MCA Nashville When Sam Hunt traveled south of the border to film the new video for Downtowns Dead, the Georgia native admits he had a bit of an ulterior motive. The destination video thing was an excuse for me to travel a little bit, he admits. "I've had the travel bug over the past couple years, so I enjoyed getting to see that part of Mexico and meet some new people. The picturesque location where the video was shot also has a pretty interesting history. We were down in Mexico, a couple hours north of Mexico City, Sam explains, in a very rural part of the country, [in] this really unique, cool little town that was sort of positioned around this old volcano. It's a beautiful country, [with] really great people and [it was] a really authentic cultural experience for us. Downtowns Dead is currently climbing in countrys top twenty. You can check out the new music video on YouTube. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. 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 Lei Jun, chairman and CEO of Xiaomi, visited East Lake High-tech Development Zone (Optics Valley of China) in Wuhan, Hubei province, on July 19. One of Chinas largest tech giants, Xiaomi floated its shares on the Hong Kong stock exchange on July 9. Wuhan municipal peoples government signed an agreement with Xiaomi on June 29, 2017, allowing the firm to set up its Wuhan headquarters in Optics Valley of China. The new headquarters opened for business on Nov 18, 2017, and it is expected to have around 1,000 staff working there by the end of this year, with around 70 percent of the workforce coming from Wuhan. Lei Jun said that Xiaomis Wuhan headquarters will eventually have 10,000 staff members, with a focus on research and development. The company is planning to set up its artificial intelligence headquarters in Optics Valley of China, according to Lei. Lei is a graduate of Wuhan University and once ran a business in Guangbutun, which was the cradle of Optics Valley. Lei Jun (L) visits Optics Valley of China in Wuhan, Hubei province, on July 19. [Photo provided to China Daily] Lei (second from left) meets with officials from Optics Valley of China, on July 19. [Photo provided to China Daily] Lei (second from left) and officials of Optics Valley of China pose for a photograph with a map of the zone on July 19. [Photo provided to China Daily] Any honest observer of the priestly sexual abuse scandal knows that the lion's share of the molestation was committed by homosexuals, not pedophiles. Now an online Washington Post article by Robert Mickens acknowledges this verity. This is virtually breaking news: the liberal media and pundits have ritualistically called this a pedophile problem. The most exhaustive study on this issue was done by researchers at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and they concluded that less than five percent of the predators were pedophiles. Indeed, 81% of the victims were male, and 78% were post-pubescent, meaning that homosexualitynot heterosexuality or pedophiliawas in play. Mickens writes about the case of Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the former Archbishop of Washington who allegedly preyed on seminarians. He begins his piece by coming clean on what has been going on all along: "It is the fact that almost all of them concern maleswhether they are adolescents, post-pubescent teens or young men." He then seeks an explanation. His first observation is undeniable: "psychologically healthy gay men do not rape boys or force themselves on other men over whom they wield some measure of power or authority." But then he falls back on the old saw about homophobia causing gay men to become predators. He blames the Church for adopting policies that "actually punish seminarians and priests who seek to deal openly, honestly and healthily with their sexual orientation." What is driving the problem, he says, is "homophobia," the result of which "keeps gay men in the closest." His logic is deeply flawed and does not square with the evidence. Everyone agrees that the heyday of traditionalism in the Catholic Church was the 1950s. Everyone also agrees that traditionalism came under severe attack in the late 1960s, peaking in the 1970s. The sexual abuse of minors was infinitesimal in the 1950s and exploded in the 1970s. In other words, when gay priests were mostly in the closet, the abuse problem was not an issue. It became one when the Church let down its guard in the 1970s, particularly in the seminaries. The timeline of the abuse, when most of the problem took place, is not in doubtthe mid-1960s to the mid-1980s. This is the period of the sexual revolution: libertine cultural currents hit every institution in society, including the Catholic Church. To put it differently, this is when "homophobia" came under attack! This is not a plea for punishing homosexual priests. It is a plea to abide by the policy adopted by Pope Benedict XVI: men with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies" should not be welcomed in the seminaries. That stricture has served the Church well since it was adopted in 2005: the decline in new cases of sexual abuse has been dramatic, and is almost non-existent in the United States today. Two months ago, Pope Francis picked up on this discussion, strongly backing the position of his predecessor. "These tendencies, when they are 'deeply rooted,' and the practice of homosexual acts, can compromise the life of the seminary beyond that of the young man himself and his eventual future priesthood." Well said. Blaming "homophobia" is a dodge. It is employed as justification for recreating the very milieu that created the problem in the first place. We should never want to return to a time when good heterosexual men left the seminaries because they were surrounded by gay men acting out with impunity. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form 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. CRJM anunta concurs de selectare a unei companii sau persoane fizice care sa presteze servicii de traducere scrisa 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. The non-apology apology is an intensely irritating feature of modern political discourse. Last week, we endured two more classics of the genre one from the Minister for small businesses, Andrew Griffiths, and another from (I regret to say) Theresa May. Actually, the 47-year-old MP for Burton and Uttoxeter is no longer a Minister: Griffiths quit after two constituents revealed some of the more than 2,000 obscene texts he sent over three weeks. To one of them, a 27-year-old barmaid called Imogen Treharne (whom Griffiths paid 700 for services rendered), he texted: Daddy has been up making speeches and running the country. But what he really wants to be doing is *******naughty girls ****** . . . .Im the Daddy with the power. Im the Daddy with the naughtiest streak. MP Andrew Griffiths quit as a Minister after two constituents revealed some of the more than 2,000 obscene texts he sent over three weeks The fact that the married Mr Griffiths had just become a father for the first time makes this a horribly compelling confection of cruelty and conceit. To be fair, Griffiths did begin his public statement with the words: I would like to personally apologise to everyone in Burton and Uttoxeter. Then came the nauseating self-exculpation: The messages were written during a period of great personal pressure and in no way represent my views or actions. This is a variant of the fashionable this is not who I am non-apology apology. Unpleasant But by definition the texts represent his actions he sent them. And our actions reveal exactly what sort of people we are, however unpleasant it might be for us to admit it. Then Griffiths went on: I am undertaking professional treatment to ensure I never make the same mistakes again. This is designed to suggest that he is actually unwell, the unfortunate sufferer of some medical condition, rather than just a rotter who has been caught out. And finally, the MP dismissed his own conduct as a few moments of stupidity. In other words, almost nothing. But, I repeat, he sent more than 2,000 texts in a period of three weeks. That is a rate of almost 100 a day. In fact, its rather surprising he felt he had left enough time to be running the country. This moment of madness excuse is also unoriginal. I believe the MP who first used it to minimise the significance of what was actually a pattern of behaviour was the Secretary of State for Wales in the first Blair administration, Ron Davies. In October 1998, Davies was discovered to have been robbed after seeking sexual encounters on Clapham Common in South London. He described this as a moment of madness. Chief Whip Julian Smith (pictured) ordered a number of Tory MPs to break their pairs, but they refused to dishonour the established parliamentary arrangements But when five years later by then a Labour member of the Welsh Assembly he was found to be involved in similar incidents (without robbery), it became clear it was not a moment of madness. Again, the word madness is designed to suggest one has no responsibility for ones actions: the law (rightly) does not attribute guilt to the genuinely insane. The most common political non-apology apology is the phrase it was an honest mistake. The word honest tells the listener that one is actually a decent person; the word mistake is designed to disguise intentional unethical behaviour as mere carelessness. Thus last week the Prime Minister dismissed as an honest mistake the actions of the government Chief Whip, Julian Smith, in ordering Conservative MPs to break their pairing arrangements in a crucial parliamentary vote. The Liberal Democrat Jo Swinson was away on maternity leave for the parliamentary vote Pairing is the time-honoured system under which parliamentarians on different sides of the House pair up so if one MP for medical or travel reasons is unable to vote, his or her pair doesnt vote either. In this case, the Liberal Democrat Jo Swinson was away on maternity leave, but the Chief Whip ordered the Conservative MP Brandon Lewis, to break his pair with her and take part in the vote (a Brexit measure which the government narrowly won). It turned out that Julian Smith had ordered a number of other Tory MPs to break their pairs, but they had refused to dishonour the established parliamentary arrangements. So when Mrs May declared that an honest mistake was made, Jo Swinson responded, understandably: Do you mean we honestly intended to screw over someone else? Brutal At least the current PM doesnt use Tony Blairs favourite and very lawyerly non-apology apology, I acted in good faith. As in his non mea culpa over the Iraq War: For any mistakes made in good faith I, of course, take full responsibility. Wouldnt it be wonderful if these MPs were instead to give frank and honest explanations? So, Theresa May would instead have said: Look, whipping votes in the House of Commons, especially in a hung parliament on matters of great importance, has always been a brutal business. And anyway, Jo Swinsons maternity leave didnt stop her attending a rally against Donald Trump. And Mark Griffiths would have said: The truth is Im a randy devil and was finding it tough to keep on the straight and narrow while my wife spent all her care and attention on our first newborn. Besides, what I did wasnt illegal, the women concerned were willing partners, and if it did mean I spent 45 minutes a day texting them well, cant a man have a little downtime from the drudgery of being minister for small businesses? True, it wouldnt have helped him keep his job. But at least it would have been honest. According to a 16-year study by researchers at two universities, wives are less adversely affected by marital arguments than their husbands: the women suffered fewer symptoms of ill-health than their spouses as a result of rows. Im not surprised. Over the years I have observed that whereas women will confront their partners for perceived or actual misdemeanours, men pretend that everything is all right (even when it isnt). But why is it that females are better able to cope with open argument in relationships? I suppose it is because they are more articulate in the language of emotions: we men know we will lose the row, so just fume silently. This bottling up is no good for us. But were not going to change. Boris's Chequers Blunder Boris Johnson, his critics insist, is constantly preoccupied with becoming Prime Minister. If thats the case, hes a talentless plotter. A mutual friend pointed out to me last week what a superb opportunity Boris missed, when Theresa May ambushed the cabinet at Chequers with her low-calorie Brexit plans. Johnson had toasted her at the end of the meeting; it was only days later that he quit as Foreign Secretary (rather pathetically releasing a picture of himself signing his letter of resignation). Boris Johnson, his critics insist, is constantly preoccupied with becoming Prime Minister. If thats the case, hes a talentless plotter Instead, his friend pointed out to me, Boris could have stood up at Chequers and walked out . . . where he would have been filmed by the camera crews covering the scene via helicopters. It would have been like O.J. Simpson fleeing the LA police Boriss friend wailed: only in a good cause. The point is that Chequers has a mile-long drive. Before the meeting, allies of the Prime Minister childishly warned any Cabinet ministers considering resignation that it would be a long walk: but Boris could have turned this magnificently to his advantage. By the time he had strode all the way to the main road, he would have had a watching nation agog at what he was about to say (and Im sure it would have been better than O.J. Simpsons not guilty). Anyway, he missed his chance. Boris, whatever his critics say, is not ruthless. But the devoted churchgoer Theresa May as that Chequers ambush shows definitely is. Which is one reason shes Prime Minister and Boris isnt. The princess and her 32-year-old fiance Jack Brooksbank will marry on October 12 in St Georges Chapel, Windsor Eugenie who? Shes doing what? How many tickets? Are you having a laugh? A flock of eyebrows were raised when Princess Eugenies grandiose wedding plans were announced last week. Despite being ninth in line to the throne and about as constitutionally important as one of the Queens corgis, the 28-year old princess clearly has her heart set on a full-throttle, trumpet- tootling extravaganza, complete with all the royal trimmings. Instead of shuffling off to tie the knot discreetly in parts unknown as perhaps befits her relatively lowly royal status the princess and her 32-year-old fiance Jack Brooksbank will marry on October 12 in St Georges Chapel, Windsor. And it is not just the location that has embarrassing echoes of the recent nuptials of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Just like Harry and Meghan, Eugenie and Jack will also have a carriage ride through Windsor after the ceremony. And just like Harry and Meghan, they have invited members of the public and representatives of their favourite charities inside the grounds of Windsor Castle to goggle appreciatively at all the royal swells. These lucky golden ticket holders will have the best views of the bride and groom and all their celebrity pals, whether they like it or not. This announcement was made by Buckingham Palace, who decreed that the couple were delighted to announce an opportunity for 1,200 people from across the UK to share the experience of their special day. That number will include members of the Windsor community, residents of the castle and some royal household staff, along with children from the local schools. On her Instagram account, the princess herself wrote that: Jack and I are excited to be able to invite people to watch our wedding inside the Precinct of Windsor Castle. Very magnanimous of her, Im sure. However, it does beg the question who the hell does Princess Eugenie think she is? Shes not exactly a huge star within the Royal Family firmament, and over the years she has done absolutely nothing to distinguish herself or to encourage public affection. Indeed, she is most famous for her ridiculous fashion faux pas, including an irrational fondness for wearing teapot-shaped skirts, a trait that is hardly likely to get them out cheering on the streets of Berkshire. Her husband-to-be seems a lovely bloke, but is unknown to the great unwashed. Brooksbank is a former bar manager, whose great-grandfather was an equerry to Queen Mary. He may be a commoner and he will not take a title after the wedding but his distinguished family have pots of money. He now works as a tequila brand ambassador for George Clooneys Casamigos company, the kind of glamorous, untaxing job that only posh boys can land. Just like Harry and Meghan, Eugenie and Jack will also have a carriage ride through Windsor after the ceremony Meanwhile, like her big sister Princess Beatrice, Eugenie is considered by Buckingham Palace to be a private individual; her name does not appear in the court circular and she gets no income from the Privy Purse. In this vein, her parents the Duke and Duchess of York have always scrupulously maintained the conceit that their daughters are just another pair of typically modern, independent women, making their own way in the world with no special privileges attached. Of course, no one outside the Yorks inner circle has ever been fooled by that. If the girls really want to be ordinary, why dont they follow the example of the Queens adored niece, Lady Sarah Chatto? For years she has quietly just got on with her own life, living in her own house and doing her own job, without any palace-decreed fanfare. In comparison, Eugenies upcoming wedding plans strip away that were-so-normal facade even further, revealing a hunger for glitz and royal glamour that is every bit as monstrous as Mother Fergies. The wedding even has some elements that make it seem like a state occasion, a turn of events which certainly feeds into the senior Yorks endless delusions of grandeur. Princess Eugenie is not even the second royal after Harry to have a big wedding like this at St Georges. The Earl and Countess of Wessex did it first, back in 1999. However, Prince Edward was fifth in line to the throne at the time, and there was still a huge amount of interest in him. Brooksbank (left) is a former bar manager, whose great-grandfather was an equerry to Queen Mary Prince Harry was fifth in line when he announced his engagement to Meghan Markle, and sixth in line when he married her in May. Yet she was a famous American television actress who had sparked much fascination, some of it fuelled by her ongoing dysfunctional family dramas. And he, well, he is our beloved Harry; the wounded little boy who lost his mother, the handsome soldier prince who turned into the most relatable royal of them all. There was huge, global enchantment with that wedding, certainly enough to validate the pomp and the enormous taxpayer-funded security operation that went with it. As lovely as Eugenie and Jack seem, is there really any justification for the opulence of these nuptials, as Princess Nobody takes Joe Soap to be her lawful wedded hubs? Eugenie is considered by Buckingham Palace to be a private individual; her name does not appear in the court circular and she gets no income from the Privy Purse Let us be frank. For her first 28 years on this planet, Her Royal Highness Princess Eugenie of York has done almost nothing of note. Nothing to startle the horses, admittedly but nothing to impress the horses either. A little light charity work here. A vague position in the art world there. Anybody need their coloured pencils sharpened? Shes your girl. She has a 2.1 degree from Newcastle University, she has a good job at an art gallery and she has never unlike her mother caused the Royals any embarrassment. Like her sister Princess Beatrice, she is swift to make a glamorous appearance at any fancy party and no one could quibble about her rigorous attendance at royal events, sometimes wearing a silly hat to cheer us all up. She has a 2.1 degree from Newcastle University (pictured at graduation), she has a good job at an art gallery and she has never unlike her mother caused the Royals any embarrassment Like a neatly groomed, determined seagull, Eugenie has spent nearly three decades drifting along in the richly foaming wake of the Queen, picking off what she can from the royal catch. Who could blame her, for what else is a high-born gal like her to do? With her winning dimpled smile, her impeccable manners and her pampered arms spread wide, she has embraced the spoils of her birthright with enthusiasm. Yet the rest of the world has watched her development with rather less fascination, even if she is terribly excited about her wedding and has been planning feverishly since the beginning of the year. It would be churlish not to be truly happy for Princess Eugenie, especially as she and Mr Brooksbank seem genuinely besotted with each other. They have been together for seven years after meeting in the ski resort of Verbier and in that time he impressed his future in-laws by vowing not to propose until he had established his career and could provide for their daughter. Tickets will go out to the public for free - so the wedding is likely to be well attended At the moment, this does not exactly extend to providing a home. The couple have moved into a Crown Estate property (Ivy Cottage) at Kensington Palace in London, with all the lovely perks that ensues. Yes, they are paying a commercial rent on the cottage, but one suspects it will be a fraction of the true market rate. A similar property in the area would cost around 7,000 a week 364,000 a year and that is a lot of tequila, amigos. In the meantime, the couple have reportedly become quite close with next-door neighbours, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. According to Andrew Mortons biography, Meghan: A Hollywood Princess, Eugenie and Meghan have bonded over a shared love of art, dogs and late-night macaroni suppers. No doubt the Sussexes will be guests of honour at the October wedding. And, no doubt, the public tickets will be over-subscribed because, lets face it, they are free. And there are enough royal fans and random tourists out there to take advantage of the offer. One wishes the couple well, but wonders about the pressure this pumped- up event will put on Thames Valley Police, who have already had to bear the huge cost of policing Prince Harrys wedding earlier this year. Extra officers from London and other districts will be drafted in to cope. The local council, however, will probably be quite happy about the possible boost to tourism. But wont an awful lot of people, even while once more being dazzled by the pomp and pageantry in Windsor town, be asking themselves this once more Eugenie who? Dressing to impress isn't something men worry about - but wearing a poor choice of outfit can instantly change someone's impression of you. Melbourne personal stylist Cheyenne Scott explained how men often fall into the habit of wearing the same clothes back-to-back despite having a full wardrobe. Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, the 25-year-old revealed the common fashion mistakes men make - and the five staple items that can turn their wardrobes around. Stylist Cheyenne Scott (pictured) revealed the common fashion mistakes men are making Before and after: Cheyenne - who specialises in revamping men's wardrobes (picture of one of her client's closet) - explained how men often fall into the habit of wearing the same clothes Five must-have staples every men should own White linen long sleeve shirt Denim jacket or black bomber Good fitting pair of black jeans Pair of dress pant chinos Basic cotton tees in black, white and grey Advertisement 'I think the most common mistakes men make are falling into the habit of having a full wardrobe but continuing to wear the same three or four things,' she said. 'Also not understanding the difference in materials, and the importance of natural fibres and how they wear on your body. 'I find that a lot of men are quite easily able to dress for "dressy" occasions, as this usually involves a nice suit that's probably been originally sold as a set. 'But they find "casual" and "neat casual" more challenging and tend to actually blur the lines between the two. 'I have also found a lot of men don't actually wear their correct size and often wear a size larger than what they require.' For a wardrobe overhaul, Cheyenne - who specialises in revamping men's closets - suggested decluttering the space by getting rid of clothes you no longer wear. 'I don't necessarily think men should be avoiding any pieces as such, but I do think they should avoid hoarding pieces,' she explained. 'I know as women we can be bad with this area, but I've also seen a number of men holding onto a bit of white noise in their wardrobe. 'This simply creates the choosing of an outfit in the morning an even more challenging task. So even if you aren't reconstructing your wardrobe, a bit of spring cleaning here and there is essential.' Dressing to impress isn't something men worry about - but wearing a poor choice of outfit can instantly change someone's impression of you (stock image) The 25-year-old stylist said another mistake men often make is wearing a size larger than them Cheyenne said there are five must-have staples every men should own in his closet And when it comes to style, Cheyenne said there are five must-have staples every man should own in his closet. 'Personally, I think the top five items all men should have in their wardrobe is, a good white linen long sleeve shirt,' she explained. 'I consider linen to be everyone's best friend, it is breathable and easily converted from summer to winter. 'A "casual" jacket, whether that be a blue denim, or a black bomber. A good fitting pair of black jeans. 'A pair of dress pant chinos - these also come in the style of shorts for the warmer months. These are a great alternative when jeans are too casual, and suit pants are too dressy. And a few basic cotton tees in black, white and grey. 'Everyone needs a solid representation of some basics in their wardrobe.' To follow Cheyenne Scott, please visit her at cheyennerosescott. The original influencer, breaker-of-the-internet and undisputed queen of Instagram, few in fashion are as ground breaking as Kim Kardashian West. From Balmain and Fendi to her uniform of Yeezy, Kim's style is ever-evolving and diverse - but sadly for the rest of us, her sartorial taste doesn't come cheap. Australian fashion label Showpo recently took the time to recreate five of her most popular looks - at very budget-friendly prices. FEMAIL took a look at the replicas which are, surprisingly, almost identical to the originals. Scroll down for video Break the internet: From Balmain and Fendi to Versace and her uniform of Yeezy, Kim's style is ever-evolving and diverse (pictured wearing Versace at the MTV Movie Awards in Santa Monica, June 2018) YEEZY MAFIA Kim stepped out in head to toe Yeezy in November 2017 to promote husband Kanye West's fashion line on the Jimmy Kimmel Show. The makeup mogul has been acting as Yeezy's de facto cover girl in recent months, with Kanye shunning traditional runway opportunities at New York Fashion Week in favour of showcasing his designs on his bodacious wife. And with Kim arguably the world's most famous woman, it's proving to be a winning collaboration. Straight from Season 6, the bralet and ankle length skirt retail at $270 and $590 respectively from Yeezy's exclusive website. Mrs West also wore unreleased custom heels from the family brand. But Showpo has managed to recreate this chic outfit for a total of just $90. They did so using a matching black crop top and body con skirt. Keeping it in the family: Kim is known for promoting her husband Kanye West's fashion line Yeezy Showpo recreated the look using a simple body con skirt and black strappy crop top which totalled less than $100 NOW YOU SEE ME NOW YOU DON'T Kim poked fun at herself when the flash from paparazzi shots turned her leggings see through in this statement look from New York Fashion Week in September 2017. In a get-up that left little to the imagination, Kim showed off her toned abs and derriere in black leather bandeau top, matching thong and high-waisted sheer black leggings. To cover up (a bit) Kim added added a fitted black leather jacket. Showpo paid homage to the Fashion Week creation with a black bikini top for $49.95, 'Hierarchy' pants $79.95 and a blazer for $59.95. Kim poked fun at herself when the flash from paparazzi shots turned her leggings see through at New York Fashion Week 2017 Showpo paid homage to the Fashion Week creation with a black bikini top for $49.95, 'Hierarchy' pants $79.95 and a blazer for $59.95 Underwear as outerwear Kim headed for dinner at New York City's Estiatorio Milos in this striking ensemble last July. Famous for her love of the underwear as outerwear trend and sheer fabrics, Mrs West's look consisted of midnight blue pants by Lisa Marie Fernandez and a delicate tulle bra, a rare vintage piece from current darling of the fashion world Gucci. Kim also wore her signature Yeezy Season 4 clear strap mules and carried a vintage nylon Prada briefcase. Echoing the CEO of KKW Beauty, Showpo mocked up this look by styling a $54.95 black body con skirt with a $49.95 bra. The brand finished the outfit with their 'Just the Same' coat which retails at $109.95. Kim's bra was a rare vintage piece from current darling of the fashion world Gucci While Showpo's take on this NYC summer nights look may not be as rare as vintage Gucci, the label put in a stellar attempt using a $49.95 bralet CASUAL IN CAMO The Kardashian beauty wore this outfit on a sisters' trip to Japan in June, 2017. She wears a John Lewis tank top which costs $34, vintage camouflage combats from Iro Paris and accessorised with a Kelly Mini Bag from high-end French designer Hermes. The rare Kelly Bag retails at an eye watering $27,000. Showpo mimicked the outfit with a basic white bodysuit ($39.95) and a pair of their 'Bangin Pants' in green camo ($69.95). The Kardashian beauty wore this outfit on a sisters' trip to Japan in June, 2017 Blink and you'd miss it: Showpo's version is practically identical ALL WHITE EVERYTHING Out in Manhattan in September 2016, Kim looked flawless wearing a distressed denim bomber by Ben Taverniti, a white bodysuit by Naked Wardrobe and pants turned into Bermudas by sister Khloe's brand Good American. KKW finished the ensemble with a pair of her favourite lucite heels by Yeezy. Showpo styled the look by pairing a $69.95 cream cardigan with a staple white bodysuit for $34.95. The Kardashian decade: KKW's influence has transcended every facet of fashion The Australian label mixed things up a little by styling the outfit with ripped jeans instead of Kim's favourite Bermudas VERSACE VERSACE VERSACE Kim came out top of the best dressed lists when she poured her curves into this show stopping Versace treasure for the 2018 'Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination' MET Gala in New York City. The dress was inspired by the labels Fall/Winter 1997 collection. While the original dress would wipe out the ordinary shoppers pension plan, Showpo have brilliantly recreated the look with their 'High School Sweetheart' rose gold maxi-dress which costs just $99.95. Now there's officially no arguing that Timothee Chalamet, the 22-year-old star of the Oscar-winning movie Call Me by Your Name, is a work of art thanks to an Instagram account that's Photoshopping the actor into historical paintings. The Instagram account, @chalametinart, which features Timothee in a variety of classic artwork from Grant Wood's American Gothic to Edward Hopper's Nighthawks, has only been going since the start of July but it has already garnered more than 40,000 followers. But although it has only been active for a short period, Anna, the 23-year-old Polish student (who preferred to remain anonymous) behind the account told Mashable that she got the idea after watching Call Me by Your Name, which came out late last year. Beautiful: The Instagram account, @chalametinart , which features Timothee in a variety of classic artwork such as Caravaggios Boy with a Basket of Fruit (pictured) Artistic: The account was created in July by 23-year-old Polish student, Anna (Bartolome Esteban Murillo's A Young Man with a Basket of Fruit - Personification of 'Summer' Inspired: Anna said she was inspired to create the account after she saw Call Me by Your Name, which came out late last year (Grant Wood's American Gothic) 'I was absolutely stunned by its beauty,' she said. 'The scenery, the music, the acting - all of it seemed to almost live and breathe art.' 'Each shot of the movie, presented from just one perspective (due to the use of a single lens) truly resembled a carefully thought out painting.' She added that to her, every scene from the movie reminded her of a classical painting - especially Caravaggios Boy with a Basket of Fruit. 'To me, each and every scene of the movie resembles a classical painting,' she told High Snobiety. 'I couldnt help but notice the similarities between Elio Perlman (Timothee's character) and the boy from Caravaggios Boy with a Basket of Fruit.' 'The movie's sensual way of telling a love story tied extremely well with the theme of the painting: the nature of desire, lost youth - symbolized by the dried leaves in the painting - and self-hood,' she added. Stunning: Anna said the scenery, music and acting 'all seemed to breathe art' (Edward Hopper's Nighthawks) Imitation: Anna said that to her, every scene from the movie reminded her of a classical painting (Gustav Klimt's The Kiss) Beginning: When Anna first started the account, the first image edits were made in less than 10 minutes (Edvard Munch's The Scream) 'The curly hair and the theme of peaches present in both seem to only confirm my theory of the two being magically linked to each other.' When Anna first started the account, the first image edits were made in less than 10 minutes but it wasn't until she decided to put in more effort that the account took off. 'I decided to give them some more effort and then the account really blew up,' she told Mashable. 'It was really unexpected but incredibly rewarding.' 'Now the process of editing takes me from about one to three hours, as I run the picture through various different programs to give them more of an authentic look.' And fans have taken notice with some sharing in the comments their love for the account, which is also labeled badly photoshopped timmy. 'You are my new favorite account,' one person wrote while another person said: 'Wow this is so good.' Attention: It wasn't until she took more time on the edits that people began to take notice (Renoir's Luncheon of the Boating Party) Appreciative: Although she's a bit overwhelmed by all the attention, Anna said she's also incredibly grateful for the support (Gustave Courbet's The Desperate Man) Fans: In March, the account Call Me By Monet, which recreates scenes from the movie in the style of the impressionist French painter was created Scenes: The images include Elio's brief fling with Marzia as well as Elio and Oliver's romance And although she's a bit overwhelmed by all the attention, Anna said she's also incredibly grateful for the support she's been getting and plans to continue her work on the account. 'It's truly an extraordinary experience and I'm beyond excited that the account was able to unite the fans of Timothee in this exceptional way,' she said. And while Timothee doesn't follow the account, here's hoping that it's also able to unite her with the actor himself. This isn't the first time an Instagram account has dedicated itself to Timothee or Call Me by Your Name because in March the account Call Me By Monet, which recreates scenes from the movie in the style of impressionist French painter, Claude Monet, was created by 22-year-old Filipino artist Mika Labrague. The images, which depict key scenes from the film set against the backdrop of famous Monet paintings, include Elio's brief fling with Marzia as well as Elio and Oliver's romance. Alexia Inge, 41, is the co-founder and co-CEO of website Cult Beauty. She lives in North London with her husband, Pravin, an architect. Growing up in a village in Somerset, I was a frustrated beauty consumer; we had only a Boots nearby. Occasionally wed go to Bristol, but I felt let down by department stores it didnt feel like you could play with the products as the sales assistants there were working on commission. Cult Beauty founder Alexia Inge, 41 (pictured) reveals the inspiration behind her beauty website I modelled after university, but in 2001, I broke my back and sternum in a car crash. I was in a cast for four months and it was years before my back got better. I couldnt model again, so worked on shoots, ending up in fashion and beauty PR. I saw there was a disconnect between what was recommended to the public, and what was actually being used behind the scenes. This struck me as disingenuous. Then I met Jess DeLuca, a consultant for investment banks. We agreed that many of the products wed been convinced to buy were simply taking up space in our drawers. We totted up how much wed spent on products we hadnt used in three months: I counted about 900 worth that hadnt lived up to their claims. It felt like the beauty industry was not considering customers needs. Jess and I decided to set up an online beauty store which cherry-picked the best products. It was only our second time meeting! I received 45,000 compensation from the car crash, and used it to set up Cult Beauty, which we launched in June 2008. It was the height of the credit crunch, so not a good time to be starting a business. Some brands said we had to have bricks-and-mortar stores before they would even talk to us. But we didnt give up. The brands probably thought: For goodness sake, well give you some stock if you just go away! The first product we bought was a perfume by Escentric Molecules. Jesss neighbour was managing a store and Naomi Campbell walked in smelling glorious. She said she was wearing Molecule 01. Its been a top-seller ever since. I call the internet the rediscovery of the village network if you live in a village and the butcher sells you bad meat, you tell everyone to buy from someone else. The internet works in a similar way. I want Cult Beauty to be the worlds most trusted beauty website. cultbeauty.co.uk A 25-year-old woman who 'fell from the sky' and was left paralysed after a freak skydiving accident announced she will be returning to the site it happened - and the thought terrifies her. Queensland native Emma Carey has been talking about her accident on social media and spreading positivity for the last five years - but has finally mustered up the courage to return to Switzerland. 'I haven't been back since so I have no idea how it's going to make me feel. Maybe a lot, maybe nothing. I have no idea,' she explained in a revealing Instagram post. Scroll down for video Queensland native Emma Carey has been talking about her accident on social media and spreading positivity for the last five years 'I only booked this ticket last week and I don't exactly know what I'm going to do once I get there. 'The thought of going back to Europe makes me feel sick. It's like everything in my body is screaming at me to not go back there, to the place where it got so hurt. 'But everything else is me is begging me to go, to create new memories, to stop thinking about it so much and to finally enjoy a European summer for what it should have always been... fun.' Emma was told she would spend the rest of her life confined to a wheelchair following the horrific incident in 2013 which forced her to re-learn how to walk. Emma was told she would spend the rest of her life confined to a wheelchair following the horrific incident in 2013 which forced her to re-learn how to walk She admitted that the accident cost her many things, including her work, relationship and elements of her family, and she's afraid things will change again 'It's not that I'm worried about something going wrong over there again, it's more the thought of coming home which scares me,' she said. 'Last time I left I came home to an entirely different world. Not only was my body forever changed but every other aspect of my life was as well.' She admitted that the accident cost her many things, including her work, relationship and elements of her family, and she's afraid things will change again. 'I think what scares me now is I am SO in love with the new life I've created here. My job, my friends, my home, my body I've worked so hard to heal, my happiness... it feels like there's a lot to lose. 'This might explain why I almost miss every flight I catch... I think subconsciously a part of me actually WANTS to miss it. I love travelling but it's definitely not something which comes easy to me anymore.' Emma Carey (pictured) has explained the story behind her seemingly ordinary mirror selfie. The young woman has been living with a spinal cord injury where she suffers from bladder incontinence The young woman was told she would spend the rest of her life confined to a wheelchair following the horrific Switzerland incident in 2013 One of the other side effects of her accident was suffering from bladder incontinence; a result of her spinal cord injury. Previously, Emma shared a seemingly ordinary mirror selfie - but on closer inspection, her denim shorts are covered in urine. 'This is what I look like every. single. day. Multiple times a day,' she said. 'I think because I can walk, people tend to think I have completely recovered from my spinal cord injury but the truth is I still have many lasting effects, one of them being that I am completely incontinent with both my bladder and bowels.' At first, Emma said she would hide out at her home so her friends and family would never find out about her problem out of fear of judgement. 'I was so embarrassed by this and tried to keep it a secret. I didn't leave the house because I was so worried that people would find out,' she explained. 'I wouldn't tell anyone why I had to be near a toilet at all times. I wouldn't let anyone see my catheters or pads. 'I would run away and hide every time I had an accident. It was exhausting trying to keep it a secret, so instead I just didn't let anyone close to me.' The photograph taken just moments before Emma landed on her stomach with her instructor on top of her. She was left with a broken spike, shattered pelvis and spinal cord crushed Emma was told she would be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of her life. But against all odds, she found the strength to walk again just one year after the horrific skydiving accident But despite her insecurities, Emma said she soon realised she needed to accept the new part of her life whether she liked it or not. 'It wasn't long until I realised that if I was going to get upset and angry every time I peed myself, it would mean that I would be upset and angry every single day of my life,' she said. 'For the rest of my life. And that's when it hit me.. I survived a bloody skydiving accident. I don't know how or why but I know that it certainly wasn't to live a depressing life. I owed myself way more than that.' Now five years on, Emma said she has since learned to embrace her condition where her 'bladder can only hold 100mLs before it leaks'. 'I don't think I have a single friend that hasn't seen me pee,' she admitted. 'I tell people about my incontinence generally within 10 minutes of meeting them. And now I'm posting a picture of my pee covered pants to over 100,000 people without a second thought. Emma has been documenting her carefree lifestyle on social media - and she has since accepted the new part of her life Five years ago, Emma's parachute and emergency chute became tangled during a dive and choked her instructor, who became unconscious Despite suffering severe injuries, Emma learned to walk again as she made a remarkable recovery 'The point of this isn't for sympathy or for praise, it's to show you that it is completely and entirely possible to not give a single sh** about the things that people expect you to care about. 'Just because we have grown up to believe that certain things are taboo or shouldn't be spoken about, doesn't mean that they are. 'Just because people think you should feel embarrassed about something, doesn't mean you need to. Just because people might judge you on a certain thing, doesn't mean you need to care. How you feel about certain situations is entirely up to you. 'If you own your life and all your 'flaws', they will never be able to own you. It's the most freeing thing in the world.' Five years ago, Emma's parachute and emergency chute became tangled during a dive and choked her instructor, who became unconscious. The subsequent free fall saw her land on her stomach with her instructor on top of her. She was left with a broken spine, shattered pelvis and spinal cord crushed. Eventually, she began physical therapy at a Sydney hospital, which was when she slowly and steadily learned to walk again. Advertisement Thousands of excited partygoers flocked to North Byron Parklands this weekend to witness Kendrick Lamar, Lorde and Vampire Weekend perform at Splendour in the Grass. And amongst the many musical lovers stood a string of very fashionable faces in barely-there ensembles, stomping the grass areas in their cool-again platform boots and military style cargo pants. They are Australia's social media influencers. Scroll down for video Amongst the many musical lovers stood a string of very fashionable faces in barely-there ensembles, stomping the grass areas in their cool-again platform boots and military style cargo pants (Beginning Boutique squad of Shani Grimmond (back) and Elisha and Renee Herbert pictured) Australia's social media influencers matched their cropped outfits with a selection of bumbags and platform boots Ladies representing Princess Polly's label (left) and Spell and the Gypsy Collective (right is Cartia Mallan, Annalise Mclachlan and Anita Ghise) captured these mesmerising photos at the festival While their names don't ring a bell in the same way Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's do, many of the Instagram elite were sponsored by brands to attend the event wearing the chosen label's head-to-toe - even posing for photos at pre-parties together. The company's are no doubt hoping the millions of followers they have online will translate to sales in store and online, when they see their favourite 'influencer's' festival look. Beginning Boutique had the Herbert twins and Hembrow sisters Tammy and Emilee kitted out in crop tops, faux leather bumbags, and silver chainware for the event, posting a mini video each day of the ladies dancing up a storm together. Make up YouTuber Shani Grimmond was also in attendance in full camouflage gear, her long blonde hair styled into two pigtail plaits on either side of her head. The MaxConnectors team (Holly Phillips pictured left) looked effortlessly chic in their styled outfits, opting for practicality and comfort this year While the weather looked fine and sunny throughout the weekend, you'd be mistaken for thinking it wasn't winter Down Under, with some of the influencers wearing chaps and bikini tops on the field (Renee Herbert pictured left) Slips and cowboy boots aplenty for the Spell girls who attended - as well as a hat or two (Annalise Mclachlan pictured right) Bright colours and sequins were on high alert at the festival - but they weren't always practical to dance in Clothing brand Princess Polly followed suit with a double decker bus transporting influencers to and from the venue safely Beginning Boutique went one step further and provided all of their guests with a personalised bottle of Moet champagne from The Bottle Project Sydney to get the party started, as well as Acai bowls for breakfast and ice cream for an after lunch treat. Clothing brand Princess Polly followed suit with a double decker bus transporting influencers to and from the venue safely, with Sydney-based star Sammy Robinson even thanking the brand for supplying her clothes because she hadn't packed any herself. Turns out she'd only just returned from a family vacation to Greece when the media opportunity presented itself. Sisters doing it for themselves! The Hembrow sisters (Emilee and Tammy pictured left) and the Bullen duo (Lauren and Ellie pictured right) wore matching ensembles to the festival Loreal brought their colorista haircare range to the parklands and styled models hair in various shades of bubblegum pink and blue (L-R: Indy Clinton, Avril Rae, Bella Clinton and Elle Morris all wearing Showpo) Ladies in black and white! Indy Clinton and her sister Bella, Elle Morris and Avril Rae all opted to have the colour treatment - as well as Sydney socialite Jade Tunchy (left) (Herbert sisters pictured right) Pregnant Skye Wheatley kept cosy in a faux fur jacket and celestial-themed pants (pictured) The perks! Acar bowls and personalised bottles of Moet from The Bottle Project Sydney were free flowing at the pre-parties Spell and the Gypsy collective, an iconic Byron-based label, where out in full force with the founders of the company curating 90s style scrunchies out of a tent at the event. Their steady stream of influencers wore bohemian dresses and thigh-high cowboy boots to keep their lithe limbs from getting muddy. Loreal brought their colorista haircare range to the parklands and dyed models hair in various shades of bubblegum pink and blue. Spell and the Gypsy collective, an iconic Byron-based label, where out in full force with the founders of the company curating 90s style scrunchies out of a tent at the event (Annalise Mclachlan pictured) Their steady stream of influencers wore bohemian dresses and thigh-high cowboy boots to keep their lithe limbs from getting muddy Some of the influencers were trying to disappear completely... including make up influencer Shani Grimmond (left) Keeping it innocent and flirty was actress Isabelle Lucas in Spell (left) and Sammy Robinson in Princess Polly (right) Indy Clinton and her sister Bella, Elle Morris and Avril Rae all opted to have the colour treatment - as well as Sydney socialite Jade Tunchy. While the weather looked fine and sunny throughout the weekend, you'd be mistaken for thinking it wasn't winter Down Under, with some of the influencers wearing cheeky chaps and bikini tops on the field. The festival is held annually in Byron and has previously been washed out by heavy rain - leaving revellers forced to don gumboots and avoid puddles while hearing their favourite bands perform. The festival is held annually in Byron and has previously been washed out by heavy rain - leaving revellers forced to don gumboots and avoid puddles while hearing their favourite bands perform (Cartia Mallan pictured) Vegan treats were on hand for Spell and Beginning Boutique's pre-party events (pictured) A cash-strapped master's student has revealed how resorting to bin diving has allowed her to eat virtually for free for weeks at a time. Sophie Bridgman, 27, from Bangor in North Wales, began taking food from supermarket bins when she returned to university in September 2017, to study for a master's degree in Manchester. Sophie, who explained that she can't abide waste, said her after-hours foraging sessions saw her bag everything from meat, fruit and veg to smoothies and, on one occasion, a freezer's worth of ice cream. While the food she finds in wheelie bins has been discarded by supermarkets, Sophie said it's still fit for consumption, and claims she's often found items that have been thrown away well in advance of their sell by date. Sophie and her housemates' efforts proved so successful they formed an entire network of bin diving students who share details of their finds in a Whatsapp group - meaning nothing goes to waste. The 27-year-old, who recommends bringing a head-torch and transport and says it's important to 'leave everything as you found it' when searching wheelie bins, said: 'I've been able to live off bin food almost entirely at some points.' Sophie Bridgman, 27, (seen on the left with a friend) began bin diving for foods discarded by supermarkets whilst studying for her master's degree Sophie said she and her housemates are often able to get enough food to last a week for free Sophie revealed she's now apart of a WhatsApp group of people who share the food around that they collect Sophie said of her first forays into bin diving: 'I was a student again and despite working a part-time job, I didn't have much money. 'I started going with my housemates and it just grew and grew. We realised we could get a lot of food that would be enough for us all week. 'I've met so many people bin-diving and we now have a WhatsApp group to share food around everyone, to make sure that if one of us picks up lots of stuff, none of it goes to waste,' she added. 'We spread the word and more and more people started coming with us, with us all sharing the food between us. 'I find it really difficult to leave food and have it go to waste. 'I've been able to live almost entirely off bin food at some points. Sometimes I've added some more veg or extra bits, if there hasn't been enough in the bins that week, but usually there's been plenty. Sophie and her friends have been able to take foods such as ice-cream, vegetables and meat Sophie claims some of the food they've managed to take from supermarkets still have one months shelf life at their time of disposal Sophie (pictured) has also shared her food findings with people at her university and zero-waste cafes 'We get such a random selection of stuff. Quite often it's a load of one thing. 'Sometimes it's lots of smoothies and one time there was just a bin full of onions. We found loads of meat one night that had another month of shelf life. 'Once, after a bank holiday, we found two wheelie bins full of ice cream, but we could only take about third of it, as we didn't have enough freezer space for it. 'I was like Mr Whippy, taking free ice cream to all my friends' houses,' Sophie joked. 'We try to take everything that's there and redistribute it. As well as the WhatsApp group, I have taken things to university and just left it on the side for people to take. 'We've also given some to a zero-waste cafe.' Sophie (pictured) recommends never attempting to bin dive while the shop is still open Sophie suggests planning ahead of trips to the bins with a head torch and transport Sophie suggests meeting like-minded people at cafes that use wasted food and on social media Sophie said she has no plans to stop bin diving even though she has almost finished her master's, and said she would recommend the hobby to others. 'It is a really great thing to do and I would recommend it - as long as you plan it properly,' she said. WHAT HAS SOPHIE FOUND WHILE BIN DIVING? Fruit Vegetables - including an entire bin full of onions Meat discarded in advance of its sell-by-date Actimel yoghurts Weetabix On the Go breakfast drinks Cookies Brownies Granola Ben & Jerry's ice cream Alpro dairy-free ice cream Petits Filous yoghurts Advertisement 'My tips would be to wait until late in the day and never to go when the supermarket is open. 'It's worth sussing it out first. Find out what time the supermarket shuts and what time staff leave. I went in and spoke to one of the staff in a subtle way just to figure that out. 'Don't make yourself look too obvious, take a head torch and have transport if you can, so you can carry everything. 'It's really important to be respectful. Try and leave everything as you found it. If a door was closed, close it again afterwards and don't leave rubbish all over the place. 'If you can connect with other people who want to bin-dive, too, it can be really helpful. 'Look on social media for people, or ask friends if they want to try doing it. 'You can go to cafes that use waste food, where you might come across other people doing this sort of thing. 'It means you can share food around as well, to make sure nothing goes to waste.' Produce discarded by supermarkets in bins is still regarded as store property, and people have been charged for taking food waste in the past. Trespassing on private property in order to access supermarket bins could also see bin divers fall foul of the law. Royal fans have been pointing out Prince George's growing resemblance to his late grandmother following the release of a sweet new portrait to mark his fifth birthday at the weekend. Taken by photographer Matt Porteous, the snap of George pulling a cheeky grin for the camera was captured outside Clarence House on the day of his little brother Prince Louis' christening. An Instagram fan account dedicated to Diana has since shared the new photo of George, who turned five on Sunday, alongside one of the late Princess, and followers were quick to spot the likenesses between the pair. 'The same loving smile,' one charmed follower wrote in reply to the post. Scroll down for video Royal fans have been pointing out the resemblance between Prince George and his late grandmother, seen visiting an Aids charity in 1996 in the photo shared alongside The post was shared by the Love Princess Diana account, which has more than 64,000 followers, and shows beaming George side by side with an image of Diana visiting an Aids charity in 1996 when she was 35 - just a year before her death. The caption reads: 'Happy 5th Birthday to little Prince! Grandmother would be proud of you!' The post quickly racked up thousands of likes, along with gushing replies from royal fans including one who wrote: 'I think it's just the same lips and same smile as Diana'. Another added: 'Aw same loving smile,' while one agreed, writing: 'Same smile as his beautiful late grandma.' 'This is just spot on!!! Perfect side by side picture of the two! Wow!', another added. Fans have taken to Instagram to point out similarities between Prince George and his late grandmother Princess Diana's smile, after a side-by-side shot was shared online Shared to fan account ' Love Princess Diana ', the snap shows George beaming alongside a picture of Diana visiting an Aids charity in 1996, aged just 35- a year before her tragic death And others commented on how proud Diana would have been of her family. 'Princess Diana would have been soooo proud of her grandchildren and loved them immensely,' another wrote. 'Diana would be so happy with George, Charlotte and Louis ,' one follower added. 'You would be the apple of your grandmother's eye had she still been alive. Just know that you have a very special angel watching over and your family every minute of every day,' another fan declared. Family affair: George's birthday portrait was taken at Clarence House earlier this month, following the christening of his little brother Prince Louis (pictured with sister Princess Charlotte and their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at St. James's Palace) George leaves St James's Palace with his family following the christening ceremony. Fans have compared the third-in-line to the throne to Princess Diana after his birthday portrait was released Birthday boy: The past 12 months have been an exciting period for George, from completing his first school year to his little brother's christening (pictured) Prince George pictured in Germany last year, just before his fourth birthday. Royal fans have compared the youngster to his grandmother, Princess Diana Diana had always highlighted the importance of family, once describing it as 'the most important thing in the world. And last summer Princes William and Harry shared a touching tribute to their mother to mark the 20th anniversary of her death. In a rare interview, Harry said: She was the best mum in the world. She smothered us with love, thats for sure. I miss having that mother to give you those hugs and that compassion that everybody needs. William added: She was extremely good at showing her love, showing what we meant to her, what feelings meant and how important it was to feel. Even after 20 years, I still feel that love... that warmth which is a huge testament to her. The youngster at an RAF show in Gloucestershire in 2016. He recently became a big brother for the second time after the arrival of Prince Louis in April One fan quickly replied: 'Happy birthday! I think it's just the same lips and same smile as Diana'. Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge was born at the private maternity unit of St Marys Hospital, Paddington, the Lindo Wing, at 4.24pm on July 22, 2013, weighing 8lbs 6oz. The past 12 months have been an exciting period for George, from completing his first school year to once again joining his great grandmother the Queen on Buckingham Palace's balcony to mark her official birthday. The youngster has just completed his first year at school, attending Thomas's Battersea in south London. He even played a sheep in his school's Christmas nativity play, and loves helicopters, flying and is obsessed with all things police-related. George was last seen at the christening of his baby brother Louis at the Chapel Royal at St James's Palace on July 9, and in official photos marking the royal baptism. Espadrilles are still all over Instagram this summer - and there may be a way to achieve the same high fashion look as your favourite bloggers without breaking the bank. Fashon e-tailer Nasty Gal is selling a pair of black raffia flatforms for 25 - and they look virtually identical to Miu Miu's 360 sandals. While the crossover fabric straps on the designer sandals are suede, the copycat versions are made from synthetic materials. The other giveaway is the black stitching around the edges of the cheaper shoes' flatform sole. Aside from that, the only glaring difference between the two pairs is the price. Spot the difference: Nasty Gal's 25 flatform sandals, seen left, are virtually identical to a 360 designer pair by Miu Miu, seen right Nasty Gal has described its Santa Clara espadrilles as 'a perfect excuse to get away', featuring a platform jute sole, slip-on design and an open toe. The high end Miu Miu version is available on Net-a-Porter in both black and baby pink. High-street retailers have gained a reputation in recent years for bringing catwalk looks to customers for a fraction of the price. Miu Miu's made in Italy espadrilles (pictured) are sculpted from luxurious goat suede for 360 A distinctive black pattern across the heel of Nasty Gal's design (pictured right) makes it noticeably different to those with an awareness of catwalk trends Nasty Gal's espadrilles (pictured) use synthetic materials for a similar look for just 25 Another cult label, the Danish brand Ganni, has seen its must-have items inspired a host of high street copycats. Most recently H&M unveiled a chic pair of kitten heel slingbacks that appeared to have taken inspiration from the label loved by everyone from Alexa Chung to the model Adwoa Aboah. H&M's 24.99 kitten heel slingbacks (seen left) bore more than a passing resemblance to this 210 pair by cult Danish brand Ganni (seen right) Cash-strapped fashion fans were delighted to see the high street favourite selling the dainty bow back heels for 24.99. The real deal, from Ganni, are almost 10 times the price at 210. Nodding off in a comfy bed for an hour after a long lunch is a rare treat reserved for the weekends if you're in possession of a 9 to 5 job. However, the rise of nap pods - where workers can press pause on their day for an hour and tumble into blissful sleep - have arrived in the UK, after debuting in New York, Tokyo and airports across the globe. Yet the less-than-humble price tag - 18 an hour - at one East London pop-up has attracted derision from some on Twitter, suggesting that the most fundamental of human needs should be priced more competitively. Scroll down for video Pop&Rest, which offers nap stations in East London for 18 an hour, has come under fire on Twitter for its price tag The pop-up nap station offers 'private and peaceful spaces to get recharged' but some have said the price tag for a 60-minute siesta is too expensive On its website, Pop&Rest describes itself as offering 'private and peaceful spaces to get recharged.' Rooms in London's Old Street can be booked for up to two hours, or for as little as 30 minutes. Visitors are greeted with 'forest scenery; plants, natural smells and bright colours, making you feel as though you have escaped from the city noise with calming nature sounds enabling you to easily relax and drift off to paradise.' However, the concept didn't wash with many. One incensed social media user, @Ankaman616, took to Twitter to criticise the fee, writing: '18 to nap for an hour in Shoreditch. Eighteen pounds. To nap. In a pod. For an hour. In East London.' He didn't stop there, finishing the tirade with the words: 'EIGHT. TEN. ENGLISH. POUNDS. TO SLEEP. FOR SIXTY MINUTES.' The simply furnished rooms can be booked for up to two hours of sleep or meditation and come with scents to distract you from the city Daylight robbery or a sleep revolution? Others on Twitter queried whether you might actually be able to nod off in such a short space of time And plenty of others agreed with him. @KevBeirne suggested knowing you've paid for it might stop you dropping off: 'As if you could fall asleep within an hour while dealing with the anxiety of knowing you'd just paid 18 an hour for it.' @DnDDurin joked: 'I got a park bench that'll do you a hell of a deal mate...' while @howlieT jested: 'Don't these people know the joy of falling asleep on a bus?' MailOnline has approached Pop&Rest for comment. A Korean make-up brand has come under fire after being accused of coloring a model's hand to make it appear black instead of hiring a black person to pose in its ads. Stylenanda, a lifestyle and fashion company that includes a cosmetics brand named 3CE, used the shots to promote an orange nail polish. L'Oreal acquired Stylenanda in May this year and has announced plans to expand sales of 3CE products internationally. At first glance, the images seem to feature two intertwined hands, one of which is black but eagle-eyed social media users were quick to notice something in the photos seems amiss. Backlash: A Korean make-up brand has come under fire after being accused of coloring a model's hand to make it appear black instead of hiring a black person to pose in its ads Images: Stylenanda, a lifestyle and fashion company that includes a cosmetics brand named 3CE, used the shots to promote an orange nail polish In the photos, the palm of the hand is the same color as the rest of the body instead of being lighter, as is naturally the case for palms and soles. Make-up influencer Tiara Willis, a teenager who focuses on make-up for people of color, shared two screenshots of the ads one taken from Stylenanda's website and the other from its Instagram Story while pointing out the oddity. 'The graphic designer must've never seen a black hand in real life before,' she wrote in a tweet that has since been shared more than 4,000 times. Other Twitter users shared her dismay, suggesting that the hand in the ad was either digitally edited or made to look darker by using make-up. The DailyMail.com has reached out to Stylenanda and L'Oreal for comment. Strange: In the photos, the palm of the hand is the same color as the rest of the body instead of being lighter, as is naturally the case for palms and soles Speaking out: Make-up influencer Tiara Willis, a teenager who focuses on make-up for people of color, shared two screenshots of the ads while pointing out the oddity Outrage: Other Twitter users shared her dismay, with several suggesting that the hand in the ad was either digitally edited or made to look darker by using make-up 'Did they really just dip a white hand in a darker foundation... that's a yikes from me,' one person wrote. 'They blackfaced a hand,' someone else tweeted, adding: 'Fix it Jesus' next to a string of face-palm emoji. 'It's crazy the absurd lengths these people will go to not actually use black people,' another person tweeted. 'They really just painted sis whole hand brown and think we wouldn't notice.' One Twitter user deemed the images 'embarrassing', while someone else asked: 'Why couldn't they just get a black model?? Is it really that hard?' 'Is this hand really doing black face rn? Idk how to process this,' another person wrote. Eagle-eyed: Someone even pointed out that the hand's pinky seems to be a different color from the rest of it Photo: That Twitter user posted a photo of a close-up of the two pinkies similar to this one, in which both fingers seem to be the same color, unlike the rest of the hands Someone even pointed out that the hand's pinky seems to be a different color from the rest of it. 'Jrbtxbzkcfkrkflssldgkrkd they just PHOTOSHOPPED THE COLOR ONTO THE HAND I'M DEAD!!!!!!!!!!!! They forgot the pinky,' that person wrote next to a close-up on one of the images, which shows the two intertwined pinkies. L'Oreal, which is headquartered in France, acquired 100 per cent of Stylenanda in May, calling it 'a highly desirable brand among Korean and Chinese millennials'. Stylenanda, which also sells clothes, shoes, and accessories in addition to make-up, was created in 2004 in Seoul by entrepreneur Kim So-Hee, who was then in her early 20s. By the time L'Oreal took over the brand, 3CE, its make-up entity, represented more than 70 per cent of its business. The French cosmetics giant was planning to expand 3CE sales globally within two months of the acquisition in May, after securing the necessary approvals. An actor has shared the brutally honest note he wrote to his teacher as a child after she said she was jealous of his trip to the beach, responding that he was 'glad' she hadn't been there. Harry Morrison, from London, took to Twitter where he posted a photo of his teacher's friendly comment in his exercise book, joking that he had been a 'cold b***h'. Aged six, he had written in his school book about what he'd done at the weekend and handed it in to be marked by the unnamed teacher. The report read: 'I went to my granny's on Friday. We went to the beach the whole day and I ate all the biscuits. Harry Morrison, an actor, from London, shared the hilarious exchange he had with one of his primary school teachers on Twitter 'The next day I went to the camp site in Stiffkey and met the gang. We went to the sea side and built a long moat. We ran about 15 miles to get to the water.' Responding to his essay about his weekend break, the teacher wrote: 'Lucky you - I wish I had been to the beach'. But a six-year-old Harry was less than impressed, responding underneath: 'I am glad you didn't'. The patient teacher later responded to say: 'I didn't mean with you Harry!' But the stubborn six-year-old stuck to his guns and in a second reply said: 'I am glad you didn't anyway'. Captioning his photos Harry described himself as a 'cold b****' on Twitter Clearly tickled by the surprisingly spiteful comment, Harry branded his younger self 'cold' Harry had written in his school book about what he'd done at the weekend and handed it in to be marked Harry took to Twitter where he shared photos of the hilarious exchange with his 600 strong following, and racked up dozens of likes and comments. Clearly tickled by the spiteful comment, Harry branded his younger self a 'cold b****'. The post left his followers equally amused receiving dozens of likes on social media. One wrote: 'Feeling for that teacher. How cud u crush her heart so badly!' 'That is HILARIOUS!!! Wow..harsh harry!!' another said followed by a laughing emoji. A Scottish academic has come to the defense of millennials after an assistant university professor branded them 'entitled'. In an essay written for Times Higher Education, Vieno Vehko, a professor at a Midwestern university, complained about millennial students. She charged that they don't do the work and have 'lost respect for knowledge' leading Times Higher Education to call them 'the lamest generation' in a tweet promoting the article. Yet many found the sweeping generalizations unfair, including Scottish academic Jenny Bann who took to Twitter to point out that millennials are hardly the worst students in the history of higher learning. Way to generalize! Times Higher Education shared an essay by a college professor from the Midwest who called millennials 'entitled' and saying they don't read or respect learning Wait a minute... Many people took issue with the op-ed and Jenny Bann offered a creative defense of millennials She knows! Bann, a Scottish academic, said she once transcribed disciplinary records of students in the 1700s Up to no good... She said those students got in trouble for dueling, getting drunk, and making 'obscene toasts' In the piece, Vehko (who used a pseudonym) recounts experiences she's had with her students. She labels one a 'blamer, complainer, and shamer' who 'doesnt seem able to take responsibility for her own learning'. Bann (pictured) used her expertise to show the complaining essay-writer that there have been much, much worse students 'There has been a lot of millennial-bashing in the news recently. There is also a lot in private, among faculty; my colleagues all report similar experiences to mine,' she writes. Citing more anecdotal evidence, she concludes by painting milennials with a wide brush, writing: 'Millennials dont read. They dont think as critically as they could. And theyre not interested in learning for learnings sake. They want the Dream. 'They will go into debt to get that degree they believe will help them pursue it, but they have lost respect for knowledge, rigor and hard intellectual work. Working among such entitled puppies makes me feel like an academic platypus out of water.' The piece was published on July 19, and the Times Higher Education Twitter account tweeted it out that day with the tweet, 'The lamest generation: I cant teach millennials they refuse to take any responsibility for their learning, says an assistant professor.' Students at universities in the 18th century got up to much worse hijinks (picture circa 1790) Vandalism: One record showed a student who got drunk and damaged someone else's home Par-tay! Students then were disciplined for having too many friends over and breaking furniture Tale as old as time: Some also skipped lectures, proving that students have been playing hooky for centuries Quickly, commenters began to take issue with the generalization. Several pointed to their own hard work and success, listing their degrees and career accolades. 'Do you understand how old millennials are now?' asked one. 'I finished law school and got married what are you doing.' Another decried the 'cognitive dissonance' of the article, pointing out that a student would like have a harder time if their teachers clearly did not respect them. But Jenny Bann took a different and slightly more humorous tactic. Bann, who has worked for the Scottish government and Fast Stream UK, pointed out that millennials are a lot more focused than some previous generations. 'I transcribed a collection of 18th [century] student disciplinary records once. Let me give a quick overview of the things that generation were doing,' she began her thread, which has since gone viral. 'Dueling with swords; getting loudly and raucously drunk and getting kicked out of taverns; going along to a dancing master's classes to meet girls, being told not to dance with one of said girls, getting into a fight with the dancing master over it; Every generation: The professor who wrote the original essay concluded that students today are worse than those who have come before Nope: But Bann's evidence told a different story Yikes! Some students were particularly troublesome Problems: Two students were expelled for falling into 'an unhappy afray' with townies 'Making 'obscene toasts' when drunk; hassling the landlady's daughter when drunk; taking a sedan chair home when drunk and trashing it (Glasgow sedan chairs could be hired like taxis in 18thC, there were even designated sedan-chair pickup ranks) 'Getting drunk and damaging somebody else's lodgings to the point where he was "expelled from his Habitation and deprived of his Body Cloaths and the poor Remainder of his furniture to Satisfy the Landlord for his Rent"; '"Having too many Companions always in his room, disturbing the house wt noise & breaking the furniture, as an evidence of which the Chairs in his room have been no les than three times broke [...] the expense whereof he promised to pay but has never yet fulfilled his promise" 'Not attending lectures, and claiming when told off for this that there was a university regulation saying students on his particular bursary only needed to attend 1/3 to pass, leading to two professors combing through rules for nonexistent regulation; Scoundrels! The students back then, who were all male, also got into trouble for activities with women Some mead! Mostly, though, they all seemed to get drunk a lot 'I struggle to believe they're the Worst Student Generation Ever,' Bann concluded 'Arguing at the university debating society that the university is a "dusty shop of logic and metaphysic" and students would be better off just going to the theatre; 'Suggesting to the ex-military chemistry lecturer that the army only wear red because they are trying to make up for their lack of virility; getting into a fight with said chemistry lecturer in the university quad that two academic staff had to wade into and break up; '(The last three were all the same student; he eventually got expelled and went off to seek his fortune with the East India Company) 'Something that was bad enough to get two students expelled but is only described (by them) as "having the Misfortune sometime agoe to fall into an unhappy afray with some People of the Town"; 'Trapping a servant girl in their rooms and scaring her; Damaging their lodgings again, this time by "some indecent language being painted on the inside of the room door wt a brush & whitening" Age: Others also chimed in to take issue with the piece, with some taking issue of the publication's definition of a millennial This is what happens when you work with anecdotes! Others listed their own academic accomplishments Maybe she needs a new career? This person pointed out that if this professor is so dismissive, she must give off that vibe and her students can probably tell she thinks little of them Hard work: Several millennials who are getting their PhDs chimed in Trying to look smart? One man who read the piece pointed out that the author references her syllabus which seems unnecessarily wordy This professor said he teaches millennials and also taught the generation before and they're the same Take that! This professor said she's found that her students actually work harder 'Getting drunk and arguing with a lecturer, deciding later that he needed to be taught a lesson, marching out drunkenly into the night with the tavern fireplace poker, beating an innocent passer-by w/ it until the Lord Provost arrived to wrench said poker out of student's hand. 'A significant proportion of these students were planning to go into the Church, btw. 'So while I agree it's annoying when your undergrads don't do the reading and plagiarise their essays from SparkNotes, I struggle to believe they're the Worst Student Generation Ever,' she concluded. In the days since she tweeted, Jenny's thread has earned thousands of likes and plenty of appreciation. Pete Davidson has clapped back after being accused of leaving an inappropriate comment on a photo of Ariana Grande and her late grandfather - and has now deleted all his own Instagram posts. Ariana, 25, took to Instagram on Sunday to share a photo of herself and her grandpa, honoring his memory on the fourth anniversary of his death and writing near the snap: 'Miss n love u forever my best friend.' Her fiance Pete, 24, commented below the snap: 'Omg what a cutie'. Several people thought the SNL cast member praising Ariana's look and promptly bashed the comment, which they found offensive given the context in which it was posted. Not having it: Pete Davidson, 24, has clapped back after fans accused him of making an inappropriate comment on a photo of Ariana Grande and her late grandfather 'Why the hell would u say that under a post about someone who died,' one person wrote, while someone else remarked: 'That is not the appropriate comment for this photo wtf is wrong with you man.' More people took to Instagram to criticize Pete for his comment, including one who wrote: 'Ari: my family member died.. he was my everythin- you: haha yeah that's sad turn around for me.' 'Dude, wrong timing,' one Instagram user commented. Someone else worte: 'Honey - is that the only thing you have to say?' But Pete responded in a follow-up comment, insisting that he wasn't referring to Ariana, but rather her grandfather. Family: Ariana, 25, posted a picture of herself and her grandpa on Instagram on Sunday, honoring his memory on the fourth anniversary of his death Comments: Pete proceeded to write 'omg what a cutie', which some fans interpreted as being in reference to Ariana but Pete insisted he was talking about her grandfather Done: On Monday afternoon, Pete deleted all of his Instagram posts, explaining he no longer wanted to be on social media because 'the Internet is an evil place' 'Are you guys all insane?' he wrote. 'I was talking about how cute her grandpa is. What's wrong with that? You guys will really look for anything to attack people. It's sad.' Other fans came to Pete's defense and shared their support for the comedian in the comments. 'The fact that these nimrods literally thought you were talking about Ari when you can barely even see her face LMAAAAO,' one person said. 'People are sour and have no sense of humor. Leave them stew in their misery lol,' another comment stated. 'Tell them!' someone else wrote. 'Some people are toxic and will find any excuse to attack. I'm so sorry some people are like this, don't let it get to you. Many of us love you so very much.' 'He's talking about Ariana's grandfather what is wrong with you people,' another Instagram user chimed in, while another person commented: 'People will always try to bring you down for something, if its not one thing its another! Sending love to you and Ari.' Gift: Pete previously received backlash after sharing this photo of Ariana wearing his late father's FDNY badge as a pendant On Monday afternoon, Pete wiped his own Instagram account clean, after several weeks of sharing photos of himself with his fiancee along with smitten comments. He explained his decision on Instagram Stories, explaining he didn't feel like using social media any longer. 'No there's nothing wrong. No nothing happened. No there's nothing cryptic about anything,' he wrote. 'I just don't wanna be on Instagram anymore, or on any social media platform. 'The Internet is an evil place and it doesn't make me feel good. Why should I spend any time on negative energy when my real life is f*****g lit. The fact that I even have to say this proves my point. 'I love you all and I'm sure I'll be back at some point.' This isn't the first time Pete has clapped back at critics. Just this month, he defended his decision to give Ariana his late father's FDNY badge. Scott Davidson, Pete's dad, was a firefighter who died in the 9/11 terror attacks. After Pete posted a photo of Ariana wearing the badge as a pendant, someone commented: 'No girl should ever wear your dad's chain. So disrespectful.' Pete responded: 'For your information that's not just some girl. That's my fiancee. 'She's the greatest person I know. I gave it to her because she has my heart and that is the most precious thing I own. My dad would be so happy and love her so much.' Prosecutors in Russia are investigating how a woman was left 'crippled' after plastic surgery to improve her bum and breasts. Veleslava Grigorieva, 40, from Ekaterinburg has ended up with gaping hole in one buttock after doctors were forced to operate to clean up a serious abscess believed to have been caused by the surgery. She complained her nipples were left 'too high and in the wrong place' and required corrective surgery - which has still not solved the problem. Veleslava has suffered acute pain after spending 25,000 on surgery and says she now needs 'to book three seats on a plane' because she can't sit down for more than a few minutes without searing agony. Following her 'botched' surgery, Veleslava has been left with a painful wound and says she cannot 'cannot walk normally or go to work, nor swim or get into a car' Misery: The patient ended up with gaping hole in one buttock after doctors were forced to operate to clean up a serious abscess believed to have been caused by the surgery After the first surgery on her breasts - at a clinic in Ekaterinburg with a respected surgeon - she claims her 'nipples were too high and ugly scars were visible'. She returned to the clinic where another surgeon agreed to do a new operation on her breasts and suggested she should 'improve my buttocks'. Veleslava claims she underwent liposuction and 'lipo-lifting' when the buttocks are enlarged with the help of patient's own fat removed from other parts of the body. 'Next morning my bottom was leaking from the wounds in the buttocks, everything was black and blue,' she said. 'The doctor said this was normal. I spent five days in the clinic and was sent home with horrible pains. 'Three days later I send photographs to my surgeon showing my buttocks getting worse again. He told me to have a massage.' She said her breasts had been left 'even worse than before', with loose folds of skin and scar marks. Painful: After undergoing plastic surgery, her bum was left 'leaking from the wounds in the buttocks, everything was black and blue' Painful stitches on Veleslava's buttocks, after she was left with a gaping wound following the cosmetic surgery, which cost her an eye-watering 25,000 Three weeks later she was so worried about her bum that she went to another clinic where the doctor told her she had an abscess in one buttock. 'He did not want to get the blame and refused to help me,' she said. The doctor who carried out the operation removed puss from the wound and gave her antibiotics, insisting she would be fine, she said. Three months later, the pain became so acute that she could not walk. Eventually she flew to Moscow where surgeons did an emergency operation which 'removed much of my buttock', she said. Now Veleslava has said she cannot 'cannot walk normally or go to work, nor swim or get into a car', according to a Russian news report. Veleslava's chest before (left) and now (right). She says her breasts had been left 'even worse than before', with loose folds of skin and scar marks Veleslava says her nipples have been left 'too high and in the wrong place' and required corrective surgery - which has still not solved the problem Another report said she had been 'left crippled' by the plastic surgery treatment. The surgeon who operated on her was unavailable for comment while the clinic, called Nudelman Cosmetology and Plastic Surgery, refused to discuss the case citing privacy laws. But an executive said: 'We tell our patients about all the risks before any procedures. We never betray our patients and never leave them in trouble, we never refuse to help.' Alexander Shulga, an official with the Russian Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, said it was examining the case. 'The actions of the plastic surgery centre employees will be given legal assessment,' he said. 'Forensic medical experts will be called to establish the health damage done to the patient along with the quality of provided medical services.' It is the unexpected romantic story which arose from one of Britains most celebrated miracles of modern medicine. As Britains first test tube baby, Louise Brown, turns 40 she has revealed she first encountered her husband when she was just days old - because he was one of the well-wishers who gathered at her home. Instantly famous when she was born using a technology many believed would not work, Miss Brown was the focus of worldwide press attention. Today, she revealed one of those greeted her when she returned from hospital was her future husband, Wesley Mullinder. Louise Brown (pictured), the world's first test tube baby, is set to celebrate her 40th birthday this week She has now revealed how she met her husband Wesley Mullinder (pictured) in the days after her birth and how they later reconnected when she was 24 Wesley, who was eight at the time, lived across the street from Louise's parents and was drawn by the crowd of journalists at their house Then an eight-year-old in Bristol, he had followed the crowd across the street from where he lived to her parents address. Miss Brown was the first IVF baby born at Oldham General Hospital in 1978, and celebrates her 40th birthday on Wednesday. The couple later met in adulthood - when Miss Brown was 24 - and romance blossomed. About a year into our relationship my husband told me he had been there after I was born, which was quite weird, she said. It was only when we met years and years later that I found out he lived across the road from my family home at the time. There was so much press interest, with 100 journalists at the door, and lots of children just wanted to see what was going on. He was among that group. Louise's birth was reported exclusively by the Daily Mail on Jul 25, 1978 with the headline And here she is.. the Lovely Louise Louise's sister, Natalie, went on to be the 40th IVF baby and was the first one to have a child of her own The couple now have two children of their own. The birth of Miss Brown on July 25, 1978, was reported exclusively by the Daily Mail with the headline And here she is.. the Lovely Louise. Her mother, Lesley Brown, had been unable to conceive naturally because her Fallopian tubes were blocked. She had been trying for a baby for nine years when she signed up for IVF. Lesley Brown, Louise's mother, had been unable to conceive naturally because her Fallopian tubes were blocked Her mother signed up for the IVF treatment after she had been trying for a baby for nine years Lesley was among 282 women who tried the experimental IVF procedure and doctors attempted 457 egg collections as part of the trial She was among 282 women who tried the experimental procedure, with doctors attempting 457 egg collections but only 167 cycles resulting in fertilisation. From 12 embryos successfully implanted into women, five became pregnant, and Louise was the one live birth. Her sister, Natalie, was the 40th IVF baby and the first to have a child of her own. Miss Brown was speaking at an exhibition at Londons Science Museum, marking 40 years of IVF, during which another six million children have been born using fertility treatment. Since Louise's (pictured) birth, six million children have been born through the use of fertility treatment She was speaking at an exhibition at Londons Science Museum where she criticised the impact of the NHS rationing IVF Louise (pictured this week) became the first baby to be born using the IVF technique pioneered by British researchers Robert Edwards, Patrick Steptoe and Jean Purdy The UKs first test tube baby was photographed for only the second time beside the small glass dish in which, as a bundle of fertilised cells, she spent her first days. Miss Brown, who married her husband two years after meeting him in 2004, has criticised the devastating impact on couples from the NHS rationing IVF and said she is glad fertility treatment is now more accepted. The mother of two said: Had anything been slightly wrong with me, that, I think, would have been the end of IVF. Asked for her advice for other couples, she added: My mum just believed it would happen and it did. Just keep on persevering and if you believe it will happen, then hopefully it will. New pictures have emerged of a mother-of-five who has been left disabled after being ravaged by a flesh-eating infection from a spider bite. Tamara Owsley-Savard is lucky to be alive after she was nipped by a brown recluse spider when she ran into a web while camping with her family. The 32-year-old, from Topeka, Kansas, noticed her left forearm began to swell just two days after the bite, though she hoped it would eventually heal. But her condition worsened on June 7 - ten days after she was bitten at Perry Lake, Kansas - and her arm began grow in size, swelling one inch every hour. Mrs Owsley-Savard was rushed to St Francis Hospital, where she spent three days before being transferred to Kansas University Medical Center in Kansas City. Doctors diagnosed her with necrotizing fasciitis, a flesh-eating infection, which can be caused by various strains of bacteria, such as those found in spiders. Mrs Owsley-Savard, a supervisor, spent 16 days in the hospital's intensive care unit as she underwent twelve surgeries to try to contain the deadly infection. Surgeons were forced to remove the pectoral muscle on her arm, which means she will never be able to lift her left arm above her head. Tamara Owsley-Savard, 32, from Topeka, Kansas, was nipped by a brown recluse spider after she ran into a web while camping with her family (pictured in hospital) Doctors diagnosed her with necrotizing fasciitis, a flesh-eating infection, which was attacking the tissues and muscles the left side of her body (pictured with her husband David, 30) She also underwent three skin graft surgeries on her arm, chest and back after doctors were forced to cut away infected tissue. Recalling her ordeal, Mrs Owsley-Savard said: 'It was Memorial Day weekend and we were camping at Perry Lake. 'I was playing hide and go seek with my kids when I ran into the biggest spider web I had ever seen in my life. It covered my whole body. 'One of them bite me on the forearm, and it hurt but not more than if you had been bitten by a fly or a mosquito. Surgeons were forced to remove the pectoral muscle on her arm, which means she will never be able to lift it above her head (pictured in hospital) She also underwent three skin graft surgeries on her arm, chest and back after doctors were forced to cut away infected tissue (pictured in hospital) WHAT IS NECROTISING FASCIITIS? Necrotising fasciitis is most commonly caused by an infection with group A Streptococcus, but can be caused by several different types of bacteria. They infect flat layers of a membrane known as the fascia, which are connective bands of tissue that surround muscles, nerves, fat, and blood vessels. The infection also damages the tissues next to the fascia. Sometimes toxins made by these bacteria destroy the tissue they infect, causing it to die. When this happens, the infection is very serious and can result in loss of limbs or death. Necrotising fasciitis can progress very quickly and lead to serious problems such as sepsis and organ failure. The infection kills 40 per cent of sufferers, even with treatment, according to the NHS. Those who survive can often be left with long-term disability as a result of amputation, or the removal of infected tissue. Advertisement 'It wasn't very painful but my arm began to swell on the second day. I was stubborn and I thought it would get better with time. 'But by the next week my arm was swelling and swelling, about an inch per hour. I knew I had to go to the doctor.' She added: 'They decided they didn't have the expertise to treat me in St Francis and I was transferred to KU Medical Center on June 11. 'I was really scared because they told me I could lose my arm. The doctors finally told me what I had - a freaking flesh eating bug which had spread to my chest too.' Mrs Owsley-Savard said her family, including her technician husband David Savard, 30, feared she wouldn't pull through. She added: 'My family thought I was going to die. 'My mum flew in from Oregon and my brother flew from California. They were told how seriously ill I was. 'My husband thought I was going to die and leave behind four children.' Mrs Owsley-Savard said her family, including her technician husband David Savard, 30, feared she wouldn't pull through (pictured in hospital) Mrs Owsley-Savard spent 41 days in KU Medical Center before she was discharged on July 18 (pictured in hospital) Mrs Owsley-Savard said she will never go camping again and was shocked that a bite from a common spider has changed her life so dramatically Mrs Owsley-Savard went to St Francis Hospital, where she spent three days before being transferred to Kansas University Medical Center in Kansas City (pictured with husband David) Mrs Owsley-Savard spent 41 days in KU Medical Center before she was discharged on July 18. She fears she will not be able to return to her job as a supervisor as doctors were forced to remove her pectoral muscle in her left arm. Mrs Owsley-Savard said: 'I've been left permanently disabled as they were forced to take my pectoral muscle which helps you lift. 'I have a two year old that I will struggle to pick up after this. My body is covered in skin grafts but I haven't looked at myself in the mirror yet.' Mrs Owsley-Savard said she will never go camping again and was shocked that a bite from a common spider has changed her life so dramatically. 'I would have never thought a spider would be capable of this s***. It's freaking insane. 'If your arm starts swelling don't do what I did and be stubborn and get yourself to a hospital.' Mrs Owsley-Savard's story went viral last week, when she told KSHB that she didn't think anything of the spider bite until days later. A baby has been born in Indonesia with two faces because his conjoined twin did not develop properly in the womb. Two-month-old Gilang Andika, from Batam, a city in Indonesia about 20 miles (32km) across the sea from Singapore, has two faces and two brains but just one head. The complication has left him looking disfigured and suffering from a potentially fatal brain condition, which is causing fluid to build up. Although he has just one body with two arms and two legs, Gilang is technically a conjoined twin a condition which affects one in every 250,000 births. On his head he has the face and brain of a sibling which did not grow its own body in the womb, because their mother's egg did not completely split in two during pregnancy. His parents, Ernilasari and Mustafa, now desperately want help to save their son's life after local doctors told them they were unable to operate. Two-month-old Gilang Andika, from Batam in Indonesia, was born with two faces and two brains because he is a conjoined twin, however his sibling did not develop a body Because of his rare predicament, Gilang cannot be breastfed, so has to be fed milk through a tube. And doctors have said he is not likely to live long because of his condition. The unfortunate infant also has a condition called hydrocephalus, which is caused by a build-up of fluid in the brain. Many babies who are born with hydrocephalus have long-term brain damage, which can cause learning disabilities, speech, vision or memory problems, or epilepsy. Mother Ernilasari and father Mustafa did not know about their son's serious illness until he was born by Caesarean section. Parents cannot afford treatment to save their son They want to seek treatment for Gilang, but they dont have the money. Dr Nenden Ismawati, who looked after Gilang at Awal Bros Hospital in Batam, says it is unlikely doctors will be able to perform surgery. He told Kompas News: 'Indeed, we suggested [surgery] to one of the hospitals in Jakarta which has better equipment than Awal Bros Hospital, but it also does not mean it he can be operated on right away, because doctors in Jakarta are still discussing the case.' Mother Ernilasari (left) did not feel anything was wrong during her pregnancy, and doctors did not pick up on the problem until after Gilang was born despite doing three ultrasound scans Gilang's parents are now desperate for help for their son because they cannot afford his treatment and local doctors say they do not have the equipment to operate (pictured, his father Mustafa holding the ultrasounds which failed to pick up Gilang's condition) Gilang cannot be breastfed because of his condition so must be fed through a tube, and also has a condition called hydrocephalus, which is caused by a build-up of fluid in the brain (pictured: Gilang's mother Ernilasari) Doctors did not notice the problem in three ultrasound scans During her pregnancy Ernilasari said she did not feel anything strange, and doctors at the Chamata Sahidiya Panbil Hospital did not notice the problem despite three ultrasound scans. 'The doctor just said the baby's head is enlarged and he is in breech position,' Ernilasari said. Now Gilang's parents are desperate to find a way to separate their child's head, as the abnormality has caused health problems for the little one. It is believed he has a disorder called diprosopus, one of the rarest deformities in humans, and one which most do not survive beyond birth. The condition is known as craniofacial duplication and causes part or all of the face to be grown twice because of a problem during the egg's division in the womb. Curing Gilang will likely involve risky surgery to remove one of his brains and faces, and part of his skull. Just two alcoholic drinks a month during pregnancy raises children's risk of having low IQs and attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD), new research suggests. Youngsters whose mothers drank while expecting score six points lower on IQ tests and are more likely to have poor attention skills than those whose mums went teetotal, a German study found. Such children have 193 mutated genes, which are associated with brain cell development, the research adds. Previous studies suggest youngsters who were exposed to alcohol in the womb are more likely to suffer from hyperactivity and impulsive actions. The NHS and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend pregnant women or those trying to conceive abstain from alcohol. Just two alcoholic drinks a month during pregnancy raises children's risk of low IQs (stock) DOES WI-FI INCREASE PREGNANT WOMEN'S RISK OF HAVING A MISCARRIAGE? Wi-fi increases pregnant women's risk of suffering a miscarriage by nearly 50 percent, research suggested in December 2017. Magnetic field (MF) non-ionizing radiation, which is also given off by mobile phones, power lines and cell towers, has previously been found to put a stress on the body, leading to genetic damage that can cause pregnant women to miscarry. Those exposed to the highest levels of MF radiation are 48 percent more likely to lose their baby than women exposed to the lowest amounts, the study found. MF radiation, which everyone is exposed to at some extent, has previously been linked to cancer and has been recommended by the World Health Organization to be studied for its effect on pregnancies. Researchers, from the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, California, analysed 913 pregnant women at varying stages of their gestation periods. Some of the study's participants had previously suffered at least one miscarriage. All of the participants carried an EMDEX Lite meter, which measures MF-radiation exposure, for 24 hours on a typical day. Their pregnancy outcomes were followed for the duration of their gestation periods. results further suggest among pregnant women exposed to the highest levels of MF radiation, 24.2 percent go on to have a miscarriage compared to 10.4 per cent of those exposed to the lowest amounts. Advertisement How the research was carried out The researchers, from the University Hospital Erlangen, analysed 1,100 pregnant women, with health information being collected during their third trimesters. The women were told their newborns would be tested for meconium EtG, which is a by-product of alcohol degeneration. Around 75 per cent of meconium EtG accumulates in foetus' guts during the last eight weeks of pregnancy. Due to alcohol also being present in products such as mouthwashes, the researchers set a cut off meconium EtG level that has previously reflected two alcoholic drinks a month. Between seven and eight years later, 198 of the families agreed to have the same children assessed for their IQs and attention skills. Attention was measured by recording how long it took for the children to respond to green traffic lights. DNA samples were also taken from mouth cells in the children. The findings were published in the journal Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience. Women in the UK are more likely to drink while pregnant than anywhere else in Europe This comes after research released in April 2017 suggested more women in the UK drink alcohol while pregnant than the rest of Europe. Researchers found that 28.5 per cent of women from the UK drink despite knowing they are expecting. This is a sharp contrast to just 4.1 per cent of Norwegian women. Pregnant women in the UK are also among the most frequent drinkers, with nearly three per cent admitting to drinking up to two units a week. One unit is the equivalent of a small glass of wine. Differences in expectant mother's drinking habits across Europe are thought to be due to varying exposure to educational campaigns and different attitudes to the habit. We're all well aware of the growing threat of superbugs. There are plenty warnings about how we encourage these antibiotic-resistant bacteria by either overusing antibiotics or not finishing a prescribed course of treatment. But while this has hopefully made people more cautious about misusing these drugs, few probably give it a second thought when it comes to their pets. As it turns out, this is going to have to quickly change. It is well known that farm animals are an issue. Many of the antibiotics we give them are also used in humans, so superbugs on farms threaten us all. There are also problems with antibiotics getting into the water table because of farm run-off. The World Health Organization issued recommendations last year, warning the food industry to stop routinely giving antibiotics to farm animals. Yet while the same is true with pets, it has been mostly overlooked by both the research community and general public. This research has found that pet owners generally had good knowledge about superbugs, but their understanding of antimicrobial resistance was limited. When it came to antibiotics, researchers found that owners wanted to do whatever was necessary to help their animal in the short term You might think we should be more worried about agriculture, since the sector treats many times more animals and uses far more antibiotics by weight than pets. But because pets are in such close proximity to many more humans, they're actually more likely to transfer resistant bacteria mainly through saliva or skin contact. Pets risk becoming reservoirs of resistant microbes that spill over into their owners with disastrous effects. Owner obstacles I'm part of a team that has been researching this issue in Scotland through in-depth interviews with groups of pet owners and vets. We found pet owners generally had good knowledge about superbugs, but their understanding of antimicrobial resistance was limited. When it came to antibiotics, we found that owners wanted to do whatever was necessary to help their animal in the short term. This often overruled concerns about antimicrobial resistance, which owners saw as abstract and mainly a problem for the future similar to how people often view actions that cause climate change. Interestingly, our interviewees were happy to hold off on antibiotics for themselves to see if their infection sorted itself out. But when it came to their pets, much like children, people wanted antibiotics straight away. Any large-scale public awareness campaign for pet owners will therefore have to try to be relevant to their present situation. One possibility might be to let them know that without responsibly using antibiotics now, there may be no working treatment for pets later. But let's not kid ourselves here it is well documented that getting people to make preventative behaviour changes is extremely challenging in public health. Another issue was contact between owners and animals. As we all know, many pet owners let their animals lick their faces, sleep in their beds or eat food from their hands or plates. Many consider pets to be part of the family, of course, and these affectionate moments are one of the reasons we have pets in the first place. Research shows that, unless the pet or owner has been colonised by resistant bacteria, there are no risks. But as there are no simple tests at present, owners cannot know whether they are safe. In a part of the work still to be published, researchers asked owners whether they would be prepared to change this kind of behaviour as antimicrobial resistance becomes more critical, and many said they wouldn't Most owners in our research didn't know that resistant bacteria could be spread between pet and owner and vice versa. It should be stressed that unless the pet or owner has been colonised by resistant bacteria, there are no risks. But as there are no simple tests at present, owners cannot know whether they are safe. In a part of our work still to be published, we asked owners whether they would be prepared to change this kind of behaviour as antimicrobial resistance becomes more critical, and many said they wouldn't. Convincing people not to do these things clearly won't to be easy. We also asked vets why they thought antibiotics are overused in pets. Unlike doctors operating in publicly funded healthcare, vets feel market pressures: dissatisfied pet owners can always go elsewhere for antibiotics. Vets told us that pet owners tended to want something tangible in exchange for the fees they were paying, and often saw antibiotics as a 'magic fix-all.' Yet the pet owners had a very different perspective: they tended to think the pressure to use antibiotics was coming from vets. They said it was the vet who was the expert and that they tended to go along with their decisions. For the majority of us, the way forward lies in making small changes around antibiotics to our daily lives pet owners, for one, need to start acting more responsibly WHAT IS ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE? Antibiotics have been doled out unnecessarily by GPs and hospital staff for decades, fueling once harmless bacteria to become superbugs. The World Health Organization (WHO) has previously warned if nothing is done the world is heading for a 'post-antibiotic' era. It claimed common infections, such as chlamydia, will become killers without immediate solutions to the growing crisis. Bacteria can become drug resistant when people take incorrect doses of antibiotics or if they are given out unnecessarily. Former chief medical officer Dame Sally Davies claimed in 2016 that the threat of antibiotic resistance is as severe as terrorism. Figures estimate that superbugs will kill 10 million people each year by 2050, with patients succumbing to once harmless bugs. Around 700,000 people already die yearly due to drug-resistant infections including tuberculosis (TB), HIV and malaria across the world. Concerns have repeatedly been raised that medicine will be taken back to the 'dark ages' if antibiotics are rendered ineffective in the coming years. In addition to existing drugs becoming less effective, there have only been one or two new antibiotics developed in the last 30 years. In September, the WHO warned antibiotics are 'running out' as a report found a 'serious lack' of new drugs in the development pipeline. Without antibiotics, C-sections, cancer treatments and hip replacements will become incredibly 'risky', it was said at the time. Advertisement What next? The central challenge with antimicrobial resistance in pets lies in trying to make it a priority in a world where there are already so many large issues for us to comprehend. Antimicrobial resistance is already having an impact on many aspects of our daily lives, and the search for new antibiotics is an expensive and drawn-out process. The answer is a 'one health' response which acknowledges that healthcare, agriculture, pets and other issues are all contributing to this crisis. To have any chance of having an impact, they all need to be tackled under the same policy package. This can seem impossibly complex, even within the UK let alone globally. We are at least seeing some excellent research initiatives that take this big-picture approach, along with action plans on the policy front such as this one by the EU. The question is whether we will have done enough before the problem becomes uncontrollable. For the majority of us, the way forward lies in making small changes around antibiotics to our daily lives pet owners, for one, need to start acting more responsibly. So what is happening here? There was little agreement about who should be taking responsibility for the antibiotics. It looked like there was a breakdown in communication between owners and vets. Our conclusion was that both sides should be 'trained' to be sensitive to these interactions, and provided with the skills and knowledge to make more informed decisions. With vets, this could be through professional development or externally enforced guidelines and standards. This won't be easy, however, as most veterinary practices are private businesses. Unlike doctors' surgeries, vets lack an overarching body to which they all subscribe. For vets and pet owners alike, the next logical step will be to survey people in much larger numbers. This would confirm that our findings are reflected by the country at large. Hotter temperatures and climate change could put thousands more Americans and Mexicans at risk of suicide, new research reveals. The series of heat waves sweeping the US and many countries worldwide may contribute to making life literally unbearable for some. Winter may bring seasonal affective disorder to some five percent of people around the world, but oppressive heat makes more people feel 'trapped,' 'lonely,' or 'suicidal,' Stanford University and University of California, Berkeley, scientists found. The estimated that if temperatures continue to climb as projected through 2050, the US and Mexico may be faced with an additional 21,000 suicide deaths. Though climate is hardly the most substantial risk factor for suicide, the Berkeley and Stanford researchers caution that their findings demonstrate yet another tangible public health impact of global warming. For each one degree Celsius the temperature rises in US states and Mexican municipalities graph shows suicide rates may increase by one to seven percent in some places By 2050, the average global temperature may creep up by as much as two degrees Celsius. If that does not sound like much of a surge, research broadly demonstrates that, in fact, it is. Not only will the temperature change undermine crop growth and depress sea levels, the heat can tamper with our brains and mess with our moods. And, according to the Stanford researchers, it isn't something we simply get used to over time. The team examined both suicide rates and patterns of language and communication on social media platforms like Twitter. When they matched historical data on temperatures in each of the thousands of US counties and Mexican municipalities to records of suicides, the researchers found that the statistics rose parallel to one another. What's more, the hotter it was in their hometowns, the more people tweeted about feeling 'lonely,' 'trapped' or 'suicidal.' It didn't matter if they were rich or poor, or lived in a place where the weather was often hot. The heat still seemed to get under everyone's skin and destabilized their emotional states. Violent and aggressive behavior tends to ramp up with heat while empathy and kindness to others falls off, according to previous research. The study authors suggest heat also fuels suicide as a form of violence turned against oneself. Scientists at Lehigh University and Northwestern University demonstrated in their research last year that people trapped in hot, stuffy rooms were far more irritable and less willing to participate in so-called 'prosocial' activities. But the new study suggests that heat the heat can have much more meaningful and lasting effects than making us cranky for a day. 'We've been studying the effects of warming on conflict and violence for years, finding that people fight more when it's hot,' said Solomon Hsiang, study co-author and associate professor at the University of California, Berkeley. As temperatures rise (bars at bottoms of graphs), the study suggests that suicide rates increase (multicolored lines) in US states (left) and Mexico (right) As temperatures creep upward over time, the graphs show researchers' predicted increases in the possible number of excess suicides in the US (left) and Mexico (right) 'Now we see that in addition to hurting others, some individuals hurt themselves. It appears that heat profoundly affects the human mind and how we decide to inflict harm.' They estimated that in the US, suicide rates stood to climb with temperatures by 1.4 percent by 2050. In Mexico, the 2.3 percent more people might take their own lives. Those increases are about equivalent to the impact of economic recessions on suicide rates, according to the study, published in Nature Climate Change. 'When talking about climate change, it's often easy to think in abstractions,' said co-author Dr Marshall Burke of Stanford. 'But the thousands of additional suicides that are likely to occur as a result of unmitigated climate change are not just a number, they represent tragic losses for families across the country,' added Dr Burke, an assistant professor of Earth system science in the School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences. The United Nations have made a goal of slowing down the world's climbing temperatures. But even if we can limit the increasing heat, annual average temperatures will increase - and it has already begun. We may not be able to put a full stop to climate change, but, the study authors urge, we can can implement policies to otherwise counteract its potential affects on suicide rates. They note that gun restriction laws have been found to drive down suicide rates by roughly as much as they estimate global warming will drive up rates of these deaths. 'Hotter temperatures are clearly not the only, nor the most important, risk factor for suicide,' Dr Burke said. 'But our findings suggest that warming can have a surprisingly large impact on suicide risk, and this matters for both our understanding of mental health as well as for what we should expect as temperatures continue to warm.' One in four GPs would consider quitting their jobs to work for a health diagnosis app, new research suggests. Improved pay is a key driver behind doctors considering working for controversial online private providers such as Babylon Health, a survey found. Earlier this month, an NHS consultant claimed he tested Babylon by pretending to have a nosebleed with reduced sexual desire. The app concluded he was likely suffering from erectile dysfunction, which he called a 'risk to patient safety'. Although Dr Krishna Kasaraneni, from the British Medical Association, claims most doctors prefer face-to-face consultations within the NHS, she adds many medics are increasingly frustrated by 'unmanageable workloads' and 'chronic underfunding'. Babylon, which offers both a private and an NHS service, reportedly pays its 200 GPs a full-time salary of around 90,000 to work from home or 108,000 if office based. Although an attractive option for some, other GPs dismiss such services as 'McDonald's medicine'. One in four GPs would consider quitting their jobs to work for a health diagnosis app (stock) HOW MANY DOCTORS SUFFER MENTAL-HEALTH PROBLEMS? Three GPs a day are seeking help for 'meltdowns' as they struggle to take on the workloads of growing doctor vacancies, research suggested in January 2018. Some 981 GPs referred themselves to the GP Health Service, which was set up to help doctors suffering from stress or burnout, between the end of November and the service's launch on January 30 2017. 'Practice meltdown' is the most common reason for self-referral, according to the service's chief executive Lucy Warner. GPs are making themselves ill by being too eager to take on the workloads of unfilled positions, causing them to buckle under the pressure, General Practitioners Committee chairman Dr Richard Vautrey said, describing the situation as a 'baptism of fire'. According to Dr Vautrey, newly-qualified GPs are being put in situations experienced doctors would struggle to cope with. He added the use of the GP Health Service highlights the need to address workload pressures so doctors can practice safely without putting themselves or their patients at risk. Ms Warner told GP Online: 'Ultimately, our advice to doctors would be to look after themselves in order to be able to look after their patients. 'If doctors cared for themselves and their colleagues and followed the same advice they would give to their patients they would seek help sooner. 'Doctors make excellent patients and excellent recoveries with the right support. Other reasons GPs are seeking help include them receiving official complaints or discovering they have made a mistake as result of their own mental-health problems. Younger GPs are also requiring assistance as they generally struggle to cope with the workloads and pressures of the job. Advertisement App accuracy is 'shockingly poor' Yet 63.16 per cent of the 760 GPs surveyed by Pulse said they would not consider working for such apps due to them being 'high risk' for patient safety and 'unethical'. Part-time GPs are more likely to be tempted, with 39 per cent saying they would consider such a position compared to just 20 per cent of GP partners. The remaining medics surveyed were unsure if they would take up such a position. Some 1.6 per cent of those questioned already hold part or full-time positions at online private practitioners. Speaking of the results, Dr Charlotte Ferriday, a GP in Devon, who would not work for a private online GP service, said: 'I think the results so far are shockingly poor in terms of the quality of prescribing, follow up and consideration of co-morbidities and it will do nothing to reduce the strain on the NHS.' A GP partner in Hampshire called the services 'McDonald's medicine for convenience for young people who do not need continuity'. Yet, Dr Zishan Syed, a GP partner in Maidstone and Local Medical Committees representative for West Kent, said the General Medical Services contract is unfit for purpose, with private solutions allowing doctors greater control of their workloads, as well as been proven to be effective in dentistry. A Babylon spokesperson claims the company supports doctors to provide high-quality care efficiently in a way that is 'simply not possible for GPs working in a traditional general practice'. NHS is 'haemorrhaging' nurses as one in 10 quit in a year This comes after the head of the Royal College of Nursing said the NHS is 'haemorrhaging' nurses as 33,000 quit in one year. One in 10 nurses are leaving their position in England every 12 months, which is enough to staff more than 20 hospitals and means quitters outnumbered joiners by 3,000 last year, figures revealed last January. Nurses leaving the profession are up by 20 per cent since 2012-to-2013, which adds extra pressure to already strained hospitals and requires staff be pulled off special research projects to help out. Of those quitting, more than half are under 40, with many citing stress and rising workloads for being behind their decisions to leave. Although the Government is increasing the number of nurse training places by 25 per cent this year, it will be three years before they graduate, with one in nine nursing positions currently being vacant. Virginia health officials are warning residents about a flesh-eating bacteria which has killed one person and sickened another 22. Since April, there have been 23 reports of infections caused by Vibrio bacteria, which are found in warm waters along the coast and can enter the body through the smallest cut. The Virginia Department of Health has yet to release the name of the person who died or where they came into contact with it. But state epidemiologist Nancy Lemis told WFMY that nine of the infections have occurred in the Hampton Roads area, in the southeastern part of the state, and that she expects the number of cases to rise through the summer months. Officials from the Virginia Department of Health are warning residents about a flesh-eating bacteria after one person died from it. Since April, 23 have reported infection from it with nine occurring in Hampton Roads (seen in dark green and light green in bottom right corner) Vibrio bacteria are found in warm waters along the coast and can enter the body through the smallest cut. Virginia fisherman Tim Morgan (pictured) contracted the infection five years ago after he stabbed his index finger with a fishing hook Morgan spent four days in the hospital and for eight weeks needed an IV as well as antibiotics, but doctors were able to save his finger (pictured) Vibrio bacteria are found in coastal waters and multiply during the warm months, typically between May and October. According to the CDC, most people become infected with the bacteria after eating raw or undercooked shellfish. Symptoms can included nausea, vomiting, fever, and watery diarrhea. The onset is usually 24 hours after the food had been eaten and last no more than three days, the CDC says. However, some species of Vibrio can cause skin infections if an open wound is exposed to salt water or brackish water, which is a combination of fresh and sea water. This can lead to necrotizing fasciitis, in which bacteria damages and kills the skin and tissue covering the muscles, and why Vibrio is referred to as a flesh-eating bacteria. In Virginia, about 50 cases of Vibrio per year are reported on average, according to the Virginia Department of Health. Currently, a total of 23 - including the resident who died - have been infected. It is currently unclear how they are being treated. Katherine McCombs, a foodborne disease epidemiologist at the Virginia Department of Health, says that almost all of those who've reported falling ill have recovered. Hampton fisherman Tim Morgan told WFMY that he contracted the infection five years ago after he stabbed his index finger with a fishing hook. He said the pain became unbearable within hours, so his wife took him to the emergency room. 'The doctor said at one point: "Hey, good news! We're gonna save your finger",' he told the station. 'And my wife looked at each other and said: "What the, huh?" I had no idea, and I'd never heard about the disease before,' he said. Earlier this month, 60-year-old Angel Perez (pictured), of Millville, New Jersey, contracted a Vibrio infection after he went 'fishing' for crabs over Fourth of July weekend The infection started in his right leg (right) but has spread to all four limbs, including his right arm (left). His daughter, Dilena Perez-Dilan, said he is likely to lose some of his toes and fingers and doctors may have to amputate his limbs if he doesn't respond to antibiotics soon Morgan spent four days in the hospital and for eight weeks needed an IV as well as antibiotics. 'My wife and I were really surprised that it's a possibility that I could lose my finger, or my arm, or my life,' he said. Morgan said his best friend since the first grade died of Vibrio just last month, although it is unclear if this is the same person reported dead by Virginia health officials. He told WFMY that he hopes that sharing his story will help raise awareness about the life-threatening infection. Earlier this month, a 60-year-old New Jersey man contracted a Vibrio infection after he went 'fishing' for crabs over Fourth of July weekend. Angel Perez's right leg began to swell and become discolored the very next day and soon the infection spread to his bloodstream and all four limbs. His daughter, Dilena Perez-Dilan, told NJ Advance Media that Perez is likely to lose some of his toes and fingers. If he doesn't respond to the antibiotics he's receiving soon, doctors may be forced to amputate all of his limbs. Additionally, a 71-year-old man from Sarasota, Florida, died on July 10 after eating raw oysters caused by Vibrio vulnificus bacteria. Another woman has been informed that frozen eggs donated to her were lost by University Hospitals in Cleveland - four months after the cryobank malfunction that cost 1,000 families their harvested eggs and embryos. Back in March, the hospital told patients that twice as many eggs, embryos and patients were affected, but that this was the final tally as 'all of our records for the storage tank in question have now been reviewed.' Prior to notifying the woman of her loss, the fertility clinic also requested a gag order to keep the attorneys in the case and others from speaking about the case publicly. On Thursday, the hospital assured reporters that, this time, they have the final count of lost eggs right: the previously reported 4,000 eggs and embryos, including those those donated to two patients. But her attorney, Joe Peiffer, told Daily Mail Online that the notice comes far too late and that the hospital has offered too little sympathy, much less compensation to the families who lost their 'most precious assets.' University Hospitals, Cleveland failed to inform one woman that frozen embryos that had been donated to her and her husband were destroyed in its cryotank failure until four months later More than 20,000 American women have frozen eggs or embryos frozen and stashed them away at cryobanks across the country. These facilities are entrusted - at a going rate of around $100 a year - with keeping these women's prospects for children safe and cold until they are ready for motherhood. But embryos and (especially) eggs, are fragile and while they can last for as long as a quarter century when cryotanks function properly, fluctuations of even just a few degrees can be disastrous. This nightmare scenario came true for 1,000 Americans who had stored their eggs at the Cleveland, Ohio facility and hundreds more whose eggs were stored at a San Francisco clinic. On March 4, one of the cryotanks failed, the alarm intended to alert the clinic to to the failure failed, and the clinic failed to discover any of it until the next day, Sunday. It also failed to notify patients (addressed as 'community members') until Thursday, by way of a form letter. And, in fact, that first letter only went to 400 families whose cumulative 2,000 eggs and embryos the clinic thought had thawed and been destroyed. It later came to light that 4,000 eggs and embryos belonging to 1,000 families had been lost. 'In early April they sent out another letter in which they said they were sorry and seemed to be accepting some responsibility, saying they were sorry they had failed their patients,' recalls Jo Peiffer, an attorney who represents 75 of the patients in their lawsuit against University Hospitals. 'But then, they turned around and filed court pleadings saying people knew all the risks so [the hospital] was not responsible, which was a little disheartening,' Peiffer told Daily Mail Online. And just last week, Peiffer got another phone call, from yet another woman who had received a letter just the previous day notifying her that all of the embryos that had been donated to her and her husband had been lost too. Frozen eggs and embryos are stored in cryotanks like this one. Right now, there are recommendations but no regulations for what safeguards need to prevent failures and thawing 'Through careful review of our records, UH only recently became aware that embryos donated to you were in the affected tank,' the clinic wrote to her. Also enclosed were the same form letters that had gone out months before to the rest of the families explaining what had happened. 'We sincerely apologize that these communications did not reach you sooner.' She had recently begun the preparation process to have one of those embryos implanted. Now, she and her husband are back at square one. 'She was just devastated. It was like walking down the street and having an anvil fall on her head,' Peiffer says. The evening of the same day that woman received her letter from UH, the hospital told the Washington Post that Peiffer's client was the only person who was affected but had previously been told she wasn't. One other patient's donated eggs were also lost. 'If it was only two families affected by this, why send two families a letter that's not even signed with a real signature? They just printed it off the machine and sent it off in the mail. For something this personal and devastating, I just don't get it,' Peiffer says. 'I'm kind of dumbfounded by the whole thing.' Peiffer claims that the hospital says 'we shouldn't have made such a big deal out of this,' referring to the discovery that an additional patient's embryos were lost. 'But the fact of the matter is that time is of the essence with fertility issues,' he says. Peiffer and his legal team are suing the hospital in the hopes that the court will award their clients monetary damages. 'We want to hold them accountable for losing all of these families' most precious asset: the ability to have children,' he says. 'No amount of compensation is going to make that right, but that's the civil justice system we have here. 'Hopefully it will at least teach [UH] that if it comes down to a choice of whether or not to hire a 24-hour security guard, they'll make the right call.' He says his firm has also helped draft legislation that Ohio state Senator Joe Shiavoni is introducing to the state Senator. The bill would require precautionary measures like the 24-hour guard Peiffer suggested, better training on the handling of liquid nitrogen for clinic employees and storage of one person's eggs or embryos in multiple tanks, instead of having all of a patient's samples confined to just one tank, as University Hospitals had fatefully done. 'These are just the saddest cases in our office,' says Peiffer. 'To listen to these people that thought they were going to be able to become parents and then find out that they can't, it makes us passionate and want to move legislation forward to get regulations and requirements in place.' Millions of Americans support medical marijuana for reasons that have not been proven by research, according to a new study. More than a third of the population see cannabis as being beneficial for health, a nationally representative survey by the University of California, San Francisco shows. However, while many rightly understood that it can treat pain and epilepsy, many of the benefits that people cited are not proven to be true. Most of that third believed cannabis is not addictive and its secondhand smoke is safer than secondhand smoke from tobacco - two things which remain unproven. There is also no evidence, contrary to what many believed, that the drug has a meaningful impact on insomnia, depression or anxiety. Lead author Salomeh Keyhani, MD, warns many of these misconceptions likely come from aggressive unregulated marketing by the cannabis industry as more and more states legalize the drug for both recreational and medicinal use. More than a third of the US sees cannabis as beneficial for health, a nationally representative survey by the University of California, San Francisco shows. But the reasons they cite aren't proven More than half of the United States (30 states) has legalized medicinal marijuana, with many more soon to come. Canada will legalize recreational marijuana in October, following nine states and Washington, DC. The shift has been welcomed by patients, lawmakers, and recreational consumers alike. The amount of Americans consuming the drug doubled between 2004 and 2014, to 13.3 percent. Changing the law to tax marijuana allowed states to cash in: Washington and Colorado, for example, rake in $1 billion a year. Medicinally, use is restricted to certain things per state. Most allow it for cancer and HIV/AIDS patients to alleviate pain. Some have approved the drug for ALS, some for epilepsy, and some for multiple sclerosis. But Dr Keyhani, an internist and health services researcher, was concerned that the push to promote the product as it becomes legalized has blurred the lines between what we know, what we don't know, what we suspect, and what we are dubious about. 'I live in the Bay Area and its very common to see people smoking marijuana in public areas,' she told DailyMail.com. 'There doesnt seem to be the same stigma/concern towards secondhand marijuana smoke as there is towards tobacco smoke. It made me think about public perceptions towards marijuana use.' The fact that the cannabis industry has fast grown into a multi-billion dollar operation also gave Dr Keyhani pause. 'On the internet and via media there is lots of inaccurate information being communicated to the public. I wondered how this was impacting public perceptions.' To assess the public's understanding, Dr Keyhani's team surveyed 16,280 people online. Among the 9,003 that replied, the average age was 48 years old, with 52 percent women, 64 percent white, 16 percent Hispanic, 12 percent black, and the rest of other racial groups. Most of them (81 percent) saw marijuana as beneficial in some way or another - something the team did not dispute. The drug has been shown to be beneficial for pain management, as many cited, and managing seizures in epilepsy patients. However, many of the most commonly-cited benefits are not known to be true. Just under half of those surveyed (46.8 percent) said it offers relief from anxiety, stress and depression - which is not proven, aside from the fact that users feel a sense of momentary relief in the immediate aftermath of consuming marijuana. While most (76 percent) said marijuana may be addictive 22.4 percent believe it is not addictive - something not proven to be true. A significant number (13.5 percent) believed marijuana to be better for health than alcohol. 'Although excessive alcohol use is associated with many health risks, moderate alcohol intake may prevent coronary heart disease,' she writes in the study, adding: '[H]owever, not enough data exist to support the notion that marijuana use in any form prevents health problems.' The study highlights particular concerns about smoking marijuana and secondhand marijuana smoke being dismissed. Twenty-nine percent said smoking the drug largely improves health, 18 percent believe secondhand marijuana smoke is harmless, and 7.6 percent believe inhaling the smoke is harmless for children. 'Despite insufficient evidence for potential harms from daily marijuana smoking, media coverage of existing studies with low cumulative exposure may be creating the impression among the public that smoking marijuana, even on a daily basis, is harmless,' Dr Keyhani writes, adding that 'inhalation of particulate matter in any form (for example, breathing smog or secondhand tobacco smoke or smoking) is associated with increased cardiovascular risk.' Dr Keyhani concedes that changing the tide will be complicated. There is not enough research done on the matter, nor enough research funding to clarify these confusions. But, she says, there is enough to communicate to the general public that there are gaps in what we know. 'We need public health campaigns similar to what we have for tobacco and alcohol to inform the public,' Dr Keyhani told DailyMail.com. She hopes the study, published today by the journal the Annals of Internal Medicine, will garner 'more investment in research to expand the evidence base and more investment in public health education.' Most of us take antibiotics, grateful for a reliable cure, with little thought for the potential side-effects. But concerns are mounting about adverse reactions caused by a group of widely prescribed antibiotics called quinolones and fluoroquinolones. In some people, even a short course of the pills can cause long-term, even permanent damage including tendon rupture, joint problems and nerve pain. Last month, patients affected testified to the regulator, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), in a public hearing held in London as part of a review by the safety committee. Worry: Prescribed antibiotics quinolones and fluoroquinolones can called long-term damage This was only the second-ever held by the EMA (the first was into the epilepsy drug valproate, which can cause birth defects in pregnant women). It is being viewed as a sign that long-standing concerns about these antibiotics are finally being taken seriously. Quinolones and fluoroquinolones are broad-spectrum antibiotics: fluoroquinolones are the newer drugs and more frequently prescribed. They work against a number of bacteria including salmonella and E.coli, and are commonly used to treat recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs), prostatitis inflammation of the prostate and serious lung infections. Ciprofloxacin, a fluoroquinolone, is the most prescribed of the group; others include levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, and norfloxacin. In 2017 more than 675,000 quinolones and fluoroquinolones were dispensed by GPs and other practitioners in England alone, and about the same amount again in hospitals, according to estimates. In the U.S., the drugs carry health warnings highlighting the risks of tendonitis (inflamed tendons), tendon rupture and irreversible nerve damage. The latest warning issued two weeks ago by the U.S. drugs regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), highlighted a risk of brain-related side-effects such as memory impairment, delirium, agitation and disorientation. Its thought that because fluoroquinolones act on mitochondria powerhouses in cells responsible for energy the effects can be felt all over the body. Laboratory research also suggests the drugs can provoke a reaction specifically in tendon cells, leading to the production of enzymes that degrade the tendon, causing it to break down prematurely. Concern: In the U.S., the drugs carry health warnings highlighting the risks of tendonitis (inflamed tendons), tendon rupture and irreversible nerve damage But so far, the UKs drug safety watchdog, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has remained silent. This is despite 10,838 adverse reactions and 107 deaths reported for ciprofloxacin alone in the UK between 1990 and 2018. Campaigners are frustrated by this apparent inertia and claim patients are being prescribed fluoroquinolones for minor infections when other antibiotics are available, and that patients are not warned about side-effects. Around 100 patients have joined the group Quinolone Toxicity Support UK complaining of ongoing, painful and disabling problems with tendons, muscles and nerve pain. But numbers could be higher, experts say. Side-effects are grossly under-reported, says Neal Millar, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon and lecturer in immunology at the University of Glasgow, who gave evidence at last months hearing. The complication rate including tendon rupture, tendonitis, nerve pain and joint problems is reported as between 1 and 3 per cent, based on official reports. But, in my experience, its closer to 10 to 15 per cent. Hundreds of thousands could be affected and the majority will not have connected their symptoms with taking a fluoroquinolone, and of those that have realised, the majority struggle to make doctors believe them. It shocks me how medical professionals dismiss these patients, he told Good Health. The FDA has issued five warnings in ten years why are we only just having this hearing in Europe? Mr Millar says one of the problems is that the side-effects can take weeks to appear, so most people dont make the link. Around 100 patients have joined the group Quinolone Toxicity Support UK complaining of ongoing, painful and disabling problems, but numbers could be higher, experts say Lyn How, 68, one of the patients who gave testimonies to the EMA, was prescribed ciprofloxacin by her GP before travelling on holiday to India. During the trip, she developed a painful urinary tract infection (UTI) and took the tablets, which worked brilliantly. The next day though, Lyn developed intense pain in her feet. I felt as though Id been shot in my right foot it was excruciating, says Lyn, a former events organiser, who lives in Hayling Island, Hampshire with husband Nick, 68, a retired chartered surveyor. We were flying home the next day and I had to get a wheelchair to take me through the airport, she adds. Back home, Lyn read the information leaflet and noted tendon problems were a known side-effect, especially if you already had a tendon issue. Id previously complained of tendon pain in my feet and my GP admitted he shouldnt have prescribed this antibiotic, she says. He referred Lyn for scans that confirmed one of the tendons on her right foot had ruptured and another was in danger of rupturing. The orthopaedic surgeon said it might have been caused by ciprofloxacin, says Lyn. He suggested I try physiotherapy, but it was extremely painful. Lyns symptoms intensified and, barely able to walk, she eventually had an operation on her tendon in November 2012, eight months after her trip to India. But a year later she was still using crutches and in constant pain. The complication rate including tendon rupture, tendonitis, nerve pain and joint problems is reported as between 1 and 3 per cent, based on official reports. But, in my experience, its closer to 10 to 15 per cent. Neal Miller Lyn sued her GP on the grounds that guidelines advise ciprofloxacin should be used with caution in people over 60 or with tendon problems. She won an out-of-court settlement in 2015. It wasnt until 2016 that a rheumatologist diagnosed me with quinolone-associated musculoskeletal systemic toxicity, she says. Im much better than I was, but have been left with nerve damage in my legs and cant walk far. Elizabeth Carmouche, 50, from Dumbarton, travelled from her home in Brussels, where she works as a translator, to give evidence at the EMA hearing. She was prescribed ciprofloxacin before a three-week holiday in case I developed UTIs or travellers diarrhoea, she says. I took a tablet after developing cystitis and three weeks later, back home, I developed terrible pain in my bones, tendons and joints it gradually spread all over my body. I struggled to walk up the stairs and my wrists were so painful I couldnt even turn a door handle. I researched my symptoms online and ciprofloxacin kept cropping up, so I told my GP I thought my symptoms were connected. She dismissed my concerns and said I had rheumatism. Between May and September 2016, I saw three specialists a rheumatologist, an orthopaedic consultant and a neurologist, but not one of them acknowledged ciprofloxacin may be to blame. They tested me for Lyme disease and lupus [an auto-immune disorder] but all tests were negative. I tried physiotherapy, but it made it worse. This is a common problem, says Mr Millar its important patients see a physiotherapist who specialises in tendon problems as some techniques load the tendons too much, exacerbating the problem. It was only when I found Mr Millars research on tendon problems and contacted him that I got some acknowledgement of what was wrong, says Elizabeth. It was such a relief to be believed. Two years on, she still has painful joints and has to work from home three days a week as driving puts strain on her knees. Campaigners are quick to highlight that this is not a historic problem and people are still being floxed as they call it. Stacey Rodger, a council waste manager, who lives with her two young children in Wyton, Cambridgeshire, was prescribed ciprofloxacin 15 months ago for a kidney infection. Im very cautious about my health because I suffer from fibromyalgia, says Stacey. When I read the leaflet and noticed the warning about tendon problems I rang an out-of-hours doctor to ask for an alternative. I was told not to be ridiculous and that if we all read the side-effects, no one would take any drugs. It was a Bank Holiday and I was in severe pain so I reluctantly took the antibiotics. After the third dose, I noticed bad pain in my legs and a sensation that felt like popcorn popping under my skin. Stacey is still in severe pain and has spent more than 2,000 seeing osteopaths and chiropractors. Im better than I was, but I still have a long way to go, she says. Mr Millar says patients with ongoing symptoms should ask their GP for a referral to a rheumatologist, specialist tendon physiotherapist or orthopaedic surgeon. He hopes the EMAs review will recommend the restriction of prescriptions for fluoroquinolones. These drugs should be prescribed only by specialists for patients with no alternative, he says. Patients also need to be warned about side-effects. An MHRA spokesperson said: The safety of fluoroquinolones is currently being assessed as part of an EU-wide review, co-ordinated via the EMA. As with any EU medicines safety review, MHRA is participating fully. It is important that people take their medicines as prescribed and if they have any questions to discuss them with their doctor. Bayer, which manufactures Ciproxin (ciprofloxacin) and Avelox (moxifloxacin) said it welcomes the investigation into quinolones and fluoroquinolones, adding: Bayer has been in continuous scientific dialogue with health authorities and medical communities to ensure that safety information is up to date. Gordon Jayson is a man used to fighting against the odds. As a medical oncologist specialising in ovarian cancer, he knows his patients are battling a disease which has an average five-year survival rate of just 30 per cent. Yet this softly-spoken consultant is not only leading the research to improve this bleak statistic, but refuses to give up on any patient, insisting that no matter how advanced a patients illness is, there is in his words always something you can do. It might not always be curative, Professor Jayson admits. But it might be the one thing that day which makes them feel better. Nominee: Professor Gordon Jayson, of Manchester's Christie Hospital, and Sarah Carlick Take the patient whod spent her lifes savings on a dream holiday just before she was diagnosed. Professor Jayson adapted her chemotherapy, starting it immediately and giving weekly intensive doses to get the disease to a stage where she could go on her trip. Its important to fit treatment around my patients lives, he says. Of course I want to make them better. But I also want them to feel better whatever the stage of their illness. Professor Jayson, whos worked at The Christie in Manchester since 1992, is the type of consultant who is always available by email day or night, say his patients. He spends up to four hours every evening looking over patients test results from that day to double-check nothings been missed. Despite being stretched, when one of his patients, Ros Carlick, wanted to raise awareness of ovarian cancer by setting up a charity (called Tic Toc), Professor Jayson willingly offered his free time, says Ross daughter Sarah. Hell travel to meetings all over Manchester, and further, so he can talk to women about how to spot ovarian cancer and answer their questions, says Sarah, who took over the charity after her mother died in 2013. He spends ages talking to individual women about their concerns. Mum was inspired by Professor Jayson. Her cancer was mistaken by a GP for IBS which meant a six-week delay until she was diagnosed, so the cancer had time to spread. She was passionate that this shouldnt happen to anyone else as is Professor Jayson. He has thrown himself into our cause, hes a star. Whatever we ask of him, he does. If hes invited to a fundraising activity such as a fashion show, hell be there. Respect: The much-loved clinician is also leading research into the disease. The 54-year-old has published more than 200 research papers Sarah, 44, nominated Professor Jayson for our Health Hero Awards. She explains: When Mum was in his care, he was the most supportive consultant imaginable and gave us the time and care we needed. He was away when Mum fell into a coma before she died. She hung on for several days until he came back or thats how it felt. It was only after hed been to see her that she passed away. It was the strangest thing. He stayed with us and it felt as if he was part of the family. Its no surprise to learn that patients flock to Professor Jaysons clinic often having been told by other hospitals that their options have run out. He explains: I had an email from a lady whose mother had, if you like, been written off. But the family wanted to try to carry on. We treated her for 18 months with chemotherapy, but in weekly doses instead of the [more usual] three-weekly cycle. And she is still here, Im delighted to say. This approach isnt widely used outside specialist centres, but when you prescribe standard chemotherapy, the illness can get immune to this form of treatment, he explains. Our approach is to start slowly. When the disease gets aggressive only then do we get aggressive with chemotherapy. Its much more effective. A study he led found that survival rates from ovarian cancer in the UK could be improved by 45 per cent if patients were treated in specialised regional centres. The much-loved clinician is also leading research into the disease. The 54-year-old has published more than 200 research papers. One area Professor Jayson has focused on involves chemotherapy drugs such as Avastin, which work by blocking blood vessel formation to starve tumours. He led a study to develop a blood test that could predict whether patients taking the drug would benefit from it. The problem is the NHS uses this drug only once, he explains. Theres the belief it will only work once as trials only showed it worked for a year. Weve developed a blood test which shows that, for certain patients, the drug can be reused with very effective results. Were exploring ways to introduce this to mainstream NHS treatment. Professor Jayson leads the way in providing exemplary care and in discovering much-needed new treatments, says Annwen Jones, chief executive of the charity Target Ovarian Cancer. His pioneering work on bevacizumab (Avastin) has opened new frontiers in ovarian cancer research. Father-of-three Professor Jayson, who is married to Dinah a consultant child psychiatrist says he is driven to make patients feel cared for. Spending time with patients, pulling up a chair, reading their body language, thats all important, he says. For his patients and their families, that quiet dedication was laid bare after Professor Jayson suffered heartbreaking loss. In 2012, his 20-year-old son, Jonathan, died suddenly from heart failure. Eric Cohens wife Marilyn was under Professor Jaysons care at the time, having been diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2010. I remember thinking, how can he go on? says Eric, 71, from Crumpsall in Manchester. Yet he soldiered on, always smiling. Id spend hours researching my wifes disease and email him, and hed come back to me with a detailed answer. He never seemed to tire. My family were heartbroken when Marilyn died seven years ago, but it was so comforting to know hed tried his best. Professor Jayson says: The treatment of my patients is about their lives, not mine but sometimes there is a connection. For example, I was treating a woman with ovarian cancer whose child was in hospital with a serious illness. Tragically, her child passed away and I understood her feelings of loss and helplessness having been through such a loss myself. Professor Jayson, the son of a rheumatologist, was drawn to medicine as he was interested in chemistry, but fell into oncology when he did a placement at The Christie (and where he has worked for his entire career). I loved it. One consultant, Professor Derek Crowther, taught me so much mainly about the way to treat patients, seeing the patient as a person. From then on I knew it was what I wanted to do. When my patients pass away, I feel the loss very badly. I just want to give them a chance. Thats what helps set him apart, says Sarah. You know hell provide the best medical care. But its so much more. He makes the patient in our case, our lovely mum feel cared for and supported and it comforts us all to know that Mum had that kind of care. Shares in Tesla dropped sharply after the electric car maker reportedly begged suppliers for refunds to help it turn a profit. Suppliers claim to have been sent letters asking them to repay substantial amounts. Worry: Shares fell as much as 5 per cent amid growing concern over profitability and flamboyant billionaire owner Elon Musk (pictured) Tesla is burning through 760m every three months as it battles to produce the first mass-market electric car. Shares fell as much as 5 per cent in New York after the report in the Wall Street Journal, amid growing concern over profitability and flamboyant billionaire owner Elon Musk. The firm managed to hit its target of building 5,000 Model 3 cars a week at the start of this month but only after building a giant plastic tent in the car park of its California factory to house an extra production line. Meanwhile Musk said earlier this year that he was sleeping on the factory floor because he was so busy trying to ramp up production. The 47-year-old has recently caused alarm with his Twitter rants. He apologised for one in which he called a British diver who rescued the 12 boys trapped in a Thai cave a 'pedo'. An increase in lenders placing down valuations on properties could signal a growing anxiety over the health of the housing market, experts have warned. Leading mortgage brokers told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme there has been a significant rise in the number of homes being valued by banks and building societies at less than what buyers have agreed to pay. In the past two years, the number of sales resulting in a 'down valuation' has increased from one in 20 to one in five the highest level since the 2008 financial crash. The number of sales resulting in a down valuation has increased from one in 20 to one in five And experts warn this conservative behaviour may be a sign that banks and building societies are worried about house prices dropping in the near future. When a home is bought with a mortgage, the lender will put a valuation on the property to ensure the price paid represents the market value. While a homebuyer may be willing to pay over the market value to secure a property, this places the lender at extra risk. If the lender's valuation is less than the price the buyer has agreed to pay, this is known as a 'down valuation'. It can lead to buyers having to front thousands of extra pounds to secure their new home, or risk the property sale falling through. Online estate agent Emoov said that one in five of its sales now resulted in a down valuation, compared to fewer than one in 20 just two years ago. Emoov chief executive Russel Quirk told the BBC that the increase was the result of surveyors, who act on behalf of the lenders, 'covering their backs' in the event of a financial crash. 'Surveyors are prophesising a crash,' he said. 'The system is built to protect them.' The trade body for surveyors, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, insists however that all valuations are independent and accurate. 'It is questionable whether the term "down valuation" is an accurate reflection,' a RICS spokesperson told This is Money. Estate agents warn lenders are insulating themselves from a crash by undervaluing property 'The market value is based on comparable market evidence, usually a minimum of three sales transactions of similar properties in the local area, and also the professional's knowledge of the local market including supply and demand dynamics. 'For this reason, it is quite possible that the valuation for the lender the market value - does not match an asking price for a property that has been set by the seller or agent. 'When house prices are falling or rising at a faster rate than typical, as they are in some areas of the country, or when transaction levels are perhaps not what they might be, surveyors have to be very certain they can evidence the value on paper and always strictly follow valuation guidelines.' During March this year, 86 per cent of properties sold for less than the asking price the highest level since records began in 2013, according to the National Association of Estate Agents. Not everyone is convinced that a crash is on the horizon, however. Nick Morrey, of mortgage broker John Charcol, said: 'A financial crash. Really? I disagree. I predict a further reduction in the number of properties coming to market, which will restrict supply, which will reduce the chance of a crash. 'For Emoov to predict a financial crash I would question their macro-economic credentials and sources of data to make that assumption. 'I do not presume to have access to the same data as the Bank of England, but the signs I have seen so far are not for a financial crash for the banks or the economy. But that is not to say that cannot happen.' A UK Finance spokesperson said: 'Lenders have a responsibility to ensure that the value of property taken as security on mortgage loans is current and realistic. 'Lenders only use valuers who are trained professionals, who work to industry standards and base their valuation on comparable recent property sales. Valuers are under a duty to ensure that their valuations are as accurate as possible.' A 15-year-old Indonesian girl has been sentenced to six months in prison for having an abortion after being raped by her brother. Both the girl and her 18-year-old brother were convicted on Thursday by the District Court of Muara Bulian in Batanghari district in Jambi province, said Singgih Hermawan, deputy chief of the local police. The brother received a two-year prison sentence for having sex with a minor. The prosecutors originally demanded a one-year prison sentence for the girl, who had the illegal abortion when she was about six months pregnant Abortion is illegal in Indonesia, but is permitted in cases of rape, especially if the woman's life is at risk. However, the abortion must take place within 1 1/2 months of the woman becoming pregnant and must be performed by professionals. The girl had her abortion when she was six months' pregnant, according to a court official. Her mother is facing charges for aiding the abortion, having confessed to helping her daughter out of fear of being shamed by neighbours. Both the girl and her brother were convicted on Thursday at the District Court of Muara Bulian in Batanghari district in Jambi province of the Indonesian Island of Sumatra It was revealed in court that the girl had been raped eight times since September. In May, residents discovered a headless foetus near a palm oil plantation. Police made the arrests in June. The defendants and their lawyers accepted the sentences, which also ruled that the girl and her brother must undergo rehabilitation at the Institute for Special Education of Children. It was not clear whether the prosecutors, who had demanded a one-year prison sentence for the girl and seven years for her brother, would appeal the sentences. Former NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin was noticeably absent from a gala kicking off a yearlong celebration of the 50-year anniversary of the first moon landing, even though his nonprofit space education foundation is a sponsor and he typically is the star attraction. The black-tie Apollo Celebration Gala held under a Saturn V rocket at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on Saturday evening featured a panel discussion by astronauts, an awards ceremony and an auction of space memorabilia. Aldrin's expected absence comes just a month after he sued two of his adult children and a former business manager, accusing them of misusing his credit cards, transferring money from an account and slandering him by saying he has dementia. Only weeks before the lawsuit, Andrew and Jan Aldrin filed a petition claiming their 88-year-old father was suffering from memory loss, delusions, paranoia and confusion. Former NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin (above) was noticeably absent from a gala kicking off a yearlong celebration of the 50-year anniversary of the first moon landing Andrew Aldrin, Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin's son, is seen at the gala. He is involved in a legal dispute with his father after filing a petition claiming he is in 'cognitive decline' Andrew and Jan Aldrin, as well as business manager Christina Korp, are on the foundation's board and attended the gala. Aldrin's oldest son, James, isn't involved in the legal fight. Andrew Aldrin acknowledged his father's absence during the gala. 'We're sorry dad can't be here, I know some of you are disappointed,' Aldrin said. 'Ultimately, what we're about is creating the first generation of Martians.' Buzz Aldrin, along with Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins, was part of the Apollo 11 mission which landed the first two humans on the moon on July 20, 1969. On Saturday, hundreds of people attended the sold-out event, including British physicist Brian Cox, who presented Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson with the ShareSpace Foundation's Innovation award. Branson, whose company is developing a new generation of commercial spacecraft, said in a recorded video that the Apollo missions influenced his generation. The black-tie Apollo Celebration Gala is held under a Saturn V rocket at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on Saturday. Buzz Aldrin was noticeably absent 'Space is still hard, really hard. It still really matters,' Branson said. 'There would be no Virgin Galactic, no Virgin Orbit and no spaceship company had it not been for Apollo astronauts and the thousands of talented people who made their mission possible.' Dr. Carolyn Williams of the nonprofit From One Hand To AnOTHER received the foundation's Education award, and former Johnson Space Center director Gerry Griffin, a flight director for all of the crewed Apollo missions, was honored with the Pioneer award. 'It's very humbling, it kind of came out of the blue,' Griffin said. 'It is so neat to know that we've passed the torch that will let this next generation take us to this next step.' That next step, Griffin said, is a return of Americans to the Moon and, eventually, Mars - something former Apollo astronauts Walt Cunningham, Harrison Schmitt, Rusty Schweickart and Tom Stafford discussed during a conversation with Cox. Former Johnson Space Center Director Gerry Griffin, left, a flight director for all of the crewed Apollo missions, sits next to Apollo astronauts Harrison Schmitt, Rusty Schweickart, Walt Cunningham and Tom Stafford, from second from left, during a panel discussion at the gala 'We're sort of going through a second door here. The door isn't all the way open - we haven't gone all the way through it - but it's cracked open,' Schweickart, who flew as the lunar module pilot on Apollo 9, told The Associated Press. 'Space is going to be much less expensive to go to, and that's going to open up not just opportunities for people to fly, but because of the decreased cost, real opportunities for innovators to generate new ideas and to do things that have never been done before.' Aldrin's ShareSpace Foundation is one of the sponsors of the annual gala, which raises money for Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics - or STEAM education - and Astronaut Scholarship Foundation scholarships. Renowned Brazilian pop artist Romero Britto donated artwork from his 'Buzz Aldrin Space Series' for the auction, which also included a behind-the-scenes tour of Virgin Galactic in California and autographed space memorabilia. Tickets for the event ranged from $750 to $2,500 per person. A Seattle police officer has been killed in the line of duty after he was hit by another cop while trying to deploy spike stripes to stop a fleeing suspect. Diego Moreno was attempting to deploy the spikes at an intersection early Sunday morning to flatten the suspect's tires when he was hit by a police vehicle. The officer who hit Moreno then crashed into three other cars that were parked at a nearby intersection and was seriously injured in the collision. Kent Police Department officer Diego Moreno was attempting to deploy spike stripes to stop a fleeing suspect when he was struck and killed by another cop in his department The officer who hit Moreno then went on to crash into three other cars that were parked at a nearby intersection and was seriously injured in the collision. Pictured is his car He was taken to a Seattle hospital and was in critical condition on Sunday morning. Kent Police Department officers began chasing the red pickup truck after witnesses said it was involved in a 2am shooting in a parking lot. The officers followed the truck onto State Route 516 when it pulled a U-turn and headed for the pursuing officers. That's when Moreno reportedly exited his police vehicle and attempted to deploy the spike strikes before he was struck and killed. The officer who hit Moreno was taken to a Seattle hospital and is in critical condition Kent Police Department officers began chasing a red pickup truck (pictured) after witnesses said it was involved in a 2am shooting. One suspect was arrested after it crashed Pictured is the scene where Moreno was struck and killed by the police vehicle on Sunday A short time later the truck crashed and one person was arrested, according to KIRO 7. 'Make no question about this, were it not for the actions of this suspect or suspects, this officer would be alive today,' Captain Rod Mead said at a news conference following Moreno's death. 'It's directly because of the suspect or suspect's actions that led to the officer's death.' Moreno, who is originally from Venezuela, was a decorated eight-year veteran of the Kent Police Department. He reportedly leaves behind a wife and two children. Moreno, who is originally from Venezuela, was a decorated eight-year veteran of the Kent Police Department Moreno, who served in the civil disturbance unit, leaves behind a wife and two children Pictured are multiple police agencies preparing to escort Moreno on Sunday morning 'It is with the sorrow of a million heartbreaks that I announce the death of my beautiful husband Diego,' Shelly Moreno wrote on social media. 'He was killed in the line of duty last night. Thank you to everyone who has been and will be at our side.' Moreno served in the civil disturbance unit, and also worked as a hostage negotiator and defensive tactics instructor. He was given the Chief's Award for Exceptional Duty in 2016 after he saved an elderly woman from a fire. Moreno also worked as a hostage negotiator and defensive tactics instructor for the Kent Police Department Luke Lazarus was in May acquitted of the alleged 2013 rape of an 18-year-old virgin in a Kings Cross alleyway Accused rapists who unreasonably but 'honestly believe there is consent' should be found not guilty, according to the NSW Bar Association. The state government commissioned a review of consent laws in May after Luke Lazarus was acquitted of the alleged 2013 rape of an 18-year-old virgin in a Kings Cross alleyway. Under current NSW legislation, a person who doesn't have 'reasonable grounds' for believing there is consent is deemed to have knowledge of its absence. Lazarus was in 2015 found guilty of raping Saxon Mullins, but was granted a retrial and acquitted after it was ruled his belief in consent was reasonable. In its submission to the Law Reform Commission, the NSW Bar Association, which represents the state's barristers, called for amendments to sexual consent laws. Scroll down for video Lazarus was in 2015 found guilty of raping Saxon Mullins, but was granted a retrial and acquitted after it was ruled his belief in consent was reasonable 'A person should not be liable to conviction for sexual assault in circumstances where he or she honestly believes that there is consent,' the submission reads. The submission noted that when a jury finds there are no reasonable grounds for believing in consent, it would in most cases conclude the accused knew the victim did not consent. Bar Association President Arthur Moses told the Sydney Morning Herald sexual consent is a difficult area of law involving 'many complex human and criminal law factors'. Lazarus claimed he believed Ms Mullins 'wanted to be there' during their encounter The Association said it did not support changing the law to reflect provisions in Tasmania, which states a person does not consent unless they 'say or do anything to communicate consent'. The Police Association of NSW said it supports reforms which 'require persons who engage in sexual activity to actively ensure sexual partners consent to all activity engaged in'. The NSW Law Society said it does not support any changes to consent laws. Lazarus broke his silence over his acquittal in an interview with 2GB's Ben Fordham in May, claiming he believed Ms Mullins 'wanted to be there' during their encounter. 'Her physical body language and everything she did physically told me that she wanted to be there,' he said. 'I witnessed in front of me a woman participating in sex. 'So if I'm a man assessing a situation and I'm watching a woman not only consent but participate as she has admitted then I'd ask you, how is a man to know that a woman is not consenting when she is participating?' CCTV from the Soho nightclub showed Lazarus taking Ms Mullins by the hand and directing her outside Mr Lazarus said in the interview Ms Mullins never used the word 'no' while they were having sex. CCTV from the Soho nightclub, which Lazarus' father owned and has since shut down, showed Lazarus taking Ms Mullins by the hand and directing her outside. Ms Mullins said she was ordered to get 'on all fours and arch her back' against a wall behind the club just four minutes after they met. 'I thought just do what he says and then you can go... And he had anal sex with me,' she told the ABC. Ms Mullins said she was ordered to get 'on all fours and arch her back' against a wall behind the club Three months after the incident Lazarus was charged with having sex without consent. In 2015, Lazarus was initially found guilty after a trial by jury and was sentenced to least three years' jail. He served 11 months before being granted a fresh trial after a successful appeal. Lazarus was in May acquitted of the alleged rape. Popular U.S. comedian and host of the top rating 'The Daily Show' Trevor Noah has come under fire for a comedy routine where he called Aboriginal women unattractive. Footage of his stand-up show, from 2013, emerged ahead of his Australian tour, which starts in Melbourne next month. 'All women of every race can be beautiful,' Noah tells an audience in the footage which emerged online overnight. 'And I know some of you are sitting there now going, 'Oh Trevor, yeah, but I've never seen a beautiful Aborigine', he jokes. Comedian and The Daily Show host Trevor Noah (pictured) has come under fire for a comedy routine in 2013 targeting Aboriginal women as unattractive 'Yeah, but you know what you say? You say ''yet'', that's what you say; ''yet''. Because you haven't seen all of them, right?' 'Plus it's not always about looks, maybe Aborigine women do special things, maybe they'll just like, jump on top of you,' Noah, 34, concludes, before imitating the sound of a didgeridoo while inferring oral sex. Noah, who took on the role as The Daily Show host three years ago from Jon Stewart, apologised for his comments on Twitter on Monday. 'After visiting Australia's Bunjilaka museum and learning about aboriginal history first hand I vowed never to make a joke like that again. And I haven't. I'll make sure the clip from 2013 is not promoted in any way,' he wrote. The clip, which was uploaded to YouTube under the title of 'Women of all Race are Beautiful', has since been removed by The Daily Show's David Meyer, who filed a copyright complaint against the video. However, Daily Mail Australia has obtained the original footage. Social media has erupted with calls for the comedian's upcoming Australian tour to be boycotted. 'He grossly sexualises and objectifies First Nations Australian women for a 'joke',' Katelyn Jones of the Feminism & Decolonisation Facebook page said. 'He perpetuated incredibly harmful stereotypes ... that Indigenous women aren't beautiful, that Indigenous women are only good for their bodies; and Indigenous women are over-sexualised sex starved beings,' Ms Jones said. Others said Noah's comments were 'unacceptable' and 'perpetrating and encouraging racial abuse.' 'For such a social justice warrior, your race baiting isn't smart or witty at all. It's simply racist. Our beautiful black women shouldn't be treated like the punchline of a joke,' wrote one user on Twitter. 'I can't bring myself to watch that, I'm so tired of Aboriginal women being used as punchlines for cheap laughs from talentless hacks,' another person said. 'We deserve so much better and I hope this guy falls and fades into obscurity, he doesn't deserve a platform if he's going to punch down like this.' 'I know some of you are sitting there now going, 'Oh Trevor, yeah, but I've never seen a beautiful Aborigine', Noah joked The South African-born comedian who hosts the Emmy Award-winning show, caused controversy with previous tasteless jokes in relation to women, Jewish people and rapper Chris Brown. 'You show me half my jokes from even two years ago, three years agoI hate them,' Noah told GQ in 2015. 'Because you see, like, a young version of yourself. You're like, ''Why would you say that? You idiot! That makes no sense.'' Or, 'That's just stupid.' Or, ''Ahh, I can't believe I said that about a woman''.' 'You should not like what you did back then, because that shows that you've grown. If you're still doing it, that's a scarier place to be,' he said. The comedian is set to touch down in Australia next month for a five-date tour beginning August 23 and including Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, and Sydney. Residents in some of Australia's biggest cities woke to freezing conditions on Monday as clear skies and light winds courtesy of a cold front sent temperatures plummeting. Camden, on Sydney's south-western outskirts, dipped to a frosty low of -2.9 degrees, but the temperature actually felt like -5.1 degrees thanks to the wind chill factor. The temperature in nearby Badgerys Creek plunged to -1.8 degrees, which felt more like -4.7 degrees. Scroll down for video A combination of clear skies and light winds from a recent cold front sent temperatures plummeting in Sydney and Canberra on Monday morning. Pictured, a synoptic chart of Australia from 7am on Monday Residents in some of Australia's biggest cities woke to an extra cool morning on Monday, with Canberra recording its coldest morning of the year (stock image) In Sydney's centre, the mercury hit a low of 5.4 degrees, which felt like 0.9 degrees, making it one of the city's coldest mornings this year. Meanwhile, Canberra woke to its coldest morning of the year on Monday. An icy low of -7.4 degrees was recorded at the city's airport, just eclipsing the 7.3 degrees residents were forced to endure on the Monday a week prior. Melbourne was not as cold, with temperatures in the city dropping to 8.4 degrees, 'The reason why we can have these really cold minimum temperatures come down to three factors,' Gabrielle Woodhouse, forecaster at the Bureau of Meteorology, told Daily Mail Australia. 'The first is clear skies, the second is light winds and a cold air mass. Sydney residents had to rug up as temperatures in several parts of the city dropped to below zero on Monday (stock image) Residents can expect temperatures to improve slightly in coming days, thanks to increased cloud cover (stock images) 'The third one is usually what we have once the cold front moves through, we have that cold air. 'Over the weekend we did see quite cold mornings.' Sydney and Canberra residents can expect slightly warmer mornings in the coming days, with Ms Woodhouse saying increased cloud cover will act as a blanket. Sydney will reach a low of 10 degrees on Tuesday and Canberra will narrowly escape the freezing conditions, with a low of zero expected. But temperatures will drop again later in the week, although they will not be as cool as Monday, Ms Woodhouse said. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for damaging winds across parts of Victoria. Pictured, a fisherman prepares as a large wave crashes over Mornington Pier in Melbourne on Monday Wind gusts of 106km/h were recorded in parts of Victoria on Monday morning. Pictured, waves crashing over Mornington Pier on Monday The Bureau of Meteorology has also issued a severe weather warning for the New South Wales Snowy Mountains. 'Damaging winds, averaging 80 to 90 km/h are likely above 1900 metres in the Alpine area on Monday evening,' the Bureau said. There is also a warning in place for damaging winds across the Central, South West, North Central and parts of East Gippsland, North East, West and South Gippsland and Wimmera Forecast Districts, in Victoria. 'Locations which may be affected include Warrnambool, Ballarat, Geelong, Melbourne, Wonthaggi, Bacchus Marsh and the Alpine resorts,' the Bureau said. 'The highest wind gusts (Monday) has been 106km/h at Mount William and 96km/h at Melbourne Airport.' Telco customers are being forced to wait up to two months to have connection issues resolved - with Telstra ranking among the country's worst providers. It follows a new report which was prompted after a record number of customer service complaints towards networks last year. The survey, which was conducted by the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network, also slammed Telstra as a 'low-performing provider'. Telco customers are being forced to waiting up to two months for their connection to be fixed - with Telstra in particular slammed as 'a low-performing provider' It follows a report from the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network which revealed telco customers waited 13 days on average to have issues resolved and less than 40 per cent of the major providers' customers were satisfied with the service On average it took 13 days for consumers to have issues resolved, but this waiting game was extended up to two months for more complicated problems. And among an increasingly saturated provider market, it revealed the country's biggest phone companies, Optus and Telstra, are becoming less efficient than most of their cheaper rivals. In fact, more than half of TPG, iiNet, Amaysim, iPrimus customers said they'd had a positive experience. This was compared to only 40 per cent of Optus and Telstra customers who felt the same way. The survey also showed consumers routinely had to contact their telco multiple times and found it tough to escalate an issue to a formal complaint. However, customers of the same brand weren't always on equal footing for how long they would have to wait. Those who dropped into their telco store in person had issues resolved the quickest - typically with eight days - while those who complained by phone often had to wait more than 23 Those who dropped into their telco store in person had issues resolved the quickest - typically with eight days - while those who complained by phone often had to wait more than 23. According to ACCAN chief executive Teresa Corbin, the results from the report leave room for improvement in an increasingly customer-centric industry. 'It's time to shift the balance back to telcos so that customers are not carrying such heavy costs to maintain their essential telecommunications services,' she said. 'Nearly half the complaints received by the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman last year identified customer service as an issue, so we know it's a source of considerable frustration.' Last year, a record 158,016 complaints made to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman prompted the need for a report - with over 76,932 of those lodged involving customer service issues. A woman visiting a Maryland beach on Sunday was accidentally impaled in the chest by a beach umbrella, making it the second incident of its kind in a week. Ocean City spokeswoman Jessica Waters said it happened shortly after 3pm on the beach near 54th Street in the Maryland resort town. According to Ocean City Beach Patrol Captain Butch Arbin, a gust of wind yanked an unattended rental umbrella from the sand and then drove its sharp tip into the victim's chest. A 46-year-old woman from Pennsylvania had to be airlifted from an Ocean City, Maryland, beach on Sunday after being impaled in the chest by a beach umbrella The rental umbrella left unattended on the beach near 54th Street (pictured) was picked up by a gust of wind and driven into the victim's chest Firefighters who were summoned to the scene cut the wooden shaft of the umbrella, but left a small piece inside the woman's body pending her transfer to a hospital, reported the station WMDT. Meanwhile, first responders secured the beach umbrella so it would not harm anyone else. The injured beach goer, identified only as a 46-year-old resident of Pennsylvania, was then flown to Peninsula Regional medical Center on board a Maryland State Police helicopter. On July 16, 67-year-old Margaret Reynolds, a tourist from London, was impaled in the ankle by a beach umbrella at Seaside Heights on the Jersey Shore (pictured) The woman was conscious, and first responders said her injury did not appear to be life-threatening. She was expected to undergo tests for doctors to determine the best way to remove the tip of the umbrella pole from her chest. On July 16, a week before the freak accident in Maryland, 67-year-old Margaret Reynolds, a tourist from London, was impaled by a beach umbrella at Seaside Heights on the Jersey Shore in New Jersey. Authorities said part of the umbrella pierced Reynolds' ankle after being driven along by the force of the wind. Doug Gurr, UK manager for the US online giant, issued the warning on Friday Amazon's UK chief is facing a backlash today after claiming there could be civil unrest within two weeks if Britain leaves the EU with no deal. Doug Gurr issued the extraordinary warning at a meeting on Friday organised by Brexit secretary Dominic Raab. Gurr, UK manager for the US online giant, implied there could be riots and protests when he made the remarks in front of representatives of Britain's biggest businesses. Attendees were said to have been shocked by his assessment, with some expressing scepticism. And Brexiteers were incensed, suggesting the firm was worried it would be made to pay more tax after the UK leaves the EU. A spokesman for Amazon refused to confirm or deny the remarks. But the spokesman told the Times: 'Like any business, we consider a wide range of scenarios in planning discussions so that we're prepared to continue serving customers and small businesses who count on Amazon, even if those scenarios are very unlikely. 'This is not specific to any one issue it's the way we plan for any number of issues around the world.' Dover MP Charlie Elphicke said: 'Out of Europe we will be able to take back control of our tax system - including making @amazon collect UK VAT as they are now required to do in Australia. 'No wonder they want us to sign up to stop us doing that.' Tory former minister Robert Halfon said: 'More likely to be civil unrest when Amazon delivery drones drop packages in wrong garden/or front drive.' Fellow Conservative Marcus Fysh said: 'Time to make @amazon contribute to rather than asset strip the UK retail environment.' In his first television interview since becoming Brexit secretary earlier this month, Mr Raab accused Brussels yesterday of 'irresponsibly' ramping up pressure in withdrawal negotiations. Mr Raab was scathing about comments from Brussels stating that a no deal scenario would mean there would be no specific arrangements in place for UK citizens living on the continent, or for EU migrants in Britain after withdrawal. 'I think that's a rather irresponsible thing to be coming from the other side. We ought to be trying to reassure citizens on the Continent and also here,' he told The Andrew Marr Show on BBC One. Tory MPs gave a withering response to the dire warnings from Amazon's UK chief Brexit secretary Dominic Raab (left) and EU Chief Brexit Negotiator Michel Barnier shake hands at Brexit talks last Thursday 'There is obviously an attempt to try and ramp up the pressure.' Mr Raab said that he would return to Brussels for talks on Thursday and try everything he could to get the best deal. Asked if reports the Government was planning to stockpile food for a no deal outcome were true, Mr Raab said: 'No. That kind of selective snippet that makes it into the media I think is to the extent that the public pay attention to it I think is unhelpful.' Strictly Come Dancing star Shirley Ballas (pictured) was moved to tears when she found out her ancestors were sold as slaves on the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are? Strictly Come Dancing star Shirley Ballas was moved to tears when she found out her ancestors were sold as slaves. She was always intrigued by rumours her paternal grandfather had mixed race heritage and decided to sign up for the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are? But things got emotional when the 57-year-old discovered her four-times great grandmother was sold as a child slave in South Africa after being snatched from Madagascar. She said: 'I came on this journey to find out if I had any black heritage and Ive learnt so much about my ancestry taken from Madagascar into slavery. 'Just this whole struggle of this family and still they survived. 'I must have got a gene from those women of a survival instinct cos being a child on a housing estate with a single family. My own mother is strong and I think that my own mother got that will from her ancestry and Ive also got it from my mothers side and my fathers side. And Ill never forget this journey'. She uncovered family death records that revealed her great-great-great-great-grandmother on her father's side, Caroline Otto, arrived in South Africa in the early 19th century. Her death certificate, dated 1848, stated she was 'Malay', a term used to refer to non-white Muslims. It also said she was born in 'Malagas', which refers to the island nation of Madagascar. The BBC One documentary saw her uncover that Caroline took on the name Otto from a family she worked for in Cape Town. She had three children and eventually converted from Islam to Christianity. Mother-of-one Shirley welled up when she found out more about her roots. Her father George walked out on the family when she was two, but his father, George Rich (pictured left) was rumoured to be an 'olive-skinned' bare knuckle boxer with black ancestry. Her maternal grandmother Clara Sutton (pictured right) moved to the US where she ended up in a psychiatric hospital Her father George walked out on the family when she was two, but his father, George Rich, was rumoured to be an 'olive-skinned' bare knuckle boxer with black ancestry. She confessed he was sometimes called racist names, which used to upset her. But his and Caroline's lineage weren't the only ones she discovered on the show. Her maternal grandmother was a woman called Clara Sutton, whose husband George died of cancer at a young age. She was left unable to care for their three children and they were taken from her by their grandmother. She married her second husband, Arthur in 1919 and adopted a daughter called Dorothy after moving to Boston, USA. They later divorced, with Clara claiming he was abusive, beating her and drinking heavily. She ended up in a psychiatric unit where she spent 17 years before her death aged 66 in 1947. She had developed a fatal brain condition as a result of syphilis. The story about her grandmother Clara moving to America reminded Shirley of her young self. She split from her husband of five years at the age of 23 to try and make it in the States. She moved to Texas after marrying her first husband at the tender age of 18. Shirley Ballas is pictured in her dancing hey day When she lived in the US she met her second husband Corky Ballas, and had a son called Mark, now 32, before moving back to the UK. She split from him in 2007. Who Do You Think You Are? made Shirley reflect on her own upbringing, which was not plain sailing, with little money and no father figure. She fell in love with dance during her Saturday morning lessons. Her brother battled depression and killed himself in December 2003. Shirley raised his daughter, 10, as her own. Speaking about her happiness with Mr Ballas, she told Weekend magazine: 'There's a line in the musical Jersey Boys, 'Everybody remembers a story how they need to remember it.' 'I choose to remember we had an amazing child together in Mark, a great career together and I have great in-laws, actually the best. I'm still close to his family.' But then her brother's suicide turned her world upside down. She said: 'He was the strongest person I knew but he got a little bit down on his luck and into a place where he couldn't cope with life.' She became head judge on Strictly Come Dancing in 2017, replacing Len Goodman after 12 years. Who Do You Think You Are? will air on BBC One on July 30 at 9pm. A former priest has revealed he was paid 30,000 to murder an anti-Putin Russian journalist in a case that shocked the world. The death of Arkady Babchenko in Ukraine caused a sensation in May when it was revealed the assassination had been faked. It was staged to get more information about a mysterious group paying hitmen to kill both him and a number of other people. Former monk Oleksiy Tsymbaliuk was paid 30,000 to murder an anti-Putin journalist Arkady Babchenko speaks to Panorama about how he faked his own death to save his life Now, Oleksiy Tsymbaliuk, a former monk and Orthodox priest, has spoken about how he was approached by an old contact and asked to carry out the murder in the reporters home. Tsymbaliuk told BBCs Panorama that killing a person is not difficult at all but that he decided to tip off the SBU Ukraines intelligence service. He [the contact] told me that there was a hit list, he explained. And that there were people willing to finance this being carried out and would I be interested in the job. I of course agreed. When asked if he planned to go through with it, he said: Well of course not. Whether you agree or not doesnt matter. If you refuse a request like this you probably end up dead. Mr Tsymbaliuk has spoken about how he was approached by an old contact and asked to carry out the murder in the reporters home The death of Mr Babchenko (pictured) in Ukraine caused a sensation in May when it was revealed the assassination had been faked The former monk then told the intelligence services, who told him they wanted to let the plot unfold to try to trap the perpetrators. Vasyl Hrytsak, the head of the SBU, told the programme: We were told there were several units in Ukraine and that this assassination is just a test run for others. Only by staging this crime, could we get the list of targets. Russia's President Vladimir Putin is pictured at a meeting in Moscow last Thursday The operation saw a make-up artist called in and pigs blood used to make the crime scene look realistic. The fake assassin then made his entry. Mr Babchenko was reported to have been shot three times in the back in the stairwell of his apartment block in Kiev. A photograph of his body was then released to the worlds media. Shortly after, the priest was rigged up with a secret camera to go to a meeting and collect his money. Speaking of the moment he saw the fake murder scene, Tsymbaliuk said: Everything looked very real, the make-up people did a great job. Mr Babchenko defended the tactics used by Ukraines security services, saying: At first I just wanted to grab my family and fleeBut then it became clear to me, why should we run? We have work to do. The SBU said when they arrested Borys Herman, the man who hired the former monk, they found a hit list part of a raft of evidence they argue proves Russias security services were ultimately behind the plot. Russia has denied Ukraines ridiculous allegations. The Fake Murder That Fooled The World is on BBC1 at 8.30pm tonight. President Donald Trump has doubled down on claims that Russian election meddling claims are a hoax, in yet another reversal on the issue following his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign?,' Trump tweeted on Sunday evening as he returned to the White House from spending the weekend in Bedminster, New Jersey. 'Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!' Trump continued. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk from Marine One to board Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in New Jersey on Sunday It is unclear whether the 'hoax' referred to claims that Russia meddled in the election, or claims that the Trump campaign colluded in those efforts in some way. While Trump has consistently denied his campaign had any illicit ties to the Russian government, his statements have varied about Russia's responsibility for leaking stolen DNC emails. He drew universal condemnation from Democrats and not a few Beltway Republicans when, at his meeting with Putin in Helsinki last week, he said he said 'I dont see any reason why it would be Russia' in reference to election meddling. The following day he said he had misspoke, and the word should have been 'wouldn't'. Trump spent the weekend with Melania at his golf resort in New Jersey, and they are seen exiting Marine One at Morristown Municipal Airport on the way back to DC on Sunday Trump and the First Lady cross the tarmac toward Air Force One on Sunday in New Jersey Trump waves as he boards Air Force One en route to Joint Base Andrews on Sunday In the days since, a string of top Obama administration officials have joined with several high-ranking Republicans to condemn Trump's approach at Helsinki. 'The great mystery is why the president has not spoken up for our country,' said former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at OZY Fest in Manhattan on Saturday. 'We saw that most clearly in this most recent meeting with Putin. We don't know what was said in the room with just the two of them.' 'This idea that we are somehow not sure where our own president stands is deeply disturbing,' Clinton continued. Clinton also implied that Trump was a patsy getting played by Putin. 'I don't think there is any doubt that Vladimir Putin has a very clear strategy,' she said. 'As a former KGB spy, he is quite adept at reading people and knowing how to manipulate them.' Hillary Clinton blasted Trump's meeting with Putin at a festival in Manhattan on Saturday John Kerry also lashed out at Trump from his summer home on Martha's Vineyard on Sunday Another former Obama secretary of state, John Kerry, spoke out about the Helsinki meeting from his summer home on Martha's Vineyard in an interview with Face The Nation that aired on Sunday. 'I found it shocking. I found it to be one of the most disgraceful, remarkable moments of kowtowing to a foreign leader by an American president that anyone has ever witnessed,' Kerry said. 'And it wasn't just that it was a kind of surrender. It's that it is dangerous. The president stood there and did not defend our country. He stood there and did not defend the truth, he did not defend the facts,' he continued. For his part, Trump said on Friday that Barack Obama, under whom Clinton and Kerry served as secretaries of state, was the true 'patsy' in Russian relations. 'Look at all the things that I have done. Nobody else did what I have done,' Trump told CNBC. 'Obama didn't do it. Obama was a patsy for Russia. He was a total patsy.' Trump has blamed Obama for any Russian meddling, saying he was a 'total patsy for Russia' Earlier on Sunday, Trump reacted to the release of top secret warrant applications to surveil his former campaign advisor Carter Page, claiming the documents show an illicit FBI scheme to spy on his campaign. 'Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC,' he said in a tweet, referring to the Democratic National Committee. 'Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam!' Referring to the Carter Page documents, he said: 'As usual they are ridiculously heavily redacted but confirm with little doubt that the Department of 'Justice' and FBI misled the courts. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam!' The 412 pages, mostly heavily redacted, included surveillance applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and warrants surrounding the investigation into Page. 'The FBI believes that Page has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian Government,' the surveillance application filed in October 2016 said. The documents released include the initial application and renewal warrants filed in 2017 after Trump took office. A gunman arrested for murder after storming a Trader Joe's store in Los Angeles and killing an employee had earlier shot his grandmother several times over a feud about TVs and his girlfriend. Gene Evin Atkins, 28, remains behind bars in lieu of $2 million bail, according to police. He is accused of going on a shooting spree on Saturday, which began when he shot his grandmother several times and wounded his girlfriend, who he forced into his car, and led police on a chase before he crashed into a pole outside Trader Joe's. Atkins is said to have shot the 76-year-old at their South Los Angeles home after she complained about his having too many television sets on, a cousin, Charlene Egland, said. Gene Evin Atkins, 28, (pictured) remained behind bars on Sunday in lieu of $2 million bail, according to police Mary Elizabeth Madison was taken to a hospital in critical condition but Egland said she underwent surgery and was improving Sunday. Madison raised Atkins from the age of seven and he had never been violent toward her but recently had seemed upset and distant, Egland said. 'He didn't seem right to me,' Egland said. For the past two or three weeks, the two had argued over Atkins' girlfriend, who was staying at their home, Egland said. 'She didn't want the girl over there anymore,' Egland said. Egland said she was walking toward the house when she heard about six gunshots. Another cousin, who lives in the house, came running from the porch and shouted to Egland, 'I think Gene shot my mama!' Police said Atkins' girlfriend was grazed in the head by a bullet, but the injury is not life threatening. Egland ran to call 911 but Atkins allegedly forced his wounded girlfriend into his grandmother's car and drove away. Atkins who held up to 50 people hostage at Trader Joe's and allegedly killed a woman inside surrendered to police in handcuffs on Saturday evening Atkins (pictured being taken for medical treatment after his arrest) is accused of going on a shooting spree on Saturday, which began when he shot his grandmother seven times, and wounded his girlfriend, who he forced into his car, and led police on a chase before he crashed into a pole outside Trader Joes A stolen-car device helped police track it to Hollywood but Atkins refused to pull over, police said. During the chase, Atkins fired at officers, blowing out the car's back window, and there was more shooting before the car crashed into a pole outside the Trader Joe's, followed by another shootout with police, Police Chief Michel Moore said. Trader Joe's employee Melyda Corado, 27, was killed in the crossfire. Police did not provide any additional details on Sunday and it remained unclear whether she died from police gunfire or was killed by the gunman. Officer Drake Madison, a Los Angeles police spokesman, said Atkins had been licensed to work as a security guard, but his license expired in November 2017, according to state records. It was not clear whether the particular license he possessed would have allowed him to legally carry a firearm. He was booked Sunday on suspicion of murder. Pictured: Mely Corado, the Trader Joe's employee who was killed in the store when the suspect ran in on Saturday afternoon The incident began when Atkins got into an argument with his grandmother about 1.30pm, police said. He shot her several times and stole her 2015 Toyota Camry. The man's grandmother was transported to hospital in 'grave condition', has undergone several surgeries and remains in a critical condition, LAPD Chief Michael Moore said. He fled with a woman believed to be his girlfriend, who was 'forcibly taken' with him, police said. She was also injured but is expected to survive. They arrived outside the supermarket at just before 3.30pm. Police chased Atkins from Hollywood into Silverlake, where he crashed outside the shop, shot his girlfriend, and ran inside. Police rescued the 20-year-old woman left inside. Law enforcement sources told the Los Angeles Times the woman is his girlfriend, and he had fired at officers, who fired back, before he ran inside the supermarket. Pictured: The suspect, who is 28 years old, allegedly shot his grandmother as many as seven times before holding as many as 50 people in a Trader Joe's hostage Pictured: The suspect (pictured center), handed himself into police just after 6.30pm after a three-hour siege Police swarmed the Trader Joe's in Silverlake on Saturday afternoon after the gunman barricaded himself inside Customers and employees frantically dove for cover and barricaded themselves inside storerooms and bathrooms as bullets fired by police shattered the store's glass doors. As he heard gunfire, Sean Gerace, who was working in the back of the supermarket, grabbed several of his co-workers and the group made their way into an upstairs storage area. He grabbed a folding ladder and tossed it out a window, helping his colleagues escape to safety, he told KNBC-TV. 'I grabbed an emergency ladder, barricaded the hallway, grabbed a weapon, put the ladder out the window and just tried to get the attention of the SWAT officer,' Gerace told the television station. Devin Field said on Twitter he was about to enter the Trader Joe's when the man's car crashed into a street lamp outside. 'I was walking in when he crashed into the entrance and got out shooting,' he said. 'I ducked behind the four-foot retaining wall in the parking lot and three LAPD officers ran over, knelt behind it right next to me and opened fire.' Mayor Eric Garcetti said a woman had been shot dead inside the store Pictured: A young victim is taken away from the store in a wheelchair with a bandage on their knee an Hostages were seen escaping from a ladder near the front of the store (pictured) A police officer with a helmet is seen carrying a child away from the store Field says others who had been evacuated said the gunman 'walked in shooting', demanded a jumper and a phone, and moved the remaining hostages to the back of the store. Law enforcement spent hours working to evacuate employees and customers, including small children, with at least one person seen fleeing with injuries. Heavily armed officers in riot gear stood along the side of the store and used mirrors to look inside as hostage negotiators tried to coax Atkins into freeing his 40 to 50 hostages and surrendering. Meanwhile, police removed the female passenger in the car, who had a graze wound, from the scene. Mayor Garcetti confirmed to reporters there were initially 40-50 customers and employees in the store with him. 'A slow and steady stream of people who had hidden and were helped by LAPD to escape, or people who were released by the hostage taker [were seen leaving the store],' he said. The gunman was injured in his left arm during his shootout with police, and NBC reported towards the end of the hostage situation, people he had forcibly taken were helping him with his wounds. An employee told him there was 'blood all over the floor', but they did not know where it'd come from. He says another employee said one Trader Joe's worker was shot in the arm. About three hours later, Atkins agreed to handcuff himself and walked out the front door, surrounded by four of the hostages. Pictured: A Trader Joe's employee is comforted after escaping the supermarket where the man barricaded himself with hostages A Trader Joe's cart left by a customer who fled a hostage situation in the store sits in a parking lot nearby Corado, who was killed, had worked at Trader Joe's since 2014. LAPD sources told ABC7 Mely was the store manager. On Sunday, grieving family members, co-workers and customers remembered Corado as lively, hardworking and always smiling. A makeshift memorial of flowers, candles and notes grew on the sidewalk outside of the store on Sunday. 'I'm sad to say she didn't make it. My baby sister. My world,' her brother, Albert Corado said on Twitter. Trader Joe's said the store - known by customers as a neighborhood hangout with great customer service - would remain closed for the foreseeable future to give their employees time to process and grieve. 'Yesterday marks the saddest day in Trader Joe's history as we mourn the loss of one our own,' company spokeswoman Kenya Friend-Daniel said in a statement. 'Our thoughts are with her family, and our Crew Members and customers who experienced this terrifying and unimaginable ordeal.' North Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan Less than a third of country residents believe the police in their area are doing a good job, stark survey results reveal. Frustrated rural dwellers fear that serious crime is hidden by a picture postcard view of the countryside, researchers were told. Of particular concern was the trend in residents deciding not to report crime in the first place as they did not believe police would take any action. Just 27 per cent of those in rural areas are satisfied with local policing, according to the latest figures from the annual National Rural Crime Survey. Responding to the results last night, North Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan who chairs the National Rural Crime Network said the findings were stark and worrying, adding that too many resources were being taken from rural areas to fund towns. She said: Crime is up. Anger is up. Frustration is up. Trust is down. Those rating the police as good is down. With 10.3million people living in rural areas, these are trends we can no longer ignore. This report needs to be listened to when decisions on funding are being made. We can no longer continue to see funding being sucked from rural areas to urban. The lack of trust in local policing comes as official statistics revealed that there was a major increase in the concentration of robberies in rural areas. In March, robberies in Durham rose by almost 50 per cent and in North Wales by 68 per cent. In Cumbria, they were up by 30 per cent and in Warwickshire by 48 per cent. Meanwhile, burglaries were up by 18 per cent in Bedfordshire, 19 per cent in Cambridgeshire and 17 per cent in Suffolk. The National Rural Crime Survey also named some of the more common concerns held by residents related to crime such as fly tipping and speeding, where the police have a shared responsibility along with local authorities and other agencies. Some 20,000 country residents across England and Wales were questioned for the survey, which was commissioned by the National Rural Crime Network. More than two-thirds of farmers and rural-specific business owners have been a victim of crime over the past 12 months, it found. In a self-commissioned report earlier this year the National Farmers Union (NFU) said that their members regularly experience fear, threats of violence and intimidation and said that unique rural policing challenges were not being taken into consideration. Farmers have long voiced their concerns about the lack of police funding allocated to more rural areas, with the NFU saying they have been left behind. Police funding the so-called funding formula is how the Government decides the budgets for each police force. Because each force has different areas of expertise and challenges, allocating funds can be a difficult and fraught process. The report made ten recommendations, including urging chief constables to change the way rural areas are policed, ensuring the reporting of crimes is easier, and doing more to help rural businesses prevent crime. As Sydney housing prices soar out of reach, many people are looking for new ways to crack the unrelenting market and moving to the outskirts of the city. Bundeena is one suburb offering relief for people willing to change their scenery with a median house price of less than one million dollars at $955,000. The catch: It's is located 29km south of Sydney's central business district. This means it's a about an hour-and-a-half drive south of the city. Scroll down for video Located 29 kilometres south of Sydney CBD, Bundeena (pictured) is offering relief for those looking to buy property The seaside village has a median home owner price of less than one million dollars at $955,000 Despite the distance, the location offers residents access to the opportunities of city life while also allowing them to enjoy quieter moments by the seaside. Bundeena locals can get a ferry to Sydney's Cronulla in 30 minutes as well as a 25 minute drive to Sutherland station where trains run frequently into the city. Shellie Boswell, principal of Ray White Bundeena, claims that you can leave Sydney at five o'clock and arrive at Bundeena by six o'clock, domain.com.au reported. Most home-owners in Bundeena live there permanently while other holiday-house owners tend to visit the village a few times a week as Boswell says it's all about the 'lifestyle'. 'You can still work in the city but when you're home, it's like being on holidays. We've got beautiful beaches and lots of hiking trails. It's just a lovely place to live,' she said. Prices in Bundeena have continued to increase despite a dip in 2012. In 2015, the median house price was $917,500 before reaching the current price of $955,000. There are only two apartment blocks in the village with most houses having views of the ocean or at least a short walk to the shore. Bundeena locals can get a ferry to Sydney's Cronulla (pictured) in 30 minutes where they can get further public transport into Sydney city One million dollars can get a buyer a four-bedroom, two-bathroom house that's a close walk to the beach. An extra $200,000 is expected for properties with ocean views. IT worker, Liza Tinker left the Inner West of Sydney for Bundeena after she fell in love with the art scene and community culture of the village. Tinker now owns an art gallery with her sister where she sells her paintings, prints, cards. Bundeena is located through the Royal National Park, allowing visitors and locals to enjoy walking trails. The village also has an IGA, gelato bar, chemist, doctors and cafes to enjoy a bite to eat. Food safety controls could be suspended to prevent perishable goods being delayed at UK borders if no Brexit deal is made, according to a report. Academics warn the UK could adopt a 'cavalier approach' to safety standards - resulting in EU countries blocking exports from the UK. It is claimed a Government adviser told them of the plans being developed if delays emerge. Food safety controls could be suspended to prevent perishable goods being delayed at UK borders, a report claims. Pictured: border Force staff stop a lorry arriving at the UK border But the Government denied this was true - saying it will not suspend food safety controls regardless of a no-deal scenario. The warnings are contained in the Food Research Collaboration briefing, Feeding Britain: Food Security After Brexit. In the section entitled 'Preparing for a no deal food Brexit', the report says it believes the UK will need to maintain 'open and unhindered borders' with the EU for food. It adds: 'The Prime Minister told the Cabinet in July to prepare for no deal. 'She is right but it is already happening in Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) in some worrying directions. 'In recent months, we have learned from a senior Government adviser that plans are being prepared to 'suspend food controls' if there are any delays to imports of perishable foods at our borders. 'We learned too that other policy commentators had been told the same by senior Defra personnel. 'One Government adviser even informed us that the plans were being devised 'to avoid parliamentary scrutiny'. 'Senior industry people have told us in no uncertain terms that this would be folly and must be avoided, not least because it would threaten exports from the UK to the EU. 'If the UK were to suspend food safety controls, others might block exports from a country taking such a cavalier approach to public health. 'It would go completely against all the protestations of commitment to high consumer and health standards. 'Yet this appears to be what Defra envisages.' The report adds there have already been 'several hints' from ministers to endorse such a proposal. It went on: 'If border checks rose to four minutes, there would be 20-mile or so (possibly even 29-mile) lorry tailbacks within a day, hence the fall-back, we presume, of suspending food controls to allow all traffic to be waved through. 'This is not 'taking back control', it is abandoning it.' City University Professor Tim Lang, a co-author of the report, said: 'One could argue that this is sensible emergency planning but it is also risky. 'Consumers would rightly wonder who was guaranteeing the safety and quality of the imported food they were buying. 'Criminals would be alerted to opportunities for food fraud. 'And the move would send negative signals to the EU, at a delicate time in Brexit negotiations. It could make the UK's third country status more problematic for exports.' The report was also produced by University of Sussex Professor Erik Millstone, Tony Lewis of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, and Cardiff University Professor Terry Marsden. Responding to the report, a Government spokesman said: 'The Government will not suspend food safety controls or weaken our high standards, even in the event of no deal. 'Our aim is to agree a deal with the EU that keeps trade as frictionless as possible and maintains the current system of checks and controls at the border. 'Food imports from third countries will be subject to the same robust checks as they are now and our high standards will be upheld.' Queen of the selfie Kim Kardashian posted this picture to her Instagram account Social media stars have been blamed for heaping pressure on children to meet unobtainable beauty standards. Some 62 per cent of 15 to 16-year-olds feel social media has ramped up expectations over their personal appearance, youth charity YMCA found. It said photoshopped images and the sharing of only flattering shots have shifted young peoples understanding of what a normal body looks like. The charity also blamed celebrity culture for fuelling ideals of physical perfection, with 58 per cent of 11 to 16-year-olds identifying it as the main influence. YMCA spoke to more than 1,000 children about the pressures they felt to look perfect. Among 11 to 12-year-olds, social media was already a concern, with 43 per cent claiming they were influenced by stars on social media sites such as Instagram and Facebook. The charity has joined Dove for the Be Real campaign, which is urging people to stop editing their pictures and to hold brands responsible for not promoting a healthy body image. Weve all been guilty of only posting our most flattering pictures on social media, said Denise Hatton, chief executive of YMCA. While theres nothing wrong with wanting to show yourself from your best angle, its important we still like ourselves when were not looking our best. Todays beauty standard is completely unobtainable, leading us to constantly feel bad about our bodies and looks. 'This is particularly the case for young people and it can have serious effects on their mental and physical wellbeing. A study recently published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Review reveals that white Americans who dropped out of high school are three times more affluent than black Americans who graduated college. The study titled 'Family Achievements?: How a College Degree Accumulates Wealth for Whites and Not For Blacks' reveals a shocking wealth gap between white and black families - even if they are better educated. Findings from the research, conducted in 2015 by The New School, were published last year by Brandeis University researchers Tatjana Meschede, Joanna Taylor, Alexis Mann and Thomas Shapiro. The data was collected during the time period 1989 to 2013 from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics as well as the Institute on Assets and Social Policy Levering Mobility,' according to the Brandeis University press release. A 2017 study by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Review reveals that white Americans who dropped out of high school are three times more affluent than black Americans who have a college degree (stock picture) 'While it is true that getting an education will improve your chances of attaining greater wealth, it is not true that education equalizes across race,' Taylor said of the findings. 'What were seeing is that for African-American families, there are some costs to getting a college education that dont exist for white families.' The study found that black families with one or more parents who graduated college held about one-third less the wealth than white families with one or more parents who dropped out of school as a teen. The study also found that white parents who hold a college degree are more likely to give their kids free financial handouts - compared to black parents with a degree. 'Black students are more likely to take student loans and more likely to take larger student loans than white students,' Taylor said. Black families overall are less likely to receive a hefty inheritance payout. 'Among college-educated black families, about 13 percent get an inheritance of more than $10,000, as opposed to about 41 percent of white, college-educated families.' Taylor said, on average, a white family inheritance amounts to more than $150,000 - while a black family inheritance, on average, amounts to less than $40,000. 'We think about education as the great equalizer, when clearly its not,' Meschede added of the study. 'Its much more complex than that... theres so much more needed in order to support the black community toward closing the racial wealth gap.' The headmaster of a top school which had its SATs results cancelled in a cheating row denies any wrongdoing and claims staff opened the wrong paper from a secure box. The results of two SATs tests taken by pupils at Broadford Primary School in Romford, East London, have been annulled following an investigation by Government inspectors. According to an informed source, nine Year Six pupils out of 90 were able to complete a complex maths question normally answered by only the brightest students in the country. Despite the difficulty of the question, none of the children, aged ten or 11, had written down any of their workings-out. Justine Greening, the then Education Secretary, praised this truly outstanding school during a visit in December But Malcolm Drakes, the 118,00 a year executive headteacher of the school 'hailed as the best in Britain' said nothing wrong had happened at the school. He told the Sun: We made a mistake by taking the box from the secure cupboard with both papers in and opened the wrong paper. We immediately put paper two back in the box. At that moment the Standards and Testing Agency arrived in the school office. There had physically not been enough time to report the paper being opened. We reported it to the STA representative on site. The development will be a blow to Malcolm Drakes, the 118,000-a-year executive head teacher of Broadford The school, which is in a deprived area and has been described as a role model, is accused of feeding answers to children. A whistleblowers tip-off prompted inspectors from the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) to investigate the allegations. There was also a dramatic drop in the number of questions answered when an inspector sat in on a test compared with the previous day. And investigators found a bundle of maths tests that had been opened ahead of an exam. Broadford was in special measures in 2011 but is now rated as outstanding by Ofsted. It is in the top 1 per cent of schools for SATs scores, with 81 per cent of pupils meeting expected standards in reading, writing and maths. This compares with 53 per cent nationally. The results of two SATs tests have been annulled following an investigation by Government inspectors Although there is no evidence he was involved in any wrongdoing, the revelations will be a blow to head teacher Malcolm Drakes. In a letter to parents on Friday, Mr Drakes and school governor Chris Kent wrote: We would like to apologise for any failure on our part that has led to the STA making this decision. We wish to assure you that the decision by the STA is not seen as a reflection on your child. Staff and governors are deeply saddened and disappointed and did not agree with the STAs decision. The affected children will not receive results for the void tests, the outcomes of which are used to put pupils into sets at secondary school. Mr Drakes and Mr Kent declined to comment, but a source said: The STA decision was based on them having enough doubt to declare papers as null and void. It does not mean there has been maladministration. There is no right of appeal and the whole process is shambolic. The STA has not given the school a fair opportunity to put its case. A Havering Council spokesman said the childrens education would not be affected. Judges on the TES awards panel said the school went far beyond traditional expectations of education and Justine Greening, the then Education Secretary, praised this truly outstanding school during a visit in December. Awarding Broadford with a top prize last year, judges on the Times Educational Supplement panel said it went far beyond traditional expectations of education. Then-Education Secretary Justine Greening praised it as truly outstanding in December. A 13-year-old boy was charged with assault after firing a McDonald's chip through a straw at someone's face. The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, used the straw to launch the chip at a young woman's head, prosecutors alleged. The row resulted in three of his friends clashing with four young women outside the McDonald's at the Broadway shopping centre in Hammersmith, west London. He was arrested and prosecutors took months to build up a case against him, which his mother rubbished by saying he was aiming it at a friend, The Sun reports. The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, used the straw to launch the chip in a young woman's face, prosecutors alleged. File image used The case was eventually dropped when he accepted a police caution, with his mother slamming the ordeal as 'ridiculous'. His friends, all aged 13, were also charged. One pleaded guilty, one was referred for a caution and another is awaiting trial. The exact wording of the offence was 'assault by using a straw to fire a chip, hitting a woman in the face'. The row resulted in three of his friends clashing with four young women outside the McDonald's at the Broadway shopping centre in Hammersmith, west London (pictured) The boy's mother added it was a waste of time, as her son 'actually threw the straw wrapper at a friend'. She told the newspaper: 'It's ridiculous. I tried to put a chip in a McDonald's straw. It doesn't fit.' It comes as an American man demanding McDonald's workers pay for a replacement watch after he broke it in their restaurant went viral. He was filmed shouting at a female customer with a young child to 'mind her own business' before he launched a furious tirade at the employee behind the counter. The clip has been viewed thousands of times online. An Ohio man who called in a bomb threat to avoid missing his flight has been jailed. Dana Carter, 40, of Dayton, and his female companion, was running late to catch his United flight from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport to Texas in October. The court heard that he made a series of calls, claiming there was a bomb aboard his plane, the Dayton Daily News reports. An Ohio man who called in a bomb threat to avoid missing his United flight has been jailed (file image) The flight was cancelled because of the bomb threat, and Carter was booked into another flight to Dallas less than two hours later. Carter admitted making the false threat with his attorney calling it a 'foolish act.' On Thursday, he was sentenced to four months in jail and ordered to pay $7,700 in restitution to United Airlines for the canceled flight. Carter will also be on federal probation for three years after his release. A former bikie leader who converted to Islam has fronted a video endorsing a Sharia-compliant cryptocurrency. Vince Focarelli, who survived five attempts on his life as the Adelaide-based leader of the Comancheros, is the new frontman for Bayan Token, a Singapore-based Islamic finance group. The 42-year-old reformed bikie is introduced in a three-minute YouTube clip as a 'devout Muslim and social worker' who was previously a 'gang leader'. Scroll down for video A former bikie leader who converted to Islam has fronted a video endorsing a Sharia-compliant crypto currency 'My name is Vince Focarelli and I believe in God,' he said, after delivering a brief introduction in Bahasa Indonesian. 'I believe that when you do good, goodness will come back to you.' The Italian-born former underworld figure describes the cryptocurrency as something that delivers 'goodness at every turn' and has 'real world benefits and a 'higher purpose'. 'It is backed by ongoing projects that are strong in Islamic principles,' he said in the video. Vince Focarelli, who survived five attempts on his life as the Adelaide-based leader of the Comancheros, is the new frontman for Bayan Token, a Singapore-based Islamic finance group The man with a colourful past said the world's growing Islamic population meant there would be more demand for halal products, that were permissible in Islam. Last year, he fled South Australia to live in Malaysia to escape a criminal-related deportation. The Kuala Lumpur-based man, who describes himself as a devoted Muslim, has a wife and a stepdaughter in Adelaide. The man with a colourful past said the world's growing Islamic population meant there would be more demand for halal products, that are permissible in Islam Last year, he fled South Australia to live in Malaysia to escape a criminal-related deportation The former Comancheros leader narrowly escaped time in a detention centre over criminal activity, but says his underworld ties are now behind him The former Comancheros leader risked having his Australian visa cancelled under the Migration Act, which gives Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton the power to deport a non-citizen that is regarded as a threat to community safety. Fearing it would be revoked and he would be sent to a detention centre, he left the country before an adjudication process could begin. Focarelli, who became a Islam devout in 2012, survived five assassination attempts at the hands of gangland rivals - the last attempt killing his stepson. Once a man who's life literally involved dodging bullets, Focarelli has now devoted himself to caring for his mother (right), who has stage-four cancer Now, he encourages others to celebrate the beauty of life, and hopes to reopen his old Adelaide restaurant, La'Fig Cucina, in Kuala Lumpur. The daunting task won't be the same without his wife though, given she was 'the backbone' behind their Carrington Street establishment. Once a man who's life literally involved dodging bullets, Focarelli has now devoted himself to caring for his mother, who has stage-four cancer. Getting lost in an Ikea warehouse may be a thing of the past the company plans on opening a string of smaller high street stores. The Swedish firm hopes smaller shops will offer customers an opportunity to talk to staff before committing to a purchase. It also hopes to start a 24-hour delivery service due to the number of online shoppers buying goods around the clock. Ikea plans on opening a string of smaller high street stores and start a 24-hour delivery service Retail manager for the UK and Ireland Javier Quinones said changes had to be made or the company would cease to exist. He told The Times: 'It's not that we have to change because otherwise we will not exist tomorrow, but I'm convinced that if we do not do the transformation then in the long-run we will not exist.' Having first arrived in the UK 30 years ago, the flatpack furniture shop's business model has stayed roughly the same. Mr Quinones said: 'Consumers were driving to where the stores were and picking up the goods and going home. 'This is changing totally. Online is impacting massively because people are ordering through phones and iPads.' The first miniature Ikea will open in Tottenham Court Road, just off Oxford Street later this year. It will display a smaller range of kitchens and bathrooms but will not serve their famous meatballs. The flatpack furniture shop's business model has stayed roughly the same for 30 years Order and collection points have already been set up in Birmingham, Norwich and Westfield shopping centre in east London. The first ever Ikea to open in the UK was in Warrington in 1987. Since its founding here, the company has expanded to have 21 stores. But bigger stores are not taking off as well anymore, with their new Preston store being aborted recently as it was not considered a good investment. Mr Quinones said he saw smaller stores overtaking their larger stores in the future. Smaller shops, he said, could react to trends more quickly. The move to downsize stores comes after Ikea's profits fell last year by 40 per cent to 87million after six years of steady growth. A dysfunctional Outback town claims police have abandoned them closing the tiny station operating out of a tin shed despite a nurse being abducted, raped and murdered in a crime that shocked Australia. Outback nurse Gayle Woodford, 56, was lured to her death by Dudley Davey, 35, in Fregon, South Australia in 2016. Her husband Keith has joined community leaders in desperately calling for a police station to be built in the town. The town's old police station - a run-down tin shed - has long been abandoned, and sits alongside dilapidated houses in the arid Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (AYP) Lands community 490km southwest of Alice Springs. Outback nurse Gayle Woodford, 56, was lured to her death by Dudley Davey, 35, in Fregon, South Australia Her husband Keith has joined community leaders in desperately calling for a police station to be built in the town (Davey pictured surrounded by police) Fregon's old police station - a run-down tin shed - has long been abandoned, and sits alongside dilapidated houses in the arid Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (AYP) Lands community 490km southwest of Alice Springs Ms Woodford's husband Keith said domestic violence in the area was 'shocking', and a police station was needed to buck the trend The town sits on a dusty plain and is home to about 220 people. The close-knit inhabitants were shaken by Ms Woodford's rape and murder in March 2016. Davey - who was on a three-day ice binge when he killed Ms Woodford - is serving a minimum of 32 years in prison after pleading guilty to the vicious attack. Ms Woodford's husband Keith said domestic violence in the area was 'shocking', and a police station was needed to buck the trend. Gillian Steel, the manager of a local art centre, told The Australian she was forced to hide in the building after she was attacked by thugs demanding money who threw a steel bar at her. Her home is surrounded by a security cage, and she said there needs to be more police in Fregon. 'I generally go to work, go home, lock my door and live behind a cage. The kids are out of control,' she said. The town sits on a dusty plain and is home to about 220 people. The close-knit inhabitants were shaken by Ms Woodford's rape and murder in March 2016 Gillian Steel, the manager of a local art centre, told The Australian she was forced to hide in the building after she was attacked by thugs demanding money who threw a steel bar at her 'There are constant problems. It has only got worse. Gambling is a real problem, which creates a whole range of other issues, and the little kids are doing it as well, so a police presence will help.' Ms Steel said when she called triple-zero she was connected with police in Port Augusta, almost 1000km away - and it often takes a full day for police to arrive on the scene. Entry to the APY Lands without a special permit is illegal, and it is a 'dry' zone meaning alcohol is banned. Police officers said the town is the most 'dysfunctional' of the six communities in the ALP Lands. South Australia Premier Steven Marshall visited Fregon last week while protected by two armed elite tactical response group police officers. He said Fregon's small population meant it was 'difficult to have full police coverage'. Ms Steel's home is surrounded by a security cage, and she said there needs to be more police in Fregon A man posted a cryptic message to Facebook moments before he died in a head-on collision where three other people were injured. Supermarket worker Todd Talbot, 30, was killed when his Mitsubishi Lancer collided with a Range Rover Evoque on the New South Wales Central Coast last Wednesday. The occupants of the Range Rover - two elderly men, aged 70 and 91, and a woman - were taken to hospital suffering serious injuries. Supermarket worker Todd Talbot, 30, died in a car crash at Magenta, on the New South Wales Central Coast, on Wednesday Three other people - two men and a woman - were seriously injured in the head-on collision at Wilfred Barrett Drive A cryptic message appeared on Mr Talbot's account prior the fatal crash The crash occurred about 11am on Wilfred Barrett Drive at Magenta and came within an hour after a social media post appearing on Mr Talbot's page. 'Sorry but this was always my destiny #nomorefakesmilesfinallyhappy,' said the post, which was published at 10.22am. Police said Mr Talbot's car was driving south when it crossed onto the wrong side of the road and collided head-on with the Range Rover, police said. We've been offering our support to team members at the store and will continue to do so The Woolworths Lake Haven staff member has been remembered by friends and colleagues as one of the 'nicest people in the world'. 'Our thoughts and condolences are with his family and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time,' a Woolworths spokesman said. 'We've been offering our support to team members at the store and will continue to do so'. The company arranged for counsellors to visit the store to support staff last week and has directly contacted the family to express its condolences on behalf of his colleagues. One supermarket worker said the store would not be the same without his smiling face. This is the damaged Range Rover three people were freed from on Wednesday A Woolworths supermarket spokesman said the company has provided counsellors to staff The 91-year-old injured in the crash has been discharged from hospital while the 70-year-old man is in a stable condition. Officials could not confirm the female passenger's condition, but it is understood she has been transferred to a smaller hospital. Immediately following the crash police said there was no clear cause to the incident. On Monday, a New South Wales police spokeswoman said a report has been prepared for the Coroner. For confidential support call the Lifeline 24-hour crisis support on 13 11 14 Blue Chair/Warner Bros. NashvilleKenny Chesney's record-setting 30th career #1 "Get Along" remains at the top of the chart for a second week, just days before his new album comes out on Friday. The superstar from East Tennessee is donating all the proceeds from Songs for the Saints to help his beloved Virgin Islands recover from last year's hurricanes. Kenny's made the tropical locale his home away from home for some time now. This is more personal than anything Ive done, he says. Theres a lot of seeking, hopefully a lot of healing and definitely songs about how we face things. But its not dark or heavy. Like Get Along, Songs for the Saints is about lifting people up, reminding them what theyre made of. Kenny will appear on both ABC's Good Morning America and NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in the coming days to promote the new album. This weekend, he takes his Trip Around the Sun Tour to Chicago's Soldier Field. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. Dennis Quaid tells Megyn Kelly just how bad his addiction to cocaine got in an interview that will air this Monday on Today. The actor, 64, said he began using the drug when he first arrived in Hollywood, noting that it was everywhere he went and even in the budget of some films. He then got to a point where he was sleeping for just one hour a night, Quid confesses in a clip obtained by DailyMail.com. The actor says he would vow to quit but then be back at it by 4pm every day, until he saw himself dead in what he calls a 'white light moment.' Scroll down for video Dennis Quaid has revealed that his cocaine addiction in the 80s got so bad that he was only sleeping for an hour a night 'I grew up in the 60s, 70s, and there was a completely different attitude about it back then. Even in some movie budgets. I kept roaring on,' says Quaid. 'I was basically doing cocaine pretty much on a daily basis during the 80s. I spent many, many a night screaming at god to please take this away from me, I'll never do it again because I've only got an hour before I have to be at work.' 'Then about 4 o'clock in the afternoon I would be "oh that's not so bad'. I had a white light experience where I saw myself either dead or losing everything that meant anything to me.' This is not the first time Quaid has spoken about his struggle with drugs. Quaid, 64, said he began using the drug when he first arrived in Hollywood, noting that it was everywhere he went and even in the budget of some films The actor (pictured in 1987) says he would vow to quit but then be back at it by 4pm every day, until he saw himself dead in what he calls a 'white light moment' In 2011 the actor wrote a piece for Newsweek in which he detailed that same 'white light moment' while playing with his band. 'One night we played a show at the China Club in LA, and the band broke up, just like in the movie The Commitments, because it all got too crazy,' wrote Quaid, 'I had one of those white-light experiences that night where I kind of realized I was going to be dead in five years if I didn't change my ways. The next day I was in rehab.' Quaid also revealed that it was at the height of his career when he started to hit his rock bottom. Quaid (pictured in 1981) only got help when he said he had a 'white light experience' where he saw himself either dead or losing 'everything that meant anything to me' 'By the time I was doing The Big Easy, in the late 1980s, I was a mess. I was getting an hour of sleep a night,' wrote the actor. 'I had a reputation for being a "bad boy", which seemed like a good thing, but basically I just had my head stuck up my ass.' The actor, who has only spoken about his marriage to Meg Ryan a handful of times since the two split, also confesses that his ex-wife's fame did weigh on him during their union in another clip from Monday's show. 'When we met you know I was the big deal and then my career [came to a halt],' Quaid tells Kelly, driving the point home by making the sound of screeching brakes. 'And I have to admit it, I actually did feel like I disappeared.' Quaid and Ryan were Hollywood's golden couple throughout the 90s, with the pair tying the knot on Valentine's Day of 1991 after falling in love on the set of their film D.O.A. It was the second film they had done together after Innerspace. Quaid was a huge star in the 80s, having appeared in hit films including The Big Easy, The Right Stuff, Postcards from the Edge and Great Balls of Fire. Quaid (pictured in 1989) said it was at the height of his career when he hit rock bottom Quaid also admitted that he started feeling small when his wife Meg Ryan's career began to ascend his in the 1990s (pictured together in 1995) But his past success did not stop his wife's ascent from shaking his nerves and rattling his brain. Ryan was also a household name in the wake of her role in the 1989 classic When Harry Meet Sally, but two years after she and Quaid wed she suddenly became the biggest star in Hollywood with the release of Sleepless in Seattle. This boost was aided in great part by the late writer and director Nora Ephron's affinity for Ryan. Ephron wrote both Harry and Sleepless, wrote and directed Ryan's 1997 hit You've Got Mail, and produced Hanging Up in 2000, which was released just as Quaid and his wife announced their split The couple, whose son Jack was born in 1992 and starred in The Hunger Games, were divorced by 2001 with Ryan getting almost all the blame amidst rumors she had an affair with Russell Crowe. Ryan would later claim it was Quaid who strayed during their marriage, and since 2010 has been in a relationship with John Mellancamp. Quaid and Ryan were Hollywood's golden couple throughout the 90s, with the pair tying the knot on Valentine's Day of 1991. They are pictured here in 2000 'It was a growth opportunity, I did learn from that,' Quaid tells Kelly of his marriage to Ryan in his Today interview. He also recalls how almost overnight he found himself walking alongside his wife on the street as fans screamed: 'MEG! MEG! MEG!' Quaid would later remarry but split from third wife Kimberly Buffington in 2016. The younger brother of Randy Quaid is now dating Santa Auzina, a 32-year-old model. More about Quaid's marriages will be revealed on Today this Monday when the interview airs on NBC at 9am on Megyn Kelly Today. Kelly sat down with Quaid to talk about playing Ronald Reagan in an upcoming biopic about the Republican leader. And for that interview, Kelly flew out to the Reagan Ranch near Santa Barbara, California. The actor also talks with Megyn about being a father, a few of his memorable co-stars and which roles have been his favorite over the years. A 33-foot inflatable chicken with a striking resemblance to President Trump's signature hairstyle set sail in San Francisco Sunday. The chicken, donning a black and white striped prison uniform, is called Prisoner 45, referring to Donald Trump as the 45th President of the US. Backed by more than $1,500 in GoFundMe proceeds, 'President Chicken' was 'sent off to jail' with a banner on the rental boat that read: 'Release Your Tax Returns. The Republic Demands It'. A 33-foot inflatable chicken with President Trump's signature golden hairstyle sailed around San Francisco Bay Sunday From noon until 3pm, 'President Chicken' sailed from Crissy Field, along Embarcarcadero and McCovey Cove. Before the event, organizers encouraged everyone to come out to 'send president chicken off to jail' A map shows the route the chicken took as it set sail for three hours 'As he sails past, you can say anything you want to President Chicken. You can mock and squawk and swear like youve never sworn before in a proud expression of your First Amendment right,' they wrote. 'Bring your friends. Make some signs and banners. Wear costumes. Dance. Everyone remember were still free.' This isn't the first time the Trump Chicken has created a spectacle. Last April, the giant bird made its first big appearance at the San Francisco Tax March. Then in February, the chicken made its way to the White House lawn, also known as the 'Big Coop'. Organizers were able to raise $10,000 to rent boats for its last appearance. During President's Day weekend, it as sailed around Alcatraz dressed in its Prisoner 45 uniform while a banner hung from the boat that read: 'Alcatraz Prison Transport'. RSPCA has hit back at allegations that it had gone soft on the cruel practices of puppy farms and adopted 'a focus on saving money not animals.' The allegations were made by anti-puppy factory activist Debra Tranter. 'I have had to watch on helplessly as dogs suffer in unimaginable situations,' Ms Tranter said. Ms Tranter, founder of anti-puppy farm campaign Oscar's Law, alleged RSPCA Victoria has allowed the public to continue buying dogs from illegal puppy factories despite the state-wide ban of selling animals, including dogs, in pet shops. Scroll down for video RSPCA has hit back at allegations that the non-for-profit had not properly used millions of dollars in tax payer funds to stop the abuse of dogs suffering in puppy factories in Victoria. (Pictured) One of the puppy farms that is still in operation illegally according to Debra Tranter Puppy factories, also known as puppy farms, refers to a place where dogs are intensively bred in poor and abusive conditions, with the breeding animals often suffering. The activist further alleged a puppy farmer with a ten-year banning order and court imposed monitoring order has recently put advertisements selling their dogs online in the Trading Post. CEO of RSPCA Victoria Dr Liz Walker refuted the allegations. Dr Walker told Daily Mail Australia that RSPCA Victoria conducts regular audits including the sale of animals online. 'Our Inspectors conduct audits on properties to ensure animal welfare standards and legislative requirements are being met. Our Inspectors currently monitor online sales of animals and investigate where appropriate,' Dr Walker said. Ms Tranter further claimed RSPCA Victoria has not attempted to close down one puppy factory she accused of malpractice. 'A puppy farmer operating without a permit and in breach of the code has continued business as usual with the RSPCA visiting the illegal property for over a year and merely walking away despite a clear breach of Section 45 of the Domestic Animals Act that specifically states it is an offence to operate without a permit,' Ms Tranter wrote in Independent Australia. Ms Tranter further claims RSPCA Victoria has not attempted to close down the puppy factory despite being informed of the malpractice. (Pictured) a puppy factory exposed by Ms Tranter Ms Tranter said on Twitter: 'It's almost impossible to get any action on puppy factory cruelty complaints in Victoria despite the RSPCA being given $5 million for one specific purpose > investigating puppy factories' Ms Tranter shared a photo of what she alleges to be an illegal puppy factory on Twitter. 'It's almost impossible to get any action on puppy factory cruelty complaints in Victoria despite the RSPCA being given $5 million for one specific purpose > investigating puppy factories,' she said on Twitter accompanied by the photo. Dr Walker chose not to respond to the allegations Daily Mail Australia put forward on the specific puppy factory Ms Tranter was referring to. Dr Liz Walker told Daily Mail Australia RSPCA the non-for-profit organisation is entrusted by the state government to enforce animal welfare legislation through their special investigative team called MIT. 'In 2016 our former Special Investigations Unit was refocused to become the Major Investigations Team (MIT). Our MIT comprises three operational inspectors and a vet and is dedicated to investigating illegal dog and cat breeding establishments and their associated supply chains across Victoria,' she said. Ms Tranter (pictured centre), founder of anti-puppy farm campaign Oscar's Law, alleged RSPCA Victoria has not been using tax payer funds properly to investigate and close down illegal puppy farms Dr Liz Walker told Daily Mail Australia RSPCA the non-for-profit organisation is entrusted by the state government to enforce animal welfare legislation through their special investigative team called MIT The CEO of RSPCA Victoria said the organisation has the power to both investigate and prosecute illegal dog and cat breeding establishments. She also explained the process of how RSPCA deals with an illegal breeding complaint from the public. 'Upon receiving a report of an illegal breeding operation our Inspectors commence an investigation into the facility that initially involves comprehensive intelligence gathering. This includes among other things - liaising with the relevant local council, which is the agency that has the authority to register domestic animal businesses,' she said. 'RSPCA Victoria is absolutely committed to stamping out illegal puppy and kitten factories. Over the past two years we have significantly increased resources for our Inspectorate and Major Investigations Team to be able to investigate and prosecute cases,' Dr Walker said. The CEO of RSPCA Victoria said the organisation has the power to both investigate and prosecute illegal dog and cat breeding establishments In a 2017 inquiry into the funding of RSPCA Victoria by state parliament, the Victorian government funds $1 million to the state's non-for-profit each year from 2007. 'In addition, RSPCA Victorias special investigations unit has received extra funding to investigate and prosecute illegal, large-scale domestic animal breeding businesses,' according to the inquiry report by the state's Legislative Council Economy and Infrastructure Committee. This amounted to total funding of $2.25 million in 2014-15 and $2 million in 2015-16. An additional $1 million annually until 2019 was also agreed. Financial data from 2015-16 from found the costs of RSPCA Victoria's investigative team exceeded the budget which resulted in a $1.275 million deficit. This difference was funded through RSPCA Victorias non-government income streams, according to the inquiry report. Dr Walker said that since 2016 the MIT has 'acquitted all responsibilities assigned to it by the Victorian government.' A former Libertarian Party candidate for the Nevada State Assembly opened fire inside his Mormon church Sunday, killing one and injuring another. Police officials confirmed 48-year-old John Kelley O'Connor walked into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on East Richards Street in Fallon where the deadly incident took place just before 1pm. The victim has been identified as 61-year-old Charles Miller. The identity of the victim who suffered a leg injury has not yet been released. O'Connor had surrendered after police called his home and inquired about the shooting, TV station KOLO reported. Fallon Police Chief Kevin Gehman said as many as 50 congregation members where present at the time of the attack that was believed to be targeted at one individual. An official motive has yet to be released. The city of Fallon, the seat of Churchill County, is located about 60 miles east of Reno. John Kelley O'Connor, 48, (left and right) was arrested after he allegedly killed one person and injured another after walking into a Mormon church in Fallon, Nevada, and opened fire The church member who died has been identified as 61-year-old Charles Miller (pictured above in this handout) Authorities say one person is dead and another injured following a shooting at this Mormon church located on East Richards Street in Fallon State records reveal that O'Connor ran for the Nevada State Assembly for the Libertarian Party in 2014. Nevada Senator Dean Heller took to Twitter Sunday evening to share a condolence message after the deadly incident. 'Deeply saddened by the act of senseless violence in Fallon today at the LDS church. We are in contact with Mayor Tedford and other officials. 'My family and I are praying for all loved ones, churchgoers and community members impacted by this tragedy,' Heller said. Fallon is located about 60 miles east of Reno. It is the seat of Churchill County Senator Cortez Masto also tweeted: 'Devastated by the horrific news of the fatal shooting at the LDS church in Fallon. Thank you to the first responders on the scene. 'My heart goes out to all of those impacted. Places of worship should be a safe haven. The gun violence across this country must end.' And US Representative Jacky Rosen said late Sunday: 'Saddened by the shooting at the LDS Church in Fallon today. My deepest sympathies are with the victims' families and the community.' Director of Media Relations for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Eric Hawkins, also issued a statement. 'We express our love to those in this congregation and our prayers for the victims and their families. Local leaders are ministering to them at this time.' This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. A leader of Victoria's South Sudanese community claims he was bashed with a metal-pole in a politically motivated attack. The alleged incident follows continuous turmoil between South Sudanese people in Australia. Ring Mayar, chairman of the South Sudanese Community Association of Victoria (SSCAV) was allegedly assaulted by another community member, an SMS obtained by Fairfax Media has revealed. It is claimed that Mr Mayar was forced to undergo surgery for a broken collarbone at St Vincent's Hospital after he was hit with metal-pole by 'unknown South Sudanese male.' The revelation of the alleged assault comes after the death of a South Sudanese teenager in Melbourne's CBD over the weekend. It's alleged that Ring Mayar (pictured) was attacked by a South-Sudanese community member with a metal-pole following turmoil in the community There are reports that the matter is under investigation by Victoria Police. Mr Mayar, however, declined to comment but said the assault was under investigation. Other members of the community have responded to the allegations, accusing the leader of politicising the attack due to his unpopular handling of other politically charged issues. Last week, Mr Mayar commented on sharing the blame between Airbnb owners and the media following crimes linked to African-Australian youths. Mayar said the owners of 'Airbnb party houses' had to take 'some of the burden' for sub-letting their properties to host out-of-control parties where homes were trashed, neighbours assaulted and police targeted. Mr Mayar believes the home owners are partly culpable for the destruction and vandalising of their own homes by the Airbnb guests. It comes after Mr Mayar (pictured) said that Airbnb owners were partly to blame for the destruction and vandalising linked to African-Australian youths 'What are the contracts in place, if I may ask the house owners, and how are they leasing these houses to the young people who may come with unruly behaviour?, he asked The Australian. 'Are they aware that when they rent houses to those kids, and there are so many of them, that there'll be problems?' When Mr Mayar took on the role of chairman of the SSCAV he promised to address crime rates and acknowledged the community had a problem with youth offending. However, he denies his community has a 'youth gang problem' and instead accused the media of unfair reporting. 'What are the contracts in place, if I may ask the house owners, and how are they leasing these houses to the young people who may come with unruly behaviour?, Mr Mayar said. (Pictured: A new housing estate's community centre found trashed and property destroyed) The South Sudanese leader more recently said his community did not have a 'youth gang problem' and instead accused the media of unfair reporting. (Pictured: A police car damaged when police arrived at a party at a Melbourne home where four police vehicles were trashed) 'The statistics indicate that there are no gang crimes with the South Sudanese or any other group. It's just the media which does that often [says there are gangs],' he said. 'Stereotypes and discrimination become the forefront of reporting, therefore young people are unsettled in schools, some of them become homeless this is the ripple effect of unfair reporting.' Mr Mayar, who took on the role of chairman in May, promised a fresh approach to youth crime but believes that home owners also share responsibility for property damage 'The statistics indicate that there are no gang crimes with the South Sudanese or any other group. It's just the media which does that often [says there are gangs],' Mr Mayar said Mr Mayar and the SSCAV were angered by the Seven Network's Sunday Night program which last week covered 'African gangs' in Melbourne. The group said that report indicated that the media were disregarding anti-racial discrimination laws. Mr Mayar did apologize for a comment by former SSCAV spokesman Richard Deng, who said Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull should 'go back to where he came from'. Mr Mayar works to address crime through educating youths about Australia's legal system, and by directly working with offenders when they get out of juvenile detention. Pictured: An Airbnb rental damaged by African gangs A man accused of grooming an underage girl online has been arrested following a two-year investigation. Wearing a Hawaiian shirt and black-out glasses, the 37-year-old was apprehended by strike force detectives at a beach at Coffs Harbour, in northern New South Wales, on Friday. The man is accused of communicating with what he believed was an underage girl and later made arrangements to meet the child in person. Scroll down for video Eagle-eyed Aussies noticed one extra long fingernail on the alleged pedo's hand A middle-aged man accused of grooming a underage girl online has been dramatically arrested following a two-year investigation Wearing a Hawaiian shirt and black-out glasses, the 37-year-old was apprehended by strike force detectives at a beach at Coffs Harbour on Friday In dramatic footage released by New South Wales Police, the accused appears suprised when he is handcuffed by waiting authorities during the sting. Investigators then seized three mobile phones and a computer tablet from the man in a search of his vehicle. A raid on his home was conducted after the arrest where ammunition, computers and electronic storage devices was taken as potential evidence. The sting follows an operation by detectives from the Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Squads Child Exploitation Internet Unit which began earlier this year. However, the initial investigation was launched long before by Victoria Polices Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team, which began in 2016. Highly-sexualised conversations with the apparently underage girl were said to be the main cause for concern during the man's online exchanges. The man was ultimately charged with two counts of use carriage service to procure person under 16 years for sex and taken to Coffs Harbour Police Station. He was later refused bail and is expected to face Coffs Harbour Local Court on Monday. A struggling farmer who was left with no choice but to shoot his mob of 1,200 starving sheep and bury them on his drought-stricken property, will no longer have to kill his beloved livestock. Les Jones, a sheep farmer in Goolhi, New South Wales' drought declared north-east, said the mass shooting was his only option because the land was too dry to produce food, there was no money to pay for it, and the sheep were too weak to be sold off to the market. With 10 sheep dying from starvation each day, he said shooting them was also the most humane option. Since going public with his plight on Sunday, thousands of Australians reached out to offer whatever they could to help save the struggling family and its livestock. Goolhi sheep farmer Les Jones (pictured) said he had no choice but to shoot his sheep - but thanks to donations flooding in, his stock have a new chance at life Les Jones' wife Laura said she was overwhelmed by the outpouring of support she received. 'I've cried a thousand tears of joy this morning, you'd think I would have flooded our barren farm,' she told The Daily Telegraph. 'I can't remember the last time I felt so overwhelmed with joy and so humbled.' The support was a welcome relief for the Jones family, who has struggled to keep their property running in harsh drought conditions. Farming charity Aussie Helpers founder Brian Egan, who has worked closely with the family, said the donations were the difference between life and death. 'They won't have to shoot the sheep. We'll have three road trains of barley for farmers in Goolhi within 10 days,' he said. He said the donations would go a long way to buy increasingly scarce hay and increasingly expensive grain. Les Jones is pictured feeding grain to his starving sheep on their drought-stricken property Laura Jones (centre) and her daughter Lilly (right) talk with Aussie Helpers volunteer Krystal (left) Mrs Jones said 'words can't express how grateful we are for this kind of support'. 'All of our feed options are almost completely gone, so for something like this to come along and help keep us going is really something special,' she told the NV Independent. Before their story went public, the Jones family was working round-the-clock to keep their stock alive. Mrs Jones even brought the weakest lambs inside the home, where she cared for them day and night. As a result, their home was badly soiled. Mrs Jones (with daughter Lilly and volunteer Krystal) said 'words can't express how grateful we are for this kind of support' Mrs Jones even brought the weakest lambs inside the home, where she cared for them day and night (a lamb in poor condition is pictured at the property) Rural Aid's Buy a Bale charity said they had enough donations to fund a small working bee at the Jones' home to replace the carpet and refurbish the homestead to its former glory. While heartbreaking, the Jones family's plight is not unique. The family is just one of many across the nation working tirelessly to keep their stock alive and business afloat. The drought has ravaged large parts of New South Wales, forcing farmers to fork out thousands of dollars to keep their stock alive. The added financial pressure forced many to close up shop altogether. While heartbreaking, the Jones family's plight is not unique (deceased sheep are pictured at the Goolhi property) The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said the first three months of 2018 were the driest NSW had experienced for more than 30 years. With conditions worsening across the nation, the drought has not been contained to NSW. BOM said the drought, dubbed the Millennium Drought, was starving land right across the country. Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Hobart, Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane were all affected by persistent or periodic episodes. A sheep rummages for food in an empty grain bucket at the Goolhi property in New South Wales' north-east 'The drought conditions were particularly severe in the more densely populated southeast and southwest, and severely affected the Murray-Darling Basin,' BOM said. 'Most particularly in the southwest where winter drying has persisted for more than four decades.' Calls for the federal government to take action have flooded in. 'This is so so so sad. Brokenhearted for the farmers and for the animals. Extremely angry that the government helps and supports methadone and injecting rooms and our poor farmers are giving up their livelihoods,' one commenter said. 'Such a sad, desperate situation.' Coles customers are being warned about the latest scam targeting shoppers. Emails which claim to be from the supermarket giant have been sent out with the subject line 'You are selected to win a Coles gift card!'. The email - which comes from an address that is a combination of letters and numbers - reads 'Congratulations' and lists the name of the recipient. An email (pictured) claiming to be from Coles advises the recipient they have been 'selected to win a Coles Gift Card!' and asks them to 'confirm immediately' 'You are a finalist if you confirm,' the email continues and then requires the customer to 'confirm immediately'. Coles warns customers on its website to be wary of scams, including emails which advise a gift card has been 'won'. 'Customers may receive emails that appear to be from a trusted Coles email address, advising that they have in fact "won" a high value gift card,' Coles says. 'These scams are sent in an attempt to obtain personal information such as a bank account or credit card numbers as well as passwords. 'In most cases, once you click on the link within the email, you are redirected to a "phishing site" where they will request your personal information and use this to carry out fraudulent activities.' Coles says shoppers should report scam activity to the federal government's Scamwatch website. Coles advises customers to report scam activity to the federal government's Scamwatch website (stock image) 'Coles will never request personal or banking details in unsolicited communications and legitimate businesses or government agencies will never request payment in gift cards,' the Coles website says. Earlier this month, customers reported receiving text messages claiming to be from Coles which said: 'Our national postcode draw's results are known today! You are one of our 15 lucky shoppers'. Daily Mail Australia contacted Coles for further comment. Barnaby Joyce has declared his wants to be deputy prime minister of Australia again after being ousted for leaving his wife of 24 years to start a relationship with his much younger media adviser. The 51-year-old backbench member for New England, in northern New South Wales, resigned as National Party leader in February when his staffer and new lover Vikki Campion's pregnancy became news. Almost five months on from his departure as a senior cabinet minister, the father-of-five now says he wants to be Australia's second most powerful politician again. Scroll down for video Barnaby Joyce (pictured with girlfriend Vikki Campion and their baby son Sebastian) has declared his wants to be deputy prime minister again following the end of his 24-year marriage 'Of course I would. There's your answer. The answer is yes, I'd love to do those jobs if given that opportunity again,' he told Sky News today. 'If you said, "Do I want that job?", I'll give you a straight answer, of course I want that job if I was given it again.' However the former accountant, now based at Armidale, acknowledged there was currently 'no mechanism' for him to roll his successor Michael McCormack and return to being Nationals leader. Mr Joyce, who is separated from his wife of 24 years Natalie, became a father for the fifth time in April with the birth of Sebastian, his only son. Almost five months since he quit being a senior cabinet minister, the father-of-five declared he wanted to be Nationals leader (pictured are his estranged wife Natalie and their daughters) Mr Joyce, who is separated from his wife of 24 years Natalie, became a father for the fifth time in April with the birth of Sebastian The family values politician and his girlfriend Vikki agreed to a $150,000 paid interview with the Seven Network's Sunday Night program in May, with the former deputy PM saying the proceeds were for their baby boy. His estranged wife Natalie responded a month later with a separate interview in The Australian Women's Weekly, where she recalled confronting the other woman in her husband's life and calling her a 'home wrecking w****'. In January 2017, Mr Joyce charged taxpayers $780 to join his estranged wife Natalie and daughters on a summer holiday as he was seeing Ms Campion on the side. The Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority cleared him of misusing taxpayer funds, when he hired a car to return from Canberra to the Sunshine Coast. Mr Joyce repaid the cost of car hire, from Tamworth in his electorate to Queensland, however he was criticised for an expense which appeared 'inconsistent in the context of the circumstances'. US Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman has fired back at those calling for him to resign after last week's meeting between President Trump and Vladimir Putin. Among those urging him to step down from his current position is a columnist who wrote a scathing op-ed in Huntsman's family-owned newspaper. Columnist Robert Gehrke published a piece in the Salt Lake Tribune, the newspaper owned and published by Huntsman's brother Paul, pleading for the ambassador to 'come home'. 'Ambassador Huntsman, you work for a pawn, not a president. It's time to come home.' Gehrke wrote last week. Huntsman then responded with his own op-ed in the same newspaper Saturday titled 'Why I'm Staying' where he referred to suggestions he resign as laughable. US Ambassador Jon Huntsman has been called to resign following last week's meeting between President Trump and Vladimir Putin 'There is no other reasonable course of action to take after Monday's disgraceful joint news conference with President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin,' Gehrke wrote. He is referring to the world leaders' press conference in Helsinki, where Putin denied claims that Russia interfered in the US presidential election. Though US intelligence finding have proven time and time again that there in fact was meddling, Trump stood by Putin and supported his claims. Trump said at the press conference: 'There was no collusion at all, 'And people are being brought out to the fore. So far that I know, virtually none of it related to the campaign. And they're going to have to try really hard to find somebody that did relate to the campaign.' Gehrke wrote: 'For Trump to simply accept at face value Putin's assertion that Russia played no part in the plot to meddle in US elections is a tragic disservice to the U.S. intelligence community, those diplomats who work in your office, and the integrity of our democracy and justice system.' He added: 'It's by resigning immediately and speaking out against a president who attacks our allies, gives comfort to our adversaries and undermines our moral standing, our commitment to democratic ideals and our interest in human rights every time he opens his gaping mouth.' Others including Huntsman's former campaign strategist during his 2012 presidential run, John Weaver, called for the ambassador's resignation in a tweet. 'Resign, if you have any honor,' he wrote. Last week President Donald Trump met stood with President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki where Putin denied claims that Russia interfered in the US presidential election In response, Huntsman's op-ed is an open letter addressed the Gehrke. He shot down the calls to resign, saying he will continue to serve in this 'fragile moment.' 'I have taken an unscientific survey among my colleagues, whom you reference, about whether I should resign,' Huntsman wrote. 'The laughter told me everything I needed to know.' After reading Huntsman's response, his former press secretary on the 2012 campaign, Tim Miller, said there could be 'solidarity in walking away.' Miller also analyzed the ambassador's response. 'I do find it pretty noteworthy in the Huntsman letter that people in government are now openly saying that they are staying because leaving their job in the hands of Trump would be a catastrophe,' Miller wrote in another tweet. 'I presume then that those people will all be vocally opposing his re-elect.' A Texas woman has been arrested after she allegedly tried mailing meth to a double murderer serving a life sentence in prison. Sara Elizabeth Russell, of Katy, was taken into custody on Thursday after a mailroom worker at the James V Allred Unit prison spotted a bulge behind a photograph. The photograph was attached to a handmade card. When the worker pulled on the photo, she discovered a clear package filled with a white powder. Sarah Elizabeth Russell was arrested after she allegedly tried mailing meth to a double murderer serving a life sentence in a Katy, Texas prison Tests later revealed that the white powder was methamphetamine. Also included with the package were handwritten instructions on how to disguise the meth in the card, according to KFDX. Part of the instructions included a note to tape the outside edges of the package shut. Inmate Jason Burkett told investigators that he had made the card and mailed it to Russell but claimed he did not ask her to mail him drugs. Inmate Jason Burkett (pictured) told investigators that he had made the card detailing how to disguise the meth and mailed it to Russell but said he did not ask her to mail him drugs The Texas Department of Public Safety Crime Lab tied fingerprints on the package back to Russell. Russell has been charged with one count of prohibited substance in a correctional facility. She is being held on $10,000 bond. Burkett is serving a life sentence for his involvement in a gruesome triple murder in 2001. He was found guilty of killing two teenage boys. His co-defendant, Michael Perry, was executed for murdering the mother of one of the victims. Advertisement Two people have died and another 13 are in hospital after a gunman dressed all in black opened fire in central Toronto on Sunday night. Police said a 10-year-old girl from the GTA area and an 18-year-old woman from Toronto were killed in the attack, but are yet to release their names. The gunman was also from Toronto. Police Chief Mark Saunders told reporters the remaining victims are aged 10-59, and their injuries range from minor to serious in nature, with homicide detective Sargent Terry Browne saying some may have 'life-altering' wounds. The gunman, 29, was also shot dead after getting into a firefight with officers. Police have not released his identity due to an investigation by the Special Investigation Unit, and have given no indication of what his motive might be. The mass shooting began around 10pm near the intersection of Danforth and Chester Avenues in the popular Greektown neighborhood while the street was bustling with diners. A cellphone video shot from a window overlook the street shows the gunman walk up to a restaurant window, pull out a handgun, and fire several shots through the glass. A 29-year-old man walked through a busy restaurant district in Toronto on Sunday night, shooting pedestrians and firing his gun into restaurants Surveillance footage from the scene appeared to capture the shooter, in a black hoodie, walking down the street during the mass shooting in Toronto on Sunday evening. Suddenly he turned as he passed by what appeared to be a store or restaurant front, whipped out his gun and opened fire Two people were killed and at least nine others were injured after the gunman opened fire in Toronto. A nine-year-old girl was left in a critical condition (pictured: police react to the shooting) Fire and ambulance crews loaded the victims into ambulances and rushed them to local trauma centers Pictured: A man with a wound to his leg is taken away by paramedics following the shooting on Toronto's Danforth Avenue Police said 13 people were wounded, including an eight or nine-year-old girl in critical condition, and one young woman killed after the Sunday night shooting, as well as another, unidentified, person Three gunshots were heard before the person filming ducked to safety and stopped recording. The gunman shot at least 14 people. A young woman died in hospital on Sunday night after succumbing to her injuries. Several other victims reportedly suffered 'significant injuries'. A young girl, 9, was taken to a pediatric trauma center and is in a critical condition, police said, while six more of his victims were rushed to a trauma center. At least two others were taken to hospital. The nine-year-old girl was taken to Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children, CBC reported, while four more victims were taken to St. Michael's Hospital and three others to Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center. Officers revealed the second victim had died in the early hours of Monday morning. Mark Saunders, Toronto Police Chief, confirmed the suspect was killed in 'an exchange of gunfire' with the police and pronounced dead at the scene. He said police are still looking for a motive behind the shooting. 'We're living in a different world now. When you look at the global issues, when you look at motivations for doing these things, and you know that urban cities are much more vulnerable to these.' Toronto Councillor Paula Fletcher told CP24 she'd been told the gunman was emotionally disturbed, as did Councillor Mary Fragedakis. 'Its not gang related. It looks like someone who is very disturbed,' Fletcher said. Mayor of Toronto John Tory also urged the public not to 'draw any conclusions' about the shooting, but to wait for police to conduct their investigation. He added: 'I just want to say to the families of those we lost tonight and to those... who were injured... I extend the deepest condolences.' Tory also admitted Toronto has 'a gun problem in that guns are too readily available to too many people', and said: 'It's almost inconceivable that these things can happen'. An unknown number of people were treated at the scene. A witness said multiple victims were injured on different blocks. Mike McCormack, the president of the Toronto Police Association, told CBC officers were faced with a 'terrible scene', and that even veteran officers said they'd never seen anything like it. 'It's just a terrible scene. Families enjoying themselves on the Danforth, supposed to be in a very safe area, and this happens,' he said. 'It's absolutely devastating.' Police spent hours at the crime scene on Monday morning, with chief Mark Saunders telling reporters the area would not reopen for 'some time' Green markers were used to identify places where bullet casings were found scattered along the street. A 10-year-old girl and 18-year-old woman were killed in the mass shooting on Sunday night Police investigate a car with a bullet hole on a street in east Toronto after 16 people, including the gunman, were shot A witness at the scene said multiple victims were injured on different blocks across the Greektown area One person, who police later conformed was the shooter, was pronounced dead at the scene, six others were rushed to a trauma center An armed police officer patrols along Danforth avenue shortly after the shooting on Sunday night Police began combing the streets for evidence on Sunday night and continued during the day on Monday Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders addresses the media after the mass shooting in downtown Toronto. He confirmed the shooter was killed in an 'exchange of gunfire' with police People leave an area taped off by the police near the scene of a mass shooting in Toronto, Canada, July 22 Police cleared the area after the shooting, and people are seen leaving the area under the yellow tape Officers flooded the scene on Sunday night and a heavy police presence remained until the morning A police officer escorts a civilian away from the scene of the shooting, which took place less than three months after a man in a van plowed into pedestrians on a Toronto sidewalk in late April, killing 10 people and injuring 14. A witness at the scene, who did not want to be named, told DailyMail.com she'd seen the shooter, in a black hoodie, black baseball cap and black top, shooting and breaking the glass at a storefront. She described the terrifying moment she heard 'at least 8 shots' ring out in the typically quiet and family friendly neighborhood.' 'I was in a car and heard loud gun shots which I at first thought was a car back firing, but then turned around and saw him shooting into a store from the sidewalk,' she told us. 'The glass was broken and he was shooting directly into the store, I heard at least 8 shots if not more. 'I yelled at my friend to drive and we got out of there as fast as we could. As we drove down the street we saw everyone coming out of stores to see what was going on.' Witnesses also described seeing several people on the ground inside Mezes Restaurant, although it was unclear if they were hiding or injured. Andrew Mantzios told the Globe and Mail he heard gunshots about 10pm and saw 'people falling all over the place', while he was enjoying a coffee with friends near Danforth and Logan Avenues. Mantzios said when he turned around he saw the gunman, who was dressed in black and had a horrible expression on his face and was pointing his gun and firing into a crowd of people waiting to cross the street. He said he heard a person yell get down before watching a woman try to run and fall instead. '[The gunman] turned around and shot her point blank, two or three times,' he said. A woman named Diana told CP24 said she had been working at Demetres cafe serving the family of the nine-year-old girl who was shot, when she saw a gunman aim at the restaurant and fire about three shots through the patio doors. Jody Steinhauer told CBC News she was with her family at Christina's restaurant on the Danforth when she heard a blast of gunfire, which she initially mistook for firecrackers. Suddenly, she and the other customers were told to run to the back of the restaurant. 'We started to hear people scream out front,' Steinhauer said. The area was closed off to the public on Monday, and police say it could be 'some time' before it is reopened. Officers loaded people at the scene onto several city buses to take them to local police divisions, and have asked anyone with information, videos or photos to come forward. Video taken on Monday and shared by local Jamie Tracey showed police combing the streets in slow-moving lines for evidence. Police say it's too early to say if the shooting was gang or terror related. Gun crime appears to have spiked in the area, with official statistics reporting 220 shootings and 27 gun deaths from January 1 to July 14, and 196 shootings causing 17 deaths for the whole of 2017. City officials have blamed the spike on gang violence, and Toronto has deployed 200 police officers since July 20 to try and help combat the increase in crime. The mass shooting comes after a driver of a van plowed into pedestrians on a Toronto sidewalk in late April, killing 10 people and injuring 14. Authorities have not disclosed a motive for the attack, but they have said the arrested driver, Alek Minassian, posted a message on social media referencing a misogynistic online community before the attack. It was the worst mass killing in Canada since December 6, 1989, when a man shot 14 women at the Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal before turning the gun on himself. Social media reports suggest the shooting began at a restaurant near Chester Avenue, with additional shots fired at nearby Logan Avenue (pictured right) Multiple people were injured after shots were fired in the area of Danforth and Logan avenues (Pictured: Toronto Paramedic Services respond to the shooting) A nine-year-old girl was taken to a pediatric trauma center, and two others were taken to hospital. A further six were also rushed to trauma centers in the area Police say the shooter was confirmed dead at the scene following an exchange of gunfire with officers Pictured: Police officers take a break on a street near Danforth Avenue after responding to reports of a shooting Pictured: Armed officers patrol downtown Toronto following the fatal shooting on Sunday night Officers gather close to the scene of the shooting, at the corner of Danforth Avenue and Chester Avenue Police tried to stop the public knowing that an accused killer and his dead wife's mobile phones were deactivated the day she went missing. Karen Ristevski, 47, vanished from her home in 2016 before her body was found lodged between two logs in bushland eight months later. Borce Ristevski, 54, says she left their home in Avondale Heights, north-west Melbourne to clear her mind after an argument and never returned - but police say he killed her. Borce Ristevski, 54, allegedly murdered his fashion boutique owner wife Karen (pictured) in 2016 at the family's Avondale Heights home in Melbourne's north-west before dumping her body in bushland Police had applied for a suppression order that would stop media publishing information from a key witness. However, it was thrown out (Pictured: Karen Ristevski, left, Borce Ristevski and daughter Sarah, right) Optus technical specialist Oleg Prypoten told Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday that both the Ristevskis' phones were detected on June 29, 2016 - the day Karen went missing - before they were deactivated. Police failed in their bid to prevent Mr Prypoten's evidence being reported by media, arguing it could reveal too much detail about their investigation methodologies. 'We say the information is so highly confidential it shouldn't be disclosed to anyone but the court,' Astrid Haban-Beer, counsel for the Office of the Chief Commissioner of Police, said. Magistrate Suzanne Cameron refused the request, stating that what occurs during police investigations is regularly discussed in open court. Mr Prypoten said Optus could detect phones if they were on and even if they'd been left idle. However, he said the couples' phones had been deactivated either because they had been turned off, switched to airplane mode, or run out of battery. The magistrate will hear evidence about Ms Ristevski's body from experienced forensic pathologist Stephen Cordner Court documents show Borce's phone was unable to make or receive calls between 11.09am and 12.51pm. Karen's phone last pinged to a cell tower in Gisborne, near the Macedon Regional Park, at 11.40am. But Optus couldn't pinpoint where the phones were last used as they could have pinged off a number of different stations within the area. Mr Prypoten said Optus could detect phones within a 35km-radius in rural areas. Detectives claim Borce murdered his wife at home and drove her black Mercedes-Benz roadster to dump the body, killing the signal on his mobile phone along the way. They claim he lied about where he was on the day of Karen's disappearance and made inconsistent statements. Borce Ristevski (centre right) the husband of missing Melbourne woman Karen Ristevski and their daughter Patricia Gray (pictured outside Melbourne Magistrates Court, left) claims Ristevski's account was 'flimsy' The court has previously been told the Ristevskis were in financial dire straits and would sometimes argue about money and business in the lead up to Karen's disappearance. Prosecutors have compiled a 22,000-page evidence brief, including CCTV footage of Karen's Mercedes, phone recordings and telecommunications data. The committal hearing, which is expected to conclude this week, will determine whether Borce will stand trial over his wife's death. Last week, Ristevski's daughter made an emotional testimony and said her parents rarely fought. Despite this, Ms Ristevski's aunt, Patricia Gray, said that Ristevski's account was 'flimsy' as he didn't assist police in the best way possible when his wife vanished. There will be another week of witness evidence in the four week committal hearing before Magistrate Suzanne Cameron is forced to decide whether Ristevski should be put on trial for the alleged murder of his wife. Republican Senate candidate Corey Stewart has been met with chuckles after insisting that President Donald Trump 'is standing up to the Russians'. Stewart was debating incumbent Democrat and former Hillary Clinton running mate Tim Kaine in Hot Springs, Virginia on Saturday when he punched back at claims that Trump is soft on Russia. 'Senator Kaine seems to be surprised that Russians are behaving, well, like Russians. They've been spying for years, and in fact he was noticeably silent when they shot down a Maylasian airliner when President Obama was in office,' Stewart said, adding a similar observation about the Russian annexation of the Crimea during Obama's term. 'We have a president who is standing up to the Russians,' Stewart continued, provoking laughter from Kaine and some of the audience members. Debate Audience Erupts in Laughter After Republican Corey Stewart Says Trump is standing up to the Russians.pic.twitter.com/vSuqxZtsiH PoliticsVideoChannel (@politvidchannel) July 22, 2018 Democrat Tim Kaine (left) and Republican Corey Stewart (right) debated in Hot Springs, Virginia on Saturday, when Stewart provoked chuckles by defending Trump on Russia Last week, Trump drew widespread condemnation for failing to denounce Russian President Vladimir Putin when they met over claims of Russian interference in US elections. But Trump's supporters point out that aid and weapons to fighters in the Ukraine who oppose Russia have increased under his administration, including a new $200million package approved last week. US forces have also clashed with Russians in Syria. In the Senate race debate, Stewart, a one-time state chairman of Trump's presidential campaign, accused Kaine of being an ineffective elitist who puts his opposition to the president above all other considerations. Stewart said Trump-backed tax cuts and increases in military spending were helping Virginia's working class and chided Kaine for not being more supportive. 'Whether it's good for Virginia or bad for Virginia, he opposes everything that President Trump does automatically,' Stewart said. Stewart (above), a one-time state chairman of Trump's presidential campaign, accused Kaine of being an ineffective elitist who opposes the President at all costs Kaine (above) said he's a needed check against the president and mocked Stewart Kaine, a former vice presidential candidate seeking his second term in the Senate, said he's worked with Trump on areas of common agreement but always puts Virginia's interests first. Kaine said he's a needed check against the president and mocked Stewart for saying the president was 'standing up' to Russia. 'If there's anything that demonstrates the difference between us, it's Corey Stewart standing up here and saying that President Trump is standing up to the Russians,' Kaine said. 'President Trump is caving to the Russians.' Kaine is an early favorite to win, and national attention and deep-pocketed outside groups are more focused on other Senate races. The former governor has a huge cash advantage over Stewart, who has never run a statewide general election campaign before. Stewart's full embrace of Trump puts him at odds with many elected Virginia Republicans, who have tried to keep their distance from the president. Virginia's growing urban and suburban areas have made the state increasingly friendly to Democrats. Trump lost Virginia in 2016 and Republicans haven't won a statewide election in the Old Dominion since 2009. Kaine (left) is an early favorite to win, and has a huge cash advantage over Stewart (right) The debate, sponsored by the Virginia Bar Association and held at the posh Homestead Resort in Bath County, featured plenty of sharp exchanges and was often punctuated by boos and jeers from the crowd. Previous VBA debates have been much more staid. A conservative provocateur who often insults politicians in both parties, Stewart launched several broadsides against Kaine's record as governor and in the Senate. 'He's too weak, he's too liberal, and he's got nothing done,' Stewart said. Kaine accused Stewart of lying in order to deflect criticism for his past associations with unsavory people. Kaine said it was 'disgraceful' that Stewart had campaigned in support of Roy Moore, a defeated Senate candidate in Alabama who was accused of sexual misconduct. Kaine said Stewart's campaign strategy was clear: 'Make it nasty, make it personal, or make it up.' President Donald Trump has issued a dire warning to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, escalating a war of words over looming sanctions against Tehran. Rouhani had warned Trump not to 'play with the lion's tail' before Trump let rip on Twitter late on Sunday night, saying: 'To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE.' 'WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!' But that only prompted Iran to further goad Trump, calling his reaction 'passive' and saying he 'won't dare' launch an attack. Trump and First Lady Melania are seen returning to DC on Sunday after the weekend. Trump issued the stark threat after he had arrived back at the White House Trump was responding to remarks by Hassan Rouhani (above), in which the Iranian President said 'war with Iran will be the mother of all wars' Trump unloaded on Rouhani in an all-caps tweet but the regime brushed aside his remarks as 'passive', adding that he 'won't dare' attack The regime also accused him of copying Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who in the past has warned the West to 'never threaten an Iranian.' Gen. Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, the chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guards volunteer Basij force, added that Trump's tweet amounts to nothing more than 'psychological warfare' He said: 'We will never abandon our revolutionary beliefs. We will resist pressure from enemies... America wants nothing less than (to) destroy Iran ... (but) Trump cannot do a damn thing against Iran.' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump's 'strong stance' against Iran and welcomed an end to world powers 'pampering' the regime. Rouhani had earlier warned America that 'Iran is the mother of all peace' before adding that 'war with Iran is the mother of all wars'. 'Don't play with fire, or you will regret [it],' he continued. 'Iranian people are the master and they will never bow to anyone.' Trump (pictured arriving in Washington DC from New Jersey) spoke out shortly after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo promised a 'maximum pressure' campaign against Iran Trump's war of words with Iran echo his threats of 'fire and fury' against North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un before their appeasement at the summit in Singapore Earlier this year, Trump tore up the nuclear agreement signed by predecessor Barack Obama by pledging to reinstate harsh sanctions against Iran Rouhani warned against any US attempt to destabilize the country by encouraging protests, saying: 'You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests.' US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hinted at such efforts on Sunday, promising unspecified backing for Iranian dissents as he referred to the country's leaders as a 'mafia'. Pompeo, in a California speech to a largely Iranian-American audience, dismissed Rouhani and his top ministers as 'merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry.' Iran 'is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government,' Pompeo said, citing what he called Iranian leaders' vast wealth and corruption. Pompeo said senior Iranian leaders had benefited from embezzlement, sweetheart deals and other ill-gotten gains. Iran's ayatollahs, he said, were 'hypocritical holy men' who 'seem more concerned with riches than religion.' In a move sure to anger Tehran, Pompeo announced that the US government is launching a 24-hour television, radio and digital information channel in Farsi to broadcast American propaganda across Iran. The information service would insure that 'ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe can know that America stands with them', Pompeo said. The war of words grew to a fever pitch not long after Iran threatened to block international oil tankers from passing through the critical Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for Trump's looming sanctions. The vital strategic choke-point, just 29 nautical miles wide at its narrowest point, controls all ocean traffic to the Persian Gulf. About one-fifth of the world's petroleum passes through the strait. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California on Sunday, in a speech where he referred to the leadership of Iran as a 'mafia' Protesters against the current Iranian regime stand outside the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum where Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was speaking on Sunday Trump's words also echo his statements against North Korea's Kim Jong Un in August last year, in which he said: 'North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States. 'They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.' Trump and Kim eventually buried the hatchet before sitting down for the first ever summit between the two world leaders in Singapore in June. Sanctions against Iran are set to come into play after Trump's decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Iran's nuclear program. The Trump administration initially planned to shut Iran out of global oil markets completely, demanding all other countries stop buying Iranian crude by November. But the US has somewhat eased its stance, saying it may grant sanction waivers to some allies that are particularly reliant on Iranian supplies. Rouhani scoffed at Trump's threat to halt Iranian oil exports and said Iran has a dominant position in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping waterway. 'Anyone who understands the rudiments of politics doesn't say 'we will stop Iran's oil exports,'' Rouhani said, cited by the semi-official ISNA news agency. 'We have been the guarantor of the regional waterway's security throughout history.' Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei backed his president and said: 'If Iran's oil is not exported, no regional country's oil will be exported.' Iran has threatened to block oil tankers transiting through the Strait of Hormuz (above). The vitale choke-point controls all ocean traffic from the Persian Gulf 'If Iran's oil is not exported, no regional country's oil will be exported,' said Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (seen on Saturday) Pedestrians are seen walking beneath a mural of Iranian martyrs and late Ayatollah Khomeini (far left) in Tehran on Sunday. The war of words between Iran and the US has escalated Iranian officials have in the past threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping route, in retaliation for any hostile US action. Khamenei used a speech to foreign ministry officials to reject any renewed talks with the United States after President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from a 2015 international deal over Iran's nuclear program. Khamenei added: 'The word and even the signature of the Americans cannot be relied upon, so negotiations with America are of no avail.' He claimed it would be an 'obvious mistake' to negotiate with the US as Washington was unreliable. Ruben McDornan heard the screams of his crew mates trapped inside the trawler The sole survivor of the Queensland trawler tragedy has broken down in tears as he recalled the moment he realised his six 'brothers' would die - as he reveals how the thoughts of his wife drove him to make it back to dry land. Ruben McDornan heard the screams of his crew mates trapped inside the FV Dianne trawler when it capsized off the coast of the Queensland town of 1770 in October last year. The 32-year-old was the only one of the men who escaped, desperately clinging to the hull of the boat while trying to communicate with his trapped friends. 'I could hear some banging, and I just banged, and then instantly I heard banging back... I just screamed into the hull and I heard a voice scream straight back,' he told 60 Minutes. The 32-year-old (back right) was the only one of the men who escaped, desperately clinging to the hull of the boat while trying to communicate with his trapped friends Mr McDornan said the thoughts of his wife Sammy drove him to make it back to dry land 'They were working on something, they were making efforts. They never stopped making an effort to get out.' About four hours after she capsized, Dianne sunk to the sea floor with the six men still trapped inside. 'I just broke down I've just lost my mates and my brothers. I wanted to go back under, but the boat was completely submerged,' he said. 'To go back under is to... I couldn't go back under.' Heavily bleeding in treacherous seas known for tiger sharks, Mr McDornan began to swim. About four hours after she capsized, Dianne sunk to the sea floor with the six men still trapped inside. The body of Eli Tonks (right) has never been found Zachary Feeney (pictured left) and skipper 45-year-old skipper Ben Leahy (right) were among the seven men on board 'Honestly, [sharks] never even crossed my mind, not even for a second. I was too focused on what was in front of me, you know, and that was getting [back to land],' he said. 'I was talking to myself, motivating myself, talking to [wife] Sammy I was just saying, ''Don't worry. I'm going to make it. I'm not going to disappoint you'',' he recalled. 'To me, the feeling was really weird. It was like I was letting her down by not giving it my all. Everything was flashing in front of me for her without me of what it was going to be like. 'No way am I letting that happen. Not while I've still got a chance.' Pictured left is 30-year-old Adam Hoffman. He was one of the seven men on board the boat when it capsized. Another was Chris Sammut (pictured right) At first light the next day, Mr McDornan considered giving up the fight after realising the tide had taken him away from land and further out to sea. 'I thought, do I swim or do I just bloody give up? Is it easier just to drown yourself or something?,' he questioned. 'I just felt like I'd failed. But, you know, I just quickly snapped out of that... So I just went, right - I'm going to go down swimming. If I die, it's because I've died from exhaustion.' Mr McDornan spotted commercial fisherman Mal Priday and his wife Linda in the distance as he entered his eighth hour in turbulent seas. Ruben McDornan (with wife Sammy), 32, was one of seven men aboard trawler 'FV Dianne' when it capsized off the Queensland town of Seventeen Seventy in Octobe , Mr McDornan considered giving up the fight after realising the tide had taken him away from land and further out to sea. Pictured is Adam Bidner 'It got so close to where I could see the people on the boat. And when I saw them, I could see that all their heads were turned away and they were going miss me,' Mr McDornan said. 'I was screaming and whistling as it was coming past.' The bodies of two of Mr McDornan's friends - Adam Hoffman, 30, and Ben Leahy, 45 - were later found in the wreckage by police divers. Eli Tonks, 39, Adam Bidner, 33, Zach Feeney, 28, and Chris Sammut, 34, have never been found. Mr McDornan spotted commercial fisherman Mal Priday and his wife Linda in the distance as he entered his eighth hour in turbulent seas A mobile speed camera operator has been seen sleeping on the job. A passerby spotted the man napping behind the wheel of a parked Ford Falcon with New South Wales Government branding on Sydney Road, in the city's north, from 7am to 8.45am on Sunday. Cars could be seen driving past the mobile speed camera he slept in the front seat. A mobile speed camera operator has been seen sleeping on the job for almost two hours The operator was behind the wheel of a parked Ford Falcon on Sydney Road in north Sydney on Sunday morning He was seen sleeping in the mobile speed camera marked with New South Wales Government branding from 7am to 8.45am NSW Roads and Maritime Services told Daily Mail Australia they were investigating the incident. Photos of the sleeping operator emerged as it was revealed a Melbourne intersection has been raking in more than $45,000 a day in traffic fines. Cars and cyclists could be seen driving past the speed camera operator as he sat in the front seat Cameras on the corner of King and La Trobe Streets in Melbourne caught 137 people speeding every day for four months. Department of Justice and Regulation spokeswoman Ashleigh Brown told the Herald Sun speed cameras played a 'critical role in changing driver behaviour and helping keep people safe on our roads'. 'Research shows us that a pedestrian hit by a car travelling at 60km/h is unlikely to survive, whereas a pedestrian struck at 40km/h has a much greater chance of survival.' A police officer involved in the savage beating and arrest of a 16-year-old boy with Asperger's syndrome as he lay naked screaming for help, could face criminal charges. Horrifying CCTV footage showed the teenager being pinned to the ground as he was capsicum sprayed and tasered before being struck about 20 times with a baton outside a Byron Bay backpackers hostel in early January. Counsel assisting the NSW Law Enforcement Conduct Commission on Monday recommended the Commissioner of Police consider taking legal action against one of the officers. Scroll down for video A police officer involved in the savage beating and arrest of a 16-year-old boy with Asperger's as he lay naked screaming for help (pictured), could face criminal charges The boy was capsicum sprayed and tasered before being bashed 20 times with a baton outside a Byron Bay backpackers hostel in early January, leaving him severely bruised (pictured) This officer, referred to as 'Officer E', delivered 18 of the 20 baton strikes, some of them while the teenager was handcuffed, the ABC reported. Counsel submitted that the unidentified officer 'unjustifiably used grossly unnecessary force' on the boy, hitting him 'as hard as he was physically able' and attempted to mislead the commission, the publication reported. Another officer, referred to as 'Officer D', used capsicum spray and a taser which was described by counsel as 'unreasonable' and 'premature'. Michael Taylor, the lawyer for Officer E, said witnesses described the teenager as having the strength of three or four men. However, 'four on one is not bad odds, and they're [police officers] all bigger than him,' Chief Commissioner Michael Adams QC said. Another officer, referred to as 'Officer D', used capsicum spray and a taser which was described by counsel as 'unreasonable' and 'premature' Officer E told a private inquiry the baton strikes were justified in order to get the teenager's hands from under his body as he was laying on his stomach, but when presented with a video showing a contrasting scenario, he changed his evidence, an executive summary of counsel assisting submissions read. The teenager was left with severe purple bruising across his legs following the altercation. The unnamed teenager was lying on the ground outside of the backpacker hostel on Lanteen Lane before police arrived. Police alleged they deployed pepper spray when the boy became aggressive, before using a taser when he allegedly assaulted an officer. Officers also alleged the teenager continued to resist arrest before he was taken to Byron Bay police station. In the footage, filmed by terrified locals, four officers repeatedly hit the 16-year-old, yelling 'you f***ing loser' at the boy. The boy then yelled 'I'm not resisting' as police struggled to handcuff him. The Director of Public Prosecutions may also be consulted about possible criminal proceedings. Lawyers representing the police officers will address the commission later on Monday. Australian man Tim Kentley-Klay quit his 9am-5pm job to pursue his dream of creating a driverless car to rival google's. Kentley-Klay, 43, grew up in Melbourne and graduated from university with a communication design degree, but after working his way up to the top of his field, gave it all up to pursue his own business. Kentley-Klay has now created a driverless car he and his business partner claim is the best technology in the industry. Australian man Tim Kentley-Klay quit his 9am-5pm job to pursue his dream and create a driverless car to rival google's Kentley-Klay and his partner Jesse Levinson were not ignorant to the fact their company was in a race against some of the biggest, and most well-funded companies in the world. 'We are a startup pitted against the biggest companies on the planet. But we believe deeply that what we're building is the right thing. Creativity and technical elegance will win here,' Kentley-Klay told Bloomberg. The Australian businessman's foray into the driverless car industry began when he stumbled across a post about Google's car project. He thought Google's prototype was lacking, and set out to do it better. Kentley-Klay (pictured) and his partner Jesse Levinson were not ignorant to the fact their company was in a race against some of the biggest, and most well-funded companies in the world The passionate Australian committed to his own project, and with the help of co-founder Levinson, now has a prototype worth $800 million parked in his garage Kentley-Klay dropped everything and moved to the US, where he set out to beat the big names including Google - who have a team of engineers working on their self-driving car project Kentley-Klay dropped everything and moved to the US, where he worked hard to beat the big names at their own game. In a somewhat underhanded move, the Australian approached the big-name companies under the guise of making a documentary. Instead, he mined them for information. 'I played the oldest trick in the director's book: the vanity card. I showed up with a Canon and a bulls*** microphone and interviewed Sterling for two hours in a grassy field,' he said. 'In my defence, I might have been making a documentary. The jury is still out on whether I am full of s***.' 'I played the oldest trick in the director's book: the vanity card. I showed up with a Canon and a bulls*** microphone and interviewed Sterling for two hours in a grassy field,' Kentley-Klay said The passionate Australian committed to his own project, and with the help of co-founder Levinson, (together) now has a prototype worth $800 million parked in his garage Kentley-Klay got to know some of the industry's biggest players, including one of Google's head autonomous-vehicle engineers Anthony Levandowski. His bright mind and determination were enough to convince google to offer him a job on the team, but Kentley-Klay turned it down in favour of his own pursuit. The passionate Australian committed to his own project, and with the help of co-founder Levinson, now has a prototype worth $800 million parked in his garage. The company, Zoox, now has 500 employees based at the headquarters in Foster City, California The company, Zoox, now has 500 employees based at the headquarters in Foster City, California. Kentley-Klay even convinced engineers from Google, Tesla, Apple and Amazon to join his company and work on his driverless car dream. Despite his offers of employment at some of the world's biggest companies, Kentley-Klay never second-guessed his decision to make his own mark on the industry. 'For me, it's not complicated. You have to think about what will give you the best result and then walk down that road, even if it means it's the harder road to go down,' he said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo didn't hold back in a war of words against Iran's leaders on Sunday, comparing them to the 'mafia' and 'wolves in sheep's clothing'. Pompeo was in California giving a speech to a largely Iranian-American audience when he hit out at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif. The secretary, who spoke just hours before Donald Trump issued an extraordinary warning to Iran, called Rouhani and Zarif 'merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry'. Pompeo also attacked Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, and claimed he had a personal hedge fund worth $95billion. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo didn't hold back in a war of words against Iran's leaders on Sunday, comparing them to the 'mafia' and 'wolves in sheep's clothing' He went on to claim that the fund was untaxed and used to fund the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. 'The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than the government,' Pompeo said. 'These hypocritical holy men have devised all kinds of crooked schemes to become some of the wealthiest men on Earth while their people suffer.' Pompeo's speech was the latest step in a communications offensive launched by the Trump administration meant to instigate unrest in Iran and help pressure the government to end its nuclear program and support of militant groups, US officials familiar with the matter said. Donald Trump withdrew in May from the 2015 nuclear accord designed to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Tehran has said its nuclear work is just for electricity generation and other peaceful projects. Pompeo was in California giving a speech to a largely Iranian-American audience when he hit out at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif Pompeo was in California giving a speech to a largely Iranian-American audience when he hit out at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (left) and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif (right) 'The ideologues who forcibly came to power in 1979 and remain in power today are driven by a desire to conform all of Iranian society to the tenants of the Islamic Revolution,' Pompeo said. 'The regime is also committed to spreading the Revolution to other countries, by force if necessary.' 'To the regime, prosperity, security, and freedom for the Iranian people are acceptable casualties in the march to fulfill the Revolution,' he added. Pompeo said the US government planned to launch a 'maximum pressure campaign' against the Iranian government. He said the 'mission' was to pursue a 'diplomatic and economic pressure campaign' that would help the 'shoots of liberty' grow back in the country. Pompeo's words came just hours before Donald Trump sent a threatening tweet to Rouhani The offensive is meant to work in concert with severe economic sanctions that Washington plans to reimpose in the coming months, including on Tehran's oil exports, its principal revenue generator. Pompeo said the US will work with countries that import Iranian oil 'to get imports as close to zero as possible' by November. Rouhani cautioned Trump on Sunday about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying: 'War with Iran is the mother of all wars.' 'You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests,' Rouhani said, in an apparent reference to reports of efforts by Washington to destabilize Iran's Islamic government. Trump responded to Rouhani in a tweet late on Sunday, saying: 'NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!' 'LONG-IGNORED VOICE OF PEOPLE.' Protesters against the current Iranian regime stood outside the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, where Secretary of State Pompeo was speaking on Sunday Publicly, the Trump administration says its policy with Iran is not 'regime change,' but to change Tehran's behavior so it stops nuclear and missile work, support for proxies in the Middle East and backing of militant groups. 'While it is ultimately up to the Iranian people to determine the direction of their country, the United States...will support the long-ignored voice of the Iranian people,' Pompeo said. Pompeo spoke at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, to a packed house of about 1,000 people. He received frequent applause, although one audience member heckled him over the Trump administration's immigration policies. 'If there was only so much freedom of speech in Iran,' Pompeo quipped after they finished. Several dozen protesters lined the route to the library, including one group that distributed fliers opposing both Iran's current government and any US intervention in Iran. Trump and First Lady Melania are seen returning to DC on Sunday after the weekend. Trump issued the stark threat after he had arrived back at the White House Meanwhile, Pompeo revealed the US government broadcasting agency was launching a 24/7 Farsi-language channel on TV, radio, digital and social media platforms. The US government is also taking steps to help Iranians get around internet censorship, he added. Tensions escalated between the US and Iran after the latter threatened to block international oil tankers from passing through the critical Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for Trump's looming sanctions. Rouhani scoffed at Trump's threat to halt Iranian oil exports and said Iran has a dominant position in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping waterway. 'Anyone who understands the rudiments of politics doesn't say 'we will stop Iran's oil exports,'' Rouhani said, cited by the semi-official ISNA news agency. 'We have been the guarantor of the regional waterway's security throughout history.' On Saturday Khamenei backed Rouhani's suggestion that Iran may block Gulf oil exports if its own exports are halted. Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has been slammed for enlisting her 11-year-old daughter to denounce another politician for making comments about her mother's sex life. The federal lawmaker from Adelaide has taken legal action against Liberal Democrats senator David Leyonhjelm after he told her last month to 'stop shagging men' during a heated debate about capsicum spray. Senator Hanson-Young, who has previously denied suggesting all men were rapists, appeared on The Sunday Project with her 11-year-old daughter Kora Young. Scroll down for video Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has been slammed for enlisting her 11-year-old daughter Kora to denounce another politician for making comments about her mother's sex life Asked by Network Ten interviewer Lisa Wilkinson what she would say to Senator Leyonhjelm, Kora replied: 'Being a bully was not right and I would try to stay confident which most women and young women must do.' The girl also criticised Senator Leyonhjelm, a Sydney-based free speech libertarian, for refusing to apologise to her mother. 'I think it's wrong,' she said. Kora said she had also confronted a girl at primary school who had suggested her 36-year-old mum had 'lots of boyfriends'. 'I said that that was a lie and whoever said that was not being fair,' she said. The Greens lawmaker has taken legal action against Liberal Democrats senator David Leyonhjelm after he told her last month to 'stop shagging men' during a heated debate 'Being unfair to women or any gender isn't right and, like, he's refused to apologise and he deserves to apologise.' Conservative commentator Andrew Bolt said Senator Hanson-Young was exposing her daughter to more playground taunts to score political points. 'It makes an 11-year-old a political target - and also a possible target for playground teasing,' he said on his Herald Sun blog today. 'And how is Leyonhjelm meant to defend himself from this criticism? To respond would hurt Kora and make him seem a bully. 'It does seem too much like using a child to get a free kick, and I suspect Sarah Hanson-Young will lose a lot of the support she has so far won.' The Project's Lisa Wilkinson asked 11-year-old Kora Young what she would say to Senator David Leyonhjelm is she saw him The Project's Lisa Wilkinson said Senator Hanson-Young had consented to involving Kora in the interview The Project's Lisa Wilkinson said Senator Hanson-Young had consented to involving Kora in the interview after former news presenter turned businessman Peter Ford suggested kids should be 'off limits in political debates'. 'We asked Sarah if she wanted her involved in the interview and she replied, "Yes, Kora wants to have her say",' Wilkinson said. As a two-year-old girl in 2009, Kora unwittingly became involved in another political drama when her mother took her into the Senate chamber during a late night vote, which led to her daughter being ejected. In late June, Senator Hanson-Young became involved in another confrontation, this time with Senator Leyonhjelm during a debate about whether women should be allowed to carry pepper spray or tasers to defend themselves. In late June, Senator Hanson-Young became involved in a confrontation with Senator Leyonhjelm during a debate about whether women should be allowed to carry pepper spray In subsequent days, the Greens senator for South Australia accused her libertarian opponent of 'slut shaming' her during an ABC Radio National interview. A week after that parliamentary confrontation, Senator Hanson-Young hired legal firm Kennedys Australasia, who demanded an apology and compensation on her behalf. The pair clashed on the last sitting day of June when Senator Leyonhjelm believed he heard Senator Hanson-Young say words to the effect of 'all men are rapists' in parliament, which she denied. Senator Leyonhjelm admitted he had told her to 'stop shagging men' in response. The notice claims he caused 'hurt, stress and embarrassment' over comments made in the media between July 1 and 4 regarding her opinions about men, which he described as 'without merit'. A man was arrested by police at the Splendour in the Grass music festival after he allegedly threatened a security guard with a plank of wood and then kicked him. Police charged the 42-year-old with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and trespass after the alleged incident unfolded about 11pm on Saturday. He was one of more than 100 revellers charged by officers during the three-day event in northern New South Wales. Police charged more than 100 people during the three-day Splendour in the Grass music festival, which wrapped-up on Sunday. Pictured, part of the 37,000-strong crowd which attended the event Police swarmed the North Byron Parklands, far north New South Wales, throughout the music festival to keep a close eye on revellers The man will face court in September. Officers had swarmed the North Byron Parklands to keep a close eye on the 37,000-strong crowd who attended the festival, which wrapped-up on Sunday. Police said they issued 115 field court attendance notices for 148 drug offences. A 25-year-old man faced court on Monday after he was charged with possessing a prohibited drug, supplying a prohibited drug and deal with proceeds of crime. Police allegedly found 57 MDMA tablets and cash in the man's possession. Tweed/Byron Police District Commander Detective Superintendent Wayne Starling said while the majority of revellers were well-behaved, police were disappointed with the number of arrests. Police said the majority of revellers at this year's Splendour in the Grass were well-behaved 'It's disappointing we continue to detect the possession and supply of prohibited drugs,' Supt Starling said. 'Not only is it a serious criminal offence, it is also harmful to your health and you simply do not know what you are taking. 'The safety of music fans attending the festival is and continues to be our number one priority.' Thirty-eight cannabis cautions and five youth cautions were also issued by officers. Police said they are continuing to investigate after an 18-year-old woman was allegedly sexually assaulted about 11pm on Sunday. A serial sex attacker had warned police he might strike again just weeks before he raped and murdered a nurse in her own home. Leroy Campbell, 57, was released from prison four months prior to attacking Lisa Skidmore, 37, in her home in Bilston, West Midlands, in November of 2016. The convicted rapist, who was on probation at the time, raped and murdered Lisa before attempting to kill her mother, Margaret Skidmore, 81, by choking her. Campbell, from Moseley in Birmingham, had been watching Lisa for weeks - after chillingly telling his probation officer that he 'felt like raping' someone again. Leroy Campbell, 57, (left) was released from prison four months before he raped and killed Lisa Skidmore, 37, (right) in Bilston, West Midlands in November of 2016 Campbell, from Moseley in Birmingham, had been watching Lisa for weeks - after chillingly telling his probation officer that he 'felt like raping' someone again. Pictured: Lisa's home This was the second missed opportunity to recall Campbell, as he told his probation officer just after his release he had troubling thoughts - the same type he would get before attacking a woman. Campbell was released in 2016 and just three months later, he spoke of 'rape' to his probation officer and admitted he recognised similar feelings before he committed his crimes. However the troubling admission was not recorded on the system, reported the Mirror. The convicted rapist attempted to kill Lisa's mother, Margaret Skidmore by choking her Just days later, he told a detective he was having thoughts about burglarising homes after noticing open windows. He told the detective he would allow himself two weeks to 'get through or re-offend'. Now Lisa's family is pushing for the police, probation and parole board to hand over all the details on the case. Speaking to the Mirror, Lisa's sister Alison said: 'We had a meeting with [Justice Minister] Rory Stewart and he agreed there were catastrophic failings in how Campbell was managed by probation and the police. 'They failed to act on critical information. If they had, Lisa would be alive.' After killing Lisa, Campbell hid in her house. Margaret walked in on him after he had attacked her daughter. He attempted to strangle her to death with a vacuum hose and left her unconscious. Campbell set the house on fire in a bid to cover his tracks but was later jailed for life. He had previously been jailed in 1983 for the attempted choking of a woman with intention to commit rape and again in 1991, when he raped a woman in her home. This was the second missed chance to recall Campbell, as he told his probation officer just after his release he had troubling thoughts - the same type he would get before attacking a woman. Pictured: A young Lisa Campbell also told a detective he was having thoughts about burglarising homes after noticing open windows. Pictured: Flowers placed outside Lisa's home Despite the pensioner's horrific ordeal, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority, the body in charge of awarding taxypayer-funded payouts to victims of violent crime, ruled she didn't meet the threshold for compensation, reported the Telegraph. The decision comes in spite of the National Probation Service (NPS) acknowledging there were serious failures in their handling of Campbell. In a letter outlining their decision, the CICA said: 'The widespread bruising to your head, black eyes, bloody nose, bloodshot left eye, swelling over your cheek, tenderness around your jaw and bruising and cuts to your neck are not listed in Annex E. (We are) therefore unable to make an award for these injuries as they are not qualifying injuries.' A female prison officer has resigned after having a sexual relationship with an inmate serving a 36-year sentence for killing a policeman. The officer had a relationship with convicted murderer Sione Penisini while he was being held at the Mid North Coast Correctional Centre in Kempsey, New South Wales. Penisini was convicted of killing highway patrol officer Constable Glenn McEnallay, 26, in 2002, and is considered an 'Extreme High Risk' inmate. The officer had a relationship with convicted murderer Sione Penisini while he was being held at the Mid North Coast Correctional Centre in Kempsey, New South Wales The female corrections officer has since resigned, 2GB reported. Penisini has been moved from the prison after he was able to leave his maximum security cell and allegedly assault another inmate. He went through several controlled gates the the prison's reception room on July 17 before he allegedly seriously assaulted the fellow inmate who was a cleaner in the area. A source told 2GB the alleged attack wasn't reported. New South Wales Corrections Minister David Elliott will fly to Kempsey to visit the prison. Penisini has since been relocated to Goulburn super max jail. Penisini was convicted of killing highway patrol officer Constable Glenn McEnallay (pictured), 26, in 2002, and is considered an 'Extreme High Risk' inmate Constable McEnallay was shot once in the head and twice in the chest by Penisini in March 2002. Penisini had been driving a stolen car when he was pulled over by Constable McEnallay. The 26-year-old police officer was about to be married before he was killed. As news broke of a duck boat capsizing and taking 17 lives - including nine members of the same family - it was one woman's footage that got played over and over again. All Jennie Carr could do was watch from the safety of land as she recorded the horrific moment the Ride the Ducks boat disappeared in a Branson lake. Carr spoke out for the first time on Sunday and revealed that she believes the entire tragedy could have easily been avoided. Scroll down for video Jennie Carr, who recorded the horrific moment the Ride the Ducks boat disappeared in a lake in Branson, Missouri, said on Sunday that the tragedy could have easily been avoided 'I am really sorry and sad that it happened,' she told KMOV. 'It should not have happened.' 'They knew the storm was coming. I saw the storm in the sky.' A severe weather warning had been issued in Branson at 6.30pm - about half an hour before the duck boat got into trouble. Winds were recorded to be blowing at 73mph when the duck boat launched into the lake. Hurricane-force winds start at about 75mph. 'It wasn't a pop-up storm by any means,' Carr said. 'How are people saying it was a pop-up storm? I don't know.' 'It was on a radar. We had a watch. At 6.30pm we got a warning.' Thursday was the first time Carr had ever been on a boat. She traveled two hours with her husband to celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary on the tour. Carr was on a second boat that was just 125ft ahead of the ill-fated duck boat. 'You could clearly see the duck was having issues out in the water,' she said. 'It was not going well.' Carr was on a second boat that was just 125ft ahead of the ill-fated duck boat. She said she was in disbelief when she saw it capsize 'I could not see anybody, but you knew what was going to happen.' 'I really wanted to do something, you know? But, what could you do? We were all told to calm down. We were even told to have a seat, but nobody had a seat.' Carr said she was in disbelief as she saw the duck boat go down. Carr said the storm that took down the boat wasn't a surprise and that a warning (pictured) had been issued 30 minutes prior 'My heart was breaking because I knew what was going to happen,' she said. 'My heart breaks bad for those families. I know they were scared. I know they were terrified.' The state attorney is currently investigating whether the boat's surviving captain will face criminal charges. It will examine what protocols were in place for bad weather, and how much the captain knew about the storm before taking off for the tour. National Transport Safety Board member Earl Weener told reporters they had a lot of questions for the captain, as it was discovered winds were approaching hurricane force when the boat entered the water. Weener said witness-submitted tapes suggested the waves were between four and six feet high. Tia Coleman said the crew told passengers they were going into the water first, before the land-based part of their tour, because of the incoming storm. First responders are seen pulling survivors who swam to the surface out of the water Coleman lost her husband, her three children, and another five members of her family in the tragedy. The devastated mother said her son had been right next to her as the ship began to sink, but as the water levels crept up she said: 'I could no longer feel anybody, I couldn't see'. 'I hit my head on part of the boat, and when I went into the water, it was ice cold, so I knew I was at the bottom.' When she finally made it to the surface, fighting against the pull of the sinking ship, Coleman said she saw people on a nearby river boat 'jumping in and saving everybody, they were throwing life rafts to every body'. 'Somehow I managed to get to the boat, and these beautiful people, angels, I don't know who they were, they pulled me up,' she said. Nine family members from the Coleman clan were killed in the duck boat ride on Thursday Tia Coleman lost her husband and three children when their boat capsized on Table Rock lake. She and her nephew are the only two who survived 'And when they pulled me up, I didn't see any of my family.' Horace 'Butch' Coleman, 70, his wife, Belinda Coleman, 69, and his brother, Irving Raymond Coleman, 76, were killed in the tragedy, as were Belinda's cousins, Angela Coleman, 45, and Glenn Coleman, 40 - who is also Tia's husband the IndyStar reported. Angela's two-year-old son Maxwell died in the tragic accident, as did Glenn's sons Evan, 7, and Reece, 9, and his one-year-old daughter Arya. The final photo of the family, taken shortly before they boarded the doomed ride shows the tight-knit clan beaming with a lifesaver ring. Of the 11 people in the photograph, only two survived the ordeal. Nine members of the same family (eight pictured) were killed on Thursday night after a duck boat capsized on Table Rock Lake in Branson, Missouri (from top left: Butch Coleman, Ray Coleman, Glenn Coleman, Angela Coleman (seen holding Maxwell). From bottom left: Reece Coleman, Belinda Coleman and Evan Coleman) Butch Coleman (left) remembered as a 'community legend' was killed in the tragic accident, as was one-year-old Arya (pictured right with her uncle Gary) Fourteen people in total survived. Seven people were hospitalized with injuries. 'Going home, I already know is going to be completely difficult,' Coleman said as she addressed reporters from hospital. 'I don't know how I'm going to do it. Since I've had a home, it's always been filled with little feet, laughter, and my husband.' A GoFundMe has been set up for the Coleman family. Earlier, Coleman told FOX59 the captain had told passengers: 'Don't worry about grabbing the life jackets'. 'When it was time to grab them, it was too late,' she said. 'A lot of people could have been spared.' Former FBI Director James Comey took another aggressive stance against Donald Trump Sunday afternoon when he posted his second tweet in a week giving advice to Democratic voters. Comey, who was sacked by the president in May of last year on the recommendation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, wrote in the tweet: 'Democrats, please, please don't lose your minds and rush to the socialist left. 'This president and his Republican Party are counting on you to do exactly that. America's great middle wants sensible, balanced, ethical leadership.' Comey, 57, who recently described himself as unaffiliated with a political party, received backlash after sharing the piece of advice to American voters. US Congress candidate and Democrat, Bill Cimbrelo, replied to the tweet roughly thirty minutes later. James Comey (seen during an interview that aired April 15, 2018 on the ABC Television Network) shared another tweet Sunday, giving advice to Democratic voters The former FBI director wrote: 'Democrats, please, please don't lose your minds and rush to the socialist left' Cimbrelo said in part: 'Hey Jimmy, we talkin' about the same sensible, balanced, ethical leadership that eroded our trust in gov't, stole from the poor and middle class to make the rich even wealthier, and helped deliver to Trump?' Comedian Kathy Griffin, defamed over her controversial photo shoot that showed her holding a bloody prop of Trump's head, said: 'We probably wouldn't have Trump if it weren't for you so maybe you should cut your losses....' Pod Save America Co-host Tommy Vietor also tweeted: 'Hey Jim, we got this covered. No one is asking for your advice. As we saw during the campaign, your judgement isn't great! All the best, everyone.' Last Tuesday, Comey tweeted out again - publicly going against the party he has aligned himself with for the past four decades. His comments came in the wake of President Trump's joint press conference with Vladimir Putin on Monday in Helsinki (President Trump and Putin last Monday above) Comey previously wrote the above tweet that said: 'All who believe in this country's values must vote for Democrats this fall. Policy differences don't matter right now. History has its eyes on us' 'This Republican Congress has proven incapable of fulfilling the Founders' design that 'Ambition must ... counteract ambition,'' Comey wrote. 'All who believe in this country's values must vote for Democrats this fall. Policy differences don't matter right now. History has its eyes on us.' Comey had previously taken aim at President Trump in the wake of his joint press conference with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Monday in Helsinki. 'This was the day an American president stood on foreign soil next to a murderous lying thug and refused to back his own country,' tweeted Comey last Monday. 'Patriots need to stand up and reject the behavior of this president.' He was back on Twitter a few hours later to criticize President Trump once more, this time for the interviews he granted to two Fox News hosts. 'Having sold out our nation on an international stage, Mr. Trump will now explain it all to Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson?' Comey wrote. 'I'm guessing RT and Sputnick were unavailable. He owes it to our nation to sit down with a serious journalist.' Blistered by bipartisan condemnation of his embrace of Putin, Trump last Tuesday backed away from his public undermining of American intelligence agencies. Trump said he simply misspoke when he said he saw no reason to believe Russia had interfered in the 2016 election. In addition to Comey, leading Republicans including Senator John McCain and Senator Lindsey Graham, as well as the often reserved Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, went after President Trump. He responded to them on Tuesday. 'The sentence should have been, 'I don't see any reason why I wouldn't, or why it wouldn't be Russia' instead of 'why it would,'' said a petulant Trump of the comments he had made on Monday. There was no explanation however for why Trump - who had tweeted a half-dozen times and sat for two television interviews since he made that statement - waited so long to correct his remarks. A driver who had acid thrown in his face while he looked in his boot has today appealed for the public to help find his attack and 'put him behind bars'. Andrew Waker, 36, suffered life changing injuries after the unprovoked acid attack at 9.18am in Woodford Green, east London on Saturday, January 20. Mr Waker said he heard a noise behind him as he opened his car boot on Waltham Road and when he turned around acid was sprayed into his face. Andrew, who has waived his anonymity, said he did not recognise the young white man and police need the public's help to identify him and the red BMW 1-Series he sped away in. Explaining his decision to come forward Mr Waker said: 'The person who attacked me changed my life forever, and I am constantly reminded of the pain they caused when they randomly attacked me earlier this year. 'I would urge anyone with any information to come forward to the police as soon as possible so that this person can be put behind bars and won't be able to harm anyone else for a long time'. Andrew Waker, 36, wants the world to see the injuries caused by a random acid attack in January as he help police appeal to find the thug who did it Mr Waker was opening his boot when he heard a noise, turned around and was sprayed with a corrosive substance This is the man detectives need to find - he struck at 9.18am in Woodford Green, east London on Saturday, January 20 Officers in Ilford have released CCTV images of a man they wish to speak to in connection with the unprovoked acid attack. Police were called at approximately 09:18am on Saturday, 20 January to Waltham Road, Woodford Green following reports of a suspected noxious substance attack. Officers attended along with London Ambulance Service [LAS] and London Fire Brigade [LFB]. Andrew Waker was taken to an east London hospital suffering from facial injuries that have since been deemed life-changing. The attack which was entirely unprovoked is being treated as GBH with intent. He then drove away in this red BMW 1-Series, which police also need to identify Lead investigating officer, Detective Chief Inspector Jamie Piscopo said: 'This was a shocking attack on an innocent man going about his daily business. He has received life-changing injuries, including extensive burns and scarring to his arms, face, and the left side of his body. 'At this stage, we are unsure as to what the motive for this was attack was or why someone would want to harm Mr Waker in this way. 'We're releasing the CCTV images in the hope that somebody will recognise the suspect and get in contact with us. It shows the suspect running away and a red car, which we also believe to be involved'. There has been no arrest in this investigation. Anyone with information on the incident, or who may recognise the male shown in the CCTV is asked to contact police on 0208 345 2714 Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. A man accused of smothering his wife of 41 years with a pillow was 'angry and jealous' of her involvement with a man from high school who she had reconnected with via Facebook, a jury has heard. Warren Francis Rogers has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Anne Rogers, 61, in their Milperra home in September 2016. His trial began in the NSW Supreme Court on Monday before Justice Julia Lonergan. Crown prosecutor Nanette Williams said the court would hear evidence Rogers, then 68, confronted his wife over her 'ongoing contact' with the other man before the 'fatal conflict'. Warren Francis Rogers has pleaded not guilty to the murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Anne Rogers (pictured) in western Sydney in 2016 Police found Ms Rogers dead in a bedroom and her husband 'semi-conscious' in a bathtub of red water. The court heard when an ambulance officer asked Rogers what had happened he replied: 'She cheated on me four times. Stick a needle in my arm. I want to die'. He later told police his wife 'asked him to kill her' so he smothered her with a pillow in the bedroom. The couple separated for several weeks in mid-2016 but Rogers asked her to return 'when he was unhappy being by himself' on the condition she have no further contact with the other man. 'The accused was jealous and angry with the deceased because she continued, against his wishes, to have contact with (the man),' Ms Williams said on Monday. The prosecutor said 'hand-in-hand' with that was Rogers' desire to maintain control of the family's finances including a $300,000 redundancy payout he received in the years preceding his wife's death. 'The accused would have been aware if the deceased left and went off with (the other man) ... there would have been a substantial redistribution of family assets. 'One way to prevent that, indeed, was to ensure that she didn't leave.' Crown prosecutor Nanette Williams argued Anne Rogers' ongoing contact with the man caused arguments between the couple and shortly before her death, Mr Rogers told his wife to move out of their family home The trial before Justice Julia Lonergan is expected to run for four weeks Defence barrister Richard Pontello said Rogers was a 'true family man' whose behaviour was completely out of character. He asked the jury to consider the defence of substantial impairment by abnormality of mind. The marriage breakdown occurred 'in circumstances where Ms Rogers had been seeing another man she knew from her high school years, Mr Pontello said. 'After Mr Rogers learned of his wife's relationship ... he became very depressed. Very depressed indeed. '(He) for all but one day of his 69 years lived with the highest degree of integrity and love for those around him.' The lawyer said there was no dispute Mr Rogers caused his wife's death. 'However ... his capacity to control himself was in fact substantially impaired, arising from an underlying condition, namely the major depressive disorder from which he suffered and/or a chronic adjustment disorder.' Emmanuel Macron reportedly told Donald Trump he planned to use tactics from the US President's own book against him. At a recent meeting to discuss resolving the current trade dispute between the US and the EU, Macron was said to have revealed to Trump he had read his best-selling business book. A source close to the President told Axios Macron had told the President he planned to use the tactics in a chat at this month's NATO summit in Brussels. Scroll down for video President Trump and Emmanuel Macron discussed his book at the NATO summit in Brussels earlier this month During their tete-a-tete, Trump suggested to Macron that he tell the European Union they ought to negotiate with the US over current trade sanctions. But according to the source, Macron told the President he was not in favour of negotiation while under threat. 'I read the Art of the Deal,' the French president was said to have told Trump. 'I know that we need to retaliate first so we have some leverage in the negotiation.' Trump has imposed stringent aluminium and steel tariffs on the EU touting low unemployment rates in the US as a sign of success for his 'America First' doctrine and approach to re-negotiating many of the 'unfair' agreements with Europe. He had proposed a 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent import duty on aluminium, and tweeted ahead of the formal announcement that 'trade wars are good and easy to win'. But the EU hit back at the President's tariffs by introducing a number of levies of its own. Donald Trump holds his book 'Trump: The Art of the Deal' up in front of a crowd during the Presidential campaign in 2015 President Macron and Donald Trump share a joke at the NATO headquarters in Brussels ahead of the summit Brussels trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said certain goods like cranberries, orange juice, Levi's jeans, Harley-Davidson motorcycles, peanut butter, Kentucky bourbon and whiskey would be hit in retailiation. President Macron, however, said he believed relations between the US and EU were back on the right track after discussions with President Trump. 'I think we had a very open and direct discussion this afternoon, we've always had this kind of discussion,' he said at the NATO conference. 'And I think on trade, there is a critical path, there is a way to progress altogether,' He added that he 'saw the willingness on all the sides to find agreement and have a win-win approach for our people, our workers and our middle classes'. A Canadian startup has developed the first ever cannabis beer in a bid to provide an alternative to alcohol. Province Brands, based in Toronto, created the drink using the plant's stem, stalks and roots. There are already beers on the market brewed with barley and infused with cannabis oil, but none has previously used the plant itself in the brewing process. Province Brands, based in Toronto, has created the drink using the plant's stem, stalks and roots Canada's Senate has voted to legalize recreational marijuana nationally in June. Pictured: Smoke rising during the annual 4/20 marijuana rally in Ottawa on April 20, 2018 Dooma Wendschuh, the CEO and co-founder of Province Brands, told The Guardian his startup's creation tastes 'dry, savory' and 'less sweet than a typical beer'. He added: 'The beer hits you very quickly, which is not common for a marijuana edible.' In June, Canada passed a federal bill to legalize recreational marijuana on a national level. The bill passed in the Senate by a vote of 52-29 in June to end the 90-year prohibition, but it will not come into effect until October 17. The law makes Canada only the second country to have a nationwide, legal marijuana market, after Uruguay. Wendschuh, an American who moved to Canada to take advantage of the impending legalization, said he hopes to change drinking culture. 'The idea came from thinking, "Can we create something that can serve the role that alcohol serves in our society, and can we do that using this monumental sea change that is happening in our world right now?".' The law makes Canada only the second country to have a nationwide, legal marijuana market, after Uruguay. Pictured: A woman smoking cannabis outside Canada's parliament in April But he admitted that it wasn't easy to create a palatable product, with the first batches of cannabis beer tasting 'horrible' and 'like rotten broccoli'. Eventually, however, a chemist assisted the team in finding the right mix of hops, yeast, cannabis and water. The end product is alcohol-free and contains no gluten. But it still creates a high for the drinker since it contains the primary psychoactive constituent of cannabis - tetrahydrocannabinol. Wendschuh, though, made sure to emphasize that the drink is still 'not good for you' and should only be consumed in moderation. Police are trying to track down nine people after violent disorder at a protest against the imprisonment of former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson. Scotland Yard said scaffolding and glass bottles were among the items thrown at police at the June 9 protest in Whitehall, with 21 officers injured. Hundreds of demonstrators descended on the capital and blocked off the road around Trafalgar Square after Robinson was jailed for contempt of court. Police are asking for information on nine people whose pictures they have released Police are asking for information on nine people whose pictures they have released Scotland Yard released images of nine people this morning and appealed for information Leeds Crown Court heard Robinson, real name Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon, used social media to broadcast details of a trial which was subject to blanket reporting restrictions. Detective Constable Jonny Wise, from the Metropolitan Police Public Order Investigations team, said: 'During this demonstration violent disorder broke out on the streets of Central London. 'Serious disruption was caused to members of the public, local businesses and the local communities. Vehicles and buildings were damaged and those responsible need to be held accountable for their actions.' On June 9, rows of riot police blocked the gate down the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace where the Royal Family had gathered after celebrating Trooping the Colour just hours before. Five arrests were made and five officers were reportedly injured during the demonstration which saw some of Robinson's supporters appear to throw bottles, metal barriers and traffic cones at police. Troubled flared after a speech by Dutch right-wing campaigner Geert Wilders. Demonstrators clashed with police on June 9 after a speech by Geert Wilders A number of police officers were injured after bottles and scaffolding poles were thrown Robinson's case has also been taken up by right-wingers in the US, most notably former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon. In a radio discussion earlier this month, Bannon said the English Defence League founder was 'a solid guy' and that 'he's got to be released from prison.' It emerged yesterday that Bannon plans to set up a foundation in Europe called The Movement, which he hopes will help spark a Right-wing revolution this side of the Atlantic. Anyone with information about those pictured is asked to call police on 020 8246 0076 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111. An American tourist has fallen to his death from a popular whale-watching clifftop in Australia. The 19-year-old man was thought to be taking a selfie with friends at Cape Solander, south of Sydney when he lost his balance and plunged 30ft into the sea below at 3.30pm local time. His shell-shocked friends were unable to reach where he had landed and made desperate phone calls to police. An American tourist has fallen to his death from a popular whale-watching clifftop in Australia. Pictured: Emergency crews at the scene today The 19-year-old man was reportedly taking a selfie with friends at Cape Solander, south of Sydney when he lost his balance. Pictured: Police at the scene after the fall The teenager's body was in the water for about 30 minutes before it was recovered. Pictured: The official viewing platform where the group is thought to have walked down from before the man fell A lifesaver helicopter arrived in seven minutes and crews put green dye in the water to trace the current to find the man. They found him unconscious just below the surface after 30 minutes in the water. Lifeguards on jet-skis pulled him from the waves and put him in a police boat from where he was winched to dry land - but paramedics could not revive him with CPR and he was pronounced dead at the scene. The teenager has been identified and his family has been told but his name has not been released. The man, understood to be part of a Mormon group, was reportedly with 15 others on holiday. It is thought the group of teenagers walked down from an official viewing platform to a slippery, rocky ledge nearer the water. The man was taking a selfie when he slipped and one of his friends caught the fall on video, the Daily Telegraph reported. 'He was here with a group of friends to go whale watching. They've made their way down onto the rock platform at this stage it appears to be misadventure where he's slipped and fallen over the edge,' New South Wales Police Chief Inspector Chris Hill said. The cliffs (pictured in a stock image), next to Kamay Botany Bay National Park, are one of the best places see humpbacks migrate north to warmer Queensland in the winter The National Parks NSW website describes the area as 'an unbeatable lookout during whale watching season'. Pictured: An Instagram image of the cliffs He added: 'If you are attending this location, those rocks are very slippery so for your safety, stay up on the whale watching platform and please don't go down on the rocks.' In early June another man fell to his death while taking photos in the same area, which is popular for watching migrating whales. The cliffs, next to Kamay Botany Bay National Park, are among the best places see humpbacks migrate north to warmer Queensland in the winter. The National Parks NSW website describes the area as 'an unbeatable lookout during whale watching season'. 'If you're lucky you won't even need to look far whales have been known to swim as close as 200m from the coast,' the site reads. In early June another man fell to his death while taking photos in the same area, which is popular for watching migrating wales. Pictured: A sign at the lookout John Constable's gloomy landscapes have long been thought of as representations of his dark mood after his wife's death, but an expert now claims he was just accurately painting miserable British weather. Mark Evans, the head of paintings at the Victoria and Albert Museum in Knightsbridge, London, has compared some of Constable's work to meteorological data, reports the Telegraph. The data was collected by Charles Henry Adams, a headmaster at The Latymer School in Edmonton which is just five-and-a-half miles from Hampstead Heath where Constable would paint. Mr Evans was able to compare the two because Constable wrote the date, time of day and weather conditions on the back of his paintings. John Constable's gloomy paintings after his wife died in 1828 have long been considered a representation of his dark mood - but an expert now says they were just accurate depictions of miserable British weather (Pictured: West End Fields, Hampstead, 1833) Pictured: View at Hampstead Looking Towards London, 1833. The inscription on the back of this painting says 'very stormy afternoon & high wind' Constable's wife Maria died from tuberculosis in 1828 and his paintings after that date, which depict gloomy skies, have been linked to his depression after her death. Mark Evans, the head of paintings at the Victoria and Albert Museum, was able to compare the meteorological data to the paintings because Constable (pictured) wrote the date, time of day and weather conditions on the back Mr Evans, an expert on Constable, said: 'Several writers have associated the dark and expressive effects, wild weather and rough and painterly handling of Constables work post-1828 to his depression following her death.' He compared sketches from September 26 and December 7, 1833, and April 12, 1834, and realised that actually they were 'founded on what he saw'. He told the Telegraph: 'With Constable's late work, people said he painted like that because he was sad as his wife had died or he was ill, he was feeling gloomy. 'Poor man died of a heart attack, he didn't realise he was going to die, but there's been a general perception to interpret Constable's late work in terms of his emotional and mental state.' One work from 1834 that had 'spring clouds - hail squalls' written on the back was painted on a day with 'frequent hail and a heavy shower at 3pm'. A woman has been beaten to death by a lynchmob in India after false rumours circulated on WhatsApp that she was a child abductor. Nine have been arrested after the middle-aged woman's mutilated body was found near a forest in the Singrauli district of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Sunday. More than 20 people have been killed in similar incidents in the past two months, leaving both the Indian authorities and Facebook-owned WhatsApp scrambling to find a solution in its biggest market. Just days ago WhatsApp said it would test limiting the ability of its more than 225 million Indian users to forward messages. A woman has been beaten to death by a lynchmob in India after false rumours circulated on WhatsApp that she was a child abductor (file picture) The accused men told police they caught hold of the woman late Saturday after finding her moving suspiciously and seeing a flurry of WhatsApp messages about gangs of child kidnappers in the area, local police chief Riyaz Iqbal told AFP. 'We are trying to identify the victim and have circulated her picture to all the police stations,' Singrauli police chief Riyaz Iqbal told AFP. Last Thursday the Indian government threatened WhatsApp with legal action, saying the 'medium' for spreading malicious rumours 'cannot evade responsibility and accountability'. WhatsApp said the next day it would test limiting the ability of its Indian users to forward messages and remove the 'quick forward button' next to media messages. A horrific spate of lynchings has led to WhatsApp announcing limits on the forwarding of messages by its 200 million Indian users. Gulshan Daolagupu, deputy superintendent of police in Karbi Anglong district, inspects the vehicle in which two men were lynched on July 10 It had already announced new features to help users identify messages that have been forwarded and bought full-page adverts in Indian newspapers with tips on how to spot misinformation. It has however stopped short of acceding to Indian government demands to enable the authorities to trace messages, saying its service would stay 'end-to-end encrypted'. Lynchings are nothing new in India, but the spread of smartphones to even the most remote corners has enabled rumours to be shared at lightning speed and in huge volumes. The spate of attacks related to rumours of child kidnapping started last May in the eastern state of Jharkhand with the emergence of a video that has since spread across India. People have also been lynched by Hindu extremists murdering Muslims and thrashing low-caste Dalits accused of killing cows or eating beef. An ordinary shopping trip has landed Insta-famous bikie Ben 'Notorious' Geppert back in custody less than a week after he was released. Geppert, a former Hells Angels member, spent Sunday night in a Gold Coast prison cell after he was caught breaching a banning order from Robina Town Centre. He appeared before Southport Magistrates Court on Monday and pleaded guilty to one count of trespassing. The court heard Geppert went to the Town Centre's Woolworths on Thursday, breaking the five-year banning notice he was issued in May. Ben Geppert, a high profile Instagramer and former Hells Angels member, has faced court for breaching a banning order from Southport Town Centre Ben Geppert and another man were filmed fighting in a KFC car park. Gebbert was given a five-year ban from the shopping centre, as well as a suspended prison sentence He was allegedly caught on CCTV going through the shopping centre before being approached by a security guard. The security guard asked him to leave, which he did without causing any trouble. Last week, Geppert was given a six-month prison sentence, suspended for three years, following a brutal punch-up in a KFC car park. He was released from prison after already serving 56 days behind bars. Geppert was cleared on Monday for the trespassing offence, with the Magistrate choosing not to punish him beyond the night he had already spent in custody. Magistrate Kerrie O'Callaghan also chose not to activate the suspended sentence, saying the trespassing offence was 'not like offending'. Geppert was silent throughout the 15 minute hearing, supported by his long-term partner Allaina Vader, who sat in the back of the courthouse. The Gold Coast Bulletin reported that at the end of the brief hearing, she leant in to speak to Geppert, leaving them both smiling. Israel activated a joint U.S.-Israeli missile interceptor for the first time on Monday in response to rockets from the fighting in neighboring Syria that were believed to be headed for Israeli territory. The system, dubbed David's Sling, is meant to counter the type of medium-range missiles that Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah militants have and rounded out Israel's multi-layer aerial defense system when it became operational in 2017. Its activation came after Israel on two separate occasions this month fired Patriot missiles at incoming drones from Syria. The Israeli military said two interceptors were launched after rockets from the fighting in Syria were identified. No injuries or damage was reported, and the military says the rockets landed in Syrian territory. Smoke can be seen following an explosion at the Syrian side of the Israeli Syrian border as it is seen from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Israel The interceptors were launched on the Syrian frontier, where Damascus's Russian-backed forces have been routing rebels. Moscow sent envoys for what it called 'urgent' talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu planned to meet Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and its armed forces chief, General Valery Gerasimov, later in the day, a visit the Israeli leader said was arranged last week at the request of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The incident set off sirens throughout northern Israel and residents were forced to rush into shelters. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (pictured at a weekly cabinet meeting) A defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to discuss the event with the media, said Israel had identified two surface-to-surface SS-21 rockets launched from Syria carrying a payload of hundreds of kilograms that they believed were headed for Israeli-controlled territory. The official said the rockets were likely aimed at Syrian rebels fighting the government and they eventually landed just one kilometer from the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. He said the sirens were set off when one of the interceptors self-destructed. He called the incident the system's 'first successful operational interception.' David's Sling's addition last year marked the completion of Israel's multi-tier system that includes the Arrow, designed to intercept long-range ballistic missiles in the stratosphere with an eye on Iran, and Iron Dome, which defends against short-range rockets from the Gaza Strip. David's Sling was developed by Israeli defense firm Rafael with American defense giant Raytheon. Monday's incident came after Israel earlier this month, twice in the same week, fired a Patriot missile at an unmanned aircraft that approached the country's border from Syria. In June, Israel fired a missile at a drone that approached its airspace near the Syrian frontier. Meghan Markle's half-sister has admitted to 'cashing in' on Meghan and the royals, as she pleads with Meghan to visit their father Thomas Markle amid fears for his health. Samantha Markle appeared on Good Morning Britain on Monday to talk about her relationship with the Duchess of Sussex, and whether she was profiting off Meghan's royal position. The 53-year-old said: 'I've worked in media most of my life and in broadcasting. So because my sister is suddenly royal isn't grounds for me to stop doing all that. 'Let's face it, we all have to survive, money makes the world go round, so if you want to call that cashing in, that's fine. But no one in media would refuse a paycheck for talking about the royals.' She later added: 'For someone to say, ''Oh you shouldn't take any money, you should turn down a paycheck'', go tell your boss you don't want a paycheck for interviewing me because that's cashing in.' Meghan Markle's outspoken half-sister has defended herself against claims that she is 'cashing in' on the royal family Samantha Markle appeared on Good Morning Britain on Monday to talk about her relationship with the Duchess of Sussex , and whether she was profiting off Meghan's royal position Samantha urged Meghan to get in contact with their father Thomas Markle (pictured together) Samantha's appearance on the morning show comes after she targeted Meghan in a rant last week, claiming if anything happens to their father Thomas Markle, it would be on her hands. She launched her Twitter tirade, hours after Thomas told TMZ he wouldn't stop talking to the media until his daughter accepted him back into her life. Samantha took aim at Meghan and Prince Harry's appearance at the Nelson Mandela centenary exhibition, telling her: 'How about you pay tribute to your own father?! Enough is enough. 'Act like a humanitarian, act like a woman,' she wrote, adding: 'If our father dies, it's on you Meg'. On Good Morning Britain, Samantha walked back on her explosive rant, saying she regretted it 'to a degree.' She added: 'But I was really feeling that, it is so unfair that if there's a misunderstanding that she reach out to him and she clarify because life is very short. 'I felt as though if something were to happen to him, and he passed away, I don't think any of us could live with the fact that he died unhappy and there was not closure. I believe in her heart that she would want that also.' The 53-year-old said: 'I've worked in media most of my life and in broadcasting. So because my sister is suddenly royal isn't grounds for me to stop doing all that' Samantha's appearance on the morning show comes after she targeted Meghan in a rant last week, claiming if anything happens to their father Thomas Markle, it would be on her hands Samantha continued: 'Naturally, as you can imagine, he is 74-years-old and we all know that life is short. 'So given the circumstances over the last several months since the wedding, I think he really just wants to embrace her, and have some closure on the distance, and the misperception and really let her know that he loves her. 'He sincerely had a heart attack and I was very shocked that the world would mock that or make fun of it. He really had a difficult time. ' Samantha also added to speculation she would be on Celebrity Big Brother next month, as producers are thought to be eyeing a controversial theme, dubbed 'The Eye of the Storm'. Broadcasters Channel 5 are thought to be introducing the theme to improve recent poor viewing figures, particularly in comparison to ITV2 series Love Island. Samantha also added to speculation she would be on Celebrity Big Brother next month, as producers are thought to be eyeing a controversial theme, dubbed 'The Eye of the Storm' Broadcasters Channel 5 are thought to be introducing the theme to improve recent poor viewing figures, particularly in comparison to ITV2 series Love Island Samantha said: 'I've worked in media most of my life, why would I not? Why would I stop living because I have a family issue going on? 'Back to the issue of cashing in, the media make billions of dollars off social issues and talking about the Royals. I don't see how we're any different. No one has a copyright on our life experiences. 'We're each individuals with our own life experience. With all due respect, it's not just Meg, we're entitled to share that, we're entitled to be open about it, if we can shed some light on some issues for the public, then great. 'We can enjoy the process. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. It's not disparaging, it's not harmful. When pressed if she would be appearing on the reality show, Samantha squirmed and said: 'Urm well, I would tell you, but then I would have to kill you, so. I don't want to find myself in locks and stocks quite frankly. It wouldn't be becoming.' Samantha also addressed claims that Meghan might be embarrassed of her extended family, as her future sister-in-law Darlene Blount (pictured) was arrested on suspicion of assault on Friday. Samantha defended her family saying: With all due respect, every family - including the British Royal family - have had their complexities and their issues. Pictured: Thomas Markle Jr. and Blount Samantha also addressed claims that Meghan might be embarrassed of her extended family, as her future sister-in-law Darlene Blount was arrested on suspicion of assault on Friday. Few details are known about the incident, but a source told DailyMail.com: 'Last night there was a domestic violence call at the home of Thomas Markle [Jr] and Darlene Blount. Darlene was arrested on assault charges.' Samantha defended her family saying: With all due respect, every family - including the British Royal family - have had their complexities and their issues. 'You cant generalise the actions of certain family members who engage in deviant legal activity for whatever reason, you cant generalise that to the entire family. 'To suggest she would be embarrassed of the entire family, including her mothers family, and not be in contact because of that would be foolhardy.' A plaque is set to be added to a statue of a 17th century Bristol slave trader to link him to the deaths of nearly 20,000 people. Edward Colston, a divisive figure among city residents, played a key role in the Royal Africa Company, which turned the buying and shipping of slaves into an industrial-scale practice in the 17th Century. A statue honouring Colston was erected in the city centre in 1895 with a plaque reading: 'Erected by citizens of Bristol as a memorial of one of the most virtuous and wise sons of their city.' Bristol City Council has now submitted an application to add a second plaque explaining the instrumental role he played in the slave trade after the statue was repeatedly targeted by protesters over its representation of history. It is the latest move by the city to dissociate themselves from Colston, with venues and schools having previously removed his name from their titles. Edward Colston played a key role in the Royal Africa Company, which turned the buying and shipping of slaves into an industrial-scale practice. A statue honouring Colston, pictured, was erected in Bristol city centre in 1895 with a plaque declaring him 'virtuous' and 'wise' Bristol City Council has now submitted an application to attach a secondary plaque explaining the instrumental role he played in the slave trade after the statue was repeatedly targeted by protesters over its representation of history. Pictured, a mock-up of the proposed plaque Last month the Lord Mayor of Bristol removed a portrait of Colston from the mayor's office. The statue itself has been targeted by protesters furious with the way the original plaque and the honouring of the slave merchant. It comes amid similar controversy in Oxford surrounding the statue of Cecil Rhodes, a racist mining magnate and the founder of Rhodesia, at the university's Oriel building. The proposed secondary plaque will read: 'As a high official of the Royal African Company from 1680 to 1692, Edward Colston played an active role in the enslavement of over 84,000 Africans (including 12,000 children) of whom over 19,000 died en route to the Caribbean and America. Historians estimate Colston, pictured, was involved in the deaths of 20,000 people - including as many as 4,000 women and children - on board his slave ships in the late 17th century 'Colston also invested in the Spanish slave trade and in slave-produced sugar. 'As Tory MP for Bristol (1710-1713), he defended the city's 'right' to trade in enslaved Africans. Bristol's move to erase Colston's name comes amid similar calls in Oxford There are at least 20 roads, schools, pubs, businesses and buildings named after Edward Colston, and the slave trader is still commemorated and celebrated in the city. The city's premier concert venue, Colston Hall, closed earlier this month for a major refit and will re-open in 2020 with a different name, while governors and parents at Colston Primary School in Cotham recently voted to change its name. The campaign came at the same time as students in Oxford have been protesting about a statue of Cecil Rhodes on the University's Oriel College. Students say Rhodes, a mining magnate and the founder of Rhodesia, was racist and benefited from plundering African resources. Advertisement 'Bristolians who did not subscribe to his religious and political beliefs were not permitted to benefit from his charities.' The proposed plaque has already been criticised by some residents, including a newspaper reader who wrote in to say the wording ignored Colston's philanthropic work. Julian Hill, from Knowle, said: 'It includes misinformation and cheap political shots unworthy of a permanent public monument. 'And of course it doesn't make a lot of sense when added to a statue with the original plaque describing Colston as "virtuous and wise".' The statue has repeatedly been defaced, including a 'yarn-bombings' and paint attacks. Recently a plaque bearing the words 'unauthorised heritage' was added, which says 'This commemorates the 12,000,000 enslaved of whom 6,000,000 died as captives.' It was removed by council workers but has since returned. Historians estimate Colston was involved in the deaths of 20,000 people - including as many as 4,000 women and children - on board his slave ships in the late 17th century. Colston Girls' School, pictured, removed any reference to the slave trader in a commemoration in his honour to make the service more 'inclusive' A local man, he opened access to slave trade routes to Bristol's merchants, and profited hugely from the forced trafficking of people over a number of decades. He later invested heavily in opening up slave trade routes through Asia. A small portion of his fortune was given away to good causes in Bristol - setting up his own school and building almshouses. Bristol has at least 20 roads, schools, pubs, businesses and buildings named after Edward Colston, but authorities have been attempting to dissociate themselves with him. A Colston Girls' School service last year drew protests, pictured. Despite widespread criticism, the school decided not to change its name Concert venue Colston Hall closed last month and will re-open in 2020 with a different name. Governors and parents at Colston Primary School in Cotham meanwhile voted to change its name. Colston Girls' School, the highest attaining in the city, decided not to change its name following widespread debate. However it did remove any mention of Colston from an annual church service traditionally held to commemorate the school. Bristol City Council said in a statement: 'There have been calls to remove the statue to a museum that can provide this historic context. 'The view of the council is that keeping the statue in the public realm with the additional context provided by a plaque encourages further debate about these important issues concerning Bristol's heritage.' Talks aimed at the denuclearization of North Korea hinge on America's willingness to agree to a peace treaty with Kim Jong-un, it has been claimed. Washington may have to make a 'bold move' for a lasting peace to replace the existing armistice agreement that brought an end to hostilities in the Korean War, a source said. An official with knowledge of North Korea's position on the matter told CNN that Pyongyang may abandon talks on denuclearization if the US does not agree to such a deal. But US President Donald Trump would need the backing of two-thirds of the Senate to secure a legally binding peace treaty. Talks aimed at the denuclearization of North Korea hinge on America's willingness to agree to a peace treaty with Kim Jong-un, it has been claimed It comes after the US appealed at the UN for 'full enforcement' of sanctions against North Korea - underscoring the difficulty of attaining real progress on denuclearization, more than a month after the much-vaunted Donald Trump-Kim Jong Un summit. In their joint declaration after the historic meeting June 12 in Singapore, the North Korean leader 'reaffirmed his commitment' to the 'complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.' But the actual details of the process, including how and by what timetable the North's nuclear program is to be dismantled, have yet to be negotiated. At the time, the US administration insisted on the 'urgency' of denuclearization, which was supposed to begin 'very quickly.' 'We're hopeful we can get it done' by 2020, before the end of Trump's current presidential term, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the time. Pompeo has been charged with the challenge of putting meat on the bare bones of the Singapore commitment. But more than a month and one apparently fruitless visit by Pompeo to Pyongyang later, the tone of the American side has clearly changed. 'We have no time limit,' Trump told reporters on Wednesday. 'We have no speed limit.' Donald Trump (pictured on Sunday) met Kim Jong-un for historic talks on June 12 in Singapore Asked about the change in tone, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert sought to reassure: 'We have teams in place that are working very hard on this issue every day,' she said. 'We have said there's a lot of work left to be done.' For several experts who had warned that the Singapore summit, for all its hype, pomp and high expectations, had provided only the barest outline of a long and arduous process, the return to reality is welcome. 'To be successful, negotiations need time,' said Abraham Denmark of the Wilson Center think tank in Washington. Some experts, he added, 'warn that complete and verified denuclearization could take 15 years.' So after the head-spinning events and reversals of the past six months, it may now be time to dig in for a long wait. To some observers, moreover, the loss of momentum that Singapore should have provided is worrying. There have been few if any real advances. Even the North's return to the US of the remains of American soldiers killed in the Korean War (1950-53), described as 'immediate' on June 12, appears more complicated - with Pompeo now saying it may take place in 'the next couple of weeks.' For now, the only concrete results of the Washington-Pyongyang thaw are the North's halt to nuclear and missile testing and the American side's suspension of planned military maneuvers with South Korea, long denounced as a 'provocation' by Pyongyang. The US had long rejected such a 'double freeze.' It involves gestures that could be reversed in a moment. 'If our goal still is the complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement of the North Korean nuclear program, we're not succeeding,' said Sue Mi Terry of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, speaking to a security conference in Aspen, Colorado. 'Not only are they not giving up their nuclear weapons program,' she continued, 'they've been working overtime on advancing their program.' The Trump administration, criticized for failing to obtain a written promise of this key objective in Singapore, now insists negotiations are progressing toward the North's 'final, fully verified' denuclearization. But a Pompeo visit to North Korea in early July was 'by all accounts except his own deeply disappointing,' said Jeffrey Bader and Ryan Hass in an article for the Brookings Institution. The problem, say the two experts, is that in Singapore, 'Trump gave away much of that leverage' to ensure the North's cooperation. And now the international campaign of 'maximum pressure' on Pyongyang - the stringent sanctions and the diplomatic isolation that Washington helped orchestrate - is beginning to weaken. 'The sanctions are already loosening,' said Terry, 'because China is not really implementing' them. Hence Pompeo's visit to the UN on Friday to condemn the erosion of the sanctions regime and to demand that the international community maintain serious pressure. But this could be a challenge, experts say. 'Maximum pressure' will be difficult to maintain in the absence of some new North Korean provocation. 'In case it doesn't work, we need to have a plan,' Terry said. 'We don't really have a Plan B.' A passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Moscow on Sunday when a dog escaped from its cage and opened the luggage hatch from the inside, local reports say. The small dog had been stowed with the baggage in the cargo hold but its cage had not been properly locked. After finding itself loose in the unfamiliar compartment, the distressed animal fought 'tooth and nail' to escape and eventually managed to open one of the doors. Dogs often travel in the cargo hold on passenger flights, but in this case the animal managed to get out of its cage and in amongst the baggage, where it tore the inner lining and opened the front half-door (file photo) This triggered the emergency alarm above, while the plane was at an altitude of 13,000 feet and approaching the Russian capital. The commander of the Boeing 737, which took off from St. Petersburg, was forced to alert the ground services to the situation and perform an emergency landing, RT reported. A source at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport said that in its desperation to escape the dog 'tore the inner lining of the luggage compartment and somehow provoked the opening of its front half-door.' Fortunately, the plane's security electronics prevented the hatch from opening completely and this likely saved the dog's life. 'There was a gap of several dozen centimeters, but the dog was unable to get into it and stayed alive,' the source said. The aircraft's crew safely performed the emergency landing and no one was hurt. The Boeing 737 was forced to make an emergency landing as it approached Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow Under European regulations EU airlines can only carry animals up to 8kg in the cabin, so most animals instead travel in the hold. Pettravel.com recommends getting 'a sturdy pet crate with adequate ventilation, waterproof bottom, spring-locked door, disabled wheels and no handles (except for smaller crates). 'Size your pet's crate generously: the airline rules for pet air-travel require that your pet be able to stand up erect and turn around in the crate. 'Attach a large water bowl. It is important to keep your pet hydrated when flying. If you have a larger dog, get a large pet-crate bowl. Fill and freeze the night before travel for dripless hydration.' An NHS manager accidentally killed herself with a lethal overdose of morphine after she took the powerful painkiller to treat her bad back. Former dancer Melissa Amos, 42, had been struggling with spinal problems since a horse riding accident when she was in her 20s. But despite being on a variety of medications, Mrs Amos obtained morphine through a 'non-medical source' and her husband had begun to lock her tablets in a cabinet in order to prevent her from overdosing on them. Mrs Amos, from Bury, Greater Manchester sent a friend a text message saying: 'I need some medication because my back is f***ed', last March. Later that day she was found collapsed on the floor of her home by her husband Philip. She died shortly afterwards. Former dancer Melissa Amos, 42, accidentally killed herself with a lethal overdose of morphine after she took the powerful painkiller to treat her bad back last March But despite being on a variety of medications, Mrs Amos obtained morphine through a 'non-medical source' and her husband had begun to lock her tablets in a cabinet in order to prevent her from overdosing on them. Pictured: Mrs Amos with her husband Philip Tests revealed she had taken almost three times the recognised lethal dose for morphine. Police examined her phone and discovered one of the last messages she received was: 'l've got morphine'. It is thought the person who supplied the morphine has since passed away. At an inquest Mr Amos said: 'I believe that she didn't want to end her own life. She had her own children and we were trying for a child together. We were meant for each other.' The hearing at Heywood heard how Mrs Amos who had two children from a previous relationship originally lived and worked in Leeds as a manager for a NHS supply chain. She moved to Bury and married Mr Amos in 2016. He said: 'Melissa went abroad to work as a dancer in Ibiza for a year when she was 21 and later suffered a fall from a horse about 20 years ago which resulted in her having ongoing pain in her lower back. 'She was previously in a relationship with somebody else and she had two children from that relationship and they stayed in Leeds with their father after that relationship ended. She came and moved in with me and we were flatmates.' The mother had been struggling with spinal problems since a horse riding accident when she was in her 20s. Pictured: A young Mrs Amos on a horse 'But she had a number of seizures and they started in 2016. One day, I heard the dog barking and Melissa was lying on the floor with her arms stretched out after falling off a step. She was take to hospital for an MRI scan and she had a number of seizures after that and was on medication. 'On Saturday March 10, she had been in good spirits that day but later that evening, our dog went into her room and he started barking and I went into the room and she was slumped on the floor. She had suffered a seizure. 'Because of the horse riding fall, she was in a lot of pain and that is why she was taking the morphine. 'I know that she didn't want to want to take her own life. She was happy as Larry that day.' A toxicology report found Mrs Amos had 1,512mg of morphine per litre of blood in her body. As little as 60mg of morphine in a litre of blood can be fatal to people who rarely consume the drug. The cause death was morphine toxicity. There were also traces of prescription drugs in her system. Tests revealed she had taken almost three times the recognised lethal dose for morphine. Police examined her phone and discovered one of the last messages she received was: 'l've got morphine' The hearing at Heywood heard how Mrs Amos who had two children from a previous relationship originally lived and worked in Leeds as a manager for a NHS supply chain. She moved to Bury and married Mr Amos in 2016 A pathologist's report said: 'There was evidence of an excess use of morphine and most probably her death could be explained by this. 'Melissa died as a result of morphine toxicity. It seems that by trying to control the pain, she had taken a lot of painkillers.' Det Insp Simon Edginton, who investigated Melissa's death said: I took possession of her phone and on March 10 there was a message to a Rebecca Platt, where Melissa said that she needed some medication because her back was f***ed. 'So, from these texts, it seems that she had got some morphine from Rebecca Platt. 'We went to speak to Ms Platt's partner to ask him if had any knowledge about the morphine and he said he had none.In summary, I don't believe there was any suspicious circumstances or third party involvement in her death.' Recording a conclusion of drug related death coroner Michael Salt said: 'The pathologist tried to find a cause of death and he was not able to come to a solid conclusion. He relied on the toxicologist to come up with a cause of death, and that came back as combined drug toxicity but primarily morphine toxicity. A corner recording a conclusion of drug related death A pathologist's report said: 'Melissa died as a result of morphine toxicity. It seems that by trying to control the pain, she had taken a lot of painkillers' 'It seems that there may have been a possible source for these drugs, but sadly that person passed away on April 7. Melissa's GP was aware of the possibility of her abusing her prescribed medication and Phillip Amos had a locked cabinet for her medication. 'The toxicology report came back with no trace of alcohol but there was evidence of other drugs. The report found a very high level of morphine which had a high risk of mortality. 'My findings will be that she died of combined drug toxicity but the toxicology report says that morphine was the major issue. 'I have to say that I don't consider that she committed suicide and the conclusion that I propose to reach is one of drug related death. 'My condolences to the family, I can obviously see how much she is missed.' A Chinese woman who had allegedly hoped to make a traditional snake wine has died after being bitten by a venomous serpent which she had bought online for the process. The woman, identified as 21-year-old Qiqi by media, reportedly died in hospital last Tuesday, eight days after being bitten in the finger by the many-banded krait, one of the deadliest snakes in the world. The snake then escaped from Qiqi's home onto the streets of Weinan, a city in the province of Shaanxi in north-west China. Its dead body was found at a market by police one day later. Tragic: Qiqi's family shows a funeral picture of the woman has died after being bitten by a highly poisonous snake. It is claimed that she had bought the snake to make a traditional wine Culprit: The dead body of the snake was found by police at a market a day after it escaped Qiqi's mother said she planned to sue the shopping app, the seller and the courier company over the death of her eldest daughter, according to a report on Xinhua news agency. 'How could a venomous live animal as such be sold online? And how could the courier company be allowed to transport such dangerous animal?' Qiqi's mother, known by her surname Qi, said in the Xinhua report, which cited Chengdu Business Daily. Qiqi had reportedly bought the snake on Zhuanzhuan, an e-commerce platform backed by Chinese internet heavyweight Tencent. She was described by Ms Qi as an animal-loving person and at one point had wanted to open her own pet store. It is said that she had ordered the many-banded krait from a seller in the province of Guangdong in southern China, where the highly venomous reptile is endemic. The snake had been delivered by a local courier company. The driver, who delivered the parcel to Qiqi on July 3, told Chengdu Business Daily that he did not know what was in the box, nor did the box have any warning sign. It is believed that Qiqi had planned to use the snake to make a traditional medicinal wine. Venomous kraits (centre, file photo) are commonly seen in south-east Asia and southern China It is likely that Qiqi had wanted to use the snake to make a traditional snake wine popular in Asia (file photo). The medicinal wine is typically made by infusing whole snakes in alcohol Ms Qi told Chengdu Business Daily that when she checked her late daughter's phone, she found that the seller had warned her daughter that the snake was highly poisonous, but Qiqi claimed that she would use it to make wine. The so-called snake wine is typically made by infusing whole snakes in alcohol, with the resulting beverage said to have an invigorating effect. According to her mother's accounts, Qiqi was bitten on the index finger of her left hand at around 6pm on July 9. She was taken to Weinan No. 3 Hospital by her mother after being given first aid at home. It is said that the doctors initially gave Qiqi a normal type of antivenom - not knowing that she had been bitten by the many-banded krait - but Qiqi's condition didn't improve. After Qiqi's family informed them about the species of the snake, the doctors had to arrange the correct type of serum from Shanghai before giving it to Qiqi on the night of July 10. The report said that Qiqi passed away on July 19 - 'a few days' after she had been pronounced brain dead. The deceased woman had reportedly bought the snake from a Chinese shopping app (file photo). Her mother said the e-commerce platform should bear part of the responsibility Ms Qi claimed that at first she didn't realise Qiqi had been bitten by a highly venomous snake because there was only one 'red spot' her finger. She said had she known the seriousness of the bite, she would have taken actions differently. According to the local forestry police, the reptile managed to escape after biting Qiqi, and it was found dead at a farmers' market near the woman's home one day later. Online platforms are banned from trading in wildlife and administrators quickly take down such postings. But customers can turn to smaller platforms like Zhuanzhuan with less oversight. E-commerce has boomed in China, led by major player like Alibaba's Taobao platform which handle billions of dollars in orders for everything from everyday items to the bizarre. Ms Qi acknowledged the responsibility Qiqi held for her own death, but she claimed that the shopping app, seller and the courier firm should bear partial responsibility too. She said: 'Because the shopping platform lacks proper management, the seller would have a way to sell and my daughter would have a way to buy. 'If the platform had prevented venomous snakes, such as the many banded krait, from being sold, then things like this wouldn't have happened. ' She also argued that the courier company should have checked all parcels and refused to send those that are banned by the Chinese authorities. Ms Qi said she planned to sue all of the three parties to seek justice for her daughter's death. This is the shocking moment a woman is beaten up by her jealous girlfriend after changing a password on her phone. Pimpilai Paksee, 22, had been with female partner Kanjana Sinpraseat, 25, drinking with friends last Thursday night in Bangkok, Thailand. But Pimpilai said the couple started arguing after discovering that she had used a password to protect her messaging app. CCTV captured the moment Pimpilai tried to reconcile with her partner before Kanjana hit her with a motorbike helmet, hurled her to the floor and repeatedly smashed her face into the ground. CCTV captured the moment Pimpilai tried to reconcile with her partner before Kanjana hit her with a motorbike helmet, hurled her to the floor and repeatedly smashed her face into the ground In a five-minute long attack - as two grown men looked on then walked away - the enraged woman repeatedly punched, kicked and pulled the hair of her partner. With blood pouring from Pimpilai's face, Kanjana then continued the attack as she tried to drag her onto her moped to go home. Shockingly, Pimpilai begged for help from passers-by as several young men stood watching. A middle-aged female resident eventually arrived back home and stepped in to save her. Pimpilai Paksee, 22, had been with female partner Kanjana Sinpraseat, 25, drinking with friends last Thursday night in Bangkok, Thailand Kanjana has now been arrested after domestic violence groups became involved and she faces up to ten years in prison over the savage attack. Shaken Pimpilai, who is still recovering from the assault having suffered a smashed eye socket and cuts to her face requiring several stitches, said: 'I was scared for my life, I thought I would die. She would not stop hitting me. 'I tried to stop her but I did not have the power to fight back. I was not strong enough. I cried and cried and called for help but nobody came.' Pimpilai's cousin, Thikampron, said her relative had been in a 'very bad' condition in hospital but is feeling stronger. She claims the family of Kanjana had offered to pay 50,000 baht (1,100) in compensation to cover medical expenses. Pimpilai's cousin, Thikampron, said her relative (pictured) had been in a 'very bad' condition in hospital but is feeling stronger But the family of Pimpilai declined the payment and have instructed police to prosecute the alleged attacker. Thikampron said: 'There have been many people who have offered support for my cousin. We're very thankful.' Pahonyothin police station in the Ratchada district of the Thai capital said Kanjana had been arrested over the attack and officers were now reviewing evidence. A station spokesman said today: 'We have taken statements from the victim and reviewed the CCTV footage. 'The suspect has been questioned and admitted the attack. The case will be fully pursued according to the law and we will prosecute the suspect once the investigation is processed.' Brave divers have been filmed swimming up-close and personal with more than 20 sharks off the coast of Cornwall. The pack were spotted close to a popular beach in Penzance, and are believed to have been attracted by Britain's recent hot weather. Unusually warm water on England's south-western tip has drawn the sharks in, with Charles Hood - who runs Blue Sharks Cornwall and took the pictures - saying he's seen more porbeagle sharks than usual this year. The up-close and personal experience with sharks on the popular Cornwall beach have attracted shark-fanatics to the rare ocean experience According to Cornwall Live, the balmy conditions have also allowed businesses such as Blue Sharks Cornwall to host swimming experiences with the sharks. These expeditions have become popular with photographers because of the rare opportunity to film the blue sharks without a barrier or cage. Charles Hood who runs the shark adventure experience said: 'There have always been blue sharks in Cornish waters but they've definitely increased in the past couple of years, The shark expeditions have become popular with photographers because of the rare opportunity to see the blue shark without barrier A specialist boat hosts full-day trips to see the blue sharks frolic in the out-of-character conditions 'We normally see ten when we go out, five on a poor day but around 20 on a good day. I would say there's usually double the amount around that you see.' A specialist boat charter hosts full-day trips to see the blue sharks which allows thrill-seekers to soak up the out-of-character conditions. 'The blues can appear within minutes or up to a couple hours but once around the RIB they will often stay for a few hours at a time,' he said. Mr Hood has also noticed more unusual shark sightings such as the porbeagle shark in the Cornish waters. A guest at an exclusive dinner party hosted by a Chinese billionaire has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a model invited to the event. Longwei Xu, who also goes by the name Tommy, was found guilty by a NSW District Court jury on Monday of pinning a young woman down and repeatedly trying to have sex with her during an hour-long ordeal. Xu, a Chinese national who works in property development, was found guilty of seven offences including indecent assault, assault and having sex with the woman without her consent, The Sydney Morning Herald has reported. The woman, 20, told the trial the Xu had taken her to his 13th floor room at Sydney's exclusive Shangri-La Hotel on December 26, 2015 after offering her a lift home. The exclusive party was held by Chinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong (pictured) He had then thrown away her phone, removed her clothes and penetrated her with his fingers. 'When he attempted to rape me, Tommy said that he would buy a boat for me, but I refused,' the woman said via audio-visual link and through a Mandarin interpreter. She said that Xu had pinned her down during the ordeal. She had been invited to the exclusive party, held by Chinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong, through Coco; an acquaintance she had met while working as a bikini model on a masquerade ball boat party. Coco invited the woman to the event telling her that the people at the party were 'very high-ranking and very rich'. The woman was chauffeured in a white Land Rover, driven by Xi, to the luxurious apartment. Longwei Xu has been fund guilty of sexually assaulting a 20-year-old model after an exclusive party which he drove her to in a white Land Rover (pictured) At the party she was given numerous drinks by several men excluding Mr Liu despite telling them she was allergic to alcohol. She was quite intoxicated so Xu offered to drive her home before taking her to his hotel. During the course of the sexual assault she repeatedly said 'I don't want this,' The Daily telegraph reported. 'The struggling continued on or off altogether for about an hour and during that time the accused pulled [the victim's] fingers back and she complained that it was hurting her and yelled out for help,' Crown prosecutor Sarah Talbert said during her opening address. After Xu fell asleep the woman was able to escape the room and called her boyfriends in tears. The pair then went to the police station where she vomited several times while speaking to detectives. When Sydney detectives interviewed him he claimed she was lying for money During an interview with detectives in 2015 Xu denied sexually assaulting the woman and claimed she said it for money. 'I don't know why she'd do this to me, I didn't do it,' Xu told detectives at the Sydney City Police Station. 'Maybe she wants some money or something but I don't know.' The Court of Criminal Appeal had previously refused a bid by Liu, who is the founder of online marketplace JD.com and known as China's , to keep his identity suppressed throughout the proceedings. On Monday Xus bail was revoked by Judge Nicole Noman SC who said his access to highly connected people with wealth made him a flight risk. He is expected to face a sentencing hearing on September 21. A man sparked a major security scare at Brisbane domestic airport after he allegedly tried to smuggle a gun into the terminal on Monday. Security staff reportedly detected the gun in the passenger's luggage and called Australian Federal Police, who arrested him and took him into custody. 'A restricted item was detected at a standard security screening point and caused no operational issues or delays for passengers,' a Brisbane Airport spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia. Brisbane Airport (pictured) has confirmed a 'restricted item' was detected at the domestic terminal on Monday An airport source told 9 News that the passenger had flown in from the US. Authorities are yet to confirm when and where he came in. It's understood the incident wasn't terrorism-related. A Queensland Police spokesman said it was a Australian Federal Police matter. An AFP spokesman told Daily Mail Australia on Monday night that it was currently unable to comment on the incident. But he confirmed a man had been arrested and that no charges have yet been laid. Tony Blair has called for a second referendum to try and break the deadlock over the choice of a soft or hard Brexit Tony Blair has called for a second referendum to try and break the deadlock over the choice of a soft or hard Brexit. He suggested a new vote could include three choices - leave Europe, stay in a reformed Europe or back the soft Brexit put forward by Theresa May. The former Labour leader said the feud within the Cabinet over Mrs May's Chequers plan showed that the Government was in 'chronic disarray.' He said her blueprint for leaving would not work as the EU would not accept her proposals. 'The most obvious thing frankly is that it goes back to the people - if there is no agreement over what a soft Brexit really means, and I don't think there is. The obvious thing is to go back with a simple referendum choice - stay in a reformed Europe or a clean break Brexit,' he said. 'But you could have a different question - the soft Brexit option that Theresa May is trying to put forward.' Blair made his renewed demand for a second referendum in an interview with the 'Economist Ask' podcast. While he said Teresa May's Government was in 'chronic disarray', he was equally gloomy about the prospect for the future with Corbyn in power. Blair suggested a new vote could include three choices - leave Europe, stay in a reformed Europe or back the soft Brexit put forward by Theresa May He said: 'The choice for the British people is pretty grim if it's a Brexit dominated Tory party versus a Corbyn led Labour party. 'That is a choice of two extreme positions where I think there is a majority of British people who wouldn't want either of those things if they had an alternative.' Blair, 65, said his preference would be for the Labour Party to sort itself out - but added that was unlikely while Corbyn is in charge. Since a majority of British people voted to leave the EU over two years ago Blair has been outspoken in his opposition to leaving. He has led calls for a second referendum but in the podcast interview accepted that if the British people again voted to leave everyone would have to accept the decision. He said the public are now better informed after two years of negotiations to know what they want. Blair said he had sympathy for Mrs May as she struggled to hold together the opposing factions within her Cabinet and said Article 50 might yet have to be postponed. 'I know how hard it is to be Prime Minister,' he said. 'I think Theresa May is a well intentioned person with the least enviable job in western politics today trying to steer her way through this morass. 'I have complete great sympathy for her on a personal level. What she wants will not work. 'It will not work because there is no way of squaring the circle. There is no way of staying close to Europe and being part of a frictionless border with Europe and going your own way with trade rules.' Blair, who was Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007, said the country was more divided than ever with the disarray within Mrs May's Government a huge problem. 'This agenda is being driven by a government in more chronic disarray than any government I've seen in my lifetime in the Western world in a major developed country,' he said. 'Look, you may have to end up having to postpone article 50. When people say to me, 'Why don't you just get on with it?' I'm sorry this thing is too complicated just to get on with it because it won't get on with in that way. 'Because until you've resolved where you going to go in the fundamental questions... The Chequers statement was an attempt to come down on staying close to Europe.' In later comments likely to infuriate Labour chiefs, Blair said he would be willing to meet with President Donald Trump. Blair's Institute for Global Change has had talks with Trump's son in law Jared Kushner who is involved in the Middle East peace process in his role as a senior White House advisor. He said despite the scorn poured on Trump the White House administration had been making positive steps in trying to solve the Israeli-Palestinian question. Asked if he would meet Trump, Blair said: 'If I had the right thing to discuss, and he wanted to, it would depend on what the issue was.' As a former Middle East Peace envoy Blair was optimistic about the chance of peace in the Middle East with Trump in power, he said: 'It is hard to have a rational conversation about Trump's policies because there is so much focus on the character. 'But the one thing the Administration has correctly understood is that the future of resolution to the Palestinian issue lies in the Israeli-Arab relationship and not simply in the Israeli-Palestinian relationship. They have understood that correctly. They have strong ties with the Israeli leadership and the Arab leadership. 'I don't think you will get a resolution to the Palestinian question unless you build it from the bottom up as much as trying to negotiate from the top down.' A mother has been left outraged after her 11-year-old daughter was warned in a letter that she was 'overweight'. Emma-Louise Eyre's body statistics were taken as part of a healthy living scheme between her school, Oakwood Academy, Plymouth, and NHS campaign Live Well. Emma-Louise was measured to be 4ft 8ins tall. She weighed in at 7st 8lbs. The 11-year-old's mother Sarah Eyre said that her daughter has taken the letter to heart and that 'it's absolutely disgusting'. Emma-Louise Eyre (pictured) was told she was overweight in a letter after her body statistics were taken as part of a healthy living scheme between her school and NHS campaign Live Well However the active youngster, who enjoys brisk walks on Dartmoor with her Army worker father, was told in a letter she should be 6st 5lbs. The letter read: 'These results suggest that your child is overweight for their age, sex and height. 'If your child is overweight now they are more likely to grow up to be overweight as an adult. 'This can lead to health problems.' It urged Mrs Eyre to take steps to encourage weight loss. Emma-Louise's mother Sarah (pictured left with her daughter) was left in shock over the letter and said the 'target' weight of 6st 5lbs was 'very, very skinny' However Mrs Eyre rejected the idea that her daughter needed to lose weight. She said: 'She's 12 this year, she is getting spots, going through change and development, her body is changing. 'The reason I want to raise awareness of this is because, you get kids and children that harm themselves, or commit suicide or get very anxious. 'My daughter wears her heart on her sleeve and she has taken it to heart. 'I can't believe professional people would say this. It's absolutely disgusting.' She said that the weight outlined is 'very, very skinny'. Emma-Louise's brother, Bradley, aged nine, did not receive a similar letter. Mrs Eye said: 'It shouldn't be the child that worries about the weight, it should be the parents. They are the ones that feed the children' Mrs Eyre, who is a care worker, said she is 'pretty sure' others at the school also received the letter. She said now her daughter believes she is fat. Mrs Eyre said: 'It shouldn't be the child that worries about the weight, it should be the parents. 'They are the ones that feed the children.' She continued: 'Emma-Louise and her brother eat fruit, they generally eat quite healthily. 'If I have her McDonald's every day she would put weight on. 'It has got beyond a joke.' Emma-Louise was measured in May by the National Child Measurement Programme. A Pennsylvania woman who was admiring a turtle in her backyard got quite the surprise when she spotted an alligator lurking just a few feet away from her. Tracie Hoffecker says she found the three-foot-long gator near her home in the Philadelphia suburb of Prospect Park on Sunday morning. She was using her cellphone to record a turtle she had spotted in the water when out of the corner of her eye she noticed something that didn't belong. Tracie Hoffecker found a three-foot-long alligator in the creek that flows past her Pennsylvania backyard Her cousin, Shaun Swayngim, a Philadelphia firefighter jumped in the creek to rescue it Tracie was filming a large turtle in the creek when she spotted the three-foot-long gator 'Oh my gosh, there's an alligator in my backyard!' Tracie cried. Hoffecker called her cousin Shaun Swayngim, who is a Philadelphia firefighter, and he safely removed the alligator using a net. 'I was just shocked,' said Shaun who managed to jump in the creek, dodge the gator's sharp teeth and powerful jaws to net the reptile. The capture was filmed by the Philadelphia Fire Dept and posted on YouTube. Once the gator was caught, it turns out he wasn't that scary up close. The reptile was placed into a plastic storage bin while they contacted an agency that would take it. 'Everyone in the neighborhood has been here to see alligator and it's awesome,' Tracie said. Because the gator was so big, they had difficulty finding a rescue center that was willing to take it with some even suggesting she simply kill the animal. The alligator became the talk of the town on Sunday afternoon as many stopped by for a look Kids and adults alike got the chance to take a close look at the gator and even touched it 'We just kept calling people, calling people, calling people and finally we got a hold of a rescue that would take the animal and take care of it and give it a proper home,' Tracie said to Fox29. Slimy, Scaly, Taily Reptile Rescue arrived on the scene and recovered the animal. Rescue group representative Matt Snider says the alligator will go to an aquarium. 'This little guy is going to be going down to Delaware Maryland aquarium and he will have a new home with plenty of other alligators he can play with,' said Matt Snider with the rescue group. Authorities say the alligator was likely someone's pet and was illegally dumped in the area. The gator has now been given to a rescue center while will take care of the reptile 'That creature can't live here all year. As soon as it gets cold, it's going to die. That's horrible. It's an animal that deserves to live,' Tracie explained. It is legal to own an alligator under Pennsylvania state law, but it is illegal to release them into the wild. 'I come down here every day to feed my bees and I never imagined I'd see an alligator,' Tracie said. A millionaire British expat has been stabbed to death at his Greek villa with local authorities hunting his son on suspicion of murder. Derek Arber, 65, was found dead at his home in the town of Agios Georgios on the island of Antiparos on Sunday - according to local media. Eyewitnesses who knew Mr Arber said he had been out for dinner on Saturday night with his son, who remains unnamed. Derek Arber (right) with his wife Lilly with whom he owned several properties on the Greek island of Antiparos They said the two of them seemed to have been engaged in a heated conversation which descended into a full-blown argument. Later on the two men were said to have left the restaurant together. Mr Arber's body was found the following morning, with police speculating he may have been stabbed with a screwdriver. Police have confirmed they have opened a murder investigation with his son as the main suspect. Authorities are speculating that the young man might have already left the island. Due to the severity of the case, the commander of the Paros Security Department traveled to the small Greek island of Antiparos to coordinate the investigations and to direct the forensic examination. Mr Arber was stabbed to death at his home in the town of Agios Georgios on the island of Antiparos, Greece Mr Arber and his wife are the owners of Lilly's Villas, a company which runs anumber of holiday properties on the island Derek Arber was well-known in the Antiparos business scene and was according to Greek media well liked by locals who praised his adventurous spirit and his intelligence. He owned Lilly's Villas with his wife Lilly Arber, which is a group of independent houses built in the style of a small village on the hills of the town of Agios Georgios. His residence was located within the complex of houses. Mr Arber had been living permanently on the island and was a British citizen. He reportedly also had a Greek passport. A spokesperson for the local police said: 'Police investigations are under way to investigate a murder case in Antiparos. 'Police investigations are under way to investigate the murder of a 65-year-old, who was found dead at his home in Antiparos this afternoon (July 22, 2018). Hewas allegedly injured in a deadly object. 'The Paramedical Police Department is conducting the preliminary investigation with the assistance of Criminal Services personnel will fly into the island for an autopsy, exploration and scientific investigation of the area.' Mr Wedding suffers mental health issues and believed he was a philosopher An unemployed man has walked free from court after using a sledgehammer to destroy a recruitment agency office after failing to find work. Anthony Wedding, 50, walked calmly into the St Laurence employment agency in Geelong holding a sledgehammer before screaming profanities at staff. Mr Wedding yelled 'I want a f***ing job' at staff before smashing his way into the building and going on a violent rampage, reported Ten Daily. The 50-year-old used the sledgehammer to burst through the door of the business and smash a hole in a desk, the County Court heard on Monday. Anthony Wedding (pictured) wielded a sledgehammer in a Geelong employment office All the people waiting inside the office and the staff members fled the building, except one man who stayed to talk to Mr Wedding and calm him down. In the lead-up to the incident he had been hearing voices in his head in different languages, including Arabic, and had come to believe he was a philosopher. Two psychiatrists who assessed Mr Wedding both said he was suffering severe mental illness at the time. His health had also been deteriorating since 2014. Judge Gerard Mullaly said that Mr Wedding didn't understand the gravity of his actions. He threatened staff before breaking a door down and smashing a hole in a desk Mr Wedding suffers mental health issues and believed he was a philosopher at the time he entered the employment office (pictured) 'It seems clear and unequivocal that your deteriorating mental health was very much behind you doing what you did,' Judge Mullaly said. 'In your paranoid state, you felt you weren't being dealt with properly.' Judge Mullaly said the employees at the agency didn't deserve to be attacked and that the sledgehammer had created a powerful threat. 'Your actions, though frightening, were brief and not directed specifically at a worker. The court heard Mr Wedding had been getting increasingly frustrated about his lack of employment before the incident. Judge Mullaly acknowledged Mr Wedding had never been in trouble with the law before, and sentenced him to 20 months on a community corrections order, and 150 hours of unpaid work. A boulder has fallen out of the ancient Western Wall in Jerusalem and crashed onto a prayer platform below, narrowly missing a woman who was praying. Mayor Nir Barkat said the stone, weighing 220lb (100kg), fell close to a woman who was praying... without hitting her'. He described the fact that nobody was harmed in the incident as 'a great miracle'. The platform the boulder crashed on was an egalitarian area where men and women can pray together. Antiquities authorities are investigating and said they were aware of the 'sensitivity' of the site, The Times of Israel reported. A boulder has fallen out of the ancient Western Wall in Jerusalem and crashed onto a prayer platform below The statement said that Barkat visited the scene with the city engineer and safety officials, who declared the spot dangerous and closed it to the public pending further inspection. Yizhar Hess wrote on Twitter that Israeli Antiquities Authorities officials were investigating and that the balcony would remain closed for the time being, saying the damage on Sunday was a 'wake-up call'. He said: 'We must check the entire Western Wall, both parts, so that heaven forbid there is no disaster in the future.' The Western Wall, which Prince William visited last month, is more than 2,000 years old. It is the most sacred site accessible to Jews as it is the only remaining part of the Temple Mount, held to be uniquely holy in Judaism. The site of the former temple on Temple Mount now houses the Dome of the Rock mosque, the cause of violent disputes. But for religious reasons Jews are forbidden to go there in case they tread on the site of the Holy of Holies, thought to be located under the Dome of the Rock. King Herod built the Western Wall in 20 BC during an expansion of the Second Temple. When the Romans destroyed the temple in 70 AD the retaining wall survived. The platform the boulder crashed on was an egalitarian area where men and women can pray together Prince William visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem during his trip to the Middle East in June For hundreds of years, Jews came to pray in the small area of the wall that could be seen, posting folded pieces of paper containing prayers in cracks in the ancient stones. It became known by Europeans as the Wailing Wall, a translation of the Arabic el-Mabka, which means place of weeping. That description came from the Jewish practice of mourning the destruction of the Temple and praying for its rebuilding at the site of the Western Wall. In 1967, following the Six Day War, Israelis dug below the ground of the wall, exposing two more levels of the wall. To Muslims it is the Haram al-Sharif compound, the third-holiest in Islam after Mecca and Medina, and home to the Al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock. Advertisement Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and spurring extreme measures to protect them. For what they say is the first time, volunteer groups in Arizona and Colorado are hauling thousands of gallons of water and truckloads of food to remote grazing grounds where springs have run dry and vegetation has disappeared. Federal land managers also have begun emergency roundups in desert areas of Utah and Nevada. 'We've never seen it like this,' said Simone Netherlands, president of the Arizona-based Salt River Wild Horse Management Group. In May, dozens of horses were found dead on the edge of a dried-up watering hole in northeastern Arizona. Wild horses occupy a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them 'We've never seen it like this,' said Simone Netherlands, president of the Arizona-based Salt River Wild Horse Management Group. Pictured: A dusty horse outside Salt Lake City Parts of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico are under the most severe category of drought, though extreme conditions are present from California to Missouri, government analysts say. Pictured: A horse at a muddy watering hole in Utah IBaked earth is shown in a dry watering hole outside Salt Lake City. This now dried up watering hole previously provided water to a herd of wild horses Wild horses walk to a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. The dry conditions have fed wildfires that have destroyed hundreds of buildings across the West As spring turned to summer, drought conditions turned from bad to worse, Netherlands said. Parts of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico are under the most severe category of drought, though extreme conditions are present from California to Missouri, government analysts say. Parts of the region have witnessed some of the driest conditions on record, amid a cycle of high temperatures and low snowmelt that appears to be getting worse, National Weather Service hydrologist Brian McInerney said. The dry conditions have fed wildfires that have destroyed hundreds of buildings across the West. This month, a firefighter was killed battling a blaze near California's Yosemite National Park. The federal Bureau of Land Management - which oversees vast expanses of public land, mostly in the West - says the problem facing wild horses stems from overpopulation aggravated by severe drought. The region is home to roughly 67,000 wild horses. 'You're always going to have drought issues. That's a common thing out on the range,' agency spokesman Jason Lutterman said. 'What really exacerbates things is when we're already overpopulation, because then you already have resource issues.' The agency's emergency roundup in western Utah began a week ago, aiming to remove roughly 250 wild horses from a population of approximately 670. The operation is expected to take several weeks. Once the horses are rounded up, the government gives them veterinary treatment and offers them for sale or adoption. Those that aren't sold or adopted are transferred to privately contracted corrals and pastures for the long term. Parts of the West have witnessed some of the driest conditions on record, amid a cycle of high temperatures and low snowmelt that appears to be getting worse, National Weather Service hydrologist Brian McInerney said The federal Bureau of Land Management - which oversees vast expanses of public land, mostly in the West - says the problem facing wild horses stems from overpopulation aggravated by severe drought Wild horses are held in a temporary pen after being rounded up the night before due to insufficient water to sustain them, near Salt Lake City 'If we don't have a very good fall with a lot of rain - and it's also warm so that our fall vegetation grows - we're going to lose horses,' Cindy Wright, co-founder of Colorado conservation group Wild Horse Warriors for Sand Wash Basin, said A similar emergency roundup began this month in central Nevada, where officials said some horses in a herd of 2,100 could die from lack of water in coming weeks. The operation was quickly halted, ironically because of extreme rain, but will likely resume. 'The ground's so dry it's not absorbing that water. It's running off,' bureau spokeswoman Jenny Lesieutre said. Volunteers are also taking action. Since late spring, Netherlands's Salt River group has hauled hay to a dozen locations outside Phoenix to feed a herd of starving wild horses. Roughly 200 miles north, a couple near Gray Mountain, on the Navajo Nation, have spearheaded an effort to leave water and food for horses they say would die without human intervention. In western Colorado, volunteers say they're preparing to bring up to 5,000 gallons of water per day to a herd of 750 desperate horses. 'Springs are drying up that have never dried up,' said Cindy Wright, co-founder of Colorado conservation group Wild Horse Warriors for Sand Wash Basin. Horses in the area stalk the dry earth with their ribs exposed, desperate for a drop, she said. Wild horse advocates have balked at the Bureau of Land Management's insistence that wild horse populations are too high Critics say the agency is using dry conditions as a smoke screen to shrink horse populations in response to pressure from ranchers whose livestock compete with the horses for grazing land The agency is prohibited from euthanizing the wild horses it rounds up, though President Donald Trump has proposed allowing the animals to be killed or sold for slaughter Activists in Nevada held a rally last Tuesday at the bureau's state headquarters in Reno to protest a planned roundup later this year. Pictured: More wild horses in Utah Wild horse advocates have balked at the Bureau of Land Management's insistence that wild horse populations are too high. Critics say the agency is using dry conditions as a smoke screen to shrink horse populations in response to pressure from ranchers whose livestock compete with the horses for grazing land. 'I do have a concern about the larger numbers that they're pulling off, and then a bigger concern about the BLM under this administration using all kinds of excuses to pull off horses,' said Suzanne Roy, executive director of the American Wild Horse Campaign, an advocacy organization. The agency is prohibited from euthanizing the wild horses it rounds up, though President Donald Trump has proposed allowing the animals to be killed or sold for slaughter. Activists in Nevada held a rally last Tuesday at the bureau's state headquarters in Reno to protest a planned roundup later this year. Critics want the government to instead use birth control to manage wild horse populations. The bureau says the fertility treatment, which must be administered yearly and fired from a dart gun at close range, is too difficult for use except in certain cases where herds are easy to approach and have markings that make horses distinguishable from one another. Whatever the long-term answer, volunteers say their efforts can't go on forever. Trucking in water and food could cost several thousand dollars per month and make horses overly dependent on humans, they said. 'If we don't have a very good fall with a lot of rain - and it's also warm so that our fall vegetation grows - we're going to lose horses,' Wright said. Far-right congressman Jair Bolsonaro formally announced his candidacy for Brazil's presidential election on Sunday. The 63-year-old joins a race in which he is currently polling second after jailed ex-President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, who will likely be barred from running. The former army captain, who has been likened to Donald Trump, made his announcement to an elated crowd in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday. Centrist parties have thrown their support behind centrist rival Geraldo Alckmin for the election in October. Bolsonaro has made headlines with provocative comments against minorities, saying he could not love a gay son and telling a congresswoman she did not deserve to be raped. He has also come under fire for praising Brazil's former military dictatorship and only has the backing of a minor party. Far-right congressman Jair Bolsonaro formally announced his candidacy for Brazil's presidential election on Sunday But he shifted to a more inclusive tone on Sunday, saying: 'We are going to unite this people. We will unite whites and blacks, homosexuals and heterosexuals ... We will unite bosses and employees, and we won't plant the seed of discord between them.' Some 3,000 supporters, including one Trump impersonator, gathered in Rio de Janeiro to welcome his candidacy, chanting Bolsonaro slogans and making pistol gestures with their hands in tribute to him. His anti-corruption message and vows to loosen gun controls to fight crime resonate deeply in the city, where a crime wave has prompted the federal government to intervene in the state's security. A massive graft scandal at Petrobras that has saddled the state-controlled oil giant with billions in debt has also weighed on the city. Leaders of the centrist parties backing Geraldo Alckmin are under investigation for payments in the sprawling Petrobras bribes and kickbacks scandal. 'He's our hope. The Brazilian people are discouraged by all the corruption,' said Gilcemar Jasset, a 35-year-old Rio de Janeiro bus driver who arrived at the event dressed as Bolsonaro complete with a presidential sash. Bolsonaro has not been able to forge alliances with other parties, who view him as too controversial. Despite his popularity, he only has the backing of a small fringe party, which means he is only allowed 10 seconds of free television time. Jair Bolsonaro is surrounded by supporters as he launches his campaign in Rio de Janeiro A late June poll placed Bolsonaro on top with 17 percent of intended votes in the first round, in the absence of former leftist leader Lula, who has been in prison on a corruption conviction since April and whose candidacy will likely be blocked. Ecologist Marina Silva polled second place at 13 percent, in a field where Brazil's more than 30 parties have until mid-August to name candidates. The seven-term congressman has been vague about specific policy plans involving the economy, which he professed to know little about in an interview with Brazil's O Globo newspaper on Saturday. On Sunday, Bolsonaro said he supported the privatization of some parts of Petrobras without going into detail, and declined to weigh in on recently announced plans by Boeing to buy a majority stake in Brazilian planemaker Embraer's commercial arm. At the rally he spoke about helping police to crack down on crime, filling his Cabinet with military officers and taking Brazil out of the Paris climate accord. He also said he would support a reduction in the number of government ministries. The candidate has not nominated a vice president to run with him yet. Records released by a Kentucky police department show a former officer had been suspended for calling a black teen a 'wild animal that needs to be put down.' WDRB-TV obtained documents from Kentucky's Louisville Metro Police Department's internal investigation into Facebook posts made by former police officer Brian Smith. Authorities investigated Smith after it was revealed that he had written several Facebook posts that seemingly supported violence against and had racial undertones. Former police officer Brian Smith retired from Kentucky's Louisville Metro Police Department three month after being suspended following an internal investigation in his Facebook posts One of the Facebook posts read, 'ANIMAL! Nothing but a wild animal that needs put down. There I said it,' and linked to a video of a black teenager supposedly sucker-punching another female. Another post about Madonna read, 'Somebody please take that microphone and beat her half to death with it. Thats a lesson in Muslin [sic] behavior for her.' In a third post, Smith wrote that if people opted to wear hats, they should be worn 'square on ur head' with a 'bend in the bill,' and that pants should be pulled up, seeming references to stereotypical urban youth sartorial choices. 'You really make me want to hit u as hard as i can in the face just to see if I can fold ur teeth inside ur mouth,' Smith's Facebook post read. 'Im not saying id do it, for that would be illegal, immoral, and wrong, not to mention (and most important) could get me in trouble. That is all.' In newly released documents, Louisville Police Chief Steve Conrad (left) wrote that Smith's Facebook posts 'advocate violence against others' and 'fostered mistrust of the police.' He then suspended Smith for 30-days without pay Courtesy of WDRB According to the newly released documents, Louisville Metro Police Chief Steven Conrad planned to fire Smith for the Facebook posts which 'advocate violence against others' and 'fostered mistrust of the police' in January 2018. But, 10 days later, Conrad said a 30-day suspension without pay would be sufficient. Police said Smith ultimately resigned in April. The released documents also included a letter Conrad wrote to Smith in January, stating, 'I believe your posts can be construed by some to express ridicule, bias, disrespect or prejudice against members of our community.' The three Facebook posts were brought to the attention of the police department by an attorney representing the children of Darnell Wicker, 57, in a wrongful death lawsuit against the city and police. Wicker was fatally shot by police in August 2016 after he failed to put down his weapon, a 'large curved bladed object,' which his family members maintained was a saw, WDRB reported. Smith and the other involved officers were exonerated in the shooting, and Smith was dropped as a defendant. The attorney's complaint stated that Smith should be fired from his position because his Facebook page demonstrated 'deep-seated bias against minority communities.' Smith's released personnel file also showed that he had been suspended without pay for 25 days in 2009 for sending inappropriate text messages to his ex-girlfriend's minor daughter. He had also once received a reprimand for failing to report off-duty work. A notorious Hells Angels bikie was dragged bloodied and screaming from his family home after being tackled and repeatedly tasered by four tactical police officers. Phillip O'Shea, sergeant-at-arms of the Darwin chapter of the Hells Angels, was tasered multiple times by police in his Palmerston home in October 2017. With cameras latched onto their vests, police stormed the property after acquiring evidence of the 44-year-old obtaining drugs, the ABC reported. One of the officers involved in the arrest said it was the most violent resistance from a criminal he had seen in his three decades in the force. O'Shea is tackled to the ground by four police officers (left) and is finally handcuffed (right) after two minutes Footage shows O'Shea being tackled to the ground by four officers after being capsicum sprayed. He is seen resisting arrest as an officer shouts repeatedly, 'put your hands behind your back...stop resisting'. It takes close to two minutes for police to handcuff O'Shea, before leading him outside past his confused parents sitting outside. NT Police Sergeant Scott Rose said he had never witnessed such violence in his 30 years of policing, the publication reported. O'Shea appeared in Darwin Local Court on Monday and was found guilty of possessing a trafficable quantity of drugs, resisting arrest, and assaulting a police officer. O'Shea's lawyer slammed the police's handling of his client, claiming officer's use of force during the arrest was excessive. However, senior crown prosecutor David Morters, rejected the claim, stating police acted within reason. O'Shea will be sentenced on July 31. Rachael Denhollander, the first woman to publicly accuse Larry Nassar of sexual abuse, has named her newborn daughter after the detective who worked the former gymnast's case. The 33-year-old gave birth to her fourth child, Elora Renee Joy, on Friday in Kentucky where she lives with her husband Jacob. In announcing the birth, Denhollander took to social media to pay tribute to Michigan State University detective Lt. Andrea Renee Munford, who built the case against Nassar. 'Elora Renee Joy. Elora means 'to God belongs the victory',' she wrote alongside a photo of her daughter. Rachael Denhollander gave birth to her fourth child, Elora Renee Joy, on Friday in Kentucky where she lives with her husband Jacob In announcing the birth, Denhollander took to social media to pay tribute to Michigan State University detective Lt. Andrea Renee Munford who built the case against Nassar 'Renee, which means 'rebirth' or 'redemption', for the One who gives beauty for ashes, and after Dt. Lt. Andrea Renee Munford, one of women who first made redeeming so much evil for good, possible. 'So grateful my children have her example, and the example of many others, who fought for what was right, and changed everything by it. 'Just need a few more babies so we can have namesakes for the others who fought for us too.' Denhollander was 15 when Nassar assaulted her five times while she was being treated for back pain at Michigan State University by the former team doctor in 2000. She came forward publicly in August 2016 and filed a report with MSU Police saying that Nassar had molested her. Denhollander was one of the 100 women to give victim impact statements during Nassar's trial (above) in February this year and helped lead the charge against him Denhollander is pictured above being hugged by detective Munford after giving her victim impact statement during Nassar's trial earlier this year Detective Munford was the one who interviewed the former gymnast about her allegations and led the investigation as other victims began to come forward. Denhollander was 15 when Nassar assaulted her five times while she was being treated for back pain at Michigan State University by the former team doctor in 2000 Denhollander was one of the 100 women to give victim impact statements during Nassar's trial earlier this year. 'Larry meticulously groomed me for the purpose of exploiting me for his sexual pleasure,' Denhollander told the court. 'As Larry abused me, I assured myself it was just fine because I thought I could trust the adults around me. And so I lay still.' Nassar was sentenced in February to between 40 to 175 years in prison. Denhollander was one of the most outspoken victims and helped lead the charge against him. She was named as one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in April. In the days before she gave birth, Denhollander also honored the other victims who accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage award together at the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles last week. Nassar, the former Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics doctor, was sentenced in February to between 40 to 175 years in prison 141 of Nassar's victims flooded the stage while Aly Raisman accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage Award on their behalf at the ESPYs last week In the days before she gave birth, Denhollander also honored the other victims who accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage award together at the ESPY Awards Less than six months after the 54-year-old was sentenced, 141 of Nassar's victims flooded the stage while Aly Raisman accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage Award on their behalf. 'Waiting for our fourth child to arrive (late as is family tradition!) and thinking with gratitude of all the Sister Survivors who will be accepting the Arthur Ashe Courage award tomorrow, and of four women in attendance with them who are also true heroes. 'Former Assistant Attorney General Angela Povalaitis, Detective Lt. Andrea Munford, Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, and our victim advocate, Rebekah Bakker,' Denhollander wrote on Facebook. 'And never forget that these survivors stand in the place of hundreds still in silence, still needing justice, still needing an advocate. Speak for them. The impact of sexual assault, put on display for the world in the sentencing hearing, is but a shadow of the reality so many more live with along with us. Stand for them.' A mother's worst fears were realised when she made the discovery that her baby's eating problems weren't a case of teething, but rather meningococcal disease. Violet was flown to Adelaide's Women's and Children's Hospital from regional South Australia when her parents discovered red spots on her stomach and legs. Mother Tiffany Henderson told 9 News she feared that her seven-month-old daughter could have been left with no legs. Purple blotches and red pock marks peppered seven-month-old Violet Henderson's body, who has made a full recovery from meningococcal B Meningococcal disease is an infectious disease which can be transmitted by close or prolonged exposure like coughing or touching Mother Tiffany Henderson and father Peter Duffield were able to take their seven-month-old daughter Violet home after two weeks of treatment and monitoring (family pictured) Purple blotches coated Violet's legs and torso, as she was diagnosed with meningococcal B. Eliza Ault-Connell from Meningococcal Australia told Daily Mail Australia that time is the key when diagnosing meningococcal disease. 'We've seen people at breakfast be dead by dinner,' she says. WHAT IS MENINGOCOCCAL DISEASE? Meningococcal disease is a bacterial infection that can cause death within hours if not recognised and treated in time. There are five main strains of the infection, each of which now have a vaccine available in Australia. Although the majority of victims will recover fully, 10% of those infected will die, and around 20% will have permanent disabilities. If left untreated, the disease is fatal. Amputation is not uncommon. Neither is organ failure and kidney damage, with extreme cases requiring long-term dialysis. Babies and children up to five-years-old account for two-thirds of cases due to their less mature immune system Advertisement 'You literally see rashes develop before their eyes.' This was the case with Violet as well, as her unwillingness to eat quickly developed into other symptoms of meningococcal disease. 'She started to get really purple lips, they got really dark purple, they started to get really dry and cracked and she started to just go limp and it was within five minutes that happened,' Ms Henderson said. The family was flown 563km to Women's and Children's Hospital, fighting against the clock to properly diagnose and treat which specific strain of the disease she had. Violet spent five days in intensive care receiving life-saving treatment, and was released from hospital after two weeks of monitoring. Meningococcal disease has five strains; A, B, C, W and Y, each of which have different vaccines. Strains A, C, W and Y were placed under the government vaccination scheme on July 1 this year. Strain B, the most common, will be on the scheme from October this year. Ms Henderson (pictured with daughter Violet) saw her daughter's meningococcal disease symptoms grow and develop within hours A former star of 'The Dukes of Hazzard' television show has pleaded guilty to inappropriately touching two women in the cast of a musical in Massachusetts in which he starred. Prosecutors say 66-year-old Tom Wopat was sentenced Friday to a year of probation after pleading guilty to two counts of annoying and accosting a person of the opposite sex. The New York City resident was charged last August with touching two female cast members while rehearsing for '42nd Street' at Waltham's Reagle Music Theatre. Prosecutors say 66-year-old Tom Wopat (pictured) was sentenced Friday to a year of probation after pleading guilty Wopat (R) played Luke Duke on the popular 1980s television show along with John Schneider (L) and Catherine Bach (C) He also received a continuation without a finding for one year after admitting to sufficient facts on the charge of cocaine possession. The drugs were found on his person during his arrest. Wopat played Luke Duke on the popular 1980s television show. The New York City resident was charged last August with touching two female cast members while rehearsing for '42nd Street' Wpoat initially pleaded not guilty to touching the buttocks of a woman during the local production. He was later accused of poking a 16-year-old girl co-star in her stomach with his finger on the set of the same play. Wopat was arrested in Massachusetts on August 2, 2017 and charged with indecent assault after putting his finger between the cheeks of the woman's posterior. Two weeks later, police interviewed the second victim, who says he did the same to her, TMZ reported. According to court documents obtained by TMZ, Wopat told the young co-star: 'I'm a creepy old man, you're really talented and really cute.' The teenager told police that she ignored his advances, which made her uncomfortable. Shortly after the comment, she said he took a copy of the script and whacked her in the butt. He also received a continuation without a finding for one year after admitting to sufficient facts on the charge of cocaine possession Wopat then took his finger and touched her midriff, which was exposed because she was wearing a cropped top. The actor was told by an adult on-set: 'Don't flirt with this girl, she's only 16.' After his arrest last year, the actor said he would take time to address his ongoing struggle with substance abuse. 'Tom definitely understands that sobriety is the sole course for a successful future and will take immediate steps to achieve it,' a statement issued by the actor's representative read Soon after his arrest, the actor apologized to all those affected by the incident but still 'firmly' denied the allegations of inappropriate touching. The 65-year-old Tony Award-nominated actor played Luke Duke on the 1980s television show The Dukes of Hazzard. Wopat isn't the only cast member from the hit 1980s show to face legal troubles. Last month, Wopat's former co-star on the Dukes of Hazzard, John Schneider (pictured), was arrested by LAPD for failing to pay spousal support to his estranged wife Last month, Dukes of Hazzard co-star John Schneider was arrested by the LAPD for failing to pay spousal support to his estranged wife Elvira Castle. He was released from jail after only five hours due to overcrowding. The 58-year-old was originally given a three-day jail sentence in Los Angeles County. Instead of blaming himself for apparently missing the alimony payments, the actor believes he was targeted because he's a member of the Republican party. Schneider and wife Elvira Castle at the world premiere of 'Bruce Almighty' in 2003 'I do think there's a bias against conservatives, Republicans, in Hollywood, but I think if you let that alter how you are, then I question how you are,' Schneider said in an interview with Fox News after his release. '[Within the] court system, I was treated like I was guilty until proven innocent, like a second-class citizen,' he said, and added that it's time for Hollywood stars to 'come out of the Republican closet.' The Smallville actor was also ordered by a judge to perform 240 hours of community service. Schneider was previously given a March deadline by the court to pay more than $150,000 in delinquent spousal support. He claimed that he couldn't afford the payments after losing the majority of his money when his Louisiana movie studio was destroyed by floods in March 2016. 'If I had it [money], I would've given it to her just to let this go away but I don't have it,' he said. 'I've worked seven days a week, 80 hours a week, at least since 1978. I have, as every working person has, a mountain of debt that was attached to my dream. 'There's a group now that somehow feels they're entitled to life or even luxury without work and the judicial system apparently agrees with that,' he added. Schneider had earlier been ordered by a judge to transfer his property to his estranged wife to pay his spousal support debt and to resolve tax liens against the property. Castle filed for divorce in December 2014 after 21 years of marriage. She cited irreconcilable differences in the divorce filing. A schoolboy is understood to have taken his own life after he accidentally killed a classmate with a body slam. The boy had hurled his classmate to the ground in Kayathur, in India's southern Thoothukudi, after a row over a comb. After the smaller child had died in the classroom attack the body slammer's body was later found in a well, The Hindu reported. The boy had hurled his classmate to the ground in Kayathur, in India's southern Thoothukudi, after a row over a comb Shocking footage shows the fight breaking out in the classroom at breaktime which ends with one of the boys being slammed to the ground. At the start of the clip several boys are gathered around a school bench while others file out of the classroom. There seems to be an exchange of words between one of the boys, wearing a light-coloured shirt, and a smaller child in an orange coat. After stepping away for a moment the taller boy turns more aggressive and grabs the other child's jacket to pull him towards him. Other pupils look on with concern during the shocking classroom footage in southern India Trapped between two taller children, the smaller pupil tries to crawl away and then flee across one of the tables, but remains penned in. The boy in the light shirt then picks the boy up and flings him to the ground. It is clear immediately that something is wrong as the other pupils gather round the younger child looking extremely concerned. The boy who was attacked reportedly died in hospital before the older student was reported missing and was later found dead. Advertisement The run-down mansion of a hero killed in the Battle of Waterloo is up for sale for the price of a modest London flat. The mansion was purchased by British Lieutenant General Sir Thomas Picton just three years before he was the most senior ranking British officer to die fighting against Napoleon and his French troops at Waterloo. Now there will be an auction with a price guide of just 500,000 and it is expected to go under the hammer on September 12. The mansion was purchased by British Lieutenant General Sir Thomas Picton just three years before he was the most senior ranking British officer to die fighting against Napoleon and his French troops at Waterloo The mansion is expected to go to auction on September 12 this year. There are estimates it will go for 500,000, which is the cost of a modest flat in London Images capturing the home in Ferryside, Carmarthenshire, West Wales, show that is has no roof or floors. The grade two listed building has been empty since 1957 and includes a three-storey Georgian house with matching 'wings'. The Iscoed estate also features a rear building, creating an enclosed courtyard, and equated to 13 bedrooms. Planning consent has been given for conversion of the courtyard into give three-bedroom houses and one six-bedroom house. One of the courtyard buildings has already been converted and people have moved in. Sir Picton bought the home in 1812 as an unfinished shell as an intended retirement home. The home, which was purchased to be a retirement home, was in the family until 1919 and used as council flats after 1945. It has been empty since 1957 But he spent very little time there before he was called to battle and his eventual death on June 18, 1815. The mansion stayed in the Picton family until 1919 and was most recently used as council flats after 1945. The British Lieutenant General was a controversial figure. Planning consent has been given for conversion of the courtyard into give three-bedroom houses and one six-bedroom house He was described by the Duke of Wellington as 'a rough foul-mouthed devil' but 'very capable'. Sir Thomas Picton was born in Haverfordwest and was considered to be a brave loyal military hero. However his role as Governor of Trinidad included accusations of the use of torture. Donald Trump's chief spokeswoman claimed on Monday that the president's apocalyptic allcaps warning to Iran is an example of 'peace through strength' following 'empty threats against America' from Tehran's mullahs. 'The only person that's inciting anything is Iran,' Sarah Sanders said on 'Fox & Friends,' adding that Trump 'is going to continue to be tough on this topic.' 'He's certainly not going to tolerate the leader of Iran making threats against Americans,' she added, warning that the president is 'not afraid to take tough steps if necessary' against Israel's mortal enemy. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had warned Trump not to 'play with the lion's tail' before Trump Tweeted an escalation of his war of words Sunday night over looming sanctions against Tehran. Sarah Sanders claimed Monday that Iran is the 'only' one issuing threats just hours after President Trump warned Tehran in an allcaps tweet that it could 'SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE SUFFERED' Trump and First Lady Melania are seen returning to DC on Sunday after the weekend. Trump issued the stark threat after he had arrived back at the White House 'To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE,' Trump blasted. 'WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!' That prompted Iran to goad Trump even more, calling his reaction 'passive' and saying he 'won't dare' launch an attack. The regime also accused him of copying Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who in the past has warned the West to 'never threaten an Iranian.' In a statement issued by the White House, National Security Advisor John Bolton said that he had spoken to Trump 'over the last several days,' and the president 'told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before.' Gen. Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, the chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guards volunteer Basij force, claimed that Trump's tweet amounts to nothing more than 'psychological warfare.' Trump was responding to remarks by Hassan Rouhani (above), in which the Iranian President said 'war with Iran will be the mother of all wars' Trump unloaded on Rouhani in an all-caps tweet but the regime brushed aside his remarks as 'passive', adding that he 'won't dare' attack 'We will never abandon our revolutionary beliefs. We will resist pressure from enemies,' he said, adding that 'America wants nothing less than [to] destroy Iran ... [but] Trump cannot do a damn thing against Iran.' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump's 'strong stance' and welcomed an end to world powers 'pampering' the regime. Rouhani had earlier claimed that 'Iran is the mother of all peace' before warning America that 'war with Iran is the mother of all wars.' 'Don't play with fire, or you will regret [it],' he continued. 'Iranian people are the master and they will never bow to anyone.' National Security Advisor John Bolton said Trump 'told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before' Trump (pictured arriving in Washington DC from New Jersey) spoke out shortly after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo promised a 'maximum pressure' campaign against Iran Trump's war of words with Iran echo his threats of 'fire and fury' against North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un before their appeasement at the summit in Singapore Earlier this year, Trump tore up the nuclear agreement signed by predecessor Barack Obama by pledging to reinstate harsh sanctions against Iran Rouhani warned against any U.S. attempt to destabilize the country by encouraging protests, saying: 'You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests.' Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hinted at such efforts on Sunday, promising unspecified backing for Iranian dissents as he referred to the country's leaders as a 'mafia'. Pompeo, in a California speech to a largely Iranian-American audience, dismissed Rouhani and his top ministers as 'merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry.' Iran 'is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government,' Pompeo said, citing what he called Iranian leaders' vast wealth and corruption. Pompeo said senior Iranian leaders had benefited from embezzlement, sweetheart deals and other ill-gotten gains. Iran's ayatollahs, he said, were 'hypocritical holy men' who 'seem more concerned with riches than religion.' In a move sure to anger Tehran, Pompeo announced that the U.S. government is launching a 24-hour television, radio and digital information channel in Farsi to broadcast pro-American messages across Iran. The information service would insure that 'ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe can know that America stands with them', Pompeo said. The war of words grew to a fever pitch not long after Iran threatened to block international oil tankers from passing through the critical Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for Trump's looming sanctions. The vital strategic choke-point, just 29 nautical miles wide at its narrowest point, controls all ocean traffic to the Persian Gulf. About one-fifth of the world's petroleum passes through the strait. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California on Sunday, in a speech where he referred to the leadership of Iran as a 'mafia' Protesters against the current Iranian regime stand outside the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum where Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was speaking on Sunday Trump's words also echo his statements against North Korea's Kim Jong-un in August 2017, in which he said: 'North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States. 'They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.' Trump and Kim eventually buried the hatchet before sitting down for the first-ever summit between the two world leaders in Singapore in June. Sanctions against Iran are set to come into play after Trump's decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Iran's nuclear program. The Trump administration initially planned to shut Iran out of global oil markets completely, demanding all other countries stop buying Iranian crude by November. But the U.S. has somewhat eased its stance, saying it may grant sanction waivers to some allies that are particularly reliant on Iranian supplies. Iran has threatened to block oil tankers transiting through the Strait of Hormuz (above). The vitale choke-point controls all ocean traffic from the Persian Gulf 'If Iran's oil is not exported, no regional country's oil will be exported,' said Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (seen on Saturday) This is the adorable moment a dog rescued a fellow pup who got stuck in the mud. A dog named Puppy accompanied his owner Karen James on a horseback ride on Thursday afternoon and went missing on the trail near McCleary, Washington. After going two days with no sign of the Great Pyrenees, James called in Three Retrievers Lost Pet Rescue for help. Tino the search and rescue dog was dispatched to the heavily wooded area on Saturday and managed to find Puppy trapped in a muddy gully, less than a mile from his home. Scroll down for video Emotional photos show the moment a search and rescue dog named Tino located a family's missing dog Puppy after he had been missing for two days near McCleary, Washington Puppy the Great Pyrenees had gotten stuck in a muddy gull less than a mile from his home Tino caught the lost pet's scent trail and traced it to where Puppy was stuck in the woods Emotional photos show the frightened pet covered in thick mud while Tino stands by, showing off his triumphant rescue. James told Fox 13: 'He could not have gotten out of the mud. We would not have seen him because he was far enough off the trail. 'And you know there's miles and miles, acres and acres of wilderness out there to search. 'We just never would have found him.' Three Retrievers Lost Pet Rescue said if it wasn't for Tino, Puppy may have never been located The frightened pet was unable to move his legs at first after spending 40 hours in the cold mud It took three people to pull 150lb Puppy out of the pit using ropes, according to a post on the Three Retrievers' Facebook page. 'His back feet werent working at first, probably because he had been stuck in the cold mud for hours,' the post said. 'The woods go on for many miles, and Puppys family may not have found him without the help of a search dog.' Puppy was transported in a wagon back to his home where he was greeted by the relieved family. The search service said Tino had been training for 16 months and this was his first solo success. It took three people in the search party to pull the 150lb dog out of the thick mud using ropes Puppy was transported in a wagon because his legs weren't working after 40 hours in the mud A video shows him arriving back at home where he was greeted by the relieved family Tessa Penalver (pictured) , of Hornchurch, Essex has been convicted of perverting the course of justice and transferring criminal property by a jury A gangster's girlfriend has been jailed for 15 months for laundering profits from her lover's 2.5million criminal fortune. Tessa Penalver, of Hornchurch, Essex has been convicted of perverting the course of justice and transferring criminal property. The 25-year-old's boyfriend, Manjit Sandhu targeted keyless Range Rovers, Mercedes as well as BMW's and sold them on the black market. Penalver was charged with intentionally encouraging or assisting the commission of one or more offences as well as fraud by false representation. The high-tech 'Gone in 60 Seconds gang' stole more than 120 cars, each worth up to 60,000 using programming technology designed for locksmiths. Sandu's gang of hi-tech thieves used key programming technology to steal Range Rovers, Mercedes and BMWs and made their getaway cars look like minicabs - complete with TfL private hire stickers. He was convicted by a jury in April last year and sentenced to 12 years behind bars for conspiracy to commit burglary and conspiracy to steal. Collectively the 'Gone in 60 Seconds gang' were jailed for a total of 46 years and four months. Despite collecting state benefits, Penalver had more than 120,000 go through her Nationwide bank account over the course of two years. While jailing Penalver, Judge David Tomlinson said: 'There was a level of naivety on your part, you being appreciably younger than this career criminal and you having led a blameless life up to the time that you first met him. Your prime motivation was to assist this man to whom you were very attached and I can make some allowances as to your immaturity at the time of offending. In November 2015 Penalver travelled to Bulgaria and returned with the Edilock type devices - a program for locksmiths. Police found car keys (pictured above), a key programmer, 'blank' keys and a lock-picking tool during a raid on the gang. The criminals used technology to bypass the security systems The court heard these professional devices enabled the gang to carry out the thefts. Prosecutor Jane Osborne said: 'Police wanted to discover where the monies that came from his car theft operation had gone, because someone had undoubtedly benefited. 'Enquiries into Manjit Sandhus finances showed he had no bank accounts. 'His girlfriend, Tessa Penalver, did hold a bank account and police found that there were significant amounts of cash credited to the account. Tessa Penalver was the girlfriend of Manjit Sandhu the 'operator' of the scheme. He and his gang were jailed for more than 46 years in 2017. 'Prior to 2014, the cash credited had been minimal, around 4,000. 'During this time period Tessa Penalver was not employed but was receiving state benefits. 'The credits therefore are unexplained, other than as attributable to the activities of her boyfriend Manjit Sandhu.' Penalvers expenditure was also 'indicative' of payments being made on 'behalf of Sandhu,' jurors heard. She made payments to a company called Edilock who specialise in producing equipment for locksmiths. The technology enabled thieves to carry out the 'keyless thefts,' the court heard. Penalver told jurors she had no idea her beau was dodgy, saying: 'When youre with someone and you have been together for so many years, you trust that person. 'He kept a lot from me. I know that now.' Following Sandhus arrest Penalver helped create false documents detailing movements of cars he was accused of using at the time of the thefts during 2015 and 2016. Sandhu and his gang were jailed for a total of 46 years and four months last year for stealing more than 120 vehicles worth as much as 60,000 each over a 12-month period. Penalver, of Hornchurch, Essex, denied but was convicted of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and converting criminal property. She was jailed for 15 months. A female passenger has disgusted an aircrew when she urinated on the floor of a Wizz Air flight between Britain and Poland because the toilet was engaged. The unnamed woman can be seen with her trousers down to her knees and a large puddle around her as she chats on the phone to a friend. The incident took place on board a recent Wizz Air flight between London and Warsaw when the woman was not allowed to use the toilet. According to reports, the plane was fuelling up and passengers were not allowed to go to the toilet during the procedure, so the woman decided to relieve herself in the galley - the compartment where food is prepared. The unnamed woman can be seen with her trousers down to her knees and a large puddle around her as she chats on the phone to a friend In the footage, the young woman is seen squatting against a wall while speaking with someone on the phone. By her feet are several paper towels and a large pool of urine. With her knickers and leggings pulled down, she tells the person on the phone: 'You have to help me before the flight takes off. I am peeing in the aircraft. 'I asked them (cabin crew) if I could use the toilet, but they said I could not right now. So I am peeing in the galley. Right in front of them.' Unconcerned, the brazen woman continues: 'The police are coming because it is my fault. All my fault.' A young British couple then interrupt her to chastise the woman, with the British woman saying to her: 'Are you being serious? That is disgusting! You are a grown woman!' The woman replies: 'Yeah, I know. I did ask.' The man then adds: 'So you think it is okay to p*** on the floor?' There have been no further updates on what happened to the woman after the police arrived. Wizz Air is a Hungarian low-cost airline that serves many cities across Europe as well as some destinations in North Africa and the Middle East Wizz Air is a Hungarian low-cost airline that serves many cities across Europe as well as some destinations in North Africa and the Middle East. In a statement to The Sun, a spokesperson said: 'On Wizz Air flight W6 1309 from Warsaw to London Luton a passenger was reported to become unruly during landing, ignoring crew instructions. 'The cabin crew handled the situation as they are trained to do and reported the passenger's behaviour to the respective authorities. 'After disembarkation, while waiting for the authorities' arrival, the situation escalated. 'The aircraft was refuelling and therefore the lavatories could not be used, as is standard procedure. 'As a result, the passenger's behaviour became aggressive and offensive towards the crew. 'Safety is our top priority and the airline has zero tolerance for abusive behaviour. This is now a matter for the police.' A Queensland stonemason faces an uncertain future after a deadly lung disease forced him to give up his livelihood. Garry Moratti, 49, is among an influx of tradesmen struck down with the deadly lung disease silicosis, contracted by cutting artificial stone products used for kitchen and bathroom benchtops. Silicosis is caused by inhaling the dust which becomes trapped in the lungs, causing deep scarring and impacting the ability to breathe. It takes 10-15 years for the disease to to develop, which often starts with a persistent cough that wont go away. Scroll down for video Silicosis has taken a psychological toll on Garry Moratti (pictured), who now suffers from depression Garry Moratti fears his health will deteriorate similar to fellow Queensland stonemason Anthony White (pictured) who has spent spent the last few weeks in intensive care fighting for life Mr Moratti was diagnosed with the irreversible disease in May 2017 after he collapsed at work 'I was shocked at the time and am still shocked today,' Mr Moratti told Daily Mail Australia. 'They did all these tests to find out what had happened and they found something on a chest scan. The doctors put a camera down into my lungs and that's how they diagnosed it as silicosis.' He had worked as a stonemason for more than 35 years. While Mr Moratti currently doesn't have too many serious symptoms physically, the disease has taken its toll psychologically and now suffers from depression. 'I'm not getting better but the disease hasn't spread any further,' he said. 'But lung doctor doesn't know what the future holds for me.' Mr Moratti, pictured with his baby grandson, has no plans to return to the industry. 'It's not worth it. I've got a family and a grandson to live for,' he told Daily Mail Australia He fears his health will deteriorate similar to fellow Queensland stonemason Anthony White, who at just 37, now needs to undergo a double lung transplant and has spent spent the last few weeks in intensive care fighting for life after succumbing to a viral infection. The disease has given Mr Moratti a new outlook on life and has no plans to returns to the industry. His diagnosis prompted his former colleagues to get tested for silicosis. 'The doctors said it would get worse if I went back,' Mr Moratti told Daily Mail Australia. 'It's not worth it. I've got a family and a grandson to live for. Life's too short.' Silicosis sufferers Garry Moratti and Anthony White (pictured) are among six tradesmen with the disease who are speaking with Shine Lawyers regarding possible legal action The demand for natural stone dropped after artificial stone was introduced into Australia in the early 2000s. 'It's only been popular in the last seven or eight years,' Mr Moratti said 'In every job, there's always something that's dangerous but at least you're aware. I'm mad because no one told us how dangerous it could be. Whoever it was that was supposed to be checking these materials wasn't doing their job. There are now three different materials coming into the country that aren't good for you.' What is silicosis? A silicosis infected lung Silicosis is the scarring of the lung tissue which leads to a shortness of breath due to a buildup of silica dust in the air sacs. Symptoms include shortness of breath, coughing, chest pain, loss of appetite, fatigue Advertisement Mr White and Mr Moratti are among six tradesmen with the disease who are speaking with Shine Lawyers regarding possible legal action. Shine Lawyers dust diseases expert Roger Singh has called for action and regulation before any more tradesmen succumb or die from the shocking disease and has written to every state and territory minister calling for an immediate ban to dry cutting. Mr Singh also wants tougher penalties and fines for workshops that continue to use unsafe practices. Mr Moratti welcomes a dry cutting ban and urged other tradesmen to avoid the practice as he pursues his legal options. 'Someone has to be held accountable if something were to happen to me,' Mr Moratti told Daily Mail Australia. 'I want support for my family and ensure they're safe if something happens.' Someone has to be held accountable if something were to happen to me,' Mr Moratti (pictured) said We all might be fond of splashing the cash now and again. But one woman in South Korea decided to go one step further and litter the street with more than 10,000 after throwing it out of a car window. Police recovered 15.8 million won (10,593) from the roads of Daegu after the woman was spotted hurling the cash out of her luxury car. Footage shows the cash being flung out of the vehicles window and flying through the air before spreading across the busy road. A woman in South Korea decided to litter the street with more than 10,000 The unnamed woman drove to 11 different places between 7.25am and 8am on Thursday morning, while trailing wads of cash behind her, according toYonhap News. Officers arriving at the scene where the video was filmed discovered 300,000 won (201), with more money then being recovered in a supermarket car park. Apparently the money was part of a deposit from the womans previous home as she had just moved to Daegu from the capital in order to be closer to her family, the Korea Herald reported. The high roller did not explain the reason for her action but expressed a desire to give money to people. Police recovered 15.8 million won (10,593) from the roads of Daegu after the woman was spotted hurling the cash out of her luxury car Footage shows the cash being flung out of the vehicles window and flying through the air before spreading across the busy road Onlookers couldnt take the money as it would have been considered theft and so it was handed over to the police. Yet this hasnt stopped people from wishing the big spender, who is reportedly 51-years-old, make a quick stop near their home. One said: Sprinkle some in front of my house while others compared the generous woman to Father Christmas: Santa is coming in summer in Dae-ji. Police say they are holding on to the money for now as they woman could still lay claim to it. Brazilians have been left furious over the ordeal of a black man jailed for more than a week in Rio de Janeiro after he was mistaken for a suspect simply because they were both Afro-Brazilian with shaven heads. Antonio Carlos Rodrigues, 43, was arrested on July 13, accused of taking part in an armed robbery at the Venezuelan consulate. His case serves to highlight the institutional racism black and mixed race citizens still face in Brazil, despite making up more than half the population. 'It does not change, and it will never change. Society is racist and it will always be,' Mr Rodrigues told local media when he was released from jail late Friday. Scroll down for video Antonio Carlos Rodrigues (right) was jailed in a case of mistaken identity. Police believed he was an armed robbery suspect (left). The commissioner said he saw a resemblance in 'skin colour, the shape of the nose and face, and large pointed ears' Antonio Carlos Rodrigues, 43, was released on Friday having been in prison for more than a week after police mistook him for an armed robbery suspect who was also Afro-Brazilian In an attempt to identify him, police had compared video surveillance images from the consulate robbery to photos the man had put on social networks. However, the surveillance images were unclear and the suspect was wearing sunglasses. According to a report published by the G1 site, the commissioner in charge of the investigation saw a resemblance in 'skin colour, the shape of the nose and face,' and highlighted certain features such as the bald head and 'large, pointed ears.' The suspect in the surveillance footage from the armed robbery at the Venezuelan consulate (left), for which Mr Rodrigues was wrongly jailed, was imprisoned a few days later for another assault with an armed weapon 'Society is racist and it always will be' - angry Brazilians are showing their support to Mr Rodrigues online using the hashtag #SomosTodosAntonioCarlos (We are all Antonio Carlos) The family of the detainee carried out its own investigation and got other images from security cameras. It turned out the suspect who appears in the consulate video was already in prison. He had been arrested a few days later for another assault with an armed weapon. 'It's a massive mistake, anyone can recognise the physical differences between the two,' Rodrigues' brother told the G1 news site. A tearful Mr Rodrigues is reunited with his friends and family, who looked into the case themselves after his arrest and obtained other images from security cameras in an effort to clear his name Police in Rio de Janeiro finally acknowledged their error and gave the order to free Mr Rodrigues. They have now opened an investigation 'to establish the responsibilities' in this case. In the aftermath, many Brazilians signed on to a social media campaign called #Somos todos Antonio Carlos (We are all Antonio Carlos). Brazil was the last country in Latin America to end slavery in 1888, and even now, acts of institutional racism deepen social inequalities. For example, data show that only five percent of black and mixed race Brazilians hold managerial positions. One of the contenders for the presidential election in October, Jair Bolsonaro, is currently under investigation for alleged racism over derogatory remarks he made about Afro-Brazilians. The so-called 'Brazilian Trump' is polling second behind ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is jail for corruption and may therefore be barred from the race. An 'evil' acid attack on a three-year-old boy which has led to his family being moved to a safe house was part of a 'dispute between communities', police have suggested. The unnamed mother screamed 'What have you done to my baby?' as the boy was doused in a corrosive substance inside a Home Bargains store in Worcester on Saturday afternoon in an attack which was captured on CCTV. The mother and child are 'in shock' and are being looked after by police in a secret location as she still fears for their safety after the deliberate and targeted attack. Scroll down for video West Mercia Police believe the child was deliberately targeted in Home Bargains on Shrub Hill Retail Park at Tallow Hill. They have released images of three men (pictured) they would like to speak to A paramedic who treated the boy, in what he described as an 'absolutely horrific' incident, said the liquid was a pungent pink chemical. Nick Carson, of West Midlands Ambulance Service, told the BBC: 'The fluid that I saw was pink in colour. 'It had quite a strong smell, no bleach or acidy type smell but it was an astringent kind of smell.' Police have now arrested four men - but none of them in Worcester. Three were in Walthamstow, London, last night and another in Wolverhampton A West Mercia Police source told MailOnline: 'The mother fears for her safety and well-being and that of her little boy. This is an unspeakable crime. 'Police also fear for the safety of the mother and child and they've been temporarily moved away from their home while our investigation continues. They are under police protection. They are safe but still in a state of shock by what happened'. The hunt for the thugs who deliberately hurled acid in the face of a three-year-old boy in Worcester reached London today as three men were arrested 130 miles away in the capital overnight. A 39-year-old man in Wolverhampton was also arrested yesterday and police have held four people on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis, who is leading the investigation, hinted today that the motive behind the acid attack may have come out of a 'dispute between communities'. Police said today they are still appealing for witnesses and admitted the moment the boy was attacked is on store CCTV but won't be released for now. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said: 'At this time we are treating this as a deliberate attack on a three-year-old boy.' Pictured: The men wish to speak to Chf Supt Travis said: 'The incident was captured on CCTV but we will not release any footage that showed the substance being thrown or sprayed towards the little boy. 'A number of other exhibits from the area have also been taken for examination in the next couple of weeks. 'We have looked at the movement of people in the footage throughout the area and consider this to be a deliberate act against the little boy. 'The substance that was used is an acid or an alkali substance with caused the boy a degree of discomfort, we are finding out the nature of the substance as part of the investigation.' West Mercia Police said the family of the little boy were coming to terms with the 'shocking' attack. Speaking at a press conference at police HQ in Worcester, Chief Superintendent Travis said: 'There is nothing to suggest that this is incident is in anyway motivated by race or anything to do with the EDL protest that took place in Worcester this weekend. 'I think it's a natural question people would ask but we're really, really confident that they're not connected.' Chf Supt Travis added: 'The family are coming to terms with something that is quite shocking. 'It's a difficult time for them and we need to make sure that while we work through the investigation they are safe and secure and are allowed to deal with the issues that they face. 'As a local policing commander in support of our local community I want to make sure the message is really clear that this is a very, very rare occurrence and what we will do is work to make people understand that this is not the way to resolve issues and disputes in communities. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis added: 'Officers are working hard to establish exactly what happened and what the substance involved was.' Pictured: The store in Worcester Police officers conducting a search of Shrub Hill Retail Park in Worcester on Sunday The child was treated in hospital for burns to his face and arms before being released yesterday afternoon. However, the long-term effects of his injuries are unknown. Police yesterday issued a public appeal, releasing CCTV images of three men who were seen around the child at the time of the incident. Shocked residents of the cathedral city, known for its low crime rate, last night condemned the attack as 'absolutely pure evil'. Witnesses described the anguish of the mother, saying: 'There was a bit of shouting and screaming in the store but then it all went quiet. 'But then this woman ran outside and started screaming that her baby had been hurt and needed help. 'The mother was sitting outside the shop, screaming: 'My baby, my baby, what have they done to my baby?' 'She was in floods of tears and people from the shop were telling her they had called an ambulance and her child would be well looked after.' Officers are investigating a suspected acid attack on a three-year-old child on Saturday The attack happened in a Home Bargains store in a retail park in the Tallow Hill area of the city on Saturday afternoon. Shopper Rachel Bryant told The Daily Star: 'When I heard about the acid attack I couldn't believe it. 'It's horrendous to think something like this could happen to a little boy in the middle of a shop.' The very thin blue line: he's made of paper Pictured: The cardboard PC The police officer looked a bit wooden, and as shoppers got closer, they could see why. This life-size cardboard policeman was spotted in the Worcester branch of Home Bargains yesterday. Flat-pack PCs are an increasingly popular way for cash-strapped forces to boost their street presence. They are often seen in petrol stations to deter motorists from driving away without paying and in shops to discourage shoplifting. Advertisement Although detectives have not ruled out a racial motivation, they have said it is not thought to be linked to a march involving the far-Right English Defence League which took place in Worcester on the same day. Mayor of Worcester Jabba Riaz also said there was no link between the two incidents. The investigation has moved rapidly, with a 39-year-old man from Wolverhampton arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm. He remains in police custody. Police have also issued an appeal showing three men captured in a CCTV image. In it, they are wearing casual clothing and sunglasses, and can be seen leaving the store and heading towards the city centre. Last night it was claimed that one of the men pictured was seen in a pub car park smoking cannabis shortly before the attack. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis of West Mercia Police said the boy, believed to be from Worcester, is now recovering at home with his family. However, he stressed that the long-term implications of the child's injuries are unknown. He said: 'Clearly we are working with the family to understand the motive of the attack. 'The child was with family members and was being well looked after and remained with family all the way through to hospital.' He added: 'At this time we are treating this as a deliberate attack on a three- year-old boy. 'At the moment we are really trying to understand the motive so, consequently, the three men in the images we released, we would really like to speak to them. 'They were seen near the child at around the time of the incident and left the store shortly afterwards. 'We believe they may have information that may help us to understand what took place.' Chief Superintendent Kevin Purcell renewed the appeal, tweeting: 'Really nasty crime this. 'These men are very distinctive. They clearly from behaviour know each other well. If you know them please let us know.' One shopper added: 'I heard from someone who works at the shop that the man [who attacked the boy] was a skinny white guy. He was about 5ft 11ins and he ran out the shop.' Cruel assaults that have left victims disfigured for life Model and presenter Katie Piper was brutally attacked by a man enlisted by her ex-boyfriend In recent years the headlines have been dominated by several high-profile acid attacks. Model and presenter Katie Piper was brutally attacked by a man enlisted by her ex-boyfriend, David Lynch. In 2008 Stefan Sylvestre threw sulphuric acid at Miss Pipers face. The attack was caught on CCTV and both men were jailed indefinitely in 2009. Miss Piper had 250 operations to reconstruct her face. Last November, the ex-boyfriend of reality TV star Ferne McCann was jailed for 20 years for a horrific nightclub acid attack which left 22 revellers injured. Arthur Collins hurled acid across a dance floor at the Mangle E8 club in east London last April. Collins was convicted of grievous bodily harm with intent and nine counts of actual bodily harm. In June last year a woman celebrating her 21st birthday suffered life-changing injuries after a man hurled acid at her and her cousin. Resham Khan suffered injuries to her face, eyes and legs after John Tomlin threw the corrosive substance over the pair as they sat in a car in east London. It happened after Miss Khans cousin Jameel Muhktar had an argument with Tomlin, who was jailed for 16 years in April. Berlinah Wallace was jailed for life in May after her 2015 acid attack on ex-lover Mark van Dongen in Bristol left him with such terrible injuries that he ended his life at a euthanasia clinic. In July Xeneral Webster, 19, was jailed for 17 years for manslaughter for killing dementia nurse Joanne Rand in Frogmoor, High Wycombe. Ms Rand was splashed with acid and died 11 days later from multiple organ failure after contracting septicaemia due to the burns. It was the UK's first acid attack killing. Advertisement Worcester City Council leader Marc Bayliss described the attack as 'absolutely pure evil'. He added: 'I have never heard of an acid attack in Worcester so this is absolutely not something we have any experience of. 'If anything knows anything about this I would urge them to come forward. 'Think if this was a member of your family, an innocent child.' Robin Walker, the MP for Worcester, described the incident as 'horrific', adding: 'The shock will be universal, anyone conducting such an attack on a small child is just appalling. 'It's an issue which rightly there has been a lot of concern in Parliament and a move to toughen sentences for any kind of acid attack.' A Home Bargains spokesman said: 'Our thoughts are with this young child and his family at this very difficult time.' Worcester is known for its low crime rates and in 2016, was named the safest city in England. Prince Harry is expected to attend the International AIDS Conference 2018 in Amsterdam and will join advocates from his charity Sentebale to raise awareness of the problems teenagers who have the disease face. During the Duke of Sussexs two day visit, he will highlight the significance of the fight against HIV alongside Sir Elton John, who is also launching the MenStar coalition, a global AIDS organisation that aims to target HIV infection in men. Continuing Princess Dianas crusade to reduce the stigma of the disease, Harry said: When my mother held the hand of a man dying of Aids in an East London hospital, no one would have imagined that over a quarter of a century later treatment would exist that could see HIV-positive people live full, healthy lives. Rihanna watches as Prince Harry gets his blood sample taken for a live HIV test in Barbados Prince Harrys commitment to the AIDS campaign Harry has been a committed campaigner for the past few years and has even been publicly tested for the virus multiple times, once with Rihanna in Barbados in 2016 on World AIDS Day as part of his Commonwealth tour. In addition to the Duke of Sussexs charity that supports HIV-positive youth in Lesotho and Botswana, its Let Youth Lead programme gives young people a voice to discuss how AIDS affects their lives and some advocates will have the opportunity to speak with Harry at the 22nd International AIDS Conference. Linda-Gail Bekker spoke about Harrys commitment to the organisation. His genuine commitment to the fight against AIDS is inspiring a whole new generation of leaders and reminding the world that AIDS is not over. 'We are so grateful for him for his leadership in the HIV responses and the strong collaboration between Sentebale and the International AIDS Society. Our team from Lesotho & Botswana arrived in Amsterdam today - stay tuned & be the first to see all the action from #AIDS2018. @AIDS_conference #LetYouthLead pic.twitter.com/WA6DwT30xg @Sentebale (@Sentebale) July 21, 2018 Cathy Ferrier, the CEO of Sentebale, said that It is a privilege for Sentebale to be participating in The 22nd International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam. This year, we are joined by Sentebale youth advocates from Lesotho and Botswana who work to raise the voice of their generation through Sentebales Let Youth Lead programme. Their involvement in the conference reflects the progress Sentebale has made in the global response to addressing adolescent HIV since Durban in 2016 and I am delighted that they will be leading the conversation alongside our Patron The Duke of Sussex in Amsterdam. When is the International AIDS Conference 2018? The International AIDS Conference 2018 will take place from July 23 to 27, 2018. The summit will be held at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Centre, welcoming around 18,000 participants from around the world, according to the events official website. Hosted by the International AIDS Society (IAS), the event aims to strengthen policies and programmes that ensure an evidence-based response to the epidemic, as ITV reported. Prince Harry will attend a British Embassy reception in the evening of Monday, July 23, where he will meet a number of leading young people from Holland. What can you expect from #AIDS2018 this year? Watch the conference Co-Chairs @LindaGailBekker and @dr_PeterReiss discuss what's in store at the world's largest conference on #HIV and AIDS in #Amsterdam this July. pic.twitter.com/Js78qAvySb International AIDS Conference (@AIDS_conference) June 5, 2018 In addition to this, sessions will include discussion about safe sex, how President Trump is jeopardising the global AIDS response and PrEP with former President Bill Clinton giving a keynote at the end of the event. UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS, will also be participating and co-organising a number of AIDS 2018 events about condom programming, HIV primary prevention and political resistance. President Donald Trump took on critics of his public embrace of Russian President Vladimir Putin at their Helsinki summit, saying he gave up 'NOTHING' and established a rapport with his counterpart. Trump fired off a defense of his performance while attacking the media who covered it as a new poll showed 50 per cent of Americans disapproved of his conduct at the summit, where he expressed support for Putin's 'powerful' denial of election hacking despite the conclusions of U.S. intelligence. 'When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries,' Trump wrote Monday. President Donald Trump tweeted that he 'gave up NOTHING' during his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin 'Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media!' the president added. Trump said in Helsinki that the two men discussed a variety of topics in their two-hour one-on-one meeting. Among them were Ukraine, Syria, Russian meddling in the U.S. elections, and the nations' nuclear arsenal, according to Trump. A new Washington Post / ABC News poll found 50 per cent of Americans disapproved of Trump's handling of the summit, compared to 33 per cent who approve. Trump tweeted Monday about his Helsinki summit with Putin Trump waves as he boards Air Force One en route to Joint Base Andrews on Sunday President Donald Trump (L) and Russia's President Vladimir Putin pose ahead a meeting in Helsinki, on July 16, 2018 Trump tweeted on the summit after a new poll showed 50 per cent of Americans disapprove of his performance there Details of their meeting continue to dribble out, with some tidbits coming from the Kremlin. Anatoly Antonov, Russia's ambassador to the U.S., says the two men discussed a referendum in separatist-leaning eastern Ukraine. But the White House said afterward the topic would carry 'no legitimacy.' Trump said during his Helsinki press conference he found Putin's denial of election meddling 'powerful.' After blowback for his performance, he gave TV interviews where he said Russia did engage in election meddling. Then Trump tweeted Sunday: 'So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign?' 'Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!' Trump added. A man who had been kicked out of a bar for 'making racist remarks to a black patron' later shot and killed a brand new father who may have gone outside to try to make peace, police say. Chad Merrill, was shot early Saturday outside the Red Rose Restaurant and Lounge in Hellam Township at around 1:00am. Merrill was the proud father of a five-month-old boy when he was killed. Chad Merrill (pictured), a new father to a five-month-old baby boy, was shot early Saturday outside the Red Rose Restaurant The man who was kicked out of the bar, James Saylor, was arrested and was charged with criminal homicide, police said. Witnesses told investigators that just before the shooting Saylor had an argument with Merrill's friend, Jerrell Douglas, and after some racial remarks he was removed from the bar. James Saylor (pictured), 24, allegedly shot and killed Merill after shouting racial abuse at his African-American friend inside the bar Police said that Douglas refused to engage Saylor and ignored the abuse, according to The Washington Post. Surveillance video showed Saylor, 24, going to his pickup truck and firing at the building, authorities said. Video showed Merrill, 25, walking outside in the direction of Saylor's truck and then falling to the ground, they said. Saylor, of Lower Windsor Township, tried to leave in his truck and collided with a sedan, then fled and later was arrested, police said. It's unclear why Merrill walked outside since he didn't appear to be leaving the bar, they said, and surveillance images don't show any hostility on his part. Witness accounts indicate he may have been trying to make peace, they said. 'Maybe he was trying to right the wrong,' police Chief Doug Pollock said. Pollock described the shooting as 'unusual,' adding that 'In the 16 or 17 years I've been here, there hasn't been a homicide. It doesn't happen here.' Family members suggested that Merrill, of Windsor, had been defending his friend targeted by the racial remarks. His older brother Richard Merrill said that was something very much in character for him. Police suggested that Merrill had been defending his friend targeted by the racial remarks (Pictured: Entrance to the Red Rose Restaurant) 'He was always the peacemaker. He didn't want people hating each other,' Merrill said, 'or the world being segregated the way it is, with the racism you see all over the news. 'The world wants to keep everything segregated and he would rather have seen everybody get along.' Court documents don't list an attorney who could respond to the charge against Saylor, and a listed phone number for him couldn't be found Sunday. The Red Rose Restaurant and Lounge did not respond to a request for comment, but did extend their condolences via their Facebook page and shared a link to a GoFundMe campaign set up by the Merrill family. 'We would like to extend our most heartfelt condolences to the Merrill family. Please know that our sincere thoughts and prayers are with you,' the restaurant's message read. President Donald Trump is ripping what he calls an 'unverified and fake Dirty Dossier' that was part of the basis for a warrant to wiretap his former campaign adviser Carter Page as evidence there is a 'witch hunt' against him. In an early morning Twitter rant on Monday, Trump railed against the dossier complied by former British intelligence operative Christopher Steele that newly-released documents show was part of the investigation into Page. 'So we now find out that it was indeed the unverified and Fake Dirty Dossier, that was paid for by Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC, that was knowingly & falsely submitted to FISA and which was responsible for starting the totally conflicted and discredited Mueller Witch Hunt!,' he wrote. President Trump is ripping what he calls an 'unverified and fake Dirty Dossier' that was part of the basis for a warrant to wiretap his former campaign adviser Carter Page The president went on a twitter rant Monday morning about the warrant on Page President Trump quoted Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton extensively Judicial Watch was one of the organizations that sued for the documents related to Page's warrant Trump has been tweeting about the documents multiple times since they were released He then quoted Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton, who was on 'Fox & Friends' Monday morning. Fitton's group was among those who sued for the documents related to the FISA warrant of Page. Fitton argued the documents were classified to 'cover up' the fact the FBI used the unverified Steele dossier to obtain a warrant on Page. Trump quoted Fitton extensively and went on to argue that since the dossier was used by the FBI in their request to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for the warrant on Page that special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation is tainted. The president again used his favorite criticism of the Mueller probe - calling it a 'witch hunt' against him. 'It was classified to cover up misconduct by the FBI and the Justice Department in misleading the Court by using this Dossier in a dishonest way to gain a warrant to target the Trump Team. This is a Clinton Campaign document. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump....' the president wrote. '....and the DOJ, FBI and Obama Gang need to be held to account. Source #1 was the major source. Avoided talking about it being the Clinton campaign behind it. Misled the Court to provide a pretext to SPY on the Trump Team. Not about Carter Page..was all about getting Trump.....' he continued. '....'Carter Page wasn't a spy, wasn't an agent of the Russians - he would have cooperated with the FBI. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump.' Tom Fitton A disgrace to America. They should drop the discredited Mueller Witch Hunt now!' he concluded. Trump has sent multiple tweets about the documents that were released on Saturday, using them to rail against Mueller's investigation of Russia's role in the 2016 election and his look into whether or not the president obstructed justice. Sarah Huckaee Sanders called special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation a 'hoax' Carter Page denies he was an agent for the Russians and he has not been charged with any crime Special counsel Robert Mueller is investigating Russia's role in the 2016 election White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders argued the document show the president was right in that the Mueller investigation is a waste of time and money. 'Look, the president wants transparency in this process. I think what you can see even just from the information that has been released is that the president has been right all along that this is a total waste of time and waste of taxpayer money,' she said Monday morning on 'Fox & Friends.' 'His campaign had nothing to do with Russia but had everything to do with a great message. To defeat Hillary Clinton.' She went on to call the Mueller probe a 'hoax and a waste of time.' The documents show the FBI sought permission to surveil Page, who was working as a foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, one month before the 2016 election because, they allege, he had been recruited by the Russian government. 'The FBI believes the Russian government's efforts are being coordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals associated with [Trump's] campaign,' the application with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court said. The highly-redacted documents also indicate that the FBI 'believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government ... to undermine and influence the outcome of the 2016 U.S. presidential election in violation of U.S. criminal law.' The Justice Department released the more than 400 pages of documents in response to lawsuits by Judicial watch and other media news organizations. It marked the first time the government has released applications seeking wiretaps of an American under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Trump declassified the documents last year. Page call the charges 'totally false.' 'This is ridiculous it's just beyond words,' he said on CNN's 'State of the Union' Sunday morning. 'It's literally a complete joke. It's so sad,' he added. 'I've never been agent of a foreign power by any stretch of the imagination.' Republicans have railed against Robert Mueller's investigation as tainted President Trump had repeatedly claimed there is a witch hunt against him Page has not been charged with any crime. Trump and his allies have claimed the warrant was obtained based on the unverified Steele dossier, which was paid for by a law firm that also did work for Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee. They also claim the agents didn't say where the information came from when they asked the FISA court for the warrant. From that, they argue, the Mueller investigation is tainted. But the documents released Saturday show agents used other sources besides the Steele dossier to press for the warrant. The warrant also shows the FBI did notify the judges that some of the information came from the Steele dossier. The Steele dossier alleges that Page served as an intermediary between Russian officials and the Trump campaign as they worked to aide his presidential bid. Page denies this. He resigned from the Trump campaign in September 2016, as questions about contacts between the Trump advisers and Russia became a campaign issue. The warrant on Page has been a major point of contention between Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill. Republicans claim Page was the victim of the FBI, which was abusing its powers, and the warrant was part of a pattern of abuse from the FBI and Justice Department in their targeting of the Trump campaign. Democrats, however, argue the warrant on Page was justified because of his contacts with Russia. They also point out the proper procedure was followed in obtaining the warrant. Each side made their case in dueling memos released in February that were written based on information in the documents released on Saturday. General Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar said that Trump 'cannot do a damn thing' against Iran despite his Twitter threats Iran has hit back at Donald Trump after the President warned Tehran to 'never, ever threaten the US again' in an all-caps Twitter outburst that raised the specter of war. A top Iranian general bragged on Monday that America 'won't dare' attack despite Trump threatening 'consequences few throughout history have ever suffered' a tweet-storm late on Sunday night. General Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, chief of the Revolutionary Guard's Basij force, dismissed Trump's message as little more than 'psychological warfare.' He added: 'We will never abandon our revolutionary beliefs. We will resist pressure from enemies. 'America wants nothing less than [to] destroy Iran ... [but] Trump cannot do a damn thing against Iran.' Iran's state-owned IRNA news agency further goaded Trump, describing his tweet as a 'passive reaction'. Trump lashed out at Rouhani on Twitter late on Sunday, warning of 'consequences the like of which few throughout history have suffered' The agency also accused Trump of copying Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who had in the past warned the West to 'never threaten an Iranian.' Trump's attack came after President Hassan Rouhani gave a speech in which he cautioned: 'Peace with Iran will be the mother of all peace, but war with Iran will be the mother of all wars.' That prompted Trump to write: 'To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. 'WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!' The message echoed remarks Trump made to North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un in August last year amid a flurry of missile tests. At the time, Trump told reporters: 'North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States. 'They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.' Rouhani had earlier told Trump 'peace with Iran will be the mother of all peace, but war with Iran will be the mother of all wars' Trump's tweet came after Mike Pompeo promised a 'maximum pressure' campaign against the Iranian regime in echoes of the administration's strategy against North Korea Trump's remarks came after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pledged a 'maximum pressure campaign' against Rouhani and his government. The Trump administration described its approach to North Korea in the same terms. Pompeo branded Iran's leadership a 'mafia' and promised US backing to groups rebelling against the government, though did not name them. All of this comes after Trump effectively tore up the Iran nuclear agreement signed under predecessor Barack Obama by threatening tough new sanctions on Tehran. In response Iran threatened to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, which handles around 20 per cent of the world's oil shipments. The Trump administration initially planned to shut Iran out of global oil markets completely, demanding all other countries stop buying Iranian crude by November. But the U.S. has somewhat eased its stance, saying it may grant sanction waivers to some allies that are particularly reliant on Iranian supplies. Nia Wilson, 18 (pictured), has died and her 20-year-old sister has been hospitalized after both women were stabbed at an Oakland Bay Area Rapid Transit station on Sunday An 18-year-old was killed and her older sister wounded in a horror knife attack at an Oakland Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station on Sunday night. Nia Wilson, 18, died after a person police described as a white heavyset male, five-feet-nine-inches tall with short blonde hair in his 20s or 30s stabbed the teenager as she walked off the BART train at MacArthur station. Her sister, age 20, was also stabbed and has been taken to a hospital for treatment. The father of the two women talked with KTVU in a brief, emotional interview, after he was called to the scene. 'I want justice for my daughter,' he said, with his eyes welling up with tears, seemingly in disbelief. 'I want justice for my daughter. Please help me get justice for my daughter.' A man, who told SF Gate that he was present when the attack occurred, said he was turned away from the sisters when he heard noise behind him. Then he saw one of the women bleeding from her back, and witnessed the suspect 'poking' the other sister. There was no audible confrontation between the sisters and the suspect, prior to the attack he said. 'I work at Highland Hospital, I see this every single day,' the father said, with tears streaming down his face. 'I never imagined myself going through nothing like this,' he said. 'That's my baby girl laying up there.' He went on to describe the confusion he experienced when he got the phone call on Sunday night that something terrible had happened. The father of the two women (pictured) talked with KTVU in a brief, emotional interview, after he was called to the scene, pleading for 'justice for my daughter' with tears in his eyes The victims' cousin, Ebony Monroe, said Wilson was a 'beautiful, sweet person' who loved her cousins, makeup and fashion 'She needs her justice,' Monroe said of Wilson (pictured), adding, 'She was just an innocent kid, and she didnt deserve this. And he did this for no reason' 'My daughter called me, crying hysterically, I couldn't understand what she was talking about. She told me to get here to MacArthur park,' he said. 'I get here, I see all the police and ambulance and I run up the platform, and I see my youngest daughter laying up under a tarp, dead, you know?' Police said the attack appeared to be 'random' with no motive immediately apparent. Wilson's 20-year-old sister was in stable condition at the time she was taken to the hospital on Sunday night, authorities told CBS. Police described the attacker as a heavyset male standing about five-feet-nine-inches tall with short blonde hair, appearing to be white, and in his 20s or 30s The two women have at least one other sister, named Malika Harris, who confirmed the identity of Wilson (pictured here); Wilson attended Oakland High School The two women have at least one other sister, named Malika Harris, who confirmed the identity of Wilson. Wilson attended Oakland High School, Harris said. On Sunday, family members gathered together at MacArthur station, embracing and crying, as police worked to recover whatever evidence they could at the train stop. The victims' cousin, Ebony Monroe, said Wilson was a 'beautiful, sweet person' who loved her cousins, makeup and fashion. 'She needs her justice,' Monroe said. 'She was just an innocent kid, and she didnt deserve this. And he did this for no reason.' The station reopened at 4.00am Pacific on Monday, BART spokesperson Jim Allison said. It had been closed since 9.45pm Pacific on Sunday, as police began their investigation into the attack. Owners have been warned to keep their pets inside as Britain braces itself for another week of soaring temperatures. Animal charities including the RSPCA have released advice on the best way to care for pets as the mercury climbs to 101F (38C). Twitter user @Zucchinisaurus was among those who drew attention to the risk of walking dogs on hot pavements, explaining they can suffer blisters and burns. Warning: Owners were reminded that dogs can suffer blisters and burns on their paws as Britain faces another week of soaring temperatures Meanwhile a post shared by pet support account Keeley's Pet Service explained that when the outside air temperature reaches 86F (30C), pavements can be as hot as 134F (57C). Once temperatures reach 88F (31C), the asphalt can be as hot as 144F (62C). The @Zucchinisaurus Twitter account advised: 'Before you take your dog for a walk in hot weather, take off your shoes/socks and stand on the pavement. If it's too hot for you, it's too hot for your dog! #Heatwaveuk.' The RSPCA said it recommends walking dogs in the morning or evening 'when they will not burn their paws on the pavement or be at increased risk of heatstroke'. Hotter than you think: A post shared by pet account Keeley's Pet Service explained that when the outside air temperature reaches 86F (30C), pavements can be as hot as 134F (57C) RSPCA tips for keeping pets cool Never leave animals in hot cars, conservatories, outbuildings or caravans, even if its just for a short while. Temperatures can quickly rise to 47C (117F) which can result in death. Use pet safe sun cream on exposed parts of your pets skin, such as the tips of their ears and nose, to avoid sunburn. If you're unsure on the right product, please ask your vet. Ensure pets always have access to shade and fresh drinking water to help keep them cool. Check every day for flystrike. Putting ice cubes into your dog or cats water bowl or making some tasty ice cube treats is another fantastic idea. Damp towels for your pet to lie on or an ice pack wrapped in a towel could provide a welcome relief from the heat. Dogs may also appreciate a paddling pool to splash around in. Take a look at one of the dogs in our care enjoy a dip in the water. Source: RSPCA Advertisement The charity advised that signs of burnt paws include limping or refusing to walk, licking or chewing at the feet, pads darker in colour, missing part of pad and blisters or redness. Meanwhile cat owners were told to double check greenhouses and conservatories before locking them up, in case cats become trapped inside and are dehydrated. It comes as Met Office officials are urging the public to stay out of the sunshine as the nation is set to bask in temperatures of up to 101F (38C). Take precautions: Pet and wildlife Twitter accounts have posted helpful advice for owners Health services are expecting a surge in sun stroke patients as advice to draw curtains and close windows is hurriedly issued to the public, as the nation braces for what could be the driest summer for 225 years. Britain could experience the highest temperatures for more than a decade, this week, while many homes and offices - as well as Tube lines - are unprepared for the heat spike. Official Met Office advice is to stay indoors with closed and covered windows - avoiding the stunning sunshine which can be so rare in Britain. The amber, or level three, warning is issued when temperatures are predicted to hit 86F (30C) degrees during the day, and 59F (15C) degrees at night, for at least two consecutive days. Amber warning: Britons are being advised to stay out of the sunshine washing over from Spain which has been dubbed the 'Mediterranean melt' Stay out of the sun? No chance. Britons flock to the nation's beaches today to soak up the sun. Pictured: Chichester, England Esther and Daisy the dog enjoy paddle boarding across calm seas at Lyme Regis in Dorset while the sun bakes Britain A family say their dream extension to their home has been ruined by B&Q paint which smells of cat wee when the weather heats up. Jenny Ballard and her husband Paul splashed out more than 35,000 to create an open plan living room in the downstairs of their home in Colchester, Essex. The couple started work back in May and it was going perfectly until they decided to spend 80 on seven-and-a-half litres of 'the perfect white' Valspar paint from B&Q for the finishing touches. Their builders coated the walls of the extension on Monday July 9 but by the Friday Mrs Ballard noticed a strange smell. Jenny Ballard and her husband Paul spent more than 35,000 on an extension for their living room but they say it has been ruined by B&Q paint which smells of cat urine when the weather heats up The extension to their home (pictured today) was going perfectly until they bought seven-and-a-half litres of 'the perfect white' Valspar paint She initially wondered if one of her two dogs was responsible for having an accident - but to her horror she realised it was the paint that was producing the horrible scent. Mrs Ballard claims the smell is like cat urine and becomes so unbearable when the weather is warm that the family are refusing to spend time in the room and go upstairs instead. She has also felt too embarrassed to let friends come into the house to see the finished job which should have added significant value to their 280,000 three-bedroom semi-detached home. Mrs Ballard said: 'The smell is unbearable - it's so bad that none of us want to be in the room together. 'Our building work had all gone so well - it was almost too good to be true and then this happened. It's just heartbreaking.' The couple, who have two children, Molly, 19, and Layla, 11, were initially left bemused as to what was causing the urinal smell. She added: 'The paint actually looks lovely - I can't fault the finish but oh, that smell. 'I was checking the floor for wee but it was on the Thursday that I was cleaning the windows and my face was close to the walls that I then realised what it was. 'I told Paul and he said "don't be stupid" and we were both stood there sniffing the walls and realised what it was.' The catering manager went back to B&Q to complain about the product which she had chosen because it boasts that it is scrubbable and stain resistant. Mrs Ballard now feels too embarrassed to let friends come into the house to see the finished job which should have added significant value to their three-bedroom semi-detached home She said: 'It's got to be the worst 80 we have ever spent. The extension has been ruined and 100 compensation is an insult' She was put on the phone to a representative of Valspar pain, which is made by B&Q, and was told that the problem occurs in about one in 100,000 jobs. B&Q has since offered to pay 100 compensation as well as paying for the builders to return to carry out the repair work needed. She added: 'I was told that it was due to the walls being porous and the weather conditions but we painted on to new plaster and an old wall yet both smell of cats' wee. 'The chap from Valspar described it is a "ghost smell" - whatever that means - I think he was just hoping to spin me a line. 'It's got to be the worst 80 we have ever spent. The extension has been ruined and 100 compensation is an insult.' Mrs Ballard and insurance worker Paul will now have to splash out on stain blocking paint in a bid to 'seal in' the smell before re-painting the walls in the hope that the stench can be banished. She said: 'It stinks from the moment you walk into the house, 'The mum of one of Layla's friends called round and I was itching to show her round the new house but I was too embarrassed to let her in because of the smell. 'We've tried putting a dehumidifier in the room but that doesn't help.' A spokesman for B&Q said: 'In very exceptional circumstances, paint may emit an unpleasant odour when used on walls that are particularly porous, and where the wall is exposed to excessive heat or direct sunlight. 'This is an issue known within the global paint industry - we are in contact with Mrs Ballard and are investigating.' Mystery surrounds the deaths of more than 200 galahs whose bodies were found lying lifeless on a country road. A handful of dead birds started turning up in Burra, a historic town in South Australia, on Wednesday. Within just a few days the death toll had skyrocketed to over 200. Animal Rescue and Care CEO Ruth Norris posted an image of dozens of the dead birds with the caption '115 Dead and Dying Galahs and counting' on Friday. 'Yesterday received calls for two galahs not doing well... then today numerous calls and messages about numerous dead and dying galahs in a street in Burra,' she wrote. More than 200 galahs (pictured) have dropped dead in a tourist town in South Australia The birds were found in a concentrated area with the majority of them dying near the old courthouse on Sancreed St. Ms Norris shot down suggestions that the birds were 'grain drunk,' a phenomenon where bird become intoxicated after gorging on fermented fruits and grains. 'A small concentrated area of dying birds that do not behave like grain drunk birds,' she wrote. 'Autopsy also reveals it is not due to grain gorging.' Ms Norris said they all appear to be adult birds which are healthy and have good flight muscle. She has her suspicions that the birds had been accidentally poisoned, writing that: 'The manner in which they die suggests poisoning.' They all died in one area leaving suspicions that they may have been poisoned (stock) She told Yahoo7 that it was possible someone had innocently sprayed for weeds meaning the poison could have run off into a water supply that the birds drank. 'We don't know at this stage what's going on or why they died,' she said. Several of the dead galahs have been transported to Adelaide to be tested by the Department of Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA). The birds are not a protected species in South Australia, however they can only be killed by shooting. Ms Norris said that more injured birds had been seen in the area, meaning the death toll will continue to rise in the next few days. 'Please be aware there are also bodies on the bike track northern end. Do not allow your dog/cat to eat. 'More were sick today but still could fly, so there will be more to be picked up over the weekend.' Donald Trump lashed out at The Washington Post on Monday for a weekend story claiming he's growing impatient with the plodding pace of North Korean nuclear negotiations. And he threatened the acclaimed newspaper's owner, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, with a possible shipping rate hike from the U.S. Postal Service as payback. The Post reported in a front-page Sunday feature that the president 'has fumed at his aides in private' because he has been forced to accept the diplomatic realpolitik of slow progress with America's demands for a denuclearlized Korean peninsula. Even as Trump has claimed negotiations are continuing, according to the Post's unnamed sources, Pyongyang has canceled follow-up meetings and cut off some communications with the U.S. as its ties with South Korea and China have improved. No matter, Trump seemed to be saying on Monday, blaming the Post and threatening its sister company Amazon instead of Kim Jong-un for gumming up the works. President Donald Trump denied on Monday that he's furious with the plodding pace of North Korean nuclear weapons negotiations Instead of blaming dictator Kim Jong-un for saber-rattling over his maturing nuke program, Trump chose to bash the Washington Post and its sister company, Amazon.com The Post reported Sunday that the president 'has fumed at his aides in private' because of slow progress with America's demands for a denuclearlized Korean peninsula 'A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy,' the president tweeted. 'But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy!' The hermit kingdom's last lanuch was November 28, 2017, less than 8 months ago, when what the communist nation called a Hwasong-15 rocket flew 600 miles into the Sea of Japan. The missil's potential range is reportedly more than 8,000 miles, long enough to reach Washington, D.C. and the rest of the continental U.S. Trump had plenty to say about Bezos's business empire Monday, saying that '[t]he Amazon Washington Post has gone crazy against me ever since they lost the Internet Tax Case in the U.S. Supreme Court two months ago.' 'Next up is the U.S. Post Office which they use, at a fraction of real cost, as their delivery boy for a BIG percentage of their packages,' he continued. Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos also owns the Post, but the companies are run independently of each other 'In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon. Is it used as protection against antitrust claims which many feel should be brought?' The Supreme Court Case, decided five weeks ago, allows states to force online shoppers to pay sales taxes something most independent merchants using Amazon's massive platform don't do. Some analysts have estimated that fees charged to those third-party vendors represents one-third or more of Amazon's revenues. Adding sales taxes in states that levy them won't change the company's but, but it will make the website less competitive against brick-and-mortar retailers. Amazon already adds state sales taxes to products it sells directly to customers. Trump's warning about postal rates is more complicated. Trump is threatening a U.S. Postal Service rate hike that could eat into Amazon's profits at a time when the Supreme Court has just dealt it a blow by demanding it charge sales tax He issued an executive order in April, setting in motion a top-to-bottom review of the Postal Service's finances. That came just weeks after he accused Amazon of benefiting from a sweetheart deal. Trump has carped repeatedly in the last year about financial losses the USPS has suffered, blaming them largely on Amazon which uses the USPS for more of its packages than any other shipping service. The familiar domestic mail service lost $1.3 billion in the second quarter of 2018, but package deliveries were up 5 per cent even while the volume of regular letters and marketing mailers plummeted. In the same period, meanwhile, expenses surged as the cost of fuel, wages and retiree medical benefits rose. Postmaster General Megan J. Brennan said in a statement in May that '[d]espite growth in our package business, our financial results reflect systemic trends in the marketplace and the effects of an inflexible, legislatively mandated business model that limits our ability to generate sufficient revenue and imposes costs upon us that we cannot afford.' In a March 31 tweet, Trump cited reports that 'the U.S. Post Office will lose $1.50 on average for each package it delivers for Amazon. That amounts to Billions of Dollars.' Lawyers for Prince Charles suggested he could not be compelled to give a statement regarding his friendship with a since disgraced bishop, an inquiry has heard. The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse is examining how abuse allegations against former Church of England bishop Peter Ball were handled. Ball, jailed in 2015 for sexually abusing 18 young men over 30 years, previously boasted of his links to royalty and was said to be a confidant of Charles. The heir to the throne's evidence to the inquiry, which was leaked to the media last week, will be read on Friday, in the form of a letter. Lawyers for Prince Charles suggested he could not be compelled to give a statement regarding his friendship with disgraced bishop Peter Ball, an inquiry has heard During Monday's hearing a lawyer for some of Ball's victims said his clients were surprised and concerned at the format of the evidence. Richard Scorer said: 'We wish to register our surprise and concern that the prince has chosen to put his evidence to the inquiry in the form of a letter as opposed to a witness statement verified by a statement of truth in the normal way that survivors giving evidence to this inquiry have done.' Mr Scorer said concerns around Charles' letter include that it may be 'less than entirely frank about his personal relationship with Peter Ball and that it contains matters to which he is reluctant to attach a formal statement of truth'. A formal statement of truth is essentially equivalent to swearing on oath. The final sentence of Charles' letter, which makes clear that the information within it is true, is considered by the inquiry to comply with the requirements of a statement of truth, Monday's hearing was told. Counsel to the inquiry Fiona Scolding said there had been 'lengthy and extensive correspondence' between Charles's lawyers and the inquiry. She explained that a witness statement bearing a statement of truth had been required from Charles, but said his lawyers had asserted that the inquiry's requests for evidence were 'outside its powers'. The heir to the throne's evidence to the inquiry, which was leaked to the media last week, will be read on Friday, in the form of a letter Ms Scolding said submissions from his lawyers included a suggestion that the inquiry had no power to compel him to make a statement and that the inquiry was requesting his personal data which was 'intensely private and confidential'. She said the inquiry did not 'accept the contention that the prince should be treated in a way that was different from any other witness'. Following discussions, she said agreement was reached on the prince providing a statement and added that the signed letter was deemed to cover all the topics the inquiry wanted to address. Earlier she dismissed a suggestion a source had made to the Times newspaper that the timing of the statement at the end of the week was deliberate to prevent Charles being called for cross examination. She said this 'could not be further from the truth'. She said: 'There is no requirement for him (Charles) to attend in person as his evidence, whilst important, is not of central relevance to many of the issues raised by this case study.' A Clarence House spokesman has said: 'The Prince made it clear that he was willing to help the Inquiry and voluntarily answered all the questions asked in the form of 'free flowing text' as requested by the Inquiry itself. The final submission includes a statement of truth in common with all witness statements. The legal exchanges, which have been extensively referred to by the Inquirys solicitors, were necessary to ensure clarity regarding both the structure, relevance and content of the statement. Once resolved, the Inquiry raised no objection to the format of The Prince's submission.' Ball accepted a caution for one count of gross indecency in 1993 and resigned due to ill health. It was reported last week that Charles' statement will say he was not aware of the 'significance' of the caution when Ball mentioned it in a letter in 2009, and that he did not know until recently that a caution carries an acceptance of guilt. The former Bishop of Lewes (pictured in 2015, right), who previously boasted of being a confidant of Charles, sexually abused 18 young men over 30 years Mr Scorer said his clients found that explanation 'frankly astonishing'. He added: 'The Crown prosecutes people in this country every day on the principle that ignorance of the law is no defence. 'Yet seemingly this is the defence that the monarch-in-waiting seeks to rely on here.' Now aged 86, Ball, the former bishop of Lewes and then Gloucester, was released in February last year after serving half his 2015 sentence behind bars. At the beginning of Monday's hearing inquiry chairwoman Professor Alexis Jay said the leaking of Charles' statement would be investigated, describing it as a 'very serious breach of confidence by someone with direct access to information in this investigation'. It has been reported that Charles' statement will say he was 'deceived' by Ball and that he was unaware of the true nature of the clergyman's behaviour until more than 20 years after allegations first surfaced. Opening the hearing in central London on Monday Ms Scolding said of Ball: 'His fall from grace was a huge shock to the church. 'He was a very senior clergyman with enormous spiritual authority. He also had power and charm.' She said that power had been 'further enhanced by his cultivation of influential friends both within and outside the church'. 'He did not stint from mentioning those friends in prominent places when he thought it would assist his cause,' she added. Britain may be enjoying the summer sunshine now - but the weather could soon have upsetting consequences for the nation's farmers, who are struggling to save both their crops and their animals. Soaring temperatures have led to a heatwave bringing prolonged dry spells, meaning while Brits basked on the beaches, farmers were manually carrying water to cattle to try to keep them hydrated, on the hottest day of the year so far, on Monday. Greg Cotterell, of Bank Top farm in Fenny Bentley, said to The Derby Telegraph the well he was forced to manually dug up for his cows is only producing a quarter of what they need. The drastic way to get water to them was necessary because of the water shortage in seven villages in the area, he revealed. Cattle are used to grazing on green grass with plenty of water but the drought conditions across the country are causing major problems for farmers Andrew Webster, who runs a Jersey and Guernsey in nearby Ashbourne requested a water tanker to help his cattle. However, his request was refused by supplier Severn Trent. Robert Martin, a dairy farmer with a 120-strong herd near Carlisle, told The Guardian there could be huge financial consequences for the farmers if milk yields fall as predicted. Milk yields are likely to be down by about 15 to 20% the farmer said, however, there is yet to be cost implications for consumers. While an amber warning was released by the Met Office advising people to stay away from the sunshine, farms were growing increasingly worried, praying for rain. In the past month there have been a number of fires which have been caused by dry grass and soaring temperatures. The drought conditions are not only affecting cattle, but crops, too. Many parts of South and Midlands have had virtually no rainfall for almost two months far exceeding the definition of 'absolute drought,' which is no measurable rainfall for 15 days. This could mean 2018 has had the driest summer since 1766. There may now be a disastrous harvest on the way, coupled with a national carrot shortage. Experienced carrot farmer Rodger Hobson says that the harsh spring and hot summer in the UK is causing a huge carrot shortage The bright orange vegetable which adorns the traditional roast dinner is in jeopardy this year because of the current heatwave, it is claimed. Rodger Hobson says there has been a 'perfect storm' of poor growing conditions after the wintry 'Beast from the East' was followed by record smashing temperatures and what could be Britain's driest summer for 225 years. The lack of British-grown carrots could last up until June 2019 and force supermarkets to import the vegetable from abroad, the 54-year-old farmer has revealed. Mr Hobson runs Hobson Farming on the outskirts of York which has seen it harvest 30 per cent fewer carrots than last year - which is likely to hit the Christmas dinner table hard. Mr Hobson, chairman of the British Carrot Growers Association, said: 'It's the most serious I have ever seen it. 'We normally plant in March and April because the longer they are in the ground the more they grow. 'But because of the snow we didn't get them planted until the middle of May and it's not just the water shortage - it's also the temperatures. 'The optimum is 16C to 19C. It's 25C and the carrots just wilt. 'For the first time in four years we have not harvested for two weeks - you feel a bit useless.' Other food which could be hit include barley. Estate manager Sam Mitchell holds some of the barley which has been harvested since June 28 Bisterne Estate in Ringwood, Hampshire, produces seed barley, milling wheat and biscuit rye. This year, for the first time in 30 years, they began harvesting their 750 acres of arable land on June 28, two weeks earlier than normal. Farm manager Martin Button says this is the earliest harvest there since 1976. However, they are expecting a significantly reduced yield as the barley grain is much smaller than in a typical year, which was been attributed to the dry summer. Mr Hobson, who has been farming carrots for 28 years, said the crisis will inevitably have an impact on prices as poor yields push up UK production costs and farmers are put under pressure. Mr Hobson highlighted the Aldi Christmas marketing campaign, saying: 'Kevin the Carrot might be French this year - the only option will be bring carrots in from abroad.' Winter barley ready to harvest at the Bisterne Estate in Ringwood, Hampshire, amid the June heatwave Mr Hobson, also chair of the British Carrot Growers Association, has revealed the ground conditions are making carrot growing tough Carrots are sold by the thousands in Britain as the nation consumes around 700,000 per year Rodger Hobson said the Beast from the East storms in the spring and the summer heatwave have made it tough to harvest carrots The UK traditionally grows about 97 per cent of its own carrots but Mr Hobson added: 'The British carrot growing industry is respected worldwide for its ability to produce fresh from the field carrots 52 weeks of the year. 'However, we have suffered the perfect storm of poor conditions this year. The damage is done, we are now halfway through the growing season.' But it is not just carrot growers who have suffered - pea and lettuce crops have also been hit by the unusual weather. With much of Europe experiencing the same weather, there could be a shortage of imported carrots too. Mr Hobson warned consumers to expect price rises but urged them to continue to support British growers. Britain traditionally grows 97 per cent of its own carrots - although later this year he may be forced to import Carrots are not growing as they usually do in Britain after harsh weather - which could lead to a shortage Hobson Farming is the UK's largest grower of carrots for the processing market producing more than 30,000 tonnes of carrots each year. Britain consumes around 700,000 carrots a year, compared with 17 million consumed in China. The female security worker who was mauled by a pack of dingoes at a mine in far-north Western Australia has spoken about her harrowing brush with death. Debbie Rundle, 54, was working as a fly-in fly-out worker at the Telfer mine site last Wednesday when she was attacked and left for dead by the wild animals. She was on her lunch break, eating an egg sandwich in a designated safe eating space, when a dingo came up and took her mobile phone off the table. When Ms Rundle followed it, she saw another two dingoes, and was mauled by the trio. FIFO worker Debbie Rundle (pictured) has spoken of how she screamed for help for ten minutes, as she fought of a pack of dingoes mauling her She says that her co-workers saved her life, after she stayed upright for ten minutes while screaming for help She has recounted to 7News how she screamed for help for ten minutes, managing to stay on her feet as the dingoes gnawed at her. 'I looked down and thought oh my God, am I gonna die?' She says that her co-workers saved her life. 'I'm just so grateful they came to my rescue,' she said from her hospital bed. She is lucky that she didn't collapse, as the dogs may have gone for her throat had she fallen, her family has said. A security worker has received bites all over her body after being mauled by a pack of dingoes Ms Rundle was eating her lunch when a dingo took her mobile phone. When she followed it, she was attacked by three dingoes Photos show horrific bites to her arms and legs, and it has been reported that her entire body was covering in deep puncture marks, besides her neck and head. One of the bite marks on her leg is so deep there are concerns that the foot may have to be amputated, though the plastic surgeon is confident he can save it. The woman has already been operated on twice since arriving at the Royal Perth Hospital after the attack, but she will now need plastic surgery. She will undergo micro-vascular reconstruction surgery on Wednesday. Her surgeon will take skin, a vein and an artery from around her ribcage and then, under a microscope, attach it to a salvageable vein and artery in her ankle. If all goes to plan, she could be back on her feet within days. Deb says she is hoping to return to work eventually, saying she will 'confront my fears again'. Dingoes are apparently not uncommon to the area, with workers saying that they're regularly seen prowling through work sites, looking for scraps of food. Trials have been done in the Telfer township using dogs to try to warn off dingoes and prevent confrontations with people. Three men have been arrested in connection with the manslaughter of a have-a-go-hero pensioner who collapsed and died after reportedly chasing thieves on his mobility scooter. The pensioner, 77, was said to have been riding along the pavement in the High Street in Crawley, West Sussex when he spotted several men carrying bottles which they had apparently just stolen from a Marks & Spencer store. The brave pensioner gave chase along the pavement and after an altercation, suffered a cardiac arrest and fell unconscious, according to residents. The 77-year-old man is believed to have suffered a heart attack following the altercation which happened near a block of toilets in Crawley, West Sussex He was airlifted to hospital after paramedics who rushed to the scene tried in vain to save his life. Detectives said three men had been arrested originally on suspicion of robbery but following the OAP's death, they were re-arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. A woman who runs the charity shop immediately next to where the confrontation happened, said: 'The man on the mobility scooter chased after them and then it came to a confrontation here outside the shop. Then he suffered a heart attack. 'What I do know is that the ambulance crews were working on him from about half past three, right up until when I left the shop at 4.30pm. 'The day before we had a shoplifter in here and it was ridiculous,' she said. The manager of a nearby fast-food chain, that also overlooks the scene, said: 'We didn't realise at first that there had been an incident. We just thought an old man had gone down because of the heat. 'It was only when the huge number of police and ambulances started arriving did we realised that it was something way more serious.' Outside a local care home and community centre, other elderly members of the community were equally concerned about what had happened. One elderly woman said: 'It is disgusting, you can't even go out in the day now.' Paramedics treated the man for the cardiac arrest before he was stabilised and flown by air ambulance from the scene in The Boulevard, the High Street, Crawley, to a major trauma hospital in London where he died soon after. The arrested men, a 26-year-old from Crawley and two others of no fixed address, aged 41 and 25 years, are now in police custody and are being quizzed by officers. A spokesman for Sussex Police said the force was called by paramedics and believed the pensioner had been involved in an argument. A spokesman for Sussex Police said: 'Police were called to The Boulevard at 3.48pm by ambulance service colleagues who were dealing with a 77-year-old man who had fallen from a mobility scooter. 'It is believed that shortly beforehand he had been involved in an altercation close to the public toilets near to Marks and Spencer. 'He was taken to St George's Hospital in London, where he died shortly before 9pm. The incident is now being investigated as manslaughter. 'We have spoken to a few witnesses and expect to speak to more shortly as we seek to establish the exact circumstances and sequence of events. 'Until we have got a clearer picture of what led to the gentleman's sad death, we are not in a position to provide any further details at this time. 'A 36-year-old man from Crawley and two men, aged 41 and 25 years, both of no fixed address, were arrested on suspicion of robbery and have since been further arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. They remained in custody.' Passerby Vanessa Smith said she saw the emergency service descend onto the town and said: 'I saw the emergency services giving CPR on this poor man. 'May he RIP and hope the culprit(s) are caught. Thoughts are with this poor man's family.' A woman who was taking photographs over the weekend of a steam locomotive was struck and killed after getting too close to the tracks in north suburban Denver. The 15-car Union Pacific train was returning to Denver on Saturday evening from a daylong trip to Cheyenne Frontier Days in Wyoming when the woman was hit at a crossing in Henderson at about 7:45 p.m. The victim was among several people taking photos of the train as it traveled back to Denver. Her name has not been released. A woman was hit and killed by a train Saturday night in north Denver by a vintage locomotive A few hundred people were on the train when the accident happened The accident happened in the intersection of 124th Ave and Highway 85 as the train was heading south toward Denver from Cheyenne (file photo) There were four or five other people also taking pictures of the passing train, but they were further back, according to officials. Passengers aboard the train wished not to speak on the record, but told CBS4 'it was traumatic.' One man said he didn't see anything happen but realized something was terribly wrong after the train stopped abruptly. About 700 passengers were on the train whose annual trip to Cheyenne for the parade and rodeo is sponsored by The Denver Post Community Foundation. Union Pacific said the train was bringing people back to Denver from Cheyenne Frontier Days The circumstances of the collision are still under investigation by Union Pacific and the police The event includes a downtown parade, a barbecue at the rodeo grounds and the 'Daddy of 'em All' rodeo. No other injuries were reported. The passengers were bused back to Denver. The woman has not been identified. Sheriff's officials say the situation appears to be accidental. The recovery of a shipwreck laden with up to $17billion worth of treasure will move a step closer today when Colombia's government announces which company will win the rights to salvage it. The galleon San Jose went down off the coast of Cartagena more than 300 years ago when it was sunk by the Royal Navy during the War of the Spanish Succession. It was carrying a vast haul of gold and silver coins as well as emeralds and precious stones which were meant to return to Spain to help finance the war. The ownership of the treasure has been fiercely disputed since the boat was found in 2015, the Miami Herald reported, but the fight is on the verge of being resolved. Finally found: Colombia announced in 2015 that researchers had found the wreck of the San Jose, a Spanish galleon that was sunk 300 years ago carrying gold and precious stones Sea Search Armada, a company which claimed it had discovered the shipwreck in 1982, has said it should be entitled to half the ship's treasures. A court decision in 2007 said they would be entitled to split the winnings equally with the government but the state claims the ship belongs to them. The Colombian government said it had found the shipwreck without the company's help in 2015 and that the co-ordinates SSA provided had been wrong. A deadline was set for today for prospective rescuers to bid for the job of salvaging the centuries-old vessel. Swiss-based firm Marine Archaeology Consultants are reportedly among the leading bidders for the project along with SSA. But incoming Colombian president Ivan Duque, who will take office on August 7, has said the process of choosing a rescuer for the ship had been 'shameful', National Geographic reported. Images taken underwater showed the wreckage of the San Jose after it was found in 2015 Experts sent down a deep-sea camera to examine the ship's wreckage when it was found Sonar images images spotted bronze cannons made for the ship, arms and ceramics A map shows where the San Jose was sunk by the British Navy more than 300 years ago SSA are set to sue the Colombian government if they are not awarded the rights and the treasure that comes with them. The San Jose was found submerged off the coast of Baru in what is now Colombia, near the Rosario Islands, in November 2015. Experts sent down a deep-sea camera to examine the wreckage ahead of a planned salvage operation, with sonar images revealing arms, ceramics and bronze cannons made specifically for the ship. Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, the Colombian president said at the time it was 'one of the greatest - if not the biggest, as some say - discoveries of submerged patrimony in the history of mankind'. The San Jose was sunk during an attack by Britain's Royal Navy in 1708 in the Caribbean Sea close to the walled port city of Cartagena. It was discovered by a team of international experts, the Colombian Navy and the country's archaeology institute. A tradesman wearing a hi-visibility vest was arrested and led handcuffed from his home in Sydney's west on Friday morning over a drug haul worth $45 million. Police arrested the 47-year-old man at Penrith, in Sydney's west, just after 5am on Friday as part of an ongoing investigation into drug importation. Shortly after the arrest, investigators raided a nearby home and seized about 85kg of methylamphetamine, 13kg of cocaine, and 2kg of MDMA. In total, the drugs have an estimated potential street value of more than $45 million. Scroll down for video A 47-year-old South Penrith man (pictured) has been arrested in relation to illegal drugs being imported into the country Police seized about 85kg of meth, 13kg of cocaine, and 2kg of MDMA (pictured) Detective Superintendent Beaufils said that despite large seizures of illicit drugs, demand in NSW remains far too high. 'We know that organised criminal groups are motivated by profit, and the unwavering demand within our community feeds right into their greed there's no hesitation in exploiting that demand for their own benefit. 'Police and our partners will continue to do our job in terms of targeting these networks, but we need the community's support to incite real cultural change in relation to drug use. In March, detectives from the State Crime Command's Organised Crime Squad established Strike Force Sharrock to investigate the importation and supply of prohibited drugs. Organised Crime Squad Commander, Detective Acting Superintendent Damian Beaufils, said that the taskforce had curb the supply of drugs coming into the community. 'The NSW Police Force in partnership and cooperation with local and international law enforcement and intelligence agencies has had significant success in recent years with the seizure of tonnes of illicit drugs and millions of dollars in cash, suspected to be proceeds of crime,' Det A/Supt Beaufils said. The drugs have an estimated potential street value of more than $45 million 'Strike Force Sharrock is another example of the squad's continued dedication to tackling large-scale drug importation and supply and we're not done yet. 'We will continue to investigate source of the drugs, which includes ongoing targeting of importation attempts, as well as those involved in the manufacture of illicit substances, both here and abroad.' The man was taken to Penrith Police Station and charged with three counts of large commercial drug supply. He was refused bail and will reappear at Penrith Local Court on Friday 14 September 2018. The furious family of a 16-year-old boy hit by a police car in California on Sunday night are demanding answers from police and alleging they 'broke his back'. The boy, who has not been formally identified, was riding his bike through Sacramento about 10pm when police tried to pull him over for an unknown vehicle violation, ABC reported. Police allege the teenager tried to escape, and so officers pursued him both on foot and in a car with lights flashing and sirens blaring. The car collided with the teenager, but family members and officers cannot agree on what happened next. Family members told local Black Lives Matter activist Tanya Ikemba Faison officers 'rammed' the boy, with a woman claiming to be his aunt declaring the 15-year-old 'flew 10 feet, over another car'. Two women claiming to be the aunts of a 16-year-old boy who was hit by a police car while riding his bike, trying to avoid being stopped by police, say he flew '10 feet in the air' and 'broke his back' in the incident Another woman claiming to be his aunt said the horrific scene unravelled right in front of her, and alleged officers had driven off the road onto the grass outside a nearby house to hit her nephew. Both women alleged his back had been broken in the crash, and that police then handcuffed him. Police told CBS their vehicle 'made contact with the fleeing suspect', who had been taken to hospital with minor injuries. Sacramento officers say the teenager, a 16-year-old white male, was complaining of pain when he was taken for medical treatment. More than a dozen local officers were reportedly at the scene, forming a riot line nearby the crash site as locals shouted angrily towards them. Lavar Washington, who told CBS they were a family member of the boy, said the hit 'shouldn't have took place'. Thousands of homes have been left without power as extreme winds batter Melbourne. The state's outer north, east and southeast have been affected the most, with 974 homes in Epping affected around 10pm, Herald Sun reported. A further 450 properties east of the state have also been affected. Additional houses in the west have also been plunged into darkness. Scroll down for video Melbourne experiencing intense winds of up to 120km/h on Monday night, and is expected again on Tuesday SES had responded to 101 emergency calls from central since 1pm Wednesday Damaging winds of 110 to 120km/h are expected on Monday night with the Bureau of Meteorology warning of an intense cold front and rain over Victoria. Winds will ease on Tuesday morning, but will again increase throughout the afternoon and on Tuesday night. The Bureau of Meteorology also warns of potential snow in some areas. Meteorologist Peter Newman told the publication that these have been some of the strongest winds around Melbourne. An SES spokesperson told the Herald Sun that they have received 101 emergency calls from central Melbourne since 1pm Monday. They reported to an emergency where a tin roof of a house flew off from the strong gust of winds. The State Emergency Service has advised people to move their vehicles away from trees, secure loose items in and around the house, and to steer clear of fallen power lines. Pictured is Mornington Pier being battered by damaging wind and rain on Monday night While Melbourne is plunged into darkness with damaging winds and heavy rain, Sydney is expecting to continue with another sunny week, until Friday, with maximum temperatures reaching 23 degrees on Tuesday. Queensland is also enjoying a warm and sunny week as temperatures reach a maximum of 25 degrees. The country's capital will be in for another cold week and some morning frost, with a minimum temperature of -2 degrees. In Adelaide, is experiencing a long week of wet weather as temperatures drop and a slight wind increase making it seem cooler than it actually is. Perth is also facing a gloomy and wet week. Tasmania will bear the brunt of the cold as temperatures plummet to a minimum of 4 degrees overnight. The Northern Territory will continue to enjoy warm temperatures, with no rain expected during the week. A U.S. judge on Monday delayed the criminal trial of President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort until next week, and made public the identity of five witnesses granted immunity to testify. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III also said the office of Special Counsel Robert Mueller must provide a list of about 30 witnesses to lawyers for Manafort, who had sought a delay in his criminal trial scheduled to start on Wednesday on bank and tax fraud charges. Manafort, a long-time Republican operative and businessman, is a target of Mueller's investigation into Russia's role in the 2016 U.S. election. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. The stakes are high for Mueller, who has felt Trump's wrath about the 'witch hunt' against him. The trial was scheduled to start on Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. It involves 16 counts, including bank and tax fraud and failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. According to court filings unsealed by Ellis on Monday, Mueller had requested immunity for Dennis Raico, Cindy Laporta, Conor O'Brien, Donna Duggan and James Brennan. All appear to be involved in finance. The Manafort charges largely pre-date the five months Manafort worked on the Trump team in 2016, some of them as campaign chairman. Paul Manafort's trial begins on Wednesday in Virigina Manafort's trial is the first case to go to court for special counsel Robert Mueller's team None of the charges relate to possible coordination with Russian officials by members of the Trump campaign, which is part of Mueller's investigation. The Kremlin denies election interference and Trump denies collusion. Manafort faces a second criminal trial in Washington in September on related charges, including witness tampering, in connection with lobbying work he performed for the pro-Russia Ukrainian government. His lawyers have argued they need more time to prepare for both cases. Trump and his allies have been undercutting the Russia investigation for months and have argued the Manafort case is about the former campaign manager's work outside of the campaign. 'We have no concern about it,' Rudy Giuliani, one of Trump's personal lawyers, told Politico about the trial. 'The whole case will be like everything else. They chase it down an alley until they think they've got something legitimate, and it will not connect to the original investigation.' But no matter the legal outcome, the Manafort trial is expected to dominate the news cycle with cable TV commenting on it and Trump possibly tweeting on it. Manafort is not on trial for any election-related crimes but for his business practices, including during the time he worked for the Trump campaign. The trial involves 16 counts including bank and tax fraud and failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. The charges against Manafort largely pre-date the two months he led Trump's campaign in 2016 and none relate to possible collusion by Trump's campaign with Russia. 'The government does not intend to present at trial evidence or argument concerning collusion with the Russian government,' prosecutors said in a court filing. Mueller's probe has led to multiple indictments and several guilty pleas from other Trump associates, including Rick Gates, a former Trump deputy campaign chairman who worked with Manafort. Alex Van der Zwaan, a lawyer who once worked closely with Manafort and Gates, has also pleaded guilty and has been sentenced. Though the charges did not reference the Trump campaign or the 2016 election, legal experts have said they put more pressure on former Trump aides to cooperate with Mueller as he looks into whether Russia tried to influence the election in favor of Trump by hacking the emails of leading Democrats and distributing disinformation and propaganda online. Mueller's team has outlined an extensive list of evidence to present at the Virginia trial, submitting a 21-page list detailing more than 400 exhibits that include scores of bank records, emails and photographs, among other documents. It could take prosecutors more than a week to present their case. President Trump has not ruled out a pardon for his former campaign manager Paul Manafort faces a second trial in September in Washington D.C. Prosecutors allege Manafort fraudulently obtained $16 million in two loans from an un-named bank where an executive wanted a position in the Trump campaign and in the administration should Trump win. The executive, who was not named in the court filings, served as a campaign advisor but did not end up working for the Trump administration. Prosecutors offered details about how Manafort spent his money. The indictment alleged Manafort spent $934,000 on antique rugs, $1.4 million at men's clothing stores and $5.4 million for renovations at his beach home in the Hamptons. He faces a second trial in Washington D.C. on September 17 on charges of money laundering and failing to register as a lobbyist in his work before 2014 on behalf of Ukraine's pro-Russian president at the time, Viktor Yanukovych. He formally registered as a lobbyist for the Ukraine in June 2017, after his work for that country was revealed. Manafort has plead not guilty in both cases. There could be some surprise witnesses at the trial in Virginia this week. Last week, Mueller offered some form of immunity to five potential witnesses in the case, court filings showed. The five were not named publicly at Mueller's request. The special counsel asked they be kept safely anonymous unless they appear in court to testify as they are at risk of 'undue harassment' or 'reputational harm' if their identities are disclosed. Immunity for these witnesses means prosecutors cannot use their testimony against them although the special counsel says none of them have been charged with any crime. President Trump has not ruled a pardon for Manafort should he be convicted. The president has tweeted in support of is former campaign manager, writing in June after Manafort lost his release on bail amid allegations of witness tampering: 'Wow, what a tough sentence for Paul Manafort, who has represented Ronald Reagan, Bob Dole and many other top political people and campaigns. Didn't know Manafort was the head of the Mob. What about Comey and Crooked Hillary and all of the others? Very unfair!' Advertisement Casino Royale: the name conjures up thoughts of James Bond, of men in sharp tuxedos gambling away unthinkable amounts of cash at plush tables in Las Vegas. But the reality could not be more different, at least aboard the cruise ship Casino Royale, which has been left to rot at a dock somewhere in the south east since 2015 after a seedy history of illegal gambling. The Royale's fate was finally sealed after running around twice in two years which saw its licence to operate revoked and no buyers come forward to purchase the vessel. Cruise ship Casino Royale was built in 1978 in Florida to skirt gambling laws by sailing into international waters, but has been abandoned since 2015 following a troubled history which saw it run around twice in two years The Royale has gone by dozens of different names over the course of its life as different owners tried to make a quick buck on the high seas, with many being convicted of illegal practices The boat's casino covers three decks with 6,000sq ft of gambling space featuring dozens of tables and hundreds of machines, and a fourth top deck for sightseeing The ship first ran aground in 2014 when it got stuck on a sand bar and the Coast Guard had to rescue it. It was allowed to keep operating but ran around again a year later, and was ordered back to shore The casino floor is still littered with chips while an abandoned beer sits amid the gathering dust on top of the slots (top right) Over the course of its life the vessel has operated out of the Gulf of Mexico, as well as spending a short time in South Carolina before being brought to Georgia, where it now rests Since then it has sat abandoned, with chips still scattered across its empty tables and beer bottles still perched on top of slot machines amid the gathering dust. The ship was first launched in 1978 in Florida to take advantage of maritime laws that mean gambling restrictions only apply until a vessel is three miles offshore. Once the ship crosses that line federal regulations no longer apply, meaning guests can gamble to their heart's (and the owner's) content. The ship was built with three decks dedicated to gambling, according to blog Abandoned Southeast, with dozens of tables and 200 poker machines spread over 6,000sq ft of gaming space. In the early 2000s the vessel operated in the Gulf of Mexico until its owners were shut down for routinely allowing passengers to gamble within the three-mile limit. The boat then bumped from owner to owner, changed names dozens of times as investors went in search of a quick buck on the high seas. The Casino Royale has been stationary since 2015 with the exception of one moment in 2016, when its owners were forced to move it to avoid incoming Hurricane Matthew After the boat had its licence to operate stripped in 2015 the owners attempted to sell it for $4million but no buyer could be found, and it has been lying idle ever since Multiple owners have been accused of routinely allowing the casino to operate closer than three nautical miles from shore, including when the boat got stranded, in violation of gambling laws In the past the ship was a destination for gamblers looking to spend some time at sea while hitting the tables. Nowadays it is frequented by urban explorers looking to get pictures of its eerie interior While the boat has not moved in three years its owners insist there are plans to renovate it and take to the waves once more A row of abandoned slot machines on board the Casino Royale, which has also been known as the Diamond Royale and The Escapade during its long life During its travels it was taken to South Carolina and then to Georgia, where it was operating when it first ran aground in 2014. Passengers were stranded for hours on board the stricken vessel as it rested atop a sand bank before they could all be evacuated and the boat freed. Despite more allegations of illegal gambling while the passengers were stranded within three miles of the shore, the boat was allowed to continue operating. But the following year the ship ran aground again and this time the Coast Guard ordered the ship to stop sailing. The owners listed it for sale, but no buyer came forward, so it was left to rust. The only time the boast has moved since was in 2016 when the owners were told to move it to avoid incoming Hurricane Matthew. Now, it stands as an eerie testament to the past, though plans are in the works to renovate it. Police are probing two separate alleged sex attacks on British holidaymakers at hotels in the party resort of Maglaluf. A 33-year-old British tourist told officers she was raped by a 19-year-old Irish man after he tried to stop her leaving a room at the BH Mallorca Hotel by grabbing her round the neck. The other alleged sex assault victim was a 19-year-old British tourist staying at the Wave House Hotel in Magaluf. A 19-year-old woman was found naked from the waist up after an alleged attack at the Wave House Hotel in Magaluf Another female victim, aged 33, was left with marks on her neck after claiming she was assaulted by an Irishman at BH Mallorca Hotel She is said to have been in a state of shock after the incident when she was found naked from the waist up in a hotel corridor. Police say a worker at the hotel heard the friends of the suspect, an 18-year-old Brit staying at the same hotel, telling the woman to 'keep quiet.' She was taken to hospital after the alarm was raised. A spokesman for Calvia's local police force, who are council-employed and cover the Magaluf area, confirmed: 'Calvia Local Police were alerted yesterday morning about a possible sex crime against a 33-year-old British woman staying at a Magaluf hotel. 'They were called by a medical centre to deal with a possible case of rape. 'The police were able to track down the suspected sex attacker, an Irishman aged 19 staying at the same hotel, thanks to information the woman provided. 'The woman said he had spent part of the night with friends of the alleged victim in a room at the hotel and had forced her to have sex and when she tried to escape, grabbed hold of her and left marks on her neck. 'The case has been handed over to the Civil Guard for further investigation. 'The local police have also been called upon to deal with a second case involving a British 19-year-old who was found in a state of shock and was hardly able to relay anything about what had happened. Spanish police vans make their way along a party strip in Magaluf which attracts thousands of young British holidaymakers each year 'Female friends of hers identified an 18-year-old British tourist staying in the same hotel as her as the possible aggressor. 'According to a worker at the hotel, the woman was found naked from the waist up in a hotel corridor and he heard the suspected sex attacker's friends telling the woman not to say anything. 'Local police called for an ambulance so the woman was transferred to Son Espases Hospital in the Majorcan capital Palma. 'The suspected attacker and a roommate were handed over to the Civil Guard so they could try to clarify what had happened.' Fake news king Russia has claimed it will clamp down on false comments by making social media companies remove them within 24 hours. A proposed new law put forward by the country's governing party, United Russia, suggests holding social networks accountable for 'inaccurate' remarks posted by users. Under the plans, websites with more than 100,000 daily visitors will be given 24 hours to delete inaccurate remarks or face fines of up to 50million (600,000), according to the New York Times. But critics have already warned it could end up being another form of censorship under Russian President Vladimir Putin. Fake news king Russia has claimed it will clamp down on false comments by making social media companies remove them within 24 hours. But critics have already warned it could end up being another form of censorship under Russian President Vladimir Putin (pictured) Social media users already risking fines and jail time for promoting homosexuality or posting anything deemed a threat to public order. Russian hackers are accused of having targeted the US elections, spreading fake news to meddle in the outcome - a claim the Kremlin denies. Last year Emmanuel Macron said his French Presidential election campaign was targeted by groups in both Russia and Ukraine. In June, a study by Russia expert and Tory MP Bob Seely claimed the Kremlin was using hackers, trolls, paid protesters and misinformation as part of an attempt to destabilise the West. The latest legislation in Russia has passed one of three Parliamentary votes, it has been reported. Its co-sponsor, Sergei M. Boyarsky, used the example of a devastating mall fire in Siberia as evidence of the dangers of fake news after a series of online posts gave incorrect death tolls for the tragedy. But there are fears that internet moderators, while trying to interpret the tough new accuracy rules, will be overly cautious and end up merely removing or blunting comments to the advantage of Russian authorities. Internet firms, meanwhile, say there are far too many posts to enable moderators to properly review each potential case of fake news within a 24 hour period. According to the New York Times, Vladimir V. Zykov, head of an association of social media users in Russia, told politicians that social media companies will somehow have to develop algorithms to help tell the difference between false news and real news. Failure to do so, he said, could see the new laws simply becoming 'an instrument of censorship'. The family of a 12-year-old boy who was strangled by mafia members and his body dissolved in acid are to get more than 2 million in compensation for his murder. A Sicilian court has now ordered a payout more than 22 years after Giuseppe di Matteo's death, and 25 years after he was first kidnapped because his mafia clan member father had become an informant. His mother and brother will receive 2.2 million in damages, to be paid for by the Italian government out of its fund for victims of the mafia. Giuseppe di Matteo was kidnapped in 1993 by mafiosi disguised as police officers after they told him they would take him to see his father, Santino di Matteo, who was being held in police protection at the time. Instead, he was held for 26 months, during which time he was tortured and kept in squalor Guiseppe's kidnappers sent photos of his torture to his father in an attempt to force him to retract his testimony, but he had already signed a legally binding deposition. His father had hoped he would become a vet because he loved animals The order to kidnap Guiseppe came from the notorious mafia boss Salvatore 'Toto' Riina, who died in an Italian prison last year aged 87. He was serving 26 life sentences for at least 150 murders. The boy was held in squalid conditions and brutally tortured for nearly 800 days between 1993 and 1996 in an attempt to force his father, Santino di Matteo, to withdraw his anti-mafia testimony. The final order to 'get rid of the puppy' was ordered by Giovanni Brusca, who was responsible for Falcone's murder. 'My son melted in acid': Santino di Matteo, the ex-mafia member turned informant whose son Guiseppe was strangled and dissolved in a barrel of acid in January 1996. He made a desperate attempt to negotiate his son's release but to no avail Guiseppe's father Santino di Matteo had been a member of the Cosa Nostra clan, but turned against them following his arrest for taking part in the murder of the anti-mafia magistrate Giovanni Falcone. He became the first of those involved in Falcone's killing to assist the police with the investigation. In an interview to mark 25 years since his son was taken, Mr di Matteo said he would never forgive himself for what happened. He said: 'I think about it every day. How can there be people so evil to treat a child this way. 'Guiseppe was playing with their kids. Brusca even bought a playstation to him, which they played together.' He added: 'I knew Guiseppe wasn't coming home. When people get involved in stuff like this it's most likely they are never coming back. 'Unfortunately I was born into this situation.' Giovanni Falcone (left) was an anti-mafia judge who was murdered on the orders of Salvatore 'Toto' Riina in 1992 The mafia often try to ensure the bodies of their victims can never be found, a practice known as 'lupara bianca'. To this end, dissolving bodies in acid is a relatively common tactic. The method means both that vital evidence is destroyed and that families are prevented from carrying out proper burials. In 2008, Guiseppe's mother said: 'We have won, Giuseppe has won, because I think thanks to him the mafia has been wiped out, if not completely then at least 70 percent.' The family came face to face with Giovanni Brusca in court. The Sicilian mafia boss Salvatore 'Toto' Riina was nicknamed 'The Beast' and is believed to have first murdered for the Mafia aged 19. He died in November 2017 'The only thing I could do was throw the microphone at him,' Mr di Matteo said. 'I couldn't resist while he was talking about what he did.' 'I always thought that Guiseppe was going to be out of the mafia circle. He loved animals and he always wanted to be a vet. He had a real passion.' The case sent shock waves through Italy as it contravened what many believe to be the mafia 'code of honour' - which is not harming women and children, despite the fact that they have been among the organisation's victims for decades. 'Of course it's partly my fault,' Mr di Matteo said. 'He was my son. But it is 90% Brusca's fault. I would never have touched a kid.' Republicans continue to give President Donald Trump huge approval ratings from within their ranks, even after his controversial summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump's overall approval rating ticked up to 45 per cent in the latest Wall Street Journal / NBC poll, a high point for his presidency. The poll was taken beginning the day before Trump's Helsinki summit, so includes respondents who were exposed to some of the furious blowback after Trump called Putin's denial of meddling in the U.S. election 'powerful.' President Donald Trump's approval rating ticked up to 45 per cent in the latest Wall Street Journal / NBC poll Trump's approval from among Republicans is 88 per cent a level not reached since President George W. Bush following the Sept. 11 attacks. Bush his 96 per cent at that time, only to watch his approval steadily drop. A majority of 51 per cent don't approve of the relationship between Washington and Moscow, according to the poll. That echoes a 50 per cent figure for disapproval of Trump's conduct in a new Washington Post / ABC news poll. And in the Journal poll, nearly two-thirds of voters, 65 per cent, believe Russia interfered a conclusion Trump has raised repeated skepticism about, despite the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies. Republicans continue to give President Donald Trump huge approval ratings from within their ranks, even after his controversial summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin Trump tweeted on the summit after a new Washington Post / ABC showed 50 per cent of Americans disapprove of his performance there Trump tweeted Monday about his Helsinki summit with Putin The strong GOP support helps explain Trump's decision to dig in and attack critics, as he did Monday when he tweeted that he gave up 'NOTHING to Putin. It also may help explain the reluctance of many top Republicans to criticize Trump. His performance in Helsinki was an exception, although even many lawmakers who condemned Russia and elements of the summit did not mention Trump by name. The time a Republican had Trump's in-party approval rating was George W. Bush after Sept. 11 Trump fired off a defense of his performance while attacking the media who covered it as the ABC poll showed 50 per cent of Americans disapproved of his conduct at the summit, where he expressed support for Putin's 'powerful' denial of election hacking despite the conclusions of U.S. intelligence. 'When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries,' Trump wrote Monday. 'Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media!' the president added. Trump said in Helsinki that the two men discussed a variety of topics in their two-hour one-on-one meeting. Among them were Ukraine, Syria, Russian meddling in the U.S. elections, and the nations' nuclear arsenal, according to Trump. The new Washington Post / ABC News poll found 50 per cent of Americans disapproved of Trump's handling of the summit, compared to 33 per cent who approve. A woman killed in a New Jersey house collapse shielded her youngest daughter as the structure came down, authorities said. Tika Justice, 38, died after the home tumbled into rubble on South Broad Street in Hamilton Township, near Trenton, just before 7.00am Eastern on Monday. Justice was inside with her two daughters, ages 16 and 20, who both survived the collapse. Capt Ferdinand Mather of Hamilton Township Fire District No. 3 confirmed the identity of the mother to DailyMail.com. The sisters remain hospitalized in serious but stable condition, and further details on their injuries haven't been disclosed. Justice lived in the home, which authorities said they believed was a rental property, along with her two daughters, Mather said. Passerby Paul Feig told KYW TV based out of Philadelphia that he tried to comfort a woman injured in the collapse until first responders arrived. "I saw the house, it was a pile of rubble. Couldn't believe what I saw so I rode over there to observe,' Feig said. 'There were two people on the sidewalk but I went right up to the house. There was a woman trapped in there, I talked to her. She was on the phone with dispatch. She was half in tears. So was I.' Tika Justice, 38, was killed when her New Jersey home collapsed, as she shielded her daughter, 16, from derbis when the structure came down, authorities said Justice lived in the home, which authorities said they believed was a rental property, along with her two daughters, Capt Ferdinand Mather of Hamilton Township Fire District No. 3 said It's not clear what caused the collapse that killed the 38-year-old woman, whose body was found on top of her teen daughter. Emergency responders helped rescue the older daughter shortly after they arrived, they said. The 16-year-old was stuck in the debris for about one hour and forty minutes, Mather said, before officials could free her. It's not clear what caused the collapse that killed the 38-year-old woman, whose body was found on top of her teen daughter; Justice's 20-year-old daughter was also inside and survived Authorities said there were only three people in the home at the time of its collapse, at 6.50am The teen was found quickly, he said, but the delay resulted from the difficulty in carrying out the rescue due to the manner in which the home collapsed around her. The 20-year-old said she heard a cracking noise and was running out of the home when it collapsed, police said. The names of the victims have not been released. Authorities said there were only three people in the home at the time of its collapse, at 6.50am. Dogs were brought in to assist rescuers who searched through the rubble to ensure no victims remained trapped in the debris. Police are still investigating whether a married Republican politician accused of having a years-long affair with a young girl may have also posed as a woman online to urge the victim to continuing having sex with him. Jon Landry, 42, was charged earlier this month following a lengthy investigation into the six-year relationship he was having with the girl who he met online when she was just 12. Landry, a former city council member from Connecticut, faced Superior Court of New Britain again on Friday following his arrest for harassment and interfering with police. Erika, his wife of 17 years who he has two daughters with, has previously supported him in court but was absent on Friday. Fox 61 reports that a moving truck was recently spotted outside the family home that is now up for sale. Jon Landry, 42, (above with wife Erika and their daughters) was arrested on Friday in Connecticut following an investigation into the six year affair he was having with the victim Details of the case only publicly surfaced after Landry resigned from his position as a Farmington Town Council member in January, around the time police first revealed they were investigating him. At the time he submitted his resignation, Landry said the decision would allow him to spend more time with his wife and daughters. Court documents related to the investigation show that the politician told the victim his name was Jason Davis when they first met online using AOL Instant Messenger back in 2008 when she was just 12. Landry initially told the girl he was 17 and living with his parents. They communicated online for four years before eventually meeting in person, according to court documents. The girl said their relationship turned sexual in 2013 when she reached the legal age of 16 and they signed a four-page sex contract that outlined their 'friends with sexual benefits' rules. Landry's wife of 17 years was absent from his latest court appearance on Friday (above) and a moving truck was recently spotted outside their family home Police started investigating when the victim, who is now 22, reported to authorities that she was being harassed via text message by a woman named Jessica Munroe, who had claimed to be friends Davis. Investigators say the politician, who is married with two daughters, told the victim his name was Jason Davis when they first met online using AOL Instant Messenger back in 2008 when she was just 12 She said Munroe was threatening her and pressuring her into having sex with Davis. The harassment from Munroe came soon after the victim and Davis had a dispute about their sex contract last summer. So far, police have not been able to track down Munroe. They are still investigating whether she is in fact a real person given phone and online records so far show links to Landry. Police said their investigation into Munroe could result in more charges for Landry if it turns out that he was allegedly posing as the woman to blackmail the victim. Authorities only made the connection between Landry and the fake identity he had been using earlier this year when the victim reported that she was being threatened and harassed. Landry has not been charged with sexual assault because the victim was not underage and she told police the sex was consensual. He is facing harassment and interfering with police charges. Landry resigned from his position as a Farmington Town Council member back in January around the time police first revealed they were investigating him Text messages between Davis and the victim from August last year show that he told her she could buy out of the sex contract for $500. The victim told police they had sex days later in the parking lot of the West Hartford Toys R Us. Some messages also allegedly show Landry trying to coerce the girl into having sex by threatening to contact her school. The interfering charge against Landry stems from when police first contacted him believing he was Davis and he allegedly never revealed his true identity. Landry, through his lawyer, denies any wrongdoing. He acknowledged the police investigation and said he planned to cooperate fully and trust that 'the matter will be closed once the investigation is complete.' During the brief court hearing last week, Landry's attorney asked the judge for more time so he could examine DVDs included in the state's evidence. They reportedly include saved text messages related to the case. Landry is due to face court again next month. A former British soldier has been revealed as the man behind a Magaluf 'walk of shame' website which shows scantily-clad women returning home after wild nights out in the Spanish party resort. David King, now a DJ from Sutton Coldfield, calls himself the 'host and narrator' of the humiliating videos and goes by the name 'He Who Dares'. King, a former Lance Corporal, runs the page which has more than 10,000 followers and sees camera-wielding men accost the women and film them before uploading the footage. He declined to comment when he was tracked down to Magaluf, The Sun Online reported. David King, a DJ from Sutton Coldfield, is the man behind the humiliating Magaluf website The former Lance Corporal describes himself as the 'host and narrator' of the videos King, a former Lance Corporal, runs the page which has more than 10,000 followers King goes by the name 'He Who Dares' and has shared reports of his Magaluf website He was in the Army before he became a DJ and set up his 'walk of shame' page A 'Walk of Shame' is when a man or woman walks home the day after a casual sexual encounter, usually wearing the same outfit they wore the previous evening. Clips show scantily-clad revellers returning home in the morning after wild nights out at the party resort in Majorca. King has approvingly posted online reports about his Facebook page and has told his critics to 'bore off'. The DJ, who has had a regular Wednesday slot at the resort, has written on Facebook: 'Don't really follow rules, I try and get them to follow me. 'I say it as it is or I say it as I see it either way I like to make sure the is no F-in about and always learn from mine and others mistakes. 'I'm my own boss and I write my own future, always trying to make things happen by myself but always humble.' He apparently started off posting the videos on his own Facebook page before he created the separate 'walk of shame' page. This woman tries to cover her face as the cameraman accosted her in the street in Magaluf A reveller reaches for her high heels the morning after a night out in the party resort This woman tries to hide her face as she makes her way through the party town in a barely-there dress Many of the embarrassed party-goers can be seen covering their faces in the humiliating footage. In one clip a dark-haired woman is followed down the street and asked where she stayed last night, before being told to 'get a shower'. One woman nearly trips over she untied shoelaces as she tries to get away from the filming men. Some social media users have slammed the Facebook page for invading the women's privacy. But others found the videos funny, with one person commenting: 'I'm fully creasing at these'. Many of the women are wearing the skimpy outfits they put on for their night out the previous evening iStock/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) -- He is 12, and in a shelter in Maryland, nearly a thousand miles from his family. When Brayan Caceres' grandmother in Florida was finally able to talk to the boy after he had been detained with family at the border and sent to Maryland, "He was crying. He didn't understand what was happening," Rosa Caceres, the grandmother, said. Now when she talks by phone with the child, He asks me when we are going to see each other, and I dont know what to say. Sometimes Im scared they will never give him back to me... With the authorities here, anything can happen. A traumatic past Brayan is one of about 2,000 children who have been recently separated from family members trying to cross the U.S. border. He is from Honduras, a country that has become wracked by violence and the home to many of the migrants now trying to reach the United States. About two years ago, Brayan's mother was found murdered in her homes septic tank. The main suspect was a boyfriend who had been living with the mom and Brayan since her separation from her son's father. The boyfriend, according to Caceres, had been violent to both the mother and son, and was arrested in the mother's killing. But he was later released, the grandmother said. After the traumatic loss of Brayan's mother, his grandmother worries about the effect on him of living more than 900 miles from any family. At first when his mother died he was terrified of the dark, of being alone It was terrible to know that he was alone in that place [the shelter in Maryland] after what hes been through, said Caceres, 48, who has been in the U.S. since 2007 and lives in Kissimee in central Florida. They traveled by foot, bus and on top of trains It began for Caceres with a call in early May informing her that her child was in custody at the U.S.-Mexico border in California. She assumed it was a mistake since her youngest child, a teenager, had just spoken to her by phone from Honduras. Later she learned that her adult son, Jose, had traveled to the U.S. border with Brayan; the boy's stepmother, Nubia; and Jose and Nubias youngest child, Yahir, a 4-year-old boy. The family had come on the so-called Way of the Cross caravan, an organized group of mostly Central American migrants that travels together for protection as they make their way through Mexico to the U.S. Jose, Nubia and the two young boys came by foot, bus and on top of trains, and when they reached the U.S. they turned themselves in to authorities, Caceres said. Two days later, Brayan was taken from his father, and did not know why, Caceres said. The father, Jose, is back in Honduras after signing a deportation order when he met with immigration officials, according to Caceres. The circumstances around his deportation are unclear. He also signed a notarized document granting custody to his mother, she said. The Department of Homeland Security declined to comment except to confirm that, Jose Bartolo Caseres Caseres illegally entered the U.S on May 4, 2018, and was processed for removal. On May 22, 2018, he was removed to Honduras. But where was the 4-year-old? The grandmother meanwhile said she didn't know for about 10 days what happened to her youngest grandchild, 4-year-old Yahir, or his mother. I was desperate, I called every number I saw in the news, I looked for their faces in the TV reports," Caceres said. "I was very scared because [Yahir] was born prematurely and he has always been a small and sickly child. Then she got a call from Nubia from a jail near the border, Caceres said. She said the boy's mother asked for money for food because the child had a high fever and was refusing to eat the jail's food. Nubia and her son were released soon after, and Caceres paid for them to travel by bus from Texas to her Florida home. They are preparing to file an asylum claim. Brayan remains in Maryland, where according to his grandmother he shares a cottage with 11 other children and is able to make a 20-minute phone call twice a week. The shelter is run the Board of Child Care in Baltimore, which is affiliated with the United Methodist Church, according to the program's website. It launched its migrant-child program in 2014, targeted at the time to unaccompanied minors who came to the U.S., to "offer care, safety, and support to a unique population in need," the agency's website says. ABC News reached out to the Board of Child Care but the agency declined to comment. Caceres has been told that Brayan might be released around July 4, but, she said she has been given inaccurate or incomplete information before and is skeptical. Obstacles to reunification Caceres, who is employed at a construction company in Florida, has help from a social worker to sort out paperwork to acquire custody of her grandson. She said she has had to submit a variety of notarized documents, including proof of her residence, a background check, fingerprinting and several documents sent from Honduras certifying their family ties to Brayan. Her one-bedroom apartment proved to be a problem, Caceres said. The social worker told her she needed a larger place, a two-bedroom home, which has been a financial hardship. And because the area where she lives has been flooded with people fleeing from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, there is a shortage of affordable homes, with several families often sharing a single house. When Caceres finally managed to navigate the home search, she said she was told that too much time had elapsed and she needed to start the process over. Caceres has also had to submit documentation proving that she has enough income to support Brayan. She then started working as much overtime as possible, often working up to 12 hours a day. This, too, proved to be a problem because there would be no one to provide child care during those long hours. Now that Nubia and her child have joined her in Florida, Caceres said she hopes to prove that Nubia can take care of the children while she works. My son often tells me that he feels trapped in a dark tunnel with no way out. I tell him we have to keep pushing forward. Even if they are separated, things will be better once both children are with me, Caceres says. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. The girlfriend of a man who was shot and killed during a heated row over a handicapped parking space in Florida last week has called for justice in the father's death in a new interview. Markeis McGlockton, 28, was shot in front of his girlfriend Britany Jacobs and the couple's three young children on Thursday afternoon after gunman Michael Drejka picked a fight with the mother for parking in a handicap spot without tags. Jacobs described how the argument over proper parking etiquette took a deadly turn in an emotional interview with Good Morning America on Monday. 'He wanted somebody to be angry at. He just wanted someone to fight him,' Jacobs said of the white man who shot her black boyfriend. Scroll down for video Britany Jacobs, whose boyfriend was shot and killed during an argument over a parking space in Florida, appeared on Good Morning America Monday and called for justice Markeis McGlockton, 28, was shot and killed after shoving a man to the ground in the dispute outside a convenience store in Clearwater, Florida, on Thursday afternoon Jacobs and the couple's three young children, two shown above, witnessed the fatal shooting Surveillance footage from the convenience store shows the deadly parking lot altercation McGlockton and the couple's five-year-old son were inside the convenience store when Drejka approached Jacobs, who was sitting in the car with her infant and three-year-old children. 'He was picking a fight. I'm just sitting, waiting for my family to come back to the car,' she said. The mother said she started feeling 'scared' as the argument quickly escalated. 'By this time a witness pulls up and everybody hears us going back and forth with one another. [The witness] let the owner know that there was somebody out there messing with a woman in a car,' she said. 'My man hears what's going on, sees the guy yelling at me and I'm sitting in the car. My man is defending me and his children, so he pushes him down.' 'The guy is on the ground and he pulls the gun out. My dude steps back 'cause my dude is fearing for his life - all of us were.' Within seconds of pulling the gun, Drejka fired a shot directly into McGlockton's chest. 'Everybody is panicking, my son is screaming, but it was too late,' she said. 'It's hard for a four- or five-year-old to witness what he saw. It's really tough for him.' Jacobs broke down in tears describing the horror of having her son witness his father's death Jacobs is pictured with the 28-year-old pronounced dead at a hospital after the shooting McGlockton stumbled back into the store and fought for his life for the next 30 minutes, but was later pronounced dead at a hospital. 'He was a good man and all he was trying to do was protect his family,' Jacobs said. 'I just want justice. I need something to be done because this is not right.' Drejka has been cleared by police because of Florida's 'stand your ground' law, which authorizes deadly force in self-defense with no duty to retreat from an attacker. The shooting 'is within the bookends of stand your ground and within the bookends of force being justified,' Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said at a press conference Friday. 'No matter how you slice it or dice it that was a violent push to the ground. '[Drejka] told deputies that he had to shoot to defend himself. Those are the facts and that's the law. I'm not saying I agree with it, but I don't make that call.' Drejka remained on the scene until police arrived and was confirmed to have a concealed carry license. The owner of the Circle-A Food Store WFTS that Drejka had assaulted customers in the stores parking lot before. A man who frequents the store, Rich Kelly, claimed Drejka picked a fight with him over a parking spot about a month ago, calling him racial slurs and threatening to kill him. Drejka is seen gesturing to the empty spaces as he scolds Jacobs for parking in a handicapped spot without the proper tags McGlockton turns and stumbles back inside the store as Drejka trains the gun at him A woman is fighting for her life after plunging from a pier while watching bioluminescence turn the water a sparkling blue. Kirsty Williams-Henry, 27, was waiting to spot the pools of bright blue light at Aberavon beach in Port Talbot, South Wales, when she slipped and fell 20ft onto rocks. More than 100 people had gathered on the beach on Saturday night to watch the natural phenomena unfold. Kirsty Williams-Henry, 27, was hoping to spot the pools of bright blue light at Aberavon beach in Port Talbot, South Wales, when she slipped and fell 20ft onto rocks Scientists believe the phenomenon is the result of plankton being disturbed, causing them to emit light though a complex chemical reaction. Kirsty was admiring the glow from the breakwater when she lost her footing and plunged onto the rocks below. It took coastguard rescue teams two hours to help her in a race against time before the tide came in. Jules Newton, who called 999 after Kirsty fell said: 'My sister and I called the emergency services we were a few feet away. 'She did fall onto rocks. The call handler told us to tell everyone we saw to stay away from the pier until the police arrived. The plankton emit a blue glow that creates eerie designs in the water and scientists believe it is caused by plankton being disturbed. These pictures were taken at the same beach on Friday 'Horrific accident my thoughts are with her and her family. The pier is treacherous. I'd avoid and just paddle at the waters edge.' A spokesman for the coastguard said Port Talbot and Porthcawl coastguard rescue teams both attended the incident. They were called at 11.04pm and spent around two hours at the scene. A spokeswoman for South Wales Police said they assisted in the rescue of a woman who had fallen approximately 20ft from the pier. She said: 'Officers were called to the scene shortly before 11pm alongside the Coastguard and ambulance service. 'A 27-year-old woman was subsequently taken to the University Hospital of Wales with multiple injuries.' It took coastguard teams two hours to help her in a race against time before the tide came in Emergency services are pictured at the pier following her fall on Saturday evening A woman is accused of setting fire to a home where her ex-husband and four of their children live. Lisa Marie Merka, 46, allegedly started the fire in the very early hours of Friday morning at the Copperfield home in Houston by using a lighter to burn notebooks, police told Click 2 Houston. The father, Desmond Merka, 55, managed to escape, along with his four children, Chron reported. Firefighters said his 18-year-old son had been the one to raise the alarm when he awoke to the smell of smoke, and helped to evacuate his family. Desmond Merka (pictured center) and four of his children were forced to evacuate their home in the early hours of Friday morning after his ex-wife and their mother allegedly tried to burn it down Police say Lisa Marie Merka (pictured left and in her mugshot, right) admitted to lighting notebooks on fire on the front porch of the home and using them to ignite the house. Police allege she was armed at the time Desmond told police he believed the fire had been started intentionally, and officers claim Merka admitted to using a cigarette lighter to set the books on fire from the front porch. The 46-year-old has had a warrant out for her arrest since May, police say, after failing to appear in court to face a charge of interfering with a peace officer, and has a previous conviction for assaulting a family member. Police allege Merka was armed when she set fire to the home on Friday. She is being held in the Harris County Jail. Desmond's mother Carole shared the story to her Facebook account, telling friends nobody was harmed in the fire, and the home is insured. 'My son and this family will be just fine,' she wrote. 'They all work together to keep the bills paid and everyone taken care of. 'This is the strongest single Dad ever. They will get through this.' A mother serving a 23-year prison sentence in Cambodia after trying to smuggle two kilograms of heroin into Australia could soon be free after a shock legal victory. Yoshe Taylor, a kindergarten teacher from Queensland, was arrested in 2013 after allegedly falling for an internet dating scam run by an international drug syndicate. The mother-of-two, 46, always claimed her innocence and said she was duped into concealing the drugs by a Nigerian con artist named 'Precious Max'. Now, her 2014 drug trafficking sentence has been quashed in the Cambodian Supreme Court - meaning it will go before the appeals court to be redetermined. Ms Taylor is just five years into a prison term that could see her separated from her children for another two decades. Yoshe Ann Taylor (pictured with her two children), has been in a Cambodian prison since 2013 Her sentence was referred to the Cambodian Court of Appeal for her case to be redetermined Ms Taylor was caught trying to leave Cambodia with two kilograms of heroin hidden in her luggage in September 2013. At the time, she claimed that she had been duped by 'Precious Max' whom she had been flirting with online. 'Precious Max'- also known as Nigerian national Nwoko Precious Chineme - had fooled several other Australians, who were caught re-entering Australia with drugs after travelling to Cambodia. He was arrested shortly after Ms Taylor in 2013, but allegedly continued to scam women behind bars. He would allegedly engage with Australian women on dating websites, inviting them to Cambodia to visit him. The picture on 'Precious Max's' dating profile He would allegedly offer to pay for their plane tickets to and from the country. On Ms Taylor's third visit, Max asked her to take back arts and crafts supplies, in which he told her he hoped to start a business. Ms Taylor agreed, and took 2kg of what was she thought was Khmer Arts and Crafts business supplies, but was actually heroin. The Supreme Court decision is a huge step towards Ms Taylor's potential freedom and reunion with her children, whom she hasn't spoken to in four years. In 2014, a sympathetic guard at a Cambodian hospital allowed her to call her children using his mobile phone. A date for the hearing was yet to be set. Nigerian man Nwoko Precious Chineme, who goes by 'Precious Max', was arrested shortly after Ms Taylor Alexandre Benalla, 29, was caught up in the scandal after being caught on camera Emmanuel Macron's security adviser has released a statement saying he just wanted to 'lend a hand to police' after he was caught attacking anti-government protesters in riot gear. Alexandre Benalla, a 26-year-old who was one of the president's closest lieutenants, was caught on camera beating demonstrators while dressed as a police officer on May 1. But speaking through his lawyers, the security adviser claimed he was only present at the May Day protests to 'observe police operations'. 'He was received and equipped by the police, who assigned him various positions,' the statement released on Monday read. 'On the occasion of this observation, Mr. Benalla was able to supplement his knowledge of the maintenance of order and had no vocation to intervene personally on these operations. 'However, witnessing the actions of two particularly virulent individuals and the seeming overtaking of the operational capacities of the police officers on the spot, Mr. Benalla took the initiative to lend a hand to the device by helping to control these people. This vigorous but non-violent action caused no injury.' Scroll down for video The 26-year-old was one of the president Macron's closest lieutenants (pictured together last May) His lawyers also claimed that he personally reported the incident after it took place and that he received an 'administrative penalty from his employer'. Benalla was on Sunday night indicted with charges including violence at a public meeting, impersonating a police officer and trying to destroy video evidence. Vincent Crase, who worked for Mr Macron during his election campaign last year, faced similar charges. The policemen, meanwhile, were accused of giving Benalla video surveillance images of his assaults in 'breach of professional secrecy'. They are said to have hidden the footage in the hope that it could not be used as evidence. All of the men were on Sunday night bailed to appear in court at a later date after judicial police spent the weekend interviewing them. Security adviser Alexandre Benalla faces prison after footage emerged of him attacking May Day protesters earlier this year Security adviser Alexandre Benalla faces prison after footage emerged of him attacking May Day protesters earlier this year 'They are all under judicial control,' said a prosecuting source, as he confirmed all of the charges. Benalla, who used to ski and cycle with Mr Macron, was initially suspended from the Elysee Palace staff for just fifteen days, but his alleged crimes were otherwise hushed up. The French interior minister admitted he was told of Mr Benalla's attack but said it was not his role to report them to the police. Quizzed by MPs, Gerard Collomb said Alexandre Benalla's violent behaviour was unacceptable but that the Elysee adviser's presence at the demonstrations as an observer was legitimate. After a meeting of top government ministers at the Elysee on Sunday, Macron said he considered the facts in Benalla's case 'unacceptable,' - a close aide of the French president revealed. Moreover, Macron ordered a reorganization of his office after acknowledging failings in the way the presidency had handled the scandal. French interior minister Gerard Collomb (right) admitted on Monday he was aware of Mr Benalla's behaviour A Republican lawmaker who is currently serving in the Georgia House of Representatives got semi-nude, shouted racial slurs and expressed anti-gay, anti-Muslim and anti-Asian sentiments on the latest episode of Who Is America? Representative Jason Spencer, 43, was tricked into appearing on Sacha Baron Cohen's Showtime program, believing he was being taught self-defense to fight off terrorists. Instead, the physician's assistant from the town of Woodbine was seen on the show shouting the n-word multiple times, calling Muslims 'sand n*****s' and 'rapists,' imitating a Chinese tourist by speaking nonsense, and trying to ward off a potential terrorist by ripping down his pants and threatening them with his bare buttocks. Spencer is now being asked to step down by members of both parties, including Georgia House Speaker David Ralston, but has said he refuses to vacate his post. He also released a statement that said in part: 'Sacha Baron Cohen and his associates took advantage of my paralyzing fear that my family would be attacked.' Guns blazing: Jason Spencer, a Republican member of the Georgia House of Representatives, was taught techniques to combat terrorists on Who Is America? (Spencer above trying to fight off Cohen as an ISIS member by threatening to rub his butt on him and make him appear gay) Flashdance: In one segment, he stripped off his pats and boxers to ward off a potential ISIS member with gay panic by threatening to rub his bare buttocks on the man (above) Snap into it: At the end of the episode he simulates cutting off a dummy's penis, then produces a piece of cured meat he bites into (left) and starts to chew (right) In this episode, Cohen was playing the character of Captain Erran Morad, an anti-terrorism expert. He introduces himself by stating: 'I was in the Mossad, I mean not in the Mossad for 13 years. I am here to teach you krav maga.' Spencer then introduces himself, at which point the show reveals that last August the Republican lawmaker had told a former member of the Georgia House of Representatives that she would be killed and thrown in a swamp if she supported the removal of Confederate statues. LaDawn Jones, a black attorney who is no longer a member of the Georgia House, expressed her shock when Spencer responded to her objections over a Jefferson Davis statue by writing: 'Continue your quixotic journey into South Georgia and it will not be pleasant. The truth. Not a warning. Those folks wont put up with it like they do in Atlanta. It best you move on.' He did not stop there either, going on to state: 'I can guarantee you wont be met with torches but something a lot more definitive. People of South Georgia are people of action, not drama. Things then went a step further in the next post, with Spencer writing of people like Jones who are against these statues: 'They will go missing in the Okefenokee [swamp]. Too many necks they are red around here. Dont say I didnt warn you about em.' Spencer was also in the news for introducing a bill that would make it illegal for people to conceal their faces in public. He tells Cohen that he does not call it a 'burka ban' and rather an 'anti-masking statute' because 'to win in the legal system you cannot be against the First Amendment.' He then added: 'See this is how the Muslims in the country are using the First Amendment for them. You got to fight fire with fire.' Headline grabber: He was in the news last year after telling a black woman, who was previously a member of the House, she might go missing for protesting Confederate statues (above) Message: 'All you sand n****** over the Middle East, we are tired of you coming to America and we are tired of you threatening us,' states Spencer (above waving a knife while addressing terrorists) Cut and chew: 'You understand, we will cut off your dick and we will shove it in your mouth, chew it off, put it in your mouth,' he tells the camera (cutting off the dummy's fake penis on left, putting the fake penis in the dummy's mouth right) The men then work on techniques, with each practice becoming more and more absurd and offensive. When Cohen urges Spencer to try and attract attention by screaming out the n-word, the politician yells out the racial slur a slew of times before Cohen stops him and says he meant 'noony.' Cohen then adds that the word Spencer was screaming is 'disgusting.' 'ISIS is scared of being seen as homo,' says Cohen, who teaches Spencer 'how to use his bottom' to scare off terrorists. Spencer willingly takes down his pants and runs backwards to ram his buttocks into Cohen's groin while yelling 'Murica' on the first attempt shown on the show, with the editing of the episode making it unclear how long each segment lasted and what parts made it to air. Cohen then tells Spencer that in the Mosad they say: 'If you want to win, you have to show some skin.' That is when the lawmaker takes down his boxer briefs, which he once again seems to do with no real issue or concern, and again starts to back up his buttocks to Cohen's groin. Cohen meanwhile has his pants unzipped the entire time they are simulating this 'intimidation technique.' A semi-naked Spencer yells: 'I will touch you. I will touch you with my buttocks. USA' This practice, meant to simulate a gay panic that would fend off terrorists, ends with Spencer doing a fourth pass in which he screams: 'I will touch you. I will make you a homosexual. USA!' Family: Spencer and his wife Meloney with their children and Ted Cruz in 2016 during the primary (above) Spencer is then off the show, but returns in the end of the episode in a special message he filmed for terrorists. 'All you sand n****** over the Middle East, we are tired of you coming to America and we are tired of you threatening us. We will cut off your dick,' states Spencer, who then simulates cutting off a dummy's penis with the knife he is waving around while producing a piece of cured meat in his hand. 'You understand, we will cut off your dick and we will shove it in your mouth, chew it off, put it in your mouth.' While delivering that line, Spencer bits off the top of the meat and then shoves the rest into the dummy's mouth. 'How are you going to rape little children and women without a dick?' While he may not be stepping down, Spencer is not long for his seat, having lost in the recent primary election. Dick Cheney, Trent Lott, David Petraeus, Alberto Gonzales and Sarah Palin are among the other big names who have been duped by Cohen for the new series. Palin, the former governor of Alaska, confirmed that she was tricked into flying to Washington DC for an interview with Cohen, writing a detailed post about her experience on Facebook. It has also been suggested by Cohen himself that President Trump will be the focus of his new show, which airs new episodes on Sunday night. A court battle is underway over a wealthy and reclusive man's estate after it was revealed that he left the bulk of his millions to the boarding school he went to as a teen. Peter Knoll, 75, was found dead in his multimillion-dollar Upper East Side, New York City townhouse on January 8, after having died several days prior. A medical examiner declared that he had frozen to death and it was later revealed that he had been living without gas hooked up in his home since 2014. According to the executor of his estate, Peter's 2017 will declared that each of his three children would receive just $50,000, while his grandchildren were allotted $100,000. Select friends and acquaintances were to receive anywhere from $5,000 to $500,000. Peter Knoll, 75 (in an undated photo), was found frozen to death in his $10million townhouse in January. His son has now filed court papers claiming that his reclusive father was coerced into donating most of his millions to the boarding school he attended as a teen The remainder of the funds obtained from the sale of his $10million townhouse, however, were earmarked for The Putney School, a boarding school in Vermont, which Peter attended in his teen years in the 1950s. Peter's only son, Aaron Knoll, told the New York Daily News that he recently filed court papers claiming that his elderly father had been pressured into willing so much of his estate to the school. Aaron said in an email to the newspaper that he spoke with many of his father's friends and colleagues, as well as other family members, and 'everyone was in shock that he left virtually his entire estate to the school because it was contrary to conversations they had personally had with him'. Aaron believes that Peter's financial adviser and representatives from the school 'capitalized on my fathers frail physical and mental state' during the final months of Peter's life. According to Peter's will, the majority of the proceeds from the sale of his $10million Upper East Side townhouse were earmarked for the Vermont boarding school A representative for The Putney School (shown), which Peter attended in the 1950s, said that Peter had contacted them five years prior to his death about making a gift to the school Peter, the son of high-end Knoll furniture design firm founder, Hans Knoll, suffered from melanoma and diabetes, as well as other medical issues, prior to his death. Peter's financial adviser, Bill McKnight, told the Daily News that Putney was Peter's 'favorite' school he attended, but could not comment on Aaron's allegations due to 'rules and regulations.' McKnight is not a beneficiary of Peter's will. Putney's lawyers also declined to comment on Aaron's court filings, although the school's development director, Hugh Montgomery, had previously said that Peter had contacted the school five years ago, saying that he was interested in donating money to the school upon his death. Still, Montgomery said that he was 'surprised' that the school was 'as much a beneficiary' of Peter's will. Peter was said to have grown more reclusive in his old age, with friends telling the Daily News that he was 'complicated' and 'eccentric.' Peter apparently declined help from his three adult children Aaron and his two sisters who all live in Florida. They were seemingly unaware that Peter had been unable to have his gas turned back on following the 2013 replacement of his gas boilers, due to a supposed safety issue. Instead of seeking to remedy the situation, Peter was said to have used electric space heaters and spent the night with friends during the cold winter months. Sudanese-born people in Victoria are far more likely to be charged with aggravated robbery and riot and affray than their Australian-born counterparts, according to recent crime figures. Victorian Crime Statistics Agency figures to the end of March reveal they are 57 times more likely to be charged with aggravated robbery and 33 times more likely charged with riot and affray than Australians ,The Australian reported. Sudanese-born offenders accounted for 8.5 per cent of aggravated robbery offences and 6.9 per cent of riot and affray offences in the year to March - despite only accounting for 0.15 per cent of the state's population. The highly politicised debate regarding African crime has reignited in recent days following the alleged stabbing murder of Melbourne woman, Laa Chol, who was at a party gatecrashed by African-Australian men early Saturday. Scroll down for video The highly politicised debate regarding African crime has reignited. Pictured is a youth being arrested outside a shopping centre in Melbourne's west in January Federal Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton declared Victoria has a major law and order problem following the teenage girl's death, accusing Premier Daniel Andrews of failing to acknowledge the issue of Sudanese gangs. Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Minister Alan Tudge also entered the debate, claiming the shocking crime levels in Victoria were not seen in Sudanese communities in NSW and Queensland. 'Basically the crime data is kept by country of origin, and what it shows is that typically the Australian-born commit most of the crime, naturally, because three-quarters of Victoria are Australian-born,' Mr Tudge told Sky News. 'But often now, Sudanese-born is No 2 or No 3, despite them being a tiny proportion of the population, so there clearly is an issue going on there, and the Victorian public know this.' Pictured are African youths during a confrontation with police at a Melbourne shopping centre earlier this year during mounting community tensions, which resulted in three arrests Mr Andrews was reluctant to respond to Dutton's comments on Monday. 'In relation to the very tragic death of Laa Chol, I don't think her family will be getting much comfort from this sort of discussion,' he told ABC Radio. 'I don't think her family, I think they deserve fundamentally better than what they've been given these last 12 or 24 hours.' But the head of police taskforce set up to investigate violent gang crime in Melbourne slammed Mr Dutton for suggesting the stabbing death of a young woman was related to the city's problem with South Sudanese gangs. Commander Stuart Bateson said the death of Ms Chol, 19, had nothing to do with violent gangs or ethnicity. 'This is not to do with warring factions,' he said. 'The suggestion that Laa Chol, the victim, was a member of a gang just not true.' 3AW's Neil Mitchell agreed, saying that politics needed to be 'taken out of it' and said 'What Peter Dutton has said overnight is just wrong.' Waleed Aly launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull over his views on African gang violence in an eight minute segment on The Project last Thursday. He admitted that while crimes committed by those of African descent were 'over-represented' and 'unacceptable' in some areas, they account for one per cent of crime, compared to 71 per cent of crime committed by Australian-born people. 'I'm not saying that African-Australians don't commit crime. And I'm not denying that victims of those crimes have a right to feel afraid,' Aly said. 'But it's just a fraction of the crime being committed, and to suggest a city is gripped by a fear of African gangs is just untrue.' Embattled Labor backbencher Emma Husar has charged taxpayers over $2,000 in the past year to drive around in a limousine, despite having a government-funded car. The member for the western Sydney seat of Lindsay made the Comcar trips from June last year to attend multiple functions in the Harbour City, according to Fairfax. Comcar provides politicians car-with-driver services, which backbenchers are entitled to use in Canberra or when on business outside of their home state. They can also use the service when travelling to and from the airport in their home town, but are expected to use their publicly-funded private vehicles to attend local functions. Comcar provides politicians car-with-driver services, which backbenchers are entitled to use in Canberra or when on business outside of their home state. They can also use the service when travelling to and from the airport in their home town, but are expected to use their publicly-funded private vehicles to attend local functions. Labor MP Emma Husar (pictured) has racked up more than $2,000 worth of Comcar trips since June last year Ms Husar (pictured left with Opposition Leader Bill Shorten) was previoulsy accused of telling a man working in her electorate office to do the dishes to 'learn about white male privilege' Ms Husar has defended her use of the Comcar service through Bill Shorten, stating there was limited parking which made it difficult for her to use her own car. The revelations come as Ms Husar faces accusations of bullying and abusing staff. During her term in office, staff allege it was common for Ms Husar to require them to serve in work time as 'babysitters' for two of her three children, to wash dishes, walk her dog and clean up dog excrement, among other duties. Earlier this week, a former male staffer claimed to Sky News he was instructed to do the dishes to learn about his 'white male privilege'. In a Friday phone conference, Labor bosses were said to have questioned how Husar's alleged behaviour could have gone unchecked for so long, given the turnover of more than 20 staff members in just two years. The allegation came after BuzzFeed revealed the New South Wales branch of the Labor Party had been investigating Ms Husar since March, looking into allegations of bullying harassment, verbal intimidation and misusing staff. Ms Husar has defended her use of the Comcar service stating there was limited parking which made it difficult for her to use her own car These revelations come as Ms Husar is already facing accusations of bullying and abusing staff One former staff member alleged to the website that Husar had called them 'c***s' and 'f***wits'. Others have reportedly accused her of making her staff babysit her children during and outside work hours and walk her dog. Her Penrith electorate office has also seen a high turnover of staff since she won her marginal seat at the July 2016 elections, with 20 people resigning during the past two years. Ms Husar, who hails from Labor's right faction, has vehemently denied the allegations leveled against her but did not specifically refute individual claims. Australian Federal Opposition leader Bill Shorten (centre) greets locals with federal member for Lindsay Emma Husar (second right) 'The assertions that have been made do not reflect who I am or how my office operates,' she said in a statement sent from Opposition Leader Bill Shorten's office late today. 'I was horrified to learn that complaints have been made. At no time has any staff member raised these issues with me.' Ms Husar said her office was a 'professional and respectful workplace'. 'I am a single mum with three children, working hard and doing my best. If I have let anyone down, I apologise,' she said. 'I respect and am cooperating with the independent process that is underway, and will not be commenting any further.' Ms Husar, who hails from Labor's right faction, has vehemently denied the allegations leveled against her but did not specifically refute individual claims Senior federal Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese, who was raised by a single mother, praised Ms Husar, who has spoken in parliament about the struggles of raising an autistic son. 'What I know about Emma Husar is that she's a single mum, works incredibly hard, represents her electorate very strongly,' he told Nine Network on Monday. 'I find her a terrific person to deal with. I find her a very good local member of parliament.' Senior federal cabinet minister Christopher Pyne said any investigation should be allowed to run its course. 'I'm not obviously privy to what these complaints are and I think you'd be unwise to comment on them unless you have all the facts,' he told the Nine Network. The Labor Party's NSW branch confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that an independent investigation was underway. 'The ALP has an independent process for assessing complaints,' a spokesman from Essential Media Communications said. 'The independent process also provides advice to the party on what action, if any, is necessary in response. 'The process is mindful to provide protection to the complainant and also procedural fairness to the subject of the complaint.' Ms Husar, who won Lindsay in 2016 with a four per cent swing, previously worked in the electorate office of Labor frontbencher Ed Husic. Against the backdrop of Donald Trump's latest aggressive Twitter salvo against Iran, a series of his old tweets has resurfaced portraying Barack Obama as a warmonger willing to attack Tehran to burnish his image. The president blared an allcaps threat at his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani on Sunday night, warning: 'NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE.' 'WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!' he added. Nearly seven years ago, however, it was Citizen Trump accusing President Obama of plotting a drastic Middle East intervention. 'In order to get [re-]elected, @BarackObama will start a war with Iran,' he predicted in November 2011, when Obama's approval ratings were hovering around 42 per cent lower than his own today. President Donald Trump (left) is in a new verbal spat with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (right), threatening dire consequences for threatening the U.S. When he was Citizen Trump, the president mockingly predicted that President Barack Obama would attack Iran to 'save face' when his nuclear deal with Tehran's mullahs failed Obama green-lighted a nuclear deal, from which Trump withdrew this year, that was intended to slow, not prevent, Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions Trump vented on Twitter Sunday night, warning Iran of a serious price to be paid for insulting and threatening the United States A week earlier, Obama had leveled a round of ultimately fruitless sanctions on Tehran including actions coordinated with allies to punish its central bank and commercial banks in Iran, and unilateral sanctions on the nation's nuclear and petrochemical industry sectors. Negotiations with Iran, hampered by the sluggishness of a bickering international coalition arrayed against it, proceeded by inches through the 2012 election season. By late October, the Obama White House was signaling that one-on-one talks with Iran could be on the horizon, and quietly claiming to reporters that Republican rival Mitt Romney wouldn't be as willing to embrace diplomacy. Trump, though, believed Obama would fail in what was seen as a last-ditch effort to prevent full-scale military strikes. 'Don't let Obama play the Iran card in order to start a war in order to get elected--be careful Republicans!' he cautioned just two weeks before Election Day. Trump was still predicting U.S. military action in Iran 11 months later when a multi-nation deal was first agreed to, a move intended to slow, but not stop, Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions. The future president suggested on Twitter at the time that diplomacy would fail, leaving military options as the only ones left. 'I predict that President Obama will at some point attack Iran in order to save face!' he declared in September 2013, just hours after an early, temporary version of the nuclear deal was signed. In a separate tweet, he doubled down: 'Obama will someday attack Iran in order to show how tough he is.' Two months later the French foreign ministry threw a monkey-wrench into the diplomatic works, saying it wouldn't be a party to a 'jeu des dupes' a fools' game in which Tehran played the rest of the world. Trump again prophesied armed conflict. 'Remember that I predicted a long time ago that President Obama will attack Iran because of his inability to negotiate properly-not skilled!' he tweeted. Trump predicted military action over and over during the Obama years Obama never approved overt military action against the Islamist nation, preferring to run out the clock on his administration. Two weeks after Trump replaced him, Tehran test-launched a missile in what was seen as a test of the new president's resolve. Suddenly, the war oracle had become commander-in-chief. 'Iran is playing with fire - they don't appreciate how "kind" President Obama was to them. Not me!' he threatened. During his campaign, Trump called the Obama-era nuclear agreement 'the worst deal in history.' In May 2018 he withdrew the U.S. from it, arguing that it had held the seeds of its own demise from day one. By then his complaints about the deal had moved the cause of international security in the wrong direction. 'Irans Military Budget is up more than 40% since the Obama negotiated Nuclear Deal was reached,' Trump fumed in September 2017. '[J]ust another indicator that it was all a big lie.' Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian President, has cautioned President Donald Trump to not take military action against his state after the US leader threatened to pursue hostile policies against Tehran amid the decision to withdraw from the 2015 international nuclear program deal. President Rouhani addressed a number of Iranian diplomats after the Twitter showdown and stated that without peace between the two countries, which have been at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, there would only be regret. Trumps threat to halt Iranian oil exports was scoffed at by the President of Iran and he explained that the Middle Eastern state was in a dominant position in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz. But who is Hassan Rouhani? President of Iran Hassan Rouhani addresses the United Nations General Assembly in New York Hassan Rouhani Born Hassan Feridon on November 12, 1948 in Sorkheh, Iran, he is a Shiite Muslim and has studied at the University of Tehran and Glasgow Caledonian University, receiving a Masters and PhD at the latter college. Rouhani was arrested a number of times in the 1960s and 1970s as a follower of Ayatollah Khomeini, the former leader of Iran, and in 1977, because of threat of a subsequent arrest, he left Iran to join him in exile in France, as reported in CNN. Between 1980 and 2000, after the Shah was overthrown, Rouhani served in the National Assembly for five terms and during this time, was a member of the Supreme Defense Council, Commander of the Iranian air defenses, Deputy commander of Irans Armed Forces and National security adviser to the President, to name a few roles. In 2013, he was sworn in as the seventh President of Iran and soon after wrote a column in The Washington Post, calling for a constructive approach to Irans nuclear weapons program, having acted as Irans chief nuclear negotiator from 2003 to 2005. In a dramatic move, President Rouhani condemned the actions of the Nazis during the Holocaust and had the first direct conversation an Iranian leader has had with a US leader, at the time former President Barack Obama, since 1979. President Barack Obama makes a statement after he spoke with Iranian President Rouhani Two years later in Vienna, a deal was struck that would see restrictions on uranium enrichment and research in exchange for economic sanctions relief, which Rouhani stated was a dream. In the same year, the Iranian President addressed the General Assembly of the United Nations, stating: A new chapter has started in Irans relations with the world. He also went on to mention that America and Israel are somewhat at fault for the rise in terrorism across the world. If we did not have the US military invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, and the United States unwarranted support for the inhumane actions of the Zionist regime against the oppressed nation of Palestine, today the terrorists would not have an excuse for the justification of their crimes, he said. A year later, however, Rouhani accused the US of a lack of compliance with the nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers in 2015 and also discussed how the US Supreme Court had undertaken illegal actions when they allowed US victims of terror to claim nearly $2 billion in compensation from Irans central bank. In 2017, Rouhani won re-election, with 57 per cent of the vote. After Trumps own speech to the UN General Assembly, he called for an apology to Iran for the offensive comments and baseless accusations after the US President claimed the Iranian government masks a corrupt dictatorship behind the false guise of a democracy. Since becoming president, Rouhani has stated there would be no overnight solutions to the countrys problems. While the nuclear deal may have ensured that sanctions were lifted, the benefits have been slow, as reported in the BBC. President Rouhani also pledged to free reformist opposition leaders that have been held without trial since 2011 and promised an era of increased freedom. However, activists and journalists remain in jail and the number of executions in Iran has soared. In addition to this, censorship has not eased and the internet is still tightly controlled. Trump announces his decision to withdraw the United States from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal Hassan Rouhani wife President Rouhani married Sahebeh Rouhani in 1968 and the couple have five children, the eldest of whom died in 1992. While she is not a political figure herself, she is known as a philanthropic one and in 2014 constructed ten schools. However, these charitable events have occasionally been condemned; in 2014, the Iranian President was criticised for what was considered to be a lavish ball organised by the first lady, as reported by Reuters. Held in a palace, the all-female charity dinner celebrated Womens Day, which also coincided with the birthday of the Prophet Muhammads daughter Fatima, a paragon of virtue. However, many saw this as the president indulging while so many others were suffering amid the economic hardship. Trump Twitter In May 2018, Trump was poised to make his decision on the Iran nuclear deal after stating that it was too lenient and accused the Middle Eastern country of breaking parts of the agreement. After refusing to sign off on the agreement, he also called for sanctions against the Revolutionary Guard police force. Trump took to Twitter to issue a warning to Hassan Rouhani amid the looming sanctions against Tehran, after the Iranian President warned his US counterpart to not play with the lions tail. President Trump let rip: 'To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE.' 'WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!' What did Rouhani say? However, this only meant that Iran found his reaction passive and said that he wont dare launch an attack. Gen. Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, the chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guards volunteer Basij force, added that Trump's tweet amounts to nothing more than 'psychological warfare'. He said: 'We will never abandon our revolutionary beliefs. We will resist pressure from enemies... America wants nothing less than (to) destroy Iran ... (but) Trump cannot do a damn thing against Iran.' Although, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump's 'strong stance' against Iran and welcomed an end to world powers 'pampering' the regime. Rouhani had earlier warned that 'Iran is the mother of all peace' before adding that 'war with Iran is the mother of all wars'. 'Don't play with fire, or you will regret [it],' he continued. 'Iranian people are the master and they will never bow to anyone, the Iranian President said. He also warned against any US attempt to destabilise Iran by encouraging protests and said: 'You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests.' What did Mike Pompeo say? US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hinted at such efforts while speaking in California at the weekend and promised backing for Iranian dissents as he referred to the country's leaders as a 'mafia'. He also went on to dismiss Rouhani and the rest of his government as 'merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry.' Pompeo also announced that the US government is launching a 24-hour television, radio and digital information channel in Farsi to broadcast American propaganda across Iran. The service would insure that 'ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe can know that America stands with them'. For the second time in two weeks, a woman in North Carolina was forced to call for medical help after running into trouble along the Appalachian trail. Andrea Pincumbe, 21, of Asheville. made a distress call to the the Franklin County Regional Communications Center in Farmington at about 8am on Tuesday. The Press Herald reported that she called for assistance from Poplar Ridge Lean atop Saddleback Mountain complaining of severe illness and requested immediate medical attention. Andrea Pincumbe (pictured), 21, of Asheville made a distress call after falling ill on the Appalachian trail at about 8am on Tuesday The rescue came less than two weeks after Pincumbe was forced to call for assistance during another excursion along the 2,200 miles trail on July 5 At times, according to the Herald, Pincumbe was forced to walk with assistance and eventually brought to an ambulance Lt. Kevin Adam of the Maine Warden Service said that rescuers arrived three hours later and carried her partially down the trail. At times, according to the Herald, Pincumbe was forced to walk with assistance and eventually brought to an ambulance at Perham Junction in Madrid Township around 5pm. Lt. Kevin Adam of the Maine Warden Service said that rescuers arrived three hours later and carried her partially down the trail She was transferred to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington for treatment and is expected to make a full recovery, Adam added. The nature of her illness remains unclear. The rescue came less than two weeks after Pincumbe was forced to call for assistance during another excursion along the 2,200 miles trail on July 5. Pincumbe was carried from the Appalachian Trail east of Greenville in the 100-Mile Wilderness in Piscataquis County after becoming sick, according to The Herald. Numerous departments and agencies, including Phillips and Rangeley fire departments, NorthStar EMS, Maine Forest Service, Franklin County Search and Rescue, along with civilian volunteers all participated in retrieving Pincumbe. The Maine Warden Service also noted that they rescued a woman from London, England, the day before after she broke her ankle near Bigelow Mountain in Wyman Township in Franklin County. She was transferred to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington (pictured) for treatment The Maine Warden Service cautioned hikers to always inform someone responsible of which route you are taking in case of an emergency. Others tips include bringing enough supplies to spend the night; sign each sign-in book you pass, with the date and time; and have a good communication plan while in poor cellphone coverage areas. The Appalachian National Scenic Trail, thought to be the longest hiking-only trail in the world, stretches more than 2,200 miles and runs through 14 states located along the east coast of the United States. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy estimates that more than 2 million visitors take a hike on part of the trail at least once each year. A nail salon manager was convicted Monday of setting a fire that killed two firefighters in Kansas City, Missouri. The Kansas City Star reports that a Jackson County circuit judge found 46-year-old Thu Hong Nguyen guilty of two counts of second-degree murder, second-degree arson and second-degree assault. Her sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 14. She could be facing to up to 30 years in prison for each murder charge. After Judge Joel P. Fahnestock's verdict, Nguyen was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs. hu Hong Nguyen makes a court appearance with her lawyer Lexi Thanh Nguyen at Jackson County Circuit Court in Kansas City, Mo - November 12, 2015 Forty-three-year-old Larry Leggio (L) and 39-year-old John Mesh (R) were killed when a brick wall fell on them Forty-three-year-old Larry Leggio and 39-year-old John Mesh were killed when a brick wall fell on them as they fought a fire at a three-story building containing Nguyen's nail salon in October 2015. Two other firefighters were seriously injured. 'It answers a lot of questions that we've all had deep down in our heart and has lifted a little bit of weight off our chest to where we can finally continue on with our healing process,' said Missy Leggio, the widow of Larry Leggio, after the verdict. Judge Joel P. Fahnestock (pictured) found the 46-year-old Nguyen guilty of two counts of second-degree murder, second-degree arson and second-degree assault 'We still have a little bit of a way to go.' 'On behalf of the Leggio family and the Kansas City Fire Department, we just want to extend our thank you to the prosecution team, the judge all the hours the ATF and the attorneys have put into this case,' Missy Leggio added. According to authorities, Nguyen lit a fire in the nail salon's storeroom located on the 2600 block of Independence Boulevard on Oct. 12, 2015 and was the last person seen leaving the building. More than 100 firefighters responded to the the three-alarm blaze, which was subsequently investigated by officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. 'The ATF is extremely grateful to the Jackson County prosecutor's office and their diligence in seeking justice in this case,' George Lauder, special agent in charge of the federal bureau in Kansas City. 'Our thoughts are with the Mesh and Leggio families,' Lauder added. The prosecution portrayed Nguyen as someone who had a habit of burning businesses for insurance money. Nguyen also was found guilty of first-degree arson in a separate fire in 2013 at a nail salon she operated in the Kansas City suburb of Lee's Summit. Nguyen was not guilty of one count of causing a catastrophe, however, which is defines as causing substantial damage to five or more buildings. 'It's been a long couple of years,' said Jim Mesh, John Mesh's brother. 'On behalf of the Mesh family we'd like to thank the prosecutor's office and the ATF. We're very happy with the verdict.' A Kuwaiti Instagram star has been slammed for criticising new laws introduced to improve conditions for Filipino domestic workers. Make-up artist Sondos Alqattan, who has 2.3million followers, was outraged that 'servants' would have a day off every week and be allowed to keep their passports. She posted her furious rant online and it has since gone viral, attracting critical comments from social media users in the Middle East and Philippines. 'How can you have a servant at home who keeps their own passport with them?' she raged, adding: 'Whats worse is they have one day off every week.' She continued: 'If they run away and go back to their country, who will refund me? Honestly I disagree with this law. I dont want a Filipino maid any more.' Reforms were introduced in May to protect the rights of Filipino domestic workers in Kuwait, which lies between Iraq and Saudi Arabia. The agreement followed months of strained diplomatic relations between the two countries over treatment of overseas employees. Sondos Alqattan ranting about reforms introduced in May to improve conditions for Filipino domestic workers In February, the Philippines issued a temporary ban on workers travelling to Kuwait after a 29-year-old Filipino was found mutilated in a freezer in an abandoned flat. Make-up artist and Instagram star Alqattan has 3.2million followers Alqattan's video, which she filmed while sitting in the front seat of a luxurious car, provoked uproar. Migrante International, an advocacy group for overseas Filipino workers, said she sounded like 'a slave owner', the Guardian report. It added that the social media icon had 'a backward outlook which literally belongs to the dark ages'. Critics are demanding that Alqattan's sponsors drop their lucrative endorsement deals with her. Brands that she has worked with in the past include Max Factor and MAC Cosmetics. An estimated 660,000 domestic migrant workers are living in Kuwait, which has a population of four million. Authorities discovered 65 pounds of cocaine worth more than $1million inside a vehicle that was delivered on a car carrier to a western New York auto dealership. The drugs were found in a Florida-registered Mercury Mariner SUV that arrived at Grand Island on Thursday, according to US Attorney James P Kennedy Jr. The man who picked up the vehicle, Edgar Joel Jimenez-Rodriguez, 38, is now facing federal drug charges. Authorities discovered 65 pounds of cocaine worth more than $1million inside a Mercury Mariner being delivered to an auto dealership in Grand Island, New York, on Thursday The SUV raised suspicion when it was delivered to the Fuccillo Toyota dealership at around 7pm Thursday alongside several Toyota vehicles, The Buffalo News reports. Jimenez-Rodriguez arrived at the dealership as the vehicles were unloaded from the carrier. Once the Mercury Mariner was unloaded, the 38-year-old got into the SUV and drove out of the lot. He was later stopped by police who had observed plastic 'protruding' from the rear of the vehicle, Kennedy said. A US Border Patrol K-9 Unit was called to the scene authorities obtained a search warrant for the vehicle, discovering the large quantity of cocaine inside. US Attorney James P Kennedy Jr said the bust was one of the largest local drug seizures 'in quite some time' at a press conference Monday The man who picked up the vehicle, Edgar Joel Jimenez-Rodriguez, 38, is now facing a charge of possession with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine Kennedy said the bust was one of the largest local drug seizures 'in quite some time' at a press conference Monday. 'The street value is well in excess of $1million. This is clearly a significant load,' he said. 'Obviously, this is not a street-level dealer. This is a significant trafficker.' Jimenez-Rodriguez, of North Tonawanda, faces a charge of possession with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and will appear in court Tuesday. If convicted he could be sentenced to a minimum of 10 years in prison or a maximum of life in prison and a $10million fine. The driver of the car hauler has not been charged as of Monday afternoon, and investigators say the dealership itself had no involvement. Kennedy declined to comment on whether Jimenez-Rodriguez has a criminal record. Kennedy said: 'Obviously, this is not a street-level dealer. This is a significant trafficker' Advertisement Incredible images have been released to commemorate the 84th anniversary of the opening of the forgotten beach that once lay right in the middle of London - along the banks of the River Thames. The stunning shots show the famous Windmill Theatre girls running along the beach during a brief break between shows, women relaxing on deck chairs as their children play in the sand and people paddling in the river. Other remarkable pictures show the Tower Bridge in the background, the beach packed to capacity and the Governor of the Tower, Colonel E.H. Carkeet-James at the opening ceremony in 1946 after the war finished. Amazing images have released to commemorate the 84th anniversary of the opening of the forgotten beach that once lay right in the middle of London - along the banks of the River Thames. Boys splash in the river with Tower Bridge behind them The famous Windmill Theatre girls work hard, but they also found time to play between shows. London's own beach by the Thames at Tower Bridge was close enough to the theatre for them to change into swimsuits and enjoy a brief breather with hundreds of Londoners who are enjoying a spell of early summer. Left-to-right is Josephine Hamlett, Jill Anstey, Anita D'Ray, Avril Amos, Toni Leighton and Mavis Greenaway The black and white photographs showcase a forgotten time in history when London had its very own beach. On 23 July, 1934 the Tower Hill Improvement Trust opened its beach on the banks of the Thames close to Tower Bridge in London Children do what children do best - find something to play with - while the woman looks up, maybe keeping an eye on the weather In 1939 with the start of WWII and the evacuation of many of London's children the beach closed. This shot is the 1946 reopening when Tower guards helped celebrate the beach party The Windmill Theatre girls dock besides the Thames beach A trip to the seaside was financially out of reach for most east end children so they brought the beach to London - a stretch of shingly, muddy foreshore, uncovered at low tide and brought in 1,500 tons of sand in barges to cover it King George V decreed that the beach was to be used by the children of London and that they should be given 'free access forever'. This stunning shot shows it was still a popular spot in 1952 The King's blessing was necessary as a proclamation by King Edward III forbade swimming here 'on pain of death'. It was just like a proper beach with deckchairs for hire, ice cream carts, sandcastle building and the chance to paddle This 1952 photo shows Mrs D.E. Greenfield (in chair) and Mrs B.R. Kirk, both of Camberwell, ensuring daytime peace for night-working husbands, who are sleeping at their homes by taking their children to the popular Tower Beach, according to the original caption This 1951 photo was captioned as 'Kevin Murphy, a 14-month-old youngster from Shoreditch, London, discarded convention with his clothes when 11-year-old sister Patricia introduced him to Old Father Thames at Tower Beach, near the Tower of London. Passing shipping provides the waves for the youngsters who splash around at London's Seaside' When the beach opened a newspaper reported 'When it was opened a few weeks ago they expected that 500 children a day would visit it. But there were 5,000 a day from the beginning, and considerably more since the summer holidays started.' It was estimated that between 1934 and 1939 over half a million people used the beach At the 1946 reopening Chief Warder A.P. Cook, D.C.M., M.M., B.E.M., ( Distinguished Conduct Medal, Military Medal and British Empire Medal ) of the Tower of London talks to visitors An 'American Owned' Texas lawn mowing company owner is being accused of racism after a business card surfaced, in which the company proclaims it is 'Your Alternative to Illegal Lawn Services.' Jeff Hinkle, owner of Mow Masters, located in Carrollton, Texas, felt the internet burn when one of his demo business cards surfaced and made the rounds on social media on July 18. The text-heavy card featured an American flag along with the declaration, 'High business standards, follow tax laws, best credentials, ethics, ratings and reviews.' It also proclaimed that the company is 'Taking back Carrollton - One lawn at a time' and that its employees are 'crime and drug free' and that it is insured. Jeff Hinkle, owner of Texas' Mow Masters, caused a social media stir when it was revealed that he had once considered writing 'Your Alternative to Illegal Lawn Services' on his business card In big, bold, black type, the card states 'AMERICAN OWNED' and 'Your Alternative to Illegal Lawn Services.' People upset by Hinkle's apparent 'racist, nativist, MAGA-inspired business card,' as one Twitter user called it, were quick to express their views in reviews of the company. 'Mow Masters is a racist company, trying to "get ahead" simply by the color of their skin. Disgusting,' read one new Yelp review. 'They left me an advertisement for their service that reads "Your Alternative to Illegal Lawn Services" and "Employees are crime free" which is a completely bigoted thing to advertise,' another Yelp reviewer wrote. Another Yelp reviewer wrote, 'He's using the same rhetoric as Trump to get people in Carrollton to switch over to his services because its "American made." Hinkle appeared to defend himself on Yelp, writing in response to several one-star reviews, 'These reviews are grossly misinterpreted. This is not an attack on the Hispanic people. My deceased wife is Hispanic, my son is brown... This is about about economic! Giving customers a choice on who they what to hire! It's so sad that you see racism every where you look and seek to destroy honest, law abiding, tax paying businesses. What do you hate America so much!' People unhappy with Hinkle's supposed use of racism to promote his business were quick to vent their feelings on Yelp and other review sites Since the sample business card went viral, Hinkle told CBS DFW that he has gotten death threats and is now concerned about his family's safety. His company website and his personal LinkedIn page have been deleted and the phone number attached to his business card has been disconnected. In a statement to CBS DFW, Hinkle said that when the business cards were being designed, several samples were made up 'to determine which wording would be used to let customers know there are legitimate, honest, tax paying lawn services with excellent credentials and verifiable backgrounds.' He said that the business card image floating around the internet was actually just a sample card that he had made up three years ago and was not meant to be distributed. He also shared a picture of what his current business card looks like. 'Thank you for choosing Mow Masters and rewarding U.S.A. Owned, legitimate, tax paying companies for doing the right thing!' the new card reads. Where it once said 'American owned,' the card now reads 'GOD BLESS AMERICA' in bold red type, and the American flag has been replaced with a graphic of a man pushing a mowing machine. While the 'American owned' phrase might not have made the business card cut, it does appear that the slogan is still part of Hinkle's marketing campaign, considering there are pictures of it being used on his truck signs and elsewhere. CBS DFW reported that at least three of Hinkle's employees are Mexican. Two women from Minnesota who were confronted while they breastfed at a public pool have received the support of dozens of other breastfeeding moms. Stephanie Buchanan and Mary Davis were relaxing in the children's pool with their babies at the Aquatic Center in Mora, near Minneapolis when Stephanie's three-month-old son became hungry and started crying. Stephanie began nursing little Roman when a woman came over to tell her that she needed to cover up her breast. But then Mary, decided to breastfeed her baby as well in order to show solidarity with her friend and sister-in-law. Stephanie Buchanan, left, and Mary Davis, right, were asked to cover up or stop breastfeeding in the kiddie pool in Mora, near Minneapolis After the pair where thrown out of the pool, the pair were joined by a number of other moms A member of the staff approached the pair as well as another patron who was using the pool Then, a pool employee came over to ask them both to cover up or move to the locker room. 'A patron came up, a lady, at the pool, and told me that I needed to cover up because her sons were swimming.' The nursing mothers refused and instead decided to leave the pool, but as they left, they were approached by a police officer. 'Minnesota state law protects me to feed my baby anywhere that I need to,' Stephanie told the officer to which he replied, 'I understand, and I let the establishment know, but they reserve the right to ask you to leave.' The friends then organized a Poolside Nurse-In protest with dozens of breastfeeding moms showing up to nurse their babies outside the pool The pool say they asked the pair to move to the locker rooms to breastfeed because it was making other swimmers uncomfortable The moms said they felt humiliated at the way they were treated for the most natural of processes. 'There's not really a choice sometimes,' Stephanie said to the Press Republican. 'So, I was wearing a one-piece swimsuit, slipped my strap down and just fed him.' Stephanie aired her frustrations on Facebook: 'Mora aquatic center lost my business forever, today. They called the police on me for nursing our babies in public. I wasn't flashing them around, nobody saw any nipple, there were other moms there nursing their babies, and LOTS of other women showing more skin than me but because one woman saw me and complained, this establishment called the police. 'I could not get charged with anything but the Mora pool said that if I was not going to feed my baby in the locker room, that as a private business they reserve the right to ask me to leave. I don't expect any grown adult to go eat in the locker room and I'm not going to remove the other children I have with me to go sit in the locker room also while I feed my baby, it's absolutely disgusting and maddening that this is how this establishment treats moms!!! I hope they understand the backlash that companies receive over stuff like this.' The friends are sister-in-laws to one another - and have several young children between them Mary and Stephanie are both planning to host another 'nurse-in' protest next month Over the weekend dozens of other moms have since joined Mary and Stephanie to protest outside the pool and breastfed their own children in support of the two women. 'To get such an overwhelming community and state response from not just moms, but dads and other family members has been amazing,' Stephanie says. 'We are really really thankful for all the support that we received.' Minnesota law states: 'A mother may breastfeed in any location, public or private, where the mother and child are otherwise authorized to be' Officials with the city and the Aquatic Center have since issued an apology and say that neither of the nursing women were asked to leave. 'While we always have supported nursing mothers, the situation inside of the kiddie pool made many patrons uncomfortable, but neither woman was asked to leave.' Mary Davis says that such an apology falls short. 'We just don't want any other mom to feel that she needs to cover up,' she said to the Press Republican. 'People have no problem seeing puppies feed from their mama, and it's so cute, but then the minute a mom starts to breast-feed some people say it makes them comfortable. They don't like it, they have a certain set of expectations about how her mother should breast-feed,' she said. The mothers are filing discrimination charges against the city of Mora and the county. The city said it supports breastfeeding mothers, but also acknowledged that some patrons felt uncomfortable during the incident. Another nurse-in protest outside the Aquatic Center is planned for next month. The pair say they hope the small demonstration will help normalize breast-feeding and bring about greater awareness and understanding. President Donald Trump is exploring ways to remove the security clearances of former CIA chief John Brennan, former FBI director James Comey and other Obama era national security officials who have been critical of his administration. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders made the shocking announcement at her briefing on Monday and charged the officials with using their security clearances for political means and financial gain. Former deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Andrew McCabe, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former Director of the National Security Agency Michael Hayden, and former National Security Advisor Susan Rice are also on the White House list. Former CIA director John Brennan (L) and former director of National Intelligence James Clapper are in danger of losing their security clearances after angering the president Former FBi director James Comey no longer has a security clearance Former deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Andrew McCabe was fired by the Trump administration and lost his security clearance at that time Sarah Huckabee Sanders made the shocking announcement in her briefing on Tuesday Former National Security Advisor Susan Rice is on the White House list for losing her clearance Former Director of the NSA Michael Hayden is under fire from the Trump administration 'The president is exploring the mechanisms to remove security clearances because they've politicized and in some cases monetized their clearances,' she said. 'It's extremely inappropriate, and the fact that people with security clearances are making baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence,' she added. It's unclear what she meant by the monetization accusation. Some of the former officials are contributors to news networks, which pay them for their work. But all of the officials have been deeply critical of the Trump administration in one way or another. Criticism of Trump John Brennan called the President Trump's comments in his press conference with Vladimir Putin 'treasonous.' Brennan tweeted: 'Donald Trump's press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of 'high crimes & misdemeanors.' It was nothing short of treasonous. Not only were Trump's comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you???' James Comey wrote a book 'A Higher Loyalty' about his time as FBI director and how Trump fired him. His firing resulted in the special counsel examining whether the president was obstructing the investigation into Russia's role in the 2016 election. Comey said of Trump: 'My impression was he looked exactly like he did on television, except he looked shorter to me than he did on television, but otherwise exactly the same.' Andrew McCabe, who was fired by the Trump administration, said of his firing: 'I am being singled out and treated this way because of the role I played, the actions I took, and the events I witnessed in the aftermath of the firing of James Comey.' James Clapper said in December of Trump and Putin's relationship that Putin, a former KBG operative 'knows how to handle an asset, and that's what he's doing with the president.' Michael Hayden responded to a Trump tweet in November attacking CNN and praising Fox News with: 'If this is who we are or who we are becoming, I have wasted 40 years of my life. Until now it was not possible for me to conceive of an American President capable of such an outrageous assault on truth, a free press or the first amendment.' Susan Rice denied a report that she used intelligence for political purposes: 'Absolutely not for any political purposes, to spy, expose, anything.' She also denied leaking any information about former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn: 'I leaked nothing to nobody and never have and never would.' Advertisement Asked if the White House was doing this because of their criticism, Sanders responded: 'I think you are creating your own story there.' She added: 'The president doesn't like the fact that people are politicizing agencies and departments that are specifically meant to not be political and not meant to be monetized off of security clearances.' Sanders didn't have details on how the clearance could be removed. 'As of now we're exploring the mechanism on those specific names,' she said. At least two of the officials Comey and McCabe do not currently have clearances, according to The Washington Post. Comey hasn't had a security clearance for many months, a source close to him told the paper. McCabe's clearance was deactivated when he was fired from the FBI, said his spokesman Melissa Schwartz. 'Andrew McCabe's security clearance was deactivated when he was terminated, according to what we were told was FBI policy,' she wrote on Twitter. 'You would think the White House would check with the FBI before trying to throw shiny objects to the press corps...' Sanders was also asked if the White House was politicizing the security clearance issue as they accused the former intel chiefs of doing. 'The president is not not making baseless accusations of contact with a foreign government and accusing the president of treasonous activity,' she responded. Clapper went on CNN afterward to call the move 'a petty thing to do.' 'For political reasons this is a petty way of retribution, I suppose for speaking out against the president which I think on the part of all of us, are borne out of genuine concerns about President Trump,' he said. He added: 'Security clearance has nothing to do with how I or any of us feel about the president. And I don't get the briefings. I don't have access to classified information. It's frankly more of a courtesy that former senior officials get the security clearance. Haven't had a case of using it. Has no bearing on my regard or lack thereof for President Trump or what he's doing.' And Hayden tweeted whether or not he had a clearance would not affect his work. 'I dont go back for classified briefings. Won't have any effect on what I say or write,' he wrote. While Clapper and Hayden have said their clearance status doesn't matter, other officials do use their security clearance to perform lucrative consulting work. The threat of losing their status and, therefore, any employment obtained on the contingency of having a clearance, could have a chilling effort on potential critics. A security clearance requires a security clearance investigation completed within the past 5 years for a Top Secret clearance and 10 years for a Secret clearance, according to the State Department website. High-level officials also typically keep their clearances for years so they can provide counsel to their successors and be called upon by their advice. There are 13 guidelines that, if violated, could result in a security clearance being revoked. They include criminal activity, sudden unexplained wealth, helping a foreign government, alcohol or drug addiction, and unauthorized disclosure of classified information. Any president can classify or declassify information as he see fits. It's unclear if Trump could simply order the clearances revoked. Sanders' announcement follows Republican Senator Rand Paul's demand that Brennan lose his security clearance. Brennan has been the most vocal in the wake of Trump's meeting in Helsinki with Putin. In a series of tweets, Paul charged the former intelligence chief with making money off his clearance and said he would meet with Trump on Monday to demand it be revoked. Michael Hayden tweeted a loss of security clearance would not affect his work A spokesperson for Andrew McCabe said he lost his clearance when he was fired Republican Sen. Rand Paul wants former CIA chief John Brennan to lose his security clearance Former CIA chief John Brennan said President Trump's remarks in his press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin was 'treasonous' Sen. Paul charged Brennan with making money off his security clearance Sen. Paul said he would meet with President Trump on the issue Sen. Paul tweeted after his meeting with Trump where he appeared to take credit for the move Paul wrote he didn't think the former officials should use their status for paid speeches or news network contributor contracts Paul's office did not respond to DailyMail.com's request for comment. 'Is John Brennan monetizing his security clearance? Is John Brennan making millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks on @realDonaldTrump?,' the senator tweeted Monday morning. He wrote in a later tweet: 'Today I will meet with the President and I will ask him to revoke John Brennan's security clearance!' It's unclear when that meeting took place but Paul tweeted about it shortly after Sanders' briefing and appeared to take credit for the White House move. 'Just got out of WH meeting with @realDonaldTrump. I restated to him what I have said in public: John Brennan and others partisans should have their security clearances revoked,' he wrote. He also clarified he didn't think the officials should get speaking fees or network contracts based on their status. 'Public officials should not use their security clearances to leverage speaking fees or network talking head fees,' he wrote on Twitter. Paul, a maverick GOP senator who does not always have the best relationships with the Republican Party or Trump, has emerged as one of the president's biggest champions on his meeting with Putin. He also defended Trump's criticism of special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, telling CBS News: 'The President has gone through a year and a half of totally partisan investigations - what's he supposed to think?' The president tweeted his thanks to Paul in return. Paul plans to travel to Russia in early August on behalf of the administration, according to Politico. Brennan served as President Barack Obama's CIA director and left the job in January 2017 after Trump was inaugurated. Since then he has become one of the president's harshest critics. Brennan soundly criticized Trump after his press conference with Putin in Helsinki last week, calling it 'nothing short of treasonous.' He also accused the president of being 'wholly in the pocket of Putin.' 'Donald Trump's press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of 'high crimes & misdemeanors.' It was nothing short of treasonous. Not only were Trump's comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you???,' tweeted Brennan. President Trump has been just as critical of former CIA Chief John Brennan as Brennan has been of him Sen. Rand Paul has emerged as one of Trump's biggest champions on Russia He was expressing his fury that the president declined to back the U.S. intelligence community's assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election. Putin denied Russia had any role in the election. Trump was asked if he believed his Russian counterpart or his intelligence chiefs. 'I don't see any reason why it would be' Russia, the president said. 'I have great confidence in my intelligence people,' he added, 'but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today. And what he did is an incredible offer. He offered to have the people working on the case come and work with their investigators with respect to the 12 people. I think that's an incredible offer.' The president later clarified his remarks to say he did believe intelligence assessments that Russia meddled in the 2016 contest. Trump also fired back at Brennan, slamming him in an interview with Fox News Channel'sTucker Carlson. 'I think Brennan is a very bad guy, and if you look at it, a lot of things happened under his watch,' Trump told Carlson. 'I think he's a very bad person.' Brennan has not held back in the harsh language he uses to describe the president. In June op-ed he wrote for The Washington Post, Brennan called Trump a 'snake-oil salesman' who has shown 'mean-spirited, malicious, and highly abnormal behavior.' Trump fired back then too. He attacked Brennan on Twitter after the op-ed appeared, quoting a former Secret Service agent who appeared on 'Fox & Friends' and called Brennan a liar. London commuters faced another sweaty commute today just hours after heading home in temperatures of 97F (36C) inside crammed Tube carriages. City workers wiped the sweat from their brows, buttoned down their shirt collars and rolled up their sleeves as they suffered the uncomfortable journeys in silence. While Britons basked in the sunshine - with a year high 91.9F (33.3C) in Suffolk yesterday - London commuters entered the depths of the stuffy Underground. Commuters struggle on a stuffy Victoria line train on the Underground this morning A woman fans herself on a hot Victoria line train during the London heatwave this morning Commuters try to stay cool on the Victoria line as it is hit by further soaring temperatures The mercury went from 86F (30C) at the entrance to Liverpool Street station to 91F (33C) on the platform of one of the capital's deepest and oldest Tube lines. The red hot Central line has been clacking through the tunnels with basic air ventilation systems since 1900. It's London's longest Tube line at 34 miles long. Passengers had no option but to travel in sauna-like carriages, where the temperature rocketed to a baking 97F (36C). Sarah Gordon, a lawyer from Finchley Road, North London, usually avoids peak times in the heat and enjoys the delights of the air-conditioned Metropolitan line trains. But she was outraged by the Central line conditions as she travelled through its busiest stations at 6.30pm to try on bridesmaids' dresses at Oxford Circus. The 35-year-old said: 'Knowing it is 36C (97F) down here is shocking - that is almost body temperature. 'It is awful when you get on a train as normal and you leave soaked through with sweat. 'I am going to try on bridesmaids' dresses for my best friend's wedding and it will feel absolutely disgusting and sticky after this journey. 'If this was my commute I would want to work from home or move home or job to avoid the hot, sweaty journey. 'You would need to go home and shower before doing anything else.' London commuters cooked inside crammed Tube carriages yesterday as temperatures hit 92F Passengers had no option but to travel in sauna-like trains with very basic air conditioning Commuters fanned themselves down on a Central Line train during their sticky, stuffy journey A thermometer reads nearly 100F on a Central line tube train yesterday evening A young girl tries to cool herself down with an electric fan as her family squeeze into a carriage A woman clutches a bottle of water in an attempt to keep hydrated on the Central line Sam Mitchell, 27, is a trainee solicitor who uses the Central line to commute from East Acton in West London to St Paul's every weekday. He often waits 15 minutes fighting for a space on an overcrowded carriage and said the worst part of his 35-minute sweltering journey is between Marble Arch and St Paul's where overcrowding is pushed to the maximum. He said: 'This commute in this heat is the worst way to start my day. It is really uncomfortable. There is no air conditioning which is appalling.' Michael Obire, 25 of Marylebone, has started taking a longer, alternative route to commute to his job as a sales executive at St Paul's. A woman waves a fan in the direction of her friend to try keep her cool while riding the train Passengers were on top of one another in the sweaty carriages where it was almost 100F The Central line has been travelling with basic air ventilation systems since the year 1900 City workers wiped the sweat from their brows and buttoned down their shirt collars Commuters ride a packed Central Line Tube train in London during high temperatures Mr Obire said: 'My tactic is to stand next to the carriage door window where you can catch a slight breeze. The Central and Northern lines are the worst. 'It is too hot down there. They are the most crowded, especially in zones one and two. I avoid it when I can in this heat.' Kavina Depala, an 18-year-old sales executive, takes the Central line from Tottenham Court Road to St Paul's as part of her daily commute from High Barnet. She said: 'I dread the rush hour. It's really hot and stuffy. There are so many people and it is boiling on the train.' Fox & Friends First co-hosts Rob Schmitt and Jillian Mele got an unexpected earful about President Donald Trump's controversial immigration policy from a Massachusetts Democrat after a booking mix-up. The morning talk show had planned to invite Ann Kirkpatrick, a Democrat running for the US Congress in Arizona, who was jeered during a primary debate last week after expressing support for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Instead, they unwittingly got Massachusetts State Senator Barbara L'Italien, who is also running for Congress and is a vehement opponent of the Trump administrations zero-tolerance stance concerning undocumented immigrants. Duped: Fox & Friends First hosts Jillian Mele and Rob Schmitt on Monday got an earful about President Trump from Massachusetts State Senator Barbara L'Italien after a booking snafu The hosts thought they were talking to Ann Kirkpatrick, a Democrat running for the US Congress in Arizona who was jeered last week for expressing support for ICE Operating under the assumption that they were addressing Kirkpatrick, Schmitt and Mele asked her to explain why she supports ICE. Appearing on a split screen, L'Italien delivered a diatribe directed at the president, who is known to be an avid viewer of Fox News. After L'Italien's feed was cut off, she delivered her full statement on YouTube (pictured) Good morning, Im actually here to speak directly to Donald Trump. I feel that whats happening at the border is wrong, said LItalien. I believe that separating kids from their parents is illegal and inhumane. L'Italien then identified herself by name and revealed that she reprents a large immigrant community in Massachusetts. I keep thinking about what were putting parents through and imagining how terrifying that must be for those families, imagining how it would feel not knowing if Id ever see my kids again, she continued. We have to stop abducting children and ripping them from their parents arms, and stop putting kids in cages, and stop making 3-year-olds defend themselves in court. Schmitt, still thinking he was talking to Kirkpatrick, attempted to interject, pointing out that ICE officers have stopped separating immigrant families at the border. Not impressed: Schmitt later took to Twitter, railing against L'Italien for hijacking the show with a 'publicity stunt' Ann Kirkpatrick, of Arizona, also weighed in on the confusion involving her and LItalien L'Italien again stated her name to clear up the misunderstanding, but Schmitt appeared confused and inquired of Mele: 'Who is this?' After L'Italien's feed was cut off by the shows producers, Schmitt recapped: that didn't go as planned.' Mele chimed in: 'that's what happens sometimes.' At the conclusion of the broadcast, Schmitt took to Twitter, railing against L'Italien for hijacking the show with a 'publicity stunt.' in a follow-up tweet, he derided her as 'desperate for attention.' His co-presenter, Mele, also addressed the awkward interview. 'One heck of a Morning so far, she tweeted. By the way, kind of a weak move to do this on live TV.' Fox & Friends First Executive Producer Desiree Dunne later released a statement accusing L'Italien of taking advantage of a misunderstanding and lying her way onto the show to deliver her message. This morning we invited Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick to appear on Fox & Friends First through her press contact on file Joe Katz, who accepted the invitation on Kirkpatricks behalf, Dunne explained. Katz followed with an email confirming the segment, which also included background information and a campaign logo for Ann Kirkpatrick. During the actual segment, Barbara LItalien, appeared on camera instead of Kirkpatrick. Despite speaking to producers prior to the interview, LItalien did not identify herself as anything other than Kirkpatrick until she was live on air, at which point we ended the interview. L'Italien's campaign largely corroborated Dunne's account of the chain of events that landed her as an unexpected guest on Fox & Friends First. The candidate herself struck a defiant tone when addressing the incident in a series of tweets on Monday. Just did an appearance on @FoxNews to talk to Donald Trump about his vile, racist policies at the border, she wrote. 'As the state senator from a strong immigrant community where people are living in fear, this morning I took an opportunity to amplify their voices directly to @realDonaldTrump the only place where I knew he would be listening - Fox News, LItalien later tweeted, adding a link to a video of her appearance. Meanwhile, Ann Kirkpatrick, of Arizona, also weighed in on the confusion involving her and LItalien, accusing Fox News 'and other outlets' of putting out 'false reports regarding her stance on ICE. Her tweet was accompanied by a detailed statement calling for a 'top-to-bottom' reform at ICE and saying she is 'disgusted by the Trump politics aimed at immigrant families.' Prosecutors have now gained access to 12 recordings kept by longtime Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, a federal court revealed. The tapes were among voluminous materials being reviewed by a court-appointed special master for possible conflict of interest issues, after the FBI raided Cohen's home and office in April. It wasn't immediately known what was on 11 of them but one tape has been revealed to include conversations about a former Playboy model who claims she had an affair with Trump. 'On July 20, the parties withdrew their designations of 'privileged' as to 12 audio items that were under consideration by the Special Master,' according to the Friday court filing in the Southern District of New York, Law and Crime reported. 'Based upon those de-designations, the Special Master released the 12 items to the Government that day.' Prosecutors have gained access to 12 audio recordings belonging to longtime Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen. They were seized in an FBI raid in April The New York Times reported on Friday, the same day the tapes were handed over to prosecutors, that there was a recording of a conversation between Trump and his longtime attorney Michael Cohen two months before Election Day about a Playboy model who claims she had an affair with Trump. It was not immediately clear what the additional tapes referred to. However, based on the order, they have been deemed not to contain privileged communications. The model, Karen McDougal, got a $150,000 payment from the National Enquirer for her story, although it never ran. She says she had a year-long affair with Trump. The FBI seized Cohen's devices during a raid on his home and office in New York this spring. A court then oversaw the culling of millions of documents and files to determine which ones might be protected by attorney-client priveledge. Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani says the recording is two minutes long, the New York Times reported. McDougal says she had a year-long affair with Trump after the birth of his son Baron A new court filing reveals that prosecutors will get 12 Michael Cohen tapes CNN reported on air that Trump only learned of the existence of the tape this week and exclaimed, 'I can't believe Michael would do this to me.' Cohen is under criminal investigation on possible tax and campaign finance charges, and it is unclear if the tape would apply added pressure him. President Trump and his associates are closely watching Cohen to see if he decides to cooperate with authorities should charges be brought against him. If payments to McDougal are deemed to have been an effort to circumvent campaign finance laws and their strict limits on monetary contributions to a political campaign, it could provide legal exposure for Cohen. Giuliani said the recording would play to Trump's benefit. McDougal is seen far right in this photo with Melania Trump (third from left), Donald Trump (center), and Ivanka Trump (third from right McDougal received a $150,000 payment in exchange for her story, which never ran Cohen is under criminal investigation. Authorities obtained tape he made of a conversation with Trump about McDougal 'Nothing in that conversation suggests that he had any knowledge of it in advance,' Giuliani said, according to the Times, and said Trump told Cohen that if he made a payment to McDougal, he should write a check, rather than using cash, so it could be properly documented. In the case of another woman who claimed an affair with Trump, porn star Stormy Daniels, Cohen did write her a check, using an LLC he set up immediately beforehand. Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani said the phone call would be 'exculpatory' for his client The alleged affair began shortly after the birth of Trump's son, Baron One of Cohen's lawyers, Lanny Davis, said 'any attempt at spin cannot change what is on the tape' 'In the big scheme of things, it's powerful exculpatory evidence,' said Giuliani. Lawyer Peter Stris, who negotiated a settlement between McDougal and American Media Inc., tweeted: 'When @realDonaldTrump said we were lying, do you think he meant we WEREN'T?' in a play on Trump's walk-back of his statement about Russian election meddling. The Washington Post reported that the September 2016 story two months before the election involved a plan by Cohen to buy the rights to McDougal's story. But the deal never happened. When the Wall Street Journal broke the story on the payment and the alleged affair days before the election, Trump spokeswoman and later White House communications director Hope Hicks said, 'We have no knowledge of any of this.' Under the arrangement, David Pecker, chairman of American Media, which owns the National Enquirer, oversaw a $150,000 payment to McDougal. Pecker is a longtime friend of Trump's and a political supporter. Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani said it is 'powerful exculpatory evidence' for Trump Cohen met with MSBNC host and New York figure Rev. Al Sharpton, who he says he has known for 20 years. 'Just spent an hour w/ Michael Cohen, Trump's former attorney. I bet you're wondering what we could be talking about! Stay tuned,' Sharpton teased on Twitter. 'I've known [Cohen] for maybe 20 years. He was a Democrat. He used to broker meetings between Trump and I when we were fighting,' Sharpton followed up. Cohen replied to one of Sharpton's tweets, writing: 'I have known Rev for almost 20 years. No one better to talk to!' Porn Star Stormy Daniels' lawyer Michael Avenatti said there are more Cohen tapes out there. 'I know for a fact that this is not the only tape,' Avenatti told MSNBC. 'I think this is a very serious matter and I think that any or all audio tapes that Michael Cohen has in his possession relating to this president should be released for the public,' he said. 'There's nothing that's stopping Michael Cohen from releasing the audio recordings that he made between him and the president concerning my client, Ms. McDougal, and others,' Avenatti added. One of Cohen's lawyers, Lanny Davis, said 'any attempt at spin cannot change what is on the tape.' 'When the recording is heard, it will not hurt Mr. Cohen,' Davis said in a statement. Nearly 300 White Helmets have been left stranded in Syria after efforts to get them out of a war-torn region in the country failed, reports say. The first responders were prevented from reaching an evacuation point in an escape operation yesterday. Up to 800 White Helmets rescue workers were successfully evacuated to Jordan but not everyone made it, the volunteer group told CNN. Syria's civil defence unit, known as White Helmets, are trying to escape the country's war-torn region in the south into Jordan but up to 300 volunteers have been left behind. This file photo shows the group responding after air strikes on Douma in 2016 'The situation is getting worse by the minute, especially after the batch of White Helmets who have managed to leave yesterday morning, the regime is looking for us.' It is reported the remaining White Helmets couldn't reach Israeli-occupied Golan Heights due to fighting between ISIS and the Syrian regime. The saved White Helmets rescue workers in Syria were evacuated with the help of the Israeli military and could be resettled in the UK. Jordan's foreign ministry announced in a statement that the kingdom received 422 Syrian citizens, after earlier saying it had given permission for 800 to arrive. The Syrian regime considers the White Helmets as a 'terrorist organisations' as they operate in areas controlled by opponents to Bashar al-Assad. The group fled the area near the southern border earlier this summer. On Monday Damascus condemned the evacuation, calling it a 'criminal operation.' The UK has backed an international effort to rescue members of the group and their families via the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said in a joint statement with Penny Mordaunt, the International Development Secretary, that the 'brave and selfless' volunteers required 'immediate protection'. An Israeli soldier hands out water on a bus during the evacuation of White Helmets from Syria A convoy on its way from the Golan Heights as the Israeli army helped to rescue White Helmets Jordan has agreed to temporarily house 422 evacuees, although its Foreign Ministry said Britain, Germany and Canada would resettle them. Spokesman Mohammed al-Kayed said the Syrians would remain in a closed area for up to three months before moving on. It is understood that the United Nations Human Right Council's procedures for identifying and resettling refugees would be used to decide who could come to the UK, while their placement would be resolved through the Government's vulnerable persons resettlement scheme. Israel carried out the rescue mission on Saturday night following a request from the 'US, Canada, and EU countries'. It was the first such intervention the country has had in Syria's civil war, now in its eighth year. A spokesman for the Israel Defence Forces said the operation was an 'exceptional humanitarian gesture'. 'Upon request of the US, Canada and European states Israel has completed a humanitarian effort to rescue members of a Syrian civil organisation ('White Helmets') and families,' Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon tweeted. But the military vowed to stay firm in its commitment to a non-intervention policy - where all the warring parties are considered hostile. A video grab shows the evacuation of White Helmet rescuers in Syria on their way to Jordan Family members of the Syrian WHite Helmet rescuers on a bus during the evacuation It is unclear at this time just how many Syrian rescue workers could be relocated to the UK. Mr Hunt and Penny Mordaunt said in a joint statement: 'Following a joint diplomatic effort by the UK and international partners, a group of White Helmets volunteers from southern Syria and their families have been able to leave Syria for safety. 'They are now being assisted by the UNHCR in Jordan pending international resettlement. 'The White Helmets have saved over 115,000 lives during the Syrian conflict, at great risk to their own. Many White Helmets volunteers have also been killed while doing their work - trying to rescue civilians trapped in bombarded buildings or providing first aid to injured civilians. 'White Helmets have been the target of attacks and, due to their high profile, we judged that, in these particular circumstances, the volunteers required immediate protection. We therefore took steps with the aim of affording that protection to as many of the volunteers and their families as possible. 'We pay tribute to the brave and selfless work that White Helmets volunteers have done to save Syrians on all sides of the conflict.' Germany and Canada are also expected to rehouse some of those evacuated. Jordan 'authorised the United Nations to organise the passage of 800 Syrian citizens through Jordan to be resettled in western countries,' the kingdom said. 'The government gave the permission after Britain, Germany and Canada made a legally binding undertaking to resettle them within a specified period of time due to 'a risk to their lives',' it explained. People are escorted to a bus by Israeli soldiers during the evacuation on Sunday People walk with children during the evacuation of White Helmets from war-torn Syria Jordan 'authorised the United Nations to organise the passage of 800 Syrian citizens' the kingdom said. Pictured: Israeli soldiers on a bus Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescues wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-held territory. White Helmets head Raed Saleh said the evacuees had arrived in Jordan after being 'surrounded in a dangerous region'. They were encircled in the provinces of Daraa and Quneitra, he said, including a number trapped between the border with the Golan Heights and advancing Russia-backed regime troops, he told AFP. Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said she 'called for global leadership to support and help these heroes' during a meeting of foreign ministers at the NATO leaders' summit in Brussels a week ago. People board a bus at an unknown location as Israel took White Helmets via the Golan Heights Israeli soldiers guiding members of families of Syrian White Helmet rescuers into a bus Members of the Israeli security forces clear the way for a bus to evacuate the White Helmets Civilians rushing out of the damaged buildings in Syria after airstrikes hit a school housing a number of displaced people. Running toward the danger is a member of the White Helmets Israel has been sending medical aid to civilians who have fled fighting in the Syrian-controlled part of the Golan Heights. Israel seized 1,200 460 square miles of the Golan from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it, in a move never recognised internationally. On June 19, forces of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad launched an Russia-backed offensive to retake Daraa and Quneitra provinces. Who are Syria's White Helmets? Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescues wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-held territory. The White Helmets have rescued thousands of civilians trapped under the rubble or caught up in fighting in battered opposition-held zones along various fronts of Syria's seven-year conflict. Since its formation, when Syria's conflict was nearing its third year, more than 200 of its volunteers have died and another 500 have been wounded. The group's motto -- 'To save one life is to save all of humanity' -- is drawn from a verse in the Koran, although the White Helmets insist they treat all victims, regardless of religion. A wounded White Helmets volunteer evacuates his injured colleague following a reported air strike on the rebel-controlled town of Hammuriyeh in 2017 Some members have received training abroad, including in Turkey, returning to instruct colleagues on search-and-rescue techniques. The group receives funding from a number of governments, including Britain, Germany and the United States, but also solicits individual donations to purchase equipment such as its signature hard hats. Last year, a Netflix production called 'The White Helmets' won an Academy Award for best short documentary. A second film on the group, named 'Last Men in Aleppo,' was nominated for an Oscar in 2018. Advertisement Just a month later, government institutions look set to return to most of these two provinces through a combination of deadly bombardment and Moscow-brokered surrender deals. These deals provide for rebels to hand over their heavy weapons and those who disagree with a regime takeover to be bussed with family members towards opposition-held areas in the north of the country. Jihadists are not party to these deals, and Russian planes bombarded a holdout of Islamic State in Daraa province overnight, a Britain-based war monitor said. More than 20,000 civilians have fled bombardment on the IS-held corner on the border with Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan in the past 24 hours, fleeing into regime-held areas, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor. Four members of an Oklahoma family have been charged with child neglect after a malnourished 15-year-old boy was found living in a barn and eating sticks, leaves and grass to survive. Court records indicate charges were filed on Monday in Lincoln County against the boy's father, Jimmy Lee Jones Sr, 34; stepmother, Amy Adkins Jones, 46; and two older stepbrothers, Jonathan Luke Plank, 20, and Tyler Joe Adkins, 24. Jimmy Jones was also charged with child abuse by injury after allegedly shooting his son in the leg. Adkins Jones was also charged with enabling child abuse by injury for allegedly failing to prevent the abuse. Scroll down for video A 15-year-old boy was found starving, eating sticks and grass, in a barn on his family's farm. Authorities arrested his father, Jimmy Lee Jones Sr., 34, and stepmother, Amy A. Jones, 46 Authorities also arrested the boy's brothers, Tyler Joe Adkins, 24, and Jonathan Luke Plank, 20. All four of the boy's family members were jailed on child neglect complaints Each of the counts carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. Their 15-year-old son, who has not been named, lived on a farm near Meeker. Authorities say the teen weighed 80lbs when he was discovered July 12 sharing the barn with goats, rabbits and chicken. Investigators said last week that in addition to being nearly starved to death - within just days of dying, according to doctors the boy was found with several broken bones, shotgun pellets in his leg and head wounds. Authorities were said to have been tipped off by a concerned passerby by saw the boy outside the barn. After authorities arrived, the boy was taken to OU Children's Hospital for treatment. The court affidavit stated that the boy told authorities his father shot him in the leg with a 12-gauge shotgun about a year ago. The boy also said that when maggots appeared in one of his head wounds, his father dug them out and used superglue to close up the wound. The boy also allegedly said that he hadn't been taken to the hospital because 'doctors are expensive' and that he hadn't been allowed off the farm for about two years, during which his family had said that he was being homeschooled. Investigators noted that while the boy was clearly starving, his parents' home was stocked with provisions and all the other members of his family, as well as the farm animals on the property, appeared to have been well-fed. 'He had to forage for his own food; he wasn't allowed food from inside the house,' Pottawatomie/Lincoln County First Assistant District Attorney Adam Panter told KFOR. The boy's stepmother told authorities that she hadn't realized that the boy was in such bad shape, but admitted that he should have been given medical treatment. A passerby told authorities about seeing the starving boy at his family's Oklahoma farm Authorities said the boy may need to have surgery to remove the sticks and grass from his stomach and may require hospitalization for at least a month. 'Were incredibly thankful that someone called... they literally saved this childs life,' said Panter, according to The Shawnee News-Star. 'He could have died and been buried on that property and no one would have ever known.' Megha Mohan has been appointed the BBC's first 'global gender and identity' correspondent to cover issues from women and sexuality to transgender and ethnicity The BBC has appointed a correspondent to cover gender issues just weeks after coming under fire for having no women among its top ten earners. The role marks the first time the BBC has employed a 'global gender and identity' journalist, who will cover issues such as women, sexuality and race. Megha Mohan, who already works as a senior reporter at the BBC, announced on Twitter that she was taking on the role. 'In September I'll be starting a new job as part of the Specialists Unit for BBC News and World Service Languages,' she said. 'Thrilled to start as the BBC's first global Gender and Identity Correspondent, reporting on issues concerning women, sexuality, race, etc.' It is also believed she will cover issues such as ethnicity and the transgender movement. Miss Mohan, 30, currently works as the corporation's Digital Current Affairs department, where she reports on global issues with a focus on minority women. The excited 30-year-old made announced via Twitter that she'll take up the post in September Her articles have included: 'Secret World: The women in the UK who can not report abuse' and 'Why transgender Africans turned against a famous feminist'. She has also spoken publicly about women in journalism and regularly features on BBC News TV, the World Service and Radio 4. Aside from her work at the BBC, she is a co-founder of The Second Source an initiative set up by a group of women journalists in Britain to tackle harassment in the media. The BBC's top 12 highest-paid stars... and they're all men 1. Gary Lineker 1,750,000 - 1,759,999 2. Chris Evans 1,660,000 - 1,669,999 3. Graham Norton - 600,000 - 609,999 4. Steve Wright 550,000 559,999 5. Huw Edwards 520,000 - 529,999 6. Jeremy Vine 440,000 - 449,999 7. Alan Shearer 410,000 - 419,999 =7. Nicky Campbell 410,000 - 419,999 9. Nick Grimshaw 400,000 - 409,999 =9. Stephen Nolan 400,000 - 409,999 =9. John Humphrys 400,000 -409,999 =9. Andrew Marr 400,000 - 409,999 Advertisement Her appointment comes at a time when the BBC continues to face accusations of pay inequality. A year after it released its first rich list, which led to China Editor Carrie Gracie resigning after it emerged that she was earning tens of thousands less than male counterparts, this year's figures showed that women still lagged a long way behind men on the pay scale. Only 22 out of 64 people on the list of stars earning more than 150,000 a year were women and none was in the top 12 earners. The highest paid female, Claudia Winkleman, was taking home 1.4million less than the top earner, Gary Lineker. Hundreds of female workers are said to have asked for their salaries to be investigated amid concerns that they may have been discriminated against. An independent group of female workers, BBC Women, which includes many high-profile stars, this month vowed to keep fighting. Its statement read: 'This list shows how far the BBC has to go in valuing women and men equally for their work. 'A year on from the formation of our group, many women in all levels of the organisation are still involved in protracted and gruelling processes to address their pay claims. We urge management to resolve these as swiftly as possible and in full accordance with the law. From now on we expect all management decisions on pay, promotion and recruitment to be made with equal pay as a given.' The corporation is also addressing gender issues within its workforce. It has 417 employees who identify as transgender out of a total 21,239 number of staff, according to figures released last year. There are also 786 gay men, 206 gay women and 365 bisexuals among the workforce. The BBC has previously said that it is committed to supporting transgender employees 'through a transition period'. In evidence to regulator Ofcom, the broadcaster said a new scheme will give paid time off to those undergoing a sex change. The guidance added that employees and employer would work together to determine 'the date from which their gender will be changed on all BBC records'. A BBC spokesperson stated: 'Gender and identity issues are of great interest to our audiences around the world and this role will be dedicated to reporting on them. The appointment is not related to the BBC's record on gender pay, which is better than almost all other broadcasters and many other organisations in the media industry.' The White House said Monday that Donald Trump has met with his senior national security team during the week since his one-on-one summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but won't say what they discussed or whether the president took notes during the Helsinki one-on-one with his Russian counterpart. Trump, Putin and their translators were the only people in the room during the historic July 16 meeting. It's unknown whether it was transcribed or recorded. That may have put the two leaders in the position of recalling, purely from memory, two hours of discussions about weighty matters of global significance when they huddled with their senior advisers afterward. Acknowledging that a written or audio record of the summit exists would give congressional Democrats an opening to subpoena it, provoking a nasty fight with the White House over executive privilege. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders deflected questions on Monday about whether anyone took notes or made a recording during Donald Trump's July 16 summit with Vladimir Putin, and she wouldn't say if the president has specifically briefed his national security team about the details Trump was lambasted for declining to publicly chastise Putin over his nation's interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, but insisted that he challenged his Russian counterpart onthe subject something that can't be documented Trump's and Putin's translators were shown in photographs, taken before the historic meeting in Helsinki, with notepads on their laps. No recording devices were visible. New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said last week that the president's translator, 'an official with the U.S. government,' should be compelled to tell Congress what she heard in Helsinki. Bob Corker, the Republican chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said a day later that he was looking into the appropriateness of hauling an executive branch translator to Capitol Hill to ask about her notes. 'All of us want to know what took place in this meeting. ... These are notes taken by translators, you understand, in a meeting. I'm not sure it's even appropriate. We're checking that. If it is, certainly we'll pursue it,' Corker said on CNN. Trump's and Putin's translators were shown in photographs, taken before the historic meeting, with notepads on their laps. No recording devices were visible. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders was asked during Monday's press briefing whether the president briefed National Security Advisor John Bolton, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and Defense Secretary James Mattis after the Helsinki summit. 'The president has met and spoken with all of those individuals since his meeting with President Putin,' she said, while not saying those discussions were summit-related. Pressed on whether the 72-year-old Trump was operating solely from his memory during internal discussions of the event, Sanders again punted. Trump tweeted Monday about his Helsinki summit with Putin, saying he hadn't given anything away Sanders was careful not to acknowledge that the White House had a recording or transcript of the summit meeting; that could create an opening for Congress to demand a copy of it 'The president has met and consulted with all of his national security team, and we feel very confident in that process ... I'm not going to go into the specific details,' she said. Trump raised hackles all over Washington after the summit when he stood next to Putin in a press conference and declined to browbeat him over his nation's interference with the 2016 U.S. election. TIME Magazine took a shot at Trump last week, picturing his face as half-Putin He said at the time that Putin was persuasive in his denials that the Kremlin purposely meddled in the election, and that he couldn't see why Russia would have been involved. Trump later tried to walk back those comments. Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake told reporters last week that members of Congress could see the translator's notes and interview her in person, but only in a classified setting. Sanders contended on Monday that the White House has gone out of its way to brief the public on the substance of the Helsinki summit. 'The president had a press conference. The president's done a number of interviews. We've actually put out quite a bit of information following that meeting,' she said. She told reporters that 'the only specific agreement that was made' between Trump and Putin 'was that the two national security teams from both the United States and Russia would continue, at a working level, these discussions.' Bolton, she added, plans a follow-up meeting next month with Russian officials. And Sanders reiterated that Trump has tried to address election meddling'directly' with Putin 'in person every single time that they have met.' 'He has put [on] unprecedented sanctions and been extremely tough on Russia across a number of fronts, which we've addressed here many times before,' she claimed. 'Frankly, I'm not sure why that is so hard for the media to write about.' Trump tweeted Monday morning that despite his apparent public embrace of Putin, he gave up 'NOTHING' in Finland while establishing a rapport with the man he regards as a 'competitor,' not an enemy. Trump defended his performance while attacking the media who covered it, even as a new poll shows half of Americans disapproved of his conduct in Helsinki. 'When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries,' he tweeted Monday. 'Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media!' the president added. Trump said in Helsinki that the two men discussed a variety of topics in their two-hour meeting. Among them, he explained, were Ukraine, Syria, election interference and the two nations' nuclear arsenals. A Washington Post / ABC News poll found 50 per cent of Americans disapproved of Trump's handling of the summit, compared to 33 per cent who approve. Details of their meeting continue to dribble out, with some tidbits coming from the Kremlin. Anatoly Antonov, Russia's ambassador to the U.S., said Trump and Putin discussed a referendum in separatist-leaning eastern Ukraine. The White House said afterward that the topic would carry 'no legitimacy.' Trump said during last week's joint press conference in Helsinki that he found Putin's denial of election meddling 'powerful.' But he said later in television interview that he believes the consensus of American intelligence agencies that Russia did try to interfere with the 2016 election. Then Trump tweeted Sunday: 'So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign?' 'Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!' It's a misery familiar to countless rail passengers. But not a problem usually experienced by ministers more used to being ferried around in limousines. So spare a thought for the clutch of ministers who were stuck motionless on a London-bound train yesterday afternoon for an hour. The MPs, who were returning from a Cabinet meeting in Gateshead, were held up because of wildfires on the tracks outside York. Environment Secretary Michael Gove could be seen doling out wine and catching up on some reading. Environment Secretary Michael Gove was snapped with a snack and a book, and later one passenger said 'he took the crisps - and a bottle of red and white - and handed them out to the passengers' And MP for Portsmouth North Penny Mordaunt was forced to deliver a speech which she was due to give at a reception for the Global Disability Summit via video link from the train. It is understood that Justice Secretary David Gauke, International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss. One commuter said: It was really packed and people had to come into the carriage. Michael took over as steward, commandeering the food trolley and handing out wine and crisps to all the long-suffering rail passengers. The three hour journey ended up taking more than six hours. A spokesman for Transport Secretary Chris Grayling denied reports he had been delayed. Mr Grayling had been rumoured to be one of the ministers held up. Ministers were returning from a Cabinet meeting where the PM reaffirmed her commitment to advancing the Northern powerhouse. Mrs May promised to set aside an extra 780million to fund an East Coast Mainline upgrade. International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt used a video link to give her speech at a reception for the Global Disability Summit via video link from the train Twitter user @Pavagen shared a picture to his profile of Michael Gove surrounded by sandwich and crisp packets, looking up from his book. The image was captioned: Wildfires have killed trains between York and Doncaster. Environment Minister @michaelgove has been doling out wine to new friends that have been forced to join First in this now declassified train. Sante! Meanwhile a picture of MP for Portsmouth North, Penny Mordaunt was shared by another social media user who said Mrs Mordaunt was using the time to prepare for todays disability summit. One Twitter user wrote: Even government Ministers get stuck on the train. Great to hear @PennyMordaunt message, from somewhere near Tyneside, to the Civil Society Forum ahead of tomorrows #DisabilitySummit North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said a mile of track was engulfed close to the Balne area near Selby. About 300 people have been evacuated in Melbourne after heavy 120km/h winds damaged a 40metre-high crane leaving it in danger of collapsing and causing traffic chaos. The crane on the corner of Bridge Road and Lennox Street in Richmond in the city's south-east was damaged around 11pm on Monday and threatened to collapse during the night. Hundreds of people were forced to leave their homes as a result, and thousands more were left without power across Melbourne. Emergency services received over 350 calls for assistance during the night while winds hit record high speeds - 111km/h in St Kilda and 113km/h in Port Phillip Bay. Scroll down for video Wild 120km/h winds have caused chaos in Melbourne as hundreds were evacuated from homes near a 40metre-high crane arm which was bent backwards in the gale Richmond's busy Bridge Road (pictured) has been closed due to a damaged construction crane Hundreds of people were forced to leave their homes as a result of wild winds, and thousands more were left without power across Melbourne Melbourne experienced intense winds of up to 120km/h on Monday night, and more wild winds are expected again on Tuesday Strong winds caused the 40metre-high crane arm to bend dangerously, but emergency services were forced to wait until daylight to stabilise it. Residents were evacuated to Richmond Town Hall, Bridge Road - one of the city's busiest streets - was closed along with nearby streets and trams were stopped. A section of Bridge Road between Punt Road and Church Street is expected to remain closed for several hours. Motorists are being told to use Victoria Street or Swan Street instead. Heavy winds hit Melbourne overnight and another warning has been issued for Victoria on Tuesday. Damaging winds averaging 60-70km/h with peak gusts of around 90km/h are expected as a cold front moves eastwards across the state. Strong winds caused the 40metre-high crane (left, right) arm to bend dangerously, but emergency services were forced to wait until daylight to stabilise it Residents were evacuated to Richmond Town Hall, Bridge Road - one of the city's busiest streets - was closed along with nearby streets and trams were stopped Damaging winds averaging 60-70km/h with peak gusts of around 90km/h are expected as a cold front moves eastwards across the state As well, alpine areas are expected to receive peak gusts of 100-110km/h, the Bureau of Meteorology said. The affected areas are Warrnambool, Ballarat, Geelong, Melbourne, Wonthaggi, Bacchus Marsh and the Alpine resorts. State Emergency Service advice: - Move vehicles under cover or away from trees - Secure or put away loose items around your house, yard and balcony - Keep clear of fallen power lines Advertisement Home in Melbourne's outer north, east and southeast were hit by blackouts on Sunday night, with 974 homes in Epping affected at 10pm,The Herald Sun reported. At least another 450 properties in the state's east and west were also affected. Meteorologist Peter Newman told the publication that these have been some of the strongest winds around Melbourne. An SES spokesperson told the Herald Sun that they have received 101 emergency calls from central Melbourne since 1pm Monday. They reported to an emergency where a tin roof of a house flew off from the strong gust of winds. The State Emergency Service has advised people to move their vehicles away from trees, secure loose items in and around the house, and to steer clear of fallen power lines. Emergency services received over 350 calls for assistance during the night while winds hit record high speeds - 111km/h in St Kilda and 113km/h in Port Phillip Bay Pictured is Mornington Pier being battered by damaging wind and rain on Monday night While Melbourne is plunged into darkness with damaging winds and heavy rain, Sydney is expecting to continue with another sunny week, until Friday, with maximum temperatures reaching 23 degrees on Tuesday. Queensland is also enjoying a warm and sunny week as temperatures reach a maximum of 25 degrees. The country's capital will be in for another cold week and some morning frost, with a minimum temperature of -2 degrees. In Adelaide, is experiencing a long week of wet weather as temperatures drop and a slight wind increase making it seem cooler than it actually is. Perth is also facing a gloomy and wet week. Tasmania will bear the brunt of the cold as temperatures plummet to a minimum of 4 degrees overnight. The Northern Territory will continue to enjoy warm temperatures, with no rain expected during the week. A mother whose three-year-old son was the victim of an acid attack had been hidden in a safe house after a messy break-up before the evil and targeted hit, it emerged today. The woman, believed to be from eastern Europe, had been living with her three children in a quiet residential street in Worcester for the past eight months after a relationship ended. Her child suffered serious burns when a bright pink acid was thrown over him as he sat in his pushchair in the city's Home Bargains store on Saturday while his mother shopped. Four men have been arrested in connection with the attack - and she is now in a safe house with her son under police protection amid fears they could be attacked again. Three of the men were arrested 130 miles from Worcester in Walthamstow on Sunday and are reportedly eastern Europeans from the Romani community and accomplished bare-knuckle fighters, a neighbour in east London said. One neighbour said there had been 'bad blood' caused by a family dispute and said the attack may have been launched over the end of a relationship with the three-year-old's mother, who could have been the true target. West Mercia Police believe the child was deliberately targeted in Home Bargains on Shrub Hill Retail Park at Tallow Hill. They have released images of three men (pictured) they would like to speak to Police have now arrested four men - but none of them in Worcester. Three were in Walthamstow, London, last night and another in Wolverhampton A source close to the investigation revealed the mother, who has not been named, had fled to Worcester from Wolverhampton after difficulties within her family. Mark Travis, Chief Superintendent of West Mercia Police, hinted that a community dispute may have led to the vile attack A 39-year-old was later arrested in the city. The source said: She had moved to Worcester from elsewhere but hasnt been here long. She had moved because of difficulties within her family. Nobody knows her really well and she didnt have any connection with Worcester. Thats why she was moved here, because she was fleeing her previous situation. Somehow the parties she was in a dispute with found out where she had moved to and thats how this horrendous incident has happened. The acid attack was targeted at her. The child just happened to get in the way. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis, who is leading the investigation, says he is keeping an 'open mind' about the motive and target of the attack. But hinting about a row he said: 'This is not the way to resolve issues and disputes in communities'. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said: 'At this time we are treating this as a deliberate attack on a three-year-old boy.' Pictured: The men wish to speak to The mother screamed What have you done to my baby? after the thugs hurled the pink acid at the toddler in an attack which was captured on CCTV in the discount store. Three men, aged 22, 25, and 26, were arrested in Walthamstow, east London in the early hours of yesterday morning on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm. Neighbours said they believed the attackers were from the 'gypsy community'. On Sunday officers made enquiries near the womans home, asking residents if they had seen any suspicious vehicles or people in the area. And last night police forensic officers could be seen combing the area. They were also seen searching a nearby phone box. Police have said they are keeping an 'open mind' about the attack but do not believe it was gang-related. They have ruled out racial tension or any link to the nearby English Defence League march. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis added: 'Officers are working hard to establish exactly what happened and what the substance involved was.' Pictured: The store in Worcester Police officers conducting a search of Shrub Hill Retail Park in Worcester on Sunday Officers are investigating a suspected acid attack on a three-year-old child on Saturday A neighbour said: Police asked us if we had noticed any strange vehicles or anything disturbing. At first we thought it might about a robbery but we were shocked to find out that it was connected to the horrible acid attack. We have not seen the woman for a few days. Neighbours said she did not appear to have a partner and had been seen taking her children to school each day. A neighbour said: The house she was living in is a safe house. We have been told that someone was paid to attack the woman but they missed and got the child. 'Its disgusting that men would do this. The woman and her children have since been moved to another safe house. A 39-year-old man from Wolverhampton who was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm remains in police custody. The very thin blue line: he's made of paper Pictured: The cardboard PC The police officer looked a bit wooden, and as shoppers got closer, they could see why. This life-size cardboard policeman was spotted in the Worcester branch of Home Bargains yesterday. Flat-pack PCs are an increasingly popular way for cash-strapped forces to boost their street presence. They are often seen in petrol stations to deter motorists from driving away without paying and in shops to discourage shoplifting. Advertisement Yesterday Nick Carson, from West Midlands Ambulance Service, who treated the little boy, told how the fluid had an acrid, chemical smell. He said: Its horrific, absolutely horrific. We had no inkling or any reason to suspect it was an acid attack. We just thought that maybe he had come into contact with some sort of chemical. But to find out afterwards that that was the case, its shocking. The fluid that I saw was pink in colour. It had quite a strong smell. No bleach or acidy type smell but it was an astringent kind of smell. Just smelt like a chemical really. Chief Superintendent Travis said the boys relatives were coming to terms with the shocking attack. He told a press conference: Its a difficult time for them and we need to make sure that while we work through the investigation they are safe and secure and are allowed to deal with the issues that they face. I want to make sure the message is really clear that this is a very, very rare occurrence and what we will do is work to make people understand that this is not the way to resolve issues and disputes in communities. He added: The incident was captured on CCTV but we will not release any footage that showed the substance being thrown or sprayed. A number of other exhibits from the area have also been taken for examinations. We have looked at the movement of people in the footage throughout the area and consider this to be a deliberate act against the little boy. Police in Northern California have arrested a 27-year-old felon on parole who is the sole suspect in a deadly train stabbing that happened Sunday night. Bay Area Rapid Transit Police Chief Carlos Rojas released a mugshot and surveillance photos of John Lee Cowell, who struck 18-year-old Nia Wilson to death in a horror knife attack that has been described as a 'random and unprovoked' incident. The victim's 20-year-old sister, Latifa Wilson, was also hospitalized in stable condition after being injured in the attack that took place at MacArthur Station of the Oakland Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART). BART police finally arrested the suspect around 6:45pm Monday after they received an anonymous tip from another subway rider, Rojas said in a press conference. Cowell was taken into custody at the Pleasant Hill, Contra Costa Centre station and was then transported to the department for questioning. Surveillance footage shows Cowell at the time he 'rapidly struck' the two young women as they departed the train. Not long after, the suspect was spotted as he fled the scene and changed clothes. Police found a bloody knife at the scene shortly after that was believed to be used in the attack. Both victims are black and the suspect is white. Authorities have not determined a motive for the attack and have no evidence thus far that suggest it was racially motivated. Scroll down for videos The left photo released Monday, July 23, 2018, by Bay Area Rapid Transit shows John Lee Cowell, 27, the suspect arrested in the stabbings of two women at a BART station in Oakland, California. The victim who died, Nia Wilson, 18, is pictured right on Facebook Bay Area police released new photos that show suspect Cowell John Lee Cowell. He is seen above in this surveillance image from the night of the stabbing Bay Area police released the above photo from a recent interaction with BART Police. The wanted suspect in the Sunday attack is a violent felon on parole 'Up to this point we don't have any information that was race-motivated, but we can't discard it,' Rojas said. Further investigation is currently underway. The father of the two women talked with KTVU in a brief, emotional interview, after he was called to the scene. 'I want justice for my daughter,' he said, with his eyes welling up with tears, seemingly in disbelief. 'I want justice for my daughter. Please help me get justice for my daughter.' A man, who told the San Francisco Gate he was present when the attack occurred, said he was turned away from the sisters when he heard noise behind him. Then he saw one of the women bleeding from her back, and witnessed the suspect 'poking' the other sister. There was no audible confrontation between the sisters and the suspect, prior to the attack he said. The father of the two women (pictured) talked with KTVU in a brief, emotional interview, after he was called to the scene, pleading for 'justice for my daughter' with tears in his eyes The attack occurred at MacArthur station (pictured), which reopened after the incident at 4.00am on Monday 'I work at Highland Hospital, I see this every single day,' the father said, with tears streaming down his face. 'I never imagined myself going through nothing like this,' he said. 'That's my baby girl laying up there.' He went on to describe the confusion he experienced when he got the phone call on Sunday night that something terrible had happened. 'My daughter called me, crying hysterically, I couldn't understand what she was talking about. She told me to get here to MacArthur park,' he said. 'I get here, I see all the police and ambulance and I run up the platform, and I see my youngest daughter laying up under a tarp, dead, you know?' 'She needs her justice,' Monroe said of Wilson (pictured), adding, 'She was just an innocent kid, and she didnt deserve this. And he did this for no reason' The victims' cousin, Ebony Monroe, said Wilson was a 'beautiful, sweet person' who loved her cousins, makeup and fashion The two women have at least one other sister, named Malika Harris, who confirmed the identity of Wilson (pictured here); Wilson attended Oakland High School Police initially described the attacker as a heavyset male standing about five-feet-nine-inches tall with short blonde hair The two women have at least one other sister, named Malika Harris, who confirmed the identity of Wilson. Wilson attended Oakland High School, Harris said. On Sunday, family members gathered together at MacArthur station, embracing and crying, as police worked to recover whatever evidence they could at the train stop. The victims' cousin, Ebony Monroe, said Wilson was a 'beautiful, sweet person' who loved her cousins, makeup and fashion. 'She needs her justice,' Monroe said. 'She was just an innocent kid, and she didnt deserve this. And he did this for no reason.' The station reopened at 4.00am Pacific on Monday, BART spokesperson Jim Allison said. It had been closed since 9.45pm Pacific on Sunday, as police began their investigation into the attack. Maria Butina's pro-gun activities before her arrest as an accused agent of the Russian government were bankrolled by a Russian billionaire who sits on the board of a U.S. energy company. Konstantin Nikolaev has been identified as the Russian oligarch who helped fund Butina's activities, as she made inroads with the National Rifle Association and prominent conservative groups, the Washington Post reported. Butina told the Senate Intelligence Committee before her arrest last week that she received support from Nikolaev, according to the report. Maria Butina's pro-gun activities were backed by Russian billionaire Konstantin Nikolaev, according to the latest revelation in the alleged spy saga Konstantin Nikolaev has invested in ports and railways, and sits on the board of American Ethane Nikolaev has invested in ports and railways, and his Global Ports Investments went public at a value of $500 million, according to his bio on American Ethane, a Houston-based firm where Nikolaev sits on the board of directors. Nikolaev's son, Andrey, was a Trump campaign volunteer. Although he wasn't identified by name in court records, prosecutors reference a Russian whose wealth was valued by Forbes magazine at $1.2 billion, an amount that matches his estimated wealth. American Ethane inked new business agreement that was formalized during Trump's trip to China, signed while Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping looked on. Butina made inroads with conservative groups including the National Rifle Association Prosecutors who charge Butina and opposed her release on bail referenced a 'known Russian businessman with deep ties to the Russian Presidential Administration' Prosecutors cited her financial ties in arguing she was a flight risk Ultimate access: This is Maria Butina asking Trump a question about Putin at 'Freedomfest' in 2015, when he was campaigning for the Republican nomination According to the firm's web site, the 20-year deal 'was signed by American Ethane and Nanshan Group on November 9, 2017, in the presence of President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping. American Ethane anticipates entering into an additional ethane supply agreement in the future.' Prosecutors who charge Butina and opposed her release on bail referenced a 'known Russian businessman with deep ties to the Russian Presidential Administration' who appears to match up with Nikolaev's description. Prosecutors cited Butina's contacts with Nikolaev as they argued that she is a flight risk and should remain in jail as she awaits trial. The Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has called her arrest 'unacceptable' in a call with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Lavrov 'stressed the unacceptability of the actions of the U.S. authorities who arrested Russian citizen Butina on the basis of fabricated charges, and the need for her early release,' the foreign ministry said Saturday. Reuters reported Monday that Butina in addition to meeting with a series of conservative figures also met with two senior officials at the U.S. Federal Reserve and Treasury Department. Visit: Government evidence shows that Maria Butina, the alleged Russian spy, sent this picture of herself at the Trump inauguration in January 2017 to what they say was her Kremlin handler. Almost all of her exchange has been redacted (right), but her 'handler' replied: 'I have no words.' Nikolaev helped fund Butina as she established the Russian gun rights group Right to Bear Arms, a gun rights group that landed her access in the U.S., where she studied at American University. A Nikolaev spokesman told the Post that the billionaire last had contact with her in 2014. At the time, Butina had a 'public profile in Russia as a blogger on key domestic issues that were of interest.' The spokesman added that Nikolaev's Kremlin connection 'cannot be characterized as deep,' and his only connections to the Russian government 'other than those that are strictly required professionally.' According to an FBI affadivit last week, Butina and Russian banker Alexander Torshin, 'took steps to develop relationships with American politicians in order to establish private, or as she called them, 'back channel' lines of communication.' One Cincinnati police officer had his job already done for him when a man dancing in the streets on bath salts put himself into the cop car. Kyle Carte was just waking up on Saturday morning when his girlfriend spotted a man outside their bedroom window acting 'kind of crazy'. Carte began to film the man, who was swinging and dancing around a wire that was attached to a utility pole. Kyle Carte was just waking up on Saturday morning when his girlfriend spotted a man, believed to be on bath salts, outside their bedroom window acting 'kind of crazy' 'Oh, he's gonna get electrocuted!' Carte's girlfriend can be heard saying off-camera in the clip . 'Bath salts are a hell of a drug man,' she added. The man continues to dance with the wire as Carte says: 'Oh, he's having a blast though.' 'Yeah, he is,' his girlfriend laughs in agreement. The Cincinnati man continues to dance to the music in his head abandoning the pole to run around on the sidewalk and bang on the door of a restaurant The man continues to dance to the music in his head, abandoning the pole to run around on the sidewalk. He starts jumping up and down and clapping his hands against his knees, before running up to a nearby restaurant and banging on the front door. The man then decides to change course when he notices a cop car driving up next to him. The man then decides to change course when he notices a cop car. But instead of running in the opposite direction, the man goes straight toward the police and jumps right in But instead of running in the opposite direction, the man goes straight toward the police. He briefly chats with an officer through the passenger window, then opens the back door and jumps right in. Carte and his girlfriend burst out laughing in shock as the police car drives away with the man inside. 'He's like "S**t, they're taking me out to dinner"', Carte quips. Girls will be offered the option to wear pants or shorts instead of skirts and dresses at every public school as part of a statewide 'modern makeover' of uniform policy. NSW Education Minister Rob Stokes this week scrapped a 24-page school uniform document in favour of a new two-page policy, The Daily Telegraph reported. While it had previously been at a school's discretion to allow girls to choose their uniform, the new policy will make it mandatory to offer a shorts or pants option. 'Parents asked for a better policy and I am proud to provide one. It is important to remember families need to have access to the most affordable uniforms possible,' Mr Stokes said. Scroll down for video Girls will be offered the option to wear pants or shorts instead of skirts and dresses at every NSW public school (stock image) NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian supported the move, noting that in her school days there was no uniform option for girls. 'The new modern makeover makes uniforms practical and comfortable for students, with affordability for parents front and centre,' Ms Berejiklian said. The move brings the state's uniform policy in line with Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia - and promises to protect working families against rising costs. Queensland schoolgirls will be offered the choice to wear pants or shorts from 2019. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian supported the move, noting in her school days there was no uniform option for girls 'In today's day and age, there should be no reason why shorts and pants aren't made part of the school formal uniform,' the state's Education Minister Grace Grace told ABC radio earlier this year. That move followed the decision in September which declared girls at all Victoria state schools would no longer be forced to wear dresses and skirts. Education Minister James Merlino said at the time the changes made 'common sense' and that schools had to provide options 'as far as practicable'. 'It's a relatively minor change to ensure that our expectation is that every school does provide the option of shorts and pants for girls,' Mr Merlino told 3AW. One-eyed white supremacist Ronald Kidwell (pictured), 47, has been arrested and charged with murdering MeShon Cooper, 43, whose body was found inside his home on July 14 A one-eyed white supremacist has been accused of murdering a black woman whom he befriended weeks before her body was discovered inside his Missouri home. Ronald Lee Kidwell, 47, was arrested on July 14, the same day MeShon Cooper's body was found at his residence. Cooper, 43, had been missing for a week when her body was discovered by officers from Shawnee, Lenexa and Kansas City police. Authorities were led to Kidwell's home after family members reported her missing. When police arrived to the home, they noticed an overwhelming smell of bleach. After requesting a search warrant, police found Coopers body inside. Kidwell's neighbor, Kathleen Brown, told police that Cooper had visited the suspect's home about 10 days before her disappearance, according to the Kansas City Star. Brown claimed that after the victim left that day, Kidwell referred to her as a 'black b***h' and used a racial slur when talking about Cooper. On July 6, Brown said Cooper was back at Kidwell's home where she and the victim spoke while the suspect went out to get beer. Cooper (right), 43, had been missing for a week when her body was discovered by Kansas City officers. Kidwell's family members said the suspect would often drape himself in the Confederate flag (left) and brag about his membership in the Ku Klux Klan Kidwell was arrested on July 14, the same day Cooper's body was found at his residence (pictured) The next day, Cooper's vehicle was found near Lykins Square park in Kansas City. Her family said the keys were left in the vehicle. On July 6, Cooper was back at Kidwell's house, and he went out to get beer, Brown 'If I would have known he was going to harm her in any way, I would have never let her leave my house,' Brown told the Star. Family members remember Cooper as being a 'wonderful person' who was 'full of life, laughter, and so much joy' Just days after Cooper disappeared, Brown claimed that Kidwell asked her for trash bags and a handsaw. 'This was a hate crime,' Brown told the Star. 'One hundred per cent a hate crime.' Kidwell, who has been charged with second-degree murder, would often drape himself in the Confederate flag, according to his family members. His daughter, Crystal Foster, told the newspaper that he would also brag about his membership in the Ku Klux Klan and send her photos of his swastika tattoo on his left arm. 'He's been a monster his whole life,' Foster said. 'He's the true definition of evil.' Family members remember Cooper as being a 'wonderful person' who was 'full of life, laughter, and so much joy'. Cooper, who was diagnosed with lupus, has a 25-year-old son who lived with her. Her nephew, DaRon Cooper, told the Star: 'She fought off a lot of different things, a lot of different diseases, so for someone to come in and take a life like this, it's shocking and it hurts.' DaRon said his aunt was working part-time at a Subway restaurant despite qualifying for disability. He said his family's goal now is to support her son. 'They were taking care of each other,' he said. 'With her being gone, it leaves him out to dry in a way.' A GoFundMe account was created to benefit Cooper's son. As of Monday evening, it has raised $1,000 of its $2,000 goal. Kidwell's bond has been set at $1million. In an interview with police, Kidwell admitted to killing Cooper by repeatedly striking her and stabbing her, but claimed it was self-defense, according to KSHB. A GoFundMe account was created to benefit Cooper's son. As of Monday evening, it has raised $1,000 of its $2,000 goal He also told police that his actions were not pre-meditated. According to family members, Kidwell has a history of violently targeting victims based on their race. 'He pretends to be 'colored people's' friends and then he harms them,' Foster told the Star. He has spent 15 years in prison on various assault charges, including a sexual assault charge stemming from 2011. During that incident, Kidwell hit a sleeping woman on the head with a hammer before sexually assaulting her. According to police records, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years in prison. During the trial for the 2011 case, Kidwell was referred to as 'One Eye'. A relative told the Star that Kidwell lost his right eye at age seven when pit bulls attacked him. YouTube repeatedly fails to remove jihadist videos within two hours of them being posted because of 'staggering' holes in its monitoring, according to a study. It found that the Google-owned video sharing site missed its target for taking down Islamic State films in one in four cases. Dozens of terrorist propaganda and recruitment videos were left up for more than three days at a time, clocking up tens of thousands of views, according to the three-month study by the Counter Extremism Project (CEP). YouTube is failing to remove flagged jihadi videos because of 'staggering' holes in its system, the Counter Extremism Project found. Six in 10 of the IS supporters who posted the hate videos were not even banned from the site and their accounts remain active, it found. The failings come after YouTube rejected an offer of free technology to instantly block any previously identified extremist content, preferring to develop its own system that it says deletes millions of banned videos before they are seen. At the G7 summit in October last year, YouTube joined with Facebook, Twitter and Microsoft in an accord aimed at removing extremist content from their platforms within two hours. But in the first in-depth independent study of IS videos on YouTube, the CEP found this was not happening because of 'inexcusable' holes in the service's monitoring system. The deadline is two hours but dozens stayed up for three days, study finds. Researchers found 229 previously identified terror videos were uploaded 1,348 times and viewed on 163,000 occasions over three months from March 8 to June 8, with 24 per cent left on the site for more than two hours. They included the film Caliphate 4 uploaded six times during the trial period in which a terrorist taunts former soldier Prince Harry, saying: 'Why don't you come here and fight us if you're man enough, so we can send you and your Apaches to hellfire?' Another video called Hunt Them O Monotheist was uploaded 12 times during the study and on one occasion allowed to remain up for 39 hours. It urges Muslims to launch terror attacks in cities including London and Birmingham, with a voice-over saying: 'Don't hesitate to attack their concentrations even if there are children.' Another, which was uploaded 17 times, was a bomb-making instruction video called You Must Fight Them O Monotheist, which was used by Manchester bomber Salman Abedi. Computer scientist Dr Hany Farid, from Dartmouth College in the US, who developed a system that stops known child abuse films being uploaded, created a similar program that instantly identifies and removes terror videos. YouTube, Facebook and Google were all offered the eGlyph system free by the CEP in 2016 but decided not use it. Dr Farid said it was 'infuriating' that companies worth billions refused to implement systems that could instantly stop jihadist videos. 'Spectacular failures are allowing terror groups to continue to radicalise and recruit online,' he added. Former Tory minister Mark Simmonds, now a senior adviser to CEP, said: 'This study dispels any lingering myth that YouTube are doing enough to stop their site being used as an IS recruitment tool. 'The research shows that YouTube are not even meeting their own promise to delete all extremist content within two hours. For them to fail in a quarter of all cases, with much of the content still available three days or more after first being uploaded, is unacceptable.' He added: 'Even videos that stayed online for less than two hours received a total of nearly 15,000 hits any one could become a potential terrorist. 'It is staggering and inexcusable that well over half of the IS supporters who upload this dangerous content are not even banned and their accounts remain active spreading IS propaganda and grooming potential recruits.' Google said it 'rejects terrorism and has a strong track record of taking swift action against terrorist content'. A spokesman added: 'We've invested heavily in people and technology to ensure we keep making progress to detect and remove terror content as quickly as possible. 'We're a founding member of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism, which sees tech companies collaborate to keep terror content off the web.' A single mother-of-five whose baby drowned in a bath said she didn't realise he was there alone because she asked her 10-year-old son to watch him. Kandita Rose Kattenberg was sentenced to one year behind bars for the manslaughter of her nine-month-old son. The 29-year-old mother had regularly asked her eldest son to bathe baby Carlyle but the boy left the infant in the water and went to play with other kids in Charters Towers, northern Queensland. Single mother-of-five Kandita Rose Kattenberg (pictured) left her baby alone to drown in a bath and said she didn't realise he was alone because she asked her 10-year-old to watch him The 29-year-old mother regularly asked her eldest son to bathe Carlyle (pictured) but the boy left the infant in the water and went to play a game of tiggy in Charters Towers, Queensland 'She continually placed her child in a vulnerable position,' Police prosecutor Nathan Crane told the Supreme Court on Monday, ABC News reported. The baby was in the bath with his three-year-old sister and when the 10-year-old boy returned from his game, he found Carlyle unconscious and tried to revive him in the lounge room on November 9, 2016. The bath took place at 4.10pm but it is believed the infant, who had slipped out of his bath seat, turned the taps on again when his brother had left the room, according to Townsville Bulletin. 'This is not a case of death by violence but a case of death by neglect, set up in the context of the dangerous routine where you exposed a young child to great danger,' Justice David North said. The single mother was sentenced to four years suspended after 12 months. The woman's other four children are in the care of their fathers. Jeremy Corbyns closest aide has been urged to retract past comments about Israel in which he called it a racist state. Seumas Milne, the Labour leaders director of strategy and communications, was a strong critic of Israel during his years as a newspaper columnist. Some Labour insiders believe his previous statements may lie behind the partys decision not to sign up fully to the internationally accepted definition of anti-Semitism in its code of conduct. One of the parts it omitted states anti-Semitism may include claiming the existence of a state of Israel is a racist endeavour. Seumus Milne, Labour's director of strategy and communications, called Israel a racist state Mr Milne wrote in The Guardian in 2009: The truth is that throughout the Arab, Muslim and wider developing worlds, the idea that Israel is a racist state is largely uncontroversial...This is a state, after all, created by European colonists, built on the ethnic cleansing of the indigenous population. Labour MP John Mann, chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on tackling anti-Semitism, said: Seumas has said some things that need withdrawing. He should want to withdraw them. A Labour spokesman said: It is not anti-Semitic to discuss racism and Israeli state policies using the same standards that would apply to other states. The American tourist who plunged to his death from a popular whale-watching clifftop has been named as Gavin Paul Zimmerman. A missionary with the Church of Latter Day Saints, the 19-year-old was with a group of friends at Cape Solander, south of Sydney, when he fell into the ocean. Mr Zimmerman's parents released a statement about the death of their son, who had been working at the church's Sydney mission since last year. Scroll down for video Mr Zimmerman's parents released a statement about the death of their son, who had been working at the church's Sydney mission since last year A missionary with the Church of Latter Day Saints, the 19-year-old was with a group of friends at Cape Solander, south of Sydney, when he fell into the ocean 'It is with deep sorrow and heavy hearts that we share the news of our son's passing from this earth to return home to his Heavenly Father,' Raymond and Jeanette Zimmerman said, Nine News reported. 'He was a great example to us all, and he loved his mission very much. He enjoyed teaching people and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. 'Gavin was a bright light in our lives.' A friend of Mr Zimmerman's, Gio Grillo, said he had been sending her photos of his time in Australia. The American tourist who plunged to his death from a popular whale-watching clifftop has been named as Gavin Paul Zimmerman (pictured) A lifesaver helicopter arrived in seven minutes and crews put green dye in the water to trace the current to find the Mormon missionary 'He emailed me yesterday, telling me they were going to the cliffs and he was going to take lots of pictures to show me,' she wrote on Facebook. 'It was today when I found out what happened, one of my closest friends, one of the best missionaries I knew, fell to his death. 'Gavin was such an amazing guy. I'm so heart broken right now.' Mr Zimmerman was thought to be taking a selfie when he lost his balance and plunged ten metres into the sea below at 3.30pm local time on Monday. FULL STATEMENT FROM THE ZIMMERMAN FAMILY It is with deep sorrow and heavy hearts that we share the news of our son's passing from this earth to return home to his Heavenly Father. Gavin Paul Zimmerman grew up in Roy and West Haven. He attended Fremont High and participated in both track and football. Gavin was called to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Australia Sydney Mission. He began his mission on August 16, 2017. Gavin served in several leadership positions in the mission field. He was a great example to us all, and he loved his mission very much. He enjoyed teaching people and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. He loved the Savior Jesus Christ and his family, and we loved him. Gavin was a bright light in our lives! We are so grateful for our Father in Heaven's plan of salvation. We know that we will be with him again one day. Our family will miss him greatly until we meet again. - The statement was released by the Church of Latter Day Saints on Monday Advertisement His shell-shocked friends were unable to reach where he had landed and made desperate phone calls to police. A lifesaver helicopter arrived in seven minutes and crews put green dye in the water to trace the current to find the Mormon missionary. They found him unconscious just below the surface after 30 minutes in the water. Lifeguards on jet-skis pulled him from the waves and put him in a police boat from where he was winched to dry land - but paramedics could not revive him with CPR and he was pronounced dead at the scene. It is thought the group of teenagers walked down from an official viewing platform to a slippery, rocky ledge nearer the water. An American tourist has fallen to his death from a popular whale-watching clifftop in Australia. Pictured: Emergency crews at the scene today The man was taking a selfie when he slipped and one of his friends caught the fall on video, The Daily Telegraph reported. 'He was here with a group of friends to go whale watching. They've made their way down onto the rock platform at this stage it appears to be misadventure where he's slipped and fallen over the edge,' New South Wales Police Chief Inspector Chris Hill said. He added: 'If you are attending this location, those rocks are very slippery so for your safety, stay up on the whale watching platform and please don't go down on the rocks.' In early June another man fell to his death while taking photos in the same area, which is popular for watching migrating whales. The cliffs, next to Kamay Botany Bay National Park, are among the best places see humpbacks migrate north to warmer Queensland in the winter. The National Parks NSW website describes the area as 'an unbeatable lookout during whale watching season'. 'If you're lucky you won't even need to look far whales have been known to swim as close as 200m from the coast,' the site reads. Former MTV VJ Jesse Camp, who rose to fame on Total Request Live after winning a reality show, has disappeared. Camp, whose real name is Josiah, was reported missing by his sister Marisha on July 19. The Riverside Police Department is currently investigating his disappearance. 'Jesse was last seen in California last week but has not reached out to us yet,' Marisha wrote in a Facebook post on Monday. Former MTV VJ Jesse Camp (pictured in 2016), who rose to fame on Total Request Live after winning an MTV reality show, has disappeared 'What he needs now more than anything is kindness and love. Please keep him in your prayers.' Fontana Police told The Blast that a bicycle officer made contact with Camp just hours before his sister reported him missing last week. The officer saw Camp in front of a Sherwin Williams store around 10am and did a 'pedestrian check' to make sure he was okay. After determining that Camp was fine and verifying his identity, the officer took no further action. Hours later, Marisha filed a missing person report in Riverside. Camp was reported missing by his sister Marisha on July 19. The Riverside Police Department is currently investigating. He is pictured here in his last Instagram post, shared in May Camp (pictured in 1998) had previously been homeless before his surprise win on the television show in 1998, and hosted various programs for the network until 2001 Sources told the site that the area around Sherwin Williams is popular among 'transients and homeless people'. Camp was previously spotted outside the hardware store in April and flagged a police officer down to ask them a question. Authorities told Page Six that Camp has not been in contact with his mother, who he used to call weekly, since July 11 or 12. An ex-girlfriend also told police that when she tried to call his cell phone, a stranger said Camp had given him the phone plus three bags filled with personal belongings. A Fontana officer did a 'pedestrian check' on Camp to make sure he was okay just hours before his sister reported him missing. He is pictured here with Ozzy Osbourne in 1998 The former VJ (pictured here with the Osbourne family) got his big break when he won MTV's 'Wanna Be a VJ' contest in 1998 Marisha reportedly told police that her 38-year-old brother had recently been depressed but did not indicate he was suicidal. Camp has not been located in any local jails or hospitals. The former TRL host got his big break when he won MTV's 'Wanna Be a VJ' contest in 1998. Camp had previously been homeless before his surprise win on the television show, and hosted various programs for the network until 2001. An ex-girlfriend also told police that when she tried to call his cell phone, a stranger said Camp had given him the phone and three bags filled with personal belongings. He is pictured left in 1999 and right in 2015 He then went into music, releasing an album in 1999 that featured a duet with Stevie Nicks. Camp's last interview appears to be in 2016, when he was stopped by the New York Post for a video segment. 'I'm zipping it cause I am on a very bad acid trip at the moment,' Camp tells the reporter at the end of the video. 'I think I'm being interviewed by the New York Post - so clearly I'm not in my right head.' More than 215,000 children in China may have been injected with faulty mandatory vaccines in the latest safety scare to hit the country's pharmaceutical industry. A snap investigation by the government revealed that one of the country's biggest vaccine makers, Changchun Changsheng Bio-technology, has been fabricating records for its rabies vaccine production. A further investigation revealed that at least 252,600 doses of substandard DPT vaccine - meant to prevent three infectious diseases - had been sold by the company to Shandong province and had been given to children as young as three months in eight cities. So far, there have been no reports of injuries or side effects from the vaccines, according to authorities. However, Chinese premier Li Keqiang has vowed a thorough investigation into the scandal. More than 215,000 children in China may have been injected with faulty vaccines in the latest safety scare to hit the country's pharmaceutical industry (file photo) China is hit regularly by quality-control scandals, fuelling fear over the safety of medicines The scandal has shaken public trust in the government and sparked fierce criticism online across the country. China's censors and regulators struggled to stay abreast of the public's response when the news first broke, deleting articles and postings on WeChat about the vaccine industry as state media tried to take control of the narrative. However, response from the public intensified. The topic page on twitter-like Weibo with the hashtag 'Changsheng vaccine case' has been viewed over 680 million times on Monday. China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) announced late Sunday that it had ordered the Jilin-based Changchun Changsheng Bio-technology to stop all production. An official with CFDA said it launched a surprise inspection of the company on July 5 after receiving a tip-off, according to Xinhua News. Regulators found that the company had fabricated production records and product inspection records, arbitrarily changed process parameters and equipment during its production of freeze-dried human rabies vaccines, according to the report. Regulators found that Changchun Changsheng Bio-technology had fabricated production records and product inspection records during production of its rabies vaccines The Jilin-based company has been ordered to stop all its rabies vaccine production (file photo) The CFDA had revoked the company's drug GMP certificate - an essential licence for production - following its serious violations of relevant law and regulations, and demanded a recall of unused vaccines. Shandong Disease Prevention and Control Center - the agency in charge of public health in a province of about 100 million people - said on Monday that all of the faulty DPT vaccines, which combats diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough) and tetanus, are now accounted for. Every child inoculated with the drug as well as all unused doses have now been identified. Health authorities have arranged for all 215,184 children affected to receive qualified vaccines made by other companies, with 97 already completed the procedure, according to China Daily. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has vowed stern action over the scandal as drug stocks tumbled on Monday. Saying that the latest case had crossed a 'line of human ethics', Mr Li vowed a thorough investigation and harsh consequences for any infractions or lax supervision. At least 252,600 doses of substandard DPT vaccine for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis had been sold to Shandong province and had been given to children in eight cities (file photo) China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) announced late Sunday that it had ordered all production stopped at Jilin-based Changchun Changsheng Bio-technology (file photo) '(We) must resolutely strike with heavy blows all law-breaking criminal behaviour, severely punish the criminals according to the law, and hold accountable those who were negligent in supervision,' Mr Li said in a statement posted late Sunday on the government's website. Officials have since launched an investigation into the company. Those who have committed criminal offences would be handed over to the public security department. Changsheng Bio-technology has released an apology, saying the incident has left the company 'guilty and embarrassed'. 'We would like to express our deepest apologies to the vaccination population and investors,' the statement added. The company has been fined 3,442,887 yuan (386,090) in total by the Chinese government. Stocks of major Chinese vaccine producers plunged on Monday following the scandal. In Shenzhen, Walvax Bio-technology, which makes a range of flu and other vaccines, dropped by its 10 per cent daily allowable limit, as did vaccine suppliers Shenzhen Kangtai Biological Products and Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products. After a brief trading halt, shares of Changchun Changsheng's parent company also fell by the 10 per cent limit. Health authorities have arranged for all 215,184 children affected by the faulty shots to receive qualified vaccines made by other companies, according to China Daily (file photo) So far, there have been no reports of injuries or side effects from the vaccines (file photo) China is hit regularly by quality-control scandals, fuelling fear over the safety of food and medicines and anger at regulatory lapses. Authorities in Hebei announced on Monday that nearly 150,000 people in the northern province received a sub-standard diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine made by another firm, Wuhan Institute of Biological Products. Hebei said it has launched steps to re-administer new vaccines to those affected. Chinese authorities also failed eight batches of a vaccine produced by Sanofi, a French pharmaceutical company, for low quality standards last year. The vaccine aims to prevent five diseases, including diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus. In 2008, six infants died and 300,000 babies fell ill after drinking milk powder tainted with melamin, a chemical compound used in plastic and fertiliser production. The state-run Global Times newspaper questioned in an editorial Monday how dodgy vaccines were still being produced following the harsh lessons of the past. 'People do not understand why the country had not prevented a substandard vaccine from being produced in the first place,' it said, suggesting it may be due to 'lax supervision and light punishment.' Islamic State militants in Libya are recruiting desperate migrants into their ranks by offering them monthly salaries, a military commander said last night. Major General Mohamed Al-Zain warned that illegal immigration in Libya had become a 'ticking time bomb', with the prospect of migrants being paid to carry out terror attacks. IS has found it easier to target those fleeing African nations because they are poor and easily influenced. He said: 'Money is the number one incentive of recruitment outside of the ideological convictions.' They are being recruited to fight 'in the early stages of them entering Libya', as well in their countries of origin, he added. They have moved to the desert and the valleys where they are plotting attacks. His comments came as the Libyan coastguard said migrants' hope of getting to Europe had dwindled after Italy closed its borders and they stepped up their rescue efforts. General Al-Zain was speaking from Khoms, a coastal city in the war-torn nation where migrants and refugees have set off for Europe in dinghies. He said: 'With regards to illegal immigration it is not only a source of funding for Daesh but it is also a way for them to recruit and increase their forces. 'They end up recruiting them and using them as fighters and this is something we saw a great deal of in Sirte.' He was one of the commanders of the 2016 military operation against IS in its former stronghold of Sirte, Colonel Gaddafi's home town. He said that at that time migrants were paid 1,500 Libyan dinars (834) a month to fight for them. A donkey who was 'beaten to a pulp' as part of a political stunt in Pakistan has died a week after it was punched in the face and rammed with a car. The animal, nicknamed Hero, was wounded during a stunt ahead of the country's general elections on July 25 which saw politicians from one party described as 'asses'. The seriously injured animal was found and handed over to the Ayesha Chundrigar Foundation (AFC) which tried to revive him but the rescue centre announced on Monday that Hero had died. They said: 'He just saw a week of happiness, peace and love with us, and we saw this beautiful, intelligent personality who was abused and tortured for absolutely no reason, for no fault of his own.' The Ayesha Chundrigar Foundation announced that Hero had died a week after the attack A volunteer at the rescue centre tries to keep Hero alive after the brutal attack in Pakistan The rescue centre said Hero was 'doing a lot better' until Sunday but then stopped breathing According to the ACF, the donkey had been beaten, punched in the face and abdomen repeatedly, kicked all over and rammed with a car. The horrific abuse which the centre branded a hate crime was all 'to describe one political party as an 'ass' by some hooligans as written on the poor donkey's body.' The rescue centre said today: 'He was doing a lot better until yesterday, he managed to stand up on his own, eat powdered food although he had a broken jaw, and drink water on his own. 'We kept his temperature under control, massaged and cuddled him to calm down him as he would try take faltering steps, distressed, suffering from post traumatic stress, his heart pounding a mile a minute. 'However, this morning, his blood pressure was too high, his temperature kept fluctuating hence he was under constant observation, he started bleeding from his nose and he couldnt breathe properly anymore. 'His internal injuries due to the violence he faced, were too much for him to bear. 'Hero should never had suffered for even a moment in life. Hero was the epitome of purity and innocence. Shame on us for doing this to him and not being able to curtail this menace of torture and abuse of animals and human beings alike. 'We are to be blamed for not bothering to raise our voices for the most ignored, neglected and tortured inhabitants of our society. 'We have to think and act upon this, there cannot be and should not be more Heroes who suffer at the hands of humans. Volunteers try to help Hero after he was brutally attacked during a Pakistani political stunt The centre said internal injuries due to the violence he faced were too much for him to bear A donkey was found 'beaten to a pulp' after being tortured for a political stunt in Pakistan The horrific abuse was all 'to describe one political party as an 'ass' by some hooligans as written on the poor donkey's body,' the rescue centre said 'With the upcoming elections looming upon us, no one is spared from the wrath of this time not even the most helpless of animals,' the centre wrote on Facebook The rescue centre said it had blurred out the names written on the donkey's body. 'With the upcoming elections looming upon us, no one is spared from the wrath of this time not even the most helpless of animals,' the centre wrote on Facebook alongside pictures of the animal's injuries. 'This is a hate crime. A donkey beaten to a pulp, punched in the face and abdomen several times, nose broken, kicked all over his body until he collapsed, has rope marks and a car rammed into him all of this to describe one political party as an 'ass' by some hooligans as written on the poor donkey's body.' It added: 'Is this what our country has come to? Or is this what it's always been? And social media and a little bit of animal welfare has now highlighted what we always were and are. Monsters. 'If this is our general public that can abuse an innocent animal for fun and ridiculous, irrational reasons, because he's a 'Ghadha' then nothing else matters anyway. 'We should all be ashamed of ourselves. This is what we are.' The centre said the donkey had been found by a man called Abdullah 'trembling, with shallow breathing and pain painted all over his face.' The rescue centre took to social media on Monday to share pictures of the injured donkey and slam the perpetrators of the attack The centre said the animal wasn't eating much and its body was still 'stiff yet shaking in fear' According to the ACF, the donkey had been beaten, punched in the face and abdomen repeatedly, kicked all over and rammed with a car Abdullah and Adeel, from Innocent Pet Shelter stayed with the animal until ACF's workers showed up to take the donkey. The centre said the animal wasn't eating much and its body was still 'stiff yet shaking in fear.' It added that he 'winces at any touch because he thinks each one will hurt.' In an update on Tuesday, the ACF revealed they had named the donkey Hero as 'it takes a true hero of the heart to stand quietly, collapse helplessly, and endure painfully as this donkey did.' In an update on Tuesday, the ACF revealed they had named the injured donkey Hero Tesla has requested some suppliers refund a portion of what the automaker has already spent on orders in a bid to help it turn a profit, according to a leaked memo. The plea, which has been branded 'desperate' and 'ludicrous' by a leading industry expert, raises questions around Tesla's cash reserves. Earlier this year, CEO Elon Musk said he expected Tesla to become profitable in the second half of 2018, despite losing $710 million (540 million) on a revenue of $3.41 billion (2.6 billion) during the last quarterly results. According to the confidential memo, which was sent by a global supply manager for the company, Tesla has requested what it calls a 'meaningful amount' of money on its payments since 2016 from its supplier. Scroll down for video Tesla has asked some of its suppliers to refund a portion of what the auto maker has already spent to help it become profitable, according to a memo. Pictured is a Tesla Model 3 sedan All suppliers for the company are being asked to help Tesla become profitable, according to the memo seen by the Wall Street Journal. The electric car company declined to comment on any specific leaked memos, however, confirmed that it is seeking price reductions from suppliers for projects, some of which date back to 2016. Supply-chain consultants told the paper that sometimes automakers will demand a reduction in price for a current contract going forward or use the promise of a new deal as leverage to get savings upfront. However, it is unusual for an automaker to ask for a refund for past work, they said. 'It's simply ludicrous and it just shows that Tesla is desperate right now,' Dennis Virag, a manufacturing consultant who has worked in the automotive industry for 40 years, told the Wall Street Journal. 'Theyre worried about their profitability but they dont care about their suppliers profitability.' Tesla has been burning cash at a rate of about $1 billion (0.76bn) a quarter and finished the first quarter with $2.7 billion (2bn) in cash on hand. However, it has struggled to balance its desire for growth with the expense of launching new vehicles and building out infrastructure to support its business. Tesla is ready to be profitable, CEO and co-founder Elon Musk recently wrote in an internal email to all staff. Pictured is Musk speaking at the 2018 SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition, in Hawthorne, California on Sunday. Tesla is ready to be profitable, CEO and co-founder Musk recently wrote in an internal email to all staff Pictured is Musk with his new girlfriend singer singer Grimes in Hawthorne on Sunday. Last week it was revealed a growing number of Model 3 buyers have been cancelling their orders The company just needs to whittle down its capital expenditures, Musk added. CEO Elon Musk has previously stated that he wants to avoid raising additional cash from venture capitalists and investors, promising the electric automaker will become cash-flow positive thanks to the continued Model 3 build rate. Many analysts expect Tesla will eventually have to resort to raising more money. MailOnline has contacted Tesla for comment. Last week, it was revealed a growing number of Model 3 buyers have been cancelling their orders, following supply chain issues with the vehicle. The memo suggests Tesla requested the supplier return what it calls a meaningful amount of money on its payments since 2016. Pictured is CEO Elon Musk The cancellations come amid extended delays to roll-out Model 3 vehicles from the production line, and fears the promise of a full tax credit will expire. Analysts claim that cancelled orders now outpace new orders for the car. An analyst for Needham & Co last week said the refund rate has now hit 24 per cent, doubling what it was last summer. Tesla has categorically denied claims that refunds for the deposit on its Model 3 sedan were now outpacing reservations. 'The notion that Model 3 cancellations are outpacing orders is unequivocally false,' a Tesla spokesperson told Reuters. Needham & Co analyst Rajvindra Gill wrote in a client note earlier on Thursday: 'In August '17, TSLA cited that the refund rate was 12 per cent. 'Almost a year later, we believe the refund rate has doubled and outpaced deposits.' Shares in Tesla fell as much as 3 per cent in early deals on Thursday last week before recovering to trade just 0.3 per cent lower by 2.05 p.m. EDT. The Chinese military is developing a fleet of new submarines that will navigate the ocean without a human crew, according to scientists involved in the project. The submarines will be powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), allowing them to navigate independently and work alongside existing fleets. The crew-less submersibles will be relatively large and low-cost compared to other military watercrafts, according to scientists working on the project. The AI submarines are rumoured to be fitted with diesel-electric engines to enable them to stay at sea for several months without returning to dock. China will use these unmanned subs for intelligence gathering missions, planting sea mines, and 'kamikaze'-style attacks on high-value targets, the scientists said. These missions are scheduled to start in the early 2020s, they added. Scroll down for video The Chinese military is developing unmanned submarines in a bid to keep up with the advancing technology of the west. The submersibles will be relatively large and low-cost and are to be fitted with AI-technology to allow it to navigate independently (file photo) According to those familiar with the AI-powered submarine project, who spoke to the South China Morning Post on condition of anonymity, the machines are not set to replace traditional submarines with human crews. Researchers claim the autonomous subs will work alongside manned fleets. The machines will purportedly be able to gather information, plant sea mines and be stationed at geographical 'checkpoints' to keep watch for intruding vessels. Other potential uses for the unmanned watercrafts include being used as decoys to expose the position of an enemy fleet and, if necessary, a 'suicide' mission to destory a particularly high valuable target. There will be no human operators on board the machines, however, they will be able to establish contact with ground command on a regular basis. The submarines will be deigned to complete missions independently, but could also be likely to assist in larger missions alongside human-navigated subs. China has an existing programme in place, with unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) already being tested. However, these crafts are relatively small and limited in their role. Existing models also suffer with a relatively a small range and must be deployed and collected by another ship. The military hopes to improve the technology powering these machines to develop larger models with diesel-electric engines capable of constant energy production for months at the time. The next-generation will also be able to dock and deploy like their conventional predecessors, researchers claim. Executive decisions such a attacking an enemy vessel will still be made by a human operator but these so-called 'giant UUVs' will be able to make its own decisions for day-to-day operations. This will include navigating the ocean, changing course and depth to avoid detection, determining the difference between enemy and civilian vessels, as well as the best path to reach a destination. China is hoping the latest military AI developments will help the country challenge the dominance of the west, and particularly the US, in strategic waters like the South China Sea and western Pacific Ocean. This project is a single branch of a much larger initiative from the country, which recently increased funding to its armed forces. Beijing announced earlier this year plans to increase military budget by almost 10 per cent, raising the operating funds from $132 billion to $175 billion. Researchers claim the autonomous submarines will work in conjunction with manned fleets. They will gather information, plant sea mines and conduct 'kamikaze' missions if necessary while working alongside existing fleets of conventional machines (file photo) WHY ARE PEOPLE SO WORRIED ABOUT AI? It is an issue troubling some of the greatest minds in the world at the moment, from Bill Gates to Elon Musk. SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk described AI as our 'biggest existential threat' and likened its development as 'summoning the demon'. He believes super intelligent machines could use humans as pets. Professor Stephen Hawking said it is a 'near certainty' that a major technological disaster will threaten humanity in the next 1,000 to 10,000 years. They could steal jobs More than 60 percent of people fear that robots will lead to there being fewer jobs in the next ten years, according to a 2016 YouGov survey. And 27 percent predict that it will decrease the number of jobs 'a lot' with previous research suggesting admin and service sector workers will be the hardest hit. As well as posing a threat to our jobs, other experts believe AI could 'go rogue' and become too complex for scientists to understand. A quarter of the respondents predicted robots will become part of everyday life in just 11 to 20 years, with 18 percent predicting this will happen within the next decade. They could 'go rogue' Computer scientist Professor Michael Wooldridge said AI machines could become so intricate that engineers don't fully understand how they work. If experts don't understand how AI algorithms function, they won't be able to predict when they fail. This means driverless cars or intelligent robots could make unpredictable 'out of character' decisions during critical moments, which could put people in danger. For instance, the AI behind a driverless car could choose to swerve into pedestrians or crash into barriers instead of deciding to drive sensibly. They could wipe out humanity Some people believe AI will wipe out humans completely. 'Eventually, I think human extinction will probably occur, and technology will likely play a part in this,' DeepMind's Shane Legg said in a recent interview. He singled out artificial intelligence, or AI, as the 'number one risk for this century'. Musk warned that AI poses more of a threat to humanity than North Korea. 'If you're not concerned about AI safety, you should be. Vastly more risk than North Korea,' the 46-year-old wrote on Twitter. 'Nobody likes being regulated, but everything (cars, planes, food, drugs, etc) that's a danger to the public is regulated. AI should be too.' Musk has consistently advocated for governments and private institutions to apply regulations on AI technology. He has argued that controls are necessary in order protect machines from advancing out of human control Advertisement Lin Yang, marine technology equipment director at the Shenyang Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, confirmed the larger and more complex automated submarines are in development. 'Yes, we are doing it,' he told the South China Morning Post. Mr Lin refused to be drawn into revealing the exact technical details of the project, due to the sensitive nature of the work. 'It will be announced sooner or later, but not now,' he added. The main advantage of the large AI subs is that they can be produced and operated on a large scale at a relatively low cost, sources said. The lack of humans on baord means the crafts are more cost efficient, with no need to spend money to ensure the safety, comfort and mental health of the crew. College of Automation in Harbin Engineering University professor Luo Yuesheng said the submarines would ramp-up the pressure and expectations on human captains who face the unmanned ships in battle. The AI-powered submarines would be fearless as they have nothing to lose. The computers powering the watercrafts will be able to learn tactics for battle based on the sinking of other vessels, making them 'a formidable opponent' in battle, Yuesheng said. The AI technology necessary for these unmanned submarines still in its infancy and faces numerous challenges to pilot a craft independently. Hardware must meet an exceptional standard as there will be no readily-available engineers on deck to fix any faults with the submarines once they are at sea. The missions of unmanned submarines will also likely be limited to specific, relatively simple tasks, Luo said. 'AI will not replace humans. The situation under water can get quite sophisticated. I don't think a robot can understand or handle all the challenges,' he added. Chinese manufacturer BOE Technology Group is developing advanced organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays, which it hopes will be used in Apple's top-tier smartphone range. The company, based in Sichuan province, is the worlds top producer of large liquid crystal displays, or LCDs. BOE currently supplies LCDs to Apple for its iPad and MacBook ranges. Apple uses OLED technology for its top-tier iPhone X, which starts from 999 ($999), supplied by smartphone rival Samsung. Rumours suggest Apple will remove all LCD displays from its iPhone range with a refresh to the line-up this September. BOE Technology Group wants production of its own OLED displays by 2020 in a bid to challenge rival companies from South Korea and Japan, which currently hold the monopoly for the increasingly-popular screen technology. Scroll down for video China is targeting Apple with advanced organic light-emitting diode (OLED) smartphone screens for Apple's most expensive iPhones. Pictured is the iPhone X BOE Technology Group is currently the only Chinese display company that provides screens for Apple the most profitable company in the world, according to a report by Wall Street Journal. In an LED display, each light-emitting diode provides its own source of light. When it's not needed, the pixel will not produce any light at all creating much deeper blacks and better contrast than other types of display. LCDs use cold-cathode fluorescent lamps behind the pixels to light the entire screen. As a result, there is never a complete absence of light, resulting in worse contrast levels than LEDs. Organic (OLED) sets emit light using a layer of material based on carbon. For Apple, working with BOE, whose biggest shareholders are state-linked companies, provides an alternative to rival Samsung, which is currently its own supplier of OLED technology. According to BOE company filings, local governments contributed to most of the initial phase of investment at four of the five factories built or under construction by the company. This year Apple included BOE on its list of its 200 top suppliers, fuelling speculation that BOE could supply OLEDs for the company from 2020 onward. 'Many years ago, people were saying that no, the China guys can't do it', said David Hsieh, senior director of display research at IHS Markit, a data analytics company. 'But I think BOE makes a good example.' BOE first approached Apple in 2011 with hopes to provide the company with screens. Since 2015, the company, which is headquartered in Beijing, has provided screens for MacBook and started to supply displays for the iPad the following year. BOE first approached Apple in 2011 with hopes to provide the company with screens. Since 2015 it has provided screens for MacBook (pictured) and since 2016 it has provided the company's iPad displays WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LCD AND LED DISPLAYS? The are two technologies at the heart of most modern televisions, computer monitors and smartphone screens liquid crystal displays (LCD) and light emitting diode (LED) displays. An LED screen uses light-emitting diodes as a source of light behind the screen, as opposed to LCDs which use cold-cathode fluorescent lamps. Organic (OLED) sets emit light using a layer of material based on carbon, which technically makes them organic. Displays powered by OLED technology, primarily made by LG Display and Samsung, tend to be pricey because they are tougher to produce. Individual pixels the individual points that form an image when viewed from a distance are self-illuminating in OLEDs and can be shut-off independently. That allows images to have truly black areas, rather than just very dark. OLED sets also cut down on light spillage in scenes where bright and dark colours are side-by-side, which means you see sharper contrast. In contrast, LCDs use cold-cathode fluorescent lamps behind the pixels to light the entire screen. As a result, there is never a complete absence of light, resulting in worse contrast levels than LEDs. OLED sets also have a wider viewing angles than rival technology, but they have been known to suffer 'burn-in' if a static image is on-screen for too long. Advertisement In May 2018, rumours broke that Apple planned to use OLED screens on all of its upcoming iPhone models, which are tipped to launch in September. The decision to outfit all three forthcoming iPhone models with the technology sent shares in Japan Display tumbling. Japan Display, one of the main suppliers of iPhone liquid crystal display (LCD) screens, has lagged its South Korean rivals in OLED production. By contrast, shares in LG Display surged. Cash-strapped Japan Display plans to start mass-producing OLED panels for smartphones from next year, and is currently looking for new investors who can finance investment to launch a production line. 'The Japanese government will continue to provide a lifeline to Japan Display, but the company has been just so slow in catching up with South Korean rivals in OLED,' said Masayuki Otani, chief market analyst at Securities Japan. It was formed in 2012 by combining the display businesses of Hitachi, Toshiba Corp and Sony in a deal brokered by the state-backed Innovation Network Corp of Japan (INCJ). Shares in LG Display gained 5 per cent. 'If Apple uses OLED for all models for next year, that could raise hopes for LG Display to take a slice, as Apple may want to diversify its sources for OLED supply,' said Lee Won-sik, an analyst at Shinyoung Securities in Seoul. Facebook plans to beam broadband access to remote areas from a constellation of satellites, the social network has confirmed. The world's most popular social network plans to send a constellation of satellites into a low orbit, between 100 (160 km) and 1,250 miles (2,000 km) above the Earth. According to leaked emails from inside Facebook, the company plans to launch its first constellation, dubbed Athena, by early next year. Facebook has long experimented with ways to bring new users into its product portfolio, which includes the likes of Facebook, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram. In an effort to connect those in remote areas, Facebook has planned to use a fleet of anonymous drones to beam high-speed internet. However, these plans were quietly scrapped back in June. Scroll down for video Remote areas of the planet could soon receive broadband internet connections beamed down from space. Under plans confirmed by Facebook, a constellation of satellites will be sent into a low orbit, around 100 (160 km) to 1,250 miles (2,000 km) above the Earth (stock image) The latest plans for a constellation of satellites were revealed in documents obtained exclusively by Wired business reporter Louise Matsakis, who broke the story, under a US Freedom of Information Act request. Massive satellites the size of busses in high orbit are already used to provide internet to 'unserved and underserved' regions, but these usually result in slow connections. Facebook and other companies hope satellites in lower orbit, formed in a cluster, will yield faster speeds for those living on the ground. 'While we have nothing to share about specific projects at this time, we believe satellite technology will be an important enabler of the next generation of broadband infrastructure, making it possible to bring broadband connectivity to rural regions where internet connectivity is lacking or non-existent,' a Facebook spokesperson told Wired in a statement. Facebook has long expressed interest in how satellites can be used to help more people 'get connected'. It appears the firm is using a secretive firm PointView Tech to further those efforts Rumours of the project first emerged in partially-redacted FCC (Federal Communications Commission) filings back in early May, which described a plan to launch a multi-million dollar experimental satellite, named Athena. If approved, Athena would 'efficiently provide broadband access to unserved and underserved areas throughout the world', the filing stated. 'Specifically, the public interest rationale in support of the Athena experiment is strong,' the filing explained. 'PointView will examine the suitability of LEO satellites using millimeter wave frequencies...to provide broadband acces to unserved and underserved areasacross the globe'. The document was submitted by secretive firm PointView Tech LLC, which was reported at the time to be a subsidiary of Facebook, according to IEEE Spectrum. Athena would provide broadband access to unserved and underserved areas across the globe. Pictured is a map showing which areas are and aren't covered by mobile networks Rumours of Facebook's satellite project first emerged in partially-redacted filings from the Federal Communications Commission in early May (above) that describe a plan to launch a multi-million dollar experimental satellite, named Athena PointView hopes to launch Athena in 2019 as part of a two-year testing period. The project could serve as a major threat to similar efforts being launched by Elon Musk's SpaceX and billionaire mogul Richard Branson's OneWeb. Athena would use high-frequency millimetre wave radio signals, which would help drive the faster speeds necessary for 5G networks. This would outdo SpaceX, which aims to build satellites that offer gigabit speeds. In March, SpaceX received FCC approval to build a global broadband network using satellites, a system it has dubbed 'Starlink'. Branson's OneWeb has proposed a similar system that would use 700 satellites. Athena would use high-frequency millimeter wave radio signals, which would help drive the faster speeds necessary for 5G networks. This would outdo SpaceX CEO Elon Musk's (pictured) 'Starlink' program, which aims to build a global space network by 2019 G ELON MUSK'S SPACEX SET TO BRING BROADBAND INTERNET TO THE WORLD WITH ITS STARLINK CONSTELLATION OF SATELLITES Elon Musk's SpaceX has launched the fifth batch of its 'Starlink' space internet satellites - taking the total to 300. They form a constellation of thousands of satellites, designed to provide low-cost broadband internet service from low Earth orbit. The constellation, informally known as Starlink, and under development at SpaceX's facilities in Redmond, Washington. Its goal is to beam superfast internet into your home from space. While satellite internet has been around for a while, it has suffered from high latency and unreliable connections. Starlink is different. SpaceX says putting a 'constellation' of satellites in low earth orbit would provide high-speed, cable-like internet all over the world. The billionaire's company wants to create the global system to help it generate more cash. Musk has previously said the venture could give three billion people who currently do not have access to the internet a cheap way of getting online. It could also help fund a future city on Mars. Helping humanity reach the red planet is one of Musk's long-stated aims and was what inspired him to start SpaceX. The company recently filed plans with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to launch 4,425 satellites into orbit above the Earth - three times as many that are currently in operation. 'Once fully deployed, the SpaceX system will pass over virtually all parts of the Earth's surface and therefore, in principle, have the ability to provide ubiquitous global service,' the firm said. 'Every point on the Earth's surface will see, at all times, a SpaceX satellite.' The network will provide internet access to the US and the rest of the world, it added. It is expected to take more than five years and $9.8 billion (7.1bn) of investment, although satellite internet has proved an expensive market in the past and analysts expect the final bill will be higher. Musk compared the project to 'rebuilding the internet in space', as it would reduce reliance on the existing network of undersea fibre-optic cables which criss-cross the planet. In the US, the FCC welcomed the scheme as a way to provide internet connections to more people. Advertisement Facebook has long had its eye on satellite systems and improving global connectivity. The firm launched Internet.org in 2013 as an effort to bring affordable and efficient internet access to developing countries. Facebook's previous project to provide high-speed internet across the globe envisioned massive drones, known as the Aquila project. The company, co-founded by Mark Zuckerberg, successfully flew prototype drones during two separate flights, but has since dropped the project, reportedly in favour of new partnerships with firms like Airbus. Facebook's previous project to provide high-speed internet across the globe envisioned massive drones (pictured) under its Aquila project. It twice successfully flew prototype drones but has now been dropped It follows the announcement that Andrew Cox, head of Aquila project, and Martin Gomez, Facebook's director of aeronautical platforms, have both resigned. The decision means Facebook is shutting down a facility in Bridgwater, Somerset, that had been helping to build the technology. Sixteen people have lost their jobs as a result of the closure. 'We've decided not to design or build our own aircraft any longer, and to close our facility in Bridgwater,' Facebook said in a blog post back in June. 'Going forward, we'll continue to work with partners like Airbus on HAPS connectivity generally, and on the other technologies needed to make this system work, like flight control computers and high-density batteries.' The Google Doodle for July 23, 2018 celebrates Ludwig Sutterlin, the German graphic artist and font designer, on what would have been his 153rd birthday. Sutterlin is most famous for creating the Sutterlinschrift, a child-friendly font that was de rigueur in Prussia and Germany from 1915 until the middle of World War II. Here is all you need to know about Ludwig Sutterlin including who he was and why he created Sutterlin script. The Google Doodle for July 23, 2018 celebrates German graphic artist Ludwig Sutterlin Who was Ludwig Sutterlin? Ludwig Sutterlin was born in Lahr, located on the edge of the Black Forest in Germany, on July 23, 1865. Little is known about Sutterlins early years, however, his rise to prominence began when he relocated to Berlin around 1890. He worked as a graphic artist and gained attention in 1896 when his poster Berliner Gewerbe Ausstellung won the first prize at the Berlin Trade Fair. Sutterlin also worked as a teacher at Berlins Museum of Decorative Arts. In 1911, Sutterlin was commissioned by the Prussian Ministry of Culture to devise a handwriting style that would lend itself easily to beginner writers, especially with the rise of steel-spring pens precipitating the decline of quill pens. Sutterlins creation featured pronounced curves and extremely acute angles and proved to be a popular script for a time. By 1915, it was the standard script in Prussian schools and 19 years later it was being used in all German schools. However, Sutterlin script quickly fell out of use in the 1940s. In 1941, Hitler ended the use of Sutterlin script in schools due to increasing communication problems: occupied European lands could not understand or read the script. The graphic artist was also famous for his 'Hammer Poster' at the Berlin Trade Fair 1896 With many older generations knowing no other way of writing, Sutterlin script was still used throughout the war and reintroduced into schools as optional until the 1960s, thus allowing children to understand letters from their parents and grandparents. However, Ludwig Sutterlin didn't live long enough to see his script adopted across Germany. The graphic artist and designer died in 1917. What is a Google Doodle? The Google Doodle for July 23, 2018 pays tribute to Ludwig Sutterlin, saying of his script: 'No doubt young students rejoiced about the simple letters, reduced smudging, and fewer reprimands by teachers.' Google Doodles are little illustrations or animations that appear in the Google logo on the search engine's homepage. The first time a Google Doodle was used was in 1998, when Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin visited the 1998 Burning Man Festival. To commemorate their trip, the founders drew a stick-man standing behind the second o in the Google logo. Recent Google Doodles include Gino Bartali, Georges Lemaitre and Fanny Durack. Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk has been spotted with his Canadian girlfriend Grimes watching the winners of the latest round of the Hyperloop pod competition. The competition allows students from around the world to test their prototype pods on the 0.75 mile (1.25 km) long tubular test track at the SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California. Hyperloop is a proposed method of travel that will transport people at roughly 700mph. Passengers will seated in a small pod that is propelled through a tube with the air removed creating a vaccum. Grimes, age 30, was spotted at the competition with current partner Elon Musk, 47, who first proposed the idea of Hyperloop back in 2013. The 'Flesh Without Blood' singer watched as engineering students from the Technical University of Munich won the competition for the third year in a row, beating their previous record of 201 mph (323 kph). Their prototype, known as WARR Hyperloop pod, travelled 50 per cent faster than their winning entry from the August 2017 competition, reaching speeds of 290 mph (467 kmh). The model is made from carbon fibre-reinforced materials and has eight small motors. At slightly under two metres in length, the pod has a power performance of 240 kilowatts, or 320 horsepower. Scroll down for video The winner (pictured) of the SpaceX hyperloop pod competition has broken the competition's speed record, reaching 290 mph (467 kmh) Ahead of the competition, SpaceX released the rules for its latest Hyperloop Pod Competition, telling teams there was only one thing they would be judged on: Maximum speed. The competition will be judged solely on one criteria: Maximum speed with successful deceleration (i.e. without crashing),' the 2018 rules stated. Last year, contestants were allowed help from a SpaceX-made vehicle called a 'pusher', write Tech Crunch. However, this year all of the 20 student teams who entered had to be self-propelled. The students had to show their pod could past key tests and safety inspections and also underwent training in a 26-foot long vacuum chamber. 'We're excited to announce that our team WARR Hyperloop is the winner of the 2018 SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition', the Munchen-based team wrote on their Twitter page. Elon Musk attended the event in Hawthorne, California, with his current partner the Canadian musician Grimes Students from around the world tested their pods on a 0.75 mile (1.25km) long piece of tubular test track at the SpaceX headquarters. Pictured is the WARR Hyperloop team We're excited to announce that our team WARR Hyperloop is the winner of the 2018 SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition!!!!! We managed to go almost 50% faster than last year, reaching a final speed of 467 km/h (290 mph)! We'd like to sincerely thank all our sponsors! pic.twitter.com/YpPTURnHp5 TUM Hyperloop (@TUM_Hyperloop) July 23, 2018 'We managed to go almost 50% faster than last year, reaching a final speed of 467 km/h (290 mph)!' Hyperloop is a proposed method of travel that would transport people at roughly 700mph (1,130kph) between distant locations. The concept was unveiled by Musk in 2013, who at the time said it would take passengers the 380 miles (610km) from LA to San Francisco in 30 minutes - half the time it takes a plane. It is essentially a long tube that has had the air removed to create a vacuum. Hyperloop is a proposed method of travel that would transport people at roughly 700mph (1,130kph) between distant locations. The concept was unveiled by Musk (pictured) in 2013 WHAT IS THE HYPERLOOP? Hyperloop is a proposed method of travel that would transport people at roughly 700mph between distant locations. It was unveiled by Elon Musk in 2013, who at the time said it could take passengers the 380 miles (610km) from LA to San Francisco in 30 minutes - half the time it takes a plane. It is essentially a long tube that has had the air removed to create a vacuum. For safety reasons, Hyperloop tunnels need escape hatches in case of fire. The tube is suspended off the ground to protect against weather and earthquakes. There are now a number of firms vying to bring the technology to life, including Elon Musk himself, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, and Virgin Hyperloop One. As several firms vie to create the first operational Hyperloop, Elon Musks vision of a radical transport system that could ferry passengers above land at 760 miles per hour continues to inch closer to reality Advertisement 'We had to reduce weight while increasing drive performance at the same time', said team leader Gabriele Semino. 'We succeeded by building the new model from lightweight carbon fibre-reinforced composite materials. The 50 kilowatt electric motor from last year's design has been replaced by eight small motors, each of which drives one wheel. 'At under two meters in length, the new pod is shorter than its predecessor and has an aerodynamically optimised shape', he said. Dr Semino says the top speed of 700mph (1,130kph) would not be achievable on a test track. 'The tube in front of the SpaceX building in Los Angeles is only 1.2 kilometres long, and the pod has to accelerate to full speed and then brake again within this distance', he said. 'This is a gigantic challenge: Our pod accelerates five times faster than an airplane during take-off', he said. SpaceX founder Elon Musk and Canadian musician Grimes (left) pose for a snapshot. The students had to show their pod could past key tests and safety inspections and also underwent training in a 26-foot long vacuum chamber Musk said in 2013 that the Hyperloop concept would take passengers the 380 miles (610km) from LA to San Francisco in 30 minutes - half the time it takes a plane As winners the team (pictured) won a trophy which is a 3D model of the tube with a pod, signed by Musk. The prototype is still far too small to hold people but researchers say they are still testing various technologies MailOnline has contacted the team to find out how their design worked. SpaceX isn't currently working on any of the start-ups but Musk (pictured) wants to encourage people to develop the technology Back in August last year, a Tesla Hyperloop pod set a new speed record with a 220 mile per hour (350 kph) test run The team won a trophy which is a 3D model of the tube with a pod signed by Musk. The prototype is far too small to hold people but researchers say they are still testing various technologies. MailOnline has contacted the team to find out exactly how their winning design worked. SpaceX isn't currently working on any of the start-ups but Musk wants to encourage people to develop the technology. Back in August last year, a Tesla Hyperloop pod set a new speed record with a 220mph (350 kph) test run. The Tesla run beat the previous speed record of 201mph (323 kph), set by the same team of German students. Both records were set at the 'near-vacuum' Hyperloop tunnel track at Musk's SpaceX rocket building. Both records were set at the 'near-vacuum' 0.8-mile (1.3 km) Hyperloop tunnel track at Musk's SpaceX rocket building company in California Greek archaeologists have discovered a virtually intact grave of an ancient noblewoman buried with her golden jewellery at a Roman burial monument in the island of Sikinos. Her name, according to a burial inscription, was Neko - or using the Greek alphabet. The box-shaped grave was found untouched in the vault of the Episkopi monument, a rare burial memorial of the Roman era, which was later turned into a Byzantine church and a monastery. Greek archaeologists have discovered a virtually intact grave of an ancient noblewoman buried with her golden jewellery at a Roman burial monument in the island of Sikinos. Her name, according to a burial inscription, was Neko Golden wristbands, rings, a long golden necklace, a female figure carved cameo buckle, glass and metal vases and fragments of the dead woman's clothes were found in the grave. The well-preserved mausoleum on the tiny island, in the Cycladic group southeast of Athens, was likely to have been constructed to shelter the grave, archaeologists said. 'We were unexpectedly lucky,' Director of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Cyclades Dimitris Athanassoulis told Reuters on Monday. 'This is Neko's mausoleum.' 'It's very rare. A monument, one of the Aegean's most impressive, has got an identity. An archaeologist holds a finding from a grave of an ancient noble woman discovered inside a burial memorial of the Roman era on the island of Sikinos The box-shaped grave was found untouched in the vault of the Episkopi monument, a rare burial memorial of the Roman era, which was later turned into a Byzantine church and a monastery 'We now have the person for whom the building was built, we have her remains, her name.' Despite attacks by grave robbers in ancient times and the building's various uses through the centuries, Neko's grave was found intact mainly because it was well hidden in a blind spot between two walls at the basement of the building, Athanassoulis said. He said that experts thought Neko had links to the island but it was not clear whether she was actually from Sikinos. 'We are now trying to find out more about her,' he said. 'We are still at the beginning.' The intact grave was found at a Roman burial monument in the island of Sikinos. Archaeologists are now working to find out more about the mysterious 'Neko' Thankless tasks and office 'housework' are more likely to be undertaken by women, despite the fact that it won't help them to secure a promotion. That's the finding of a group of experts who looked at time-consuming tasks that are likely to go unrecognised by management. They found that women are asked to volunteer and accept requests to volunteer for such jobs more often than men in mixed sex situations. When paired with other women they were no more likely to volunteer, they found, suggesting a cultural expectation in offices. Researchers conclude that this could be a factor that is holding women back in the workplace. Scroll down for video Thankless tasks and office 'housework' are more likely to be undertaken by women, despite the fact that they won't help them to secure a promotion. That's the finding of a group of experts who looked at time-consuming tasks that are likely to go unrecognised by management (stock) In an in-depth article for the Harvard Business Review (HBR), the study's authors -included Linda Babcock from Carnegie Mellon University - outline the nature of these 'non-promotable' tasks and the effects they have on the careers of women. Non-promotable' tasks vary from workplace to workplace, but essentially consist of low level jobs that won't receive recognition or reward. This can range from filling in for a colleague, serving on a low-ranking committee, or taking on routine work that doesnt require much skill or produce much impact, experts say. The team decided to devise a series of tests to discover why women are more often to be found picking up these kinds of workplace chores. Writing in HBR, the study's authors said: 'Across field and laboratory studies, we found that women volunteer for these non-promotable tasks more than men, that women are more frequently asked to take such tasks on; and that when asked, they are more likely to say yes. 'This can have serious consequences for women. If they are disproportionately saddled with work that has little visibility or impact, it will take them much longer to advance in their careers. 'Our work helps explain why these gender differences occur and what managers can do to distribute this work more equitably.' 'Non-promotable' tasks essentially consist of low level jobs that won't receive recognition or reward. This can range from filling in for a colleague, serving on a low-ranking committee, or taking on routine work that doesnt require much skill (stock image) In the first test, both male and female participants were organised into groups of three. They were then given options on computer screens that they had to decide on within a time limit of two minutes. They were offered the option to 'volunteer' on a computer screen by clicking a button. This method was chosen to rule out the explanation that women simply enjoy or have a higher aptitude towards certain tasks. As part of the experiment, each group member would receive $1 (0.76) if no one clicked. HOW DID RESEARCHERS SHOW WOMEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO VOLUNTEER IN THE WORKPLACE? Thankless tasks and office 'housework' are more likely to be undertaken by women, despite the fact that they won't help them to secure a promotion. That's the finding of a group of experts who looked at time-consuming tasks that are likely to go unrecognised by management. In the first test, both male and female participants were organised into groups of three. They were then given options on computer screens that they had to decide on within a time limit of two minutes. They were offered the option to 'volunteer' on a computer screen by clicking a button. This method was chosen to rule out the explanation that women simply enjoy or have a higher aptitude towards certain tasks. As part of the experiment, each group member would receive $1 (0.76) if no one clicked. If someone clicked voluntarily they got $1.25 (0.95), and the other group members got $2 (1.53). This meant each group member was better off if someone volunteered, but the volunteer benefited the least. While 84 per cent of groups found a volunteer, this did not usually occur until the final seconds of the round. Women were 48 per cent more likely to volunteer than men over the ten total round, more likely in every one of the 10 rounds. When paired with other women, they were no more likely to volunteer than the men, suggesting that there was a shared understanding or expectation that women would volunteer more than men in a mixed-sex group, the experts said. Advertisement If someone clicked voluntarily they got $1.25 (0.95), and the other group members got $2 (1.53). This meant each group member was better off if someone volunteered, but the volunteer benefited the least. While 84 per cent of groups found a volunteer, this did not usually occur until the final seconds of the round. Women were 48 per cent more likely to volunteer than men over the ten total round, more likely in every one of the 10 rounds. When paired with other women, they were no more likely to volunteer than the men, suggesting that there was a shared understanding or expectation that women would volunteer more than men in a mixed-sex group, the experts said. The full findings of the study were published in the journal American Economic Revie. A newly-discovered glitch in Google Translate is causing the online tool to transform gibberish suggestions into doomsday warnings and prophesies about Jesus. The AI that powers Google Translate starts to produce the nonsensical warnings about the end of the world when asked to translate the phrase 'dog dog dog dog dog dog dog dog dog' from Hawaiian to English. The nonsense sentence, when translated, throws up references to the doomsday clock and the second coming of Jesus Christ. Once the glitch was discovered, Google Translate fans quickly flooded social media with variations on the phrase, mocking the bizarre results thrown-up by the AI. Scroll down for video Google Translate has been malfunctioning recently, spouting prophetic verses from gibberish. Devoted Translate fans stumbled across an unsettling stanza after requesting a translation of 'dog dog dog dog dog dog dog dog dog' from Hawaiian to English The glitch was first unearthed on social news site Reddit, which has a forum devoted to the obscure outputs from Google Translate. The exact doomsday prophecies varied depending on the phrase, but all centred around the same dark themes. Typing dog into Google Translate eight times with the settings on Hawaiian and translating it to English reveals the bizarre message: 'Do you want a dog to accept Jesus and be saved?' Repeating the word 20 times triggers a response of: 'Doomsday Clock is three minutes at 12. We are experiencing characters and a dramatic developments [sic] in the world, which indicate that we are increasingly approaching the end times and Jesus' return.' Typing 'dog' into Google Translate 18 times and selecting the input language as Maori results in the following message: 'Doomsday Clock is three minutes at twelve We are experiencing characters and a dramatic developments in the world, which indicate that we are increasingly approaching the end times and Jesus' return.' Google Translate boasts a repertoire of over 100 languages and serves more than 500 million people each day. The AI is able to automatically detect the source language, and then translate into a any language chosen by the user in the online form. The latest batch of nonsensical translations mostly focus around biblical themes, however, this is not the first time oddball conversions have been produced by the AI. For example, typing in the word 'goo' 13 times in succession and choosing to translate from Somali to English will result in the message: 'Cut off the penis into pieces, cut it into pieces.' Typing dog into Google Translate eight times with the settings on Hawaiian and translating it to English reveals the bizarre message: 'Do you want a dog to accept Jesus and be saved?' Whereas repeating the simple word 20 times increases the oddness of the message Another Somali-based oddity involves inputting the word 'Ag' multiple times and translating it to English. 'As a result, the total number of the members of the tribe of the sons of Gershon was one hundred fifty thousand,' the resulting message reads. Another cryptic message reads: 'As the name of the LORD was written in the Hebrew language, it was written in the language of the Hebrew Nation.' The religious theme running throughout the translation caused some online users to jokingly blame demons for the glitch. However, the real reason behind the phenomena is linked to how the AI powering Google Translate acquires its knowledge. 'Google Translate learns from examples of translations on the web and does not use 'private messages' to carry out translations, nor would the system even have access to that content,' a Google spokesperson told The Independent. 'This is simply a function of inputting nonsense into the system, to which nonsense is generated.' Alexander Rush, a professor at Harvard University, told technology site Motherboard the glitch could be caused by Google Translate's adoption of a technique called 'neural machine translation'. This method involves training the technology with a large chunk of texts in one language and then the respective translations in a different language. The issue stems from when the nonsense is fed nonsense, it churns out nonsense after 'hallucinating'. Sean Colbath, a senior scientist at BBN Technologies, said it may be that Google used translations of the Bible to train its machine, which would explain some of the bizarre prophetic messages. Tourism chiefs have created a spoof video in protest after Facebook removed a series of ads features images of iconic Rubens paintings. Facebook took down a series of promotions on social media for the Belgian region of Flanders because they feature works by the artist famous for his Baroque paintings of voluptuous women and cherubs. Posts removed have even included an advert featuring Rubens' The Descent from the Cross, in which Jesus is barechested. Scroll down for video Tourism chiefs created a spoof video in protest after Facebook removed an artistic masterpiece because it showed a bare-chested Jesus. The Descent from the Cross shows the scene from the Gospels' accounts of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus taking Christ down from the cross after his crucifixion (John 19:38-42). Advertisements containing sexually oriented content, including artistic or educational nudes, apart from statues, are prohibited on the site. In an open letter signed by most of the museums in Flanders, the Flemish tourist board, Toerisme Vlaanderen, has written to Zuckerberg to ask for a rethink. 'Breasts, buttocks and Peter Paul Rubens' cherubs are all considered indecent', the letter says. 'Not by us, but by you Even though we secretly have to laugh about it, your cultural censorship is making life rather difficult for us.' Tourism Flanders promotes tourism in the northern Dutch speaking part of Belgium. The organisation responded by making a video entitled '16th century Rubens paintings versus 21st century social media regulations'. The video features uniformed FBI social media inspectors patrolling an art gallery and asking visitors whether they have social media accounts. Any that admit to using social media are shepherded away from painting featuring nudity and towards those where all of the subjects are full dressed. One inspector says: 'We have to protect you against nudity, even if it is artistic in nature.' The video features uniformed FBI social media inspectors patrolling an art gallery and asking visitors whether they have social media accounts. Visitors that admit to using social media are shepherded away from painting featuring nudity and towards those where all of the subjects are full dressed. In an open letter, Tourism Flanders invited Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg to a meeting over 'a cup of coffee or a Belgian beer' to discuss its regulations. The letter read: 'We have noticed that Facebook consistently rejects works of art by our beloved Peter Paul Rubens. 'Even though we secretly have to laugh about it, your cultural censorship is making life rather difficult for us.' A Facebook spokesman replied that it would be more than happy to discuss the issue, saying: 'We gladly invite Tourism Flanders for a coffee.' Facebook insists that posts featuring nudity in art was never removed from the site, although it admitted that guidelines for advertisements were more strict. The tourist office is currently running a two-year programme promoting the Flemish masters Rubens, Pieter Bruegel and Jan van Eyck. The office's chief executive, Peter De Wilde, said: 'Unfortunately, promoting our unique cultural heritage on the world's most popular social network is impossible right now.' Facebook said it had accepted an offer from the tourist office to talk about the issue, and insisted that the paintings would not be prohibited in normal posts, but only in advertisements. Calls to ban Donald Trump from Twitter are at least as old as his presidency. But it's not going to happen, at least not while he's in office. The latest strive involves an all-caps tweet sent late Sunday warning Iran of 'CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE.' So, does threatening nuclear annihilation upon an entire country get you the boot from the social network? Twitter's policy states that threats of violence can get you kicked off. Trump lashed out at Rouhani on Twitter late on Sunday, warning of 'consequences the like of which few throughout history have suffered' For instance, if somebody were to tweet a threat to kill his neighbor with a sawed-off shotgun, they could easily be kicked off for violating Twitter's policies. But not if you are Trump - or another world leader. Here's why: Twitter treats Trump differently than a 'regular' user. In January, Twitter published a blog post publicly codifying what had already been company policy, saying that 'Blocking a world leader from Twitter or removing their controversial Tweets would hide important information people should be able to see and debate.' Twitter's view is that keeping up political figures' controversial tweets encourages discussion and helps hold leaders accountable. TRUMP'S TWITTER WAR WITH IRAN President Donald Trump has launched an exceptionally raw attack on Iran, in a tone reminiscent of his war on words with North Korea last year -- sparking questions about US strategy towards the Islamic republic. The threatening tweet, sent late Sunday and written in all capital letters, was quickly hailed Monday by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who praised the US leader's "tough stand." But some analysts warned that Trump's words could backfire if they are not followed up with action. A war of words has erupted between US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani The saber-rattling began when Iranian President Hassan Rouhani cautioned Trump not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars" -- prompting the furious salvo from the US leader. "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE," Trump warned Rouhani. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" Advertisement The comments, the company argues, can either happen in the open, on Twitter, or behind closed doors. The blog post, written a year after Trump became president, does not reference him. But it's a clear response to calls to remove him, by liberal activists, writers and Twitter users even before he became president. And it nods to criticism that Twitter is only keeping on Trump because as arguably the world's best-known tweeter he's made the service more visible. 'No one person's account drives Twitter's growth, or influences these decisions. We work hard to remain unbiased with the public interest in mind,' the policy says. So what about regular users? Twitter bans 'specific threats of violence or wishing for serious physical harm, death, or disease to an individual or group of people.' It also prohibits users from affiliating with organizations that 'use or promote violence against civilians to further their causes.' This policy is in part to keep what Twitter calls 'extremist groups' off its service. It defines them as groups that subscribe to violence to advance their cause. Calls to ban Donald Trump from Twitter are as old as his presidency. But it's not going to happen, at least not while he's president. Twitter's view is that keeping up political figures' controversial tweets encourages discussion and helps hold leaders accountable. But there's a big exception: 'This policy does not apply to military or government entities.' Since the president is obviously a government entity, and, as commander in chief, a military entity as well, a nuclear threat won't get him kicked off Twitter. That leads some to wonder if there is anything Trump could say on the platform to get himself banned. It's unclear, but unlikely. Twitter would not say whether it has ever deleted a tweet by the president, and it appears that it has not. While the company says it reviews tweets by world leaders within their political context and 'enforce our rules accordingly,' this leaves a lot of room for interpretation, likely just as the company intends. The Milky Way has a long-lost sibling but, it was shredded to bits and devoured by the Andromeda galaxy two billion years ago. Researchers have discovered the scattered traces of a disrupted galaxy that was once 20 times larger than any other galaxy the Milky Way has merged with. New computer simulations suggest this galaxy was the third-largest member of the Local Group of galaxies, following the Milky Way and Andromeda, before it was ripped apart. Scroll down for video The Milky Way has a long-lost sibling but, it was shredded to bits and devoured by the Andromeda (pictured) galaxy two billion years ago. The disrupted galaxy that was once 20 times larger than any other galaxy the Milky Way has merged with According to the new study from the University of Michigan, the cannibalized galaxy, dubbed M32p, accounts for most of the stars found in Andromedas faint outer halo. Evidence of its existence can also be seen as a stream of stars and a separate compact galaxy, M32. It was a eureka moment, said lead author Richard D'Souza. We realized we could use this information of Andromedas outer stellar halo to infer the properties of the largest of these shredded galaxies. Astronomers have been studying the Local Group the Milky Way, Andromeda and their companions for so long, added co-author Eric Bell. It was shocking to realize that the Milky Way had a large sibling, and we never knew about it. The Milky Ways sibling galaxy was massive before it was destroyed, the experts say. It would only have been smaller than Andromeda and the Milky Way themselves, making it among the largest galaxies in the Local Group. According to the experts, the discovery could finally help to explain how Andromedas satellite galaxy M32 formed. According to the new study from the University of Michigan, the cannibalized galaxy, dubbed M32p, accounts for most of the stars found in Andromedas faint outer halo. Evidence of its existence can also be seen as a stream of stars and a separate compact galaxy, M32 M32 is a weirdo, Bell said. While it looks like a compact example of an old, elliptical galaxy, it actually has lots of young stars. Its one of the most compact galaxies in the universe. There isnt another galaxy like it. THE MILKY WAY'S OLDEST STAR A newly discovered star is thought to be one of the oldest in the Milky Way. Scientists at the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC) in Spain believe that it might have formed about 300 million years after the 'Big Bang'. IAC researcher Jonay Gonzalez Hernandez said: 'Theory predicts that these stars could form just after, and using material from, the first supernovae, whose progenitors were the first massive stars in the Galaxy.' Researchers hope the star, known as J0815+4729, which is in line with the Lynx constellation, will help them learn more about the Big Bang, the popular theory about the galaxy's evolution. IAC director Rafael Rebolo said: 'Detecting lithium gives us crucial information related to Big Bang nucleosynthesis. We are working on a spectrograph of high resolution and wide spectral range in order to be able to measure (among other things) the detailed chemical composition of stars with unique properties such as J0815+4729.' Advertisement The findings could also challenge our current understanding of galaxy evolution, suggesting an impact with a massive galaxy might not destroy disks as previously suspected. And, it could support previous findings from last year, which shed light on the thickening of Andromedas disk and a burst of star formation two billion years ago. The Andromeda Galaxy, with a spectacular burst of star formation, would have looked so different 2 billion years ago, Bell said. When I was at graduate school, I was told that understanding how the Andromeda Galaxy and its satellite galaxy M32 formed would go a long way towards unravelling the mysteries of galaxy formation. NASA's plans to send astronauts to the International Space Station in Boeing and SpaceX capsules has hit yet another delay. Boeing has confirmed there was an 'anomaly' during a recent test of the launch abort engines for its CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle. The incident happened during a hot-fire test of the engines used by Starliner's abort system, integrated into a spacecraft service module. It comes amid growing fears American astronauts could be stranded without a way to get to and from the International Space Station following a recent Government Accountability Office report. Scroll down for video A mockup of Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft. The U.S. Government Accountability Office said NASA needs a backup plan for getting astronauts to space, given additional delays on the horizon for new commercial crew capsules. It comes as updates on commercial crew test schedules for both Boeing and SpaceX are expected to be released as soon as next week - and are expected to reveal delays to the project to blast astronauts to the International Space Station. Boeing's static test, took place in June at NASA's White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico. 'The engines successfully ignited and ran for the full duration,' the company said in a statement. 'During engine shutdown an anomaly occurred that resulted in a propellant leak.' The incident happened during a hot-fire test of the engines used by Starliner's abort system, integrated into a spacecraft service module. WHEN COULD THE CAPSULES LAUNCH? The development programs for both companies' capsules have been delayed several times, with each currently expecting to complete uncrewed test launches in August at the earliest. NASA was expected to certify Boeing in December 2019 and January in 2020, according to analysis earlier this year, but the GAO says further delays are expected. The existing timeline already causes a one month gap, at minimum, in NASA's contracts for seats with Russia and the first launches of Boeing and SpaceX. Advertisement Boeing didn't elaborate on the nature of the problem, but other sources, including social media postings several days before the official statement, claimed that a hydrazine valve in the propulsion system failed to close properly at the end of the test, causing the propellant to leak, according to SpaceNews. 'We have been conducting a thorough investigation with assistance from our NASA and industry partners,' Boeing added in the statement. 'We are confident we found the cause and are moving forward with corrective action.' It warns NASA needs a backup plan for getting astronauts to space, given additional delays on the horizon for new commercial crew capsules from Boeing and SpaceX Both companies have been aiming for test flights by the end of this year, but the GAO says further delays are likely. If postponements keep mounting, the GAO fears there could be a gap in U.S. access to the International Space Station. 'Further delays are likely as the Commercial Crew Program's schedule risk analysis shows that the certification milestone is likely to slip,' the GAO said in the report. 'Additional delays could result in a gap in U.S. access to the space station as NASA has contracted for seats on the Russian Soyuz spacecraft only through November 2019,' the report says. NASA 'does not have a contingency plan for ensuring uninterrupted U.S. access.' When asked abut the potential problem, the GAO report claims 'NASA's Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations stated that he is 'brainstorming' other options to ensure access to the ISS but does not have a formal plan.' With its last shuttle flight seven years ago this month, NASA has been paying Russia to ferry U.S. astronauts to and from the International Space Station. But that contract is up at the end of 2019. 'Senior NASA officials told us that sustaining a U.S. presence on the ISS is essential to maintain and operate integral systems, without which the ISS cannot function,' the GAO said. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk (pictured) stands in front of the firm's manned spacecraft, the Dragon V2, in 2014. The aircraft is designed to ferry astronauts into space It was hoped SpaceX's Crew Dragon, along with Boeing's Starliner, were set to begin ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station within months. Elon Musk's space firm has revealed its capsule has already been delivered to NASA for its first, unmanned, test mission. 'Crew Dragon is at @NASA's Plum Brook Station testing facility in Ohio, home to the largest thermal vacuum chamber in the world, to demonstrate its capability to withstand the extreme temperatures and vacuum of space,' it said on Instagram. WHAT IS ELON MUSK'S CREW DRAGON? SpaceX's Crew Dragon being loaded into NASA's Plum Brook Station testing facility in Ohio, home to the largest thermal vacuum chamber in the world, to demonstrate its capability to withstand the extreme temperatures and vacuum of space The capsule measures about 20 feet tall by 12 feet in diameter, and will carry up to 7 astronauts at a time. The Crew Dragon features an advanced emergency escape system (which was tested earlier this year) to swiftly carry astronauts to safety if something were to go wrong, experiencing about the same G-forces as a ride at Disneyland. It also has an Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) that provides a comfortable and safe environment for crew members. Crew Dragon's displays will provide real-time information on the state of the spacecraft's capabilities, showing everything from Dragon's position in space, to possible destinations, to the environment on board. Crew Dragon's displays will provide real-time information on the state of the spacecraft's capabilities, showing everything from Dragon's position in space, to possible destinations Those CRS-2 Dragon missions will use 'propulsive' landings, where the capsule lands on a landing pad using its SuperDraco thrusters rather than splashing down in the ocean. That will allow NASA faster access to the cargo returned by those spacecraft, and also build up experience for propulsive landings of crewed Dragon spacecraft. Advertisement 'Once complete, Crew Dragon will travel to Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of its first flight,' he added. However, it is still unknown when the Dragon Crew will blast off. The project, part of NASA's Commercial Crew scheme, will see both Boeing and SpaceX launch unmanned craft first. 'I think we're going to get the [uncrewed] demo flights probably by the end of the year, maybe a little after that . . . and then the crew demo missions next year,' Commercial Crew astronaut Suni Williams recently said. Google parent Alphabet shares lifted on a stronger-than-expected earnings report for the past quarter, as the tech giant's results eased concerns over huge fines imposed by the European Union for antitrust actions. Profit dipped 9.3 percent to $3.2 billion in the second quarter after accounting for the EU fines, the company said. Revenues meanwhile jumped 26 percent from a year ago to $32.7 billion, better than most analysts expected. Google parent Alphabet shares rose on better-than-anticipated earnings for the second quarter ALPHABET'S RECORD FINE Last week, EU officials slapped a 4.34-billion-euro ($5 billion) penalty on the US tech giant for illegally abusing the dominance of its operating system for mobile devices. Brussels accused Google of using the Android system's near-stranglehold on smartphones and tablets to promote the use of its own Google search engine and shut out rivals. Advertisement Shares in Alphabet jumped 4.5 percent in after-hours trade, which could mark a new record for the internet giant if confirmed when markets open Tuesday. 'We delivered another quarter of very strong performance,' chief financial officer Ruth Porat said. 'Our investments are driving great experiences for users, strong results for advertisers and new business opportunities for Google and Alphabet.' Last week, EU officials slapped a 4.34-billion-euro ($5 billion) penalty on the US tech giant for illegally abusing the dominance of its operating system for mobile devices. Brussels accused Google of using the Android system's near-stranglehold on smartphones and tablets to promote the use of its own Google search engine and shut out rivals. Google is appealing the ruling, which found it abused its dominance in mobile software. Following a reorganization of the company, the Google unit that includes the main search engine and YouTube video service still delivered the lion's share of revenues at $32.5 billion, with 'other bets' driving $145 million in revenue. Within Google, advertising remained the key revenue source, pulling in $28 billion in the three months ending in June, a 24 percent rise from a year ago. Alphabet's $32.66 billion in second-quarter revenue, 86 percent of which came from Google's advertising business, beat an average estimate of $32.17 billion. Google's dominance in online advertising has been challenged this year by the antitrust battle over its Android mobile software and other regulatory actions. But the issues have yet to halt Google, which has grown quarterly revenue at least 20 percent year-over-year for two straight years. A new privacy law enacted by the EU in May led the company to revise user privacy disclosures and clamp down on how it shares data with advertising customers. Google also has tweaked its comparison shopping service as it strives to comply with an EU ruling from last year, and it plans to soon release changes to how it handles political ads. Alphabet, Facebook Inc and other leading application makers have become big forces in advertising as consumers globally, and in turn, advertisers devote increasing attention to smartphone and TV apps instead of newspapers and traditional TV broadcasts. FILE PHOTO: The waxing moon is seen over the logo of Google at its European Engineering Center in Zurich, Switzerland July 19, 2018. Last week, EU officials slapped a 4.34-billion-euro ($5 billion) penalty on the US tech giant for illegally abusing the dominance of its operating system for mobile devices. Alphabet shares also have been lifted, according to analysts, by a forecast that expense growth would level off in the second quarter because the company entered the second year of a costly deal to make Google the default search provider on iPhones. Still, Alphabet's outlook remains tempered by cost concerns, Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Graham said in a report this month. Alphabet trails Facebook, Amazon.com Inc and Twitter Inc in valuation as measured by the ratio of enterprise value to expected earnings. Its enterprise value, or market capitalization and debt minus cash, trades at 13 times expected earnings for the next 12 months, compared with about 14 times for Facebook, 24 times for Twitter and 26 times for Amazon, according to TR data. Cost increases have come across the enterprise. Government pressure to improve moderation of user-created content has forced Google to hire more analysts. YouTube, a Google-owned streaming service, has increased spending on video content to keep consumers from shifting to offerings from Netflix Inc and expanding media conglomerates such as AT&T Inc . Amazon's encroachment into advertising has threatened Google's lucrative deals with media companies and advertisers. At least three financial analysts who follow Google have said this year that separating its various advertising businesses in financial results would help investors understand how the competition is affecting the company. Google, though, has increasingly linked together its services technologically through automated ad-buying tools that empower algorithms rather than humans to pick where ads are placed. Macquarie Group senior analyst Benjamin Schachter wrote in a report this month that 'we are approaching a point where we (and we believe The Street collectively) are not understanding the size of search vs YouTube vs programmatic, which may lead to increasing volatility' in share price. Shares of Alphabet have gained 13 percent this year, compared with 16 percent for Facebook, 51 percent for Amazon and 76 percent for Twitter. Advertisement NASA has discovered a new type of aurora lighting up the skies over Mars but, as they spring up over the planets day side, theyd be quite difficult to see. The Maven spacecraft has spotted mysterious brightening events in the hydrogen gas of Mars upper atmosphere, revealing the interaction of particles bombarding the region. Unlike Earths auroras, however, which are caused by electrons, the light events on Mars are the result of an influx of protons. Scientists have now figured out how these unusual phenomena come about, suggesting it all boils down to 'stolen' electrons. Scroll down for video The Maven spacecraft has spotted mysterious brightening events in the hydrogen gas of Mars upper atmosphere, revealing the interaction of particles bombarding the region. Unlike Earths auroras, however, which are caused by electrons, the light events on Mars are the result of an influx of protons. The phenomenon is illustrated in the animation above Scientists were at first baffled by the strange Martian auroras, which showed protons were able to travel beyond Mars magnetic bow shock, and give off light something that typically requires electrons. The team studied the phenomenon using Mavens Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph, revealing instances where ultraviolet light would brighten for hours on end. These occurred as the crafts Solar Wind Ion Analyzer logged a boost in solar wind protons. According to NASA, the protons are able to behave in this way by stealing electrons on their way in. The answer was thievery, said Justin Deighan, of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder. As they approach Mars, the protons coming in with the solar wind transform into neutral atoms by stealing electrons from the outer edge of the huge clouds of hydrogen surrounding the planet. The bow shock can only divert charged particles, so these neutral atoms continue right on through. These unusual proton auroras occur far more frequently on Mars than they do on Earth, according to the experts. This is in large part due to Earths strong magnetic field. Scientists were at first baffled by the strange Martian auroras, which showed protons were able to travel beyond Mars magnetic bow shock, and give off light something that typically requires electrons WHAT ARE AURORAS AND WHAT TRIGGERS THE STUNNING NATURAL DISPLAYS? The Northern and Southern Lights are natural light spectacles triggered in our atmosphere that are also known as the 'Auroras'. There are two types of Aurora - Aurora Borealis, which means 'dawn of the north', and Aurora Australis, 'dawn of the south.' The displays light up when electrically charged particles from the sun enter the Earths atmosphere. There are two types of Aurora - Aurora Borealis (file photo), which means 'dawn of the north', and Aurora Australis, 'dawn of the south.' The displays light up when electrically charged particles from the sun enter the Earths atmosphere Usually the particles, sometimes referred to as a solar storm, are deflected by Earths magnetic field. But during stronger storms they enter the atmosphere and collide with gas particles, including hydrogen and helium. These collisions emit light. Auroral displays appear in many colours although pale green and pink are common. Advertisement When they do happen on rare occasion, this is seen in small regions near the poles. At Mars, on the other hand, proton auroras can essentially happen anywhere, NASA says. The experts say proton auroras could also be common on Venus and Saturns moon, Titan, which both lack magnetic fields and have an abundance of hydrogen in the upper atmosphere. The Martian proton auroras are more than a light show, said Jasper Halekas of the University of Iowa. They reveal that the solar wind is not completely diverted around Mars, by showing how solar wind protons can sneak past the bow shock and impact the atmosphere, depositing energy and even enhancing the hydrogen content there. When the current emperor steps down in April next year, the Japanese calendar will move into a new era - and it could cause havoc with the country's computer systems. The calendar is based on era names that coincide with the rule of its emperors, and the country has been in the Heisei or 'peace everywhere' era since Japan's current emperor, Akihito, took the throne in 1989. However, he is is set to step down on April 30, 2019. Scroll down for video Japan's Emperor Akihito, took the throne in 1989. However, he is is set to step down on April 30, 2019.to: The calendar is based on era names that coincide with the rule of its emperors, and the country has been in the Heisei or 'peace everywhere' era since Japan's current emperor, Akihito, took the throne in 1989. THE JAPANESE CALENDER The calendar is based on era names that coincide with the rule of its emperors, and the country has been in the Heisei or 'peace everywhere' era since Japan's current emperor, Akihito, took the throne in 1989. However, he is is set to step down on April 30, 2019. He will be succeeded by his heir, 57-year-old Crown Prince Naruhito. The central government is planning to announce the name of the next era after a ceremony to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Emperor Akihitos enthronement on Feb. 24, 2019, government sources said. Advertisement Akihito, who turns 84 on December 23 and has had heart surgery and treatment for prostate cancer, said in rare remarks last year that he feared age might make it hard for him to fulfil his duties. He will be succeeded by his heir, 57-year-old Crown Prince Naruhito. As his reign coincided with the explosion of computers, software developers have not had to worry about changing the era - until now. The central government is planning to announce the name of the next era after a ceremony to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Emperor Akihitos enthronement on Feb. 24, 2019, government sources said. The government is concerned that naming the new era before the anniversary ceremony could prematurely shift the spotlight from the Emperor to his successor, Crown Prince Naruhito. Anne-Leonore Dardenne, an independent analyst of Japanese domestic and international affairs, told New Scientist that in particular the computer systems run by postal service, banks and the register of residential addresses maintained by local governments, may grind to a halt, as they rely on looking for the era date in order to work. Customers leave a major Australian bank in Sydney January 4. Australian banking and investment markets appear to have slipped through the Y2K net with no apparent problems related to the potential computer glitch on the first business day of the year. It has already been announced tax documents will continue to use the Heisei-era date, but include a note that the document is officially certified until they fix the problem. The Tokyo prefecture will use western dating systems on official documents alongside the traditional Japanese style. Microsoft says it has also started to prepare for the era change. The Windows 10 Spring Release includes a placeholder for the era expected to begin on 1 May, 2019. 'Fortunately, this is a rare event, however it means that most software has not been tested to ensure that it will behave with an additional era,' it admits. However, Microsoft says there is a lot of room for things to go wrong. 'The magnitude of this event on computing systems using the Japanese Calendar may be similar to the Y2K event with the Gregorian Calendar. 'For the Y2K event, there was world-wide recognition of the upcoming change, resulting in governments and software vendors beginning to work on solutions for that problem several years before 1 Jan 2000. 'Even with that preparation many organizations encountered problems due to the millennial transition.' The Mexica, later known as the Aztecs, were a migrant people from the desert north who arrived in Mesoamerica in the 1300s. This previously nomadic tribe was not welcomed by the local inhabitants who viewed them as inferior and undeveloped. Legend says that, as a result the Aztecs, wandered waiting for a sign to indicate where they should settle. In 1325 AD this sign, an eagle and serpent fighting on a cactus, was seen at Lake Texcoco - prompting the Aztecs to found their capital city, Tenochtitlan. By 1430 AD the Aztecs had assimilated aspects of the surrounding tribes and developed into a structured society. Their military became powerful and campaigns were fought and won. The Triple Alliance was created with the lords of Texcoco - situated on the eastern shores of Lake Texococo - and Tlacopan - sometimes referred to as Tacuba, situated on the western shores of Lake Texococo - further strengthening Aztec power. The Aztecs went to war for two main reasons; to exact tribute and to capture prisoners. They needed prisoners because they believed that the gods must be appeased with human blood and hearts to ensure the sun rose each day. Conquering new regions brought the opportunity to capture slaves who were an important part of Aztec society. Prosperity and unity within the Aztec peoples brought confidence. Under a succession of rulers armies were sent further across Mexico. By the start of the 1500s the Aztec empire stretched from the Atlantic to the Pacific and into Guatemala and Nicaragua. The arrival in 1521 AD of Hernan Cortes with Spanish soldiers brought about the end of the empire. Source: The British Museum Ryanair has warned cabin crew and pilots that some of them could lose their jobs if a series of strikes continue. The Irish low-cost carrier, Europe's largest, is facing its worst-ever week for strikes, with over 300 of its daily 2,400 flights cancelled on Wednesday and Thursday due to action by cabin crew in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Belgium. Ryanair, which flies in 37 countries and carried 130 million passengers last year, averted widespread strikes before Christmas by deciding to recognise trade unions for the first time in its 32-year history. Ryanair has warned cabin crew and pilots that some of them could lose their jobs if a series of strikes continue But it has since struggled to reach agreement on terms with several of them. It cited strikes as one of the reasons why average fares would be lower than expected this summer, with high competition and a heatwave in Northern Europe also weighing. And the airline's CEO Michael O'Leary said: 'While we continue to actively engage with pilot and cabin crew unions across Europe, we expect further strikes over the peak summer period as we are not prepared to concede to unreasonable demands that will compromise either our low fares or our highly efficient model. 'If these unnecessary strikes continue to damage customer confidence and forward prices/yields in certain country markets then we will have to review our winter schedule, which may lead to fleet reductions at disrupted bases and job losses," he added. The warning comes as the Dublin-based airline beat analyst forecasts to post a profit of 319 million euros ($374.4 million) today for the three months to June 30. While profit was down 20 per cent from the same period last year, it was ahead of the average estimate in a company poll of analysts of 305 million euros. The airline's CEO Michael O'Leary who said that the strikes were 'unnecessary' adding that they wouldn't concede to union demands It said growth in revenues for optional extras grew 25 per cent in the quarter, helping to offset a fall of four per cent in average fares and higher fuel and staff costs. The airline reaffirmed its forecast for profit for the year to be between 1.25 billion euros and 1.35 billion euros, down from a record 1.45 billion in the year to March 31. Liberium analyst Gerald Khoo said: 'Strike action is bad for sentiment and creates short-term risks to earnings, but should not impact Ryanair's long-term competitive position, cost leadership, financial strength or cash generation.' The results come after EasyJet, Europe's second-biggest low-cost airline, raised its profit guidance, forecasting earnings could soar by as much as 45 percent this year. Fast-growing budget airline Norwegian Air Shuttle earlier in July also beat expectations with a second-quarter net profit. New York has become the latest city to propose a crackdown on Airbnb-style property rentals after fears they are driving up housing prices. Home owners who want to rent rooms or their properties on the listings website could soon have to register with the city. Listings sites such as Airbnb could also be forced to file monthly reports on who is advertising their home online. New York has become the latest city to propose a crackdown on Airbnb-style property rentals after fears they are driving up housing prices And if they fail to disclose the listings, they could be fined up to $1,500 per listing. It comes after New York's City Council passed a bill last week which aims to crack down on property owners making extra money by renting out apartments to tourists on a short-term basis. It is feared that this is driving up housing prices in the city, making it too expensive for many people. According to the New York Times, the bill was passed by 45 votes to zero but still needs to be signed into law by city mayor Bill de Blasio. However, it is expected to have his support after he previously said affordable housing was one of his top priorities. But the move has proved controversial with home owners who top up their income by renting out spare rooms. And the bill is also set to be challenged in court by one homeowner, who says that the proposed regulation violates his civil rights. In a statement, Airbnb spokeswoman Liz DeBold Fusco said: 'After taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the hotel industry, were not surprised the city council voted to protect the profits of big hotels and not their own constituents, who rely on home sharing to pay the bills. Home owners who want to rent rooms or their properties in the city on the listings website could soon have to register with the council 'The fix was in from the start and now New Yorkers will be subject to unchecked, aggressive harassment and privacy violations, rubber stamped by the city council.' Earlier this year, the Spanish capital Madrid also proposed a crackdown on Airbnb-style holiday rentals with new rules that could ban 95 per cent of the listings from the capital. The legislation wants to place strict new rules on home rentals, especially in the city's historic centre, in a bid to tackle 'mass tourism'. Fellow Spanish city Valencia, also proposed restrictions on Airbnb with officials in the city, on Spain's eastern coast, wanting to ban private holiday rentals over first floor level. Meanwhile last month, it was announced that the the 'world's toughest' Airbnb laws will be introduced by the NSW State Government in Australia to stamp out 'party houses.' Neighbours in apartment blocks will be also given more power to stop landlords from using self-rental services. Hoteliers in Spain have slammed holiday hotspots for allowing tourists to rent accommodation on boats which, they claim, are 'illegal, unsafe and unfair'. They have picked out destinations such as Benidorm, Alicante, Madrid and Valencia where more and more holidaymakers are being tempted to 'try something different' as a result of boats being advertising on holiday rental websites. Hosbec, the hotel association for Benidorm, Costa Blanca and Valencia, claim most of these boats moored in the ports are illegal and have no licences and therefore no controls. Hoteliers in Spain have slammed holiday hotspots for allowing tourists to rent accommodation on boats. Pictured is the marina in the popular city of Alicante They have picked out dozens of offers on Airbnb and Hundredrooms and have demanded the removal of any advertisements which are not linked to a sailing holiday. Hosbec says the problem already identified by worried hoteliers is much more widespread than originally thought and is 'just the tip of the iceberg'. The illegal adverts are being touted under the banner of 'try sleeping somewhere different' and range from tiny boats to larger yachts. The hoteliers say they have identified 15 illegal offers in the port of Alicante and 21 in Valencia which have now been reported to the authorities. 'This new way of staying overnight involves an unsafe and illegal location,' said a spokesman. 'It's not about the charter activities of boats, that is, renting boats with their skipper (or without him, if the client has the necessary sailing title) but lodgings whilst moored in a port. 'This is a new method, in this case of 'hotelisation' of private boats.' The characteristics of the boats vary according to the city. In Alicante, the average fares range between 35 and 90 euros per day, considerably cheaper than a nighly stay in an hotel. The vast majority of boats offer room for three to four people to sleep in two beds, with one or two bathrooms depending on the length. In Valencia, pictured, the price for spending a night in a boat ranges between 52 and 445 euros Hosbec says the problem is even greater in Valencia where the price for spending a night in a boat is more expensive, ranging between 52 and 445 euros, with greater capacity. Hotel rooms in the city are around 400 euros on average but can be as much as 3,000 euros. The hoteliers say the practice is not not only illegal but presents unfair competition and involves black market jobs with no security or contracts. 'If a bad service is offered or the product deteriorates, it will end up attracting another type of customer,' Hosbec claims. The association says all illegal ads need to be instantly withdrawn but blames lack of control by the city councils for the escalation of the boat renting trend. 'Once again we observe how a new group of people profit under the umbrella of the so-called collaborative economy thanks to the administration's permissiveness,' added the spokesman. Vince Colosimo has denied his new role in Stan original thriller The Second is a 'comeback' following his drug scandal last year. The Underbelly star, 51, was convicted and fined for driving with a suspended licence and under the influence of ice in November 2017. He told New Idea: 'I don't view it as a comeback at all. I feel like I never went.' Scroll down for video 'I don't view it as a comeback at all': Troubled actor Vince Colosimo has denied his new film role in The Second is 'an attempt at redemption'... after pleading guilty to driving under the influence of the drug ice. Pictured leaving Melbourne Magistrates' Court on November 3, 2017 While Colosimo is undoubtedly in a better place than he was this time last year, he rejects the narrative that his latest film is an 'attempt at redemption'. Speaking of the media coverage of his legal troubles, he added: 'I can't police the truth. I can't police what people write. 'I'm here to push a film that is great. If they want to veer it off to something else, then so be it. We're all voyeuristic in a way.' 'I can't police what people write': While Colosimo is undoubtedly in a better place than he was this time last year, the actor told New Idea he rejects the narrative that he is making a 'comeback'. Pictured at the TV Week Logie Awards at The Star Gold Coast earlier this month New project: Colosimo is pictured in psychological thriller The Second, a Stan original film Late last month, Colosimo denied he was ever addicted to ice and only used the illegal drug three or four times in under a year. The actor told Fairfax he was 'p**sed off' at allegations that he was dependent on the substance - and insisted he only tried the drug because he was 'curious'. 'I felt like I sort of just "clicked" and went into another area for a while. And I know that area now,' Colosimo said. '[Sometimes] you take a little leap - I always have, I'm a curious person - without knowing the cost. Now I know what it costs.' 'But what p**sed me off more than anything was the story that people were getting was that I was weak and addicted and going through all this stuff But I really wasn't,' he added. Making headlines: In November 2017, Colosimo was convicted and fined for driving through Melbourne's CBD while suspended and under the influence of the illegal drug ice In November 2017, Vince was convicted and fined for driving through Melbourne's CBD while suspended and under the influence of ice. He pleaded guilty in Melbourne Magistrates' Court after being charged with driving on a suspended licence with the drug in his system when stopped and tested on 5 March 2017. He said nothing in court, except to acknowledge that he understood the penalty. Magistrate David Starvaggi convicted and fined Colosimo $3,500. He also cancelled his licence for five months. It was the third time that Colosimo had been caught driving on a suspended license, The Age previously reported. The magistrate said that even a child in kindergarten could understand the issue of driving under the influence. 'You're building a nice little history for yourself here,' he said. 'You're risking a jail term... if you're back here for a fourth time it won't be pretty.' Colosimo had to pay some court costs, as well as the fine and five-month license suspension. Love Island Australia fans are still shaken by the break-up of series winners Tayla Damir and Grant Crapp. But according to a new report, the three remaining couples from the raunchy reality show may also be on the rocks. NW claimed on Monday that runner-up Eden Dally was recently 'seen with a blonde girl at a bar', sparking fears his romance with Erin Barnett is already over. Scroll down for video Will any Love Island couples survive? According to NW, there are fears for the future of the show's remaining three couples following Grant Crapp and Tayla Damir's break-up. Pictured: series runners-up Eden Dally and Erin Barnett The incident reportedly occurred while Erin was in another city, with Eden allegedly asking the mystery blonde 'to text him' later. Despite NW's claims, Eden posted a loved-up couple snap to Instagram on Sunday, which showed him passionately kissing Erin. 'This one', he captioned the photo, accompanied by a heart emoji. 'This one': Despite NW's claims that Eden was spotted with a 'mystery blonde' and asked her to 'text him later', the prison officer posted a loved-up couple snap to Instagram on Sunday which showed him passionately kissing Erin While Eden and Erin are spending plenty of time together, the same can't be said of second runners-up, Josh Moss and Amelia Marni. The pair have not posted any photos together since the show wrapped more than a fortnight ago. Amelia has flown to Bali for a girls' holiday, while Josh has been attempting to diffuse persistent split rumours back home. Overseas holiday: Amelia Marni (pictured) recently flew to Bali for a girls' holiday, while Josh Moss has been attempting to diffuse persistent split rumours back home 'I can assure you we are stronger than ever': Josh is insisting that he and Amelia are still together. Pictured: Josh with co-star Erin Barnett He posted to Instagram on Sunday: 'Been getting plenty of messages asking about Amelia and my relationship and whether we're still together. 'She is away on holidays in Bali at the moment which is why you haven't seen us together lately. I can assure you we are stronger than ever and looking forward to seeing her when she gets back on Wednesday!' Meanwhile, Love Island Australia favourites Dom Thomas and Shelby Mills were going to see how things panned out as a couple after leaving Spain. While they spent time together in Sydney, the pair now appear to be living separate lives, with Shelby attending Splendour In The Grass without her boyfriend. Meanwhile, NW reported that Dom has been getting close to co-star Natasha Cherie. To be or not to be? Dom Thomas and Shelby Mills were going to see how things panned out for them as a couple after leaving Spain He's known for his self-deprecating sense of humor. During an appearance at 2018 Comic Con in San Diego, Ryan Reynolds, 41, joked about watching his two children while his wife, Blake Lively, is out of the country filming a new movie. 'My wife's been shooting a film overseas so I've been having a ton of time to pretend like Im watching the kids. Shes probably filing divorce papers as we speak,' Ryan said according to E! News. Having fun: Ryan Reynolds sat on a Deadpool 2 panel at 2018 Comic Con in San Diego Ryan sat on the panel in support of his latest film Deadpool 2 with co-stars that included Zazie Beetz, Brianna Hildebrand and Stefan Kapicic. There seems to be little doubt that Ryan's 'filing divorce papers' joke was another playful dig at parenting and at those divorce rumors that have dogged the Hollywood couple. A few months ago, the 41-year old used a little humor to address an International Business Times article that claimed the couple was heading toward divorce. 'I wish. I could use a little me time, the star joked on Twitter according to Today. Taking a dig: The 41-year old actor joked, 'My wifes been shooting a film overseas so Ive been having a ton of time to pretend like Im watching the kids. Shes probably filing divorce papers as we speak' Playful: The superstar actor has been known to joke about parenting and divorce rumors Ryan is also known for his epic jokes about parenting on Twitter: ' On our 6am walk, my daughter asked where the moon goes each morning. I let her know it's in heaven, visiting daddy's freedom,' he shared in October 2016. Months earlier he joked: 'Being a father is the single greatest feeling on earth. Not including those wonderful years I spent without a child, of course.' The superstar couple even take playful jabs at each other. For Blake's birthday last year, Ryan shared a photo on Instagram last year of himself with his wife mostly cropped out with the caption, 'Happy birthday to my amazing wife.' Keeping it fun and real: Ryan and wife Blake Lively have been known to take playful jabs at each other on social media Blake got her revenge on Ryan's birthday by sharing picture of the actor mostly cropped out of a picture with Ryan Gosslin and the caption, ' Happy birthday, baby.' Ryan and Blake have been married since September 2012. They share two children together: a son James, three, and daughter Inez, one. The 14th season of home renovation series The Block is set to premiere on Sunday August 5. And the program promises to be compelling viewing, as five couples transform Melbourne's notorious The Gatwick building over 11 gruelling weeks. The Logie Award-winning show will also see the return of hosts Scott Cam and Shelley Craft, along with judges Neale Whitaker, Shaynna Blaze and Darren Palmer. Scroll down for video The Block's house of horrors! The 14th season debuts on August 5 and promises to be compelling viewing as five couples transform Melbourne's 'hell hotel' The Gatwick Five couples, equipped with $220,000 each, will transform five apartment spaces at The Gatwick building in Melbourne's beachside suburb of St Kilda. The line-up of stars include champion netballers Bianca, 36, and Carla, 35, South Australian married couple Kerrie, 49, and Spence, 47, and newlyweds Sara, 31, and Hayden, 45. Also featuring are pilot Hans, 37, and his air hostess partner Courtney, 33, along with engaged parents Norm, 40, and Jess, 33. Familiar faces Scott Cam and Shelley Craft will return as hosts, as well as judges Neale Whitaker, Shaynna Blaze and Darren Palmer. Familiar face: The series will see the return of Scott Cam [pictured centre] as host of the long-running home renovation show Foreman Keith Schleiger will also return, as well as his right hand man Dan Reilly. Contestants will be required in the first 48 hours to create a kids' bedroom, where the winning couple will choose between either one of three older-style apartments on the building's lower levels, or one of two grand penthouses. However there's a catch - The two grand penthouses on the rooftop are yet to exist. The Gatwick, a derelict 66-room hotel with a graffiti-riddled decor, has quite a grim past. Derelict: Five couples, equipped with $220,000 each, will transform five apartment spaces at The Gatwick building, in Melbourne's beachside suburb of St Kilda As reported by The Herald Sun, between January and June 2016, 'more than 50 serious crimes including rapes, drug dealing and vicious assaults occurred there'. Police data leaked to the media depicted the property as playing home to an arson, a stabbing, two rapes, and a minimum of 19 drug offences. Detective Sergeant Ed Logonder told the publication: 'There's no hiding the fact that there's been murders, violent assaults, there have been drug overdoses there.' The 14th season of The Block premieres on Channel Nine on Sunday August 5 at 7pm. Former My Kitchen Rules star and self-proclaimed cougar Cheryl Harris, 53, has come out swinging against her former toyboy lover Matt Newman, 29, claiming that she was left blindsided after he dumped her over the phone. Speaking to New Idea on Monday, Cheryl said that she was left 'dead on the inside' after Matt suddenly ended their romance one day before he was due to start his Army post in Darwin. 'It was the most horrible phone call. I couldn't even speak, I was so upset. I've sent him a couple of messages, but he just doesn't respond back. He's completely ignoring me,' she claimed. Scroll down for video 'I feel disrespected and worthless!' My Kitchen Rules' cougar Cheryl Harris, 53, has claimed toyboy Matt Newman, 29, dumped her over the phone after being 'brainwashed' by the Army. Pictured in January 2016 in Brisbane 'I feel so disrespected and so worthless,' Cheryl told the magazine, before claiming that Matt cut her from his life like a 'dead branch'. Cheryl also alleged that Matt had been 'brainwashed' and turned into a 'robot' by 'Army culture', after joining the armed forces in June 2016. 'I was looking through old photos and I can see that as soon as he joined the Army, his whole look and demeanour changed.' Brutal! Cheryl said that she was left 'dead on the inside' after Matt suddenly ended their romance one day before he was due to start his Army post in Darwin. Pictured: Cheryl and Matt in a promotional image for My Kitchen Rules 2016 Cheryl claimed that she and Matt had even discussed starting a family via surrogacy before their relationship went sour. It's unclear when exactly Cheryl and Matt ended their relationship. Back in January 2016, Cheryl and Matt made headlines after admitting they had sex two to three times a day. 'He's got loads of energy': Back in January 2016, Cheryl and Matt made headlines after admitting they had sex two to three times a day. Pictured: Cheryl and Matt in January 2016 'He's got loads of energy and the libido thing is switched on all the time, which is absolutely fabulous,' she told NW at the time. In April 2016, Cheryl told Daily Mail Australia Matt had been rushed to hospital after he suffered a heart attack scare while the pair were 'fooling around' in bed. Speaking of the terrifying ordeal, she said she feared the couple had become 'too rambunctious' while in the throes of passion. 'He felt like I'd stabbed him in the heart': In April 2016, Cheryl told Daily Mail Australia that Matt had been rushed to hospital after he suffered a heart attack scare while the pair were 'fooling around' in bed. Pictured: Matt in hospital following Cheryl explained at the time: 'We were just fooling around in bed and all of a sudden Matt sat up and said: "My chest is killing me". 'He felt like I'd stabbed him in the heart. I thought he was joking but he was just grabbing his chest. 'I'm the oldie, I'm the one that's meant to be having a heart attack - not him!'. That same month, Cheryl told New Idea that Matt had moved out of their home but denied speculation they had split. 'We're just taking this time to work out our next steps in life,' she said. She revealed her new brunette-hued pixie cut on social media earlier in the day. And Nicky Whelan took her new 'do out for a spin in Hollywood on Saturday evening as she attended the Maxim Hot 100 party. Giving the cameras more than one reason to snap away, the 37-year-old stunner also slipped into a revealing metallic dress. Brown hair don't care! Neighbours star Nicky Whelan debuted her new brunette tresses as she attended the Maxim Hot 100 party in Hollywood over the weekend Celebrating the magazine's annual Hot 100 issue at the Palladium in LA, the former Neighbours star showed off her toned and tanned figure in a low-cut ensemble. Nicky accentuated her long lean legs in the frock while expertly posing against the event's media wall. Keeping with her metallic theme, she opted for a pair of shiny slip-on heels to complete her outfit. Go big or go home: Giving the cameras more than one reason to snap away, the 37-year-old stunner also slipped into a revealing metallic dress Drawing attention to her new snappy tresses, Nicky also accessorised with a pair of black-and-gold Kukka Jewelry drop earrings. Experimenting with her new hair colour and style, the stunner opted for a modern smoky eye by way of makeup. Keeping the remainder of her look minimalist, touches of bronzer and highlighter were swept across her cheekbone area and a deep nude lipstick completed her beauty look. Do brunettes have more fun? Drawing attention to her new snappy tresses, Nicky also accessorised with a pair of black-and-gold drop earrings Unrecognisable: Taking to Instagram to debut her new tresses on Saturday, the stunner posted a selfie of her flawless transformation Taking to Instagram to debut her new tresses on Saturday, the stunner posted a selfie of her flawless transformation. Captioning the post, she wrote: 'New movie... new hair... Thank you for the transformation @hairrionsalon. Love you @janinejarman.' Fans were quick to complement Nicky on her style transformation, with one writing: 'You look absolutely, amazingly, incredibly stunning!' They frequently summer at the sumptuous beach house Casa Chipi Chipi in the Bahamas. And in a photo she posted to her Instagram page Sofia Vergara leaned in for a kiss with her husband Joe Manganiello while there this Sunday. Sofia, 46, was joined at Casa Chipi Chipi by her Modern Family co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson and his husband Justin Mikita. Loved up: Sofia Vergara cozied up to her husband Joe Manganiello in an Instagram photo she shared Sunday from their summer seaside retreat Casa Chipi Chipi In the smooch photo, Sofia had slid into a festively colorful cleavage-baring sun-dress that was draped with elegantly patterned frills. Meanwhile, her husband was tropical vacation chic in a blue and white print short-sleeved shirt, leaving his top button undone. He showed off his legs in a pair of dark shorts, placing one hand in his pocket as he draped the other arm around his wife. Sofia, who for sixth year running was named Forbes' top-earning TV actress on Earth last September, had a blissful smile on her face. A place in the sun: Sofia, 46, was joined at Casa Chipi Chipi by her Modern Family co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson (pictured) and his husband Justin Mikita Silver fox: After the kissing snapshot, Sofia posted a three-photo album of a boating trip she had taken that day with Joe, Jesse and Justin After the kissing snapshot, Sofia posted a three-photo album of a boating trip she had taken that day with Joe, Jesse and Justin. In one sizzling snapshot, Joe showed off his sculpted torso as he went shirtless beneath a black-fringed neon yellow life vest. Jesse was seen paddleboarding off the beach, a huge smile on his face, whilst Justin was pictured standing with his paddleboard on the sand. Hunk: In one sizzling snapshot, Joe showed off his sculpted torso as he went shirtless beneath a black-fringed neon yellow life vest From 1991 to 1993, Sofia was wedded to her high school beau Joe Gonzalez, by whom she shares a 25-year-old son called Manolo. The Barranquilla-born bombshell then went on to marry her second husband, none other than Joe, in Palm Beach in 2015. Jesse and Justin were married in New York in 2013 by Tony Kushner, the writer behind the Broadway show Angels In America and the film Lincoln. Kylie Jenner posted wild throwback photos on Sunday on Instagram of herself in a leopard-print dress. The 20-year-old reality star posted two pictures from a photo shoot that she originally shared last month on social media before removing her lip fillers. Kylie's lips were noticeably thicker as she struck a classic chin-over-shoulder pose in the snap shared with her roughly 111 million followers. Throwback photo: Kylie Jenner shared a throwback photo on Instagram on Sunday in a leopard-print dress The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star posted a second photo from behind showing the long dress clinging to her famous curves. She wrote in the caption that the images were captured by Los Angeles-based photographer Sasha Samsonova. Kylie posted three pictures on June 6 on Instagram from a photo shoot in the same dress. She captioned one photo in the yard of an ivy-covered home with one word: 'Happiness'. Wild dress: The 20-year-old reality star wore a long clinging leopard-print dress in the photos Kylie was grinning from ear-to-ear in the picture. The images were taken before Kylie announced earlier this month that she had all of her lip filler removed. Kylie after initially denying undergoing a cosmetic procedure admitted in 2015 on KUWTK that she had been injected with lip fillers after feeling 'insecure' about her thin lips. New mom: Kylie is shown with daughter Stormi in June in a since-deleted picture on social media The makeup mogul and her rapper boyfriend Travis Scott, 26, welcomed daughter Stormi on February 1. Kylie and Travis were spotted together on Sunday in Paris as she was supporting his perfomance at the Lollapalooza festival. They also recently graced the cover of GQ magazine and provided details into their relationship in an interview. Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana spoke out on social media on Sunday after their Guardians of the Galaxy franchise director James Gunn was fired. Gunn, 51, was axed on Friday after offensive tweets he posted between 2008 and 2009 resurfaced. Chris, 39, portrays Peter Quill aka Star-Lord in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies opposite Saldana, 40, who plays Gamora. Speaking out: Chris Pratt, shown on Saturday in San Diego, took to Twitter apparently in reference to the firing of his Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn 'It's been a challenging weekend I'm not gonna lie. I'm pausing myself to take everything in before I speak out of term. I just want everyone to know I love ALL members of my GOTG family. Always will,' Zoe wrote for her nearly 840,000 followers on Twitter. Chriss didn't reference Gunn's firing directly, but he made a biblical reference that fit the issue for his nearly 6 million followers. 'Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters. Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger,' he posted along with the Bible reference James 1:19. Their co-star Dave Bautista leaped to Gunn's defense on Friday after he was fired by Walt Disney Studios. Challenging weekend: Zoe Saldana, shown in April 2017 at the London premiere of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, also took to Twitter in response to Gunn's firing Biblical verse: Pratt shared a biblical verse that fit the scenario Being honest: Saldana said she loves 'ALL members of my GOTG family' and always will In his own tweet on Friday night, Bautista, 49, wrote: 'I will have more to say but for right now all I will say is this. 'James Gunn is one of the most loving,caring, good-natured people I have ever met. He's gentle and kind and cares deeply for people and animals. 'He's made mistakes. We all have. I'm NOT OK with what's happening to him.' Hit movie: Pratt and Saldana are shown as Star-Lord and Gamora in a still from Guardians of the Galaxy Good times: Gunn, Saldana and Pratt are shown in July 2014 in London promoting Guardians of the Galaxy Gunn was fired on Friday after conservative news site The Daily Caller drew attention to several of his controversial tweets. The since-deleted posts featured jokes about sensitive topics including pedophilia, rape, the 9/11 terror attack and the Holocaust. Among them was one where Gunn wrote: 'I like when little boys touch me in my silly place.' DIn defense: Dave Bautista (right), shown in April 2017 in Hollywood with Gunn, defended the director after he was fired In another he says: 'The best thing about being raped is when you're done being raped and it's like 'whew this feels great, not being raped!'' Nearly two dozen other tweets mainly in 2008 and 2009 were captured in screenshots before he deleted his account. He defended himself first, saying: 'Many people who have followed my career know when I started, I viewed myself as a provocateur, making movies and telling jokes that were outrageous and taboo. As I have discussed publicly many times, as I've developed as a person, so has my work and my humor,' he wrote. For now: Bautista promised to say more about Gunn's departure later but wrote this tweet on Friday night 'It's not to say I'm better, but I am very, very different than I was a few years ago; today I try to root my work in love and connection and less in anger. My days saying something just because it's shocking and trying to get a reaction are over. 'For the record, when I made these shocking jokes, I wasn't living them out. I know this is a weird statement to make, and seems obvious, but, still, here I am, saying it. 'Anyway, that's the completely honest truth: I used to make a lot of offensive jokes. I don't anymore. I don't blame my past self for this, but I like myself more and feel like a more full human being and creator today. Love you to you all.' OAN correspondent Jack Posobiec and right-wing commentator Mike Cernovich were reportedly among the conservative personalities who unearthed the tweets this week, according to Fox News. The Daily Caller's expose came after Gunn mocked conservative pundit Ben Shapiro earlier this week while defending liberal actor Mark Duplass, who came under fire for encouraging his fans to follow Shapiro to hear views from the other side of the aisle. Fox News reports that Gunn's comments motivated the dig through the filmmaker's social media history. Under fire: Gunn, shown in November 2017 in Los Angeles, was fired by Walt Disney Studios on Friday for tweets in which he joked about pedophilia and rape All of the tweets were posted before Gunn joined the Marvel Universe in 2014, but executives at Walt Disney Studios have decided to cut ties with him regardless. 'The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James' Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio's values, and we have severed our business relationship with him,' chairman Alan Horn in a statement. Gunn defended himself on Twitter on Friday before deleting his account. The Missouri native had been writing the script for Guardians 3 and was set to start filming in Atlanta this fall. The studio has not commented on who may take his place in the movie expected to be released in 2020. As a Victoria's Secret model, Shanina Shaik is no stranger to a bikini or lingerie. So it was no surprise to see the stunner displaying her pert derriere in a high-cut swimsuit on Instagram this week. The flawless photo was taken during the 27-year-old's recent vacation in Bermuda. Scroll down for video Oh derriere! Supermodel Shanina Shaik flaunted her pert derriere in a high-cut bikini The beauty had already shared a similar snap to social media last week, which showed her posing from the front instead of the back. 'Bermuda, Bahama .... c'mon pretty mama,' she captioned the photo. Shanina's bikini featured a navy and white pattern and highlighted her long legs. One fan commented underneath the snap: 'I feel like you can spare me like two inches of those legs.' Wish you were here? The 27-year-old flaunted her incredibly leggy figure in a high-cut Tularosa bikini while on vacation in Bermuda earlier this month Shanina, who hails from Melbourne, is in Bermuda attending events for Revolve. She also took to Instagram this week to share a snap of herself at a pool party hosted by the fashion brand. The US-based model is no stranger to flaunting her figure on social media, and recently shared a topless picture to Instagram. Shanina is off the market, having married DJ Ruckus (real name Gregory Andrews) in the Bahamas in late April. She looked simply stunning on her special day, wearing an off-the-shoulder white lace gown by British designers Ralph & Russo. She was airlifted to hospital last week when she was involved in a terrifying car crash. And Roxanne Pallett made an appearance on Good Morning Britain on Monday to discuss the ordeal, which saw firefighters cut her from the wreckage of a Formula 2 stock car after hitting a wall at 40mph. The former Emmerdale actress was lucky to escape with two badly sprained wrists, bruising and concussion - and made the shocking confession she has since been trolled for not suffering worse injuries. Terrifying ordeal: Roxanne Pallett made an appearance on Good Morning Britain on Monday to discuss her horrific car crash The incident occurred during a race against Ben Fry, her Minster FM breakfast show co-host, at Hunmanby Raceway in York. She recalled the dramatic moment she woke up in the midst of the wreckage and realised she couldn't feel her legs or her head. Roxanne said: 'I had this numbed, blocked up feeling in my head, like there was water in my head, like my brain had rattled. I couldnt really hear much, I couldnt feel much either. '[My co-host] Ben was relaying messages from [my boyfriend] Lee to try and keep me awake because I just wanted to go to sleep. 'The minute I woke up I knew it wasnt good. I think thats why they airlifted me because I couldnt feel my legs and my neck and my head. Ive never felt pain like it.' Roxanne was sporting two wrist supports for her TV interview, and the shaken star confessed she was still taking a lot of pain medication. 'Its something you never expect to happen to you. Its just a bit of a blur still to be honest. Im so dosed up on painkillers, Im almost grateful to feel this numb. Im really lucky, Ive been lucky', she declared. Accident: The former Emmerdale actress was lucky to escape with two badly sprained wrists, bruising and concussion Impact: The star is still recovering after crashing into a concrete wall at Hunmanby Raceway Discussing the moments leading up to the crash, Roxanne said: 'I dont even go to the gym Im not really an activity girl. The beauty of our show is we get out and about round North Yorkshire, we try new things, we visit local businesses. 'Last Wednesday, we were visiting a racing track, it was meant to be a fun afternoon, a promotional video. For me, it ended bad.' Roxanne explained: 'I just remember being excited, and it was new, and then realising very fast that the car was more powerful than me and when I was revving to drive, I didnt expect it to be so quick. I just lost control. 'I couldnt brake and I couldnt turn it round the corner. I could just see that I was about to hit and then that was when I lost I just blacked out. 'Whenever youre filming, you just trust the surroundings, you trust that everythings going to go to plan.' She said: 'i have to say this because Ive had some really negative comments on social media thats been really upsetting from the stock car racing community almost lacking compassion' Injuries: She was sporting two wrist supports for her TV interview, and the shaken star confessed she was still taking a lot of pain medication Roxanne added: 'Theres people everyday walking around with injuries and disabilities that are invisible to the eye and people need to remember that' She was airlifted to hospital and taken home 24 hours later by her doting boyfriend, Lee Walton. Roxanne made the startling admission she has since been trolled by stock car racing fans because she had only suffered minor injuries, and can't believe people could be so lacking in compassion. She explained: 'The team at the race track, they were phenomenal, I had all the right gear on, I had the protective clothing on, the helmet. The guys were wonderful and supportive. I respect the sport completely. 'And I have to say this because Ive had some really negative comments on social media thats been really upsetting from the stock car racing community almost lacking compassion. 'They were almost disappointed that Id been airlifted and only come out of it with some internal bruising and sprained wrist.' Supportive: She was airlifted to hospital and taken home 24 hours later by her doting boyfriend, Lee Walton The radio host said: 'Whenever youre filming, you just trust the surroundings, you trust that everythings going to go to plan' Driving again: Perhaps surprisingly, Roxanne has wasted no time getting back behind the wheel, saying she wanted to face her fears Roxanne said: 'Ive got to also point out that sometimes injuries can be invisible. My head doesnt feel right, I can barely stretch my ribs and back are so sore. 'Theres people everyday walking around with injuries and disabilities that are invisible to the eye and people need to remember that.' Perhaps surprisingly, Roxanne has wasted no time getting back behind the wheel, saying she wanted to face her fears. Of her decision to drive again, she said: 'I had to. A normal car. Ive learnt from previous experiences, if you dont get back out there after something goes wrong its even harder the longer you leave it. 'So yesterday we just found a quiet spot and I got behind the wheel and I just took it easy. 'I didnt want to be scared to drive and I didnt want to be scared of anything really. Its going to take time like any bad incident just to erase from your memory.' Roxanne had to remain in the wreckage for two hours as firefighters worked to cut her free, before being airlifted 41 miles to Hull Royal Infirmary, The Sun reported at the time. She was said to have suffered severe bruising and two sprained wrists and is awaiting the results of a CT scan to check for further damage. A source told The Sun Online: 'She tried to overtake Ben on a bend and was travelling too fast and smashed into the concrete wall on the track. Scary: The actress crashed during a stock car race against Ben Fry, her Minster FM breakfast show co-host, at Hunmanby Raceway in York (pictured in 2016) 'She lost consciousness for about 30 seconds on impact. Fortunately she was wearing a helmet and race gear.' Tony Walker, the Station Manager for the Scarborough district of the Fire and Rescue team live tweeted the incident, posting at 1.03pm on Wednesday: 'Scarborough and filey crews currently dealing with an incident at Hunmanby grass track. 'Air ambulance in attendance. Further details to follow.' Half an hour later, he posted: 'Update on hunmanby incident. 1 female cut free from a stockcar... 'Injuries not believed serious. Great joint effort with fire, police, ambulance and air ambulance. @NorthYorksFire @YorksCoastRadio'. On the morning of the crash, Roxanne was seen in tears as she wandered around York city center, with onlookers describing the star as looking like she was having an emotional meltdown. Intense: Roxanne had to remain in the wreckage for two hours as firefighters worked to cut her free, before being airlifted 41 miles to Hull Royal Infirmary, The Sun reported last week However, the soap star was putting her acting skills to good use in filming a special feature for her radio show. Roxanne was seeing how long it would take locals to step in and ask if she was okay as part of the kindness experiment to find Yorkshire's 'greatest place'. Roxanne was taking part in the car race as a segment for her Minster FM breakfast show, after revealing she quit acting after feeling 'unappreciated' in order to become a radio DJ. The actress vented her frustrations at the industry, as she recalled casting experiences where she was told 'to lose weight and get Botox'. 'I have also been told to lose weight, get Botox and change my accent to get a casting,' she told the Daily Star On Sunday. 'I wasn't prepared to do that. I don't feel appreciated as an actress so I am quitting the industry.' He's been sending MasterChef Australia hopefuls crazy with his loudmouth antics. And Gordon Ramsay touched back down in California to enjoy a family day with his wife Tana and children Matilda, Jack, Holly and Megan on Sunday. The Michelin star chef, 51, looked totally relaxed as he strolled through the busy streets hand-in-hand with his stylish wife Tana, 43. Devoted dad: Gordon Ramsay looked ever the family man as he stepped out with lookalike son Jack and wife Tana in Los Angeles on Sunday Gordon cut a laid-back figure with a grey sweatshirt and black jeans, tied together with monochrome sneakers. The famously foul-mouthed cook looked ever the devoted dad as he walked in front of his lookalike son Jack, 18, with the pair sporting similarly hair-raising blonde 'dos. Wife Tana looked effortlessly chic in a classic black jumper, with her slender pins elongated by vertical stripe flared trousers. The broadcaster teamed her low-key look with black wedge heels and polished off the look with a chestnut leather bag. Tana's glossy chocolate locks fell far past her shoulders in a sleek straight style as she ditched any heavy make-up and opted for a minimalist style. Chilled out: Gordon cut a laid-back figure with a grey sweatshirt and black jeans, tied together with monochrome sneakers Leaving any glitzy accessories by the wayside, Tana cosied up to the celebrated chef as they continued their family day out. Gordon recently revealed he's not worried about any of his children getting bad exam results and the pressure on young people in the UK 'ridiculous'. According to HELLO!, Gordon - who was speaking to young chefs in New York - said: 'I disagree with everybody being judged on one exam - That upsets me, because the pressure on youngsters today is ridiculous. The TV star continued: 'I didn't peak at 15 and I certainly didn't peak at 12 and I certainly didn't peak at 18'. Family matters: Gordon recently revealed he's not worried about any of his children getting bad exam results and the pressure on young people in the UK 'ridiculous' Gordon's daughter Matilda - otherwise known as Tilly - recently finished her GCSEs and is on track to follow in her father's footsteps, with her show Matilda And The Ramsay Bunch becoming one of CBBC's most watched show. Meanwhile, the chef and Tilly appeared on Monday's edition of This Morning to introduce the programme's new competition, called Big Chef Little Chef. Viewers witnessed Gordon and his daughter on location from LA declaring, 'Were joining This Morning! Gordon explained: 'We are on a big mission to coach children across the country to learn how to cook. As a chef and dad, trust me, I know how important to learn the basics are of cooking.' Tilly added: 'I'm lucky enough to learn from dad, even if cooking together can be a challenging experience! Following footsteps: Matilda recently finished her GCSEs and is on track for her own success, with show Matilda And The Ramsay Bunch being one of CBBC's most watched on the channel 'We want to pass on some of this incredible experience to you...', he added. Reports revealed that Tekashi 6ix9ine had been robbed and kidnapped after returning to his Brooklyn, New York home from a video shoot at around 4am when three assailants pistol-whipped him and dragged him from the passenger seat into their car. Tekashi69 then awoke to death threats and his house was raided by the attackers who stole around $750,000 in jewellery and between $15,000 and $20,000 in cash, despite the rainbow-haired rappers baby mama and child being at home, as reported in TMZ. However, it seems that Tekashi 69 gave the police a very different report of the incident and said that he had been kidnapped before he had arrived home. The Gummo rapper claimed that two men rammed the bumper of his car at a traffic stop and had robbed the passengers. But who is 6ix9ine? Tekashi 6ix9ine has been robbed and kidnapped after returning to Brooklyn, New York home Who is 6ix9ine? Despite only being 22, Tekashi 6ix9ine is renowned as a controversial rapper and is the self-proclaimed King of New York, as reported in Metro. Born Daniel Hernandez on May 8, 1996, in Bushwick, Brooklyn, before he embarked on his music career in 2014, he sold marijuana and worked a number of jobs in order to support his family after his father was murdered. Due to his rainbow-coloured hair, rainbow grill and a body covered in tattoos, 69 became an internet meme and grew in popularity in this way. After the release of Gummo, which peaked at number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in 2017, he started working on other releases and mixtapes. Day69 debuted at number four on the Billboard Hot 200 chart, Tekashi 69 worked with Fetty Wap on KeKe and his most recent collaboration was with Nicki Minaj on FEFE, which was released only hours before the reported attack. 6ix9ine has a daughter with his partner Sara, who were at home at the time of the raid, but were left unharmed. The rapper also has a history with the law and was arrested this month on a warrant after he allegedly strangled a 16-year-old in a Houston mall. After being jailed for the incident, Tekashi was released from Rikers Island on $150,000 bail although posting on Instagram that he could be in jail forever. In addition to this, the rapper has also been involved in beefs with the likes of Casanova and Chief Keef. In 2015, Hernandez pleaded guilty to a charge of Use of a Child in a Sexual Performance after videos emerged of 69 with a naked 13-year-old girl. He also faces a misdemeanour assault charge after being accused of assaulting a NYPD lieutenant when being arrested for driving without a license. Tekashi 6ix9ine robbed According to TMZ, Tekashi 69 told law enforcement that at around 4:25am on Sunday, while he was sitting in the passenger seat of a Chevy Tahoe at an intersection in Brooklyn, a car bumped them from behind. The rapper revealed that two armed men jumped out, took the drivers iPhone and went on to grab Tekashi to drag him into their car. He then was driven to his home and asked who was presumed to be his baby mama to come downstairs with his jewellery. 69 told law enforcement while he was sitting at a red light, a car bumped them from behind Sources revealed that 69 was able to escape, but after reporting the incident he was uncooperative and later checked himself into hospital. However, hours earlier, sources close to the star told TMZ that he had been robbed after reaching home and found a car blocking his driveway. Two men allegedly made their way into the home and raided the home of $750,000 in jewellery and between $15,000 and $20,000 in cash, while a third guarded the vehicle that Hernandez was in. Reports revealed that the assailants then drove away with the rapper in the car, but he managed to escape and alert the authorities. They met while filming Agatha Christie adaptation Murder On The Orient Express almost two years ago. And Daisy Ridley proved things were still going strong with her boyfriend Tom Bateman when they attended the British Summer Time Festival in Hyde Park. The Star Wars actress and her actor partner were looking loved-up as they shared a kiss during Paul Simon's set. Cute couple: Daisy Ridley proved things were still going strong with her boyfriend Tom Bateman when they attended the British Summer Time Festival in Hyde Park recently PDA: The Star Wars actress and her actor partner were looking loved-up as they shared a kiss during Paul Simon's set Daisy, 26, and Tom, 29, were spotted chatting to friends as they set up camp on the London park's grass, before leaning over for a kiss. The brunette beauty and Tom later went hand-in-hand as they stocked up on cold beverages for the concert. The British actress was casually clad for the occasion, sporting a pair of wide-legged red trousers and a baggy white T-shirt. Hand-in-hand: Daisy, 26, and Tom, 29, were seen strolling along together Low-key summer look: The British actress was casually clad for the occasion Getting the giggles: The talented young actress shared a laugh with her boyfriend Stylish: The star was sporting a pair of wide-legged red trousers and a baggy white T-shirt Daisy pulled her look together with a black leather belt and a pair of chunky sandals. She added some summery accessories including a wide-brimmed straw hat, tortoiseshell rimmed shades and gold hoop earrings. Tom sported a matching fedora and casual T-shirt and jeans ensemble for their day out. The pair are said to have fallen for one another on the set of Murder On The Orient Express. Stocking up: The pair were seen getting some more cold beverages before the gig Casual: Daisy pulled her look together with a black leather belt and a pair of chunky sandals Chic: She added some summery accessories including a wide-brimmed straw hat, tortoiseshell rimmed shades and gold hoop earrings The actress and the handsome star reportedly hit it off while filming their respective roles as Mary Debenham and Bouc on the Kenneth Branagh-helmed adaptation of the Agatha Christie classic. And although they had wanted to keep things quiet, a producer let the news slip at the red carpet premiere of the movie at London's Royal Albert Hall in November. According to the Daily Mirror, Judy Hofflund let slip: 'Something kinda happened with Tom and Daisy... but that's public news, right? I should keep my mouth shut.' Still going strong: The pair are said to have fallen for one another on the set of Murder On The Orient Express Cute: Daisy leaned in for a kiss as they made themselves comfortable on the grass Hanging out: Daisy and Tom were chatting to some friends in the park When later pushed on whether the rumour was true, Tom skirted around the question and claimed the producers just like to 'create a buzz' sometimes. Daisy - who previously dated Charlie Hamblett - refused to comment when she was asked by press at the time whether she had a man on the scene. She coyly replied at the time: 'I'm not saying.' Keeping coy: Daisy - who previously dated Charlie Hamblett - refused to comment when she was asked by press at the time whether she had a man on the scene Shady lady: Daisy shielded her eyes behind a pair of tortoiseshell sunglasses The Worlds of DC are expanding with 2019s Shazam! movie. DC cinematic universes latest movie, which stars Chuck actor Zachary Levi, debuted its teaser trailer over the weekend at Comic-Con in San Diego. Shazam! is about a 14-year-old kid who gets magical powers that allow him to turn into a superhero with abilities to rival that of Superman. In fact, the idea of a kid becoming a superhero proved to be such a popular concept that during the 1940s, the comics, which were then called Captain Marvel Adventures, routinely outsold Superman comics, not to mention all other heroes. The film stars Zachary Levi as the superpowered alter-ego of a teenage boy called Billy Batson Captain Marvelhe and the comics would only officially become known as Shazam much laterproved a big enough hit to become the first official comic book superhero to get the silver screen treatment. Here is all you need to know about the Shazam! movie including the trailer, its cast, its release date and plot. Shazam! trailer The teaser trailer for Shazam! debuted at Comic Con San Diego over the weekend of July 21/22. It has been viewed nearly twenty million times on YouTube across different channels. Shazam! release date Shazam! Fans will have to wait quite some time, with the film scheduled to be released on April 5, 2019. Shazam! Cast Chuck and Tangled star Zachary Levi stars as Shazam a superhero with superpowers that include super strength, flight, superspeed and increased durability. Shazam is the alter-ego of a 14-year-old kid, Billy Batson, an orphaned kid who bounces from foster home to foster home. Mark Strong plays the films villain Dr Thaddeus Sivana, an evil scientist obsessed with acquiring magical superpowers through science. Jack Dylan Grazer plays Billys best friend Freddy Freeman, a kid with a disability who is bullied at school and the only one who knows that Billy is Shazam. Djimon Hounsou plays the Wizard Shazam, the ancient magical character who bestows the superhero powers upon Billy. Shazam! Plot The film's official synopsis reads: 'We all have a superhero inside us, it just takes a bit of magic to bring it out. In Billy Batsons case, by shouting out one wordSHAZAM!this streetwise 14-year-old foster kid can turn into the adult Super Hero Shazam, courtesy of an ancient wizard. The film follows Billy Batson, a teen who gets superpowers from a wizard called Shazam 'Still a kid at heartinside a ripped, godlike bodyShazam revels in this adult version of himself by doing what any teen would do with superpowers: have fun with them! Can he fly? Does he have X-ray vision? Can he shoot lightning out of his hands? Can he skip his social studies test?' 'Shazam sets out to test the limits of his abilities with the joyful recklessness of a child. But hell need to master these powers quickly in order to fight the deadly forces of evil controlled by Dr. Thaddeus Sivana.' Shazam Captain Marvel confusion Shazam was originally published by Fawcett Comics with the Captain Marvel protagonist appearing first in Whiz Comics and subsequently his own title, Captain Marvel Adventures. The comics proved to be such a hit that during the 1940s they outsold all other superheroes and Captain Marvel even became the first superhero to get adapted for the big screen. However, the huge comic book sales and film adaptation attracted the attention of DC Comics who were fervently stopping any characters that they felt were created to ape Superman. Shazam was originally called Captain Marvel but Marvel Comics has the name trademarked Subsequent legal issues and defeats, not to mention the decline of interest in superheroes, saw Fawcett agree to stop publishing Captain Marvel and promise DC not to resume publication without their permission. The last Captain Marvel comic was The Marvel Family #89, published in January 1954 and called And Then There Were None!. For nearly two decades the character slumbered until the early 1970s when in twist of irony, DC decided to license Captain Marvel from Fawcett. However, DC could no longer run the comics as Captain Marvel given that Marvel Comics now had the trademark on the name, so they decided to reintroduce the character under the title of Shazam! Over time, and the fact that DC could not use Captain Marvel on the cover of its titles, many people began to only know Captain Marvel as Shazam, something which the upcoming film will reportedly address, after Zachary Levi teased that there was fun had with this issue. Shazam's powers Billy Batson gets his powers when he utters Shazam, with each letter of the word standing for a specific power. Traditionally they are: Lisa Wilkinson, 58, is a veteran broadcast journalist, who has been working in television for more than 20 years. But on Monday, the spotlight was on her son Louis, as he returned to Channel Nine's Australian Ninja Warrior. Ahead of his appearance on the show, Lisa applauded her son's effort in a heartfelt Instagram post. Scroll down to video 'So proud of my beautiful ninja warrior': Lisa Wilkinson applauds her son Louis FitzSimons' appearance on Australian Ninja Warrior. Pictured Lisa (left), daughter, Billi, 20 (centre) and Louis (right) 'So proud of my beautiful #ninjawarrior boy - sorry make that man - Louis,' Lisa wrote. She shared a snap of the two from her vow renewal last year, where she re-committed to her husband of 26 years, Peter FitzSimons. '[Louis] Who last year walked me down the aisle,' she wrote adding the hashtag 'allgrownup.' #Allgrownup! The 22-year-old donned a bandanna, similar to his father Peter FitzSimons, who is a journalist at the Sydney Morning Herald Lisa and Peter share three children: Jake, 24, Louis and a daughter, Billi, 20. Last year, Lisa and Peter enjoyed a lavish vow renewal at Balmoral Beach Bathers Pavilion to mark their 25th wedding anniversary. Lisa revealed Peter had popped the question to her in 2015, after seeing her wearing a stunning white Pallas Couture gown to the Logie Awards. 'Here comes the bride! Lisa Wilkinson and husband Peter FitzSimons celebrated their 25th anniversary with a vow renewal at Balmoral Pavilion last year Blushing bride! Lisa looked every bit the blushing bride, wearing a stunning dress by Pallas Couture, after she was walked down the aisle by Louis The high-profile couple first thought they would tie-the-knot in Las Vegas, however, they opted for a more sentimental option going back to where they first said 'I do'. Lisa and Peter are known to have a close knit family, with the pair often taking to Instagram to share insights into their home life. Wishing her sons Jake and Louis a happy birthday in 2016, Lisa revealed that both her boys were born on the same day, two years apart. Huge happy birthday to our two beautiful boys born on the same day two years apart,' Lisa captioned the snap. 'All grown up now...and the best of mates. #soproud.' Their appearance on Love Island spin-off Aftersun saw the truth behind her controversial kiss with Jack Fowler finally revealed. But Sam Bird proved Georgia Steel was very much forgiven as he asked her to be his girlfriend on Monday's installment of Good Morning Britain and revealed plans to pack up his life in Norwich and move to London to be with the drama student. Appearing on This Morning, Sam, 23, confirmed the wheels were in motion to set up a new life in the British capital, where Georgia is based for drama school Academy of Live and Recorded Arts (ALRA), after making their relationship official. It's official! Sam Bird proved Georgia Steel was very much forgiven for THAT kiss blunder as he asked her to be his girlfriend on Monday's installment of Good Morning Britain and revealed plans to move in together Asked by host Ruth Langsford to share what he had asked the 20-year-old reality star earlier in the day, he smiled: 'I asked Georgia to be my girlfriend.' Going on to discuss their future plans, Sam revealed: 'I own a gym back in Norwich, but the future, for me, I want to move to London where she is.' Georgia added: 'It'll be quite busy for us now. We're going to focus on our careers...' 'We're going to get a place together so we can go and be busy but then come home to each other,' Sam explained. Moving fast: Sam confirmed the wheels were in motion to set up a new life in the British capital, where Georgia is based for drama school, after making their relationship official 'At least we can come home to each other': The couple explained they have decided to move in together because their busy lifestyles might prevent them from seeing one another The couple were also joined by Georgia's mum Sharon during the interview, who gushed over her daughter's new boyfriend, describing him as Georgia's very own 'Prince Charming'. Unsurprisingly the chat also saw hosts Ruth and Eamonn Holmes speak about the beauty's controversial kiss with Jack Fowler, prompting Georgia to quip: 'I'm not half-hearted. I don't just give one peck. 'That is not how I remember it at all. If I remembered it that way then I would have said to Laura. I was in there to meet somebody at the end of the day.' Proud: The couple were also joined by Georgia's mum Sharon during the interview, who gushed over her daughter's new boyfriend Beautiful in blue: Georgia sported a demure pale blue trouser suit for her appearance on the show Seal of approval: Georgia's mother Sharon described Sam as her daughter's 'Prince Charming' Georgia's cheeky confession came after she was forced to watch the incriminating evidence of her smooch with Jack in front of her new beau, as well as her former contestants, Ellie Brown and Charlie Brake, on Sunday's explosive Love Island: Aftersun. The barmaid had remained adamant that Jack was lying about their awkward kiss on a date and that their feelings were mutual, with the two of them leaning in for a smooch - not just her. Yet host Caroline Flack decided to clear up the confusion on Sunday's show as she aired the footage, which showed Georgia go in for a kiss TWICE, in slow motion. Awkward!: Georgia was forced to watch the incriminating evidence of her smooch with Jack Fowler in front of her new beau on Sunday's explosive Love Island: Aftersun Georgia was left mortified over the scenes, as she squirmed: 'That's NOT the way I remember it. I swear to God, I do not remember it that way. 'I don't do just a peck, I always do a double whammy, so yeah, for me, it was very erm, not how I remembered that at all.' And not letting her get away with it quite just yet, Caroline asked: 'Do you think you owe some people an apology?' Not impressed: The footage of the barmaid, 20, was also aired in front of her former contestants Ellie Brown and Charlie Brake To which the camera panned onto Ellie in the audience, who got into an explosive spat with Georgia over the kiss and her so called 'loyalty' in the villa, as Charlie signalled for the barmaid to apologise to his girlfriend. But in awkward scenes, Georgia snubbed Ellie and failed to apologise to her, as she continued: 'I feel like yeah, I feel like the way that it went, was the way it went.' To which the audience started booing over the awkward scenes, with Ellie left speechless over the snub. Loyal: Georgia has remained adamant that Jack was lying about their awkward kiss on a date and that their feelings were mutual, with the two of them leaning in for a smooch - not just her Yet Georgia continued to ignore the jeering crowd and Ellie, as she continued: 'That's not the way I remember it at all, because I'm honest, so I would have said if I did.' But Caroline still wasn't done grilling the contestant as she asked: 'Do you think you were loyal at that moment?' To which the squirming reality star replied: 'I was in there to find someone, I would have loved to have seen someone in my situation handle it in a different way to be honest. I spoke to Laura before, which I didn't have to do.' Oh dear: Georgia was left mortified over the scenes, as she squirmed: 'That's NOT the way I remember it. I swear to God, I do not remember it that way.' Tense: When asked if she should apologise, the video panned into the audience onto Ellie as Charlie signalled for the barmaid to apologise to his girlfriend Talking about what she would say to Laura now, she added: 'Laura, babe, I honestly do not remember it that way, you know me, hun, if I remembered it that way, I would have said it.' Yet awkward moments aside, Sam revealed that the two are planning to move in with each other in London, despite the fact they're not even official boyfriend and girlfriend yet. He said: 'I haven't popped that question yet, we were living together first anyway!' No apology: Yet Georgia snubbed Ellie, who she fell out with in the villa over the kiss, as she looked straight at her and then turned around to keep talking 'I'm honest!': Talking about what she would say to Laura, she added: 'Laura, babe, I honestly do not remember it that way, you know me, hun, if I remembered it that way, I would have said it.' On Monday morning, Georgia and Sam made another TV appearance, joining Christine Lampard on the Lorraine sofa. Christine looked stylish as ever in a midi leopard print dress which showed off her blossoming baby bump. On Aftersun, Georgia insisted that despite initially being left heartbroken by former flame Josh when he dumped her for Kaz, she is well and truly over him. 'It was an absolute blessing in disguise. I can't thank him enough', she enthused. Her knight in shining armour: Sam was adamant the pair are in it for the long haul, revealing that Georgia's mum keeps calling him 'Prince Charming' Going strong: Sam revealed that the two are planning to move in with each other in London 'I didn't think I'd get over it but it wasn't as difficult as I thought it was - and also then I wouldn't have met [Sam]!' Sam was adamant the pair are in it for the long haul, revealing that Georgia's mum keeps calling him 'Prince Charming' and ringing him up to chat. Georgia was also asked whether her 'I'm loyal, babe' catchphrase has been haunting her in the outside world. 'It is. I never knew it would be as big as it is!', she giggled. Having a chat: On Monday morning, Georgia and Sam made another TV appearance, joining Christine Lampard on the Lorraine sofa Wild side: Christine looked stylish as ever in a midi leopard print dress which showed off her blossoming baby bump So chic: Christine boosted her frame in a pair of simple strappy black sandals During Georgia and Sam's Aftersun appearance, fans were shown a clip of the couple meeting Georgia's parents in Yorkshire in sweet scenes. The brunette beauty's mother, Sharon, broke down in tears as she was so thrilled for her daughter and one 'happy mama'. She said: 'It was very hard to see you upset. Then Prince Charming came along, you have found love and I can genuinely say that in my heart. 'It is a shame, you should have been there until the end. Are you going to make an honest woman of my daughter?' To which Sam replied: 'Getting into a relationship is important to me, if I want to ask her, I would do it in a special way.' With Georgia crying and adding: 'I couldn't have done it without you Sam, I really couldn't.' Emotional reunion: Earlier in the evening, it showed Sam meeting Georgia's parents in Yorkshire in sweet scenes Parents' approval: During the introduction, the brunette beauty's mother, Sharon, broke down in tears as she was so thrilled for her daughter and one 'happy mama' Megha Dhade, the Indian actress, has taken home the Rs 50 lakh (55,300) prize as the first winner of Bigg Boss after beating Pushkar Jog in the first season of the Marathi version of the Big Brother-style reality show. The Big Boss Marathi winner gained popularity in the early episodes after the other housemates ganged up against her and this in turn, resulted in support from the viewers in the form of votes. Megha Dhade has taken home the Rs 50 lakh (55,300) prize as the first winner of Bigg Boss Due to her talkative and expressive nature, host Mahesh Manjrekar dubbed Megha the Jaan of the show, but who is Meghan Dhade? Who is Megha Dhade? Born on May 23, 1988 in Jalgon in the Maharashtra region of India, she is known as an actress and producer for Marathi cinema, an industry in which she has worked since childhood, according to Wikibio. After dropping out of college to pursue her acting career, Megha appeared in the television series Kasautii Zindagii Kay and later, went on to star in several shows and established herself as a film actress. Megha Dhade husband Megha Dhade is married to Aditya Pawaskar and he had a lot to say about her appearance on Bigg Boss. Speaking to TimesofIndia.com, he said: I am 100% sure that Megha will win the show and there are no doubts about it. And as I am an engineer, I normally talk with facts and figures, not randomly. Megha Dhade has worked as an actress and producer in Marathi cinema since her childhood He continued: She is exactly the same in her real life, too. No one can behave fake in Bigg Boss. Sai and Pushkar have said that she is faking things but what do they know how Megha is in her real life. Also till date, Meghas behavior hasnt changed at all whereas the behavior of al the other contestants has, later adding that the show is a game of intelligence and mind. Even some people blame that Megha has played the victim card but who made her the victim in the first place? Aditya also mentioned that his wife had made the mistake of being loyal to her friends. Making decisions emotionally and supporting both Aastad and Pushkar just to live up to their friendship was her biggest mistake and I feel this is where she got into trouble. With all your love, faith and support our Tigress Megha Dhade is the winner of Biggboss Marathi Season 1! Thank you all! Cheers to Megha!#meghadhade pic.twitter.com/U6IivlYNEe Megha Dhade (@meghadhade) July 22, 2018 Megha Dhade on Bigg Boss Megha Dhade was crowned the winner of the first season of Bigg Boss Marathi and took home the Rs 50 lakh prize after beating rival Pushkar Jog in the competition. According to IBTimes, she truly showed her spirit when she announced that It doesnt matter who wins or who gets eliminated from the show. For me, everybody is a winner and even if I get evicted, it is still an achievement for me to reach the finals. With Sharmishtha being eliminated first and the evictions of Aastad Kale, Sai Lokur and Smita following, Megha was announced the winner on July 22 after she received the majority of votes. She arrived in the Caribbean ahead of her love and his brood. And Jeremy Kyle planted a tender kiss on his fiancee Vicky Burton's lips when they were reunited at the Barbados airports' terminal with three of his children on Sunday. The chat show host, 52, puckered up to smooch his ladylove, 36, as he pulled his children's former nanny into his arms. Good together: Jeremy Kyle, 52, kissed his fiancee Vicky Burton, 36, as they arrived in Barbados with his kids on Sunday - she was their former nanny They appeared delighted to be in each other's arms again, stealing an intimate kiss just moments after being reunited. Jeremy arrived at the terminal with three of his children: nine-year-old Henry, 14-year-old Alice and 13-year-old Ava. The eldest girl brought Vicky into a huge hug when they greeted Jeremy's ladylove at the airport terminal in the Caribbean. So sweet: The eldest girl brought Vicky into a huge bear hug when they greeted Jeremy's ladylove at the airport terminal in the Caribbean Must be love: They were delighted to be in each other's arms again, stealing an intimate kiss just moments after being reunited Family time: Jeremy arrived at the terminal with three of his children: nine-year-old Henry, 14-year-old Alice and 13-year-old Ava Jeremy shares the trio with his ex-wife of 13 years Carla, with Vicky acting as a nanny to them in their younger years. Vicky used to accompany Jeremy to Barbados every year for his annual family festive trip over the festive period as a nanny to his kids with ex-wife Carla. Jeremy's 13-year marriage to Carla came to an end in 2015 after reports emerged his wife had an affair with England polo player James Carr, 25. History: Jeremy shares the trio with his ex-wife of 13 years Carla, with Vicky acting as a nanny to them in their younger years Past times: Vicky used to accompany Jeremy to Barbados every year for his annual family festive trip over the festive period as a nanny to his kids with ex-wife Carla Too good in turquoise: Vicky flattered her incredible figure in a flowing blue dress which had orange pom poms stitched into the hem of the garment to draw eyes to her legs In June, the father-of-four became a grandfather after his grown-up daughter Harriet, whom he shares with first ex-wife Kristy Rowley, gave birth. A source told The Sun at the time: 'Jeremy is over the moon at becoming a grandfather for the first time. 'Hes going to spoil little Isla rotten and is proud as punch. He hasnt stopped smiling since.' Moving on: Jeremy's 13-year marriage to Carla came to an end in 2015 after reports emerged his wife had an affair with England polo player James Carr, 25 Fabulous news: In June, the father-of-four became a grandfather after his grown-up daughter Harriet, whom he shares with first ex-wife Kristy Rowley, gave birth Muslim feminist Dr. Susan Carland has revealed the secret to a successful marriage, after being married to Waleed Aly, 39, for 16 years. On Monday, the Melbourne academic, 38, took to Instagram to confess the pair have enjoyed many years of martial bliss due to a simple photography hack. 'The secret to being married more than 16 years? If my husband ever tries to look better than me in a photo, I shut that thing down,' Susan captioned the snap in jest. Scroll down for video Wedded bliss! Waleed Aly's wife Dr. Susan Carland reveals the secret to a successful marriage after being together for 16 years She accompanied the post with two contrasting photos. In the first snap, the cheerful couple are seen flashing their pearly whites to the camera. However the second shot appeared to be much less amorous as Susan was pictured with her hand splayed over Waleed's face. 'If my husband ever tries to look better than me in a photo, I shut that thing down': On Monday the Muslim feminist, 38, took to Instagram to confess the pair have enjoyed many years of martial bliss due to a simple photography hack She appeared to be quite amused by her attempt to shield her husband's handsome visage as she shot the lens a wide grin. Susan's unique relationship hack comes after she dished on the most bizarre questions people ask her about converting to Islam and wearing a hijab. Speaking to Yahoo!Be, Susan revealed the biggest queries that people seem to be itching to know about her decision to wear a head scarf or hijab. In the end, the reason I wear the hijab or the headscarf as an active worship to God, she told Mamamia in 2016. 'Do you shower with that on?' Susan's unique relationship hack comes after she dished on the most bizarre questions people ask her about converting to Islam and wearing a hijab While on the red carpet at the 60th TV Week Logie Awards in July the media personality laughed off some of the most common misconceptions. 'There are a few unusual questions,' Susan began. Chuckling as she listed three, she added: 'Do you shower with that on?... Do you ever take it off? Someone once asked, But how do you give birth?' 'Do you shower with that on?... Do you ever take it off': Susan claimed curious people often ask her questions about her decision to wear a hijab, and whether she takes it off to shower or give birth to her children In an interview with Julia Zemiro on ABC's Home Delivery in March, the prominent Australian-born Muslim revealed she was 'terrified' to tell loved ones about her decision to convert to Islam at 19. 'I was terrified, absolutely terrified about telling people. My family, my mum in particular. And my friends,' she said. 'I assumed they would react negatively, and most people did.' Susan tied the knot with Waleed in 2002, after the pair first locked eyes on each other at the ripe old age of 16. The couple share two children, daughter Aisha, 14, and son Zayd, 10, who Waleed has previously boasted about being 'high achievers'. She proudly displayed her surgery scars related to kidney dysplasia in her 4th July bikini snaps. And Sarah Hyland ensured all eyes were on her once again as she continued to soak up the sun with boyfriend Wells Adams, 33, in Mexico on Sunday. The Modern Family beauty, 27, posed up a storm in a skimpy red and mustard swimsuit - which highlighted her taut abs and showed off her abdomen scars. Brave: Sarah Hyland, 27, proudly displayed her surgery scars in a barely-there bikini as she soaked up the sun during a romantic trip with boyfriend Wells Adams in Mexico Sarah drew attention to her slender pins in her barely-there yellow bikini bottoms as she pulled a sultry pose while clutching a glass of wine. The Wedding Year star glitzed up her summer ensemble with a sparkling body chain and decadent mustard tassel earrings. Sarah shielded her eyes from the bright sunshine in sleek winged shades and rocked a striking straw hat. So much fun! The reality TV stud also joined in on the action, and posted a hilarious snap of the smitten couple larking around with two starfish placed over Sarah's ample cleavage Stunning couple: In another dramatic snap, Sarah posed with former Bachelorette star Wells, who showed off his rippling abs in an open white shirt and stripped shorts The star joked around about her flamboyant pose in the caption, and wrote: 'Hi. My name is Sarah & Im EXTRA #bigd***energy #showyourscars #actnatural' In another dramatic snap, Sarah posed with former Bachelorette star Wells, who showed off his rippling abs in an open white shirt and stripped shorts. The reality TV stud also joined in on the fun, and posted a hilarious snap of the smitten couple larking around with two starfish placed over Sarah's ample cleavage. Flashing huge smiles as they posed for the humorous snap, Sarah locked down her chocolate tresses in the wind with a top bun while Wells ensured her starfish stayed in place. Earlier this month, Sarah showed off her surgery scars related to kidney dysplasia while sporting a bikini on the Fourth Of July. The movie star was diagnosed with the disease when she was a baby; it is a condition that occurs when one or both of a fetus' kidneys do not develop normally. Sarah previously revealed that her dad Edward Hyland helped to alleviate symptoms by donating a kidney to her. On display: The movie star was diagnosed with the disease when she was a baby and she previously revealed that her dad Edward Hyland helped to alleviate symptoms by donating a kidney to her Last month, she shared that she had to go to the hospital but did not disclose if it was related to her kidney dysplasia. Meanwhile, Sarah and Wells have been dating since October and have been inseparable ever since. When asked about what it was like dating a high-profile celebrity, Wells told PeopleTV: 'Its been really weirdly normal. That question gets asked a lot because you expect the answer to be like its crazy because its in the spotlight.' He added, 'But for whatever reason, its been really nice and normal and wonderful.' Sarah - who regularly watches The Bachelor franchises - met Wells over social media, when Wells messaged her to tell her how 'funny' he thought she was. She had fans hyped up for the latest series of Doctor Who at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday. And Jodie Whittaker returned to home soil as she touched down at Heathrow Airport with her future show companion Mandip Gill, 30, on Monday. The TV favourite, 36, cut a casual figure in a light blue linen dress knee-length dress as she made her way through the terminal. Getting home: Jodie Whittaker, 36, put on a casual display as she touched down in Heathrow with her future Doctor Who co-star Mandip Gill, 30, following Comic-Con appearance in LA on Monday Jodie teamed her breezy design with chunky black sandals and a matching cross-body bag. The Attack The Block beauty left her cropped blonde tresses untouched and opted out of any heavy make-up for a minimalist look. Jodie wheeled her belongings through the airport with her Doctor Who co-star Mandip not far behind, with the actress also going fresh-faced for the travel day. Toned down: Jodie wheeled her belongings through the airport with her Doctor Who co-star Mandip not far behind, with the actress also going fresh-faced for the travel day Almost here: Jodie will take to the screen as Doctor Who's first female doctor in October The former Hollyoaks star opted for comfort as she wrapped up in a furry black jumper and stripped cropped slacks. Mandip swept her glossy raven locks up into a chic ballerina bun and padded through the terminal in white sneakers. The Leeds native ditched any jewellery for her trip and carried her belongings in a smart brown rucksack. Mandip is set to play The Doctor's companion Yasmin in the upcoming series of the celebrated BBC sci-fi drama, and co-star Jodie was more than happy to discuss female representation in cinema and television with Variety, at San Diego Comic Con on Saturday. Iconic character: Mandip (right), who is set to play The Doctor's companion Yasmin, joined Jodie to discuss female representative in cinema and television at Comic-Con on Saturday The actress was candid with her co-stars Mandip and Tosin Cole, 25, as well as series showrunner Chris Chibnall, 48, and said: 'If we just cast who we think is right for the job, just start there.' She continued: 'And then every door is open to everyone and we dont have to be defined by all the other things, the box-tick bits. 'Obviously some are gender-specific, thats not something to shy away from, but just audition an actor and say, "Whos the right person for the role?" It should be that simple.' Mandip then suggested that the next gender-swapped character could be James Bond, or rather Jane Bond. Ahead of October's anticipated Doctor Who return, Jodie has spoken out on the mixed response she's received from fans of the show after being cast by Chris - who she had previously worked with on the ITV drama Broadchurch. In an interview in Radio Times, Jodie insisted the 'pressure is less' on her, as she feels free to make the role completely her own. Jodie explained that she's excited to be a role model as the 13th Doctor, especially to young girls watching the iconic BBC show. American rapper Kendrick Lamar headlined Bryon Bay's Splendour in the Grass festival on Sunday night. And an event organiser told The Daily Telegraph on Tuesday that the Pulitzer Prize winner, 30, permitted only 'one event photographer' to cover the performance. Kendrick and his management have also reportedly banned professional photographers from documenting the final leg of his 'DAMN' Australian arena tour. Scroll down for video Rapper Kendrick Lamar has 'banned professional photographers' from the final leg of his DAMN. arena tour of Australia. Pictured in January 2018 in New York 'Due to artist/management request we are unable to issue photo passes for any of the shows on Kendrick's tour,' a spokesperson said on Monday. In February, The Guardian reported that Kendrick could possibly be following in the footsteps of other major artists who are 'limiting online footage of gigs' to keep fans interested in live performances. Kendrick is finishing off his Australian tour at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney on Tuesday and Wednesday night. Limited coverage: Kendrick, who is the first rapper to win a Pulitzer Prize, headlined Bryon Bay's Splendour in the Grass festival on Sunday night (pictured). However, only one photographer was permitted in the pit, according to The Daily Telegraph Kendrick has already toured his critically-acclaimed fourth album DAMN. across the UK, Europe, Canada and America. The 2018 tour will be the musician's fourth visit to Australia, following a series of performances in March 2016. DAMN., which was released last April, won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music. Suddenly shy? Kendrick and his management have also reportedly banned photographers from documenting the final leg of his DAMN. Australian arena tour. He could be following in the footsteps of other major artists who are 'limiting online footage of gigs' to keep fans interested in live performances. Pictured in September 2017 in New York It was the first time a non-classical or jazz artist had received the accolade. The judges remarked that DAMN. was a 'virtuosic song collection, unified by its vernacular authenticity and rhythmic dynamism that offers affecting vignettes capturing the complexity of modern African-American life'. The DAMN. Tour began in July last year and will conclude in Sydney on Wednesday. They've worked together closely on the hit TV series Modern Family since 2009. And Sofia Vergara -accompanied by husband Joe Manganiello- has helped co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson to celebrate his fifth anniversary with husband Justin Mikita in a series of tropical Instagram posts on Sunday. The 46-year-old Colombian beauty put on an eye-popping display in a very low-cut floral dress during the romantic weekend getaway. Hostess with the mostest: Sofia Vergara -accompanied by husband Joe Manganiello [Far right]- has helped co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson [2nd left] to celebrate his fifth anniversary with husband Justin Mikita [Far left] in a series of tropical Instagram posts The Hot Pursuit actress showed plenty of front as she posed for snaps with the cute couple and her husband of three years at their tropical vacation home, affectionately known as Casa ChipiChipi. The revealing garment also boasted a side split that showcased Sofia's gorgeous gams. Her wavy brunette tresses were worn loose and cascaded down the mother-of-one's bare shoulders. Vergara's sun-kissed skin was on display with just a touch of makeup highlighting her already stunning features. 'Ciao Amigos!': The Hot Pursuit actress showed plenty of front as she posed for snaps with the cute couple and her husband of three years at their tropical vacation home What worries? Meanwhile the guests of honor -who recently splashed out $3million on an NYC apartment- appeared supremely relaxed during their lavish getaway Meanwhile the guests of honor -who recently splashed out $3million on an NYC apartment- appeared supremely relaxed during their lavish getaway. The 42-year-old actor and the 32-year-old bedding designer covered up in T-shirts and caps for the romantic weekend. At one point Jesse was photographed standing up on a paddleboard out in the blue waters. Good times: The 42-year-old actor and the 32-year-old bedding designer covered up in T-shirts and caps for the romantic weekend Cohorts: Jesse and Sofia have worked together closely on the hit TV series Modern Family since 2009 Sofia's husband Joe also went for the relaxed approach when it came to dressing up. The Magic Mike hunk paired a tight, muscle-enhancing gray T-shirt with turtle print board shorts. The 41-year-old actor completed the holiday look with flip flops, a cap and mirrored aviator shades. Madonna, 59, and Guy Ritchie's son, 17, has undergone a huge style transformation after he smartened up his trademark scruffy appearance for a new slick look. And his famous parents recently took to Instagram to have banter over Rocco Ritchie's new vintage-inspired appearance, proving any acrimony has well and truly vanished between the couple, who divorced 10 years ago. In June, Guy's long-term assistant Bobby Richie shared a sensational snap of the teenager looking debonair, with the caption: 'Class', before Guy wondered over where he had picked up the style - for which Madonna gladly took credit. Joking around: Rocco Ritchie's famous parents took to Instagram last month to have banter over his new vintage-inspired appearance after he underwent a huge style transformation, after Guy's assistant shared a photograph of their son looking dapper Rocco looked older than his years, and from a different era, dressed in a blue and white striped shirt with a clashing muted multicoloured tie. Guy, 49, and Madonna's son finished off his smart look with tan braces, giving his ensemble a distinctly 60's vibe. In the photograph, Rocco was sat at a table in a speakeasy style restaurant, intertwining his fingers, which were adorned with an array of signet rings. His short hair was swept to the side in keeping with his overall vintage look, and his relaxed smile oozed confidence as he glanced his eyes away from the camera. Having a laugh: Guy Ritchie, 49, joked 'Who the f**k taught that boy how to dress?' and Madonna got involved, taking full credit for her son's new look, exclaiming : 'Pretty sure I did!!' followed by a laughing face emoji; Pictured in Hollywood in 2001 Makeover: Looking a far cry from how he used to style himself: baggy shirts and a skin head, his father, Guy Ritchie couldn't help but flatter his son's newfound fashion sense; Rocco Ritchie pictured in London in 2016 Looking a far cry from how he used to style himself: baggy shirts and a skin head, his father, Guy Ritchie couldn't help but flatter his son's newfound fashion sense. 'Who the f**k taught that boy how to dress?' joked the film director. Bobby teased back: 'I know right!! Its a f**kin miracle with what's knocking around him,' followed by a winking face. And then Madonna got involved, taking full credit for her son's new look, exclaiming : 'Pretty sure I did!!' followed by a laughing emoji. Meanwhile, the megastar continued to display her playful personality on Monday, while in Blantyre, Malawi. She megastar jetted to the country in southeastern Africa a week ago to celebrate the first anniversary of the Mercy James Centre for Pediatric Surgery and Intensive Care, named after one of her adopted daughters. Having fun: Meanwhile, the megastar continued to display her playful personality on Monday, while in Blantyre, Malawi Jet-set: She megastar jetted to the country in southeastern Africa a week ago to celebrate the first anniversary of the Mercy James Centre for Pediatric Surgery and Intensive Care Deep meaning: The Mercy James Centre is named after one of her adopted daughters And Madonna made her presence known in the Intensive Care Unit, dancing around wearing a full set of scrubs including waterproof shoe covers. The pop icon took to Instagram to share a video of herself prancing around the unit to the delight of the nurses and doctor's watching on. At first, Madonna teased her moved, edging herself into a side lunge, before placing her hands on her hips and strutting away from the operating room. After hitting a sassy pose, she sashayed her way down the corridor, twisting and turning as she went before throwing out a few Vogue-inspired moves. Making an impact: Madonna made her presence known in the Intensive Care Unit, dancing around wearing a full set of scrubs including waterproof shoe covers Making moves: At first, Madonna teased her moved, edging herself into a side lunge Work it! She then placed her hands on her hips and strutted away from the operating room She captioned the video: 'Teaching. Dr. Borgstein to be F I E R C E in the OR of the ICU! #myhero #raisingmalawi #savinglives #mercyjamescentre #globalfamily.'' Madonna previously adopted David and Mercy, both 12, from Malawi as well as five-year-old twin sisters Esther and Stella. The musician - who is currently working on her 14th studio album - also has 21-year-old daughter Lourdes Leon with actor Carlos Leon, 52, and 17-year-old son Rocco Ritchie with director Guy Ritchie, 49. The Centre which Madonna was visiting is named after her daughter Mercy James. Strike a pose: After hitting a sassy pose, she sashayed her way down the long corridor Fabulous dancing skills: Madonna finished up by throwing out a few Vogue-inspired moves All that sass: The music icon made her way along twisting and turning as she went She captioned the video: 'Teaching. Dr. Borgstein to be F I E R C E in the OR of the ICU! #myhero #raisingmalawi #savinglives #mercyjamescentre #globalfamily.'' Madonna previously adopted David and Mercy, both 12, from Malawi as well as five-year-old twin sisters Esther and Stella. The musician - who is currently working on her 14th studio album - also has 21-year-old daughter Lourdes Leon with actor Carlos Leon, 52, alongside Rocco with Guy. The Centre which Madonna was visiting is named after her daughter Mercy James. Fierce: She captioned the video: 'Teaching. Dr. Borgstein to be F I E R C E in the OR of the ICU!' Talented: Madonna flaunted her best moves during her 'lesson' for the doctor My hero: Madonna gushed about the doctor in her hashtags: '#myhero #raisingmalawi #savinglives #mercyjamescentre #globalfamily.' Last Monday, the Impressive Instant songstress took to Instagram to post a shot of her proudly standing with her entire brood. The family - who have had their estrangements in the past - looked like a closely knit unit as the cuddled up to one another and smiled for a snap, posing under painted tree. Madonna captioned the image: 'Tree of Life - Mercy James Pediatric Hospital - One Year Later! #everythingislove #malawi' Brad Pitt is one of the biggest movie stars in the world, commanding huge fees to appear in films such as Oceans 11, Troy and World War Z. But the American superstar didnt want much in return for appearing in Ryan Reynoldss hugely successful Deadpool 2 film. Seriously, not much at all. During the weekends Comic-Con in San Diego, the cast and crew of the Deadpool sequel spoke to ET, where Brad Pitts hilarious blink-and-youll-miss-it cameo came up. During the weekends Comic-Con in San Diego, the cast and crew of the Deadpool sequel spoke about Brad Pitts hilarious blink-and-youll-miss-it cameo Ryan Reynolds revealed what exactly Brad Pitt wanted in return for a Deadpool 2 cameo In the film, a character called The Vanisher decides to join Deadpools X-Force. He is completely invisible and totally silentand its Brad Pitt. However, viewers only realise its Brad Pitt when [spoiler] The Vanishers invisibility stops when he gets electrocuted to death. Ryan Reynolds said of Brad Pitts role: I just loved it, because what's more irresponsible than taking one of the biggest movie stars in the world and giving him a role that is utterly wordless and invisible with an exception of three frames of film? Yeah, thats kind of amazing, the star concluded. Rhett Reese, one of Deadpool 2s writers, asked Reynolds whether the rumour about how Ryan Reynolds got Brad Pitt to join the film was true. Brad Pitt said he'd do it if Ryan personally delivered a cup of coffee from Starbucks, right? he asked. Reynolds said that particular story was sort of embellished but not too far from the truth. The actor said: I was told all he wants is a cup of coffee and I said, Like a franchise or just one individual cup of coffee? And I was told one individual cup of coffee, which was really his way of saying, I'm doing it for nothing. And it was a total solid and the nicest thing anyone could do. Deadpool 2 was a huge success, pocketing $255 million in America and $344 million overseas The films director David Leitch said that it was only because of Deadpools irreverent nature and success that a star of Brad Pitts calibre could appear in the film for basically nothing. I knew both of those guys and I worked with them before, but they would have never done a cameo in a movie I directed if it wasnt Deadpool," Leitch told ET. Theres such a... beloved feeling for the things you guys created in the first one that it was an easy ask. Deadpool 2 has been a huge success, pocketing $255 million in America and $344 million overseas. News that she had to take husband Kanye West to the hospital for the flu dropped Monday morning. And soon after, Kim Kardashian shared a flawless bikini post to her Instagram page while posing alongside her pal Larsa Pippen. The 37-year-old entrepreneur posed in a barely-there white bikini, adding in the caption that she calls Larsa 'Mrs. Rogers.' Gorgeous: Kim Kardashian shared a flawless bikini post to her Instagram page while posing alongside her pal Larsa Pippen on Monday Kim showed off her flat stomach, her curvy hips and her busty cleavage in the string two-piece swimwear. The mother of three styled her long brunette tresses loose in waves with large sunglasses shielding her eyes from the sun. Larsa posed in a white bikini as well, consisting of a strapless top with high-waisted bottoms; she rocked twin French braids and futuristic sunglasses. The stunners posed while in the shallow portion of the pool. Always there for each other: News that she had to take husband Kanye West to the hospital for the flu dropped Monday morning; he has since been released and is at home recovering She captioned it: 'Me & Mrs. Rogers. (I call her Mrs. Rogers because she's the most positive uplifting person I know just like Mr. Rogers neighborhood).' The image of Kim appears to be from the same shoot as the bikini photo of herself she posted two days ago. She posed solo while leaning back in the water; she wrote a cheeky caption: 'I'm really shy...' According to TMZ, Kim took Kanye to West Hills Hospital in the San Fernando Valley on Sunday because of the flu. Wow factor: The image of Kim appears to be from the same shoot as the bikini photo of herself she posted two days ago The website reports that he got worse and worse until he needed medication, which led to the KKW Beauty founder to take him to the ER. TMZ noted that Kanye, 41, was admitted for a short time before he returned home to rest and recover. A source told Dailymail.com that Kanye was 'under the weather with common cold or flu.' Adding that he was taken to the hospital 'to see a doctor for antibiotics' and 'was in, out.' The insider confirmed that Kanye was 'home resting now.' The rapper had tweeted about having a sinus headache on July 14. Not feeling well: The rapper had tweeted about having a sinus headache on July 14 Kanye wrote: 'I had a sinus headache on a flight once and I got a f*****g cat scan after because it was so bad.' Adding: 'Whenever you're feeling down bored irritated or disgruntled just say...thank god I don't have a sinus headache... they feel like the episode of black mirror when the bee went into the guys ear...' One day before the hospital visit, Kanye and Kim attended rapper Pusha T and Virginia Williams' wedding in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Sir Paul McCartney threw a secret gig in London on Monday, which brought out some of the music and film industry's most glistening stars. Leading the way was Kylie Minogue, who strutted into Abbey Road Studios - known for its legendary affiliation with Sir Paul's group The Beatles. Kylie was joined by the likes of Pirates Of The Caribbean stars Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom, and British music star Stormzy. Stars come out: Sir Paul McCartney threw a secret gig in London on Monday, which featured the likes of Kylie Minogue, Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom on the elite guest list Kylie - who earlier this year turned 50 and celebrated at London's Chiltern Firehouse - stunned in a white summer dress, which flowed around her lithe frame. The Put Your Hands Up songstress - who has herself recorded a live album at Abbey Road - showed off her long limbs in the sleeveless number, which featured cream paneling and a lacy semi-sheer effect at the front. She carried a taupe shoulder purse and wore rose-tinted shades for the event, sweeping her honeyed locks back behind her head in what was one of the hottest days of England's current heatwave. The Australian star accessorised with pink and gold jewelry to finish off the classic ensemble. In good company: Kylie was joined by the likes of Pirates Of The Caribbean stars Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom Big fan: Johnny Depp was seen leaving The Abbey Road Studios after watching the Paul McCartney secret gig in great spirits Ageless beauty: Kylie - who earlier this year turned 50 and celebrated at London's Chiltern Firehouse - stunned in a white summer dress, which flowed around her lithe frame Stunning scenes: The Put Your Hands Up songstress has herself recorded a live album at Abbey Road Johnny looked typically quirky for the outing at the famous London music venue. He rocked a white shirt, with a black pinstripe waistcoat, jeans and boots, adorning the look with countless necklaces, chains and medallions. The Sleepy Hollow star wore aviator shades and a cowboy hat, more than happy to wave to bystanders as he entered and later exited the studios. Orlando - who starred alongside Johnny in four of the five Pirates Of The Caribbean movies - cut a casual figure in a multicoloured paneled shirt, stone-wash jeans and a slate grey baseball cap. Pop princess: Her dress featured cream paneling and a lacy semi-sheer effect at the front Entrance and exit: Kylie showed off her long limbs in the sleeveless number Man of the hour: Paul himself stepped outside after the gig to wave at those gathered around the venue In he goes: Rapper Stormzy appeared in a black tee, Adidas sweats and a black baseball cap Jazzy: Orlando - who starred alongside Johnny in four of the five Pirates Of The Caribbean movies - cut a casual figure Casual: Orlando wore a multicoloured paneled shirt, stone-wash jeans and a slate grey baseball cap Funky: Later in the day, Orlando headed to The Trafalgar Theatre after his latest performance in Killer Joe Low-key and lovely: He was looking typically kooky with his graphic shirt and trucker cap Turning heads: Sir Paul's car had to fight through the crowds to make its eventual exit from the Studio Proving the show must go on, Orlando later left the party to head to The Trafalgar Theatre after his latest performance in 'Killer Joe'. Rapper Stormzy appeared in a black tee, Adidas sweats and a black baseball cap. Sir Paul's family were in attendance also - with Nancy Shevell and James McCartney swinging by to show their support. Paul himself stepped outside after the gig to wave at those gathered around the venue. The 76-year-old put on a spritely display in a cornflower blue shirt, maroon slacks and black jacket. He finished the look off with black sandals and shades. On the guest list: Stormzy looked in great spirits to be invited to the event In he goes: The rapper entered the famous venue, made famous by The Beatles He's the eldest of his parents Victoria and David Beckham's offspring, having turned 19 in March. And Brooklyn Beckham made sure he played the role of man in charge on Sunday as he took his younger siblings Romeo, 15 and Cruz, 13 to an open-air cinema to watch Mrs Doubtfire at Silver Lake Picture Show in Los Angeles. The photographer was also joined by Gordon and Tana Ramsay's son Jack, 18. Leading the pack: Brooklyn Beckham made sure he played the role of man in charge on Sunday as he took his younger siblings Romeo, 15 and Cruz, 13 to an open-air cinema to watch Mrs Doubtfire at Silver Lake Picture Show in Los Angeles It wasn't just a boys-only affair, however: Joining them were the Beckham boys' younger sister, Harper, seven. Also there were Jack's siblings: Megan, 20, his twin sister Holly, 18, as well as younger sister Matilda, 16. Brooklyn cut a casual figure for the movie date as he wore a pair of black jeans with a set of keys attached to them and an oversized white t-shirt with a piece of art on it. He teamed the ensemble with a pair of white Vans trainers, bracelets and a grey beanie hat. 'Homesick' Brooklyn spent a lot of time with his youngest brother Cruz as he sat himself next to him on their very indulgent picnic at the outside cinema. The boys: The photographer was also joined by Gordon and Tana Ramsay's son Jack, 18 [R] It wasn't just a boys-only affair, however: Joining them were the Beckham boys' younger sister, Harper, seven Chilling out: Also there were Jack's siblings: Megan, 20, his twin sister Holly, 18, as well as younger sister Matilda, 16 While his little sister, Harper, debuted her much shorter locks after her father David revealed in a 2015 interview he never wants her 'long, princess hair' cut. The Beckhams and the Ramsays gobbled an array of snacks including Twix, Hi Chew candy, Red Vines licorice, tortilla chips as well as sipping healthy La Croix seltzer and Fiji water. No doubt Brooklyn was delighted to be reunited with not only his own family but their close friends after he quit his photography course in New York because he was 'homesick'. Stylish: He teamed the ensemble with a pair of white Vans trainers, bracelets and a grey beanie hat 'Homesick': 'Homesick' Brooklyn spent a lot of time with his youngest brother Cruz, 13, as he sat himself next to him on their very indulgent picnic at the outside cinema The aspiring photographer has packed in the photography studies after just one year at the world-renowned Parsons School of Design, costing more than $23,000 per term. Brooklyn, the eldest of David and Victoria's four children, has deferred the course for an internship with a respected British photographer, whose name remains a secret. The famous offspring ended his relationship with Chloe Grace Moretz in March after the pair decided to give their love another go when he moved to the States in September. New hairdo: While his little sister, Harper, debuted her much shorter locks after her father David revealed in a 2015 interview he never wants her 'long, princess hair' cut Reunited: No doubt Brooklyn was delighted to be reunited with his own family and close friends after he quit his photography course in New York because he was 'homesick' The Beckhams and the Ramsays have an incredibly close relationship as they have been brought up together, thanks to David and Gordon's long-lasting friendship. Despite their families being so close, the television chef insisted he and David have banned their broods from dating in the near future while speaking candidly about their relationship with the Beckhams to a TV magazine. In 2015, he said: 'Three girls and a boy, and three boys and a girl - youd be amazed at the synergy. Weve promised that no one dates anybody, and so farIf Holly said: "Yeah, Brooklyn and I"... it would be: "No, Holly."' Parents: The Beckhams and the Ramsays have an incredibly close relationship as they have been brought up together, thanks to David and Gordon's long-lasting friendship (Victoria and David pictured in 2017) She is fast approaching billionaire status, thanks in no small part to her make-up business. And Kylie Jenner showed just how much she relies on the product that's made her fortune, as she faked the perfect pout after removing her lip fillers. Posting Instagram images showing her lying on a bed, the 20-year-old reality star had noticeably fuller lips than just a day before, when she was pictured in Paris at the Lollapalooza festival. Kylie Jenner fakes it! Lipkit queen enlarges her pout using make-up after removing fillers as she poses for a sultry new Instagram image What a change: The 20-year-old reality star had noticeably thinner lips just a day before, when she was pictured in Paris at the Lollapalooza festival The reality star was just 16 when she started using lip fillers, but ditched them after welcoming her daughter Stormi five months ago. And having stopped the injections to enhance her naturally slim lips, Kylie is instead clearly making use of her make-up skills. She should go pro! Having stopped the injections to enhance her naturally slim lips, Kylie is instead clearly making use of her make-up skills Transformation: The star's look has been dramatically altered by her decision to ditch the fillers She has plenty of supplies to help. The Kylie Cosmetics boss's lipkits were a sensation from the moment they launched, regularly selling out within minutes. And thanks to the huge success of her line, she is already worth $900 million, according to Forbes magazine. Kylie - who launched her own cosmetics brand three years ago - is on track to become 'the youngest-ever self-made billionaire', according to Forbes. There's no hiding! Kylie wore a camouflage dress for her outing in Paris The brunette beauty is already worth considerably more than her sisters, model Kendall Jenner and half-sisters Kim Kardashian West, Kourtney Kardashian and Khloe Kardashian. Meanwhile this weekend Kylie and her boyfriend Travis Scott , 26,enjoyed a romantic weekend in Europe. The reality star and the Butterfly Effect rapper jetted off to Lisbon, Portugal, together on Friday before carrying on to Paris the following day for a romantic weekend away. Travis was performing at the Super Bock Super Rock music festival in the Portuguese capital - which the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star also attended - and then took to the stage in the French city on Saturday as part of Lollapalooza Paris 2018. Some heartfelt and courageous admissions from Dennis Quaid. In an interview on Megyn Kelly Today, the actor opened up about his marriage to Meg Ryan-- calling the relationship his 'most successful', and that he battled a severe addiction to cocaine. 'It was even in some movie budgets. I was basically doing cocaine pretty much on a daily basis during the 1980's,' the Any Given Sunday star revealed. Getting real: Dennis Quaid sat down for a revealing interview on Megyn Kelly Today Honest: The actor admitted to a severe and crippling cocaine addiction throughout the 1980's The 64-year old battled with addiction more than 30-years ago, and said there was a completely different attitude toward drug use while growing up in the 60's and 70's that made it easy to succumb to bad habits. 'I spent many, many a night screaming at God to please take this away from me and Ill never do it again, cause Ive only got an hour before I have to be at work. Then at 4 oclock in the afternoon Id go, oh its not so bad.' But then one day, while engaged to actress Meg Ryan, the Parent Trap star had a moment of clarity. 'I had what I call a white light experience where I saw myself either dead or losing everything that meant anything to me.' Man in the mirror: The 64-year old actor had a moment of clarity while engaged to Meg Ryan in 1990; he would eventually check into a rehabilitation facility and got clean and sober Hollywood power couple: Dennis and Meg were married from 1991 to 2001; he called it 'my most successful relationship' in an interview on Megyn Kelly Today The experience shook him enough that he sat Meg down and admitted to his drug use and then entered a rehabilitation facility. The former couple would go on to get married and have a son Jack, who is now 26-years old. Looking back, Dennis called the marriage 'my most successful relationship of my life', but also admitted that Meg's growing fame at the time brought out insecurities in himself. 'When we met I was the big deal, but then wed go out on the streets of New York and it would be like, Meg! Meg! And I have to admit it, I actually did feel like I disappeared. I didnt think I was that small, but I was. It was a growth opportunity - I learned from that.' Keeping it real: Dennis admitted that Meg's growing fame brought out insecurities in himself The Texas native is now in a relationship with model Santa Auzina, 31, whom he began dating in 2016 after he split from his third wife, Kimberly Buffington, with whom he has 10-year-old twins Thomas and Zoe. Quaid has had an illustrious career in Hollywood with a resume that includes: Breaking Away, The Big Easy, Great Balls of Fire, Postcards from the Edge, Traffic, The Rookie and The Day After Tomorrow. Just last month has was tapped to play President Ronald Reagan in a new biopic that is expected to begin shooting in the fall. Kerri-Anne Kennerley has never been shy about admitting she uses non-surgical treatments such as Botox and Fraxel laser to maintain her age-defying looks. But Beverly Hills cosmetic surgeon Dr. Randal Haworth believes that the television veteran, 64, may have also gone under the knife in recent years. 'Mrs Kennerley looks better than ever compared to her former self 15 years ago. Though maintaining a healthy lifestyle and weight certainly helps, based on recent photographs, I feel that she enlisted the expertise of a plastic surgeon along the way', Dr Haworth told Daily Mail Australia this week. EXCLUSIVE: 'She looks better than she did 15 years ago': The tell-tale signs Kerri-Anne Kennerley, 64, has undergone a facelift, according to a celebrity plastic surgeon. Pictured left in 2003, and right in 2018 The CEO of DrHaworth.com went on to claim that Kerri-Anne's jawline, earlobes and neck show signs of a 'conservative' surgical makeover. 'Currently, her face is more heart-shaped, complemented by a more defined jawline. This is most likely the result of a facelift,' the celebrity surgeon said. He added: 'Other signs pointing to a facelift include her elongated earlobes (despite them being hidden most of the time by her hairstyle) as well as her actual neck. 'Specifically, the skin texture of her lower neck does not match that of her face. The disparity between the two strongly suggests a facelift.' Defined jaw: 'Currently, her face is more heart-shaped, complemented by a more defined jawline. This is most likely the result of a facelift,' Dr. Randal Haworth told Daily Mail Australia this week. Pictured left in 2005, and right in 2018 Dr. Haworth went on to speculate that Kerri-Anne has used dermal fillers to maintain her youthful complexion. 'The small protruding ridges below the inside corners of her lower eyes while smiling indicate that Kerri-Anne may have had injections, such as Juvederm Silk or Restylane, to fill her lower under-eye hollows at some point,' he claimed. 'Despite this, her appearance over the years has been nicely maintained in a conservative fashion.' Fillers? Dr. Haworth also speculated that Kerri-Anne has used dermal fillers to maintain her youthful complexion. Pictured left in 2002, and right in 2018 Kerri-Anne, who hosted Midday from 1996 to 1998, recently confessed to 9Honey that she has no interest in looking 'natural' as she ages. 'We don't want to go natural! Natural is for 6am in the morning, I don't think so!' she said. Last year, she also told The Australian Women's Weekly that Botox and Fraxel laser were all part of her beauty routine. 'We don't want to go natural!' Kerri-Anne, who hosted Midday from 1996 to 1998, recently confessed to 9Honey that she has no interest in looking 'natural' as she ages. Pictured in 2018 'I have regular Botox injections. I had my whole face Fraxeled some years ago,' she said. 'It's not for the faint-hearted and the treatment is quite uncomfortable at first.' Kerri-Anne has spent more than 50 years on Australian television. She is perhaps best down for hosting Good Morning Australia from 1981 to 1992. Naming and blaming the Sudanese community for rising crime in Victoria is part of addressing the problem, federal Liberal MP Tim Wilson says. Mr Wilson, who represents the Melbourne electorate of Goldstein says some in his community are afraid to go out for dinner in the city because of crime rates. He says people are seeing a rise in gangs, particularly from the Sudanese community, and are demanding answers. "The only way we can practically identify and address a problem is to name it, to deal with it honestly and then to work with the communities to tackle a fundamental problem that's occurring," he told Sky News on Monday. The Sudanese community is responsible for one per cent of crimes in Victoria, which he admits is not a big number but he believes it's to blame for a growth in certain types of violent crimes. The death of a 19-year-old woman from Melbourne's African-Australian community at a party in Melbourne over the weekend has inflamed the debate. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the woman's death was indicative of a "major law and order problem" with Victoria's Labor government. Mr Wilson told Sky News the vast majority of the Sudanese community were law-abiding and constructive people trying to make the best of life in Australia. Senior government MPs have claimed some people are too afraid to go out for dinner in the city but Mr Wilson is not one of them. "But we can't ignore the fact that with these problems of crime and particularly the nature of it that some people are afraid," he said. A Sydney stonework importing company has been fined $200,000 after one of its sub-contractors was struck by stone slabs and left with a permanent cognitive impairment. The then 34-year-old truck driver suffered a significant head injury after being hit by nine slabs while unloading a truck in Sydney's south-west in November 2014, after restraints for the slabs were removed during delivery. Cosentino Australia Pty Limited was found guilty in the Sydney District Court of failing to ensure the worker's safety and was this month fined $200,000, the Minister for Better Regulation Matt Kean said on Monday. A 37-year-old man wearing a Hawaiian shirt and velcro sandals has been handcuffed and led off a NSW beach after being arrested for allegedly organising to meet up with a teenage girl for sex. Strikeforce Trawler swooped on the man at the Coffs Harbour beach on Friday morning. Detectives allege he'd been engaging in sexually charged online conversations with an underage Victorian girl since 2016. NSW investigators had been monitoring his movements since earlier this year after a tip-off from their Victorian counterparts. Surveillance revealed the man had arranged to meet up with the girl, NSW Police said in a statement on Monday. Video of the arrest shows a balding but heavily bearded man in a bright Hawaiian shirt and sandals being led from the windy beach by detectives in handcuffs. Police seized three mobile phones and a computer tablet while searching his car. A subsequent search of a Stuarts Point home - about an hour south of Coffs Harbour - resulted in the seizure of computers, a laptop, hard drives and ammunition. The 37-year-old was charged with two counts of trying to procure a person under 16 for sex. He is expected to appear at Coffs Harbour Local Court on Monday. Poweshiek County Sheriff's Office(BROOKLYN, Iowa) -- As hundreds have rallied to search for 20-year-old Mollie Tibbetts -- who went for a jog Wednesday evening in the rural town of Brooklyn, Iowa, and never returned -- her mother said she was on the cusp of new, exciting activities in her life. While time passes, she said the uncertainty has been "excruciating." Laura Calderwood, Tibbetts' mother, told ABC News there are "no words to describe how you feel when you don't know where or how your child is." Tibbetts, who was the middle child in her family, was looking forward to her upcoming sophomore year at the University of Iowa and full of hope. "She is just such an outgoing, fun, loving life, loving person," her mother said. "She was getting ready to move into her first apartment." Next month, Tibbetts and her boyfriend were planning an international trip together. "She and her boyfriend Dalton were getting ready to go to the Dominican Republic on August 2nd to attend Dalton's brother's wedding," Calderwood said. "As that date gets closer, it's like closing in on me, because I'm thinking about these two people that are getting married that were also really close to Mollie. [It's] supposed to be the happiest day of their life." Tibbetts' boyfriend, 20-year-old Dalton Jack, told ABC News on Monday that he last saw his girlfriend on Monday, July 16. The next day, he went to Dubuque for his work at a construction company. He said Tibbetts stayed at his house alone and watched his dogs. Going for an evening run, he said, was her regular routine. "She goes for a run every night. She likes to go whenever the sun's not down, but its starting cool off, like 6 or 7," he told ABC News Monday. "She knows Brooklyn extremely well, better than I do and Ive lived here my entire life." Jack said he believes Tibbetts would have been wearing both her fitness tracker and her cell phone when she went out. "She probably has on her Fitbit because she never takes it off. She uses it for the sleep tracker and for all her runs and everything," he said. "She probably has her cell phone, but its either off or dead and weve tried calling it obviously and it goes straight to voicemail." The couple met in high school and have been together for more than two years. "She is kind, sweet, caring, shell do anything for everybody," Jack said. Tibbetts was reported missing on Thursday, July 19. The sheriff's office said it's unusual for a missing person search to go on this long in the town. "We've had missing persons before, but usually we find them the same day or a couple days later," Poweshiek County Sheriff Thomas Kriegel told ABC News on Monday. "We never had one this long that I can recall." In this close-knit farming community of about 1,500 people, everyone knows everyone, Kriegel said. But the rural area makes the search difficult. "We're surrounded by farm ground -- corn and soy beans. Right now the corn is probably eight, nine feet tall. The only way you can search it is basically walk down every other row," he said. "It's difficult. Even the planes flying over have a difficulty looking down in the corn rows." Crews have searched every road, every ditch and every body of water near town, the sheriff said. On Friday authorities also conducted a large ground search of the areas around Brooklyn -- and at least 250 people came out to help. In addition, a helicopter and a plane flew over the area, he said, and kayakers searched miles along the small rivers on both sides of town. Calderwood said her daughter's disappearance "completely upended the entire community." She said she can see the toll it's taking in their eyes. She remains hopeful and praised the efforts of law enforcement. The university said its "thoughts are with Mollie Tibbetts' family and friends." "The University of Iowa is monitoring the situation and will offer support as needed," the school tweeted Friday. Tibbetts is described as having long brown hair and brown eyes. She stands at 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighs about 120 pounds. Anyone with information is urged to call the Poweshiek County Sheriff's Office at 641-623-5679. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. Treasurer Scott Morrison says there is a shared urgency within the G20 economies about resolving the latest global trade battles. Mr Morrison has been attending the G20 finance ministers meeting in Buenos Aires at which the clash between the US, China and Europe over trade was on the agenda. A final communique said although the global economy remains strong, growth is becoming "less synchronised" and risks over the short and medium terms have increased. "These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies," the communique said. "We ... recognise the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence." Mr Morrison said the ministers were very conscious of the consequences of the situation continuing. "The latest language, I think, is suggesting a great deal of urgency about resolving these issues," Mr Morrison said. "There has been a ground shift on this. I think the language (on open trade) previously had been ambiguous, a little sheepish." On Friday, US President Donald Trump renewed his threat to ultimately slap tariffs on a total of $US500 billion ($A673 billion) of imports from China - roughly equal to all the goods Beijing ships annually to the US. The US has also imposed tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium, including from Europe. China, the European Union, Canada, Mexico and Turkey have counterpunched with taxes on US goods. Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, warned at the meeting that a wave of tariffs could significantly harm the global economy, lowering growth by about 0.5 per cent "in the worst-case scenario." Mr Trump and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull are expected to attend the G20 leaders' summit later this year. with AP Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion believes there's been a remarkable change in a remote Northern Territory town months after the rape of a two-year-old girl sparked national outrage. A powerful local indigenous body, the cultural authority group, has been reinstated and they're pushing for new powers to banish troublemakers from Tennant Creek. "They have conventionally and historically had power to eject people from communities," Senator Scullion told AAP. "It's a very serious matter for them." Despite the authority's re-emergence, a raft of problems continue to beset the outback community following February's attack on the toddler including a child protection crisis heavily linked to major public housing shortages. Senator Scullion also admitted he was cynical about an alcohol limit which included 24 cans of heavy beer a day when it was introduced. "It seemed to be party time, not restriction time," he said. But a three-hour daily window for alcohol sales had produced results in reducing consumption, he said. "Tennant Creek is a remarkably different place than it was around the time of that most recent tragedy." He denied suggestions Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had avoided seeing the worst of the troubled town by visiting on a Sunday night, an alcohol-free day. A Sydney man accused of smothering his wife of 41 years to death with a pillow was "angry and jealous" of her involvement with a man from high school who she had reconnected with via Facebook, a jury has heard. Warren Francis Rogers has pleaded not guilty to the murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Anne Rogers, 61, in their Milperra home in September 2016. At the first day of his trial in the NSW Supreme Court on Monday, Crown prosecutor Nanette Williams said the court would hear evidence Rogers, then 68, confronted his wife over her "ongoing contact" with the other man but a "fatal conflict" ensued and she was smothered to death. Defence barrister Richard Pontello said Rogers' behaviour was "completely out of character" and asked the jury to consider the defence of substantial impairment by abnormality of mind. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Claims by Peter Dutton that Australia does a lot of heavy lifting for New Zealand's security have not gone down well with New Zealand's acting prime minister. In an continuing trans-Tasman stoush over Australia's deportation regime, Home Affairs Minister Mr Dutton last week said New Zealand needed to keep in mind that Australia was a buffer between it and boats and that Kiwis "don't contribute really anything to the defence effort". "There's a lot that we do for New Zealand," he said. He was responding to criticism by New Zealand Justice Minister Andrew Little who said Australia's deportation laws lacked "humanitarian ideals" and came out of venal politics. New Zealand acting Prime Minister Winston Peters - filling in for Jacinda Ardern who is on maternity leave - on Monday emphatically rejected Mr Dutton's comments. "The fact that [Australia] are geographically placed where they are is a fact of geography," he told reporters in Wellington. "To say they're doing all the heavy lifting ... I do not agree with him at all." Mr Peters pointed to a massive boost in spending on Pacific aid this year as an example of New Zealand's efforts. He also weighed into the debate about the deportation of New Zealanders on character grounds. "When you're in a foreign country you're expected to obey their laws," he said. "But someone should be tried before they're evicted from a country." Hundreds of New Zealanders have had their visas cancelled in Australia since stricter deportation laws came into place in 2014. Some have spent the bulk of their lives in Australia and have no connection with New Zealand, raising questions about the rights being afforded to Kiwi ex-pats. Mr Peters has in recent weeks also accused Australia of breaching UN conventions by holding a 17-year-old New Zealand boy with adults in a detention centre ahead of a deportation hearing. The teen last week won a visa appeal and was released to family in Sydney. A prison guard at a jail on NSW's mid north coast has been suspended amid claims she was having a relationship with an inmate. The officer was reportedly sexually involved with Sione Penisini, who is serving a 36-year sentence for the murder of Senior Constable Glenn McEnallay in 2002. Corrective Services NSW on Monday confirmed it was investigating allegations of an "inappropriate relationship" between a prisoner and guard. "A female officer at the Mid North Coast Correctional Centre has been suspended," a spokeswoman said. The allegations, aired on Sydney's 2GB radio, have angered Senior Constable McEnallay's mother. "I just couldn't believe that something like this could happen within a prison system," Judy McEnallay-Mulheron told Channel Seven. "It can't just be the two people within the prison that knew it - there has to be other people who have known about this who covered the whole situation up. "This makes you angry more than anything. The system has let everybody down." NSW Labor's corrections spokesman, Guy Zangari, said "heads should roll" over the "major security breach". Corrective Services NSW on Monday also confirmed an inmate - believed to be Penisini - had been placed in segregation after he punched another prisoner on July 10. The assaulted inmate was checked by a nurse at the centre and did not suffer any serious injuries, the spokeswoman said. "Investigations continue into the incident." Today's Birthday, July 24: Elisabeth Moss, US actor, (1982 - ). She made waves as the dowdy secretary-turned-copywriting queen in period drama Mad Men. And while her role as Peggy Olson paved the way for Moss as a leading female heroine, her turn as the sexually enslaved handmaid in The Handmaid's Tale cemented her status among Hollywood's A-list. Behind the scenes, her personal belief in Scientology has drawn some criticism, especially after Moss decried the oppressive regime portrayed in Handmaids. While she's credited the controversial religion for her stability and strength, for the most part she stays tight-lipped about her involvement in it. Moss was born in Los Angeles. Her father was a jazz musician and her mother played the harmonica in blues bands. She grew up to the soundtrack of Ella Fitzgerald and Gershwin and 50-person "jam sessions" at home. She started her acting career early in commercials, and by age eight scored her first role in TV movie Bar Girls. She also trained as a ballerina but gave up at 15 to pursue acting. As a teenager, she had small roles including in the screen remake Escape to Witch Mountain, and in Naomi and Wynonna: Love Can Build a Bridge (1995). The 17-year-old was cast as Martin Sheen's first daughter on West Wing for seven seasons (1992-2006). During this, her profile was bolstered when she appeared in critically acclaimed feature film Girl Interrupted (2006). Between 2007 and 2015 Moss starred in the cut-throat advertising world of Mad Men. She garnered five Emmy nominations for the role. In between Mad Men, she debuted on Broadway in Speed The Plow (2008). Subsequent films included Get Him to the Greek opposite Jonah Hill (2010). Moss and Saturday Night Live star Fred Armisen got married in 2009. Their marriage fell apart shortly after and they officially divorced in 2011. In 2013 she played a detective in critically acclaimed miniseries Top of the Lake. She received a Golden Globe for this and her role in Handmaids Tale. The Handmaids Tale (2017 - 2018) continues to smash records, including the Emmy for outstanding drama, a first for an online streaming platform. For her role in the show, Moss also won an Emmy for outstanding lead actress in a drama series. Parents worried about passing on inherited genetic disorders to their children can now have their babies tested for a wide range of conditions using a simple mouth swab. While the NextGen test isn't cheap at $980, it screens for more than 60 rare genetic disorders linked to a range of cardiovascular, metabolic, neurological, respiratory and muscoskeletal conditions. The test was developed by Sydney-based pathology practice Genepath to complement the traditional "heel prick" test newborns receive to check for medical conditions including the liver disorder phenylketonuria, cystic fibrosis and hypothyroidism. Genepath's laboratory director Dr Ben Shum said the new test checks for 50 conditions not currently subject to genetic screening in Australia. "We can now identify genetic conditions with DNA sequencing before any symptoms become apparent and start treatment or make the necessary lifestyle changes so that, in many cases, those conditions will never become symptomatic," he said. Among the conditions the test checks for is Krabbe disease, a difficult-to-diagnose degenerative neurological disorder which can cause developmental delays in children. Treatment for the condition, which children are screened for in the United States, involves bone marrow transplants. Clinical geneticist Dr Mary Louise Freckmann said the earlier a bone marrow transplant can be undertaken for people with Krabbe disease, the better - although it is not always successful. "There are conditions like that where you think, 'gosh if I found out that would I want to have that'," she told AAP. "And I think that's part of having good information and then the opportunity is there to discuss this with a genetic counsellor before going ahead with treatment." Dr Freckmann said as technology improves, she expects genetic tests will become more common and hopefully - as costs lower - made available under Medicare. "Most of these conditions aren't common," she said. "So most of the people who do the test will be coming back with a negative result, so it's more for reassurance." Healthcare professionals or parents can carry out the mouth swab on a newborn or older child, with the sample then sent to a lab in Australia for analysis based on DNA sequencing. Once the tests are carried out, the baby's doctor will be sent the results within four weeks so they can discuss them with the parents. The cost of the test is not covered by Medicare. An alleged international drug runner is behind bars after organised crime detectives seized more than 100 kilograms of ice, cocaine and MDMA in Sydney. The drugs would have fetched the alleged dealer's syndicate some $45 million if they reached the city's streets. Strikeforce Sharrock arrested Shane Norman McDonald in South Penrith before dawn on Friday following months of investigating. A search warrant at a home nearby unearthed 85kg of methylamphetamine - also known as ice - along with 13kg of cocaine and 2kg of MDMA. A police video of the arrest shows McDonald, clad in high-vis workwear, being lead by detectives into the back of a police van. Detectives are then seen loading a trolley with bags of drugs in plastic evidence bags. McDonald is believed to be a member of a transnational drug syndicate which may be linked to other domestic organised crime groups, AAP understands. Detective Acting Superintendent Damian Beaufils said Strikeforce Sharrock "is not done yet" when it came to targeting groups importing and producing drugs. "We know that organised criminal groups are motivated by profit, and the unwavering demand (for drugs) within our community feeds right into their greed - there's no hesitation in exploiting that demand for their own benefit," he said. McDonald was charged with multiple counts of commercial drug supply and did not apply for bail when he fronted Parramatta Local Court on Saturday. He is next expected before Penrith Local Court on September 14. A 17-year-old boy is expected to front court charged with murdering a young woman at an apartment in Melbourne's CBD. Laa Chol, 19, died in a short-term stay apartment on the 56th floor of the EQ Tower amid a dispute between two groups of partygoers early on Saturday morning. The Sunshine North youth was taken into custody on Monday afternoon before being charged with one count of murder. He was remanded in custody to appear in the Melbourne Children's Court on Tuesday. Friends of Ms Chol earlier paid tribute on social media to the "beautiful soul" who "didn't deserve any of this". Her death has been dragged into an outgoing debate about so-called Sudanese gang violence in Melbourne but police insist this has nothing to do with the incident. Premier Daniel Andrews said the woman's family deserved better than a political debate. Hundreds of Melbourne bus drivers are set to walk off the job again following failed mediation talks with a government contractor over pay demands. School bus routes will be disrupted when roughly 600 CDC Victoria drivers stop work five times over four days, as the Transport Workers Union continues to demand a four per cent pay rise. "The workers believe they need to protect their futures, their families and their ability to do things like pay for schooling and rent and mortgages. And that's where we are," the union's national vice-president John Berger said. It follows a series of strikes earlier in the month as well as Fair Work Commission mediation with the company contracted to operate 17 per cent of the state's bus services. The parties are due to return to Fair Work on Wednesday but CDC is sticking to its 2.5 per cent pay offer. Drivers plan to stop work at CDC's Sunshine depot between 6am and 10am on Tuesday and from 7am until 11am at the Ballarat depot. Twenty-four hour strikes are planned for the Oakleigh depot from Thursday's first bus and at Wyndham on Friday. Another four-hour work stoppage is also planned for the Sunshine depot on Friday afternoon. Public Transport Victoria apologised for the disruption to thousands of passengers, including school students, and urged the company and union to come to an agreement. Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have opened the Australia-US Ministerial meetings in California. The annual AUSMIN talks, also attended by Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne and US Defense Secretary James Mattis, began as US President Donald Trump heightened world tensions with an angry, all capitalised tweet threatening Iran. The AUSMIN talks are expected to also broach sensitive topics including China's territorial aggression in the Indo-Pacific, the ongoing North Korea nuclear talks, trade and infrastructure. Bishop and Pompeo did not answer reporter's questions when they met on Monday to shake hands before cameras at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, where the two day meeting is being held. A small group of protesters yelling anti-Trump chants gathered outside the building under the watch of security personnel. Trump, after his recent controversial trip to Europe and talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, unleashed an angry mostly capitalised tweet to Iran's leader Hassan Rouhani on Sunday. The tweet has the potential overshadow AUSMIN by taking the attention of Pompeo and Mattis. "To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" Mr Trump wrote. Trump's tweet came after Rouhani warned the Trump administration was playing "with the lion's tail". Pompeo, in a speech on the weekend, angered Iran when he said the US supports Iranian protesters who took to the streets to oppose corruption and call for expanded rights. "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Rouhani said. A crackdown on sex work in South Australia has seen one brothel raided every two days across the state in the 12 months to June 30. Police figures show the number of sex work-related charges laid in a single calendar year has not exceeded 75 in the past 10 years, but in the 2017-18 financial year, police made more than 200 sex work-related charges, The Advertiser reports on Tuesday. The increase comes as the state parliament debates a bill to legalise prostitution. Cartoon characters and free toys should be off the menu for advertisements marketing junk food to children, says an industry group insisting self-regulation of the sector is failing. Despite a self-regulatory code being in place for almost a decade, Victoria's Obesity Policy Coalition on Tuesday found systemic failures and called on the government to intervene. "It is naive to entrust our children's health to the same companies that are actively encouraging them to consume junk foods," the coalition's executive manager Jane Martin said. "The end goal of the food industry will always be to make more profit. "We know marketing directly impacts what children eat, what they want to eat and what they pester their carers for." Packaging including popular cartoon characters and animations from Disney-branded foods, to the Coco Pops monkey are among a list of bad junk food marketing practices, the coalition found. A report compiled by the coalition - which brings together experts from Cancer Council Victoria, Diabetes Victoria, and Deakin University - found there was no reduction in unhealthy TV food marketing to children between 2011 and 2015. The report criticises free toys and other giveaways, in-store promotions and said fast food outlets' sponsorship of junior sport does little to protect kids from unhealthy food. More than one million Australian children are above a healthy weight, the July report found. Ms Martin said the food industry claimed to be compliant in meeting the self-regulatory code but the "bar is set so low" and stakeholders are essentially setting their own homework while giving out top marks. Children are also exposed to the marketing material through social media, online games and even apps, in some instances where it's hard for parents to see. "It's time for government to step in and support families and communities to raise healthy children, free from the negative influence of junk food marketing," Ms Martin said. Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636 Three teenage girls are facing charges on a range of driving offences after a stolen ute crashed into two police cars before hitting a power pole in Adelaide's northwest. Two girls aged 15 and another aged 14 are accused of driving the ute from a Queenstown property about 9pm on Monday and crashing into a parked car and a police patrol car before speeding away, police said on Tuesday. The ute later collided with a second police car, injuring a police officer, and despite attempts by other patrols to stop the vehicle it continued on before crashing into power pole at West Croydon. A fly-in-fly-out worker attacked by three dingoes at a West Australian mine thought she would die when three dingoes savaged her leg down to the bone as she ate her lunch. Perth mother Debbie Rundle, 54, was at a designated safe eating area at the East Pilbara Telfer Mine on Wednesday when one dingo approached and stole her mobile phone, before two other dingoes attacked her. "I looked down and I thought oh my, am I gonna die? Are they gonna get me down?" Ms Rundle told Seven News Perth from her hospital bed in the State Trauma Ward at Royal Perth Hospital, where she is recovering from surgery after her right ankle was bitten to the bone. Treasurer Scott Morrison has played down concerns about the fall in Australia's migration rate, saying it simply reflects demand. The 2017/18 migrant intake plummeted by more than 10 per cent to 162,417, well below the 190,000 cap set by the government. Business groups have expressed concern about the decrease, and support among some politicians for a lower migration figure. But Mr Morrison said the migration system is "working as it should". "If there were applicants, and they met the requirements, then they would have visas, because the cap wasn't met," he told Fairfax Media on Tuesday. "There is quite a bit of distance now, and there has been over the last few years, between the cap and the actual outcome. So the program is not hitting its head on the ceiling, so the demand is within the cap. "That would suggest to me the program is operating and the policy is working as it should." The mayors of five major Victorian councils "at the coal face" of dealing with problem gambling are joining an alliance calling for pokie reform ahead of the state election. Mayors from Moreland, Whittlesea, Darebin, Wyndham and Yarra will join with The Alliance for Gambling Reform's Tim Costello on Tuesday to launch the group's 2018 election platform on the steps of state parliament. "Councils such as Moreland, Darebin, Whittlesea, Yarra and Wyndham are at the coal face of gambling harm and I sincerely welcome the commitment of their mayors to the cause of fixing this blight on Australian society," Mr Costello said in a statement. Juvenile criminals in Victoria will be banned from associating with gang members under a crackdown on youth crime in Melbourne. The Andrews Government will introduce legislation into Victoria's parliament on Tuesday to give police the power to issue "unlawful association" notices to children as young as 14. Police Minister Lisa Neville said the laws would help stop the development of criminal networks. "These changes will help police prevent crime, as well as enforce it," Ms Neville told the Herald Sun. The crackdown comes amid a rise in violence involving Sudanese youth gangs, which has sparked a war of words between Premier Daniel Andrews and senior figures in the federal government, including Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. The weekend death of 19-year-old Laa Chol from Melbourne's African-Australian community at a party has inflamed debate, despite there being no indication of gang involvement. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the woman's death was indicative of a "major law and order problem" with Victoria's Labor government. A handout picture from the Iranian presidency on July 22, 2018, shows President Hassan Rouhani (R) with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in the capital Tehran Iran's President Hassan Rouhani warned the United States not to "play with the lion's tail" on Sunday, saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". Addressing his US counterpart Donald Trump, Rouhani said: "You declare war and then you speak of wanting to support the Iranian people. "You cannot provoke the Iranian people against their own security and interests," he said in a televised speech at a gathering of Iranian diplomats in Tehran. Rouhani repeated his warning that Iran could shut down the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane for international oil supplies. "We have always guaranteed the security of this strait. Do not play with the lion's tail, you will regret it forever," he said. "Peace with Iran would be the mother of all peace and war with Iran would be the mother of all wars." Rouhani spoke ahead of a much-trailed speech by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo later Sunday, seen as part of Washington's efforts to foment unrest against the Islamic government in Iran. The US is seeking to tighten the economic screws on Iran, abandoning a landmark 2015 nuclear deal and reimposing stringent sanctions. Washington has also launched concerted propaganda efforts in Iran, including social media campaigns, designed to exacerbate popular discontent. "Whenever Europe has sought an agreement with us, the White House has sown discord," Rouhani said. But he added: "We must not think that the White House will remain forever at this level of opposition to international law, against the Muslim world." Mexico's future president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador says he offered US President Donald Trump a new relationship Mexico's incoming president on Sunday said he had floated the idea of a new relationship between the neighboring countries in a letter to US President Donald Trump. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he sent Trump proposals on bilateral relations -- which have reached one of their lowest points in decades -- in the areas of migration, public safety and trade. Lopez Obrador, who won the presidential election July 1 with 53 percent of the vote and will take office in December, said Sunday that the letter was sent to Trump through the delegation of senior US officials that visited him in Mexico City on July 13. "It encourages me that we both know how to keep our pledges, and we have faced adversity successfully, we've managed to put our voters and citizens at the center, displace the establishment or the predominant regime," Lopez Obrador wrote. While noting that he is awaiting Trump's response, Lopez Obrador published the letter "so that all Mexicans know our position on the new relationship we want" with the United States. The incoming president said Mexico wants a relationship of "respect, friendship and focused on development cooperation," and said that the more developed Mexico is, the fewer people will have to leave their country in search of work. US-Mexican relations have been severely strained since Trump won the 2016 presidential election after a campaign laced with anti-Mexican insults, attacks on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and vows to make Mexico pay for a wall on their border. Since then, US tariffs on Mexican steel and aluminum, Trump's "zero-tolerance" policy on undocumented immigrants, and President Enrique Pena Nieto's two abrupt cancellations of visits to Washington have only added to the tension. Lopez Obrador, 64, pledged during the campaign to "put (Trump) in his place." But both men say they had a positive phone call the day after Mexico's July 1 election, and Lopez Obrador has invited Trump to his inauguration. A California groundskeeper dying of cancer is testifying before jurors hearing evidence in his lawsuit blaming Monsanto weed killer Roundup for his terminal illness. The trial has pitted 46-year-old Dewayne Johnson, who worked as a groundskeeper in Benicia, California, against the agrichemical colossus. Johnson doesn't have long to live, having been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma - a cancer that starts in the white bloods cells - in August 2014, which has since spread. He mixed and sprayed hundreds of gallons of Roundup to keep grass and weeds under control and believes it is responsible for his terminally illness. 'I would've never sprayed that product on school grounds or around people if I knew it would cause them harm,' he said on the stand, according to Courthouse News reporter Helen Christophi. 'It's unethical, it's wrong. I have children who go to school. People I don't deserve that. They deserve better." Californian groundskeeper Dewayne Johnson - seen in this file photo - is testifying before jurors hearing evidence in his lawsuit blaming Monsanto weed killer Roundup for his terminal cancer Johnson was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma - a cancer that starts in the white bloods cells - in August 2014. He believes Round up responsible. 80 percent of his body is covered in lesions (pictured) Johnson used a generic version of Roundup called 'Ranger Pro' repeatedly in his job after being promoted to groundskeeper in 2012 through mid-2015. 'I figured if it could kill weeds it could kill me. I took it seriously that's why I wore anything I could to protect myself,' he told jurors, according to KPIX reporter Susie Steimle. One of Johnson's attorneys, Timothy Litzenburg, told Daily Mail Online that Johnson called that in November 2014, his client contacted the company about his diagnosis. 'He said: "Hey I just want to let you know I have this and I want to ask ask could it be contributing to my cancer",' Litzenburg said. Johnson's concerns landed on the desk of Dr Daniel Goldstein, the lead of medical sciences at Monstanto. 'I would've never sprayed that product on school grounds or around people if I knew it would cause them harm,' Johnson said on the stand. Pictured, the lesions on his back According to an internal company email, Dr Goldstein wrote that he intended to call Johnson but never did. Daily Mail Online has learned that it was just four months later that the main ingredient - a chemical compound called glyphosate - was declared carcinogenic by the World Health Organization. 'For the past 40 years, Monsanto has known the primary ingredient in Roundup can produce tumors in lab animals,' one of Johnson's attorneys, Brent Wisner, said during opening remarks to jurors. California law calls for products containing chemicals known to cause cancer to have warning labels. Johnson's lawyer told jurors the father-of-two would not have used the weed-killer if it came with a warning label regarding cancer risk. Monsanto countered in court that no such warning was needed, saying no link to cancer has been confirmed. In a filing, Monsanto said non-Hodgkin's lymphoma can 'take many years to form' and that the company says the period between Johnson's first exposure in 2012 and his diagnosis in 2014 'precludes any possible causal connection here'. However, during testimony, Johnson's dermatologist, Dr Ope Ofodile, said Johnson didn't have any rash symptoms just a year prior to his diagnosis. The legal clash involves dueling studies, along with allegations Monsanto connived behind the scenes to thwart potentially damning research. His wife, Araceli Johnson (pictured, left) testified that her husband's state of mind after the diagnosis was 'scared, depressed, angry, quiet, cried a lot' On the stand, Johnson (pictured, with his sons) said that his youngest son wants to be a chemist who said he made his father a 'potion' to cure Johnsons cancer In his opening statement, Wisner said Monsanto opted against warning consumers of the risks and that instead 'they have fought science' by playing down the suspected link between the herbicide and cancer. 'Monsanto has gone out of its way to bully scientists and fight researchers,' he told the jury. The case in California Superior Court is the first trial in which Roundup is said to have caused cancer, a claim repeatedly denied by the chemical company. If Monsanto loses, the case could open the door to hundreds of additional lawsuits against the company recently acquired by German-based pharmaceutical and chemical group Bayer. 'He got drenched in it repeatedly' Johnson had little warning about the risks of Roundup, his lawyer said. 'He was told you could drink it, it was completely non toxic,' Wisner said with his client sitting in the San Francisco courtroom. 'You will hear testimony from him that he got drenched in it, repeatedly.' Litzenburg, told Daily Mail Online that Johnson used hundreds of gallons of the products between 30 and 40 times per year. Dewayne Johnson, 46 (pictured), who worked as a groundskeeper for the school district in Benicia, California, is heading to trial claiming that weed killer Roundup is responsible for his cancer diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Monsanto, the maker of Roundup, said the product has undergone stringent testing and more than 800 studies that have established its safety The lawyer said Johnson, who is between rounds of chemotherapy, 'is actually on borrowed time, he is not supposed to be alive today.' This is because when in September 2015, doctors told Johnson that he was likely to die in less than a couple of years, Litzenburg said. A key to Johnson's case will be convincing jurors that Monsanto's pesticide. Wisner contended glyphosate combined with an ingredient intended to help it spread over leaves in a cancer-causing 'synergy.' THE SAGA SURROUNDING THE SAFETY OF GLYPHOSATE Glyphosate is an herbicide first registered for use in the US in 1974. It is marketed either as a salt or an amber-colored liquid with no smell. Monsanto markets glyphosate as part of the pesticide Roundup. Several studies found that high doses administered to laboratory animals caused cancer, although the evidence is 'limited' when it comes to humans. In March 2015, the World Health Organizatrion ranked glyphosate a Group 2a carcinogen, a substance that probably causes cancer in people. In 2017, California added glyphosate to its proposition 65 list, which requires Roundup to carry a warning label if sold in California. Monsanto has vehemently denied that its product causes cancer and says and more than 800 studies that have established its safety. Yet more than 4,000 plaintiffs have filed lawsuits - 800 over the past year - claiming Monsanto made them or members of their family sick. Advertisement Whether glyphosate causes cancer has been the source of long debate among government regulators, health experts and lawyers. Monsanto has denied any link with the disease, saying the product has undergone stringent testing and more than 800 studies have established its safety. 'Mr Johnson's cancer is a terrible disease. We all do and we all should have great sympathy for what he is going through,' Monsanto defense attorney George Lombardi said during opening remarks in court. 'The scientific evidence is overwhelming that glyphosate-based products do not cause cancer, and did not cause Mr Johnson's cancer.' Monsanto's flagship herbicide Roundup was launched in 1976. Roundup has been approved the US Environmental Protection Agency, according to Lombardi. Two years after the WHO labeled it 'probably carcinogenic', the state of California named glyphosate an ingredient that causes cancer under the state's Proposition 65, which requires Roundup to carry a warning label if sold in California. Additionally, earlier this year, a peer-reviewed study found that women in agriculture-intensive areas of Indiana tended to have shorter pregnancies if they had been regularly exposed to glyphosate. Founded in 1901 in St Louis, Missouri, Monsanto began producing agrochemicals in the 1940s. It was acquired by Bayer for more than $62 billion in June. The failure of the Samarco dam killed 19 people and unleashed a wave of toxic sludge BHP Monday vowed to fight an Australian class action alleging the mining giant breached its disclosure obligations and engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct over the deadly Samarco dam failure in Brazil. Nineteen people were killed and a tsunami of toxic waste was unleashed when an iron ore tailings dam burst at the mine in the Minas Gerais region in 2015 in one of the country's worst environmental disasters. BHP and Vale, co-owners of Samarco, last month reached an agreement with Brazilian public authorities to settle a 20 billion real (US$5.3 billion) civil suit over the tragedy. The companies also established a framework to progress a second 155 billion real claim brought by Brazilian federal prosecutors in the next two years. The disaster saw BHP's shares plunge and some 3,000 investors have now signed up to participate in a class action, brought by shareholder Vince Impiombato, the law firm representing him Phi Finney McDonald told AFP. "BHP intends to defend the claim," the Anglo-Australian miner said in a brief statement about the class action, which was filed in the Federal Court of Australia in Victoria state in late May. BHP shares were trading 1.03 percent lower to Aus$32.57 in Sydney Monday. The class action's statement of claim alleges there had been problems with the dam in the years before 2015, and there was "significant risk of failure". It also alleged BHP was or ought to have been aware of the risks, and that investors should have been informed. BHP said last week in its annual operational review that the company would record a US$650 million charge for the year to June 30 over the dam collapse. The rose petals grown in Nangarhar province are turned into rose water and oils for sale around the world Standing in a field of roses in eastern Afghanistan, former poppy grower Mohammad Din Sapai quickly but carefully plucks the delicate petals that will be turned into rose water and oils for sale around the world. The sweet smelling crop is providing farmers in Nangarhar province with a viable alternative to growing opium poppies, the sale of which has fuelled the conflict raging across the country. "I am very happy with this harvest of flowers," Sapai tells AFP as he stands among hundreds of blooming rose bushes. Sapai is one of more than 800 farmers in the province bordering Pakistan benefiting from the "Roses for Nangarhar" project, a joint Afghan-German initiative set up in 2007 to encourage poppy growers to switch to a legal, money-making flower. "They provided us with the plants, the tools and even paid us for the first year when we had no harvest," Sapai, 50, explains. Roses are providing farmers in Nangarhar province with a viable alternative to growing opium poppies, the sale of which has fuelled the conflict raging across the country "Now I have 600 plants and I collect up to 1,200 kilos (2,650 pounds) of petals." Opium is big business in Afghanistan, where Nangarhar is the sixth biggest poppy-producing province. Poppy cultivation hit a new record last year, with opium production soaring 87 percent to an estimated 9,000 tonnes, official figures show. But Sapai says he is perfectly happy to grow roses. He makes enough money to support his family, and insists roses have fewer costs and take less effort. After the rose season, which ends in May, he switches to growing vegetables. - 'Better than poppies' - Starting at dawn and working until late morning when the heat sets in, Sapai and his workers appear resigned to the constant dangers lurking around them as they quickly pick off petals and drop them into large bags. Starting at dawn and working until late morning when the heat sets in, the Afghan workers appear resigned to the constant dangers lurking around them as they quickly pick off petals and drop them into large bags Nangarhar is rife with fighters belonging to the Islamic State group (IS), which emerged in Afghanistan by the end of 2014 and quickly turned the province into a stronghold. The Taliban also roam the area, and bombs planted along the roads leading to rose fields are a constant threat. In nearby Omar Qala village, teacher and rose-grower Shah Zaman is also convinced about the benefits of harvesting petals instead of poppies. "The people here used to cultivate poppies but this is haram (forbidden under Islamic law)," Zaman tells AFP. He expects to harvest one tonne of petals this year. "The roses are much better... I make good money from roses. They are resistant and don't require as much expense or work." Khan Agha, a representative for Afghan Rose Ltd in Dara-e-Noor district, which emerged out of the Afghan-German initiative, agrees. Roses "do not require watering, fertiliser or care" -- unlike poppies, he says. Rose trees are also more durable, lasting 30 to 50 years, compared with poppies, which must be planted every season. "We have solid contracts with the farmers who grow roses asking them to stop cultivating poppy and other types of narcotics, and the places where we grow roses are clean from poppy 100 percent," he adds. The farmers grow a variety known as Damask roses, which were brought from Bulgaria by the Germans but are endemic to Afghanistan, says Mohammad Akbar Mohmand, the owner of Afghan Rose Ltd. The farmers grow a variety known as Damask roses, which were brought from Bulgaria by the Germans but are endemic to Afghanistan The petals are distilled in the provincial capital Jalalabad. It takes about six tonnes of petals on average to extract one litre of essential oil. At peak harvest time, Mohmand's distillery employs more than 120 people. From dawn until late morning, trucks flow from districts across the province delivering their precious cargo. Once picked, rose petals begin to wilt within hours and lose their scent. "The roses picked in the morning have to be distilled the very same day, even if we have to work until 2:00 am or 3:00 am," explains Mohmand, as bags of petals are poured into seven huge stainless steel vats. - 'Make perfume, not war' - Shortly before the "Roses for Nangarhar" project started, Afghan entrepreneur Abdullah Orzala began growing roses and distributing the plants. Once picked, rose petals begin to wilt within hours and lose their scent. Roses picked in the morning have to be distilled the very same day The US-trained engineer recently opened a boutique in Kabul selling rose water and perfumes to middle-class Afghans and foreigners. He has 100 hectares (250 acres) of roses, but hopes to triple the number of plants next year "if the security (situation) allows". Like Mohmand, Orzala never stops worrying about the constant threat of violence. In 2016, 50 farmers working for him packed up and abandoned their crops in Achin district after it became an IS stronghold. "You can deal with the Taliban, but you can't mess with Daesh," he says, using the Arabic name for IS. Two years later, his farmers remain displaced further north. Afghan Rose Ltd also closed the Achin distillery and retreated to Jalalabad. Afghan rose oil is used by several European companies, including German organic cosmetics brand Dr. Hauschka -- whose products are priced well out of reach of ordinary Afghans Its rose oil now supplies several European companies, including German organic cosmetics brand Dr. Hauschka -- whose products are priced well out of reach of ordinary Afghans. "They make very expensive creams with our roses," says Mohmand. Orzala exports its rose oil to Canadian company The 7 Virtues, which also sources essential oils from Haiti, the Middle East and Rwanda under the slogan "Make perfume, not war". It is a message that has more than a whiff of support among Nangarhar farmers. Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking From a distance, the Gile National Reserve in northern Mozambique is a vast, dense ocean of green that reaches as far as the horizon. Bigger than Luxembourg, the 2,800-square-kilometre (1,080-square-mile) forest seems to be reassuringly preserved, its hardwood treasure placed by Mozambique under legal protection. Close up though, the forest bears deep scars from bouts of rampant logging and relentless population growth -- a testimony to the real-life challenge of how to shield this jewel. Logs line the path leading into the reserve, while further along, trucks piled high with wood shavings, seized by the authorities, stand idle, rusting in the weeds. "Illegal logging was a huge problem between 2014 and 2016," said reserve manager Jose Mohamede Dias. French environmental group Nitidae is offering practical, low-tech help to small farmers on how to use the land more sustainably "The other challenge is the bushfires used in hunting and agriculture which feed local people." Such blazes are the main reason for the forest's shrinkage in recent years, he explained. Local people burn down swathes of forest to open up arable land. Once the fields become exhausted, the farmers burn down more trees, and so on. The reserve's population, currently more than 10,000, has shot up in recent years, putting immense pressure on the ecosystem. Some seven million hectares (17 million acres) of tropical forests go up in smoke every year worldwide, according to a UN estimate. - Decompose and fertilise - In a bid to stop the ravaging of the forest, French environmental group Nitidae is offering practical, low-tech help to small farmers on how to use the land more sustainably. One beneficiary is Alexandre Soares, who enrolled a year ago in a training scheme on how to cope with drought and retain soil fertility. Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking "They explained that I should leave certain trees in place to balance the ecosystem. Their leaves decompose and fertilise the soil for the next season," he said, wearing a white hat as he tended his plot under the baking sun. Nitidae specialist Dinis Augusto looked at Soares' mix of crops, which include corn, cassava and beans. "Mixing these plants allows us to guarantee the viability of the soil so the farmers can spend more time on the plot and won't need to find new land," he said. The advice from the pilot project has slowly spread through surrounding communities and improved crop yields -- a powerful inducement for others to follow the tips. - Better charcoal ovens - As well as logging and man-made bushfires, the reserve has also been targeted for the manufacture of charcoal -- the main heat source in many homes in the region. Luis Aghostino set up a basic charcoal oven, digging at the ground barefoot and wearing blue overalls beside several tightly stacked logs, covered in straw and earth. With simple modifications like improved ventilation, the oven is capable of making more charcoal of higher quality and requiring less wood. "It doesn't cost any more, the materials are exactly the same and it doesn't take any more time," said Nitidae's Alexandre Tregoures. As well as logging and man-made bushfires, the reserve has also been targeted for the manufacture of charcoal "With this amount of wood, we can produce seven bags of charcoal whereas we were only able to produce two or three before," added Aghostino. Between 10 and 15 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide come through deforestation, which releases carbon, locked in the soil for millennia, into the atmosphere. Forests, on the other hand, are carbon "sinks" -- in growing, they take carbon dioxide out of the air and sequestrate it. The Gile reserve is hoping to cash in on its conservation efforts by offering carbon credits under a UN-supported programme called REDD+, for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation, which seeks to tackle forest loss and combat global warming at the same time. The local scheme is financed by the French Fund for the World Environment (FFEM) in collaboration with the Mozambican government. Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking. "Between 2010 and 2016, we witnessed a decrease in deforestation in the reserve's buffer zone -- greenhouse gas emissions were avoided," said Nitidae's country manager, Jean-Baptiste Roelens. The scheme has reduced carbon emissions by 300,000 tonnes over five years, with each tonne saved credited at a rate of between $5 (4.30 euros) and $8 a tonne on the international market for carbon dioxide (CO2). The credits will net the reserve between $2 million and $3 million -- the windfall will be reinvested locally, "to finance sustainable development and support environmental projects," said Roelens. The historic walls are under threat from a combination of an exploding population and local politics Young boys scramble up the remains of a crumbling section of the ancient city wall in the Kofar Na'isa area of Kano, in northern Nigeria. "This wall may not survive the rainy season," warned Falalu Musa, a local resident. "It will soon join the others," he added, pointing to mounds of red earth lying nearby. Houses and commercial buildings have sprung up on other demolished sections or been turned into dumping grounds for rubbish, litter and sewage from the ever more crowded city. Elsewhere, excavators dig into the fortifications for the red iron- and aluminium-rich rock laterite, which is loaded onto donkeys and taken away for use in construction and renovation. Those wanting to protect the city's unique heritage are appealing for fresh funding to shore up the walls before it is too late What remains of the weakened walls that once stretched 14 kilometres (nine miles) around the city is then prone to crumble at the foundations and collapse when the rains come. The historic walls are under threat as never before from a combination of an exploding population that has put pressure on land and housing, as well as local politics. "If you look at the city wall generally, almost 80 percent of it has been destroyed," the curator of the Gidan Makama Museum in Kano, Mustapha Bachaka, told AFP. The walls no longer mark the city limits. "There is a lot of encroachment," he added. Now, those wanting to protect the city's unique heritage are appealing for fresh funding to shore up the ancient defences before it is too late. - 'Magnificent work' - The mud walls date back to the 11th century and have come to define Kano as an ancient city state, attracting archaeologists' attention and tourists from across the world. The walls no longer mark the city limits Local archives record that in their original state the walls were 15 metres (50 feet) high and 12 metres thick at the base, with a broad rampart walk. Surrounding the wall were added trenches several metres deep to further deter would-be invaders, while access was controlled by 13 large entrance gates. Two more have since been added. "It was a magnificent work of military engineering, which captivated the British when they conquered Kano in 1903," said Aliyu Abdu, from the National Commission for Museums and Monuments. Despite their shared culture, language and tradition, rivalry, warfare and conquest were the norm in pre-colonial Hausa states that now make up most of northern Nigeria. The Kano museum has set up a monitoring team to patrol the remaining walls to stop encroachment But the city, now home to most of the estimated 13 million people living in Kano state, survived and developed into an important centre for Islamic scholarship, industry and a trading hub for the wider region. "Wars were everywhere in Hausaland, just for territorial expansion. The city wall provided protection against invasion," Bachaka said. "Without these walls there would have been no Kano by now." - Funding shortfall - Abdu blamed the Kano state government as "the main culprit" for the degradation of the city walls. "The government is giving out land around the city wall to political supporters to compensate them for their support," he said. That has robbed them of the moral authority to punish anyone who encroaches themselves. No one from the government responded to requests for comment. But the situation demonstrates the difficulties in protecting sites of historic and national interest. The National Commission for Museums and Monuments took over protection of the walls from the Emir of Kano, the spiritual leader who is revered across the Muslim-majority north. In 2007, the commission submitted a bid to have the walls, the emir's palace and other places of interest declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. Experts fear that securing global protection status is unlikely if they are unable to save the walls from further damage But little or no progress has been made in the last 10 years. Experts fear that securing global protection status is unlikely if they are unable to save the walls from further damage. "It is an irony that while we are making efforts to put Kano walls on the World Heritage map, people have turned them into pit latrines," Bachaka said. Those keen to preserve the walls for generations to come say the widespread damage can be salvaged if money is found to fund the work. The only work carried out in recent years was thanks to a 58,000 euro ($68,000) grant from the German government. In the meantime, the Kano museum has set up a monitoring team to patrol the remaining walls to stop encroachment. "This is all we can do in the interim," said the commission's Abdu. "Despite the challenges, it will not be a lost battle." Local officials hope the re-opening of beaches in Miyagi prefecture will help change perceptions of the region, which has become inextricably linked with the 2011 disaster Japan has reopened three beaches in regions devastated by the 2011 tsunami and resulting Fukushima nuclear disaster after years of reconstruction efforts, officials said Monday. Local officials in Fukushima said they hoped the opening of the Haragamaobama beach would help change perceptions of the region, which has become inextricably linked with the 2011 disaster. One of the reopened waterfronts is Haragamaobama beach in Fukushima prefecture, about 40 kilometres north of the crippled Daiichi nuclear plant. The beach in the city of Soma is the closest to the plant of four beaches that the prefecture has reopened. "I'm delighted, because life in Soma had always been associated with the sea before the disaster," Hiroyuki Ito, secretary general of the Soma Tourism Association, told AFP. The tsunami sent three reactors into meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant, causing Japan's worst postwar disaster Water quality inspection has not detected radioactive materials in the offshore seawater for years, and reopening the beach was only delayed while infrastructure for bathers was being built, he said. "I used to play on the beach as a child every day... but I couldn't let my daughter have the same experience, as she was a sixth grader" when the disaster hit the region, he said. "Even now, if you Google search images for 'Fukushima', the top search result shows a lot of photos of the nuclear plant and other negative images... but our everyday lives here are returning back to normal," he said. "We want people in foreign countries to know that Soma is a place to visit," he said, noting that the association uploaded the image of the opening of the beach Saturday on its Twitter account @somakankokyokai. Two other beaches affected by the devastating tsunami in Miyagi prefecture, north of Fukushima, also reopened this weekend, Miyagi officials said. Beaches on Japan's northern Pacific coast have been gradually reopening after the construction of huge dikes to prevent future tsunami damage and the restoration of sand that was washed away in the 2011 disaster. On March 11, 2011, a devastating 9.1-magnitude quake struck under the Pacific Ocean, and the resulting tsunami caused widespread damage and claimed thousands of lives. It also sent three reactors into meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant, causing Japan's worst postwar disaster and the most serious nuclear accident since Chernobyl in 1986. No one died from radiation but tens of thousands of people were forced to evacuate their homes near the plant. Many are still living in other parts of Japan, unable or unwilling to go back home. At least 107 others were wounded in Sunday's powerful explosion, which happened as scores of people were leaving the airport after welcoming home Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum from exile The death toll from a suicide attack near Kabul international airport has risen to 23, the health ministry said Monday, with an AFP driver among the dead. At least 107 others were wounded in Sunday's powerful explosion, which happened as scores of people were leaving the airport after welcoming home Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum from exile. The health ministry warned the latest toll, which initially had been 14 dead and 60 wounded, could change. AFP driver Mohammad Akhtar, 31, was among those killed when the suicide bomber blew himself up. The father of four had been on his way to work the night shift. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State group through its official Amaq news agency, according to the SITE intelligence monitoring group. Senior Afghan government officials, political leaders and supporters had gone to the airport to greet Dostum, a powerful ethnic Uzbek leader and former warlord. Despite being linked to a catalogue of human rights abuses in Afghanistan, Dostum was mobbed like a celebrity as he arrived in Afghanistan after more than a year in exile. He was travelling in an armoured vehicle and narrowly escaped the attack. Dostum fled to Turkey in May 2017 after being accused of organising the rape and torture of a political rival. He had denied the allegations and said his departure was for medical check-ups and family reasons. Seven of Dostum's bodyguards have been convicted of the sexual assault and illegal imprisonment of Ahmad Ishchi, a former governor of the northern province of Jowzjan, in 2016. Mahathir has vowed to repeal a tough security law Malaysia will repeal a tough security law used to detain government critics without charge under the former government, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has said, with activists Monday hailing the "bold" vow. It was the latest pledge by the country's new reformist leaders to roll back repressive legislation introduced by scandal-hit ex-premier Najib Razak, whose long-serving government was toppled at elections in May. Leading pro-democracy activists were among those arrested using the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act, or SOSMA, introduced in 2012 purportedly to combat security threats from extremists. It allows for suspects to be detained without charge for 28 days and can incur a lengthy prison sentence. In a speech late Sunday, Mahathir said Najib had used repressive laws to do "whatever he liked" and vowed to abolish SOSMA. "The people will now be protected under laws that are fair and any offences will be brought before and decided by the court," he was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times newspaper. Eric Paulsen, legal director of Southeast Asia-focused rights group Fortify Rights, hailed the announcement as a "timely and bold move". "We demand that no one should be detained without trial or be a victim of arbitrary arrest," he said. One of the most high-profile figures detained under SOSMA was Maria Chin Abdullah, the former leader of pro-reform group "Bersih" which staged huge rallies against Najib's government. She was arrested in 2016, when still the head of Bersih, on the eve of a demonstration and kept in solitary confinement for 10 days. She is now an MP with the ruling alliance. Najib launched a crackdown on government critics after allegations emerged he was at the centre of a massive scandal linked to state fund 1MDB. He was arrested this month and has been charged with corruption. Mahathir himself, during a first stint as premier from 1981-2003, used repressive laws to target critics. More than 100 people, including opposition politicians and activists, were arrested and detained without trial during a major crackdown in 1987. jsm/sr/sm The latest clashes between Malian troops and jihadists highlight the fragile security situation in the West African nation as it prepares to hold elections on July 29 Malian troops killed 11 jihadists who had ambushed them in the centre of the country, in clashes that also left one soldier dead, the defence ministry said. Armed Tuareg groups supporting the government also reported assailants executed more than 20 people on Friday in a village in the northeast. The attacks highlighted the fragile security situation in the West African nation as it prepares to hold elections on July 29, in which President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita is seeking a second term. A army patrol was ambushed by "terrorists" on Sunday morning in a forest in the central region of Segou, the ministry said in a statement. The patrol suffered "one dead and one wounded. On the enemy side, we counted 11 dead". In a separate incident on Friday, "armed men" attacked the village of Tindinbawen, near the border with Niger, according to a joint statement from the Imghad and Allies Tuareg Self-Defence Force (Gatia) and the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA). The two mainly Tuareg groups support the French and Malian forces. The "attackers proceeded to summarily execute more than 20 people including elderly people and at the same time some members of the security post of the coalition", the statement said. Mali's unrest stems from a 2012 ethnic Touareg separatist uprising, which was exploited by jihadists in order to take over key cities in the north. The extremists were largely driven out in a French-led military operation launched in January 2013. But large stretches of the country remain outside of the control of the foreign and Malian forces, which are frequent targets of attacks, despite a peace accord signed with Tuareg leaders in 2015 aimed at isolating the jihadists. The violence has also spilled over into both Burkina Faso and Niger. An official of Cambodia's National Election Committee uses a bottle of indelible ink to mark a finger during a briefing on the voting process Cambodian authorities are investigating former opposition officials after accusing them of encouraging a boycott of controversial elections, one of the officials said Monday. The Supreme Court dissolved the main opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) late last year, setting up an easy poll victory this coming Sunday for Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has ruled the country for 33 years. The dissolution was accompanied by a crackdown on party members, many of whom fled the country. But in the lead-up to the poll some are pushing back by calling for a "clean-finger" campaign, referring to the ink used to mark people to stop them voting twice. Voting is not compulsory but officials have said urging others to boycott the poll is a crime and vowed to prosecute. The first known complaint was filed against ex-CNRP officials who appeared in a photo on Facebook displaying a clean finger. Chea Chiv, former head of the opposition party in Battambang province, told AFP the photo comes from an informal gathering which he and his wife hosted on Thursday with around 30 former CNRP officials. "I showed the clean finger because I won't go to vote when there is no party that I love," he said. "They sued me for obstructing and inciting people not to go to vote." He and others described the complaint as intimidation and said they were not part of a wider campaign but wanted to express their personal preference. Several said they had also been monitored by plainclothes police. "They are trying to silence people," said Kruy Kimsaing, 44, a former district councillor who also appeared in the picture. Hang Puthea, a spokesman for the National election Committee, told AFP that local election officials in Battambang received five complaints. He said the accused could face up to $5,000 in fines if found guilty after an investigation by election officials. But it is unclear whether they will face immediate action. Interior Minister Sar Kheng said in a speech streamed on his official Facebook page that the former officials should not be arrested. "Now calm down, let legal officers work on the case," he said. Analysts say Hun Sen fears a low turnout that could further damage the credibility of the election. Both the US and the EU have withdrawn funding for it but countries including China and Japan have offered support. Rhona Smith, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Cambodia, has urged the government to respect the freedom of voters and make clear that calling for a boycott is permitted. She also expressed concern over reports that local authorities had threatened to withhold public services from those who did not vote for the ruling party. The foreign ministry said Monday it was "utterly dismayed" by the comments. Agence France-Presse driver Mohammad Akhtar, a 31-year-old father of four, was among 23 people killed in a suicide attack in Kabul on Sunday AFP driver Mohammad Akhtar, a 31-year-old father of four who was among 23 people killed in a suicide attack in Kabul, was a "great friend" known for his kindness and honesty, colleagues said Monday. Sunday's attack, which was claimed by the Islamic State group, happened as supporters of Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum were leaving the capital's international airport after welcoming home the former warlord from exile. Akhtar's death comes less than three months after AFP's chief photographer in Afghanistan, Shah Marai, was killed in a bomb attack. The April 30 blast in Kabul left 25 people dead, including Marai and eight other journalists. The health ministry on Monday warned that the death toll from the airport attack, which left at least 107 people wounded, could rise. Akhtar -- who was related to Marai -- leaves a wife and four children, the youngest only a few months old. He was on his way to the AFP bureau to work the night shift and was changing public transport near the airport when the suicide bomber blew himself up. The attack was aimed at Dostum, but his armoured vehicle had already whisked him away. Akhtar was the third member of the bureau to die in a militant attack since 2014, when reporter Sardar Ahmad was killed along with his wife and two of his children in a Taliban raid on a hotel. "Once again our bureau in Kabul has suffered a devastating blow," said Michele Leridon, AFP Global News Director. "All our thoughts are with Akhtar's family and his AFP colleagues who continue to do their jobs with professionalism and great courage." Colleagues described Akhtar, who worked in the Kabul bureau for 11 years, as a "great friend" who was kind, calm and honest. "He was soft-spoken, he was patient, he was very upfront," said AFP video journalist Rateb Noori. "He never made a fuss. He kept a lot of things inside." One thing he did express, however, was a penchant for swear words learnt from French colleagues, which he would deploy periodically, his striking eyes screwed up in laughter. Afghan civilians have borne the brunt of the grinding conflict that began after the 2001 US-led invasion toppled the Taliban regime. Militant attacks and suicide bombs were the leading causes of civilian deaths in the first half of 2018, a recent UN report showed. The total number of civilians killed was 1,692, the highest number for the period since the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan began keeping records in 2009. Another 3,430 people were wounded, the report said. Suicide bombs and "complex" attacks that involve several militants accounted for 1,413 casualties -- 427 deaths and 986 injuries -- up 22 percent from a year earlier. If that trend continues, the figure will top the 2017 full-year record of nearly 2,300 casualties. Information Minister Truong Minh Tuan(R)has been suspended as part of an ongoing graft crackdown Vietnam's communications minister was suspended Monday for overseeing a proposed deal to buy a loss-making private TV company which could have cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars. The rare and severe punishment is part of the communist government's widening corruption crackdown targeting high-rolling executives and officials in a country unused to seeing the powerful publicly toppled. Minister of Information and Communications Truong Minh Tuan was suspended in a decision signed by the president for "violations", the government said on its website without elaborating. The statement follows an earlier decision from the Communist Party to punish Tuan, 57, for showing a "lack of responsibility and poor leadership" over the deal. Tuan is accused of overseeing the purchase by the state-run Mobifone telecommunications giant of the private AVG television company. Mobifone bought 95 percent of Audio Visual Global (AVG) in 2015 for around $385 million, even though the company had recorded losses of about $70 million. The government said the purchase could have caused $303 million in losses for the state had not before officials stepped in to halt the final deal and order AVG to refund the purchase price. Tuan spent decades climbing the ranks of the communist party, serving 30 years in the propaganda department before being appointed deputy communications minister in 2014 and then minister in 2016. Monday's announcement did not say whether Tuan would face criminal charges or whether he would retain his other role as deputy head of the party's propaganda department. Mobifone's former head Le Nam Tra and a senior communications ministry official were arrested earlier this month in connection with the case, but have not yet been charged. Tuan is among the most senior officials to be punished under the government's anti-graft sweep, which has captivated a country where politicians are seen as untouchable. The campaign -- led by a hardline leadership in power since 2016 -- has sent a chill through political circles and the business community in one of Asia's most corrupt countries. Sitting politburo member Dinh La Thang was handed two corruption convictions this year in a case that shocked the nation and is now serving 30 years in jail. Also convicted was Trinh Xuan Thanh, who was kidnapped from a Berlin park by Vietnam security agents and bundled into a van before returning to Vietnam to face graft charges. Thanh is currently serving two life sentences. Hanoi insists he returned voluntarily but the case has badly bruised ties with Germany. Both Thanh and Thang worked in the state-run oil sector, which has been a main target of the anti-corruption crackdown so far. Vietnam is ranked 107 out of 180 on Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, among the lowest in the region. Prison breaks are not uncommon in Indonesia Indonesian authorities are searching for two dozen inmates who escaped from a prison by sawing through the iron bars of a ventilation window, police said Monday. While six inmates were quickly apprehended after the Sunday escape, another 25 are still on the run from Doyo prison, an institution for drug offenders in easternmost Papua province, authorities said. "We have deployed officers to hunt them, secure the borders, the harbour, airport and also to set up extra security behind the prison," said Jayapura police chief Victor Dean Mackbon. Prison breaks are not uncommon in Indonesia. In May last year, more than 200 inmates escaped in a mass breakout from an overcrowded prison in Sumatra. A month later, four foreign inmates tunnelled themselves out of a prison on the resort island of Bali. Police managed to recapture three of the foreigners a few days later in neighbouring East Timor, but one of them -- an Australian -- is still on the run. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian gives a joint press conference with his Libyan counterpart in Tripoli on July 23, 2018 French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian pushed a deal paving the way for elections in Libya during a visit Monday to the chaos-ridden country. Speaking alongside the head of Libya's United Nations-backed government, Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, Le Drian urged leaders to forge ahead with plans for polls this year. "It's what Libyan citizens aspire to, who have registered massively in electoral lists," he said in the capital Tripoli. The visit by France's top diplomat follows May talks in Paris which for the first time brought together rival Libyan leaders including Sarraj and military strongman Khalifa Haftar, whose self-styled Libyan National Army dominates the country's east. At that meeting, they agreed to work towards holding parliamentary and presidential elections by December 10. "I have come to remind (parties to the deal) of those commitments and that calendar, and to share this approach with those who were not in Paris on May 29," Le Drian said. Maintaining pressure on Libyan leaders to prepare for polls, the foreign minister announced a million-dollar (853,000-euro) donation to organise the elections. "France supports the efforts of all of those who work in this direction," he said. The Paris agreement included a September 16 deadline to come up with an electoral law, forming the "constitutional base" for a vote later in the year. Many observers see the timetable as overly ambitious given ongoing instability and territorial disputes across the country, along with a economy that is flagging despite Libya's vast oil wealth. More than seven years since dictator Moamer Kadhafi was ousted and killed in a NATO-backed uprising, Libya remains divided, with rival administrations in Tripoli and the eastern city of Tobruk. While in Tripoli, Le Drian also met with Khalid al-Mishri, head of the High Council of State in Tripoli, which serves as an upper chamber. Both Mishri and Aguila Saleh Issa, the Tobruk-based parliament speaker who is also due to meet Le Drian, attended the Paris meeting and agreed to support elections. France's foreign minister is also expected to hold talks with Haftar and make a stop in the western city of Misrata, the base of powerful armed groups who did not attend the Paris talks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opens the weekly cabinet meeting at his Jerusalem office Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday praised President Donald Trump's "tough stand" against Iran after the US leader issued a stark warning to the Islamic republic. Netanyahu's remarks came hours before a meeting with top Russian officials on Iran and the situation in Syria, where Moscow-backed regime forces have been battering rebels in the south for more than a month. "I would like to praise the tough stand expressed yesterday by President Trump and Secretary of State (Mike) Pompeo against the aggression of the Iranian regime," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting. "Over the years, this regime has been spoiled by the major powers and it is good to see that the US is changing this unacceptable equation." Iran is Israel's main enemy and Netanyahu has long pushed for a tougher stand against it by international powers. He has repeatedly lauded Trump's hawkish rhetoric towards Tehran. Trump used Twitter on Sunday to send out an all-caps salvo: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had warned Trump on Sunday not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". Trump's comments came after Pompeo, in a major address to the Iranian diaspora in California, said Washington was not afraid to sanction top-ranking leaders of the "nightmare" Iranian regime. Netanyahu lobbied hard to have the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers cancelled, and Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in May. All other parties to the deal -- Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China -- have sought to keep it in effect, saying it is working as intended by preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons for now. Netanyahu has also pledged to keep Iran from entrenching itself militarily in neighbouring Syria, where Tehran is supporting President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war. A series of strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel. - Russian visit - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Moscow's military chief arrived in Israel later Monday for talks on Iran and the Syrian conflict. Like Tehran, Moscow supports Assad in the war, but Netanyahu has held a series of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent months on Syria and Iran. Netanyahu said Putin recently requested the meeting with Lavrov and General Valery Gerasimov. "I appreciated the words that were spoken by President Putin together with President Trump regarding the security of Israel during the recent summit," Netanyahu said after the meeting, in remarks relayed by his office. The Russian foreign ministry said the meeting also addressed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and "the goal of ending the anti-terrorist operation in southern Syria, and ensuring security along the Israeli border". On June 19, Syrian government forces launched a Russia-backed offensive to retake Daraa and Quneitra provinces in the country's south, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Regime forces have now regained control of most of the two provinces through a combination of deadly bombardment and Moscow-brokered surrender deals. Israel is eager to obtain guarantees that Iranian forces and allied groups, such as Hezbollah, will be kept away from the Golan. Separately on Sunday, Israel evacuated hundreds of White Helmets rescuers and their family members threatened by advancing Syrian regime forces to Jordan for resettlement in Western countries. Jordan's foreign ministry announced in a statement that the kingdom received 422 Syrian citizens, after earlier saying it had given permission for 800 to arrive. Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescues the wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-held territory. A handout picture released by the Israel Defence Ministry on December 21, 2015 shows tests being undertaken for Israel's David Sling's missile defence system Israel on Monday said its air defences fired at rockets that approached its territory from neighbouring Syria, where regime troops are advancing on opposition forces close to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. "Syrian rockets were identified as having been launched as part of the internal fighting in Syria," an Israeli army statement said in English. The statement said two of Israel's newly deployed David's Sling interceptors were launched "in response to the threat to Israeli territory," but added the Syrian rockets fell inside Syria. It did not say if the interceptors hit the rockets. David's Sling, developed with United States backing, was introduced into service in April 2017 to fill the gap between the longer-range Arrow missile defence system and the shorter-range Iron Dome interceptor. Israeli media said Monday was the first time it was fired operationally. Israel seized 1,200 square kilometres (460 square miles) of the Golan from Syria in the 1967 Six Day war, in a move never recognised internationally. Israel has been on high alert since June 19, when Syrian government forces launched a Russia-backed offensive to retake Quneitra and Daraa and provinces, adjacent respectively to the Israeli-held section of the Golan and to Jordan. Regime forces have since regained control of most of these two provinces through a combination of deadly bombardment and Moscow-brokered surrender deals. Ten people were jailed over explosive protests in Vietnam, where even peaceful demonstrations are outlawed Ten people were jailed in Vietnam Monday for joining explosive protests that swept across the communist country last month after a draft investment law triggered widespread anger. The rare rallies in the one-party state -- where even peaceful demonstrations are outlawed -- drew thousands to the streets, including in southern Binh Thuan province where protests quickly spun out of control. In some areas of the province, demonstrators attacked riot police, torched patrol cars and stormed property in rallies over the proposed law that would grant investors lengthy leases in special economic zones. Ten people were convicted Monday in Binh Thuan for their hand in the violence and sentenced to between two and three-and-a-half years in prison at the one day-trial where the suspects were accompanied by police in protective vests. They were found guilty of "massive attacks against police deployments... injuring some officers, damaging two government vehicles and causing widespread traffic blockages for 15 hours on a national highway," the Voice of Vietnam said on its website. Several others have already been convicted for joining the nationwide rallies, including American student William Nguyen who was found guilty for "causing public disorder" last week and swiftly deported from the country after more than a month in jail. His case drew ire from several US lawmakers demanding his release and was raised by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on a visit to Hanoi this month. The June 10 protests caught Vietnamese authorities off-guard, though resentment over the draft bill had been brewing online. Protesters feared the land would be handed over to China -- a touchy topic in Vietnam, which has a tumultuous relationship with its powerful communist neighbour. China was not named in the draft law, which has been tabled for now, and the government said it would reduce the original plan to hand out 99-year leases in the proposed special economic zones, but it was not enough to quell anger. Six people are already behind bars for participating in the protests, while another was given a suspended sentence. Deadly anti-China protests gripped Vietnam in 2014 when Beijing moved an oil rig into a section of the disputed South China Sea claimed by Hanoi. The countries frequently spar over competing claims in the resource-rich waterway, the latest in a long history of disputes -- including a brief but bloody border war in 1979. This handout video grab from Israel's army released on July 22, 2017, shows an Israeli soldier offering water to a family member of a Syrian White Helmets rescuer at an unknown location during an evacuation operation through Israel to Jordan The foreign ministry in Damascus condemned on Monday the evacuation of hundreds of trapped White Helmets rescue workers and their relatives from Syria's south through its arch-foe and neighbour, Israel. More than 400 rescue workers and family members from Syria's southern provinces of Daraa and Quneitra were ferried into Israel on Sunday, then taken into Jordan for resettlement into Western countries. "The criminal operation that Israel and its tools conducted in the area reveals the true nature of the so-called White Helmets," said a source at the foreign ministry, cited by state news agency SANA. The source repeated the Syrian government's accusation that the rescue force is a front group for "terrorists" and said Damascus had warned the world of its "dangers". "Words of condemnation are not enough to express the indignation that every Syrian feels towards these despicable conspiracies and the limitless aid from Western countries, Israel, and Jordan to the White Helmets," the source said. The White Helmets is a network of first responders which rescues the wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling, or explosions in rebel territory across Syria. Hundreds of them were stuck in a pocket of southern Syria, fearing advancing Syrian government forces. Jordan's foreign ministry announced in a statement that the kingdom received 422 Syrian nationals for resettlement in Britain, Germany and Canada. The group receives funding from a number of governments, including Britain, Germany, Canada and the United States, and from individual donors. Other White Helmets members have stayed in the south. Refugees at a Lebanese army checkpoint in Wadi Hmeid on July 23, 2018, after leaving Arsal to return to their homes in Syria Hundreds of Syrian refugees left Lebanon on Monday for their neighbouring home country, an AFP reporter said, the latest such return coordinated between Beirut and Damascus. In Lebanon's eastern border town of Arsal, men, women and children of all ages piled into cars, minivans and tractors. Security forces checked the identity papers of those about to make the journey back to Syria with suitcases, boxes of food and even live poultry, an AFP photographer said. "The voluntary repatriation of around 850 Syrian refugees started" on Monday morning, Lebanon's state news agency NNA reported. Seven years into Syria's war, Lebanon hosts around 1.5 million Syrian refugees, compared with a local population of 4.5 million. Over the past few months, more than 800 Syrians have left Lebanon in similar operations organised by the governments of Beirut and Damascus. Several thousand have also independently left in recent years. Syria's state news agency SANA said the first of "hundreds of Syrians coming from Lebanese territory" had arrived and were heading to Qalamun outside the capital. A Syrian girl smiles from the back of a truck loaded with her family's belongings at a Lebanese army checkpoint in Wadi Hmeid on July 23, 2018 Syria's ally Russia has also put forward plans to the United States to cooperate for the safe return of refugees to Syria. Moscow has proposed the establishment of working groups in Lebanon and Jordan, to where many refugees have fled, a Russian defence ministry official said on Friday. An advisor to Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has met Russia's deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov to find out more about the initiative, the premier's office said on Saturday. The step would "help solve the refugees' crisis in Lebanon and put an end to their suffering and its social and economic repercussions on the host countries, mainly Lebanon," it said in English. Last month Lebanon's Hezbollah said the powerful movement was creating a mechanism to help Syrian refugees return home, in coordination with Lebanese authorities and Damascus. More than 350,000 people have been killed and over half the country's population displaced since Syria's war started with the brutal repression of anti-government protests in 2011. Kurdish security forces deploy outside the governor's headquarters in Arbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, scene of an attack that killed one employee and three gunmen on July 23, 2018 Three teenage gunmen on Monday stormed the governor's headquarters in Arbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, opening fire and killing one employee before being shot dead, officials said. Initial reports said two gunmen had stormed the building in Arbil in the early morning, shooting and wounding a policeman. But as the day unfolded, the toll rose to one employee killed and several members of the security forces wounded as Kurdish security forces exchanged fire with the attackers, officials said. "An employee was killed in the assault on the provincial headquarters," Arbil governor Nawzad Hadi told a news conference. The Kurdish autonomous region's deputy police chief Farhad Mohammed said "several members of the security forces were wounded", but did not give a specific toll. Mohammed said the three gunmen had been "neutralised" after a four-hour exchange of fire with Kurdish security forces. He described the assault as a "terrorist" attack but stopped short of blaming any particular group. Kurdish security forces carry into an ambulance the body of one of the three gunmen who were shot dead after storming the governor's headquarters in the Arbil northern Iraq on July 23, 2018 The anti-terrorism squad in Kurdistan said in a statement that two of the gunmen were aged 16 and the third was 18, all of them from Arbil. An AFP correspondent near the building said he heard heavy gunfire and a loud explosion, probably from a hand grenade. Deputy governor Taher Abdullah had earlier said that Kurdish security forces known as the Asayish had set up a security cordon and were searching the building for the assailants. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack in the usually secure Kurdish regional capital, and the assailants' motives were unclear. The Islamic State jihadist group claimed a deadly attack on the interior ministry in Arbil in 2015. The previous year the group was blamed for a suicide bombing that killed at least four people outside the Arbil Provincial Council Building. Kurdish peshmerga fighters took part in the battle against IS after it seized nearly a third of Iraq in a lightning 2014 offensive. Baghdad declared victory over the group in December but the jihadists still hold pockets of territory and continue to carry out deadly attacks. Duterte poses for a selfie while surrounded by supporters and lawmakers after delivering his State of the Nation address Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte pledged on Monday to press ahead with a war on drugs that has already killed thousands, and castigated critics of his signature initiative. Duterte opened his annual State of the Nation Address with a defence of the narcotics crackdown that is now in its third year and remains largely supported in the Philippines despite fierce international censure. "Let me begin by putting it bluntly: the war against illegal drugs is far from over," he told hundreds of lawmakers, celebrities and dignitaries. "It will be as relentless and chilling, if you will, as on the day it began." Duterte launched the crackdown shortly after coming to power in June 2016. Since then authorities claim 4,354 alleged drug users and dealers have been killed in police operations. However, human rights groups and critics say the true number of dead is at least triple that. They say the killing could amount to crimes against humanity. "If you think that I can be dissuaded from continuing this fight because of demonstrations, your protests which I find misdirected, then you got it all wrong," he said, referring to critics. "Your concern is human rights, mine is human lives," he added. As Duterte spoke thousands of protesters took to the streets to denounce his administration's policies, including the drug war and a plan to re-write the constitution. Demonstrators torched large effigies of the president and waved banners calling for wage rises and relief from rising inflation, hovering at a five-year high. This year's address was also marked by high drama as political infighting in Congress delayed the passage of autonomy legislation for the nation's Muslim minority. After years of political wrangling and negotiations, a final draft of the proposed law was on the point of being approved and sent to Duterte for his signature. - 'Never gain a foothold' - But a fight for control of the top leadership post in the House of Representatives led to the delay of a final vote. Duterte promised that the legislation would still move forward. "When the approved version is transmitted and received by my office... I intend to -- give me 48 hours -- to sign it and ratify the law," he added. The measure is the key missing element in a languishing peace pact with the largest Islamic rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Along with other guerrillas, it waged a rebellion that has claimed about 150,000 lives since the 1970s. The law aims to reinforce a historic but fragile 2014 peace deal under which the MILF will give up its quest for an independent homeland in the southern island of Mindanao in return for self-rule in a newly declared autonomous region. Both sides believe that creating the area will deter extremism in a region where brutal poverty and perennial bloodshed has fuelled recruitment by radical groups. Police block a road leading to congress as anti-government demonstrators display an effigy of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte "I have made a pledge that ISIS (Islamic State) terrorists or groups or allies will never gain a foothold in our country," Duterte said, referring to the months-long siege last year of the southern city of Marawi by jihadists. "We owe it to our fallen soldiers and police officers in Marawi and elsewhere to put an end to the bloodshed and seek the path of true peace." Juncker follows a long list of European leaders who have tried to lure Trump away from a protectionist onslaught European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker heads to Washington on Wednesday in a last-ditch effort by the EU to cool nerves and find an exit door from an all-out trade war with US President Donald Trump. Juncker, a grizzled veteran of EU politics, follows a long list of European leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who have tried to lure Trump him away from a protectionist onslaught that has spooked financial markets and the world. The former Luxembourg prime minister is going to Washington without a negotiating mandate, but with the intention of thinking "outside the box" to "find a solution" with Trump, said EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, who will join Juncker on the trip. Juncker leaves for Washington on Tuesday and his meeting with Trump is scheduled for 1330 (1730 GMT) on Wednesday, to be followed by a speech on EU-US ties at a think-tank. "It is an opportunity to dedramatise any potential tensions on trade and to engage into an open, constructive dialogue with our American partners," Juncker's chief spokesman Margaritis Schinas told a news briefing. - Whiskey, jeans and motorbikes - At stake is a White House threat to slap a daunting wave of tariffs on European auto exports to the US, an action that the Europeans say would trigger a global economic earthquake and earn a withering riposte from Brussels. If confirmed, Trump's auto tariffs would add to the steel and aluminium tariffs imposed in June that seriously damaged transatlantic relations already frayed by Trump's pullout of the Paris Climate accord and the Iran nuclear deal. In response, the European Union on June 22 imposed a raft of retaliatory tariffs that targeted the most emblematic of American exports, from blue jeans to Harley Davidson motorbikes and whiskey. Fearing car tariffs, Brussels is already drawing up a list of more US products that could be hit with retaliatory duties if Juncker's trip fails. "We will continue to respond toe-to-toe to provocations," Juncker warned in a speech on Wednesday. "All efforts to divide Europeans are in vain," he added. - 'Gun to the head' - Juncker's commission handles trade matters for the EU 28 and he goes to the White House with the firm backing of Merkel, the leader of export powerhouse Germany, a country that Trump has angrily singled out for punishing the US on trade. Merkel expressed hope on Friday that Juncker could negotiate a solution with Trump and stop the trade war. Tit-for-tat feuding between the allies would be "by far the worst-possible solution", Merkel warned, describing the current trade tensions as "very serious". The potential car tariffs would not just violate the rules of the World Trade Organization, she added, but could also "endanger the prosperity of many people around the world". But the prospects for trade peace seemed slim at G20 talks on Saturday after US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, a close Trump ally, said Washington would demand a wide-ranging trade deal with Europe in order to stand back on its tariff threat. "If Europe believes in free trade, we're ready to sign a free trade agreement with no tariffs, no non-tariff barriers and no subsidies. It has to be all three," said Mnuchin at the talks in Argentina. But French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire shot back firmly: "We refuse to negotiate with a gun to the head", insisting that Trump must first withdraw the steel and aluminium tariffs and stand down on his car tariff threat. - 'Not for long!' - Not to be daunted by Trump's protectionism, Juncker last week toured Asia, signing the EU's biggest ever trade deal with Japan while also backing multilateralism alongside the Chinese government during a stop in Beijing. The prospects for trade peace seem slim as Trump drives an "America First" agenda The EU -- the world's biggest single market with 28 countries and 500 million people -- has also secured similar trade deals with US neighbours Canada and Mexico. Also looming over the Juncker visit is last week's decision by the commission to slap US tech giant Google with a record fine over its Android mobile phone operating system. Trump lashed out at the 4.34 billion euro ($5 billion) penalty and warned: "They truly have taken advantage of the US, but not for long!" Trump said. A picture taken on July 23, 2018 shows the massive stone block that dislodged from the Western Wall, falling down on to a prayer platform in the Old City of Jerusalem Jerusalem authorities restricted access to one of Judaism's holiest sites on Monday after a massive stone block from the Western Wall fell to the ground below, narrowly missing a worshipper. "The stone, weighing 100 kilogrammes (220 pounds), fell close to a woman who was praying... without hitting her," Mayor Nir Barkat said in a statement. He said the fact that nobody was harmed in the incident was "a great miracle". Barkat visited the scene with Jerusalem's city engineer and safety officials, who declared the spot dangerous and closed it to the public pending further inspection. Western Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz said he could not explain the incident but the fact it happened a day after a major gathering at the Western Wall called for "soul-searching". On Sunday, tens of thousands of Jewish worshippers thronged the main, gender-segregated Western Wall esplanade for annual prayers mourning the razing of the Jews' biblical-era temples. Israeli workers look at the place where a giant stone block dislodged from the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest worship site Monday's incident struck a less-visited part of the wall, where men and women are permitted to pray together contrary to Orthodox Jewish practise. Rabinowitz noted that the stones above the main prayer section of the Western Wall are examined by professionals twice a year. The Western Wall, in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, is the holiest place at which Jews are allowed to pray. They believe it is what remains of a supporting wall of their biblical second temple, destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. Immediately above it is the flashpoint shrine known to Jews as the Temple Mount, the holiest in Judaism, revered as the spot where the two biblical Jewish temples once stood. To Muslims it is the Haram al-Sharif compound, the third-holiest in Islam after Mecca and Medina, and home to the Al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock. Bangladeshi police take cover as a man lies on the ground near the Holey Artisan Bakery restaurant during the 2016 attack Bangladesh police Monday charged eight Islamist extremists over the savage 2016 attack claimed by Islamic State on a Dhaka cafe popular with Westerners that killed 22 people including 18 foreigners. Of the eight charged, "six have been arrested and two have absconded," Monirul Islam, the head of Dhaka police's counter-terrorism unit, told reporters. "Their aim was to destabilise the country and turn the country into a militant state," Islam said. Police said the eight face a maximum sentence of death by hanging under anti-terrorism laws. The brazen assault on July 1, 2016 saw five militants with assault rifles and machetes storm the Holey Artisan Bakery cafe in Dhaka's well-heeled Gulshan neighbourhood. Nine Italians and seven Japanese were among the foreigners to be hacked or shot dead. Two policemen were also killed. Military commandos stormed the cafe after a 10-hour standoff and freed more than two dozen hostages. The attack claimed by the Islamic State group fuelled tensions over Islamist extremism in Muslim-majority Bangladesh. All five militants were killed when police stormed the cafe. Eight others -- including mastermind Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury, a Canadian of Bangladesh descent -- were killed during raids in Dhaka and its suburbs months after the attack. They included commanders of a new faction of the homegrown extremist group Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh. One of the freed hostages, a British national of Bangladeshi origin named Hasnat Karim, was later detained by police over allegations he played a role into the attack. But Mohibul Islam Khan, counter-terrorism police deputy commissioner, said investigators found no evidence against Karim and his name has been left off the charge sheet. The government has repeatedly denied that international jihadist networks have a presence in Bangladesh. The IS-linked news agency Amaq however published extensive details of the attack, including photos from inside the cafe. Monirul Islam said Rohan Imtiaz, 19, led the attack. Imtiaz had completed his A-levels at Scholastica, a school for the children of well-to-do families in Dhaka. The hostage crisis marked an escalation from a spate of murders claimed by IS and Al Qaeda of rights activists, gays, foreigners and religious minorities. It was seen as a major blow to the country's image as a moderate Muslim nation. Dozens of atheist writers, publishers, members of religious minorities, social activists and foreign aid workers have been murdered in Bangladesh since 2013. Authorities are investigating why police officers allegedly took a tea break instead of rushing a critically injured lynching victim to hospital. Akbar Khan, 28, died of injuries after being attacked by a gang of Hindu 'cow vigilantes' in the district of Alwar in Rajasthan state on Friday. Cops are even believed to have taken the cows to shelter before seeking medical attention for Akbar. Akbar Khan died from injuries after being lynched by a village mob in India who accused him of cow smuggling Police have arrested three of the 'cow vigilante' individuals for attacking Akbar Khan and his friend Aslam Khan Cows are considered sacred in Hindu-majority India, where squads of vigilantes often roam highways inspecting livestock trucks. Akbar was moving two cows with his friend Aslam Khan when a mob of villagers accused them of cow smuggling and began hitting them with sticks and stones. Three of the attackers have since been arrested. Police arrived at around 1am when Akbar was visibly wounded and bleeding, but he was declared dead on arrival at hospital at 4am. NDTV reported that the cows were taken to a bovine shelter while Akbar was 'given a wash' to get the mud off him before they took a break for tea and snacks. There have also been accusations by an eyewitness that police were seen beating Akbar in the back of the vehicle. The murder stoked tension in the area amid media reports police stopped to have a tea break and wasted crucial time instead of taking Khan to hospital. 'Doubts have been cast on the initial response of the local police,' state police chief O.P. Galhotra said. 'A team has been constituted to look into the circumstances leading to the alleged delay and connected issues.' One of the cops involved in the incident admitted to the inexplicable delay, saying he had 'made a mistake'. Assistant sub-inspector Mohan Singh has been suspended after he was heard saying in a video: 'Yes I agree it was my fault. Now punish me. Do what you want with me. I made a mistake.' India's right-wing government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been accused of turning a blind eye to a rising number of vigilante attacks on minority Muslims in the name of cow protection. Rights groups say Hindu mobs have been emboldened under the Hindu nationalist party, which stormed to power in 2014. Cows are considered sacred in Hindu-majority India, where squads of vigilantes often roam highways inspecting livestock trucks The government Monday sought a report from state authorities on the latest lynching and 'steps taken to restore peace' in the area. It also set up a panel to suggest legal measures to curb mob violence. The panel has been asked to report in the next four weeks. Slaughtering cows is illegal in many Indian states and some also require a licence for transporting them across state borders. In two prominent cases last year, a dairy farmer was killed on a roadside for transporting cows and a Muslim teenager accused of carrying beef was stabbed to death on a crowded train. India has also been rocked by a separate spate of lynchings, with 23 people killed in the last two months after being accused of child kidnapping in viral messages circulated wildly on WhatsApp. Hadil al-Rafati gently adjusts her anaemia-stricken toddler's frail legs onto her lap in the lobby of an NGO's clinic in Gaza City. The programme providing treatment to her son is among those in the enclave facing cuts or closure due to a freeze on US aid to the Palestinians, organisers say. "He weighs 7.2 kilogrammes (16 pounds), but at a year and a month, he should be at least 10," the 21-year-old mother said of her son, Essam. Since January, US financing for humanitarian programmes serving the Palestinians has been suspended, with Washington saying it is being reviewed. President Donald Trump has threatened to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to force the Palestinians back to the negotiating table with Israel. On a recent day, around 15 mothers waited in the lobby of the clinic run by Palestinian organisation Ard al-Insan to see a paediatrician or to receive food supplements for their children. Certain services have been maintained with available funding, but the programme is due to expire at the end of August if the money is not released. "They help us, give us medicine," said Rafati, who is unemployed and whose husband picks up odd jobs to make ends meet. "If they close, where will we go?" The Gaza Strip, controlled by Islamist movement Hamas, has been under an Israeli blockade for more than 10 years. The two sides have fought three wars since 2008. Some 80 percent of the enclave's two million residents rely on aid, according to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA). Trump's comments on aid in January came after Palestinian leaders suspended relations with the White House over its deeply controversial recognition of the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Since then, the passage of a US law in March withholding certain aid to the Palestinians over payments made to prisoners jailed for security offences, or to the families of those killed while carrying out attacks against Israelis, has further complicated the situation. - 'The most vulnerable' - Some $215 million (183.5 million euros) that the United States was to invest in humanitarian aid and development in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip has been held up, according to an analysis for the US Congress. US financing for UNRWA has also been blocked. "At President Trump's direction, assistance to the Palestinians remains under review," a US State Department official said. Some programmes are already facing cuts, such as the Palestine Avenir for Childhood Foundation, which has not renewed contracts for some 30 employees since the start of the year. Suffering from cerebral palsy, nine-month-old Maher had been receiving four physiotherapy sessions per week from the organisation. He now only comes twice per week due to a lack of available therapists. "The change has been huge in the last three months," said his mother Nada Abu Assi, 27, as she watches her son move with the help of a support device. The foundation's director, Ahmad Alkashif, said "these are the last beneficiaries," adding that hundreds of children are on its waiting list. The project, financed by Washington's development agency USAID, is part of a $50 million programme started in 2016 and meant to last five years. Some 20,000 patients were to benefit from the plan, with the possibility of extending it to 250,000 in case of disaster. "Unless the funding hold is lifted in the next three months, the 'Health Matters' programme will close, leaving the most vulnerable families in Gaza without even the most basic health care services," said Ky Luu, chief operating officer of International Medical Corps, an American NGO contracted for the programme. The health system in the enclave is already badly struggling. In recent months, it has faced an influx of more than 4,000 wounded Palestinians hit by Israeli gunfire during border protests and clashes. At least 149 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the protests and clashes began on March 30. One Israeli soldier has been shot dead. - 'Another burden' - "It's another burden that we must carry," said Suhaila Tarazi, director general of the Al-Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza City. Without the US aid, training for surgeons will be cancelled, she said. "Many will wait and suffer," she said, her eyes filling with tears. Each month, more than 2,000 Gazans request permission from Israel to leave the enclave for health care. Last year, only 54 percent of requests were approved and 54 patients died before being able to leave, according to the World Health Organisation. Many fear the loss of US funding will be impossible to replace. "There is no follow-up for projects," said Iyad Abu Hijayer, deputy director of the Palestinian Centre for Democracy and Conflict Resolution. "In general, for years financing has decreased." US President Donald Trump is insisting that the probe into possible collusion between his campaign team and Russia -- led by special counsel Robert Mueller, a former FBI director -- be halted US President Donald Trump called once again Monday for an end to special counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russia interference in the 2016 election, insisting it has been "discredited." "A disgrace to America," Trump tweeted, referring to the rationale prosecutors used to place a former campaign advisor, Carter Page, under FBI surveillance. "They should drop the discredited Mueller Witch Hunt now!" he added. Trump has come under a barrage of criticism over the past week for what was seen as overly conciliatory treatment of Russian President Vladimir Putin at their summit in Helsinki. Mueller, a former FBI director, is investigating whether Trump's campaign colluded with Russia's covert attempt to sway the US elections in favor of the former reality TV star, and if the president obstructed justice. A dozen Russian intelligence agents were recently indicted for hacking into Democratic party computers. Four members of the Trump campaign also have been charged for alleged crimes, but they were not directly linked to collusion. Trump, who insists there was no collusion, repeatedly claims he is the target of a "witch hunt." US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands ahead of their meeting in Helsinki US President Donald Trump said Monday he had given up "nothing" during his summit with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, following a week of withering, bipartisan criticism over his handling of the meeting. "When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING," Trump said on Twitter. "We merely talked about future benefits for both countries. Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media!" Trump and Putin met in Helsinki a week ago behind closed doors, with no one else but their interpreters present. In the press conference and interviews afterward, Trump did not offer any specific details on any agreements he might have made with Putin, drawing scorn from Democrats, who sought to interview his interpreter. Moscow has said "agreements" had been reached over the situation in Syria. Trump faced intense criticism after the press conference, during which he appeared to support Putin's "extremely strong and powerful" denial of subverting the 2016 US presidential election. A day later, Trump was forced to attempt to walk back a comment in which he said "I don't see any reason why it would be" Russia that had hacked the election. "The sentence should have been, 'I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be Russia.' Sort of a double negative," he said. US President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un met in Singapore more than a month ago, but no concrete progress has been announced on the North's denuclearization US President Donald Trump said Monday he was "very happy" with how talks were progressing with North Korea, as observers and the media highlight the lack of concrete results one month after his summit with Kim Jong Un. "A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy," Trump tweeted. "But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy!" Trump appeared to be referring to an article in The Washington Post on Sunday that claimed the president was frustrated with the lack of immediate progress, despite his public statements claiming the talks were a success The article cited unnamed White House aides, State Department officials and diplomats. Trump hit out at the Post in a series of tweets on Monday, saying the paper, which is owned by Amazon boss Jeff Bezos had "gone crazy against" him. "In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon," Trump said. In a joint declaration after his historic summit with Trump on June 12 in Singapore, the North Korean leader "reaffirmed his commitment" to work towards the "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula." But the actual details of the process, including how and when the North's nuclear program is to be dismantled, have yet to be hammered out. A month ago, the US administration insisted on the "urgency" of denuclearization, and said it would begin "very quickly." "We're hopeful we can get it done" by 2020, before the end of Trump's term, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the time. Pompeo has been charged with the challenge of putting meat on the bare bones of the Singapore commitment. But 40 days and one apparently fruitless visit by Pompeo to Pyongyang later, the tone of the American side has clearly changed. "We have no time limit," Trump told reporters last week. "We have no speed limit." Asked about the change in tone, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert sought to reassure: "We have teams in place that are working very hard on this issue every day," she said. "We have said there's a lot of work left to be done." Chinese President Xi Jinping and Rwandan President Paul Kagame spoke with the press on Monday. China's President Xi Jinping inked 15 deals including loans and grants worth millions of dollars with Rwanda on Monday as part of a whistlestop tour to cement relations with African allies. Among the deals agreed, the value of which was not revealed, were loans for road construction, hospital renovation and the development of Rwanda's new Bugesera airport. As part of his first overseas trip since being re-elected in March, Xi last week visited Senegal to conclude a raft of trade accords. He will head to Johannesburg on Tuesday for a summit of the BRICS emerging economies -- Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa. Since taking office, Xi has overseen efforts to expand Chinese influence in Africa. China has already provided vast sums to the continent with Beijing's financial largesse raising fears that poor nations are unprepared for such massive debts. "We are bound with common interest. To grow our solidarity with Africa is an important foundation for China's foreign policy," said Xi at a media conference where no questions were taken. Rwandan President Paul Kagame added that the agreements showed "what is possible between our two countries". Rwanda, which is one of Africa's fastest growing economies, had trade with China worth $157 million (134 million euros) in 2017, making Beijing one of Kigali's largest trade partners. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also set to arrive in Kigali on Monday on his own five-day African tour which will also take him to Uganda before he heads to the BRICS summit. AMID Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Authority (DAWASA) and Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Company (DAWASCO) merging process, the government has insisted that it will hire the best management team based on qualifications. Water and Irrigation Minister Professor Makame Mbarawa warned the top managers in both authorities to refrain from lobbying for the top positions, vowing never to tolerate anyone trying to do so. I want you to go and work for the interest of the nation and if anyone calls me to lobby for any position, I will just drop his/her call, he insisted. Prof Mbarawa was speaking at DAWASA headquarters over the weekend when inaugurating the new water bodys board under former Chief of Defence Forces General Davis Mwamunyange as chairman. President John Magufuli appointed General Mwamunyange on July 7. According to the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Professor Kitila Mkumbo, the ministry is on the final stages of proposing the name of new DAWASA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) who will later be approved by the president through appointment. We are at the final stages to get the CEO and we plan to accomplish the process by August 15, he said. It is yet to be known who will clinch the leadership of the water body as anxiety lingers within the top managers of DAWASA and DAWASCO. But, Prof Mkumbo insisted at the weekend that the new management will be subjected to rigorous vetting process during recruitment. Professor Mbarawa said the merging of the two water bodies seek to reduce unnecessary expenditure at the same time increasing revenue collection through water bills. He however punched holes in the previous DAWASA board, saying it failed to supervise major water projects that he said had taken longer period without completion. He tasked the newly inaugurated board to increase pace in supervision of the projects so that residents of Dar es Salaam and Coast Region can have enough water. As the country moves towards an industrial economy, General Mwamunyange promised to ensure that the projects were implemented timely. Currently, availability of water in Dar es Salaam and Coast Regions stands at 502 litres per day while demand is 544 litres per day. And, with completion of the Kimbiji and Mpera water wells projects, water production will hit 760 litres per day. At the weekend, Prof Mbarawa explained that he had noticed with concern that there were poor tendering process on water projects which do not follow procedures, lack job integrity and that sometimes, proper due diligence was not conducted. The minister added that project supervision was a big challenge facing DAWASA, because the process of getting contractors was equally poor. He explained: The projects are not completed on time not because there is no money, but because of favoritism during tendering processes. The New York Daily News, known for its bold front pages, is slashing half its editorial staff as it seeks to adapt to the financial troubles of the sector The New York Daily News, the century-old tabloid known for its provocative headlines, made its own news Monday by slashing half its editorial staff, in the latest retrenchment in the newspaper sector. The daily owned by the media conglomerate Tronc said in an email to employees that the move sought to address the newspaper's "significant financial challenges." A source familiar with the matter told AFP the cuts represent "nearly 50 percent" of newsroom staff. Tronc declined to comment on the cutbacks or confirm precisely how many staff were affected, but the rival New York Post said the Daily News had some 85 editorial staff before the layoffs. The editorial staff will slashed be as the newspaper looks at a fundamental restructuring to focus on breaking news, mainly in areas of "crime, civil justice and public responsibility," according to the note to staff, which was widely circulated on Twitter. "The decisions being announced today reflect the realities of our business and the need to adapt to an ever-changing media environment," the memo said. Top editors Jim Rich and Kristen Lee are departing as part of the reorganization, with the new editor-in-chief Robert York coming from the Morning Call newspaper in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Rich said in a tweet on the latest cuts: "If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you." New York Mayor Bill De Blasio denounced the job cuts. "It's no secret that I've disagreed with the Daily News from time to time," the mayor said on Twitter. "But Tronc's greedy decision to gut the newsroom is bad for government and a disaster for NYC. Tronc should sell the paper to someone committed to local journalism and keeping reporters on the beat." - State offers help - New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (L) and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, seen in a December 2017 picture, both denounced the job cuts at the New York Daily News, with the governor suggesting the possibility of state aid Governor Andrew Cuomo expressed dismay that the move came without any notice or request for assistance, pointing out that his father Mario Cuomo, governor in the 1980s, offered aid to the New York Post under similar circumstances. "Even though the Post represented an opposing active partisan interest, my father understood the value of a robust free press. So do I," Cuomo said in a statement. "I urge Tronc to reconsider this drastic move and stand ready to work with them to avert this disaster." The newspaper is known for some of the boldest front pages in the industry, including one last week with a cartoon image of President Donald Trump shooting Uncle Sam while holding hands with Russian leader Vladimir Putin below a headline that reads: "Open Treason." Among its most famous was the "Ford to City: Drop Dead" in 1975 when then president Gerald Ford refused federal aid to stave off the Big Apple's imminent municipal bankruptcy. In 2016, it reprised that theme with the headline "Drop Dead, Ted," after Senator Ted Cruz denounced "New York values" in a Republican presidential primary debate. But the daily has faced the same financial troubles as much of the newspaper industry. Once among the largest US newspapers, it has fallen behind in the digital age and has failed to keep pace with crosstown rival The New York Times and its newsroom estimated at over 1,000. In 2017, Tronc purchased the Daily News for $1, while assuming its pension liabilities, after previous owner Mort Zuckerman had been absorbing losses estimated at $30 million annually. The Daily News has won 11 Pulitzer Prizes since its founding in 1919, including one last year for its reporting on police abuse of eviction rules to oust poor residents from their homes. Inmate firefighters battle the Ferguson fire in Jerseydale, California, on July 22, 2018 The fire threatening Yosemite National Park in California raged through the weekend, growing in size to nearly 34,000 acres, authorities said Monday. "Weather forecasts are calling for hotter and drier air throughout the week as conditions align for critical and extreme fire weather in the coming days," InciWeb, an inter-agency incident reporting site, said. InciWeb said the so-called Ferguson fire was 13 percent contained, an improvement over Friday when it was only seven percent contained. Two DC-10 tanker planes and 46 helicopters have been used to slow the spread of the fire, while firefighters on the ground were working with heavy equipment to protect Yosemite National Park, which is east of the fire. Yosemite, a popular tourist destination, remains open. But several areas nearby are under mandatory evacuation orders, InciWeb said. Since the fire broke out in the Sierra Nevada mountains July 13 a 36-year-old firefighter has died and six others have been injured. A herd of elephants feed around the waterhole in late afternoon at Pendjari National Park in Benin January 10, 2018 Elephants never forget a bee sting. Their eyes and the sensitive, soft tissue inside their trunks are particularly vulnerable to painful stings, and experts believe African elephants(Loxodonta africana) have learned over the centuries to recognize the scents bees give off when they are scared and ready to swarm. Now, researchers say this well-honed fear of bees could be used to help repel the majestic beasts in places where they risk conflicts with humans. In a three-month field test at South Africa's Greater Kruger National Park, scientists hung white socks filled with bee pheromones, which are chemical clues that honeybees release from their bodies when they perceive a threat to their hive. A total of 25 of 29 elephants that approached the "showed typical signs of increased alertness, signs of uncertainty, and finally calmly moved away," said the report in the journal Current Biology. To make sure it wasn't simply the socks but the odor emanating from them, researchers hung similar socks that did not contain the pheromones, and found that elephants were curious about the socks, would pick them up and even taste them at times. Since some farmers in Africa already place commercial bee hives along their fence lines to protect their crops from elephants, the results suggest there may be a cheaper way to ward off conflicts. "Our results complement previous studies that have demonstrated that active bee hives can deter elephants from crops for example but may be difficult to implement on a large scale," said lead author Mark Wright, a professor of entomology at the Department of Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. "We hope to expand this work to develop additional tools for sustainable passive management of elephant movements, to augment the current approaches used." The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR condemned the looting of one of its compounds in South Sudan as about 10 humantarian agencies came under attack Monday in the conflict-torn country Angry protesters on Monday forcefully entered and looted around 10 humanitarian agency compounds in conflict-torn South Sudan, said the UN refugee agency UNHCR which reported two staff members were injured. "The demonstrators forcefully entered UNHCR's compound and looted its offices and residence," the organisation said, adding local residents were demanding job opportunities and accused humanitarian organisations of hiring from outside the north-western Maban county. "Ten other humanitarian agencies' compounds as well as the office of the Commission for Refugee Affairs (CRA) have been attacked and looted." UNHCR condemned the attack "in which two UN staff were injured". "This is an act of senseless violence towards humanitarians and deeply regrettable," said UNHCR's officer in charge in South Sudan Vincent Kwesi Parker. Aid workers have frequently been targeted during South Sudan's four-year-long civil war, with 100 killed since the outbreak of fighting in December 2013, according to the UN. The country has seen numerous peace efforts fail, and hopes are now pinned on a new process begun in June which saw bitter foes President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar -- his former vice president -- sign the latest ceasefire deal. The warring groups then agreed on a power-sharing deal during a round of talks in Kampala on July 7 that essentially saw Machar reinstated to his previous position of vice president. However plans to sign a preliminary power-sharing deal last week were postponed due to ongoing differences on the draft. A combination photo based on two handout images provided by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in February 2018 shows captured British Islamic State (IS) group fighters El Shafee el-Sheikh (left) and Alexanda Kotey (right), in an undisclosed location Britain said Monday it was sharing intelligence to help the United States bring to trial two British fighters captured in Syria, known as the "Beatles," and sparked outrage by saying it would not block the death penalty. Security Minister Ben Wallace told MPs that a British trial was unlikely for Alexanda Amon Kotey and El Shafee el-Sheikh, who were picked up earlier this year by US-backed Syrian forces. He also said the pair were not UK citizens, without giving further details. News reports had said that the government had unusually stripped them of their nationality. But the failure to seek assurances from Washington that the two men would not face the death penalty drew anger from lawmakers of all parties, while Amnesty International called it "deeply worrying". "We do not think we have the evidence here to try them in the United Kingdom... it is likely there is a trial that is carried out in the United States," Wallace told the House of Commons. He added: "When the request came in for sharing of evidence, this government took the decision -- rare as it is -- to share that evidence without seeking assurances." Kotey and Sheikh were part of a four-member kidnapping gang within the Islamic State group dubbed "The Beatles" by their captives due to their heavy British accents. They were notorious for videotaping beheadings and are believed to have killed American journalist James Foley and many Western aid workers. Wallace said assurances about the death penalty might "get in the way" of a future trial, but added: "We're not talking about UK citizens." He also said that "we should not forget that the crimes that we're talking about involve the beheading and videoing of those beheading dozens of innocent people by one of the most abhorrent organisations walking this earth." - Don't make them martyrs - The fate of the pair was discussed in a letter by British Home Secretary Sajid Javid to US Attorney General Jeff Sessions, which was leaked to the Daily Telegraph. The decision not to demand assurances on the death penalty sparked widespread anger and an emergency Commons debate on Monday. One Labour MP accused the government of having "unilaterally ripped up" years of opposition to capital punishment around the world, while a former minister in the ruling Conservatives said it was a "major departure". Amnesty spokesman Allan Hogarth said: "A failure to seek assurances on this case seriously jeopardises the UK's position as a strong advocate for the abolition of the death penalty." Foley's mother Diane told BBC radio that her son's killers should go to jail but said putting them to death "would just make them martyrs in their twisted ideology". Wallace insisted: "Our longstanding position on the use of the death penalty has not changed." He added that Britain "will not share information with the United States if those individuals were going to end up in Guantanamo Bay", the US detention camp on Cuba. The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) caught Kotey in January as he tried to flee Syria for Turkey, while a US defence official said in February that Sheikh had also been captured by Syrian rebel forces. Wallace said: "The individuals that we're talking about, or foreign fighters at the moment in general, are currently held by non-state actors in Syria. "That is a big challenge for all European states and indeed the US about how those people are brought back." In a file photo from February 25, 2017, a member of the Syrian Civil Defence volunteers, also known as the White Helmets, carries a wounded girl amid rubble after a reported government airstrike on the rebel-held town of Douma, near Damascus Several hundred Syrian rescuers remain trapped in the country's south with no escape from approaching regime troops, two of them said Monday after a secret evacuation saved many of their colleagues. Israel on Sunday helped more than 400 people -- opposition-linked White Helmet rescue workers and their families -- flee a neighbouring pocket of southwestern Syria as government forces bore down on them. They were then taken to Jordan and will be resettled to western nations including France, Britain, Germany, and Canada. "It was the only alternative for our trapped volunteers who would otherwise have faced detention or death at the hands of the Syrian regime and its ally Russia," the group said on Monday. Ninety-eight male and female White Helmet volunteers were able to escape to Jordan with 324 members of their families, it said in a statement. But a similar number remain trapped in southern Syria. "We're calling on concerned parties to help us leave," said Cesar, a 23-year-old White Helmets worker in the southern city of Daraa. He estimated some 400 fellow rescuers were still in the provinces of Daraa, bordering Jordan, and Quneitra, next to the buffer zone abutting the Israeli-annexed Golan. Cesar said he had learned of the operation a few days ago "by chance", but when he contacted White Helmets leadership, they told him it was too late to register to leave. - 'Made things worse' - "They set another meeting for today on the subject, but we found out a little while ago that the efforts failed. The fact that some White Helmets members left and some stayed hurt us more than it helped us," he told AFP on Monday. "Yesterday's evacuation through Israel only made things worse. We're afraid of the regime and Russia's reactions." Russian-backed Syrian forces have been battering the south for more than a month in a bid to bring it back under government control. The military push has damaged hospitals and civil defence centres, pushing hundreds of thousands to flee towards the Jordanian and Israeli borders, which remained sealed. The foreign ministry in Damascus slammed the evacuation on Monday, calling it a "criminal operation" and repeating its accusation that the White Helmets were a front for "terrorists". Moscow said it was "symbolic that the White Helmets preferred to flee Syria thanks to foreign support, thus revealing their true nature". The 422 people evacuated will be allowed to stay in Jordan for three months before being resettled, Amman has said. On Monday, the White Helmets called on the international community to help those left behind in southern Syria. "We thank all governments who contributed to the success of this operation to rescue the rescuers, and we ask that they do more to help the hundreds of thousands remaining in southern Syria," they said. - 'We're surrounded' - White Helmets chief Raed Saleh said not all workers had been evacuated because some had not signed up to do so, while "some volunteers were not able to reach the evacuation point". He said there were no plans for a second such operation. "They pulled out the others but can't get us out?" asked 20-year-old rescuer Imad from a rebel village in Quneitra. "We're surrounded," he said. A picture taken from the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights shows smoke rising across the border area in Syria's southwestern Quneitra province on July 22, 2018 Imad also said there had been a meeting of White Helmets officials in Jordan on Monday to discuss the fate of the remaining rescuers. After the meeting, the White Helmets members still in Syria were told their only option was to be bussed north to opposition-controlled territory under a surrender deal. Last week, rebels in Quneitra agreed with Russia to give up their remaining territory in the province in exchange for an end to bombardment and safe passage to other rebel-held territory. The terms are similar to previous deals that have brought swathes of Syria under government control. But Imad told AFP he feared reprisals. "We're a burnt card when it comes to the Syrian army -- there won't be any mercy. Whoever the regime gets its hands on is lost, and no one knows what ends up happening to them," he said. Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, works to rescue those wounded by attacks in rebel-held territory. The group receives funding from a number of Western governments and individual donors. The UN's top court Monday ordered the United Arab Emirates to protect the rights of Qatari citizens, wading into a bitter year-long crisis triggered when Gulf countries cut ties with Doha. The UN's top court Monday ordered the United Arab Emirates to protect the rights of Qatari citizens, wading into a bitter year-long crisis triggered when Gulf countries snapped ties with Doha. Judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague narrowly ruled in a provisional but binding decision that the UAE must allow families which include Qatari members, to be reunited, and that Qatari students must be given the chance to complete their education in the Emirates. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE and other allies severed ties with Qatar on June 7, 2017, accusing Doha of backing terrorism. Qatari nationals living in the UAE were officially given just 14 days to leave the country. But Doha denies the accusations, and last month appealed to the ICJ to impose emergency measures against the UAE to protect its citizens. It has also accused Abu Dhabi of breaking the 1965 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD). In a hearing in late June, Qatar alleged that the United Arab Emirates was spreading a "climate of fear" among Qataris living there, splitting families and causing "substantial pain" during the year-long blockade. On Monday, the court's judges found in Doha's favour, ruling the measures imposed by the UAE risked causing "irreparable harm" to Qatari citizens. - 'Repairing the damage' - The judges voted by eight votes in favour of a series of provisional measures -- with seven judges against -- that the UAE "must ensure that families, that include a Qatari, separated by the measures adopted by the United Arab Emirates ... are reunited," said presiding judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf. Qatari students must also be allowed "to complete their education" in the Emirates or obtain their educational records if they wish to study elsewhere. Qataris "affected" by the UAE measures must also be allowed "access to tribunals and other judicial organs" in the country. Qatar welcomed Monday's ruling, with foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed bin Saeed al-Rumaihi saying in a tweet that his country "was not seeking to escalate the dispute with the Emirates, but to repair the prejudice imposed on its citizens". The move into the international courts came a year after the severing of ties and the imposition of punitive measures by Gulf countries accusing Doha of backing terrorism. Other measures included banning Qatar Airways from their airspace and closing the country's only land border, with Saudi Arabia. The UAE had insisted the ICJ had no authority to hear Qatar's case and stressed the situation for Qataris living in the country today is different from a year ago. In a statement, the UAE highlighted that the court's decision involved only "provisional measures" and that "the court indicated certain measures with which the UAE is already in compliance". "Instead of these unproductive manoeuvers, Qatar should be engaging with the legitimate concerns of the UAE and the other three states that have ended relations with Qatar regarding its continuing support for terrorism and its efforts to destabilise the region," it added in a statement quoted by the Emirates WAM news agency. - 'Destabilising the region' - In a separate twist, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates earlier this month also turned to the ICJ, asking that it quash a decision in Qatar's favour, handed down by the UN's global civil aviation body. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) ruled in late June that it had the jurisdiction to determine a dispute brought by Qatar, accusing its neighbours of violating an agreement that regulates the free passage of passenger planes through foreign airspace. But Qatar's three neighbours want the ICJ, set up in 1946 to rule in disputes against states, to nullify the ICAO's ruling, saying its decision was "manifestly flawed and in violation of fundamental principles of due process and the right to be heard". Diplomatic efforts have so far proved powerless to resolve the crisis which has rendered the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council practically obsolete. Six paintings by Dutch-American abstract master Willem de Kooning, artist of "Excavation" seen on an electronic billboard in New York in 2014, were found in a storage locker in New Jersey When an American art dealer dropped $15,000 on what he thought was "junk" in a New Jersey storage locker, he never imagined it could be the deal of a lifetime. But he now believes stashed in the unit were six paintings by Dutch-American abstract master Willem de Kooning, which could be worth millions of dollars. The auction record for a de Kooning is $66.3 million, set for large canvas "Untitled XXV" at Christie's in 2016, while another sold privately for a reported $300 million in 2015. Another piece of luck, according to New York gallery owner David Killen, is a painting by Swiss modernist Paul Klee that he says was also found in the unit. The works originally came from the studio of Orrin Riley, a superstar in the art restoration business who died in 1986, leaving everything to his partner, Susanne Schnitzer, who was killed in a traffic accident in 2009. Her executors -- friends in New Jersey -- spent years trying to find rightful owners for the art, but no one came forward to claim the 200 pieces languishing in the storage unit, near the Ho-Ho-Kus township. "Honestly all I knew was (an)other auction house passed on it, so my feeling was it was a bunch of junk," Killen told AFP by telephone. "All these things are boxed up. I said, 'Look, I'll give you $15,000 for it. I'll take a chance,'" he said. If nothing else, he thought the items would pad out auctions he holds every two weeks. It was only once the items were being unloaded that he spotted what he believes to be de Kooning paintings. - 'Blown away' - The work is not signed, but Killen said a restorer based on Long Island, who used to work for both Riley and de Kooning, also believes they are genuine. "I can see in his eyes, he's shaking," Killen told AFP. "He said 'this is exactly what de Kooning was doing in the '70s, one after the other." Art conservator Lawrence Castagna says he "absolutely" believes the six oil-on-paper works to be de Koonings, but stressed it was "just my opinion." "I'm just blown away by the whole discovery to tell you the truth," he told AFP. Castagna said he did "minor repair work" but otherwise the works would be sold as they were found, anticipating significant interest when they go on display for the first time publicly in nearly 35 years. Killen is hosting a party on Tuesday to unveil the paintings, which he believes could fetch anywhere from $10,000 to $10 million when he offers them for auction later this year and next January. "I'm excited. Believe it or not -- and people will laugh when they hear this -- it's not about the money. I want some publicity for my auction house," he said. But what would he do with a bonanza check? New doors for his gallery and a "really nice apartment," he replies. The New York Post first reported the story on Sunday. Since then, the telephone has been ringing off the hook, he said. "The reaction's been tremendous." Supporters of Congolese opposition figure Moises Katumbi demonstrate in Kinshasa on June 27, 2018 in front of the Supreme Court Opposition parties in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday called on President Joseph Kabila to step down ahead of elections in December but ruled out boycotting the poll. In an exceptional move, five parties signed a joint statement setting out demands ahead of the December 23 presidential vote, whose outcome is crucial for the sprawling, volatile DRC. "We are not going to boycott the elections, because we have known from the very beginning that this is the ruling party's plan, to push the opposition into boycott the elections," said Delly Sesanga, a supporter of exiled opposition leader Moise Katumbi. The statement -- issued two days before the start of a two-week registration period for presidential candidates -- called for "free, democratic and transparent" elections. It said the elections had to take place without Kabila as a candidate and without the use of electronic voting machines, which the government controversially wants to deploy. It was signed by five parties, including the traditional mainstream opposition, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), as well as by parties led by Katumbi and Jean-Pierre Bemba, an ex-vice president and former warlord recently acquitted of war crimes by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Kabila has been at the helm of the largest country in sub-Saharan Africa since 2001, presiding over a mineral-rich country with a reputation for corruption, inequality and unrest. He was just 29 when he took over as president from his father, Laurent-Desire Kabila, who was assassinated by a bodyguard. Dozens of people have been killed in protests since late 2016, when Kabila was scheduled to stand down at the end of his second elected term, technically the last permitted under the constitution. Kabila has kept power thanks to a constitutional clause enabling him to stay in office until a successor is elected. On Thursday, Kabila delivered a state-of-the nation address that had caused wide speculation that he would announce whether he would run again, but no such big declaration was forthcoming. The DRC has never known a peaceful transition of power since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960. Some experts fear it could spiral into wide-ranging conflict once more if the present political crisis is not resolved. The UN Development Programme (UNDP) placed the DRC 176th out of 188 countries on its Human Development Index published in March 2017. The watchdog Transparency International ranked the country 156th out of 176 countries in its 2016 corruption index. It was ranked 154th out of 180 in the Reporters Without Borders' 2017 Press Freedom Index. Adult film star Stormy Daniels and her husband, Glen Crain, at the 29th Adult Video News Awards Show in 2012 Adult film star Stormy Daniels, who is battling President Donald Trump in court over their alleged sexual encounter a decade ago, and her husband plan to divorce, her lawyer announced Monday. Daniels, 39, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, married Glendon Crain, 41, in 2010. Crain is a heavy metal musician and pornographic movie actor, featuring in adult films under the name Brendon Miller. Daniels, who was married twice previously, gave birth to a daughter in 2011. "My client Stormy Daniels and her husband Glen have decided to end their marriage," lawyer Michael Avenatti said in a statement on Twitter. "A petition for divorce was filed last week, the accuracy of which is vehemently disputed," Daniel's attorney added. "Stormy's daughter remains her number one priority," Avenatti said. "She kindly asks for privacy for the sake of her family." Daniels is suing Trump to invalidate a non-disclosure agreement that prevents her from discussing their alleged 2006 sexual encounter. "I don't need or want privacy. I want truth. And it will come out. I'm not afraid," Daniels wrote. Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, paid Daniels $130,000 just days before the 2016 presidential election in exchange for her silence. Daniels told CBS's "60 Minutes" in March that she had unprotected sex with Trump once, and was threatened by a man in a parking lot in Las Vegas when she sought to sell her story five years later. Trump denies the affair. Daniels was arrested at an Ohio strip club this month for allegedly inappropriately touching patrons but the charges were dropped. Californian groundskeeper Dewayne Johnson -- seen in this file photo -- is to testify July 23, 2018 before the jury on whether a Monsanto weed killer is to blame for his terminal cancer A California groundskeeper dying of cancer said Monday he would "never" have used Monsanto weed killer Roundup, had he known it could lead to his terminal illness. The trial pitting 46-year-old Dewayne Johnson against the agrochemical colossus is expected to last into August, with the potential for a major impact on the company recently acquired by Germany-based Bayer. The case is the first to reach trial alleging a cancer link from Roundup, one of the world's most widely used herbicides. The legal clash involves dueling studies, along with allegations Monsanto connived behind the scenes to thwart potentially damning research. Diagnosed in 2014 with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a cancer that affects white blood cells, Johnson told jurors he sprayed Roundup and especially its more powerful professional grade Ranger Pro product for two years at a school in Benicia, California. One of his lawyers, David Dickens, held a Ranger Pro dispenser in his hand as he asked Johnson whether he would have used the product if he had seen a cancer warning on the label. "I would never have sprayed RP in schools or anywhere else," replied Johnson, whose job as groundskeeper including ridding the area of pests and weeds with the help of up to 150 gallons (560 liters) of diluted solution per day. Twice, a lot of product got on his skin and clothes because of a vaporizer malfunction, and Johnson experienced an "uncontrollable situation on my skin." He called the Monsanto hotline, but received no follow-up calls from representatives despite promises they would do so. - 'Frightened' - Johnson, who sat in court with his lawyer and wife, watched as his dermatologist Ope Ofodile testified in California Superior Court. Ofodile testified that Johnson consulted her when he noticed a rash on his body starting in 2014. "He was frightened by the state of his skin," the physician told the trial. After seeing the rash, Ofodile said she sent a letter to the school district board saying "that he shouldn't be exposed to any airborne chemicals that could worsen his condition." Asked whether she was referring to Ranger Pro, she said, "Yes." But the physician said she did not investigate what caused the rash, and that she was focusing on treating the patient rather than establishing a link to Roundup. Johnson had little warning about the risks of Roundup, his lawyer said in opening statements earlier this month. "He was told you could drink it, it was completely non-toxic," lawyer Brent Wisner claimed in his opening remarks. The lawyer said Johnson, who is between rounds of chemotherapy, "is actually on borrowed time -- he is not supposed to be alive today." A key to Johnson's case will be convincing jurors that Monsanto's pesticide -- whose main ingredient is glyphosate -- is responsible for the illness. Wisner contended that glyphosate combined with an ingredient intended to help it spread over leaves in a cancer-causing "synergy." - Potential impact of case - Factfile on the controversial herbicide glyphosate, which is at the center of the Monsanto trial in California Whether glyphosate causes cancer has been the source of long debate among government regulators, health experts and lawyers. If Monsanto loses, the case could open the door to hundreds of additional lawsuits against the company. Monsanto has denied any link with the disease and says studies have concluded the product is safe. "Mr Johnson's cancer is a terrible disease. We all do and we all should have great sympathy for what he is going through," Monsanto defense attorney George Lombardi said during his opening remarks. But the lawyer maintained that "the scientific evidence is overwhelming that glyphosate-based products do not cause cancer, and did not cause Mr Johnson's cancer." Monsanto's flagship herbicide Roundup was launched in 1976. Roundup has been approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency, according to Lombardi. In 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer -- a World Health Organization body -- classified glyphosate as "probably carcinogenic," and as a result, the state of California listed it as carcinogenic. Founded in 1901 in St Louis, Missouri, Monsanto began producing agrochemicals in the 1940s. It was acquired by Bayer for more than $62 billion in June. The White House says it is looking into revoking the security clearance of former CIA director John Brennan, a prominent critic of President Donald Trump The White House said Monday it was looking into revoking the security clearances of former CIA director John Brennan, a prominent critic of President Donald Trump, and several other top former US officials. "The president is looking to take away Brennan's security clearance," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said at a press briefing. "He's also looking into the clearances of Comey, Clapper, Hayden, Rice, and McCabe," she said. Sanders was referring to former FBI director James Comey, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former CIA chief Michael Hayden, former Obama National Security Advisor Susan Rice, and former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe. Brennan, Comey, Clapper and Hayden, in particular, have been harsh critics of Trump since he took office. Following the president's summit last week with Russia's Vladimir Putin, Brennan described Trump's behavior as "nothing short of treasonous." Sanders said the White House was exploring taking away the security clearances of the former officials because "they've politicized and in some cases monetized their clearances." "It's extremely inappropriate, and the fact that people with security clearances are making baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence," she said. A spokeswoman for McCabe, Melissa Schwartz, tweeted that his "security clearance was deactivated when he was terminated (in March), according to what we were told was FBI policy." Clapper, interviewed by CNN, described the move as a "very, very petty thing to do." Asked if the move was political, he said "I don't know how you present it any other way." "This is kind of a petty way for retribution, I suppose, for speaking out against the president," Clapper said. South Ossetia, the president of which Anatoly Bibilov is seen in 2017, is internationally recognised as part of Georgia, which gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but Russia and a handful of other countries recognise its independence Syria's President Bashar al-Assad welcomed the head of Russia-backed breakaway region South Ossetia to Damascus on Monday, the presidency said, two months after recognising the region as separate from Georgia. "Assad receives Anatoly Bibilov, the president of the Republic of South Ossetia, on a three-day visit," the presidency announced in a statement. Syria has been a close ally of Russia for decades, but bonds have grown since Moscow intervened militarily in 2015 to back Assad's troops in the country's civil war. Assad said the "visit and South Ossetia's support for Syria in it protecting its sovereignty and unity confirm that Syria is right in looking towards the countries of the East", the presidency said. The latter "respect the basis and principles of international law, contrary to most of the West, which knows nothing except the politics of dictation". In May, Syria recognised South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent from the former Soviet state of Georgia, prompting Tbilisi to cut diplomatic ties with Damascus. Abkhazia and South Ossetia are internationally recognised as part of Georgia, which gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but Russia and a handful of other countries recognise their independence. Russia waged a brief war with Georgia in 2008 over the two regions and has stationed thousands of troops there. A handout picture provided by the Iranian presidency on July 22, 2018 shows President Hassan Rouhani (R) with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in the capital Tehran Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif hit back on Monday at threats from US President Donald Trump on Twitter, warning him to "BE CAUTIOUS!" Mimicking Trump's bellicose Twitter threat directed at Iran's leaders the previous day, Zarif wrote: "UNIMPRESSED ... We've been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, incl our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries. BE CAUTIOUS! Zarif was responding to Trump's tweet on Sunday, in which he warned: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." That was assumed to be a response to a speech by President Hassan Rouhani earlier in the day warning Washington not to "play with the lion's tail" and that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". "The world heard even harsher bluster a few months ago," Zarif said of Trump's tweet. "And Iranians have heard them -- albeit more civilised ones -- for 40 yrs." United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein is criticizing Israel's "administrative detention" of hundreds of Palestinian children The United Nations rights chief on Monday demanded that Israel either give more than 400 detained Palestinian children their day in court or release them, decrying "assaults" on Palestinians' rights. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein criticized the "administrative detention" system under which Israel is currently holding an estimated 440 children. "Israel should immediately charge, or release, all of them," the Geneva-based Zeid said via videolink, calling Israel's system a "fundamental human rights violation." "It should be absolutely clear that international law requires detention only be used for children as a last resort," he said. "And whether for children or for adults, detention without trial, on evidence that is often kept secret, under often indefinitely renewable administrative detention orders, contravenes Israel's obligations under international law, and must come to an end." The meeting focused on recent violence in the Gaza Strip, which is to the UN Security Council is set to take up Tuesday during a regular monthly session on the Middle East. Zeid also criticized what he called Israel's arbitrary detention and arrest of rights activists. The Gaza Strip, controlled by Islamist movement Hamas, has been under an Israeli blockade for more than 10 years. But since late March, that blockade has sparked a vast protest movement along the border with Israel that has left at least 149 Palestinians and one Israeli soldier dead. A war of words has erupted between US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Tensions are mounting between Donald Trump and Iran -- the US president's raw tweet threatening Tehran was met Monday with a similarly bilious reply, upping the ante in the high-stakes game of diplomatic chicken. Trump's tweeted warning late Sunday to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani -- all in capital letters, the digital equivalent of shouting -- sparked questions about Washington's strategy towards the Islamic republic. The US is regularly suspected of backing the idea of regime change, but analysts say its current stance may simply be an attempt to pivot after a week of dire headlines over Trump's much-maligned summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin and a relative lack of progress on North Korea. The saber-rattling began when Iranian President Hassan Rouhani cautioned Trump not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would trigger the "mother of all wars" -- prompting the furious salvo from the US leader. The Republican leader's response was reminiscent of the belligerent tone he took with North Korea last year. "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE," Trump warned Rouhani on Twitter. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" A few hours later, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif fired back. "COLOR US UNIMPRESSED," Zarif wrote in English, mimicking Trump's caps-lock message. "We've been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, incl our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries. BE CAUTIOUS!" While Trump's "tough stand" was hailed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, it also provoked an avalanche of questions about its exact meaning and impact. When asked about the president's motivations, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said he was focused on "the safety and security of the American people" and ensuring Tehran did not acquire nuclear weapons. But she seemed to downplay concerns about his aggressive posturing, saying Trump has been "pretty strong since day one in his language toward Iran." - Concerns? 'None at all' - Map and factfile on the 2015 Iran nuclear deal -- US President Donald Trump withdrew from the accord in May 2018 In May, Trump -- who has made Iran his public enemy number one -- announced the US withdrawal from what he called a "defective" multinational nuclear deal with Tehran, and moved to reinstate punishing sanctions. For some analysts in Washington, Trump's harsh words were a political smoke screen. "Frustrated by no progress w/NK; angered by negative push back post Helsinki, Trump is looking to vent, act tough, and change channel," said Aaron David Miller, a former US diplomat and Middle East negotiator for several administrations. "If nothing else, Trump's ALL CAPS tirade reflect(s) reality that US has no Iran policy. Empty/ridiculous US rhetoric in response to same from Iran." After speaking with European officials about Trump's warnings, International Crisis Group president Rob Malley said diplomats on the continent were not "really taking it seriously." In Europe, Trump's tirade is seen as a way to distract from controversy over his summit with Putin and special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and a Russian effort to sway the 2016 election. But the president stood by his remarks. Asked by reporters at the White House whether he had concerns about provoking tensions with Iran, Trump said "None at all." - Saber-rattling - While US ties with Iran and North Korea are different on several fronts, the words used by Trump to denigrate Tehran are similar in tone to those he directed last August at North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Several observers noted the similarities between the threats on Iran, and Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign towards Pyongyang. In September 2017, in his first speech to the United National General Assembly, Trump threatened to "totally destroy" North Korea. Nearly a year on, Trump has met Kim -- who he once called "Rocket Man" on a "suicide mission" -- for a landmark summit, and follow-up talks are underway between the two sides. However, concrete progress has been scant so far on denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Democrats have expressed alarm about Trump's Iran bluster. "Reckless Iran rhetoric creates risks -- especially if words are unbacked by actionable strategy," Senator Richard Blumenthal said. Former DRCongo leader Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo returns to his country August 1, with presidential elections planned for December 23 Former DR Congo vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba, acquitted last month of war crimes, will return to the country on August 1 ahead of end-year elections, his party announced Monday. "The Movement for the Liberation of the Congo (MLC) has the signal honour to announce that it has pleased our lord God, after 10 years away, to allow the return of Senator Jean-Pierre Bemba Gomba to his country of birth, the land of his ancestors, the Democratic Republic of Congo on Wednesday, August 1," the party said in a statement. "The MLC invites the Congolese people, especially the Kinois (Kinshasa inhabitants) to give him a warm, peaceful and enthusiastic welcome," it added. The MLC on Friday named Bemba its candidate for planned December 23 presidential polls after the government said he could apply for a diplomatic passport to return home after he was acquitted of war crimes in The Hague. The DRC is in the grip of a crisis over the future of President Joseph Kabila, who has ruled the country since 2001 and has remained in office despite a two-term constitutional limit that expired in December 2016. He claims he can do this under a clause in the constitution that enables a president to stay in office until a successor is elected. In June, the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague overturned a 2016 conviction against Bemba on five counts of war crimes committed by his militia in the Central African Republic in 2002-2003. The court said he could not be held criminally liable for atrocities the militiamen committed, which included murder, rape and looting, as he was unable to influence their conduct. He had previously been given an 18-year term, the longest ever to be handed down by the ICC. Bemba was earlier this week known to be in Belgium having gained an interim release from the court. The ICC is due to issue a ruling in a separate case in which Bemba was sentenced to jail and fined 300,000 euros ($350,000) in 2017 for bribing witnesses during his main war crimes trial. However, he has already spent a decade behind bars, and legal experts expect him to be released definitively if this time is taken into account. It remains unclear whether he faces any threat of prosecution if he sets foot on DRC soil, after authorities issued a warrant in 2007 against him over the violence and for alleged arson at the Supreme Court. Kabila, who took over from his assassinated father in 2001, presides over the vast central African nation with a history of corruption, poor governance and armed conflict. Google parent Alphabet shares rose on better-than-anticipated earnings for the second quarter Google parent Alphabet shares lifted Monday on a stronger-than-expected earnings report for the past quarter, as the tech giant's results eased concerns over huge fines imposed by the European Union for antitrust actions. Profit dipped 9.3 percent to $3.2 billion in the second quarter after accounting for the EU fines, the company said. Revenues meanwhile jumped 26 percent from a year ago to $32.7 billion, better than most analysts expected. Shares in Alphabet jumped 3.6 percent to $1,254.12 in after-hours trade, which could mark a new record for the internet giant if confirmed when markets open Tuesday. "We delivered another quarter of very strong performance," chief financial officer Ruth Porat said. "Our investments are driving great experiences for users, strong results for advertisers and new business opportunities for Google and Alphabet." Last week, EU officials slapped a 4.34-billion-euro ($5 billion) penalty on the US tech giant for illegally abusing the dominance of its operating system for mobile devices. Without the fine -- which is being appealed by the company -- profit would have been $8.3 billion. Brussels accused Google of using the Android system's near-stranglehold on smartphones and tablets to promote the use of its own Google search engine and shut out rivals. Daniel Ives of GBH Insights said in a research note that despite some regulatory concerns, "advertising and 'bread and butter' search revenues were healthy and a good barometer of potential strength heading into the rest of 2018/2019." The future of the Android mobile operating system -- which powers more than 85 percent of smartphones -- has been clouded by the EU action, which could force Google to change its business arrangements with device makers. Google chief executive Sundar Pichai said that it was too soon to speculate on how Android may be affected by the ruling but said the company would take a "constructive approach." "We look forward to finding a solution that preserves the enormous benefits of Android to users," Pichai told analysts after the earnings release. - Ads still lion's share - Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that despite a huge EU fine over its Android operating system, the tech giant hopes to "preserve the enormous benefits" of the mobile platform Following a reorganization of the company, the Google unit that includes the main search engine and YouTube video service still delivered the lion's share of revenues at $32.5 billion, with "other bets" driving $145 million in revenue. Within Google, advertising remained the key revenue source, pulling in $28 billion in the three months ending in June, a 24 percent rise from a year ago. Although advertising remains the key driver of revenue, Google has been moving into cloud computing services for businesses, artificial intelligence and devices, including its Pixel smartphones and notebook computers. As it ramps up artificial intelligence efforts, Google is in fierce competition with rivals such as Amazon and Microsoft in the market for voice assistants that are powering the next generation of connected devices including appliances, cars and smart speakers. Alphabet's "other bets" saw a 49 percent jump in revenues from a year ago they still lost money, with an operating loss of $732 million in the past quarter. The other bets include the self-driving car unit Waymo and the life sciences division Verily. Alphabet recently "graduated" two of these projects to be independent operating units, the Loon internet balloon service and Wing drone delivery. Alphabet ended the quarter with cash reserves of $102 billion and saw its employee headcount rise to 89,000 from 75,000 a year ago. BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (AP) - The Latest on President Donald Trump and the probe of possible Russian interference in the 2016 elections. (all times local): 9:05 p.m. President Donald Trump has returned to referring to the commotion over Russia as "a big hoax" after a week of drama, back tracking and a double negative about his attitude toward Russian election interference. In a Sunday tweet, the president diminished at least the significance, if not the existence, of the interference and the U.S. investigation into Russia's actions. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk on the North Portico as they arrive back to the White House in Washington, Sunday, July 22, 2018, from weekend trip to Bedminster, N.J. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) Trump spent days trying to reassure the country that he accepts that the longtime foe interfered in the 2016 election after his public undermining of U.S. intelligence agencies in Helsinki while standing alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin. But on Sunday, Trump cast doubts once again, diminishing at least the significance, if not the existence, of the interference and the U.S. investigation into Russia's actions. "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election," Trump tweeted Sunday that President Barack Obama knew about Russia before the election bu questioned: "Why didn't he do something about it? Because it is all a big hoax, that's why." ___ 6:37 p.m. President Donald Trump has asserted without evidence that newly released documents relating to the wiretapping of his onetime campaign adviser Carter Page "confirm with little doubt" that intelligence agencies misled the court that approved the warrant. But lawmakers from both political parties said that the documents don't show wrongdoing and that they even appear to undermine some previous claims by top Republicans on the basis for obtaining a warrant against Page. Visible portions of the heavily redacted documents, released Saturday under the Freedom of Information Act, show the FBI telling the court that Page "has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government." The agency also told the court that "the FBI believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government." SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - A prominent liberal South Korean politician embroiled in a corruption scandal was found dead on Monday, police said, in what appeared to be one of the country's highest-profile suicides in recent years. The body of three-term lawmaker Roh Hoe-chan of the small opposition Justice Party was found near a Seoul apartment building. Police said they believe Roh, 61, leapt to his death from the building after leaving a suicide note. "Dear fellow citizens, I'm sorry. It's entirely my fault, so please punish me and I'd like you to continue to support the Justice Party," Roh said in a note addressed to party members. He said he accepted 40 million won ($36,260) in 2016, but without granting any political favors in return. In this July 22, 2018, photo, South Korean lawmaker Roh Hoe-chan arrives after visiting the U.S. at Incheon International Airport in Incheon, South Korea. The prominent liberal South Korean politician embroiled in a corruption scandal has been found dead in a possible suicide. (Han Jong-chan/Yonhap via AP) South Korean media reported that Roh wrote two other suicide notes to his family but their contents weren't made public. Roh faced an investigation over an allegation that he received money from an associate of an influential blogger jailed in an online opinion-rigging scandal. The allegation tarnished the clean and reform-minded image of Roh, a former labor activist who has been a symbol for progressives in South Korea. Roh's death triggered an outpouring of sympathy from many South Koreans. President Moon Jae-in said his "heart really aches" over "the sad news" of Roh's death. The independent counsel investigating the rigging scandal, Huh Ik-bum, told a televised briefing that he felt distressed by the "tragic news" of Roh's death. Huh said he respects Roh and will pray for his soul. South Korea has one of the highest suicide rates among developed countries. A string of business executives, K-pop stars and other celebrities have killed themselves in recent years. If Roh's death is officially determined a suicide, he would be the highest-profile politician to kill himself since former President Roh Moo-hyun jumped to his death in 2009 amid a corruption scandal involving his family. An office of lawmaker Roh Hoe-chan is seen in Changwon, South Korea, Monday, July 23, 2018. The prominent liberal South Korean politician embroiled in a corruption scandal has been found dead in a possible suicide. (Park Jung-hun/Yonhap via AP) BEIJING (AP) - China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a maker of rabies vaccine for humans prompted a public outcry. Premier Li Keqiang's order followed the disclosure that Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences Ltd. was accused of fabricating production and inspection records for its rabies vaccine. Li promised to "resolutely crack down" on violations that endanger public safety. He said the incident "violated a moral bottom line of the people and must be explained clearly to the public." There were no reports of injuries due to the rabies vaccine but the disclosure prompted an outpouring of criticism online. China has suffered a series of deaths and injuries due to fake or shoddy drugs, milk and other products blamed on lax oversight or corruption by regulators. MEXICO CITY (AP) - Lucia Diaz and other volunteers have found more than 300 bodies in clandestine graves along Mexico's Gulf coast, and she embodies the trepidation, hope and fear with which Mexicans regard the proposal by President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to grant amnesty to calm gang-fueled violence. With tens of thousands of dead and missing over more than a decade of drug cartel violence, some people say the wounds are too deep to consider the idea. Diaz and others think some form of amnesty is needed if the country is ever to find peace. Diaz is still searching for her own son, DJ Guillermo Lagunes Diaz, who was kidnapped in 2013 and hasn't been heard from since. While it isn't clear who will be given amnesty - Lopez Obrador's team has ruled out violent offenders -Diaz is so desperate that she might even support amnesty for killers, if they would just reveal where their victims are buried. FILE - In this May 10, 2018 file photo, women adorn photographs of missing people to call attention to the cases of disappeared people on Mother's Day in Mexico City. With tens of thousands of dead and missing over more than a decade of drug cartel violence, some people say the wounds are too deep to consider the proposal by President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to grant amnesty to calm gang-fueled violence. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo, File) "For us as mothers, we would be more inclined to favor the trade - dealing with the criminals so that they can give information and probably that would lead us to our children - than just to have somebody in jail," Diaz said. That kind of thing has happened: When Diaz and her Solecito Collective were digging in the fields of Veracruz, they were guided by an anonymous, hand-drawn map of clandestine burial pits, evidently drawn up by a repentant cartel member or killer. "I've been living in this hell for five years already. I think the answer is going to be, 'Just tell me where my son is,'" she said. Lopez Obrador is to take office Dec. 1 and his advisers have said amnesty could initially be limited to non-violent offenders, like teenagers forced or recruited to act as cartel lookouts, or women pressured into acting as "mules," transporting drugs. Still, some victims' activists distrust the whole idea of amnesty. "Whole families that have been left adrift because a parent was killed, the kids are orphans with no opportunities, the social fabric has been destroyed," said Manuel Olivares, whose human rights group works with victims in one of Mexico's most violent cities, Chilapa in Guerrero state. "I do not think an amnesty would be an act of justice toward the families the people who have suffered kidnappings, who have had someone killed or executed." In Chilapa, the bodies turn up hacked up, dismembered, burned, and left in piles on roadsides, or stuffed into clandestine burial pits. Some are victims of gang rivalries, but many are store owners or local residents who have been kidnapped for ransom. Amnesty "isn't going to bring peace or reconciliation, because as long as you are not attacking the causes of organized crime - unemployment, low wages, the lack of education or job opportunities for youth or help for farmers - then you are not really doing anything to combat organized crime," Olivares said. Some, like Juan Carlos Trujillo, take a wider view, of both victims and criminals caught in what they see as a pointless war against drugs. After a decade of fruitless searching for his four brothers, who disappeared starting in 2008, Trujillo is willing to give amnesty a try. "After ten years of searching, what I have realized is that in this country justice has disappeared, so we have chosen to get access to the truth," Trujillo said, even if it means some people may go unpunished. "We have seen that today we have to pacify our country, on the understanding that you can't fight violence with more violence." But he is quick to caution: "From the families' perspective, amnesty doesn't mean forgive and forget. It means trying to understand, to comprehend people who have been used by the criminal organizations, which are managed from the president's office down." Javier Sicilia, a poet who became an activist after his son was killed in 2011, thinks the whole question is backwards. "In this process amnesty is the last part. First we have to know the truth," Sicilia told local media. "We are bothered by this insistence on amnesty. When there is no truth, what are we pardoning if we don't even have the criminals in jail, if we don't even know what happened ... or where they (the victims) are buried." "If we don't know the truth, we are not going to be able to determine who qualifies" for amnesty, Sicilia said. Edgardo Buscaglia, an international crime expert and research fellow at Columbia University, says amnesty has to be part of what has become a popular new phrase in Mexico: transitional justice. It's the kind of thing that has been done in other countries after the fall of a dictator or, in the case of South Africa, after the fall of the apartheid regime in the early 1990s. Transitional justice includes mechanisms like truth commissions, which can investigate crimes that courts have been unable to do. In some cases, criminals can be offered pardons or immunity, if they confess. "When people begin to see that they can form part of mechanisms that can punish people, then you can start talking about amnesties," Buscaglia said. "Amnesty has to be accompanied by a process of transitional social justice. Amnesty is never discussed in a vacuum." Fernando Ocegueda has been looking for his then 23-year-old son since he was taken away by men in police uniforms in Tijuana in 2007. In 2009, Ocegueda's group was one of the first to turn up evidence that drug cartels sometimes dissolved victims in lye and other corrosive chemicals. Ocegueda says a general amnesty isn't needed. What Mexico desperately needs is some sort of sort of sentence-reduction program for criminals who provide information, he says. "The important thing ... is to reduce sentences for criminals when they give truthful information on the fate of the disappeared," Ocegueda said. TORONTO (AP) - The latest on the mass shooting in Toronto (all times local): 6:10 p.m. The family of the suspect in the deadly Toronto mass shooting says he suffered from severe mental health problems, but relatives "could never imagine that this would be his devastating and destructive end." Police investigate a car at the scene of a shooting in Toronto, on Monday, July 23, 2018. Police were trying Monday to determine what prompted a man to go on a shooting rampage in a popular Toronto neighborhood on Sunday. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP) Faisal Hussain's family expressed condolences in a statement Monday. It said the family was "utterly devastated by the incomprehensible news" that the 29-year-old was responsible for the rampage. The attacker fired into restaurants and cafes in a lively neighborhood late Sunday, killing a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman and wounding 13 other people. He died in an exchange of gunfire with police. Hussain's family says he struggled with psychosis and depression throughout his life, and medications and therapy didn't work to treat him. The relatives say their "hearts are in pieces for the victims." ___ 5:50 p.m. Police have identified the suspect in a deadly mass shooting in Toronto as 29-year-old Faisal Hussain. The Ontario police Special Investigations Unit released his name Monday evening. He died after an exchange of gunfire with police Sunday night. The attacker fired a handgun into restaurants and cafes in a lively Toronto neighborhood late Sunday, killing a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman and wounding 13 other people. Police haven't disclosed his motive. Police chief Mark Saunders said earlier Monday that investigators didn't know it yet. Contact information for his family couldn't immediately be found. The rampage came just three months after a van struck and killed 10 people in Toronto in an apparent attack directed toward women. ___ 5:30 p.m. Flags will be lowered to half-staff at a Toronto high school and administrative buildings in memory of a graduate who was killed in a shooting rampage weeks after commencement. Toronto District School Board Education Director John Malloy says 18-year-old Reese Fallon was "an engaging student" who "was highly regarded by staff and loved by her friends." She graduated in late June from Malvern Collegiate Institute. Its website shows she had been on its honor roll. McMaster University said she planned to start studying there in the fall. Fallon and a 10-year-old girl were killed Sunday when a man fired a handgun into restaurants and cafes in the lively Greektown neighborhood. Thirteen other people were wounded. The 29-year-old gunman died after an exchange of gunfire with police. 4:20 p.m. The Toronto International Film Festival is canceling an event to announce its planned film slate due to the deadly mass shooting in the city. Festival organizers said Monday that out of respect for those affected by the attack, the film slate will be announced in a press release instead. Two people were killed and 13 wounded when a man clad in black fired a handgun into restaurants and cafes in Toronto's Greektown neighborhood Sunday night. He died after an exchange of gunfire with police. The Toronto International Film Festival runs Sept. 6-16. The festival is a launching pad for Hollywood's awards season and the first showcase for many Academy Award hopefuls. ___ 3:30 p.m. A Canadian member of Parliament who knew the 18-year-old killed in the Toronto mass shooting is identifying her as Reese Fallon. Nathaniel Erskine-Smith told CP24 television he has so many wonderful things to say about the young woman he knew, but says the family is grieving and has asked for privacy. He says they are devastated. An online Facebook profile for Fallon shows her as a student of McMaster University. ___ 3:15 p.m. Canadian officials say a man with a knife has been arrested during the changing of the guard on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. It's unclear if the incident is related to the mass shooting in Toronto. The Canadian military said in a statement that the incident took place Monday morning on the lawns of Parliament Hill. The statement says that a "potential threat" was neutralized due to the quick reaction of soldiers, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Parliamentary Protective Services. No one was injured. Ottawa Police are investigating and the military gave no further details. ___ 1 p.m. Toronto police spokeswoman Meaghan Gray says victims of Sunday's mass shooting include eight women and girls, and seven men. Two victims and the gunman died. Police chief Mark Saunders says a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman were killed in the rampage in the city's Greektown neighborhood. The 29-year-old attacker died after an exchange of gunfire with police. He walked along a street firing a handgun into restaurants and cafes. Saunders declined to release his name and said authorities don't yet know his motive. Saunders said 13 other victims have injuries ranging from minor to serious. They range in age from 10 to 59. ___ 12:30 p.m. Toronto's police chief says a 10 year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman were killed in the mass shooting in the city's Greektown neighborhood. Police chief Mark Saunders said 13 other victims have injuries ranging from minor to serious. They range in age from 10 to 59. The 29-year-old gunman died after an exchange of gunfire with police. Saunders declined to release his name and said authorities "do not know why this has happened yet." ___ Noon A hospital says five of the 14 people shot by a gunman who went on a deadly rampage on a Toronto street are in serious or critical, but stable, condition. St. Michael's Hospital trauma surgeon Dr. Najma Ahmed says three of those people underwent immediate operations to save their lives. The hospital isn't releasing the patients' ages, genders or other details. Two people were killed in Sunday's shootings. Other injured victims were taken to other hospitals, and their condition isn't immediately available. The 29-year-old gunman was killed after an exchange of gunfire with police. Authorities haven't released his name or disclosed his possible motivation. ___ 7:00 a.m. Ontario's police watchdog says a second person is dead after gunman shot 14 people in Toronto's Greektown neighborhood. A spokeswoman for the province's Special Investigations Unit, Monica Hudon, says three people are dead including the gunman in the Danforth Street attack. No further details were given on the second victim. Police confirmed one victim died Sunday night and a young girl was in critical condition. The unit says police located the 29-year-old suspect about three blocks away from the scene and exchanged fire. It said the man fled, then was found dead back on Danforth. It was not immediately clear whether the man killed himself or died of injuries after being shot by police. The Special Investigations Unit will determine how the man died and whether there was any police wrongdoing. The unit is automatically called in to investigate all deaths and serious injuries where police are involved. ___ 12:30 a.m. Toronto police are seeking video and photos from people and businesses in the area where a gunman killed a woman and shot 13 other people in the Greektown neighborhood. A video from one witness shows a man dressed in black firing three shots from the sidewalk into at least one shop or restaurant late Sunday. Witnesses said they heard 20 to 30 shots. Police Chief Mark Saunders said terrorism had not been ruled out. Toronto police tweeted the shooting occurred in the Danforth and Logan avenues area of the Greektown neighborhood, a busy residential area with restaurants and cafes. A woman was killed and a young girl was critically wounded. Saunders said the gunman died after exchanging gunfire with police. ___ 11:50 p.m. Police say a gunman and one victim is dead after a man shot 14 people, including a young girl, in the Toronto neighborhood known as Greektown. Toronto police chief Mark Saunders says a young woman was killed in the shooting Sunday night. He also says a young girl is in critical condition. Police spokesman Mark Pugash says the condition of the other victims is not known yet. He says it's too early to say whether the shooting is terrorism. Following the shooting, police, paramedics and other first responders descended on the scene, while area residents, some in their pajamas, emerged from their homes to see what was happening. Over the weekend, Toronto police deployed dozens of additional officers to deal with a recent spike in gun violence in the city. ___ 10:35 p.m. Canadian police and emergency personnel services are responding to a shooting that reportedly involves multiple victims in the downtown Toronto neighborhood known as Greektown. Police have yet to release any confirmed details of the late Sunday shooting. But local television station CP24 is showing images of multiple ambulances and other first responders at the scene, with several people being treated by paramedics. Police watch the perimeter of the scene of a mass shooting in Toronto on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP) Police are photographed at the perimeter of the scene of a mass shooting in Toronto on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP) Civilians are escorted from the scene of a shooting in Toronto on Sunday, July 22, 2018. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP) Police work the scene of a shooting in Toronto on Sunday, July 22, 2018. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP) Police escort civilians away from the scene of a shooting, Sunday, July 22, 2018, in Toronto. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP) Police Chief Mark Saunders, speaks, as Toronto Mayor John Tory, partially seen standing behind, listens, during a press conference following a mass shooting in Toronto on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP) Police Chief Mark Saunders, center, and Toronto Mayor John Tory, center left, speak to the media following a mass shooting in Toronto on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP) Toronto Mayor John Tory speaks to the press following a mass shooting in Toronto on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP) Civilians are escorted from the scene of a shooting in Toronto on Sunday, July 22, 2018. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP) PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) - North Korea's state-run media have toned down their rhetorical attacks on the United States and South Korea while leader Kim Jong Un pursues a more diplomatic approach, but the vitriol continues - and Japan is now Pyongyang's favorite foil. Commentaries critical of Tokyo, which has maintained a harder line toward Pyongyang than Seoul and Washington, have increased noticeably in recent weeks in a strategy aimed at driving a wedge between Japan and its allies. Over the past few days, the North's official media have chastised Japan for discriminating against its large ethnic Korean community and played up South Korean reports that protesters in Seoul threw eggs at the Japanese Embassy over Tokyo's alleged attempts to take control over a disputed island that is a cause celebre for both North and South. FILE - In this June 12, 2018, file photo, North Korea leader Kim Jong Un adjust his glasses after signing documents with U.S. President Donald Trump at the Capella resort on Sentosa Island in Singapore. North Korea's state-run media have toned down their rhetorical attacks on the United States and South Korea while leader Kim Jong Un pursues a more diplomatic approach, but the vitriol continues, and Japan is now Pyongyang's favorite foil. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) Pyongyang has also lambasted Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono for suggesting Japan could foot part of the bill for inspections to verify the North's denuclearization process. Japan ruled the Korean Peninsula as a colony from 1910 to 1945 and the history of animosity between the neighbors goes back centuries. Tokyo and Pyongyang have never had formal diplomatic ties. But North Korea's strategy of deliberately keeping Tokyo at arm's length has been particularly apparent over the past several months, as Kim has held summits with China, South Korea and the United States. He is expected to hold a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in September. In a typical commentary late last week, the North Korean ruling party's daily newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, called Japan "impotent" in the political and diplomatic arena and said Kono was a "political charlatan." "Japan is near to the Korean Peninsula. But Japan is a burglar that historically inflicted wars and misfortune and pain of colonial rule on Korea," it said before getting to North Korea's often repeated demand: "Japan should make a sincere apology and reparation for the past crimes." Because it is state-run, North Korea's media offer a good barometer of Pyongyang's political climate. Since earlier this year, they have significantly cut back on negative commentaries directed at U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, presumably to avoid souring the North's ongoing diplomatic outreach toward both countries. It has, however, reserved the right to lash out at some of their negotiators or policies without slamming the leaders themselves. Pyongyang's game of hardball with Tokyo is calculated to play well in China and South Korea, which also harbor deep distrust toward Japan. Tokyo has clearly been relegated to a secondary role in the talks to persuade Kim to abandon his nuclear arsenal and bring his country more into the norms of the international community. But while Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is also reportedly considering a one-on-one meeting with Kim, he has held surprisingly firm to a tough policy of maintaining economic and political pressure on the North. The Japanese leader could meet Kim at an eastern Russia development forum in Vladivostok in September, where Kim and Putin may hold their summit. Abe's position is extremely delicate. Public sentiment in Japan toward North Korea is generally negative. The North already has ballistic missiles that could be used to launch a conventional, biological or nuclear attack on Tokyo or other major cities, along with U.S. military bases throughout Japan where tens of thousands of American troops are deployed. Kim unilaterally announced a moratorium on long-range missile launches, pleasing Trump, but has pointedly said nothing about the mid-range missiles that concern Japan the most. Abe is also committed to resolving a bitter dispute over more than a dozen Japanese citizens who were abducted by North Korean agents in the 1970s and '80s. Pyongyang insists that issue has been resolved. Tokyo claims the North has not been fully transparent about the fate of the abductees and whether any are still alive. The biggest hurdle, however, could well be the reparations issue, which some experts believe could cost Japan billions of dollars. North Korea has long demanded that Japan pay for the damage it caused during its often brutal colonial rule. Although Japan claims that matter was settled long ago, the shifting ties between Pyongyang, Seoul and Washington - and particularly efforts to formally declare an end to the 1950-53 Korean War - could put Tokyo under increased pressure to re-examine its own past or be left out in the cold. ___ Talmadge is the AP's Pyongyang bureau chief. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter: @EricTalmadge FILE - In this April 25, 2018, file photo, Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono waits for the start of a conference "Supporting the future of Syria and the region" at the Europa building in Brussels. North Korea's state-run media have toned down their rhetorical attacks on the United States and South Korea while leader Kim Jong Un pursues a more diplomatic approach, but the vitriol continues, and Japan is now Pyongyang's favorite foil. Pyongyang has lambasted Kono for suggesting Japan could foot part of the bill for inspections to verify the North's denuclearization process. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo, File) FILE - This Nov. 29, 2017, file photo provided by the North Korean government shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, third from left, and what the North Korean government calls the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile, in North Korea. Public sentiment in Japan toward North Korea is generally negative. The North already has ballistic missiles that could be used to launch a conventional, biological or nuclear attack on Tokyo or other major cities, along with U.S. military bases throughout Japan where tens of thousands of American troops are deployed. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File) FILE - In this June 14, 2018, file photo, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, right, bows to Shigeo Iizuka, second from right, leader of a group of families of Japanese abducted by North Korea, and Sakie Yokota, third from right, mother of Megumi Yokota, one of the Japanese abductees, and other members during a meeting at his official residence in Tokyo. Tokyo claims North Korea has not been fully transparent about the fate of the abductees and whether any are still alive. (Kazuhiro Nogi/Pool Photo via AP, File) SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and spurring extreme measures to protect them. For what they say is the first time, volunteer groups in Arizona and Colorado are hauling thousands of gallons of water and truckloads of food to remote grazing grounds where springs have run dry and vegetation has disappeared. Federal land managers also have begun emergency roundups in desert areas of Utah and Nevada. In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses occupy a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) "We've never seen it like this," said Simone Netherlands, president of the Arizona-based Salt River Wild Horse Management Group. In May, dozens of horses were found dead on the edge of a dried-up watering hole in northeastern Arizona. As spring turned to summer, drought conditions turned from bad to worse, Netherlands said. Parts of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico are under the most severe category of drought, though extreme conditions are present from California to Missouri, government analysts say. Parts of the region have witnessed some of the driest conditions on record, amid a cycle of high temperatures and low snowmelt that appears to be getting worse, National Weather Service hydrologist Brian McInerney said. The dry conditions have fed wildfires that have destroyed hundreds of buildings across the West. This month, a firefighter was killed battling a blaze near California's Yosemite National Park. The federal Bureau of Land Management - which oversees vast expanses of public land, mostly in the West - says the problem facing wild horses stems from overpopulation aggravated by severe drought. The region is home to roughly 67,000 wild horses. "You're always going to have drought issues. That's a common thing out on the range," agency spokesman Jason Lutterman said. "What really exacerbates things is when we're already over population, because then you already have resource issues." The agency's emergency roundup in western Utah began a week ago, aiming to remove roughly 250 wild horses from a population of approximately 670. The operation is expected to take several weeks. Once the horses are rounded up, the government gives them veterinary treatment and offers them for sale or adoption. Those that aren't sold or adopted are transferred to privately contracted corrals and pastures for the long term. A similar emergency roundup began this month in central Nevada, where officials said some horses in a herd of 2,100 could die from lack of water in coming weeks. The operation was quickly halted, ironically because of extreme rain, but will likely resume. "The ground's so dry it's not absorbing that water. It's running off," bureau spokeswoman Jenny Lesieutre said. Volunteers are also taking action. Since late spring, Netherlands's Salt River group has hauled hay to a dozen locations outside Phoenix to feed a herd of starving wild horses. Roughly 200 miles (320 kilometers) north, a couple near Gray Mountain, on the Navajo Nation, have spearheaded an effort to leave water and food for horses they say would die without human intervention. In western Colorado, volunteers say they're preparing to bring up to 5,000 gallons (18,900 liters) of water per day to a herd of 750 thirsty horses. "Springs are drying up that have never dried up," said Cindy Wright, co-founder of Colorado conservation group Wild Horse Warriors for Sand Wash Basin. Areas of the basin are low on food due to livestock grazing, so the group is hauling the water to others parts with more plentiful grass, said Aletha Dove, another group co-founder. Wild horse advocates have balked at the Bureau of Land Management's insistence that wild horse populations are too high. Critics say the agency is using dry conditions as a smoke screen to shrink horse populations in response to pressure from ranchers whose livestock compete with the horses for grazing land. "I do have a concern about the larger numbers that they're pulling off, and then a bigger concern about the BLM under this administration using all kinds of excuses to pull off horses," said Suzanne Roy, executive director of the American Wild Horse Campaign, an advocacy organization. The agency is prohibited from euthanizing the wild horses it rounds up, though President Donald Trump has proposed allowing the animals to be killed or sold for slaughter. Activists in Nevada held a rally last week at the bureau's state headquarters in Reno to protest a planned roundup later this year. Critics want the government to instead use birth control to manage wild horse populations. The bureau says the fertility treatment, which must be administered yearly and fired from a dart gun at close range, is too difficult for use except in certain cases where herds are easy to approach and have markings that make horses distinguishable from one another. Whatever the long-term answer, volunteers say their efforts can't go on forever. Trucking in water and food could cost several thousand dollars per month and make horses overly dependent on humans, they said. "If we don't have a very good fall with a lot of rain - and it's also warm so that our fall vegetation grows - we're going to lose horses," Wright said. ___ Associated Press writers Felicia Fonseca in Flagstaff, Arizona, and Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada, contributed to this report. In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses walk to a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this July 12, 2018 photo, baked earth is shown in a dry watering hole outside Salt Lake City. This now dried up watering hole previously provided water to a herd of wild horses. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse drinks from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse shakes off dust near a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018, photo, a wild horse jumps among others near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018 photo, wild horses are held in a temporary pen after being rounded up the night before due to insufficient water to sustain them, near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this June 29, 2018 photo shows wild horses graze outside of Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse rolls in the dust after drinking from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse rolls in muddy water after drinking from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018 photo wild horses are held in a temporary pen after being rounded up the night before due to insufficient water to sustain them, in a desert area near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses drink from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) The surveillance system that has kept watch on students entering Lockport schools for over a decade is getting a novel upgrade. Facial recognition technology soon will check each face against a database of expelled students, sex offenders and other possible troublemakers. It could be the start of a trend as more schools fearful of shootings consider adopting the technology, which has been gaining ground on city streets and in some businesses and government agencies. Just last week, Seattle-based digital software company RealNetworks began offering a free version of its facial recognition system to schools nationwide. Schools in Lockport, near Niagara, in New York state, are being fitted with new facial recognition cameras to detect possible threats to strudents The cameras can be trained to look for expelled students, disgruntled former staff members, sex offenders, and can even recognize some weapons Already, the Lockport City School District's plan has opened a debate in this western New York community and far beyond about the system's potential effectiveness, student privacy and civil rights. 'We shake our heads that we're having to deal with and talk about these kinds of security issues,' said Robert LiPuma, technology director for the Lockport district, east of Niagara Falls, 'but here we are.' The idea behind the Lockport system is to enable security officers to quickly respond to the appearance of expelled students, disgruntled employees, sex offenders or certain weapons the system is programmed to detect. Only students seen as threats will be loaded into the database. Officials say it is the first school district in the country to adopt the Canadian-made system it is installing. Administrators say it could thwart shootings like February's attack in which expelled student Nikolas Cruz is charged with killing 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. 'This would have identified (Cruz) as not being able to be in that building,' said Tony Olivo, a security consultant who recommended the system for Lockport. Cameras mounted throughout the building would have followed the banned student's every move until he left. Critics say the technology has been absent from schools for good reason. In light of Lockport's plans, the New York Civil Liberties Union asked the state Education Department to block the technology from any New York school, saying it would 'have a chilling effect on school climate.' Education officials say they are reviewing the request. 'Lockport is sending the message that it views students as potential criminals who must have their faces scanned wherever they go,' NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman said. Jennifer Lynch, senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights group, said any school considering facial recognition must consider who will have access to data, how such a system would be managed and whether students can opt out. District technology director Robert LiPuma insists the system will help prevent massacres like the one at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Florida Others question the technology's cost and effectiveness, given reports like one released in February by MIT and Stanford University that found some facial recognition programs don't work as well on racial minorities and women. Lockport parent Belinda Cooper would have preferred metal detectors in her 15-year-old daughter's school. 'It would have been cheaper for the school district, and you can guarantee no guns or knives will be brought in,' she said. District officials say the Aegis system they are installing, made by SN Technologies of Ontario, will not build or store a database of student and faculty face prints that could be shared with the government or marketers. Nor will the $1.4 million cost, funded through a state technology bond, siphon funding from staffing or supplies. District officials acknowledge it won't stop a determined attacker from coming through the door, nor will it warn against someone who is not a known threat. But 'there's no system that's going to solve every problem,' LiPuma said. 'It's another tool that we feel will give us an advantage to help make our buildings and our communities a little safer.' Individual schools and districts, as well as the governors of Wyoming and one other state, have already expressed interest in RealNetworks' customizable SAFR System, senior product director Michael Vance said. At the University Child Development School in Seattle where it was piloted, rather than rely on office staff buzzing in late arrivals or visitors, the system gives parents who have registered their faces automatic access through a locked gate and tells the office who is coming. Schools can opt to register students' faces and customize how to respond to people who have been flagged for alert. 'All of that resides with the school,' Vance said. 'We don't see it. We don't have access to the pictures, the images, the video, anything like that. It's stored in the same way that school attendance databases, grades, records, everything is kept.' Nevertheless, citing a patchwork of regulations, Vance said the company would welcome the kind of government guidelines for facial recognition technology that Microsoft President Brad Smith called for in a blog post July 13. In Lockport, as crews worked on wiring the system inside, 16-year-old student Teliyah Sumler expressed some reservations. 'I feel like it's too personal,' she said. 'Cameras all in my face. It's too much.' Khari Demos, 22, who has two siblings in Lockport High School, said he worries for their safety and views facial recognition as another piece of a security puzzle that includes locked doors and active shooter drills. 'It'll actually identify who should and shouldn't be in the school,' said Demos, who graduated from the school in 2013. 'The system will never be 100 percent perfect but it's a step in the right direction.' JERUSALEM (AP) - Palestinian health officials say a teenage boy has been killed in clashes with the Israeli military in the West Bank. The health ministry says Monday that 15-year-old Arkan Mezher was fatally shot in the chest by Israeli fire. The ministry says another person was wounded by live fire in his leg. The Israeli military says troops were carrying out an arrest raid in the Dheisheh refugee camp overnight when a "violent riot" began. It says Palestinians hurled firebombs and grenades at soldiers. The military said it fired live rounds "selectively" and that it was looking into the reports of the teenager's death. While tensions have flared over recent months between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the West Bank has been relatively calm during that time. TOKYO (AP) - The Latest on the heat wave in Northeast Asia (all times local): 5:40 p.m. On the hottest day so far this year, the governor of Japan's capital says that measures to deal with the heat are one of the pillars of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. A woman holds a portable fan at a business district in Tokyo, Monday, July 23, 2018. Searing hot temperatures are forecast for wide swaths of Japan and South Korea in a long-running heat wave. The mercury is expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday in the city of Nagoya in central Japan and reach 37 in Tokyo. Deaths have been reported almost every day. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara) The temperature reached 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) in Tokyo on Monday. Gov. Yuriko Koike told a news conference that the city has been working to address concerns about the heat for both fans and athletes. The marathon and some other outdoor Olympic events will start early in the morning. Other steps include developing road pavements that emit less surface heat, setting up mist sprays and planting tall roadside trees. Japan and South Korea are experiencing an extended heat wave that has been blamed for 50 deaths. Koike said that "the weather recently in Japan is like being in a sauna." ___ 3:10 p.m. Japanese media say a city north of Tokyo has reached the highest temperature ever recorded in the country. The temperature hit 41.1 degrees Celsius (106 degrees Fahrenheit) in Kumagaya on Monday afternoon. Japan and South Korea are in the middle of an extended heat wave. Japan's Kyodo News agency has tallied more than 40 deaths in Japan. Kumagaya is about 65 kilometers (40 miles) northwest of Tokyo. ___ 1:40 p.m. Searing hot temperatures are forecast for wide swaths of Japan and South Korea in a long-running heat wave that's killed at least two dozen people. The mercury is expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday in the city of Nagoya in central Japan and reach 37 (99 F) in Tokyo. South Korea's Yonhap news agency says the country's highest-ever morning low was recorded in the city of Gangneung, where the temperature was 31 (88 F) at 6:45 a.m. The morning low in Seoul was 29 (84 F). Hundreds of people have been rushed to Japanese hospitals with heat stroke symptoms in the more than weeklong heat wave. Deaths have been reported almost every day. Authorities in Japan warned people to stay inside and use air conditioning. People shade themselves from the heat of the sun with umbrellas as they pass the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo, Monday, July 23, 2018. Japanese media say a city north of Tokyo has reached the highest temperature ever recorded in the country. The temperature hit 41.1 degrees Celsius (106 degrees Fahrenheit) in Kumagaya city on Monday afternoon. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara) In this July 20, 2018, photo, people make their way in scorching heat near Tokyo station in Tokyo. Searing hot temperatures are forecast for wide swaths of Japan and South Korea in a long-running heat wave. The mercury is expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday, July 23, 2018, in the city of Nagoya in central Japan and reach 37 in Tokyo. Deaths have been reported almost every day. (Jun Hirata/Kyodo News via AP) ISLAMABAD (AP) - As Pakistan heads into parliamentary elections this week, the country's minorities are looking for better representation and a voice that will speak up for them in what rights groups warn is in an increasingly intolerant atmosphere in this Muslim-majority nation. It's an uphill struggle for Pakistani Christians, Sikhs, Ahmadis and others. Minority religions make up just 4 percent of Pakistan's 200 million people; Shiites account for about 15 to 20 percent of the Muslim population. The country's complicated electoral system allots minorities and women a small number of "reserved" seats, based on their parties' gains at the polls. In this July 11, 2018, photo, Radesh Singh, right, is one of about 200,000 Sikhs living in Pakistan, talks to local people in his constituency in Peshawar, Pakistan. Despite attacks on his fellow Sikhs by radicals and even by Islamic State insurgents, he is running in elections as an independent. (AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad) But for the rest of the seats - both in the 342-seat National Assembly, the law-making lower house of parliament, and the four provincial legislatures - members of minority groups are increasingly choosing to run as independent candidates, without affiliation to any political party. The minorities' major concern ahead of Wednesday's vote has been the plethora of radical religious and sectarian groups that have resurrected themselves under new names and fielded candidates for the polls - including Sunni extremists who promise to rid Pakistan of Shiite Muslims. Other radical parties have campaigned on promises to enforce Pakistan's controversial law on blasphemy, which carries the death penalty and which has allowed for the prosecution of anyone deemed to offend Islam. Frenzied mobs have killed at the mere suggestion that an act of blasphemy was committed. Pakistan "is becoming more and more intolerant of minority rights," said rights activist I.A. Rehman, a founding member of the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. He is urging the government to "make sufficient effort to ensure minorities can cast their votes." ___ THE CHRISTIANS Garbage is piled by the roadside and cinderblock homes have flimsy curtains instead of doors in Rimshah, a squatters' settlement on the outskirts of Islamabad. Years ago, scores of Christian families settled here when a mob of Muslim men, enraged over an alleged act of blasphemy by an 11-year-old Christian girl, tried to kill her and drove them out of their homes. They named the slum Rimshah, for the 11-year-old girl with Down's syndrome who was eventually cleared of charges of tearing up pages of an Islamic religious book. Michael Rose, an outspoken advocate of the Christian community, which numbers about 3 million in Pakistan, campaigns in Rimshah for Asif Shahzada, an independent Christian candidate. Rose says that independent minority candidates are the best hope of getting Christian grievances heard. Minority representatives chosen on the "reserved" seat system tow the party line and rarely raise their community's legitimate concerns, he says. "I jumped into this race only for my community," says Shahzada, looking around the slum. "We have so many problems, no education, no health care, no jobs. We don't even have enough water." ___ THE SIKHS Radesh Singh is one of about 200,000 Sikhs living in Pakistan, mostly in the conservative Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province along the border with Afghanistan. The Sikhs are easily identifiable because of their tightly wound and often colorful turbans, and because they share the surname Singh. Singh said attacks by the Taliban and lately also the Islamic State group have forced thousands to leave the province, including his son. The radicals, Singh says, are killing both fellow Muslims and members of minority groups. He is campaigning as an independent candidate in Peshawar, the provincial capital, and refuses to leave. "I wanted to show that a poor man can fight, run his own campaign and compete against these rich candidates ... who take the poor people's votes but then give them nothing in return," said Singh. On a street lined with small shops in his neighborhood, he stops at each store, run by his Muslim neighbors, and is greeted with a smile. An elderly neighbor, Allah Mir, gave Singh a gentle hug, shook his hand and promised him his vote. "I don't care about his religion," Mir said. "I care only that he is a good man." ___ THE HINDUS Hindus make up Pakistan's second-largest minority, with more than 2 million, living mainly in southern Sindh province where they are among the poorest. Many live as indentured slaves on the estates of some of Pakistan's largest landowners, working on the farms. The Hindus also suffer widespread discrimination because of the decades-old rivalry between Pakistan and neighboring India, a majority Hindu nation. Whenever relations between the two countries deteriorate, the treatment of Pakistani Hindus gets worse. Rights activist also routinely raise concerns about forced conversions of Hindu girls to Islam. Veeru Kohli was born a slave but fled bondage, walking for three days until she found offices of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan to help her. She then returned to the landowner to recover her children and free eight other families. Kohli is now running as an independent candidate. If she wins, she will become the second Hindu woman in parliament in Pakistan. In March, Krishna Kumari, a member of Pakistan People's Party, was elected to the 104-seat Senate, the upper house of parliament - becoming the first Hindu woman elected, albeit in a vote by parliament members and not a popular election. ___ THE SHIITES Though Muslim, Pakistan's Shiites have suffered enormous losses, with hundreds slaughtered at the hands of radical Sunni Muslims who consider Shiites heretics and believe it is their religious duty to kill them. However, unlike other minorities, Shiites in Pakistan are not allocated any special seats in parliament and can run either on their party's ticket or as independents. ___ THE AHMADIS Ahmadis revere the 19th century founder of their Muslim sect, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, as a messiah, challenging the basic tenet of Islam that Mohammad is the final prophet. Since Pakistan declared them non-Muslims in 1974, their numbers are difficult to gauge; they are believed to number several hundred thousand. Hundreds have been killed by zealots and their places of worship have been targeted; thousands more have fled Pakistan. Saleem Uddin, a spokesman for the community, says Ahmadis plan to boycott Wednesday's elections after being put on a separate list of registered voters. "It means we are not the same as other Pakistanis," said Uddin. "Why?" In this Sunday, July 15, 2018, photo, Asif Shahzada, center, a Christian candidate for the upcoming elections, talks to local people in his constituency in Islamabad, Pakistan. Minorities in Muslim majority Pakistan seek equality in upcoming polls and a voice they say that will protect them against an increasingly intolerant and radical atmosphere that targets them. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) In this Dec. 25, 2016, photo, a Pakistani Christian girl crosses a bridge in poor Christian neighborhood in Islamabad, Pakistan. Minorities in Muslim majority Pakistan seek equality in upcoming polls and a voice they say that will protect them against an increasingly intolerant and radical atmosphere that targets them. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash) In this July 15, 2018, photo, Fazalur Rehman, center, leader of Pakistani religious parties alliance, shows solidarity with other leaders during an election campaign in Karachi, Pakistan. Minorities face a daunting battle in parliamentary elections this week in Muslim-majority Pakistan, striving for more representation and a voice that will speak up for them in an increasingly intolerant and radical atmosphere. A big worry for minorities is the unprecedented participation of radical religious groups, including banned outfits, which have taken aim at some of Pakistan's minorities. (AP Photo Fareed Khan) In this July 19, 2018, photo, Banners and posters of election candidates from political parties, decorated outside a compound of Christian neighborhood in Islamabad, Pakistan. Minorities face a daunting battle in parliamentary elections this week in Muslim-majority Pakistan, striving for more representation and a voice that will speak up for them in an increasingly intolerant and radical atmosphere. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash) In this July 16, 2018, photo, I.A. Rehman, center, a founding member of the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) addresses a news conference regarding the upcoming elections in Islamabad, Pakistan, He said that he worried for minority voters in the upcoming election and called on the government to ensure easy and secure access to polling stations. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash) In this Sunday, July 15, 2018, photo, Pakistani Christian Pastor Waris Masih listens to Asif Shahzada, a Christian candidate runs in the upcoming election during his door-to-door campaign in Christians neighborhood in Islamabad, Pakistan. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Gunmen opened fire on worshippers inside a mosque in eastern Nangarhar province, killing four people, according to a provincial official. Attahullah Khogyani, the provincial governor's spokesman, said three other people, including the mosque's religious leader, were wounded in the attack, which took place on Sunday evening in the district of Surkh Rod. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but both the Taliban and Islamic State militants are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially in Nangarhar province. Afghan security personnel arrive to the site of an attack near the Kabul Airport, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, July 22, 2018. An Afghan spokesman says there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Earlier on Sunday, an Islamic State suicide bomber struck near Kabul's airport, killing 20 people and narrowly missing Afghanistan's vice president, who was returning home after living in Turkey for over a year. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, a former Uzbek warlord, and his entourage were unharmed, but more than 70 other people were wounded, according to Hashmat Stanekzai, spokesman for the Kabul's police chief. Among those killed in the attack near the airport was Mohammad Akhtar, a 31-year-old father of four children who was working as driver for the news agency Agence France Presse in Afghanistan. Hundreds of relatives, friends and family members attended a burial ceremony for Akhtar in the Guldara district north of the capital Kabul on Monday morning. In April AFP's chief photographer in Afghanistan, Shah Maria killed along with eight other reporters in a double suicide bombing by the Islamic State group in Kabul. The attack marked the deadliest assault on reporters since the fall of the Taliban in 2001 and claimed a total of 25 lives and wounded at least 45 others. Akhtar was related to the late Maria and was on his way to office for his night shift when the suicide bomber blew himself up near the airport. "There were both military and civilians who were killed and wounded in the attack and the dead toll could change," said Stanekzai, spokesman for the Kabul police chief. The number of civilians killed in Afghanistan in the first half of this year has increased by 1 percent, according to the latest report by the United Nations, compared to the same period last year. The U.N. mission in Afghanistan said the number - 1,692 killed by violence - is the highest 6-month death toll since the systematic documentation of civilian casualties started in 2009. The UNAMA report documented 3,430 Afghan civilians were wounded in the period from January to June. The killed and wounded add up to a total of 5,122 civilian casualties, which is a three percent overall decrease from the first six months of 2017, it added. Since the U.S. and NATO forces formally concluded their combat mission at the end of 2014, a resurgent Taliban has stepped up its attacks across the country and an Islamic State affiliate has also emerged to launch horrific high-profile attacks that have claimed the lives of scores of civilians. Relatives of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in yesterday's suicide attack, offer prayers during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Relatives carry the coffin of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in yesterday's suicide attack, during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Afghan security personnel carry an injured comrade after an attack near the Kabul International Airport, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, July 22, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place after his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Relatives, carry the coffin of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for the Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in Sunday's suicide attack, during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Dawood Yardoost, colleague of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for the Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in Sunday's suicide attack, watch to a picture during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahma Gul) Relatives carry the coffin of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for the Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in yesterday's suicide attack, during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) The brother of Mohammad Akhtar, a driver for the Agence France Presse news agency who was killed in yesterday's suicide attack, mourns during his burial ceremony in the Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Relatives, bury the body of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for the Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in Sunday's suicide attack,, during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Relatives, carry the coffin of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for the Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in Sunday's suicide attack, during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Relatives bury the body of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for the Agence France Presse news agency who was killed in yesterday's suicide attack, during a burial ceremony in the Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Relatives pray next to the body of Mohammad Akhtar, the driver for the Agence France Presse news agency, who was killed in yesterday's suicide attack, during his burial ceremony in Guldara district, north of capital Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 23, 2018. An Afghan spokesman said there has been a large explosion near the Kabul airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from abroad. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum and members of his entourage were unharmed in the explosion on Sunday, which took place as his convoy had already left the airport. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) PHOENIX (AP) - Democratic Rep. Kyrsten Sinema says Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency that some in her party are clamoring to abolish, is performing an "important function." She recently joined House Republicans to ease restrictions on banks. And she offered a decidedly nonpartisan comment on conservative Judge Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court. The third-term congresswoman has come a long way from her days as a Green Party activist as she tries to become the first Democrat to represent Arizona in the Senate in 30 years. It's a notable strategy in an election year in which many Democrats see a path to victory by tapping into the outrage of the party's base in the Trump era. In neighboring Nevada, for instance, Democratic Rep. Jacky Rosen is aiming to flip another GOP-held Senate seat and she seized on the high court vacancy to highlight the threat to abortion rights. Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz. speaks on May 29, 2018, at the Capitol in Phoenix. Sinema has come a long way from her days as a green party activist as she seeks to become the first Democrat to represent Arizona in the Senate in 30 years. (AP Photo/Matt York) Some Arizona Democrats are frustrated that the 42-year-old Sinema hasn't taken similarly aggressive stances. Ken Wixon, a lifelong Democrat, said he planned to back Sinema's Democratic opponent, Phoenix activist Deedra Abboud, in the Aug. 28 primary. "I supported (Sinema) before, but she's too easily influenced," Wixon said after attending a recent political meeting in suburban Phoenix where Abboud spoke. "She seems to roll over too easily." Sinema said her shift to the right is the result of learning to work with others in a hyper-partisan Congress. "What I'm really proud of is my ability and willingness to learn and grow as a political leader," she told The Associated Press recently when asked if her moderate profile would turn off Democrats. "That's allowed me to learn new opinions and change as I've gotten new information." Sinema is favored to win the primary and is seen as a competitive Democratic candidate in a general election that could hinge on how voters feel about President Donald Trump and his policies. That's why some Democrats are willing to back her even if her liberalism has limits. "I have some serious questions," said Steven Slugocki, Democratic chairman in Maricopa County, Arizona's most populous. "That's not to say I won't support her. The alternative is far worse." That alternative, to Slugocki, is any of the Republicans vying to succeed retiring, one-term Republican Sen. Jeff Flake, a persistent Trump critic. The GOP field includes former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, a crusader against illegal immigration who was convicted for contempt of court related to racial profiling practices and later pardoned by Trump, and Kelli Ward, a state senator endorsed last year by former Trump adviser Steve Bannon. The third GOP candidate, Rep. Martha McSally, has been viewed as a moderate in the vein of Arizona's senior GOP senator, John McCain. But as the primary approaches, she has sharpened her stance on immigration, removing her name as a co-sponsor of legislation backing a path to citizenship for some young immigrants in the country illegally. Immigration politics are central to Arizona's politics today. In 2016, the influx of Latino voters contributed to Democrat Hillary Clinton's narrow loss to Trump here. Clinton lost Ohio, for instance, by nearly twice as much as she lost Arizona. A Democratic victory in the Senate race would suggest the state could be up for grabs in 2020. Bill Clinton was the last Democratic presidential nominee to carry Arizona in 1996. And yet Sinema remains controversial among Arizona Democrats. She drew complaints among liberals last year as one of two dozen House Democrats to join majority Republicans backing a measure to sharply increase penalties for people deported more than three times, more sharply for those with a criminal record. Likewise, she was one of a handful of Democrats who backed a measure giving federal officials authority to detain and deport noncitizens who live in gang territory. While Latino voter advocates groan at some of Sinema's positions, they note her support for allowing a path to citizenship for some young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children. "The most important thing we can do right now is elect candidates who will serve as a check on Donald Trump," said Cristobal Alex, president of Latino Victory, a national political advocacy group active in several states this year. "She's the only viable choice for our community in this election." One important sign of Sinema's viability, albeit with the election still more than three months away, is that she reported having more than $5.3 million in her campaign account at the end of June. That's many times more than what Arpaio, McSally and Ward had. Recent polls also show Sinema leading all three Republican prospects in potential head-to-head contests. Some Arizona Democrats acknowledge murmurs of discontent, but say Sinema reflects her politically-mixed southwest Phoenix-area district, home to Arizona State University in Tempe and Republican-leaning residential areas in Scottsdale and Chandler. "There are some grumblings," said state Sen. Lela Alston, who served alongside her in the Legislature before Sinema's election to Congress in 2012. "While there are some individuals who would never vote for her, more say - even though they wish she was voting more to the left - they are going to embrace her candidacy, given their choices." Sinema's little-known Democratic opponent, Abboud, said she thinks both candidates have a shot to get votes from moderates or disaffected Republicans. "You have people that want something different," Abboud said. "They want to vote on their values." Such grumbling boiled over in May when some Democrats in Pima County, which abuts the U.S. border with Mexico, proposed condemning some of Sinema's votes with the Republican majority. The motion was ultimately defeated, a sign that voters are seeking pragmatism, said Jo Holt, who leads the party in Pima County. "Some of these folks on the left will say in one breath they don't like a vote she took, but that they'll support her because things in the country have gotten so bad," Holt said. "In another political environment, these votes might hurt her more." Sinema's resilience has not been lost on some Republican operatives in Arizona, increasingly anxious about their party's chances of holding the seat. "She has benefited from being able to stake out a centrist approach," said strategist Jon Seaton, "and really hasn't paid much of a price for it." Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz. arrives at the Secretary of State's office to deliver her ballot signatures, Tuesday, May 29, 2018, at the Capitol in Phoenix. Sinema has come a long way from her days as a green party activist as she seeks to become the first Democrat to represent Arizona in the Senate in 30 years. (AP Photo/Matt York) Rep. Krysten Sinema visits Blockwise Engineering in Tempe, Ariz., on July 2, 2018, and speaks with company founder Ed Goff about his company's manufacturing process. Sinema has come a long way from her days as a green party activist as she seeks to become the first Democrat to represent Arizona in the Senate in 30 years. (AP Photo/Melissa Daniels) ATLANTA (AP) - Move over, Ohio. Make room, Florida and Pennsylvania. Georgia wants in on the swing-state action. The state's gubernatorial contest comes into greater focus Tuesday after Republicans choose between Brian Kemp, who is endorsed by President Donald Trump, and Casey Cagle, who is backed by the incumbent GOP governor. The victor in their party runoff will take on Democrat Stacey Abrams in her bid to become the first African-American woman elected governor in the U.S. Abrams, a 44-year-old former state House leader, faces significant hurdles in a state that remains deeply conservative outside its metropolitan areas. No Democratic nominee for governor or U.S. Senate has carried the state since 1998. Bill Clinton was the last Democratic presidential candidate to win here - in 1992. In this July 12, 2018, photo, Republican candidates for Georgia Governor Georgia Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, left, and Secretary of State Brian Kemp speak during an Atlanta Press Club debate at Georgia Public Television in Atlanta. The two will face each other July 24 in a runoff election for the Republican nomination. (AP Photo/John Bazemore) Yet in the last decade, GOP standard-bearers have typically garnered no more than 53 percent of the vote. Some Republicans say that margin isn't enough as African-Americans, Latinos, Asian-Americans and white transplants become a larger share of the electorate. The themes that will likely dominate the general election campaign for governor, including immigration and race, will help determine whether Democrats can become consistently competitive in the Deep South after years of stinging defeats. "This is a light-red state," GOP pollster Mark Rountree said. "I don't think Georgia will be a national afterthought for either side anymore" regardless of what happens in November, Rountree adds. A close loss for Democrats will still be a loss. "There are no more moral victories in Georgia," says Democratic consultant Tharon Johnson. It's time for Democrats to capitalize on demographic changes and a "talented candidate" who should have plenty of campaign cash thanks to her national celebrity, he says. Georgia's potential evolution toward swing-state status comes at a critical time for Democrats. Gains in coastal and Sunbelt states - Virginia, North Carolina and potentially Arizona - could offset growing challenges for the party in the upper Midwest, where Trump shocked many Democrats in 2016 by sweeping a band of states that Hillary Clinton's campaign had considered a "blue wall." Ohio and Iowa are of particular concern for Democrats long-term, given that Trump's victory margin in both states neared double digits in 2016. "These changes in states like Georgia aren't occurring in a vacuum," says Democratic pollster Zac McCrary. "The party cannot afford to get in a situation where their only path to 270 (electoral votes) has to include Ohio, so we need to bring a state like Georgia online as a possibility." That reality and Abrams' candidacy have been enough to draw visits already from senators - and potential Democratic presidential candidates - Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who sought the Democratic nomination in 2016 and is considering a repeat bid, has also endorsed Abrams and told The Associated Press that he'd come to Georgia if Abrams asks. Party interest spiked when Abrams won what initially was expected to be a competitive primary in May with 76 percent of the vote. "I started getting a lot of calls then," recalls Johnson, the Democratic consultant. "'Can she win?' Can she win?' they'd ask." The question is whether Republicans can continue to rely on a large share of the white vote outside Georgia's cities to ensure victory. "Predicting the tipping point is impossible ... but if Stacey just tells people what she thinks, the votes are out there," says Democrat Jason Carter, who is former President Jimmy Carter's grandson and ran for governor in 2014, losing by eight percentage points. Since Carter's loss, which he notes came in a midterm that was bad for Democrats nationally, Democrats have flipped several state legislative seats in the northern suburbs of Atlanta. In 2016, despite losing by five percentage points statewide, Clinton led Trump in the populous suburban Atlanta counties of Cobb and Gwinnett. No Democratic presidential nominee had done that since Jimmy Carter, himself a former Georgia governor, in 1976. Abrams acknowledges she must piece together suburban swing voters, urban liberals, young voters and nonwhites from the cities and rural areas. But she insists the way to do it isn't by shying away from liberal policy positions - something she says Georgia Democrats already tried in losing efforts. So while she touts her deal-making with Republicans as a Democratic legislative leader, she unapologetically advocates expanding Medicaid insurance, enacting more stringent gun laws and spending more on education, job training and infrastructure. She criticizes Trump on immigration and other fronts, and she's expressed support for scrapping Confederate monuments around the state, including the depiction of Confederate leaders on Stone Mountain. The state GOP and outside groups already have begun casting Abrams as an extremist, though most of her policy positions are not much different than Jason Carter's. But behind that rhetoric, even some Republicans say Abrams could be a bigger threat than previous nominees. "You're going to get and give with Abrams," Rountree says, "but their moderate, retread, old-ideas approach hasn't worked. ... They're being smarter this time." ___ Follow Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP. WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate on Monday confirmed Pentagon official Robert Wilkie to be secretary of Veterans Affairs, charged with delivering on President Donald Trump's campaign promises to fire bad VA employees and steer more patients to the private sector. Wilkie won approval on a bipartisan vote of 86-9, securing the backing of many Democrats after insisting at his confirmation hearing that he will not privatize the government's second-largest department. It was a moment of respite from the sharp political divisions engulfing Trump's other nominees in the final months before congressional midterm elections. Wilkie is Trump's third pick for the job in 18 months. The longtime public official says he will "shake up complacency" at VA, which has struggled with long waits in providing medical treatment to millions of veterans. FILE - In a Wednesday, June 27, 2018 file photo, Veterans Affairs Secretary nominee Robert Wilkie is sworn in at the start of a Senate Veterans Affairs Committee nominations hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. Wilkie is expected to become secretary of Veterans Affairs when the Senate votes Monday, July 23 to confirm him. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File) In a statement released by the White House, Trump applauded the confirmation vote and said he looked forward to Wilkie's leadership. "I have no doubt that the Department of Veterans Affairs will continue to make strides in honoring and protecting the heroic men and women who have served our nation with distinction," he said. Trump selected Wilkie for the post in May after firing his first VA secretary, David Shulkin, amid ethics charges and internal rebellion at the department over the role of private care for veterans. Trump's initial replacement choice, White House doctor Ronny Jackson, withdrew after allegations of workplace misconduct surfaced. Wilkie, a former assistant secretary of defense under President George W. Bush, has received mostly positive reviews from veterans' groups for his management experience, but the extent of his willingness to expand private care as an alternative to government-run VA care remains largely unknown. Trump last year pledged he would triple the number of veterans "seeing the doctor of their choice." Currently more than 30 percent of VA appointments are made in the private sector. Under repeated questioning at his hearing, the Air Force and Navy veteran said he opposed privatizing the agency of 360,000 employees and would make sure VA health care is "fully funded." When pressed by Sen. Jon Tester, the top Democrat on the panel, if he would be willing to disagree with Trump, Wilkie responded "yes." "I have been privileged to work for some of the most high-powered people in this town," said Wilkie, currently a Pentagon undersecretary for Defense Secretary Jim Mattis. "They pay me for their opinions, and I give those to them." Wilkie's main task in the coming months will be carrying out a newly signed law to ease access to private health providers. That law gives the VA secretary wide authority to decide when veterans can bypass the VA, based on whether they receive "quality" care, but the program could face escalating costs. Some Democrats have warned the VA won't be able to handle a growing price tag, putting it at risk of budget shortfalls next year. Major veterans' groups want full funding for core VA medical centers, which they see as best-suited to veterans' specialized needs such as treatment for post-traumatic stress. As VA secretary, Wilkie also will have more power under a new accountability law to fire VA employees. Lawmakers from both parties have recently raised questions about the law's implementation, including how whistleblower complaints are handled and whether the law is being disproportionately used against rank-and-file employees rather than senior managers who set policy. "The tone has been set by President Trump on the direction of VA reforms," said Dan Caldwell, executive director of the conservative Concerned Veterans for America. "There have been a tremendous number of bills passed in the last year and half, and all will require a lot of work to make sure they are properly implemented." Republican Sen. Johnny Isakson of Georgia, chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, praised Wilkie as "eminently qualified," saying he will "bring stability and leadership" to VA. Wilkie served as acting VA secretary after Shulkin's firing in March, before returning to his role as Pentagon undersecretary. He will replace current acting VA secretary Peter O'Rourke, who clashed with the VA inspector general after refusing to release documents relating to VA whistleblower complaints and casting the independent watchdog as an underling who must "act accordingly." Under pressure from Congress, the VA agreed last week to provide documents to the IG. BERLIN (AP) - Police say two homeless men have been set on fire at a Berlin railway station, leaving them with serious burns. Police said Monday that an unknown assailant poured a liquid over the men, ages 47 and 62, before setting them and their possessions alight, in the overnight incident at the Schoeneweide station in suburban Berlin. The Bild and B.Z. newspapers reported that passers-by put out the blaze using a fire extinguisher from a nearby fast food stall. News agency dpa said police couldn't immediately confirm that. The men were taken to a hospital. MILAN (AP) - Fiat Chrysler shares were volatile Monday as investors expressed worry about the exit of ailing CEO Sergio Marchionne, whose driven and creative management style has been the company's fortune. Shares in the Italian-American carmaker closed down 1.5 percent after a harder 4 percent opening tumble in the first trading since Marchionne's grave health condition was disclosed over the weekend. Trading was volatile, particularly after news that the head of the company's big European operations, who had been considered one of Marchionne's potential successors, was quitting. Ferrari, where Marchionne was also replaced at the helm, closed down about 5 percent. FILE - In this Friday, May 21, 2010 file photo, Chrylser CEO Sergio Marchionne, left, is seen with Jeep brand President and CEO Mike Manley at the Jefferson North Assembly Plant, in Detroit. Fiat Chrysler's board recommends Jeep executive Mike Manley to replace seriously ill CEO Sergio Marchionne, Saturday, July 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) The Fiat Chrysler board on Saturday named long-time Jeep executive Mike Manley as CEO, unexpectedly accelerating a transition that was planned for early next year. The company said the 66-year-old Marchionne suffered complications from shoulder surgery in Zurich, Switzerland, last month that worsened in recent days, and that he could not resume his duties. No other details were released. Marchionne will be a hard act to follow. Analysts credit his industry vision and ability to strike deals and take risks for increasing the market value of Fiat by tenfold since he took over in 2004. And while he was due to retire in 2019, most expected him to stay on in some role to guide the company. "Some of us assumed he'd remain as chairman and be there to phone in his instructions," Max Warburton, an analyst at market research firm Bernstein who often publicly tussled with Marchionne on conference calls about the company's earnings. "Marchionne ran FCA in a command and control style, with constant firefighting measures. There is no operating manual to follow," he said. Marchionne engineered both the turnarounds of Italian carmaker Fiat and Chrysler, which Fiat acquired in 2009 in a deal with the U.S. government, creating the world's seventh-largest carmaker out of two formerly dysfunctional entities. He created shareholder value for the Fiat-founding Agnelli family with successful spinoffs of Fiat's heavy vehicle maker CNH Industrial and of the iconic Ferrari super sports car company. But his goal of another big merger failed to find any takers. Marchionne proved himself a consummate deal-maker. He won control of Chrysler in a 2009 deal with U.S. President Barack Obama's government without putting a penny down, only in exchange for bringing more small-car technology to Chrysler. In May of 2011, less than two years after leaving bankruptcy, Marchionne pulled off a huge refinancing of the company's $7.5 billion loan from the U.S. government, retiring it with a combination of corporate bonds, loans and payments, even though Chrysler had not yet turned an annual profit. Some of the debt carried at 12 percent interest rate and cost the company $1.2 billion in interest per year. The maneuver helped the company to start making money again. The Italian Canadian manager later demonstrated his agility by refocusing U.S. production on trucks and SUVS and away from passenger cars to meet market demand, a process that got underway in 2016. And when President Donald Trump took office, Marchionne quickly responded to his calls to keep jobs in America by repatriating production at a Mexican plant. On Monday, Trump called Elkann to inquire about Marchionne's condition, the company confirmed. In Italy, Marchionne moved production away from low-margin small cars and toward pricier Alfa Romeo and Maserati models for the export market, even if his relaunch of Alfa still has not reached his targets. Manley's first appointment in the role was at a regular Fiat Chrysler executive council meeting in Turin on Monday, and his first public appearance will be to present FCA's second quarter earnings on Wednesday. Marchionne had announced in his last major presentation to analysts last month that the quarterly results would show Fiat Chrysler at zero debt for the first time - an occasion for which the normally casually attired Italian-Canadian manager donned a tie - even if only briefly. The five-year plan included a significant shift to electrified motors. Manley, 54, has been key to transforming the quintessentially American Jeep brand into a global marquee since taking over there in 2009, and he also has been the head of the Ram truck division since 2015. Tokyo-based auto analyst for Nomura Securities, Anindya Das, called Manley "a natural choice" to replace Marchionne as "Manley has been heading FCA's main profit and growth engine Jeep since 2009." Both brands have formed the leading edge of Fiat Chrysler's North American strategy to move away from passenger car production and focus on SUVs and trucks to meet market demand. "Although Mr. Manley's public profile has been relatively low and limited to operational matters, he was heavily involved in setting the 2019-22 strategic plan," Philippe Houchois, an analyst at Jeffries Financial Services, said in a note. "We expect continuity." But he also expressed concern that Fiat Chrysler's success has been linked to Marchionne's ability to shift strategy to meet targets. ____ AP Auto Writer Tom Krisher contributed from Detroit. BEIJING (AP) - A look at recent developments in the South China Sea, where China is pitted against smaller neighbors in multiple disputes over islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters crucial for global commerce and rich in fish and potential oil and gas reserves: ___ EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a weekly look at the latest developments in the South China Sea, the location of several territorial conflicts that have raised tensions in the region. FILE - In this Saturday, Feb. 10, 2018, file photo, a protester, wearing a boat-shaped paper hat, holds a flag during a rally at the Chinese Consulate to protest China's alleged continued militarization of the disputed islands in the South China Sea known as Spratlys in Manila, Philippines. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File) ___ PHILIPPINE ACTIVISTS STAGE ANTI-CHINA PROTEST Flag-waving protesters in the Philippines converged at a Chinese consulate in the capital, Manila, to protest China's assertive actions in the disputed South China Sea. Saturday's protest involving more than 100 left-wing activists ended in a melee between demonstrators and the authorities, with police using a water hose and their shields. The farmers and workers belonging to the militant Bayan group burned signs showing the U.S. and Chinese flags during the action, which included a demonstration outside the heavily guarded U.S. Embassy to protest alleged U.S. meddling in the Philippines. While Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has sought to boost relations with Beijing in return for aid and investment, the two countries continue to hold differences over the rights to islands, shoals and fishing grounds in the South China Sea. ___ CIA OFFICIAL WARNS OF CHINESE SOUTH CHINA SEA MOVES A top CIA expert on Asia says China's construction of military outposts on islands in the South China Sea is comparable to Russia's brash annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula. Michael Collins said Friday that China's actions had turned the strategic waterway into the "Crimea of the East." Moscow's 2014 move to forcefully take over the Ukrainian territory was widely condemned by the West. Collins, the deputy assistant director of the CIA's East Asia mission center, said at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado that Beijing doesn't want to go to war. However, he said the current government under Communist Party leader and President Xi Jinping is subtly working on multiple fronts to undermine the U.S. in ways that are different than the more well-publicized activities being employed by Russia. "I would argue ... that what they're waging against us is fundamentally a cold war - a cold war not like we saw during the Cold War (between the U.S. and the Soviet Union) but a cold war by definition," Collins said. ___ VIETNAM DEPORTS U.S. MAN AFTER ANTI-CHINA PROTEST A Vietnamese court ordered an American man deported after convicting him of disturbing public order for taking part in a rare protest against perceived concessions to China. William Nguyen, from Houston, was arrested June 10 during protests in the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City against a proposed law on special economic zones that many say would benefit Chinese investors. A court official said that Nguyen, who is of Vietnamese descent, admitted to the violation and showed remorse, which resulted in a lenient sentence. He had faced up to seven years in prison. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted later Friday that he was "tremendously pleased" Nguyen would be returning home to his family. Six Vietnamese have been sentenced to up to 2 1/2 years in prison for the protest and more are awaiting trial. The protest was one of several in the country concerning three special economic zones, where according to proposed legislation, land could be rented for up to 99 years. The passage of the law was postponed to allow more research. Mistrust of China runs deep in Vietnam, one of the most outspoken critics of Chinese construction and militarization of artificial islands in the South China Sea's disputed waters. Anti-Chinese riots in 2014 left four people dead and more than 100 injured. ___ Associated Press writer Deb Riechmann contributed to this report from Aspen, Colorado. FILE - In this Friday, April 21, 2017, file photo, an airstrip, structures and buildings on China's man-made Subi Reef in the Spratly chain of islands in the South China Sea are seen from a Philippine Air Force C-130 transport plane of the Philippine Air Force. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File) FILE - In this Sunday, July 1, 2012, file photo, about 200 protesters march through the capital's streets, in Hanoi Vietnam, following China's recent announcement that it will open nine oil and gas lots to international bidders, even though the area overlaps with Vietnam's current foreign exploration contracts. (AP Photo/Margie Mason) ISLAMABAD (AP) - The political party of Pakistan's jailed former prime minister asked authorities on Monday to urgently move Nawaz Sharif to a hospital, saying his health was deteriorating rapidly and that he needed to be treated by his own doctors. The request by Pervaiz Rashid, spokesman for the Pakistan Muslim League party, came shortly before a team of doctors visited the jail in the garrison city of Rawalpindi where Sharif is detained to examine the ousted leader. Sharif, who has a history of heart disease, underwent open-heart surgery at a hospital in London in 2016. He has been held at the jail since July 13, when he returned from London to face a 10-year prison sentence on corruption charges. He has appealed that verdict. The party, Rashid said, is not "seeking any concession" for Sharif but insists he should have the right to be treated by his doctor. "Sharif should be allowed to be treated at a medical facility of his choice under the supervision of his doctor," Rashid told The Associated Press, adding that the party was extremely worried about Sharif's health. Pakistan's mostly ceremonious President Mamnoon Hussain also appealed on Sharif's behalf, asking caretaker Prime Minister Nasir-ul-Mulk to ensure the jailed former leader gets adequate medical treatment. The development came as candidates in the country's parliamentary elections were wrapping up their campaigning, which is to end at midnight. Pakistanis will go to the polls on Wednesday to elect the 342-seat National Assembly, the law-making lower house of parliament, and the four provincial legislatures. Opposition leader and legendary cricket player Imran Khan and Shahbaz Sharif, the brother of the jailed former premier, as well as other candidates were expected to address their final rallies in eastern Punjab province, Pakistan's most populous. Nawaz Sharif has been barred from holding public office following his ouster last July by the country's Supreme Court over corruption charges. In an audio message from his prison cell, Sharif called on people to vote for his Pakistan Muslim League party. "Vote massively for PML-N to change the fate of the country and to defeat the forces who have played havoc with justice in this country," said Sharif. His party has alleged that Pakistan's powerful military establishment was supporting Khan for the post of next prime minister - an allegation the military denies, stressing it is not interfering in politics or backing any one party. Wednesday's vote has been marred by stepped-up violence. A Taliban suicide bombing on Sunday in northwestern Pakistan killed a candidate running for a seat in the provincial assembly from Khan's party and his driver and wounded three other people. The slain candidate, Ikramullah Gandapur, was buried Monday in Dera Ismail Khan. Earlier this month, a provincial assembly candidate was killed in a massive suicide bombing in Mastung district in southwestern Baluchistan province, along with 148 people. Also, in the northwestern city of Peshawar, a suicide bombing this month killed another provincial assembly candidate and 20 others. A South Carolina dentist's submission in the viral dance challenge based on Drake's latest No. 1 hit has a lot of potential patients in their feelings. News outlets report Dr. Rich Constantine uploaded his take on the 'In My Feelings' challenge, a dance craze originated by Instagram comedian TheShiggyShow. Called In My Fillings, the video has racked up more than 49 million views in the four days since it went up July 19. Rich Constantine, 37, posted the video of his sexy dance on social media Rich has been married to his wife, Trish, for 14 years. They met during their sophomore year at Ohio University The video on Constantine Dental's Facebook page has more than 170,000 comments, many from people willing to inflict some damage to their mouths and travel to South Carolina to avail of Constantine's dentistry services. Rich told Yahoo Lifestyle: 'The women in my office challenged me to make the video, but it was a little outside my comfort zone, so I waited until everyone went to lunch so the office would be empty.' Speaking on Good Morning America on Monday morning said he just wanted to calm his patients' nerves by doing a fun dance and joining in on a viral challenge. Now he's reaching tens of millions. 'You know we get that coming to the dentist isn't always something that people look forward to, but feel that the more our patients get to know us and see a side of us that they may not otherwise see. 'We like to do fun things at the office to keep the atmosphere light and to make patients smile.' The video has since been viewed some 49 million times Constantine took to the floor in his surgery to perform a rendition of rapper Drake's In My Feelings appropriately re-titled In My Fillings 'It was surreal! I've never seen anything like that before. I've maybe gotten a couple thousand views before at best. That's it. I never expected anything like this.' 'I thought a few people in Greenville, South Carolina, might see it, and a few of my friends and family members. But I had no idea that it would get legs like it did and take off.' 'A lot of my colleagues and classmates from school have texted or called me. People that I see daily and also people that I haven't seen for days have reached out to tell me that they've seen it,' he added. 'He's fine, OMG,' wrote one Facebook commenter. Few things in life better than a hottie doctor,' wrote another. Many people claimed to suddenly be overdue for dental checkups.' 'I'm contemplating knocking my teeth out,' wrote one person. 'I need my husband to drive me here bc I may be too weak from the fillings needed after I eat all this sugar,' another besotted viewer wrote. 'I'm changing my dentist to this one!' Rich struts down the corridor of his surgery before busting out his moves Women started to post online saying they were contemplating 'knocking their teeth out' for a chance to meet the charming dentist Constantine says he isnt much of a dancer, but decided to do the challenge anyway in an effort to showcase his "fun" side. Lest anyone think the Greenville dentist would like to attract anything other than new patients, Constantine cautions he's been happily married for 13 years. His wife also doesn't mind the fact he's become an overnight internet sensation. 'She loves it,' he said, adding: 'I usually perform at weddings with a little liquid courage, but my wife and I have dance battles at home.' The #InMyFeelings dance challenge has been doing the rounds since June after Drake released his 'new No. 1 double album Scorpion'. Then comedy star Shiggy posted a video of himself on a street dancing to the chart-topping hit, which he captioned with the hashtag #DoTheShiggy. When Shiggy met Drake, the rapper then recorded a video in which he thanked the comic for helping to boost the popularity of his song. The #DoTheShiggy dance challenge was renamed the #InMyFeelingsChallenge and it has since has gone worldwide. JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Activists on Monday criticized a six-month prison sentence given to a 15-year-old Indonesian girl who had an abortion after being repeatedly raped by her brother. The district court in Muara Bulian in Jambi province also sentenced the girl's 18-year-old brother on Thursday to two years' imprisonment for having sex with a minor. Erasmus Napitupulu, program director of the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform, said the court did not take into account the reason for the abortion. "The court may decide that she is guilty of having an abortion, but if we see the background that encouraged her to do so, do we need to punish her?" Napitupulu said. "Yes, she violated the law, but she should not be held accountable." Zubaidah, director of the Embun Pagi Women's School in Jambi, said the girl's sentence was unfair and violated the Child Protection Law. "It is an incest case that has to be seen more comprehensively than merely an abortion," said Zubaidah, who uses one name. Abortion is illegal in Indonesia but is allowed in cases of rape, especially if the woman's life is at risk. However, the abortion must take place within 1 1/2 months of becoming pregnant and be performed by professionals. The girl had her abortion when she was six months' pregnant, court spokesman Listyo Arif Budiman said. "The judge panel concluded that in spite of being underage, the defendant should have protected the fetus, should have given the fetus the right to life," Budiman said. He noted that because of their ages, the panel ruled that the girl and her brother must undergo rehabilitation at the Institute for Special Education of Children. Testimony in court said the girl had been raped eight times since September. In May, residents discovered a headless fetus behind their house near a palm oil plantation. Police made the arrests in June. The girl's mother, who faces charges of aiding the abortion, helped her daughter out of fear of being shamed by neighbors, said Singgih Hermawan, the deputy police chief. The defendants and their lawyers accepted the sentences. It was not clear whether prosecutors, who had demanded a one-year sentence for the girl and seven years for her brother, would appeal the sentences. Media reports said villagers who saw the case as incest have decided to banish the siblings from the village. ___ This story has been corrected to show that first name of Napitupulu is Erasmus instead of Easmus. BERLIN (AP) - Britain's top diplomat warned Monday that the country could crash out of the European Union next year without an agreement on future relations with Brussels because of the hard line taken by EU negotiators. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt told reporters in Berlin after meeting German counterpart Heiko Maas that "there is now a very real risk of a Brexit no deal by accident." "This is because I think that many people in the EU are thinking they just have to wait long enough and Britain will blink," he said. "And that's not going to happen." German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, right, and his counterpart from Britain Jeremy Hunt, left, brief the media after a meeting at the foreign ministry in Berlin, Germany, Monday, July 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber) Big differences remain between Brussels and London over the terms of a new trade setup and the issue of how to regulate the U.K.'s only land border with the EU, between the U.K.'s Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic. A substantial number of lawmakers in British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party party favor a complete break with the EU - a so-called "hard" Brexit - rather than the "soft" option proposed by May, which calls for a "common rule book" with European nations that would govern trade in goods. Hunt, on his first bilateral visit since coming to office, said "Germany is not just one of Britain's best friends in Europe but one of our best friends in the world." He insisted that the trip to Berlin "is not about a charm offensive." Still, London appears to want to win over the leaders of Europe's biggest economy to put pressure on EU negotiators to avoid a messy split. "Without a real change of approach from the EU negotiators we do now face a real risk of no deal by accident. And that will be incredibly challenging economically," said Hunt. "Britain will find that challenging but in the end we will find a way not just to survive but to thrive economically," he said. "But my real concern is that it will change British public attitudes to Europe for a generation." Maas said his country "doesn't want a disorderly Brexit. We want a deal." But he acknowledged that on the Irish border issue, at least, "further talks will be necessary to reach practical solutions." Maas declined to comment on the threat from Britain's lead negotiator on Brexit that London might not pay its 39 billion pound ($51 billion) divorce bill if no trade agreement with the EU is reached. The EU parliament as well as national parliaments of EU nations and Britain need to ratify a deal before the U.K. leaves in March. ___ Follow Frank Jordans on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/wirereporter German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, background, and his counterpart from Britain Jeremy Hunt, foreground, arrive for a news conference after a meeting at the foreign ministry in Berlin, Germany, Monday, July 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber) NYON, Switzerland (AP) - Two-time European champion Benfica has been drawn against Fenerbahce in the Champions League third qualifying round. As runner-up in the Portuguese league last season, Benfica fell into the qualifying rounds because Russia's league is now ranked more highly and has three entries. Spartak Moscow, which placed third in Russia last season, was drawn Monday to play PAOK Thessaloniki or Basel, which play their second qualifying round games this week and next. Four-time European champion Ajax must beat Sturm Graz to play Standard Liege in the third qualifying round. Also, Celtic or Rosenborg will take on AEK Athens, and Slavia Prague meets Dynamo Kiev. First-leg games are played Aug. 7-8, and return games are Aug. 14. Winners advance to the Champions League playoff round. YORK, S.C. (AP) - Authorities say a convicted sex offender thought he was sending nude pictures through Instagram to a teen girl in Arizona - who turned out to be a police officer in Arkansas. Twenty-seven-year-old Robert Michael Shipman is charged with 10 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of attempted dissemination of pornography to a minor. South Carolina Attorney General's Office spokesman Robert Kittle tells The Herald that Shipman contacted someone he thought was a 16-year-old girl through Instagram. He sent and received nude photos, but was actually corresponding with a police officer in Conway, Arkansas. A search of Shipman's electronics then yielded child pornography. Shipman was convicted of criminal sexual conduct against minors in 2012. It's unclear whether he has a lawyer. ___ Information from: The Herald, http://www.heraldonline.com HELSINKI (AP) - Swedish officials say the country's wildfires remain a serious situation, with the continuing hot and extremely dry weather making firefighting efforts very hard despite broad international help. Britta Ramberg, operative director of the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, which is coordinating firefighting efforts, said Monday said that the risk of new blazes is now particularly high in southern Sweden. No deaths or injuries have been reported so far. Dozens of French soldiers arrived early Monday to help international firefighting crews battling some 50 wildfires raging since last week, mostly in central and western Sweden but some also in the Arctic north. The burned trunks of trees are seen after a major forest fire in Angra, Ljusdal municipality, Sweden, Sunday July 22, 2018. Sweden is fighting its most serious wildfires in decades - including blazes above the Arctic Circle - prompting the government to seek help from the military, hundreds of volunteers and other European nations. (Mats Andersson/TT News Agency via AP) France, Italy and Norway have dispatched water-bombing planes, helicopters and staff. Germany, Lithuania and Portugal have also pledged assistance, while Poland sent 139 firefighters and 44 fire trucks. ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Gale-fanned wildfires raged through holiday resorts near Greece's capital, killing at least 24 people by early Tuesday and injuring more than 100, including 11 in serious condition, in the country's deadliest fire season in more than a decade. Greece sought international help through the European Union as the fires on either side of Athens left lines of cars torched, charred farms and forests, and sent hundreds of people racing to beaches to be evacuated by navy vessels, yachts and fishing boats. Winds reached 80 kph (50 mph) as authorities deployed the country's entire fleet of water-dropping planes and helicopters to give vacationers time to escape. Military drones remained in the air in the high winds to help officials direct more than 600 firefighters on the ground. A firefighter sprays water on the fire in the town of Mati, east of Athens, Monday, July 23, 2018. Regional authorities have declared a state of emergency in the eastern and western parts of the greater Athens area as fires fanned by gale-force winds raged through pine forests and seaside settlements on either side of the Greek capital. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) "We were unlucky. The wind changed and it came at us with such force that it razed the coastal area in minutes," said Evangelos Bournous, mayor of the port town of Rafina, a sleepy mainland port that serves Greek holiday islands. The dock area became a makeshift hospital as paramedics checked survivors when they came off coast guard vessels and private boats. The operation continued through the night. The death toll rose further after the coast guard counted four bodies recovered at sea, a short distance from the fires. At daybreak Tuesday, Ambulance Service deputy director Miltiadis Mylonas said the number of casualties was likely to rise as the more gutted homes and cars were checked. "It took people by surprise and the events happened very fast. Also, the fires broke out on many fronts, so all these factors made the situation extremely difficult," he said. "The task we face now is organizing the identification of victims by members of their families." The fire posed no immediate threat to Greece's famed ancient monuments, but as it raged inland where children's' summer camps and holiday homes were hastily abandoned. Fleeing drivers clogged highways into the capital, hampering the firefighting effort, and flecks of ash swirled onto central Athens. It was the deadliest fire season to hit Greece in more than a decade. More than 60 people were killed in 2007 when huge fires swept across the southern Peloponnese region. "It's a difficult night for Greece," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said after flying back to Athens from a trip to Bosnia that was cut short. Authorities said Cyprus and Spain offered assistance after the request for EU help was made. Greek Fire Service officials issued public pleas for residents in fire-affected areas to comply with evacuation orders and not stay on in an effort trying to save their homes. Rafina's mayor said he believed about 100 houses in that area had burned. The fire service was not able to confirm the figure. Showers that passed over the Greek capital Monday missed the two big fires - one at Rafina, 30 kilometers (18 miles) to the east, and the other at Kineta, 55 kilometers (35 miles) to the west. Heavy rain is forecast across southern Greece on Wednesday. Forest fires are common in Greece during the hot, dry summers, and temperatures recently hit highs up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit). ___ Associated Press writer Costas Kantouris in Thessaloniki contributed to this report. ___ Derek Gatopoulos on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dgatopoulos Elena Becatoros on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ElenaBec A house burns in the town of Mati, east of Athens, Monday, July 23, 2018. Regional authorities have declared a state of emergency in the eastern and western parts of the greater Athens area as fires fanned by gale-force winds raged through pine forests and seaside settlements on either side of the Greek capital. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) People stand in the sea near to cars parked on the beach to protect them from the fire in the town of Mati, east of Athens, Monday, July 23, 2018. Regional authorities have declared a state of emergency in the eastern and western parts of the greater Athens area as fires fanned by gale-force winds raged through pine forests and seaside settlements on either side of the Greek capital. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) A firefighter sprays water on the fire in the town of Mati, east of Athens, Monday, July 23, 2018. Regional authorities have declared a state of emergency in the eastern and western parts of the greater Athens area as fires fanned by gale-force winds raged through pine forests and seaside settlements on either side of the Greek capital. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Buildings burn in the town of Mati, east of Athens, Monday, July 23, 2018. Regional authorities have declared a state of emergency in the eastern and western parts of the greater Athens area as fires fanned by gale-force winds raged through pine forests and seaside settlements on either side of the Greek capital. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) LONDON (AP) - A furor has erupted over leaked documents showing that British officials are not requiring their U.S. counterparts to provide assurances that two alleged British jihadis linked to the Islamic State group will not be executed if they are eventually put on trial in the United States. The Daily Telegraph said Monday it had seen a letter from Home Secretary Sajid Javid to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions concerning two individuals who have been in custody in Kurdish-controlled northeastern Syria since their capture in eastern Syria in January. The two men, Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, were allegedly part of a notorious cell of British jihadis known for their barbaric treatment of hostages. They got the nickname "the Beatles" because of their British accents. The most prominent member of the group, known as "Jihadi John," was killed in a 2015 drone strike. FILE- In this file photo dated Friday, March 30, 2018, a Kurdish security officer escorts Alexanda Kotey, left, and El Shafee Elsheikh, who were allegedly among four British jihadis who made up a brutal Islamic State cell dubbed "The Beatles," at a security center in Kobani, Syria. According to leaked documents revealed Monday July 23, 2018, British officials are not requiring their U.S. counterparts to provide assurances that Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, will not be executed if convicted in U.S.. Britain typically does not send prisoners to other countries if they face possible execution. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, FILE) In 2014 and 2015, the group held more than 20 Western hostages in Syria and tortured many of them. It beheaded seven American, British and Japanese journalists and aid workers and a group of Syrian soldiers, boasting of the butchery in grisly videos. The disclosure prompted an emergency debate in Parliament. Labour Party legislator Diane Abbott called on the government to change course. "This decision to abandon our principled opposition to the death penalty is both abhorrent and shameful, and I call on ministers even at this late stage to reverse this decision." Defending the government's position, Security Minister Ben Wallace said it would not be right to withhold evidence in such a heinous case. "We should not forget that the crimes that we're talking about involve the beheading and videoing of those beheading dozens of innocent people by one of the most abhorrent organizations walking this Earth," he said. Wallace said the government risks "being seen as hypocrites" if it never makes an exception in its demands for assurances that the death penalty will not be used but uses lethal force to kill people in battle. The newspaper says Javid told Sessions that Britain would not seek "assurances" that the two would not be executed, which has caused controversy because Britain is a longstanding opponent of the death penalty. Britain typically does not send prisoners to other countries if they face possible execution. Amnesty International U.K. spokesman Allan Hogarth said Britain should not abandon its opposition to the death penalty despite the appalling crimes that Kotey and Elsheikh are accused of. "This is a deeply worrying development," he said. "The Home Secretary must unequivocally insist that Britain's longstanding position on the death penalty has not changed and seek cast iron assurances from the U.S. that it will not be used." The discussion between the two countries involves Britain providing information that might be used against the two in a future prosecution in the United States. A spokeswoman for British Prime Minister Theresa May said she is aware of the letter. The spokeswoman says Britain remains opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances but views it as a "priority" to make sure these two men face criminal prosecution. The two suspects were interviewed by The Associated Press in Kobani, Syria, in March and said they could not get a fair trial. They were captured by the Kurdish-led, U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces amid the collapse of IS. carlballou/iStock/Thinkstock(LOS ANGELES) -- The suspected gunman who burst into a Trader Joe's in Los Angeles on Saturday, took hostages and got into a shootout with police that left a woman dead was identified Sunday. Police said Gene Evin Atkins, 28, was the man who held officers at bay for three hours on Saturday and engaged in a gunbattle in which the store manager was killed when she was caught in the crossfire. Atkins was booked in the Los Angeles County jail on suspicion of murder. He could be arraigned as early as Monday and will likely face additional charges, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department told ABC News. He was being held on $2 million bail. The slain manager of the Trader Joe's, located in the Silver Lake section of Los Angeles, was identified by her brother as Melyda Corado. "I'm sad to say she didnt make it. My baby sister. My world," Corado's brother, Albert Corado, wrote on Twitter late Saturday. Albert Corado tweeted again on Sunday, saying he "missed his sister" and that their father was "doing his best to keep it together." "I miss my sister. I wish this wasnt happening. Feels good to be with family, though. My dad is doing his best to keep it together. I am, too. Family is coming to visit from as far away as Australia. #MelydaCorado you were immensely loved." The Silver Lake store remained closed Sunday to give Corado's co-workers time to process the tragedy, the company said in a statement. "Yesterday marks the saddest day in Trader Joe's history as we mourn the loss of one of our own," the company's statement reads. The episode began around 1:30 p.m. on Saturday when Atkins got into an argument at a South Los Angeles residence with his grandmother and allegedly shot her seven times, police said. The grandmother, whom relatives identified for ABC News as Mary Elizabeth Madison, was at a hospital in stable condition on Sunday. After allegedly shooting Madison, Atkins shot and wounded a young woman, whose name was not released, at the South Los Angeles residence, forced her into his grandmother's car and drove off. The car was equipped with LoJack tracking technology, which police used to locate the suspect, officials said. When police tried to stop the car a chase ensued, officials said. During the high-speed pursuit, Atkins allegedly fired at officers, shattering the rear window of the car he was driving, police said. He eventually crashed in front of the Trader Joe's and ran inside. LAPD Chief Michel Moore told the Los Angeles Times that Corado was killed as she was exiting the store during the shootout. It is unclear if the fatal shot was fired by the gunman or a police officer, he said. Police said Atkins was shot in the arm during the firefight. Once inside the store, Atkins allegedly took shoppers and store employees hostage, police said. Following a three-hour standoff, Atkins exited the store and surrendered to police. At least six people, ranging from age 12 to 81, who were held hostage were treated at a hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. BEIJING (AP) - Chinese leaders are scrambling to shore up public confidence and oversight of the pharmaceutical industry after a rabies vaccine maker was found faking records, the latest in a slew of public health and safety scandals that have outraged Chinese parents. Premier Li Keqiang said in a statement Sunday that Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences Ltd., which is accused of fabricating production and inspection records, "violated a moral bottom line." He pledged an immediate investigation of the company and to "resolutely crack down" on violations that endanger public safety. President Xi Jinping echoed those remarks, while police in Changchun, a city in northeastern China, announced that the company's chief executive and four other executives had been placed under investigation. In this April 25, 2017, photo, a baby receives a vaccine shot next to a poster which reads "Standardize vaccination and build a healthy China" at a hospital in Handan in north China's Hebei province. China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a rabies vaccine producer prompted a public outcry following scandals over shoddy drugs and food. (Chinatopix via AP) Li's remarks were aimed at assuaging Chinese parents who complain about worrying over fake food, milk and medicine in a society that seems to lack a "moral bottom line" - and also competent, uncorrupt regulators. "Defective vaccines are like child abuse and trafficking - it touches on the most sensitive, vulnerable part of the public's hearts," wrote Xi Po, a columnist for The Paper, a popular online news outlet backed by the Shanghai government. "But unlike in cases of child abuse, the vaccine scandals involve layers and layers of broken regulators and interest groups." There were no reports of injuries due to the rabies vaccine, but the disclosure has ricocheted around social media, touching a raw nerve for Chinese parents. Two years ago, a similar scandal erupted after police broke up a criminal ring that had sold millions of faulty baby vaccines - but did not disclose the case for months. Regulators announced last week that Changchun Changsheng, China's second-largest rabies vaccine manufacturer, was ordered to stop production and recall its rabies vaccine. Days later, provincial authorities in northeast China announced that batches of DPT, or diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus, vaccine were found to be defective. More than 250,000 doses of the DPT vaccine had been sold, China's state broadcaster reported. Public anger ratcheted up swiftly over the weekend following a report by an anonymous author disclosing that regulators found production problems at Changchun Changsheng as early as November but did not publicize their findings or announce a recall until July. The post was widely shared and was censored by Sunday even as Chinese leaders launched a public relations response. In his statement, Li acknowledged the government's lapse and pledged to punish offenders and regulators found in "dereliction of duty." State media chimed in, with the China Daily urging the government to handle the matter in a "transparent manner," while the Communist Party-owned Global Times called on authorities to "follow up on people's security demands, and supervise and regulate more effectively." Government censors have employed a relatively light touch, allowing online news outlets like The Paper and Caixin to pursue the story while giving internet users some space to vent their frustration. By Monday afternoon, the hashtag "Changchun Changsheng makes fake vaccines" had garnered more than 100 million views on Weibo. The company's phone lines were busy for several hours on Monday and executives could not be reached for comment. Yang Yuze, another writer at The Paper, bluntly questioned whether national policies to prop up pharmaceutical companies were "opening the door" to corruption. "The main problem is insufficient regulation, missing regulation, powerless regulation," Yang wrote. "It's easy to see how (lax regulation of the vaccine industry) are fig leafs and excuses for the transaction of money and power." ___ AP Business Writer Joe McDonald contributed to this report. FILE - In this Sept. 11, 2010 file photo, a child cries while receiving a shot of measles vaccine at a health station in Hefei in central China's Anhui province. China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a rabies vaccine producer prompted a public outcry following scandals over shoddy drugs and food. (Chinatopix via AP) A hospital staff walks past a poster with information on rabies vaccine in Beijing, China, Monday, July 23, 2018. China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a rabies vaccine producer prompted a public outcry following scandals over shoddy drugs and food. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) MILAN (AP) - The Latest on the sudden replacement of Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne (all times local): 2:55 p.m. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles says that the executive in charge of its business in Europe and the Middle East has resigned following long-time CEO Sergio Marchionne's early exit due to his deteriorating health. FILE - In this Friday, June 1, 2018 file photo, Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne speaks during a press conference at the FCA headquarter, in Balocco, Italy. The boards of Fiat Chrysler, Ferrari and CNH Industrial have been called to meet in Italy in light of CEO Sergio Marchionne's surgery. The three boards were summoned to separate meetings in Turin on Saturday, July 21 amid the prolonged convalescence of Marchionne, who had shoulder surgery three weeks ago in Switzerland. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, file) Alfredo Altavilla resigned Monday, days after the board named the head of Jeep, Mike Manley, to replace the 66-year-old Marchionne as CEO after 14 years in the role. Altavilla, 54, was considered one of the top contenders for the job, and played a key role in the talks for Fiat to acquire Chrysler. Shares in FCA were down 3 percent as investors reacted to Marchionne's premature exit. FCA said Manley would run Europe on an interim basis. Manley was leading his first executive council meeting in Turin ahead of second-quarter earnings Wednesday. ___ 9:25 a.m. Shares in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles have dropped 4 percent in the first trading since news that the Italian-American automaker's longtime CEO, Sergio Marchionne, has been replaced unexpectedly due to complications from surgery. FCA shares opened Monday at 15.70 euros in volatile Milan trading. The losses weighed on the Milan stock exchange overall, where the heft of FCA pulled down the benchmark FTSE MIB by nearly 1 percent. The FCA board on Saturday named long-time Jeep executive Mike Manley as CEO, accelerating a transition that was planned for early next year. The company said the 66-year-old Marchionne suffered complications from shoulder surgery last month that meant he cannot resume his duties. Boards also named replacements for Marchionne as Ferrari CEO and CNH Industrial chairman. FILE - In this Friday, May 21, 2010 file photo, Chrylser CEO Sergio Marchionne, left, is seen with Jeep brand President and CEO Mike Manley at the Jefferson North Assembly Plant, in Detroit. Fiat Chrysler's board recommends Jeep executive Mike Manley to replace seriously ill CEO Sergio Marchionne, Saturday, July 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) FLINT, Mich. (AP) - Authorities have released the names of two men whose bodies were found under a door floating in the Flint River in eastern Michigan, and they say two more suspects have been arrested in the case. Police said Tuesday that the bodies of 32-year-old Rodney Harden Jr. and 19-year-old Tedmundo Meeks were found near a riverbank on July 12 by a fisherman who moved the door so his line wouldn't get tangled. Twenty-four-year-old Robert Wheeler Jr. already faces first-degree murder and other charges in the case. He's jailed without bond. Wheeler has said he'll hire an attorney, but none was listed Monday in court records. Flint Police investigate after two bodies were found along the bank of the Flint River on Thursday, July 12, 2018, under the I-475 overpass near the intersection of Lyman Street and Riverside Drive on Flint's east side, in Mich. (Jake May/The Flint Journal via AP) Detective Sgt. Tyrone Booth confirmed the two additional arrests Sunday and said the suspects are expected to be arraigned this week. Their names haven't been released. Flint Police investigate after two bodies were found along the bank of the Flint River on Thursday, July 12, 2018, under the I-475 overpass near the intersection of Lyman Street and Riverside Drive on Flint, Michigan's east side. ( Jake May/The Flint Journal via AP) BEIRUT (AP) - Lebanon's army says eight people have been killed and 41 others arrested in a raid in Brital, in eastern Lebanon, to arrest a well-known drug dealer. The army said Ali Zeid Ismael was wanted on dozens of arrest warrants including drug running, kidnapping, and murder. An army officer said it was not clear if Ismael was killed in the Monday raid. The official said Ismael was not arrested. He requested anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media. Brital is well-known for its trade in drugs and smuggling with Syria. Lebanon's parliament speaker, Nabih Berri, said his office is considering whether to legalize hashish to raise tax revenue for the country. The crop is farmed intensively in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley region. ATLANTA (AP) - A Georgia lawmaker is seen using racial slurs and dropping his pants in an episode of Sacha Baron Cohen's Showtime series "Who Is America?". In Sunday night's broadcast , Republican Rep. Jason Spencer of Woodbine repeatedly uses a racial slur for African Americans and later exposes his bottom after being told it helps scare away Muslim terrorists. Spencer lost in the May primary but his term doesn't end until his replacement takes over after the November election. But The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Georgia House Speaker David Ralston has called for Spencer to resign. "Representative Spencer has disgraced himself and should resign immediately," Ralson said. "Georgia is better than this." The newspaper reports Spencer had earlier threatened legal action to prevent the network from airing footage of him. In a statement Monday, Spencer apologized for the "ridiculously ugly episode" but he refused to step down from office. In the episode, Cohen played an Israeli military expert and told Spencer to take part in what he was told was a counterterrorism video. Spencer is told to yell racial epithets and shimmy his exposed rear-end toward purported Muslim attackers screaming "USA" and "America." Cohen told Spencer the performance would ward off terrorists. Spencer said he thought the techniques would prevent "what I believed was an inevitable attack." Other Georgia leaders also criticized Spencer. "There is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever," Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said in a tweet, "and I am saddened and disgusted by it." The Islamic Council on American-Islamic Relations also called for Spencer's resignation. "The ignorance and malice behind Islamophobia has led Mr. Spencer to not only pursue bad policy, but engage in humiliating and hateful behavior unbecoming of anyone - especially a state legislator," said Edward Ahmed Mitchell, director of the group's Georgia chapter. Spencer faced calls for his resignation last year after he warned a black former state legislator that she won't be "met with torches but something a lot more definitive" if she continued to call for the removal of Confederate statues in southern Georgia, the newspaper reported. ___ An earlier version of this report had an incorrect spelling of Sacha Baron Cohen's name. NEWPORT, Vt. (AP) - Vermont has a reputation for producing GOP politicians more moderate than their national counterparts. But as President Donald Trump and the national Republican Party move to the right, tensions are rising between those who want the state party to follow suit and those who see moderation as the way forward in an otherwise liberal state. Kendall Lambert was seeking the Republican nomination for state representative in Orleans County, but in a July 5 Facebook post , Lambert announced that her decision to run as a Republican was a mistake. "While the Republicans talk out one side of their mouths about constitutional rights and equal opportunity for all, it's becoming increasingly clear that what they mean" is that the principles apply "only to a few," Lambert wrote. In this Thursday, July 12, 2018 photo, Kendall Lambert poses outside the offices of the Memphremagog Watershed Association in Newport, Vt., where she works as the organization's director. Lambert announced on July 5 that she would no longer seek the Republican nomination for state representative, citing concerns that the state Republican party was becoming less moderate. (AP Photo/David Jordan) Lambert, 31, is director of the Memphremagog Watershed Association. She holds liberal views on the environment, immigration and same-sex marriage but supports lower taxes, small government and broad gun rights. Libertarian may be a more accurate label for her politics, she said, but running as a Republican seemed the obvious choice. Lambert cited a June vote on a resolution condemning the separation of families at the U.S.-Mexican border as the "final straw" that informed her decision to run instead as an independent. While the resolution overwhelmingly passed in the Democrat-controlled House with some Republican support, the 17 no votes all came from Republicans, including four Orleans County Republicans. Chet Greenwood, chair of the Orleans County Republican Party, said many had assumed Lambert was a "Democrat in disguise." Both Greenwood and Lambert said her candidacy did not receive much support from the Republican caucus. Greenwood, a Trump supporter, said Democratic leaders in the Vermont House introduced the resolution because they wanted to embarrass conservative members of the Republican minority by forcing them to vote on a policy they cannot directly change. Many in the state support both Trump and moderate Republican Gov. Phil Scott, Greenwood said. But Scott himself has been a critic of Trump policies on everything from immigration to tariffs, sentiments echoed by many in the Vermont Republican Party. While she disagrees with Scott on some issues, Lambert said he represents the state's Republican voters better than Trump. "The Vermont Republican Party would do better to distance itself from the current administration and move behind Gov. Scott," Lambert said. Lambert is gathering signatures to run as an independent, but her name will still appear on the Republican primary ballot next month. Greenwood said he wasn't planning on making an endorsement but is now forced to endorse one of the "real Republicans" on the ballot. This is not the first time moderates and conservatives in the Republican Party have butted heads. In April, a party mailer encouraged supporters to "Make Vermont Great Again," echoing Trump's campaign slogan, an action that drew condemnation from many in the party. Republican Rep. Heidi Scheuermann tweeted at the time that the action left her "embarrassed" and "disappointed." The mailer came the same day Scott signed gun restrictions into law after an alleged school shooting plot in Fair Haven. The restrictions angered many of Scott's former supporters, and protestors clad in hunting apparel shouted through the bill-signing ceremony. Last month, the Vermont chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union asked the Scott administration to stop deleting comments and blocking conservative critics on Facebook. Rep. Robert LaClair, a Republican from Barre who is working to field candidates this fall, said the tension can in part be attributed to the Trump administration. "I'm not going to deny what's going on at the national level has made it a bit more challenging, for sure," LaClair said. The Vermont GOP continues to be a big-tent party, he said, even if Republicans have historically been moderate. While moderation may be political messaging in a state where a June Morning Consult poll found 59 percent of people disapprove of Trump's performance, Scott and some Republicans in the Legislature have aligned with Democrats on everything from marijuana legalization to gender-neutral restrooms. Tension between the factions may affect the makeup of the Legislature. Republicans have 53 members in the House, just enough to prevent a veto-proof Democratic majority, but a lack of support from independents during elections this November could affect the outcome in swing districts. Scott himself said last week there was "plenty of room" for those who oppose Trump in the Vermont GOP, but Lambert wasn't satisfied with his answer. NEW YORK (AP) - Meghan McCain's first instinct when approached to join "The View" was to say no - until her father, Sen. John McCain, convinced her to look past her trepidation to see the opportunity. In less than a year, she's become a reason to watch ABC's daytime talk show. McCain brings a feisty spirit to the conservative commentator role where predecessors frequently seemed overmatched and overlooked. She often reflects the views of President Donald Trump's supporters at a table and city where they are deeply unpopular, despite ample personal reasons to despise him. The past few weeks alone, McCain stared down the fury of Whoopi Goldberg to explain her opposition to abortion and labeled Robert De Niro "gross" for his Tony Awards denunciation of Trump. She feuded with a conservative guest who called Trump supporters cult-like, while likening the president to "a pathetic puppy who was completely neutered" for his appearance alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin. This Feb. 28, 2018 photo released by ABC shows Meghan McCain on the set of "The View," in New York. McCain brings a feisty spirit to the conservative commentator role where predecessors frequently seemed overmatched and overlooked. She often reflects the views of President Trump's supporters at a table and city where they are deeply unpopular. (Lou Rocco/ABC via AP) "She is smart, considered and utterly fearless," said Brian Teta, executive producer of "The View." Some bravery is necessary, since McCain's workplace defines the term "Manhattan liberal." When a comic warming up the studio audience before a show this month asked how many people were Republicans, he heard one whoop, some stray claps and mostly silence. That was before the panelists came out. Goldberg so detests Trump she won't say his name, preferring "the guy in the White House." The sharp-tongued Joy Behar says she's offended by Republicans. The show has spit out previous conservatives. Nicolle Wallace is a hit on MSNBC, but was a bad fit on "The View." Jedediah Bila lasted a year. Raise your hand if you remember Candace Cameron Bure. Elisabeth Hasselbeck had the most staying power until leaving for the comfort of Fox News. The 33-year-old McCain heard the stories. "This is no shade at women who have been here before, but I knew going in that I couldn't be intimidated by the others and their strong opinions," she said. "These are all smart, strong women. I had to stay true to my convictions and my politics and not let the physical audience in front of me, which is normally very liberal, or the audience on social media impact my politics. Because a lot of things I say are unpopular." Her abortion discussion with Goldberg stepped on the third rail of American politics. "I don't believe that murder should be legal in the United States of America and I believe abortion is murder," she said on the air. "It's really that simple." Squabbles with Behar draw the most attention. Seeing them develop is like watching a storm gathering; neither woman has a poker face. McCain erupted during a discussion about adult film actress Stormy Daniels when Behar joked, "Happy birthday, Melania." "Was that necessary?" McCain said. "Come on, that was so mean." She said Behar was making fun of the first lady's pain. "You have no sense of humor," Behar said, giving her co-host a dismissive wave. "That's your problem." When McCain urged her colleagues not to give Trump a blanket condemnation, and instead deal with different topics individually, Behar said, "there aren't that many years in my life to take him issue by issue." A discussion about what the hosts did during a Fourth of July week off exposed their cultural gap. McCain talked about tubing down a creek with her husband and downing Jello shots. Behar, 42 years her senior, didn't know what a Jello shot was. The show is clearly sensitive to any perception of personal animus; Goldberg last week referenced media reports that speculate about how people get along by showing a picture of Behar, McCain and co-host Sunny Hostin holding up glasses from a liquid lunch the day before. Backstage, McCain said she's developed a kinship with Behar since they're the show's most polarizing hosts. "I like her a lot," Behar said. "She's a very intelligent girl. She has qualities in her personality that I admire in myself. For example, she's very direct. She does not take hostages - she just says it and moves on and I like that about her." McCain said she believed that people at "The View" thought she was more moderate than she was, perhaps because she advocates for LGBT rights. She describes herself as a hard-core conservative. Others on the right who once considered her "squishy" now cheer her on, primarily because of the setting. Much like her former colleague Shepard Smith at Fox News Channel, McCain is in the position of delivering contrary points of view to people who don't often hear them. McCain and her family are no fans of Trump personally, given swipes at her father that began with a denigration of his POW status in the Vietnam War. She said her toughest day on the show followed reports of a former Trump aide, Kelly Sadler, dismissing Sen. McCain's opposition to a presidential appointment because he's "dying anyway" of brain cancer. McCain said that day that "I don't understand what kind of environment you're working in when that could be acceptable and you can come into work the next day and still have a job." Yet McCain feels that it's her job to make sure the voices of people who supported Trump are heard. "I'm trying to explain how we got here," she said, "because I'm not as surprised about Trump as I think the rest of my cast is ... I think he's going to be re-elected in 2020 easily unless the Democrats wake up to reality." It still felt somewhat surreal a few weeks ago when McCain took the side of Trump's fans in an argument with conservative commentator Tara Setmayer. McCain blew up at her for making reference to a "cult" of people who blindly follow Trump no matter what he says, suggesting that's disrespectful to the president's supporters A bemused Behar loved it. "I enjoy Republican on Republican crime," she quipped. Not one of McCain's finest shows, she came off as a bully. Setmayer didn't return messages seeking comment. Two of McCain's most memorable moments of the past year had nothing to do with political fights. Her takedown of "Fire & Fury" author Michael Wolff was well-researched and appeared to take him by surprise, given his initial dismissive attitude toward her. McCain couldn't hold back tears when former Vice President Joe Biden talked about his son's death from the same brain cancer that McCain's father has. Biden held her hand to comfort her. McCain said her father watches her every day on "The View," one way to remain close when he's miles away in Arizona. She's glad she took his advice. "My dad always says that a fight not joined is a fight not enjoyed, and I feel that way," she said. "I like the debate, and these are amazing adversaries to have every morning. That's fun." NEW YORK (AP) - The New York tabloid Daily News cut half of its newsroom staff Monday including Jim Rich, the paper's editor in chief. The paper was sold to Tronc Inc. last year for $1, with the owner of the Chicago Tribune assuming liabilities and debt. In an email sent to staff Monday, Tronc said the remaining staff at the Daily News will focus on breaking news involving "crime, civil justice and public responsibility." New York Daily News staff reporter Chelsia Rose Marcius cries as she is hugged by staff photographer Todd Maisel after they were both laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) The newspaper has been a key fixture in New York City for the last century. It has won 11 Pulitzer Prizes, including last year for its work with ProPublica on the abuse of eviction rules in New York City. There had been reports that the cuts were coming, and an early-morning tweet from Rich hinted at what was to come. "If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you," Rich wrote. New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo urged Tronc to reconsider the layoffs, saying they were made without notifying the state or asking for assistance. "I urge Tronc to reconsider this drastic move and stand ready to work with them to avert this disaster," Cuomo said in a printed statement. "I understand that large corporations often only see profit and dividends as a bottom line. But in New York, we also calculate loss of an important institution, loss of jobs, and the impact on the families affected. I hope Tronc does the same and recalculates its decision. New York State stands ready to help." The cuts also targeted the tabloid's social media staff, evidenced by its Twitter feed which began posting GIFs and memes that were later deleted. One GIF was of a confused John Travolta character in the film "Pulp Fiction." It garnered 8,000 likes and was retweeted more than 2,000 times. Revenue and print circulation have been sliding at the newspaper for years, even as it provided critical coverage of health issues in public housing and for first responders after the Sept. 11 attacks. Revenue slid 22 percent between 2014 and 2016, and the paper had already been letting people go. Tronc declined to say how many journalists lost their jobs Monday. "Since the year began, we've worked hard to transform the New York Daily News into a truly digitally-focused enterprise - one that creates meaningful journalism, delivers it more quickly and more frequently, and develops new approaches to engage our readers," Tronc said in an email that was sent to the newsroom. "We've gained a deeper understanding of our readership. We've redefined our structures. But we have not gone far enough." Managing Editor Kristen Lee was also ousted. Robert York, editor of Tronc-owned The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania, will take over as editor of the Daily News. "The reporters at the Daily News are some of the very best in the business. I am heartbroken for them today, and for New York," said New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood. "We need strong local newspapers to hold those in power to account." Tronc owns the Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, the Orlando Sentinel, and other media operations. It has clashed with the leadership of other newspapers it has acquired during heavy staff cuts, including the Los Angeles Times. The paper last month was returned to local ownership after nearly two decades of control by the company that is now known as Tronc. The Times once had more than 1,200 journalists and more than 25 foreign bureaus. Now it employs about 400 journalists with bureaus in Sacramento, Washington and a handful of foreign and national outposts. Shares of Tronc Inc., down about 8 percent this year, rose slightly in afternoon trading on the Nasdaq. Copies of the New York Daily News are for sale at a news stand in New York, Monday, July 23, 2018, after the paper told employees that the newspaper is reducing its editorial staff by 50 percent. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) New York Daily News staff photographer Todd Maisel takes a phone call outside the daily newspaper's office after being laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) New York Daily News staff photographers Todd Maisel, left, and Andrew Savulich walk out of the newspaper's office after being laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) New York Daily News photo assignment editor Reggie Lewis, left, and an unidentified coworker leave the newspaper's office after they were both laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) New York Daily News staff photographers Todd Maisel, left, and Andrew Savulich walk out of the daily newspaper's office after being laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) ATHENS, Greece (AP) - The ancient Acropolis has been closed to visitors for three hours due to a heatwave in the Greek capital. The Culture Ministry said the site in central Athens was closed Monday between 2:00 and 5:00 p.m. local time. Under Greek law, public sites can be closed if temperatures reach 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 F). Open from 8:00 a.m. till 8:00 p.m. (0600-1800 GMT), the Acropolis is Greece's most popular ancient site, with more than 2.7 million visits last year. Tourists try to cool off outside the ancient Acropolis hill in Athens, Monday, July 23, 2018. Greece's foremost tourist attraction, the ancient Acropolis in Athens, is closed to visitors at midday due to forecast high temperatures. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) A culture Ministry employee closes the entrance of the ancient Acropolis hill in Athens, Monday, July 23, 2018. Greece's foremost tourist attraction, the ancient Acropolis in Athens, is closed to visitors at midday due to forecast high temperatures. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) THE Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) has succeeded to control anthrax infections in the area, according to Deputy Conservator Dr Maurus Msuha. Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptoms begin between one day and two months after the infection is contracted. Characteristics of the skin form are a small blister with surrounding swelling that often turns into a painless ulcer with a black centre. The inhalation one is associated with fever, chest pain, and shortness of breath. The intestinal form is linked to diarrhoea which may contain blood, abdominal pains, and nausea and vomiting. In an area where humans, wildlife and livestock brush shoulders, infectious diseases are inevitable, but the management of Ngorongoro Conservation Area have managed to curb such maladies, including the deadly anthrax, Mr Msuha said. Meanwhile, the Maasai who earn their living by plaiting womens hair in Zanzibar, Morogoro and Dar-es-salaam, have been disowned by fellow community members here, who dismiss them as mere actors. We are taking this opportunity to warn those actors claiming to be members of the Maasai Community while in reality they neither speak the language, nor know our culture; dressing in Maasai shukas does not make one a Maasai, the Chairman of Ngorongoro Pastoralists Community, Mr Edward Maura, said. Speaking during the recent Tourism Investors Forum organised by the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Mr Maura expressed misgivings over the conduct of the presumed Maasai of Dar-es-salaam who operated as hair dressers, contrary to the communitys traditions, culture and dignity. Our morans take care of livestock, go hunting and conduct masculine chores such as protecting families and society against attacks from enemies or ferocious animals. It is a taboo for a Maasai man to get close to or become intimate with a woman who is not his wife and start plaiting her hair, fumed Mr Maura. He asked the authorities to deal with fake Maasai herbal medicine sellers who claimed to originate from Monduli, Simanjiro or Ngorongoro. FALLON, Nev. (AP) - Police in the rural northern Nevada town of Fallon were trying to determine why a 48-year-old man opened fire inside his Mormon church on Sunday, killing one man and injuring another. Fallon Police Chief Kevin Gehman said it does not appear that 48-year-old gunman John Kelley O'Connor was targeting the church but instead was focused on an individual victim. Charles E. "Bert" Miller, 61, was killed after O'Connor walked up to him and shot him, according to Miller's daughter. This undated photo provided by the Churchill County Sheriff's office shows John O'Conner. Police in the northern Nevada city of Fallon are trying to determine why O'Conner walked into his Mormon church on Sunday, July 22, 2018, and opened fire, killing one man and injuring another. (Churchill County Sheriff's Office via AP) Authorities have not released the name of a second man who was shot in the leg and treated at a hospital. O'Connor was charged with murder and battery with substantial harm and was being held at the Churchill County Jail on a $1,050,000 bond, the police chief said Monday morning. It wasn't immediately clear Monday if he had an attorney. No one could be reached to comment on his behalf at O'Connor's listed phone number. O'Connor sat in the church for at least part of the services before opening fire shortly after it started, city spokeswoman Kaitlin Ritchie said. She said city officials didn't have details about exactly where the two men were located. After the shooting, O'Connor walked to his home around the block from the church. Police and sheriff's deputies surrounded his home. A hostage negotiator spoke to O'Connor over the phone, and the man agreed to exit and surrender with his hands up, police said. Gehman said police seized a handgun that appeared to match one used at the church and several other items from O'Connor's home but did not yet know the man's motive. "We are trying to piece together the information we have to determine the reasons," Gehman told The Associated Press. Miller's daughter Heidi Ayers told the Deseret News that the family doesn't know what prompted the shooting. Ayers said her father shook O'Connor's hand before the meeting started and had been acquainted with the man for years. Ayers said her father was shot when he was sitting on a bench in the back with his brother and sister-in-law, who were visiting from Utah. His wife, who is being treated for cancer, was not in church but instead stayed home that day with a broken ankle, Ayers said. Miller was a 35-year veteran of the local volunteer fire department, according to police, and was also a mechanic and owner of an auto part store. His helmet and other fire equipment with his name were left at makeshift memorial at the fire department where the flag flew at half-staff on Monday. "He was one of the most selfless, soft-spoken, kind people I know," Ayers said of her dad. A church member, Steve White, told the newspaper that when the shooting started, "pandemonium broke out. People were screaming and hitting the ground." Jacquie Hettinger, who lives across the street from O'Connor, told The Associated Press that she's known him for more than a decade as a kind man who helped her care for her husband when he was sick. "I'm just devastated," Hettinger said. "I don't know what happened." Craig Health, 66, and his wife, Connie, have lived across the street from Miller for 25 years. He said he can't figure out why anyone would want to shoot him. "The whole neighborhood is in shock," Heath told AP on Monday. "He was always smiling, easy going," he said about the man who also was an active volunteer in the Boy Scouts. "He never had a bad word for anyone and if you needed help, he'd come over and help you out." There were about 50 people in the church at the time of the shooting. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not allow guns in church meetings. "We express our love to those in this congregation and our prayers for the victims and their families. Local leaders are ministering to them at this time," church spokesman Eric Hawkins said in a statement. Zachary Taylor, a neighbor of O'Connor's, said he didn't know the man well but often saw him working outside in his garage tinkering with a jet ski. "It's pretty shocking," Taylor said. "I saw him the day before the shooting and he didn't seem unstable or violent or particularly unhappy." O'Connor ran for the state Legislature in 2010 and 2014, first as a Democrat and then as a Libertarian. An archived version of his campaign website, accessed through the Internet Archive website, shows O'Connor campaigned in 2014 on a platform of increased term limits for public officials, less federal regulation of firearms and the transfer of public lands from the U.S. government to state control. O'Connor is scheduled to make his first court appearance later this week, Gehman said. Fallon is about 60 miles (96 kilometers) east of Reno and has a population of about 8,700 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. ___ Price reported from Las Vegas. A woman who would only identify herself as a niece of shooting victim Charles 'Bert' Miller, is joined by her children as she places flowers at a makeshift memorial Monday, July 23, 2018, in Fallon, Nev., outside the fire department where Miller was a longtime volunteer firefighter. Police in the northern Nevada city are trying to determine why a 48-year-old man walked into his Mormon church on Sunday, July 22, 2018, and opened fire, killing Miller and injuring another person. (AP Photo/Scott Sonner) A coroner has ruled William Bishop's death a homicide due to strangulation. He was found with a dog leash wrapped around his neck A real-estate developer's mysterious death has been ruled a homicide due to strangulation weeks after his son said he found his father with a dog leash wrapped around his neck and the dog nearby. The North Carolina Office of Chief Medical Examiner issued a report Friday saying 59-year-old William Bishop died from oxygen deprivation to the brain due to strangulation. The report, which noted ligature marks on the neck, classified the death as a homicide. According to the autopsy, one of Bishop's teenage sons called authorities the afternoon of April 18 and said he found his father unresponsive with the leash around his neck. Bishop succumbed to his injuries in the hospital on April 21, according to the autopsy. The boy told authorities the leash handle was in his father's hand and the approximately 60-pound Labrador retriever was attached to the leash nearby, the report said. However, the leash was no longer around Bishop's neck when officers arrived, and the boy told him that he had removed it, according to the report. The report also said the boy didn't perform CPR because he didn't think he could do so and stay on the phone with authorities due to lack of phone reception in the basement. The Herald-Sun first reported the autopsy release. No charges were filed as of Monday. Bishop was found in a chair less than two weeks after his divorce from the boy's mother was finalized, according to court documents. The mother was living elsewhere and didn't appear to be at the home when Bishop was found, as the son called her afterward. Bishop's 16-year-old son called 911 after finding Bishop in the basement of his home (pictured), with a dog leash wrapped around his neck and the family dog nearby on the other end Bishop had been granted permanent custody of his two sons in 2017 and was found dead just two weeks after the divorce from his wife, Sharon (pictured), was finalized Bishop's son said that he had been having trouble with his current girlfriend, Julie Seel (pictured with Bishop), but that he didn't believe that Bishop would do any harm to himself The medical examiner noted that Bishop had a history of depression and cancer, and that a 2012 accident had rendered his left arm 'largely functionless.' A toxicology report found no sign of alcohol or drugs. He was found in the basement of his home in a wealthy neighborhood less than a mile from one of the area's oldest country clubs. County records show the 4,000 square-foot house has an appraised value of around $800,000. When first responders arrived on the scene, the report said, an EMS worker said that Bishop's son 'pulled one of them to the side to say, "I feel weird because I dont feel bad he might die" and "My dad is abusive to me and my mom."' The teen allegedly told authorities that, in addition to going through a divorce, he had been having trouble with his new girlfriend, Julie Seel. However, the boy said that he didn't believe his father would try to kill himself. Bishop and his ex-wife, Sharon, had been separated since late 2016. They were married in 1998 in Florida, where Bishop had worked as a prominent developer. A phone listing for Sharon Bishop couldn't be found through a public records search. The couple has two boys, ages 17 and 16. William Bishop was granted permanent custody in 2017, according to court documents. The custody and divorce orders don't elaborate on what caused the couple to split up, but show that the wife signed onto the custody agreement. Bishop was a well-known developer in Florida's Hillsborough County where he's credited with creating several master-planned or gated communities, according to a Tampa Bay Times obituary. The newspaper said he moved to North Carolina in 2008 to pursue an advanced degree. After a search warrant was executed, authorities found that Bishop's son had used his phone to look up financial information, as well as how to calculate the value of an estate and gold, as well as how to transfer bank accounts after death, ABC 11 reported. In early July, court documents were released indicating that detectives found a receipt in the safe in his office for 25 pieces of gold with a value of about $463,000. Bishop's son is said to be part of the investigation and has hired a new lawyer. WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump is mischaracterizing newly released FBI documents on the agency's wiretapping of Carter Page, a onetime campaign adviser. Among his false claims is that the FBI relied on a politically tainted source and withheld that aspect from the court. The documents, available online after media outlets sued for their release, actually suggest the opposite. Here's a look at how Trump's tweets Monday run counter to the truth: TRUMP: "Carter Page wasn't a spy, wasn't an agent of the Russians - he would have cooperated with the FBI. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump." FILE - In a Nov. 2, 2017 file photo, Carter Page, a foreign policy adviser to Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, speaks with reporters following a day of questions from the House Intelligence Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Donald Trump claimed Sunday, July 22, 2018, that newly released documents relating to the wiretapping of his onetime campaign adviser Carter Page "confirm with little doubt" that intelligence agencies misled the courts that approved the warrant. But lawmakers from both parties say the documents don't show wrongdoing.(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) THE FACTS: Trump is quoting conservative activist Tom Fitton, who appeared on Fox News early Monday. But this assertion flatly contradicts the FBI's characterization of Page as "an agent of a foreign power." Page denied this description over the weekend. However, according to the FBI, Page "has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian Government" and Russia's goal was "to undermine and improperly and illegally influence the 2016 U.S. Presidential election." The documents state "the FBI believes that the Russian Government's efforts are being coordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals associated with" Trump's campaign. ___ TRUMP, on how he thinks the FBI persuaded a court to approve a wiretap of Page: "Source #1 was the major source. Avoided talking about it being the Clinton campaign behind it. Misled the Court to provide a pretext to SPY on the Trump Team. Not about Carter Page..was all about getting Trump....." THE FACTS: Again, Trump appears to be quoting Fitton. And again, the claims directly contradict findings by the FBI and what was known previously about the Russia probe. "Source #1" is widely believed to refer to Christopher Steele, a former British spy with extensive Russia connections. As a private consultant, Steele was hired to investigate Trump's ties to Russia as part of opposition research funded by Democrats. The result of that research was the now-famous "dossier" that provided a detailed narrative of how the Russian government supposedly collaborated with Trump's Republican campaign in an elaborate operation to tilt the 2016 presidential race in his favor. Trump and his supporters wrongly suggest that the FBI covered up the link between Steele's work and its Democratic funding, and they argue Steele can't be taken seriously because of those connections. The latest documents, however, plainly note the possible political motive behind hiring Steele: "The FBI speculates that the identified U.S. person was likely looking for information that could be used to discredit" Trump's campaign. Still, the FBI told the court, it has found Steele's "previous reporting history with the FBI" to be "reliable" and "credible." Trump's laser focus on Steele ignores other facts as well, including that Page had previously lived in Russia and was on the FBI's radar as early as 2013, when it suspected Russian intelligence agents were trying to recruit Americans. Also, by the time the FBI requested the wiretap on Page in October 2016, the agency's Russia probe was already in full swing. The investigation was initiated in July 2016, the same month Page went to Russia, where the FBI says he met "with at least two Russian officials during this trip." ___ TRUMP: "It was classified to cover up misconduct by the FBI and the Justice Department in misleading the Court by using this Dossier in a dishonest way to gain a warrant to target the Trump Team. This is a Clinton Campaign document. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump ...." THE FACTS: Wiretap requests are routinely classified to protect sources and methods, not to cover up misconduct by the FBI or Justice Department. Multiple news organizations, including The Associated Press, requested that the government release the documents under the Freedom of Information Act. The New York Times and others sued for its release, resulting in the documents being posted to the FBI's website. It's also not correct to call the Steele dossier a "Clinton Campaign document." Steele was hired by Fusion GPS, a private research firm that in turn was hired by a law firm that represented the Democratic campaign. But Clinton's closest aides said they didn't learn about the research until after the election, which is probable considering they never raised the allegations publicly. ___ Associated Press writer Eric Tucker contributed to this report. ___ Find AP Fact Checks at http://apne.ws/2kbx8bd Follow @APFactCheck on Twitter: https://twitter.com/APFactCheck SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) - Puerto Rico's governor is asking federal help for the U.S. territory's forensics institute, which is struggling with understaffing and a backlog of the handling of bodies. Ricardo Rossello said Monday that he has asked the secretary of the U.S. Health Department of Health and Human Services for up to two years' worth of technical support. He said it was unacceptable that people are waiting months for autopsy reports. Local legislators have launched an investigation into the island's Institute of Forensic Science following complaints including bad odors. Forensic officials recently declined to open five containers holding 76 bodies when legislators showed up for a surprise visit. An additional 259 bodies are kept inside the morgue. Overall, 56 bodies have been identified by relatives but remain unclaimed. BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) - In a radical reform of Argentina's defense doctrine, President Mauricio Macri said Monday he is removing a ban on military involvement in fighting crime, terrorist threats and other internal security issues. Macri said he will modify a 2006 decree that limited the armed forces to defense against attacks by another country. "It's important that they can collaborate in internal security, mainly by providing logistic support in the border zones," he said at a public act held at a military base. In this photo released by Argentina's presidential press office, Argentina's President Mauricio Macri, front right, walks with Defense Minister Oscar Raul Aguad at a military headquarters on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, July 23, 2018. Macri said Monday he's removing a ban on military involvement in fighting crime, terrorist threats and other internal security issues. Argentina's current defense doctrine was adopted with the country's 1976-1983 military dictatorship in mind. (Argentina's presidential press office via AP) "We need armed forces that are capable of facing the challenges of the 21st century, but we have an outdated defense system, the product of years of underinvestment and the absence of a long-term policy." Argentina's current defense doctrine was adopted with the country's 1976-1983 military dictatorship in mind. Human rights groups estimate up to 30,000 people were kidnapped, tortured or killed during that period. Human rights groups immediately criticized the decision, saying it could authorize military espionage, lead to repression and increase violence. "Involving the armed forces in security issues puts at risk the civil government and human rights ... we have to reject this reform and defend the strict separation between defense and security," said the Buenos Aires-based Center for Legal and Social Studies. Former Defense Minister Agustin Rossi said separating national defense from internal security has been a state policy since 1983 and should remain unchanged. "Involving the armed forces in drug trafficking issues is illegal. In countries like Colombia, Brazil and Mexico this failed, and is being carefully examined now," said Rossi, who was in the left-of-center administration of President Cristina Fernandez, who preceded the conservative Macri. The current defense minister, Oscar Aguad, defended the plan, saying the change seeks only to give logistical support to security forces, including those fighting drug trafficking in the northern border region with Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay. "We're trying to help them dissuade transnational groups from drug trafficking and terrorism to come into Argentina. They must block them from entering our territory," Aguad said. For now, the government plans to issue the changes through a decree instead of a bill sent to Congress. "We know that this transformation won't be easy," Macri said. "Profound changes are never easy. But this is the first step to build the modern, professional and equipped armed forces that Argentina needs." WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump is considering revoking the security clearances of six former top national security officials who have been critical of his administration, a move that opponents and experts say would be an unprecedented politicization of the clearance process. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that the president is "exploring the mechanisms" to strip clearance from former CIA Director John Brennan as well as five other former officials who have held some of the most sensitive positions in government: former FBI Director James Comey; James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence; former CIA Director Michael Hayden; former national security adviser Susan Rice; and Andrew McCabe, who served as Trump's deputy FBI director until he was fired in March. The leaders have served in both Democratic and Republican administrations, including Trump's. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House, Monday, July 23, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) Sanders accused the officials of having "politicized and in some cases monetized their public service and security clearances" by making "baseless accusations" that the Trump administration had improper contact with Russia or was influenced by Russia. "The fact that people with security clearances are making these baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence," she said. Sanders did not cite specific comments made by any of the officials. But the president has been seething over the backlash to his meeting last week with Russia's Vladimir Putin and the ongoing investigations into Russia's meddling in the 2016 election, whether his campaign aides were involved in the effort and whether he obstructed justice. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California, a ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, tweeted that "politicizing security clearances to retaliate against former national security officials who criticize the President would set a terrible new precedent." "An enemies list is ugly, undemocratic and un-American," he added. The threat to deny the officials access to classified information marks the latest escalation in the president's ongoing war with the members of the U.S. intelligence community. It came hours after Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky tweeted that he would be meeting with Trump to discuss revoking Brennan's clearance for his scathing criticism of the president's performance at the summit with Putin. "I told the president in private what I've been saying in public: that I think there's a great danger to having talking heads on TV who are ex-CIA agents and still have classified clearance," Paul said Monday evening in an appearance on Fox News. "There's a real danger they might inadvertently reveal classified information," he said. Former CIA directors and other top national security officials are typically allowed to keep their clearances, at least for some period, as a courtesy and so they can be in a position to advise their successors. At least one of the former officials, McCabe, does not currently have security clearance, his spokeswoman said. Experts appeared split on whether the president has the authority to unilaterally terminate a security clearance, but said such a move would be unprecedented and ill-advised. "Legalities aside, it seems like a terrible mistake to use the security clearance system as an instrument of political vendettas," said Steven Aftergood at the Federation of American Scientists' Project on Government Secrecy. While standing next to Putin, Trump last week openly questioned his own intelligence agencies' conclusions that Moscow tried to tip the scales of the 2016 election in his favor and seemed to accept Putin's insistence that Russia's hands were clean. Brennan slammed those comments as "nothing short of treasonous" and accused Trump of being "wholly in the pocket of Putin." Paul, in turn, has called Brennan "the most biased, bigoted, over-the-top, hyperbolic sort of unhinged director of the CIA we've ever had" in interviews with Fox. Clapper, reacting to the White House talk of revoking clearances, said on CNN that Trump's idea was "kind of a petty way of retribution, I suppose, for speaking out against the president, which I think, on the part of all of us, are borne out of genuine concerns about President Trump." Hayden tweeted Monday that revoking his security clearance wouldn't "have any effect on what I say or write." And former Brennan deputy chief of staff Nick Shapiro said Brennan "hasn't made one penny off of his clearance" and "doesn't need a security clearance to speak out against the failings of Trump." Melissa Schwartz, a spokeswoman for McCabe, tweeted that his security clearance was deactivated when he was terminated, per FBI policy. "You would think the White House would check with the FBI before trying to throw shiny objects to the press corps," she wrote. As for whether Trump has the authority to do what Sanders suggested, Aftergood called it "a disputed question." Attorney Greg T. Rinckey, who specializes in national security and security clearance cases, said that while presidents have broad authority to grant clearances, there is "some debate over whether or not the president has the authority to revoke" them. He said he was not aware of any past case in which a person had their clearance revoked by the president. John V. Berry, an attorney who regularly represents federal intelligence agency employees, said that he didn't see any reason the president wouldn't be able to revoke clearance but that doing so would "be terrible for America" and "totally defeat the process of defending national security." "If we start interjecting politics into this, our country's going to be significantly weakened," Berry said. Rep. Elijah Cummings, ranking Democrat on the House oversight committee, said Trump had allowed his former national security adviser Michael Flynn "to keep his security clearance for weeks after the Justice Department warned that he was under investigation for lying about his secret conversations with the Russians" and "allowed his son-in-law Jared Kushner to keep his security clearance after repeatedly concealing his foreign contacts." "President Trump should get his own staff's security clearances in order rather than engaging in crass political retribution against former officials," Cummings said in statement. ___ Associated Press writers Deb Riechmann and Lisa Mascaro in Washington contributed to this report. UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The U.N. Security Council is urging Afghan authorities to accelerate preparations for elections in October and stressing the importance of "a secure environment" for credible voting to take place. The U.S. and NATO forces formally concluded their combat mission at the end of 2014 and a resurgent Taliban and an Islamic State affiliate have launched major attacks since then. The council said in a statement Monday approved by all 15 council members that quick action is needed on outstanding issues including approval of candidates to fill "critical vacancies" on the Independent Election Commission and Electoral Complaints Commission. It said a central database of the more than 8.9 million registered voters must be established "that identifies irregularities," and a final list of candidates must be published. RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) - Several hundred Brazilians have demonstrated to demand an end to police brutality against Afro-Brazilians and slum residents. It comes on the 25th anniversary of what is called the "Candelaria massacre," when police fired on homeless children and teenagers who were sleeping in front of Candelaria Church in the heart of Rio de Janeiro. Eight youths aged 11 to 19 died. Three officers were sentenced but were later pardoned. Children protest violence against black people in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, July 23, 2018. Activists and relatives of black youth who have been killed in Rio de Janeiro marched to demand justice, as they also marked the 25th anniversary of the "Candelaria Massacre" where eight black youths were killed by police. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) Acrobats led Monday's march on stilts, wearing bloody camouflage outfits to symbolize violent tactics. Protesters also criticized the government's move to impose military control over policing and prisons in Rio after an especially violent Carnival season. Jurema Werneck is Amnesty International's executive director in Brazil. She says official data show killings by state agents have increased by 60 percent since last year. Bruna da Silva, center, the mother of Marcos Vinicius da Silva who was killed during a police operation, is comforted by other women during Mass at Candelaria church in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, July 23, 2018. Activists and relatives of black youth who have been killed in Rio de Janeiro gathered to demand justice, as they also marked the 25th anniversary of the "Candelaria Massacre" where eight black youths were killed by police. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) Relatives of black youth who have been killed attend Mass at Candelaria church in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, July 23, 2018. Activists and relatives of black youth who have been killed in Rio de Janeiro gathered to demand justice, as they also marked the 25th anniversary of the "Candelaria Massacre" where eight black youths were killed by police. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) WASHINGTON (AP) - Checking out a speedboat, a fighter jet and a giant industrial magnet parked on the White House driveway, President Donald Trump showcased an array of "Made in America" products Monday as his administration pushes back aggressively against critics who say his punishing tariffs on imported goods threaten to harm the U.S. economy. Trump's event with a smorgasbord of American goods came at the start of a week in which trade discussions are expected to dominate, including talks with European officials and a trip to Illinois in which the president is planning to visit a community helped along by his steel tariffs. Trump has vowed to force international trading partners to bend to his will as he seeks to renegotiate a series of trade deals he has long argued hurt American workers. But as he deepens the U.S. involvement in trade fights, it raises questions on whether American consumers will feel the pain of retaliatory tariffs - and whether the president will incur a political price for his nationalistic trade policies in the 2018 midterm elections. President Donald Trump talks with Lockheed Martin president and CEO Marilyn Hewson and director and chief test pilot Alan Norman in front of a F-35 as he participates in a "Made in America Product Showcase" at the White House, Monday, July 23, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) "Our leaders in Washington did nothing, they did nothing. They let our factories leave, they let our people lose their jobs," Trump said at the White House. "That's not free trade, that's fool's trade, that's stupid trade and we don't do that kind of trade anymore." Trump noted that he would be meeting Wednesday with European officials, including European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. The U.S. and European allies have been at odds over the president's tariffs on steel imports and are meeting as the dispute threatens to spread to the lucrative automobile business. "Maybe we can work something out," he said. On Thursday, the president will visit Granite City, Illinois, the home of a U.S. Steel Corp. mill that has reopened after he imposed tariffs on steel imports. On the South Lawn, the president walked among a number of products manufactured across the nation, including a Lockheed Martin F 35 aircraft from Maryland, a Ford F-150 pickup truck from Michigan, a Newmar recreational vehicle from Indiana and a Ranger speedboat from Arkansas. Trump has already put taxes on imported steel and aluminum, saying they pose a threat to U.S. national security, an argument that enrages staunch U.S. allies such as the European Union and Canada. He's threatening to use the national security justification again to slap tariffs on imported cars, trucks and auto parts, potentially targeting imports that last year totaled $335 billion. And he's already imposed tariffs on $34 billion in Chinese imports in a separate dispute over Beijing's high-tech industrial policies. He has threatened to ratchet that up past $500 billion. "He likes tariffs," said William Reinsch, a former U.S. trade official under President Bill Clinton now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "His preferred remedy is always tariffs, whether it makes any sense or not." "It's a policy of victimization: 'Other people have been taking advantage of the United States for years ... Now they have to pay,'" Reinsch said, echoing the president's argument. Trade analysts say the United States has not pursued such aggressive trade policies in decades. "I can't think of another time when you had as many battles and particularly as many battles with no resolution in sight," said Edward Alden, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. In 1971, President Richard Nixon imposed a broad 10 percent import tax for four months to pressure Japan and European countries to drive up the value of their currencies. The idea: provide relief to American exporters, who were being put at a price disadvantage by a strong dollar. In 1930, the U.S. raised tariffs dramatically to protect American industry, encouraging other countries to do the same in a global trade war that made the Great Depression worse. Economists said the tariffs that Trump has imposed so far - and the resulting retaliation - are unlikely to do much economic damage. But things could escalate rapidly. "If you look at what's teed up, particularly with China and with the auto tariffs, pretty soon you are talking about some pretty large numbers. Those will do some real damage," Alden said. Oxford Economics has calculated that a full-blown U.S.-China trade war - in which each country taxes all the other's imports - would shave 1 percent off the U.S. economy and wipe out 700,000 jobs in the United States by 2020. The Peterson Institute for International Economics has estimated that a trade war over autos could cost up to 1.2 million American jobs. Critics said Trump's aggressive approach makes it tough for other countries to offer concessions, lest they be seen by their own people as caving in to bullying. "The Trump administration has not left an easy path to walk away from the fights they've created," Alden said. President Donald Trump talks with Jimmy Houston of Ranger Boats as he participates in a tour during a "Made in America Product Showcase" at the White House, Monday, July 23, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) President Donald Trump participates in a tour during a "Made in America Product Showcase" at the White House, Monday, July 23, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) President Donald Trump talks with Lockheed Martin president and CEO Marilyn Hewson, right, and director and chief test pilot Alan Norman in front of a F-35 as he participates in a "Made in America Product Showcase" at the White House, Monday, July 23, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) THE revolution of July 23rd, 1952, has become a major turning point in Egypts history, besides becoming also the starting point for all revolutions, regional and global liberation movements. The demands and dreams of the Egyptian people led this valiant revolution to eliminate dependence, feudalism, establish social justice, and build a strong national bridge that supports national security for the entire Arab spectrum, in this context, the July revolution paved the way for the strategic relationship between the former President of Egypt H.E. Gamal Abd El Nasser, and former President of Tanzania Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere, and that relationship has been considered to be a cresset to other African countries for their independence and dignity. At the internal level, in the 60s and 70s of the last century, the revolution established the General Authority of Cultural Palaces, and Cultural Centres to achieve a democratic distribution of culture and to compensate for areas that have long been deprived of the creativity that Cairo has monopolieed. This was one of the most important cultural achievements of the revolution. The revolution has also established an Academy comprising of the higher institutes of Theatres, Cinema, Ballet, Opera music and folklores, and moreover, allowed the production of films from the stories of authentic Egyptian literature, having previously relied on foreign stories and films. The revolution also approved Free Public Education and Free Higher Education, and even doubled the budget of higher education, added 10 new Universities, and equally established Scientific Research Centres, and developed also Educational Hospitals. At the Arab arena, the revolution united Arab efforts and mobilised Arab energies in favour of Arab Liberation Movements, and confirmed the concept of the Arab Nation from the Gulf to the Atlantic Ocean. The revolution on the other hand, also strongly supported the liberation of Iraq, Tunisia, Yemen, Algeria and Libya among others. At the global level, it is worth mentioning that the July Revolution played a respectable role in enhancing positive neutral doctrine which led to reduce International political tension between the two super powers. In this respect, Egypt had the leading role with ex-Yugoslavia, Indonesia and India in the formation of the Non- Aligned Movement. The revolution was characterised by flexibility and lack of inertia in its domestic policy in favour of the State, and the policy of the external revolution against colonialism, which did not go into serious confrontation and decisive positions. The revolution is in the ranks of the white revolutions, in which there was neither blood nor victims, and also formed a new phenomenon in the world which has been achieved without any affiliation to an ideology or a political party, hence the revolution gained widespread popular support of millions of peasants and the working places. PHILADELPHIA (AP) - An al-Qaida suspect linked to a plot to kill a Swedish cartoonist pleaded guilty on Monday in a U.S. court to a terrorism charge. Ali Charaf Damache was escorted into federal court in Philadelphia for the change of plea hearing wearing a drab green prison jumpsuit and handcuffed behind his back. The Algerian-born Irish citizen had been extradited from Spain last year after authorities said they were able to track his online efforts to recruit American and European citizens to join a jihadist movement. The 53-year-old, whose online handle was Theblackflag, was accused of being involved in a terror cell that wanted to kill Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilk, who depicted the Prophet Muhammad as a dog. The plot never materialized, authorities said. "This is exactly the kind of case that we want to be involved in because we want to be in the business of preventing disasters from happening not dealing with disasters after they happen," said U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain. Authorities issued an indictment for Damache in 2011 and worked with multiple entities to extradite him to face charges in a civilian court, a move that was counter to President Donald Trump's promise to send terror suspects to the military prison at Guantanamo Bay. McSwain said each case has to be handled individually, but the extradition requests that began years ago were always based on Damache being tried in U.S. federal court. Damache pleaded guilty to conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists in exchange for prosecutors recommending a 15-year prison sentence including about four years of time served in Ireland and Spain and his agreeing to be deported. An identity theft charge was dropped as part of the deal. Sentencing is scheduled for the end of October. Prosecutors said Damache sought to recruit light-skinned women and others who did not fit the traditional terrorist profile to wage jihad. His targets included Colleen LaRose, a Pennsylvania woman who called herself "Jihad Jane," online; Jamie Paulin-Ramirez, a single mother from Colorado; and Mohammad Hassan Khalid, who at the time was a high school honors student from Maryland. They were all eventually arrested. Damache married Paulin-Ramirez the day she traveled to Ireland to meet him in 2009. Paulin-Ramirez eventually helped the FBI investigate the terror cell. As part of the plea, Damache admitted to training a child to prepare for jihad. Prosecutors later identified the minor as Paulin-Ramirez's child, who she brought with her. Officials said that Damache's group recruited men online to wage jihad in South Asia and Europe, and sought to recruit women with western passports to travel through Europe in support of the cause. LaRose is serving a 10-year prison term. Paulin-Ramirez and Khalid have been released after serving their sentences. BEIRUT (AP) - The call came on Saturday night. In the raging war zone that is southwestern Syria, with enemy forces on the march, the 98 White Helmets volunteers brought their spouses, children and a personal bag each. A total of 421 people massed at two collection points where they were to make their crossing to safety. By the time they crossed, they were 422. One woman went into labor, requiring an emergency C-section. Her son, Nairouz, came into the world in an open field under the darkness of night just short of the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. It was just one moment of drama in a complicated international rescue operation to extract the Syrian volunteer rescuers who work in opposition areas through their country's bitter enemy Israel by bus to a temporary haven in Jordan. This image made from video released by the Israeli Defence Forces on Sunday, July 22, 2018 shows Israeli soldiers on hand as family members of the White Helmets load into buses to Jordan. The call to get ready came at night. In the raging war zone of southwestern Syria, with enemy government forces on the march, the 98 White Helmets were told to bring spouses, children and but a few belongings to two collection points. Fabled rescuers themselves now in need of rescue, they embarked on a hair-raising journey through Israel, a supposed enemy, enroute to reluctant haven in Jordan, a country already burdened with multitudes of refugees. One woman gave birth along the way, many colleagues were left behind to a fate uncertain, and Syria called the multinational operation by several Western powers a crime. (Israeli Defence Forces via AP) It was a nail-biting trip to a crossing over one of the most tightly sealed frontiers in the world. Up until the last minute, those on the ground were uncertain the operation would go through. Another nearly 400 people were meant to be pulled out as well. Most didn't make it in time to the assembly points, unable to go through roads that were closing fast by the advancing Syrian forces on one side and the expanding Islamic State militants on the other. In all, it took about six hours to complete the evacuation, according to a person close to the operation who agreed to discuss the details on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. "It was a 'Hail Mary' operation," said the person familiar with the evacuation. "The only place of safety was through their evacuation" to Jordan. The operation was conceived by Britain, Germany and Canada and supported by Israel, Jordan, the United States, and the U.N. It took an unprecedented level of agreement and coordination - something international players have rarely demonstrated during eight years of war in Syria that have pitted world powers against one another. The rescue of the besieged White Helmets was not without controversy. It raised questions about the fate of 3,000 other White Helmets still operating in opposition-held northern Syria, living with other 1 million other displaced civilians in areas where the government is expected to target next. The Syrian government denounced the evacuation as a "criminal process" that "smuggled terrorists" whom it blamed for undermining the country's security for years. A Syrian Foreign Ministry official repeated his government's accusations that the White Helmets staged and executed chemical attacks to blame Damascus. The White Helmets is an organization of volunteers that since 2013 took on the task of rescuing the survivors and salvaging the dead in war-ravaged held areas, whether digging them from under the rubble of bombed buildings or pulling victims of chemical attacks from site. It has had Western backing and funding, and its work brought it a Nobel Prize nomination. The government waged a virulent campaign depicting them as agents and terrorists because its volunteers helped document atrocities by government forces and their allies. In five years of operations, over 3,000 volunteers saved more than 115,000 lives, according to the White Helmets. The cost for the group has been high, with one in four of its volunteers wounded or killed. The plan was conceived in Europe and Canada about two weeks ago. The Syrian government offensive in the southwest, backed by Russia, unfolded in mid-June. Though it condemned the assault, Washington, which along with Jordan had backed armed groups in the area and sponsored the White Helmets, signaled it wouldn't help stop the advances. By early July, government forces began negotiating surrender deals with armed groups and civilians in villages and towns that were fast crumbling under the assault. The negotiations allowed those who refused to live under government control - whether armed fighters, civilians or activists - to evacuate to the north. Except for the White Helmets, said the person close to the planning. Government officials and Russian representatives said the White Helmets were "a red line" who should be "eradicated," the source said. This threat was particularly acute, he said, because during previous evacuations from fallen opposition areas elsewhere, nearly a dozen White Helmets volunteers were specifically targeted, pulled from buses, tortured and filmed making false confessions about being paid agents. They were even filmed with weapons to support the government's narrative they work closely with the armed groups. "It was a pattern of behavior," he said. The discussions about the White Helmets' safety started between Britain, Germany and Canada before the NATO summit on July 9. At the summit, there were leader-to-leader meetings over the issue. Evacuating them through Jordan quickly became impossible as government forces advanced, seizing a vital border crossing from the rebels and then deploying along the border. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he agreed to let them cross through Israel, after an appeal from U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Finding where the volunteers were in the fast-changing battlefield was a challenge. Conscious not to raise expectations, the planners only asked the volunteers whether they would accept an opportunity to evacuate through Israel. Some declined, the source said, fearing they had no guarantees where they would end up. The leadership of the White Helmets was unanimous in accepting, despite the likelihood the government would point to the Israel route in propaganda against them. "The political ramification had to be secondary to saving what is to be saved," the source said. There was an unexpected twist: Advances by an affiliate of the Islamic State group. As rebel forces retreated and surrendered in many villages between Daraa and Quneitra provinces, it was the IS affiliate - not government forces- that moved in. This changed the landscape again, blocking some escape routes to the evacuation points. One civil defense volunteer said before Saturday night that many of his colleagues were locked in areas seized by the government and the militants. "In our minds, there were no guarantees this evacuation was going to happen until it happened," the source said. The small window was quickly closing. On the night of July 21, the call came. The evacuees congregated at two points in the northern end of the frontier. Again, there was a problem. A wife of one volunteer went into labor as the call was issued. "We were worried she won't make it," the source said. An emergency C-section was performed on the Syrian side in a field near the frontier. "In a couple of hours, she was evacuated to the other side with a healthy baby boy" - Nairouz. The evacuees crossed on foot and were received on the other side by Israeli soldiers, who verified their identities and took them in buses to one of the two crossings into Jordan. "The rescuers were rescued," the source said. Germany, Canada and Britain said they will resettle the White Helmets and their families within three months. The U.S. and Jordan will not take any in. The planners are still in touch with the volunteers who didn't make it out, advising them on what to do and where to be safe. It is unclear if a similar operation can be reproduced. As for the hundred other volunteers in northern Syria, the source said the geography and landscape are different, with Turkish forces present in the area and far more options than the southwest, with firmly sealed frontiers from all sides. In a statement Monday night, the White Helmets thanked "all governments who contributed" to the evacuation and asked the international community - if it won't act to end Syrian offensives - to "do more to help the hundreds of thousands remaining in southern Syria." But the international players appear unlikely to pull together that will again. "A great many factors and partners had to interact in the right way," German Foreign Ministry spokesman Christofer Burger said. Pressed whether the action set a precedent for further world help in evacuations, he said: "The factors that made it possible in this case to help in this way people who faced an acute threat, a very specific group, cannot be reproduced at will." MEXICO CITY (AP) - Mexican authorities have slapped a 10.3 million peso ($540,364) fine on a Mennonite community for clearing tropical vegetation that was home to a protected olive-throated parakeet. The Attorney General for Environmental Protection said Monday that members of the community removed plants including endangered chit palm and jobillo trees from 3,251 acres (1,316 hectares) in Quintana Roo state, on the Yucatan Peninsula. Indigenous Maya have long used the fronds of the chit palm to thatch rooves and make brooms, while fishermen have been known to construct lobster traps from its stems. The plant has become so scarce that Mexican law forbids removing the palms. The jobillo is a flowering tree in the cashew family that is coveted for wood floors. WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on President Donald Trump considering revoking the security clearances of former Obama administration officials (all times local): 4:15 p.m. Members of Congress are pushing back against a floated White House idea of pulling the security clearances of top former intelligence officials in the Obama administration who have criticized President Donald Trump. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders points to a reporter to take a question as she speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House, Monday, July 23, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) The No. 2 Republican, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, said Monday that he can understand Trump's aggravation at some former officials who "have obviously donned the uniform of the opposition team." But he says, "I don't know whether they've been abusing their security clearance at all. That's a very serious allegation." The top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Eliot Engel of New York, says revoking the clearances would be "ironic" considering the questions raised about granting them to Trump's family. He says, "For them to start pointing fingers is ridiculous." ___ 3 p.m. President Donald Trump is considering revoking the security clearances of a half dozen former Obama administration officials and critics of his presidency. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that the president is "exploring the mechanisms" to strip clearance from former CIA director John Brennan, along with former FBI director Jim Comey, former national intelligence director James Clapper and others. Sanders is accusing the officials of having "politicized and in some cases monetized their public service and security clearances" as well as "making baseless accusations" against the president. Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky tweeted earlier Monday that he was planning to raise the issue of revoking Brennan's clearance at a meeting with Trump. Brennan last week described Trump's press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin as "nothing short of treasonous." TORONTO (AP) - Roger Federer withdrew from the Rogers Cup in Toronto next month in order to be in peak condition for the U.S. Open. Federer is a two-time champion at the Rogers Cup, which alternates between Toronto and Montreal. He's won twice in Toronto and was runner-up last year in Montreal. "Unfortunately with scheduling being the key to my longevity moving forward, I have regrettably decided to withdraw from Toronto this year," Federer said in a statement on Monday. "I ... am sorry to miss it." The Rogers Cup, which starts on Aug. 6, still features 19 of the world's top 20 ranked players. No. 2-ranked Federer is next scheduled to play the following week in Cincinnati, where he has won a tournament-record seven times. He missed it last year because of a back injury. The U.S. Open in New York starts two weeks later. Federer, due to turn 37 during the Rogers Cup, has played seven tournaments this year and won three. He last appeared at Wimbledon, and lost in the quarterfinals. NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Monday: LifePoint Health Inc., up $17 to $64.90 The hospital operator agreed to be acquired by Apollo Global Management for $65 per share. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, down 34 cents to $18.98 The company said CEO Sergio Marchionne stepped down earlier than expected because of health problems. Papa John's International Inc., down $5.03 to $46.56 The pizza company adopted a shareholder rights plan to try to stop its founder from buying a controlling stake. Tesla Inc., down $10.38 to $303.20 The Wall Street Journal reported that the electric car maker is asking for rebates from suppliers to raise cash. Halliburton Corp., down $3.66 to $41.54 The oil services company said some customers are pulling back on production and the cost of materials is rising. Syntel Inc., up $1.63 to $40.76 The information technology outsourcing company agreed to be acquired by Atos of France for $41 a share. Hasbro Inc., up $12.11 to $106.04 The toy company reported a larger second-quarter profit than investors expected. NVR Inc., down $17.50 to $2,892.50 Homebuilders slipped as sales of already built homes decreased for the third month in a row. ROCKLAND, Maine (AP) - A judge called out an alleged "dishonest officer" and urged the Knox County district attorney to review past cases involving the officer. Justice Daniel Billings shared his concerns last month when he let a man withdraw his guilty plea from a 5-year-old drunken driving case because of the actions of former officer Jacob Shirey from the Rockland Police Department. Billings wrote in his ruling that the case was "tainted by a dishonest officer" and that the state should be reviewing prior convictions, the Bangor Daily News reported. "This is not a situation where an officer's credibility is brought into question by a single incident or one-time mistake," Billings wrote. Shirey resigned from the Rockland Police Department in early 2017 amid an internal affairs investigation into allegations of misconduct and dishonesty, the newspaper reported. A spokeswoman said District Attorney Jonathan Liberman was not ready to comment on the situation. The Associated Press could not find a phone number for Shirey, and he didn't immediately return an email or a message left with a family member. Following the internal investigation, another judge ruled that the state had to notify attorneys of any case in which Shirey was involved. PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Two former Temple University police officers have been sentenced to decades in prison in the beating death of a woman two years ago. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that 49-year-old Aaron Wright was sentenced Friday to 60 to 141 years and 43-year-old Marquis Robinson was sentenced to 55 to 130 years. Both had been convicted of third-degree murder in a May nonjury trial in the death of 24-year-old Joyce Quaweay. Prosecutors say the victim was beaten with a police baton as she was handcuffed naked to a weight bench in a Philadelphia home in July 2016. She and Wright, her boyfriend, shared the home with Marquis Robinson, his girlfriend and several children. Wright's attorney, James Berardinelli, and Robinson's attorney, Gary Server, say Monday that their clients expressed remorse and could be rehabilitated. ___ Information from: The Philadelphia Inquirer, http://www.inquirer.com HENDERSON, Colo. (AP) - A woman taking photographs over the weekend of a steam locomotive was struck and killed after getting too close to tracks north of Denver. The 15-car Union Pacific historic train was arriving at Denver Saturday from Cheyenne Frontier Days in Wyoming when the woman was hit near a crossing in Henderson. Her name hasn't been released. She was among several people taking photos of the train after its annual trip to the parade and rodeo sponsored by The Denver Post Community Foundation. About 700 people were aboard. No other injuries were reported. FILE - In this July 21, 2016, file photo, employees look on as Union Pacific Railroad's No. 844 steam locomotive arrives in rail yard in Denver. A woman who was taking photographs Saturday, July 21, 2018, of the steam locomotive was struck and killed after getting too close to the tracks in north suburban Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File) The train is pulled by the last steam engine built for Union Pacific, which was delivered in 1944. ____ This story has been corrected to say the woman was hit near a railroad crossing, not at the crossing. RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Billionaire philanthropist C.D. Spangler Jr., who led North Carolina's university system for more than a decade, has died. He was 86. Spangler died Sunday, according to the University of North Carolina System. Spangler became president of the system in 1986 and led it for 11 years, working to keep tuition low and championing its role as an economic driver for the state. In this Oct. 12, 1993, photo, UNC system president C.D. Spangler Jr. appears at the kick off ceremony for the UNC-CH campus bicentennial in Chapel Hill, N.C. Billionaire philanthropist Spangler, who led North Carolina's university system for more than a decade, has died. He was 86. Spangler died Sunday, July 22, 2018, according to the University of North Carolina System. (The News & Observer via AP) The current president of the 17-campus system, Margaret Spellings, said that Spangler, also known as "Dick," helped to "change lives and transform a state." "The first in his family to go to college, Dick never forgot who our public universities were meant to serve," she said in a statement. "North Carolina is the prosperous, growing state that it is because of principled leaders like Dick." One of the wealthiest men in North Carolina, Spangler amassed a fortune estimated at approximately $4 billion through family companies and his leadership of National Gypsum, according to Forbes magazine. He served as chairman of the company that makes wallboard and other building products after leading investors who bought it in the 1990s. In an interview at the end of his tenure as system president, the Charlotte native said low tuition helped him to attend the University of North Carolina from 1950 to 1954. He also attended Harvard Business School. Spangler was a generous contributor to both universities. "Low tuition is not a gift," Spangler told The Associated Press in 1997. "It's an investment in these students. They go to work and pay that back over a lifetime." Spangler also was mindful that the state Constitution demanded that university tuition stay as low as possible, said Molly Broad, who succeeded him as University of North Carolina president before heading the American Council on Education. "His commitment to that provision was very strong," Broad said in an interview. "He was determined that the cost of higher education would be managed." The university system said that Spangler also implemented minimum admissions requirements and athletic reforms. He helped increase the system's budget and external funding for research. Spangler's work as university president was unpaid. He didn't need the money. He built his wealth in the family construction business, by selling a smaller bank to the precursor of what would become Bank of America, and later buying National Gypsum after bankruptcy and building it into the country's second-largest wallboard producer, said Hugh McColl, Bank of America's first CEO. "He always had a brilliant mind in terms of evaluation opportunity and seizing it, and he did it many times over," McColl said in an interview. Stock in Charlotte-based Bank of America provided the bulk of the more than $300 million channeled into a family foundation that supports cultural and education groups, according to the foundation's most recent report to the Internal Revenue Service. Spangler's daughter, Anna Spangler Nelson, is a current member of the state public university governing board. Away from UNC, Spangler showed his commitment to public education by sending his children to public high school, said Anthony Foxx, a former Charlotte mayor and U.S. transportation secretary. "He understood our society well and took responsibility for making it better," Foxx said on Twitter. "He did so humbly - at least as humbly as any billionaire could do anything." Spangler loved classical music and art, "was tremendously well-read, thoroughly educated and a lot of fun to be around," McColl said of the man he met for lunch every few weeks for two decades. "Not only was he a great businessman, he was really a Renaissance man." ____ Follow Emery P. Dalesio on Twitter at http://twitter.com/emerydalesio. His work can be found at https://apnews.com/search/emery%20dalesio . Follow Drew on Twitter at https://twitter.com/JonathanLDrew WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House is turning up the pressure on Senate Democrats to meet with President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, though with little success. Brett Kavanaugh has met with 23 senators, all of them Republicans, since his nomination two weeks ago. Democratic lawmakers have been pushing for more information before holding any one-on-one meetings with the 53-year-old nominee. Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that before he'll meet with Kavanaugh, Republican leadership needs to agree to make available documents from his work in President George W. Bush's administration, his writings and draft writings, and "everything that is conceivably relevant to his professional work prior to the bench." FILE - In this July 11, 2018, photo, Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh listens to Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, on Capitol Hill in Washington, during a meeting. The White House is turning up the pressure on Senate Democrats to meet with President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, though with little success. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) "It's a threshold, absolute condition," Blumenthal told reporters in a conference call. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders began Monday's press briefing by criticizing Democratic senators - particularly Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. - for not meeting with Kavanaugh. "For members of the opposing party to demand answers to questions and yet refuse to even meet with the qualified Supreme Court nominee is unprecedented," Sanders said. "Sen. Schumer should stop these political games and meet with Judge Kavanaugh." The meetings are a precursor to a confirmation hearing and a final Senate vote, which Republicans want to occur before Oct. 1. Democrats have called for no vote before the November midterm elections. Democrats are demanding access to paperwork from Kavanaugh's tenure as staff secretary in Bush's White House, on the 2000 election presidential recount and on special counsel Kenneth Starr's probe of President Bill Clinton. The tally could stretch at least 1 million pages. The paper chase has become a game of high-stakes political strategy. Recent Supreme Court confirmations have generated massive record searches: 173,000 pages of documents for the confirmation of Elena Kagan in 2010 and 182,000 pages for the confirmation of Neil Gorsuch last year. Republicans want to work out an agreement that is in keeping with that history, but Democrats are signaling they have a broader search in mind. Blumenthal said he was only speaking for himself, but he wants to see "any documents with (Kavanaugh's) name on them, whether he is a direct recipient or a sender or he is copied, because all of them are relevant to questions that we may have." Avoiding Kavanaugh could be politically risky for Democrats in conservative-leaning states. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., is scheduled to meet with Kavanaugh next Monday, while the office of Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., is working with the White House to set up a meeting, but it has not been scheduled yet. A Senate Democratic leadership aide said Schumer is fine with some Democrats meeting with Kavanaugh, but he won't unless there is progress in releasing documents. The aide spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a private conversation. Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Republican in the chamber, said half of the Democratic lawmakers have already signaled they'll vote against Kavanaugh's confirmation. He said some of the demands for documents are a stalling tactic, but that won't keep the Senate from voting. "Instead of chasing after irrelevant records from the Bush White House, I would urge our colleagues to read Judge Kavanaugh's opinions and meet with the judge and get to know him," Cornyn said. Cornyn warned that if the nomination process continues after the Supreme Court begins its next term in October, then the Senate will remain in session until the midterm elections on Nov. 6. That would mean Democratic senators would be in Washington for the weeks leading up to the election, historically a time when lawmakers have the flexibility to spend time on the campaign trail. That scenario could be problematic for senators seeking re-election in states that Trump won in 2016. "We will vote on his nomination before the midterm election," Cornyn said. Kavanaugh had no meetings lined up with lawmakers Monday but will resume making the rounds on Capitol Hill on Tuesday. ___ Associated Press writer Alan Fram contributed to this report. ___ Reach Kevin Freking at https://twitter.com/APKFreking NEW YORK (AP) - A man arrested in the 2015 slaying of an aide to Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (KWOH'-moh) has been acquitted of all charges. A jury on Monday found Keith Luncheon not guilty of murder, manslaughter, criminal possession of a weapon and reckless endangerment. The jury remained deadlocked on two co-defendants. The judge ordered that deliberations continue. The alleged shooter, Kenny Bazile (buh-ZEEL'), was found guilty of manslaughter last week in the fatal shooting of Carey Gabay (guh-BAY'), the deputy counsel of the state's economic development agency. Gabay got caught in the middle of a gang-related gun battle in the hours before a West Indian Day parade in Brooklyn. A fifth suspect took a plea deal and testified against the other four. SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) - Chile has investigated 158 members of the country's Roman Catholic Church for committing or covering up sexual abuse against minors and adults, the national prosecutor's office said Monday. The investigations include reports of abuse by bishops, clerics and lay workers filed since 2000. Some of the cases date as far back as 1960. In all, the number of victims is 266. That includes 178 children and teenagers, and 31 adults. The age of victims was not established in 57 other cases. Pope Francis delivers his message during the Angelus noon prayer in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, July 22, 2018. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) The nationwide figures follow an avalanche of sex abuse and cover-up cases that have recently embattled Chile's Catholic Church and prompted Pope Francis earlier this year to publicly denounce a "culture of abuse and cover-up." The pope also said he was ashamed that neither he nor Chilean church leaders truly ever listened to victims as the country's abuse scandal spiraled. "The temptation would be to focus on those investigated within the Church, but today we must first focus on the number of victims, which is what worries us," the Chilean church's Episcopal Conference said in a statement after the report was released. In the past, prosecutors in Chile have had to drop charges against members of the clergy accused of sex abuse because the statute of limitations had expired. But the national prosecutor's office said it wants to "rigorously investigate all sex abuse case cases committed by priests or people related to the Church" against children and adults, "regardless of whether the crimes have prescribed or not, because the victims have a right to be heard by the justice system." The report said that out of the 158 people investigated in 144 separate investigations, 65 are bishops, priests or deacons who belong to a congregation; 74 do not belong to any congregation; 10 are lay persons in charge of pastoral parishes or linked to schools; and nine were undetermined. Authorities said 36 of the 144 cases are currently being investigated, and 22 have been sent to another judicial office because the alleged crimes were committed before a judicial reform in 2000. Another 22 cases have resulted in convictions, while 64 cases have been either closed or temporarily suspended for various reasons. Prosecutors said the vast majority of the sexual abuse crimes were committed by parish priests connected to an educational establishment. There are at least five cases where the heads of congregations or bishops in charge of a diocese are accused of cover-up or obstruction of an investigation. "The prosecutor's announcement is the latest sign that the impunity of the Catholic Church is ending in Chile. Increasingly, Chilean bishops and clergy are being treated simply as fellow citizens, subject to secular laws," said Anne Barrett Doyle, co-director of BishopAccountability.org, a U.S.-based group that compiles a database of clergy abuse. "Today's report will encourage more Chilean victims to file complaints. Each complaint filed will lead to a safer church." For decades, victims and their advocates have pointed to the hierarchy's culture of cover-up as the Vatican's main failure in dealing with the problem. But Francis apparently came around to their view after meeting earlier this year with Chilean victims of the Rev. Fernando Karadima, the country's most notorious predator priest, and reading a 2,300-page report prepared for him by Vatican investigators, who also interviewed victims of Karadima and others in Chile. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said Europe must show much more flexibility and creativity to avoid a no deal by accident situation post-Brexit. Mr Hunt is meeting Heiko Maas to discuss a range of issues including Britains leaving of the European Union, Nato, the Western Balkans and Iran. Britain will leave the European Union in less than 250 days following the triggering of Article 50 in March 2017. UK-Australian ministerial consultations The former health secretary said: I will be clear that our European partners must show much more flexibility and creativity in negotiations if we are to avoid a no deal by accident scenario. Talks on a post-Brexit deal between the UK and EU are continuing, with customs arrangements the latest sticking point. Prime Minister Theresa May has called her white paper proposals a significant development of our position a coherent package, but the EUs chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier questioned whether they were workable. Mr Hunt said: Germany is one of Britains most important allies in every field, from trade to European security to counter-terrorism. Our two countries work side-by-side to defend the rules-based international system on which our safety and prosperity depend. We are striving together to preserve the Iran nuclear deal, uphold the Paris climate change treaty, strengthen Nato, combat terrorism, improve cyber security and stabilise the countries of the Western Balkans. We will also discuss the UKs exit from the EU. I will reassure my German counterpart that we want to continue to work alongside our European friends and allies, in defence of our shared values. Police have released images of six men they would like to speak to after violent disorder at a protest against the imprisonment of former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson. Scotland Yard said scaffolding and glass bottles were among the items thrown at police at the June 9 protest in Whitehall, with 21 officers injured. Hundreds of demonstrators descended on the capital and blocked off the road around Trafalgar Square after Robinson was jailed for contempt of court. Ex EDL leaders in court Detectives have released images of people they would like to speak to in connection with serious disorder which occurred during the Free Tommy Robinson Protest on Saturday, 9 June in Whitehall https://t.co/Yv2lVKQlkH pic.twitter.com/VYuNiGS7Qi Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) July 23, 2018 Leeds Crown Court heard Robinson, real name Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon, used social media to broadcast details of a trial which was subject to blanket reporting restrictions. Detective Constable Jonny Wise, from the Metropolitan Police Public Order Investigations team, said: During this demonstration violent disorder broke out on the streets of Central London. Serious disruption was caused to members of the public, local businesses and the local communities. Vehicles and buildings were damaged and those responsible need to be held accountable for their actions. Anyone with information is asked to call police on 020 8246 0076 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111. A US school district is giving its surveillance system an upgrade with the introduction of facial recognition. The technology introduced in a New York state district means they will soon check each face against a database of expelled students, sex offenders and other possible trouble makers. It could be the start of a trend as more schools wary of shootings consider the technology. Just last week, a Seattle company began offering a free version of its facial recognition system to schools. Facial recognition passport system Already, the Lockport districts plan has opened a debate in the community. But the discussion about facial recognition goes provoked a debate. Microsoft President Brad Smith in a recent blog called for government regulation. The New York Civil Liberties Union wants to keep the technology out of schools in Lockport and throughout New York, calling it invasive and inaccurate. Donald Trump has warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that he will face dire consequences for threatening the United States. The US President tweeted early on Monday about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Mr Rouhani said on Sunday America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. US Iran Mr Trump responded with a tweet that warned: NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. The president earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. US Iran Mr Rouhani warned Mr Trump to stop playing with the lions tail and threatening Iran, or else you will regret it. The US leader had suggested Iranian leaders are going to call me and say lets make a deal' but Iran has rejected talks. Mr Rouhani previously lashed out against Mr Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the US embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the US from certain Muslim-majority countries. The presidents tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing an all-capitalised message. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!, he wrote. Mr Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the US. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearisation talks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Mr Trump for his strong stance on Iran. Mr Netanyahu said Mr Trump and his secretary of state Mike Pompeo were taking a clear position against Iranian aggression after years in which the regime was pampered by world powers. A high-ranking Iranian officer dismissed Mr Trumps warning as nothing but psychological warfare. General Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, the chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guards volunteer Basij force, also said Mr Trump wont dare take any military action against Iran. Gen Gheibparvars comments were reported by the semi-official Isna news agency. On Sunday, Mr Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran, calling its religious leaders hypocritical holy men who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer. In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in California, Mr Pompeo castigated Irans political, judicial and military leaders, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government in Tehran has heartlessly repressed its own peoples human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms. Mr Pompeo said: The proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their governments many abuses. And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent either. Two captured Britons accused of being members of the Islamic State cell nicknamed The Beatles could be sent to the US for trial after the UK dropped its usual demand for a guarantee that the death penalty would not be imposed. Home Secretary Sajid Javid told US Attorney General Jeff Sessions that the UK would not demand a death penalty assurance in this particular case. He also indicated that he believed there was more chance of a successful trial in the US than in UK courts. Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, are said to have been members of the brutal four-man Beatles cell of IS executioners in Syria and Iraq, responsible for killing a series of high-profile Western captives. The pair, who are understood to have been stripped of their British citizenship, were captured in January, sparking a row over whether they should be returned to the UK for trial or face justice in another jurisdiction. In the leaked letter, obtained by the Daily Telegraph, Mr Javid said the UK does not currently intend to request, nor actively encourage, the transfer of Kotey and Elsheikh to Britain. Syria conflict Promising support for the US, Mr Javid said Scotland Yards counter-terrorism command had been engaged extensively on the case with the FBI, with the investigation running for more than four years during which time they have engaged with 14 other countries and compiled over 600 witness statements. Signalling that the UK was prepared to drop assurances relating to the death penalty, Mr Javid said: All assistance and material will be provided on the condition that it may only be used for the purpose sought in that request, namely a federal criminal investigation or prosecution. Furthermore, I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought. But he added: As you are aware, it is the long-held position of the UK to seek death penalty assurances, and our decision in this case does not reflect a change in our policy on assistance in US death penalty cases generally, nor the UK Governments stance on the global abolition of the death penalty. Mr Javid also said US courts were better placed to handle foreign fighter cases because of the risk of legal challenge in the UK. The Home Secretary said he understood US frustration on the subject and added that the UK was introducing new legislation to improve the range of offences on the statute book to deal with the scourge of foreign fighters. Ensuring foreign fighters face justice raises a real challenge for all our jurisdictions; however, in this instance, we believe that a successful federal prosecution in the US is more likely to be possible because of differences in your statute book and the restrictions on challenges to the route by which defendants appear in US courts, he said. The US currently has additional charges for terrorism offences which are not available under UK criminal law, and those offences carry long sentences. The Telegraph reported that other documents say that British officials have also assessed that the pair may be sent to Guantanamo without trial and that such an outcome will not be formally opposed. Jihadi John named Along with Mohammed Emwazi the killer nicknamed Jihadi John and Aine Davis, Kotey and Elsheikh are thought to have been part of a group named after the 60s band because of their English accents. Emwazi, who was killed in a US air strike in 2015, appeared in a number of videos in which captives, including British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning and US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, were killed. Davis was convicted of being a member of a terrorist organisation and jailed for seven-and-a-half years at a court in Silivri, Turkey, in May 2017. Mr Foleys mother, Diane, said she was opposed to the death penalty. I am very against that. I think that would just make them martyrs in their twisted ideology, she told BBC Radio 4s Today programme. I would like them held accountable by being sent to prison for the rest of their lives. Former reviewer of terrorism legislation Lord Carlile said Mr Javids letter was extraordinary. It is a dramatic change of policy by a minister, secretly, without any discussion in Parliament. It flies in the face of what has been said repeatedly and recently by the Home Office including when Theresa May was home secretary and very recently by the highly-respected Security Minister Ben Wallace, he told Today. Britain has always said that it will pass information and intelligence, in appropriate cases, provided there is no death penalty. That is a decades-old policy and it is not for the Home Secretary to change that policy. The Home Office refused to comment on the leaked document. But a spokesman said: We continue to engage with the US Government on this issue, as we do on a range of national security issues and in the context of our joint determination to tackle international terrorism and combat violent extremism. The UK Governments position on Guantanamo Bay is that the detention facility should close. A former Catalan politician has said she will continue to fight for the freedom of others after an international warrant for her arrest was formally dropped. Professor Clara Ponsati was told she was free to go during a hearing at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Monday which lasted less than five minutes. The St Andrews University academics legal team had been preparing to fight her extradition to Spain until last week when the authorities in Madrid withdrew a European Arrest Warrant she was subject to. Sheriff Nigel Ross formally discharged her from the warrant in what was hailed as a humiliating defeat for the Spanish state. Speaking outside the court Prof Ponsati said she was determined to keep fighting for the freedom of all political prisoners, for civil rights in Catalonia and Spain and for the Republic of Catalonia. In a statement, her solicitor Aamer Anwar said the warrant was a monstrous distortion of the truth which had backfired spectacularly. Catalan independence referendum He said: This is a humiliating defeat for the Spanish state which since October 1 has unleashed a wave of repression, attacking the Catalan people, suspending their government, jailing or trying to jail independence leaders. The Spanish state systematically used law as a weapon of war to try and eliminate their Catalan opponents, but they have persecuted not just politicians but also teachers, comedians, poets and rappers. The decapitation and liquidation of the Catalan Government was the sole-purpose of the European Arrest warrants as Spain twisted and broke the law, but in court after court across Europe, Spains reputation has been damaged, the failures are spectacular and ultimately the warrants were withdrawn through the fear of failure. Clara, an esteemed university professor, if extradited faced up to 33 years for peacefully promoting a referendum. The European Arrest Warrant was never meant to be used as a tool of political repression and we would ask for both the Scottish and UK Government to raise such abuse with their European Union. He said the withdrawal of the warrant was a tremendous victory but added: There can be no mood for celebration whilst nine Catalans are held as political hostages and Clara remains a political exile unable to return home for at least 20 years. Catalan independence referendum Prof Ponsati is still subject to national warrants in Spain and her legal team remained on standby for a reissued European Arrest Warrant, he added. Authorities in Madrid were seeking the ex-Catalan education minister on charges of violent rebellion and misappropriation of public funds over her role in Catalonias controversial independence referendum in 2017 charges she has consistently denied. Warrants for five other politicians who were wanted for their roles in promoting the Catalonia regions independence, including former regional president Carles Puigdemont, were also withdrawn by Spanish Supreme Court judge Pablo Llarena last week. The move followed a German court ruling that Mr Puigdemont could not be sent back to Spain for rebellion, only for embezzlement connected to the alleged misuse of public funds for a referendum on secession. Labour has made a veiled attempt to silence a Jewish MP after a confrontation with Jeremy Corbyn over anti-Semitism, lawyers have suggested. Law firm Mishcon de Reya questioned the fairness and legitimacy of a disciplinary investigation launched into Dame Margaret Hodge after a spat with the Labour leader and said the party had failed to set out what she is accused of. It comes as Mr Corbyn faces fresh pressure from Labours MPs and peers over the partys policy on dealing with prejudice against Jews. POLITICS Labour The Parliamentary Labour Party is set to debate an emergency call to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliances (IHRA) full definition of anti-Semitism. Labour launched an investigation into Dame Margaret after she confronted Mr Corbyn in the Commons about problems tackling anti-Jewish sentiment in the party. The MP was reported to have called him a f****** anti-Semite and a racist, but in the legal letter she denied having sworn at the party leader. This is vehemently denied, and our client is aware of multiple witnesses who can testify that she did not swear, the letter states. Any allegation that our client was abusive is false. Dame Margaret, who lost family members in the Holocaust, again stood by her actions in confronting Mr Corbyn, however, saying the current row had been a bridge too far. POLITICS Labour She told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: I have always in the past disagreed with the people who have called him an anti-Semite but, at the end of the day, people have to be judged on what they do and not what they say. They have to be judged on their actions and not their words. I think what has happened over the last months from failure to respond to anti-Semitism against Labour Party members, from failure to respond to the massive demonstration, unique demonstration by the Jewish community, culminating in the failure to adopt in full the universally used definition of anti-Semitism is just a bridge too far. Dame Margaret said she had received a wave of anti-Semitic abuse since the clash, including being called a Zionist bitch and told she was under the orders of my paymasters in Israel. The former minister said she received a disciplinary letter within 12 hours of speaking to Mr Corbyn. Think how long it has taken for the Labour Party to respond at all to any of the allegations of anti-Semitism, she added. In a letter to Labours general secretary, Jennie Formby, Mishcon de Reya said, given the party had failed to explain the allegation against the MP or the rule that it has breached, your threat to suspend our client if she repeats this non-particularised conduct appears to be a veiled attempt to silence her. It added: Again, it is a fundamental breach of natural justice and principles of fairness. You have left our client in the bizarre position whereby possible suspension is hanging over her for future unspecified behaviour. The law firm accused Labour of sloppiness in its handling of the case and said it could only assume that the rule Dame Margaret is being investigated over is one that relates to actions deemed to be grossly detrimental to the party. It said it was perverse that the same rule used to deal with anti-Semitism in the party is now being invoked against Dame Margaret for voicing her concern that anti-Semitism has not been properly dealt with. And it said the result of the disciplinary action against the MP appears to be pre-determined. Mr Corbyn has insisted Labours ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) had not tried to rewrite the definition of anti-Semitism when it omitted four examples from the IHRA list of behaviours likely to be regarded as anti-Semitic in its code. He said: (The NEC) wasnt trying to rewrite it, it has accepted almost all of it. What its done is also put alongside it a code of conduct for members of the party because we will not tolerate anti-Semitism in any form whatsoever in the party. The Labour leader said he would have preferred the PLP discussion on the code to have been delayed until September. I suspect Mondays meeting will not be fully attended because Parliament is rising on Tuesday, he said. A no-deal Brexit would damage British relations with Europe for a generation, Jeremy Hunt warned as he pleaded for Brussels to show more flexibility in negotiations. The Foreign Secretary used a visit to Berlin to say that while a failure to achieve a Brexit deal would be challenging for the UK, it would thrive in the long term. But relations between the UK and its allies would be severely damaged by a failure to reach an agreement, he warned. The only person to benefit from the collapse of talks would be Russian President Vladimir Putin, he suggested. Without a real change in approach from the EU negotiators, we do now face a real risk of no deal by accident, Mr Hunt said. That would be incredibly challenging economically. Britain would find that challenging but in the end we would find a way not just to survive but to thrive economically. Jeremy Hunt But my real concern is that it would change British public attitudes to Europe for a generation. It would lead to a fissure in relations which would be highly damaging for that great partnership that we have had for so many years, which has been so important in sustaining the international order. Excellent discussion with German Foreign Minister @HeikoMaas about the unintended geopolitical consequences of No Deal. Only person rejoicing would be Putin... Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) July 23, 2018 The Foreign Secretary said the only person rejoicing from a no-deal Brexit would be Mr Putin. In a statement released following the talks, the German foreign ministry said that many of the proposals in Theresa Mays Brexit White Paper raise questions on both sides of the Channel which would have to be examined by the European Commission. The priority for foreign minister Heiko Maas was the UK and EU reaching agreement on binding rules to govern their relationship following Brexit, said the statement. We dont want a disorderly Brexit, we want an agreement, said Mr Maas. Despite Brexit, we will continue to stand for the same values and interests. Mr Hunts trip to Berlin for talks with his German counterpart marks the start of a frenetic round of diplomatic activity for Theresa Mays Government as the Prime Minister seeks to build support for her Brexit strategy. Cabinet's Brexit summer tour graphic The Prime Minister is expected to hold talks with Austrian counterpart Sebastian Kurz and other EU leaders at the Salzburg Festival on Friday. Also this week, Mrs Mays de facto deputy David Lidington will travel to Paris while Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab will be in Brussels for talks on Thursday. A man died after a car was driven the wrong way on the M3 motorway in Belfast, police said. Vehicles collided after police received several reports of a silver car travelling in the wrong direction from the Sydenham bypass towards the M2 on Sunday afternoon. Inspector Andrew Wilson, from the Collision Investigation Unit, said: At approximately 3.50pm yesterday, Sunday 22 July, police received several reports of a silver car travelling in the wrong direction along the M3, Belfast, from Sydenham bypass towards the M2. PSNI badge Police appeal for information following fatal road traffic collision in Belfast, yesterday, Sunday, 22 July. pic.twitter.com/YmB2GqziBu Police Service NI (@PoliceServiceNI) July 23, 2018 We are working to establish where this vehicle joined the M3 and its subsequent movements prior to the collision. I would appeal to anyone who has dash cam footage of this vehicle or information relating to this incident to contact the Collision Investigation Unit at Sprucefield. He added: I also wish to express my thanks to the members of the public who have already come forward and provided us with dash cam footage and witness accounts leading up to this road traffic collision. Team Skys Geraint Thomas and Chris Froome go into the final week of the Tour de France first and second on general classification. Sky always insisted that Froome, seeking a record-equalling fifth Tour title, was their leader, but the longer Thomas has spent in yellow, the more that feeling has eroded. By Mondays rest day in Carcassonne, it felt as if it might have been reversed entirely as Froome said he would be willing to work for Thomas if necessary. Here, Press Association Sport breaks down the Team Sky leadership battle and looks at where it might be settled. How did we get here? Geraint Thomas has looked comfortable in yellow Froome has been Skys undisputed leader since 2013, when he was picked for the Tour de France ahead of 2012 winner Sir Bradley Wiggins. He holds all three Grand Tour titles after following his fourth Tour win last year with victory in La Vuelta and the Giro dItalia, and has his sights set on a rare Giro-Tour double. But his build-up to the Tour was far from ideal as he had to defend himself in an anti-doping investigation. He was cleared of wrongdoing just five days before the Tour started at a time when organisers were seeking to ban Froome from racing at all. Thomas was Skys back-up plan, and his victory in the Criterium du Dauphine suggested he was a strong one. After Froome lost time with a late crash on the opening stage, Thomas kept adding to his advantage to prove he is the man in form. So who is the most likely to win from here? Chris Froome has experienced winning the Tour With 99 seconds in hand, this is Thomas Tour to lose. He is yet to show a sign of weakness, claiming impressive back-to-back mountain stage wins in La Rosiere and Alpe dHuez, and avoiding the mechanical issues and crashes which have robbed other general classification hopefuls of time. The question for Thomas is whether he can hold it all together over three weeks as we have now reached uncharted territory for the Welshman a point he has been keen to make himself. Froomes experience counts in his favour, but whether he has the legs to make up his considerable deficit in the final week remains to be seen after the efforts of the Giro. Froome has said his training plan was designed for him to come good in the last week. Now is the time to deliver. The third man Tom Dumoulin cannot be ruled out Sky cannot simply afford to fight amongst themselves with Team Sunwebs Tom Dumoulin sitting just 11 seconds behind Froome. The Dutchman, winner of the Giro in 2017 and second to Froome in this years race, has spoken openly of trying to take advantage of Skys situation, knowing the leading pair are not keen to attack one another. Froome needs to make time up on the world time trial champion somewhere, though, as he cannot sit comfortably in second place with just an 11-second cushion given there is a race against the clock to come on stage 20. Like Froome, Dumoulin has the Giro in his legs, which puts a question mark over his ability to keep pace in the final week. Where will the battle for yellow be decided? Thomas still has plenty of work to do The decisive battles will unfold in the Pyrenees with three tough mountain stages before Saturdays time trial. Tuesdays stage is back-loaded with climbs of the Col de Mente and Col du Portillon before a long descent into Bagneres-de-Luchon, where Froome won with an attacking descent in 2016, albeit on different roads. Wednesdays stage to the summit of the Col du Portet is the wildcard, just 65km long and starting with an experimental grid designed to promote explosive racing. Survive that, and the riders then face three-quarters of the Circle of Death on Friday when they tackle the Aspin, the Tourmalet and the Aubisque on a brutal stage to Laruns. The final margins will be determined in Saturdays time trial, but the rolling 31km course is an intriguing one given it may temper the advantages of the pure time trialists. Ecuadors president will not discuss the future of Julian Assange during a brief visit to the UK, it has been announced. Lenin Moreno will address a Global Disability Summit in London on Tuesday, highlighting Ecuadors progress on inclusion issues. A statement issued on Monday made it clear the president will not address issues relating to the WikiLeaks founder, who has been living in Ecuadors London embassy for over six years. Julian Assange He fears being extradited to the United States if he leaves the building, for questioning over the activities of WikiLeaks. Mr Assange has been granted political asylum by the Ecuador government, but his communication was cut off three months ago when he was accused of breaching a written commitment not to issue messages that might interfere with other states. Ecuador said Tuesdays summit is considered the first global celebration to recognise the achievements and rights of people with disabilities. Mr Moreno, who uses a wheelchair after he was shot in an attempted robbery in 1998, will explain the work he developed between 2007 and 2013 as vice president of Ecuador, which earned him recognition worldwide, leading to his appointment as Special Envoy of the United Nations for disability and accessibility issues. The summit, organised by the British Government in conjunction with the government of Kenya and the International Disability Alliance (IDA), will bring together more than 700 delegates from governments, private sector organisations, charities and people with disabilities. Ecuadors statement said: It should be remembered that, in this international tour, the Head of State and his delegation will not address issues concerning the asylum granted to Mr Julian Assange, since its purpose is participation in the world meeting and the economic and commercial promotion of Ecuador in Spain, England and Scotland. The President will also travel to the University of Edinburgh, and later will talk with businessmen interested in investing in Ecuador. He is not expected to visit Ecuadors London embassy, scene of a vigil last month to mark the sixth anniversary of Mr Assange living there. Ecuador said it will continue its position of talking and promoting understandings on Mr Assanges asylum, adding there was no clear-cut short or long-term solution. A briefing to MPs last month from one of Mr Assanges legal team said the UK could resolve the impasse by providing a diplomatic assurance against US extradition. Mr Assange has made it clear he is happy to face British justice but not at the expense of facing American injustice, said the briefing. MPs were told that Mr Assange has been requesting an assurance from the UK that he would not be extradited to the US to face prosecution for his publishing activities with WikiLeaks. The UKs failure to provide this assurance was the reason Mr Assange sought asylum in Ecuadors embassy in 2012, the reason he was granted 1951 Convention refugee status by Ecuador and why he remains there today, said the briefing. UK diplomatic assurances would have significant benefits to the UK, including ending public spending on policing and surveillance, demonstrating the UKs commitment to free speech and ending a longstanding diplomatic issue which has disrupted relations with Ecuador, it was said. Mr Assange has been living under harsh conditions, with no access to sunlight or outdoor exercise, but things have worsened dramatically since his communications were cut, said the briefing, adding: This situation is clearly untenable. International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt will also address the summit. Asked about the Assange case, a Downing Street spokeswoman said: There are no plans for Penny Mordaunt to discuss that issue with the Ecuadorean president. The Duke of Sussex has urged the worlds young people to take on the challenge of tackling the Aids epidemic. Harry, who is in Amsterdam attending a world conference on Aids, told young delegates supported by his charity Sentebale they were the key. Across the globe, the numbers of new transmissions among the crucial 10-19 age group is rising while in contrast progress has been made in the very young and adults. The Duke of Sussex is at the @AIDS_conference with @Sentebale #LetYouthLead advocates from #Lesotho and #Botswana - the #LetYouthLead programme provides young people with a platform to drive positive change in #HIV interventions for youth in their region. pic.twitter.com/IK9GRVfDFO @Sentebale (@Sentebale) July 23, 2018 The duke has in recent years followed in the footsteps of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales a pioneer in the fight against Aids by raising awareness about HIV/Aids and encouraging people to get tested and know their HIV status. Speaking during a discussion session, Harry told the young advocates from Sentebales Let Youth Lead programme: More and more leaders, they should be using the younger generation and the experiences you have Im 33 years old and I already feel out of touch. Aids 2018 summit The duke added: We have to put power into the hands of the younger generation. Because thats where the solutions are going to come from, thats where the passion and engagement is coming from as well. Harry went on to say: And now we are facing another generation of complacency where a lot of people think Well, you know its solved, its done. Its not this is where it has to start, this is where you guys are going to take over and solve it. Last month The Duke of Sussex, @Sentebale Patron, made a private visit to Sentebale projects in Lesotho today at @AIDS_conference in Amsterdam he will meet youth advocates driving change in the fight to end HIV/AIDS by 2030 #AIDS2018 pic.twitter.com/pLdNvyWmBM The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) July 23, 2018 Earlier, the duke heard young delegates from countries including Zimbabwe, India and the US speak about how Aids has affected their lives. The Aids 2018 conference is billed as the largest gathering on HIV and Aids in the world, bringing together more than 15,000 scientists, activists, health providers, policy makers and global leaders. Harry told the discussion group that the young had the power to solve issues quicker and they should not just be a couple of people on the side of a platform. His charity Sentebale focuses on supporting HIV-positive young people in the African nations of Lesotho and Botswana and has, through its Let Youth Lead programme, given young men and women a voice at the conference on the issue of Aids and how if affects their lives. They will be meeting major funders and policy makers during the conference after Harry said he wanted to use his position as a royal to give them a platform. Aids 2018 summit The dukes mission to help in the fight against Aids mirrors the efforts of Diana, who in the late 1980s, when many still believed the disease could be contracted through casual contact, sat on the sickbed of a man with Aids and held his hand. Both publicly and privately she supported the work of those helping patients, with late-night trips to east Londons Mildmay HIV hospice, and serving as patron of the National Aids Trust. Barclays has announced plans to create up to 2,500 new jobs in Glasgow. The bank is developing a new campus at the citys Buchanan Wharf, providing a base for its functions, technology and operations teams. Paul Compton, chief operating officer at Barclays, said the development was a flagship project for the bank. An artist's impression of Barclay's new Glasgow base Scotlands First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said it would be transformational for Glasgow. Barclays has agreed to buy the Buchanan Wharf campus development from Drum Property Group Ltd, and is currently working with them to finalise the design of the new facility. The bank said the campus, located on the banks of the River Clyde, will play a pivotal role in the execution of Barclays long-term strategic priorities and will be one of a small number of key global sites. It is expected that, once completed, it will be able to accommodate up to 2,500 additional roles, doubling Barclays current workforce in Scotland and making the bank one of Glasgows biggest commercial employers. Scottish Enterprise has provided 12.75 million of grant funding for the project. The funding agreement requires at least 42% of new jobs to be high value, and at least 341 will be for disadvantaged workers or those who have a disability. State-of-the-art campus to be built in Glasgow: with cutting-edge technology and design, this world class working space will help us deliver outstanding services to customers and clients by fostering innovation and collaboration. Read more: https://t.co/RRXOvP38Cc #BackingtheUK pic.twitter.com/7RPLvF5OMf Barclays Bank (@Barclays) July 23, 2018 Ms Sturgeon said: This is a project that will be transformational for Glasgow, creating up to 2,500 new jobs in the heart of the city. The new campus will strengthen Glasgows financial services sector and shows Scotland continues to be a highly attractive location for inward investment. I am particularly pleased that as part of this investment, Barclays has committed to employing local people who often face barriers into work, including those with disabilities and young people. Mr Compton said: The Glasgow campus, alongside others in Whippany, New Jersey, and Pune, India, is part of a global strategy to create world-class facilities for our functions, technology and operations teams. This new campus at Buchanan Wharf is a flagship project for the bank, which builds on Barclays long history in Scotland and clearly demonstrates our commitment to supporting the UK economy. This is a fantastic opportunity to deepen our close ties with local communities and academic institutions to attract and retain the very best talent. It will be somewhere that our colleagues are incredibly proud to work. Theresa May backed the decision not to seek assurances from Washington that two Britons suspected of fighting for Islamic State will not face execution if extradited to the US for terror crimes, Downing Street has said. The decision of Home Secretary Sajid Javid not to seek death penalty assurances in the case of two suspected members of ISs so-called Beatles cell sparked uproar in Westminster. MPs accused him of breaching the UKs long-standing opposition to the death penalty, while the Governments former reviewer of anti-terror legislation Lord Carlile branded the move extraordinary. Amnesty International said Mr Javid was leaving the door wide open to charges of hypocrisy and double standards by failing to seek cast-iron assurances from the US that the two men will not be executed. 'While the alleged crimes of Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh are appalling, the UK's principled opposition to the cruelty of the #DeathPenalty isn't something it should compromise.' https://t.co/Hc0bEhS2J2 pic.twitter.com/1HZPWo7zgD Amnesty UK (@AmnestyUK) July 23, 2018 Home Office minister Ben Wallace was summoned to answer questions from alarmed MPs in the Commons, where he insisted that there had been no other cases of the requirement being waived since he took on the security brief in 2016. He promised to inform MPs if earlier instances came to light. Asked whether the Prime Minister approved of Mr Javids position, set out in a letter to US attorney general Jeff Sessions, a Downing Street spokeswoman initially said only that Mrs May was made aware of it, adding that the Government opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. But Number 10 later shifted its line, telling reporters that Mrs May supports the Home Secretarys handling of the case and hopes it will end with the two men remaining in prison for the rest of their lives. The ultimate aim for all of us in our discussions with the US is to make sure that these men face the rest of their lives in prison. That is also what the victims families want, said the Downing Street spokeswoman. In this instance, after careful and considered advice, the Government took the decision not to seek assurances. That was deemed by ministers to be appropriate. The Prime Minister was aware of these plans and supports the way that these are being handled. Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh are said to have been members of a brutal four-man cell of IS executioners in Syria and Iraq, responsible for killing a series of high-profile Western captives, including British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning and US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff. Nicknamed after the 1960s band because of their British accents, the cell is also believed to have included Mohammed Emwazi known as Jihadi John who was killed in a US air strike in 2015, and Aine Davis, who has been jailed in Turkey. Syria conflict Kotey and Elsheikh, who are understood to have been stripped of their British citizenship, were captured in January, sparking a row over whether they should be returned to the UK for trial or face justice in another jurisdiction. In his letter, obtained by The Daily Telegraph, Mr Javid told Mr Sessions the UK does not currently intend to request, nor actively encourage the transfer of the pair to Britain. Signalling that the UK was prepared to drop assurances relating to the death penalty, Mr Javid said: All assistance and material will be provided on the condition that it may only be used for the purpose sought in that request, namely a federal criminal investigation or prosecution. Furthermore, I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought. The letter sparked alarm in Westminster, with shadow attorney general Baroness Chakrabarti saying that Mr Javid appeared to have secretly and unilaterally abandoned Britains opposition to the death penalty. She warned: By doing so he is not just playing with the lives of these particular terrorists but those of other Britons including potentially innocent ones all over the world. Lord Carlile described the move as a dramatic change of policy by a minister, secretly, without any discussion in Parliament. Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Sir Ed Davey said: The use of the death penalty no matter the crimes involved is wrong. By refusing to stand up to Donald Trumps administration on this issue, Sajid Javid has abdicated his responsibility to uphold fundamental human rights. "Opposing the death penalty is one of the fundamental principles that underpins our country's commitment to human rights." - @EHRCChair's response to today's news story. More: https://t.co/NWffP3epKh pic.twitter.com/9uacjzE4n5 EHRC (@EHRC) July 23, 2018 David Isaac, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: Opposing the death penalty is one of the fundamental principles that underpins our countrys commitment to human rights. There is no conflict between these values and ensuring that justice is served. We believe the Home Secretary should first have sought assurances that the death penalty will not be used in this case. The same basic human rights should apply to everyone and they must be exercised without exception. Failing to do so risks setting a dangerous precedent and jeopardises our ability to hold other countries to account for human rights breaches. Mr Wallace assured the Commons that ministers have complied with the European Convention on Human Rights and due process. But he was heckled by opposition MPs as he said it would be bizarre and not justice to the victims if the authorities simply let them free to roam around the United Kingdom because of concerns about sharing evidence with the US. Jihadi John named Mr Foleys mother Diane said she was opposed to the death penalty, warning it would make the two men martyrs in their twisted ideology. I would like them held accountable by being sent to prison for the rest of their lives, she told BBC Radio 4s Today programme. The deputy leader of Welsh Labour has told a court that she never authorised a payrise for her office manager. Carolyn Harris, MP for Swansea East, said she was not aware of a form increasing Jenny Lee Clarkes annual pay from 37,000 to 39,000. Clarke, 42, is alleged to have forged Mrs Harriss signature on the form, which was submitted to the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa), in August 2015. Cardiff Crown Court has been told that the form also reduced Clarkes weekly hours from 40 to 37.5. When Ipsa sent an email to Mrs Harris confirming the change, Clarke is said to have accessed the MPs account and replied: Yes, this is correct. Carolyn Harris says she did not authorise the pay rise (Gus Campbell Photography/PA) Mrs Harris, who gave evidence in the case for two hours on Monday afternoon, said she had never seen either email and had not spoken to Clarke about a payrise. She told the jury of eight men and four women that she only became aware of the change when a colleague sent her the staff reports for her office in January 2016. It was the August payment which alerted me to it because it was such a dramatic uplift, Mrs Harris said. I couldnt understand why it was [the amount]. At that point it looked like Ms Clarke had given herself a payrise. I knew nothing of it. It was never discussed. Mrs Harris said she had previously agreed that Clarke could drop her hours from 40 to 37.5 per week, as this was in line with other staff members. After discovering the payrise, the MP contacted Ipsa and the human resources department at the House of Commons. The court heard the email sent from Ipsa to confirm the change of Clarkes contract was marked: FAO MP only and specified that it was confidential. Cardiff Crown Court, where the trial is taking place (Antony Stone/PA) South Wales Police were informed and Clarke, of Penllergaer, Swansea, was arrested in July 2016. In police interview, she admitted signing Mrs Harriss name on the form and sending the email from her account, but insisted both were done on the MPs instruction. Mrs Harris told the court she was elected as MP for Swansea East at the general election in 2015, after her predecessor Sian James stood down. Both Mrs Harris and Clarke had worked for Mrs James before the election, with the MP describing them as friends. On May 8 that year, Clarke was hired as Mrs Harriss office manager, working 40 hours per week and earning 37,000 per year. However, Mrs Harris said issues began to arise with Clarkes employment. In November 2015, she was informed by Ipsa that her parliamentary credit card was being suspended because the money reconciliation had not been done one of Clarkes duties. Clarke was on annual leave at the time and had taken the office laptop and relevant paperwork to her home, the court heard. This led to Mrs Harris effectively demoting Clarke and giving the job of managing office finances to David Lloyd, her election agent and community liaison officer for her constituency. Mr Lloyd accessed the staff reports in January 2016 and sent them to Mrs Harris, who replied: Looks like Jen gave herself a payrise. The form submitted by Clarke signed Carolyn Harris and dated August 8 2015 was retrieved and showed the payrise and drop in hours. Clarke was sent a letter of dismissal in January 2016, but Mrs Harris said this was for unrelated matters. She told jurors that she had trusted Clarke implicitly. Prosecuting, Jim Davis accused Clarke of forging Mrs Harriss signature and then intercepting the Ipsa email. He said Clarke may have believed Mrs Harris was far too busy dealing with parliamentary business to spot the change. Clarke, who denies forgery and fraud, told police that Mrs Harris asked her to submit a form to Ipsa to change another employees contract. She said Mrs Harris told her: While youre at it, give yourself a couple of thousand extra and authorised the reduction in her working hours. The trial continues. The EU must call time on UK Government stalling on Brexit, Sinn Feins leader said as she urged Brussels to convene a special summit on the Irish border impasse. Mary Lou McDonald urged Michel Barnier to push for the additional meeting of European leaders as she met the EUs chief Brexit negotiator in Brussels. After emerging from talks with Mr Barnier on Monday afternoon, party president Mrs McDonald said she had received assurances that the EU was standing firm on its insistence that a so-called Irish border backstop agreed between Brussels and London must form party of the final withdrawal treaty. Mary Lou McDonald EU should seek a special summit before October to resolve Irish issues @MaryLouMcDonald https://t.co/0wjS0akNw4 pic.twitter.com/xsMVj9nrM5 Sinn Fein (@sinnfeinireland) July 23, 2018 Last December the EU and UK agreed that Northern Ireland would continue to adhere to a number of European customs regulations if a wider Brexit trade deal failed to materialise. It was supposed to be a fallback position that would ensure a free-flowing border regardless of the terms of the UKs exit from the EU. However, the two sides are at loggerheads on how to translate that agreement into a legally binding commitment in a potential withdrawal treaty. Recent developments at Westminster have placed further question marks over the backstop, amid claims that Theresa Mays Chequers deal and subsequent Brexiteer-driven amendments to Government legislation are incompatible with the December agreement. Mrs McDonald, who was accompanied in Brussels by Sinn Fein vice president Michelle ONeill, said an extra EU meeting is required in September to try to forge a resolution ahead of Octobers crunch summit the effective deadline to secure a Brexit deal. The Sinn Fein leader also criticised Mrs Mays speech in Belfast last week, when the Prime Minister made clear she would not sign up to any backstop that treated Northern Ireland differently to the rest of the UK. Last weeks visit by Theresa May to Belfast has raised very serious concerns over the British Governments approach to Brexit, Mrs McDonald said in Brussels. In December we were told that a backstop was a cast-iron guarantee, that the Good Friday Agreement would be protected in word and spirit, and that there would be no diminution of rights for Irish and EU citizens in the North. The British Government is seeking to row back on these commitments and to bin the December agreement. Theresa May is placing her personal self-interest to stay in Downing Street ahead of the needs of Ireland, North and South. The British Government is now engaged in a game of brinkmanship which puts our all-island economy and our agreements at risk. There is no certainty and no clarity on Irish interests. The EU has made clear that without the backstop there will be no withdrawal agreement and that the interests of Ireland must be dealt with in line with the December agreement. Michel Barnier assured us this remains the case and that Britain must agree workable solutions in line with the December agreement. We believe that this must be given affect and the EU should call time on British Government stalling. The EU should hold a special summit in advance of October to resolve Irish issues before closing on the withdrawal agreement. 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Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe The settlement the UK has agreed in principle over Brexit is made up of obligations and commitments it has already settled on, Irish premier Leo Varadkar has said. He was speaking in Croatia as part of a tour of three European capitals to discuss Brexit and other issues relating to Britain leaving the EU next year. The Taoiseach also said a hard border could not be contemplated. I think there is a real understanding from every member state that we need to avoid that, first of all through the withdrawal treaty, and then through the final relationship, RTE reported him saying. Great meeting with Croatian PM @AndrejPlenkovic and another very warm welcome in Zagreb. Very broad discussion on #Brexit, trade and closer future relations between Ireland and Croatia pic.twitter.com/AFw7BxtTGv Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) July 23, 2018 Mr Varadkar visited Croatian capital Zagreb for meetings with president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic and prime minister Andrej Plenkovic. The Irish leader will travel to Romania on Tuesday and will meet president Klaus Iohannis and prime minister Viorica Dancila. On Wednesday, he will travel on to Italy where he will visit the Venice Biennale, before a meeting in Rome on Thursday with the new Italian prime minister, Giuseppe Conte. Irish deputy leader Simon Coveney said he was optimistic about negotiations. Simon Coveney Nobody wants a no-deal Brexit, it would be catastrophic for Britain, but also very bad news for Ireland. The responsibility is on all of us to find a way forward, and Im optimistic we will. We now have a clear white paper, which is the negotiating position for the British Government, and started intensifying negotiations thats positive. We also have a Prime Minister that has repeated that we are not going to see physical border structure in Ireland. We want to reassure communities, especially in Northern Ireland, that we can manage our way through Britain leaving the EU, and protect the peace process. The Syrian government has condemned a multilateral operation to evacuate hundreds of rescue workers from the war-torn country as a criminal process intended to destabilise Syria. Syrian authorities have long described the Civil Defence search-and-rescue group, which are popularly known as the White Helmets, as a terror organisation. The group rose to prominence as it filmed its operations to rescue civilians from Syrian government air strikes in the countrys brutal civil war. Syria Several days ago @POTUS Trump contacted me, as did @CanadianPM Trudeau and others, and requested that we assist in evacuating hundreds of 'White Helmets' from Syria. These are people who have saved lives and whose lives were in danger. pic.twitter.com/mGzFCvPe1X Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) July 22, 2018 The government has said the group stages videos. Damascus ally Russia has accused the group of staging chemical weapons attacks on civilians and blaming them on the government, a charge that has never been proven. On Saturday, more than 400 rescuers and their family members were evacuated from Syrias Quneitra province through Israel to Jordan, after the rebels surrendered the last areas they held in the south-western province to the government. Syrias foreign ministry called it a smuggling operation that was evidence of a Western conspiracy to overthrow the government. The White Helmets have financial backing from the US, the UK, and other nations. The unprecedented operation was spearheaded by the US, Canada, and UK. The rescuers and their families are expected to be resettled in Europe and Canada. Fantastic news that we - UK and friends - have secured evacuation of White Helmets and their families - thank you Israel and Jordan for acting so quickly on our request. The WH are the bravest of the brave and in a desperate situation this is at least one ray of hope Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) July 22, 2018 Germanys interior minister confirmed the country would give asylum to eight rescuers and 39 family members. Horst Seehofer said on Sunday that giving the rescue workers shelter is a humanitarian obligation. More than 250 White Helmets have been killed in the war since 2013. Foreign minister Heiko Maas was quoted as saying that the efforts of the White Helmets deserve admiration and respect. Germany has provided the group with 12 million euro (10 million) in funding since 2016. Meanwhile, Israel said it fired a pair of missiles to intercept two missiles fired from Syria in Israels direction. It said the Syrian missiles landed inside Syrian territory just short of the Golan Heights, which have been occupied by Israel since 1967. Hundreds of refugees returned to Syria from Lebanon, also on Monday, Lebanons National News Agency reported. It is the latest in a string of returns this year. President Michel Aouns Free Patriotic Movement party has put refugee returns near the top of its political agenda. The National News Agency said 850 Syrians living around the border town of Arsal were repatriated on Monday. Close to one million Syrians are registered with the UNs refugee agency in Lebanon. The agency, the UNHCR, said it is not organising returns to Syria. It says refugees should not be coerced into returning. More than five million people have fled the country during its seven-year-long civil war, according to the UN. The husband of porn film performer Stormy Daniels has filed for divorce in Texas. Ms Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, says that she had sex with Donald Trump before he became president, something Mr Trump has denied. My client Stormy Daniels and her husband Glen have decided to end their marriage. A petition for divorce was filed last week, the accuracy of which is vehemently disputed. Stormys daughter remains her number one priority. She kindly asks for privacy for the sake of her family. Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) July 23, 2018 Glendon Crain filed the petition for divorce on July 18 in district court in Kaufman County, located just south east of Dallas. Trump Porn Star In his 13-page divorce petition, Mr Crain alleged adultery as grounds for the divorce and seeks sole custody of the couples seven-year-old daughter and child support from Ms Clifford, as well as a disproportionate share of the couples community property. Ms Daniels lawyer Michael Avenatti said in a tweet that Ms Daniels and Mr Crain decided mutually to end their marriage and that the accuracy of the divorce petition is vehemently disputed. The Government has defended a decision not to seek assurances from Washington that two Britons suspected of fighting for Islamic State would not face execution if extradited to the US to face terror charges. Downing Street said Theresa May backed the decision by Home Secretary Sajid Javid not to seek death penalty assurances as the case of two suspected members of ISs so-called Beatles cell sparked uproar in Westminster. MPs on all sides accused Mr Javid of breaching the UKs long-standing opposition to the death penalty, while the Governments former reviewer of anti-terror legislation Lord Carlile branded the move extraordinary. 'While the alleged crimes of Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh are appalling, the UK's principled opposition to the cruelty of the #DeathPenalty isn't something it should compromise.' https://t.co/Hc0bEhS2J2 pic.twitter.com/1HZPWo7zgD Amnesty UK (@AmnestyUK) July 23, 2018 It emerged on Monday night that Boris Johnson backed Mr Javids decision in the case of Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh while still foreign secretary despite some reservations. The Daily Telegraph reported an internal document which said he thought it could damage future attempts to dissuade the use of the death penalty but agrees that the benefits outweigh the risks in this instance. Amnesty International said Mr Javid was leaving the door wide open to charges of hypocrisy and double standards by failing to seek cast-iron assurances from the US that the two men will not be executed. Home Office minister Ben Wallace was summoned to answer questions from alarmed MPs in the Commons, where he insisted that there had been no other cases of the requirement being waived since he took on the security brief in 2016. Asked whether the Prime Minister approved of Mr Javids position, set out in a letter to US attorney general Jeff Sessions obtained by The Daily Telegraph, a Downing Street spokeswoman initially said only that Mrs May was made aware of it, adding that the Government opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. Syria conflict But Number 10 later shifted its line, telling reporters that Mrs May supports the Home Secretarys handling of the case and hopes it will end with the two men remaining in prison for the rest of their lives. The ultimate aim for all of us in our discussions with the US is to make sure that these men face the rest of their lives in prison. That is also what the victims families want, said the Downing Street spokeswoman. In this instance, after careful and considered advice, the Government took the decision not to seek assurances. That was deemed by ministers to be appropriate. The Prime Minister was aware of these plans and supports the way that these are being handled. Kotey and Elsheikh are said to have been members of a brutal four-man cell of IS executioners in Syria and Iraq, responsible for killing a series of high-profile Western captives, including British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning and US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff. Nicknamed after the 1960s band because of their British accents, the cell is also believed to have included Mohammed Emwazi known as Jihadi John who was killed in a US air strike in 2015, and Aine Davis, who has been jailed in Turkey. Kotey and Elsheikh, who are understood to have been stripped of their British citizenship, were captured in January, sparking a row over whether they should be returned to the UK for trial or face justice in another jurisdiction. The letter sparked alarm in Westminster, with shadow attorney general Baroness Chakrabarti saying that Mr Javid appeared to have secretly and unilaterally abandoned Britains opposition to the death penalty. Jihadi John named She warned: By doing so he is not just playing with the lives of these particular terrorists but those of other Britons including potentially innocent ones all over the world. Lord Carlile described the move as a dramatic change of policy by a minister, secretly, without any discussion in Parliament. Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Sir Ed Davey said: By refusing to stand up to Donald Trumps administration on this issue, Sajid Javid has abdicated his responsibility to uphold fundamental human rights. "Opposing the death penalty is one of the fundamental principles that underpins our country's commitment to human rights." - @EHRCChair's response to today's news story. More: https://t.co/NWffP3epKh pic.twitter.com/9uacjzE4n5 EHRC (@EHRC) July 23, 2018 David Isaac, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: Opposing the death penalty is one of the fundamental principles that underpins our countrys commitment to human rights. There is no conflict between these values and ensuring that justice is served. Mr Wallace assured the Commons that ministers have complied with the European Convention on Human Rights and due process. But he was heckled by opposition MPs as he said it would be bizarre and not justice to the victims if the authorities simply let them free to roam around the United Kingdom because of concerns about sharing evidence with the US. Tory former attorney general Dominic Grieve said the decision represented a major departure from normal policy, adding: Those are the key questions and until theyre answered I have to say to him this issue is going to continue to haunt the Government. By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON, July 22 (Reuters) - Accused Russian agent Maria Butina had wider high-level contacts in Washington than previously known, taking part in 2015 meetings between a visiting Russian official and two senior officials at the U.S. Federal Reserve and Treasury Department. The meetings, revealed by several people familiar with the sessions and a report from a Washington think tank that arranged them, involved Stanley Fischer, Fed vice chairman at the time, and Nathan Sheets, then Treasury undersecretary for international affairs. Butina traveled to the United States in April 2015 with Alexander Torshin, then the Russian Central Bank deputy governor, and they took part in separate meetings with Fischer and Sheets to discuss U.S.-Russian economic relations during Democratic former President Barack Obama's administration. The two meetings, which have not been previously reported, reveal a wider circle of high-powered connections that Butina sought to cultivate with American political leaders and special interest groups. The meetings with Fischer and Sheets were arranged by the Center for the National Interest, a Washington foreign policy think tank that often advocates pro-Russia views. The meetings were documented in a Center for the National Interest report seen by Reuters that outlined its Russia-related activities from 2013 to 2015. The report described the meetings as helping bring together "leading figures from the financial institutions of the United States and Russia." A judge on Wednesday ordered Butina, 29, jailed until her trial after U.S. prosecutors argued she has ties to Russian intelligence and could flee the United States. Butina has pleaded not guilty to charges she acted as a foreign agent for Russia. Butina worked for Torshin, who has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and served as his interpreter at various Washington events. Fischer, an in email to Reuters, confirmed he met with Torshin and his interpreter. While he could not recall details, Fischer said the conversation involved "the state of the Russian economy" and Torshin's new role as deputy central bank governor. Another person familiar with the meeting, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it occurred on April 7, 2015, and confirmed Butina attended. Federal prosecutors have accused Butina of conspiring with two American citizens and a top Russian official to influence U.S. policy toward Russia and infiltrate a gun rights group believed to be the National Rifle Association. The NRA is an influential pro-gun lobby with close ties to Republican politicians including President Donald Trump. Questions relating to Russia have cast a cloud over Trump's presidency. 'ADVANCE THE INTERESTS' The description of the top Russian official mentioned in the indictment matches Torshin. The indictment said that beginning in about 2015 Butina and the official conspired to "advance the interests of the Russian Federation." "I recall Mr. Torshin mentioning, as an aside, that he planned to attend a meeting of the National Rifle Association, a fact that I considered irrelevant to our conversation," Fischer wrote to Reuters. Sheets declined to comment through Ted Smith, a spokesman for asset management firm PGIM, where Sheets currently works. Fischer and Sheets met with many international banking officials as part of their official duties. The Treasury Department in April imposed sanctions on Torshin and a number of other Russian businessmen and government officials in Putin's inner circle. The think tank hosted Trump at an event at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington in April 2016 also attended by Sergei Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to Washington at the time. The April 2015 visit by Butina and Torshin came about a year after Obama's administration imposed sanctions on Russia for its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. Two months earlier, in February 2015, the group's Russian-born CEO, Dimitri Simes, traveled to Moscow, where he met with Putin and other Russian officials, the organization's records showed. During the same April 2015 trip, Torshin and Butina also participated in a private "off the record" discussion at the center about the "Russian financial situation and its impact on Russian politics," according to people familiar with the meeting and the think tank's report. That event was moderated by the group's chairman emeritus, former AIG CEO Maurice "Hank" Greenberg, the report showed. Greenberg did not return calls for comment. Among the think tank's board members is David Keene, a former NRA president and former chairman of the American Conservative Union. Keene has previously been photographed alongside Butina at events. Paul Saunders, the think tank's executive director, said Torshin spoke at an April 2015 event about the Russian banking system and Butina attended. Saunders said people at the organization cannot recall details of Torshin's presentation. "We were unaware of any charges or suspicions of illegal or inappropriate conduct or of any connections to Russian intelligence services," Saunders said in an email. Prosecutors said the think tank's magazine published an article by Butina in June 2015 in which she said "certain U.S. politicians and Russians share many common interests." Randy Weber, a Republican U.S. congressman from Texas, also met with Torshin during the April trip, according to the think tank's documents. A spokeswoman for Weber did not respond to multiple calls or emails seeking comment. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Damon Darlin and Will Dunham) KABUL, July 22 (Reuters) - An explosion occurred near the airport in the Afghan capital Kabul on Sunday, shortly after Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum left the area following his arrival home from more than a year in exile in Turkey. Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanekzai said the blast occurred near an airport entrance where supporters had been waiting to greet Dostum as his motorcade passed on its way to the city centre. Live television pictures showed Dostum greeting supporters at his office compound not long after the explosion. (Reporting by James Mackenzie Editing by David Goodman) By Pete Schroeder WASHINGTON, July 22 (Reuters) - A pair of prominent Republican U.S. senators said on Sunday that the United States needs to prepare new sanctions against Russia to discourage interference in upcoming elections. Senator Lindsey Graham said additional sanctions must be teed up before President Donald Trump holds a second meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin after the U.S. leader came under heavy criticism for failing to confront Putin about interference in the 2016 election at a summit last Monday. "You need to work with Congress to come up with new sanctions because Putin's not getting the message," Graham said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "We need new sanctions, heavy-handed sanctions, hanging over his head, and then meet with him." Undaunted by the backlash in his own party to his first meeting, Trump invited Putin to a White House meeting sometime this fall. Congressional midterm elections will take place in November. Senator Marco Rubio wants a vote on a bill called DETER that would impose new sanctions if U.S. intelligence officials determine Russia meddled in U.S. elections. Rubio co-authored the legislation with Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, a bipartisan effort revived by the fallout of last week's summit. "What I think is indisputable is that they did interfere and they will do so in the future," Rubio said on CNN's "State of the Union." "If our bill passes and the director of national intelligence says they interfered in 2018, these very tough sanctions will hit them. So Putin knows going in, what the price of doing so is." Putin has denied that Russia tried to influence the 2016 presidential election after the U.S. intelligence community concluded Russia interfered through cyber attacks and social media in a bid to boost Trump's candidacy. Under pressure from Congress, which last year passed a tough sanctions law targeting Russia, the U.S. Treasury in April imposed sanctions on Russian officials and oligarchs for election meddling and "malign" activities. The DETER Act would make sanctions more automatic. The U.S. director of national intelligence would be required to conclude if any foreign nations interfered in elections one month after Americans cast their votes, triggering strict sanctions within 10 days if interference was detected. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell last week identified the bill as a potential step Congress could take in the coming days to push back against Russia as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for sanctions and other deterrents. But the U.S. oil and gas industry is lobbying against the bill due to worries that heightened sanctions could impact U.S. investments in Russia, congressional sources said. (Reporting by Pete Schroeder Editing by Mary Milliken and Lisa Shumaker) As organisations evolve dramatically to create and accommodate the millennial workplace, it has been established that a great corporate culture is the cornerstone to succeeding in this endeavour. Understanding this early on, software product engineering company 99X Technology has strived to put as much effort into creating an open work culture as they have into technology development and innovation. Once again, this saw 99X Technology being ranked among Sri Lankas 25 best workplaces for the sixth consecutive year by the Great Place To Work Institute Sri Lanka. Additionally, it received honours at a regional level when it was listed among Asias Best Workplaces for 2018, the only Sri Lankan company among the 25 enterprises in the Small and Medium Enterprises category. The company, along with 24 others, were felicitated earlier this month at an awards ceremony hosted at the Hilton, Colombo. Here, 99X Technology received further commendations, as it swept up the Excellence Award in Inspiring Employees and the Gold Award in the Small Enterprise Category. Its one thing to say you want a great culture and quite another to be able to shape your peoples beliefs around the vision the company has. Our culture is driven and enhanced by our people themselves thanks to the empowerment that they receive, and this is something that is recognized time and time again by the Great Place To Work Institute. As in previous years, it is truly an honour to be ranked among these companies who are leading the way in creating great workplaces, stated 99X Technology Co-Founder and CEO Mano Sekaram. Over 115 companies in Sri Lanka from over 20 key sectors participated in this years survey, representing nearly 62,000 employees in the country. Data accumulated over the six years of conducting the Great Place To Work study in Sri Lanka displays an overall improvement within the top 25, with all dimensions scoring in the 80th percentile in 2018. These dimensions consist of credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie. When considering overall dimension scoring, the 25 best workplaces have maintained a positive trend in each dimension with an overall lead of 17 points over the rest of the workplaces in the country. In response to investigations against British MPs including Ian Paisley by the House of Commons over his visit to Sri Lanka during the former rule, then External Affairs Minister Prof.G.L. Peiris said today that the government of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa had to invite such MPs to see for themselves the actual ground situation in the country. Prof. Peiris said the then government did so to counter adverse propaganda being carried out by the pro-LTTE elements. He said two important personages, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, had asked President Rajapaksa to stop the war on terror, but the government resisted such pressure and concluded the war successfully. However, Prof. Peiris, who is the Chairman of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), said there were still formidable challenges for Sri Lanka in the international arena, even after the war was over. The establishment of the Provisional Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam was cited by him as an example to this effect. During the time of the referendum in Britain on the move to quit the European Union, he said the organization called 'Tamils for Conservatives wrote to the then British Prime Minister David Cameron pledging electoral support in that country, in return for his assistance for them to win over the rights of Tamils in Sri Lanka . He said he strongly protested over the response of Mr. Cameron. Tamil organizations were on a massive campaign to spread misinformation. We had to counter it, he said. Against this backdrop, he said the government invited British MPs to see for themselves the ground situation here. He added that the British MP had been questioned not over his invitation to Sri Lanka, but over the failure to fulfil his reporting obligation. Responding to UNP MPs questioning him over the invitation, Prof. Peiris said his position was explicit and categorical. We have one aim and objective. That is to protect Sri Lanka and the armed forces, he said. Prof. Peiris questioned the present government inviting the head of the Global Tamil Forum S.J. Emmanuel to Sri Lanka. (Kelum Bandara) Video by Sanjeewa President Maithripala Sirisena shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during formers state visit to China in March 2015 Chinese President Xi Jinping has offered Sri Lanka a fresh grant of two billion yuan (US $ 295 million), as Beijing looks to expand its influence in the tiny island country off Indias southern tip. President Maithripala Sirisena, a partner in Beijings multi-country Belt and Road infrastructure push, made the announcement on Saturday at a ceremony marking the start of construction of a Chinese-funded kidney hospital in his home constituency of Polonnaruwa, 230 km (142.92 miles) from Colombo. When the Chinese ambassador visited my house to fix the date for this ceremony, he said that Chinese President Xi Jinping sent me another gift, Sirisena told the gathering. He has gifted two billion yuan to be utilized for any project of my wish. Im going to hand over a proposal to the Chinese ambassador to build houses in all the electorates in the country, he added. The grant offer comes at a time when a Chinese firm is facing heavy criticism for allegedly financing the last election campaign of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Last month, the New York Times reported that China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) gave US $ 7.6 million for Rajapaksas re-election bid, which he lost to Sirisena in early 2015. Rajapaksa, the Chinese embassy in Colombo and state-owned CHEC have all denied the allegation, but Sirisenas coalition government held a parliament debate on Thursday over the report and called for an investigation into the alleged funding. Sirisena had at the start of his term suspended most of the Chinese-backed infrastructure projects started under Rajapaksa over suspected corruption, overpricing and for flouting government procedures. But more than a year later, the Sirisena government allowed Chinese projects to resume after a few changes in some of them. China was among the first countries that stepped in to help the reconstruction of Sri Lanka after a 26-year-long civil war ended in 2009. China and Sri Lanka have traditionally been friends and China has provided assistance according to Sri Lankas development needs, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily news briefing in Beijing on Monday. The relevant assistance does not come attached with any political conditions and is for the benefit of the Sri Lankan people, Geng said, without directly referring to the two billion yuan pledge Sirisena announced over the weekend. However, many of Chinas projects, backed by loans from its government and initiated under Rajapaksa, have faced opposition in Sri Lanka amid concerns raised by the United States, India and Japan that China might use Sri Lanka as a military base. The 2014 docking of a Chinese navy submarine in Colombo raised an alarm in New Delhi, prompting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to boost ties with Sri Lanka and claw back influence in the Indian Ocean region. Both the Sri Lankan government and Chinese embassy in Colombo have denied any plans to use a southern port now handled by a Chinese firm for military purpose. (Colombo) REUTERS Commercial Banks Chairman Dharma Dheerasinghe, Managing Director Jegan Durairatnam and members of the senior management at the opening of CBC Myanmar Microfinance Company Ltd Reveals plans to make substantial investments over 4 years Myanmar was ComBanks second overseas operation after Bangladesh The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has opened a microfinance company as its second subsidiary in Myanmar, two years after opening a representative office in Yangon that offers advisory services, banking, funds transfer and encashment services to Sri Lankan and Bangladeshi businesses operating in the country. Commercial Banks Chairman Dharma Dheerasinghe presided at the formal opening of CBC Myanmar Microfinance Company Ltd. in Nay PyiTaw on July 16, accompanied by Managing Director Jegan Durairatnam and members of the banks senior management. The company was incorporated as a limited liability company and received a licence in January 2018 to engage in microfinance activities authorised by the Financial Regulatory Department (FRD) of Myanmar. CBC Myanmar will offer group loans and individual loans to customers who require microfinance facilities and plans to accept savings deposits from the general public with the approval of the regulator. The business model will be based on a hybrid of Grameen and Association for Social Advancement (ASA) Group lending methodology, adapted to the needs of borrower expectations in Myanmar, a Commercial Bank announcement said. CBC Myanmar will promote access to finance for bottom-of-the-pyramid borrowers, empowering them to improve livelihoods and progress out of poverty. The company will also target the micro and small entrepreneurs where there is a huge unmet demand in Myanmar, considered a virgin financial market. We have high expectations for our operations in Myanmar, Durairatnam said. The financial sector of Myanmar is still under-developed and has a significant unmet demand for microfinance. The country has attracted the interest of several countries including USA and received assistance from the Asian Development Bank to improve its economy. CBC Myanmar intends to provide credit, savings, business and livelihood development services to clients, initially offering credit, compulsory and voluntary savings and progressing to micro insurance and micro remittances when the host countrys microfinance law permits. Durairatnam elaborating on the business model said, CBC Myanmar from inception will take a triple bottom line approach and will focus on both social and financial performance. The lending methodology will be carried out in line with accepted social values. The company will be fully committed to implementing Smart Campaign Client Protection Principles (CPP) as a means of demonstrating its commitment to putting the customer at the centre of the business. The key of management posts have been filled by expatriates from Sri Lanka. All other vacancies are expected to be filled through local recruitment, the company said. Myanmar was Commercial Bank of Ceylons second overseas operation after Bangladesh, which the Bank entered in July 2003, with the acquisition of the Bangladesh operations of Credit Agricole Indosuez (CAI), its first ever acquisition of a banking operation. Today, Commercial Banks operations in Bangladesh have grown to 19 outlets, and have won numerous awards including the Financial Mirror - Robintex Business Award for outstanding performance, the Financial News Services (FNS) Business Award for the Best Performing Foreign Bank in Bangladesh and the ICMAB, National Best Corporate Award. Commercial Banks other overseas operations encompass the Maldives, where the bank has a fully-fledged Tier I Bank with a majority stake and Italy, where the bank operates its own money transfer service. President Maithripala Sirisena today said he made a humble appeal from the friends of the media not to shed tears after attacking, weakening and destroying the government by way of destroying the enabled democracy and media freedom in the country. The President said he was making this request from the media institutions which did not give a proper coverage to the government but obstructed it. Addressing the Water Filling Ceremony of the Moragahakanda Kaluganga Reservoir at Laggala, he added that when the people watched private TV channels, in the afternoon, they were compelled to feel that there was no government, there was no administration, no law and order and no governance but only misery, mayhem and sufferings. Both, the print and electronic media in the private sector in many instances used an unimportant but sensational statement of a politician or top government official - in many instances a slip of the tongue - to attack the government and its action. What they try to depict is that this government has done nothing for the people. But I request you, not to forget the freedom, dignity, self-respect we gave you after January 8, 2015. I never ask you to take the governments side but tell the truth. Show the truth and print the truth. Dont forget that you give publicity to all these negative and malicious comments against the government while enjoying the independence, democratic rights and dignity this government restored for you, President Sirisena emphasized. He said the private media has hopelessly failed to give a glimpse of good deeds of the unity government to the people. (Sandun A Jayasekera) Exports grow 10% to US$ 924mn; imports increase 7.7% to US$ 1.9bn May trade deficit at US $ 933mn; trade deficit in first 5 months hit US $ 4.9bn Fuel and vehicle imports weighing on import bill as policy makers grapple with options Sri Lankas deficit in the trade account has been on a continuous expansion, but the pace at which it grew during the month of May decelerated after many months, as the countrys goods exports grew faster than its imports bill. The exports in May led by industrial goods grew by just shy of 10 percent to US$ 924 million from the same month in 2017, while the importsdriven mostly by fuelgrew by 7.7 percent to US$ 1.9 billion, digging a hole of US$ 933 million in the trade account compared to US$ 884 million deficit a year ago. Meanwhile, for the first five months of the year, Sri Lanka had a US$ 4.9 billion trade deficit by importing goods worth of US$ 9.6 billion, up 11.8 percent year-on-year (YoY) and exporting goods worth of US$ 4.7 billion, up just 6.7 percent YoY. Mays exports were mainly driven by industrial exports, led by textiles and garmentsSri Lankas largest export commodity. Earnings from textiles and agreement exports rose by 10.9 percent YoY to US$ 398.3 million while the first five months exports rose by 4.0 percent YoY to US $ 2.1 billion. Export earnings from petroleum products increased by as much as 70 percent YoY to US$ 46.1 million due to the, combined effect of high exported volumes of bunker and aviation fuel together with increased export prices, the Central Bank said in a statement. Earnings from food, beverages and tobacco exports also increased notably during the month of May owing to the increase in manufactured tobacco and coconut related products. Such exports grew by 26.2 percent YoY to US$ 38.5 million. Meanwhile, all categories of agricultural exports, barring spices and seafood, declined in May. The aggregate earnings from agriculture exports for the month stood at US$ 209.6 million, down 5.9 percent YoY. Spices and seafood exports increased from the combined impact of higher prices and volumes exported. According to the Central Bank, tea exports declined by 7.9 percent YoY to US$ 121.2 million in May, owing to the reduction in both volumes and prices. With regard to imports, the Central Bank singled out fuel and vehicle imports as key factors for the higher import bill in May. Gold imports have retreated after the imposition of heavy tax on imports in mid-April. Sri Lankas fuel bill for the month was US$ 348.9 million, up 61.8 percent YoY, of which refined petroleum and crude oil composed of US$ 233 million and US$ 116 million, respectively. The Central Bank cited both higher global oil prices and volumes imported as the reasons for the elevated oil bill. For the first five months, the total oil bill of the country was US$ 1.8 billion, up 23 percent YoY. The non-fuel imports have declined marginally, the Central Bank said, stressing the notable contribution made by fuel to the countrys imports bill. Meanwhile, in May, Sri Lankans expensed US$ 150 million for importation of vehicles, up 120 percent YoY, bringing the total amount spent on vehicle importation during the first five months to US$ 666 million, an 111 percent increase YoY. It is widely expected that the Central Bank would bring macro-prudential measures to arrest the toxic impact on external account and other sectors of the economy through excessive amounts of vehicle imports. As bank credit flows profusely into vehicle imports and other non-productive areas, the Central Bank recently said the relationship between growth in credit and economic growth is getting increasingly blurred in Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, the food and beverage imports have declined by 21.1 percent YoY to US $ 129 million in May, demonstrating the impact of higher cost of imports largely due to rupee depreciation against the US dollar. As of July 20, Sri Lankas rupee had depreciated 4.5 percent against the US dollar. Meanwhile, the expenditure on gold imports, which increased considerably since early 2016, declined notably to US$ 0.1 million. In May, last year, Sri Lanka has imported gold worth of US$ 36 million. Further, import expenditure on machinery and equipment and transport equipment also declined demonstrating a slowdown in construction and other economic activities in the country. Hayleys Advantis Limited, the transportation and logistics arm of Hayleys PLC,won Gold at the recently concluded CILT Sri Lanka National Logistics and Transport Excellence Awards 2018. The event organized by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Sri Lanka, recognized individuals and corporates that have made exceptional contributions to the development of the Sri Lankan transportation and logistics industry. Commenting on the Gold Award, Mr. Ruwan Waidyaratne, Managing Director,Hayleys Advantis Limited,said, It is indeed an honour to be recognized by our eminent peers at this prestigious event. It is a validation of our unique approach to logistics and our concerted efforts to elevate the local industry to be acompetitor on the world stage. It is also a recognition of the hard work and dedication of our employees who consistently strive to meet the needs of our customers. A customer oriented company with a focus on innovation to reach new horizons, Hayleys Advantis has the widest end-to-end logistics service offerings in Sri Lanka. Strengthened by the experience and knowledge of its workforce the company continues to overcome challenges to meet and exceed the expectations of its customers thus securing its position as an industry leader. Mr. Waidyaratne went on to say, We are proud of the lasting impact we have made towards uplifting the logistics industry in Sri Lanka, by investing in people and technology development. We will continue to focus on developing local expertise to facilitate the government initiative of establishing Sri Lanka as a logistics hub for the Asian region. Driven by a new purpose to Inspire, Connect and Enrich, the company is making significant changes in the logistics landscape across Sri Lanka. The investments made by Hayleys Advantis over the years in terms of facilities development, acquisition of unique equipment and skill enhancement, has enabled the local logistics industry to facilitate large scale logistics projects, which would otherwise have required foreign expertise. Some of these projects include,the movement of heavy transformers and windmills for national electrification projects and the movement of construction equipment to rural parts of Sri Lanka for national infrastructure development projects. The company also partners with diverse private sector clients providing sea, air and land cargo services, facilitating local and global trade. In recent years, the company has expanded its service offering to diverse countries across the region with the aim of solving complex logistics needs of the region. Hayleys Advantis is Sri Lankas most diversified transportation and logistics provider with six decades of experience and operations spread across the Asian region. Backed by the blue chip multinational conglomerate Hayleys PLC, Advantis is at the forefront of the logistics industry providing end-to-end solutions covering air, land and sea. It is committed towards being an innovator in the industry, setting the pace and shaping the logistics category. Largest kidney hospital in South Asia The hospital is a brainchild of President Sirisena President Sirisena has included the private sector through the Sanjeev Gardiner Foundation A landmark in Sri Lankas fight against kidney disease due to unknown causes, known in medical language as Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown etiology (CKDu) was created on July 21, when the President of Sri Lanka, Maithripala Sirisena, laid the foundation of the National Nephrology Hospital in Polonnaruwa, in the North Central Province. The largest kidney hospital in South Asia, which is being built with a grant of LKR 1.2 billion (US$ 7.6 million) from China, will have state-of-the-art equipment, beds for 200 patients, 100 dialysis machines, six modern operating theatres, and residential facilities for the staff. The hospital is expected to come up in 24 months. The hospital is the brainchild of President Sirisena, who has been deeply concerned about the wide prevalence of CKDu in Polonnaruwa, which is both his native district and political base. Chinese Ambassador, Cheng Xueyuan, said that the hospital would be a major kidney treatment centre in the region and will certainly be a major event in the history of Sino-Lankan relations. According to the Sri Lankan Presidential Task Force on CKDu, CKDu is a widespread disease caused by wide range of precipitating factors. According to available health statistics, there are over 28,000 admissions or re-admissions of patients with renal failure in Government hospitals with approximately 5,000 deaths annually. CKDu is a toxic nephropathy causing tubular necrosis. CKDu differs from the pathophysiology of CKD caused by hypertension and diabetes. It was first detected in the early 90s in the North Central Province. Subsequently, it has been found in the Ampara, Badulla, Kurunegala, Matale, Mullaithivu, Trincomalee and Vavuniya Districts as well. Sirisenas Extraordinary Contribution For the steps he had taken to tackle the scourge, affecting mostly poor farmers in his native district, Sirisena was given an award in December 2016 by the International Society of Nephrologists (ISN). It was given by the ISN President, Prof. Adeera Levin, at a function to launch the ISN-Gardiner Fund (ISN-GF), a private initiative meant to fight CKDu not only in Sri Lanka but the South Asian region and the world at large. Levin said that the Sri Lankan programme to fight against CKDu is the first national level program in the world. The Sri Lankan model emphasizes not only treatment but prevention, care of patients and their families, research and education. The program is coordinated and led by a Presidential Task Force. Public-Private Model Breaking away from past practice, President Sirisena has included the private sector through the Sanjeev Gardiner Foundation in his fight against CKDu. The Gardiner Fund (GF) is a Sri Lankan fund initiated by Sanjeev Gardiner, the well-known entrepreneur and proprietor of the iconic Galle Face Hotel in Colombo. In 2015, President Sirisena had appointed Gardiner as the Ambassador for the fight against CKDu. Gardiner set up the Gardiner Fund with a personal contribution of LKR 30 million. It has set up Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants in the affected areas for people to drink purified water as impure water is said to be one of the causes of CKDu. The task handled by the Gardiner Foundation is huge. According to Sanjeev Gardiner, CKDu is endemic among poor farmers in 11 districts and villages under 60 Divisional Secretariats in Sri Lanka. With 20,828 patients and 5000 deaths per year, CKDu is a national disaster, he says. The Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa Districts in the North Central Province (NCP) have the bulk of the patients with 9,005 and 4,369 respectively. Kurunegala, Matale and Vavuniya have over 1,000 cases each. Families Of Patients Looking at the disease from a peoples representative, Sirisena has stressed the need to look at the economic impact of CKDu on the families of indigent farmers. Apart from treating patients, the government and others involved in the eradication of CKDu should take steps to alleviate the suffering of the patients families, the President has said. This is why under the Sri Lankan national programme envisages the building of houses, the grant of educational scholarships and aid for self- employment. According to Dr Chula Herath, President of the Sri Lanka Association of Nephrologists, Sri Lanka has come a long way since the 1980s when there were only two nephrologists in the island. Now as many as 350 transplants are done every year. The Sri Lankan Presidential Task Force on Prevention of Chronic Kidney Disease is engaged in formulating a National Plan or Policy for eradicating CKDu. It is to promote inter-ministerial, departmental and institutional coordination; intervene in legal and policy matters; ensure the welfare of patients and their families; facilitate, supervise, guide and review all activities in regard to CKDu. A critical task of the Presidential Task Force is to crack the u or the unknown aspect of the Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Etiology (CKDu). The disease has been identified and treated to an extent, but if the cause is unclear, and that is the case despite a great deal of research, treatment and prevention cannot be effective. Existing Findings Rajapakse, S, Shivanthan MC, Selvarajah in their 2016 paper (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27399161) say that in Sri Lanka, the incidence of CKDu is highest in the North Central Province (NCP), where approximately 45 % of the countrys paddy fields are located. During the past decade, a number of groups have investigated this disorder using different methodologies and reported various correlations, but have failed to find a cause. Several nephrotoxins prevalent in the region, including medications, leptospirosis, toxic herbs, illicit alcohol, locally grown tobacco, and petrochemicals, as well as the effects of changed habits which have occurred over the past four decades, have not been studied to date. However, taken together, the geographical distribution and overall findings indicate that combinations of factors and/or their interactions are likely to precipitate CKD-mfo. Much anecdotal evidence from this region suggests that consumption of contaminated water is the most likely source. Irrigation systems with demonstrable seepage to the wells are correlated with CKDu compared to communities without irrigation seepage into wells, the researchers say. High levels of cadmium and fluoride, and complex interactions between the ratio of dissolved sodium and calcium in the presence of fluoride have been hypothesized to cause CKDu. However, the results have been mixed. In another recent important study, subjects from endemic regions had higher concentrations of excreted heavy metal and glyphosate in the urine, exceeding the reference range, the authors of the paper said. Prevention Easier Although the aetiology is unknown, prevention seems relatively straightforward, the authors say. Solutions include (a) preventing environmental pollution, (b) stopping the irresponsible use and decreasing the usage of agrochemicals, and encouraging the use of environmentally friendly agricultural methods, (c) taking proper precautions when using agrochemicals and safe disposal of their containers, (d) changing the risky behavior of farmers and educating them to preserve the environment, and (e) providing clean potable water to all affected regions. NDBs Group Chief Executive Officer Dimantha Seneviratne, speaks to media in the backdrop of recent success recorded by National Development Bank PLC. NDBs inception dates back to 1979. How has the Bank evolved to become aprestigious institution in the Sri Lankan banking industry as it is today? NDB commenced its operations as a premier development financing institution [DFI] in 1979, nearly four decades ago. This was a time that Sri Lanka was going through a rapid transformation and a new scale of economic development. NDB was instrumental in financially empowering a large number of mega development projects in the county and also funded a host of SMEs in varied sectors, a key segment in the countrys economic development.Over the years it has evolved and broadened its operations to serve a larger customer base of the country. The key turnaround point in the Banks recent history is becoming a fully-fledged commercial bank in 2005. Through the years, NDB has also expanded its services to the capital market activities, through the robust capital market subsidiaries, including private equity management. We are firmly based on a set of very strong corporate values, which are upheld by our employees such as integrity, excellence in our service, sincerity, accountability and creativity and which are also closely associated with our brand. As an institution which is a custodian of public funds, we conduct ourselves with the highest level of ethical standards, professionalism and are fully compliant with the regulations that govern us. I think a combination of all this and the strong drive for business excellence has put us up in this position. NDB made several headlines right through 2018, for various awards and accolades that it won. In which areas have the Bank excelled to receive such a large number of awards? We are highly motivated by the external endorsements that were bestowed upon us during the year. Being recognized as the Best Bank in Sri Lanka by the prestigious, USA based Global Finance publication tops them all. In addition to this, a number of regional as well as UK based awards have recognized NDB in a host of core business performance areas, such as retail banking, SME banking, project financing, financial inclusion endeavors, competence in syndicated loans, corporate debt deals and corporate customer solutions. Two of our retail banking products, Dream Maker personal loans and NDB Good Life credit card were also recognized as the best in their respective categories. Our marketing initiatives and investor relations initiatives have also been recognized with awards presented by awarding bodies dedicated to these disciplines. NDBs capital market cluster companies were also the proud recipient of many awards including NDB Investment Bank being recognized as Sri Lankas Best Investment Bank by the Euromoney Magazine for the seventh consecutive year. In consideration of the fact that NDB is the only financial servicesgroup of its kind in Sri Lanka, and also the excellence NDB has shown in both banking operations as well as capital market solutions, we were also recognized as the Best Financial Group in Sri Lanka, by the Global Banking & Finance Review of UK. These awards are an affirmation of our commitment for excellence in brining better solutions to our customers and empowering them and also our nation in development. What is NDBs current market position? Today, NDB is a fully fledged commercial bankin Sri Lanka. It caters to the retail mass market as well as the retail high-net worth clients, with a robust product portfolio in both assets and liabilities. Although NDB ceased to become a development bank as per definition, our mission in supporting and empowering the countrys development continues. We cater to corporate, middle market, SME as well as micro scale businesses. We are also a most sought after lender in the project financing sphere, given our expertise in this area. Apart from that, our positioning in the industry goes beyond the scope of a commercial banking entity. NDB Group is the only financial services group in the country, who offers services in a host of capital market activities such as full service investment banking, securities trading and advisory, wealth management and private equity placements, in addition to commercial banking services. So all in all, we are unique one-stop financial solutions provider, may it be in banking or capital market services, bringing ultimate convenience to our customers. How has NDB Banks performance been in the recent past? How well have you performed in 2018 so far? NDB has made great strides in its performance over the years. We have made considerable improvement in our profitability and balance sheet indicators, especially considering the fact that we have been functioning as a commercial banking entity for just over 10 years, compared to our much mature peer banks. At a Group level, we have a balance sheet in excess of LKR 400 bn. Over the past five years, the Banks total assets have grown at a CAGR of 18%, whilst loans to customers also have grown at a similar rate. Customer deposits have grown in excess of 20% over the five years. We are glad to have sustained such consistent growth over the past. Weve also increased our profitability levels over the years. As per our financial results for the FY 2017, we are a LKR 4 bn post tax profit banking institution. Furthermore, we have been maintaining a host of KPIs at very healthy levels. Our non-performing loan ratio, which was 2.46% as per the latest published financial information for the first quarter ended 31 March 2018, has been consistently lower than the industry average. Our cost to income ratio has also been well managed. Stemming from the fact that our organization was a DFI,there have been few structural mismatches in our model compared to our mature peers. Lower Current Account and Savings Account [CASA] base and high loans to deposits ratio are a few to name. However, we are pleased to note that NDB has made vast improvements in these ratios, in a short span of 12 plus years and come to level playing fields with its peers, and is improving day by day. During the 2017 financial year, we recorded exceptional growth rates, many of which were well ahead of the industry. Out total assets grew by 15% to reach LKR 383 billion. Our loan book grew by an impressive 20%, ahead of the industry growth rate of 16%. This growth translated to a quantum of LKR 46 bnin loans. Customer deposits grew exponentially, at 34% YoY versus the industry growth rate of 17.5%. This growth translated to a quantum growth of LKR 70 bn.This was the highest YoY deposits growth rate we achieved over the past five years. Within overall deposits the CASA base also grew by an impressive 25%, higher than the industry CASA growth. In terms of profitability, our profit after tax [PAT] at the bank level soared by 37% to LKR 4.4 bn. Cost to income ratio was 45.5%, an improvement from prior years 49%. In terms of our performance for 2018 so far, we have continued the upbeat in our performance. As was reflected in our financial results for Q1 2018, we had an exceptional opening quarter for 2018. PAT at the Bank level grew by an impressive 35% to LKR 1.6 bn, compared to Q1 of 2017. Group PAS followed a similar trend, and grew by an encouraging 56% to LKR 1.2 bn. The indications given by the Q1 results are promising, for yet another successful year in 2018. What specific market competencies does the NDB Group enjoy in the Sri Lankas banking and capital markets sphere? Our retail banking offerings in both assets and liabilities are truly lifestyle solutions. Our full spectrum of products and services cater to the financial needs of any individual, in whichever stage of life they may be in. During 2017, we further strengthened our deposits offering with three new products, namely NDB Savings Planner, NDB Araliya and NDB Achara. Savings Planner is dedicated to smart savers with preference for savings plans, whilst the other two are dedicated to aspiring women and senior citizens in the country. We also relaunched our childrens savings account, with a host of new benefits. NDB Dream Maker is the most sought after personal loan product in the industry. We also have speedy and smart solutions in leasing, housing, credit cards, etc. We also enjoy unmatched competence in SME financing, which has been a part of our mandate at the inception of the Bank way back in 1979. Since then to date, we have perfected our assistance to this sector, not only via financial assistance, but also via a host of non-financial assistance. NDBs corporate banking solutions are renowned in the industry for the timely and customer-friendly solutions. Corporate banking is a prime contributor in the Banks loan growth with a full spectrum of service including cash management. Project financing is yet another very strong competence of NDB. We are proud to have been with some of the major development projects of the country right through our operations spanning four decades. Even today, we are a stakeholder in the major infrastructural and other development projects that are unfolding in Colombo as well as in other parts of the country. We also enjoy specific competence on the renewable energy sector in the country. We are proud to be one of the banks to fund the first ever wind power projects and waste-to-energy projects in Sri Lanka. Our Project & Infrastructure Unit has also expanded its services to cross-border jurisdictions and pioneered funding renewable energy projects in the African continent, through offshore companies with Sri Lankan origin. The newest addition to our product portfolio is NDB Business Banking. This is a dedicated proposition to empower the businesses in the SME and middle market segments with the mission to assist them in taking their businesses to the next level of growth. The capital market subsidiaries of NDB have also firmly established themselves in the industry. Our investment banking arm, NDBIB is the market leader for debt and equity capital raising and mergers and acquisitions. Our wealth management arm, NDB Wealth Management is Sri Lankas largest private fund manager with close LKR 100 bn funds under management with 8,000 plus customers. Please tell us about your presence in the country. Our reach to customers has also increased significantly. NDBsnetwork which stood at 22 branches when we converted to a commercial banking entity in 2005 has now reached 107, spread across the country with fully-fledged branches. A notable point about our network is that approximately 50% of the branches have been added on to the network over the past five years, hence with considerable potential in reaching out to more clients. Our reach is also strengthened by an on and off site network of 129 ATMs and cash recycle machines. Our virtual presence is also quite strong, presented via a host of digitally enabled platforms. On-line banking, mobile banking enabled on both smart phones and feature phones, branchless banking and cash recycle machines are few to name. We have strengthened our dedicated Digital Financial Services [DFS] Unit by hiring skilled and experienced staff, to enhance and improve our digital solutions, and stay abreast with the latest technology available in our industry. We have our presence in the South Asian region as well, in Bangladesh, with an investment banking arm under the name, NDB Capital Limited Bangladesh. Thisentity has greater growth prospects in the backdrop of high economic growth recorded in Bangladesh. What is the Banks current strategy that has propelled the Bank forward? We are presently on a very ambitious organic growth strategy. Dubbed as Transformation 2020, this strategy aims to transform NDB to a systemically important bank in the country by 2020, with a total assets base exceeding LKR 500 billion, as defined by the Basel III guidelines. The strategy was developed with the professional input of the IFC, a part of the World Bank Group. It involves improvements in a large range of business processes as well as support services within the Bank, with a bid to increase business volumes, profitability and customer services. This transformational strategic process can be described as the most structured and coordinated strategy program in the Bank. The strategy has led to a new organizational culture and transformation in the mindset of Team NDB, aligning them towards the strategy, and ensuring their understanding and acceptance of the ambitious growth journey the bank has embarked on. Does the bank have any inorganic growth plans? or Could you outline your companys/groups future plans especially in regard to expansion? Whilst we move forward on organic growth, we most certainly are open for inorganic growth opportunities as well. Consolidation can bring in a host of benefits to the industry also. Given the implications of recent developments affecting the banking sector such as Basel III guidelines, implementation of IFRS 9 and new tax laws in operation, banks and financial institutions are facing large capital requirements. Consolidation could prove as an effective solution in enabling certain entities to be compliant in these capital requirements. We would look at inorganic growth options, provided such consolidation enhances the value to the shareholders and other stakeholders and complements our growth model. What is NDBs approach to capital management and infusion of new capital to support the growth of the business? As a financial services institution, capital is of utmost important to us. As we have now entered a rapid growth mode, we are required to maintain a healthy capital level to support this growth. Historically, and to date, NDB has been soundly capitalized, with our capital ratios well above the regulator mandated levels. In times of need, we have resorted to raising capital via feasible modes, such as debenture issuances, as seen in 2013 and 2015. Recently, we also made intimations of raising equity capital to support the Banks growth. Accordingly, we have now announced our plans to raise equity capital via a Rights Issue of LKR 6.2 bn. Furthermore, we fund the balance sheet and loan book growth via timely institutional funding. In June 2018, the Bank obtained a loan of up to USD 75 million from Commerzbank Aktikengsellschaft Germany. The funds will be mobilized in NDBs general banking business, without restrictions on any specific sector. The Bank also entered in to an agreement with the IFC, for a loan up to USD 50 million, equivalent to a fixed rupee facility of LKR 8 bn, for the purpose of lending to borrowers, especially in the climate smart agriculture sector. What are the challenges that your bank face, as a relatively young commercial bank? As I mentioned earlier, our commercial banking operations have been in operation for just over thirteen years. Attracting low cost funds, especially CASA remains one of the key challenges that we face. We have made vast improvements in this regard, having improved the CASA base from almost zero to mid-20% in just 10 years. Our strategy places key emphasis in improving the CASA base. What is noteworthy is that, in the challenge in improving CASA, also comes the upside of further enhancing our interest margins and profitability. The scale of balance sheet, compared to much mature peers is also one area we are working on. The current strategy pursued by the Bank will propel us to be amongst the systemically important banks and place us on a better footing in terms of capturing scale advantages from 2020 onwards. How strong is your core management team, and the Group management team, in steering your organization through this internal growth phase, amidst external challenges? We have one of the best corporate management teams, with members who are industry savvy, and carry to their credit, the right fusion of professional qualifications and years of experience. They are competent in motivating our staff and guiding them towards delivering results. During the recent past, the organization saw some structural changes, to recalibrate its business model to cater to developing industry trends. We had the incoming of some fresh seasoned hands in to the Bank, to bring in added versatility to the corporate management team. For example we saw new appointees in the positions of the Group Chief Financial Officer, Vice President Human Resources and Vice President IT. We also strengthened our corporate management team with a new Vice President position for Business Banking, which is now a key business segment within the Banks overall business focus. This position was occupied by one of our own in grown talents, who is an expert in SME financing. A head of digital financial services was also appointed at the Assistant Vice President level, considering the significance of digital aspects in todays banking and its contribution in our surge forward. The function of Marketing was broadened to Marketing & Customer Experience, now under the leadership of a Vice President, in recognition of the importance of our customercentric growth model. We will also be on-boarding a Chief Operating Officer very soon, another seasoned hand in the industry, to overlook all the operational aspects which is the backbone of the Bank, such that we could focus on business development. I think with these changes in the corporate management team, the transition of which has happened in a gratifyingly short period, we are ready to take NDB to the next level. Apart from these changes to the top management team, we carried out a host of organizational change management initiatives encompassing the total NDB Team. These initiatives ensured that all of the NDB members are aware and aligned towards the Banks overall strategic objectives as set out in the Transformation 2020 strategy, and are further united under the Banks new culture identity One NDB in achieving them. Similar change management and synergy development initiatives are presently underway at the NDB Group companies, in the capital markets cluster; such that we can harness all financial services under one umbrella to provide a seamless and full spectrum of services to our customers. What are the growth prospects for NDB for beyond 2020?How will NDB achieve them? We have already strategized our growth trajectory to be pursued for the next five years, once we complete our mission set out by the current strategy of Transformation 2020. We will focus on taking NDB to greater heights, from the LKR 500 bn plus, systemically important institution that it will be by 2020. We will well embed the wider technological and customer demographic changes in to our strategy as they unfold, to stay relevant and competitive in the fast evolving market space. Delivering on digitally enable banking solutions will be at the core of our strategy and growth mode. Digital financial services [DFS] are undergoing rapid development, and some of our regional peers are now using Artificial Intelligence to serve their customers. DFS offers limitless possibilities. The upside for a mid-sized bank like NDB is that our scale of operations better allows us to embrace and embed these DFS initiatives towards an optimum business model, as opposed to larger institutions, where such conversions would be more challenging and time-consuming. The unwavering strength of our shareholders has been a key constituent of our success over the years. We look forward to their continued support as NDB forges ahead in the industry and enters new leagues. NDB is blessed with a team of best in class, skilled, trained and qualified employees, who have made every success of the Bank possible. Our loyal customer base is our biggest strength and our commitment is for their success and prosperity. Our gratitude goes out to all stakeholders who support us in our growth journey. A no-confidence motion which was brought by Independent member Janaka Tissakuttiarachchi against Uva Province Chief Minister Chamara Sampath, was dismissed today by the Councils Chairman A.H. Buddhadasa. Only seven councillors out of the 34 had signed the motion which was brought against the Chief Minister over a recent speech he made, alleged to have defamed the councillors. United National Party (UNP) council members were seen wearing black bands as a protest against the speech. Meanwhile, Councillors Shashindra Rajapaksa, Kumarasiri Ratnayake and Sudarshana Denipitiya made their way to the opposition benches and said they would act independently in protest to the Chief Ministers speech. The Chief Minister said his speech had been misinterpreted and that he would apologise to the councillors if it had defamed them. (Palitha Ariyawansha and Prasad Rukmal) Call for brand new status for zero mileage parallel vehicle imports Allege agents enjoying a monopoly on government tenders By Nishel Fernando Sri Lankas parallel vehicle importers recently urged the government to provide brand new status for vehicle imports with zero mileage by them in order to pursue government tenders. Addressing a media briefing last Friday, the Vehicle Importers Association of Sri Lanka (VIASL), Chairman Ranjan Peiris appealed to the government to do away with the current monopoly enjoyed by franchise vehicle agents in bidding for government tenders. Peiris noted that when importing a vehicle to Sri Lanka, the brand new status was only given to the vehicles imported through these franchise dealers and even when a parallel vehicle importer imported a vehicle with a zero mileage, the vehicle cannot be registered as a brand new vehicle due to prevailing regulations. Agents have unfair advantages as new vehicles imported by parallel importers do not receive the applicable brand new status even though the vehicle is brand new. This is detrimental to their ability to pursue government tenders, he said. Hence, VIASL urged the authorities to look into this matter pointing out that these agents enjoy a tender monopoly and the situation results in the government being forced to buy certain vehicles at a higher price resulting in the wastage of public money. Given the monopoly, the franchise dealers can hike the price of vehicles. However, if the bids are open to us, the government can get the vehicles at a competitive price, emphasised VIASL, Secretary Arosha Rodrigo. Peiris noted that there are a large number of parallel importers compared to a dozen of franchise dealers, hence, the government would benefit from the competition. If there are twenty franchise dealers, there are 1, 500-2, 000 parallel importers, he said. Peiris noted that VIASL will submit their suggestions for the 2019 budget proposals next month. Rodrigo charged that the agents are lobbying the government to replace the unit rate-based duty scheme with the out-dated brake horse power (BHP) based duty scheme. He warned that this BHP-based duty scheme could be easily manipulated, as it is impractical and complicated. VIASL called introduction of the unit rate-based duty scheme in the last budget was a good move as it restricts revenue leakages to the government. However, with the introduction of the unit rate-based duty, the vehicle imports have increased significantly and the Central Bank Governor also recently expressed his concerns over the increasing vehicle imports, which could adversely impact Sri Lankas BOP position. According to the latest Central Bank data, the vehicle imports to the country in the first five months of the year have grown by a whopping 110.6 percent year-on-year to US $ 665.9 million. Speaking to Mirror Business earlier, Ceylon Motor Trader Associations (CMTA) immediate past Chairman Reeza Rauf blamed the grey market for the hike in vehicle imports under the unit rate-based duty scheme. According to him, about 60-70 percent of vehicles have come into the market through grey importers with a sharp increase in the below 1000 cc category. On average 85-90 percent of passenger car registrations in the last four months have been vehicles below 1000 cc engines, which is shared among a few stakeholders. This also has paved the way to an influx of below 1000 cc and high-end expensive vehicles by grey importers, he said. However, expressing his opinion on the matter, Peiris said that there is a demand for vehicles outside of Colombo and pointed out that the vehicle ownership is still mostly concentrated in Colombo. Rodrigo claimed that parallel importers are bringing down high quality domestic models compared to lower quality export models brought down by agents. What we get are domestic models which are of quality with better safety and emission standards, and option wise they are much better vehicles, he reiterated. Rodrigo also urged the authorities to introduce a duty structure based on depreciation for imports of used vehicles. Pix by Kushan Pathiraja The modest tea sector performance of late appears to have failed to translate into better tea smallholder performance as Tea Smallholder Factories PLC (TSF) generated weaker financial performance for the quarter ended in June 30, 2018 (1Q19). TSF, of which John Keells Holdings PLC is the single largest shareholder, reported lower revenues of Rs.570.1 million for the April-June period, down from Rs.610.8 million reported for the same period, last year. The operating profits fell sharply by 92 percent to Rs.3.5 million from Rs.46.5 million a year ago. The company procures green leaf from tea small holders in Galle, Matara, Rathnapura and Nuwaraeliya and process them in seven factories operated in low grown regions in Galle, Rathnapura and Ginigathhena and sells processed black teas in the Colombo Tea Auction. TSF employs a workforce of over five hundred and caters to a green leaf supplier base of over 17,600, which is approximately 5.8 percent of the total tea smallholders registered in the low grown region of Sri Lanka. In September, last year, the companys tea fetched its highest ever tea auction price of Rs.677.63 per kilogram. Sri Lankas tea earnings increased since last year particularly due to higher prices fetched at auctions. During the first three months revenues from the Galle regionthe companys largest tea small holder area by the geographical segment fell to Rs.290.1 million from Rs.313.1 million in the corresponding three months of the previous year. Matara brought in zero revenues and revenues from Nuwara Eliya dropped to Rs.107.1 million from Rs.110.1 million a year ago. The only region that recorded increased revenues from tea processing was Rathnapura, which generated Rs.184.4 million against Rs.160.2 million recorded for the same period, last year. This weighed heavily on the companys bottom line as the 1Q19 earnings dipped to 10 cents a share or Rs.2.9 million from Rs.1.15 a share or Rs.34.4 million a year ago. The company has assets of Rs.1.6 billion and net assets of Rs.1.2 billion with a per share value of Rs.40.74. For the year ended March 31, 2018 TSF reported revenues of Rs.2.7 billion and a net profit of Rs.244.1 million with an earnings per share of Rs.8.14. This was generated from Rs.4.3 million kilograms of tea fetching a net sales average price of Rs.639.15 a kilo at the auctions, up from Rs.529.17 in 2016/17 and Rs.412.41 in 2015/16. During 2017/18 the company took several measures and invested on assisting tea small growers in improving productivity, replanting and adopting good manufacturing practices to increase the yields. Last week the government through an extraordinary gazette lifted the three-year ban on glyphosate, a weediside. The ban is said to have hit the tea plantation sector severely. As of June 30, 2018, John Keells Holdings PLC held 37.62 percent stake in TSF while Akbar Brothers Limited and Central Finance Company PLC held 24.39 percent and 22.85 percent stakes in the company respectively being the top three shareholders. June tea output down 15% (Colombo) REUTERS: Sri Lankas tea output fell 15 percent in June from a year earlier, the state-run Tea Board said on Friday. Analysts attribute the fall to heavy rains and poor fertiliser application. However, production in the first half of the year has risen 1.3 percent from the same period last year. There was too much of rain. Also the fertiliser application has declined in the month, Anil Cook of brokers Forbes & Walker said. Tea is Sri Lankas top agricultural export and one of the main foreign currency earners for the US$ 87 billion economy. Earnings from tea export for the first four months totalled US$ 478 million, up from US$ 458.2 million last year. Sri Lankas tea output rose 5 percent to 307.1 million kg last year, recovering from a seven-year low of 292.6 million kg hit in 2016. Industry officials expect production to reach 320 million kg this year if the weather holds, but a ban on cost-effective weed killers, disruption to regular agricultural practices and the high cost of fertilisers could affect the outlook for production. Tea production in 2017 was affected by severe drought followed by flooding and poor application of fertilisers while a government ban on pesticides and restricted labour. Investor Nandana Lokuwithana explains something to Minister Malik Samarawickrama and BOI officials Rigid Tyre Corporation (Pvt.) Ltd, which is said to be building Sri Lankas largest tyre plant, will generate 3,000 direct employment opportunities and possibly three times as many indirect jobs, the countrys apex investment promotion agency, the Board of Investment (BOI) said. In addition, new opportunities for local entrepreneurs have arisen, including the construction of dormitories, transport, supply of materials and other services, the BOI noted. The factory is currently being built at the BOI Wagawatte Industrial Park, with a total investment of US $ 250 million. A BOI statement said the investment could even go up to US $ 300 million. According to the BOI statement, the project is a joint Sri Lanka and Chinese investment. However, it appears that the major investor of this venture is Nandana Lokuwithana, who already has business interests in Sri Lanka and the UAE. The project is said to be completed within six months. Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama, who recently visited the project site, said a project of this magnitude could send strong signals to other enterprises to follow suit by investing. From our side, we will ensure that this project will receive all the support needed, especially with some of the vital utilities that are required. We can also showcase this project as a success story to attract other global investors, he said. The BOI said the project has obtained the approval for its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) from the Central Environmental Authority. The company is also expected to introduce advanced environmentally friendly technology. Samarawickrama was accompanied by BOI Director Mangala Yala, Director General Dumindra Ariyasinhe and several other senior officials. In addition, officials from a number of key institutions, including the Road Development Authority, Ceylon Electricity Board, Water Board and Central Environmental Authority, took part in the site visit. Privacy Overview This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. Sri Lanka navy assisted to transfer a severely injured Russian crew member on board 'MV Boston', a Bulk Carrier belonging to Marshall Island, ashore for treatment on Sunday. The crew member had got one of his legs severely injured due to an accident on board 'MV Boston' which were on her passage from Guinea to Singapore. Navy said on receipt of the information released by the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre about the patient, SLNS Nandimithra, the Fast Missile Vessel attached to Southern Naval Command had dispatched from Galle harbour to the location -146 nautical miles off Galle light house. Accordingly, the patient was safely transferred to the Galle harbour and admitted to Teaching Hospital-Karapitiya for medical treatment. (Darshana Sanjeewa) The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) today sought public assistance to locate two paintings of legendary artist George Keyt said to be worth more than Rs. 12 million. Police said the two paintings, Mother and Child and Vasanthi which gone missing since July 12, 2013, from an office at No 130, Glennie Street in Colombo 2. The two masterpieces were stolen while relocating the office premises at that time. The ' Mother and Child' which was an oil painting on canvas was done in 1953 while 'Vasanthi' was done in 1950 by the globally renowned painter. The police have asked the public to pass any information about the paintings or their current whereabouts to the Financial Crimes Investigation Unit of the CID via 0112- 395248. George Keyt who was born on April 17, 1901, died on July 31, 1993, in Colombo.(Darshana Sanjeewa) Mother and Child Vasanthi Economic benefits will not solve the ethnic problems There is nothing for me to respond to TNA MP M.A.Sumanthiran In the absence of US, there are others like UK conscious of Sri Lankan Tamils issue Public perception that there is nexus between Ava group and the security forces I have no proof of that South must grant our request Difficult to gauge Indias role Tamil Nadu is no longer a factor Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran, in an interview with the ,Daily mirror airs out his views on the political situation in the North and his plans for the future. He responds to the question about the crime wave created by Ava group. Excerpts from the interview: QHow do you look at the current political situation in the country? It is not satisfactory. There are unfortunate differences of opinion between the Presidents group and the Prime Ministers group. The third group of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa is calling the shots from outside. Both in power are not prepared to move forward for fear of the opposition. Those who brought this Government to power have been completely forgotten. If not for the fact that there would be a sitting in Geneva in March 2019 this Government does not feel obliged to solve the ethnic problem. There is no will to solve the problem. Now they are talking of economic benefits for the north and the east. Those benefits will not solve the ethnic problem. The Tamils know that all the death, damage and destruction during the war were prompted by the successive Sri Lankan Governments not wanting to accept the rights of the Tamil speaking people. No armed group would have been born except due to the insensitivity of successive majority community governments. Since no concrete steps are being taken by this government to solve the Tamil problem and since they are infighting in Parliament, it is my view that this Country will get into more and more difficulties in the future. QThere are reports about a move to postpone the Provincial Council elections. How will you react to it? Postponing in other areas is different from postponing in the north and the east when the north and the east are clamouring for full devolution. Postponing would mean a Sinhala Governor will run our Province. Already the Army consisting mainly of the majority community is in occupation of our areas. Colonization is taking place in a big way in the Northern Province with the help of the Army. If a Governor with a Sinhala oriented perception takes over reins of the office until the next Provincial Council Election, our northern and eastern provinces would lose even the meagre benefits hitherto earned. I am against any postponement. There could be a Provisional Government consisting of locals until elections if the law is changed accordingly. Since no concrete steps are being taken by this government to solve the Tamil problem and since they are infighting in Parliament, it is my view that this Country will get into more and more difficulties in the future QTNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran said that the nomination of you as the Chief Minister candidate was a failed project. What is your view? He is stating his view. What is there for me to say? Do you want me to assess him as an MP and be critical of his conduct? He was my student. I am happy to allow him to talk and keep quiet for the moment. QHow hopeful are you of the Constitution-making process? Unless pressure from interest groups makes it incumbent on the part of the Government to proceed with the constitution-making process, no Sinhala majority government would be interested in providing a reasonable and workable constitution, granting equality to the minorities let alone the Tamil speaking who are a majority in their own areas, the north and east. QYou seek extensive power-sharing under a Federal structure and the merger of the north and east. How realistic is it without the support of the south? We are saying unless a Federal set up is established, we would be gobbled up by the majority community. Already the process of cannibalization of the north is on. Are you advising us to seek the support of the south which is interested in cannibalizing us, to obtain a Federal Constitution which would put a stop to the activities presently taking place? When the time comes the South must grant our request because our requests are reasonable and justified. Meanwhile, the South will never grant any reasonable solution to the Tamil question. Do you want us, therefore, to cringe and ask for a few crumbs from the Souths plate? I doubt my people opting for such an eventuality. QIf it is impossible, how will you pursue your political goals? Leave it to us to pursue our political goals. But please be reminded the longer you take to solve the Tamil problem the greater your problems will be in this Country. We are saying unless a Federal set up is established, we would be gobbled up by the majority community. Already the process of cannibalization of the north is on QTamil people voted overwhelmingly for President Maithripala Sirisena. How do you think of that decision now? We still have a great regard for President Sirisena as a humane person. But he is caught up in his party and his community and his religion. He should never have looked upon himself as a party leader and acted as a party leader in recent times. He is President. We all voted for him. He should have evolved into a Statesman rather than a Politician. Our decision in 2015 was correct. But the benefits have been negligible. Of course, a democratic ambience is in place throughout the country. We have to accept that. QWhat is your view on the next presidential election? That is a long way off. Let us wait and see. QHow do you calculate the international situation with the United States pulling out from the UNHRC process? They are still ordinary members of the World Body. There are others like the UK who are conscious of their duties towards those affected in Sri Lanka. I believe the pressure on our Government to fulfil its obligations under the Consensus Resolution, will not be any lighter just because the US has pulled out. QRecently, Law and Order Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara came here along with senior Police Officers to discuss the law and order situation here. Actually, how do you look at this criminal group called Ava group? Nobody really knows who these Ava Group people are. Now, they have come to know that many of these people are young men aged between 17 and 22. They move around on motorbikes carrying swords to do various criminal activities. Our question is that why this is not controlled. It can be controlled. That way, there are 150,000 Army personnel and so many Police Personnel. When we ask, why are you unable to control them? They have no answer to that question. We do not know whether there is a connection between the forces and these people. The general perception of people is that there is a connection. I do not know to what extent. There are also people involved in drug peddling here. They are supposed to be having the backing of the Forces and Police. This is a general perception. I have no proof of that. The fact remains that there are so many forces, but the criminal gangs continue to operate. They operate at a particular time. At certain times, it becomes very prominent. Then, the Police take action. It goes down afterwards. It erupts again after some time. QSome people say these young persons have been inspired by violent scenes in Tamil films to carry out violence in this manner. What is your view? I do not think people are looking at films and doing these things. I will put it the other way. These things are happening. Films portray what is taking place in life. QHow serious is the problem? I asked this from Jaffna Senior DIG, Roshan Fernando. His answer is very important to be taken into consideration. He said, We have various statistics regarding the number of offences. The offences that have been taking place are not any different from what they were earlier. But, there are a few things your paper is taking into full focus. Then, the whole Northern Province looks like a place without law and order. These are a few matters that have cropped up. These are given a fair amount of press coverage. He does not agree that there is any latent increase in criminal activities. QWhat are the impediments you face in arresting the situation? Kelum, if you ask me that question, my position is that we have not been given Police Powers. There is a certain amount of rights given to us under the 13th Amendment. There is no way of using those rights even. Up to the level of Police ASP, we have certain rights. The Police Commission must allow that. That is not happening. As a result, we depend on the Police forces sent by the Central Government. They do not know our language. They have a different perception of what the people say. There are 150,000 Army soldiers here. There is no central authority to look into all these. If you give me these powers, I will make sure what should be done and looked into. If we have full power, we can easily bring this to an end. QThere are reports about you trying to form a new party in view of the Provincial Council elections. How are you proceeding with it? Reports are misleading. I was asked the question. If you are not given nomination, what will you do? I have three options as I said. I can go home. Secondly, I can join another existing party. The third one is to start up a new party. The press reports that I am going to form a new party. We have not decided on any such thing. This is an option. Now, they have come to know that many of these people are young men aged between 17 and 22. They move around in motorbikes carrying swords to do various criminal activities. Our question is that why this is not controlled. It can be controlled QYet, the TNA says your nomination for the last time is a failed project. The TNA had been saying all such things earlier. They come to wrong conclusions. My student comes to a wrong conclusion. Then, everybody comes to a wrong conclusion. When I did not help them at the elections, they accused me of helping the party led by Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam. I had nothing to do with it. My position was that certain things have not been taken into consideration by the TNA leadership. They should look into it. We have already promised to the electorate. We must conform to that. If you conform to that, I have no problem. They are changing it according to whims and fancies of various politicians in the south and among themselves. QThe TNA is quite active in the South as the Main Opposition in Parliament. What is your view? If the Constitution-making process starts up, we will welcome it. It is not happening. QHow hopeful are you of the process? Even if it starts, the Central Government will not grant a suitable, adequate political solution to the north and east. QIf there is no support from the south for Constitutional changes, how are you going to pursue your goals through other means? There are lots of other options. You have to give your report to the UNHRC in Geneva in March 2019. They have to come to grip with the question whether the Tamil national question is solved or not. I do not think our future is bleak as such. QHow do you look at the role of India? The role of India is very difficult for us to gauge. They are, more or less, taking a very non-interfering type of attitude. QHow important is Tamil Nadu factor? It is irrelevant now. They have their own problems now. There is nothing for us to talk about Tamil Nadu as far as our problems are concerned. President Maithripala Sirisena has vowed to reintroduce the death sentence on drug offenders, ending 42 years of moratorium. His desperation at his governments failure to decisively respond to the resurgence of the underworld is understandable. His desire to project himself as the strongman in the mold of his predecessor was also palpable. In a way, the presidents approach is not much different from that of UNP MP Vijayakala Maheswaran and the high priest of Kandy, both offered their own quick fixes to complex social problems. One wanted Prabhakaran, the other Hitler. The Head of the State ought to have done better. Public opinion in this country on death sentence is divided, still it has not reached the point of extreme political polarization seen in some places, such as certain American states, where the debate over the death sentence is more of a political issue than a law and order matter or in Pakistan where a more arbitrary form of capital punishment for blasphemy is fiercely defended by the religious right. The Presidents remarks have nonetheless provoked a debate and the religious, political and civil society leaders were seen both endorsing and opposing the death sentence. The Prisons Department has called for applications for the post of hangman. Abeit the new found enthusiasm, the empiric truth about capital punishment is that it does more to generate bad press than deterring crime. That is not something Sri Lanka can afford as it tries to rebuild its image. The case of Indonesia is an example. The 2014 election of Joko Widodo popularly known as Jokowi who defeated the old guard generated a worldwide enthusiasm for the South East Asian state. Then the new president spoiled the party by authorizing the death sentence against a couple of drug smugglers, despite widespread international calls for a reprieve. Jakowis desire to project himself as the law and order strongman did not quite generate results. Indonesia, which has prided its multicultural identity even under Gen. Suharto is now threatened by invasive salafi extremism, which has already banished Jakartas Christian mayor to prison over trumped up blasphemy charges. When politicians indulge in simple populist solutions to complex problems, they do effectively empower the gutter, which would overtime swallow up the saner quarters of the public. In places where there is a track record of more arbitrary pattern of administering death sentence, there are instances where executed prisoners were found to be innocent lately Statistical data do not support the notion of death sentence as an effective deterrent against violent crime. Murder rate in Americas Southern states where 80% of death sentence is carried out is twice as high as north eastern states where less than 1% of death sentence is carried out. The death sentence is also irrevocable once it is carried out. In places where there is a track record of more arbitrary pattern of administering death sentence, there are instances where executed prisoners were found to be innocent lately. In one such incident, a court in Chinas Inner Mongolia in 2014, declared as innocent a teenager who was executed 18 years ago after being convicted of rape and murder. President Sirisenas proposal of death sentence is far more calculated and selective. He wants to execute convicts who have already been sentenced to death for drug smuggling and distribution and continue to oversee the illicit trade from behind the bars. There are19 convicts whose death sentence has not yet been commuted to life imprisonment and are said to be running underworld operations from their prison cells. Some others have their appeals pending, and it would be a longtime before the president can sign their death sentence. For others whose death sentence has already been commuted, the presidential directive has no legal effect. They can continue their business from the prison. Within his constitutional remits and subject to recommendation of the attorney general, the president can go ahead with his threat and hang a couple of death row prisoners. That would hardly solve the drug menace. Their will be plenty to fill in their shoes and to take over the trade. Most likely, by hanging a few, the president would create a global outcry -- already, the EU delegates have expressed opposition -- and could probably damage the livelihood of many hundreds of thousands in the garment industry which has been given new lease of life by the GSP Plus. The President and the government need to be little more commensensical in devising an effective means to combat the underworld and drug trade. If the problem is imprisoned drug barons running the show from the prison, the solution should be to step up prison security. In fact, placing violent hard core criminals with everyday petty criminals and drug addicts lead the latter to advanced criminality. Instead, the government should relocate hardcore criminals to a high security prison, where certain restrictions should be placed on the inmates. Placing violent hard core criminals with petty criminals and drug addicts lead the latter to advanced criminality. Instead, the govt must relocate hardcore criminals to a high security prison If the problem is rotten prison guards, the solution should be to set up something similar to the military police as a branch of the Prisons Department, which would keep a tab on nefarious elements. The bigger problem however is underworld activism outside the prison walls and its regenerative capacity. Its resurgence is due to the fact that it has not been met with sufficient retributive cost. Think of this as a mini counter insurgency campaign and increase the cost of underworld criminality to the extent it is no longer cost effective for the criminals. How to do that is commonsense, but, the challenge is doing so without a tidal wave of negative publicity. Proportionality is the key. And whatever the security arm of the state that is assigned to the task should both be monitored so that it would not step out of its mandate, but also be given immunity through a Parliament act from future criminal prosecution in carrying out their mandate. If the government hit hard enough, the underworld would crack like an egg. The government should do it before gangs become hardened. But death sentence is unlikely to help in pacifying the underworld. Follow @Rangajayasuriya on Twiter Oops....! We couldn't find that... 404 error Unfortunately the page you were looking for could not be found. It may be temporarily unavailable, moved or no longer exist. Check the URL you entered for any mistakes and try again. Alternatively, search for whatever is missing or take a look around the rest of our site. The Brewers Taproom will toast its one-year anniversary Thursday, July 26 through Saturday, July 28. Chris Duncan opened up the tasting room in Encinitas Village Square a year ago to honor the best in independent craft breweries in San Diego and Southern California. Its been really fun, were having a blast, said Duncan, a self-described beer nut and former homebrewer who left a background in the healthcare and pharmaceutical business to pursue his passion for great craft beer. The Brewers Taproom will release its first collaboration beer this weekend. Courtesy As the revamped Encinitas Village Square continues to grow (coming soon: donuts!), Duncan said he hopes the Taproom will also continue to grow. He said every day a newbie comes in who lives in the area and has just discovered them Theres still a lot of people who havent heard of us yet. The Taproom will celebrate its birthday weekend with its first-ever brewery collaboration, the special release of Hazinitas, a hazy IPA (India pale ale) they collaborated on with Dos Desperados Brewing in San Marcos. The insanely crushable 7.2 percent IPA is hopped with Citra and then dry hopped with 22 pounds of 100 percent Vic Secret Hopsthe Taproom will have a bunch of kegs of Hazinitas on tap, pouring $4 pints all anniversary weekend. As part of the weekend celebration, guests can enjoy $5 pints Thursday through Saturday and free pizza from Flippin Pizza from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday (one slice per beer while it lasts). With 25 taps, The Brewers Taproom always has a wide variety of styles on tap, from pilsners and pale lagers to porters and stouts. The Taproom only orders up one keg of each brew and rotates in a new one when its kicked. Our beer is always changing and thats what our regulars really like, said Duncan, who is Cicerone certified (like a sommelier but for beers) as is all of his staff they can expertly identify all of the different flavors in a beer and better educate customers on beer styles and history. Duncan said his number one rule is that the breweries on tap have to be independentthat is his way of supporting small breweries. The whole reason I started this taproom was because I saw how challenging it was for small breweries to get their beer into restaurants, bars or grocery stores because its so competitive and they dont have a lot of resources, Duncan said. Their taps turn over quickly so a lot of different beer goes through the taproom. Duncan has dedicated five lines for roomies: They will always have a beer on tap from Stone Brewery, Modern Times, The Bruery, Lost Abbey and Burgeon Brewery, one of Duncans favorites as the owners are local, La Costa Canyon High School graduates. Duncan said the biggest trend in beer right now is hazy IPAs also called New England style, made in response to the West Coast style of hoppy, and strong, clear IPAs. New England-style IPAs use fruity strains of yeast or different oat grains that contribute to the hazy characteristics, giving it a unique texture and mouth feel. They are called juice bombs because they literally taste very juicy, Duncan said. We have dedicated a line to always have a hazy IPA on. Thats really been the one that moves the quickest for us. Since opening a year ago, Duncan created a mug club for regulars, called Muggers. The taproom has an old-school time clock and people have to punch in 30 times in 90 days to become a part of the club and get their mug engraved. So far 48 Muggers have claimed their mugs and there are still two spots left as the club will be capped at 50 members. The Taproom is not allowed to fill growlers by law but they do have a selection of bottles and cans to go. While they dont serve food, guests are welcome to bring in foodBrewers Taproom will also have food delivered for customers as well. The Brewers Taproom is located at 1456 Encinitas Boulevard. Hours are Monday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday from noon to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday noon to 10 p.m. and Sunday noon to 9 p.m. Check out whats on tap at thebrewerstaproom.com. The Solana Beach School District (SBSD) board reviewed some of the first conceptual renderings of the proposed new Solana Vista Elementary School campus at its July 19 meeting. The board gave direction to keep as much green space as possible, remove student co-location during construction as an option, and to configure the kindergarten through third grade school within the existing footprint on Santa Victoria and San Patricio Drive. Despite some rumors circulating throughout the community, SBSD Superintendent Jodee Brentlinger stressed that the design is still in the very early, conceptual phasethe district still has to complete a traffic report, geotechnical studies and work through California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the Coastal Commission. The new campus is envisioned in the modern Spanish ranch style: single story buildings with low slanted roofs that match the neighborhood. All of the relocatables on the blacktop will be gone, replaced with 24 new classrooms, special rooms for STREAM, a new multi-purpose room and a service kitchen with a covered dining area. The preliminary designs proposed shifting the school buildings to a different part of the property in order to accommodate interim housing of students on the campus while construction is ongoing. Reconfiguring the school on the site would also flip the location of the ballfields from one side of the property to the other, prompting concerns from the surrounding neighbors as well as members of the board. During public comment, several residents from San Patricio spoke out against the new configuration of the school, which would move classroom buildings and noise closer to residences and move the ballfields to an entirely new area, affecting views and property values. I dont think the school needs to move, said neighbor Eric Granholm. Its just not fair, its just not safe and its just not necessary. I love the idea of having a dynamic learning institution at Solana Vista, I think we all agree on that, said Donna Granholm. But we feel that this proposal significantly decreases our property values and negatively affects our lifestyle. Granholm said it would be wasteful to relocate the new Solana Beach Little Leagues Snack Shack, which is only a couple of years old, and noted that moving the ballfields could potentially shrink them in size due to the topography of the site. The board majority was against the plan to provide interim housing on the sitethe plan would be to house third grade students at Skyline School while kindergarten through second grade remained at Solana Vista with the construction for two years. Theres no space between the construction and where the students are housed. Im worried about the noise, Im worried about the dirt, the air quality, I just cant even imagine, SBSD board member Vicki King said about the concept of pairing little teeny kids with large construction trucks and cranes. SBSD Vice President Julie Union said she supported the idea of getting all students off campus for a one-year construction timeline, sending second and third grade to Skyline and kindergarten and first to Solana Highlands Elementary School in Carmel Valley. Im not in favor of students being there, Union said of the interim housing. I think we could move faster and we could save money by speeding up the process. Skyline is beautiful and those kids are going to be going there in the future anyway so theyll be comfortable with the school. I just think it makes a lot of sense. SBSD Clerk Holly Lewry said the construction firms the district interviewed all stated that having kids on campus during construction is a safe and fairly normal practice but her concern was in shortening the construction impact on the surrounding residential neighborhood where the roads are very narrow. If theres any way, we should limit it to one year versus two years because the construction traffic is so disruptive, Lewry said. Without the interim housing, SBSD President Debra Schade said that she was not sure the proposed design to reconfigure the school site was a viable option. Schade said that green space is at a premium in Solana Beach and maintaining that space is a key component of the districts facilities master plan. I personally believe that field space is very valuable to the community, Schade said. We really are not interested in taking that away. SBSD board member Richard Leib said interim housing should not drive the design of the campus. Philosophically, I hate designing a school based on one-year construction when youre going to have a 60-year school, Leib said. I think its important that we take whats best in terms of a design and not really factor in the interim housing so we can have a design that actually makes sense for 60 years. A 41-member design team has been meeting since May 2017 on the new Solana Vista School and the board agreed to expand the design team to include representatives from the San Patricio neighborhood. According to Caroline Brown, executive director of capital programs and technology, the plan is to hold parent and community design forums in September and have that input inform the final conceptual design presented to the board for approval in October or November. Brown said the district is targeting summer 2019 for construction to begin. The board encouraged the design team to engage with the community as soon as possible, worrying that a month might not be enough time to gather feedbackSchade noted that it is a fast-tracked timeline but if it is not doable they can adjust it. The good news is we have a neighborhood that really wants a new school and I think we ought to work together, Leib said. Save my User ID and Password Some subscribers prefer to save their log-in information so they do not have to enter their User ID and Password each time they visit the site. To activate this function, check the 'Save my User ID and Password' box in the log-in section. This will save the password on the computer you're using to access the site. Note: If you choose to use the log-out feature, you will lose your saved information. This means you will be required to log-in the next time you visit our site. Subscriber content preview JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) The federal government has officially killed a project to improve access to Alaska's capital nearly two years after Gov. Bill Walker halted the road extension. In a document published Thursday, the Federal Highway Administration said it has decided to take no action on the proposed 50-mile road extension north from Juneau, the Juneau Empire reported . . . . Subscriber content preview OLYMPIA The state Department of Ecology wants to update how it assesses water quality, and it's seeking public comments. The agency's rule change would affect the standards used to protect people from waterborne disease during activities such as swimming or boating. . . . After criminals killed his uncle and cousin and warned that he was next, Jose fled Honduras fearing for his life. He crossed Mexico with his 3-year-old son and arrived in mid-May at the Hidalgo Port of Entry on the U.S. border to claim asylum. But even though he entered the U.S. legally at an official border crossing, where the Trump administration promised asylum-seekers would not be prosecuted or separated from their children, Jose was detained and had his son taken away, according to advocates who are helping with his case. When we went to the restroom, they separated me from my son. I asked them where they were going to take him, and they said they were going to take them to another place, Jose, 27, said Tuesday through an interpreter in a phone interview. I asked again, and they didnt tell me just that they were taking him to another location. I didnt even get to say goodbye. Jose, who asked that only his first name be used out of concern for his familys safety, is not alone. Other migrants, including at least one other father from Honduras, were separated from their children after seeking asylum at official border crossings which is what the administration has been saying that people should do, said Michelle Lapointe, acting deputy legal director of the Immigrant Justice Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center, which is helping Jose. They werent prosecuted, Lapointe said, but they still had their kids taken. Subscriber content preview Rendering by DLR Group [enlarge] The new 701 Dexter will go from about 63,000 to 102,000 square feet. Unico Properties has sold the old 701 Dexter building, which it was planning to expand and renovate, for $33.5 million. . . . Subscriber content preview Photo by Unico Properties [enlarge] The 1111 Third Ave. building and associated Second & Spring buildings have sold for about $359 million, according to King County records. . . . By Daily Caller , July 22, 2018 While the majority of White House reporters are fixated on Russia, they seem to forget that the annexation of Crimea and U.S. election meddling happened on Obamas watch but somehow now this is all President Donald Trumps fault. Liberals in the media are blinded by hate for President Trump. Join us - become an Elderado today at: LarryElder.com Follow Larry Elder on Follow Larry Elder on Twitter "Like" Larry Elder on Facebook Luddite eco-imperialists claim to be virtuous By Paul Driessen and David Wojick Not every poor person in impoverished places around the world aspires to the modern living standards they see and hear about: indoor plumbing, electricity for lights, a refrigerator and stove, a paucity of disease-carrying insects, top-notch schools and hospitals, their children living past age five. But many do. Not every poor African, Asian or Latin American farmer wants to give up his backbreaking, dawn to dusk traditional agricultural practices, guiding his ox and plow, laying down meager supplies of manure to fertilize crops, surviving droughts, repeatedly hand spraying pesticides to battle ravenous insects to reap harvests that often barely feed his family, much less leave produce to sell locally. But many do. Unfortunately, they often face formidable foes. An absence of electricity, roads and other infrastructure. Corrupt, kleptocratic governments. Nonexistent property rights and other collateral to secure loans. Powerful, well-financed eco-imperialists whose policies perpetuate poverty, malnutrition and disease. Banks and other carbon colonialists glorify limited wind and solar energy for poor villages, while denying financial support for fossil fuel electricity generation. Anti-chemical fanatics promote bed nets and narrowly defined integrated pest management, but bitterly oppose chemical pesticides and the spatial repellant DDT to kill mosquitoes, keep them out of homes and prevent deadly malaria. Radical organic food groups battle any use of genetically engineered crops that multiply crop yields, survive droughts and slash pesticide spraying by 75% or more. They even vilify Golden Rice, which enables malnourished children to avoid Vitamin A Deficiency, blindness and death. Now poor country families face even harder struggles, as a coalition of well-financed malcontents, agitators and pressure groups once again proves the adage that power politics makes strange bedfellows. Coalition members share a deep distaste for fossil fuels, chemical pesticides and fertilizers, corporations, capitalism, biotechnology, and virtually all aspects of modern agriculture. Their growing social-political movement is called AgroEcology. While the concept is studiously vague, it essentially asserts that indigenous, traditional farmers must be shielded from market forces and modern technologies, so that they can continue using ancient, primitive, culturally appropriate methods. AgroEcology is anti-GMO organic food activism on steroids. It rejects virtually everything that has enabled modern agriculture to feed billions more people from less and less acreage and, given the chance, could eliminate hunger and malnutrition worldwide. It is rabidly opposed to biotechnology, monoculture farming, non-organic fertilizers and chemical insecticides and even despises mechanized equipment like tractors, and the hybrid seeds and other advances developed by Dr. Norman Borlaugs Green Revolution. AgroEcology advocates tortured but clever concepts like food sovereignty and the right to subsistence farming by indigenous people. It promotes indigenous agricultural knowledge and practices, thus excluding the vast storehouse of non-indigenous learning, practices and technologies that were developed in recent centuries and are readily available to anyone with access to a library or internet connection. Or as they put it: Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems. It puts the aspirations and needs of those who produce, distribute and consume food at the heart of food systems and policies, rather than the demands of markets and corporations. Food sovereignty also focuses on production and harvesting methods that maximize the contribution of ecosystems, avoid costly and toxic inputs, and improve the resiliency of local food systems in the face of climate change. (The 2007 Declaration of Nyeleni, the first global forum on food sovereignty. In Mali!) Some adherents even seek the re-peasantization of Latin American society! AgroEcology has the financial backing of far-left foundations like the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, which collectively have committed more than $500 million to a raft of like-minded NGOs. Its precepts and policies are approved and actively promoted by the Food and Agriculture Organization, World Bank and other UN agencies at their taxpayer-funded international conferences. These agencies are even beginning to demand adherence to uber-organic practices as a condition for receiving taxpayer funding for agricultural development programs in Africa, Asia and Latin America. (But taxpayers and legislators who provide the funding have been permitted little substantive input on any of this.) Its all justified and often accepted without question in government agencies and universities by reference to the politically correct, virtue-signaling terminology of our era: sustainability, sustainable farming, dangerous manmade climate change, social justice, indigenous rights, self-determination. Also typical, anyone opposing these ideologies, policies and demands is vilified as a willful supporter of violence against women, land-grabbing by multinational corporations, peasant farmer suicides, mass expropriation and genocide of indigenous people, and crimes against humanity. Imagine how intolerant AgroEcology ideologues would react if a farmer wanted to assert his or her food sovereignty and self-determination by planting hybrid corn, using modern synthetic fertilizers or (heaven forbid) planting Bt corn (maize), to get higher yields, spend less time in the field, spray fewer pesticides, or improve the familys living standards by selling surplus crops. And yet many want to do exactly that. By planting the new Bt cotton on my six hectares [15 acres], I was able to build a house and give it a solar panel, Bethuel Gumede told the late Roy Innis, then chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality, during a trip to South Africa. I also bought a TV and fridge. My wife can buy healthy food, and we can afford to send the kids to school. My life has changed completely. I grow maize on a half hectare, Elizabeth Ajele told him. The old plants would be destroyed by insects, but not the new biotech plants. With the profits I get from the new Bt maize, I can grow onions, spinach and tomatoes, and sell them for extra money to buy fertilizer. We were struggling to keep hunger out of our house. Now the future looks good. Equally relevant, how can agricultural practices that barely sustained families and villages before the advent of modern agriculture possibly feed the world? As Dr. Borlaug said in 2006: Our planet has 6.5 billion people. If we use only organic fertilizers and methods on existing farmland, we can only feed 4 billion. I dont see 2.5 billion people volunteering to disappear. AgroEcology promoters like Greenpeace, Food & Water Watch, Pesticide Action Network, Union of Concerned scientists and La Via Campesina (The Peasant Way) pay little attention to any of this. Theyre too busy saving people from dangerous hybrid seeds, GMOs, agribusiness, farm machinery and chemicals. Not that any of them would ever want to toil on any of the primitive farms they extol. Greenpeace frightens Africans by claiming some researchers think DDT and DDE could be inhibiting lactation in nursing mothers. So families are afraid to use DDT, and millions die from preventable malaria, while still more millions suffer permanent brain or liver damage from the disease. Would it also oppose cancer-curing chemotherapy because it causes hair loss and reduced resistance to infections? Modern instruments can detect chemicals in mere parts per billion (the equivalent of a few seconds in 32 years) or even parts per trillion (a few seconds in 32,000 years). Thats hardly a threat to human health. But Luddite eco-imperialists and uber-organic food activists stridently oppose any manmade fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, while saying natural pesticides commonly used by organic farmers are safe. In reality, copper sulfate can kill humans in lower doses per kilogram of body weight than aspirin, and exposure to rotenone causes Parkinson's Disease-like symptoms in rats and can also kill humans. UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, US and EU government agencies, and real human rights advocates should challenge and denounce AgroEcology agitators and their financial enablers for advancing fraudulent claims that perpetuate malnutrition, poverty and human rights abuses in the worlds poorest countries. They should also cut off funding to any government agencies that support AgroEcology nonsense. Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow and author of books and articles on energy, climate change and economic development. David Wojick is an independent analyst specializing in science and logic in public policy. Home Republican primary pretenders: Caveat emptor By Mark Alexander Across our nation, there are a few hotly contested federal and state Republican primaries in which genuine conservative candidates are facing wealthy pretenders who are recasting themselves as "conservative." These imitators can fund unlimited advertising and social media buys for their makeovers. Some "conservative" candidates are, at best, moderates. A case study of how such pretenders operate is the primary campaign between those seeking to become Tennessee's 50th governor. One candidate, Randy Boyd, hails from a well-heeled family and is a likable candidate. He is a husband and father, and he has supported some initiatives that have helped his community of Knoxville, Tennessee. But he is not a "conservative Republican," despite the facade that he and his handlers have erected for their campaign to defeat an unpretentious and unapologetic conservative, Rep. Diane Black. Let me be clear: My objection is not that Boyd is a moderate. I am a pragmatist and sometimes a moderate is the best a primary has to offer. My objection is that he's a pretender who is endeavoring to dupe millions of conservative Tennessee voters into believing he's one of them. He self-identified as a "moderate" when he was exploring his candidacy, but he now insists he's a "lifelong conservative" and his brand is "Conservative for Governor." The political campaign deceptions he condones demonstrate a serious underlying character flaw. This example of re-fabrication is being repeated in other Republican primaries across the nation. Perhaps this opinion/analysis of one such campaign will inspire the exposure of other pretenders. Attempting to ride the wake of Donald Trump's presidential victory, Boyd, a quintessential "Never Trumper," claims, "I'm not a professional politician. I'm a businessman." He portrays himself as a "political outsider," but in fact he's the most insidious variety of political insiders those who are not elected but use their wealth to buy into political circles and influence government policies. In fact, Boyd has spent much of his career hobnobbing around with rich politicos like Tennessee's current governor, Bill Haslam another establishment Republican. Boyd was appointed to a couple of administrative roles by Haslam, grooming his own run for governor. Like Haslam, he's a wealthy jet-setter who is disconnected from grassroots Americans, and he uses his affluence to live as if recreation were his occupation, spending extravagantly on himself and his family. Of his personal pursuits, he says, "I've been a little selfish in that I pick the things I'm most passionate about and go for those things." Like his estate in Argentina... Boyd amassed most of his estimated $800 million fortune by marketing products made in China and other countries, while sheltering some of his wealth overseas. As for the jobs he claims to have created, many have not been in the U.S. and others have been outsourced to foreign producers. In 2016, Boyd supported the establishment Republican presidential primary candidate, Jeb Bush, and refused to raise money for Trump after he won the primary. Bush has, in turn, endorsed Boyd. Boyd is a strong supporter of Barack Obama's statist Common Core "education initiative." He claims ubiquitously that "freedom should carry forward to social issues." (Like abortion and so-called "gay marriage," which is supported by Boyd's liberal church. His companies also support LGBT activist groups.) His campaign is supported by wealthy donors who also back Planned Parenthood. He says he supports the Second Amendment and claims to be an avid hunter, and he recently purchased an NRA membership to support that pretense. In fact, he supports "animal rights" groups that oppose hunters, and Boyd has organizational ties to anti-2A leftist billionaires Michael Bloomberg and George Soros. He supports "corporate welfare" and is a strong supporter of Obama's unratified Trans-Pacific Partnership, which is opposed by both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton but would boost Boyd's net worth. Boyd is a member of the Partnership for a New American Economy, backed by leftist Michael Bloomberg, which advocates for illegal immigrants. Boyd's group partnered with Welcoming America to support sanctuary cities. Welcoming America is backed by leftist George Soros, the godfather of the archenemies of Liberty. Boyd supported and donated to the campaign of Knoxville's Democrat Mayor Madeline Rogero, who promotes open borders, opposes cooperation with immigration officials, and has turned Knoxville into a sanctuary city the only one in Tennessee. He supports free tax-funded tuition for illegal immigrants, and he remains on the board of Barack Obama's College Promise Campaign, a project of the leftist Civic Nation started by Obama activists. Among other things, CPC promises education for "undocumented students." He donated $250,000 to La Raza affiliate Conexion Americas, a leftist Democrat Party front group that supports sanctuary cities and open borders and opposes President Trump's border security and immigration reform policies. Are you beginning to see a pattern here? All of this notwithstanding, Boyd is flooding the media markets with campaign ads insisting that he and Donald Trump are "a lot alike." But seasoned political observer Jackson Baker offered this assessment of the stark contrast between Boyd's campaign facade and reality: If all you saw of Boyd were his TV ads, which are loaded with hard-edged innuendo about the Second Amendment, potential welfare cheats, illegal immigrants, and Democrats' alleged indifference to the porousness of our southern border, you would think: This guy is the right-winger of the race, more Trumpian than arch-conservative gubernatorial rival Diane Black. ... But listen to [Boyd's] ideas in forums and at stump speeches and fundraisers, and all of that is turned on its head. What Boyd talks about instead is the kind of ameliorist, problem-solving approach you would expect to hear from a centrist Democrat. Regarding the disconnect between the facade he has created pretending to be a "principled conservative" and his record, Boyd said, "If I'm running to be the Republican nominee in Tennessee, I want Republican voters to see that I'm one of them." Or at least to think he's one of them... Fact is, Boyd has been polling behind Tennessee's genuine conservative Republican candidate, Diane Black. Consequently, he and his campaign CEO, Chip Saltsman, a onetime RNC chair wannabe and Mike Huckabee campaign operative, have unleashed a torrent of fallacious negative ads against Black. (Saltsman's RNC bid failed after the press exposed his promotion of the song "Barack the Magic Negro.") Saltsman has perfected the art of violating what Ronald Reagan's California Republican chairman labeled "The Eleventh Commandment" that Republicans in primaries should not engage in fratricidal infighting. His modus operandi is to sandbag Republican primary candidates in the final weeks of campaigns, when there is no time to counter mendacious accusations. (No doubt that in response to this opinion/analysis, he will turn his guns on The Patriot Post.) Boyd and Saltsman are now attempting to defeat Rep. Black with what can only be charitably described as abject lies, the most recent of these declaring that "DC Diane" (asserting that she's a career politician) was a "Never Trumper." They are using multimillion-dollar PACs to advance their racist and sexist deceits about Black's conservative legislative record. They shrewdly enlisted Saltsman's old boss, Mike Huckabee, to endorse Boyd, knowing that would then create a Sarah Huckabee Sanders gauntlet against President Trump endorsing Diane Black. Why would Trump endorse Rep. Black? For the same reasons I endorse and support her candidacy. (In fact, attesting to their conservative pedigree, Diane's husband, a decorated USMC Vietnam veteran, was a Patriot Post supporter before she went to Congress.) This authentic conservative, who should be Tennessee's first female governor, was swept into congressional office in the Republican Wave of 2010, and her gubernatorial candidacy has the endorsement of Tennessee's most conservative constituent groups. Those of you who aren't steeped in Tennessee politics but follow national legislation and policy would know Black's name in connection with the House Budget Committee. She was the first woman to chair that powerful committee and last year she shepherded Trump's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 through her committee and through Congress. That legislation has since unleashed incredible economic growth to Make America Great Again. It was the fist time in almost a decade that the House and Senate passed a budget. As Donald Trump noted, "Diane Black, the highly respected House Budget Committee Chairwoman, did a GREAT job in passing [the] Budget, setting up big Tax Cuts." In fact, Rep. Black was at Trump's side yesterday, leading the discussion on the next phase of Trump's economic plans. Notably, one of Black's most recent legislative bills would make illegal entry into the U.S. a felony, in contrast to Boyd's advocacy for illegal immigration. Bottom line: Conservatives across the country should take a close look at the background of those primary candidates marketing themselves as "conservatives," because the pretenders are propagating. Caveat emptor! Mark Alexander is the executive editor of the Patriot Post. Third parties in Canada another reassessment (Part Four) By Mark Wegierski In the 2011 federal election, the NDP won 103 seats, thus becoming a second party the so-called Official Opposition. The Liberals were reduced to 34 seats, about the lowest number they have ever held in the federal Parliament. However, in the 2015 federal election, the Liberals came roaring back with a majority, and the NDP were reduced to 44 seats. In light of the 2015 federal election campaign, a partial reassessment of the role of the NDP in Canadian politics may have been called for. They were certainly more centrist-tending in the 2015 federal election than the Liberals particularly under the leadership of Tom Mulcair who promised a balanced budget unlike Justin Trudeau, who said he was quite willing to run a deficit. However, the post-federal election NDP convention called for the replacement of Tom Mulcair. In the leadership contest of 2017, the NDP selected Jagmeet Singh as their leader thus marking a move to increased political correctness. While the NDP may have in earlier decades been the ice-breaker for left-liberalism and the so-called progressive agenda it could be argued that it is actually the Liberal Party (particularly today) that is carrying out that agenda to ever greater degrees. Nevertheless, one of the biggest illusions of Canadian politics is that the federal and provincial New Democratic Parties and the extra-parliamentary left-wing coalition groups that often work with the NDP -- are comparatively weak, and rarely able to significantly exercise power. Until the breakthrough federal election of 2011, when they won 103 seats (59 of them from Quebec), the NDP had held only about 25 to 30 seats (out of a total of about 300) in the successive federal Parliaments. In the 2015 federal election, they were reduced to 44 seats. Currently, they hold two provincial governments (Alberta and British Columbia). However, they have great influence on municipal politics, especially in Toronto, Vancouver, and Winnipeg. Until the federal election of 2011, the official NDP might have appeared to be a comparatively minor force in Canadian politics. There had also been some talk in the 1990s of the supposed triumph of free-market neoconservatism in Canada which would appear to make things more difficult for the NDP. The facts are that the NDP possesses an unusual degree of ideological strength and depth rarely seen in any of the other Canadian parties, and so has had more real influence, never holding the federal government, than, for example, the federal Progressive Conservatives. Though never holding the federal government, the NDP was able to effect such major, transformative changes in the Liberal and federal P.C. parties (especially in social and cultural areas) that it hardly needed to be in power. The NDP has counted on the support of tens of thousands of university and college professors, journalists, civil servants, dedicated social activists, and teachers all of whom wielded a far greater amount of influence on politics and social life, than the large number of more average people who supported the centre-right Reform Party in the 1990s, or the federal Progressive Conservatives in the 1980s and before. And, quite apart from the gradual percolation of their social and cultural ideas into Canadian society, the NDP has been able to enter into highly advantageous political collaborations with the Liberal Party, at critical junctures in Canadian politics. The NDP has often been able to put significant political pressure on the Liberal Party. They also significantly influenced the Progressive Conservatives in Ontario during the Bill Davis era (1971-1985). This has usually meant that the Liberals (or sometimes, P.C.s) have largely carried out NDP policies. Until the 2011 election, the NDP had appeared to be in retreat, with the apparent triumph of free trade and fiscal or economic conservatism. Even with the NDPs breakthrough in 2011, the Conservatives were, after all, able to win a strong majority. However, it could be argued that the perception of a right-wing triumph in Canada in 2011-2015 is highly misleading. Indeed, the Conservatives were decisively swept away in the 2015 federal election, without having accomplished much. The facts are that social conservatism (focussing on upholding notions of traditional nation, family, and religion) is very weak in Canada. Most people embrace the latest variants of multiculturalism; high immigration; feminism; and gay rights. To a social conservative, the triumph of fiscal conservatism, is all-but-irrelevant when compared to the cultural, social, moral, spiritual, and religious crises of late modernity. Ironically, old-fashioned social democracy, such as that represented in Canada by the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) the much-different precursor to the NDP -- could be seen as largely socially-conservative. While ferociously fighting for the working class, and for social programs that benefited the broad Canadian majority, it largely supported traditional notions of nation, family, and religion. What has occurred since the 1960s, however, is the transformation of old-fashioned social democracy into left-liberalism. While becoming ever more conciliatory to capitalism and fiscal conservatism, it at the same time took increasingly hostile outlooks towards traditional notions of nation, family, and religion. Its claim to represent the working-class majority became less and less credible. The savants and elitists who represented the leadership of the New Democratic Party realized that they could exercise meaningful power within the structures of current-day capitalism. And the things they increasingly cared about was not the well-being of the working-class majority, but rather the trendy new issues of multiculturalism, feminism, and gay rights, which had been of comparatively little interest to traditional social democracy. Indeed, such cutting-edge theorists as Frantz Fanon raged against the traditional working class. Today, one sees the NDP wrapping itself in the cloak of compassion, decency, and concern for average, ordinary people when it could be argued that it has acted largely against the working majority of Canadians for over three decades. In those places where it has avoided the excesses of left-liberalism (for example, in Saskatchewan), its success has been largely congruent with the remnants of social conservatism. However, the typical impact of the NDP in Canada, when deployed in support of the excesses of left-liberalism, appears in its own way as damaging to society as the consumerism and globalization which it sometimes quite aptly criticizes. Regardless of the partial return of fiscal or economic conservatism in Canada (especially under Chretien) the NDP had earlier been able to fundamentally transform the social and cultural ideas and policies of the Liberal Party and most of the P.C. Party (and thereby of most of the country) away from social conservatism. It could therefore be argued that its outlooks have triumphed in social and cultural matters. At the same time, it has partially continued the CCF traditions of fighting for a more generous welfare state whose universality is now being undermined not only by fiscal conservatism but ironically, also by the NDP-led social and cultural directions of promoting designated groups rather than the commonweal. It could be argued that the NDP has, in the last four to five decades, been Canadas most influential and idea-generating party. The history of the NDP in Canada on the left, and of the Reform Party on the right, may be of some interest to those who would wish to study whether it is possible that a relatively successful, third party movement could ever get underway in the United States and what its potential impact on the U.S. polity might be. Mark Wegierski is a Canadian writer and historical researcher. Home Pinellas County Sheriff/ABC News(PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla.) -- Britany Jacobs, the girlfriend of the man shot and killed in a Florida parking lot last week, says her boyfriend was just coming to her defense and the gunman wanted someone to be angry at. Now she wants justice, she says. Jacobs, who witnessed the shooting along with the couples 5-year-old son, said she and her two small children were waiting in the car for her boyfriend, Markeis McGlockton, while he ran into a convenience store in Clearwater, Florida. Onlooker Michael Drejka got out of his parked car and began harassing her about being parked in a handicap space, she said. Surveillance video showed McGlockton exiting the store and shoving Drejka to the ground. Drejka then drew a handgun and shot and killed McGlockton. He wanted somebody to be angry at. He just wanted someone to fight him, Jacobs said in an interview with Good Morning America on Monday. He was picking a fight. Im just sitting, waiting for my family to come back to the car. Drejka told deputies in Pinellas County he feared for his life, according to authorities, but McGlockton's girlfriend. Police said they won't press charges against Drejka, who is white, for shooting McGlockton, who was black, citing the state's so-called "stand your ground" law. Jacobs, who was waiting in the vehicle with the couples two younger children -- an infant and a 3-year-old -- said she started feeling scared when she noticed how fast the argument was escalating. It wasnt long before McGlockton came out along with their 5-year-old son and tried to diffuse the situation. Surveillance video from the Circle A Food Store in Clearwater, about 30 minutes east of Tampa, showed McGlockton leaving the store and shoving Drejka hard to the ground. By this time a witness pulls up and everybody hears us going back and forth with one another. ... A witness goes in the store and he let the owner know that there was somebody out there messing with a woman in a car, she said. My man hears whats going on, sees the guy yelling at me and Im sitting in the car. My man is defending me and his children, so he pushes him down. The guy is on the ground and he pulls the gun out. ... My dude steps back 'cause my dude is fearing for his life -- all of us were, she added. McGlockton was stepping back when Drejka pulled the trigger, she said, shooting him just a few feet away from her and their children. Neither she nor McGlockton knew that the man was armed. McGlockton stumbled back inside of the store and fought for his life for nearly 30 minutes, according to Jacobs. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital. Everybody is panicking ... my son is screaming, but it was too late, she said. Its hard for a 4- or 5-year-old to witness what he saw. ... Its really tough for him. Bob Gualtieri, the Pinellas County sheriff, insisted he has to follow the "stand your ground" law, which dictates that if a person feels threatened they have the right to shoot. He told deputies that he had to shoot to defend himself. Those are the facts and thats the law," Gualtieri said at a press conference. No matter how you slice it or dice it that was a violent push to the ground. Investigators said Drejka has a concealed weapons permit. The owner of the convenience store in Clearwater told ABC affiliate WFTS that Drejka had assaulted customers in the stores parking lot before. And Rich Kelly, who frequents the store, claimed Drejka picked a fight with him over a parking spot about a month ago, calling him racial slurs and threatening to kill him, WFTS reported. A sign posted outside Drejkas home Friday said No Comment in bold letters, according to WFTS. The State Attorneys Office is currently investigating the matter further. He was a good man and all he was trying to do was protect his family, Jacobs said. I just want justice. I need something to be done because this is not right. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. At the same time, the official said, the United States would work with countries that import Iranian crude on a case by case basis, signaling that the Trump administration might not immediately impose sanctions on those that continue importing from Iran beyond a Nov. 4 deadline. --- The Trump administration is standing by its plan to reduce Irans oil revenue to zero in a bid to isolate the country and force its leaders to change their behavior, a senior State Department official said Monday.At the same time, the official said, the United States would work with countries that import Iranian crude on a case by case basis, signaling that the Trump administration might not immediately impose sanctions on those that continue importing from Iran beyond a Nov. 4 deadline. --- https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/despite-impact-on-prices-us-will-aim-to-bring-irans-oil-revenue-to-zero/2018/07/02/c9be1ee8-afcd-41c9-b038-7bb60dc9f268_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.520f57e1a6f0 Click to expand... There are times when things happen that are unexpected, unanticipated; our revolution would be one of them, Pompeo said Sunday night at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, Calif., We don't know the right moment, we don't know the day, he continued, but we do know the things that the world is obligated to do, so that when the right time comes when the right moment comes the opportunity is even more likely to find it's fulfillment. --- President Trump plans to help set the conditions for a successful revolution by the Iranian people against the Islamic Republic, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday.There are times when things happen that are unexpected, unanticipated; our revolution would be one of them, Pompeo said Sunday night at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, Calif.,We don't know the right moment, we don't know the day, he continued, but we do know the things that the world is obligated to do, so that when the right time comes when the right moment comes the opportunity is even more likely to find it's fulfillment. --- https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/mike-pompeo-world-must-help-iranians-prepare-for-revolt Click to expand... Backdrop: Trump pulls the US out of a multi-nation nuclear arms agreement with Iran, isolating the US.In early July, the state department announced:Yes, the US has called on ALL nations to cease importing Iranian oil by Nov. 4, 2018, you know, a date set to get the knuckled-dragging, "we'll turn your country into glass" crowd out to vote.And then we have chickenhawk Pompeo announcing that we will actively foment revolution in Iran.After Iran's economy and government has been directly threatened, Rouhani replies, "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars.Folks, hold on. Trump is getting ready to achieve what the Bush neocons failed to achieve: make war on Iran. Your MAGA pocketbook will take a HUGE hit. A DOZEN sheep producers came together at Moora last week for the last of eight Sheep Genetics Regional Forums 2018 held across the country. The forum was co-ordinated by Sheep Genetics and delivered through LambPlan and MerinoSelect, in an effort to educate newcomers to genetic recording and assist those already involved in the program to improve their data collection, input and evaluation. Attendees came from as far as Northam, Badgingarra, Coorow and Moora, and represented a wide range of breeds including Merinos, Dohne, Dorper, Multi-Purpose Merinos, Suffolk and Poll Dorset. Presentations were given by LambPlan development officer Clara Bradford and MerinoSelect (MS) development officer Peta Bradley, both based out of Armidale, New South Wales. There was a good mix of presentation, discussion and interaction, with a focus on helping stud breeders achieve their business targets. Ms Bradford highlighted that Australia was the world leader in sheep genetics and with everyone improving the quality of their Australian Sheep Breeding Values (ASBVs) recording and evaluations, it could continue to be so. She said the Meat and Live- stock Australia funded Sheep Genetics program would feature new branding in the future, something to watch out for. Topics on the day included breeding objectives and what to measure, getting accuracy in selection, and utilisation of breeding values and other tools. Ms Bradley said reproduction was a challenging area and it was an important trait to get right - although there had been problems with inaccurate scanners affecting the integrity of the information. She hoped that as technology improved those issues would be resolved. Ms Bradley said data analysis from 2005 - 2016 showed that more Merinos were being sold that have breeding values. MerinoSelect flocks were bigger and sell more lambs, Ms Bradley said. Information showed that the number of MS rams were selling at a higher rate than the total Australian flock, and semen doses per flock were on the increase, compared to non MS flocks. It was important that once working within the ASBV system that breeders understood what is needed to improve the genetics of their flock before viewing or buying in stock in order to make positive progress towards their business target. The RamSelect program was highlighted as a way to use DNA to improve genetics. Ms Bradford said 20 DNA samples from a ewe flock would cost about $700 but that would give breeders a good understanding of their flock profile and be a basis to work from. They discussed the importance of not being selective when recording lamb weaning weights as this could lower the flock profile and not give an accurate measurement for improving. It was also stressed that breeders should value the dam pedigree as much as the ram because both contributed to the lambs DNA. There was also a reminder that while improving the genetics of the flock though selection was important, the environment and treatment of the sheep also contributed to their growth and development. Once you pull an animal out of the main group dont compare it with the main group again, because of the different environment and treatments given, Ms Bradford said. During the final session attendees were handed their flocks Ramping Up Report and were able to go through it and ask questions. One attendee said he was just starting on the ASBV program, and although he had run a stud for many years, the forum was helpful in answering questions and explaining the system. He hoped that with accurate data his stud could provide a better service to his clients and increase the value of his flock. POPANYINNING producer and WAMMCO International director Dawson Bradford has played an integral part in the development of the nations largest lamb-focused event, LambEx. Mr Bradford was the inaugural chairman at LambEx 2010 and is a member of the organising committee for LambEx 2018 which is set to return to Perth, in August. He said the event was initially created to help the company celebrate 10 years of operation. WAMMCO was the instigator, Mr Bradford said. We started discussing how we could celebrate a decade of WAMMCO and it just grew from there. We then got in touch with event organiser Esther Jones (nee Price) and the idea snowballed. It then grew into a State event and before we knew it, a national event. Im very proud to have it return to WA. Its a great event and a great occasion and WAMMCO are very proud to be a major partner at LambEx 2018. Mr Bradford said the 2010 event had more than 500 delegates, including 50 from interstate. It was initially a very hard sell to get the industry interested, but a Federal government grant made a big difference, Mr Bradford said. We had a vision to celebrate the prime lamb industry and it all came together very well in the end. The industry has changed tremendously since the very first LambEx, as at the time meat genetics were really starting to gain hold. Some of the speakers included Murdoch Universitys professor Dave Pethick on meat quality, The University of WAs professor Graeme Martin on the maternal instincts of the ewe and Costcos Marcel Moodley. Mr Bradford said the sheep meat industry had changed significantly across Australia since 2010. Here in WA interest has shifted with carcase becoming a much more important trait on not only traditional meat sheep breeds, but in self-replacing Merino flocks, Mr Bradford said. Producers now realise the value of muscle in sheep. Mr Bradford looked forward to welcoming delegates to LambEx 2018. The committee has spent a lot of time in developing an action-packed program which highlights the latest research, exciting technologies and innovations, he said. We have speakers from across Australia and the world who will share their insights on the lamb industry. We also have the largest trade stand area in LambEx history with 5500 square metres of display space. The social events will also be a stand-out. In particular lamb will be highlighted at the Australian Wool Innovation GrandsLamb Dinner with WAMMCO providing all of the lamb. WAMMCO Group chief executive officer Coll MacRury said the co-operative had grown significantly in the past decade and now managed two plants one in Katanning, WA and Southern Meats in Goulburn, New South Wales. Our pick of the news from Fethiye and around Turkey over the last week. News TUI beach clean A beach clean arranged by TUI collected 163 kilos of rubbish on Wednesday. The team was made up of 30 people, mostly TUI staff from service delivery and operations. They were joined by Vicky Erdogan from the Travel Foundation and three members of TURMEPA, who provide training and education on environmental issues. The group went by boat, the Grand Bars, which was provided by the TUI excursion supplier, over to Red Island (Kzlada), a very popular stopping place with daily boat tours. The group collected mainly smaller items such as plastic pegs, bottle tops, bottles, old shoes, paper cups and glass bottles, a lot of which had washed up with the tide. The Grand Bars supplied a much needed BBQ after the clean up. Motorcycle drivers receive training from local Jandarma Traffic Officers Local Jandarma Traffic Officers were out and about in Oiudeniz and Hisaronu this week running motorcycle training courses. These activities will be held every month in different areas in the region to raise awareness of traffic safety and reduce the number of motorcycle traffic accidents. During the training highlighted the importance of both the driver and passenger wearing a safety helmet, high visibility and protective clothing. High visibility vests were handed out to participants along with informative booklets about the safe use of motorcycles and the importance of complying with general traffic rules. Motorcycle drivers participating in the training were reminded of the prevailing motorcycle accidents and injuries and the drivers and the passengers who lost their lives. Source: www.fethiyehaber.com CarrefourSA Mavi Whatever you need on the boat CarrefourSA, one of the most important brands in the retail sector, is now providing a shopping service for seafarers in Gocek. CarrefourSA Mavi, which is 16 meters long and has a shopping area of 50 square meters, started its service in April in Gocek and goes on a specific route every day between 8.00 am and 10.00 pm, providing an on-the-spot shopping service. It also makes deliveries of groceries to charter boats and restaurants that do not have easy access to land-based shops. CarrefourSA Mavi will provide this service in Gocek until 30 September 2018. Turkey ends state of emergency after two years The Turkish government has ended the nationwide state of emergency that was imposed two years ago after a failed coup attempt. Under the state of emergency, tens of thousands of people were arrested or dismissed from their jobs. However the government has decided against extending it again after seven three-month renewals. The decision comes weeks after President Recep Tayyp Erdogan won re-election. During the campaign, opposition candidates said that the first thing they would do if they won would be to end the state of emergency. More than 107,000 people have been removed from public sector jobs by emergency decree since the state of emergency began and more than 50,000 people have been imprisoned pending trial, according to official statistics and NGOs. Many of those dismissed are alleged to be supporters of the exiled Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who lives in the United States and is a former ally of Mr Erdogan. Turkey accuses Mr Gulen and his followers of organising the coup, but he denies it. The 2016 coup attempt saw parliament bombed by military aircraft and more than 250 people killed. Source: BBC News The cheapest holiday spot for families this summer is Marmaris in Turkey The Post Office has revealed the best value holiday spot in Europe for families, based on the cost of a basket of shopping when you get there. Turkey is the cheapest place for Brits to head, with prices at the resort of Marmaris 36 per cent cheaper than last summer due to the pounds growth against the lira. If youre in Marmaris you can expect to get a bucket and spade for 82p, a banana boat ride for 6.53, a Mars or Magnum ice cream for 73p and an inflatable lilo for 1.45. After comparing prices for common expenses in 15 popular European holiday destinations, researchers found that prices have fallen in Turkey, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, the Balearic islands, the south of France and Italy. A drop in local prices and a small rise in the value of sterling against the euro and other European currencies accounts for the increased spending power of UK holidaymakers. Tour operator Thomas Cook reported in April that the number of UK visitors to Turkey this summer is surging, with package holiday bookings up 84 per cent year on year after security concerns eased. The growth is driven by families, who make up 61 per cent of bookings to the country. The second cheapest location on the list was Sunny Beach, Bulgaria and Spains Costa del Sol was in third place. Source: The Sun Sport Fethiyespor Thank you to Brian Lloyd for the Fethiyespor updates. Fethiyespor sign up two more transfers Fethiyespor signed up two more transfers this week. The first was a two-year contract with Halil Ibrahim Peksen, a right-winger from Atiker Konyaspor. The second signing was a two-year contract with Kagan Soylemezgiller, a midfielder who recently played for Gumushanespor. Both players said they were very happy to join Fethiyespor. Letoon Hospital sign up as a new season sponsor for Fethiyespor Letoon Hospital signed as a new season health sponsor again on Wednesday. Mustafa Ferizcan, Chairman of Fethiyespor, signed a contract with Hasan Aydemir, Chairman of Letoon Hospital, to sponsor health and advertising. Ferizcan thanked Aydemir and the Letoon Hospital for being one of Fethiiyespors greatest supporters. Turkish Money Turkish Lira (TL) exchange rates: The British Pound bought 6.28 TL by the close of business on Friday. The week before it was selling for 6.40 TL. The US Dollar bought 4.79 TL by the close of business on Friday. The week before it was selling for 4.83 TL. The Euro bought 5.62 TL by the close of business on Friday. The week before it was selling for 5.65 TL. Source: FxexchangeRate.com Weather Forecast Heres your weather forecast for the week ahead. Category Select Category Apparel/Garments Textiles Fashion Technical Textiles Information Technology E-commerce Retail Corporate Association Press Release SubCategory Select Sub-Category When an average Americans social-media posts dont go viral, its often understood the problem is with the content. But when that happens to a conservative pundit, its a left-wing conspiracy, at least according to a growing number of Republicans in the House. Several vocal lawmakers on the powerful House Judiciary Committee are threatening to clamp down on Silicon Valley unless companies like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube can prove theyre treating conservativeeven the alt-right trollscontent the same as they treat liberal, progressive, and mainstream material. While traditional GOP orthodoxy rejects regulation out of hand, not to mention that this Congress has been the most anti-regulation in recent memory, these lawmakers are flipping that script on its head when it comes to what they see as an assault on conservative talking heads. As a result, they are already dangling a number of sharp proposals over the necks of these social-media behemoths that are intended to make them fall in line with the GOP worldview, including one that would end, or even tweak, special protections Congress gave to websites who host outside contenta move that would open the companies up to litigation. One of the versions would be to require that they publish the algorithms. Another one would be to go back to that section in the code that gives them that protection [and] tweak that so that they become publicly liable and then let the lawyers fix it, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) told The Daily Beast. I dont like that solution either, but it seems to be the one this Congress is more likely to accept. King argues these big tech firms are, like his Democratic colleaguesand unlike himself, of courseblinded by their ideologies. When I talk to leftists, they really just, some of them just do not have, even though theyve got a lot of cognitive ability, theyre wired so differently that they cant rationally put themselves in the mind-set of a conservative, King lectured just off the House floor. So, therefore, their reasoning ability just doesnt have the circuits to make an objective judgement. Conservatives like King point to what they say was unfair censoring of Trump fanatics Diamond and Silk, when Google algorithms linked the California GOP to Nazis and the likes of Gateway Pundit. That site regularly peddles conspiracy theories as news, like when it accused Parkland, Florida, shooting survivors of being paid actors, or even Pizzagate, which lead to a family-friendly restaurant in Washington, D.C. being shot up by a deranged conservative. Even so, King wants Gateway Pundit to be treated the same by Silicon Valley algorithms as the nations traditional publications. Theyre a conservative organization, and they break news. Theres a number of times theyve had the first story out there, King said, defending the shoddy record of the controversial alt-right publication. StockViews, a London, UK-based equity research company, completed a round of funding of undisclosed amount. The round was led by Fuel Ventures. The company intends to use the funds to accelerate its investment in AI technology, also opening an engineering office in Hyderabad, India, which will be dedicated to AI, and expand the analyst team. Led by Tom Beevers, CEO, and Sandeep Bathina, COO, StockViews produces conclusion based equity research that results in actionable investment ideas for Asset Managers. It uses technology to facilitate interaction with analysts and enhance the value of the research to Asset Managers. The research is rated by its clients and the performance generated is measured against benchmarks. Every research note is evaluated through a scorecard that measures 16 data points across 4 categories (depth of research, scope of research, explanation of thesis and value to investors). Supporting financial models are constructed according to a consistent framework based on McKinsey valuation methodology. StockViews is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Reference number: 763770). FinSMEs 23/07/2018 Volta Charging, a San Francisco, CA based mobility infrastructure company, closed a $35m Series C funding round. The round, which brought total raised to more than US $60M since founding in 2010, was led by the Invenergy Future Fund, with participation from Activate Capital, GE Ventures, Orsted Venture, Nautilus Venture Partners, Idinvest, Virgo Investment Group and Autotech Ventures. The company intends to use the funds to accelerate the rapid expansion of its network, product development and talent acquisition. Led by Scott Mercer, CEO, Volta Charging operates an Electric Vehicle (EV) charging and media network. By installing chargers in high-traffic locations in top media markets and partnering with advertisers to sponsor the service, Volta EV chargers are available to both drivers and real estate hosts without cost. With over 1,000 faces available for sponsorship opportunities today, the company plans to double its network footprint by the end of 2018 by adding more stations and opening new markets. Volta also works closely with municipalities and industry groups with a stated commitment to emissions reduction. It currently operates citywide EV charging networks in more than 50 municipalities. By years end, the company anticipates that its network will operate nationwide in nearly all of the top 10 media markets, in addition to its initial launch market, Hawaii. Volta also has offices in New York City. FinSMEs 23/07/2018 . Moderna COVID-19 6 11 . , ... In the face of a trade war that intensified just four days ago, Pence is quietly setting up one-on-one meetings with major Midwestern donors where he is prepared to blunt concerns over an escalating situation thats beginning to wreak havoc on markets, farmers and employers across the region. The cost and impact is being felt by farmers for several weeks now. Its real. Its a fact. Its happening, said Kirk Leeds, Iowa Soybean Association CEO. Even if we find a way, between China and the United States, to find a political face-saving compromise, its the long-term consequences of the disruption in these trade patterns that we worry about. The timing of the visits, paired with the donor meetings, is the first sign of an administration effort to manage political blowback from a trade war the president started a confrontation that could prove costly to the GOPs efforts to hold its majorities in the House and the Senate. Since the announcement of the tariffs: weve lost 20 percent of our income in soybeans, thats nationally, said Bret Davis, an Ohio farmer who also serves as a director of the American Soybean Association. Davis fears the repercussions of a long-term trade impasse. We spent 35 years now working on this, trying to get trade with China to this point Its going to take years now to get this back. As industry leaders warn of the long-term impact of Trumps stance on trade, the president showed signs of digging in, announcing yet another round of tariffs on Tuesday. After a Kansas City fundraiser for Kansas Rep. Kevin Yoder on Wednesday, Pence will appear with House Freedom Caucus member Rep. Rod Blum in northeastern Iowa, where pork producers and soybean farmers are seeing profits plummet. The trade issue, already making headlines in the governors race, is proving to be a key wedge issue for Blums Democratic opponent, whos questioning why Pence didnt schedule face time with the agricultural sector. We are projecting to lose $1 billion here, just on pork and soybeans alone, said state Rep. Abby Finkenauer. Iowa is very different than the rest of the country. If our ag economy and our farming economy are not doing well, neither is our manufacturing. We make combines and plows here. It affects us all across the board. Finkenauer said Republicans call for patience was insulting. Im sorry, what about the families that are waking up every single day, worried about their futures, worried about what their incomes are gonna look like? she said. Our farmers cannot afford more time. To have Republican leadership say that is insulting to the families here in Iowa. An officer with the Fort Myers Police Department was shot and wounded at approximately 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 21, on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard near Flint Drive. According to a FMPD issued at 12:30 a.m., the officer was transported to Lee Memorial Hospital and underwent surgery. Information about the officers condition is unavailable. After the shooting, FMPD and Lee County Sheriffs Deputies closed all traffic on Martin Luther King from Veronica Shoemaker Boulevard east to Michigan Avenue. Earlier this morning, the road was reopened to traffic. Lee County Sheriffs Office personnel are assisting the Fort Myers Police Department in the investigation. A suspect is in custody at this time. The Ford GT is a tough sell. That is, its tough to resell. Buyers of the $450,000 supercar, who are handpicked by the automaker based on factors that include prior Ford ownership and social media standing, are required to sign a contract that says they wont try to flip their vehicle during the first two years of ownership. Ford says its a way to make sure the limited edition cars just 1,000 are set to be built through 2020 go to true fans rather than speculators only interested in turning a profit. But that hasnt stopped a couple of approved owners from trying to unload them early anyway. Ford sued entertainer John Cena last fall when he sold his GT to a California car dealer just a few weeks after it was delivered to him. Cena said at the time that financial issues were behind the move, and it wasnt until this June that Ford settled the suit with him out of court, and a separate one with the dealership that bought the car from him. The terms of the agreements were not disclosed, but Ford said the money recovered would be donated to charity. I love the Ford GT and apologize to Ford, and encourage others who own the car to respect the contract, Cena said in a statement published by Jalopnik. Cenas etreaty came too late to convince another GT owner, however, whose car crossed the block at the Mecum Auctions event in Indianapolis this May under curious circumstances, and was sold there for $1,815,000, including auction fees. Questions were raised when the silver coupe with just 7 miles on its odometer was added to the docket days before the event, and were only cryptically answered by auction house founder Dana Mecum when he took the stage to introduce it. We had a little issue in the courthouse about this and the judge did rule in Mecums favor that we could sell this car, Mecum said. Its America, you can buy and sell what you want. As far as what court he was referring to, neither Ford nor Mecum would discuss the issue at the time of the sale, but Fox News has now learned the details of how it all went down. Mecum CEO Dave Magers told Fox News that the company was contacted the week of the event by the seller, who it turns out was the second owner of the car. According to papers filed in the Indiana Commercial Court in Marion County, the original purchaser, listed as John W. Miller, sold the GT to Michael J. Flynn of Florida-based Hollywood Wheels for $1,100,000 on May 11. Ford told the court that it knew of Millers intent to sell the car as early as March 2018. Flynn then consigned the car to Mecum, who on May 15 advertised on its website that it would cross the auction block on Saturday, May 19. Ford filed a motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) on May 17 that sought to remove the car from the auction, arguing in part that its sale might cause irreparable harm to the companys reputation and the integrity of the GT application process. A hearing on the matter was held on May 18. That evening, Judge Heather Welch issued an order denying the TRO, which allowed the auction to proceed. Welch wrote that "Ford will not reasonably be able to show that Mecum tortuously interfered with contract between Miller and Ford" since Miller was no longer the legal owner of the car, and that Flynn's purchase was unencumbered as he was under no obligation to search the records of Millers ownership of the 2017 Ford GT outside of the representations made by Miller. Welch added that the potential harms that Ford argued both to its reputation and the GT allocation program did not outweigh the tangible financial harm to the defendants by its cancellation, and that the company could've taken action weeks earlier when it first became aware that the car was on the market. A counter-petition by Mecum for attorneys fees was also denied. Ford is now seeking damages from Mecum and Flynn in the same court system, with the initial case management conference between Ford and Mecum scheduled for Aug 17. Neither Ford nor Flynn would comment on Welchs ruling or the pending litigation to Fox News, while John. W. Miller could not be reached. Mecum has not revealed the identity of the winning bidder, who has so far remained anonymous despite having attended the auction in person. As far as what the future holds for this car, as possibly the only GT thats been jailbroken in court, dont be surprised to see it rolling across another auction block soon. With 750 GTs spoken for so far, Ford has announced plans to allocate the final 250 later this year. Mac Miller says hes moved on after his breakup with Ariana Grande in May and hes glad she has, too. The rapper opened up about his past relationship with Beats 1 DJ Zane Lowe on Monday, revealing it was stressful at times. KIM KARDASHIAN TAKES KANYE WEST TO THE ER: REPORT Life is stressful, Miller shared. So, of course there were stressful times. Its not that unique. You know, like, I was in love with somebody. We were together for two years. The 26-year-old continued, We worked through good times, bad times, stress, and everything else. And then it came to an end and we both moved on. And its that simple, you know. Since their breakup, Grande has made headlines for her relationship with 24-year-old Saturday Night Live comedian Pete Davidson. In May, Davidson reportedly said he was no longer with girlfriend Cazzie David, daughter of "Seinfeld" co-creator Larry David. Later that month, reports said Davidson and Grande were seeing one another. News broke in June that the couple got engaged less than a month after their relationship went public. Miller admitted his split with Grande was pretty unusual. GAME OF THRONES STAR MAISIE WILLIAMS TEASES TATTOO LINKED TO HIT HBO SHOW Its strange, he confided to Lowe, later adding "the whole thing is a little strange but its not negative. Its just a part of something thats going to continue to help make me who I am," Miller shared. "You know, its all positive energy. I am happy for her and moving forward with her life just as Im sure she is with me. Fox News' Jennifer Earl contributed to this report. Former "Dukes of Hazzard" star Tom Wopat has pleaded guilty to inappropriately touching two women from the cast of a musical in which he starred. Prosecutors say the 66-year-old was sentenced Friday to a year of probation after pleading guilty to two counts of annoying and accosting a person of the opposite sex. The New York City resident was charged last August with touching two female cast members while rehearsing for "42nd Street" at Waltham's Reagle Music Theatre, in Massachusetts. He also received a continuance without a finding for one year after admitting to sufficient facts on the charge of cocaine possession. The drugs were found on his person during his arrest. Wopat played Luke Duke on the popular 1980s television show. His co-star John Schneider, who played his cousin Bo Duke on "Dukes of Hazzard," has been dealing with legal issues of his own. Schneider served five hours out of his three-day jail sentence for unpaid alimony in June. The 58-year-old actor recently revealed that he is "leveraged to the max when it comes to money admitting to being bogged down by loans and said that he would "unlikely" be able to comply with the court's conditions to pay his wife the amount of money she is owed. So, instead, the actor asked the court to let him serve his full sentence. I am willing and able to accept the punishment for my actions/inactions as to this matter and I request this court to impose such sentence without further delay, he wrote in a July letter obtained by People Magazine. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Meghan Markles half-sister Samantha Grant doesnt mind cashing in on her famous siblings latest role as Britains Duchess of Sussex. The 53-year-old appeared on Good Morning Britain Monday to discuss the former Suits stars allegedly strained relationship with their father, former Hollywood lighting director Thomas Markle. Grant admitted to using the media to make money. Ive worked in media most of my life and in broadcasting, Grant claimed. So because my sister is suddenly royal isnt grounds for me to stop doing all of that. Lets face it, we all have to survive. Money makes the world go round, so if you want to call that cashing in, thats fine. "But I think no one in media would refuse a paycheck for talking about the royals and as a family were not subject to royal protocol, certainly here in America. If you want to call it cashing in, I think thats a little bit ridiculous. Grant added, For someone to say, Oh you shouldnt take any money, you should turn down a paycheck, go tell your boss you dont want a paycheck for interviewing me because thats cashing in. Grant also revealed that just because Markle is now a member of the royal family, it doesnt mean she should stop living. Why would I stop living because we have a family issue going on?" said Grant. "Back to the issue of cashing in, the media makes billions of dollars off social issues and talking about the royals. I dont see how were any different. No one has a copyright on our life experiences. Were each individuals with our own life experience. With all due respect, its not just Meg, were entitled to share that, were entitled to be open about it, if we can shed some light on some issues for the public, then great. We can enjoy the process. I dont think theres anything wrong with that. Its not disparaging, its not harmful. Grants appearance on the U.K. morning show comes after she lashed out at her royal sibling on July 18 via Twitter for her cold behavior toward their father. Grant said she regretted on her explosive rant to a degree. "Life is very short," she argued. I felt as though if something were to happen to him, and he passed away, I dont think any of us could live with the fact that he died unhappy and there was no closure. I believe in her heart that she would want that also. Naturally, as you can imagine, he is 74 years old and we all know is that life is short, she continued. So given the circumstances over the last several months since the wedding, I think he really just wants to embrace her, and have some closure on the distance and really let her know that he loves her. He sincerely had a heart attack and I was very shocked that the world would mock that or make fun of it. He really had a difficult time. Despite her seemingly troubled relationship with Markle, Grant may be busy these days getting ready for her close-up. Grant has reportedly scored herself a spot on the British version of Celebrity Big Brother in what the Viacom-owned network Channel 5 is billing as The Eye of The Storm. The report comes just two months after Markle tied the knot with Prince Harry in May. Prior to the wedding, Grant allegedly staged paparazzi photos for their father and made off-the-cuff remarks to Piers Morgan suggesting that Harry would be better off marrying someone else. Grant would reportedly collect a six-figure pay from the reality TV series. When pressed if she would be appearing on the popular show, Grant responded, Well, I would tell you, but then I would have to kill you so I dont want to find myself in locks and stocks quite frankly. It wouldnt be becoming. The British season of Celebrity Big Brother is slated to begin filming this August. Reps for the show did not immediately respond to Fox News request for comment. In 2017, Grant stirred headlines when Vanity Fair reported she was writing a memoir titled The Diary of Princess Pushys Sister. Grant confirmed the manuscript to Fox News in January. My relationship with my sister for a while was really hurt because of the perceptions out there, she said at the time. And I have to say, my books not what all of these people are saying it is Just because it has the world pushy doesnt mean its a slamming tell-all I was making fun of the tabloids. And I think she believed that I was slamming her and writing a nasty tell-all My sister is not pushy. I was making fun of the media and the tabloids in choosing that title. My goal is really to show how lovely and amazing she is. I look forward to the both of us hopefully laughing over this. A source previously told People magazine Markle has had no contact with her older sister for more than a decade a claim Grant adamantly denied. Grant said she and her family are new to the spotlight and it can be difficult to cope with the worldwide interest in their personal lives. As much as I love and respect Meg, shes got security and a publicist and can be protected from all that, said Grant. She and Harry can tell the media to stop. The rest of the family doesnt have that luxury. I love her, [but] she may not want me saying anything. I refuse to be a victim of the media. Im not going to let them disparage me, embarrass me personally and professionally and not defend myself I can only hope she would respect and understand that In fact, if I were Meg, I would probably put something out there so that there was some sort of protective mechanism in place where the family couldnt be tortured as much. Fox News' Julius Young contributed to this report. The New York Daily News whose over-the-top anti-Trump coverage could not stem years of red ink laid off half of its newsroom staff on Monday despite calls from Gov. Andrew Cuomo for the tabloid to reconsider. Employees received an email on Monday explaining that the Tronc-owned paper is fundamentally restructuring to focus on its digital audience. We are reducing today the size of the editorial team by approximately 50 percent and re-focusing much of our talent on breaking news." New York Daily News We are reducing today the size of the editorial team by approximately 50 percent and re-focusing much of our talent on breaking news especially in areas of crime, civil justice and public responsibility, the memo, which was obtained by Fox News, stated. I know this is difficult news to hear and want to assure you we are working hard to treat each employee with respect and to make the transition as smooth as possible, the memo stated. The tabloids human resources department promised to reach out to all affected employees by the end of the day on Monday and layoffs are effective immediately, but exiting staffers will be paid for the next 90 days. The decisions being announced today reflect the realities of our business and the need to adapt an ever-changing media environment, the memo continued. They are not a reflection on the significant talent that is leaving today. The papers now-former editor in chief Jim Rich and managing editor Kristen Lee were among the cuts, with Robert York taking over as the tabloids top editor. Rich returned to the role earlier this year after first splitting with the paper in 2016. He has now removed all mention of the Daily News from his Twitter bio, replacing it with Just a guy sitting at home watching journalism being choked into extinction. If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you, Rich tweeted. The Daily News has become known for its outlandish, anti-Trump cover images. The paper recently featured an illustration depicting Trump as a Supreme Court justice with the headline, "We Are F*#%d. The paper has also depicted Trump as numerous variations of a clown, a racist, nuts, the anti-Christ and even the poop emoji. The tabloid called Trump voters mindless zombies and categorized Trump a Dead Clown Walking when he failed to win the Iowa caucus in 2016. The Daily News was criticized for referring to Ivanka Trump as Daddys Little Ghoul, mocking the first daughter. Political commentator Britt McHenry told Fox News that the cover was reprehensible and lacked any sort of decency. Politico reported in 2017 that some members of management felt the anti-Trump direction of the paper was having a negative impact on the papers bottom line by costing the News subscriptions in places like Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island. Tronc acquired the paper from Mort Zuckerman in 2017 for only $1, assuming liabilities and debt in the process. The paper had been losing money for years, as part of a trend faced by print newspapers competing for advertising dollars with digital behemoths like Facebook and Google. Cuomo tweeted a statement urging parent-company Tronc to reconsider this drastic move, because it will devastate many households and hurt an important New York institution and one of our nations journalism giants. Tronc declined comment when reached by Fox News. Former MTV VJ Jesse Camp has gone missing. A spokesman for the Riverside Police Department in California confirmed to Page Six on Monday that Camp, whose real name is Josiah Camp, was reported missing on July 19 by his sister. Friends and family have been sharing concerned messages on social media, asking anyone for information on his whereabouts. Camp, 38, rose to fame in 1998 when he became an MTV VJ after winning the networks first Wanna Be a VJ contest. He had previously been homeless. In recent times, Camp had been keeping in touch with his elderly mother via weekly phone calls, but according to police, he hasnt contacted her since July 11 or 12. An ex-girlfriend of Camps also tried reaching out to him but told cops a stranger picked up his cell phone and said that Camp had given him the phone and three bags of property. The police spokesman also told Page Six that Camps sister said he had been depressed lately but didnt indicate if he was suicidal. The former TRL personality was last seen in Riverside. He has not been located in any local hospitals or jails. Should any suspicion be found, Camps case will be transferred to the robbery-homicide unit. In 2016, Page Six ran into Camp outside The Posts New York offices, where he chatted with us about celebrities and gossip and even jokingly tried his hand at being a Page Six reporter. At the time, MTV told us that Camp was doing some work on a TRL throwback segment for MTVs SnapChat Discover channel in the US. This article originally appeared on Page Six. In the last post , we looked at how Republican chances to hold onto Congress continue to collapse, largely because of who leads their party. That post was about his failures in regard to Russia. But the trade war he's provoked might be much worse for the GOP.reporter Megan Cassella pointed out the bad timing of his trade policies and how they will be impacting consumers as they head to the polls. "Market analysts, industry experts and economists warn," she wrote, "the economic fallout of the presidents tariffs could peak around election time." A few weeks ago we focussed in on how Trump is inadvertently helping Democrat Phil Bredensen win the open Tennessee Senate seat and how his trade war could change Iowa's House make up from 3 Republicans and one Democrat to 4 Democrats Cassella posits that "Trump's trade wars could become a major political drag for Republicans, with job losses and price increases piling up just as voters head to the polls in November. Trump jolted markets once again early Friday when he said hes prepared to impose penalties on some $500 billion in Chinese goods regardless of the consequences that might ensue, economic or political." [M]arket analysts, industry experts and economists warn that the economic fallout of the presidents tariffs-- those that are already in effect and those hes threatening to impose-- is only going to intensify over the coming months and could reach a peak around election time. Were already hearing complaints now from companies, so by the time we get to the midterms, youre going to be hearing governors, mayors, Congress complaining about jobs, about cost increases, about problems, Carlos Gutierrez, the former Commerce secretary under President George W. Bush, told POLITICO. The question is: Will that be strong enough to offset the idea that we have to get tough on our trading partners, and that our jobs are being stolen overseas? It takes months for most consumers to feel the impact of tariffs, but as the fall approaches, everything from groceries to appliances could start to cost more at major retailers across the country. Democrats could use these price increases as a political cudgel against Republicans in swing districts as they try to take back control of Congress. Trump has so far suffered little political blowback for his tariffs and trade threats, saying that he is simply following through on promises he made during the campaign to crack down on trading partners, even close allies, and put America first. Since March, he has imposed blanket tariffs on nearly all imports of steel and aluminum and placed penalties on $34 billion in goods from China, a total likely to increase to $50 billion next month and into the hundreds of billions later this year. In return, countries have retaliated with tit-for-tat duties on everything from U.S. agricultural goods to Kentucky bourbon and Harley-Davidson motorcycles, aiming to sway top Republican lawmakers by hurting constituents in their districts. But Trump and his party could soon begin to face consequences as companies in the coming months start reporting lower earnings, reassessing their supply chains and holding back on investment, all of which will begin to ripple throughout the economy and could lead to a slowdown or full-blown recession, experts say. If all of the tariffs that have been proposed take effect, they would bring down long-run U.S. GDP by 0.47 percent-- about $118 billion-- in the long term and cost more than 364,000 jobs, a new analysis from the Tax Foundation shows. The International Monetary Fund also warned this week that trade tensions could cut global output by some $400 billion by 2020, and that the U.S. is "especially vulnerable" to effects of an international slowdown. Price increases would vary by product, ranging anywhere from a few cents on a can of beer or soup to around $6,000 on a family car, if the administration moves forward with auto-specific tariffs it has threatened. Even if Trump doesn't move forward with any additional duties, the uncertainty caused by his policies and rhetoric is leading some companies to begin pulling back investments in research and development. They're afraid that if they develop products for foreign markets, those markets might no longer be accessible to them in six months or a year. The agricultural industry has been particularly vulnerable: Countries like Mexico have begun to diversify their import markets by buying more corn and soybeans from Brazil instead of the United States, in an attempt to reduce their dependence on a country that could erect new trade barriers at any time based on the presidents whims. Robert De Niro could soon share the silver screen with Joaquin Phoenix. The actor is in discussions to appear in an upcoming origin movie about the Joker, according to the Hollywood Reporter. If De Niro strikes a deal, the 74-year-old actor would reportedly work alongside Phoenix, 43, who is set to play the title role of the DC Comics villain. HOME ALONE FAN THEORY CLAIMS KEVIN MCALLISTERS DAD IS A CRIMINAL FOR THE MOB De Niro would [then] play a talk show host who is somehow instrumental in the Jokers origin, the magazine reported Monday. The film will take place in the '80s and will not follow in the steps of a traditional comic-book movie, but instead appear more like a gritty crime drama, according to Variety. Filming will reportedly start in September. JENNIFER CONNELLY TO STAR ALONGSIDE TOM CRUISE IN TOP GUN SEQUEL: REPORT Earlier this month, Phoenix admitted his role in the film, which is being directed by Todd Philips of The Hangover series, scares him. I take a lot of time and consideration when making decisions and what Im gonna work on always, Phoenix told Collider. "I think [Phillips] is very impressive and he seems to have a very interesting understanding of this world and what hes trying to say... It feels unique, it is its own world in some ways and maybe, mostly, it scares the f-----g s--t out of me or something. It might as well be the thing that scares you the most. Phoenix assured the website that Phillips movie will be something different. I wouldnt quite classify this as any genre, he said. I wouldnt say its a superhero movie, or a studio movie orIt feels unique. Fox News' Mariah Haas and Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report. Rose McGowan slammed President Trump on Saturday by sarcastically thanking him for "educating" people on sexism and racism. Debuting a bleached buzz cut, McGowan told the audience at OZY Fest that Trump is just too dumb to keep his thoughts to himself and said the president's alleged racist and sexist behavior is helpful to people. As horrified as so many of us are at living in these scary times, the reality is that all the stuff [Trump] has been doing has been going on for a long time. Hes just too dumb and says it out loud, McGowan told the audience at New York Citys Central Park. In a weird way, hes telling the truth. Hes educating, she added. Its scary as f---, but I think it was the good guys on the left who needed to see it for what it was. The lesson is, we need to honor what people are saying because weve been saying it for so long. Listen to us and hear us, goddammit! McGowan wasnt the only person to call out the president during the two-day music and culture event. Hillary Clinton took the stage earlier in the festival to lambast Trump on his administrations controversial immigration policies and his performance at the Helsinki summit last week with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Why didnt he stand up for our country? Clinton asked the audience about the summit. In this case it doesnt seem like our president cares. Hes trying to be friends with Putin for reasons we are all trying to figure out. On Saturday, McGowan also spoke about going after disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and why she directly named her alleged abuser. I dont think theres any way to out a rapist. These are criminals. These are people that steal other people, theyre super-predators. But the problem is the complicity machine. I would never judge someone for not naming their rapist, she said. An Ohio bar is facing backlash after displaying a sign with a handwritten message that many have deemed offensive. A photo of the sign, hanging on a wall at Broneys Alumni Grill in Athens, went viral after an upset customer shared it on social media. DELTA PASSENGER CLAIMS MAN SEXUALLY ASSAULTED HER ON FLIGHT BUT WASN'T DETAINED: 'I WAS LEFT DEVASTATED' Lia Knox posted a picture of the sign on Facebook Friday, which reads: If youre looking for a safe space this aint it Cupcake. The handwritten message was displayed on a large chalkboard branded with the logo of Rhinegeist, a Cincinnati-based brewery and vendor of the bar. And on Saturday, Rhinegeist announced it would no longer be doing business with Broneys over the ignorant, disrespectful message. At Rhinegeist, we are committed to our people and our community. Today, we were made aware of an offensive message written on a Rhinegeist-branded chalkboard at Broneys Alumni Grill in Athens, Ohio. The content of the message was ignorant, disrespectful, and wholly inconsistent with our values as a company. As a result, we have ended our relationship with this establishment and will not do business with them in the future, the brewery wrote on Facebook. We look forward to continuing to champion inclusion, respect, love, and equality. Thank you and have a great weekend. Critics of the sign noted that the bar is located near the Ohio University campus, which many claim has a high rate of sexual assault. Telling people they arent safe IS inappropriate! I work as a bartender in this town and would NEVER use making people unsafe as a way to get business, one person wrote. I go to OU. We constantly are getting emails that people are getting sexually assaulted in our town. This is NOT okay in the environment of a college town. You people arguing saying everyone is too sensitive seriously probably know nothing about OU's culture, living in a college town or Broney's at all, someone else commented. However, others defended the signs message, saying people were too easily offended. I can't believe you are all arguing and offended over this sign, someone wrote. Go drink beer, eat some food and go home. If you can't do that and not be offended by words then stay home in your safe place and to not create more panic for the public, another person commented. The owner of Broneys issued an apology on the bars Facebook page Saturday, saying the message did not reflect their beliefs and that the sign had been taken down. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS As the owner I cannot apologize enough for the offensive sign that was written on the chalkboard Friday night. It does not reflect my personal feelings or the image I want my establishment to reflect. As soon as I found out about the sign it was taken down immediately and I am in the process of determining who wrote it and put it up. Again, I apologize to all that were offended and will work to make certain an incident as offensive as this never occurs again, the statement read. Its unclear whether the person who wrote the message will face any disciplinary action. Fox 19 contacted the bar on Sunday night but was told the employees couldnt comment on the matter. Most of us still enjoy marveling at and using classic lures. But, modern designs, materials and raw creativity have resulted in some impressive new creations that get fish to bite. Each year, we see unique twists and tweaks to some tried-and-true standards, as well as the occasional eye-catching innovation. This year, the tackle companies at ICAST brought some of both. LIVETARGET Hollow Body Craw Crawfish imitators regularly adorn the backsides of jigs and Texas rigs, but LIVETARGETS innovative approach creates an all-in-one package with several nice details. For starters, the three-dimensional body design including pincers is very realistic, while the orientation of the weighted tail section ensures the bait moves in the authentic backward-scooting motion of a fleeing crawdad. The baits silicone skirt mimics a crawfishs legs and antennae, and its hollow body accepts rattles and add-on scent. Its available in three sizes: 1.5-inch, 0.5-ounce; 1.75-inch, 0.625-ounce; and 2-inch, 0.75-ounce. Eight bio-realistic color schemes allow anglers to match the craws regional and molting variations. Cost: $9.99-$11.49 (includes one fully assembled body and one spare pincer) RELATED: THE BEST NEW REELS FOR 2019 Jackall Chop Cut This baits asymmetrical prop design ensures proper rotation and creates different sounds depending on the retrieve speed. A front wire with an attached swivel allows you to cast freely without having to worry about your fishing line tangling with the prop. Another nice aspect is the swiveling feathered front hook, which helps prevent bass from spitting the lure. The hooks also have a special coating that facilitates easier penetration for efficient hook sets. The 3.25-inch ChopCut topwater weighs 0.8-ounce and comes in six colors. Cost: $22.99 Terminator Shudder Bait Terminators new Shudder Bait pushes more water. Resembling a bladed jig, this creation replaces the usual flat metal blade with a cupped plastic swimming lip that catches and displaces water ahead of it. The result is a unique side-to-side shimmy with loads of bite-triggering vibrations that are particularly important in mud-stained water. The 0.625- and 0.5-ounce sizes make this bait heavy enough for targeted underhand casts, as well as open water chunking and winding. The jig head comes in five colors, is pre-rigged with one of nine lifelike interchangeable silicone skirts, and can be paired with one of six blade colors. Cost: $7.99 HOW TO CATCH BIG FISH AT NIGHT Strike King KVD 1.5D Bassmaster Elite pro Kevin VanDams signature Strike King KVD 1.5 square-bill crankbait has become one of the most popular tools for bumping around shallow cover since he won the 2011 Bassmaster Classic on the Louisiana Delta with it. Now, after several years of R&D, Strike King introduced the KVD 1.5 Deep, a bait that extends the same hunting action of the shallower version down to 10 feet deep. It comes in 25 of VanDams selected color patterns. Cost: $7.49 THE 50 BEST NEW FISHING SPOTS IN AMERICA For 11 more of the best lures available, continue reading the original article at Field & Stream. Tens of thousands of sardines were caught on camera jumping onto a fishermans boat in Taiwan to escape several larger fish last Friday. Fisherman Lu Jingwai described the incredible scene to Daily Mail, saying the thousands of jumping fish looked like the sea was boiling water. 500-POUND GOLIATH GROUPER EATS SHARK AS SHOCKED FLORIDA FISHERMEN WATCH More than 10,000 of the small fish were recorded flopping out of the water and some of them managed to hop into the boat at Bisha fishing port in Keelung, Taipei City, Daily Mail reported. Jingwai told the publication he thinks the fish were escaping barracudas. I've seen three to five barracudas over 3.3 ft long swimming under my boat two days ago. I guess it is their hunting season these few days, said Jingwai to Daily Mail. According to SETN.com, barracudas have been sighted near the fishing port where Jingwai was. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS Some who viewed Jingwais video on Facebook felt the fisherman was lucky the bigger fish were there. Nick Chang commented, The best time to catch (sardines) is when they are being chased by big fish. A 9-year-old quadruple amputee the son of a Hasidic student who survived a bullet to the brain in the fatal 1994 Brooklyn Bridge shooting has learned to run for the very first time thanks to a pair of brand new prosthetics. A broad smile plastered to his face, Moshe Sasokin joyfully bounds through the halls of Prosthetics in Motion, which fitted him with custom-made running blades, in video taken last month. Moshe was just 6 months old when he was diagnosed with a severe case of meningitis leading doctors to amputate below his elbow and knee in order to save his life. In 2015, he first learned how to walk at age 6 after being fitted with his first pair of prosthetic legs. But the staff at PIM, which is headquartered in Midtown, knew he was destined for bigger things. Moshe had never been fitted with running prosthetics before, but he adjusted to the feeling of them very quickly, PIMs Emily Grey told Caters News. When he first saw the prosthetics he was hesitant. But it didnt take the fearless youth long to figure out how to use his new blades. We taught him how to trust his prosthetics and get used to the energy they return then he was off, Grey said. In the video, the adorable bespectacled boy gleefully races staffers in the office sprinting so fast that at one point his yarmulke flies off behind him. It was certainly a special moment for Moshe, his family and all of the staff at Prosthetics in Motion, Grey SAID. He loved them so much he took them to camp where he showed all of his friends how fast he can now run. Moshes father, Nachum Sasokin, was riding in a van with his yeshiva classmates on the Brooklyn Bridge when a Lebanese immigrant shot into the vehicle, killing Ari Halberstam and wounding several others. The gunman, Rashid Baz, said he targeted the van because the group was Jewish. Nachum, then 28, miraculously survived being shot in the head and became a rabbi 10 years later. This article originally appeared on the New York Post. A 25-year-old woman who suffered traumatic injuries following a horrific skydiving incident in Switzerland says shes ready to go back to the exact place" she had her accident. Emma Carey, from Queensland, Australia, revealed on Instagram that shes already purchased an airplane ticket for a second chance at a European vacation, just five years after a failed skydive in 2013 left her unable to walk. GIRL, 4, RECOVERING AFTER BEING MAULED BY DOG Carey, then 20, had organized the tandem skydive with a professional during a three-month European excursion. When it was time to pull the cord to deploy the parachute, the professional reportedly waited a little too long and the parachute deployed at the same time as the emergency chute, causing both to become entangled, News.com.au previously reported. The chutes got wrapped around the instructors neck, causing him to pass out while he and Carey hurtled toward the ground. Carey slammed into the earth stomach-first the instructor landing on her back, still unconscious and broke her jaw, pelvis, back and spine. Doctors told her she would never walk again. But Carey eventually defied the odds and, after spending four months in the hospital, began to take her first steps. Upon returning home, she continued her recovery, despite finding that some of her friends had moved on and abandoned her, and she could no longer work. I couldnt work anymore, my relationship was gone, my family was completely different and it genuinely felt like my identity was taken from me. The life I came home to resembled absolutely nothing of the life I left, she explained on Instagram over the weekend. POLICE SAY WOMAN SAVED 6 LIVES WITH HEARTFELT MESSAGES POSTED TO BRIDGE But now, after regaining the use of her legs, Carey is ready to travel back to the site of the life-changing incident, for better or for worse. [I] havent been back since, so I have no idea how its going to make me feel, she wrote, explaining that its something she feels she needs to do. The thought of going back to Europe makes me feel sick. Its like everything in my body is screaming at me to not go back there, to the place where it got so hurt. But everything else is me is begging me to go, to create new memories, to stop thinking about it so much and to finally enjoy a European summer for what it should have always been fun, she wrote. Carey still suffers lasting effects from the accident, including bladder and bowel incontinence, a condition caused by her broken spinal cord. I think because I can walk, people tend to think I have completely recovered from my spinal cord injury but the truth is I still have many lasting effects, one of them being that I am completely incontinent with both my bladder and bowels, she explained in an Instagram post. NEW JERSEY DAD INFECTED WITH FLESH-EATING BACTERIA TO LOSE FINGERS, TOES Carey added that she was at first embarrassed by the condition, but eventually decided that she would not let it change her plans, and now tells people about it within 10 minutes of meeting them. She even shared a picture of herself, after urinating on herself, with her followers this May. Carey has not revealed the exact date of her Switzerland visit, but assured followers that, while traveling doesnt come easy for her anymore, she was 100 percent excited for the next step in her journey, New memories here I come, she concluded her post. A LOreal-owned Korean beauty company, Stylenada, has been accused of painting a light skinned models hand black in an advertisement for their nail polish. BURBERRY REPORTEDLY BURNED $37 MILLION WORTH OF LUXURY GOODS In the ad for the Layering Nail Lacquer, a white hand and a black hand are intertwined each sporting the same soft orange polish. However, Twitter users quickly spotted the unusual coloring of the black hand and claimed Stylenada had Photoshopped it to appear darker. MOMS SLAM TARGET, WALMART FOR HOOKER STYLE SHORTS FOR TWEENS Many others on Twitter also called out the company for allegedly altering the photo instead of just hiring a black model. Though neither Stylenada nor LOreal have admitted that the model used was Photoshopped, Stylenada did apologize on Twitter for the advertisement and has removed it from their website. LOreal did not immediately respond to Fox News request for comment. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! Premiums for health insurance plans on ObamaCare's exchanges will rise an average of 15 percent next year, according to a new report from the Congressional Budget Office. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has blamed President Trump and congressional Republicans for the rate hikes and for "deliberately sabotaging our health care system." Schumer is half right ObamaCare's insurance markets have indeed been sabotaged. But Schumer and his fellow Democrats are the saboteurs. They're the ones who wove ObamaCare's incoherent web of mandates, which are the real reason insurance premiums are soaring. Progressives argue that two changes implemented by Republicans have led to the premium hikes: the elimination of ObamaCare's cost-sharing reduction subsidies and the repeal of the individual mandate. The cost-sharing reduction subsidies were designed to reimburse insurance companies for losses they incur because of a provision within ObamaCare that requires them to reduce out-of-pocket costs for low-income enrollees. Congress never actually appropriated money for the payments. But the Obama administration made them anyway, even after a federal judge found them unconstitutional. If Democrats are really interested in finding out who sabotaged the insurance market, they'll have to take a look in the mirror. President Trump stopped the cost-sharing reduction payments last fall. If they'd continued this year, insurers would have received another $10 billion in taxpayer money. ObamaCare's proponents assert that insurers are hiking premiums to make up for that lost revenue. The individual mandate, meanwhile, was repealed as part of the tax reform law enacted in December. The measure reduced the "tax" for going without insurance to zero, rendering the mandate moot. ObamaCare's defenders worry that repeal of the mandate will result in an exodus of healthy customers from the exchanges. Starting next year, people will face no penalty for purchasing low-cost coverage that doesn't comply with ObamaCare's many benefit mandates, or for going without insurance altogether. If a significant number of healthy people leave, the exchanges will be left with a sicker pool of enrollees, forcing insurers to raise premiums. It's true that these changes will put some upward pressure on premiums. But premiums began skyrocketing long before President Trump stepped into the White House. In 2014 the year ObamaCare's exchanges opened for business the least-expensive mid-level "silver" plans were roughly 50 percent more expensive, on average, than the typical individual market plan in 2013. In 2015 and 2016, average premiums for the lowest-priced silver plans jumped 5 percent and then another 7.5 percent. In the fall of 2016, several months before President Trump took the oath of office, insurers announced premium hikes for 2017 exchange plans of another 25 percent. Altogether, premiums for individual market plans have more than doubled since 2013. Several mandates at the heart of ObamaCare are why. Take the guaranteed issue and community rating mandates, which prevent insurers from denying coverage to anyone and require them to charge sick and healthy people of the same age the same price. Providing protections for people with pre-existing conditions is popular. Nobody likes the idea of being turned down for insurance coverage or being charged unaffordable premiums when they need coverage most. But the hard truth is that sick people cost more to insure than healthier people. Patients with chronic conditions, for instance, are about five times costlier to insure than those without. Instead of directly subsidizing care for the relatively small share of people with pre-existing conditions, the Obama administration herded everyone in the individual market into the same risk pool. Healthy Americans ended up having to pay artificially high premiums to subsidize coverage for their sicker peers. That caused premiums to skyrocket. A 2017 McKinsey study concluded that the guaranteed issue and community rating mandates were responsible for up to 75 percent of premium increases. It would have been far more cost-effective for the federal government to fund state-level high-risk pools, where consumers with chronic pre-existing conditions could purchase subsidized insurance. This approach would have helped sick patients secure affordable coverage without disrupting the broader insurance market for healthy people. If Democrats are really interested in finding out who sabotaged the insurance market, they'll have to take a look in the mirror. NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! In one of the more stunning revelations contained in the report compiled by the Justice Departments watchdog, former FBI Director James Comey claimed he doesnt remember the moment he decided and put down in writing -- that Hillary Clinton had committed crimes. We know that on or about May 2, 2016, Comey composed a statement summarizing Clintons mishandling of classified documents, concluding that she was grossly negligent. Those pivotal words have a distinct legal meaning, and are drawn directly from a federal statute, 18 U.S.C. 793(f), which makes it a felony to handle classified documents in a grossly negligent manner. Comey used the exact phrase not once, but twice. Based on Comeys finding, Clinton should have faced a multiple-count criminal indictment, since the FBI discovered that she had stored 110 classified emails on her unauthorized, private computer server. Other people had been prosecuted for similar conduct that jeopardized national security in violation of the law. Yet, Comey despite characterizing Clintons actions with the clear language denoting violation of the law - saw to it that no charges were ever brought against Clinton. Based on Comeys finding, Clinton should have faced a multiple-count criminal indictment, since the FBI discovered that she had stored 110 classified emails on her unauthorized, private computer server. Under questioning, Comey admitted to the Inspector General Michael Horowitz that he authored the May 2 statement and penned every word of it himself. But then he offered the implausible claim that he did not recall that his original draft used the term 'gross negligence,' and did not recall discussions about that issue. Comeys amnesia is preposterous. He would have us believe that, as FBI director, he memorialized in print his decision that the leading candidate for president of the United States had committed crimes, yet later could not recollect anything about the most important decision of his career. The truth is that Comey well remembers what he wrote, because he participated in subsequent discussions with top officials at the FBI about Clintons gross negligence. Several meetings were held on the subject and contemporaneous notes prove that Comey was in attendance. Those records show that although Comey was convinced that Clinton was grossly negligent in violation of the law, he was determined to clear her notwithstanding. To achieve this somersault and absolve the soon-to-be Democratic nominee, the legally damning terminology would have to be stricken from his statement. Just as Comey, Strzok, Page and company conspired to clear Hillary Clinton, they likewise concocted their insurance policy, a scam investigation of then-candidate Donald Trump. Metadata shows that on June 6, the FBIs lead investigator on the case, Peter Strzok, sat down at his office computer to cleanse his bosss statement of the vexing term, gross negligence. With the help of his paramour and FBI lawyer Lisa Page, the words extremely careless were substituted to make Clinton appear less criminally culpable. Page told the IG that to use a term that actually has a legal definition would be confusing. It most certainly would. After all, how could Clinton be exonerated under the gross negligence law if that very phrase was used to describe her behavior? The phrases mean the same thing, but only one appears in the statute. Strozk and Page also expunged from Comeys statement his reference to another statute that Clinton had plainly violated. She should have been charged under the statutes intent provisions. With Comeys consent and encouragement, the pair sanitized his findings of fact and contorted his conclusions of law. Clinton, who had not even been interviewed by the FBI yet, was free and clear. The investigation was a sham. Comey may not have remembered writing the words that should have indicted Clinton, but he had complete recall of his inability to read the law. He told the IG he thought Congress intended for there to be some level of willfulness present even to prove a gross negligence violation. If Comey had ever read the legislative history, he would have known that in 1948, Congress amended the original Espionage Act of 1917 to add a gross negligence provision that did not require intent or willfulness. Amnesia must be contagious at the FBI. Testifying before Congress, Strzok feigned no recollection of using his computer to make the critical alteration that cleared Clinton. He did, however, directly implicate the FBI director. Ultimately, he (Comey) made the decision to change that wording, said Strzok. But wait, how could Comey order a change in the words he doesnt remember writing? Their stories dont jibe. At least one of them is lying. Strzoks memory repression must be acute. He also informed Congress he does not recall writing the infamous text message to his lover, Page, vowing to stop Trump from being elected president. What I can tell you is that text in no way suggested that I or the FBI would take any action to influence the candidacy, Strzok insisted. That is a remarkably dexterous explanation for something he does not remember doing. When confronted with a myriad of other messages extoling Clinton and disparaging Trump, Strzok had the temerity to say, I do not have bias. Later, Those text messages are not indicative of bias. No one with an ounce of intelligence could possibly buy the self-serving rubbish that Strzok was peddling. This includes the inspector general who, after an exhaustive investigation, concluded that the Strzok-Page communications are not only indicative of a biased state of mind but imply a willingness to take official action to impact a presidential candidates electoral process. Just as Comey, Strzok, Page and company conspired to clear Hillary Clinton, they likewise concocted their insurance policy, a scam investigation of then-candidate Donald Trump. The FBI had no legal basis to initiate its investigation into Trump and his campaign. Facts were invented or exaggerated. Laws were perverted or ignored. The law enforcers became the law breakers. Comeys scheme to leak pilfered presidential memos in order to trigger the appointment of his friend, Robert Mueller, as special counsel was a devious maneuver by an unscrupulous man. Comeys insinuation that the president obstructed justice was another canard designed to inflame the liberal media. Sure enough, they became his witting accessories. Compare all of this that there was never any credible evidence that Trump or his campaign collaborated with Russia to win the presidency with the fact that there was ample evidence that Clinton had broken the law. This is the story of The Russia Hoax. Editor's note: This article is partly adapted from the author's new book "The Russia Hoax: The Illicit Scheme to Clear Hillary Clinton and Frame Donald Trump." (Broadside Books -- an imprint of HarperCollins, July 24, 2018). NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! With the Trump administration clearly struggling in its attempts to get North Korea to live up to its promises of denuclearization made at the Singapore summit last month, there seems to be little chance that the current path of negotiations will lead to anything resembling a breakthrough. What is needed now is a little imagination on the part of Team Trump, but also a deeper reading of what Pyongyang is telling the administration and the world. For there is a bargain to made that could rid the world of dictator Kim Jong Uns deadly nuclear weapons and missiles. Or, at the very least, a pathway to test Kims intentions, and find out once and for all if North Korea is serious about disarmament. The Trump administration should propose to Pyongyang a comprehensive roadmap where North Korea and the U.S. trade in a step-by-step manner concession for concession, eventually leading to the complete elimination of the regimes nuclear weapons and missile programs. This is something the Kim regime has hinted at in recent years, and, in fact, laid out to some extent in a press statement denouncing recent meetings with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Pyongyang. Such a grand bargain, at least in theory, if North Korea was truly serious about giving up its nukes, should be appealing enough that it would have no problem signing on. The sequence of events would begin on July 27, when it is rumored that Pyongyang would release the remains of U.S. soldiers killed during the Korean War, which falls on the sixty-fifth anniversary of the armistice pausing the conflict for decades. As the Kim regime has hinted, Washington and Seoul could use this opportunity to mark the formal end of this conflict, which was never truly concluded by any sort of peace treaty. The leaders of America, South and North Korea could all convene along the demilitarized zone (DMZ), and in a short but powerful ceremony, declare the conflict done. As the Korean War is surely part of the history books, no side is giving away any sort of concessions at this point, but only agreeing to admit the obvious. With some wind behind their backs for further negotiations, all sides would have a little more courage to make concessions. As a next step, with the Korean War now over, there could be discussions that lead to cuts in the overall conventional forces along the DMZ. While all sides would likely not agree to massive arms reductions, a ten-percent cut phased in over three months that would be monitored by inspectors sent from all parties involved would go a long way to build trust, showing there can be a peaceful pattern everyone can take to reduce tensions. There would need to be movement at some point on Kims nuclear weapons and missiles but moving into that area in negotiations with Pyongyang is always where talks collapse. From here on in things will get more challenging. There would need to be movement at some point on Kims nuclear weapons and missiles but moving into that area in negotiations with Pyongyang is always where talks collapse. A path must be constructed where America and South Korea ease Kim into the slow and steady dismantling of his atomic arsenal. A next step in this approach could be swapping inspections of North and South Koreas civilian nuclear programs. Both sides would get a look at how the other is harnessing nuclear power for peaceful purposes, opening the door that there can be trust around issues of even greater importance. Such an agreement could even involve exchanges of scientists from Washington, Seoul and Pyongyang, sharing vital nuclear safety information that has a clear benefit for all parties. Then comes the hardest part. If all the above was successful, the Trump administration would need to move toward the dismantling of Kims atomic and missile arsenals. The administration can craft an approach where North Korea gets slow and steady sanction relief for every nuclear warhead and missile it destroys, under full international inspections that are transparent. The first part of this process would be a full accounting of Kims total number of warheads and missiles. Once this is established, sanction relief would be tied to both programs destruction. For example, if Kim was to destroy twenty percent of his nuclear weapons and missiles in three months, twenty percent of all total sanctions would be removed. This would culminate in all sanctions being removed when all North Koreas missiles and nukes were dissembled. Every missile and nuclear weapon destroyed helps Kims economy get stronger and stronger. There would also be another incentive for Pyongyang if they agreed to such an approach: full diplomatic recognition by America with the exchange of ambassadors and embassies, something North Korea has sought for decades but only once Kim destroys all of his nuclear weapons and missiles. Would the Kim regime truly go along with any of this? Is North Korea worthy of keeping its word? We will never know if we dont try and truly and concretely test their intentions and offer them an approach that they seem predisposed to. I say President Trump needs to make Kim an offer he cant refuse. If he does, then the administration has some very hard choices to makeand quite soon. NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! Judge Brett Kavanaugh President Trumps nominee to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy is superbly qualified to sit on our nations highest court. His experience includes serving for 12 years as a judge on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, long regarded as the steppingstone to the Supreme Court. In fact, any list of top jurists active today who will apply the Constitution as it was written and understood by the framers in judging cases would no doubt include Kavanaugh. Yet this outstanding nominee is already suffering relentless and wholly unfairattacks by the left. As the mud flies, sober-minded senators with an appreciation of the Constitution and the rule of law should keep three things in mind as they fulfill their advise and consent role in considering his nomination. First, Kavanaugh should be confirmed, sworn in and sitting on the Supreme Court by the first Monday in October, when the high courts 2018-2019 term officially begins. In the term just ended, 19 cases were decided by a 5-4 vote. Justice Kennedy cast a tie-breaking vote in every one of those cases. That fifth vote was crucial in obtaining good decisions in vitally important cases like: ? Trump v. Hawaii, which upheld President Trumps travel restrictions on terrorist safe havens. ? Janus v. AFSCME (the American of Federal, State, County & Municipal Employees), which threw out an Illinois law that forced government employees to pay dues to unions they refused to join. ? NIFLA (the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates) v. Becerra , which found that a California law forcing pro-life pregnancy centers to advertise the states free abortion program violated the First Amendment. ? Husted v. Philip Randolph Institute, which upheld the ability of state governments to ensure election integrity by cleaning up their voter rolls. Justice Scalia once put it more colorfully, saying a law can be stupid but still be constitutional. The job of the Supreme Court is to determine whether a law even a stupid one is constitutional, not whether it is wise. In the Supreme Courts next term, a tie-breaking vote may be needed in cases like: ? Gundy v. United States, examining Congresss ability to delegate legislative authority to executive branch officials or administrative agencies. ? Knick v. Township of Scott, Pennsylvania. This deals with a requirement that those seeking just compensation from the government when their property is taken must first exhaust all options in state court before applying to federal court. ? Frank v. Gaos, which deals with courts issuing awards in class-action lawsuits that line the pockets of third-party advocacy groups, rather than the individuals who were actually injured. ? Nielsen v. Preap, which is about the federal governments right to detain illegal immigrants who have committed crimes. There is more than enough time to confirm Kavanaugh before the Supreme Court resumes hearing cases Oct. 1. Taking into account the last 14 Supreme Court nominations, starting with Sandra Day OConnor in 1981, the confirmation vote has occurred an average of 72 days after nomination. A confirmation vote in September would be par for the course. Second, claims that it is somehow unfair or unprecedented to vote on a Supreme Court nomination during a midterm election year are flat-out wrong. President Obama nominated Elena Kagan in May 2010 a midterm election year. She was confirmed that August. Other justices confirmed during midterm election years include: Stephen Breyer (1994); David Souter (1990); Antonin Scalia (1986); William Rehnquist (as chief justice, 1986); Harry Blackmun (1970); Arthur Goldberg (1962); Byron White (1962); and Potter Stewart (1958). Third, those who demand that Kavanaugh lay bare his personal views about issues like abortion, health care, the Russia investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, and others are asking for something no judicial nominee can or should give. Kavanaughs personal views on policy issues are irrelevant to his duty as a judge. He is not being appointed to a policy-making position. As Kavanaugh said in a 2016 decision, judges are not authorized to rewrite statutory text simply because (they) think it should be updated. Justice Scalia once put it more colorfully, saying a law can be stupid but still be constitutional. The job of the Supreme Court is to determine whether a law even a stupid one is constitutional, not whether it is wise. As for demands that Kavanaugh discuss his views on past high court decisions that could be revisited by the Supreme Court in the future, it would be unethical for any nominee to state how he or she might rule in a future case and unfair to future litigants for a judge to predetermine the result. It is precisely for these reasons that Justice Elena Kagan said in 2010 before her confirmation that it would be inappropriate for her to comment on the merits of past decisions of the Supreme Court other than to say that it is settled law entitled to precedential weight. Justice Sonia Sotomayor said she could not answer such hypothetical questions during her confirmation hearing in 2009. Justice Stephen Breyer also refused to answer a similar question before he was confirmed regarding issues likely to be the subject of litigation in front of the court. And this is why in 1993 Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg reminded senators when she appeared for questioning after her nomination to the Supreme Court that she should be judged as a judge, not as an advocate. She said it would be wrong for her to say or preview in this legislative chamber how she would cast her vote on questions the Supreme Court may be called upon to decide. The bottom line is this: There is no question that Brett Kavanaugh is extremely qualified to be the newest member of the Supreme Court. His long record on the bench shows him to be fair, impartial and faithful to the Constitution. No amount of character assassination, record distortion, or inappropriate questioning will change that. The top priority of the Senate should be getting Kavanaugh confirmed by Oct. 1. Elizabeth Slattery is a legal fellow in the Heritage Foundation's Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies. President Trump capped a week of contradictory statements about Russian activities during the 2016 presidential campaign by tweeting, "it is all a big hoax" Sunday evening. "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election," Trump tweeted. "Why didn't he do something about it? Why didn't he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary [Clinton] was going to win!!!" It was not clear precisely what Trump considered a hoax -- the ongoing investigation into whether his campaign colluded with Russian officials, or the notion that Russia had interfered with the election campaign at any point. However, the tweet echoed comments he made in an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity that aired Monday. "He thought Hillary Clinton was going to win and he didnt want to do anything to disturb it," Trump said of Obama at the time. "And frankly, when I won, he said, 'This is the biggest deal.' But before I won, he said, 'This is nothing and it can't happen.' Its a very dishonest deal." Following his now-infamous news conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki on Monday, Trump repeatedly attempted to reassure the American public that he accepted the intelligence community's unanimous conclusion that Kremlin interference had taken place. On Tuesday, the president tried to claim that he'd used a "double negative" and meant to say "wouldn't" instead of "would" in a key sentence at his press conference about who was responsible for election meddling. "The sentence should have been: I don't see any reason why I wouldn't -- or why it wouldn't be Russia," the president said Tuesday before a meeting with Republican members of Congress. The following day, however, Trump appeared to answer "no" to a reporter's question asking whether Russia was still targeting the U.S. While hours later, Press Secretary Sarah Sanders emerged to say Trump had merely tried to put a stop to the questioning by saying "no," although he continued discussing Russia after that. Sunday night's tweet is likely to keep alive a controversy that has distanced Trump from aides and supporters alike. "The evidence is overwhelming," Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., told "Fox News Sunday" hours before Trump's latest missive. "It can be proven beyond any evidentiary burden Russia is not our friend and they tried to attack us in 2016." The most striking comments from a Trump adviser came Thursday, when Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told the Aspen Security Forum that he wished the president had not met one-on-one with Putin. When Coats was informed by NBC News' Andrea Mitchell that Trump had invited Putin to Washington in the fall, he dramatically cupped his hand to his ear and told her: "Say that again." He then took a deep breath and continued: "OK. That's going to be special." On Saturday, Coats issued a clarifying statement: "My admittedly awkward response was in no way meant to be disrespectful or criticize the actions of the president." "The president either needs to rely on the people he has chosen to advise him or those advisers need to reevaluate whether or not they can serve in this administration," Gowdy said Sunday, "but the disconnect cannot continue when the evidence is overwhelming and the president needs to say that and act like it." Fox News' Andrew O'Reilly and The Associated Press contributed to this report. An Arizona Democratic congressional candidate has lost the support of local party officials after a decade-old rape allegation resurfaced. Yahya Yuksel, an attorney, allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl while drinking at a friends house in 2007. He was 17 years old at the time. Yuksel is one of seven Democrats vying for the seat being vacated by Republican Rep. Martha McSally. The seat could be a critical pickup for Democrats in their national quest to take control of the House of Representatives. Yuksel, who was never arrested for the alleged crime, has maintained his innocence and is brushing off calls to drop out. He told The Associated Press he did not rape anyone but did have consensual sex after drinking. They should attribute it to alcohol, but they cannot attribute it to violence, they cannot attribute it to disrespect or breaking the law, he said. In Arizona, consent cannot be given if a person is under the influence of alcohol or other similar impairment of cognition and such condition is known or should have reasonably been known to the defendant, according to RAINN, the nations leading anti-sexual assault organization. The age of consent in Arizona is 18. According to a 2008 police report, the teenage girl made the accusation to a school guidance counselor and told police she ultimately did not want to press charges. She claimed she told Yuksel "no" repeatedly during the incident and eventually blacked out. INDIANA ATTORNEY GENERAL ACCUSED OF SEXUALLY INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR BY MULTIPLE WOMEN The Arizona Daily Star reported that Yuksel filed a petition in Pima County Superior Court to hide the cover sheet of the report earlier this year, but it was denied. He also blamed his opponents for the fallout from the allegation. I think it was my opponents that, you know, looked into me, and they couldnt kill my dreams so they tried to assassinate my character, he told KGUN-TV. The Pima County Democratic Party last week took the rare move of voting to withdraw support from Yuksel. His information has also been removed from its website, which features the other six Democrats vying for the seat. He has demonstrated, and his campaign has demonstrated, that he is not ready to represent CD2 in Congress, Chair Jo Holt told The Associated Press. RAPE KIT ACCESS WOULD EXPAND UNDER BIPARTISAN BILL AS VICTIMS SEEK CARE AND JUSTICE Billy Kovacs, one of Yuksels opponents, commended the Pima County Democrats for its actions. He praised the party for adhering to the core values of our party and standing with survivors of sexual assault. This unpreseidented [sic] step taken by the executive committee stands as a reminder that we are stronger together when we listen, and we [believe women], he said in a tweet. Democratic candidate Mary Matiella said Yuksels comments during a press conference left many constituents and sexual assault victims rightfully overwhelmed with grief and anger. Today, I choose to stand with the 1 in 6 American women and the 1 in 33 men who will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetime. I stand with the victims who speak out and also those who are unable, she said in calling for Yuksel to drop out of the race. A grassroots organization called Represent Me AZ rescinded an invitation for Yuksel to speak at a recent candidate forum and called on him to drop out of the race. PEDOPHILE CAN RUN FOR OFFICE IN VIRGINIA THANKS TO MCAULIFFE DECISION RESTORING FELONS RIGHTS Until Yahya takes responsibility for his actions in a meaningful way, and his campaign and supporters stop attacking those who are demanding it, we cannot legitimize this Candidate, Marion Chubon, the groups president, said in a lengthy Facebook post. Yuksel told KGUN he didnt need his partys support because he was confident he could win over Republicans and independents in the general election who "see this as a fundamental breach of due process." The other Democrats running for the seat are Matt Heinz, Ann Kirkpatrick, Barbara Sherry, Bruce Wheeler, Kovacs and Matiella. The Republicans are: Brandon Martin, Danny DJ Morales, Lea Marquez Peterson and Casey Welch. The Associated Press contributed to this report. A millionaire businessman running for mayor in Chicago blessed a multitude of churchgoers and potential voters Sunday by handing out hundreds of thousands of dollars. Willie Wilson, one of several Democrats who plan to take on incumbent Mayor Rahm Emanuel in next year's election, handed out $300,000 to about 2,000 worshipers at a church on Chicagos South Side Sunday morning, an aide told WGN-TV. The giveaway at the New Covenant Missionary Baptist Church was orchestrated by the Dr. Willie Wilson Foundation, the nonprofit announced on social media. The foundation said it was one of the biggest property tax relief assistance events of the year, although seniors and less fortunate will also receive a helping hand. Wilson allegedly said a portion of the donated money $100,000 of it came from Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, who also attended Sunday's event, Politico reported. However, while Rauner has donated to the foundation in the past, he was not aware that cash would be distributed during the event, Alex Browning, a spokesman for Rauner, told Fox News. "The governor respects Dr. Wilson's philanthropic pursuits, but believes distributing cash is inappropriate for any candidate seeking public office," Browning said. F. Scott Winslow, Wilsons campaign manager, claimed the donations were legal since it was absolutely not a campaign event. While he happens to be a candidate, hes been a philanthropist for 30 years, Winslow told WGN, adding hes donated about $500,000 since announcing his mayoral bid. CHANCE THE RAPPER BUYS CHICAGO WEBSITE, SEEKS RAHM EMANUEL'S RESIGNATION Matt Dietrich, a spokesman for the Illinois State Board of Elections, told Fox News a formal complaint has not been filed, but if the funds were strictly from the foundation, it wouldn't be a problem. "All we know about this is what has been in media reports," Dietrich said. "If the money came from his foundation and not his campaign committee, and the other details as have been reported are correct, then it likely would not violate the Campaign Finance Act. However, the State Board of Elections does not want to engage in extensive speculation about a situation which could generate a formal complaint for which the State Board of Elections would be the hearing body." Weve been paying peoples property taxes for years, Wilson told the Chicago Sun-Times, saying it is a normal thing for me. He said some of the money was in the form of checks cut by the foundation, but he also handed out cash because some people do not have bank accounts. I keep money on me just to give it out, Wilson told the newspaper. We dont turn them down. We give what we can give. Sundays event was criticized by some Chicago lawmakers. CHICAGO POLICE CHIEF FIRED BY RAHM EMANUEL WILL RUN AGAINST HIM FOR MAYOR Check this out if you wonder why Illinois politicians are often a national joke, state Rep. David McSweeney, a Republican, said on social media. How can Willie Wilson, a candidate for Mayor of Chicago, literally hand out CASH at a public event? This is so wrong! State Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch, a Democrat, accused Rauner of using Wilson to buy votes. Handing out cash in the Black Church, he said. How about creating jobs dude! Rauner, who faces investor and Hyatt hotel fortune heir J.B. Pritzker in the gubernatorial election this fall, reportedly discussed criminal justice reform and the states high property taxes while at the church. You pay the highest property taxes in America here in Chicago and the South Side and the south suburbs, he said, according to WGN. This is wrong. The system is broken and Im trying to fix it. Georgia's voters on Tuesday will select one of two Trump-supporting candidates as the Republican nominee for governor, capping off an electric race rocked by a slow burn of secretly recorded tapes and eye-catching advertising, as well as a sudden and unexpected endorsement by the president himself. Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp and Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle are locked in a contentious primary runoff, with both vying to position themselves as the true Trump conservative. The two have emerged from a crowded field of candidates, though neither won more than 50 percent of an earlier vote to avoid the July 24 runoff. Kemp, who has called himself a "politically incorrect conservative," made headlines in May for running an advertisement boasting that he has a pick-up truck "in case I need to round up criminal illegals." Trump unexpectedly weighed in on the race last week, tweeting his "full and total endorsement" for Kemp. Trump's endorsement reportedly caught Kemp, who was in a press conference at the time, by surprise. WHO ARE KEMP AND CAGLE? A CLOSER LOOK AT THE TWO CANDIDATES Speaking to Fox News on Monday, Kemp said Georgia is a solid-red state that needs an "unapologetic conservative." "We need a nominee that's going to keep the base fired up and keep Georgia red as it's been," Kemp said. He called Trump's endorsement on Wednesday "huge," and compared it to "pouring gasoline on a fire." Meanwhile, Cagle's candidacy has been thrown off-kilter by the release of several furtively-recorded audio tapes, including one in which Cagle allegedly offers to help pay off former gubernatorial candidate Clay Tippins' $300,000 in campaign debt in exchange for an endorsement. Im well aware that we walked away from $300,000, Tippins said. Its the best $300,000 weve ever walked away from. Cagle denied the allegations, saying he never offered a bribe for any reason and saying he was tiring of "antics" in the race. In another secretly recorded tape, Cagle seemed to disparage some of his constituents, saying the race was about who had the biggest gun, who had the biggest truck and who would be the craziest. Vice President Mike Pence made his presence felt Saturday in the race, headlining a rally for Kemp, whom he called "tough on crime" and "strong on borders." WATCH: CAGLE DISCUSSES THE INCREASINGLY HOT PRIMARY RACE IN GEORGIA One of the largest reactions from the crowd in Macon came when Pence trumpeted strong support for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). "Leading liberal Democrats in the country said they want to abolish ICE," Pence said. "Abolish them!" a member of the crowd yelled back. "We will never abolish ICE," Pence said to applause from the crowd. Kemp and Cagle are both seeking to stake out conservative positions on the coattails of Trump, each frequently evoking the president's name in television ads, stump speeches and debates. And Trump on Saturday tweeted anew that Kemp has his "full endorsement," saying "He will be a GREAT governor!" Cagle, for his part, was making the rounds in northern Georgia on Saturday. He attended an early meet-and-greet in Cleveland, Ga., and another event in Hiawassee, near the North Carolina border. "It's always good to be back ... in Cleveland. This is our third time during this election cycle & I know we'll be back soon. Especially with the great advertising on the sign! Proud to be supported by the Sheriff, Commission Chair, and Senator," Cagle tweeted. The winner of Tuesday's Republican contest faces Democrat Stacey Abrams in the general election in November. Abrams is seeking to become the first black female governor in the U.S. Pence's appearance in Georgia followed a stop earlier in the day in Tennessee, where Pence touted Republican tax cuts and campaigned with two GOP congresswomen waging tough campaigns for statewide offices. In an appearance in Cleveland, Tenn., Pence praised U.S. Reps. Diane Black and Marsha Blackburn, who joined the rally and are hoping to lead Tennessee's statewide GOP ticket this fall. Trump has endorsed Blackburn in her bid for the U.S. Senate from Tennessee but has not formally backed a candidate in that state's GOP primary for governor, where Black is one of four leading contenders. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, a moderate Republican who narrowly survived a bruising primary against a conservative challenger, is facing another nasty battle as he heads into November this time, against a billionaire heir with close ties to disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Rauner, who ran four years ago as a private-sector problem solver challenging career politicians, for months has struggled to hold even GOP support in the blue state amid conservative backlash over a string of decisions in office. But now, hes tasked with unifying Illinois Republicans in order to fend off the challenge from Democrat J.B. Pritzkeran heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune with an estimated $3.4 billion net worth and brother of Obama administration Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker. To heal GOP division and point to a common enemy, Rauner joined House Republicans at an event in Marion, Ill., to sign The Peoples Pledge backing term limitslargely aimed at unpopular state Speaker of the House Mike Madigan, who was speaker on and off since the 1980s. The people of Illinois are sick and tired of destructively high taxes and corruption, Rauner said in a statement. By signing The Peoples Pledge, candidates for the state House of Representatives are demonstrating their commitment to cleaning up state government through term limits and replacing Mike Madigan as speaker. Rauners first campaign stressed reform, similar to President Trumps bid in 2016. But hes mostly kept his distance from Trump until earlier this month in Rosemont, Ill., when Vice President Mike Pence stumped for the embattled Republican and Rauner said, Mike Pence, along with President Trump, are doing it for every American, right now. We are transforming the American economy. The Pritzker campaign has sought to tie the governor to Trump. After forcing a 736-day budget crisis on Illinois, racking up billions of dollars in state debt, and waffling on everything from his support for a womans right to choose to whether he voted for Donald Trump, Illinoisans across the political spectrum are ready to see Bruce Rauner voted out in November, Pritzker spokeswoman Galia Slayen told Fox News. CLICK FOR FULL MIDTERM COVERAGE AND RACE RATINGS A Pritzker ad claims a Rauner company is profiting from the Trump administration separating illegal immigrant familieswhich an Associated Press fact check said was false. Rauner in turn is running ads about Blagojevich and Madigan and another alleging, based on reporting by the Chicago Sun-Times, that Pritzker removed toilets from one of his luxury homes to dodge property taxes. Both Pritzker and Rauner, with a reported net worth of $500 million, are independently wealthy. Pritzker reportedly contributed $76 million of his own money to his campaign, and Rauner has contributed $50 million to his. And both candidates come with baggage; Pritzker had close ties with Blagojevich and Madigan. Its already one of the most expensive races in the country, said Rod McCulloch, owner of the Victory Research polling firm. Its been a race to the bottom. Heaven forbid either run a positive ad. Blagos Back Blagojevich, the Democratic governor removed from office and sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for, among other crimes, trying to sell Barack Obamas Senate seat, has loomed large in the race. The Democratic nominee and wife Mary Kay Pritzker reportedly contributed at least $140,000 to Blagojevichs two campaigns for governor in 2002 and 2006. There has been no allegation that Pritzker did anything improper regarding his association with Blagojevich. Rauners campaign ads have highlighted FBI recordings of a Nov. 14, 2008 chat between Blagojevich and Pritzker discussing who to name to the Senate shortly after Obamas election to the presidency. During the conversation, Pritker suggested naming Secretary of State Jesse White to the Senate because, it covers you on the African-American thing. Blagojevich suggested then-Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. Pritzker responded, Oh God, please, I mean it would be a nightmare. I hope you dont do that. Later, Blagojevich joked about naming Obamas former controversial pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, to the Senate seat. How funny would it be to send Rev. Wright there? Id bet you hed take it, Blagojevich said in the FBI recording. Pritzker responded, Hilarious. Blagojevich said, Would that be f---ing funny? Hilarious. Oh my God, Pritzker responded. Blagojevich goes on to say, Right there on the Senate floor. It's not God Bless America. It's God d---- America. Pritzker repeated, God d--- America. Trump complicated the state GOPs strategy when he said he was considering clemency for Blagojevich. Shortly afterward, the Illinois Republican congressional delegation wrote a letter to the president imploring him against clemency. Divided GOP Conservative Republicans were enraged when Rauner signed a bill providing state Medicaid dollars for abortion, and made Illinois what critics of illegal immigration call a sanctuary state. The conservative National Review magazine ran a headline calling Rauner, The Worst Republican Governor in America. Rauner defeated conservative state Rep. Jeanne Ives in a March Republican primary by a slim 52-48 margin -- close enough that in his victory speech, the governor said, Those of you around the state of Illinois, who wanted to send me a message, let me be clear, I have heard you. Republican state Sen. Sam McCann is now running on the Conservative Party ticket, posing another problem. Pritzker now holds a 15-point lead over Rauner in the Victory Research poll of 1,200 state voters released on July 3. However the Cook Political Report is calling the race a tossup, while Inside Elections ranks it as leaning Democrat. Fox News Power Rankings rates the race as lean Democrat. Neither candidate is particularly popular, according to a Capital Fax/We Ask America poll in June. Madigan has been a punching for a long time and right or wrong, Republicans have done a good job demonizing him, McCulloch said. In parts of downstate, Trump won by huge margins, so Pritzker might have to walk a fine line in tying Rauner to Trump. The federal judge in the upcoming federal court trial for President Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort on Monday unsealed the names of five witnesses being granted immunity to testify, as he granted the defenses request to delay the start of the trial. Those witnesses are James Brennan, Donna Duggan, Conor OBrien, Cindy Laporta and Dennis Raico. All are believed to work for financial institutions. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III released those names as he granted the request of Manaforts attorneys to delay the start of the trial. It had been scheduled to begin Wednesday in Alexandria, Va., but Ellis agreed to delay it until July 31. Attorney Kevin Downing had argued the defense needed more time to go through tens of thousands of documents. Manafort, facing charges of bank and tax fraud related to his work in Ukraine, has pleaded not guilty to the charges. MANAFORT TRIAL COULD REVEAL EMBARRASSING DETAILS ABOUT DEM CONSULTANTS The case against Manafort stems from Special Prosecutor Robert Muellers probe of Russian interference in the 2016 elections, but prosecutors have indicated the case against Manafort will not explore Russias attempted meddling in those elections. Manafort is also facing charges in a separate federal court case in Washington, including conspiring against the United States, conspiring to launder money, failing to register as an agent of a foreign principal and providing false statements. But the case has faced skepticism, even from one of the judges. In May, Ellis, the judge in the Alexandria case, harshly rebuked Muellers team, suggesting they were more interested in bringing down the president than in Manaforts past dealings. "You don't really care about Mr. Manafort, Ellis told Muellers team at the time. You really care about what information Mr. Manafort can give you to lead you to Mr. Trump and an impeachment, or whatever." Last month, Manafort was jailed after a federal judge revoked his $10 million bail based on new witness tampering charges. Fox News Jake Gibson and Brooke Singman and The Associated Press contributed to this report. The upcoming federal court trial for President Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, will be closely watched for revelations about Trumps campaign for the White House in 2016. But its also poised to potentially reveal embarrassing information about several Democratic political consultants, including a top adviser to 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and others who have worked in lucrative elections both in the United States and abroad, court filings indicate. Manafort, facing charges of bank and tax fraud related to his work in Ukraine, has pleaded not guilty to the charges. His trial is scheduled to start in Alexandria, Virginia next week. In a court filing last week by prosecutors detailing possible evidence it could present to the jury, Special Counsel Robert Muellers team listed the names of several well-known Democratic operatives included in the exhibits. MANAFORT JUDGE DELAYS START OF FORMER TRUMP CAMPAIGN CHAIRMAN'S TRIAL The United States of America, by and through undersigned counsel, hereby submits its list of trial exhibits, the filing states. Among those is Tad Devine, the chief strategist for Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign who also worked for Al Gore and John Kerrys presidential campaigns in 2000 and 2004. Like Manafort, Devine also did work for Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. The court filing lists Devine 16 times, and lists a variety of documents, including memos, invoices and emails involving both Manafort and Devine. Devine did not immediately return to a request for comment from Fox News on Monday left with his Democratic media consulting firm Devine, Mulvey and Longbaugh. Other Democrats listed in Muellers court filing are Julian Mulvey, Daniel Rabin and Adam Strasberg. Mulvey is a partner of Devines and worked on the Sanders campaign. Rabin, according to the website for his Democratic consulting firm, has created television ads have played vital roles in political victories in the US and overseas. Strasberg is an ad maker who worked for Devine, as well as for the Sanders and Kerry campaigns. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III on Monday agreed to Manaforts motion to delay the trial, moving the start from this Wednesday to July 31. Muellers defense attorney, Kevin Downing, had argued he needed more time to go through tens of thousands of documents. Ellis also said Monday that he will grant immunity to five of the governments witnesses. The case against Manafort stems from Muellers Russia probe, but prosecutors have indicated the case against Manafort will not explore Russias attempted interference in the 2016 election. Manafort is also facing charges in a separate federal court case in Washington, including conspiring against the United States, conspiring to launder money, failing to register as an agent of a foreign principal and providing false statements. But the case has faced skepticism, even from one of the judges. In May, the judge in the Alexandria case harshly rebuked Muellers team, suggesting they were more interested in bringing down the president than in Manaforts past dealings. "You don't really care about Mr. Manafort, Ellis told Muellers team at the time. You really care about what information Mr. Manafort can give you to lead you to Mr. Trump and an impeachment, or whatever." Last month, Manafort was jailed after a federal judge revoked his $10 million bail based on new witness tampering charges. Fox News Jake Gibson and The Associated Press contributed to this report. The White House is revoking former CIA Director John Brennan's security clearance, press secretary Sarah Sanders said on August 15. The announcement comes just a few weeks after Sanders said President Trump was considering rescinding security clearances from several former top intelligence officials, including former FBI Director James Comey, who politicize, and in some cases actually monetize, their public service and their security clearances in making baseless accusations about improper contact with Russia. Brennan led the CIA for nearly four years under the Obama administration. Earlier this year, he joined MSNBC and NBC News as a contributor and senior national security and intelligence analyst. He has been critical of the Trump administration and has called the president paranoid and a charlatan. He said Trumps meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki was nothing short of treasonous. Sanders said Brennan had been "leveraging" the clearance to make "wild outbursts" and claims against the Trump administration. Trump himself lumped Brennan in with some of the biggest liars and leakers in Washington in a February tweet. Read on for a look at who else could lose their security clearances. James Comey James Comey led the FBI from 2013 until he was abruptly fired in May 2017. Trump, who has repeatedly castigated Comey on Twitter, said he could not effectively lead the bureau. The president was highly critical of Comeys handling of the investigation into Hillary Clintons emails and the Russia investigation. Comey was tapped as a U.S. attorney by former President George W. Bush before Obama appointed him to lead the FBI. After he was fired, he wrote a book called, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership. Michael Hayden Gen. Michael Hayden has served during multiple administrations, from leading the National Security Agency under former President Bill Clinton to heading the CIA under both former Presidents Bush and Obama. Hayden has been an outspoken critic of Trump, especially in his book, The Assault on Intelligence: American National Security in an Age of Lies. He also encouraged people not to work for the Trump administration during an interview with Yahoo earlier this year. HAYDEN RIPS TRUMPS DECISION-MAKING BUT BACKS CIA NOMINEE HASPEL Before the announcement, Hayden said revoking his security clearance wouldnt have any effect on what I say or write because he does not attend classified briefings. Andrew McCabe FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe was fired in March 2018. Trump praised the firing as a great day for the hard working men and women of the FBI in a tweet, calling McCabe a choirboy. JARED KUSHNER RECEIVES FULL SECURITY CLEARANCE He was fired just days before he would have been eligible for a lifetime pension after it was determined he lied to investigators reviewing the bureaus probe of Clintons email server. Susan Rice After serving as ambassador to the United Nations, Rice was the National Security Advisor for Obama from 2013 to 2017. Like others, she was highly critical of Trumps relationship with Russia and called the July summit with Putin a historic mistake. She also blasted Trump earlier this year when he said Obama allowed Russia to take Crimea. Fox News Brooke Singman and The Associated Press contributed to this report. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was caught pushing misleading claims about blocking a presumed visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to the White House in a bid to squeeze donations from gullible donors, The Daily Caller reported. Pelosi, in a fundraising email from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), said that with enough signatures on the petition, the Democrats will be able to block Putins visit, the report said. I will NOT allow Putin to set foot in the United States. I need 100,000 signatures to BLOCK his visit and keep our elections safe. I need you to sign before midnight, Pelosi reportedly said in the email circulated on Sunday. It's obvious to me Trump is terrified of Putin, so here's what I'd like to know: Is Putin blackmailing Trump? Do Republicans know about it? she continued. I need 100,000 signatures before midnight to block Putin from EVER visiting the United States and attacking our November election. It's obvious to me Trump is terrified of Putin, so here's what I'd like to know: Is Putin blackmailing Trump? Do Republicans know about it? House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi No petition, however, could legally force Trump to back down from the possible visit by Putin later this year, the report said. The Sundays fundraising email was a similar effort launched just a day before, when a DCCC email said a petition needs 50,000 signatures to bar Putin from coming to the U.S. for a visit. The House Democrats reportedly also sent out a covert fundraising petition on Sunday, claiming that the DCCC is nearing its goal of 1.2 million signatures to ensure protection for Special Counsel Robert Mueller whos investigating the alleged collusion between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign. PELOSI CLAIMS MUELLER WAS FIRED IN BIZARRE EMAIL TO DONORS This isnt the first time the top Democrat is engaging if misleading fundraising efforts. In April, Pelosi was caught fundraising off the firing of Mueller, despite him not being fired. The California Democrat reportedly sent out an email titled Mueller FIRED and asked people to donate to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) amid speculations that President Donald Trump may fire Mueller in retaliation for the FBI raid on his lawyer Michael Cohen. Federal prosecutors in the Michael Cohen case have received 12 audio recordings from the independent "special master" appointed to review materials seized from Cohen's apartment, office and hotel room by federal investigators earlier this year, Fox News has learned. In a one-page document filed Monday, Special Master Barbara Jones said that prosecutors had received the "audio items" on Friday after prosecutors and Cohen's attorneys withdrew the recordings' "privileged" designation. On the same day that the recordings were given to prosecutors, The New York Times reported that Cohen recorded himself and President Trump discussing a potential payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who claimed she had an affair with Trump in 2006. Details of the tape have been confirmed by Fox News. It was not immediately clear whether the recording between Trump and Cohen was one of the 12 turned over to federal prosecutors. Cohen, Trump's former personal attorney, is under investigation over his alleged practice of paying women to stay silent about claims they had sexual relations with the married Trump. The investigation into Cohen by federal prosecutors in New York is separate from an ongoing inquiry by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into potential coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia. A source with knowledge of the Cohen investigation told Fox News that no payment was ever made to McDougal. However, the conversation between Trump and Cohen was recorded weeks after The National Enquirer's parent company reached a $150,000 deal to pay McDougal for her story of a 2006 affair, which it never published. The company, American Media Inc., is run by Trump friend and supporter David Pecker. The company's payment effectively silenced McDougal through the election, though days beforehand news of the deal emerged in The Wall Street Journal. At the time, a Trump spokeswoman said his campaign had "no knowledge of any of this." The Enquirer's payment to McDougal gave the tabloid the exclusive rights to any story she might ever wish to tell about having an affair with a married man. She later publicly alleged that The Enquirer had tricked her into accepting the deal and had threatened to ruin her if she broke it. After she sued the tabloid seeking to invalidate the contract in March, the Enquirer agreed to allow her to tell her story. On Saturday, Trump tweeted that it was "inconceivable that a lawyer would tape a client - totally unheard of & perhaps illegal. "The good news," he added, "is that your favorite President did nothing wrong!" Fox News' Shira Bush, John Roberts and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Sen. Rand Paul called Monday for President Trump to revoke former CIA director John Brennan's security clearance, as he questioned whether the Obama-era spy boss was monetizing his access to sensitive information in his new role as a pundit. Is John Brennan monetizing his security clearance? Is John Brennan making millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks on @realDonaldTrump? Paul tweeted early Monday. Brennan joined NBC News and MSNBC in February as a contributor and senior national security and intelligence analyst. A spokesperson for the networks did not immediately respond to Fox News request for comment on Paul's tweet, which did not list any specific allegations. The Kentucky Republican, who last week jumped to Trump's defense as the president faced bipartisan criticism over his summit and press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed up the original tweet by saying: Today I will meet with the President and I will ask him to revoke John Brennans security clearance! The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News request for comment. Pauls tweets come as fellow congressional Republicans push for Brennan to testify on Capitol Hill regarding the investigation into Russian meddling and potential collusion with Trump campaign associates in the 2016 presidential election. The former CIA director has been a consistent and harsh critic of the president, blasting his performance with Putin in Helsinki as nothing short of treasonous. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said Sunday that his committee was seeking a Brennan interview. GOODLATTE SAYS HOUSE REPUBLICANS READY TO CALL BRENNAN TO TESTIFY We have lots of questions for John Brennan and he will definitely be sought by the committees for an interview, Goodlatte said on Sunday Morning Futures. This is an extremely disturbing thing to see both he and [former FBI Director] James Comey, supposedly impartial government officials carrying out their jobs in very important areas in intelligence gathering and law enforcement, express the kind of extreme bias that theyve shownwhich I think reflects quite accurately what they were doing back in 2016. Goodlatte was referring to a Wall Street Journal op-ed written by Kimberly Strassel which suggested that Brennans role in the Russia probe is in some ways more concerning than the FBIs. Mr. Brennan has taken credit for launching the Trump investigation, Strassel wrote, adding that Brennan took the lead on shaping the narrative that Russia was interfering in the election specifically to help Mr. Trumpwhich quickly evolved into the Trump-collusion narrative. Fox Business Network's Matthew Kazin and Fox News' Kristin Brown contributed to this report. A Georgia state lawmaker is facing multiple calls to resign after he shouted racial slurs and took off his pants during a segment which aired Sunday on Sacha Baron Cohens controversial new show, Who is America? Republican state Rep. Jason Spencer repeatedly yelled the N-word and mimicked a Chinese tourist while taking a photo up the skirt of an actor pretending to be a Muslim woman during the show. He also exposed his rear end in an exercise to ward off a potential terrorist while shouting, USA mother----r. In the episode, Cohen pretended to be an Israeli military expert. Spencer previously said he was tricked into doing the show because of his fears that I would be attacked by someone. Spencer was defeated in the Georgia Republican primary earlier this year. Spencers antics on the controversial Showtime program have been derided by many Republicans, including some who have called for his resignation. The actions and language used by Jason Spencer are appalling and offensive, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, a Republican, said in a tweet. There is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever, and I am saddened and disgusted by it. SACHA BARON COHEN CHIDED BY DUPED GEORGIA LAWMAKER: THIS IS WHY TRUMP WAS ELECTED Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, who is running for governor, removed Spencer from his campaigns list of endorsements, he announced on social media. Rep. Spencer's words and behavior are hurtful, insensitive, and completely unacceptable. At the very least, he should issue a public apology for this shameful incident, Kemp said in a statement. Georgia House Speaker David Ralston called Spencers actions reprehensible and said he should resign immediately, WGCL-TV reported. Georgias chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations also called on Spencer to step down from his seat, saying enough is enough. The ignorance and malice behind Islamophobia has led Mr. Spencer to not only pursue bad policy, but engage in humiliating and hateful behavior unbecoming of anyone especially a state legislator, Edward Ahmed Mitchell, the chapters director, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. SACHA BARON COHEN TRICKS GUN-RIGHTS ADVOCATES, POLITICIANS Spencer did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News, but he previously chided Cohen and the show and accused them of having exploited my state of mind for profit and notoriety. He threated to take legal action if any of this fraudulently obtained footage of me is used by these Hollywood liberals to line their own pockets. This media companys deceptive and fraudulent behavior is exactly why President Donald Trump was elected, Spencer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution last week before the episode aired. As The New York Times reported, Spencer has been somewhat of a controversial figure in Georgia politics. He filed and withdrew a bill in 2016 that would have banned Muslim women from wearing burqas on public property. He also told a black lawyer last year that she wouldnt be met with torches but something a lot more definitive and that people like her who support the removal of Confederate monuments will go missing in the Okefenokee swamp, according to The Times. Spencer represents District 180 in Georgia which is in the southeastern part of the state. Aside from Spencer, other political figures including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin have been duped by Cohens show. Maine Democratic Senate candidate Zak Ringelstein announced over the weekend he is now a Democratic socialist making him the first Senate candidate from a major party to formally join the political movement. Ringelstein, who is challenging incumbent independent Sen. Angus King, had previously declined to say if he was a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, but told the Associated Press over the weekend that he had officially joined the group. I stand with the Democratic socialists, and I have decided to become a dues-paying member, Ringelstein said. Its time to do whats right, even if its not easy. Ringelstein, a 32-year-old political newcomer, is expected to face an uphill climb in his campaign to unseat King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats. He is refusing to accept donations from lobbyists or corporate political action committees, which has made fundraising a grind. At the end of June, Kings campaign reported $2.4 million cash on hand while Ringelstein had just $23,000. Instead, Ringelstein is hoping to tap into the wave of support for the DSA that has arisen after Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated longtime New York Rep. Joe Crowley last month in the states Democratic primary. Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., are both allied with the group. There are 42 people across 20 states running for offices at the federal, state and local levels this year with the endorsement of the DSA, and the organization is making a concerted effort to bring their views into the mainstream. In the spring, the DSA published an animated video titled Thanks, Capitalism! in which it argues that capitalism takes wealth and resources away from the public and puts it on the hands of private capitalists. The groups push on social media as well as more traditional campaigning like the tour that Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez made through the Midwest over the weekend has garnered the DSA a great deal of attention and support. The groups paid membership hovered around 6,000 in the years before President Trumps election, but by last week it rose to 45,000 nationwide. The DSA, however, is currently working its way into the Democratic Party in part because of its failure to advance its own brand with a voting public reflexively suspicious of socialist policies. So it set a goal of working with groups devoted to a wide range of issues like health care, college debt, immigration, and racism to see socialism and Democratic socialist political candidates as the vehicle for policy changes. If we dont relate politically to social forces bigger than our own, DSA could devolve into merely a large socialist sect or subculture, Joseph M. Schwartz, vice chairman of the DSA, wrote in Jacobin Magazine. The common association with the failed Soviet Union has made it difficult for sympathetic liberals to explain their connection to the DSA and has become easy fodder for Republican rivals. Republicans have seized on what they view as a leftward lurch by Democrats they predict will alienate voters this fall and in the 2020 presidential race. Embracing socialist policies like government-run health care, a guaranteed jobs program and open borders will only make Democrats more out of touch, RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel said. Fox News' Elizabeth Llorente and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Tony Podesta has been offered immunity by Special Counsel Robert Mueller to testify against Paul Manafort at his upcoming trial in Washington D.C., Fox News' Tucker Carlson reported, citing two unnamed sources. Podesta is the founder of the Podesta Group and brother of John Podesta, who was chairman of Hillary Clintons 2016 presidential campaign. The Podesta Group reportedly worked with Manafort -- a former chairman of Donald Trump's 2016 campaign -- to lobby on behalf of Ukrainian interests in the United States, without properly registering at the time under the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA), Carlson said. Manafort and the group worked on a campaign called the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine, the Washington Times reported. "In other words, for a near identical crime, Bill and Hillary's friend could escape and emerge completely unscathed while Paul Manafort may rot in jail," Carlson said. Podesta did not register as a foreign agent under FARA, Carlson said in a segment last October. On Monday, a federal judge in Virginia approved and unsealed requests from Mueller's prosecutors to offer immunity to five witnesses in exchange for their testimony in Manafort's upcoming trial on tax and bank fraud charges. Those witnesses were identified publicly as Those witnesses are James Brennan, Donna Duggan, Conor OBrien, Cindy Laporta and Dennis Raico. All are believed to work for financial institutions. After the requests were unsealed, Carlson tweeted: "Our sources maintain that Tony Podesta has been offered immunity to testify in Paul Manaforts criminal trial in D.C. regarding criminal FARA violations. The witness list released today surrounds Manaforts VA trial which mainly involves tax violations." U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III pushed Manafort's Virginia trial back until July 31 to give Manafort's lawyers more time to review thousands of pages of data and documents turned over by Mueller's office in the last several weeks. Manafort was indicted in the District of Columbia in October 2017 and faces a separate trial there. Tony Podesta resigned from his lobbying group in October in response to Muellers investigation of the firm, the report said. The firm was reportedly closed by the end of last year. The special counsels office did not immediately respond for comment. Manafort is accused of multiple financial crimes in connection with lobbying work he performed in Ukraine. The first of his two upcoming trials, in Virginia, is scheduled to begin next week. Fox News' Samuel Chamberlain, Alex Pappas and The Associated Press contributed to this story. This story was originally published on July 20, 2018 and was subsequently updated to reflect events occurring on July 23, 2018. With President Trumps recent appointment of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court, many believe if hes confirmed, a challenge and overturn of Roe v. Wade will soon follow. If the court overturns the 1973 ruling, four states have laws that would ban abortions almost immediately. Louisiana, Mississippi, North and South Dakota have so-called abortion trigger laws that would go into effect if Roe v. Wade was reversed. Each state has a different way to implement the ban. Louisianas law would punish anyone who performs or aides in an abortion with 10 years in jail and a fine up to $100,000. Mississippi lawmakers would move to ban the practice 10 days after a Supreme Court ruling. South Dakotas law would immediately be implemented and effectively ban abortions at all stages of pregnancy while North Dakotas law is contingent on the recommendation of the states attorney general. Those for and against abortions pounced shortly after President Trump tapped Kavanaugh for a seat on the high court. Those who favor abortion rights strongly believe that Kavanaughs nomination threatens access to the procedure. Today, with the nomination of Judge Kavanaugh, the president is presumably making good on his Roe-reversal promise, Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said in a statement. Every senator should assume that is the case, absent a clear and compelling statement from the nominee that he agrees with the rationale and premise of Roe v. Wade that the right to abortion is among the Constitutions guaranteed personal liberty rights. Pro-life advocates argue the court needs to let states decide whether to ban abortion. Jameson Taylor is the vice president of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, an organization that lobbies for conservative principles. Were thrilled about the potential for a Supreme Court pick that could move to protect life and protect maternal health, said Jameson Taylor, the vice president of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, an organization that lobbies for conservative principles. What were asking for as a state, is let us have a choice over our abortion policy. Prior to Roe v. Wade, thats the balance that we had. At least 12 states still retain their laws banning abortion before the 1973 landmark decision, while at least 17 states have constitutional or legislative measures in place protecting abortion. It is estimated that more than 20 states could move to implement bans if Roe v. Wade were overturned. Former federal prosecutor and constitutional law expert Dan Burns said a possible challenge to Roe v. Wade could come up soon. He also expects states to act on banning or protecting abortion if a case were to come up. I think within 18 months you may see some type of case come before the court. You have to remember, Roe v. Wade and the issue of abortion is not a black or white, all-or-none issue, Burns said. Its pretty complicated and its pretty nuanced so the point is: states have tried, even with Roe v. Wade in place, to put practical restrictions on the access to abortions and different regulations chipping away at [it]youre going to see more of that. Burns noted the court could see a shift to the right but that Chief Justice John Roberts may emerge as a swing vote in high profile cases. Burns said Justice Anthony Kennedy, whos retiring, was often the swing vote on major cases. Its not ever going to be clear how a justice is going to rule on a particular case before they assume the post, Burns said. Many justices, in any case, have proven to be a bit different than their ideology. A simple majority in the Senate is needed to approve Kavanaughs nomination but he must first undergo a confirmation hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee. A hearing has not been scheduled. President Trump will not immediately grant House Republicans' request to declassify and publicize currently redacted sections of the recently released FISA application used by the FBI to justify the surveillance of an ex-Trump aide, the White House said Monday. Republicans on the House intelligence committee asked Trump last month to declassify portions of the surveillance warrant application for Page, according to a letter obtained by Fox News. The heavily redacted application outlining the justifications for surveiling Page, which was approved and renewed several times by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), was released over the weekend after a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. DOJ RELEASES FISA DOCS: WHAT THEY REVEAL ABOUT THE SURVEILLANCE OF TRUMP The documents revealed that the infamous and unverified Steele Dossier was a major component of the 2016 surveillance warrant and its renewals. The dossier, which was opposition research funded by the DNC and Hillary Clinton campaign, contains salacious allegations against Trump. "The president has purposefully remained uninvolved in this process," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Monday. "He has said repeatedly that he wants the Department of Justice to be fully transparent with these requests from Congress, and he's going to continue at this point to remain uninvolved. "However, he sees more and more every single day that this is proving further and further to be a total witch hunt, particularly because it was based on a false and unverified and discredited dossier," she added. READ THE HOUSE REPUBLICANS' LETTER TO TRUMP In their letter to Trump, the House intel committee members requested fully unredacted and declassified sections of the documents that were heavily redacted when released over the weekend. ... [W]e respectfully request that you declassify and release publicly, and in unredacted form, pages 10-12 and 17-34, along with all associated footnotes, of the third renewal of the FISA application on Mr. Page," the letter from the House Republicans states. "That renewal was filed in June 2017 and signed by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein." The documents also revealed that on four occasions, the FBI told the FISC that it "did not believe" former British spy Christopher Steele was the direct source for a Yahoo News article implicating Page in Russian collusion, newly released documents reveal. Instead, the FBI suggested to the court, the September 2016 article by Michael Isikoff was independent corroboration of the salacious, unverified allegations against Trump in the infamous Steele Dossier. Federal authorities used both the Steele Dossier and Yahoo News article to convince the FISA court to authorize a surveillance warrant for Page. But London court records show that contrary to the FBI's assessments, Steele briefed Yahoo News and other reporters in the fall of 2016 at the direction of Fusion GPS -- the opposition research firm behind the dossier. Separately, Sanders said that Trump was looking into terminating the security clearances of former Obama intelligence officials who have aggressively criticized Trump in recent months, including former CIA Director John Brennan and national security adviser Susan Rice. Fox News' Catherine Herridge contributed to this report. President Trump late Sunday tweeted out to Iranian President Rouhani to never threaten the U.S. again or face historic consequences. The tweet came on the heels of Rouhanis warning to Trump that hostile policies could lead to the mother of all wars" with Iran. Trump called for Rouhani to stop the rhetoric or--in caps lock-- suffer the consequences the like of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence and death. Be cautious! Within hours, Iranian state-owned news agency IRNA dismissed Trump's tweet, describing it as a "passive reaction" to Rouhani's remarks. The agency, a government mouthpiece, also said Monday that Trump's comment was only mimicking and copying Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif who had in the past warned the West to "never threaten an Iranian." Rouhani earlier warned Trump to stop "playing with the lion's tail" and threatening Iran, "or else you will regret it." Trump earlier this year pulled the U.S. out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. Trump has suggested Iranian leaders are "going to call me and say 'let's make a deal'" but Iran has rejected talks. Rouhani has previously lashed out against Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the U.S. from certain Muslim-majority countries. Rouhani also said that a peace with Tehran is like "the mother of all peace." Sources told Reuters that U.S. officials have launched an effort to foment unrest in Tehran and put pressure on the countrys leaders to end its nuclear program. The Associated Press contributed to this report The Roanoke Police Department has arrested a man who allegedly threw a brick through the front door of Democratic Sen. Mark Warners office early Monday. James W. Trainor, 36, was arrested Monday, a police spokeswoman told Fox News. He is believed to be the only suspect in the case, and witnesses reported seeing him carrying bricks, the spokeswoman said. Trainor allegedly targeted the building, but a motive is still under investigation, police said. He has been charged with felony property damage. Other charges could come later. Police were notified that a brick had been thrown through the glass front door of Warners office in Roanoke, Virginia, shortly after 7:30 a.m., WDBJ-TV reported. No one was in the office at the time, police said. Warner addressed the vandalism on social media, saying, Were all extremely grateful for the quick, professional response of the Roanoke Police Department. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said the incident was very troubling. I condemn any destruction of property or act of violence directed towards an elected official, he said in a tweet. Thanks to law enforcement officials for acting quickly. The Roanoke City Jail magistrate said Trainor was belligerent and uncooperative during his arrest, The Roanoke Times reported. His address is listed as a ministry that helps the homeless, and he has ties to Florida and Massachusetts, according to the newspaper. Trainor was recently released from prison, where he served time for attempted second-degree murder when he attempted to hit a man with a car in 2013, according to The Roanoke Times. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., on Sunday criticized President Trump's meeting last week with Russian President Putin, and called the former "Apprentice" star "Putin's apprentice." Waters, who was on MSNBC's "AM Joy," said she was not surprised by the amount of criticism the president received. In fact, for months Ive been trying to tell the American public that this president is dangerous [and] that hes in bed with Putin, Waters told host Joy Reid. Dont forget this president cant borrow money in the United States from any bank. This president is looking at Russia for his new money, financial playground. Waters accused Trump and his former campaign associatesor as she called them the Kremlin clanof having some form of an agreement with Putin to lift U.S. sanctions on Russia in exchange for help in the 2016 presidential election. This president, I believe, has promised him (Putin) that, once he was elected, he would get those sanctions lifted, she said, later adding, I think he is Putins apprentice. Hes been under his tutelage for a long time now. Waters challenged her Republican colleagues to take serious action against Trump in the form of protest, suggesting that they could demonstrate outside the White House or decline to attend state dinners. Waters has been a longtime opponent of Trump, consistently referring to him as an illegitimate president and has repeatedly called for his impeachment. The U.S. representative, who has served for nearly three decades, recently came under fire from Republicans and Democrats alike after she called on Americans to publicly "push back" against members of the Trump administration over its immigration policy. Waters refused to back down from her position. "I was blessed with courage. And I was blessed with the kind of strength that does not allow me to be intimidated by the likes of Donald Trump," Waters told MSNBC at the time. "Let him call me whatever he wants to call me. Let him say whatever he wants to say. He will not stop me." Skywatchers across a number of U.S. states that border Canada may get a glimpse of the northern lights thanks to a geomagnetic storm late Monday and early Tuesday. The northern lights, or aurora borealis, occur when solar wind hits Earths magnetic field. When the charged particles from the sun strike atoms and molecules in Earths atmosphere, they excite those atoms, causing them to light up, explains EarthSky. High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras on July 24th when the solar wind arrives, explains Spaceweather.com. G1-class storms can produce Northern Lights as far south as US states ranging from Maine to Washington. NORTHERN LIGHTS SHINE OVER MICHIGAN'S MACKINAC BRIDGE Fox 6 in Milwaukee reports that the phenomenon will be visible in northern Wisconsin with the best viewing times between sunset and 1 a.m. CDT. You will likely have to drive past Green Bay to see anything, it tweeted Monday. Q13 Fox also reports that the aurora borealis will be visible in parts of Washington State, noting that the phenomenon occurred around the same time last year. However, the geomagnetic storm is just a minor one, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers The Army is engineering high-tech autonomy kits designed to give robot tanks and other armored combat vehicles an ability to operate with little or no human intervention, bringing new tactical and operational dimensions to the future of ground combat. Unmanned systems, utilized in a fast-evolving, high-threat ground combat operation, could enable robot vehicles to carry supplies, test enemy defenses and even fire weapons all while manned vehicles operate at a safer distance. A kit of hardware and software can be installed into different ground platforms to increase the level of autonomy, Osie David, Chief Engineer for Mission Command, Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center, told Warrior Maven in an interview earlier this year. The technology kits, which can integrate on a small unmanned ground vehicle or a wide range of larger combat vehicles, use emerging computer algorithms, on-board processing and artificial intelligence to gather and organize sensor information. Robot vehicles, often referred to by Army weapons developers in the context of manned-unmanned teaming, are a fast-growing element of the developmental calculus when it comes to future combat platforms. Having unmanned assets operating in tandem with manned assets in combat introduces a range of new tactics available to commanders. If robot scout vehicles could operate in a forward position to identify enemy threats or test defenses, manned tanks might be able to operate at lighter weights, making them faster and more maneuverable in combat. In fact, senior Army weapons developers have told Warrior Maven that virtually all future combat vehicles now in development will likely be engineered with various new levels of autonomy. Using things like embedded infrared optical payloads, unmanned vehicles can use machine-learning technology to process key combat details, independently organize them and then send information to a human in the role of command and control, David explained. AI enables computers to instantly draw upon vast data-bases with millions of pieces of information to perform real-time data analytics before sending useful information to combat commanders. The advantage is that combatant commanders can quickly receive integrated intelligence or sensor information from a range of sources, analyzed and condensed to enable faster decision-making. Instead of sending bits of information back up to a command post, the autonomy kits can enable sensors to perform detection and object identification in real timeand then push that information up to a human, David said. Also, advanced integrated sensors, fortified by AI and greater levels of autonomy, can connect aerial and ground assets to one another to ID and hand off-targets, send real-time video of nearby enemy activity or pass other intelligence data to vehicle crews. It is certainly within the realm of the technically feasible for a future tank to simultaneously control a small fleet of unmanned robotic wing man vehicles designed to penetrate enemy lines while minimizing risk to soldiers, transport ammunition or perform long-range reconnaissance and scout missions. In fact, Army modernization strategy documents specifically cite autonomy enabled platforms, speed and maneuverability as fundamental to future armored warfare. As the armored BCT fields new systems, it will replace main battle tanks, howitzers, and mortar indirect fire platforms. Far-term initiatives aim to solve the absence of the armored BCTs ability to deploy rapidly. The Army assesses the feasibility and application of autonomous or semi-autonomous sub-systems, manned and unmanned teaming, and autonomy enabled combat platforms, the Army documents read. CERDEC and other Army entities are working on these projects with the Armys Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center to prototype, test and advance these technologies. The current effort is an extension, or next-generation iteration, of a previous TARDEC effort described as leader-follower algorithms. This technology, evolved and successfully tested in recent years, enables an unmanned tactical truck or vehicle to precisely follow a manned vehicle in front of it. The concept with leader-follower algorithms is to free up vehicle crew members such that they can focus on other pressing, threat-conscious tasks without needing to expend all their energy navigating the vehicle. These newer kits, however, bring the concept of autonomy to an entirely new level, enabling unmanned systems to maneuver quickly in response to fast-changing ground combat circumstances without needing human intervention. The current autonomy kits effort is a new Army program, slated to gain traction and begin testing this year, Army developers said. TARDEC will decide which platforms are used. Some sort of tank is being evaluated, as well as smaller platforms, David explained. David explained that the autonomy kits are now being worked on for the Armys Next-Generation Combat Vehicle program a future combat vehicle effort planning to engineer new platforms for the 2030s and beyond. We are closely tied with them (NGCV program) and we are looking to see how we can insert this kit onto these future platforms, he explained. The kits are also being engineered to help ensure that combat vehicles can continue to function in the event that GPS communications are jammed or destroyed by enemy forces. Gyroscopes and accelerometers, for instance, can help ground forces navigate in the absence of GPS, David explained. These technologies are focused on how you actually navigate and detect your position in a GPS denied environment where there is challenging terrain or an enemy is jamming you, he said. More Weapons and Technology - WARRIOR MAVEN (CLICK HERE)-- Two years ago, oncologists with the US Department of Veterans Affairs started using IBM Watson artificial intelligence to identify targeted treatment options for cancer patients. Now, they will be able to continue that work for at least another year. The VA and IBM Watson Health today announced an extension of their partnership through at least June 2019. Working out of a precision oncology "hub" in Durham, N.C., a small group of VA oncologists and pathologists receive tumor samples from patients around the country. They sequence the tumor DNA, then use Watson AI to help interpret the data, identifying likely cancer-causing mutations and drugs that might be useful to treat them. So far, VA oncologists have used Watson to help treat more than 2,700 veterans with cancermostly stage 4 patients who have exhausted all other treatment options. "It is incredibly challenging to read, understand, and stay up-to-date with the breadth and depth of medical literature and link them to relevant mutations for personalized cancer treatments," IBM Watson Health Chief Health Officer Dr. Kyu Rhee said in a statement. "This is where AI can play an important role in helping to scale precision oncology, as demonstrated in our work with VA, the largest integrated health system in the U.S." The VA currently treats 3.5 percent of the nation's cancer patients. More than a third of the patients who have benefited from its precision oncology program are veterans from rural areas where cutting-edge medical technology like this is uncommon. "Our mission with VA's precision oncology program is to bring the most advanced treatment opportunities to Veterans, in hopes of giving our nation's heroes better treatments through these breakthroughs," Acting VA Secretary Peter O'Rourke said in a statement. "We look forward to continuing this strategic partnership to assist VA in providing the best care for our veterans." Watson has been fighting cancer for some time. The New York Genome Center first started using the technology in 2014 in DNA-based treatments for glioblastoma the most common type of brain cancer, which kills more than 13,000 Americans every year. This article originally appeared on PCMag.com. A suspect was arrested Sunday after a shooting at a Mormon church in Fallon, Nev. left one dead and one wounded, authorities said. The shooting took place in front of congregants during a service at a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse, Kaitlin Ritchie, a spokeswoman for the City of Fallon, told Fox 13. Fallon Police Chief Kevin Gehman identified the suspect as 48-year-old John Kelley OConnor. Gehman said OConnor fired multiple shots, then left the church and walked to his home, which is right across the street, according to The Nevada Appeal. Gehman said OConnor surrendered to police officers and sheriffs deputies after authorities called the home and asked him to do so, KOLO-TV reported. Investigators said it was too early to understand the motive, but added the attack appeared to be directed at an individual rather than the church. Police said OConnor was a member of the church and had been attending services prior to the shooting. The second victim has a non-life-threatening leg injury and has been hospitalized. The victims identities were not immediately revealed because of pending next-of-kin identification. Sunday afternoon, Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., sent a tweet of condolence, acknowledging hes in contact with officials investigating the shooting: Deeply saddened by the act of senseless violence in Fallon today at the LDS church. He added, My family and I are praying for all loved ones, churchgoers, and community members impacted by this tragedy. Nevadas other senator, Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto, also tweeted condolences: Devastated by the horrific news of the fatal shooting at the LDS church in Fallon. Thank you to the first responders on the scene. My heart goes out to all of those impacted. Places of worship should be a safe haven. The gun violence across this country must end. We express our love to those in this congregation and our prayers for the victims and their families, LDS Church spokesman Eric Hawkins said in a statement. Local leaders are ministering to them at this time. Three suspects have been arrested in connection with a drug bust at a home day care center, North Carolina investigators say. Fayetteville Police have been conducting a monthlong investigation that has led to the seizure of up to 300 pounds of marijuana, police said in a statement. The investigation resulted in police executing a search warrant last Monday. The warrant led to the arrest of Alvin Davis III, 27, who was charged with trafficking cocaine and carrying a concealed weapon, among other charges. As the Fayetteville Police Departments Gang Unit continued this investigation, they executed an additional search warrant at a residence along the 1000 block of Ronald Reagan Drive on Tuesday, July 17, 2018, investigators explained after discovering a home day care might be involved. Officers waited until after the day care closed so no children were present for the search, according to police. Authorities added that they seized 100 pounds of marijuana, one-half kilogram of cocaine, up to an ounce of heroin, 10 firearms, over $70,000 in cash and a 2013 Audi Q7 SUV. Victoria L. Everett, 34, owner and operator of Toris Playhouse, was charged with trafficking in marijuana by possession and trafficking in heroin by possession, among other charges, police say. Authorities added that a co-owner, Reshod J. Everett, 32, and U.S. Postal Service employee, was charged with conspiring to traffic in heroin and cocaine, among other things. Officers found marijuana cookies and gummies at the scene, but haven't seen evidence at this time that the children had access to them, wral.com reported. Police say the investigation is ongoing. As the United States takes a harder line on immigration, thousands who called the country home are being forced to go. Often, they leave behind spouses and children with American citizenship and must figure out how to go on with families fractured apart. Studies have found an estimated 8 to 9 million Americans the majority of them children live with at least one relative who is in the country illegally. And so each action to deport an immigrant is just as likely to entangle a citizen or legal U.S. resident. One woman was deported this year from Kansas City to Mexico, leaving behind her American husband and daughter. The family connects now through phone calls and text messages as a lengthy legal process unfolds. A black owner of a gourmet lemonade stand in San Francisco claims he was approached by police officers on Thursday after someone in the neighborhood thought he was breaking into his own business. Viktor Stevenson, the owner of Gourmonade, said four San Francisco Police Department officers approached him last week when he was checking the security system of his lemonade kiosk. One officer, according to him, had a hand on his gun, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Four cops just hopped out on me guns almost drawn took my ID at my own store. This racist thing is out of control but it won't stop me! Living my dreams like they are golden because they are, Stevenson wrote on Instagram. Being black at my business minding my business and someone called the police and said I was breaking in, he added in a Facebook post. People die because of this kinda misuse of police resources and racial profiling everyday. Stevenson said police officers asked him to prove that it was his business. I said 'Absolutely. Like, I have the key, he recalled the incident to AJ+. I opened and closed the doors. The incident follows a number of other recent examples of black residents in California facing authorities after being called on by others. Last month, a white woman reportedly called police on an 8-year-old black girl for selling water without a license. WOMAN DUBBED '#PERMITPATTY' APPEARS TO CALL COPS ON 8-YEAR-OLD GIRL SELLING WATER IN VIRAL VIDEO In May, another white woman called the police on a group of black residents who were having a picnic by the lake. Stevenson has since received support from the community, posting a video on Saturday thanking everyone for the support. Today was an epic day ... not just because we got to sell lemonade and I got to do what I love to do and my passion, he said in the video. But people showed up and people were super human today. So many people came up from the neighborhood, locals and residents and business, and gave me hugs. And that's priceless, he added. A Dallas police union is blasting a local district attorney as a suspected drunken driver accused of killing an officer over the weekend gets out on bond. Sr. Cpl. Jamie Givens, a 32-year veteran of the force, was killed early Saturday after a Kia Sportage struck him while he was blocking an entrance ramp on Interstate 20 as part of a funeral escort, police said. Adrian Breedlove, who was been charged with intoxication manslaughter and unlawful carrying of a weapon following the officers death, bonded out of jail the following morning, Fox 4 News reported. It is reprehensible that Adrian Breedlove, was given a $76,000 bail allowing him to spend less than one day in jail and post a bond of a mere 7,600.00, Dallas Police Association President Mike Mata told the station. The officer was doing a courtesy escort for fellow officer Tyron Andrews who died from cancer. Givens had been part of the motorcycle unit since 2012. In statement, Mata added that the union is demanding to know if District Attorney Faith Johnson asked a district court judge to require a more substantial bond for such a heinous crime. If she made no such effort then perhaps its time to find a District Attorney who takes more seriously the killing of police officers, the statement added. But Pete Schulte, an attorney not connected to the case, said to Fox 4 News that he viewed the bond as appropriate because of Breedlove has no criminal history and the death was non-intentional. Theres really no way for the district attorney to get involved in that process, it would be improper to do so, Schulte said. A candlelight vigil is scheduled Monday for Givens and his funeral is set for Thursday. Breedlove, who is 25, reportedly blew a blood alcohol level of 0.19 at the time of the crash, more than twice the legal limit, according to Fox 4 News. Givens, 55, was transported to the Baylor University Medical Center where he was pronounced dead on arrival. The officer was stationary with his motorcycle's lights on at the time when he was struck "at a high rate of speed" by the car. All eastbound lanes on I-20 were closed following the crash. In a separate interview with WFAA, Mata said the bond sends a message to police officers in the area that [this] is what your life is worth. Its very hard to get people to even be police officers anymore, he added. And this is what the public there are police officers that take care of them every day are seeing. Fox News Kathleen Joyce and Elizabeth Zwirz contributed to this report. An Iraq war veteran is asking for the return of an American flag that was recently stolen from him that he says has sentimental value. Nolan Gomez said he usually flies the flag from his truck but took it off when he was doing some yard work. He placed it in a cone along the road, ran an errand and discovered it was gone when he came back. Its the ultimate disrespect to any soldier that has served their country, Gomez told KIRO-TV. The flag was particularly special to Gomez, who told news stations that it was given to him by a boy in Iraq in 2007. Later, after a roadside bomb injured his team, he said he used the flag as a tourniquet on his friend who ended up losing his legs. That friend eventually died by suicide. The flag, Gomez said, has his friends blood on the bottom four stripes. Its showing that I have pride in what Ive done, and I love my country, Gomez, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, told KIRO. No matter what Ive been through, I love my country, and I want everybody to see that. I just pray that whoever has that flag can find it in them as a human and as a God-fearing American to turn it back in, he said. No matter what Ive been through, I love my country, and I want everybody to see that. Nolan Gomez Neighbor Kim Phillips helped make a sign that pleads for the return of the sign. I just cant imagine doing that to someone who has served for our freedom, Phillips told KOMO-TV. A few neighborhood kids who saw Gomezs story gave him a flag that belonged to their uncle. Gomez said the gesture meant a lot to him. While the blood on the flag has faded, Gomez said the stains are still visible. He also said the flagpole is a yellow broom handle with wire around it. The family of Justine Damond, the 40-year-old Australian woman who was killed by a Minneapolis officer after she called 911 to report a possible assault, has sued the officer, his partner and the city. In the lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court, Damond's family alleges her civil rights were violated when she was shot July 15, 2017 by Officer Mohamed Noor, who they said was inexperienced and unfit for duty. Damonds family also accused the police departments leadership at the time and Noors partner, Officer Matthew Harrity, of conspiracy to cover up the true facts surrounding the killing of Justine, the Star Tribune reported. OFFICER WHO FATALLY SHOT JUSTINE DAMOND CHARGED WITH MURDER, TURNS HIMSELF IN The others named in the lawsuit include Janee Harteau, police chief at the time of the shooting; Police Chief Medaria Arrandondo, assistant chief when Damond was shot; and the city of Minneapolis. The family is seeking an undisclosed amount of money in damages. Damond was fatally shot just minutes after calling 911 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home. Her death drew international attention, cost the police chief her job and forced major revisions to the departments policy on cameras. Noor, a 32-year-old Somali-American, is facing criminal charges in connection to the shooting. He was terminated from his job after the charges were filed. MINNEAPOLIS COP ACTED 'RECKLESSLY' IN FATAL SHOOTING OF AUSTRALIAN WOMAN, PROSECUTOR SAYS Prosecutors allege Noor was in a squad cars passenger seat when he shot Damond through the drivers side window. They say theres no evidence Noor encountered a threat justifying deadly force. Noors attorneys have said he will plead not guilty at the criminal trial and will argue he used reasonable force that night. Harrity, who has returned to duty, reportedly told investigators he heard a loud noise and feared for his life in the moment leading up to the shooting, the Star Tribune reported. The officer perceived his life was in danger, reached for his gun, unholstered it and held it to his rib cafe while pointing it downward, the charges filed against Noor read. COP WHO SHOT JUSTINE DAMOND, WAS 'HIGHLY CELEBRATED' BY MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR IN 2015 Robert Bennett, the Damond family's attorney, was expected to hold a news conference Monday afternoon. City Attorney Susan Segal has not publicly commented on the lawsuit, only telling the Star Tribune in an email Sunday night that any matter involving a death is tragic. I cannot comment on the complaint on this case until I have received a copy of it. The Associated Press contributed to this report. An Illinois man was found dead at the base of a cliff near Mount Rushmore last week, officials said Monday. Anthony Rashid, 58, died from multiple blunt force trauma from an accidental fall, according to the Pennington County Sheriff's Office in South Dakota. Rashid's body was found around 11 a.m. local time on Friday after police received a call about a deceased person within the boundaries of Mount Rushmore National Memorial. The sheriff's office wrote on Facebook that its office is leading the investigation, with assistance from the FBI. A Maryland firefighter was killed Monday while battling a seven-alarm inferno that was possibly caused by a lightning strike, officials said. Nathan Flynn was identified as the firefighter who was killed in the blaze. Flynn was one of the first ones who entered the Clarksville home, according to FOX5 DC. Officials said he fell through a floor and was pulled from the house. He was transported to a hospital, but later died from injuries. Officials said Flynn was a 13-year veteran of the department. This is a tragic day for the family of this firefighter and for the Howard County Fire Department, assistant Howard County Fire Chief Daniel Merson said. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan expressed his condolences in a tweet. Incredibly saddened to learn of the passing of a Howard County firefighter as he bravely worked to save others lives, Hogan wrote. Emergency responders went to the home before 2 a.m. after reports of a possible lightning strike, according to WTOP. Smoke was billowing from the house when they arrived, Merson said. Firefighters had started with an aggressive, offensive, interior attack when the firefighter fell through the floor. A seventh alarm was requested shortly before 5 a.m. Three people who were in the home when the fire started were able to make it out safely, officials said. The 7,000-square-foot home sits on three acres of land, according to FOX5 DC. A former police officer in a northeast Mississippi town has been indicted on aggravated assault charges after the June 2017 shooting of a man involved in a police chase. An Oktibbeha County grand jury indicted 25-year-old Gary Wheeler. He turned himself in Monday and was released on $20,000 bail. "This is a case we will definitely take to trial," Wheeler's lawyer, Rod Ray of Columbus, told the Starkville Daily News . Wheeler is set for trial Oct. 25. Then a Starkville police officer, Wheeler stands accused of shooting into the vehicle of Zyterrious Gandy. Police say Gandy had robbed a convenience store and authorities chased him through Starkville early on a Saturday morning. When police tried to stop Gandy on a dead-end street, they say, he backed into a police car. Investigators have said that's when Wheeler fired. Gandy then drove into the porch of a house, and investigators have said more gunshots may have been fired then. Gandy then drove behind the house, abandoned the stolen car he was driving and ran away, authorities said. He was quickly captured. Gandy survived wounds to his torso and legs. Gandy is charged with three counts of aggravated assault, grand larceny, malicious mischief and failing to stop when signaled by police. Starkville Police Chief Frank Nichols told the Starkville Daily News Monday that Wheeler had been placed on paid leave after the shooting, then returned to duty for a short time before resigning. Wheeler was hired in April as a Mississippi State University police officer, but university spokesman Sid Salter said Wheeler resigned that post Monday. The case was investigated by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood's office. Margaret Ann Morgan, a spokeswoman for Hood, declined to say why the office pursued charges against Wheeler. Prosecutions of police officers for shooting at suspects are relatively rare in Mississippi. Hood's office is prosecuting former Columbus officer Canyon Boykin, who has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter in a 2015 shooting death which sparked community protests. The attorney general's office also twice prosecuted Walter Grant on a manslaughter charge in a 2013 shooting death in Cleveland. Both of the Bolivar County sheriff's deputy's trials ended in hung juries, but Grant has been indicted in federal court on a charge of evidence tampering. A Utah woman won't be charged with reckless endangerment after leaving a loaded gun on a baby changing table in a suburban Salt Lake City aquarium bathroom, authorities said Monday. The misdemeanor charge punishable by up to a year in jail doesn't apply because the woman didn't consciously put people in danger by leaving the weapon behind, said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. She told police she put the .380-caliber pistol on the folded-up changing table to use the bathroom at the Living Planet Aquarium July 10, but forgot it while chasing after her children after they crawled under the stall door. Another mother found the weapon when she went to change her newborn baby, and patrons were frustrated when police originally said they didn't plan to press charges. "It was a very close call but at the end of the day it's not about what we feel emotionally, it's about what the law requires us to prove," Gill said. The weapon had a round in the chamber and the safety off, though it was on a ledge high enough that it couldn't immediately be reached by a child, he said. The case exposes a shortfall in state law, Gill said. His office handles serious cases, and he said there's no charge they can prosecute if a weapon is accidentally left where could hurt someone. "I think this demonstrates there is a gap, and I think everybody would recognize that even being negligent with a weapon whose sole purpose is very inherently dangerous, we ought to be concerned about that," Gill said, adding that he is also a concealed-firearm permit holder who typically carries a gun. City prosecutors could still file a lesser charge, like a citation for trespassing by bringing a weapon to the aquarium despite a posted gun ban. In 2014, a Utah teacher faced a lower misdemeanor charge after she accidently dropped her weapon in an elementary school bathroom and it fired. The teacher was injured when the bullet struck a toilet and caused it to explode. No faculty or students were around, but the teacher resigned from her job and city prosecutors charged her with discharging a weapon within city limits. She eventually paid a fine and took a firearm-safety class as part of a plea deal. A Pennsylvania woman was in her backyard watching a turtle when she was shocked to see a different, far bigger reptile just a few feet away. Youre an awfully big turtle, was Tracie Hoffecker's initial reaction upon seeing an alligator creeping around her backyard, she told FOX29 Philadelphia. Hoffecker called her firefighter cousin to help remove the 3-foot gator from her Prospect Park home located about 16 miles southwest of Philadelphia. Slimy, Scaly, Taily Reptile Rescue also arrived at the home to recover the animal. The reptile is set to go to an aquarium, group representative Matt Snider said. I come down here every day to feed my bees and I never imagined Id see an alligator, Hoffecker told FOX29. The alligator was likely someones pet and was probably illegally dumped in the area, authorities said. "Youre an awfully big turtle." Tracie Hoffecker That creature cant live here all year. As soon as it gets cold, its going to die. Thats horrible. Its an animal that deserves to live, Hoffecker said. Its legal to own an alligator in the state of Pennsylvania, but illegal to release one into the wild. The Associated Press contributed to this report. The doomed duck boat that sank in the middle of a storm on Thursday, killing 17, was raised from the depths of a Missouri lake Monday, as authorities hope to learn more about why the vessel foundered. During the retrieval efforts, which began around 9 a.m., divers connected the Ride the Ducks boat to a crane that dragged the vessel from its resting place 80-feet deep in Table Rock Lake. U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Scott Stoermer said the boat will be dewatered and given to the National Transportation Security Board for investigation. The boat was at the bottom [of the lake] and resting on its axis, Stoermer said. He added: One of the goals of the investigation is to evaluate if the operational guidance for Ride the Ducks and for this particular operation was followed. About an hour before the Coast Guard began pulling the boat up from the bottom of Table Rock Lake on Monday, the Branson duck boat company announced it had offered to pay the medical bill and funeral costs for the victims of Thursdays accident. In a statement posted to Facebook, the company said it remained deeply saddened by the tragic accident." On Sunday, mechanical inspector Steven Paul told Fox News he warned the company operating the duck boat about massive design flaws and dangerous safety issues almost a year before the accident. Paul, who served in the U.S. Army for six years as a diesel mechanic before opening Test Drive Technologies in 2009, told Fox he was hired by Ripley Entertainment last year to inspect 24 duck boats. Paul said he sent the company a "2-to-3-page fleet inspection report" as well as 24 checklist reports and "as many as 20 photos for each duck" he inspected in August 2017. In the report, he cautioned that the boats' engines -- and pumps that remove water from their hulls -- might fail in bad weather. In rough conditions, water could get into the exhaust system, and then into the motor, cutting it off. With the motor off, its pump for removing water from the hull would not operate. Paul said he will likely hand over his report to the NTSB sometime Monday. The Florida-based company did not respond to multiple calls for comment. BRANSON DUCK BOAT OPERATOR WAS WARNED IN 2017 OF DANGERS, INSPECTOR SAYS The boat, with 31 people aboard, sank Thursday evening after it left for a ride on the lake that was hit by a thunderstorm generating near-hurricane strength winds. National Transportation Safety Board Member Earl Weener said in a Saturday news conference there were recorded anemometer readings of 73 mph. Hurricane-force winds are thought to begin at about 75 mph, said Weener, who also estimated waves rose to around 4 feet, with a possibility of 6-foot crests. Nine people from the same family were killed in the accident. The other tourists onboard were from Missouri, Arkansas and Illinois. All of those aboard the boat who had been taken to a hospital had been released by Monday morning. Cellphone video from a witness showed the duck boat taking on water and struggling to move before sinking. Divers also recovered a video-recording device from the boat, but its unclear if it captured the accident or if the footage can be retrieved. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Detroit cops on Monday were hunting a pair of suspects seen on surveillance video robbing a Vietnam veteran in broad daylight as the man sat on the porch outside his home. Ella Smith, the girlfriend of 68-year-old Kendrick Holloway, told FOX2 Detroit the incident happened Friday after Holloway came home from a medical appointment at a local Veterans Affairs facility. I hope whoever did this, I hope they get caught and punished for what they did, she said. Smith says Holloway had his eyes dilated and couldnt see well when the two men approached his home and demanded his belongings. They got his bracelet, four rings, his watch, his chain, and his cell phone, Smith told FOX2 Detroit. Surveillance video captured from a doorbell camera shows one of the men pulling out a gun and pointing it at Holloway, who is reported to have been shaken up after the robbery. Smith described her street as one where neighbors typically keep watch. But now, she added, you don't feel safe no more. A nail salon manager was convicted Monday of setting a fire that killed two firefighters in Kansas City, Missouri. The Kansas City Star reports that a Jackson County circuit judge found 46-year-old Thu Hong Nguyen guilty of two counts of second-degree murder, second-degree arson and second-degree assault. Her sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 14. She could be facing to up to 30 years in prison for each murder charge. After Judge Joel P. Fahnestock's verdict, Nguyen was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs. Forty-three-year-old Larry Leggio and 39-year-old John Mesh were killed when a brick wall fell on them as they fought a fire at a three-story building containing Nguyen's nail salon in October 2015. Two other firefighters were seriously injured. "It answers a lot of questions that we've all had deep down in our heart and has lifted a little bit of weight off our chest to where we can finally continue on with our healing process," said Missy Leggio, the widow of Larry Leggio, after the verdict. "We still have a little bit of a way to go." According to authorities, Nguyen lit a fire in the nail salon's storeroom and was the last person seen leaving the building. The prosecution portrayed Nguyen as someone who had a habit of burning businesses for insurance money. Nguyen also was found guilty of first-degree arson in a separate fire in 2013 at a nail salon she operated in the Kansas City suburb of Lee's Summit. ___ Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com Toronto cops nabbed the suspected driver who plowed into a group of people on a crowded city street Monday afternoon, leaving 10 people dead and 15 others injured, Deputy Police Chief Peter Yuen said. Police confirmed to Fox News the arrest of the suspect, which came just minutes after news of the incident broke. "The van involved in multiple pedestrians stuck in the Yonge and Finch area of Toronto has been located and the driver arrested," Toronto police tweeted. The identity of the driver has not been released. Cops had initially said eight to 10 people were hit near Yonge Street and Finch Avenue just before 1:30 p.m. A nearby hospital tweeted that it took in seven patients. After striking the pedestrians, the driver sped off, CBC reported. Witnesses said the driver was moving fast and appeared to be acting deliberately, but police said they did not yet know the cause or any possible motive. Photos from the site of the collision showed pedestrians attempting to help people on the ground and multiple bodies covered by sheets. A witness who identified himself as Nick said he was studying when he saw a truck flash by in the area. He said he witnessed a few people pass away in front of him as others screamed. [The driver] was definitely in control of what he was doinghe knew what he was doing, Nick told Global News. Alex Shaker, who witnessed the incident, said the van was speeding down the street before it mounted the curb and plowed into people. He started going down on the sidewalk and crumbling down people one by one, Shaker told CTV. He just destroyed so many peoples lives. Every single thing that got in his way. A worker at a gym in a building next to the site of the incident told Fox News that employees were told to stay inside as first responders tended to the scene. Ryder is aware of an incident involving a Ryder rental van striking pedestrians in Toronto on Monday April 23rd in the early afternoon, the rental company told Fox News. We are saddened by this tragic event, and our deepest sympathies go out to those impacted. We take the safety and security of our entire fleet very seriously and we are cooperating fully with authorities. Our thoughts are with all those affected by the terrible incident at Yonge and Finch in Toronto, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted. Thank you to the first responders working at the scene we're monitoring the situation closely. We are all unsettled and disturbed, Kathleen Wynne, the premier of Ontario, told reporters, emphasizing that she was awaiting further details. We have to wait until there is information before we start talking, she said. As details are available and as it is appropriate, then that information will be made public. Ralph Goodale, Canada's minister of public safety, said the country hasn't changed its terrorism alert level and he has no information that would suggest a need to do so. "Investigators are appealing for information from the public," Toronto police said, adding that a hotline for witnesses will be announced later Monday. "This is a time when this community should come together," Toronto Mayor John Tory said at an afternoon press conference. "I hope that we will, as a city, remind ourselves of the fact that we are admired around the world for being inclusive and for being accepting and understanding and considerate." The crash unfolded as Cabinet ministers from the G7 countries were gathered in Toronto to discuss a range of international issues in the run-up to the G7 meeting near Quebec City in June. Speaking at the event on Monday, Chrystia Freeland, Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs, expressed "sadness and tremendous sympathy for the victims of this incident." Investigators are expected to remain on the scene for several days. Fox News' Greg Norman, Shira Bush and The Associated Press contributed to this report. The Israeli military in coordination with its U.S. and European allies evacuated hundreds of Syrian rescue workers known as the White Helmets from near its volatile frontier with Syria, in a complex and first-of-a-kind operation. The evacuees, who were hemmed in from one side by advancing hostile Syrian troops and from another by militants affiliated with the Islamic State group, were transported to Jordan, from where they are expected to be resettled in Europe and Canada in the coming weeks. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said Sunday that 422 White Helmets volunteers were evacuated, instead of the initial 800 cleared for the operation. Israel's military said the overnight operation was "an exceptional humanitarian gesture" at the request of the United States and European allies due to an "immediate threat to the (Syrians) lives." It posted a video online showing its soldiers handing out water bottles to the evacuees. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a separate video statement, said U.S. President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and others had asked him to help evacuate the group's members. "These are people who saved lives and whose lives are now in danger. I authorized bringing them through Israel to other countries as an important humanitarian gesture," Netanyahu said. The U.S. State Department welcomed the rescue of "these brave volunteers" and cited the United Nations, Israel and Jordan for helping with the operation. The statement from spokeswoman Heather Nauert also called on Syria's government and its ally Russia "to abide by their commitments, end the violence, and protect all Syrian civilians, including humanitarians such as the White Helmets, in areas formerly part of the southwest de-escalation zone and throughout Syria." Britain said the operation was possible due to the joint diplomatic efforts, hailing the efforts of the White Helmets volunteers to save lives in opposition areas. Jeremy Hunt, U.K's foreign secretary, called the successful evacuation "fantastic news," and thanked Israel and Jordan in a tweet for acting quickly following the request. The White Helmets, he said, "are the bravest of the brave and in a desperate situation this is at least one ray of hope." The members of the White Helmets and their families had been stranded along the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights following the Syrian government offensive in southwestern Syria which began in June. Raed Saleh, head of the White Helmets, also known as the Syrian Civil Defense, said a number of volunteers and their families were evacuated from a dangerous, besieged area. This was the first such Israeli intervention in Syria's lengthy civil war, now in its eighth year. Although it has sent aid into Syria and has provided medical treatment to thousands of Syrians who reached the Golan Heights frontier, the Israeli military said its actions did not reflect a change to Israel's non-intervention policy in Syria's war, where all the warring parties are considered hostile. It was an unprecedented operation to provide protection and asylum to allies of Western nations in Syria's complex battlefield. The White Helmets have enjoyed backing and received finances and training from the United States and other Western nations for years. Because of their work in opposition areas, where they were almost exclusively the only ones to offer rescue services in the face of the government military advances, they were considered public enemy number one by the Syrian government. They offered services where state institutions and services are non-existent. Their facilities were targeted, and their volunteers hit in what became known as "double tap" attacks that drew the volunteers to areas of bombings only to hit them once on site. The Syrian government, and Russia, have called the White Helmets "terrorists," accused them of being "agents" for foreign powers, and of cooperating with radical insurgent groups. Both Moscow and Damascus have accused the White Helmets of staging rescue missions and chemical attacks to blame on the government. On Sunday, Syrian state media kept up the campaign against the group, pointing out that Israel facilitated the evacuation, citing it as evidence that the group was collaborating with an enemy power. Syrian state TV al-Ikhbariya called the evacuation a "scandal." The State News Agency SANA said "the secret" of the group had been revealed and their "role as an agent ended." Syrian lawmaker Khaled Abboud said that "foreign powers are pulling their agents out of the battlefield" because of the Syrian military victories that have quashed the "aggression" against Syria. In a quick offensive, Syrian government forces, backed by Russian air forces, have been advancing from the east on areas held by the opposition in the strategic southwestern region that straddles the Jordanian border and the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel in 1967. They first seized the border with Jordan, squeezing the opposition in the center and progressively chipping away at areas the rebels held for years. For the first time since the war began in 2011, government forces regained positions along the disengagement line following a cease-fire deal with Israel in 1974. This left the rebels and the White Helmets besieged by the government from one side, the sealed frontier with Israel, and by the group affiliated with the Islamic State group from the south. Surrender deals were reached with the armed groups, allowing thousands to evacuate to the northern province of Idlib, where the opposition still holds sway. But one civil defense official, refusing to be identified by name for his safety, said the Russians refused to allow the White Helmets to be evacuated to the north. The Associated Press first reported on Friday that U.S. officials were finalizing plans to evacuate several hundred Syrian civil defense workers and their families from southwest Syria as Russian-backed government forces closed in on the area along the Golan Heights frontier. Evacuation plans were accelerated after last week's NATO summit in Brussels. The evacuees are being assisted by the U.N. Refugee agency in Jordan pending international resettlement. The Jordanian Foreign Ministry's spokesman, Mohammed al-Kayed, said the Syrians would remain in a closed area in Jordan for three months. Safadi, Jordan's foreign minister, said in a tweet that his government approved the evacuation after a pledge from Britain, Germany and Canada that the evacuees will be resettled in three months. It is not clear if the White Helmets who have been previously evacuated to Idlib from other parts of Syria will receive similar treatment. Since the offensive began, Jordan said it will not open its borders to the newly displaced Syrians. Jordan hosts at least 650,000 registered Syrian refugees, according to the U.N., but Amman says a similar number of undocumented Syrians are also in the kingdom. Some 300,000 have been displaced by the fighting, with only a few thousands opting for evacuation to Idlib, which is expected to be the target of the next government offensive. Aron Lund, a Syria expert with the Century Foundation, said after the international community's funding and promoting the White Helmets for years, the evacuation should not be a surprise. "It seems like simple moral math to me that when the uprising fails, they should try to get their guys out alive, with their families," he told AP in an email. "Had the international community done this much earlier and also offered safe haven to the rebel leaders they've been backing, they could have helped get irreconcilables out of the equation and reduce the amount of killing and destruction." "All sides benefit from giving the losing team a safe exit," he said. Separately Sunday, al-Ikhbariya TV quoted a military official as saying that a military post in the town of Masyaf in Hama province was hit by an Israeli airstrike. The area houses several defense ministry facilities. A teenager who wrote dozens of uplifting notes and attached them to a bridge in England helped saved six lives, police said Sunday. Paige Hunter, 18, attached more than 40 "heartfelt notes" to the Wearmouth Bridge in Sunderland in an effort to "offer solace to people facing a mental health crisis," Northumbria Police said in a news release. SUICIDE RATES ON RISE IN US, CDC REPORTS The notes included such messages as, "Even though things are difficult, your life matters; you're a shining light in a dark world, so just hold on." Hunter, a student at East Durham College, returned to the bridge this week, where she was presented with a framed certificate by Pitt commending her good deed. "We thought it was important to applaud the work Paige has been doing and the help she has given those in Sunderland who are going through a mental health crisis," Chief Superintendent Sarah Pitt said. Pitt added that Hunter "should be very proud of herself" and went on to say, "It is important that we encourage people to speak out and raise awareness of mental health issues and the impact on peoples' lives." Hunter said she posted the notes because she wanted to help people, and called the response she's received "inspiring." "I wasnt doing this for an award; it was just something that I wanted to do," the teen added. "It's just amazing, the response it has had." The United Kingdom's National Health Service encourages those who are experiencing suicidal thoughts to call Samaritans an emotional support hotline at 116 123. Four men were arrested in connection with an apparent acid attack on a 3-year-old boy that occurred at a busy store in England on Saturday, police said. Three men, ages 22, 25 and 26, were being questioned in London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm, West Mercia police said Monday. A 39-year-old suspect was arrested Sunday. The attack took place around 2:15 p.m. at Home Bargains, a discount retail store in Worcester. At this time we are treating this as a deliberate attack on a 3-year-old boy, West Mercia Police Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said in a statement. The incident will rightly shock the local community and I would like to reassure local people that we are carrying out a thorough investigation to identify those responsible. Police said the boy was treated at the hospital for serious burns to his arms and face, and was later released. Authorities said the long-term medical implications for the child are unknown, but they hope he will not suffer life-changing injuries. It's an awful incident and we're really, really concerned about this, Travis told Sky News. Worcester City Council leader Marc Bayliss described the attack as absolutely pure evil, and urged anyone with information to come forward. Think if this was a member of your family, an innocent child, a 3-year-old probably scarred or damaged for life by this, he told Sky News. We need to bring the perpetrators to justice, and quickly. Fox News' Travis Fedschun and the Associated Press contributed to this report. The acid attack of a 3-year-old boy inside a busy store in England highlights the growing trend of attackers using the corrosive liquid as a weapon of choice. Four men ages 22, 25, 26, and 39 were arrested in connection with the Saturday attack against a toddler inside a discount store in Worcester. The child, who suffered serious burns to his arms and face, was treated at the hospital and later released. At this time we are treating this as a deliberate attack on a 3-year-old boy, West Merica Police Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said in a statement over the weekend. The incident will rightly shock the local community and I would like to reassure the local public that we are carrying out a thorough investigation to identify those responsible. 4 MEN ARRESTED IN CONNECTION WITH APPARENT ACID ATTACK ON 3-YEAR-OLD BRITISH BOY, POLICE SAY The use of corrosive liquids, which leave victims gruesomely disfigured with life-altering injuries, has grown in popularity the last few years. In Britain, the number of reported attacks using acid rose from 262 in 2015 to 454 in 2016. In 2017, there were more than 500 acid attacks reported across the region. In London alone, there were 208 reported cases of crimes using corrosive substances in 2016-2017, Metropolitan police reported last year. British police have reported seeing an increase in acid attacks during the last year, but it is very rare for a victim to be so young. Some attacks are related to gang fights or late-night bar confrontations. Most of the attacks have happened in London, but they have been reported in many parts of Britain. This year, a London teenager was given a prison sentence of more than 10 years after being convicted of spraying acid onto the faces of moped drivers so he could steal their mopeds. Police also report that innocuous liquids sometimes are thrown into the face of mugging targets to make them think they have been hit with a corrosive substance. The victims panic and give up their valuables more easily, police said. WOMAN SUFFERS SEVERE BURNS IN 'CAUSTIC CHEMICAL' ATTACK; SUSPECT FLEES, POLICE SAY Simon Harding, a criminologist and expert on gangs at Middlesex University, told the BBC that acid is becoming a weapon of first choice because acid throwing is a way of showing dominance, power and control, building enormous fear among gang peer groups. He said that gang members see using acid in attacks as a having a better advantage to get a less charge than using a knife. Theres no specific offence of throwing acid, Harding said. Its a hard offence to prove because there is rarely any DNA evidence and its much easier to dispose of a plastic bottle than it is a knife. The British government has been working diligently to crackdown on the use of acid, however there are no laws because many times the liquid is made up of easily assessable household products. According to the BBC, there are no age restrictions on buying household bleach or drain-cleaning products containing acid in the U.K. Last year, there was a proposal to ban the sale of most corrosive substances and acids to those under the age of 19 and to make it a criminal offense to carry these substances in a public area. Acid attacks are absolutely revolting, former Home Secretary Amber Rudd said last year when she proposed the ban. You have all seen the pictures of victims that never fully recover. Endless surgeries. Lives ruined. The use of acid in attacks has even spread to children as young as 12 who have been arming themselves with substances "for self-defense." Robin Walker, the Worcester representative in Parliament, said lawmakers are considering allowing tougher sentences for people convicted of any type of intentional assault with acid. He described what happened to the 3-year-old boy as "horrific." The Associated Press contributed to this report. A 19-year-old American tourist visiting Australia plunged to his death from a cliff while taking a selfie, police said. The unidentified man was part of a group visiting a popular whale-watching clifftop called Cape Solander, south of Sydney, on Monday when he slipped, falling about 30 feet into the sea below. A lifesaver helicopter, which arrived about seven minutes after he fell, used green dye to help trace the currents. He was found unconscious just below the waters surface directly below the whale watching platform about 30 minutes later, a spokesman for Westpac Life Save Rescue Helicopter told news.com.au. Paramedics pulled him onto dry land, but were unable to revive him after performing CPR. He was here with a group of friends to go whale watching. They've made their way down onto the rock platform at this stage it appears to be misadventure where he's slipped and fallen over the edge, New South Wales Police Chief Inspector Chris Hill told the Daily Telegraph. The mans death comes about a month after a man in his 30s died after falling from the same spot while whale watching, news.com.au reported. Those rocks are very slippery. For your safety, we recommend that you stay up on the whale watching platform and please dont go down on the rocks, hill told the Australian Associated Press. Cape Solander is considered one of Sydneys best whale-watching locations, as hundreds of humpback whales migrate in June and July to the warmer waters. If youre lucky you wont even need to look far whales have been known to swim as close as 200 meters from the coast, the National Parks NSW website says of the area. In a radical reform of Argentina's defense doctrine, President Mauricio Macri said Monday he is removing a ban on military involvement in fighting crime, terrorist threats and other internal security issues. Macri said he will modify a 2006 decree that limited the armed forces to defense against attacks by another country. "It's important that they can collaborate in internal security, mainly by providing logistic support in the border zones," he said at a public act held at a military base. "We need armed forces that are capable of facing the challenges of the 21st century, but we have an outdated defense system, the product of years of underinvestment and the absence of a long-term policy." Argentina's current defense doctrine was adopted with the country's 1976-1983 military dictatorship in mind. Human rights groups estimate up to 30,000 people were kidnapped, tortured or killed during that period. Human rights groups immediately criticized the decision, saying it could authorize military espionage, lead to repression and increase violence. "Involving the armed forces in security issues puts at risk the civil government and human rights ... we have to reject this reform and defend the strict separation between defense and security," said the Buenos Aires-based Center for Legal and Social Studies. Former Defense Minister Agustin Rossi said separating national defense from internal security has been a state policy since 1983 and should remain unchanged. "Involving the armed forces in drug trafficking issues is illegal. In countries like Colombia, Brazil and Mexico this failed, and is being carefully examined now," said Rossi, who was in the left-of-center administration of President Cristina Fernandez, who preceded the conservative Macri. The current defense minister, Oscar Aguad, defended the plan, saying the change seeks only to give logistical support to security forces, including those fighting drug trafficking in the northern border region with Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay. "We're trying to help them dissuade transnational groups from drug trafficking and terrorism to come into Argentina. They must block them from entering our territory," Aguad said. For now, the government plans to issue the changes through a decree instead of a bill sent to Congress. "We know that this transformation won't be easy," Macri said. "Profound changes are never easy. But this is the first step to build the modern, professional and equipped armed forces that Argentina needs." A woman was lynched in central India on rumors that she was part of a gang that kidnapped children, police said Monday, days after the country's highest court called for immediate steps to control deadly mob violence across the country. At least 14 people were arrested in Madhya Pradesh state's Singrauli district following the killing of the woman, who was about 25, senior police officer Riyaz Iqbal said. Iqbal said residents informed police on Saturday that a woman's body was lying in a forested area. Police recovered the body, which bore multiple injury marks, he said. An initial investigation showed that she had been taken Friday night by a mob which dragged her to a village community center while punching and kicking her and hitting her with sticks. Iqbal said the woman was seen roaming around neighboring villages a few days earlier amid wild rumors that members of child kidnapping gangs were active in the area. The officer said the woman had not yet been identified. "She was not able to properly communicate with the mob and in all probability appears to have been mentally unsound," he said. India has a long history of mob violence, but in recent years, the internet and smartphones have aided the circulation of deadly rumors even to remote places. At least 25 people have been lynched and dozens wounded in mob attacks in the last three months over rumors that they were part of child kidnapping gangs. In addition, at least 20 people have been lynched and dozens wounded by Hindu extremists who call themselves cow protectors and are linked to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bhartiya Janta Party. Most of the attacks by the so-called cow vigilantes have targeted Muslims, who make up 14 percent of India's 1.3 billion people. Hindus make up about 80 percent of the population. The victims have been accused of either smuggling cows for slaughter or eating beef. Lower-caste Hindus who carry out undesirable tasks such as skinning dead cattle have also faced mob violence. Last Tuesday, India's highest court asked the federal government to consider enacting a law to deal with mob violence. The Indian government recently accused the Facebook-owned messaging service WhatsApp of fueling the deadly rumors. The service responded last Thursday by announcing restrictions on the number of groups to which a message can be forwarded. In India, the limit on forwarding is five chats at once, while for WhatsApp users outside India, the limit on forwarding will be 20. next Image 1 of 2 prev Image 2 of 2 The Latest on forest fires in Greece (all times local): 9:10 p.m. Regional Greek authorities have declared a state of emergency in the eastern and western parts of greater Athens, as fires fanned by gale-force winds raged through pine forests and seaside towns on either side of the Greek capital. One fire was burning Monday northeast of Athens in the Penteli area, moving into the town of Rafina. In nearby Mati, the coast guard was sending a patrol boat to evacuate people trapped on a beach by the flames. The second wildfire was ravaging mountainous pine forests 50 kilometers (31 miles) west of Athens. The blaze has created such thick smoke that the main highways between the Peloponnese and the Greek mainland have been shut down and an orange haze has descended on Athens. Regional governor Rena Dourou called the state of emergency in East and West Attica and was providing buses, water trucks and machinery to help battle the fires. ___ 1:30 p.m. Two major forest fires are raging out of control on either side of the Greek capital Monday, burning houses, prompting residents to flee and turning the sky over Athens a hazy orange from the smoke. Some people were reported to be trapped on a beach by the flames. The first fire broke out in a pine forest near the seaside settlement of Kineta 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of Athens between the capital and Corinth. At least 150 firefighters were on the scene while five water-dropping planes and seven helicopters helped to fight the blaze from the air. The second major fire broke out Monday afternoon in the Penteli area northeast of Athens. Local authorities said they were evacuating children's summer camps, while dozens of homes and cars were destroyed. At least three aircraft and a helicopter were battling the flames, along with at least 50 firefighters. The coast guard was sending at least one patrol boat to rescue people who called to say the fire had trapped them on a beach. Terrorism was not being ruled out as a motive after a gunman fired into packed Toronto restaurants and cafes Sunday, killing two people and injuring 13 others before dying in a gun battle with police, officials said. Ontario's Special Investigations Unit said in a news release two people were killed by a man who fired shots at groups of people several times while walking along Danforth Avenue. Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders said cops were investigating "every possible motive, including terrorism." Saunders said the victims were an 18-year-old woman and 10-year-old girl. The 13 other victims ranged in age from 10 to 59-years-old "I'm looking at every single possible motive for this," the Canadian top cop told reporters. "When you have this many people struck by gunfire, it's a grave concern." Saunders said it was not clear if the gunman was killed by police or if he killed himself, but the Toronto Sun reported the suspect killed himself after the gunbattle. The SIU said the suspected gunman, a 29-year-old man, was located by police on Bowden Street and "an exchange of gunfire took place." The man fled the area and was located, deceased, on Danforth Avenue, according to the SIU. Det. Sgt. Terry Brown of Toronto's homicide unit said during a news conference the shooting was a "very rapid and fluid incident," and there are "several scenes within the scene." He said that some people have "life changing injuries," and authorities are working to get a search warrant for the suspect's home. SIU spokeswoman Monica Hudon said the agency is still working on identifying the shooter's identity and that authorities have the man's handgun. Hudon did not disclose any information on a possible motive for the rampage. "The SIU's investigation will take as long as is necessary to conduct a thorough investigation," she told reporters. "It takes as long as it needs to take." Hudon added that the suspect is from Toronto, and that the police watchdog will focus on what happened between police and the man. Toronto Police will focus on what took place before he was spotted by police. A spokesperson with the Toronto Police told Fox News that officials are not identifying the gunman or other victims as of now. Investigators in the city's forensic, homicide, guns and gangs, and victim services units are on scene in addition to Toronto Police's canine unit, according to police. Authorities received a call shortly after 10 p.m. about the incident in Toronto's Greektown neighborhood, a lively residential area with crowded Greek restaurants and cafes. Witnesses reported hearing many shots and described the suspect walking past restaurants and cafes and patios on both sides of the street and firing into them. John Tulloch told the Canadian Press he and his brother had just gotten out of their car when he heard about 20 to 30 gunshots. "We just ran. We saw people starting to run, so we just ran," he said. A video from one witness shows a man dressed in black clothes and a black hat walking quickly and firing three shots from the sidewalk into at least one shop or restaurant. Dr. Najma Ahmed, a trauma surgeon with St Michael's Hospital and acting head of the trauma surgical unit, told reporters at a brief news conference on Monday that there were five patients at the hospital, including three who underwent "immediate lifesaving surgery." All five patients are in serious and critical condition, she added. Another witness to the rampage told CP24 he was standing 10 to 15 feet away from the alleged gunman. He looked around 35, long hair, black hat. He had a dark shirt with long sleeves rolled up and black pants, the man told the television station. He was skinny, but he had this horrible look in his face, like he was under the influence or something. Andrew Mantzios told The Globe and Mail he heard gunshots ring out around 10 p.m. and saw a man dressed in all black walking towards the group of people he was with carrying a handgun. He had this horrible expression on his face, Mantzios said. Mantzios told the newspaper the gunman then fired at a group of people in the street. And then a lady tried to run and she fell down, he said. He turned around and shot her point blank, two or three times. Toronto Councilor Paula Fletcher told CP24 she was told the gunman was emotionally disturbed. "It's not gang related. It looks like someone who is very disturbed," Fletcher said. Councilor Mary Fragedakis also said she heard the gunman was disturbed. Toronto Mayor John Tory said the city will be "relentless" in finding out what led to the shooting rampage, which he described as a cowardly act of violence. "This is an attack against innocent families and against our entire city," he told the city council on Monday. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the rampage a "terrible tragedy." "My thoughts are with everyone affected by the terrible tragedy on the Danforth last night in Toronto, and may the injured make a full recovery," he posted to Twitter. "The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave - and well be there to support you through this difficult time." Over the past weekend, Toronto police deployed dozens of additional officers to deal with a recent spike in gun violence in the city. The city's mayor has previously said the city has a gun problem. The mass shooting comes a few months after the driver of a van plowed into pedestrians on a Toronto sidewalk, killing 10 people and injuring 14. Authorities have not disclosed a motive in that incident. But they have said the suspect, Alek Minassian, posted a message on social media referencing a misogynistic online community before the attack. Fox News' Laura Ingle and The Associated Press contributed to this report next Image 1 of 2 prev Image 2 of 2 Gunmen opened fire on worshippers inside a mosque in eastern Nangarhar province, killing four people, according to a provincial official. Attahullah Khogyani, the provincial governor's spokesman, said three other people, including the mosque's religious leader, were wounded in the attack, which took place on Sunday evening in the district of Surkh Rod. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but both the Taliban and Islamic State militants are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially in Nangarhar province. Earlier on Sunday, an Islamic State suicide bomber struck near Kabul's airport, killing 20 people and narrowly missing Afghanistan's vice president, who was returning home after living in Turkey for over a year. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, a former Uzbek warlord, and his entourage were unharmed, but more than 70 other people were wounded, according to Hashmat Stanekzai, spokesman for the Kabul's police chief. Among those killed in the attack near the airport was Mohammad Akhtar, a 31-year-old father of four children who was working as driver for the news agency Agence France Presse in Afghanistan. Hundreds of relatives, friends and family members attended a burial ceremony for Akhtar in the Guldara district north of the capital Kabul on Monday morning. In April AFP's chief photographer in Afghanistan, Shah Maria killed along with eight other reporters in a double suicide bombing by the Islamic State group in Kabul. The attack marked the deadliest assault on reporters since the fall of the Taliban in 2001 and claimed a total of 25 lives and wounded at least 45 others. Akhtar was related to the late Maria and was on his way to office for his night shift when the suicide bomber blew himself up near the airport. "There were both military and civilians who were killed and wounded in the attack and the dead toll could change," said Stanekzai, spokesman for the Kabul police chief. The number of civilians killed in Afghanistan in the first half of this year has increased by 1 percent, according to the latest report by the United Nations, compared to the same period last year. The U.N. mission in Afghanistan said the number 1,692 killed by violence is the highest 6-month death toll since the systematic documentation of civilian casualties started in 2009. The UNAMA report documented 3,430 Afghan civilians were wounded in the period from January to June. The killed and wounded add up to a total of 5,122 civilian casualties, which is a three percent overall decrease from the first six months of 2017, it added. Since the U.S. and NATO forces formally concluded their combat mission at the end of 2014, a resurgent Taliban has stepped up its attacks across the country and an Islamic State affiliate has also emerged to launch horrific high-profile attacks that have claimed the lives of scores of civilians. next Image 1 of 2 prev Image 2 of 2 A prominent liberal South Korean politician embroiled in a corruption scandal was found dead on Monday, police said, in what appeared to be one of the country's highest-profile suicides in recent years. The body of three-term lawmaker Roh Hoe-chan of the small opposition Justice Party was found near a Seoul apartment building. Police said they believe Roh, 61, leapt to his death from the building after leaving a suicide note. "Dear fellow citizens, I'm sorry. It's entirely my fault, so please punish me and I'd like you to continue to support the Justice Party," Roh said in a note addressed to party members. South Korea media reported that Roh wrote two other suicide notes to his family but their contents weren't made public. Roh faced an investigation over an allegation that he received money from an associate of an influential blogger jailed in an online opinion-rigging scandal. The allegation tarnished the clean and reform-minded image of Roh, a former labor activist who has been a symbol for progressives in South Korea. Roh's death triggered an outpouring of sympathy from many South Koreans. President Moon Jae-in said his "heart really aches" over "the sad news" of Roh's death. The independent counsel investigating the rigging scandal, Huh Ik-bum, told a televised briefing that he felt distressed by the "tragic news" of Roh's death. Huh said he respects Roh and will pray for his soul. South Korea has one of the highest suicide rates among developed countries. A string of business executives, K-pop stars and other celebrities have killed themselves in recent years. If Roh's death is officially determined a suicide, he would be the highest-profile politician to kill himself since former President Roh Moo-hyun jumped to his death in 2009 amid a corruption scandal involving his family. Canadian authorities identified the gunman who killed two people and injured 13 others in a lively Toronto neighborhood Sunday night as 29-year-old Faisal Hussain, whose family claimed had suffered from "severe mental health challenges." The Special Investigations Unit of the Ontario Provincial Police said a member of Hussain's immediate family and a "family representative" confirmed the gunman's identity. Moments after Hussain's identity was released, his family issued a statement to multiple media outlets saying he had been "struggling with psychosis and depression his entire life." "The interventions of professionals were unsuccessful," the statement read in part. "Medications and therapy were unable to treat him. While we did our best to seek help for him throughout his life of struggle and pain, we could never imagine that this would be his devastating and destructive end." Authorities say Hussain fired a handgun into restaurants and cafes in Toronto's Greektown neighborhood before dying amid an exchange of gunfire with police. A 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman were killed. Earlier Monday, Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders said he would not speculate on a motive but did not rule out terrorism. Toronto Councilor Paula Fletcher said the attack was "not gang related" and that the gunman shot "indiscriminately" into restaurants and into a park. The murdered 18-year-old was identified as Reese Fallon, a recent high school graduate who volunteered for Canada's Liberal party and was due to attend McMaster University in the fall. Her family members said in a statement that they were devastated. "She was ... smart, passionate and full of energy. It is a huge loss," said a member of the Canadian Parliament, Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, who knew Fallon. Flags at Toronto City Hall, as well as at Fallon's former high school, Malvern CI, and at school board buildings were lowered to half-staff. "An engaging student, Reese Fallon graduated from Malvern CI just last month and was highly regarded by staff and loved by her friends," the school board said in a statement, adding that support was being offered to students. The 13 wounded ranged in age from 10 to 59, and suffered injuries ranging from serious to minor, Saunders said. He did not name the victims, who included eight women and girls, and seven men. Dr. Najma Ahmed of St. Michael's Hospital said five patients had been admitted in serious or critical condition and that three of the five underwent immediate lifesaving operations. Dr. Paul Hannam of Michael Garron Hospital said the facility had treated seven people in connection with the shooting, two of whom had suffered gunshot wounds. Five patients were treated and released, while two patients were in stable condition and continuing to receive treatment. A video taken by a witness showed a man dressed all in black walking quickly down a sidewalk and firing three shots into at least one shop or restaurant in Toronto's Greektown, a residential area crowded with Greek restaurants and cafes. Witnesses heard many shots and described the suspect walking past restaurants and cafes and patios on both sides of the street and firing into them. Ontario's police watchdog said there was an exchange of gunfire between the assailant and two officers on a side street before the gunman was found dead near Danforth Avenue where the shootings occurred. It was not immediately clear whether he killed himself or was killed by police. A post-mortem on Hussain will be conducted Tuesday in Toronto. Though mass shootings are rare in Canada's largest city, Toronto police had deployed dozens of additional officers over the weekend to deal with a recent rise in gun violence in the city, which has seen 23 gun homicides so far this year, compared to 16 fatal shootings in the first half of 2017. In April, the driver of a van plowed into pedestrians on a Toronto sidewalk, killing 10 people and injuring 14. Authorities have not disclosed a motive, but said the arrested driver, Alek Minassian, posted a message on social media referencing a misogynistic online community before the attack. A now-deleted Facebook post indicated anger toward women and saluted Elliot Rodger, a community college student who killed six people and wounded 13 in shooting and stabbing attacks near the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2014. "The Incel Rebellion has already begun!" read the post, using the term incel to refer to "involuntarily celibate." Meanwhile, Ottawa police arrested a 24-year-old man with a knife on Monday during the Changing of the Guard on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. No one was injured. It was unclear if the incident was related to the mass shooting in Toronto. The Associated Press contributed to this report. The U.N. human rights chief sharply criticized Israel on Monday, calling recent killings by its soldiers during Palestinian demonstrations along the Gaza border fence "shocking" and saying living conditions inflicted by Israel's 11-year blockade of the territory are "grossly inadequate." Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said in a video address to the U.N. Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People that the situation in Gaza has escalated dramatically in recent months with "the potential to generate threats to peace across a far broader region." Zeid, who heads the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said it is essential for all parties to cooperate with the independent, international commission of inquiry into the recent deadly events in Gaza that his office is helping to establish. It was authorized by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council on May 18 "to advance accountability" for the killings and violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, he said. Zeid said there are "serious concerns" that Israeli accountability mechanisms don't comply with international standards of "independence, impartiality, and effectiveness." "Very few investigations ever occur," he said. "In the rare cases where an investigation has led to an indictment, the sentence has been extremely lenient in light of the gravity of the crime committed." Zeid said it is vital to address the root causes of the Gaza demonstrations, which have resulted in the deaths of over 100 Palestinians, including 17 children, and the wounding of more than 4,100 others with live ammunition since March 30. In addition to "grossly inadequate living conditions" caused by Israel's blockade for the residents of Gaza, most of whom are refugees, restrictive measures have also been imposed by Egypt that have "exacerbated these conditions," Zeid said. He added that the situation in Gaza may be "severely aggravated" in the coming months by the financial crisis facing the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, as a result of dramatic cuts to its budget by the Trump administration. Zeid criticized last week's approval by Israel's parliament of a bill defining that country as the nation-state of the Jewish people. He said that it "anchors inherent discrimination against non-Jewish communities," most notably the Arab citizens of Israel and residents of occupied East Jerusalem. He warned that it "could also further inflame tensions." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the bill's passage a "historic moment in the history of Zionism and the history of the state of Israel," saying: "Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people, which honors the individual rights of all its citizens." Zeid also criticized Israel's approval, planning and construction of settlements across with West Bank and East Jerusalem, which the Palestinians want as the capital of their future state. He called Israel's detention of hundreds of Palestinian children, some without charge, under a system of "administrative detention," a "fundamental human rights violation." "It should be absolutely clear that international law requires detention only be used for children as a last resort," he said. And whether for children or adults, Zeid said, detention without trial "contravenes Israel's obligations under international law." "An estimated 440 Palestinians are being held in 'administrative detention,' according to the latest figures," he said. "Israel should immediately charge, or release, all of them." Two dozen boys sit quietly in a small classroom in crisp uniforms, their nations flag draped around their necks. Colorful drawings decorate the walls, yet a sense of deep darkness punctuates the air: These boys have been heavily traumatized by Yemens ongoing civil war, and almost all of the students were forcibly recruited as child soldiers. At least half of the child soldiers -- who all appear far smaller and younger than their 12 to 15 years -- are believed to have been victims of sexual assault while under control of the militia, experts say. The most difficult thing is helping those who come from the battlefields having been sexually abused. It takes a long time to help, Dr. Mahyob Almechlatky, a psychiatrist at the Rehabilitation of Children Recruited and Impacted by War in Yemen Project in Marib, Yemen, told Fox News. Sadly, its very common. A big amount of the students have faced this and we are trying to take away the shame. The rehabilitation center, with a staff 25 health professionals, is now trying to heal those silent scars. Financed by the King Salman (KS) Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, the project aims at rehabilitating the children and reintegrating them into society and back to school. The intensive approach to get out the negative energy includes everything from arts and crafts, to sports, counseling and hypnosis. Sexual abuse is very common, maybe 50 to 60 percent, said Mohammad Mobarak, the project manager for the school and the KS Relief Center. This conflict has touched too many young lives, and we just want to give them the opportunity to be a child again. They did not choose to be a part of this. This class, three days away from graduation, will soon be added to the list of some 180 boys who have already gone through the live-in, one-month rehabilitation program since its inception in August last year. 'If I was too slow, they beat me.' Khalil, former child soldier in Yemen And every child has their own heart-wrenching story, each more tragic than the next. Khalil, 14, recalls how he was playing outside his Amran home with a friend when a man drove by and offered them a ride. They ended up at a Houthi militia base. For three months Khalil was ordered to perform various military tasks such as filling sandbags. If I was too slow, Khalil whispered, his face now lopsided, his mouth still swollen, they beat me. Omar Abdullah, 14, also was swept up from a playground outside his local Amran mosque last year and for two months was abused. If he refused to undertake the commanders orders, he was pummeled with the barrel of an AK-47 and starved into submission. Around a year ago, one of the Houthi supervisors offered to sneak Omar out of the military center in exchange for the equivalent of $100. They put me between the corpses, the dead fighters, and for ten hours I could not move, Omar remembered, fleshing out that fearful drive with vivid detail. Then when we arrived the supervisor said he would blow up my house if I did not give him the money. My family had no money, so I begged my neighbor who helped. And for Ahmed, 15, who still speaks in staccato as his eyes stare far off into the distance, he too was offered a ride home while herding his goats on the outskirts of Marib. Before he could interject, he was hurled inside and his four-month hell with a Houthi militia began. They gave us the wrong information; they told us we were fighting ISIS, Ahmed said. But when were fighting, my friend, who was a child like me, was killed next to me and I panicked. A local army unit attached to the Yemeni forces surrendered, and took him to the sheikh of his local tribe for safe passage home. Other children have been coerced into committing atrocities against their fellow child recruits -- such as stabbing them to death. The program also comprises a three month follow-up protocol to ensure the lost boys return to school, as well as a parental component. We give courses to educate the parents on awareness and legal responsibilities to protect their children, to make sure they dont end up with fighters and that once they graduate here they go back to school, Mobarak explained. 'They can't scare me anymore.' Ahmed, a former child soldier in Yemen The centers expert staff say they dont ask which militia or military outfit the boys were abducted into, but the large majority are thought to have been abducted by Houthi factions who have controlled the capital Sanaa since September 2014. In March 2015, this prompted a neighboring Saudi Arabia-led coalition to intervene with a deadly bombing campaign, spiraling the country into a protracted state of war. And since then, the United Nations has verified more than 2,000 cases of child soldier recruitment. At least 6,000 minors are still thought today to be fighting on both sides, with Houthis bearing most of the blame for violating this aspect of international law. Outside the center, the markings of mortar rounds mottle the walls, and charred glass surrounds a prominent dip in the earth. The rehab facility has been targeted by unknown actors three times since it started eleven months ago, with the most recent assault on the night of May 2. They cant scare me anymore, Ahmed added. I wont let them scare me anymore. Alex Wong/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- The first trial in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation is set to begin this week when former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort heads to court in Alexandria, Virginia. Although Manafort is the first to face trial, the recent indictment of 12 Russian military intelligence officers could be a sign that Mueller's investigation is heating up. More than 30 individuals and/or companies have now been charged in Muellers probe into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. Its also spurred other investigations, including an ongoing probe by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump continues to call for an end to what he repeatedly refers to as a witch hunt. Heres a quick look at where things stand. Indictments of Russian intelligence officers The 12 Russian intelligence officers were indicted July 13 for alleged hacking that led to the leaking of emails belonging to Hillary Clinton and her then-campaign chairman John Podesta. The indictment targets the Russians for allegedly engaging in a sustained effort to hack networks of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the Democratic National Committee, and Hillary Clintons campaign. All 12 are members of the GRU, Russia's military intelligence service, the indictment alleges. The indictment aligns with the U.S. intelligence communitys conclusion last year that Russian military intelligence officials were partly responsible for the leaks. Trump sent mixed signals about his stance on Russian meddling during a news conference at last weeks summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin when he called Putin's denials of Russian involvement "extremely strong. He tried to clarify his comments the next day back in Washington, saying he has "full faith in and accepts the conclusion of the U.S. intelligence community about election meddling. The 12 Russians indicted arent the only ones. Thirteen other Russian nationals have already been indicted for allegedly meddling in the 2016 election by launching mass social media misinformation campaigns. Those charges allege that the 13 Russians violated criminal laws with the intent of meddling "with U.S. elections and political processes." That indictment depicts an elaborate scheme in which some of the Russians are accused of coming to the U.S. with the intention of undermining the American political and electoral process, including the 2016 presidential election. Guilty pleas in the presidents orbit While the most recent indictments have been against Russians, several Americans have also been charged by the special counsel. Most have pleaded guilty and in some cases are now cooperating with Mueller. The presidents former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, served just 24 days before resigning amid controversy over whether he had lied to Vice President Mike Pence about communications he had with the Russias ambassador to the U.S. Flynn was later charged with lying to the FBI about contacts he had with the ambassador in December 2016. He took a plea deal in December 2017 and has been cooperating with the special counsel ever since, his lawyers said when Flynn appeared in court July 10. He has yet to receive a sentencing date. Former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos, however, is set to be sentenced in September for a similar crime. Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about communications he had with a foreign professor who allegedly told him Russian officials possessed potentially incriminating Hillary Clinton emails. He has been cooperating with prosecutors for months. In addition to Flynn and Papadopoulos, former Trump campaign aide Rick Gates has also pleaded guilty to charges of lying to the FBI and conspiracy against the United States. Gates has admitted to helping Paul Manafort steer tens of millions of dollars in income overseas and failing to pay U.S. taxes on it. The charges against Gates are unrelated to his work for the Trump campaign. Hes cooperating with the special counsel. The first trial While Gates pleaded guilty, his longtime business associate and former Trump campaign manager Manafort did not. Manafort has maintained hes innocent of the charges levied against him by Muellers team both in Washington, D.C., and in Virginia. He pleaded not guilty to money laundering, tax evasion, bank fraud, conspiracy against the United States, failure to register as a foreign agent and lying to the FBI, among other counts. Manaforts Virginia trial is set to begin Wednesday, though his legal team has requested a delay. His Washington, D.C., trial is set to begin in September. Hes being held in an Alexandria, Virginia, jail while he awaits trial. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. 2021 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Nintendo has filed a lawsuit against the alleged operator of ROM websites LoveROMS and LoveRetro, which grant access to a number of retro titles, including many developed by Nintendo. As reported by TorrentFreak, the Japanese outfit has suggested both sites "are built almost entirely on the brazen and mass-scale infringement of Nintendos intellectual property rights." The company also claims the defendants aren't casual fans looking to preserve history, but "sophisticated" video game pirates with extensive knowledge of Nintendo intellectual property. "The LoveROMs and LoveRetro websites are among the most open and notorious online hubs for pirated video games," reads the lawsuit, readable here in PDF form. "Through the LoveROMs and LoveRetro websites, Defendants reproduce, distribute, publicly perform and display a staggering number of unauthorized copies of Nintendos video games, all without Nintendos permission." The suit has already resulted in the shuttering of LoveRetro, which has now been taken offline. The other website, LoveROMS, continues to operate, but has removed all Nintendo titles from its collection. Prostitution or therapy? : Bonn signals red light for Tantra massage Bonn The city of Bonn insists on a license requirement for brothel-type businesses. And it seems the city and the business owners have a different interpretation of what services are provided by a Tantra massage studio near the Rigalschen Wiese park. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken Literally, Tantra means something like continuity. But the name with a Sanskrit origin, and used in the service sector in Bonn is causing some turmoil. The City of Bonn doesnt seem cooperative in dealing with so-called Tantra massage studios. Businesses that dont meet the legal requirements have to close down. In a recent case in Bad Godesberg, an ad promises The way from me to us and leads to a house near the Rigalschen Wiese (the big park in Bad Godesberg with a playground next to a large commuter parking lot). A one-hour massage costs 100 euros, 90 minutes cost 140 euros - and the range of services extends even further, as one can see by having a glance at the website. One also notices that the employees seem to be getting very warm while on the job: their work clothes are made of skimpy cloths. Or even less. The massages could soon come to an end because the city sees no legal basis for the business to operate. Apparently, the owners had tried to legalize the existing studio with a building permit. But this was rejected by the administration and building officials with the reasoning that it contradicts the current building specifications. Specifically, the administration cited a court ruling which prohibits brothel-like establishments in certain areas which are designated for residential and business use. In this case, the area is a designated residential neighborhood, which means the ruling is even more applicable. So the building permit was denied. Other businesses in this industry do have permits and are protected by certain rights. Erotic services in Tantra studio In any case, the city has no doubt that more is going on behind those closed doors than massage for tired muscles. In a Tantra studio, erotic services are also provided and in general, erotic massage studios are regarded to be brothel-like businesses under a general legal opinion. And it is exactly for this kind of business that new prostitution laws brought delicate changes. As of one year ago, all prostitution sites must apply for trade-legal permits. There are currently a dozen such applications, according to Andrea Schulte from the city press office. Two businesses have received the permits and the others are still being processed, she said. She also said that among the twelve applicants are a classic brothel , several massage studios and several apartments in which one or more prostitutes offer their services. Business operator says they provide therapeutic massage Meanwhile, the head of the Bad Godesberg studio rejects the notion of being a "brothel-like business": "We offer therapeutic massages, everything else is a matter of interpretation," she tells the General-Anzeiger. After all, she has been at the site for ten years, and there have never been any problems in the neighborhood. Now she wants to proceed with a lawyer against the decision of the city. The administration has sharpened its view of the industry and is willing to litigate against business operators it views as illegal. Incidentally, Tantra massage is not to be confused with Thai massage, which has proven to have healing properties and has nothing to do with the so-called oldest trade in the world. Friends of Tantra massage need not worry until further notice, however, as the offers at least on the internet are plentiful. It might lead some Bonn residents to wonder just how intense those massages are in their neighborhood. But on the website of the massage studio in question, it says, "To avoid misunderstandings, we would like to point out that our offer includes no sexual intercourse and no sexual exchange takes place. We ask you to refrain from inquiries of this kind. All touching during the massages are without sexual intention. " Orig. text: Rudiger Franz 23-year-old seriously injured : Suspect arrested after stabbing in Bonn Bonn A young woman was seriously injured in a knife attack in north Bonn on Sunday night. The suspect is apparently the former boyfriend of the woman. He has been arrested. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken Following an attack with a knife in Bonn north, the alleged perpetrator was arrested on Monday morning. Police released the information on inquiry. According to further GA information, the man was found and arrested in Bornheim. Police say the condition of the stabbing victim has now been stabilized. The 23-year-old woman was seriously injured in the attack on late Sunday evening on Obernierstrae in Bonn north. According to GA information, a man attacked her at 11:30 pm with a knife. The woman is said to have been heard shouting for help. The attacker then fled the scene. According to initial information, he is the former boyfriend of the seriously injured woman. People who were in the area saw the woman and provided first-aid while notifying emergency services and police. Bonn police said on Monday morning that the 23-year-old was taken to hospital and according to medical information, her condition was initially life-threatening. Criminal police searched the crime scene for evidence, with the fire department illuminating the area. Investigative police also talked to witnesses at the scene. A homicide commission is now investigating, and examining whether conflict in the relationship was the motive for the attack. Traffic chaos expected : What the tunnel renovation means for Bad Godesberg Bonn On Monday, July 23, renovation of the B9 tunnel in Bad Godesberg begins. Around 40,000 cars use the tunnel daily. What will the construction work mean for traffic flow? Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken A fire is the worst thing that can happen in a heavily used tunnel, for the fire department, paramedics and of course for motorists. Where are the emergency exits? Is the ventilation system adequate? Because these are the challenges for all those affected. Reconstruction of a major accident in the Gotthard Tunnel on October 24 of 2001 showed that the heat in the tunnel reached 300 degrees Celsius after only 100 seconds and 920 degrees after only ten minutes. Contributing to the problem was an aged ventilation system which was 30 years old. Not only this accident but many others with numerous casualties, prompted automobile associations in countries throughout Europe to test their tunnels and the European Union (EU) to call for a plan with stricter safety requirements. These were to be implemented by 2014 in all tunnels longer than 500 meters. Countries with numerous tunnels received an extension until 2019, but Germany was not included in this group. This means the upgrading of the Godesberg tunnel is late according to the EU regulations. But some measures were carried out in 2012, including improving the signage, lighting and marking of emergency exits. These were mostly carried out without major traffic disruptions. Further steps were postponed due to the UN Climate Conference at the end of 2017. One side of tunnel to be closed completely beginning in August So now comes the inevitable phase 2 to bring more safety in the tunnel. On July 23, the first restrictions will be implemented and on August 11, the complete side of the tunnel that leads north to Bonn will be closed. There will be two-way traffic on the other side of the tunnel, with an approximately 80-centimeter tall barrier in the middle of the two lanes, according to the city. The Godesberg tunnel was built to provide relief to the congested streets of Bad Godesberg, and opened to traffic on August 29, 1999. Now the inevitable construction phase is beginning, and with it will come traffic chaos. No one in the city administration is trying to play down this fact. Where there were once four lanes (two on each side of the tunnel) for 40,000 cars per day, there will be only two lanes for 18 months. Significant disruptions are expected. City engineering and road authorities have finished up all other construction projects on alternative routes. The city is trying its best to manage the situation and the entrance gates have been rebuilt to help everyone get in the right lane going into the tunnel. The speed limit will be set at 30. Suggested alternative routes The city recommends the following detours: the MUK route (Mittel-, Ubier-, Konstantinstrae) and the parallel roads (Oscar-Romero, Nahum-Goldmann, August-Bebel, Martin-Luther-Allee and Godesberger Strae). Civil engineering director Peter Esch fears that even the routes through Friesdorf or the so-called MUK route will be permanently clogged at peak times. At least at the heavily frequented areas, traffic lights should be adjusted so that no additional, unnecessary traffic jams occur. As is common with new construction sites, it will probably be really bad at the beginning on the A565 between Lengsdorf and Endenich. It will take some time for drivers to become familiar with the new situation - learning by doing - and adapting to it. Esch and his team have chosen to start the closure of the first half of the tunnel during summer holidays so that traffic would not be as heavy. Maybe there are no problems at all, he says, but he really doesnt believe it. The construction phases Construction Phase 1, North Portal: If you drive from Elsasser Strae to the B9, you can no longer turn right into the tunnel. On Wurzerstrae on the opposite side, a left turn into the tunnel is no longer possible. The short tube to Bonner Strae (city) is closed in this direction, but still open to drivers in the direction of Bonn. The access and exit via the ramp Godesberger Strae (Obi-Markt) will be blocked. In this tunnel section, the complete jet fans will be removed, equipped with additional powerful fans and integrated into the fire ventilation of the main tunnel tubes. Construction phase 1, South Portal: The Koblenzer Strae ramp in front of McDonald's will be open only to cars coming out of the tunnel in the direction of Mehlem. In the opposite direction it will be closed. Instead, the entrance on Friedrichallee (a few meters further) will be open, where all traffic is funneled to the left side of the tunnel. Pedestrians can then no longer directly cross Friedrichallee and will have to take a detour. A new traffic routing will come in mid-May of 2019. Construction Phase 2, North Portal: A right turn from Elsasser Strae and left turn from Wurzerstrae remain prohibited. If you want to travel from Bonn into the tunnel, you have to take the detour via Hochkreuzallee and Godesberger Strae and then use the local ramp behind Obi. The short tube will be fully accessible again. Building Phase 2, South Portal: The cars from Bonn come out of the tunnel onto Friedrichallee. Going the other direction, cars use the ramp on Koblenzer Strae to go underground. The traffic management is complex, and everyone has to get used to it at first. But the city says that they have planned to guarantee safety for all road users: If an accident occurs in the tunnel during construction, there are emergency bays, and rescue workers can quickly access the tunnel. However, the prescribed speed limit of 30 kilometers per hour is expected to prevent major crashes. Drinking in the Past: Rediscovering and Recreating Ancient Egyptian Brews Talk and Beer Tasting GETTY CENTER Museum Lecture Hall This is a past event Join Patrick E. McGovern, the "Indiana Jones of Ancient Ales, Wines, and Extreme Beverages," as he decodes long-forgotten drink recipes of ancient Egypt. Taking his clues from archaeology, texts, tomb art, ethnography, and chemical analysis of residues inside pottery jars, McGovern unravels what ancient Egyptians were imbibing. Beyond their mind-altering effects, these beverages were to become the medicines, religious symbols, and social lubricants of ancient Egyptian culture for thousands of years. His talk, paired with a special beer tasting, complements the exhibition Beyond the Nile: Egypt and the Classical World. Tickets $65 (includes appetizers); ages 21 and over. Complimentary parking. About Patrick McGovern Patrick E. McGovern is the scientific director of the Biomolecular Archaeology Laboratory for Cuisine, Fermented Beverages, and Health at the University of Pennsylvania Museum in Philadelphia, where he is also an adjunct professor of anthropology. Over the past two decades, he has pioneered the exciting interdisciplinary field of biomolecular archaeology, which is yielding whole new chapters concerning our human ancestry, medical practice, and ancient cuisines and beverages. He is the author of Ancient Wine: The Search for the Origins of Viniculture (Princeton University Press, 2003), Uncorking the Past: The Quest for Wine, Beer, and Other Alcoholic Beverages (Berkeley: University of California, 2009) and Ancient Brews: Rediscovered and Re-created (New York: W. W. Norton Company, Inc., 2017), and he appeared regularly on the Discovery Channel's Brew Masters program. Governments around the nation are working to design the best vaccine policies that keep both their employees and their residents safe. Although the latest data shows a variety of polarizing perspectives, there are clear emerging best practices that leading governments are following to put trust first: creating policies that are flexible and provide a range of options, and being in tune with the needs and sentiments of their employees so that they are able to be dynamic and accommodate the rapidly changing situation. STATE SOURCE OF FUNDING Arizona hospital fee Arkansas work requirements, premiums California cigarette taxes, hospital fee Colorado hospital fee Indiana cigarette taxes, hospital fee, work requirements, premiums Kentucky work requirements, premiums Louisiana tax on HMOs Minnesota provider fee Montana cigarette taxes* New Hampshire liquor taxes, work requirements North Dakota cut provider reimbursement rate Oregon tax on hospitals and health insurance plans Virginia provider fee In his last few months in office, Maine Gov. Paul LePage is taking his yearslong battle against Medicaid expansion -- a central provision of President Obama's signature health care law -- to the state Supreme Court.LePage refuses to grant lawmakers' and voters' wishes to make 70,000 more people (adults with incomes at or below 138 percent of the federal poverty level) eligible for Medicaid, the nation's government-run health insurance program. After he vetoed five expansion bills in five years,Medicaid advocates took the issue to voters, who sided with their state legislators.Still, LePage resists.The reason, he says, is money. The federal government will eventually pay only 90 percent of the costs of expanding Medicaid. The rest of the tab is on the state, and LePage says he "would go to jail before I put the state in red ink." There is some disagreement about the cost of expansion. The state's Department of Health and Human Services estimates that expansion would cost Maine $63 million for fiscal year 2019, going up to $82 million in 2020. Those numbers, however, don't include the millions in savings expected by the Office of Fiscal and Program Review.Lawmakers and expansion advocates have suggested ways to pay for expansion -- money from a one-time $35 milliontobacco settlement and $128 million of surplus revenue. But LePage has pushed against those ideas, calling the tobacco settlement a "one-time gimmick."While LePages actions are extreme -- he has ignored two courts' rulings ordering him to file expansion paperwork -- other governors are starting to think about how they will fund their portion of Medicaid expansion now that they are picking up a bigger share of the financial responsibility. During the first couple years of Medicaid expansion, the federal government paid 100 percent of the costs. That funding started winding down in 2016 and will drop to 90 percent in 2020.It cant be avoided, and every state will be looking at this. States have different starting points [for how much it may cost them], but they also have a lot of options, says Stacey Mazer, a policy analyst for the National Association of State Budget Officers.Most of the 33 states that chose to expand use their general fund to make up the difference, but 13 statesare either tapping into tax revenues for it, making hospitals help, or cutting other Medicaid costs to make room in the budget.Faced with losing Medicaid benefits, Oregon voters in January approved a ballot measure that will raise taxes on hospitals and health insurance plans to pay for expansion. California voters similarly approved two ballot initiatives in November 2016 that will fund the states share: one that makes a hospital fee permanent, and another that raises cigarette taxes. In November, Montana residents will decide whether to raise taxes on cigarettes to fund expansion. And this month, New Hampshire GOP Gov. Chris Sununu signed a proposal that earmarks 5 percent of liquor sales tax revenue for Medicaid expansion."I knew this was going to be the most important challenge the state was going to face from day one," Sununu said during the budget signing ceremony.New Hampshire is also one of several states seeking to use work requirements to cut Medicaid costs and free up money for expansion. Requiring people to meet employment criteria will limit the number of people eligible for Medicaid in generalArkansas, Kentucky and Indiana have also gotten the green light from the federal government to add work requirements to Medicaid, with Arkansas taking effect this month. Kentuckys, however, are tied up in the courts after a federal judge ruled that they were unconstitutional. Indiana's and New Hampshire's work requirements are supposed to start phasing in next year.The decision to require Medicaid beneficiaries to work or volunteer is a controversial one, but "it is likely these requirements will save states money," says Ben Sommers, health care economist at Harvard University. "Whether its a [legal] means to an end remains to be seen."A similarly controversial policy -- charging a premium for Medicaid -- is also being used by Kentucky to plug holes.Meanwhile, a handful of states -- Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan and West Virginia -- note that expansion has actually created savings in the hundreds of millions of dollars.In some states, the conversation about expansion costs is just starting. Rhode Island Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo, for instance, recently proposed putting the funding burden on Medicaid beneficiaries and adding a co-pay for emergency room visits and generic drugs. It was killed.While it's smart for states to budget, health policy experts say the cost of expansion will be relatively small in comparison to other Medicaid costs, such as prescription drugs.The population that is covered by Medicaid expansion tends to be less expensive than others [on Medicaid and Medicare].Medicaid spending fluctuates with the economy, and there are other fluctuations beyond just the wind down of federal funds," says Sommers. "It is a real cost, but if you hear a politician say that Medicaid expansion alone is going to bust the budget, then thats just a political argument." Gov. Asa Hutchinson called for state Rep. Mickey Gates to resign Tuesday as the Hot Springs Republican faces criminal charges of failure to pay state income taxes.Hutchinson is the third prominent Republican to ask for Gates' resignation since Gates' tax troubles became public last month.Gates, a two-term lawmaker, has yet to heed those calls. He has said he will plead innocent to the charges.A person who answered Gates' phone Tuesday offered to leave a message for the representative, but the phone call was not returned.On Tuesday, Hutchinson told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that he had spoken privately with Gates about 10 days ago and asked him to resign."I listened to him, but I told him in my judgment he needs to resign and it is my hope he would make that decision and listen to his colleagues," the governor said. "But it's important for me to make it clear that my view is that he should resign." Secretary of State Brian Kemp's campaign for governor got a major boost Saturday from Vice President Mike Pence, who called him the best partner for the White House in an hourlong event that cast Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle as mostly an afterthought.Instead, Pence and other speakers who rallied the crowd of more than 1,500 at the Macon Coliseum called Kemp the only candidate who can keep Georgia's top office in GOP hands and defeat Democrat Stacey Abrams in November."Brian Kemp stands for Georgia values," said Pence. "I believe that not only is he going to win come Tuesday, but he's going to win in November."Kemp, too, sharpened his focus on the general election. He thanked Pence and President Donald Trump for their endorsements, and said he'll energize Republicans to surge to the polls against Abrams because he's a "Trump conservative who will put Georgians first.""I am tired of politically correct liberals like Stacey Abrams who are offended by our faith, our guns and our big trucks," said Kemp. "This election is about trust. Who do you trust to do the right thing even when no one is looking?"At campaign stops around the state, Cagle has sharpened his attacks on Kemp, saying definitively that he would lose to Abrams if he wins the GOP nomination. He has also countered with what he calls the "other gold star" endorsement in the race: Gov. Nathan Deal's support.Pence's visit was part of a double-whammy this week that has jolted the GOP runoff for governor that ends Tuesday. Trump gave Kemp a surprise endorsement on Wednesday, saying the secretary of state has his "full and total" support.They were devastating setbacks for Cagle, who was already trailing in the polls and grappling with fallout from a secretly made recording. That audio featured him saying he supported "bad public policy" to undercut another rival.Clay Tippins, the former GOP candidate for governor who made that recording, stuck to the same theme as the other speakers as he urged Republicans not to let up."Tuesday night is the kickoff of the hardest mission we've had yet. We've shaken things up the last few weeks -- myself included," he said. "Now it's time to bring things together."The Middle Georgia area surrounding Macon has been targeted by the Kemp campaign as a key pickup opportunity. Cagle carried Bibb County in May's primary with 35 percent of the vote, compared to Kemp's 26 percent.The president is overwhelmingly popular with the conservatives who will decide Tuesday's runoff -- an Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll showed he had an 80 percent approval rating among Georgia GOP voters -- and Pence urged the crowd to show up in force.He earned wild applause when he said putting Kemp in the Governor's Mansion would deliver to Georgia "the same type of leadership that Trump brought to the White House.""Brian Kemp is the real deal," said Pence. "He puts his family first. And when Brian Kemp is governor, he'll always put Georgia families first." Not a Tape Recording New Jersey First After nearly 38 years, on Jan. 30 Malcolm Alexander walked away from a place he never should have been to begin with: the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola.Earlier that day, a Jefferson Parish judge had tossed out Alexanders conviction, partly in response to new DNA evidence proving that Alexander could not have been the armed man who in 1979 raped a 39-year-old woman in her antique shop bathroom.Twenty-one when he was sentenced to life without parole, Alexander had been the victim of what the Innocence Project described as a deeply flawed, unreliable identification procedure.The Innocence Project, whose advocacy led to Alexanders release at age 58, said the flaws included interactions with police officers that strengthened the victims initial tentative identification of Alexander in a police lineup into one of certainty by the time she testified at the trial nearly a year later.Alexanders wrongful conviction helped convince Louisiana lawmakers to join a growing list of states in taking steps to prevent eyewitnesses from being swayed by police or other influences. Among the changes Louisiana enacted earlier this year is requiring police to use double-blind lineups, in which the officer conducting the lineup doesnt know who the suspect is. Other changes are intended to reduce the chance that witnesses will make identifications through guesswork or deduction or to please police investigators.Although research has long demonstrated the unreliability of eyewitness identifications, police agencies largely resisted making changes until DNA exonerations over the past three decades presented incontrovertible proof that the wrong person had been convicted, as was the case with Alexander.The new policies, which have been adopted by police in half the states, largely grew out of research showing that traditional police practices and cues often induced witnesses to identify the wrong suspect.While some police organizations resisted the new policies, calling them impractical and possibly costly, many police departments, including those in Minneapolis and San Diego, adopted new eyewitness procedures without waiting for legislation.Theres no question, we just didnt know any better back then, said William Brooks, chief of the Norwood (Massachusetts) Police Department and a member of the board of the International Association of Chiefs of Police who has traveled extensively around the nation to speak in favor of the changes.The new policies do not address a long-noted weakness in eyewitness identification: Eyewitnesses are more likely to misidentify someone of a race other than their own. Though judges often instruct juries about the problem with cross-racial eyewitness identifications, no one has figured out how to solve the problem.The goal, said Rebecca Brown, policy director at the Innocence Project, isnt to pick someone, but to pick the right person.Researchers have been chronicling the inaccuracy of eyewitness identification at least as far back as the 1930s. One theme in the scholarship is that memory is not fixed. In the words of Brian Cutler, a prominent researcher into eyewitness identification at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, memory is not like a tape recording.Often, witnesses do not remember events as they were. Their memories can be influenced by later stimuli, such as police body language during the lineup.University of Alberta psychologist Gary Wells conducted a thorough review of the research on eyewitness testimony. In 1978, he published a seminal paper that showed the ways in which witness identification can be influenced by such factors as the way a police lineup is conducted, the instructions given to a witness, and the behavior of officers in front of a witness.At the time, Wells and fellow researchers in the field tried to get the attention of law enforcement. It didnt go well.We were largely ignored in the legal system, said Wells, who is now at Iowa State University. Then, Wells said, it was the rare police department that even had formal procedures for conducting eyewitness identifications. Lineups were conducted differently from police department to police department, and even from investigator to investigator within the same department.Even as scholarship continued to hammer away at the fallacy of memory in identification, police procedures remained largely the same over the next decade. The first U.S. exoneration by DNA evidence came in 1989, and the Innocence Project was founded in 1992. It has been especially prominent in using DNA to exonerate hundreds of people serving lengthy prison sentences.The Innocence Project found that eyewitness misidentifications were a factor in 71 percent of the more than 350 wrongful convictions overturned by post-conviction DNA.Another organization that tracks wrongful convictions, the National Registry of Exonerations, which is run jointly by the University of California at Irvine and law schools at the University of Michigan and Michigan State University, found that mistaken identifications were a factor in 29 percent of 2,245 exonerations since 1989.The registry includes cases that do not involve DNA evidence and surveys a broader category of crimes than the Innocence Project, whose list of exonerations is heavily weighted toward homicides and sex crimes.Janet Reno, the U.S. attorney general under President Bill Clinton, summoned Wells to Washington in the late 90s to discuss his work. She appointed a task force that recommended a series of changes to police identification procedures. Wells traveled the country to police forces trying to sell the reforms. It had almost no effect on anyone, he said.The problem, Wells said, is that most U.S. police agencies are local independent of state and federal agencies. Few are interested in being told how to run their criminal investigations.New Jersey is different. Unlike other states, it has a unified, integrated law enforcement system. The state attorney general is also the chief law enforcement officer. Two decades ago, then-Attorney General John Farmer was upset by the revelation, based on DNA evidence, that a New Jersey man was wrongfully convicted of a 1992 rape after the victim misidentified him as her assailant.Farmer in 2001 ordered police departments in the state to adopt new procedures for conducting lineups. Those requirements mirrored recommendations from the Reno commission, the National Academy of Sciences and the International Association of Chiefs of Police.After New Jersey, progress by the states in adopting the reforms was fitful but steady. The pace has picked up considerably since 2014, when the National Academy of Sciences released a report supporting the new policies, and the Innocence Project intensified its advocacy of the changes. A dozen states have adopted the new policies in the last three years. Police in half the states now have the new policies in place.The California House sent a bill to the Senate earlier this year. Iowa and New Mexico are expected to take up legislation next year.The reality of witness identification is that it is one of the least-reliable pieces of evidence, and yet we put great weight on it, said state Sen. Scott Wiener, a Democrat and sponsor of the California bill. Weve designed a system to encourage people to make inaccurate identifications, and we should have a system that does everything in its power to get accuracy.Louisiana state Sen. Wesley Bishop, a Democrat and a criminal lawyer, said he agreed to sponsor the bill in his state after he was approached by the Innocence Project in New Orleans before the 2018 legislative session. He said he was also prompted by the exoneration of Malcolm Alexander and others who were wrongly convicted in part because of misidentifications.Bishop recalled in an interview that his allies at the Innocence Project told him they werent optimistic about passage, anticipating opposition from law enforcement. But Bishop had worked closely with police and prosecutors in the past, he said, and in the end, the Louisiana Sheriffs Association and the Louisiana District Attorneys Association supported the bill without changes.The key change is adopting double-blind lineups, whether live or by photos. If the witness understands the officer doesnt know who the suspect is, Wells said, the witness wont try to read cues from the officers behavior, demeanor or words.The witness should be instructed that the perpetrator might not be in the lineup. Ontarios Cutler said that instruction is intended to relieve the witness of feeling pressured to make an identification.The lineup should include no more than one suspect and at least five others. The so-called fillers should bear some resemblance to the perpetrator as described by the witness.The officers presenting the lineup should record the level of confidence with which the witness makes an identification.Police departments in Santa Clara County, California, adopted the changes 15 years ago. They even adopted another of Wells recommendations: They record video of the identification from start to finish so that jurors can view it later.The head of the Conviction Integrity Unit for Santa Clara, Assistant District Attorney David Angel, said that police were skeptical about the new procedures but now embrace them. He said hes unaware of any false identifications under the new policies.The nature of science is to change as new evidence comes in, Angel said. We want to make sure we change with it.Not all police resistance has vanished. The California Police Chiefs Association, among other California law enforcement organizations, opposes Wieners bill.Its position is that in gang-related crimes, officers develop trust with potential witnesses who may object to being passed on to unfamiliar officers for lineups. According to the association, the bill as written would make it impractical for lineups that must be conducted in the field, when police are pursuing a criminal who presents an imminent danger to the public.It would also require recording video of the identifications and storing those video recordings, which according to the association could be too costly for some small police departments.Nevertheless, Jonathan Feldman, head of legislative affairs for the association, said he expects the organization will be able to reach a compromise with Wiener. We just havent gotten there yet. Recipe for violence? A different convention Charlotte-Mecklenburg police, political organizers and national law enforcement experts are preparing for huge protests and a massive police presence when the Republican National Convention arrives in 2020.Forecasts of widespread violent protests at past conventions have proven unfounded, including the 2012 Democratic National Convention hosted in Charlotte.Some Charlotte public officials and community activists say what makes the RNC different is that past rallies for President Donald Trump have been marred by altercations between his supporters and opponents.In March 2016, Trump canceled a campaign speech in Chicago after violence erupted, and that same month, an anti-Trump protester was punched at an event in North Carolina. In August 2017, police used tear gas to disperse crowds in Arizona that had gathered outside a convention center where Trump gave a speech.Law enforcement experts told the Observer that the passion Trump evokes among both opponents and supporters presents a special challenge for police.Since he took office in January 2017, tens of thousands of people around the country have participated in marches against policies on immigration, women's rights and a travel ban targeting people from some Muslim-majority countries.White supremacists evoked Trump's name during a demonstration in Charlottesville, Va., last year that resulted in clashes with counterprotesters and left three people dead and dozens injured.At the 2012 DNC, police worried about protesters confronting officers. Now they must figure out how to reduce the chances of violence between pro- and anti-Trump demonstrators, said Eugene O'Donnell, a nationally known expert on policing and professor at the John Jay School of Criminal Justice in New York."This is going to be the mother of all protests," O'Donnell said. "Who in their right mind would want to police this?"The 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland also prompted warnings about clashes between pro- and anti-Trump protesters. Dueling demonstrations, however, turned out mostly peaceful.Earlier this year, CMPD Chief Kerr Putney told reporters he believed safeguarding a political convention would present different worries in 2020 than it did in 2012."Hopefully not, but what we see is a lot more violence this time," Putney said May 31 at the end of a town hall meeting on community safety. "Last time, it was people talking about being heard -- this time it's 'Let's be actually seen committing violence.' So we've got to be able to keep people calm and defuse situations and use good discretion."He also said the department would prepare for the worst-case scenario and was already watching events unfold around the country to help get ready.CMPD would not make Putney or other commanders available for an interview for this story, but in minutes from a June 25 closed-session City Council meeting released Friday, he told city leaders he had "all the confidence in the world" in CMPD's ability to keep Charlotte safe during the convention.Because protesters want to be seen, Putney said the department would change its strategy from the Democratic National Convention, when protesters were kept away from main routes in the city. The DNC drew far fewer protesters than expected and demonstrations were nearly all peaceful.In 2020, Putney said, the key will be keeping opposing groups of protesters separate."If their goal is to come together, to fight, then we are going to prevent that," Putney said, according to minutes from the meeting.Thousands of police officers from CMPD, the Secret Service, FBI and other city and state forces will ensure adequate manpower during the RNC, Republican city council member Ed Driggs said."We gave this a lot of thought and Chief Putney expressed confidence," Driggs said."With the $50 million federal grant we receive, he can triple the size of the police force for the convention. They have two years to prepare."Driggs said city and RNC officials also discussed the security plan during meetings."We all reached a level of comfort," he said. "Conventions are an essential part of our election process. We need to not make this all about one person. The show must go on somewhere."The decision to host the RNC remains controversial among Charlotte Democrats and their supporters.On Monday, the Democratic-controlled City Council voted 6-5 to approve convention-related contracts in front of a large crowd split between convention supporters and opponents.The Rev. Rodney Sadler, a leader for the Charlotte Clergy Coalition for Justice who has advised CMPD in the past, urged city council members to reject the RNC because Trump's policies are offensive to the poor, racial minorities and immigrants.Anger over economic inequality, racial discrimination and other issues important to those groups helped spark violent protests following the police shooting of Keith Lamont Scott in 2016, Sadler said."You are inviting a brute into a city that just had an uprising," he said. "It is not a recipe for success. That will incite the potential for violence."Democratic city council member Matt Newton opposed Charlotte hosting the RNC. Newton said the possibly of violent protests was among his chief concerns.But now that Charlotte is the host city, Newton said, officials need to turn their attention to making the convention a success."We have to shift gears and start preparations so that our worst fears are not realized," he said.Specifics about security for the RNC likely will remain secret until shortly before the event.In 2012, a perimeter fence with security checkpoints encircled part of uptown and access to some streets was restricted or closed.For the RNC, police will have to get ready for potential clashes between pro-Trump and anti-Trump protesters, said Mark Michalec, a CMPD officer and president of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police.Officers anticipate a long, stressful week, and based on the ways the country's political climate has changed since 2012, Michalec said, they expect a "very different type of convention" compared to Charlotte's DNC."We're not really looking forward to it," he said.Kenneth Williams, a nationally known expert on policing and a professor at the South Texas College of Law Houston, said authorities will likely set up security measures that try to keep protesters far away from the main convention site -- the Spectrum Center -- and keep Trump opponents separated from supporters."Trump evokes so much passion that you have to anticipate violence even if that means overdoing it," Williams said.Robert Dawkins, a leader of N.C. SAFE Coalition, a social justice group, said groups like Black Lives Matter, Charlotte Uprising and other progressive demonstrators will not resort to violence.Dawkins plans to meet with members from protest groups to help ensure demonstrations are peaceful."There will be acts of disobedience, but that is nothing the city should be afraid of," Dawkins said. The National Rifle Association, Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation and two Seattle residents are suing Seattle over the city's new gun-safety law.Earlier this month, Seattle's City Council passed an ordinance that requires gun owners to lock up their guns. Mayor Jenny Durkan signed the legislation Wednesday, with the law to take effect 180 days later. The legislation came at a time of heightened national concern around gun safety and mass shootings.Under the legislation, a gun owner could be fined up to $500 if a firearm isn't locked up, up to $1,000 if a minor, "at-risk person" or unauthorized user accesses the weapon and up to $10,000 if someone uses the weapon to hurt someone or commit a crime.The lawsuit filed Friday in King County Superior Court alleges that the "safe storage" requirement violates Washington state law, which prevents cities from regulating guns."Seattle simply can't break the law to adopt an ordinance as a political statement," Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) founder Alan Gottlieb said in a statement.Durkan and Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best are also named as defendants in the lawsuit."If they think we are intimidated, they are mistaken. I will continue to fight for our kids," Durkan said in a tweet.This isn't the first time Seattle has tried to regulate guns.In 2010, the city introduced a ban on firearms in Seattle parks. The NRA and SAF sued the city, and the law was ultimately ruled unconstitutional.In August 2017, however, the Washington state Supreme Court ruled in favor of Seattle's tax on guns. The city's ordinance, passed in 2015, imposed a tax of $25 per firearm and 2 or 5 cents per round of ammunition. The tax raised $93,000 last year.The new lawsuit was expected by many. The nonprofit group Everytown for Gun Safety and the law firm Orrick LLP said they would represent Seattle without charge, the same week the city passed the ordinance."Frankly, this is no surprise," City Attorney Pete Holmes said in a statement. "The Mayor and Council are trying to prevent children from accessing guns with this Safe Storage legislation. If the NRA and SAF want to be on record fighting responsible gun ownership, that's their choice."Omar Abdul Alim and Michael Thyng, both Seattle residents, are plaintiffs in the case and cite a fear of home invasions as their motivation to keep their firearms unlocked.Steven Fogg, an attorney for the plaintiffs, asserts that the ordinance breaks the law by overreaching into state authority on possession of firearms. Fogg said he expects a ruling within three or four months, and that their challenge will be successful."The law clearly violates pre-emptions," Fogg said. "The city seems not to learn its lesson." (TNS) Salesforce is hunting worldwide for lawyers focused on data privacy. So is Google. Newly public Okta, a San Francisco software firm, also wants to hire a privacy-oriented lawyer. Same with cloud service Twilio. The list goes on.Data privacy, once a second-order subject in Silicon Valley, has rocketed to the fore thanks to a battery of new laws. Europes groundbreaking data-privacy rule, the General Data Protection Regulation, took effect in May and requires continuing vigilance. Last month, Sacramento lawmakers piled on with a hastily passed law called the California Consumer Privacy Act directed at companies pulling in at least $25 million in annual revenue.Among the big winners in the scramble to comply? Lawyers and corporate information-technology firms.The issue of privacy has virtually taken over my practice, said Cynthia Cole, a special counsel with Baker Botts who is well-versed in Europes new GDPR regulations. For example, she said, some of the disclosure paperwork in mergers and acquisitions specifically, the data privacy representation of a company being bought has grown from a few lines a year or so ago to three pages, as companies list topics like the various laws they have complied with.Interest has surged particularly as companies implement technology such as blockchain and artificial intelligence, because many of them touch on data privacy issues, according to Brandyne Russell, a managing director at Major, Lindsey & Africa, a global legal recruiting firm.Where certain companies may have had a lawyer who wore a few hats including privacy, many companies are now creating dedicated roles for that (and) building small teams, said Ray Everett, a longtime privacy expert who manages consulting projects for TrustArc, a San Francisco compliance and risk-management company.For companies, compliance can be costly. It can go well, well into the millions, depending on the size of your company, Cole said.And American companies may spend more than their European counterparts.Over the years, U.S. firms have dealt with discrete privacy rules, like the specific laws governing health care records or the identity data guidelines in financial services, but have not had to contend with any overarching regulations.By contrast, European companies have been dealing with data privacy since the 80s ... so this is not new for them, Cole said. To comply with GDPR, they didnt have to go back and revisit their entire business model.Tech firms, too, have seen increasing interest.Ray Everett said his consulting team had grown five-fold during the past 18 months, as its number of projects has ballooned. (TrustArc, whose products and services help companies review their compliance and develop policies around privacy, is stocked with technical experts and lawyers but does not practice law.)There been a change in the nature of the work, Everett said. While law firms have long worked on privacy aspects of contracts, notices and other documents, now firms needs are expanding to new areas, like developing processes and technologies to manage data flows and compliance reporting across the company.There are plenty of pickings for lobbyists, too. Californias privacy law, for example, was passed with such speed roughly a week start to finish, as part of a deal to head off a tougher ballot measure on the same subject that it will probably be amended before it takes effect in 2020. And while Congress seems unlikely to move quickly on privacy, other states are looking to pass rules. Colorados governor, for example, recently signed a data privacy law.It will sort of be like county liquor laws, predicted Cole of Baker Botts, who expects more cities and states will move on data privacy.Another major European regulation, known as the ePrivacy Regulation is in the pipeline, governing the use of web-tracking devices like cookies.The work, in other words, is very much continuing, Everett said. The realization is that many organizations thought GDPR was a finish line they had to cross in May, and theyre realizing its very much of a lifestyle. Queens College is a senior college of the City University of New York, the third largest university system in the U.S. in terms of enrollment. With a faculty and staff of 5,000 and a student population of nearly 20,000, the school was inundated with not only a large number of college-owned devices but also the powerful surge of the bring your own device (BYOD) trend in recent years as well. Queens Colleges network was also facing an outbreak of more sophisticated threats, including zero-day attacks and it was not uncommon for hundreds of computers on the network to be regularly infected resulting in the spread of malware to other machines. Malware and other threats even consumed enough bandwidth to take the college network services offline. The colleges IT and asset management teams desperately needed a solution that would not only let them better manage and organize corporate assets, but also improve their security profile with more complete visibility and control. The Queens Colleges IT team led a search for a visibility platform that would fit their needs and ultimately turned to ForeScout. The deployment of ForeScout immediately helped to temper the persistent malware outbreaks. The schools Director of Network Services and Internet Security Officer, Morris Altman, noted once we had ForeScout in place, the first time a new worm broke out, we had only three computers that became infected. They were immediately isolated and the infection was contained. Additionally, those three users were automatically notified about the problem, and instructed to call our help desk so we could fix it. Instead of weeks, the problem was solved in less than a day and had minimal impact on our students, faculty and staff. Before ForeScout, Altman recounts we really didnt have an idea of how many devices were on our networks. We now know that we have about 6,000 wireless and 5,000 wired endpoints at any given time. This helps when deploying policies, for instance. You monitor, learn and then make educated decisions. The networking team is now able to see what version of software and operating systems users are running on their endpoints, which tells them how many devices are on the network, the type of devices, and if they have vulnerabilities, such as out-of-date software. IT teams can now utilize this data to notify students and faculty when their machines are lacking up-to- date software, including common applications that often become infected such as Adobe Flash Player, Adobe Reader and Java. This also supports compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) by keeping all endpoints up-to-date, which allows the school to reduce the risk of information disclosure. The school must also comply with the Digital Rights Millennium Copyright Act. The ForeScout platform assists IT in enforcing take-down notices for music and movies. The college is able to use ForeScout to block noncompliant users and avoid copyright violations. Deploying ForeScout has produced benefits across the entire IT team at Queens College. Asset management uses it for visibility into the network, the endpoint team monitors device posture, the help desk examines whats occuring with devices when issues are reported, and the network and security teams constantly monitor for risks and exposures. Students and staff can even use ForeScout desktop support for personal patches. Most importantly, network downtime has dramatically decreased with the colleges network running without issue nearly 100 percent of the time. Author Shawn RodriguezRegional Vice President, U.S State & Local Government and EducationForeScout Technologies Inc. (TNS) Ardmore City Schools' extensive security camera system is just one tool in the ever-changing conversation about school security, privacy and defense.Public schools are more concerned with safety than ever following February's deadly shooting in Parkland, Florida, including those in Carter County. But the shift toward hypervigilance started long before spring's tragedy. Healdton Public Schools had bulletproof panic rooms placed in their buildings, Dickson Public Schools is updating their doors and locks and Ardmore City Schools is expanding their camera system.ACS placed Axis brand security cameras in every part of the middle school and is now adding them to nearly every part of the high school, replacing and expanding the old system. Technology Director Scott Foster said the cameras aren't just high quality, they're capable of surveillance without much human input at all."It really helps with discipline issues," Foster said. "At first, teachers felt like they were being watched by them, but that's not really the purpose at all. It helps with issues in the classroom, and it helps protect the teacher and the district."He said the cameras can be programmed to do a lot of the work on their own, following motion and adjusting for glare. The cameras are on 24/7, but can be set to only record in response to motion after school hours. During the day, the cameras can automatically track a person from one hallway to another, something law enforcement or school staff could use to track an intruder.The system consists of multiple servers tied together. Administration and staff are granted access based on their position. For example, a principal may only be able to access their own school's camera system while the superintendent's office can access multiple schools. Foster said the administration is also looking into granting access to the system to law enforcement.Ardmore Police Department Capt. Keith Ingle said if given access, the department could use the footage to follow the movements of a shooter in an emergency or solve more mundane crimes like theft."If we had access to footage of the inside of the school, of course that would be a tremendous help," Ingle said.Law enforcement has a presence at most American high schools, and Ardmore is no exception. School officers are the first line of defense in an active shooter situation."They'll probably use them to monitor entrances and exits," Ingle said. "Back then, with Columbine, the idea was to wait, set up a perimeter, then take action when you've got your people in place. These days, if even one officer gets there... You don't have to wait for a four man team, it's up to the officers' discretion."He said live footage from inside a school would give officers crucial insight during an active shooter situation."We know that one person can make a difference," Ingle said. "Civilians have stopped shootings by blocking shooters from gaining access to the school."The cameras could also be used for smaller incidents, like fender benders."It's there for the protection for the kids and the faculty," Ingle said. "It's just like police officers with body cameras and the cameras in our cars. A lot of us don't feel comfortable doing it, but it's needed."All APD officers have active shooter training and opportunities to learn more through Oklahoma Municipal Assurance Group. Ingle said the topic is never far from their minds."It can happen anywhere," Ingle said. "You can never say, 'it can't happen here.' There's a lot of schools smaller than ours where it has."Following the Parkland shooting, the Department of Homeland Security has taken a more direct role in school security. DHS has launched programs to help local schools prepare ahead of time for disasters, assess their security measures, inspect school buses and provide emergency training to faculty and staff.Security measures may prevent some crimes, but statistically speaking, it takes a concerned person raising an alarm to successfully stop most school shootings before they start.Schoolshooters.info, a database compiled by school shooting expert and psychologist Peter Langman, analyzes different incidents and foiled attempts for patterns. In his book "Why Kids Kill: Inside the Minds of School Shooters," he writes that prevention is not as simple as upping security measures."In the wake of shootings, schools often increase their physical security measures by giving students identification badges, adding surveillance cameras, and installing metal detectors, among other measures," Langman states in the analysis. "These measures, however, do not prevent school shootings. When students commit school shootings, they typically do so at their own schools."Langman said cameras may deter people trying to commit crimes in secret and restricting access to the school may prevent strangers from committing mass shootings, but neither measure deters would-be student shooters who aren't usually concerned with hiding their identity and are usually foiled because someone else, a parent, friend or teacher, noticed red flags and spoke up.Dickson Public Schools is also ratcheting up security as part of their last construction bond. Superintendent Jeff Colclasure said his district is mostly concerned with updating their doors and locks."We're focusing more on access control," Colclasure said. "We're trying to limit access to only one entrance at each building."Each building's doors and locks are being replaced with electronic locks and key cards. Colclasure said when the new locks are in place, the entire campus can be put on lockdown with the push of a button."For years we've had open access to our playground at the elementary," Colclasure said. "Then we're going to start working around the high school."Colclasure said fences around part of the elementary school and high school are in the works, and the administration is also looking into shatter-proofing windows in its buildings."We're kind of isolated out here, so we need to make determinations," Colclasure said.Colclasure said his district, which is located in a rural area, is in a much different situation than ACS. The school's isolated position in a tight-knit community means that for years, students and faculty have felt relatively safe."You want school to be a safe, secure environment but at the same time you don't want to turn it into a prison," Colclasure said. "That's the challenge." (TNS) Government officials using emails and text messages to handle public business in Ohio had best avoid apps and software that instantly or automatically delete their digital communications.Under state law, no public records can be destroyed unless authorized by a public office's records retention schedule that specifies how long records must be kept before they are destroyed.And, if electronic messages are illegally deleted, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled a decade ago that government officials must pay the costs of attempting to recover them and, if successful, turn them over for inspection.A public official's use of an app that automatically destroys a digital or electronic public record would violate state law, said Dennis Hetzel, executive director of the Ohio News Media Association."It is clear under Ohio law, as it should be, that the nature of the content of the communications, not the device or server used, should determine if it is a public record. That includes emails and text messages. There are many easy, best practices that public officials can and should follow to make sure these records are preserved," said Hetzel, also president of the Ohio Coalition for Open Government."Any person who has spent more than 30 seconds in the world of politics knows exactly what will happen if personal devices become exempt from open-records laws. That is what will be used for any and all important communications about government business, and there will be fewer records and fewer meaningful public meetings with a resulting loss in transparency and accountability."There are plenty of ways already for public officials to have preliminary dialogue and discussion outside the public eye. And that's perfectly appropriate in many situations. So let's not weaponize digital secrecy," Hetzel said.If a public official uses a personal cellphone for government business, those communications are public record and must be preserved. Those of a personal nature are not public and are protected from release. (TNS) For decades, law enforcement officials across California have had access to a powerful computer network that, with a few keystrokes from a desk terminal or patrol car, can access information on any Californian with a drivers license, registered car, parking ticket, restraining order or dozens of other digital records.The California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System, or CLETS, also gives police access to national databases maintained by the FBI and the neighboring state of Oregon. Its a little known and widely used police tool officials estimated its used by law enforcement about 2.8 million times a day.But sometimes law enforcement workers tap into the vast trove of information improperly, breaking the rules about when the detailed information can be properly accessed, according to a batch of records of CLETS misuse held by the state attorney general and collected by a privacy rights group.In 2017, the San Diego County Sheriffs Department investigated 19 suspected incidents of misuse of the network by department employees. Records show that four were determined to have violated CLETS-use policies: two people received reprimands, one was suspended, and one resigned over the misuse. The other 15 cases resulted in no administrative action taken.That wasnt an unusual year. In 2015, there were 22 investigations that resulted in one termination and one suspension. And in 2014, there were 28 investigations that found four violations. Three people resigned; one was fired that year.The department annually has the largest number of investigations into CLETS misuse of any agency in San Diego, and is one of the highest in the state, the records show.But exactly what the violations entailed isnt known: both the one-page form that agencies are required to turn in dont detail the violations, and the Sheriffs Department citing confidentiality of police personnel records declined to provide details.In an email response to questions, spokeswoman Lt. Karen Stubkjaer said the department takes CLETS abuse seriously and has a robust auditing system that in turn triggers many investigations.We stand behind our aggressive approach to monitoring and auditing CLETS use, she wrote. The Department is prohibited by law from releasing specific and confidential details of personnel investigations. However, when there is the appearance of misuse, we investigate it.The accounting of misuse of the powerful network is the result of a years-long effort by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital privacy rights organization based in the Bay Area. The organization, through annual Public Records Act requests to the state attorney general, has collected misuse reports that every agency that taps into CLETS is required to fill out and submit annually.The problem was that for years many agencies did not comply. In 2016, for example, barely more than half of the required agencies submitted reports, according to the foundation.But this year the attorney generals office put its foot down. In April, a bulletin went out that lamented the increasingly low submissions of misuse reporting and warning that in the future agencies that dont file the reports will be subject to sanctions.The warning worked. This year 98 percent of the roughly 1,500 agencies with access to CLETS filed reports.And while some employees have been fired or resigned and a few have been prosecuted, records show that many violations dont result in any formal action taken against the employee.Misusing the system can take a variety of forms. Its broadly defined as obtaining information outside the normal course of police business. Law enforcement agencies are allowed to access the information if its required for the performance of official duties or functions and if it is OK to do so under state law.Examples of misuse are getting information on a family member, friend or ex-wife, or querying the system to get home address or vehicle registration information for personal use. Other examples of misuse given by the attorney general include querying a firearm to determine if it is stolen prior to purchase and querying high-profile individuals in the media.Dave Maass, a researcher with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said the higher compliance was a welcome step but more information about how the system was misused was needed.For police departments this is like Google, he said. Its what they interact with every day.The relatively high number of investigations by the San Diego County sheriff may show a department that is diligent, or one with a chronic problem.Is it that there are more things going on in the San Diego Sheriffs Department? Or are they actually doing a better job of investigating and reporting? Maass said. If thats the case, if San Diego Sheriffs department is doing a good job, what does that say about the other agencies in San Diego?Last year, the San Diego Police Department reported three investigations into misuse, one of which resulted in an administrative action defined only as Other not a resignation, termination, suspension or counseling.The county Probation Department had three investigations that resulted in one termination. Oceanside Police Department reported a single investigation that resulted in termination. And the San Diego Community College District Police Department reported four investigations, none of which resulted in resignation or termination.The majority of agencies in the county said they had no instances of misuse of the system in 2017, the records show. And that has been true for nearly every year since 2010.There have been exceptions, however. In 2012, for example, San Diego Unified School District Police reported 15 misuse investigations. All were closed with no official finding of misuse.Statewide in 2017 there were 143 violations of the rules for using the system reported by the agencies, Electronic Frontier Foundation records show. From that 22 law enforcement employees were either terminated or resigned as a result of CLETS misuse. (TNS) From 22,000 miles above the Earth, the last day of May seemed relatively normal in Colfax County, N.M.Fluffy white clouds, like oddly shaped polka-dots, migrated across the Mora County line, but the arid brown desert and swaths of darker-colored forests were easily visible through what must have been a big, blue sky down below.As the afternoon progressed, though, a thin line of white smoke started to climb skyward, just north of N.M. 64. Satellite video shows the plume growing wider and wider, eventually blanketing the northeastern corner of the county and crossing well into Colorado by the early morning of June 1.So went the start of the Ute Park Fire, which burned more than 36,000 acres near the town of Cimarron earlier this year.Santa Fe based Descartes Labs last week unveiled satellite videos and infrared footage of Ute Park and dozens of other fires around the country, demonstrating its new Wildfire Watch system a Twitter bot called @WildfireSignal This tool could help folks who are dealing with wildfire in their community, explained Caitlin Kontgis, technical lead for Descartes applied science team.Employees at Descartes, a satellite imaging firm, were inspired to do something that could help during natural disasters after watching the destruction left by Hurricane Harvey last fall, Kontgis said. They decided to focus their efforts on mapping wildfires since many of them had personal experience with fire disasters in California, or at Los Alamos.The bot will publish new video and infrared images of ongoing wildfires every six hours. Already the Twitter feed has thousands of posts up, showing snippets of burns from Washington state to New Mexico.Kontgis team hopes these visualizations can help the public track wildfires and their smoke an advantage when trying to determine where and when to flee, or to help people keep an eye on whether a fire is approaching.Just visually, data like this we realized is incredibly powerful, Kontgis said.For example, Kontgis said, another employee at Descartes Lab described how the app could have been useful when his family was evacuated from a fire zone in California. They have a young child, Kontgis said, and wanted to flee from the smoke, but the smoke caught up to the town where they evacuated only a day later.A map like this could show the public the general direction smoke is traveling, so people can better avoid it. The infrared technology also can spot and map fires overnight when visual tools arent as effective, she said.Kontgis said its not the place of Descartes programmers to give people advice related to fires, but theyre hoping the tool can simply provide people objective information so they can be better informed.Being able to see [fire and smoke] movement provides more information when there really isnt a lot of information coming, Kontgis said. We want to provide information to people and help them make their own decisions.The bot software that is coded to run assigned tasks automatically essentially finds information on new fires from InciWeb, the incident information system for wildfires published through the National Wildfire Coordinating Group. It then identifies satellite imagery of the area where a fire has started. The bot then publishes infrared and video footage using hashtags like #UteParkFire that make the posts easy to search on the internet.A new satellite called GOES-16 is a critical component of the nearly live feed, Kontgis said. Instead of orbiting like other satellites, GOES-16 stays in place over the Western Hemisphere and takes constant images of the United States. Descartes can compile nearly live images from that satellite and provide that feed to first responders.However, theyre only tweeting the six-hour videos because of Twitter parameters, and because that makes the data easier to manage, Kontgis said.The groups ultimate goal is to program a computer to keep an eye on the infrared data, and create an alert system when a fire starts. The idea is to innovate a system that could help first responders get to the scene of a fire faster in hopes of preventing small fires from spreading.That alert system probably would be exclusively for public safety agencies, Kontgis said, because Descartes wouldnt want to start a panic over a fire that could just be a prescribed burn.Were cognizant of the implications of releasing a tool like that, Kontgis said.In a post on the website Medium.com , Descartes announced it had shared the technology with the Santa Fe National Forest in the hopes that it could help track and monitor fires.However, Forest Service spokesman Bruce Hill said the agency doesnt have use for the technology at the moment. Forest Geographic Information System coordinator Julie Luetzelschwab said the Forest Service already uses the GOES satellite system to keep an eye on fires in Northern New Mexico.We appreciate their offers; they do amazing work, I know, Luetzelschwab said of the new Descartes product. Theres so much new tech its hard to keep track of it all, but I know that the fire world here is using quite a bit of it. GTI (Gas Technology Institue) is leading a high-profile program on Hydraulic Fracturing Test Sites (HFTS) in the Permian Basin, bringing together government and industry to improve recovery, continue enhancing environmentally responsible methods of optimizing production, and lowering costs in the Midland and Delaware Basins. In January 2018, GTI was awarded funding from the US Department of Energy National Energy Technology Laboratory (DOE/NETL) for cost-shared research and development on hydraulic fracturing efficiency. Anadarko Petroleum Corporation (Anadarko) and Shell Exploration and Production Company (Shell) plan to co-host a new field test site in the Delaware Basin, where multiple experiments to evaluate well completion, optimize design, and quantify environmental impact will be carried out. Work will commence in late 2018 at an Anadarko-operated location, and other industry partners are invited to join the project. The new HFTS2Delaware field test site located in Block 55 T1, Loving County, Texas will feature different depth, pressures, and permeability than the site of GTIs first collaborative project, HFTS1Midland. Each location requires specific techniques for optimal production based on local geologic complexity. The Permian Basin in West Texas is considered one of the largest hydrocarbon resources in the world, covering 86,000 square miles and encompassing 52 counties in New Mexico and Texas. An increase in shale production from the Permian alone could set the US on a very plausible path toward fossil-based energy security. Current oil production is approximately 2.4 million barrels per day, and projections suggest that this could more than double over the next seven to 10 years. Natural gas production in the Permian Basin is likely to triple by 2020 from its 2010 level. This new work will build off HFTS1Midland, which was also supported by DOE/NETL, along with cofunding from operators and service companies. Laredo Petroleum, Inc. hosted the test site and provided critical geological and reservoir data from many wells in the area. In September 2015, 400+ fracture stages were completed in 11 Laredo wells in the Wolfcamp formation of the Midland portion of the Permian Basin. A first-of-a-kind through-fracture core sample was produced to document the physical properties of the fractures. Along with comprehensive data, it provided insight on how induced underground fractures spread, which is being used to assess the performance of individual fracture stages. It is the most meaningful data set to date for unconventional oil and gas production, providing ground truth evidence paramount to understanding fractures, validating and developing models, and assessing how predictive analytics can improve the process. In the quest to realize artificial photosynthesis to convert sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into fueljust as plants doresearchers need to not only identify materials to efficiently perform photoelectrochemical water splitting, but also to understand why a certain material may or may not work. Now scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have pioneered a technique that uses nanoscale imaging to understand how local, nanoscale properties can affect a materials macroscopic performance. In an open-access paper in the journal Nature Communications, they describe mapping the correlation between morphological and functional heterogeneity in bismuth vanadate, a promising metal oxide photoanode for photoelectrochemical water splitting, by photoconductive atomic force microscopy. This technique correlates the materials morphology to its functionality, and gives insights on the charge transport mechanism, or how the charges move inside the material, at the nanoscale. Francesca Toma, corresponding author and a researcher in the Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis, a Department of Energy Innovation Hub Schematic principle of photoconductive atomic force microscopy on polycrystalline bismuth vanadate thin films for solar water splitting. A nanoscale metal-coated probe images how efficiently charge carriers move through the film and how variations in the material influence device performance. (Credit: Berkeley Lab) Click to enlarge. Artificial photosynthesis seeks to produce energy-dense fuel using only sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide as inputs. The advantage of such an approach is that it does not compete against food stocks and would produce no or low greenhouse gas emissions. A photoelectrochemical water splitting system requires specialized semiconductors that use sunlight to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. Bismuth vanadate has been identified as a promising material for a photoanode, which provides charges to oxidize water in a photoelectrochemical cell. This material is a case example in which efficiency should be theoretically good, but in experimental tests you actually observe very poor efficiency. The reasons for that are not completely understood. Johanna Eichhorn The researchers used photoconductive atomic force microscopy to map the current at every point of the sample with high spatial resolution. This technique has already been used to analyze local charge transport and optoelectronic properties of solar cell materials but is not known to have been used to understand the charge carrier transport limitations at the nanoscale in photoelectrochemical materials. Eichhorn and Toma worked with scientists at the Molecular Foundry, a nanoscale science research facility at Berkeley Lab, on these measurements through the Foundrys user program. They found that there were differences in performance related to the nanoscale morphology of the material. We discovered that the way charges are utilized is not homogeneous over the whole sample, but rather, theres heterogeneity. Those differences in performance may account for its macroscopic performancethe overall output of the samplewhen we perform water splitting. Johanna Eichhorn To understand this characterization, Toma gives the example of a solar panel. Lets say the panel has 22 percent efficiency. But can you tell at the nanoscale, at each point in the panel, that it will give you 22 percent efficiency? This technique enables you to say, yes or no, specifically for photoelectrochemical materials. If the answer is no, it means there are less active spots on your material. In the best case it just decreases your total efficiency, but if there are more complex processes, your efficiency can be decreased by a lot. Francesca Toma The improved understanding of how the bismuth vanadate is working will also allow researchers to synthesize new materials that may be able to drive the same reaction more efficiently. This study builds on previous research by Toma and others, in which she was able to analyze and predict the mechanism that defines (photo)chemical stability of a photoelectrochemical material. Toma said these results put scientists much closer to achieving efficient artificial photosynthesis. Now we know how to measure local photocurrent in these materials, which have very low conductivity. The next step is to put all of this in a liquid electrolyte and do exactly the same thing. We have the tools. Now we know how to interpret the results, and how to analyze them, which is an important first step for moving forward. Francesca Toma Other co-authors of the study were Christoph Kastl, Jason Cooper, Adam Schwartzberg, and Ian Sharp (now at the Technical University of Munich) of Berkeley Lab; and Dominik Ziegler of Scuba Probe Technologies, a startup company and Molecular Foundry user. The research was funded by Berkeley Labs Laboratory Directed Research and Development program (LDRD). The Molecular Foundry is a Department of Energy Office of Science User Facility. Resources Tokyo Institute of Technology and Tohoku University have entered into an agreement to cooperate in information science research centering on quantum computing. The collaboration will allow the two institutions to build upon their respective strengths and form a global base to advance the field of study. With its potential to shorten processing time in complex tasks, quantum computing has attracted attention in a wide range of fields, some of which are out of reach of existing systems. Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) proposed the concept of quantum annealing in 1998, and that concept has been applied for many years as the operating principle in widely used commercial devices. This fundamental theory from 20 years ago has now become one of the worlds most influential scientific fields. Tohoku University is a global leader in applied research on quantum annealing and related software sciences, and has developed solutions to important issues through broad cooperation with industry. Utilizing this extensive experience, the Quantum Computing Unit, established at Tokyo Techs Institute of innovative Research (IIR) on 1 July 1, and the Q+HPC Data-Driven Social Infrastructure Development Base, an interdisciplinary priority research institute at Tohoku University, are collaborating to form a central base for quantum computing research. They will also use their combined strengths to organize the Quantum Annealing Research and Development Consortium (tentative name). Volkswagen Group Canada has formed Electrify Canada, a new company that will build an ultra-fast electric vehicle (EV) direct current (DC) charging network across Canada. Volkswagen expects the network to be operational starting in the second quarter of 2019. The mission of Electrify Canada is similar to that of Electrify America, established by Volkswagen as part of the settlement over the diesel emissions cheating scandal to invest $2 billion over a ten-year period ending in 2027 in Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) infrastructure and education programs in the United States. The initial Electrify Canada plan includes the installation of 32 EV charging sites near major highways and in major metro areas in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec. Each charging site will have four chargers on average and use the non-proprietary DC fast charging technologies (CCS and CHAdeMO). Charging power will range from 150kW to 350kW for the expected longer range, larger battery vehicles coming to market and will also deliver 50kW charging power to support todays EVs from all automotive manufacturers. The Canadian electric vehicle market is growing, creating a great need for charging that is fast, convenient and available in key locations. We are thrilled to be able to offer this service and to take a leadership position in providing this key EV adoption enabler to the Canadian market. Daniel Weissland, president and CEO, Volkswagen Group Canada, Inc. Electrify Canada, a new limited partnership company based in Ajax, ON, will manage the rollout and ongoing operation of the network. The company will engage with local vendors to locate, build and operate the network. Electrify Canada covers the planning, procurement, implementation and ongoing customer care which will support all automotive brands in order to help ensure that all EV drivers have access to these chargers, regardless of their choice of manufacturer, to drive EV adoption. Navigant Research forecasts that Canadian electric vehicle sales will grow at a compounded annual rate of 29% to reach about 140,000 vehicles per year in 2026. Sport Pakistan look to extend winning run; WI and SA eye return to winning ways Dubai: A buoyant Pakistan will look to extend their winning streak when they take on New Zealand in their second T20 world Cup match on Tuesday. Pakistan are brimming with confidence after breaking the losing jinx against India at the World Cup. They finally Haiti - FLASH : Admission contest of the State University of Haiti, Registrations open The State University of Haiti (UEH) informs the applicants that the registrations for the entrance examination to the UEH (academic year 2018-2019) are open from July 20 to August 24, 2018. Applicants can enroll in up to 3 faculties. CONDITIONS OF ADMISSION : 1. Do not be already students at the UEH; 2. Make a complete file: 2.1. Hold the certificates of completion of secondary studies: BAC I and BAC II, New Secondary Certificate or Certificate of the BAC Unique; 2.2. Be provided with his birth certificate or extract from the National Archives; 2.3. Hold his Tax Identification Number (TIN); 2.4. Present two identical and recent passport-size photos (6 months). STEPS OF REGISTRATION : Follow the procedure described at this address : https://admission.ueh.edu.ht/Inscription/Home/About 1. Fill out the form online 2. Pay for each selected entity the registration fee of 500 Gdes (Five Hundred Gourds) at any SOGEBANK branch on behalf of the account "UEH/DEMANDE D'ADMISSION" number: 706054558; 3. Present the required documents to the secretariat of each of the selected entities between 8:30 am and 3:30 pm for validation on the dates and dates indicated. Please note : At the time of registration, you must: a. Submit a complete file for each registration; b. Write on the back of each photo: name and surname, telephone and NIF; c. Submit the completed form online; d. Present a SOGEBANK 500 gourdes deposit slip for each selected entity. DATES RETAINED FOR ADMISSION COMPETITIONS : Faculte d'Odontologie (FO) - Saturday September 1st Institut National d'Administration, de Gestion et des Hautes Etudes Internationales (INAGHEI) - Sunday September 2nd Faculte d'Agronomie et de Medecine Veterinaire (FAMV) - Saturday, September 8th Faculte de linguistique Appliquee (FLA) - Sunday September 9th Campus Henry Christophe de limonade (CHCL) - Tuesday 11 and Wednesday 12 September Faculte de Medecine et de Pharmacie (FMP) - Saturday September 15 Faculte de Droit et des Sciences Economiques (FOSE) - Sunday September 16th Institut d'Etudes et de Recherches Africaines d'Halti (IERAH/ISERSS) - Saturday, September 22 Faculte des Sciences Humaines (FASCH) - Dimanche 23 septembre Faculte des Sciences (FOS) - Saturday, September 29 Ecole Normale Superieure (ENS) - Sunday, September 30 Ecole de Droit et des Sciences Economiques de Hinche (EDSEH) - Saturday 15 and Sunday 16, September Ecole de droit de Jacmel (EDJ) - Sunday September 16 Ecole de Droit et des Sciences Economiques des Cayes (EDSEC) - Sunday September 16 Ecole de Droit et des Sciences Economiques de Fort-liberte (EDSEFl) - Sunday, September 30 Faculte d'Ethnologie (FE) - To be determined Ecole de Droit et d'Economie de Port-de-Paix (EDEPP) - To be determined Faculte de Droit, des Sciences Economiques et de Gestion du Cap-Haitien - To be determined (FOSEG-CAP) (FOSEG-CAP) Ecole de Droit et des Sciences Economiques des Gonaives (EDSEG) - To be determined IMPORTANT : There will be no consideration or refund for the following reasons : Delay; Loss of file ; Payment made at another bank or account. It is mandatory to register online, on the website of the UEH before depositing the coins in the chosen entity Follow the procedure : https://admission.ueh.edu.ht/Inscription/Home/About For informations : Email : admission@ueh.edu.ht Phone : 41039827 ; 44945108 ; 22622000 Rectorat of the UEH : 21, Rue Riviere, Port-au-Prince, Haiti HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - DR : Nearly 70,000 Haitians deported or returned in Haiti during the 1st semester The Directorate of Dominican Migration (DGM) continues to increase migration control operations for Haitians living illegally in Dominican territory and border operations against illegal entry attempts. During the first 6 of the year (January to June 2018) nearly 70,000 Haitians were deported or returned to Haiti. In June, nearly 12,000 Haitians were returned to Haiti, 7,000 Haitians were turned back at the border trying to enter illegally or illegally on Dominican territory and nearly 5,000 others living illegally on Dominican territory (some for a few months others for more than 10 years), were deported after being controlled as illegal according to DGM information. In May, nearly 11,000 Haitians were returned to Haiti (6,000 Haitians were turned back at the border and nearly 5,000 others living illegally in the Dominican Republic, were deported) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-24707-haiti-dr-more-than-11-000-haitians-deported-or-repressed-in-haiti-may-2018.html In April, nearly 11,500 were returned to Haiti (5,800 Haitians were turned back at the border and nearly 5,600 others living illegally in the Dominican Republic, were deported) https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-24287-icihaiti-dr-nearly-10-000-haitians-deported-or-returned-to-haiti-april-2018.html For the first 3 months of the year nearly 35,000 Haitians were deported during migration controls or expelled to the border https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-24025-haiti-dr-nearly-35-000-haitians-deported-or-turned-back-in-haiti-since-the-beginning-of-the-year.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23748-haiti-rd-nearly-7-500-haitians-deported-to-haiti-or-turned-back.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23510-haiti-flash-nearly-16-000-haitians-deported-or-expelled-from-the-dominican-territory-in-january.html It should be noted that from July 2015 to March June 2018 at the official and unofficial border points of the border, nearly 300,000 Haitians were deported or returned to Haiti. Moreover, it should be remembered that the National Plan for the Regulation of Abroad and the extension of temporary residence cards granted to Haitians included in this plan will expire on August 26, 2018. Most of the 239,000 Haitians who have not been able to regularize will be then under threat of deportation. It is urgent that the Haitian authorities enter into discussion with the Dominican State to avoid a possible massive repatriation in the coming months. See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-24707-haiti-dr-more-than-11-000-haitians-deported-or-repressed-in-haiti-may-2018.html https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-24287-icihaiti-dr-nearly-10-000-haitians-deported-or-returned-to-haiti-april-2018.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-24025-haiti-dr-nearly-35-000-haitians-deported-or-turned-back-in-haiti-since-the-beginning-of-the-year.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23748-haiti-rd-nearly-7-500-haitians-deported-to-haiti-or-turned-back.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23510-haiti-flash-nearly-16-000-haitians-deported-or-expelled-from-the-dominican-territory-in-january.html SL/ HaitiLibre The Children's Museum of the East End - CMEE - is a vital part of the East End community. Their mission, as described on their website, is "to spark imagination and foster learning for children of all backgrounds and abilities and to build strong connections within the East End community by providing playful experiences." CMEE opened its current home in Bridgehampton in October 2005 and soon became one of the most loved and visited museums on Long Island, bringing in nearly 75,000 visitors each year, as noted on their website. Hamptons.com recently spoke with Liz... (Bloomberg) A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S is in an unusual place this year as the worlds biggest shipping company finds itself the target of an attack by hedge funds. For years, theres been no speculation against Maersk to speak of. In September, short positions represented just 0.8 percent of the Danish companys stock. But with a trade war upending the outlook for the global container shipping industry, investors are reviewing their options. To read this article: CUSTOMERS and staff at a Checkendon pub dressed up as soldiers, nurses and fighter pilots to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War. The Black Horse off Uxmore Road was decorated with Union flag bunting, poppies and hay bales for the event on Saturday. There were also several 20th century motorbikes and an early version of the Ford car in the grounds, as well as models of fighter planes and trenches made from sandbags. In the evening, a band performed songs from the era and a traditional wartime meal of corned beef and beans was served. The Last Post was also played by a bugler at 8pm. The pub, which dates back to the 18th century, has been run by Martin and Margaret Morgan for 50 years and has been in Mrs Morgans family for more than 100. They regularly hold summer parties for customers and the family also visits war graves in Belgium and France as Mrs Morgans uncle Archie Stallwood was killed in action. They decided to give this years party a First World War theme following a suggestion by John Green, chairman of the Henley and Peppard branch of the Royal British Legion. Mrs Morgan said: We always do something as a thank-you to our regular customers. This time we decided as its 100 years since the end of the war wed do this. My husband had the idea to include the model plane and poppies. Mrs Morgans daughter Claire Wilkinson, who helped organise the event, said: Mum and Dad go over to Ypres a lot and felt it would be nice to have a celebration of the end of the war. We couldnt do it in November because it would be too wet and cold so we did it for our summer party. It was amazing, we had nearly 80 people and most of them dressed up. It was a nice effort and everyone looked really good. We are very pleased with how it went. AN estate has cancelled an event that would have seen the release of thousands of sky lanterns because of the fire risk. The Culden Faw estate had agreed to host The Lights Fest on August 4 but has now decided to pull the plug following weeks without rain. The country has experienced a heatwave and there are concerns that this, along with a breeze, could cause a fire to spread quickly. Estate manager Alex Dick said: We have cancelled because of the obvious fire risk and obviously theres a lot of people worried about that. We dont need to take a risk when everythings tinder dry. It only takes a spark to set a fire off and it would irresponsible for us to even take the risk. Mr Dick said it had no connection with the business and simply let the land for the event and it would be up to The Lights Fest to offer refunds. Last week, the Henley Standard reported how the town council is encouraging people not to drop litter in green spaces as it could magnify the suns rays and spark a blaze. SIX men were arrested after immigration officials raided two restaurants in Henley. Officers visited Asiana Spice in Reading Road and then Cafe Le Raj opposite on Thursday evening last week and found a total of nine members of staff who had no right to work in the UK. Both businesses may now face fines running into the thousands unless they can demonstrate that proper checks were carried out. The Home Office said that checks at Asiana Spice uncovered six members of staff who had no permission to work in the UK. A spokeswoman said: Four men, all from Bangladesh and aged between 28 and 44 years old, were arrested and remain in immigration detention pending their removal from the UK. All had overstayed their visas. A further two Bangladeshi men with ongoing immigration applications, but with no right to work were escorted from the premises and must report regularly to the Home Office while their cases are dealt with. At Cafe Le Raj checks revealed that three members of staff had no permission to work in the UK. The spokeswoman added: Two men, aged 31 and 42 and both from Bangladesh, were arrested and remain in immigration detention pending their removal from the UK. Both had overstayed their visas. The third man, also from Bangladesh who has an ongoing application, but no right to work was escorted from the premises and must report regularly to the Home Office while his case is dealt with. Both businesses were served with referral notices. This means a financial penalty of up to 20,000 per illegal worker found will be imposed unless the employers can demonstrate that appropriate right-to-work document checks were carried out, such as seeing a passport or Home Office document confirming permission to work. The Home Office said the raid was the result of intelligence information and immigration enforcement vans were spotted in the road. The owners of Cafe Le Raj and Asiana Spice were not available for comment. People with information about suspected immigration abuse should visit www.gov.uk/report-immigration-crime A MAN from Maidensgrove and his grandson will make a pilgrimage to Ypres to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War. John Green, chairman of the Henley and Peppard branch of the Royal British Legion, and Edward Bloomer will travel to the Belgian battleground next month for a parade and ceremony. They will be among more than 2,000 legion members and dignitaries from around the world to make the journey, known as the Great Pilgrimage, from August 5 to 9. This year marks 90 years since the first Great Pilgrimage in 1928, when 11,000 war veterans and widows visited battlefields in France and Belgium. The event will culminate with a march to the Menin Gate war memorial where Edward, a 17-year-old student at The Henley College, who lives in Stoke Row, will lay a wreath on behalf of the town. He will also wear war medals awarded to his great grandfather, and Mr Greens father, Captain William Leslie Green, including the Military Cross. Mr Green, 82, who will be standard-bearer for the pilgrimage, said: This is a unique opportunity for the legion to come together and bear our standards along the same route in Ypres taken 90 years earlier. He added: The branch looks forward to proudly representing Henley at the event. UPPER THAMES claimed 15 gold medals at last weeks Henley Masters Regatta to make them by far the most successful club at the event. The two-day event held on Friday and Saturday last week drew crews from across the world to compete over a 1,000 metre course upstream from Temple Island in sunny conditions. Stand-out wins for Upper Thames came from the mens C8+ (average age 43 to 49), who fought an intense duel with a strong international composite crew from Edinburgh and Dynamo Moscow in the final, with never more than one-third of a length separating the crews. The womens C8+ saw good racing against Wallingford in their semi-final and were nip and tuck all the way, winning by just one foot on the line. In the final they triumphed over Chinook Performance Racing USA by more than three lengths. Elise Cope, in her first race in the pair, and Clare Forgie won the masters WC2- beating Vada-Daventria Composite (Holland) in the final by 2.5 lengths. Peter Jacobs and Dan Sadler comfortably won in the E coxless pairs (average age 55) to add to their unbeaten record in the pair in masters events over the past eight years, including British Masters gold in June and two World Masters golds in Bled, Slovenia, last September. Jacobs and Sadler then joined forces with Zad Rogers and Tim Senior to win the D coxless fours (average age 50) in the fastest final in this boat class, rowing through Swan Creek RC from the USA. Tim Lincoln and George Petelin reaped the rewards of training together daily over the last two months to claim victory in the I/J2x (average age 75+ years) while regular racer at Boston USAs Head of the Charles River, Bob Gullett won in the H1x (average age 70 to 74). Adding to the tally were wins in B4x quad sculls (average age 36), F4x quad sculls (average age 60 to 64), I/J4x quad sculls and womens D4x and E4x quad sculls. Wins in mens and womens B category double sculls and C coxless fours rounded off an impressive medal haul. Meanwhile Henley Rowing Club also gain success as Helen Turnell and Victoria Morgan won the masters D double sculls. The Henley double had a bye to the final where they beat Eton Excelsior. Elsewhere for Henley crews, the masters B quad lost to a Pocock Quintin BC composite, a composite Henley/Sydney University womens masters F 8 lost to Marlow while Janet Mehers in womens masters F single won her first heat against Nesbit of Weybridge but lost in the semi-final to Meyer of GMS Rowing Centre, USA. In all 77 events were contested at the 25th regatta by 357 entries in the annual event hosted by Upper Thames. Looking for the Conan strain of yeast? If youre looking to use the Vermont IPA Strain of yeast to take a swing at home brewing something like Alchemist Brewings Heady Topper here are the options. Two Limited Time Deals, Article Continues Below: Label Peelers is shipping Lalbrew American East Coast Yeast for free to US addresses Adventures in Homebrewing has OYL-052 DIPA on sale for $6.99 Dry Version! LalBrews American East Coast Yeast is the Conan Strain at Adventures in Homebrewing, MoreBeer and Label Peelers usually ships for free to US addresses White Labs Burlington Ale About: Ideal for IPAs and other hop forward beers, this yeast will provide a unique flavor profile and nice body. This is the ideal strain to make your favorite North East IPA, New England IPA or Hazy IPA. Omega Yeast Labs Double IPA Yeast OYL-052 DIPA About: Ale strain isolated from a famous double IPA brewed in Vermont. Produces a unique ester profile reminiscent of peaches. This strain complements an aggressive use of hops. There is a common thought that this is mostly likely the Conan Strain thats used for The Alchemists Heady Topper. GigaYeast Double Pitch Vermont IPA Yeast GY054 About: The Vermont IPA strain from Giga has a strong, growing following if you search the web. The problem is the supply has not been able to keep up with demand. MoreBeer! worked with Giga to get all they could produce and was able to offer this product via mail order delivery (it is not yet in our retail stores). We are excited because we know you are going to love it. As the name suggests this yeast is perfect in IPAs where it leaves a beer with more body and a slight fruity ester. What really makes it stand out is that is known for being amazing when combined with aromatic hops. While perfect for IPAs it is also a good choice for any high gravity beers and hoppy styles. Broad temperature range and moderate flocculation make this yeast a versatile house strain. Imperial Organic Yeast Barbarian via MoreBeer also via Keg Connection Barbarian is created to mimics the yeast used in a popular Double IPA in Vermont. Barbarian is a great choice for creating balanced IPAs. this strain produces stone fruit esters and works excellent along side citrusy hops varietals. Heady Topper Clone! About Topped With Hops: Based off of one of the most exceptional east coast beers (in our humble opinion) on the market, this double IPA instantly became one of our favorite ingredient kits! Our version of a Heady Topper clone recipe is packed with almost a pound of hops, and is definitely a beer that will have hopheads in hop heaven. One of the first things we noticed when pouring this beer into the pint glass was the aroma. With a dry hop addition consisting of Amarillo, Apollo, Centennial, Columbus, and Simcoe, we werent necessarily surprised. Impressed is more like it. A balanced malt profile helps to tame the bitterness, allowing the hop flavor and aroma to be the true star in this recipe. More Fermentation Related! This is a Top Post! See: All Top Posts toppost:conanstrain tag:tpr rs:4 TBILISI, July 19, 2018 With the goal of supporting governments and civil society in countries and sub-nationals that participate in the Open Government Partnership (OGP) to increase government transparency, improve accountability and strengthen citizen engagement and government responsiveness, the World Bank and development partners have launched the OGP Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) . The US$12 million Fund will support implementation of open government reforms, an inclusive and participatory dialogue and decision-making process, and build the evidence base on the impact of open government reforms. The design, strategy and governance of the MDTF is rooted in OGPs founding principles that government and civil society should have an equal seat at the table. With the support of Agence Francaise de Developpement, the Department for International Development UK, and Global Affairs Canada, the MDTF aims to deliver customized support to both governments and civil society in line with the OGP standards and timeframes, and it incentivizes robust performance by all partners while leveraging the World Banks technical expertise and country programs. The World Bank is supporting both governments and civil society in OGP to deliver country or locally led reforms to build knowledge, and create avenues and opportunities for open government and citizen engagement, and help build and maintain trust between citizens and the state, said Debbie Wetzel, Senior Director of the World Banks Governance Global Practice. The MDTF is an instrument to leverage the Banks technical specialists and in-country presence to support experimentation and innovative approaches to reform, participation, inclusion, and learning to move the needle on open government and citizen engagement. Aidan Eyakuze, Executive Director of Twaweza and a member of the OGP Steering Committee said, The OGP Trust Fund is a very welcome addition to the growing collection of powerful tools for opening up governments around the world. Civil society actors were previously disadvantaged by having fewer financial resources to deploy to this mission than our government partners. This fund helps to further level that playing field. The first set of awards have been given to nine civil society organizations to facilitate the participatory process of developing OGP Action Plans in five countries and four sub-nationals. Given the significant demand, this exceeded initial expectations. Eyakuze added, The superb quality of the CSO proposals, and the decision to fund more than we had anticipated underscore the unique value of this MDTF. There is momentum to increase ambition on open government reforms as more countries are joining the OGP, especially in francophone Africa. The MDTF is a lever to support this ambition both among the civil society community and the government partners, said Helene Julien, Public Sector Reform Program Manager of the Governance Department, Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD). AFD is therefore very happy to have been the first donor to contribute to the MDTF. The OGP Trust Fund is an exciting moment for the partnership. It has been designed to explicitly support OGP partners around the world in their work, be it co-creation, advancing thematic priorities or implementing ambitious commitments, said Joe Powell, Deputy CEO of the OGP Support Unit. "We are already seeing high demand from the community and look forward to further discussions at the Global Summit in Tbilisi. The MDTF will open calls for proposals throughout the year for awards on a competitive basis to national and sub-national/local OGP participants with a multi-stakeholder forum, and to partners who will support the learning and building of evidence of impact of OGP commitments. For more information on the World Bank, please visit: http://www.worldbank.org For more information on the MDTF, please visit: https://www.opengovpartnership.org/ogp-trust-fund Source: http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2018/07/19/world-bank-and-development-partners-have-launched-the-ogp-multi-donor-trust-fund Authorities Say Police Service Weapon Used In Cromwell Ave Shooting State police are taking over an investigation into a shooting that occurred at a house owned by a Pittsfield Police officer. PITTSFIELD, Mass. Police say the gun used in the shooting on Cromwell Avenue was a Police issued service weapon. A woman, whom authorities continue to refuse to identify, was shot at the home of Officer Miles Barber last Wednesday. She was transported to Berkshire Medical Center following surgery and airlifted to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield. The District Attorney's office has said that the preliminary investigation appears that the wound was self-inflicted. Pittsfield Police released a statement on Monday saying that the weapon used was the Glock Model 22, .40 caliber pistol that was issued to the 18-year veteran of the force. The gun is now in custody of the Massachusetts State Police Firearms Identification Section pending ballistic testing. Barber has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal administrative investigation. The State Police have taken over the investigation into the shooting. Updated on Thursday, July 19, 2018 at 2:12 p.m. PITTSFIELD, Mass. Preliminary evidence is pointing to a self-inflicted wound in the shooting incident that occurred Wednesday on Cromwell Avenue, say authorities. At 3:09 Wednesday afternoon, the Pittsfield Police Department received a call reporting that an individual had sustained a gunshot wound at the home of an off-duty Pittsfield Police officer on Cromwell Avenue. The individual injured in the shooting, identified only as a woman by authorities, is listed in critical but stable condition at Baystate Medical Center. She was airlifted to the Springfield hospital Wednesday evening following emergency surgery at Berkshire Medical Center. According to a statement from the district attorney's office, evidence collected and preliminary interviews conducted reveal that the incident is being considered a case of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, however, the investigation is still in its early stages. The investigation remains active and no further details can be released at this time. The investigation is being conducted by state police detectives assigned to the district attorneys office, the State Police Crime Scene Services and Ballistics Sections, forensic scientists assigned to the State Police Crime Laboratory. Members of the Pittsfield Police Department are also aiding, according to the statement, although Pittsfield Police Chief Michael Wynn said on Wednesday that the state police will be the lead on the investigation, and the Berkshire County sheriff's department. Original post at 4:59 p.m., July 18, 2018: PITTSFIELD, Mass. A woman was shot at the home of a city police officer on Wednesday. The woman was taken to Berkshire Medical Center where she underwent surgery and is listed in stable condition, according to a statement from the district attorney's office. Police have not released much in the way of details but say an off-duty officer called in the shooting on Cromwell Avenue on Wednesday afternoon. "At approximately 3:09 in the afternoon we received a call in the dispatch center from an off-duty police officer reporting that he found a shooting incident at his residence," Police Chief Michael Wynn said at the scene. According to land records, the home at 102 Cromwell Ave. is owned by Officer Miles J. Barber but Wynn would not confirm the identity of the homeowner nor the victim. A very brief statement from the district attorney's office at about 6 p.m. confirmed only the information iBerkshires' gleaned from the scene and the update on the victim's status. The woman's identity was not provided nor her relationship, if any, to Barber, or if he was the one who found her. It's also not clear what firearm was used, who owned it or how the shooting occurred. iBerkshires' has reached out to the DA's office with these questions but has been informed that no further information will be immediately released because it is an active investigation. Wynn said state police are taking over the investigation since it involves a currently active officer within Pittsfield's ranks. "Based on the fact that there is a law enforcement connection, we immediately requested assistance from the state police Berkshire detective unit and the DA's office. At this point, the ongoing investigation at this scene is being conducted by the state police," he said. "We will be opening a separate administrative investigation once they get through their preliminary." Wynn said there is no current threat to the public. The chief also wouldn't confirm where the officer is now. District Attorney Paul Caccaviello was also there but did not speak to the press. MCLA's public safety department is asking for a no-parking zone along the west side of Ashland Street near the Facilities Building. The parking change would not affect the short-term parking in front of several businesses. North Adams Council Taking Up Motel Zoning, No-Parking Zone The developers of the Tourists motel complex are asking that all of the various parcels be zoned under one designation. NORTH ADAMS, Mass. The City Council is expected to vote on a zoning ordinance change on Tuesday that will affect a large swath of land on both sides of the Hoosic River in Blackinton. The landowner's petition, by the developers of The Beyond Place LLC, would convert two industrial zones and one residential zone to align with an existing commercial (CC-1) zone. The properties have been purchased over the last few years to become part of the Tourists motel complex. The Planning Board recommended the zoning change after a joint public hearing with the City Council on July 9. Principal Benjamin Svenson, project manager Eric Kerns, and the petitioner's attorney, F. Sydney Smithers of Cain Hibbard & Myers, appeared before the joint hearing to answer questions. Smithers said the request was to ensure "certainty, consistency and predictability" as the once humble motor court has expanded to include plans for a restaurant and farm, trails, outdoor activities and the yet-to-be-determined future of the Blackinton Mill. Svenson and his partners purchased the former Redwood Motel on State Road in 2015 with the intention of rebuilding the deteriorating motor court into a boutique motel along what is being called the "Cultural Corridor" between North Adams and Williamstown. That modest proposal has grown by leaps and bounds over the past three years to comprise some 18 properties on both sides of the Hoosic River including the mill and the city's former wastewater treatment plant property. The developers say the consolidation of all these properties under one commercial zone, including a piece of land owned by the state's Division of Wildlife and Fisheries, will provide the consistency to pursue the development of an envisioned spa-type resort while also maintaining the character of a once flourishing village with its own commercial core. Those councilors in attendance at the July 9 hearing raised no significant objections and the planners moved to recommend the zoning change 8-1. The parcels affected are 915 State Road, 861 State Road, Rear Massachusetts Avenue (former sewer plant), 1470 Massachusetts Avenue, 1428 Massachusetts Avenue, 1288 Massachusetts Avenue, off Massachusetts Avenue, Map 96 / Lot 1 & 1A, Ashton Avenue Map 9O /Lot 15, off Ashton Avenue Map 95 Lot 44. The council will also take up a request from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts that has been recommended by the Traffic Commission to create a no-parking zone by the college's Facilities Building on the west side of Ashland Street. MCLA Police Chief Daniel Colonno wrote to ask that signs be located in front of the building at 341 Ashland and the adjacent commuter lot because of visibility issues when exiting onto Ashland. "The issue is that when people are pulling out of these two driveways, their view is obstructed by parked cars making it difficult for drivers to see southbound traffic (one of our staff members was involved in a personal injury auto accident last semester pulling out onto Ashland St. and a contributing factor of the accident was that her view was obstructed by parked cars north of the driveway)," he wrote in a communique last September. Traffic Commission Chairwoman Mary Ann King wrote to the council that she had attempted to pull out of the three college driveways on that stretch and "had to just about pull out into traffice before I could see cars approaching." King also found that there was a two-hour parking zone still in effect in the Facilities Building area that the commission first voted to remove. The east side of the street (in front of the college's town houses) is a no-parking zone; just north of the commuter lot, the parking is 15 minutes by the pizza parlor and coffeehouse. The commission approved a "No Parking Zone" on the west side from the Boston and Maine Bridge abutment 368 feet north. "This would still allow for some on-street parking as well as parking in the parking lot," King wrote. Also on the agenda are a host of permissions for more hanging signs on Eagle Street. The signage is part of the NAMAzing Eagle Street Initiative that is providing new hanging signs for businesses on Eagle. The signs have been approved by the Planning Board but because they will hang out over a public way, the council has to approve the permits with proof of liability insurance. The signs will hang from King Kut's Salon, Mia's Exchange, Jack's Hot Dog Stand, Klipper Kingz, Adams Community Bank, Birdsong Gallery, and Galen Gallery. The council will also be asked to approve the appointment of two new members of the Public Arts Commission, Bryan Sapienza and Derek Parker. Sapienza will complete the unexpired term of Nancy Ziter ending on May 1, 2019; Parker, who is replacing Erica Manville, will have a term to expire May 1, 2023. After 11 years in local government, Thomas Wickham seeks a seat in the state house. Lee Selectman Wickham Making Bid For State Senate PITTSFIELD, Mass. Thomas Wickham describes himself as a "realist" and a "moderate" and is looking for a seat in the state Senate. Eleven years ago he received a tax bill that frustrated him. But instead of just getting mad and complaining about it, he got involved. "After I got my taxes, I was kind of mad. I figured I wanted to get involved and figure out what is going on," Wickham said. "I started on the Planning Board 10, 11 years ago learning how zoning goes and how we zone businesses in town, whether we are friendly or not." That experience led him to get involved with the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission. The Lee Democrat worked on such committees as regional issues where he spent a great deal of time discussing issues impacting all of the Berkshires and he learned a lot about the role the state plays and state grants. Five years ago he was elected to the Lee Board of Selectmen. And now he has his sights set on the state Senate. Wickham is challenging incumbent Adam Hinds, D-Pittsfield, for the Berkshire, Hampshire, Franklin, and Hampden district seat. "I've got 10, 11 years in local government. I understand the small towns and the big towns and how grants work, how municipalities work, how much money is involved, unions and labor negotiations, all of that," Wickham said. "I have experience in this and I can do this job and do it well if I get elected." Wickham is bringing a number of his own ideas to the campaign. He was the originator of a local option gas tax proposal which the town of Lee passed but still needs state approval. That would place a local tax on gas for the towns to spend solely on infrastructure repairs. "Roads are half a million dollars a mile. Lee has 72 miles of roads. All towns have tons of roads. We are barely keeping up with our main roads and our secondary roads are terrible. These are people paying taxes in a nice neighborhood and they have a terrible road. We need to start addressing secondary roads," Wickham said. "Being a town selectman, I understand what needs to be fixed. Just give me the money, I don't have it and I can't keep raising property taxes to do it. A five cent gas tax taxes everybody, poor, rich, it doesn't make a difference and we all get the improvements." Recently he was walking on the Berkshire Community College campus when he took a peek into a classroom. He saw some 30 seats but only around 20 students. That gave him the idea of an "empty chair" program. "Those empty chairs could be filled by a certain group of kids out of high school. So what I am thinking is have the guidance councilors choose three kids who don't have the resources to go to BCC but deserve it. They pick the three out of each high school," Wickham said. His concept is to start a state program to provide those students from each school a free ride at the community college while private donors can help with books and other materials. He said as long as the students maintain a B average, they'd be able to retain their seat. That's an example of his more moderate stance than some other Democrats. While there has been talk about free college education for all, Wickham said his program would at least accomplish some of that instead of ending up with nothing. Education has become one of his key points he'd like to focus on if elected, in particular in support of public schools. "I'm a product of public school, so are my kids, so is my family for generations. We all seemed to have done pretty well," Wickham said. Jobs remains another top priority for Wickham. A carpenter of more than 30 years is watching as a large number of carpenters retire and there is a lack of younger people to fill those jobs. He is also seeing a lack of career opportunities in the Berkshires - but instead a large number of service jobs. "There are a lot of jobs but there are no careers. And a lot of them are seasonal. So that is something I'd want to work on," Wickham said. Wickham said he'd like to chase down businesses that require "a skill" such as those in manufacturing to help provide better work opportunities to the Berkshires. "The manufacturing base is coming back. There are a few things starting to get back in the Pittsfield area. We are a manufacturing, historically, type place," Wickham said. He said he'd personally reach out to such companies and try to convince them to move here but growing the economy takes efforts on all fronts to improve a community. For example, he said companies are more apt to move to a place if they see such things are roads being repaired and blight being cleaned. He is also suggesting the creation of economic zones in which companies with 100 or more employees that move to those areas receive a lower tax rate. The laws for businesses also have to change. He owns his own business - Wickham and Daughters Construction - and has seen first hand a number of obstacles being placed in front of businesses. He said the sprinkler laws are a good example. Those laws are preventing businesses from moving into old structures because of the costly improvements required. "You are stopping businesses from going into old businesses because of that law," Wickham said. Energy remains another obstacle. He said he'd take some of the similar efforts the town of Lee did to a state level. He helped negotiate an energy rate of 8.2 cents per kilowatt house - a third lower than most right now - for 20 years from solar. That locked-in rate helps moderate fluctuations in price increases. He said he studies energy closely and has a number of plans for the grid, promoting solar, and wants to bring in Hydro-Canada electricity to prevent the need for gas pipelines. He also wants to address the law which allows a utility company to make 10 percent profit, saying 5 percent is enough. He promised to go after Eversource and Spectrum for rate increases. Wickham will emphasis his local government experience and passion to make things better for the individual towns. "You've got to have a passion for this. If you don't have the passion, only doing it to get rich and popular, go ahead. I'm done with that. We've got to elect people who actually want to do something. I will do the best I can in two years and if I don't do good enough and everyone wants to kick me out, then they kick me out. But I can sleep at night because I am going to work my butt off and do exactly what I said I was going to do," Wickham said. Wickham is taking on incumbent Adam Hinds in the Democratic primary in September. Warren addressed a full theater after addressing another large group in the overflow area outside. Warren addressed the overflow crowd first. U.S. Rep. Richard Neal introduced Warren to both crowds. Indpendent Shiva Ayyadurai antagonized Warren and her supporters and that ultimately led to a small scuffle in the street. PreviousNext Sen. Warren's Town Hall Attracts More Than A Thousand In Great Barrington U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren promised to "keep fighting." GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. - U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren is one of the most polarizing senators in the country. Democrats love her and that was shown on Sunday when more than 1,000 people stood in line, some hours ahead of time, to hear her speak at the Mahaiwe Performance Arts Center. Republicans hate her and that was shown by the counter-protest being held just outside those doors. But Warren seems to operate comfortably in that position as for more than an hour, in a speech and question and answers from the audience, she focused on what she sees as the fundamental differences between the two political parties, called for Democrats to take back control on all levels of government, and promised to continue to "fight." "I am not giving up, not tomorrow, not next month," Warren said. "I am not giving up because I am in this fight out of gratitude. I am deeply grateful to an America that invested in a kid like me and I am deeply determined that the way I will repay that gratitude is that I will do everything I can to make this America work again." The Massachusetts Democrat took particular aim at the Republican-led tax bill. She said that gave some $1.5 trillion dollars to billionaires and corporations, and that has limited the country's ability to invest in education, health care, and infrastructure. "The Republicans managed in the space of a few weeks to write and pass a tax bill that completely overhauls much of our economy and that says as clearly as possible how they believe we build a future going forward. Let me go to the central feature of that tax bill, that tax bill gives away more than $1.5 trillion to billionaires and giant corporations. That's how they think we build a future in America - you help the rich and the powerful get richer and more powerful and somehow that is America's future," Warren said. Recently she has been pushing what called the Care Act. The bill would allocate some $100 billion over the next decade to combat opioid abuse by bolstering treatment and medical programs. She said right now someone struggling with addiction has a 1 in 10 chance to get the medical support he or she needs. "We do know about the treatments we need. It is because we won't spend the money to be able to provide the care, the treatment centers, the long-term support. So 20-year-olds, 30-year-olds, 40 years olds have died, leaving children behind, leaving parents whose hearts are broken because America wants their money," Warren said. She consulted with experts in crafting the bill. "It would take $10 billion a year for 10 years to turn this around. That's $100 billion. That's a lot of money. But, it would be enough if we pushed it right down to the communities that are affected, we pushed this money down to the treatment facilities. We'd turn this around, knock this problem in the head and save a lot of people in this country," Warren said. "So we wrote this up and I took it to my Republican colleagues and I said 'you come from a state where there is a serious problem with addiction. This is a terrible problem.' I explained this whole thing, we call it the Care Act. Will you join me on this? Do you know what the answer was every single time? Great idea, we can't afford it. We can't afford it because they just gave away $1.5 trillion to multi-national corporations and billionaires." That was a repeated theme for Warren as she cycled through a number of issues facing the country. She said many of the issues could be fixed if "everybody paid their fair share" and the money was invested wisely. Health insurance faces another challenge. She said Republicans are pushing to cut Medicare, aren't curbing private health insurance increases, and are fighting to allow insurance companies to "discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions." Warren would rather see money invested in those programs, but, again she said the country can't afford it because of the tax bill. She continued onto infrastructure. "We are not even at the replacement rate of what is crumbling and breaking down around us, much less building a future for our small businesses, our big businesses, building the kind of transportation infrastructure that gets people to the Berkshires, building the kind of communications infrastructure so everybody has access to 21st Century communications. That's where we need to spend money," Warren said. She said she brought the discussion to the Republicans and received the same response, "great idea but we can't afford it." The same story goes for student debt, which Warren said is growing exponentially each year. She wants to expand the loan forgiveness programs but again, she said it was rejected. "Budgets are the manifest statement of our values. They tell us what we care about," Warren said. The line into the theater went a long way down Main Street. Warren dovetailed into the familiar story she tells of growing up. She wanted to be a school teacher. He father was a janitor and her mother worked minimum wage at Sears. When college came, her parents were unable to afford it. Her hopes were lost until she eventually found a commuter college at an affordable rate. She then got the degrees she needed and worked her way to the U.S. Senate. Warren says that kind of America is being threatened right now by the Republican control. "America's back is to the wall. The kind of country that we believe in, the kind of country we want to be is at risk now. It has all been put at risk. That means each and every one of us is called on. This is our moment in history and those who turn away, those who say I am just discouraged, those who say I've given up, those who throw their hands in the air, those who say no one has been perfect, no. We can't afford that in America anymore," Warren said. That sentiment is something state Sen. Adam Hinds reflected on. In introducing the program, Hinds said there are relentless attacks on democracy and Warren is one fighting on behalf of the Democrats to reverse those trends. "It is at these moments you want to have a fighter in your corner," Hinds, who later returned to the stage to moderate the question and answer session, said. U.S. Rep. Richard Neal introduced the senator and praised her as someone who goes to Washington "armed with facts every single day." The mid-term elections are quickly approaching and Warren is hoping Democrats are motivated to vote and switch the power in Congress. She has her own race as she is being challenged by Republicans Geoff Diehl, Beth Lindstom, and John Kingston as well as independent Shiva Ayyadurai - who campaigned outside of the event. Warren has been linked numerous times to a possible presidential run in 2020 and many in the theater shouted to her to run. But, she avoided the topic mostly. While she wants more Democrats up and down the levels of government, those in Great Barrington want her at the top. While the Care Act and infrastructure bills have been Warren's most recent push, she is also working on a bill to fight against "corruption in the government," has a bill calling on the federal government to defer to state laws regarding marijuana, and, through her role on the Armed Services Committee, crafting a bill to allow National Guard members to receive their full recognition of a promotion immediately instead of a governmental delay. She also touched on immigration, calling for Congress to negotiate a new deal that works for everyone, and the environment, calling for strong protections. The town hall meeting was one of many Warren will be holding across her home state and her 30th overall. As early as noon, if not earlier, people from all over the region were lining up at the door. The theater was quickly filled for the 2:30 event and the rest gathered around a gazebo across the street. Prior to entering the theater for the speaking portion, Warren gave a brief address and fielded a couple questions from the overflow audience there. Warren said the turnout is motivating for her. "I am reminded when I am here in the Berkshires about how every policy in Washington directly affects every person here," Warren said. Choreographer and disability arts innovator Alice Sheppard and the Kinetic Light collaborative will give a debut appearance at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festivals Inside/Out series on Wednesday, Aug. 1. Berkshires Beat: Disability Innovator to Give Jacob's Pillow Performance Wheeled away Following a sold-out run at New York Live Arts and performances at San Francisco's Fresh Meat Festival, choreographer and disability arts innovator Alice Sheppard and the Kinetic Light collaborative will give a debut appearance at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festivals Inside/Out series on Wednesday, Aug. 1, from 6:15 to 7 p.m. They will present a mixed program of solo and duet works celebrating wheeled movement, using wooden ramp wedges designed by Massachusetts artist and design researcher Sara Hendren. The program includes a restaged duet from "Descent," the evening-length work that celebrated a sold-out run at New York Live Arts in March 2018. Inside/Out performances are free and presented on the Pillow's beautiful outdoor stage overlooking the Berkshire Hills. In 2004, Sheppard saw Homer Avila, a disabled dancer, perform. Avila dared her to take a dance class; she did, and she loved moving so much that she resigned her academic professorship at Pennsylvania State University in order to begin a career in dance. She studied ballet and modern dance with Kitty Lunn and made her debut with Infinity Dance Theater. After an apprenticeship, Sheppard joined AXIS Dance Company, an Oakland-based company, where she toured nationally and taught in the companys education and outreach programs. Since becoming an independent artist, Sheppard has danced in projects with Ballet Cymru, GDance, and Marc Brew Company in the United Kingdom and Full Radius Dance, Marjani Forte, MBDance, Infinity Dance Theater, and Steve Paxton in the United States. As an emerging, award-winning choreographer, Sheppard creates movement that challenges conventional understandings of disabled and dancing bodies. Engaging with disability arts, culture, and history, she attends to the complex intersections of disability, gender, and race by exploring the societal and cultural significance of difference. In addition to performance and choreography, Sheppard is a sought-after speaker and has lectured on topics related to disability arts, race and dance. For more information, visit her website. Emerging voice Democratic Congressional candidate Tahirah Amatul-Wadud will meet with local residents on Monday, July 23, at 6 p.m. at the Bushnell-Sage Memorial Library. Her primary opponent, Rep. Richard Neal, has also been invited to speak. The Sheffield Democratic Committee is not endorsing either candidate but wants area residents to be able to hear the views of both. Amatul-Wadud, a 44-year-old attorney from Springfield, is a strong advocate for the rights of women and religious minorities. As an African-American Muslim woman, she is passionate about interfaith outreach to increase religious literacy and diminish divisive rhetoric, according to her website. She serves as legal counsel for religious congregations in Massachusetts and New York to protect the religious freedom rights of all citizens. And as a volunteer commissioner for the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women, Amatul-Wadud advocates to the state legislature to enact laws responsive to the needs of women and girls. She is also the mother of seven children, one of whom had lifesaving heart surgery at Boston Children's Hospital. To show her gratitude, she serves on the hospitals family advisory council. Her law practice focuses on domestic relations and civil rights law. She is a graduate of Elms College in Chicopee and Western New England University School of Law in Springfield. Among the issues she is raising in her run for Congress are climate change, universal public education, and affordable high-speed Internet access for every resident of the First Congressional District. A new 'Book' Patrick Demeo, a 2018 graduate of Hoosac Valley High School, has self-published a book called "The Book." Demeo created it for his anthropology class this past fall as an assignment of children's folklore. The story themem as his teacher wrote is "of self determination and overcoming." Both his senior English teacher and anthropology teacher encouraged him to self publish. The book is about an author who has lost believe in himself as a writer, takes a fall and gains insight about believing in himself where all success begins. The book gives advice to the young and old in a poetic rhyming use of language. Appropriate for ages 7 years and up, it can be purchased at Bella Sky in Adams for $5. Demeo said he chose the characters he did because "kids like animals, and kids need a good moral to learn from. It is not always easy to believe in yourself and sometimes the best ideas are inside of us and we don't even know it." Demeo hopes kids will learn something valuable from it. He also said, "I chose to write in a rhyming pattern when I wrote the text because of Dr. Suess," he said. "He (Suess) knew how say a lot through his rhymes. Suess thought outside the box,and had his own creative style and that is what I wanted to do with this book." Festival of Books The Berkshires' second annual Jewish Festival of Books will take place at Hevreh of Southern Berkshire in Great Barrington from Thursday, July 26, through Sunday, July 29. Co-presented by Hevreh and Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, in partnership with the Jewish Book Council, the festival will feature free and fee-based lectures, teachings and readings by internationally acclaimed authors in genres ranging from adult fiction to childrens literature to cookbooks. The opening night author on Thursday, July 26, at 7 p.m. is Jewish and Feminist icon Francine Klagsbrun who, among the more than a dozen books she has authored, also edited "The First Ms. Reader" and "Free to Be ... You and Me." Klagsbrun will be discussing her latest book, "Lioness," the definitive biography of Golda Meir. The book won the top prize at this years National Jewish Book Awards when it was recognized as the Everett Family Foundation Book of the Year. The festival ends with another literary lioness and National Jewish Book Award Winner on its closing day, on Sunday, July 29, at 10 a.m., when Rachel Kadish reads from and discusses her latest novel, the National Jewish Book Award Winning "The Weight of Ink." The book interweaves the story of two remarkable women and scholars - a 17th century Jewish scribe in London, and the 21st century researcher who discovers her. Kadish will be interviewed by Judith Rosenbaum, executive director of the Jewish Women's Archive. For the complete schedule, call Hevreh at 413-528-6378, or visit the website. Hevreh will have books available for advance purchase in the lobby, which the authors will be happy to sign at the festival. Grief groups Hospice of Western & Central Massachusetts will hold grief support groups on Thuesdays from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. from July 26 through Aug. 30 at 55 Church St in Pittsfield. BArT openings Berkshire Arts & Technology Charter Public School is accepting applications for the 2018-19 school year for students entering grades six through 10. The college preparatory school currently has openings in grades six, seven, nine and 10 but is anticipating waitlists across all entry grades to begin shortly. Applications are available at the school or can be found on the school's website. An enrollment counselor can be reached at 413-743-7311, ext. 732, or by email. The next two deadlines for students to enroll into BArT in grades six through 10 during the upcoming 2018-19 school year will be Thursday, July 26, and Thursday, Aug. 16. The deadline to transfer into grade 10 for the upcoming 2018-2019 school year will be Friday, Sept. 28. All interested families are strongly encouraged to submit an application as soon as possible. Waitlists should not discourage you from applying. More information on the schools enrollment and lottery process can be found online. Age-friendly Lanesborough Age Friendly Berkshires has received an Age-Friendly Municipal Resolution submitted by the town of Lanesborough, dated July 9, 2018. Adopting an age-friendly community strategy in Lanesborough initially came as a result of the Council on Aging's wish to create an intergenerational park thats welcoming for seniors, as well as younger children and families. Ideas for the park include walking paths, planting trees for shaded areas for exercise, with nearby benches for rest, but also open play spaces for kids and gathering spots for family picnics and community groups too. Lanesborough's resolution goes further, identifying several other areas where age-friendly improvements might be made for improving public health and wellness, providing for safer streets, creating affordable and accessible housing and community buildings and providing for a vibrant workforce. Lanesborough is only the sixth community in the county to take the affirmative step of signing a Municipal Resolution. The cities of Pittsfield and North Adams and the towns of Adams, Cheshire and Sheffield have also joined the Age Friendly movement, with projects under way. For information on the Age Friendly Berkshire Action Plan, or to download a Municipal Resolution Template and community self-assessment checklists, visit the website. Left to right: Dr. Scott Rogge, physician at SVMC Cardiology, medical director of Cardiology and chair of the Cardiology Department at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center; Jennifer Thuermer, cardiac care nurse practitioner at SVMC Cardiology; Arlene Law; Alison Malmborg, cardiac care nurse practitioner at SVMC Cardiology; Dr. Bina Ahmed, assistant professor at the Geisel School of Medicine and an interventional cardiologist at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center; and Dr. Thomas A. Dee, president and CEO of SVHC. Heart talk A talk about women's heart health by Dartmouth-Hitchcocks Dr. Bina Ahmed, an interventional cardiologist, drew 120 people to the Taconic Hotel on July 11. During the talk, Dr. Ahmed revealed differences in heart disease in men and women, including the ways it is commonly treated. She revealed three heart diagnoses that occur mostly or only in women. The talk was sponsored by Southwestern Vermont Medical Centers Department of Cardiology and is part of an ongoing series called Medicine Today. The next Medicine Today lecture is about sleep and health and is scheduled for October. It will be presented by Dartmouth-Hitchcock sleep medicine expert Dr. Brooke Judd. Southwestern Vermont Health Care is a comprehensive, preeminent, health care system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices. Harvesting history Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, in collaboration with the North Adams Public Library and the North Adams Historical Society, has received a $15,000 grant from Mass Humanities in support of "Historic North Adams," a long-term, digital public humanities asset for the community, and funding for an inaugural "History Harvest" event to celebrate the history of work in North Adams. Managed by the History Department at MCLA, the project will design and launch "Historic North Adams," a cloud-based website and mobile application that will allow for the long-term sharing and dissemination of local history. Dr. Ely Janis, associate professor of history at MCLA, will oversee the entire project. He will work with scholars and volunteers on the content and organization of the Historic North Adams website and mobile app. He also will oversee the first History Harvest event in North Adams, which is planned for November. At this event, previously unknown or under-appreciated artifacts and stories related to North Adams will be collected from local residents for preservation and sharing online. Together, these two projects will document North Adams' rich history and its connection to broader themes in American society. This local history includes the cotton mills that sprang up alongside the Hoosic River in the 1840s; the Hoosac Tunnel, which linked North Adams with major commercial centers 1874 at the cost of 193 lives; 100 Chinese workers who were brought to North Adams to break a shoemakers' strike in 1870; Sprague Electric's contributions to World War II and the nation's defense until the 1980s; and the artistic revival of North Adams that has continued since the opening of Mass MoCA. Green with envy Lenox, Stockbridge and Egremont are three of the 80 municipalities set to receive this year's round of Green Communities Competitive Grants through the Department of Energy Resources. The proposed projects from each Southern Berkshire town to be funded by this year's grants include LED lighting and refrigeration enhancements at Morris Elementary and Lenox Middle and High School, and LED upgrades to town buildings in Lenox; central fire station HVAC and lighting improvements in Stockbridge; and Town Hall and Library heat and refrigeration replacements in Egremont. In all, $248,794 will go to Lenox; $54,829 to Stockbridge; and $7,635 to Egremont. Green Communities Competitive Grants, created under the Green Communities Act, are awarded to provide monetary support for each communitys designated clean energy goals. This is the DOER's seventh annual round of grant announcements designated to existing Green Communities to support energy efficiency and renewable energy projects within each individual municipality. This year's grant total comes to $14,798,596. The town of Lenox received funding through the same grant in June 2017, as well. A source close to the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry and the presidents office, unauthorized to speak publicly, has confirmed to The Intercept that Moreno is close to finalizing, if he has not already finalized, an agreement to hand over Assange to the U.K. within the next several weeks. The withdrawal of asylum and physical ejection of Assange could come as early as this week. On Friday, RT reported that Ecuador was preparing to enter into such an agreement. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter The consequences of such an agreement depend in part on the concessions Ecuador extracts in exchange for withdrawing Assanges asylum. But as former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa told The Intercept in an interview in May, Morenos government has returned Ecuador to a highly subservient and submissive posture toward Western governments. It is thus highly unlikely that Moreno who has shown himself to be willing to submit to threats and coercion from the U.K., Spain, and the U.S. will obtain a guarantee that the U.K. not extradite Assange to the U.S., where top Donald Trump officials have vowed to prosecute Assange and destroy WikiLeaks. The central oddity of Assanges case that he has been effectively imprisoned for eight years despite never having been charged with, let alone convicted of, any crime is virtually certain to be prolonged once Ecuador hands him over to the U.K. Even under the best-case scenario, it appears highly likely that Assange will continue to be imprisoned by British authorities. The only known criminal proceeding Assange currently faces is a pending 2012 arrest warrant for failure to surrender basically a minor bail violation that arose when he obtained asylum from Ecuador rather than complying with bail conditions by returning to court for a hearing on his attempt to resist extradition to Sweden. That offense carries a prison term of three months and a fine, though it is possible that the time Assange has already spent in prison in the U.K. could be counted against that sentence. In 2010, Assange was imprisoned in Wandsworth Prison, kept in isolation for 10 days until he was released on bail; he was then under house arrest for 550 days at the home of a supporter. Assanges lawyer, Jen Robinson, told The Intercept that he would argue that all of that prison time already served should count toward (and thus completely fulfill) any prison term imposed on the failure to surrender charge, though British prosecutors would almost certainly contest that claim. Assange would also argue that he had a reasonable, valid basis for seeking asylum rather than submitting to U.K. authorities: namely, well-grounded fear that he would be extradited to the U.S. for prosecution for the act of publishing documents. Beyond that minor charge, British prosecutors could argue that Assanges evading of legal process in the U.K. was so protracted, intentional, and malicious that it rose beyond mere failure to surrender to contempt of court, which carries a prison term of up to two years. Just on those charges alone, then, Assange faces a high risk of detention for another year or even longer in a British prison. Currently, that is the only known criminal proceeding Assange faces. In May 2017, Swedish prosecutors announced they were closing their investigation into the sexual assault allegations due to the futility of proceeding in light of Assanges asylum and the time that has elapsed. The far more important question that will determine Assanges future is what the U.S. government intends to do. The Barack Obama administration was eager to prosecute Assange and WikiLeaks for publishing hundreds of thousands of classified documents, but ultimately concluded that there was no way to do so without either also prosecuting newspapers such as the New York Times and The Guardian, which published the same documents, or creating precedents that would enable the criminal prosecution of media outlets in the future. Indeed, it is technically a crime under U.S. law for anyone including a media outlet to publish certain types of classified information. Under U.S. law, for instance, it was a felony for the Washington Posts David Ignatius to report on the contents of telephone calls, intercepted by the National Security Agency, between then-national security adviser nominee Michael Flynn and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, even though such reporting was clearly in the public interest since it proved Flynn lied when he denied such contacts. That the Washington Post and Ignatius and not merely their sources violated U.S. criminal law by revealing the contents of intercepted communications with a Russian official is made clear by the text of 18 798 of the U.S. Code, which provides: Whoever knowingly and willfully communicates or otherwise makes available to an unauthorized person, or publishes any classified information obtained by the processes of communication intelligence from the communications of any foreign government shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both (emphasis added). But the U.S. Justice Department has never wanted to indict and prosecute anyone for the crime of publishing such material, contenting themselves instead to prosecuting the government sources who leak it. Their reluctance has been due to two reasons: First, media outlets would argue that any attempts to criminalize the mere publication of classified or stolen documents is barred by the press freedom guarantee of the First Amendment, a proposition the Justice Department has never wanted to test; second, no Justice Department has wanted as part of its legacy the creation of a precedent that allows the U.S. government to criminally prosecute journalists and media outlets for reporting classified documents. But the Trump administration has made clear that they have no such concerns. Quite the contrary: Last April, Trumps then-CIA Director Mike Pompeo, now his secretary of state, delivered a deranged, rambling, highly threatening broadside against WikiLeaks. Without citing any evidence, Pompeo decreed that WikiLeaks is a non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors like Russia, and thus declared, We have to recognize that we can no longer allow Assange and his colleagues the latitude to use free speech values against us. The longtime right-wing congressman, now one of Trumps most loyal and favored cabinet officials, also explicitly rejected any First Amendment concerns about prosecuting Assange, arguing that while WikiLeaks pretended that Americas First Amendment freedoms shield them from justice they may have believed that, but they are wrong. Pompeo then issued this bold threat: To give them the space to crush us with misappropriated secrets is a perversion of what our great Constitution stands for. It ends now. Trumps Attorney General Jeff Sessions has similarly vowed not only to continue and expand the Obama Justice Departments crackdown on sources, but also to consider the prosecution of media outlets that publish classified information. It would be incredibly shrewd for Sessions to lay the foundation for doing so by prosecuting Assange first, safe in the knowledge that journalists themselves consumed with hatred for Assange due to personal reasons, professional jealousies, and anger over the role they believed he played in 2016 in helping Hillary Clinton lose would unite behind the Trump Justice Department and in support of its efforts to imprison Assange. During the Obama years, it was a mainstream view among media outlets that prosecuting Assange would be a serious danger to press freedoms. Even the Washington Post editorial page, which vehemently condemned WikiLeaks, warned in 2010 that any such prosecution would criminalize the exchange of information and put at risk all media outlets. When Pompeo and Sessions last year issued their threats to prosecute Assange, former Obama Justice Department spokesperson Matthew Miller insisted that no such prosecution could ever succeed: For years, the Obama Justice Department searched for evidence that Assange actively assisted Chelsea Manning or other sources in the hacking or stealing of documents in order to prosecute them for more than merely publishing documents and found no such evidence. But even that theory that a publisher of classified documents can be prosecuted for assisting a source would be a severe threat to press freedom, since journalists frequently work in some form of collaboration with sources who remove or disclose classified information. And nobody has ever presented evidence that WikiLeaks conspired with whoever hacked the Democratic National Committee and John Podesta email inboxes to effectuate that hacking. But there seems little question that, as Sessions surely knows, large numbers of U.S. journalists along with many, or perhaps most, Democrats would actually support the Trump Justice Department in prosecuting Assange for publishing documents. After all, the DNC sued WikiLeaks in April for publishing documents a serious, obvious threat to press freedom and few objected. And it was Democratic senators such as Dianne Feinstein who, during the Obama years, were urging the prosecution of WikiLeaks, with the support of numerous GOP senators. There is no doubt that, after 2016, support among both journalists and Democrats for imprisoning Assange for publishing documents would be higher than ever. If the U.S. did indict Assange for alleged crimes relating to the publication of documents, or if they have already obtained a sealed indictment, and then uses that indictment to request that the U.K. extradite him to the U.S. to stand trial, that alone would ensure that Assange remains in prison in the U.K. for years to come. Assange would, of course, resist any such extradition on the ground that publishing documents is not a cognizable crime and that the U.S is seeking his extradition for political charges that, by treaty, cannot serve as the basis for extradition. But it would take at least a year, and probably closer to three years, for U.K. courts to decide these extradition questions. And while all of that lingers, Assange would almost certainly be in prison, given that it is inconceivable that a British judge would release Assange on bail given what happened the last time he was released. All of this means that it is highly likely that Assange under his best-case scenario faces at least another year in prison, and will end up having spent a decade in prison despite never having been charged with, let alone convicted of, any crime. He has essentially been punished imprisoned by process. And while it is often argued that Assange has only himself to blame, it is beyond doubt, given the grand jury convened by the Obama Justice Department and now the threats of Pompeo and Sessions, that the fear that led Assange to seek asylum in the first place being extradited to the U.S. and politically persecuted for political crimes was well-grounded. Assange, his lawyers and his supporters always said that he would immediately board a plane to Stockholm if he were guaranteed that doing so would not be used to extradite him to the U.S., and for years offered to be questioned by Swedish investigators inside the embassy in London, something Swedish prosecutors only did years later. Citing those facts, a United Nations panel ruled in 2016 that the actions of the U.K. government constituted arbitrary detention and a violation of Assanges fundamental human rights. But if, as seems quite likely, the Trump administration finally announces that it intends to prosecute Assange for publishing classified U.S. government documents, we will be faced with the bizarre spectacle of U.S. journalists who have spent the last two years melodramatically expressing grave concern over press freedom due to insulting tweets from Trump about Wolf Blitzer and Chuck Todd, or his mean treatment of Jim Acosta possibly cheering for a precedent that would be the gravest press freedom threat in decades. That precedent would be one that could easily be used to put them in a prison cell alongside Assange for the new crime of publishing any documents that the U.S. government has decreed should not be published. When it comes to press freedom threats, such an indictment would not be in the same universe as name-calling tweets by Trump directed at various TV personalities. When it came to denouncing due process denials and the use of torture at Guantanamo, it was not difficult for journalists to set aside their personal dislike for Al Qaeda sympathizers to denounce the dangers of those human rights and legal abuses. When it comes to free speech assaults, journalists are able to set aside their personal contempt for a persons opinions to oppose the precedent that the government can punish people for expressing noxious ideas. It should not be this difficult for journalists to set aside their personal emotions about Assange to recognize the profound dangers not just to press freedoms but to themselves if the U.S. government succeeds in keeping Assange imprisoned for years to come, all due to its attempts to prosecute him for publishing classified or stolen documents. That seems the highly likely scenario once Ecuador hands over Assange to the U.K. Moon-Strzok No More, Lisa Page Spills the Beans The meaning of a crucial text message between two FBI officials appears to have been finally explained, and its not good news for the Russia-gate faithful, as Ray McGovern explains. By Ray McGovern July 23, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - Former FBI attorney Lisa Page has reportedly told a joint committee of the House of Representatives that when FBI counterintelligence official Peter Strzok texted her on May 19, 2017 saying there was no big there there, he meant there was no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. It was clearly a bad-luck day for Strzok, when on Friday the 13th this month Page gave her explanation of the text to the House Judiciary and Oversight/Government Reform Committees and in effect threw her lover, Strzok, under the bus. Strzoks apparent admission to Page about there being no big there there was reported on Friday by John Solomon in The Hill based on multiple sources who he said were present during Pages closed door interview. Strzoks text did not come out of the blue. For the previous ten months he and his FBI subordinates had been trying every-which-way to ferret out some there preferably a big there but had failed miserably. It is appearing more and more likely that there was nothing left for them to do but to make it up out of whole cloth, with the baton then passed to special counsel Robert Mueller. The no there there text came just two days after former FBI Director James Comey succeeded in getting his friend Mueller appointed to investigate the alleged collusion that Strzok was all but certain wasnt there. Robert Parry, the late founder and editor of Consortium News whom Solomon described to me last year as his model for journalistic courage and professionalism, was already able to discern as early as March 2017 the outlines of what is now Deep State-gate, and, typically, was the first to dare report on its implications. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter Parrys article, written two and a half months before Strzok texted the self-incriminating comment to Page on there being no big there there, is a case study in professional journalism. His very first sentence entirely anticipated Strzoks text: The hysteria over Russia-gate continues to grow but at its core there may be no there there. (Emphasis added.) As for witch-hunts, Bob and others at Consortiumnews.com, who didnt succumb to the virulent HWHW (Hillary Would Have Won) virus, and refused to slurp the Kool-Aid offered at the deep Deep State trough, have come close to being burned at the stake virtually. Typically, Bob stuck to his guns: he ran an organ (now vestigial in most Establishment publications) that sifted through and digested actual evidence and expelled drivel out the other end. Those of us following the example set by Bob Parry are still taking a lot of incoming fire including from folks on formerly serious even progressive websites. Nor do we expect a cease-fire now, even with Pages statement (about which, ten days after her interview, the Establishment media keep a timorous silence). Far too much is at stake. As Mark Twain put it, It is easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled. And, as we have seen over the past couple of years, that goes in spades for Russia-gate. For many of us who have looked into it objectively and written about it dispassionately, we are aware, that on this issue, we are looked upon as being in sync with President Donald Trump. Blind hatred for the man seems to thwart any acknowledgment that he could ever be right about somethinganything. This brings considerable awkwardness. Chalk it up to the price of pursuing the truth, no matter what bedfellows you end up with. Courage at The Hill Solomons article merits a careful read, in toto. Here are the most germane paragraphs: It turns out that what Strzok and Lisa Page were really doing that day [May 19, 2017] was debating whether they should stay with the FBI and try to rise through the ranks to the level of an assistant director (AD) or join Muellers special counsel team. [Page has since left the FBI.] Who gives a f*ck, one more AD [Assistant Director] like [redacted] or whoever? Strzok wrote, weighing the merits of promotion, before apparently suggesting what would be a more attractive role: An investigation leading to impeachment? A few minutes later Strzok texted his own handicap of the Russia evidence: You and I both know the odds are nothing. If I thought it was likely, Id be there no question. I hesitate in part because of my gut sense and concern theres no big there there. So the FBI agents who helped drive the Russia collusion narrative as well as Rosensteins decision to appoint Mueller apparently knew all along that the evidence was going to lead to nothing and, yet, they proceeded because they thought there was still a possibility of impeachment. Solomon adds: How concerned you are by this conduct is almost certainly affected by your love or hatred for Trump. But put yourself for a second in the hot seat of an investigation by the same FBI cast of characters: You are under investigation for a crime the agents dont think occurred, but the investigation still advances because the desired outcome is to get you fired from your job. Is that an FBI you can live with? The Timing As noted, Strzoks text was written two days after Mueller was appointed on May 17, 2016. The day before, on May 16, The New York Times published a story that Comey leaked to it through an intermediary that was expressly designed (as Comey admitted in Congressional testimony three weeks later) to lead to the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. Hmmmmm. Had Strzok forgotten to tell his boss that after ten months of his best investigative efforts legal and otherhe could find no there there? Comeys leak, by the way, was about alleged pressure from Trump on Comey to go easy on Gen. Michael Flynn for lying at an impromptu interrogation led by you guessed it the ubiquitous, indispensable Peter Strzok. In any event, the operation worked like a charm at least at first. And absent revelation of the Strzok-Page texts it might well have continued to succeed. After Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein named Mueller, one of Comeys best buddies, to be special counsel, Mueller, in turn, picked Strzok to lead the Russia-gate team, until the summer, when the Department of Justice Inspector General was given the Strzok-Page texts and refused to sit on them. A Timeline Heres a timeline, which might be helpful: 2017 May 16: Comey leak to NY Times to get a special counsel appointed May 17: Special counsel appointed namely, Robert Mueller. May 19: Strzok confides to girlfriend Page, No big there there. July: Mueller appoints Strzok lead FBI Agent on collusion investigation. August: Mueller removes Strzok after learning of his anti-Trump texts to Page. Dec. 12: DOJ IG releases some, but by no means all, relevant Strzok-Page texts to Congress and the media, which first reports on Strzoks removal in August. 2018 June 14: DOJ IG Report Published. June 15; Strzok escorted out of FBI Headquarters. June 21: Attorney General Jeff Sessions announces Strzok has lost his security clearances. July 12: Strzok testifies to House committees. Solomon reports he refused to answer question about the there there text. July 13: Lisa Page interviewed by same committees. Answers the question. Earlier: Bob Parry in Action On December 12, 2017, as soon as first news broke of the Strzok-Page texts, Bob Parry and I compared notes by phone. We agreed that this was quite big and that, clearly, Russia-gate had begun to morph into something like FBI-gate. It was rare for Bob to call me before he wrote; in retrospect, it seemed to have been merely a sanity check. The piece Bob posted early the following morning was typical Bob. Many of those who click on the link will be surprised that, last December, he already had pieced together most of the story. Sadly, it turned out to be Bobs last substantive piece before he fell seriously ill. Earlier last year he had successfully shot down other Russia-gate-related canards on which he found Establishment media sorely lacking Facebook-gate, for example. Remarkably, it has taken another half-year for Congress and the media to address haltingly the significance of Deep State-gate however easy it has become to dissect the plot, and identify the main plotters. With Bob having prepared the way with his Dec.13 article, I followed up a few weeks later with The FBI Hand Behind Russia-gate, in the process winning no friends among those still suffering from the highly resistant HWHW virus. VIPS Parry also deserves credit for his recognition and appreciation of the unique expertise and analytical integrity among Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS) and giving us a secure, well respected home at Consortium News. It is almost exactly a year since Bob took a whole lot of flak for publishing what quickly became VIPS most controversial, and at the same time perhaps most important, Memorandum For the President; namely, Intelligence Veterans Challenge Russia Hack Evidence. Critics have landed no serious blows on the key judgments of that Memorandum, which rely largely on the type of forensic evidence that Comey failed to ensure was done by his FBI because the Bureau never seized the DNC server. Still more forensic evidence has become available over recent months soon to be revealed on Consortium News, confirming our conclusions. Ray McGovern works with Tell the Word, a publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. He was a CIA analyst for 27 years and, in retirement, co-founded Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity. This article was originally published by " Consortium News " - The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. How Israel Helped to Revive Europe's Ugly Ethnic Nationalisms Israel preserved a tribal idea of citizenship that followers of Trump and Europes far-right now seek to emulate By Jonathan Cook July 23, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - Polarisation within western societies on issues relating to migration and human rights has been intensifying over recent weeks and months. To many observers, it looks suspiciously as if an international order in place since the end of the second world one that emphasised universal rights as a way to prevent dehumanisation and conflict is rapidly unravelling in Europe and the United States. Handling the 'migrants crisis' Just in the past few days in Donald Trump's America, it has emerged that thousands of migrant children have been snatched from their parents while trying to enter at the southern border, with some held in cages; the US Supreme Court has upheld the right of border officials to bar entry to Muslims from proscribed countries; and the Trump administration has quit the United Nations' Human Rights Council, a key institution for monitoring human rights violations. Meanwhile, far-right parties across Europe have ridden to electoral success on the back of mounting fears at a wave of migrants displaced from North Africa and the Middle East by wars and hunger. Joining the trenchant anti-immigration stances of governments in Hungary and Poland, Italy's interior minister Matteo Salvini has turned away boatloads of migrants from his country's ports. He called last month for the European Union to "defend its border" and deny access to human rights groups, while also threatening to cut his countrys budget to Europe unless action was taken against migrants. Salvini is among the Italian politicians demanding the expulsion of the Roma minority. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter Other European governments led by Germany, fearful of internal political instability that might undermine their continuing rule, called a hasty summit at the weekend to consider options for dealing with the "migrant crisis". And casting a long shadow over the proceedings is Britain's efforts to negotiate its exit from the EU, a blow that might eventually lead to the whole edifice of the European project crumbling. Two ideas of citizenship These are not random events. They are part of a quickening trend, and one that signals how an international order built up over the past 70 years and represented by pan-national institutions like the United Nations and the EU is gradually breaking down. While the evidence suggests that there is no particular migration crisis at the moment, there are long-term factors that provoke populist fears and can be readily exploited, especially over the depletion of key global resources like oil, and environmental changes caused by climate breakdown. Together they have stoked resource conflicts and begun to shrink world economies. The effects are ideological and political shockwaves that have put a system of long-standing international agreements and norms under unprecedented strain. The emerging struggle faced today is one that was fought out a century ago in Europe, and relates to differing conceptions of citizenship. In the early 20th century, western Europe was riven by ethnic nationalisms: each state was seen as representing a separate biological people or in the terminology of the time, a race or Volk. And each believed it needed territory in which to express its distinct heritage, identity, language and culture. In the space of a few decades, these antagonistic nationalisms tore Europe apart in two "world wars". At the time, ethnic nationalism was pitted against an alternative vision of citizenship: civic nationalism. It is worth briefly outlining how the two differed. Civic nationalists draw on long-standing liberal ideas that prioritise a shared political identity based on citizenship inside the stable territorial unit of a democratic state. The state should aspire at least in theory to be neutral towards ethnic minorities, and their languages and cultures. Civic nationalism is premised on individual rights, social equality and tolerance. Its downside is an inherent tendency to atomise societies into individuals, and cultivate consumption over other social values. That has made it easier for powerful corporations to capture the political system, leading to the emergence of neoliberal capitalist economies. Minorities scapegoated Ethnic nationalists, by contrast, believe in distinct peoples, with a shared heritage and ancestry. Such nationalists not only resist the idea that other groups can integrate or assimilate, but fear that they might weaken or dissolve the ties binding the nation together. Ethnic nationalists, therefore, accentuate an imagined collective will belonging to the dominant ethnic group that guides its destiny; emphasise threats from external enemies and subversion from within by those opposed to the values of the core group; encourage the militarisation of the society to cope with such threats; and anxiously guard existing territory and aggressively seek to expand borders to increase the nations resilience. Even before Europe's two great wars, most western states were a hybrid of civic and ethnic nationalist impulses. But in a political climate of competition over resources and paranoid vigilance against rivals that prevailed before the second world war, especially fears among western elites at how best to counter the growing threat of a Soviet Communism, ideas associated with ethnic nationalism tended to dominate. It was for this reason that ethnic minorities especially those, such as Jews and Roma, whose loyalties to the core nation were considered suspect found themselves scapegoated and faced rampant discrimination. This took different forms. In Britain, ethnic nationalism contributed to the Balfour Declaration of 1917, a document proposing that British Jews be transplanted to the Middle East. In part this was a colonial project to create an outpost of Jews in the Middle East dependent on British favour for their security. But as noted by Edwin Montagu, the only Jew in the British cabinet at the time, the Balfour Declaration had strong anti-semitic overtones, reinforcing the idea that Jews did not belong and should be relocated elsewhere. Ethnic nationalism in France was evidenced by the notorious Dreyfus Affair. A Jewish captain in the French army, Alfred Dreyfus, was convicted of treason in 1894 for leaking military secrets to Germany. In fact, as it later emerged, another French officer was responsible for the leak, but the military preferred to falsify documents to ensure that blame rested with Dreyfus. And in Germany, racism towards minorities like Jews and Roma culminated in the Nazi concentration camps of the 1930s and later a policy of mass extermination that claimed the lives of many millions. Rebuilding a post-war Europe After the devastation of the second world war, western Europe had to be rebuilt, both physically and ideologically. With the dangers of ethnic nationalisms now apparent, greater emphasis was placed on civic nationalism. This trend was encouraged by the US through its Marshall Plan, an economic recovery programme to reconstruct western Europe. The US wanted a united, peaceful Europe its ethnic antagonisms a thing of the past so that a culture of individualism and consumerism could be fostered, guaranteeing an export market for American goods. A US-dependent Europe could also be relied on as a bulwark against Washingtons chief ideological rival, Soviet communism. By the end of the 20th century, these developments would lead to the emergence of a common market, later the European Union, a single currency and the dropping of border controls. At the same time, in the immediate post-war period, it was decided to put safeguards in place against the recent slaughter. The Nuremberg Trials helped to define the rules of war, and classed their violations as war crimes, while the UNs 1948 Declaration of Human Rights and the Geneva Conventions began the process of formalising international law and the concept of universal human rights. All of that post-war order is now unravelling. Bucking the trend Israel was established in 1948, the year of the UN's Declaration of Human Rights, which was itself intended to prevent any return to the horrors of the Holocaust. Israel was presented as a sanctuary for Jews from a depraved Europe that had been overrun by aggressive racial ideologies. And Israel was extolled as a light unto the nations, the political fruit of the new international legal order to promote the rights of minorities. But paradoxically, the "western" state that most visibly bucked the trend towards civic nationalism in the post-war period was Israel. It stuck rigidly with a political model of ethnic nationalism that had just been discredited in Europe. Today Israel embodies a political alternative to civic nationalism one that is slowly and increasingly helping to rehabilitate ethnic nationalism. From the outset, Israel was not what it appeared to most outsiders. It had been sponsored as a colonial settler project by big power patrons that variously included Britain, the Soviet Union, France and, latterly, the US. Set up to be an explicitly "Jewish state", it was built on the ruins of the native Palestinian people's homeland after a campaign of expulsions historians have characterised as ethnic cleansing. Israel was not the liberal democracy claimed in its campaigns of self-promotion, known as hasbara. In fact, far from being an antidote to ethnic nationalism, Israel was decisively a product or more specifically, a mirroring of this form of nationalism. Israels tribal ideology Its founding ideology, Zionism, was deeply opposed to civic nationalism and attendant ideas of a common political identity. Rather, it was a tribal ideology one based on blood ties and religious heritage that spoke the same language as Europe's earlier ethnic nationalisms. It agreed with the racists of Europe that the Jews could not be assimilated or integrated because they were a people apart. It was this shared ground with the ethnic nationalists that made the Zionist movement deeply unpopular among the vast majority of European Jews until the rise of Hitler in the 1930s. After the horrors of the Nazis, however, growing numbers of Jews concluded that, if you could not beat the ethnic nationalists, it was better to join them. A highly militarised, nuclear-armed Israel sponsored by Europe and belligerent towards its new, relatively weak Arab neighbours appeared the best solution available. It is that shared ground that today makes Israel an ally and friend to Trump and his political constituency in the US and to Europes far-right parties. In fact, Israel is revered by a new breed of white supremacists and anti-semites in the US known as the alt-right. Their leader, Richard Spencer, has termed himself a "white Zionist", saying he wants the US to become a "secure homeland" to prevent "the demographic dispossession of white people in the United States and around the world in the same way Israel achieved for Jews. Making racism respectable Israel preserved the model of ethnic nationalism and is now seeking to help make it respectable again among sections of western public opinion. Just as historically there were different varieties of ethnic nationalisms in Europe, so there are among the popular and political movements in Israel. At the most disturbing extreme of the spectrum are the religious settlers who have actively taken up the task of once again uprooting the native Palestinian population, this time in the occupied territories. Such settlers now dominate the middle ranks of the Israeli army. In a handbook for further dispossession known as the Kings Torah, influential settler rabbis have justified the pre-emptive killing of Palestinians as terrorists, and their babies as "future terrorists". This worldview explains why settlers massed outside a court in Israel last week taunting a Palestinian, Hussein Dawabshe, whose 18-month-old grandson, Ali, was among family members burnt alive by settlers in 2015. As the grandfather arrived, the settlers jeered "Where is Ali, Ali's dead" and "Ali's on the grill." Even more common, to the extent that it passes almost unnoticed in Israel, is the structural racism that keeps the fifth of the population belonging to a Palestinian minority apart from the Jewish majority. For decades, for example, Israeli hospitals have been separating women in maternity wards based on their ethnicity. Last month, in a familiar pattern, it was revealed that a municipal swimming pool in the Negev was quietly segregating Jewish and Palestinian bathers all citizens of the same state by offering different hours. At least the pool accepted Palestinian citizens. Almost all communities in Israel are segregated, with many hundreds using admissions committees to ensure they bar Palestinian citizens and remain exclusively Jewish. There have been weeks of angry protests among Jewish residents of the northern city of Afula, after the first Palestinian family managed to buy a home in a neighbourhood. Deputy mayor Shlomo Malihi observed: "I hope that the house sale will be cancelled so that this city won't begin to be mixed." The 'danger' of intermarriage Last month Miki Zohar, a legislator in the ruling Likud party, observed not only that there is a "Jewish race", but that it represents "the highest human capital, the smartest, the most comprehending". At the same time, the governments education minister, Naftali Bennett, noted that the future of the Jewish people in countries like the US kept him awake at night. "If we dont act urgently, were going to be losing millions of Jews to assimilation, he told a conference in Jerusalem. This is a common refrain on the Israeli left too. Isaac Herzog, the former leader of the supposedly socialist Labor party and the new chair of the Jewish Agency, shares Bennett's tribal impulse. Last week he warned that Jews outside Israel were falling victim to a "plague" of intermarriage with non-Jews. He bewailed that on a visit to the US last year: "I saw the children of my friends marrying or living with non-Jewish partners." He concluded: "We have to rack our brains over how to solve this great challenge." An ethnic fortress But the problem is not restricted to the prejudice of individuals and communities. It has state sanction, just as in Europe a century ago. That can be seen not only in rampant institutional racism in Israel some 70 laws that explicitly discriminate based on ethnic belonging but in Israels obsession with wall-building. There are walls sealing off Gaza, and the densely Palestinian-populated parts of occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank. In another indication of the ethnic fortress mentality, Israel has built a wall to block the entry of African asylum seekers through the Sinai peninsula as they flee wars. Israel has been deporting these refugees back to Africa in violation of international conventions it has ratified putting their lives in danger. And while western liberals have grown exercised at the separation of children from their parents by the Trump administration, they have ignored decades of similarly brutal Israeli policies. In that time, thousands of Palestinian children have been seized from their homes, often in night-time raids, and jailed in trials with a near-100 per cent conviction rate. Extrajudicial violence Throughout its history, Israel has glorified in its military prowess and brazenly celebrated a tradition of extrajudicial violence against opponents. That has included practices such as torture and political assassinations that international law seeks to prohibit. The sophistry used by Israel to defend these actions has been enthusiastically taken up in Washington in particular, when the US began its own programmes of torture and extrajudicial murder after the Iraq invasion of 2003. Israel has readymade rationalisations and specious soundbites that have made it much easier to sell to western publics the dismantling of international norms. The upending of international law and, with it, a reversal of the trend towards civic nationalism has intensified with Israels repeated attacks on Gaza over the past decade. Israel has subverted the key principles of international law proportionality, distinction and necessity by hugely widening the circle of potential targets of military action to include swaths of civilians, and using massive force beyond any possible justification. That has been graphically illustrated of late in its maiming and killing of thousands of unarmed Palestinian protesters for being supposedly too close to the perimeter fence Israel has built to encage Gaza. That fence simply delimits the Palestinian land occupied by Israel. But in another success for Israeli hasbara, western reporting has almost universally suggested that the fence is a border Israel is entitled to defend. Israeli expertise in demand Israel's expertise is increasingly in demand in a West where ethnic nationalisms are again taking root. Israel's weapons have been tested on the battlefield against Palestinians. Its homeland security systems have proven they can surveill and control Palestinian populations, just as western elites think about their own protection inside gated communities. Israel's paramilitary police train and militarise western police forces needed to repress internal dissent. Israel has developed sophisticated cyberwarfare techniques based on its efforts to remain a regional superpower that now satisfy the West's politically paranoid atmosphere. With an abiding aversion to the ideology of their former Soviet rulers, central and east European states have led the move towards a renewal of ethnic nationalism. Civic nationalism is seen as dangerously exposing the nation to outside influences. Hungarys prime minister, Viktor Orban, is among the new brand of eastern European leader brazenly stoking ethnic politics at home through anti-semitism. He has targeted the Hungarian Jewish billionaire and philanthropist George Soros for promoting a civic nationalism, suggesting Soros represents a wider Jewish threat to Hungary. Under a recent law, popularly known as "STOP Soros", anyone helping migrants enter Hungary risks a prison sentence. Orban has lauded Miklos Horthy, a long-time Hungarian leader who was a close ally of Hitlers. Nonetheless, Orban is being feted by Benjamin Netanyahu, in the same way the Israeli prime minister has closely identified with Trump. Netanyahu called to congratulate Orban shortly after he was re-elected in April, and will welcome him in a state visit this month. Ultimately, Netanyahu is angling to host the next meeting of the Visegrad group, four central European countries in the grip of far-right ethnic politics Israel wishes to develop closer ties with. For leaders like Orban, Israel has led the way. It has shown that ethnic politics is not discredited after all, that it can work. For Europe and Americas new ethnic nationalists, Israel has proven that some peoples are destined for greatness, if they are allowed to triumph over those who stand in their way. It will be a darker, far more divided and frightening world if this logic prevails. It is time to recognise what Israel represents, and how it does not offer solutions only far greater problems. - Jonathan Cook, a British journalist based in Nazareth since 2001, is the author of three books on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He is a past winner of the Martha Gellhorn Special Prize for Journalism. His website and blog can be found at: www.jonathan-cook.net The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. ====== Say No to a Citizenship Question on the 2020 Census: Americans have until August 7 to tell the Commerce Department that a question cooked up by Steve Bannon and Kris Kobach is dangerous and misguided. White Nationalist Richard Spencer Backs Israel's Apartheid Nation-state Law Join the Discussion By Claire Bernish July 23, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - Ask an average American who makes a habit of following government-mouthpiece corporate media about interference in national elections and youll likely elicit a nebulous response concerning Russian hackers and a plan to install Donald Trump in the White House but you probably wont hear a single syllable pertaining to United States governments actual attempts to do the same. On Monday, FBI Director James Comey confirmed for the first time publicly that the bureau is officially investigating hotly contentious allegations of Russian meddling in the U.S. election but, even if proven true, such geopolitical escapades better characterize the routine behavior of accuser than of accused. The F.B.I., as part of our counterintelligence effort, is investigating the Russian governments efforts to interfere in the 2016 president election, the director announced, adding the bureau would conduct a probe to discern whether Trumps associates had contact with Russian officials. Despite that the U.S. has hypocritically exerted influence over foreign elections in all corners of the globe in fact, it has arrogantly done so a whopping 81 times between 1946 and 2000, alone with just one-third of those operations undertaken overtly. For months, mainstream media parroted murky accusations hurled by politicians keen to point a finger of blame for the apparently stultifying victory of a former reality television host on someone that The Russians had somehow surreptitiously undermined the election-centric foundation of American Democracy. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter While that has yet to prove true, this new Red Scare constitutes a duplicitous attempt by the pot to call the kettle an election meddler. Researcher Dov Levin of Carnegie Mellon Universitys Institute for Politics and Strategy an expert on the topic at hand discussed the lengthy but incomplete list of times the U.S. government has interfered in other nations elections with NPRs Ari Shapiro. Asked for examples where this tampering tangibly altered results, Levin stated, One example of that was our intervention in Serbia, Yugoslavia in the 2000 election there. Slobodan Milosevic was running for re-election, and we didnt want him to stay in power there due to his tendency, you know, to disrupt the Balkans and his human rights violations. So we intervened in various ways for the opposition candidate, Vojislav Kostunica. And we gave funding to the opposition, and we gave them training and campaigning aide. And according to my estimate, that assistance was crucial in enabling the opposition to win. Levin reiterated the more blatant methods with which the U.S. asserts dominance through the overt coups or all-out regime changes branding the nation a notorious interventionist are not among the list of the 80-plus attempts to manipulate the electoral outcome. As for the issue of pot versus kettle, Levin explained that although Russia and other powerful nations indisputably employ similar tactics the United States has been quite prodigious in its effort. Well, for my dataset, the United States is the most common user of this technique. Russia or the Soviet Union since 1945 has used it half as much. My estimate has been 36 cases between 1946 to 2000. We know also that the Chinese have used this technique and the Venezuelans when the late Hugo Chavez was still in power in Venezuela and other countries. As sanctimoniously as U.S. politicians cry foul about The Russians, it would behoove the new McCarthyites to reflect on the nations sticky imperialist fingerprints around the globe like that time in 1996, when the United States undertook an extensive, secret operation to ensure the presidency of Boris Yeltsin. That is, of course, former President Boris Yeltsin of the Russian Federation. Claire Bernish writes for TheFreeThoughtProject.com, where this article first appeared. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. A 29-year-old man who escaped lynching after he was mobbed by residents of Bahati, Nakuru, Kenya, has claimed that he engages in sex with cows because he is scared of getting infected with HIV. John Mwaura who was caught while engaging in the unnatural act with his neighbours cow whose compound he sneaked into, confessed that it was the fifth cow he has had sex with. It was gathered that the owner of the cow had gone to the farm to harvest her crops, but came back and found the man zipping up his pair of trousers. She attacked him with blows, stones, and sticks, leaving him with critical injuries. It is not my first time. I have had sex with four other cows in Ndunduri and Wanyororo. I am pleading for mercy, he said. Dont kill melet me surrender my piece of land to pay for the cow, Mwaura said. I always have sex with the cow whenever I feel like because I fear girls might infect me with HIV. After being pressed further, Mwaura confessed that the neighbors cow was not his first. It is not my first time. I have had sex with four other cows in Ndunduri and Wanyororo. I am pleading for mercy, he said. The man who disclosed that he has a high sex urge, was asked to compensate the woman with another cow by the villagers who said it was a taboo for the defiled animal to remain in the compound. It was gathered that Mwaura was whisked to Wanyororo police station, where he is expected to be questioned before he is charged. Before this report, the police in Niger State, Nigeria had apprehended a teenage boy, Kabiru Idi, for having sex with a goat. His arrest was aided by a secret information offered to the law enforcement agents. It was gathered that the suspect had engaged in the act twice so far. A twitter user identified as Tracy Sylvester has taken to the platform to narrate on her experience in Lagos. According to her, a certain luxurious car that was occupied by a white man and a Police escort tried to disobey the traffic, but they were met with a bigger match. The Policeman who was escorting the white man had been diverting vehicles on the other lane, so they could maneuver and ride along on a one-way road, when a certain vehicle refused to move. He then went to confront the occupants, only to discover they were Army officers. Read her narration below: I experienced the best scene of a life time in Lagos today. I was at a particular bstop just before Egbeda, there was mad traffic on one side of the road and the other side was pretty free. Apparently the person in a black mercedes GL class couldnt take it anymore. So as soon as they got to a road cut, a policeman came down from the passengers side of the Mercedes, stopped some cars and they diverted to the free road tryna use one way. The amazing part. It wasnt up to 10 secs they did that, the Mercedes got blocked by a black Lexus The furious police man came down again, went straight to the Lexus, tapped the drivers window and demonstrated angrily My friend, will you move to one side Then it happened.. A man in his mid 40s and 3 other men came down from the Lexus and guess what? They were army officers The army officers made everyone in the Mercedes come down, that was when we noticed that the owner of the Mercedes was a white man. He apologised but the soldiers wont have it and clearly told him Mr man, If I can obey traffic law in your country, you would obey in mine. Now heres the funny part The soldiers cleared the road, apologised for causing traffic and made sure the Mercedes went all the way back to the beginning of the traffic. All them Agberos were cheering. I almost pulled out my phone to record but the army is NOT my mate. Besides.. Im launching a search for one of the army officer. He was soooooooo cute, I think in his late 20s and He had the cutest lips I ever saw Dark skinned Macho body. I felt like asking him to marry me but they got into the Lexus and drove off before I could. A cross-section of Commercial sex workers in Lagos have revealed that they prefer doing business with married men than with single men and they explained why. They admitted that they have sex with both married and single men but said the greater number of their customers are married men and they prefer them to the single ones. PM Express visited brothels and hotels in Agege, Idimu, Shasha, Mushin, Ikotun, Igando, Yaba, Ejigbo, and other areas in Lagos to conduct the research and some of the sex workers were all too willing to speak. One of the ladies simply known as Jenifer, who works as a sex worker in Shasha area of Lagos, said that most of her clients are married men. She said that even though she collects good money from them, she still pities them as their wives are not taking care of their emotional needs at home. She narrated that one of her clients opened up and complained that he got married some years ago and they had three children. But that since then, the wife has practically abandoned him and faced the children without knowing that he needs care as well as the children. Jenifer said that as a graduate, she knew what those men needed and they were not getting them in their different homes. She then worked on them and as a result, they stuck with her and have been paying reasonable money, unlike the single men who came with many fake stories. She further narrated that she has three regular married clients and whenever they come calling, she makes sure that she treats them well. She said that she usually spends good time with them, chats them up about life in general, and then attends to their sexual needs which they lack in their homes and at the end, they pay her reasonable money. Another sex worker, who gave her name as Grace, revealed that married men are preferable because they are more considerate and appreciate the workers more than the single men who may not want to pay at all or pay less. She, however, noted that dealing with married clients was a huge task, as such workers must have patience in order to treat such clients well, but at the end, the patience will be worth the pay and such men become regular, steady clients eventually. She observed that married men preferred them because of the attention and time they usually gave to them which they were not getting from their wives in their various homes. Once they get what they are lacking at home from the sex workers, they become glued to them. She revealed that some of the men even got carried away and proposed to marry her but she usually declines such proposals because marriage is not part of why they became sex workers, but money to cater for other things. Another sex worker, Miss Chizoba, equally agreed with her colleagues assertion on married men but added that not all were good clients as some may come and start telling woes of their wives at home; even making terrible demands and may not have the money to match what they want from them. Some other workers who spoke had almost the same opinion and noted that the married clients preferred to stay longer with them because they find solace and enjoy themselves more any time they come around unlike in their homes. The men who patronize sex workers were also interviewed and, though a lot refused to comment, one patron at a popular hotel along Ejigbo/Ikotun Road, simply known as Emman, said that there are many reasons why married men patronise those sex workers. One of the reasons he gave is that most times the sex workers are full of excitement and fun. He also noted that the workers had a lot to offer when men have issues with their wives. Emman explained that he was not getting the needed attention from his wife at home and he mentioned it to his friend who then introduced him to the lifestyle of patronising sex workers. He said that he embraced it and since then has been enjoying it. He hastily added that it is not that he doesnt love his wife but there are things he is getting from the workers which he realised that he was not getting from her. Mr. Emman cited that sometimes he may prefer to forget all the financial and family pressures which he will not get when he was with his wife as she will only help compound them. Hence, he will find his way to the hotel and will temporarily forget them. Another patron, Mr. Peter, said that no man will ordinarily like to go to the hotels to fraternize with sex workers if his wife was rightly taking care of his emotional needs at home. He noted that hotel life was expensive but it was also fun and difficult to give up. Leave a Comment comments Nigerias Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed met with the Nigerian Ambassador to the US, Sylvanus Nsofor in Washington over the weekend. He told Nigerians living abroad to be careful of the news they read about Nigeria online as 80% of them are fake. Backing his claims with farmers/herders clashes, Lai Mohammed said news platforms reported that the two Catholic priests killed in Benue in April were killed by herdsmen but investigations revealed that they were killed by armed militia. Fake news and misinformation when mixed with hate speech threaten the peace, unity, security and corporate existence of Nigerians. Many people in the diaspora depend a lot on Social media for news about Nigeria. However, 80 percent of what you read on social media is fake. Please, we implore you to visit our website fgnnformation.iapp where you can find information that is genuine about Nigeria. When you go by social media, the impression you get is as if Nigeria is at war and as if Muslims are killing Christians and about ethnic war. However, those disgruntled politicians have now tried to factor ethnicity and religion into the situation that we have in the country. Our challenges have nothing to do with religion or ethnicity he said. The Minister had before now told Nigerians in Diaspora, that with President Muhammadu Buhari piloting the affairs of Nigeria, the country is in very safe and competent hands, hence there is no cause for alarm. The minister said this at a town hall meeting with the staff of the Nigerian Embassy in Madrid, Spain and a cross section of Nigerians living in the European countries. In a statement by the ministers media aide, Segun Adeyemi, Mohammed said contrary to the fake news being peddled on the Social Media, Nigeria is making steady progress, especially in revamping the economy, tackling insecurity and fighting corruption the three cardinal programmes of the Buhari Administration. Leave a Comment comments Punch The Senator representing Ogun East at the National Assembly, Buruji Kashamu, has blamed the defeat of the Peoples Democratic Party in the July 14 governorship election in Ekiti State on the arrogance of incumbent Governor Ayodele Fayose. Vanguard Eight people were killed at a mosque in northeast Nigeria on Monday when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives, a civilian militia member and a local resident said. The Nation APC, PDP in war of words over Saraki, Dogara, others The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) got yesterday a reply to its threat to boycott next years elections. The Authority The chieftain of Social Democratic Party (SDP) and gubernatorial candidate Alh Abubakar Mohammed Sadiq has urged the people of Sokoto state to support the party so that it will clinched power come 2019. Daily Times Plateau APC elders frown at politicisation of security, land grabbing A group operating under the aegis of All Progressive Congress (APC), Elders and Stakeholders of Barkin Ladi, Jos North, Jos South and Riyom Local Government. Tribune PDP summons emergency NEC for Monday The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called an emergency meeting of its National Executive Committee (NEC) for Monday. Daily Independent Stop Depending On Social Media For News, Minister Tells Diaspora Nigerians Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, has admonished Nigerians in Diaspora to stop depending on social media for news about the country. Mohammed gave the admonition in Washington at a meeting with Justice Sylvanus Nsofor, the Nigerias Ambassador to USA, and the Embassys members of staff. The meeting was on the sideline.. The Herald PDP Considers Change of Name Ahead of 2019 General Election The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has resolved to change its name ahead of the 2019 general election. Since the 2015 polls, which saw the partys ouster at the federal level and some states, the PDP has lost many other elections. With the most recent being the Ekiti governorship election, PDP lost gubernatorial elections New Telegraph PDP signs MoU with R-APC In a bid to cement the grand alliance between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and members of the Reformed All Progressives Congress (R-APC), the leadership of both groups have entered into a fresh ThisDay The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday pushed forward its agenda for retrieval of power from the All Progressives Congress (APC), holding a meeting of its National Caucus last night, preparatory to todays National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting, to consider a demand by its allies for The Flying Eagles will be rewarded with a cash sum of N2.5 million following their 5-0 routing of hapless Mauritania in the 2019 Africa U20 Cup of Nations to be hosted by Niger Republic. Nazifi Yahaya scored a hat-trick while Afeez Aremu and Wasiu Alalade also got on the score sheet to seal an emphatic win for Nigeria. Meanwhile, speaking to the media after the win, captain of the side, Ukouwem Udoh, said that an earlier promise of a cash reward of N.5million did the magic for them, as they needed to score more goals in order to earn much. Consequently, the wet and waterlogged Agege Township Stadium did not deter the side as they opened scoring inside the opening 11 minutes of the encounter through Wasiu Alalade. Nazifi Yahaya doubled the advantage on 33 minutes and then made it 3-0 a minute after the restart when he headed home off a corner. Aniekeme Asuquo scored Nigerias fourth goal, before Afeez Aremu completed the routing in the 87th minute with a fifth goal from the penalty spot, after a Flying Eagles attacker was brought down inside the box on his way to goal. The team will receive now receive a total of N2.5 million after they put five behind their visitors. The government of Kaduna state says they are working with the federal government to bring an end to armed robberies and kidnapping on Kaduna-Abuja road. In recent times, travelling along Abuja -Kaduna expressway has become a nightmare as travellers are either killed or kidnapped by armed bandits. The government of Kaduna state says it is on top of the situation and is working closely with the federal government to end menace as the life of every Nigerian matters. MILLGROVE, ON Round five of the 2018 season for the APC United Late Model Series saw the tour head to Millgrove, Ontario for the London Recreational Racing 100 at the Flamboro Speedway. A full field of Late Models was on hand Saturday, July 21, all ready for battle at the tough bullring. Bennett GM Pole Qualifying started the evenings competition off as drivers had just five laps to try and score a track record and earn themselves a top starting position. Brandon Watson looked to have the top spot locked up, but Ryan Kimball stole the pole position with a lap of 15.020 in the last seconds of qualifying. Brandon Watson, Jordan Sims, Shae Gemmell, and JR Fitzpatrick rounded out the top five spots. GALLERY: COURTESY OF DEREK SMITH / WWW.RACEPULSE.COM The London Recreational Racing 100 started with Ryan Kimball on the pole but it would be Shae Gemmell emerging with the lead on the high side and leading the opening circuit. The caution flag would fly early as Mark Burbridge went around in turn four on lap five, erasing the early advantage for Gemmell. Shawn Chenoweth moved into the second position on the restart after several cars made contact. All drivers would continue in the proper direction and the race would continue with Shae Gemmell pacing the field up front. The yellow flag was shown for the second time on lap 15 when Jade Franklin suffered a mechanical failure. Gemmell would continue to lead the early portion of the race as drivers worked each other over for spots behind. Shawn Chenoweth took the second spot back on lap 28 and set his sights on the race leader, closing the gap fairly quickly. A long green flag run allowed Chenoweth to get within striking distance as Brandon Watson advanced to the third spot on lap 41, moving Junior Farrelly back to the fourth spot. The race lead changed hands for the first time on lap 43 when Shawn Chenoweth muscled his way around Gemmell. Chenoweth worked through lapped traffic before the yellow flag came out on lap 61 as Junior Farrelly went around off of turn two. The field just settled in after the restart before the caution flag was displayed for the fourth time on lap 64 when Ryan Kimball stopped on the track. Shawn Chenoweth continued to show the way up front, holding off Brandon Watson before the yellow came out again, this time for Shawn McGlynn on lap 77. Another caution on lap 77 for contact between Ken Schrader and Jordan Sims set up for a wild restart that saw Shae Gemmell and Brandon Watson make contact in turn three. The contact saw Watson fall off the pace and on lap 78 Junior Farrelly drove over top of him with nowhere to go, bringing out the caution for the seventh time in the London Recreational Racing 100. Watsons night would end as a result of the incident. The lap 78 restart saw drama up front as contact between the leaders pushed Shawn Chenoweth up the track and outside the top ten. 2017 MacMaster of Orangeville Rookie of the Year, Treyten Lapcevich, found himself in the lead in the aftermath and would lead lap 80 before JR Fitzpatrick took over the lead a lap later. Shae Gemmell followed Fitzpatrick through and applied pressure for several laps before losing him with less than 10 to go. When it looked like the race was over, a caution on the last lap set up a dramatic green-white-checkered finish. Gemmell would squeeze his way in line but would fall short as Fitzpatrick went on to sweep the 2018 events at Flamboro Speedway. Treyten Lapcevich, Matt Pritiko, and Andrew Gresel rounded out the top five spots. The tour enjoys a week off before heading to Sauble Speedway on August 4th for the Spira Fire Protection Beat the Heat 100. Event information can be found on www.APCRacingSeries.com. The event gets underway at 5:00pm By Ryan Dyson APC Series PR www.APCRacingSeries.com VANCOUVER - July 23, 2018 (Investorideas.com Newswire) GoverMedia Plus Canada Corp. (CSE: MPLS) (FSE: 48G) (WKN: A2JF6W) ("GoverMedia" or the "Company"), is pleased to announce it has signed a software development agreement with a Swiss private bank based in Geneva. The bank has a long history in asset and wealth management. The agreement is for the development and sale of a proprietary white labeled messaging platform for the bank's internal communication. The messaging solution is fully customized, with the servers and the encryption keys at the bank level and can be replicated to other banking institutions. The technology will be built based on GoverMedia's state-of-the-art, proprietary messaging software: MFLY+. The Company's team has already begun the software development activities for the bank's internal messaging platform and is expecting to deliver the final software solution during Q3 2018. The commercial agreement stipulates a software development fee and additional maintenance and technical support fees. These fees represent direct significant revenues to GoverMedia. Leonid Afanasyev, GoverMedia's Founder and Director, commented "After months of restless work, we are pleased to announce this partnership in the financial heart of Switzerland. Based on years of professional relationship with the bank, we managed to develop a tailor-made solution for the financial institution's needs. The solution the Company has developed is fully adapted to the banking technology infrastructure in Switzerland and can be easily implemented to other banks in our network. We are confident this agreement will provide the basis for many other commercial contracts to come." To read the full press release please click here. About GoverMedia Plus Canada Corp. GoverMedia Plus Canada Corp. is a Canadian holding company with a fully owned Russian technology subsidiary. GoverMedia has developed a fully operational state of the art internet platform offering all-inclusive online services such as, e-commerce, social media, multimedia, corporate auctions, corporate database, messaging platform and crowdfunding services. We believe the GoverMedia platform is the first and only internet platform offering such a wide range of online services accessible via only one account. The Companys management and advisors have extensive expertise in the Telecommunications, High-Technology, Corporate Development and Finance fields. http://www.gm.plus and http://www.govermedia.plus. For further information, please contact: Roland J. Bopp President and CEO (888) 672-4415 This press release is not an offer of securities of the Company for sale in the United States. The Common Shares of the Company may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the U.S. Securities Act), or an exemption from such registration. The Common Shares have not been and will not be publicly offered in the United States. The Common Shares have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act or any state securities laws. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements The statements made in this press release may contain certain forward-looking statements concerning potential developments affecting the business, prospects, financial condition and other aspects of GoverMedia. The words "will", "may", "anticipate", "intend", "plan" and similar words and expressions are used to identify forward-looking information. These statements include that the Company will resume trading on the CSE. The actual results of the specific items described in this release, and the Company's operations generally, may differ materially from what is projected in such forward-looking statements. Although such statements are based upon the best judgments of GoverMedia's management as of the date of this release, significant deviations in magnitude, timing and other factors may result from business risks and uncertainties including, without limitation, GoverMedia's dependence on third parties, general market and economic conditions, technical factors, the availability of outside capital, receipt of revenues and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of GoverMedia. GoverMedia disclaims any obligation to update information contained in any forward-looking statement unless required by applicable securities laws. SOURCE: GoverMedia Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investment involves risk and possible loss of investment. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Contact each company directly regarding content and press release questions. Disclosure is posted for each compensated news release, content published /created if required but otherwise the news was not compensated for and was published for the sole interest of our readers and followers. More disclaimer info: http://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp Disclosure: GoverMedia Plus Canada Corp. (CSE: MPLS) is a paid PR news and social media client effective March 1, 2018 , More info http://www.investorideas.com/About/News/Clientspecifics.asp Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: http://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp July 23, 2018 (Investorideas.com Newswire) A Haywood Securities report provided an update on the uranium sector. In a July 19, 2018, research note, Haywood Securities analyst Colin Healey reported that on July 18 the U.S. Department of Commerce launched an investigation into how uranium imports may be threatening national security. "U.S.-focused uranium equities rallied yesterday on the news, although we expect some profit taking is likely in the term," added Healey. The DOC's move came in response to a joint request for such an inquiry, in accordance with Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, filed in mid-January by two of the U.S.' largest uranium producers, Ur-Energy Inc. (URG:NYSE.MKT; URE:TSX) and Energy Fuels Inc. (EFR:TSX; UUUU:NYSE.American). Healey pointed out that in that correspondence, the two companies purported that the domestic uranium mining industry is vital to U.S. national security but is suffering dramatically from having to compete with heavily subsidized ex-U.S. producers. Ur-Energy and Energy Fuels offered two solutions, that a cap be placed on uranium imports and that utilities in the United States be required to buy uranium produced in the U.S. For example, "if the government were to mandate that 25% of its nuclear fuel be sourced domestically, this would require an incremental increase of about 10 million pounds of uranium," Healey indicated. Healey relayed that the most recent data shows 83% of the uranium the U.S. requires is imported. About 25% comes from Canada, about 24% from Kazakhstan, about 20% from Australia and about 14% from Russia. U.S. uranium production has plummeted by about 90% since the peak in 1980. The DOC's investigation and any subsequent action are expected to take about a year. By law, the commerce department has 270 days to complete and report the findings of such an investigation along with its recommendations to the U.S. president, who then has 90 days to take action. The imposition of any tariffs, quotas and/or federal utility purchase mandates resulting from the investigation would greatly benefit U.S. uranium producers and developers because it would allow them to capture a larger share of the domestic market. "This could eventually lead to outperformance from the associated equities and turn the group into sector leaders," suggested Healey. The companies that could benefit, he wrote, are: Ur-Energy, Energy Fuels, Uranium Energy Corp. (UEC:NYSE.MKT), Azarga Uranium Corp. (AZZ:TSX), Laramide Resources Ltd. (LAM:TSX; LAM:ASX), Peninsula Energy Ltd. (PEN:ASX) and Cameco Corp. (CCO:TSX; CCJ:NYSE). Haywood's favorite stocks in the sector are: NexGen Energy Ltd. (NXE:TSX; NXE:NYSE.MKT), Denison Mines Corp. (DML:TSX; DNN:NYSE.MKT) and Uranium Participation Corp. (U:TSX). In the interim, near-term drivers of share price in the sector will be news flow, particularly related to the Section 232 investigation, and market sentiment. As such, Haywood recommends investors build positions in "quality uranium names, using news-driven price shocks such as this as an opportunity to rebalance security exposures," Healey noted. The analyst concluded, "We continue to believe we are in the very early stages of a secular bull market in uranium and that sentiment is beginning to perk up. . .we expect a sustained increase in the long-term price to be the sector's most salient catalyst." Disclosure: 1) Doresa Banning compiled this article for Streetwise Reports LLC and provides services to Streetwise reports as an independent contractor. She or members of her household own securities of the following companies mentioned in the article: None. She or members of her household are paid by the following companies mentioned in this article: None. 2) The following companies mentioned in this article are billboard sponsors of Streetwise Reports: Energy Fuels and Azarga Uranium. Click here for important disclosures about sponsor fees. 3) Comments and opinions expressed are those of the specific experts and not of Streetwise Reports or its officers. The information provided above is for informational purposes only and is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. 4) The article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility. By opening this page, each reader accepts and agrees to Streetwise Reports' terms of use and full legal disclaimer. This article is not a solicitation for investment. Streetwise Reports does not render general or specific investment advice and the information on Streetwise Reports should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Streetwise Reports does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any company mentioned on Streetwise Reports. 5) From time to time, Streetwise Reports LLC and its directors, officers, employees or members of their families, as well as persons interviewed for articles and interviews on the site, may have a long or short position in securities mentioned. Directors, officers, employees or members of their immediate families are prohibited from making purchases and/or sales of those securities in the open market or otherwise from the time of the interview or the decision to write an article, until one week after the publication of the interview or article. As of the date of this article, officers and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of Azarga Uranium, a company mentioned in this article. Disclosures from Haywood Securities, Uranium Sector Update, July 19, 2018 Haywood Securities, or certain of its affiliated companies, may from time to time receive a portion of commissions or other fees derived from the trading or financings conducted by other affiliated companies in the covered security. Haywood analysts are salaried employees who may receive a performance bonus that may be derived, in part, from corporate finance income. Haywood Securities, Inc., and Haywood Securities (USA) Inc. do have officers in common however, none of those common officers affect or control the ratings given a specific issuer or which issuer will be the subject of Research coverage. In addition, the firm does maintain and enforce written policies and procedures reasonably designed to prevent influence on the activities of affiliated analysts. Analyst Certification: I, Colin Healey, hereby certify that the views expressed in this report (which includes the rating assigned to the issuers shares as well as the analytical substance and tone of the report) accurately reflect my/our personal views about the subject securities and the issuer. No part of my/our compensation was, is, or will be directly or indirectly related to the specific recommendations. Important Disclosures The following Important Disclosures apply: At the end of the month immediately preceding this publication either Haywood Securities, Inc., one of its subsidiaries, its officers or directors beneficially owned 1% or more of Azarga Uranium and NexGen Energy Haywood Securities, Inc. has reviewed lead projects of Azarga Uranium, Denison Mines, Energy Fuels, NexGen Energy and Uranium Energy Corp. and a portion of the expenses for this travel may have been reimbursed by the issuer. Haywood Securities Inc. or one of its subsidiaries has managed or co-managed or participated as selling group in a public offering of securities for Uranium Participation Corp. in the past 12 months. Haywood Securities, Inc. or one of its subsidiaries has received compensation for investment banking services from this company in the past 12 months: Azarga Uranium Corp. Haywood Securities, Inc. or one of its subsidiaries has received compensation for investment banking services from this company in the past 24 months: Azarga Uranium Corp. and NexGen Energy. Other material conflict of interest of the research analyst of which the research analyst or Haywood Securities Inc. knows or has reason to know at the time of publication or at the time of public appearance: n/a. More Info: This news is published on the Investorideas.com Newswire - a global digital news source for investors and business leaders Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. 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Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp July 23, 2018 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Bob Moriarty of 321 Gold discusses the reasons behind the slow pace of assay results. The chat boards on Novo Resources Corp. (NVO:TSX.V; NSRPF:OTCQX) have been a hive of activity pondering the issue of why only five assays have been released in the past year. Is Quinton Hennigh involved in some devious conspiracy to hold down the price of his own shares? Is Novo maneuvering to take over Artemis or Kirkland Lake? Or is Quinton simply incompetent? None of the above actually comes even close to the truth. The conglomerate gold story based around Karratha is similar to one of those good news/bad news stories. Due to the size of the gold, it is virtually impossible to measure with accuracy. I have said before and I will repeat it again. You can't measure this gold, you can only mine it. I don't give a damn what anyone calls it, a bulk sample is mining, albeit on a tiny scale. Everyone keeps trying to run the exploration program just as if you are exploring a many million-ounce gold deposit. Which it most certainly is. But thinking of it as a giant hard rock property is causing all of the companies involved, not just Novo Resources, to see the trees and miss the forest. The conglomerate gold story is a placer story. And with placer gold, you have exactly the same good news/bad news story. Depending on the size and grade of the gold it varies from measuring with a 35% plus or minus guess at the grade to simply wetting your finger and holding it in the breeze to see which way the breeze is blowing. Or better put, giving a SWAG (Stupid Wild-Assed Guess). It's between hard to measure to impossible to measure. However the good news is really good news. Placer gold is really easy to process. The bigger the gold, the easier and cheaper it is to process. After figuring out that a large core drill rig could drill nice wide pretty holes, Novo also figured out that you couldn't blow the gold, with an specific gravity of about 19, back up the hole so you could measure it scientifically. If you can, just imagine the drill supervisor looking down a wonderful wide hole three meters deep at a pile of gold nuggets at the bottom and saying, "Yup. You got a lotta gold here." So Novo went the mining route bulk sample process as I suggested . I think that started back in November when they figured out the large diameter drill was a write off. And the company went to one of the best and most qualified assay labs in Australia, SGS. SGS was going to design and build a small plant just for processing the bulk samples. Since December SGS has managed to process and release two samples. In seven months. That's absurd. There are two issues that caused this utter failure. One is that unbeknownst to most people, Australia has a severe labor problem. With the iron and coal mines working 24/7 it's damned hard to find and keep qualified labor. The other issue is that everyone, including SGS, is making the conglomerate gold issue too complicated. It's placer gold that just happens to be in hard rock. Crush it and run it across a sluice box. But SGS makes a lot more money if they come up with a complicated solution. They don't need a complicated solution, they need a simple solution. Simple solutions work. Complicated solutions fail. I talked to Quinton a little while back and asked just what it was that held things up; after all, all they are doing is building a mini plant. He said there were issues with the hardness of the rock and they seemed to have a crusher that didn't work. Rocks tend to be hard. That is what makes them rock. If they were soft, they would be dirt. If you try running a certain species of rock through a crusher and the crusher has a problem with it, get a bigger hammer. No problem. I had a placer project in Mexico and used a screen deck and a short sluice box to recover most of the gold from what was fairly fine gold. Certainly not coarse. It cost about $50,000 all in, design, fabrication, customs, transportation and set up. And it worked even though the guys working for me specialized in breaking equipment. The life span of a truck was about six months. I had another placer gold project in Tanzania with ultra fine, fly spec gold. We used $3000 all in, hand fed sluice boxes larger but similar to this. A pan of dirt to be sampled might have 400 colors. It was really hard to pan, the gold was so small. But those tiny almost home-made recovery plants worked. When I was in Karratha a year ago, we drove out to Comet Well and Purdy's and passed a shallow gravel pit on the way to the projects. Someone working on a road crew a few months before saw some gold in the gravel on a job they were on and asked around about where the gravel came from. He and a mate bought a metal detector and tested the gravel pit. It wasn't big, maybe 100 meters across and maybe 1-2 meters in depth. They took home hundreds of ounces of gold from a weekend. I'm certain they declared all the gold and paid taxes on it. There is a boatload of gold in Karratha. It could easily be mined at great profit if people would stop making it so damned complicated. If metal detectors work, buy some and rip the ground with a D-11 dozer with a ripper. Run the crap across a sluice box and recover 98% of the gold. Easy Peasy. SGS has stopped the conglomerate gold rush in its tracks just by keeping their head where the sun don't shine. It would be wonderful to have a Jorc or 43-101 and know to a gnat's ass just how much gold there is in the Pilbara. But I could put it in production in a weekend with a blasting permit, a D-11 and a sluice box. For a couple of million dollars. If two guys can recover $400,000 of gold in a weekend with a $10,000 metal detector, it really need not be rocket science. Novo Resources has about 1.2 million warrants at $1.25 expiring on August 12. Some warrant holders will probably be selling shares to exercise. Expect higher prices once the selling pressure lets up. I'm a big fan of Novo and have been for nine years. They are still my biggest holding and naturally I am biased. Do your own due diligence. Novo Resources NVO-V $3.83 (Jul 20, 2018) NSRPF $2.88 OTCQX 159 million shares Novo Resources website Bob and Barb Moriarty brought 321gold.com to the Internet almost 16 years ago. They later added 321energy.com to cover oil, natural gas, gasoline, coal, solar, wind and nuclear energy. Both sites feature articles, editorial opinions, pricing figures and updates on current events affecting both sectors. Previously, Moriarty was a Marine F-4B and O-1 pilot with more than 832 missions in Vietnam. He holds 14 international aviation records. Disclosure: 1) Bob Moriarty: I, or members of my immediate household or family, own shares of the following companies mentioned in this article: Novo Resources. Novo Resources is an advertiser on 321 Gold. I determined which companies would be included in this article based on my research and understanding of the sector. 2) The following companies mentioned are billboard sponsors of Streetwise Reports: None. Click here for important disclosures about sponsor fees. 3) Statements and opinions expressed are the opinions of the author and not of Streetwise Reports or its officers. The author is wholly responsible for the validity of the statements. The author was not paid by Streetwise Reports for this article. Streetwise Reports was not paid by the author to publish or syndicate this article. The information provided above is for informational purposes only and is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. 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Samsung has today sent out invites for the official unveiling of the Galaxy Note 9 on August 9 at its Unpacked event. The Note 9 will be Samsungs flagship phone for the second half of the year after the release of the Galaxy S9 and S9+ earlier this year. The S9 and S9+ have failed to set the sales chart on fire for Samsung so a lot rides on the Note 9 for the Korean company. Last year, the Galaxy Note 8 met with a modest response, with its mediocre battery life being criticised by many. This year, Samsung is again basing the Note 9 on the Galaxy S9+ but with a few improvements thrown in. For starters, to maximize the internal space on the handset for battery, the Note 9 will feature a horizontal dual-camera setup like the Note 8. As per rumors, this will allow Samsung to fit in a massive 4,000mAh battery on the Note 9. However, theres no credible leak on this front so it is better to take this rumor with a pinch of salt. As for the invite from Samsung, it shows off the S-Pen. There are rumors of the S-Pen getting a massive upgrade with the Note 9 this year and this teaser image from the company possibly hints at that. Apart from the S Pen, the camera is going to be another area where Samsung is going to make major improvements. The internal specs of the Galaxy Note 9 are expected to remain the same as the Galaxy S9 which means it will come with an Exynos 9810/Snapdragon 845 chipset, 6GB RAM, 64/128GB storage, microSD card slot, wireless charging, iris scanner, and an IP68 certification. Are you looking forward to Samsung unveiling the Galaxy Note 9 with a new and improved S Pen? Apple might have been slow to the smart speaker game with the HomePod but the coming is working behind the scenes to add all major missing features to it. With the OS 12 update for the HomePod, Apple will add support for native phone call support to its smart speaker. Currently, an iPhone user has to start a voice call on their phone and then switch the audio input to HomePod. Post the HomePod OS 12 update though, they will be able to directly use the HomePod to initiate a call. The feature will require your iPhone to be connected to the speaker since the latter will make use of its cellular connection for the call. Another notable feature that HomePod will gain with OS 12 is support for Find My iPhone command. Using the command, one will be able to use Siri on the HomePod to locate their lost iPhone, though it will require that your iPhone is connected to the same Wi-Fi network. To ensure all Wi-Fi woes on the HomePod are easily fixable, Apple is going to add a new fix Wi-Fi feature in the HomePod that will automatically connect the smart speaker to the same network your iPhone is connected to. As of now, one needs to reset their HomePod if they wish to change the Wi-Fi network it is connected to. A small but notable feature that will be a part of HomePods OS 12 update is the ability to handle multiple timers. For some reason, Apples smart speaker is currently capable of handling only one timer. Apart from this, Apple will also improve support for other languages on the HomePod and add Spanish language support while at it. Apple employees are currently testing the beta HomePod OS 12 update on their HomePod, and it is likely that we will see the company provide details about this update at its September iPhone event. [Via iGeneration Samsung is back to doing what it does best: copying Apple. While theres no mention of when Apple will get around to finally releasing its AirPower wireless charger, Samsung is preparing to launch the Wireless Charger Duo alongside the Galaxy Note 9 at its Unpacked event next month. As the name suggests, the wireless charger will be capable of wireless charging two Qi-compatible devices at once. Samsung will unveil the Wireless Charger Duo to complement the release of the Galaxy Note 9 and the Galaxy Watch as it will allow a user to charge both devices wirelessly at once. In typical Samsung fashion though, while the company has copied Apples idea, its implementation leaves a lot to be desired. Unlike AirPower, the Wireless Charger Duo basically combines Samsungs two previous wireless chargers into one using a plastic shell. This makes the wireless charger significantly bigger than AirPower and it does not look that elegant or portable as well. The leak points to the wireless charger being priced at 75 (~$90) which if true will be a pretty sweet price especially since Samsung is also going to bundle a power adapter and the required USB cable in the retail box. Since the Wireless Charger Duo is going to be a wireless charger, you can buy it and use it to charge your iPhone X or iPhone 8 and the Apple Watch Series 3 simultaneously. If you are bummed about Apple still not releasing the AirPower wireless charger, maybe perhaps its time for you to switch loyalties? [Via LetsGoDigital Earlier this year, Samsung highlighted the fact that the Galaxy S9 offers 37 percent faster LTE download speeds than the iPhone X. Now, Qualcomm is highlighting the same albeit with a lot more data. In a detailed post, Qualcomm highlights the higher LTE speeds offered by its X20 modem found inside the Snapdragon 845 chipset. The company post is based on the data collected by Ooklas Speedtest. Qualcomm highlights that its latest X20 modem which is a part of its Snapdragon 845 chipset offers up to 40 percent faster LTE speeds on AT&Ts network in the United States. For comparison, it has used data from Intels XMM7480 and XMM7360 modem which is used by Apple inside the iPhone 7 and iPhone 8. On T-Mobiles network, Qualcomms modem offers up to 68 percent faster download speeds while offering 35 percent lower latency. Qualcomm is highlighting that even in poor network areas, its modem continues to offer higher download speeds compared to Intels basebands. In one particular worst-case scenario, the X20 LTE modem from Qualcomm offers 192 percent faster upload speeds compared to Intels XM7480 and 7360 modem. Various tests conducted before have already confirmed that Qualcomms LTE modem offers far superior download speeds and power efficiency when compared to Intels offering. Despite a notable performance gap, Apple continues to source modem from Intel for iPhones that it sells outside of the United States. Even on paper, Qualcomms X20 LTE modem is superior as it is capable of reaching a maximum theoretical download speed of up to 1.2Gbps, while the Intel modem inside the iPhone X tops out at around 800Mbps. Our Take After years of relying on Qualcomm for the modem inside iPhones, Apple started sourcing modems from Intel starting with the iPhone 7. Apple is now further keen on reducing its reliance on Qualcomm for modem requirements due to the ongoing legal tiff between the two companies. Given how the situation between the two companies has gone from bad to worse, it is unlikely that we will see Apple solely rely on Qualcomm again for its modem requirement. As for modem performance, Intel is reportedly supplying Apple with a gigabit LTE modem for its 2018 iPhone lineup. This new modem should perform better than the modem found inside the iPhone X, but it is still unlikely to beat Qualcomms offering in terms of performance and power efficiency. japatino/Getty Images(HOUSTON) -- The longest total lunar eclipse of the century is coming Friday, and it will transform the moon into a reddish orange color for more than 100 minutes, according to NASA. The eclipse won't be visible from North America, Noah Petro, a scientist for the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, told ABC News. Star-gazers in areas near the Middle East, south or eastern Africa, western and southeast Asia and India will be able to catch a glimpse of the celestial event as long as the weather permits, Petro said. In those areas, the totality of the lunar eclipse -- when the moon will retain its red color -- will last for about an hour and 42 minutes. The entire event -- beginning as the moon passes through the Earth's stratosphere -- will last about six hours and 13 minutes, Petro said. Residents in Australia will be able to see the lunar eclipse as the moon sets, while those in eastern Brazil and western Europe can see it as the moon is rising. Petro suggested either renting a boat and driving it to the middle of the Indian Ocean or visiting relatives in Ethiopia for the "best seat in the house." In the U.S., the lunar eclipse will start around 1:14 p.m. ET, and the maximum period of totality will start around 4:21 p.m. ET, making it too light outside for the blood moon to be visible, Petro said. Although U.S. residents wont be able to see the eclipse, they should still be excited because the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter -- NASA's robotic spacecraft orbiting the moon -- will experience it first-hand, Petro said. The LRO was launched in June 2009 to provide detailed maps to identify "safe and interesting" landing sites on the moon for future human and robotic exploration. "The moon really holds the secret to understanding how the solar system works," Petro said. It's a good time for Americans to start getting excited about the moon, as NASA will begin celebrating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, the the spaceflight that made astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin the first two people on the moon, in October, Petro said. Armstrong and Aldrin landed on the moon on July 20, 1969. The next total lunar eclipse visible in the U.S. will be on Jan. 21, 2019, according to NASA. It will be a super moon as well, which is a full moon or new moon that coincides with the moon's position at it's closest to the Earth. A partial lunar eclipse -- which looks "like someone took a bite out of the moon -- will also be visible in the U.S. in July 2019, Petro said. The partial lunar eclipse involves the southern half of the moon passing into the earth's shadow, he added. What exactly is a blood moon? A blood moon is a term used to describe a total lunar eclipse, which is when the moon appears darkened as it passes through the Earth's shadow. The total lunar eclipse is given the "blood" nickname because of the "beautiful" red color caused by the projection of all of the Earth's sunrises and sunsets onto its surface, Petro told ABC News earlier this year, before the super blue blood moon event that took place on Jan. 31. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. The assessment was made in an article published in the newspaper on July 20th. Author of the story Refat Khaled said during the visit to Egypt in last May, Vo Van Thuong, Politburo member and Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee, highlighted the growing relations between Vietnam and Egypt in all fields, especially after the historical visit to Vietnam by Egyptian President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi in September 2017. The Presidents visit created a good foundation for the bilateral cooperation to grow in various spheres, particularly marine economy and tourism. The article pointed to Egypts significant geo-strategic position, serving as the gateway between the three continents of Africa, Europe and Asia. A corner of Nha Trang city - a popular destination in Vietnam (Photo: VNA) Meanwhile, Vietnam has great potential in sea-based economy development with 48 bays and more than 3,000 islands in the East Sea. Regarding fishery resources, Vietnam is on the list of 20 most economically advantageous seas for marine fisheries in the world, with many species of high economic value. Vietnam is also a popular destination for millions of foreign tourists with white beaches and world-renowned scenic sites in Ha Long, Nha Trang, Da Nang and Phu Quoc along the countrys 3,260 km long coastline. In 2017, Vietnam welcomed 12 million international visitors, including tens of thousands of holidaymakers from Africa and Egypt in particular. At the same time, an increasing number of Vietnamese people are also visiting Egypt the country of pyramids. According to the article, Vietnam and Egypt have signed nine cooperation agreements, including four relating to marine economy and tourism. This shows that the two sectors are the focuses and priorities for win-win cooperation./. Today Mostly clear and windy. Low 57F. W winds at 25 to 35 mph, decreasing to 10 to 20 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 50 mph. Tonight Mostly clear and windy. Low 57F. W winds at 25 to 35 mph, decreasing to 10 to 20 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 50 mph. Tomorrow Sunny skies. High 79F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. Dental Specialists, Female Nurses Job in Saudi Arabia Latest Brosha Overseas Employment Medical Posts Saudi Arabia 2021 Dental Specialists, Surgeons, Female Nurses are required in Saudi Arabia Through Brosha Overseas Employment. Candidate must have experience in Medical. How to Apply on Brosha Overseas Employment Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Pakistan Water & Power Development Authority WAPDA Job Open Latest Water and Power Development Authority WAPDA Management Posts Lahore 2021 Director General Social Safeguard are required in Pakistan Water & Power Development Authority WAPDA in Lahore. Last date for Submission of application is 06 -08- 2018 How to Apply on Water and Power Development Authority WAPDA Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Telephone: 042-99205066 Official Website: www.wapda.gov.pk Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Senegalese counterpart Macky Sall attend a handover ceremony of the National Wrestling Arena built with Chinese aid in Dakar, Senegal, July 22, 2018. (Xinhua/Wang Ye) DAKAR, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Senegalese counterpart, Macky Sall, attended here on Sunday a handover ceremony of the National Wrestling Arena built with Chinese aid. Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, were received by Sall and his wife Marieme at the arena in the suburb of the Senegalese capital of Dakar, where a large picture of Xi and Sall standing side by side was hung at the entrance. The two couples saw a photo exhibition of the project before appearing at the arena to a cheering crowd waving the national flags of China and Senegal. Banners celebrating China-Africa relations and China-Senegal friendship were seen hanging at the arena. At the ceremony, the Chinese president handed over to Sall the "golden key" of the project. Afterwards, they watched a show of traditional Senegalese wrestling. The National Wrestling Arena is a vivid reflection of the profound friendship between the Chinese and the Senegalese, Xi said. Hailing Senegal as a country of culture, Xi said China is ready to work with Senegal in committing itself to preserving and carrying forward traditional cultures so as to promote cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two sides. Noting that wrestling is the national treasure of Senegal, Sall extended heartfelt thanks to China for helping build such a modern and multi-functional arena for his country. The arena is a new emblem of Senegal-China friendship, he added. The arena, the first modern one in Africa, is the largest aid project China has carried out in Senegal. [ Editor: Zhang Zhou ] HANOI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam is likely to earn 4.7 billion U.S. dollars from exporting vegetables and fruits this year, up from more than 3.5 billion U.S. dollars last year, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said on Monday. At present, Vietnamese farmers are encouraged to grow fruit trees, vegetables and flowers and use more advanced farming techniques, while local and foreign firms provide them with more high-grade seeds and seedlings. Vietnam is boosting export of both fresh and processed fruit and vegetables to traditional markets and new ones, the ministry said, noting that local litchi, longan, mango and dragon fruits have recently penetrated into big markets which have strict requirements for food safety. In the first half of this year, Vietnam made total fruit and veggie export turnovers of 2 billion U.S. dollars, up 20 percent on-year. During this time, China remained Vietnam's top fruit and veggie export market with turnovers of 1.2 billion U.S. dollars, up 18.1 percent, followed by the United States and Japan. The high growth in fruit and veggie export turnovers was mainly attributed to the wider application of clean production processes, and modern semi-processed and preservation technologies, according to Vietnamese agriculture and trade experts. [ Editor: WPY ] Springfield, Ore. -- Hundreds of people celebrated the 39th annual Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Reunion Sunday afternoon at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Springfield. The event brought together hundreds of NICU alumni, their family members and staff who cared for children during critical times in their lives. For David Hokama, Sacred Heart Medical Center became his second home when his daughter Gracie was born three months early. Hokama said he was told by doctors his daughter may not be able to breathe. Three years later, he said Gracie is thriving. This is just so much fun, Hokama said. We get to see all the families and doctors and see the nurses again and meet everyone that was special to her and helped her survive." Lisa Quezada, the Interim Director of Women and Childrens Services at Sacred Heart said the reunion is a great way to bring closure to both families and the hospital staff. She said it brings her joy to see children who were once suffering from health complications, happy and healthy. For Kayla Guerrero, every day she gets to spend with her 9-year-old son is a celebration. She said she was elated when she gave birth to her first-born son, Mateo, but a whirlwind of fear took over when he was born with Hirschsprungs disease which is a a lack of nerve cells in the intestines. Guerrero said her son was facing a 30% chance of survival and underwent six surgeries. "He's doing really well, Guerrero said. He's still is a frequent flyer to the pediatric care here at Riverbend but for his condition, he's doing really amazing." Guerrero said she comes back to the reunion each year to spend time with the caregivers who were crucial to Mateo's life. "The hospital itself is such a wonderful place, she said. "The care they provided my son and most of all, getting to see our old doctors and nurses that got us through those trying times when he was a baby." The reunion took place immediately after the 2018 Race for the Ace 5K, a fundraiser for Childrens Miracle Network, a program of the PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center Foundation. Quezada says the event seems to be growing each year and hopes to continue to reunite families, children and staff for years to come. ST. PAUL, Minn. An Albert Lea man will remain in prison after losing in the Minnesota Court of Appeals. Jose Alarcon Jr., 30, was convicted in November 2016 of felon in possession of a firearm and a predatory offender registration violation. He was sentenced to five years behind bars. Alarcon was arrested on April 6, 2015, after a traffic stop in Freeborn County. Police say Alarcon was in the backseat of the vehicle, next to a handgun that was partially covered by a napkin. In addition, Alarcon was charged after authorities learned he had been locked out of the hotel room where he was living and did not notify law enforcement. Alarcon is required to register as a predatory offender in Minnesota until December 2024 and tell the authorities when he changes his residence. Alarcon appealed his conviction, arguing there was insufficient evidence the gun in the backseat of the vehicle belonged to him and that prosecutors failed to prove Alarcon knew he had been locked out of his hotel room. The Court of Appeals rejected both arguments, stating that the only rational hypothesis is that he had possession of the gun and the evidence showed Alarcon was aware he violated his notification requirements as a predatory offender. KABUL, July 23 (Xinhua) -- At least 25 militants were killed and five others injured during airstrikes and clashes in Afghanistan on Sunday night, authorities said Monday. In two incidents, 11 militants were killed after U.S. and NATO-led coalition forces launched two drone strikes in Burka and Dahana-i-Ghori districts of northern Baghlan province overnight, provincial Governor Abdul Hai Nemati told Xinhua. Afghan security forces and U.S. and NATO-led coalition troops have increased ground and air offensives against militants in the last few months as the militants frequently attack government interests across the country. In eastern Ghazni province, six Taliban militants lost their lives and five militants injured after they clashed with security forces in Chahar Dewal village of Andar district, provincial Police Chief Farid Ahmad Mashal told Xinhua. In addition, Afghan air force launched an airstrike against an Islamic State (IS) hideout in Sado Tangai village of Nawa district in Ghazni last night, killing eight IS fighters, he said. A militants' defense fighting position and a vehicle were also destroyed by the sortie, he noted. The Taliban and the IS group have yet to make comments. [ Editor: Xueying ] ROCHESTER, Minn. - On Sunday, community members came out to Rochester Civic Theatre for fhe Bioethics at the Cinema event hosted by Mayo Clinic and Rochester Public Library. The purpose of the event, which includes a screening of the movie 'Wonder' followed by a discussion, is to bridge the gap between what happens in the bioethics medical field and how bioethics impacts a family. Ben Cockram lives with cerebal palsy and was a particpant in the panel. He said unless a person is perfect at everything, they have a disability. For Cockram, this realization will help people have empathy for those with more noticable disabilities. "It's okay to have one. We just have to name it so we can adapt to it. Because for us to go our whole lives and pretend there's nothing wrong with us, we're doing ourselves a major disservice," he said. He said reaching out to each other can help the community move forward as a whole. "Instead of walking right by them, say hi, engage and have a conversation to see what a day in their life is like," Cockram said. Event organizers said they hope the event starts a conversation within families and the community about how disabilities and bioethics impacts them. This is the second year of the Bioethics in the Cinema partnership. DECORAH, Iowa Authorities have identified the woman who drowned on the Upper Iowa River Sunday as Susan Ann Fechhelm, 65 of St. Petersburg, Florida. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says kayakers found Fechhelms body around 2:45 pm near the shoreline northwest of Decorah and tried to provide immediate medical assistance. She was eventually moved to Winneshiek Medical Center, where Fechhelm was pronounced dead. The DNR says Fechhelm was kayaking on the river by herself and is believed to have been in distress. No witnesses saw her capsize. The DNR says Fechhelm was wearing a life jacket in her kayak but it was partially off when her body was discovered. An autopsy will be performed to determine if any other factors contributed to this drowning. The DNR continues to investigate. Winneshiek County Sheriffs Office, Decorah Fire Department, Winneshiek County Medical Center Ambulance, Iowa State Patrol, and Iowa Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Enforcement assisted in this incident. MINNEAPOLIS (AP) The family of a woman who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer last year after she called 911 to report a possible assault is suing the officer, his partner and the city. A lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court alleges Justine Ruszczyk Damond's civil rights were violated when she was shot July 15, 2017, by Officer Mohamed Noor. It alleges Noor was inexperienced and unfit for duty. The lawsuit also claims Noor and his partner conspired to cover up the facts surrounding the shooting. Noor faces criminal charges. Prosecutors say Noor was in a squad car's passenger seat when he shot Damond through the driver's side window. They say there's no evidence Noor encountered a threat justifying deadly force. The lawsuit filed by Damond's father seeks monetary damages. STILLWATER, Minn. (AP) A former Minnesota corrections officer, who resigned following a colleague's death, says he's concerned that the state Department of Corrections is putting profit from its prison industry program above corrections officers' safety. Joe Miller is one of three officers who quit after Joseph Gomm was killed last week at the Minnesota Correctional Facility-Stillwater, Minnesota Public Radio News reported. Gomm was allegedly killed by an inmate in a MINNCOR Industries building, where inmates make products for public agencies and private companies. Gomm is the first Minnesota corrections officer to die on duty, the department said. The MINNCOR program generates less than 1 percent of the agency's budget, the department said. The funds are used for education and re-entry programs, along with maintenance projects and security equipment, the department said. The prison has had about 20 staff for the 300 inmates spread out in buildings that have numerous blind spots, Miller said. He said he's voicing his concerns to honor Gomm and that he hopes changes in the department can prevent another loss. "If I can say something that helps, I will," Miller said. "But I'm done." The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has also expressed concerns about insufficient staffing in Minnesota correctional facilities. The union said it has lobbied the Legislature for increased staffing and funding to no avail. State Corrections Commissioner Tom Roy said he and other leaders of the department have for years tried to secure funding from the Legislature for more corrections officers. "The notion that we don't care is something that we push back pretty hard on," Roy said. "All of our executive staff have significant correctional experience themselves, (and) everything we do relates to the safety of those officers, including our security procedures and our training." ___ Information from: Minnesota Public Radio News, http://www.mprnews.org MASON CITY, Iowa A North Iowa man is being held on $10,000 bond after what police are calling a weekend assault. Justin James Zobel, 29 of Mason City, is charged with willful injury causing serious injury. Mason City police say just after midnight Sunday, Zobel repeated punched another male in the face. Officers say the victims right eye swelled shut, causing temporary blindness. According to court documents, the assault happened in the area of 27th Street and South Madison Avenue. Willful injury causing serious injury is a class C felony in Iowa, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. MASON CITY, Iowa A North Iowa man who will serve the rest of his life in prison for killing his grandparents said I realize hell is hot and the devil is mean at his sentencing hearing Monday. Codie Matz, 25, was sentenced Monday to life without the possibility of parole for killing his grandparents in November of last year. The sentences will be served concurrently. Matz was charged with two counts of 1st-degree murder for the deaths of Kenneth Hackbart, 61, and Kathleen Hackbart, 62. Their bodies were found stabbed to death at their Mason City home on November 7, 2017. How I treated them was completely unacceptable, Matz said before the court. I found myself in a place where I mentally wasnt right. I was filled with rage. The violence I let out on them was unacceptable. In a plea hearing, Matz said he wanted to take accountability for what he did. On Monday, he echoed those statements. The best thing for me to do was to take the life sentences, he said. Related: The Codie Matz murder case. NASHUA, Iowa The Nashua Police Department is asking for the publics help after vandalism to the mens restroom at the campground. Authorities posted a picture on Facebook Monday showing a urinal ripped off the wall and shattered on the ground. We are currently following up on some information, but welcome any tips as to the identity of the person responsible, the department said on Facebook. Anyone with information is asked to call 641-435-2068. ALBERT LEA, Minn. A North Iowa man is pleading not guilty to attacking another man in a Freeborn County bar. Christopher Lon Rogers, 40 of Northwood, Iowa, is charged with 3rd degree assault. According to the criminal complaint, Rogers was at Hunters Bar in Myrtle on June 14, 2017, when he punched the victim in the face and caused him to fall. The Freeborn County Sheriffs Office says surveillance video from the bar shows an exchange of words between the two men, then Rogers walked over and struck him. A deputy called to the scene says the victim was found lying on the floor of the bar patio with a pool of blood around his head. The deputy said the victims head was lying on a roll of paper towels that was getting soaked in blood. The victim was transported to Mayo Clinic for treatment of head injuries. Rogers was charged in November 2017 and entered a not guilty plea to 3rd degree assault on Monday. His trial is set to begin on October 23. MASON CITY, Iowa A man is accused of spending more than $4,000 from his former employer over the course of five trips to Menards. Eric Scheff, 39, is facing a felony charge of unauthorized use of a credit card after allegedly spending $4,433.75 at Menards in June. On five separate occasions the defendant did enter the Menards store and use the company credit card of his former employer to purchase goods for his own personal gain, court documents state. Scheff is being held on $5,000 bond. ROCHESTER, Minn. A couple and their grandchildren were asleep when their house was broken into this weekend. Authorities say a couple had around $6,000 worth of goods were stolen, including televisions, a digital camera, a purse and a signed Joe Mauer jersey. It happened in the 3400 block of 21st Ave. NW between 2-3:30 a.m. Saturday morning. The suspect(s) gained access by cutting open a window screen and stood on the AC unit to get inside, authorities said. No arrests have been made. Accordingly, the airline will move the departing and landing times at the airport for four flights to after 20:00 (Shanghai time) on July 22 as required by the airports authorities. The affected flights are VN522, VN523, VN530 and VN531 between Hanoi/ Ho Chi Minh City and Shanghai. The carrier will continue to follow weather conditions and update passengers on further flight schedule adjustments. It recommends passengers who intend to travel to or from Pudong airport in Shanghai follow the storms movement and the carriers latest announcement via http://www.vietnamairlines.com, its booking agents nationwide or call its hotline 19001100. Senior Producers, Larger-Cap Near-Term Production Aluminum Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Alcoa Inc AA 2.1 US$40.32 186 $7,518 3.01 4.12 4.06 9.8 9.9 6.55 5.26 9.47 7.7 4.3 9.4 0.0% Alumina Ltd AWC 2.2 US$2.04 2880 $5,877 0.13 0.23 0.16 8.8 12.6 0.09 0.21 0.15 9.6 13.2 7.8 7.0% Aluminum Corp China Ltd (ADR) ACH 2.6 CNY$2.77 14904 $7,279 0.09 0.16 0.23 17.5 12.1 0.88 0.83 1.05 3.3 2.6 13.5 0.0% Century Aluminum CENX 2.6 US$12.97 88 $1,135 0.36 0.69 2.05 18.7 6.3 0.59 1.14 2.84 11.4 4.6 42.6 0.0% United Company Rusal Ltd (HK) 486 2.0 US$0.27 15193 $4,065 0.07 0.13 0.13 2.0 2.1 0.11 0.13 0.14 2.0 1.9 7.9 2.8% Average 11.3 8.6 6.8 5.3 16.2 Iron Ore Cliffs Natural Resources CLF 2.2 US$9.96 298 $2,965 0.43 1.63 1.33 6.1 7.5 1.15 1.66 2.05 6.0 4.9 12.3 0.0% Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (AU) FMG 2.3 US$3.32 3114 $10,329 0.51 0.36 0.36 9.2 9.2 0.96 0.63 0.72 5.3 4.6 3.4 7.3% Kumba Iron Ore Ltd (SA) KIO 4.2 ZAR$287.55 322 $6,849 30.26 19.70 20.00 14.6 14.4 52.91 35.88 35.97 8.0 8.0 4.8 8.2% Labrador Iron Ore Royalty (CN) LIF 2.6 C$24.03 64 $1,170 2.46 2.09 2.56 11.5 9.4 2.61 1.68 2.28 14.3 10.5 16.9 4.7% Mount Gibson Iron Limited (AU) MGX 2.5 AUD$0.42 1100 $343 0.02 0.02 0.04 17.0 11.5 0.02 0.02 0.00 23.3 NM -- 4.4% Average 11.7 10.4 11.4 7.0 9.4 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Consensus Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Base Metals & Diversified Large Cap Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Anglo American PLC (UK) AAL 2.4 US$21.01 1405 $29,512 2.53 2.51 2.31 8.4 9.1 6.48 4.84 4.78 4.3 4.4 6.5 4.9% Antofagasta PLC (UK) ANTO 2.8 US$12.37 986 $12,190 0.76 0.80 0.93 15.5 13.3 2.12 1.93 2.22 6.4 5.6 9.6 3.7% BHP Billiton Ltd BHP 2.5 US$24.42 5324 $123,185 1.49 1.67 1.59 14.6 15.4 3.22 3.39 3.44 7.2 7.1 8.8 4.2% China Molybdenum Co Ltd (HK) 3993 2.1 CNY$3.07 21599 $17,581 0.14 0.24 0.24 12.6 12.6 0.36 0.71 0.68 4.3 4.5 55.1 0.0% Freeport McMoran C&G FCX 2.7 US$15.75 1449 $22,817 1.17 1.91 1.17 8.2 13.4 3.22 3.64 2.41 4.3 6.5 7.3 0.3% Glencore International PLC (UK) GLEN 2.0 US$4.09 14343 $58,701 0.39 0.49 0.46 8.3 8.9 0.82 0.82 0.91 5.0 4.5 8.8 1.9% Grupo Mexico (MX) GMEXICOB 2.5 US$2.86 7785 $22,272 0.20 0.25 0.31 11.3 9.4 0.43 0.37 0.43 7.8 6.6 8.8 2.4% Hindustan Zinc (IN) HZ 2.6 INR$265.25 4225 $16,241 20.96 24.62 27.08 10.8 9.8 21.97 29.42 31.08 9.0 8.5 8.3 2.7% MMC Norilsk Nickel (RU) GMKN -- RU$5,429.84 158 $25,525 -- 899.94 1210.92 6.0 4.5 -- 689.72 1388.13 7.9 3.9 9.5 7.7% Rio Tinto PLC (UK) RIO 2.4 US$53.67 1724 $94,918 4.83 5.05 4.48 10.6 12.0 7.77 7.64 7.52 7.0 7.1 8.5 5.3% Sesa Sterlite Ltd (ADR) SSLT 1.7 INR$202.40 3717 $10,902 18.89 29.67 38.29 6.8 5.3 53.84 57.05 64.82 3.5 3.1 5.3 7.6% South32 Ltd (AU) S32 2.8 US$2.63 5120 $13,450 0.23 0.26 0.24 10.0 10.8 0.37 0.37 0.40 7.1 6.7 6.7 3.9% Southern Copper Corp SCCO 3.6 US$43.77 773 $33,835 0.94 2.44 2.77 17.9 15.8 2.63 3.04 3.38 14.4 13.0 17.5 1.5% Sumitomo Metal Mining (JP) 5713 2.2 JPY$3,822 291 $9,978 232.51 383.96 420.41 10.0 9.1 400.09 587.27 641.56 6.5 6.0 12.4 2.2% Teck Resources Ltd TCK 2.0 C$32.00 575 $13,986 4.45 4.68 3.93 6.8 8.1 8.84 8.23 7.35 3.9 4.4 7.0 0.6% Vale SA (ADR) VALE 2.2 US$48.71 5284 $68,344 4.39 5.55 6.05 8.8 8.0 7.79 9.22 9.46 5.3 5.2 9.6 3.6% Average 10.4 10.3 6.5 6.1 11.9 Mid Cap Assore Ltd (SA) ASR 3.6 ZAR$264.63 140 $2,732 47.40 41.47 34.81 6.4 7.6 26.37 37.33 26.28 7.1 10.1 10.2 5.0% Aurubis AG (GR) NDA 2.4 EUR$67.14 45 $3,514 5.35 5.72 5.73 11.7 11.7 9.82 7.49 8.26 9.0 8.1 9.1 2.1% Boliden AB (SW) BOL 2.8 SEK$259.30 274 $7,958 25.06 27.38 24.99 9.5 10.4 46.57 43.25 43.74 6.0 5.9 7.3 2.9% Eramet (FR) ERA 2.8 EUR$106.60 27 $3,305 7.03 11.86 10.93 9.0 9.8 17.81 20.96 24.12 5.1 4.4 9.0 2.3% Exxaro Resources Ltd (SA) EXX 1.9 ZAR$124.62 359 $3,306 4.50 21.53 19.57 5.8 6.4 9.80 14.43 17.74 8.6 7.0 7.6 4.7% First Quantum Minerals (CN) FM 2.1 US$13.62 689 $9,386 (0.16) 0.77 1.40 17.8 9.7 1.62 2.49 2.89 5.5 4.7 16.7 0.1% Iluka Resources Ltd (AU) ILU 2.4 AUD$11.29 422 $3,536 0.23 0.65 0.82 17.3 13.8 0.99 1.20 1.18 9.4 9.6 -- 3.0% Jiangxi Copper Co "H" (HK) 358 2.4 CNY$8.04 3463 $6,225 0.48 0.78 0.90 10.3 8.9 0.72 1.44 1.56 5.6 5.2 11.2 2.0% Kazakhmys PLC (UK) KAZ 2.3 US$10.40 447 $4,648 1.07 1.42 1.56 7.3 6.7 1.68 1.81 2.05 5.8 5.1 28.5 0.0% KGHM Polska Miedz (PO) KGH 2.9 PLN$91.00 200 $4,884 7.84 13.56 15.57 6.7 5.8 21.44 24.19 26.26 3.8 3.5 5.4 0.0% Lundin Mining Corp (CN) LUN 2.3 US$5.42 732 $3,967 0.56 0.40 0.46 13.7 11.8 1.14 0.90 0.99 6.0 5.5 5.5 0.0% MMG Ltd (HK) 1208 1.9 US$0.57 8051 $4,626 0.02 0.07 0.08 8.8 7.5 0.29 0.25 0.26 2.3 2.2 15.4 0.0% Outokumpu (FN) OUT1V 2.5 EUR$5.03 416 $2,437 0.83 0.46 0.64 11.0 7.9 0.75 0.83 1.21 6.1 4.1 10.4 4.5% Turquoise Hill Resources TRQ 3.0 US$2.84 2012 $5,694 0.09 0.10 0.04 27.9 63.5 0.06 0.14 0.16 20.1 18.3 19.3 0.0% Vale Indonesia Tbk PT (ID) INCO 2.0 US$0.29 9936 $2,932 (0.00) 0.01 0.01 43.2 22.7 0.02 0.02 0.03 17.4 11.8 20.4 0.0% Vedanta Resources PLC (UK) VED 2.6 US$10.15 282 $2,861 0.43 1.02 1.67 9.9 6.1 5.26 10.26 14.17 1.0 0.7 6.5 6.6% Average 13.5 13.1 7.4 6.6 12.2 Small Cap Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Capstone Mining Corp (CN) CS 1.9 US$0.70 399 $277 (0.02) 0.14 0.16 5.2 4.5 0.29 0.32 0.35 2.2 2.0 3.5 0.0% Hudbay Minerals HBM 2.0 US$5.27 261 $1,377 0.61 0.56 0.68 9.4 7.8 2.05 1.80 1.87 2.9 2.8 4.4 0.2% Independence Group NL (AU) IGO 2.9 AUD$4.68 590 $2,050 0.10 0.25 0.38 18.8 12.4 0.36 0.64 0.74 7.3 6.4 19.8 0.4% Ivanhoe Mines Ltd (CN) IVP 2.1 US$1.90 791 $1,505 (0.14) (0.04) (0.06) -- -- (0.05) (0.03) (0.05) -- -- -- 0.0% Mechel OAO (ADR) MTL 4.0 RU$95.50 555 $870 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 8.9 0.0% Mineral Resources Ltd (AU) MIN 2.7 AUD$16.46 188 $2,293 1.22 1.43 1.76 11.5 9.4 1.69 1.97 2.32 8.3 7.1 7.6 0.0% Mitsui Mining & Smelting (JP) 5706 2.0 JPY$4,170 57 $2,145 72.45 355.45 556.82 11.7 7.5 532.87 852.83 1079.08 4.9 3.9 7.9 1.4% Nevsun Resources Ltd NSU 1.9 US$3.57 302 $1,078 (0.12) 0.04 0.05 97.7 70.2 (0.07) 0.36 0.34 10.0 10.6 9.4 1.3% Nyrstar NV (BE) NYR 2.6 EUR$4.57 110 $584 (0.82) (0.20) 0.48 -- 9.6 0.78 0.75 1.62 6.1 2.8 9.2 0.0% Oz Minerals (AU) OZL 2.4 AUD$9.37 322 $2,242 0.77 0.67 0.54 14.1 17.4 1.15 1.29 1.44 7.3 6.5 6.1 2.2% Philex Mining Corp (PH) PX 3.0 Php$4.30 4940 $399 0.34 0.41 0.33 10.5 13.0 -- -- -- -- -- 7.4 1.3% Sandfire Resources NL (AU) SFR 3.3 AUD$8.78 159 $1,037 0.64 0.91 1.19 9.7 7.4 1.47 1.71 2.00 5.1 4.4 6.1 3.0% Sherritt International (CN) S 1.6 C$1.00 397 $302 (1.07) (0.01) 0.16 -- 6.2 (0.03) 0.03 0.17 40.0 5.7 21.5 0.0% Volcan Cia Ninera VOLABC1 2.0 US$0.26 4077 $2,433 (0.12) 0.04 0.05 6.6 5.8 -- -- -- -- -- 11.0 1.1% Western Areas NL (AU) WSA 2.9 AUD$3.33 273 $676 0.07 0.15 0.25 21.7 13.4 0.27 0.39 0.49 8.6 6.8 12.5 0.6% Average 19.7 14.2 9.3 5.4 9.7 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Consensus Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Gold Large Cap Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd AEM 2.2 US$46.03 234 $10,729 1.02 0.47 0.93 98.9 49.7 3.30 2.96 3.58 15.6 12.9 13.2 1.0% Barrick Gold Corp ABX 3.0 US$12.37 1167 $14,405 0.75 0.71 0.70 17.3 17.8 1.77 2.11 2.06 5.9 6.0 5.3 1.0% Franco-Nevada FNV 2.3 US$74.46 186 $13,844 1.08 1.22 1.34 61.0 55.7 2.67 2.73 3.03 27.3 24.5 28.1 1.3% Goldcorp Inc GG 2.1 US$13.36 869 $11,800 0.40 0.39 0.69 34.4 19.4 1.55 1.57 2.04 8.5 6.5 10.5 0.6% Newcrest Mining Ltd (AU) NCM 2.8 AUD$14.91 768 $11,446 0.48 0.67 0.98 22.3 15.3 1.66 1.66 1.98 9.0 7.5 9.6 0.6% Newmont Mining NEM 2.5 US$37.02 533 $19,750 1.46 1.41 1.63 26.2 22.7 4.39 3.89 4.35 9.5 8.5 9.2 0.9% Polyus Gold International (UK) PGIL 2.0 RU$4,077.00 134 $8,586 560.33 538.77 635.65 7.6 6.4 475.56 604.89 827.82 6.7 4.9 -- 5.6% Zijin Mining Group (HK) 2899 2.0 CNY$2.32 23031 $10,350 0.16 0.21 0.23 11.1 10.1 0.44 0.53 0.52 4.4 4.5 15.4 0.0% Average 34.9 24.6 10.9 9.4 13.0 Mid Cap AngloGold Ashanti Ltd AU 2.2 US$7.99 412 $3,289 0.02 0.78 0.94 10.3 8.5 2.40 2.65 3.07 3.0 2.6 3.5 0.5% B2Gold Corp BTG 1.7 US$2.56 986 $2,527 0.05 0.19 0.23 13.3 11.0 0.16 0.47 0.53 5.4 4.8 9.2 0.0% Buenaventura (ADR) BVN 2.7 US$12.82 276 $3,523 0.29 0.94 1.14 13.7 11.2 0.84 1.67 1.87 7.7 6.9 11.0 0.6% Centamin Egypt (CN) CEE 2.1 US$1.60 1155 $1,846 0.13 0.10 0.12 15.8 13.3 0.31 0.17 0.25 9.5 6.4 3.6 5.8% Endeavour Mining Corp (CN) EDV 1.6 US$17.68 108 $1,904 0.67 0.99 1.44 17.9 12.3 2.24 2.59 3.58 6.8 4.9 9.7 0.0% Evolution Mining Ltd (AU) EVN 2.9 AUD$2.99 1693 $3,756 0.14 0.17 0.19 17.8 15.4 0.41 0.42 0.44 7.1 6.8 8.0 2.1% Gold Fields Ltd (ADR) GFI 2.3 US$3.61 822 $2,897 0.24 0.18 0.28 20.6 12.9 1.01 1.06 1.29 3.4 2.8 3.5 1.8% Iamgold Corp IAG 2.0 US$5.89 467 $2,736 0.06 0.16 0.19 37.3 31.0 0.63 0.77 0.86 7.6 6.8 7.4 0.0% Kinross Gold Corp KGC 2.4 US$3.69 1250 $4,602 0.14 0.20 0.18 18.6 20.9 0.76 0.84 0.82 4.4 4.5 6.3 0.0% Kirkland Lake Gold (CN) KL 2.2 C$21.95 211 $4,636 0.72 1.11 1.43 19.9 15.3 1.42 1.92 2.35 11.4 9.4 25.0 0.3% Northern Star Resources (AU) NST 3.1 AUD$6.86 613 $3,120 0.35 0.42 0.49 16.4 14.1 0.57 0.62 0.72 11.0 9.5 8.9 1.7% Polymetal International PLC (UK) POLY 2.6 US$8.83 453 $3,998 0.88 0.97 1.27 9.1 7.0 1.22 1.44 1.64 6.1 5.4 7.1 3.5% Randgold Resources (ADR) GOLD 2.0 US$73.43 94 $6,908 2.92 3.01 3.47 24.4 21.1 5.75 6.58 7.77 11.2 9.5 11.6 2.4% Royal Gold Inc RGLD 2.1 US$91.91 65 $6,016 1.66 1.98 2.33 46.3 39.5 4.22 4.62 5.07 19.9 18.1 23.2 1.1% Yamana Gold Inc AUY 2.3 US$2.83 949 $2,678 0.08 0.12 0.16 24.3 18.0 0.51 0.63 0.66 4.5 4.3 6.8 0.7% Zhaojin Mining Industry Co Ltd (HK) 1818 2.5 CNY$5.18 3221 $2,466 0.20 0.21 0.24 24.4 21.7 0.79 1.06 0.72 4.9 7.2 14.9 1.2% Average 20.6 17.1 7.7 6.9 10.0 Small Cap Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Acacia Mining PLC (UK) ACAA 2.8 US$1.47 410 $602 0.36 0.27 0.28 5.4 5.2 (0.06) 0.69 0.70 2.1 2.1 1.4 0.0% Alacer Gold Corp (CN) ASR 2.6 US$2.00 294 $588 0.28 0.16 0.31 12.5 6.4 0.37 0.22 0.68 8.9 2.9 24.2 0.0% Alamos Gold AGI 1.9 US$5.48 389 $2,132 0.13 0.12 0.24 45.2 22.9 0.53 0.62 0.75 8.8 7.3 12.6 0.6% Argonaut Gold Ltd (CN) AR 2.0 US$1.78 178 $314 0.09 0.18 0.28 9.7 6.4 0.22 0.42 0.55 4.2 3.2 7.6 0.0% Centerra Gold (CN) CG 2.8 US$4.55 292 $1,328 0.93 0.47 0.58 9.7 7.8 1.71 1.21 1.40 3.8 3.3 4.5 0.0% Detour Gold Corp (CN) DGC 2.0 US$10.06 175 $1,760 0.66 0.54 0.41 18.6 24.7 1.65 1.67 1.51 6.0 6.7 7.2 0.0% Eldorado Gold Corp EGO 3.0 US$1.13 794 $888 0.02 0.02 0.02 69.2 67.3 0.09 0.14 0.19 8.2 6.0 6.9 0.0% Guyana Goldfields Inc (CN) GUY 2.0 US$3.15 173 $546 0.12 0.25 0.44 12.5 7.2 0.38 0.49 0.82 6.4 3.8 5.7 0.0% Harmony Gold Mining Ltd HAR 2.9 ZAR$21.10 511 $798 3.01 2.81 2.29 7.5 9.2 8.07 7.77 7.69 2.7 2.7 2.7 1.5% Hochschild Mining PLC (UK) HOC 2.4 US$2.45 509 $1,247 0.08 0.06 0.15 40.3 16.1 0.45 0.52 0.59 4.7 4.2 4.4 0.9% McEwen Ming Inc. MUX 2.0 US$2.45 337 $826 (0.03) (0.05) 0.05 -- 46.7 (0.05) (0.06) 0.11 -- 22.3 -- 0.2% New Gold Inc NGD 2.6 US$1.89 579 $1,096 0.09 0.05 0.13 36.9 14.4 0.61 0.61 0.74 3.1 2.6 6.3 0.0% Pretium Resources PVG 2.0 C$8.34 183 $1,523 0.10 0.55 0.87 15.1 9.6 0.40 1.16 1.63 7.2 5.1 -- 0.0% Oceanagold Corp (AU) OGC 1.9 US$2.90 617 $1,832 0.30 0.22 0.21 13.1 13.5 0.57 0.57 0.52 5.1 5.5 7.0 0.7% Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd OR 1.9 C$12.54 156 $1,490 0.18 0.13 0.37 96.5 33.9 0.38 0.53 0.72 23.4 17.5 49.8 1.5% Regis Resources Ltd (AU) RRL 3.5 AUD$4.99 504 $1,868 0.30 0.34 0.37 14.9 13.6 0.44 0.48 0.53 10.3 9.5 9.7 3.7% St Barbara Ltd (AU) SBM 3.5 AUD$4.79 521 $1,850 0.37 0.38 0.32 12.6 14.8 0.60 0.57 0.51 8.3 9.4 7.5 2.6% Semafo (CN) SMF 2.0 US$2.88 326 $939 0.00 0.09 0.36 31.1 8.1 0.23 0.39 0.80 7.5 3.6 6.5 0.0% Sibanye Gold Ltd (SA) SGL 2.4 ZAR$7.24 2266 $1,225 (0.12) 0.66 1.47 10.9 4.9 3.53 3.34 4.20 2.2 1.7 3.8 0.0% SSR Mining SSRM 2.3 US$10.38 120 $1,241 0.34 0.21 0.32 50.2 32.2 1.21 1.23 1.29 8.4 8.0 4.9 0.0% Torex Gold Resources (CN) TXG 1.7 US$8.30 85 $705 (0.18) 0.60 0.77 13.9 10.8 0.92 2.00 2.41 4.1 3.4 6.0 0.0% Average 26.3 17.9 6.8 6.2 9.4 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Silver Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Americas Silver Corp (CN) USA 1.7 US$2.65 43 $112 (0.09) 0.36 0.32 7.4 8.3 0.04 0.72 0.79 3.7 3.4 0.0 0.0% Coeur Mining Corp CDE 2.1 US$7.97 186 $1,483 0.02 0.03 0.34 NM 23.8 1.08 0.84 1.19 9.5 6.7 8.1 0.0% Endeavour Silver Corp EXK 2.8 US$2.97 127 $376 0.08 0.11 0.15 27.9 20.5 0.12 0.33 0.30 9.1 9.8 10.2 0.0% First Majestic Silver Corp AG 2.5 US$6.60 193 $1,265 (0.04) (0.04) 0.21 -- 31.8 0.43 0.51 0.85 13.0 7.8 10.5 0.0% Fortuna Silver Mines FSM 2.2 US$5.48 160 $875 0.28 0.30 0.45 18.4 12.3 0.44 0.54 0.83 10.1 6.6 8.5 0.0% Fresnillo (UK) FRES 2.5 US$14.75 737 $10,867 0.65 0.63 0.72 23.4 20.5 1.03 1.18 1.29 12.5 11.4 10.6 2.1% Hecla Mining Co HL 2.8 US$3.22 401 $1,290 0.10 0.07 0.17 44.7 19.1 0.29 0.38 0.55 8.5 5.8 6.6 0.3% Mag Silver Corp MAG 1.8 US$9.50 86 $812 (0.08) (0.05) (0.06) -- -- (0.05) (0.02) (0.05) -- -- 88.1 0.0% Pan American Silver PAAS 2.3 US$16.52 153 $2,522 0.51 0.73 0.79 22.8 20.9 1.47 1.56 1.84 10.6 9.0 8.5 0.6% Wheaton Precious Metals WPM 1.8 US$21.31 444 $9,430 0.63 0.58 0.71 36.5 30.0 1.22 1.13 1.32 18.8 16.1 16.5 1.7% Silvercorp SVM 2.0 US$2.65 167 $442 0.26 0.26 0.24 10.2 11.1 0.42 0.37 0.39 7.2 6.8 -- 0.4% Tahoe Resources TAHO 2.5 US$4.52 313 $1,414 0.27 0.11 0.54 40.5 8.4 0.75 0.55 1.22 8.3 3.7 3.7 1.7% Average 25.8 18.8 10.1 7.9 15.6 Platinum Group Metals African Rainbow Minerals (SA) ARI 1.8 ZAR$109.00 220 $1,771 17.47 18.37 16.84 5.9 6.5 16.60 17.12 19.45 6.4 5.6 25.2 1.9% Anglo Platinum Ltd (SA) AMS 2.6 ZAR$355.90 270 $7,097 14.76 17.45 22.08 20.4 16.1 49.84 34.02 38.73 10.5 9.2 10.6 1.0% Impala Platinum (SA) IMP 2.5 ZAR$18.49 735 $1,188 (0.87) 0.56 2.38 33.1 7.8 1.81 5.33 8.37 3.5 2.2 7.2 0.0% Lonmin PLC (UK) LMI 3.8 US$0.49 283 $137 (2.68) (0.14) (0.08) -- -- 0.09 0.03 0.19 16.0 2.6 -- 0.0% Northam Platinum Ltd (SA) NHM 2.5 ZAR$35.00 510 $1,319 (1.42) (0.78) (0.05) -- -- 2.57 3.39 4.41 10.3 7.9 31.1 0.0% Average 19.8 10.1 9.3 5.5 18.5 Diamonds & Gems Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % AK Alrosa PAO (RU) ALRS 2.6 RU$33.75 7365 $11,155 10.47 12.58 12.41 2.7 2.7 13.65 19.12 16.03 1.8 2.1 4.1 5.7% Lucara Diamond Corp (CN) LUC 1.5 US$1.62 397 $642 0.16 0.11 0.15 15.2 10.9 0.25 0.15 0.20 10.8 8.2 3.2 5.0% Mountain Province Diamonds (CN) MPVD 2.7 US$3.23 210 $511 0.11 0.08 0.25 40.4 12.8 0.26 0.93 0.83 3.5 3.9 -- 0.0% Petra Diamonds Ltd (UK) PDL 1.8 US$0.66 865 $568 0.05 0.09 0.13 7.4 5.1 0.21 0.18 0.19 3.6 3.5 7.8 0.0% Stornoway Diamond Corp (CN) SWY 2.8 C$0.43 836 $268 0.02 (0.05) 0.00 -- -- 0.08 0.02 0.09 21.3 4.9 -- 0.0% Average 16.4 7.9 8.2 4.5 5.1 Fertilizers Arab Potash Co (JR) APOT -- JOD$14.65 83 $1,722 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 10.3 5.9% CF Industries CF 2.7 US$43.04 233 $10,044 (0.25) 1.07 1.84 40.4 23.4 6.97 5.15 5.62 8.4 7.7 19.7 3.2% Compass Minerals CMP 2.4 US$67.70 34 $2,292 2.75 2.94 4.00 23.0 16.9 4.34 3.86 11.33 17.6 6.0 12.7 4.8% Incitec Pivot Ltd (AU) IPL 3.0 AUD$3.82 1661 $4,709 0.19 0.22 0.24 17.7 15.8 0.39 0.40 0.43 9.4 8.8 12.1 2.7% Israel Chemical (IS) ICL 2.3 US$4.70 1280 $6,023 0.30 0.35 0.37 13.5 12.6 0.66 0.54 0.63 8.7 7.5 8.0 3.9% K & S Aktiengesellschaft (GR) SDF 2.6 EUR$21.29 191 $4,744 0.96 1.36 1.84 15.6 11.6 1.60 3.10 3.57 6.9 6.0 12.8 1.5% Mosaic Co MOS 2.5 US$28.32 385 $10,915 1.09 1.50 1.89 18.8 14.9 2.67 3.47 3.97 8.2 7.1 14.0 1.4% Sociedad Quimica Minera (ADR) SQM 2.3 US$47.30 263 $12,358 1.63 1.89 2.24 25.0 21.1 2.67 2.50 2.91 18.9 16.2 16.5 3.8% Yara International ASA (NO) YAR 2.9 NOK$41.93 273 $11,380 1.81 1.65 3.25 25.3 12.9 2.87 4.94 5.92 8.5 7.1 9.0 1.9% Average 22.4 16.2 10.8 8.3 12.8 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Uranium Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Cameco Corp CCJ 2.7 C$14.64 396 $4,407 0.15 0.33 0.30 45.0 48.3 1.51 1.19 1.07 12.3 13.7 11.1 3.4% Denison Mines DNN 2.0 US$0.48 559 $266 (0.03) (0.03) (0.03) -- -- 0.02 (0.03) (0.02) -- -- -- 0.0% Energy Resources Australia (AU) ERA 4.0 AUD$0.42 518 $159 (0.04) (0.06) (0.03) -- -- 0.02 (0.01) 0.04 -- 10.4 -- 0.0% Uranium Participation Corp (CN) U 2.2 C$4.10 137 $424 (0.03) (0.03) 0.32 -- 12.7 (0.04) (0.04) -- -- -- -- 0.0% Average 45.0 30.5 12.3 12.0 11.1 Coal Large - Mid Cap Price Shrs O/S Mkt Cap Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Cash Flow Per Share Price/Cash Flow EV/EBITDA Div Yld Symbol Rating 20-Jul-18 (MM) (US$MM) 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2017 2018E 2019E 2018E 2019E 2018E % Adaro Energy TBK (ID) ADRO 1.8 US$0.13 31986 $4,034 0.01 0.02 0.02 7.9 8.3 0.03 0.03 0.03 4.4 4.5 5.8 5.1% China Coal Energy Co (HK) 1898 2.3 CNY$2.69 13259 $7,936 0.26 0.33 0.32 8.2 8.4 1.34 1.09 1.20 2.5 2.2 12.3 1.9% China Shenhua Energy Co (HK) 1088 2.0 CNY$14.41 19890 $49,479 2.40 2.30 2.21 6.3 6.5 4.78 3.86 4.04 3.7 3.6 5.8 5.8% Consol Energy CNX 2.1 US$17.20 218 $3,748 (0.04) 0.70 0.53 24.4 32.2 1.88 3.48 3.74 4.9 4.6 9.7 0.0% Whitehaven Coal Lyd (AU) WHC 2.4 AUD$5.37 1026 $4,089 0.45 0.56 0.49 9.6 11.0 0.72 0.84 0.72 6.4 7.4 0.0 0.0% Yancoal Australia Lyd YAL -- AUD$0.14 43962 $4,567 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0 0.0% Yanzhou Coal Mining Co Ltd (HK) 1171 2.4 CNY$7.92 4912 $7,286 1.50 1.67 1.60 4.7 4.9 2.48 2.80 3.22 2.8 2.5 20.3 6.5% Average 10.2 11.9 4.1 4.1 7.7 Small Cap Banpu Public Co Ltd (TH) BANPU 1.7 THB$0.63 5162 $3,224 0.07 0.08 0.07 8.0 8.7 0.13 0.08 0.10 7.5 6.5 19.3 3.0% Cloud Peak Energy CLD 3.1 US$3.18 76 $241 (0.50) (0.29) (0.38) -- -- 0.71 0.87 0.63 3.7 5.0 5.5 0.0% Fushan Int'l Energy Group (HK) 639 2.4 HK$1.82 5302 $1,229 0.20 0.21 0.22 8.9 8.4 0.29 0.19 0.29 9.4 6.3 7.9 6.3% NLC India Ltd (IN) NLCINDIA -- INR$70.30 1529 $1,557 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 6.3 5.4% New Hope Corp Ltd (AU) NHC 2.3 AUD$3.15 831 $1,943 0.22 0.30 0.24 10.6 13.2 0.38 0.42 0.35 7.5 8.9 15.0 4.8% PT Tambang Batubara Bukit (ID) PTBA 2.2 IDR$4,260 11521 $3,392 425.00 427.60 409.81 10.0 10.4 229.16 444.31 436.26 9.6 9.8 14.6 10.8% PT Bumi Resources (ID) BUMI -- US$0.02 65379 $1,012 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0% Average 9.4 10.2 7.5 7.3 11.4 Limited Partnership Alliance Resource Partners LP ARLP 2.0 US$19.10 131 $2,500 2.80 3.13 2.07 6.1 9.2 5.63 3.18 2.84 6.0 6.7 4.4 11.1% Natural Resource Partners LP NRP 3.0 US$31.95 12 $391 3.43 4.81 4.71 6.6 6.8 1.32 1.45 16.07 22.0 2.0 5.2 6.3% Average 6.4 8.0 14.0 4.4 4.8 Note: Currency shown is that used by the company for financial reporting. Currency does not always reflect the country/market in which the company/stock symbol trades. GAAP may differ between stocks due to countries and markets. The tables are compiled from the Thomson Reuters database of consensus Ratings & Estimates of equity analysts. The historicals and estimates of earnings and cash flows exclude non-operating, special items. Thomson Reuters Rating System: Buy (1.0), Buy/Hold (2.0), Hold (3.0), Sell/Hold (4.0), Sell (5.0) Source: Thomson Reuters. Recent and Forecast Commodity Prices Cash Price (20-Jul-18) Aluminum ($0.94 / lb) Cobalt ($31.75 / lb) Copper ($2.75 / lb) Lead ($0.95 / lb) Molybdenum ($11.79 / lb) Nickel ($6.09 / lb) Tin ($8.83 / lb) Zinc ($1.20 / lb) Palladium ($825 / oz) Platinum ($889 / oz) Silver ($15.51 / oz) (Kitco News) - An abandoned silver mining town just north of Los Angeles is back on the map after a group of investors purchased a piece of history in the form of 22 buildings for $1.4 million. The historic town Cerro Gordo or fat hill in Spanish was first formed more than 150 years ago after silver was discovered there. It is located in California between the Death Valley National Park and the Sequoia National Park. The unique property, which was famously known for its quality silver, had more than one offer after going up for sale on June 2 for $925,000. Less than three weeks later, the 300-acre property was sold to a group of investors led by Jon Bier, owner of boutique public relations agency Jack Taylor PR and Brent Underwood, owner of HK Austin hostel, CNBC reported. Some other offers were even higher than the accepted $1.4 million, but the previous owners, who are choosing to remain anonymous, picked Taylor and Underwood because of their promise to respect the heritage of the mining town. The sellers appreciated the historical preservation the buyers presented, Jake Rasmuson from of Bishop Real Estate Rasmuson & Associates told CNBC on Friday. The town has been renovated and currently offers public tours, which will continue as the new owners take over. There [are] ... multiple pianos antiques everywhere gramophones and ice boxes. And tables that were set. I mean chandeliers, said Bier. While still finalizing plans on what to do with the property, the initial thinking is to turn the town into a corporate retreat center that could be rented out for various events or film shoots. Silver was first discovered in the area in 1865 by Pablo Flores. By 1867, tales of the silver at Cerro Gordo had spread, bringing in flocks of new prospectors, according to the mining towns website. Businessman, Victor Beaudry of nearby Independence, California, was so impressed by the quality of silver being taken out of Cerro Gordo, he opened a store near the mine and soon acquired several mining claims to settle unpaid debts. As the mining town grew, lead and ore were also discovered and mined there. (Kitco News) - Gold prices continued to trade under pressure, remaining near daily lows following the news that U.S. consumers bought less pre-existing homes in June, according to the latest report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Existing home sales decreased 0.6% last month to a seasonally adjusted and annualized rate of 5.38 million units, compared to Mays annualized rate of 5.41 million homes, the association said on Monday. Economists were expecting to see an advance of 0.4% to 5.46 million units. Gold prices were largely unchanged after the data was released, with August Comex gold futures last seen trading at $1,225.30, down 0.47% on the day. Gold began the North American session on Monday slightly lower and hovered not far above last weeks 12-month lows. [Golds] technical postures remain fully bearish on a near-term basis, said Kitcos senior technical analyst Jim Wyckoff. Existing home sales fell for the third month in a row, with most of the weakness coming from the South and West, NAR said in the report. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said that the severe housing shortage is to blame for the decline in sales. There continues to be a mismatch since the spring between the growing level of homebuyer demand in most of the country in relation to the actual pace of home sales, which are declining, Yun said. What is for sale in most areas is going under contract very fast and in many cases, has multiple offers. This dynamic is keeping home price growth elevated, pricing out would-be buyers and ultimately slowing sales. The median price for all home types in June hit a new all-time high, rising 5.2% on an annual basis to $276,900, marking the 76th straight month of annual gains. At the same time, the association said that total inventory as of the end of June rose 4.3% to 1.95 million existing homes available for sale. But, Yun noted that a much bigger uptick in inventory is needed to meet the growing demand. Despite the modest year-over-year rise in inventory, the current level is far from whats needed to satisfy demand levels, added Yun. Furthermore, it remains to be seen if this modest increase will stick, given the fact that the robust economy is bringing more interested buyers into the market, and new home construction is failing to keep up. Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE: HL) has completed the previously announced acquisition of Klondex Mines Ltd. (NYSE American: KLDX; TSX: KDX), the companies report. With this acquisition, Hecla now has three high-grade mines in Nevada, one of the best mining districts in the world, says Phillips S. Baker, Jr., president and chief executive officer. These assets immediately add production and cash flow, and because they are a good fit with Heclas expertise, we believe there is significant opportunity for improvement in the mines productivity and consistency. Hecla acquired the outstanding shares of Klondex for some $153 million and 75 million shares of Hecla common stock. Klondex shareholders were able to receive either Hecla stock or a combination of cash and stock. Klondex shareholders will also receive 0.125 of a share of Havilah Mining Corp., a newly formed entity that will retain Klondexs Canadian operations. Havilah has been approved to list its common shares on the TSX Venture Exchange, with trading expected to begin Wednesday. Also, Hecla subscribed for a little more than 3.5 million shares of Havilah at a price of C$2.61 per share. Hecla thus owns 13.46% of Havilah shares. Hecla adds that the shares were acquired for investment purposes only. By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com Harmony Gold Mining Exceeds Fiscal 2018 Guidance Harmony Gold Mining Co. Ltd. (NYSE: HMY; JSE: HAR) reports gold production of 1.228 million ounces in fiscal year 2018, exceeding guidance of 1.18 million ounces. This is the third straight year Harmony has achieved its guidance. South African operations recorded a 14% increase in production, with Moab Khotsong turning out 105,900 ounces and contributing 10% of the increase in South African output during the four months the operation has been included in Harmonys asset portfolio, the company says. The $200 million bridge facility raised for the Moab Khotsong transaction has been fully repaid using cash resources and the proceeds received from the share placement, Harmony says. (Kitco News) - Gold and silver prices are slightly lower in early U.S. trading Tuesday. Both metals are not far above last weeks 12-month lows, and their technical postures remain fully bearish on a near-term basis. August gold futures were last down $1.60 an ounce at $1,229.60. September Comex silver was down $0.049 at $15.50 an ounce. World stock markets were mixed to mostly lower overnight. U.S. stock indexes are pointed toward slightly lower openings when the New York day session begins. The world stock markets showed a mildly bearish reaction to President Trumps tweet late Sunday warning Iran not to threaten the U.S. or that country would suffer grave consequences. A Group of 20 finance ministers meeting held in Argentina during the weekend resulted in little markets-moving results. U.S. Treasury Secretary Mnuchin said the U.S. could indeed follow through with $500 billion in new trade sanctions against China. The key outside markets today find Nymex crude oil prices higher and trading just around $69.00 a barrel. Meantime, the U.S. dollar index is near steady early today. U.S. economic data due for release Monday includes the Chicago Fed national activity index and existing home sales. Technically, gold bears have the solid overall near-term technical advantage amid a price downtrend on the daily bar chart. Gold bulls' next upside near-term price breakout objective is to produce a close in August futures above solid resistance at $1,250.00. Bears' next near-term downside price breakout objective is pushing prices below solid technical support at $1,200.00. First resistance is seen at the overnight high of $1,235.20 and then at $1,240.00. First support is seen at $1,225.00 and then at $1,220.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 1.5 September silver futures bears have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. Silver bulls' next upside price breakout objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at $16.00 an ounce. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $15.00. First resistance is seen at $15.625 and then at $15.75. Next support is seen at last weeks low of $15.185 and then at $15.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 1.5. The event was attended by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, and former Politburo members, including former President Truong Tan Sang, former National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung, former permanent member of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee (CPVCC) Secretariat Le Hong Anh, along with Politburo members: National Assembly Standing vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong, Secretary of the Party Central Committee (PCC) and Head of the PCC's Organisation Commission Pham Minh Chinh, Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan. Also attending were members of the Party Central Committee (PCC) Secretariat: President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Tran Thanh Man, Head of the PCCs Commission for Internal Affairs Phan Dinh Trac, Chief Justice of the Supreme Peoples Court Nguyen Hoa Binh, and Chairman of the PCCs Inspection Commission Tran Cam Tu; along with Vice Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Uong Chu Luu and representatives from Laos and delegates of central ministries and departments, and provinces and cities nationwide and heroic Vietnamese Mothers, Heroes of the People's Armed Forces, veterans, war invalids, soldiers, former youth volunteers and the relatives of martyrs. The Prime Minister presented gifts to relatives of the ten young unmarried female volunteers at the Dong Loc T-junction during the war, and families of martyrs and national contributors in the province. Addressing the event, PM Phuc said that Dong Loc victory was the victory of patriotism, showing the traditional indomitable spirit of the Vietnamese people. The examples of selflessness for the motherland and the heroes and martyrs' great sacrifices are a source of eternal pride, providing great encouragement for generations of Vietnamese people in the struggle for national independence, sovereignty, unity, territory integrity. On behalf of the Party and State leaders, the PM called on ministries, agencies and localities, agencies, organisations, enterprises and people all over the country to jointly take better care of the families of war invalids, sick soldiers, martyrs, veterans, former volunteers and people who contributed meritorious services to the revolution. The Prime Minister presented gifts to relatives of the ten young unmarried female volunteers at the Dong Loc T-junction during the war, and families of martyrs and national contributors in the province. Politburo member and National Assembly Standing vice Chairwoman, Tong Thi Phong, handed over the Resolution of the National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee on recognising Dong Loc as Dong Loc town. On the occasion, Politburo member and National Assembly Standing vice Chairwoman, Tong Thi Phong, handed over the Resolution of the National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee on recognising Dong Loc as Dong Loc town. The ceremony was followed by an art programme featuring a number of songs and dances praising the country and honouring the bravery of soldiers and young volunteers who laid down their lives in the struggle for national liberation and reunification. Visual effect artist Shin Min-jung. Courtesy of the Walt Disney Company Korea By Dong Sun-hwa While many Korean actors are enthusiastically searching for their path in Hollywood, other Koreans are taking active roles making movies. Shin Min-jung, who belongs to American film company Lucasfilm, was involved in producing the blockbuster "Avengers: Infinity War, 2018," for which more than 10 million tickets were sold in Korea alone. Shin, a visual effects artist, contributed to the filmmaking as a digital compositor as well. She was involved in Korean movies including "The Thieves" (2012) and "The Age of Shadows" (2016) too. Cinematographer Chung Chung-hoon is also well known in Hollywood. Cinematographer Chung Chung-hoon at left. Courtesy of Warner Bros. Korea By Dong Sun-hwa The Korean drama "Mr. Sunshine" is in hot water for allegedly being pro-Japanese. The drama is set in the turn-of-the-century Joseon Kingdom that became so weak that Japan and other colonial powers were trying to take it over. Japan eventually absorbed it. Viewers expressed dissatisfaction over Joseon's culture being portrayed as uncivilized and for the show's excessive justification of those who turned against Joseon. The program is also taking flack for being lenient about Japanese pillage. In particular, "Black Dragon Society," to which Goo Dong-mae (Yoo Yeon-seok) belongs, was a right-wing Japanese organization. "We will come up with a new and non-existent organization," said the crew of the drama. "We apologize for causing inconvenience and confusion but we truly did not mean to praise Japan." "We are learning the need to be more careful, because our drama deals with a sensitive era." The drama was written by Kim Eun-sook, whose credits include such hits as "Descendants of the Sun" and "Guardian: The Lonely and Great God." In the latest series, Lee Byung-hun plays Eugene Choi, a Korean-born U.S. Marine who falls in love with Ko Ae-shin, an assassin who fights for the Joseon. Kim Tae-ri, 28, has the female role. >>> Speaker of Australian House of Representatives to visit Vietnam The visit is being made at the invitation of Vietnamese National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan. Accompanying the Australian Speaker are Chief-of-Staff to the Speaker, Senior Adviser at the Office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Cate Clunies-Ross, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam, Craig Chittick, and other members of the embassy. The Honourable Tony Smith was born on March 13, 1967, in Melbourne, Australia. He was educated as Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne. He is currently the 30th Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives and a member of the Liberal Party. The Honourable Tony Smith was elected as a Member for the electorate of Casey, Victoria, from 2001 to 2016. He has held various key posts, such as Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, John Howard (2007-2008); Shadow Assistant Treasurer in the shadow cabinet of Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull (2008-2009); Shadow Minister for Communications in the shadow cabinet of Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull (2009-2010); Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Tax Reform; and Deputy Chairman at the Coalition Policy Development Committee in the shadow government of Tony Abott (2010-2015). He has assumed office as Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives since August 10, 2015. He is married and has two children. By Park Si-soo Rep. Roh Hoe-chan of the minor opposition Justice Party, whose tenacious pursuit of transparency and justice earned him the nickname "Mr. Clean," committed suicide at an apartment complex in Seoul on Monday amid a bribery scandal. His body was found at 9:39 a.m. in front of building 13 at the Namsan Town Apartment complex, police said, citing a security guard who first spotted the body. A note was found on him, police added. Roh has been under investigation into suspicions he accepted 50 million won ($44,333) from an aide to an influential blogger, known by the nickname Druking, at the center of an opinion-rigging scandal. "I feel sorry for my family," the note reads. "I did receive money linked with Druking, but it was not in exchange for any inappropriate favors." The incident took place one day after he returned from the U.S. President Moon Jae-in plans to announce a new agriculture minister this week in the start of a Cabinet reshuffle that is expected to bring more appointments next month, possibly including inviting opposition politicians to join the Cabinet, officials said Monday. Moon has been widely expected to shake up the Cabinet in his second year in office, but nominations have been delayed as the National Assembly had been idling and unable to hold confirmation hearings. The legislature resumed work only a little over a week ago after more than 40 days of inactivity. Officials at Cheong Wa Dae said that Moon is expected to begin a Cabinet reorganization with the appointment of a successor to former agriculture minister Kim Yung-rok who left the post to run in last month's local elections and was elected governor of South Jeolla Province. "It's highly likely that President Moon will be announcing the nomination of an agriculture minister this week," an official said on customary condition of anonymity. Sources said other appointments will likely come next month. Posts that could possibly be affected in the shakeup include the environment minister, the gender equality minister, and the industry minister. Presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said that Moon is considering inviting opposition politicians to join the Cabinet, after the ruling Democratic Party suggested the idea as part of its "cooperative politics" initiative. Kim said Moon has been waiting to see how discussions between the ruling and opposition parties are going about forming a bipartisan Cabinet. But the president plans to announce his agriculture minister pick this week as the post has been vacant for more than four months, he said. (Yonhap) By Paola Subacchi LONDON Officials at the People's Bank of China (PBOC) have long insisted that "China won't weaponize the renminbi." And yet, implicit in their promise not to manipulate the currency for strategic ends is their ability to do so if they so desired. China's monetary policy has come to the fore now that U.S. President Donald Trump has imposed import tariffs on a range of Chinese goods. Many are wondering if China will respond to Trump's trade war by threatening a currency war. If it does, the world should call its bluff. To be sure, with more than $3 trillion in foreign reserves and an established albeit not entirely successful system to manage its exchange rate, China has enough financial and monetary leverage to bring the U.S. economy to its knees. But having the weapons it needs does not mean that China can afford to use them. In June, the renminbi had its worst month on record, dropping 3.7 percent against the dollar. Analysts are divided about the cause. Some view it as the result of a slowdown in economic growth, coupled with market concerns about the introduction of U.S. tariffs and dollar appreciation on the back of rising U.S. interest rates. Others suspect that Chinese monetary authorities intervened to weaken the renminbi, in order to offset the impact of U.S. policies. The Chinese government has a long history of intervening to ensure that the renminbi's exchange rate aligns with its economic goals. But, since 2016, when the renminbi was included in the basket of currencies that determines the value of the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights (SDR), the exchange rate has been determined mainly by market forces. Still, despite PBOC Governor Yi Gang's insistence that China's exchange rate reflects demand and supply (with a basket of currencies as a reference), monetary authorities have the power to intervene when necessary. And though such interventions have been less frequent than in the past, they have continued to muddle market signals. In the context of today's trade war, however, an "engineered" competitive devaluation of the renminbi, even if technically possible, would not be in China's best interest. Unlike in the past and despite the Trump administration's view of China as an unreformed currency manipulator a weak renminbi has more costs than benefits for China. For starters, by increasing import prices and bolstering export sectors, a weaker renminbi would undermine the Chinese government's goal of shifting away from export-led growth and toward a model based on higher domestic consumption. Moreover, a weaker renminbi could invite renewed U.S. complaints about currency manipulation. Finally, and more crucially, a weak renminbi at the same time that dollar-denominated assets become more attractive could cause China to suffer capital flight. In this scenario, Chinese monetary authorities might be forced to reverse course and prop up the renminbi. By then, such an intervention would have to be large, implying a significant decrease in the country's official reserves, as happened in 2015 and 2016. Complicating matters further, China's monetary authorities are already struggling to maintain financial stability under conditions of slowing economic growth, a total debt-to-GDP ratio of around 250 percent, and monetary-policy normalization on the part of the U.S. Federal Reserve. China thus finds itself between a rock and a hard place. To discourage new lending and reduce the risk of capital outflows, the PBOC should tighten monetary policy. But counteracting the negative impact on growth resulting from rising U.S. interest rates and tariffs calls for more monetary accommodation. So far, China's answer to this conundrum has been to relax capital requirements in order to create more liquidity into the banking system. But if Chinese savers expect the renminbi to depreciate further, this measure could be offset by capital outflows even with the capital controls the government currently has in place. Looking ahead, Yi may have to resort to more than verbal assurances to support the exchange rate. That could mean that China and the Fed will end up selling or at least not rolling over U.S. Treasury bonds at the same time. In the event, U.S. interest rates could go through the roof, implying serious risks for global financial stability. So, while a weak renminbi is worse for China than it is for the U.S., a PBOC intervention to strengthen the currency could undermine the Fed's policy normalization, and financial stability generally. China's lack of a fully liquid and convertible currency means that there will always be a fundamental divergence of exchange-rate regimes across the international monetary system. And this divergence will continue to produce distortions that intensify the global effects of new U.S. monetary-policy trajectories. The solution to this problem is straightforward: eliminate the distortions. China should float the renminbi so that its exchange rate becomes truly market-determined, even as it continues to manage capital flows. A "managed" approach of this kind would help China strengthen its financial system and develop the renminbi as a major international currency. Unfortunately, China seems as beholden to its current exchange-rate regime as the Trump administration is to its trade policy. The U.S. and China's irreconcilable approaches are not good for anyone. We all should be concerned about what may come next. Paola Subacchi is a senior fellow at Chatham House and the author of "The People's Money: How China Is Building a Global Currency." Copyright belongs to Project Syndicate ( ). By Bikzad Abdullah South Korea is one of the countries that has enjoyed tremendous technological economic and progress over the past few decades, and it is one of the countries that uses its soft power resources intelligently. South Korea's soft power has been mostly concentrated and impactful in East Asia. However, there has been some influence on other regions such as the Middle East mostly in the last few years - as well. One of the Middle Eastern countries where South Korea's soft power can be seen is Iran. In recent years, the Iranians have gained especial interest in Korean culture and products which has been directly affecting trade and commerce relations of the two nations. One of the main reasons for this is the Korean wave known as "hallyu." There are a few major reasons behind the increasing impact of Korean soft power in Iran and its role in the bilateral relationship. Soft power, named by Joseph Nye of Harvard University in 1990, is a means of persuasion by attracting and co-opting rather than coercing or utilizing financial incentives. Soft power is the ability to shape others' preferences through appeal and attraction. A defining feature of soft power is that it is non-coercive; the weapons of soft power are culture, political values and economy. Hallyu refers to the dramatic increase in South Korea's culture and entertainment in the 1990s in Asia and most recently elsewhere in the world. The popularity of Korean pop culture in Iran and other parts of the world has different reasons (like attractiveness of stars, cultural appeal, a squeakily clean image compared to Western movies, clothing, music) and depends on the age, interests and values of the audience. The beauty of the individuals in Korean dramas has been rated as one of the most significant factors in the increasing popularity of Korean dramas. If not all, the majority of artists working in different Korean dramas and television programs are considered attractive, particularly women. Therefore, among other abovementioned characteristics, Korean dramas and beauty remain at the top of what makes Korean culture attractive to Iranians because Persian people love beauty, as is evident from Persia's rich poetry and its modern television and film industry. In 2000, the cost of buying a Korean television show or a Korean drama was a quarter of a similar Japanese one. Korean dramas have not only increased their viewership in Iran and Middle Eastern countries but also have impacted societies. A recent study done by Mozafari had identified the major factors of the popularity of Korean dramas and movies in Iran. Mozafari's study analyzed the direct and indirect impacts of K-dramas on Iranian markets. He found that the Korean drama industry is increasing its share in the Iranian market due to their ethical content and moral lessons. Also, Iranians prefer the sartorial and makeup styles of the artists. Mozafari also outlined that Korean dramas are emotionally powerful and this is what most Iranian people like. The other reason is that the Korean dramas depict the urban middle class representing modernization, which is interesting to Iranians who are in the same situation. Soft power has various dimensions and, as stated, a country may be weak in one area and powerful elsewhere, but it is important to note that generally advanced and industrialized countries have been more successful in the field of soft power. The same is true in the case of South Korea, despite the fact it has a high level of economic and technological power; its soft power is weaker compared to Western countries, and broadcasting and cultural authorities are developing strategic moves like K-pop to increase the popularity of Korean culture. As a result, the world has begun to pour its enormous economic power into the cultural sphere. Bikzad Abdullah is from Afghanistan and attends Korea University and can be reached at ikzad.abdullah93@gmail.com. Models promote Brioche Pasquier's macarons directly sourced from France at a Home plus Special's Mokdong store in Seoul, Monday. The discount chain came up with the product containing 36 macarons per box, as ones containing 12 pieces had become popular with customers. / Courtesy of Home plus During their meeting in Hanoi on July 23, the Party leader welcomed Smiths official visit to Vietnam at a time when the two countries have agreed to lift their relationship to the status of strategic partnership. General Secretary Trong noted with pleasure the fruitful development of their bilateral ties across many fields, ranging from politics to economy, national defence and security to education and training. He thanked the Australian Government for their backing in Vietnams bid to run for a non-permanent seat at the UN Security Council for 2020-2021, as well as Australias coordination and support for Vietnams role in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the region. Vietnam highly values Australias consistent stance on the East Sea issue, he said, urging the two sides to continue their close cooperation at multilateral forums, for peace, stability, cooperation, and development in Southeast Asia and the East Sea. For his part, Smith expressed his positive impressions of the thriving relations between Vietnam and Australia over recent years, especially the two countries efforts to elevate their relationship to the strategic partnership. The guest said he is impressed by Vietnams achievements, noting his belief that the legislative cooperation and people-to-people exchange between Vietnam and Australia are solid evidence of the development of their bilateral ties. Smith also voiced his hope that his trip, as well as other recent high-level visits to Vietnam by Australian leaders, would help promote the strategic partnership in the time ahead. He affirmed that Australias consistent stance on the East Sea issue is clear and matches the stance and viewpoint of Vietnam. Welcoming her guests official visit, Chairwoman Ngan said the trip is significant amid the 45th anniversary of the countries diplomatic ties and the increasing trust in their political relations. In particular, the elevation of bilateral relations to a strategic partnership last March has created a new important framework for enhancing all-round cooperation in a more substantial manner. She noted Vietnam has always treasured its ties with Australia, which plays a growing role in the region and the world, and is one of its key partners. She expressed her delight that Australia is currently one of the leading trade and investment partners of her country. Bilateral trade has risen by over 7 percent each year, approximating US$6.5 billion in 2017 and US$3.62 billion in the first half of 2018. Australia has 416 investment projects worth a total of US$1.8 billion in Vietnam at present, ranking 20th among the 126 countries and territories investing in the Southeast Asian nation. Valuing Australias facilitation for Vietnamese agricultural products, Chairwoman Ngan said Vietnam will support Australian firms in increasing their investments, especially in high-demand fields such as energy, infrastructure, telecommunications, finance and banking, mining, manufacturing, high-tech agriculture, education, and tourism. At the talks, the two leaders noted with satisfaction that Australias official development assistance for Vietnam has resulted in some encouraging outcomes. Notably, Cao Lanh Bridge, inaugurated on May 27 during a visit by Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, is a symbol of the countries strategic partnership. It is also a demonstration of Australias effective support for socio-economic development in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. The host asked Australia to continue assisting Vietnam in infrastructure, agriculture and rural development, poverty reduction, climate change combat, and human resource development. Regarding defence and security, the two sides said bilateral cooperation in this area is becoming more and more substantive, trustworthy, and stable, especially in terms of coordination in participating in the United Nations peacekeeping mission, fighting terrorism and trans-national crimes, and training English. Chairwoman Ngan called on Australia to further help Vietnam address the consequences of unexploded ordnances (UXO) and provide information about missing Vietnamese soldiers, as agreed in a memorandum of understanding inked in 2015. She applauded Australias White Paper Foreign Policy, released in November 2017, that prioritises relations with Southeast Asia, including Vietnam. She also highly valued the countrys increasing role in and responsibility towards the region, particularly in disaster relief. The NA leader affirmed that Vietnam will coordinate closely to help strengthen Australias relations with ASEAN and other regional countries. She also lauded the two countries cooperation at regional and international forums, including the United Nations, the Asia-Pacific Economic Partnership (APEC), ASEAN, the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and other ASEAN-led mechanisms. To reinforce legislative ties, the Chairwoman asked the two parliaments to boost mutual visits to share legislative experience; supervise and support their respective Governments to realise the commitments in the Plan of Action for 2016-2019 and other agreements; create more favourable conditions for people-to-people exchange; and promote the role of parliamentary friendship groups and friendship associations in each country. There are now nearly 30,000 Vietnamese students in Australia while about 1,000 Australian students have come to Vietnam under the New Colombo Plan, Ngan said, asking Australia to continue helping her country develop high-quality human resources. She affirmed that Vietnam will keep close cooperation with Australia to carry out the New Colombo Plan. She highlighted the growth in tourism cooperation when nearly 400,000 Australians visited Vietnam in 2017. The national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has operated 18 direct flights a week to major cities in Australia. Meanwhile, the budget carrier Vietjet Air is also planning to open a direct route linking Brisbane to Ho Chi Minh City in 2019. She also asked Australia to continue favourable conditions for Vietnamese citizens to join the Work and Holiday programme, and the nearly 300,000 Vietnamese expatriates to integrate into local society and contribute to bilateral relations. For his part, Speaker Tony Smith said the recent visits between the two parliaments and Governments have shown the strong connections between Australia and Vietnam. He shared the view that the countries should enhance coordination in ratifying and implementing the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). He also placed Vietnams efforts to ratify the deal in 2018 under high value. Discussing the cooperation areas mentioned by Chairwoman Ngan, he said they are important to people-to-people connections. He voiced his belief that the Australian and Vietnamese students, entrepreneurs, and labourers in each others countries are ambassadors helping to enhance bilateral relations in the future. Tony Smith said his country has a successful agricultural community and it wants to learn about the agricultural experience of Vietnam. He noted that the New Colombo Plan, which sends Australian students to Vietnam, has been deemed a success and has received major domestic support. At the talks, the two leaders said maintaining peace, stability, security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight over the East Sea is critical to all countries in the region. They also underlined the importance of resolving disputes by peaceful means on the basis of international law. On this occasion, Chairwoman Ngan asked Speaker Tony Smith to convey her invitation to visit Vietnam to the President of the Australian Senate. Later on July 23, the top legislator of Vietnam hosted a banquet in honour of Speaker Tony Smith and the delegation of the Australian House of Representatives. During a phone conversation, Lavrov and Pompeo exchanged views on the prospects for further normalizing relations between the two countries "on an equal and mutually beneficial basis", a ministry statement said. The diplomats also discussed a number of pressing international issues, including, in particular, possible interaction of Russia and the US with other countries to address humanitarian problems in Syria as well as to promote the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, according to the statement. On July 16, Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump held a full-fledged summit in Finland's capital Helsinki, at which the two leaders discussed a wide range of topics including Russia-US relations, national security and top international issues. Pompeo on July 20 confirmed Trump's continuing of talks with Putin and said that the two leaders began discussing the return of millions of Syrian refugees. Freely accessible local news is vital. Please power our reporters and help keep us independent with a donation today. Start your day with LAist Sign up for the Morning Brief, delivered weekdays. Subscribe Facing criminal charges and dogged by a separate financial scandal, Refugio "Ref" Rodriguez has resigned from his seat on the Los Angeles Unified School Board. Rodriguez gave up his seat the same morning he appeared in court to announce a plea deal with prosecutors, who had brought three felony counts against him for political money laundering during his 2015 election campaign. Under the deal, announced Monday, Rodriguez will plead guilty to one felony count of conspiracy and four misdemeanor charges. He will also complete 60 days of community service and serve three years of probation. District attorney spokesman Ricardo Santiago confirmed that Rodriguez resigned this morning, separately from the plea deal. Rodriguez also struck a parallel agreement with L.A. City Ethics Commission in which he and his co-defendant -- cousin Elizabeth Melendrez -- would admit to the political money laundering scheme in exchange for paying a reduced fine of $100,000. The commission voted Monday morning to accept the deal. The decision to quit caps a stunning fall from grace for Rodriguez, once a well-liked and well-connected co-founder of a charter school network, who only one year ago seemed perfectly-positioned to become the face of education reform in L.A. Politically, Rodriguez's resignation deals a significant setback to the pro-charter school groups who had backed his 2015 campaign. Those groups also spent unprecedented amounts of money on L.A. Unified School Board elections last year, helping to seat a new-look board in 2017 that selected Rodriguez to serve as its president. Rodriguez was one of four board members endorsed by the California Charter Schools Association. That bloc's lock on a majority on the seven-member board is now gone. "I am sorry for the mistakes I have made," Rodriguez said in a statement posted to social media. REMIND ME: HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? Rodriguez ascended to the presidency of the L.A. Unified School Board in July 2017. He had only begun to chart a new course for the board when, on Sept. 13, the L.A. County District Attorney dropped a bombshell that few saw coming. Prosecutors charged Rodriguez with three felonies. They alleged Rodriguez funneled more than $24,000 through straw donors into his 2015 school board campaign, then filed false campaign disclosures obscuring the true source of the money. Rodriguez has pleaded not guilty to those charges. Candidates are not barred from self-financing their own election campaigns. If Rodriguez had simply deposited that $24,250 into his campaign himself, it's possible no charges may ever have been filed. But L.A. election laws clearly prohibit making campaign donations in someone else's name or with someone else's money. Rocio Rivas, parent of a student at Rockdale Elementary School, disputed the assertion that Rodriguez's actions amounted to a simple mistake by a first-time candidate. "Why did he have to lie?" asked Rivas, who attended Rodriguez's sentencing hearing. "He can go ahead and give as much contribution [to his own campaign] ... but he did it under false pretenses. He wanted to show that he had support, that he had all these contributions coming in, which wasn't true." A week after the charges were announced, Rodriguez gave up the presidency of the school board, but did not resign from the board altogether. Then, in October, the charter network Rodriguez co-founded, Partnerships to Uplift Communities, or "PUC Schools," disclosed files that raised even more questions. They showed Rodriguez had signed $285,000-worth of checks sending public funds to two outside corporations to which he also had personal ties. Through his attorney, Rodriguez has denied any wrongdoing. FILE - LAUSD School Board Member Dr. Ref Rodriguez visits an eighth grade history class at Luther Burbank Middle School on Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2016, during the first day of instruction. (Photo by Maya Sugarman/KPCC) WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? The six remaining L.A Unified board members would have to decide how to proceed to fill Rodriguez's seat. The L.A. City Charter -- amended just three years ago following a similar school board succession crisis -- gives them several options. Board members could ask the city to call a special election to fill the remaining two-and-a-half years on Rodriguez's term. As this special election plays out, the board could simply leave the seat vacant or appoint a temporary representative. L.A. Unified's top attorney, David Holmquist, said the board could even decide to grant this temporary appointtee full voting powers. In a statement, Board President Monica Garcia and Vice President Nick Melvoin said they favored appointing a temporary voting representative for District 5, which covers much of northeast and southeast Los Angeles, and that they would call a special election to replace Rodriguez "as soon as we can." Garcia and Melvoin's statement noted whatever steps the board decides to take will require a majority vote: "We hope to convene the Board in the coming weeks to collaboratively decide the path forward." Board members may also have another option: Holmquist said board members could simply appoint a full voting representative to serve until Rodriguez's original term expires in December 2020. A spokesman for the L.A. City Attorney's Office disagrees with that interpretation, saying the city charter only allows an appointed successor to serve until June 30, 2019 -- meaning the school district would have to call a special election sometime before then, most likely in March 2019. But Holmquist said L.A. Unified attorneys point out the charter also says the city should "consolidate" a special school board election with the municipal primary and general elections "next following the appointment;" it's too late to put a special election on the November 2018 ballot, and L.A. isn't having municipal elections again until 2020. In a statement of her own, board member Kelly Gonez did not comment on how she hoped to fill Rodriguez's seat. "There will of course be questions about what happens next," Gonez said in a separate statement, "and those will be answered in due time. In the meantime, I hope that we can work to restore the public's trust in the process." Depending on who replaces Rodriguez, his departure could leave L.A. Unified's new superintendent in a more precarious position. Some would not accept a district superintendent's job without a unanimous or near-unanimous vote of the school board. But with Rodriguez gone, Beutner is left with a mere majority of board members who voted to hire him. Even Gonez, who ultimately voted for Beutner, expressed some reservations about giving him the job. The two remaining board members were vocal in their criticism of Beutner's selection. However board members move to fill Rodriguez's seat, the process is likely to be hotly-contested. A special election would be divisive -- and perhaps just as expensive as the 2017 board elections, which set records for independent campaign spending. Similarly, appointing a replacement for Rodriguez would require the board to reach a consensus, and with Rodriguez gone, the board is politically divided: three board members have the charter association's backing and the other three were endorsed by L.A.'s main teachers union, United Teachers Los Angeles. HOW WILL THIS CHANGE THE LAUSD BOARD? This loose "pro-charter majority" coalition of charter-backed members has not always voted in lockstep. But the coalition was at its most cohesive when board members had to vote on nominations. In July 2017, the four charter-backed members overruled the three UTLA-endorsed board members in naming Rodriguez to be the board's president. After Rodriguez relinquished the board presidency in September, the three union-endorsed board members voted against the nomination of the current president, Monica Garcia. Other nomination fights have broken along these factional lines. On other matters of policy, it's not clear how Rodriguez's departure will impact the L.A. Unified board's decision-making. The "pro-charter majority" had shown it would not be inclined to grant every request charter schools made. For instance, in October, the board unanimously rejected a renewal for a charter school that had attempted to push back on some of the district regulations many more charters found to be overly burdensome. In November, though, the board's pressure was key in striking a compromise on those charter regulations -- a compromise that critics have painted as a cave-in to charter school interests. The L.A. Unified board has cast consequential votes that cross these factional lines as well. In April, the board voted unanimously to re-write the district's rules for determining which schools should get extra money in their budgets to help ensure some of the most vulnerable students are educated. Teachers union leaders said many of those votes are now tainted. On Monday, UTLA president Alex Caputo-Pearl called on the board to revisit -- or perhaps even throw out completely -- "all 4-3 votes where Rodriguez cast the deciding vote." Caputo-Pearl said his statement would include a controversial 4-3 decision made in closed session -- he would call it a "vote," others might disagree -- to open contract talks that lead to Beutner's hiring. "Every vote [Rodriguez] made on the school board," Caputo-Pearl's statement read, "was not in the interest of students or parents of LAUSD. He carried out the wishes of the wealthy elite, including the CEO of Netflix" -- Reed Hastings, who donated $75,000 to Rodriguez's legal defense -- "and the billionaire-backed California Charter Schools Association." From Bennett Kayser's perspective, the damage has already been done. Kayser, a noted opponent of charter schools, was the school board incumbent Rodriguez ousted in 2015 after a bitterly-fought campaign. "Ref Rodriguez cheated the voters and hid the facts behind his illegitimate campaign win," Kayser said in a written statement Friday, after word of a possible deal first trickled out. "In the meantime," Kayser added, "Ref Rodriguez represented a compromised vote on multiple critical decisions ... Justice delayed has hurt the voters, our school district, and most importantly, our children." This post was updated at 4:30 p.m. on Tues., July 24, with more specific information on the process of filling a school board vacancy. News happens every day. Here at LAist, our goal is to cover the stories that matter to you and the community you live in. Now that we're part of KPCC, those stories (including this one you're on right now!) are made possible by generous people like you. Independent, local journalism isn't cheap, but with your support we can keep delivering it. Donate now. Opinion / Guest Commentary / Our Readers Write: Next Gen/Metroplex Commercial Jet Noise Update: July 19 Weve been reporting on the FAAs NextGen Metroplex system and the ongoing noise impact studies commissioned by the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority (SDCRAA) and the FAA. On July 9, a significant new development occurred. The SDCRAA Airport Noise Authority released a Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR), addressing its master plan for a major $3 billion construction project at San Diego International Airport (the Airport Development Plan). The draft EIR may be found at: bit.ly/airportexpansion If approved, construction of more than 5 million-square-feet of buildings and an additional 5 million-square-feet of surface elements will begin in late 2018 or 2019. This includes the planned demolition and remodel of Terminal 1. The number of gates will be increased from 19 to 30 gates, to accommodate a 21 percent increase in passenger traffic from the record 22 million passengers in 2017, up to a projected 28 million passengers. That means many more flights in and out of the airport. While increasing the airports capacity is good for commerce and tourism, we believe it should be smart growth accompanied by measures to minimize the adverse environmental impacts on the communities served including La Jolla . The draft EIR concludes that the increased cumulative noise associated with the project will be significant and unavoidable and inevitable but necessary. There are, however, simple flight path modifications and procedures that can be implemented to reduce the aircraft noise impact, such as dechannelizing flight paths, directing departing flights further west offshore over the Pacific Ocean (away from the Bird Rock and La Jolla coastline before turning north or south, and routing the southbound arrival flight path over the 805/Route 52 intersection and over unincorporated and less populated areas) as they were prior to NextGens new arrival path over Del Mar, La Jolla Shores , UCSD and the Muirlands. Residents of La Jolla must speak up now to advocate for these adjustments to the SDCRAAs expansion project. Failure to speak will equate to a waiver of our interests the very thing that occurred when NextGen was announced and implemented and La Jolla suffered the consequences. The public has until Aug. 23 to comment on the draft EIR. We urge every La Jolla resident to send a response along these lines: To the attention of the SDCRAA and Ted Anasis: With regard to the draft Environmental Impact Report released July 9 on the San Diego International Airport expansion project and Airport Development Plan Sch. No. 2017011053SDCRAA # EIR-18-01, we strongly object to the increased noise over and around La Jolla resulting from the implementation of NextGen Metroplex and the increased frequency of noise that will be associated with the airport and gate expansion project. Before moving forward, a more thorough noise study should be conducted to assess and mitigate the noise impact on La Jolla from any increase in the number of departures and arrivals at SDIA. Simple modifications, such as routing departing flights further offshore before turning north or south, will reduce the predicted noise. Likewise, adjusting arrival paths and altitudes for flights arriving from the north, away from UCSD, La Jolla Shores and Mount Soledad and prohibiting La Jolla overflights unless required for safety reasons, will reduce the impact of the predicted noise associated with the airport expansion. We respectfully request that the SDCRAA take these serious concerns into consideration and take the necessary steps to mitigate commercial jet noise in, around and over La Jolla. How to take action: Comments should be addressed to the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority (Attention: Ted Anasis) and may be e-mailed to the SDCRAA offices at planning@san.org; mailed to SDCRAA, P.O. Box 82776, San Diego, CA 92138-2776; hand delivered to the SDCRAA offices at 3225 N. Harbor Drive, 3rd Floor, San Diego, CA 92101; or faxed to (619) 400-2459. The dealine for all is 5 p.m. Aug. 23, 2018. Air Noise website is now free to use. Heres how it works: Sign up for an account at airnoise.io Hear jet noise. Go to the website on your phone/computer. Click the complaint link on the webpage. Your complaint is filed automatically to the San Diego International Airport You may also continue filing complaints using the Quiet Skies Air Noise Complaint Button, which can be acquired and set up through airnoise.io Also, join the Quiet Skies La Jolla mailing list by e-mailing: noplanenoiselajolla@gmail.com and visit quietskieslajolla.org Dairy ownership change could have industry wide implications The outcome of Fonterra's potential sale could be seen as an indicator of the level of confidence in the Australian dairy industry, according to ANZ's latest Agri Commodity Report. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Senegalese President Macky Sall hold talks in Dakar, Senegal, July 21, 2018. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi) DAKAR, July 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and Senegalese President Macky Sall held talks here Saturday, vowing to create a better future for China-Senegal ties. The two leaders spoke highly of the development of bilateral ties in recent years, and agreed to continue to make joint efforts and promote more fruitful results from cooperation in various fields. Xi arrived here earlier on Saturday for the first state visit to Senegal by a Chinese head of state in nine years. During the meeting with his host, the Chinese president thanked the government and people of Senegal for their warm hospitality and welcome, saying it fully demonstrated that China-Senegal friendship has gained broad support. Recalling their joint decision to forge a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries in 2016, Xi said that thanks to joint efforts from both sides, China-Senegal relations have entered a fast track with growing political mutual trust and concrete economic and trade cooperation. China is willing to join hands with Senegal to lift bilateral ties and cooperation to a higher level, so as to bring more benefits to both peoples, Xi said. The Chinese president expressed appreciation to Sall for viewing their ties from a strategic perspective, positively responding to the Belt and Road Initiative and strongly supporting China-Africa cooperation. The two sides should carry out closer high-level exchanges and support each other on issues concerning their core interests and major concern, said Xi. Noting that the two countries should strengthen the alignment of development strategies and policy communication, Xi welcomed Senegal to be the first West African country to sign a Belt and Road cooperation document with China. We hope to take this opportunity to comprehensively upgrade China-Senegal cooperation, he said. China will continue to uphold the spirit of "teaching a man to fish," expand and deepen cooperation with Senegal, and enhance its ability in independent development, Xi said. He called on the two countries to boost people-to-people exchanges and promote mutual understanding between the two peoples. The two sides should enhance law enforcement and security cooperation, Xi said, adding that China supports Senegal in building capability in counter-terrorism, peacekeeping and safeguarding stability. China supports Senegal in playing a greater role in global and regional affairs, and is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with Senegal in major international and regional issues such as peace and security in Africa, the United Nations and climate change, so as to protect the common interests of Africa and developing countries, said the Chinese president. Noting that he attaches great importance to China-Africa ties, Xi said he feels strongly about the long-term friendship between China and Africa, and their common future in sharing weal and woe. The two sides are sincere partners on their path of development and natural allies in international affairs, Xi said, adding that China's development will bring more opportunities to Africa, while Africa's development will add momentum to China's development. China will continue to uphold its African policy and concept of sincerity, concrete results, affinity and good faith, uphold justice and pursue shared interests, promote the construction of a closer China-Africa community with a shared future, so as to realize win-win cooperation and common development, Xi said. In September, we will hold a summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, said Xi, adding that he is looking forward to meeting African leaders including President Sall in Beijing and discussing the important agenda on China-Africa cooperation. For his part, Sall thanked President Xi for visiting Senegal in his first overseas trip since being re-elected as Chinese president, saying that it is Senegalese people's honor. Hailing that China made significant contributions to humanity's progress in history, Sall said today's China is playing an even more important role in international affairs. Senegal, Sall said, admires China's development achievements, appreciates China's precious support for Senegalese economic and social development and its implementation of revitalization plan. The bilateral ties, based on solidarity, mutual trust, mutual respect, win-win and mutual benefit, are strong and satisfactory, said the Senegalese president. Senegal firmly adheres to the one-China policy, is committed to deepening the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership with China, stands ready to enhance cooperation in areas such as infrastructure construction, water conservation, industrialization, agricultural product processing, tourism, culture and sports, said Sall. Senegal supports China's Belt and Road Initiative and stands ready to vigorously participate in connectivity construction, Sall said, adding that his country appreciates China's contribution in Africa's peace and development cause. The FOCAC is a cooperative framework featuring inclusiveness, effectiveness and solidarity, established on the basis of practical cooperation, Sall said, vowing Senegal's full support in strengthening the FOCAC, deepening cooperation between China and Africa, and establishing the China-Africa community with a shared future. Senegal is ready to strengthen communication and coordination with China in multilateral affairs, and work with China to build a more balanced, just and inclusive global governance system, safeguard multilateralism and oppose protectionism, Sall said. After their talks, Xi received Senegal's top medal of honor from Sall, and the two leaders witnessed the signing of multiple cooperation documents, including the one on jointly building the Belt and Road. Before the talks, the Senegalese president and people held a grand welcoming ceremony for Xi, with thousands of locals dressed in festive attire, cheering, singing and dancing. Senegal's official guards of the presidency also put on a magnificent parade on the streets of Dakar escorting the Chinese president. Senegal is the second stop in Xi's first overseas trip after being re-elected Chinese president in March. He has already visited the United Arab Emirates and will pay state visits to Rwanda and South Africa, attend the 10th BRICS summit in Johannesburg, and visit Mauritius during a stopover. Joe Davis dancing in "Body Traffic." Photo: Rob Latour. Take your pick. The big screen with intimate close-ups and high-tech sonics at Hollywood Bowl, courtesy of the LA Philharmonic. Or the old-time glory of glittering Russian ballet downtown at the Music Center's Chandler Pavilion. Well, you could've greeted the summer with both and come out ahead -- by visiting two entirely different worlds. A telling, grateful contrast. Gustavo Dudamel and Co. settled into the Bowl's vast open spaces in Cahuenga Pass where 18,000 people can, from high up in the bleachers, view either the tiny stage figures making music -- or, shift their eyes to giant screens and see eyebrows arching on the maestro's face (as well as the ring on a horn player's finger). Either way the scene is enticing (once you get there!) And the sound, well, it's not anything like that in Disney Hall, the orchestra's home. But neither, these days, do we peer at the stage and hear what seems like a small table radio trying to deliver the music at hand. No, it's at full-throttle now. Too close to stage and the result can be similar to the fat, polished, homogenized, unnatural thing we often hear at movie theaters carrying the Met Opera simulcasts (or superhero blockbusters). But a little farther back in the boxes above promenade 2 and the amplification comes close to outdoor perfection. Naturally, for such a broad swath of Angelenos, the fare is familiar. One war-horse night we had Dudamel in a Russian program -- with Behzod Abduraimov in Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Concerto (ah, yes, if you recall, it was turned to popular song, "Full Moon and Empty Arms" and even used in the movie "September Affair" with Joan Fontaine as the concert pianist playing it). Together, at the Bowl, they and the orchestra gave the ever-romantic work a passionate/lyrical reading that swept the swooning audience under its spell. So, too, did Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition" keep the imagery going, in their hands. But Dudamel's concert version of Verdi's "Otello" proved to be a difficult task in the mammoth amphitheater. For starters, it's a dark piece, aside from its enveloping love music. "Carmen" or "Boheme" fare better. What's more, it requires intimacy -- and staging. Its quietly brooding, suspenseful moments get lost in the open air. Still, the cast did not let that cramp their style. In the title role Russell Thomas's tenor came across with its ear-delighting timbre intact (only on the high, forceful "Esultate," a killer opening test for any warrior Moor, was there a bit of uncertainty). Julianna Di Giacomo made a knowingly doomed Desdemona, capitalizing on her welcome spinto territory rather than frail lyricism. And George Gagnidze, as Iago, rolled out his sinister scheme rigorously. Also side-stepping from typical Bowl-proof programming was Thomas Ades's "Tevot" (2007) a roaring piece that depicts Noah's Ark and the storm it survives. Big-boned, bold, thrusting, it suggests lots of diverse activities, sometimes simultaneously and utilizing every choir with intricate connections to each other. And who better to be at the helm than the composer himself, in this case? With Ades waving his baton, we saw a take-charge leader, one who gives vigorous, detailed cues that illuminate graphically the score's clear shape and a varied dynamic scheme. The British composer/conductor, warmly personable in his comments to the audience, went from there to Beethoven -- with Iceland's pianist Vikingur Olafsson, a tall, lanky, bespectacled, schoolboy type who played the 2nd Concerto somewhat stiffly but masterfully. Then came the 7th Symphony, just the thing for the Phil and Ades to gallop away with breathlessly -- on the breeze of the summer night air. But for sheer theatrical dazzle, the indoor variety, nothing quite overwhelms like American Ballet Theatre's staging of "La Bayadere," that full-fledged super-spectacle of grand opera-house tradition. Where else would you get the Marius Petipa Russian Imperial choreographic brand, the St. Petersburg pre-cursor of the Kirov/Mariinsky Ballet? Well, Ballet Theatre brought its revival (staged by Natalia Makarova) to the Music Center Pavilion and simply wowed the crowds. While you can almost forget the notion of deep moralistic parable in this story of a Hindu Giselle, it's the mighty force of ballet imagery, namely the "Kingdom of the Shades" scene, that cannot fail to enthrall, as performed here. This iconic "white act" starts with the corps drifting down a ramp one at a time to Ludwig Minkus's barcarolle -- step-step-step-arabesque-stepback-arch backward. And thanks to conductor Ormsby Wilkins leading the terrific pick-up orchestra there was no dragging weightedness but a lift to each repeat. It ends in scrupulous splendor, the 24 coryphees arrayed across the stage in rows of 6, arms extended in second, on pointe and delicately atremble in a one-heart-beat, breathtaking moment. A knock-out. But that wasn't all, of course. Isabella Boylston as Nikiya, the temple dancer entreating her lover to forsake his arranged marriage to the Rajah's daughter, was the very model of a Kirov ballerina in lovely, physical form (proportions, turnout, arches). And her undulating exotica (shades of shiva) seemed to grow naturally from that form, as did the pathos of her surrender to death. What electrified the performance, though, was Jeffrey Cirio. His Solor, the warrior who fought for her (but not hard enough, just as Albrecht did not for Giselle) partnered his beloved ardently -- he also soared in the air as though powered by helium, doing double cabrioles, his body a supple, boneless, jointless thing merely physicalizing emotion. Best-known to the wide public was Misty Copeland, as Gamzatti, the regal bride-to-be. Next to the above leads she paled but still managed to vent her hell-cat rivalry and then telegraph an abject sense of loss. One thing to remember, though, about "Bayadere" is the genre that defines it, aside from Russian Imperial ballet. It's the Ludwig Minkus score that has a generous amount of rinky-dink music, in other words, circus-y stuff. Because while John Lanchbery's arrangement glorifies the narrative moments beyond their silent-film cheap dramatics, Minkus happily accommodates the sudden intrusion of classical divertissements You know, those de rigueur tutu-and-tiara affairs -- a pizzicato parade of pretties that also displays the dancers' hard-won classical virtuosity. But virtuosity of another sort is required for current dance modes, displayed by several local troupes overflowing on local stages. At the Wallis there was Body Traffic with Sidra Bell's determinedly edgy "Beyond the Edge..." which looks great on this blackened stage. It's got the armature of balletic elegance (and even Ohad Naharin's Gaga). Its movements also meld into natural body comportment to suggest a clubby chic in its costumes, lighting, demeanor. Altogether a deeply engrossing piece. Easy appeal via pop nostalgia is customarily on the menu as well -- this time with Matthew Neenan's "A Million Voices." Here it was Peggy Lee's, in recordings of Johnny Mercer and Harold Arlen songs, suggesting those past days of seeming innocence, along with some of its underlying consternation. But the finale gave us Lee's existential "Is That All There Is?" with an assortment of Fellini-like characters parading across the stage. More to the otherworldly side was the Barak Ballet's "Desert Transport" by Nicolas Blanc at Santa Monica's Broad Stage. Its major impact comes from Mason Bate's mountainous score, a big, gorgeous, orchestral essay that suggests narrative all by itself. Smartly, the choreography follows its cues by way of gestural dance but at all times showing off the dancers' exceptional technique and expressive qualities. While Melissa Barak's own works stay locked in well-crafted, flattering configurations of the body-ballet-beautiful, she's wise to add on diversity. More would be even better. Public libraries should be replaced by Amazon stores, argued Panos Mourdoukoutas in an article published on Forbes website Saturday and removed on Monday. At the core, Amazon has provided something better than a local library without the tax fees, wrote Mourdoukoutas, an economics professor at Long Island University-Post. This is why Amazon should replace local libraries. The move would save taxpayers money and enhance the stockholder value of Amazon all in one fell swoop. At Gizmodo, journalist Tom McKay pointed out a few flaws in the professors case, noting, Mourdoukoutas writes that the government should stop funding libraries in part to save taxpayers a vague (and within the article, never quantified) amount of money. He also took apart its logic, noting in part, Amazon does not have an online library. It has an store. These are entirely different ways of providing access to things. On Twitter, users wasted no time defending the purpose of public libraries: Advertisement While public libraries are simply an abstraction to some, for many of us they were & continue to be a sanctuary, a community, a public rejection of the notion that knowledge should be contingent on what you can afford, a place where no price can be placed on the access to ideas. Clint Smith (@ClintSmithIII) July 22, 2018 A library card is a passport for the mind. My son loves visiting the library just as much as I did when I was a kid (back before we had all this new-fangled inter-webby stuff ;) ) There is still a real need for the wonderful services libraries can offer! N J Crosskey (@NJCrosskey) July 23, 2018 That library thing is why people hate economists. The Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom (@tressiemcphd) July 23, 2018 Writer Nick Kolakowski, who first engaged with Mourdoukoutas on Twitter, later posted a response on Medium. Libraries provide more than just books, of course, he writes. At my local library, just down the block, kids use the computers (and free Web access) to do schoolwork; adults consult with librarians to find out information about city services; people check out books and videos they might not be able to otherwise afford. It is a shining example of what we might call street level democracy, or the ability of the collective to access what it needs to survive and prosper. the fact that folks have had to spend valuable time and energy explaining and defending the function of libraries makes me sick wikipedia brown ||| abolish ICE. (@eveewing) July 23, 2018 Maybe @Forbes doesnt like that you can download their magazine free with your #SF library card. https://t.co/vqQk1BDMZE SF Public Library (@SFPublicLibrary) July 22, 2018 UPDATES: 11 a.m. July 28: This article was updated with information that Forbes removed the story from its site. This post was originally published at 12:05 p.m. July 23 A portion of Boeing Co.s astronaut test capsule suffered what was described as an anomaly during an engine test fire last month, which analysts said is likely to delay the Chicago aerospace giants first flight of astronauts from U.S. soil even further. The issue occurred early last month when the test version of whats known as the integrated service module was undergoing a hot-fire test of its launch-abort engines. The service module provides propulsion when the capsule reaches orbit. If something goes wrong during launch, the module will be able to blast the capsule away. It is located below the crew capsule, which holds astronauts and cargo. Boeing said in a statement Monday that the engines on the service module successfully ignited and ran for the full duration of the test, which was performed at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico. But during engine shutdown, an anomaly occurred that resulted in a propellant leak. Boeing declined to provide more information about the problem or how the leak occurred. The crew module was not involved in this particular test. The company said it was confident it had found the cause, is moving forward with corrective action and has been conducting a thorough investigation with NASAs assistance. Advertisement Boeing and Hawthorne-based SpaceX are each developing crew capsules under NASA contracts that will transport astronauts to the International Space Station. Since the end of the space shuttle program in 2011, the U.S. has relied on Russia to take its astronauts to space. Both companies are set to launch their capsules for the first time next month in an uncrewed test, with crewed tests set for the end of the year, according to NASAs schedule. However, industry observers have believed the NASA timelines listed on their website were unrealistic, even before the anomaly. My sense is that it all gets pushed back at least two to three months at minimum, said Marco Caceres, senior space analyst at Teal Group. They may still meet the uncrewed flight test this year, but then the crewed one will be pushed back to next year. Boeing said in the statement that it did not have any schedule updates at the time. NASA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A report this month from the U.S. Government Accountability Office warned that certification of each companys capsule could be delayed, possibly resulting in a gap in U.S. access to space as the contract with Russia extends only through November 2019. samantha.masunaga@latimes.com Twitter: @smasunaga The New York tabloid Daily News cut half of its newsroom staff Monday, including the editor in chief. The paper was sold to Chicago Tribune owner Tronc Inc. last year for $1, with the buyer assuming liabilities and debt. In an email sent to staff Monday, Tronc said the remaining staff at the Daily News will focus on breaking news involving crime, civil justice and public responsibility. The newspaper has been a key fixture in New York City for the last century. It has won 11 Pulitzer Prizes, including last year for its work with ProPublica on the abuse of eviction rules in New York City. Advertisement There had been reports that the cuts were coming, and an early-morning tweet from editor in chief Jim Rich hinted at what was to come. If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you, Rich wrote. New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo urged Tronc to reconsider the layoffs, saying they were made without notifying the state or asking for assistance. I urge Tronc to reconsider this drastic move and stand ready to work with them to avert this disaster, Cuomo said in a statement. I understand that large corporations often only see profit and dividends as a bottom line. But in New York, we also calculate loss of an important institution, loss of jobs, and the impact on the families affected. I hope Tronc does the same and recalculates its decision. New York state stands ready to help. Revenue and print circulation have been sliding at the newspaper for years, even as it provided crucial coverage of health issues in public housing and for first responders after the Sept. 11 attacks. Revenue slid 22% between 2014 and 2016, and the paper had already been letting people go. Tronc declined to say how many journalists lost their jobs Monday. Since the year began, weve worked hard to transform the New York Daily News into a truly digitally-focused enterprise one that creates meaningful journalism, delivers it more quickly and more frequently, and develops new approaches to engage our readers, an email sent to staff said. Weve gained a deeper understanding of our readership. Weve redefined our structures. But we have not gone far enough. Along with Rich, Managing Editor Kristen Lee was included in the layoffs. Robert York, editor of the Tronc-owned Morning Call in Allentown, Pa., will take over as editor of the Daily News. Tronc Inc., based in Chicago, owns the Chicago Tribune, the Baltimore Sun, the Orlando Sentinel and other media operations. Its shares slipped 0.6% on Monday to $16.10. The stock is down 8.5% so far this year. Tronc recently sold the Los Angeles Times, San Diego Union-Tribune and other properties to biotech billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong. UPDATES: 2 p.m.: This article was updated with comments from the Daily News laid-off editor in chief Jim Rich and from New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, Troncs stock movement and additional background information. This article was originally published at 9:30 a.m. For 21 months, Qualcomm Inc. has been trying to buy Dutch automotive chip maker NXP Semiconductors to reduce its reliance on the slowing smartphone market. By Wednesday, it should become clear whether those efforts were for nothing. Qualcomm and NXP set that day as the deadline for receiving regulatory approval from China for the $43-billion deal. Chinese regulators have balked at giving the green light amid rising trade tensions with the United States. Chinese officials still could approve the deal at the last minute, and the companies could agree to postpone the deadline. Advertisement But executives at both companies have signaled that theyre willing to walk away, Cowen & Co. analyst Matthew Ramsey said. If the acquisition isnt approved by Wednesday, Qualcomm has agreed to pay NXP a $2-billion breakup fee the next day. Based on NXPs Monday closing price of $105.09 a share, investors say the deal will evaporate. The stock would be trading closer to $127.50 a share the amount San Diego-based Qualcomm offered if investors were confident that China would approve the deal. It is unfortunate Qualcomm has self-imposed this deadline, said Ryan Shrout, head of technology consulting firm Shrout Research. Instead of putting the impetus on the China regulatory group to make the final decision, they have to do it themselves. The market is clearly betting against it. Though most analysts agree that closing the deal is the best path forward for both companies, they also say shareholders are ready to move on. If I took a poll of 10 investors, five would be happy they might not be getting it and five would be disappointed, said Mike Walkley, an analyst with Canaccord Genuity. But I think all 10 would agree its good for the stock to get out of this two-year purgatory. The investment community is ready for the uncertainty to end. It appears shareholders will get their wish. Qualcomm Chief Executive Steve Mollenkopf told the New York Times last week that if the deal doesnt close by Wednesday, it will expire; the deadline will not be extended. If if doesnt get done, we also have means to create value in different ways, he said. Qualcomm first announced that it was buying NXP in October 2016. Antitrust regulators in eight countries have approved the merger since then. China is the lone holdout. Problems with the approval kicked up shortly before the Trump administration announced tariffs on $34 billion worth of imports from China. The administrations tariffs have since expanded significantly now targeting $200 billion worth of imports from China. China responded with tariffs of its own on American goods. And it applied the brakes to the regulatory review of the Qualcomm-NXP merger. The fact that Qualcomms largest, most transformational acquisition appears to be in trouble in part because of the Trump administrations tough trade stance comes just a few months after the administration stepped in to rescue Qualcomm from a hostile takeover by rival chipmaker Broadcom. In March, President Trump signed an order that blocked Broadcoms bid to gain control of Qualcomms board of directors, citing national security concerns. The rationale included fears that a Broadcom buyout would hamstring investment in advanced 5G technologies and thereby hand industry leadership to Huawei, a Chinese company. Tensions between the two countries extend beyond trade. In April, the Commerce Department banned Chinese phone maker ZTE from buying American technology for seven years after it failed to live up to terms of a settlement imposed for sidestepping trade sanctions against Iran. The move threatened to push ZTE out of business, but the Trump administration last month eased the restrictions to enable ZTE to resume buying U.S. technology That raised hopes that China would move ahead with approval of the Qualcomm-NXP deal. But it hasnt happened. I think it is in Chinas most rational interest to approve it, said Stacy Rasgon, an analyst with Bernstein Research. They got ZTE. They can extract concessions from Qualcomm. If they let it go, they get nothing. But things havent been rational lately. Buying NXP would make Qualcomm less reliant on the smartphone sector, where growth has slowed. The company also is mired in a fierce legal battle over patent fees with Apple Inc., its largest smartphone customer. Apple has stopped paying patent royalties to Qualcomm for use of its cellular technology during the dispute. NXP makes semiconductors used for security, keyless entry, advanced driver assistance systems, mobile payment chips and a variety of other products. Buying NXP would put Qualcomm in position to expand its cellular expertise into new industries such as connected cars, wireless healthcare devices, smart infrastructure, automated factory floors and other internet of things markets. The NXP acquisition significantly accelerates what they are trying to do in the internet of things and gives them a very strong position in automotive, said Geoff Blaber, an analyst with CCS Insight. There arent a huge number of areas where products clash. The fact that there is not much product overlap makes this a good fit. Folding NXP into Qualcomm would be difficult, however. The acquisition would be exponentially larger than any other in Qualcomms history. NXP has 31,000 employees globally which is approximatelyy equal to Qualcomms current headcount. It owns semiconductor factories, while Qualcomm hires Samsung and others to manufacture its chips. Even if everything over at NXP is perfect, it is going to be a beast to bring the companies together, Bernstein Researchs Rasgon said. And the worry is that everything over at NXP is not perfect. If the deal fails, Qualcomm has pledged to use cash earmarked for NXP to buy back shares of its own stock. Through share repurchases, which reduce share count, Qualcomm aims to achieve a $1.50 per share gain in adjusted earnings by 2019 which is equal to what NXP would have contributed to Qualcomms bottom line. The company promised the $1.50 earnings gain as part of its pitch to investors to reject Broadcoms hostile-takeover bid. Some investors would prefer the buyback because its less risky than merging the two companies. Qualcomm could buy back $20 billion to $30 billion in stock and still have the financial flexibility to make smaller acquisitions to boost its footprint in connected cars and other non-smartphone markets. The company already has made strides in that regard, with growing orders for in-vehicle chips and other non-smartphone products, said Shrout, the technology analyst. Dont get me wrong [Qualcomm] would be a bigger and more significant force if the NXP deal actually happens, he said. But I still believe Qualcomm has strong momentum in automotive and the internet of things in particular to withstand the damage if the deal fails. Freeman writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune. UPDATES: 2:10 p.m.: This article was updated with NXP shares closing price. This article was originally published at 11:50 a.m. There was no official Star Wars film panel at Comic-Con this year, but on Saturday afternoon the fandom came together in the name of Rose Tico. For the record: FOR THE RECORD: In an earlier version of this story The Rebel Legion was mistakenly referred to as The Rebel Alliance. While the Rally for Rose event was celebratory in nature dozens of Comic-Con attendees cosplayed as Kelly Marie Trans famed Last Jedi character it was in response to a recent disturbance in the force. The event was organized as a way for fans to combat (mostly) online backlash against the actress. Tran, who is the first Asian American actress to appear in a prominent role in any Star Wars film, removed her photos from her social media accounts presumably because of harrassment. There has been criticism of General Leia Organas use of the Force in The Last Jedi, and there have been calls for Kathleen Kennedy, shepherd of the Star Wars movie legacy, to step down. Advertisement These are all fan-initiated events that have lately defined the group as a whole, labeling them as a toxic fanbase. But is it fair? The loudest voice in the room is the one thats heard the most. The fans that have the most negative opinions are being the loudest right now, said Chris Polansky, a Star Wars fan The Times spoke with on the Comic-Con exhibition floor. Its had some unfortunate consequences, but for the most part, the fandom is great. FULL COVERAGE: San Diego Comic-Con 2018 In the San Diego Convention Center, located between the retail floor and the autograph area in Sails Pavilion, is a small corner of the Con that houses societies and organizations looking to increase their reach. Among them each year are many of the Star Wars cosplay and charity organizations, chief among them being the 501st Legion, or Vaders Fist and the Rebel Legion (pictured above), organizations that visit hospitals and perform at charity events regularly. The groups boasts a strong and growing membership numbering in the tens of thousands worldwide. Another sister Star Wars organization, the Mandalorian Mercs, is also camped out on the corner of this mid-level of the convention center that is also the home of many popular card gaming rooms for things like Pokemon and Magic the Gathering. Michelle Waxman, a member of the Rebel Legion, cosplays as Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo. Jevon Phillips / Los Angeles Times Its here that the question of a toxic fanbase is posed. Obviously these individuals are uber fans, but no one among them thinks that the rhetoric and actions of a few represent the whole. Jamie Diamond Dog Tobitt, a member of the Imperial Sands Garrison of the 501st Legion, doesnt defend the dissenting voices but does understand them. Some people feel entitled about it cause theyre so wrapped up in it, but that doesnt mean they stop liking it. Maybe theyre just trying to nudge it in another direction. I disagree with people saying that they want Kathleen Kennedy fired and stuff like that. Its just a story. Its a complicated story, though, and its a story thats gone on for decades. The most vocal of the contingent seem to be males, and some fans, like Michelle Waxman, a member of the Sunrider Base of The Rebel Legion, see that as part of the problem. I think a little bit of [the toxic fanbase] is there because change is difficult and because its been male leads in the past. Male story arcs. With a female protagonist thats ascending in a big way, thats a little different. I think for some its a tough pill to swallow. I think its an evolution in the right direction cause theres so many female fans, said Waxman. I think that theres a small contingent of guys that are the naysayers. I think theyre getting a lot of weight out there editorially. They just seem to be getting a lot of print. The male fanbase is kind of saturated. Whether its gender-based or not, the prevailing feeling is that its an issue that should not taint the entire fanbase. The real ugly stuff that has been online is a very, very small minority, said Leslie Camerino, a member of the 501st clad in a stormtrooper uniform. Theres critics out there in the true fanbase, but not that much hate. Sue Contant, mom of Michelle Waxman above, cosplays as Rose Tico from the Star Wars franchise. Jevon Phillips / Los Angeles Times True fans of the franchise may not like every decision thats being made, but they watch and try to enjoy every nuance in the Star Wars universe -- whether its originals, prequels or the new iterations. Ive enjoyed them. I also realize that Im not the target audience. Im in my 40s. I grew up with the original trilogy that was presented in theaters. Not the special editions that were remastered by George, or the prequels. This is not my particular Star Wars, but its still Star Wars. Its marketed for a new generation, and thats what we want. We want to bring in more fans, says Polansky. I personally didnt think Solo was necessary, but it was fun. We had a good time watching that movie. In the end, it is about sharing fandom, not owning it, even as the franchise evolves with the times. Its more inclusive on a number of levels. Even with ethnic characters. My mom, whos half Chinese, wanted to be Rose Tico. Shes 72, said Waxman. Theres nothing better than to see the impact that this brand has on people of any age and any walk of life. You dont need superpowers to be a superhero. On Sunday afternoon, activists and advocates for justice assembled in Embarcadero Marina Park North for the inaugural Real Life Superhero Rally. The event, unaffiliated with Comic-Con and the happenings within the San Diego Convention Center, celebrated the intersection of pop culture and social justice with various speakers and musical performances. And while the event wasnt officially a part of Comic-Con, the mega-conventions presence was certainly felt. In addition to the various protest signs that are a familiar sight at political events, spotted in the intimate crowd were some people in cosplay and others with their Comic-Con badges still hanging around their necks. In the spirit of the superheroes coming together in this city, I wanted to create an event that celebrates real-life superheroes and use pop culture to draw attention to real world social justice issues, actress and rally chair Chase Masterson told The Times. Advertisement Mastersons goal is to channel the excitement people have for superhero stories into actual action. Ive been coming to Comic-Con as an actress for many years, she said. I have watched as the crowds celebrate pop culture in a way that almost nothing else on Earth is celebrated and its always hit me: Wouldnt it be great if we can use these stories to create justice in real life? FULL COVERAGE: San Diego Comic-Con 2018 With San Diegos proximity to the Mexican border, many speakers used the platform to address immigration issues including author Carrie Goldman. But Goldmans speech was unique because she chose to first deliver her remarks in Spanish. Many of the people that are here are advocating for the rights of immigrants and one of the largest groups of immigrants that struggles in our country are Spanish-speaking immigrants who are coming over the border, said Goldman in explaining her decision. I wanted to show that I honor them, she added. The reality is, theres no national language in America. America is a land of many languages. So I wanted to make sure that I spoke my remarks in Spanish first and then in English to say: You are welcome here. You can speak your language here. We are here as a country of immigrants. DACA, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals; the treatment of asylum seekers; LGBTQ rights; gun violence and more were addressed by the various speakers. As Lamba Legal attorney Leo Miras noted in his speech, all of these issues are interconnected. During the rally there were volunteers on hand to register new voters because voting is a superpower. Among the organizations participating in the Real Life Superhero Rally were Families Belong Together, Amnesty International, ACLU San Diego, United Nations Assn. San Diego, Indivisible San Diego, San Diego Refugee Forum, Center for American-Islamic Relations and Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans. The event also had support from Power Plus, Overpass Light Brigade San Diego and volunteers from IATSE. Wonder Woman said, It is my sacred duty to defend the world. Thats what we are standing for, said Masterson. These stories have unique power. Lets use that power in real life. BEIJING, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday published a signed article titled "For a New Era of China-South Africa Friendship" on three South African newspapers, namely, The Sunday Independent, Sunday Tribune and Weekend Argus, ahead of his state visit to the African country. The following is the full text of the article: For a New Era of China-South Africa Friendship Xi Jinping President of the People's Republic of China It gives me great pleasure to pay my third state visit to the Republic of South Africa and attend the 10th BRICS Summit at the invitation of President Cyril Ramaphosa. I am full of expectations as I am about to set foot again on the beautiful land of South Africa, the rainbow nation standing at the convergence of the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, and home to unique and magnificent landscapes, industrious and enterprising people, and colorful and pluralistic cultures. This year marks the 20th anniversary of diplomatic ties between our two countries, but the friendly interactions between our peoples go far beyond that. Our peoples forged a deep friendship during our common struggle against imperialism, colonialism and racism. After the birth of a new South Africa, especially in the past 20 years of diplomatic relations, our two countries have supported and learned from each other in our respective exploration of a development path suited to national conditions. This relationship has stood the test of time and a changing international environment. From a partnership to a strategic partnership, and then to a comprehensive strategic partnership, this relationship has made big strides and demonstrated a strong growth momentum in political trust, economic and trade cooperation, people-to-people exchanges and strategic coordination. Over the past six years, our two countries have worked closely as co-chairs of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) to advance the comprehensive strategic and cooperative partnership between China and Africa. Our bilateral ties have thus served as a model for China-Africa relations, for South-South cooperation, and for unity and cooperation among emerging market countries, and offered valuable experience for building an even stronger community with a shared future between China and Africa and a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation. We enjoy close high-level exchanges and fruitful practical cooperation across the board. Our leaders have, through frequent mutual visits, meetings and other exchanges, provided top-level and strategic guidance for the bilateral ties. China has been South Africa's largest trading partner for nine years in a row, and South Africa has become China's largest trading partner in Africa. Two-way trade totaled 39.17 billion U.S. dollars in 2017, more than 20 times the figure at the start of our diplomatic engagement. Preliminary statistics show that China's direct investment in South Africa has grown by more than 80 times and exceeded 10.2 billion U.S. dollars in cumulative terms, creating tens of thousands of jobs for local communities and giving a strong boost to the South African economy. Many Chinese companies are running successful businesses in South Africa, which is a full testament to our mutually beneficial relationship for common development. South African companies, for their part, are also making great success in China. In recent years, measures such as hosting the Year of China/South Africa and launching the High-Level People-to-People Exchange Mechanism have brought our two peoples even closer with greater mutual understanding and friendship. We have seen expanding cooperation in such areas as education, culture, science and technology, and health, and growing exchanges between our youths and women. South Africa has attracted more Chinese tourists, established sister relations with more Chinese provinces and cities, and opened more Confucius Institutes and classrooms than any other Sub-Saharan country. China has become an increasingly popular destination for South African students and tourists. Traditional Chinese medicine companies are actively exploring the South African market, introducing acupuncture, cupping and other traditional Chinese therapies to the South African people as a new option to treat illnesses and keep fit. Chinese volunteers have mobilized Chinese companies and Chinese communities in South Africa to partner with local animal conservation organizations and make their contribution to wildlife protection in Africa. These are all powerful examples of China-South Africa and China-Africa friendship. South Africa is now on a new journey of national development. President Ramaphosa has put forth the goals of growing the economy, creating jobs, improving people's lives and advancing social transformation, thereby ushering South Africa into a new era of hope and confidence. China looks forward to working with South Africa to build on the momentum of the 20th anniversary of diplomatic ties and strive for faster and greater progress in our comprehensive strategic partnership. - We must steadily elevate our political mutual trust to new levels. We need to maintain high-level exchanges, strengthen inter-party cooperation and governance experience sharing, continue to provide each other with mutual understanding and support on issues bearing on our respective core interests and major concerns, and stay forever as each other's reliable good friend, good brother and good partner. I look forward to receiving President Ramaphosa in Beijing in September and co-chairing with him the FOCAC Beijing Summit. - We must strive for new outcomes in our practical cooperation. We need to promote complementarity between our development strategies, and make full use of bilateral mechanisms, FOCAC, the Belt and Road Initiative, BRICS cooperation, and other platforms to deepen cooperation in key areas such as industries, production capacity, resources and energy, infrastructure, finance, tourism, and digital economy and deliver more benefits to our peoples. - We must increase communication to add new impetus to our people-to-people exchanges. We need to leverage the role of the High-Level People-to-People Exchange Mechanism in enhancing communication between our peoples, expand cooperation in education, culture, science and technology, health, and sports, and promote exchanges between youths, women, think tanks and media outlets. Such measures will bring greater public support for China-South Africa friendship, and make our peoples be more closely connected. - We must strengthen collaboration and scale new heights in our strategic coordination. We need to support each other in hosting the 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit and the 10th BRICS Summit, step up coordination and cooperation within multilateral frameworks including the UN, the G20 and BRICS, and promote the reform of the global governance system in a joint effort to advance the fundamental interests of African and other developing countries, to build a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind, and to contribute wisdom and proposals to solving the world's most pressing issues. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of the BRICS Summit. Ten years on, BRICS cooperation has achieved remarkable development and gained an ever-growing influence. This year's summit will be the first one held in the second "Golden Decade" of BRICS cooperation. China will go all out to support South Africa in hosting this event. Under the theme of "BRICS in Africa: Collaboration for Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity in the Fourth Industrial Revolution," we will deepen BRICS strategic partnership, enhance BRICS solidarity and cooperation, and facilitate the inter-connected development of BRICS countries. We are confident that this summit will usher in an even brighter future for BRICS cooperation. This year celebrates yet another important event, the 100th anniversary of Nelson Mandela, the inaugural president of the new South Africa. To quote Mr. Mandela, "The African rebirth is now more than an idea. Its seeds are being sown in the regional communities we are busy building and in the continent as a whole." With unremitting efforts, South Africa and the rest of the African Continent gained a new life in the last century. I am confident that this century will witness the rejuvenation of South Africa and that of the whole African Continent. Let us work together for a new era of China-South Africa friendship. Several months ago, Agnes Varda received an honorary Academy Award for her extraordinary career and an Oscar nomination for her 2017 documentary feature, Faces Places. (In a world as sweetly utopian as the one she often depicts, she would have won the latter prize outright.) At age 90, this Belgian-born master remains justly beloved for her roving, exploratory approach to filmmaking, her influence on the French New Wave and a feminism that courses through her work as naturally and insistently as her impish sense of humor. All these qualities are on luminous display in Vardas 1977 film, One Sings, the Other Doesnt (LUne Chante, LAutre Pas), which screens in a fresh 2-K digital restoration Tuesday night at the Downtown Independent. The movie lays out its plan of attack in its opening scene: In 1962, an outspoken 17-year-old named Pauline (Valerie Mairesse) enters a photo gallery filled with somber-looking female nudes and wonders why they all look so sad. The photographer, Jerome (Robert Dadies), disagrees, claiming that he captures his subjects in a natural state of being, sans posing or artifice. Pauline remains unconvinced. So does Varda, whose wondrously free-form movie full of color and light, warmth and music plays like a rebuke to the idea of viewing women through such a stiff, reductive prism. Jerome will soon vanish from the picture, while our attention shifts to his 22-year-old lover, Suzanne (Therese Liotard), a former neighbor of Paulines. Suzanne already has two children with Jerome and is pregnant with a third, until Pauline helps her procure an abortion a gesture that seals the two womens friendship for life. Even in the wake of tragic loss and tumultuous upheaval, One Sings, the Other Doesnt is an enchantingly upbeat chronicle of that friendship as it unfolds over the next 14 years, a period that overlaps with the post-1968 French womens movement. Despite their differences in background, temperament and vocation, both the sparky Pauline and the more melancholic Suzanne are united by the same activist spirit. The two live apart for long stretches but stay in touch through postcards, supplemented by flashbacks and voice-over narration, which gives the picture the quality of an epistolary novel. Advertisement Pauline, who renames herself Pomme (or Apple), joins a feminist performance troupe whose songs nearly transform the film into a full-blown musical. (Varda wrote the lyrics herself.) Suzanne, after raising her children for a while on her parents miserable farm, teaches herself to type, gets a job and opens her own family planning clinic. Reproductive freedom is repeatedly foregrounded: The two women meet again at an abortion-rights protest in 1972, by which point Pomme has also terminated a pregnancy. The films embrace of motherhood we watch as Suzannes children grow up, and Pomme eventually has two of her own is no less sincerely or passionately felt. To describe Vardas picture as an ardent tribute to the never-not-timely subjects of womens liberation and solidarity is to risk making it sound awfully schematic. But if One Sings, the Other Doesnt is something of a thesis movie, that thesis takes shape gently, with equal parts documentary grit and dreamlike evanescence. (Vardas career-long play with nonfiction techniques is very much in evidence, particularly when lawyer and feminist activist Gisele Halimi appears as herself in the 1972 protest scene.) Agnes Varda on making films, admiring Angelina Jolie and winning a side Oscar Not all the critics were convinced when the film first screened in the U.S. Pauline Kael, writing in the New Yorker, dismissed it as a cheery, educational, feminism-can-be-fun movie and said that Vardas lyricism is trivializing. The New York Times Vincent Canby likened it to Soviet propaganda and complained that the male roles were superfluous, especially that of Darius (Ali Raffi), the Iranian man who fathers Pommes two children but soon becomes another oppressive patriarch. Leaving aside the question of whether superfluous male roles are such a bad thing in a medium that often treats women as an afterthought (plus ca change), its fascinating that Varda spends as much time as she does on Darius and to a lesser extent Pierre (Jean-Pierre Pellegrin), the married doctor who makes a late bid for Suzannes affections. The movie dwells on these men precisely because they mean a great deal to Pomme and Suzanne, but crucially, it acknowledges their place in the story without allowing them to dominate it. In Vardas movies, a commitment to politics doesnt mean the negation of nuance, ambiguity, pleasure, love. She seems to share with her two heroines not just a talent for continual self-reinvention but also an understanding that collective progress and personal fulfillment are never achieved without self-doubt or compromise. That sentiment comes through beautifully in a sequence set at a joyous outdoor reunion: The camera drifts along a riverbank and eventually comes to rest on Pomme and Suzanne, their faces alive with a serenity as lovely as it is hard-won. ------------ One Sings, the Other Doesnt (In French with English subtitles) Running time: 2 hours Playing: 8 p.m. Tuesday, July 24, at Downtown Independent See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour justin.chang@latimes.com @JustinCChang Gucci revealed on Monday that its spring 2019 collection will be presented at Theatre Le Palace in Paris on Sept. 24 at 9 p.m. The Italian fashion house said this is the first time the location will host a runway show. Le Palace, located at 8 Rue du Faubourg-Montmartre, served for years as a nightclub, drawing members of the fashion and music industries as well as an underground culture. The Theatre Le Palace resonates with the vision of the house as it is a venue that gave life to a (sub)culture that has inspired young generations up until today, said a statement from Gucci. This is a one-off show for Gucci in Paris and marks the crescendo of a three-part homage to France conceived by the Italian brands creative director, Alessandro Michele. Advertisement Gucci began its ode to France starting with its pre-fall advertising campaign, which harks back to that country circa 1968, when student marches and riots sparked popular rebellions against military and bureaucratic elites. Photographed and directed by Glen Luchford, it depicts Gucci-clad rebels occupying a university campus, passionately challenging the establishment and asking for change. Luchfords black-and-white photos are inspired by the bold French Nouvelle Vague imagery of the late Fifties and Sixties and by radical filmmakers Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard. For the campaign, Gucci launched the hashtag #GucciDansLesRues [Gucci in the streets]. The campaign was also launched on the Gucci Art Walls in Milan, New York, London and Hong Kong. On May 30, Gucci held its cruise show in Arles, exalting the ancient site and Roman necropolis of the Promenade Des Alyscamps. In the span of a few hours, Gene Atkins had shot his grandmother, kidnapped his girlfriend and then led police on a wild chase from Hollywood to Silver Lake while shooting at officers from his car, authorities said. Now, the armed 28-year-old was running through a crowded Trader Joes parking lot toward a store filled with dozens of shoppers and employees. The officers chasing him had a decision to make: Shoot back and risk the lives of anyone in the line of fire, or allow Atkins to enter the store and potentially endanger dozens more. In the gun battle that followed, the stores manager was killed as she stepped into the parking lot. Advertisement It remains unclear whether the manager was shot by police or Atkins, but the decision to engage in a firefight at the busy shopping center led some to question the Los Angeles Police Departments response, while others were quick to praise the officers for risking their lives in an effort to stop Atkins. LAPD Chief Michel Moore labeled the situation a tragedy, and policing experts said the officers faced a near-impossible decision in which their options ranged only from bad to worse. Its one of those lose-lose situations, said Geoff Alpert, a professor of criminology at the University of South Carolina and expert on police use of force. Unless you can walk away with no one else getting injured or killed, theres going to be someone criticizing something. But some were openly critical of the LAPDs decision to shoot at Atkins when there were bystanders in the area. How are police deciding to open fire in a packed place, in the afternoon, on a Saturday? asked Jesse Palmer, a 38-year-old neighbor of the slain woman. Its not like its an empty lot. Its not like its an abandoned warehouse. What sort of protocol is required before you shoot into an area thats congested and booming with commerce? The chaotic series of events that led to the shooting and a subsequent standoff inside the popular Trader Joes began hours earlier in South L.A. Atkins had become involved in an argument with his grandmother at their home in the 1600 block of East 32nd Street. The dispute turned bloody and Atkins shot the woman multiple times before forcing his girlfriend into his grandmothers Toyota Camry, police said. Police used an anti-vehicle theft system to track Atkins to Hollywood hours later, but the gunman fled. He shot at police during the ensuing car chase, shattering the rear window of the Camry, before crashing into a light post on Hyperion Avenue, where the Trader Joes was located. Atkins fired at police as he ran toward the store, and was injured by a volley of return fire, police said. He is expected to survive and is being held in lieu of $2 million on suspicion of murder, according to an LAPD spokesman. Additional charges are likely. The suspects cousin, Charlene Egland, said Atkins lived with his grandmother, whom she identified as Mary Madison. Madison raised Atkins and frequently took care of him despite past run-ins with police and sometimes heated clashes between the two family members, she said. Whenever he got into something, shed go to his rescue; thats why I cant even believe what he did to her, Egland said. 1 / 16 Paolo Singer, 27, of Silver Lake prays at a memorial outside of Trader Joes in Silver Lake, where a shooting left one woman dead and at least two wounded Saturday. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 2 / 16 A portrait of Melyda Corado, who was shot and killed Saturday, is pinned to a memorial outside Trader Joes in Silver Lake. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 3 / 16 Fiona Shields, of Los Feliz, leaves a note at a memorial outside of Trader Joes in Silver Lake on Monday. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 4 / 16 A couple embrace at a memorial Sunday night for Melyda Corado, a store manager who was killed in Saturdays shootout involving a gunman and LAPD officers at Trader Joe s in Silver Lake. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 5 / 16 Members of the community pay their respects Sunday night to Melyda Corado, a store manager who was killed in Saturday s shootout involving a gunman and LAPD officers at Trader Joe s in Silver Lake. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 6 / 16 Members of the community pay their respects Sunday night to Melyda Corado, a store manager who was killed in Saturday s shootout involving a gunman and LAPD officers at Trader Joe s in Silver Lake. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 7 / 16 Community members mourn for Melyda Corado, the Trader Joes store manager who was killed Saturday in Silver Lake. Photographs by Marcus Yam Los Angeles Times (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 16 People embrace outside a Trader Joes market after a gunman took dozens of people hostage inside the store before surrendering to police. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 16 A woman is evacuated on a gurney outside the Silver Lake Trader Joes where a gunman held hostages for several hours. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 16 A gunman suspected of shooting two people at a South L.A. home before opening fire outside a Trader Joes in Silver Lake is in custody after a tense standoff. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 16 The scene around the Trader Joes in Silver Lake after a police pursuit ended near there and a hostage drama ensued. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 16 Officials push a gurney to the scene of the Silver Lake Trader Joes where a gunman held hostages for several hours. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 16 Los Angeles police SWAT officers escort a group of people who were held for their safety by police at businesses surrounding a Trader Joes market after a gunman took dozens of people hostage inside the store before surrendering to police. (Damian Dovarganes / AP) 14 / 16 Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, center, and Police Chief Michel Moore, right, brief the media at a news conference after a gunman held dozens of people hostage inside a Trader Joes market before surrendering to police in Los Angeles. (Damian Dovarganes / AP) 15 / 16 A woman is evacuated on a gurney outside the Silver Lake Trader Joes where a gunman held hostages for several hours. (Damian Dovarganes / AP) 16 / 16 In this image from video provided by KNBC-TV, Los Angeles police remove a passenger from a car that crashed after police pursuit of a driver who then ran into a nearby Trader Joes market in Silver Lake. (KNBC-TV via AP) Police said the shooting left Madison in critical condition. On Sunday, Egland said Madison, who is in her 70s, had made it through surgery and would likely be OK. Madison and Atkins had repeatedly argued over letting Atkins girlfriend sleep at their home, relatives said. Atkins had struggled with anger issues as a child and was deeply affected by his mothers death from leukemia in 2014, according to Egland and another cousin, Deshon Hayward. We pretty much have been trying to figure out why he would harm the one person who has done the most for him. We dont understand. He must have blacked out, Hayward said. Los Angeles police had arrested Atkins for vandalism in 2008, but he was never formally charged with a crime, records show. Madison also received a restraining order against Atkins in 2010, records show. Egland said Atkins stopped taking medication in recent years. She said she believed her cousin needed professional help. Egland, who lives next door to Madison, said Atkins also robbed her daughter at gunpoint in 2010, but he was never arrested for the crime. In recent days, Egland said, Atkins made disturbing comments to her daughter. Im either gonna die and go to hell or Im gonna kill somebody, he said, according to Egland. Sid Heal, a retired Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department commander and use-of-force expert, said it would be tragic if a bullet fired by police caused the death of an innocent bystander, but added that Atkins was an obvious danger to both the public and responding officers. We try to have a clear field of fire, but obviously the suspect has a substantial, even a decisive, advantage if we dont return fire, he said. There is no easy answer. The question of whether to open fire on a dangerous suspect when innocent bystanders are nearby is one that has confronted other officers, including the LAPDs chief. As a young officer, Moore was moonlighting as a security guard at a shopping mall in the San Fernando Valley when he killed a man who was firing a semiautomatic rifle in the parking lot. With parked cars obscuring his view, Moore was unsure what the man was firing at. The man pointed the rifle at Moore, who fatally shot him in the head, according to a report by then-Chief Daryl Gates. It later became clear that the man was shooting at his ex-wife, killing her. Moore received the LAPDs Medal of Valor, awarded to officers who display courage in the face of imminent peril. In the aftermath of the Trader Joes shooting, friends remembered the slain store manager, identified by a relative as Melyda Corado, as a cheerful presence in the neighborhood. I could always hear her laughing that boisterous, big, room-filling laugh, said Palmer, who lived in the same apartment building as Corado for four years. Corado shared a two-bedroom apartment with a couple who neighbors said were among her closest friends, according to Zaher Cassim, the buildings manager. She recently transferred to the Silver Lake Trader Joes from a different store branch. Outside the store Sunday morning, a steady stream of students, residents and tourists could be overheard talking about the violence. By noon, a blooming memorial filled with roses, lilies, daisies and tender wildflowers had sprouted at Monon Street and Hyperion Avenue, stacked against the grocery stores white exterior. Customers, neighbors and others stopped by to pay their respects, scribbling sympathy messages on sticky notes and attaching them to the wall above the bouquets. All of the employees are part of our community, one note read. We will care for each other. Those who were held hostage inside the store remained shaken Sunday as they recounted the harrowing experience of a bloodied and panicked Atkins pacing through the store with his gun drawn. Roughly 40 people were inside the store when he barged in, according to Moore, though several were able to escape by fleeing through windows or rear exits. Atkins also released a number of hostages during a three-hour negotiation with the LAPD. Ten people were taken to area hospitals and treated for non-life-threatening injuries, according to a statement issued Sunday by the LAPD. No officers were hurt. Cyrani Ackerman, 49, told The Times she was walking toward the checkout line with her 19-year-old daughter when the screech of tires sent her scrambling. As gunfire began to erupt outside, many customers fled toward the back of the store, either cowering in bathrooms or ducking in aisles as far away from the melee as possible. Seven of us were hiding in the back behind the bread, she said. There was a lot of shots fired. The gunman stayed near the front of the building with about five employees and customers, according to Ackerman, who said at some point the gunman noticed people had found ways to exit the store. He ordered one hostage to walk the aisles and round up anyone else who was hiding, including Ackerman and her daughter. Ackerman said she noticed a lot of blood in the store but did not know about the death of the store manager while she was hiding. She said she overheard the gunman talking to police as he demanded to speak with his grandmother and referred to someone being dead. The comments caused her and others hiding inside to grow even more fearful. At one point, Atkins became alarmed by the sight of snipers outside the store, according to Ackerman. Thats when he threatened to kill us, she said. During his negotiations with the LAPD, Atkins also discussed the woman who was fatally shot as he stormed the grocery store. He said to the police that it was their fault for her being dead, Ackerman said. james.queally@latimes.com anh.do@latimes.com richard.winton@latimes.com For more breaking news in Southern California, follow @JamesQueallyLAT @newsterrier & @LAcrimes Its taken about two weeks, but crews battling a wildfire west of Yosemite National Park have nearly completed defenses around those communities most at risk of burning, authorities say. Firefighters have worked around the clock since the Ferguson fire began July 13 to complete containment lines around the Jerseydale, Clearing House and Incline neighborhoods. In that time, one firefighter operating a bulldozer was killed when his vehicle rolled down a hillside and six others have been hurt their injuries ranging from back strains to broken bones and heat exhaustion, said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Jim Mackensen. The ground were working on has some of the most unforgiving topography in the central Sierra, Mackensen said. Advertisement Highway shoulders lead to sharp cliffs and boulders are but a footstep away from rolling downhill onto fire crews. Weve got this chunk of gulch here called Devils Gulch. People go in there and never come back out, Mackensen said. Its a really, really steep hole choked with brush and rocks and the fire is burning in that. Where the flames are more easily accessible, crews are battling the blaze among groves of dead standing timber destroyed by an epic bark beetle infestation and years of drought, Mackensen said. On Sunday, crews were conducting a back burn igniting brush ahead of the fire to eliminate its potential fuel when a towering, burning tree fell across their path. That ignited a 7-acre blaze that crews had to scramble to put out, forcing them to stop their work on containing the larger blaze, Mackensen said. And where its not the dead trees complicating matters, Mackensen said, the blaze is pushing through forest that hasnt burned in more than a century. The terrain is what it is. We got some really nasty terrain in California, he said. So far, the Ferguson fire has scorched 33,743 acres mostly south of Highway 140 along the south fork of the Merced River, the Forest Service said. Crews expect the fire to burn deeper into the Sierra and Stanislaus national forests in the coming days. Firefighters are scraping the earth clean of brush down to the root up to a mile south and east of the fires current perimeter so they can set up defensive positions, Mackensen said. The fires edge is about a mile and a half outside of Yosemite National Park. About 3,500 structures are considered threatened by the fire and more than 3,000 firefighters are attacking the blaze. joseph.serna@latimes.com For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna on Twitter. Health officials issued a heat alert for Los Angeles Countys inland valleys Monday, warning that a multiday heat wave expected for Southern California this week will put the communitys most vulnerable residents at risk. Temperatures arent expected to be quite as blistering as they were during a heat wave that shattered records two weekends ago, but the one expected this week will last longer and reach from the San Gabriel Valley and high desert to the coast, the National Weather Service said. Its not going to cool off at night. Just 96 hours of hot temperatures, warned meteorologist Andrew Rorke. If you can survive to the weekend you might get a little relief. Monday could be up to 8 degrees warmer than it was Sunday, Rorke said. It was expected to be 92 degrees in downtown Los Angeles and 105 degrees in Woodland Hills. The heat wave will peak Tuesday and Wednesday when temperatures will hit 94 each day downtown and 107 in Woodland Hills, Rorke said. Advertisement This weeks heat wave isnt expected to cause any major outages, according to Marty Adams, chief operating officer for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Adams said the DWP is making sure the city has adequate power supplies and will balance electricity going to different neighborhoods. That way, no one area will be overwhelmed, or at least thats the plan. The DWP is most closely monitoring Mid-City, where the power grid was worst hit during the extreme heat wave that gripped the city earlier this month. Department staff are working 12-hour days there, Adams said, fixing potential weak links in the circuitry. Usually, the L.A. power grid cools down overnight, giving the equipment some rest, Adams said. But when theres a heat wave, the grid can become overwhelmed without that reprieve much like how an extension cord is hot to the touch when its been used heavily and malfunction. DWP customers can help prevent that overload by using less electricity at peak times, from 2 to 9 p.m, Adams said. Thats especially important during a heat wave, when people are using more energy than usual to air-condition their homes. Dont do laundry, dont use certain appliances if you dont have to, Adams said. And keep your thermostat at 78 degrees, if you can bear it, he added. Also, on Monday, the California Independent System Operator, which runs the electrical grid and shares responsibilities for preventing blackouts and brownouts, issued flex alerts or Tuesday and Wednesday, between the hours of 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. During those periods, consumers are urged to voluntarily scale back their power usage. (Kyle Kim) The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health issued a heat alert Monday and Tuesday for residents in the Antelope, Santa Clarita, San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys and Pomona. Downtown Los Angeles was included in Tuesdays heat alert. When temperatures are high, even a few hours of exertion may cause severe dehydration, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heatstroke. Others who are frail or have chronic health conditions may develop serious health problems leading to death if they are exposed to high temperatures over several days, said the countys interim health officer, Jeffrey Gunzenhauser, in a statement. Thus, it is critically important to never leave children, elderly people or pets unattended in homes with no air conditioning and particularly in vehicles, even if the windows are cracked or open, as temperatures inside can quickly rise to life-threatening levels. A list of cooling centers is available here. Not only will it be hot with little relief overnight, but the air will be dry and windy inland, which sucks moisture out of any vegetation in the area and primes the landscape for a fast-moving brush fire. Its just piling on the bad news, Rorke said. Much of Los Angeles County will likely be above 80 degrees until at after midnight, he said. The winds that will be posing fire dangers inland will be absent along the coast, which ironically might make it a worse place to be this week because few coastal residents have air conditioning, Rorke said. The sea breeze will be nonexistent, he said. A 1- or 2-degree dip in the heat is expected Thursday, but temperatures wont noticeably begin to decrease until Friday, Rorke said. A marine layer could return to the region by the weekend. On top of L.A. Countys heat alert, the National Weather Service issued its own heat warning from Tuesday through Thursday for Kern, Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange and San Diego counties. joseph.serna@latimes.com For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna on Twitter. UPDATES: 2:10 p.m.: This article was updated with details about two upcoming flex alerts from Cal-ISO. 12:25 p.m.: This article was updated with comments from Adams. This article was originally published at 6:55 a.m. One man was killed and a woman was seriously injured when their sport utility vehicle was struck by a car involved in an illegal street race in Los Angeles early Sunday morning, police said. The dead victim, who was not immediately identified, was pulling out of a driveway in the 5000 block of South Central Avenue around 1:30 a.m. when his SUV was hit by a 2009 BMW that was racing a white sedan, according to a statement issued by the Los Angeles Police Department. The BMW was unable to stop and slammed into the drivers side of the victims SUV, police said. The BMW then crashed into two other vehicles before it came to a stop, but the occupants of those vehicles were not hurt, according to police. The victim suffered injuries to his head and body, and was pronounced dead despite being rushed to surgery, police said. A woman in the SUV remains in critical condition after suffering trauma to her head and body. Advertisement The driver of the BMW was also hospitalized in stable condition. It was not clear whether the driver was arrested or would face charges, and calls to an LAPD spokesperson seeking additional comment Sunday were not returned. Police are searching for the driver of the sedan and asked anyone with information to contact detectives with the LAPDs Central Traffic Division at (213) 833-3713 or (213) 486-0760. Earlier this year, a Times analysis of coroners records, media accounts and police reports found that roughly 170 people have died in Los Angeles County in crashes linked to illegal street racing between 2000 and 2017. james.queally@latimes.com Follow @JamesQueallyLAT for crime and police news in California. The Trader Joes market that was the scene of a deadly shootout and hostage crisis in Silver Lake over the weekend will remain closed until further notice, company officials said. The store was the final scene in a violent rampage allegedly perpetrated by 28-year-old Gene Atkins, who police said shot his grandmother in the South L.A. home they shared, kidnapped his girlfriend and led officers on a wild chase from Hollywood to the Trader Joes market in the span of a few hours Saturday afternoon. When it was all over, Atkins was in custody and one store employee was dead killed by gunfire from an unknown shooter. Now police are working to determine if the employee, identified by family members as Melyda Corado, was fatally wounded by the suspect or the Los Angeles Police Department. 1 / 16 Paolo Singer, 27, of Silver Lake prays at a memorial outside of Trader Joes in Silver Lake, where a shooting left one woman dead and at least two wounded Saturday. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 2 / 16 A portrait of Melyda Corado, who was shot and killed Saturday, is pinned to a memorial outside Trader Joes in Silver Lake. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 3 / 16 Fiona Shields, of Los Feliz, leaves a note at a memorial outside of Trader Joes in Silver Lake on Monday. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 4 / 16 A couple embrace at a memorial Sunday night for Melyda Corado, a store manager who was killed in Saturdays shootout involving a gunman and LAPD officers at Trader Joe s in Silver Lake. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 5 / 16 Members of the community pay their respects Sunday night to Melyda Corado, a store manager who was killed in Saturday s shootout involving a gunman and LAPD officers at Trader Joe s in Silver Lake. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 6 / 16 Members of the community pay their respects Sunday night to Melyda Corado, a store manager who was killed in Saturday s shootout involving a gunman and LAPD officers at Trader Joe s in Silver Lake. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 7 / 16 Community members mourn for Melyda Corado, the Trader Joes store manager who was killed Saturday in Silver Lake. Photographs by Marcus Yam Los Angeles Times (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) 8 / 16 People embrace outside a Trader Joes market after a gunman took dozens of people hostage inside the store before surrendering to police. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 9 / 16 A woman is evacuated on a gurney outside the Silver Lake Trader Joes where a gunman held hostages for several hours. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 16 A gunman suspected of shooting two people at a South L.A. home before opening fire outside a Trader Joes in Silver Lake is in custody after a tense standoff. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 11 / 16 The scene around the Trader Joes in Silver Lake after a police pursuit ended near there and a hostage drama ensued. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 16 Officials push a gurney to the scene of the Silver Lake Trader Joes where a gunman held hostages for several hours. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 16 Los Angeles police SWAT officers escort a group of people who were held for their safety by police at businesses surrounding a Trader Joes market after a gunman took dozens of people hostage inside the store before surrendering to police. (Damian Dovarganes / AP) 14 / 16 Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, center, and Police Chief Michel Moore, right, brief the media at a news conference after a gunman held dozens of people hostage inside a Trader Joes market before surrendering to police in Los Angeles. (Damian Dovarganes / AP) 15 / 16 A woman is evacuated on a gurney outside the Silver Lake Trader Joes where a gunman held hostages for several hours. (Damian Dovarganes / AP) 16 / 16 In this image from video provided by KNBC-TV, Los Angeles police remove a passenger from a car that crashed after police pursuit of a driver who then ran into a nearby Trader Joes market in Silver Lake. (KNBC-TV via AP) Advertisement Trader Joes released a statement regarding the shooting Sunday: To Our Valued Customers, Yesterday marks the saddest day in Trader Joes history as we mourn the loss of one of our own. Our thoughts are with her family, and our Crew Members and customers who experienced this terrifying and unimaginable ordeal. Our Silverlake store will remain closed until further notice to give our Crew Members time to process yesterdays events. We will continue to do whatever we can to support them. Thank you for your understanding and outpouring of support. Police continue to investigate the incident. Detectives will be canvassing the area for security camera videos and additional witnesses to help piece together the incident, said LAPD spokesman Chris Ramirez. The suspects cousin, Charlene Egland, said Atkins lived with his grandmother, whom she identified as Mary Madison. Hes not a killer, Egland said Monday. He had a lot of stuff on his mind. The 63-year-old said she visited Madison her aunt in the hospital the day before. She was out of surgery and recovering in ICU, she said. As relatives flowed in and out of the room, Madison tried to speak, but had a tube in her throat, making her words incomprehensible. The family prayed for her recovery, Egland said. Doctors told Egland that Madison was shot three times in the chest and leg not the seven that has been widely reported, and that Madison would have to have an additional operation on her hip. On the day of the shooting, Cyrani Ackerman was inside Trader Joes with her daughter Morgan when they heard gunshots in the parking lot. We heard the screech of tires and the crash. We started scrambling before we even heard shots, Ackerman said. They were just about to check out when bullets began to fly. Terrified staff and customers scrambled to the back of the store where they hid in bathrooms, upstairs and behind shipments of food. Seven of us were hiding in the back behind the bread, Ackerman said. There was a lot of shots fired. About 30 minutes after the gunfire began, Los Angeles police began to stealthily rescue dozens of those hiding while the gunman remained at the front of the store. Ackerman, a creative director for a design studio, said the gunman forced an employee to find everyone in the store and bring them up so he could see us. The entire store was empty except us behind the bread and the few people that were with him, she said. Two women were laying on the floor near him when we approached and we couldnt tell if they were hurt, but then it became clear they were just trying to hide and stay out of the way. Tension peaked when the gunman noticed police had surrounded the building, Ackerman said. That was the worst when he saw the snipers outside and told the police to move them, she recalled. Thats when he threatened to kill us and at this point, we were 5 to 10 [feet] in front of him. She said the hostages couldnt really communicate with one another and just held to whoever we could reach. Ackerman said that throughout the ordeal, I tried to keep eye contact with him when I could. And I thanked him whenever he released someone. She said all she could think about was saving her daughter. As soon as the gunman was able to talk to his grandmother, he began letting people go, Ackerman said. He asked Ackerman if the college-age woman with her was her daughter and Ackerman said yes, so he let the woman go, she said. I was holding to another young woman too he asked if she was also my daughter and I said yes and he let her go too, she said. The gunman ultimately surrendered after police said they would not shoot him if he surrendered, Ackerman said. In the aftermath of the shooting, friends remembered Corado, who was the store manager, as a cheerful presence in the neighborhood. Corado shared a two-bedroom apartment with a couple who neighbors said were among her closest friends, according to Zaher Cassim, the buildings manager. She recently transferred to the Silver Lake Trader Joes from a different store branch. Im sad to say she didnt make it. My baby sister. My world. I appreciate the retweets and the love, Albert Corado tweeted Saturday. Please respect my familys privacy as we are still coming to terms with this. Atkins is being held in lieu of $2-million bail on suspicion of murder, according to police. Egland said Atkins had been involved in a feud with his grandmother over his girlfriends presence at the home they shared on East 32nd Street in South L.A. Egland said Atkins was raised by his grandmother, who repeatedly cared for him despite prior run-ins with police and sometimes violent arguments that would erupt between the two. Whenever he got into something, shed go to his rescue; thats why I cant even believe what he did to her, Egland said. No court date had been set for Atkins by Monday morning, jail records showed. Los Angeles Times staff writer Joseph Serna contributed to this report. UPDATES: 12:15 p.m.: This article was updated with comments from Charlene Egland, the suspects cousin. This article was originally published at 10:20 a.m. More than two decades after Los Angeles was forced to cut water diversions to protect Californias natural resources, the state is poised to impose similar restrictions on San Francisco and some of the Central Valleys oldest irrigation districts. The proposal represents a dramatic new front in one of Californias most enduring water fights: the battle over the pastoral delta that is part of the West Coasts largest estuary and also an important source of water for much of the state. Regulators have long focused on the harmful environmental effects of the Sacramento-San Joaquin deltas giant pumping operations, which send water south and have helped push native fish to the brink of extinction. As fish populations collapsed, environmental limits on water exports to San Joaquin Valley farms and Southern California cities have tightened. Now, the State Water Resources Control Board is looking upstream to agricultural districts and cities that have long escaped responsibility for the deltas woes even though they suck massive quantities of water out of the river systems that feed the delta. Advertisement Its an important milestone, board chairwoman Felicia Marcus said. Weve laid out a framework for taking the next step in reconciling ourselves with the natural world in a way that has been on the plate for decades. In what environmentalists say is a long overdue move, the board for the first time is asking major upstream diverters to take less from three heavily tapped tributaries of the San Joaquin River, which merges with the Sacramento River to form the delta, a maze of farm islands and meandering water channels. More water in the Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Merced rivers will improve conditions for migrating salmon, the board says, increase flows in the much abused lower San Joaquin River and ultimately boost inflow to the delta. (Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times) But more water for the delta and salmon means less for San Francisco and the agricultural districts that staked their claims to river flows a century or more ago. What gives is going to be a cutback in farming, said Scott Furgerson, general manager of the 131-year-old Modesto Irrigation District, which has historic rights to the Tuolumne. Were going down a slippery slope. The Modesto, Oakdale, South San Joaquin, Turlock and other districts take so much water out of the three salmon rivers that average flows on the tributaries range from 21% to 40% of what they would be without dams and diversions. At times the riverbeds hold as little as 10% of their natural flow. Dams, diversions, pollution and shrinking habitat have driven Californias fabled salmon runs onto the endangered species list, triggering environmental lawsuits and efforts to restore some of the water lost to croplands and cities. The state board proposal would require maintenance of 40% of the natural flow, within a range of 30% to 50%, in the Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Merced during the February-though-June period, which is critical for salmon survival. That would collectively cost water users 300,000 acre-feet of supply or about 15% of their total diversions on all three rivers. (An acre-foot is enough to supply two average households for a year.) But that could change. The board says less flow might be required if districts agree to measures to improve conditions for salmon, which swim up the tributaries to spawn. Were extending an olive branch to say if you come up with a better idea, well reward it, Marcus said. The board has spent years developing the flow standards. It released a draft of the proposal in 2016, when Gov. Jerry Brown called for voluntary agreements between the state and water districts to avoid a contentious rule-making process. The state hired former U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt to help with the negotiations. But the off-and-on talks have yet to yield a settlement. State officials hope this months release of the final board plan will kickstart discussions. Were really hoping that we can keep the water users at the table as a result of these documents coming out and see if we can come to closure on agreement that we can present to the water board, said Karla Nemeth, director of the state Department of Water Resources. Everybodys going to need to give a little. In place of water cutbacks, San Francisco and the other major diverters have proposed restoration efforts such as rebuilding gravel beds for spawning, control of salmon predators and creation of floodplain habitat. We think the state board uses a very simplistic approach, said Steve Ritchie, an assistant general manager at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which gets which gets most of its supply from Hetch Hetchy Reservoir on the upper Tuolumne. He warned that the flow requirements would leave San Francisco and the Bay Area communities it serves with less water reserves to ride out droughts. We just wouldnt be able to replenish our storage over time, Ritchie said. On the Stanislaus, the 40% flow standard is surely not anything we will accept, said Steve Knell, general manager of the Oakdale Irrigation District, which has made roughly $40 million in the past decade selling some of its river supplies to less water-rich agricultural districts. Environmental advocates also dont like the proposed requirements, which they deem too low in the overtaxed San Joaquin system. The science is pretty strong, said Gary Bobker, program director for the Bay Institute, an estuary protection group. If you want to have anywhere from stabilizing fish populations to actually recovering them and rebuilding the stock to a healthy level, youve got to have somewhere between 50 and 60% of the [natural] runoff. He added that you cant separate flow from all the other factors such as invasive species and poor water quality that contributed to the steep decline of Californias salmon stocks, which were once so abundant that farmers scooped the fish out of rivers and fed them to hogs. Bobker nonetheless credited the board for extending the pain of water cuts to the most senior agricultural diverters something the panel of gubernatorial appointees has historically been reluctant to do. Were moving to a mentality where were all in this together as Californians, he said. Indeed, the board is not stopping in the San Joaquin Valley. It is also developing flow requirements for the Sacramento River basin that would cut diversions in that watershed and send more water to the delta. And the board wants to increase flows through the delta and out to sea to restore some of the estuarys natural hydrological rhythm. That could mean less water is pumped south. It may take a while. We might have to litigate a while but Im very confident well succeed, Marcus said. She citied the Mono Lake case, when the board in 1994 ordered Los Angeles to reduce diversions from the Eastern Sierra to protect the regions fish and wildlife. To compensate, the city has stepped up development of local supplies, purchased more imported water from the Colorado River and Northern California and promoted conservation. Despite adding 1 million residents, L.A. is using less water than it did two decades ago. No matter how senior, water-use rights do not confer ownership, Marcus notes. Water belongs to all the people of the state of California, she said. And fish and wildlife are one of those commonly held assets that we as a water board are supposed to be protecting. bettina.boxall@latimes.com Twitter: @boxall As more lawsuits pile up against USC for its handling of a campus gynecologist accused of sexually abusing patients, the chair of the universitys board of trustees said he wanted to see the litigation resolved as quickly as possible. Rick Caruso, the mall magnate tapped to lead the board in the wake of the scandal, said he hoped a settlement could occur without depositions and trials that would require former patients to detail publicly their experiences with Dr. George Tyndall. We are going to be fair, we are going to be dignified and we are going to have a process that does not put them through hardship in coming to a resolution, said Caruso. Settling the cases could cost USC and its insurers hundreds of millions of dollars. More than 225 students and alumnae are now suing USC for failing to protect them from Tyndall, including 51 women who filed suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court on Monday morning. Advertisement The plaintiffs who sued Monday are clients of a Houston law firm that used Facebook advertisements as well as other methods to reach former patients of Tyndall. They include graduates from across the U.S., as well as from Israel and Britain, and the time frame of their accusations ranges from the late 1980s to two years ago, the entire span of Tyndalls three-decade career at the student health center. One suit on behalf of 2002 graduate Amanda Davis asserts that Tyndall inserted his ungloved, uncleaned fingers inside her while remarking on her body. The suit contends that during the same appointment, Tyndall told Davis, who had recently given birth, that he was writing a book on how women were able to get back into shape and persuaded her to let him take full body nude photographs for what he said were research purposes. There is no record of Tyndall publishing a book or research study. It is unclear what became of the pictures, a fact that Davis said in an interview left her disgusted. I grew up in a small town, and I was very trusting especially when it comes to authority figures, said Davis, now living in Arizona. I didnt have a reason to doubt him. Tyndall is also named as a defendant in the suits. The 71-year-old has denied any wrongdoing. In interviews with The Times, he specifically denied ever examining a woman without gloves. He has said through an attorney that when all the facts come out, he will be vindicated. The physician, the sole full-time gynecologist on campus, was the subject of repeated complaints throughout his career, but was allowed to continue treating women until 2016 when a frustrated nurse reported him to the rape crisis center. An internal investigation concluded his touching of patient genitals during pelvic exams and accompanying comments about their bodies amounted to sexual harassment. Administrators did not alert his patients and allowed him to resign with a financial settlement last year. More than 400 people have contacted a hotline for former patients of Tyndall. University leaders have apologized to students and alumni, and President C.L. Max Nikias stepped down in May under pressure from faculty and students. Caruso and USCs lead defense attorney, Susan Estrich, also a university law professor, said lawyers for the school are working with its insurers as they respond to the lawsuits. We absolutely have to defend the university and be cognizant of the limits of the university and the university treasury, but there are many ways to resolve cases like this without putting women through a difficult and painful experience, Estrich said. Experts have said the settlement amount could be staggering. In May, Michigan State University agreed in May to a $500-million settlement with 332 women treated by Dr. Larry Nassar, the physician accused of sexually abusing Olympic gymnasts and other patients. Andy Rubenstein, whose Texas firm D. Miller & Associates is representing the Tyndall patients who sued Monday, said the case against USC is strong because of what he called the generational arc of institutional silence. This couldve been prevented if anyone at USC had stepped up sooner, he said. We have a client who is still a student at USC and she wasnt even born yet when [another client] Dr. Dana Loewy was being abused by Tyndall. Loewy, who received her Ph.D. from USC in 1995, alleged in her suit that Tyndall touched her inappropriately and made bizarre and insulting comments during an appointment. He insisted that she was a virgin and that he could feel her intact hymen despite the fact she had been in several committed intimate relationships with boyfriends, according to the suit. When she told the gynecologist that her current romantic partner was a woman, he asked her, Is it true that all lesbians hate men? Loewy, a textbook author in Fullerton, said she saw the universitys response to Tyndall as part of larger culture of covering up problems and said she joined the litigation precisely because I care about USC. Dr. Tyndall should be held accountable and USC should be held accountable as well, Loewy said. Times staff writer Matt Hamilton contributed to this story. harriet.ryan@latimes.com @latimesharriet In an abrupt escalation of tensions with Iran, President Trump is threatening the Islamic Republic with war unless it changes its ways, in concert with senior advisors who are speaking out on separate fronts. Critics immediately branded the threats as Trumps attempt to divert attention from widespread, bipartisan disapproval of his troubled dealings with Russia, criticism that has only grown since last weeks Helsinki summit with President Vladimir Putin and amid attention to the upcoming trial of his former campaign manager, Paul Manafort. But in contrast to the Russia controversy, where Trumps embrace of Putin has seemed oddly at cross-purposes with the tough policies of his own administration, on Iran, senior officials echoed the president on Sunday and Monday with their tough talk, just weeks before the administration plans to slap brutal economic sanctions on the country. In a blistering tweet, Trump wrote shortly before midnight Sunday in Washington, To Iranian President Rouhani, and then hit his caps-lock button for the message: Advertisement To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Trump was apparently responding to a speech earlier Sunday by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, in which the Iranian warned of a mother of all wars if the United States attacked. Mr. Trump, dont play with the lions tail, Rouhani warned. He also said, however, that peaceful ties between the two countries could be the mother of all peace. Though Trump may have been replying to Rouhani, the tweet came as part of an overall administration escalation of verbal attacks on Iran. On Sunday evening in Simi Valley, Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo gave a harsh speech denouncing what he called Tehrans Mafia government and pledging support for Iranians who would challenge it. Pompeo said Irans clerics and hypocritical holy men run a kleptocracy that enriches them while impoverishing ordinary Iranians, all while quashing domestic opponents and promoting terrorism abroad. And on Monday, John R. Bolton, Trumps national security advisor, echoed Trumps angry tweet in similar words. The president told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before, Bolton, a longtime hawk, said in a statement. Trumps tweet was reminiscent of his threats, issued at just about this time last summer, to unleash fire and fury like the world has never seen against a nuclear-armed North Korea if it attacked U.S. territory. Since then, however, Trump has embarked on a rapprochement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the still-unfulfilled quest to begin to denuclearize the Korean peninsula. The two leaders met at a one-day summit in Singapore in June in which Trump made a major concession to Kim canceling the United States joint military exercises with South Korea and received little, if anything, in return. This outburst could prove more perilous, however. Unlike with North Korea, where U.S. officials and experts agreed there was no military option against a nuclear-armed adversary, Iran hasnt built a nuclear weapon and therefore is more exposed. Several senior members of the administration including Pompeo at least until recently believed Iran could be contained through U.S. military action. Also, in the case of North Korea, regional players such as South Korea and Japan were invested in finding a peaceful solution. With Iran, however, Washingtons closest like-minded allies on the issue Saudi Arabia and Israel routinely engage in similar bellicose rhetoric, which only encourages Trump. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders would not say whether Trump consulted his national security team before the tweet. She blamed the escalation on Iran. If anybodys inciting anything, look no further than to Iran, she said. The Iran tensions come after Trump withdrew the United States from an agreement to curtail Irans nuclear activities a landmark, international pact signed in 2015 that the administration hopes to unravel. Tehran was abiding by the terms of the nuclear agreement, but Trump said that pact didnt go far enough. He said he wants to confront all of Tehrans malign behavior, such as support for regional militant groups, in addition to thwarting the countrys nuclear potential. Christopher R. Hill, a veteran diplomat in Republican and Democratic administrations, said Trumps hostile rhetoric toward Iran was raw meat for his political base and an effort to shift the subject away from the Putin summit. Things have not gone well and this idea that hes a tough guy has really frayed, Hill said. Sure, hes been tough on Canada and Germany, but he looked weak when he was face-to-face with Putin. This looks like an effort to tell his base, I really am tough. Washington will unilaterally reimpose economic sanctions on Iran in a few weeks and has demanded, so far unsuccessfully, that other nations stop all imports of Iranian oil. Several European allies, who are seeking to keep the Iran agreement alive, have sought waivers from the sanctions, but the State Department has seemed unlikely to grant them. The initial sanctions, targeting Irans automotive sector and trade in gold and other metals, will snap back Aug. 6, said Brian Hook, States director of policy planning. A second tranche of the punitive measures, targeting the energy sector and transactions with the Central Bank of Iran, go into effect Nov. 4, Hook said. Further crippling Irans economy potentially, the sanctions would make it extremely difficult for other countries and international companies to do business with Tehran. Also this week, Pompeo is hosting the first ministerial level conference on religious freedom, with foreign ministers of several nations planning to attend. It gives the secretary another opportunity to highlight what he has described as Irans repression of religious minorities. Reaction in Congress to Trumps ratcheting up of anti-Iran rhetoric was mixed. Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, a Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Trumps belligerent tweet was another alarming warning sign that hes blundering toward war with Iran. The administrations hostile rhetoric and efforts to stir up internal protests against the regime are dangerous, Kaine said. However, a senior Republican congressional aide said Trumps tirade could be part of an approach to scare Iran, and thus constrain it, that has broad party support. After Iran was largely contained in 2008, it then spread its reach to the point where its forces or proxies now are operating in Yemen, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, said the official, who requested anonymity to speak candidly. The goal is to bottle them back up without firing a shot, the aide said. And given Pompeos speech last night, you cant say [Trumps] weird tweets come in the absence of a wider strategic policy. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised what he called Trumps bold stance against Iranian aggression. Netanyahu was speaking ahead of a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Israel wants Russia to help remove pro-Iranian forces from Syria. Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif also used Twitter, and wrote in capital letters, to respond to Trump. COLOR US UNIMPRESSED, Zarif wrote. The world heard even harsher bluster a few months ago, he added, apparently alluding to the North Korea comments. Weve been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, incl our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries, Zarif said. BE CAUTIOUS! On the streets of Tehran, ordinary Iranians were worried that the combative rhetoric would lead to U.S. military action or economic punishment that mostly hurts citizens. But they also continued to show their anger at what many see as the mismanagement of the country by their own leaders. Our rulers are incompetent and inefficient; if they had been good governors, they would have come up with efficient ways to run the country and meet the needs of their own people, said Hadi Pourasel, 55, manager of a taxi agency. Now the threat of the U.S. administration adds to our miseries. Special correspondent Ramin Mostaghim contributed to this report from Tehran. tracy.wilkinson@latimes.com Twitter: @TracyKWilkinson UPDATES: 3:55 p.m.: This article was updated with additional context. This article was originally published at 4:45 a.m. China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) has issued an announcement asking Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences, Chinas second-biggest rabies vaccine maker, to terminate the production of its Vero-cell rabies vaccines. The announcement came after authorities carried out a snap inspection and found the company forging production data and violating the countrys drug production quality management protocols. [File photo: CGTN] The CFDA has asked the provincial food and drug administration of Jilin, where the company is based, to revoke Changchun Changshengs Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certificate, an international recognized license for drug production. CFDA stated that the batch of rabies vaccines involved in the inspection had not been put on the market and had been effectively controlled. Inspectors from both state and provincial food and drug administrations have been stationing at the company for further investigation. Changchun Changshengs parent company, Shenzhen-listed Changsheng Biotechnology, has made a public apology and voluntarily recalled all their rabies vaccines available on the market. The company stated the recall would cost over 200 million yuan (approximately 30 million US dollars) of the companys business income. Zhao Chunzhi, secretary to the president at Changsheng Biotechnology, told China Securities Journal that sales revenue from rabies vaccine products counted for half of Changchun Changshengs gross revenue. This is not the first time Changsheng Biotechnology and its subsidiaries have been involved in drug safety scandals. On July 18, Jilin provincial food and drug administration announced the investigation result into Changchun Changshengs DTaP vaccine. Last year, a batch of the vaccines immunizing children against whooping cough, diphtheria and tetanus were found failing to conform to standards for biological potency. According to the report, 252,600 vaccines in the batch had been sold to disease control and prevention centers throughout east Chinas Shandong Province. Reality has finally fulfilled the predictions that have swirled for months: On Monday, Los Angeles Unified school board member Ref Rodriguez pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate campaign finance laws during his 2015 election campaign. He then resigned his position. Rodriguezs misdeeds which included characterizing donations as coming from supporters when the money was in fact coming from him made a mockery of the laws governing elections. And he didnt take the ethical high road after the charges were filed nearly a year ago. Of course, he was under no legal obligation to explain himself while the charges remained unproven, or to refrain from key votes while a cloud hung over his office, or to resign while the charges against him colored the school boards dealings. But the public, especially the voters, deserved better. For the record: An earlier version of this editorial incorrectly referred to L.A. Unified school board member Nick Melvoin as Neil Melvoin. Sadly, his actions have shown how little he considered what he owed the public. Rodriguez was part of a reform faction favoring a more aggressive push into charter schools. With him on the board, this faction held a one-vote majority over members that were more skeptical of charters and testing-based reforms. The ink on Rodriguezs resignation letter was barely dry before two of his allies, Monica Garcia and Nick Melvoin, issued a statement saying that they wanted the board to replace Rodriguez with a temporary appointed board member, and then hold a special election. Advertisement Whoa, there. When the late, longtime board member Marguerite Poindexter LaMotte who was perhaps the staunchest ally of the teachers union at the time died five years ago, the board voted not to appoint a replacement, either temporary or permanent, and instead left the seat open until a special election could be held. It was the right decision at the time former principal George McKenna, a popular figure in the community, was elected in her place and its the right thing to do now. True representation is more important than expediency. Garcia and Melvoin point out correctly that until an election could be held, the voters of District 5 would be without a voting representative on the school board. Its an oddly shaped district in the eastern portion of L.A. Unified, two bulges connected by a skinny neck, that takes in Silver Lake, Los Feliz, South Gate and Vernon, among other areas. On the other hand, by having a board member who broke the law to gain office, Rodriguezs district already lacked legitimate representation. In any case, in order for voters to be truly represented on the board, they need someone who advances their desires and interests. The residents of Rodriguezs district didnt vote for any of the other board members, who may or may not seem to have the best interests of Rodriguezs district at heart. The board would actually worsen the voter-representation situation if it named a temporary replacement for Rodriguez to fill in until a special election. That fill-in would have an unquestionable and unfair edge as the incumbent once an election was held. District 5 voters already have been victimized by election shenanigans that slanted a candidates chances; the last thing L.A. Unified should do is create another unbalanced campaign. Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion Voters in District 5 might be so put off that they decide they want nothing to do with pro-reform board members, though it would be a shame for Rodriguezs misdeeds to taint everyone who shares his educational philosophy. That was a risk he took. Alternatively, voters might like the direction the district is headed in now and vote to maintain a reform majority. That should be their choice to make. In a scenario eerily similar to that of five years ago, when LaMotte died, Rodriguezs departure leaves the school board in a murky situation, with three members who are clearly seen as pro-reform and three on the other side. Although the districts new superintendent, Austin Beutner, was chosen by a 5-2 majority, giving him some measure of security, the newly even split on the board could be unnerving to the administration, and some initiatives might be placed on hold if they cant win majority approval. Thats potentially frustrating, but it doesnt change the bottom line. True representation is more important than expediency. The voters of District 5 deserve a democratically chosen representative, without any board-chosen favorites given a head start. The board would be making a big mistake if it fuels the voter mistrust that Rodriguez already has created. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinionand Facebook Catching swordfish off the coast of California today means leaving milelong mesh nets deep in the ocean overnight. But what fishermen pull up is mostly not swordfish. For every one of the hefty, long-billed swordfish in a net, its estimated that there are four other marine animals entangled there. The particular kind of drift gillnets used by swordfishermen have holes sized to ensnare swordfish (by their gills, hence the name). But the nets also capture dolphins, whales, sharks, sea turtles and numerous other species of fish. At least half of this bycatch is tossed back out to sea in the case of dolphins, sometimes without their fins (which get tangled in the nets), leaving them no chance of surviving. Most of the mammals trapped in the nets are already dead or dying by the time the nets are raised, having spent hours thrashing underwater. But the marketable fish that are trapped by happenstance are hauled in and sold. There is a United Nations treaty that outlaws large-scale gillnets in international waters because of their destructive effect on marine life, and the federal government has banned this kind of fishing in federal waters off the East Coast. (An attempt to limit gillnet fishing in federal waters off the West Coast fizzled last year when the proposal was shelved by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.) Other states have prohibited gillnets too, leaving California as the last state in the nation to issue permits for their use. Those permits are good only for federal waters off the California coast. The way to prevent swordfishermen from indiscriminately killing sea life is to have California ban gillnets outright. Advertisement The National Marine Fisheries Service sends trained observers out to sea with gillnet fishers to count and report back what fish and mammals are caught with the nets. But in the 2016-2017 swordfishing season, the observers were present for only about a sixth of all such outings. The way to prevent swordfishermen from indiscriminately killing sea life is to have California ban gillnets outright. California Senate Bill 1017, introduced by Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica), would phase out drift gillnet fishing by Jan. 31, 2023, and compensate the fishermen who used them for the loss of their nets and permits. The compensation would peak at $75,000 for active swordfishermen who surrender their nets and permits and agree not to obtain new ones. The number of drift gillnet permit holders has dwindled over the past decade; there are a little more than 70 today. Under the bills compensation plan, they would collectively receive about $2.5 million with half the money expected to come from federal, nonprofit or philanthropic sources. Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion Yet fishermen who give up gillnets dont have to find a new line of work or even give up swordfishing. An innovative approach being used off the East Coast and tested off the West Coast employs deep-set buoy gear. Fishermen drop weighted hooks during the daytime as deep as 1,200 feet into the ocean. When swordfish go for the baited hooks, a buoy on (or under) the surface alerts the fisherman that a fish is on the line and can be retrieved. Studies by various environmental groups show the amount of fish caught incidentally using this kind of gear is reduced to a mere 2% to 3% of the entire catch. Meanwhile, there are two bipartisan bills in Congress to ban drift gillnets in all federal waters. One is sponsored by Californias two Democratic senators, Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris, and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.). The House companion to it is sponsored by Reps. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.). The measure with the greatest chance of being passed and signed into law, though, is Allens SB 1017 in the California Legislature, which already has cleared the state Senate and is now before the Assembly Appropriations Committee. It is supported by animal welfare advocates, environmental organizations, the California Fish and Game Commission, the Pew Charitable Trusts (which has helped fund trials with the newer fishing gear), Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, the Sierra Club California, Sea World, sportfishermen and many businesses. There are some fishery businesses and fishermen opposed. But its long past time to join the rest of the country and the world in banishing this inhumane and environmentally damaging fishing practice. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook This is why Trump won! If youre anywhere on the left and spend any time talking about politics in public or the quasi-public of social media, youre likely to have had this phrase lobbed at you. Trumps victory in 2016 is seen by many as a full bore repudiation of Democratic and leftist tactics, programs and morals. If you say that Trumps supporters endorsed racism, and that racism is bad, then youre alienating God-fearing people, and Trump will win re-election. If you point out that separating infants from their parents as government policy is a hideous moral failure, and that the people responsible for it should be publicly shunned, youre showing that the left is uncivil and intolerant, and once again, Trump will win. Call for universal healthcare, oppose sexual harassment, ask for immigrants to be treated with decency and respect, object to Russia influencing U.S. elections the response is the same. This is why Trump wins! Whatever you say, it just shows youre out of touch with the average American, and that the country is doomed to Trump rule forever. Advertisement If the Democrats and the left ever want to win elections, apparently, they need to turn themselves into Republicans. If the Democrats and the left ever want to win elections, apparently, they need to turn themselves into Republicans. Close the borders, cheer for Russian President Vladimir Putin, abolish unions, make abortion illegal, and never ever protest, and maybe if youre lucky Trump will agree to step down after three terms. The endless rhetorical Trump victory lap is wearisome. Its also deeply confused. This is why Trump is winning! only makes sense if Trump is winning. But even a cursory look at the political landscape since 2016 makes it clear that he is not. The GOP has been repeatedly, humiliatingly defeated in elections since 2016. Democrats achieved a shocking victory in Virginia in 2017, winning what was supposed to be a dead heat governors race by nine points and picking up 15 seats in the 100-seat House of Delegates. In an even more shocking victory a couple months later, Democrats won a Senate seat in deep red Alabama for the first time in a quarter century. Overall, Democrats have flipped more than 40 state and local special election seats since 2016, and the average swing toward Democrats in special elections is more than 13 points. Analyst G. Elliott Morris of the Economist says that special elections point to the largest Democratic wave election since 1994. If this is why Trump is winning, Democrats and the left should do more of this. Trump partisans believe that Trump is the chief beneficiary of negative partisanship. Voters, supposedly, hate anti-racism and feminism and immigration so much that they will turn out in droves to cast ballots against anyone who champions those things. Its certainly true that GOP voters and Fox viewers hate Democrats and the left, and get angry at them for every reason and for no reason. But negative partisanship goes both ways. And at the moment, its primarily helping the left. Trump is among the most unpopular presidents in history. His net approval has been at least 10 points underwater for virtually his entire presidency. As of mid-July, according to 538, his numbers were worse than any president in history at this point in his term except for Truman. People really dislike Trump and that dislike is precisely what has been fueling the wave of Democratic electoral victories since 2016. Low presidential approval is correlated with substantial losses in midterm elections. At the moment, some people hate Democrats and therefore vote for Trumps party. But more people hate Trump, and therefore vote against everyone associated with him. Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion We cant know for sure if Democratic wins will continue. Republicans have many advantages because of gerrymandering, voter suppression, and structural biases in favor of rural voters. Democrats are by no means assured of winning the House, much less the Senate. Still, since 2016, the electorate has not been primarily motivated by anger at anti-racism or immigration. Rather, all indications suggest that voters are sick of Trumps racist attacks on immigrants, of his authoritarian bellowing, and of his divisive attacks on politicians and citizens who dare to disagree with him. Voters are not angry at the lefts efforts to preserve healthcare, or to protest vicious policies. Theyre angry at right-wing extremism, tax cuts for the wealthy, and monstrous border policies designed to separate children from their families. When Republicans crow, This is why Trump won! they remind everyone of GOP entitlement and disdain for democracy. Republicans dont even pretend that Trump is trying to govern for everybody. He is simply a punishment meted out to anyone who dares dissent, or who has the temerity to hope for a better country. Trump is evoked not to stir hope or pride, but as a threat. Throwing his name at Democrats or the left is a deliberate insult and as such, it reminds everyone of all the things they hate about the presidents arrogance and vindictiveness. The mocking, irritating insistence that this is why Trump won! is actually a big part of the reason that Democrats have been winning. Noah Berlatsky is the author most recently of Chattering Class War: Punching Pundits From Chait to Chapo and Brooks to Breitbart. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook I arrived in Chicago this spring, one of a handful of refugees sent to the United States under an agreement with Australia. Im enjoying my freedom here and looking forward to the chance to get an education and a job and, at last, to lead a normal life after years spent looking for a country to call my own. My journey here has been a long one. I was born in 1994, in Myanmar, to Rohingya parents. Although Rohingya have lived in Myanmar for generations, the government refuses to recognize us as one of the eight national indigenous races and we face constant persecution as stateless people. When I was 16, I left Myanmar by boat, passing through Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia and Papua New Guinea. I was detained in Indonesia for 17 months and on Papua New Guineas Manus Island for almost five years by the Australian government. Advertisement In 2013, Australia proclaimed that any asylum-seekers arriving by boat would never enter its country. Since then, it has sent thousands to Manus Island and the island nation of Nauru. The government said it was trying to prevent more dangerous boat crossings and drownings at sea. It trapped people like me on land, consigning us to prison-like camps. On Manus Island, every day was filled with trauma. We were treated like animals by the security guards and some of us were beaten by local people, but no action was taken. We did not receive proper medical attention. We had to beg for the privilege of a phone call. We were treated like animals by the security guards and some of us were beaten by local people, but no action was taken. One day I made a request to call my uncle, who was ill and near death. My case worker went to her boss and he went to his boss for permission. It took two days, and by that time, my uncle had passed away. All the while, the Australian government threatened forcible deportation, indefinite incarceration and resettlement in Papua New Guinea, where we are not wanted. Our hopes would rise when caring people fought for us in protests and in legal proceedings, and crash when international attention drifted to some other problem in some other place. We spent our time worrying about our survival, safety and our loved ones whom we had left behind. We lost interest in improving our lives, because we couldnt see any future. Depression, boredom and fear affected us day and night, and all this continues for those who are still held captive. For years, Australia has looked for places to send the people it has trapped on these islands. The United States agreed in 2016 to take around 1,250 refugees, and I was one of the lucky ones. The process began on March 3, 2017, when an officer from the International Rescue Committees Resettlement Support Center interviewed me. My biometric information was collected a month later. I was then scheduled for another interview, in August, this time with officers from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In September, I was called for a mandatory medical examination and U.S. health screening. My refugee application was finally accepted in December. Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion Also in 2017, while my fortunes were taking a turn for the better, my family had to flee Myanmar due to a brutal military assault on the Rohingya people and now have no clue what the future will bring. In Chicago, I think of them, and I think of my friends left behind on Manus Island. They live in centers dotted around the town of Lorengau without any assurance of safety and increasingly restricted in their movements. A new curfew means they cant leave the campgrounds from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. I am happy to be in the United States, hopeful and motivated for the future. I want to study and work so that I can create something wonderful out of this gift of freedom. I am grateful that the Trump administration honored the agreement reached previously with the Australian government, to accept selected men, women and children from Manus and Nauru. But many people, many of my people, have been left behind. Imran Mohammed is a stateless refugee from Myanmar living in the United States. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook. To the editor: Brilliant is the best word I could use to describe the late Los Angeles Times restaurant critic Jonathan Golds writing and career. I first picked up the LA Weekly in the early 1980s as a student at UCLA; when Gold joined the staff a few years later, he became my favorite because of his insightful writing style. I always picked up the Weekly for so many years just to make sure I read his pieces, no matter the subject. The writing was always tight, but so incredibly descriptive. It is a difficult skill to master, and he was a master of it. I have saved many of Golds 99 Essential Restaurants sections from the LA Weekly (and his 101 Best Restaurants in the L.A. Times) because there was no one who I could trust more when needing to find a great place to eat. When I took a food writing class through UCLA Extension, it was the biggest thrill when he was the guest speaker. He was very modest about his own skills, but so wonderfully perceptive and passionate about food and restaurants. Gold could have written about L.A.s smog and made it seem appetizing, though he never would have because he always had truth in his writing. There will never be another food critic like him. Advertisement I hope there are fabulous food trucks wherever Gold is. He deserves to eat like a king for eternity. Lea Bean, Santa Ana .. To the editor: In 1992, Gold wrote an article about Bakersfield in The Times and recommended its Hotel Noriega for Basque food. When I next found myself in that city, I reluctantly tried out the restaurant because I wasnt sure if dining communally with strangers would appeal to me. But my experience there turned out to be so satisfying that the restaurant has become a mandatory stop on my yearly trek to visit relatives in Northern California. I love being seated at one of Noriegas communal tables, passing delicious dishes to new acquaintances and chatting with them, learning their backgrounds and experiences. I have been going to Hotel Noriega regularly for 25 years now and wouldnt think of missing this heartwarming opportunity to break bread with strangers. I will toast Gold during my next visit to Bakersfield. Rickard Roudebush, Long Beach .. To the editor: Golds passing is a great loss for The Times as well as for the people who read his thoughtful, well-written reviews of the wonderful restaurants we are lucky to have in our great city. I met Gold at this years L.A. Times Food Bowl when he appeared with Nadine Levy Redzepi, who was signing copies of her book, Downtime: Deliciousness at Home. I recall asking him which taco stall to try, and he seemed to hesitate and looked a bit dismayed but then offered a suggestion. Thinking back to that exchange, he probably thought it a little strange that I would ask him to pick one since he was probably instrumental in bringing all these small restaurants to the Food Bowl. I am sure he appreciated them all for different reasons. I hope there are fabulous food trucks wherever Gold is. He deserves to eat like a king for eternity. Lea Bean, Santa Ana Saturdays newspaper will not be the same without his erudite writing. It was because of his ability to connect us all through food in far-flung areas that Los Angeles has become the greatest city in which to dine and live. As a native New Yorker, I am proud to say, I love L.A. Gold signed my copy of the 101 Best Restaurants, Eat well always. Amen. Rena Leeds, Los Angeles .. To the editor: I am 72 years old. When I was young, Julia Child taught me that food could be French high culture. From Gold, I learned that food was our culture. Even now, though I eat out less, I notice down the street when a Thai-Mexican take-out opens or a Mexican Sushi bar swims to the surface and then takes a dive and is replaced by a Mexican mariscos restaurant. When I do revisit favorites like the Kobee Factory a tiny, woman-operated delight I think of Gold and how he mapped Los Angeles for me and made me appreciate the joys all around us. Lynne Culp, Valley Glen .. To the editor: From my own experience, I can say this about Gold: He was a pathfinder. With his lack of fear of foreign food and neighborhoods I would think twice about visiting, he showed me the way from his early days at the LA Weekly and his time at The Times. As someone who spent 23 years in working in restaurants both very good and not so good, I appreciated this man and his writing. Ray Caccioli, Valley Village .. To the editor: Food-wise, I am not as adventurous as Gold and his fans. But I am a proud Angeleno, and this man seemed to know and appreciate every inch of this city and its inhabitants. Much appreciation back at you, Mr. Gold. Laura Owen, Pacific Palisades Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook If the thick New England accent did not already reveal that Boston Mayor Marty Walsh was not from around here, the polemic he launched into at a campaign rally in a union hall did. We have an administration that is reckless, Walsh said, attacking President Trumps foreign policy. It is reckless. Thats not the approach that Danny OConnor, one of the congressional candidates Walsh was here to boost, typically takes. No one asks me, OConnor says about Trumps unorthodox approach to diplomacy. I love asking people, What are you worried about? What keeps you up.? It is, My social security, my healthcare. It is economic opportunity, student debt. If that is what people are telling me they are worried about, that is what I am going to talk about. Advertisement OConnor, 31, defines himself as a progressive, but he is highly selective about which pages of the progressive playbook he uses. You wont hear him talking about Trump much at all. Or calling for socialized medicine. Or demanding a government-guaranteed minimum income. But as a Democrat running in what was long assumed to be a safely Republican district, hes happy to have the outside help, even at the price of an occasional discordant note. Its a strategy that may be about to pay off. In 2016, Donald Trump won this district by 11 points. The seat was held for 18 years by John Kasich, now Ohios Republican governor, who still lives within the districts heavily gerrymandered boundaries. He handed it off to Patrick J. Tiberi, another business-oriented Republican, who held the district for 17 years until he stepped down to take a post heading the Ohio Business Roundtable. Yet polls show the race to fill the remaining months of Tiberis term to be a tossup two weeks before the Aug. 7 election. Its the latest in a series of special elections in the last 18 months in which Democrats have performed far better than normal patterns would predict. Like other Democrats in tough districts in the Rust Belt and the South, OConnor has surged in the polls by hewing to the kind of pragmatic liberalism many party activists had forsworn after the Democrats painful loss in the presidential election. The energy on the partys left has gotten lots of attention, especially after the victory in late June of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who defeated a longtime Democratic incumbent in a primary election in New York. But the candidates who have won the biggest elections in the last year have mostly not come from the partys Bernie Sanders wing. These candidates may be anti-establishment, vowing to jettison Nancy Pelosi from her leadership role, but they are thoroughly moderate. The centrists are back. They just prefer you not call them that anymore. The latest look at the Trump administration and the rest of Washington As with so much in the Democratic Party these days, what the center should look like remains very much up for debate. While OConnor campaigned this week through his awkwardly shaped district, which stretches from the rapidly growing and well-to-do suburbs of Columbus into the depressed, industrial Trump strongholds an hour north, another big political event was taking place nearby. Its organizers have no affiliation with OConnor, but they are encouraged by his success. The Washington-based think tank Third Way, a growth-oriented, business-friendly policy powerhouse, had convened in Columbus with potential new recruits from 32 states, as well as some longtime allies, to map out a strategy for taking back the White House in 2020. An overarching concern of the group is the influence that the Democratic left, personified by Vermonts Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, has gained since the last election. The conference leaders presented their new brand as Opportunity Democrats who would work to democratize economic opportunity and entrepreneurship, which has been increasingly concentrated in a few coastal areas. They showed maps of the large swaths of America that have seen a net loss in businesses over the last decade and questioned how it is possible that Switzerland dwarfs the United States in the number of apprenticeships available to aspiring skilled workers. Restoring the right to earn was a central promise of [Trumps] pitch, said Jon Cowan, the think tanks president. He got the question right. He got the answer appallingly wrong. The organizers insisted socialism is also the wrong answer. But they also strained to shed their long-standing brand as moderates, acknowledging that label no longer appeals to voters and insisting it does not accurately reflect their agenda for a new economy. We had to look at the baggage of our own brand and say, is this the right way to brand us? said Lanae Erickson Hatalsky, who directs politics and policy at Third Way. People will still call us moderate Democrats. But a lot of people here would not call themselves that. You dont have to be a self-described moderate to believe there is a path other than the end of capitalism. The rebranding of the center-left comes as the quest to find a unifying message for Democrats grows increasingly complicated with each unanticipated electoral victory. Ocasio-Cortez, a political newcomer, dislodged one of the most powerful House Democrats in the primary by running in New York City as an unapologetic democratic socialist. OConnor is having his success running on a platform that looks more like that of the congressman she beat. How far Democrats should go in stoking class resentment was a persistent theme at the Third Way event. You are not going to make me hate somebody just because they are rich, said Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan, a Democrat from the Youngstown area who has campaigned for OConnor and who says voters in struggling Rust Belt communities want opportunity and government investment in local industries, not guaranteed government income. People are dying for some new ideas. Are we really going to go through the next decade having the same arguments we have had for the last 30 or 40 years when the entire economy has changed? Back in OConnors district, the centrist candidate has drawn support from progressives by aligning himself closely with organized labor and narrowly focusing on a handful of economic issues that have broad appeal. People want pragmatism, said OConnor, who ran an ad pronouncing he would not support Pelosi to lead the Democrats in the House. If there is a good idea, it does not have to be a Republican or Democratic idea. If it will benefit the people in this district, I am going to embrace it. One sign of that pragmatism is OConnors praise for Kasich on the issue of healthcare. The governor championed the expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act a stand that angered many conservative Republicans. Kasich, a sharp critic of Trump, also declared last years tax cut fiscally dangerous, a criticism OConnor echoes. The governor has declined to endorse OConnors opponent, state Sen. Troy Balderson, who says he agrees with Trump on everything but the presidents tweeting habit. Trump tweeted his Full & Total Endorsement of Balderson on Saturday. In an area traumatized by the opioid epidemic, OConnors pitch to preserve government healthcare programs has particular appeal. You talk to doctors, especially rural doctors, and ask what getting rid of the Medicaid expansion would do to fighting back against opioid addiction, and they will tell you it is the single most devastating thing you can do, OConnor said. You have to be such an extremist to oppose having that in place. In fact, OConnor said, one of the first things hell do if he wins will be to call Republican Kasich and suggest they join forces in the fight. More stories from Evan Halper evan.halper@latimes.com | Twitter: @evanhalper Rep. Barbara Lee will seek to lead the Democratic Caucus next year, making her the second Californian to enter the race. Whether its working across the aisle to enact HIV/AIDS laws, or bringing the Sanders and Clinton campaigns together behind a cohesive and progressive Democratic platform, my career has been dedicated to finding common ground and delivering results. Over the years, I have fought to lift families out of poverty and empower everyday people. As your caucus chair, I will ensure that we hear every view, respect every member and welcome every voice, Lee said in a letter to colleagues Monday. If Democrats pick the Oakland lawmaker as Democratic Caucus chairwoman in the election this fall, she would be the first black woman to serve in House leadership. Lee said in the letter that she wants to focus on making sure every member gets input in leadership and is well equipped to communicate directly with constituents. Advertisement Rep. Linda Sanchez, the current caucus vice chairwoman, announced a bid for the post last week, and other representatives could still enter the race. In 2016, Sanchez won the post over Lee by just two votes. The fourth-ranking position in the Democratic leadership is a common springboard to eventually becoming speaker, or minority leader. New York Rep. Joseph Crowleys surprise loss in a primary last month unexpectedly opened the position. Crowley, who was once seen as an eventual replacement for Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, lost to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a 28-year-old Latina activist running her first campaign. Lee is seen as a progressive hero to many young Democrats. First elected in 1998, the former chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus was the only representative to vote against the authorization for the use of military force in the days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. She said the authorization, which gave President George W. Bush authority to use the military to fight terrorism, was too open-ended. Nearly 20 years later, it is still being used to send American troops into battle around the world without congressional approval. Ocasio-Cortez said after her race that shed back Lee, a sentiment echoed by other young, progressive House members. Shes just a voice of courage and principle, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Fremont) said. Its time that we have an African American woman in leadership. When she was first contemplating running, Lee said she can bring Democrats together while respecting their differing views. Ive always worked with all parts of our caucus to bring people together and unify them. Even as a progressive I never challenge people on their views and I never hit below the belt, Lee said. I would hope thats a strength, bringing people together. The latest from Washington More stories from Sarah D. Wire sarah.wire@latimes.com Twitter: @sarahdwire Read more about the 55 members of Californias delegation With his well-coiffed hair, tailored suits and keen ability to charm the powerful, Paul S. Manafort spent decades wheeling and dealing with U.S. politicians and foreign despots before he became Donald Trumps campaign chairman in 2016 and ran the Republican National Convention. As a Republican political strategist, he had helped run successful campaigns for Presidents Reagan and George H.W. Bush. As a lobbyist and consultant, he had pocketed tens of millions of dollars working for autocratic leaders, warlords and kleptocrats in such far-flung locales as Angola, Zaire, the Philippines and Ukraine. Manafort, 69, is about to face his toughest challenge yet winning over a federal judge and jury in Alexandria, Va. Hes scheduled to go on trial Wednesday on allegations of bank fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy in the first courtroom showdown over charges brought by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. Although Manafort was ensnared by the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, he wasnt accused of election-related crimes. But prosecutors say his scheme extended through his time working for Trump and according to a motion filed on July 6, the campaign is relevant and inextricably intertwined with one of the charges against Manafort. Advertisement Prosecutors say Manafort fraudulently obtained $16 million in two loans from a financial institution where an executive sought a role on the Trump campaign and, if he won, the administration. The executive, who was not named in the court filing, served as a campaign advisor but did not end up working in government. The bank was not named. But for those hoping the case will finally reveal or permanently dispel a broader and more insidious conspiracy are likely to be disappointed. In the same court filing, prosecutors said, The government does not intend to present at trial evidence or argument concerning collusion with the Russian government. Manafort has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has fought every step of the way. Even if hes acquitted, however, he faces a second trial in September on related charges, including failing to register as a lobbyist for a foreign government, in Washington, D.C. Once the trial starts, Muellers team has amassed so much evidence it could take more than a week to present their case. In a July 6 filing, they gave the court a 20-page list of more than 500 pieces of evidence they might use at trial. It includes Manaforts loan documents, personal financial statements and bank records from Cyprus, St. Vincent and the United Kingdom. Prosecutors also may showcase how Manafort used his wealth, submitting photos of his expensive suits and invoices from hefty purchases from his allegedly ill-gotten gains. Manaforts indictment said he had spent $934,000 on antique rugs, $1.4 million at mens clothing stores and $5.4 million for renovations at his beach home in the Hamptons, an affluent area on Long Island, N.Y. The evidence list also includes dozens of emails involving Manafort and former business partners like Richard W. Gates III, who also worked on Trumps campaign. Gates pleaded guilty earlier this year to false statements and conspiracy for participating in Manaforts schemes, and he agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. Also on tap are five potential witnesses who have not been publicly identified. Prosecutors have asked District Court Judge T.S. Ellis III, who is presiding over the case, to grant immunity to the five so they could testify without fear of self-incrimination. The prosecutors said they kept the names secret because the information contained in the motions could lead to reputational harm to people who arent facing criminal charges. Manafort joined the Trump campaign in March 2016, a critical juncture in the race. Trump was winning Republican primaries but appeared in danger of losing delegates needed to lock down the partys nomination without a floor fight. Manafort helped stanch the bleeding. That May, he was named campaign chairman and chief strategist. A month later, his influence grew further after Trump fired campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, who had openly sparred with Manafort. During the Republican National Convention that July, Manafort held daily briefings for the media and defended Melania Trump after she was accused of plagiarizing former First Lady Michelle Obama in her convention speech. His position began unraveling in August, barely five months after he joined the campaign, after the New York Times reported that investigators were looking into $12.7 million in undisclosed cash payments to Manafort from former Ukrainian strongman Viktor Yanukovich, and the Associated Press reported he helped a pro-Russian party in Ukraine funnel money to lobbying firms in Washington, D.C. Yanukovich fled to Russia after he was ousted during violent protests in 2014. One of Manaforts business partners in Ukraine, Konstantin Kilimnik, is alleged to have ties to Russian intelligence. Michael Dreeben, a lawyer in Muellers office, said in April that investigators started looking into Manafort to determine whether any of his Russian connections provided a back channel between Trumps campaign and Russia. They found no such evidence, he said. The White House tried to distance itself from Manafort even before he was indicted last October. Seven months earlier, Sean Spicer, then the presidents spokesman, had downplayed Manaforts role in the campaign, saying he played a very limited role for a very limited amount of time. The trial judge, who was nominated to the bench by Reagan in 1987, has been willing to slash at both sides during pre-trial hearings. During a contentious hearing in May, Ellis challenged Muellers authority to bring charges against Manafort and suggested he was simply trying to pressure the defendant to provide evidence against the president. You dont really care about Mr. Manaforts bank fraud, Ellis said. What you really care about is what information Mr. Manafort could give you that would reflect on Mr. Trump or lead to his prosecution or impeachment. Trump was delighted by the judges comments, reading a news story aloud during a speech to the National Rifle Assn. and complaining about the phony Russia witch hunt. A month later, Ellis rejected Manaforts motion to dismiss the case and let the prosecution proceed to trial. But he added a stiff warning. Although this case will continue, those involved should be sensitive to the danger unleashed when political disagreements are transformed into partisan prosecutions, he wrote. Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor who worked with Ellis in the 1970s, said the judge is not one to hold his tongue. He says what he thinks often from the bench, he said. Some judges are more reserved. Tobias added, He doesnt suffer fools gladly. Manafort enters the trial already on a losing streak in court. In June, the judge in the Washington case revoked his $10-million bail and ordered him jailed while awaiting trial after prosecutors said he had sought to tamper with witnesses. His lawyers also failed to convince Ellis to suppress evidence seized from a storage unit or get a change of venue to southern Virginia, where jurors might be more sympathetic to a former Trump aide. Ellis also ordered Manafort transferred from a rural jail about 100 miles away, where he wanted to stay, to the Alexandria Detention Center, which is closer to the courthouse. Prosecutors had told the court that in the rural jail, Manaforts cell had a private toilet and shower, that he was allowed to use a laptop and that he had boasted on a recorded call that he was being treated like a VIP. Ellis made clear that Manaforts creature comforts were not his concern. The professionals at the Alexandria Detention Center are very familiar with housing high-profile defendants, including foreign and domestic terrorists, spies and traitors, Ellis wrote in his order. Follow the latest news of the Trump administration on Essential Washington chris.megerian@latimes.com Twitter: @chrismegerian After reading Costa Mesa council denies permits for 2 sober-living homes (July 19), I thought about Councilwoman Katrina Foleys efforts to control sober-living homes in Costa Mesa. I have known Foley, a longtime local business owner (law practice), Costa Mesa city councilwoman and 2018 mayoral candidate, for several years and appreciate that she has deep roots in the community. As a result, Foley doesnt take positions or make City Council decisions without considering what is best for local businesses, residents and their families, including her own family. Foleys comment cited in the article is a very good example of her current, thoughtful position on sober-living homes and is consistent with her previous efforts. In the past, Foley led the effort to make several revisions to regulations governing sober-living homes in Costa Mesa, including requiring increased transparency and preventing evicted occupants from adding to our homeless population. However, she recognized that state and federal laws needed to be changed in order to protect the public and patients from rehab home operators that are exploiting the current laws. Foley went to Sacramento, and Washington, D.C., to testify in committee hearings and educate committee members about the abuses of bad rehab home operators. She has also worked with the county to obtain Costa Mesas share of mental health funding and continues to work with other cities and states to correct the laws that allow rehab home operators to exploit and traffic addiction patients. Based on her actions and position on sober-living homes, and her vested interest in Costa Mesa, I am voting for Foley for mayor in November. Margaret Mooney Costa Mesa * Unwanted, desalination project goes forward anyway Re O.C. Water District approves updated terms for buying water from H.B. desalination plant if Poseidon gets final permits, (July 20): Reading between the lines of staff writer Priscella Vegas article, one can deduce that the proposed Poseidon desalination plant does not enjoy much community support and is assailed as both a $1 billion boondoggle and an insult to our coastal environment. Dozens of speakers in public comments, myself among them, railed at the board for considering a project where the details were still so unclear, the costs were not yet determined, and the future is still murky after 15 years of wrangling. Dozens of speakers also criticized the board majority members for forcing this expensive water down our throats. Tim Geddes Huntington Beach * Sanctuary city lawsuit is mean-spirited Re Judge denies states request to delay Huntington Beach lawsuit against sanctuary law (July 19): What is the true meaning of Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates expressing that hes very pleased with an Orange County Superior Court judges decision to allow this mean-spirited lawsuit to proceed? Further, what is the truth beneath Huntington Beach Mayor Mike Posey and Mayor Pro Tem Erik Petersons proposal to seek relief from the states sanctuary law? Are they hanging on the coattails of President Trump? If so, how long will those coattails last before theyre tattered and shredded by the sharp edges of reality? Remember what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once warned, The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. Ben Miles Huntington Beach * Voters are getting a say on Fairview Park In November 2016, much of the at-large Costa Mesa public voted in favor of ballot Measure AA. This measure, dubbed by some groups as the Save Fairview Park campaign, directly affects some of our current and future residents in District 5. It also directly affects disabled populations who want to enjoy Fairview Park. While those who drafted Measure AA may have had a venerable goal (I too am pro-environment and want to save Fairview Park) in composing lacking, vague/stringent language and exemptions, the writers potentially kept some populations from being able to enjoy the park while putting the safety of some of our District 5 residents at risk. In a recent Costa Mesa City Council meeting, the council had the opportunity to decide what the public would be able to vote on this November. One option was to solely go with the Fairview Park Steering Committees language and recommendations for the November vote, which in one way disenfranchised disabled populations and in numerous other ways put the safety of nearby District 5 residents at risk. Another option was to go with a project on which I worked with District 5 residents, one that asked the council to include items A-E as public safety exemptions now not wait until November. Our requested exemptions included making areas of the park accessible in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, providing a turnaround for District 5 residents who live next to Fairview Park (providing security for them) and allowing a drainage system so they no longer have flooding and standing water. A third possible option was to consider allowing at-large, unaffected voters to decide whether items A-E should be considered. This would have kept the affected District 5 residents in harms way and denied the disabled access until the voters decided this November. In a somewhat shocking upset, the council moved our option forward. I am sure disabled populations are now relieved their needs were considered and their problems will finally be resolved. Now we just have to continue to hold our council accountable to its word, and to agreed upon timetables, and see this through until the changes we requested are actually made. Rebecca Trahan Costa Mesa The writer is a City Council candidate in District 5. * How to get published: Email us at dailypilot@latimes.com. All correspondence must include full name, hometown and phone number (for verification purposes). The Pilot reserves the right to edit all submissions for clarity and length. Of the 12 boats competing in the Governors Cup off Newport Beach, Balboa Yacht Club sailed in at the end on Thursday. Balboa Yacht Club was the last to dock its boat, but the host of the oldest youth match racing regatta in the world finds itself near the top. The third day of competition for Balboa Yacht Club skipper Christophe Killian and crew members Harrison Vandervort and Jack Martin turned out much better than the first two days. Stressful is how Killian described the first two days. Leading up to the 50th Governors Cup, Killian said he and his crew felt the pressure to lead Balboa Yacht Club to the title. All this pressure is from the 36 years of not winning it, Vandervort said, referring to Balboa Yacht Clubs drought. Winning is all Killian, Vandervort and Martin, in their third year competing together in the Governors Cup, did on Thursday. On one day, Balboa Yacht Club almost matched its win total from the previous two days. Balboa Yacht Club went 5-0 on Thursday, helping it move into fourth place with four round-robin races left on Friday. Through 18 races, Balboa Yacht Club has 11 points (one point for each win), five behind leader San Diego Yacht Club, which last won the Governors Cup five years ago with the same skipper, Nevin Snow. Defending champion Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, which features skipper Harry Price, is in second place with 15 points, followed by the Australias Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club skippered by Sam Gilmour (13 points). It was a great day, Killian said. I think that [performance] gives us a shot at the final four. The final four move on [the semifinals]. Weve got a shot at it now. Balboa Yacht Club pulled off a couple of narrow wins, beating Australias Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club, which is skippered by Lachy Gilmour, by half a foot and finishing things off by edging Cruising Yacht Club of Australia by a couple of feet. The last result was impressive, as Cruising Yacht Club, skippered by Harry Price, only lost once in its first 11 races. While the light winds benefited Balboa Yacht Club, one of the lightest crews in the competition, the reason behind its turnaround was simple if you asked Killian, a 2014 Corona del Mar High graduate who is a student at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. We were having some rough races, some frustrations [the first two days], and we just wanted to have a little bit of fun and I think we did, said Killian, whose team had only six wins in its first 13 races. We laughed a few times. [Martin and Vandervort] fell in the water. We were laughing right in the middle of the race. Winning can make everyone happy. The trio stayed positive, even though Vandervort heard the news that lifeguards spotted a shark in nearby waters. So, how did Vandervort and Martin, both Newport Harbor graduates, react in the water? We got back in [the boat] real quick, Vandervort said. Killian is going to need Vandervort and Martin, if Balboa Yacht Club plans to advance to the semifinals, which are set for Friday, after the last four round-robin races. Third place in the Governors Cup is the best showing by the three the last two years. They know the two teams behind Balboa Yacht Club Australias Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club (10 points) and Del Rey Yacht Club of Marina del Rey (nine) are within striking distance of fourth place. Balboa Yacht Club cracked the top on the shortest day of the Governors Cup, which ends Saturday. While the 11 other teams planned to eat dinner at Balboa Yacht Club and go on the beer can regatta, Killian, Vandervort and Martin had other plans. Were going to get some In-N-Out [Burger], Killian said. We get to do this all the time, so were going to let all the teams who are visiting go sailing and well go do our own thing tonight. MOSCOW, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Russia has started working on the creation of a new Soyuz-5 carrier rocket, director general of Russia's Roscosmos State Space Corporation for Space Activities Dmitry Rogozin said Sunday. "Works on the creation of the Soyuz-5 rocket kicked off at Energia Rocket and Space Corporation, Progress Rocket Space Center and NPO Energomash. Then we will begin work on a super-heavy rocket," Rogozin tweeted. The new project will help mobilize Russia's entire rocket and space industry, get it updated and tap its powerful potential in design and production, he added. Roscosmos has reportedly approved the conceptual design of the Soyuz-5 medium-class carrier rocket, which is expected to be created by 2021 and will serve as the base of a super heavy-lift launch vehicle. On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with the Roscosmos leadership that flight tests of Soyuz-5 carrier rockets would begin in 2022. Ten Years Ago Two La Canada grocery store staffs were cleaning up broken bottles of wine and spaghetti sauce, among other items, after the region experienced a 5.5 magnitude earthquake. Chino Hills was the epicenter of the late morning shaker on Tuesday, July 29, 2008. It was followed by more than 50 aftershocks within a 24-hour period. Twenty Years Ago Gilbert and Sullivans Pirates of Penzance was being staged by Foothill Summer Theatre, a youth theater program. The production, which was reportedly wowing local crowds, was under the direction of Marlys Marsteller. Thirty Years Ago Three Persian rugs with a combined value of $24,000 were stolen from the living room of a Flintridge area home during a daytime burglary that took place when the homeowner was out for a four-hour period. Also stolen from the home were a video cassette recorder and some jewelry. A television was left behind on a sofa, with sheriffs deputies speculating the thieves believed they were running out of time and needed to get out of the house before they were caught. Forty Years Ago The Rev. John Lathrop, rector of St. Georges Episcopal Church, announced his intention to resign sometime prior to the beginning of 1979. Lathrop had served at St. Georges for 12 years. Fifty Years Ago Seven La Canada teens announced they would paddle their self-built boat christened Sport Chalet from San Pedro to Catalina Island. Brothers Brett and Eric Simison were joined by friends Dave Stipe, Bob Honer, Greg Damon, Craig Carpenter and Ray Hensley on the adventure. According to an Aug. 9, 1968 Los Angeles Times article, the young men followed through with their plans, paddling to Catalina on Aug. 3. When they made the return trip on Aug. 8 they arrived in Los Angeles Harbor hungry, thirsty and exhausted after nearly eight hours of rowing against the current to the mainland, The Times reported. Sixty Years Ago La Canada Girl Scout Troop #259 held a dinner meeting to make final preparations for a 23-day trip to Mexico by chartered bus. The girls and their chaperons were set to stay at a Girl Scout camp in Cuernavaca for one week, then spend a few days in Mexico City, followed by several days in Guadalajara. Compiled from the Valley Sun archives by Carol Cormaci. Hello, my name is John Cherwa and welcome back to our horse racing newsletter as we see what doubles the readers suggested would be fun. It was a tragic morning at Del Mar during training on Sunday. Stakes winner Bobby Abu Dhabi suffered a fatal heart attack near the end of his run and while falling threw jockey Victor Espinoza , whose injuries included a fracture of his C-3 vertebra. If you remember, the other day as I was learning about a double bet between stakes races on Saturday at Saratoga thoroughbred and Saratoga harness tracks, I asked you folks for your suggestions for non-conventional doubles. Of course, government regulation would keep almost all of these bets from happening except in Nevada and New Jersey. At least for now. So, heres a good sampling of your responses, remembering, of course, that if you didnt supply your name, you didnt make the cut. I also weeded out the political ones, even though they made me smile. Rey Hernandez thought: A daily double linking the winner of the Pacific Classic with the combined age of the jockeys that win the six races that make up the Pick-6 on that card. Call it the Pick-6 Classic Double. Dave Brooks offered this: How about tying action on the major July 4 races (NYRA's, e.g.) with the Nathan's hot dog eating contest at Coney Island. Probably more integrity and tougher to fix at Coney Island Downs. What would a Hoppertunity/Joey Chestnut DD pay? This from William Prieti : Since they are close together as far as dates are concerned, how about the winner of the Pegasus with the winner of the Super Bowl. That way people wont have to wait long to see who wins. Fred Hoyt has this head swizzler: How about a trainer/jockey DD? If you can beat ONeil/Prat it would pay big bucks. Another wager would be a superfecta or trifecta on top trainers, and jockeys that is payable on closing day. Thanks to everyone who took time out of their day to offer a suggestion. Best of all, my favorite newsletter are the ones you folks write, not me. Ed Burgart , the worlds best quarter-horse announcer, was called in to duty on Saturday night at Los Alamitos and had to call the weiner-dog races, one of the biggest promotions the track does. Ed, who also does our Los Alamitos nighttime pick, had the public in mind when he identified Willie the Weanie as a first-time gelding. I had no choice when I saw that name, Burgart said. It was not in the program so I had to let the public know before the race, otherwise we might have a disqualification should Willie the Weanie win. We know what the CHRB rules are so I decided I should make that announcement. Of course, he did not win so it made no difference. Ike and Burgart continued the conversation with mock seriousness because the winner was a repeat champion, who Burgart pointed out was only a 3-year-old. Burgart riffed that the wiener dog had put on some weight and the owners were thinking of bringing him back as a 4-year-old. You can listen to the show right here. This comes at about the 37-minute mark. Up top, we talked about doubles you would like to see. How about a stone-cold trainer double for John Sadler winning the San Diego Handicap on Saturday with Catalina Cruiser and the Grade 2 $250,000 Eddie Read Stakes on Sunday with Catapult. The Eddie Read was for older horses going 1 1/8 miles on the turf. This is a nice horse, Sadler said. He comes from the East Coast where he had good form last year. The owners gave him a little time off at the end of last year and decided to try him here in California. Theres a lot of good grass opportunities back east, but I think they wanted to send one out here. We thought hed run a good race today and he did. In a minor stakes, the $75,000 Wickerr saw longshot Double Touch survive an inquiry to beat Bombard by a neck. He paid $60.80 to win for older horses going a mile on the turf. Now some of you who signed up for Rob Henies free Saratoga plays today also got his West Coast report from Del Mar as a bonus. Rob called it. He had Double Touch as well as some other winners. Its Robs success but this newsletter is not above coat-tailing every once in a while. Good ($60.80) call, Rob. Still looking to jump the circulation of this newsletter. Cant beat the price. If you like it, tell someone. If you dont like it, then youre probably not reading this. Either way, send to a friend and just have them click here and sign up . Remember, its free, and all we need is your email, nothing more. Del Mar Charts Results for Sunday, July 22. Copyright 2018 by Equibase Company. Reproduction prohibited. Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, Del Mar, California. All finishes confirmed by Plusmic USA. Official program numbers may not correspond with post position. 5th day of a 36-day meet. Clear & Fast FIRST RACE. 6 Furlongs. Purse: $60,000. Maiden Special Weight. 3 year olds and up. Time 22.32 46.07 58.61 1:10.78 Pgm Horse Wt PP St Str Fin Jockey $1 4 Paddock Pick 120 4 1 53 41 21 1 Pereira 2.90 3 Deputy Bernardini 120 3 4 2 1hd 1hd 24 Talamo 0.50 7 Town Champ 124 7 2 1hd 21 31 32 Bejarano 5.80 2 Aggressivity 120 2 7 7 7 61 4 T Baze 35.80 6 Croatian 120 6 3 41 52 52 5 Mn Garcia 22.10 5 I Am the Danger 124 5 5 3hd 3 42 66 Franco 13.10 1 Northrndancrsghost 115 1 6 66 63 7 7 Payeras 96.30 4 PADDOCK PICK 7.80 3.00 2.10 3 DEPUTY BERNARDINI 2.10 2.10 7 TOWN CHAMP 2.20 $1 EXACTA (4-3) $6.60 $2 QUINELLA (3-4) $4.40 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (4-3-7-2) $7.51 50-CENT TRIFECTA (4-3-7) $8.50 WinnerPaddock Pick B.g.3 by Graydar out of Fiery Pulpit, by Pulpit. Bred by Taylor Brothers Properties LLC,Pollock Farms, Patrick H. Payne, et al (KY). Trainer: Brian J. Koriner. Owner: Jay Em Ess Stable. Mutuel Pool $325,160 Exacta Pool $125,604 Quinella Pool $5,981 Superfecta Pool $78,737 Trifecta Pool $117,685. Scratchednone. PADDOCK PICK between horses early, stalked a bit off the rail, eased out three deep into the stretch, bid outside the runner-up in midstretch, gained the lead past the eighth pole, drifted in some and gamely prevailed under left handed urging. DEPUTY BERNARDINI had good early speed and dueled inside, took a short lead nearing the turn, fought back along the rail through the stretch and continued willingly to the wire. TOWN CHAMP sped to the early lead off the rail, angled in and dueled between horses then outside the runner-up, was between foes in upper stretch and bested the others. AGGRESSIVITY hopped slightly in a slow start, settled inside, came out into the stretch and again in upper stretch and lacked the needed rally. CROATIAN prompted the pace four wide, stalked outside then off the rail on the turn, came four wide into the stretch and weakened. I AM THE DANGER pressed the pace three deep between rivals then stalked off the rail, came three wide into the stretch and also weakened. NORTHRNDANCRSGHOST broke a bit slowly, chased inside, came out in the stretch and had little left for the drive. SECOND RACE. 1 Mile Turf. Purse: $34,000. Claiming. 3 year olds and up. Claiming Prices $25,000-$22,500. Time 22.63 45.89 1:10.04 1:22.23 1:34.30 Pgm Horse Wt PP St Str Fin Jockey $1 9 Secreto Primero 120 8 7 5 61 72 31 12 Franco 5.40 8 Mongolian Greywolf 120 7 8 31 22 21 2 2hd Elliott 10.30 4 Trifecta 120 4 3 7hd 72 6hd 71 3 Pereira 27.80 3 Gain Ground 120 3 1 42 4 41 4hd 4ns Prat 5.70 6 Cimpl Man 120 6 5 1 1hd 1hd 1hd 5nk T Baze 1.40 1 Broken Up 120 1 4 8 8 8 8 61 Desormeaux 6.90 2 Stringent 120 2 2 2hd 32 3hd 51 7ns Pedroza 3.70 5 Rate for Me 118 5 6 61 5hd 5hd 6hd 8 Fuentes 72.10 9 SECRETO PRIMERO 12.80 7.60 4.60 8 MONGOLIAN GREYWOLF 10.40 4.40 4 TRIFECTA 8.80 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (4-9) $62.40 $1 EXACTA (9-8) $64.60 $2 QUINELLA (8-9) $68.40 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (9-8-4-3) $263.47 50-CENT TRIFECTA (9-8-4) $348.75 WinnerSecreto Primero Dbb.g.6 by First Samurai out of My Special Secret, by Mineshaft. Bred by Los Samanes Polo & Racing Farm LLC (KY). Trainer: John F. Martin. Owner: Troy Onorato. Mutuel Pool $319,318 Daily Double Pool $65,182 Exacta Pool $176,701 Quinella Pool $8,391 Superfecta Pool $84,387 Trifecta Pool $130,032. ClaimedGain Ground by Slam Dunk Racing. Trainer: Philip D'Amato. ClaimedCimpl Man by Supreme Racing. Trainer: Rafael Becerra. ClaimedStringent by George Kerr. Trainer: Paul Aguirre. ScratchedBold Papa. SECRETO PRIMERO chased three deep into the first turn then outside a rival to the stretch, bid three wide in the drive, gained the advantage past midstretch and won clear under some urging. MONGOLIAN GREYWOLF pressed the pace three deep then outside a rival, battled between horses in midstretch and held second. TRIFECTA chased outside a rival then three deep on the second turn and five wide into the stretch and edged foes late for the show. GAIN GROUND stalked off the rail then outside a rival, came out four wide into the stretch and was edged for the show. CIMPL MAN had speed between horses then angled in and dueled inside, fought back in the stretch and was outfinished for a minor award late. BROKEN UP saved ground chasing the pace, came out in upper stretch, was in tight between horses a sixteenth out, continued between foes and was outfinished. STRINGENT pressed then stalked the pace inside, came a bit off the rail leaving the second turn, angled out into the stretch, was between rivals through much of the drive and was outkicked. RATE FOR ME angled in and saved ground stalking the pace throughout and lacked the needed rally. THIRD RACE. 7 Furlongs. Purse: $48,000. Claiming. 3 year olds. Claiming Prices $50,000-$45,000. Time 22.57 45.43 1:10.93 1:24.46 Pgm Horse Wt PP St Str Fin Jockey $1 6 Italiano 115 6 1 31 21 1 1 Espinoza 4.40 5 Goodwillambassador 120 5 7 6 63 3 22 Franco 9.50 7 Saratoga Morning 120 7 4 4hd 3 41 31 Desormeaux 20.60 3 Stop the Violence 113 3 5 1 1hd 22 4 Figueroa 1.20 2 Platinum Equity 120 2 3 51 5hd 53 510 Prat 5.60 1 Risky Proposition 122 1 2 2hd 4 65 61 Talamo 4.50 4 Lolly Express 122 4 6 7 7 7 7 Bejarano 12.40 6 ITALIANO 10.80 5.60 4.40 5 GOODWILLAMBASSADOR 9.20 5.60 7 SARATOGA MORNING 6.80 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (9-6) $74.40 $1 EXACTA (6-5) $40.80 $2 QUINELLA (5-6) $50.20 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (6-5-7-3) $94.48 50-CENT TRIFECTA (6-5-7) $160.15 WinnerItaliano B.c.3 by Twirling Candy out of Personal Sunset, by Belong to Me. Bred by Al Graziani (KY). Trainer: Jerry Hollendorfer. Owner: Al Graziani. Mutuel Pool $396,025 Daily Double Pool $37,313 Exacta Pool $230,347 Quinella Pool $8,918 Superfecta Pool $88,250 Trifecta Pool $152,567. ClaimedRisky Proposition by Acker, Tom, Becker, Barry and Judith, Bloom, Michael,Lindo,Jon and Wafer, Tom. Trainer: William Spawr. Scratchednone. $1 Pick Three (4-9-6) paid $198.10. Pick Three Pool $99,925. ITALIANO pressed the pace three deep then outside a rival on the turn, took the lead into the stretch, drifted out a bit past midstretch and held on gamely under urging. GOODWILLAMBASSADOR broke a bit slowly, chased between foes then outside a rival, went three deep on the turn and four wide into the stretch, bid outside the winner in deep stretch and continued willingly but could not get by. SARATOGA MORNING pressed the pace four wide then stalked outside, came three deep into the stretch, angled in past midstretch and gained the show along the rail. STOP THE VIOLENCE stumbled at the start, had speed between horses to duel for the lead, battled inside on the turn and into the stretch, fought back and drifted out some from the whip in the drive and weakened late. PLATINUM EQUITY stalked between rivals then outside a foe, continued between horses on the turn and into the stretch, drifted to the inside in the drive and lacked a rally. RISKY PROPOSITION prompted the pace inside, dropped back on the turn and gave way. LOLLY EXPRESS broke a bit slowly, angled in and saved ground chasing the pace, continued inside on the turn and into the stretch and had little left for the drive. FOURTH RACE. 5 Furlongs Turf. Purse: $62,000. Allowance Optional Claiming. Fillies and Mares. 3 year olds and up. Claiming Price $40,000. Time 22.22 44.96 56.79 Pgm Horse Wt PP St 3/16 3/8 Str Fin Jockey $1 13 Kentan Road 115 11 1 1 11 11 1 Espinoza 74.00 2 Tonahutu 120 2 11 111 101 5hd 2 Prat 3.70 14 Vallestina 120 12 9 4hd 2hd 22 3 Van Dyke 10.00 3 Tizanillusion 120 3 2 3hd 51 3hd 4nk Conner 5.60 1 Queen Bee to You 122 1 7 8hd 71 6 51 Desormeaux 5.10 8 Silken Spy 118 7 5 51 4hd 4 61 Pedroza 6.40 7 Ruby Trust 120 6 6 101 8 9hd 7ns Stevens 55.60 6 Late 'n Left 120 5 10 7hd 111 12 8ns Maldonado 33.80 10 Smiling Tigress 118 8 4 12 12 11 91 T Baze 26.60 11 Cute Knows Cute 120 9 3 9hd 9hd 101 101 Roman 10.80 12 Berryessa 120 10 12 6hd 6 8hd 111 Elliott 47.40 4 Classy Atlantic 120 4 8 21 31 72 12 Talamo 3.20 13 KENTAN ROAD 150.00 58.20 24.20 2 TONAHUTU (IRE) 5.60 4.20 14 VALLESTINA 7.20 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (6-13) $399.80 $1 EXACTA (13-2) $511.60 $2 QUINELLA (2-13) $331.80 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (13-2-14-3) $4,333.93 50-CENT TRIFECTA (13-2-14) $2,644.75 WinnerKentan Road B.f.4 by Into Mischief out of Western Rush, by West by West. Bred by Keith Abrahams (KY). Trainer: John W. Sadler. Owner: Keith Abrahams. Mutuel Pool $502,108 Daily Double Pool $51,108 Exacta Pool $281,904 Quinella Pool $12,784 Superfecta Pool $125,114 Trifecta Pool $195,304. ScratchedTrust Fund Kitty, Venezuelan Gold. $1 Pick Three (9-6-13) paid $3,014.10. Pick Three Pool $59,258. KENTAN ROAD had speed outside foes then angled in and dueled alongside a rival, inched away leaving the turn, kicked clear in the stretch and held under left handed urging. TONAHUTU (IRE) chased between horses then inside, came out in the drive, split horses in midstretch and deep stretch and surged late. VALLESTINA had speed four wide then stalked three deep, continued outside on the turn and three wide into the stretch and finished with interest. TIZANILLUSION saved ground stalking the pace, came out into the stretch and was outfinished. QUEEN BEE TO YOU chased inside, was in tight midway on the turn, came out for room into the stretch and also was outfinished. SILKEN SPY stalked between horses then outside a rival leaving the turn, came out into the stretch and lacked the needed late kick. RUBY TRUST was reluctant to load then broke through the gate before the start, steadied early, stalked between horses on the backstretch and turn and could not offer the necessary response in the drive. LATE 'N LEFT stalked three wide between horses, was shuffled back in tight on the turn, steadied off heels leaving the turn, came four wide into the stretch and lacked the needed rally. SMILING TIGRESS between horses early, dropped back off the rail, angled in for the turn, came out some in the stretch and split foes late. CUTE KNOWS CUTE broke out a bit, stalked four wide between horses then outside on the turn and four wide into the stretch and lacked the necessary rally. BERRYESSA (IRE) squeezed at the start, stalked five wide then three deep on the turn and into the stretch and weakened. CLASSY ATLANTIC had speed between foes then dueled inside, stalked leaving the turn and weakened in the drive. FIFTH RACE. 5 Furlongs. Purse: $30,000. Maiden Claiming. Fillies. 2 year olds. Claiming Price $50,000. Time 22.45 47.26 1:00.37 Pgm Horse Wt PP St 3/16 3/8 Str Fin Jockey $1 3 Swing Thoughts 120 3 1 42 31 11 12 Conner 2.50 10 Disco Tale 115 10 6 71 6 53 2nk Payeras 3.80 9 Lakerball 120 9 4 62 52 41 31 Delgadillo 4.90 8 Storms a Brewn 120 8 5 2hd 22 3hd 41 Pereira 33.90 7 Rolinga 120 7 3 1hd 1 21 52 Fuentes 6.30 5 She's a Dime 120 5 7 5hd 75 6 61 Mn Garcia 6.30 1 Spicy Curry 115 1 9 93 95 86 73 Espinoza 14.20 6 Gee Cee Cee 120 6 2 31 4hd 75 812 Franco 8.80 4 Lady Suzzett 120 4 10 10 10 10 97 Ceballos 29.90 2 Tizbuds Princess 120 2 8 83 81 92 10 Quinonez 37.80 3 SWING THOUGHTS 7.00 4.20 3.20 10 DISCO TALE 4.60 3.40 9 LAKERBALL 4.40 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (13-3) $779.80 $1 EXACTA (3-10) $14.80 $2 QUINELLA (3-10) $13.80 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (3-10-9-8) $90.93 50-CENT TRIFECTA (3-10-9) $32.10 WinnerSwing Thoughts B.f.2 by U S Ranger out of Ankha, by Desert Classic. Bred by Rancho de Los Aviadores, Sacha Campbell& David Chase (CA). Trainer: Ed Moger, Jr.. Owner: Moger Inc., Morris, Randy and Riley, Mark. Mutuel Pool $351,176 Daily Double Pool $50,201 Exacta Pool $181,930 Quinella Pool $7,654 Superfecta Pool $73,738 Trifecta Pool $116,228. ScratchedCat Holic. $1 Pick Three (6-13-3) paid $1,514.20. Pick Three Pool $106,392. 50-Cent Pick Four (9-6-13-3/11) 4 correct paid $4,708.20. Pick Four Pool $363,450. 50-Cent Pick Five (4-9-6-13-3/11) 5 correct paid $42,028.25. Pick Five Pool $831,012. SWING THOUGHTS bobbled some at the start, had speed inside then stalked along the rail, bid from the fence in the lane to gain the lead and won clear under urging. DISCO TALE chased outside then alongside a rival, angled to the inside on the turn and gained the place along the rail. LAKERBALL also chased outside then off the rail, came four wide into the stretch and was edged for second. STORMS A BREWN had speed outside, dueled three deep then outside a rival to the stretch and weakened some in the final furlong. ROLINGA dueled between horses then off the rail, battled a bit off the fence on the turn and weakened in the final furlong. SHE'S A DIME chased a bit off the inside, came out on the turn and four wide into the stretch and lacked the needed rally. SPICY CURRY broke a bit slowly, settled inside, came out into the stretch and lacked the necessary response. GEE CEE CEE dueled between horses then off the rail, fell back on the turn, came out into the stretch and weakened. LADY SUZZETT broke slowly, settled just off the rail to the stretch and was not a threat. TIZBUDS PRINCESS between foes early, settled inside chasing the pace, saved ground on the turn and gave way in the stretch. SIXTH RACE. 1 Mile Turf. Purse: $75,000. 'Wickerr Stakes'. 3 year olds and up. Time 22.29 45.66 1:09.80 1:21.69 1:33.61 Pgm Horse Wt PP St Str Fin Jockey $1 13 Double Touch 119 11 5 71 72 4 11 1hd Stevens 29.40 14 Bombard 119 12 1 43 41 51 4 21 Prat 8.40 12 Perfectly Majestic 119 10 8 9hd 91 8hd 62 3 Nakatani 10.40 9 Big Score 121 7 12 12 12 12 9 4hd Bejarano 3.90 10 Colonist 119 8 11 112 114 111 7 5 Van Dyke 6.20 6 Isotherm 121 5 7 81 81 7hd 5hd 61 Franco 5.10 3 Cistron 121 3 4 3hd 31 2hd 2hd 7 T Baze 19.00 4 Giant Payday 121 4 10 101 10 10hd 8hd 81 Desormeaux 13.90 7 Tule Fog 123 6 3 23 21 1 31 93 Gonzalez 23.40 1 Gold Rush Dancer 121 1 6 61 6 91 11hd 101 Roman 61.60 2 Forever Juanito 119 2 9 5hd 51 61 101 1110 Delgadillo 35.50 11 Conquest Tsunami 119 9 2 1 11 31 12 12 Talamo 2.90 13 DOUBLE TOUCH (GB) 60.80 24.20 12.00 14 BOMBARD 9.40 6.40 12 PERFECTLY MAJESTIC 7.20 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (3-13) $346.00 $1 EXACTA (13-14) $202.00 $2 QUINELLA (13-14) $222.20 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (13-14-12-9) $1,159.44 50-CENT TRIFECTA (13-14-12) $696.55 WinnerDouble Touch (GB) Ch.g.4 by Dutch Art (GB) out of Classical Dancer (GB), by Dr Fong. Bred by Honeypuddle Stud (GB). Trainer: Dan Blacker. Owner: Radley Equine, Inc, Roadrunner Racing, Gold, R., MacDonald, Scott and Smole, K.. Mutuel Pool $516,687 Daily Double Pool $45,542 Exacta Pool $277,994 Quinella Pool $12,166 Superfecta Pool $126,979 Trifecta Pool $182,222. ScratchedEditore (BRZ), Liam the Charmer. $1 Pick Three (13-3-13) paid $4,625.20. Pick Three Pool $109,153. DOUBLE TOUCH (GB) chased outside a rival, moved up inside then went around the pacesetter leaving the second turn, bid along the fence into the stretch to gain the lead, inched away nearing midstretch, drifted out despite right handed urging in the final furlong, bumped with the runner-up in the final strides and held gamely. BOMBARD angled in and chased outside a rival then between horses on the second turn, came four wide into the stretch and finished well then bumped with the winner late. PERFECTLY MAJESTIC also angled in and chased alongside a foe, came out three deep into the stretch and rallied for the show. BIG SCORE broke a bit slowly, angled in and settled inside, came out on the second turn and three wide into the stretch and found his best stride late. COLONIST settled off the pace outside a rival, came out leaving the second turn and three deep into the stretch and finished willingly. ISOTHERM saved ground stalking the pace, continued between horses on the second turn, angled to the inside in the stretch and was outfinished. CISTRON stalked inside, came a bit off the rail on the second turn, bid three wide leaving that turn and into the stretch but weakened in the final furlong. GIANT PAYDAY settled off the pace inside, came out into the stretch then angled back to the inside and lacked the needed rally. TULE FOG pulled and angled in to press the early pace then stalked inside, re-bid alongside a rival then between foes on the second turn to take the lead, fought back in upper stretch and weakened in the final furlong. GOLD RUSH DANCER saved ground stalking the pace, split horses in midstretch and lacked a rally. FOREVER JUANITO stalked outside a rival then three deep on the second turn and four wide into the stretch and weakened. CONQUEST TSUNAMI angled in and dueled outside a rival then inched away and set the pace inside, battled along the rail leaving the second turn and gave way in the stretch. The stewards conducted an inquiry into the late stretch run by the top pair but made no change when they ruled the late bumping did not alter the original order of finish. SEVENTH RACE. 6 Furlongs. Purse: $60,000. Maiden Special Weight. Fillies. 2 year olds. Time 22.16 46.08 58.35 1:10.78 Pgm Horse Wt PP St Str Fin Jockey $1 3 Mother Mother 120 2 1 21 11 13 16 Van Dyke 0.60 8 Tapwater 120 6 5 512 41 21 24 Prat 2.00 6 Over Emphasize 115 5 4 42 2 35 310 Espinoza 6.50 1 Calm Down Lady 120 1 2 1 31 43 44 Stevens 24.10 4 Creative Romance 120 3 6 6 6 6 5 Conner 53.30 5 Queen of the Track 120 4 3 3 515 510 6 Bejarano 18.20 3 MOTHER MOTHER 3.20 2.20 2.10 8 TAPWATER 2.60 2.20 6 OVER EMPHASIZE 2.40 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (13-3) $249.40 $1 EXACTA (3-8) $2.80 $2 QUINELLA (3-8) $3.60 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (3-8-6-1) $1.36 50-CENT TRIFECTA (3-8-6) $2.50 $2 CONSOLATION DOUBLE (13-7) $47.40 WinnerMother Mother Dbb.f.2 by Pioneerof the Nile out of Mother, by Lion Hearted. Bred by T. F. VanMeter (KY). Trainer: Bob Baffert. Owner: Bolton, George, Hall, Barry, Lipman, Barry, Mathiesen, Mark and Molasky, Andrew. Mutuel Pool $391,934 Daily Double Pool $50,283 Exacta Pool $189,749 Quinella Pool $9,195 Superfecta Pool $85,213 Trifecta Pool $128,024. ScratchedShe Rocks the Look, She's My Gem. $1 Pick Three (3-13-3) paid $485.60. Pick Three Pool $84,341. $1 Consolation Pick Three (3-13-7) paid $233.50. MOTHER MOTHER dueled between horses then outside a rival, inched away on the turn and drew clear in the stretch under some urging. TAPWATER chased off the rail on the backstretch and turn, came four wide into the stretch and gained the place. OVER EMPHASIZE stalked outside a rival then off the rail, came three wide into the stretch, drifted to the inside and bested the others. CALM DOWN LADY went up inside to duel for the lead, stalked along the rail leaving the turn and weakened din the stretch. CREATIVE ROMANCE dropped back a bit off the rail early, continued just off the inside to the stretch and failed to menace. QUEEN OF THE TRACK had speed three deep then stalked a bit off the rail to the stretch and gave way. EIGHTH RACE. 1 1/8 Mile Turf. Purse: $250,000. 'Eddie Read Stakes'. 3 year olds and up. Time 23.75 47.65 1:11.00 1:34.26 1:46.07 Pgm Horse Wt PP St Str Fin Jockey $1 6 Catapult 120 5 5 7hd 7 7hd 62 1nk Van Dyke 21.00 5 Sharp Samurai 120 4 8 21 2 2hd 1hd 2hd Stevens 3.10 10 Prime Attraction 120 9 7 1 11 1hd 21 3 Desormeaux 9.70 4 Bowies Hero 124 3 3 84 83 83 51 41 Nakatani 8.20 8 Multiplier 120 7 1 3 31 32 31 5hd Pedroza 15.30 2 Next Shares 120 2 10 9 91 91 82 6 Bejarano 12.40 1 True Valour 120 1 6 41 4hd 4hd 4hd 71 Spencer 8.00 11 Fashion Business 120 10 9 10 10 10 10 81 Talamo 20.60 9 Itsinthepost 122 8 4 5 5 5hd 9 91 T Baze 4.80 7 Hunt 124 6 2 61 61 62 7 10 Prat 3.30 6 CATAPULT 44.00 14.40 8.60 5 SHARP SAMURAI 4.60 4.00 10 PRIME ATTRACTION 6.60 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (3-6) $82.80 $1 EXACTA (6-5) $112.50 $2 QUINELLA (5-6) $73.20 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (6-5-10-4) $680.00 50-CENT TRIFECTA (6-5-10) $729.65 WinnerCatapult Dbb.h.5 by Kitten's Joy out of Gata Bella, by Storm Cat. Bred by Breffni Farm (KY). Trainer: John W. Sadler. Owner: Woodford Racing, LLC. Mutuel Pool $611,520 Daily Double Pool $82,206 Exacta Pool $288,714 Quinella Pool $11,591 Superfecta Pool $146,707 Trifecta Pool $207,509. ScratchedFlamboyant (FR). $1 Pick Three (13-3-6) paid $2,010.70. Pick Three Pool $89,883. $1 Consolation Pick Three (13-7-6) paid $2,198.90. CATAPULT chased outside a rival, came out in the stretch and rallied under urging to get up three wide late. SHARP SAMURAI had speed between foes then dueled then stalked inside, re-bid between foes leaving the backstretch and on the second turn, battled outside a rival in the stretch and was caught between foes late. PRIME ATTRACTION four wide in the chute, dueled three deep then outside a rival, inched away and angled in on the first turn, set the pace inside, fought back along the rail on the second turn and through the stretch and continued gamely. BOWIES HERO saved ground chasing the pace, came out in midstretch and was in tight off heels nearing the wire. MULTIPLIER four wide in the chute, dueled then stalked outside a rival, re-bid three deep into and on the second turn and into the stretch and was outfinished. NEXT SHARES saved ground off the pace, came out leaving the second turn and four wide into the stretch and also was outfinished. TRUE VALOUR (IRE) stalked the pace inside, came out into the stretch and lacked the needed rally. FASHION BUSINESS (GB) angled in outside a rival then a bit off the rail, continued inside on the second turn and could not offer the necessary late response. ITSINTHEPOST (FR) stalked three deep, dropped back leaving the second turn and three wide into the stretch and weakened. HUNT (IRE) was in a good position stalking the pace between horses then outside a rival leaving the second turn and also weakened. NINTH RACE. 1 Mile. Purse: $23,000. Claiming. Fillies and Mares. 3 year olds and up. Claiming Prices $12,500-$10,500. Time 23.73 48.34 1:13.61 1:26.57 1:39.76 Pgm Horse Wt PP St Str Fin Jockey $1 7 If You Like It 113 6 8 4hd 3hd 11 12 13 Figueroa 2.00 4 Ipray 120 4 2 7hd 7hd 61 5hd 22 Elliott 5.50 10 Ryder's Starlight 115 8 3 5 4hd 3hd 31 3hd Espinoza 6.20 6 Brookes All Mine 120 5 1 3 2hd 2 2 4 Roman 5.70 3 Scathing 120 3 4 11 1hd 51 63 51 Gonzalez 9.70 14 Jersey Buns 118 9 9 61 51 41 4hd 6 Ceballos 19.00 1 Resky Business 120 1 7 2hd 61 71 71 73 Mt Garcia 5.20 9 Veronica Bay 120 7 5 8hd 9 9 86 814 Pereira 27.90 2 Detail 120 2 6 9 8hd 8hd 9 9 Franco 11.90 7 IF YOU LIKE IT 6.00 3.60 2.80 4 IPRAY 5.60 3.40 10 RYDER'S STARLIGHT 4.20 $2 DAILY DOUBLE (6-7) $185.40 $1 EXACTA (7-4) $14.60 $2 QUINELLA (4-7) $15.60 10-CENT SUPERFECTA (7-4-10-6) $30.46 $1 SUPER HIGH FIVE (7-4-10-6-3) $935.40 50-CENT TRIFECTA (7-4-10) $39.30 WinnerIf You Like It Ch.m.7 by First Samurai out of Ice Cool Kitty, by Tomorrows Cat. Bred by Lansdon B. Robbins & Kevin Callahan (KY). Trainer: William E. Morey. Owner: Ron Stolich. Mutuel Pool $399,997 Daily Double Pool $114,346 Exacta Pool $214,856 Quinella Pool $8,675 Superfecta Pool $109,424 Super High Five Pool $24,514 Trifecta Pool $155,443. ClaimedIf You Like It by Robert Bone. Trainer: Mike Puype. ClaimedScathing by James Davis, III. Trainer: James Davis, III. ScratchedDizzy Diva, Honor Maker, Skeeter Davis, Tiki Bar Logic, Zuzanna. $1 Pick Three (3-6-7) paid $137.40. Pick Three Pool $266,224. 50-Cent Pick Four (13-3/7-6-7/8) 4 correct paid $3,199.15. Pick Four Pool $885,718. 50-Cent Pick Five (3/11-13-3/7-6-7/8) 5 correct paid $11,363.25. Pick Five Pool $580,669. $2 Pick Six (13-3/11-13-3/7-6-7/8) 5 out of 6 paid $537.00. $2 Pick Six Jackpot (13-3/11-13-3/7-6-7/8) 6 correct paid $119,107.80. Pick Six Jackpot Pool $150,120. $1 Place Pick All 8 out of 9 paid $1,673.00. Place Pick All Pool $39,460. IF YOU LIKE IT stalked between horses then bid between foes to duel for the lead, inched away leaving the second turn and won clear under urging. IPRAY chased outside a rival then between horses on the backstretch and three wide on the second turn, came four wide into the stretch and gained the place. RYDER'S STARLIGHT stalked four wide then bid four wide between foes, came three wide into the stretch and just held third. BROOKES ALL MINE stalked between horses then bid between foes to vie for command, angled in entering the stretch and was edged for the show inside. SCATHING sped to the early lead, set the pace inside then dueled along the rail, fell back leaving the second turn, came out into the stretch then drifted in and weakened. JERSEY BUNS five wide into the first turn, bid five wide on the backstretch then four wide leaving the second turn and into the stretch and also weakened. RESKY BUSINESS saved ground stalking the pace, came out some in the stretch and also weakened. VERONICA BAY four wide into the first turn, chased three deep then dropped back off the rail on the second turn, came four wide into the stretch and lacked a further response. DETAIL stalked inside, went between horses into the second turn, angled back to the inside into the stretch and gave way. The priest turned and walked away, waving an arm for me to follow. Trailing him down the aisle, I stopped at the altar steps as he disappeared into the vestibule. I glanced back past empty pews to the entrance of the church. The scorching April sun pushed its way through the arched doorways of the Hoi An cathedral, rays reflecting so hard off the glossy floor that my eyes went into a safety squint. The priest reappeared with a soda can-size candle, a gold cross sticker covering the front of its plastic wrap. For you, he said. God bless. Advertisement City of Lanterns I was in Vietnam on a three-month tour through Southeast Asia. It was the culmination of two years of planning, saving and practicing hello and thank you in Thai, Lao and Vietnamese. Hoi An was the high point of the trip. This ancient port city on Vietnams central coast is often called the City of Lanterns, and nearly every building in its old town is ornamented with paper lampions, a 400-year-old tradition accentuating the citys fusion of Chinese, Japanese and French-influenced architecture. Beyond its physical beauty, Hoi An has distinct street foods, immense markets and a relaxed pace that had drawn me in from Day 1. Wanting to experience the citys rural outskirts, I left Hoi An by motorcycle on a sun-drenched Tuesday morning, spending the day touring villages surrounding the Thu Bon River delta. The tranquil village life provided the ideal backdrop as I glided between the rivers banks. When I had cell service again that afternoon, I saw I had a voicemail from home. My grandmother, the family matriarch, had died unexpectedly. I spent the next few hours searching for flights home, but the cheapest options cost nearly as much as my entire trip. My efforts, I finally realized, were futile. I would stay in Vietnam. A devout Catholic My grandmother died in the New Jersey house where she raised eight children, just beyond the kitchen table where she would sit to call each of her 57 grandchildren and great-grandchildren on their birthdays. Mom-Mom (Mom-Mom-Mom to her great-grandchildren) was a devout Catholic who would regularly light prayer candles, a custom dating to the earliest days of Christianity. During my growing-up years, I frequently saw candles burning in her bedroom when family members were in the hospital, awaiting job offers or just needing a bit of good fortune. Candles were even lighted for long-distance journeys. I had no doubt one burned for me as I departed LAX on my transpacific flight. Now, sitting in my room, saddened, I could not grieve with family, and feeling farther from home than I had ever felt, I remembered passing the cathedral in Hoi Ans old town. I left my hotel on a rented bicycle, navigating the concrete paths snaking through Hoi Ans maze of rice fields. I peddled my way to Ly Thuong Kiet, a main road, before continuing to the cathedral gates. As I pedaled, I thought about Mom-Moms joyous response when I told her about my planned across-the-world adventure. Inside the church, I found the priest, a slight man in a linen shirt affixed with a clerical collar, preparing for evening Mass. I interrupted him as he stacked missals. Sorry, I said, but I was wondering if you have a candle I could light? I told him why I wanted it, and in condensed English, he asked about my grandmother. Then he headed off toward the vestibule. Returning with the candle, he suggested I stay for Mass. I politely declined, shaking his hand and returning to my bike. The candle stayed in my backpack until my last day in Hoi An, the evening coinciding with Mom-Moms funeral. I set the lighted candle on the hotel room nightstand, comforted that I somehow was sharing this experience with my family. As I sat at the edge of the bed, my eyes fixated on the flame. For now, in Vietnams City of Lanterns, home didnt seem so far away. Departure Points explores the ways in which traveling changes us, whether its a lesson learned or a truth uncovered. You may submit a first-person essay of 700 words or fewer to travel@latimes.com with Departure Points in the subject line. Please include your first and last names and your contact information for editorial consideration. travel@latimes.com @latimestravel Britains slow move away from the European Union took a new twist Sunday as the new Brexit chief suggested that Britain might not pay its $51-billion divorce bill if no trade agreement with the European Union is reached. Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab told the Sunday Telegraph that there must be conditionality between Britain making the hefty exit payment and its ability to create a new relationship with the EU. You cant have one side fulfilling its side of the bargain and the other side not, or going slow, or failing to commit on its side, he said, implying that the threat of withholding payment might get Brexit talks back on track. Britain and the EU remain far apart on terms of a new trade setup. British Prime Minister Theresa Mays Conservative Party is also deeply split over what Brexit policy to support. Raab replaced David Davis, who resigned two weeks ago to protest Mays soft Brexit plan. Advertisement May has faced a substantial rebellion from party colleagues who favor a complete break with the EU a so-called hard Brexit rather than Mays proposal, which calls for a common rule book with European nations that would govern trade in goods. EU negotiator Michel Barnier is also lukewarm on Mays latest proposal, asking many questions about its viability Friday. Raab, however, says he is still hopeful a deal can be concluded by October so the EU parliament and national parliaments of EU nations can ratify the deal before Britain leaves in March. Actually the fact Michel Barnier is not blowing it out the water but asking questions is a good positive sign thats what we negotiate on, Raab said, looking forward to more Brexit discussions Thursday in Brussels. But former Prime Minister John Major warned that the hard-liners in his own Conservative Party are making the situation worse. The danger at the moment is that they will frustrate every move the government seeks to make and by accident, because nothing can be agreed, we will crash out without a deal, he said on the BBC. Major said holding a second referendum to gauge public sentiment now that more is known about the true impact of Brexit would be morally justified because Brexit advocates made so many inflated claims ahead of the June 2016 vote. If you look back at the Leave campaign, a great many of the promises they made were fantasy promises, he said. We now know they are not going to be met. The call came on Saturday night. In the raging war zone that is southwestern Syria, with enemy forces on the march, the 98 White Helmets volunteers brought their spouses, children and a personal bag each. A total of 421 people massed at two collection points where they were to make their crossing to safety. By the time they crossed, they were 422. One woman went into labor, requiring an emergency C-section. Her son, Nairouz, came into the world in an open field under the darkness of night just short of the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. It was just one moment of drama in a complicated international rescue operation to extract the Syrian volunteer rescuers who work in opposition areas through their countrys bitter enemy Israel by bus to a temporary haven in Jordan. It was a nail-biting trip to a crossing over one of the most tightly sealed frontiers in the world. Up until the last minute, those on the ground were uncertain the operation would go through. Advertisement Another nearly 400 people were meant to be pulled out as well. Most didnt make it in time to the assembly points, unable to go through roads that were closing fast by the advancing Syrian forces on one side and the expanding Islamic State militants on the other. In all, it took about six hours to complete the evacuation, according to a person close to the operation who agreed to discuss the details on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. It was a Hail Mary operation, said the person familiar with the evacuation. The only place of safety was through their evacuation to Jordan. An Israeli soldier offers water to a family member of a Syrian White Helmet rescuer during an evacuation operation through Israel en route to Jordan. (Handout / AFP/Getty Images) The operation was conceived by Britain, Germany and Canada and supported by Israel, Jordan, the United States, and the U.N. It took an unprecedented level of agreement and coordination something international players have rarely demonstrated during eight years of war in Syria that have pitted world powers against one another. The rescue of the besieged White Helmets was not without controversy. It raised questions about the fate of 3,000 other White Helmets still operating in opposition-held northern Syria, living with other 1 million other displaced civilians in areas where the government is expected to target next. The Syrian government denounced the evacuation as a criminal process that smuggled terrorists whom it blamed for undermining the countrys security for years. A Syrian Foreign Ministry official repeated his governments accusations that the White Helmets staged and executed chemical attacks to blame Damascus. The White Helmets is an organization of volunteers that since 2013 took on the task of rescuing the survivors and salvaging the dead in war-ravaged held areas, whether digging them from under the rubble of bombed buildings or pulling victims of chemical attacks from site. It has had Western backing and funding, and its work brought it a Nobel Prize nomination. The government waged a virulent campaign depicting them as agents and terrorists because its volunteers helped document atrocities by government forces and their allies. In five years of operations, over 3,000 volunteers saved more than 115,000 lives, according to the White Helmets. The cost for the group has been high, with one in four of its volunteers wounded or killed. The plan was conceived in Europe and Canada about two weeks ago. The Syrian government offensive in the southwest, backed by Russia, unfolded in mid-June. Though it condemned the assault, Washington, which along with Jordan had backed armed groups in the area and sponsored the White Helmets, signaled it wouldnt help stop the advances. By early July, government forces began negotiating surrender deals with armed groups and civilians in villages and towns that were fast crumbling under the assault. The negotiations allowed those who refused to live under government control whether armed fighters, civilians or activists to evacuate to the north. Except for the White Helmets, said the person close to the planning. Government officials and Russian representatives said the White Helmets were a red line who should be eradicated, the source said. This threat was particularly acute, he said, because during previous evacuations from fallen opposition areas elsewhere, nearly a dozen White Helmets volunteers were specifically targeted, pulled from buses, tortured and filmed making false confessions about being paid agents. They were even filmed with weapons to support the governments narrative that they work closely with the armed groups. It was a pattern of behavior, he said. The discussions about the White Helmets safety started among Britain, Germany and Canada before the NATO summit on July 9. At the summit, there were leader-to-leader meetings over the issue. Evacuating them through Jordan quickly became impossible as government forces advanced, seizing a vital border crossing from the rebels and then deploying along the border. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he agreed to let them cross through Israel, after an appeal from President Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Finding the volunteers in the fast-changing battlefield was a challenge. Conscious not to raise expectations, the planners only asked the volunteers whether they would accept an opportunity to evacuate through Israel. Some declined, the source said, fearing they had no guarantees where they would end up. The leadership of the White Helmets was unanimous in accepting, despite the likelihood the government would point to the Israel route in propaganda against them. The political ramification had to be secondary to saving what is to be saved, the source said. There was an unexpected twist: advances by an affiliate of the Islamic State group. As rebel forces retreated and surrendered in many villages between Dara and Quneitra provinces, it was the Islamic State affiliate not government forces that moved in. This changed the landscape again, blocking some escape routes to the evacuation points. One civil defense volunteer said before Saturday night that many of his colleagues were locked in areas seized by the government and the militants. In our minds, there were no guarantees this evacuation was going to happen until it happened, the source said. The small window was quickly closing. On Saturday night, the call came. The evacuees congregated at two points in the northern end of the frontier. Again, there was a problem. A wife of one volunteer went into labor as the call was issued. We were worried she wont make it, the source said. An emergency C-section was performed on the Syrian side in a field near the frontier. In a couple of hours, she was evacuated to the other side with a healthy baby boy Nairouz. The evacuees crossed on foot and were received on the other side by Israeli soldiers, who verified their identities and took them in buses to one of the two crossings into Jordan. The rescuers were rescued, the source said. Germany, Canada and Britain said they will resettle the White Helmets and their families within three months. The U.S. and Jordan will not take any in. The planners are still in touch with the volunteers who didnt make it out, advising them on what to do and where to be safe. It is unclear whether a similar operation can be produced. As for the hundred other volunteers in northern Syria, the source said the geography and landscape are different, with Turkish forces present in the area and far more options than the southwest, with firmly sealed frontiers from all sides. In a statement Monday night, the White Helmets thanked all governments who contributed to the evacuation and asked the international community if it wont act to end Syrian offensives to do more to help the hundreds of thousands remaining in southern Syria. But the international players appear unlikely to pull together that will again. A great many factors and partners had to interact in the right way, German Foreign Ministry spokesman Christofer Burger said. Pressed whether the action set a precedent for further world help in evacuations, he said: The factors that made it possible in this case to help in this way people who faced an acute threat, a very specific group, cannot be reproduced at will. In an extraordinary public protest, tens of thousands of Israelis poured into the streets across the country Sunday to voice their displeasure with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Shame! Shame! they shouted. The issue was not Gaza policy or the controversial nation-state law favoring Jews over Arabs. It was the governments refusal to pay for single men or gay male couples to have children using surrogates. Israels welfare system has long paid for surrogacy for single women and married heterosexual couples who are unable to have children on their own. Typically, an embryo created through in vitro fertilization is implanted in a woman who then carries the fetus to term. Advertisement Last Monday, Netanyahu announced that hed support an amendment extending state subsidies for surrogacy to single men and gay couples a move that apparently upset religious conservatives in his fragile coalition government. Two days later in the parliament, or Knesset, he voted against it without explanation, and the amendment narrowly failed. The protest began the same day, as members of the LGBTQ communities in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem gathered spontaneously to demonstrate. By Thursday, technology companies that have sustained Israels reputation as the start-up nation had joined the cause. Microsofts Israel affiliate announced that it would pay 60,000 shekels, about $16,500, for any gay employee to use a surrogate. My heart is with each and every employee in their desire to create a family, said Assaf Rappaport, the chief executive of Microsofts research and development center in Israel. IBM issued a statement Friday decrying the law: No one should be denied one of the most basic human rights the right to start a family for being who they are. We support IBMers who wish to stand in solidarity with the LGBT community in advocating for legislation that is inclusive of ALL. Dozens of other companies agreed to give their employees the day off on Sunday normally a workday here to protest. In Jerusalem, dozens of protesters blocked the square facing the prime ministers residence. In Haifa, protesters showed up with empty strollers. A few hours before the start of Sundays nationwide protests, Apple Inc. released a statement supporting the Israeli campaign. One of Israels greatest gifts is the creativity, diversity and talent of all of its people, it said. Unfortunately, recent legislation passed by the Knesset undermines those values. Apple will always maintain its values of fairness, dignity, and mutual respect, and we stand with all of our employees seeking equality under the law. Even trade unions, which are traditionally conservative, granted their employees a day off, causing some delays at the national electric company and Ben Gurion International Airport. Marching alongside thousands of protesters, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai said, These people are protesting for something so basic, just human rights, against a government and a prime minister who misleads us. This is apparently the moment when the straw broke the camels back. There is an awakening. Around him, marchers chanted, Netanyahu! Homophobe! We are here, we are everywhere! The protest there morphed into a general outcry against several conservative laws passed last week before the start of a three-month summer recess. The most controversial was the nation-state law, which defines Israel as the national home of the Jewish people and downgrades Arabic from an official language to one with an undefined special status. As the magnitude of Sundays protests became clear, senior Israeli officials began to signal the possibility of reversing course. Minister of Culture Miri Regev, who voted against the amendment that would have paid for surrogacy for gay men, said in a television interview that the government would review the law. We mucked up with surrogacy, she said. I regret that coalition obligations forced us to do so. Netanyahu told gay rights leaders he would meet with them in the coming days. Itzik Shmuli, an opposition legislator who is gay, said the prime minister was treating us as second-class citizens. BEIJING, July 22 (Xinhua) -- The relations between China and Senegal are poised to reach new heights thanks to President Xi Jinping's state visit to the West African nation, the first by a Chinese head of state in nine years. Xi and Senegalese President Macky Sall held talks and attended a ceremony for the signing of multiple cooperation documents, including one on jointly building the Belt and Road. Senegal is the first West African country to sign a Belt and Road cooperation document with China. Xi said China is willing to join hands with Senegal to lift bilateral ties and cooperation to a higher level, so as to bring more benefits to both peoples. China-Senegal ties have seen sound and stable development since the restoration of diplomatic ties in 2005. The relationship was elevated to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in 2016. China is now Senegal's second largest trading partner and largest source of financing. "The China-Senegal cooperation has a new starting point with Xi's visit," said Cheng Tao, former director-general of the department of African affairs of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "The visit will strengthen mutual political trust and boost China-Senegal pragmatic cooperation." Senegal is the second stop in Xi's first overseas trip after being re-elected Chinese president in March. He has already visited the United Arab Emirates and will pay state visits to Rwanda and South Africa, attend the 10th BRICS summit in Johannesburg, and visit Mauritius during a stopover. It is also Xi's first foreign visit after the Central Conference on Work Relating to Foreign Affairs. "Such arrangement further highlights the importance of China-Africa relations in China's work relating to foreign affairs in the new era," said Chen Fengying, a research fellow at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations. China and Africa have deep-rooted friendship and a shared pursuit for development and prosperity as China is the largest developing country and Africa has the largest number of developing countries, said Cheng. This year is key for China-Africa ties. In September, a summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) will be held in Beijing. In his talks with Xi, Sall vowed Senegal's full support in strengthening the FOCAC, deepening cooperation between China and Africa, and establishing the China-Africa community with a shared future. Cheng said Xi's visit will cement China-Africa solidarity and cooperation and gather more consensus for the summit. Stock Market News UK Markets - Kenya loses UK market share to Rwanda, Dar 23-07-2018 03:50 Stock News headlines are gathered from financial news sources around the web. Views and opinions on each item are from their respective authors and website. They are not opinions of LiveCharts.co.uk Stock Market News USA Markets - Major People Leaders' Summit set to Launch in Boston in March 2019, as the HRD Summit Expands its Successful Events Portfolio to the US Market 23-07-2018 04:17 Stock News headlines are gathered from financial news sources around the web. Views and opinions on each item are from their respective authors and website. They are not opinions of LiveCharts.co.uk Stock Market News USA Stocks - Asia stocks ease, US dollar near two-week lows on Trump comments 23-07-2018 03:55 Stock News headlines are gathered from financial news sources around the web. Views and opinions on each item are from their respective authors and website. They are not opinions of LiveCharts.co.uk A brewing scandal over violations of drug production regulations by one of China's largest vaccine manufacturers, which has sparked nationwide outrage, could pose serious challenges for a domestic industry that has seen rapid growth in recent years but experienced a series of scandals. The growing concerns over the safety of the whole domestic vaccine industry, triggered by the Changchun Changsheng incidents, could also turn Chinese consumers to foreign alternatives and prompt tougher regulations. These factors are likely to rein in the skyrocketing profits of domestic companies, experts noted. The outrage started when the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) released a statement on July 15, saying an investigation into Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences found that the company has seriously violated drug production quality management regulations, including forging production records on rabie vanccine. The probe was launched after the CFDA received complaints. The situation further escalated after the CFDA on July 19 announced penalties on Changsheng resulted from another separate probe into the company launched in November 2017. The company was found selling substandard vaccines back that time. Finger-pointing continues regarding the Changsheng incident, with some blaming authorities for a lack of proper oversight and others pointing to dishonest companies that only seek profits and ignore the safety of millions of patients across the country. But experts noted that the key root behind the frequent incident of problematic vaccine is that punishment for companies that violate regulations is too light, prompting some companies to take risks. "If regulation is not tough, companies will always seek (to maximize) profits. Unless there's a major problem, companies will cut production costs as much as they can," a Beijing-based expert told the Global Times, speaking on condition of anonymity. "If this kind of life and death [violation] could result in the death penalty, companies wouldn't dare do it." In the case of Changsheng for violations of selling substandard products in October 2017, the company was only fined about 2.58 million yuan ($381,323) in addition to 858,840 yuan being confiscated, according to a Changsheng filing to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Thursday. "The public's distrust of domestic drug companies has only intensified and after this incident, some might actually turn to foreign vaccines instead of domestic ones," Li Tianquan, co-founder of domestic healthcare big data platform yaozh.com told the Global Times on Sunday. "Domestic companies will mostly likely face some of the toughest regulations." The Chinese vaccine market has grown rapidly in recent years on the strength of increased government support for healthcare and rising parental attention to having children vaccinated, Li noted. As a result, domestic companies have prospered. Vaccine companies are some of the most profitable enterprises in China, with 52 vaccine-focused companies listed on the A-share market averaging a gross margin of 50 percent in the first quarter of 2018, according to a report in the Beijing News. Changsheng's gross margin was the highest, reaching 91.59 percent. "With all of these producers, it is hard to imagine that they will grow as fast as they have," Li said, while stressing that "the overall environment is good" for the domestic industry's long-term growth. "This goes in the right direction toward better regulations and better-quality vaccines." Eight well-known economists urged Congress to pass the corporate tax reform bill to help fulfill the governments goal of making the countrys taxation system simpler, fairer and more efficient. The economists said in a statement the deficiencies of the current corporate income tax system had hampered the countrys growth and competitivenessand that maintaining them could make the government miss its long-term vision of transforming the Philippines into a prosperous, high-income economy by 2040. The statement was signed by former Finance Undersecretary Romeo Bernardo; Prof. Dante Canlas of the UP School of Economics; Gerardo Sicat, the first director-general of National Economic and Development Authority; Gilberto Llanto, former president of the Philippine Institute of Development Studies; Renato Reside Jr., assistant professor of the UP School of Economics; Monetary Board member Prof. Felipe Medalla; Monetary Board member Bruce Tolentino; and Arsenio Balisacan, chairperson of the Philippine Competition Commission and former Neda director-general. The economists lauded the efforts of the Finance and Trade Departments to modernize the corporate income tax system as part of the Duterte administrations objective of making tax policy reform a key pillar of socioeconomic policy and tool for fair and inclusive growth. The proposals of the DoF and DTI to overhaul the corporate tax system are contained in Package 2 of the Duterte administrations comprehensive tax reform program.As Congress deliberates on the second package of the reform, we express our support for the main principle of a corporate tax system that is broad-based and competitive relative to our peers in the region. More importantly, lowering the corporate income tax rate will help entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises thrive. However, in the interest of fiscal prudence, the lowering of rates should be in conjunction with the rationalization of fiscal incentives, the economists said in a joint statement of support. They said that tax incentives are given to businesses are public investments and that their benefits should accrue to the Filipino people. We stand with the Department of Finance and the Department of Trade and Industry that tax incentives should be performance-based, time-bound, targeted, and transparent, they said. The House of Representatives is set to deliberate on the corporate tax reform bill beginning this week. The Potala Palace in Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region will open a new visiting route for tourists on Monday to relieve overcrowding. The new route aims to balance the safety of the relics and to provide a better experience for tourists, the palace's website said on Friday. "We usually receive about 2,000 tourists a day, but this has increased to over 5,000. Thus, we will open a second route," a palace employee who requested anonymity told the Global Times on Sunday. When the number of palace visitors surpasses 5,000 in a day, the new route will be opened to protect the buildings, the website said. The new route will cover 15 attractions, including the treasure hall and the porch of the Potrang Karpo, or White Palace. The Potrang Marpo, or Red Palace, in the middle of the Potala Palace will not be included in the new route to prevent it from the huge tourist flow, the anonymous employee said. "The palace is constructed with timber and clay, which cannot endure too many visitors a day," the employee explained. Tickets will be issued at 8:00 am starting Monday. Tourists need to go to the ticket office to make a reservation. Travel agencies will reserve group tours. All reservations need to be made a day ahead. Proprietary System Shows Stock Market Rally Could Extend Higher The following Weekly charts are illustrations of one of our proprietary price modeling systems that shows trends, market breadth and much more. We use this almost exclusively on longer-term (Weekly, Monthly, and Quarterly charts) to help us understand where longer-term support and resistance levels are, where the market ranges are truly important and to determine true market breadth. When we are studying Daily chart or intra-day charts the shorter term price rotation can often clutter our interpretation of the long term expectations. Yes, we have other modeling systems, predictive analysis systems, Fibonacci systems, Adaptive Cycles systems and more. Our collection of proprietary analysis tools is very deep. Yet, one has to know how to use these tools and what value they can provide at different times. This proprietary modeling system is designed to model price swings/rotation and provide clear overall objective analysis of key price levels/pivots. We call it TT Charger. WEEKLY CHART OF THE SPY USING OUR TT CHARGER MODELING SYSTEM This first Weekly chart of the SPY using our TT Charger modeling system is clearly still bullish. The price breadth contracting a bit near the current prices and support is currently functioning near $252. The current market price has recently broken higher above the short term price channels in addition to the longer term price channels. This is a pretty good indication that price may attempt another rally attempt that may extend for many weeks. In 2017, we witnessed more than 5 to 15+ weeks of extended price rally above both of these channel levels at times. The recent rotation in February 2018 may operate as a recharging of price in terms of a future rally attempt. WEEKLY NQ CHART WITH THE TT CHARGER This Weekly NQ chart with the TT Charger applied for shows an even more incredible setup. Support is currently setting near $6190 and price has extended beyond both of the price channels for more than 11 weeks now. Market Breadth is expanding, therefore the implied volatility is increasing as well. Although we may not see a very big volatility rotation in price, the capability of increased volatility is still valid. WEEKLY TRANSPORTATION INDEX CHART This Weekly Transportation Index chart paints a clearer picture of the struggling Transportation Index in terms of the recent price rotation. The TT Charger analysis still shows a solidly bullish price trend with support at $10,005. Price is within the longer term price channels and just above the shorter term price channel. The Transportation index typically leads the US equities markets by about 4~8 months, so it is important that we see the Transportation index rally in support of the equities markets rally. If this fails to happen, then we are likely experiencing a capital appreciation that is not supported by economic fundamentals. In other words, without a rally in the Transports, any price advance in the equities markets is likely short-lived (3~6 months at best) before one of the two will break. At this point, our interpretation of these charts is that the US earnings season should drive equities prices higher, within and above these price channels, and create a real opportunity for investors/traders. Yes, support is quite a bit below the current price levels, but these support models will adjust as price advances. Unless a reversal trigger is generated, which does not seem likely right now, or the support levels are broken, which is not likely right away, we should be looking for advancing prices and breakout rallies over the next few weeks or months. Our members have access to much greater insight and analysis than we can share with the general public. We reserve our most advanced price modeling systems, predictive analysis and research for our exclusive membership levels. We are warning you that a massive upside swing is about to setup and youll want to be prepared for it because this could be a true once in a lifetime type of move. We also urge you to consider joining www.TheTechnicalTraders.com as a member to receive all of our detailed updates, daily videos, trading signals and more. If you dont believe we can assist you in your future with our research, analysis and other features and benefits, you can cancel your subscription and move onto something else. Either way, we urge you to be prepared for this next move higher and take a few minutes to read over our most recent public research posts at www.TheTechnicalTraders.com/FreeMarketResearch/ . Chris Vermeulen www.TheTechnicalTraders.com Chris Vermeulen has been involved in the markets since 1997 and is the founder of Technical Traders Ltd. He is an internationally recognized technical analyst, trader, and is the author of the book: 7 Steps to Win With Logic Through years of research, trading and helping individual traders around the world. He learned that many traders have great trading ideas, but they lack one thing, they struggle to execute trades in a systematic way for consistent results. Chris helps educate traders with a three-hour video course that can change your trading results for the better. His mission is to help his clients boost their trading performance while reducing market exposure and portfolio volatility. He is a regular speaker on HoweStreet.com, and the FinancialSurvivorNetwork radio shows. Chris was also featured on the cover of AmalgaTrader Magazine, and contributes articles to several leading financial hubs like MarketOracle.co.uk Disclaimer: Nothing in this report should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any securities mentioned. Technical Traders Ltd., its owners and the author of this report are not registered broker-dealers or financial advisors. Before investing in any securities, you should consult with your financial advisor and a registered broker-dealer. Never make an investment based solely on what you read in an online or printed report, including this report, especially if the investment involves a small, thinly-traded company that isnt well known. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report has been paid by Cardiff Energy Corp. In addition, the author owns shares of Cardiff Energy Corp. and would also benefit from volume and price appreciation of its stock. The information provided here within should not be construed as a financial analysis but rather as an advertisement. The authors views and opinions regarding the companies featured in reports are his own views and are based on information that he has researched independently and has received, which the author assumes to be reliable. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any content of this report, nor its fitness for any particular purpose. Lastly, the author does not guarantee that any of the companies mentioned in the reports will perform as expected, and any comparisons made to other companies may not be valid or come into effect. Chris Vermeulen Archive 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication. 1) The Maclean Animal Adoption Center announced it raised enough money to entirely pay off its debt. Congratulations and thank you to all involved! GFDA, First Interstate Bank and Prairie Mountain Bank joined forces several years ago to finance completion of the center. We received our final loan payment on Thursday. This Wednesday our Loan Committee will meet to consider new loans that will put these funds right back to work in our community. 2) The Great Falls City Design Review Board approved plans for the 124-apartment Rockcress Commons development, one of the many projects planning spring construction starts. 10 more: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?m=1101450799075&ca=12b1e95d-f91f-409a-a0f9-0de3f0415c90 If you cant make it to Yellowstone National Park this summer but would still like to visit, the National Geographic Channel can bring the park into your living room. In another unique feat of live television, the channel will have real-time broadcasts from the park over the course of four days, beginning on Sunday, Aug. 5, at 7 p.m. local time. "What better place than Yellowstone?" said Al Berman, executive producer of the broadcast, in a telephone interview. BRETT FRENCH [email protected] https://ravallirepublic.com/lifestyles/recreation/article_b24442c8-a3a7-5813-a5b2-56e33f28a10e.html#tracking-source=home-the-latest TOMIS is an automated marketing intelligence platform for activity providers. TOMIS (Tour Operator Marketing Intelligence Software) levels the playing field for SMBs (starting with tour operators) to navigate the increasingly complex world of digital marketing, allowing them to raise their visibility and drive sales. TOMIS is a machine learning engine that uses AI technology to constantly predict optimal marketing placement options across dozens of platforms (Facebook, Google, Website) and deliver optimized recommended actions based on recent and historical sales/marketing data. https://tomis.tech/careers/ Wed appreciate it if youd mention that you found this opportunity on MATR.net Thank you. Pilots assigned to the Chinese PLA Air Force stand in front of an H-6K bomber on July 20. All aircraft of the PLA Air Force to participate in the "Aviadarts-2018" international competition of the International Army Games 2018 have arrived at the Dyagilevo military airport in Ryazan Oblast, Russia, on July 21, 2018. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Yang Pan) Welcome to Morningstar.co.uk! You have been redirected here from Hemscott.com as we are merging our websites to provide you with a one-stop shop for all your investment research needs.To search for a security, type the name or ticker in the search box at the top of the page and select from the dropdown results.Registered Hemscott users can log in to Morningstar using the same login details. Similarly, if you are a Hemscott Premium user, you now have a Morningstar Premium account which you can access using the same login details. The tourism business in one of Chinas most popular scenic spots-Lijiang, SW Chinas Yunan Province, is flagging after years of intense growth, especially in the city's famed Old Town, which is taking a series of measures to guarantee quality tourism experience and combat over commercialization. Lijiang has become a popular scenic getaway since its old town was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997. With its rich natural beauty, diverse ethnic cultures and Silk Road legacy, the city attracted more than 40 million visitors in the year of 2017. After years of intense growth in the tourism-related businesses, more and more travelers who come to Lijiang to escape from chaos of city life began to complain that the city seem to lose its identity and became over commercialized. In response to tourists complaints, the local government has taken a series of measures to improve tourism experience and enhance the citys cultural atmosphere, especially in the old town area. Special attention is being paid to endeavors that highlight traditional Naxi Dongba culture, the major ethnic culture in the region. Since 2009,17 cultural yards have been set up to enhance cultural experience of tourists, some of which feature daily Naxi ethnic dance and music performances, allowing visitors to get a closer look at the ethnic groups folklore. At another yard specially designed for the protection of the endangered language, He Runyuan, an inheritor of Dongba, the ancient language used by Naxi ethnic people, has introduced the Dongba characters to over 300 thousands visitors over the years. Visitors can learn to recognize the characters of the ancient language and buy souvenirs related to the language. The cultural yard practice has been a win-win solution, He Lijun, deputy director of the protection and administration bureau of the Old Town, told People's Daily. On one hand, these cultural yards helped enhance the cultural atmosphere inside the Old Town. On the other, inheritors of non-intangible cultural heritage have gained motivation to carry on their unique but often dying culture. Cultural related businesses and projects are welcomed in the Old Town area with favorable policies from the local government. For example, stores selling cultural and creative products of the local culture are given rent-free policy inside the Old Town scenic area, according to He. Modern ways of consumption such as the famous bar street are still kept inside the town, but noise monitors were set up to detect the volume of the music and avoid noise pollution. To protect the over-burned tourism resources and improve tourists experience, Zheng Yi, mayor of Lijiang told People's Daily, other popular tourist sites such as the Old Town and the Lugu Lake are also planning or taking trials to limit the number of visitors each day, using the similar measure adopted at the famed Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. We are no longer simply pursuing higher tourist numbers, said Zheng. Starting last year, a maximum daily tourists number was set at the Old Town toguarantee better tourist experience. A smart device, which shows the instant tourist number, can be seen inside the Old Town. Once the number reaches the peak of 80,000, measures such as crowd control and directing will be triggered. Zheng said that researchers are studying the capacity of the Old Town scenic area and are trying to figure out a suitable daily limit number of tourists. Meanwhile, Lijiang is also improving its infrastructure such as in and out transportation. Zheng revealed. The city is expanding its airport and plans to open 7 international flights and over 70 domestic flights in the near future. Yang Yihang, economic and commercial counselor at the Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco. The development of China-U.S. economic and trade cooperation has brought tangible benefits to the people and enterprises of both countries, and U.S. states are enthusiastic to cooperate with China, said Yang Yihang, economic and commercial counselor at the Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco. Yang made the remarks during his address at the China-U.S. Entrepreneur and Investment Summit and Peoples Daily Online Global Partners Conference held in Silicon Valley, June 21. In 2017, China-U.S. trade volume reached $583.7 billion, which is 233 times the figure in 1979 when the two countries first established diplomatic relations, Yang pointed out. He explained that Chinas trade volume with the five states within the San Francisco Consulate General accounted for 35 percent of that with the U.S. as a whole, with China remaining the top trading partner of these five states. Yang explained that last year, General Motors (GM) suffered a 10.9 billion yuan loss in global profit, but its two Chinese branches registered a profit of 13.3 billion yuan ($196 million). The San Francisco Consulate General recently organized more than 10 Chinese new energy enterprises to visit three American states. The Chinese firms were warmly greeted by the American governments and firms, Yang added. The California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development noted that the state will continue to expand cooperation with China no matter how the policies of the U.S. federal government may change. China and US enterprises are highly complementary that the American firms have strengths in technology and management, while Chinese enterprises can help American firms enter the Chinese market, and together they can even explore market in countries along the Belt and Road, Yang said. Yang said that Chinese enterprises have a strengthened confidence in investing in the U.S. and expect more tangible cooperation projects, adding that the Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco will strive to promote pragmatic cooperation on local levels and between entrepreneurs. Mortgage Rates Surge to 1-Month Highs Mortgage rates rose today at the quickest pace in months, ultimately hitting the highest levels since June 25th for the average lender. While neither of those are "fun" facts for fans of low rates, they are made slightly more palatable by the nature of the recent range. Specifically, rates hadn't moved very much since late June. The average mortgage seeker will not have seen a change in their quoted interest rate during that time (the only adjustments have been to upfront closing costs/credits). The point is that it didn't require a huge move to be able to say "highest in a month" or "fastest pace in months." Caveats aside, today's rate spike confirms that a recent consolidation in the bond market is now over. The risk is that by breaking to the upside, rates have signaled that we're in for more negative momentum (or at least an absence of any notable positive momentum). Loan Originator Perspective Range bound rates have made a move starting last Friday and following through today with no resistance in sight. Definitely locking at submission is recommended at this time. -Al Hensling After idling in place for most of July, bonds dropped sharply today and 10 year yields are at 2 month highs. Anyone floating needs to seriously consider their risk tolerance. I've been in "lock early" mode for months, and the last two days are great examples of why. -Ted Rood, Senior Originator Today's Most Prevalent Rates 30YR FIXED - 4.625-4.75 FHA/VA - 4.25-4.5% 15 YEAR FIXED - 4.125% 5 YEAR ARMS - 3.75-4.25% depending on the lender Ongoing Lock/Float Considerations Rates moved higher in a serious way due to several big-picture headwinds, including: the Fed's rate hike outlook (and general policy tightening), the increased amount of Treasury issuance to pay for the tax bill (higher bond issuance = higher rates), and the possibility that fiscal stimulus results in higher growth/inflation. Despite those headwinds, the upward momentum in rates has cooled off heading into the summer months. This could merely be the eye of the storm, or it could end up being the moment where markets began to doubt that prevailing trends would continue. It makes sense to remain defensive (i.e. generally more lock-biased) because the headwinds mentioned above won't die down quickly. Temporary corrections can be explained away, but it will take a big change in economic fundamentals or geopolitical risk for the big picture to change. While that doesn't necessarily mean rates have to skyrocket, there's a good chance it means rates will struggle to move much lower than early 2018 lows until more convincing motivation shows up. To share with friends and brethren The Gospel of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (the Everlasting Gospel), and to prepare a people to stand when He returns to redeem His remnant. Also, to share relevant information of current events, and to show how they relate to prophecy; By means of articles, editorials, opinions, scripture readings, and poetry. Disclaimer Endrtimes does not necessarily endorse or agree with every opinion expressed in every article/video posted on this site. The information provided here is done so for personal edification; It's up to the reader to separate truth from error, and to examine everything (like the Bereans) from a Biblical perspective. Let the Holy Scriptures be you guide! - - - FAIR USE NOTICE: These pages/videos may contain copyrighted () material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is made available to advance understanding of ecological, POLITICAL, HUMAN RIGHTS, economic, DEMOCRACY, scientific, MORAL, ETHICAL, and SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES, etc. It is believed that 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, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior general interest in receiving similar information for research and educational purposes. Altiant Expands in UK, Sweden and Bulgaria Stockholm-based affluent sample provider Altiant has appointed online fieldwork specialist Richard Roig as Vice President of Client Servicing in its London office, while adding a further four members of staff to its Operations teams in Sweden and Bulgaria. Previously known as Red Carpet Research, Altiant enables large scale, quant market research for clients in the luxury goods and wealth management sectors; provides validated affluent and high net worth (HNW) sample through its proprietary panel LuxuryOpinions; and offers access to a suite of fieldwork solutions. Roig (pictured) joins with twenty years' MR industry experience, including fifteen in online fieldwork services. Most recently, he was Director at Research Interactive, where he worked for nearly eight years. Before this, he held several management roles including Head of Strategic Relationships at the Id Factor, and worked with Ipsos Interactive's Operations and Panel teams. He began his career at Research International. In his new role, Roig will oversee strategic client projects, and drive the firm's servicing strategy, assessing new technologies and methods to meet clients' research requirements. Emelie Ingvarsson has joined as Product Development Manager in Sweden, to assist in the technical development of the LuxuryOpinions community platform. In Sofia, Bulgaria, Miroslava Boeva joins the Global Panel Recruitment team to support the growth of the panel; Mariya Boycheva takes up the role of Support & Validation Coordinator; and Atanas Kostadinov joins as Project Manager. CEO and founder Lars Long comments: 'This hiring boost adds both customization and scalability to our core service offerings. This enables us to be even more relevant in the international and fast growing context of affluent fieldwork. Our clients, recruitment partners and panellists all stand to benefit immediately from this phase of growth'. Web site: www.altiant.com . By Devin Leith-Yessian Record-Journal staff PLAINVILLE Lines of volunteers cheered on runners in the Chips Family 5k Road Race Sunday morning, giving high fives and hugs as they crossed the finish line. There was little four year olds running with us, said runner Karina Szczepanczyk, who feels the race, now in its eleventh year, has a greater community orientation to it that other 5Ks she runs. Its about having a good time. To see all these people come and have a great time is wonderful, said Maggie Johndrow, a board member of the Petit Family Foundation, which organized the race. I think the Petit Family Foundation and all their sponsors have touched people. Dr. William Petit, who represents Plainville and New Britian as a state representative, said around 700 runners and walkers participated in the event, fueled by over 2,000 pancakes served out of the Chips Family Restaurant food truck. A lot of people come out because they remember Jennifer, Michaela and Hayley, Petit said, noting that some of the women now running in the race had gone to school with Michaela. It makes me feel good, its very heartening. He began the family foundation in 2008 to honor the memories of his wife and daughters Jennifer, Hayley and Michaela Petit, who were killed during a home invasion in Cheshire in 2007. The race was split between the 5K, which brought out around 550 runners, and a shorter fitness walk with a shorter distance. Petit said he originally meant to just do the fitness walk, but when his 4-year-old son, William Petit, took off running down the 5K route he was forced to follow. I couldnt get him to turn around, he said. The proceeds from the race support the Petit Family Foundations charitable giving, which has amounted to over $1 million in grants written over the past ten years. Petit said beneficiaries have included educational projects at the Beardsley Zoo, the Network Against Domestic Violence and the Connecticut Childrens Medical Centers Injury Prevention Program. We really appreciate the Petit Family Foundation for all they do, said Matt Fleury, president of the Connecticut Science Center. He said the foundation has supported the centers efforts to advance women seeking careers in science. I think its a great way for everyone to come together, said runner Kathleen Kalbian, who lives in Pennsylvania, but grew up in Cheshire. You get an overwhelming sense of community. The races course is also good for runners seeking a fast time, she said, since the lack of hills lets runners keep their speed up. I like the small, local vibe (and) its really well organized, said Emily DAddario, the fastest-finishing female in the race. I look forward to it every summer. Having run the race in the past, she enjoys the relaxed, local vibe it has and the charitable work the foundation does. You know your money goes to a really good place, she said. dleithyessian@record-journal.com 203-317-2317 Twitter: @leith_yessian WALLINGFORD If someone driving through downtown Sunday afternoon thought that visitors from the year 1775 appeared on South Main Street, well, theyd be right. The Lebanon Towne Militia, a group of colonial re-enactors, took over the Franklin Johnson Mansion to offer a perspective on the life and times of the people who lived through the Revolutionary War. The event was presented as part of the Wallingford Historic Preservation Trusts Sundays in the Yard series, taking place throughout the summer. Dina Rawling, a board member with the trust and the organizer of the event, hoped that by throwing open the mansions doors in such an interesting manner, they could highlight the Wallingford Silver Museum, located in the basement of the house. We want them to see this beautiful house, she said. Costumed members of the living history group plied their respective 18th century trades throughout the 19th century house. Spinners and basket weavers worked on the front porch. A dollmaker worked up on the third floor. However, no Revolutionary War demonstration would be complete without a few examples of the martial life. Killingly resident Kenneth Giella portrayed Major James Clark, commander of the original Lebanon militia, which took the battlefield against the British at Breeds Hill in 1775. A group of 178 soldiers marched 140 miles and fought on the third day of the battle. They got pushed back because they ran out of powder and shot, Giella said. They served in Boston until December of that year, Giella said, and then most of the men returned to their farms. George Washington didnt like militias, New England specifically, because we were a little grubby. He was a proper Virginia gentleman, Giella said. Ron Gresl stood on the lawn of the mansion, occasionally firing off his nine pound Brown Bess musket, a smoothbore weapon. He quickly bit open a small paper cartridge, sprinkled a bit of black gunpowder in the pan, then dumped the remainder down the barrel. A militiaman wouldve then used a ramrod to tamp down the paper, the ball, and the gunpowder in the barrel. However, because of the muskets lack of range, most Revolutionary War conflict took place in close proximity, both sides wielding fierce three sided bayonets, a blade later outlawed by the Geneva Conventions, he said. A lot more colonials were killed by bayonet, he said. Peter Johnson, portraying the company surgeon, spoke about the aftermath of war. If a bullet shattered bone, the limb would have to be amputated in three to five minutes because of the lack of anesthetic. A head injury would require trepanning to alleviate the pressure. Picture a large metal bore screwed into the skull and youve got the idea. And no matter what, if the wound didn't get you, the infection did. Basically if you came to me I did one of four things: purge, puke, blister, or bleed, Johnson said, describing what strategies 18th century doctors had at their disposal. You had something in you, and they had to get it out. But not everything about the 18th century was so gruesome. Denise Gresl, Ron's wife, sat in the dining room working a modern loom. Weaving using a loom is an intricate and labor intensive process. Simply stringing the warp threads think long strands running vertically through the wire mechanism known as the heddle can take up to six hours. They probably threaded a lot more, yards and yards and yards of material, she said, noting that 80 percent of a womans work in the colonial period dealt with textiles in some manner. She worked the loom briskly, weaving the shuttle back and forth, using her feet to manipulate the device, a lot of effort to make a small kitchen towel. She displayed a bit of her other work colorful and intricate patterns, sturdy, and somehow personal. Its a solitary craft where you have to stop and think, she said. When you are doing it, you can sit and contemplate. And when you are done, you have something pretty. I think everything is just too fast these days, she added. Everyone always asks me how long it takes. Its a hobby, who cares how long it takes? WALLINGFORD Residents in the area will soon have a new way to unwind. One of the states first ax-throwing venues is slated to open in a former warehouse at 21b North Plains Industrial Road. Town resident Jerry Ferraro plans to open Blue Ox Axe Throwing on Aug. 3. I feel like for the most part people are kind of doing the same thing doing their 9-to-5 gig, whereas this is way different, he said. When do you ever pick up a sharp object and chuck it into the wall? Ax throwing originated as a competitive sport in Canada and has become popular in several major U.S. markets, including San Francisco and New York. Blue Ox Ax Throwing will be the third ax throwing business to open in Connecticut. Pine & Iron Axe Throwing opened earlier this year in Hartford and Montana Nights Axe Throwing is slated to open in Newington next month, according to its Facebook page. Its nice to be on the beginning of it, Ferraro said. He feels ax throwing most closely mirrors darts. Participants throw a hatchet, weighing a little less than a couple pounds, at a target about 12 feet away. Like darts, throwers are given points for hitting specific locations. The key, Ferraro said, is to keep the hatchet straight while also getting a good rotation on it. Ax throwing experts consider the sport relatively safe. Evan Walters, commissioner of the World Axe Throwing League, told the Hartford Courant earlier this year that he doesnt think there are many safety issues when trained instructors are present. I dont think its any less safe than having a 10-pound ball you can hurl, especially when you have instructors right there, said Walters. The worst Ive seen is a few large splinters. Like many other ax throwing venues, Blue Ox will allow customers to bring their own beer and wine, but no hard liquor. Other ax throwing venues, like Montana Nights Axe Throwing in Newington, have received permits to serve alcohol. Ferraro first learned about ax throwing when he and friends went to an ax throwing facility in Minnesota during a bachelors weekend earlier this year. Ferraros friend and business partner thought they should open one in Wallingford. He nagged me with it and he was serious, so I ended up taking him up on it, said Ferraro, who graduated from Sheehan in 2011. This will be Ferraros second business opening in two years. In 2016, he opened Ferraros Gym in Silversmith Park on Quinnipiac Street. Blue Ox will have six lanes with two targets in each lane. Customers can either book one lane for a one-hour open throw session or book a lane for a two-hour social throw session that includes instructions from ax masters. Open throw sessions are meant for groups of two to four and social throw sessions is for parties of five to 10. Customers can book sessions in advance at blueoxeaxethrowing.com. mzabierek@record-journal.com 203-317-2279 Twitter: @MatthewZabierek National Geographic WILD is home to a big family of animal caretakers and rescuers. In these special episodes, check out how the Men of WILD are helping all kinds of creatures one case at a time. Fridays from 8:30pm AEDT. Another one of the gunmen who shot their way into the governorate building in Erbil, capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, carried out a suicide bombing on Monday, Kurdish security forces at the scene said. The officials said several hostages remain inside the building, where the gunmen seized control of the third floor. Search Keywords: Short link: C Shivakumar By Express News Service CHENNAI: Air India flight carrying 172 passengers, including crew, from Singapore to Chennai suffered a bird hit 400 feet above the ground damaging the nose of the aircraft. An Airport Authority of India official told Express that the incident happened at 400 feet above and not in the airport premises. The nose of the aircraft or radome is damaged but the radar has not been affected, an airport official told Express. Radome or nose cone is found at the foremost point of an aircraft. The nose cone also houses radar and other instruments that might be used to detect meteorological phenomena or transmit communication signals. Because they protect sensitive instruments while allowing electronic signals to pass through, nose cones also known as radomes are made from specific materials like fiberglass, quartz, honeycomb and foam cores as well as various chemical resins. Interestingly, the same aircraft, which was to fly again to Singapore, at 11.30 am has now been grounded affecting the travel schedule of more than 150 passengers. An Air India spokesman told Express that alternative arrangements are being made to fly the passengers to Singapore. We are making arrangements for a possible new aircraft which is proposed to fly the passengers to Singapore by 3.30 pm, said the spokesman. Airport Director G Chandramouli said that the nose of the aircraft has been repaired. He also said that measures are being taken to control bird menace. Airport Authority of India headquarters will soon be appointing consultants to tackle the bird hits in Airport Authority of India operated airports. It will take into account the 5km radius as well as 5,000 feet, said Chandramouli. The director said that the initiative is likely to be taken up along with the local bodies. The bird menace is blamed on civic issues wherein sewer network from Pallavaram and Pozhichalur flow through the airport. The Indian Institute of technology has submitted a report of re-routing the sewers. But the water from the sewer and the canal that stagnate tend to attract the birds. The move to study and provide measures for bird and animal hazard control management in operational area and surrounding area up to 10-km radius was initiated a couple of years ago. However, the consultant Vanamitra could not take up the contract as difference of opinion cropped up between Vanamitra and AAI and the project could not be taken up. Jayanthi Pawar By Express News Service CHENNAI: Most of the victims of the Saturdays scaffolding collapse at Perungudi were working beyond the duty hours just in the hope of being paid an additional amount. The working hours of the construction labourers end at 6 pm, but many workers were still working when the accident took place around 7.30 pm as they would be paid `50 extra for every extra hour they work. In the accident that took place at an upcoming hospital, one worker from Bihar, Babloo Kumar, was killed and 29 others were injured. The deceased Babloo Kumar was working on the site for over two months and was caught under the debris and iron rods. He lost one of his legs and was dragged out of the debris. However, he succumbed to injures on the way to the hospital, said a police source. Also, five others who suffered severe injures are undergoing treatment at a private hospital. A day after the collapse, the roads to the construction site were barricaded and the locals shifted from their houses. The power was cut off and earth movers were pressed into action to clear the debris. Police stationed at the site did not allow the public to enter the Govindasami First Street. A few locals, who were present, only remember a loud sound and by the time they came out, the facility had collapsed. Speaking to Express, Mukesh Kumar, a native of Bihar, whose leg was injured, said, I along with three other men was seated on the ground floor of the under-construction site. I worked for an hour extra after duty to get paid `50. We were then talking and getting ready to go to the room, when we heard some cracking sound. It was only a matter of a few seconds that we looked up and the scaffolding along with the iron rods came crashing in front. We went blank, three men ran in front and were partially trapped in the iron rods. When I tried to jump, I slipped and an iron rod fell on my leg. Fearing I might die, I got up and again ran when a police personnel only took me to the ambulance,recalls Mukesh, while undergoing treatment in the government hospital at Royapettah. Another labourer said that the facility was over 12 feet and the concrete was still not dry, which led to the collapse. I moved to the city in 2010 and worked on various construction sites. Over here, we normally come for work at around 8 am and leave by 6 pm. But on some days, I work overtime as we will be paid `50 for every hour. We get a daily wage of `400. I would save up this extra money to buy toys when I meet my children once in five or six months at Bihar,said the labourer. 29 people were injured in the accident that killed a worker from Bihar Faster rescue A senior officer from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said that since iron rods and minimum concrete were used, they were able to rescue trapped people faster and reduce casualties. In the Mugalivakkam collapse, they had to drill deep inside to find the trapped people Sahaya Novinston Lobo By Express News Service CHENNAI: A day after the rescue of four trainee sailors who were illegally taken in a ship, the city police on Sunday arrested the ships captain Pavan Kumar on charges of entering the country without proper documents. The immigration officials on Friday rescued four Indian sailors who were illegally taken in the ship Rise Dignity, which was carrying crude oil, and not declared as a part of the crew. This is a serious violation of the maritime laws. The four young sailors, who were handed over to the Harbour police, told Express that they were cheated by the job agents. They grew suspicious only when the ship crew insisted that they must hide when the ship reached Indian shore. The rescued were identified as R Prakash (24) from Cuddalore, P Tejus (25), from Calicut in Kerala, Puneet Bisla (21) from Uttar Pradesh and Suresh Kumar (22) from Andhra Pradesh. Three months ago, an agent from Calicut took `3.6 lakh from me to get me into a shipping company in Bombay (Mumbai). My father passed away by January and I have an elderly mother and a college-going sister, said Tejus who is a diploma holder. Said Prakash, After getting our jobs in Rise Dignity, we landed in Iran as Ordinary Seaman on June 10 and were taken to Khark in Iran. We used to clean tanks, remove oil spills and do other menial jobs. The ship then halted in Syria and Dubai. Every time the ship halted, the captain told us to hide in the engine room. Just before arriving at the Chennai harbour, the captain again told the men that they should stay inside. We were shifted to the engine room on Saturday when the ship docked in Chennai. A ship official used to talk to the immigration officers, and another used to keep us moving, so we dont get caught, said Prakash. After the immigration officials caught us, they told us about the seriousness of travelling without the names on the list. In Dubai or Syria, they could have tagged us as militants and arrested us, said Tejus. A crew should have only 46 members in a commercial ship and the Captain had appointed these four men for cheap labour. They were rescued after the immigration officer found out. While the ship will be docked in the Chennai for a week at least, these men will not be allowed to step down. The crew had 12 Ordinary Seamen altogether. Since they got four more experienced men from Dubai, the company decided to sideline them, said Inspector Srinivasan from Harbour police station. By PTI NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today said there cannot be a "complete ban" on holding protests and sit-ins at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club here and asked the Centre to frame guidelines for according sanctions to such events. A bench comprising justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said there was a need to strike a balance between conflicting rights such as the right to protest and the right of citizens to live peacefully. "There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate)," the bench said, while directing the Centre to frame guidelines on the matter. In this file photo, Potato farmers from UP throwing the vegetable on the road at a protest for increase in the minimum support price during 'Kisan Mukti Sansad' at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. (EPS) The verdict came on a batch of petitions, including one filed by the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, challenging the decision of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to ban all kinds of protests at the said places. The NGT had, on October 5 last year, banned all protests and dharnas around the historic Jantar Mantar here, which has been a hotspot of many agitations over the past decades, saying such activities violated environmental laws. The green panel had said the State had totally failed to protect the right of a citizen to enjoy a pollution-free environment at the Jantar Mantar Road area, which is located close to Connaught Place at the heart of the national capital. It had added that it was the duty of the State to ensure that the rights of the people to live a peaceful and comfortable life were not infringed by those who created noise pollution in the name of their right to freedom of speech and expression, which could never be unlimited. The tribunal had directed the authorities to shift the protesters to an alternative site at the Ramleela Grounds in Ajmeri Gate "forthwith". "The environmental condition at Jantar Mantar Road in relation to noise pollution, cleanliness, management of waste and public health has grossly deteriorated. Besides, constant dharna, slogans, noise pollution, health problems due to unhygienic conditions generated by the agitators round-the-clock is unique in the instant case," the NGT had said. It had also said those participating in protests and raising slogans through loudspeakers had no right to compel the petitioner and others living in the area to tolerate it day and night. The NGT verdict had come on a plea moved by one Varun Seth and others, alleging that processions and agitations held by social groups, political parties, NGOs at Jantar Mantar Road were a major source of noise pollution in the area. By Express News Service HYDERABAD: In a first, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Hyderabad unit busted an international gold smuggling racket and seized gold in the form of paste from an air passenger at the RGI airport here on Saturday. This is the first such case by DRI, where gold was seized in a paste form. The seized quantity around 1.8 kg, came down to 1.12 kg after purification, said DRI. Based on specific intelligence, DRI sleuths intercepted an air passenger, who arrived by Spicejet flight from Madurai to Hyderabad in the early hours of Saturday. On examination, he was found carrying two packages in his hand luggage containing paste weighing 1,850 grams. The gold paste seized by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence(DRI) sleuths at RGIA airport. Gold weighing 1.12 kg was later extracted by heating the paste | Express Photo On further examination it turned out to be having gold content of 1,120.78 grams valued at more than `34.57 lakh. Inquiries revealed that the gold, smuggled to Hyderabad, from Colombo via Madurai, could have been actually smuggled from Dubai to Colombo, to dodge the investigating agencies, where the carrier could have concealed it in his undergarments while boarding the flight. Though the passenger did not reveal the place where the gold paste was placed in the aircraft before he collected it, sleuths found that the smuggled gold was to be delivered at Chennai. However, more details about his travel plans to Chennai were not revealed. After a thorough inquiry, the passenger admitted that the gold was smuggled into the country and he did not have any documents to prove the purchase or import of the said gold. The extracted gold has been seized, said ADG DRI MK Singh in a release. Though earlier, RGIA at Shamshabad had witnessed different types of gold smuggling, this is the first time that gold in the form of paste was seized at Hyderabad airport. Officials say this modus operandi is adapted by smuggling gangs, as it is very difficult to detect them even through a body scanner. Gold smuggled from Madurai Inquiries revealed that the gold, smuggled, from Colombo via Madurai, could have been actually smuggled from Dubai to Colombo. By Express News Service HYDERABAD: A Civil Services aspirant who was allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol died in a road mishap and his friend who was riding pillion suffered injuries late on Saturday night. The incident took place near Lal Bunglow stretch when the bike the deceased was driving rammed the road median. The deceased, identified as U Mahanth Kumar (25), had recently appeared for the UPSC prelimnary examination and was preparing for the mains. He was accompanied by his friend Nikhil, who sustained head injuries in the mishap. Kumar, according to Panjagutta police, was an inmate at a hostel in Ameerpet and a native of West Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh. Sub-inspector G Venkateswarlu of Panjagutta police said that overspeeding led to the accident. However, the police did not confirm whether drunk driving caused the accident. We have to probe whether Mahanth Kumar was in drunken condition. The post mortem report will reveal the details. Nikhil is still unconscious, police said. A case of negligent driving causing death was registered and police have started investigation. Post mortem examination was conducted and Kumars body handed over to his family members. The police received a complaint from one Ch Jacob Raju (51), who is working as a head constable with SCRCPL in Amberpet. He told police that he received information from 108 emergency services on Saturday midnight informing him about his nephews accident. When the 108 medical emergency staff visited the place and shifted the accident victims to Gandhi General Hospital, doctors declared Mahanth brought dead the SI said. R Rajashekar Rao By Express News Service HYDERABAD: If the incidents relating to death cases are based on circumstantial evidence, the courts are of the view that a duty is cast upon the prosecution to establish that the circumstances relied upon in such cases are proved beyond reasonable doubt and lead to one and only conclusion towards the guilt of the accused. The circumstances relied upon by the prosecution should form the chain of events connecting the accused with the crime. If the prosecution builds up its case creating suspicion in the mind of the courts, then the latter will set aside the conviction and sentence, if any, recorded against the accused. The Supreme Court, in the Jagroop Singh vs State of Punjab case, had held, When the case of prosecution is based on circumstantial evidence, conviction is permissible only when all links in the chain of events are established beyond reasonable doubt and established circumstances are consistent only with the hypothesis of guilt of accused and totally inconsistent with his innocence. In an appeal before a division bench of the Hyderabad High Court, the appellant-accused challenged the order of the first additional sessions judge, Vizianagaram, in convicting and sentencing him to suffer life imprisonment for the offence under IPC Sections 302. The essence of the charge against the accused is that on April 9, 2011 at Bellanapeta village in Vizianagaram district of Andhra Pradesh, he is said to have caused the death of his wife by stabbing her with a knife on the neck and head. The case of the prosecution is that the accused looked after his wife well till the birth of the children and thereafter disputes arose between them. The evidence of one of the prosecution witnesses, who is a brother of the deceased, shows that the accused got addicted to alcohol and was not caring the family members properly, and used to beat his wife suspecting her fidelity. About 15 days prior to the date of incident, the woman had left home and went to her brothers house along with the children. After a few days she received a phone call from her brother-in-law stating that her presence was required for signing a bill for payment of house tax. She then went to the house of her husband along with her minor son. As it was a holiday for his school, the minor boy stayed in the house as his parents went together to the forest for firewood but neither of them returned home. When the paternal uncle of the boy went in search of the couple, he found the dead body of the woman lying in a streamlet (vagu) with injuries on the face and the head. Police registered a case basing on a complaint lodged by the brother of the deceased. After 10 days i.e. on April 19, the husband was produced before the police station along with an extra-judicial confession statement. He pleaded not guilty before the trial court and claimed to be tried. After considering the entire material, including oral and documentary evidence available on record, the sessions judge convicted the accused for offences under Sections 302 and 498-A of IPC. Challenging the conviction. The counsel appearing for the appellant-accused contended that there is absolutely no material to connect the accused with the crime and the circumstances relied upon by the prosecution do not form a chain of events so as to connect him with the crime. The FIR, which has been given on the following day of the incident, should have contained the fact that the body of the woman had been traced on the previous night. But, the report only refers to the couple leaving the house, which throws any amount of doubt on the case. When the oral evidence shows that the body was traced the previous night, the inquest report reveals that the dead body was traced at about 9 am on April 10. Therefore, no reliance can be placed on the evidence of any of the prosecution witnesses and the alleged last seen theory, recovery of the body and the extra-judicial confession cannot be made, the counsel argued. On the other hand, the state public prosecutor contended that the circumstances relied upon by the prosecution and, more particularly, the evidence of the minor son of the deceased can be relied upon to convict the accused and, as such, the finding given by the trial court warranted no interference. The bench of justices C Praveen Kumar and K Vijaya Lakshmi found that there were no eyewitnesses to the incident and the entire case rested on circumstantial evidence. The evidence of the minor boy clearly showed that five days after the death of his mother the police brought the accused to the house. A doubt arises as to how the accused would have made an extra-judicial confession before the local sarpanch on April 19. It means that the accused was in the custody of police within five days of the incident. When the body was traced prior to lodging of the report, no reasons are forthcoming as to why it was suppressed. Even the circumstances pertaining to the time of the registration of FIR, the visit of the investigation officer to the scene of offence, preparation of panchanama and so on creates some suspicion in the case of the prosecution, the bench pointed out. The bench held that the extra-judicial confession, recovery of knife and clothes and tracing of the dead body were not proved by any legal evidence. Even the evidence of the prosecution witnesses did not anywhere indicate that the accused had harassed his wife for money and property. By Express News Service KOCHI: The state government on Monday extended its support for the plea of the victim in the Malayalam actor assault and abduction case seeking to constitute a special court headed by a woman judge for the trial. In the statement, the Home department submitted that "considering the special circumstances government is of the opinion that a special court may be constituted headed by a woman judge for the trial for a period of one year or until the closure of trial whichever is earlier." The state government filed the statement in response to a petition filed by the victim challenging the Ernakulam Sessions Court order rejecting her plea for transferring the case to a court of woman judge for trial on the ground that there was no women additional sessions judge in the Ernakulam district. The petitioner said that the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code mandated that the victim of an offence of gang rape should not be compelled to depose and otherwise participate in a trial before a male judge. This was to protect her privacy and dignity and keep intrusion thereon as minimal as possible. Even if an appropriate court presided over by a woman judge was not available within the Ernakulam district, section 185 of the Criminal Procedure Code grants sufficient power to the government to transfer any case committed for trial to any sessions court to any other Sessions Court. The government submitted that the victim had submitted a representation and it was forwarded to the High Court. In response to the communication, the High Court replied that it had given the necessary direction to the Principal Sessions Judge, Ernakulam for trial and dispose of the case expeditiously. "As the case became sensational one and widely discussed in media and also many litigations are arising, the government is of the view that a speedy trial is essential," government submitted. Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned on Sunday the terrorist bombing that took place at Kabul airport, leaving 14 people dead and 22 injured.. The bombing took place shortly after Vice President Abdul-Rashid Dostum left the airport following his return home after more than a year in exile in Turkey. "The Egyptian government and people stand with the government and people of Afghanistan in the face of the phenomenon of terrorism," said a statement by the Egyptian foreign ministry. Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanekzai said the blast occurred near an airport entrance where supporters had been waiting to greet Dostum as his motorcade passed on its way to the city centre, according to Reuters. The Egyptian ministrys statement expressed sincere condolences to the families of the victims and a wished speedy recovery for the injured. The terrorist group Daesh reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack shortly after the bombing. Gopinath Rajendran By Express News Service It's not every day that we get a film with three prominent heroines, especially one in which the three play characters with a sense of purpose. While Sayyeshaa got the heroine honours, both Priya Bhavani Shankar and Arthana Binu impressed with their roles as the protagonists nieces, Poonkuzhali Chellama and Aandal Priyadarshini respectively. Despite both having done lead roles in Tamil films Priya in Meyaadha Maan and Arthana in Semma and Thondan they didnt at all seem to have minded relinquishing lead duties. We engage with the actors in this tete-a-tete, as they discuss the film and their respective characters: Arthana Binu How has the reception been? Priya Bhavani Shankar: We knew the film would be successful even before we went for the shoot. Its not often you see a film with so many artists wrapped up in less than 90 days. It has also been a different experience because in TV serials, its the heroines who faces all the hurdles and problems, but here, its the hero. Arthana Binu: After the release of each of my films, I feel I could have done better, but for the first time Im content with what Ive done. I loved the character so much that Im still hungover on it. How did the film happen? Priya: Interestingly, Pandiraj sir hadnt seen Meyaadha Maan before calling me. He had seen my interviews for that film on YouTube and felt that my looks would suit the role. Arthana: Pandiraj sir had produced and written dialogues for my previous film, Semma. Even before that films release, I got a call from his office and learned about Kadaikutty Singam, and also that it was being produced by Suriya sir. I had to do a look test and was asked to perform two lengthy dialogues following which I was chosen. Tell us about working with such a huge cast. Priya: It was a wonderful experience to work with a team from which theres loads to learn. Despite being veterans, Sathyaraj sir, Bhanupriya mam and Viji amma were very humble. During shooting, they shared a lot of their experiences in the industry. At the beginning, I had inhibitions of working with a film with such a huge cast, and that too after my first film. Its not easy to break the wall between TV and films but now that Id done that with Meyaadha Maan, I was worried about doing a multi-starrer. But I loved how Pandiraj sir didnt consider the roles as leads but as characters. I have a couple of scenes to score and I get a good amount of screen space in the second half. Priya Bhavani Shankar Arthana: In every frame, there will be a lot of people which is completely different from the films Ive done so far. Seeing the senior actors act is a boon. When they emote for a scene, I automatically respond to it. Thats not acting but more of a reaction to what they say and in some scenes where Im supposed to cry, seeing them emote their characters so well automatically made me spill tears. How was the experience of doing a film with Karthi? Priya: We had loads to talk as were from the same college hes my super senior. We also discussed his days as an assistant director. Moreover, apart from films, we also spoke about politics and Nadigar Sangam. Hes a very knowledgeable and jovial person. Arthana: Hes a dedicated actor and his growth has been phenomenal. I saw him for the first time during the look test and I got worried about working with such a huge actor. But he broke ice during our first interaction and he also appreciated me whenever he liked what I did in a particular scene. Hes very vigilant on the sets as he keeps a tab on our performances as well and not just his. Kadaikutty Singam is about a large family. Could you relate to it? Priya: Of course I could because my mother had four sisters and a brother. I often joke to my mother and aunts about the plight of my uncle. My entire family, including my grandfather who had never watched a film in 20 years, went to the theatre to watch this film. Though our family didnt have as much drama as the one in the film (laughs), every family will have its own set of good and bad moments which we were able to relate with. Arthana: I have similarities as well as dissimilarities to the role I played. Im very attached to my family and that affection and family bonding is something I could relate to despite not being in a joint family. Though its a rural subject, the emotions are the same everywhere. Even in scenes where I talk with my uncles, I was imagining my actual ones on the spot. Whats cooking next? Priya: Ive got two projects coming up, but I feel it would be better if the respective production houses announce them. Arthana: Ive got Vennila Kabaddi Kuzhu 2 which is in post-production, and theres one in which Im collaborating with Vikranth once again after Thondan. Ive been doing village roles continuously; so I hope to at least get promoted to a churidar (laughs). By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Days before the National Register of Citizens (NRC) publication, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday assured the people that no harassment would take place during the exercise. Singh said the central government wants to make it clear that the NRC, which will be published on July 30, is only a draft. After draft publication, adequate opportunity for claims and objections will be available, he said. There is no reason for panic or fear. No person will be allowed to be harassed. We will ensure that every individual gets justice and is treated in a humane manner, Singh said in an official statement. Singh said the NRC exercise was being carried out in a totally impartial, transparent and meticulous manner and would remain so. The NRC is being updated in accordance with the Assam Accord signed on August 15, 1985. The exercise is being carried out as per the directions of the Supreme Court, which is constantly monitoring the process. All individuals will have sufficient opportunity for all remedies available under the law. At every stage of the process, adequate opportunity is given to all persons to be heard. Singh said the entire process is being conducted according to law and the due procedure is being followed. All claims and objections will be duly examined. Adequate opportunity of being heard will be given before disposal of claims and objections. Only thereafter, the final NRC will be published. The Citizenship Rules provide that any person who is not satisfied with the outcome of claims and objections can appeal in the Foreigners Tribunal, he said. Therefore, there is no question of anyone being put in a detention centre after the publication of NRC. Singh said the Assam government was told to ensure that law and order was maintained and no one was allowed to take law into their hands. Singh said the Assam government has been asked to ensure that law and order is maintained and no one is allowed to take law into their hands, and all possible arrangements are made to ensure safety and security for all. "The central government will provide all necessary help to the state government of Assam in this regard," he said. The first draft of the NRC, a list of the state's citizens, was published on the intervening night of December 31 and January 1 last where names of 1.9 crore people out of the 3.29 crore applicants were incorporated. The massive exercise aimed at identifying illegal immigrants in the state that borders Bangladesh is being carried out following a decision in 2005 after a series of meetings between the central and state governments and the influential All Assam Students' Union (AASU). Assam, which faced an influx of people from Bangladesh since the early 20th century, is the only state having an NRC, first prepared in 1951. The current exercise started in 2005 under the then Congress regime, got a major push after the BJP came to power in the state with illegal immigration from Bangladesh as a poll plank. When the NRC was first prepared in Assam way back in 1951, the state had 80 lakh citizens then. The process of identification of illegal immigrants in Assam has been debated and become a contentious issue in the state's politics. A six-year agitation demanding identification and deportation of illegal immigrants was launched by the AASU in 1979. It culminated with the signing of the Assam Accord on August 15, 1985, in the presence of the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. (With PTI inputs) By PTI PUNE: At least20 members of the Maratha Kranti Morcha were detained today while they were planning to stage a protest at the venue of an event to be attended by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis here, an official said. Fadnavis is scheduled to attend a couple of events, including the 'ground-breaking' ceremony of Krantiveer Chaphekar National Museum, in Chinchwad area of Pune today. "As a precautionary measure, we detained around 20 members of the Maratha Kranti Morcha when they were on the way to the venue," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone III) Ganesh Shinde said. Security has been stepped up to avoid any law and order problem, Shinde said. Notably, Fadnavis today skipped the annual puja at the Lord Vitthal Temple in Pandharpur town due to protest threats by the Maratha community members over their various demands, including reservation in government jobs and education. As part of a long-standing tradition, the sitting chief minister every year offers prayers at the temple dedicated to Lord Vitthal and Rukmini at Pandharpur in Solapur district, on the occasion of 'Ashadhi Ekadashi'. Some Maratha community leaders had threatened to disrupt Fadnavis' visit to Pandharpur if their demands, are not accepted. The community leaders had earlier taken out several rallies in various districts to highlight their demands. Last year, a huge rally was organised by the Maratha Kranti Morcha in this connection in Mumbai. Despite assurances from Fadnavis to fulfil the demands, nothing concrete has been done till now, community leaders have claimed. Siddhanta Mishra By Express News Service LALAWANDI, ALWAR: According to the police, from the spot where the alleged mob lynching took place in Kolgaon, the Haryana border is 12 kilometres by foot, if one takes a path through farms, avoiding the main road. It is a well-known fact that Lalawandi and the adjoining three villages have become a safe passage for cow smugglers to operate as the Haryana border is very near and the jurisdiction of Rajasthan Police ends at Kolgaon. Now, Rakhbar also had a case registered against him last year for the same, whether he was doing the same is up to the investigation, but the law should not be taken in ones own hands, said Sanjay Kapoor, manager of Shree Digambar Jain Sudhasagar Gaushala. According to Kapoor, all the 384 cattle he has were provided to him by police stations. ALSO READ | Alwar lynching: Eye-witness recalls turn of events leading to Akbar Khan's murder As per the process, after seizing the bovine animals in cases of smuggling, police have to register an FIR and present a copy of it to the manager. In return, a receipt is provided detailing the number of animals and the date and time of the admission. As per the report of the veterinarian, both the cows are non-milking, one being of a local breed and aged three years, the other being a foreign breed and aged six years. Both the animals are healthy, although both have injury marks on their legs and under the horns. ALSO READ | Alwar lynching: My child is innocent, he did not do this, says accused Paramjeet's father Rajinder Singh, Superintendent of Police, Alwar, who visited the spot, said: We have identified more people in the case. Asked about any lax attitude on the part of the police, he said, Anyone found guilty of involvement in the crime will be dealt with strictly. ALSO READ | Is lynching becoming a trend, ask villagers after man killed in Rajasthan's Alwar 28-year-old Akbar Khan along with his friend was taking some cows to his village through a forest near Lalawandi area in the Alwar district of Rajasthan when some locals allegedly thrashed him brutally, suspecting him to be a cow smuggler. The police immediately rushed the victim to a nearby hospital, where he was declared brought dead. Police have, so far, arrested two suspects and launched a manhunt for other suspects. In a similar incident, 50-year-old Pehlu Khan was beaten to death by cow vigilantes in the same district in April last year. Just on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged state governments to take stringent action against the culprits of mob lynching. The cases of mob fury have been on a rise in India. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, 45 persons were killed by mob in 40 cases across nine states between 2014 and March 03 this year. (With agency inputs) By ANI NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday hit back at Congress president Rahul Gandhi for criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Alwar lynching incident. Union Minister and BJP leader Piyush Goyal called Rahul "merchant of hate" while accusing him of trying to divide society for electoral gains. "Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE," Goyal tweeted. Meanwhile, Union Minister Smriti Irani also trained guns at the Congress chief and said that there wasn't a single instance where he "doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains". "Rahul Gandhi's family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains," Irani tweeted. The BJP, on its official Twitter handle posted a poem, wherein they stressed on the "fake drama of love (pyaar ka natak)" that the Congress have been propagating for the last 70 years. Earlier today, the Congress chief, in a tweet said that the Alwar lynching incident shows Prime Minister Modi's brutal "New India". He also slammed the Rajasthan Police for allegedly making delay in taking 28-year-old Akbar Khan, the victim of mob lynching, to the hospital. "Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modi's brutal "New India" where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die," Rahul tweeted. On the intervening night of July 20-21, Khan was allegedly beaten to death by an agitated mob on suspicions of cow smuggling in Alwar district. By PTI NEW DELHI: A court here today granted protection from arrest till August 7 to former Union minister P Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis case filed by the CBI. Special CBI Judge O P Saini granted the relief to the Congress leader after a plea was moved by him in the morning, seeking anticipatory bail in the case. The court, meanwhile, granted three weeks to CBI to file a detailed reply to Chidambaram's application and directed the agency not to take any coercive action against him till that time. The former Finance Minister told the court that he had apprehensions that the CBI might arrest him in the case. "Nothing is preventing them (CBI) from arresting me (Chidambaram) in the case. I am apprehending arrest in the current matter. They can arrest me as a matter of law. I am made an accused for nothing," senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Chidambaram, said. He also told the court that the agency had only called Chidambaram for questioning in 2014 and since then he was not asked before it. The CBI opposed the application by saying it was not maintainable and that the Congress leader did not point out any evidence to show his apprehension of arrest. It further sought time to file the detailed reply to the application after which the court adjourned the matter till August 7 with directions to the CBI. Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram were named in the charge sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the case on July 19. The agency had filed a supplementary charge sheet before the special judge, who had fixed it for consideration on July 31. The CBI is probing as to how Chidambaram, who was the Union finance minister in 2006, granted a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approval to a foreign firm when only the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) was empowered to do it. The senior Congress leader's role has come under the scanner of investigating agencies in the Rs 3,500-crore Aircel-Maxis deal and the INX Media case involving Rs 305 crore. In its charge sheet filed earlier in the case against former telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran, his brother Kalanithi Maran and others, the agency had alleged that Chidambaram had granted an FIPB approval in March 2006 to Mauritius-based Global Communication Services Holdings Ltd, a subsidiary of Maxis. The Maran brothers and the other accused named in the CBI chargesheet were discharged by the special court, which had said the agency had failed to produce any material against them to proceed with the trial. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is also probing a separate money-laundering case in the Aircel-Maxis matter, in which Chidambaram and Karti have been questioned by the agency. Both Chidambaram and Karti have denied the allegations levelled against them by the CBI and the ED. By PTI NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today told a Delhi court that it has enough evidence to prosecute former AgustaWestland and Finmeccanica directors Giuseppe Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, and others for alleged money laundering in the VVIP chopper case. Special Judge Arvind Kumar reserved for tomorrow the order on whether to take cognisance on the charge sheet filed by special public prosecutor N K Matta, and summon Orsi, Spagnolini and others as accused in the case. In the charge sheet, the ED said it had recorded unimpeachable evidence supporting the allegations against all the accused persons. The probe agency had on July 18 filed a supplementary charge sheet, through advocate Yashu Khurana, accusing Orsi, Spagnolini and ex-IAF chief S P Tyagi, besides others, of money laundering in the case. It accused 34 Indian and foreign individuals and companies, including Tyagi, Italian middlemen Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke, lawyer Gautam Khaitan and Finmeccanica, the parent company of AgustaWestland, of laundering money to the tune of around 28 million Euro. The probe report also claimed that the kickbacks were paid by AgustaWestland through two different channels. The ED, in its charge sheet, has alleged that money was laundered through multiple foreign companies, which were used as fronts to park the alleged kickbacks. The agency said it may file more supplementary charge sheets in the matter. On January 1, 2014, India scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF over an alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of kickbacks of Rs 423 crore paid by it to secure the deal. The accused named in the charge sheet include Guido Haschke, Carlo Gerosa, S P Tyagi, his cousins Rajiv Tyagi and Sanjeev Tyagi, advocate Gautam Khaitan and his wife Ritu Khaitan, Shivani Saxena and her husband Rajeev Saxena, both directors of two Dubai-based firms, Besides, the final report also named various Indian and foreign firms, including Finmeccanica SPA, AgustaWestland, Aeromatrix Info Solution Ltd, Windsor Group Holdings, Ismax International Ltd, Cricklewood Ltd, Long Lasting Ltd, Matrix Holding Pvt Ltd, UHY Saxena, Dubai Interstellar Technologies Ltd, O P Khaitan and Co, International Mediterranean Consulting, Tunisia, Infotech Design Systems Gordian Services. "Khaitan, the mastermind behind laundering the proceeds of crime in the present case, was known to the accused persons Gerosa, Haschke and the Tyagi brothers. He prepared a corporate structure of companies and got incorporated several legal entities across the globe. "Thereafter, the proceeds of crime were laundered through various companies in Tunisia, Mauritius, India, BVI, Singapore, Switzerland, Dubai etc," according to the charge sheet. It further claimed that Khaitan also received proceeds of crime in personal bank accounts opened in his name and the accounts of his companies in India and abroad, M/s Windsor Holding Group Ltd, M/s Ismax International Ltd and M/s O P Khaitan & Co. The ED had earlier attached properties worth Rs 10 crore and froze shares worth more than Rs 150 crore belonging to the Tyagi brothers, Gautam Khaitan, Gerosa, Haschke, Christian Michel James and Rajiv Saxena. By Express News Service CHANDIGARH: After the Canadian Immigration and border control authorities on Sunday refused entry to two AAP MLAs Kultar Singh Sandhwan and Amarjit Singh Sandoa. After reaching India, both MLAs claimed that the Canadian authorities denied entry in confusion whether their visit was personal or political. Both the legislators of the AAP from Punjab were sent back from the Ottawa airport after they were detained and questioned by immigration officials upon arrival at Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport. Later, they were put on Air Canada flight and sent back to Delhi and they landed today morning at IGI airport in Delhi, said sources. It is learnt that both legislators were to stay with the sister of Sandhwan in Ottawa and she was waiting to receive them at the airport but came to know that they have been detained and were sent back. Both Sandhwan and Sandhoa denied that they were detained at an airport and sent back by the Canadian authorities. Sandhwan said that he, along with Sandhoa reached the Ottawa airport yesterday afternoon and after getting clearance from immigration authority they were questioned by the officers of Canada Border services. He said that he was asked if the tour was personal or political visit as at the time of applying he termed it purely personal visit along with his family. He said that during the questioning, he said that the visit is personal but the party workers would invite them for talks he will be going there as well. Sandhwan said that the Canadian authorities them inquired about the programme of political activities but he replied that the same can be told as the meetings are not fixed yet. He said that the authorities then accused him of hiding the details and even after his repeated requests they did not allow them to leave. He said that the authorities asked them to furnish the details and apply the visa afresh then they will be allowed to go. He said then both the were returned back to India. Meanwhile, Sandoa said that he was just asked why did not he took his family along with him as per the details filled in the initial visa form and he politely replied that due to the ongoing schools of his children he was unable to take them along. He cleared that nothing related to any case was asked by Canadian authorities. Amarjit Singh Sandoa is facing a molestation case by his former landlady. A local court framed charges against him last week. The complaint was registered by the lady on July 29 last year. He was again in the news recently when he was allegedly attacked by the mining mafia, who have accused him of extortion. A former AAP member and dental surgeon based in Ludhiana Dr Amandeep Singh Bains had written to the Canadian authorities about the case registered on legislator Sandoa as he knew that both MALs were going to Canada. Bains in a Facebook post said, 'We reported about Amarjit Sandoya to Arvind Kejriwal with evidence, he did nothing. Then we reported to matter to Canadian Authorities. When documents against Sandoa were sent to Arvind Kejriwal by a member of the team, he did not take action against Sandoa. However when we sent a written letter to the Canadian Immigration they believed us and took actions immediately,'' he said. While in March Sandhwan had a spat with Faridkot additional deputy commissioner Keshav Hingonia as he alleged that Hingonia had not shown him due respect. By PTI MUZZAFARPUR: A girl of a government-funded shelter home here has alleged that one of her fellow inmates was beaten to death and buried at the premises of the facility, and several were raped. Sexual exploitation of girls lodged at the shelter home in Bihar had come to light in a social audit by a Mumbai-based institute, following which the state social welfare department lodged an FIR in this connection last month and 10 people were arrested. Following the shelter home inmate's claim that a girl was killed, the Bihar Police dug up the grounds of the facility, but are yet to find the body. The opposition RJD raised the issue in both the Legislative Assembly and the Council demanding a CBI inquiry into the allegations and claimed that the scandal involved many "well-connected people" whom the Nitish Kumar government was trying to shield. Muzaffarpur SSP Harpreet Kaur told reporters, "We are carrying out the excavation based on the statement given by one of the girls. The spot has been identified by her." "Nothing has so far been found from the site during the excavation. However, the area of excavation might be enlarged after further examination of the girl who had alleged in her testimony that one of the inmates had been beaten to death," the officer said. More than 40 girls had been lodged at the shelter home and medical reports suggest that over half of them may have had sexual intercourse at some point of time, she said, adding, "Altogether 10 people, including the district child protection officer, women staff members of the shelter home have been arrested so far." The NGO running the shelter home has been blacklisted, she said adding, all the girls have been shifted to shelter homes in other districts while the premises here have been sealed. The incident drew sharp criticism from political parties in the state with the opposition RJD demanding a CBI inquiry into the allegations of sexual exploitation of girls at the shelter home. The leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Tejashwi Yadav alleged that the scandal involved many "well-connected people" whom the Nitish Kumar government was trying to shield. Opposition leader in the Legislative Council Rabri Devi too raised the issue in the Upper House. Speaking to reporters outside the House, both Tejashwi Yadav and Rabri Devi alleged, "Many safedposh (white-collared) people are involved in the Muzaffarpur scandal and they enjoy proximity to the ruling dispensation. A CBI inquiry should be ordered so that the accused are not able to influence the investigation." Yadav said the Muzaffarpur incident will be highlighted by his party as one of the many failures of the Nitish Kumar government, during the state-wide "cycle yatra" scheduled to commence later this week. "This regime has failed on all fronts -- be it law and order or relief to drought-affected farmers," he said. By Express News Service MUMBAI: I'm fighting for the dreams of common people of this country and not to fulfil the dream of Modi, Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray has said in an interview given to the party mouthpiece Saamana. Saamana has a tradition to publish lengthy interviews of party chiefs ahead of their birthday. Uddhav's birthday happens to be on July 27 hence, the first part of the three-part interview was published on Monday. While replying to questions asked by party spokesperson, Rajya Sabha MP and the executive editor of Saamana Sanjay Raut, Thackeray lashed out at the so-called 'development agenda' of the BJP as well as the RSS-BJP brand of Hinduva that includes the 'cow vigilantism' in over 6,000 word first part of the interview apart from explaining the logic behind his party's strategy to be in the government and not vote in favour of the government during no-trust motion in the parliament or the constant criticism of the government policies. "The government has betrayed the people of Konkan in the Nanar refinery case. The Shiv Sena shall continue opposing it. We shall also oppose the Jaitapur nuclear power project and the Bullet train project as well. I'm not fighting for the dreams of Modi. I'm fighting for the dreams of common people. If they are going to be destroyed I shall side by them," Thackeray said while justifying party's stand on various development projects in Maharashtra. Thackeray also lashed out the RSS-BJP duo over their brand of Hindutva."It is not Hindutva if you are going behind people who are eating beef without ensuring the security of women in the country. One should be ashamed that India has become the most dangerous country for women," Thackeray has said in the interview. Thackeray also criticized the decision to distribute BhagwatGita in Maharashtra schools."We have high regards for the sacred book of Hindus. But, would it be distributed to the convent schools? What is the use if it is going to be distributed in government schools when the government is not able to provide jobs to fresh graduates," Thackeray said adding that the Shiv Sena's brand of Hindutva is 'Practical Hindutva'. "My father, the late Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray was often asked about his definition of Hindutva and he would reply - Nationalism is our Hindutva. We don't want Hindus who just go to ring bells in temples sporting a 'choti' and a 'janoi' (thread). Balasaheb's idea of Hindutva has to be propagated and implemented vigorously now," Thackeray urged. Targeting the ruling party over the debate on nationalism, Thackeray said that the BJP has no right to decide who is a nationalist and who is anti-national. He also said that his definition of being 'friend' is to ensure that the person is on the right path."Anyone criticising the government does not become anti-national," he said. "I criticise the government for wrong steps. I cannot take the appeasement route to woo them (BJP). The previous (UPA) regime was defeated by people and there were big expectations from this NDA government. But this government is also functioning like the previous one," he added. Justifying his party's stance on No-Trust motion Thackeray said, "Nobody can shoot the gun from our shoulders and the Sena will not fire from someone else's shoulders either. Where were all these parties when we raked up issues concerning 'people's confidence' in the government? And anyway, if we wanted to vote for the government, why should we oppose it since past over four years? I have a gun in my hand, and when the target is in sight, will fire it," he said. Referring to BJP President Amit Shah being called 'Chanakya', he said, "Chanakya used his 'niti' for the country, not for political gains of a party."However, he maintained that the alliance with BJP will not be affected by their decision to abstain from voting during Friday's no-confidence motion. Related Security forces end attack on Erbil governorate by suspected Islamic State militants Kurdish security forces killed two gunmen on Monday who shot their way into the governorate building in the city of Erbil in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in north Iraq, but other assailants were still holding some hostages, security officials said. Two hostages were rescued. One of them was critically wounded, the officials said. Search Keywords: Short link: By UNI ANANTNAG: Life remained crippled for the second day on Monday in south Kashmir district of Kulgam, where three Lashker-e-Toiba (LeT) militants, including a foreigner, were killed in an encounter by security forces at Khudwani on Sunday morning. Meanwhile, mobile internet service in most parts of south Kashmir also remained suspended as a precautionary measure to prevent spread of rumours. However, train service was resumed in the south Kashmir after remaining suspended on Sunday for security reasons. Shops and business establishments remained closed and traffic was off the road in Kulgam. However, traffic, including vehicles carrying Amarnath pilgrims, on Srinagar-Jammu national highway, passing through south Kashmir, was plying normally. Additional security forces have been deployed at sensitive places to avoid any untoward incident. Work in government offices and banks was affected due to strike. However, schools remained closed on account of summer vacation. Situation elsewhere in the south Kashmir was normal. By Express News Service BHOPAL: As many as 14 tribal men have been arrested in Singrauli district of Madhya Pradesh for allegedly lynching a young mentally challenged woman, after suspecting her to be a child lifter. The barbaric incident which happened on Thursday late night in Bhosh village in Morwa police station area of Singrauli district (700 km from Bhopal and 200 km from Varanasi), when the woman aged around 25 years was caught by the tribals suspecting her to be a child lifter. With rumours being rife about child lifters being active in the district and adjoining areas, particularly following fake messages and videos over WhatsApp groups, the residents of Bhosh village suspected that the homeless woman was a child lifter. The woman was chased and after being caught, attacked by the mob of villagers with sticks and rods. They didnt stop there but then inflicted deep wounds with a pick-axe. After killing the woman, the villagers dumped the body in a culvert in the jungles of Bargad, situated close to the Bhosh village, where she was allegedly lynched. According to Morwa police station in-charge Narendra Singh Raghuvanshi, a tribal man spotted the womans body near the forest departments nursery in Bargad jungles on Friday evening, after which he reported it to the police. We rushed a police team to the spot and recovered the body and began investigations which led us to the Bhosh village. A case of murder was lodged on Saturday and subsequent probe led us to the villagers who lynched the woman suspecting her to be a child lifter, Raghuvanshi told The New Indian Express. As many as 14 accused, including a man identified as Hira Singh, who assaulted the woman with a pick-axe have been arrested till Sunday late night. The arrested men are aged between 25 and 50 years. Its possible that 5-6 more men might be involved in the crime. Were in the process of identifying them also, said Raghuvanshi. The incident happened more than two weeks after five men were lynched by a mob over child lifting rumours in Dhule district of Maharashtra. In Singrauli district of MP only, nearly a month back, a behrupiya (impersonator) was attacked by a mob, suspecting him to be a child lifter in Manda area. Rumours of child lifters roaming in the jungles of tribal MP have been rife, particularly in the wake of fake videos and messages over social media. The police has been alerting the villagers about not believing in rumours, but still the incident happened on Thursday late night. By PTI NEW DELHI: There is no proposal to control social media, the government said today in Rajya Sabha when asked if it was planning to do so. In a written reply, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said, "There is no proposal in the ministry to control social media. "However, the ministry proposes to set up a social media hub to facilitate information flow regarding its policies and programmes through social media platforms i.e., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube etc." His response came to a question on whether the government was planning to control social media, as it was posing a serious threat to the society. "There is no proposal to invade an individual's right to privacy," Rathore said. The minister's reply in Rajya Sabha comes days after the Supreme Court asked the government whether its move to create a Social Media Hub was to tap people's WhatsApp messages, observing that it will be like creating a "surveillance state". In May this year, the Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL), a Public Sector Undertaking under the ministry, had floated a tender to supply a software for the project. By IANS NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for Rwanda on the first leg of his five-day, three-nation tour of Africa that will also take him to Uganda and South Africa. "Embarking on a momentous journey to strengthen our historical bond with Africa," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. This will be the first ever prime ministerial visit from India to Rwanda. From Rwanda, Modi will reach Uganda on July 24 in what will be the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in 21 years. From Uganda, the Prime Minister will reach South Africa on July 25 where he will attend this year's Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) Summit. "India shares close, warm and friendly relations with Africa which are cemented by robust development partnership and a large presence of the Indian diaspora," the Prime Minister's Office said in a pre-departure statement. "A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the visit," it stated. This is Modi's second official visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. Ramananda Sengupta By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Prime minister Narendra Modi arrived in Kigali, Rwanda, on Monday evening, becoming the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the tiny landlocked central/East African nation. In another first, Modi will gift 200 locally-sourced cows to buttress Rwandan President Paul Kagames Girinka scheme, under which poor families are gifted dairy cows by the government, and the first female calf born of the cow is in turn gifted to a neighbor, thereby not just boosting agricultural production and better nutrition, but also promoting brotherhood and solidarity in the community. Modi, who plane arrived hours after Chinese President Xi Jinping left Kigali after a two state day visit, was greeted on the tarmac by President Kagame and senior officials, and accorded a ceremonial welcome at the airport. He then attended the restricted and delegation level talks, witnessed the signing of agreements on dairy cooperation, leather and defence, among other things-- and a banquet dinner hosted by Kagame. He also attended a reception hosted by Indias High Commissioner to Uganda, Ravi Shankar, who also covers Rwanda and Burundi, for the Indian community in Rwanda, estimated at around 3,000. India is expected to open a permanent high commission in Kigali later this year. On Tuesday, Modi will attended a business conclave, visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial, the final resting place for more than 250,000 victims of the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda in 1994 by the Hutu government, and then travel to the model village of Rweru to gift the cows, secretary, economic relations, ministry of external affairs, T.S Tirumurti said at a briefing Saturday. As the Girinka scheme had President Kagame's personal touch'', the MEA felt that it was important that we get involved in it,'' he said. Modi will then leave for Kampala, Uganda, where he will become the first Indian Prime Minister to address the Ugandan parliament, and then on to South Africa to attend the Brazil-Russia-India -China -South Africa or BRICS summit before returning to New Delhi on July 27. By ANI NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will undertake a state visit to three African countries, namely Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa, over five days, starting today. The Prime Minister will first arrive at Rwanda, marking the first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister, a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. Thereafter, Prime Minister Modi will proceed to Uganda, where he will undertake engagements from July 24 to 25. The visit will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over 20 years. Finally, Prime Minister Modi will pay a visit to South Africa from July 25 to 27 to attend the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit. Prime Minister Modi's official engagement in Rwanda and Uganda will include bilateral meetings with the presidents of both the nations, delegation-level talks and meetings with the business and the Indian communities respectively, the MEA statement added. In Rwanda, the Prime Minister will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda, which is personally initiated by Rwandan President Paul Kagame. In Uganda, Prime Minister Modi will deliver a keynote address at the Parliament of Uganda, a first for any Indian Prime Minister. In South Africa, Prime Minister Modi will have a bilateral meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and will attend the BRICS summit and other BRICS-related meetings. Also, bilateral meetings with participating countries on the sidelines of BRICS meetings are planned, the statement continued. Various issues such as - inclusive growth, health and vaccines, peacekeeping, and sustainable development will be the core agenda during the BRICS summit. The MEA statement said, "India shares close, warm and friendly relations with Africa which are cemented by robust development partnership and a large presence of the Indian diaspora. A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the visit." "Africa has been the top priority of India's Foreign Policy. The visit of the Prime Minister to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa will further strengthen our relations with the African continent," it added. Over the last few years, there has been a significant intensification of India's engagement in various fields with African countries and there have been as many as 23 outgoing visits to Africa at the level of President, Vice President and Prime Minister in the last four years. By PTI KIGALI: India today extended USD 200 million lines of credit to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to boost the bilateral strategic ties by strengthening cooperation in defence, trade and agriculture sectors. After the one-on-one talks with president Kagame, Modi, the first Indian prime minister to visit the East African country, announced that India will soon open its mission in Rwanda. ALSO READ | Narendra Modi Africa tour: First Indian Prime Minister to set foot in Rwanda "We are going to open a High Commission in Rwanda. This will not only establish communication between our respective governments but also enable facilities for consular, passport, visa," Modi said at a joint press statement. He noted that India and Rwanda relationships have stood the test of time. "It is a matter of honour for us that India has stood with Rwanda in their economic development journey," Modi said, adding that India will continue to back Rwanda's development. ALSO READ | PM Narendra Modi to gift 200 cows to Rwanda Besides one-to-one meeting, the two leaders also participated in delegation level talks to strengthen partnership in trade and investment, capacity building, development partnership and people to people ties. The two countries signed agreements on cooperation in the field of defence, trade, agriculture and animal resources. They agreed on cooperation in defence capacity building, industry, science and technology. India extended two lines of credit -- one of USD 100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ) in Rwanda and another one for USD 100 million for agriculture. The two sides signed MoUs on collaboration in the areas of leather and allied sectors, dairy cooperation, agricultural research and education collaborations between Rwanda Agricultural Board (RAB) and Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Enthusiastic reception at the community event in honour of PM @narendramodi in Kigali, Rwanda. Concluding a hectic day of engagement by meeting our own. pic.twitter.com/cl6VSvjLG4 Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) July 23, 2018 The two countries agreed to facilitate, diversify and promote trade and economic cooperation. President Kagame in his remarks said that Prime Minister Modi's visit represents a milestone between the long standing friendship and cooperation between Rwanda and India. Modi arrived in Rwanda tonight on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour as part of India's outreach to the resource-rich continent, soon after Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Kigali. The prime minister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was received by President Kagame. He was accorded a red carpet welcome at the airport. "A historic visit starts with a special gesture. President @PaulKagame personally welcomed PM @narendramodi to Rwanda," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. His two-day state visit to Rwanda -- one of Africa's fastest growing economies -- assumes significance as it could boost India's strategic ties with this country. "A special gesture by a close friend and a strategic partner! Prime Minister @narenderamodi personally received by Rwandan President @PaulKagame at #Kigali International Airport on the first leg of his three-nation tour. First-ever visit by an Indian PM to Rwanda," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had tweeted. Modi will also meet the business leaders and the Indian communities here. Tomorrow, Prime Minister Modi will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. Namita Bajpai By Express News Service LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath created a record on Monday during his Hathras visit by becoming the first-ever CM to have visited all 75 districts of the state in just 16 months of his rule. At Hathras, where he laid the foundation stone of 34 development and welfare schemes worth Rs 155 crore, Aditynath blamed the previous governments for backwardness and lack of development in Uttar Pradesh. The CM launched a blistering attack on the parties that had ruled for the last decade-and-a-half, saying they had been busy propagating caste and dynastic politics and nepotism. He cautioned the people of Hathras against supporting those family- and caste-based parties in the future elections. Adityanath claimed the 'gundaraj' established during the SP rule had been totally nixed in the state. "The previous Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) governments had no vision and that retarded the growth of the State," he stated, adding that law and order were in tatters and investors turned away. He claimed that his government had focused on the holistic development of Uttar Pradesh during the last 16 months of governance. While assuming the charge on March 19 last year, Adityanath had spelt out his priorities and visiting each and every district of the state to speed up overall development of Uttar Pradesh was one of them. The intent was to ensure that benefits of the schemes launched by the Centre and his government reached the last person. "With his Hathras visit, the Chief Minister will become the first Head of the government to cover the entire state within first 16 months of his rule. No other CM in UP's history has ever visited all 75 districts even in five years of their rule," claimed a senior official in the CM's Secretariat. Though he visits at least five-six districts every month, Gorakhpur and Varanasi are on top of his itinerary. Adityanath has visited his home district and other PM's parliamentary constituency at least four-five times. In fact, after holding his government's first investors' summit in February, an investment of over Rs 4.28 lakh crore was promised to the state by known business and corporate honchos. Now after five months, the BJP government has been able to convert those promises into promises worth Rs 60,000 crore which will be launched by PM Modi at a ceremony in Lucknow on July 29. All the big business magnates are likely to attend the event on Sunday. Ch V M Krishna Rao By Telangana Chief Minister and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) boss K Chandrasekhar Rao is known for his political astuteness. But he is also an unpredictable strategist. He proved this once again by participating in the discussion on the no-trust motion moved by the TDP in the Lok Sabha against the Narendra Modi government but distancing his party from voting on the motion. TRS decision to abstain from the voting surprised many because it was widely expected TRS would support the motion which was aimed at exposing the Centres indecisiveness in resolving issues related to the AP Reorganisation Act. Besides, Raos statements about forming a Federal Front at the national level and his vociferous belligerence shown towards the NDA had created the impression TRS would take on the Modi government. The people of Telangana, like their AP counterparts, are unhappy over the Centres half-hearted attitude towards implementing bifurcation promises such as division of Hyderabad High Court and establishing a steel factory in Telangana. Raos recent statement that AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu was his long-time friend and they were maintaining good relations with each other to resolve disputes between the two states also provided ground for this argument. As the TRS had earlier openly supported TDP MPs vociferous demand that AP should be granted the special category status, many of the politicos in AP, too, were of the view that the pink party would back the no-trust move. Surprisingly, instead of backing APs demand for a special status during the debate on no-trust motion, TRS MPs demanded that the very term be defined again. Further, during the voting on no-trust motion, the pink party members abstained. This led to the allegation that KCR has some understanding with the BJP. It is a known fact that Rao does not want any direct confrontation with Prime Minister Modi. At the same time, he wants to establish his secularism credentials in the run-up to the ensuing Assembly/Lok Sabha polls to keep the minority sections of voters in the State in a good humour. Had the TRS voted in favour of the motion, it would have been branded as an ally of the Congress and the TDP, whom the pink party has been blaming for the misery of Telangana people in the past 60 years. Facing this difficult situation, Rao might have decided to abstain from voting. Hence, he might have opted for staying neutral during the crucial vote, while thanking the Centre for granting various clearances for the gigantic Kaleshwaram Irrigation Project, being constructed in Telangana. During the debate, TRS also targeted the then Congress-led UPA government for not according national project status for Kaleshwaram. TRS MPs used the debate as a platform to attack the AP government for causing several obstructions to the Kaleshwaram project, which is considered the lifeline of North Telangana. The earlier game plan of TRS boss Rao to form a Federal Front against the BJP and the Congress at the national level too took a beating with the recent joining of hands by JD(S) and the Congress in Karnataka. Similarly, the leaders whom Rao had earlier met to seek support for his proposed Front, are now seen in the company of the Congress rather than remaining neutral. In the past few months, Rao has been favouring advancing the Assembly polls in the State, instead of clubbing them with Lok Sabha polls. The TRS boss does not want the atmosphere engulfing the simultaneous polls to be dominated by a key campaign between his arch-rivals BJP and Congress. He also does not want domination of national issues during TS Assembly polls. He is very much interested to go for assembly polls separately only with a view that state-centric issues alone have to decide the poll outcome. Whatever be the reason, if Assembly elections are to be advanced, it requires the Governors nod, which means it is going to be decided by the Centre. The BJP, which cannot defeat the Congress in Telangana on its own to implement its Congress-mukt Bharat strategy, should choose a regional party like the TRS to accomplish its task. The recent meetings of the Telangana CM and his son K T Rama Rao, who is the IT minister, with Modi should be understood on these lines. Ch V M Krishna Rao Resident Editor, Hyderabad Email: krishnarao@newindianexpress.com Arun Lakshman By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) is set for a major overhaul, with a change of its flag also being a possibility. The Muslim Youth League (MYL) leaders have come out with the suggestion that the party, which they believe is set to make a major foray into the north Indian states, must rework on the flag, especially the Pakistani effect on it. One other major reason for thinking of a change of flag is the public interest litigation filed in Supreme Court by Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Wakf Board chairman Syed Waseem Rizvi. He had said there was nothing Islamic in the flag which resembles that of Pakistani Muslim League. The apex court has sought the Central Governments view on it. Rizwi termed hoisting of such flags un-Islamic and added it had resulted in communal clashes in several parts of the country. IUML state secretary Abdurahiman Randathani told Express: Syed Rizvi is a Shia cleric who has called to build Ram Temple after demolishing Babri Masjid. He has also asked to ban madrasas across the country stating they teach terrorism and communalism. His opinion must be rejected outright. We have never thought of changing IUML flag Muslim Youth League (MYL), led by state president Munavar Ali Shihab Thangal, will conduct a yatra from Kasargod to Thiruvananthapuram from November 24 to December 24. In the public programme held in Kannur to announce it, the green flag was seen missing while the dais was full of red colour. MYL state general secretary P K Firoz, however, denied the allegation and said the green colour was prominent. In a related incident, at the national executive in Thiruvananthapuram, delegates were received with red garlands instead of green. At a recent meeting at the League House in Kozhikode, a firebrand leader of its student wing MSF told on the face of a senior leader that the party has to change the flag, in green colour with crescent and star, as it has a resemblance to that of Pakistan Muslim League. ET Mohammed Basheer MP, who is the IUML national organising secretary, denied any change of party flag. These are mere rumours. Party has never thought of such a move and the League has been part of the Union Government for 10 years and had produced a Chief Minister in Kerala. We have been using this flag all these years, so whats the need for a change now? he asked. A senior MYL leader on condition of anonymity confirmed Youth League is for a change of its flag which may be extended to the IUML also while a senior MLA of the party said, an MYL leader has given three different designs, but no decision has been taken yet. Israel launched its newest air defence system on Monday on the Syrian frontier, where Damascus's Russian-backed forces have been routing rebels, as Moscow sent envoys for what it called "urgent" talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu planned to meet Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and its armed forces chief, General Valery Gerasimov, later in the day, a visit the Israeli leader said was arranged last week at the request of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Israel has been on high alert as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regains ground from southern rebels, bringing his forces close to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. In a sign of high tensions, Israel launched two David's Sling interceptor missiles at rockets which the Israeli military later said fell inside Syrian territory and were part of the internal fighting there. It was Israel's first published operational use of the mid-range missiles, which are jointly manufactured by U.S. firm Raytheon Co. The incident triggered sirens in northern Israel and on the Golan. The military did not immediately elaborate on whether the targets were shot down by David's Sling. Israel deployed the system last year to complement its short-range Iron Dome and long-range Arrow interceptors. Netanyahu held talks with Putin in Moscow on July 11 amid Israeli concern that Assad, an old foe, may defy a 1974 demilitarisation deal on the Golan or allow his Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah allies to deploy there. Russia, whose foreign ministry confirmed Lavrov's visit, has said it wants to see the separation of forces on the frontier preserved. Lavrov's deputy, Grigory Karasin, told Russian media the foreign minister's trip was "urgent and important". Netanyahu, in broadcast remarks, said he would tell the envoys that "Israel insists on the separation of forces agreement between us and Syria being honoured, as they were honoured for decades until the civil war in Syria broke out". He also reaffirmed "Israel will continue to act against any attempt by Iran and its proxies to entrench militarily in Syria". Syrian state television said on Sunday an Israeli air strike hit a military post in the city of Misyaf in Syria's Hama province but caused only material damage. An Israeli military spokeswoman said it does not comment on foreign reports. Also on Sunday, hundreds of Syrian "White Helmet" rescue workers and their families fled advancing government forces and slipped over the border into Jordan with the help of Israeli soldiers and Western powers. Search Keywords: Short link: Biju E Paul By Express News Service KAINAKARI: If only strong outer bunds as suggested by the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation had been in place, Kuttanad wouldnt be drowning in sorrow right now. As the rice bowl of Kerala grapples with one of the worst floods in history, the contrast is stark. Houses and fields protected by strong outer bunds escaped natures wrath, while those that lacked permanent bunds were breached. According to Vavakkad resident Ratheesan, the absence of strong bunds is the reason for peoples plight. Some of the paddy polders were constructed with strong outer bunds under the Kuttanad package and they survived the heavy flood. More than 350 houses in the Vavakkad South paddy polder are protected with outer bunds. So, the solution to the problem is the construction of permanent outer bunds. The paddy polders of Naduthuruth, Irumbanam and Vavakkad South survived because of the strong bunds constructed a few years ago, he said. Vavakkad South Padasekhara Samiti member Balan said strong outer bunds and continuous discharge of water saved many houses. We are safe because more than Rs 2 lakh was spent in the past week for protecting the bund. However, Vavakkad resident Sasiyamma was not so lucky. Thanks to the hard work of my daughter who is in the Gulf, I had built a house two years ago. But the breaching of the bund has dashed all my dreams. My house has been destroyed and household items washed away, she said. People affected by the flood complained that officials were denying relief citing various reasons. At the same time, official laxity and legal tangles are delaying distribution of relief materials by the Civil Supplies Department. Kochukattuthara resident Shaji lambasted the attitude of peoples representatives. The Kuttanad MLA never visited the affected area. He is a native of Kuttanad and he knows the plight of the people, but he never visited the areas or pacified the affected people, he said. He visited Kuttamangalam along with the Central team and left. The MLAs absence is a major problem in coordinating the rescue operations and distribution of relief to people. Fishing vessel with four goes missing A fishing trawler with four fishermen on board was reported missing off Lakshadweep on Sunday. The Coast Guard is said to have deployed a Dornier aircraft as part of the mission to locate Farhana and Samudra Prahari was diverted to the vessels last recorded position. Separately, the Navy sent out search boats, along with local fisherman, to expedite the relief and rescue mission. A Naval Dornier aircraft also joined the search party by noon. INS Sujata has been diverted to search the area, which is expected to arrive late on Sunday evening. Strong winds likely to hit coast in next 24 hrs Strong winds from mainly the westerly direction, with a speed ranging between 35-45 kmph and 55 kmph, are likely to hit along the Kerala coast and over Lakshadweep area for the next 24 hours. Sea condition will be rough to very rough along the Lakshadweep area and in the southwest, central and north Arabian Sea. Fishermen are advised not to venture into the sea along Lakshadweep area, southwest, central and north Arabian Sea, according to a statement issued by the India Meteorological Department. Dalits allege discrimination at relief camp A group of Dalits under the aegis of the All Kerala Pulayar Mahasabha have complained to the Chief Minister alleging that members of the Christian community had humiliated them at the relief camp functioning at Anjilimoodu LP School in Pallippadu panchayat near Haripad. After refusing to share space and food prepared by SCs, members of the Christian community had moved to another camp, they alleged. However, panchayat member T K Sujatha claimed it was a non-issue. These are politically motivated charges. No caste discrimination has taken place at the camp, Sujatha said. SWTD recorded a 41 per cent increase in revenue and a 60 per cent rise in the number of travellers in the Kuttanad region after the second spell of monsoon worsened after bus services were suspended Palakkad: The shutters of the Aliyar dam in Tamil Nadu were opened for the first time this season on Saturday, which increased the inflow into the Chitturpuzha. As work was in progress at the Moolathara regulator and left-bank canal of the Chitturpuzha, the Kerala government has given an operational plan to TN to maintain the water level in the dam at 1,046.50 feet, which has been agreed to. As per the plan submitted by Kerala, TN will regulate the release of water to 5,000 cusecs. The full reservoir level is 1,050 feet, said Joint Water Regulatory Development Board deputy director Sudheer Padikkal. By Associated Press TORONTO: A chilling Facebook message posted before a van plowed onto a crowded Toronto sidewalk has raised the possibility the suspect in the attack nursed grudges against women and it is bringing back memories of a 1989 massacre of 14 women that remains one of Canada's most traumatic acts of violence. A crowd gathered late Tuesday in Toronto's North York community to pay their respects to the van victims at a makeshift memorial of roses, candles and messages of condolence. "I needed to come here to show that I'm not afraid of this city," said Meena Chowdry, wiping away tears. "That one man's actions cannot taint an otherwise beautiful, welcoming city." Earlier in the day, the 25-year-old suspect, Alek Minassian, was charged with first degree murder in the deaths of 10 pedestrians mowed down by a rented van that he sent careening along a mile of a busy walkway. Fourteen others were injured. Toronto Police Services Det. Sgt. Graham Gibson said at a news conference that those killed and injured were "predominantly" women, though he declined to discuss a possible motive. "All the lanes are open with this investigation," said Police Chief Mark Saunders. Authorities had yet to release a list of victims. Those known to have been killed include a 30-year-old woman from Toronto, Anne Marie D'Amico, who was active in volunteer work, as well as a female student at Seneca College, which Minassian attended. A Jordanian citizen and two South Koreans were also among those killed. The gender issue arose because of what police called a "cryptic" Facebook message posted by Minassian just before the incident that suggested he was part of an online community angry over their inability to form relationships with women. The now-deleted post saluted Elliot Rodger, a community college student who killed six people and wounded 13 in shooting and stabbing attacks near the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2014. Calling Rodger "the Supreme Gentleman," the Facebook post declared: "The Incel Rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys!" Rodger had used the term "incel" for involuntarily celibate in online posts raging at women for rejecting him romantically. Like-minded people in internet forums sometimes use "Chad" and "Stacy" as dismissive slang for men and women with more robust sex lives. The anti-women sentiment also recalled Canada's 1989 massacre at the Ecole Polytechnique, an engineering college in Montreal, when 25-year-old Marc Lepine entered a classroom, separated the men from the women, told the men to leave and opened fire, killing 14 women before killing himself. In a suicide note, he blamed feminists for ruining his life. Since then, there have been sporadic mass shootings in Canada, but none with a higher death toll reinforcing the view among many Canadians that their country is less violent than the United States. Wendy Cukier, a professor in the business school at Toronto's Ryerson University and president of Canada's Coalition for Gun Control, said Canada may avoid some types of violence because its social programs are stronger than those in many U.S. states and there is less income inequality. But the main difference, she contends, is tighter gun regulations in Canada. "If you take guns out of the mix, Canada and the U.S. are identical," she said, citing statistics indicating the two countries have similar rates of non-firearm homicides. Although police said Monday's rampage did not appear linked to international terrorism, the use of a vehicle to kill mirrored tactics used by terrorists in France, Germany, Spain, New York City and elsewhere. Since 2014, there have been at least two terror-related cases in Canada of vehicles being used as weapons they caused several injuries and one death. But overall, Canada has been spared high-casualty terror attacks. Its most striking incidents of violence over the past 50 years have varied widely in nature. In 2014 a Canadian Muslim fatally shot a member of the honor guard at Ottawa's national war memorial, then stormed Parliament, where he was shot to death by a sergeant-at arms. Last year, a French-Canadian man fatally shot six Muslim men during evening prayers at a mosque in Quebec City. Back in 1972, 37 people died in a Montreal cafe deliberately set on fire by three men who had been refused entry. Canadian rapper Maestro Fresh Wes returned to the scene of the van rampage Tuesday, pausing by a newly erected memorial. Wes, who lives nearby, was strolling down Yonge Street to get a haircut when he saw a body bag on the ground. "Yesterday was the most beautiful day of the year and then look what happened," he said. "Toronto is a safe city but things could happen anywhere. When these things happen, you have to reflect." Also revisiting the site was Saman Tabasinejad, a New Democrat Party politician who was canvassing in the area when the attack occurred. "I saw shattered glass everywhere, a fire hydrant knocked over and then five body bags," she said. "People were holding others and I saw solidarity all over, people trying to help others." "When something like this happens, you think people are going to run away from the tragedy, but people didn't they ran toward it to try to help others," she added. "It shows that something like this could happen at the hands of one person, but so many more stand against it and show their humanity." By AFP KABUL: A suicide bomber killed at least 14 people and wounded 60 at the entrance to Kabul international airport on Sunday, officials said, as scores gathered to welcome home Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum from exile. Senior government officials, political leaders and supporters were leaving the airport after greeting the powerful ethnic Uzbek leader and former warlord when the explosion happened. "This is the first time I have seen a suicide attack," one witness told AFP. "People were collecting human flesh with their hands," he said, shaking as he spoke. "What is going on in Afghanistan?" Dostum, clad in a Western suit and sunglasses and travelling in an armoured vehicle, was unharmed, his spokesman Bashir Ahmad Tayanj said. IN PICS | Suicide attack rocks Kabul Airport Kabul Police spokesman Hashmat Stanikzai said 14 people had been killed and 60 others wounded, adding that nine members of the security forces and traffic police were among the dead. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack through its official Amaq news agency late Saturday, according to the SITE intelligence monitoring group. The suicide bomber was on foot, interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish said, adding that civilians, including a child, and security force members were among the casualties. Dostum, who is linked to a catalogue of human rights abuses in Afghanistan, was mobbed like a celebrity as he left the chartered plane from Turkey, where he has lived since May 2017. His return, which has been the subject of much speculation, comes amid violent protests in several provinces across northern Afghanistan, his traditional power base. Thousands of Dostum's supporters have taken to the streets in recent weeks, shuttering election and government offices and blocking sections of highways to demand the release of a pro-government militia leader and to call for Dostum's return. Expectations of the return did little to quell the unrest, with protesters vowing Sunday to continue demonstrating until the burly leader of the Uzbek ethnic minority tells them otherwise. "We don't trust the government. We will continue our protests unless General Dostum tells us to stop," Ehsanullah Qowanch, a protest leader in Faryab province, told AFP. Qowanch also repeated calls for the release of Nezamuddin Qaisari -- a district police chief and Dostum's provincial representative in Faryab -- whose arrest earlier this month ignited the protests. Another protester, Massoud Khan, said: "We have been on the streets for 20 days now. We are not going to stop our protests unless our demands are met." 'Known killer Observers say President Ashraf Ghani, an ethnic Pashtun, gave the green light for Dostum to come home to stabilise the north and secure Uzbek support before next year's presidential election, which he is widely expected to contest. Dostum left Afghanistan in May 2017 after he was accused of organising the rape and torture of a political rival. He had denied the allegations and said his departure was for medical check-ups and family reasons. Ghani in 2009 described Dostum as a "known killer", yet he chose him as his running mate in the 2014 presidential election, underlining the sometimes uncomfortable ethnic realities of Afghan politics. Presidential spokesman Haroon Chakhansuri said Saturday that Dostum had been "treated" and would resume his duties upon his return. Seven of Dostum's bodyguards have been convicted of the sexual assault and illegal imprisonment of Ahmad Ishchi, a former governor of the northern province of Jowzjan, in 2016. Dostum allegedly had Ishchi abducted in Jowzjan and then kept him hostage in his private compound for several days, where the captive was said to have been tortured and sodomised. Chakhansuri deflected questions about whether Dostum would face charges over the incident, saying "the judiciary is an independent body, the government does not interfere in their decisions". Dostum is one of several controversial figures whom Kabul has sought to reintegrate into mainstream politics since the US-led invasion in 2001. His heroic status in the north belies the barbarities for which he is known. Dostum, who helped the United States oust the Taliban regime in 2001, allegedly allowed hundreds of Taliban prisoners to be suffocated in shipping containers. By PTI BAMAKO: Mali's defence minister says one soldier and 11 extremists were killed after an ambush of security forces in a region where al-Qaida-linked fighters roam. Yesterday's ambush in the Macina area of central Mali comes a week before the West African nation votes in a presidential election. The growing brazenness of attacks by multiple extremist groups has put the vote at risk. More than eight million voters are expected to go to the polls as President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita seeks a second five-year term. Defence Minister Tiena Coulibaly says one soldier was wounded in this latest attack. Central Mali has seen more attacks as extremist groups push farther from their usual areas in the vast north. One deadly attack recently targeted the headquarters of a new West African counter-terror force. By PTI LONDON: Three more men were today arrested by British police after a three-year-old boy suffered serious burns in an appaling acid attack in central England. The boy was treated in hospital for serious burns to his arm and face after an "acid or a corrosive substance" was either "thrown at or sprayed towards him" at a discount store in the city of Worcester, according to police. The boy was in a pushchair when he was "deliberately attacked" at Home Bargains in Worcester on Saturday afternoon. The men, aged 22, 25 and 26, were arrested in London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm. Earlier, a 39-year-old man was arrested on Sunday on suspicion of conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm remains in police custody, the BBC reported. Doctors discharged the boy from hospital yesterday, it said. He was treated for serious burns to his arm and face and the "long-term implications" of the his injuries are unknown, police said. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said the motive for the attack is so far "unclear". He said the family is receiving specialist medical and police support. "We are hoping the injuries won't be life changing. They are serious and at the moment it's just that little bit too soon to say, but things look positive. "Everything that can be done to provide support is being done, support for the family has been great. I absolutely understand the community will be concerned, these are life changing incidents, this is something that lasts forever and we need to send a message that this is unacceptable," Travis said. "We'd like to thank everyone who shared our appeal over the weekend and contacted us with information; all of this is helping us to build up a better picture of this incident", detective inspector Tony Garner said. "The shock will be universal. Anyone conducting such an attack on a small child is just appalling", Robin Walker, member of parliament for Worcester added. Britain has seen a spike in the number of acid attacks in recent years, with hundreds of incidents in London alone every year. The trend has prompted government intervention initiatives while police have asked the public for help to try to tackle the problem. By PTI ISLAMABAD: A two-month-long electioneering by candidates contesting the July 25 elections in Pakistan were making last ditch efforts through public gatherings, corner meetings and door-to-door canvassing before the campaign comes to an end at midnight tonight, amid low voter enthusiasm and a tense security situation. Over 12,570 candidates, including a number of hardline clerics, are contesting the elections to the parliament and four provincial assemblies. Against the National Assembly's seats, about 3,675 candidates are in the electoral race whereas about 8,895 for the provincial legislatures of all four provinces, according to the data shared by the Election Commission of Pakistan. According to election rules, the public campaign must end at midnight. No candidate or party leader will address gatherings or corner meetings or take out processions after the deadline. According to an ECP official, electronic and print media would also avoid telecasting or publishing political advertisements. Anyone who contravenes ECP guidelines will be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years or with a Rs 100,000 fine. The election campaign has generally been seen as low-key and has failed to enthuse voters as in previous polls. There was also a sense of uncertainty due to court cases against leading politicians including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader and ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif who was convicted and sent to jail for corruption. The actions of the anti-corruption watchdog 'National Accountability Bureau' have also hampered the campaign of PML-N. Similarly actions by the Federal Investigation Agency against former president and Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari in a money laundering case have also been questioned due to their timing. A wave of deadly suicide attacks by militants have also affected the campaign. About 180 people, including three candidates, were killed in these attacks in the past two weeks in the run up to the elections. But the contestants and leaders are making last ditch efforts to woo voters before the end of the deadline tonight. PML-N chief Shahbaz Sharif will address rallies in Dera Ghazi Khan and Rawalpindi in Punjab while his son Hamza will organise a rally in Lahore. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan will address gatherings in Lahore, capital of Punjab and the chief battleground for ascendency to power in Pakistan. Separately, Pakistan Peoples Party leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will speak at gatherings in Jacobabad and Shikarpur, the two areas in Sindh, which is a PPP stronghold. The religious alliance of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Sirajul Haq will also make a show of power in capital Islamabad. The MMA includes traditional religious parties such as Jamaat-e-Islami led by Qazi Hussain Ahmed, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl headed by Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan led by Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani and Tehreek-e-Jafaria led by Allama Sajid Naqvi. The extreme right wing groups - linked to militants and jehadi outfits - have fielded a huge number of candidates at the provincial and national level. Most of these extreme right wing parties have fielded their candidates from the platform of shadow parties. The Pakistan Rah-e-Haq Party emerged from sectarian outfit Sipa-e-Sahaba party and Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek came to the fore as a shadow party of Hafiz Saeed-led Jamat-ud Dawa, and Khadim Rizvi's Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan. By PTI DHAKA: Police in Bangladesh have pressed charges against eight militants over the 2016 Dhaka cafe attack that killed 20 people, including an Indian girl, the worst terror attack in the country's history. The charge sheet was placed before a Dhaka court this morning, more than two years after the gruesome attack on the Gulshan's Holey Artisan Bakery (cafe) in Dhaka's posh diplomatic area, claimed by the Islamic State terror group. The delay in filing the charge sheet was attributed to the "complexities in obtaining information" as those "involved directly with the operation were killed on the spot," The Daily Star quoted chief of Bangladesh's Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit Monirul Islam as saying. Police, however, claimed that the homegrown terror group Neo-Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB), which is close to the ISIS, was behind the attack. Monirul said that police have pressed charges against eight militants over the attack, where 20 people, mostly foreigners, were killed after being taken as hostages. He added that the six militants who directly carried out the attack were killed at the scene in the subsequent military assault while 13 others involved were later killed in different security clampdowns. Prof Hasnat Karim, a former teacher of North South University was dropped from the chargesheet as "investigation could not relate him with the militant activity", he said. The charges brought against the accused are based on 75 pieces of evidence and 211 witnesses to the incident. Those made accused are: "Neo-Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh" operatives Rakibul Islam Regan, Hadisur Rahman Sagor, Jahangir Hossain Rajeeb alias Rajeeb Gandhi, Aslam Hossain Rashed alias Rash, Abdus Sabur Khan alias Sohel Mahfuj, Mizanur Rahman alias Baro Mizan, and Mamunur Rashid alias Ripon and Shariful Islam Khaled, a former student of the English department at Rajshahi University. Of them, the first six "Neo-JMB" operatives are now in jail while the two others are on the run. Court officials, meanwhile, said a metropolitan magistrate recorded the chargesheet but the case was expected to be transferred later this week to the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal for its quick disposal. Twenty people, mostly foreigners, were killed in the brutal late-night attack on July 1 after the attackers took diners and restaurant staff hostage. The Indian girl, Tarishi Jain, was a student of the University of California in Berkeley and was in Dhaka for vacations. Next morning, a joint commando force stormed the bakery, killing all the attackers and rescuing the captives, ending the terror siege of nearly 11 hours. By PTI WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said today he had given up "nothing" during his summit with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, following a week of withering, bipartisan criticism over his handling of the meeting. "When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING," Trump said on Twitter. When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries. Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Trump and Putin met in Helsinki a week ago behind closed doors, with no one else but their interpreters present. In the press conference and interviews afterwards, Trump did not offer any specific details on any agreements he might have made with Putin, drawing scorn from Democrats, who sought to interview his interpreter. Moscow has said "agreements" had been reached over the situation in Syria. Trump faced intense criticism after the press conference, during which he appeared to support Putin's "extremely strong and powerful" denial of subverting the 2016 US presidential election. A day later, Trump was forced to attempt to walk back a comment in which he said "I don't see any reason why it would be" Russia that had hacked the election. "The sentence should have been, 'I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be Russia. Sort of a double negative," he said. By PTI KIGALI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today arrived in Rwanda on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour as part of India's outreach to the resource-rich continent, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. The Prime Minister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was received by President of Rwanda Paul Kagame. He was accorded a red carpet welcome at the airport. "A historic visit starts with a special gesture. President @PaulKagame personally welcomed PM @narendramodi to Rwanda," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. His two-day state visit to Rwanda -- one of Africa's fastest-growing economies -- assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. "A special gesture by a close friend and a strategic partner! Prime Minister @narenderamodi personally received by Rwandan President @PaulKagame at #Kigali International Airport on the first leg of his three-nation tour. The first-ever visit by an Indian PM to Rwanda," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. Ceremonial welcome at Kigali Airport, Rwanda. Some more images of the special welcome extended to PM @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/2b3MwqRQRg Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) July 23, 2018 Later, Prime Minister Modi held one-on-one talks with President Kagame. He will also meet the business leaders and the Indian communities here. President PaulKagame welcomes Narendra Modi. (Photo | Twitter) He will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. ALSO READ | PM Narendra Modi to gift 200 cows to Rwanda A defence cooperation agreement is also expected to be signed between India and Rwanda during the visit, T S Tirumurti, secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said in New Delhi last week. India will also be opening a mission in Rwanda very soon, Tirumurti said. "During this visit, we expect to conclude two lines of credit -- one of USD 100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ), and another one for USD 100 million for agriculture and irrigation," he said. An important element of the programme would be the prime minister's visit to Rweru Model Village where he will gift 200 cows as a contribution from India to the 'Girinka' scheme of Rwanda, Tirumurti said. Under 'Girinka', a social protection scheme of the Rwandan government personally overseen by President Kagame, poorest families are gifted dairy cows by the government and the first female calf born to the cow is gifted to the neighbour, thus promoting brotherhood and solidarity. The cows to be gifted by India would be sourced from Rwanda. "We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture, and culture," he said. Modi's visit comes days after Chinese President Xi Jinping's trip to Rwanda. Modi would proceed to Uganda tomorrow for a two-day visit, the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister since 1997. "Rwanda is an important gateway to Eastern Africa and we have elevated our bilateral relations with Rwanda to the level of a strategic partnership in January 2017," a senior External Affairs Ministry official said in New Delhi. The President of Rwanda is the current Chair of the African Union. Modi will attend the 10th edition of the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa during which the grouping's leaders are expected to deliberate on global hot-spot issues, international peace and security, global governance and trade issues among others. By ANI Jailed Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif is on the verge of a kidney failure and doctors have recommended to shift him to a hospital immediately, according to a media report. Sharif , 68, is serving a 10-year jail term in a corruption case over his family's purchase of luxury apartments in London. He has been lodged in the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi since July 13. A team of doctors from Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC), headed by its Chief Executive Major General (retd) Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani, visited the prison and compiled a report after carrying out a detailed medical check-up. READ| Adiala Jail authorities reject former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif's daughter Maryam's request to teach inmates The report has now been sent to the Punjab Health secretary. The findings in the report suggest that Sharif be shifted to a hospital immediately, The Express Tribune reported. Although his personal physician Dr Adnan had seen him twice in recent days, the jail administration called doctors from RIC to be sure of what had happened. The team spent about one-and-a-half hour inspecting his condition. According to the medical board, his body's water levels are very low, which has made his heartbeat erratic now. The amount of urea in his blood has also become very high, which could even lead to kidney failure, the report said. The board's findings suggested that Sharif be shifted to hospital immediately, it added. Sharif had complained about his health on Saturday and the Punjab health secretary constituted a medical board to examine him. The Punjab Prisons sources told Daily Express that they are waiting for the Punjab home department's orders about shifting Sharif to the hospital. Caretaker provincial ministers Shaukat Javed and Ahmed Waqas Riaz said the jail superintendent has been informed in writing about Sharif's health issues and the home department has formed a medical board which will perform another checkup today to decide on whether to shift him to a hospital, the report said. They confirmed that Sharif's medical tests suggested he had kidney issues. The caretaker government is in touch with jail authorities and Nawaz Sharif is getting better medical facilities, they added. Related Lebanon president says US pullout from Iran deal will hurt Middle East A suspected drug dealer and seven others were killed during a Lebanese army raid on a house in the country's northeast on Monday, an army source said. The raid happened near the town of Brital, not far from the border with Syria. A number of others were arrested and no soldiers were injured, the source said. Search Keywords: Short link: By PTI ISLAMABAD: A medical board which examined Nawaz Sharif today recommended the immediate shifting of the jailed former Pakistan prime minister to a hospital but the PML-N supremo insisted that the required medical facilities should be provided to him in the jail itself, according to a media report. Sharif, 68, and his daughter Maryam, 44, are serving jail terms of 10 years and 7 years respectively in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, after an accountability court convicted them on July 6 over the family's ownership of four luxury flats in London. A four-member medical board comprising cardiologist Dr Naeem Malik, Medical Specialist Dr. Shaji Siddiqui, neurologist Dr Sohail Tanvir and Dr Mashood examined Sharif to decide about shifting him to the hospital following health related complications, sources said. Sharif has multiple health issues like heart problems, hypertension and diabetes. He already underwent open heart surgery in London in 2016. Citing family sources, Urdu langauge daily 'Jang' said that the medical board has recommended to immediately shift Sharif to the hospital, but he insisted that the required medical facilities should be provided to him in the jail itself. Meanwhile, Pakistan President Mamnoon Hussain today expressed concerns at Sharif's health conditions and asked the government to ensure his treatment. In a phone call to Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk, the President "expressed concerns" at the health condition of Sharif and asked him to "ensure complete treatment of the former prime minister", according to a statement issued by the President House. Sharif's family and the party also voiced concerns at the reports about his health complications. His younger brother and PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif said that he had already raised the issue of poor jail condition in a letter addressed to the Punjab government and asked for provision of facilities to the former premier. PML-N leader Pervaiz Rashid also expressed concerns at Sharif's health and demanded that he should be provided complete medical care. Earlier, a team of doctors from Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC), headed by its Chief Executive Major General (retd) Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani, visited the prison and compiled a report after carrying out a detailed medical check-up, the Express Tribune reported. Although his personal physician Dr Adnan had seen him twice in recent days, the jail administration called doctors from RIC to be sure of what had happened. The team spent about one-and-a-half hour inspecting his condition. According to the RIC medical team, his body's water levels are very low, which has made his heartbeat erratic now. The amount of urea in his blood has also become very high, which could even lead to kidney failure, the report said. They recommended to shift Sharif to the hospital immediately. Sharif had complained about his health on Saturday. ALSO READ | Nawaz Sharif urges followers to pray for his critically ill wife The Punjab Prisons sources told Daily Express that they are waiting for the Punjab home department's orders about shifting Sharif to the hospital. Caretaker provincial ministers Shaukat Javed and Ahmed Waqas Riaz confirmed that Sharif's medical tests suggested he had kidney issues. The caretaker government is in touch with jail authorities and Sharif is getting better medical facilities, they added. Meanwhile, Barrister Zafrullah Khan of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has filed a petition with the Supreme Court to declare residences of Sharif and his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Muhammad Safdar as sub-jails. By PTI WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said today he was "very happy" with how talks were progressing with North Korea, as observers and the media highlight the lack of concrete results one month after his summit with Kim Jong Un. "A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy," Trump tweeted. "But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy!" In a joint declaration after his historic summit with Trump on June 12 in Singapore, the North Korean leader "reaffirmed his commitment" to work towards the "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula". But the actual details of the process, including how and when the North's nuclear program is to be dismantled, have yet to be hammered out. A month ago, the US administration insisted on the "urgency" of denuclearization, and said it would begin "very quickly". ALSO READ | United States making 'gangster-like' demands on denuclearisation, says North Korea "We're hopeful we can get it done" by 2020, before the end of Trump's term, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the time. Pompeo has been charged with the challenge of putting meat on the bare bones of the Singapore commitment. But 40 days and one apparently fruitless visit by Pompeo to Pyongyang later, the tone of the American side has clearly changed. "We have no time limit," Trump told reporters last week. ALSO READ | Sanctions to remain until North Korea 'final' denuclearisation: US Secretary Mike Pompeo Asked about the change in tone, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert sought to reassure: "We have teams in place that are working very hard on this issue every day," she said. "We have said there's a lot of work left to be done." By Reuters MOGADISHU (SOMALIA): Somalia's al Shabaab group said on Monday its fighters had attacked a military base in the south of the country, killing 27 soldiers. "We first attacked the base with a suicide car bomb and then stormed. We killed 27 soldiers and took the base. Some soldiers fled into the jungles," Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaab's military operation spokesman said. The base is some 50 km (31 miles) away from the port city of Kismayu. There was no immediate comment from the government on the attack. Al Shabaab fights to topple Somalia's central government and impose its a rule based on its own strict interpretation of Islam's Sharia law. Al Shabaab attacked the same base in June, wounding seven soldiers. By PTI WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo plans to urge members of the Iranian diaspora to "support" protesters in Iran, as the Trump administration hints at a desire for regime change in Tehran after turning its back on the Iranian nuclear accord. President Donald Trump, who has made the Islamic republic a favourite target since his unexpected rapprochement with North Korea, decided on May 8 to restore all the sanctions that had been lifted as part of the multi-nation agreement aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Following the US withdrawal that stunned even Washington's closest European allies, Pompeo on May 21 unveiled a "new strategy" intended to force Iran to yield to a dozen stringent demands or else face the "strongest sanctions in history". The next US step is due today in the Ronald Reagan presidential library in Simi Valley, California, when the secretary of state delivers a speech entitled "Supporting Iranian Voices". With the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 a year away, Pompeo plans to retrace "40 years of stealing from the Iranian people, the terrorism they have committed around the region, the brutal repression at home" as well as the "religious persecution" there, a senior State Department official told reporters ahead of the speech. The venue for Pompeo's address is significant, the official noted: some 2,50,000 Iranian-Americans live in Southern California. "He will be exposing some of the corruption" of a "kleptocratic regime," the diplomat told reporters. "The regime has prioritized its ideological agenda over the welfare of the Iranian people. " Pompeo launched his campaign against Iran on Twitter last month, saying the government in Tehran and the Revolutionary Guards -- the regime's elite armed corps -- had "plundered the country's wealth" in proxy wars "while Iranian families struggle. " The Trump administration's strategy appears simple: to exploit the already growing tensions within Iranian society that are being exacerbated by renewed US sanctions that have forced some foreign firms to leave. There have been a series of anti-government protests in Iran in recent months, prompted by an array of different issues and concerns. The State Department briefer said Pompeo plans to support "the legitimate demands of the Iranian people, especially their economic demands for a better life. " But how far will he and the administration go? "That's the key question," Behnam Ben Taleblu of the conservative pressure group Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), told AFP. "Pompeo and the administration can do more than just rhetorical support to the Iranian protester. " Several Iranian dissidents have written to Pompeo to urge him to re-establish punitive measures against the state-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting network, which they accuse of abetting human rights violations. Word of Pompeo's planned speech has fanned speculation on Washington's precise intentions. The State Department insists that the US seeks merely a "change in behavior" by the regime. But some senior members of the Trump administration -- notably national security advisor John Bolton -- have made it clear in the past that they would like to see the Tehran regime topple, and Pompeo himself said in May that "the Iranian people get to choose for themselves the kind of leadership they want. " To Behnam Ben Taleblu, "genuine regime change can only come from inside. " With an upsurge of "Iranians of all different social classes protesting," he said, the Trump administration will have to decide whether it wants to "support elements that actually want to change the regime. " Diplomats and experts in Washington are divided as to whether the protests and social tensions within Iran pose a true threat to the Islamic republic. Nor is there agreement on what it would actually mean should the Iranian regime fall -- but some find that uncertainty deeply worrying. "The more likely result of regime collapse would be a military coup in the name of restoring order, led by the man Washington's Iran hawks fear the most: Gen. Qasem Suleimani," the commander of the Revolutionary Guards, according to Mark Fitzpatrick of the International Institute for Strategic Studies. "Exerting maximum pressure on Iran could bring about America's worst nightmare," he added on Twitter. Champaign, IL (61820) Today Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low around 40F. Winds N at 15 to 25 mph. Higher wind gusts possible.. Tonight Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low around 40F. Winds N at 15 to 25 mph. Higher wind gusts possible. US President Donald Trump told Iran it risked dire consequences "the like of which few throughout history have suffered before" if the Islamic Republic made more threats against the United States. His words, spelled out in capital letters in a late night Twitter message, came hours after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told Trump that hostile policies toward Tehran could lead to "the mother of all wars." Despite the heightened rhetoric, both sides have reasons to want to avoid starting a conflict that could easily escalate. Trump's comments come in the context of a barrage of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and pressure Iran to end its nuclear program and its support of militant groups, according to US officials. Iran has faced increased US pressure and possible sanctions since Trump's decision in May to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international agreement over Iran's nuclear program. In his message directed at Rouhani, Trump wrote: "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious!". Earlier on Sunday, Rouhani had told a gathering of Iranian diplomats: "Mr Trump, don't play with the lion's tail, this would only lead to regret." "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," said Rouhani, quoted by the state news agency IRNA. Rouhani left open the possibility of peace between the two countries, at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. But Iran's most powerful authority Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday negotiations with the United States would be an "obvious mistake". Rouhani also scoffed at Trump's threat to halt Iranian oil exports and said Iran has a dominant position in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping waterway. A senior commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards reacted angrily to Trump's threats by saying Tehran would continue to resist its enemies, Iran's Students news Agency ISNA reported. "We will never abandon our revolutionary beliefs ... we will resist pressure from enemies ... America wants nothing less than (to) destroy Iran ... (but) Trump cannot do a damn thing against Iran," Brigadier General Gholamhossein Gheybparvar said. White House national security adviser John Bolton, who has in the past called for air strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, said :"President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before", according to a White House statement. "War Of Words" Trump's threat to Iran came hours after a speech by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who denounced Iran's clerical leadership as a "mafia" and promised unspecified backing for Iranians unhappy with their government. Tehran reacted to Pompeo's speech as an interference in Tehran's affairs, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported. "Such policies will unite Iranians who will overcome plots against their country," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is bitterly opposed to Iran, praised Trump's "strong stance" on Tehran. At the same time, Germany said threats of war were "never helpful". There is limited appetite in Washington for a conflict with Iran, not least because of the difficulties the US military faced in Iraq after its 2003 invasion but also because of the impact on the global economy if conflict raised oil prices. Many ordinary Iranians are worried that the war of words might lead to a military confrontation but insiders in Tehran told Reuters that the US administration would not drag the country into another quagmire in the Middle East. With popular discontent over Irans faltering economy and sliding currency, and the prospect of tough new US sanctions, Iran's leaders have called for unity. Many ordinary Iranians are largely skeptical of the Trump administration's support for Iranian citizens because of the harsh US sanctions on the country and a visa ban imposed on Iranians barring them from entering the United States. While Washington prepares to reimpose economic sanctions on Tehran after pulling out of the nuclear deal, Iran's faction-ridden religious and political elites have closed ranks against Trump's hawkish approach to Tehran. However, growing strains with the US will eventually boost Rouhani's anti-Western hardline rivals who fear losing power if the nuclear deal, championed by Rouhani, ended the countrys political and economic isolation. Rouhani's apparent threat earlier this month to disrupt oil shipments from neighboring countries came in reaction to efforts by Washington to force all countries to stop buying Iranian oil. Washington initially planned to shut Iran out of global oil markets completely after Trump abandoned the deal that limited Iran's nuclear ambitions, demanding all other countries stop buying Iranian crude by November. But the United States has somewhat eased its stance, saying it may grant sanction waivers to some allies that are particularly reliant on Iranian supplies. Search Keywords: Short link: Install the Newser News app in two easy steps: 1. Tap in your navigation bar. 2. Tap to Add to Home Screen. (Newser) When an LAPD officer entered the Salomons' Northridge, Calif., home on Oct. 13, 1982, the family wasn't there but all seemed normal, down to the fact that the master bedroom's bed was made. That detail freaked Dorene Laffer out. She was Elaine Salomon's cousin, and the two were incredibly close, so much so that she knew Elaine never made the bed. So police dug deeper and found a more disturbing truth: In 14-year-old Michelle Salomon's bedroom, the bed was broken, the bedding was missing, and there were small bloodstains present. Elaine, Michelle, Salomon's second husband Sol, and their 9-year-old son Mitchell were missing. That police were even at the house that night was thanks to neighbors Stacy Perman and her mother, who'd gone to check on the family after another neighbor mentioned the Salomons' pool was overflowing. story continues below Perman and Michelle were friendsPerman was supposed to sleep over the previous night but had changed her mindand she's also the author of an in-depth Los Angeles Magazine article delving into what happened to the Salomons, who to this day remain missing. After suffering nightmares for years, Perman writes that she came "to the realization that I needed to try looking into what happened myself. I didn't like what I found." She recounts what she learned about Elaine and Sol, an Israeli immigrant who was rumored to have participated in illegal guns sales and frequent prostitutes; Elaine herself was reportedly having an affair. But much of Perman's piece delves into Harvey Rader, an English-born associate of Sol's who attended a car auction with Sol on the night the family disappeared. Rader told a story riddled with inconsistencies and was tied to three other missing persons. Read Perman's full story for much more on Rader, who stood trial for the family's murders, here. (Read more Longform stories.) (Newser) Police in Florida say there would have been yet another headline about a child dying in a hot car if not for an alert passerby. Officers credit Jessica Kaiser with spotting the 8-month-old boy in a vehicle with the windows rolled up on a 93-degree day in Orange City, reports Fox News. Luckily, the vehicle apparently was not locked, and Kaiser and her husband opened a door and called 911. The boy is fine, but police video shows his mother returning to the vehicle 24 minutes after the 911 call was placed and learning that she had left the boy inside. story continues below Meagan Burgess told officers she thought she had dropped him off with a relative along with her other children. "Is he OK?" a crying Burgess can be heard saying. She is informed that he is, and Kaiser gives her a hug. "We avoided a disaster," says Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood in the video he made to thank Kaiser. Burgess, meanwhile, faces child-neglect charges. (In Nashville, a father rushing to catch a flight forgot about his 1-year-old daughter in his vehicle.) (Newser) In Somalia, about 98% of girls undergo female genital mutilation, but one 10-year-old is now part of an even grimmer statistic: those who've died from it. A doctor at a Dhusamareb hospital tells Voice of America the child was brought to the ER early last week, two days after her parents say she'd had the procedure, but despite the response team's efforts to save the girl, she bled to death. She also got tetanus because the instruments used during the procedure weren't sterilized, Dr. Abdirahman Omar Hassan says. "They cut the clitoris, one side of the vulva was cut, the other side was wounded in three areas," Hassan noted. "I never saw anyone who was mutilated like that in my life." Hawa Aden Mohamed, a social activist and head of a local women's rights group, tells Reuters it's believed the person who carried out the mutilation "cut an important vein in the course of the operation." story continues below The girl's father, meanwhile, says he's "distraught" but doesn't blame anyone for her death (he says she was "taken by Allah") and stands behind the practice. "The people in the area are content with it, her mother consented to it," Dahir Nur says. "We have seen the effects, but it's a culture in the country we live in." The practicewhich involves partial or total removal of the clitoris and labiais prohibited in Somalia's constitution, but there's nothing on the books actually outlawing it, the BBC notes. Politicians have been wary of criminalizing it for fear of infuriating locals who consider it a religious ritual. "The woman who performed the operation has not been arrested, but even if she was, there is no law that would ensure she is punished," Mohamed tells Reuters. "This is just one among many cases happening on a daily basis across Somalia." (A Michigan doctor was accused of mutilating 100 girls.) (Newser) President Trump declared North Korea was "no longer a nuclear threat" after his summit last month with Kim Jong Un, but the latest assessment from the Korean Peninsula's top US military commander offers a different take. The North's nuclear "production capability is still intact," Army Gen. Vincent Brooks, via a video link, told Aspen Security Forum attendees Saturday, adding that there's been no "complete shutdown" and no sign of fuel rods being removed. CNBC notes that what Brooks is saying jibes with a Washington Post report Sunday on a frustrated Trump and "stiff resistance from a North Korean team practiced in the art of delay and obfuscation." Some of that resistance has included canceled follow-up meetings, requests for more money, and a lack of communication, as well as a still-intact missile-engine testing site Trump vowed would be dismantled. story continues below "There has to be demonstrable action [toward denuclearization] or we cannot be satisfied and we probably can't be friends and we probably won't be at peace," Brooks said, per CNBC, though he stressed it was critical not to "overreact" and for the US and the North to build trust. He also expressed hope that steps toward denuclearization would happen. "[Kim] has really demonstrated he is a man of his word in a number of ways," Brooks said, per Voice of America. Others didn't share his optimism. "This is not the time to be putting the brakes on maximum pressure," said Rep. Mike McCaul, head of the House Homeland Security Committee. "This is a time [to] be putting the accelerator on." Brooks also relayed that the remains of "some" Americans killed in the Korean War would make their way home, per CNN. "The pain of those families is as acute today as it was then," he told the forum. (Read more North Korea stories.) (Newser) President Trump shifted his attention to another country overnight, unloading an all-caps threat to Iran via Twitter. "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE," he wrote. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" As Reuters reports, his tweet came after Iranian President Hasan Rouhani had issued a threat of his own, warning the US not to "play with the lion's tail," adding, America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." story continues below Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also got into the mix, declaring in a California speech that Iran was led by "hypocritical holy men" similar to a "mafia," reports the Wall Street Journal. All of this is playing out in the aftermath of Trump's May decision to pull out from the nuclear deal orchestrated by former President Obama. As a result, banking sanctions go back into effect on Iran in three weeks and bigger sanctions aimed at its oil market take effect in November, notes the Washington Post. In addition to those looming sanctions, the White House is trying to raise pressure on Iran with what Reuters calls an "offensive of speeches and online communications." The rhetoric is similar to that between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the months before their summit, and one prominent Iranian analyst sees all this as "the storm before the calm," reports the AP. (Read more President Trump stories.) The Syrian government on Monday condemned the evacuation of hundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers, calling it a "criminal operation" undertaken by "Israel and its tools". The rescue workers and their families crossed out of Syria into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights before arriving in Jordan over the weekend. Israel said it had helped with the evacuation at the request of US President Donald Trump and other leaders - and there had been fears that the workers' lives were at risk. The Syrian government has accused the White Helmets, also known as Syria Civil Defence, of being a Western-sponsored terrorist organisation. President Bashar al-Assad has called the White Helmets part of al Qaeda in Syria. The White Helmets was established as a rescue service in rebel-held areas of the country, where its volunteers have often worked to save people trapped under the rubble of government bombardment. State news agency SANA, citing a foreign ministry official, said the evacuation "exposed the true nature of the organisation known as the White Helmets", calling it a risk to stability and security "because of its terrorist nature". As Assad has won back areas such as eastern Aleppo and Ghouta, the rescue workers have left on buses to rebel-held areas of the north along with fighters and civilians who fear a return of government rule. A Jordanian government source said 422 people were brought from Syria, over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights frontier and into Jordan, down from a figure of 800 announced earlier by the foreign ministry in Amman. The evacuees will be kept in a "closed" location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months, the source said. A second non-Jordanian source familiar with the agreement said the original plan had been to evacuate 800 people, but only 422 made it out as operations were hampered by government checkpoints and the expansion of Islamic State group in the area. Search Keywords: Short link: (Newser) If you lose your lunch in an Uber, it's only fair that you pay for the cleanup. But many users of the rideshare service say they were charged steep cleaning fees (ostensibly so drivers can have their cars professionally cleaned) even though they didn't make a mess. So-called "vomit fraud" can increase the cost of a ride by $80 to more than $150, according to the Miami Herald. Uber's default position is to side with its drivers, who supply photos of vehicle interiors spattered with vomit and other messes as evidence. Riders, meanwhile, report having a difficult time getting Uber to investigate complaints and issue refunds. Uber tells the Herald's Spanish-language sister paper, el Nuevo Herald, that fraud does occur, but adds that more often than not, cleaning fees are "legitimately the result of someone making a mess in the car." story continues below Last summer, Uber hit Florida resident David Shoultz with a $165 cleaning fee. He tells WPYV that Uber responded to his allegations of fraud by forwarding "two photos that don't look anything like the car I rode in, but there was vomit everywhere." Uber ultimately refunded the cleaning fee, but only after Shoultz broadcast his frustrations on social media. It's not just a US problem: An Australian woman, who said she had a similar experience earlier this year, suggests that riders take photos of the car's interior so they can prove it was clean when they left, news.com.au reports. In a 2017 report, Business Insider profiled a San Diego Uber driver who is making a little extra cash from cleaning fees in a different way. Will Preston does the cleanup himself and pockets the fee. (This might help detect drunk riders in advance.) We use cookies. By Clicking "OK" or any content on this site, you agree to allow cookies to be placed. Read more in our privacy policy (Newser) A white Georgia college student is blaming spellcheck for a racist slur she accidentally sent via text message to her new roommate. "Her insta looks pretty normal not too n-----ish," the student, identified by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as Courtney Schaefer, texted after the two exchanged pleasantries, in a text about the new roommate actually meant for someone else, BuzzFeed News reports. She quickly followed up with a message apologizing and blaming her phone's "damn spell check," explaining she really meant to say "triggerish meaning like you seemed really cool nothing that triggered a red flag." Screenshots of the exchange have been shared widely over social media, prompting interim college President Shelley Nickel to release a letter condemning racist comments as "offensive and unacceptable," adding "there is no place for bigotry or racism on our campuses," per WSAV. story continues below Despite the Schaefer's apologyor maybe because of itothers on campus are demanding that she be punished, per Inside Higher Ed. Senior Leon Bowles tells the George-Anne student newspaper that the text was "cause enough for outrage, but the pathetic attempt at an excuse and apology was a flippant insult to [the recipient's] intelligence." Others have tested the spellcheck defense and found it lacking. Senior Dajah Morrison discovered that autocorrect changes "triggerish" to "triggerfish." "So for her to cover those things up, it just didn't add up," she tells WSAV. (Read more racism stories.) (Newser) A woman who was taking photographs over the weekend of a steam locomotive was struck and killed after getting too close to the tracks in north suburban Denver. The Union Pacific locomotivethe AP says it was a 15-car train; the Denver Channel says it had 21 carswas returning to Denver on Saturday evening from a daylong trip to Cheyenne Frontier Days in Wyoming when the woman was hit at a crossing in Henderson about 7:45pm. The victim was among several people taking photos of the train as it traveled back to Denver; her name hasn't been released. story continues below "We are working with local authorities to see what happened leading up to the crash," a Union Pacific spokeswoman says. About 700 passengers were on the train, whose annual trip to Cheyenne for the parade and rodeo is sponsored by the Denver Post Community Foundation. No other injuries were reported. The passengers on the UP 844 train, said to be the nation's most famous steam locomotive, were bused back to Denver. (Read more Colorado stories.) (Newser) Doug Bock Clark begins a lengthy piece for GQ on the fate of Otto Warmbier with a bold assertion: That what happened to the 21-year-old American college student "is even more shocking than anyone knew" and that he had the "untold story." So does he? The piece, the result of six months of reporting, is indeed incredibly detailed and filled with one major previously unreported nugget. He gives a timeline of the intense efforts made to free Warmbier, from meetings with the "New York Channel" (North Korea's reps at United Nations headquarters) to a proposal to have then-president-elect Trump pick Warmbier up in his plane. After learning in June 2017 Warmbier was unconscious, North Korea was "unilaterally informed" that a US plane would arrive to collect him. story continues below "Intense negotiations" followed on the ground, and Michael Flueckiger, the medical director for Phoenix Air, whose Gulfstream G-III jet was being used in the mission, was finally allowed to see Warmbier. He knew immediately that "the Otto of old was already gone," though he noted the hospital care had been of quality (Warmbier had no bedsores, for instance, which is difficult in the case of a comatose patient). Flueckiger tells Clark that the hospital staff told him Warmbier had been admitted unresponsive the morning after he was sentenced to 15 years, a timeline detail that hadn't been made public. But only two weeks prior, Warmbier appeared on TV and seemed healthy. The narrow window between the two suggests to Clark that the theory that Warmbier was continually beaten doesn't hold up, and he provides other evidence in support of that. So what happened? Clark presents one theory: that it was a suicide attempt gone wrong. Read his full piece here. (Read more Longform stories.) (Newser) A federal judge on Monday postponed until next week the trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, the AP reports. The tax and bank fraud trial had been scheduled to start Wednesday in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. But US District Judge TS Ellis III pushed the trial back until July 31 to give Manafort's lawyers more time to review thousands of pages of data and documents turned over by special counsel Robert Mueller's office in the last several weeks. The documents come from a firm that handled Manafort's bookkeeping and the electronic devices of Rick Gates, his longtime business associate. Gates pleaded guilty earlier this year and is expected to testify against Manafort. Also Monday, Ellis approved and unsealed requests from Mueller's prosecutors to offer immunity to five witnesses in exchange for their testimony, and ordered Mueller's team to tell Manafort's team all of the almost 30 witnesses it plans to call in the trial. story continues below The immunity offers mean prosecutors will not use the witnesses' statements against them in any criminal case. CNN reports that the five people are James Brennan, Donna Duggan, Conor O'Brien, Cindy Laporta, and Dennis Raico, but court filings do not specify what they will be asked to testify about. Manafort's trial will be the first arising from Mueller's investigation into potential coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 presidential election. The indictment against Manafort doesn't focus on his work on the Trump campaign. Instead, it accuses him of funneling the proceeds of Ukrainian political consulting work through offshore accounts and using the funds to pay for a lavish lifestyle. Manafort has pleaded not guilty and denied all the charges. Jury selection begins this week. Manafort faces a separate trial in the District of Columbia, where he was indicted last October. (Read more Paul Manafort stories.) New Delhi: The Centre is keen to resolve the ongoing agitation at the Manipur University as early as possible and has set up a fact-finding committee, which will submit its report within a month, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said on Monday. Javadekar said in the Lok Sabha that the central government had sent a team of officers to Imphal where they held discussions with students and teachers. They came back and reported that the matter will be resolved very soon. Unfortunately, it did not happen like that. Therefore, we have, now, appointed a fact-finding committee under the chairmanship of an ex-Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court, Justice Nandakumar. That Committee has been given only one months time, he said during the Question Hour. The minister said the committee has started functioning and it will ensure a dialogue with everybody. We want to arrive at a peaceful solution at the earliest, he said. When Congress member Thokchom Meinya pointed out that the students have been demanding the removal of the vice-chancellor of the Manipur University, Javadekar said the issue is not just about removing him, but about settling the dispute, if any. Therefore, what we have said is that if students have any genuine demand about infrastructure, repairing, etc., that can be addressed immediately. If they want improvement in functioning, that is also welcomed. Therefore, an all-round dialogue will happen with the committee, he said. BJP member Prahlad Singh Patel alleged that there has been turmoil in the university for a long time and it has been a den of undergrounds. The minister avoided a direct reply but said he has discussed the Manipur University issue with Chief Minister N Biren Singh and requested him to prevail upon and talk to all concerned and ensure that a solution is arrived at the earliest. He (chief minister) has also assured me that he will make all efforts and will solve the issue at the earliest, he said. The students of the Manipur University, a central university, have been demanding the vice-chancellors resignation over multiple allegations of administrative negligence and misuse of varsity funds. There have been reports of violence in the university campus and the state government had last week even suspended all telecom services except voice calls for five days in the wake of escalating protests. New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) will now be providing training to those aiming to become Japanese language teachers with the setting up of a new centre at the varsity. India and Japan on Monday signed a memorandum of cooperation in the field of Japanese language promotion in the country. Kenji Hiramatsu, Ambassador of Japan to India and Ashok Kumar Chawla, Advisor (Japan), Ministry of External Affairs, shared the agreement and announced the launch of the first Japanese course. The language is very different from other foreign langauges and it is very important to have trained teachers for the purpose. Hence, the centre has been set up, Hiramastsu said. New Delhi: After being prodded by the Supreme Court, Narendra Modi government has set up a four-member committee, headed by Union Home Secretary, to look into new laws to curb the growing incidents of mob lynching in the country, Home Ministry said in a press release on Monday. The move by the Modi government came after widespread criticism and Opposition bashing in Parliament for not being able to control the growing incidents of mob lynching across the country. In the latest incident, a man was lynched by a mob over suspicion of cow smuggling in Rajasthans Alwar. After the incident, the Opposition Congress slammed the Centre for its lacklustre approach to stop the prevailing mobocracy in the country. Government is concerned at the incidents of violence by mobs in some parts of the country. The government has already condemned such incidents and has made its stand clear in Parliament that it is committed to upholding the rule of law and adopting effective measures to curb such incidents, the ministry said. Also Read | Alwar lynching case: This is Modi's 'brutal New India', says Rahul Gandhi The move also came days after the Supreme Court, hearing a plea filed by social activist Tehseen Poonawalla, urged Parliament to look into the possibilities of a new law to deter such crimes. The horrendous acts of mobocracy cannot be allowed to become the new normal. No citizen can take law into their own hands. In case of fear and anarchy, the state has to act positively, the apex court had said. A ministerial panel, headed by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, has also been constituted. The panel will submit its report to the prime minister based on the recommendations of the four-member committee. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: The lynching of a Muslim man in Rajasthans Alwar on suspicion of cow smuggling and the lackluster action by the local police, which took three hours to take the victim to a hospital just 6 km away, has turned into a political battle between the Opposition Congress and the ruling BJP. While Congress president Rahul Gandhi termed the incident a brutal example of Prime Minister Narendra Modis New India, the BJP hit back, calling him a merchant of hate. "Policemen in Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modi's brutal "New India" where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die," Gandhi wrote on Twitter. The BJP was quick to launch a counteroffensive against the Congress president and accused him of playing divisive politics while himself being a merchant of hate. "Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a merchant of hate," Interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal retorted. Also Read | Alwar lynching case: This is Modi's 'brutal New India', says Rahul Gandhi Another Union Minister Smriti Irani, who fought against the Congress president from Amethi in 2014, accused him of rupturing the social bonds for electoral gains and doing vulture politics. "Rahul Gandhi's family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through vulture politics. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains," Irani tweeted. There has been a sharp rise in the incidents of mob lynching in India for the last four years. The issue was even taken up by the Supreme Court which observed that the rise in mobocracy in India was harming the social fabric of the country, thus, needed strong action from the states. The apex court even urged the Centre to look for the possibilities of bringing a new law to punish the offenders. Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh sought a detailed response from the Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government on Alwar lynching. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Despite regional and international mediation, the road to peace in South Sudan remains replete with potholes The peace agreement signed between South Sudan President Salva Kiir and rivalling factions at the end of June failed to conclude the civil war that has been tearing apart the worlds newest country since 2013, leaving thousands dead and millions displaced. While the ink was still wet on the document, the rebels rejected parts of the deal, dashing the hopes of the international community for ending the conflict and presenting a successful model of seceding countries in Africa. Amid regional mediation efforts to revive peace in South Sudan, the UN Security Council (UNSC) last week approved a US-drafted resolution imposing an arms embargo on South Sudan. Six countries abstained from voting on the resolution: Russia, China, Ethiopia, Bolivia, Equatorial Guinea and Kazakhstan. The embargo was passed with the minimum of nine votes, unlike that proposed by the Obama administration which failed to garner enough votes. South Sudans people have endured unimaginable suffering and unspeakable atrocities. Their leaders have failed them. We need the violence to stop, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley told the council before the vote. Ethiopias UN Ambassador Tekeda Alemu told the council before voting that, Addis Ababa has been mediating for another round of peace talks in South Sudan. He added that imposing the arms embargo would undermine the peace process and that the African Union and East African regional bloc, comprising the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), believe now is not the appropriate time for taking such measures. At the end of May the UN renewed its embargo on South Sudan until 15 July. In addition to the immediate arms embargo, the resolution imposed a travel ban and asset freeze on six leading South Sudanese officials. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said 29 June that trusted reports confirmed violence was still ongoing and that peacekeeping forces have recorded grave violations of international humanitarian law. Regional and international efforts to mediate for peace in South Sudan have not yet yielded tangible results. But I must emphasise that any deal has to be comprehensive, just and sustainable, Guterres wrote in his report. At least 232 people were killed and 120 women and girls raped in scorched earth attacks conducted by South Sudan government and allied forces in villages regarded as opposition strongholds earlier this year, the UN Human Rights Office said 10 July. A UN investigation, the office added, revealed that three South Sudanese leaders bear the gravest responsibility for the violence ravaging the youngest country, especially in the period from 16 April to 24 May, that can be at least described as war crimes. The investigation report stated that in the attack on 40 opposition-held villages, elders and disabled people were burned alive. In addition, 132 women and girls were kidnapped in the violent assaults that forced 31,140 to flee for their lives. Opposition forces also conducted attacks that claimed the lives of civilians, the report added. Before the UNSC voted on the arms embargo, the South Sudan parliament had approved extending Kiirs presidential term till 2021 in a move condemned by the opposition. Chairman of Parliaments Information Committee Paul Youani Bonju said the move will bolster the governments position in the peace talks with rebel groups. The terms of other officials, including parliamentarians and governors, were extended as well. Mabior Garang De Mabior, spokesman of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement-In-Opposition (SPLM-IO), told Reuters from Nairobi: We regret the move as it shows the regime is playing games at the negotiating table. The international community should not recognise this move and the regime should be declared as a rogue regime. The move will complicate the way to lasting peace in South Sudan immersed in tribal war between the majority Dinka, to which Kiir belongs, and rebel leader Riek Machars Nuer. The recent reinstatement of Machar as vice president convinced the opposition to retract its disapproval of the law that was changed to allow for the extended term of Kiir and other officials. Deputy spokesman of SPLM-IO Paul Lam Gabriel said the move was unacceptable and that the rebels should choose two of Kiirs four vice-presidents the number of vice-presidents was agreed upon in the 2010 Entebbe Agreement to loosen Kiirs grip on power. We will not settle for the position of vice president only in these negotiations. We are more focused on structural and institutional causes to impose more restrictions on Kiirs regime on the legislative and executive levels, he added. From the look of it, South Sudan is back to square one. The armed opposition, while objecting to extending Kiirs mandate, is demanding the instatement of an additional vice president. Negotiating for a list of other demands appears even more difficult. The governments attack on opposition-held villages and areas inhabited by the Nuer tribe will further complicate the road to peace in South Sudan. The situation is disturbing, to say the least, for neighbouring countries, especially with the leaps Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopias prime minister, has taken to reconcile with Eritrea, Addis Ababas arch-rival for more than two decades, as well as talks among East Africa countries to calm Kenyas domestic front, and reconciliation efforts taking place in Somalia. At the same time, the Khartoum administration, which is accused of aggravating violence in South Sudan, wants to change the status quo to give more room to negotiate for the exportation of oil from South Sudan and Red Sea ports to improve its failing economy. *A version of this article appears in print in the 19 July 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under the headline: Stumbling blocks in South Sudan Search Keywords: Short link: New Delhi: In a tragic incident, five people have lost their lives after a residential complex in Mandi was gutted in a major fire at the wee hours of Monday. "Five persons lost their lives in the fire that broke out at a residential building at Ner Chowk in Mandi," the news agency ANI reported. Prima facie, LPG Cylinder blast is believed to be the reason behind the fire. However, the exact cause of the blaze is yet to be ascertained. Several people are still feared trapped inside the building while three fire engines and water tankers have been mobilised to douse the blaze. Himachal Pradesh: Fire breaks out in a residential building at Ner Chowk in Mandi. Many feared trapped inside. Three fire tenders at the spot and rescue operations underway. pic.twitter.com/NVKS03zWr9 a ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 Meanwhile, more personnel are being sent to rescue the trapped. RugveThakur, the District Magistrate of Mandi also reached the accident site. "The situation is under control and all help is being given to the effected, " Mr Thakur told NDTV. An investigation has also been initiated to find the exact cause of the incident. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: In yet another tragic incident over 40 minor girls were allegedly raped while one of them was mercilesslyA beaten to death at a shelter home in Bihar's Muzaffarpur, the news agency ANI reported. As per the latest reports, a disagreement with some of the staff members from the stay homeA has ended tragically in theA deathA of the minor.A Following the report of her death, who was buried in the shelter home premises, police have initiated a probe and started digging in and around the place. Talking about the latest development, Harpreet Kaur, SSP, Muzaffarpur said, "10 people have been arrested so far, we will soon file a charge-sheet against them. None of the girls have mentioned that they were ever taken outside the hostel". "Nothing has been found so far at the shelter home premises where digging is underway. We are conducting a thorough investigation, police is working independently," Kaur added. Meanwhile, in a dramatic twist, senior RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav alleged that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has a close connection to the NGO owner and is trying to protect the accused. "Owner of the NGO that runs the shelter home is close to CM Nitish Kumar, had even campaigned for him in elections," Yadav was quoted by ANI as saying. #Bihar: Owner of the NGO that runs the shelter home is close to CM Nitish Kumar, had even campaigned for him in elections: Tejashwi Yadav, RJD on Muzaffarpur Shelter Home Rape Case pic.twitter.com/RxCFR17bKR a ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 Several RJD MLAs have also been staging a protest outside Bihar legislative assembly over the shelter home rape case. The agitation by the RJD leaders led to a Law and order and Drought like situation in the state. In the past few years, the number of reported cases of children rape in India has increased at an alarming rate. Crime against children has surged up by sharp 11 per cent in the past few years, according to a freshly released data. Going by absolute numbers, itas an increase of 12,786 reported crimes against children across the country. Earlier this year, shock and terrorr engulfed the nation after an eight-year-old girl, from a minority nomadic community was allegedly raped and murdered in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua. He had disappeared from near her home in Kathua and was later found dead in the area. The Unnao rape case, on the other hand, came as a huge embarrasement for the Bharatiya Janata Praty (BJP) government. The shameful incident came to light after the victim allegedly attempted self-immolation outside Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanathas residence. A purported video of the girlas father before his death had gone viral in which he alleged that he was mercilessly beaten up, including with rifle butts, by the MLAas brother and others in the presence of police. CBI found that a minor girl was raped at the residence of BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar on June 4, 2017 at 8 PM where she was lured by a woman, named, Sashi Singh. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday said that there cannot be complete ban on protests and sit-ins at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, and asked the Centre to form steps for sanctions to such events. A bench of Justices AK Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said a balance between right to protest and right of citizens to live peacefully is needed. There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate), the bench said and directed the Centre to frame guidelines. The verdict came following a batch of petitions challenging the decision of National Green Tribunal, which had banned protests at Jantar Mantar and Boat Club. (With inputs from PTI) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Congress president Rahul Gandhias veiled threat to his partyas high-profile MP and former minister Shashi Tharoor that he will not hesitate to take action against party leaders whose statements weaken the partyas abigger fightsa is an apt warning against going overboard in his public statements. Some recent statements of Tharoor have gone over the hump of permissibility and it is good that Rahul has cried a stop to such open expressions of malice against the BJP. Tharooras observation in a newspaper article that ait seems safe in many places these days to be a cow than a Muslima was one such glaring example of indiscreetness which tended to fan the flames of hatred between communities. Tharoor is apparently angry with the BJP because he has recently been charged by the CBI with abetment in the suicide of his wife Sunanda Pushkar, a socialite who was found dead mysteriously in a five-star hotel in New Delhi. But this is no way to vent oneas pique. In recent days, Tharoor has said that if the BJP wins in 2019, India's Constitution won't survive. Victory in the general elections will give the BJP "all the elements they need to tear apart the Constitution of India and write a new one. That will remove equality for minorities, that willA create a Hindu Pakistan..," he added. That was impolitic and hitting BJP below the belt in a milieu in which the Congress is doing everything possible to win back favour with the majority Hindu community after it was mauled in general elections across the country in 2014. It is now felt in the higher echelons of the Congress that the party was made to pay a price by the electorate for going too far with minority appeasement. That accounts for Rahul Gandhi going out of his way in visiting Hindu temples in Gujarat and invoking the blessings of Hindu gods and seers in Karnataka during Assembly elections in the two key states and toning down his pro-minorities rhetoric. Rahul evidently feels that Shashi Tharooras indiscretion would not go down well with the Hindus and would thereby sour the pitch for the Congress party. The newly-anointed president of the Congress is no messiah of circumspection and moderation either but he does now realize which side his bread is buttered. Before the Gujarat Assembly elections, Rahul had suspended Mani Shankar Aiyar, a veteran party leader, who called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a "neech aadmi". Aiyar had later apologised to try and prevent any damage to the party but the damage nevertheless was done as the results showed. What made matters worse for the Congress was the clever manner in which Prime Minister Modi exploited Aiyaras slur to arouse the voters. The stakes in the 2019 polls being very high, Rahul does not want the BJP to capitalize on Tharooras indiscreet statements which can be interpreted as not only being anti-Hindu but also bordering on anti-national. Consequently, his warning on exercising caution in making statements is not only to Tharoor without naming him personally but to other partymen too in the same breath. Rahul is also keen to be seen as a tough leader who can wield the stick if required even against a party leader who commands wide acceptance in the party. But Rahul has a surfeit of challenges to grapple with as he sits comfortably ensconced in the party presidentas agaddi.aThe most daunting is the authority vested in him to work out pre-poll and post-poll alliances without giving in too much to so-called allies. In a situation in which many parties are sceptical about accepting him as leader of a major alliance, he has to use tact and diplomacy, an area in which he is clearly deficient. The cold reality is that Rahul has been catapulted to a position for which he seemed ill-equipped. But it is not unknown for a mediocre leader to be propped up by circumstances in his favour. A lot would also depend on what type of account the BJP gives of itself in coming days. New Delhi: Former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is suffering from ailing health and is 'on the verge of kidney failure, Pakistan media reported on Sunday. Due to the lack of high-quality medical facilities, a medical board has recommended for his immediate transfer from Adiala jail in Rawalpindi to a hospital. The urea nitrogen in Nawaz Sharifs blood has climbed up to critical levels, his heartbeat is irregular and he is suffering from excessive sweating and dehydration, a leading Pakistani media house reported. It is urgent to take him to the hospital as the Adiala jail hospital does not have a facility where Sharif could be given intravenous fluid and failing to do so could create emergency at night, according to the report. The Pakistan government is likely to announce a decision soon. As per reports, a medical board has examined Sharif on Sunday. On July 6, Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were convicted in relation to the Avenfield reference case. Sharif was sentenced to ten years of jail, while daughter Maryam was handed eight years of jail time. On July 13, the father-daughter duo was taken to Islamabad by a chartered flight soon after they had arrived at Lahore, from where they were taken to Adiala jail in Rawalpindi. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: A gunman and one victim were killed after a man shot 14 people, including a female adult, in the Toronto neighbourhood famously known as Greektown, the police said. "One female adult has died and One young girl in critical condition," Toronto police said on Twitter, adding that all 14 victims were shot with a handgun late last night. Other than the shooter we have a young lady that is deceased, Toronto police chief Mark Saunders said. Saunders also said a young victim was in critical condition. Police spokesperson Mark Pugash said that it was too early to call it as an act of terrorism, adding that the condition of the other victims was not known yet. John Tulloch said that he and his brother heard about 20 to 30 gunshots on Sunday night as they got out of their car. We just ran. We saw people starting to run so we just ran, he said. An army of paramedics, police, and others rushed to the scene as residents of the area, some in their pajamas, emerged from their houses to see what was actually happening. Toronto Councillor Paula Fletcher told CP24 she heard that the gunman was emotionally disturbed. Its not gang related. It looks like someone who is very disturbed, Fletcher said. Councillor Mary Fragedakis also said she heard the gunman was disturbed. Fletcher added that this incident to happen in a family-dinner area is a tragedy. This past weekend Toronto police deployed dozens of officers to deal with a recent spike in gun violence. (With inputs from PTI) For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa has issued a royal decree appointing two Bahraini women as the director-generals of the Capital Municipality and the Northern Municipality respectively. Shawqiya Ibrahim Humaidan and Lamia Yousef Al Fadhala have become the first women to assume this position in the history of the Kingdom. They will be responsible for promoting municipal work in the governorates. The appointment of two women in senior administrative positions in the field of municipal work is a great step towards the empowerment of women in the Kingdom, which already has 40 per cent women presence in the leadership and decision-making wings of the executive authority. The Kingdom has a woman minister and many women undersecretaries and assistant undersecretaries. The participation of women in the legislative authority is 15pc. There also a good number of women holding key judicial posts including the Constitutional Court and Supreme Judicial Council in addition to public prosecution. Bahrain has also produced many women diplomats. Speaking to Tribune, Ms Shawqiya thanked His Majesty for appointing her to a prominent position. I am also thankful to HRH the Premier, HRH the Crown Prince and HRH Princess Sabeeka for constantly promoting the role of women in this country. She said Bahraini women always were the first achievers when compared to the women of other Gulf countries. The appointment will definitely serve an impetus to Bahraini women who are all set to accomplish greater goals in the days to come. A potential candidate for the parliamentary elections was arrested yesterday after an MP lodged a complaint against him over sectarian tweets. Mohammed Al Aradi, 54, a religious scholar who recently announced his intention to compete in the upcoming parliamentary elections was summoned on Friday by the General Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Economic and Electronic Security. This came few days after MP Jamal Buhassan complained against Mr Al Aradi for posting tweets that were considered sectarian and insulting. Northern Governorate Chief Prosecutor Mohammed Salah confirmed this in a statement released yesterday, saying, and The Public Prosecution was notified by the General Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Economic and Electronic Security, with regards to an individual who posted abusive tweets on his social media account. The Prosecution initiated its investigations into the incident and interrogated the accused. Mr Salah added, The accused was ordered to be remanded for seven days pending further investigation after being accused of insulting a symbol or a person glorified or considered sacred by the members of a particular sect. Legal procedures are continued to refer the case to the concerned court. Anti Corruption and Economic and Electronic Security Director-General Lieutenant Colonel Bassam Al Miraj announced on Friday that Mr Al Aradi was summoned for posting tweets insulting a particular sect in Bahrain. His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa has affirmed that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was established for the sake of GCC peoples. HRH the Premier stressed that the needs and aspirations of GCC citizens require stepping up efforts to strengthen solidarity and collaboration, expressing confidence that GCC leaders will spare no effort in order to fulfill the aspirations of their peoples for preserving the gains and achievements attained under the GCC in many fields of joint cooperation. The Prime Minister made the statements while receiving GCC Secretary-General, Dr Abdullatif Al Zayani, at the Gudaibiya Palace yesterday. HRH the Premier underlined Bahrains keenness to support initiatives that consolidate the GCC march and maintain its unity and peoples cohesion to attain more accomplished for the best interests of everybody, noting that under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the kingdom is always keen to ensure that its relations with brotherly countries are strong at all levels. While the GCC is the all-inclusive home for its member countries, Saudi Arabia is the main pillar of this home and all its members, and it has always supported the blessed GCC march, the Premier said. A man who had made scratching car bonnets and doors his habit was sentenced to two months behind bars. The Bahraini, in his fifties, first scratched a womans car and also wrote some insulting phrases in English on it, the court files say. Though he initially escaped from getting caught as no-one noticed his special hobby, luck did not favour him when the 56-year-old tried the same thing with the womans brothers vehicle. A camera installed inside the vehicle caught the man committing the crime. He admitted to committing the crime when he was summoned by prosecutors, and offered to repair the cars. However, he was put on trial. I go to work early morning every day, but one day I saw my car had scratches and abusive words written on it. I reported the case to police and my brother fixed cameras, the woman, whose car got damaged, told police officers. After nine days, the cameras recorded someone doing the same act on my brothers car. The defendant was tried before the Lower Criminal Court, and he was sentenced to two months behind bars. However, the court granted him bail for an amount of BD200. Britain called on European Union negotiators on Monday to urgently change their approach to Brexit or face the turmoil of a "no-deal by accident". With just over eight months left until Britain is due to leave the EU, there is little clarity about how trade will flow as Prime Minister Theresa May, who is grappling with a rebellion in her party, is still trying to strike a deal with the bloc. May has stepped up planning for a so called "no-deal" Brexit that would see the world's fifth largest economy crash out of the EU on March 29, 2019, a step that could spook financial markets and dislocate trade flows across Europe and beyond. EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said last week that May's new Brexit proposals contained constructive elements, though he added that many questions remain. In Berlin on his first overseas trip as British foreign minister since replacing Boris Johnson, who resigned over May's new proposals, Jeremy Hunt delivered a caution to the most powerful European Union power. "When it comes to Brexit there is now a very real risk of a Brexit no-deal by accident," he told a news conference alongside his German counterpart Heiko Maas. "I think that many people in the EU are thinking that they just have to wait long enough and Britain will blink. And that's not going to happen," Hunt said. Under the current timetable, both London and Brussels hope to get a final Brexit deal in October to give enough time to ratify it by Brexit day next March, though few diplomats expect the deal to be struck until months later. About 52 percent of Britain's total $1.1 trillion trade in goods last year was with the EU and some investors have said such a chaotic scenario would seriously damage both the economies of Britain and the EU over the short term. Supporters of Brexit admit there may be some short-term pain for Britain's $2.9 trillion economy, but that long-term it will prosper when cut free from the EU which they cast as a failing German-dominated experiment in European integration. Disorderly Brexit? Hunt, who campaigned ahead of the 2016 referendum to remain in the EU, said Britain and Germany shared a commitment to a rules-based international order and that only Russian President Vladimir Putin would rejoice at the turmoil of a "no-deal" Brexit. He added that the lack of a deal, while damaging for Britain, would provoke a backlash among British voters. "Without a real change in approach from the EU negotiators we do now face a real risk of no deal by accident and that would be incredibly challenging economically," Hunt said. Maas said Germany did not want a disorderly Brexit. "We want an agreement. And we also know that for that we have to make steps toward each other," he said, adding that the EU's collective interests had to be defended. Some international businesses have stepped up planning for a so-called "no deal" though they admit there is little clarity about what such a scenario would look like. EU countries will suffer long-term damage equivalent to about 1.5 percent of annual economic output if Britain leaves the bloc without a free trade deal next year, the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday. Search Keywords: Short link: Six men burned tyres in a bid to lure police officers into an area in Nuwaidrat in order to kill them, court files revealed. Aged between 16 and 26, the Bahrainis are said to have planted an explosive device before the police officers arrived, purposely to kill maximum police officers. We were called to go to Nuwaidrat because a riot broke out in the area. There were 20 to 25 masked rioters when we reached, an officer who was among the teams dispatched recounted the events occurred prior the explosion. Suddenly, a blast occurred and one officer was wounded, while our patrol car got damaged. The officer was taken to the hospital for treatment, he added. According to court files, police officers combed the area and found eight firebombs and 22 bottles which were intended to be used as Molotov cocktails. Police investigations established the involvement of the six men in plotting the attack. The second defendant, however, admitted to taking part in the riot but ruled out the connection between him and the blast. When I met the third defendant I was told that they would attack police officers. And I met the other defendants one hour before the assault. We were given iron rods and firebombs. Then we headed to the area where we were expecting police officers to arrive, the second defendant said. The six men will be tried before the High Criminal Court on charges of attempting to murder police officers, rioting, possessing firebombs as well as bombing. London : Qatars Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani arrived in the United Kingdom yesterday for a visit that is already mired in controversy, with activists planning to demonstrate outside Parliament on Monday against Qatars continued support for terrorism across the Middle East region. Meanwhile, banners over prominent roads in London, with the hashtag #OpposeQatarVisit, asked: If a country was accused of paying $1 billion in a ransom to terrorist groups then why is the UK government rolling out the red carpet for the Qatar Emir? For centuries, even when Athens was a bastion of the West during the Cold War, Greece and Russia have seen themselves as natural allies. Both are Christian Orthodox nations; even as a NATO member, Greece tried to maintain channels of communication with the Soviet Union. Yet a sudden dispute over alleged Russian meddling in Greek affairs has escalated rapidly. This could have long-term consequences for Greek-Russian ties and for the Western Balkans. This month, Athens informed Moscow that it was expelling two Russian diplomats and refusing entry to two others. Among the accusations: the four were trying stoke opposition to a recent agreement signed by Greece and a northern neighbour, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, ending a 27-year dispute over the latters name. Ratification by both countries would open the way for a renamed Republic of North Macedonia to join NATO and the European Union. Greek opponents of the deal object to their neighbors use of Macedonia in any form, saying this implies claims on the Greek province of the same name; Macedonian nationalists object to adding a qualifier to their countrys name. It is easy to see how Russia, which is opposed to Macedonia joining NATO, could be tempted to exploit this volatile mix to encourage hard-liners on both sides. Macedonias prime minister, Zoran Zaev, claimed in an interview with Buzz- Feed News that Greek businessmen sympathetic to the Russian cause paid large sums of money to foes of the deal in his country to commit acts of violence before a referendum on the agreement is held. The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a stern protest to the Greek ambassador over the expulsions and has threatened to respond further. On July 18, a ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, declared that Greece was acting under pressure from its allies and warned that such actions do not remain without consequences. The Greek government reacted angrily. The Foreign Ministry in Athens declared these statements a characteristic example of disrespect for a third country and a lack of understanding of todays world, in which states, regardless of their size, are independent and can exercise an independent, multidimensional and democratic foreign policy. It added, In any case, the Russian authorities themselves are very well aware of what their people do. A few days earlier, a State Department spokeswoman, Heather Nauert, tweeted: We support Greece defending its sovereignty. Russia must end its destabilizing behavior. In Moscows view, this alignment between Athens and Washington confirmed its suspicions of collusion. Until now, Russian officials had been full of praise for Greece. In 2015, Foreign Minister Sergey V Lavrov noted Greeces opposition to sanctions against Russia. We appreciate the stance of the Greek government, which understands the complete counterproductivity of attempts to speak this language with Russia, he said after a meeting in Moscow with his Greek counterpart, Nikos Kotzias. On July 20, the Russian Ambassador in Athens, Andrey Maslov, tweeted: The past years were a time of an unprecedented boom in Russian-Greek relations. But, he added, The actions of the Greek side have become a disappointment for us. The Greek move was unexpected. Not only has Athens has always been careful in its dealings with Moscow, but this sudden rupture was executed by what is considered to be the most pro-Russian government Greece has had - a government that in March refused to join its Western allies in expelling Russian diplomats in retaliation for Moscows alleged involvement in the poisoning of a former Russian double agent and his daughter in Britain. The coalition government is dominated by the radical-left Syriza party, which opposed international sanctions imposed on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. Its leader, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, visited Moscow for support in 2015, while threatening the European Union, the International Monetary Fund and other creditors that Greece would walk away from its bailout commitments. The junior coalition partner, Independent Greeks, is a hard-right nationalist party. Its leader, Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, while an outspoken supporter of Moscow, has also worked closely with United States military officials; his political contortions include denouncing the Macedonia deal while remaining in the government. The United States has been Greeces major ally since 1947, when Washington stepped to help a rightwing government defeat Communist forces in a civil war in 1946-49. In the years after, the Greek left opposed the United States while supporting closer ties with the Soviet Union. Russia is now, by default, the antithesis to the imperialist alliance, as Greeces small but unbending Communist Party calls the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The Communists, echoing Russian officials, saw the expulsions as Tsipras gift to NATO, timed to coincide with the recent NATO summit. Support for Russias positions goes beyond any effort to embarrass the government or oppose the Macedonia deal. President Vladimir Putin enjoys broad support among Greeks, more than in any other European country. Greece (along with Vietnam, the Philippines and Tanzania) was one of only four countries among 37 surveyed by the Pew Research Center last year in which Putin got more than 50 per cent approval for his international performance. This could be because he projects the image of a powerful leader who is proud of his Eastern Orthodox heritage, visiting the monastic community of Mount Athos in northern Greece and playing on deep-rooted feelings in his own country and here. During the nearly four centuries of subjugation to Ottoman rule, Greeks yearned for liberation and many saw Russia as their salvation. Although these expectations were usually disappointed, Russia has often played a crucial role in Greek history. Major milestones included a 1774 treaty under which Russia assumed the right to protect all Orthodox Christians in the Ottoman Empire. This allowed Greek merchants and shipowners to fly the Russian flag, thus escaping Ottoman taxes and expanding their wealth and influence. In 1821, when the Greek War of Independence broke out, the Greek Orthodox patriarch was hanged by the Turks and his body thrown into the Bosporus; when it resurfaced unexpectedly, Greeks took it to Russia, to the city of Odessa, where it was afforded a grand funeral in the Russian Orthodox Church. In 1827, a combined British, French and Russian fleet destroyed an Ottoman- Egyptian fleet at Navarino, leading to the declaration of an independent Greece after years of struggle. More recently, the relationship has been more complicated with Soviet support and then abandonment of Communist forces in the civil war, with Russias intricate economic and political relationship with Cyprus, with the current marriage of convenience between Moscow and Ankara. There is also a strong ethnic-religious current that influences politics in both Greece and Russia. The quest ion now is, what prompted a Greek government with pro-Moscow sympathies to take such drastic action? Was it because of fears of violence over the Macedonia issue, as suggested by the claims of Zaev, the Macedonian prime minister? Was it because foreign meddling with the fires of nationalism in Greece could harm the governments prospects in elections that must be held by autumn 2019? Were the expulsions a way of declaring allegiance to the United States? In any case, this unexpected turn of events could lead despite Athenss protestations to the contrary to a re-evaluation of Greeces relations with Russia. The result could be Athens playing a more prominent role in stabilizing the western Balkans, and aligning itself more fully with European Union policies rather than deferring to Russias concerns and interests. (Nikos Konstandaras, a columnist at the newspaper Kathimerini, is a contributing opinion writer.) All Progressives Congress, APC, has reacted to threats by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to boycott the 2019 general elections, saying such threat was borne out of the fact that the opposition party now understands that its end is near.But the PDP, yesterday, said the duo of President Muhammadu Buhari and National Chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, have become jittery over the mega-coalition it has with 38 other political groups, with just seven months to the 2019 general elections.National Chairman of the APC, Oshiomhole, stated this, weekend, when he received the report of Governor Abdulaziz Yaris Governorship Primary Election Committee for Osun State.While declaring that the ruling party was not desperate to win the next general elections, Oshiomhole said PDP had continued to press the panic button because its rigging machine had been dismantled while it no longer had free access to federal resources.He said: Let me also use this opportunity to comment on what I read about the PDP chairman. I heard him threatening that they may boycott the 2019 general elections. When a rabbit in the afternoon jumps out of its hole, not because the hunter has come to smoke it out and it is running, you will know that it has already seen its end.The truth is that we are not desperate, we have worked hard to defeat PDP while they were in power, when they had no faction, when all the founding fathers and founding mothers were in the same house.Nigerian people rejected them on account of 16 years of absolute misrule at the peak of our prosperity as a nation when oil sold for $140 per barrel and we came in when oil price has dropped.If with all those huge revenue that accrued to them, people complained of bad roads, whether from the South to East from the North to the West, they have nothing new to offer to the Nigerian people.I think they are haunted by their own ghost and this is because they had perpetrated a do-or-die politics and they are on record that election matters are do-or-die affairs.One of their old men was recorded as saying that they perfected the language of rigging. Now, rigging machines have been dismantled and their problem is how can they survive without them.On the forthcoming governorship election in Osun State, the party chairman expressed optimism that the APC would retain power in the state.He said: First, I am very excited that you did a fantastic job because we are going to try a new method. We needed men and women of integrity who cannot be compromised, who have the courage and from my interaction, our people any day, anywhere they can stand their grounds on what they believe in.You cant influence them, you cant buy them, you cant bend, you will either agree to stand by the truth or you fall out and I am glad that you have brought all of those qualities to bear and the result is that we have a panel, which people could not question its integrity.So, I want to thank you for accepting this assignment. We accept this report in line with the provisions of our constitution and we have set up, in line with our rules, an appeal panel because, however, clean a report appears to be, members of our party, who may be aggrieved either for the right reasons or for the wrong reasons, have the right of appeal that our party constitution provides for.Buhari, Oshiomhole jittery over our grand coalition PDPMeanwhile, PDP said, yesterday, that President Buhari and Oshiomhole, where jittery over the mega coalition between it and 38 other political groups, barely seven months to 2019 general elections.The party said Oshiomholes resort to insults directed at the PDP betrayed the confusion of a depressed politician seeking to cover his personal vacuity and inner fears of the inevitable defeat awaiting President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC in 2019.In a statement issued by its spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party took a swipe at what it described as the hypocrisy of Oshiomhole, who, having earlier dismissed members of the Reformed All Progressives Congress, R-APC, as inconsequential, later paid a nocturnal visit to its chairman, Buba Galadima, in what appeared a fence-mending gesture.The PDP holds nothing but pity for Oshiomhole, who is now licking his own vomit by going around cap in hand and begging the same compatriots whom he earlier called names like inconsequential, hungry birds and tired feet, not to leave his sinking party.Unfortunately for Oshiomhole and his presidential sponsor, events of the weeks ahead will clear all doubts that APC is dead and that Oshiomhole is just an undertaker, whose job is to cremate the derelict contraption by oppressors, who are falsely hailing themselves as messiahs.Very soon, Oshiomhole and President Buhari would find themselves alone in the cursed Black Pearl that the APC has irredeemably become.While we understand Oshiomholes frustration over his inability to stop the coalition, the fact remains that he and President Buhari are fighting a lost battle in trying to destroy it. The Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki said, yesterday, that he will soon make his position known to Nigerians on which political party he would join when he eventually make up his mind to dump the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.Fielding questions with reporters shortly after the 4th convocation of Adeleke University, Ede, Osun State, Saraki stressed that his position will be made public when it is time.Speaking on his defections rumour, Saraki said he will tell Nigerians which party he belongs when it is time.He said: As I said recently, when it is time, I will tell Nigerians where I am and I am going to do that very soon.He also congratulated Senator Adeleke for emerging the PDP candidate in Osun State.He said: Apart from being a member of PDP, he is a colleague of mine in the Senate. I could see he is popular and well accepted. So, I wish him all the best in the election ahead. The Peoples Democratic Party has called an emergency meeting of its National Executive Committee over demands by some members of its coalition group for the 2019 general elections.The NEC meeting will follow the meeting of its Board of Trustees, both of which will hold in Abuja on Monday (today).But while the BoT will meet in the morning, the NEC will hold in the evening.The national caucus had earlier met in Abuja on Sunday night.Our correspondent gathered that some issues were raised by some political parties and associations with whom the PDP signed an agreement recently on how to wrest power from the All Progressives Congress in 2019.Some of the issues, our correspondent learnt, included the possibility of a change of name for the PDP and positions where other political parties apart from the PDP could field candidates in the elections.A member of the BoT of the PDP, who spoke on condition of anonymity with our correspondent on Sunday night, said that the meeting would also discuss how to receive those expected to defect to the party within the week.He said, The NEC meeting and others before it are important because of the issues raised by the coalition groups.For example, some are still insisting that we should change our name and logo, while others want to know how they will benefit in terms of fielding of candidates for the elections.We were manipulated in the Ekiti State governorship election because the coalition did not work. Now, the Osun State governorship election is approaching. We need to finalise that before all the political parties send the names of their candidates to the Independent National Electoral Commission.We need to discuss which party will step down for the other and so on. We cannot go to that battle as a scattered group. If we do, we could be whipped again.The spokesperson for the party, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, confirmed the meeting and its agenda.He, however, said that the meeting would take action on all pending issues, adding that the party had not said it was changing its name.Meanwhile, the party has summoned all its 11 governorship aspirants in Osun State to a meeting in Abuja.The meeting with the aspirants will be presided over by the National Chairman of the party, Prince Uche Secondus and will be attended by all the members of its National Working Committee.It was gathered that some of the aspirants had complained about the conduct of the primary which was won by Senator Nurudeen Adeleke.Apart from him, others expected at the meeting are Sen. Akanbi Abdulrasheed, Dr Oyewumi Olalere, Mr Nathaniel Oke (SAN), Sen. Ogunwale Felix and Alhaji Fatai Akinbade.Others are Dr Ezekiel Adeniji, Dr Akin Ogunbiyi, Dr Ayoade Adewepo, Rafiu Bello and Prof. Adeolu Durotoye.It was gathered that Ogunbiyi, who came a close second to Adeleke, had petitioned the Governorship Appeal Committee that he was not fairly treated during the election.Ologbondiyan, who confirmed the holding of the meeting, said that the committee would not take sides in anything that is brought before it. The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has resolved to change its name ahead of the 2019 general election. Since the 2015 polls, which saw the partys ouster at the federal level and some states, the PDP has lost many other elections. With the most recent being the Ekiti governorship election, PDP lost gubernatorial elections in Edo, Ondo as well as a number of legislative re-run elections across the county. But in a bid to go into the next years battle stronger, the opposition party has agreed that a new identity should be created. Some chieftains and members favourably disposed to the idea believe the current brand has been damaged. They are also worried that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, continue to rubbish the PDP name and logo at every opportunity. It was learnt that Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu is heading a committee for the project. A source close to the Enugu-born lawmaker declined comment on the issue. I can neither confirm or deny that the DSP has been given such responsibility, he told newsmen. Meanwhile, the APC has again mocked the PDP for forming a coalition ahead of the 2019 elections. Bolaji Abdullahi, APC National Publicity Secretary, in a statement on Sunday, also spoke on President Muhammadu Buhari and APC leaderships meeting with aggrieved members. Buhari last week met with Senate President Bukola Saraki at the Aso Villa as part of moves to stop him and others from leaving the party. Ahead of the 2019 general election, a coalition of pro Biafra groups have warned the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as well as political parties and aspirants to desist from plans to conduct elections in the former Eastern region in 2019.The groups; Biafra Defence Council, All Youths For Biafra, among others, insisted that the restoration of the Biafra republic is more important to the people of Biafra than the conduct of elections which it claimed would further enslave Biafrans.Briefing newsmen in Aba, the groups lamented that the federal government under President Muhammad Buhari had failed to protect lives and properties of Biafrans and vowed to ensure the liberation of the people of the former Eastern region from oppression of the Nigerian government.Spokesmen for the groups Comrade Sunny Okeh and Chidi Otah, said, Politicians from the former Eastern region should not be deceived; there will be no election anywhere in Biafra land in 2019. We are issuing this warning to our politicians that what ought to be paramount to them should the restoration of the Biafra republic, not elections. Election is not the solution to the problem of the Biafra people. We have been electing people to political offices, but this has only brought untold suffering and hunger to the people. We are using this medium to warn political parties and aspirants to stop any form of campaign in Biafra land.We want to re-emphasize that there will no election in Biafra land in 2019.The international community has been informed and Biafran people have been sensitized. Elections in Biafra land have only produced servants to the Hausa /Fulani oligarchy and those who feed on crumbs from their table. No force can challenge our resolve. It is our determination to restore Biafra republic where its people will greater freedom and accommodation.The groups added that they have mapped out strategies to ensure that no electoral activity is held in all the territories of the Eastern region. With the recent upheavals in Nigerias political space, some members of the Senate are expected to defect from their parties in the coming... With the recent upheavals in Nigerias political space, some members of the Senate are expected to defect from their parties in the coming days. The speculation on the defection has been on for a long time but reached new heights on July 4 when a faction of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) announced the formation of a new party bloc, tagged Reformed APC, simply R-APC. The group comprises mostly members of nPDP, and defunct CPC, ANPP and ACN. A week later, the R-APC and 37 other parties signed a memorandum for a coalition that will ensure the defeat of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC come 2019. Some senators were featured in this turn of events and several onthe-side consultations fueled the possibility of massive decamping. BELOW ARE SOME SENATOR WHO MAY LEAVE THEIR PARTY SOON AND WHY Bukola Saraki Since the breakaway from APC, Mr Saraki has not publicly announced whether he is part of the disgruntled R-APC or not. But many expect him to change party soon, especially as he has been seen holding meetings with PDP leaders and as some of his supporters have left APC. Mr Sarakis travails in the APC is connected to his long-standing cold war with the presidency which started right from his inauguration as Senate President. After his swearing-in, Mr Saraki was slammed with forgery, false assets declaration and sundry charges by the federal government. Though acquitted, many of Mr Sarakis supporters believe he is being harasssed for standing his ground against the presidency. Dino Melaye The Kogi West Senator is not keeping silent his bias on defection. After returning to the Senate in June, Mr Melaye requested to sit in the opposition wing of the Senate chamber. He has been sitting there since then and was also spotted at the venue of MoU signing of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP). He also released a video where he claimed he missed his home, the PDP. The unending political feud between Mr Melaye, and Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello is a major factor forcing the lawmaker out of APC. Having survived a recall process which he believed was orchestrated by Mr Bello, Mr Melaye will likely make his defection back to PDP in coming days. Shehu Sani The Kaduna Central Senator has hinted of his imminent defection in interviews and social media posts in recent times. Mr Sani would want out of APC primarily because of his feud with Governor Nasir El-Rufai. The crisis dates back to 2015 when, after the elections, Mr El-Rufai made some appointments, and Mr Sani and others felt disregarded and marginalised. Mr Sani has not been silent all along, criticising most of the policies of the state government and the governors party activities. When he was suspended from the party in 2017, he accused the governor of masterminding his ordeal. His last words on defection was that he was still making consultations. Suleiman Hunkuyi Like Mr Sani, the Kaduna North Senator may leave APC because of his feud with Mr El-Rufai. The genesis of their disagreement is difficult to trace given the fact that Mr Hunkuyis younger brother was appointed commissioner and his elder, Idris Othman, was for many years a close associate of the governor. Although his has not been as rough as the feud between him and Shehu Sani, all indications point that there is no love lost between him and the governor. Just recently, as in many other occasions, Mr Hunkuyi vowed to do everything possible to vote Mr El-Rufai out in 2019 governorship election in the state. In February, the Kaduna State Governmemt demolished a building belonging to a faction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state. Mr Hunkuyi, a leader of one of Restoration APC, alleged that the demolition was masterminded by the state. The score still lingers and may force the senator out of the party. Shaaba Lafiagi Though without any known confrontations, Mr Lafiagi is believed to be part of aggrieved senators who may defect from APC due to his loyalty to Mr Saraki. Kabir Marafa The struggle for political space in Zamfara state has brought the governor, Abdulaziz Yari, and Senator representing Zamfara Central, Kabiru Marafa, at loggerheads in recent times. The political quagmire took an interesting dimension in November 2017, when the senator alleged that the governor was not an indigene of the state. This followed the Senates refusal to confirm nomination of Ahmad Bello Mahmud as REC nominee for the state on the strength of a petition written to the committee on INEC by Mr Yari. In another appearance at plenary, Mr Marafa alleged that the governor and his deputy knew the militias laying siege on the state. Mr Yari, in his response to the allegation said in a statement by his Special Adviser, Salisi Isah, that the senators comments were mischievous, callous and misleading. The governor went further to threaten Mr Marafas 2019 ambition. Yes we are going to kill him politically, we are going to bury his political ambition in 2019. He wants to be governor, he is not going to get it, even the Senate, he is not going to return, he said in a statement. The feud continues even as Mr Marafa was spotted at the venue of the signing of the CUPP MoU. Sabi Abdulahi The Niger North Senator is not known to be having difficulty with his governor or any bigwig in his political party but he may defect due to his affiliation with R-APC members. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso The handwritings are clearly written on the wall, suggesting the the former Kano State governor, Mr Kwankwaso, will make official his return to PDP soon. This may be borne out of two reason: first, his feud with the state Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje and his presidential ambition. Early July, he boasted of his ability to defeat President Buhari if fielded by PDP. Im a free man now and available to try my luck elsewhere but I know that PDP is the biggest party and as long as they follow democratic principle, Buhari will easily be defeated, but if they handpick and force any candidate on the party, they will fail, he said. Abu Kyari The 2019 ambition of the senator representing Borno North appears capable of instigating his defection. His ambition is putting him at loggerheads with the Governor Kashim Shettima of the state. The senator, who is currently nursing an ambition of occupying the state government house is not in the best of relationships with the governor who many believe is eyeing the northern senatorial seat in 2019. To neutralise Mr Kyaris ambition, Mr Shettima was said to have initiated moves to draft the senator representing the central senatorial district, Baba Kaka Garbai, into the governorship race to succeed him. Mr Kyari may have to leave APC if his ambition will ever materialise. Adamu Aliero The Kebbi APC has been battling with the emergence of two warring factions: Buhari/Bagudu 4+4 (BB4+4) and Buhari/Bagudu Support Organisation (BBSO) led by different political figures in the state. Even though he had vowed to support their proscription, the crisis seems unending. Beyond this and more importantly, the preparation to win re-election in 2019 is staring the senator right in the eyes. The senator , in an interview in September 2017 said, nothing good can ever comes out of PDP but he was part of a meeting of aggrieved senators in May where the options of return to PDP or seeking fresh grounds topped the agenda. Danjuma Goje The senator has been accused of hijacking the Gombe APC due to his overwhelming influence. To solve this, the national headquarters of the APC last year disbanded officials of the party in Gombe State and inaugurated a caretaker committee. But the crisis continues with no love lost between the Chairman of the committee, Bala Jibrin, and Mr Goje, sometimes degenerating into physical attacks by their supporters. Mr Goje is one of the senators making consultations on their next moves. Isa Misau Mr Misau has not hidden his displeasure towards the government of President Buhari especially in his comments on the Nigeria Police and its leadership. In January, Mr Misau said the Buhari administration was populated with incompetent people who have now taken over the reins, with some of them acting as though they are above the president. His open confrontation with the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, whom he accused of corruption and incompetence also pitched him against the presidency. Mr Misau also questioned Mr Buharis anti-corruption war citing the example of Babachir Lawal, the former SGF who was accused of embezzling funds meant for IDPs and still walking scot-free, including being a frequent visitor to the presidential villa. With this affront coupled with his involvement in underground consultations, the Bauchi lawmaker may be on his way out of APC. Others They may not have been involved in major crises but these senators have been part of underground meetings, especially with the CUPP: Ibrahim Gobir John Enoh Ibrahim Danbaba Suleman Nazif Muhammed Shitu David Umaru Barnabas Gemade Rufai Ibrahim Bala Ibn. NaAllah culled: PremiumTimes US President Donald Trump said on Monday he "gave up nothing" at last week's private meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin but remained elusive about their conversation as fellow Republicans and other critics questioned any potential deals. Following the two leaders' summit in Helsinki, Trump previously said they discussed a range of issues, including efforts to denuclearize North Korea, the Middle East peace efforts and cyber attacks but has not given any details. Russian officials have said Putin made concrete proposals to Trump during their one-on-one talk regarding conflict in Ukraine. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also said the two discussed the Syrian crisis. But top US intelligence officials and members of Congress have said they do not know what was discussed and have not been briefed. "I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries," Trump wrote on Twitter. Despite the fierce criticism, Trump has extended an invitation for Putin to visit Washington for a second meeting this autumn. Search Keywords: Short link: As the race to succeed Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha gathers momentum, his brother-in-law, Mr. Chuks Ololo, has declared interest to... As the race to succeed Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha gathers momentum, his brother-in-law, Mr. Chuks Ololo, has declared interest to run in the 2019 governorship election in the State. Ololo, a board member of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research (FIIRO), Oshodi, is married to Ogechi, Okorochas younger sister, who is the Commissioner for Happiness and Purpose Fulfillment. The development means Okorocha now has two in-laws seeking to take over from him. Uche Nwosu, the incumbent Chief of Staff who is married to Okorochas first daughter is also in the contest. Okorocha had reportedly asked Ololo to forget his ambition, insisting he had already endorsed Nwosu. But Daily Trust, however, quoted Ololo, in Owerri, as saying he was in the race, and that his mission to govern Imo State was divine. Uche Nwosu recently rubbished claims that he had suspended his governorship aspiration, following pressures by the opposition. In a statement, the former Commissioner of Lands in the state noted that contrary to insinuations, his ambition has been strengthened by the activities of the opposition. The Reformed All Progressives Congress (R-APC), a new faction of the APC, says the ruling party has been pleading with its members to retu... The Reformed All Progressives Congress (R-APC), a new faction of the APC, says the ruling party has been pleading with its members to return to its fold. In a statement by Kazeem Afegbua, its spokesman, the breakaway faction said the APC is dangling juicy carrots and promising them heaven and earth. President Muhammadu Buhari and four APC governors met with Senate President Bukola Saraki on Thursday over the crisis rocking the party. Afegbua said Buhari promised mouth-watering offers all in the name of re-election to the same leader who was ridiculed, scandalised, demonised. The spokesman accused the leadership of the ruling party of double standard, saying it should not be taken seriously. After the ruling party became factionalised, Adams Oshiomhole, the national chairman, had said he would not lose sleep over R-APC. In the statement released on Sunday, Afegbua said those who claimed they would not lose sleep have become sleepless in the last two weeks. He said it was too late for a reconciliation. Below is the full statement: We members of the R-APC find it very amusing that those who boasted that they wont lose sleep over our altruistic action, have been hopping from door to door pleading with our members not to leave by dangling juicy carrots and promising them heaven and earth. Such level of double standard is the reason why the R-APC was birthed in the first place because the leadership is not one that keeps promises and its the reason why no one should take the APC serious. It is interesting to suddenly see Mr. President holding meetings with the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, reportedly promising mouth-watering offers; the same leader who was ridiculed, scandalised, demonised, criminalised and called all sorts of names by agents of the presidency just to give the Senate President a bad name in order to hang him. As soon as the Supreme Court gave a resounding verdict on the trumped up and frivolous charges against the Senate President, Mr. President suddenly felt a need to praise the judiciary for standing on its own. Hmm, power as they truly say, must be a crazy aphrodisiac. Never a time has the number 3 (three) citizen of Nigeria been so dehumanized, criminalised and disgraced in such whimsical manner while all the present reconciliators kept conspiratorial silence, waiting for the sledge hammer to fall on the Senate President. They tried all tricks, mounted all manner of pressures, raised all dubious allegations, just to nail the Senate President. They were short of calling him a promoter of armed robbery; they linked his name to the Offa Robbery and improvised all biles to rubbish the institution of the Legislature. They stripped him naked in the marketplace and now desperately trying to bath him with ornaments in the inner fortress of Aso Rock. The Chairman of the Code of Conduct displayed magisterial arrogance in prosecuting the Senate President, but all that fell by the wayside as the Supreme Court gave one of its landmark judgments in recent time by giving him a clean bill of health. Pronto, all the political conspirators in the APC swoop into dubious reconciliation assignment, hopping from door to door at the thick of the night to strike deals of reconciliation. Those who said they wont lose sleep over the R-APC, have become sleepless in the last two weeks. Does anyone need to be reminded that caveat emptor should be the operative words? Those who pleaded in the past, short of kneeling before their subordinates, ended up in the political belly of their benefactors when the re-election was concluded. It is an albatross that some people are still carrying till date. Examples abound in this our democracy and it is ringing bell in our consciousness every now and then. This government is never a promise keeper and some of the promises contained in the manifestos of the APC have been jettisoned. The president who has held himself in the inner sanctuary of the Presidential Villa is all of a sudden, opening his doors to one meeting or the other all in the name of re-election. Just to make the point that it is too late in the day. The train has left the station. Leopards cannot change their spots no matter how much one tries to tame them. We enjoin all our members to remain steadfast and resolute in defending their rights and taking the appropriate action in defence of democracy. This democracy must survive on ethical grounds and not on lawlessness and exclusion. It must provide a level playing grounds for all participants. Those who prevented some persons from visiting their states in the name of politics, have suddenly realised that they need the services and support of those persons. They are now pleading, ready to submit to all demands. Who does not know that wont work because examples have shown that political agreements are often observed in the breach. Eight people were killed at a mosque in northeast Nigeria on Monday when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives, a civilian militia member and a local resident said.The blast happened in the Mainari area of Konduga, in Borno state, said Ibrahim Liman, from the civilian militia force assisting the military in the fight against Boko Haram.The male bomber walked into the mosque at about 5:15 am (0415 GMT) while prayers were on and exploded, killing eight worshippers and injuring five others, he told AFP.Seven of the victims died in the mosque while another died on the way to (the Borno state capital) Maiduguri.Suicide bombings against soft civilian targets such as mosques, markets and bus stations are the hallmark of the Boko Haram faction led by Abubakar Shekau.Many of the bombers used are young women and girls. Liman said the latest attack appeared to be carried out by a man in his early 20s.Umar Goni, who lives in Konduga, said he was on his way to the mosque when the blast occurred and he helped to rescue victims with members of the civilian volunteer force.We pulled out seven dead bodies and six injured worshippers. One of the six injured died on the way to hospital, he added.The bomber was disguised as a worshipper, he said, adding: There was no way anybody could have known his mission.The latest attack comes as Nigerias government is encouraging people displaced by Boko Harams Islamist insurgency to return home.But aid agencies providing food, healthcare, clean water and shelter across the conflict-ravaged region have warned that security has not improved.Last week, at least six traders were killed when a convoy of lorries under military escort were ambushed in Borno state near the border with Cameroon.There have also been a number of attacks on military convoys and bases in Borno and neighbouring Yobe state, with undisclosed casualties.Soldiers and civilians have also been targeted in separate attacks in neighbouring Chad and Niger. The Reformed All Progressives Congress (R-APC) has criticised the All Progressives Congress (APC) government led by President Muhammadu Buhari, over how they treated the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki.Speaking on Channels Televisions Politics Tonight yesterday, R-APC spokesman, Kassim Afegbua, regretted Sarakis travails since his trial began at the Code of Conduct Tribunal that lasted for three years.Bukola Saraki, the Senate President is a strong political player. And he was part and parcel of those who ensured that this government came on stream in 2015, he said on Sunday night.He was abandoned in the cold, he was criminalized, he was disgraced, he was ridiculed. In fact, they called him all manners of names. As soon as he got the verdict of the Supreme Court saying that his trial was no substance, he suddenly became a bride.All the present people who are going to meet him were all sitting down maintaining some conspiratorial silence at that period. They were waiting for the sledgehammer to fall on him, Afegbua said.Afegbuas comments came two weeks after the Supreme Court discharged Saraki, of the remaining three charges against him in the case of false declaration of assets. The Director-General of Voice of Nigeria, Mr Osita Okechukwu, has challenged former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to come clean on his United States immigration status.Okechukwu also gave the indication that Abubakar would not be able to address insecurity in the country if, as the Nigerian President, he is unable to go to the US.Reacting to Abubakars presidential declaration in Yola, Adamawa State, on Saturday, Okechukwu wondered if the Peoples Democratic Party chieftain would be able to go to the US if elected President in 2019.The VON DG said that Abubakars inability to visit the US made him a less attractive option than the incumbent, President Muhammadu Buhari, who was hosted in the White House shortly after he assumed office.Speaking to journalists in Enugu on Sunday, Okechukwu challenged Abubakar to authorise the United States Border Authority to make public his immigration status.He said, Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari, few weeks after the inauguration, was honoured with a red carpet reception at the White House.A presidential contest is like a beauty contest, and Buhari remains the best among those parading themselves to be President in 2019.The VON DG faulted Abubakar for declaring that more Nigerians had been killed during Buharis administration than the number of people that died in war-torn Iraq and Afghanistan.He urged Abubakar and all Nigerians to join hands with Buhari to fight insecurity, instead of comparing the dead with those killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Workers in Ekiti State have issued a fourteen-day ultimatum to Governor Ayo Fayose to pay all arrears of salaries and pension of retirees.... Workers in Ekiti State have issued a fourteen-day ultimatum to Governor Ayo Fayose to pay all arrears of salaries and pension of retirees. Acting under the aegis of Ekiti State Organized Labour, they said the Fayose government must clear all arrears of workers entitlements before a new government takes office on October 16. The workers demand were contained in a bulletin issued on Saturday. Their demands also include payment of over seven months deduction, payment nine month arrears to local government workers and primary school teachers. They also advocated payment of eleven months and six months pensions to local government pensioners and state government pensioners respectively. The bulletin reads: Workers in the public service of Ekiti State have been suffering over the years with nobody to rescue them in relation to payment of salaries, pensions and other benefits. The import of this is that the condition of service of an average worker in Ekiti is deplorable or poor despite the huge funds allocated to Ekiti State from the Federation Account between 2014 to date. In view of the present development in the state occasioned by the result of the governorship election, it has become necessary to assess the implication on welfare of workers vis-a-vis the arrears of unpaid salaries. In order to avoid a situation whereby the incoming government may wish to foot drag on the payment of the arrears of salaries on the premise that the organized labour was inept to the payment of same by the outgoing government thus amounting to a huge financial burden on the new government. Former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olisa Metuh, has spoken for the first time on his health ... Former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olisa Metuh, has spoken for the first time on his health challenges. While receiving members of the Anambra Progressive Union (APU) at his Abuja home on Sunday, he advised politicians at all levels to pay adequate attention to their personal health, regardless of their busy schedule, Vanguard reports. According to him, if he had made out time to undergo a prescribed minor corrective surgery when his spinal chord ailment was first diagnosed at the National Hospital in 2008, he wouldnt be in the situation he is today. No matter how busy you may be in politics or business, you must find time to take adequate care of your health. This is very important. In 2008, I was diagnosed with a minor spinal chord issue for which doctors at the National Hospital recommended that I undergo a laminectomy which is more of a minor corrective surgery. At that time, I had just been sworn in as National Vice Chairman (South East) of the PDP. I underrated the situation. In fact, I felt that it had to do with the stress of the campaign, so I did not go for the surgery. I was very much engulfed with political activities. Later, I started having much pain in my spine and some doctors I met in Dubai recommended a palliative hot water therapy in the absence of a surgery, which I did. I never went back for the operation but continued with the therapy while busy with political activities. In 2016 when I was arrested and detained, the situation aggravated but worsened after I had a very bad fall in the office, for which I was rushed to the National Hospital where I lost sensation on my lower limbs. They conducted an MRI scan and found out that my condition has really deteriorated. Several times I had fallen into trauma. On one of those occasions, I had to be brought from hospital to court on a stretcher, almost unconscious. As at then, I couldnt move my lower limbs. The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said that the recent invitation of Nigerias President, Muhammadu Buhari to the Hague to present ... The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has said that the recent invitation of Nigerias President, Muhammadu Buhari to the Hague to present a keynote address to the International Criminal Court, ICC, was done in bad faith. IPOB, in a press release signed by its media and publicity secretary, Mr Emma Powerful stated that the refusal of the federal government, led by Buhari to release the duo of Shiite leader, Sheikh El-Zakzaky and former National Security Adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki (retd), despite court orders disqualifies Buhari from such engagement. It maintained that with the invitation to President Buhari, not minding his alleged penchant for flaunting or ignoring court orders, the current leadership of the International Criminal Court(ICC), which is mostly Africans, may lose the chance of providing another Africans in future. Part of the statement read; We condemn in the strongest possible terms, the statement credited to Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Alhaji Abubakar Mallami over the refusal of this Buhari administration to obey multiple court orders to release both Sheikh El-Zakzaky and former National Security Adviser (NSA) Col. Sambo Dasuki from extra judicial detention. The most recent ruling by Hon. Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court Abuja admitting Dasuki on bail has once again been ignored, so has numerous pronouncements by the courts to set Sheikh El-Zakzaky free. This flagrant disobedience of the rule of law is not only shameful but also an impeachable offence. Coming at the heels of Buharis lecture at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague on the virtues of rule of law and the commitment of his government to adhere to court orders, it is hypocritical and criminal for the those that invited Buhari to address them at the Hague conference to keep silent as rule of law is being destroyed in Nigeria. IPOB said the President of the ICC, Judge Chile Eboe-Osuji and African Chief Prosecutor of the court, Madame Fatou Bensouda, both of whom are blacks, should cover their faces in shame for inviting a man they knew does not obey the law to address them on the need for a government to adhere to the rule of law. It said further, Should Africans be overlooked in the future for such sensitive appointments such as the ICC President or Chief Prosecutor, Africans should not complain of racism because such sensitive offices should be reserved for not only brilliant legal minds but also those who cannot be swayed by sentimental or material considerations. Inviting Buhari to address the ICC when he has steadfastly refused to obey the law when it comes to Col. Dasuki, Sheikh El-Zakzaky and many IPOB detainees is the greatest mistake the court has ever made. It doesnt speak well of the diplomatic community in Nigeria either, especially Britain, the colonial master and creator, to maintain a deafening silence in the face of unbridled tyranny. If Britain can offer its public opinion on the probity or lack of, in the conduct of elections in Ekiti State, surely it has a moral obligation to admonish the Buhari government on its refusal to obey the law. Abu Ibrahim, chairman, senate committee on police affairs, says the fear of indiscriminate arrest and detention by state governors may kil... Abu Ibrahim, chairman, senate committee on police affairs, says the fear of indiscriminate arrest and detention by state governors may kill the state and community police bill. The bill which is being sponsored by Ike Ekweremadu, deputy senate president, has passed first reading in the senate. Ibrahim, however, told journalists on Sunday that the bill may not get two-third majority to get through to third reading and passage. He said while lawmakers from some parts of the country may vote in favour of the bill, others may not due to fear of abuse. My fear is the required numbers. The disagreement between the national assembly members and governors may kill it, Ibrahim said. This is because I know many senators and house of representatives members think that if state governors get state police, they can trample on them, arrest and detain them. From my assessment, there is no way it will get two thirds in the national assembly. Probably the bulk of south-west senators will go for it because in the area, there is some control and there is synergy because of the control system. I do not want to mention names but there are states that there is no way they will vote for its passage. From the way I see it, nine states out of 37 will not vote for it. But let us see how it goes. On whether or not there is merit in the clamour for state and community police, the lawmaker said if passed and signed into law, it would help in tackling security challenges in the country. However, he said there were other factors that may not allow the structure to work effectively. According to him, the basic problem with the establishment of state police is funding. If you create state police, will you get a better funding? These are the things we should ask ourselves, he said. What are the main reasons for failure of the federal police system if it is regarded as failure. The reason is lack of funding. You give Nigeria Police N20 billion as budgetary allocation when they require about N300 billion. Even the N20 billion is not fully released. It is sometimes between 40 per cent and 50 per cent. So, will state police do better. They may know the locality better but do they have the resources?. Can the states pay them their salaries and allowances. These are things we should look into, he said. Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has warned that the party will not hesitate to suspend or e... Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has warned that the party will not hesitate to suspend or expel any Minister who flouts orders from President Muhammadu Buhari. Oshiomhole said this in reaction to the delay by the Minister of Labour, Senator Chris Ngige, to inaugurate the board of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Funds, NSITF. The Minister had refused to inaugurate the board over alleged fraud committed by the previous board to the tune of over N40 billion. However, Oshiomhole, while speaking with journalists after meeting with Buhari at the President Villa, Abuja, said he wont condone disrespect from any Minister. When asked on the comment by Ngige, the former Edo State Governor said, If the minister refuse we will suspend him from the party. You know we must return to internal discipline. For me it is the height of mischief for any minister. You cannot purport to be honourable minister and you act dishonourably and nobody is greater than the party. And if the President condones disrespect for his office, I will not condone disrespect for the party. And when we expel the minister we will prevail on the President that he cant keep in his cabinet people who have neither respect for his own decisions nor have respect for the party without which they would not have been ministers. There are no independent candidate in our system, nobody. I emphasis no minister is above the party and they have taken undue advantage of the Presidents fatherly disposition. Now, it is the same green pen that made them minister that appointed these boards that they are refusing to swear in. And it is absolutely illegal for a minister in a democracy to prey the powers of the board because the laws establishing those institutions are clear, that the boards have procedures to follow. So, when a minister sits in his office to appropriate the powers of the board in a democracy, not in a dictatorship, award contract that didnt go through boards, those are clear abuse of office for which they are liable. I am convinced that what they are doing is not with the endorsement of Mr. President. Over the period they have tried to drop the Presidents name but I tell them it is the same authority that appointed these people. Britain's government will publish proposals on Tuesday setting out more details of how it plans to leave the European Union, a junior Brexit minister said on Monday. "We are continuing to prepare the legislation needed to implement the withdrawal agreement in UK law and we will publish a white paper tomorrow setting out more details on this," Martin Callanan told the upper house of Britain's parliament. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Theresa May revealed her latest plans for Britain's relationship with the EU after its scheduled departure in March next year. Search Keywords: Short link: Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has reiterated that he is not losing sleep over the breakaway ... Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has reiterated that he is not losing sleep over the breakaway Reformed-APC faction. The former Edo governor says he has defeated powerful godfathers, stressing that I will not miss my sleep because a lot of these guys cannot on a good day deliver their unit. Oshiomhole said this in reaction to a statement by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that he is licking his vomit after his no loss of sleep comment. The PDP had said the APC chairman was making moves to woo the members of R-APC back into the ruling party. But speaking on Monday after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, Oshiomhole said: You have seen me. Do I look like Im losing sleep? The former president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) said he is willing to negotiate and persuade but does not deal with permanent political mercenaries. Oshiomhole said: No, I am not losing sleep. I am sleeping very well. I still maintain that I dont see any man of honour, who with his eyes open left PDP on the account of their gross mismanagement, abuse of the treasury and all of the crime that the PDP committed, I dont see them whatever their irritations. That cannot be a justification to return a house that all we need to do is to play back their own tape about what PDP represents and why they left. I still hold the view that you cant vomit in the morning and convert it to lunch in the afternoon if you have honour. And that position still remains the same. Number two is that yes, I have made this point clear that we can distinguish the mercenaries from those who genuinely have complaints. Our business as party leaders is to try and manage, listen and find solutions to those who have verifiable complaintss. But those who are permanent mercenaries and are in this business for personal reasons, there is not much we can do about that and we are not going to change the core values of the party in order to retain them. So, let me reinstate, we remain committed and I have said so from the word go in my acceptance speech when I was elected that we acknowledge the fact that there are people with genuine complains. For such people, we are ready to listen. We are ready to act on the basis of justice, fairness, no arrogance and inclusion. I remain committed to those. At 5:22 this morning, Cape Coral Police responded to a traffic crash in the 900 block of Cape Coral Parkway, E., where it was reported that a vehicle struck a pedestrian. The pedestrian, identified as Steven A. Grant, 54, of Cape Coral, suffered a fatal injuries in the crash. According to a report from the CCPD, a 2012 silver Chevy Malibu was traveling east in the inside travel lane of Cape Coral Parkway, just east of the intersection at Southeast 8th Court. Grant was reportedly walking across the eastbound lanes of Cape Coral Parkway mid-block, outside of the available marked crosswalks, when he walked in front of the Malibu. The police report indicates Grant came to final rest in the eastbound center travel lane of Cape Coral Parkway, approximately 100 feet from the area of impact. The driver of the Malibu, who was uninjured in the accident, made a controlled stop and came to rest in the inside travel lane of Cape Coral Parkway. Police reported that witnesses to the fatal accident indicated that several other vehicles struck the pedestrian immediately following the initial impact with the Malibu but failed to stop at the scene afterwards. The investigation is ongoing and Cape Coral Police Department is attempting to identify other vehicles and drivers from this crash. If you have information about their identity please contact the Cape Coral Police Department at 239-574-3223 or at www.capecops.com/tips-disclaimer. The IFC finance will focus on the renewable energy field through 2019 The World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC) will provide finance for the Egyptian private sector to the amount of $2 billion, Egypt's Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation announced Sunday. According to a ministry statement, the IFC finance will focus on the renewable energy field through 2019, as part of the partnership between Egypt and the World Bank. The statement came after a meeting between Egyptian Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr and IFC CEO Philippe Le Houerou in Washington during the former's visit to the US. The statement said that Nasr and Le Houerou discussed cooperation between Egypt and the IFC and the latest economic reforms adopted by Egypt. Search Keywords: Short link: The documents published by the Egyptian national archives include King Farouk I's abdication letter and a decree announcing Mohamed Naguib as the first President of the Egyptian Republic Egypt's National Archive has published a collection of original documents from the 23 July revolution, which saw the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of an Egyptian republic in 1952. The documents include the original letter, dated 26 July, 1952, sent by the Free Officers Movement to King Farouk I. The letter demands that he abdicate his throne to his son, Prince Ahmed Fouad II, who was an infant at that time, and never ruled the country. King Farouk I ruled Egypt from 28 April, 1936 until 26 July, 1952. He was born in 1920 and died the age of 45 in Capri, Italy, on 18 March, 1965. The collection of documents also includes the abdication letter of King Farouk I, dated 26 July, 1952, marked with the king's seal and issued from Ras El-Tin palace in Alexandria. It also includes a royal decree announcing Prince Ahmed Fouad II as King of Egypt and Sudan. The second group of documents includes the declaration of the constitution from the commander of the Egyptian armed forces and the leader of the army's revolution, Mohamed Naguib, dated 10 February, 1953. Naguib later became Egypt's first president, serving in office from June 18, 1953 until November 14, 1954. The collection also records the turn of Egypt's political scene in a document dated 17 April, 1954, in which Mohamed Naguib resigns and Gamal Abdel Nasser acceded to the presidential office. The documents also include a list of Nasser's full cabinet. Search Keywords: Short link: Anyone who follows developments on the Libyan scene would say that Egypt has approached the crisis with no hidden agenda. From the outset, Egypt stood for the safety and security which are so vital to the country. Rather than veering towards supporting for guerrilla warfare or militias, Egypt identified the Libyan army as a force for stability early on in the conflict. Egypt's actions to Islamist extremists have been responsible, perceiving their danger, and drawing no distinction between extremists and those acting according to an ideology. When some international powers inclined towards appeasing ideologists, Egypt was adamant that they were part of the crisis rather than a means to solve it. Some in foreign circles watched on or even supported terrorists, while Egypt bore the responsibility of fighting and exposing them to the world. The results recently achieved testify to the fact that the Libyan crisis has undergone a transformation. Egypt has exerted efforts, encouraging some international actors to discontinue their unsuccessful approaches towards a resolution. Some have mistakenly treated Libya as a an ordinary crisis, without taking into consideration the specific balance of powers, and showing a total disregard for the key solution of support for and unity in the Libyan military institution. It was hard to alter the stance of foreign powers without their realising the full dimensions of the crisis. Some international parties participated in the uproar which preceded the conflict, which failed to put Libya on the right track. The clamour was of no help to those who contributed to it; to those who perceived the crisis as a political picnic; who thought this and that could be appeased, and so and so could be punished; and thought the whole formula would be resolved in the press of a button. Events in Libya have proved that this crisis was more complicated, due to its security, political and social aspects. A special understanding of its internal make-up and its entangled relationships is required. It's hard to characterise the Libyan people as Levantine, Maghrebi or even African in temperament. The simplicity of Libyans can entice you into thinking they can be easily persuaded, while their complexity is such that it's impossible to change their inclinations. In short, they are a blend of this and that. Egypt has understood this matter and acted capably upon it, enabling an apprehension of strong and weak points in the crisis as a whole. The majority of conceptions for resolution presented by international and regional actors didn't reach the core of the crisis, which emanates from its uniqueness in comparison with any other in the region. Egypt is the only state which understood the dimensions of the crisis, handling it shrewdly whilst maintaining an honest desire for a solution before its repercussions could mount too high. It neither invested in it nor attempted to utilise it, as others did. This stance only led to further obstruction. Whenever the UN adopted a certain discourse it found a mountain of obstacles. When political initiatives were presented by some, they found themselves surrounded by dispute from different parties. Even the threat of military intervention didn't provide a foundation stable enough to reach a successful settlement. It is not a trivial matter that the international stance towards the Libyan crisis has begun to undergo transformation. This change constitutes the beginning of a new manner of interaction with a crisis that has seemed to be a fire ball. Every participant has attempted to throw it in another's face, and each is governed by motives which are a far cry from acting in the interests of the Libyan people. Egypt has thought soberly and upon the basis of a practical understanding. It has made moves on security and diplomatic levels aimed towards putting the crisis on the right track. It has been simultaneously stern and calm in righting the disturbed balance. Some international powers have begun to appreciate the importance of Egypts vision and become keen to cooperate and coordinate in order to generate movement in previously stagnant water. The joint communique issued last Thursday by the USA, France, Italy and Britain was a significant move. It revealed the depth of change in the international approach to managing the crisis. After a back and forth between Paris and Rome over areas of influence, Washington shelved its hesitation, deploying the power of veto to prevent the handling of the crisis from escalating to absurdity, as if Libya remained a colony to this or that nation. Search Keywords: Short link: Washington, D.C. - The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) welcomes the judgment of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) that declared that the mandatory death penalty in Barbados is unconstitutional. The judgment was delivered by the CCJ on June 27, 2018 in relation to two mandatory death penalty cases from Barbados: Jabari Sensimania Nervais v The Queen and Dwayne Omar Severin v The Queen. The Court stated that section 2 of the Offences Against the Person Act was unconstitutional because it provided for a mandatory sentence of death. With respect to Dwayne Omar Severin and Jabari Sensimania Nervais, on May 5, 2018, the IACHR adopted Resolution 33/2018, related to petition P-2457-17, by which it granted precautionary measures, requesting that the State of Barbados refrain from executing the death penalty against them until the IACHR has ruled on their petition; adopt the necessary measures to preserve their lives and personal integrity; among others. After analyzing the allegations of fact and law, the Commission considered that said matter met the requirements of seriousness, urgency and risk of irreparable harm, in part because of the impact that the death row would have on the rights of Dwayne Omar Severin and Jabari Sensimania Nervais, of 3 and 6 years, respectively, as well as the effect that execution would have on their rights to life and personal integrity, making a future pronouncement of the Commission ineffective. In similar terms, on the same May 5th, the IACHR adopted Resolution 34/2018, related to petition P-1046-17, by which it granted precautionary measures in favor of Clyde Anderson Grazette regarding Barbados, who has been in the death row for 11 years and awaiting for the Government to pass a Law that abolish the death penalty. The IACHR applauds the CCJs finding that it was indisputable that the nation, through its actions, had acknowledged that it had an obligation to remove such mandatory sentence under section 2 of the Offences against the Person Act and that Barbados had also given undertakings to the CCJ and the Inter American Court of Human Rights to rectify the mandatory sentence. For more than 15 years, the Commission and the Inter American Court of Human Rights have affirmed that the mandatory death penalty cannot be reconciled with Article 4 of the American Convention on Human Rights. The cases of Hilaire, Constantine and Benjamin (Trinidad and Tobago), Boyce and others (Barbados) and Dacosta Cadogan (Barbados) are examples of mandatory death penalty cases dealt with first by the Commission and then the Court. The laws at issue in these cases did not distinguish between different classifications of murder, or consider whether the perpetrator had the intent to kill. Under these laws the death penalty could be issued for crimes of differing degrees of seriousness, and sentencing could be inconsistent. Through these and other cases, the Commission and Court established that the automatic imposition of the death penalty without consideration of the individual circumstances of the offence or the offender is incompatible with the rights to life, humane treatment and due process. The Commission notes that many Caribbean countries have already courts of national jurisdiction have found the mandatory death penalty to be unconstitutional in countries including Saint Lucia (The Queen v. Hughes), Dominica (Balson v. The State), Belize (Reyes v. The Queen), The Bahamas (Bowe v. The Queen) and Grenada (Coard et al. v. Grenada), among other examples. Following this period of reexamination of the mandatory death penalty, a number of countries have abolished that aspect of the death penalty. The judges of Belize, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Saint Lucia, Grenada and Guyana, among others, now have the discretion to impose lesser sentences. This decision by Barbados highest court serves to reinforce the jurisprudence of the Inter American Human Rights System said Joel Hernandez Garcia, IACHR Country Rapporteur for Barbados. The Rapporteur also noted that The CCJs judgment reflects major progress in the Caribbean region in enforcing States obligation to eliminate the mandatory death penalty in accordance with international human rights standards. The IACHR urges the State of Barbados to take whatever legislative steps might be necessary to amend the Offences Against the Person Act, so as to bring it into conformity with the judgment of the CCJ. As were disposed by the Court in its ruling, those persons convicted of murder and sentenced to death pursuant to Section 2 of the OAPA or who have had their mandatory death sentences commuted to life imprisonment be brought with reasonable expedition before the Supreme Court for resentencing. Finally, the IACHR takes the opportunity to stress the need for countries that still allow for capital punishment in their legislation to move toward the goal of abolishing the death penalty throughout the region or at least imposing a moratorium on its application. The Commission invites States that have not done so to ratify the Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights to Abolish the Death Penalty. A principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), the IACHR derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for and to defend human rights in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this area. The Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent their countries of origin or residence. No. 159/18 22/07/18 - OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria and Argentinas Minister of Treasury Nicolas Dujovne presided today over the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to establish a centre of the OECD Academy for Tax and Financial Crime Investigation in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The signing, which took place in the margins of the meeting of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Buenos Aires, establishes the OECD Latin America Academy for Tax and Financial Crime Investigation, to be housed in the facilities of Argentinas Federal Administration of Public Revenues. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Argentinas Commissioner of Public Revenues Leandro Cuccioli and the OECDs Director of the Centre for Tax Policy and Administration Pascal Saint-Amans. The OECD Latin America Academy for Tax and Financial Crime Investigation will provide intensive capacity-building courses targeted at tax crime investigators and other related law enforcement officials, including prosecutors, anti-money laundering and anti-corruption officials, in particular from Latin American countries, that will support tax crime investigators throughout their careers. This will include broad-based courses on conducting and managing financial investigations as well as targeted courses on specific types of tax and financial crimes, such as those associated with crypto-currencies, money laundering and VAT fraud. The establishment of the OECD Latin America Academy here in Buenos Aires to train investigators in using the latest techniques to deter, detect and prosecute financial crime such as tax fraud, money-laundering or corruption, will strengthen Latin Americas capacity to tackle these crimes, Mr Gurria said. We are very grateful to the Argentine authorities for supporting this initiative. Illicit financial flows, including tax evasion and other financial crimes, have a large cost to government budgets and threaten the strategic, political and economic interests of all countries, with a particularly damaging impact in developing countries. These activities thrive in a climate of secrecy, inadequate legal frameworks, lax regulation, poor enforcement and weak inter-agency co-operation. Programmes offered by the OECD Latin America Academy for Tax and Financial Crime Investigation will be an important contribution to the wider work of the OECD Oslo Dialogue, which promotes a whole-of-government approach to fighting financial crime. The establishment of the OECD Latin America Academy for Tax and Financial Crime Investigation builds on the success of the original centre hosted by the Gaurdia di Finanza in Ostia, Italy, and a pilot Africa Academy for Tax and Financial Crime Investigation launched by the OECD, Kenya, Italy and Germany at the G20 Africa Partnership conference in June 2017. Together, these efforts have trained more than 550 financial investigators from over 80 countries. The first events planned for the OECD Latin America Academy for Tax and Financial Crime Investigation are scheduled to begin in late 2018. Media queries should be directed to Pascal Saint-Amans (+33 1 4524 9108), Director of the OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration. Working with over 100 countries, the OECD is a global policy forum that promotes policies to improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world. Related Documents The Houston area is experiencing a heat wave, with forecast temperatures entering the triple digits as early as Friday and into the beginning of next week. If heat index values (ie, the "feels like" temperature) reach 108 degrees, Heat Advisories could follow. Protective Actions We are reminding residents to stay safe during the heat wave this weekend. A few tips: Stay hydrated. Check on vulnerable neighbors and loved ones. Limit outdoor activity during the afternoon hours. Bring your pets inside. If you or your loved one do not have adequate access to air conditioning during periods of extreme heat, you may seek relief in air conditioned spaces such as shopping malls, museums, movie theaters, recreation centers, or libraries. Be sure to verify hours of operation in advance. Prolonged exposure to extreme heat without proper hydration and other precautionary actions may result in heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Recognize the signs of heat-related illness: Stay Informed For more information on keeping yourself, your family, and your pets safe during extreme heat, visit:https://www.houstonemergency. org/extreme-heat-tips-to-stay- cool/ For up-to-date weather information, visit the National Weather Service Houston/ Galveston forecast office website: weather.gov/hgx. 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. If You Don't Like Trump's Positions on Russia Now, Just Wait 5 Minutes By Dustin Rowles | Pajiba Love | July 22, 2018 | Jenny Slate cut her hair, and Baby Pinkman looks absolutely adorable in a meth suit. (These things are not related) (Lainey) Speaking of adorable, Prince George is 5, and Will and Kate have blessed us with a photo. (GFY) Hey! Remember when Trump was like, My people came to me. They said they think its Russia. I have President Putin; he just said its not Russia. I will say this: I dont see any reason why it would be, and then the very next day, he was like, I mean, I dont see any reason why it would NOT be? Well, he went back to that first thing again. Hey Trump! Your FACE is a hoax! So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 If it was all a big hoax, why are you calling Obama a patsy for not doing anything about it, huh? (Celebitchy) This should help our cause: Voter registration among young people in Florida shot up 41 percent after the Parkland shooting. (Upworthy) Meanwhile, according to high-quality polling data, the polls are showing in actual races what the generic ballots are suggesting: A 6-9 point swing for Democrats in House races. (538) Also, if you are registered, double check to make sure that you havent been purged. (Vote.org) I dont care if it IS a dumb show like Teen Mom, MTV. Why are you even giving Bristol Palin a platform? (Dlisted) Look: I thought the trailer for the upcoming season of The Walking Dead looked great. You can think what you want, or you can dismiss my opinion because I like Suits. (Uproxx) I dont know how many of yall remember or read The Superficial. Personally, I thought it was smutty bikini photos and dick jokes at first, but over the years, the guy running it Mike Redmond evolved or matured or, I dont know. Something. I cant explain it, except to say that the bikini photos and dick jokes didnt go away, but somehow Redmond transformed a smutty celeb gossip site into socially conscious smut. Redmond, however, resigned in 2017, the site quickly faltered, and now it no longer exists. Redmond has taken to Medium to tell the story of its demise. Warning: Cliffhanger alert. (The Medium) If you havent seen it yet, heres a woman BODY SLAMMING a dude after he grabbed her ass. Ive literally watched it 10 times. Its fucking fantastic. (Wonkette) Ryan Reynolds got asked about criticism he received about the continued fridging of Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) in Deadpool 2, and the bastard wait? He agreed? (Yahoo) HA! HA HA! This is why we have oxford commas https://t.co/nSb98i5s6K Jen (@thejenlife) July 21, 2018 HA HA HA! HA HA HA HA! Oh shit. Hey! Supergirl has cast its first transgender superhero, who just happens to be Nicole Maines, that woman I was telling yall about who lived across the street from me until a few weeks ago. In fact, the new owners moved in this weekend, and I need to go ask them if anyone in their family has been cast in Supergirl. (Vulture) Julia Roberts looks fucking fantastic, FYI. (LG) Theres always a chance when you pick up a book for vacation that you will hate it. Octothorp hated Dominick Dunnes Too Much Money so much that she left it on the beach under a palm tree and was relieved when it rained a few minutes later. "I got this for free from an airport book exchange because I wanted something light for a flight; this actually sheared off some brain cells. I paid too much and it cost nothing." What airport books would you recommend instead? (Cannonball Read 10) Dick Cheney's Signed Waterboarding Kit From Sacha Baron Cohen's New Show Is On Sale | There's a Tweet for Everything, Part 3,378 Dustin is the founder and co-owner of Pajiba. You may email him here, follow him on Twitter, or listen to his weekly TV podcast, Podjiba. US Lawmakers, Printers and Publishers Testify Against Crippling Import Tariffs on Canadian Newsprint "The tariffs will hurt the U.S. paper industry because they will cause permanent harm to newspapers, printers and book publishers, shrinking the U.S. paper industry's customer base." Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine). By Mark Michelson, Editor-in-Chief of Printing Impressions July 23, 2018 - With all of the talking heads on television news stations pontificating about the prospects for an international trade war initially fueled by tariffs that have been implemented by the Trump administration including imported steel and aluminum the import tariffs that are currently being imposed on Canadian uncoated groundwood papers (newsprint) aren't capturing any attention within the electronic media. Even so, July 17 was a pivotal day for the printing and publishing industry as more than a dozen Congressional lawmakers from both sides of the aisle, publishers, printers, newspaper advocacy groups and newsprint paper producers testified in Washington before the International Trade Commission (ITC) to express their strong opposition to the preliminary paper tariffs. The tariffs will hurt the U.S. paper industry because they will cause permanent harm to newspapers, printers and book publishers, shrinking the U.S. paper industry's customer base, said Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) during her testimony before the ITC. In fact, the tariffs will likely lead to less production of newsprint by U.S. manufacturers as customers cut their consumption once and for all. This is simply not the way Congress intended the trade laws to work. The ITC is reportedly slated to vote on Aug. 28 whether or not to make the import tariffs permanent. And the U.S. Department of Commerce is expected to render its decision on the matter by Aug. 2. Current tariffs on imported Canadian newsprint, which largely impact U.S. newspaper, book, directory and circular printers and publishers, will become permanent if both organizations vote in favor to keep them in place. In January, the Department of Commerce assessed preliminary countervailing duties on uncoated groundwood ranging from 4.4% to 9.9%, depending on the Canadian paper manufacturer. Then, it later added preliminary antidumping duties, on top of the countervailing tariffs, of up to 22.16%, resulting in total tariffs of up to 32% now being imposed. The preliminary countervailing and antidumping duties by the Department of Commerce emanate from a complaint filed by North Pacific Paper Corp. (NORPAC), a single-location paper manufacturer located in Longview, Wash., which is owned by a New York-based hedge fund. NORPAC is reportedly one of five newsprint paper mills still remaining in the U.S., but it was the only one to file an antidumping complaint. Bills Introduced in Both Congressional Houses In response to the impact of the current paper tariffs, a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the U.S. Senate, led by Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine), introduced a bill in May that would delay dumping tariffs and countervailing duties currently being applied. The PRINT (Protecting Rational Incentives in Newsprint Trade) Act would suspend the import taxes on Canadian uncoated groundwood paper and would require the Department of Commerce to complete a study on the consequences the tariffs will have on U.S. newspapers and the more than 600,000-employee-strong printing and publishing industry in general. The bill would also suspend any action by the Commerce Department and the ITC on newsprint import duties until President Trump would receive the report and certify that the taxes are in the economic interests of the United States. The bipartisan PRINT Act is co-sponsored by Senators Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), Doug Jones (D-Ala.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W. Va.). A very similar bill, introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Kristi Noem (R-S.D.), has more than 20 co-sponsors. Go to the full story on Printing Impressions' website: Printing Impressions . SOURCE: Printing Impressions Yes, we're still talking about Anna "Delvey" Sorokin, the illustrious pseudo-socialite who took NYC weird news by storm this spring. In the latest development of Sorokin's charming and bizarre saga in which the the Russian-born woman successfully masqueraded as a German heiress, infiltrated NYC's socialite class, and swindled banks, hotels, businesses, friends and strangers out of hundreds of thousands of dollars Page Six has reported that Sorokin once freeloaded off of rival iconic scammer, Fyre Fest co-founder Billy McFarland for months. McFarland is the man behind 2017's music festival and viral Internet disaster, which was marketed as a "life-changing" luxury Caribbean music festival experience, but ended up stranding a herd of rich millennials in the Bahamas but with cancelled acts, leaky tents and iconically bleak cheese sandwiches. According to the gossip column, the pair of swindlers go way back 2013 when, during the height of Sorokin's hoax, Sorokin innocently asked to crash at the Wooster Street headquarters of McFarland's sketchy credit card company Magnises for a few days. Related | Meet Neff Davis, Anna Delvey's Only Friend In New York Page Six's source recalls: "She hung out and went to parties. She was there, just sitting all the time." Sorokin made herself at home in McFarland's office and reportedly had "Balenciaga bags and clothes everywhere." A few days turned into a few months and Sorokin essentially became a parasite at the company's headquarters, refusing to move out when repeatedly asked by McFarland's team. According to Page Six, McFarland was too "polite and non-confrontational" to demand that she leave. To resolve the issue, the business ultimately ended up moving from the office into a townhouse as a desperate, last-resort effort. "That's the only way to get her out! She had been there for months!" explained Page Six's source. Sorokin has been in custody on Riker's Island since being charged with grand larceny by the Manhattan DA's office last year, while McFarland had pled guilty to fraud related Fyre Festival and is awaiting sentencing. The story of one scammer fearlessly ripping off another has a poetic justice that is almost too delicious to be true, and now we're even more excited to see Shonda Rhimes' Netflix documentary about Sorokin's escapades. Maybe Adam DeVine will play McFarland? I can see it. Photo via BFA Cuba is the latest Latin American country to be on its way to legalizing the institution of same-sex marriage. Preceding it are countries like Argentina, Brazil, and Colombia. Previously defined by decades of homophobic policies and cultural attitudes, Cuba is currently in the process of revising its constitution with this addendum, describing same-sex marriage as "the consensual union of two people, regardless of gender." The update to the constitution, which is called the Magna Carta, replaces an earlier definition of marriage: "the voluntary union between a man and a woman." Legislators within the Cuban Parliament voted unanimously to uphold the referendum, which will be put into the constitution later this year, The Guardian reports. Related | Charli XCX Interviews Brazilian Pop Star Pabllo Vittar Before the vote, debate in favor of and against the proposed same-sex amendment arose, creating a rare and open dialogue around LGBTQ rights in the Communist-ruled country. Five of Cuba's evangelical sects joined forces to create an open letter last month, pronouncing the sanctity of marriage as something "exclusively the union of man and woman." They went on to write that "the ideology of gender has no relation with our culture, our struggles, or with the historic leaders of the Revolution." After the Communist Revolution, there were slow moves toward more liberal cultural attitudes involving the LGBTQ community. Cuban ally, the Soviet Union, made their own attempts to quash LGBTQ rights, alongside Fidel Castro's own enforcement of policies such as the mandate that effeminate men often seen as an abomination within traditional Latin culture under the thumb of the Catholic Church undergo conversion-aversion therapy. By the end of the 1970s, same-sex consenting relationships over the age of 16 had been decriminalized, led by the People's Supreme Court of Cuba, which gave rise to a series of still more inclusive actions, including the presence of literature and television shows with gay subject matter, and free sex-reassignment surgeries for transgender individuals by 2008. Additionally over the years, the country's capital Havana has seen a rapidly growing attendance for its annual gay pride parade, combating homophobia and transphobia. Related | Paris Hilton Interviews Pop Star Kim Petras By Fidel Castro's own admission in his autobiography, My Life, he took responsibility, and blamed Spanish machismo for the prevalence of homophobic culture in Cuba, urging for the acceptance of gay people. The former leader, who died in 2016 at age 91, later gave interviews where he called the persecution of gay people "a great injustice." Photo via Getty From its roots in New York and Japan to a proliferation around the world thanks to the connectedness of social media, intricate, over-the-top nail art is alive and well and has never been more inventive. Each day, Nailed It will highlight a manicure or style we love, from both celebrity and underground nail artists. Glow-in-the-dark Catholic Glamour Login Instagram The Met Gala: Heavenly Bodies may have brought the ostentatious style of old world Catholicism to the forefront of fashion's hive mind, but celebrity nail artist Britney Tokyo (who counts Kylie Jenner and Rita Ora as fans) has been creating glamorous odes to the religion's iconography for years. The above manicure comes complete with a glow-in-the-dark base so your devotion will always show. Photo via Instagram Last year Patently Apple reported twice (01 and 02) on Apple being in talks with China's display maker BOE. Last night MarketWatch published a report titled "China's BOE eyes Apple as it seeks to prove its advanced-manufacturing prowess." The report notes that "China's campaign to become a global power in advanced manufacturing is playing out at a high-tech factory in the Sichuan province, where engineers are aiming to supply display screens for Apple Inc.'s top-tier iPhones." The report doesn't advance previous public reports on the matter. Source: MarketWatch - WSJ 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. As Water Crisis Continues, Fresh Protests In Southern Iran 07/23/18 Source: Radio Farda Residents of the southern Iranian city of Borazjan have blocked the main road leading into the city as part of a protest over water shortages, state-run Iran Labor News Agency (ILNA) reports. Some People in Borazjan, Iran Demonstrated against Lack of Water. "On Sunday morning, July 22, several residents of Borazjan held rallies in the city center to protest the shortage of water," the provincial representative to the Supreme Council of Provinces, Ali Akbar Fatemi, told ILNA, adding that "security forces stepped in to disperse the demonstrators." Protesters, according to Fatemi, set off a huge blaze at the city's point-of-entry and disrupted the traffic for half an hour before the governor, police, and authorities affiliated with the city's water and sewage department stepped in and restored order. The county deputy for political and social affairs, Javad Loqmanzadeh, said peace and order was restored after protestors cooperated with the authorities, who promised to meet their demands. A provincial official in Borazjan has admitted that since the beginning of the spring the water supply to the area has decreased by 30,000 cubic meters daily. There are reports alleging the drop in supply is due to misuse of the water by influential agricultural land owners. Based on local reports, the taps in Borazjan have been dry for several days, and residents blame corruption and mismanagement by local authorities for the water crisis. Borazjan, the capital of Dashtestan County, has experienced widespread protests against water shortages in recent days. Thousands of Borazjan residents poured into the streets July 7 to protest water shortages and what they described as the "chaotic" distribution of water. Chanting slogans against local authorities, the protesters assembled in the city's main square, where they demanded the governor take action. The governor's deputy and the city's Friday prayer leader tried to deliver a speech, but angry protestors forced them to flee. Footage widely circulated in social media show that despite the presence of hundreds of security forces, the demonstrators did not allow the Friday prayer leader, mid-ranking cleric Hassan Mosleh, to deliver his speech. Mosleh had earlier called upon the authorities to address the water shortages. "Either the governor steps in, or we are going to raise hell!" one protester insisted. Dashtestan's representative to the parliament, Mohammad Baqir Sa'adat, has accused the county's authorities of incompetence and procrastination regarding the water crisis, insisting, "The people's anger is justified. They are even entitled to insult the authorities." According to Sa'adat, the water crisis was caused by the recent installation of more than thirty powerful water pumps on a nearby river by the owners of several orchards in the neighboring city of Kazeroon. Sa'adat accused the orchard owners of illegally irrigation their fields at night. "The governor of Kazeroon, originally from the city's suburbs, has so far ignored an official order to dismantle the powerful pumps," Sa'adat maintained. Meanwhile, the New York based Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) reported, "A civilian who was shot dead by the state security forces during the recent demonstration in Borazjan (Bushehr province in southern Iran) against the city's water crisis, was identified as Iman Ahmadi." The government's official news agency, IRNA, had earlier confirmed violent clashes between protesters and security forces July 8. In recent months, people in many cities and agricultural areas have been protesting water shortages and environmental problems in Iran. The government has adopted the double-track (semester/sandwich) system to increase enrollment under its flagship programme, the Free Senior High School. This was revealed by Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh, the Minister of Education at a sensitization programme organized for Metro/Municipal/District Directors of Education, Heads of Senior High School and Public Relation Officers of the Education Sector on the theme No qualified child be left out on 21st July, 2018 at the Accra Girls Senior High School in Accra. Briefing participants, Dr Prempeh emphasized that the exigencies of the situation call for a shift system to be introduced where there will be adequate use of the existing classrooms. According to Dr Prempeh, a gap of 181,993 exists which calls for the double-track school calendar system to absorb students. He added that as it stands now only 90,000 spaces are available for the 2018 September intake. The new programme creates a calendar of two semesters in a year for the SHS 1 class containing 81 days per each semester and 41 days of vacation for a sandwich class. He further added that the new system will run in all the categories A and B Senior high schools in the country. A software has been developed to change the timetable to make room for the new system. The Minister was optimistic that over 8,000 teachers are being recruited to handle the sandwich classes because teachers would not be deprived of their holidays. He claimed that the new system was an adoption and not invention since few countries including Kenyan, Japan, Costa Rica, Germany, Australia and United States are already running the system. The new system reduces the current contact hours and so a remedial school is also instituted on Saturdays for English and Mathematics where government is committed to pay 50 Ghana cedis per student per semester as an academic intervention. Heads of schools would also be supported with incentives for supervision on Saturdays. In all, a total of 323,061,739.00 is earmarked to cushion the remedial school for the year. The double-track system was proposed by Professor Jophus Anamuah-Mensah, an educationist and a former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Education Winneba, saying it is the best way to go. Source: 3news 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 video of Angel Obinim, in which he delivered a woman, Deborah Adam who says she has two children with the popular Justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana, Atuguba from bedwetting has popped up. According to the womans testimony, she traveled to New Jersey in the United States to visit one of her sons. She was given room to sleep, only to wake up the next day to see urine all over the bed. She continued that, her sons wife noticed her embarrassment but she couldnt gather the courage to ask her. For something she thought it was a normal thing, happened again the next day. The 56-year-old woman decided to visit a doctor to seek a solution to her bedwetting but to no avail. She returned to Ghana and still, the bedwetting continued until she tuned in to a television to pray with Obinim. According to her, whiles watching one of Obinims deliverance service on TV, the man of God called out people who wet their bed to come forward. At home and watching the TV with faith, she also stood up and after Obinims prayers, she received her portion of the deliverance. To test if indeed, she has been delivered, she traveled again to the States, slept at where she slept at her sons house but this time, didnt bedwets. And for three years now, she has not been bedwetting. The woman added that, when she is in her house, she doesnt bed wets but it only happens when she visits her son. The more reason why she felt it is not physical but a spiritual problem Watch the video below; Source: ghpage.com/youtube Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Deputy Ambassador of Ghana to China, Dr Charles Dwamena, has reminded Ghanaian students of their unique roles as Ambassadors of Ghana in their various communities and schools in the Peoples Republic of China. Dr Charles Dwamena, who was guest speaker at the 30th Annual Congress of the National Union of Ghana Students, NUGS China, used the occasion to encourage Ghanaian students to put up the best of behaviors in their various schools and communities. He advised the student to take advantage of their international student statuses to build and develop comprehensive networks of friends from around the globe as these networks would be their most valuable assets in the future. Whiles reiterating the need for them to focus on their studies, he advised them to be on the look out for opportunities and leverage their Chinese Guanxi to drive investment into the country to support the industrial revolution being spearheaded by H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addos Government. Touching on measures the Ghana Embassy is putting in place to address their concerns, Dr Dwamena informed the students that Government would be setting up a Consulate-General in Guangzhou in the coming weeks, to attend to the Consular needs of Ghanaians in the southern part of China. He used the occasion to advise students not to engage in illegal work as the Chinese authorities have intensified their resolve to remove all foreigners engaged in illegal employment. He said Mission will from next year be liaising with the National Service ISecretariat to facilitate the National Service registration of students who graduate from China. According to the Deputy Ambassador, about half of the over 6,000 Ghanaian Students studying in China are medical students and that there is the need for a sustainable effort aimed at getting this huge pool of medical professionals to return home to contribute to the Ghana Beyond Aid agenda. To this end, he informed the gathering that the Embassy will from next year be coordinating with the appropriate authorities in Ghana to ensure that final year medical students are encouraged and assisted to return home to do their one year internship at the Tamale Teaching Hospital after which students would be posted there for the Housemanship training. He stressed that such an arrangement would be a Win-Win for both students and the hospital as both sides stand to benefit greatly. The CEO (Ag.) of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, Dr David Kolbila, who was present at the congress with a team made up of the Medical Director of the Hospital, Dr Abass Adam and the Head of the Ophthalmology Department Dr Gilbert Bonsaana, affirmed the Hospitals readiness to receive and train final year medical students during their one year internship. He informed the gathering that his team was in China to commence negotiations towards the setting up of the Sino-Ghana Joint Eye and Vision Centre at the Tamale Teaching Hospital. According to him, the center, when completed, would position the TTU as the leading Centre for eyecare not only in Ghana but also in west Africa . Source: Emmanuel Akorl/Parliamentary Correspondent, Peace FM 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 Scores of passengers are reportedly injured with at least six in critical condition after two buses collided head at Potsin Junction on the Accra-Cape Coast highway Sunday evening. Police explain the accident occurred near an area called Mustapha Plus around 7 pm when a White Sprinter Benz bus with the Registration number AC 1756-17, travelling from Asante-Bekwai made an illegal overtaking and in the process collided with another Mercedes Benz Sprinter with the registration number GT 3404- 17 travelling from Accra to Mankesim. Gomoa Dominase District Police Commander, ASP Paul Ankan, told Adom News Kofi Adjei the critically injured persons have been sent to the Winneba Trauma and Specialist Hospital for intensive care. According to the police commander, only prayers can save them. ASP Ankan also called on the Minister of Roads and Highways to put rumble strips on the Kasoa-Cape Coast highway to quell further road accidents. Sunday evenings gory accident is just one of the many road crashes, sometimes fatal accidents, that happens on the Accra-Cape Coast stretch. More than 60 percent of all the road accidents that struck in 2017 happened on the single-lane road that leads to the Central Region. Source: adomonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has directed the Electoral Commission (EC) to organise Referendum this year for the creation of proposed six new regions. The President announced this at the weekend at Nalerigu during a durbar of chiefs and people of the Mamprugu Traditional area as part of his three-day tour of the Northern Region. He said there were substantial demand for the creation of new regions when he assumed office, which he referred such demands to the Council of State to look into. He mentioned the proposed regions as Western North to be curved out of the Western region, Bono East and Ahafo to be created out of the Brong Ahafo region, North East and Savannah as well as the Oti region be separated from the Northern and the Volta regions. "Last Thursday before I left Accra to begin the Northern tour, I wrote a letter to the Electoral Commission (EC) asking them to organise Referendum this year according to the recommendation of the Brobbey Commission in the affected areas to determine whether the people really support the creation of the proposed regions", he said. He hoped that the EC would be able to organise the Referendum as soon as possible so that by December this year the process of creating the proposed regions would be completed. The President, however, indicated that before the regions would be created, 50 per cent of eligible voters in the affected areas must turn out to vote, which 80 per cent of the 50 per cent turn out must vote yes. He said the creation of new regions would improve the quality of governance in the country and would bring governance closer to the people for socio-economic development. Na Bohagu Mahami Sheriga, the King of the Mamprugu Traditional Area commended the President for the vision to create the North East Region, which would improve local governance in the country. He said the government's social intervention projects such as the planting for food and Jobs, the one district, one dam, the free Senior High School programme among others within the first year of the government was commendable. He said the East Mamprusi district had a lot iron ore deposits that must be explored through the one district one factory policy to extract the minerals to give the country more revenue. Na Sheriga appealed to President Akufo-Addo to also embark on infrastructural improvement especially roads and educational projects for the area to befit its status. The President also made whistle stops at Bunkprugu, Yunyoo, Nankpanduri and Nabia where he assured the people of his vision of transforming the country. Source: Peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The loyal ladies of Ghana has condemned the act of brutality meted out to a nursing mother at the Shiashie branch of Midland Savings and Loans Company. In a statement signed by Perpetual Lomokie Akwada, the loyal ladies of Ghana said it is their strongest conviction as Loyal Ladies, that no amount of provocation or abuse can warrant such an abhorrent act from a Police Officer, and they, therefore, condemn in the strongest possible terms this violent and inhumane attack on the woman and baby. We know the Ghana Police Service is a decent institution, and we do commend the swift action taken by the Police Administration in response to this sad event. We look forward to an outcome of justice and compensation for the victim and also severe sanctions for the perpetrator to serve as a deterrent.- the statement further stated. Press Release by NPP LOYAL LADIES The loyal ladies of Ghana note with horror and despair a video on social media, of a police officer brutally assaulting a citizen of Ghana, a woman holding a baby. It is our strongest conviction as Loyal Ladies, that no amount of provocation or abuse can warrant such an abhorrent act from a Police Officer, and we, therefore, condemn in the strongest possible terms this violent and inhumane attack on the woman and baby. It is also most unfortunate that this heinous crime was perpetrated by a police officer, who is expected to exhibit the highest level of Professionalism AT ALL TIMES and be the number one protector of citizens. This action of physical abuse against the woman and baby by a uniformed officer of the Ghana Police Service is totally unacceptable, unprofessional and inhumane. Just as the police work against instant mob justice, and expect citizens to respect the rights of criminals even when caught red-handed, we also expect an even higher standard of application of rule of law from them as the frontline law enforcement agency. That said, we know the Ghana Police Service is a decent institution, and we do commend the swift action taken by the Police Administration in response to this sad event. We look forward to an outcome of justice and compensation for the victim and also severe sanctions for the perpetrator to serve as a deterrent. We also note with shock the non-reaction of staff of the Midland Bank, who stood by and did nothing as the woman was violently attacked by the police officer. We call on the management of the bank to investigate and sanction the staff, who in complete negligence of their responsibility of care towards their customers looked on with tacit approval as the horrible event unfolded. The Loyal Ladies solidly stands with this woman, and all others who have suffered any form of physical and verbal abuse by the very people we expect protect us as citizens. As champions of democracy with a keen interest in protecting the rights of the vulnerable in society, we the Loyal Ladies do condemn this action by the police officer, not only because the alleged victim is a woman, but most importantly because the Police has sworn an important oath of service to protect lives and property of citizens at all times. We as a law abiding citizens call on the government of Ghana to ensure that personnel of the Ghana Police Service adhere to this Service Promise AT ALL TIMES. We look forward to swift action from all state institutions to ensure the safety of the woman and baby and also ensure that the perpetrator and all accomplices face the full rigors of the law. Signed Perpetual Lomokie Akwada 0209119315 Amo Suzzane 0243818034 Adwoa Pomaah Sanwu 0548129296 Zainab Suraka 0558793201 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 President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has named the boss of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), Jean Adukwei Mensah, as the new chairperson of the Electoral Commission. Her appointment follows the removal from office last month of the former Chairperson of the EC, Mrs Charlotte Osei, and the two deputies, Mr. Amadu Sulley and Mrs. Georgina Opoku Amankwah, by President Akufo-Addo, after the Committee established by the Chief Justice, Justice Sophia Akuffo, to investigate petitions brought against them, recommended their removal. A statement signed by the Chief of Staff Frema Opare, also named Mr. Samuel Tettey together with Dr. Eric Asare Bossman, as Deputy Chairpersons and Ms. Adwoa Asuama Abrefa, as a Member of the Commission "President Akufo-Addo is hopeful that the Council of State will discharge its constitutional duty expeditiously, to enable hint make these critical appointments to this very important institution of State," the statement added. Below is the full statement BRIEF PROFILES Mrs. Jean Adukwei Mensah Mrs. Jean Adukwei Mensa is currently the Executive Director of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), and Co-ordinator of the Ghana Political Parties Programme. She is a lawyer by profession, and has carved a niche for herself in the field of policy research and advocacy. She has been involved in the development of policies such as the Presidential Transition Act of 2012; the Revised 1992 Constitution of Ghana (draft); the Political Parties Funding Bill; and the Revised Political Parties Bill. In 2010, she served as a Commissioner of 1992 Constitution Review Commission, and is currently a member of the Government Committee tasked with preparing the Affirmative Action Bill. She is married with three children. Mr Samuel Tettey Mr. Samuel Tettey is currently the Director, Electoral Services (Elections) at the Electoral Commission, a position he has held since January 2014. He has held several positions in the Electoral Commission, including District Electoral Officer in the Awutu/Effutu/Senya District, and Central Regional Director of the EC, a position he held from 2005 to 2011. He has been a member of many Election Observer Missions to countries such as the Kingdom of Lesotho, Guinea and Liberia. He is married with three children. Dr Eric Asare Bossman Dr. Eric Asare Bossman is currently the Head of the Department of Political Science at the University of Ghana, Legon. He holds a Master of Arts Degree in International Affairs from Ohio University, and, also, has a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Political Science from West Virginia University. He is the author of several policy papers in the areas of international politics, democracy in Ghana, and has teaching and research interests in the fields of Comparative Public Policy, Democratic Development, Public Policy Analysis, Human Rights, International Security, Globalisation, and Forced Migration. Ms Adwoa Asuama Abrefa Ms Adwoa Asuama Abrefa is a corporate legal practitioner, with specialisation in land/property acquisitions, corporate law, and corporate governance. She is currently the General Manager, Legal and Corporate Affairs, at Cirrus Oil Services Limited, and holds an LLM Master of Laws Degree in Oil and Gas, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Law and Political Science from the University of Ghana, Legon. She is married with one child. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Communication team member of the opposition NDC has stated that the blame for the police officers assault in the banking hall of Midland Savings and Loans Bank should be laid at the feet of the president of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo. Ghanaians are still deliberating on the viral video of a police officer, Fredrick Amanor assaulting Madam Patience Sarfo after she went to the Midland Savings and Loans to retrieve her own money deposited there. Following the outcry, the police officer has been arrested and the donations have been pouring in for the victim, Madam Sarfo. Reacting to the viral video on UTV, Sammy Gyamfi condemn the action of the police officer, he also called on the police to ensure he is sacked from the service. He also called on them to prosecute and jail the officer to serve as a warning. Touching on the state of security in the country, Sammy Gyamfi revealed since President Akufo-Addo became president, there has been general break down of law and order. Sammy Gyamfi claims the security officers are no more discipline and they do what they like because they know Akufo Addo and his appointees do not have the courage and moral right to condemn them. To him, the recent ruthless shoot-to-kill proposal put forward by a leading member of the ruling government as antidote to ending the galamsey menace which had brought a lot of destruction to the environment, particularly water bodies, is the bane of most atrocities by the police. WATCH VIDEO BELOW Source: ghpage.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video A 17-year-old Junior High School student has impregnated his former class teacher who is 33-years-old according to report from Zambian Accurate. The two according to sources are set to walk down the aisle as soon as the boy is done with school later this year. The boy we are informed got transferred from his former school which happens to be a government school where he was in the same class with his yet-to-be wife to a private school to enable him writes his final exams. The teacher took to social media and posted I know i will be criticized..but I dont mind because I started loving this boy, my hubby to be in 2014 when he was in Grade 8 and its me who has been meeting his school fees, she wrote on Facebook. My love for him is unique, she added. Source: ghpage.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video This image made from video released by the Israeli Defence Forces on Sunday, July 22, 2018 shows Israeli soldiers on hand as family members of the White Helmets load into buses to Jordan. The call to get ready came at night. In the raging war zone of southwestern Syria, with enemy government forces on the march, the 98 White Helmets were told to bring spouses, children and but a few belongings to two collection points. Fabled rescuers themselves now in need of rescue, they embarked on a hair-raising journey through Israel, a supposed enemy, enroute to reluctant haven in Jordan, a country already burdened with multitudes of refugees. One woman gave birth along the way, many colleagues were left behind to a fate uncertain, and Syria called the multinational operation by several Western powers a crime. (Israeli Defence Forces via AP) Here's something that may surprise you: Switching to Comcast can save you money. The cable and broadband giant, often criticized for its rising bills and fees, has one of the best deals for cellphone service on the market if you don't use a lot of data. There are some caveats. You have to be an existing Comcast internet customer to subscribe. And heavy use on multiple lines erases Comcast's advantage. Xfinity Mobile, launched in May 2017, is a relatively new entrant to the cell phone market and is avidly trying to build up the business as it incurs substantial losses. It offers two options: a monthly $45-per-line unlimited talk, text and data plan, and a pay-as-you-go plan for $12 per gigabyte. Comcast also allows customers to mix and match plans on one account, meaning parents can choose pay-as-you-go plans while signing up their kids for unlimited data. Comcast's unlimited plan is the cheapest single-line offer compared to the major wireless providers. Verizon, for example, charges $75 for a single-line unlimited plan. AT&T and T-Mobile both bill $70, while Sprint's costs $60, according to offers on their websites. Xfinity Mobile's unlimited plan remains a bargain until several phones are added. Sprint sells three unlimited lines for $120, compared with $135 through Xfinity. At four unlimited lines, AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile all charge $160, while Xfinity will bill $180. But Comcast officials say many consumers don't need that much data. Randall Hounsell, Comcast's senior vice president of product and marketing for Xfinity Mobile, said roughly 60 percent of smartphones use less than five gigabytes of data, while a third use less than two gigabytes. "In a family, there's usually a couple devices in there that don't need unlimited," Hounsell said. Giving consumers the flexibility to mix unlimited with per-gigabyte plans is "our smart way of allowing families to save," he said. Verizon does not allow account holders to have some lines on unlimited data while others separately share a data plan. An AT&T spokesperson said the company does give customers that option, but acknowledged that such an offer "isn't online anywhere." T-Mobile offers only an unlimited plan. Sprint's website doesn't mention a mix-and-match option and did not respond to a request for comment. Comcast customers can switch lines from a per-gigabyte plan to unlimited data at any point during the month if they find themselves using more data than expected. An Xfinity Mobile app allows users to track their data usage and easily make changes to their account. Xfinity's $12 per gigabyte plan is also cheaper than the competition in several instances. For example, a Comcast account using three gigabytes of data per month would cost $36, less expensive than the $50 that AT&T and Verizon would charge. Again, T-Mobile does not have a shared data plan, so at a minimum you'd have to pay $70 for unlimited data. Sprint sells two gigabytes for $40, but you'd need to buy the $60 unlimited plan to reach three gigabytes. There are cheaper data plans out there in some specific scenarios. For example, AT&T sells five gigabytes for $50 while Xfinity bills $60, and Verizon charges $70 for eight gigabytes compared to $96 through Xfinity. But Comcast doesn't charge access fees for up to five phones, while both AT&T and Verizon impose $20 per phone access fees. When factoring in those fees, Xfinity Mobile is still a better deal in those cases.. There are no contracts with Xfinity Mobile and no penalties for canceling, though customers who pay for their phones in monthly installments would have to clear their remaining balances upon quitting, a Comcast spokesperson said. Xfinity Mobile runs over Verizon's wireless network under a 2011 deal that lets Comcast resell Verizon's wireless spectrum. Comcast is also utilizing its 18 million WiFi hotspots, so consumers don't always have to burn through their cellular data. Comcast's move into the smartphone business is expected to cost the company $1.2 billion during its first 18 months. Comcast added 196,000 smartphone subscribers during the first quarter of 2018 and lost $189 million on the business. Comcast executives have said Xfinity Mobile will be profitable if the business gets larger. As of April, Xfinity Mobile has 577,000 subscribers. The service is available only to Comcast's 26 million internet customers. Walter Piecyk, a BTIG analyst who tracks the telecommunications industry, said Comcast hasn't dented the wireless market yet and would need to add about 325,000 subscribers per quarter for the industry to take notice. "It's interesting and certainly a compelling service for Comcast customers, but they haven't taken enough customers from existing wireless operators to merit a competitive response to their actions," he said. Piecyk described Comcast's move into the wireless market as both an offensive and defensive strategy. He said it helps the company hold onto internet customers and prepare for how 5G mobile networks will enable wireless competitors to encroach on the home internet business, while also generating free cash flow once the company builds up its customer base. "Comcast would not have to achieve much market share in order to realize significant free cash flow from a successful wireless business," he said. SEI is integrating blockchain into hedge fund and alternative asset management business, using the technology to track investors' documentation in the funds. (Credit: SEI) Read more Say you're a hedge-fund manager, and people want to give you money. Investors have to fill out a hundred-page paper document by hand, sign it in ink, and mail it back. They may also need to cough up a copy of their driver's license or passport, proof of funds, bank wiring instructions and account numbers, again, much of that on paper, also mailed, faxed, or scanned. Weeks elapse, mistakes are common, and both sides waste time when new money could be invested. What if there were a faster way? What if technology could track every document, every account number, every transaction, kept securely and traceable forever? That's the promise of blockchain, and SEI Investments, based in Oaks, Montgomery County, is now offering such software for its Wall Street clients. First, what is blockchain? Think of an accountant's old-fashioned paper ledger, the kind Santa uses to track naughty and nice children, but a ledger existing only virtually. Every time Santa adds or deletes someone, the ledger generates "code," or blockchain, that verifies each boy or girl, name, age, and address, updated every minute of every day. The public can see Santa's blockchain ledger but can't change the list. Another good description comes from colleague Joe DiStefano. He described blockchain as a digital ledger program that allows a network of verified users to update data quickly without a central authority or intermediary. Think Excel-type spreadsheets, linked, and sped up for the smartphone era. Sounds amazing but does it work? SEI, which employs over 3,600 full-time workers, is one of many financial firms configuring a blockchain option: SEI Trade, its in-house trading software, uses blockchain in wealth management, although for now it's strictly for eight Wall Street clients. SEI Trade helps investment managers solve the paperwork problem, tracking money going in and out of their hedge funds, private equity funds, and other vehicles. In January, SEI also launched the SEI Blockchain Center of Excellence, enabling employees to take a 13-week course that builds an in-house team of certified experts "to explore use cases for this emerging technology," said spokesperson Leslie Wojcik. In March, SEI signed an agreement with Synechron, a consulting firm, to use its blockchain curriculum to train SEI's internal team of experts, said Wojcik. So far, 90 SEI employees have completed the Synechron training. Of course, hurdles remain. Chief among them: that the blockchain is slow, handling an estimated seven transactions per second, compared with 2,000 per second for a typical credit card network. The blockchain consumes massive amounts of energy. Questions remain whether a blockchain can satisfy audit and record-keeping requirements while protecting confidentiality and maintaining cybersecurity. So, Wall Street is testing the blockchain concept internally at first. "Each piece of data in the investor process generates computer code," said Jim Warren, head of solutions strategy and development in SEI's investment manager services division. He leads the team responsible for developing blockchain-based SEI Trade to track user setup, investor subscription documents for hedge funds and private equity funds, wiring and bank information. SEI Trade digitally records every transaction in a fund for an investor or manager how much invested, by an "onshore" or "offshore" investor, and which bank is wiring in and out of the fund all tracked via blockchain. "We started building the trading platform in 2014 and 2015, and went fully live in 2016," he said, before making it available to external clients in January 2017. So far, eight SEI Trade clients have signed on and have experienced "no issues," the spokeswoman said. Wall Street has lagged behind other sectors using blockchain but has much to gain from the new technology. SEI is also looking at using artificial intelligence to track investor data already inside SEI, including a computer model predicting redemptions in underlying funds. It's a way of using behavioral finance to predict when investors will pull money out of the market. SEI isn't alone on the blockchain frontier. As the Inquirer has reported, Philadelphia-area companies trying out blockchain include Vanguard Group, the Malvern investment giant; the Institutes, the Willistown Township-based insurance-industry group that wants insurers to embrace the new technology; the upstart Delaware Board of Trade in Wilmington; and area blockchain start-ups, including Quickblocks (accounting), Clinical Blockchain (drug trials), Amino Payments (advertising), and Alpha Point (securities trading). Insurance companies are also pursuing the use of blockchain. The quantitative trading firm Susquehanna International Group is already doing a lot of trading in blockchain-backed currencies, according to the New York Times. Some Wall Street firms prefer to invest in blockchain start-ups. This year, Kadena, a blockchain platform provider, raised $12 million from Devonshire Investors, a private firm affiliated with Fidelity Investments, and Susquehanna International Group. Susquehanna also invested $5 million in the blockchain start-up TigerWit. In the last decade, Susquehanna has invested $1.3 billion in over 200 companies. In August 2017, Delaware passed a law that the start-up Symbiont helped write, recognizing blockchain as an acceptable form of record-keeping for Delaware-registered corporations. They can now issue shares and track ownership records using Symbiont blockchain technology. Symbiont is a four-year-old start-up, based in New York City. It builds blockchain platforms for financial-services clients. Symbiont is "on a very long road map" with the index-fund giant Vanguard Group to develop several blockchain products, Symbiont CEO Mark Smith said. The first automated the distribution of equity index data. Vanguard is now moving a pilot program into production, in which "they deploy our blockchain and smart contracts to solve problems with corporate action data," Smith said. Index providers such as Standard & Poor's and the Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 deliver updates in an antiquated, manual way, and "Vanguard wanted to modernize that process. We'll have a few more successful deployments and hopefully in 2019 over time wind down their previous methods of getting index data," Smith said. For example, Vanguard manually pulled data, sometimes by having a live person monitor those index sites all day, and then reformatted the data to send to its traders in-house. "Now we help them do a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week automatic download to the traders themselves. So they have all they need to buy and sell," Smith said. "As an owner of a Vanguard fund, we lower costs for you." By the Numbers SEI Investments (symbol:SEIC) provides investment processing, management, and operations solutions that help corporations, financial institutions, financial advisors, and ultra-high-net-worth families create and manage wealth. As of March 31, 2018, SEI manages, advises or administers $869 billion in hedge, private equity, mutual fund and separately managed assets, including $335 billion in assets under management and $530 billion in client assets under administration. SEI was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Oaks, Pa. "They shouldn't have given us uniforms if they didn't want us to be an army." June/Offred, "The Handmaid's Tale" By now, Vice President Mike Pence probably has at least a vague idea of why women in red habits and protest signs keep turning up at his public appearances, even if he's never seen an episode of Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale or read the 1985 Margaret Atwood novel on which it's based. At the very least, he's probably figured out that they're not nuns. Or happy with him. Certainly the hundred women scheduled to join protesters outside Philadelphia's Union League on Monday evening aren't braving July humidity, and potential thunderstorms, in handmade handmaid habits because they want to look cool. Red means one thing on an electoral map, but in Gilead, the dystopian, post-U.S. society in which The Handmaid's Tale is set, it's the color that denotes a class of women who've lost all civil rights and who've been turned into breeding stock, forced to bear children for a ruling class that can no longer reproduce on its own and uses religion to justify ritualized rape. The Hulu series, which just ended its second season, has been tough viewing for anyone who's inclined to see parallels between the events leading up to the creation of Gilead and present-day attacks on women's ability to control their fertility, and on LGBT rights. It's hard to imagine anyone who doesn't see, or care about, such parallels watching it at all. >>READ MORE: Hulu's 'Handmaid's Tale' is the one show right now that refuses to be a distraction Call it a failure of imagination, but I don't see Pence and his wife, Karen, whiling away a free hour watching June (Elisabeth Moss), whose handmaid name is Offred, trying to fight the Scripture-spouting patriarchy while wearing an outfit that's at once offensive and strikingly attractive. Out here in what's still America, handmaid's habits are more like the pussy hats of the Women's March on Washington handmade, often by those who wear them, and meant to send a message of solidarity. Their appearance may have no more effect on Pence, or on those who support him, than June and her fellow handmaids have so far had on the institutions that enslave them. They may even look a little silly. (If there's one thing the TV Gilead has going for it that a real one probably wouldn't, it's first-class costume design.) What the handmaid protesters are, though, is visible. The uniform they're briefly adopting might represent the sum of all fears or might just be a convenient cultural reference, but it makes them easy to spot in a crowd. And reminds those who'll get, and appreciate, the allusion that they're not alone. Edubray Ramos (shown in June) had just missed 12 days due to a shoulder injury. Read more Nine days before the trade deadline, one of the Phillies' top relief pitchers is headed to the disabled list. Edubray Ramos left in the sixth inning of the opener of Sunday's doubleheader and was diagnosed with a strained patella tendon in his left knee. Ramos will undergo an MRI exam Monday, at which point the Phillies will know more about the severity of the injury. "It happened the very last pitch when I landed on my left leg," Ramos said through a team translator after the Phillies' 10-2 loss to the San Diego Padres. "I felt that sharp pain in the knee. It was weird." Ramos has a 1.91 ERA, 33 strikeouts and 13 walks in 33 innings over 39 appearances this season. He recently returned from a 12-day absence because of a right shoulder impingement. The Phillies reinstated righthander Luis Garcia from the disabled list before Sunday's nightcap. Garcia has been sidelined since June 13 because of a strained right wrist. The Phillies elected to keep him out through the all-star break to give him additional time to reincorporate his splitter with his fastball and slider. With the trade deadline approaching, the Phillies have considered several relievers, notably Baltimore Orioles lefthander Zach Britton. They scouted New York Mets closer Jeurys Familia before he was dealt to the Oakland A's on Saturday. Righthander Yacksel Rios was recalled from triple-A Lehigh Valley to serve as the 26th player for the finale of the doubleheader. Ronald C. Anderson, a professor and chair of the finance department at Temple's Fox business school, has been appointed interim dean of Fox. Read more The chair of the Temple University business school's department of finance will take over as interim dean in the wake of the rankings scandal, the school announced Monday. Ronald C. Anderson, 59, has been a professor and finance department chair at Temple's Fox school since 2012. His appointment, which also includes leading Temple's School of Sport, Tourism, and Hospitality Management, is expected to last two years. A national search for a replacement will be conducted during the 2019-20 school year, university leaders announced. Anderson replaces Moshe Porat, who was forced out this month after the university released findings of an investigation that showed the school knowingly submitted false rankings data about its online M.B.A. program to U.S. News and World Report. Porat had led the school since 1996. "Ron has led significant growth in the department of finance, which is one of the most popular majors at Temple," Temple president Richard M. Englert said in a statement. "He is an accomplished researcher and a well-regarded teacher who takes great pride in his students' success. His professional experiences, both in industry and academia, are well suited for this critical leadership role." Fox, which is celebrating its centennial this year, enrolls more than 9,000 students and employs more than 225 full-time faculty across nine departments. Temple self-reported its data errors to U.S. News, which earlier this year stripped the school of the No. 1 ranking for its online M.B.A. program. A law firm hired by the university to investigate found that over multiple years, Fox reported inaccurate data concerning the number of entrants who provided GMAT scores, the mean undergraduate GPA of entrants, the offers of admission, and student debt. The firm asserted that the inaccurate data was not limited to the online M.B.A. program, but did not specify the other areas where problems were found. Since then, Temple has moved to put new practices in place to ensure such missteps don't recur. Last week, the school requested that it be removed from another list of school rankings this one by Best Value Schools saying it neither sought nor provided the information to be included in its rankings. "We respectfully request that we not be included in this ranking in any form," Debbie Campbell, Fox senior vice dean, wrote to Best Value Schools. Meanwhile, the state Attorney General's Office has launched a probe into Fox's inaccurate data reporting. One accrediting agency is investigating, another is monitoring. Some students are suing, claiming the reputation of their degree has been harmed. And internally, some professors are questioning how the school became so focused on rankings, while others have complained that the former dean hasn't been treated fairly. Temple's faculty union last week also weighed in in an email to members. "This scandal has damaged the trust that students in and outside of Fox as well as the general public place in our university," said the Temple Association of University Professionals and its president, Steve Newman. The union also took aim at Temple's focus on rankings. "This scandal is in part the result of an unhealthy fixation on rankings that warps the priorities of our university as a whole," Newman wrote. "We understand that rankings matter in recruiting students, but their effect on fiscal and pedagogical decisions at Temple is entirely too strong." Both faculty and the administration should work harder to make sure shared governance is respected, with faculty playing a significant role in the decision-making. And despite the good that Porat did while serving as dean, "he bears responsibility for the practices of the school he oversaw," Newman wrote. Porat remains a tenured member of the faculty. The new dean, Anderson, previously worked at American University and is an expert in internal control systems, corporate governance, and executive compensation, Temple said. Before his academic career, he held positions at Schlumberger Ltd., a Paris- and Houston-based oil field services company. A native of Franklin in Western Pennsylvania, Anderson got both his bachelor's degree in engineering and M.B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh and his doctorate in finance from Texas A&M University. Jonathan Scott, a longtime Fox finance professor and deputy chair of the finance department under Anderson, called Anderson "a person of integrity" who is "transparent" and "has a passion for what he believes in." Faculty have been dismayed about the scandal, he said. "We were just hoping we could get through the process of identifying an interim dean and get on with righting the ship," he said. "Ron is the right person to get us back on track." Left: Christian Coulson in the title role of "Richard II," through Aug. 5 at the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival; Right: Luigi Sottile and Mairin Lee in "Shakespeare in Love," also through Aug. 5. Read more Sometimes presenting plays in juxtaposition can achieve its own artistic effect, especially when they sharply contrast. That is the case in the electric bundling of Shakespeare in Love with Richard II, now running in rotating repertoire at the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival. Our greatest poet is dynamically present, and yet, more elusive than ever. In adapting the 1998 Oscar winning Shakespeare in Love by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, Lee Hall keeps most of the movie's inside jokes and hews to the core story. Young Shakespeare struggles with writer's block. He finds his muse and true love in Viola De Lesseps (glamorous Mairin Lee), an aristocrat who loves theater and flees an arranged marriage with hateful Lord Wessex (Christian Coulson, who played Tom Riddle in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets). Director Patrick Mulcahy (also producing artistic director at PSF) pulls out all the stops. Thanks to Daniel Conway, the set design recreates an Elizabethan theater. With Paddy Cunneen's score in hand, music director Liz Filios uses live musicians and period instruments. Lisa Zinni's costumes fill the stage with swirling color. Mulcahy even trots a little doggy on stage (the queen likes doggies). Luigi Sottile is a strong-voiced Shakespeare frustrated, angry, fearful, brave, amorous, sardonic and you always believe him. But he shares the stage with a wild bunch of characters. Impresario Philip Henslowe (Richard B. Watson) clashes with loan shark Fennyman (Christopher Coucill), while rival entrepreneur Richard Burbage (Christopher Patrick Mullen) and actor Ned Alleyn (Brandon J. Pierce) prance and preen. All manically interact with Will. Yet, this clash of artistic vision, commercial interests, and egos just as easily describes theater today. The romance of Will and Viola intertwines with Will's play, Romeo and Juliet. As an audience member, it is charming to sit behind a shifting fourth wall, watch a play within a play, and the scenes behind the play. But one reason Romeo and Juliet hits the boards at all is because the bard gets so much help. Kit Marlowe (Justin Adams) contributes plot and poetry, Alleyn comes up with the title, and as a practical matter, Queen Elizabeth herself (imperious Starla Benford) becomes a crafty eleventh-hour supporter. What a contrast this show makes with grimly compelling Richard II, often running the same day! Here, all gaiety is banished from the kingdom. Ominous chords of sound designer William Neal replace lilting, strolling players. Lighting designer Eric T. Haugen now startles you with violent flashes of light. Olivera Gajic dresses Richard in brilliant, flowing white, but other players are subdued. And Conway's set design is dominated by a huge sun king emblem, looming over a golden throne. (After Richard's martyrdom, the symbol of Divine Right hangs limply from the ceiling, a mass of broken pieces.) Director Gina Lamparella uses the same actors. Coulson, creates a memorable, ill-fated king. You do not like Richard's callous, supercilious treatment of John of Gaunt (played with injured dignity by Coucill) that sets his downfall in motion. But later he wins your sympathy with his bravery and freedom from bombast in accepting fate. Too accepting. Why does Richard not fight harder to stay in power, or more largely, what does he truly think about Divine Right? The weaker his grip on power, the more soaring his poetry. His final soliloquy rivals anything in Hamlet, ("I have wasted time and now doth time waste me"), and has come to doubt the medieval metaphysic itself, warding off nihilism with art like an Oscar Wilde Decadent. Justin Adams plays Bolingbroke perfectly, pitiless in stealing power with practical action while Richard broods. Earlier, Richard scoffs at usurpers. "An anointed king the breath of worldly men cannot depose." But he collapses into self-pity and hastens his downfall by turning himself into an ironist and an actor-poet. Bolingbroke: "Are you content to resign the crown?" Richard: "Ay, no, no, ay, for I must nothing be." The effect of the two plays together is haunting. Shakespeare in Love is clever and fun-loving, but fictional. We only know the bard through his plays. Yet, his brilliant work is so restless and shape-shifting that no clear idea about the artist emerges. And you come away from the repertoire with an eerie awareness of how little you know about Shakespeare himself. THEATER REVIEW Shakespeare In Love and Richard II Vice President Mike Pence addresses the crowd at the America First Policies event in Rosemont, Ill. Read more When I visit Philadelphia on Monday, I will deliver an important message to the hardworking men and women of the Keystone State: Our agenda is delivering real results and we're just getting started. >>READ MORE: VP Mike Pence to visit Philly Monday to promote GOP's Lou Barletta, tax cuts Simply look at the historic tax cuts that President Trump signed last December. With the strong support of every Pennsylvania Republican in Congress, we enacted the largest tax cuts and reform in American history. Under our tax cuts, the first $24,000 of income for a married couple is now 100 percent income-tax free, nearly double what it was before. We also increased the child tax credit from $1,000 to $2,000. And we cut out the core of ObamaCare by eliminating the individual mandate tax, so Pennsylvanians will no longer be forced to buy government-mandated health insurance you don't want and can't afford. All told, the typical family of four in the Philadelphia area will save nearly $2,500 on their taxes every single year. This is a win for working families. It means a down payment on a car, a new refrigerator, or saving a little bit more for your kids' education. We also cut taxes on job creators of all sizes. Businesses across the Keystone State and around the nation have already responded with renewed investment in their workers. Nationwide, more than 6 million Americans including at least 73,000 Pennsylvanians have received bigger pay raises, better benefits, and cash bonuses because of our tax cuts. But this is just the beginning. As businesses continue to invest their tax-cut savings in their workers, we estimate that annual wages for Pennsylvania families will rise by more than $4,200 in the years ahead. The Keystone State is represented by strong Republican leaders in our nation's capital who helped pass our tax cuts, including Congressman Lou Barletta. Rep. Barletta and his Republican colleagues stood with President Trump to put more money in the pockets of working families and job creators, and they deserve Pennsylvania's thanks. The same can't be said of Sen. Bob Casey. Sen. Casey voted against cutting your taxes and time and again, he votes against the policies that Pennsylvania's working families need. The evidence is clear: Our tax cuts are working for Pennsylvania, and so is the rest of our agenda. >>READ MORE: Trump support a 'double-edged sword' for Barletta's Senate run Working with the Keystone State's conservatives in Congress, President Trump has signed more laws rolling back federal red tape than any president in American history. Our administration has eliminated 22 federal regulations for every new rule put on the books. We've also unleashed affordable American energy to power our factories, farms, and homes. We're standing up to predatory trade practices from countries, such as China, and we're fighting tirelessly to break down trade barriers, so Pennsylvania farmers and manufacturers have new opportunities to expand and export and create more jobs right here in Philadelphia. The results have been extraordinary. Since the Keystone State voted to send President Trump to the White House, America's job creators have added nearly 3.7 million new jobs. More than 115,000 have been created in Pennsylvania alone including more than 10,000 manufacturing jobs. And the unemployment rate in the Philadelphia metro area is now at its lowest level ever recorded. But for all we've done, there's still more work to do. The good people of Pennsylvania can be assured that we will continue to keep our promises to you. President Trump made that clear once again when he nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh to be the next justice on the Supreme Court. Like all the principled jurists who we've put on the federal courts, Judge Kavanaugh will uphold all the God-given liberties enshrined in the Constitution of the United States. Under President Trump, the forgotten men and women of America are forgotten no more. In the days ahead, with the continued support of the hardworking men and women of Pennsylvania, we'll finish what we've started, and we will Make America Great Again. Mike Pence is Vice President of the United States of America. Republican U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Lou Barletta, R-Pa., left, greets Vice President Mike Pence at an America First Policies event in Philadelphia, Monday, July 23, 2018. Read more Vice President Pence came to Philadelphia on Monday to tout President Trump's economic agenda, raise cash for Rep. Lou Barletta's bid for the Senate, and tell voters they need Republicans in Congress to "finish what we've started." His visit, which included speeches at a Center City hotel and a Barletta fundraiser at the Union League, snarled downtown traffic and drew protesters into the early evening. At his first stop, a free event hosted by America First Policies, a nonprofit set up by former Trump campaign staff to support the president's agenda, Pence told the crowd that the administration has kept its promises. He cited tariffs imposed to help American steel companies, the weakening of the individual mandate that was a core of the Affordable Care Act, and the tax cut package Trump signed into law in December. Pence noted that the legislation resulted in 73,000 Pennsylvanians receiving pay raises. That's about 1.3 percent of the state's work force, per U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Under our administration, Philadelphia's unemployment rate has fallen to the lowest level ever reported," the vice president told more than 200 gathered in the ballroom. "The American dream is working again for every American." Philadelphia's unemployment rate was 5 percent as of May; the last time it was that low was in December 2000, according to Federal Reserve statistics. His speech was a locally tailored version of a speech he has been delivering for months from Cleveland in March to Milwaukee in April to Phoenix in May to Columbus in June to St. Louis last Thursday as both parties prepare for midterm elections expected to have profound political implications. Though the event was open to the public, it drew a largely partisan crowd: Cheers went up when Pence cited Trump's morning tweets warning Iran. And as he has done elsewhere, Pence served up the same names and topics for the audiences to boo such as House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Obamacare, and Democratic opposition to Trump's tax cuts. "Let me say it from the heart, any leader who says $1,000 in the pocket of American workers are 'crumbs' is out of touch with the American Public and should never lead the Congress again," he said, citing Pelosi's criticism that the tax-cut raises were little more than crumbs. Pence also knocked Barletta's opponent, Sen. Bob Casey, a Scranton Democrat seeking a third term, who opposed the Trump tax cuts. "He was supposed to be a moderate; he votes more like Bernie Sanders than Pennsylvania," Pence said, as the crowd chanted "Vote him out!" Casey, speaking to reporters in Harrisburg hours before Pence arrived in Philadelphia, criticized the tax reform bill, rattling off statistics that he says prove that the largest tax breaks will come to those who need it the least, rather than to middle-class families. "We missed an opportunity that only comes around every 30 years," he said. The crowd at Pence's gathering had a different take. "The president and vice president have restored our standing in the world and made us proud to be as exceptional as we are," said Jonathan Verlin, a resident of Philadelphia's Art Museum neighborhood, who had Pence autograph a red USA hat he brought to the event. He called Pence's speech "truly awe-inspiring." Bill Kiss of Doylestown brought his own hat this one a "Make America Great Again" hat he bought at Trump Tower in May 2016. "We need to have more people who want to push the agenda forward instead of burying it and trying to destroy the best two men we've had in the White House in a long, long time," Kiss said. His appearance as the headliner at the private campaign fundraiser later at the Union League drew less enthusiastic support. Nearly 200, some in costumes from the dystopian Hulu drama The Handmaid's Tale, crowded near police barricades to protest the vice president and the administration in general. "The Trump-Pence regime must go," the women, donning scarlet dresses and white bonnets, chanted several times in unison. Among them was Patty Murphy, a Chestnut Hill tavern owner. "This is a bad group of men and women running our country," she said. "I'm turning 69 soon, and I never thought we would go back." Pence's visit could be a much-needed boost for Barletta, a Hazleton Republican who has lagged behind Casey in campaign cash. Casey's most recent campaign finance reports show he raised $2.2 million in the second quarter of 2018, and had $9.8 million on hand for the fall contest. Barletta raised $1.3 million in the same period, with $1.6 million in the bank. "I don't need to raise as much money as Sen. Casey," Barletta said Monday in Philadelphia before the vice president arrived. "The person who raises the most money doesn't always win. It's the person with the best ideas and who the people of Pennsylvania want to represent them." Barletta said it was Trump, in a June 2017 phone call, who first urged him to run for the Senate. Trump has committed to campaign for him, said Barletta, who was cochairman of Trump's campaign in Pennsylvania in 2016. That could set up a unique political tension between a president who cherishes campaign rallies and his political team, who might worry about Trump so publicly supporting a candidate who falls short. America First Policies, which also makes independent expenditures in races, reported spending just short of $2 million on two races in 2017, one win and one loss. The group supported Luther Strange, who lost a Republican primary in Alabama for the U.S. Senate to former Judge Roy Moore, who then lost the special election to Democrat Doug Jones. And the group opposed Democrat Jon Ossoff, who lost a special election for the U.S. House to Republican Karen Handel in Georgia. Asked if he feels his political fortunes are linked to Trump's, Barletta said he was looking forward to talking about tax cuts. "That's what matters most to people," he said. "Not so much the president but that his policies are working." Staff writer Claudia Irizarry-Aponte and Liz Navratil of the Harrisburg Bureau contributed to this article. CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article inaccurately referred to Judge Roy Moore. Dennis Parrish, 52, of Vineland, during a detention hearing in the Cumberland County Superior Court, Wednesday, January 4, 2017. Parrish is being charged with the dismembering of a woman's corpse. Read more The South Jersey man accused this month of dismembering and burning the corpse of a Vineland woman was charged with murder on Monday in connection with her death. Prosecutors say Dennis Parrish, 52, of Vineland, tortured and killed Tonya Cook, 32, then dumped her burned and mutilated body in a field in rural Cumberland County. Authorities say they found Cook's blood inside Parrish's home on West Arbor Avenue, along with a hatchet, lighter fluid and mysterious "gold flakes" similar to flakes found on Cook's body. Parrish appeared in Superior Court in Bridgeton on Monday for a detention hearing on the earlier charges of desecrating and moving a corpse. At the hearing, First Assistant Prosecutor Harold Shapiro announced that his office had added a first-degree murder charge against Cook, along with charges of obstruction, tampering with evidence and hindering apprehension. He did not disclose a motive for the alleged crime. As the prosecutor spoke, about a dozen of Cook's family and friends, many dressed in white "Justice for Tonya" T-shirts, looked on. Shapiro asked that Parrish remain jailed without bail. Public Defender JoEllyn Jones did not oppose detention. "I don't think this is necessarily a shock," she said in court. Parrish, who appeared in court with a bandaged right hand, sat quietly and spoke only to answer questions. Shapiro and Jones declined to comment on Parrish's injury. Before the murder charge, Parrish could have been eligible for bail, but the more serious charge shifts the burden of proof to Parrish, who now will have to demonstrate why he should be freed as he awaits trial. Superior Court Judge Joseph Chiarello ruled that Parrish will await trial in the Cumberland County Jail. A passerby discovered Cook's remains in a field off Banks Road near Lummistown Road on July 2, authorities said. Beneath the remains, police said, they found a partially burned cardboard box with an orange sticker that they traced to Allied Van Lines. An investigation revealed that the package had been delivered to Parrish's home, where he lives alone, authorities said. After obtaining a search warrant, investigators said they found blood throughout the house. DNA testing matched the blood to Cook, authorities said. On July 12, Parrish was arrested at a motel in Absecon, where authorities said they found notes on flight information and hotels in Illinois. In the probable cause affidavit for Parrish's arrest, a state trooper said Parrish admitted to torturing Cook. Prosecutors declined to elaborate. The affidavit said purchase receipts and number of sightings of someone matching Parrish's description tied him to the crime. Cook's family and friends declined to comment in court Monday. In an earlier statement released by the law offices of Conrad J. Benedetto, the family thanked law enforcement officers for their work on the case and described the arrest as bittersweet. "The Cook family, and the world, has lost a beautiful soul," they said. Joyce Quaweay, left, 24, was beaten to death in the Germantown home she shared with her then-boyfriend, Aaron Wright, top right, and his friend, Marquis Robinson. Both men are former Temple University police officers. Read more Two former Temple University police officers have been ordered to spend decades behind bars for their roles in the 2016 beating death of a 24-year-old woman in the Germantown home the three shared. Aaron Wright, 49, and Marquis Robinson, 43, had fatally bound and beaten Wright's girlfriend, Joyce Quaweay, as she lay face-down and naked on a weight bench in their kitchen. Common Pleas Court Judge Diana Anhalt on Friday sentenced Wright to 60 to 141 years and Robinson to 55 to 130 years in state prison. Anhalt, after a two-day nonjury trial, on May 2 found the two men guilty of all charges including third-degree murder, conspiracy, and related offenses in Quaweay's death. She also convicted them of aggravated assault and related offenses for the beating of a then-10-year-old girl. During the trial, Assistant District Attorney Chesley Lightsey described the two men as controlling and physically abusive of the women and girls who lived with them, who were regularly beaten for "not following the rules." Lightsey said the two men created a "degrading, diabolical torture chamber" in their home on the 4600 block of Greene Street. On July 29, 2016, the day Quaweay was killed, the two men had bound her at her wrists and ankles on a weight bench in their home, where the two children she had with Wright also lived and where other children also stayed. Using a police baton, the two men repeatedly beat Quaweay, according to testimony at the trial by a 12-year-old girl. The girl, who was 10 in July 2016, said she and her younger sister, then 6, stayed with Wright when their mother, Wright's ex-girlfriend, worked at night. The 12-year-old also testified that she had been beaten and handcuffed by the two men and had seen Robinson's girlfriend being beaten. The victim's mother, Jackey Wea of Providence, R.I., where Quaweay was born, attended Friday's hearing. She said Monday that she was happy with the sentences and believed that justice was served. Wea, who is from Liberia, said she asked Wright during her victim-impact statement how he could make her daughter suffer so much. "He put his head down when I was talking," she said Monday. She said her daughter had moved to Philadelphia when she was 15 and stayed with an aunt. About two weeks before her daughter died, Wea visited Quaweay and Wright in their home for a few hours, but had no indication that her daughter was being abused, she said. She also recalled that she told Wright on Friday that during that visit, he "didn't tell me anything." "How can you be evil to take my daughter away from me?" she said she told Wright at the hearing. Wright's attorney, James Berardinelli, and Robinson's attorney, Gary Server, said Monday that their clients expressed remorse and could be rehabilitated, and that this had been their first arrest. Wright had joined Temple's police force in 1989 and was forced to resign in 2012, according to Zulma Rosario, who at the time was a former Temple police union representative and who still has ties to the union. A Temple spokesperson has declined to discuss the circumstances of Wright's resignation. Officials with the union have declined to comment or could not be reached. Robinson joined the force in 2006 and was fired after being charged with murder, the university spokesperson has said. Namar Plummer, 28, of Plaza Street in Marcus Hook, PA, was convicted after a 2-day trial of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl who attended the school he worked at as a security guard. Read more After a two-day trial, a former security guard for Chester High School was convicted of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl at his home last July, filming the encounter, and threatening her with a gun, the Delaware County District Attorney's Office said Monday. Namar Ikeam Plummer, 28, of Marcus Hook, was found guilty by a jury of sexual assault and sexual abuse of a child for creating child pornography, authorities said. Plummer, who will have to register for life as a sex offender, faces up to 30 years in prison. After Plummer recorded the sexual assault, it was shared last August by others authorities say they don't know who on Facebook and Snapchat. The girl, who knew Plummer as "Mar" through his security guard job, complied with the sexual assault because she feared for her safety and her family's safety, authorities said. "The victim demonstrated incredible courage by coming forward and providing detailed testimony, ensuring that the defendant will be held accountable for his actions," District Attorney Katayoun M. Copeland said in a statement. Prosecutors did not say whether Plummer was a public employee or the employee of a private security company contracted with the Chester Upland School District at the time of the assault. Emily Harris, a spokeswoman for the District Attorney's Office, said the agency "was not able to confirm the defendant's employment details." An administrator for the district was not immediately available for comment. Until he is sent to state prison, Plummer is being held at the George W. Hill Correctional Facility. He is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 23. Authorities ask that anyone who may have been victimized by Plummer or has information about the case call the District Attorney's Criminal Investigation Division's Child Abuse Unit at 610-891-4700. In this March 15, 2010, file photo, Ali Charaf Damache arrives at the courthouse in Waterford, Ireland. Damache, an al-Qaeda suspect known as Black Flag who has been linked to a plot to kill Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, pleaded guilty to terrorism related charges Monday in federal court in Philadelphia. Read more An Algerian-born al-Qaeda operative who recruited Montgomery County's Colleen "Jihad Jane" LaRose and others in a 2009 plot to assassinate a Swedish cartoonist pleaded guilty Monday and agreed to a 15-year prison term, bringing the final conviction in one of Philadelphia's longest-running terrorism cases. The plea by Ali Charaf Damache who was indicted in 2011 and has been held in custody in Philadelphia since his extradition from Spain last year came as something as a surprise. Just eight months earlier, the pugnacious defendant interrupted one of his earliest court appearances, demanding he be allowed to fire his lawyer and alleging he had been fed false promises of a shorter sentence in exchange for cooperating with authorities. But in Monday's hearing before U.S. District Judge Petrese B. Tucker, Damache, 53, was significantly more subdued. Dressed in an olive prison jumpsuit, his black-framed eyeglasses pushed atop his head, he mumbled responses to a series of questions from the bench showing only glimpses of his earlier combativeness. Asked by Tucker whether he was pleading guilty because he believed himself to be guilty, he hesitated for a moment before responding: "I think so. Yes." As part of his deal with prosecutors, Damache agreed to accept the maximum sentence on a count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, and said he would not fight attempts to deport him to Ireland or Algeria countries in which he holds citizenship once he has completed his prison term. In exchange, prosecutors dropped another charge they had lodged, accusing him of identity theft in support of a terrorist plot. The deal must be officially approved by Tucker at a sentencing hearing scheduled for Oct. 30. Still, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams on Monday characterized the outcome as ideal in a case that produced some of the earliest prosecutions of Americans radicalized over the internet a threat that has become more acute in the seven years since Damache was charged. "Mr. Damache recruited individuals from the United States and brought them over to Europe," she said. "He was organizing a plan to train them in explosives and send them out to the West to conduct violent jihad." Those recruits included LaRose, whose 2009 arrest and fiery online rhetoric under the screen name "Jihad Jane" shocked an America still coming to terms with the threat of international terrorists. Blond, white, and blue-eyed, the Pennsburg woman hardly fit the profile many in the United States associated with Islamic extremism. But those very qualities made her attractive to Damache. He admitted Monday that he set out to recruit LaRose and others like her in hopes they could more easily move across borders with less suspicion. His other targets included Jamie Paulin Ramirez, a Hispanic single mother from Colorado, and Mohammad Hassan Khalid, a former high school honors student from Maryland who at the time of his 2012 plea hearing was the youngest person convicted in the U.S. on terrorism-related charges. And Damache courted them all aggressively, operating in jihadi forums under the online moniker "theblackflag." In his postings, Damache detailed his plans to recruit a "professional organized team" with "brothers" who could travel freely across Europe and "sisters" who would act in supporting roles. He hoped to send his cell members to al-Qaeda camps in South Asia for explosives training that they could put to use in Europe. We "have already organized everything for her," Damache wrote of LaRose in a 2009 email to Khalid quoted in court filings Monday. We "are will[ing] to die in order to protect her, no matter what the risk is." Later that year, Damache persuaded LaRose and Ramirez to join him in Waterford, Ireland, with promises they would launch an attack on Lars Vilks, a Swedish artist whose work depicting the prophet Muhammad's head on the body of a dog had offended some Muslims. LaRose became disenchanted and eventually left the group before they could carry out their attack, calling an FBI tip line seeking money to return home. Ramirez, who took her 6-year-old son to Ireland, married Damache the day she arrived. Prosecutors played videos at her 2014 sentencing showing her and Damache goading the boy, dressed in a traditional Middle Eastern headdress and long robes, into cheerfully vowing to kill nonbelievers. Asked Monday in court whether he admitted to trying to train Ramirez's son "in the ways of violent jihad," Damache paused. "I suppose so," he eventually responded. "Yes." Damache was arrested in Ireland in 2010 shortly after that video was shot, but it was not always clear that he would face justice in a U.S. courtroom. The Obama Justice Department secured Damache's indictment in 2011, but he successfully fought extradition to the U.S., convincing a judge in Ireland that he faced "inhuman and degrading treatment" if jailed in an American prison. Spanish authorities found him seven months later in Barcelona and agreed to hand him over to the U.S. But by the time his extradition was finalized last year, the Trump administration had taken control of the Justice Department, and both the new president and newly appointed Attorney General Jeff Sessions had explicitly advocated on the campaign trail that foreign-born terror suspects should be tried in front of military tribunals, not in U.S. courts. Asked Monday whether Damache's case in Philadelphia signaled a reversal in the administration's stance, U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain, a Trump appointee, was hesitant to draw any broad conclusions. "Each case has to be considered individually," he said. "This case doesn't stand for the proposition that there will never be military tribunals or that there won't be other ways of approaching a case. But the extradition requests here were always based on the idea that there was going to be a federal courtroom prosecution." LaRose, 55, remains in federal prison, serving a 10-year term. Ramirez, 39, and Khalid, 24, have been released after serving their sentences. A woman protests on Broad Street for the pending arrival of Vice President Mike Pence at the Union League, in Philadelphia. Read more Vice President Mike Pence's second visit to Philadelphia this summer was again met with protests, this time with a dystopian theme. People dressed as handmaids from the novel-turned-Hulu series The Handmaid's Tale joined protesters outside of the Union League Monday evening. Pence was hosting a fund-raiser at the club for fellow Republican Lou Barletta, who is running against Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.). Samantha Goldman, an organizer of the protest, said before the event that 100 women had signed up to dress as handmaids. Over the past few weeks, they have been meeting in living rooms and coffee shops to sew the scarlet robed costumes and make white bonnets. >> READ MORE: In Philly, VP Mike Pence touts Trump successes, stumps Lou Barletta Handmaid-themed protests have gained popularity in recent months from Washington, D.C. to England and Ireland. In March, women in Texas wearing Handmaid's Tale garb protested legislation limiting abortion access before the state senate there. In May, women in Missouri held a similar costumed protest. In the 1985 novel by Margaret Atwood, the United States is turned into the Republic of Gilead, a military dictatorship in which fertile women are imprisoned and forced to provide children to higher-ranking families. Goldman said the group is protesting Pence for what they see as anti-woman and anti-LGBT stances. "We just felt that the visual of the Handmaid's Tale costumes, a society in which women in Gilead are stripped of their most basic rights and their humanity, was appropriate," Goldman said. Hundreds of protesters took to Rittenhouse Square the last time Pence came to Philadelphia June 19, lining up children's shoes to condemn President Trump's policy of separating children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border. Monday's protest was organized by Goldman's group, Refuse Fascism, in conjunction with Philadelphia's chapter of the National Organization for Women and the Delaware County chapter of NOW. Additional Pence protests led by NextGen Pennsylvania were planned for the afternoon at City Hall. Goldman noted that since Pence's last visit the Supreme Court upheld Trump's travel ban and the president nominated Brett Kavanaugh to become a justice. >> READ MORE: Pence and the Philly 'Handmaids': Why getting the red out there matters "A lot has happened since the last time he came here," she said. "Not that it wasn't important then, but the necessity to be heard has only increased." Fox & Friends news anchor Jillian Mele was trapped in an elevator early Monday morning. He day only got worse from there. Read more Fox News host Jillian Mele had a rough Monday morning. Mele, the co-host of Fox & Friends First and a Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia alum, started her day by getting stuck on an elevator at 2:09 a.m. Unfortunately, it only went downhill from there. Mele and her co-host, Rob Schmitt, thought their show had booked Ann Kirkpatrick, a former congresswoman and current Democratic congressional candidate in Arizona who was booed during a debate last week for expressing support for U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement, commonly known as ICE. Expecting to hear Kirkpatrick explain why she supports ICE, Mele and her co-host, Rob Schmitt, were instead greeted by Barbara L'Italien, a Democratic congressional candidate in Massachusetts who has called for the agency to be abolished. >> READ MORE: Jillian Mele: A day in the life of a Fox News host "I feel that what's happening at the border is wrong. I'm a mother of four, and I believe that separating kids from their parents is illegal and inhumane," L'Italien said before introducing herself to the confused hosts. "I keep thinking about what we're putting parents through, imagining how terrifying that must be for those families, imagining how it would feel not knowing if I'd ever see my kids again," L'Italien continued. "We have to stop abducting children and ripping them from their parents' arms, stop putting kids in cages, and stop making 3-year-old defend themselves in court." "Who is this?" Schmitt asked just before Fox News cut off L'Italien's feed and the show went to a commercial break, adding, "That didn't go as planned." When the two hosts returned, they tried to explain to their viewers what just happened: "We were told Ann Kirkpatrick was going to be on the show. As you saw, somebody else stepped in front of the camera. We are working to figure out how that happened." Watch: In a statement, Fox & Friends First executive producer Desiree Dunne said L'Italien and her campaign fooled the crew into thinking the candidate was actually Kirkpatrick in order to hijack the broadcast. "This morning we invited Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick to appear on Fox & Friends First through her press contact on file Joe Katz, who accepted the invitation on Kirkpatrick's behalf. Katz followed with an email confirming the segment, which also included background information and a campaign logo for Ann Kirkpatrick," Dunne said. "During the actual segment, Barbara L'Italien, appeared on camera instead of Kirkpatrick. Despite speaking to producers prior to the interview, L'Italien did not identify herself as anything other than Kirkpatrick until she was live on air, at which point we ended the interview." According to a source with L'Italien's campaign, Katz last worked for Kirkpatrick in 2010, and has served as L'Italien's spokesman this election cycle. Fox News apparently didn't realize that Katz no longer worked for Kirkpatrick, and L'Italien's campaign said she decided to take advantage of the network's mistake in order to "speak to President Trump in the only way we can be sure he's listening: through Fox News." Though Trump ended his own administration's "zero tolerance" policy of separating families that cross the U.S.-Mexican border illegally, 2,551 children under the age of 17 remain separated from their parents, Department of Justice attorney August Flentje told a judge Friday. The Trump administration has been ordered to reunite all migrant children with their parents by Thursday, a deadline it appears unlikely to meet. Following New York congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's shocking primary victory over 10-term incumbent Rep. Joe Crowley, many Democratic Party candidates and lawmakers have echoed her call to abolish ICE. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D., N.Y.), a potential 2020 presidential candidate, was the first senator to call for the agency's elimination, telling CNN host Chris Cuomo last month ago that it was time to "reimagine" ICE with a "very different mission." Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), another potential 2020 candidate, posted on Facebook last week that it was time to rebuild out entire immigration system, "starting by replacing ICE with something that reflects our values." Blanca Pacheco, the assistant director of the New Sanctuary Movement, left, is embraced by Maggie Trotzky, during an immigration protest outside of the United States Custom House on 200 Chestnut St, in Philadelphia. Read more On a hot and steamy Sunday, blocks from where tourists had lined up to see the Liberty Bell and under the eyes of police, more than 150 demonstrators gathered by the U.S. Custom House in Philadelphia to take issue with the country's policies on immigration. "We are not going to be silent," said Rabbi Joshua Waxman, from Or Hadash Congregation in Fort Washington, who helped lead the protest. Waxman said President Trump's rhetoric and his restriction on immigration violate the principles upon which the county was founded and have turned people against each other. The protest, he said, gave voice to those who have tried to cross the border and now sit in detention. "Jewish people know what it is to be a despised minority," Waxman said. The event occurred on the Jewish holiday Tisha b'Av, which commemorates a series of tragic events in Jewish history. Part demonstration, part remembrance and part prayer service, the protest saw participants chant from the Book of Lamentations, which describes the sorrow after the fall of Jerusalem. >READ MORE: Police clash with protesters outside Philly ICE office, arresting 29 The group included young families with children. Participants stood in silence for most of the event, occasionally joining in song. They carried handmade signs that read "I am here because of immigrants," "End racism against refugees," and "Indivisible with Liberty and Justice for all: No exceptions." "We've been here before," Rabbi Avi Winokur, from the Society Hill Synagogue. He recounted the story of the ship St. Louis, a German ocean liner that came to the United States in 1939 with more than 900 refugees who were denied entry, "We are reenacting what we once did so terribly," Winokur said, referring to the current treatment of immigrants. "The immigration system is broken," said Blanca Pacheco, of the New Sanctuary Movement in Philadelphia. For years, she said, the U.S. has sold immigrants a dream to come to the county for a good life. Once here, she said, they find the path to citizenship blocked. "I'm just appalled about what is going on," said Cathryn Miller-Wilson, the executive director of HIAS Pennsylvania, a nonprofit that provides legal services for immigrants and refugees. Miller-Wilson said she also saw similarities between what happened to Jews in Germany during the 1930s and what immigrants now face. First, the immigrants are portrayed as the "other." Then a climate of fear about the immigrants is created. Finally, she said, "anti-other" policies are imposed. "Fear," she said, "is one of the strongest weapons out there." Members of the semi-spiritual progressive group Reclaim Philadelphia reminisce while looking at a group photo taken during the May primary election campaign, as they prepare to meet in South Philadelphia July 9, 2018. From left to right are: organizers Rick Krajewski, Lev Hirschhorn, Nicolas Pastore, and Elizabeth Fiedler, Democratic candidate for the state House, holding her son, Louis Fiedler-Rackes, 1. One of the most successful progressive groups in the city, it recently took over a couple machine-controlled wards. Read more Nikil Saval is opening up to dozens of people about one of the most harrowing experiences of his family's life. He's at a city rec center, where the left-wing group Reclaim Philadelphia is meeting, on a muggy June night. Technically, the 35-year-old literary magazine editor is speaking about the dearth of affordable housing. But instead of simply rattling off wonky statistics, he's talking about the fact that his parents were forced to leave the country after costs skyrocketed in their Los Angeles neighborhood. "They sold their house and moved back to India," Saval said, "abandoning their 30-year-long project to make a permanent life in the United States." Through the evening, young leader after young leader of Reclaim Philadelphia shares the experiences that have fueled their political activism. A man tells the crowd his mother was arrested on Christmas Eve for driving a car involved in a robbery, and why that inspires his fight for criminal justice reform. A woman talks about being raped in college, and how that powers her work against sexual violence. It's gritty, emotional, it speaks to the almost surprisingly vulnerable and it's working. Reclaim Philadelphia has been a major force behind the left wing's biggest victories in the city in recent years. Larry Krasner, the progressive district attorney, said the organization played a "key role" in his 2017 victory by harnessing "populist and grassroots energy." In the spring, Reclaim's members provided critical support to Democrats Elizabeth Fiedler and Joe Hohenstein, who both won primaries for the state legislature against candidates backed by the city's powerful electricians union. Also, Fiedler's husband, Reclaim member Adams Rackes, was elected last month to lead a ward long run by the Democratic establishment. So was Saval, a co-founder of the group. "They have a track record of almost two years of winning, and the places they've won have been strongholds of traditional machine operations," said political consultant Mustafa Rashed. "At this point, you'd have to classify it as an insurgency. They're a force to be considered in any election moving forward." In a sign of how quickly politics has changed after President Trump's campaign, Democratic power players now seem to be kissing Reclaim Philadelphia's ring. City Councilwoman Helen Gym and Deputy Mayor Rich Lazer attended its two-year anniversary party in May at the Boot & Saddle Bar, and state representative candidate Mike Doyle went to the June meeting. But the lion's share of the group's electoral successes have occurred in gentrifying neighborhoods full of new, young voters. Most of its members are also white, while the city is majority-minority. Can it prevail among a larger swath of the electorate? "It is yet to be seen whether it can translate to the city as a whole," said Rashed, adding that if the organization began making gains in places like North Philly's 181st District, a largely black, low-income area, "that would impress me." Its only revolutionary in the sense that the Democratic Party isnt doing it Reclaim's leaders argue that they've won elections largely because their progressive message is resonating in the Trump era. Members talk about pursuing "a political revolution in Philadelphia" and the "radical redistribution of wealth and power from corporations and billionaires." They support policies such as Medicare-for-All, free college, and a $15 minimum wage. "People are struggling, and we are speaking directly to that," said Lev Hirschhorn, another co-founder. But the group's honchos also attribute their success to their highly personal way of organizing: They don't just talk to each other at meetings about their experiences with income inequality, sexism, and racism. They also speak to voters about injustices they've lived through and encourage them to open up, too. "It's shockingly effective," said Hirschhorn. "But it's not as revolutionary as it sounds. It's only revolutionary in the sense that the Democratic Party isn't doing it." It's known as "deep canvassing," and this is what it looks like on the campaign trail: Fiedler and her then-campaign manager, Amanda McIllmurray, who is a co-founder of Reclaim, knocked on a 20-year-old voter's door during the primary. They asked him: What are the issues that matter most to you? What are you struggling with right now? "He started to cry," said McIllmurray. "He said, 'Planned Parenthood is going to be defunded and I rely on that. My girlfriend just had an abortion a few days ago, and if I didn't have Planned Parenthood, I would be forced to be a father when I can't even pay my own bills.' " Fiedler then promised the voter she'd support the abortion rights group, she said. The numbers argue that this strategy is working. In the 2017 district attorney's race, Reclaim said that 64 percent of 18- to 35-year-olds that it and related organizations canvassed came out to vote, compared to just 29 percent of those who didn't have contact with the group. In white, working-class voting divisions where Reclaim and the other associations canvassed, Krasner won 48 percent of the vote on average, the group said; in areas where it didn't, 20 percent. Fiedler, a former WHYY reporter, said Reclaim "helped me refine my platform," "build relationships with labor unions," and "gain volunteers." Hohenstein, an immigration attorney whose field director in the primary was a founding member of the group, said "Reclaim always seeks to listen as much as it seeks to speak out, and that was one real important feature for my race" in the River Wards' 177th District. Along with those two candidates, the organization endorsed State Rep. Chris Rabb, a Northwest Philly Democrat who secured his party's nomination this spring against a machine-backed candidate, as well as longtime incumbent State Rep. James Roebuck. Reclaim Philadelphia's fiscal sponsor is the liberal group Keystone Progress' 501(c)(4). Often called "dark-money" nonprofits, 501(c)(4)s typically aren't required by law to disclose their donors. Reclaim's leaders said it lists their contributors on their website: In 2017, the organization said it received almost $36,000 from individuals' membership dues and $70,000 in grant funding from the institute People's Action. A group formed out of the ashes of the Bernie Sanders campaign Reclaim Philadelphia might be on a winning streak, but it was born in the wake of a major loss. After Bernie Sanders struck out in his 2016 bid for president, heartbroken ex-staffers and volunteers got together to figure out what to do next. "We said, we built something really great here, and we don't want to see it die out," said McIllmurray. The left-wingers began by staging protests around the Democratic National Convention, railing against the establishment's "moneyed interests." Today, Reclaim Philadelphia has about 350 dues-paying members, plus an extra few hundred or so who participate regularly, McIllmurray said. It is officially a chapter of Our Revolution, the national political organization formed out of Sanders' campaign. The group has also won admiration from some of its former foes. "Reclaim is just checking the oil under our hoods," said John Dougherty, leader of the city's electricians union. "I respect what they're doing." After such a big couple years, what's next? Rick Krajewski, a criminal justice organizer for Reclaim, said the group is about to launch a program to help support families of prisoners. Members are also thinking about how they can use 2019 when Mayor Kenney and Council members are up for reelection "as a way to really make a progressive push in Philadelphia," he said. Krajewski said the group does have an internal issue: It needs to diversify. At the June meeting, one member told attendants that the room was too white. "It's absolutely a problem," said Krajewski. "Reclaim leadership is very clear that we need a multi-class, multi-racial movement if we want to create change. We need to be talking about racial justice, economic justice, education justice, and we need to talk about it in ways that people directly relate to." Observers will likewise be watching to see whether Reclaim Philadelphia can expand its power beyond changing neighborhoods in South Philly and the River Wards. Louis Agre, a longtime ward leader, said Reclaim's economic message can resonate with more traditional Democrats: "They believe in fair taxation, jobs for young people, and a lot of the things that Reclaim believes in. They're hopefully the future of the party." But the organization may find it more challenging to win over those voters on "some of the social issues," he said. Reclaim Philadelphia's leaders and endorsed candidates said they aren't taking anything for granted. "Someone in the political establishment suggested that my victory was a fluke, a onetime thing," said Fiedler. "I do not believe that is true. But I would say that it is up to all of us and our neighbors to decide what happens next." Renee Gorski, 40, a mother of two in Norristown who works 25 hours a week in the office of a trucking firm said it would be "crushing" to lose food stamps. "What will I do then?" she asked. Read more For Ceyeissha McKim, it's all pretty simple: "If I lose food stamps, I don't survive," said McKim, 26, a mother of three and a professional caregiver who works 25 to 30 hours a week in West Grove, Chester County. Her eligibility for food stamps could one day disappear, thanks to proposed changes in the benefits program, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. A bill in the U.S. House of Representatives would mandate enhanced work requirements for people receiving SNAP, denying benefits to those who work fewer than 20 hours a week. It also would penalize people whose hours fall below that mark, making it much harder to regain food stamps. Further, the proposed law would change guidelines that currently give states the ability to make SNAP benefits available to a wider pool of people, potentially throwing tens of thousands of Pennsylvanians off SNAP. Many conservative legislators have said the proposed changes will ensure that able-bodied people who receive SNAP benefits are not freeloading. Advocates for the poor, however, say the changes would hurt working people. "The proposed law is just stacked against low-wage workers in so many ways," said Kathy Fisher, policy director of the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger. "It will make people fall further into poverty." Renee Gorski, 40, a mother of two in Norristown who works 25 hours a week in the office of a trucking firm, said: "This would be crushing. It would be more hardship without food stamps. Sometimes, in our slow season, I work just 15 hours a week. What will I do then?" The House bill is the latest proposed version of the Farm Bill, which funds SNAP, currently at $68 billion annually. The Senate created its own version, which doesn't differ substantially from current guidelines. Both chambers are scheduled to come up with a final Farm Bill by Sept. 30. The House legislation is sanctioned by Republicans and the conservative Heritage Foundation. It was written to "promote self-support among recipients," according to a foundation report. "The bill represents a step toward an important goal: combining the principles of compassion and fairness in federal welfare policy," the report said. People who receive SNAP benefits who are physically able to work "would be required to take steps to support themselves." Poverty advocates disagree. First, they say, most of the people on SNAP are children, elderly, or disabled. Second, lots of people who receive SNAP benefits work, and working people need those benefits, Fisher said, because so many jobs these days are part time and subject to unstable schedules and fluctuating hours. Ultimately, increased work requirements "would do more harm than good," noted a report by the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities "fueling increases in hunger and poverty and forcing states to develop large new bureaucracies" to determine whether people are working. For years, there have been work requirements for SNAP. Since 1996, people aged 18 to 49 without a child under age 18 have had to work at least 20 hours a week or be in school or job training to receive SNAP benefits. Anyone not following the rule would be limited to three months of benefits within a three-year period. During hard times, such as the Great Recession, states were permitted to waive the rules in places of high unemployment. Philadelphia fell into that category. The proposed bill would do away with the waiver, then expand the age of people required to work to 59. It also would require parents of children aged 6 and over to work, potentially creating serious child-care challenges for parents, advocates say. And if people fall below 20 hours of work in a week, they could lose SNAP benefits for a year, the proposed new rules say. Already disadvantaged by low wages and unpredictable hours, people working in part-time jobs in industries such as fast food, hospitality, and retail could be devastated, said Elizabeth Lower-Basch, a director of the nonprofit Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). Meanwhile, if the waivers end, some 92,000 Pennsylvania residents including 45,000 Philadelphians would likely get kicked off SNAP, Fisher said. Nationwide, the bill's changes would cause more than two million people to lose benefits altogether or have them reduced, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Because the House bill would also eliminate the flexibility state governments have to expand SNAP eligibility, many other people will have their benefits taken away, said Joel Berg, CEO of the nonprofit advocacy group Hunger Free America. For example, nationwide, people are eligible for SNAP if they are making 130 percent of the poverty level, around $27,000 for a family of three. However, the old SNAP rules have allowed states to raise the level at their discretion. In the case of Pennsylvania, eligibility stands at 160 percent of poverty, or around $33,000 for a family of three. The House bill would end that, throwing everyone between 130 percent and 160 percent of the poverty level off food stamps. Critics also say that the House bill requires greater scrutiny of SNAP recipients, which means that states would actually have to spend more money expanding their bureaucracies, Fisher said. And, while the House bill offers money to train people for work so they ultimately won't need SNAP, the stipends granted are woefully inadequate to train anyone for anything, she added. Fisher contended that the ultimate plan by the House was to make getting SNAP so difficult that people would drop off its rolls, thereby reducing the cost of the program. For their part, conservatives have said that they'd like to see SNAP benefits reduced across the United States According to a Heritage Foundation report, "This reform would promote self-support among recipients and generate significant savings." Philadelphia Media Network is one of 19 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the city's push toward economic justice. Follow us at @BrokeInPhilly. Robert York, editor in chief of The Morning Call in Allentown, is headed to The New York Daily News as huge layoffs hit the Daily News newsroom. Read more Tronc Inc., the company that owns the New York Daily News, is laying off half the newspaper's staff and replacing its ousted editor-in-chief with Robert York, publisher and editor of the Allentown Morning Call. Tronc owns both newspapers. Daily News staff learned of the change Monday in a morning meeting that lasted less than a minute, according to the New York Times. Jim Rich, the outgoing editor-in-chief, decried the move on Twitter prior to the meeting. His bio now reads: "Just a guy sitting at home watching journalism being choked into extinction." York joined the Morning Call in July 2016 becoming its fifth publisher in the past year, the newspaper reported at the time. He previously worked for two decades at the San Diego Union-Tribune. Tronc's move on Monday drew swift condemnation. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called it a "disaster" and urged Tronc to reconsider. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio also came to the Daily News' defense, writing on Twitter that "Tronc should sell the paper to someone committed to local journalism and keeping reporters on the beat." Tronc, based in Chicago, bought the Daily News last year for $1 and the assumption of operational and pension liabilities, according to the Chicago Tribune (Tronc also owns the Tribune). Justin Dearborn, Tronc's chief executive officer, told the newspaper at the time: "We think this is a great deal for the paper and for us. We expect it to benefit greatly from becoming part of the Tronc ecosystem." Some Daily News staffers left the newsroom in tears upon hearing of the layoffs Monday. York appeared taken by surprise about Tronc's announcement and told Gothamist: "I need to regroup and figure this out, because there was a timing sequence to this that's now not being adhered to, in terms of the announcement." Tronc, in announcing the layoffs, cited financial challenges and said it wanted to refocus on breaking news. Media reports have described the Daily News as a newsroom of 75 to 100 staffers, with sources telling the New York Post the number was around 85 before the cuts. Candace Amos, among those laid off, tweeted that the whole social media team had been let go. It appears not everyone immediately lost access to the Daily News' Twitter account, which at 12:46 p.m. posted a gif of John Travolta looking confused in the movie Pulp Fiction. That tweet and other posts were later removed. Vice President Mike Pence speaks at a tax policy event hosted by America First Policies at Lee University's Pangle Hall on Saturday, July 21, 2018, in Cleveland, Tenn. Pence was the keynote speaker at the event. (Doug Strickland/Chattanooga Times Free Press via AP) Read more Vice President Pence will visit Philadelphia today and motorists should be aware of possible backups and delays related to movements of his motorcade and planned protests. The White House says Air Force Two will arrive at Philadelphia International Airport at 1:45 p.m. >> READ MORE: 100 people dressed in 'Handmaid's Tale' garb to protest Pence in Philly on Monday From there, Pence will go to a America First Policies political action committee event at the Sheraton Philadelphia Downtown, 201 N. 17th St. The event is open to the press. After that, Pence will host a fund-raiser at the club for fellow Republican Lou Barletta, who is running against Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.), at the Union League, 140 S.Broad St. That event is closed to the press. The White House has not yet provided a time for the vice president's departure. In a Friday July 13, 2018 photo, Samantha Jones, 30, is led into Magisterial Judge Jean Seaman's District Court in Warwick Township, Pa.,for her arraignment on homicide charges of killing her 11-month-old son through her drug-laced breast milk. (Kim Weimer/Bucks County Courier Times via AP) Read more On the morning of April 2, Samantha Whitney Jones found R.J., her 11-week-old baby boy, dead in his bassinet. According to an autopsy, the cause of death was a combination of methadone, amphetamines, and methamphetamines. Jones, a person in recovery, takes methadone on a daily basis to treat her opioid addiction a treatment that is recommended for breast-feeding mothers. That night, around 3 a.m. she breastfed R.J. because she was just too tired to make a bottle of formula. Jones was charged with criminal homicide. Her bail: $3 million. A judge later decreased the bail to $500,000. In the heart of our criminal justice system is an inherent urge to be as punitive as possible. To achieve true reform that reverses the trend of mass incarceration, we must push against injustices in every case regardless of how tragic that case may be. >> READ MORE: Nursing mother charged with killing infant with drug-laced breast milk The Eighth Amendment protects against "excessive bail." It is hard to see how the bail set in this case does not fall under that category. Marni Snyder, a criminal defense attorney practicing in Philadelphia, explains that the amount of bail "is really supposed to be whether a person is a danger to the community and whether they are a flight risk, but often they are considered a flight risk because of how serious the allegations are." The allegations against Jones are very serious. Does that automatically make her a flight risk? Jones is a grieving mother who just lost her baby under terrible circumstances. Perhaps she has criminal responsibility, but a $3 million or even $500,000 bail is as good as holding her with no bail at all. Jones shouted to her mother who lives with her when she saw that something was wrong with R.J. He was rushed to the hospital. The criminal complaint does not indicate any lack of cooperation from Jones. Nothing that we know so far about the case suggests that she is a flight risk. Perhaps the bail is so high because Jones is a danger to society. After all, she is charged with criminal homicide. "If the crime is really upsetting, all of a sudden they are considered a danger to the community, without looking whether or not their crime is likely to be repeated on the street," Snyder explains. According to the criminal complaint, the physician that performed R.J.'s autopsy "advised [that] R.J. ingested the combination of fatal drugs through breast milk." In addition to the high bail, the judge imposed a condition that Jones will not come in contact with anyone under the age of 18. What is the judge scared of, that Jones will breast-feed teenagers after using drugs? It seems improbable, if not impossible, that Jones would be able to repeat the alleged crime. >> READ MORE: Breastfeeding is best for babies, but what about their sleep-deprived parents? Why the high bail then? Snyder says that often the official setting the bail which could be a judge, magistrate, or commissioner depending on the court "uses their gut reaction to the crime to set a high bail to make a statement about how upsetting the offense is, and that is not right." A mother struggling with addiction, less than three months after giving birth, who lost her child a bit over a month ago is now incarcerated while she awaits trial because of a gut reaction to a devastating tragedy. She won't be able to tend to her 2-year-old son or grieve the death of her newborn because of a judge's need to be punitive. Every day hundreds of thousands of people, mainly poor people of color, are incarcerated before trial because they can't make bail. Many of those people are not a risk to society or at risk to not appear in court. Being held in pretrial detention is associated with longer sentences and increased probability of re-offending. Justice doesn't require sympathy. You don't need to feel for Jones. However, if you believe that excessive cash bail is unjust, you should advocate for Jones even though she might be found criminally responsible for the death of her baby. Justice and due process should not be limited to defendants in nonviolent cases or cases that don't make our stomach turn. >> READ MORE: A formula for disaster: addicted mom, breastfeeding baby | Christine Flowers The Bucks County prosecutor handling the case said that, "This is a sad and tragic example of the opioid crisis that's affecting Bucks County." If that is true, the case should be handled with the larger context in mind. An initial $3 million bail makes it clear that there is one person to blame here Samantha Whitney Jones. In reality, there is a whole system that led to the premature end of R.J.'s life. Even in the saddest cases we need to demand justice. Allowing Jones to grieve the death of her son while being with family as she awaits her trial is the just way to handle the case. I was face down on the pavement. One police officer was kneeing me in the back, while others pulled or punched. They paid no attention to my screams identifying myself as an engineering Ph,D, student at Northwestern University. They just kept punching. One shouted, "Stop resisting!" The record is on the dash-cam footage: It's nighttime. I step out of my car, bewildered at being pulled over and surrounded by police vehicles in the college town I've lived in for years. I hold my hands up high, shocked to see several guns pointed at me. It turns out a fellow student had called the police to report that someone was trying to steal a car. That someone was me. The car was my own. I had a key. "I don't know if I'm, like, racial profiling," the woman had told the 911 dispatcher. To her and to the police, I was a black man in a hoodie. After the cops arrived, after they tackled me, and after they determined that the car was indeed my own, they charged me anyway. >> READ MORE: Antwon Rose's death reminds us that in many police departments, deadly force is too routine | Editorial Resisting arrest, they said. One cop joked to another that I "should feel lucky" he didn't shoot me. I don't feel lucky. Every time I see the video from that October 2015 encounter, I experience fear, anger, and terror. Fear that the color of my skin will make me out to be a criminal when I have broken no laws. Anger at the blatant disregard for human life and rights that the Constitution is supposed to guarantee to all citizens. Terror to have come perhaps within seconds of being shot by people sworn to serve and protect. Amadou Diallo , Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams , Philando Castile . Their stories like many others are all too familiar. They all suffered gross overreactions by officers of the peace. Unfortunately, you will never hear their side of the stories, as they didn't get the chance to speak before being shot to death. But you can hear mine. My experience happened in Evanston, Ill., a college town that thinks of itself as progressive and forward-thinking. If such rough treatment can happen here, where the police department has hired outside trainers to give lessons on racial sensitivity, and if it can happen to me, with my education and resources, it can happen anywhere. >> READ MORE: Philadelphia needs to respond to black people's trauma from police shootings | Editorial My life is no more valuable than any of the people I mentioned above. But this shouldn't happen to anyone. I was minding my own business and driving my own car, my accuser was aware of her racial preconceptions, and the police should have known better. And still I ended up face down for a crime I didn't commit, fearing for my life. Now I must face consequences that are not of my own making. There's an arrest on my record, even though a Cook County judge found me not guilty once he heard the evidence. There's news coverage and the dash-cam video on the internet, available for any future employer or colleague who might choose to question me or my motives. This isn't the story that I expected to be telling at this point in my life, having just received my doctorate from one of the top schools in the country. The bigger story of my life is growing up without knowing my father, losing my mother to illness when I was 8 and becoming a ward of the state. Many people black and white stepped up to serve as mother, father, sister and brother to me. I persisted. The day after my foster mother kicked me out because I refused to join the National Guard, I applied to Stanford University and got in. After four years, I graduated with a bachelor's degree in engineering. >> READ MORE: Police shooting survivor Leon Ford: 'We all failed Antwon Rose.' | Perspective I've done everything in my power to defy the odds. Yet I feel as though I'm forever going to have to explain myself. As for the arresting officers, are they doing any explaining? Will they have to answer for the rest of their lives for their decision to wrestle me to the ground, pummel me and charge me with a crime? A fellow student's impulsive action and her hasty decision to call the police have put all of my hard work in jeopardy. The arrest, the charges, and the trial a scarlet letter to go with the dark brown skin that I will wear for the rest of my life. Lawrence Crosby is a Ph.D. graduate in materials engineering. He wrote this for the Washington Post, where a version of this piece originally appeared. The justices of the U.S. Supreme Court gather for an official group portrait to include new Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, top row, far right, at the Supreme Court Building in Washington, Thursday. June 1, 2017. Seated in bottom row are, from left, Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, and Associate Justice Stephen Breyer. Standing in top row are, from left, Associate Justice Elena Kagan, Associate Justice Samuel Alito Jr., Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch. Read more Before nominating 53-year-old Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, President Trump expressed a hope that his pick would serve for 40 to 45 years. That was wishful thinking: The longest-serving justice in history, William O. Douglas, lasted over 36 years but was so obviously incompetent toward the end that his colleagues conspired to decide no closely contested cases until he stepped down. Still, Kavanaugh is likely to serve a long time by our standards, and a very long time by the standards prevailing when the Constitution was framed. For most of American history, justices left the court at an average age of below 70. Today it's about 80. They used to serve about 15 years, but now average more than 28 years. (For scale, consider that 28 years ago, about 38 percent of the current U.S. population had not been born.) As much as justices appear to enjoy these extended careers, their unlimited terms are dysfunctional for the judicial system, the court itself, the presidency, and Congress. We need term limits for the court. Right now, justices race against senility, physical decrepitude, and death itself in order to hand the power to appoint their successor to a specific party. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy was appointed by a Republican, and to few people's genuine surprise, retired with a Republican in the White House. That's how it usually works. In a 2010 article, we calculated that the odds of a justice's retiring rise 168 percent during the first two years of the term of a president of the same party. Justices also tend to avoid retirement when the sitting president is not of the same party a delay that triples their odds of dying in office. These distorting effects add up. While it might seem that things would average out over time, that doesn't happen. From Dwight Eisenhower's presidency through Barack Obama's, six presidents were Republicans and five were Democrats, but that didn't lead to similar numbers of appointments for each party. Rather, Democrats appointed eight justices while Republicans appointed 17. Much of the imbalance comes from Eisenhower and Richard Nixon, who appointed nine justices between them more than the five Democratic presidents combined in spite of Nixon's premature departure from office. Long tenures on the court also provoke a fear, reasonable or not, that an ill-considered appointment could damage the nation for a long time. That fear worsens already acrimonious confirmation hearings, often marked more by exaggerated claims and character assassinations than with evidence of the quality of jurisprudence that a nominee would bring to the court. Term limits of 18 or 24 years for Supreme Court justices would fix many of these problems. Under staggered 18-year term limits, for example, one of the nine seats could be filled every odd year. If any justice died or retired before the term was up, a replacement would fill only the remainder of that term. Thus, there would be no partisan advantage in retiring early because doing so would not change the schedule of regular appointments. After completing an 18-year term, justices could still serve on lower courts, thus technically preserving their life tenure as a federal judge, though not all of it would be on the Supreme Court. Such a fundamental change in the meaning of life tenure would probably require a constitutional amendment, although not everyone thinks so. Adding court term limits to the Constitution stands a better chance than some might think. A constitutional amendment requires ratification by three-quarters of the states, and judicial term limits are well established in the states. Term limits or maximum judicial ages are used by 49 of 50 state supreme courts, as well as the high courts of other highly developed countries. If there is an impediment, it's Congress. Senators and representatives might, in the abstract, favor term limits for justices, but might not want to encourage anyone to start thinking about term limits for the legislative branch. James Lindgren is a professor at the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. Ross M. Stolzenberg is a professor of sociology at the University of Chicago. KAMPALA The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development with support from Eskom Uganda Limited is on Monday, July 23 holding the fourth Edition of the Sustainable Energy Campaign 2018. The sustainable energy campaign 2018 is slated for July 23 28 and aims at promoting demand side management through the use of alternative energy sources such as renewable energy and energy efficient technologies and practices in the country. The 2018 campaign will take place in Mbarara Municipality at Boma Grounds, Mbarara for five days. The Sustainable Energy Campaigns are designed to meet governments commitment to providing energy for social and economic development in a sustainable manner, said Eng David Bilimumaso, the acting commissioner and the energy officer at Ministry of Energy and mineral development. Eng Bilimumaso told PML Daily at the launch of the Sustainable Energy Campaign 2018 ahead of the launch on 25 July at at Boma Grounds, Mbarara that government has set up a renewable energy policy framework which sets policies for increasing uptake of renewable energy in the country. He revealed that the overall objective of this policy is to make renewable energy an alternative for energy sources. The government is also supporting association of renewable energy providers to scale up their work and also address major challenges in the market such as the poor quality of products and build technological capacity. He explained that the ministrys aim is also to find solutions for rural electrification provides affordable, sustainable and reliable electricity to off-grid areas and facilitate access to clean light, safe water, communication, information, medication and various business opportunities. In 2016, the Climate Investment Fund (CIF) has endorsed Ugandas renewable energy investment plans, a move aimed at financing renewable energy projects in the country. The endorsement gave Uganda $50 million (Shs168.9b) from CIF under the scaling up renewable energy in low income countries programme (SREP). According to Mr Yusuf Masaba, the Communication Specialist at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development the SREP funding will help countries to advance geothermal exploration, solar photovoltaic net metering, building of mini-grids and the development of wind power in the country. Related NSAMBYA The Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) Executive Board will meet in Kampala, Uganda this week to flag off its Golden Jubilee celebrations that will climax a year later on July 29, 2019. His Holiness Pope Paul VI was welcomed to Kampala (Uganda), the first-ever visit of a Pope to Africa which was used to officially launch SECAM in July 1969. According to Msgr. John Baptist Kauta, Secetary General of the Uganda Episcopal Conference, the SECAM Executive Board will meet in Kampala, Uganda on July 27-28, 2018 and their official inauguration Mass for Golden Jubilee celebrations will take place at Rubaga Cathedral at 10am on July 29, 2018. All are invited for the inaugural Mass. The preparations for the celebrations of the Golden Jubilee will begin in Uganda headed by the Uganda Episcopal Conference after July 30, 2018. Other details of the preparations will be communicated, Msgr. J.B Kauta said. SECAM was born out of the will of young African Bishops during the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). They wanted to speak with one voice. The establishment of SECAM is therefore the result of the Bishops resolution to build a continental structure in order to bring forth the African vision to the whole Church. Seeing the importance of such an Association for Africa, the Congregation for the Evangelisation of the Peoples at the Holy See invited the Presidents of the Regional Episcopal Conferences for consultation in 1968. A year later, the first-ever visit of a Pope to Africa was seen as very opportune to launch the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar. As a matter of fact, His Holiness Pope Paul VI was welcomed to Kampala (Uganda) for the official launching of SECAM in July 1969. So, it is now 50 years since that historic moment in Kampala in 1969. The Secretary General of SECAM, Fr. Joseph Koma-Koma says theme chosen for the Golden Jubilee celebrations is: Church, Family of God in Africa, Celebrate your Jubilee! Proclaim, Meet and Welcome Christ your Savior. Fr. Koma-Koma says that, the objective of the Jubilee is to celebrate in thanking God for His wonders and marvelous deeds, the gift of Baptism and of the Church, to ponder on the progress made so far, with the aim of deepening our roots in Christ and to engage ourselves resolutely in faith in proclamation of the mission of the Gospel in words and actions. Related MBARARA The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), a government agency mandated to eliminate all forms of discrimination and inequalities in Uganda, has ordered Bishop Stuart University, a private university established by Ankole Anglican Diocese in Mbarara District, to stop ring-fencing key positions in the guild administration for only students of the Anglican faith, saying the move contradicts the equality principle as enshrined in the constitution. In a July 18 ruling, the EOC tribunal ruled that the practice of allowing only students who belong to the Anglican faith to contest and occupy key offices of the Guild administration to the exclusion of others has the adverse effect of killing natural endowments of leadership skills of the non-Anglican students at the university, who are rudely denied the opportunity to harness their skills as to develop into future leaders. The Commission was responding to a petition by Deusdedit Bwengye, a law student at the university, who protested some provisions of the Universitys Guild Constitution that ring-fence certain positions on the Guild Executive exclusively for students who belong to the Anglican faith. Bwengyes petition arose of the university rules that stipulate that for a student at the university to contest for any of the posts of Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Guild President, Guild Vice President, Guild Speaker and Deputy Guild Speaker, Minister of Religious Affairs and Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, he or she must belong to the Anglican faith. The prospective candidates are also required to seek clearance from the University Chaplain as well as their home Parish. Contestants for the office of Guild President are additionally required to include baptism cards and marriage certificates on their applications for nominations. The complainant, therefore, contends that the provisions and requirements referred to herein are discriminatory and amount to nullification of equal opportunities as they seek to exclude students who do not belong to or profess the Anglican faith from contesting for the listed Guild positions. The Complainant consequently prays that the Commission declares the impugned provisions discriminatory and accordingly nullifies them. And in agreement, the EOC agreed that the university rules are discriminatory and offend Ugandas constitution and other international laws. Article 3(1) of the Guild constitution states that all students are equal before and under the guild laws in all spheres of academic, political, and social life and every other respect and shall enjoy equal protection of the Guild law. Article 3(iv) of the same Guild constitution confers an unfettered right upon all members of the students guild to elect and to be elected to any organ of the guild. Article 1(5) of the constitution provides that all registered students of Bishop Stuart University shall be members of the Guild Moreover each student is mandated to pay subscription fees to the students guild under Article 1(5) of the constitution, reads in part the ruling by Mr Joel Cox Ojuko, the presiding member of the EOC tribunal. However, in sharp contrast to the above provisions, the same constitution provides in Article 6 that the chairperson and the vice chairperson of the Guild Electoral Commission shall be a member of the Anglican Communion and shall be nominated after getting clearance from the university parish. Similarly, contestants for the office of the Guild President, Vice Guild President, Guild Speaker, Deputy Guild Speaker, Minister for Justice and Constitutional affairs and the minister for religious affairs must mandatorily be members of the Anglican Communion and must cleared by the university authorities and their home parishes, the ruling adds. The EOC adds that the impugned provisions are discriminatory within the meaning of article 21 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, Sections 1 and 14 of the EOC Act 2007, Article 2 of the Universal Declarations of Human Rights, Article 2(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1966; Articles 2 and 3 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, and the Declaration on the elimination of all forms of intolerance and Discrimination based on religion or belief (UNGA Resolution 36/55 of 25th November 1981). By giving unequal treatment to its students on the basis of religion, the respondent does not only offend Ugandas constitution and other laws (including international and regional instruments) listed above but contradicts its own constitution whose provisions on equal opportunities for all students are clear cut. Reading the provisions of the Guild Constitution together, it is clear that the impugned provisions are out of sync with the overall purpose of that document and the students guild generally, which seeks to allow all students to showcase their leadership abilities and competences. This is in view of the fact that students are admitted from all walks of life and no reference is made to religion as a mandatory requirement for admission to the respondent university. It is discriminatory for students who profess the Anglican faith to be given preferential treatment, especially with regards to offering themselves to contest for leadership positions, the ruling reads. EOC orders the university to delete the impugned provisions of the Guild Constitution and cause amendments thereto with clear provisions guaranteeing equal opportunities and non-discrimination in respect to all affairs and activities of the students community, including but not limited to students leadership. It is ordered that a duly amended copy of the respondents Guild Constitution in the terms directed in Paragraph 3 above shall be submitted to the tribunal registry at Plot 7 Luthuli Close, Bugolobi, Kampala not later than 90 days from the date of this decision, EOC ruling concludes. Related Corporal Breanna Herrera was honored with a Certificate of Recognition for rescuing two young children locked inside a hot car. Image courtesy of Redlands PD / Facebook. The Redlands (CA) Police Department recently awarded an officer with a Certificate of Recognition for her actions in rescuing two young children a three-week-old infant and a 2-year-old boy locked inside a car where the temperature had climbed to 138 degrees. Responding to several 911 calls about the children in the car, Corporal Breanna Herrera spoke with the children's mother, a 26-year-old Loma Linda woman. The woman said she had locked the keys in the car and that someone was on the way with a spare key. She said the children were only locked inside for a few minutes, but Corporal Herrera observed that the children were not moving. Herrera broke a window and entered the vehicle. She found the 2-year-old boy seemed lethargic and in distress, while the infant was not moving. The mother of the children was arrested for child endangerment, according to ABC7. Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller was reportedly responding to a call at a gas station when a gunman opened fire on him. He is now listed in critical but stable condition. Image courtesy of Fort Myers PD / Facebook. A Fort Myers (FL) police officer who was wounded by gunfire shot on Saturday night is now listed in critical but stable condition, according to WFTX-TV. Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller was reportedly responding to a call at a gas station when a gunman opened fire on him. Jobbers-Miller was rushed to a local hospital where he underwent emergency surgery. Fort Myers Chief of Police Derrick Diggs said in a Facebook post, "Words cannot express the emotions running through the Fort Myers Police family at this time. Our department spent the night in anxious anticipation as our comrade and co-worker underwent lifesaving surgery. We are grateful to the many people and agencies who have expressed their support, to the medical professionals who rushed to save him and to the Lee County Sheriffs Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) for their immediate assistance with this situation." The suspect was taken into custody. A Massachusetts State Police trooper has admitted receiving free guns from a state-contracted firearms dealer and is cooperating with prosecutors in an ongoing criminal investigation into the sale of department weapons, according to the Boston Globe. Trooper Robert Outwater testified before a state grand jury investigating allegations of wrongdoing involving at least two former troopers who worked alongside Outwater in the armorer's unit, the Globe said. The three troopers are accused of selling about 500 used State Police guns to a Greenfield firearms dealer in 2015 on behalf of the department. The troopers allegedly received nearly two dozen of those weapons as personal gifts, the Globe reported. No charges have been filed. Embed from Getty Images Toronto police have not ruled out terrorism in the attack on Sunday that killed two and injured 13 others on Sunday. Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders said cops were investigating "every possible motive, including terrorism," according to Fox News. Chief Saunders said that an 18-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl were killed. The wounded ranged in age from 10 to 59, and some might have life-changing injuries, according to USA Today. The gunman who was shot by police fled the scene but was later found dead. It was not immediately clear if the gunman was killed by police or if he killed himself. AHMEDABAD, India, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Applications for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018 have commenced and deadline for entry submission is August 26, 2018 As a build-up towards the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2019, the International Centre for Entrepreneurship and Technology (iCreate) is working closely with the Government of Gujarat as one of the Knowledge Partners for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018, as well as the lead organiser for Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018. The Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018 will take place from October 11-13, 2018. This is supported by organizations like Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), Industrial Extension Bureau (iNDEXTb), Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Gujarat Electronics & Software Industries Association (GESIA). The 3-day event is aimed to provide an excellent opportunity for collaborations and propel investments towards the startup and IT ecosystems. It will also bring in experts to discuss NextGen sectors like AI, IoT, Blockchain and Big Data. The Summit will see an expected footfall of over 10,000 attendees ranging from startups, students, startup enthusiasts, investors, service providers, young professionals, incubators and government officials and will comprise various workshops, seminars, networking opportunities, etc. As part of this Summit, iCreate, among other organizations like Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), SkyQuest, Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE), LJ and Kadi Sarva Vidhyalaya Kelavani Mandal will be leading the national-level Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge. iCreate will also host Road Shows in 8 out of the 30 identified Indian cities i.e. Surat, Mehsana, Rajkot, Shimla, Kochi, Patna, Bhubaneswar and Visakhapatnam, to spread the message of Vibrant Gujarat 2019, the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit in October 2018 and the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018. About Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018: This year's StartUp Grand Challenge focuses on 8 areas: AgriTech, HealthTech, FinTech, Manufacturing 4.0, Smart and Shared Mobility, Women-Centric Solutions, Maritime and Military Intelligence and Governance 2030. Applications : In English, Gujarati and Hindi are invited for 3 levels of startup stages to win attractive prize monies of up to INR 3 Cr, the highest amount thus far as prize money for any startup challenge in India . : In English, Gujarati and Hindi are invited for 3 levels of startup stages to win attractive prize monies of up to INR 3 Cr, the highest amount thus far as prize money for any startup challenge in . Eligibility criteria: The Grand Challenge is open to people of all nationalities, age groups and qualifications. Only startups registered/incubated in India will be eligible to compete for Grand Challenge Prize Money, whereas all foreign applications that are selected will have an opportunity to be featured in 'Empowered by Innovation' publications of UN ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Innovation task force, global profiling on www.sdgsolvers.org as well as Coffee Table book on startups to be released during Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018. The Grand Challenge is open to people of all nationalities, age groups and qualifications. Only startups registered/incubated in will be eligible to compete for Grand Challenge Prize Money, whereas all foreign applications that are selected will have an opportunity to be featured in 'Empowered by Innovation' publications of UN ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Innovation task force, global profiling on www.sdgsolvers.org as well as Coffee Table book on startups to be released during Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018. Evaluation criteria: Based on the following: thoroughness of entry, innovation, practicality, tech-feasibility, business feasibility, scalability and team competency. A total of 44 winners will be selected for prizes are categorized as follows: For Level 1: Idea Stage - 25 prizes of INR 10,000 each For Level 2: Blooming Stage - Total 3 prizes: 1st prize of INR 3 lakh, 2nd prize of INR 2 lakh and 3rd prize of INR 1 lakh For Level 3: Scale-up Stage - Total 16 prizes, comprising of Four Super Jury Prizes: 1st prize - INR 30 lakhs, 2nd prize - INR 27 lakhs, 3rd prize - INR 25 lakhs, 4th prize - INR 22 lakhs, and 12 consolation prizes of INR 12 lakhs each Winners of the Idea and Blooming Stage and shortlisted entries for Scale-Up Stage will be informed in September 2018 via email, followed by 2 rounds of pitching to juries and Super Juries for the ultimate 16 Scale-Up Stage winners. The winners will be awarded and facilitated during the 3-day Vibrant Gujarat StartUp & Technology Summit in October 2018. Incubation Support will be given to all top 100 startups under the StartUp support policies of Government of Gujarat. Mr. Anupam Jalote, CEO of iCreate, said, "The upcoming Vibrant Gujarat Summit is going to be bigger, better and wider. If you have an innovative or revolutionary business or even just an idea, we welcome you to share your thoughts with us. With various renowned business leaders, investors, sector experts and industry bodies associated with the Grand Challenge, we can certainly identify and build successful companies that are able to address the challenges faced by our country. The Grand Challenge is our endeavour towards building a cohesive ecosystem that is at par with the best in the world." For more information and to apply for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge, please visit: http://vgstartup.com/grandchallenge; you can also email at [email protected]. To register for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018, please visit: http://vgstartup.com/registrations About iCreate: iCreate is an initiative of GFEE (Gujarat Foundation for Entrepreneurial Excellence), a Section 25, now a section 8 Company, and is a 50:50 Public Private Partnership between GMDC Ltd. (Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation) and GEVPF (Gujarat Entrepreneurship and Venture Promotion Foundation). iCreate is governed by a statutory Board, with members from GMDC and GEVPF. Since its inception, iCreate has been supported by a strong Advisory Board with 12 leading stalwarts from India as well as abroad, initially chaired by Shri Narayana Murthy, Co-founder, Infosys and is now led by Chairman Shri Dilip Shanghvi, Founder & MD, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. For more details, please visit: icreate.org.in. Media contacts: Manisha Dalal +91-9833448457 [email protected] Bhakti Dalal +91-9819118807 [email protected] Vijay Nair +91-9819118807 [email protected] Manager International Centre for Entrepreneurship and Technology (iCreate) SOURCE International Centre for Entrepreneurship and Technology (iCreate) HYDERABAD, India, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- MEIL Successfully Executed PLIS Phase-II The Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd (MEIL) successfully executed the Purushothapatnam Lift Irrigation Scheme (PLIS) Phase-II and ready for inauguration by Govt. of Andhra Pradesh. It is yet another milestone in MEIL's journey towards creating world's major irrigation vertical company. The irrigation department of Andhra Pradesh government awarded this project to MEIL with the estimated outlay of Rs. 1550 crore. Prior this MEIL also completed the Phase-I of PLIS and it was inaugurated by The Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Sri Nara Chandrababu Naidu, on 15 August last year. (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/721516/MEIL_PLIS_PhaseII.jpg ) Yeleru reservoir which has a capacity of 24 TMC feet of water has never been filled during the last 10 years. It would have 10-12 TMC of water on an average. Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd. (MEIL) have mitigated the problem with Purushothapatnam Lift Irrigation Scheme. The project taken up as part of Uttarandhra Sujala Sravanti is a boon to the people and farmers of East Godavari district. It also caters to the drinking water needs of the people of Visakhapatnam and addressed the water requirements of industries in Visakhapatnam including Visakhapatnam steel plant. PLIS would ensure filling Yeleru reservoir to the brim. Phase 1 of PLIS was taken up at Purushothapatnam village of Seethanagaram Mandal in East Godavari district. During the last water year, 1.6 TMC feet of water lifted from Godavari River has been pumped to Yeleru reservoir with two motors. The water pumped from the scheme flowed through Polavaram left the main canal and reached Yeleru reservoir. Purushothapatnam LIS was designed to utilize Godavari water that is otherwise discharged into the sea. "Despite several problems like laying of pipelines through agricultural lands, wet soil and hostile terrain, Megha Engineering has overcome all the hurdles to successfully complete the project on time," said Associate Vice-President of MEIL Sri K. Rangarajan. The first phase of this project was commissioned with 10 vertical turbine pumps with a capacity of 57 megawatts. Each pump can lift 10 cumecs of water. The pumped water will be discharged through MS pressure main in 5 rows. Each pipe is of 3200 mm diameter, which will run for a length of 10.10 Km. "The Second phase of PLIS built at Ramavaram will draw 1400 cusecs of water from the Godavari River during floods and pump it to Yeleru reservoir through Polavaram left main canal. It requires lifting water to a height of 68 meters. To enable this operation, eight pumps each with a capacity of five cumecs have been installed. Water lifted from Polavaram left main canal will have to be taken to Yeleru reservoir through pipelines," explained Mr Rangarajan. For this purpose pipelines in two rows have been laid for a distance of 13.12 Km. The main objective is to supply water for irrigation to an extent of 2.15 lakh acres by making use of the existing infrastructure available at Polavaram left main canal under Pithapuram branch canal, Polavaram left main canal and Yeleru reservoir areas. Through Purushothapatnam Lift Irrigation Scheme, 12 TMC feet of water will be utilized for drinking and industrial needs of Visakhapatnam city. The government estimates an annual income of Rs. 200 crore through this lift irrigation scheme. The government acquired 254 acres required for the first phase of PLIS and handed the same to MEIL in May 2017. Megha has completed the first phase of PLIS within four months and got it commissioned by Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu. Similarly, the government has acquired 115 acres in Ramavaram and surrounding villages to commence works on the second phase of PLIS. MEIL has raced against time to complete the works on a war footing and made the scheme ready for commissioning. Redefining Moment for MEIL It's a redefining moment in the history of Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd., (MEIL). It created a record of sorts for having successfully accomplished an arduous journey of setting up of massive pumps and motors for lift irrigation schemes across India. The achievement is unparalleled as no other company in the entire world has executed so many lift irrigation schemes powered by gigantic pumping systems in less than five years. Not long ago, the yardstick to measure the capacity of pumps and motors in lift irrigation schemes were in terms of horsepower (HP). However, with the growing needs and advent of new technologies, the capacity of pumps and motors had reached to megawatts. While low capacity (HP) pumps and motors have made many lift irrigation projects impractical and redundant, Megha has stepped in with the state-of-the-art technologies and innovative solutions in the field of lift irrigation to make them viable and meaningful. MEIL is the only company which has successfully executed five major lift irrigation projects in two Telugu states since 2012 and set a record for its achievement. Now, with the commencement of pumping water to Yeleru reservoir under phase two of Purushothapatnam Lift Irrigation Project, MEIL has surpassed its own record. Installing 186 high power pumps and motors with a combined capacity of 731 megawatts capacity in as many as 17 pumping stations under five major lift irrigation schemes is no mean achievement by any standards. And MEIL has accomplished it with aplomb. Until recently, Mubarak pumping station in Egypt was considered as the biggest lift irrigation scheme in the world. It was built with a 228-megawatt capacity. With the commissioning of a major lift irrigation pumping station on Handri-Neeva in Andhra Pradesh, MEIL has emerged as the largest company in the world for having commissioned massive lift irrigation projects in AP and Telangana with a combined capacity of 731 megawatts. The capacity is much higher when compared to other lift irrigation projects MEIL has executed across other states in the country. At present, under phase two of Purushothapatnam Lift Irrigation Project, water is being pumped into Yeleru with eight pumps of 4.8 megawatts capacity each. The water has to be lifted to a height of 68 meters before being pumped. Under Handri-Neeva stage-1, 128 pumps have been installed in 12 pumping stations with a total capacity of 458.83 megawatts: a record by itself. Under Muchumarri LI scheme, 13 pumps of 48.1 megawatts capacity have been set up. Likewise, Megha has completed Pattiseema, Bhakta Ramadasu. Phase 1 of Purushothapatnam has been successfully commissioned and maintained by Megha. Pattiseema lift irrigation project which has 24 pumps of a total 113 megawatts capacity was already up and functional since two years. Under phase 1 of Purushothapatnam LIP, 10 pumps with 5.22 megawatts capacity each have been set up. Bhakta Ramadasu lift irrigation project in Telangana was built with two pumps with a total of 21 megawatts capacity. The unique feature in the entire lift irrigation schemes being undertaken by MEIL is linking of rivers. Megha has achieved a distinction for linking of river Krishna with Penna, Krishna with Godavari and Godavari with Yeleru. Similarly, having completed Narmada-KshipraSimhastha lift irrigation scheme, MEIL is being acclaimed to be the first company to achieve inter-state linking of rivers in the country. About MEIL Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd. (MEIL) established in 1989, is one of the fastest growing infra companies in India. Over the years, MEIL has constructed numerous structures like large civil constructions, oil and gas pipelines, pump houses, large water treatment plants, dams, reservoirs, power transmission lines, power generation units, tunnels - and all of them have an important role to play in improving the quality of life of the common man for many years into the foreseeable future. For more information, please visit: http://meil.in/ Media Contact: SV Rao [email protected] +91-9100032262 MEIL SOURCE Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd. (MEIL) LOS ANGELES, TOKYO and PUNE, India, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care industry was 20,968 million USD in 2017 and is projected to reach 39,613 million USD by 2025, at a CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth Rate) of 8.28% between 2017 and 2025. The market is driven by various end-user industries, such as Supermarket, Convenience Store, Online Sales and others. (Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/719476/QY_Research_Logo.jpg ) The industry is concentration, the key brand include Procter & Gamble, Kimberly-Clark, Unicharm, Hengan, Johnson & Johnson, Essity, Kingdom Healthcare, Kao Corporation, Jieling, Edgewell Personal Care Company, Elleair, KleanNara, Ontex International, Corman SpA, Bjbest are the leaders. Report [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/index/detail/581413/global-sanitary-napkin-for-feminine-care-sales-market The leading companies own the advantages on better performance, more abundant product's types, better technical and impeccable after-sales service. Consequently, they take the majority of the market share of high-end market. Looking to the future years, the slow downward price trend in recent years will maintain. As competition intensifies, prices gap between different brands will go narrowing. Similarly, there will be fluctuation in gross margin. The industry is expected to remain innovation-led, with frequent acquisitions and strategic alliances adopted as the key strategies by the players to increase their industry presence. Market stays in mature period with a clear concentration. Meanwhile, optimize product mix and further develop value-added capabilities to maximize margins. In the last several years, global market of Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care developed rapidly, with an average growth rate of 7.61% during 2013 to 2017. In 2017, global revenue of Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care is nearly 20.97 Billion USD; the actual sales are about 256303 M Unit. The classification of sanitary napkin for feminine care includes daily use and night use, and the proportion of sanitary napkin for feminine care for daily use in 2017 is about 69%. Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care is widely purchased in supermarket, convenience store, online sales and others. The most proportion of Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care is purchased in supermarket, and the proportion in 2017 is about 58.7%. Request Sample [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/sample-form/form/581413/global-sanitary-napkin-for-feminine-care-sales-market On the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, and market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split into Daily Use Night Use On the basis on the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, sales volume, market share and growth rate for each application, including Supermarket Convenience Store Online Sales Others The Global Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care Market Research Report 2018 report released by QYResearch provides a basic overview of the Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care industry, including definition, classification, application and industrial chain structure. Discuss development policies and plans as well as manufacturing processes and cost structures. Request to buy Full [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/request-discount/form/581413/global-sanitary-napkin-for-feminine-care-sales-market The report then focuses on major industry players in Global, including company profiles, product images and specifications, sales, market share, and contact information. More importantly, the Sanitary Napkin for Feminine Care industry development trends and marketing channels were analysed. Providing the main statistical data on the current status of the industry is a valuable guide and direction for companies and individuals interested in the market. More Consumer Good related [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/index/list/58/consumer-goods About Us: QY Research, Established in 2007: focuses on custom research, management consulting, IPO consulting, industry chain research, and data base &seminar services. QY Research has more than 34000 global well-known customers, covering more than 30 industries including energy, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, agriculture, etc. Company services cover one-stop solution as Data-Analysis-Suggestion-Consulting Implementation. Research regions cover China, US, EU, Asia, Middle East and Africa, South America, Australia, and other regions in the world. QYResearch built research or marketing centres in China (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong), USA, Canada, Germany, UK, France, etc. Currently, QYResearch has become the first choice, worthy and trusted consulting brand in Global and China business consulting services. QY Research Achievements: Year of Experience: 11 Years Consulting Projects: 500+ successfully conducted so far Global Reports: 5000 Reports Every Years Resellers Partners for Our Reports: 150 + Across Globe Global Clients: 34000+ Contact US: USA Registered Office: QY Research, INC. 17890 Castleton, Suite 218, City of industry, CA - 91748 USA: +1-6262-952-442 Japan Registered Office: Ginza wall building 5F, 6-13-16, Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 104-0061, Japan Tel.: +81-9038009273; +81-345704342 India Registered Office: 102, Siddh Icon, Opposite Royal Enfield Showroom, Baner Road, Baner, Pune - 411045, Maharashtra, India Tel: +91-9766-478-224 Emails - [email protected] [email protected] Media: Rahul Singh Director - Digital Marketing Mob. +91-7028920828 Sales: Hitesh Balchandani Director Sales Mob. +91-9766478224 Web - http://www.qyresearch.com Expert News: https://www.qyresearch.com/expert/list SOURCE QY Research MUMBAI, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- PML to invest approximately Rs. 2.30 bn for a 50% stake in the JV Key Highlights: The Phoenix Mills Limited (PML) enters into a 50:50 joint venture with Ahmedabad-based BSafal group to acquire a 5.16-acre land parcel located in Thaltej, Ahmedabad The JV will develop a premium retail destination spread over approximately 0.6 million square feet On 21st July, The Phoenix Mills Limited (PML) announced that it has formed a 50:50 joint venture with Ahmedabad-based BSafal group to acquire a 5.16-acre land located on Sarkhej - Gandhinagar (SG) Highway in Thaltej, Ahmedabad. PML will invest approximately Rs. 2.30 bn for its 50% stake in the JV. The JV will develop a premium retail destination spread over approximately 0.6 million square feet. This retail development will be operated and managed by PML. Ahmedabad is the largest city in Gujarat and fifth most populous city in India. The city is the financial capital of the state and has presence of some of India's largest corporates and IT-ITES companies. Thaltej, where the land parcel is located, is the fastest growing prime residential area in Ahmedabad and is at a distance of about 4 kms from Western Ahmedabad's other prime residential areas such as Satellite, Bodakdev and Vastrapur which have one of the highest capital values amongst residential areas in the city. "This investment is in line with PML's plan to establish presence in emerging tier-1 cities. Ahmedabad has been on our radar for some time as the city has one of the most discerning customers in the country who are young, aspirational, well-travelled and have high propensity to spend. Our proposed premium retail development will cater to upmarket residential areas of Western Ahmedabad as well as the catchment areas of CG Road, Ashram Road and Navrangpura which are all within 20-22 minutes driving distance. With our foray in Ahmedabad, our retail portfolio under development stands at approx. 4.6 million square feet in addition to our existing operational portfolio of about 6 million square feet. This brings us very close to our stated plan of adding 5-6 million sq. ft by FY23," commented Mr. Shishir Shrivastava, Joint Managing Director, The Phoenix Mills Limited. About The Phoenix Mills Limited (PML) PML (BSE: 503100) (NSE: PHOENIXLTD) is a leading retail mall developer and operator in India and is the pioneer of retail-led, mixed-use developments in India with completed development of over 17.5 million square feet spread across retail, hospitality, commercial, and residential asset classes. The company has an operational retail portfolio of approximately 6.0 million square feet of retail space spread across 8 operational malls in 6 gateway cities of India. The company is further developing 5 malls with over 4.6 million sq. feet of retail space in 5 gateway cities of India. Media Contact : Varun Parwal VP - Finance & Investor Relations The Phoenix Mills Limited +91-22-3001-6737 [email protected] Mehul Mehta President - Financial PR Dickenson Group +91-9820280325 [email protected] SOURCE The Phoenix Mills Limited (PML) LOS ANGELES, TOKYO and PUNE, India, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- New report published by QY Research which offers insights on the global Zinc Oxide market. The Zinc Oxide market has been experiencing steady growth graph since past years. The market for Zinc Oxide was 3,796 USD Million in 2017 and is projected to register a CAGR of 2.22% between 2017 and 2024 to reach 4,426 USD Million by 2024. (Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/719476/QY_Research_Logo.jpg ) Global Zinc Oxide Market: Forecast by Region North America plays an important role in global Zinc Oxide market, with a market share of 15.1% in 2017 and is expected to show a similar trend during the forecast period, especially in United States, it has great influence on the development of Zinc Oxide. The Europe market is mature and developed stably in the past few years and will keep the trend in the next years, it was 777 USD Million in 2017 and will reach 859 USD million in 2024, with a CAGR of 1.44% between 2017 and 2024. The Asia-Pacific will take an increasing significant part in global Zinc Oxide market, due to the strong demand from China, India and Southeast Asian countries. It was 2400 USD million in 2017 in Asia-Pacific, and it is predicted that the market size will reach 2720 USD million in 2024. Request Sample [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/sample-form/form/156069/global-zinc-oxide-sales-market Global Zinc Oxide Market: Market Driver and Restraint Zinc Oxide is mainly used for Rubber/Tires industry and Ceramic/Glass manufacturing. Rubber/Tires industry are the most important application. In 2017, Rubber/Tires application holds 44% of the consumption market share. Despite the presence of competition problems, due to the global recovery trend is clear, investors are still optimistic about this area. In the future, the market in developed countries will have some growth and the market in developing countries will have a faster growth rate. In the zinc oxide industry, there is a high threat of substitute products. If manufacturers sell their products at higher prices, or if the products are of low quality, then consumers are able to purchase substitutes from the many competitors who are present in the market environment. It is therefore essential for the market players in the zinc oxide to be guarantee the quality if they are to tackle the challenge of the threat of substitute. In addition, in this industry, the competition is very intense due to the large number of manufacturers. The difference between brands is low. Global Zinc Oxide Market: Key Takeaways Overall economic performance will continue to be the best indicator of future demand for Zinc Oxide. Demand in most downstream markets is greatly influenced by general economic conditions. As a result, demand largely follows the patterns of the leading world economies. View More Chemical & Material Research Reports @ https://www.qyresearch.com/index/list/44/chemical-and-material Global Zinc Oxide Market: Forecast by Application Zinc oxide is the most widely used zinc compound, and it plays an important role in a multitude of applications. The galvanization of steel products accounts for half of global zinc consumption due in large part to the metal's critically important corrosion-resistant properties. Zinc oxide is also a critical material in the manufacturing of tires, where it increases resilience and elasticity, literally putting the bounce in rubber. Ceramics is another major market for zinc oxide. The compound's durability is what makes up many of today's ceramic tiles, cookware and tableware. Sunscreen and skincare companies rely on zinc oxide for its UV-absorbing properties and the protection it provides from the sun. Its regenerative effect on the skin makes it an integral component in baby creams and wound-care ointments. Global Zinc Oxide Market: Key Players US Zinc, EverZinc, Zochem, Silox, Zinc Oxide LLC, Longli, Pan-Continental Chemical,GH Chemicals, Rubamin, Yongchang, Zinc Nacional, Univentures,Seyang, Grillo, PT. Indo Lysaght , Haihua, Hakusui,Mario Pilato, Brueggemann, are the key vendors included in this report. Request for buy full report or customize [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/request-discount/form/156069/global-zinc-oxide-sales-market Global Zinc Oxide Market: Forecast by Form In the future, the market share of French process zinc oxide will become higher and higher. Related Reports on Zinc Oxides, Listed below Global Nano Zinc Oxide [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/index/detail/496732/global-nano-zinc-oxide-market Global High Purity Zinc Oxide [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/index/detail/496724/global-high-purity-zinc-oxide-market Global Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/index/detail/107786/global-indium-gallium-zinc-oxide-market Global Zinc Oxide for Cosmetics [email protected] https://www.qyresearch.com/index/detail/334934/global-zinc-oxide-for-cosmetics-sales-market About Us: QY Research, Established in 2007: focuses on custom research, management consulting, IPO consulting, industry chain research, and data base &seminar services. QY Research has more than 34000 global well-known customers, covering more than 30 industries including energy, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, agriculture, etc. Company services cover one-stop solution as Data-Analysis-Suggestion-Consulting Implementation. Research regions cover China, US, EU, Asia, Middle East and Africa, South America, Australia, and other regions in the world. QYResearch built research or marketing centres in China (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong), USA, Canada, Germany, UK, France, etc. Currently, QYResearch has become the first choice, worthy and trusted consulting brand in Global and China business consulting services. QY Research Achievements: Year of Experience: 11 Years Consulting Projects: 500+ successfully conducted so far Global Reports: 5000 Reports Every Years Resellers Partners for Our Reports: 150 + Across Globe Global Clients: 34000+ Contact US: USA Registered Office: QY Research, INC. 17890 Castleton, Suite 218, City of industry, CA - 91748 USA: +1-6262-952-442 Japan Registered Office: Ginza wall building 5F, 6-13-16, Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 104-0061, Japan Tel.: +81-9038009273; +81-345704342 India Registered Office: 102, Siddh Icon, Opposite Royal Enfield Showroom, Baner Road, Baner, Pune - 411045, Maharashtra, India Tel: +91-9766-478-224 Emails - [email protected] [email protected] Web - www.qyresearch.com Expert News: https://www.qyresearch.com/expert/list SOURCE QY Research OXFORD, England, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Owen Mumford, a company with a reputation for innovative products, has announced that it has acquired exclusive rights to sell and distribute the rapid diagnostic HIV test, Simplitude Pro HIV across Europe. Senior Product Manager, Tania MacKenzie says, "We are delighted to be introducing the product to the European market for the first time at AIDS2018 in Amsterdam. "We believe that Simplitude Pro HIV meets the need for a reliable point-of-care diagnostic test that is simple to use and offers confidence in reliable test results to both patients and healthcare professionals." Simplitude Pro HIV is the first rapid diagnostic test with a built-in safety lancet, blood collection unit, and strip test. The blood collection unit ensures that the correct amount of blood is collected and transferred to give health care professionals confidence in a reliable result, while its built-in feature allows for a simplified procedure. This addresses several of the key challenges identified with rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) such as under collection of blood and complicated instructions which research[1] has been shown to lead to user error. Tania MacKenzie concludes, "We believe that overcoming users' concerns around RDTs will encourage higher levels of testing in Europe and will improve early diagnosis, which is known to increase the chances of living a long and healthy life, while reducing the chances of HIV being transmitted to others."[2] The device, which has already seen success in Africa, will be available to the European market in early 2019. Owen Mumford will be demonstrating the Simplitude Pro HIV at booth 304 throughout AIDS2018. ABOUT OWEN MUMFORD Owen Mumford is a major healthcare company and device manufacturer that commercialises pioneering medical products in its own brand and custom device solutions for the world's major pharmaceutical and diagnostic companies. Owen Mumford's goal is to enhance access to diagnostics, encourage adherence to treatment and reduce healthcare costs, making a world of difference to a world of people. Through advanced research involving end-users and healthcare professionals, and extensive design and manufacturing capabilities, Owen Mumford produces class-leading medical devices that are used globally and exports over 85% of its products to more than 60 countries worldwide. Selected as one of The World Economic Forum's Global Growth Companies, Owen Mumford is a trusted partner to many of the world's biggest diagnostic and pharmaceutical companies. For further information visit http://www.owenmumford.com. 1. Figueroa et al (2018) Reliability of HIV rapid diagnostic tests for self-testing compared with testing by health-care workers: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The lancet HIV. ISSN 2405-4704 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S2352-3018(18)30044-4 2. https://ecdc.europa.eu/sites/portal/files/documents/HIV%20testing.pdf SOURCE Owen Mumford If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here The Chinese naval hospital ship Ark Peace will visit Fiji for a humanitarian mission from Aug. 2-9, Chinese Ambassador Qian Bo said on Monday. Qian told a press briefing that he invited Fijians to visit the Port of Suva to receive free screenings, treatments and medication from the Ark Peace. The level of service to be provided from the hospital ship is of very high standard, said the ambassador. Qian said as part of the mission, Chinese medical teams will be deployed to the Raiwaqa, Makoi and Lami medical centers for three days. The visit is part of the hospital ship's Mission Harmony 2018. The European Commission has found that a loan of 166m granted by Slovakia to ZSSK Cargo does not involve state aid within the meaning of EU rules. The Commission concluded that the state had behaved as a market investor would have in similar circumstances, and thus provided no selective economic ... HUNGARY: The EU has provided 193m from the Cohesion Fund to cover 85% of the cost of the recently-completed modernisation of the 123 km line around the south side of Lake Balaton between Szekesfehervar and Keszthely (RG 7.17 p40). Moscow Regional Ecology Ministry objects to closure of notorious landfill TASS, Stanislav Krasilnikov 10:59 23/07/2018 MOSCOW, July 23 (RAPSI) The Ecology Ministry for the Moscow Region has objected to demands of the Volokolamsk town administration, which filed a lawsuit with the Moscow Regional Commercial Court seeking to shut down the notorious Yadrovo landfill site, the court ruling reads. The Ministry believes that the city administration has no authority to file a lawsuit with a commercial court. A review of the lawsuit was postponed until August 22. The defendant in the case is Yadrovo company. On June 19, the Volokolamsk City Court of the Moscow Region dismissed a lawsuit lodged by residents of the area, who asked to recover 1.4 million rubles ($21,800) in compensation from a company behind Yadrovo landfill. The plaintiffs asked to compensate their moral damages, stop collection and transportation of waste by the company and organize redevelopment measures at the landfill. According to the claimants, the company failed to meet its obligations regarding management of the site and violated their Constitutional right to live in beneficial environment and caused deterioration to the health of local residents. The defendants said that there was no cause and consequence effect between gas emissions and health problems of the plaintiffs, asking the court to dismiss the lawsuit. Local authorities also supported that motion. Earlier, the court dismissed several other lawsuits against the landfill. In March, the Volokalamsk districts authorities initiated emergency protocol and announced measures to liquidate the consequences of ecological violations during exploitation of the landfill. Yadrovo company was fined 150,000 rubles ($2,300) by the Volokolamsk City Court. Case of Ukrainian citizen charged with incitement of terrorism returned to prosecutors : - - 12:59 23/07/2018 MOSCOW, July 23 (RAPSI) The North Caucasus District Military Court had returned to prosecutors a criminal case against Ukrainian national Pavel Gryb charged with inciting a Russian schoolgirl to commit a terrorist attack, the press-service of the court has told RAPSI. The press-service said that the case was returned due to the fact that charges brought against the defendant were not incorporated into the Criminal Code at the time the crime was allegedly committed. If the case was to be revised, it could be tried by a court once again. According to investigators, from March 27 to May 15, 2017, the Ukrainian citizen persuaded and called through the Internet a girl living in Sochi to commit a terrorist attack during a graduation party on June 30 and then leave Russia. The defendant is charged with aiding terrorist activity. He could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted. Currently, the defendant is in detention. His jail term is to expire on December 19. Rosneft files lawsuit against companies involved in Sakhalin-I project RIA Novosti, Natalya Seliverstova 14:30 23/07/2018 MOSCOW, July 23 (RAPSI) Russias largest oil corporation Rosneft has filed a 89-billion-ruble claim against five companies involved in international project Sakhalin-I, a ruling of the Sakhalin commercial court reads. The plaintiff seeks to recover money allegedly accumulated by unjust enrichment as well as interest for using other entitys funds in 2015-2018. The preliminary hearings are scheduled for September 10. Rosneft asks the court to recover 26.7 billion rubles ($423.8 million) from Exxon Neftegas Limited and Sakhalin Oil and Gas Development Co Ltd. (SODESCO); 17.8 billion rubles ($282.5 million) from Indian VIdesh Ltd.; 10.2 billion rubles ($161,900) from Sakhalinmorneftegzs-Shelf company; 7.5 billion rubles ($119 million) from RN-Astra. In 2017, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed decree ordering amicable agreement with Exxon Neftegas Limited controlled by the U.S. oil and gas corporation oil and gas company ExxonMobil in a tax dispute over the Sakhalin-I. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov was ordered to sign the settlement on behalf of the Russian Federation, the document reads. Exxon Neftegas Limited has lodged a lawsuit with the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC) seeking tax refund which the company claims to have overpaid over the past seven years under the Sakhalin-I Production Sharing Agreement. Reportedly, the agreement was signed in the mid-1990s when Russian legislation stipulated 35% profit tax rates that were reduced to 20% in 2009. Russian authorities claimed that provisions were not subject to change. Sakhalin-I is one of Russias largest projects involving direct foreign investments, as it is centered on use of advanced technology to extract resources in subarctic conditions. 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 By Han Chao and Zhang Xiaokun Chinese peacekeeping engineers are confronted with mock militants during the joint defense exercise with peacekeepers from other four troop-contributing countries (TCCs) including Bangladesh, Nepal, India, and Cambodia in the Sector West of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) in Wau on July 19. WAU, July 23 (ChinaMil) -- The 8th Chinese peacekeeping engineer detachment to Wau of South Sudan conducted joint defense exercise with other peacekeepers from four troop-contributing countries (TCCs) including Bangladesh, Nepal, India, and Cambodia in the Sector West of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) in Wau on July 19, to improve their ability to jointly deal with emergencies. The security situation in Wau of South Sudan remains volatile and there were already 12 armed attacks against peacekeepers in this area since June 27 to July 19. In order to further strengthen the security capabilities of the peacekeeping camps and ensure the troops effective response to violent attacks against UN staff members by militants, Chinese peacekeepers have been closely coordinating with the four TCCs' peacekeepers to tackle various problems. The exercise included such scenarios as large-scale riots caused by fights in refugee camps, the targeted attack at the UN compound by armed militants, and attacks at No. 15, 16, and 17 UN sentry posts manned by the Chinese peacekeepers. In the exercise, the commanding team of the Chinese peacekeepers handled the "dangerous situation" resolutely according to the pre-planning measures, effectively preventing any escalation of the situation, and provided assistance to other troops in handling the emergencies. Brigadier General Nain Raj Dahal, Sector West Commander of the UNMISS, highly praised the handling capacity of the Chinese peacekeepers. It is understood that the 8th Chinese peacekeeping engineer detachment to Wau in South Sudan has also taken initiative to establish an information sharing mechanism with its TCCs partners in Sector West to jointly handle relevant risks and challenges. Chinese peacekeeping engineers launch counterattack against mock militants during the joint defense exercise with peacekeepers from other four troop-contributing countries (TCCs) including Bangladesh, Nepal, India, and Cambodia in the Sector West of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) in Wau on July 19. From the archives: CARNIVORE Magazine Issue 1 HUNTERS HAVE MOVED EN MASSE TO HELP PUBLIC LANDS IN AMERICA IN THE HANDS OF THE PEOPLE Remi Warren is a public lands advocate. Hes not a politician or lobbyist, and he wouldnt fit well in most suit-and-tie legislative hearings. Hes more at home in the mountains as a user. Its been that way since he was old enough to hike, climb, and glass. Growing up in the harsh high desert of Nevada, Warren spent countless hours exploring the millions of acres of public access in his home state. After high school he jumped head first into guiding and outfitting, opening up Montana Outwest Outfitters at the age of 22. Located in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana, Warren specializes in elk and deer hunts on public land. The vast tracks of western land that he calls home have shaped him, and hes used his experiences to help introduce others to the benefits of the lands we share. In short, Warren is invested in our public lands, and those lands have invested in him. Last February, Warren had a chance to pay back what hes been afforded, to help keep Nevada lands in the hands of folks like him. It started in a previous session of congress on March 19, 2015, when Nevada Republican Congressman Mark Amodei introduced a measure known as the Honor the Nevada Enabling of 1864 Act. The legislation wasnt the first of its kind in Nevada, but it was definitely the most aggressive. The bill moved to direct the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain federal lands to the state of Nevada . The simple term used for this premise is land transfer. The bill included a massive transfer of Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service property that would have, in its first phase, given control of 7.2 million acres parallel to Interstate 80, the Union Pacific Railroad, and the Humboldt River back to the state. In its second phase, Amodeis Bill would champion a much more substantial transfer that would eliminate much of the land managed by the federal government in Nevada. This would exclude wilderness, wildlife refuges, national parks, and tribal land. Amodei and his fellow Republicans listed their reasoning in an eight-point argument summarizing why, in their minds, land transfer was the only way forward. The local economy, they said, is severely constrained in size and diversity by the paucity of state land and privately controlled land. The federal government controls over 80 percent of all of the land within the state of Nevada, a greater percentage than any other state, and Nevada could generate significant net revenue for the benefit of its lands and people if it were afforded the opportunity to manage an expanded state-controlled land portfolio. Supporters of the Bill claim that the federal government does a poor job of oversight on these lands, and that the ranchers, recreationalists, anglers, and hunters would benefit from local leadership calling the shots. Warren thinks otherwise and hes not the only one. A broad opposition to the land transfer movement had already formed before he made his plan to attend a hearing of the Nevada Wildlife Commission in Carson City on February 9. But the Commission, which oversees the Nevada Department of Wildlife, needed to hear that opposition loud and clear from the people their decisions would affect most tangibly. So Warren rented a bus, filled it full of like-minded advocates, and drove from Reno to Carson City. His plan was to lay out the opposition platform, summed up by the fact that land transfers can only lead to the sale and privatization of these lands and, eventually, the end of public access. States cant afford the cost of managing large tracts, placing them in danger. I just wanted to get across to them the value of these lands, he said. The value to me and to future generations. I wanted them to see us all together. In total, 15 people spoke to the commission that evening; only one was in favor of the transfer. Most of the opponents were backcountry hunters. The plan worked. The commission voted unanimously to summarize Warren and his fellow hunters concerns in a letter to Amodei. It was a powerful step in the fight to kill the bill. In my opinion we should look at preserving these high value habitats and movement corridors as public lands, said Commissioner Jeremy Drew, one of the members that signed off on the letter. The letter detailed the concerns voiced at the meeting: There was nearly unanimous opposition to the transfer of most Phase 1 lands The primary reasons for concern with such a transfer of Phase 1 lands include, but are not limited to: The state of Nevada does not have adequate resources (funding, staff, or programming) to administer large tracts of transfer lands; it is unclear as to how funding for the actual transfer (short-term) and management (long-term) of such lands would be secured; and, the use of lands for long-term maximization of net revenue, including potential sale to private parties, was a concept that was very clearly opposed. The letter might as well have been a template for land transfer oppositions in the recent and distant past. The stage was set for a fight that would decide the fate of millions of acres of land. A LONG HISTORY These kinds of battles go way back. Back to the conception of Americas public lands. Teddy Roosevelt found staunch opposition to his fight to save our Nations wildlife and wild places at the turn of the century. At the height of market hunting and commercialization, Roosevelt took over the presidency with a mission to save our lands from industrialization and to promote a naturalists approach to land use across the West. During his time in office, Roosevelt was able to conserve and protect about 230 million acres of land for public use and help create The North American Model of Wildlife Management, setting in stone that wildlife resources are a public trust, markets for game are eliminated, allocation of wildlife is by law, and science is the proper tool to discharge wildlife policy. Concern about the administration of public resources also led the Roosevelt administration to appoint a Public Lands Commission to study and report on public lands issues in 1903. Who opposed Roosevelt? Industrialists, robber barons, and those who stood to pro t from the privatization of those lands. The early 20th century was marked by profiteers like John D. Rockefeller, Cornelius Vanderbilt, other titans of industry, and railroad magnates. In many ways this was the antithesis of a free market; rather, crony capitalism reigned supreme. Throughout the next century our public lands continued to be a divisive issue among politicians and businessmen alike, but Roosevelt and his conservation contemporaries values have held mostly true. Fast-forward to earlier this year and the cousin to Amodeis the Honor the Nevada Enabling of 1864 Act, House Resolution 621. The Bill was sponsored by now-infamous Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz, calling for the disposal of 3.3 million acres of federal land in 10 western states. The concept was a carbon copy of Amodeis Nevada efforts. Chaffetz, a hardline republican, had hopes to find public support for his land transfer bill. He was met with the fervor of a movement that he never expected. In the days that followed the bills introduction, Outside Magazine, Mens Journal, The Guardian, and other media outlets panned it, driving huge opposition. HR 621 become a rallying cry for hunters and anglers. The congressmans Instagram and Facebook pages were full of comments opposing his bill, and the outpouring of anger seemed to swell. He was pushed into a corner and had to respond. Only a week after the HR 621 made its appearance Chaffetz posted on Instagram: Im a proud gun owner, hunter, and love our public lands. The bill would have disposed of small parcels of lands President Clinton identified as serving no public purpose, but groups I support and care about fear it sends the wrong message I hear you and HR 621 dies tomorrow. The hashtag keepitpublic boomed. A NEW MOVEMENT Just over 13 years ago a group of dedicated hunters and anglers gathered together around a camp re. Mike Beagle, Dick Hentze, Tim Lillebo, James Montieth, Tony Heckard, Michelle Halle, and Brian Maguire saw a problem in this country that needed to be fixed. Habitat loss, pollution of waters, and dwindling public access to wild places was a scary proposition for the group. They decided to act. In March of 2004, a group dubbed Backcountry Hunters & Anglers was born. The mission: Be the voice for public lands, wildlife, and waters. It was a pretty simple cause to get behind, more important than any single local issue. The members called back to public land pioneers like Roosevelt and Leopold, aiming their message at hunters and anglers who grew up knowing the freedom that wild places provide. Most only needed to be made aware of the threats facing their way of life to jump in and help. When I was a kid I just thought everyone in the world had what we had, Warren said. But I slowly found out how special this land was. Today the organization is booming, growing by thousands of members a month and enjoying a growing influence on The Hill. With over 35 state chapters, they got the attention of avid users like Warren. Im a member of BHA because I care about the future of public access, he said. They are the future of public lands, and I will do all that I can to help this cause. The groups #keepitpublic has become a staple of the movement. Celebrities and activists don Public Land Owner shirts on social media, turning the opposition into a trending topic, injecting relevance and energy. Driving the machine is CEO Land Tawney, a fifth-generation Montanan who was tapped to lead the organization and has turned up the dial on the organizations relevance. Hes appeared on Anthony Bourdains No Reservations show, on CNN with Joe Rogan talking about the issues, and on national TV with several interviews regarding Rep. Ryan Zinkes confirmation as Secretary of the Interior. We are starting to feel this groundswell, he told me. We might not be a big group, but we are vocal, and we are relentless. Thousands of members flooded into Missoula, Montana, with Tawney this past April for the 2017 Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Rendezvous. They drank beer, ate wild game, and celebrated their local, regional, and national efforts to shine a light on public lands. Twenty-year-old college kids joined with 65-year-old ranchers, van-living hipsters stood beside hard-core DIY elk hunters, and politicians ate locally sourced wild game with leaders of industry. The core of the movement was represented there, a breed of activists multiplying in every corner of the nation. This reawakening has brought together animal-loving mountain bikers, hikers, and campers with even the most hard-core hunters and anglers. Its inspired rallies at state capitals in Montana, Idaho, and Utah. The Montana rally, coauthored by the Montana Wilderness Association and BHA, saw 1,000-plus gather in Helena. Last year, Colorado officially coined the third Saturday in May Americas first-ever Public Lands Day to bring together all that hope to push back on the idea that our lands are for sale. The Outdoor Retailer trade show pulled its influence and dollars out of Utah in opposition to the states public land politics. Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, a titanic and unifying industry voice, penned an open letter helping to push that idea forward. The list goes on. The movement has shot down just about every attempt from this small band of politicians hoping to reverse the course of history. The simple values of the #keepitpublic campaign have unified in a way that few thought possible. BATTLES WON On May 16, only three months after Warren sat in front of the Nevada Wildlife Commission, Rep. Amodei changed his message during an interview with the Reno Gazette-Journal editorial board. Transferring millions of acres of public lands is not something I think the majority of people think is a good idea, he said. Amodei is right. According to Colorado Colleges 2017 State of the Rockies poll, 56 percent of people in seven western states oppose transferring national lands to state ownership. Pair public sentiment with the strong opinion of the Wildlife Commission, and it seemed there was no path forward. With that, the Honor the Nevada Enabling of 1864 Act was dead. It would not return to congress. In the long history of Americas public land fight, hunters and anglers marked this as another win. The integrity of these lands, though, will only stand as long as like-minded users like Warren speak out as advocates. Just as the idea of shared resources defines our Nation, so does the premise of a peoples republic. Warrens bus trip may seem small in the scope of this issue, but its message was strong enough to be heard in halls of Congress. The people would not consent in this case. With the killing of Amodei and Chaffetzs bills and the rise of organizations like Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, the underpinnings of a movement have taken hold. Hunters and anglers now understand their political clout and have become leaders in the fight against land transfer. Now emboldened, their collective voice promises to only get louder. Millions of acres of public lands are off the market for now. The battles have been won, but the war is just getting started. Porterville, CA (93257) Today Becoming partly cloudy after some evening light rain. Potential for heavy rainfall. Low 48F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%.. Tonight Becoming partly cloudy after some evening light rain. Potential for heavy rainfall. Low 48F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%. Under its door-step delivery model, consumers can shop at any of the three Future Group-owned convenience formats - Easyday, Nilgiris and Heritage - both online or offline. Future Group is testing a door-step delivery service in a bid to secure its market as competition intensifies from hyper-local grocery delivery service providers, besides the growing threat from Amazon India which is scaling up the Amazon Now app, a two-hour doorstep delivery service of daily essentials. The retailer is looking to tap a growing segment of customers who value the convenience of shopping at the click of a button anytime and from anywhere, but want the delivery at a pre-appointed destination. Under its door-step delivery model, consumers can shop at any of the three Future Group-owned convenience formats - Easyday, Nilgiris and Heritage - both online or offline. At present, about 1,000 outlets under these three brands are part of the pilot. The products covered include essential household items, milk, fruits, vegetables and grocery that are delivered within 2-3 km radius of a store. This new initiative of home delivery is expected to generate around Rs 20 lakh per store per month of additional revenue. As part of our digital strategy, Retail 3.0, the company is focused on developing an ecosystem to provide customers whatever, whenever and wherever. "Technology is the enabler to develop this ecosystem. Within this, we would like to push our subscription model and loyalty programmes, says Venkateshwar Kumar, chief executive officer, south, Future Retail Limited. He adds the groups home delivery service should be viewed as part of its overall corporate strategy rather than a reaction to competition which would reduce it to a transactional logistics piece. "Tina Garg, founder and chief executive officer, Pink Lemonade, a Bangalore-based communication agency, says the delivery initiative is also an indication of Future Groups growing ambition to lead the space - something which was reflected in its acquisition of Easyday, Nilgiris and Heritage. "This is a space where offline players are seeing strong competition from online players such as BigBasket etc. Now, Amazons acquisition of Whole Foods has also created flurry in the market. This is an apt time for the Future team to experiment with delivery services so that they have enough of the market pie before Amazon disrupts it, explains Garg. According to Future Groups Kumar, as the pilot project evolves, the first thing the retail giant would look at is a major expansion of neighbourhood stores. The objective is to make sure that the Future Group stores are present in every pin code. That way delivery becomes easier. Second, the company is driving memberships for the three brands covered by the pilot. If the population in a particular catchment area is high - which means more potential customers - it will open more stores, but if an area store does not stock a product the consumer wants, the retailer will move stocks from another location. This will take care of the fact that small stores may not always be in a position to stock everything the customer needs. Home deliveries are being made by a dedicated team of two-wheeler riders. Given that not all the orders or multiple orders on the same route can be serviced by an in-house two-wheeler team, stores will also engage third-party three-wheeler logistics providers as and when they are needed. Smart management of inventory would be critical here. Going by the number of store visits that customers make and on the basis of member curated shopping lists, Future Group can figure out exactly what a consumer wants and when. The retailer claims to enjoy an accuracy rate of 99 per cent when it comes to forecasting customer demand. Garg points out that delivery and logistics is a business in itself and one needs specialised skills and expertise to run these functions efficiently. She suggests Future Group unbundle these functions. Then, technology is at the heart of accurate logistics and the retail giant needs to invest significantly in it to lead with optimised route paths, bundled and time-based deliveries as deployed by players such as Amazon and Swiggy. The airline is not convinced that it will have a sizeable passenger traffic to make wide body operations profitable High fuel price and aircraft acquisition cost have prompted IndiGo to have second thoughts on acquiring Airbus A330neo wide-body jets, through which it had planned to launch low-cost, long-haul direct flights to European cities from the coming winter. Instead, the airline is weighing options to acquire A321LR, which will help it operate flights to European cities in nine-hour range. Airbus advertises the A321LR for the middle-of-market segment, with 16 business class (36-inch pitch) and 190 economy (30-inch pitch) for a total of 206 seats. The aircraft demonstrated a test flight flying non-stop for 11 hours. No wide body as of now. Flying long-haul routes with wide body and filling the planes is a different ball game. "Not so soon. The A321LR is definitely being considered, said a person aware of the plan. The person said the airline, instead, would increase its international destinations in the West Asia, Southeast Asia and China. IndiGo will launch flights to Phuket, Istanbul, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Maldives and Kuala Lumpur between October and March. What worries the airline in acquiring the wide bodies is it doubts there will be a sizeable passenger traffic to make the operations profitable. With jet fuel price and currency fluctuation making business tougher for airlines, IndiGo may not yet venture into a new operation. Wide-body aircrafts have almost twice the operational costs compared with the narrow body on the route. "This means we need a sizable passenger traffic to cover the costs of the wide-body aircraft for each departure, said a second person aware of the plan. In response to queries from Business Standard over IndiGos wide-body plans, a spokeswoman said the airline's focus remained on the short-haul international routes. We recently announced Dhaka as our ninth international destination. There will be announcement of more destinations as we have rights to fly into markets like Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Male, Jeddah and Hong Kong. "IndiGos focus remains on fare travel for fast-growing Indian market and its close neighbours. The airline has not ordered wide-body aircraft at this time, she said. It is learnt that the airline has held serious negotiations with Airbus for the A330-800 model but could not reach an agreement. While Airbus didnt respond to queries, a senior executive of its rival Boeing confirmed there had been no discussions with the airline regarding wide-body aircraft. IndiGos rival SpiceJet has also shelved plans of launching flights to London, citing high aircraft acquisition cost. The question is the cost. The high cost of ownership for new-generation wide bodies is a key obstacle to the development of long-haul, low-cost air travel, SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh said. However, a source in the aircraft leasing industry said the airline would sooner or later order the wide bodies and the only factor was the acquisition cost. There has been a management change at Airbus. The current management doesnt believe much in aggressive pricing and since the A330neo programme got a new life from AirAsia, it will negotiate more, he said. AirAsia Group recently expanded an order for A330neo, adding 34 aircraft to an existing order to bring the total order to 100. Photograph: Vivek Prakash/Reuters Closure has meant loss of Rs 2,000 crore to the public exchequer; around three per cent of Tamil Nadu's Gross State Domestic Product is from the facility The closure of the Vedanta group's Sterlite Copper smelter plant at Thoothukudi, 600 km from Tamil Nadu capital, would remove a third of domestic production, argues the company. It would also hit downstream copper industries, chemical industries and local businesses, said P Ramnath, chief executive of Sterlite Copper. The facility, with capacity to produce around 400,000 tonnes a year of refined copper, was also exporting. It was ordered by the state government to be permanently shut down, in the wake of police firing on protesting villagers in the vicinity in May, killing 11. At a discussion Chennai, Ramnath denied the pollution charges. He said the major pollutant in the region was several thermal power plants of around 4,000 Mw combined capacity, responsible for 99 per cent of the sulphur dioxide in the region. Closure has meant loss of Rs 2,000 crore to the public exchequer; around three per cent of Tamil Nadu's Gross State Domestic Product is from the facility, said Ramnath. A total (annual) turnover of Rs 600 billion is affected," he said. Over 400 businesses, many from first-generation entrepreneurs faced closure with the shutdown of Sterlite Copper. Several chemical and fertiliser companies were getting sulphuric acid and phosphoric acid at a low rate from the company, he said, as a byproduct of refining copper. As for jobs, said Ramnath, at least 100,000 employees are affected directly and indirectly all over Tamil Nadu; at stake was the livelihood of about 400,000 people. The facility, contends Ramnath, is a zero liquid discharge smelter plant. Also, many of the allegations raised by opponents of the unit had been declared closed by the Supreme Court (SC) order of 2013, which allowed the plant to operate while asking it to deposit Rs 100 crore with the state government for steps to protect the environment. The SC directed the government to use the interest from the Rs 100 crore we paid into action to protect the environment. The interest alone is around Rs 40 crore and only Rs 4 crore has been spent, and only to construct roads, he alleged. D Nagasaila, an environmental advocate who has been arguing for remedial steps at Thoothukudi, says for those in the neighbourhood, pollution is a reality. In the panel discussion (moderated by former national security advisor M K Narayanan, she alleged the state pollution control board had colluded with the firm to ease various norms earlier stipulated under the environmental regulations for the plant. Photograph: PTI Photo Overall attrition jumped to 20.6 per cent in the quarter, a 400 basis points rise over 16.6 per cent in the earlier quarter. Information technology major Infosys saw more numbers of high performers leaving in the April-June quarter, apart from exits in the senior executive category. However, says the company, it is confident of bringing down this attrition to normal levels in subsequent quarters. The countrys second largest IT company saw two seniors exit in the period. Sangita Singh resigned while head of its health care vertical, to join IBM's global business services division as a general manager of cloud consulting services, Nitesh Banga, its global head of manufacturing business, quit to subsequently join as chief operating officer (COO) at GlobalLogic. "Attrition at the senior level is low. We have had a couple of exits in the recent past but have a strong leadership bench (people to step in)," said U B Pravin Rao, the COO, to analysts after announcing the quarters results. These exits give people at the next level the opportunity to step up and we have already identified replacements for the two people who left. The Bengaluru-headquartered company underwent much leadership transition in the past year. Overall attrition jumped to 20.6 per cent in the quarter, a 400 basis points rise over 16.6 per cent in the earlier quarter. This is also almost double the level of its larger sectoral peer, Tata Consultancy Services, at 10.9 per cent in the quarter. ''Part of the attrition is seasonal. In Q1 (the June or first quarter), you typically have a big per cent of people going abroad for higher education. Nevertheless, its probably higher than what weve seen in the past," said Rao. According to the company, a big chunk of the attrition is from people with two to four years of experience. We have seen a higher number of high-performer attrition. In past quarters, the attrition level from high performers was lower and, in that sense, this quarter was an exception. We have identified certain interventions to check that and are confident of bringing it back to normal levels," said Rao. Infosys says it continues to conduct major recruitment drives and added 17,709 professionals at the gross level during the June quarter. On the interventions, Rao said much had been done over recent quarters. We rolled out a wage hike for 85 per cent of our employees effective April. We have also given 100 per cent of variable pay in the past couple of quarters. There is a lot of focus on re-skilling and training and so on. In April, Infosys said it had created a special bonus pool of $10 million (Rs 68 crore) to be paid to its 200,000-plus employees, in addition to their regular quarterly variable pay, to check the high level of employee exits. Photograph: Abhishek N Chinnappa/Reuters In case MGNREGA is expanded, officials said the total expenditure on farming-related works could reach up to 80 per cent of MGNREGA budget, as against the current 67 per cent. The governments move to expand MGNREGA for creation of durable assets in post- and pre-harvesting agriculture operations has raised doubts on whether it would lead to using farm labour for big private land at the cost of public exchequer, which could dilute the entire premise on which the Act has been framed. Senior government officials, however, are confident that there wont be any move through which MGNREGA ends up subsidising private farm labour. And, the activities that would be taken up under MGNREGA would be to enhance the construction of post-harvest facilities, such as market yards, village-level and farm gate small processing facilities such as grading and sorting vends, etc. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanaths suggestion to use MGNREGA labour for building farm fences has also not found much traction among senior officials on the same ground - it might be misused to subsidise farm labour for private lands. In case MGNREGA is expanded, officials said the total expenditure on farming-related works could reach up to 80 per cent of MGNREGA budget, as against the current 67 per cent. A number of such activities are already being undertaken under MGNREGA, while the aim in the next phase would be to expand their scope, so as to raise farmers income. Earlier this month, a panel of chief ministers under MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan met in the capital to find out ways through which MGNREGA could be used for doing jobs that reduce cost of cultivation for farmers, enhancing the production through efficient use of water or other inputs and even fencing of farms to protect them from wild animals. The panel also decided to organise five regional workshops in Patna, Bhopal, Hyderabad, Guwahati and New Delhi to discuss with experts, farmers and farmers representatives and other stakeholders, along with state governments, the various options through which MGNREGA can be better integrated with farming activities. The regional meetings will be completed by August 15. If at all any activity is permitted on private land, it would be confined to small and marginal farmers, such as those involved in bamboo, papaya, banana plantations, etc, which the Act permits, a senior government official said. At present, creation of individual assets under MGNREGA is permitted on land or homestead-owned by households belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, nomadic tribes, denotified tribes, other families below poverty line and once all the categories are exhausted then only in the land of small and marginal farmers as defined in the Agriculture Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme of 2008. Reetika Khera, associate professor, IIM Ahmedabad, told Business Standard that expansion of permissible MGNREGA works should meet two conditions. First, it should create additional employment, rather than subsidising private farm labour. Second, the new works should remain as labour intensive as possible. For example, land levelling raises productivity and is labour intensive. Similarly, wells, orchards and plantations have benefited small and marginal farmers. Construction of threshing floors, which farmers appreciate, can also be considered, she said. There is a lot of creative thinking at the village and district levels. If gram panchayats are allowed to decide (as mandated by the Act), it might be a better way forward, Khera added. The Centre is also considering expanding the definition of workers under MGNREGA to include semi-skilled and skilled workers as well, so that more farm-related works could be incorporated in it. However, which of these get into final nod would depend on the suggestions by chief ministers after their discussion with all stakeholders. Photograph: Desmond Boylan/Reuters The Miss World was in South Africa during the 100th birthday celebrations of late Nelson Mandela. Miss World Manushi Chhillar visited South Africa to launch the very first 100 per cent compostable sanitary pad manufacturing unit at Mvezo, the birthplace of Nelson Mandela on his 100th birthday celebrations. The unit was launched less than 50 meters away from the home where Mandela was born. 'President Mandela was the greatest supporter of a women's right to equality,' wrote the Miss World organisation on their Instagram page. 'He often commented on the urgent need to solve the problems faced by the girl child when she begins menstruation,' they added. Manushi, who has in the past used the Miss World platform to highlight the urgent need for increased menstrual hygiene in India, is doing her best to break the taboo around periods in India and across the world. Her visit coincides with the GST on sanitary napkins in India being waived off. Commenting on the GST waiver, Manushi said: 'When a girl understands that her body is a gift and doesn't limit her in any way is when she will truly feel empowered. 'The revised GST on sanitary pads will surely make more girls feel that their needs are respected and menstruation doesn't limit them in any way.' At the event, she explained how her Menstrual Hygiene project had started as an awareness programme. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who listened with rapt attention to Manushi's speech, had some kind words for the Miss World. 'Julia Morley has contributed for many years to South Africa, and you (Manushi) are all doing great work,' he said. 'I can see this making a real difference to many young girls in South Africa.' 'A new milestone achieved!' wrote the Miss World on Instagram. 'Nelson Mandela said that poor menstrual hygiene was one of the three reasons why girls were facing inequality as compared to boys. 'It was an honour to inaugurate the first sanitary pad manufacturing unit set up by us in South Africa along with his excellency, President Cyril Ramaphosa. 'Work has already started and the first batch of 100 per cent compostable, low cost sanitary pads have been produced! 'Two shifts of six to eight women, and one supervisor each have been trained to operate the unit providing employment to the women of Mvezo. 'Around 2000 pads will be produced everyday and no girl shall feel uncomfortable while attending school. 'We already have more than 40 of these units running across 12 states of India,' she added. Miss World 2017 Manushi Chhillar, Miss World 2016 Stephanie Del Valle and Miss World 2014 Rolene Struass pose with the locals. Rolene Struass and Manushi poses and pout for the cameras. 'Here's to the invisible bond that comes with the crown dearest Rolene,' Manushi captioned this pic. 'Sharing the same passion, I am so happy to have finally met you. 'We have made some great memories even though the trip was short. Thank you for joining me in my project!' 200 blankets and winter hats were handed out to the elderly at the newly opened centre. There were also 100 bicycles donated to school children. Julia Morley of the Miss World organisation shares a laugh with the president. On her return from South Africa, Manushi stopped at London for a short weekend before getting back to work. He is among the contenders for the top job in the event the BJP gets fewer seats in 2019. That may have something to do with him picking up the cudgels for Sushma Swaraj when many in the party kept mum, says Aditi Phadnis. IMAGE: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, seen right, as Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Anilchandra Shah felicitates Maharashta Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai, July 22, 2018. Photograph: Arun Patil Roads and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari was one of only two senior leaders from the Bharatiya Janata Party (the other was Home Minister Rajnath Singh) who spoke out in favour of Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj when supporters of her party attacked her following her intervention to transfer a passport issuing official who asked embarrassing and unrelated questions when a Hindu-Muslim couple applied for their passports. The officer reportedly asked questions about Tanvi Seth's name on her nikahnama, why she had married Mohammad Anas Siddiqui and why her married name was not endorsed in her passport. Apart from the fact that nikahnama etc are no longer required to get a passport and a woman can retain any name she wants so long as her identity matches the documents she has presented, the officer is said to have asked intrusive questions. When Seth tweeted about 'harassment', Swaraj, who was travelling, took action immediately. Eventually, it was Gadkari who spoke up. Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi said nothing as abusive and insulting comments choked up social media about a perfectly legitimate intervention by one of his ministers. What made Gadkari do this? Does it have anything to do with the fact that his name is one of those circulating for the top job, should the BJP get fewer seats in the 2019 elections? Originally from Nagpur -- where the RSS also has its headquarters -- Gadkari has been the leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Vidhan Parishad, or the Upper House. He is not known for his vote-catching abilities in the state though he won the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Nagpur, defeating the Congress' Vilas Muttemwar by a huge margin. The BJP had won from Nagpur only once in 1996 when Banwarilal Purohit had defeated Kunda Vijaykar of the Congress, the daughter of former BCCI president S K Wankhede. Purohit originally belonged to the Congress and had earlier won on the ticket of that party. Alongside, the BJP won all the assembly constituencies with one of the seats going to Devendra Fadnavis, now chief minister. Gadkari began life as a small-time contractor for the public works department who prospered and set up several companies. While building roads in the tribal areas in Maharashtra, he saw how the tribals lived and confessed to having a secret affection for Naxalites. His experience with government at the time was not happy and shaped his world view. If you are a bureaucrat and he is a minister, you risk saying 'no' to him at your peril because he knows from personal experience how obstructive as well as malleable the bureaucracy can be. His career as a contractor and businessman saw him foray into the complex world of cooperatives in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, traditionally short of capital which is why the cooperative experiment never took off there. But Gadkari did start cooperatives in this region. He is the chairman of a group of companies called Poorti, which is into construction and furniture and retail supermarkets. In 1995, after a career spent pretty much confined to the Upper House, Gadkari became a minister in the PWD. He did some good work -- creating a scientific methodology of BOT projects by initiating traffic surveys, working out IRR (internal rate of return) and deciding the concession period of toll. He made the Maharashtra government change the existing rules and formulated a new toll policy amid scepticism and outrage. His election to the Upper House unopposed in 2002 was cause for heartburn. He was proud of the fact that he had many friends in the Opposition including various Thackeray factions and Congress leader, the late Vilasrao Deshmukh. But a section of the Maharashtra BJP felt he had compromised himself politically. They said he showed a marked lack of enthusiasm for going for the government's jugular when the opportunity arose. They also said this was why no one opposed him in 2002. Be that as it may, the fact is Gadkari has come to be regarded as a politician who understands issues of the interface of development and politics. His tenure as BJP president was cut short by corruption charges that could never be proved and were largely a result of machinations by his party colleagues. When he was made roads minister, he went about his task with zeal that few ministers could match. He is considered a minister with a track record of solid performance. All this gives Gadkari the confidence to speak up when he feels it is the right thing to do. For this alone, he should be supported. 'From now on, every time Modi takes a foreign dignitary in his arms, the Indians will remember how he was taken aback when an Indian indulged in hugplomacy,' says Amulya Ganguli. IMAGE: In this combo of four photographs is seen Congress President Rahul Gandhi as he hugs Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi after his speech in the Lok Sabha on the no-confidence motion, July 20, 2018. Photograph: PTI Photo It is known that the political Right has no sense of humour. This void also applies to Fascists and Communists. Since humour encompasses both hilarity and a touch of the comic, including the gentle art of pulling someone's leg in a gathering of friends, it stands for a relaxed atmosphere which is the hallmark of a civilised and cultured society. The tinkle of glasses and a background of soft music are a part of such an ambience. That fascists are not appreciative of an environment of this nature was evident from Joseph Goebbels' threat to draw a gun if and when he heard the word 'culture'. Like the Nazi Reich minister, the Bolshevik dictator, Vladimir Lenin, too, was wary of the beguiling effects of culture and civilisation. Hence, his observation: 'I can't listen to music too often. It affects your nerves, makes you want to say stupid nice things and stroke the heads of people who could create such beauty while living in this vile hell.' Few will disagree with the logic behind the aversion towards melody. Since both Goebbels and Lenin were dead serious about their respective objectives -- a 1,000-year Reich in Germany and a Communist paradise in the Soviet Union -- they could not afford to be distracted by the trappings of civilisation with their emphasis on jollity and togetherness. They had no time, therefore, to let their guard down when the enemy was at the door and had to be eliminated -- the non-Aryans in Germany and the bourgeoisie in the Soviet Union. Is a similar mentality behind Narendra Damodardas Modi's summary rejection of Rahul Gandhi's 'forced hug' -- 'gale padna' as the prime minister said at a public meeting? However, the fact that Modi found it necessary to refer to the hug -- which was an off-the-cuff gesture that had nothing to do with the business of Parliament -- at a rally suggests that he has been unable to keep the episode out of his mind. The clinch not only took him by surprise, but was also of a kind which does not come naturally to people on the Right of the political spectrum. The prime minister and his party are also probably unsure of the political impact of the sudden unwanted embrace. Will it succeed in sending out the Congress president's message of his party's preference for love as opposed to the brotherhood's penchant for hate as is evident from the lynchings which have persuaded the highest court in the land to intervene? If the idea of love is aligned to the idea of India during the election campaign, then nearly all of the Sangh Parivar's tricks of the trade -- ghar wapsi, love jihad, harassment of couples on Valentine's Day, the mocking of 'Rome rajya' via a mimicry of Sonia Gandhi's Italian accent -- will lose their sheen. Not surprisingly, the BJP has already wheeled out those who are accusing Rahul of being 'high' on intoxicants. Such snide, below-the-belt innuendo come naturally to the Parivar. That is the only way it can deflect attention from the publicity which the hug has received by depicting it in a lurid light. But the acts of deflection will not be easy given Modi's habit of hugging whoever he meets on his tours as a 'travelling salesman', as the Trinamool Congress's Saugata Roy said in Parliament. The only one who has escaped a cuddle is Xi Jinping notwithstanding the Wuhan camaraderie. From now on, every time Modi takes a foreign dignitary in his arms, the Indians will remember how he was taken aback when an Indian indulged in hugplomacy. Amulya Ganguli is a writer on current affairs. LAOS, July 23 (ChinaMil) -- Three Chinese IL-76 transport aircraft loaded with supplies and carrying Chinas military medical team arrived at the Wattay International Airport in Vientiane, capital of Laos, on Sunday. From July 24 to August 7, the Chinese military medical team will participate in a China-Laos joint exercise under the theme of humanitarian medical rescue in flood disasters and provide free clinical treatment and other medical services for local servicemen and civilians in Laos. From July 24 to 31, Chinese and Laotian militaries will hold the humanitarian and medical joint rescue exercise (codenamed Peace Train -2018) at the Logistics College of Laos. China and Laos will dispatch 100 and 90 personnel respectively to participate. As the first such joint exercise between the two militaries medical service troops, it is aimed at improving the two sides capability in conducting coordinated actions. From August 2 to 6, the Chinese medical team will provide medical services in Vientiane City and Xiangkhouang Province of Laos with the help of the No.103 and No.101 hospitals of the Laotian military, helping Laotian military medical peers improve their clinical skills. The Chinese military will send experts from 26 disciplines in general surgery, orthopedics, and neurology to provide voluntary clinics, physical examinations, itinerant visits, and surgery services for the Laotian government officials, troops, military families, and local people. During the event, the Chinese medical team will also donate ambulances, epidemic control vehicles and other equipment as well as medicine worth RMB 3.5 million to the Laotian military and civilians. 'Being authoritative is one thing, but being authoritarian is quite another -- the current prime minister is clearly one.' IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi with Communist Party of India leader Doraiswamy Raja, National Conference MP Dr Farooq Abdullah and Nationalist Congress Party supremo Sharad Pawar as Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, left, looks on. Photograph: Subhav Shukla/PTI Photo If Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi had an advisor to tell him frankly about the dangerous ramifications of demonetisation, would the country have spared the pains it went through during the process? Maybe not. But it is more important for a prime minister to have advisors who can "tell the truth", and are not just "yes-men", believes former Union minister Jairam Ramesh. That's the lesson he wants administrators to learn from his new book, Intertwined Lives: P N Haksar and Indira Gandhi. The book is a biography of Parmeshwar Narayan Haksar, Mrs Gandhi's principal secretary from 1967 to 1973 who was considered 'India's most powerful civil servant' during those years. "The prime minister ultimately decides. But the adviser has to have the courage of his or her convictions and not be bothered about whether the advice will be taken or not," Ramesh tells Rediff.com's Utkarsh Mishra. A prime minister, Ramesh stresses, "must get different points of view". Your book on P N Haksar comes at a time when it is being said that only two people in the government wield all the power. Let alone being consulted, top babus sometimes know nothing about an impending decision until it is taken. Did you have this in mind while writing the book? Absolutely not. That is a perverse interpretation of a work of recent political history, a work meant to be a work of scholarship, not polemics. You said every PM must have an advisor like Haksar to 'tell the truth', but when an authoritative leader is in power, does it help much? Like you gave the example of the note ban, it was reported that even Union ministers like Nitin Gadkari were not in favour of it, but the decision was taken, without taking the RBI on board. The prime minister ultimately decides. But the adviser has to have the courage of his or her convictions and not be bothered about whether the advice will be taken or not. Indira Gandhi went by Haksar's advice on most occasions, but there were instances when they differed and her views prevailed. Being authoritative is one thing -- Nehru was that -- but being authoritarian is quite another -- the current prime minister is clearly one. Could a P N Haksar survive or attain similar heights in today's administration? It all depends on the boss. Haksar was really a creation of Indira Gandhi. She brought him in and gave him full freedom and authority for almost five-and-a-half years. Without her backing, trust and confidence, he would not have been able to make his contributions -- just as Indira Gandhi would not have reached the zenith of her glory without his assistance. One fact which makes the present times completely different from any other time in the past is how any official or bureaucrat taking a position contrary to the government, or the PM to be precise, is declared 'anti-national' or 'supported by the Opposition'. Won't senior officials choose not to speak their mind in such a situation to avoid controversy? That is why the prime minister must encourage debate, discussion and even dissent. The prime minister must get different points of view. Even though Haksar was intensely ideological, he encouraged a diversity of opinion to be expressed. I have written in the book how he encouraged Indira Gandhi to meet with Nani Palkhivala and get ideas from him on tax reforms and other matters. Haksar got P N Dhar as his understudy and to finally take over from him in 1973, but the two had different economic and political philosophies. What changes did Haksar bring to Indira Gandhi's political instincts? And how did it change when he left? Why did the PM, who always sought Haksar's company and advice on important matters, decide one day that, as you write, 'she could do without him'? The rift between Haksar and Sanjay Gandhi over the latter's Maruti car project caused the drift between Haksar and Indira Gandhi. Haksar was opposed to the Maruti project on ideological and personal grounds. He felt India should be investing more in public transport and should expand scooter production. He also believed and told Indira Gandhi that it was not right for the prime minister's son staying in the prime minister's house and carry on the Maruti business. Over time this caused Indira Gandhi and Haksar to move apart. After her spectacular electoral mandate of March 1971 and the defeat of Pakistan in the war in December 1971 she must have felt that she had emerged on her own. Haksar too believed that one phase of the prime ministership was over and he did not see a role for himself in the next phase. He exited gracefully on his own in mid-January 1973. As someone who has written earlier on Mrs Gandhi, how do you react when our incumbent PM is compared to her? There is simply no comparison. Indira Gandhi grew up in an environment nurtured by Tagore, Gandhi and of course Nehru. By calling for elections in mid-January 1977, she proved that she was Nehru's daughter. She had wide-ranging interests and concerns and was not obsessed with power. She sought out people whose views did not converge with hers. The full story of her relationship with (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee, for instance, has not been written. She was fiercely secular even while being proud of and steeped in India's Hindu heritage. Her commitment to ecological balance was uncompromising. Barring the Emergency period which was a colossal error of judgement and decision even assuming that there were factors leading up to it, her commitment to democratic values was total and she proved it in January 1977 by calling for elections and accepting her defeat gracefully. She made a Haksar possible -- our incumbent PM would never do so. You write that if Haksar had attended the Cabinet meeting in which Mrs Gandhi informed the ministers about the decision to impose the Emergency, he would have 'opposed it but not resigned'. Why do you feel so? Didn't he make up his mind to quit over relatively smaller issues? He distinguished the personal from the professional and his loyalty to Indira Gandhi was total. The fact that he was a protege of Nehru had much to do with this and also the fact that she had plucked him out of diplomatic obscurity and given him the pride of place in her inner-most orbit. They had known each other for over 30 years and he was also a buddy of her husband. He was deputy chairman of the Planning Commission during the Emergency and my sense is that he felt that by being within the system he could still influence Indira Gandhi in a constructive manner -- which he did as I show in the book. Rajiv Gandhi was one PM who listened to advice, but he got all perilous ones. If Haksar had continued with him, would things have been different? Rajiv Gandhi sent Haksar as his special envoy to China and Haksar's May 1987 talks with the Chinese prime minister and officials paved the way for Mr Gandhi's historic visit to China in December 1988. He met Haksar every now and then, but clearly Haksar's time had passed. He said what he had to and the prime minister listened to him carefully. In a way, the beginning of Congress President Rahul Gandhi's political career was very similar to Mrs Gandhi's 'gungiya gudiya (dumb doll' phase. After the Gujarat election campaign, we are seeing a lot of change in him. Who plays a Haksar for him? You are considered one of his mentors. Do you still play the role? Absolutely not. Mr Rahul Gandhi has certainly evolved and transformed himself. I think perhaps the Gujarat elections was the turning point and also the fact that now the buck stops with him. He is in the hot seat himself and that has definitely brought new vigour, aggression and drive into his public persona. I am one of many who meet him off and on and he certainly encourages us to speak our minds and express ourselves freely. And I can testify to the fact that he is an admirer of Haksar and is well aware of Haksar's role during Indira Gandhi's tenure. The Centre on Monday sought a report from the Rajasthan government on the alleged lynching of a man in the state's Alwar district on the suspicion of cow smuggling. The home ministry asked the Rajasthan government to provide details of the incident, the action taken to punish those involved in it and the steps taken to restore peace, an official said. The report has been sought as early as possible, the official said. The deceased 28-year-old Akbar Khan was thrashed by a group of people on suspicion of being a cow smuggler in Lalawandi village in Alwar on Saturday last. The Rajasthan Police has also set up a high-level committee to probe the allegations of delay against the Alwar police in taking Khan to a hospital after he was allegedly lynched on the suspicion of cow smuggling. "Allegations of delay in taking Khan to the hospital and policemen crossing their limits have come to fore. A four-member committee of senior police officials is in Alwar to enquire into the matter," state Director General of Police O P Galhotra said. It will also be probed whether the 28-year-old Akbar, alias Rakbar Khan, became a victim of police beating on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday. Appropriate action would be taken if any lapses were found in the enquiry report, the DGP said. The committee comprise special DGP (law and order) N R K Reddy, Additional DGP (CID-Crime Branch) P K Singh, Inspector General (Jaipur Range) Hemant Priyadarshi and state nodal officer (cow vigilance) Mahendra Singh Chaudhary, Galhotra informed in a statement here. The enquiry is in addition to the overall probe that has been handed over to a additional SP-rank officer. While two persons, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh, were arrested on Saturday, the third accused, Naresh Singh, was arrested on Sunday and they are under police custody for five days, police said. "There are certain allegations that the local police had beaten Khan and delayed in taking him to hospital which are being looked into," SP (Alwar) Rajendra Singh said. It is alleged that when the incident happened in Lalawandi village in Alwar, it took over two-and-a-half hours for the police to take the victim to the Ramgarh Community Healthcare Centre, which is nearly 4 km away. Akbar, along with his friend Aslam, were taking cows to their villages in Haryana through a forest area in Ramgarh area of Alwar, where they caught by a group of people. Aslam had managed to flee from there. As per the FIR lodged with Ramgarh police station on Saturday, Naval Kishore Sharma, the chief of Vishwa Hindu Parishad's "Gau Raksha" cell in Ramgarh, had informed the police at 12.41 am (on Saturday) about the incident. Police reached the spot at around 1.15 am. Akbar's statement was recorded and he was taken to police station. As per the CHC entry register, a body of a 28-year-old male was brought at 4.00 am. Questioning the role of the police, local Ramgarh MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja has demanded a judicial enquiry to find out if Rakbar was lynched by a mob or beaten to death by police. Following the allegation, the probe into the alleged lynching incident was handed over to Additional SP (Crime and Vigilance), Jaipur Range, on Sunday. "The investigation will be carried out in a fair and transparent manner," IG, Jaipur Range, Hemant Priyadarshi had said. Meanwhile, the police investigation has revealed the past police record of the victim. On December 30, 2014, Nauganwa police station in Alwar had registered a case against Rakbar under sections 5 (prohibits the export of bovine animals for slaughter) and 8 (penalty for contravention of Section 5) of the Rajasthan Bovine Animal Act, after allegedly retrieving two cows from him. Nauganwa police station SHO Mohan Singh said a challan was filed in the 2014 case. In a shocking development in Alwar lynching case, media reports have claimed that police took almost four hours to travel 6 km while taking a critically injured victim of lynching, Akbar Khan, to the nearest hospital. Akbar and his friend Aslam had reportedly purchased the cows from Ladpura village and were taking them to their village in Haryana through a forested area near Lalawandi in Alwar district when the accused attacked them. Aslam manage to flee but an injured Akbar died at a hospital in Alwar. According to Times of India report, the FIR says police were alerted about the attack at 12.41 am by a 'gau rakshak', Naval Kishore Sharma. Ramgarh police said a team reached the lynching spot within 15-20 minutes. However, according to hospital's OPD register Akbar was brought in at 4 am. According to NDTV report, after taking Akbar from the spot, the cops gave him a bath, since he was covered in mud. Then, they took Akbar to Sharma's home to organise transport to ferry the cows to a local cattle shelter. One of Kishore's relatives, Maya, told NDTV that she saw "a policeman beating the man inside the vehicle and abusing him." Asked if the man was still alive, she said yes. After arrangements were being made for the vehicle, the policemen headed out for refreshments. With the injured man complaining of pain, the policemen drank cups of tea from a nearby stall. Later, the policemen went to the police station with the injured man, Kishore said, adding that he took the cows to the cow shelter. Around 4 am, the man was taken to the local hospital, where Akbar was declared brought dead. So far, the police have arrested three persons and the case has been handed over to an additional SP-rank officer by the IG of Jaipur range for investigation. Inspector General (Jaipur range) Hemant Priyadarshy said an impartial investigation would be carried out. No culprit would be spared nor would any innocent be framed, he added. In April last year, a 50-year-old dairy farmer, Pehlu Khan, was also beaten to death by vigilantes suspecting him to be a cow smuggler. The kisan is as integral a part of the BJPs master plan for the 2019 polls as the Dalit because it surmised that the farmers and Dalits were as restive in UP as in much of the country, and if it had to cut its losses, its reflexes must kick in fast. Radhika Ramaseshan reports. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath with party leaders during the Kisan Kalyan rally at Shahjahanpur on Saturday. Photograph: PTI Photo Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently commissioned a perishable cargo centre near Raja Talab railway station in Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency. Such centres, set up by the Container Corporation of India and the railways, first came up in 2013. But the Varanasi project has been vested in political symbolism and electoral substance, considering that the Lok Sabha election is likely nine months away. In 2014, Modi launched his Varanasi campaign from Raja Talab. Sunil Ojha, a former Gujarat legislator who minds Varanasi for the PM, explained: The centre is a boon for farmers in and around the city because the cold storage will be powered 24x7 to ensure that the perishables remain fresh until they reach Mumbai. Farmers will be paid the Mumbai market price to ensure good returns for their produce. Vegetable and fruit growers Ojha referred to are from the backward caste Shakhya, variously called Koeri, Kushwaha and Kachi. While the Shakhyas counted for little (although their numbers are significant in Uttar Pradesh) during the previous regime, the Bharatiya Janata Party integrated the less visible backward castes into a larger social template before 2014 to blunt the Yadavs clout. The kisan is as integral a part of the BJPs master plan for the 2019 polls as the Dalit because it surmised that the farmers and Dalits were as restive in UP as in much of the country, and if it had to cut its losses, its reflexes must kick in fast. Modi followed through the Varanasi overture with an address to farmers at a rally in Shahjahanpur on Saturday, largely to market the hike in the minimum support price of staple crops. The BJP is up against a formidable challenge posed by the prospective coalition of the Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (the Congresss status is yet indistinct), which can potentially trim its tally of 73 (out of 80) Lok Sabha seats in the state. The strategy it pencilled in so far has three principal elements: Modi; development, urban and rural with a pronounced thrust on the latter; and fine-tuning the caste alliances that might collapse if the SP-BSP were together. The plan has been executed in three phases: Galvanising the local cadre through the BJPs classic themed yatras, the BJP president Amit Shah stepped in to pep up the cadre, whose heart was not fully in the Ambedkar Mission padyatra, conceived essentially to answer the Oppositions propaganda of the BJP being anti-Dalit; or the Jan Samwad Yatra, launched to disseminate the Centre and the UP governments welfare schemes and to oversee preparations in the booths. Lastly, Modi heralded his appearance at the opening of the worlds largest mobile factory in Noida on July 9 and will wrap up the month with a speech to the BJPs mayors in Lucknow. "Modi will not utter the Hindutva word. For him it is development and the poor. Yogi Adityanath (the chief minister) will fill in on Hindutva, a BJP source said. Shah met the leaders and workers from all over UP in two meetings in July at Mirzapur and Agra, where his central message to the partys malcontent -- reportedly upset on being ordered to lay off fixers and not cultivate cronies -- was: We are not a party of contractors but of ideas and ideology. UP BJP spokesperson Chandra Mohan said: Our cadre was told to focus on re-energising the booth committees and check the voters lists because the previous governments had fiddled around with them. Bhupendra Yadav, the general secretary who was present in Mirzapur and Agra, said, The booth committees must be socially inclusive. Sidharth Nath Singh, UPs health minister and government spokesperson, said Shahs prolonged interactions instilled a sense of confidence in the workers who felt shaken after the SP-BSP-RLD combine defeated the BJP in four recent by-elections. "The combine is a challenge but our organisational capacity is being strengthened again through programmes of mobilisation, the aggressive promotion of the MSP increase, and focus on Dalits, said Singh. The by-poll setback notwithstanding, UP Power Minister Shrikant Sharma said: "The only glue binding the Opposition is hatred towards Modi. Our answer is they are fighting to stop Modis development. The bypoll losses dont matter because the atmosphere is different when voters elect a single MP and the countrys PM. Modi has his own vote. Sceptics contested the BJPs optimism. A senior bureaucrats take was, Only Hindu-Muslim polarisation can help the BJP... A solid counter consolidation of castes will weaken it. The BJPs greatest advantages are the Opposition is without a face, is not working hard and lacks resources. Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday secured interim protection from arrest from a trial court in the Aircel-Maxis case filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation but will have to wait till Tuesday to know the fate of his anticipatory bail plea before the Delhi high court in the Enforcement Directorates money-laundering case related to INX Media. In a related development that came as a reprieve for Karti Chidambaram, the son of the former union minister, the Madras high court quashed CBIs look out circular issued against him in the INX Media case. Separately, Karti, who wanted to visit the United Kingdom, France and America for personal reasons, including witnessing the US Grand Slam tournament, was allowed by the apex court to travel abroad from July 23-31. P Chidambaram had simultaneously moved the Delhi high court and a trial court for seeking protection from arrest in the INX Media money laundering case and the Aircel-Maxis case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI respectively. While the Delhi high court listed for Tuesday Chidambarams anticipatory bail plea in the money-laundering case, a trial court granted interim protection from arrest to him in the Aircel-Maxis case. The anticipatory bail plea in the EDs case will be heard tomorrow by Justice A K Pathak. Karti, whose role is being investigated by the ED and the CBI in several cases, including the one relating to FIPB clearance to INX Media for receiving foreign funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore when his father was the finance minister, was earlier also allowed to go abroad. In his plea filed before the Delhi high court, P Chidambaram said although no summons were ever been served to him by the ED in this case, he was apprehending arrest in view of the summons issued to him by the CBI, which is investigating the scheduled offence. The plea, filed through advocates Pramod Kumar Dubey and Arshdeep Singh, said during investigation of the EDs case, which has been going on for over a year, no summons has been issued to Chidambaram till date and no allegation has been levelled against him regarding evading the process of law or fleeing from the process of law or interfering with the investigation in any manner. There is not even a slightest whisper about his tampering with any evidence or hampering/impeding the process of investigation, it said, while seeking relief. The plea said the senior Congress leader had already got protection from arrest in the CBIs case related to INX Media. In the Aircel-Maxis case lodged by the CBI, Special CBI Judge O P Saini asked the CBI to file a detailed reply to P Chidambarams application and directed the agency not to take any coercive action against him till August 7. The former finance minister told the court that he had apprehensions that the CBI might arrest him in the case. Nothing is preventing them (CBI) from arresting me (Chidambaram) in the case. I am apprehending arrest in the current matter. They can arrest me as a matter of law. I am made an accused for nothing, said senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for P Chidambaram. CBI had on July 19 filed a supplementary chargesheet against Chidambaram and his son Karti and 16 others before the trial court which has fixed it for consideration on July 31. The CBI is probing as to how Chidambaram, who was the Union finance minister in 2006, granted a Foreign Investment Promotion Board approval to a foreign firm, when only the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs was empowered to do it. The Congress leaders role has come under the scanner of probe agencies in the Rs 3,500-crore Aircel-Maxis deal and the INX Media case involving Rs 305 crore. It was during his tenure as the finance minister in the United Progressive Alliance-1 government that clearances from the FIPB were given to the two ventures, in which alleged irregularities have been found. In the INX Media case, the CBI had registered an FIR on May 15 last year, alleging irregularities in the FIPB clearance to the media group for receiving overseas funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during Chidambarams tenure as the finance minister. Thereafter, the ED had last year lodged the money-laundering case in this regard. Both Chidambaram and Karti have denied the allegations levelled against them by the CBI and the ED. Chidambaram had already got protection from arrest from the high court in the CBIs case related to INX Media. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday arrived in Rwanda on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the first Indian PM to visit Rwanda, was received by President Paul Kagame on arrival at the Kigali international airport on July 23, 2018. Photograph: @MEAIndia/Twitter The prime ministers aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was given a red carpet welcome on Monday evening. His two-day state visit to Rwanda -- one of Africas fastest growing economies -- assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. Prime Minister Modi will hold bilateral meetings with President Paul Kagame, delegation-level talks and meetings with the business and the Indian communities, a statement from the Prime Ministers Office said. He will also visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on Girinka (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. A defence cooperation agreement is also expected to be signed between India and Rwanda during the visit, T S Tirumurti, secretary (Economic Relations) in the ministry of external affairs, said in New Delhi last week. India will also be opening a mission in Rwanda very soon, Tirumurti said. During this visit, we expect to conclude two lines of credit -- one of $100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone, and another one for $100 million for agriculture and irrigation, he said. An important element of the programme would be the prime ministers visit to Rweru Model Village where he will gift 200 cows as a contribution from India to the Girinka scheme of Rwanda, Tirumurti said. Under Girinka, a social protection scheme of the Rwandan government personally overseen by President Kagame, poorest families are gifted dairy cows by the government and the first female calf born to the cow is gifted to the neighbour, thus promoting brotherhood and solidarity. The cows to be gifted by India would be sourced from Rwanda. We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture, and culture, he said. Modis visit comes days after Chinese President Xi Jinpings trip to Rwanda. Modi would proceed to Uganda on Tuesday for a two-day visit, the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister since 1997. The prime ministers visit to Rwanda is a historic one since it will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the East African country, a senior external affairs ministry official said in New Delhi. Rwanda is an important gateway to Eastern Africa and we have elevated our bilateral relations with Rwanda to the level of a strategic partnership in January 2017, he said. The President of Rwanda is the current Chair of the African Union. Modi will attend the 10th edition of the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa during which the groupings leaders are expected to deliberate on global hot-spot issues, international peace and security, global governance and trade issues among others. In a late-night tweet in capital letters, he said Iran must never, ever threaten the United States again. A furious United States President Donald Trump on Monday warned his Iranian counterpart that Tehran risked consequences the likes of which few throughout history have suffered before if he threatens the US again, hours after Hassan Rouhani cautioned that Americas hostile threats may trigger the mother of all wars. The tirade at the highest level signalled an immediate escalation of tensions between Washington, DC and Tehran, weeks after the US left a landmark deal signed in 2015 which curbed Irans nuclear activities in return for the lifting of international sanctions. Rouhani had also warned Trump to stop playing with the lions tail and threatening Iran, or else you will regret it. In the nearly all-caps tweet, Trump mentioned about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Rouhani said, America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE, Trump tweeted, adding that WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Even before Trumps angry tweets, his administration had already intensified the rhetoric against Iran. In a blistering speech hours earlier, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo likened the Iranian regime to the mafia, accusing the clerics that rule the country of enriching themselves and funding terrorism at the expense of ordinary Iranians. To the regime, prosperity, security, and freedom for the Iranian people are acceptable casualties in the march to fulfil the Revolution, Pompeo said in remarks delivered at the Ronald Reagan National Library in Simi Valley, California. The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government, Pompeo said. Among the most startling allegations levelled by Pompeo, who was Central Intelligence Agency director before becoming secretary of state, was that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has a personal hedge fund worth $95 billion, CNN reported. In light of these protests and 40 years of regime tyranny, I have a message for the people of Iran: the United States hears you. The United States supports you. The United States is with you, Pompeo said according to prepared remarks released in advance of his speech. He added: While it is ultimately up to the Iranian people to determine the direction of their country, the United States, in the spirit of our own freedoms, will support the long-ignored voice of the Iranian people. In May, Trump called the nuclear accord -- or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, a horrible, one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made. The other signatories to the deal -- China, France, Germany, European Union, Iran, Russia, United Kingdom -- have vowed to stand by it. Trump has alleged that the deal did not restrict Irans destabilising activities in the region enough, and could not detect or prevent any breaking of its terms. The had agreement forced Iran to curtail its uranium enrichment capacity to prevent it developing nuclear weapons, and imposed stringent verification processes, in exchange for relief on crippling sanctions. Iran insists its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful, and its compliance with the deal has been verified by the International Atomic Energy Agency, which has said Iran is honouring its commitments. Pompeo, in his speech, also said he wanted to try to stop countries importing Iranian oil by November as part of stepping up pressure on Tehran. In May, he had outlined 12 conditions for any new deal between Washington and Tehran, including the withdrawal of its forces from Syria and an end to its support for rebels in Yemen. The US Treasury has said there will be wind-down periods of 90 and 180 days before sanctions are implemented. The first deadline, on August 6, will affect the purchase of US dollars, trade in gold and certain other metals, as well as aviation and the car industry. The next, on November 4, will target Irans financial and oil institutions. Iran is one of the worlds largest oil producers, with exports worth billions of dollars each year. There is no proposal to control social media, the government said on Monday in Rajya Sabha when asked if it was planning to do so. In a written reply, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said, There is no proposal in the ministry to control social media. However, the ministry proposes to set up a social media hub to facilitate information flow regarding its policies and programmes through social media platforms i.e., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube etc. His response came to a question on whether the government was planning to control social media, as it was posing a serious threat to the society. There is no proposal to invade an individuals right to privacy, Rathore said. The ministers reply in Rajya Sabha comes days after the Supreme Court asked the government whether its move to create a Social Media Hub was to tap peoples WhatsApp messages, observing that it will be like creating a surveillance state. In May this year, the Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited, a Public Sector Undertaking under the ministry, had floated a tender to supply a software for the project. IMAGE: Former defence minister A K Antony with Congress leaders Anand Sharma and Randeep Surjewala at a press conference regarding the Rafael deal, at Parliament House in New Delhi on Monday. Photograph: Vijay Verma/PTI Photo In a fresh offensive, the Congress on Monday said there was no secrecy clause in a 2008 Indo-French pact forcing the government not to divulge the price details of the Rafale deal, and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of lying in the Parliament on the issue. Days after Congress president Rahul Gandhi assailed the government in Parliament over the Rafale deal, the party fielded three of its top leaders -- former defence minister A K Antony, Anand Sharma and Randeep Surjewala -- who demanded the Modi dispensation must reveal the price details of the aircraft. The leaders also released a copy of the confidential agreement the United Progressive Alliance government had signed with France in January 2008, to drive home the point that it does not restrict India to reveal the price details of the Rafale deal. They also indicated that Congress may give a privilege motion notice against the prime minister and Sitharaman. According to the copy of the agreement released by the Congress, both French and Indian governments, in accordance with their national laws, shall take all measures necessary for the protection of classified information and material provided to them under it or in accordance with agreements, contracts or sub-contracts concluded between or by the two sides or by their authorised agencies. In his address during the debate on the no-confidence motion against the government on Friday, Gandhi had said that French President Emmanuel Macron had told him during a meeting here earlier this year that there was no secrecy pact that restricts India from revealing price details of Rafale aircraft. After Gandhis remarks, the French foreign ministry had said France had signed a security pact with India in 2008 which legally binds the two countries to protect the classified information which could impact security and operational capabilities of the defence equipment. In his reply to the motion, Modi asked Gandhi to not make such childish allegations on such sensitive issues having security implications, while Sitharaman completely rejected the Congress leaders charges. The 2008 pact was renewed during Macrons visit here in March as the agreement had lapsed. In Mondays press conference, Antony said the governments claim that a secrecy clause in the pact was forcing it to not reveal price details of the deal was totally wrong. They have to reveal price details of each aircraft, said Antony, adding that the more they are trying to hide, the more suspicion there is about the deal. Antony also said the government cannot hide the price details of the Rafale jets as the deal has to be scrutinised by the Comptroller and Auditor General as well as Parliaments Public Accounts Committee. They must reveal the price details of the aircraft and they must also tell us why a company was selected as offset partner which has no experience manufacturing aircraft, said Antony, alleging the private player has benefited by crores. His colleague Anand Sharma said the government owes Parliament an explanation on why Modi and Sitharaman misled the nation on the price issue. The French government had no objection in revealing the price of the Rafale aircraft. This was conveyed by the French president to Rahul Gandhi during a meeting in which I was present along with the former prime minister, he said. Surjewala said the prime minister and the defence minister misled Parliament on the issue and it is clearly a matter of breach of privilege. Asked if the Congress would give a notice of privilege motion against the prime minister and the defence minister, he said, The issue pertains to the Lok Sabha and the leader of the Congress parliamentary party will take a decision on the issue soon. According to the Congress leaders, the prime minister sought to hide behind a cloak of pseudo-nationalism in the Rafale deal during the debate on the no-confidence motion against the government in Parliament on July 20. The truth, however, is that the Modi government is unforgivably guilty of compromising national interest and national security in the Rafale deal, they said. Shoddy cover-up, self-defeating assertions and deliberate lies are being dished out to divert, dupe and deceive. Grave apprehensions and claims of insurmountable loss being caused to public exchequer stand exposed as the government refuses to state the truth, the statement said. It said new revelations in the Rafale deal nail the doublespeak, lies and hypocrisy of the Modi government. The Congress has been ramping up attack on the government over the Rafale issue, claiming that the deal negotiated under its rule was much cheaper than the contract signed by the Modi government to procure 36 Rafale fighter jets from France at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore. The party has been demanding details, including cost of equipment and weapons, but the government has refused to share them citing a secrecy pact with France. The Congress had claimed that the per aircraft price under the deal inked by the National Democratic Alliance came to Rs 1,600 crore as against the Rs 520 crore negotiated during the UPA. The UPA government floated a tender in 2007 for purchase of 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft for the Air Force and, post negotiations, two of them -- Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon -- remained in the reckoning. However, the deal could not be finalised by the UPA regime. A woman has died and a young girl is in critical condition after a gunman opened fire on Sunday night in the Toronto neighborhood known as Greektown, police said. IMAGE: Police are seen near the scene of a mass shooting in Toronto, Canada. Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters Fourteen people were injured and the gunman has also died, police say. "One female adult has died. One young girl in critical condition," Toronto police said on Twitter, adding that all 14 victims were shot with a handgun. The suspect is believed to have opened fire at police before killing himself, Global News quoted a Toronto police source as saying. IMAGE: People leave an area taped off by the police near the scene of a mass shooting. Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters Officers, some armed with rifles, sealed off Greektown's main street, known as the Danforth, after getting the call around 10 pm local time. Witnesses told the Toronto Star that a man dressed in black had fired a gun multiple times. Police spokesman Mark Pugash says it's too early to say whether the shooting is terrorism. IMAGE: A paramedic bus leaves the area cordoned off by the police. Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters A witness who was standing near the scene told CTV that he heard about 20 shots and the sound of the weapon being reloaded repeatedly. "And then, I saw the carnage as I ran down the street here to kind of follow the gunfire," the man told the station, who described the scene as "pretty crazy". Flag raising ceremony (Photo by Shang Wenbin) By Shang Wenbin QUANZHOU, July 23 (ChinaMil) -- As the national flag of the Russian Federation rose in the competition area in Shishi, Quanzhou city, China, at 8:00 on the morning of July 22, five teams participating in the "Seaborne Assault" competition among Marine Corps of the International Army Games 2018 all arrived in the competition area in China on time. The competition organisation committee held the first meeting of the Judge Committee at 9:00. The heads and relevant personnel of the competition teams attended the meeting. During the meeting, the Judge Committee was formally set up, judges of each country were appointed and the competition schedule was confirmed. The rules of competition and the methods of performance evaluation were discussed and reviewed. After the meeting, the Chinese side issued light weapons to foreign participating teams and arranged instructors to direct the operation of weapons. It is reported that all participating teams in the "Seaborne Assault" competition among Marine Corps will use the weapons and equipment provided by the Chinese side, including the automatic rifles, sniper rifles, 40-mm rocket launchers, and other light weapons, as well as ZBD-05 amphibious infantry fighting vehicles (IFV). According to the arrangement, all participating teams will visit the competition venue to get familiar with the tracks and start adaptive training on July 23. Chinese and Venezuelan Marines conduct exchanges on the operation of weapons. (Photo by Shang Wenbin) Hes met the Obamas, calls Britains Queen Elizabeth II granny and is delightful as one can be. Meet Prince George -- one of the worlds most recognisable children. As he turned 5 on Sunday (July 22), we gathered a collection of his cutest moments. Making his world debut Just hours after he arrived into the world, Prince George made his first public appearance on the steps of the St Mary's Hospital's Lindo Wing on 22 July 2013. Bundled up in a white blanket, the little prince was cradled by his proud parents as he was introduced to the media and adoring crowds who had awaited his arrival. Photograph: John Stillwell/WPA-Pool/Getty Images A royal christening In October 2013, Prince George was christened at St James's Palace's Chapel Royal in Westminster wearing a replica of a gown commissioned by Queen Victoria. Also baptised using the lavish Lily Font, Prince George was appointed seven godparents including Prince Williams cousin Zara Tindall. Photograph: John Stillwell/WPA-Pool/Getty Images Monkey-ing around on first royal tour At just 10 months old, Prince George and his parents jetted off to Australia on their first Royal Tour as a family. He captured hearts over the world when they visited the Taronga Zoo in Sydney and played with the animals. He was also gifted a toy bilby, one of his first gifts while travelling. Photograph: Chris Jackson/Getty Images Taking his first steps towards the throne In June 2014, George hit one of the important milestones for a baby -- his first steps. He took his baby strides during the Jerudong Trophy at Cirencester Park Polo Club. Photograph: Chris Jackson/Getty Images for La Martina Cant hide his excitement We know that the tiny tot is a fan of airplanes so the annual Trooping the Colour for the Queens birthday is a real treat. Hes all smiles and animated as he looks at the celebrations for the first time in 2015 through a window at Buckingham Palace. Photograph: Chris Jackson/Getty Images Playing the doting brother We still adore this photo of Charlotte and George shortly after his younger sister was born in May 2015. Photograph: Duchess of Cambridge/Reuters Whats up Gran? Prince George is known for his wardrobe full of colourful shorts. But this adorable outfit, hed worn for his sisters christening had special meaning as his red shorts were inspired by what Prince William wore to his younger brother Harry's christening in 1984. The hearts of the nation also melted when he shared this super cute moment with his Great Gan-Gan, the Queen. Photograph: Chris Jackson/WPA Pool/Getty Images Keeping it cool with the Obamas At just two-years-old, the prince had already met some pretty important people. But he turned heads when he met Barack Obama at Kensington Palace in 2016. And why? Because he was captured shaking hands with the then US President, and playing on his rocking horse, dressed in his pyjamas. Well, he did have to stay up late to meet him. Photograph: Pete Souza/The White House/Getty Images Top Gun! Like lots of three-year-old boys, Prince George is fascinated by planes. And in July 2016, the heir to the throne was loving life in the cockpit during a visit to a RAF base in Gloucestershire. Photograph: Chris Jackson/Getty Images Fulfilling his family duties George looked absolutely adorable in his pageboy outfit for Pippa Middleton's 2017 wedding to James Matthews. If anyone was going to steal the bride's thunder, it was going to be Prince George all dressed up in a shirt and trousers scattering flower petals all over the place. Wed like to book him in for our wedding, thanks. Photograph: Justin Tallis-WPA Pool/Getty Images Too cool for school George started his first day at school with his father in September 2017, but without his mother as she was experiencing severe morning sickness as she was pregnant with Prince Louis. The pair turned up at Thomass Battersea in south London with the young prince looking glum as he gripped his fathers hand. Photograph: Richard Pohle -WPA Pool/Getty Images Shush Fun on the balcony The Supreme Court on Sunday lifted a blanket ban on rallies, dharnas or sit-ins at the Jantar Mantar and Boat Club areas here, saying there could not be an 'absolute' ban on protests in such localities. The top court also asked the Centre to frame guidelines within two months for according sanctions to such events. A bench of justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said, "There is a need to strike a balance between conflicting rights such as the right to protest and the right of citizens to live peacefully." "There cannot be a complete or absolute ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate)," the bench added, while directing the Centre to frame guidelines on the matter. The verdict came on a batch of petitions, including one filed by the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, an NGO, challenging the decision of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to ban all kinds of protests at the said places. The top court had earlier observed, "When, during elections, politicians can go among the public to seek votes, why can't people come near their offices after the polls to protest." Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO and other petitioners, had contended that the Centre had completely banned protests or assembly of people in whole of central Delhi and imposed Section 144, Code of Criminal Procedure permanently in the guise of avoiding traffic obstruction. He had said the authorities had asked the protesters to go to the Ramlila Maidan to stage agitations, while there were several court verdicts that recognised the 'people's right to protest'. "The protests have to be near the seat of power, so that the people can make their voices heard," Bhushan had submitted, while referring to a Delhi high court verdict, recognising the people's right to protest at the gate of a factory, so long it did not affect the traffic. Earlier, the Centre had justified the continuous imposition of prohibitory orders under section 144, CrPC in central Delhi, which houses most of the government offices and VIP residences. The Centre's counsel had told the apex court that this was an era of "professional protesters", who liked to protest outside Parliament or the president's or prime minister's house to make their voices heard. He had added that the government had to take holistic steps while dealing with such protests, rallies and dharnas to ensure that peace and harmony prevailed in an area. The Centre, while justifying the permanent imposition of prohibitory orders in its affidavit, had referred to over a dozen instances when protests had turned violent and the police had to use teargas shells and water cannons to control the mobs at the Jantar Mantar and Boat Club areas. The plea moved by the NGO had challenged the complete ban on assemblies and protests in the central and New Delhi areas imposed by the NGT. It had claimed that there could not be a continuous imposition of prohibitory orders in entire central Delhi, which was an emergency provision to be used when there was an apprehension of violence or law-and-order problems. It had said it would have been understandable if the government's decision to impose prohibitory orders was based on a specific intelligence input or apprehension of a protest turning violent. The NGT had, on October 5 last year, banned all protests and dharnas around the historic Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, which had been a hotspot of many agitations over the past decades, saying such activities violated environmental laws. The green panel had said the State had totally failed to protect the right of a citizen to enjoy a pollution-free environment at the Jantar Mantar Road area, which was located close to Connaught Place at the heart of the national capital. It had added that it was the duty of the State to ensure that the right of the people to live a peaceful and comfortable life was not infringed by those who created noise pollution in the name of their right to freedom of speech and expression, which could never be unlimited. The tribunal had directed the authorities to shift the protesters to an alternative site at the Ramleela Grounds in Ajmeri Gate 'forthwith'. It had also said those participating in protests and raising slogans through loudspeakers had no right to compel the people living in the area to tolerate it day and night. A woman was allegedly lynched by a mob near Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh on suspicion that she was a child-lifter, police said on Monday. The woman, who appeared to be mentally unstable, was killed by the mob in Bhosh village under the Morwa police station on July 19, Morwa Sub-Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) K S Dwivedi told PTI over the phone. Believed to be aged between 25 to 30 years, the woman is yet to be unidentified, he said. The lynching took place amid rumours on WhatsApp that child-lifters were on the prowl in rural areas of the district, the officer said. The rumours were circulating for the last one month, Dwivedi said. As many as 12 people were arrested on Sunday in connection with the lynching incident and produced on Monday in a local court, which sent them to jail, Dwivedi said. The SDOP said some people spotted the woman roaming in the village at around 9.30 pm on July 19. They stopped her, suspecting her to be a child-lifterand hit her with lathis and axes, Dwivedi said. After killing the woman, the mob dumped her body in a drain in a forested area of Bhosh, some 90km from the district headquarters, he said. Some villagers spotted the body on July 20 and informed the police, he added. The police arrested 12 people and booked them forrioting and murder, among other charges under the Indian Penal Code, the SDOP said. He said efforts are on to identify the deceased. The Singrauli episode is the latest in a spate of incidents of lynching and mob violence reported from across the country in the recent past. A few weeks back, five nomads were lynched in Dhule village of Maharashtra on suspicion that they were child-lifters. Last Friday, a man was beaten to death in Rajasthan on suspicion of cow smuggling. The Supreme Court recently took a strong view of such incidents and asked the Centre to frame a separate law to tackle this menace. 'India placed the order, primarily due to the IAF's 'critical operational necessity'.' 'The complexity of the IAF's requirements delayed the process for months.' 'It is these requirements which cannot be made public.' 'Can you image Indian politicians publicly discussing the pros and the cons of such military equipment?' 'It would provide India's enemies with indications about the IAF's tactical plans in case of a conflict.' 'It is crucial that they should remain secret to protect India's defence preparedness,' explains Claude Arpi. The Election Season is on. On Friday evening, the Modi Sarkar comfortably sailed through its first confidence motion after a 12-hour debate. The motion moved by the Telugu Desam Party ended with the BJP winning with a margin of 325 vs 126 against the Opposition. It was not without drama. Congress President Rahul Gandhi delivered a fiery speech ending with a great theatrical move. As a national newspaper noted, the debate was 'advertised almost like a prize bout, with Gandhi the challenger and Modi the comfortably ahead reigning champion'. Not less 'dramatic' was the accusation of the scion of the Gandhi dynasty that there was something fishy in the Rafale deal with France. Rahul Gandhi claimed that though the government said there was a secrecy clause covering the details of the deal, it was not true. He told Parliament that he had discussed the issue with French President Emmanuel Macron: 'I personally met the French president and asked him if there is such a pact between the French and Indian governments. The French president told me that there is no such pact between the French and Indian governments.' Probably as a first, the spokesperson of France's ministry of Europe and foreign affairs immediately issued a clarification about the Congress president' statement. The French ministry usually never comments on internal issues discussed in the Indian Parliament. However in this case, President Macron had been misquoted, the French statement clarified: 'We have noted the statement of Mr Gandhi before the Parliament. France and India concluded in 2008 a Security Agreement which legally binds the two States to protect the declassified information provided by the partner that could impact security and operational capabilities of the defence equipment of France or India.' The French side further affirmed: 'These provisions naturally apply to the IGA (Inter Governmental Agreement) concluded on 23 September 2016 on the acquisition of 36 Rafale aircraft and their weapons.' It also cited the fact that Macron indicated publicly in an interview given to the magazine India Today on March 9: 'In India and in France, when a deal is very sensitive, we can't reveal all details.' The rebuttal came after a question asked if the Indian defence minister had been lying when she mentioned the secrecy clause. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman later reiterated that the secrecy agreement of 2008 covered the Rafale deal. Later, the Congress president said, 'Let them deny it if they want. He (Macron) said that before me. I was there, Anand Sharma and Dr Manmohan Singh were also there.' It was followed by a privilege notice submitted against the Congress leader; he was accused of misleading Parliament during the no-confidence motion. But it is the speed, with which the French ministry denied Mr Gandhi's allegations, that is unprecedented. Remember the facts On September 23, 2016, then French defence minister Jean Yves Le Drian, accompanied by Eric Trappier, chairman, Dassault Aviation signed with India a 7.87 billion Euro deal (about Rs 59,000 crores/Rs 590 billion) for 36 Rafale fighter jets. The basic cost, armaments, offsets and service value had been finalised a few days earlier; it was included in a several-thousand pages IGA. It is this document which is secret. Why? Because it describes in details the configuration of the fighter planes and their armament as well as other clauses of the contract such as maintenance of the Rafales or the training of the pilots. The fact that it took nearly a year-and-a-half to negotiate these details shows the complexity of the deal. On April 9, 2015, when an Indian delegation visited Paris ahead of the prime minister's arrival, the French side was then informed of Delhi's decision to purchase 36 planes 'off-the-shelf'. Tailored for India It was not really 'off-the shelf' as the aircraft had to be tailored to the needs of the Indian Air Force which has the responsibility of defending two fronts at the same time (the Chinese front being rather complex with the altitude of the Himalayas, the length of the front and the often better equipped People's Liberation Army). India placed the order, primarily due to the IAF's 'critical operational necessity'. The complexity of the IAF's requirements delayed the process for months. It is these requirements which cannot be made public. Can you image Indian politicians (or 'experts') starting to publicly discuss the pros and the cons of such military equipment? It would certainly provide India's enemies with indications about the IAF's tactical plans, in case of a conflict. In fact, it is rather surprising that Indian politicians ask for 'details' of the deal. It is crucial that they should remain secret to protect India's defence preparedness. A long process The process had been a long one and the IAF suffered. It took 15 years to arrive at the 2016 signature. India is probably the only country in the world which has such a cumbersome system for defence procurement. Is it better under the present government? I am not sure. While the Congress president compared the Indian Rafale deal with the purchase of 36 Rafales by Egypt, he forgets to mention that in the Egyptian case, it was literarily planes 'off-the-shelf'. The deal was sealed in a few weeks. Egypt did not have the immediate tactical need for the aircraft; Cairo was more interested in the immediate delivery of a few planes (originally destined for the French air force), to show its neighbours that it had the Rafales. Incidentally, there are different versions of the Rafale. On March 20, 2017, Le Drian, authorised the launch of the development of the new Rafale F4 standard. Dassault Aviation and the 500 French companies associated with the programme were delighted to have again the French government's trust and support. In a statement, Dassault asserted that the Rafale programme was based on continuous developments to adapt the plane, through successive standards, to changing needs. From 2023, a first version of the F4 standard will follow the F3 R standard available in 2018. It is indeed difficult to compare the price of one Rafale to another Rafale (even if one walks in a Mercedes showroom, you will be told that there are different models and even within the same model the price can greatly vary). A complicated first deal An initial Request for Information for 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) was issued in 2001; the Request for Proposal was only publicised in 2007 and then the 'complications' started. In January 2012, after a long competitive process, in which the American F/A-18 and F-16, Russian MiG 35, European Eurofighter and Swedish Saab Gripen participated, Dassault and its partners Thales and Safran were selected to supply 126 planes to the IAF. Of the 126, 18 planes were to be manufactured by Dassault in France, while the remaining 108 planes were to be built in India, under a large Transfer of Technology agreement, by Hindustan Aeronautical Ltd. It soon became clear for Paris and Delhi that an immediate transfer of technology was far too ambitious. Further, Dassault was not ready to take 'full responsibility' for the 108 fighters to be manufactured in India by HAL. The negotiations had reached an impasse when Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi decided to go for 36 planes as a stop-gap solution. During his visit to India in March, President Macron discussed an important part of the project: The offsets. A short para in the joint statement said: 'The leaders noted ongoing discussions between DRDO and SAFRAN on combat aircraft engine and encouraged necessary measures and forward looking approaches to facilitate early conclusion.' This will be a major part of the deal (never mentioned by politicians). At the end of 2017, Florence Parly, the French defence minister, visited India to 'strengthen defence cooperation and offering a production line in India for the Rafale jets'. Ms Parly and her Indian counterpart Nirmala Sitharaman travelled to Nagpur to launch a joint production facility between Dassault Aviation and Reliance to fulfill part of the Rafale deal's offset obligation. Around Rs 20,000 crores (Rs 200 billion) needs to be invested by the French. The Dassault-Reliance joint venture has already shortlisted a large number of vendors, mostly small and medium-sized enterprises, to be part of an indigenous supply chain for the Rafales. The strengthening of Indo-French relations will greatly depend on the success of this JV. A new process has started In the meantime last week, the IAF has received responses to its 'Request for Information' from six fighter aircraft manufacturers for the purchase of 110 new fighter planes. The same companies -- Boeing and Lockheed Martin, the Russian Aircraft Corporation, Dassault, the Swedish firm Saab and the European consortium, Eurofighter GmbH -- expressed their interest to supply the desired aircraft. The IAF had issued a detailed 73-page RFI on April 6, giving 'original equipment manufacturers' (OEMs) and 'government-sponsored export agencies' a three-month window to submit their proposals. Let us hope that this time, it will not take 15 years and that it will generate less unnecessary political heat. Claude Arpi holds the Field Marshal K M Cariappa Chair of Excellence at the United Service Institution of India. Libya must end "outrageous" auctions of enslaved people, UN experts insist Publisher UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Publication Date 30 November 2017 Cite as UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Libya must end "outrageous" auctions of enslaved people, UN experts insist, 30 November 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b5593324.html [accessed 26 October 2021] GENEVA (30 November 2017) The Government of Libya must take urgent action to end the country's trade in enslaved people, UN human rights experts* have said, after shocking images showing an auction of people were captured on video. "We were extremely disturbed to see the images which show migrants being auctioned as merchandise, and the evidence of markets in enslaved Africans which has since been gathered," the experts said in a joint statement. "It is now clear that slavery is an outrageous reality in Libya. The auctions are reminiscent of one of the darkest chapters in human history, when millions of Africans were uprooted, enslaved, trafficked and auctioned to the highest bidder," they said. "The Government and the international community, particularly the EU which is the destination of most of the migrants, must take immediate and decisive action to ensure that this crime does not continue. They must also urgently prioritize the release of all those people who have been enslaved. Enslavement is most often an extreme form of racial discrimination," they added. The experts welcomed a Libyan Government commitment to start an investigation of the issue, and insisted that the pledge had to be turned into concrete action, such as ensuring protective measures and effective remedies for victims, without delay. "It is imperative that the authorities urgently locate and rescue the victims of this horrendous crime and that Libya holds the perpetrators accountable," said the experts. An estimated 700,000 migrants are in Libya, a major transit country for those trying to reach Europe. "It is critically important for the Libyan Government to implement measures to protect migrants - among whom are victims of trafficking and minorities from different ethnic backgrounds - in accordance with international human rights laws and standards," the experts said. "Migrants in Libya are at high risk of multiple grave violations of their human rights, such as slavery, forced labour, trafficking, arbitrary and indefinite detention, exploitation and extortion, rape, torture and even being killed. "The enslavement of migrants derives from the situation of extreme vulnerability in which they find themselves. It is paramount that the Government of Libya acts now to stop the human rights situation deteriorating further, and to bring about urgent improvements in the protection of migrants." The experts also urged the international community to act in solidarity to support the investigation of atrocious crimes occurring in the country. "UN Member States must stop ignoring the unimaginable horrors endured by migrants in Libya, must urge countries to suspend any measures, including bilateral agreements with countries of origin and transit, that expose migrants to further risks, and should ensure that any such incidents are expeditiously and thoroughly investigated," they said. "It is a dangerous trend that European States are shifting responsibility for migrants to African countries instead of creating regular, safe, affordable and accessible channels for them. "Any agreement reached with the Libyan authorities needs to be in line with international human rights standards. European states can be held accountable for any human rights violations migrants are subject to. "We remind the Libyan authorities and all other Governments that compliance with international human rights and humanitarian law norms is essential in the current climate of impunity and that justice must prevail," they concluded. ENDS *The UN experts: Ms. Urmila Bhoola, Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences; Ms. Anastasia Crickley, Chairperson of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination; Mr. Felipe Gonzalez-Morales, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants; Ms. E. Tendayi Achiume,Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism; Ms. Maria Grazia Giammarinaro, Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons; Ms. Dubravka Simonovic, Special Rapporteur on violence against women; Mr. Obiora C. Okafor, Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity; Mr. Fernand de Varennes, Special Rapporteur on minority issues; Ms. Maud de Boer-Buquiccio, Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children; the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent. The Independent Experts are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council's independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures' experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity. The United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery (UNVTFCFS), managed by OHCHR, provides assistance to people who have experienced some form of slavery. It provides direct humanitarian, legal and financial assistance to victims through grants awarded to non-governmental organisations. Screenshot of Xi's signed article on The New Times. Chinese President Xi Jinping's signing of an article on China-Rwanda relations has received positive reviews from both the Rwandan media and its public. In an editorial named "Rwandans should make the most of ties with China" on the website of The New Times, Rwanda's mainstream media outlet which also published Xi's article on July 21, the author highly praised Xi's remarks on the friendship between China and Rwanda, citing the Chinese proverb "Good friends feel close to each other even when they are thousands of miles away" used by Xi in the article. The editorial also pointed out that the highlight of Xi's visit is that as many as 15 agreements across a diverse range of sectors are expected to be signed. The editorial also said China represents a lucrative market for Rwandan businesses in particular, urging people of both countries to take advantage of this relationship. President Xi's article also places importance on people-to-people friendship. It reads "the rich and diverse people-to-people exchanges between our two sides have led to a growing interest in China and Chinese culture among the Rwandan people." Charles Murigande, deputy vice chancellor at the University of Rwanda said he felt really honored that Xi mentioned the Confucius Institute at his university in the article. According to the article, the number of registered students in the Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda is approaching 5,000. The Rwanda Kung Fu/Wushu Federation has also been mentioned in Xi's article. The federation's president Uwiragiye Marc said he was so thrilled at reading his federation's name in the article, emphasizing that there's a huge potential for the development of Wushu in Rwanda. Marc said his federation's goal is to expand Wushu's influence in Rwanda, and to make his country the center for the promotion of the spirit of Wushu in East Africa or even on the African continent. Ordinary Rwandan citizens are also reacting affirmatively to Xi's article. A passer-by with the first name of Norbert told China Central Television that "the article was well written" and "demonstrated his (Xi's) interest and his knowledge about Rwanda." Norbert added that the article also contained "very encouraging words on the future of the relationship between Rwanda and China." March 24, 2016: Zhang Dejiang (2nd R), former chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress, and Rwandan Prime Minister Anastase Murekezi, attend the groundbreaking ceremony of a China-aided government complex in Kigali, Rwanda. /Xinhua Photo Returned migrants are being robbed, raped and murdered in Libya Publisher UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Author Zeid Raad Al Hussein Publication Date 8 September 2017 Cite as UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Returned migrants are being robbed, raped and murdered in Libya, 8 September 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b5598dd4.html [accessed 26 October 2021] Returned migrants are being robbed, raped and murdered in Libya Opinion by By Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights 8 September 2017 Last week, in Paris, seven European and African heads of state or government agreed a plan of action on migration and asylum, linked to movements from sub-Saharan Africa via Libya to Europe. The final text acknowledged a shared responsibility to address the root causes of irregular migration and the human rights abuses faced by migrants, the need to protect those who need protecting and support for the contribution of regular and well-managed migration. These are important commitments, but they do not disguise the fact that the plan is geared primarily towards stopping people en route to Europe. There is no simple solution to this most complex of issues, no magic bullet that will reconcile the pressures on people to escape war, persecution or poverty, climate change and other man-made disasters, with the reluctance of European nations to accept large numbers of migrants and refugees. Perhaps the most worrying omission in the Paris document, is a failure to draw up a detailed blueprint to tackle the hidden human calamity that continues to take place within Libya, and along its coast. Last December, a report issued jointly by my office and the UN Support Mission in Libya detailed the horrendous violations and abuses faced by migrants in official and unofficial detention centres in Libya. The report received some attention at the time, but memories are short when facts are inconvenient. Nine months later, the situation has, if anything, grown worse. Allegations pour in, far beyond our capacity to verify them. Reports of bodies in the desert, in the forest, on the beaches. UN human rights staff contact the morgues in various towns, which complain they do not have enough space to store all the bodies. Some migrants die of thirst, hunger or easily-cured illnesses, some are tortured or beaten to death while working as slave labour, others are just casually murdered. The unidentified bodies are buried in unmarked graves. Others simply disappear, unrecorded, unmourned, while somewhere in a far-flung country south of the Sahara, relatives wait anxiously for news that will never come. Apart from them, hardly anyone appears to care. Our staff also document the rape of women in detention. They find ways to meet women who are locked up all day by men the same men who organize their rape by night. In some cases, every night. We talk to these women, but are powerless to extract them from this ghastly fate. Such rape is endemic. Yet, both inside and outside Libya despite reports like our one of last December, or articles like this hardly anyone appears to care. The information we receive is sketchy. We only hear from some parts of the country. Other parts are too dangerous to access, either for UN staff or others who might pass on the information. We cannot even guess the scale of the abuses inflicted on migrants in all these hidden places, untouched by the rule of law. The situation of migrants crossing Libya was appalling during Gaddafi's era, but it has become diabolical since. And here lies the moral and legal dilemma for the EU. When we interviewed migrants in Italy, we found many had been picked up by the Libyan Coast Guard during their initial attempts to escape. It didn't stop their desperate efforts to reach Europe, it just made them more desperate after they were delivered back to the clutches of militias and state employees who exploit and abuse them. Returning people to detention centres where they are held arbitrarily, and face torture, rape and other serious human rights violations is a clear breach of the international law prohibition of 'non-refoulement'. The EU, and Italy in particular, are committed to supporting the Libyan Coast Guard a coast guard that has shot at NGO boats trying to rescue migrants at risk of drowning with the result that the NGOs now have to operate much further out to sea. A coast guard that sometimes rescues migrants in distress but sometimes chooses not to. Like the militias onshore, coastguards also sometimes beat, rob and even shoot the migrants they intercept. Some European authorities play down the behaviour of a Coast Guard which jeopardises lives, while criticizing the NGOs trying to save them. Yesterday, 7 September, the President of one of those NGOs, Joanne Liu of Medecins Sans Frontieres, published an open letter in which she described the horrendous conditions she and her staff have encountered in the detention centres, and decries what she describes as the "cynical complicity" of those who support returning migrants to Libya while turning a blind eye to what is going on there. I fully support her analysis, and share her disgust at this situation. I do not wish to downplay the Paris agreement, which contains the important recognition that a comprehensive response is needed to this complex situation. But it is very thin on the protection of the human rights of migrants inside Libya and on the boats, and silent on the urgent need for alternatives to the arbitrary detention of vulnerable people. Serious action is needed to protect the hundreds of thousands of migrants bottled up in Libya, as innocent people continue to die or be maltreated every single day, on land and at sea. We should not continue to avert our eyes from this brutal reality. Press briefing note on Libya escalating risks Publisher UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Publication Date 8 June 2018 Cite as UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Press briefing note on Libya escalating risks, 8 June 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b559f0d4.html [accessed 26 October 2021] Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: Elizabeth Throssell Location: Geneva Date: 8 June 2018 Subject: Libya escalating risks We are deeply alarmed at the escalating risks to the population in the eastern city of Derna in Libya, where fighting has intensified in recent days with the Libyan National Army group the LNA - reported to have taken over densely populated districts. There have been increasing allegations that civilians have been arbitrarily detained, while others have been prevented from leaving the city. The humanitarian situation in Derna, which has a population of some 125,000, is also said to be deteriorating, with shortages of food, water and medicine. Since 5 June, the city's only hospital has been closed and we have documented the deaths of three women as a result of the lack of oxygen supplies. Our concern for civilians and fighters who have surrendered, laid down their weapons, are sick or wounded, or otherwise hors de combat is all the greater given the serious violations of human rights law and international humanitarian law that we documented during fighting for control of the eastern oil crescent and for parts of the city of Benghazi, both in early 2017. We urge all parties to the conflict in Derna, including the LNA and the Derna Protection Forces, to take all feasible measures to protect civilians. We call on the LNA to allow unimpeded humanitarian assistance to reach the city. We also call on all parties to the conflict to ensure that the wounded and sick, both civilians and those who have participated in hostilities, are cared for, including through medical evacuations. They should also facilitate safe passage for civilians wishing to leave the city. All commanders should take effective steps to ensure that their forces comply with their obligations under international law The population of Derna must be protected and treated with dignity and respect. Oral update of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Libya pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 34/38 Publisher UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Publication Date 20 March 2018 Cite as UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Oral update of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Libya pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 34/38, 20 March 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b55b92c4.html [accessed 26 October 2021] 37th session of the Human Rights Council Address by Mr. Andrew Gilmour, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Geneva, 20 March 2018 Salle XX, Palais des Nations Mr. President, Excellencies, colleagues, I am pleased to update you on human rights in Libya including on the effectiveness of technical assistance and capacity building received by the Government of Libya. I wish to convey the High Commissioner's deep appreciation to the Government of Libya for hosting his visit to Libya on 10 October last year. When the Deputy High Commissioner updated you last September, she emphasized that the human rights situation had not improved. Regretfully, I deliver the same message today. It's been seven years since the Libyan revolution, but the proliferation of armed groups throughout Libya has led to a situation in which abuses remain acute and widespread. Armed groups continue to be the main perpetrators, and act with almost complete impunity for even the most serious of crimes. [CIVILIAN CASUALTIES] In 2017, UNSMIL/OHCHR documented 371 civilian casualties, including 161 killed. The leading causes of death were the indiscriminate gunfire, explosive remnants of war, airstrikes, and bombs. Civilian medical facilities were attacked across the country. There have also been deadly attacks targeting mosques during prayer times. [EJK, WERFALLI, UNLAWFUL KILLINGS IN THE EAST and WEST] Mr. President, Execution style killing of captives continued, some well-publicized, as on 24 January, when social media showed images and a video purportedly of Special Forces field commander, Mahmoud al-Werfalli, shooting 10 blindfolded men kneeling with their hands tied behind their backs. Al-Werfalli has been the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant since August 2017. In what has become an increasing pattern in and around Benghazi over the last two years, more bodies with signs of torture and hands bound were found in the streets, such as 36 men were found in the area of al-Abyar, east of Benghazi in October. The west of the country is also not spared. [DETENTION] Mr. President, Places of detention remain a huge concern, with those run by armed groups, including those with links to Ministries, having the worst records. Detainees are held often arbitrarily, incommunicado, tortured and denied medical treatment. Women, including victims of the so-called Islamic State and survivors of rape, are arbitrarily detained, as the slow prosecution processes grind on. OHCHR and UNSMIL have been advocating for years that armed groups must hand over detainees to judicial authorities, but when will action been taken? Similarly, it would be good if we would hear the Government declare its public and unequivocal condemnation of torture, ill-treatment and summary executions and its determination to ensure the accountability for such crimes. We are not aware, unfortunately, of the Government having been very vocal on these issues. Derna remains surrounded by forces allied to the Libyan National Army who restrict the movement of civilians and entry of essential humanitarian assistance into the city. These forces have arbitrarily detained and are continuing to hold, Derna residents, including medical professionals, when they tried to leave or enter the city. [TAWERGHA RETURN] On 26 December, the Presidency Council announced that Tawerghans would be able to return home as of 1 February 2018. However, when Tawergha IDP families tried to return to their homes, they were blocked by armed groups. Around 200 of these families are living in harsh winter conditions without the most basic of services. We call on all actors to protect civilians and to ensure a process is swiftly put in place to guarantee the right to return, allow demining to begin, rebuilding and delivering basic services in Tawergha. [MIGRANTS] Mr. President, Reports of open slave markets where captured migrants are bought and sold have shocked the world. Such reports are part of a widespread pattern of serious human rights violations against migrants in Libya that our Office in Libya continues to monitor. Despite some progress made by United Nations agencies in providing voluntary repatriation of migrants and refugees, the treatment for those still in State-run detention centres remains appalling Since November 2017, our monitoring has indicated a continuation of a pattern of torture, including by the Department for Combatting Illegal Migration (DCIM) officials, and in particular targeting men. Male detainees are subjected to forced labour; women to strip and intrusive cavity search by male DCIM staff, and all face extortion. In December 2017, the UN Committee against Torture found that the European Union and individual Members States were providing significant support to the Libyan coastguard and other agencies working with migrants without any form of conditionality or review based on compliance with human rights. It recommended that relevant State parties should take all necessary legal, political and diplomatic measures to ensure that cooperation is consistent with the absolute prohibition of torture. I reiterate the High Commissioner's call to the European contries to adopt a human rights due diligence approach to their support to the Libyan authorities. Failure to do so would in effect be tantamount to encouraging and subsidizing torture. We understand that such an approach may be under consideration and would urge its immediate adoption. [LOOKING FORWARD] Mr. President, We saw the first visit of a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to Libya in October, followed by the first visit of a Special Rapporteur (on IDPs), in January. These were positive steps that must be built upon. UNSMIL/OHCHR is working with donors and civil society on establishing legal aid, psychosocial and medical services for victims of human rights abuses. We urge Member States to prioritize addressing impunity, including through active support for the International Criminal Court and other accountability mechanisms that complement it. OHCHR stresses the need for broader engagement of Member States on human rights issues in Libya, including when working in support of security forces. I underscore the need to work on oversight and accountability mechanisms, and to step up efforts to prevent further violations, to release all detainees in arbitrary detention; to improve the current deplorable conditions both for Libyan detainees and for migrant foreign migrants; and to begin processes for the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of fighters. Our Office stands ready to support such efforts. Thank you. End of Mission Statement by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, Ms. Cecilia Jimenez-Damary, upon conclusion of her official visit to Libya - 25 to 31 January 2018 Publisher UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Publication Date 2 February 2018 Cite as UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), End of Mission Statement by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, Ms. Cecilia Jimenez-Damary, upon conclusion of her official visit to Libya - 25 to 31 January 2018, 2 February 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b55ba1bd.html [accessed 26 October 2021] 2 February 2018 Introductory comments In my capacity as United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs), I have had the honour to carry out an official visit to Libya from 25 to 31 January 2018 at the invitation of the Government. This was the first ever visit by a UN Special Rapporteur to the country. The objective of my visit was to consult widely with Government representatives both at the national and local levels, United Nations specialized agencies, civil society, and other key national and international stakeholders on the main issues concerning internal displacement in Libya, as well as to identify main humanitarian, human rights and protection concerns facing IDPs. An important element of my visit was to consult IDPs and those who have returned home, to see their situations first hand and to hear from them about their situation, needs and expectations. During my seven-day visit I travelled to Tripoli, and areas in the vicinity of Tripoli, and Misrata where I met with numerous IDPs who told me about their situations, challenges and hopes for solutions to their problems. I regret that I was unable to visit those affected by displacement in more remote areas in southern Libya, due to security limitations, where conditions are also reportedly of particular concern. Moreover, the planned visit to Benghazi on the last day of my mission in Libya was cancelled at the last minute by the Benghazi authorities apparently due to logistical reasons; this was very unfortunate. The findings presented here represent only my preliminary observations and do not reflect the full range of issues that were brought to my attention, nor do they reflect all the initiatives on the part of the Government or its humanitarian and development partners. Over the coming weeks, I will be reviewing the information I have received in order to develop my full country visit report, which will be presented to the Government of Libya and the United Nations Human Rights Council at its 38th session in June 2018. I take this opportunity to sincerely thank the Government of Libya for its invitation to visit and for the high-level meetings held, including a short welcome meeting with the Chairman of the Presidential Council of Libya, Fayez Mustafa al-Sarraj. I thank the Government as well for its full respect of the independence of my mandate in accordance with the UN terms of reference for special rapporteurs and experts. The willingness to engage with my mandate is testament to the political will to address displacement issues in Libya and must be commended. Firstly, let me say a few words about my mandate on the human rights of internally displaced persons. I take my guidance from the human rights standards relating to those persons who have to flee their homes but remain within the borders of their countries. The Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (1998), establish that internal displacement can be caused by a wide range of factors including conflict, human rights violations, violence, and fleeing for reasons of force or fear of the factors just stated. IDPs can cluster in camps or centers, or stay in homes to escape or hide from potential sources of persecution and violence. The primary responsibility to protect and assist internally displaced persons lies with Governments. The Libyan Government has demonstrated some political will and commitment to address the situation of IDPs through establishing a Minister of IDPs as well as a High Committee for the Return of IDPs, and these positive measures must be acknowledged. However, the displacement crisis in Libya is one of huge complexities and the protection dilemma is such that on the one hand, the capacity of the Government to meet the needs of internally displaced persons is limited, and on the other hand, United Nations agencies and other humanitarian actors are constrained by a lack of access due to security concerns, limited coordination mechanisms in place and a general lack of international support to deal with such pressing humanitarian issues in Libya. While the country is perceived as an upper middle-income country with vast oil resources, the cost of the political conflict has taken a severe toll on the Libyan economy, which remained in recession for the fifth consecutive year in 2017. Political strife, weak security conditions, and blockaded oil infrastructure continue to constrain the supply side of the economy, which is now near collapse. The effect of this situation on all Libyans is clear as I witnessed long queues at every bank and gas station. In this context, the reality is that many IDPs have not been sufficiently protected and their human rights needs have not been met, in line with international law and standards, including the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. It must be stressed that in the midst of the economic crisis, there are very specific displacement-related issues that are not experienced by the general population and that need to be addressed. The Government's approach has been largely ad hoc and it must intensify its efforts and devote greater resources, planning and attention to meeting the needs of IDPs. In order to improve the Government's response to the displacement crisis, a vital step will be to put in place a comprehensive roadmap on internal displacement implemented nationally and developed with full participation of the relevant municipalities and the IDPs themselves, to ensure that the necessary budgets are in place and to guide more effective governance and response structures. The signing and ratification of the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention) could also be helpful to the Libyan Government as a guidance tool to regulate Government's actions at the national and regional levels. The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Framework on Durable Solutions for IDPs is also a valuable tool in providing guidance to States. The displacement situation in Libya Libya has experienced several waves of armed conflict and displacement movements since the 2011 Revolution between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and those seeking to overthrow his Government. Libya has since suffered from political instability and clashes between rival armed groups, which escalated in 2014, triggering armed conflicts in Benghazi, Tripoli, Misrata and other cities causing widespread destruction of property, civilian deaths and massive displacement. An estimated 400,000 people (equivalent to 6-7% of the population of Libya) became internally displaced as a result of the nationwide renewed conflict from 2014 onwards and many still suffer the effects of this displacement. In addition, most foreign embassies, the United Nations, ICRC and other international agencies were forced to withdraw their staff and close their missions in 2014 due to the deteriorating security situation. For the United Nations, this evacuation status has still not yet been lifted. Displacement movements are still ongoing in Libya with multi-faceted causes, such as tensions leading to armed clashes in cities, lack of access to basic services, conflicts related to housing, land and property, political persecution, attacks based on alleged terrorist or party affiliations and tribal and ethnic clashes. Displacement nearly always generates conditions of severe hardship and suffering for the affected populations and can lead to further human rights violations and discrimination as a direct result of the displacement. In effect, IDPs in Libya have many times suffered from human rights violations leading to their displacement as well as violations after displacement. During the time of my visit, it was estimated that the number of IDPs who are still displaced in Libya is approximately 193,000 and the number of displaced persons who have returned to their areas of origin since the beginning of 2016 is around 317,000. These figures have not been thoroughly validated. General Observations The situation of many of the IDPs across the west, east and south of Libya is dire and should no longer be downplayed by the Government. Many IDPs, the vast majority of whom are women and children, are traumatized by the violence that prompted them to flee, and cost them their homes, their livelihoods and their family members. An alarming number of displaced Libyans suffer from conflict-related psychological traumas and require urgent psychosocial support. Although many IDPs have returned to their homes, concerns remain that must be addressed regarding the conditions to which they are returning such as safety and security, access to services and discrimination and a low standard of living. Return must only take place voluntarily, on an informed basis and in conditions of security, dignity and with appropriate support in place. The prospects for new displacement and mass population movement throughout the country is high given the instability and lack of access to services due to destruction caused by conflict in many parts of Libya. The political and security situation in Libya remains highly volatile and is disrupting people's access to basic services, including cash, fuel and electricity, as well as severely constraining life-saving protection and humanitarian assistance. There is a need for more and accurate data about the number of IDPs across the country and their location and needs. What is starkly evident however, is that hundreds of thousands, including persons from all ethnic and tribal communities are living in extremely precarious conditions and often under the constant threat of violence, persecution or further displacement, many under suspicion, and with inadequate shelter, healthcare, food and water. Many have few if any financial resources and little prospects of employment or income generating activities. Of particular concern is the negative role of armed groups, who usually control territory in localised areas. I have received reports of armed groups destroying houses, forcing people to leave their homes or preventing their return. One major challenge that I see in Libya regarding displacement is the lack of acknowledgement of the existence of many population groups of IDPs in particular urban to urban displacement. It is crucial that all IDPs are recognized by the Government in order to acknowledge and address their specific needs. The vast majority of IDPs live in rented accommodations or houses of families. The majority of those outside so-called camps are receiving little if any humanitarian assistance and their situation must be better understood and addressed as well as the needs and problems of host communities supporting them. This will require data, resources and expertise that are currently absent and must be quickly put in place. Those outside of camps must not be left to fend for themselves and they must be identified and provided with relevant information and assistance to the fullest extent possible. I call on the Government and its humanitarian partners to develop an out of camp strategy to cater for the needs of these internally displaced persons. Such a strategy must be based on the needs as expressed by the IDPs themselves, ensuring full participation. In the IDP camps that I was able to visit, essential needs are being met and it was encouraging to note that parents reported that their children are attending schools and most facilities had some form of primary healthcare service in place. Nevertheless, for some IDPs, six to seven years after their displacement, they remain living in cramped and extremely basic shelters, with several family members sharing a single room and with communal bathing and cooking facilities. The situation of women and girls in IDP camps and conflict affected areas is of particular concern and although I was not informed of allegations of rape, sexual and gender based violence, I am concerned that this may constitute a hidden crisis of abuse with fear, stigma and cultural factors as well as impunity for perpetrators leading to under-reporting of abuse to the relevant authorities. The situation of many IDPs in the south of Libya, where access is entirely restricted due to security, is largely unknown and neglected which is deeply worrying. I am deeply concerned by the reality that many IDPs and overstretched host families in the south are living in dire circumstance, insecurity and lack access to basic services. During my visit I was informed numerous times of the complete absence of services in the south, such as hospitals and schools which is forcing many to leave their homes. While much more work is required to assess the needs of IDPs in areas that are to some extent accessible to humanitarian and development actors, the situation of those in hard to reach locations remains extremely difficult to assess and is a major cause for concern. It is imperative that the Government ensures that efforts are stepped up to provide assistance to the fullest extent possible to the vulnerable communities in these areas, including those at protection risk because of tribal conflicts and land issues. It is my preliminary finding that in practice there are insufficient coordinated efforts and protocols in place specifically targeting internally displaced persons. There is currently no legal or policy framework for the protection of IDPs in Libya, which hampers the ability of the Government and other partners to respond to internal displacement with coordinated and clearly defined protection and accountability mechanisms, structures, procedures and dedicated budgets. I strongly recommend that a Roadmap is put in place, in line with the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. Such measures would clearly define responsibilities across Ministries and other dedicated bodies, including the Ministry of State for Displaced as well as the Ministry of Social Services and various committees and would allow for more coherent and legally-based responses. This would also assist municipalities hosting IDPs and those where safe, dignified and voluntary return is possible. Comprehensive needs assessment and intention surveys are also required to ensure that appropriate assistance and durable solutions are provided to IDPs. In view of the many IDPs who have returned to their homes in recent years and the projected return of over 40,000 Tawarghans these coming months, it is all the more essential that all IDPs are well-informed of the process of return and their rights related to safe and voluntary return as well as durable solutions. I cannot stress enough the fact that return of IDPs is not equivalent to solving the issue of displacement, and it is imperative that the Government ensures the safety and assistance of IDPs during return, as well as the rebuilding of their homes and standard of living. So long as there remain unresolved specific displacement-related issues, IDPs remain IDPs and have not achieved durable solutions. In view of the frequently shifting dynamics and complex nature of the crisis in Libya, a Roadmap would also ensure that preparations are put in place in order to establish programs and deploy rapid assistance at the earliest opportunity to respond to any new displacement flows. It would moreover allow for the Government to better inform the international community on how to best provide tangible support to the Government. Mapping of locations and data of IDPs across Libya and especially in the larger cities such as Tripoli, Misrata and Benghazi will be important to ensure that all actors are aware of the groups and areas in need of coordinated assistance. Displacement outside of camps Many IDPs are displaced in urban areas where their distress is less visible, but it must not allow us to become complacent about the situation of these hundreds of thousands across the country who are still trying to rebuild their lives or who are facing immense suffering on a daily basis due to their current displacement. The impact on their lives is immense and the vulnerability and suffering that they endure is devastating and must be recognized and addressed consistently by the Government and its national and international partners. No verified figures are available regarding the total number of Libyans who are displaced in urban settings such as Tripoli and Benghazi, also due to many IDPs fearing protection risks if they are registered, and I am concerned that this aspect of displacement in Libya is relatively less attended to, both nationally and internationally. IDPs are frequently living in substandard conditions in unfinished or abandoned buildings. Some are living in rented accommodation or empty factories where they are forced to pay rent, leading to a precarious situation since their financial resources are low or exhausted and they become unable to pay rents, resulting in evictions and renewed displacement. This was the case in Misrata where IDPs from Benghazi whom I met were told to leave the housing where they were living at short notice and with no support on alternative housing. These IDPs do not only face harsh conditions but also uncertainty about their futures because of insecurity of tenure. The elderly, children, persons with disabilities, pregnant women and other highly vulnerable persons must be the highest priority in these cases. IDPs fleeing the east - Discrimination and security Many IDPs in Libya who experience constant insecurity in their places of origin, take the difficult decision not to return to their homes. This is particularly an issue for IDPs from the east who became displaced as a result of violations against them by the authorities and are now facing even more violations as IDPs. I met with IDPs displaced from Benghazi to Tripoli and to Misrata, who are not able to return home due to security concerns, impeded freedom of movement and a fear of becoming victims of violations of human rights, including arbitrary arrest, torture, unlawful killings, indiscriminate attacks, disappearances or forced displacement. This demonstrates that durable solutions do not lie in their mere physical return. Many of the IDPs I spoke with also shared stories of not feeling safe even within the cities in which they are now living, and experiencing daily discrimination, which interferes with their ability to secure the livelihoods for themselves and their families. In many cases, this fear prevents them from even requesting assistance from the authorities. Although I am well aware that discrimination is not a policy of the Government, it is still very much present in Libya and particularly targeting IDPs. One seven-year old girl whom I met in one of the camps told me that she did not like going to school "because the teachers hate me and they say I am a child of terrorists and should go back to where I belong". I regret to say that I have been informed by numerous IDPs from the east that they or their family members have suffered arbitrary detention, torture, witnessing of executions, and disappearances of family members. Investigations into these abuses must be taken extremely seriously. There is apparently little trust in the judicial system and I was told on a number of occasions that many judges and lawyers are pressured into not taking on cases involving human rights abuses against IDPs due to the political sensitivity. Several IDPs reported to me that due to the risk of abuses, lack of protection and livelihoods options for them in Libya and the conditions they face, this has led them to reflect on leaving Libya by the sea through illegal migration routes. In fact, some of those internally displaced end up joining dangerous migration routes in an attempt to seek protection outside of the country. There is also a fear amongst many IDPs that their youth is at high risk of being recruited by armed groups. While legitimate security concerns were reported to me by the Libyan authorities, including that ISIL fighters may try to infiltrate IDP communities, it must be recalled that the overwhelming majority of IDPs are innocent victims of conflict and they must be respected and treated on a humanitarian basis within the framework of protection of civilians. Any arrests must meet certain criteria, be justified, specified in law and non-discriminatory. Arrest and detention of IDPs after their displacement were reported to me numerous times and raises concerns, including with regard to due process, conditions in prisons, treatment and duration of detention, including allegations of torture, and access to those detained by lawyers and family members. Many IDPs from Benghazi have been targeted for suspicion of supporting terrorist groups and many of those displaced I spoke to reported to me that male family members had been detained since 2014 and that they had had little or no information about their location or contact with them. International standards require that no person can be arbitrarily detained or held without charge and those who have not been charged with a crime should be released without delay. Access to services Challenges relating to civil documentation were frequently raised by the IDPs whom I met. Many left their documents as they were fleeing their homes and consequently now face challenges to gaining access to services. Documentation is an essential first step to ensuring assistance to IDPs. Of particular concern is the requirement for IDPs to travel back to their place of origin in order to complete the necessary administrative requirements to re-issue valid documents. IDPs are frequently not able to do so safely and this requirement may put them in danger. Recognizing the security and logistical challenges facing IDPs, the national Government and the municipal authorities should take necessary steps to ensure that documentation can be issued and banks accessed in places of displacement rather than their place of origin and with no undue administrative barriers. I urge the Government to give a high priority to this issue and ensure that all civil documentations are available to IDPs, including birth, marriage and death certificates. This may require innovative solutions, including the use of mobile documentation and facilities to reach IDPs in their locations. The need for accurate and comprehensive disaggregated data on IDPs is vital and must be quickly improved. While some positive steps have been taken in regard to data gathering such as the Displacement Tracking Matrix and intention surveys, there is still an urgent need to conduct further detailed profiling and needs assessments, including for the most vulnerable, in order to monitor the protection needs of women, children, youth, older persons, and persons with disabilities. I very much welcome efforts to implement a profiling exercise with the support of UNHCR, UNFPA and JIPS, as I definitely see the strong need for it in the Libyan context. At the same time, I strongly recommend that if such profiling is to be useful as a responsible undertaking, it should have a significant displacement focus, specifically looking at the situation of the IDPs compared to the overall population in Libya. Progress towards achieving durable solutions for the Tawarghans The nature of the conflict in 2011, meant that the entire population of the city of Tawargha, approximately 43,000 people, were forced to flee their homes and the majority ended up in camps around Tripoli and Benghazi. It is now seven years since they became internally displaced and many of the Tawarghans I spoke with were eager to return home but also apprehensive about the conditions they would find upon return. Following a political dialogue from 2015 to 2017 between the Tawarghans and Misratans, an agreement was reached for the Tawarghans to return and the date was set for 1 February 2018. From all the actors I have spoken to, it is clear that there is a need for increased communication regarding the return and clarity of leadership and accountability regarding the reconstruction and reestablishment of the services needed to provide the returned IDPs with sustainable livelihoods. The return should be gradual and ensure that conditions are established for it to be a durable solution. The return of the Tawarghans to an area that experienced intense fighting furthermore exposes them to threats, including the danger of Explosive Remnants of War (ERWs). Many of their homes have been damaged or destroyed, and infrastructure and livelihoods were completely disrupted, including schools, hospitals and other public buildings that were frequently used by parties to the conflict during the course of hostilities. One young Tawarghan girl whom I met in one of the camps expressed apprehension of returning due to a fear of mines that may be hidden in their homes when they return. It is essential that the return of the Tawarghans is voluntary and informed and that they do not face pressure to return prematurely. It is vital that their return is monitored and supported to the fullest extent possible. Assumptions that they return to conditions of safety and relative normality must be verified and necessary assistance provided. I urge the government and the international community to ensure that they do not neglect the need to integrate durable solutions and transitional steps towards them at the earliest phase, such as re-establishing livelihoods and initiating recovery programmes. Massive investment in rebuilding infrastructure and homes will be required and I urge that there be a strategy for development in order to prevent further displacement or situations of protracted displacement. It is essential that development partners be engaged at the earliest phase to integrate development approaches into the humanitarian phase as soon as possible. In this respect, the views and wishes of IDPs must be fully taken into account and respected, including their right to choose a durable solution that is appropriate for them. For those Tawarghans who will continue to live in the camps before returning home, the Government, local authorities and international actors should promote and support IDP efforts to be better organized and to ensure their participation in the management of the camp. It is especially crucial that women and children are given a forum whereby they can express their needs and for them to have a stronger and more unified voice. National responses to internal displacement Having in place appropriate and effective institutions at the national and municipal levels to respond to internal displacement is an essential factor to achieve solutions for IDPs. Libya has taken an essential first step in assigning a Minister in charge of IDPs, the Ministry of State for Displaced, as well as a High Committee for the Return of IDPs and other council level committees across parts of the country. However greater coordination mechanisms are needed in order to have clear objectives and clarity of roles of key institutions in responding to internal displacement as well as their partnerships with both national and international partners. This should be addressed as a matter of urgency. I was informed that allocated resources and coordination across the Ministries and between national and municipal counterparts remains poor. Nevertheless, with appropriate resources, capacity and above all political will, the Minister of IDPs has the potential to function more effectively and be better able to respond to the IDP situation. Addressing internal displacement within national development frameworks is vital to achieve durable solutions for those in protracted displacement. The main responsibility falls on the Libyan Government, yet it undeniably faces an immense task that it cannot cope with alone. It is clear that an urgent and coordinated response from the Government and national and international humanitarian organizations working in stronger partnership with each other is required. The international community must urgently bolster support to humanitarian agencies working tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of the hundreds of thousand people affected by the displacement crisis. Equally, the Government must allow United Nations and other humanitarian actors to function freely in areas under its control and where security allows it, with unhindered access to all locations and IDP populations. Armed groups, including those aligned to the Government, should also facilitate, rather than hinder such access. While the Government's concern for the security of humanitarian actors is greatly appreciated, bureaucratic and other restrictions on full and rapid access to IDPs and at-risk communities are currently a major impediment to their work and effectiveness and should be lifted. While humanitarian assistance must be the highest priority to save lives now, the Libyan Government, together with its national and international humanitarian and development partners must already begin to take steps towards durable solutions and improving recovery strategies. It should also prioritise community reconciliation and social cohesion projects that address the possibility of return for some or local integration for those who are unable or unwilling to return. Where the possibility of voluntary, safe and dignified return exists, it must be recognized that justice, reconciliation and the rebuilding of trust between communities may be required in the short, medium and long-term and this may require specially trained units, police and other public officials to avoid problems and tensions emerging. International assistance to address internal displacement It is a sad reality that other ongoing crisis situations, including those in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen and Syria, have understandably required much needed attention and resources from the international community. Nevertheless, it is vital that attention to Libya by the international community does not fade at this vital time of protracted displacement and need for durable solutions for returning IDPs and that humanitarian and development support is maintained and enhanced. The staff of the United Nations humanitarian agencies in Libya, as well as other international organizations, must be commended for the exercise of their essential work. However, they are stretched thin and can only work within the confines of the resources and access that they have. Those resources and access are gravely inadequate at the present time. These dedicated agencies bear the brunt of criticism on the ground and yet it is the lack of access and shortfall in funding across all sectors, including shelter, food, water and sanitation, and protection, that hampers their work and is a shame on both the Libyan Government and the international community. While the Libyan Government lacks the capacity and resources to fully meet the humanitarian needs of IDPs and development and reconstruction requirements, it is imperative that the international community does not turn its back on these issues in Libya and remains a consistent and reliable partner in providing humanitarian and development assistance. Improvements are also needed at the local level, where numerous actors and the UN seemed to not be fully coordinated in terms of how they could and should be implementing on the ground. The Launch of the 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan held on 25 January 2018 in Tripoli, and in which I participated, was a positive reinforcement that the humanitarian plight of the Libyan people continues to be of concern to the international community. I hope, and I encourage partners to ensure, that the funding and initiatives within this response plan fully includes IDPs who require immediate and longer-term assistance and to address specific displacement-related issues. Equally, I urge the wider donor community to consider much more seriously the immense need for additional humanitarian funding within Libya. Challenges facing the Government are massive and yet its capacity to respond is limited and constrained, including by the economic crisis. I wish to also express my deep disappointment of not being able to visit the east of Libya, as intended. Despite extensive discussions with the Benghazi authorities following up to my planned visit on my last day of the mission in Libya, and with detailed preparations already in place concerning travelling to Benghazi where I had planned to speak with the Municipalities and IDPs who are facing grave conditions there, the visit was cancelled last minute by the Benghazi authorities, much to my regret. I have been informed by various sources of the dire situation facing IDPs in the east and would strongly urge that renewed attention is brought to their plight. It would also have been a good opportunity to see first-hand the conditions that oblige persons to flee the city. Finally, I take this opportunity to again thank the Government of National Accord of Libya for its invitation to visit and its cooperation with my mandate at this critical time, which I hope constitutes the beginning of a constructive and fruitful engagement ahead. I also wish to thank the various municipality authorities with whom discussions were frank and to the point. Most importantly, my appreciation goes to the IDPs themselves who opened up their homes to me and my delegation, those who presented their analyses and recommendations on how to move forward, and shared their aspirations for the future. I also express my gratitude to the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) for their continuous and generous support in facilitating all aspects of my visit which ensured its success. I want to also thank the numerous other UN agencies, institutions and individuals whom I met, in particular the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Organization for Migration, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and other key agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations, who provided valuable information to me and who are working to provide support and assistance to internally displaced persons. My full report and recommendations to the Government will be submitted to the Human Rights Council in June 2018. I stand ready to support all efforts by the Government, the United Nations and other humanitarian and human rights actors to promote and protect the human rights of internally displaced persons in Libya. Thank you. Paris Summit: Work Towards Fair Elections in Libya Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 29 May 2018 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Paris Summit: Work Towards Fair Elections in Libya, 29 May 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b55bcd64.html [accessed 26 October 2021] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Paris Summit: Work Towards Fair Elections in Libya 4 Leaders Should Ensure Respect for Rights French President Emmanuel Macron walks with Libyan Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj and General Khalifa Haftar, commander in the Libyan National Army (LNA), before a meeting for talks over a political deal to help end Libya's crisis in La Celle-Saint-Cloud near Paris, France, July 25, 2017. (Paris, May 29, 2018) French President Emmanuel Macron should ensure that four Libyan leaders meeting in Paris on May 29, 2018, pledge to improve human rights and ensure conditions conducive for a free and fair vote ahead of any planned elections, Human Rights Watch said today. The new French initiative is the second attempt by Macron to reach consensus among some key figures in Libya. It builds on a July 2017 meeting that led to no discernible results between General Khalifa Hiftar, commander of the Libyan National Army forces (LNA), and Fayez Serraj, prime minister of the rival Tripoli-based, internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA). In the meantime, armed groups commit abuses with no fear of being held accountable, while protracted armed conflicts and political divisions have decimated the economy and caused a human rights and humanitarian crisis. "President Macron should make clear that the pretext of political negotiations will not cause France to turn a blind eye to the responsibility of political leaders for the deplorable human rights conditions in Libya," said Benedicte Jeannerod, France director at Human Rights Watch. "The international community, but most of all Libyans, need to hear Libyan leaders pledge significant improvements to the rule of law, justice, and accountability including for their own abusive forces before organizing elections." At minimum, Libyan authorities should pledge to ensure conditions in which candidates can campaign freely without undue risk of attacks, an independent audit of the voter registry, secure polling places in areas under their control, and sufficient court security to allow adjudication of disputes, Human Rights Watch said. Human Rights Watch has a reviewed a copy of the draft accord to be negotiated at the summit. The 13-point accord includes commitments to hold elections in 2018 and respect the results, and an understanding that the international community would impose sanctions on spoilers. It makes no mention of the human rights obligations of the parties and no commitment to hold elections in conditions that will ensure that they are free, fair, and credible. In addition to Hiftar and Serraj, media reports say, Macron extended invitations to Khalid Al-Meshri, head of the Supreme State Council, a consultative body for the GNA, and Aqila Saleh, the speaker of the House of Representatives, which, along with Hiftar, is allied with the GNA's competitor, the Al-Bayda-based Interim Government. The United Nations has publicly supported holding general elections in Libya in 2018. But the special representative of the secretary general in Libya, Ghassan Salame, said in his May update to the Security Council that to hold elections "proper conditions must be in place. A new round of voter registration, prior commitment to accept the results, appropriate funds, and strong security arrangements are needed." The legal framework for holding elections remains opaque. The House of Representatives has yet to pass a new elections law, and a draft constitution proposed by the Constitution Drafting Assembly in July 2017 has yet to be put to a national referendum. The High National Elections Commission, the body responsible for holding elections, has yet to clarify the legal framework for participation by political parties, and how it plans to ensure the presence and security of independent and international monitors where voting is planned. Armed groups throughout the country, some of them affiliated with the competing governments, extra-judicially execute people; attack civilians and civilian infrastructure, including healthcare structures; and abduct and disappear people. Migrants and asylum seekers who pass through Libya risk beatings, extortion, sexual violence, and forced labor in unofficial facilities and detention centers nominally under the state, at the hands of guards, militias, and smugglers. The extremist group Islamic State (also known as ISIS) claimed responsibility for an armed attack on May 2, against the election commission headquarters in Tripoli that resulted in 14 deaths, most of them of civilians. On May 25, an unidentified group carried out a suicide attack in Benghazi, killing seven people and injuring 10, mostly civilians. For elections to be free and fair, they need to be held in an environment free of coercion, discrimination, or intimidation of voters, candidates, and political parties, Human Rights Watch said. Instead, restrictive laws have undermined freedom of speech and association in Libya, and armed groups have attacked and intimidated journalists and other media professionals. Libyan authorities need to guarantee free speech and assembly by addressing these restrictive laws and punishing armed groups carrying out unlawful attacks. Authorities also need to ensure the basic rule of law, accompanied by a functioning impartial and independent judiciary that is able to fairly and promptly resolve disputes around campaigns and voting. Copyright notice: Copyright, Human Rights Watch Libya: Battle for City Endangers Civilians Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 14 May 2018 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Libya: Battle for City Endangers Civilians, 14 May 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b55bf314.html [accessed 26 October 2021] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Libya: Battle for City Endangers Civilians Conflict Parties in Derna Should Abide by Laws of War (Beirut) Forces under Gen. Khalifa Hiftar have started a land and air operation to wrest the eastern city of Derna from an alliance of militant armed groups, Human Rights Watch said today. All parties to the conflict are obligated to respect the laws of war and spare civilians and civilian infrastructure. The Libyan National Army (LNA) under Hiftar's command has enforced a siege on the city of 150,000 people since August 2016, to drive out the Derna Mujahideen Shura Council (DMSC), an armed group with an Islamist ideology that has controlled Derna since the ouster of the Islamic State (also known as ISIS) in April 2016. The group, headed by Attia al-Shaeri, recently renamed itself the Derna Protection Force. On May 3, LNA fighters opened a ground attack south of the city, two Derna residents told Human Rights Watch by phone. "Derna residents, suffering under a military siege for nearly two years, are bracing for a possible drawn-out battle for their city," said Hanan Salah, senior Middle East and North Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. "Senior commanders need to ensure fighters under their command take all feasible measures to spare civilians from harm." Since May 3, the fighting has extended to the eastern part of the city, including ground incursions and air strikes, mostly at night, against the armed group's locations. There have been reports of fighters' deaths but not civilian casualties. Hiftar said on May 3 that he had given strict orders to spare civilians, although past statements did not prevent his forces from inflicting significant casualties on civilians and mistreating them. Since the outbreak in 2014 of conflicts around the country, initially three, then two, rival governments have claimed legitimacy. The United Nations-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), based in Tripoli, controls parts of western Libya in addition to the capital. A rival, the Interim Government, based in the eastern cities of al-Bayda and Tobruk, controls much of eastern Libya, with the exception of Derna and parts of the south. The Interim Government is linked with the House of Representatives and the LNA. Key Concerns Regarding the Current Fighting in Derna Siege LNA troops operate checkpoints, severely restricting the ability of civilians to leave and enter the city. The siege is causing a spike in food prices, with some foods increasingly scarce, the two Derna residents said. They also said trash is building up in various areas, stemming from restrictions on bringing fuel into the city that municipal authorities need to provide adequate sanitation services. The laws of war require all parties to allow and facilitate the "rapid and unimpeded passage" of humanitarian aid and humanitarian workers to affected civilians, including areas under siege such as Derna. They also require all parties to the conflict to allow free and safe passage for civilians who wish to leave Derna. Conduct of Hostilities The LNA and other forces who support them, including the Egyptian government, have conducted air strikes against the armed group's targets since 2014, causing civilian deaths and damage to civilian infrastructure. Airstrikes by unidentified forces on October 30, 2017, killed 16 civilians, including 12 children. There was no claim of responsibility and no investigation by Libyan or other authorities. Under the laws of war, warring parties must direct attacks only at military targets. Deliberate, indiscriminate, or disproportionate attacks against civilians and civilian structures are prohibited. Warring parties must "take all feasible precautions" to avoid or minimize harm to civilians and damage to civilian objects. Screening of Fleeing Civilians Parties to the conflict should presume anyone leaving an area of conflict to be a civilian unless there is evidence to the contrary. Any screening process should be limited to hours, not days or weeks, and only agencies or personnel with a screening mandate should be allowed to carry out such activities. Anyone held for more than a few hours should be treated as a detainee and given all the rights that detainees are entitled to under Libyan and international law. Children suspected of being recruited and used by militant groups to commit acts that violated international law should be treated primarily as victims, not criminals, with a view to their rehabilitation and reintegration, not punishment, and authorities should seek alternatives to subjecting children to judicial procedures. Screening and detaining authorities should not presume affiliation to a militant group based solely on a person's gender, age, family, or tribal affiliation. Screening and Treatment of Detainees The prison system in Libya, run by various authorities, is characterized by systematic abuses across the country, and the criminal justice system is dysfunctional in most areas. Detaining authorities should promptly provide detainees with all protections and due process rights under Libyan and international law. Authorities should ensure that anyone detained is held in humane conditions in a recognized detention center accessible to independent monitors and is treated with dignity and respect. Anyone detained, including in conjunction with the conflict in Derna, should have a judicial review of the legality of their detention. Authorities should only detain children as a last resort and for the shortest appropriate period, in keeping with international law. Commanders and prison authorities should communicate clearly to forces under their command that torture and ill-treatment are prohibited. Detaining authorities should also make public the number of fighters and civilians killed or detained as a result of the hostilities. Extrajudicial Killings and Summary Executions Since 2016, Human Rights Watch has documented a series of extrajudicial killings that included civilians and summary executions of detained fighters, most in eastern Libya, but also in Tripoli and in the southern region. In January 2018, a commander of the LNA wanted by the International Criminal Court since 2017 for war crimes summarily executed 10 people, apparently in retaliation for a mosque bombing that resulted in deaths. The LNA did not hold anyone responsible for these crimes and has refused to surrender the commander, Mahmoud al-Werfalli, to the ICC. International law prohibits the extrajudicial killing of civilians and of fighters who have surrendered and no longer pose a threat. Mass Forced Displacement Armed hostilities in Derna could lead to mass displacement of civilians, which carries the risk of people not being allowed to return to their homes. LNA members and affiliates have since 2014 prevented thousands of families from returning home, accusing them of "supporting terrorism." The authorities should ensure that civilians who are forcibly displaced are able to go home safely and are protected from reprisals. International humanitarian law, or the laws of war, apply to all sides in the fighting in Libya, including armed groups, Human Rights Watch said. Senior military and civilian commanders of the forces on all sides who do not act resolutely to stop gross human rights violations in areas under their control, and who fail to hold those responsible to account, risk domestic or international criminal prosecution for complicity in war crimes. Serious violations of the laws of war, when committed with criminal intent, are war crimes. Those who commit, order, assist, or have command responsibility for war crimes are subject to prosecution by domestic courts or the ICC. The ICC has jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide committed in Libya since February 15, 2011, under UN Security Council resolution 1970. Copyright notice: Copyright, Human Rights Watch Libya: Women human rights defenders still under attack, four years after activist's assassination Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 25 June 2018 Cite as Amnesty International, Libya: Women human rights defenders still under attack, four years after activist's assassination, 25 June 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b55c1dc4.html [accessed 26 October 2021] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Libya: Women human rights defenders still under attack, four years after activist's assassination 25 June 2018 The Libyan authorities must do more to protect women human rights defenders in the country and investigate the repeated violent attacks against them, Amnesty International said today, four years after the killing of renowned Libyan human rights lawyer and activist Salwa Bugaighis. Salwa Bugaighis was shot dead in her home in the eastern city of Benghazi on 25 June 2014 - her assassination triggering a downward spiral in security for women human rights defenders that has persisted ever since. "Salwa Bugaighis' assassination was a negative turning point for women in Libya who had actively sought to participate in public and political life following the 2011 uprising," said Heba Morayef, Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International. "The general security situation for Libyans deteriorated after 2014 but women were particularly hard-hit. The lack of accountability for the assassination exposed a climate of impunity for violence against women who speak out, causing some women to retreat from Libyan civil society and forcing others to flee the country." Salwa Bugaighis's killers, described at the time as unknown hooded men wearing military uniforms, remain unidentified. On the day of her assassination, Salwa had just voted in Libya's general elections. Her husband, Essam al-Ghariani, also abducted on that day and his whereabouts remain unknown. The Libyan authorities subsequent' failure to launch any effective investigation into the killing, despite saying they would, sent a message to members of armed groups that they could target other women human rights defenders without fear of repercussions. These include former Derna Congress member Fariha Al-Berkawi, killed on 17 July 2014; and human rights activist Entisar El Hassari, killed in February 2015. In each case, the Libyan authorities asserted that the killings were not politically motivated and failed to conduct proper, transparent investigations. Laila Mughrabi, a human rights defender forced to flee Libya after threats and attacks against her, told Amnesty International: "For each of the women assassinated, the authorities and society attributed [their killing] to theft in the case of Salwa, inheritance in the case of Intisar and honour killing in the case of Naseeb (TV journalist Naseeb Kernafa, killed in May 2014). "Perceiving these women as equal political actors is not an option [for the authorities] and their assassinations are then boiled down to criminality and nothing more." Amnesty International has documented numerous other examples of gender-based violence and abuse targeting women human rights defenders in Libya, including assaults, abductions, sexual violence and defamation on social media. "Since Salwa Bugaighis' murder and the assassinations that followed, we have seen an escalation in gender-based violence against women who continue to fight for political inclusion," said Heba Morayef. "The inadequate response from the authorities demonstrates a tolerance for this violence, while conservative social norms further protect those who commit such crimes." Women in Libya face huge obstacles to participation in public and political life, despite initial gains after the fall of the Gaddafi regime. This is exacerbated by the fact that armed groups operate above the law and commit abuses with impunity and the apparent unwillingness of the Libyan authorities to hold perpetrators to account. "The ongoing insecurity in Libya cannot be an excuse for the authorities to neglect the dire situation for women's rights. They must bring an end to violations against women human rights defenders, conduct effective investigations into crimes against them and challenge the social norms that ostracize women from public engagement. "Libya must urgently act to meet its international human rights obligations, and especially to protect all its citizens - and address the entrenched discrimination against women which exists at all levels in society." Amnesty International renews its call on the Libyan government to meaningfully investigate Salwa Bugaighis' death and to hold those responsible to account in fair trials, without recourse to the death penalty. Copyright notice: Copyright Amnesty International Niger: More than a hundred Sudanese nationals deported to Libya in critical situation and at risk of serious abuses including torture Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 11 May 2018 Cite as Amnesty International, Niger: More than a hundred Sudanese nationals deported to Libya in critical situation and at risk of serious abuses including torture , 11 May 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b55c3734.html [accessed 26 October 2021] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Niger: More than a hundred Sudanese nationals deported to Libya in critical situation and at risk of serious abuses including torture 11 May 2018 More than a hundred Sudanese nationals arrested in Niger are at risk of serious abuses including unlawful detention in harsh conditions, torture and other forms of ill-treatment, often for the purpose of extortion, after they were deported back to Libya last week, said Amnesty International. The group of around 145 people - including women and children had fled Libya because of the brutal conditions they endured there, and had been living in a displacement camp in the Nigerien city of Agadez where they hoped to claim asylum. On 2 May authorities in Niger rounded them up, packed them onto trucks and drove back towards the Libya border. Authorities confirmed the deportation, saying it had been carried out because the groups were not ''refugees but possible members of armed groups'' in Libya, and therefore threatened the security of the country. By forcibly sending back these people to Libya, authorities in Niger are violating the very principle of asylum and refugee protection Gaetan Mootoo, Amnesty International West Africa researcher "By forcibly sending back these people to Libya, authorities in Niger are violating the very principle of asylum and refugee protection," said Gaetan Mootoo, Amnesty International West Africa researcher. "Libya is simply not a safe country. Our research has shown how migrants and refugees are subject to torture, detention and extortion there. The authorities must allow these people back to Niger in line with its obligations under the Refugee Convention and work with the UN refugee agency to find a safe alternative for them." Amnesty International spoke to a Sudanese national in Agadez who managed to escape the deportation after being arrested with the group. He stayed in contact with some of them by phone and confirmed that they had been taken to Libya. He said: "When we left the mosque at sundown on 2 May, we found the police waiting for us. They took us all to the police station in Agadez where we spent the night. We were 145 men, and four families with one child around 10 years old. We spent four nights in prisonThey took them to Libya. I was supposed to be with them but I managed to escape. Yesterday at 3 am one of those deported called me. They are now in a border location between Libya and Niger. The area is completely deserted and they have been left in the middle of nowhere for five days now." The authorities in Niger confirmed that nationals from Sudan had been sent back to the border with Libya and added that "these people did not respect the law and rules of the country" and that "they were threatening the security of the country." Over the past five years, thousands of refugees and migrants transited through Niger on their way to Libya and Algeria. At the end of 2017, an estimated 2,000 Sudanese nationals arrived in Agadez. Some of them came from displacement camps in Sudan and refugee camps in Chad, and others were returning from Libya. Another Sudanese national who escaped the deportation back to Libya told Amnesty International that he went to Libya looking for work. However when he arrived he was arrested along with around 50 other people, and held in horrendous conditions for six months: He said: "I was beaten every day and sometimes with a stick. I had to work and dig in the ground. They wanted money and told me to call my family. I had no one to call. I saw others around me being beaten and some died following their injuries and diseases. After six months they let me go From there, I went [looking] for security and everywhere I went there was none. I found a big car going to Niger transporting goods. I got in and went to Niger, where I have been since 2014". "Sending back people to Libya where they can be at serious risk of torture constitutes a dangerous precedent," said Gaetan Mootoo. "Authorities in Niger should make sure they honor their international obligations to protect the rights of all refugees or migrants and ensure they are not exploited and abused." Copyright notice: Copyright Amnesty International The press freedom that began to develop in 2011 has been obliterated since then by political conflict and violence. The state has been torn apart by the power struggle between two rival factions, one in the west and one in the east, a fight that has made journalistic independence impossible and has turned journalists in targets. At least 18 journalists have been killed since the revolution. The two main military factions undermining the state since 2014 are "Al Karama" in Benghazi and "Fajr Libya" in Tripoli. News reporting has become virtually impossible because of the political polarization. Silencing journalists is a permanent goal for the many militias in both factions and their commanders. In these circumstances and given the prevailing impunity for violence, journalists often have no choice but to flee abroad. Libya has been steadily losing its journalists and media outlets. According to RSF's tally, 67 journalists have fled the country and eight Libyan media outlets are now operating from bases in other Middle Eastern countries. RSF has also registered many cases of disappearances, abduction and torture, especially this year. In most of these cases, the terrorized victims or their families did not want to be identified. Annabaa TV stopped broadcasting on 15 March 2017 when its Tripoli suburb headquarters were set on fire by one of western Libya's militias. This militia also obtained a list of the TV channel's employees and posted it online. The publication of the list giving their full names, the department where they worked and their salaries triggered a wave online hate comments against the TV channel's journalists, who were suddenly very exposed. RSF and the Libyan Centre for Freedom of Press (LCFP) set up a crisis unit with the aim of assisting Annabaa TV's journalists and, if necessary, helping them to leave Libya to guarantee their safety. Since then, 40 requests for help have been received by the crisis unit, and assistance has been provided to the 13 journalists most in danger, who were able to move to Tunisia and subsequently move again to Turkey to resume working for Annabaa TV after it relocated there. "The situation for journalists and media in Libya is untenable," RSF said. "The country is haemorrhaging journalists, who prefer to go into exile in order to continue reporting or chose to stop all journalistic activity because it has become too dangerous. Those who decide to stay are trapped and must choose between the rival factions. Media freedom and independence is nonetheless crucial for democracy and the rule of law." Enthusiasm crushed by instability The months that followed Muammar Gaddafi's overthrow in 2011 saw the emergence of new media that displayed incredible energy and enthusiasm, but the enthusiasm was unable to resist the ensuing political instability and violence. The crimes against press freedom have been ignored and the perpetrators have enjoyed complete impunity. Legislative progress has meanwhile been slow and inadequate. In November 2017, RSF and seven other free speech and press freedom NGOs sent a letter to the Libyan constitution drafting committee calling for amendments to the draft constitution so as to bring it into line with international standards for protecting free speech and press freedom. A constitution that guarantees press freedom, the confidentiality of journalists' sources and the safety of journalists would sent a powerful message to all those who violate media freedom every day, a message that would help combat the prevailing impunity for crimes of violence against journalists. Libya is ranked 163rd out of 180 countries in RSF's 2017 World Press Freedom Index. French authorities opened a judicial investigation Sunday of the beating of a protester in May by one of President Emmanuel Macron's top security aides, an incident that was caught on camera and has sparked the first major political crisis of Macron's tenure. The Paris prosecutor's office said Alexandre Benalla and four others went before a judge Sunday and charges could be brought in the case soon. Benalla, 26, faces possible charges of violence by a public official, illegal use of surveillance video and impersonating a police officer. France's Le Monde newspaper first made the video public on Wednesday. It showed Benalla, who handled Macron's campaign security and remained close to him after he was elected, wearing a police helmet at a May 1 demonstration where the beating happened. Surrounded by riot police, he brutally dragged a woman from the crowd and then repeatedly beat a young male protester on the ground. The man was heard begging Benalla to stop. The officers did not intervene. Benalla was fired by the presidential palace Friday and investigators raided his house Saturday. However, the president's office has been heavily criticized since it revealed last week that it knew about the assault before last week. Macron took office last year amid a pledge to restore integrity and transparency to the presidency. Lawmakers were aghast to learn that Benalla initially received only a two-week suspension and still had an office in the presidential palace 2.5 months after the beating instead of having been reported to judicial authorities. Amsterdam, Netherlands -- (ReleaseWire) -- 07/23/2018 --Konijnenburg Wheels has acquired a 50% interest in the Slovenian castor factory LIV Kolesa. The plant, located 45 kilometers east of Triest, is Europe's fifth castor wheel factory. LIV Kolesa currently employs 170 people and last year generated a turnover of 14 million, with capacity for a potential turnover of 26 million. The acquisition makes Konijnenburg Wheels the fifth largest wheel manufacturer in Europe in terms of turnover. The acquisition will considerably strengthen the market position of Konijnenburg Wheels. Thanks to its automated presses and attractive wage cost for production in Slovenia, LIV Kolesa is considered the most competitive wheel manufacturer in Europe. As a result of the takeover, customers of Konijnenburg will have the opportunity to have large volumes of custom castors delivered within a few weeks. At the moment, the minimum delivery time for such volumes from Asia is ten weeks. After the takeover, the management of LIV Kolesa will be in the hands of Floris van Konijnenburg, managing director of Konijnenburg Wielen, and Franc Gregorcic, founder and managing director of G4 Group. The new management wants to quickly optimize the factory and strengthen LIV Kolesa's brand internationally. 'LIV Kolesa needs to be transformed,' says Franc Gregorcic. 'The company currently does not have enough profitable operations and we will help it enter new markets and develop and introduce new products. Redundancies are unlikely, says Gregorcic. 'Our G4 Group has seven factories with a total of 950 employees. Wherever we have appeared, we have achieved growth.' LIV Kolesa was founded in 1954 as a metal factory and woodworking company. The Slovenian company has since developed into a high-tech producer of castors, wheelbarrows, plastic injection moulded parts and sheet metal stamped components, serving customers all over the world. Unique to the Slovenian factory is the optimized internal logistic process, which enables short delivery times. LIV Kolesa is the only castor factory in Europe to have its own galvanizing plant, two towering fully automatic 400-tonne transfer presses and its own slitting lines. The factory has a progressive sustainability program; part of its energy supply is supplied by 4000m2 of solar panels. According to the latest information, LIV Kolesa's products are sold in 27 countries, with the EU being its most important market. Germany and Poland are the largest markets. In the first quarter of this year, LIV Kolesa's sales grew to 3.8 million, an increase of 18% compared to the same period last year. Konijnenburg Wielen is acquiring LIV Kolesa together with G4 Group, a conglomerate owned by the Gregorcic family, a well-known and successful entrepreneurial family in Slovenia. The company started in 1995 when Franc Gregorcic decided to produce caravans on the site of the defunct IMV Adria caravan factory. Today, G4 Group is a major European producer of thermoforming, a technique for processing plastic sheets. In addition, the group focuses on buying and restructuring other companies. Floris van Konijnenburg knows LIV Kolesa well. Konijnenburg Wielen has been representing the Slovenian company in the Benelux for the past 25 years. Over the decades, the two companies have jointly developed several new systems for transportation and swivel castors for the Western European market. 'This is a logical step for us', says Van Konijnenburg. 'The advantage to our customers lies in custom work at a good price, with a short delivery time. With this acquisition, we can deliver European quality at a competitive price, a two-day drive from our Amsterdam head office', says Floris van Konijnenburg. About Konijnenburg Wheels Konijnenburg Wheels and Vlukon are part of Konindustries BV (group turnover 2017: 13 million; 70 employees). With the acquisition of LIV Kolesa d.o.o. Konindustries is investing in a leading market position in technical wheels and industrial components for use in the automotive industry, waste processing, retail logistics, parcel delivery, and horticulture. Konijnenburg Wielen BV has been a supplier of high-quality transport wheels and mechanical components to the European manufacturing industry since 1946. The wheel manufacturer Vlukon BV, located near the southern Dutch town of Maastricht, was acquired by Konindustries in 2017. For further information, please contact: Floris van Konijnenburg Director, Konindustries BV / SPV LIV d.o.o. E-mail: contact@konijnenburg.nl Tel: +31-206821051 Mobile: +31647320974 http://www.vlukon.com http://www.wielen.nl http://www.konijnenburg.nl http://www.livkolesa.si A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind. The Commercial Bank Of Qatar (CBQS.L) reported Monday that its first-half net profit surged 376 percent to of 855 million Qatari Rial from 180 million Rial last year. Operating profit of 1.2 billion Rial grew 12.3%. Net operating income increased 3.7% to 1.833 billion rial from 1.77 billion rial a year ago. Net interest income grew 8.2% to 1.33 billion rial, driven mainly by strong loan growth. Net interest margin was 2.3% for the half year, an increase of 0.1% compared to 2017. Non-interest income, meanwhile, decreased 6.5% to 504 million rial. The bank's net provisions for loans and advances plunged 51.9% to 462 million rial. Customer loans and advances grew 4.3% and customer deposits increased 1%. Joseph Abraham, Commercial Bank's Group Chief Executive Officer, said, "The benefits of our 5-year strategic plan and its continued execution are evident in our H1 2018 results..." For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News The South Korean government failed to take appropriate action for four months against illegal shipments of North Korean coal that arrived here disguised as Russian product. The government was warned that two ships from a third country had unloaded 9,156 tons of North Korean coal in the South, the Foreign Ministry admitted, telling Bareun Mirae Party lawmaker Choung Byoung-gug, that the suspicions were "reported swiftly" to the government. The Panamanian cargo ship Sky Angel arrived at Incheon port with 4,156 tons of coal and the Sierra Leone-registered Rich Glory at Pohang with 5,000 tons after carrying them from the Russian port of Kholmsk in October last year. The coal was marked as Russian in origin and was imported by a South Korean company, but the ministry suspected that the cargo originated from North Korea and reported it to Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha. The ships entered South Korean ports some 30 times since unloading the suspicious cargo, but the government did not search them until February this year. The U.S. and the international community have criticized South Korea for being too lax in enforcing sanctions against the North amid a sudden thaw. The U.S. State Department warned that South Korea was potentially violating international regulations. But Kang reportedly told a closed-door briefing at the UN Security Council last Friday that sanctions should be waived in areas necessary for dialogue and cooperation with North Korea. U.K. shares were modestly lower on Monday after the weekend's G20 meeting of finance ministers in Argentina did little to allay fears of a global trade war and Brexit secretary Dominic Raab warned a "no deal" Brexit is possible if talks fall through by October. The benchmark FTSE 100 was down 26 points or 0.34 percent at 7,653 in late opening deals after closing 0.1 percent lower on Friday. Ryanair Holdings fell as much as 5 percent as it battles a series of labor strikes. Mining heavyweight BHP Billiton was marginally lower. The company is facing a class action lawsuit in an Australian court regarding the 2015 Samarco dam failure in Brazil. WPP jumped more than 2 percent. Sky News reported that the British advertising giant is in talks to sell a minority stake in its Chinese unit to Alibaba, Tencent and China Media. IWG held steady after Prime Opportunities Investment said it would not bid for the company, leaving Starwood, TDR Capital and Terra Firma in the race. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Canadian stocks are seen opening lower on Monday, tracking cues from in Asia and Europe. Trade war tensions may continue to prompt investors to tread cautiously. The market will open with investors reacting to wholesales data for the month of May, due at 8.30 AM ET. In economic news from U.S., data on existing home sales price and inventories are due at 10 AM ET. Energy stocks may edge higher on crude oil's uptick. Otherwise, activity is expected to be stock specific with quarterly earnings reports and other corporate news providing some direction. On Friday, the benchmark S&P/TSX ended down 107.55 points or 0.65% at 16,435.46, after scaling a high of 16,498.56 and a low of 16,424.75 intraday. Trade war fears are escalating following US President Donald Trump's threat that his administration will impose tariffs on all imports, totalling over $500 billion, from China. The finance ministers and central bank governors of G20 nations, following their meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina, over the weekend, have stepped up call to initiate dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence on international trade. At the conclusion of the G20 meeting, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde has reportedly urged that trade conflicts be resolved via international cooperation without resort to exceptional measures. Macroeconomic policies should adapt to the changing outlook, taking individual circumstances into account, Lagarde said. Hydro One Limited (H.TO) announced on Saturday that the company and Avista Corporation (NYSE: AVA) received notice from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission that it has extended the deadline for a decision on the proposed merger between Hydro One and Avista by four months to December 14, 2018. Organigram Holdings Inc. (OGI.TO) has announced that the company is in the final stages of planting the remaining three of the sixteen three-tier Phase 3 cultivation rooms, licensed by Health Canada. The Company's Phase 3 expansion has increased Organigram's target dried flower equivalent production capacity by over 60%. Nuvo Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NRI.TO) announced Monday morning that its wholly owned subsidiary, Nuvo Pharmaceuticals (Ireland) Limited has entered into a license and supply agreement with Fagron Belgium NV for the exclusive right to register, distribute, market and sell Resultzin Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Nutrien Ltd. (NTR.TO) has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with SDIC Mining Investment Co. Ltd. to sell 23,294,614 common shares of Arab Potash Company for gross proceeds of $502 million. In commodities, crude oil futures for September delivery are up $0.71 or 1.04% at $68.97 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after rising to a high of $69.19 a barrel. Gold futures for August are up marginally at $1,231.40 an ounce. Silver futures for September are down $0.014 or 0.09% at $15.535 an ounce, while Copper futures are up $0.017 or 0.62% at $2.773 per pound. Asian markets ended mostly lower on Trump's threat to slap punitive tariffs on all Chinese imports and on G20 finance ministers' warning of increased risks to global economic growth. Most of the markets in Europe are edging lower amid persisting trade tensions. Markets are also looking ahead to Trump's meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Wednesday. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Spanish bank Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA or BBVA, signed a new corporate loan using blockchain with Spanish civil engineering company ACS Group after the success of its first pilots of a loan and a corporate credit facility in late April. BBVA signed a 100-million-euro or $117 million, long-term bilateral corporate loan with ACS to be used for general financial needs. With the negotiation process being digitized, it reduces the processing time from days to hours for negotiation and closing of the agreement conditions for the loan on BBVA's private blockchain network (Hyperledger). BBVA, Spain's second largest bank, claims to have recently successfully carried out the first pilots in the world to issue corporate loans powered by blockchain technology. The bank partnered with Spanish tech consultancy firm Indra, and issued 75 million euros or $87 million in corporate loans through DLT and smart contracts. Following that, BBVA also renewed a credit line worth 325 million euros or $380 million, involving a revolving credit facility, using DLT and smart contracts in a deal with Spanish energy firm Repsol SA. BBVA is also developing different blockchain initiatives related to international payments, international trade, and foreign exchange transactions. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News China's central bank injected record liquidity into the banking system via medium-term lending facility to alleviate funding pressure. The People's Bank of China on Monday offered CNY 502 billion of MLF with one-year maturity. This was the biggest injection via MLF since it was introduced in 2014. The MLF helps commercial banks to borrow from the central bank using securities as collateral. Last month, the PBoC had reduced the ratio of cash that banks should retain as reserves by 50 basis points, so that to free up funds available for lending. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Economic News What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more. Bitcoin sustained its upward trend from last week and rose around 5 percent to near $7,800 Monday morning. The Bitcoin dominance rate hit 46 percent on CoinMarketCap for the first time since December, suggesting that the demand for the top cryptocurrency is rising. Market sentiment improved on hopes of institutional money flowing into crypto assets and a possible regulatory approval for a Bitcoin ETF as soon as August. Here is a wrap of the main news from the cryptocurrency and blockchain space over the past 24 hours. Bitcoin Price Hits Two-month High Despite Sunday Sell-off Bitcoin is recovering from a sudden decline in price triggered by a sell-off at the weekend. Monday's momentum is showing signs of inching towards its next target of $8,000. After a 20 percent rally seen in the last seven days, the most popular cryptocurrency clocked a two-month high of $7,820 Monday. Read more... India Top Court Final Hearing On Banks' Crypto Ban Set For September 11 The Supreme Court of India has set September 11 as the final hearing date on a set of writ petitions challenging the central bank's ban on the country's commercial banks from providing services to investors in digital currencies. The apex court resumed hearing on petition by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) Friday. Read more... Spanish Bank BBVA Signs Blockchain-based Corporate Loan With ACS Spanish bank Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA or BBVA, signed a new corporate loan using blockchain with Spanish civil engineering company ACS Group after the success of its first pilots of a loan and a corporate credit facility in late April. BBVA signed a 100-million-euro or $117 million, long-term bilateral corporate loan with ACS to be used for general financial needs. Read more... Hashflare Shuts Down Bitcoin Mining Service Citing Weak Profit Hashflare, a cloud cryptocurrency mining platform, abruptly shut down bitcoin mining service and canceled all active bitcoin contracts, citing weak profit amid difficult cryptocurrency market. In a Facebook post, the company noted that BTC mining continues being unprofitable and it started disabling SHA hardware on July 18. On July 20, the company stopped the mining service of active SHA-256 contracts. Read more... India Telecom Regulator Asks Operators To Use Blockchain To Check Pesky Calls The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) issued a directive to telecom operators to use blockchain technology to curb pesky telemarketing calls and SMSs, which are made despite the "Do Not Disturb" choice of customers. The use of blockchain technology will ensure that telemarketing calls and messages are sent out only by authorized entities and are directed at those who have subscribed to them. Read more... Current Prices As of 10.14 am ET on Monday, Bitcoin was up 3.37 percent at $7,709.10, while Ethereum was lower by 0.88 percent at $461.53 on Coinbase. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Forex News Iranian President Hassan Rouhani triggered a fresh round of rhetorics between he and his US counterpart with a warning to Donald Trump not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that confrontation with Iran would be the "mother of all wars." The message that irked Trump came while Rouhani was addressing a meeting of Iranian diplomats in capital Tehran on Sunday. "Do not play with the lion's tail or else you will regret it," Rouhani told the diplomats, reiterating that the US cannot prevent it from exporting its crude oil to the international market. He continued, "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." Trump retorted in tough language, saying if Iran threatened the United States again, it would face severe consequences. In a message directly addressed to Rouhani on Twitter, Trump said, "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious!" Iran's state-owned Islamic Republic News Agency responded to it by saying that it was a "passive reaction" to Rouhani's remarks. Earlier, addressing a group of Iranian Americans in California, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the United States is not "afraid to tackle" Iranian officials with sanctions at the "highest level" of its government. In an apparent reference to Iran's special forces and Revolutionary Guards, Pompeo said "Regime leaders, especially those at the top of the IRGC and the Quds Force like Qasem Soleimani, must be made to feel painful consequences of their bad decision making." Iran faces the risk of stage-by-stage US sanctions that Trump announced in May while withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. Pompeo also told the Iranian Americans that as part of US efforts to increase economic pressure on Tehran, he wanted to try to stop countries importing Iranian oil to reduce their imports "as close to zero as possible" by November 4. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Political News Congress accuses PM, Sitharaman of 'misleading' Lok Sabha on Rafale deal The Congress on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of misleading the Lok Sabha by not revealing the price of the Rafale fighter jets bought from France and indicated it could move a motion of breach of privilege against them. "Deluding and misleading the people of India, the Prime Minister and Defence Minister sought to lie on the floor of Parliament. Neither the revelation of the commercial cost of Rafale aircraft will violate any secrecy agreement with the French government nor will it reveal any classified or protected information," former Defence Minister A.K. Antony and senior leader Anand Sharma told a press conference. Party sources said that consultations will be held with legal experts and the leader of the party in the Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, will decide on moving a privilege motion against Modi and Sitharaman in a day or two. Antony and Sharma referred to the discussion during the no-confidence motion against the NDA government in the Lok Sabha on July 20 and said the Prime Minister sought to "hide behind a cloak of pseudo nationalism" in the Rafale deal and said the truth was that the Modi government was "guilty of compromising national interest and national security". The two leaders said that "shoddy cover-up, self defeating assertions and deliberate lies were being dished out to divert, dupe and deceive". "Grave apprehensions and claims of insurmountable loss being caused to public exchequer stand exposed as government refuses to state the truth," they said. Rejecting the government contention that the deal was covered by a secrecy clause under which the price cannot be revealed, Antony said the agreement between the governments of India and France in 2008 during the UPA government does not mention that commercial cost of procurement of defence deals cannot be revealed. "The scope of the agreement only extends to tactical and technical details of weaponry relating to the capability of the platform in question and its performance and tactics in combat and does not include commercial details and costs. It is clear that the Prime Minister and Defence Minister misled the nation," Antony said. Claiming that the per aircraft price of Rafale as per international bid in 2012 during UPA government came to Rs 18,940 crore for 36 aircraft, the leaders said the Modi government purchased the same number of aircraft for Rs 60,145 crore and asked BJP to explain the extra amount of Rs 41,000 crore paid from public money. "This price is apparent from the 'Annual Report, 2016' of Dassault Aviation," they said. They contended that under the law, the government was bound to provide to full information to the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence and the Comptroller and Director General of India (CAG) and asked why the Modi government was not disclosing the commercial cost of the deal. Antony and Sharma referred to two replies given by the Defence Ministry in 2016 and 2018 in Parliament revealing the price to be approximately Rs 670 crore per aircraft and asked why was the Defence Minister lying today. They also quoted an interview given by French President Emmanuel Macron to a prominent news channel in India saying that if the Modi government wanted to disclose some of the details with the opposition, it can do so. "Prime Minister Modi in Parliament took refuge in the statement released by the French government. Modi government must tell that the price of Rafale is not a secret, its specifications and weaponry are. The statement said the agreement 'legally binds the two states to protect the classified information provided by the partner that could impact security and operational capabilities of the defence equipments of India and France'." The Congress asked where had the French government even said that the price of Rafale aircraft cannot be disclosed. The two leaders also referred to answers given by the UPA government between 2010 and 2013 regarding the price of acquiring INS Vikramaditya, upgrade of Mirage aircraft, procurement of Sukhoi aircraft and development of Kaveri engine. The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programmes (S.P.R.E.P.) has launched their new online decision support tools for climate change during the I.M.P.A.C.T. Regional Workshop at Vailima. These decision support tools will add to the functionality of S.P.R.E.Ps Pacific Climate Change Portal, the go-to hub for Pacific climate change information. The tools were developed through the Pacific iCLIM Project, which is a collaboration between S.P.R.E.P. and Griffith University, and funded by the Australian Governments Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The projects main object is to support the regional management of climate change information in the Pacific. In opening the launch, Tagaloa Cooper Halo, Director of Climate Change Resilience Programme (S.P.R.E.P.) stated that, S.P.R.E.P. has been working very closely with Griffith University to scope and develop both decision support tools. These tools are designed to help Pacific countries navigate climate change adaptation and finance, and we are very excited to be launching them today. The Adaptation Project Tool provides Pacific focused guidance on scoping, developing and planning climate change adaptation projects, including assisting users to access resources and develop project concept notes and preliminary project proposals. The Climate Finance Navigator provides a regional snapshot of multilateral climate funds active in the Pacific, creating a platform for exploring current and upcoming projects. It also serves as a hub to get to know Accredited Entities to the Green Climate Fund active in the Pacific, and provides news and events for users to stay up to date with climate finance news. Kalara McGregor, Project Manager of the Pacific iCLIM Project (Griffith University) presented the tools to the audience, and explained that, The tools have been developed in close collaboration with S.P.R.E.P. and its member countries. We are looking forward to the next phase in the development process rolling out a comprehensive pilot program to evaluate and increase uptake of the tools. We are focussed on ensuring that were connecting users to the right information at the right time throughout the Pacific region. The Pacific iCLIM Project commenced in March 2014, and was funded for a second phase in 2016 until December 2019. Four men from Salelavalu appeared before His Honour, Chief Justice Patu Tiava'asu'e Falefatu Sapolu yesterday morning. They are Manuia Tanuvasa, Kaalili Tagaloa Liae, Kilifi Nifae and Olomotu Suni. During the criminal mention hearing, Manuia Tanuvasa was called separately from the other three. Prosecution lawyer, Fuifui Ioane made an application to adjourn the matter for another two weeks so he can be jointly charged with the other three on the charged of arson. However, Mr. Tanuvasa raised an issue inside the Courtroom. Your Honour, I have been in custody for two months now, he told the Court. My case has been called four times and this has always been the answer for the prosecution. They have been asking for an adjournment so they can finalise charges and now they are asking again for another adjournment. Your Honour, I was wondering if I can be allowed on bail so that I can go and see my family please. Chief Justice Patu then questioned prosecution about what the accused has raised. Why is this happening, asked Chief Justice Patu. The accused said its been two months since hes been remanded in custody and his matter has been called for mention four times and the Police were not ready. Will he still be sitting and get locked up for two months and yet the prosecution is still not ready? Ms. Ioane then told the Court that prosecution opposes bail because the accused has previous conviction. Your Honour, we are seeking a final adjournment so that we can jointly charge Mr. Tanuvasa together with the other three on the charge of arson because it is the same incident that they are charged with, she said. However, Chief Justice Patu still granted bail for the accused. Bail has been granted for the accused with the following conditions, said Chief Justice Patu. You are to hand in your travel documents if you do have passports, you are to sign at the Tuasivi Police Office every Tuesday and Friday before 12 noon, you are to reside at your family at Salelavalu, Savaii unless the Court ordered you to reside elsewhere and lastly dont go burning other peoples houses while you are out on bail. [And] make sure you appear in Court again on 6th of August. The other three, Kaalili Tagaloa Liae, Kilifi Nifae and Olomotu Suni were also granted bail upon their request to the Chief Justice yesterday morning and the same conditions were applied to them except they are also to sign at the Tuasivi Police Office every Monday and Thursday before midday. Tanuvasa is being charged with actual bodily harm, being armed with a firearm, presenting a firearm and arson. Tanuvasa and the other three accused have been charged in connection to the video that went viral where a young man by the name of Fui Tomesi from Salelologa was kneeling while a rifle was held to his mouth. The accused are scheduled to appear in court on the 6th of August for re-mention. National security adviser Chung Eui-yong returned to Seoul on Sunday after a two-day visit to the U.S., where he met White House National Security adviser John Bolton on Saturday. It was Chung's first visit to Washington since May 4, but Cheong Wa Dae did not say what the reason for the trip was. It came as denuclearization talks between the U.S. and North Korea stalled and South Korea is accused of turning a blind eye to shipments of North Korean coal. Until now, Cheong Wa Dae has been forthcoming about Chung's visits. One diplomatic source said, "There must be a reason why Chung's visit to Washington is being kept under wraps." A Cheong Wa Dae official said the trip was aimed at "stimulating U.S.-North Korean dialogue and to strengthen [South] Korea-U.S. cooperation." But others suspect that Seoul was trying to deal with misunderstanding with Washington over the pace of denuclearization. A prisoners wish of receiving an engineering book has come true. Last week, a library was commissioned at the Tafaigata Prison. Samoa Stationery and Books (S.S.A.B.) initiated the project and contributed $15,000 with the New Zealand High Commission assisting with another $10,000. The Lithgow family from Melbourne, Australia donated some books. It is our hope that this library will bless everyone here. I encourage each and everyone here, who use this library to feed your minds, obtain knowledge, also feed your spirits and more importantly to be closer to the Lord with the hope that you will have new minds and new hearts and become productive and better citizens of our country when you are released from here, President and owner of S.S.A.B., Tofilau Fiti Leung Wai said during the launch. Not only that, but it will also encourage inmates to read so they can renew their minds and assist them not only during their imprisonment term. Tofilau added the project is not just a library, but the start of greater things. The reason I said that as mentioned there was a book needed by one of the prisoners in relation to engineering. We also brought a cook books, we also have our Culinary Society here and a thought came to me that its about time that we have other rehabilitative programmes. We can tap into the Culinary Society to actually educate our prisoners here to upskill them with cooking skills and when they are released from here, its easy for them to reintegrate into society because they have jobs and at the end of the day we want them to fit back into society and thats my hope. The library includes a television, book shelves, desks and chairs. Prime Minister Tuilaepa congratulated S.S.A.B. for the great initiative as well as the New Zealand Government and the Lithgow family for the assistance. I encouraged all inmates here to read books, he said. Use the educational resources and facilities which have been made at this library to help you learn and be inspired. Think a minuteDuring World War II, an uneducated man who lived out in the hills hand-delivered this letter to the U. S. Army office in the city. Since he could not read or write, his wife had written it for him. This is what her letter said: Dear United States Army: My husband asked me to write a recommendation that he supports his family. He cannot read. So please take him. He aint no good to me. He aint done nothing but make trouble and drink beer since I married him 8 years ago. And I got to feed his 7 kids. Maybe you can get him to carry a gun. Hes good at huttin squirrels and eatin. Take him. I need his food and bed for the kids. Dont tell him I said this, just take him. That husbands ignorance was not bliss! What he did not know did hurt him! A story is told of a thief in ancient times who stole a valuable coat. The coat was made of the finest materials, including buttons of pure silver and gold. When he returned to his friends after selling the coat in the market, they asked him how much money he had gotten for the coat. He answered, A hundred pieces of silver. His friends were shocked and upset. They said: You only got a hundred pieces of silver for that rare, valuable coat? The thief looked surprised and asked: Why? Is there a number higher than 100? If you do not know there is more, you will never get more! There is so much in life just waiting for us to experience and enjoy. If all you are used to eating is bread and water, then you do not know you could be eating steak and lobster! Remember, there is one person who can show you everything there is to be enjoyed in life. That is the One Who created life. Jesus came to show us what it means to be fully human and fully alive, so we can live our lives to the fullest. He also knows the dangers that can trick and trap us. He will protect you from the pain that you and your family will have if you do not live your Makers way that He designed for your happiness. So wont you ask Jesus to forgive you for your sins and living your own way? Then ask Him to take full charge so He can start helping you live His true and satisfying way? It is the only way you will not miss out on all the exciting, wonderful things He has planned for you. Just think a minute WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump's explosive twitter threat to Iran's leader comes as his administration is ratcheting up a pressure campaign on the Islamic republic that many suspect is aimed at regime change. No one is predicting imminent war. But Trump's bellicose, all-caps challenge addressed to President Hassan Rouhani followed a speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in which he accused Iran's leadership of massive corruption and widespread rights abuses and urged Iranians to rise up in protest. Both the tweet and the speech landed less than two weeks before the administration will begin re-imposing sanctions on Iran that had been lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal. In the meantime, the U.S. is stepping up Farsi-language outreach that is intended to support Iranians demonstrating against the policies of their government. Trump's tweet doesn't appear to have been prompted by any notable shift in rhetoric from Iran. It could have been an impulsive reaction to reports from Tehran quoting Rouhani as giving the U.S. an oft-repeated reminder that conflict with Iran would be "the mother of all wars." Yet animosity directed at the Iranian leadership is an established part of the administration's broader foreign policy. Iran publicly shrugged off Trump's late Sunday message "NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Tweeted Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday: COLOR US UNIMPRESSED: The world heard even harsher bluster a few months ago. And Iranians have heard them albeit more civilized ones_for 40 yrs. We've been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, incl our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries. BE CAUTIOUS!" Asked at the White House if he had concerns about provoking Iran, Trump said simply, "None at all." Tehran is already aware of what is coming from the administration as consequences of Trump's May withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear accord take shape. As Pompeo noted in his speech to Iranian-Americans and others in California on Sunday, the centerpiece will be the re-imposition of U.S. economic sanctions; the first batch will go back into force on Aug. 4 targeting the Iranian automotive sector and trade in gold and other metals. A more significant set of sanctions that will hit Iran's oil industry and central bank by punishing countries and companies that do business with them will resume on Nov. 4. "Right now, the United States is undertaking a diplomatic and financial pressure campaign to cut off the funds that the regime uses to enrich itself and support death and destruction," Pompeo said in his speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley. Pompeo also slammed Iran's political, judicial and military officials, accusing several by name of participating in rampant corruption, and called its religious leaders "hypocritical holy men" who amassed wealth while allowing their people to suffer. He said the government has "heartlessly repressed its own people's human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms," and he hailed the "proud Iranian people (for) not staying silent about their government's many abuses." "The United States under President Trump will not stay silent either," he said. He was right. True to form, Trump did not stay silent. But the White House blamed Rouhani for inciting the war of words with his comment that "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!," Trump wrote. Reaction from Congress, particularly Democrats, was swift and critical. Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, acknowledged that Iran's terrorist activities in the Middle East pose a threat but suggested it wouldn't be solved through a tweet from Trump. "Sadly, after pulling us out of the nuclear deal with Europe and Iran, there doesn't seem to be strategy for how to move forward to fight Iran's activities," she said. And Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, the former Democratic vice presidential candidate, called the Twitter blast from the White House "another warning sign that Trump is blundering toward war with Iran." Trump's National Security Council pushed back: "Our differences are with the Iranian regime's actions and, in particular, with the actions of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, not the Iranian people. The Trump administration's Iran policy seeks to address the totality of these threats and malign activities and to bring about a change in the Iranian regime's behavior." "If anybody's inciting anything, look no further than to Iran," said White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said. She added that Trump has been "very clear about what he's not going to allow to take place." Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the U.S. In the case of North Korea, the verbal war cooled quickly and gradually led to the high-profile summit and denuclearization talks. Still there has been little tangible progress in a global push to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons program since the historic Trump-Kim Jong Un summit on June 12. The current focus on the U.S. Supreme Court makes this a good time to discuss a major ruling the high court issued in late June.addressing the law at work. In Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, the court ruled that states may not require state or local government employees represented by a union in their workplace, but who choose not to be union members, to pay an agency fee to the union. An agency fee covers the nonmembers share of the cost of collective bargaining and grievance arbitration on the nonmembers behalf, but excludes the small portion of full union dues that funds the unions political activities. A central justification for mandatory agency fees is that it keeps nonmembers from free-riding off the benefit of higher pay and other benefits the union negotiates on behalf of nonmembers and members alike. According to the website San Diegos Top 10, five of the top 10 employers in San Diego are state or local government entities, including San Diego County (No. 2: 20,500) and the City of San Diego (No. 4: 19,500) and both UCSD (No. 1: 26,000) and SDSU (No. 10: 6,939). I could not find the percentage of the regions public sector workforce that is unionized. Nationally, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, unions represent 33.4 percent of state government workers and 43.6 percent of local government workers, including nonmembers who pay agency fees in about two dozen states. The unionization rate in the private workforce is 6.5 percent. Advertisement California is among the states that require government workers who are not members of the union that represents them to pay agency fees. According to a brief the state filed in Janus supporting the constitutionality of mandatory fees, California has several different statutes regulating public sector labor relations that impose the duty of fair representation on any [union] selected as exclusive bargaining representative and then, under prescribed circumstances, permit the [union] to collect agency fees from employees who choose not to join the union. That permission has been invalidated. Overruling a longstanding precedent, Justice Samuel Alito wrote for a 5-4 majority of the court that by compelling government workers who choose not to belong to a union to pay agency fees, and thereby mouth support for views they find objectionable, states such as California violate those workers First Amendment right not to subsidize the private speech of unions on a matter of public concern: the appropriate wages and other employment terms of government workers. The court further held that nonmember government workers now will have to give their consent clearly and affirmatively to pay an agency fee to the union that represents them before any money is taken from them. By agreeing to pay, nonmembers are waiving their First Amendment rights not to subsidize the unions speech, and such a waiver cannot be presumed. Justice Elena Kagan, writing for the four dissenting justices, said the courts holding will force California and the other states that allow agency fees to come up with new ways elaborated in new statutes to structure relations between government employers and their workers. Right, but Justice Alito noted that California law already allows a union to require a government worker with religious objections to paying an agency fee to pay the reasonable cost of using a union-sponsored grievance or arbitration procedure. Accordingly, California may enact a law allowing unions to charge nonmembers who decline to pay agency fees for any reason to pay the reasonable cost of union services the nonmember uses, at least partially offsetting the asserted free-rider problem. Public sector union officials have said they will seek legislation such as this to limit the impact of this ruling. A recent search of the California legislative database for the 2017-2018 session identified only one measure mentioning Janus, a resolution expressing the Legislatures recognition of the importance of labor unions. That resolution, which would have had no legal effect, went nowhere. In next years session, watch for more substantial legislation. Dan Eaton is a partner with the San Diego law firm of Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek where his practice focuses on defending and advising employers. He also is an instructor at the San Diego State University Fowler College of Business where he teaches classes in business ethics and employment law. He may be reached at eaton@scmv.com. His Twitter handle is @DanEatonlaw. Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, this entrepreneur walks into mine. Recently, I have had two occasions in which really smart entrepreneurs have come calling. In each case, I had compassion and empathy for the fact that they did not know what they did not know. By that I mean, it is really hard for the early stage start-up entrepreneur to be trusting enough and to feel safe enough to confess that they need help and the help they need is specifically in areas that are foreign to them. In one case, the idea that they would have to vest their stock over time was a concept they had not heard of. They got the corporation correctly formed in Delaware, but the agreements they entered into with their co-founders were destined to either lead to litigation or to justifiable homicide. I am not trying to sound arrogant. I have a raft of high-priced legal eagles who protect me from that by reminding me often enough of what I dont know. But what I am puzzling about is this: How does the entrepreneur ask for help without giving in to the suspicion that he is going to be taken advantage of? Corporate structure and venture financing are often viewed in an adversarial way, as win-lose, like going in to buy a used car and you know you are certain that somehow you are only going to end up with three tires. Advertisement A couple of young geniuses come in to see me. They have revenue, they have a contract with a Fortune 500 that might be border-line fabulous. When I began to discuss how to structure their company going forward to maximize the revenue opportunity (remember, everyone thinks that they are just one small right hand turn from becoming a unicorn), they thought that my modest opinion as to their pre-money valuation was tantamount to heresy and blaspheming Mother Teresa. It is important for the mentor/investor to stand in the other guys shoes, to understand how they got to their conclusion. At the same time, if the shoe is the wrong size, in the final analysis, your toes will curl up and gangrene will set in. Ultimately, we made a deal. They are really smart guys. My experience with them made me think about how hard it is to trust advice. In certain areas like health care, insurance, stock market, real estate etc., most of us accept that we are not experts, so not much push back there. However, when you have created a company and technology and revenue, the assumption is that you also are required to be an expert in other areas. (That is why we ask movie stars to opine about geopolitical strategy). Another young engineer entrepreneur comes to see me. What he has achieved with almost no money is remarkable. His product is superb. When I listen to his tale of woe, I am torn between laughing out loud and crying. He danced in the Valley with some big-time crooks, (shades of Wolf of Wall Street), they worked him over, they abused him, and so he comes to me like a wounded animal -- rightfully angry and scared. Two components are important. Can I behave in a way that inspires his trust, and by the same token, is he in a frame of mind that he can recognize it? On the money side, my investor pals run the gamut. I know one guy who will throw $25,000 at a passing car, and I know others who want to conduct three years of due diligence. Match that spectrum against entrepreneurs who are fearful and those who are all-in too quickly. Lots of square pegs and round holes. I am willing to concede my own inadequacy, that the fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves. But I also want to offer a solution. More rigorous teaching. Not just of how to pitch your deal, but how to think strategically about the nuts and bolts of a deal and to realize that if they are not screwed down correctly, the car is going to explode when you blow by 80 mph. The entrepreneur thinks the problem is what color to paint the car, and the mentor worries about how to open the gas cap. Rule No. 569: Trust is a two-way street. Neil Senturia, a serial entrepreneur who invests in early-stage technology companies, writes weekly about entrepreneurship in San Diego. Please email ideas to Neil at neil@blackbirdv.com. Business jennifer.vangrove@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1840 Twitter: @jbruin Crisis House in El Cajon, a nonprofit that helps homeless individuals and those trying to break free from domestic violence situations, will now be able to assist more people thanks to a $100,000 grant from the Cushman Foundation. Crisis House, the community resource center on Magnolia Avenue, was one of 15 organizations in San Diego County who shared a total of $1.2 million via the foundations Making a Difference for San Diego initiative. The Cushman Foundation is run by fourth-generation San Diegan Stephen Cushman, a business owner and civic leader who has sat on myriad commissions and committees, his wife, Marjorie Cushman, and their family. The groups 2018 initiative marked the 30th year of the foundations existence. Advertisement The Cushman Foundation created an initiative, Making a Difference for San Diego, to impact worthy organizations throughout San Diego County, said Cushman spokeswoman and family member Debby Cushman-Parrish. The intention was to provide funding to elevate or create new programs that truly make a difference in the community. One of those organizations is Crisis House, under the leadership of Mary Case, whose dedicated staff and volunteers provide critical resources to the homeless and those suffering from domestic violence in the East County area. The foundation was focused on helping only groups in San Diego County. Other groups that received funding were: Bilateral Safety Corridor Coalition Burn Institute Center for Community Solutions Hannahs House Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank Leap to Success Outdoor Outreach Partners in College Success Seacrest Foundation Urban Street Angels Wounded Warrior Homes ElderHelp of San Diego Interfaith Shelter Network UCSD Student-Run Free Clinic Project The grant request brought about a quick turnaround for Crisis House, Case said. We applied in May, were interviewed as a finalist on June 12 and awarded the grant on June 21, when Crisis House was presented with a check for $100,000 at Grossmont Center by Cushman Foundation representatives, Case said. Steve Cushman owns the La Mesa shopping mall. The gift was the largest grant ever received by Crisis House, which was established in 1970 to support men, women and children in overcoming complex and challenging circumstances, including domestic violence, health conditions, and lack of access to food and housing, Case said. Our mission is to respond immediately to stop the cycle of domestic violence and homelessness and connect families and individuals to crucial resources that empower them to renew their lives, she said. We see people of all races, ethnicities, religions, genders, and ages, including the physically and mentally challenged. To have this kind of support just means so much. Crisis House operates four housing programs for survivors of domestic violence with children and two for families and individuals, including veterans, experiencing homelessness. The housing programs solve homelessness for more than 500 people a year and provides services to more than 5,000 people annually in East County. Case said Crisis House will be looking to match the Cushman Foundation funds with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grants and California-based grants. karen.pearlman@sduniontribune.com Cuyamaca College is the first San Diego County community college to be honored with the Dr. John W. Rice Diversity & Equity Award. The Rancho San Diego school was honored on July 17 at the Crocker Art Center in Sacramento, one of two California community colleges to get the nod for the annual award. Santa Barbara City College, which also won the award in 2011 and 2012, was also named a winner. The award has been given annually since 2001 to honor community college staff members, districts, colleges or programs that contribute toward greater faculty, staff and student diversity and equity. Dr. John W. Rice was a member of the California Community Colleges Board of Governors from 1992 until he died in 2000. While on the board, Rice displayed a strong commitment to multicultural learning experiences for all students, according to a media release from the California Community Colleges Chancellors office. Advertisement Cuyamaca was chosen for its Accelerated Pathways through Transferable English, Math and English as a Second Language program, which markedly increased the number of students who completed their math and English classes. Santa Barbara City College was chosen for its Single Parents Arriving Ready for College program. Cuyamacas accelerated pathways program is the first of its kind among California community colleges. It shakes up the traditional way in which students are placed into math, English, and English as a Second Language classes, and how they are taught in those classes. Instead of solely relying on an assessment test, the college places students in the classes based on their high school grade-point average and courses. And instead of requiring students who are not yet prepared to take several remedial classes, students are placed in transfer-level courses and given additional support. The media release said that with Cuyamacas program, almost immediately, students who seemed to be unprepared, enrolled directly in a transferable math class. They showed significant increases in one-year completion rates compared to the previous year. Overall completion rates were nearly seven times greater than the year before, six times greater for business and science-oriented students and nine times greater for African-American students. Success rates were similar for students enrolled in the schools new accelerated English pathway, the release said. It not only shortened the time that students spent taking classes, but also increased students completion rates in freshman composition classes. Its imperative to give all students the opportunity to succeed in their education, Cuyamaca President Julianna Barnes said in a statement. The results at Cuyamaca College show what is possible when we advance an equity-minded culture and transform placement and remediation. karen.pearlman@sduniontribune.com Chula Vistas City Council is expected to vote Tuesday to place a marijuana tax measure on the November ballot. If approved by voters in November, the city could generate $6 million a year in tax revenues. If voters reject the measure, Chula Vista wont have a cannabis industry. The council approved a set of regulations by a 4-1 vote in February. Those regulations are dependent on voters approving a marijuana tax in November. The measure calls for a range of 5 percent to 15 percent of gross receipts of marijuana businesses, except cultivation, and a fee of $10 to $25 per square foot of space for cultivation. Advertisement The measure also allows the City Council to adjust the tax rate within that range without voter approval. In 2016, San Diego approved a 5 percent recreational cannabis tax, with an increase to 8 percent after one year. In Oakland, where the recreational tax rate is 10 percent, the city council voted unanimously to place a lower tax rate on Novembers ballot. This was done partly to stay competitive with neighboring cities, some of which have a 3 percent tax, according to news reports. Chula Vista has had difficulty shutting down illegal dispensaries all year. Part of the rationale behind having a legal marketplace is that it would help the city close more illegal shops. The City of Chula Vista has experienced the negative impacts and secondary effects associated with the operation of unlawful cannabis businesses within its corporate boundaries, a staff report reads. After considerable public debate and evaluation of the pros and cons of allowing commercial cannabis business activity in the City, the Council directed staff to prepare an ordinance which would regulate, permit and license commercial cannabis activity in the City. Chula Vistas marijuana regulations allow wider use than San Diegos. While San Diego limits cannabis businesses to storefront recreational dispensaries, Chula Vista is open to retail, delivery, manufacturing, cultivation, and testing facilities. There are limits. The city will only approve up to 12 marijuana retailers either storefronts or delivery in Chula Vista. There can only be three retailers in one of Chula Vistas four city council districts and no more than two storefronts in each district. Additionally, the city can only approve 10 cultivation businesses. There is no limit on testing and manufacturing facilities, which produce edibles and oils from cannabis extract. Novembers tax measure requires a simple majority 50 percent, plus one for approval. The tax revenues generated from the measure will go into the citys general fund and can be spent at the discretion of the city council on a variety of projects. In January, the city payed a research firm to conduct a public opinion survey to identify voter support of a potential measure. The survey showed that 66 percent of voters supported a tax on marijuana businesses. The cost of putting the tax measure on the November ballot is about $70,000. That cost was included in the 2019 fiscal year budget. Contact Gustavo Solis via Email or Twitter Riverdale may have just kicked off production for its third season last week, but the hit CW series still had some new footage to share at its debut Hall H presentation at San Diego Comic-Con on Sunday. Fans who packed the 6,500-capacity room at the San Diego Convention Center were treated to a highlight reel that included some brand new footage from Season 3. I just watched that and I am shook up, said Riverdale superfan Kelly Ripa, who was on hand to moderate the event. Joining her onstage were cast members Luke Perry (Fred Andrews), Marisol Nichols (Hermione Lodge), Mark Consuelos (Hiram Lodge), Vanessa Morgan (Toni Topaz), Madelaine Petsch (Cheryl Blossom), KJ Apa (Archie Andrews), Camila Mendes (Veronica Lodge), Lili Reinhart (Betty Cooper), Cole Sprouse (Jughead Jones), Casey Cott (Kevin Keller), Ashleigh Murray (Josie McCoy), Madchen Amick (Alice Cooper) and Skeet Ulrich (F.P. Jones), as well as Riverdale showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and fellow executive producers Sarah Schechter and Jon Goldwater. Advertisement FULL COVERAGE: San Diego Comic-Con 2018 Aguirre-Sacasa reassured a worried Ripa that viewers would actually see the high school students do actual high school stuff next season, like worry about colleges, jobs and friendships. While he teased that the first few episodes would focus on the shows established characters assembled onstage, he did acknowledge that there are new characters on the way, including Jugheads mother and sister (to be introduced in either Episode 8 or 9) and Edgar Evernever (leader of the Farm). Also in store for Season 3? A flashback episode where the actors playing the kids will play their parents an episode that has been on the crews wish list since Season 1. Season 3 will also pick up right where the second season cliffhanger left off after Archie was arrested in the murder of Shadow Lake resident Cassidy. The first episode starts off with Archie being on trial for the murder of Cassidy, said Apa. But many fans, including Ripa, were there to learn about whats next for the characters various romantic entanglements in Season 3. Ripa, who admitted she didnt understand what a ship was when she first started watching the series, showed off how she is now very much fluent in the lingo of the fandom during the presentation. She asked Morgan, who will be returning as a series regular for Season 3, whether she shipped Choni (the relationship between Cheryl and Toni). I ship the Choni harder than I ship anything else, replied Morgan said. Also on Team Choni, of course, is Petsch, who shared her thoughts on Cheryls journey so far. She finally got to come out, Petsch said when asked about the root of Cheryls transformation in the last two seasons. It was really huge for her, she added, because of how her mother reacted to her coming out the first time. She explained how that pressure from her mother contributed to some of her Season 1 behavior. She was scared to come out, added Petch. But shes living her truth now. Thats why she changed so much. In other relationship news, Reinhart and Sprouse reassured fans that things are looking pretty solid for Bughead, while Amick let it be known that shes also ready for Falice to happen. Kevin and Moose definitely are a thing in Season 3, said Cott. Aguirre-Sacasa also teased that there will be an unlikely romance for Reggie starting in Episode 3. Riverdales Season 3 is scheduled to kick off on Oct. 10. North Korea suffered its worst economic performance in 20 years last year as international sanctions proved effective. The Bank of Korea said Friday North Korea's economy shrank an estimated 3.5 percent last year, the worst performance since the famine of 1997. Shin Seung-cheol at the BOK said, "Sanctions against North Korea last year were far more severe than in previous years. North Korea was banned from exporting products, resulting in a sharp decline in trade." Top concerts headed to town this week include Logic, Steel Pulse, Snow Tha Product, and 311 and Offspring. 7.24: Logic Maryland-based rapper Logic (aka Sir Robert Bryson Hall II) is having a good year. Not only did his latest album, the March-released Bobby Tarantino II mixtape, debut at the top spot on the Billboard 200, he also became one of 15 artists to have 10 or more songs make Billboards Hot 100 chart in a single week. @ Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, livenation.com Rapper Logic performs onstage at Sir Lucian Grainge?s 2018 Artist Showcase presented by Citi with support from Remy Martin on January 27, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Brian Ach/Getty Images for Universal Music Group) (Brian Ach / Getty Images for Universal Music Group) Advertisement 7.25: Mt. Joy After watching their single Astrovan collect over 5 million Spotify streams, the Philadelphia-based roots rockers released their self-titled debut in March. The show is part of local radio station 91Xs Inspired by the Music series. @ Music Box, musicboxsd.com Mt. Joy. (Mac Kotas) 7.27: Steel Pulse These Grammy-winning British veterans are considered by many to be the greatest non-Jamaican reggae band of all time. And after 40-plus years, Steel Pulse still features founding lead vocalist David Hinds and keyboardist Selwyn Brown. @ Del Mar Turf Club, dmtc.com Steel Pulse. (Courtesy photo) 7.28: Snow Tha Product After releasing her first official EP, the eight-track Half Way TherePt.1, two years ago, rapper, actress and Mesa College alum Claudia Feliciano followed it with a handful of appearances on other artists singles in 2017. This year, Meza returned with a pair of her own tracks, the March-released Help a B*tch Out (feat. O.T. Genesis) and Mays Myself (feat. DRAM). @ House of Blues, houseofblues.com/sandiego Snow Tha Product. (Courtesy photo) 7.28: Valentino Khan This L.A.-based DJ and producers 2017 single, Pump, became Vevos most streamed video of all time. Khans March-released follow-up, Lick It, has already spawned two, three-song remix EPs. @ Bassmnt, bassmntsd.com Valentino Khan. (Pete Don) 7.29: Adam Ant After a long stretch of acting, writing and fatherhood, the iconic 80s superstar is ready to don the pirate gear, his goody two shoes and stand and deliver. Ahoy! @ Humphreys Concerts by the Bay, humphreysconcerts.com Adam Ant. (Courtesy photo) 7.29: 311 and Offspring The SoCal-by-way-of-Nebraska funk-rock quintet joins forces with the keep em separated punks for a 90s-era double-dip. 311 released their latest album, Mosaic, last year, while the Offspring are readying their first album in six years for release this summer. @ Mattress Firm Amphitheatre, livenation.com The scourge of mass shootings struck north of the border Sunday as a gunman pumped a flurry of bullets into a packed Toronto bar killing at least two and wounding 12 more, authorities said. A madman clad in black, according to witnesses, opened fire in the Greektown neighborhood around 10 p.m., Toronto police officials said. One woman died Sunday night after being rushed to a local hospital and another victim was confirmed dead Monday morning. A 9-year-girl was critically wounded, authorities said Sunday, though it was not clear if she later died of her wounds. Advertisement #TorontoShooting: Toronto police say 9 people shot and shooter is dead in city's #Greektown. WATCH THE FIRST VIDEO pic.twitter.com/vY3eHlONLY APN NEWS (@apnnewsindia) July 23, 2018 An Instagram video shot from above showed the gunman walking down the sidewalk before suddenly turning and firing, though the original video was later taken down. Witnesses said the shooter fired between 20 to 30 shots from what appeared to be a handgun on the restaurant-lined street. We heard a loud bang and I just looked to my left and I saw a guy in a black hoodie, just standing there, pointing at one of the storefront windows and the glass was just shattered, one witness told the Toronto Sun. The 19-year-old witness said the shooter stood outside on the sidewalk, but didnt appear to be using a rifle. She said it looked like he was specifically aiming directly into the restaurant. It was like he was in a stance, his arms were straight out, she told the paper. Another witness said he saw seven victims lying on the ground, some of whom were drinking beer inside the Brass Taps Pizza Pub moments before the attack. Some wounded victims fled to a nearby tattoo parlor where Tanya Wilson made them makeshift tourniquets, according to the CBC. More patrons holed up inside the bar until the gunfire subsided and officers came rushing to their aid. The rest of the people came out to help when the police came. They were afraid to come out. They didnt know what they were facing, an unidentified witness told a local TV station. The unidentified gunman took his own life after shooting at officers, according to Global News, citing a police source. Police did not specify a motive behind the attack, which was the latest attempt at mass killing in Canadas largest city after a van attack killed 10 people in April. My thoughts are with everyone affected by the terrible tragedy on the Danforth last night in Toronto, and may the injured make a full recovery, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave and well be there to support you through this difficult time. With News Wire Services Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. Its Monday, July 23, and heres whats happening across California: TOP STORIES As Los Angeles has struggled to keep speed limits current on major streets, there has been a 77% drop in the number of speeding tickets written annually by the LAPD, a Times analysis has found. More than 200 miles of city streets now have so-called expired speed limits and very little enforcement, including streets that are considered the deadliest for pedestrians and bicyclists. Others have seen their speed limits go up. Los Angeles Times Lose-lose situation Advertisement The decision to engage in a firefight with a gunman at the busy Silver Lake Trader Joes has led some to question the Los Angeles Police Departments response, while others were quick to praise the officers for risking their lives in an effort to stop him. In the span of a few hours, Gene Atkins had shot his grandmother, kidnapped his girlfriend and then led police on a wild chase. In the gun battle that followed at the Trader Joes, the stores manager was killed as she stepped into the parking lot. Los Angeles Times Water fight heads north More than two decades after Los Angeles was forced to cut water diversions to protect Californias natural resources, the state is poised to impose similar restrictions on San Francisco and some of the Central Valleys oldest irrigation districts. The proposal represents a dramatic new front in one of Californias most enduring water fights: the battle over the pastoral delta that is part of the West Coasts largest estuary and also an important source of water for much of the state. Los Angeles Times Get the Essential California newsletter Jonathan Gold in a scene from the film City of Gold. (City of Gold) REMEMBERING JONATHAN GOLD Times restaurant critic Jonathan Golds untimely death at age 57 stunned many. Gold wrote about restaurants for four decades and became indelibly linked with the city in which he was born and raised. He also become one of L.A.s most respected thinkers and writers. He, more than any chef, changed the dining scene in Los Angeles, said longtime friend, chef and Mozza co-owner Nancy Silverton. He really was the ambassador for our city. Los Angeles Times -- Gold transcended the role of restaurant critic to become a modern-day ethnographer. His gift was his ability to explain the tribes of this place to each other by celebrating the things they cook and eat. Times columnist Robin Abcarian. Los Angeles Times -- Jonathan didnt want us to go out to Monterey Park simply to eat Sichuan pickles. He didnt lure us out to El Monte or the worlds best birria burritos for their mere deliciousness. He wrote enticing prose designed to take us out of our safe little territories to mingle with other people because he knew that restaurants arent really about food. Theyre about people. Food critic Ruth Reichl. Los Angeles Times -- A chronicler of L.A.s streets who never bought into the noir nightmares of Raymond Chandler or Mike Davis. Columnist Gustavo Arellano. Los Angeles Times L.A. STORIES Child poverty: A few blocks from the big-money downtown construction boom, children struggle to survive. Los Angeles Times Long history: How the Lakers finally nabbed LeBron James. Los Angeles Times Out of the spotlight: Roger Mahony was once the leading voice for people in this country illegally. Then came the fall from grace, when he was relieved of public duties over his mishandling of clergy sex abuse of children. But Mahony is still at it, in small and low-profile ways. Los Angeles Times Demanding answers: A key witness could finally reveal information on the long-term health effects of the Porter Ranch gas leak. Los Angeles Daily News Shuttered: Its the end of an era as the Out of the Closet store in Echo Park closes its doors. L.A. Taco CRIME AND COURTS On tape: After Los Angeles Countys public defender expressed concerns about possibly illegal recordings of privileged attorney-client meetings at a downtown courthouse, a spokeswoman for the district attorney has acknowledged that such recordings had inadvertently occurred in one case. Los Angeles Times Wrong man? Did an innocent man die in prison for a killing actually committed by the Golden State Killer? Sacramento Bee In the spotlight: Meet the San Diego judge who took on the Trump administrations family separation policies. San Diego Union-Tribune Violent memory: A Napa veterans facility where a mass shooting occurred wont reopen. San Francisco Chronicle Big data: Sentiment readers are a new weapon for police departments. Wired POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT All those lawsuits: California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra has emerged as a leading national figure in what Democrats call their resistance to the Trump administration, filing a flurry of 38 lawsuits against the federal government in just the last year and a half. Los Angeles Times Its complicated: A plan to replace Californias antiquated website for disclosing lobbying activity and contributions to elected officials is 11 months behind schedule, and its budget has doubled. Los Angeles Times Reservoir visit: Is the Trump administration about to weigh in on a California water war? Sacramento Bee CALIFORNIA CULTURE Hollywoods been there, done that: It was supposed to be Chinas Lord of the Rings. Instead, it turned into another Ishtar, the infamous box office bomb of 1987. Produced for more than $100 million, the fantasy epic Asura was billed as the most expensive movie ever produced by Chinas burgeoning film industry. How China is struggling with bombs. Los Angeles Times Creme de la creme: The highlights from this weekends Comic-Con in San Diego. Los Angeles Times Youre fired: How the anything goes culture of Hollywood has been replaced by zero tolerance. Wall Street Journal -- Former Paramount TV chief Amy Powell is denying the claims of racially charged comments that cost her her job. Los Angeles Times -- Should we punish people even after theyve changed? Backers of a fired Guardians of the Galaxy director say its wrong. Hollywood Reporter 108 grandchildren: Saying goodbye to the San Jose matriarch with an incredible extended family. Mercury News Impressive: In a single generation, Californians have invented a whole new world. San Francisco Chronicle CALIFORNIA ALMANAC Los Angeles area: Sunny, 90, Monday. Sunny, 91, Tuesday. San Diego: Sunny, 81, Monday. Mostly sunny, 83, Tuesday. San Francisco area: Partly cloudy, 67, Monday. Sunny, 65, Tuesday. Sacramento: Sunny, 98, Monday. Sunny, 99, Tuesday. More weather is here. AND FINALLY This weeks birthdays for those who made a mark in California: Retiring U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy (July 23, 1936), L.A. City Councilman Mitchell Englander (July 25, 1970) and Rep. Jeff Denham (July 29, 1967). If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. Send us an email to let us know what you love or fondly remember about our state. (Please keep your story to 100 words.) Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Benjamin Oreskes and Shelby Grad. Also follow them on Twitter @boreskes and @shelbygrad. July 23, 1913 The San Diego Union The San Diego Union-Tribune will mark its 150th anniversary in 2018 by presenting a significant front page from the archives each day throughout the year. Wednesday, July 23, 1913 In 1913 Secretary of the Navy, Josephus Daniels pledged to bring the Pacific fleet to San Diego. Civic boosters had invited the Secretary here with hopes of becoming the Navys main West Coast port. Here are the first few paragraphs of the story: DANIELS IS COMING THROUGH CANAL WITH FLEET OF MONSTER BATTLESHIPS, HE TELLS HIS HOSTS AT BANQUET OF BEAUTY AT HOTEL DEL CORONADO NO BETTER PORT IN THE WORLD, SAYS CAPT. PLUNKETT Skipper of Cruiser Drives Home Facts of the Bay for Benefit of Secretary. BANQUET IN FAIRYLAND Room Replica of Famous Harbor of the Sun, Showing All Its Marvels. It is my ambition and purpose, when the Panama Canal is open to come through that canal with the fleet, bringing every ship in the navy to San Diego. Standing on the stern of an imaginary battleship, named in his honor, and looking off upon a dreamlike panorama of the moonlit bay and city of San Diego, Josephus Daniels, secretary of the navy, at a banquet given in his honor by the Chamber of Commerce at the Hotel del Coronado last night, paid his tribute to the Harbor of the Sun as the first port of call on the Pacific Coast. The scene of the banquet was a fairyland of the decorators art, brilliantly suggestive of the purpose of the hosts, which was first fittingly to do honor to a cabinet minister, here as the citys guest, and second to impress upon him forcibly and appealingly the natural advantages and great naval and strategic possibilities of San Diego Harbor. Hears Harbor Praised Secretary Daniels heard the praises of the harbor spoken, in terms of glowing and unmitigated appreciation, by no less an authority than Captain C.P. Plunkett of the U.S.S. South Dakota. Captain Plunkett did not mince words. HE forgot diplomacy and oratory in his eagerness for the eloquence of facts. I have traveled much, said the naval officer, an anchored in many of the harbors of the world, but in no harbor to equal San Diego. I make this statement without qualification principally on account of the weather. I have never seen such weather anywhere and I understand that it is the same all the year around. Pounds Home Facts Captain Plunkett pounded home his facts, unadorned but terribly convincing, from the beginning of his speech to the end. Admiral Southerland said to me, You will find San Diego will be the southern base. It is the only place you can carry on the work without interruption. In San Diego you can make plans several weeks ahead and keep them to the day and letter. The giants of the sea will not have to come inside the harbor, but if they did have to come, theyd come and there would be ample room for all. Though great pressure is being brought to bear elsewhere, the natural advantages of San Diego are bound to win out. View anniversary front pages online at sandiegouniontribune.com/150-years. For more from the Union-Tribune digital archives, go to newslibrary.com/sites/sdub. Searching is free, with registration. A fee is required to view full stories. Los Angeles school board member Ref Rodriguez pleaded guilty Monday to a felony count of conspiracy and resigned from office, marking a dramatic fall for a widely admired educator who became the first charter schools executive elected to the Board of Education. Rodriguez, 47, was once the leader of the charter school-backed majority that took over the board a year ago after the nations most expensive school board elections ever. For the record: A previous version of this article stated that Rodriguez resigned as part of an agreement with prosecutors. His resignation was not part of that agreement. But two months after becoming school board president, the criminal charges compelled him to step back giving up his presidency but retaining his seat amid the distractions of defending himself. Under the deal with prosecutors, Rodriguez will avoid jail time. Instead, he will get three years probation and 60 days of community service. Advertisement Rodriguez also pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor counts of assumed-name contribution. In doing so, he admitted that he was part of a scheme to conceal that he was the true source of early donations to his campaign. It has been the honor of my life to serve the communities of Board District 5 as their L.A. Unified board member, Rodriguez wrote on his Twitter feed. I have spent my adult life working to improve educational conditions for students who come from neighborhoods like the one where I grew up, with parents who worked hard like mine did for me. This work, he said, will continue: I will just pursue that work from a different position. On Monday, board member Kelly Gonez, who also was elected with charter support, said it was time for Rodriguez to go. Given his transgressions, it is right that he is stepping down, Gonez said. From the national to the local level, the integrity of the democratic process is fundamental. Rodriguez had faced three felony charges and 25 misdemeanor counts and could have received several years in prison if convicted. Just over a year ago, Rodriguez was selected president of the seven-member Board of Education by a 4-to-3 margin. He became president as a result of a first-ever majority elected with substantial financial support from charter school backers. Charter schools are independently operated and compete with L.A. Unified for students and for the government funds that follow them. Los Angeles has more charters and more charter students about 18% of district enrollment than any other school system. Many charter enthusiasts had long believed that the district treated their schools unfairly in terms of sharing campuses and other resources. They saw the rise of Rodriguez as the herald of a new day. But the campaign finance problems surfaced within months of his becoming board president. Rodriguez had known about the investigation for as long as two years but had kept the matter secret from his colleagues, according to school board members. Two other members of the charter-backed bloc announced Monday that they favored calling a special election to replace Rodriguez as soon as we can. The statement, from President Monica Garcia and board member Nick Melvoin, also talked of possibly appointing a temporary replacement with voting powers. To settle the charges against him, Rodriguez had to make two deals. Besides the court plea, Rodriguez also had to resolve an enforcement action by the citys Ethics Commission, which oversees local elections. That matter also was settled Monday, when the Ethics Commission unanimously approved a deal under which Rodriguez and his collaborator in the funding scheme, Elizabeth Melendrez, agreed to pay a joint $100,000 fine to the ethics body. Melendrez and Rodriguez are equally liable for the fine, said Kirsten Pickenpaugh, the acting director of enforcement for the commission. Jim Sutton, an attorney for Rodriguez and Melendrez, told the commission that Rodriguez takes full responsibility and would pay the fine on behalf of Melendrez. In an ethics filing posted Friday afternoon, Rodriguez admitted that he engaged in money laundering to further his 2015 campaign for a seat on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education. The ethics filing describes in some detail what happened, investigators said. Late in 2014, Rodriguez, who was then a senior executive at a charter school organization, was putting together his first run for office. That December, he instructed Melendrez, his cousin, to enlist contributors and later reimburse them with Rodriguezs money. Melendrez worked under Rodriguez as an administrator in the same charter school organization. Rodriguez held an event at a family members residence later that month to announce his candidacy. During the event, he asked family and friends for support. Afterward, Melendrez promised contributors that Rodriguez would reimburse them. From Dec. 23 through Dec. 31, Rodriguezs family and friends, including employees under his supervision, made 25 campaign contributions ranging from $775 to $1,100. The contributors included low-wage custodians for the charter schools, and their donations totaled $24,350. Soon after, on Jan. 15, Rodriguez attended mandatory Ethics Commission training for candidates. It included a detailed discussion of city law regarding contributions, including prohibitions on money laundering. Rodriguez declined to come forward. Had he done so, the fallout could have derailed his campaign. Instead, when Rodriguez filed his first campaign statement, he reported raising $51,001. Nearly half of that was the laundered contributions. In the same reporting period, school board member Bennett Kayser reported raising $13,739, and another challenger, Andrew Thomas, reported raising $10,732. Kayser already was a prominent candidate as the incumbent and as the favorite of the powerful teachers union. Thomas, for his part, was a parent activist who represented competition for Rodriguez as the leading challenger to Kayser. Thomas had already lent his campaign $51,000. Rodriguez had the opportunity to stand out more if major funding came from community members rather than from his own resources. Rodriguezs first public disclosure statement identified him as having received more contributions in that reporting period than any other candidate in the LAUSD District 5 race, the Ethics Commission said. Rodriguez could have contributed the money openly and legally to his own campaign. It is against the law to disguise the source of campaign donations. The violations were deliberate, and Rodriguez knowingly received and made use of laundered funds during the election, the filing states. The actions reflected an intent to conceal, deceive and mislead. Ultimately, Rodriguez emerged as the favored candidate of wealthy charter school supporters and an independent campaign on his behalf raised millions of dollars. A whistleblower filed a complaint in March 2015, about two months before Rodriguez was elected, but the issue did not become public until nearly 2 years later. Melendrez, 45, pleaded guilty Monday to four misdemeanor counts of assumed-name contribution. She also will serve 60 days of community service and three years probation, although her probation unlike that of Rodriguez will not be court-supervised. A spokesman for the district attorneys office said the convictions would not have required Rodriguez to step down. And both sides also said that the plea deal did not hinge on Rodriguezs resignation. The legal troubles for Rodriquez are not necessarily over. Sources tell The Times that the U.S. attorneys office has looked into unrelated conflict-of-interest allegations against him. Those allegations arose when his former employer, Partnerships to Uplift Communities, or PUC Schools, reported that Rodriguez had a conflict of interest when he authorized more than $285,000 in payments. The payments were made from PUC to a separate nonprofit under Rodriguezs control and to a private business in which Rodriguez may have owned an interest. Through his attorney, Rodriguez has denied wrongdoing regarding the alleged conflict of interest. howard.blume@latimes.com emily.alpert@latimes.com Times staff writer David Zahniser contributed to this report. UPDATES: 12:15 p.m.: This story was updated to include comments from Ref Rodriguez, a report from the Ethics Commission meeting, comments from school board members, specifics of the guilty plea by Melendrez and other details. This post was originally published at 9:15 a.m. An off-duty Border Patrol agent who was arrested after Oceanside police officers found him asleep in his truck with an illegal rifle pleaded guilty Monday to a felony charge of unlawful possession of an assault weapon. Brandon Herrera, 37, will be sentenced Aug. 20 at the Vista Courthouse. Herrera was arrested April 8 around 8:45 a.m. outside an apartment complex at Los Arbolitos Boulevard and Fredricks Avenue. Oceanside police spokesman Tom Bussey said officers contacted Herrera because he matched the description of a suspicious man in his 30s who was reportedly loitering near a trash bin at the complex less than a week earlier. Advertisement His Ford pickup also matched the suspectsvehicle description. As officers took him into custody, Herrera identified himself as aBorder Patrol agent, Bussey said. During a search of Herrera and his vehicle, officers found about five grams of suspected heroine and a short-barrel rifle, Bussey said. Prior to making contact with Herrera, officers did not know the person they were looking for was a federal agent, he said. teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com (760) 529-4945 Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT All of the greatest hits are reprised in Watching Oprah, a new exhibition at the Smithsonian Institutions National Museum of African American History & Culture. Theres Favorite Things. Remembering Your Spirit. The Texas cattlemens lawsuit. There are, of course, You get a car!, The Color Purple, and those early shows that sought to understand Klansmen and the final ones that filled the United Center with adoring fans and A-list celebrities. In case theres an episode that was your own Oprah Winfrey Show favorite, you can even find that one, literally, on the wall. For one gallery, exhibit designers crafted wallpaper whose decorative element the stripe, if you will is the titles of each and every one of the almost 5,000 shows Winfrey presided over during her quarter-century run, mostly out of studios in Chicagos West Loop. They include Religious Addicts, The Husband Who Became a Woman, Oprah and Elie Wiesel at Auschwitz Death Camp, Inside the Secret Lives of Hoarders, Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, and on and on, topics ranging from the lurid to the profound, a virtual catalog of late-20th century American interests. Advertisement As part of the research materials, we received a complete list of all 4,561 episodes, said Kathleen Kendrick, a co-curator of the exhibit. We were mesmerized by just, A, the sheer volume and, B, the subject matter. That really impressed me, just thinking this one woman was present for all of those hours of television. Kendricks research included a visit to Harpo Studios in its final days to see what artifacts lingered there. So the studios are on hand, too, represented by a camera, a section of audience seats and even a scaled-down version of the Harpo sign outside the building that appears to have become the exhibits primary visitor photo prop. Watching Oprah, in other words, is a whole lotta Oprah, a close-to-comprehensive look at an American icon. Winfrey has been many things in her 64 years, from high school orator to daytime ratings dominatrix to frequent college course topic to, now, billionaire philanthropist and just-maybe presidential candidate. (She says no.) But topic of a major museum exhibition on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is a new one. And you know what? Seven years after Winfrey signed off from the eponymous talk show that made her fame and fortune and almost two years after Harpo Studios was demolished to make way for McDonalds new corporate headquarters it is refreshing to revisit her, even for those of us who never were much for scented candles, daily self-improvement lists or actors movie-promotion chats. This is a cultural moment that could use a little more understanding and a little more of attempts to do better: a little more Oprah. The exhibition certainly made an impression on its subject, who toured the show shortly before it opened in June. I am profoundly grateful to the National Museum of African American History and Culture for acknowledging and displaying my legacy in such a profound and beautiful way, Winfrey said in a statement for the Tribune shared by an Oprah Winfrey Network spokeswoman. It truly is the highest honor Ive ever achieved and received, and it was most exciting to be alive to see it. When she came, she was quite verklempt, said Rhea Combs, the exhibits other co-curator. She sat down and watched the videos. She laughed at herself. I remember her commenting on the poster from A.M. Chicago, the short-lived local talk show that would morph into the national Oprah Winfrey Show and history. She said, I wore white stockings to my first day at work? She just couldnt believe it. (In her defense, it was the 80s.) Offering a wide-angle perspective, Watching Oprah was borne out of a false premise: that the institution, almost two years into its run, would need some new attractions to give attendance a nudge. Um, nope. The museum, with former Chicago History Museum Director Lonnie Bunch as its founding director, remains perennially sold out, one of the toughest tickets in American culture and proof that the nation wanted desperately to grapple with some of the thorniest questions about the people it brought here by force. We thought we would be 20 months into museum development and we would probably have a dip in attendance, Combs said. Attendance hasnt slowed down one iota. Still, museum shows are planned years in advance; the Oprah exhibit train was already running by the time attendance trends became clear. Plus, said Combs, it was important for the museum to flex its curatorial muscle in the special exhibition space and to signal that it is both a history and a culture museum. The permanent culture galleries are upstairs, while the main historical exhibit begins three floors below ground, guiding visitors on an emotionally fraught journey from the beginnings of slavery to the presidency of Barack Obama (with a brief stop at Oprahs story there too). Located not far from the elevator that takes you into the historical exhibition, Watching Oprah, in a way, splits the difference. Indeed, the first gallery delivers what curators wanted to be almost a surprise, said Combs: Not hitting people over the head with Oprah the moment you walk in. It says Winfrey was born in 1954, but then it nudges her aside to talk about what 1954 means and how does that suggest a larger story and narrative, Combs said. The cultural forces that would bring Winfreys career into being, it says, are the civil rights movement, the womens movement, and the 1970s push for more equal racial and gender representation in the television business. We used to gather round the TV and watch and scream and jump up and down: Colored people on TV! Colored people on TV! Winfrey is quoted as saying on the gallerys wall, the most assertive of the three appearances she makes in the opening section. So that first gallery is almost a microcosm of what the museum as a whole offers. When you think about the mantra of the museum of telling the American story through the African-American lens, she becomes emblematic of that, Combs said. From there, though, the show, which runs through June 2019, is basically one long dip in the Oprah pool. The information is presented mostly with scholarly dispassion, but the basic stance is one of admiration. Through the power of her own image, she continues to change perceptions of what is possible, concludes the opening wall text, which calls her one of the most influential Americans in modern history while noting she drew some criticism for downplaying her race in order to appeal to white viewers. Origin stories of future superstars are especially enticing, and the one presented here does not disappoint. Young Winfrey was no shrinking violet. We see a college-era event poster for Oprah and Sweet Honey in the Rock in Drama and Song Oprah, with her speech skills, was the drama, billed equally with the renowned a cappella group. Among the artifacts provided by Winfrey are photos of herself as a Milwaukee high school student, attending a charm school at the local Sears and as Miss Black Tennessee at the 1972 Miss Black America Pageant. At 17, she landed a job reading news on the radio in Nashville, then moved quickly to local TV where, before she was 21, she became the first woman to co-anchor the news in that city. In 1976, Winfrey moved, as ambitious TV people do, to the bigger market of Baltimore, to be a news anchor and reporter. But conflicts with station management over subjects including the natural hairstyle she adopted led her instead, and at first reluctantly, to a gig co-hosting her stations People Are Talking show. In this common, and often pedestrian, TV genre, Winfrey had found her metier. Talking was a Baltimore hit, and starting in 1984, WLS-TV, the Chicago ABC station, hired her to host A.M. Chicago. By 1986, it was the Oprah Winfrey Show, and it was going into national syndication, where it would come to rule the ratings even in a very crowded daytime talk-show market. The exhibition covers the Winfrey shows changes in tone, the epiphany that led her away from on-air confrontations and deliberately outrageous guests and toward a more, lets say, instructive and celebrity-focused show. It details how producers, the shows backbone, would come up with topics and plot them on a wall. And, yes, it offers one Oprah outfit after another. This finely detailed examination of Winfreys show will stir memories for many visitors and, for the younger ones, give some idea of what all the fuss was about. We wanted to really kind of unpack what does it mean to be on TV for 25 years and to be No. 1 for 25 years, Combs said. This is not the luck of the draw. In the final section, which delve into Winfreys influence on American culture, the exhibit finally addresses a sort of elephant in the room. Watching Oprah is staged just around a staircase from the museums Oprah Winfrey Theatre, named for the museums largest individual donor. But there was no hint of quid pro quo here, museum officials say, just an attempt to reckon honestly and fairly with one of the great American cultural forces in recent decades. The full disclosure moment comes on the exhibit wall, which notes, in a section on Winfreys considerable philanthropy, that she gave $22 million to the very museum she is appearing in. We had to recognize and acknowledge that this is someone who has contributed mightily to the museum, Combs said. We also went through all of the sort of ethics channels required by the Smithsonian. That means Winfrey, although a participant in the sense of providing memorabilia and sitting for a video at the end, understood and really respected the fact that this was a Smithsonian project. We would do the research, the scholarship, Combs said. And after living through the decades of Oprah, as much of Chicago did at close quarters, or merely after seeing that story retold in text, video and artifacts, youd be hard-pressed to make an argument that The Oprah WInfrey Show doesnt deserve a museum exhibition and that it would be just as fitting at Smithsonians National Museum of American History next door. Putting the exhibit together, said Combs, was really about thinking of her as this phenomenal figure who really speaks to American potential and American promise. sajohnson@chicagotribune.com Twitter @StevenKJohnson The national African-American museum still stirs the soul and drops hints of what to expect at the Obama Presidential Center More on Museums: Read all of the Tribunes recent museum coverage. Three out of four small business owners said they will be unable to afford the increased minimum wage next year and may have to lay off staff. In a survey by the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business of 300 small business owners, 74.7 percent said it will be difficult to pay the minimum wage of W8,350 an hour next year, which is an increase of 10.9 percent (US$1=W1,135). About 25 percent said they can tolerate the hike or do not care. Environmental advocates led a hike along the San Diego River in Mission Valley on Sunday morning to build awareness about ongoing efforts to remove invasive species from its banks. The San Diego River Park Foundation hosted the hour-long jaunt, showing off a dramatically improved section of the river located in the 52-acre Mission Valley Preserve. About a dozen folks in wide-brimmed hats and toting water bottles listened as Marina Varano, outreach associate with the foundation, educated the crowd about efforts to restore the riparian habitat. By removing these invasive species, were creating a healthier ecosystem and a more balanced one and a healthier San Diego River, she said. Advertisement Once teeming with homeless and trash, many parts of the river have experienced a dramatic cleanup in the last year, thanks to the foundation and an aggressive campaign by the city of San Diego. Efforts are now underway to rip out invasive plant species such as arundo, castor bean, yellow flag iris and eucalyptus that can crowd out native vegetation and destroy habitats, insects, fish, birds and other animals. Native plants in the area include evening primrose and mulefat, while the endangered bird species least bells vireo and the southwestern willow Flycatcher have been spotted in the area. This is false indigo, a host plant for the dogfaced butterfly, Californias state insect, Varano pointed out. Butterflies get nectar from the plant and also lay their larva on it. This ones doing quite well, but theres a bunch of sweat clover around here, she added. Theres an arundo patch right there. A variety of invasives threaten all our native plants. Accessed through the parking lot of the Mission Valley YMCA on Friars Road, the preserve stretches mostly west under the junction of interstates 5 and 8. The foundation received a two-year $272,000 grant last year from the San Diego River Conservancy to remove invasive species from along the river, as well as cleanup trash and conduct public education campaigns. Sundays outing was part of that outreach effort and it seemed to have a receptive audience, many of whom said they had not been to the park. Ive never been to this preserve before even though Ive lived here for 40 years, said 62-year-old Donald McCraig. I didnt know it existed. Many in the group took notes on the various types of plants identified along the hike. This could be a place that I would go, said Mickey Greenberg, 56. Ive only been living here for two years, and I knew a lot of species in my native Illinois, so Im interested in finding out whats here. Greenberg came with his father, a 78-year-old retired wildlife biologist, whom he credits with inspiring his love of nature. Whats edible, thats always fun. Whats poisonous, thats always more important, he said chewing on a wild radish seed and smirking at his dad. Joseph Sochor, an event planner for the San Diego Chapter of the California Native Plant Society, said hes interested in bring his members to the preserve. Its really beautiful out here, he said. Seeing the arrowweed back there thats really special and the black walnut (tree). You usually have to go a little farther north of San Diego to reach black walnuts. Since being founded in 2001, the River Park Foundation has removed more than 1,250 tons of trash from in and around the river. Efforts to clear out homeless camps and associated refuse received a significant boost from the city last fall, following an outbreak of hepatitis A. The contagious virus was thought to have spread through unsanitary living conditions among the homeless. Since September, city officials said the number of camps along the river had been cut in half and more than 157 tons of trash removed. Most recently, the city announced that private landowners located along the river, such as Kaiser Permanente and H.G. Fenton Company, would dedicate resources to maintaining their sections of the channel. Its definitely an ongoing effort, said Rob Hutsel, president and CEO of the foundation. The big thing now is the engagement of the private landowners. The city has worked through many of the initial cleanups that they committed to. Now well see what the private landowners will do. Ultimately, the foundation envisions constructing and maintaining a comprehensive system of trails along the river, which stretches from Ocean Beach to its headwaters near Julian in the Santa Ysabel Open Space Preserve. Volunteer teams help remove nonnative plants and debris from around the river 9 a.m. to noon on Thursdays and every second Saturday of the month. For more information call 619-297-7380 or email volunteer@sandiegoriver.org. Twitter: @jemersmith Phone: (619) 293-2234 Email: joshua.smith@sduniontribune.com The pending suspension of Tri-City Medical Centers psychiatric units is a red-flag warning of an approaching crisis that no one can afford to ignore. Thats the growing consensus among hospital executives, government officials and advocates across San Diego County who said last week that the Oceanside hospitals decision is pushing everyone to address long-standing problems with the regions psychiatric emergency system. On Tuesday, the county Board of Supervisors will consider ordering a big-picture analysis of psychiatric bed closures to better understand what can be done to prevent emergency department overcrowding and other serious consequences. And ongoing behind-the-scenes talks in the local psychiatric services community about finding new ways to rebuild the existing system suddenly have a greater sense of urgency than they have in a long time. Advertisement I think that the events at Tri-City really bring to light, in a real way, what were facing and why its a crisis that deserves our attention right now, said Patty Maysent, chief executive officer at UC San Diego Health. If we start talking about it in three years, its too late. We wont have a solution in place for the facility changes that are coming. Nick Macchione, director of the county Health and Human Services Agency, agreed. We are still meeting the need right now, but thinking about the near future a few years out, this is very concerning and potentially of crisis proportion in terms of our access to psychiatric emergency services, Macchione said. Tri-City cited underfunding, government regulation and staffing problems as the three main reasons why it decided to take such drastic action on June 26, choosing to indefinitely suspend both its 18-bed locked behavioral health unit and its 12-person crisis-stabilization unit within 60 days of its decision. Though there was no intent to spur a countywide discussion about mental health resources, Aaron Byzak, the hospitals chief government and external affairs officer, said that so far, continued talks have not produced any change in Tri-Citys intent to suspend its units even though there is not yet a solid plan for how other facilities across the region would absorb the extra workload. We are open to collaboration across the board. But I do have to note that in the conversations we have had thus far, not once have we heard anyone bring up a meaningful solution to any of the three problems we have mentioned, Byzak said. He added that Tri-City, like everyone else involved, believes that problems such as chronic underfunding, laws that make it difficult for family members to effectively advocate for their loved ones, and a nationwide shortage of psychiatrists are all problems that will require a coalition to solve not just locally but in Sacramento with legislative change. The executive, who has extensive local and statewide advocacy experience on a range of issues from drug and alcohol policy to senior citizen rights, said he believes now is the moment for bold and broad action. People across the state and across the country are feeling the pressure on mental health, Byzak said. If ever there were a time to stand up and say, what does it take to do a better job this is it. Steady decline The decline in mental health resources has been statewide. A recent analysis performed by the California Hospital Association found that, since 1995, the state has lost 37 mental health facilities and has seen a decrease of nearly 2,700 beds. The association recommends 50 beds per 100,000 population, but had only 17.05 in 2016. An overall decrease in the amount of funding available for mental health care through Medi-Cal, the states program for lower-income and disabled residents, has meant that most units operate at a significant loss. But changes to state and federal laws have also played a significant role. In addition to new federal recommendations that require hospitals to make expensive repairs to their facilities in order to address hanging risks in every psychiatric patient room, a state law that requires every hospital to meet seismic safety standards by 2030 or shut down has had a ripple effect as health systems race to replace their oldest buildings which often tend to house psychiatric wards. It was this law that pushed Palomar Health in North San Diego County to build a new $900 million hospital in Escondido. But that facility opened in 2012 with no psychiatric unit. That function remains part of Palomars old hospital complex in downtown Escondido. That building has now been sold, and Palomar has not yet determined how to replace it, putting 22 inpatient beds at risk. Further south in Hillcrest, both Scripps Mercy Hospital and UC San Diego Medical Center must be re-built with construction starting in the early 2020s because they dont meet state seismic regulations. Tentative building plans for both projects call for construction of a new medical tower adjacent to the existing facility. Those build a new one next door plans, executives said, will eventually impinge on the low-slung buildings that currently house their locked psychiatric units. Taken together, the capacity of the two Hillcrest units, plus the beds at Tri-City and Palomar, total 108 beds, a significant proportion of the 772 beds that a report from the county behavioral health department lists as the current total inventory across the region. And, there is reluctance among hospital operators to include locked psychiatric units inside new medical towers. Expensive dilemma Chris Van Gorder, chief executive of Scripps Health, said that while his organization is committed to continuing mental health treatment in the area, its difficult to justify the cost of including a mental health unit in medical towers where seismic regulations push the price of construction into the stratosphere. Hospitals cannot operate large programs that lose money year after year and then be expected to rebuild and comply with expensive regulations (albiet well intended) and lose even more money, Van Gorder said in an email. Maysent, UCSDs chief executive, expressed similar sentiments. The cost of including psychiatric beds in the new Hillcrest hospital, she said, will be a tough sell to the universitys Board of Regents. It is a challenge because of both the cost of replacing the beds and the fact that those services are not well funded, Maysent said. We subsidize those services by millions of dollars every year. We can try to address it very narrowly, but I would prefer working with the other health systems to come up with a broader community-based solution in partnership with the county. Those cost concerns are not unique to San Diego, said Sheree Lowe, vice president of behavioral health at the California Hospital Association. Psychiatric bed space just does not require the full range of services, such as plumbing for oxygen, thats required in any room used to treat patients recovering from surgery. While this reality makes health systems reluctant to locate hospital beds inside new full-service hospitals, it also means that stand-alone psychiatric hospitals cost less. Its about $2 million per bed to build new medical and surgical space and thats compared to about $1 million per bed if youre building a freestanding acute psychiatric hospital, Lowe said. Though San Diego County leaders have been talking behind the scenes about working together to help solve the regions need for inpatient facilities, its not clear whether plans are in the works to try building more stand-alone psychiatric hospitals in the region. There are many places across the state that are interested in building new freestanding facilities but, so far, most have run into solid walls of community opposition when it comes time to choose exactly where to put them. Everybody wants more new beds but nobody wants them in their community, Lowe said. Dont forget after-hospital care Regardless of who they work for, everyone makes it clear that this issue is not just about hospital beds. Resources that can accept psychiatric patients when theyre ready to be discharged from a locked hospital unit are an even greater need, said Dan Gross, executive vice president for Sharp HealthCare, the regions largest private nonprofit psychiatric services provider with a total of 204 beds at Sharp Mesa Vista Hospital in San Diego and Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa. In many cases, Gross said, the lack of skilled nursing facilities and other post acute programs that will accept Medi-Cal patients is so serious that backups occur. If I could move every one of those patients out consistently and smoothly, I would have more inpatient capacity available with the same number of beds I have now, Gross said. If we created that type of efficiency and throughput, then the inpatient capacity crisis would lessen, even if we lost some of the players we have now. Gross noted that the agenda for Tuesdays county Board of Supervisors meeting focuses on taking inventory of the regions supply of inpatient beds and recommends returning for an in-depth conversation in October. That discussion, he said, must also address the full continuum of care if it is to come up with an effective solution. Many others echoed that sentiment. Macchione, the county Health and Human Services director, said he does plan to bring up the whole picture even though the focus at the moment is on inpatient psychiatric bed capacity. He noted that the countys behavioral health budget for the 2018-19 budget year includes funds for more psychiatric emergency teams and the county will soon add 64 more step down beds which were contracted for in previous years. There are additional slots opening up in many different types of post-acute care and, while more of these kinds of services are needed, Macchione said he is proud of the resources that the county has put into the problem in recent years. I feel confident to say that we as a jurisdiction have done some of the most significant investments in post acute care of any county in the state, but we know we still need to do more, Macchinoe said. The county also holds the purse strings for reimbursement that hospitals receive every time they admit a Medi-Cal patient. Tri-City, for example, said that it loses $5 million per year operating its unit. Scripps, UCSD and Sharp all reported the same trend. Sharp, with the largest number of beds, had the largest operating loss at $14.5 million per year. Macchione said that this underfunding is due in part to the states overall status as one of the lowest recipients of federal Medicaid funding. He said that San Diego County pays between 5 percent and 8 percent more than the base rate for Medi-Cal patients. 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 Iranians on Monday shrugged off the possibility that a bellicose exchange of words between President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart could escalate into military conflict, but expressed growing concern Americas stepped-up sanctions could damage their fragile economy. In his latest salvo, Trump tweeted late on Sunday that hostile threats from Iran could bring dire consequences. This was after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani remarked earlier in the day that American must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Trump tweeted: NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. Advertisement Within hours, Irans state-owned news agency IRNA dismissed the tweet, describing it as a passive reaction to Rouhanis remarks. On Tehran streets, residents took the exchange in stride. Both America and Iran have threatened one another in different ways for several years, shrugged Mohsen Taheri, a 58-year-old publisher. A headline on a local newspaper quoted Rouhani as saying: Mr. Trump, do not play with the lions tail. Prominent Iranian political analyst Seed Leilaz downplayed the war of words, saying it was in his opinion the storm before the calm. Leilaz told The Associated Press he was not worried about the remarks and tweets, and that neither Iran, nor any other country is interested in escalating tensions in the region. Citing harsh words the United States and North Korea had exchanged before the high-profile summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Leilaz said Trump and Kim got closer despite the warring words. Trumps eruption on Twitter came after a week of heavy controversy about Russian meddling in the U.S. 2016 election, following the Helsinki summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, the tweet was reverberating across the Mideast. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the U.S. presidents strong stance after years in which the Iranian regime was pampered by world powers. Trump earlier this year pulled the U.S. out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions, as well as threatening penalties for companies from other countries that continue to do business with Iran. With the economic pressure, Trump said earlier this month that at a certain point theyre going to call me and say lets make a deal, and well make a deal. Iran has rejected talks with the U.S., and Rouhani has accused the U.S. of stoking an economic war. Rouhani also suggested Iran could immediately ramp up its production of uranium in response to U.S. pressure. Potentially that would escalate the very situation the nuclear deal sought to avoid an Iran with a stockpile of enriched uranium that could lead to making atomic bombs. Trumps tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing the all-capitalized tweet. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!, he wrote. Another Tehran resident, Mehdi Naderi, fretted that the U.S. measures and his own governments policies are damaging the lives of the average Iranian. America is threatening the Iranian people with its sanctions and our government is doing the same with its incompetence and mismanagement, said the self-employed 35-year-old. Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the U.S. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearization talks. There has been little tangible progress in a global push to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons program since the historic Trump-Kim summit on June 12. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew to Pyongyang for follow-up talks earlier this month, but the two sides showed conflicting accounts of the talks. Norths Foreign Ministry accused the United States of making gangster-like demands for its unilateral disarmament. Some experts say Kim is using diplomacy as a way to win outside concessions and weaken U.S.-led international sanctions. Many in Iran have expressed frustration that Trump has seemed willing to engage with North Korea, which has openly boasted of producing nuclear weapons, but not Iran, which signed the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Since Trump pulled out of the deal, other nations involved Germany, Britain, France, Russia and China as well as the European Union have reaffirmed their support for the deal and have been working to try and keep Iran on board. Iran is angry since Trump responded to Tehrans engagement diplomacy by pulling the U.S. out of the nuclear deal, Iranian lawmaker Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh told the AP. He added, however, the war of words between the two presidents was to be expected, since official diplomatic relations between the two countries have been frozen for decades. They express themselves through speeches since diplomatic channels are closed, said Falahatpisheh who heads the influential parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy. On Sunday in California, Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran, calling its religious leaders hypocritical holy men who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer. In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, Pompeo castigated Irans political, judicial and military leaders, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government has heartlessly repressed its own peoples human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms. He said despite poor treatment by their leaders, the proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their governments many abuses, Pompeo said. And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent either. Lester reported from Washington. Associated Press writers David Rising in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, Aron Heller in Jerusalem and Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report. A 48-year-old gunman stormed into a packed Mormon church service and opened fire, killing one parishioner and wounding another Sunday afternoon in Nevada, according to local reports. The shooting erupted around 1 p.m. local time inside a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints church in Fallon, KOLO-TV reported. The gunman, John OConnor, was captured at his home near the church shortly after the shooting, according to the Nevada Appeal newspaper, citing Fallon police Chief Kevin Gehman. The church which was reportedly packed with about 50 people at the time of the shooting is about 60 miles east of Reno. Advertisement What prompted the attack was not immediately known. After the shooting, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto called for an end to gun violence. Devastated by the horrific news of the fatal shooting at the LDS church in Fallon, the Democrat tweeted. Thank you to the first responders on the scene. My heart goes out to all of those impacted. Places of worship should be a safe haven. The gun violence across this country must end. A pedestrian was struck and killed by an Amtrak train in Carlsbad on Monday morning, a sheriffs lieutenant said, The incident was reported at 8:17 a.m. near the Poinsettia station, Lt. Amber Baggs said. She said Carlsbad police were the first units to arrive, and that those officers said the person had died. Officials confirmed that an Amtrak train was involved. No further information was immediately available. Advertisement teri.figueroa@sduniontribune.com (760) 529-4945 Twitter: @TeriFigueroaUT A lengthy police pursuit of a man suspected of making off with a brand-new luxury car from a Kearny Mesa dealership ended in an arrest Sunday, police said. Workers at Infiniti Kearny Mesa called police about a man behaving erratically at the dealership just before 11 a.m., San Diego police Sgt. Thomas Sullivan said. A short time later, the same man took off in an Infiniti QX50 from the dealer lot, Sullivan said. The suspect led both San Diego police and California Highway Patrol officers onto state Route 52, then onto northbound Interstate 15. He was eventually taken into custody near Miramar Road. Advertisement Twitter: @LAWinkley (619) 293-1546 lyndsay.winkley@sduniontribune.com Samsung has broken the stalemate in a decade-long dispute about compensation for leukemia victims among former staff of its semiconductor factories. Samsung Electronics and a group of victims agreed to accept the decision of an arbitration committee. Samsung workers who contracted diseases like leukemia, brain tumors, breast cancer, cervical cancer and skin cancer demanded compensation after Hwang Yu-mi, a worker at Samsung's memory-chip factory in Giheung, died from acute leukemia in 2007. "We are willing to accept the committee's proposal without objection," a senior Samsung executive said. "We'll also unconditionally follow the compensation plan the committee will present." The victims also said they will accept what is offered, ending a sit-in that had been going on for more than 1,000 days in front of Samsung headquarters in Seocho-dong, Seoul. The committee gave an ultimatum last week to both sides, who had refused to accept any previous proposal. As negotiations dragged on, some victims formed their own legal body in 2014 demanding quick compensation. But its first arbitration proposal in July 2015 was rejected by both sides. Samsung announced its own compensation program later that year, launching a W100 billion fund and starting to compensate some victims who had applied (US$1=W1,135). Samsung has so far paid W20 billion to about 130 victims who were suffering from some 30 diseases. The committee is expected to present a final proposal at the end of September. A federal judge in Alexandria, Va., approved special counsel Robert S. Mueller IIIs request on Monday to grant immunity to five witnesses set to testify in the trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III also moved the start of the trial from Wednesday to July 31, according to the office of the special counsel. Ellis ruled that Muellers prosecutors must inform the defense team about nearly 30 witnesses that Mueller intends to bring to trial. Manafort has pleaded not guilty to charges of bank fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy. Advertisement The grant of immunity means that the witnesses can answer questions at the trial without fear that their testimony could incriminate them. The five witnesses who would receive immunity were identified as Donna Duggan, Conor OBrien, Cindy Laporta, Dennis Raico and James Brennan. Earlier this month, Ellis rejected the Manafort teams request to relocate the trial to Roanoke, Va., dismissing arguments that the shift away from the Washington, D.C., area was necessary for a fair trial. The trial in Alexandria is the first of two that Manafort faces this year. In September, he is set to appear in federal court in Washington on charges that include acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government. The latest from Washington @ElizaFawcett President Trump is considering revoking the security clearances of at least half a dozen well-known former national security officials, his spokeswoman said on Monday, in an extraordinary expression of his desire to punish increasingly vocal critics from past administrations. Among the presidents targets, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, are former CIA Director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper and former national security advisor Susan Rice, who all served under President Obama. She also named Michael Hayden, who was head of the National Security Agency and then CIA director under President George W. Bush, as well as James B. Comey, the former FBI director under Obama whom Trump fired last year, and Andrew McCabe, the former FBI deputy director also removed by Trump. However, neither Comey nor McCabe still have clearances, according to their representatives, suggesting that the White House had not fully considered the threatened action before making it public. Advertisement Sanders, addressing White House reporters, said of the targets: Theyve politicized and in some cases monetized their public service and security clearances, making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia. The pronouncement reflects a presidency feeling a bipartisan backlash from Trumps news conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, when Trump refused to condemn Moscows interference in the 2016 election and accepted Putins denials. Brennan, for one, called Trumps conduct treasonous. The presidents decision to align himself with Russia rather than U.S. intelligence agencies, which he later tried to walk back, led to a new round of speculation that Trump is somehow under Putins influence, perhaps because of blackmail or financial entanglements. That speculation remains unproven. Since returning from Helsinki, Finland, Trump has grown more agitated by condemnations from former officials who have become paid analysts for cable news networks, leaving him eager to find a way to fight back, according to two people close to the president. The threat, however, drew only more condemnation. To strip individuals of security clearances absent specific evidence of improper or illegal use of classified information is seriously wrong, tweeted Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations and a former diplomat who served in both Bush administrations. It represents a degree of politicization and a misuse of power that we associate with (President Recep Tayyip) Erdogans Turkey, not with the United States. The talk of stripping Comeys and McCabes nonexistent security clearances also invited ridicule of a White House whose competence frequently is questioned. You would think the White House would check with the FBI before trying to throw shiny objects at the press corps, tweeted Melissa Schwartz, a spokeswoman for McCabe, who said his clearance was deactivated when he was fired. The same goes for Comey, said David Kelley, one of the former directors lawyers. Trump fired Comey in May 2017, a decision that led to the appointment of Robert S. Mueller III as special counsel to investigate Russian election interference, possible Trump campaign involvement and whether the president obstructed justice in the inquiry. Sanders would not rule out some kind of similar action against the clearances held by Obama and his vice president, Joe Biden. Im not aware of any plans for that at this point, she said. If Trump decides to revoke the clearances of the former officials, many of whom spent decades in government or military service, or both, they would no longer be permitted to review classified material. Former national security officials maintain their clearances in part because they are called upon by subsequent administrations or Congress for advice or service on advisory panels. Soon after Sanders remarks, Clapper called the potential revocation a very, very petty thing to do in an interview with CNN, where he has a contract as an analyst. If he chooses to do it for political reasons, well thats I think thats a terrible precedent, and I think thats a very sad commentary. And its an abuse of the system, Clapper said. Hayden, also a CNN analyst, said the threat wouldnt affect him. I dont go back for classified briefings, he said on Twitter. Wont have any effect on what I say or write. All of the officials named by Sanders have been critical of Trump, although Brennan has been particularly outspoken. Not only were Trumps comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin, Brennan said on Twitter last week. Brennan, who serves as an analyst for NBC and MSNBC and has been described as a total low life by Trump, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The issue arose Monday when Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) encouraged Trump to target Brennans security clearance. Is John Brennan monetizing his security clearance? Is John Brennan making millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks on @realDonaldTrump? Paul tweeted, without citing evidence for his figures. When a White House reporter asked Sanders at her briefing about the senators advice, she not only confirmed that Brennans clearance is under review but also named the five other people, provoking a round of questions from the news media about the unusual threat. Rep. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said Trump was politicizing access to classified information. An enemies list is ugly, undemocratic and un-American, he said on Twitter. Is there no length Trump will not go to stifle opposition? One common denominator that has fueled Trumps anger in recent days has been television specifically, the unrelenting criticism hes received on cable news programs, even at times on Fox News. As the president flew home from Helsinki last week, the coverage of his summit with Putin was more negative than he had anticipated. Then on Friday, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats gently disagreed with the presidents handling of the meeting while being interviewed live on television from a security conference in Aspen, Colo. Accustomed to dominating the airwaves, Trump has bristled at the attacks, according to two people close to the president who spoke anonymously to comment on internal discussions. The fact that some of the critics have paid contracts with cable networks only stokes his anger, though Trump supporters are paid for commentary as well. He doesnt like criticism, but he can usually handle it, said one friend of the president who requested anonymity to discuss private conversations. But the fact that all these people are being paid by the networks to go on and beat him up, thats getting to him. The fixation on television contracts extends to newspaper reporters who are paid by cable networks. In a TV interview Saturday night, presidential advisor Kellyanne Conway accused print journalists of performing for the cameras and the viewers on those particular networks. Follow the latest news of the Trump administration on Essential Washington chris.megerian@latimes.com Twitter: @chrismegerian UPDATES: 4:25 p.m.: The article was updated with reactions from Comey and McCabe representatives and from Clapper, Haass and Schiff; additional context, including from Trump associates; and Sen. Pauls comments. The article was originally published at 1:10 p.m. With his time as governor winding down, Jerry Brown has been in legacy protection mode. He has staved off fellow Democrats expensive programs to protect reserves that he could build to $17 billion next year. He has defended Proposition 57, the 2016 ballot measure he embraced to make it easier for prisoners to win parole, which opponents have already targeted with a 2020 ballot measure. And he has got a fight on his hands to combat Proposition 6, the repeal of a gas tax increase he signed last year. Now The Sacramento Bee reports that the governor has directly appealed to California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye to expedite the courts review of a lawsuit that challenges the Public Employee Pension Reform Act, a 2012 law that he championed. The lawsuit, filed by the union representing state firefighters, seeks to undo a key provision of the pension law: its ban on air time, which lets workers buy additional years of service to boost their pensions upon retirement. If the court sides with Brown, that would be a huge win for the pension reform movement. Thats because it would undermine whats known as the California Rule. This is a judicial precedent that generally holds that public employee pensions cannot be reduced in any way without affected employees receiving additional compensation to cover their lost income. The rule creates an immense obstacle to meaningful changes in retirement benefits for already-hired workers. Given that it was created by judges not the California Legislature it deserves no deference from the states high court. Browns likely successor Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom has already said he will support retention of the California Rule no matter how courts rule, so its no wonder the governor wants the state Supreme Court to act before his January exit. But if Brown really wants to help local and state government agencies deal with extreme pension costs, he should also push justices to back the city of San Diego in its Supreme Court pension fight. Thats because San Diegos loss in court would set a precedent making it much harder to cut retirement benefits even for public employees who havent been hired. Advertisement San Diegos fight involves Proposition B. The successful 2012 ballot measure required that new city hires outside of police officers receive 401(k)-style retirement benefits, not traditional defined-benefit pensions. City unions say that then-Mayor Jerry Sanders role as a leader of the campaign violated their rights to collectively bargain changes in employment contracts, and state justices appeared to agree at oral arguments in May. This contention is questionable. Labor-law expert Tim Yeung argues that it simply doesnt make sense to consider an individual elected leaders lobbying for citizen-driven ballot measures as always being tantamount to an official action. But thats not the only reason the California Supreme Court should hesitate to overrule the decisive vote of San Diegans. If justices create a precedent that says elected leaders must steer clear of ballot measures that affect their public employees, then the imbalance of power in the Golden State between public employee unions and taxpayers will become even more skewed. Because of their popularity, elected officials have played a key role in direct democracy since it began in California in 1911. If this potent tool to take on the states most powerful special interests is diminished, that will be awful news for all Californians not just San Diegans. If Gov. Jerry Brown cares not just about his legacy but the future of his home state, he should make this point loudly and clearly. Twitter: @sdutIdeas Facebook: San Diego Union-Tribune Ideas & Opinion Trainer John Sadler had a handful of hints that things might break his way in Sundays Eddie Read Stakes at Del Mar. In the weekends first big race, he won the San Diego Handicap on Saturday with Catalina Cruiser. Then early in the card on Sunday, Sadler admitted he was shocked to watch 74-1 Kentan Road take a $40,000 claiming race to pay $150 on a $2 bet. I dont think Ive ever had one that paid that much, and Ive been training for 30 years, Sadler said. Just goes to show you if youre around long enough, things happen. Advertisement It all set him up nicely for another surprise in the Read, a $250,000 Grade II race over 11/8 miles that draws some of the meets top turf runners. In a field of 10 that featured a number of multiple stakes winners, Sadlers Catapult was so lightly regarded he went off at 21-1. Sadler had them right where he wanted. With jockey Drayden Van Dyke riding, the 5-year-old went from sixth at the top of the stretch to beating favorite Sharp Samurai by a neck at the wire. He catapulted me, Van Dyke said, enjoying the word play. The victory didnt pay Kentan Road money, but was still worth $44, while adding $150,000 to Catapults $351,384 career total. He shouldnt have been that big of a price, Sadler said. Sharp Samurai was the favorite (at 3-1). I thought (Catapult) was 8-1, 10-1. This is a nice horse. Catapult, by Kittens Joy and owned by Woodford Racing, had only raced once previously under Sadlers charge. That was a month ago at Santa Anita, where he finished second by 1 lengths to Sharp Samurai in a $75,000 optional claiming race. Before that, Catapult was trained by East Coast-based Chad Brown and had four wins in 12 lifetime starts. He hadnt started since last September at Laurel, and Sadler took him over in the spring. He was a little rank the first time he ran for us at a mile, Sadler said, but he ran a really good race against the favorite. We thought hed progress today, and he did. Sadler isnt sure where hell place Catapult next. I dont know that theres another race for him here, Sadler said. The Del Mar Mile might be a little short. Well keep him on the stakes schedule for horses in California. Well play it by ear. The Eddie Read was something of a disappointment to a number of connections. Hunt won the Read last year for trainer Phil DAmato and was coming off a victory in the Shoemaker Mile at Santa Anita. He stalked the pace, but faded to last a performance not unlike his 13th-place showing at Del Mar in the Breeders Cup Turf in November. Trainer Jeff Mullins said before the race that Itsinthepost might not be great at 11/8 miles after running longer distances, including 1 miles in a victory in the Charlie Whittingham at Santa Anita. The 10-time winner did respond poorly and placed ninth, though if healthy he should still be headed for the Aug. 18 Del Mar Handicap. Mark Glatts 4-year-old gelding Sharp Samurai the champion of last years Del Mar Derby was placed in the Read instead of the San Diego Handicap, and he nearly pulled off the win in his stakes debut against older horses. He was super, super game today, jockey Gary Stevens said. He gave me all he had. tod.leonard@sduniontribune.com . Sports Videos tod.leonard@sduniontribune.com; Twitter: @sdutleonard Houston, TX -- (SBWIRE) -- 07/25/2018 -- A duck boat that was carrying tourists on Table Rock Lake in Branson, MO capsized and sank Thursday evening after it was hit with a thunderstorm during its navigation. 17 people, including children, died as a result of the accident. Seven of the 14 survivors were injured and taken to nearby hospitals. Two of them are being treated for critical injuries. Officials believe the stormy weather is what contributed to the boat capsizing. Another boat on the lake during the time of the storm made it safely back to shore. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the Branson area early Thursday evening. Winds were to recorded to have reached 60 mph that night. Video footage captured the duck boat struggling with large swells and taking on water. An off-duty sheriff's deputy helped rescue people once the boat capsized. Several dive teams in the area also assisted with the effort. The National Transportation Safety Board arrived in Branson this morning to start the investigation. Ride the Ducks in Branson states that this was the tour's only accident in more than 40 years of operation. Recreational boat tours are popular for families in the summertime, but unsafe boats and boat operators can pose a serious risk to passengers. Schechter, McElwee, Shaffer & Harris has handled thousands of maritime injury cases including the Deepwater Horizon disaster and El Faro. Managing partner, Matthew D. Shaffer, recently recovered a seven figure settlement for a family injured in a lake boat tour after the operator struck an outcropping and family members were launched into the water. If you or a loved one were hurt in a boating or maritime accident, contact Schechter, McElwee, Shaffer, & Harris, L.L.P. at 1-800-836-5830 for a free consultation with one of our maritime lawyers today. Dublin, Ireland -- (SBWIRE) -- 07/23/2018 -- Situated in Dublin, Everything IT is a renowned tech company that focuses on providing their broad range of clientele with a variety of ICT services. Since their market entrance in 2010, they've worked hard towards becoming a national brand in Ireland; a goal that they continue to achieve through their range of services which include cloud computing, procurement, professional services, moving services and managed services. Made up of ICT experts, they cater to various client sectors which include health & safety, accounting & finance, legal, manufacturing, cosmetics, auctioneer & real estate, supply chain management and so on. Their solutions are aimed at addressing the specific requirements of a particular client, and one is always guaranteed of excellence when they team up with the firm. Talking about their integrated quality systems, the Company Manager said, "At Everything IT, we've been known to operate in line with internationally recognized standards for quality management as well as the industry's best practices. Given our professional status, our internal management systems are fully certified and have been developed based on the pillars of IT Service Management (ITSM). Other industry certifications that we adhere to include ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004, and ISO 27001:2013. Bottom line is we've taken all the necessary measures to make sure we offer you excellent solutions that will see your business operations run seamlessly as it relates to IT. We know no boundaries when it comes to addressing your needs, and you can trust us to deliver." Clients looking to get the best network services in Dublin can find the same at Everything IT. The firm understands that a network is the backbone of any business and its functionality is one of the elements that determines whether a business will succeed or not. This is why they provide highly secure network solutions that will see a business explore its full potential. Regardless of how intricate or simple one's network is, they make sure one's information stays protected and that only authorized people have access to it. Speaking further about their services, the Company Manager reiterated, "High-quality customer care support is always at the center of our operations. From the word go, we've always looked at how we can improve our systems to ensure we provide our clientele with the support they need as it pertains to our ICT services. We're proud of the strides we've made in our quest to provide excellent services, and we're confident to say that we stand 100% behind our capable team of individuals. Our customer support is always at hand to render any help needed, and you can always expect a warm, friendly and professional voice at the end of the line." Everything IT's network services in Dublin cover all the pain points of a network system which includes network implementation, design, network support & maintenance as well as accessibility (employee access, management access, wireless guest access, etc.) They're proud of the relationships they've made through their network solutions and promise to treat every client's need with the agility, seriousness, and attention it deserves. One can visit their site for more details on their networking services. About Everything IT Everything IT is a well-known IT firm famed for their excellent works in the field of ICT. They offer an extensive range of solutions and personalize all their services to meet the various requirements of their clients' operations. Company Name: Everything IT Unit 1a, Bracken Business Park, Bracken Road, Sandyford, Dublin, D18H283, Ireland Telephone Number: +353 1 524 0755 Email: info@everythingit.ie Website: http://www.everythingit.ie "Travel to North Korea is booming despite the continued UNSC sanctions," he said. "The number of Chinese tourists jumped from about 100 a day before May to about 1,000 a day now." According to the Yomiuri Shimbun last Friday, a representative of the [North] Korean Heritage International Travel Company held a press conference in Taipei last Thursday to celebrate the opening of a branch there. North Korea is feverishly promoting tourism to the impoverished country now that international sanctions are starting to fray at the seams. The North has recently formed a joint-venture travel agency with China to promote package tours to the North in Taiwan. The company is the first North Korean-Chinese joint-venture travel agency, owned 51-49 by the North Korean cultural bureau and a Chinese travel union. It is openly promoting package tours despite the UNSC's ban of any joint venture with the reclusive country since Jan. 9 this year. The head of the company said, "It seems that China's regulations have been disappeared as the international environment has turned favorable since the North's summits with China and the U.S." "There is even a prospect of homestays with North Korean families from September," he added. This agency plans to open another branch in Australia. Meanwhile, a visa-free market has been set up on the Chinese border to sell North Korean seafood to Chinese tourists although the trade is banned under UN Security Council sanctions. Radio Free Asia reported last Thursday that the market was set up as a sort of no man's land in Wonjong-ri, Rason this month. The regime recently repaired an old bridge near the Wonjong Customs Office so that Chinese tourists can get across. Melbourne, Australia -- (SBWIRE) -- 07/22/2018 -- Since 1994, Melbourne Stairs has been designing and constructing customized stairs in Australia. Some of the stairs availed by the company include Twist Wrought Iron, Birdcage Edwardian, Straight T-Stair, and Closed Stringer. By adopting a state of the art technology, the company is able to assure quality in every project they accomplish. Over the years, the company has established a good reputation on the market by engaging their customers in coming up with stair designs that exceed their expectations. The local and regional authorities have certified and approved all the products and services offered by the company. While speaking at an industrial conference organized in Melbourne, one of the company's heads of marketing said, "At Melbourne Stairs, we look forward to maintaining our good reputation on the market by being consistent with the quality services we provide. We have employed some of the top artisans and interiors designers who are committed to delivering quality in every project they take. Over the years, we have been able to install staircase of various sizes and configurations for both local and distant clients. Those looking forward to getting Wooden Balustrade in the Victoria should not hesitate to contact us." Sometimes it can be tedious finding a reliable company offering staircase construction services in Australia. However, the services offered by Melbourne Stairs are a phone call away. The company adopts a cost-effective mode of input acquisition, which enables them to charge a reasonable price for all their services. The company has an in-house manufacturing facility for premium stairs. Over the years, they have expanded their production facility to provide a wide variety of stairs for their customers to choose. As a member of the Master Builders Association, one can rely on the originality and quality of their services. On the reason why one should opt for their services, the head of marketing added, "At Melbourne Stairs, we are driven by a passion for offering our customers the best stairs. As one of the most sought staircase builders in the region, we intend to widen our customer base through the provision of contemporary staircase designs that fit the contemporary home. Our professional team is always available to attend to all our customers. We engage our clients in every stage of the production to ensure we deliver timely projects that meet their demands. Those intending to buy Commercial Stairs online should not hesitate to contact our customer care." The company has employed committed customer care who attends to all customers in a timely and friendly way. One can inquire about their wide variety of premiums staircase and rest-assured of immediate feedback from the customer care team. About Melbourne Stairs Melbourne Stairs is a family-owned company specializing in the provision of staircases in Australia. As a member of the Building Designers Association, the company is looking forward to establishing an excellent reputation in the industry by providing beautiful and affordable staircases. Those intending to get Wrought Iron Staircase Price can visit the company's website or contact their customer care. Contact details Company name: Melbourne Stairs Pty Ltd Address: 22 Bridge Street, Eltham, VIC 3095, Melbourne Australia Tel: (03) 9439 8452 Fax: (03) 9431 4545 Contact page: https://www.melbournestairs.com.au/contact-us/ Website: https://www.melbournestairs.com.au Quito, Pichincha -- (SBWIRE) -- 07/23/2018 -- REMU REMake Jacket is an all-new handmade denim jacket and it is made in Ecuador with pure love for planet earth. This custom jacket is designed with the purpose to reduce textile waste while empowering women in several areas of this developing country on the equator. Having already surpassed their original goal, of $5,000 for their kickstarter campaign, they strive to create an even greater impact. The more they are able to raise the more women they will be able to empower and the more waste they will be able to keep from reaching landfills. "Our goal is to minimize the negative environmental impacts of the clothing industry while providing jobs and empowering women in marginalized areas around Ecuador." Said the creator of REMU REMake Handmade Jacket, while introducing this project to the Kickstarter community. In addition, the jacket is made entirely from upcycled denim, which is basically second-hand jeans along with the fabric waste that the company buys from local denim factories. The company's aim is to empower women, who skillfully handcraft these jackets and the project will ultimately play a major role in creating jobs for women in Ecuador. The Kickstarter Campaign is located on the web at: www.kickstarter.com/projects/1042481966/remu-remake-jacket-the-ultimate-upcycled-denim-jac and the company is offering these jackets as a reward to the supporters on surprisingly affordable rates. Pledges for this project can range from $1 to $500 or more and each pledge offers a great reward with worldwide shipping. More details are available on the Kickstarter campaign page of the project. About REMU REMake Jacket REMU REMake Jacket is an emerging denim jacket brand from Ecuador, which creates high quality handmade denim jackets. The project aims at reducing textile waste, while also creating new jobs for women in Ecuador. Furthermore, the project is currently raising funds and support in a recently launched Kickstarter campaign, where supporters from around the world can participate to make pledges and donations. Contact: Contact Person: Jose Maria Chiriboga Company: Remu Apparel City: Quito State: Pichincha Country: Ecuador Phone: 2028058748 Email: remu.apparel@gmail.com Website: www.kickstarter.com/projects/1042481966/remu-remake-jacket-the-ultimate-upcycled-denim-jac All major Nepali and English broadsheet dailies published from Kathmandu on Monday have given the top priority to various issues related to the ongoing fast-unto-death of medical education reform activist, Dr Govinda KC, as his protest entered the 24th day today. Most newspapers have expressed concerns over delay on the part of government in taking initiatives for the talks so as to resolve the issue. At the same time, discussions are underway among various stakeholders on if nationalising all medical colleges of the country is possible so that it will end the unhealthy competition among private institutions. Some newspapers have carried stories on this issue too. Few other political, sociocultural and economic issues have been featured on the front pages of te broadsheets published from the capital today. Important No talks with Dr Govinda KC yet Lead stories in Kantipur, Nagarik, Republica and The Kathmandu Post have criticised the government for its failure to hold talks with the fasting medical education reform activist. Republica says though a chairperson of the ruling Nepal Communist Party, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, seems quite flexible about meeting Dr KCs demands, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli seems quite rigid. Meanwhile, Annapurna Post lead story reports that the gap between ruling and opposition parties is also increasing as the opposition party has tried to mobilise its cadres in Dr KCs supports whereas the ruling party is also interested in coming up with a political interpretation of his protest. This has also delayed the talks, according to the report. On the other hand, The Himalayan Times reports that Dr KC has refused to undergo any health checkup necessary for his treatment; consequently the sexagenarians health has deteriorated further. Gold smuggling through TIA continues Nagarik and Rajdhani report on their front pages that more incidents of gold smuggling have been reported from the Tribhuvan International Airport despite a recent investigation into the cases. The investigation, however, was halted without reaching any conclusion, according to Nagarik. The report further informs that police have been confiscating illegal gold from the sole international airport of the country almost every week. In past two weeks, police have already seized more than three kilogram of gold. SP Dinesh Raj Mainali has told the newspaper that more than seven kg gold has been confiscated from the Airport in past three months. Meanwhile, the smugglers are seen using new kinds of modus operandi of late as an Indian national has been arrested for trying to smuggle the precious yellow metal by hiding it in anus, according to Rajdhani. Ignored Centre to provide money to construct local govt offices Gorkhapatra reports in its two-column lead story that the central government is planning to allocate funds for local governments to build offices for their operation. The Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration has informed that a Local Development Fund has been established with Rs 20 billion whereas the federal government will manage extra money for the office construction purpose. Nepal has border disputes with China too Nepals border disputes with the southern neighbour India in various places are reported quite frequently. However, the country has a couple of disputes with another neighbour too, according to a story in Naya Patrika. Quoting former chief of Department of Survey, Budhdhi Narayan Shrestha, the report says Nepal has border disputes with China in Dolakha and Everest regions. NAC selling Boeing The lead story of Abhiyan national daily reports that the countrys national flag carrier, Nepal Airlines Corporation, is planning to sell a Boeing aircraft it has so that it will operate Airbus aircraft only. The Corporations logic is that owing aeroplanes from the same company will make the operation and maintenance easier. Meanwhile, a Singaporean company is being assigned to conduct valuation for the aircraft it is selling. Provincial ministers complain of no rights Social security ministers of provincial governments have complained that their ministries have been treated as branches of the federal government as they have been deprived of many rights, according to Kantipur. Speaking at an interaction organised by the Prime Minister Employment Programme, the ministers complained that their rights have been restricted to monitoring only. KMC begins garbage collection A three-column story in Nepal Samacharpatra reports that the Kathmandu Metropolitan City is resuming the collection of city garbage from Monday after a gap of around three weeks. Earlier, the waste management was halted as a road leading to the landfill site in Sisdol of Nuwakot got damaged after rains. The Environment Management Department of the local government has claimed it will collect all garbage from the city roads today itself. Interesting Nepal Police to form special bureaus for cyber crime, trafficking investigations Nepal Police is planning to form two new special bureaus which will specialise in investigations into cyber crime and human trafficking cases respectively, according to Naya Patrika. The Cyber Crime Bureau (CCB) and the Human Trafficking Bureau (HTB) will have an authority to reach any place in the world for their investigations, according to the report. Preparations are underway to draft rules and policies for the formation of bureaus, the report adds. Home Just In Nepals Foreign Affairs Minister heading to Europe to lobby for priority-based aid Kathmandu, July 23 Nepals Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali is heading to Europe on an official visit on Monday. Sources at the Ministry say the Minister will lobby with various development partners of Nepal to concentrate their support to the Himalayan country on the basis of priorities set by the government here. After the end of transitional politics, the Nepal government wants to redefine Nepals relations with the development partners. Therefore, Nepal will request them to mobilise their resources in the priority areas identified by the government, according to Gyawali. In meetings, I frequently tell them that they have assisted us to develop the habit of washing hands. Nepali people have already learned to wash hands after toilet and before meal now, the Minister says, This is good. But now, we do not have water. We need money to bring water to our taps. Minister Gyawali says the foreign aid should be more productive, and less distributive. Please invest as much as possible. We will create an environment for that. The Minister states that European countries among development partners of Nepal are priorities to improve its bilateral ties after strengthening the relations with its immediate neighboursIndia and China. Then, major destinations for Nepali migrant workers follow the list of prioritised countries to mend the ties, according to the Minister. Saptari, July 23 The government of Province 2 has formed a panel to investigate into a violent incident in Maleth of Saptari in 2017 March. Five cadres of then Madheshi Morcha were killed in a police firing in the incident. The National Human Rights Commission had concluded its investigation into the case and made public its report recently. Some sections of the society including the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal had claimed the NHRC report did not dig out the truth. The RJPN is a member of the Province 2 ruling coalition. In this context, a meeting of the Provincial Council of Ministers on Monday formed the three-member committee led by Internal Affairs and Law Minister Gyanendra Yadav. Social Development Minister Nawal Kishor Sah and Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperative Minister Shailendra Sah are members of the panel. The team has been mandated to carry out an independent investigation and submit its report to the government within next 15 days. Kathmandu, July 23 One of the two chairmen of Nepal Communist Party, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, has called on veteran leaders of small communist parties of the country to join his big party so as to achieve the common goal of communism together. The NCP was formed a couple of months ago with the merger of two biggest communist parties of Nepal: CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Centre. Speaking at a function organised in Kathmandu to mark the death anniversary of Pushpa Lal Shrestha, the first chief of Nepals first communist party established in 1950s, Dahal said veteran communist leaders of the country should join the NCP so that the opportunity to grow itself as a powerful communist party of the world would not be missed. He said the unity among all communist forces was necessary to leave no space for reactionaries to play against people. Dahal, however, maintained that conspiracies were being hatched against the unification campaign; hence the partys ties with the people should be strengthened. The partys senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal also spoke at the function. Giving some insight into the tough trading environment, the container manufacturer said that despite strong demand for dry freight containers, increase in material costs, especially corten steel and intense competition in the market, which put a cap on its ability to pass on increased material costs, affected margins. Meanwhile, the rapid appreciation of the Renminbi against USD in the first few months of the year further depressed the profit margin, Singamas added in a stock market announcement. Read More: Buoyant lines, advance orders help Singmas back to H1 profit Looking ahead, Singamas said: With trade tensions between the US and the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), economic downside risk is therefore expected to increase. This may affect the trade volume between US and the PRC in the second half of 2018, which may in turn affect the demand in, and the average selling price of, new dry freight containers. However there were some sparks of optimism as the groups order book is full till August and material prices are expected to stabilise in the second half while the Renminbi is also seen weakening, which will help moderate production costs. Nevertheless Singamas still expects the remaining two quarters of the year to become increasingly challenging due to adverse developments in the trading environment. CMA CGM is currently the major client of CSP Zeebrugge and accounted for one-third of the terminals total throughput in 2017. The strategic partnership with CMA CGM should foster the development of CSP Zeebrugge into a major hub port in Northwest Europe, CSP said in a press release. CSP completed the acquisition of the remaining 76% equity interest in CSP Zeebrugge Terminal in November 2017 and made it a wholly-owned subsidiary after taking over APM Terminals interest for 35m euros. The company then sealed a concession agreement for the terminal with the Port of Zeebrugge and also announced CMA CGM would take a 10% stake. CSP said it is dedicated to the strategic development of the terminal by enhancing management and services, and forming strategic partnerships for the long-term development of the terminal. In May 2018, CSP also formed another strategic alliance with the Port of Zeebrugge, with the Port authority of Zeebrugge taking a 5% stake in CSP Zeebrugge. There are plans to not only to develop the terminal into a strategic hub port but also an ultra-logistics platform to serve continental Europe and the British Isles, where CSP will work closely with the Port of Zeebrugge on the Maritime Logistic Zone. The Port of Zeebrugge enjoys a strategic geographic position in Europe and is a transportation hub for global container traffic. The port also benefits from good connections to other European countries through a dense network of road and rail connections. Read More: Cosco Shipping Ports seals fresh concession agreement with Port of Zeebrugge, ties up with CMA CGM CSP vice chairman and md Zhang Wei said: The 10% investment by CMA CGM in CSP Zeebrugge enables the terminal to further secure the volume from CMA CGM and Ocean Alliance, and enhance its operational efficiency. The strategic partnership sets a success example for the future cooperation among members of shipping alliances and terminals. He added: CSP Zeebrugge is the first terminal in Northwest Europe in which Cosco Shipping Ports holds a controlling stake, which is a part of our effort in globalization and building a global terminal network with highly efficient and cost-effective services to serve shipping companies. We will continue to strengthen the cooperation with members of Ocean Alliance and maximize the synergies among us. Cosco Shipping is a fellow Ocean Alliance member with CMA CGM. CMA CGM Group executive officer Farid Salem said: Through this investment, CMA CGM is pleased to develop its strategic partnership with Cosco Shipping Ports and to be part of Zeebrugge Terminals future. Zeebrugge enjoys a central location in Europe which, combined with CMA CGM service offering and customer-centric strategy, will offer many new opportunities to the groups customers. This investment is in line with the groups global strategy and will strengthen CMA CGMs position in the deep-sea container trades. Citing its innovative free-trade zone and improvement in the domestic trade environment, Dubai is one of the top five world-class maritime cities listed in the International Shipping Centre Development Index (ISCD) compiled by the Baltic Exchange and Xinhua alongside Singapore, Hong Kong, London, and Shanghai. This landmark feat is expected to further raise the confidence of the global maritime community in Dubais world-class maritime infrastructure and capabilities. International experts are upbeat as well that the emirate is going to be the seventh leading maritime center in the world by 2020 from being the Middle Easts current leading maritime city. This sentiment was revealed in the recent international survey conducted by Menon Business Economics Group, which benchmarks the worlds leading maritime capitals. The latest developments are seen to further bolster the positive mood in the domestic maritime community ahead of the prestigious Seatrade Maritime Middle East (STMME), which is taking place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 29 31 October 2018. Widely regarded as one of the most important maritime events, SMME to be held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, UAE, will showcase and cement anew the cosmopolitan citys status as a leading regional and international maritime hub. Amer Ali, Executive Director of Dubai Maritime City Authority, said: The ongoing efforts of Dubai maritime authorities are paying off as evidenced by the emirates recent global achievement. This year, Dubai was ranked fifth in the list of the most important shipping hubs worldwide based on the ISCD released by Baltic Exchange and Xinhua news agency. It is an honor and a privilege to be recognized by the global community, further emboldening us in Dubai to continuously take the necessary steps to sustain this accomplishment, support innovation and competitiveness, and attract maritime-related businesses and investments to maintain the industrys vibrancy, sustainability, and inclusiveness. STMMEs upcoming latest edition is another initiative that will back our endeavors designed to help realize the key goals and objectives of Dubai Plan 2021. For his part, Chris Hayman, Chairman of Seatrade, said: More than ever, the strategically located Dubai is poised to play a pivotal role in the continued progress and development of the many aspects of international trade and the global maritime community, specifically in the shipping segment. STMME is an opportunity to discuss in-depth Dubais potentials and advantages as it sets to gather international and regional shipowners and operators, ports, financiers, and other maritime professionals. This years edition will again encourage maritime professionals to network, do business, strengthen and nurture new relationships, while hearing about industry topics within relevant and comprehensive conference sessions. STMME, the regions largest gathering of shipping and maritime industry decision makers, yearly attracts nearly 8,000 attendees from across 90 countries. The international participants take advantage of the platform to do business with ship owners, ship operators, ship managers, charterers, superintendents, senior management, and other industry professionals involved in the procurement of equipment and services within the maritime, offshore, oil and gas, and ports industries. The agenda of the 2018 edition will revolve around autonomous shipping and automation, fuels of the future, digital and cyber technologies, and environmental challenges within the shipping industry. Complete details of the event are available at https://www.seatrademaritimeevents.com/stmme/ Press Release July 22, 2018 De Lima slams PHL's war on drugs as failure Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima has urged the Duterte administration to rethink its anti-drug policy which has miserably failed in stopping criminal syndicates from the illegal drugs trade but instead led to the killings of thousands of individuals. De Lima, a known human rights defender, said the government's war on drugs is a dismal failure because it only led to the summary killings of poor individuals, including innocent ones. It targets the powerless but allows big-time offenders to remain scot-free. "Niloloko na lang ni Duterte ang sarili niya sa pag-iisip na gumagana ang palpak niyang War on Drugs. Sa loob ng dalawang taon, nagbunsod lang ang marahas at madugo niyang polisiya sa pagpatay sa libu-libong maralitang Pilipino, habang malaya pa rin, kundi man inaabswelto ang malalaking drug lords," she said. "Kungsabagay, wala naman talaga tayong aasahan kay Duterte na ubod ng sinungaling. Wala pa talaga siyang nagawa sa kanyang termino kundi ang magpapatay, magmura, mambastos at manira ng kredibilidad ng mga tutol sa kanyang baluktot na pamamahala," she added. Since Duterte launched his war on drugs, the Philippine National Police (PNP) has recorded a total of 22,983 cases of killings that were classified as deaths under inquiry (DUI), but it claimed that the recorded homicide cases under investigation (HCUI) were different from incidents of drug suspects who were killed in police operations. Human rights watchdogs, however, have pinned the drug war deaths, including those from vigilante-style killings and "legitimized" police operations at an estimate of 23,000, with minors - including four-year-old Skyler Abatayo from Cebu City - literally being caught in the barrage. "Obviously, Duterte's drug list has not produced the filing of criminal charges, but instead resorted to 'short-cuts' with the killing-spree of small-time drug users and dealers. Worse, we have yet to see or hear high-profile drug traffickers getting apprehended," the Senator pointed out. De Lima, the staunchest critic of the administration's war on drugs, remains illegally detained over trumped-up drug charges based on testimonies of convicted felons who struck a deal with the government to pin her down in exchange for own privileges. "With the privileges given to these convicted felons, Duterte enabled them to resume their illegal drug operations which only show that as long as you are willing to cooperate with Duterte's evil scheme, you can get away with anything," she said. With Duterte's "promotion" of the culture of violence, policemen were also involved in cases of abuses against women that were documented from January 2017 to July 2018 by the Center for Women's Resources (CWR). Based on CWR's report, 33 policemen have committed abuses against women with their cases ranging from rape (48%), acts of lasciviousness (36%), physical assault (12%), to harassment (3%). "Mr. Duterte's war on drugs has inspired this culture of violence and brutality. He should realize that violence will never solve the drug menace in the country and will only lead to more crimes committed by state authorities," she said. Last year, De Lima through Senate Resolution (SR) No. 499, urged the appropriate Senate committee to investigate the successive reports of killings of children either by police or vigilantes. A staunch critic of injustices happening in the country since Duterte assumed presidency, De Lima vowed to protect human rights of women and children even while in detention for trumped-up drug charges fabricated by the present administration. Press Release July 23, 2018 Legarda All Geared Up for the Start of the 3rd Regular Session, Hopes for Clear-Cut Agenda on Climate Change in PRRD's SONA Senator Loren Legarda, chair of the Senate Committees on Finance, Climate Change, and Foreign Relations, said today that she is ready to take on priority measures that espouse and promote inclusive, sustainable and resilient development. Legarda made the statement during the opening of the third regular session of the Seventeenth Congress, which also marks the last she will attend under her current term as Senator as she will end her term in June next year. "The opening of the third regular session signals the start of the legislative work on urgent measures, especially the passage of the proposed 2019 national budget," Legarda said. "I also hope to pass urgent and priority bills foremost of which are the Supplemental Budget on the Dengvaxia Medical Assistance Program, the Budget Reform Bill, the Rightsizing of National Government Act, and the Department of Culture Act, among others," Legarda added. Legarda, who will also attend the Joint Session of Congress to hear the State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Rodrigo Duterte in the afternoon at the House of the Representatives, said that among the issues she hopes the President will include in his third SONA is the country's commitment to combat the impact of climate change and promote resilience against disaster risks. She urges the government to pursue a development pathway that will not only provide the basic needs of citizens but will also proactively address the risks that threaten to disrupt and undermine the progress already achieved by the country. "The Philippines is highly vulnerable to climate change impacts and natural hazards. Thus, disaster and climate resilience should be at the core of our development strategy and should be foremost in the agenda of the Administration," Legarda said. "The prevalence of extreme natural hazards such as typhoons Ondoy, Sendong, Pablo, Yolanda, heavy rains induced by Habagat, and the stronger episodes of El Nino, among many other disasters aggravated by climate change impede economic growth and slow down development programs of the government, thereby affecting our livelihood, health, food security, biodiversity and even our cultural integrity,"Legarda noted. "As reported in the pre-SONA event of the Cabinet Cluster on CCAM-DRR, I know that we have become more proactive in responding to impending natural hazards, but we should continue to embrace our commitment and be more aggressive in pursuing climate justice so as to protect the future generations from bearing the brunt of severe weather events caused by climate change. Let us work together to achieve a climate-adaptive, disaster-resilient, environment-friendly, sustainable and inclusive Philippines," Legarda concluded. For today's Opening Ceremonies and SONA, Legarda wore an off-shoulder pina dress by Paul Cabral, accessorized it with antique jewelry from her late mother, Bessie. Completing the classic outfit is a crocheted bag from the Bauang Crochet Association of La Union. Press Release July 23, 2018 SPEECH OF SENATE PRESIDENT VICENTE C. SOTTO III OPENING OF THE SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS THIRD REGULAR SESSION It has been a practice of former Senate Presidents to mention the achievements of the past regular session as a preliminary statement in the opening of the new regular session; however, today, I will breakaway from that tradition as I will just submit to you the Senate's accomplishment - with special thanks to the leadership of Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III. Today, we commence the third regular session of the 17th Congress on the part of one of its two component Houses, the Senate of the Republic of the Philippines. Like all beginnings, it is a fine time for looking back, a time to presently locate ourselves, and a moment to reflect on the path towards our dream for peace, prosperity and happiness for all. Those who do not look back to their history, as one threatened, are condemned to repeat it. We had senators elected by districts before, then we changed the system to nationally-elected senators to prevent regionalism, and now some think regional-states may be right after all. We've had single house legislatures before -- the National Assembly in the early decades of the 20th century, then bicameral with President Quezon as first Senate President; then single house again when we had the Batasang Pambansa under the 1972 Constitution, back to bicameral in the 1987 Constitution, and now we debate again which is best. We had a four-year term of office before, with one re-election for President, then we said it made the President political in the first term, so we decided to have a single six-year term, and now there are those who think it might have been right to have a four-year term with one re-election after all. We therefore recall the saying that goes: "Of forms of government let fools contest, that which is best administered is best." The road towards progress serves as our way forward, but that same road doubles as a limitation of our moves, too. We must abide by the rules of driving - such as staying on the right and inside your lane, passing on the left and driving at appropriate speed. The careless and reckless driver is bound to land us in a roadside canal or muddy rice field. 1 In lawmaking, that road where we travel as a nation is limited by our 1987 Constitution, our laws, Supreme Court decisions, and our sense of reasonableness, equality, fairness and justice. Tradition is also a useful guidepost to temper our desire for novel adventures and experimentation. To do otherwise is to court disaster. Ang lumalakad ng matulin, kung matinik ay malalim. We, in the Senate, comprise one of two essential component Houses of the Legislative Department, as set forth in Article VI, Section 1, of the 1987 Constitution which states: "The legislative power shall be vested in the Congress of the Philippines which SHALL CONSIST OF A SENATE AND A HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES...". The use of the word "SHALL" as any student of law learns early in his studies, means that it is compulsory. Our Constitution further states that the Senate shall be composed of twenty-four (24) senators; while the House of Representatives shall be composed of not more than two hundred and fifty (250) members. The Senate is essential in any and all matters pertaining to legislation and whenever Congress is mandated to exercise some functions. It is obvious that 250 beats 24 anytime. But to claim that the procedure in the Legislative Department is a purely numbers game is to miss the point bigtime. There would be no need for any Senate counterpart bills, no need for bicameral conference committees, no need for joint resolutions, and no joint assemblies if that lame argument is carried to its absurd conclusion. Sa pagpapalit ng pangalan ng escuela o paaralan sa isang liblib na sulok ng Pilipinas kailangan ang Senado. Sa pagtatakda ng umpisa at katapusan ng Christmas break ng Kongreso, kailangan ang Senado. Sa pagpapalit ng pangalan ng mga kalsada, kailangan ang Senado. Sa pagtatalaga ng isang espesyal na araw sa isang maliit na bayan ng bansa, kailangan ang Senado. Sa maliliit na bagay kailangan kami. Pero sa pag iiba ng Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas hindi kailangan ang Senado? 2 If our consent is needed in small things, more so in bigger things! It is not my intention to preside over an unnecessary body of the Legislative Department of the Philippine Republic. It would be a dishonor to the memory of this august body whose name brings us back to the glory days of Rome up to the great Manuel Luis Quezon whose tenure as Commonwealth President intersected at some point with my grandfather Senator Vicente Y. Sotto. To say, or even insinuate, that we are unnecessary and irrelevant, is unacceptable. I do not wish to preside during my watch over the necrological services of the Philippine Senate. Especially so today, when we are confronted with a number of momentous choices affecting our nation: Do we shift from presidential to parliamentary form of government? Do we retain a unitary Republic or try the federal system? Do we transform our Regions to states themselves? Pray tell, bakit? The Senate is the forum, the ring, within which these ideas will struggle for supremacy. It is the stage where these ideas are proposed and debated. And finally, it is the rostrum from which far-reaching decisions are promulgated. In this 3rd regular session, we look forward in passing more relevant measures that will be beneficial to the Filipino people. The Senate has a distinct role and DNA to preserve in the life of our nation, an integrity to defend, and an honor to die for. The memories of the giants who sat in this august hall will forever hound us if we drop the ball at this crucial hour. This afternoon we shall hear the President address the nation through us. We shall listen with our hearts and minds. And afterwards, we shall do what is best for our country, in our mandated role as the Senate of the People of the Philippines. May the God of our fathers, the Allah of our Brother Muslims, and our own Bathala and Maykapal guide us always. Thank you. Shukran. Salamat po ng marami. 3 BILLS ENACTED INTO LAW DURING THE SECOND REGULAR SESSION (24) (as of July 18, 2018) 1) Republic Act No. 10923 - Barangay/Election Postponement 2) Republic Act No. 10927 - Designating Casinos as Covered Persons under AMLA 3) Republic Act No. 10928 - Philippine Passport Act 4) Republic Act No. 10929 - Free Internet Access in Public Places Act 5) Republic Act No. 10930 - Extending the Validity Period of Driver's Licenses to 5 years 6) Republic Act No. 10931 - Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act 7) Republic Act No. 10932 - Anti-Hospital Deposit Law 8) Republic Act No. 10951 Amending the Revised Penal Code (Adjusting the amount involved on which a penalty is based) 9) Republic Act No. 10952 - Postponing the October 2017 Barangay/SK Election to the 2nd Monday of May 2018 10) Republic Act No. 10962 - The Gift Check Act 11) Republic Act No. 10963 - Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) 12) Republic Act No. 10968 - Philippine Qualification Framework (PQF) Act 13) Republic Act No. 10969 - Free Irrigation Service to Small Farmers Act 14) Republic Act No. 10970 - National Tech-Voc Day 15) Republic Act No. 10973 - Amending PNO Reorganization Act 16) Republic Act No. 11037 - Free School Feeding Act/PAgkaing Pinor Para sa Batang Pinoy Act 17) Republic Act No. 11032 - Expanded Anti-Red Tape Act of 2017 18) Republic Act No. 11036 - Mental Health Act 19) Republic Act No. 11035 - Balik Scientist Act 20) Republic Act No. 11033 - Davao Oriental State University 21) Republic Act No. 11053 - Anti-Hazing Act of 2018 22) Republic Act No. 11038 - Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act 23) Republic Act No. 11039 - Electric Cooperative Emergency Resiliency Fund Act 24) Republic Act No. 11040 - Lapu-Lapu Day ENROLLED BILLS PENDING THE PRESIDENT'S SIGNATURE (5) 1) SBN 1103 - PUP-Sablayan Campus Act 2) SBN 1317 - Occupational Safety and Health Standards Act 3) SBN 1459 - Personal Property Security Act 4) SBN 1738 - Philippine Identification System Act of 2018 5) SBN 1762 - Retirement Law (Office of the Ombudsman) PENDING CONFERENCE COMMITTEE (6) 1) SBN 1233 - Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund (Coco Levy Fund) 2) SBN 1255 - Shield Law/Sotto Law (Expanding the Coverage of Exemption from Revealing the Source of Information Obtained in Confidence) 3) SBN 1537 - The Healthy Nanay and Bulilit Act 4) SBN 1620 - Road Board Regulatory Agency of Motor Vehicle Use's Charge, Abolition 5) SBN 1717 - Bangsamoro Basic Law 6) SBN 1623 - Recoverable System Loss Act New Zealand shares dropped in light trading as local corporate news remained scarce, led lower by A2 Milk Co and Pushpay Holdings. The S&P/NZX50 Index fell 82.98 points, or 0.9 percent, to 8,872.56. Within the index, 26 stocks fell, 15 rose and nine were unchanged. Turnover was $75.3 million. "We've had an offshore lead with slightly timid markets based on the currency and trade implications of what's going on from the Trump policies," said James Lindsay, senior portfolio manager at Nikko Asset Management. "In pretty thin trading we're off a bit - it's a continuation of the incredibly light market we've seen in the past couple of weeks. We're coming up towards reporting season and fewer companies are providing updates." On Friday, US President Donald Trump said he was "ready to go" on imposing tariffs on all US$500 billion of Chinese imports. Earlier this month, the US imposed tariffs on US$34 billion of Chinese imports, prompting China to levy taxes on the same value of US products. A2 Milk Co led the index lower, down 2.8 percent to $10.45. Pushpay Holdings dropped 2.7 percent to $3.95, Z Energy fell 2.5 percent to $6.95, and Fletcher Building fell 1.9 percent to $6.86. Kathmandu Holdings was the best performer, rising 1.9 percent to $3.28. Skellerup Holdings rose 1.5 percent to $2.01, Restaurant Brands New Zealand gained 1.3 percent to $7.60, and Trustpower advanced 0.9 percent to $5.90. NZX gained 0.9 percent to $1.12. Its proposals to impose stiffer disclosure obligations received a mixed response, finding favour with investor groups whereas listed companies and law firms were more cautious or outright hostile to the added burden. NZX has previously said it planned to make final decisions in the third quarter of this year, which runs until the end of September. The changes are part of a wider review to improve liquidity and revive interest in the local market with more streamlined equity markets and updated rules and processes. Warehouse Group was unchanged at $2.03. It will cut between 120 and 140 full-time jobs across its flagship 'red shed' stores in a restructure. The Warehouse division chief executive Pejman Okhovat, who oversees the big-box retail business, said the company needs to "evolve from a traditional, hierarchal structure to one that is fit for the future". (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: Contact Energy Limited (NZX: CEN) Considers Green Capital Bond Offer Tourism Holdings Limited (NZX: THL) Sells Mighway and SHAREaCAMPER to Camplify 26th October 2021 Morning Report Harmoney Corp Limited (NZX: HMY) Prices $105m Inaugural ABS Transaction New Zealand Rural Land Company Limited (NZX: NZL) Agreement to acquire large scale dairy asset portfolio EROAD Limited (NZX: ERD) launches Clarity Solo Dashcam 22nd October 2021 Morning Report Pictor ready to roll out game-changing COVID antibody test in New Zealand Scott Technology Limited (NZX: SCT) Announces FY21 Results 21st October 2021 Morning Report Trustpower supports the intent of the governments net-zero emissions target by 2050 but says decisions such as the recent ban on offshore oil and gas exploration that deplete the capital needed for the task and don't achieve the objective "must be avoided". In April, the government announced it would not issue new offshore oil and gas exploration permits, in a decision that was widely criticised for a lack of consultation. Trustpower chair Paul Ridley-Smith told the company's annual general meeting at ASB Baypark Mount Maunganui that "the (zero emissions) targets are ambitious and require careful consideration of economic and social impacts," according to a presentation filed with the stock exchange. He said the government's target is "achievable, but not necessarily the best economic outcome, nor the most productive means of getting the greatest emission reductions. The targets need further expert analysis." However, he recognised that renewable electricity generation should significantly increase, both to meet greater demand as other sectors move from fossil fuels and in the proportion of electricity generated from renewable sources. Among other things, conversion of industrial heat boilers to electricity and the widespread uptake of electric vehicles could increase electricity consumption by 75 percent in 2050, he said. According to Ridley-Smith, gas peaking for dry, calm overcast and peak demand periods will be needed and "retaining access to existing hydro resources underpin the ability to increase renewable generation." He said the national policy statement for renewable energy generation - which sets out the objectives and policies for renewable energy generation - needs to strengthen if targets are to be realistic. He also called on the government to "join up" policy, noting there are currently 10 Crown agencies with climate change functions and said that both the Climate Change Commission and the government's goals must have cross-party support to succeed. New Zealand's government received 14,000 submissions on its plans for a new Zero Carbon Bill during a six-week consultation that closed last week. Regarding the company's market view, chief executive Vince Hawksworth said the electricity industry is poised for growth. While Trustpower agrees the market is "approaching a supply/demand balance" he said there is considerable uncertainty around that balance in the long run. As a result, "Trustpower is unlikely to invest in a significant new generation build in the near term. Small-scale builds/enhancements may be possible," he said. Overall, "clear signals" are required from government to encourage capital deployment, said Hawksworth. Trustpower shares recently traded up 0.3 percent at $5.87, having shed 2.2 percent so far this year. (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: Contact Energy Limited (NZX: CEN) Considers Green Capital Bond Offer Tourism Holdings Limited (NZX: THL) Sells Mighway and SHAREaCAMPER to Camplify 26th October 2021 Morning Report Harmoney Corp Limited (NZX: HMY) Prices $105m Inaugural ABS Transaction New Zealand Rural Land Company Limited (NZX: NZL) Agreement to acquire large scale dairy asset portfolio EROAD Limited (NZX: ERD) launches Clarity Solo Dashcam 22nd October 2021 Morning Report Pictor ready to roll out game-changing COVID antibody test in New Zealand Scott Technology Limited (NZX: SCT) Announces FY21 Results 21st October 2021 Morning Report Following the allegations, the Bihar Police has launched a probe and dug up the grounds of the shelter home, but are yet to find the body. : Girls of a government-funded shelter home in Bihar's Muzaffarpur have alleged that one of their fellow inmates was beaten to death and buried at the premises of the facility, and several were raped. Muzaffarpur Senior Superintendent of Police Harpreet Kaur said, "We are carrying out the excavation based on the statement given by one of the girls. The spot has been identified by her." More than 40 girls are lodged at the shelter home and medical reports suggest that more than half of them may have had sexual intercourse at some point of time, she said. The SSP said, "Nothing noteworthy has so far been found from the site during the excavation. However, the area of excavation might be enlarged after further examination of the girl who made the allegation." Aslam, who had a narrow escape said, We (him and Akbar, the deceased) both were going with our two cows, on seeing a speeding bike the cows ran into the fields where 6-7 people were present who fired at us, I ran away from the spot to save my life, later found that my friend was killed. : The eye-witness, in the Alwar lynching case on Sunday recalled the spine-chilling turn of events when his friend was lynched to death on suspicion of smuggling cows. This comes barely a week after the Supreme Court urged Parliament to enact a law against lynching. Akbar Khan, 28, along with his friend was taking some cows to his village through a forest near Lalawandi area in the Alwar district of Rajasthan when some locals allegedly thrashed him brutally, suspecting him to be a cow smuggler. The police immediately rushed the victim to a nearby hospital, where he was declared brought dead. Police have, so far, arrested two suspects and launched a manhunt for other suspects. In a similar incident, 50-year-old Pehlu Khan was beaten to death by cow vigilantes in the same district in April last year. Just on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged state governments to take stringent action against the culprits of mob lynching. The cases of mob fury have been on a rise in India. According to the ministry of home affairs, 45 persons were killed by mob in 40 cases across nine states between 2014 and March 03 this year. China's Xi inks deals in Rwanda on whirlwind tour Kigali, July 23 (AFP) Jul 23, 2018 China's President Xi Jinping inked 15 deals including loans and grants worth millions of dollars with Rwanda on Monday as part of a whistlestop tour to cement relations with African allies. Among the deals agreed, the value of which was not revealed, were loans for road construction, hospital renovation and the development of Rwanda's new Bugesera airport. As part of his first overseas trip since being re-elected in March, Xi last week visited Senegal to conclude a raft of trade accords. He will head to Johannesburg on Tuesday for a summit of the BRICS emerging economies -- Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa. Since taking office, Xi has overseen efforts to expand Chinese influence in Africa. China has already provided vast sums to the continent with Beijing's financial largesse raising fears that poor nations are unprepared for such massive debts. "We are bound with common interest. To grow our solidarity with Africa is an important foundation for China's foreign policy," said Xi at a media conference where no questions were taken. Rwandan President Paul Kagame added that the agreements showed "what is possible between our two countries". Rwanda, which is one of Africa's fastest growing economies, had trade with China worth $157 million (134 million euros) in 2017, making Beijing one of Kigali's largest trade partners. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also set to arrive in Kigali on Monday on his own five-day African tour which will also take him to Uganda before he heads to the BRICS summit. 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Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2b893d0)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5a910)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2b893d0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5a910)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5a8b0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5a910)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5a910)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd227a498)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd2b80e58)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd2b80e58)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951 /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5ef50)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5b4b8)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5ef50)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5b4b8)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5b488)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5b4b8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2a5b4b8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd227a600)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd2a0c7b8)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd2a0c7b8)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951 /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2b5a660)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2b67f18)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2b5a660)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2b67f18)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2be26c0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2b67f18)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2b67f18)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd227a600)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd2bf9048)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd2bf9048)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951 /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2bbc880)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe133d380)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2bbc880)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe133d380)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd2b4a4c8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe133d380)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe133d380)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd2279970)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd4b7e850)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd4b7e850)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 Joining global supply chains where to start? VietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam has been excluded from multinational groups global production chains because of its weak supporting industries. Vietnam wants to join global supply chains The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industrys (VCCI) chair Vu Tien Loc on July 3 stirred up the business community when he said that Samsung plans to bring 200 foreign suppliers to Vietnam which will be vendors for Samsung. Loc said he heard the news at a trade promotion conference in Thai Nguyen province some days before. I wish the 200 vendors were Vietnamese enterprises, he said. One day later, Samsung Vietnam representative said any enterprise, Vietnamese or foreign, has to take the initiative to prove their capability to join Samsungs global chain. He denied that Samsung invited the enterprises to join the chains, affirming that the enterprises came to Vietnam on their own. Samsungs official website shows there are 2,500 vendors that provide components to Samsung all over the world. In Vietnam, Samsung has 200 first-class vendors, but only 29 Vietnamese enterprises have got the nod from the South Korean conglomerate to join its production chain. This means that only 15 percent of vendors are Vietnamese. In Vietnam, Samsung has 200 first-class vendors, but only 29 Vietnamese enterprises have got the nod from the South Korean conglomerate to join its production chain. This means that only 15 percent of vendors are Vietnamese. Samsung affirms that the number of vendors would increase to 50 by 2020, showing action plans to support domestic enterprises, including training and consultancy programs. However, analysts said that Samsung had more than two decades to take action, but the results are still far from Vietnamese expectations. Twenty-two years have elapsed since Vietnam received investment from Samsung and 30 years since Vietnam began attracting FDI. By June 2018, Vietnam had attracted nearly 26,000 foreign invested projects worth $326 billion, of which 84 percent are wholly foreign owned. However, most foreign invested projects just do assembling and outsourcing with low volume of locally made content. Experts attending the conference recently expressed their disappointment about technology transfer between Vietnamese and foreign investors. Though Vietnam offers a lot of incentives, foreign investors still do not transfer technology to Vietnamese partners. The problem is that it is not a requirement stipulated in Vietnamese laws. Experts said that industries will not be able to develop if they rely on assembling and technologies from foreign enterprises, while Vietnamese do not have opportunities to join supply chains. To grow, they need to become active. That is why Vingroup is moving ahead with Vinfast, fulfilling the made-in-Vietnam car dream. The manufacturer strives to have 60 percent of car components and 100 percent of electric motorbikes made domestically. RELATED NEWS Vietnamese firms join Samsungs supply chain Samsung seeks more VN part suppliers Kim Chi Gunmen storm government building in Iraq Kurdish capital Arbil, Iraq, July 23 (AFP) Jul 23, 2018 Two gunmen on Monday stormed the governor's headquarters in Arbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, opening fire and wounding a policeman, deputy governor Taher Abdullah said. Kurdish security forces known as Asayish set up a "security cordon and are searching the building" for the assailants, Abdullah said. The attack took place in the early morning before employees had arrived for work, witnesses said, adding that the gunmen were probably holed up on the third floor of the building. It was not immediately clear what sparked the attack in the usually secure Kurdish regional capital. The Islamic State jihadist group claimed a deadly attack on the interior ministry in Arbil in 2015. The previous year the group was blamed for a suicide bombing that killed at least four people outside the Arbil Provincial Council Building. Iraq declared victory over IS in December but the jihadists still hold pockets of territory and continue to carry out deadly attacks. Kurdish peshmerga fighters took part in the battle against IS after it launched a 2014 offensive in Iraq, seizing nearly a third of the country. 8 killed as Lebanon army swoops on suspected drug baron Beirut, July 23 (AFP) Jul 23, 2018 Eight people were killed including a suspected drug trafficking baron in an army raid on his home in eastern Lebanon on Monday, the armed forces said. "An army unit raided the house of Ali Zayd Ismail, wanted on several counts of drug trafficking in the area of Al-Hamudiya-Brital," in the Bekaa Valley, which borders Syria, the army said. "The unit was shot at... forcing the force's members to retaliate, which led to the killing of eight gunmen," it said in a statement. The army said it detained a further 41 people -- 16 Lebanese and 25 Syrians -- and seized weapons and drugs. It said Ismail, a notorious figure, was among those killed. In April, the army seized 20 kilogrammes (44 pounds) of Captagon from an abandoned house they said Ismail was using in Brital. Captagon is classified by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime as an "amphetamine-type stimulant" and usually blends amphetamines, caffeine and other substances. And in December, the army seized 800 kilogrammes of cannabis from Ismail's home. Consuming, growing and selling marijuana are all illegal in Lebanon. But in the Bekaa Valley, long marginalised by the central government, its widespread production has become a multi-million-dollar industry. The Lebanese parliament is soon to review legislation to legalise medicinal marijuana, its speaker Nabih Berri said last week. The move comes after a consulting firm, charged with setting a vision to kickstart the Lebanese economy, suggested legalising and regularising the production and sale of marijuana. Iraq protests leave 14 dead in two weeks: rights official Baghdad, July 23 (AFP) Jul 23, 2018 At least 14 people have been killed in Iraq in two weeks of protests over corruption and lack of public services, a member of the state human rights commission said Monday. Demonstrations have rocked southern and central Iraq since erupting in the oil-rich port city of Basra on July 8, when security forces opened fire killing one person. They have since waned after security forces repeatedly used force to disperse demonstrators, although AFP reporters cited protests in the south on Monday. Rights commission official Fadel al-Gharrawi said 14 people had died in Basra, Samawah, the Shiite shrine cities of Najaf and Karbala and in the provinces of Diwaniyah and Babylon. He did not specify whether those killed were protesters or members of the security services, but a Sunday toll compiled from medical sources put the number of dead at 11, all demonstrators. Gharrawi said 275 protesters and 470 security personnel were wounded during thousands-strong demonstrations against corrupt officials. He said over 800 people had also been arrested, but said "the majority were later released", without providing a precise figure. Local officials and medical sources said most of the dead were killed by gunfire from unidentified assailants, while one person suffocated on tear gas used to disperse the demonstrators. At least one Basra demonstrator was killed by security forces, local officials said, but authorities have also accused "vandals" of infiltrating protests. Gharrawi, who was appointed by parliament, said he had "urged Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to avoid violence and indiscriminate arrests" but also called on protesters to "behave peacefully". One of the most important companies in the controversial phosphate business in Western Sahara is ending its involvement. Innophos Holding's exit might lead to the US totally terminating its decade-long imports from the occupied territory. Published: 23.07 - 2018 "As part of Innophos commitment to overall social responsibility and good corporate stewardship, Innophos will no longer indirectly participate in a raw material supply chain which sources phosphate rock from the Western Sahara region in Africa, an area from which the Company has not directly purchased raw materials for more than three years", Innophos Holdings wrote in a press release on 2 July 2018. The decision could lead to another massive blow to Moroccan government, in that phosphate rock that it illegally exports from Western Sahara to North America will come to a complete stop. In its report P for Plunder 2016, published in April 2017, Western Sahara Resource Watch (WSRW) for the first time reported that Innophos most likely is the main client of the only importing factory in the United States of phosphate rock originating from Western Sahara. WSRW drew the conclusion by referring to a pipeline that had been constructed between the factories of the importer PotashCorp (now renamed to Nutrien) in Louisiana and the purchaser Innophos. The pipeline transports phosphate derivatives from the first to the latter. Shortly after, in its 2016 annual report, Innophos for the first time confirmed that the information was correct: "We are also subject to risks stemming from local social and political conditions in those jurisdictions where the phosphate rock that supports our operations is sourced. The phosphate rock that it utilized by PCS to supply MGA to our Geismar, Louisiana facility is subject to those social and political conditions in Western Sahara, where PCS sources the phosphate rock, which territory has had a long history of social and political upheaval. If PCS is unable to source phosphate rock or sufficient amounts of phosphate rock, our MGA supply would be disrupted and our ability to manufacture our products could be materially adversely affected", Innophos wrote last year. The fact that Innophos is ending its purchases of such rock will have large consequences for the involvement of the one importing into the US: Nutrien. A likely scenario is that Nutrien will end its imports to the US altogether, even though a decision has not yet been announced. Nutrien has twice this year hinted that something like that might happen, in continuation of its decision to also stop importing Western Sahara rock into Canadian from late 2018. During an investor conference on 25 January 2018, the President and CEO of Nutrien, Mr. Chuck Magro stated that a decision regarding its imports to the US (to the legacy company PotashCorp) will be announced "certainly by the middle of the year". This promise was repeated by Nutrien in a statement to Business and Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC) on 15 June. The new statement says that the decision will be made "before the fall". The full statement from Nutrien to BHRRC, by the Nutrien representative Richard D. Downey, reads: "Nutrien is a new company as of January this year and the recent merger has created opportunities, particularly for the phosphate business. One of these opportunities is, we will see a significant reduction in our need for offshore imports of phosphate rock. We announced we will be (sic) convert our Redwater phosphate facility to an Ammonium Sulphate facility and will increase production at our existing underutilized facilities in the U.S. which have their own integrated rock supply. As a result, the large majority of our phosphate rock imports from OCP will be eliminated later this year. There is still a small amount of phosphate rock that is required for the Geismer, GA facility. A decision on the need to import rock for this facility is expected after a review of our end product customer needs which is expected to be complete before the fall this year." The claim that the imports to Geismar is "small" echoes the comment made by Nutrien's President and CEO, Mr. Chuck Magro, on 25 January 2018. Mr. Magro had stated the volume of the Geismar imports to constitute "a little bit". However, that is not correct. The imports into the Nutrien (ex-PotashCorp) plant in Geismar has been massive. From WSRW's daily monitoring of ship traffic, it has been established that the Geismar imports have constituted 2,04 million tonnes from 2012 to 2017, at a value of 250 million USD. All of the proceeds have been ending up in the treasury of the Moroccan government, occupying Western Sahara. The people of Western Sahara have been systematically protesting the trade. The details of each shipment can be found in the WSRW reports P for Plunder for the years 2012-2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017. A number of international investors have blacklisted Nutrien and its customer Innophos for taking part in the dirty trade, while several of the importers are realising the legal risk involved, following landmark judgements in the Court of Justice of the EU, and the arrest of a phosphate transporting vessel in South Africa in 2017. "We congratulate Innophos in its important decision to halt the sourcing of conflict minerals in Western Sahara. The people of Western Sahara now anticipates the decision of Nutrien with keen interest. Considering that Nutrien now sees its main or only client in US end, we expect Nutrien to no longer be involved in any sourcing of phosphate rock from Western Sahara from the end of 2018. If the Geismar plant stops its purchases, it would mean that the decades-long imports into the US will have come to a complete stop. This is fantastic news for the Saharawi people", WSRW coordinator Sara Eyckmans said. Western Sahara Resource Watch sent its latest letters to Nutrien on 21 February 2018 and on 28 May 2018 and to Innophos on 3 March 2017 and 1 March 2018. None of these four letters was responded to. A Mexican subsidiary of US registered Innophos Holdings was previously an important and long-term direct importer of Western Sahara phosphate rock. But since 2015, WSRW has not observed any shipments to Innophos' plant in Coatzalcoalcos, Mexico. The phosphate mine in Western Sahara has been Morocco's most important source of income since the occupation began, but importers are now shying away. From 2019, New Zealand farmers will be the only clients of the dirty rock, after over a dozen countries have ended the trade, besides a Moroccan owned importing company in India. (SPS) 062/SPS http://wsrw.org/a105x4231 English22/07/2018 ORCHESTRATED CAMPAIGN AGAINST MOI BEYOND NORMAL PELAGICEVO, July 22 /SRNA/ - Republika Srpska Prime Minister Zeljka Cvijanovic said today in Pelagicevo that an orchestrated campaign against the Srpska Ministry of Interior is beyond normal and said that Srpska will never give up its own police, which is a guarantor of its survival. "This has become a very hysterical and problematic situation and the atmosphere that is being created," Cvijanovic told reporters anent accusations by BiH Security Minister Dragan Mektic at the expense of the Srpska MoI. Cvijanovic has pointed out that it is evident that various orchestrated attacks on the Srpska MoI have been going on for a year already. "You recall the militarization story that we purchase some weapons, which purpose I do not know. None of these people, including the BiH minister of security and all the people holding the seats in Sarajevo on behalf of the Alliance for Change, has never said or questioned any weapons procurement in the Federation of BiH, or cantons," said Cvijanovic. She has pointed out that the FBiH was procuring the weapons without control, which was never a media topic, nor did anyone ever oppose it; but once the Srpska MoI decided to purchase it after years of non-procurement due to certain rules and all the reasons, then hysterical campaign against the Srpska MoI started. Before that, the PM reminded, there were theories on paramilitary units. "At that time, there were very organized efforts to question the MoI, and it has never stopped. The international community will never get over the time when we did not accept to renounce our police through the police reform," Cvijanovic has stressed. She has said that Srpska will not give up its own police. "The Srpska Police is a guarantee of the survival of our Republic. The police is the only uniformed force of Srpska, and we will not allow this to be taken away from us. The role and position of the police is clear," said Cvijanovic. Also, she has added, the task of the police is to carry out its work adequately, professionally and organized, while the Government's obligation is to provide them with a better material situation and conditions, which is what it does. "Now the Police will be covered by salaries increase, we purchased weapons and uniforms; we made some very modern training centres for our police. We invest as it is a resource in which we need to invest," Cvijanovic has pointed out and emphasized that this orchestrated campaign, whit the aim to discredit someone, is beyond normal. She has said that the elections will take place soon, but that there are no programmes opposing each other, nor powers are measured on the basis of policies they promote, but everything has been narrowed down to simple human discrimination. Cvijanovic has stated that she knows that citizens appreciate what is being done in Srpska based on achievements and results, not by "destroying someones reputation or poking whoever you get". Mektic has recently stated, without providing evidence, that "the top of the Republika Srpska MoI traffics drugs". /end/vos With high quality crops of Scottish soft fruit now going to waste because of a shortfall in seasonal staff, members of Westminsters Scottish Affairs Committee joined NFUS officeholders and staff on a Perthshire soft fruit farm to call for urgent action. A cross-party group of MPs from the influential committee visited West Jordanstone Farm at Alyth, Blairgowrie where the Marshall family has already had to leave crops to rot due to a lack of available staff to pick them. Other MPs visited soft fruit farms in Angus and the Borders to show their support. Pete Wishart MP (Chair of the Committee, SNP MP for Perth and North Perthshire); David Duguid (Conservative MP for Banff and Buchan), Hugh Gaffney (Labour MP for Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill) and Ged Killen (Labour MP for Rutherglen and Hamilton West) joined the Marshalls at West Jordanstone to pick fruit. Committee Vice Chair John Lamont (Conservative MP for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) visited Border Berries near Kelso. Although not a member of the Scottish Affairs Committee, Kirstene Hair (Conservative MP for Angus) met with NFU Scotlands Horticulture Chair James Porter, who sells berries through Angus Soft Fruits. Picking fruit at West Jordanstone, NFU Scotland Vice President Martin Kennedy said: To see quality Scottish produce wasting in fields and polytunnels is appalling and the loss in potential value and revenue to businesses and the wider rural economy must be recognised and addressed. Our survey of soft fruit and vegetable growers at the start of this year predicted that, without the reinstatement of an effective seasonal workers scheme, the difficulties encountered in recruiting staff in 2017 would only be exacerbated this season. Political dithering on this matter has seen those fears become a reality, the challenge of finding seasonal staff is hitting some producers hard and the distressing sight of crops being left to rot is happening right now. Recognising that a crisis was looming, we fed written and oral evidence in to the Scottish Affairs Committee report on immigration that was published last week. We fully endorse its recommendation that the Government introduce a new Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme at the earliest possible date. That mirrors calls that NFU Scotland has been making for many months now. Speaking at West Jordanstone Farm, Pete Wishart MP, Chair of the Scottish Affairs Select Committee said: This trip to Alyth was not only a chance for members of the Scottish Affairs Committee to visit a vital part of Scotlands agricultural sector, but also a chance to hear first-hand from those on the front line about the need for a new Seasonal Agricultural Workers scheme something we recommended in our recent Immigration and Scotland report. Nobody wants to see fruit and vegetables go to waste in the fields due to labour shortages, and we hope to see the necessary support provided to Scottish farmers without delay. Overseas sales now account for more than 30 per cent of the business at Ifor Williams Trailers which has a worldwide network of distributors. The iconic Welsh brand was established in 1958 in Cynwyd, near Corwen, where it still has a factory. The firm also has manufacturing sites in Corwen, Ruthin and on Deeside Industrial Estate. Last year it opened a new 5 million production facility in Sandycroft, in Flintshire, to create extra capacity to cope with the bulging order book. The company employs more than 500 people across all the sites. As well as having a network of 50 UK trailer outlets, the company has Distributors as far afield as Australia and New Zealand and sells its trailers as far afield as Russia, the former Soviet republic of Georgia, the West Indies, Japan and Africa. Ifor Williams Trailers is the leading manufacturer of braked trailers in Europe with Scandinavian countries like Norway and Denmark being growth areas. According to Business Development Manager Peter Nesbitt, sales are also taking off in Australia where the firm now has three distributors with more in the offing. Mr Nesbitt said: It's great in our 60th year to be in such excellent health and for our prospects to be so positive. The sales have been very strong and consequently we've a very considerable order book and it's allowing us to move forward and invest in new manufacturing facilities like Sandycroft. That's a real indication of our confidence in the future and the fact that were planning for an expecting continued sales growth both domestically and with our exports. What we're seeing is good growth of exports in a broad range of products throughout our existing export markets in mainland Europe. Were also seeing accelerating export sales further afield in places such as Australia. We have three Australian distributors at the moment in New South Wales, north of Sydney, in south Australia close to Adelaide, and in Perth in Western Australia. "Theres a great deal of potential for growth because it's a massive nation geographically and with a large population, so we're only at the start of where we expect to be a very significant journey. Head-on crash at Pineview kills 1, seriously injures 2 HUNTSVILLE A head-on crash near Pineview Reservoir on Sunday killed one driver and seriously injured two other people, the Utah Highway Patrol said. An eastbound Audi abruptly crossed the center line and collided with a westbound Dodge 3500 pickup, the UHP said in a news release. The crash occurred at 4:41 p.m. on State Road 39. The Audi came to rest facing south and the pickup rolled onto a dirt pullout strip next to the reservoir, ending up on its top. The Audis driver was dead at the scene and a 9-year-old in the back seat, not buckled in properly, was taken to a local ... Shares is the leading weekly publication for retail investors. It is packed with investment ideas, news and educational material to help build and run portfolios and get more from your money. Shares puts on free Investor Events throughout the year across the country. They provide an opportunity for investors to learn more about companies on the stock market and hear from a range of investment experts including fund managers and Shares journalists. One thing that hasnt changed about combat since 2001 is that most of the American casualties, even in places like Iraq and Afghanistan have been non-combat. Actually, in that time less than 30 percent of deaths in the military were from combat and most of them did not take place in a combat zone but back in the United States. During the period of most intense combat (2001-2009) accidents, disease and stress (physical and mental) problems accounted for 81 percent of those troops flown out so they could get more advanced care. There are about ten of these evacuations for every soldier killed (combat or non-combat). Only 19 percent of those "medical evacuations" were for combat injuries. Thus, in the military hospitals (both in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as back in the United States), the vast majority of combat zone casualties are not there because of combat injuries. By 2009 American troops in Iraq had more to fear from accidents, disease and stress than enemy action. Less than half the troops who died were combat casualties. This is a trend that had been growing for several years. Actually, while not caused by combat, a lot of the "non-combat" injuries were the result of combat operations. For example, ten percent of those evacuated had musculoskeletal system problems. Since the 1990s American infantry has had to carry more weight (sometimes a 45 kg/a hundred pounds or more), more often and for longer periods. No one else in the combat zone had to deal with that. Back and muscle problems are still common. The combat troops are also out and about more, and more likely to catch exotic local diseases. Thus it's not surprising that in places like Iraq and Afghanistan for a long time at least ten percent of the medical evacuations were for "ill-defined conditions." This was first discovered when thousands of American troops were stationed in the Persian Gulf during World War II. Before that, the British warned, from their World War I experience, that Iraq was a nasty place (from a disease standpoint) to hang out in. Afghanistan has proved to have its own extensive collection of exotic, and often unrecognized (by Western medicine) afflictions. While most of the deaths (as opposed to casualties) in Iraq and Afghanistan were from combat, many were not. Of the 7,000 or so U.S. troops that died in Iraq and Afghanistan through 2018), nearly twenty percent of those fatalities were from non-combat causes. Most of the non-combat deaths were from accidents and disease. One of the major categories of non-combat death is vehicle accidents. In 2007, over fifteen percent of the non-combat deaths were from vehicle accidents. But in 2008, overall deaths declined by two thirds (from 904 in 2007 to 312 in 2008), and vehicle accident deaths went from 37 to 19. Over time better driver training, improved vehicle design and experience, in general, made driving less lethal. The U.S. Army expected vehicle accidents to decline even more in 2008 because the number of terrorist incidents went down by 80 percent. Many vehicle accidents were the result of the fast driving tactics troops were encouraged to use to get away from roadside bombs and ambushes. Ask the NCOs, and they will often complain that the sharp reduction in combat has removed the incentive to stay sharp and pay attention. Not a unique situation in a combat zone, and despite the energetic exhortations of the NCOs, too many troops did not stay alert enough to avoid accidents. Ask the troops, and they will (correctly) complain about the heavier traffic. With peace breaking out all over central Iraq, and the economy continuing to boom, more Iraqis have cars. Iraqis drive like they're from Boston, with abandon and indifference. Not much different in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, military experts around the world are still trying to make sense of how the United States has kept its casualties so low in Iraq and Afghanistan. To put it in simple terms, you were three times more likely to be killed or wounded in Vietnam (or World War II), compared to U.S. troops serving in Iraq. And then there is the mystery of higher non-combat deaths in Afghanistan. In Vietnam and Iraq, 19 percent of the deaths were from non-combat causes (accidents, disease, for the most part.) During World War II, 25 percent of the dead were non-combat. In Afghanistan, 29 percent of the deaths were non-combat, although that is rapidly changing as combat deaths increase. Afghanistan does have a greater variety of diseases, and nasty terrain (including the atrocious roads, many of them roads in name only). What the U.S. did was put in well trained, led, armed and motivated troops and then supported them lavishly. Civilians were hired to do a lot of the menial jobs. Much effort was put into getting to know the local culture, and avoiding civilian casualties. That eventually won over enough Iraqis to undercut support for Islamic radicals (mostly Sunni Arabs angry at no longer being in charge, and minority Shia groups keen on setting up a Shia religious dictatorship). But while the diseases and safety situation in the Middle East improved enormously since 2003, improvements came more slowly in Afghanistan. The many diseases, bad roads, hills and mountains remain a major hazard. Afghanistan will remain a dangerous place, even if no one is shooting at you. Another item that is still a concern is bad data. No, not official deception but simply inept record keeping. Bad numbers are nothing new. For example, the Department of Defense used to report that the number of combat deaths in the Korean War was higher (by over 10,000 dead) than there actually were. This was because, early on, someone mistakenly added all the accidental deaths, world-wide, for the United States military, during the period of the war (1950-53), to the total combat dead. It wasn't until the 1980s that this got cleared up. And then there are some bad numbers that will never be cleaned up. Friendly fire incidents in past wars were routinely misreported, usually at the lowest levels (friends of those who got shot or did the shooting.) Any attempts to get to the bottom of friendly fire statistics from old wars would open too may psychological wounds. Same with the misreporting of dead soldiers as "missing in action" during World War II. This was often done by the dead soldiers family, so the widow could collect the soldiers pay (which was higher than widow's benefits) for a while longer. There are a lot of bad numbers out there, and an interesting story behind many of them. Although there is agreement on national presidential and parliamentary elections being held in December so that the new officials can form a unified national government that might be soon enough. The GNA (Government of National Accord), one of the two existing national governments, is falling apart. The GNA is based in Tripoli and recognized by the UN has proved much less capable than its eastern (Tobruk) rival the HoR (House of Representatives). It was agreements between these two existing governments in Libya that made the December election plan possible. The governments agreed to increase their cooperation (already functional enough) to improve the operation of the National Oil Company and the Central Bank of Libya. Neighboring countries (especially Egypt, Tunisia and Italy) are cooperating with the two Libyan governments to identify key Libyan gangsters (often former government officials) and Islamic terrorists based in Libya and impose international (via the UN and Interpol) sanctions on them. These outlaws are key movers of illegal money and goods (people, weapons, oil and so on). Italy has been particularly effective here because many of the European criminals (working with Libyan outlaws) are Italian. But in Tripoli, the traditional capital, the GNA never had complete control of the city because of so many powerful and uncooperative militias that had been there since the 2011 revolution. The HoR thrived because it had more competent military commanders who literally took over and rebuilt the pre-2011 Libyan armed forces. This was done by replacing all the officers and troops loyal to the deposed 2011 government with tribal militias and former Libyan officers returning from exile and training a new generation of Libyan military leaders. The UN and the West opposed this but it worked and with the cooperation of most Arab countries the HoR was finally accepted by the UN. This made possible the December elections that will merge the GNA and HoR. But the GNA might not last until December and that is a problem that has to be fixed if the elections are to take place. Risky Business The LNA (Libyan National Army) has become the most effective organized and disciplined armed force in Libya. The LNA continues to defeat or absorb defiant militias, especially ones that are religion based or outright Islamic terrorists. While many Western nations consider the LNA, or at least some of its commanders, to be war criminals the fact is that pro-GNA faction leaders are no better and often a lot worse. The Arab nations that have long supported the LNA and its creator Khalifa Hiftar and understand this and the fact that Hiftar is simply a more effective military leader. After living in the U.S. for over a decade, Hiftar knows first-hand what works. Hiftar always worked for the rival Libyan HoR government in Tobruk and has remained loyal to the HoR for as long as the LNA existed. Most Libyans, having little or no personal experience of a much less corrupt and more productive Western economy, just want someone to make all the chaos and pain go away. There is no easy way to make that happen. A first step would be to form a united government. That is still a work in progress but at least progress is being made. Hiftar is also popular in Libya (and with other Moslem governments in the region) for his steadfast and effective opposition to Islamic terrorists and Islamic radicalism in general. Now Hiftar is accusing someone in the NOC (National Oil Company) and/or CBL (Central Bank of Libya) of financing some of the recent attacks on oil facilities. Hiftar believes that a southern militia coalition (led by Ibrahim Jadran) that recently, and suddenly came out of the south to gain very brief control over the three oil export ports was provided with a lot of cash to organize this operation. Jadran was once the leader of the local PDG (Petroleum Defense Guards) militia that provided security for the oil export operations at Sidra, Ras Lanuf and Zueitina. Until 2017 Jardan and his fellow PDG leaders frequently shut down exports in an attempt to get paid more for their efforts. Worse the unreliable PDG groups were also stealing oil and exporting it on outlaw ships that would sell the oil in the black market. By late 2017 LNA forces had replaced the outlaw PDG groups with more reliable ones. But many of the outlaw PDG men fled south and planned their revenge. The latest plan seemed good but didnt work. Jardan organized a coalition of ousted PDG militias who agreed to move north and regain control over the ports and resume their extortion and smuggling. After a week of fighting the LNA the Jardan forces were finally driven away from the ports by June 22nd and are now fleeing south with LNA forces in pursuit, seeking to destroy the Jardan coalition for good. The Jardan forces included over a thousand mercenaries from Chad and over 200 armed (and some armored) vehicles. Jardan made a lot of promises to his followers that he could not keep. As a result, his coalition is falling apart as it flees south. Thats why the LNA believes they can put Jardan and is larcenous PDG groups out of business for good. Hiftar learned from interrogations of captured Jardan followers that were was talk of where Jardan got the money to organize his latest attack. The cash apparently came from Tripoli. That meant the GNA and the branch of the NOC based in Tripoli. To deal with this problem Hiftar announced earlier in the month that he would send oil sales proceeds to the eastern branch of the NOC and CBL in Benghazi and work out the details with the UN (which tries to make sure most of this oil income is spent on what Libya needs and not stolen). Despite the defeat of Jardan the fighting has done more damage to the oil export facilities and further reduced the amount of oil that can be shipped each day. Making repairs to the export facilities requires time and security to assure the foreign tech personnel brought in to do the work can do so safely. This will delay the resumption of oil shipments returning to pre-war (2011) levels. Gangster Games The EU (European Union) is anything but united on how to deal with the people smuggling gangs in Libya. A growing number of European nations are withdrawing from EU agreements to cooperate with the smuggling gangs and assist the smugglers to get boats of illegal migrants across the Mediterranean from Libya to Italy. A new Italian government has refused to accept any more of these illegals, even if they were now on EU warships or some of the rescue ships operated by EU civilians belonging to NGOs (non-governmental organizations). Libya (plus Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia) turned down the latest EU proposal; to set up EU migrant processing centers in a North African country where illegals would be screened by EU personnel to determine who are eligible for asylum (very few) and who is not (who would have to pay smugglers to try and get them across the Mediterranean to Malta or Spain, the only two EU nations willing to cooperate with the people smugglers. As a result of this opposition the number of illegal migrants is down by half so far this year compared to 2017. But that means the number of illegal migrants stuck in Libya is increasing and is over half a million and rising. About 50,000 illegals made it to Europe so far this year, but about two percent of those attempting to reach Europe died getting across the Mediterranean. The people smuggling business is too lucrative to shut down as long as it is possible to land illegals in an EU nation bordering the Mediterranean. As soon as one Libyan people smuggler gang is shut down in a particular coast town, another shows up elsewhere, often run by the same people smuggler organizers that fled when the militia or Islamic terror group they were allied with (and paid a lot of money to for protection) got defeated. As long as there is a good chance of getting into Europe people in Africa and the Middle East will find the cash to pay people smugglers to get them into Libya (relatively easy) and across the Mediterranean (getting more difficult). All that money in a nation facing an economic crisis (Libya can only survive via food and other imports paid for by oil income) means many Libyans are willing to participate. For example, a Libyan Bedouin tribe (Awlad Ali) which actually straddles most of the Libyan border with Egypt. While most Awlad Ali tribesmen oppose Islamic terror groups they see smuggling as an ancient and legitimate enterprise. So Awlad Ali members will work for people smuggling gangs based on the Libyan coast and, for a fee, bring illegal migrants across the Egyptian border to the coastal town the people smugglers use to get illegals on a boat and on their way to Europe. Other Libyan tribes in the south also provide guides to get illegals across the southern border and to the coast. If confronted by armed opposition these tribal smugglers tend to flee rather than fight. Because these tribesmen are in it just for the money they do not show up in reports of who the people smugglers are. Nor do the many tribal and militia leaders who accept gifts (bribes) to allow the people smugglers to move through with their illegal migrants. What annoys Libyans most about the people smuggling is that the cash from this business keeps a lot of Islamic terror groups and troublesome militias in business, which makes it difficult to get the Libyan economy (mainly the oil industry) revived. Until 2018 the attitude among smugglers was that yes, business is sometimes more difficult (and less profitable) because of EU countermeasures and the shrinking number of outlaw ports but in the long run they will continue to thrive because the smugglers have partners in Europe (mostly Italy based gangsters) who know how to manipulate the European media and politicians to apply pressure on Libya to halt its inhuman treatment of illegals and the NGOs seeking to help the smugglers get the illegals into Europe. The smugglers may have overestimated continued European support. Then there is the culture of corruption in Libya which will often enable people smugglers to operate more freely. The bribery is still a factor but there are fewer powerful (heavily armed and willing to fight) groups willing to take a bribe. A unified government for Libya is increasingly likely and although it will likely not be a police state similar to what Kaddafi ran it will have security forces that are able to shut down the smugglers as thoroughly as Kadaffi did. July 17, 2018: Most of the disrupted (by fighting) oil production and export facilities were working again, for a few days, until there was another incident. Oil exports from the Zawiya export facility were halted because of an attack on the Sahara oil fields, which supplies Zawiya. Four workers were kidnapped by local tribesmen. Two hostages were soon released but the other two (one of them a European engineer) were being held for ransom. During a recent (until early July) month of violence the mayhem turned out to be somewhat organized in that some of the attackers were paid to get join together and try to seize control of facilities and then demand high pay and permanent status as PDG ((Petroleum Defense Guards). This scam is usually (but not always) attempted by local tribes or militias that see nearby oil facilities (pumping, pipelines, export terminals) as an economic opportunity that potentially worth a lot of money if you are willing to fight for it. The problem is there are often competing groups willing to fight for the right to be the highly paid (and not very reliable) PDG. The only solution to this problem is a national government that can provide law and order. The most recent attack was on part of the Sahara facility, which is largest oil field in Libya and before the revolution in 2011 accounted for 17 percent of national production. Currently it can, when undisturbed, still produce the same amount, 270,000 BPD (barrels per day), as it did in 2011. The Sahara field was developed and managed by a multinational (Spain, France, Austria and Norway) effort and that means there are a lot of foreign workers there, mainly to deal with the high tech stuff. Normally the main source of interruption is extortionate oil facility guards or other local militia problems. Despite these constant interruption the NOC has continued to increase production in exports. By the end of 2017 production was about a million BPD. The current goal is to reach 1.5 million BPD by the end of 2018 and 2.1 million BPD by the early 2020s. This is far in excess of pre-2011 levels (1.6 million BPD) but is necessary because of the need to finance reconstruction and adapt to the fact that the world price for oil keeps falling, despite OPEC (the Arab dominated oil cartel) efforts to reduce overall production and drive up the price. The problem is that the United States and Canada are producing a lot more due to new technologies (like fracking) that open up huge new sources that were long known but not reachable. The problem with increasing production is that it attracts more greedy militias seeking to get paid. July 11, 2018: In south central Libya (Jufra, 650 kilometers southeast of Tripoli) LNA forces have cornered an ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) faction believed responsible for some recent attacks on southern oil facilities (like the one near Jufra). Most of the remaining ISIL fighters are operating in the largely desert south, surviving as bandits most of the time. The LNA is tracking them down and destroying them, something no other organization in Libya can do. July 10, 2018: The LNA is trying to confirm where a Bulgarian freighter carrying weapons came from. The ships was caught at a port (al Khums) east of Tripoli. It is suspected that the weapons came from, or were financed by, Qatar. The weapons were apparently intended for some local Islamic militias that oppose the unified government effort and the December elections. The UN has imposed sanctions on exporting weapons to Libya but there have been numerous violations. . July 7, 2018: During the first six months of 2018 Libyan oil income was $11.4 billion. This continues a positive trend. Libya tripled its oil income (to $14 billion) in 2017 but that achievement has attracted a lot of corrupt officials. This threatens the ability of the oil industry to function. Despite the chaos since 2012 the National Oil Corporation (NOC) and Libyan Central Bank (LCB) were generally left alone to deal with essential matters like importing food and other necessities that Libya does not produce itself. Yet there is so much more cash available that more of it is mysteriously disappearing. June 28, 2018: The LNA declared it had complete control of the coastal city of Derna, long a lawless place occupied by dozens of rival militias and Islamic terror groups. Grievances of the residents of Palitha Place, Dematagoda were discussed at a programme attended by Western Provincial Councillor and the United National Party Borella Organiser Jayantha de Silva. Mr. de Silva is seen accepting a petition outlining the grievances of the residents. Earlier this week the government's representative for Malaga province, Maria Gamez, announced the details of this year's special plan to keep tourists safe, which begins today. It includes the temporary assignment of an extra 190 National Police officers to Malaga, which she said is deemed sufficient to deal with the avalanche of tourists who are expected this summer. Also at the presentation were the provincial police chief, Francisco Lopez Canedo; the head of the Consular corps in Malaga, Pedro Megias Gonzalez; and the president of the Costa del Sol Hoteliers Association, Luis Callejon. Maria Gamez explained that the police officers will increase safety for visitors to the coastal region in general, and that special attention will also be given to major events, where there will be a higher police presence than usual. Both Gamez and Lopez Canedo stressed that this is purely a precautionary measure and there is no cause for alarm: tourists can feel confident about their safety in Malaga province, they said. The police headquarters in Malaga will also have the cooperation of police from elsewhere in Europe: several officers from France and Germany will be arriving soon to provide support for the National Police in the province. The safe tourism plan operates all year round, but is boosted in the summer. There will be extra monitoring of beaches, hotels, places of interest, town centres, shopping malls, railway and bus stations, the port, airport, tourist information centres and other busy places. Four hundred Ryanair flights to and from Spain are to be cancelled this Wednesday, 25 July, and Thursday, 26 July due to strikes from cabin crew. A total 24 of these were scheduled to take off or land at Malaga airport. On Wednesday, those airports with cancelled Costa del Sol connections include Newcastle, Prestwick (Glasgow), Manchester, Weeze, Brussels, Ibiza, Barcelona, Hamburg, Charleroi and Treviso. The following day, flights to and from Newcastle, Stansted, Birmingham, Leeds, Berlin, Barcelona, Santiago de Compostella, Ibiza, Santander and Palma de Mallorca will be cancelled, as well as two flights from Manchester and one to Stockholm, according to information from union representatives. Ground staff strike called off after airports reach an agreement Plans for a possible strike from ground staff at Spanish airports have been scrapped after a consensus was reached during a meeting on Friday 20 July. Labour disputes from 60,000 baggage handling employees threatened to halt airport activity for an entire day on Sunday 29 July. "After days of intense negotiations, airport management has come to its senses and has promised to uphold workers' rights," explain union representatives from Comisiones Obreras, Union General de Trabajadores and Union Sindical Obrera, who consider the new agreement to be "very positive". The company has contacted any affected passengers by text and email. It is understood that anyone who has not received notification of cancellation or delay can presume that their flight is to go ahead. Airline cabin crews' unions in Belgium, Portugal and Spain are striking over pay and working conditions, forcing the low-cost airline to cancel 200 flights, out of the 830 a day it was due to run, from Spain on each of the two days. Ryanair has denied that working conditions for its crews in Spain, Belgium and Portugal are bad and has said it has done all it can to avoid the strikes. Kenny Jacobs, the company's marketing chief, said that the protests wouldn't achieve anything "other than disrupt family holidays and benefit other airlines". Flight reduction On Monday Ryanair announced that it could be moved to reduce its fleet and number of European flights this winter if pilots and cabin crew continue to carry out "unnecessary" strikes. The airline also warns of "job losses". The chief executive, Michael O'Leary, has indicated that he expects more strikes this summer from groups of pilots in Ireland and "possibly" Portugal and Germany, saying: "We are not prepared to concede to unreasonable demands that will compromise either our low fares or our highly efficient model". Consumer help OCU, the non-for-profit consumer support organisation has implemented a new campaign to help those affected by the upcoming strikes. Passengers whose flights have been delayed or cancelled may be entitled to compensation, and can receive advice and more information on OCU's webpage. At home on the range With hunting season now in full swing throughout the State of Iowa, a new business in the Tama-Toledo area looks to ... saurabh89 BHPian Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 93 Thanked: 277 Times How does it feel to ride to the Himalayas? My experience of Ladakh Valley on an Enfield Bullet Having upgraded to a bullet in 2016, I always wanted to travel along the Himalayas. After months of planning, the dream finally came true in June 2018. A friend of mine joined me from Mumbai for the trip and little did we know that our life was about to change post the trip! Could make it happen thanks to this machine: We took the following route: Delhi - Amritsar - Patnitop - Sonamarg - Leh - Nubra - Pangong Tso - Tso Moriri - Zing Zing bar (do read about this part) - Manali - Delhi While I rode solo until Amritsar, my friend joined me in from there. Got my bike serviced before the ride and purchased few gears: Solace 'furious' riding gear Bikeratti 'doubledry' all weather gloves pro-biker knee guards Rockrider Hydrapack (2 lts - Decathlon) Day 1: Gurgaon to Amritsar Having packed my bags a week in advance, I was all set to start at 4 am for Amritsar on my first long trip with my bullet! Couldnt sleep in excitement a night earlier and ended up starting 5 hours late than planned at 9 am. It took me 2 hours to cross Delhi traffic and it was a breeze thereafter. Stopped at the Panipat toll plaza for a quick water break and continued past Ambala. Stopped at a dhaba after Ambala and had awesome punjabi lassi on top of Rajma chawal! Till now I was comfortable riding the bike and had started to enjoy the road. NH 1 is smooth as butter and the green fields in Punjab is a treat to the eyes. I lost my way in Jalandhar city but few kind souls helped me to get back on track. We had booked an AirBnB in advance in Amritsar and I was there by 5:30 pm. Checked in to the hotel and decided to take a walk around the city till the time Praneev landed. Went to the famous Surjit Food Plaza to try some chicken but was disappointed to core with the taste. Had read awesome reviews about them on multiple forums but didn't find it up to the mark. Was tired after 520 kms ride on day 1 and had slept off by the time Praneev was there. Day 2: Golden temple | Amritsar to Patnitop We started the day early and were at Golden temple by 5:30 am to watch all the gold glitter in morning sun. The atmosphere inside was calm. We waited for our turn to enter Harmandir Sahib for an hour and enjoyed the bhajans till then. The Golden temple, pic taken at 7 am: We started off from Amritsar around 11 am towards Patnitop. The highway all the way until Pathankot and further is a breeze through. The views around were changing slowly from wheat fields to pine trees. Must say, the roads in this part of the country are a notch better than west India. We reached Pathankot in 2 hours and continued our journey towards Patnitop. There was no need to stop at Lakhanpur border and the roads turned steep from there. We stopped near Kathua for lunch and then continued the journey. The roads were fantastic and we completely missed the turn to Udhampur from Samba and reached Jammu. Didn't realize it until we reached Jammu city! We took the bypass towards Udhampur and must say, the 4 lane in the mountains is a true depiction of India's growth! Was feeling proud to drive on such beautiful roads. The 4 Lane vanished after Udhampur and story turned 180 degrees south! All that feeling of being proud was vanished the moment we hit our first rough patch of the trip We reached near Chenani tunnel by 6 pm and were completely tired with all the dust due to construction work along the way. The road towards Patnitop is newly laid tarmac and the 20 km ghat is fantastic ride. Felt like getting into the wild along with pine trees. We had a booking at a hotel in Patnitop but that was already shut down a month back. Booking.com has clearly not updated the details correctly. The owner helped us with a nearby hotel room. It was a steal for the price and the owner was very kind. We went to a park in the evening and had some local food before dozing off by 10 pm. Had to leave early next morning towards Sonamarg. Total dist covered: 280 Kms The hotel manager in Patnitop (do stay here whenever you plan to visit Patnitop): Day 3: Patnitop to Sonamarg Got up early and lubed the chain. We left Patnitop by 8 am and continued on our journey towards Srinagar. I couldn't believe I was closer to Srinagar looking at the conditions of the roads. Its a 4 lane with fantastic tarmac and we were riding close to 90 kmph. I was in complete awe of the surrounding. This patch is there after crossing the Jawahar tunnel. Also, for the first time we could spot snow clad mountains. It was a day of many firsts! We reached Srinagar by 2 pm and took the road along Dal lake towards Sonamarg. The bike horn suddenly started acting weird and we decided to show it to a local mechanic in Srinagar. The fuse was blown and the mechanic ended up blowing 4 more fuses in the process to rectify the issue. All my spare fuses (3 10 Wt and 1 15 Wt ) had blown off. We got a temp solution in place and continued the journey towards sonamarg. The road to sonamarg is nice and there is a tunnel being constructed to ease out the journey. We hit rains some 15 kms before Sonamarg but kept on riding since it was getting darker. Reached Sonamarg at 6:30 pm, had booked the JnkTDC hotel in advance. We got a BSNL sim from here. Also met a riding group from Maharashtra. The views around Sonamarg: Total dist: 290 Kms Day 4: Patnitop to Leh | Zozila, kargil, Lamayuru, Leh We started off early at 6:30 am since it was a long day to cover, and well, look what happened! 15 mins towards Zozi la, we had our first flat tyre! We got the bike parked, removed the nail with nail cutter (some awesome use of the cutter, right ? ) and filled in air with the pump. The sealant inside the tube worked its magic and we heaved a sigh of relief. The closest puncture shop was 20 kms behind and we had a long long day planned. We waited for 15 mins to check if the tyre pressure was maintained and started off towards Zozi La. Zozi La was first of the 3 big riding challenges in Ladakh region. The 17 km patch until zero point was one of the most dangerous rides of my life. No bikes around, cold temperatures, ice streams around and slippery roads. We managed to cross the pass in 45 mins and had a cup of tea at zero point. Praneev clicked this video whilst I was busy balancing the bike! http://youtu.be/LAX0r6sG5jI Views around Zozi La and Zero Point: We stopped at Dras for a quick Maggie at 10 am and then at the Kargil War memorial. The museum at the memorial is a collection of some awe inspiring stories of Indian Army fighting the enemy. After a 90 mins pit stop we started our journey towards Kargil. Got the tank full at Kargil, had lunch and started our journey towards Nimik La and Foot La pass. Both the passes have a smooth tarmac but gusty winds. Its worth waiting at the top to capture the views around. Nimikla Top 12200 Feet: Foot La is even higher at 13500 feet. We reached Lamayuru around 5 pm. After enjoying the moonland, we decided to give it a shot for Leh. Lamayuru monastery: Leh was still some 120 kms away and we were feeling the heat from the passes left behind. Praneev took over the bullet and we reached Leh by 9 pm. Likir Monastery: The bike had started losing its power by now and the brakes had also gone loose. Inspite the 350 km journey, we had all the energy in the world to roam around Leh Market in the night. We dream about achieving multiple things in life. Few of us aspire to fly a plane, few love the coffee along with raindrops on the front window and few of us love to travel! I believe the one's who travel are the blesseth ones!Having upgraded to a bullet in 2016, I always wanted to travel along the Himalayas. After months of planning, the dream finally came true in June 2018. A friend of mine joined me from Mumbai for the trip and little did we know that our life was about to change post the trip!Delhi - Amritsar - Patnitop - Sonamarg - Leh - Nubra - Pangong Tso - Tso Moriri - Zing Zing bar (do read about this part) - Manali - DelhiWhile I rode solo until Amritsar, my friend joined me in from there.Having packed my bags a week in advance, I was all set to start at 4 am for Amritsar on my first long trip with my bullet! Couldnt sleep in excitement a night earlierand ended up starting 5 hours late than planned at 9 am.It took me 2 hours to crossand it was a breeze thereafter. Stopped at the Panipat toll plaza for a quick water break and continued past Ambala.Stopped at a dhaba after Ambala and had awesome punjabi lassi on top of Rajma chawal! Till now I was comfortable riding the bike and had started to enjoy the road. NH 1 is smooth as butter and the green fields in Punjab is a treat to the eyes. I lost my way in Jalandhar city but few kind souls helped me to get back on track. We had booked an AirBnB in advance in Amritsar and I was there by 5:30 pm. Checked in to the hotel and decided to take a walk around the city till the time Praneev landed. Went to the famous Surjit Food Plaza to try some chicken but was disappointed to core with the taste.Had read awesome reviews about them on multiple forums but didn't find it up to the mark.Was tired after 520 kms ride on day 1 and had slept off by the time Praneev was there.We started the day early and were at Golden temple by 5:30 am to watch all the gold glitter in morning sun. The atmosphere inside was calm. We waited for our turn to enter Harmandir Sahib for an hour and enjoyed the bhajans till then.We started off from Amritsar around 11 am towards Patnitop. The highway all the way until Pathankot and further is a breeze through. The views around were changing slowly from wheat fields to pine trees. Must say, the roads in this part of the country are a notch better than west India. We reached Pathankot in 2 hours and continued our journey towards Patnitop. There was no need to stop atand the roads turned steep from there.We stopped nearfor lunch and then continued the journey. The roads were fantastic and we completely missed the turn to Udhampur from Samba and reached Jammu. Didn't realize it until we reached Jammu city! We took the bypass towards Udhampur and must say, the 4 lane in the mountains is a true depiction of India's growth! Was feeling proud to drive on such beautiful roads. The 4 Lane vanished after Udhampur and story turned 180 degrees south! All that feeling of being proud was vanished the moment we hit our first rough patch of the tripWe reached nearby 6 pm and were completely tired with all the dust due to construction work along the way. The road towards Patnitop is newly laid tarmac and the 20 km ghat is fantastic ride. Felt like getting into the wild along with pine trees. We had a booking at a hotel in Patnitop but that was already shut down a month back. Booking.com has clearly not updated the details correctly. The owner helped us with a nearby hotel room. It was a steal for the price and the owner was very kind.Wein the evening and had some local food before dozing off by 10 pm.Had to leave early next morning towards Sonamarg.Total dist covered: 280 KmsGot up early and lubed the chain. We left Patnitop by 8 am and continued on our journey towards Srinagar. I couldn't believe I was closer to Srinagar looking at the conditions of the roads. Its a 4 lane with fantastic tarmac and we were riding close to 90 kmph. I was in complete awe of the surrounding. This patch is there after crossing the Jawahar tunnel. Also, for the first time we could spot snow clad mountains. It was a day of many firsts! We reached Srinagar by 2 pm and took the road alongtowards Sonamarg.The bike horn suddenly started acting weird and we decided to show it to aTheand the mechanic ended up blowing 4 more fuses in the process to rectify the issue. All my spare fuses (3 10 Wt and 1 15 Wt ) had blown off. We got a temp solution in place and continued the journey towards sonamarg.The road to sonamarg is nice and there is a tunnel being constructed to ease out the journey. We hit rains some 15 kms before Sonamarg but kept on riding since it was getting darker. Reached Sonamarg at 6:30 pm, had booked the JnkTDC hotel in advance. We got a BSNL sim from here. Also met a riding group from Maharashtra.Total dist: 290 KmsWe started off early at 6:30 am since it was a long day to cover, and well, look what happened! 15 mins towards Zozi la, we had ourWe got the bike parked, removed the nail with nail cutter (some awesome use of the cutter, right ?) and filled in air with the pump. The sealant inside the tube worked its magic and we heaved a sigh of relief. The closest puncture shop was 20 kms behind and we had a long long day planned. We waited for 15 mins to check if the tyre pressure was maintained and started off towards Zozi La.Zozi La was first of the 3 big riding challenges in Ladakh region. The 17 km patch until zero point was one of the most dangerous rides of my life. No bikes around, cold temperatures, ice streams around and slippery roads. We managed to cross the pass in 45 mins and had a cup of tea at zero point.We stopped at Dras for a quick Maggie at 10 am and then at theThe museum at the memorial is a collection of some awe inspiring stories of Indian Army fighting the enemy.After a 90 mins pit stop we started our journey towards. Got the tank full at Kargil, had lunch and started our journey towards Nimik La and Foot La pass. Both the passes have a smooth tarmac but gusty winds. Its worth waiting at the top to capture the views around.Foot La is even higher at 13500 feet. We reached Lamayuru around 5 pm. After enjoying the moonland, we decided to give it a shot for Leh.Leh was still some 120 kms away and we were feeling the heat from the passes left behind. Praneev took over the bullet and we reached Leh by 9 pm.The bike had started losing its power by now and the brakes had also gone loose.Inspite the 350 km journey, we had all the energy in the world to roam around Leh Market in the night. Last edited by Aditya : 24th July 2018 at 22:08 . Reason: typo corrected Sweden faces 'extreme' fire risk in coming days Stockholm, July 23 (AFP) Jul 23, 2018 Sweden warned Monday of an "extreme" risk of fresh forest fires as much of Scandinavia baked in a heatwave and dozens of fires hit countries across northern Europe. Sweden's civil protection agency MSB counted 27 active fires across the country on Monday, half the previous day's number, as temperatures were expected to soar as high as 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) this week. Other European countries including France, Italy and Germany have sent a mix of equipment and firefighters to help tackle the blazes as Sweden, where usual summer temperatures are closer to 23 Celsius, is under-equipped to deal with this kind of crisis. At least four of the fires had not been brought under control, MSB said, and weather conditions were unfavourable. Sweden is experiencing an unprecedented drought and soaring temperatures which have reached the highest in a century. "The risk is extreme" in the southern part of Sweden, with the heatwave leaving forests tinder dry with no rain likely, MSB head of operations Britta Ramberg told a news conference. Ramberg said anybody lighting fires or barbecues would face prosecution. Norway, Denmark and Poland have also sent help to try to extinguish the fires. In the region of Ljusdal, 400 kilometres (250 miles) north of Stockholm, French firefighters were deployed to ensure that blazes put out in recent days do not reignite. "We are working on the edges (of the burned areas), treating the surface and picking through the earth," firefighting co-ordinator Stephane Nissle told AFP. "It's a long struggle." There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in the Nordic country, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres in mid-June. Farmers have even been forced to send their livestock to slaughter after fire damage led to shortages of hay. Other northern European nations have been struggling to contain forest fires as the unseasonable temperatures show no sign of dropping. In Finland's northernmost Lapland province, fires have ravaged wood and grassland close to the border with Russia. Norway, which this year experienced its hottest May temperatures on record, has also seen several small fires, and one firefighter was killed on July 15 while trying to contain one blaze. Fires have raged for five days in Latvia, destroying more than 800 hectares (2,000 acres) in the Baltic state's western regions. Meteorologists warned that the high temperatures are persisting and no rain is expected for the next two weeks. Latvia has experienced severe drought over the last few months, prompting authorities to declare a natural catastrophe in the agricultural sector. And in Greece -- a country no stranger to summer blazes -- authorities on Monday ordered the evacuation of a region west of Athens as a fire raged out of control. More than 130 firefighters, five aircraft and two helicopters have been mobilised to tackle the "extremely difficult" situation due to strong gusts of wind, Athens fire chief Achille Tzouvaras said. The army has also provided four helicopters and tankers, according to the interior ministry. Temperatures in Greece have been so extreme in recent days -- it was forecast to hit 41 Celsius on Monday -- that the culture ministry was forced to close early due to the heat. burs-pg/dcr Sweden faces 'extreme' fire risk in coming days Stockholm, July 23 (AFP) Jul 23, 2018 Sweden warned Monday of an "extreme" risk of fresh forest fires as much of Scandinavia baked in a heatwave and dozens of fires hit countries across northern Europe. Sweden's civil protection agency MSB counted 27 active fires across the country on Monday, half the previous day's number, as temperatures were expected to soar as high as 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) this week. Other European countries including France, Italy and Germany have sent a mix of plane, trucks and firefighters to help tackle the blazes as Sweden, where usual summer temperatures are closer to 23 Celsius, has struggled to contain the crisis. Some 25,000 hectares (62,000 acres) of land has already gone up in smoke or continues to burn -- an area twice the size of the city of Paris. At least four of the fires had not been brought under control, MSB said, and weather conditions were unfavourable. Sweden is experiencing an unprecedented drought and soaring temperatures which have reached the highest in a century. "The risk is extreme" in the southern part of Sweden, with the heatwave leaving forests tinder dry with no rain likely, MSB head of operations Britta Ramberg told a news conference. Ramberg said anybody lighting fires or barbecues would face prosecution. Norway, Denmark and Poland have also sent help to battle the blazes. Almost 140 Polish firefighters and 44 trucks arrived in the central Jamtland province on Sunday. France has dispatched two water-bomber planes and in the region of Ljusdal, 400 kilometres (250 miles) north of Stockholm, French firefighters were deployed to ensure that blazes put out in recent days do not reignite. "We are working on the edges (of the burned areas), treating the surface and picking through the earth," firefighting co-ordinator Stephane Nissle told AFP. "It's a long struggle." - Forest fires - There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in the Nordic country, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres in mid-June. Farmers have even been forced to send livestock to slaughter after fire damage led to shortages of hay. The Forestry Bureau said in a statement Monday that the value of the destroyed forests was 900 million kronor (87 million euros). Other northern European nations have been struggling to contain forest fires as the temperature shows no sign of dropping. In Finland's northernmost Lapland province, fires have ravaged wood and grassland close to the border with Russia. Norway, which this year experienced its hottest May temperatures on record, has also seen several small fires, and one firefighter was killed on July 15 while trying to contain a blaze. Fires have raged for five days in Latvia, destroying more than 800 hectares (2,000 acres) in the Baltic state's western regions. Meteorologists warned that the high temperatures are persisting and no rain is expected for the next two weeks. Latvia has experienced severe drought over the last few months, prompting authorities to declare a natural catastrophe in the agricultural sector. And in Greece -- a country no stranger to summer blazes -- authorities on Monday ordered the evacuation of a region west of Athens as a fire raged out of control. More than 130 firefighters, five aircraft and two helicopters have been mobilised to tackle the "extremely difficult" situation due to strong gusts of wind, Athens fire chief Achille Tzouvaras said. The army has also provided four helicopters and tankers, according to the interior ministry. Temperatures in Greece have soared in recent days -- it was forecast to hit 41 Celsius on Monday -- with the culture ministry closing early due to the heat. burs-pg/dcr/bp Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi... CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images Princess Mako of Akishino, the eldest granddaughter of Emperor Akihito of Japan, embarked on a diplomatic visit to Brazil last week. The trip marked the 110th anniversary of the first waves of Japanese immigration to Brazil, and Mako brought some lovely jewels along in her luggage. MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP/Getty Images On Wednesday, Mako wore the classic jewelry uniform of Japanese princesses a necklace and earrings made of petite round, white pearls in Rio de Janeiro, where she visited the statue of Christ the Redeemer and attended an event at the Nikkei Association. NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP/Getty Images Makos lovely traditional dress for Saturdays speech at the 21st Japan Festival in Sao Paulo required no Western jewelry to accessorize it. NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP/Getty Images But she also wore pearls on Saturday to tour parts of the festival, pairing them with a patterned dress. NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP/Getty Images On Sunday, Mako headed to the Japan House cultural promotion centre in Sao Paulo, where she wore a lovely suite of jewels set with pale blue gemstones. NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP/Getty Images Heres a better look at the jewels, which are perhaps set with aquamarines or blue topazes. NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP/Getty Images The postponement of Makos engagement means that shell continue to be an active member of the Japanese imperial family for the foreseeable future. Its hard for me to believe, though, that the Imperial Household Agency can see successful outings like Makos trip to Brazil and still believe that their princesses should leave the family when they marry. With Makos younger brother currently standing as the only male member of her generation of the family, fewer and fewer representatives will be available for diplomatic trips in the future unless changes are made. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin A. Ibrahim Almuttaqi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 09:23 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef12351 3 Opinion Indonesian-foreign-policy,Jerusalem,nation-state,Indonesia,minority-groups,Arab,Israel Free This week, Israels legislature The Knesset passed a new law by 62 votes to 55 (with two abstentions) that defines the country as a Jewish nation-state. For critics, the controversial new law further marginalizes the states Arab minority, who have long complained of being treated as second-class citizens. The law declares Israel the national home of the Jewish people; states that the right to exercise self-determination is unique to the Jewish people and not its Arab minority; and declares Hebrew as the states language, with Arabic seemingly downgraded to special status, according to available translations. The law appears to further complicate the Middle East peace process between Israelis and Palestinians by reiterating that Jerusalem is the complete and united [...] capital of Israel before going on to say that the state views the development of Jewish settlement as a national value and will act to encourage and promote its establishment and consolidation, despite the process being considered illegal under international law. Although almost 9,000 kilometers separate Indonesia and Israel, issues pertaining to the Holy Land have always been close to the hearts of many Indonesians. This is unsurprising given Indonesias status as the worlds most populous Muslim-majority nation and the important status that Al-Quds or Jerusalem has as the home of Islams third-most holiest site after the Kabaa and the Masjidil Haram in Mecca. Yet, the issue also touches on Jakartas strong aversion to any form of colonialism, which Israels occupation of the Palestinian people amounts to. The Preamble to Indonesias Constitution declares that all colonialism must be abolished in this world as it is not in conformity with humanity and justice and mandates the government to participate in the establishment of a world order based on freedom, perpetual peace and social justice. It was in this sense that President Joko Jokowi Widodo campaigned in 2014 on a pledge to advance the Palestinian cause. He promised to open an Indonesian embassy in Palestine and support its effort to obtain full membership in the United Nations. In March 2016, Indonesia opened an honorary consulate in Ramallah, appointing Palestinian businesswoman Maha Abou Susheh as honorary consul. However, the inauguration had to be moved to Amman in neighboring Jordan after an Indonesian delegation led by Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi was refused entry by Israeli authorities. Indonesias support for the Palestinian cause (including Israels Arab minority) was manifested in other ways too. In March of the same year, Jakarta rebuffed calls from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to establish official bilateral relations. The other major manifestation of Indonesias support for the Palestinian cause was the holding of the fifth Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Extraordinary Summit on Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif in Jakarta, also in March 2016. Over 500 delegates from the 49 OIC member states participated, including Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Representatives, including those from the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC) and the European Union, which, together with the United States and Russia, make up the Quartet on the Middle East, were also invited. Jokowi then stated, The Islamic world still owes the Palestinian people their independence. The Palestinian struggle is our struggle. The summit adopted two documents, the Jakarta Declaration and the Resolution, both on Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif. Indonesia banned Israeli passport holders from entering the country in May as a response to the killing of Palestinian civilians who were holding a demonstration over the 70th year of the Nakba (catastrophe) in the Gaza Strip. Yet, several shortcomings are obvious. An honorary consul lacks the same authority and status as a fully fledged ambassador, with the former limited to providing assistance to Indonesian citizens in the Holy Land and advancing economic and sociocultural cooperation between Indonesia and Palestine. Furthermore, despite Jakartas rejection of formal relations, Indonesia and Israel have continued to conduct covert trade; totalling US$180 million in 2015. Also, the aforementioned summit was not covered significantly in Western media. This was perhaps unsurprising. Neither the UNSC nor the Quartet sent their foreign ministers to the summit, with countries such as the US being represented by a junior envoy and Russia and the EU by their Jakarta-based ambassadors. Jakartas decision to ban Israelis from visiting the country was quietly overturned after Israel temporarily responded in kind, leading to much outcry from Indonesian pilgrims wishing to travel to the Holy Land. How, then, should Indonesia respond to Israels new Jewish nation-state law? What lessons does the aforementioned provide for Jakarta in determining how to react to the latest development? Does it even matter if the government takes action? Clearly, inaction violates the noble vision of our founding fathers to rid colonialism in all its forms. Regarding past lessons, Indonesia must ensure its efforts go beyond simply hosting international gatherings and producing pretty documents. Indonesia should do more to work with key powers such as the five permanent members of the UNSC and the Quartet to put pressure on Israel. Jakarta must also be more firm and consistent in its position. It is simply not good enough for the government to flip-flop like it did with its policy on Israeli visitors or publicly declare that it does not recognize the Israeli state while allowing trade to take place. Such inconsistencies undermine Jakartas efforts and do nothing to help our Palestinian brothers and sisters. *** The writer heads the ASEAN Studies Program, The Habibie Center, Jakarta. The views expressed are his own. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Janet Steele (The Jakarta Post) Washington, D.C. Mon, July 23, 2018 11:21 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef17ba0 3 Opinion Malaysia,Malaysiakini,Malaysia-election,Mahathir-Mohamad,media,reformasi,democracy,Indonesian-politics,press-freedom Free Ever since the astonishing results of the 14th General Election in Malaysia, I have felt a strong sense of deja vu. I was in Jakarta working as a Fulbright professor on May 21, 1998, the day that Soeharto was forced to step down after 32 years of authoritarian rule. On May 9, 2018, I was on the other side of the world in Washington DC, but I was still able to follow the results live on Malaysiakini. In some ways, the Malaysian election was an even more remarkable achievement than what Id witnessed in Indonesia 20 years earlier. A change of government, after more than 60 years of one-party rule, and not one drop of bloodshed! But now the hard work begins. As happy as I was at the outcome of the election, I was also worried. Will Malaysia take the steps necessary to secure the most important reform of all - freedom of the press? If I have learned one thing from following press developments in Indonesia and Malaysia for the past 20 years, it is this: all reforms follow from press freedom, and journalists themselves must take the lead in demanding it. If anything secured the transition to democracy in Indonesia, it was the 1999 Press Law, which was drafted and passed largely because of how journalists kept up the pressure on the new government. So far, the new Pakatan Harapan government has been saying the right things about freedom of the press. Even before the election, PKR president Wan Azizah Wan Ismail promised that if the coalition won, it would review all laws and regulations restricting the media. DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng likewise guaranteed that Harapan would set up a media council comprising media figures, which will be responsible for developing and implementing a code of ethics on reporting and act as an ombudsman for public complaints. It is encouraging to see that new Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo has said that the government will create a media council, and heartening that media organizations such as the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) have reminded Harapan that it needs to keep its word. The Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) and Institute of Journalists Malaysia (IOJ) have also spoken up, chiding the new prime minister that it is not enough to redefine the Anti-Fake-News Bill, but that it must be repealed altogether - along with other laws that repress media freedom, including the Sedition Act and the Printing Presses and Publications Act. These are all good signs, but journalists need to do more than issue statements. As the IOJ itself has pointed out, While we laud the swift move by the new government to reiterate its commitment for press freedom and also push for the formation of a media council, we would like to remind and urge the ministry that any such proposal should be drawn up with active consultation with the stakeholders, including media groups. The day after Soehartos fall It has always been obvious to Indonesian journalists that most of what Indonesia has achieved since the fall of Soeharto would not have been possible without a free press. Journalists have informed the public of the content of repressive draft laws. They have uncovered scandals, reported on the theft of public money, and fact-checked what is said by politicians and candidates for public office. They have published details of crimes committed by those who were previously untouchable even Tommy Soeharto, who in 2002 was convicted of masterminding the murder of the judge who had sentenced him to prison for corruption. But how was all of this achieved? Beginning with the resignation of Soeharto in May 1998, Indonesian journalists wasted no time in pressing the new government for reform. One day after Soehartos resignation, the still-outlawed Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) circulated a list of demands that they considered essential to press freedom. AJI had been founded in 1994 in response not only to the banning of Tempo, Editor and Detik, but also to the tepid reaction of the state-sanctioned Indonesian Journalists Association, or PWI, which had stated that it could understand the banning of the three magazines. In his inaugural speech on May 23, the new Indonesian Minister of Information, Lieutenant General Muhammad Yunus Yosfiah, promised that he would support journalists in their profession. Unconvinced that he would keep this promise, a group of journalists led by AJI activist Roy Tumpal Pakpahan demonstrated in front of the Department of Information on May 28, and demanded to meet the new minister. To their astonishment, they were admitted to his reception room. Veteran journalist Atmakusumah Astraatmadja, who had been blacklisted from working in journalism after the 1974 banning of Mochtar Lubiss newspaper Indonesia Raya, recalled what happened next. So Roy read the 10 demands, he said. And when Yunus answered Roys speech, he said I agree with all of them. One week later, Yunus fulfilled the promise he had made and annulled the 1984 regulations signed by Harmoko. Stating that a review of the Press Law would take time because it had to involve the legislative assembly, he nevertheless removed many of the more restrictive rules that had been used to shackle the press. The minister further announced that the PWI would no longer be the sole body allowed to represent journalists, and that the government had no objection to journalists joining AJI, or indeed any other organization. And finally he confirmed that publishers who had lost their licenses under Soeharto should simply apply for a new one. The most important of AJIs demands had been met. The press community moved quickly to take advantage of the changes, while at the same time keeping pressure on the government to remove remaining restraints and institutionalize new freedoms. As Eros Djarot, the editor of the banned tabloid Detik said, I trust Yunus commitment to press freedom. But he is not going to be minister for thirty years. What will happen to the press if subsequent ministers are like Harmoko? In July 1998in a complete reversal of the usual way of doing things the Department of Information began to work with journalists on drawing up a new Press Law. Atmakusumah was invited to join these discussions, and he remembers them as being quite heated. There were many contentious issues, including whether a code of ethics should be included in the law, whether it would be compulsory to require media companies to set aside shares for journalists, and whether the government should set standards of journalistic competence. At a meeting with the Newspaper Publishers Association (SPS) on July 10, President Habibie suggested that journalists be required to get renewable licenses in order to maintain high standards of professionalism. PWI Secretary General Parni Hadi, who was known to be a close advisor to the president on media matters, explained that in Habibies view, the license would be like that required by the medical profession, valid for one year, but subject to revocation if the journalist was regarded as unprofessional or unqualified. The reaction to the presidents proposal was swift. Goenawan Mohamad, the former editor of Tempo, called it pathetic and a major setback. Pointing out that journalismunlike medicinewas an open profession, he said that editors are the ones who should be responsible for the quality of journalism. By September 1998, the battle lines were clear; journalists had to force the Habibie government to keep its promises of reform, and they had to be ever-vigilant against possible backsliding. In October, a group of journalists, activists and press organizations created a new association; the Indonesian Press Society or MPI, which drew up its own draft press law. As Leo Batubara of the Newspaper Publishers Association (SPS) pointed out, the governments version of the law (Draft 8) still had thirteen articles that would empower the government to control the media through regulation. It was like giving the government a blank check, he said. Apparently others in the Ministry of Information were also unhappy with the draft law as it was, and in early November Minister Yunus quietly asked UNESCO for assistance. One of UNESCOs partners in the promotion of freedom of the press is ARTICLE 19, an inter-governmental organization devoted to defending and promoting freedom of expression and access to information as enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Toby Mendel of ARTICLE 19 explained, the Minister realized that they simply did not have the capacity to take it forward (that is, they did not know how to draft a democratic press law). According to Mendel, this was the first time that UNESCO had provided actual drafting assistance for a law affecting freedom of expression. Once the draft press bill was complete, it was sent to the State Secretariat for study. Meanwhile, journalists organizations began to hold a series of seminars, hearings, and programs to socialize the public about the new law. On March 23 to April 4, an important seminar, titled Media and Government in Search of Solutions, took place in Jakarta. The program was officially opened by President Habibie at the State Palace. The first speaker was Tempo magazine founder Goenawan Mohamad, who pointed out that the riots and violence of the preceding year could have been avoided if there had been more openness and information. If there is a place for honest dialogue, a source of reliable information, a source to counter the poisonous rumors, then the free media can play its social role and obligations, he said. In August 1999, the DPR began its deliberations on the bill. Information Minister Yunus appeared twice before the DPR on August 26 and 27 to defend and explain the governments view of the bill, and in doing so demonstrated a firm command of both the particulars and the larger issues at stake. But it was not the ministers articulate defense of freedom of the press that impressed the press community, rather it was his willingness to let journalists themselves testify before the DPR. It was a heady day for Indonesian journalism when Atmakusumah Astraatmadja and Leo Batubaratwo great lions of press freedomappeared in Parliament as government experts, defending a Press Law that they themselves had been involved in drafting. The DPR passed the bill on September 13, 1999 and ten days later President Habibie signed it into law. As Atmakusumah wrote in D&R magazine, it was a law that had been 255 exhausting years in the making. Based on the fundamental principles of freedom of expression and the right to gather and disseminate information, the 1999 Press Law guaranteed freedom of the press, eliminated licensing as a means of controlling the press, removed the governments ability to ban publications, and limited the power of the government to introduce subsequent regulations. It also removed restrictions on who might practice journalism, and guaranteed the rights of journalists to join associations of their own choice, to seek, acquire, and disseminate ideas and information, to be free of censorship, and to refuse to divulge the names of their sources. Significantly, for the first time it provided penalties of fines or imprisonment for those who attempted to restrict press freedom rather than the reverse and it allowed for self-regulation of the press through the establishment of an independent press council. It was hard not to agree with Tempo when it concluded, If this law is truly applied as it is written, the Indonesian press is going to experience an era as sweet as honey. Despite the masterpiece of the 1999 Press Law, Indonesian journalists today still face a number of serious challengesmost notably from the defamation provisions of the Criminal Code (KUHP) that are at odds with the Press Law. The Criminal Code contains at least 40 clauses that can be used against journalists. Although the independent Press Council (created by the 1999 Press Law) is supposed to adjudicate in media disputes, authorities continue to undermine its mandate by bringing defamation charges to the courts. And despite a 2005 Supreme Court ruling that the 1999 Press Law should be used in all cases involving the press, the Criminal Code continues to be used to file defamation cases against journalists and others. Although interference from the government has ended, Indonesian journalists continue to face threats and intimidation from the public. Being perceived as insulting religion is especially dangerous; as Atmakusumah Astraatmadja has pointed out, it is extremely difficult to reach consensus on this topic even in the Press Council. Although there will always be a variety of opinions as to who deserves credit for the passage of the landmark 1999 Press Law, it was ultimately Indonesian journalists -- and the students and civil society groups that backed them -- who kept up the political pressure that led to the institutionalization of press freedom. As Atmakusumah put it, the initiative came from Yunus and the context from Habibie, but the movement came from the Indonesian people. The atmosphere, the euphoria pushed all sides to support the movement, he said, and it was they who pushed the DPR to create the new law. As the events of the 2011 Arab Spring have demonstrated, without an independent press a democratic revolution can be neither secure nor complete. In Indonesia, it was an unlikely coalition of journalists, old-school political elites, and forward-looking civil society groups that led to the historic passage of the 1999 Press Law, and paved the way to real and lasting reform. Malaysia, which is far more developed and advanced economically than Indonesia was twenty years ago, could nevertheless learn a great deal from Indonesian journalists insistence on reformasi total, beginning with a strong law that institutionalized press freedom. Will journalists in Malaysia take the lead in demanding the legislation necessary to secure this most important reform of all? It remains to be seen. *** Janet Steele is an associate professor of journalism at the George Washington University and the director of the Institute for Public Diplomacy and Global Communication. She received her Ph.D. in History from the Johns Hopkins University and focuses on how culture is communicated through the mass media. ______________________ This article was previously published on MalaysiaKini. The Jakarta Post republished the article with permission from author Janet Steele. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Editorial Board (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 08:29 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef10722 4 Editorial #Editorial,smoking,cigarette-smoking,cigarette-prices,smokers,children,children-health,stunting-in-children Free The adverse impact of nicotine on health is common knowledge. A 21-year study by the University of Indonesias Social Security Research Center (PKJS-UI) made public in June only confirms it and reminds the government yet again to take radical action. The research found that tobacco smoking is also a drain on peoples finances and more importantly stunts their children physically and intellectually. While the health hazards do not easily deter people from smoking, serious attention should be focused on how to prevent children from becoming another generation of tobacco smokers. Still, preventing the next generation from becoming addicted to smoking is just as difficult as convincing the adults to stop. Indonesia is one of the worlds largest smoking nations. In 2017, the Health Ministry recorded more than 60 million active smokers in the country. Though most of the smokers were adult males (67 percent), the ministry also discovered an 8.8 percent increase in the number of young smokers aged 10 to 18. Antitobacco activists argue that low cost is a primary cause of the large number of smokers in Indonesia. Child protection group Lentera Anak Indonesia (LAI) has singled out low prices as the leading factor that tempts many people to begin smoking at a young age. Its research in May and June 2017 in 10 regencies and municipalities showed that cigarettes were so inexpensive that even students from poor families could afford to buy them. One significant result of the PKJS-UI research is that children exposed to cigarette smoke at home are at increased risk of stunting. It found that children of nonsmoking parents were 1.5 kilograms heavier and 3.4 millimeters taller than those of heavy smokers. The latter also had a 5.5 percent higher probability of stunting. Tobacco smoking is not the sole trigger of stunting. But, as the PKJS-UI has concluded, exposure to cigarette smoke creates an unhealthy environment that hampers childrens growth. It also found that children whose parents are chain smokers tend to have poor academic performances, especially in mathematics, due to inadequate nutrient intake and an unhealthy home environment that is not conducive to their studying. Antitobacco activists believe that one effective way to discourage people from smoking is to raise cigarette prices by increasing the excise on tobacco by up to 57 percent. The government raised the tobacco excise by only 10 percent this year based on a conviction that increasing taxes would deal a heavy blow to the tobacco industry, which 6 million people rely on for their livelihoods, and over fears that expensive cigarettes could give rise to a black market and slash income tax. Certainly, no policy can satisfy everybody but to achieve the noble goal of ensuring a healthy environment for future generations, it is high time the government did whatever it takes to protect our children, especially when we are anticipating a demographic bonus in 2025-2035. As the PKJS-UI found, most smokers would not mind a sharp increase in cigarette prices. So what is the government waiting for? Every year, San Diego Comic-Con offers delightful surprises for science-fiction and fantasy lovers. This year's convention has done the same, without fail, with a series of new teasers and trailers. Some videos were exclusive to Comic-Con attendees, like the teaser for It: Chapter 2, but luckily for us, new trailers for highly anticipated movies were uploaded on YouTube after debuting at Comic-Con. Without further ado, here are five new trailers from Comic-Con that are sure to put fuel in the hype train: Aquaman The trailer teases the origin story of how half-Atlantean Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa) became Aquaman. Upon viewing the first 30 seconds of the trailer, one cannot help but think of a scene from the Harry Potter franchise in which Harry talks to a snake behind a glass wall. As an adult, land-dweller Arthur must go back to Atlantis to stop his brother Orm (Patrick Wilson), the present King of Atlantis, from declaring war against humans. The vivid and enchanting visuals of the Atlantis kingdom look promising enough, and better than the notorious CGI in Justice League. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald The trailer opens with the sight of good old Hogwarts. There, a young student, Newton "Newt" Scamander (Joshua Shea), reveals in class that his biggest fear is "having to work in an office". It seems that the second installment of the Fantastic Beasts series will focus on how older Newt (Eddie Redmayne) and beloved headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) team up to catch a powerful dark wizard, Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp), who escaped after the end of the first movie. While the first film was set in the United States, this one takes place in Europe. Still, some characters from America make an appearance, including "No-Maj" Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler), sisters Queenie (Alison Sudol) and Porpentina "Tina" Goldstein (Katherine Waterston), and the tortured Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller). Famed alchemist Nicholas Flamel is expected to get some screen time as well. Glass Are superheroes real, or are they just delusional? Dr. Ellie Staple (Sarah Paulson) makes it her mission to find out the answer, with three extraordinary patients under her care. Glass is the third and final installment in M. Night Shyamalan's "Eastrail 177 Trilogy", following Unbreakable (2000) and Split (2016). The movie reunites three superhumans: the fragile genius Mr. Glass (Samuel L. Jackson), the man of 23 separate personalities, Kevin Wendell Crumb, (James McAvoy) and heroic David Dunn (Bruce Willis). Godzilla: King of the Monsters Go away, humans. The monsters are back, and in the words of director Michael Dougherty, they are trying to "reclaim the Earth". The movie pays homage to the kaiju genre, with the appearance of Rodan, Mothra and the three-headed King Ghidorah. The human cast includes Millie Bobby Brown, Vera Farmiga, O'Shea Jackson and Charles Dance. A secret, likely villainous organization, Monarch, looks to play a central role in the movie. Shazam! After years of being put through commercial flops, DC fanboys deserve a solid superhero movie beyond Wonder Woman. The trailer for Shazam! is lighthearted and funny, standing in stark contrast to the studio's usual grim, desaturated look. Main character Billy Batson finds himself with an alter-ego as superhero Shazam, played by Zachary Levi (who previously appeared in Thor). According to several reports, DC will take a step back from its rather disastrous expanded universe to focus on standalone movies. Indeed, with Shazam!, it seems that DC is pushing the reset button. Read also: Trailer for Tom Hardy's Venom released Fun fact: Shazam was initially called Captain Marvel, but the superhero was rebranded because of a trademark dispute with Marvel Comics. A movie on Captain Marvel starring Brie Larson is set to hit the screens in 2019. (kes) A number of watercolor paintings were exhibited at Balai Soedjatmoko in Surakarta, Central Java, earlier in July. Carrying the theme Cinta Warna Nusantara (Love of the archipelagos colors), more than 90 paintings by artists hailing from various places, including Nepal and Thailand, were exhibited at the exhibition. The exhibiting artists are members of the Indonesian Watercolor Painters Community (Kolcai), established in 2012. Around 25,000 artists are members of Kolcai, divided into 16 chapters throughout Indonesia. True to its theme, the exhibition portrays the diversity of Indonesia covering art, culture, tradition, tourism and way of life. Diversity is also visible through the different styles and techniques employed by the artists. Kolcai head Candra Martoyo said the exhibition aimed to provide a stage for watercolor artists. The art has been less popular, although he sees that Indonesias watercolor paintings have been getting more international exposure over the past few years. Kolcai was, therefore, established to serve as the center of information, learning and exploration of watercolor art. Read also: Graphic art exhibit asks where dignity has gone Among the highlighted works are Tari Rejang di Pura Samuan Tiga (Rejang dance at Samuan Tiga temple) by SNK Sutama, which depicts a ritual in a Hindu temple. The watercolors were brushed lightly, dominated by white, yellow and red. Another highlight is Agus Tomins Wayang Krucil (Krucil puppet), inspired by Blora, Central Java puppets. This type of puppet was initially made of leather, but it shifted to wood and became known as wayang Klithik. The exhibition is well-appreciated by attendees. Rahyu, a visitor to the exhibition, said that the watercolor paintings were no less beautiful than oil paintings. Kolcai also interacted with watercolor enthusiasts through a discussion, workshop and painting class at Loji Gandrung, the mayors official residence. (mut) The world's largest fan convention bid a poignant farewell to the star of the most successful show in cable TV history on Friday as zombies took over San Diego Comic-Con. An extensive line-up of stars descended on the city's sprawling convention center to whet appetites for AMC's "The Walking Dead" and its sister show "Fear the Walking Dead." The departure of British actor Andrew Lincoln, who has appeared as Sheriff Rick Grimes in almost every episode since the 2010 pilot, has been an open secret since May, confirmed inadvertently by executive producer Robert Kirkman. But the official announcement was reserved for Comic-Con, an annual pop culture celebration that attracts more than 100,000 devotees to southern California, many in elaborate costumes, every July. "There seems to be an elephant in the room. This will be my last season playing the part of Rick Grimes," Lincoln, 44, told the packed 6,500-seat Hall H, prompting a dismayed murmur that spread throughout the arena. "I love this show. It means everything to me. I love the people who make this show. I promise not to cry. I've done enough crying on screen," Lincoln promised. Based on a comic book of the same name by a trio of writers including one of the show's executive producers Robert Kirkman, the post-apocalyptic zombie-ridden vision of the United States portrayed in "The Walking Dead" has proved uniquely resonant. Dwarfing competition like HBO's "Game of Thrones" in the US, it has the highest total viewership in cable history and, crucially, the highest audience of 18-49s for any kind of US television between 2013 and 2017. Read also: Track zombies with Pokemon Go-style 'The Walking Dead' mobile game 'Tensions rising' The show centers on Lincoln's Grimes, who wakes up in a hospital bed after getting shot, only to find he is alone in a world of vicious, flesh-eating reanimated corpses -- known as "walkers" on the show. "I got kind of choked up. It's been nine years of coming here," Lincoln told reporters after what will be his last sojourn to San Diego on behalf of "The Walking Dead." "I love this place and I love seeing the fans, and you've been such a vital part of this experience. But my relationship with Mr Grimes is far from over." It was unclear if he was talking about the current shoot for his final episodes, the possibility of appearing in one of the franchise's numerous side projects, or something else entirely. The ninth season, coming in October, takes place two years after the "All Out War" saga of the previous two, with story editor Angela Kang taking over from veteran showrunner Scott Gimple. AMC dropped a trailer lasting almost six minutes at Comic-Con which shows Rick in more peaceful times as the leader of a sprawling settlement of survivors -- but with tensions rising among his lieutenants. "Fear the Walking Dead" kicked off the two-hour zombocalypse earlier with a presentation that critics agreed seemed to be drawing a line under all storylines past and presenting an almost entirely new show. Read also: Walking Dead keeps Next Games alive in cutthroat competition 'Fermentation process' Aired since 2015, "FtWD" doesn't get the history-making numbers of the main show -- but is still one of the top-rated US cable series with just under two million viewers per episode. "Fear" shocked its legion of ardent fans by presaging its parent show and killing its protagonist -- Kim Dickens's Madison Clark -- just before the halfway break of season four. The remaining cast -- including established stars Colman Domingo, Alycia Debnam-Carey, Danay Garcia and newcomers Lennie James, Garret Dillahunt, Maggie Grace and Jenna Elfman -- spoke passionately about their work. But it wasn't long before the conversation with journalists descended into a conversation about whether zombies were able to "poop," as well as snarling and shuffling. The tone was lowered as Gimple mentioned in passing that James's character Morgan, a crossover from the main show, is seen on the toilet in an upcoming episode and was asked if zombies "poop." "What did I say? It's going to be the next thing people want to know! It's exactly what I said!" grandstanded a faux-exasperated James. "I think there's a fermentation process that could result in projectiles," offered a wry Gimple, clearly amused by the prospect. Grace, most famous for ABC's "Lost" and the "Taken" movies, was disdainful, however, explaining that she didn't really go in for matters "scatalogical." She was game enough to suggest, though, that we might already be witnessing the effect of many a zombie call-of-nature in every episode. "That's why they walk so strangely," she said. Season four of "Fear The Walking Dead" resumes on August 12. Scores of literature enthusiasts and artists crowded the newly renovated hall of Aksara bookstore in Kemang, South Jakarta, on Saturday evening as the retailer celebrated its recent collaboration with Post Santa Bookshop, also based in South Jakarta, to focus on alternative literature and serve as a community center. Today marks a very important milestone. Aksara has officially switched gears to prioritize books by authors from the alternative literature scene, which has notably gained traction as of late, Aksara creative director Aninda Simanjuntak said. The subject of alternative literature was at the heart of a lively panel involving authors Mikael Johani and Yusi Avianto Pareanom, as well as Post Santa Bookshop co-founders Teddy W. Kusuma and his wife Maesy Ang as speakers. According to Mikael, the importance of alternative literature could not be overstated since it introduced readers to various subjects and perspectives that were rarely found in mainstream works. The emergence of alternative literature, he added, should be accommodated by independent publishers and bookstores. However, it is worth noting that the book-publishing industry in Indonesia is a little odd. Some independent publishers lack a clear sense of specialization, he said. Yusi shared the outlook, saying that most publishers who claimed to be independent relied on book sales at mainstream big-chain retailers. Mainstream publishers only aim to meet demands in the market. For instance, there was a religious novel boom several years ago, and every big publisher suddenly wanted to cash in on the trend, he said. The profit-oriented approach by mainstream publishers had directly contributed to a lack of literary choices for readers, Yusi added. This is where the revamped Aksara comes in. We want to fill the gap. To me, alternative means opening up a new range of literary tastes and styles for readers to indulge in, Adinda said. Maesy, whose Post Santa Bookshop offers works published by independent publishers, such as Banana and Marjin Kiri, noted the significance of a more personalized approach to book curation at independent bookstores such as Aksara. The key is to make the bookstore a human environment where the staff warmly offer personal recommendations to the customers, she said, adding that such seemingly small gestures stood in stark contrast to the emotionally detached sales approach at large book retailers. As part of its new curation approach, Post Santa Bookshop now has a special shelf containing alternative novels. The curated shelf would be updated with a quarterly theme every three months, according to Maesy. The concept of personalized book curation has struck a chord with long-time Aksara customers, who have embraced the bookstores new direction. I am excited for a more curated collection at Aksara since I love discovering new authors, said Agatha Rachel, a frequent shopper at the bookstore, which holds poetry collections. Meanwhile, another loyal customer of Aksara, Clarissa Pascalia, said she looked forward to future community events at the bookstore. Aksaras pivot to alternative literature came after its decision in April to close its stores at upscale shopping malls such as Pacific Place and Cilandak Townsquare, both in South Jakarta, because of financial reasons. Decreases in book sales at both stores could barely cover the malls costs for rent, Adinda said. From now on, we no longer cater exclusively to the book crowd. We share the building with various communities and hobbyists, which we hope will bring energy among customers, Adinda said, adding that the book-selling business would remain at the core of Aksara. Currently, Aksara works with communities such as Ganara Art, ABCD School of Coffee, Samson Vinyl Music and Labnara Analog Photography to deliver on its promise of being a community center. Labnara Analog Photography founder Wahyudin responded positively to the newfound collaboration among communities at Aksara. Hobbies and interests always intersect with each other. You gather them in one place, and great things will surely follow, he said. (rfa) When her monthly period comes, 17-year-old Maria Chaodza dismantles a home-made pillowcase and picks out pieces of its worn stuffing - an old, cloth rug - which she uses in place of the sanitary pad she cannot afford. Menstruation means missing school; Chaodza feels too ashamed of her makeshift pad to show her face as she battles days of heavy bleeding. Neither her parents, who are peasant farmers in Zimbabwes Mashonaland West Province in Makonde rural district, nor her boyfriend in the village can afford to buy her sanitary wear. Zimbabwe is suffering a sanitary wear crisis. With many schoolgirls too poor to buy the sort of basic products most teens take for granted, they rely on teachers' donations, torn strips of cloth, plants and old newspapers. In February this year, hundreds of girls and women gathered in the capital for a march dubbed Happy Flow Campaign to demand more affordable sanitary wear. First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa has distributed free sanitary pads to poor women and girls, and hopes are now rising that this year's elections might yet ease the crisis. If we vote for the right person to lead our country, Im sure things will get better for us, as poor woman, facing difficulties (getting) sanitary wear," said Chaodza. Until then, handouts and ersatz pads will have to do. Some young girls resort to using weeds and leaves in place of sanitary pads, compromising their health," Obert Masaraure, president of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "We appeal for free sanitary wear in our schools. Along with the rural teachers, civil society groups such as the Youth Dialogue Action Network have stepped in to help. We have managed to raise resources to enable us get sanitary wear for the poor women andgirls, especially in rural areas. Sanitary wear is a big challenge to them because most families here live on less than $1 a day, its director Catherine Mkwapati told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. It costs the equivalent of $5 to buy one standard packet of pads in Zimbabwe, way beyond the reach of many families. It cost just $1 in 2015, before the nation's economic crisis worsened. With average earnings per head of $253 dollars a month, most families would rather spend $5 on a standard 20 kg bag of maize. Torn towel Even for grown women like 37-year-old Tracy Hungwe, who lives in the same rural district as Chaodza, so-called period poverty has become a repeated monthly problem. I share a little torn towel with my 16-year-old daughter during our menstruation because buying actual sanitary wear from shops is very expensive she told Thomson Reuters Foundation. "And even if they become cheaper, we have no money." Yet with two years of cash shortages worsening in this southern African nation, pads have only grown more expensive. Companies such as Clovit Investments - which used to manufacture sanitary pads in Zimbabwe - ceased operations four years ago, so pads are now imported from neighbouring countries like South Africa, boosting prices. In November, Zimbabwes sole remaining sanitary wear maker, Onsdale Enterprises, faced closure as it lacked the foreign currency to import raw materials. It is not currently operating. Read also: Zimbabwe legalises cannabis for medical, scientific use Politics of periods Parliamentarians from the opposition Movement for Democratic Change party have urged the government to invest in the industry and provide free period products as a show of respect. Sanitary wear should be made readily available free of charge just like condoms; government should pay for sanitary wear. Government should take the dignity of women and girls seriously, Jessie Majome, a Zimbabwean legislator from the opposition MDC party, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. But with a dearth of cash in the rural areas that are home to more than 70 percent of the population, women are hard hit. Here in the village, even if a relative living in the city sends you money via your mobile phone, in order to buy (things) using that money, shops require physical money, not money transferred from your phone. This is hurting us, Chaodza said. Traders who sell imported sanitary products need foreign currency and a handsome margin to turn enough profit from their business, pushing prices out of the reach of many locals. Remember, we need foreign currency to go and buy these sanitary pads to sell, and we also need profit. We cant run a business on practising mercy, Jimson Mugove, who sells wares imported from South Africa, told Thomson Reuters Foundation. Activists say the situation is now desperate, forcing tough decisions on anyone poor who menstruates. "Because they just want to have sanitary wear, some of the girls and women are in desperate mode and engage in sex work, just to have something to buy sanitary wear, Sarah Chikono, an activist with the rights group Women of Zimbabwe Arise, said. "But that doesnt end like that, because its always tragic as some of them get infected with AIDS," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Warner Bros. closed the final full day of the Comic-Con International fanfest on Saturday as the belle of the ball, bringing its roster of superheroes to take a bow in San Diego. The studio took over the 6,500-seat main arena at the world's largest celebration of fan culture for two star-studded hours, serving up tantalizing teasers for its DC Extended Universe series of comic-book movies. With Disney-owned Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm both bowing out this year, it was Warner's chance to shine and the studio obliged with a line-up of the world's biggest stars, including Johnny Depp, Chris Pratt, Jude Law, Elizabeth Banks and Eddie Redmayne. One of the most eagerly-awaited presentations of the week, it was a chance for WB to show it is back on track after poor reviews for its DC Extended Universe movies "Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice," "Suicide Squad" and "Justice League." The studio set out its stall with extensive looks at James Wan's upcoming "Aquaman" and "Wonder Woman: 1984," a follow-up to 2017's "Wonder Woman," the DCEU's only unqualified success. "The way we look at this is not a sequel, it's a new chapter, it's a new story," said Israeli actress Gal Gadot, who was shown as Wonder Woman saving a young girl from gunmen in rough early footage. Director Patty Jenkins described the era of the sequel -- out in November next year -- as "mankind at its best and worst." 'Half-naked' "We're aware of things now that we weren't in the 1980s," she told the crowd. "There were some incredible and beautiful things in the 80s but at the same time... it's us at our most extreme." The presentation also unveiled the first trailer for "Shazam!" -- an altogether more light-hearted entry in the DC universe starring Zachary Levi that is due out in April next year. Read also: Scare Diego unleashes terror as Comic-Con kicks off But the undoubted star of the show was "Aquaman," which raised the roof as a shirtless Jason Momoa appeared onscreen in a new trailer as half-human, half-Atlantean hero Arthur Curry. "You're in armor or you're half-naked in tattoos and it was a bad choice looking back to wear denim," Momoa recalled of the production, which required him to be wet most days. "They look like leather pants, but they're not." There was a second preview for the Christmas release that unveiled Aquaman's nemesis, Black Manta, as well as more underwater action, a rooftop chase and a final view of the Momoa in his superhero threads. Warner's first exclusive of the session gave Harry Potter fans a look at the legendary battle between Professor Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald in "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald," which hits theaters on November 16. Troubled star Johnny Depp was a surprise appearance onstage, missing "Aquaman" actress Amber Heard, his wife before last year's acrimonious divorce, by less than an hour. Loud gasps Depp plays Gellert Grindelwald, a casting that irked many since the actor has been dogged by controversy in his private life, including allegations of domestic abuse. The mustachioed, platinum-haired A-lister didn't take questions but came onstage in costume after the Q&A to rapturous applause, alongside Redmayne and newcomer Jude Law, making his Harry Potter debut as a young Albus Dumbledore. Up next was "Lego Movie 2" with sit-com support actor turned in-demand megastar Chris Pratt, who plays Star-Lord in the "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies. Read also: 'Better Call Saul' goes back to the future at Comic-Con The actor laughed that he first accepted the role of Lego construction worker and planet-saver Emmet Brickowski in the 2014 original when he was still Andy on comedy series "Parks & Recreation." By the time he'd finished recording his voice part he was a Hollywood star and a Marvel superhero. "It was one of those moments when I thought, 'Oh, I'm living in a computer simulation -- this is the Matrix," he joked. If it's not superheroes and wizards, it's skyscraper-sized lizards, and a trailer from "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" drew loud gasps from the Comic-Conners. Led by 14-year-old "Stranger Things" star Millie Bobby Brown, the footage showed a city collapsing as Godzilla and fellow giants King Ghidora, a three-headed dragon, the insect Mothra and the winged beast Rodan do battle. Michael Dougherty's movie is part of WB's "MonsterVerse," which launched with Gareth Edwards's 2014 "Godzilla" and last year's "Kong: Skull Island." "I'm still a kid playing with Godzilla toys. They're just bigger more expensive Godzilla toys," he said. Kim Sang-ji picks up on the latest fashion trends and finds out about new cosmetics by scrolling through posts on Instagram. The 28-year-old says more than half of the people she follows on Instagram are not her friends or acquaintances, but celebrities or social media superstars. It is just enjoyable to look at their picture-perfect lifestyles on social media. Their photos are glamorous, and the trendy fashion items they introduce are fun to watch, said Kim, who spends less time flipping through fashion magazines and looking for reviews online. Fashion and beauty industries have quickly caught on to the trend that the younger generation is spending a significant amount of time on social media platforms, such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, rather than traditional advertising platforms like TV. A 2017 survey by statistics portal Statista found that 84 percent of Koreans were active social media users. Another set of statistics showed that an average of 2 hours and 15 minutes per day is spent on social networks globally. As for Instagram, 90 percent of its users are younger than 35, and 68 percent are female, according to US social media marketing firm Dreamgrow. This has led to more brands turning to influencer marketing to lure consumers, further boosting the power of social media stars. Influencer marketing has more focus on influential people rather than the target market as a whole. It identifies the individuals with influence, and orients marketing activities around these influencer, Park Kyung-a, CEO of mobile marketing and advertising company Stella, told The Korea Herald. Followers of these influencers are more than fans who like celebrities since they not only gain useful information from them but also empathize, communicate, and share common interests with influencers, Park said. Paying celebrities to share branded content on social media is one of the most widely-known forms of influencer marketing. Read also: Why do we trust beauty influencers? This kind of advertising, in which celebrities and popular Instagramers earn money by posting their experience with products, has developed globally in recent years on social media platforms. In the US, the social media influencer market was valued at $1 billion (1.1 trillion won) in 2016, but is expected to reach $2 billion by 2019, industry data showed. The US alone contributes to a whopping 85 percent of Instagrams total advertisement revenue, according to data. The lucrative business is also significant in other countries. One of Chinas best-known Wang Hong -- a Chinese word for social media star -- reportedly earns $46 million a year. According to Forbes, top Chinese actress Fan Bingbing made about $21 million in 2016. In Korea, over 2 trillion won was spent for advertising on mobile platforms last year, surpassing that of advertising on cable TV -- 1.8 trillion won -- for the first time. While Instagram influencers in the US charge up to $100,000 for a sponsored post, industry insiders here say brands in Korea pay from 100,000 won to more than 2 million won for a single social media post, depending on the loyalty of the persons followers. Beauty and fast fashion brands are at the forefront of using social media influencers who have millions of followers. South Korean cosmetics giant Amorepacific is one of them. Its budget cosmetics brand Etude House has seen success in influencer marketing, the company said. In February, it collaborated with beauty YouTuber Holy, who has some 382,000 subscribers, to promote a new cleansing water product. A video of Holy trying out the product garnered more than 630,000 views in just four days after its release. In a month, the video garnered over 3.8 million views, according to the company. Read also: When fashion meets social media As these influencers try to review the product from a creative, new and different point of view, in ways that sometimes the company cannot think of, it is more appealing and more candid, said Ahn Hyeon-jin, a public relations official at Amorepacific. The rapid growth of influencer marketing shows how the ad industry is transforming as brands struggle to reach consumers in a widespread world of diverse content on the internet, which is now the biggest platform ahead of TV, he added. Viral online posts have indeed raised revenue, according to Galleria Department store. In March, Galleria Department store collaborated with beauty influencer Sangahtube for the marketing of Tom Ford beauty products. Following the release of online content on Sangahtubes social media channels, sales of Tom Ford beauty products on its online mall went up by 55 percent on-year, officials said. To make the most of influencer marketing, brands are testing ways to measure paid-partnership posts, industry insiders say. Although influencer marketing has many benefits in terms of brand awareness and winning over consumers, it can also go awry if an influencer loses public support. To minimize the risks of influencer marketing, we determine the type of influencers the brand is engaging with before deciding on collaboration. While reach and engagement rates are great indicators in choosing influencers, the factors that define each influencer persona are found in influencers motivations and attitudes, said Ahn from Amorepacific. Since theres little that brands can do to predict whether an influencer will lose public support, brands are trying out new ways of creating sponsored content. Brands are finding their own approach to transparency and authenticity, whether or not the term sponsored has a negative impact on consumer perception, said an agency official who has planned several offline events with social media stars. Since paid partnership does not always equate high sales or explosive consumer feedback, whats important is that the brand matches with the right influencer for its product to sincerely deliver the brands value -- or at least what the brand wants to say, she added. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Bambang Muryanto (The Jakarta Post) Kulon Progo, Yogyakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 06:31 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef0d6a8 1 National NYIA,Yogyakarta,Kulon-progo,eviction,land-acquisition,land-clearing,land-conflicts Free From inside her closed house, Wagirah, 40, was reciting prayers in a last-ditch effort to defend her house and land against the development of a new airport in Yogyakarta. But dozens of police, military and provincial public order personnel did not hear her prayers. Some of them came forward, forced open her door and dragged Wagirah and her son, Yuli, out. Wearing pink praying attire, she fought off police officers who tried to carry her away from her house. They dropped her to the ground but she fought to stand up, trying to bite the hands that were trying to restrain her. I dont want you demolish my house. You are an oppressor of small people, she screamed repeatedly on Thursday. That day, Wagirahs house in Temon, Kulon Progo regency, was demolished to pave the way for a new, bigger airport for the province, called New Yogyakarta International Airport (NYIA), to replace the overcrowded Adisutjipto International Airport in Sleman regency. The demolition continued until Saturday, when all 10 houses were flattened to the ground. Wagirah and her neighbors, all of them women, continued to defy the personnel. They threw dust and challenged the officers to a one-on-one fight. The fight, however, came to a bitter end for the residents. Two excavators quickly destroyed her house. At the same time, two women, Wagirahs neighbors, tried to protect their belongings, which were going to be taken away by state-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I. Also wearing praying attire, they sat on their furniture while reciting prayers. They sometimes interrupted their prayers to express their anger to the people who wanted to take their land. Dont you think about our children? They will come home from school to find they no longer have a house, a woman yelled. Ika Rochyanti, a resident, said she was punched in the nose by a policewoman while she was trying to defend her house. She showed a spot of blood on her white praying dress. They took my Quran and I was dragged out of the house, she said. PT Angkasa Pura I, with the support of 700 civilian and military personnel, destroy residents' houses on Thursday in Temon, Kulonprogo regency, to make way for a new airport. Some residents do not want to move because they say the area is good for farming, which for them has been a steady source of income. (JP /Bambang Muryanto) The defiant 86 families Wagirah, Ika and the other women are part of 86 families who still refused to sell their land for the airports development. From Thursday to Saturday, AP I officials and 700 joint personnel finally demolished the rest of houses except for the village mosque. Their fight to defend the land that was not just their home but also a source of income from agriculture had continued for years since 2012. The fight escalated last year when the company finished the legal process to buy the land. Some residents accepted the purchase, while others, like Wagirah, refused and claimed the legal process validating the land purchase did not have their consent as land owners. The 86 families were united under the Association of Residents Rejecting Kulon Progo Forced Eviction. In 2012, there were thousands of members defying the acquisition. But many of them left the fight after they got a price they agreed with. In April, the 86 families were the only ones left fighting AP I when the company cut the electricity supply and damaged their farmland. They remained in the village and replanted their fields. Because planting is fighting, farmer Tuginah said in April. The residents refused to agree to the prices offered by AP I because they had earned considerable income planting vegetables and fruits there. They believed they would not be able to find a suitable replacement for their fertile coastal soil. For the residents here, after harvesting their chilies, vegetables and fruits, they can easily buy a motorcycle [if they want], resident Widi Sumarto said, describing the wealth the land had brought them. Legal battle The residents have taken several legal avenues to refuse the acquisition. They tried to find help from the Indonesian Ombudsman, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) and the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan). But until now, they could not stop the land acquisition. The land acquisition followed a procedure stipulated in Law No. 12/2012 on land procurement for public facilities. The law allows the government to procure land and pay compensation via the local court, called a konsiyasi mechanism. The residents lawyer, Teguh Purnomo, argued that the mechanism applied to the Temon residents was not valid. There has never been any agreement between the government and the residents under the association to comply with the konsiyasi mechanism. The residents still rightfully own the houses and the land, he claimed. Local Islamic figure Ustadz Sofyan, one of the leaders of an association of local residents rejecting eviction in Kulon Progo, delivers a speech to call for state utility firm PLN Yogyakarta to reinstall electricity networks to their houses. (JP/Bambang Muryanto) However, the leader of the NYIA project, Sujiastono, begged to differ. He said the demolition and the land acquisition were done in compliance with the law. It has been decided firmly [by the court] that this land is not for housing anymore but for NYIA development, he said. He said the procedure was also done in line with human rights principles. AP I provided free transportation and helped pay the rent of 20 houses for the families under the association. Mosque as last bastion Losing her house and her field did not stop Wagirah from fighting. She and dozens of others remained in their village and refused relocation. Were going to stay here and help each other, said Sofyan. He said Al-Hidayah Mosque, a permanent building that is still standing in the demolished village, would be the residents last bastion. Sofyan said they would keep fighting because they felt they had the rights to the land. Our house and land are not for sale, he said. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nethy Dharma Somba (The Jakarta Post) Jayapura Mon, July 23, 2018 22:05 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef4bae9 1 National #Papua,#vaccines Free Twenty-one out of 29 regencies and cities in Papua have received measles, rubela and polio (MRP) vaccines. The remaining eight regencies have yet to receive the vaccines, Papua Health Agency vaccination division head Togu Sihombing said on Monday. In addition to the measles and rubela vaccines, the government is also adding polio vaccines to the program because of a polio outbreak in neighboring Papua New Guinea (PNG). Five regencies and cities in Papua -- Jayapura city, Keerom, Pegunungan Bintang, Boven Digul and Supiori -- share a border with PNG. Togu said the agency had implemented the vaccination program dissemination in 26 regencies but not to the regencies of Yahukimo, Paniai and Central Memberamo. The three regencies have yet to implement the program dissemination because we are waiting for the right time, he said. He revealed that 14 regencies have low vaccination coverage due to them being in remote areas and a lack of awareness among residents about the program. Papua Customary Community Council deputy chairman Weynand Watoti suggested that the government should involve traditional leaders to increase residents awareness of the program. People still believe in customary and religious leaders. The campaign would be more effective if it involved them, he said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Gautier Virol (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France Mon, July 23, 2018 22:51 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef4ca99 2 World #France,#Macron,#security,#scandal Free At just 26, Alexandre Benalla -- the French presidential bodyguard filmed beating a protester -- enjoyed a meteoric rise before sparking the biggest scandal yet of Emmanuel Macron's presidency. A former bouncer, Benalla grew up in a working-class neighbourhood of Evreux, a sleepy town in the northern region of Normandy, where former classmates remembered him as mild-mannered and friendly. He was a keen rugby player, though he had yet to take on the burly frame of the man filmed wrestling a young man and woman during violent May 1 protests, while wearing the helmet of a riot officer. A member of the Young Socialists, Benalla joined the party's security team in 2010, guarding Francois Hollande during his winning presidential campaign two years later. Eric Plumer, who was head of the Socialist security corps in 2010 when Benalla was hired, said that he had trained the young man himself and that his behaviour had been "irreproachable". "He worked very hard on the tasks I gave him," Plumer said. But Benalla ran into trouble when he was posted onto the security detail of industry minister Arnaud Montebourg. "I let him go after a week, after a serious professional error -- he caused a car accident in my presence, and wanted to flee the scene," Montebourg said. 'Rambo' Benalla, who was due to get married last weekend and who reportedly holds a master's degree in law, then spent some time working for a security company in Casablanca, Morocco. After returning to France he joined Macron's security team for last year's election campaign, soon becoming the future president's closest bodyguard. After Macron's victory in May 2017 Benalla was given a top role in the presidential security team. Until his suspension and subsequent sacking over the videos of him manhandling the protesters -- which have led to criminal charges and opposition cries of an attempted cover-up -- he was often photographed at Macron's side. Elysee Chief Security Officer Alexandre Benalla (center) wearing a police visor, next to Vincent Crase (center, left), a security aide for Macron's Republic on the Move party, as they drag away a demonstrator during May 1 protests in Paris. (Naguib-Michel Sidhom / AFP) (AFP/Naguib-Michel Sidhom) Several journalists complained of Benalla's heavy-handed behaviour while protecting Macron on the campaign trail, and the Young Communists have claimed he beat one of their members at a protest in 2016. At the headquarters of Macron's centrist party En Marche, he earned the nickname "Rambo". Emails just before the election revealed a run-in with party treasurer Cedric O after he tried to buy pellet guns and riot shields for the campaign. "I've never heard of political parties having armed guards," O wrote. "I actually find that pretty crazy and I would like to know 1. whether it's justified and 2. whether it's legal." Benalla applied for an interior ministry permit to carry a weapon during the campaign, which was refused. He eventually managed to get permission through the Paris police. Away from the office, Benalla was ranked as a lieutenant-colonel in the reserves of France's national military police, the gendarmerie -- a senior rank rarely granted to anyone under the age of 40. Benalla was given the rank due to "the level of his expertise", according to the gendarmerie. He left the reserves at his own request in 2017, continuing with the force instead as a security expert. Despite his role in the gendarmerie reserves, he has never worked as a police officer, and it remains unclear how he got the police helmet and armband he is seen wearing in the videos. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Beijing Mon, July 23, 2018 14:43 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef2d5c5 2 Business China,EU,Japan,South-Korea,Indonesia,Trade,dumping-allegation,steel Free China on Monday launched an anti-dumping probe into stainless steel products imported from the European Union, Japan, South Korea and Indonesia as the metal remains the focus of global trade tensions. This spring Washington slapped steep tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from major producers, including China, citing concerns that a glut of the metals was hurting US industry and threatening national security. Although the measures were largely aimed at overcapacity in China, Beijing on Monday became the latest government to take action on the issue after a local producer called for an investigation into alleged dumping. China's probe focuses on stainless steel billet and hot-rolled stainless steel plate, according to a statement from the commerce ministry. The initial complaint was filed by Shanxi Taigang Stainless Steel, with support from five other manufacturers including a subsidiary of industry giant Baosteel. China imported 703,105 tonnes of such products in 2017 -- up 189 percent from the previous year -- 98 percent of which came from the regions targeted by the probe, Shanxi Taigang said in its complaint. "China's domestic industries that produce the same products have suffered substantial damage and threats of substantial damage," the complaint said. It blamed "massive importing and dumping" for having an "obvious negative impact" on the price of domestic products. China is by far the world's biggest steel producer with more than 831 million tonnes in 2017. Shanxi Taigang accounted for 25 to 35 percent of the country's total stainless steel production in 2017. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Surakarta, Central Java Mon, July 23, 2018 09:35 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef12370 1 National #CentralJava,#village,#drought Free A drought has struck hundreds of villages in Central Java, with agencies in the province sending clean water to subdistricts in Sragen, Boyolali, Klaten and Wonogiri regencies. The Sragen Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) has allocated Rp 44.5 million (US$3,000), equal to 150 water tankers, to provide water to seven high-risk drought districts, namely Tangen, Mondokan, Sumberlawang, Jenar, Miri, Sukodono and Gesi. Agency data shows there are 28 villages affected by this drought, which is similar to last year. We have already provided clean drinking water to three villages that are in urgent need, BPBD Sragen head Sugeng Priyono said on Saturday. Meanwhile, the Boyolali BPBD reported that 41 villages in six districts Wonosegoro, Karanggede, Kemusu, Musuk, Juwangi and Andong were vulnerable to drought. Several villages have already asked for clean water and the agency has responded with aid. Weve sent water tankers to Juwangi, Musuk and Kemusu because they were the most urgent, said Boyolali BPBD head Bambang Sinungharjo. Running out: A resident pumps out the remaining water from Gajah Mungkur dam to water his rice paddy in Wuryanto district in Wonogiri, Central Java, on Saturday. The dry season has brought drought to many regencies in Central Java. JP/Ganug Nugroho Adi. (The Jakarta Post/Ganug Nugroho Adi) The Wonogiri BPBD reported that 38 out of 294 villages in the regency were suffering from drought, with a total of 25 districts prone to drought and 12 other districts susceptible to fire. The BPBD is ready for the effects of the dry season. Our priorities are providing clean drinking water and irrigation water, as well as tackling house, plantation and forest fires, said Wonogiri BPBD head Bambang Haryanto. The dry season in Wonogiri began in April and is predicted to last until September. Meanwhile, Wonogiri Regent Joko Jekek Sutopo announced that his administration received a total of Rp 12 billion in funds from the central government to permanently eradicate drought. Last year, the regency spent Rp 2,6 billion on a water treatment plant in Paranggupito district that provides clean water to some 554 families composed of 1,300 individuals. The province is hit by drought annually. Thousands of villages in the province suffered from a water shortage in 2017. (nor) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Bogor Mon, July 23 2018 Two people died in an accident involving a boat carrying 20 students and researchers from the Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) and the University of Washington in Muara Binuangeun waters in Banten on Friday. IPB rector Arif Satria said on Saturday that the group was on a field trip to Tinjil Island and was to return to Bogor. The incident took place at around 2 p.m. as the boat was heading to Binuangeun in Banten. The students, researchers and two boat crew members, meanwhile, survived the incident. The deceased victims, Atiah and Emah, were locals who cooked meals for the students and researchers during the field trip. Illegal mining causes environmental problems in Central Highlands VietNamNet Bridge Illegal mining has caused not only losses of natural resources but also environmental problems in the Central Highlands provinces of Vietnam. Illegal exploitation of natural resources in the Central Highlands Province of Kon Tum. The issue has caused losses to the area as well as the country. VNA/VNS Photo In 2011, Nui Cao Investment and Mining JSC was licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to explore natural resources at Nui Cao (Cao Mount) near the National Highway No 27C in Da Lat City of the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong. With the license, Nui Cao JSC carried out 97 exploratory drills and found tin ores in Cao Mount. In March 2016, when the license granted to the company expired, the provincial authorities of Lam Dong asked Nui Cao JSC to move its facilities, machinery and equipment away from Cao Mount and to transfer the exploration area to Lam Dong Province. Since then, illegal tin miners have openly worked day and night at the site, digging for ores. On the busiest days, about 30 to 40 illegal miners work in three tunnels under Cao Mount, which are 1.5 metre high and 200 metre long. Local residents living along the National Highway No 27C in Ward 12 of Da Lat City said motorbikes have carried tin from the Cao Mount and sold it every night. One ore buyer in Ward 12 of Da Lat City was quoted by Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) newspaper as saying he sold at VND120,000 VND130,000 per kg. Tin ore is also mined at Song Con in Da Sar Commune of Lam Dong Provinces Lac Duong District. At this mine, about 70 miners are using machinery and equipment at an open-cast mine. Illegal miners have also been working throughout the day at sand and rock mines at the communes of Ia Grang, Ia Ba, Ia Hrung, and Ia Khai in Ia Grai District of Gia Lai Province. Thai Ba Tuan, deputy head of the Natural Resources and Environment Division of Ia Grai District, said illegal mining has not only caused losses of mineral resources and tax collection, but also changed the surface of the ground. Despite this, authorities find its hard to punish illegal mining. According to the Natural Resources and Environment Division of Lac Duong District in Lam Dong Province, in 2018 relevant agencies in the district raided unlicensed mines at Cao Mount and Song Con. They have found and seized nine generators, 22 engines, two pumps and other machinery and equipment used for illegal mining. They have also demolished an underground tunnel used for tin ore mining. However, Hoang Van Hanh, deputy chief of the Natural Resources and Environment Division of Lac Duong District, said the district authorities found it difficult to eliminate the illegal mining, especially tin ore mining, because there is only one path to each of these mines and illegal miners would be warned of any raids launched by the district authorities. To obstruct the district authorities efforts, illegal ore miners had collapsed the entrances to the mines, and would clear them again when the district authorities leave. As they have earned big profits, illegal miners would hire local labourers to bring new machinery and equipment to the site to resume the illegal mining after the authorities raids, said Hanh. Thai Anh Tuan, deputy chief of the Natural Resources and Environment Division of Ia Grai District in Gia Lai Province, said since early 2017, agencies in Ia Grai District have found 18 cases of illegal ore mining and fined them more than VND216 million. However, these unlicensed miners resumed their illegal operation after these punishments being meted out, said Tuan. According to Luong Thanh Binh, deputy director of Gia Lai Provinces Department of Natural Resources and Environment, the illegal mining of rock and sand were mainly reported from the districts of Krong Chro, Ia Grai, Phu Thien and Chu Pah. These mines are located in remote areas, making it difficult for the district authorities to manage. Binh said it is difficult for the department to launch raids as it has a small staff. The department has asked the district authorities in the province to hold more inspections and to strictly punish illegal mining, and illegal transportation of mineral resources in their districts. Binh said the department has also proposed the district authorities of Mang Yang, Ia Grai, Chu Pah and Kbang name and shame the unlicensed miners to prevent illegal mining in each district. Source: VNS Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23 2018 Scores of literature enthusiasts and artists crowded the newly renovated hall of Aksara bookstore in Kemang, South Jakarta, on Saturday evening as the retailer celebrated its recent collaboration with Post Santa Bookshop, also based in South Jakarta, to focus on alternative literature and serve as a community center. Today marks a very important milestone. Aksara has officially switched gears to prioritize books by authors from the alternative literature scene, which has notably gained traction as of late, Aksara creative director Aninda Simanjuntak said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 15:46 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef30c2d 1 World #Indonesia,#Netherlands,#rape Free An Indonesian exchange student at Erasmus University was reportedly raped by an unidentified man near her residence on Herman Bavinckstraat in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, on Saturday. The Indonesian Foreign Ministrys citizen protection director, Lalu Muhammad Iqbal, confirmed the incident and said a citizen protection team from the Indonesian Embassy in Den Haag had helped the victim. The Indonesian embassy would assist [the student] and closely coordinate with local authorities, Iqbal said on Monday, adding that the embassy would not reveal the victims identity to protect their privacy. A local news report said the Rotterdam Police were investigating the case. A police report said the victim was riding a bicycle from Rotterdam Station to her residence on Herman Bavinckstraat at around 5:30 a.m. on Saturday and, shortly after she locked her bike, she was allegedly attacked by the assailant. The alleged rape took place near the victim's residence. The Rotterdam Police have so far examined about 20 witnesses and identified the route taken by the Indonesian student. Furthermore, images from CCTVs were obtained to identify the alleged offender, who the police suspect is a dark man who was wearing a hoodie jacket and riding a black bicycle. Editor's note: We updated this story to make it clear that according to the description we have, the suspect was only identified as having dark skin, which in no way should be interpreted as African without confirmation. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Bethlehem, Palestinian Territories Mon, July 23, 2018 12:47 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef290ef 2 World Palestine,Israel,army,shooting,Bethlehem,teenagers Free Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian teenager during a raid in the occupied West Bank overnight, the Palestinian health ministry said on Monday. Arkan Mizher, 15, was shot in the chest during clashes in Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem, in the southern West Bank, the ministry said. His funeral was due to take place later Monday. The Israeli army said its forces had entered the camp and arrested two people suspected of "terror activity". "During the operation, a violent riot was instigated in which Palestinians hurled rocks and threw firebombs and grenades at (Israeli) soldiers," the army said in a statement. Soldiers fired live rounds at the protesters, the statement added. The camp is in a part of the West Bank supposedly under full Palestinian control but the Israeli army regularly carries out raids in such areas. It says the operations are necessary to arrest suspects, but they often spark violent clashes with young Palestinians. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 11:15 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef16d96 4 Business njop,jakarta,increase,revision Free The Jakarta administration plans revise its taxable value of property (NJOP) after residents and property businesses protested the 19.54 percent increase in the NJOP earlier this month. Jakarta Tax and Levy Board (BPRD) head Faisal Syahfrudin would meet with governor Anies Baswedan on Monday to discuss the matter, particularly regarding the rezoning of non-commercial areas, said tax and levy management head Johari over the weekend. He said rezoning non-commercial areas was intended help to decrease the NJOP and property tax, which many believe had overburdened Jakarta residents. It is still possible to revise the NJOP and property tax in non-commercial areas, while a revision to commercial areas is unlikely, said Johari as quoted by kontan.co.id. He added that the Jakarta administration had intended since the beginning to increase property tax only in commercial areas, and not in residential areas. For example, said Johari, the NJOP for houses that were used for commercial activities would be different from the NJOP for residential houses in nearby areas. [The NJOP] in all residential areas will be studied. They will be our focus for the revision, he said. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan, North Sumatra Mon, July 23, 2018 15:16 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef2f4b7 1 National #ITELaw,#defamation,#arrest Free Police have nabbed a man for allegedly defaming Batak people, one of North Sumatra's ethnic groups, on social media following a tense gubernatorial election. North Sumatra Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Tatan Dirsan Atmaja said the suspect, Faisal, was arrested on Friday at his in-laws' house in Deli Serdang regency after he went on the run a few weeks earlier. We are still processing the documents. The suspect will be handed over to prosecutors, Tatan told The Jakarta Post on Monday. Manganar Situmorang, a board member of Batak association Parsadaan Poparan Raja Lontung, reported Faisal for insulting the ethnic group through social media posts that allegedly violated the Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law. His posts concerned the defeat of gubernatorial candidate pair Djarot Saiful Hidayat and Sihar Sitorus, known as "Djoss". "Batak people, eat that s***...," read one of the postings, using the vulgar slang term for feces. Djarot is Javanese while Sihar is Batak. Edy Rahmayadi, a retired army general and a Malay of the royal Deli house, and his running mate Musa Rajekshah, also a Melayu Deli, won the North Sumatra election. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 18:51 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef43ebc 1 City suicide,blok-m,fallen,shopping-mall Free A man died after falling from the fifth floor of Blok M Plaza shopping mall in South Jakarta on Monday. The body was taken to Fatmawati General Hospital, according to South Jakarta Police crimes unit chief Sr. Comr. Adj. Stefanus Tamuntuan. "The hospital will conduct an autopsy on the body," he said as quoted by tempo.co on Monday. The police were still investigating the incident, he added. Initial reports identified the body as 33-year-old Arif Wicaksono. The man, who was a resident of Pesanggrahan, South Jakarta, is believed to have committed suicide. (rfa) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Montreal Mon, July 23, 2018 10:55 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef15128 2 World Toronto,Canada,shooting-incident Free A gunman opened fire in central Toronto on Sunday night, injuring nine people including a child before being shot dead, police reported. Toronto Police said they had responded to a call at around 10:00 pm (0200 GMT Monday) in the city's Greektown district. "Conditions of victims not known yet. A young girl is one of the 9 victims," the police department tweeted. The police said the nine victims did "not include the shooter who is dead." Global News quoted a Toronto police source as saying the suspect is believed to have opened fire at police before killing himself. Witnesses described to local media hearing about 20 shots and the sound of a weapon being reloaded several times. Ontario Premier Doug Ford tweeted out a message of solidary with the victims, saying: "My heart goes out to the victims and loved ones of the horrific act of gun violence in Toronto. "Thank you to all the first responders for acting quickly to help everyone affected." The incident comes with Canada's largest metropolis concerned over a spate of shootings, more than 200, this year. About two dozen have been fatal. Canada traditionally has relatively low levels of gun violence, particularly compared with its neighbor the United States. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 17:45 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef4017e 1 City pedestrian-bridge,Bundaran-HI,Asian-Games-2018,MRT-Jakarta Free Underground access to the bus stop and MRT station at the Hotel Indonesia (HI) traffic circle will replace a pedestrian bridge that will be torn down. Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said on Sunday that the bridge would be torn down, because it was blocking motorists view of the Welcome Monument. The bridge was built during the administration of former governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, who declared it the standard for pedestrian bridges across the city. [Once the bridge is taken down], we will be able to see Jl. Thamrin [...] and reach the traffic circle with the sight of the Welcome Monument," Anies said, as quoted by kompas.com. The dismantling would be carried out ahead of the Asian Games, so that foreign guests would be able to see the statue as they pass the thoroughfare, he added. The statue was built to welcome participants of the Asian Games in 1962," he said. The bridge will be replaced by an underpass to be connected with the Transjakarta bus stop and MRT station in the area, according to Anies. "People will cross the thoroughfare underground when the MRT is operational," he said. Jakarta is getting ready to host the quadrennial sporting event from Aug. 18 to Sept. 2 alongside Palembang, South Sumatra. (acr/rfa) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Reuters) Buenos Aires Mon, July 23, 2018 10:27 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef137df 2 World IMF,Christine-Lagarde,plane,emergency-landing,Argentina Free An American Airlines flight carrying International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde made an emergency landing in Argentina shortly after taking off from Buenos Aires' Ezeiza airport on Sunday, several local media outlets reported. Local newspapers Clarin and La Nacion and local television station TN reported the flight, which was destined for the United States, experienced a drop in cabin pressure about 200 km (124 miles) north of the Argentine capital and returned to Ezeiza to land. Lagarde had been in Argentina over the weekend for the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank presidents. An IMF spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. No injuries related to the incident were reported. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Warren Strobel and Dana Feldman (Reuters) Washington, United States Mon, July 23, 2018 10:56 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef15ac5 2 World #USA,#Iran,#NuclearDeal Free U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo launched a rhetorical assault on Iran's leaders on Sunday, comparing them to a "mafia" and promising unspecified backing for Iranians unhappy with their government. Pompeo, in a California speech to a largely Iranian-American audience, dismissed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, who negotiated a nuclear deal with the United States and five other countries, as "merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry." U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew in May from the 2015 nuclear accord designed to stopIran from developing nuclear weapons. Tehran has said its nuclear work is just for electricity generation and other peaceful projects. Iran "is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government," Pompeo said, citing what he called Iranian leaders' vast wealth and corruption. Pompeo's speech was the latest step in a communications offensive launched by the Trump administration that is meant to foment unrest in Iran and help pressure its government to end its nuclear program and support of militant groups, U.S. officials familiar with the matter said. The offensive is meant to work in concert with severe economic sanctions that Washington plans to reimpose in the coming months, including on Tehran's oil exports, its principal revenue generator. The United States will work with countries that import Iranian oil "to get imports as close to zero as possible" by Nov. 4, Pompeo said. Rouhani cautioned Trump on Sunday about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying: "War with Iran is the mother of all wars." But he did not rule out peace between the two countries, which have been at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. "You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests," Rouhani said, in an apparent reference to reports of efforts by Washington to destabilize Iran's Islamic government. Trump responded to Rouhani in a tweet late on Sunday, saying: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" 'LONG-IGNORED VOICE OF PEOPLE' Publicly, the Trump administration says its policy with Iran is not "regime change," but to change Tehran's behavior so it stops nuclear and missile work, support for proxies in the Middle East and backing of militant groups. "While it is ultimately up to the Iranian people to determine the direction of their country, the United States ... will support the long-ignored voice of the Iranian people," Pompeo said. Pompeo spoke at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, to a packed house of about 1,000 people. He received frequent applause, although one audience member heckled him over the Trump administration's immigration policies. Several dozen protesters lined the route to the site, including one group that distributed fliers opposing both Iran's current government and any U.S. intervention in Iran. Pompeo said senior Iranian leaders had benefited from embezzlement, sweetheart deals and other ill-gotten gains. Iran's ayatollahs, he said, were "hypocritical holy men" who "seem more concerned with riches than religion." Pompeo said the U.S. government broadcasting agency was launching a 24/7 Farsi-language channel on TV, radio, digital and social media platforms. The U.S. government also is taking steps to help Iranians get around internet censorship, he said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 19:33 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef45569 1 Politics Prabowo-Subianto,Democratic-party,Agus-Harimurti-Yudhoyono,AriefPoyuono Free Gerindra Party leader Prabowo Subianto has publicly reprimanded one of his deputies, Arief Poyuono, for calling Agus Yudhoyono, one of Prabowos potential vice presidential candidates, too inexperienced and juvenile to lead the country. Prabowo issued the statement on Monday, just a day before his scheduled meeting with Democratic Party leader Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Agus father. The statement you made is beyond your authority and utterly groundless, he said in a letter that has circulated online. I do not consider [Agus] a kid. His experience within the Indonesian Military and his education here and abroad show that he has the capability, he said, referring to Agus by his initials. He instructed his deputy to hold a press conference to retract his statement and to apologize to the Democratic Party. Speaking to a local media outlet last week, Arief voiced doubt about the possibility of Gerindra forming an alliance with the Democratic Party by fielding a Prabowo-Agus ticket in the upcoming presidential election. Leading a country is not a game [] If Prabowo is elected, then Agus would become vice president. What would happen? Is a kid going to manage the country? The nation may collapse, he said. Prabowo is currently seeking a coalition partner in order to contest the election and challenge President Joko Jokowi Widodo for a second time. With the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the National Mandate Party (PAN) reluctant to immediately announce their official endorsement of Prabowo, Gerindra appears to be relying on the Democratic Party to salvage Prabowos chances of a presidential bid. (ahw) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Karina M. Tehusijarana (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 17:35 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef366fe 1 Politics Susilo-Bambang-Yudhoyono,Prabowo-Subianto,presidential-election,coalition Free Democratic Party chairman Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) and his Gerindra Party counterpart, Prabowo Subianto, are set to meet at Yudhoyonos residence in Kuningan, South Jakarta, on Tuesday after last weeks delayed meeting. Yudhoyono and Prabowo were scheduled to meet last Wednesday but the meeting was postponed after the former fell ill and had to receive treatment at the Gatot Subroto Army Hospital. Pak SBY has returned home to Kuningan with his family and we have spoken a lot about the party, Democratic Party secretary-general Hinca Panjaitan told reporters on Monday. One of the things that we are preparing is the meeting with Pak Prabowo tomorrow, which had been previously delayed. He said it would be preceded by a meeting between the executives of both parties on Monday night. Hinca added that SBY and Prabowo would discuss a possible Democrat-Gerindra coalition and also potential candidate pairs, including the possibility of SBYs son, Agus Harimurti, being Prabowos running mate. I think they will talk about [Agus as a vice presidential candidate] and also other alternatives in case we do form a coalition, he said, adding that the Dems were still in communication with other parties such as the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS). (ahw) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 10:11 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef137be 1 Business low-cost-carrier,terminal,tourism,arrivals Free The Tourism Ministry is working hard to achieve its target of 20 million tourist arrivals by 2020, including by proposing the establishment of low-cost carrier (LCC) terminals in airports across the country. Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said in Jakarta on Sunday that he had received approval from President Joko Jokowi Widodo to turn Soekarno-Hatta International Airports Terminal 2 into a low-cost carrier terminal (LCCT). He said he had met with state-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II (AP II) president director Muhammad Awaluddin to discuss the issue. We agree that Terminal 2 is the best terminal [available] to be converted into an LCCT, he said as reported by kontan.co.id. Previously, Awaluddin also said that an airport in Banyuwangi, East Java, would also focus on serving low-cost carriers. The arrival of foreign tourists to Indonesian airports grows 13 percent annually on average, said Arief, adding that the number of visitors who arrived with full-service carriers (FSC) grew 7 percent, while those using low-cost carriers grew about 55 percent annually. The establishment of an LCC terminal is important because the LCC passenger growth is above 20 percent in line with the governments tourism target of 21 percent annually. Meanwhile, the passengers of flag carrier Garuda Indonesias FSC only grew less than 5 percent, he said. With the availability of LCC terminals, low-cost carriers can cut operational costs by up to 50 percent, while traffic is estimated to double, he said, adding that about 45 LCCs could potentially open flights if Indonesia had terminals for them. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Tehran, Iran Mon, July 23, 2018 16:15 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef31c01 2 World trump,Iran,US,War-and-Peace Free The head of Iran's Basij militia on Monday dismissed threats by US President Donald Trump as "psychological warfare", local media reported. "Trump's statements against Iran are psychological warfare. He is not in a position to act against Iran," said General Gholam Hossein Gheypour, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency. His comments followed an all-caps salvo from Trump on Twitter on Sunday, in which he wrote: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Earlier Sunday, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani had warned Trump not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". "Those who fear this crazy president's psychological warfare will know that America will not be content with anything less than our annihilation," said Gheypour. But he said the Iranian "people and the armed forces will stand up against our enemies and will not come up short." Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, July 24, 2018 06:21 1189 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef507e9 1 City wastewater-treatment-facilities,IPAL,waste-water-treatment-plant,river,Ciliwung-river,Citarum-River,Jakarta-Bay,PAL,#PostScript,explainer Free This month, the Jakarta administration covered an eyesore of a river with a giant nylon net ahead of the 18th Asian Games in August. The Sentiong River, nicknamed the black river by locals, is murky and smelly because, according to a city official, wastewater from houses and a tofu factory is dumped untreated there. The Sentiong River is not the only heavily polluted river in Jakarta. In fact, all 13 rivers in Jakarta and their dozens of tributaries are highly polluted. How polluted? The Jakarta Water Resources Council stated that the rivers in Jakarta could only supply 2.2 percent of the total demand for clean water, all of which came from the Krukut River, as the other rivers were too dirty to process. City workers clean the Sentiong River under a giant nylon net in Central Jakarta on July 21. The city administration covered the river in an attempt to ward off the smell ahead of the 18th Asian Games in August. (Antara/Rivan Awal Lingga) In addition to the more visible solid trash that is picked up by the orange troops sanitation workers that were first deployed under the leadership of former governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama Jakartas rivers contain highly toxic wastewater. The National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) reported in February that 96 percent of river water in the city is severely polluted. The rivers are contaminated with high levels of biochemical oxygen demand, phosphor and nitrogen. Some 20 percent of the raw water supply for Jakarta comes from the Cisadane River in Tangerang, Banten, and the remaining comes from the Jatiluhur Reservoir in West Java, which receives water from the Citarum River, dubbed the worlds most polluted river by international media. Why and how? Jakarta rivers receive an estimated 2.5 million cubic meters of wastewater per day. More than 70 percent of the wastewater comes from millions of households and the remaining comes from commercial buildings and industrial activities. Household wastewater is sourced from the populations gray water or detergent water, other kinds of household wastewater and black water, which is wastewater from feces. The 2009 law on the environment prohibits companies from dumping wastewater into rivers; however, poor supervision and law enforcement have resulted in companies polluting rivers without consequence. In March, water in the East Flood Canal in Marunda, North Jakarta, was covered with white foam that had a pungent smell. Wahyu Perdana, the campaign manager for food, water and essential ecosystems at the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), said that, based on monitoring conducted by the organization a few years ago, the water in the canal had a sulfur smell. Judging by the characteristics of the smell, we suspect that the pollution came from textile factories. The factories wash the clothes with detergent, Wahyu said. The city administration said the suffocating smell emanating from the black river was also partly due to a nearby tofu factory that dumped untreated wastewater into it. Jakartas sole wastewater treatment plant (IPAL) is located in the Setiabudi Reservoir in Central Jakarta. It can only treat about 2 percent of wastewater, which comes not only from households in Jakarta but also from millions of houses, factories, commercial buildings and agricultural fields in upstream areas. Excavators dredge the West Setiabudi Reservoir in South Jakarta on Monday. Setiabudi only treats about 2 percent of waste water, which comes not only from households in Jakarta, but also from millions of houses, factories, commercial buildings and agricultural fields in upstream areas. (JP/Berto R. Wedhatama) How do we clean the rivers? The government has long planned to develop the Jakarta Sewerage System (JSS) to process household waste at the Jakarta IPAL before the water is pumped into rivers. The system is expected to reduce pollution in Jakartas 13 rivers, provide clean water and stop residents from pumping groundwater, an activity that has resulted in land subsidence. However, development of the JSS, which was scheduled to kick off last year, has been postponed to 2019 for various reasons. The JSS is set to manage waste treatment in 15 zones, including Zone 0 at the Setiabudi Reservoir, with an initial focus on zones 1 and 6. Zone 1 will be situated on a 4.9-hectare plot of land in Pluit, North Jakarta, while Zone 6 will be situated on a 5.8-hectare plot of land in Duri Kosambi, West Jakarta. Zone 1 and 6 will be able to process 198,000 and 282,000 cubic meters of wastewater per day respectively. The cost of the Zone 1 project is around Rp 8.1 trillion (US$ 614 million) while the Zone 6 project is around Rp 8.7 trillion. The Japan International Cooperation Agency will bear about 55 percent of the total cost through a loan scheme. The president director of city-owned wastewater treatment firm PD PAL Jaya, Subekti, said the company was conducting detailed engineering for the development of the system in Zone 1. We hope that the detail engineering can finish in mid-2019 and the construction can begin in 2020. The project is set to finish in 2026, Subekti said recently. After finishing both zones, the project will continue in 12 other zones across the city. Subekti said the project would be time-consuming and cost a lot of money as the pipes for the system would be placed 20 to 30 meters underground. Furthermore, with building foundations already occupying space underground, installing the pipes would be difficult. To find investors interested in the project might also be challenging, as the project might not bring much of a profit, he said. Are there alternatives to the large-scale JSS? PAL Jaya has planned to take another approach the subzone approach to treat wastewater, and it is all about starting small. To treat wastewater at Ancol Dreamland in North Jakarta, for example, it would start by installing a pipe that would treat wastewater. We have also conducted a study to treat water in industrial areas and several office buildings in Jakarta, he said. The city administration has urged the management of high-rise buildings to operate their own IPALs. In March, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan raided buildings along Jl. Sudirman and Jl. MH Thamrin and asked management teams to install infiltration wells, preserve groundwater and treat wastewater. In addition to the two thoroughfares, the city administration has also inspected buildings in industrial areas in East Jakarta and West Jakarta. What about informal settlements? An informal settlement in Malakasari in Duren Sawit, East Jakarta, has had its own communal wastewater treatment system since 1998, using both aerobic and anaerobic processes. The wastewater treatment plant was built by the city administration and managed by the community and PAL Jaya. Officials from the city administration and city-owned wastewater management firm PD PAL Jaya inspect a communal wastewater treatment site in Malakasari, East Jakarta, in 2017. (Courtesy of Water Management Agency/-) Urban-water spatial planner Prathiwi Widyatmi Putri said it would be difficult for the city administration to realize the idea of developing a centralized sewerage system. Apart from the high cost of installing big pipes, many problems could arise during the process. She suggested that the administration install sewerage systems in smaller areas, including informal settlements, such as subdistricts or neighborhoods like Malakasari, as it would cost less and pose fewer risks to other utility systems. She emphasized that communal sewerage systems would also reduce the time it takes for water to be processed and distributed as clean water. Why should we take on the difficult task of cleaning the rivers? Cleaner rivers in Jakarta more than just make them visually and olfactorily acceptable to residents. It also means Jakarta tap water operators would have a greater raw water supply, which would allow them to expand their tap water coverage in the city. The operators have long complained about a lack of raw water supply to improve their tap water coverage, which stands at about 60 percent. The polluted rivers have also degraded the quality of the Jakarta Bay ecosystem. Fisherfolk in Muara Angke, North Jakarta, often complain about catch declines, allegedly because of pollution from the rivers. Bogor Agriculture Institute scholar Alan F. Koropitan studied the Jakarta Bay and found that the water had become a wastewater disposal site for Jakarta, and domestic sewage, and industrial and agricultural waste, are deposited in it. "It will be a difficult task, but when it is accomplished it will be a source of national pride," said Alan. (evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Mon, July 23, 2018 12:19 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef27495 4 City human-trafficking,jakarta,west-sumatra,beggar,poverty,crime Free The Tanah Abang Police have arrested a suspect identified as Herman, also known as Buyung, for allegedly kidnapping a 5-year-old girl, PA, in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, and forcing her to work as a beggar in West Sumatra. Herman was reported to the police by a resident of Gerbang Dermaga in West Sumatra, who became suspicious of his and PAs relationship, according to Tanah Abang Police chief Sr. Adj. Comr. Lukman Cahyono. A local resident suspected that the girl had been kidnapped when she called Herman uncle. The resident then reported it to the Pariaman Police, Lukman said as quoted by Warta Kota on Monday. Priaman Police investigators concluded they were indeed faced with a kidnapping case after Herman and PA gave inconsistent answers to their questions. They learned of a missing child who matched PAs description though the National Police database and worked with their Tanah Abang counterparts to return the girl and hand over custody of Herman. PA was reported missing on July 11, Lukman said, adding that PA and Herman had returned to Jakarta on Sunday. According to Hermans statement, Lukman said, Herman had kidnapped PA from her grandmother on July 11 by offering her an ice cream. PAs grandmother reportedly trusted Herman because they lived in the same residential area. He then took PA to Merak Port [in Banten] and they travelled to Bakauheni Port [in Lampung], he said. Herman allegedly instructed PA to beg for money from passersby as they made their way from Lampung to West Sumatra. Herman will be charged under Article 83 in the Child Protection Law, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and between Rp 60 million (US$4,000) and Rp 300 million in fines. (vla/dmr) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Rachmadea Aisyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, July 24 2018 An expert has advised Indonesia to revisit bilateral and multilateral relations with neighboring countries amid rising protectionism in the United States. Since the beginning of this year, the US under President Donald Trump has imposed tariffs on goods from various countries and regions, including China, the European Union, Mexico and Canada, all of which have since retaliated. Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) director general of policy design Anita Prakash said that, as growing US protectionism affected both developed and emerging markets, Indonesia Southeast Asias largest economy should revisit relationships with its neighbors. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, July 24 2018 Indonesia is weighing in on the recent passing of a law defining Israel as a Jewish nation-state, warning of its detrimental effect on possible peace with Palestine. Jakarta made the announcement as it prepares to take on a greater role influencing the outcome of the Middle East conflict. Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi issued a statement on Monday deploring the adoption of the law by the Israeli legislature, which has stoked fears that it will lead to discrimination against its Arab citizens. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dian Septiari and Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Tue, July 24 2018 New policy: Malaysias Foreign Minister Dato Saifuddin Abdullah (left) and Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) executive director Philips J. Vermonte pack up after the CSIS lecture series on regional dynamics in Jakarta on Monday. The minister spoke about the new Malaysian governments foreign policy. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan) Neighbors Indonesia and Malaysia are trying to overcome the easiest of challenges first when it comes to their outstanding border issues, which have for decades been a bone of contention between them. In his first official visit to Indonesia as Malaysias foreign minister, Saifuddin Abdullah said on Monday that the two governments had agreed to conclude individual segments of unresolved borders one step at a time, rather than making a massive concerted effort to finalize negotiations all at once. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (Reuters) Hanoi Mon, July 23, 2018 13:17 1190 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9ef2b8a2 2 SE Asia Vietnam,Hanoi,Minister,information-communication-technology,telecommunications-ministry Free Vietnam on Monday suspended its minister of information and communications for mismanagement at a state telecoms firm, official state media Vietnam News Agency reported, amid a crackdown on corruption. Police earlier this month arrested a former chairman of MobiFone Corp and another senior official of the Ministry of Information and Communications on allegations of economic mismanagement. The Communist Party's inspection committee found MobiFone overpaid for a 95 percent stake in a loss-making pay TV provider. MobiFone, one of Vietnam's three largest mobile carriers by subscription, bought the stake in private pay TV provider Audio Visual Global JSC for nearly 8.9 trillion dong ($386.07 million) in late 2015. President Tran Dai Quang approved a decision to suspend Information Minister Truong Minh Tuan for violations stated by the party inspection committee, VNA reported. Last month, the committee said Tuan lacked responsibility and illegally approved and mismanaged the stake sale between AVG and MobiFone, which is under direct control of the information ministry. Tuan did not answer calls or a text message to his telephone on Monday. Who doesnt want to look fit and perfect, right? I mean, almost all of us have been running in this... Bali has grabbed top awards at the inaugural Kayak Travel Awards Singapore, an event presented by Kayak.sg, a fare aggregator and travel metasearch engine operated by Booking Holdings. Announced on Thursday, the Island of the Gods was named Singapores favorite destination for short breaks and favorite beach destination. Meanwhile, I Gusti Ngurah Rai was named the runner-up in the favorite airports category. In regards to hotels, W Bali in Seminyak and Sheraton Bali Kuta Resort were named the winner and runner-up, respectively, in the favorite resort hotels in Southeast Asia category, meanwhile The Westin Resort Nusa Dua was named favorite affordable hotel in the Asia category. Read also: Bali remains top destination among Indonesian travelers The company said in a statement that the candidates had been shortlisted based on search volume on the website from Jan. 1 to March 31. The top five in each award category were shortlisted for Singaporeans and Singapore residents to choose their favorites on KAYAK.sg during the Voting Period. Winners and runners-up in each award category were decided based on the total number of public votes, read the statement. In addition to Bali, Yogyakarta has also caught the attention of Singaporeans, as the city was named the runner-up for favorite trending destination in Southeast Asia. In response to the awards, Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said as quoted by kompas.com, that the achievements automatically increased the countrys confidence and credibility. He also said these kind of awards also increased the global standards for local destinations. (jes/kes) East Java capital Surabaya topped the list of the 10 best cities in tourism at the 2018 Yokatta Wonderful Indonesia Tourism Awards. As reported by kompas.com , Surabaya ranked highest in its commitment, performance, innovation, creation and leadership in building regional tourism. "Seen from the scoring, in terms of size and growth, Surabaya scored the highest. Its performance is marked at 40 percent," Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said, as quoted by Kompas.com. Arief explained that numerous factors had been taken into scoring consideration, including indicators consisting of tourist business performance (accommodation and food and beverage): gross regional domestic product and work force, as well as impact/outcome (in reference to Central Statistics Agency [BPS] data), Indonesian Tourism Index, Indonesia's Attractiveness Award and international and national awards. Read also: 5 must-visit destinations in Surabaya The 2018 Yokatta Wonderful Indonesia Tourism Awards named 10 best cities, which in addition to Surabaya were Denpasar, Bandung, Semarang, Batam, Yogyakarta, Padang, Makassar, Balikpapan and Palembang. The awards also named 10 best performing regencies in terms of tourism, which were Badung, Sleman, Banyuwangi, Bogor, Buleleng, Gianyar, Klungkung, Bantul, Sidoarjo and Bandung. The judging team comprised of head of the Indonesian Tourism Industry Association (GIPI), Didied Djunaedy, Bandung Institute of Technology's (ITB) Budi Faisal, the BPS's Adhi Wiriana and the Tourism Ministry's Frans Teguh. Yokatta Wonderful Indonesia Tourism Awards recognizes cities and regencies with outstanding commitment, performance, innovation, creation and leadership in developing regional tourism, which is awarded to the regional governments for their contributions. (liz/kes) Posted Sunday, July 22, 2018 11:00 pm A new effort in Litchfield is hoping to rid the city of some of its derelict properties, while boosting housing development in the community as well. After a 23 minute closed session during their meeting on Thursday, July 19, the members of the Litchfield City Council voted to make an offer on the lot located at 1018 East Union Avenue, pending a title search. According to Mayor Steve Dougherty, the city received $100,000 to assist in the clean up and reclamation of derelict properties, with hopes that these lots can be utilized in a better way. Dougherty said that the city is looking for lots that are bigger than the small 50 foot lots, like the one they are looking at located at East Union and Locust, which is 150' by 94'. While most of the structures have been cleared from 1018 East Union, the city is planning to use the money to clear or clean up other properties in the future. Once the lots are ready, Dougherty said the hope is to allow contractors to build homes on speculation, with the possibility of utilizing veterans through the Montgomery County Growth Initiative. He added that he will also be speaking with the county about securing an extended abatement for those properties to allow the contractors to not worry about property taxes for a long period of time if the house doesn't sell immediately. The council also decided to not move forward with the Army Corps of Engineers' lake aquatic ecosystem project until they receive information about the 319 grant they applied for. City Administrator Tonya Flannery said that she had received notification from the Army Corps of Engineers that funds would be available if the city was willing to move forward with the project, but if they were not ready, it would be 12 to 15 months until they could apply for funding again. Flannery said that the city's share of the project would be $400,000 and that they had originally decided to wait for the word on the 319 grant, which would cover a portion of that share. It was decided to continue to wait for word on the grant and possibly pursue the project at a later date. The aldermen did vote to renew Richard Ward's appointment to the Litchfield Tree Board for three years, along with approving motions to enter a contract with Highway Through the Heartland to produce a travel segment highlighting Litchfield for $750, to direct the city attorney to begin a title search and a legal agreement for 1003 North Illinois to be donated to the city, to amend the listing agreement with Montgomery County Realty for the properties at 1007 and 1009 South Walnut as listed for $2,800, to purchase a half-page advertisement in Intersect Illinois for an amount not to exceed $3,520 and to purchase nine regulatory can buoys from Walsh Marine at a cost of $140 per unit. A downtown facade grant application by Caterina Vitale of Gianni's Pizza for an amount not to exceed $1,470 was also approved, with the mayor saying that it was good to see more new activity and redevelopment in the downtown area. The council also approved the purchase of a variable frequency drive for one of the primary pumps at the wastewater treatment plant for $7,509 after the previous one was damaged following a lightning strike. Facility manager Craig Noble said that the plant is switching to a Toshiba VFD (two of the three drives at the plant were Toshiba, the one that failed was not) and that they are putting optical isolators in place to help prevent something like this from happening again. Just before going into closed session at 6:45 p.m., Flannery asked the board how many aldermen were planning to attend the Illinois Municipal League conference in September. The date of the conference conflicts with the Sept. 20 council meeting and Flannery wanted to make sure that there would be a quorum. Aldermen Woodrow Street and Mark Brown said they would be attending, but the other six aldermen and alderwomen said they were planning to be at the Sept. 20 council meeting. Before then, the council will meet in August, with the first of two meetings set for Thursday, Aug. 2, at 6:30 p.m. at Corwin Hall. Posted Sunday, July 22, 2018 11:00 pm Last Tuesday, July 17, members of Congress and witnesses voiced their opposition to tariffs on Canadian newsprint to the International Trade Commission, citing the harm already caused to U.S. newspapers in their home states. Newspapers have already been hit with higher newsprint prices since the Department of Commerce's preliminary rulings both in January and March, and have adapted by reducing news coverage, reducing pages, laying off employees and not filling open positions. "Unfortunately, the trade laws are against us when it comes to tariffs, but that didn't stop us from making our voices heard at the ITC hearing," IPA President and CEO Sam Fisher said. "Nineteen members of Congress testified on our behalf, including Danny Davis (D-IL)." He continued, "This may be a first, but every member of Congress from Illinois took a position to oppose the newsprint tariffs. All 18 members of the House signed a joint letter to the ITC and both Sens. Durbin (D-IL) and Duckworth (D-IL) wrote opposition letters as well. I believe that no other state got the support of their entire congressional delegation." In August 2017, North Pacific Paper Company, a single newsprint mill in the Pacific northwest owned by a New York hedge fund, petitioned the Department of Commerce alleging unfair trade practices on the import of Canadian newsprint. The claim alleges that the Canadian government subsidizes (countervailing) the production of newsprint and Canadian mills are selling newsprint below the actual cost of production (anti-dumping). "We've been good to mobilize when it comes to issues that affect us in Springfield, but this is the first time that I can remember that we've tackled a federal issue," said Fisher. "We should be proud of our efforts and we will continue to fight against these terrible tariffs." He continued, "As a state, our newspapers wrote countless editorials, solicited opposition signatures and reached out to their elected officials. Additionally, the impact of tariffs on Illinois newspapers and our Congressional support received national and international attention. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL) is one of the co-sponsors in the House of the PRINT Act, which calls for a suspension of tariffs until a thorough study can be conducted about the impact of tariffs." An ITC decision is expected in late August, and the Department of Commerce will make its final determination in September. It should be noted that both the ITC and the DOC have to agree to uphold preliminary tariffs. If they don't, the tariffs go away. Posted Sunday, July 22, 2018 11:00 pm In a recent poll held a couple weeks ago (June 26-28) by Victory Research, Democrat J.B. Pritzker had a 15-point lead over incumbent Republican Bruce Rauner in this heavily contested gubernatorial race. If you just looked at Rauner and Pritzker alone, it's a tight race in central and southern Illinois. While the city of Chicago and Cook County are heavily slanted toward Pritzker, Rauner has control of the collar counties. It's dead even in the rest of northern Illinois, but are incredibly tight in central and southern Illinois. Without consideration of the two alternatives in Libertarian Party candidate Kash Jackson and Conservative Party candidate Sam McCann, there is a rough statewide average of 30 percent of voters undecided. The die-hard liberals and conservatives had better pay attention to these statistics: 25 percent of registered Democrats won't even support Pritzker. A little over eight percent support Rauner's re-election bid, but currently 15.6 percent are undecided; 42.9 percent of registered Republicans refuse to re-elect Rauner due to his questionable actions such as supporting expanded taxpayer funding of abortion and making Chicago a sanctuary city, and 12.9 percent of those voters are likely going to cast a vote for McCann over Rauner. It's funny what you discover when you request specific results by county. In Montgomery, Christian and Shelby counties, an average of 65 percent outright refuse to vote between Rauner and Pritzker. Keep in mind, these are also three of the highest concentrations of registered independent voters because they have become disenfranchised with the candidates both major parties put out there. When you look at Fayette, Effingham, Bond and Macoupin counties, that average is closer to 75 percent. Here are even worse statistics not related to the poll: in the 2014 gubernatorial election, the outcome was decided with only 40 percent of voters casting their votes. In the 2016 presidential election, the state's outcome was determined with 33 percent of registered voters showing up at the polls. Less than 25 percent of registered voters turned out statewide in the March primaries. And worst of all, Democrats and Republicans want to suppress voter choice, trying to keep other candidates off the ballot. The efforts of both parties, fortunately, failed and hence there's a four-way race for governor. Voter choice is a great thing and even better when there are choices beyond Democrat and Republican. 2018 needs to be the year voters (and politicians) revolt against their party lines and ensure the election of a third-party governor. It is not impossible: Minnesota voters elected former pro wrestler Jesse Ventura as a Reform Party candidate in 1999, Angus King was elected as governor of Maine as an independent in 1995 and in recent years, Bill Walker was elected governor of Alaska as an independent in 2014. Voters are more disenfranchised than ever and these people do have alternatives to vote for in November's general election. The battle for Two Bridges returns to Community Board 3 tonight. Developers of three proposed mega-towers will present the findings of their environmental review and answer questions about proposed mitigations for the large-scale projects. There was outrage last month when the city released the Two Bridges Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), which signaled the start of the public land use review process for the towers. After elected officials and the community board complained about the initial timetable, which would have required CB3 to weigh in on the EIS during the summer, the City Planning Commission relented. A vote is not expected at CB3 until September. According to the Draft EIS, the projects would add 2,775 mostly market rate rental units to the historically low-income Two Bridges area. 694 apartments (25%) would be designated as permanently affordable, with 200 of those set aside for low-income seniors. The developers are JDS Development Group, a partnership between L+M Development Partners and the CIM Group and The Starrett Group. Their four proposed towers, stretching from Rutgers Street to Clinton Street would range in height between 63-80 stories, dwarfing everything in the neighborhood except for Extells massive One Manhattan Square. The Draft EIS spells out the various impacts the towers are likely to have on local infrastructure, transportation, schools and neighborhood character. Proposed mitigations include a $40 million upgrade of the East Broadway F Train station and improvements to several parks. Local residents are dead set against the projects, and are pursuing a rezoning of the area to block construction. Local elected officials are pushing for a zoning text amendment to require a full ULURP, a land use review that would require City Council approval. Tonights meeting will take place at 6:30 p.m. at Henry Street Settlement, 301 Henry St. Socket chargers may soon become a thing of the past. We already have wireless charging mats, and soon we might have clothes that charge our phones too. University of Cincinnatis College of Engineering and Applied Sciences has partnered with the US Air Force Research Laboratory to expand military technology applications, including the use of carbon nanotubes (CNT) to charge electronics. The team is focusing on the unique properties of CNT, like their strong surface area that is conductive and heat resistant, to develop smart materials. The team used a process called chemical vapour deposition to develop the nanotubes. In chemical vapour deposition, carbon-containing gas is introduced to a vacuum chamber with a silicon wafer under heat. When the gas interacts with crystallising silicone particles in the chamber, it breaks down and reforms as a nanotube. The structure continues to grow until the desired size is reached. The unique technique proposed by the team resulted in 100-120 per cent increase in the tensile strength of the technology. Any source of carbon can be used as a reactant, even Girl Scout cookies as proved one resourceful group on the team. The team then stretched the nanotube around an industrial spool creating a thread resembling a spiders silk, only much stronger. Carbon nanotubes are the most durable materials yet discovered. In 2000 a multi-walled nanotube was shown to have a tensile strength that would be able to endure tension of 6,422 kg on a cable with a cross section of 1 square millimetre. The thread can be sewn into fabrics, used to power devices, and perhaps much more. Such technology has many potential uses in the military. As much as one-third of the weight that soldiers carry is made up of batteries. A much lighter carbon nanotube would quite literally take a load off their shoulders. CNT fibres might also help deliver targeted doses of medicine. If proteins can be attached to the tubes, they would attract cells that consume them. There is still more to be done. Researchers arent sure if carbon nanotubes are nontoxic though and some studies indicate that acute exposure can cause lung damage. To be sure, the operation needs to be scaled up. The Cincinnati lab can produce about 45 meters of carbon nanotube at a time, but clothing production would require kilometres. Right now, synthesis is costly, so CNT is mostly used in research, but when production becomes more efficient, costs will go down. The good news is that there is no shortage of materials to make the tubing. The Cincinnati and Air Force team isnt the first to try to create charging textiles. In 2016 Hiral Sanghavi launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise $100,000 for his startup BauBax to turn jackets, jeans, and shorts into mobile charging stations using built-in copper wire. Sanghavi cancelled the campaign before he could get the needed funding. A team at the Georgia Institute of Technology has also been researching materials that can generate electricity and act as batteries, but they are focusing on energy from physical movement and sunlight. Carbon nanotubes are the potential future of batteries, but they are not the only recently examined uses of carbon. One of the leading authors of the Cincinnati-Air Force paper, Mark Schulz said that manufacturing is at the cusp of a carbon renaissance, from possible replacements for copper wire in cars, planes, or circuitry, to biometric sensors, to maybe even battery chargers in our everyday portable devices, we are only beginning to tap into the potential of carbon technology. That can only leave tech fan wondering: 'what next?' 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 Central Bank of Liberia It is not true that the World Bank stated, GIVE ME CONTROL OF A NATIONS WEALTH AND I CARE NOT WHO MAKES ITS LAWS. In fact, historians are still searching for the original author of that quote. However, is the World Bank not dictating onerous policies for poor countries such as Liberia, for example, since it came into existence in 1943? For example, was it not the World Bank that guided Liberia in awarding 66 fraudulent concessionary agreements such as the ExxonMobil concessionary agreement, according to Mr. Robert Sirleaf, son of former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf? Was it not the World Banks economic prescription that allowed its subsidiary and allies to make money (i.e., fungible) from Liberias iron ore, rubber, gold mine, some portion of which the World Bank lent to Liberia? Nowadays, while it lends money to the Liberian government, its 100% owned subsidiary (International Finance Company-IFC) is at the same time usurping business functions of Liberian commercial banks, by lending money to Liberias state-owned entities, including the Liberian Electricity Corporation. More so, its subsidiary (IFC) owns a US $19M investment in a gold mining Company that is polluting the Kinjor Community, Grand Cape Mount County; and has also invested US $8m in gold mines located within four southeastern counties of Liberia. Every country or community should view the ownership of a nations wealth within a broader perspective, warned Chief Justice Edward G. Ryan of the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 1873. Commenting on the issue of a nations wealth at a graduation ceremony, he stated, The question will arisewhich shall rule-wealth or man; which shall lead-money or intellect; who shall fill public stations-educated and patriotic freemen, or the feudal serfs of corporate capital? Judge Ryans warnings, of course, such a warning is not the first nor will it be the last, has not discouraged a privileged few from accumulating a nations wealth at the expense of society. Neither have the countless financial crisis from AD 33, when Roman banking houses issued mass unsecured loans, to the 14th-century banking crisis, to the tulip mania in 1637, to the recent 2008 financial debacle, etc. reduced the desire of profiteers to accumulate more wealth. In the case of Liberia, there is enough evidence for our officials to search for an alternative economic system, even if we are to forget about the causes of the fourteen-year civil war. Yet I do not understand why Liberia continues to limit governmental role in the management of its wealth with the hope that profiteers will voluntarily trickledown to the masses some portion of their productivity. Okay, if Liberias experience with profiteers is insufficient, are American officials not under the influence of big business? Well other countries such as the five countries listed below, do not share Liberias view and have authorized their governments to play a role. (1) Italy: The government has ownership in the worlds 11th largest industrial company with US $90 billion capitalization called Eni S.p.A.. (2) Germany: An entity manages more than 400 German State-owned entities. (3) France: Agence des de l'Etat (APE) manages the state's holdings in about 70 firms. (4) Japan: Government owns a 34% stake in the Petroleum Exploration Company (JAPEX); (5) South Korea: Government owns a share in the National Oil Corporation (KNOC). Certainly, denying wealth ownership to multinational corporations does not necessarily reduce income inequality as it is in Germany, according to some experts. Then the question is, how did Germany gain trade surplus and a budget surplus, as it has done for the past five years, according to Mr. Michael Pettis. (Forbes Magazine). Mr. Pettis argued that Germany is increasing its saving, thereby, increasing deficits of other countries. But nationally, Germanys increase in savings is not at the expense of funding for domestic programs such as education, healthcare, etc. Presumably, the German government generates adequate revenue in order to finance domestic programs and at the same time increase its surplus. For example, Germanys 16 states abolished tuition fees for undergraduate students. In order to understand how Germany generates adequate revenue by denying a transfer of wealth ownership to profiteers, let us review its banking system as presented by Mr. Theidor Baums in The German Banking System and Its Impact on Corporate Finance and Governance. (www.jura.uni-frankfurt.de). Germany divides its bank industry into three layers; Universal banks (Total commercial banks of 340), which includes the three largest banks; Savings banks (total savings banks of 771), which are owned by states and municipalities; and credit co-operative banks (total co-operative banks of 3,346), which are owned by communities, etc. The bank industry, for strategic reason, owns shares in many companies. For instance, the bank industry owns about 34% of the shares of Mercedes Benz car company. While it does not own a majority stake in many of the 100 big businesses, its votes coupled with the votes of its subsidiaries represent about 82% of the votes at meetings of the management board and supervisory board. In addition, members of the supervisory board elect and dismiss members of the management board, an economic arrangement that increases the influence of stakeholders, and not shareholders. The influence of stakeholders is not limited to state-owned banks and co-operative banks. This is because the supervisory board, the organ that makes important decisions, is made up of equaled numbers of representatives of employees and representatives of shareholders. Using the Mercedes Benz car company as a test case, in which the bank industry owns 34% shares, stakeholders would have significant influence. Let assume that there are 100 members of the supervisory board to decide (1) to relocate Mercedes Benz car company outside of Germany and (2) to replace qualified workers with substandard employees (of course in order to increase profits). Half of the 100 supervisory board will be employees and 17 representatives of state/local government (i.e., 34% of the remaining 50 members) will represent the interest of stakeholders. This arrangement creates an opportunity for the government to make decisions in the interest of stakeholders and not only shareholders. Instead of using Botswanas economic policy, which allows a government to play a significant role, let us review the benefits that accrue to a minority ( passive) shareholder as depicted by the 2015 income statement and balance sheet of the Ghana National Petroleum Oil Company of Ghana. The country has about 10 to 15% stakes in the oil fields in Ghana. This interest has increased Ghanaian government revenue, similar to Botswanas revenue increase. For instance, in addition to royalty income, it also receives a portion of the sale of petroleum products. With addition revenue, Ghana has invested in other profit-making associations and joint ventures (see page # 6 of the 2015 Audited Financial Statements). More so, it allocated funds for future projects and equity funds or sovereign funds. Yes, government employees are corrupt, but private investors, with the desire to make profits, are usually the first to offer bribes to government bureaucrats, according to Transparency International. In some cases, if John Perkins, the author of a book called An Economic Hit Man, is right, bribe offerors do not accept a no for an answer. Most importantly, Liberian elites and foreign profiteers who want to own Liberias wealth will continue to insist that prohibiting governments role in the ownership and, or management of the nations wealth is the best way to generate adequate revenue. If such a propaganda is correct, Germany will be experiencing trade deficit and budget deficit. All UK households should have access to full-fibre broadband by 2033, a new digital strategy from the government has proposed. It suggests that new legislation is written to guarantee all new build homes are fitted with full-fibre broadband as standard. Homes in rural and hard-to-reach areas should be prioritised for receiving full-fibre broadband, according to the report from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport. The majority of the UK will have access to 5G and 15million homes will have full-fibre by 2025 The report also recommends that the majority of the UK has access to 5G and 15 million premises are connected to full-fibre broadband by 2025. Without these changes full-fibre broadband, which uses high-speed cables to provide fast internet access rather than copper wiring, will only ever reach three quarters of the country and this will take more than 20 years to achieve. Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright said: 'We want everyone in the UK to benefit from world-class connectivity no matter where they live, work or travel. 'This radical new blueprint for the future of telecommunications in this country will increase competition and investment in full-fibre broadband, create more commercial opportunities and make it easier and cheaper to roll out infrastructure for 5G. 'The FTIR's analysis indicates that, without change, full-fibre broadband networks will at best only ever reach three-quarters of the country, and it would take more than 20 years to do so. 'It also indicates that 5G offers the potential for an expansion of the telecoms market, with opportunities for existing players and new entrants.' The changes proposed today come after the UK recently slipped to 31st from 35th place in the global broadband league tables. Rural homes and those in hard-to-reach areas will be made a priority for full-fibre access Analysis of 163 million broadband speed tests across 200 countries put Singapore in the top spot and the UK was the third bottom of countries within the European Union, according to the data from Cable.co.uk. The government hopes that changes to regulation and an industry-led switch over from copper to full-fibre co-ordinated with Ofcom will help drive private investment and minimise the cost. Hard-to-reach rural areas would be prioritised for fixed broadband and 5G mobile connections with around 200 million within the existing superfast broadband programme. Sharon White, Ofcom chief executive, said: 'We welcome the government's review, and share its ambition for full-fibre and 5G networks to be rolled out right across the UK. 'The government and Ofcom are working together, and with industry, to help ensure people and businesses get the broadband and mobile they need for the 21st century.' In the slow lane: The UK is now in the 31st place in the global broadband league tables While Mark Pocock, home communications expert for Broadbandchoices.co.uk, said; 'Despite it feeling like we are late to the party, far behind our European counterparts, the news of the government's blue print is positive. 'It puts the consumers at the heart of what is trying to be achieved and helps to break down the barriers operators face today. The commitment means that consumers will be able to fully benefit from technological advancements in the future, a solid, fast connection is key to this. 'The challenge to consumers at the moment is two-fold. Not only are 'full-fibre' connections not readily available today, rural areas are suffering the most, and many consumers could already be getting much more for less spend. 'We need to ensure everyone is seeking the best deal available to them, as many are still paying over the odds. We urge customers to check their speed versus what is available to them and compare. Price is important but it's important to balance your budget against what you realistically need that connection to do and pick the right package.' The government will now publish a consultation on the legislative changes needed to make its suggested changes. Taking off Tom Enders, chief executive at Airbus, has suggested his firm's jet fighter business could merge with rival BAE Systems to take on US competitors. Beaming up Satellite broadcaster Sky is expected to report a 9 per cent rise in full-year profits to 1.5 billion next week, which will help to maintain its appeal as a takeover target for rivals 21st Century Fox and Comcast. Suggestion: Airbus' jet fighter business could merge with rival BAE Systems to take on US competitors Cash cops Officers at City of London Police are to be given lessons about bitcoin and other web-based crypto-currencies. The force hopes the pilot scheme, due to begin this autumn, will help it tackle fraud. Royal wave The 'king of mining', Ian Hannam, is reportedly poised to make a major investment in tidal power. The former JP Morgan banker is believed to be backing a renewable energy project proposed by Tidal Electric located on the west coast near the Scottish border. It is an alternative to the controversial Swansea Bay plan rejected by the Government a few weeks ago. Convenience store chain McColl's hasn't been pulling in the customers like it used to. The company revealed yesterday that like-for-like sales had slipped by 2.7 per cent in the six months to May, which it blamed on supply disruptions and the cold snap. Total revenue was up 19.2 per cent to 601.7m thanks to the 300 convenience stores it hoovered up in 2017. But profit before tax almost halved from 4.5m last year to 2.3m, while gross margin the amount McColl's made from selling items compared to how much it spent buying them was squeezed from 25.4 per cent to 25 per cent. Russ Mould, an investment director at AJ Bell, said that the problems caused by weather, and supply chain disruptions from the collapse of wholesaler Palmer & Harvey, would 'hopefully sort themselves out'. But he added: 'More worrying is a drop in margins due to cutting prices in order to stay competitive.' Investors looked panicked McColl's shares tumbled 13.8 per cent, or 29p, to 181p. However, the business is fortunately not under financial pressure, Mould added, but shareholders would 'want reassurance that it is only experiencing short-term pains'. In the FTSE 100, online groceries retailer Ocado fared better. Its shares rose 5.5 per cent, or 60p, to 1143p as investors continued to plough money into the technology-focused company. But Ocado's momentum was not enough to keep the blue-chip index in positive territory. The FTSE 100 ended the day down 0.3 per cent, or 23 points, at 7655.8 as housebuilders Taylor Wimpey, Barratt Developments and Persimmon weighed on the index. Mining giant BHP Billiton slipped slightly as it revealed it had been hit with another lawsuit, this time in Australia, relating to the Brazil Samarco dam failure that killed 19 people in 2015. BHP was already facing claims from the Brazilian government and federal prosecutors, and shareholders in the US, but this latest lawsuit has been filed by more than 3000 investors. They are trying to recover their losses, saying that BHP misled them as to the risk of the dam failure. They estimate the disaster wiped around 14 billion from BHP's market value. BHP ended the day down 0.2 per cent, or 3.2p, at 1610.2p as the company said it would defend itself against the claim. Smaller miner Petra Diamonds had an even less sparkling day, as its shares lost 10.6 per cent of their value, or 5.28p, to close at 44.7p. Though production was in line with expectations, security concerns led to a 27m-to-34m write-down at the KEM mine it jointly owns in South Africa. Firestone Diamonds was the hotter option, as it reported strong output from its mine in Lesotho, although the average price per carat decreased. The small miner's share climbed 6.5 per cent, or 0.35p, to 5.7p. Investment firm Draper Esprit, which has backed companies such as snack box firm Graze and money transfer business Transferwise, jumped on the day of its AGM. It said that since April this year it had invested 29m across eight deals, including call centre software firm Aircall, digital bank Revolut and Finnish microsatellite manufacturer ICEYE. It also announced a 7m investment in Endomag, a firm pioneering magnetic sensing equipment that helps to fight cancer. Shares rose 4.2 per cent, or 25p, to 620p. Doctor Who also made an appearance on London's listed market, as Escape Hunt announced a five-year exclusive licence agreement with BBC Studios to create escape rooms themed around the show. Investors seemed happy to get locked in, as Escape Hunt shares rose 2.2 per cent, or 2.5p, to 116.5p. By Trend The United Arab Emirates (UAE) financial free zone Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) of South Africa, ADGM said on Sunday, Xinhua reported. As part of the MoU, ADGM said it will work "collaboratively" with CIPC on issues of mutual interest in the registries sector by incorporating each organization's appropriate resources and technical capacity. The MoU was signed by the Commissioner of CIPC Adv Rory W. Voller, and CEO of the Registration Authority of ADGM Dhaher bin Dhaher Al Mheiri. The aim of the MoU is to "strengthen mutual understanding of the legislative, procedural and information technological frameworks in each party's respective jurisdictions in the area of registering companies and other legal entities," according to ADGM. Al Mheiri said "the MoU with CIPC establishes a strategic partnership that develops ADGM's international relations in the field of registries." In turn, Voller noted "collaboration is a core value of CIPC and this MoU offers an opportunity to expand and enhance the relations with our counterparts at the ADGM Registration Authority." Established in 2013 and fully open for business since 2015, ADGM is the UAE's second financial free zone after the Dubai International Financial Center. This spot is all about peace and quiet and grand beaches, with the most famous being Vrika and Voutoumi The stunning little Greek island of Antipaxi is a favourite day trip destination from both Paxi and Corfu. While very few visitors stay overnight, the two amazing beach coves near the islands north are packed every day in summer with local and international visitors who fall in love with this stunning isle. Antipaxi is tiny, measuring only 4km long, and is totally unspoilt making it the place to visit if you really want to experience serenity. There are no shops, no real roads, only a couple of tavernas and just a few houses with friendly locals. This spot is all about peace and quiet and grand beaches, with the most famous being Vrika and Voutoumi, known worldwide for their transparent waters and breathtaking settings. The gorgeous beaches offer some of the finest clear blue seas in the world for swimming and snorkelling and are safe for all ages to enjoy. South of these two beaches are many more private coves that can also be reached every day over summer. Boats bring in day trippers once a day from nearby Paxos island, but once the last boat leaves for the day, total tranquillity kicks in and as soon as the sun sets you can enjoy the island to yourself. Apart from its beaches, Antipaxi is home to some beautiful white stretches of coastline, olive groves and a large vineyard, which produces some fine wine. Even though there are no shops, there are some great beach taverns serving local Greek dishes and refreshments. Antipaxi may be one of the smallest of the Ionian islands but it is filled with plenty of Greek charm and is a must see when visiting this part of Greece. Read more at greekcitytimes.com 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: Costas78 License: CC-BY-SA The third largest island of the Cyclades is one of the best organised because it has a long tradition as a tourist destination "Paros Try the Cyclades in the summer is the title of a feature prancing the beauties of the Greek island of Paros published in the online edition of German newspaper Griechenland Zeitung. In 2015, the municipality of Paros had hosted seven journalists, members of the International Union of Editors for Gastronomy, Wine and Journey (IFWTWA). The reporters were enchanted by the island when they made wine by stomping on grapes and savored a souma with figs on the Cross. Paros, again and again, the article points out, adding: The third largest island of the Cyclades is one of the best organised because it has a long tradition as a tourist destination. In recent years, some 14,000 inhabitants of the island have once again attracted attention. Paros, along with being a European first prize winner, has also emerged as the top choice in the list of the 20 most popular destinations searched by Greeks for this summer, according to the new, very interesting data recorded by the global search engine Skyscanner. which is used by millions of users from around the world. The island offers the full package for visitors with its multidimensional provisions, as has recently been outlined by CNN. The international cable network notes: Modern lifestyle and traditional elements, authentic luxury and Cycladic simplicity, picturesque settlements and a cosmopolitan atmosphere coexist harmoniously in Paros. It is not by chance that the island can cater for every taste, appealing to diverse crowds every year, from students to families, which is why it has been on top of the list for the most popular Greek destinations for years. Read more at protothema.gr 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: Bgabel License: CC-BY-SA The government, which is aggressively pushing for affluent foreigners to buy the visas, has barred agencies from promoting them NICOSIA Wealthy foreigners who can buy so-called Golden Visas to get residency permits in Cyprus without living there but able to reside in other European Union countries could find themselves in a bind if the government decides to grant companies or individuals selling investments the right to operate as licensed advisers. That was the warning from a stakeholder, Akis Kyradjis, Vice President at Arton Capital, who told the Cyprus Mail that they risk being exposed to malpractice and fraud. This is like allowing the producers of medicines to act as doctors as well, said Kyradjis, whose company advises the rich about residency and citizenship matters. We find it hard to believe that the government will make Cyprus the only country in the world to declare officially that it allows conflict of interest in providing professional services to investors, he said. Ironically, the government, which is aggressively pushing for affluent foreigners to buy the visas, has barred agencies from promoting them. Kyradjis said that while the government had taken measures to reduce the risk of abuse in other areas, it had not taken a final decision over the licenses. Applicants are required to present clean criminal records although Cyprus is still fighting a reputation as a haven for tax cheats and money launderers, and they must sign an agreement that they will avoid conflicts of interest between their organizations, clients, business associates and other professionals. The scheme, introduced in 2014, has been updated with measures regulating the business of the Golden Visas, with investors required to put at least 2 million euros ($2.34 million) into real estate or a company or in shares. They can also invest 2 million euros in securities offered by investment companies licensed by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission, or a combination of both parts. If investment sellers also become eligible to register as service providers, the island could suffer another huge blow to its reputation as a transparent, dependable and ethical destination for foreign investors, said Kyradjis, if it turns out the buyers have shady records. Cyprus will thus become the object of international ridicule, he said. Read more at thenationalherald.com 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:Jon Rawlinson License: CC-BY-SA The net income of Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), the Bahrain-based aluminium smelter, surged 65 per cent in the second quarter of this year to BD29.1 million ($77.4 million), compared to BD17.7 million ($46.9 million) for the same period in 2017. Albas top-line and bottom-line for the second quarter and first-half of 2018 were primarily driven by higher sales volume, higher London Metal Exchange (LME) prices (an increase of 18 per cent YoY) and the impact of Line 5 recovery in Q2 2017, said a statement from the company. The companys total sales/revenues reached BD244 million ($648.9 million) in Q2, up by 36 per cent YoY, compared to BD179.3 million ($476.9 million) in the same period last year, it said. Earnings per share (EPS) in this quarter were fils 21 versus fils 12 in Q2 2017, it added. The net profits jumped 46 per cent to BD63 million ($167.5 million) in the first half of this year, compared to BD43.3 million ($115 million) in H1 2017. The total sales/revenues reached BD465.2 million ($1.237 billion) in H1, up by 26 per cent YoY, compared to BD369.7 million ($983.3 million) in the same period last year. Earnings per share were fils 44 versus fils 31 in H1 2017, said the statement. Some of Albas highlights for Q2 included: *Production went up by 23 per cent YoY (252,081 mt) while sales volume increase 19 per cent YoY (249,595 mt); * Alba value-added sales averaged 60 per cent of total shipments in Q2; * The achieved benefits of Titan Phase III are $81/MT; * Line 6 Expansion Project closed first part of 2nd tranche ECA-covered facilities (204.5 million) and overall progress of the project reached 61 per cent; * Power Expansion Project (PS 5 & PDS) overall progress reached 63 per cent & 91 per cent. The company said its priorities for 2018 inlcude: Continued focus on safety initiatives; deliver on Project Titan -Phase III (2018: 1 Million MT & $60/t); leverage strong demand on value-added sales; focus on future upstream opportunities; prepare for the start-up of Line 6: close final part of 2ndECA-covered facility tranche; award remaining packages within second half of the year. Shaikh Daij Bin Salman Bin Daij Al Khalifa, chairman of Albas board of directors, said: Our company delivered a strong performance in the first half of this year. As we are half-way through the year, we remain fully committed to achieve our targets on the Line 6 Expansion Project, he said. Albas chief executive officer Tim Murray added: Safety continues to be our number 1 priority as we move into the difficult summer months. As we are facing many headwinds in the market in particular the impact of higher alumina prices, we will be focused on our Project Titan Program as well as increase our production to offset the market challenges in the second half of this year, he said. I also thank our people for working together on the same tune to make things happen, he added. TradeArabia News Service Batelco, a leading digital solutions provider in Bahrain, has signed a partnership agreement with Bahrain Credit in a move to provide customers with rewarding and exclusive benefits. The partnership agreement was signed by Batelcos acting general manager Maha Abdulrahman and assistant vice president of Bahrain Credit Rasool Al Aali. Batelco and Bahrain Credit have agreed on bundling selected products and services to offer exclusive and rewarding benefits to their mutual customers, which further enhances and complements their lifestyle. As part of the agreement, Batelco Fixed, Home Internet and Mobile Postpaid line customers subscribing for an Imtiaz card and paying their Batelco bills with the Imtiaz card, are entitled to enjoy a reimbursement of BD10 ($26.3) monthly in their bills for one year. Customers wishing to benefit from this offer need to transfer their current Credit Card balance to their Bahrain Credit Imtiaz card in order to receive the monthly BD10 credit, a statement said. TradeArabia News Service Dubai will host the third edition of The Global Franchise Market Exhibition (TGFM), a dedicated platform for local and international franchisors and franchisees to explore new business opportunities, on December 5 and 6. The event will take place at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. TGFM will bring together leading investors, master franchisees, licensees, entrepreneurs, and leading brands in various sectors and it is expected to attract over 2,000 visitors and participants and witness the participation of over 100 leading brands from 80 countries. The exhibition will also feature five pavilions for participating countries like Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Malaysia and Turkey. TGFM will offer a platform for B2B meetings at the exhibition while also awarding participating brands with the best stand design and best stand activity prizes to recognize their unique contribution. As a testament to its growing reputation for generating great value on investment for exhibitors, last year, 42 per cent of exhibitors generated business value between $100,000 to $500,000 while 18 percent generated business value between $500,000 to $1 million and 3 percent even generated business worth more than $1 million. The Global Franchise Market Conference and Exhibition - TGFM 2018 comes at a time when the Franchise market in the UAE is set to grow immensely owing to a series of business-friendly policies and regulations implemented by the UAE leadership as well as UAEs strong economic growth, high purchasing power among consumers, consumption patterns, and the increasing penetration of international franchise brands. Franchising has developed extensively in the UAE over a short time, especially in the Food and Beverage F & B sector, which according to a survey by a global audit firm KPMG, has grown by nearly 4 percent annually, increasing from $11.3 billion in 2014 to reach $13.2 billion this year, said Anas Al Madani, vice chairman and Group CEO of Index Holding. Jassim Al Bastaki, CEO, Franchise Souq said: With the growing franchise industry and the increased number of aspiring entrepreneurs and investors, TGFM presents a great medium for franchise brand owners looking to enter the MENA region to meet and connect with franchise partners. As the franchise market is growing people are understanding the benefits of franchising and investing in quality risk free businesses. TGFM is a business-matching platform for companies wishing to grow globally through networking with potential investors, business partners, distributors and agents, as well it provides an opportunity to meet industry experts within their field. The CEO of Francorp Middle East and Strategic Partner for TGFM, Imad Charaf Eddine said: This December will be Francorps third consecutive year as a strategic partner for TGFM, and we couldnt be happier with the success of the previous years and the international growth the two days offered those exhibiting. The Global Franchise Market 2018 is set to be the perfect platform for face-face interaction with every type of profile in the franchising industry, whether youre a business owner, investor, service provider or employee; we are confident it will be a memorable and valuable experience from the moment you sign up to attend. TGFM is an excellent opportunity where you can expand the know-how of others to propel your business into a successful future in franchising! he added. Food and Beverage: Key to the growth of franchise industry in the UAE According to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, F & B continues to dominate the franchise market in the region and the industry was the second largest spending category for UAE consumers, totalling $24.8 billion last year. In addition, fast food is expected to account for 40 percent of the franchising market and industry experts expect the regions F & B franchisees to grow by more than 25 percent in the coming years and maintain their dominance over other sectors like education and healthcare services. A number of leading brands from the F&B sector are exhibiting this year at TGFM like Jelly Belly Ice Cream (Gold Sponsor),and the regions first locally made gourmet ice-cream produced in the heart of Dubai in an exclusive state-of-the-art manufacturing facility; in addition to Mary Browns Chicken & Taters, Reis &Irvys, The Future of Frozen Yogurt, Delifrance, AlmayassLebanese Armenian Cuisine, Bouza Roll, Fishface, Munch Bakery, Meito Cafe Lounge & Bubble Tea, Under500 and ChicKing. The exhibition will also witness the participation of Francorp Middle East (Platinum Sponsor and Strategic Partner) among others. The Global Franchise Market (TGFM) is organized annually by Index Conferences and Exhibitions a member of Index Holding with the support of Department of Economic Development Dubai and under the strategic partnership of Franchise Souq and Francorp Middle East. TradeArabia News Service The Ajman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) will participate in the sixth edition of the International Franchise Exhibition, and taking place at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) on October 16 and 17. Organized by Abu Dhabi Chamber, the exhibition is will feature numerous major international brands including, Michelin Tires, the world's leading manufacturer of tires, and the Seven Eleven chain of convenience stores, which recently launched branches in the UAE under a concession agreement between Seven Emirates Investment LLC and Seven Eleven International. Mohammad Helal Al Muhairi, director-general of ADCCI, said: Ajman Chambers participation underscores the exhibitions support for the UAE vision and strategy to enhance the contribution of the private sector and achieve economic diversification objectives. Additionally, it provides further opportunities in the investment and business fields and encourages a diverse range of companies to exchange experiences and strengthen cooperation." Al Muhairi emphasized that the exhibition is designed to provide opportunities for the development of successful partnerships between foreign companies, entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the UAE. Local and regional investors will also be provided with insights on international best practices within the franchising sector, supporting the sectors development within the UAE and enhancing its contribution to the nations gross domestic product (GDP). "In line with our strategy of encouraging Emirati entrepreneurs to engage in business and participate in the private sector, ADCCI is keen to organize the International Franchise Exhibition and contribute to the sustainable economic development of the UAE. Moreover, the Exhibition is recognized for supporting and developing SMEs by highlighting investment and partnership opportunities with leading brands across a variety of industries," added Al Muhairi. Hilal Mohammed Al Qubaisi, acting executive director of Innovation and Business Development at ADCCI, said: The Chambers organization of the sixth edition of the International Franchise Exhibition is indicative of the exhibition's position as a leading global business event in the field of franchising. The event contributes to the expansion of the franchise base, supporting local brands and enabling companies to improve their performance and encouraging them to increase their investments in the sector - contributing to sustainable economic development within the UAE. Al Qubaisi highlighted that more than 100 international and local exhibitors, representing 12 diverse sectors from 15 countries, are committed to participating in the Exhibition. The event will host exhibitors from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Italy, Jordan, India, Pakistan, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Portugal, the US, Kuwait, France and the UK. A series of exclusive workshops for attendees will be held on the sidelines of the exhibition, with the aim of familiarizing participants with the experiences of some of the most influential pioneers of the franchising sector. The knowledge-sharing workshops will provide attendees with the skills and information to better benefit from opportunities in the world of franchising. Registration is now open for the introductory and training workshops that will be moderated by Essam Lootah, executive director of the Franchises Service. The exhibition will showcase innovative concepts and strategies to entrepreneurs and SMEs alike, while providing them with the opportunity to connect with international franchises to establish partnerships and highlight how brands can be developed regionally and internationally. The exhibition will also provide an appropriate working environment, by allocating suitable spaces that allow exhibitors, visitors and delegates to communicate and hold business meetings, and transactions. TradeArabia News Service SalamAir, Omans first budget airline, will be adding Dhaka to its destination network in August with the launch of a four-times-weekly service to the Bangladeshi capital, said a report. Flights from Muscat to Dhaka will commence on August 28 and will be operated on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, while flights from Dhaka will be operated on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. One-way tickets from Muscat start at RO60 ($155.4), while from Dhaka starts at RO74 ($191.7), a report in Oman Observer said. The airline is looking to increase connectivity in the region with plans to start flights to Iran, Sudan, Nepal, Kuwait, Bangladesh and India by summer, the report cited Captain Mohamed Ahmed, CEO, as saying. "We are exploring new destinations across Asia including Peshawar, Islamabad, Shiraz, Khartoum and Dhaka among others, he said. A four-member group of travel enthusiasts from Bahrain will undertake a road trip to the Greek island of Chios with the aim of promoting Bahrain's culture, history and tourism. The six-week trip, dubbed as "From Island of Pearls to the Island of Mastic" is organised by 101 Guides, led by director and publisher Ali Mushaima. The group is expected to start the journey next week and it can be followed on www.friendshiparabia.com. The road trip will cover over 10,000 km and pass through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey and Greece. Chios is the fifth largest of the Greek islands, situated in the Aegean Sea, 7 km off the Anatolian coast. Chios is notable for its exports of mastic gum and its nickname is the Mastic Island. "The trip is aimed at creating awareness about Bahrain and its cultural traditions and touristic facilities," said Mushaima. "Promoting Bahrain is, has been and will always be close to our hearts and this tour aims to do the same," he said. The group had earlier conducted such trips - from Bahrain to Dublin in 2004, Bahrain to Britain in 2008, and Bahrain to Thassos, Greece in 2010. The 101 Guides, which publishes the '101 Things to Do in Bahrain' guide and other publications, has also published a similar guide on Chios island. The group is working with the Bahrain Historical and Archeological Society for the trip, which is supported by Zayani Motors and Bahrain Holidays. - TradeArabia News Service Where Should Cryptocurrency Be in 2019 Bitcoin will officially turn 10 years old next year. With 2019 being only 6 months away, now is a good time to think about where the crypto market is going to be in half a years time. Bitcoin was made in response to the Global Financial crisis in 2008. And today, many other cryptocurrencies have followed. So far, there are around more than 1,600 digital currencies present, not to mention other blockchain projects. In 2017, Bitcoin was able to reach its all-time high at almost $20,000. However, things went bearish ever since the start of 2018. At this point, Bitcoin has dipped below $6,000 a few days ago. In reality, so-called crypto investors have different views when it comes to its future value. There are experts who believe that Bitcoin is about to hit $50,000 this year while there are those that have a more tapered prediction saying that Bitcoin will have a hard time to go up again. Tough but Clear Regulations One of the reasons behind the bearish performance in 2018 so far is because of the regulatory changes made by regulators from different parts of the world. China is among the first that decided to ban crypto-related activities, including crypto exchanges in the country in 2017. In addition to this, there is a witch hunt being done against crypto mining operations. In the coming months, especially in 2019, expect tougher but clearer regulations for the crypto market. Though regulatory changes have caused panic and even concern on the part of crypto investors and businesses alike, these changes are needed in order for the market to mature. Expect to see this trend being carried out throughout the globe. The US Securities and Exchange Commission is slowly trying to define exactly what cryptocurrencies and ICOs are. And so far, William Hinman, who works as the agencys director of the division of corporate finance mentioned that Ethereum isnt a security. His statement follows a similar tune as SEC chair Jay Clayton as he also cleared Bitcoin from being regulated in the same way as stocks and bonds or other investment vehicles. Fewer ICOs? Though Bitcoin and Ethereum have been considered as commodities by the SEC, it isnt exactly the same for ICOs. ICOs, on the other hand, have been viewed as securities. This distinction matters since being considered a security means being subjected to the same regulations applied to different investment vehicles. What this means is that there could potentially be a decrease in the number of ICOs in the coming months, especially in 2019. Keep in mind that in the first quarter of 2018, ICOs have generated more funds than the entire 2017. In April, it was reported that ICOs were able to raise $6.3 billion which is equivalent to 118% of the value raised by ICOs from last year. But it seems that this could change soon. 1 2 next For more information on related topics, visit the following channels: You can opt out of certain types of cookies (e.g. those used in social media sharing) by choosing "I do not accept". The website will still largely function well, but with slightly less functionality in places. To manage your cookie preferences in future, visit the "Cookie Statement" link at the bottom of any page. Ben Edwards, founder and CEO, and Greg Herr, VP, of Weatherby Consulting LLC, a leading vacation rental consulting firm based in Florida, will be featured speakers at three industry events in September and October this year. (TRAVPR.COM) CA - July 20th, 2018 - Miramar Beach, FL, July 20, 2018 Ben Edwards, founder and CEO, and Greg Herr, VP, of Weatherby Consulting LLC, a leading vacation rental consulting firm based in Florida, will be featured speakers at three industry events in September and October this year. Edwards and Herr will speak at the Streamline Summit 2018, to be held Sept 10-12, at The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa, Scottsdale, Arizona; Rezfest 2018, the worlds leading vacation rental technology conference, on Sept. 25-27, in Florida; and at 2018 VRMA International Conference, set for Oct. 27-30, MGM Grand Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Streamline Summit features five speakers over three days and more than 100 workshops, while Rezfest 2018 is the worlds leading vacation rental technology conference. At this years Rezfest, participants will dive deep into industry trends and technology solutions, inviting all professional property managers to join in. The event will feature exciting general sessions and keynote speeches, plus many opportunities to collaborate and network with hundreds of industry leaders and property managers from around the globe. The VRMA National Conference has been re-named and re-branded as the VRMA International Conference, to more accurately reflect what it has become. Participants will still experience the same top-tier educational content and one-of-a-kind networking opportunities featured at VRMAs fall event with a broadened scope and more education geared toward the international audience, including a new international track. With more than 60-plus educational sessions and an exhibit hall featuring more than 100 industry-leading suppliers, this is the global conference for the vacation rental industry. About Ben Edwards As a respected and innovative industry leader, Ben Edwards has been positively affecting the vacation rental industry for over 19 years. From managing small resorts, to financial and operational auditing, to opening large-scale resort developments, Edwards unique background provides a multi-level approach to vacation rental consulting, transaction advisory services and accounting services. Involved in more than 100 purchase and sale transactions in the vacation rental industry, Edwards's experience offers significant advantages, typically providing material gains or savings of the gross purchase price for clients at a cost that is generally a small fraction of the value delivered. About Weatherby Consulting Weatherby Consulting provides strategic transaction advisory services, vacation rental consulting an expert accounting services to create opportunities and solutions in the highly competitive vacation rental and resort management industries. Founded in 2013 by vacation rental industry veteran Ben Edwards, Weatherby Consulting is the preeminent provider of consulting services in the vacation rental industry with more than 100 buy-and-sell transactions and more than $200 million in sales of vacation rental companies throughout his career. Based in Miramar Beach, Florida, Weatherby Consulting delivers high-impact results, provides partner-level attention and implements solutions tailored to address every clients unique goals and objectives. Weatherby Consulting has worked with industry leading clients in more than 200 resort markets across North America and beyond. With more than 19 years of industry and accounting knowledge, Weatherby Consulting provides rapid, strategic advice to assist our clients with purchase-and-sale transactions, profitability consulting and vacation rental specific financial reporting. With an unwavering dedication to both the short- and long-term interests of your company, our services are designed to identify underlying issues, provide straightforward answers, and create solutions that will achieve the maximum financial benefit and a competitive advantage for your organization. Their services include: 1. Transaction Advisory Services This service line includes the purchase and sale of Vacation Rental Companies, our primary service line. 2. Vacation Rental Consulting We provide consulting services focused on creating sustainability, efficiencies and increased profits. 3. Accounting Services We provide expert-level accounting services and financial reporting to more than 30 companies across the U.S. 4. Partnership Opportunities Weatherby Consulting is willing to partner with Vacation Rental Companies to more effectively manage certain business operations and substantially increase the value of the business. Weatherby Consulting, LLC 755 Grand Boulevard Suite 105-275 Miramar Beach, Florida 32550 Toll-Free: (888) 304-1405 Fax: (888) 304-1405 Email: info@weatherbyconsulting.com Contact: Marci Bracco Cain Chatterbox PR Salinas, CA 93901 (831) 747-7455 http://www.weatherbyconsulting.com ### | By Mary T. Phelan As a girl, Ambassador Susan G. Esserman, JD, founder and executive director of the University of Maryland Support, Advocacy, Freedom and Empowerment (SAFE) Center for Human Trafficking Survivors, was inspired by the work of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), the historic civil rights organization whose founding and longtime president was Martin Luther King Jr. This month, the SCLC, whose roots trace back to the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955, when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, awarded Esserman with its Justice for Girls Award for her advocacy in assisting survivors of human trafficking. (See video below.) It is such an honor to participate in this very inspiring program and join the other honorees today, Esserman said as she accepted the award July 13 at the SCLCs 60th annual convention at the Renaissance Hotel in Washington, D.C. It is especially meaningful to receive this award from SCLC, whose work has inspired me since my childhood. From left, Cathelean C. Steele, first lady of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference(SCLC), Ambassador Susan G. Esserman, JD, founder and executive director of the University of Maryland Support, Advocacy, Freedom and Empowerment (SAFE) Center for Human Trafficking Survivors, and Josephine Mourning, chairperson of the SCLC's Prince George's County (Md.) Chapter. Your powerful history and enduring legacy have changed our nation and your commitment to social, economic, and political justice and to the principles and vision of Dr. King is as vital today as ever, Esserman told the estimated 175 SCLC members in attendance. Your attempts to bring attention to the human trafficking situation are pivotal as so many are unaware of the extent of human trafficking across the country and how brutal it often can be, said Esserman, a visiting professor with a joint appointment at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law and the University of Maryland School of Social Work (SSW). She also is a partner at the international law firm of Steptoe & Johnson LLP. She served in four senior positions in the Clinton administration, including deputy U.S. trade representative with the rank of ambassador. In May 2016, the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) and the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) announced the opening of the SAFE Center near College Park, the countrys first university-based program to combine comprehensive services for sex and labor trafficking survivors, legal case management, medical, mental health and economic empowerment with research and advocacy to combat trafficking. It is an initiative of UMCP and UMB through its formal collaborative program for innovation, the University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State, and draws on the combined resources and the wide range of disciplines at both institutions. Since the SAFE Center opened, more than 80 trafficking survivors have been served. In her acceptance remarks, Esserman recalled how at the March on Washington in 1963, King called on the nation to make real for all within its borders Americas founding ideals life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But the tens of thousands of human trafficking victims in America know neither liberty, nor happiness. Their lives play out against a backdrop of intolerable cruelty, Esserman said. So much remains to be done, not only to support victims in escaping from their traffickers, but also to help restore them to a life of dignity. Only with a sustained and broad-based effort, working together, can the victims of human trafficking be freed from the trauma they have endured. We are so proud that Susan Esserman and the SAFE Center have been recognized by the SCLC, UMB President Jay A. Perman, MD, said. It's fitting that this historic organization honor a woman working every day to restore health, happiness, dignity, and power to people who have been so cruelly stripped of them. We're grateful for the vital support and services Ambassador Esserman provides to the most vulnerable among us. SSW Dean Richard P. Barth, PhD, MSW, described Esserman as a highly skilled and committed fighter for the safety of every client and for policies that fully prevent and respond to the injustice of human trafficking. The intensity of her work to create the SAFE Center and to ensure effective work there is extraordinary, he said. The University of Maryland is immensely fortunate to have her applying her talents and helping us to develop greater capacity on this critical area of practice and policy. Esserman was one of six honorees receiving awards during the groups Womens Empowerment Luncheon, the theme of which was The Hands of Empowered Women: Reaching Down, Reaching Out, and Reaching Back. The event was hosted by SCLC first lady Cathelean C. Steele, founder of Justice for Girls, an initiative that seeks to empower girls and heighten awareness of human trafficking within communities. Through seminars, workshops, public forums, roundtable discussions, and partnerships with other organizations, Justice for Girls educates and increases awareness of sex trafficking of children in the United States. We honor women who are doing extraordinary things in the community, Steele said, explaining why Esserman was chosen to receive the Justice for Girls Award. We really are excited to honor Ambassador Esserman because she is doing great things for the survivors of human trafficking. We are trying to train our girls to feel good about themselves, and to defend themselves, and not to just fall for any and everything, but there are so many girls who get trapped, Steele continued. Girls have the comfort of knowing that people like Ambassador Esserman are looking out for them and giving them a second chance. In community consultations in Nigeria, the descriptions of discrimination and violence shared by men who have sex with men and female sex workers were disturbing and extensive. We were beaten up by a bunch of community boys, at some of our gatherings the police come and harass us, If I go to the police station, they will say, is she not a prostitute? [] I prefer dying in silence. The distressing experiences may differ, but the impact is the same. Those who are most vulnerable to HIV infection stop accessing life-saving treatment or reporting human rights violations due to fear, stigma, discrimination and the possibility they may face prosecution. Nigeria has the second largest HIV epidemic globally, with an estimated 3.2 million people living with the disease, and particularly high HIV infection rates among key populations. HIV prevalence among adults is 2.9 percent, while HIV prevalence is 14.4 percent among sex workers and 23 percent among gay men and other men who have sex with men. A successful national HIV strategy must respond to the barriers key populations face in accessing HIV services. This requires improving laws and policies in Nigeria that currently present significant challenges for key populations. Although anti-discrimination laws exist, they may not be comprehensively understood by the public or routinely enforced by the authorities. This perceived lack of legal protection can drive vulnerable people further underground, and away from health services. UNDP welcomes the theme of the upcoming 22nd International AIDS Conference: Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges. Putting human rights centre stage by drawing attention to the need for evidence and rights-based laws and policies is critical. But progress needs more than just words. It requires direct action to address the laws and policies undermining public health efforts, and a partnership approach that engages key populations, government, legal and healthcare professionals. The Nigerian government, supported by Enda Sante and UNDP, has developed the National Plan of Action for the removal of legal and human rights barriers in the HIV/AIDS response. Founded on the experiences of key populations, it draws on the collective wisdom of policy makers, health care providers, civil society organizations and development partners. Gender equity and human rights are integrated into the National HIV and AIDS Strategic Framework and Plan, meaning these important issues can no longer be overlooked. Nigerian law enforcement officers, healthcare workers, lawyers, judges and parliamentarians have been sensitized on removing legal and human rights barriers to HIV services. Civil society organizations have received financial support to document human rights violations and train community-based groups on their rights, to facilitate access to justice for key populations and to enforce their rights. More remains to be done, and the Nigeria national HIV plan sets ambitious targets, as it must, if we are serious about ending AIDS by 2030. To achieve these targets, human rights must take centre stage of HIV responses once and for all. About the author Deena Patel is a programme manager in the HIV, Health and Development Group at the United Nations Development Programme Regional Service Centre for Africa. Follow her on Twitter: @deenapatel1234 Together with the Global Fund, UNDP is working with 10 African countries and four leading African civil society organizations the AIDS and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa, ENDA Sante, KELIN and the Southern Africa Litigation Centre to support human rights programmes for HIV. The programme aims to remove legal and policy barriers by providing documentation of human rights violations, advocacy support, strategic litigation and capacity strengthening for key stakeholders. Project and Document Summary Forging Resilient Social Contracts: Preventing Violent Conflict and Sustaining Peace is an 11-country research and policy dialogue project that aims to revitalise the social contract amidst conflict and fragility and to advance policy and practice for preventing violent conflict and for achieving and sustaining peace. The comparative findings provide evidence and insight into what drives social contracts that are inclusive and resilient, and how they manifest and adapt in different contexts, transcending what are often unsustainable, ephemeral elite bargains into more inclusive ones, with durable arrangements for achieving and sustaining peace. The project involves international scholars, policy advisers and authors from the countries examined: Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Colombia, Cyprus, Nepal, Somalia, South Sudan, South Africa, Tunisia, Yemen and Zimbabwe. This Summary Findings Report introduces the project context, the projects research framing, and findings from nine of the 11 case studies. Numerous validation workshops and policy dialogues in the case study countries and elsewhere inform the findings. Policy recommendations for national and international policymakers are shared. These findings and recommendations provide a basis for deepened future research and related policy and project activity. Research findings illuminate how three drivers facilitate resilient social contracts to attain and sustain peace: i) inclusive political settlements addressing core conflict issues, ii) institutions delivering effectively and inclusively; and, iii) social cohesion broadening and deepening. The project activities reported on here took place from 2016 to mid 2018 and include case research in these countries, a series of policy and scholarly dialogues and this summary. Future project work could include policy papers on critical themes emerging from the research, knowledge products featuring the case studies, and a social contract assessment tool. The project gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Oslo Governance Centre (OGC), the Friedrich-Ebert- Stiftung (FES) in Berlin and New York, the Julian J. Studley Fund of the Graduate Program of International Affairs at The New School in New York, in this work. For more information on the project click here. Tbilisi Governments should double efforts to be open, accountable, and responsive to their citizens, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said, as more than 76 nations convened here to discuss putting people first. Just when we need it most, trust in globalization, in government, and in elected officials is at an all-time low in many parts of the world, said Achim Steiner, the Administrator of UNDP. Accomplishing the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals requires unprecedented international cooperation and leadership at a time of intense political polarization over complex issues such as migration, climate change, violent extremism, gender equality, Steiner said. The purpose of this summit - to actively explore new ways of opening governments to the citizens and delivering quality public services that restore trust between state and society - is more important than ever before in tackling todays complex challenges, he added. The Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a multilateral initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from governments to promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance. Within OGP, we have courageous reformers working each and every day to ensure government listens to its citizens and delivers on their behalf. By joining forces with organizations, such as UNDP, we can step up and scale up innovative reforms across the partnership and forge new global norms that show an alternative and more hopeful - path for the world, said Sanjay Pradhan, CEO of the Open Government Partnership. The OGP will review 2,500 governance-related commitments made by 76 participating countries and 15 subnational governments. It will also examine issues such as promoting women leaders, boosting open data, opening civic space and scaling up the fight to eliminate corruption. This year, the OGP summit is hosted and chaired by Georgia, a middle-income country that has made leaps and bounds on transparency and anti-corruption. Georgia will be handing the chairmanship of OGP to Canada later this year. The second most transparent aid organization in the world, UNDPs governance work spanning 700 projects around the world - involves supporting countries to bring about constitutional reforms, organizing credible elections and strengthening parliaments, while ensuring constructive engagement of civil society. **** For media queries, please contact Nicolas.douillet@Undp.org (Istanbul) and sophie.tchitchinadze@undp.org (Tbilisi). For more information and the summit agenda, please visit https://ogpsummit.org/ Buenos Aires - Addressing the G20 finance ministers meeting in Buenos Aires, UN Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Achim Steiner acknowledged the improved momentum for the global economy, but stressed that the risks since the groups last meeting four months ago had become more pronounced. As the United Nations representative in the high-level meeting with G20 finance ministers and central bank governors he called for policies that mitigate the rising risks to long-term growth and prosperity for all. Such risks could lead to severe consequences for not only developed but many emerging and developing countries. The financial architecture must play a key role to create gains in the economy through greater stability and resilience, but also in the social and environmental realms, including reducing inequalities, Steiner said. He added that G20 countries policy choices matter to the global economy and these should be geared towards inclusive prosperity. In particular, he stressed the role of the G20 in strengthening multilateral and cooperative approaches to curtail harmful tax policies and competition including in the rapidly growing digital economy. He proposed that economic activities in the digital space lead to collective action towards a coherent set of international tax rules that, in turn, also create policy space for developing countries. The UNDP chief warned that the debt risks have risen rapidly in many developing countries in recent months, making them particularly vulnerable to potential financial shocks. In recognizing the special role of G20 nations, he invited finance ministers to work together to strengthen multilateral action to mitigate risks and create an enabling environment - be it with respect to the future of work or mobilising investment for infrastructure, both priority themes of Argentinas G20 Presidency. The timely realization of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals remain important reference points for the impact of G20 decisions - both on and beyond their own economies - including through appropriate international cooperation and lending policies which can boost resilience to future shocks. Click here to read the communique of the First G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of 2018 The United Nations Foundation announced the new Arthur H. Vandenberg Distinguished Fellowship with former U.S. Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) and former U.S. Congressman Ander Crenshaw (R-FL) as its inaugural Arthur H. Vandenberg Distinguished Fellows. In these newly created roles, Senator Kirk and Congressman Crenshaw will advise on important foreign policy and national security challenges and deepen discussions about Americas relationship with the UN and other multilateral institutions. We are honored to welcome Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Representative Ander Crenshaw (R-FL) to the UN Foundation as the first Arthur H. Vandenberg Distinguished Fellows. As long-term champions of foreign aid and funding for U.S. global leadership, Senator Kirk and Congressman Crenshaw will provide invaluable insights to the work of our organization, said Kathy Calvin, President and CEO of the UN Foundation. U.S. leadership at the UN and in the world remains essential to solving global challenges and advancing U.S. interests and values. The two Distinguished Fellows will continue the legacy of late Senator Arthur H. Vandenberg who championed bipartisan support for the ratification of the United Nations Charter, the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and NATO. Senator Vandenbergs legacy is clear: When America engages in the world, we are stronger, said Peter Yeo, Senior Vice President of the UN Foundation. Senator Kirk served in the U.S. Senate from 2010 to 2016. Prior to his tenure in the Senate, Senator Kirk represented Illinoiss 10th Congressional District for 10 years in the House. While in the Senate, he served on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPS), where he championed increases to the international affairs budget. Congressman Crenshaw represented Floridas 4th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2001 to 2017. During his tenure in the House, he served on the House Appropriations State, Foreign Operations Subcommittee, co-chaired the Malaria Caucus, and was viewed as a champion for robust foreign assistance. Congressman Crenshaw is presently Senior Counsel at the international law firm King and Spalding. ### Media Contacts: Erika Howard | ebriceno@unfoundation.org | 202-864-5156 Serena Jiwani | sjiwani@unfoundation.org | 202-854-2355 About the United Nations Foundation The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the worlds most pressing problems, and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by philanthropic, corporate, government, and individual donors. Learn more at: www.unfoundation.org. (July 23, 2018) Fun is in the air this week as a variety of summer camps kick off on the UTSA Main Campus. Throughout the summer, UTSA offers more than 60 camps in science, engineering, architecture, sports, music, writing, language, culture and more. Campers will explore modern science and technology, discover the Chinese culture and show off their skills on the Roadrunner fields. UTSA offers these camps for the week of July 23-27: Archaeology and the Science of Skeletons Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Center for Archeological Research, Main Campus In this sold out session, campers ages 9-13 will discover the field of bioarchaeology while being introduced to cultural traditions all over the world. They will learn how archaeologists use skeletal remains to uncover the past. Campers can expect archaeology themed activities, games, crafts and a hands-on look at artifacts in a lab. iTEC Camps Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., various locations, Main Campus Campers will explore science, technology, engineering and math through hands-on activities. This week, campers in kindergarten through 2nd grade will explore the color of science and programming. Third grade through 5th grade will take part in engineering week and learn about Sir Lance-a-Bot. Sixth grade through 8th grade will have a chance to experience digital technology and fused robotic from Sphero company. New this year, UTSA is also offering Texas Workforce Commission Governors Summer Merit Program, a free iTEC program for qualified students ages 14-21. The camp gives students an understanding and appreciation of specific aspects of the science, technology and career opportunities in advanced technologies and manufacturing, particularity robotics. Football Camp Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., UTSA Practice Field, Main Campus This camp will provide a great opportunity for athletes from 9th grade through college to learn from the top UTSA football coach and staff. Campers will receive instruction and coaching on agility testing as well as position specific drills, allowing participants to refine and improve their skillset as a football player. They will put those skills to use at the end of the camp during practice games. Baseball Camp Monday to Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Roadrunner Field, Main Campus Campers will cover throwing, hitting, fielding, fly balls, base running and bunting in this youth camp designed for players ages 5-14. Campers will compete in games daily and in the Roadrunner Olympics on the final day of camp. Softball Camp Monday and Tuesday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Roadrunner Field, Main Campus Campers from age 5 through 6th grade will get instruction on infield, outfield and hitting techniques. Campers will experience some of the everyday drills that UTSA softball players do. The camp will also contain drill and competition stations. Chinese Language and Culture Camp Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Main Campus Campers will enjoy the summer learning to read, write and speak the Chinese language. They also will learn about the Chinese culture such as martial arts, painting and drawing, arts and crafts and more. This camp is intended for children ages 6-12. UPDATE: Anthony Randklev, 39, of Pelican Rapids has been arrested and is the Otter Tail County Jail on charges related to the kidnapping of Amber Rose Simonson. Randklev is a registered sex offender. A Family member tells us, Randklev got into Simonson's house through a basement door. They say, he had a disguise covering his face. They tell us, Randklev was carrying a gun when he came in the home and forced Simonson out of the house. Her husband was not home at the time, and her kids called 911. -------------------- UPDATE: Amber Rose Simonson has been found safe. The Otter Tail County Sheriff's Department tells us, a suspect is in custody. There is no threat to the public. ------------------ The Otter Tail County Sheriffs Department is investigating a report of an abducted adult female in rural Fergus Falls. Multiple family members tell Valley News Live, Amber Rose Simonson was the woman abducted. An official with the department tells us, an adult female was taken from a residence Sunday afternoon. The initial report says the abduction involved a firearm but that has not yet been confirmed by deputies. The missing woman is being described as a white female, 54, weighing around 130 pounds. Deputies say she was wearing a pink tank top and black yoga pants when the incident happened. A Deputy tells us, the suspect has been described as a white, heavy-set male that is balding. The vehicle he was driving is being described as a silver pick-up. The deputy we spoke with says, the department is extensively searching for the woman and suspect now. He advises the public to use caution if you see anyone related to the matching descriptions and call officials right away at (218) 367-6300. A part of the Nam Trung Yen urban area in Hanoi. Several apartments in the area remain unoccupied despite having been built a decade ago.-VNA/VNS Photo Tuan Anh Meanwhile there is no shortage of resettlement houses, with thousands of homes abandoned, causing waste to the Stage budget. According to the latest report of the Hanoi Housing Development and Management Company, it has 166 resettlement buildings with a total of 14,211 apartments. Of which 13,111 were already paid for by homeowners, with the remaining 1,100 uninhabited. Some resettlement buildings have been left empty for more than ten years in Long Bien Districts Sai Dong Ward, surrounded by fields of grass and garbage. The complexs facilities, including electronic cabinets and hygienic equipment, have degraded due to unuse and lack of maintenance. Three buildings in Bac Tu Liem District have been staying vacant since they were completed in 2014. Similarly, the 20-floor apartment block in Hai Ba Trung Districts Ta Quang Buu Street is still uninhabited although it was built more than ten years ago. The reasons Nguyen Dac Thao, deputy head Urban Management Office under the Hanoi Construction Department, told Hanoi Moi (New Hanoi) newspaper that many households are not interested in resettlement apartments due to low quality and poor management. Hoang The Anh, a resident living in Nam Trung Yen urban area, complained to Thoi bao Kinh Doanh (Business Times) newspaper about the low quality of the apartments, with cracks and peeled mortars covering the walls on the inside while moss grows rampant outside the house. In my apartment, the toilet breaks twice a week and fire safety equipment fails to meet standards, Anh said. Degradation and poor quality is the leading reason contributing to the vacancies in settlement houses, according to lawyer Truong Thanh Duc from Banking-Securities-Investment Law Co., Ltd. Inconvenient locations of the housing and lack of accompanying social infrastructure such as hospitals or schools also reduce the attractiveness of the settlement houses, he said. Many do not want to move because their designated apartments are located on high floors, preventing them from easily running businesses like setting up shops. In addition, many house traders just buy resettlement houses at low prices only to flip them later to earn profits. The first beneficiary must be people in need of resettlement when we renovate the city, not a buy-to-sell trader," said architect Ngo Viet Nam Son from Ngo Viet Group. Inappropriate compensation was also why resettlement buildings were abandoned in Hanoi, he said. Many land clearance projects have been lagging behind schedule. Since residents see no progress in construction, they refuse to leave their old homes to move into the resettlement houses. It is hard for residents to part with their land for a place far from the main road, not to mention giving up their business locations while their children must travel long distances to attend school. According to the regulations of Hanoi Peoples Committee, residents can receive financial compensation instead of a resettlement apartment if they opt for that option. The department will withdraw the unclaimed apartments for other projects that will need resettlement. In 2017, Urban Management Office retrieved 41 apartments because residents chose to receive compensation instead. EU finance chief Pierre Moscovici hits out at Trump over the US president's protectionist policies. (AFP/Eitan ABRAMOVICH) The US and EU have been at loggerheads since Trump angered European allies by announcing tariffs on steel and aluminium as he launched trade restrictions targeting China in particular. Referring to Trump branding the EU, alongside China and Russia, as trade "foes," Moscovici said the EU is "willing to build bridges." "What I stressed several times in my meetings here is that the EU is certainly not the author of major trade imbalances," Moscovici told reporters during the Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires. On Saturday, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke at the conference about wanting to "balance" the country's trade relationships with China and the EU, calling on both to respect "free, fair and reciprocal trade." But Moscovici said that "we believe that targeting us is certainly inappropriate ... and that we must act with the US as allies - not foes but allies." "These meetings take place in an international context which is changing," he said. "The multilateral system of which the G20 is a central piece is under significant pressure, trade tensions are high and threaten to escalate further. All of this creates uncertainty for the economic outlook." He added: "We must remain cool-headed." Trump's protectionist policies have come under fire from all sides at the summit, which groups finance ministers and central bankers from the world's 20 largest economies. On Saturday, French finance minister Bruno Le Maire called on Trump to "return to reason." As well as imposing tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium, Trump stuck a 25 per cent levy on US$34 billion of goods from China with an additional US$16 billion on the way. He has threatened to target European automotive exports and to impose duties on the entire $500 billion of goods the US imports from China. "The impact of protectionist measures already implemented has been, luckily, so far limited, but the risk of escalation is there," said Moscovici. The International Monetary Fund predicts that in a worst-case scenario, US$430 billion - or a half percentage point of global GDP - could be cut in 2020 if all tariff threats and retaliations are carried out. "Further trade escalation conflicts would negatively affect welfare in all countries involved -- in the US also," said Moscovici. Protectionism, he said, benefits no one, creating "no winners, only casualties." IMF chief Christine Lagarde had warned on Wednesday that the US economy was "especially vulnerable" to trade conflicts "because so much of its global trade will be subject to retaliatory measures." Firefighters on Sunday were battling around 50 wildfires in Sweden after an unprecedented drought in the region AFP/Mats ANDERSSON Dozens of French soldiers specialised in firefighting arrived in Sweden early Monday (Jul 23) to tackle blazes raging across the country during an extreme heatwave. Firefighters on Sunday were battling around 50 wildfires after an unprecedented drought in the region and soaring temperatures, which have reached the hightest in a century. The 30 French soldiers from a Civil Defence unit landed shortly after midnight on Monday (2200 GMT Sunday) in Stockholm, an AFP correspondent said. They will be joined by another 30 firefighters from the south of France on Monday. France has already sent two Canadair planes to Sweden after authorities asked for EU emergency help to fight the blazes, which have caused no fatalities so far. Italy has sent two firefighting aircraft and Norway sent eight helicopters. Germany and Poland also responded to the request for assistance. Record temperatures above 33 degrees Celsius were reported in Uppsala, a city north of Stockholm. There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in the country, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres that fell in mid-June. Denmark, southern Norway and northern Finland are also experiencing a period of extreme heat which, according to weather forecasts, is unlikely to end soon. A meeting on digital technology as a key to financial inclusion, on the second day of the G20 meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, in Buenos Aires. (HO/G20 PRESS OFFICE/AFP) Finance ministers and central bankers from 20 leading economies closed a two-day meeting in Buenos Aires warning that "heightened trade and geopolitical tensions" threaten the economic expansion. It comes at a time when US President Donald Trump's protectionist policies have provoked ire from traditional allies such as the European Union, Canada and Mexico, and sparked a series of retaliatory measures. The G20's final communique stressed "the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence" amidst fears of an escalating global trade war. While the statement did not mention the United States, which is at the centre of trade disputes with G20 members China, the EU and others, it demonstrated more concern than in March, when the group avoided the issue altogether. Argentina's Economy Minister Nicolas Dujovne hinted that the group could not afford a rupture over trade disputes which he said should be resolved directly between governments or through the World Trade Organisation. "It's not about denying differences," Dujovne told reporters at the conclusion of the meeting. But "we have to try to emphasise consensus because we recognise the importance of keeping this group alive and in harmony." During the 2008 global financial crisis the G20 was critical in preventing an even worse outcome and saved millions of jobs, he said, noting that "it's in the bad times when you see how essential it is." But Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reiterated his claim that the US merely wants "more balanced trade" with other countries. Mnuchin also dismissed the economic impact of the raft of tariff hikes and retaliatory duties, saying so far they have only affected the US on a "micro" scale. But from a "macro standpoint we do not yet see any significant pattern on the economy." US businesses have been hit with a series of punitive measures by China, the EU, Canada and Mexico, including tariffs on soybean, motorcycles, bourbon and other goods, while manufacturers are complaining about rising prices of key supplies subject to new US duties. 'ALLIES NOT FOES' EU finance chief Pierre Moscovici hit out at Trump's protectionist policies, but said cool heads are needed to resolve the dispute. The US and EU have been at loggerheads since Trump angered European allies by imposing tariffs on steel and aluminium. He has also threatened to hit auto imports with duties which would be especially hard for Germany. While the EU is "willing to build bridges," Moscovici told reporters "we believe that targeting us (the EU) is certainly inappropriate ... and that we must act with the US as allies - not foes but allies." International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde spoke out against the tit-for-tat tariffs and urged that "trade conflicts be resolved via international cooperation without resort to exceptional measures." On Saturday, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke at the summit about wanting to "balance" the country's trade relationships with China and the EU, calling on both to respect "free, fair and reciprocal trade." Trump's protectionist policies came under fire from all sides at the meeting, which includes finance ministers and central bankers from the world's 20 largest economies. On Saturday, French finance minister Bruno Le Maire called on Trump to "return to reason." As well as imposing tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium, Trump hit China with a 25 per cent punitive levy on US$34 billion of goods, an additional US$16 billion on the way. In addition, he has threatened to target autos and auto parts and to impose duties on the entire US$500 billion of goods the US imports from China. "The impact of protectionist measures already implemented has been, luckily, so far limited, but the risk of escalation is there," said Moscovici. The IMF predicts that in a worst-case scenario, US$430 billion of global GDP - or a half percentage point - could be lost in 2020 if all tariff threats and retaliations are carried out. "Further trade escalation conflicts would negatively affect welfare in all countries involved - in the US also," Moscovici said. Protectionism, he said, benefits no one, creating "no winners, only casualties." Lagarde had warned last week that the US economy was "especially vulnerable" to trade conflicts "because so much of its global trade will be subject to retaliatory measures." But on Saturday, Mnuchin was inflexible in his approach to the EU, and said the US was "ready to sign a free trade agreement with no tariffs, no non-tariff barriers and no subsidies. It has to be all three." That brought a stern rebuke from Le Maire saying Europe would "refuse to negotiate with a gun to the head." PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc inspects wastewater treatment system of the Formosa Ha Tinh Steel Corporation in Ha Tinh province on July 20, 2018. Photo: VGP The Government chief said the environmental breakdown caused by the FHS two years ago has been basically addressed but the company needs to fully avoid similar incident in the future. The company had installed a sewage pipe under the sea to discharge wastewater directly into the sea near Vung Ang Economic Zone in Ha Tinh province, causing a huge dead fish toll in Ha Tinh and several neighboring provinces like Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue. He also tasked local authorities of Ha Tinh to continue strict supervision of the environment and coordinate with investors to settle emerging issues. Formosa has poured more than US $11 billion to build the Son Duong port and integrated steel mill, making it the biggest foreign direct investment project in Vietnam and creating jobs for around 12,000 local people. Grab co-founders Anthony Tan and Tan Hooi Ling Fortune magazines 40 under 40 lists forty of the worlds most productive names who are less than forty years of age. This years luminaries featured several familiar names, like Mark Zuckerberg and Rihanna, as well as new faces, such as Instagram founder Kevin Systrom and Wang Xing, CEO of Chinas shopping platform Meituan. Being named on this list of overachievers is a great honour for any young entrepreneur and is usually a boost to his or her (already thriving) career. While at Harvard Business School, Anthony and Hooi Ling bonded over the idea of making taxis safer in their native Southeast Asia (both hail from Malaysia). Since then the pair have built a business reportedly valued at more than $3 billion and operating in over 30 cities. In the past year, Singapore-based Grab has raised more than $1 billion, opened an engineering office in Seattle, and partnered with Chinas Didi Chuxing, Indias Ola, and Lyft in the US to serve one anothers customers. The ride-hailing startups name is a perfect description of its approach to 2018. In March the company snapped up rival Ubers Southeast Asian operations, cementing its position as the dominant on-demand taxi provider in the region. In June, Toyota pumped $1 billion into the business in a round of funding said to value Grab at more than $10 billion. Now the duo is focused on transforming Grab into an everyday superapp, offering mobile payments, micro-financing, grocery shopping, and more. Illustrative image. Kien Giang Police is investigating the missing of 1,029 original certificates for land use rights at land registration office in Phu Quoc Island District.- Photo batdongsan.com The police has sent a notice to banks in the province about the missing documents, commonly known as "red books". According to Colonel Luu Thanh Tin, deputy director of the Kien Giang Police Department, the move was taken in response to the risk that some people could take advantage of the red books to falsify papers and mortgages. The certificates had allegedly been missing since 2014. The incident was detected in March last year as the police investigated a criminal case involving embezzlement and lack of responsibility, causing serious consequences, at the land registration office in Phu Quoc District. According to investigators, Pham Thi Ngoc Anh was assigned as the accountant and treasurer managing the fees collected from Phu Quocs Land Registration Office from 2013 to June 2016. In order to scam the money for personal expenses, Anh modified 128 receipts to illegally appropriate nearly VND2.5 billion (US$108,500) from the office. Tran Van Hoang, former director, and Tran Van Kien, former deputy director, are accused of not performing their duties or supervising the fee declarations and receipts, creating loopholes for Anh to take large sums of money. At the first trial which was held on April 11 this year, Anh was sentenced to 15 years in prison for property embezzlement by Kien Giang Province Peoples Court, while Hoang and Kien were imprisoned for one year for negligent responsibility, causing severe consequences. Famous Korean actor Kwon Sang Woo received a warm welcome from Vietnamese fans as he arrived at Tan Son Nhat International Airport on July 20 to take part in an event in Ho Chi Minh City. Korean movie star Kwon Sang Woo was invited to attend an event in Ho Chi Minh City by Nguyen Thu Hoai, former Mrs Vietnam Continents for 2012. Kwon Sang Woo draws the medias attention with a causal youthful look. The 42-year-old actor looks cool and relaxed in casual clothes. Although he arrived at Tan Son Nhat Airport at 11pm, he didnt show fatigue. As a brand ambassador, Kwon Sang Woo will attend meetings with exclusive distributors and partners during his short visit to Vietnam. He will then be a special guest at the 15th birthday celebration for a beauty salon in Ho Chi Minh City. Kwon Sang Woo, 42, established himself in the Korean entertainment industry after acting in the 2001 movie Volcano High. A few years later, his fan base grew as he was cast in many big film projects. In 2004 Kwon Sang Woo found fame once more, acting in Memories of Paradise with well-known actress Choi Ji Woo. The movie was popular with audiences in Vietnam and throughout the whole of Asia. The Korean star stands out at 1.82 meters tall and maintains his youthful good looks at the age of 42. Nguyen Thu Hoai, former Mrs Vietnam Continents for 2012, (L) receives Kwon Sang Woo at Tan Son Nhat International Airport. Many local fans arrive at Tan Son Nhat International Airport for a chance to meet the star. VOV Tran Van Phong and the votive paper he gave to the two foreign visitors as change. The votive paper money is usually burnt as offerings for deceased relatives in Vietnam. - Photo anninhthudo.vn The two visitors Miguel Fernandez Lamelas and Elena Blasco Hernandez, were also from Spain, not France as earlier reported, and arrived in Hanoi on July 15. The day after, the couple took a ride with Tran Van Phong, 29, from a restautant to their hotel in Long Bien District at around 7pm for VND37,000 ($1.6). They gave Phong a VND500,000 ($22) note, but he gave them votive paper as change, which is usually burnt as offerings for deceased relatives in Vietnam. The tourists said it was the first time they had visited the country, so they were unable to distinguish between real money and votive paper money. It was only a day later, when they tried to use the money to pay another taxi driver, that they realised theyd been cheated. Working on the case, police also discovered that they were charged VND1.5 million ($67) for a one-hour cyclo ride in Hanoi last Monday. Normal rates range between VND100,000-300,000 ($4-13) per person per hour. Last year's Vietnam M&A Forum was a resounding success As the tenth edition of the biggest annual economic event, Vietnam M&A Forum 2018 will welcome numerous international and Vietnamese guest speakers and 500 senior leaders of investment funds and Vietnamese and international corporations as a platform to meet and share opportunities as well as discuss investment strategies. Additionally, the participants will be able to meet international investors from the US, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, and other ASEAN member states, as well as seek opportunities in the equitisation of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). During the forum, an in-depth conference about M&A activities in Vietnam, titled New Thrust, New Era will be an highlight of the event. Besides, a series of activities will be organised, namely the Gala Dinner to celebrate the 10th anniversary and honour the most outstanding M&A deals and advisory firms of 2017-2018 as well as a Master Class on M&A strategy to create a breakthrough in growth. As an added boon, the Vietnam M&A Outlook 2018 Special Publication will also be published, providing quality coverage of the years global and domestic trends, as well as the most notable deals. Vietnam M&A Forum has become a premier annual event among the business community as well as domestic and international investors. Over the past nine years, Vietnam M&A Forum has attracted hundreds of speakers, leading international and local M&A experts, and thousands of senior leaders from international investment funds, international and local consultancy firms, state-run corporations, and private sector companies operating in Vietnam. Vietnam named among worlds beautiful biking destinations Vietnam named among worlds beautiful biking destinations, travel news, Vietnam guide, Vietnam airlines, Vietnam tour, tour Vietnam, Hanoi, ho chi minh city, Saigon, travelling to Vietnam, Vietnam travelling, Vietnam travel, vn news Vietnam and Cambodia have been ranked 10th among the 12 beautiful biking destinations in the world that should be on one's bucklist, released by Self, a US magazine for women. According to Aydan Puth, a social media manager and avid traveler, adventurer, she spent 12 days traveling with the tour company Backroads on a bike trip through Vietnam and Cambodia. Vietnam and Cambodia are breathtakingly beautiful. This was my first long bike trip, and I was in awe at the new advantage biking allowed me as a traveler, said Aydan Puth. In countries that might not be as developed, a bike allows you to ride into villages, meet and talk with locals, and see the true beauty of the country up close and personal, she added. Genolhac to Vallon Pont dArc (France) tops the list, followed by Teton Village to Jackson Hole (Wyoming), Robinson Canyon, Carmel Valley (California), Danube Bike Path (Austria), the countryside outside of Medellin (Colombia), etc. Earlier, Vietnam has been ranked 43rd on the list of the best adventure travel countries in the world, released by Us News and World Report, a US media company. Vietnam is densely populated and growing quickly, with about one third of the population living in bustling cities, Usnews and World Report wrote. The number of foreign tourists to Vietnam in the first half of 2018 is estimated at 7.89 million, increasing by 27.2% year-on-year, the General Statistics Office has announced. Arrivals by air, road, and sea in the reviewed period recorded annual increases of 22.2%, 63.7% and 1.7%, respectively, while growth was also seen in the numbers of visitors from all five continents. Search and Rescue Incident On the 19th July, the Gibraltar Port Authority (GPA) received a call at the VTS Centre from Algeciras VTS advising that the ferry Ciudad de Malaga had reported seeing a small craft drifting in the area of the Gibraltar pilot boarding area 1 mile South West of Europa Point. After an initial investigation by the Gibraltar Pilot boat, which was in the area at the time, it was confirmed that there was an overturned boat. The GPAs Search and Rescue protocols were immediately activated, with marine assets from the GPA, Royal Gibraltar Police (RGP), Gibraltar Defence Police (GDP) and HM Customs being deployed, as well as assistance from the shoreside MOD Windy Hill Station. Service craft from two local port operators, the AS Two and the Mistress, who were also operating in the area at this time, also assisted in the search and rescue operation. At 6:30pm the overturned boat was observed with a hole in her hull, with no persons on board. This led to a subsequent detailed search of the immediate area to see if any persons were in the water. The area of the search and rescue was then widened to cover most of British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW) to look for any persons in the water. After an extended search with loss of daylight as night time approached, and with no sightings of any persons in the water, the search and rescue operation was stood down. Manuel Tirado, CEO and Captain of the Port (Acting) would like to thank all participants in this operation for their immediate response and assistance which once again demonstrated the excellent partnership between agencies and maritime stakeholders in Gibraltar Dick Cheney on Who Is America? Ahead of Dick Cheneys appearance on Sacha Baron Cohens Who Is America?, in which the former vice president under George W. Bush apparently picks a favorite from all the wars he personally had a hand in, the Showtime series has put the waterboarding kit signed by Cheney on eBay. Currently available at the insanely reasonable/reasonably insane price of $1,700.00, the kit has been posted for purchase by Cohens Israeli anti-terrorist character Colonel Erran Morad. Here is a rare opportunity to own a WATER BOARD BOTTLE SIGNED BY the Godfather of the sport - American war hero and all-round mensch, VICE-PRESIDENT DICK CHENEY, the product description reads. All proceeds from the sale will go to Amnesty International, if that helps you feel less conflicted about shelling out almost two grand for an empty milk carton with Dick Cheneys signature. Then again, being conflicted is kind of what Sacha Baron Cohen is going for with the entire show, so maybe youre feeling just right. Georgia state representative Jason Spencers appearance on Sundays episode of Who Is America? was so bad that his fellow Georgia Republicans are calling on him to resign. Georgia governor Nathan Deal called Spencers behavior appalling and offensive and speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives David Ralston said Georgia is better than this. Spencer attempted to do damage control ahead of the episode by releasing a statement last week claiming that Sacha Baron Cohen and Showtime exploited my state of mind for profit and notoriety and that they are exactly why President Donald Trump was elected. Instead of reading Spencers statement and watching his Who Is America? segment separately, we decided to include them together in one video so you can judge for yourself if Spencer was as misled and exploited as he claimed. Watch at your own risk. Photo: Credit: Industrial Light & Magic/Industrial Light & Magic Through the myriad tonal shifts and personnel changes of the Mission: Impossible films, one element has remained consistent: the power of its self-contained action sequences. Some are distinguished by their intricate disguises, miraculous computer work, and split-second timing; others are noteworthy for what can only be described as the death wish of producer/star Tom Cruise, whose dangerous stunt work and on-set injuries have become as much a part of the seriess promotional lore as in the golden age of Jackie Chan. In advance of the July 27 opening of the seriess sixth installment, Mission: Impossible Fallout, we revisited the entire series (and got an early look at the latest) to select the absolute best of its big set pieces so far. 10. Paris chase, Mission: Impossible - Fallout One of the pleasures of the new M:I is the complexity of its plotting full of double crosses, surprise turns, and mistaken identities so well tread lightly here. Suffice it to say that in order for our intrepid hero, Ethan Hunt (Cruise), to save the world, he must masquerade as a dangerous international criminal and lead a mission to break another dangerous international criminal out of a tightly controlled police motorcade. Hes presented with a plan, which involves a lot of casualties, so he comes up with an alternative. Director Christopher McQuarrie (returning from the previous installment a first for the famously one-and-done franchise) uses gliding camerawork and razor-sharp cutting to heighten the excitement of Hunts improvisation, which results in a car-and-truck chase down the very narrow streets of Paris, followed by some white-knuckle motorcycle work by Cruise; his ride through a roundabout, seemingly sliding within inches of dozens of other vehicles, is truly terrifying. 9. Bridge ambush, Mission: Impossible III J.J. Abramss third installment seems to take genuine pleasure in deflating the achievements of its baroque set pieces the extraction of Agent Farris (Keri Russell) goes like gangbusters, yet she dies during the getaway, and though Ethan and his team pull one of their most elaborate ruses to kidnap super-villain Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman), the bad guys manage to steal him right back in this breathtaking sequence. Abrams, meanwhile, puts any questions of his big-screen bona fides to rest, throwing in choppers, explosions, gunplay, void leaps, and a Cruise fast-run thats exhilaratingly interrupted. 8. Motorcycle chase/beach fight, Mission: Impossible II John Woos 2000 sequel is widely acknowledged as the least successful film in the series, and its hard not to agree the pacing is choppy, the villain is weak, and theres a sense, in some of the action scenes, that Woo is just going through the two-gun motions (though, to be fair, theyre still pretty entertaining). But his climactic action sequence is energetically bonkers, tossing aside all precepts of logic and physics in pursuit of a cool visual, and there are plenty of them: Hunt shoots a guy off of a flying motorcycle, rides away from flames in slow motion, and executes a move where he pulls a front wheelie, spins around, shoots a pursuing cars gas tank, and flips it. Even better, his pursuit of villain Sean Ambrose (Dougray Scott) culminates in an honest-to-God motorcycle joust, in which each man leaps from his bike in midair (leaving the bikes to crash into each other and, obviously, explode) so they can engage in a fierce bout of hand-to-hand combat on a conveniently handy beach. To be clear, its ridiculous. But its a lot of fun. 7. Underwater chip exchange, Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation The best of the IMF operation sequences tend to follow a particular pattern. First, we marvel at the clockwork efficiency of the teams planning and execution, as everything seems to fall into place. Then, we share in their horror as it all goes down the tubes, thanks to an unexpected complication or the failure of a piece of technology. And then we can gasp at the cleverness with which they improvise their way out of it. Thats certainly the construction of this tip-top sequence in 2015s Rogue Nation, in which Benji (Simon Pegg) attempts to infiltrate a high-security computer lab as Ethan and Ilsa (Rebecca Ferguson) perform a complicated swap-out maneuver in an underwater computer facility (sure, thats a thing) that will enable Benjis entrance. And then well, as Ilsa puts it, No no no no no no no. Cruise reportedly held his breath for six full minutes during the shooting of the scene, and thats the kind of wide-eyed promotional tidbit that, if its not true, should be. 6. Kremlin infiltration, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol The mission is simple: retrieve a file from an archive room. The (to put it mildly) highly secure location is what makes it impossible. The setup recalls the Langley heist in the first Mission: Impossible (see below), and Ghost Protocol director Brad Bird certainly seems to have studied the earlier sequence, borrowing its patient approach and risky but wildly effective decision to forgo musical underscoring. The central device, a projection screen that hides Hunt and Benji from the eyes of the archives security guard, is jaw-dropping in its ingenuity and the source of a huge laugh, when Benjis big ol face unexpectedly splashes across the screen. Peggs presence is the primary addition here, and its a good one; Benjis nerves, and his enthusiasm about working with Hunt (Its a bit of a dream for me!) adds a welcome bit of human interest and comic relief to the sequence. 5. Vatican extraction, Mission: Impossible III Swiping arms dealer Owen Davian isnt an easy job hes rarely seen in public, and never without his security detail so Ethan and the IMF team determine their one shot will come during a benefit at the Vatican. This requires the team to sneak in surreptitiously (or, in the case of Maggie Q, glide in with all eyes on her), make a mask of Davians face, and knock him out in the bathroom so Ethan can replace him. Theres much to love about this one: the way Ethan repels in, arms out, a la the Langley heist; the tick-tock precision of their arrivals and disguises; the logistical details (for the first time, we see how they make those magnificent masks). But the cherry on top is the deadpan exchange between Ethan and Luther (Ving Rhames) at its conclusion: Whats up? Nothin. Whats up with you? Nothin. All in a days work. 4. Vienna Opera House, Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation McQuarrie pays elegant homage to Hitchcocks The Man Who Knew Too Much with this marvelous mid-movie sequence, in which Hunt and Benji attempt to foil the assassination of a head of state, a mission complicated considerably by Ilsa, whose motivations and allegiances are still unclear. Cruise leaps across ropes and fights in catwalks, Ferguson dominates some of the sexiest images of the franchise, and Pegg again provides ample comic relief from the lighting booth, and while some of the most memorable Mission sequences make artful use of silence, McQuarrie masterfully orchestrates the events to the music onstage (Puccinis Turandot) to give the scene a properly operatic feel. 3. Kashmir climax, Mission: Impossible - Fallout It would be untoward to reveal much of anything about the dazzling closing action sequence of the new Mission; to do so, one would have to spoil character reveals and plot turns, to say nothing of the sheer holy shit theyre doing THAT quality of the damn thing. But suffice it to say that the sequence which includes a helicopter chase, mountain climbing, and not one but two ticking bombs is the seriess most delightfully over-the-top set piece to date. The sheer relentlessness of the sequence, the manner in which McQuarrie cheerfully keeps piling on complications, stretching out time, and turning the entire situation upside down, becomes an act of sly self-awareness. They know what were expecting out of the franchise by now, and theyll be damned if theyre not going to give us our moneys worth. 2. Langley heist, Mission: Impossible Relax, Luther, Ethan says with a smile. Its much worse than you think. And indeed it is getting to the file they need from CIA headquarters requires voice ID, changing numerical codes, double electronic key card, and a retinal scan, all to get into a secure room with heightened sound and temperature sensitivity. And so Hunt is lowered in, by rope from an air duct (an homage to the classic 60s heist picture Topkapi), in whats really the opposite of what we think of an action sequence: theres no gunplay, no explosions, no fisticuffs, and no pounding score to juice up the excitement. (The closing action sequence, which falls into those a parameters, is a dud and, criminal considering the eventual direction of the franchise, it looks laughably fake.) In fact, director Brian De Palmas decision to play the sequence in total silence makes it more involving for the viewer; its so quiet, and the stakes are so high, the audience is afraid to make a sound either. De Palma, playing his audience like a piano (as his hero Alfred Hitchcock used to say), stretches the suspense as far as he can, snaking in to tight close-ups of Hunts rope, Jean Renos hands, that single bead of sweat and then the rat shows up. 1. Burj Khalifa climb, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol The camera circles it lovingly, like the phallic object it most certainly is: the Burj Khalifa, the Dubai skyscraper that stands a mind-boggling 2,722 feet, and the setting for the seriess best single sequence (so far). In order to pull off an elaborate double-deception, the team has to access the buildings server, and as Benji explains, We can get to it from the outside. And thus Tom Cruise, one of the biggest stars in the world, goes out the damn window and climbs 11 stories on the outside of the tallest building in the world, using only a pair of climbing gloves (one of which fails almost immediately). In this tight-fisted scene, director Brad Bird has our hero both engaging in a horrifyingly dangerous stunt and racing a ticking clock to their targets door knock (The countdown is not helping! he notes), forced to cut and then kick through glass, finally resorting to running down the building before leaping into an open window. Full disclosure: this viewer saw Ghost Protocol on a giant IMAX screen, and suffers from a pretty severe case of vertigo, so that mightve made the experience a bit more vivid. But that caveat aside, the Burj Khalifa (and the fights, shoot-outs, sandstorm, and high-speed running that follow) is everything you want from a Mission: Impossible movie: death-defying stunt work and ingenious improvisation, played with tension, wit, and precision. HONORABLE MENTION: Prague embassy mission goes sideways (Mission: Impossible); Atrium dive (Mission: Impossible II); Berlin extraction, Shanghai skyscraper climb (Mission: Impossible III); Moscow jailbreak, Mumbai takedown, robotic parking garage fight (Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol); Airplane jump, Morocco car/motorcycle chase (Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation); Halo jump, bathroom fight, Paris rooftop pursuit (Mission: Impossible Fallout). Sacha Baron Cohen on Who Is America? Photo: Showtime When Sacha Baron Cohen went to Kingman, Arizona, to film a prank for Who Is America? episode two, he got exactly what he wanted. After his liberal character, Dr. Nira Cain-NDegeocello, led a focus group about plans to replace a local shopping center with a $385 million mosque funded by the Saudi government and the Clinton Foundation plans that, to put it lightly, did not go over well with the attendees the event received coverage in a local newspaper, well before Baron Cohens prank victims knew who they were dealing with. A Mohave Valley Daily News article published on January 3 describes how a reality TV production company called Clear Meadow Films recruited and paid people through Facebook, Craigslist, and other local ads to attend the focus group, in which they signed consent forms before attending what would ultimately become a segment on Who Is America?, where one of the attendees bluntly announced, Im racist toward Muslims. He said the project was going to be building the worlds largest mosque outside of the Middle East. He implied that Muslims would take over our town and wed all be converted or one would have to move, one attendee told Daily News reporter D.K. McDonald. I think they were trying to piss us off, just for reactions, another attendee said, because the stuff they were stating was just absurd. Heres more from the Daily News report: He showed pictures of our town with business signs photoshopped into Muslim languages, Mudge said. He used many trigger statements like the Muslims would be protected from regular citizens to make sure there were no terror attacks from us. Mudge, who attended with her husband, said she and some of the other attendees speculated the purported focus group was going to be used to create a show or documentary about hate toward Muslims using the responses from the meeting. They claimed it (the filming) was for the architectural firm that was going to build the mosque, she said. We even tried pointing out to those around us to stop playing into the speakers hands by responding because it was all a set up. So many members responded with hate, some with blatant racism and a whole lot of ignorance. The Daily News also reached out to the owner of the Bullhead City Marina Plaza, which Baron Cohens character claimed would be bulldozed to build the mosque, who called the claim a bold-faced lie So to whoever brought this up, it is totally not credible. When the article was published in January, it quickly circulated on Facebook and several people who attended, or knew people who attended, chimed in with comments: My son went to this focus group. He was expecting someone to pop out and say they were on candid camera or some kind of show. Hey this did actually happen. I was there and collected my 150.00 thank you very much. I dont know about that but we left after the guy in front of us left because it just didnt seem real and $100 each wasnt enough to stay. Another problem we had was not being allowed to have our phones and if an emergency had came up at home then wed have problems. It wasnt a real focus group and thats why we came. Glad it was fake. Reality show sponsored it. Not Trumps but who knows. Have a feeling that they were bad mouthing Arizona due to our heavily right wing reputation. Were not all that way. In late December, the Bullhead Area Chamber of Commerce addressed the mosque rumor and even claimed that the meeting with Baron Cohens character never took place. THE BULLHEAD CITY MARINA PLAZA HAS NOT AND WILL NOT BE SOLD, BULLDOZED, AND BE THE SITE OF A NEW MOSQUE! This is a ridiculous rumor that someone made up, posted on Facebook and it has since sprouted legs with the Sky is Falling crowd, Chamber of Commerce Executive Director John C. Pynakker wrote. It has even been reported by some of these trolls, that the Bullhead Area Chamber of Commerce was the site of this Secret Meeting where it was hashed out and decided. I can tell you unequivocally, that this meeting NEVER HAPPENED. Under the post are several comments from people who attended the meeting, with one writing, My husband and I went to it. We were actually paid $150 each because they bused us in from Kingman. Other Facebook commenters noted that two mosques already exist in Bullhead City and the nearby town of Kingman. The most prescient Facebook comment in response to the Daily News coverage of the meeting? Well, except for the part where they take some targeted footage of locals and blanket us as continuing to be back-woods racist morons. Not cool for a community that profits so much from tourism. Jason Spencer in a still from Who Is America? Photo: Showtime No one comes out of a Sacha Baron Cohen show looking good. Your mere presence on Showtimes Who Is America? means youve already been duped by a guy in a costume. Its an impossible game to win, but some guests make it out relatively unscathed by refusing to play along. The people who look the worst on Who Is America? tend to look that way because they are the worst egged on by Baron Cohens characters, they reveal their own deeply held, morally repugnant beliefs. Or, just as bad, they reveal that theyre willing to say morally repugnant things in order to be on television. Here is a ranking of all the guests in Who Is America? episode two, from those who leave with their reputations intact, to those who do not. 5. Ted Koppel Photo: Showtime If youre getting duped by Sacha Baron Cohen, Ted Koppels reaction is pretty much your best-case scenario. Hes confronted with the Trump-supporting character Billy Wayne Ruddick Jr. Ph.D., and is forced to debate Trumps inauguration crowd sizes. At first, Koppel seriously attempts to refute Ruddicks claims (You happen to be wrong, but thats okay), making careful statements about the photos and attempting to be reasonable. Once Ruddick refuses to accept that a photo taken in broad daylight couldnt have been taken at night, though, Koppels patience runs thin. A solar eclipse is when the moon covers the sun, he says with a hint of exasperation. When Ruddick presents a photo of Obamas inauguration and says, If we zoom in with 35 magnification Koppel sighs deeply before he even hears the rest. I mean no disrespect to you, but this is a waste of time, he concludes. 4. Corinne Olympios Photo: Showtime This is not a great outing for former Bachelor contestant Corinne Olympios. Believing shes filming promotional materials for a charity run by Baron Cohens Italian character Gio Monaldo, Olympios reads aloud from a script asking people to adopt a child soldier. (Support for a child soldier, she explains, involves buying them more weapons.) She puts on a hazmat suit to film fake footage of herself in dangerous locations, and then, at Monaldos prompting, she also lies about her experiences traveling in Africa, going so far as to make up a story about an African warlord who recognized her from television. I saved 6,000 people, she says, adding that her presence really helped with the whole massacre situation. So, yeah, Olympios looks pretty bad here. The worst of it is her painful thirst to be recognized, to do whatever she needs to do to be on TV. But in the segment itself, her palpable embarrassment mitigates the damage instead of funny, the whole thing seems sad. The most damning part may actually be in her post-encounter media coverage, in which she describes being immensely uncomfortable throughout the taping. Olympios makes the experience sound terrifying, and then quickly pivots: Im so excited to be a part of his new project not everyone gets to just be a cameo as themselves, so its fucking awesome. 3. Dick Cheney Photo: Showtime The first Who Is America? footage that Showtime revealed came in the form of a 20-second promo released earlier this month, in which former Vice President Dick Cheney is asked by an unseen Baron Cohen character to sign my waterboard kit. (Its now for sale on eBay.) Unsurprisingly, Cheneys segment turned out to be even worse than that quick clip suggested. You started so many wars Afghanistan, Iraq 1, Iraq 2 which was your favorite war and why? Baron Cohen, disguised as his Israeli terrorism expert Erran Morad, asks Cheney. Oh, I think it was what we did in Desert Storm, I really do. I never thought of it as having a favorite war, Cheney replies. Of course, Morad interrupts, but youve got to enjoy it too! It gets even worse from there. I have killed some terrorists. How does it feel being the king of terrorist killers? I mean, you killed 100,000 actual terrorists and about 700,000 potential terrorists, Morad says. After a casual laugh, Cheney says, Well, it was never personal. I wasnt in the same position you are where it was kill or be killed. Cheney is infamous for his pro-torture (or as he likes to call it, proenhanced interrogation) stance, so making him look even more evil is a tall order. But now we know hell chat about which of his wars is his favorite as if theyre ice cream flavors. 2. The Arizona mosque focus group Photo: Showtime Disguised as Dr. Nira Cain-NDegeocello, Baron Cohen heads to Kingman, Arizona, to present a focus group with a $385 million proposal: The Saudi government and the Clinton Foundation want to replace the local shopping center with the biggest mosque outside of the Middle East, which would become a hub for tourism for Muslims from around the world. This does not go over well with the focus group, to say the least, and the bigoted responses from several attendees are incredibly painful to watch: We dont want that shit here As soon as you said mosque, you ruined it! a bearded man in the second row says at one point. When Cain-NDegeocello says, I didnt imply anyone here is racist, of course not, another man responds with, I am! Im racist toward Muslims! Later, a third man interjects, This towns lucky to have black people in it! to which Cain-NDegeocello replies, Yeah, of course youre lucky to have black people. They add a lot to society! Thats when the bearded man chimes in again: Hes saying there are black people in Kingman that arent welcome there either, but we tolerate them. The focus group is the only segment in this episode to feature non-famous people, and witnessing the unfettered fear and racism of these everyday citizens after Baron Cohen pushes just the right buttons to instigate them is more sobering than it is entertaining. 1. Georgia state representative Jason Spencer What else is there to say about Jason Spencer? While taking what he believes to be a self-defense training course with Baron Cohens Israeli character Erran Morad, the Georgia politician pretends to be a Chinese tourist (which he does by yelling gibberish); screams the N-word; rams his bare butt into Moran in an attempt to thwart a kidnapping (because he thinks it will threaten to make his kidnapper gay); warns people about sand N-words; and cuts off the prop penis of a terrorist mannequin and bites into it. In his statement about the taping, Spencer seems to recall little of his homophobia, attempting only to account for his racism: I was repeatedly asked to shout provocative language which I requested be removed. Of all the individuals featured in Who Is America? so far, Spencer seems the most likely to have damaged his career. Happily, the people he represents took steps to make that happen long before this segment even aired: After serving four terms, Spencer lost his primary re-election in May to a 24-year-old newcomer whod never run for public office before. Congratulations to the people of Georgias 180th district for already ditching this guy. All about Gio Monaldo. Photo: Showtime In the second episode of Who Is America?, Sacha Baron Cohen introduced yet another new character: Gio Monaldo, a white-haired, bearded Italian billionaire who dupes Bachelor star Corinne Olympios into recording a prochild soldier PSA and claiming she spent a month helping kids with Ebola in Sierra Leone. Like Baron Cohens other characters, Monaldo has a fairly basic online footprint including his own Twitter and Facebook accounts, but his most interesting internet presence is the first Google result that shows up when you search his name: a press release from last September thats titled Italian Billionaire Gio Monaldo Purchases Tragonisi Island. Heres the full release: TRAGONISI ISLAND, Greece, Sept. 18, 2017 /PRNewswire-iReach/ Royal Blue Real Estate today announced the sale of Tragonisi Island, a gorgeous 90 acre isle in the Peloponnese. Purchase terms were not disclosed but the island had previously been listed at 7.2 million. The buyer was identified as Gio Monaldo, the reclusive Italian billionaire known for his lavish real estate purchases. Tragonisi Island will undoubtedly be one of the crown jewels in his collection, an exclusive, unspoiled island surrounded by shimmering, gorgeous blue waters. Located just off the Grecian coast, Tragonisi Island offers breathtaking panaromic views of its neighboring isles and is primed for both commercial and private development. Athens is a 45 minute boat ride away, while the quaint harbor village of Korfos is a 15 minute trip. Todays closing speaks to the unique and exquisite beauty of this island, said Royal Blues Russell Downs. We congratulate Mr. Monaldo on his purchase and wish him much success and happiness with the property. For further press enquiries about the Tragonisi sale please contact Tim Coleman at 323.880.0852. ABOUT ROYAL BLUE REAL ESTATE Royal Blue Real Estate represents the finest homes and properties in the United States, Europe, and Australia. With over $100m in sales in 2016, RBRE is one of the most successful independent real estate firms specializing in second homes in the world. For further information please contact Mitch Hurns at 305.902.1030 Media Contact: Tim Coleman, TPR Group, 323.880.0852, timcoleman4488@gmail.com SOURCE Royal Blue Real Estate Related Stories All the People Sacha Baron Cohen Has Duped So Far Tragonisi (also referred to as Dragonisi) is an undeveloped private island off the eastern coast of Mykonos. It was featured in a February 2017 roundup by Culture Trip titled 6 Beautiful Greek Islands You Can Actually Buy, and several Greek snorkel and boat tour companies offer day trips to Tragonisis caves and coves, but aside from that, theres not a whole lot of information about the island online. In other words, its the perfect thing for Who Is America? to reference as proof of Gio Monaldos wealth, should any of his prospective victims search his name online to learn more about the guy Corinne Olympios described as a crazy Italian man. But did Showtime really purchase an undeveloped Greek island just for the sake of a Sacha Baron Cohen character? After the network and Baron Cohens representatives declined to comment, and calls to both contacts on the press release went unanswered, we inquired about the islands availability, price, and owners through this online listing on privateislandsonline.com. Here is the response that we received: This has been owned by a private family for quite some time I am told over decades. The price is 5 million Euros. The taxes are a one time tax at the time of sale according to Greek Law. What are you looking for in an island? Were not looking for an island, were looking for answers! To corroborate this information, we reached out to a local scuba resort called GoDive Mykonos, which offers cave diving trips to Tragonisi. When asked if the island was for sale, or if they know anything about its current owner, a man named Kostas responded: This is an old story, sold 50 or more years ago on a local Greek family which leaves in U.S. since then I dont know anything else.. We followed up with the representative connected to the sales listing, who clarified in another email: The owners all live in Greece. It is a large Greek family But, their is an island close by where one of the owners has a place in the United States but his partner lives in Greece as well. Maybe that is the one you have been informed about. So, theres your answer. A Greek island has not been sold to an American television network in the name of a fake Italian billionaire created by a British comedian. The lingering question is, will an upcoming episode reveal why Gio Monaldos Twitter bio links to the press release? It makes sense, for instance, that someone from Baron Cohens crew inserted Monaldos name into the List of Italians by net worth Wikipedia page, but when it comes to the bogus private island press releases, was this just meant to bulk up Monaldos Google results, or should we expect more from this mystery? (Perhaps, just spitballing here, a connection with Mykonos beach club owner Lindsay Lohan?) Well have to wait for more Who Is America? to find out. Whatever the case may be, this story is a friendly reminder that just you should never trust a press release just because its published online. Photo: Syfy Last October, Morgan Jarrett made an offer to Wynonna Earp fans: She was headed to Derby City Comic-Con in Louisville, Kentucky, and had an extra bed in her hotel room. Did anybody need a place to stay? She put the offer on Twitter adding that shed pay for their VIP ticket if they couldnt afford to attend themselves and it was snatched up within hours. They didnt know each other, but the two fans struck a fast friendship around their shared love of the Syfy series. Later, another Wynonna Earp fan would offer Jarrett a free hotel room for another convention, remembering that she had once done the same. Youll find that we do things like that in this fandom, Jarrett says. That is something that Ive never seen in any other fandom out there, or heard of other fandoms doing. Welcome to the world of Earpers, as fans of Wynonna Earp call themselves. They are the most passionate devotees of the sci-fi Western series which follows Wyatt Earps great-granddaughter, Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano), as she fights demons and other supernatural creatures alongside Doc Holliday (Tim Rozon), her younger sister Waverly (Dominique Provost-Chalkley), and a mutant deputy marshal named Xavier Dolls (Shamier Anderson) but what makes their fandom so unique is a tremendous capacity for kindness. Earpers who need help with anything, including math tests, stolen glasses, surgery, and grief, tweet out requests tagged with #EarperSupport, and roughly 30 volunteers in different time zones around the world manage the @EarperSupport handle to offer round-the-clock aid. Fans have even offered each other places to stay not just hotel rooms, but for people who are moving, those in transit due to cancelled flights, or even victims affected by hurricanes. They refer to this spirit as Earp It Forward. In honor of the third season, which premiered last Friday, fans started a campaign to fundraise for the National Womens Law Center in the U.S. and the Womens Legal Education and Action Fund in Canada. Last month, a group of fan artists responded to U.S. immigration policies by donating their work to raise money for RAICES, a Texas nonprofit that provides immigration legal services, focusing on immigrant children, families, and refugees. And last year, they raised more than $12,000 for the LGBTQ media-advocacy organization GLAAD. Earpers are all the more remarkable because not every fandom is like them. In June, Star Wars: The Last Jedi actor Kelly Marie Tran quit Instagram after being harassed by angry fans online, just as fellow star Daisy Ridley did two years ago. Jar Jar Binks actor Ahmed Best recently revealed that he contemplated suicide after the backlash from The Phantom Menace almost 20 years ago. And toxic fandom is far from limited to the Star Wars universe. So, how did Wynonna Earp not only avoid the toxic-fandom problem, but create such a nice community? Its simple. Its a fandom built on acceptance and kindness above all else, star Tim Rozon wrote in an email. At a time when the world can feel so scary, this fandom is a safe place to be. Heather Patterson, an avid Wynonna Earp fan whos gotten mail, greeting cards, and gifts from Earpers around the world, says she has never seen any fandom as supportive as the Earper community. A Marine Corps veteran with severe anxiety and depression, Patterson says that during a particularly bad night last year, she tweeted that she was struggling. Immediately, the responses I started getting of support were from Earpers people that I barely knew and some of them I had never met, she says. That sense of support and inclusion is unfortunately rare in other fandoms. Erika Ensign, one of the hosts of the Wynonna Earp podcast Earp Chirp, also hosts two Doctor Who podcasts and often sees a phenomenon that she calls the gatekeeping quiz: Usually, if a woman or a teenage girl says something nice about Doctor Who either at a convention or on Twitter, they will get usually a middle-aged white guy coming in and saying, Oh, you like this show? Well, can you name all 13 Doctors? she says. Theyll ask a question that requires a deep amount of nitpicky knowledge and implies that if this girl doesnt actually know the answer to whatever silly question theyre being asked, that theyre not a true fan. Ive seen it happen so many times, and it makes me just want to tear my hair out because thats dumb. But Ensign has not seen anything like that among Earpers. Its got this love and joy at the core of the show, she says. It seems like maybe thats just jerk-repellant. According to showrunner Emily Andras, fans are also responding to the fact that the Wynonna Earp team really, really likes each other. The audience may have picked up on this and understood that we were simply not going to tolerate cruelty or bullying among ourselves or in the fandom; that we were going to be inclusive to anyone who loves the show and wants to celebrate it, she wrote in an email. The fandom is doing a lot of things right, Andras added. They welcome newbies and celebrate each others fan art, opinions, jokes, and fan fiction. They do a TON of charity work in the name of the show. Theyre also very good-looking. Jacinta Yanders, a Ph.D. candidate at the department of english at Ohio State University, recently wrote an academic article about how Wynonna Earp created such a positive fandom. Alongside direct interactions with Earpers like using a fans suggestion to name a characters cat, and sharing fan art on the shows official social-media accounts Yanders says that Andras does a good job of being a self-aware showrunner by balancing the need to create narrative tension with an understanding about what fans want. While the first season was airing, for example, Earpers feared that a beloved couple Waverly and her girlfriend, Nicole Haught (Katherine Barrell) would fall victim to the Bury Your Gays trope, in which LGBTQ characters are often killed off. Mid-season, Andras promised that both characters would definitely survive. It seems like an actual embrace of fans rather than just utilizing the fans, Yanders says. Given that awareness, its no surprise that many fans credit Andras with setting the positive example that Earpers follow. Heather Patterson remembers meeting the showrunner for the first time at a Las Vegas convention in 2017, and Andras already knew her name from Twitter. We are the luckiest fans in the world, Patterson said. This might sound really silly, but we want to make Emily proud. We want to say, You gave us this thing, so we want to show you how grateful we are by associating it with kindness. Continued negotiations between the United States and North Korea hinge on Washington's willingness to make a "bold move" and agree to a peace treaty with Pyongyang, according to an official with close knowledge of North Korea's position on the matter. If the US is unwilling to replace the armistice agreement that ended the Korean War with a permanent peace that would ensure the survival of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's regime, Pyongyang will likely not proceed further with denuclearization talks, the source said. The establishment of a legally binding peace treaty would require the approval of two-thirds of the US Senate. North Korea is putting pressure on the administration of US President Donald Trump to begin lifting sanctions, according to the official, believing they have done "so much" by freezing nuclear and missile testing, destroying one of their nuclear sites, and facilitating the upcoming repatriation of US service members' war remains. For his part however, Trump has privately expressed frustration over the perceived lack of progress in the talks, according to a US official, though he regarded the testing freeze as a positive sign. Trump pushed back against that suggestion Monday, tweeting that he is "very happy" with the progress with North Korea, noting a lack of rocket launches and nuclear tests in recent months. Both Trump and his secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, have been urging patience since Trump held an historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore last month. Pyongyang and Washington have technically been at war since 1950, and their relationship has been defined by decades of mistrust and failed agreements. Trump's meeting with Kim was the first time sitting leaders of the two countries have ever met. "We have no rush for speed ... We have no time limit. We have no speed limit. We have -- we're just going through the process. But the relationships are very good," Trump said last week. Singapore and sanctions One of the agreements at the Singapore meeting was to "work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," a notoriously vague phrase that experts say is viewed differently by Washington and Pyongyang. Pyongyang also committed to returning the remains of US soldiers killed during the Korean War. A US official told CNN that Washington is expecting the return of the first group of remains on July 27, the anniversary of the signing of the armistice which paused the Korean War and established the demilitarized zone that divides the two Koreas to this day. Critics of the Singapore deal claim the document lacks specifics and does not tie North Korea to a firm timetable on denuclearization or giving up its current nuclear weapons. Both Pompeo and Trump have argued there is no daylight between the two governments' positions on Pyongyang's nukes. "It's really pretty straightforward ... Chairman Kim made a promise. Chairman Kim told not only President Trump, but (South Korean) President Moon that he was prepared to denuclearize," Pompeo said Friday. "The scope and scale of that is agreed to. The North Koreans understand what that means. There's no mistake about what the scope of denuclearization looks like," said Pompeo. Trump and Kim also agreed to the "building of a lasting and robust peace regime on the Korean Peninsula," including the providing of "security guarantees" to North Korea. Pyongyang has frequently expressed concern that without a nuclear deterrent it could face attempted regime change or other military action by the US, particularly while the two countries are technically at war. Ending the Korean War was also a key element of the Panmunjom Declaration agreed earlier this year by Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Family reunions in question? North Korea's ongoing negotiations with Seoul have also run into a hurdle this month, with the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Saturday demanding South Korea repatriate a group of North Korean restaurant workers thought to have defected across the border. In May, the women's manager at the restaurant where they worked claimed he tricked them into doing so on behalf of South Korea's spy agency, the National Intelligence Service (NIS). NIS did not respond to CNN's requests for comment on the claim. KCNA said the failure to return the women to North Korea could impede efforts to improve North-South relations, including next month's planned reunion of families separate by the Korean War. UN special rapporteur on human rights North Korea, Tom-s Ojea Quintana, said earlier this month that if the women had been taken to South Korea unwillingly "that is considered the crime." "They should be allowed to make decisions (on whether to return) without any interference," he added. KCNA, blaming the former government of impeached President Park Geun-hye for the incident, said the women had been "forcibly separated ... from their beloved families in wanton violation of their rights." "Their repatriation is a pending issue which brooks no further delay," the news agency added. "It is ridiculous to trumpet about the 'pain of separated families' while keeping the new 'separated families' deliberately created due to the inhumane act of the former conservative regime and while shunning the strong appeal of the (restaurant workers' families)." On Sunday, President Donald Trump tweeted this: "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didn't he do something about it? Why didn't he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, that's why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!" The message seemed clear: The entire investigation into Russia's active interference in the 2016 election was a "hoax." Which would be somewhat odd, given that the intelligence community unanimously concluded that Russia not only worked to meddle in the election but did so to help Trump and hurt Hillary Clinton. But, given Trump's repeated refusal to acknowledge that fact -- including while standing next to Russian President Vladimir Putin last week in Helsinki, Finland -- it all made a weird sort of sense. Except, of course, when Trump said, "it is all a big hoax," he wasn't actually talking about the Russia investigation currently being led by special counsel Robert Mueller. At least according to White House press secretary Sarah Sanders. "He's referring to the claim that his campaign had anything to do with it," she explained to reporters Monday morning. Which, um, OK. Maybe in a vacuum that explanation makes sense. Maybe. But the context of Trump's last week suggests a simple pattern: Trump says or tweets what he believes and then his White House staff tries to explain it away even as he kind of, sort of works to undermine their explanations. The result is a President and a White House choking on their own contradictions and falsehoods on an issue -- a rogue nation meddling in our democracy -- that sits at the heart of the American experiment. Let's go through some of that context. Seven days ago in Helsinki, Trump refused to condemn Putin for election interference -- and instead said that both Russia and the United States were to blame for the election meddling. He added that he had asked Putin directly whether Russia orchestrated a interference campaign. "He just said it's not Russia," said Trump. "I don't see any reason why it would be." The following day -- so, Tuesday -- Trump was forced to issue the rarest of rarities for him: A clarification. Reading slowly from a message written on a piece of paper in front of him, Trump said that he had meant to say "wouldn't" rather than "would" in the sentence above. It should have read, according to Trump, "I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be" -- meaning he figured Russia had meddled. There was no explanation offered for why -- if this was all one big misunderstanding over a mistaken word choice -- Trump didn't see fit to correct it in either of the interviews he gave with Fox News between when he held the press conference with Putin on Monday and when he issued the clarification Tuesday. Then came an exchange on Wednesday between Trump and a reporter who asked him whether Russia was still targeting the US. "No," Trump replied -- setting off an entirely new controversy. But, wait, said Sanders! Trump wasn't responding to the question of whether Russia is targeting the US, he was simply saying "no," he didn't want to take any questions. Except, well, he took several more questions after that "no" response. Maybe one of these incidents could be explained away by a slip of the tongue. Or a media misinterpretation. But three "misunderstandings" in a single week? All about the same topic? Seems extremely unlikely. 5 times Trump said something controversial ... and then walked it back The reason for all of this confusion and clashing messaging is simple: The President of the United States has a set of convictions as it relates to Russia and their attempts to interfere in the 2016 election that are directly at odds with the nation's intelligence community and everyone else (not named Devin Nunes) in a position to know what they are talking about. Trump is unwilling/incapable of decoupling these two ideas: 1) Russia tried to meddle in the election to help him and 2) He is President anyway. Acknowledging the first doesn't invalidate the second. Russia can have tried to cheat the system and Trump could have won fair and square anyway. Everyone around him sees that. The Senate Intelligence Committee. The CIA director. The FBI director. The Director of National Intelligence. And what they also see is that Russia is already back at their meddling, buoyed by the successes they achieved in 2016. Even as Russia plots -- and executes that plan -- the White House remains stuck in neutral in dealing with that threat. Because the President just can't bring himself to say these sentences: Yes, Russia tried to interfere in our election. I didn't collude with them and there was no impact on the outcome. Still, Russia has proven itself to be a bad actor on the national stage and I will treat them that way until their behavior changes. Instead, Russia is choking Trump's presidency -- and sowing chaos in the country. Which is exactly what Putin wants. Georgia House Speaker David Ralston is calling for the resignation of a state lawmaker who dropped his trousers and repeatedly used the "n-word" on Sunday night's episode of the Showtime series "Who Is America?" Jason Spencer, a Republican who represents the community of Woodbine in southeast Georgia, appeared in a segment in which the show's star Sacha Baron Cohen played a character named Col. Erran Morad. Cohen pretended to be an anti-terrorism expert The lawmaker says the show took advantage of him Spencer was pranked into believing believing that the comedian was an Israeli anti-terrorism expert who was able to convince the legislator that a series of racist acts would protect him against terrorists. They first discussed Spencer's support of a burqa ban. Spencer told Cohen's character, "I don't call it a burqa ban, I call it an anti-masking statute." Sacha Baron Cohen punks politicians in Showtime series 'Who is America?' From there, Cohen engaged in a series of supposed anti-terrorism exercises which included telling Spencer to yell as a way of attracting attention during an ISIS kidnapping attempt. "In America there is one forbidden word," Cohen said. "It is the 'n-word.'" After Spencer yelled the racial slur, Cohen responded "Are you crazy? The 'n-word' is noonie! Not this word. This word is disgusting." "Got it," Spencer said. Cohen also got Spencer to imitate an Asian accent in an exercise that had him pretending to be an Asian tourist in an attempt to take a photo under a person's burqa and to drop his trousers "to use your buttocks to intimidate ISIS." Ralston, Georgia's House speaker, called Spencer's actions and language "reprehensible" in a statement provided to CNN. "Representative Spencer has disgraced himself and should resign immediately," Ralston said. "Georgia is better than this." Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal tweeted about Spencer's actions on Monday. "The actions and language used by Jason Spencer are appalling and offensive," Deal tweeted. "There is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever, and I am saddened and disgusted by it." Spencer has not returned calls from CNN, but told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the Showtime series got him to participate by taking advantage of his fears that he or his family would be attacked -- fears sparked by death threats he says he received after he proposed legislation barring Muslim women from wearing a burqa in public. "In posing as an Israeli agent, (Cohen) pretended to offer self-defense exercises. As uncomfortable as I was to participate, I agreed to, understanding that these 'techniques' were meant to help me and others fend off what I believed was an inevitable attack. "My fears were so heightened at that time, I was not thinking clearly nor could I appreciate what I was agreeing to when I participated in his 'class.' I was told I would be filmed as a 'demonstration video' to teach others the same skills in Israel. Sacha and his crew further lied to me, stating that I would be able to review and have final approval over any footage used. "I deeply regret the language I used at (Cohen's) request as well as my participation in the 'class' in general. If I had not been so distracted by my fears, I never would have agreed to participate in the first place. "I apologize to my family, friends, and the people of my district for this ridiculously ugly episode," Spencer said. Spencer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the show "exploited" his state of mind "for profit and notoriety." "This media company's deceptive and fraudulent behavior is exactly why President Donald Trump was elected," he said in a statement last week in response to other politicians falling prey to the comedian. Showtime had no comment when contacted by CNN. Still in character, Cohen, as Israeli Col. Erran Morad, posted videos of Spencer on Twitter with this message: "Boker tov. I have been inform elected official & all-round mensch I meet, Jason Spencer, have somehow been portray in bad light by Showtime. To reveal the truth, here is the unedited film. Do not worry Jason Shpenker, Erran Morad have got your backside." Previous calls for Spencer's resignation Some called for Spencer's resignation last year after he warned former state Rep. LaDawn Jones, a black woman, that she would not be "met with torches but something a lot more definitive" if she continued to call for the removal of Confederate statues in south Georgia and suggested that someone who didn't understand this "will go missing in the Okefenokee" swamp. Spencer was elected to the Georgia House in 2010. He has served four terms and is still in office, but was defeated by political newcomer Steven Sainz in the Republican primary in May. "I recently lost my primary election, so I will not eligible to hold office next term," Spencer said in his statement to the AJC. "Therefore, I will finish the remaining five months at my post and vacate my seat." There are four intertwined reasons for President Donald Trump's late-night, 276-character Twitter warning of war with Iran: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES." First, the Trump administration is effectively pursuing a policy of regime change in the Islamic republic, hoping expanding sanctions will break the Iranian economy. Hours before Trump's blast, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a high-profile speech in California, proclaiming US support for protests against "hypocritical holy men." Second, Iran's regime -- the Supreme Leader and President Hassan Rouhani, forced into tougher rhetoric by hardliners -- are issuing their own threat: to hinder the oil exports of other countries if Tehran's sales are sharply reduced by US sanctions. That threat could include blocking the Strait of Hormuz at the top of the Gulf, a vital route for oil tankers. Third, Trump's ego was poked by Rouhani's direct address in a speech Sunday: "Mr Trump! We are the people of dignity and guarantor of security of the waterway of the region throughout history. Don't play with the lion's tail; you will regret it." And fourth, Trump needs a distraction from the fallout over his Helsinki summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and -- more importantly -- the Trump-Russia investigation that is closing in on him. In the past 10 days, 12 Russian military intelligence officials have been indicted, the smoke from Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller is rising, a declassified document has highlighted suspicions of Russian coordination not only with Carter Page but with other Trump campaign advisors, and the trial of former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort is looming. But is there a fifth reason for Trump's all-caps blast? Could this be a maneuver -- as with North Korea over the past 18 months -- to threaten war, only to pursue a flashbulb-popping photo op with Iran's leaders? No. Even assuming that Trump's tweet was based on rationality, rather than regime change hopes or personal animosity, there are a series of barriers to any sudden Trumpian mission to Tehran. Regime change means no talks and no resurrection of the July 2015 nuclear deal. Trump's top advisors, Pompeo and National Security Advisor John Bolton, are devotees of the toppling of the Islamic Republic's leaders. Trump's close friend and personal attorney Rudy Giuliani was in Paris last month headlining a conference of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, which has pursued violent as well as non-violent overthrow of the Iranian regime since the 1979 revolution. Unsurprisingly, Iran's Supreme Leader is not an advocate of regime change. And, even if Trump's team foresees talks based on Ayatollah Khamenei taking a knee, the cleric will never accept the terms. As he said on Saturday: "I have always been insisting that we cannot trust the words or even signatures of the US authorities. Hence, negotiating with the US is useless." Through his vague but strident declaration of a resistance economy for self-sufficiency, Khamenei has put down his marker. He expects Iranians to sacrifice in defiance of the US. He is gambling that his will prevails over any nationwide protests: After all, he survived the mass demonstrations after Iran's disputed 2009 presidential election. Iran's hardliners currently have the upper hand. Rouhani's tough talk, with a "mother of all wars" reference on Sunday, is a capitulation to factions such as the Revolutionary Guards as well as the Supreme Leader's office. The President is blocked from any outreach to the US. He is even having to pull back from pursuit of links with the European Union, which is trying to salvage the nuclear deal but struggling to protect European companies against American punishment. The recent experience with North Korea works against any prospect of Trump switching from regime change war-war to jaw-jaw with Iran. His vision of a historic deal with Kim Jong Un has quickly faded, with Pyongyang playing hardball over any substantive negotiations and stepping up rather than scrapping its nuclear program. Trump may have sought last September to get a handshake and picture with Rouhani at the UN General Assembly. However, those days are long gone. We are not talking a quick jump from Twitter war to real war. The Trump administration's preference is still for economic collapse in Tehran. But the risk of military conflict is real -- from the provocation of tweets and speeches on both sides, from the takeover of wounded egos, from alpha-male miscalculations and from the fallout of a resistance economy that can no longer resist. One of Sen. Bernie Sanders' former top Iowa advisers, Pete D'Alessandro, has signed on as a general consultant to help Rep. Tim Ryan navigate the Hawkeye State as Ryan tests the waters there for a 2020 presidential bid. But D'Alessandro, who recently came up short in a Democratic congressional primary, tells CNN he's not telegraphing a message about his 2020 allegiances. His agreement with Ryan is good only through the end of this year, and it isn't exclusive. "Obviously, if Bernie Sanders comes in and says, 'Pete, I'm doing an event and I'd like you to help me,' I'd go and help him," said D'Alessandro. "I think Tim understands that." He added, "My folks that I talk to in Bernie world are very aware of it, and nobody said not to do it." D'Alessandro agreed to help Ryan after the Ohio Democrat lent his support to D'Alessandro's congressional bid. ABC News first reported D'Alessandro's move. "Tim Ryan was out here helping me. He was just such a great supporter in every way, who was there as a friend when I would ask him for advice," said D'Alessandro. "He certainly didn't need to weigh in on the guy who was going to finish third, and the fact that he did that for me ... whatever he decides to do, (helping him) just seemed like absolutely the right thing to do. Maybe that transcends politics." D'Alessandro also praised Ryan for his "compelling" story, as a Rust Belt Democrat "who was willing to take on establishment" by challenging House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. D'Alessandro touted Ryan's "authenticity," saying: "One thing that came clear to me in 2016 working for Bernie -- what you're talking about matters, that's the first place you bring people in -- but people are just crying for authenticity and this guy is as authentic as the day is long. And I think that's going to be one of the things people realize right away." In his work for Ryan, D'Alessandro will connect him with state lawmakers and party activists for meetings and events, although he said he believes Ryan is already "doing the right things" in Iowa to test the waters. Ryan is slated to headline the Iowa Democratic Wing Ding event next month along with Rep. John Delaney, a Maryland Democrat who has already announced his bid for president. This story has been updated to note that ABC News first reported D'Alessandro's personnel move. A 15-year-old Texas girl told her mother the captain of the duck boat which sunk in a Missouri lake was "freaking out" as the boat began to take on water, the Kansas City Star reported. The girl was on the tour boat with her father, who also survived. Gillian Keller's mother relayed the story from her daughter. "She said, 'I was freaking out because he was freaking out.'" According to Gillian, the windows and canopy were both closed as the boat began to rock back-and-forth. It wasn't until water began to seep in that the captain opened the canopy to the boat. ABC News reported Monday morning about a plan to raise the boat from the lake. Advertisement By Tim Brockwell Jul. 23, 2018 | PADUCAH By Tim Brockwell Jul. 23, 2018 | 10:09 AM | PADUCAH Lourdes Hospital in Paducah has changed its name to Mercy Health. Hospital staff and community leaders met Monday morning in the hospital's parking lot for a renaming ceremony. Mercy Health-Lourdes Hospital CEO Michael Yungmann said that although the hospital's name has changed, patients will get the same level of care and compassion they have always received. "Even though we are changing our name we are still the same local hospital, with the same physicians, nurses, other care givers, support staff and volunteers that you have come to know and trust." Yungmann said. Chairman of the Lourdes Board of Trustees Roger Harris said he's proud of the progress the hospital has made over the years. "We're proud to have become such a vital part of so many lives. We've accomplished so much together, and we look forward to a promising and vibrant future of making lives better." Mercy Health is a Catholic health care ministry with nearly 34,000 employees serving areas in Kentucky and Ohio. Lourdes, which began as Riverside Hospital in 1905, first entered into a management contract with Mercy Health System in 1989. Email To : Multiple e-mail addresses must be separated with a comma character(maximum 200 characters) Email To is required. Your Full Name: (optional) Your Email Address: Your Email Address is required. By West Kentucky Star Staff Jul. 23, 2018 | 09:21 AM | METROPOLIS A Paducah man faces methamphetamine charges in Massac County. According to the Metropolis Police Department, officers were called to the Strickland Apartments after being informed that someone was attempting to kick in a door. When police arrived, an officer allegedly saw a man matching the clothing description given by the victims. When the officer exited his squad car, the man fled on foot. A foot chase ensued, and the man was taken into custody. Police say 35-year-old Jeffery C. Crass, of Paducah, was reportedly found in possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia. Crass was arrested and charged with possession of meth, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest. He was lodged in the Massac County Detention Center. Police said Crass was not the one attempting to kick in the door. Paducah Police warn of scam using names of police officers By West Kentucky Star Staff Jul. 22, 2018 | 05:00 PM | TRENTON This summer, 7 students from Gibson Electric Membership Corporation spent a week in our nations capital as delegates on the 2018 Washington Youth Tour. Silas Freeze, Obion County Central High School; Ashley Becton, Crockett County High School; Joshua Hairston, Gibson County High School; Hannah Causer, Hickman County High School; Presley Jones, Dyer County High School; Jacob Rhodes, Crockett County High School; and Summer Farley, Lake County High School were among 135 students sent from Tennessees electric cooperatives. The annual event, sponsored by Gibson EMC, provides young leaders with an opportunity to explore the nations capital, learn about government and cooperatives and develop their leadership skills. Students were selected for the trip by writing winning short stories titled Electric Cooperatives Going Beyond the Wires that explained how co-ops provide communities with much more than electric power. Gibson EMC is pleased to provide this opportunity for the young people in the communities we serve, says Cynthia McClure, Gibson EMC Key Accounts Representative and trip chaperone. It is a great trip and a wonderful chance for these delegates to learn about history, government, co-ops and leadership. The investments co-ops make in Youth Tour pay real dividends for these young people and the communities where they live, said Dan Rodamaker, President and CEO of Gibson EMC and Gibson Connect. They come home with a deeper understanding of history and government. More importantly, we want them to be prepared to have a positive influence on their hometowns and to consider leadership roles when the opportunities come along. While in Washington, D.C., youth tour delegates saw the White House and memorials to past presidents Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Delano Roosevelt as well as monuments honoring the sacrifices of veterans of World War II and the Vietnam and Korean Wars. During visits to the museums of the Smithsonian Institution, the touring students saw and experienced natural, historical and artistic treasures. Other stops included historic homes of former presidents George Washingtons Mount Vernon and Jeffersons Monticello as well as Tobys Dinner Theatre, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and International Spy Museum. Among other Youth Tour highlights was a solemn and sobering visit to Arlington National Cemetery where the group laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. While in D.C., winners were announced in the statewide competition for the Robert McCarty Memorial Scholarships. Silas Freeze from Gibson Electric Membership Corporation was awarded the $3,000 first-place scholarship for writing the top-judged short story of the more than 10,000 papers submitted across the state. It was an overwhelming experience when I learned that I had won a scholarship by writing a short story, Freeze said. It will be very beneficial as I plan to attend Vanderbilt after graduation. Im looking forward to encouraging next years juniors to take advantage of the opportunity to win the trip of a lifetime. Matthew Byrd of Tipton County, a recent graduate of Munford High School, was awarded a $10,000 Cooperative Youth Ambassador Scholarship. Byrd was a 2017 delegate for Southwest Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation on the Washington Youth Tour. In the year following the tour, delegates who remain engaged with their sponsoring cooperatives and complete certain community service requirements are eligible for the scholarship. Byrds name was randomly selected from 37 delegates from across the state who completed the requirements. The excitement that co-op leaders and chaperones have for these students tells the story, said David Callis, CEO of the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association. These young people are the next generation of doctors and teachers and farmers in the communities we serve. We want them to be passionate about their communities and prepared to lead when those opportunities come along. President Lyndon Johnson, then a senator from Texas, inspired the Washington Youth Tour in 1957 when he encouraged electric cooperatives to send youngsters to the nations capital. In the years since, more than 6,000 young Tennesseans have been delegates on the Washington Youth Tour. Gibson EMC is a local, not-for-profit, member-owned and member-controlled electric cooperative serving almost 39,000 homes and businesses in eight west Tennessee counties (Crockett, Dyer, Gibson, Haywood, Lake, Lauderdale, Obion and Madison) and four west Kentucky counties (Carlisle, Fulton, Graves and Hickman). #relative poverty S. Korea ranks 4th in relative poverty among OECD nations South Korea ranks fourth in relative poverty among major economies in the world, data showed Monday, in a sign of its high income inequality. The country's relative poverty rat... #Olympics Seoul to host int'l Olympic meeting in 2022 South Korea will host a meeting of over 200 national Olympic committees in 2022, one year after losing the event to the coronavirus pandemic. The Korean Sport & Olympic Comm... How health workers have adapted to SAs breastfeeding policy In the past 20 years there has been a massive global push for mothers to exclusively breastfeed their newborns for the first six months of their lives. The science suggests this is a good way to improve their childrens later development. There has also been a large body of research on the effects of formula milk, and other replacement foods, on the health of babies during their first six months. A great deal shows that they have negative effects. But for many years HIV positive mothers were advised to either exclusively breastfeed their babies, or only feed them formula. They could choose which they preferred but not a mixture of the two. This was very confusing for many mothers. Many fell back on mixed feeding. They started using both approaches as the same time sometimes breastfeeding their babies, sometimes using commercial formula or other replacement liquids and foods. In South Africa this practise was very common close to 90% of the countrys babies were mixed fed in the early 2000s. In 2010 this changed. The World Health Organisation took a stand and recommended that governments should make a choice between the two options. They either had to encourage HIV positive mothers to exclusively breastfeed or to exclusively formula feed. They shouldnt do both. These guidelines prompted South Africa to end its free formula programme in public facilities. Instead, it promoted exclusive breastfeeding for all mothers. This meant that frontline health workers, including nurses and clinic staff, had to change they way they counselled mothers about feeding practises. Seven years after the new policy was introduced we wanted to find out how well frontline workers had adjusted. Did they understand the new policy and its purpose? And did it make a difference to breastfeeding rates? Our findings were surprising. When it came to HIV positive mothers, the frontline workers encouraged them to breastfeed their babies exclusively. But when it came to HIV negative mothers, the workers didnt highlight the importance of exclusive breastfeeding, nor did they discourage mothers from mixed feeding. Our study suggests that South Africa could improve exclusive breastfeeding rates. The rate has improved in recent years by 2016 32% of mothers were exclusively breastfeeding their babies. But theres still a great deal of room for improvement. Kenya, for example, has achieved a rate of over 60%. The onus is with the South African government to engage health workers about the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding for babies born to HIV positive as well as HIV negative mothers. They need to provide clear communication tools and counselling skills that can help health workers address the barriers mothers face. Reliant on advice Studies have shown that new mothers rely heavily on the advice they get from health workers about infant feeding. Mothers who get confusing or misleading advice from health workers are less likely to exclusively breastfeed, or to do so for a shorter time. On the other hand, those who receive clear, positive messages about exclusive breastfeeding from their health workers are more likely to breastfeed. Thats why our study focused on health workers. We interviewed frontline health workers from four community health clinics in Soweto. They included nurses, ward-based outreach team members and staff seconded from non-governmental organisations. Each of them had counselled mothers about baby feeding before and after the policy change. Some mothers were breastfeeding their babies but not exclusively, they were using formula. Shutterstock Few health workers understood the scientific rationale of the policy to promote exclusive breastfeeding. Many were under the impression that the formula programme had been stopped due to costs and most hadnt been trained on the new policy. The health workers believed that breastmilk was best for babies and were able to rattle off the nutritional benefits and other advantages such as allowing the mother and the baby to bond and the fact that it was cheaper. But there were differences in the way they responded to HIV positive and negative mothers. They advised all mothers to breastfeed their babies. But they spent more time educating HIV positive mothers about the importance of exclusive breastfeeding rather than HIV negative mothers. The subtext was that mixed feeding was mostly a HIV related risk. When they spoke to HIV negative mothers they spent more time warning them about HIV and advising them how to protect themselves. They did not emphasise the benefits of exclusively breastfeeding. What next? There are still structural barriers around exclusive breastfeeding that need attention. This includes maternity leave policies that fall short of the six month exclusive breastfeeding period, an absence of public and workplace spaces for breastfeeding and the idea that exclusive breastfeeding is only for HIV-exposed babies. On top of this, mixed feeding remains a cultural norm in many communities. On the bright side, exclusive breastfeeding rates are increasing in South Africa and health workers have an important role to play in explaining the health and development benefits of exclusive breastfeeding for all babies. South Africas health department should provide health workers with updated information on the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding and the risks of mixed feeding. This needs to include pre-tested materials that can be placed in public spaces like clinics. In addition, they should continuously provide interactive content on the health workers cellphones through platforms like NurseConnect which they could access during consultations. Health workers also need training on how to navigate between health education and counselling that empowers mothers. To get the best outcome for both mother and baby, a single directive from above is less likely to result in behaviour change than a two-way conversation about overcoming barriers. Sara Nieuwoudt, Lecturer, University of the Witwatersrand. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Every week, I offer a glimpse of the kind of intelligence assessments that are likely to come across the desk of the President of the United States. Modeled on the President's Daily Briefing, or PDB, which the director of national intelligence prepares for the President almost daily, my Presidential Weekly Briefing focuses on the topics and issues the President needs to know to make informed decisions. Here's this week's briefing: European Union: From bad blood to a trade ceasefire As European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker prepares for his high stakes visit to Washington on Wednesday, he is probably worried about the bad blood between the United States and the European Union (EU) on a host of trade issues, including stalled negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement, steel and aluminum tariffs and your most recent threat to impose tariffs on autos and auto parts. He is undoubtedly aware of your statements about the EU being "a foe" because of "what they do to us in trade," and previous public remarks from you, describing the EU as a "piggybank" that was set up to take advantage of the United States. He is probably hopeful that your meeting will focus on areas other than transatlantic trade tensions, so as to reaffirm the bonds between the United States and EU. But Juncker may also assess that, on a loaded transatlantic trade agenda, he now has added leverage. The EU just signed a landmark trade agreement with Japan -- the biggest ever negotiated by the EU -- which creates an open trade zone covering almost a third of global GDP. He has probably been briefed on Secretary of Treasury Steve Mnuchin's comments this weekend saying that he was "encouraged" by the EU-Japan trade deal and "very hopeful" that the United States and EU can make progress on brokering our own free trade deal. Juncker may be coming to negotiate a trade war ceasefire -- particularly when it comes to your threat to impose tariffs on imported cars and vehicle parts. He knows there is a domestic backlash against these tariffs and may be willing to offer concessions, such as reducing some existing EU tariffs on automobiles. While Juncker will likely be looking to change course on EU tariffs and take a more flexible approach on a bilateral trade agreement, he, along with EU leaders, is probably hopeful that the visit will be marked by a clear statement of friendship and cooperation. In fact, he would likely love for you to brand the visit as positive because "what unites us -- in values, interests, trade and security -- is vastly greater than what divides us." Russia is ready for a party in the USA Russian President Vladimir Putin thinks that he has multiple reasons to celebrate and to keep the party going. For starters, he likely assesses that his efforts to sow confusion are reaping rewards in real time. In the absence of a readout from the White House on what was discussed in your meeting with Putin, few know what was actually said or agreed to. This confusion was only exacerbated by Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats' statement that he doesn't know what happened behind closed doors. Because you have not given an account of what did or did not get discussed, the American people are confused. And each time the Russians share information (or disinformation) on offers they made, and then we offer a different account, the confusion only grows. We also assess that Putin thinks that your behavior after the summit helps his mission of undermining confidence in our institutions and attacking our democracy. Your attack on the media (and detractors) can be considered an attack on the key democratic institution of a free press, and, when added to your (mis)statements undercutting your own government officials -- the US intelligence community on Russian election interference -- and obfuscation on whether you would consider turning over a former US ambassador to Russia, the Putin party narrative is that you aren't siding with your own team. Not surprisingly, much of the public commentary in the United States has focused on whether you did something illegal or at least questionable with Putin behind closed doors, which again helps Putin's mission of undermining your credibility. He's also celebrating his control of post-Helsinki messaging. We assess that he enjoys being in control of the public readout of your meeting because he can use the spin to his advantage -- to manipulate perceptions of you and the United States -- and he may even discourage you from providing a more fulsome readout to the press by stoking concerns that the "fake news media" will distort the message. He's also putting the United States on defense by releasing, piecemeal, information about what you two agreed to. We are perceived as taking our cues from Russia. But there is yet another reason for Russia to celebrate: Putin may be communicating more with our allies about the meeting than we are, and your silence may make them anxious about why you don't want to tell them what happened. There is no indication that you have debriefed any of our allies on the Helsinki summit, particularly on issues that affect them -- such as election interference, Syria, Ukraine and Russia's alleged chemical weapons use in the UK. Debriefing allies has historically been standard operating procedure, even as recently as after your meeting with Kim Jong Un, when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo went to some allied capitals to share a readout. Putin may be celebrating this lack of outreach on your part by trying to reach our allies first and giving them his version of the story. And now, it seems, Putin may be coming to America, following the announcement that you're inviting him this fall. His visit is a cause for Kremlin celebration, not only because he expects to witness celebrations while on the ground (there are even rumors that he will attend a US military parade with you), but because he perceives that he's manipulated you to such a degree that you are inviting him to visit while he is, simultaneously, attacking us and continuing to interfere in our electoral processes. Iran is never getting back together with us We assess that the Iranian regime will not come back to the negotiating table with the United States anytime soon -- particularly after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo laid out 12 preconditions for negotiations. Furthermore, they are concerned about US efforts to support regime change. There are perceptions that you are now engaging in a direct campaign -- through speeches and other forms of communications -- to foment unrest in Iran by chastising the regime. Your own tweets supporting protests and labeling the government brutal and corrupt are likely perceived by at least some Iranian leaders as a means to directly interfere in their politics. Your statements and Secretary Pompeo's speech on "Supporting Iranian Voices" are heard in Tehran but also in Moscow. Putin is deeply opposed to what he thinks is a US policy of fomenting unrest and supporting regime change. He accused then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton of trying to incite unrest in Russia against the government. He is worried about regime change in places like Syria and North Korea (Kim Jong Un shares this anxiety), particularly after US actions to unseat Saddam Hussein in Iraq and Moammar Gadhafi in Libya. And he is deeply paranoid about domestic unrest and opposition to him in Russia. So, we assess that he may interpret your communications campaign against Iran as an attempt to topple the regime -- even though the State Department has said a change in regime behavior, rather than regime change, is the goal. You should also be aware that Iran probably won't take this lying down. The empire can strike back, and cyberspace is a potential theater to do so. There are reports that Iran is planning cyberattacks against key US infrastructure and health care and technology companies in the United States (it's hit us before), so we should be on high alert. China can't be tamed As official public statements about the risks from China hit the media, including FBI Director Christopher Wray's statement that "China, from a counterintelligence perspective, in many ways represents the broadest, most challenging, most significant threat we face as a country," and a CIA official's description of the cold war between the US and China, President Xi Jinping is kicking off an African tour. He arrived in Senegal this weekend and will travel to Rwanda (the first visit by a Chinese President), South Africa (where he will attend a summit of BRICS countries -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), before visiting Mauritius. Xi arrived in Africa after a three-day state visit in the United Arab Emirates, where he signed 13 agreements and memoranda. The media coverage of his time in the UAE and in Senegal has been positive. And it's clear that Xi is trying to position China as an ardent supporter of African development -- China is Africa's largest trading partner and a great business partner for countries like the UAE. We assess that he views his personal investment in forging relationships with leaders around the world as something that will bring economic and geostrategic returns as both developed and developing countries turn more toward China in the future. As your own national security strategy outlined, China is a rival power, and, according to the CIA, "China wants every country around the world, when it's deciding its interests on policy issues, to first and foremost side with China and not the United States." So we assess that Xi views bolstering ties with countries around the world as a direct means of getting them closer to Beijing and further from you. Looking for a city that's both green and disaster-resilient? The Philippines is building one just for you. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door. (You can also get "5 Things You Need to Know Today" delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.) 1. Iran President Trump unleashed the mother of all tweets after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani seemed to threaten the US in a speech. Trump's tweet, sent out late last night and in all caps (!), instructed Rouhani to never threaten America again or "YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Rouhani, in a speech earlier in the day to diplomats in Tehran, said Americans "must understand that war with Iran is the mother of all wars and peace with Iran is the mother of all peace." Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had tough words for Iran too, saying the clerics who run the country line their own pockets and fund terror attacks at the expense of average Iranians. This sudden, unexpected rise in the rhetoric between the two countries alarmed many Middle East observers, with CNN military analyst Rick Francona calling Trump's tweet "really dangerous." The Trump administration, which pulled the US out of the Iran nuclear deal, is expected to re-enact many of the punishing sanctions that were in place before the 2015 agreement was reached, including limiting Iran's ability to sell oil. 2. Branson boat tragedy The duck boat that sank in a storm in a Missouri lake -- killing 17 people -- will be raised this morning as the investigation into the tragedy continues. Thirty-one people were on board the Ride the Ducks Branson amphibious vessel last week when it set sail on Table Rock Lake near Branson. None of the victims were wearing life jackets when they were found, a source told CNN. One woman who survived the incident lost nine family members, including her husband and her three children. The National Transportation Safety Board's investigation of the sinking could take up to a year to complete. 3. Syria Israel evacuated 422 Syrians -- including members of the famed White Helmets rescue group -- to Jordan. The humanitarian evac became necessary because the lives of the White Helmet volunteers were in danger as Syrian forces tightened their grip on one of the last rebel strongholds. The White Helmets, through video and pictures on social media, are widely seen as having played a huge role in showing the world the horrors of the Syrian civil war. 4. Toronto shooting One woman is dead and 13 others hurt after a man opened fire last night on the streets of Toronto's Greektown neighborhood. The shooter is dead from a gunshot, but it's not clear if it was self-inflicted or came from a shootout with police. Every possible motive is being considered in the shooting, including terrorism, Police Chief Mark Saunders said. One witness described hearing 20 shots and the sound of a weapon being reloaded repeatedly. 5. Ride share livestreams Uber and Lyft suspended a driver in St. Louis for livestreaming passengers without their permission. The live video, streamed on Twitch, occasionally revealed passengers' full names and residences. And an online audience would comment on passengers' appearance and conversation in real time. Now here's the kicker: it's legal. That's because Missouri only requires one party in a conversation to be aware a recording is taking place. But it's probably not ethical (and at the very least, really creepy), so the ride share companies gave him the boot. The driver told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he set up the live stream for his own security. BREAKFAST BROWSE Super reboot "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" is getting a reboot (what isn't these days?) and an African-American actress will be in the lead role. Super smart This 11-year-old graduated from college this weekend, with plans to be an astrophysicist. What are you doing with your life, again? Chicken for life Gracelyn Mae Violet Griffin's life is pretty much set. She'll get free food and a guaranteed job -- all because she was born at a Texas Chick-fil-A. Color of success She was once bullied over her skin color. Now she's flexin' her complexion with her own clothing line. The robots are coming Robots have learned to do a lot of things. Now not only are they drawing paintings, they're doing it better than us humans. We should just give up now. NUMBERS OF THE DAY $2 million The bail that's been set for Gene Evin Atkins, the suspect in this weekend's armed standoff at a Trader Joe's in Los Angeles. A store manager was killed in the incident. 105.98 degrees That was the temperature today, in Fahrenheit, in Kumagaya, Japan, the highest ever recorded in the country. Japan is suffering through a deadly heat wave that's killed at least 44 people since mid-July. AND FINALLY ... Cuddle time How hard is it to get out of bed on Mondays? About as hard as it is for this cute dog to stop cuddling with her human. (Click to view) ONE MORE THING Just wanted to say thanks to the 5 Things family for all the happy birthday wishes. I heard from hundreds of you from all over the world. It was simply the best birthday ever. Now I have to have a little talk with my boss about hijacking my videos. :) The three-year-old boy who drowned in Goodyear Lake over the weekend has been identified as Andrew Durkin of Gilboa, according to New York State Police. Just before 3 p.m. Sunday, New York State Police were called to Goodyear Lake in Milford for a report of a missing child. State polices Underwater Recovery Team found the boy in the lake, submerged in about seven feet of water, about 17 feet from a residential dock. A member of state police performed CPR on the child, and he was then taken to A.O. Fox Hospital in Oneonta, where he was pronounced dead. Police say the child's death has been ruled an accidental drowning, and no foul play is suspected. The child and his family were at the summer residence with other family, and police say Andrew has an identical twin broher who was dressed exactly the same way at the time Andrew went missing. The Otsego County Sheriffs Office, the Milford Fire Department and Milford EMS also responded to the scene and assisted with the search, along with civilians. Police say the investigation into the incident is ongoing. RUSSIA- Several fire crews were called to a home in the town of Russia on Sunday night. This happened at the corner of Military and Gauss roads. Barneveld, Remsen, Holland Patent, and other crews were called to help put the fire out. Other units also assisted in bringing water to that location. The powerline to the home was severed and fell in the road. National Grid crews had to cut off power. No word on whether anyone was in the home at the time or if there were injuries. The fire is still under investigation. A former New York State Trooper and former head of the Great American Irish Festival, Matthew Sullivan, died over the weekend at age 49. According to his obituary, Sullivan died of a cardiac event on Saturday, July 21. Sullivan was born in Utica in 1968, and he grew up in Barneveld and attended Holland Patent High School. He then went on to graduate from Herkimer County Community College and SUNY ESF. Sullivan followed in his fathers footsteps and became a New York State Trooper, according to his obituary. He owned and operated Total Body Fitness in Barneveld, and he served as president of the Remsen Volunteer Fire Company. Sullivan was also the director of the Great American Irish Festival until he retired from the position in 2014. Calling hours for family and friends will be held 4-7 p.m. Wednesday at McGrath, Myslinski, Karboski & Nunn Funeral Directors, located at 470 French Rd. in Utica. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, located at 2222 Genesee St. in Utica. In 2009, Sullivan was fired from the New York State Police after pleading guilty to reckless driving, DWAI and unlawfully fleeing an officer, after a fellow trooper attempted to pull him over and he fled from the scene. Last month, Sullivan was arrested again for DWI and other charges after he failed to stop at a stop sign in New York Mills, went through an intersection and then struck a house on Burrstone Road, according to police. That case was still pending. FRANKFORT -- Local veterans and their families gathered at Camp Sitrin for Sitrin Health Care Centers 5th annual Warrior Retreat. More than 100 local veterans who were deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq came together for a weekend of family fun. Sitrin's warrior retreat is a way for vets to come together each year and be welcomed back into the community. "It's a very family environment that we have here, Vice President of Clinical Development at Sitrin Jackie Warmuth said. It's very relaxing but it's very rewarding for myself, the volunteers that we have here and all of the families" At Camp Sitrin veterans were able to share their experiences being on and off the battlefield. The retreat included a healing circle, where veterans could talk amongst their peers who have a first-hand understanding of the challenges they face. "This has really helped me a lot, just overcoming a lot of anxiety I had, and just re-activating back into regular life," Veteran Jerry Reid said. Behavior Specialist Cara Acuri want veterans to know that there are many types of therapy, including dance therapy, for people who would rather show their feelings instead of talk about them. "People who may not be able to benefit from verbal counseling because they don't want to talk about their issues or can't talk about their issues, you can still help them," Arcuri said. "Just talking about it sometimes isn't enough like if they're holding tension, if they're holding anxiety, if they're holding fear the dance is a way to address those feelings and kind of help dissipate them that talking about them might not. Sitrin staff want vets to know that the health care center offers a variety of programs to fit different needs. "Don't be afraid to try different things, Arcuri said. Just because one approach isn't working for you doesn't mean that counseling or therapy isn't effective, or that you can't be helped. There is 101 different ways to approach a problem." WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) Now until the end of August, donations are being collected to help sponsor a free luncheon for Vietnam veterans and their guests this September. The goal is to make sure these veterans and their guests do not have to spend a penny to attend. Purdue employees are volunteering to host the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War commemoration luncheon. During the luncheon there will be a keynote speaker. "And then just an opportunity for these people to get together and talk about some of the things that they experienced," said luncheon Chair David Burford. "Maybe, reconnect with old friends and things like that." It's open to Purdue Alumni and people in surrounding Greater Lafayette communities. Support is needed from companies and people in the area to help raise money. Now until the end of August, volunteers are collecting donations for this event. The goal is to raise around $12,000 dollars to provide meals for close to 400 people. If volunteers raise more than their goal, the money is being used to support future Vietnam commemorative events. Burford said it's time to recognize the veterans for the sacrifices they made. "A lot of people came home and took their uniforms and threw them in the trash immediately," said Burford. "They were embarrassed by the publicity, the negative publicity from that war." Volunteers will have a booth set up at the Lafayette Aviators game on Monday, July 23. to collect donations. They will also be at the Purdue Farmers Markets on Thursdays from now until Aug. 29. The luncheon is on Friday, Sept 14. from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Lafayette National Guard Armory. You and your guest must register for the event here. INDIANAPOLIS (WTTV) A vigil will be held Monday night for the nine members of an Indianapolis family who died in a duck boat accident in Branson, Missouri. Eleven members of the Coleman family were on vacation when they got on the boat ride last Thursday. The victims ranged in ages from 1 to 76 and included a father and his three children as well as his parents, uncle, sister and nephew. The two surviving members are Tia Coleman and her nephew Donovan. Tia Coleman lost her husband Glenn, her three children and five of her in-laws. "It's something I can't comprehend," Coleman told our Indianapolis CBS affiliate WTTV. "It's something I can't explain. I don't have the capacity to understand it. Only thing I think is, you know, God must have something for me because there is no way I should be here." Seventeen people died in total when the duck boat sank. Monday's vigil will be at 7 p.m. at the Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church in Indianapolis. The Coast Guard also plans to pull the boat from the bottom of the water Monday morning. WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) More and more local stores are selling CBD oil products after they became legal in Indiana earlier this month. Even some gas stations in Lafayette have added them to the shelves. For Amused Clothing, it's about awareness. "People think CBD oil is going to get you high, which is kind of silly if you do any research at all," said Owner Bob Krusinski. He posted a CBD oil sign outside his store on State Street a few weeks ago, hoping people would come in and ask questions. "These are newer for us, kind of the sour gummies," explained Krusinski. Whether you want to eat it, rub it, or vape it, CBD products are used to provide relief. That can be for pain, anxiety or depression. "We have just continued to see a continual growth on it," said Sunspot Natural Market Manager Andrea Parish. "There are many days that I don't get away from the counter just talking about CBD oil for all the different people it helps and all the different things that you can address with CBD oil." But when Parish does leave the counter, it's usually to recommend CBD with other items in the store. "This is deep sleep it works wonderfully for sleep also Magnesium also for muscles, aches, cramps, tiredness, those types of things," explained Parish. "These are all natural things that you can use in couplement with your CBD." Parish said she has first-hand knowledge these products work. "I have a burn and I have been using it and making my own balm for my own burn, I personally use the green for anxiety," said Parish. She hopes more people turn to CBD products. Parish believes it could help solve the area's drug problem. "I think it's groundbreaking and I think it's a fabulous alternative for opioids and pain management," said Parish. Krusinski agrees. "I had a guy in a couple of days ago saying he doesn't want to do that, he's hoping that the CBD products can help alleviate that drug issue," said Krusinski. On Tuesday, News 18 is featuring a story about a man who went from being a school principal to opening a CBD oil shop in Lafayette. Why he took the risk, coming up tomorrow night on News 18 at Six. 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 India says French and US vendor talks ongoing 23 July 2018 Share India is in active talks with French and US companies on projects to build new nuclear power plants at Jaitapur and Kovvada, the country's minister of state, Jitendra Singh, has confirmed to parliament. The minister was responding to questions in both houses of India's parliament last week. Singh told the Rajya Sabha - India's upper house - that discussions between Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) and EDF on a project to build six 1650 MWe EPRs at Jaitapur in Maharashtra were "advancing" towards a project proposal. Noting they had signed an Industrial Way Forward agreement in March, he said spending on the project to date had been INR563 crore (USD82 million). (One crore is equivalent to ten million). Singh told the Lok Sabha - the lower house - that discussions on finalisation of project proposals for a six-unit plant at Kovvada were under way. Kovvada, in Andhra Pradesh, has been earmarked for the construction of six 1250 MWe Westinghouse AP1000 reactors. "The cost of reactors to be set up at these sites will emerge on conclusion of the techno-commercial discussions and formulation of their project proposals," Singh told the Lok Sabha. The projects would be launched after they receive administrative approval and financial sanction by the government, he said. The government has approved 'in principle' three further sites: Mithi Virdi in Gujarat, where six AP1000s are proposed; Haripur in West Bengal, where six Russian-designed units are envisaged; and Bhimpur in Madhya Pradesh, earmarked for four indigenously designed pressurised heavy water reactors. Pre-project works at those sites are at "various stages", the minister said. A 500 MWe prototype fast breeder reactor under construction at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu by the Department of Atomic Energy public sector unit Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI) will be followed by a further six units, Singh said. The proposed FBRs are to be built as a series of twin reactors, with construction to begin on the first pair in 2021, followed by the second pair in 2025 and the third pair in 2029. The first of those FBRs would be scheduled to begin commercial operation in 2029, with the others following at two-yearly intervals, according to the proposed schedule presented to the Lok Sabha. Researched and written by World Nuclear News Related topics Review for repaired isotope production facility 23 July 2018 Share A mechanical failure that caused the suspension of Australian manufacture of technetium-99m (Tc-99m) generators has been addressed, but resumption of production is still some weeks away, the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) said on 20 July. ANSTO is continuing to import generators of the medical isotope from the USA. Australia's Opal research reactor (Image: Ansto) Tc-99m is the most commonly used nuclear medicine, and is produced by the decay of the parent isotope, molybdenum-99 (Mo-99). Both Tc-99m, and the Mo-99 used to produce it inside a Tc-99m generator, are very short-lived so a reliable and steady supply is needed. ANSTO produces the Mo-99 and places it in Tc-99m generators to provide 10,000 doses per week for Australian patients, as well as providing generators to hospitals and nuclear medicine practices in New Zealand and Asia. However, the organisation temporarily suspended production of Tc-99m generators on 22 June, after a mechanical fault with a piece of equipment called a transfer conveyer. That breakdown has now been fixed, but compliance checks to restart the facility will take some weeks, ANSTO said on 20 July. The organisation has been importing Tc-99m generators from the USA while its own production has been suspended. Operations at ANSTO's OPAL reactor and the production of other radioisotopes have not been affected by the suspension. "ANSTO apologises for the impact this has had, and it is a priority for our organisation to resume local manufacture and distribution of nuclear medicine as soon as possible," the organisation said. Once the conveyor belt breakdown is fully resolved, the organisation will also undertake a comprehensive mechanical review of the Mo-99 processing and distribution facility. ANSTO also said it is finalising the appointment of an external team to conduct an independent third party review and report on best workplace health and safety practice at the facility, in response to a directive from the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Authority (ARPANSA). The regulator earlier this month directed ANSTO take "immediate steps" to initiate an independent review of its approach to occupational radiation safety of processes and operational procedures at its ANSTO Health nuclear medicine facility, in particular those associated with quality control of Mo-99 samples. The directive was issued following four separate events with safety implications between August 2017 and June 2018, which the regulator said "indicate ongoing safety issues at ANSTO Health". ANSTO said it has already taken many steps to improve safety in the processing and distribution facility, including improvements to procedures and instructions, training, the physical equipment, event reporting and the safety culture. It said the appointment of the review team was part of continuous improvement. "The joint objective here is to identify what more we can do to make the Mo-99 processing and distribution facility operate better from a mechanical perspective, and also raise the standard of safety performance," an ANSTO spokesperson said. "ANSTO has a history of working transparently with the independent nuclear regulator, and will keep ARPANSA readily informed of the independent reviews progress and outcomes, as well as the next steps." Researched and written by World Nuclear News Related topics Aspiring entrepreneur collects prestigious award This article is old - Published: Monday, Jul 23rd, 2018 A Coleg Cambria student has been announced as runner up in a prestigious and highly competitive business challenge. George Wilbraham, a Yale Sixth student, competed in Making Business Happen Awards an event which highlights and celebrates entrepreneurial talent. This year Coleg Cambria had two of its submissions make it through the to final; one team and one individual submission from George. Hosted by the University of South Wales, the event saw George crowned runner up bagging a prize of 1000 while the college was awarded a further 500. George returned with prize of 1,000 and the college was awarded a further 500. After a trip to Milan, George plans on using the rest of his winnings to support his studies of Business Management at Bath University and his entrepreneurial talents alongside. George was recently named Coleg Cambrias Enterprise Student of the year 2018. As well as leading the colleges Enterprise Committee and developing various enrichment activities for fellow students, he has brought home several awards over the past 16 months, both solo and as part of a team, including winning Best Business Skills Award 2018; Gold in the Welsh Skills Finals 2017 and runner up in Wrexhams Social Enterprise Awards 2017 (to name but a few!) Coleg Cambria Deputy Director Learner Experience & Enterprise, Rona Griffiths, described George as being a force of nature. He possesses a truly enviable rate of energy, intelligence and intuition, coupled with great focus, persistence and good humour, continued Rona. He has used his entrepreneurial drive to develop student-led enrichment activities through the Enterprise Committee. Students, staff and our chosen charity have all benefited from his hard work. He loves a challenge and I would like to wish him all the best, he has a bright future ahead. Its been a pleasure to support him and other talented students during their time at the college. Yale Sixth Lecturer in A Level Business, Mel Henry added: It has been a pleasure to welcome George at Yale 6th over the last two years. He has been an ambitious and self-driven student who chose to make the most of his two years at our College. Not only has he excelled in his A levels he has also grabbed every opportunity presented to him. For example, entering and succeeding in Business competitions, founding our college enterprise committee and supporting our Principal Sue Price in giving a talk to parents during our advice nights. He has been a real inspiration to current and future students. Georges journey to success has only just begun, and it will be a pleasure to see what the next chapter after leaving college will bring. I will certainly miss him in class. Wrexham only area in North Wales to be left with Kingdom litter enforcement This article is old - Published: Monday, Jul 23rd, 2018 A litter enforcement firm will stop issuing fines in Conwy, Flintshire and Denbighshire months earlier than expected with Wrexham remaining contracted to the company. Last week Flintshire Councils cabinet voted not to renew its contract with Kingdom Services after a strong public backlash which saw its staff accused of taking a heavy-handed approach. However, the authority planned to keep using them until the end of the current trial on December 31 in order to decide how fines for littering and dog fouling will be handed out in future. The Merseyside-based company has now served notice that it will stop working in the county from mid-August. Following the move Cllr Carolyn Thomas, Flintshire Councils cabinet member for Streetscene and countryside, said penalty notices will now be given out by council staff while plans to create a new regional enforcement service are considered which when last mooted in Flintshire included reference to Wrexham, although locally we have not seen or heard of any such public discussion. Cllr Thomas said: The councils cabinet made a decision last week not to renew its contract with Kingdom when it ends in December. Kingdom have subsequently made a decision to serve notice and will cease working for the council from mid-August. The council is currently reviewing options for a new council run enforcement service, including a possible partnership with other local authorities. This afternoon Kingdom also informed Denbighshire County Council of their intention to withdraw services in the county from August 17th, 2018 in line with their 28 days contractural notice. Denbighshire Council openly referenced the latter contract period in a public press release, whereas Wrexham Council have been very particular in ensuring no elements of the contract are referenced in public meetings. Denbighshire County Council Councillor Tony Thomas, Cabinet Lead Member for Housing, Regulatory Services and the Environment there, said: The Group have partnered the Council in dealing with environmental issues such as littering and dog fouling over the last five years, in response to the Councils efforts to make its streets cleaner and creating a pleasant environment for people to live in and visit. The joint work has made an impact in terms of awareness and there has been a marked reduction in the number of littering and dog fouling incidents. Whilst disappointed, we must respect Kingdoms decision and would like to thank them for their co-operation over the past five years. Denbighshire County Council say they will now consider how the environmental education and enforcement work will continue in the future, as having clean and tidy streets remains a key priority for the Council. In a triple hit Conwy County Borough Council today also had notification from Kingdom, with the Council looking to extend their deal, but being told the opposite by the firm. Conwy Council have said: Officers met with Kingdom last week to outline the Councils position and our preferred contract terms. Kingdom has notified us that they do not wish to extend their contract beyond 9 August 2018. The Council was aware this was a possibility and had already started looking at alternative options, which could include bringing the service in-house or developing a partnership model with other local authorities. That work is on-going, and we will be able to update further in due course. The issue of the cleanliness of the environment remains a high priority for the Council and we know it matters to the people of Conwy and our visitors. Cllr Mark Baker said: We wish to reassure the people of Conwy that the environment remains one of our top priorities. We have checked with Wrexham Council, and it appears no such notice has been served on them by Kingdom, and Kingdom still operate in Wrexham. No comment was forthcoming from the Lead Member with responsibility, Cllr David Bithell, over Wrexham looking likely to be the last authority in North Wales to use Kingdom. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has reaffirmed Canadas staunch support for NATO and increased its commitments to US-led NATO military missions. Canada is expanding its involvement in NATOs drive to threaten and encircle Russia and is assuming command of a NATO training mission in Iraq. These actions underscore the determination of Canadas ruling elite to aggressively pursue its own predatory interests and ambitions around the world, under conditions of deepening inter-imperialist rivalries. In a visit to Latvia July 10, Trudeau announced that Canadas current contingent of 455 troops, which were sent to the Baltic last year to lead one of NATOs four advance-deployed battle groups in the region, will be increased to 540. Canadian leadership of the battle group was also extended through 2023. The other three NATO battle groups stationed on Russias borders are located in Estonia, Lithuania and Poland, and are led by Britain, Germany and the United States respectively. Following the announcement, the Liberal Prime Minister sharply denounced Russia for its alleged acts of aggression, including the annexation of Crimea in 2014. We certainly hope that the message is passed clearly to President Putin that his actions in destabilizing and disregarding the international rules-based order that has been successfully underpinned by NATO amongst others over the past 75 years or so is extremely important, Trudeau declared. Trudeau followed this up by delivering an anti-Russian tirade in the wake of US President Donald Trumps July 17 summit with Putin in the Finnish capital of Helsinki. Trudeau inveighed against Russias illegal annexation of Crimea and their incursion into the Donbas in Ukraine, and stated he was glad that 200 Canadian troops are training Ukrainian military and security forces in the west of the country. He then turned to criticizing Moscows support for the murderous Assad regime, before concluding with a reference to the Skripal affair in Britain. Although Trudeau studiously avoided criticizing Trump by name, his government has made no secret of its sympathy for the faction of the US ruling elite, led by the military-intelligence apparatus and the Democratic Party, which has attacked Trump for his conciliatory stance towards Moscow. This reached new heights following the Helsinki meeting, with media outlets including the New York Times denouncing Trumps actions as treasonous. Trudeau has proven no less strident in his anti-Russian stance than his Conservative predecessor, Stephen Harper. This has included appointing Chrystia Freeland, who is a notorious anti-Russian hawk, as Foreign Minister. Trudeau defended Freeland against all criticism when it emerged that her Ukrainian nationalist grandfather was a Nazi collaborator during World War II, denouncing this historically accurate description of his activities as a smear and an attack on Canadian democracy. Trudeaus boast that Canadian troops are training pro-government forces in Ukraine underscores his governments backing for the far-right nationalist regime in Kiev, which was brought to power in a US-orchestrated, fascist-spearheaded coup in February 2014. The Canadian ruling elites support for the hardline anti-Russia stance being championed by the deep state and the Democrats in the US is bound up with the bourgeoisies preferred option of deepening its three-quarter century old military-strategic alliance with Washington, as the most effective means of advancing its global interests. At the same time, the Canadian bourgeoisie views Russia as a direct competitor in certain spheres, such as in the mounting conflict over control of the Arctic, which, due to climate change, is opening up as a new transit route and lucrative source of oil and other raw materials. The day after his Latvia trip, Trudeau attended the NATO summit in Brussels, where he committed 250 Canadian troops and helicopters to lead a new NATO training mission in war-ravaged Iraq. The mission, which will bolster Canadian forces in the war-ravaged country above a thousand, will involve training Iraqi government forces in counter-terrorism techniques, including disarming roadside bombs and improvised explosive devices. Trudeau also committed Canadian personnel and aircraft to maintaining NATOs Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS). These moves were widely interpreted as an attempt to undercut Trumps criticism of Canada for its failure to meet the military alliances commitment to spend 2 percent of economic output on defence by 2024. Last month, Trump addressed an official letter to Trudeau in which he took Ottawa to task for its military budget, which currently stands at around 1 percent of GDP. Trumps criticisms are part of a deepening crisis in Canada-US relations. On the economic front, Trumps imposition of tariffs on steel and aluminum imports and his threats to rip up NAFTA and enforce tariffs on auto imports have thrown the Canadian ruling elite into turmoil. The Trudeau government, supported by the trade unions, has responded with the largest package to date of counter-tariffs against the US, totaling some $16 billion. These tariffs came into force just weeks after Trump blew up the G-7 summit in Charlevoix, Quebec and denounced its host, Trudeau, as very dishonest and weak. Trumps economic nationalism, coupled with the breakdown of international multilateral institutions that is rooted in the global capitalist crisis, is undermining the strategy used by Canadian imperialism since the end of World War II to advance its interests on the world stage. This was to maintain an intimate strategic partnership with US imperialism, while at the same time relying on NATO, the trans-Atlantic alliance between the North American and European imperialist powers and other multilateral institutions and alliances to offset the vast power imbalance between the two countries. Like their counterparts around the world, the Canadian elite is responding to the surge in global trade and geopolitical tensions with economic protectionism and rearmament. The Trudeau government is committed to hiking military spending by more than 70 percent over the next decade, taking overall defence spending to over 1.4 percent of GDP. This will include an expansion of the army, the purchase of new fleets of fighter jets and warships, and the upgrading of the North American Aerospace Defense command (NORAD) in conjunction with the Pentagon. Trudeaus attempts, continued at the Brussels summit, to pose as an opponent of the 2 percent NATO spending target, are driven solely by domestic political considerations, above all the understanding that an explicit commitment to such a dramatic spending increase would provoke popular opposition to militarism and war. The new Iraq mission was accompanied by propaganda about Canadas supposed determination to uphold democracy and the rule of law. Such claims are utterly fraudulent. Ever since Canadian troops were dispatched to Iraq by the Harper Conservative government in 2014, they have played a key role in waging a ruthless US-led wara war that has arisen out of the series of ruinous wars that Washington has waged in the Middle East over the past three decades in an attempt to shore up its domination over the worlds principal oil-exporting region. After coming to power in 2015, the Trudeau government expanded the number of special forces deployed in the north of the country. As part of their support for Kurdish Peshmerga militias in northern Iraq, Canadian forces participated in the murderous offensive on Mosul, which claimed the lives of thousands of civilians and laid waste to what had been Iraqs second largest city. Trudeaus new commitments have failed to satiate the ruling elites appetite for a further militarization of Canadian foreign policy. Rosie Dimanno, writing in the liberal Toronto Star, declared, Trump is right about Canadas military spending. For its part, the neoconservative National Post said Canada should be embarrassed by its defence budget. Trudeau, it declared, needs to smarten up on defence and pay our share to NATO. Five years after the July 3, 2013 military coup against Islamist president Mohamed Mursi and the massacre of more than 1,000 of his followers on the streets of Cairo, the Western-backed military regime of dictator Abdel Fatah al-Sisi is intensifying its counterrevolutionary terror. On July 14, the state of emergency was extended once again for another three months. Effectively, constitutional rights remain suspended, and habeas corpus is abolished. Strikes and demonstrations are banned, and the police and security forces have the power to incarcerate individuals indefinitely without charges. In the past five years, the Sisi regime has extensively used these powers, through which the Egyptian ruling class has crushed protests and strikes and banned political activity for decades. It has imprisoned at least 60,000 political prisoners and sentenced over a thousand to death. In 2017 alone, at least 112 executions took place. The freedom of opinion has basically been abolished. Terrified by the specter of a renewed eruption of mass revolutionary struggles that led to the ouster of longtime dictator and imperialist stooge Hosni Mubarak in February 2011, the regime is stepping up its repression. Last Monday, the Egyptian parliament approved three new media laws effectively criminalizing critical journalism and comments on social media. Under the new laws, the Supreme Council of Media, a body appointed by Sisi himself, can control and shut down media platforms, blogs and private social media accounts with more than 5,000 followers. Article 19 of the new law states that newspapers, media outlets, or websites are prohibited from publishing or broadcasting fake news or advocating or inciting a violation of the law, or violence, or hatred. That is, any dissenting statement in a printed newspaper or on the Internet that the regime declares to be fake news is a criminal act and can be prosecuted. As capitalist governments in the US and Europe back Sisis reign of terror and enact similar censorship laws in their own countries, several human rights groups have condemned the new law. The new press law that was approved ... seems to set in stone repressive practices that were already in place in Egypt, effectively legalizing new methods of cracking down on the freedom of information, said Sophie Anmuth of Reporters Without Borders. Amnesty International released a statement declaring that the new regulation would increase the Egyptian governments already broad powers to monitor, censor and block social media and blogs, as well as criminalize content that violates vaguely defined political, social or religious norms. It added that Egypt has already blocked 500 web sites, including independent news outlets and pages belonging to rights groups, on charges of publishing false information and harming national security. The crackdown is a response to rising opposition among workers and youth to a new round of austerity measures imposed by the regime. On Saturday, Egypt raised natural gas prices for households and businesses by between 33.3 and 75 percent. The measures will come into effect in August. They set the price for consuming up to 30 cubic meters of gas at 0.175 Egyptian pounds, a 75 percent increase. Already last month, the regime raised fuel prices by up to 50 percentthe fourth fuel subsidy cut since 2014to meet the IMFs demands. Harsh subsidy cuts also increased electricity costs for households by 30-45 percent and the price of cooking gas cylinders by 66 percent. In 2016, the Sisi regime agreed to a new IMF loan and pledged to slash government spending and cut subsidies for gas, water and bread, and workers extremely low wages. The new round of cuts amounts to a declaration of war against the impoverished Egyptian masses. It is without a doubt that the road to true reform is difficult and cruel and that it causes much suffering, but it is also without a doubt that the suffering which comes from the lack of reform is much greater, Sisi threatened in a recent speech. In response, tens of thousands of Egyptian Internet users have been calling upon Sisi to step down. The hashtag Irhal ya Sisi (Get lost Sisi) has become a top trend in Egypt. The comments testify to the revolutionary anger that is once again building up in the Egyptian working class. We will not let you go quietly, and you will taste the same bitter cup that you gave the Egyptian people. From killing, imprisoning, torturing and hiding minors to oppressed youths and displacing our people everywhere. Al-Sisi killer. Al-Sisi war criminal. Traitor, writes a user named Abo Mahmoud. Another Twitter user states, We dont have any time for you again. We are starving. Everything has become too expensive. Gas, food, electronics, electricity and fuel. Please, we need to feel free. And someone else: No freedom, no justice, no education, no country, no humanity. Its time to go away. Many repost images from the revolutionary mass struggles in 2011 and issue the call: Lets do it again. In Iraq, mass demonstrations are taking place against the US-backed regime following protests, and strikes shook Morocco, Tunisia and Iran earlier this year. As the Egyptian and Middle Eastern masses move once again into struggle, it is crucial to work through the experiences of the Egyptian Revolution and the broader upheavals throughout the region. The mass strikes and demonstrations of the Egyptian and Tunisian working class in 2011 were able to overthrow US-backed dictators and shake the ruling elites throughout the region and internationally. But without establishing its political independence and without a revolutionary party to lead it, the working class could not achieve its social and democratic aspirations. Instead, the ruling elites were able to remain in power and intensify their policies of war, repression and the exploitation of the working class. The central lesson of these bitter events is that the only way forward is an international revolutionary struggle of the working class that consciously seeks to overthrow the capitalist state and imperialism, struggling to take state power and restructure society along socialist lines. The development of such a struggle requires a political reckoning with pseudo-left forces like the Revolutionary Socialists (RS) in Egypt, who rule out a struggle for socialism by the working class and instead call for a democratic struggle in alliance with capitalist parties. The RS are aware and afraid of growing opposition in the working class. In a recent statement, they warn: What history shows is that such a combination of austerity capitalism and a semi-absolute military dictatorship is not sustainable in the long term. They call for a a long and arduous struggle to regain democratic spaces and to fight neoliberalism [...] Let us begin together in this long road to overcome the plight of the rule of capitalism and the generals. This vague rhetoric covers over the filthy, anti-worker record of the RS in the Egyptian revolution. In each phase of the revolution, the RS sought to subordinate the working class to one or other faction of the bourgeoisie. First, they promoted illusions that they could obtain a democratic space under the military junta that replaced Mubarak after his fall, then they hailed Mursi and the Muslim Brotherhood as the right wing of the revolution. They capped off this reactionary record by aligning themselves once again with the military and praising Sisis coup as a second revolution. That is, the RS are continuing to subordinate the working class to parties and organizations of the bourgeoisie. In Egypt, they have issued joint statements with parties such as Strong Egypt of former Muslim Brotherhood leader Abdel Moneim Abul Futuh, or the liberal Constitution Party of Mohamed ElBaradei. Internationally, the RS hail social-democratic scoundrels such as British Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, claiming that his arrival to power would constitute the first systematic attack against neoliberalism in advanced capitalist states. At least 1,000 locked-out National Grid workers and their supporters rallied at Government Center in Boston and marched to the Massachusetts State House Wednesday afternoon. More than 1,200 workers in United Steelworkers Locals 12003 and 12012 were locked out by the multimillion-dollar energy giant on June 25 after contract negotiations broke down. On July 1, the company stopped paying for workers health insurance. Participants at the rally included members of other USW locals, the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees, the Teamsters, the Hotel & Food Service Union, and many others. The spirited nature of the rally and the solidarity expressed for the struggle of the locked-out workers stood in contrast to the bankrupt perspective of the USW leadership. The USW has directed workers toward futile appeals to big business politicians to pressure National Grid to bargain in good faith. Meanwhile it has refused to mobilize broader support in the working class behind the locked-out workers. Rally at State House The USW leadership, however, has not sought to mobilize the support of workers and National Grid customers, the majority of them workers themselves, but instead called the rally to let worker anger dissipate through futile appeals to Massachusetts politicians, including Republican Governor Charlie Baker. Among those at the rally was Democratic Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, who postured as a defender of the locked-out workers, offering empty phrases of support while calling on National Grid to settle with the USW. National Grid locked out workers when the union would not agree to a no-strike clause in their contract, despite the unions offer to have workers continue on the job without a contract. The company was well prepared and has deployed over 600 skilled contractors and nearly 700 National Grid management employees, as well as experienced gas workers from New York and Rhode Island who have been specifically trained for their contingency roles, the company told MassLive. The locked-out National Grid workers serve more than 85 cities and towns across Massachusetts. The companys territory also covers Rhode Island along with large swaths of upstate New York, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island and Long Island. There are some 20 million people residing in its area of operations. Rally outside State House National Grid, one of the largest privately-owned utility companies in the world, reported operating profits of $4.58 billion for fiscal year 2018, an increase of 9 percent over the previous year. Yet the company is seeking deep cuts to health care and pensions, and the right to bring in more contractors. They are demanding that new hires receive defined contribution plans and 401(k)s with company-matching contributions instead of pensions. Workers feel that the attack on new hires pensions would be a gateway into pension cuts for existing workers. The company has targeted Local 12003 and 12012 workers health care plans because they are largely without deductibles and co-pays. They have proposed to replace these plans with the choice of a Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) planwith an annual deductible of $250 for an individual or $500 for a family, with co-insurance of 5 percent and monthly premiumsor a cut-rate Consumer Directed Health Plan, including higher deductibles and lower premiums. The companys attack on locked-out workers health care was foremost in the minds of those attending Wednesdays rally. John, a member of Local 12003 with 12 years at National Grid, attended with his wife Trisha and their children. I am able to be on my wifes insurance, he said. But I know people who have had spouses with cancer and kids with cancer and I cant imagine what I would do. I dont know what theyre going to do to come up with the money to pay all those bills. From what weve been told, they had a discussion yesterday, but nothing was resolved. They didnt get anywhere and theyre just going back and forth. Thats why were here. Steelworkers representatives met Tuesday with National Grid for only the second time since late June. Neither side has released details of their discussions, but National Grid appears to be standing firm in their drive to slash workers benefits, saying in a statement, National Grid remains committed to bargaining in good faith to reach a fair and equitable solutionas soon as possiblethat balances the needs of our employees and customers. Trisha and John The USW leadership allowed its membership to be locked out, rather than call a strike, by agreeing to work without a contract after the contract expiration. The lockout comes at a time of the year when the demand for natural gas is much reduced, providing the company with more leverage. The company was well prepared with management and contractors to take workers places in the field. National Grid above all is relying on the USW to suppress any opposition to concessions and a broader unification of the working class behind the locked-out workers. The isolation of the National Grid workers follows a long pattern. In 2016, the USW rammed through a concessionary contract at Allegheny Technologies Inc., ending a lockout by more than 2,000 ATI workers in six states. The USW systematically isolated the ATI workers and settled for a contract that included thousands of dollars in increased out-of-pocket health care costs for current and retired workers, an effective wage cut, and a large-scale expansion of outside contractorsconcessions differing only slightly from what ATI demanded at the beginning of the lockout. The USW has not sought to mobilize support from its 12,000 members employed across the company, or from the 4,700 power workers in New York organized in the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 97. They also fear any link-up between the struggle of National Grid workers and 250,000 United Parcel Service workers battling a sellout agreement by the Teamsters. In opposition to the trade union bureaucrats, National Grid workers must begin to organize rank-and-file workplace committees to mobilize broader support in the working class to break the isolation of their struggle. They must reject any contract that fails to meet their demands, including full health care coverage with no copays, the expansion of pension coverage and the defense of all jobs. Workers must reject the political orientation of the USW to the Democrats and advance an independent political strategy. The allies of National Grid workers are not the Democratic and Republican politicians, but the masses of workers across the power industry, telecom and transport as well as municipal workers, teachers and other sections of the working class. This great social force must be mobilized in a fight against the entire corporate political set-up. More than a thousand workers marched to a Haryana state government office in Gurgaon on Wednesday, July 18 to protest the imprisonment for life on frame-up murder charges of thirteen Maruti Suzuki autoworkers. The demonstration marked six years since the July 18, 2012 company-provoked altercation and fire at Maruti Suzukis Manesar, Haryana car assembly that was used by the automaker, the police, and the Congress Party state government to mount a legal vendetta against the Maruti Suzuki workers that continues to this day. The Haryana state government, now led by Narendra Modis Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has petitioned the courts to set aside the life-sentences and instead order the thirteen workers to be hanged. It is also appealing the courts exoneration of 117 other workers who defence lawyers demonstrated had been victims of police malfeasance, including as a result of police collusion with the company and the outright fabrication of evidence. Not a single prosecution witness could identify the exonerated workers. More than a thousand workers participated in the July 18 march that demanded freedom for the 13 Maruti Suzuki workers sentenced to jail-for-life on frame-up murder charges In the aftermath of the unexplained July 18, 2012 events, Maruti Suzuki purged the workforce of its Manesar plant, sacking and replacing 2,400 employees. Indias elite are determined to inflict exemplary punishment on the Maruti Suzuki workers, because in 2011-12 the Manesar plant emerged as a focal point for militant opposition to poverty wages, sweatshop conditions, and precarious contract-labour jobs across the Gurgaon-Manesar industrial belt. Twelve of the 13 workers condemned to spend the rest of their lives in the living hell that is an Indian prison were leaders of the Maruti Suzuki Workers Union (MSWU), which workers had founded in bitter struggle against a government-accredited, company-supported stooge union. Workers from all four Maruti Suzuki plants in the Gurgaon-Manesar area joined last Wednesday's demonstration, as did workers from more than two dozen other plants, including facilities owned by Honda, and the auto-parts manufacturers Rico and Bellsonica. A representative of the Provisional Committee of the MSWU, which has assumed leadership of the union pending its leaders release, addressed the demonstrators and explained that the events of July 18, 2012 were the result of a staged management conspiracy. There were also speakers from local unions, including from the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), which is affiliated with the Stalinist Communist Party of India Marxist or CPM, and the All India Trades Union Congress, which is allied with the CPMs sister party, the Stalinist Communist Party of India. The Stalinist leaders professed support for the Maruti Suzuki workers and appealed to the BJP government, which they routinely denounce for mounting an unprecedented assault on the working class, to call a high level judicial inquiry into the July 18 events and the legal persecution of the Maruti Suzuki workers. The reality is that the Stalinist leaders have systematically isolated the Maruti Suzuki workers, leaving them to fight the state frame-up alone. This has included imposing a virtual blackout on their case. For weeks, the CPMs English-language weekly failed to so much as mention the March 2017 frame-up convictions of the Maruti Suzuki workers. When the CPM held its national congress in April, it made no mention of the fight to free the Maruti Suzuki workers, although it is well-known that employers routinely threaten workers that they will do a Maruti Suzuki, i.e., conspire with the police and politicians to fire and frame them up. If on occasion the local Stalinist trade union leaders feign support by joining a protest marking the July 18 anniversary or the date of the workers frame-up convictions, it is because they are aware that there is enormous sympathy for the victimized and jailed workers in Gurgaon-Manesar and across India. The Stalinists fear the militant example of the Maruti Suzuki workers. Above all they recognize that any campaign to mobilize the working class in their defence would cut across their attempts to forge a political alliance with the big business Congress Party for the 2019 national elections and to promote the courts and other state institutions as democratic bulwarks against the Hindu supremacist BJP. The International Committee of the Fourth International and the World Socialist Web Site have emphasized the urgent need for workers all over the world to rally to the defence of the Maruti Suzuki workers and fight for their immediate release. In challenging the Japanese automakers brutal work regime and poverty wages, the Maruti Suzuki workers were striking a blow for the international working class. The campaign for their release can and must be a vital first step in forging the world unity of the working class that is needed to combat the transnationals and defeat their attempts to drive down wages and working condition by pitting workers against each other in a never-ending race to the bottom. The authors also recommend: A travesty of justice that must not stand! One year since Indias courts condemned framed-up Maruti Suzuki workers to jail for life [17 March 2018] Free the framed-up Maruti Suzuki workers! [20 March 2017] Last week, the armed forces controlled by the Sandinista Front for National Liberation (FSLN) government of Daniel Ortega swept through the main pockets of blockades and resistance, including the Autonomous National University and the city of Masayahistorically a bastion of support for the FSLN. The government deployed hundreds of armed squads of police and paramilitary squads to violently clear entire towns, many guarded with road blockades made up of cement blocks. According to the special investigative committee set up by the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR), at least 11 protesters died between Monday and Wednesday, bringing the total of people killed to 277 and more than 2,000 injured in continuous demonstrations since April 18. The IACHR also reports dozens of kidnappings of demonstrators during the last two weeks. Peasants who had travelled to Managua, Leon, Masaya and other cities to man the blockades have mostly left. Leaders of the Anti-Canal Peasant Movement, which composed the Civic Alliance dominated by the business chambers and US-financed opposition groups, are openly discussing an armed struggle against the government, raising the prospect of a new civil war three decades after the war between the FSLN government and the US-backed Contra guerrillas. The demonstrations triggered an economic downturn, shifting projected growth for 2018 from 4.9 percent, one of the highest in the region, to 1 percent, according to the Nicaraguan Central Bank. Other economists expect an economic contraction. At least 60,000 jobs were lost, including about 20,000 workers whose continued employment funds the social security institute INSS. In fact, it was an IMF-dictated decree cutting pensions and increasing the rate of INSS contributions from workers and employers that first sparked the demonstrations in mid-April, forcing Ortega to suspend the measures. Now, workers are facing even deeper austerity measures given the worsening of the crisis of the state-controlled social security fund, which covers over 800,000 workers. At the same time, in order to attract lost foreign investments, the only policy available for the ruling class is deepening the attacks on the living standards of what is already the second poorest country in the Americas. After suppressing the recent upsurge of demonstrations, Ortegas approval rating fell from over 70 percent in January to 19 percent in June, according to the most recent CID/Gallup poll. Seventy-two percent of responders call for his resignation. On Monday, the Sandinista-controlled Parliament approved a law punishing with 15 to 20 years of prison all terrorism, defined as anyone who kills or injures others outside of an armed conflict, destroys property, changes the constitutional order or forces the government or an international organization to realize an act or abstain from it. This legislation criminalizes all forms of social protest against the government, foreign companies and imperialist credit agencies like the IMF who dictate austerity measures. After crushing the demonstrations, the FSLN is institutionalizing police-state measures to prepare for major class battles still ahead. On July 19, marking the 39th anniversary of the 1979 Sandinista revolution, hundreds of thousands of FSLN supporters gathered in Managua and marched in other parts of the country. Ortega used the occasion as an opportunity to celebrate his victory against the anti-IMF protests and to make further threats against demonstrators and those priests who have backed the protests. They need to get exorcised those devils, demons, he denounced, threatening to continue the defense of his government and even pledging to eradicate hate messages online. The erosion of Ortegas economic support from Venezuelan investments and his loss of popular support have turned him increasingly into a liability for the ruling class, which has been reflected in calls for early elections by the main business organizations of the country previously in close alliance with his government, including the Superior Council for Private Enterprise (COSEP) and the American Chamber of Commerce. The Trump administration and the Organization of American States (OAS), which operates as a US foreign policy arm for the Western Hemisphere, were giving effective support for Ortegas efforts to quell the demonstrations while at the same time using student and peasant leaders to contain and channel the demonstrations behind a national dialogue mediated by the Catholic Church. Ortega told the crowd of supporters and state functionaries Thursday that when discussing the removal of police from the streets in late-April, the US ambassador told us: the police have to act now. After a small pause, he added, Its not because the ambassador told us to do it, but because the State is responsible. While global attention was focused on the US administrations brutal separation of refugee children from their parents, events in Australia last week highlighted the role of successive governments in deliberately splitting up families as a mean of punishing and blocking asylum seekers. Malcolm Turnbulls Liberal-National government forcibly removed Thileepan Gnaneswaran, a 30-year-old Tamil asylum seeker, to Sri Lanka under the cover of darkness. He was separated from his 10-month-old Australian-born daughter and his wife, Karthika Gnaneswaran, possibly permanently. Gnaneswaran was issued with a deportation notice on July 13 and removed less than four days later, in the middle of the night of July 1617. He was one of 18 Sri Lankan asylum seekers deported via a charter jet, hired by the Australian government. They were flown to Bandaranaike airport, near the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo, where they were immediately turned over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). Gnaneswaran was then interrogated, before being released from custody last Wednesday night. He is expected to face court this coming Wednesday on unknown charges. The CID has a long-documented history of torturing Tamil refugees who are deported back to Sri Lanka, particularly those who are allegedly associated with the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Gnaneswaran had fled Sri Lanka after being captured by security forces and tortured until he falsely confessed to being a member of the LTTE. He arrived in Australia by boat in June 2012, and was placed in community detention on a bridging visa. After his application for refugee protection was rejected earlier this year, he was imprisoned in Sydneys Villawood Detention Centre. His future wife, Karthika, arrived on a different boat in September 2012 and was similarly placed in community detention. The pair met and married in 2016, before having their daughter last September. After Gnaneswarans removal, Karthika spoke to the Australian media to express her devastation. We are all so depressed; my daughter is very upset, she misses her father, she said. My husband is not with us and I have no idea when we will see him again. My daughter needs her father in her life. But we are apart. The separation may indeed be permanent as Karthika and the baby girl were issued with safe-haven enterprise visas two days before Gnaneswaran received his deportation notice. This type of visa explicitly denies the right to family reunion, by not allowing visa holders to sponsor family members to come to Australia. As Karthika faces persecution if she returns to Sri Lanka, she cannot leave Australia and may never see her husband again. The rapidity of Gnaneswarans deportation was designed to prevent any legal intervention or injunction. He was removed despite Karthika, along with supporters, organising a demonstration on July 16 in front of the detention centre where he was incarcerated. The government also defied the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). On July 15, an appeal was made to the UNHCR, requesting its intervention against Gnaneswarans removal. Two days after his deportation it emerged that the UNHCR had formally requested that the Australian government not deport him. At a press briefing in Geneva, UNHCR spokeswoman Andrej Mahecic, said the deportation contravened the basic right of family unity, as well as the fundamental principle of the best interests of the child. Mahecic added that Australias policy of offshore processing and deterrence had led to the separation of refugee families since 2013. Asylum-seekers who arrive to Australia by sea have been prevented from reuniting with their loved ones in Australia, including spouses, parents and children. The UNHCR representative stated: This latest incident goes beyond a refusal to reunite families, to instead actively and indefinitely separate them. The treatment of Gnaneswaran and his family is akin to the Trump administrations zero tolerance policy by which children have been ripped away from their parents. While public protests in the US and an international outcry saw Trump rescind the order, more than 2,000 children remain separated from their parents, held in cages or detention centres throughout the US. These practices have been pioneered in Australia. Thousands of families have been denied the right to reunite through the policies of successive Labor and Liberal-National governments. In 2012, the Greens-backed Gillard Labor government issued refugee visa bans for all asylum seekers reaching Australia by boat, forcing them onto temporary bridging visas. These visas not only robbed families of the right to family reunion, it forbade them from working and gave them a below-poverty level allowance of just $270 a week. In August that year the Gillard government moved to strengthen geo-strategic ties with the authoritarian Sri Lankan government of President Mahinda Rajapakse by beginning the mass deportation of refugees to Colombo, initially sending back around 700. In December 2012, under the fraudulent banner of combatting people smuggling, Bob Carr, then Labors foreign minister, announced that the Australian navy would capture and return any Sri Lankan asylum seeker fleeing to Australia by boat. Last September, Australias supreme court approved the forced removal of asylum seekers to Sri Lanka, even though it was proven they face appalling conditions of imprisonment, including torture, maltreatment and violence. The current Sri Lankan government of President Maithripala Sirisena, whose administration has been presented as less ruthless than Rajapakses, has continued these arrangements. Hundreds, if not thousands, of Sri Lankan refugees have been either captured or deported. In March this year, the Australian Border Force seized a family of four and they were on the brink of deportation, but it was stalled by a powerful campaign waged by the residents of Biloela, the small rural town where the family lived. Across the globe, refugees are being scapegoated for the deteriorating social conditions inflicted by the corporate elites and the governments that serve them. Workers are witnessing barbaric scenes, in the United States, throughout Europe and in Australia, of families being ripped apart, and men, women and children dying at sea or being detained indefinitely. As living conditions continue to worsen, these policies will be turned against the working class more broadly. The author also recommends: Refugees ensnared in European dragnet [9 July 2018] On Thursday morning, a huge explosion from a steam pipe in lower Manhattans Flatiron District sent a geyser of smoke, steam and debris over 70 feet into the air. The 20-inch pipe, operated by the energy provider Consolidated Edison and installed in 1932, was lined with asbestos. The substance, a known carcinogen, contaminated nearly 30 buildings. In addition to the spread of asbestos, Fire Department Commissioner Daniel Nigro reported, not only did the steam line burst, but it caused a disruption of a gas line, a water main and some electrical power. Days after the explosion, the area remains covered in mud and debris. While no one was seriously injured, over 500 people from 49 buildings were evacuated, and residents and passersby were advised to clean or dispose of clothing they were wearing at the time. Forty-four buildings have been inspected for asbestos contamination. Fifth Avenue was closed for several blocks as Con Edison cleared the exterior of buildings with high-pressure hoses. Residents complained that the city could offer no timeline as to when they could return home. One resident, speaking of city officials, told the media, For all their planning, they have no plan. New York City has the largest steam heating and cooling infrastructure in the world. It came into operation in 1882 and was an engineering marvel in its day. Over 100 miles of pipe continues to supply over 2,000 buildings in Manhattan with heating and air conditioning. But the aging systems operation is based on the profitability of Con Ed, a massive utility company with nearly $50 billion in assets. Its CEO, John McAvoy, was paid more than $8.7 million in 2017. The company has demonstrated repeatedly that the needs and safety of the population are secondary considerations as far as it is concerned. As with much of the physical infrastructure in New York, Con Ed operates out-of-date equipment that is a danger to the public and to its workers. Steam pipes have exploded 12 times since 1987. The asbestos covering of many pipes has been a concern, particularly after a 1989 steam pipe explosion in Gramercy Park, after which Con Ed waited four days before notifying residents of asbestos contamination. In 2007, an almost identical explosion near Grand Central Station killed one person and injured several others. In a suit 10 years later, plaintiffs alleged that Con Edison had a long, documented history of systemic problems with the steam system, according to a report in the New York Times. Plaintiffs also repudiated a report by Con Edison made shortly after the incident as a whitewash that cast blame solely on the contractor hired by Con Ed to conduct repairs on the pipe. A 2012 investigation by the state inspector generals office into an unrelated gas line explosion in Queens uncovered evidence in the 2007 steam pipe explosion of bribery by Con Ed of engineers in the states Department of Public Service, the investigative arm of the Public Service Commission that regulates the utility, to ensure that a favorable report was forthcoming. The exact cause of Thursdays explosion remains under investigation. The G20 finance ministers meeting in Buenos Aires over the weekend ended with no steps being taken toward resolving the trade war tensions moving through the global economy. While there was no repeat of the open conflict that marked the meeting of the G7 last month, when US President Donald Trump repudiated the final communique, the schism in global trade relations was laid bare, in the words of a Financial Times report. The communique issued at the end of the talks noted that while global economic growth remained robust, it had become less synchronised recently and short- and medium-term risks had increased. These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies. This assessment reflected that made by the International Monetary Fund on the eve of the meeting. The IMF warned that the likelihood of escalating and sustained trade actions threatened to have a serious and adverse impact on global growth while leaving unaddressed the underlying causes of global imbalances. Rather than confront any of these problems, the main work of the G20 meeting was to try to craft a statement that avoided them. The commitment to resist protectionism, which had formed the centre of G20 statements since the global financial crisis in 2008, but was junked last year as the US stepped up its trade war measures, did not make a reappearance. The question of competitive currency devaluations, which had been put into the spotlight by statements from Donald Trump on the eve of the meeting that the currencies of the European Union and China were being devalued at the expense of the US, was virtually passed over. The communique said only that the G20 reaffirmed our exchange rate commitments made in March, which said competitive devaluations should not be undertaken. German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz rejected Trumps claim that the EU manipulated the value of the euro, saying it carried out very rational policies that are not geared to artificially creating economic successes through currency levels. China also denied it was deliberately pushing down the value of the renminbi, which has dropped by 4 percent against the US dollar in the past month. Rather than any measures to address the eruption of trade war, the G20 meeting was characterised by the manoeuvres of the various participants, reflecting their different economic and political interests as they seek to obtain the best possible position in the deepening global conflict. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin moved to call the EUs free trade bluff. If Europe believes in free trade, were ready to sign a free-trade agreement, he said. But any agreement would have to eliminate tariffs, along with non-tariff barriers and subsidies. It has to be all three issues, he said. As Mnuchin well knows, there is no likelihood of such an agreement because the EU has a complex system of subsidies and other arrangements, particularly covering agriculture. Mnuchin also made clear that measures directed against China, which have led to the imposition of 25 percent tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports and include a plan to impose a 10 percent tariff on a further $200 billion worth of products, will be intensified. Underlining the threat made by Trump to target all Chinese exports to the US, Mnuchin said before the meeting that he wouldnt minimize the possibility that tariffs could be imposed on $500 billion worth of Chinese goods. Mnuchin held no discussions with Chinese officials at the G20 gathering, but repeated the claim that the US wanted the Chinese to buy more US products. Earlier, Beijing had offered to increase its exports by $100 billion, but this was rejected as inadequate, reflecting the fact that the drive of the US against China is aimed not at the trade imbalance per se, but at Chinas promotion of high-tech industrial development, regarded as a long-term threat to US dominance. Seeking to portray the US as being in a strong position, Mnuchin said that while some individual sectors of the economy, such as agriculture, had been hurt, the overall US economy had not been impacted adversely by the administrations trade measures. He added that the US would be looking at specific action to assist those sectors unfairly targeted, including retaliatory measuresa reference to the imposts on US goods by the EU and China. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire repeated the assertion that the EU would not negotiate with a gun to our head and called on the US to return to reason. He said the US had to be the first to move in the scrapping of tariffs, as it was the first to implement them. The law of jungle will only lead to chaos, he added. But there are differences in the EU. They centre on how to respond to the next threatened move by the Trump administrationthe imposition of tariffs on European auto imports under national security provisions of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act. Germany and the Netherlands would be more adversely affected by auto tariffs than France and Italy and, while the official position is that there will be one EU response and the US should remove its threats before negotiations, other moves are underway. Pierre Moscovici, the EU commissioner for economic and financial affairs, said trade tensions were high and it was a very challenging time, with multilateralism under significant pressure. He said the EU would respond firmly to protectionism and take action within the rules of the World Trade Organisation. But, in a reference to the visit by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to Washington this week, he added that we are always willing to go the extra mile to build bridges. Reflecting the ever closer alignment of the Turnbull government with the Trump administration over its military and economic push against China, Australian Treasurer Scott Morrison said in an interview with Bloomberg that no country was pursuing protectionism for protectionisms sake. There are some grievances that have been around for a decade, he said. There is legitimate frustration about the failure of the system to resolve the issues that concern the US and others. So far, Japan has sought to fly under the radar and avoid a direct conflict with the US, while seeking to advance its own agenda by reviving the Trans Pacific Partnership, minus the US, and by signing a major trade deal with the European Union. Despite being refused an exemption from the US tariffs imposed on a steel and aluminium, Japan did not follow Canada and the EU and initiate retaliatory action. However, Japanese Trade Minister Hiroshige Seko said last week the case of autos is different and our response would change. The Teamsters Union is seeking to blackmail UPS workers into voting for its sellout contract proposal by threatening that a no vote will result in an even worse offer. A UPS worker provided the World Socialist Web Site with a letter sent out to all New York state UPS Teamster members by Local 687 president Brian Hammond. The letter, dated July 16, includes the following threat: Health and pensionthe company has agreed to pay the full amount needed to the health and pension fund of $5.28 over the life of the agreement. They will do this only if we pass our supplement [agreement] the first time. If not, the extra amount will come from your wage increase like before. Currently FT [full-time] employees have $1.95 per hour diverted to pension. I do not want to see that number increase! Supplementary agreements are worked out by local Teamsters unions and apply in addition to the national master contract. Hammonds letter is a threat that if workers vote against the agreement, the already low wage increases that it contains will be lost and diverted to the companys pension obligations. The Teamsters statement demonstrates yet again that it functions not as a representative of the workers against the company, but as an agency of the company against the workers. If the union were in any way answerable to the rank-and-file workers, a no vote would be taken as a mandate for a national strike to meet workers demands for improved wages and conditions. Letter from Teamsters Local 687 President Brian Hammond to UPS workers But the Teamsters view a no vote as an insolent affront and obstacle to their cooperation with management and participation in the boosting of UPSs profits. Hammonds letter is also aimed at dividing younger workers from those nearing retirement, by threatening younger workers with paying more toward current pensions. The UPS worker who sent the WSWS Hammonds letter, and wished to remain anonymous to avoid retribution by the union, told this reporter, The union is supposed to represent us, the dues-paying members, but theyre in collusion with the company and doing the companys bidding with them. Thats the belief among the workers at the building I work for. Its basically a tool for the company. Hammond, whose officially reported income as Local 687 president is $100,000, is a seasoned expert at cutting workers pensions. He sits on the board of the New York State Teamsters Conference Pension and Retirement Fund as one of its four labor trustees. Last September, the Teamsters conspired to slash pension pay outs to retired workers by up to 30 percent. The union sent ballots to all 34,000 workers covered under the fund, asking whether they supported cuts to pensions. More than 9,700 workers voted against the cuts, with only 4,081 voting in favor. The Teamsters then utilized the fact that the more than 20,000 eligible Teamsters members who did not vote could be counted as a yes under federal law to ram the cuts through. A typical retirees monthly pension benefit fell from approximately $5,000 to $3,000 the following month. The UPS worker explained, It was a complete sham. They sent a vote out to anyone, including those who worked there for three days. They got a ballot and it was counted as a yes. The worker said his own pension had already been cut several years earlier, in 2011, when the union set a retirement age of 55. Previously, workers could retire at any age, so long as they had worked for at least 30 years. Hammonds letter is full of lies aimed at strong arming workers into voting in favor of the agreement. It begins by referring to an unnamed group [on Facebook] trying to discourage the membership of [sic] voting in favor of the new agreement. Mainly because of the new classification of 22.4 drivers. I can tell you that this classification is a necessity for upstate New York! The new 22.4 position is a second-tier driver/warehouse worker hybrid that would be paid less than current drivers. Hammond claims that accepting the new category would force the hiring of full-time employees delivering packages at UPS. In fact, the position is aimed at destroying the last remaining better-paid, full-time position at the company. The contract now states that existing full-time drivers will be provided with five consecutive days of eight hours each week, so long as work is available. Hammonds letter is in line with the unions manoeuvres throughout the contract negotiations. At the beginning of June, 93 percent of UPS workers voted to authorize strike action with the expiration of the current contract on July 31. On July 10, the union published an announcement that it was extending the negotiations beyond the deadline. This is to buy time, wear down workers opposition and prevent a walkout. There has still been no date set for a vote on the deal. UPS workers cannot fight to defend their conditions through the Teamsters union. The unions are not defensive organizations of the working class. They are labor-management syndicates that police the working class on behalf of the corporations. Workers need new organizations to fight. Rank-and-file factory committees must be established in every depot and warehouse to develop opposition to the proposed contract and ensure it is rejected. Workers must take the struggle out of the Teamsters union, and unite with other warehouse and distribution workers, including at Amazon, FedEx and the US Postal Service, in the United States and internationally in a common struggle against the class war on workers jobs, wages and conditions. 25 years ago: Clinton administration proposes anti-immigrant legislation Al Gore and Bill Clinton The administration of Democratic President Bill Clinton announced a new round of attacks on immigrants and democratic rights on July 27, 1993, unveiling new legislation titled the Expedited Exclusion and Alien Smuggling Enhanced Penalties Act, to be sponsored in Congress by the leading Senate liberal, Edward Kennedy. The proposed new law was drawn up by a 12-agency task force led by Vice President Al Gore. At a media event where he was flanked by Gore and Attorney General Janet Reno, President Clinton called on Congress to boost the Immigration and Naturalization Service budget by 10 percent, including the hiring of 600 new Border Patrol officers, and then cynically claimed the new laws were directed against smugglers and terrorists. In reality Clintons proposals were aimed at blocking thousands of immigrants seeking refuge in America, while providing the state with all-encompassing powers to intimidate immigrant families already living in the US. The law would abolish the right of immigrants arriving in the United States and seeking political asylum to have a judicial hearing with appeal rights, including habeas corpus . Instead, a newly established INS Asylum Corps would interrogate the immigrants seeking refugee status and decide whether they displayed a credible fear of persecution if forcibly returned to their home country. INS officers would be empowered to immediately deport anyone they consider not genuine. In the name of a crackdown on smuggling of undocumented workers, the INS would be given additional powers to tap phones, intercept mail and seize the property, bank accounts or assets of anyone suspected of contravening US immigration laws. Up to $5 million would also be made available to reward informers who provided intelligence leading to the arrest and conviction of smugglers or terrorists. American passport photographs would be digitized and funds provided to install electronic visa and passport scanning devices at airports and expand pre-inspection of American-bound passengers at foreign airports. Playing upon the hysteria whipped up by the media and the government over the World Trade Center bombing in New York, Clinton equated immigrants seeking political asylum with smugglers and terrorists and called for the INS to be given the same powers accorded to the FBI under the notorious RICO antiracketeering law. This would mean that police-state methods originally adopted on the pretext of fighting the mafia will be employed against immigrant families who attempt to secure entry into the US. 50 years ago: Cleveland under martial law after riots in Glenville National Guard troops in Cleveland A shootout between police and black nationalists in the east Cleveland neighborhood of Glenville touched off a week of rioting and the occupation of the city by the National Guard, during this week in 1968. The violence was triggered by police who targeted the home of Ahmed Evans, a former Army soldier who ran a bookstore called the Afro Culture Shop, which they had previously raided repeatedly. Evans headed a group called the Black Nationalists of New Libya. Police claimed that the nationalist group was planning an uprising on July 24, citing information from a paid FBI informer who was reportedly under the influence of drugs. Officials went to Evans home, where he told them about ongoing police harassment. Shortly after the officials had departed, a shootout began, under circumstances that remain unclear. The police and media maintained that several armed men emerged from Evans home and began firing on police cars. There are also claims that Evans ambushed and shot a driver of a tow truck in the area. But an official government report stated that it was more likely that the tow truck had just been caught in the crossfire. In any event, on the night/early morning of July 22-23 there was an exchange of gunfire between Evans and 16 of his followers and 125 Cleveland police. The result was a total of seven deaths: three black nationalists, three police, and one bystander. Evans surrendered to police and was eventually tried, convicted of killing the three policemen and the bystander and sentenced to life imprisonment. He died of cancer in 1978. For the next week riots broke out in the Glenville area. Protesters clashed with police by throwing rocks and occasionally Molotov cocktails. Clevelands black mayor, Carl Stokes, at first ordered that only black police officers be allowed into Glenville to deal with the protesters. But this made no difference, and rioting continued. White police rebelled against being excluded from the repression, and began to refuse to go out on calls, even denouncing the mayor in explicitly racist terms. On July 25, Stokes allowed white officers to enter the area once again. More significantly, over 3,000 National Guard troops were deployed to place Cleveland under martial law. During the suppression of the riot, there are endless accounts of police brutality and beatings. The National Guard was recalled on July 27, but there was one final violent outbreak that occurred on July 28. This time the police quickly responded in full riot gear and brutally beat two photographers who were covering the event. 75 years ago: Royal Air Force destroys Hamburg with fire-bombing Bombed-out apartment blocks in Hamburg On July 27, 1943, more than 729 British Royal Air Force bombers dropped some 2,326 tons of bombs on the German city of Hamburg. Although the raid lasted only 43 minutes, its effects were devastating. The incendiary bombs and high explosives, coupled with the warm temperatures and low humidity, created the conditions for a gigantic firestorm. Starting in the working-class area of Hammerbrook, a hurricane-like storm with winds raging at 150 miles per hour, ripped through a four-square-mile area of the city. More than 35,000 residential buildings were incinerated. An earlier raid on July 24 had knocked out most of the citys fire services. The July 27 firestorm raged for three hours before it finally died down, leaving 44,600 civilians and 800 soldiers were dead. An estimated 1 million others fled the city in the aftermath. The bombing was the second raid of Operation Gomorrah, a British bombing campaign lasting more than a week. Further raids were conducted on July 29 and August 2. Additional daytime raids were launched by the US Army Air Force on July 25 and 26. One British airman recalled: The burning of Hamburg that night was remarkable in that I saw not many fires but one. Set in the darkness was a turbulent dome of bright red fire lightened and ignited like the glowing heart of a vast brazier. Above the city was a misty red haze. I looked down, fascinated but aghast, satisfied yet horrified. I had never seen a fire like that before and was never to see its like again. Operation Gomorrah was part of a larger Allied strategy to shatter German morale and cripple its industrial production. This included the systematic targeting of residential and working-class areas. Arthur Harris, commander of RAF bombing operations, stated that targeting workers was as effective as bombing factories. If you cant hit the works, hit the workers, Harris said. Dozens of other cities were similarly targeted. 100 years ago: Riots begin in Japan against high price of rice Protesters in Japan during the rice riots On July 23, fisherwomen in the small seaside village of Uozu, in Toyma Prefecture on the west coast of Japans largest island, Honshu, assembled on the beach and began peacefully protesting against the high price of rice with petitions to the authorities and rice merchants. Many women in the area worked in the fishing industry since their husbands were away in cities as wageworkers. The price of rice, the staple food of Japan, had risen precipitously over the previous months. One contributing factor to the high cost was the need to supply the Japanese imperialist forces in the Siberian Intervention against the young Soviet Republic with foodstuffs. Over the next few weeks demonstrations spread to major cities such as Kobe, Kyoto, Nagoya, Osaka and Tokyo. Police were unable to contain the protests, and in many places the military was called out. Houses of the rich were besieged, and police stations were firebombed by insurgents, as were government institutions and newspaper offices. The riots, by August, had a semi-insurrectionary character and were led by the young Japanese working class in larger cities. Some sources estimate that as many as a quarter million joined demonstrations in Osaka alone, and that 10 million participated nationwide (out of a population of about 55 million). While the riots were sparked by the high price of rice, they were a reaction to the breakneck development of capitalism in Japan. As one historian notes, they were a protest against the extreme exploitation which workers, tenant farmers and others were suffering. The authorities reacted with extreme severity: 25,000 people were arrested, of whom 8,200 were convicted of various crimes. A number were executed. The Great Rice Riots were unprecedented in modern Japanese history and caused the fall of the government and resignation of the militarist prime minister, Count Terauchi Masatake, in September. The movement, along with the Russian Revolution a few months earlier, had a tremendous impact on the development of socialist thought in Japan. Rwanda's President Paul Kagame played host to two world leaders Monday when China's President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the central African country. The Chinese President, who is on an Africa tour to cement China's role as one of the continent's closest economic and diplomatic allies, held discussions with Kagame, the present chairman of the African Union on China-Africa cooperation. From Rwanda, he will also visit Mauritius, meaning his trip will span almost every corner of sub-Saharan Africa, where China's economic clout, and strategic ambitions are growing by the year. President Xi and PM Modi will travel to South Africa to attend the BRICS summit later this week. Russian leader Vladimir Putin is expected to participate in the summit on July 25. It is the first visit to Rwanda for both leaders. As President Xi departed, Modi arrived in Rwanda on a five-day, three-nation tour of Africa. The Indian premier held talks with President Kagame on India's investment in key sectors of the country and announced that India would open a High Commission in Rwanda, according to The Times of India. During the trip, PM Modi will also travel to a village in Rwanda's eastern province and gift 200 cows as India's contribution to Kagame's flagship "Girinka" one cow, per family program, the newspaper said. While India is seeking to boost investment and trade opportunities with Rwanda, China's interests in the country leave India trailing in its wake. China is by far Rwanda's largest trading partner and contractor -- with 70% of roads in the country built by Chinese companies. China has invested more than $400,000 million in 61 projects and joint ventures over the last 12 years, Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda, Rao Hongwei, said. Xi Jinping said in a statement that, although the two countries had established diplomatic relations since 1971, his visit was to strengthen bilateral ties, which could increase China's investments in Rwanda. Rwanda has increased its regional and global influence under Kagame's leadership and continues to set an example for countries who face similar tasks of development, the Chinese President said. "Despite the vast geographic distance and differences in size, system, and culture between China and Rwanda, our peoples enjoy a deep traditional friendship. "Both our two countries endured great sufferings in history. That is why we cherish the national stability, ethnic unity and economic development we now enjoy, and take pride in what we have accomplished along the way," Xi said in the statement. Xi highlighted the construction of Rwanda's national stadium and one of its technology school as examples of the positive impact that Chinese firms have played in growing the country's manufacturing sector. China is Africa's largest trading partner, overtaking the United States nearly a decade ago. Bilateral trade reached a record high of $220 billion in 2014, official statistics show. Chinese leaders have always made a point of visiting African nations regularly and early during their time in power. When he assumed the presidency in 2013, Xi also chose Africa as part of his maiden journey abroad and went on to visit the continent two more times during his first term. Earlier this year, the IMF stated that Rwanda is the third fastest growing economy in Africa, although human rights groups report restricted freedom of speech in the country. TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTHI)- Mold continues to be a problem for some renters in Terre Haute. News 10 first brought you the story last week. A woman who was living with what she says is severe mold and mildew covering her basement. Now, another man is speaking up. He claims he's been living with similar issues under the same property manager. John Rushing is currently in the process of moving out. "This place is not fit to live," Rushing said. He has been living in a rental in Terre Haute for only a couple of months. "It's gross and disgusting," Rushing said. He says mold and mildew are all over. "She {his landlord} said 'if you don't like it, leave,'" Rushing said. "She has someone else to throw in here {the rental home}." LINK | 'HE SAID IT'S NOTHING A FEW GALLONS OF BLEACH CAN'T HANDLE...' MOLD ISSUES SHOCK TERRE HAUTE RENTER AS SHE SAYS SHE HAS WAITED YEARS FOR A FIX Rushing says he has had multiple conversations with his landlord, Lisa Reed with Team Realty. Rushing says he has given up. "Okay, the slumlord wins," he said. "I have to just take what there is. I have to just live with it." Rushing says he refused to pay rent after the first sight of damages and mold contamination. "I am paying for a decent place to live and she is suing me for damages to the house," he said. Reed appeared in court Monday. She is evicting Rushing and also suing him. According to law, you cannot withhold rent in the state of Indiana. Tenants are still required to pay rent, even if damages have not yet been fixed. Rushing says maintenance did show up. "They {maintenance} brought a container and filled it with bleach. They watered down the bleach and sprayed the ceiling with it," he said. Reed did not want to comment on the case. A local attorney tells News 10 there are certain duties landlords must have. But, it is legal to neglect a property. This makes it hard for tenants like Rushing and Natosha Porter. Both are locked into a lease and are required to pay damage repairs out of their own pockets. Rushing plans to move into an apartment. An attorney tells News 10 the problem with the landlord, tenant system is often tenants do not have enough money to hire an attorney. A tenant may have pictures and documented emails, but there is nothing a tenant can do if they do not pay the rent. This is a story News 10 will continue to follow. CLARK COUNTY, Ill. (WTHI) - County Fairs across the Wabash Valley have come across this decision at one time or another: Should fair-goers have access to beer at the fair? That question was on the table late last week in Clark County, Illinois. The Fair Board went to the Clark County Board on Friday, requesting permission for a beer tent. The results: 2 yes's, 4 no's, and one absent. News 10 spoke with Fair President Chris ORourke. He says the Clark County Fair has never had a beer tent. But, that's not for a lack of trying. He says the fair board has tried to get one three times, never getting approval. ORourke says there were a few benefits the fair board was looking forward to if the beer tent got the go-ahead. This includes a bump in profits, as well as safety. ORourke explains, There's a lot of stuff that's coming into a fairgrounds, and it's not only our fair, but it's everyone's fair, where they've got it in their cups and everything else. So it was going to be a lot safer to be able to monitor it in one spot than have it strung out all over the entire fairgrounds." ORourke says there is a way to go through the city of Marshall to get a beer tent. But, he says it's too close to fair week to start that process for this year's fair. Marshall Resident Tim Bloodworth admits it's usually the food the lures him to the Clark County Fair. But, a beer tent could have been another draw for him and other fairgoers. Bloodworth shares, "I don't understand why they wouldn't allow to have a beer tent at the fair. At least one year, to try it." Bloodworth says hes noticed fewer people going to the fair, and with Illinois budget issues the decision to opt out of a beer tent could really hurt the organization. Bloodworth says, "County fairs are not getting much money or getting funded. So you have an organization that's trying to make money and fund itself, but they have the upper hand and want to vote to deny it." After speaking with several community members against the beer tent they did express some concerns. One of them is the thought of having alcohol present in the middle of the midway, fair activities, or where children are present. However, ORourke says the actual plan was to have the beer tent on the track, and secluded from the rest of the fair. The tent would have also only been in place for one night, for when the fairs headlining act was in town. ORourke says it's discouraging this test run didn't get the green light. He shares, "For whatever reason on their part they, they voted it 'no'. I mean and that's their prerogative. I don't know if there's a legal reason that I don't know about, I don't know if it's a morality issue. I'm not sure where its at." But even though the beer tent isn't a "go" for this year, doesn't mean the idea is dead. ORourke shared, "With the time constraint that Im at now, we're probably just going to let it go for this year, and look at doing things a bit different for next year." News 10 spoke with County Board Chairman John Hammond. He says he can't speak for the whole board. However, Hammond says he voted no because he feels the fair is a family event, and he doesnt think children need to be around alcohol. ORourke says the Clark County Fair runs from August 12th through the 18th. To view the Clark County Fair Book, click here. Mothers and other family members of detained opponents of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega fled to the cathedral in Managua after pro-government groups harassed them, said Adelaida S-nchez, a spokesperson for the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (CENIDH). The mothers had been camping outside El Chipote detention center for several weeks awaiting news of their children, mostly students and civil leaders. S-nchez said the Nicaraguan government ordered the pro-government groups to clear the area around the detention center, prompting many of the mothers to seek refuge in the Managua Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. As many as 20 mothers and family members were still inside the church Sunday. The pro-government groups surrounded the church Saturday afternoon, but no incidents were reported. CNN spoke to one of the mothers inside, who said they haven't left because they're "afraid of being detained or worse." CNN is not naming the woman because she fears for her safety. CNN has been trying to get a statement from government authorities, but emails and phone calls have not been answered. The pro-government groups are a mix of members of the Nicaraguan National Police, plain-clothes activists and paramilitary forces. According to reports by the Organization of American States (OAS), they operate together, sometimes wearing dark clothes and masks. Clashes started in April CENIDH said the people held in the El Chipote detention center are not allowed to receive visits nor seek legal representation. S-nchez said their main concern is the well-being of the detainees, especially after CENIDH confirmed "cases of torture and cruelty" inside the prison. The detainees in El Chipote are part of the resistance groups against Ortega, who has been in power for 11 years. They began protesting in April after the government announced changes to the social security system regarding pensions. Although Ortega backed down a few days later, the protests did not stop. The government's heavy-handed response ignited a national movement asking for his resignation. According to CENIDH, 286 people have died and 2,000 have been injured in the unrest. The government puts the number of victims at more than 50. A report from the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) published in mid-July stated that they have not been able to confirm the number of protesters detained in Nicaragua. However, IACHR estimated that the numbers could surpass 1,000. IACHR is part of the Organization of American States (OAS). Ortega's government has called the protesters terrorists and says it's working with groups loyal to the administration in liberating towns and cities across the country. Nicaragua's National Police have not responded to CNN's request for comment. However, they have previously stated that all efforts to restore peace in the country are being driven by a plan the governments calls "Operaci-n Limpieza," or "Operation Cleaning." The government, however, has not specified what the plan entails or how they operate. CENIDH says Operation Cleaning is a joint action between police members and armed civilians in which groups "go from town to town, entering homes, detaining protesters and even carrying out extrajudicial executions." 4 killed in Monimb- The groups carrying out Operation Cleaning were armed when they stormed Monimb-, a stronghold of the country's anti-government movement in western Nicaragua Tuesday. The clash, which left the area littered with shell casings and shattered glass, lasted more than four hours and saw protesters armed with homemade mortars pitted against hooded government loyalists with automatic, high-caliber weapons, reporters with CNN said. Four people were killed in this attack, CENIDH said -- three civilians and one policeman. In a statement, the Nicaraguan National Police identified the policeman as Kelvin Javier Rivera, saying that he was killed by "terrorist groups." The statement did not make any comments about the civilians killed. CNN talked to a group of protesters in Monimb- who described the post-attack scene as a "war zone." Carlos Trujillo, US ambassador to the OAS, condemned the forceful intervention in Monimb-, describing the government's actions as "genocide." "The government's repeated acts of violence and repression will only lead to further isolation and sanctions," he wrote on Twitter. The government did not refer to the situation in Monimb- as an attack but as a "liberation" and has not made any comments regarding the reported victims. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivered a scathing speech on Iran's leadership Sunday, accusing Tehran's ruling ayatollahs of spreading violence across the Middle East and lining their own pockets with ill-gotten gains at the expense of ordinary Iranians. "The ideologues who forcibly came to power in 1979 and remain in power today are driven by a desire to conform all of Iranian society to the tenants of the Islamic Revolution. The regime is also committed to spreading the Revolution to other countries, by force if necessary," said Pompeo during a highly anticipated address at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. Southern California is home to a significant portion of the Iranian diaspora living in the United States. Many of them fled Iran after the revolution that brought Iran's ayatollahs to power. "To the regime, prosperity, security, and freedom for the Iranian people are acceptable casualties in the march to fulfill the Revolution," said Pompeo. The secretary of state and former CIA director accused several members of Iran's leadership, including Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, of participating in widespread corruption. Khamenei, Pompeo alleged, maintains a personal off-the-books hedge fund worth $95 billion, that is untaxed and used as a "slush fund" by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Crops (IRGC). The IRGC is a branch of the country's armed with influence over practically every aspect of Iranian life. "The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government," Pompeo said. "These hypocritical holy men have devised all kinds of crooked schemes to become some of the wealthiest men on Earth while their people suffer." Pompeo's speech came just hours after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told diplomats in Tehran that the United States "must understand that war with Iran is the mother of all wars and peace with Iran is the mother of all peace," according to Iran's state-run news agency IRNA. "Do not play with the lion's tail, because you will regret it eternally," Rouhani said. Shortly after Pompeo's speech, Trump tweeted that Iran will "suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before" if it were to threaten the United States again. Though the tweet was addressed to Rouhani, it's unclear if he was responding to the Iranian President's comments earlier Sunday. Pompeo's speech was briefly interrupted by protesters shouting "think about the children," likely a reference to US President Donald Trump's immigration policies that have led to children being separated by their family at the border. Once they were done, Pompeo said "if there was only so much freedom of speech in Iran." A handful of prominent Iranian-Americans were in the audience, including Washington Post columnist and former Tehran bureau chief Jason Rezaian. Rezaian spent months in Iranian detention on what many believed were spurious charges of spying on behalf of the United States. Also in attendance for the speech, titled "Supporting Iranian Voices," was Makan Delrahim, a US assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice's antitrust division. Delrahim came to the United States at 10 years old. A new pressure campaign Since his time in Congress, Pompeo has been a vocal critic of the Iranian regime and the internationally negotiated deal to limit Tehran's nuclear program and subject it to international verification in exchange for sanctions relief. The Trump administration backed out of that deal in May. Among the President and Pompeo's many criticisms of the accord was that it did not do enough to limit Iran's destabilizing behavior in the region, such as funding Houthi rebels in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon, a powerful political force in that country. The United States considers Hezbollah a terror group. The Trump administration is now expected to re-enact many of the punishing sanctions that were in place before the 2015 agreement was reached, including limiting Iran's ability to sell oil. "We are asking every nation who is sick and tired of the Islamic Republic's destructive behavior to join our pressure campaign. This especially goes for our allies in the Middle East and Europe, people who have themselves been terrorized by violent regime activity for decades," Pompeo said. "The goal of our efforts is to one day see Iranians in Iran enjoying the same quality of life that Iranians in America enjoy." Rouhani has warned that the deal could fall apart and hinted that Iran could restart its nuclear efforts if the US were to re-enact sanctions, though the European signatories of the accord have pledged to honor it. 'Wolves in sheep's clothing' Many in the international community consider Rouhani and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as moderates within Iran, owing to their support of the nuclear deal. In his speech, Pompeo criticized the notion that Zarif and Rouhani could be considered moderate when Iran has continued to fund Shiite-backed groups engaged in violence across the region. Presidential candidates in Iran must be vetted by a clerical body, and once elected the head of government answers to the Supreme Leader. "The regime's revolutionary goals and willingness to commit violent acts hasn't produced anyone to lead Iran that can remotely be called a statesman. Some believe that President Rouhani and Foreign Minister Zarif fit the bill. The truth is they are merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry. Their nuclear deal didn't make them moderates, it made them wolves in sheep's clothing," Pompeo said. "These so-called moderates within the regime are still violent Islamic revolutionaries with an anti-America, anti-West agenda." Without continuing US military support, Taiwan would be vulnerable to an armed takeover from Beijing, the island's foreign minister told CNN in an exclusive interview. Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu told CNN the Taiwan government felt relations with the United States had grown stronger in recent years, but it was vital for Washington to continue to support Taipei militarily and diplomatically. "(If) the Chinese see vulnerability of Taiwan not getting US support, then they would be thinking about starting scenarios where they would be able to take Taiwan over," he said. Despite Taiwan being self-governed for almost seventy years, the mainland Chinese government continues to view the island as an integral part of its territory. Beijing has been ramping up pressure on the Taiwan government since President Tsai Ing-wen's Democratic Progressive Party, which traditionally favored independence, took power in 2016. The Chinese navy has been conducting the latest in a series of live-fire military drills in the Taiwan Strait from Wednesday until Monday, which an expert quoted in state media tabloid Global Times said was "tailored for Taiwan separatists." Wu said the live-fire drills were part of a campaign to "intimidate the Taiwanese people." "We are trying to maximize our cooperation with like-minded countries, try to engage security cooperation with the US to prevent China from thinking that they can take Taiwan over just overnight," he said. Beijing provoking 'hatred' Beijing has long dreamed of reuniting Taiwan with the Chinese mainland. In a nationalistic speech in March, President Xi Jinping described unification as "the aspiration of all Chinese people," while during a visit by US Secretary of Defense James Mattis in June, Xi said China would not give up "any inch of territory." But Wu said China's actions against Taiwan were undermining any support for Xi's reunification efforts and turning public opinion against Beijing. "They say they want to win the hearts and minds of Taiwanese people but what they're doing ... is to create hatred among the regular Taiwanese people of the Chinese government. It is pushing Taiwan further and further away," he said. Early in the Trump administration there were questions over whether Taiwan would be used as a pawn between Washington and Beijing, given the latter's keen interest in returning the island to the fold. But more than a year-and-a-half later, Wu said Taiwan is pleased with the growing closeness of Taiwan US relations under the Trump administration. "President Trump maintains very good relations with Taiwan ... they told us that they believe Taiwan is not tradeable, and democracy is not tradeable," he said. Asked whether President Tsai, leading the traditionally pro-independence DPP party, would push for Taiwan independence, Wu said Tsai was determined to maintain "the status quo" with its mainland neighbor. "We want to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait ... By itself, Taiwan exists outside China, Taiwan exists by itself, so there's no need for Taiwan to go beyond what it is right now," he said. Diplomatic battle As part of their campaign of pressure, the Chinese government has been slowly chipping away at Taiwan's small number of remaining diplomatic allies around the world. In May, both the Dominican Republic and Burkina Faso severed ties with Taipei in exchange for Beijing. But despite their dwindling number of allies globally, Wu insists the Taiwan government is not preparing for a time when they no longer have any diplomatic partners. "Some countries (who switched) are coming back to us and saying they didn't get what China promised, they didn't get what China promised financially and they're not getting what China promised politically," he said. "What China gave them is something which is easily destroyable." The most symbolic country which still recognizes Taipei over Beijing is the Vatican, the tiny nation home to the leadership of the Catholic Church. In the past six months, rumors have leaked out suggesting the Holy See might be considering switching its allegiance to the Beijing government but Wu said Taiwan still hoped the Vatican could remain their diplomatic partner for the long term. "We stay in very close contact with Vatican officials, telling them what they want is to allow freedom of religion to prevail in mainland China, and Taiwan has been serving as a beacon in that aspect," he said. "Therefore maintaining good relations with Taiwan is the key to have Taiwan as an example to the Chinese people, especially Chinese Catholics, that they can have freedom of religion one day." Jeg Weets is a normal five-year-old. As he runs around with his friends you wouldn't know he is fighting a deadly disease. In December of 2017, Jeg was diagnosed with Niemann-Pick Disease type C1, a rare genetic disease that leads to organ damage including brain damage. "Eventually he'll lose the ability to walk, talk, hear and his memory is going to go," said his mother, Jenna Weets. The Weets travel to Chicago every other week for treatment but right now there is no cure. "It is a fatal disorder and the average life expectancy is thirteen so we're just trying to give him a normal life, filled with love," said Weets. On July 21, they made sure to fill Jeg's day with a communities worth of love at a benefit, "Race for Jeg". "It's heartbreaking to watch your close friends go through this. We havea lot of hope for them but we want to be there for them every step of the way and this is just one of the ways we can help support them," said Dani Vance. Vance and her friend Jackie Damhoff helped plan the benefit. Everything raised will help pay for Jeg's medical bills. Dozens of people showed up in support but the outreach goes beyond their own community. "People from all over the country have reached out to them. Morrison is an awesome community and they've pitched in to help us pull this off but it's been really neat with the outreach past Morrison and Whiteside County that this event has gotten," said Vance. Morrison Police Chief Brian Melton presented Jeg with a quilt filled with patches from police departments all over the country and some even out of the country. Each patch representing support for Jeg's battle. "The support we've gotten it lifts our spirits and let's us know that we're not alone," said Weets. They are still working on a final count from the benefit but believe they have raised over five thousand dollars. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 07:28:43|Editor: ZD Video Player Close People participate in a demonstration in Tel Aviv, Israel, on July 22, 2018. Israel went on a nationwide strike on Sunday over a new law denying surrogacy to gay couples, with the support of a trade union and hundreds of local and international firms. The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people (LGBT) called for the one-day strike after the Knesset (parliament) passed on Wednesday a law that allows surrogacy for single women unable to conceive, without allowing the same right to single gay men or couples. (Xinhua/JINI/Tomer Neuberg) Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 01:16:32|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close LHASA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- The 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu performed Sunday a head-touching ritual to bless the Buddhists in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. The ritual started at about 10:10 a.m. at the Panchen Lama's Lhasa residence. Long lines of Buddhists holding hada, a long, scarf-like white silk, waited orderly to receive his blessings. During the ritual that ran nearly three hours, the Panchen Lama, always with a smile on his face, gave blessings to more than 5,100 Buddhists. He also prayed for swift recovery for patients, and named new-borns. Head touching is a ceremony carried out by a living Buddha to bless believers who consider that it will help them avoid disasters. "I am very happy to receive blessings from the living Buddha for two years in a row," said 45-year-old Lhasa resident Migmar Tsering. The Panchen Lama arrived in Lhasa on Tuesday for Buddhist and social activities. On Thursday, he visited Jokhang Temple, the most revered monastery in Lhasa. The Panchen Lama serves as vice president of the Buddhist Association of China and is a member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the country's top political advisory body. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 03:31:53|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close BEIJING, July 22 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) on Sunday released findings of the latest round of disciplinary inspection, the first such practice taken by the 19th CPC Central Committee. The findings concern 14 provincial-level regions and ten cities at the sub-provincial level, according to the website of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI). The inspection targeted Party organizations in 14 provincial-level regions, eight central government agencies including the Ministry of Commerce, and eight state-owned companies such as China National Nuclear Corporation. Ten cities at the sub-provincial level were also included, the CCDI said. Starting in late February, 15 teams stayed in the regions or entities they inspected for three months. By July, the teams have drawn "problem lists" for overhaul and inspected Party organizations have pledged to address issues that are being raised. CPC's disciplinary inspection is considered a powerful weapon of Party building that has cut like a blade through corruption and misconduct. The 18th CPC Central Committee is the first in Party history to inspect all CPC organizations in provincial-level regions, central CPC and government organs, major state-owned enterprises, central financial institutions and centrally-administered universities in one term. More than 60 percent of investigations into centrally-administered officials were a result of information found by discipline inspectors. Twelve rounds of inspections were conducted during the term of the 18th CPC Central Committee. Based on the findings, the latest round of inspection has shown some trends: -- It sticks to the duty of political inspection. Being emphasized is the need for Party organizations to maintain political integrity, think in big-picture terms, follow the leadership core, and keep in alignment, as well as to uphold the authority of the CPC Central Committee and its centralized, unified leadership. Some were found to have not implemented well the central authorities' policies and decisions on issues like poverty alleviation, environmental protection, or anti-gang fight. The CCDI stressed the need of strengthening political duties to ensure all targets set at the 19th CPC National Congress will be met and strategic plans be realized. -- The campaign of full and strict governance over the Party has a long way to victory. Weakness was found in the Party building of some grass-roots organizations. Malpractice such as the trade of government positions, factionalism, or lax management existed. The CCDI required Party committees in relevant regions to continue efforts to purify intra-Party political ecosystem. -- The fight against corruption remains arduous and complex. Despite ban, the problem of undesirable conduct was there and corruption was found to have changed in forms in different areas and at different levels. Some officials dined on public expenses, pocketed money and enjoyed privileges. Corruption was common in some areas such as construction projects and state-owned companies. Corruption at grass-roots levels was called to attention. The CCDI urged high pressure on corruption, continuous correcting undesirable conduct, strengthening supervision and accountability as deterrence. -- Rectification measures after past inspections are emphasized. The latest inspection has raised the issue of inadequate rectification following past inspections. Some were found to have rectified problems in a perfunctory manner or ignore part of the problems. The CCDI demanded leading officials of various Party organizations to assume the responsibility of enforcement. They were especially warned not to ignore rectification duties of their predecessors. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 06:42:22|Editor: ZD Video Player Close KHARTOUM, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Sudan government has set July 26 as the date for signing a deal on power-sharing between South Sudanese rivals, amid concerns that differences may rise to fail the proposed deal. Sudan's Foreign Ministry on Sunday announced that invitations have been sent to all heads of state of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development in Africa (IGAD) to attend the signing ceremony in Khartoum next Thursday, Sudanese Media Center (SMC) reported. The parties were scheduled to sign the initial deal on July 19, but the signing was delayed at the request of South Sudanese government, who said it needed more time for further consultations. Sudan's Foreign Minister Al-Dirdiri Mohamed Ahmed was quoted as saying that the Sudanese mediation efforts are supported by the IGAD Chairman and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, to complete the remaining tasks of peace realization in South Sudan. "The opportunities of success provided for these talks are considered enough and make us confident that matters are pressing ahead," he said. However, South Sudanese conflicting parties have reportedly expressed reservations over the draft document of the deal on power-sharing. To this end, Sudanese media outlets earlier quoted South Sudan's Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth as saying that the Sudanese mediation has amended what the parties have agreed on and presented new proposals discussed before. The South Sudanese opposition alliance has also reportedly expressed objection to the draft agreement and filed a memo with reservations to the mediation. Abdul-Khaliq Mahjoub, a Sudanese political analyst, expressed concern over possibility that the signing on the power-sharing deal may fail. "It is apparent that there are deep differences over the items of the agreement that may cripple the endeavors to reach a consensus formula," he said. The draft deal on power-sharing includes appointment of five vice presidents in addition to other security and governance aspects. Since June 25, Khartoum has been hosting direct talks between South Sudanese government, rebels and representatives of other South Sudanese opposition groups. On June 27, South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar signed a cessation of hostilities agreement in Khartoum, which included immediate cease-fire and a pre-transitional period of 120 days that went into effect as of the day the agreement was signed. South Sudan has been suffering from a civil war since December 2013 between the forces loyal to South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit and former Vice President Riek Machar. HOUSTON, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Five cooling centers were opened Sunday afternoon in Houston, U.S. state of Texas, for residents who don't have access to air-conditioned buildings. Officials urged high-risk groups, such as adults over 55-year-old, children under 5 and residents with chronic illness to seek shelter inside air-conditioned buildings during the hottest part of the day. Temperatures on Sunday are expected to peak between 100 and 103 degrees Fahrenheit (about 37.7 and 39.4 degrees Celsius). Residents are also urged to drink plenty of water, take frequent cool showers or baths, and wear light-colored and loose-fitting clothing. Mayor of Houston Sylvester Turner on Sunday reminded residents of not leaving children or elderly in vehicles during the heat. On Thursday, a 3-year-old child died after he was left inside of a daycare van. According to local police, the boy was left in the vehicle for at least four hours. Temperatures inside reached at least 113 degrees Fahrenheit (45 degrees Celsius). The city's effort came as the National Weather Service (NWS) issued its third heat advisory in as many days. A Heat Advisory will remain in effect for the southeastern part of Texas, including the Houston area, during the hot hours of the day through Monday. According to the NWS on Sunday, dangerous heat remains in place across the southern Plains, lower Mississippi Valley, and much of the Southwest and far western United States. This heat is expected to remain in place through Monday across the southern Plains and Lower Mississippi Valley, and through at least mid-week for the Southwest and much of the western coast. Excessive heat watches, warnings and heat advisories are currently in place across these regions. by Tuesday, the Desert Southwest will see temperatures climb well above 110 degrees Fahrenheit (over 43.3 degrees Celsius). SAN FRANCISCO, July 22 (Xinhua) -- An eight-year veteran police officer was killed Sunday after he was hit by a police patrol vehicle during an operation of chasing a fleeing suspect in the U.S. west state of Washington, police authorities said. The police officer from Kent city in King County, Washington, whose name was not released before his next-of-kin were informed, was trying to deploy spike strips at an intersection early Sunday to stop a fleeing driver, when he was struck by the police car pursuing the suspect. The Kent Police Department said on Facebook that officers were pursuing a red pickup truck seen leaving a parking lot where gunshots were reported near a restaurant at Russell Road S and W. Meeker in Kent city early Sunday. The police officer who was chasing the suspect was critically injured after he crashed into three cars at a nearby intersection. One suspect was arrested and two others escaped and remained at large when their vehicle also crashed. "It is with great heartbreak that the Kent Police Department announces that we have lost one of our officers in the line of duty early this morning. The Patrol Officer was assisting with the capture of subjects who were attempting to elude the police when he was struck by a vehicle. Life-saving efforts were not successful," the Kent Police Department said in a statement. A local news outlet quoted Washington State Patrol Captain Ron Mead as blaming the police officer's death on the suspects. "Make no question about this, were it not for the actions of this suspect or suspects, this officer would be alive today. It's directly because of the suspect or suspects' actions that led to the officer's death," he said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 07:32:28|Editor: ZX Video Player Close Chinese President Xi Jinping (L, front) arrives in Kigali on July 22, 2018 for a state visit to Rwanda. Upon their arrival, Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan were warmly received by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and his wife Jeannette Kagame. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) KIGALI, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived here on Sunday for a state visit to Rwanda, the first by a Chinese head of state to the African country. Upon their arrival, Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, were warmly received by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and his wife Jeannette Kagame. At the airport, a group of local people in colorful clothes with distinctive ethnic features performed dances and beat drums to greet the honored Chinese guests. In his cordial talks with Kagame, Xi sent sincere greetings and good wishes to the Rwandan government and the Rwandan people on behalf of the Chinese government and the Chinese people. Noting that he is the first Chinese head of state to pay a visit to Rwanda, Xi said he has felt the friendship of the Rwandan government and the people towards the Chinese people soon as he set foot on the country's soil. Since the establishment of their diplomatic relations 47 years ago, China and Rwanda have treated each other as equals with sincerity and friendship, Xi said, adding that bilateral ties have undergone healthy and steady development. Xi recalled that during Kagame's visit to China in March 2017, they had an in-depth exchange of views on advancing bilateral ties and cooperation of mutual benefits, adding that their consensus has seen comprehensive implementation. The fact that the two heads of state have visited each other's country within slightly more than a year indicates the great importance both sides have attached to deepening their ties, Xi said. The Chinese president said he expects to have deep discussions with Kagame, who is also the rotating chairman of the African Union, on China-Rwanda ties, China-Africa cooperation and other regional and international issues of common concern. Xi said he believes the upcoming visit will deliver fruitful results so as to benefit the two peoples. Kagame extended warm welcome to Xi on behalf of the Rwandan government and the people. He believed Xi's visit to Rwanda will further push forward the two countries' friendly cooperation. The Chinese president arrived in Kigali after finishing his state visit to Senegal. Senegalese President Macky Sall and his wife Marieme saw Xi and his wife off at the airport. Xi said upon departure that the visit to Senegal is very successful, efficient and pragmatic, and will further promote the development of China-Senegal ties. Sall said Xi's visit is a complete success, and has achieved fruitful results. He also expressed the hope to meet with Xi on a frequent basis. Rwanda is the third stop of Xi's first overseas trip after being re-elected Chinese president in March, which has already taken him to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Senegal. Xi will also pay a state visit to South Africa where he is scheduled to attend the 10th BRICS summit, and visit Mauritius during a stopover. ISLAMABAD, July 23 (Xinhua) -- At least 25 people have been injured in a hand grenade attack at an office of a political party in Pakistan's southwest district of Chaghi, local media reported Monday. According to the reports, some unknown miscreants on Sunday night lobbed a hand grenade at the people sitting in the election campaign office of the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) in Dalbandin town of Chaghi, a district in the country's southwest Balochistan province. Police, security forces and rescue teams rushed to the site and shifted the injured to hospital, where around five of the wounded were reportedly to be in critical condition. Security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a search operation. No group has claimed the attack yet. It is the second terrorist attack on Sunday at the people campaigning for the country's general elections to be held on July 25. Earlier in the day, a suicide bomb attack killed a candidate for a provincial assembly seat of northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Since the start of July, it was the ninth terrorist attack on election candidates. At least 170 people including three prominent politicians have been killed and over 200 others injured in terrorist attacks at public rallies across the country during the last three weeks. Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 08:47:35|Editor: mmm Video Player Close TOKYO, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo shares opened lower Monday amid market concerns over trade conflicts. As of 9:15 a.m., the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 224.01 points, or 0.99 percent, from Friday to 22,473.87. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange was down 2.25 points, or 0.13 percent, at 1,742.73. Decliners were led by oil and coal product, electric appliance and marine transportation issues. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 10:13:00|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close A visitor touches a hat at the exhibition portraying the history and culture of the ancient Silk Road in Zainul Gallery of the Faculty of Fine Arts of Dhaka University (DU) in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on July 22, 2018. (Xinhua) DHAKA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition portraying the history and culture of "Silk Road" opened on Sunday at the Zainul Gallery of the Faculty of Fine Arts of Bangladesh's leading Dhaka University (DU) in capital Dhaka. The nine-day exhibition features dozens of striking photographs and dresses that take visitors to the golden eras of the Silk Road that served as a trade route bringing together civilizations since ancient times. The exhibition was organized by the Yunnan University, Dhaka University, Bangladesh-China Center for Arts and Cultural Exchange, Confucius Institute at Dhaka University and the Faculty of Fine Arts, Dhaka University in collaboration with Overseas Chinese Association in Bangladesh and Institute of Modern Language, University of Dhaka. Teachers of the respective organizations were present during the inauguration of the exhibition, which is aimed at paving an opportunity for thousands of Dhaka University students specially to see landscapes along the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative. Experts here say countries like Bangladesh will immensely benefit from China's growth, as China has emerged as a major economy on the world stage. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 10:38:05|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- China's shadow banking has declined sharply since the beginning of the year due to stricter supervision. "At the beginning of the year, authorities made it clear that the risks from shadow banking and cross-industry financial businesses will be included in this year's main subjects for rectification," said Sheng Songcheng, an advisor to the People's Bank of China (PBOC). Sheng said the amount of entrusted loans has been dropping since January. PBOC data showed that entrusted loans in the first half of the year dropped more than 800 billion yuan (118 billion U.S. dollars). Shadow banking, substandard financial business that is hard to supervise, has grown rapidly in the past few years, with some of the funds having gone to local governments and the property market. China has heavily regulated investment and financing activities by local governments and state-owned enterprises since 2017. In April, new guidelines unified rules covering asset management products issued by all types of financial institutions to curb risks and reduce leverage. Prevention of financial risk is key for China in what policy-makers called the "three tough battles": controlling risk, reducing poverty and tackling pollution. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 11:23:10|Editor: mmm Video Player Close HAVANA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Cuba's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was up just 1.1 percent in the first half of 2018, said Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Sunday. During his closing speech at the ordinary session of the National Assembly of People's Power, Diaz-Canel said the country's economic situation remains "tense" regarding the availability of foreign currencies. The Cuban leader emphasized that the modest GDP growth was "encouraging, though there are many adverse factors (to overcome)." The president cited low export, tourism and sugar production revenues, as well as the harmful effects of the extreme weather events, as the issues that dampened growth. The Cuban leader said that it would be necessary to adopt additional measures during the second half of 2018 to guarantee planned economic results. He said that despite the internal and external difficulties, a plan for economic growth and progress, together with the gradual restoration of the nation's financial credibility, will be designed. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 11:28:11|Editor: mmm Video Player Close BUENOS AIRES, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Argentine President Mauricio Macri on Sunday said he was "very satisfied" with the progress made in G20 meetings during Argentina's presidency. Macri made his remarks during the Third G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Buenos Aires. Argentina assumed the one-year G20 presidency in November 2017. "We have already passed the half-way point of our G20 presidency with more than 50 pre-summit meetings. The Argentine government is very satisfied with the progress made (in the meetings)," Macri said. He highlighted the importance of these meetings, suggesting they were "fundamental steps" for the development of bilateral agendas among G20 members. "They encourage everyone to continue working to achieve concrete results that reflect the efficiency of G20 and its relevancy with the world we live," he said. The Argentine leader also stated that his country would overcome the economic "turbulence" in the last few weeks in which the peso devalued almost 36 percent against the U.S. dollar. "We will navigate these troubled waters and maintain our course," he said, predicting economic expansion in 2019. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 11:33:12|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close Jean de Dieu Mugiraneza, an engineer of Rwandan government's Rural Sector Support Project, receives an interview on a dam built by China Geo-Engineering Corporation (CGC) in Nyagatare District, Eastern Province, Rwanda, July 13, 2018. Chinese companies have played a vital role in enabling Rwandan farmers to increase agricultural productivity and household incomes, a Rwandan analyst said. (Xinhua/Zhang Gaiping) by Xinhua writers Lyu Tianran, Zhang Gaiping and Frank Kanyesigye KIGALI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- In July when the dry season dominates Rwanda, clouds of dirt billow from parched roads in the Kaduha village in the country's northeastern part when cars roar past. On one side of the road, fresh water in an irrigation canal is flowing through a rice field that stretches beyond sight. Constructed by China Geo-Engineering Corporation (CGC), the 30-km-long canal brings water from a CGC-built irrigation dam into the farm, supplying water for 925 hectares of farm in Eastern Province throughout the year, even during the dry season. As part of the Rwandan government's Rural Sector Support Project funded by the World Bank, the construction works are aimed at improving agricultural production and could benefit over 1,500 farmers, said Jean de Dieu Mugiraneza, an engineer of the project. Before the works were completed in 2016, farmers could not plant rice here as there was no irrigation system and only in areas close to small rivers could water be accessed to cultivate crops, Mugiraneza said. Farmers planted rain-fed crops including potato, banana and maize by rivers, he said, adding that the rivers had little water during the dry season, increasing difficulties for farming. With the works conducted by the CGC, the area now has sufficient water for farming. "In the past, the production is not good and the crops were used for self-consumption. But now farmers have good production of rice and get more benefits than before," the engineer said. Amuri Bizumutima was one of the beneficiaries. "I grew a small quantity of beans and maize. There was no water in the place where I grow rice now," recalled the 32-year-old farmer, who has four children, two of whom are in school. "We didn't get enough food in the past. We ate what we grew and didn't have surplus to sell," said Bizumutima, who now grows rice in the farm covering an area of 0.2 hectare. "Now I have surplus rice to sell and have better income. With the money earned from selling rice, I can pay for my family's food and school fees of my children," he said. Agriculture plays an important role in Rwanda's economy, accounting for 33 percent of Rwanda's gross domestic product and engages 70 percent of the population, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Water conservation and irrigation is vital to agricultural transformation and food security, said Rwandan political analyst Ladislas Ngendahimana, adding that the irrigation scheme is part of the Rwandan government's program to lift people out of extreme poverty and strive for economic prosperity. "Chinese companies have played a vital role in enabling Rwandan farmers to increase agricultural productivity and household incomes," Ngendahimana said. China and Rwanda established diplomatic ties in 1971. China has since been a key trading partner, important source of investment and major development partner of Rwanda, according to the Chinese Embassy in Rwanda. Since entering the Rwandan market in 1999, the CGC has been running 13 irrigation and water conservancy projects mainly in marshland development, hillside irrigation and prevention of soil erosion. The projects include the 26-meter-high Muyanza Dam, the second highest dam in Rwanda and the highest and largest earth-fill dam in the hilly country. The CGC employs highly skilled and veteran engineers from China to design and implement projects for Rwanda, which also brings Chinese technology and experience to Rwanda, said Zhu Xinghui, general manager of CGC Central East Africa Branch. Zhu said that the CGC, as an enterprise, has to consider economic benefits when implementing projects, but when owners of Rwandan projects experience financial difficulties, it continues delivering projects to support the country. Zhu, who has been working in Rwanda since 2005, has witnessed the development of Rwanda's agricultural sector over the decade. The country has carried out many effective agricultural projects, which benefit more and more Rwandan people and increase food production, he said. "Delivering projects in Rwanda is a job for me, but our projects provide farmers with farmland that can be cultivated for generations," he said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 11:33:12|Editor: ZD Video Player Close HAVANA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Sunday called on his countrymen to fight corruption and crimes in the country. In his closing speech at the ordinary session of the National Assembly of People's Power, Diaz-Canel said that "fighting corruption is not only a task of the government and the police force, but a mission for the whole society." The president insisted that the "unity" of citizens would be the main tool against corruption in the island nation. Cuban authorities consider corruption as a major threat to the country, with the potential to undermine its socialist ideology to a greater degree than the current financial crisis. The Office of the Comptroller General reported in May that a national audit of 361 state-owned entities had discovered economic damage worth over 1 billion U.S. dollars. The office added that 1,251 people had been sanctioned as a result. "There will be no impunity for the offenders," Comptroller General of Cuba Gladys Bejerano told reporters. The office was founded by former President Raul Castro in 2009 to bolster anti-corruption measures, especially in the state-run entrepreneurial sector. SUVA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Unreported fishing in Fijian waters costs the government millions of dollars according to the Fijian government on Monday. Fiji's Fisheries Ministry said unreported fishing could lead to pressure on fish stocks, cost the economy millions and affect the livelihood of Fijians living in coastal areas. More than half of Fiji's over 884,000 population depend on fish as a source of income and livelihood. Fiji's Fisheries Enforcement Officer, Hilda Lobendahn said on Fiji Broadcasting Corporation state owned (FBC news) on Monday that many fishing vessels that entered Fiji's ports were not reporting their catch honestly and correctly. Lobendahn added the big problem for now is the language barrier because foreign vessels do not understand the reporting requirements. Fiji's Fisheries Officer, Meli Raicebe said they inspected up to five fishing vessels a day and if they find a breach, flag states are immediately notified. "If we do come across issues where there are discrepancies or issues of IUU, there's a procedure to be followed which is investigation on the matter and notification to the flag state." Meanwhile, the implementation of the Port State Measures will now give fisheries officers the confidence to carry out inspections of fishing vessels that enter the island nation's ports. In early July, Fiji had agreed on port state measures to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. Port state measures are a binding international agreement to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing by preventing vessels engaged in IUU fishing from using ports and landing their catches. The implementation means Fiji will be able to identify vessels of interest and illegal vessels that may visit her ports. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 11:53:16|Editor: mmm Video Player Close Participants attend the Group of 20 (G20) Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on July 22, 2018. Finance ministers and central bank governors of the G20 ended their third meeting of the year here on Sunday, referring to "consensus" and "constructive dialogues" as the tools to resolve the issue of import tariffs. (Xinhua) BUENOS AIRES, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of 20 (G20) ended their third meeting of the year here on Sunday, referring to "consensus" and "constructive dialogues" as the tools to resolve the issue of import tariffs. The meeting issued a 13-point statement, addressing matters related to global monetary policies that guarantee the economic activity of the countries. It also touched on the application of technology in the financial field and the promotion of greater investment in infrastructure. The group reaffirmed its commitment to "monitor debt vulnerabilities in low-income countries," as well as grant tools and minimize risks in the face of the recent volatility of the financial market. "The financial system must remain open, resilient and supportive of growth," said the group. "We remain committed to the full, consistent and timely implementation of post-crisis reforms and to the evaluation of its results," read the statement. Argentine Treasury Minister Nicolas Dujovne said at a press conference that the international meeting was successful. "In this group we have to facilitate consensus, and constructive dialogue is an essential part of that job," he said. He added that a "unanimous consensus" was obtained on issues discussed though the world faces "challenges" related to irregular growth. There were 57 representatives taking part in the G20's Third Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, among which there were 23 ministers and 14 presidents of monetary entities. Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Christine Lagarde met with Argentine President Mauricio Macri and Dujovne during her stay, discussing the 50-billion-U.S.-dollar financial program that both parties recently agreed on. The ministerial meeting in the Argentine capital was the third of five meetings that finance ministers will attend ahead of the G20 Leaders' Summit, to take place from Nov. 30 to Dec. 1. According to information from G20, its member countries represent 85 percent of the world's GDP, two-thirds of the global population and 75 percent of international trade. HANOI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam is likely to earn 4.7 billion U.S. dollars from exporting vegetables and fruits this year, up from more than 3.5 billion U.S. dollars last year, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said on Monday. At present, Vietnamese farmers are encouraged to grow fruit trees, vegetables and flowers and use more advanced farming techniques, while local and foreign firms provide them with more high-grade seeds and seedlings. Vietnam is boosting export of both fresh and processed fruit and vegetables to traditional markets and new ones, the ministry said, noting that local litchi, longan, mango and dragon fruits have recently penetrated into big markets which have strict requirements for food safety. In the first half of this year, Vietnam made total fruit and veggie export turnovers of 2 billion U.S. dollars, up 20 percent on-year. During this time, China remained Vietnam's top fruit and veggie export market with turnovers of 1.2 billion U.S. dollars, up 18.1 percent, followed by the United States and Japan. The high growth in fruit and veggie export turnovers was mainly attributed to the wider application of clean production processes, and modern semi-processed and preservation technologies, according to Vietnamese agriculture and trade experts. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 12:03:18|Editor: Li Xia Video Player Close SUVA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese naval hospital ship Ark Peace will visit Fiji for a humanitarian mission from Aug. 2-9, Chinese Ambassador Qian Bo said on Monday. Qian told a press briefing that he invited Fijians to visit the Port of Suva to receive free screenings, treatments and medication from the Ark Peace. The level of service to be provided from the hospital ship is of very high standard, said the ambassador. Qian said as part of the mission, Chinese medical teams will be deployed to the Raiwaqa, Makoi and Lami medical centers for three days. The visit is part of the hospital ship's Mission Harmony 2018. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 12:18:21|Editor: Li Xia Video Player Close CHANGSHA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- "I finally became a real man!" Nigerian Anthony Ekwensi posted on his WeChat Moments, referring to the well-known poem by Mao Zedong carved on a stone tablet at the highest point of Badaling Great Wall near Beijing. On July 1, Ekwensi, 21, landed in Beijing and became the first competitor to register for the 17th Chinese Bridge, a Chinese language competition for foreign college students hosted by the Confucius Institute. Over 150 contestants from more than 100 countries, the best Chinese speaking students in their own countries, took part in the contest combining language, culture and fun, which has become popular around the world. "Hard work pays off," he posted on WeChat, quoting another Chinese saying, on making it to the final 15 and top three in Africa. On his journey from outsider to one of the best non-native Chinese speakers, Ekwensi's strategy has been simple: "Constantly practising, listening, reading, writing and speaking." Everywhere he goes, he carries a little notebook with him, where he jots down any new words he comes across. He goes through the list diligently at the end of each day. Every morning he reads aloud in Chinese for about two hours because "the brain absorbs new information more efficiently in the morning". Ekwensi became interested in learning Chinese because of Kung Fu. "I enjoyed watching Kung Fu movies," he said. "Also, I wanted to know how people read and understand Chinese characters." His first post on WeChat was "Learning Chinese brings me the greatest fun." His diligence and concern for others impressed Xu Wei, his Chinese teacher at Nnamdi Azikiwe University in southeastern Nigeria, where the country's first Confucius Institute is located. Xu said when Ekwensi discovered that snakes appeared on campus because the grass was overgrown, he quietly mowed the lawn after school to eliminate the serpentine menace. Last year, Xu recommended him to a Chinese company as an intern translator. He worked hard and earned a salary that was nearly three times the local average. He used the money to pay his tuition fees and his three brothers' school fees. "Learning Chinese has brought a lot of good things to my life," Ekwensi said. "My standard of living has improved a lot. I have also learned other things, like modesty and honesty." Mirna Mogahed from Egypt and Duncan Acorlor from Ghana made up the rest of Africa's top three at this year's contest. Mogahed compares herself to a shy peacock that shrank from displaying its dazzling tail. However, her fluent Chinese and the broad knowledge that she has acquired preparing for the Chinese Bridge has helped her "show the fan in its full splendor and gain joy and confidence," the 22-year-old said. Once she finishes her Chinese course, Mogahed plans to be a Chinese teacher in Egypt or an Arabic teacher in China. The language has given her new skills for a promising livelihood. Acorlor, who studies international relations, wants to be a politician or diplomat. He said learning Chinese helps him "understand the political system of China, which will help to develop his own country." "Studying Chinese gives me so many opportunities that I don't have any worries about getting a job in future," he said. As of the end of 2017, there were 54 Confucius Institutes in 39 African countrie, as greater China-Africa friendship and cooperation bring more opportunities to local people. "I am touched by the students' passion for learning Chinese," Xu said. "It keeps me in Africa." Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 12:43:23|Editor: Li Xia Video Player Close JOHANNESBURG, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's upcoming state visit to South Africa, where he will also attend the 10th BRICS Summit, is an opportunity for the two nations to deepen and consolidate their ties. According to the Chinese Ambassador to South Africa, Lin Songtian, the relationship between China and South Africa has become a "role model" for China's cooperation with other African and developing countries. GROWING BILATERAL TIES In the previous two decades, the relationship has grown in strategic significance. In 2000, they signed the Pretoria Declaration, marking the formal establishment of partnership. Then they built it up into a strategic partnership in 2004, and ultimately to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2010, when the Beijing Declaration was signed. South Africa has sought to advance the China-Africa partnership by continuing to co-chair the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), and working toward the implementation of the outcomes of the 2015 FOCAC Johannesburg Summit. Relations between the two countries have been growing, Daniel Bradlow, a professor of international development law and African economic relations at University of Pretoria, told Xinhua. South Africa needs to be thinking how it can further strengthen the relationship as "a gateway to Africa for China as well as for other countries," he added. STRONG TRADE & INVESTMENT LINKS In a commentary published in April in South African daily Pretoria News, the Chinese ambassador said trade and investment between the two countries have grown immensely. "China has for nine years in a row been South Africa's largest trading partner. In 2017 bilateral trade grew by 11.7 percent to 39.17 billion U.S. dollars, a more than 20-fold increase from the figure at the beginning of diplomatic relations," Lin said in the article. "South Africa has been China's largest trading partner in Africa for eight consecutive years, accounting for a quarter to a third of China-Africa overall trade," he noted. According to the Chinese diplomat, last year South Africa became the first country in the continent to export beef to China. The two nations are strategic partners in many fields, including trade, mining, manufacturing, finance and commerce. "Combined existing and planned direct investment from China to South Africa reached over 25 billion dollars in accumulative terms by June 2017 in manufacturing, processing, mining, finance, energy, tourism, commerce, trade, and services. South Africa is now China's largest investment destination among African countries," Lin said. DEVELOPMENT PARTNER This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. "The South Africa-China diplomatic relations have reached a milestone. China has become a vibrant and important partner for our country's development," said Manelisi Genge, chief director of East Asia and Oceania at South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation. Seeking to realize industrialization by building eight special economic zones (SEZs), South Africa sees China as a true partner in terms of investment and expertise. In May, a South African delegation led by Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry Bulelani Magwanishe traveled to Shanghai, where roadshow and workshops were held on SEZ investment opportunities and incentives. South Africa has also sent many of its SEZ and supporting sector specialists to China to learn about the Chinese experience. THRIVING PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE EXCHANGES People-to-people relations between the two countries were boosted in April 2017 when a South Africa-China high-level mechanism was launched in Pretoria. Genge said the South African government wants to strengthen exchanges in all sectors, including academia and civil society. "We have hundreds of students in China. Sending these students is an investment for us. We expect them to learn business acumen, the culture of doing business and competence," he said. Tourism is another major sector where the two countries could do more together. "China is the strongest partner for building South Africa into the tourism hub of the world," Lin wrote in his commentary. "It is estimated that tourism expenditure from China will reach 429 billion dollars by 2021. South Africa hosts the largest number of Chinese tourists in Africa. Last year, only about 100,000 Chinese tourists visited but the potential is huge. In the next five years, over 650 million Chinese tourists will travel abroad." "We hope that, through joint efforts, we will attract more Chinese tourists to South Africa," he added. While relations between the two countries have strengthened, more still needs to be done to fully realize the potential of the bilateral partnership, according to Kobus van der Wath, managing director of The Beijing Axis, an international advisory and procurement firm. "The opportunities are not fully appreciated in South Africa ... South Africa needs to tap the huge and dynamic Chinese market," he added. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 13:23:27|Editor: mmm Video Player Close NEW DELHI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- At least five members of a family were killed and few others suffered burn injuries Monday in a devastating fire inside a residential building in northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, officials said. The fire broke out during morning hours at Ner Chowk in Mandi district, about 127 km north of Shimla, the capital city of Himachal Pradesh. "Fire broke out today inside a residential building here, killing five of a family besides injuring couple of people," said Rugved Takhur, district magistrate of Mandi. "It is a crowded area and there are no reports of people being trapped inside." Immediately following the reports of fire, fighter tenders along with firefighters were rushed to the spot. Several people who were trapped in the building were evacuated safely by firefighters, police said. Authorities have ordered a probe into the cause of the fire. However, initial reports said blast of a cooking gas cylinder in one of the households triggered the blaze. KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Moody's Investor Service said on Monday that the Malaysian government's increasingly using longer-term Islamic instruments to fund its deficit to lower liquidity risk is a credit positive. "We view the shift toward Islamic financial instruments to be credit positive for the sovereign, because of the more stable nature of these holdings compared to conventional bonds, and the diversification that they impart to Malaysia's debt profile," the rating agency said in a report. The Malaysian government has a sizable debt burden which, at 50.8 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), is larger than the median of 40.1 percent of GDP for A-rated sovereigns. "Relatively low-cost and liquid domestic funding, and the fact that the debt is predominantly local currency-denominated (96.4 percent of the total) partially compensate for this, by presenting low exchange rate risk. Islamic financial instruments are an important pillar of this local currency funding component," Moody's said. The Malaysian Government Investment Issues (MGII) - local currency, Shariah-compliant debt instruments - accounted for 50 percent of total federal government financing in 2017, up from a 26.4-percent share in 2008. As a result of the Malaysian government's growing funding via sukuk (Islamic bond), the share of MGII has grown to 40 percent of outstanding government debt at the end of the first quarter, up from 13.9 percent at the end of 2008. "The authorities' various initiatives to support the market are likely to drive this share higher still," said Moody's. "More broadly, active participation in Islamic finance is part of Malaysia's broader vision to position itself as an international center for the instrument, and a recognized goal in the central bank's financial sector master plan," said Moody's. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 14:28:37|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close Friends and relatives take part in the funeral of a suicide attack victim in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, July 23, 2018. At least 14 people were killed and over 60 wounded on Sunday after a suicide bomber detonated his suicide vest near Kabul airport shortly after convoy of First Vice President General Abdul Rashid Dostum passed by the area, Kabul police said Monday. (Xinhua/Rahmat Alizadah) by Farid Behbud KABUL, July 23 (Xinhua) -- At least 14 people were killed and over 60 wounded on Sunday after a suicide bomber detonated his suicide vest near Kabul airport shortly after convoy of First Vice President General Abdul Rashid Dostum passed by the area, Kabul police said Monday. Dostum, after nearly 14 months living in Turkey and receiving medical treatment and recovery, returned home amid tight security on Sunday but his supporters believed he was living in exile. Those among the killed were two women, two traffic police officers as well as several security forces and civilians. Several of the wounded remained in critical condition. The Islamic State (IS) terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the attack. The blast came days after the UN mission in the country announced that 1,690 civilians were killed and over 3,430 others injured in conflict-related incidents and terrorist attacks in the first half of the year. According to the report, suicide attacks and improvised explosive device (IED) blasts were the leading cause of civilian deaths and injuries over the period. The following is a listing of major bomb attacks in Kabul since early this year. In two separate suicide bomb attacks on July 15 and June 11 against Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development workers in Dar-ul-Aman neighborhood, 23 employees of the ministry were killed and 48 others wounded. On June 4, 14 people, including seven religious scholars, were killed and 17 people injured when a suicide bomber attacked a religious scholars meeting in western Kabul. The meeting issued a Fatwa or religious decree against suicide attacks, war and conflict. On May 30, one police and 10 IS gunmen were killed and five police wounded after the gunmen attacked the Interior Ministry building in fortified area near Kabul airport. Seven people died and 17 others wounded in terrorist attacks against two separate police stations in Kabul in western and central Kabul on May 9. On April 30, 25 people, including nine journalists, were killed and 45 others wounded in two back-to-back suicide bombings in Shash Darak diplomatic district for which the IS group claimed responsibility. On April 22, 60 civilians, including 23 women and nine children, lost their lives and 129 others injured when an IS suicide bomber struck an ID card distribution center which also acted as a voter registration office in western Kabul. Thirty-one civilians died and 65 wounded when an IS terrorist struck New Year celebration in Jamal Mina locality in the city on March 21. On Feb. 24, a national intelligence officer and two civilians were killed and six injured in a suicide bombing in Shash Darak since the officer tried to intercept the terrorist from entering the diplomatic enclave. On Jan. 29, 11 Afghan national army soldiers died and 16 others wounded after five armed IS members attacked 1st Battalion of Army's 111 Capital Division in western Kabul. A member of Taliban insurgent group exploded an explosive-laden ambulance near an old Interior Ministry building, peace council office and a nearby hospital, killing 103 people and injuring 235 others on Jan. 28. On Jan. 20, five Taliban attacked a luxury Kabul Intercontinental Hotel, leaving 42 people, including 17 foreigners, dead and injured 14 others. On Jan. 4, 13 policemen were killed and 16 police personnel and two civilians injured after a suicide bomber targeted a protest in Microryan-e-Chahar neighborhood. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 14:43:39|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Next time when your kids ask you to bring them a star from the sky, you don't have to shrug and walk away. Tell them to wait, instead. A group of Chinese scientists are mulling a bold idea to capture a small near-Earth asteroid, which might be a potential threat, and bring it back to Earth to exploit its resources. "Sounds like science-fiction, but I believe it can be realized," said Li Mingtao, a researcher at the National Space Science Center under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Li and his team raised the audacious idea in a contest of innovative future technologies recently held in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, and entered the finals with another 59 projects. The contest encouraged young Chinese scientists to conceive groundbreaking technologies and trigger innovation. The process could start with a spacecraft carrying a huge bag to wrap a small asteroid and push it back over the Earth. Then it would unfold a heat shield to reduce the velocity of the asteroid when it enters the Earth's atmosphere, and control it to safely land in a no-human zone, Li explained. Huang Wei, chief engineer at an institute of the China Academy of Space Technology, said the idea is very creative and could help promote the development of space technologies. Li said many key technologies would have to be tackled to achieve the goal. One challenge would be finding a suitable target. The smaller an asteroid, the more difficult it is to discover. Telescopes on the ground can only find small asteroids when they come very close. Li is working with space engineers at the Qian Xuesen Laboratory of Space Technology, under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, to draw up a plan for a satellite constellation on the heliocentric Venus-like orbit. The satellites will be used to search for and analyze near-Earth small celestial bodies with a diameter around 10 meters. He said the hardest challenge might be the control of the asteroid after it enters the Earth's atmosphere. They must design a heat shield, and drop the speed of the asteroid from 12.5 km per second to about 140 meters per second before it touches down at a designated area. To analyze the feasibility of the plan, Li's team has targeted a small asteroid more than 100 million km away. It's about 6.4 meters in diameter and weighs several hundred tonnes. The asteroid's main components are still not clear, and need more observation and analysis to determine. Li calculated the proper time to launch an asteroid catcher would be 2029, and it could be brought back to Earth in 2034. Some near-Earth asteroids are at risk of colliding with Earth. An asteroid entered the Earth's atmosphere over Russia in February 2013, and exploded above Chelyabinsk, leaving more than 1,500 people injured and about 3,000 buildings damaged. Many scientists believe the extinction of dinosaurs was caused by the collision of an asteroid or a comet with the Earth. However, many asteroids contain resources with great scientific and economic values. The study of the formation and evolution of asteroids might shed light on the origins of the solar system, as well as the origins of life and water on Earth. NASA is reportedly planning to launch a spacecraft in 2022, which is due to arrive at an asteroid named Psyche in 2026. More than 95 percent of Psyche appears to be made of iron, nickel, and other metals such as gold, platinum and copper. "Space mining might become a new engine for the global economy," said Li. So far, the United States and Japan have landed probes on asteroids. Japan has brought back a sample. After sending a probe to Mars in 2020, China plans to explore asteroids and even land on one to conduct scientific research. "Unlike missions to bring samples back, we aim to bring back a whole asteroid weighing several hundred tonnes, which could turn asteroids with a potential threat to Earth into usable resources," said Li. Li, 36, began dreaming of space when he was growing up in the countryside. He liked gazing at the stars, and watching meteors flying across the sky. He studied spacecraft design at university. After joining the National Space Science Center, he took part in China's space science programs, and helped design the trajectory for the Chang'e-2 probe to the second Lagrange point of the Sun-Earth system. The probe is China's farthest flying spacecraft. Li often talked with colleagues about whether they could predict the landing points of shooting stars. One day, an idea struck him: why not catch an asteroid and control it to land at a designated area? "Our analysis shows that maneuvering a small asteroid is feasible in principle, and could bring enormous economic and social benefits," said Li. "Preventing the danger of near-Earth asteroids will also help secure the shared future of mankind," he added. Okay, this is all starting to become more than a little cringeworthy. It seems that if you've been a couple on 'Love Island' and have either walked out of the villa voluntarily, or been turfed out before you were ready to leave, the done thing is to 'make it official' on national television in the aftermath. Sam and Georgia are the latest to indulge in this cringey craze, as Sam asked the ETERNALLY LOYAL Georgia to be his girlfriend on 'Good Morning Britain' this morning. Magazine deal? Well, it worked for Adam and Zara. The question is... do we believe that Georgia is really into Sam and his eyebrows, even now? The fact that she can barely make eye contact with him says it all... #LoveIsland's Sam and Georgia have made it official on #GMB pic.twitter.com/PIjK3UmGlY Good Morning Britain (@GMB) July 23, 2018 See the reaction below... Just because you say it ,doesn't make you loyal. Still don't belevie it will work out . She's fake . li uk (@li338) July 23, 2018 Omg set up or what YY JGee (@JGEE_63) July 23, 2018 Arrrh bless. I give it till Wednesday. Nigel Gordon-Johnson (@NigelGJ) July 23, 2018 Ill give it 3 weeks. Joshua (@WeatherJoshua) July 23, 2018 What a load of total shite shallow stuart (@thejackhorn) July 23, 2018 "We can make a bit of cash here. Let's say we're truly in love, hang about together outside the villa. We can do some tv, make some appearances and stuff. Then, after a few months of making cash, we can split and say it was down to the pressure of our work. Whaddayathink?" TalkingPoint (@point_talking) July 23, 2018 Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 14:43:40|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close CHENGDU, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Three people had been detained for allegedly cutting down endangered Chinese yew trees, forestry police in southwest China's Sichuan Province said Monday. On May 10, forestry bureau staff in Mali Tibetan Autonomous County discovered that some trees had been cut down. An investigation found that three people had been cutting down Chinese yews since July 2017, and hiding the wood near a river. Police detained the suspects and seized 18 trees. The species is listed as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list and experts believe they can grow for 100 to 250 years before reaching maturity. The case is under further investigation. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 14:48:41|Editor: mmm Video Player Close KABUL, July 23 (Xinhua) -- At least 25 militants were killed and five others injured during airstrikes and clashes in Afghanistan on Sunday night, authorities said Monday. In two incidents, 11 militants were killed after U.S. and NATO-led coalition forces launched two drone strikes in Burka and Dahana-i-Ghori districts of northern Baghlan province overnight, provincial Governor Abdul Hai Nemati told Xinhua. Afghan security forces and U.S. and NATO-led coalition troops have increased ground and air offensives against militants in the last few months as the militants frequently attack government interests across the country. In eastern Ghazni province, six Taliban militants lost their lives and five militants injured after they clashed with security forces in Chahar Dewal village of Andar district, provincial Police Chief Farid Ahmad Mashal told Xinhua. In addition, Afghan air force launched an airstrike against an Islamic State (IS) hideout in Sado Tangai village of Nawa district in Ghazni last night, killing eight IS fighters, he said. A militants' defense fighting position and a vehicle were also destroyed by the sortie, he noted. The Taliban and the IS group have yet to make comments. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 14:48:41|Editor: mmm Video Player Close SEOUL, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A multilateral trade cooperation would be needed to fight against protectionism, which does damage to emerging economies heavily depending on global trade for growth, a South Korean expert said Monday. Emerging economies were feared to be damaged harshly amid trade tensions, Han Jae-jin, senior research fellow at Hyundai Research Institute, said in an interview with Xinhua. South Korea's economy was forecast to be hit hard especially in exports of intermediary goods to major economies, Han noted. The United States triggered a global trade conflict by levying heavy tariffs on imports recklessly from major economies. It was feared to reduce global trade and slump recovery around the world as the tariff imposition encourages foreign governments to retaliate against U.S. companies. "Multilateral cooperation is necessary to break down the trade protectionism," said Han. Han forecast that South Korea would closely cooperate with China through the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations and develop the New Southern Policy, advocated by South Korean President Moon Jae-in to increase cooperation with Southeast Asian nations. South Korea signed the Korea-Central America free trade agreement (FTA), involving five Central American countries, in February. The pact among multiple partners was forecast to take effect by the end of this year. Han expected South Korea to strengthen multilateral trade cooperation with emerging economies as well as partners, with which the country already signed FTAs. The RCEP is a multilateral free trade deal involving the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and six other countries - China, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. The negotiations for the RCEP, launched in November 2012, have advanced in areas including liberalization of goods and services as well as the rules on country of origin. SEOUL, July 23 (Xinhua) -- An influential South Korean progressive lawmaker committed suicide on Monday amid a probe into allegations that he received illegal political fund, according to local media. The body of Rep. Roh Hoe-chan, a floor leader of the minor progressive Justice Party, was found near the entrance of an apartment building in Seoul at 9:38 a.m. local time (0038 GMT). A security guard of the apartment building, where Roh's mother and younger brother lives, reported his finding to police. Police found a suicide note from his jacket left on the building's stairs. Roh said in the note that he accepted fund, which had nothing to do with illegal favors. He said sorry to his family. The three-term lawmaker, known for his clean and reformist image, was estimated to have jumped from the building amid the investigation into suspicions that he received 50 million won (about 44,000 U.S. dollars) from an aide to a power blogger, nicknamed Druking, in March 2016. An independent counsel was looking into the Druking over an opinion rigging scandal, in which the suspect rigged opinion in the cyberspace using an illegal computer program. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 15:08:44|Editor: ZX Video Player Close YINCHUAN, July 23 (Xinhua) - China is strengthening agricultural technology cooperation with Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), authorities have said. On a big screen in the West China Electronic Business Co., Ltd (WCEB), engineers are remote controlling a smart greenhouse system in Dubai to support the local date growing industry. The company, located in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, is a pioneer in technology cooperation with Arab countries. In recent years, the company has been transferring agricultural technologies to the UAE, Oman, Saudi Arabia and other Arab states. Since 2015, the company has sent three groups of engineers to the UAE to conduct field research on the technology. "Greenhouses in northern China are heaters, but in the UAE they are cooling systems," said Han Tao, one of the project managers. To provide tomatoes and melons with a better growing environment in Dubai, Han has brought the company's intelligent greenhouse management system. "Dubai is arid, and our intelligent greenhouse can analyze and adjust humidity, carbon dioxide density and illumination intensity inside the greenhouse to ensure the best growing environment," Han said. The company currently has 141 intelligent greenhouses installed in Dubai, helping solve problems such as labor shortages too. "Our product is cost-effective, and it's a good start for technology cooperation between China and Arab countries," said Wang Zheng, chief technology officer of the WCEB. Besides the greenhouse system, China has also introduced a water-saving system in Abu Dhabi in 2017. "We manage to let every drop of water there count," Han said. In 2015, WCEB engineers and experts from Ningxia University were invited to Dubai to build an experimental intelligent irrigation system in parks growing dates. Growing dates in the open air results in a lack of irrigation or waste of water, but intelligent irrigation systems help avoid this while improving output and saving manpower. The project has received acknowledgement from the local agricultural authority. "Bringing Ningxia's agricultural technology to Arab countries is a long term strategy, and we keep innovating to best combine the technology with the local situation," Han said. To deepen cooperation with Arab countries, China in 2015, established a China Arab States Technology Transfer Center in Yinchuan, capital of Ningxia, with five sub-centers in different Arab countries. "We hope more Arab partners will know about our technological solutions and benefit from them," Wang said. SEOUL, July 23 (Xinhua) -- South Korean men taking paternity leave surged in the first half amid the changing social atmosphere, a government report showed Monday. The number of men, who took time off to help rear children, was 8,463 in the January-June period, up 65.9 percent from the same period of last year, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor. The ministry forecast this year's paternity leave would surpass 16,000 to hit a new record high if this trend continues. The number of men who applies for parental leave for child-rearing has recently increased on the spread of a social trend, called WoLaBal or Work-Life Balance. By domestic law, workers whose children are less than eight or below the second grade of elementary school are allowed to take parental leave for as long as one year. The government provides allowance to workers in parental leave who subscribed to employment insurance. Men who took paternity leave in the first half accounted for 16.9 percent of the total, up from 11.4 percent tallied a year earlier. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 15:53:55|Editor: ZX Video Player Close HEFEI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A shipment of 160 Chinese-manufactured wheels for high-speed trains have arrived in Germany, according to the exporter Magang (Group) Holding Co., Ltd. Monday. Magang said that it is the first Chinese company to have exported high-speed train wheels to Germany. The deal was signed between Magang and German railway company Deutsche Bahn last year. Founded in the 1950s and based in east China's Anhui Province, Magang is China's first train wheel manufacturer and has exported train wheels to over 70 countries and regions. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 16:03:59|Editor: ZX Video Player Close JOHANNESBURG, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The relations between China and South Africa have become an exemplary model for South-South cooperation, Chinese Ambassador to South Africa Lin Songtian has said. The diplomat made the remarks ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping's upcoming state visit to South Africa, where Xi will also attend the 10th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg on July 25-27. The trip is part of Xi's ongoing Middle East and Africa tour, which also includes the United Arab Emirates, Senegal, Rwanda and Mauritius. It is Xi's fourth visit to Africa as Chinese president. "This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of China-South Africa diplomatic ties, and the bilateral relations have grown into a comprehensive strategic partnership over the years," Lin said in a recent interview with Xinhua. On economic and trade front, Lin said that China has been South Africa's largest trading partner for nine straight years, and South Africa is also China's largest trading partner in Africa. Bilateral trade amounted to over 39 billion U.S. dollars in 2017, more than 26 times the value back in 1998. Lin said that Chinese investment in South Africa has exceeded 25 billion dollars. Noting that the South African government is championing the development of special economic zones, he encouraged Chinese companies to make more investment in this area. So far, Chinese automaker FAW's South African plant has already been up and running, and a local factory of China's BAIC Group will roll out its first SUV soon. The two countries have also achieved a lot in terms of mutual connectivity, Lin said, noting that direct flights are running between them and many Chinese commercial vessels have chosen South Africa's Cape of Good Hope as a transit point to Europe. In the financial realm, China's major institutions have established branches or offices in Johannesburg, said the ambassador. In people-to-people exchanges, South Africa hosts the largest number of Chinese students and Confucius Institutes in Africa, and the Chinese language has become part of the nation's educational curricula, Lin said. He said Xi's upcoming trip will be the Chinese president's third state visit to South Africa, while South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will visit China and co-host the Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in September. "Frequent high-level visits are set to inject strong momentum into the development of bilateral relations," Lin said. Lin said that BRICS, which groups Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, has grown into an important force for global governance and a major engine for global economic growth. "How BRICS nations strengthen their political mutual trust, unity and cooperation and how they make their own voices in safeguarding multilateralism will draw much attention during the Johannesburg summit," Lin said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 16:24:01|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close ERBIL, Iraq, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Security forces on Monday sealed off a government building in the northern city of Erbil, after two unidentified gunmen stormed into the building. The incident took place at around 7 a.m. local time (0500 GMT), when two gunmen wounded a policeman at the gate, broke into the building and fired with small arms, Kurdish media net Rudaw cited deputy governor Tahir Abdullah as saying. Kurdish security forces rushed to the scene, cordoned off the area, and started exchange fire with the attackers, Abdullah added. Kurdish special forces later broke into the building, searching for the attackers room by room, he said. As the largest city in northern Iraq, Erbil is both the capital of its namesake province and the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan. No group claimed responsibility for the attack in Erbil, some 350 km north of Iraq's capital Baghdad, which has been relatively calm since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 16:29:04|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close Police officers gather at the crime scene in Toronto, Canada, on July 23, 2018. A man shot 14 people, killing one and injuring 13 others in Toronto's east-end neighborhood before dying after an exchange of gunfire with police, according to CTV Monday. (Xinhua/Li Haitao) OTTAWA, July 22 (Xinhua) -- A man shot 14 people, killing one and injuring 13 others in Toronto's east-end neighborhood before dying after an exchange of gunfire with police, according to CTV Monday. Police Chief Mark Saunders said the shooting was not random and he did not rule out terrorism as a motive. It has not been confirmed whether the shooter was shot down by police or died from a self-inflicted gunshot. The wounded were taken to hospitals, including a young girl, who was in critical condition. Other than the shooter, a woman was killed at the scene. Toronto police have been seeking videos and photos from people nearby. A video from one witness showed a man dressed in black with a hat firing three shots from the sidewalk into at least one shop or restaurant late Sunday. The gunfire happened at 10 p.m. Sunday (0200 GMT Monday) in Greektown, a lively Toronto neighborhood in between Danforth and Logan avenues lined with restaurants and cafes. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 16:39:07|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close BUENOS AIRES, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Protectionist trade measures taken by the United States are "dangerous" to global economic growth and "require immediate international action," said Argentine economist Jorge Marchini on Sunday. "In the last few decades, trade has been the most important engine for global growth; (... the existence of) trade tensions means the global economy is being diverted," Marchini, vice president of the Foundation for Latin American Integration, told Xinhua on the sidelines of the Third G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Buenos Aires. Marchini, also coordinator for the Latin American International Debt Observatory, criticized U.S. threats to increase tariffs on products from countries including China. "Changes to the way trade is structured (increased protectionism) could be very regressive," he said. In June, the United States placed tariffs on aluminum and steel produced in countries including Canada, Mexico and the European Union (EU) before imposing duties on 34 billion U.S. dollars worth of Chinese imports in early July. The expert said that the heightening of tensions caused by the tariffs has created "uncertain conditions" for the future of the world economy, given the interdependent economic relationship between nations. "There are shared value chains and productive conditions linked to world trade...without doubt this is dangerous and so there must be counter actions to avoid protectionism," he added. For Marchini, the United States "must acknowledge multilateralism" and accept there is an international order whose priority must be considered. Escalating trade tensions between the United States and other countries could cause problems that go beyond trade and enter into the political arena, he said. "This may lead to political tensions that could disrupt international balance. This danger exists and must be guarded against with joint actions," underlined Marchini. "The contradictions are not only among world powers but lead to changes in international monetary conditions that hurt Latin American countries. Protectionism affects the development of these countries," he said. Asked about the working group between China and the EU which is currently holding discussions about promoting World Trade Organization (WTO) reform, Marchini indicated several existing issues needed to be addressed. Among those are "asymmetries in international trade" and "the mechanisms of conflict resolution" that must be optimized, he said. But above all, said Marchini, international trade must be shielded from unilateral practices and protectionism. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 16:44:09|Editor: ZX Video Player Close SHANGHAI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A declaration from English teachers has called for forming a consistent English language teaching system in China that stretches from elementary school to college, further promoting graded English reading programs, and utilizing online resources. The declaration on improving English language education in China was issued Sunday at the closing ceremony of the 2018 TESOL International Association China Assembly, held in Shanghai. Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages International Association, commonly known as TESOL International Association, is an organization based in the United States aiming to advance the quality of English language teaching. According to the declaration, English speakers with sufficient professional knowledge and global outlooks are in high demand in the process of improving China's ability to participate in global affairs, further promoting the Belt and Road Initiative, and building a community with a shared future for humanity. The declaration made an eight-point commitment to improve English language education in China, emphasizing coordinated progress in language skills, cultural understanding, and ethical standards of English learners. While learning English, students should be guided to think in cross-cultural terms and establish the consciousness of the community with a shared future for humanity, so as to be the torchbearers in introducing Chinese culture and telling Chinese stories to the rest of the world, the declaration said. The declaration also stressed the need to train professional English teachers and form a better environment for them to develop, as well as increase support for English language education in underdeveloped areas. Themed "English Education in China: Striding into a New Era," the three-day event attracted over 1,800 practitioners and specialists in the field of English language education. The next TESOL China Assembly is scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province next year in July. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 16:54:12|Editor: ZX Video Player Close BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-eight China watchers from 24 countries and regions gathered in Beijing on Monday for the 2018 Symposium on China Studies. Jointly hosted by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the symposium will look at the past 40 years since the launch of China's reform and opening-up. China experts and academics coming from countries including Britain, the Netherlands, France, the United States and India, together with Chinese scholars, are attending the event. The symposium features on three topics, namely new concepts for China's development and new prospects for international cooperation, the Belt and Road Initiative and common development, and the Chinese culture and a community with a shared future for humanity. The Chinese and foreign scholars will head to Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, from Wednesday to Friday, for inspections related to China's internet economy and the building of townships that focus on the development of certain industries. The symposium has been held for six consecutive years, having been attended by 150 internationally influential sinologists and scholars from 56 countries and regions. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 16:59:13|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close MOSCOW, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said Monday it had detained a group of individuals suspected of smuggling weapons into Russia in a joint operation with police and National Guard officials. The group based in Moscow, St. Petersburg and the northeastern city of Yaroslavl is suspected to have set up a channel of smuggling weapons from European Union countries and upgrading and manufacturing firearms and munitions inside Russia, an FSB statement said. In the course of the operation, a total of 380 domestic- and foreign-made firearms were seized, it said. The list included 25 machine guns, 30 assault rifles, 70 submachine guns, 94 carbines and rifles, 158 pistols and revolvers, two anti-tank weapons guns, a 45 mm infantry mortar, an automatic grenade launcher, an improvised explosive device, 15 manual fragmentation grenades, as well as over 4,500 cartridges of various caliber and silencers. At the end of May, the FSB said in a statement that it had carried out searches in 14 Russian regions, foiling the activities of a group of 32 individuals suspected of the acquisition, manufacturing, upgrading and sales of weapons. During the operation, a total of 83 firearms, a number of hand grenades, mortar mines and varied ammunition were seized and the activities of four clandestine arms and munitions workshops stopped, it said. ULAN BATOR, July 23 (Xinhua) -- An international conference on Mongolian culture kicked off here Monday, with the aim to promote Mongolia's heritage globally. The conference is themed "Culture World of the Mongols: Heritage, Values and Arts." The conference aims to discuss how scholars from home and abroad can inject new impetus into Mongolian studies, explore the depths of Mongolian spiritual life through enhanced cultural and art research and nurture young experts in Mongolian studies for the future, said Erdenetsogt Sonintogos, director of the Mongolian State University of Arts and Culture, at the opening ceremony. The two-day event is co-organized by the university and the International Association for Mongol Studies. Scholars from 12 countries including Mongolia, China, Russia, Poland, Turkey and Austria are participating. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 17:09:15|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close Security personnel gather outside Erbil provincial government building at Erbil, Iraq, July 23, 2018. The Kurdish security forces on Monday killed three gunmen who broke into the provincial government building in Iraq's northern city of Erbil, a local security source said.(Xinhua/Yasser Jawad) ERBIL, Iraq, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Kurdish security forces on Monday killed three gunmen who broke into the provincial government building in Iraq's northern city of Erbil, a local security source said. "The Asaiysh forces (Kurdish security forces) regained control on the provincial government building in Erbil after killing two terrorists on the second and another one on the third floor," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. "The troops also managed to release three people who apparently were taken hostages by the attackers, while they continued searching the building to secure the place," the source said. As the largest city in northern Iraq, Erbil is both the capital of its namesake province and the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan. No group claimed responsibility for the attack in Erbil, some 350 km north of Iraq's capital Baghdad, which has been relatively calm since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. However, the security source said the Islamic State militant group could be behind the attack, as the security forces hold the fingerprints of its members. KABUL, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Deputy commander of Islamic State (IS) group in the northern region of the war-battered Afghanistan has been killed, a police spokesman in the northern region said on Monday. "The deputy commander of the terrorist group of Islamic State who used several names including Mullah Sarwar and Qari Rauf to hide his identify was killed in clash with security forces in Darzab district of the northern Jawzjan province on Sunday night," Sayed Sarwar Hussaini told Xinhua. Five more militants were also killed in the crackdown, the spokesman said. Without mentioning the possible casualties of security personnel, Hussaini described Mullah Sarwar as infamous, saying IS militants would lose more grounds after the death of its deputy commander in the northern region. IS militants who are engaged in fighting with government forces and the rival Taliban outfit in Darzab and Qush Tepa district of the northern Jawzjan province are yet to make comment on the report. BANGKOK, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A record haul of nearly 10 million methamphetamine tablets was seized on Sunday on the northern outskirts of Bangkok, a police general said on Monday. Narcotics Suppression Bureau police raided a building in Khlong Luang district of Pathum Thani province, about 40 km north of Bangkok, where an estimated 9,859,000 speed pills were found hidden inside, according to Deputy National Police Commissioner General Pol. Gen. Chalermkiat Srivorakhan. In addition, the police seized 50 grams of crystal methamphetamine alongside nearly 10 million speed pills. Two suspected drug traffickers, identified as Chirawat Chat-ngern and Wathanyu Kaenchai, narrowly escaped on Saturday night. A police helicopter and dogs joined in the hunt for drug suspects who currently remained at large. They had been allegedly hired by those connected with southern Wa rebels who allegedly ran the massive production of the methamphetamine in Myanmar's Shan state, opposite Chiang Rai province in northern Thailand, according to the deputy police chief. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 18:24:39|Editor: ZX Video Player Close BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Local governments in China have entrusted more pension funds for investment as the country faces the challenge of an aging population, a human resource official said Monday. By the end of June, 14 provincial-level regions including Beijing and Shanghai had signed contracts to entrust a total of 585 billion yuan (about 87 billion U.S. dollars) in pension funds to the National Council for Social Security Fund (NCSSF), according to Lu Aihong, spokesperson with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. Of the total, 371.65 billion yuan is already in place and has been invested, Lu told a press conference. The ministry will continue to encourage more regions to put pension fund into investment and at the same time strengthen risk management to secure long-term and stable investment return, he said. As a significant part of the pension reform, pension fund investment aims to tackle the challenge of an aging society and facilitate a fair and sustainable pension scheme. Between January and June this year, the revenue of China's pension, unemployment and occupational injury funds totaled 2.65 trillion yuan, up 19 percent year-on-year, while the total expenses stood at 2.15 trillion yuan, up 18 percent. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 18:29:40|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close BETHLEHEM/JERUSALEM, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A Palestinian boy was killed by Israeli gun fire on Monday morning, after an Israeli military raid into Dheisheh Refugee Camp in the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem. The Palestinian boy, identified as 15-year-old Arkan Mezher, was shot in the chest and heart, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Two were injured and at least three others arrested during the military raid into the camp, as young Palestinians clashed with Israeli forces, said Palestinian sources. Israeli soldiers stormed into a number of homes in the refugee camp before the clashes erupted, they added. Meanwhile, the Israeli military said it was investigating the killing of the Palestinian teenager in the West Bank. A military spokesman said in a statement that the Palestinians "hurled rocks and threw firebombs and grenades at Israel Defense Forces soldiers." "In response, the soldiers used riot dispersal means and .22-caliber rounds, while firing live rounds selectively," the spokesperson added. The Dheisheh camp is located near Bethlehem, an area supposed to be under full Palestinian control but often raided by the Israeli army, which triggers clashes with young Palestinians. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 18:44:43|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close ABUJA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- At least 11 dead bodies have been evacuated following a suicide attack on a local mosque in Nigeria's northeastern state of Borno early Monday, local residents said. Eight others were wounded in the attack at about 5:15 a.m. in Konduga area of Borno, Abubakar Khalid, a survivor said. According to Khalid, a male suicide bomber who entered the mosque during the morning prayer had pretended to be a worshipper before detonating his improvised explosive device. All of the victims were worshippers, said Yunusa Bala, another witness. Bala said seven of the victims died inside the mosque, while two bodies were found at the entrance of the building. "One died on the way to the hospital and one other died at the hospital," he said after assisting victims to the hospital in his van. Victims of the suicide attack were rushed to the Univerity of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) in the capital of Borno, located 43 kilometers to Konduga. Hospital sources told Xinhua by telephone that the victims were admitted at the emergency unit of the facility. Local authorities, including the police, are yet to issue any official statements on the attack. According to local residents, the Nigeria-based terror group Boko Haram, which launched its bloody campaign in 2009, might be responsible for the suicide attack. Despite the efforts by the government and the armed forces to destabilize the group, Boko Haram has been attacking soft targets recently, mostly in the northeast region of the country. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 19:24:56|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- British foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt will pay an official visit to China on July 30 at the invitation of Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang announced Monday. During the visit, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee Yang Jiechi will each meet with the foreign secretary, Geng said at a press briefing. Wang and Hunt will co-host the 9th China-UK Strategic Dialogue and exchange views on bilateral relations and international and regional hotspot issues, according to the announcement. "The China-UK relationship enjoys a sound momentum for development at this point," Geng said. Earlier this year, British Prime Minister Theresa May visited China, marking another round of the annual meeting between the Chinese Premier and the British Prime Minister. Leaders of both countries reached important consensus on pushing forward the "Golden Era" for China-UK relations, he said. Foreign secretary Hunt came to China to hold the China-UK Strategic Dialogue shortly after taking office, showing that the British side attaches great importance to the development of bilateral relations, Geng said. "China also highly values deepening cooperation with the United Kingdom in various fields. We believe that Hunt's visit will enhance political mutual trust and promote greater development of China-UK global comprehensive strategic partnership for the 21st century," said the spokesperson. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 19:34:58|Editor: ZX Video Player Close by Xinhua writer Wang Jiangang UNITED NATIONS, July 23 (Xinhua) -- United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) President Miroslav Lajcak has said that China's continuous support and investment in the United Nations are "fundamental to the functioning and credibility of this organization," particularly at a time when multilateralism is constantly challenged. Lajcak said in a recent interview with Xinhua that China has been actively supporting UN peacekeeping operations. "China contributes more troops to those operations than all other permanent members of the Security Council combined. It is also the second-largest financial contributor to the peacekeeping budget." "China is also playing a leading role in combating climate change and translating the 2030 Agenda into deeds, particularly through its National Plan for the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda and by aligning the 2030 Agenda with its national development strategy," he said. Speaking of China's financial support to the United Nations, the president said that under the current scale of assessments, China contributes 7.921 percent to the UN regular budget (roughly 210 million U.S. dollars yearly) and 10.25 percent of UN peacekeeping budgets (amounting to over 810 million dollars yearly given the current level of peacekeeping activities). "This makes China the second-largest financial contributor to United Nations' peacekeeping operations (second only to the United States) and the third biggest contributor to the United Nations' regular budget after the United States and Japan," he said. "So it goes without saying that China has a critical role to play, ranging from peace to development, and those are the areas where the United Nations and China should continue to enhance their cooperation," said the president. Lajcak also spoke highly of some of China's initiatives and development concepts by saying that "China's initiatives such as Belt and Road and (building a community with a) Shared Future for Humanity are in line with the spirit and value of multilateralism." "The United Nations can serve as a good platform for China to seek broader cooperation with member states," the president added. Whenever the Security Council is divided over some thorny problems and fails to adopt resolutions or make decisions, some UN member or observer states tend to resort to the General Assembly for help or moral support. Regarding this, the president said that the UN Charter confers on the Security Council primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. "At the same time, the General Assembly can hold emergency special sessions and make recommendations aimed at restoring international peace and security if the Security Council is unable to act," he said. "During my presidency, I have resumed the 10th emergency special session twice, at the request of Member States. As President, it is important that I respect the wishes of Member States and ensure that the General Assembly is functioning properly," he said. "That is my primary concern." The 10th emergency special session of the General Assembly centers on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: the ongoing dispute and conflict over the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The session was first convened in 1997 under then UNGA President Razali Ismail. This occurred when the Security Council failed to make a decision on the issue at two different meetings. The session was last resumed on June 13, 2018 to consider a draft resolution entitled "Protection of the Palestinian civilian population," at the request of member states. Concerning how to protect multilateralism, the president said that "we are living in a constantly evolving world, and we face various challenges and uncertainties that transcend national boundaries, such as conflicts, terrorism, climate change, natural disasters, diseases and inequality." "None of us is able to deal with these issues alone," the president said. "It is in our best interest to continue to strengthen the United Nations' system and multilateralism," Lajcak said, adding that "multilateral solutions are a must -- not an option." All member states should believe in and support the work of the United Nations, because it is "the most representative and legitimate intergovernmental organization in the world," he said. "And it has the capacity to unite the world in coping with the challenges that might impact our humanity," the president said. Lajcak admitted that it is natural that sometimes "it is hard to reach consensus" because member states may have different positions. "But at least the United Nations provides a platform and mechanism for Member States to discuss and reach consensus." "Meanwhile, we also need to bring the United Nations closer to people and make it more relevant to their needs. We also need to improve its efficiency and effectiveness. That is why we are reforming the United Nations," he added. When asked how he would comment on the U.S. withdrawal from a number of UN agencies or programs, the president said, "I believe that our collective work to ensure a better world will benefit from more dialogue and collaboration -- not less. In that regard, I would encourage all Member States to remain closely engaged with all United Nations' agencies, programs and processes." Lajcak happily recalled his recent visit to China. What impressed him most was "China's renewed commitment to multilateralism." "This visit further enhanced mutual understanding and cooperation between the United Nations and China on many critical matters, in particular how both could work together on sustaining peace and to achieve sustainable development across the world," he said. "The visit was a success." Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 20:05:07|Editor: ZX Video Player Close Li Zhanshu (2nd L, front), a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, inspects ceramic relics protection in Jingdezhen, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 22, 2018. Li made an inspection tour in Jiangxi Province from July 19 to 23. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen) NANCHANG, July 23 (Xinhua) -- China's top legislator Li Zhanshu stressed the importance of planning, arranging and advancing the work of people's congresses in accordance with the overall work of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the country during an inspection tour in east China's Jiangxi Province from July 19 to 23. Li, chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee and a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, visited Ganzhou, Nanchang, Jiujiang, and Jingdezhen, among others. Li called for dedication to forestall and defuse major risks, carry out targeted poverty alleviation, and prevent and control pollution, as well as secure a decisive victory in finishing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects. During the inspection, Li visited and held symposiums with officials from local people's congresses, discussing how to best serve the overall work of the Party and the country. Li asked them to uphold Party leadership in all aspects and step up the work of people's congresses, making sure the Party's decisions and plans are implemented. Li communicated with locals and officials to better understand the development of the local economy and society and the work of people's congresses during his visit. While visiting Ruijin, where the Long March began, Li shared the education and inspiration he learned from the heroic stories of the Chinese Communists and said the spirit of martyrs must be inherited and the revolutionary tradition must be promoted. He also visited various local enterprises from several different industries, including new energy, electronic information, and aircraft manufacturing, and inspected poverty relief work, environmental protection, and ceramic relics protection. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 20:55:18|Editor: ZX Video Player Close Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan addresses the opening session of the Fifth China-Africa People's Forum in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, July 23, 2018. The forum kicked off in Chengdu on Monday. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao) CHENGDU, July 23 (Xinhua) -- China will continue to maintain the policy of sincerity, affinity and good faith, uphold justice and pursue shared interests, to bring China-Africa relations to a higher level, Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan said Monday. Wang made the remarks during a speech at the opening ceremony of the Fifth China-Africa People's Forum in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu. "Chinese people and African people are as close as family members sharing fortune and hardships and are natural allies," said Wang, adding that since the Johannesburg summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2015, China-Africa cooperation has yielded abundant fruits and China-Africa relations have entered a new era. "After all, state-to-state relations must be implemented by people and people-to-people exchanges between China and Africa have a broad prospect in building a closer community with a shared future for China and Africa," Wang said. He called on social organizations and personnel from China and Africa to promote political mutual trust, work for mutual benefit in economy, learn from each other's cultures, and coordinate in multilateral interaction. Wang also met with Vincent Meriton, president of Parti Lepep and vice president of Seychelles and Clement Mouamba, prime minister of the Republic of Congo, respectively. During his meeting with Meriton, Wang said leaders of China and African countries would develop a blueprint for closer China-Africa relations during the Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, which will be held in September. He said China stands ready to work with Seychelles to deepen mutual trust, enhance experience exchanges on governance, implement a policy of sincerity, affinity and good faith, and cooperate on the construction of the Belt and Road, to benefit the people as soon as possible. Meriton said cooperation between the two countries, as well as Africa and China, has established an example for an equal, fair, and reasonable global order by adhering to the idea of equality, respect, and win-win cooperation and Seychelles hopes to cement the people-to-people friendship with China. During his meeting with Mouamba, Wang said China supports the Republic of Congo's efforts to achieve prosperity and hopes the two sides can make joint efforts to push forward people-to-people cooperation between the two countries as well as China and Africa. Mouamba said the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and other relevant meetings have unveiled the traits of Africa-China cooperation which are sincerity, unity, pragmatism, and win-win result. The Republic of Congo is grateful for the aid China has provided and stands ready to forge pragmatic cooperation in various fields, to make progress on the Belt and Road Initiative and build a community with a shared future for China and Africa, he said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 21:00:20|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close ABUJA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria has confirmed seven people killed and seven others wounded following a suicide attack on a local mosque in the northeastern state of Borno early Monday. The wounded have been evacuated to a local hospital in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno, said Bello Dambatta, head of rescue operations at the State Emergency Management Agency. The remains of the male suicide attacker who wreaked the havoc were among those evacuated from the scene of the attack in Konduga, 43 kilometers to Maiduguri, Dambatta told reporters. The attacker had entered the mosque during the morning prayer, pretending to be a worshipper before detonating the improvised explosive device strapped to his back, said Dambatta and local residents who witnessed the attack. Ali Kolo, head of a local vigilante group in Konduga, said a child was among the wounded victims. "It is not clear how the suicide bomber infiltrated the town and attacked the mosque," Kolo said, adding the building collapsed during the explosion, and the victims were evacuated from the rubble. Local residents, however, said 11 dead bodies were evacuated due to the magnitude of the blast. Yunusa Bello, a resident who witnessed the blast, said all of the victims were worshippers at the mosque. Bala said he saw bodies of seven of the victims who died inside the mosque, while two bodies were found at the entrance of the building. "One died on the way to the hospital and one other died at the hospital," he said after assisting victims to the hospital in his van. Hospital sources told Xinhua by telephone that the victims were admitted at the emergency unit of the facility. No group has claimed responsibility for the blast but local residents suspected the Nigeria-based terror group Boko Haram, which launched its bloody campaign in 2009 to have carried out the attack. Despite the efforts by the government and the armed forces to destabilize the group, Boko Haram has been attacking soft targets recently, mostly in the northeast region of the country. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 21:00:21|Editor: ZX Video Player Close SHENZHEN, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Five suspects in connection with a jeweler robbery case in Hong Kong have been captured in south China's Shenzhen City, police said Monday. A jewelry and watch store was raided in Tsim Sha Tsui district of Hong Kong on the morning of July 1, with 33 luxury watches and six bracelets worth 23 million Hong Kong dollars (2.9 million U.S. dollars) stolen. In cooperation with their counterparts across the border in Hong Kong, police in Shenzhen caught three suspects, including two men from Hong Kong, in Longgang District on July 17. They also seized 12 watches and 1.74-million-Hong Kong dollars in cash. Another two men, who allegedly helped sell the stolen goods, were apprehended later in Luohu and Futian districts. Several other suspects were captured in Hong Kong. Further investigation is underway. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 21:10:25|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close MOGADISHU, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Somali extremist group al-Shabab attacked a military base in southern Somalia early Monday, killing unknown number of soldiers, officials said. A senior military commander confirmed the 5 a.m. attack in Sanguni, 50 km north of Kismayo, adding the Somali National Army (SNA) soldiers repulsed the attack. The militant group said its fighters first attacked the military base with a vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) and then stormed and later took control of the base, killing several soldiers while other ran into the forest. However, the commander who declined to be named, said the militants destroyed the truck bomb before it could reach the military base. "There was heavy fighting between the soldiers and the militants but we managed to foil the attack," said the SNA official. Independent sources said at least three soldiers and seven al-Shabab militants were killed during the attack. Sources said the death toll could be higher due to heavy fighting that ensued. The latest attack comes amid heightened security in the Somali capital following the deployment of more security forces and erection of security roadblocks along key roads. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 21:15:26|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close RAMALLAH, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) said on Monday that the recently approved Israeli nation-state law violates all bases for peace in the Middle East. "The law aims at destroying the two-state solution and replacing it with an apartheid regime," Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the PLO, told reporters in his office in Ramallah. The adoption of the Jewish Zionist narrative without consideration of the Arab Palestinian narrative "transforms the conflict from a political one to a religious one," Erekat said. According to the new Israeli law, the Palestinian people on the Israel-occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem, have no right to self-determination. The top PLO official also accuses the U.S. government of aiding and abetting the Israeli law. The U.S. is a "full accomplice" in this law, which is a tool of its "Deal of the Century," he said, calling it "a racist and politically blind law." Riad Mansour, Palestinian representative at the UN, has held a meeting with the legal department of the UN General Assembly, over Israel's UN membership after it approved the law, Erekat said. "The Israeli occupation, war crimes and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinian people in the Palestinian territories is going to end and fail eventually," he warned. The Israeli parliament approved the controversial Jewish Nation-State Basic Law, which constitutionally enshrines the identity of Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people, by a 62-to-55 vote last week. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 21:30:29|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close JUBA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan on Monday reiterated its commitment to the ongoing peace talks in Khartoum, dispelling fresh doubts and fears by the U.S. that President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar lack requisite leadership needed to bring peace. Mawien Makol Ariik, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman, said Kiir has already demonstrated commitment and leadership at the peace talks mediated by the Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir after having said he will agree to the outcome of the peace talks. "We have already taken steps to bring peace and I don't think anybody can doubt President Kiir's commitment to bring peace to South Sudan," Makol told Xinhua in Juba. He said the South Sudanese people need continued support from the U.S to bring peace at the round of talks overseen by the East African bloc Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) which mediated the now weakened 2015 peace agreement. This came after the Donald Trump administration in a statement on Sunday expressed deep concerns and doubts over the two warring leaders reaching peace in Khartoum in addition to the talks lacking inclusivity. "We are deeply concerned about the direction of the current peace process, a narrow agreement between elites will not solve the problems plaguing South Sudan," it said, adding that civil society, women and religious leaders should be included in the peace process. "South Sudan's political leaders including President Kiir and SPLM-IO leader Machar have not demonstrated the leadership required to bring genuine peace and accountable governance to South Sudan," the White House said. It further disclosed that Washington will not be guarantor of any agreement and will not fund or call for additional United Nations resources to support the transitional government in the absence of a sustained, demonstrated commitment to peace, inclusivity, financial accountability and good governance. The South Sudan warring parties prior to postponing talks in Khartoum for further consultation already agreed to permanent ceasefire, security arrangements and have expressed commitment to hammer out the latest details on the governance and power-sharing agreement which will produce five vice presidents and increase the number of parliamentarians to 550. South Sudan descended into civil war in late 2013, and the conflict has created one of the fastest growing refugee crises in the world. A 2015 peace agreement was shattered when the warring parties renewed fighting in July 2016 in the capital, forcing rebel leader Riek Machar to flee into exile. The UN estimates that about 4 million South Sudanese have been displaced internally and externally. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 21:35:31|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Clashes in Ethiopia's central Oromia regional state have left at least six people dead, an Ethiopian official said on Monday. Alemayehu Ejigu, Commissioner, Oromia Police Commission, said clashes in the weekend over ownership of a park in Goba city, 416 kilometers east of Ethiopia's capital city Addis Ababa, left at least six dead and an undetermined amount of property damage, reported state affiliated media outlet Walta Information Center. He further said the death toll from the clashes could increase as there are several others with critical injuries, with regional and federal security forces currently deployed in the area to prevent a recurrence of the violence. Witnesses who spoke to Xinhua said the park had been used as a spot for Ethiopian Timket (Epiphany) celebrations by a mostly migrant Christian population but locals who are mostly Muslims wanted to build a statue to a local hero on the same spot. The dispute turned into bloody clashes over the weekends with the two sides using rocks, sticks and knives to fight each other. Ethiopia is a heavily religious country with about 98 percent of the East African country's estimated 100 million population professing to follow a religion. Muslims make up about 33 percent of the population and are generally well integrated into the wider Ethiopian society, although in recent years the Ethiopian government has warned of a danger of rise in extremism among a section of the Muslim community. Christians of various denominations make up more than 60 percent of Ethiopia's population and generally live in harmony with their Muslim peers. However, disputes over land rights and resource sharing have at times taken on a religious character leading occasionally into deadly clashes. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 21:45:35|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Monday called for concerted efforts in building effective education system so as to create a better socioeconomic and political future. Ahmed, who met more than 3,000 Ethiopian university teachers on Monday, stressed that the education sector should effectively perform its role in harnessing the country's burgeoning youth population. Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous nation with more than 100 million population, has a burgeoning youth as more than 70 percent of its total population categorized under 30 years of age, according to figures from the Ethiopian government. Ahmed, while discussing with representatives of more than 50 public higher education institutions in the capital Addis Ababa, also urged scholars to take the lead in harnessing the demographic dividend of the East African country's youth population. Ahmed, in relations to the recent waves of unrest that affected the country since the second half of 2016 mainly attributed to challenges related with corruption and maladministration, stressed that bad-governance and conflicts are manifestations of ineffective education system. Noting academic freedom as the founding pillar to instill effective education system in the country, Ahmed also revealed his administration's readiness to reemploy dozens of scholars who were sacked from their role due to strong criticism against the Ethiopian government over the years. The Ethiopian Ministry of Education earlier this month had revealed that in excess of 170,000 graduates will join Ethiopia's working force after graduating from public higher education institutions in the coming few months period. The Ethiopian government had also recently introduced the university-industry linkage initiative as it envisaged to improve employment opportunities as well as to bridge the gap between demand and supply in the country's employment sector. An Iranian military truck carries a missile during a parade on the occasion of the annual Army Day on April 18, 2018, in the Iranian capital Tehran. (AFP photo) TEHRAN, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Defense Ministry on Monday launched the mass production of an indigenous air-to-air missile, official IRNA news agency reported. The mass production of missile Fakour, which can be mounted on all types of fighter jets, was inaugurated by Iran's Defense Minister Amir Hatami. "Many countries just import the technology but cannot improve it to make new version of the missile according to their needs. However, Iran, as a missile producer, has the ability to do so," Hatami was quoted as saying in the opening ceremony. The enemies imagine that they can deprive Iran of its interests and resources, but ignorant of the fact that Iran will resist any bully and sanction with all its power, he said. Any threat against the country will receive a proportional response, Hatami warned. According to the minister, radar-based Fakour is a state-of-the-art medium-range missile which can fight off various types of intruding jets, Tasnim news agency reported. The new missile production by Iran comes after the U.S. calls to contain the country's missile developments. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:05:39|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte delivers his third State of the Nation Address at the Philippine House of Representatives in Quezon City, the Philippines, July 23, 2018. Rodrigo Duterte vowed on Monday to intensify his administration's war on illegal drugs, saying the fight against drug dealers and users is "far from over." (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali) MANILA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte vowed on Monday to intensify his administration's war on illegal drugs, saying the fight against drug dealers and users is "far from over." The president said in his third State of the Nation Address that the war against illegal drugs "will not be sidelined," and promised the campaign "will be as relentless and chilling." "These drug dealers know fully well that their business is against the law. They know the consequences of their criminal acts, especially when caught in flagrante delicto and they violently resist arrest. They know that illegal drugs waste away lives, destroy families, and ruin relationships," Duterte added. Duterte launched the anti-drug crackdown after he took office in June 2016 to wipe out the drug trade in the country. Data from the Philippine government showed that 4,354 suspects have died in the Duterte administration's war on drugs compared to 147,802 that have been arrested in 102,630 anti-drug operations conducted from July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2018. And to his critics, Duterte said he would not be dissuaded from continuing his war on drugs. During the less than one-hour speech, Duterte also vowed to combat corruption. "Corruption is like a leech that it bleeds the government of funds programmed for its infrastructure and other social development projects. It saps the morale or the morale of dedicated and honest government workers," he said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:05:39|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close TEHRAN, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Ministry on Monday condemned the recent anti-Iran remarks by the U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as "baseless and unfounded." The hypocritical and worthless remarks made by Pompeo were merely part of propagandist hype, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Bahram Qasemi said in a statement. On Sunday, Pompeo told a gathering of a group of Iranian-American in California that "the level of corruption and wealth among Iranian leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government." "These remarks, more than ever, reveal the utter helplessness of the U.S. government after its illegal withdrawal from the nuclear deal and its failure to achieve the goals of this unwise and one-sided move which made Washington globally isolated," Qasemi was quoted as saying by the Ministry's website. "Such words are precisely in line with the United States' long-term policy of destabilizing the region, which is a violation of its international obligations," he added. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:05:39|Editor: ZX Video Player Close BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- As rainfall continued to batter northern China, relevant departments have been required to make necessary preparations for possible disasters caused by the rain. China's Ministry of Emergency Management (MEM) on Sunday called for better efforts to mitigate disasters and reduce casualties during the flood season. MEM's Vice Minister Huang Ming said that late July and early August is a "critical stage" for fighting floods and providing relief. The Yellow River Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, the second longest river in China, issued a new alert for floods in its upper reaches Monday morning. The water level in the section of Lanzhou, the capital city of northwest China's Gansu Province, along the Yellow River, has risen rapidly due to heavy rain. A hydrologic station located in Lanzhou recorded a water flow of 2,700 cubic meters per second at 5:00 a.m. Monday morning, and the figure rose to 3,600 cubic meters per second at 8:00 a.m. The headquarters has asked relevant departments in the upper reaches of the Yellow River to strengthen precautions against floods and landslides, as well as evacuate people from affected areas, and enhance monitoring along the river and dikes. Safety personnel have been required to promptly update and report information regarding floods, while reservoir management agencies have also been demanded to release flood waters according to instructions. The water resources department of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province said Monday that water levels of the main stream of the Heilongjiang River are currently higher compared to the same period in history, due to lingering rainfall. Water levels of several main streams have already exceeded the warning level. The provincial meteorological observatory forecast rainstorms and high winds in the following days in the province. In northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, more than 5,200 residents have been evacuated as torrential rain has battered Helan Mountain since Sunday. The region saw heavy rain between Sunday night and Monday morning. The maximum rainfall during this period reached 277.6 millimeters in Helan Mountain, and floods have formed in the eastern areas at the foot of the mountain. The regional flood control and drought relief headquarters have organized relevant departments including public security, fire, water resources and traffic to evacuate residents from affected areas. An auxiliary police officer remains missing after being washed away by floods during the evacuation. A search operation is underway. An injured police officer is also receiving treatment at the hospital. In north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, floods triggered by torrential rain have left 12 people dead and three others missing, local authorities said Monday. The regional meteorological observatory has issued a red alert for rainstorms, warning that rainfall will continue in the following days and may cause floods and landslides in cities and towns. Inner Mongolia has been hit by heavy rain since the flood season started this month. A number of roads and hydrological facilities have been damaged. More than 338,000 residents and over 157,000 hectares of crops have been affected by heavy rain. More than 300 houses have been destroyed, and a total of 9,307 people have been relocated, according to the local authorities. The direct economic losses in the region were estimated at 637 million yuan (94 million U.S. dollars). Meanwhile, Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Province are expecting heavy rain on Monday and Tuesday, under the influence of Ampil, the 10th typhoon this year, the Beijing Meteorological Service said Monday. Beijing has issued a blue alert warning against mud flows and landslides in mountainous areas. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:20:42|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close BELGRADE, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Cyprus supports Serbia's aspiration to become the next member of the European Union (EU), as well as its dedication to preserving its territorial integrity and sovereignty, visiting President of the Cypriot Parliament Demetris Syllouris said Monday at Serbia's parliament. Syllouris told MPs that this first visit of a Cypriot speaker to Serbia in the history of their relations aims to strengthen "extraordinary, fraternal relations" between the two countries that stretch back to the establishment of the Non-Aligned Movement. "I welcome the progress Serbia has made in the course of the accession negotiations and expect the process to continue by opening and closing new chapters, as described in the conclusions of the European Council from June 2018," he said, referring to the document that reaffirms EU's commitment to the enlargement process and to the European perspective of the Western Balkans. "Cyprus sees the accession of Serbia as the prerequisite for the Union to strengthen stability in the Balkans, which is inextricably linked to security and stability throughout Europe. We support this position in the institutions of the European Union," Syllouris continued. He said that Cyprus also strongly supports Serbia's sovereignty and territorial integrity and is consistent in its decision to reject recognizing Serbia's southern province of Kosovo and Metohija that unilaterally seceded in 2008. Comparing Serbia's problem to that of Cyprus, Syllouris also thanked Serbia for the support to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Cyprus. "I am sure that this visit will further strengthen our parliamentary cooperation and I hope that together we will lay the foundations for even more fruitful development of the relations of our countries in all areas, and for the benefit of our people," he concluded. Syllouris also had a bilateral meeting with his counterpart Maja Gojkovic, where the two signed a memorandum of understanding between two parliaments aiming to strengthen parliamentary and overall relations, according to a statement issued by the Serbian parliament. Thanking Cyprus for its support, Gojkovic said that Serbia also supports the territorial integrity of Cyprus. The "solution between the two communities there should be achieved by political means," she said. Gojkovic and Syllouris called for stronger economic cooperation, stressing the importance of the upcoming business forum to be held in Nicosia by the end of this year. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:25:46|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close ERBIL, Iraq, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Kurdish security forces Monday ended an attack by three gunmen who broke into the provincial government building in Iraq's northern city of Erbil, provincial official and a security source said. Nawzad Hadi, the governor of Erbil, told reporters at a press conference that "three gunmen at 7:12 a.m. (0412GMT) broke into the provincial building, but the security forces managed to kill them all and regained control of the building after a counter attack that resulted in the killing of a civilian employee during the battle." It was not immediately clear whether the civilian was killed by the gunmen or was caught in cross-fire with the security forces, Hadi said, adding that four security members were also wounded by the clashes. Kurdish media reports identified the dead employee as Farhan Eliya Ibrahim, from the Christian minority who worked for years serving tea in the building. "This is a terrorist act which will not undermine the will of the people of Kurdistan, and we reassure the citizens that the situation is under control," Hadi added. For his part, Tariq Nouri, head of Asaiysh forces (Kurdish security forces), told the press conference that "the three gunmen have been identified as Erbil Kurdish residents, their names and addresses are now known to the Kurdish security forces." Nouri declined to disclose further information about the attackers as an investigation into the incident is underway by the security forces. Earlier in the day, Erbil's deputy governor Tahir Abdullah, said two gunmen wounded a policeman at the gate, broke into the building and fired with small arms on the security forces which rushed to the scene and surrounded the building. Kurdish special forces later broke into the building, searching for the attackers room by room, he said. Abdullah believed that the attackers are members of sleeper cells of the extremist Islamic State (IS) group as they shouted "Allahu Akbar" in Arabic, or God is Greatest, which is usually used by IS extremist militants. Hours later, a local security source anonymously told Xinhua that "the Asaiysh forces regained control on the provincial government building in Erbil after killing two terrorists on the second and another one on the third floor." "The troops also managed to release three people who apparently were taken hostages by the attackers, while they continued searching the building to secure the place," the source said. As the largest city in northern Iraq, Erbil is both the capital of its namesake province and the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan. No group claimed responsibility for the attack in Erbil, some 350 km north of Iraq's capital Baghdad, which has been relatively calm since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. However, the security source said the Islamic State militant group could be behind the attack, as the security forces hold the fingerprints of its members. During the past months, hundreds of IS militants fled their former urban strongholds in Mosul, Salahudin Province and Hawija area in the west of Kirkuk, after Iraqi forces took over these regions in major offensives. On Dec. 9, 2017, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi officially declared full liberation of Iraq from IS after Iraqi forces recaptured all the areas once seized by the extremist group. However, remnants of IS militants are still capable of carrying out attacks and suicide bombings against security forces and civilian targets from time to time. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:30:47|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close SANAA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A suspected U.S. drone strike killed four alleged al-Qaida members in Yemen's central province of Marib, a provincial security official said on Monday. The strike took place on Sunday, destroying a small house inside a farm in al-Rawda district and killing four men, the official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. The U.S. military has carried out airstrikes against al-Qaida fighters across Yemen since U.S. President Donald Trump approved expanded military operations against the group. On May 15, a U.S. drone strike hit a vehicle in Yemen's southeastern province of Shabwa, killing four al-Qaida operatives, according to local security officials. The al-Qaida network, mostly operating in Yemen's eastern and southern provinces, is responsible for many high-profile attacks against security forces in the war-torn country. The Yemen-based al-Qaida branch, seen by the U.S. as the global terror network's most dangerous branch, has exploited years of deadly conflicts between Yemen's government and Houthi rebels to expand its presence, especially in southeastern provinces. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:40:50|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close MOSCOW, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Russian and Iranian senior officials held talks here on more potential bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the energy sector, the Russian Energy Ministry said Monday. According to a ministry statement, during the meeting Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Iranian Petroleum Minister Bijan Zanganeh discussed the possibility of Russian oil and gas companies' participation in mining projects in Iran and cooperation in joint infrastructure gas projects. They also touched upon cooperation in multilateral formats, in particular, through the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), it said. "Regular contacts at the highest level create favorable conditions for strengthening bilateral cooperation both at the interagency level and at the corporate level," Novak said. In March, Russia and Iran signed a string of cooperation agreements in various fields including the energy sector. The two sides paid particular attention to bilateral projects in the nuclear power industry and agreed to continue coordinated efforts to stabilize international markets. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:40:52|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close DUBAI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Monday "strongly condemned" the "terrorist attack" which targeted a security checkpoint in the Buraidah District of the Qassim Province in central Saudi Arabia, UAE state news agency WAM reported. A member of Saudi Arabia's security forces and a foreign citizen were killed in the attack. In a statement, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in Abu Dhabi said that the Gulf Arab state strongly condemns these "criminal acts" that threaten international security and stability. The ministry also reiterated its persistent and principled position against all forms and manifestations of terrorism that target all, regardless of their religion and race. The ministry expressed the UAE's condolences and solace to the government and the people of Saudi Arabia as well as to the families of those killed. The UAE is part of the Saudi-led coalition which has been fighting anti-government Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015, as a well as of the Arab Quartet. The latter term describes the group of four Arab countries which has been spearheading since June last year the diplomatic and economic isolation of Qatar which the quartet blames of supporting "terrorism." Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:40:53|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close KIGALI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's signed article published Saturday in the mainstream Rwandan newspaper The New Times has met with great acclaim in the African country. Titled "China and Rwanda: A Friendship Higher than Mountains," the article praised Rwanda's accomplishments in its development and indicated directions for future cooperation. The article, which appreciates the Rwandan people's brave and hardworking nature, shows that Xi cares about the Rwandan people, said Gerald Mbanda, head of the Media Affairs and Communication Department at Rwanda Governance Board. As the first Chinese president to visit Rwanda, Xi said he was looking forward to the visit. That, Mbanda told Xinhua, indicates Xi's hope to bring bilateral relations to a new level. Citing the statement that China supports the development path Rwanda has independently chosen, Mbanda said that shows China's respect for the African country. It is also encouraging to the Rwandan people that Xi voiced China's support for Rwanda, as the rotating chair of the African Union, to play a bigger role in upholding African unity and promoting its development, Mbanda said. "There is no other visiting leader who has written an article of this kind! That's why it is classy and considerate!" said the official. Ladislas Ngendahimana, a political scholar, said he had read the article with a keen interest. "I really appreciated President Xi Jinping for his openness and commitment to developing cooperation between China and Rwanda based on mutual trust and respect." In the eyes of Magnus Mazimpaka, chief editor of Taarifa, a news website in Rwanda, major highlights of the article include the proposal to advance cooperation in such areas as infrastructure, mining and education. After reading the article, Emmanuel Nkangura, a Rwandan journalist with Isango Star Radio, said the very impressive content reflects what is happening on the ground, which shows that Rwanda-China ties are growing stronger. "The article provides an opportunity for both the Rwandan and Chinese people to know the positive impacts of the bilateral relations," he added. "It is indeed 'a friendship higher than mountains,' as Xi Jinping stated," he said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:45:54|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close NAIROBI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations on Monday urged African states to develop regulations in order to spur e-commerce growth. Mukhisa Kituyi, Secretary-General of UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), told journalists in Nairobi that the continent lags the rest of the world in the uptake of digital trade due to lack of a conducive ecosystem. "Africa needs to develop laws to enhance on integrity of procurement on electronic platforms so that consumer can trust e-commerce platforms," Kituyi said during the African Union e-commerce conference in Nairobi. The three-day event aims to provide a platform to enhance understanding of the current state of e-commerce in Africa, the challenges and opportunities, build on the experience of actors on the ground as well as other regions of the world, and to discuss key elements of a roadmap for the development of a African protocol on intellectual rights to facilitate emergency of African players. Kituyi called for adequate regulations to protect consumers who order goods electronically and as well as delivery mechanism to ensure seamless connectivity of goods procured online. He noted that some of the rules that need to be introduced should ensure that e-commerce firms are compelled to deliver goods paid for by consumers as they have promised. According to UNCTAD senior official, states should also develop online dispute mechanism so that contracts can be honored by all parties involved including in the case of cross border trade. He noted that e-commerce has numerous advantages over traditional platforms because it can provide visibility for small scale producers to global markets. "However, for the small business community to benefit they need to develop products that are of global standards," he said. Kituyi said that Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria lead the continent in the performance of e-commerce as they have all recorded approximately 6 percent of overall trade as being conducted in digital platforms as at the end of 2017. He said that Kenya has one of the most advanced mobile money payments systems in the world with about 85 percent of adults having a mobile bank accounts. "However, high financial inclusion is not a sufficient condition to catalyze e-commerce especially in the rural areas that lack physical infrastructure to provide efficient delivery systems," said Kituyi. Kiyuti who is also a former Kenyan trade minister decried the lack of domestic e-commerce platforms in the continent. He said that local e-commerce platforms are likely to show more fidelity to local producers and boost domestic productivity as opposed to foreign players that have a bias towards selling more international goods locally. Kituyi noted that it is not too late for Africa to catch up to the rest of the world in digital commerce because the region has the intellectual capacity to do so. "What is required is dialogue between private sector, government and academia on the right policies required to be implemented," he added. The UNCTAD official also called for reforms in the education sector so that graduates produced are matched to current market demand. He said that currently there is a deficit of relevant skills that are required to transform the continent into an economic giant. In order to catalyze the e-commerce trade, UNCTAD and the Africa Union have jointly organized the First UNCTAD Regional eCommerce week that will take place from Dec. 10 to 14 in the Kenya capital city of Nairobi. Under the theme "Empowering African economies in the digital era", the conference will examine the ways to enhance the ability of African countries to engage in and benefit from e-commerce and the evolving digital economy. Kituyi said that the forum will offer a targeted program for policymakers from African countries and other stakeholders to identify innovative ways for shaping the African digital economy. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:45:55|Editor: ZD Video Player Close Vehicles transporting Syrian refugees and their belongings are seen crossing the Syria-Lebanon border in Qalamoun, north of Damascus, capital of Syria, on July 23, 2018. Around 850 Syrian refugees from Arsal in Lebanon returned to their homeland on Monday through Zemrani border crossing. Departing Syrian refugees were registered in a center at Wadi Hemayed and they moved towards Zemrani border crossing using cars while carrying luggage, furniture, home appliances and ready-made houses, reported the Lebanese National News Agency. (Xinhua/Ammar Safarjalani) BEIRUT, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Around 850 Syrian refugees from Arsal in Lebanon returned to their homeland on Monday through Zemrani border crossing. Departing Syrian refugees were registered in a center at Wadi Hemayed and they moved towards Zemrani border crossing using cars while carrying luggage, furniture, home appliances and ready-made houses, reported the Lebanese National News Agency. The return of refugees was carried out in cooperation with the Lebanese General Security and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Lebanon under strict supervision of the Lebanese army. The Lebanese Red Cross (LRC) placed two ambulances close to the meeting point in Wadi Hemayed with medical workers and a field hospital. LRC offered medical services to 65 people since the start of the process till it ended, said a statement by local news agency Elnashra. On June 28, the first round of 400 refugees returned to their homeland from Arsal to Qalamoun via Wadi Hmayyed. Meanwhile, around 400 refugees returned to their homeland on July 7 from camps in Arsal to Qara, Jarajir and Ras al-maara in Syria. Around 1,000 Syrian refugees returned from Shabaa to Golan Heights over two months ago. The Syrian refugees' crisis has been a hot topic in Lebanon lately. More than one million Syrian refugees are registered with the UNHCR in Lebanon. The government estimated the true number of Syrians in the country to be 1.5 million. Around 850 Syrian refugees from Aarsal in Lebanon returned to their homeland Monday though Zemrani border crossing. (Xinhua photo) BEIRUT, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Around 850 Syrian refugees from Arsal in Lebanon returned to their homeland on Monday through Zemrani border crossing. Departing Syrian refugees were registered in a center at Wadi Hemayed and they moved towards Zemrani border crossing using cars while carrying luggage, furniture, home appliances and ready-made houses, reported the Lebanese National News Agency. The return of refugees was carried out in cooperation with the Lebanese General Security and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Lebanon under strict supervision of the Lebanese army. The Lebanese Red Cross (LRC) placed two ambulances close to the meeting point in Wadi Hemayed with medical workers and a field hospital. LRC offered medical services to 65 people since the start of the process till it ended, said a statement by local news agency Elnashra. On June 28, the first round of 400 refugees returned to their homeland from Arsal to Qalamoun via Wadi Hmayyed. Meanwhile, around 400 refugees returned to their homeland on July 7 from camps in Arsal to Qara, Jarajir and Ras al-maara in Syria. Around 1,000 Syrian refugees returned from Shabaa to Golan Heights over two months ago. The Syrian refugees' crisis has been a hot topic in Lebanon lately. More than one million Syrian refugees are registered with the UNHCR in Lebanon. The government estimated the true number of Syrians in the country to be 1.5 million. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:55:58|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close GAZA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The only power plant in the Palestinian Gaza Strip stopped operation on Monday due to shortage of fuel, an official in Gaza announced. The plant's halt will affect all aspects of life in Gaza, said Mohammed Thabet, media officer in Gaza's energy distribution company, in a statement. He noted that stopping the station will affect electricity distribution table in the war-torn territory. Thabet said that nine Israeli lines out of 10 are currently providing Gaza electricity with a capacity of 108 megawatts, adding that the line, damaged a few days ago, provided 12 megawatts. The company will make efforts to provide a four-hour cycle of electricity per day, he added. The coastal enclave needs around 500 megawatts of power per day. The power plant operates with one turbine of 25 megawatts, while the Israeli lines provide 120 megawatts and the Egyptian lines, which have been idle for a week, provide 14 megawatts. On July 9, Israel closed the Gaza Strip's main cargo crossing for export and import as part of the measures against Hamas, the Islamic movement that runs the besieged Palestinian enclave, only allowing the entry of food supplies and medicines into Gaza through the terminal. The Israeli decision came in response to the arson kites and helium balloons flying from Gaza into Israel, which caused large fire and losses in the Israeli territory. The sanctions came at a time of escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, created by a blockade imposed by Israel since Hamas violently took over the territory in 2007. Israel said it will not remove its restrictions until arson balloons released by Palestinian protesters during the mass anti-Israel demonstrations, known as the "Great March of Return," stop completely. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 22:56:00|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close NAIROBI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Kenya will rely heavily on modern technologies to boost the capacity of security personnel to detect and thwart emerging threats like cyber-crime, terrorism and influx of contraband goods, a senior official said on Monday. Fred Matiang'i, the Cabinet Secretary for Interior said that modernization of security services through adoption of information and communication technology (ICT) coupled with improved working condition for police is on the cards to boost action on crime. "The national government has invested heavily in security infrastructure and the requisite human resources to enable our police respond effectively to peace and security challenges in the country," Matiang'i said. "Towards this end, we have provided modern equipment to counter terrorism threats, deployed ICT to clean and safeguard our national data for identification and immigration documentation as well," he added. The CS spoke in Nairobi during a national security forum attended by police commanders and regional administrators to evaluate the scope of threats to law and order in the country. He said that improved security is key to realization of President Uhuru Kenyatta's development blueprint dubbed the Big Four Agenda for growth and transformation. Kenya has lately grappled myriad threats to national security that include cattle rustling, terrorist attacks along the border with Somalia, cyber-crime, influx of contraband goods and school riots. Matiang'i said that adequately resourced security officers have been deployed across the country to combat emerging security threats like blockade of tankers ferrying crude oil from Turkana to the refinery in the port city of Mombasa. "Seamless coordination of our security agencies has been prioritized to enhance their capacity to respond to threats linked to resource sharing or incitement from political actors," said Matiang'i. He noted that investments in surgical intelligence gathering are key to thwart grave security threats like armed robberies, terrorism, kidnappings and human trafficking. Enditem SANTA FE, United States, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. state of Utah hopes to build better communication and understanding with China, said Utah State Governor Gary Herbert during the National Governors Association (NGA) meeting that was just concluded here. Giving talks at the NGA meeting in Santa Fe, the capital city of New Mexico State, Herbert said "the final three feet" are vital to building real trust and understanding. "China is halfway around the world from Utah," he said Friday, emphasizing that "the final three feet is where you can sit and talk to each other eye to eye." "At least once a year, we have a delegation going to Beijing or Shanghai. We have two sister states relationships and two sister cities (with China)," he added. The governor said there are about 130 languages spoken in Utah, emphasizing the importance of communication when doing business with the outside world. "That gives us the ability to communicate with the world as we all know some of the challenges we face come from probably the lack of communications," he said. According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, China is Utah's number four export destination. In 2017, total exports from Utah to China amounted to 737 million U.S. dollars, accounting for 6.4 percent of the state's total exports. The governor, who advocates free and fair trade, said the United States should not isolate itself from the rest of the world. "When you look at the purchasing power in the world, 70 percent of the purchasing power lives outside the border of the United States ... 95 percent of the customers live outside the border of America," he said, adding that doing business in the global market is in the interest of not only the U.S. economy, but also the world economy at large. "I believe in international trade and international business. I believe the marketplace is global in nature ... We need, in fact, to work together and find ways to have international exchange," he said. The NGA Summer Meeting was held from July 19 to July 21. Over 20 U.S. governors attended the event and all 50 U.S. states sent representatives. Delegations from China, Canada, Kenya, Japan and Mexico also participated in the event. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 23:06:02|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian (L) and Libyan Foreign Minister Mohamed Sayala attend a joint press conference in Tripoli, Libya, on July 23, 2018. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Monday said that France will help Libyans hold presidential and parliamentary elections. (Xinhua) TRIPOLI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Monday said that France will help Libyans hold presidential and parliamentary elections. He made his remarks during a joint press conference with Libyan Foreign Minister Mohamed Sayala in the Libyan capital Tripoli, after leaving neighboring Tunisia. "Libyan leaders have pledged in Paris to hold presidential and legislative elections. France will push to help the Libyans go in this direction," the French official said. He said that the Libyan Elections Commission received financial support from the United Nations estimated at one million U.S. dollars to prepare for the upcoming elections. France hosted in May a meeting on Libya with the participation of different Libyan parties to end the political crisis in the country. The parties agreed to hold and commit themselves to "credible" presidential and parliamentary elections slated for Dec. 10. "France continues to support the Libyans to reach a political solution between the political parties," Sayala told the press conference. Despite signing a UN-sponsored peace agreement by the Libyan parties later in 2015, Libya remains politically divided between two governments in the east and the west, both competing for legitimacy. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 23:21:04|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close JERUSALEM, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Israeli exports to China broke a new record in the first half of 2018 and reached 2.8 billion U.S. dollars, up 73 percent year on year, said data by the Israeli Governmental Export Institute on Monday. Israel's total exports, excluding diamonds, rose by 4 percent in January-June to 24.2 billion U.S. dollars, according to the data. The United States and the European Union countries are still the largest and most significant markets for Israeli exports, accounting for 55 percent of the total exports. In addition, Israeli exports to Latin America grew by 13.8 percent. Israeli agricultural exports fell by 6 percent during the period, to 720 million U.S. dollars, and diamond exports fell by 4 percent, to 3.8 billion U.S. dollars. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 23:26:05|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close Former Philippine President and current Representative Gloria Arroyo (C) waves to her colleagues after being elected as new Speaker of the House of Representatives in Quezon City, the Philippines, July 23, 2018. Gloria Arroyo was elected as new Speaker of the House of Representatives on Monday night, replacing the outgoing former speaker Pantaleon Alvarez. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali) MANILA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Former Philippine President and current Representative Gloria Arroyo was elected as new Speaker of the House of Representatives on Monday night, replacing the outgoing former speaker Pantaleon Alvarez. A few minutes before President Rodrigo Duterte was scheduled to deliver his annual State of the Nation Address (SONA) to the joint session of Congress on Monday afternoon, there was an informal voting among House members to install Arroyo as their new leader and remove Alvarez from the position of the Speaker. However, the tug-of-war for House leadership lasted more than an hour due to Alvarez's refusal to step down. After a meeting with President Duterte, Alvarez still attended SONA as the House of Representatives Speaker. The members of the House of Representatives convened again after Duterte delivered his speech to make a formal election, with 244 members present in the session. Around 184 members of the chamber voted for Arroyo's speakership and 12 abstained paving the way for Arroyo's official installation as new House speaker. Both Alvarez and Arroyo are Duterte's political allies. Arroyo, 71, was president of the Philippines from 2001 until 2010. After her presidential term ended she ran for a seat in the House of Representatives. In 2011 Arroyo was arrested on electoral fraud charges but could post bail. She was detained again in 2012 on plunder case for allegedly misusing about 8 million U.S. dollars lottery funds of the state-run Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office during her presidential term. After almost four years detention, Arroyo was released from hospital arrest after the Supreme Court cleared her of plunder. Her release came a month after Duterte took his oath of office in 2016. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 23:36:08|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close BELGRADE, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Serbia will provide grants to 61 municipalities with total worth of 500 million RSD (around 4.96 million U.S. dollars) intended for population policy measures, Slavica Djukic Dejanovic, minister in charge of demography and population policy, said on Monday. According to an official statement, a total of 14 municipalities in autonomous province of Vojvodina (Northern Serbia) were awarded with 100 million RSD (9.9 million dollars), 26 municipalities in southwestern Serbia received 216 million RSD (2.1 million dollars), while Sumadija (Central Serbia) and Western Serbia received 128 million RSD (1.3 million dollars) intended for 28 municipalities. Out of the allocated funds, 63 percent is intended for the reconstruction of preschools and playgrounds, while the remaining part is for financing startup projects for young parents, for pediatricians and gynecological health institutions, as well as for counseling and parenting schools. While summing up Serbia's efforts to cope with negative demographic outlooks since 2016, Djukic Dejanovic said that financial support to the family aims to raise the standard of parents, especially those who have three or four children. In average, Serbia loses more than 30,000 people every year. Figures showed that in 2016, 102,455 Serbian citizens deceased, while only 67,459 were born. This spring, Serbian government adopted a new birth-stimulation strategy that incorporates migration management and care towards the elderly. Djukic Dejanovic said the new population policy measures of the government envisage that families receive monthly financial assistance of around 12,000 RSD (119 U.S. dollars) for the third child, and 18,000 RSD (178.6 U.S. dollars) for the fourth child. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 23:41:10|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close MOSCOW, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Russia and India on Monday called on the international community to continue to work together on combating terrorism "without double standards", the Russian Foreign Ministry said. They made the appeal at the tenth meeting of the Russian-Indian working group on combating international terrorism, which was presided over by the deputy foreign ministers of both countries and attended by representatives of relevant agencies, a ministry statement said. "They reaffirmed their firm stand on the need to consolidate the efforts of the international community, led and coordinated by the UN, in the global fight against international terrorism and extremism based on the norms and principles of international law without any double standards," it said. During the meeting, topical issues of international cooperation in countering terrorism were discussed, including the tasks of preventing terrorism, suppressing material and ideological fueling of terrorist organizations and combating the phenomenon of "foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs)." The parties also assessed the state of terrorist threats in various regions of the world, including the Middle East, Afghanistan, and South, Southeast and Central Asia. They informed each other about the achievements of Russia and India in the field of fighting terrorism, including the development of related legislation. They also discussed the prospects for enhancing cooperation and information exchange in combating terrorism in a bilateral format and at key international venues, including the UN, Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), BRICS, and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the statement added. The working group, created in December 2002, meets regularly in Moscow and New Delhi. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-23 23:56:13|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close by Stefania Fumo ROME, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said Monday that 1,200 migrants have reached Italy from Turkey by sea this year, in spite of a European Union (EU) deal signed in 2016 that was designed to stop the flow of asylum seekers along the so-called Eastern Mediterranean route. "Since the beginning of the year, 1,200 immigrants who arrived by sea from Turkey have disembarked in Italy," tweeted Salvini, who also serves as interior minister and who leads the far-right League party. "The EU gives Turkey 6 billion euros (7 billion U.S. dollars) to control immigration. Something's not right, is someone failing to do what they should?" he tweeted. Speaking at an impromptu televized press conference after donating blood earlier in the day, Salvini said that a recent spate of fatal migrant shipwrecks in the Mediterranean was down to "backlash from (human) traffickers, who... use deflated rubber dinghies, broken-down engines and vessels in desperate conditions." "They are criminals and murderers," Salvini told reporters. Salvini spoke in response to questions about his hardline anti-immigrant policies, which include closing Italy's ports to international humanitarian vessels with rescued migrants on board. "We are working to have fewer departures and fewer arrivals," the right-wing leader explained. "The fewer people leave the fewer will die -- this is what my role as (interior) minister demands." According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 17,838 asylum seekers reached Italy and 1,107 people died or went missing in the attempt between Jan. 1-July 18 this year. This compares with over 93,000 arrivals and 2,221 deaths in the same period last year, according to the IOM. According to EU border agency Frontex, in the first half of 2018 the total number of irregular crossings into the EU nearly halved from a year ago to 60,430, mainly because of lower migratory pressure on the Central Mediterranean route. "The number of migrants arriving in Italy via the Central Mediterranean route in June fell to about 3,000, down 87 percent from June 2017," Frontex said in a statement out Monday. "The total number of migrants detected on this route in the first half of 2018 fell to roughly 16,100, down 81 percent from a year ago." On a global level, record numbers of human beings are on the move due to war and other humanitarian emergencies, with over 40 million internally displaced people and more than 22 million refugees, according to the IOM's 2018 World Migration Report. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 00:06:15|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- At least 1 million people, the majority of whom being women and children, are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance following recent inter-communal conflict in Ethiopia, aid agencies revealed on Monday. International non-governmental organizations in a joint statement issued on Monday stressed that displaced communities in Ethiopia's Gedeo Zone in the Southern region and West Guji Zone in Ethiopia's largest Oromia region "are facing critical gaps in accessing basic services as the majority left their houses with close to nothing." "They are in need of food, shelter, water and psycho-social support. Aid agencies warn that without a scale up of assistance, the situation of the IDPs is likely to further deteriorate," the statement read. In their joint statement, eight international aid agencies that include CARE International, Plan International, Save the Children and World Vision also revealed their appeal "for critical and urgent assistance for close to 1 million people" that have fled their homes following inter-communal violence along the border of the two regional states in Ethiopia. "Given the enormity of the scale and severity of the humanitarian needs, significantly more resourcing is required to ensure we can effectively respond," said Samuel Wood, Humanitarian Director at Save the Children in Ethiopia. Noting the prolonged drought that severely eroded the resilience of communities in Ethiopia over the past few years as well as the current 7.9 million people who are said to be food insecure, the statement also indicated the various challenges that are affecting in responding to the humanitarian needs of the displaced people. The aid agencies, which acknowledged the Ethiopian government's ongoing peace and reconciliation efforts, further called on the government "to expedite the resolution of the conflict among the communities in affected areas and facilitate durable solutions to growing internal displacement." The UN's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) also earlier this month released 15 million U.S. dollars to urgently scale up humanitarian assistance to people affected by escalating inter-communal violence in Ethiopia. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 00:11:16|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close JERUSALEM, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the UN Middle East Envoy Nickolay Mladenov met here on Monday with Gaza on top of their agenda. The meeting between the prime minister and the envoy took place amidst escalating violence along the fence separating Israel and the besieged Palestinian enclave. Netanyahu's office said in a statement that the two discussed "regional issues and the situation in Gaza." Israel's Walla news site reported that Mladenov updated Netanyahu on his talks with Islamic Hamas movement and Egypt to achieve calm along the fence and on humanitarian initiatives to ease the crisis in Gaza. During the weekend, Mladenov helped to broker a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, who runs the Gaza Strip. Gaza Strip has suffered a humanitarian crisis in the wake of a blockade imposed by Israel since 2007. The recent round of violence has cost the lives of at least 135 Palestinians and an Israeli soldier. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 00:16:17|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close ACCRA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo has named Jean Adukwei Mensa, Executive Director of think-thank Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), as the new chair of the country's Electoral Commission (EC), the presidency said in a statement on Monday. The nomination was necessitated by the removal of Charlotte Osei as the EC boss following recommendations by a committee set up to investigate separate complaints brought against Osei alongside two other top EC officials. The committee recommended their removal on the basis of stated misbehavior and incompetence. Akufo-Addo also appointed two new deputy commissioners of the election management committee. The operations of the EC were almost at a halt following the alleged internal rifts and the subsequent removal of the three top officials. The appointment of the new high-ranking members is therefore expected to get the EC back to work as it readies to conduct a referendum for the creation of new administrative regions later in the year. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 00:31:21|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close CHICAGO, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural commodities traded slightly higher on Monday morning, as the EU hunts for feed grain imports of U.S. products. December corn was 1.25 cents higher at 3.7025 U.S. dollars per bushel as of 1530 GMT, September wheat was 1 cent higher at 5.17 dollars, and November soybean was up 0.5 cent at 8.655 dollars. The start of European grain trade helped the CBOT agricultural commodities bounce as European crop estimates decline and end users search for supply. A real and rather dire shortage of feed grain exists across the EU as drought deepens its grip on Germany and the remainder of North Europe. The hunt is on for feed grain to be imported into the EU which comes at a time of declining Latin American supply. World grain and wheat prices are rising amid tightening world supplies and stocks. As for weather forecast for agricultural crop, the heat wave that hovered over the southern U.S. Midwest is now limited to mostly central and southern Texas with rainfall and cooler temperatures expected in parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas that baked over the weekend. Enditem DHAKA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Charges have finally been pressed against eight militants over Bangladesh's most horrific terror attack that left 22 people, mostly foreigners, dead. Monirul Islam, chief of Bangladesh's Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit, on Monday submitted the charge sheet against the accused in a case before a court in Dhaka. Of the accused, he said six Neo-JMB (an offshoot of banned militant outfit Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh or JMB), operatives are now in jail while the two others are on the run. Five gunmen stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery cafe in Dhaka's diplomatic area Gulshan on July 1, 2016. They then brutally killed the hostages with guns and machetes, and used the victims' phones to publish images of the bodies on the social media. Nine Italians, seven Japanese, two Bangladeshis, an Indian and a Bangladeshi-born U.S. citizen were among the 20 people hacked to death by the attackers. The gunmen also murdered two Bangladeshi police officers in the early hour of the attack. Around 12 hours later, Bangladesh Army commandos stormed the restaurant. Five attackers were killed. Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) had then claimed responsibility for the Dhaka cafe attack. But Bangladeshi authorities rejected the claim, saying operatives of the banned local militant outfit plotted the attack to boast about their existence. Since the deadly cafe attack in Dhaka in 2016, Bangladeshi police have tightened anti-militant drive and conducted series of large-scale operations against militants, killing and arresting scores of militants. Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury, a Bangladeshi-Canadian, and Sarwar Jahan, identified as Neo JMB chief who was killed during a raid later, have been blamed as the mastermind of the brutal attack. Chowdhury was also killed in a police raid. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 00:51:30|Editor: Lu Hui Video Player Close BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- China on Monday said it has no intention to spur exports through competitive devaluation of its currency, rejecting the United States' accusations of manipulating the exchange rate of the yuan. "The yuan's exchange rate is mainly determined by market supply and demand," Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang told a press briefing. "It floats in both ways, which means there are ups and downs." Currently, the good fundamentals of China's economy provide strong support for the exchange rate of the yuan to remain generally stable. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said last week the United States was monitoring the recent weakness in China's currency yuan and would review whether it had been manipulated. "As for the United States willfully igniting a trade war, China remains resolute and clear in its stance that it does not want a trade war, but is not afraid of and will fight one when necessary," Geng said. The U.S. has threatened to impose tariffs on more than 500 billion U.S. dollars of goods imported from China. "Threats and intimidation will never work on China. We are capable of and confident in safeguarding the interests of the Chinese people," said the spokesperson. He also said, "we advise the United States to remain calm and handle and solve related issues with a rational attitude." Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 00:56:31|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close BAGHDAD, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Unidentified gunmen Monday shot dead a lawyer defending detained demonstrators who were protesting lack of jobs and deterioration of basic services in Iraq's southern city of Basra, a security source said. Gunmen in four-wheel drive vehicle intercepted the car of the lawyer Jabbar Karam al-Bahadli in downtown Basra and riddled him with bullets before they fled the scene, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. The security forces launched an investigation into the incident to find out the real motive behind the assassination as he is one of a group of lawyers stand to defend protestors accused of committing acts of violence and breach of security during anti-government demonstrations recently, the source said. Ahlam al-Lami, head of the Iraqi Lawyers Syndicate, condemned Bahadli's assassination and pledged to take immediate measures until bringing the murderers to justice. A statement by syndicate said that al-Lami called Ministry of Interior and other security authorities to "protect the citizens and clear the cities from domination of armed groups, as the arms must be in the hand of the state exclusively." The protests continued in Basra as well as several Iraqi cities for almost two weeks despite a series of measures taken by the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi aimed at quelling the street anger. The measures included allocating 3.5 trillion Iraqi dinars (about 2.9 billion U.S. dollars) to carry out several major projects for public services, such as electricity and water facilities, in addition to providing thousands of jobs in the government institutions. Meanwhile, Abadi, as the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi forces, issued an order of high alert for the security forces in the central and southern provinces in response to the protests. The demonstrators accused the influential political parties of being behind the wide-spread corruption that led to high rates of unemployment and failure in rehabilitation of the country's electricity, water and other basic services. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 00:56:32|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close UNITED NATIONS, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Monday called on all parties concerned by the upcoming elections in Afghan to uphold the "highest standards of integrity" throughout the "historic process" to ensure its outcome reflects the will of the Afghan people. In a presidential statement, the council urged speedy completion of outstanding issues regarding the elections, including the approval of candidates to fill critical vacancies within the Independent Election Commission and the Electoral Complaints Commission, the establishment of a central database of all registered voters that identifies irregularities, as well as the publication of a final list of candidates. It also emphasized the central role of UNAMA, the UN's political operation in Afghan, in supporting the organization of elections and the strengthening of electoral reform efforts, as well as the need for electoral observation missions to be in place. Shortly before the release of the statement, Afghan ambassador to the UN Mahmoud Saikal told the press that the statement shows the international community's interests in Afghan's holding of free, fair and credible elections and that the Afghan government, political leaders and the Independent Electoral Commission aim to make it happen. Afghan has recently concluded the voter registration process for the elections, which saw more than 8.9 million Afghans register, including more than 3 million women. The country is expected to hold parliamentary and district council elections in October and presidential elections in 2019. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 01:11:38|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close By Stefania Fumo ROME, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Tributes to visionary auto executive Sergio Marchionne dominated the front pages and the airwaves in Italy on Monday, which was the first day at work for his replacement at the helm of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA). FCA on Saturday appointed longtime Jeep executive Mike Manley to replace ailing Marchionne as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Marchionne, 66, suffered complications after surgery on his shoulder and is in intensive care in a clinic in Zurich, FCA said. "A giant, he changed the industrial history of our country," former center-left prime minister Matteo Renzi told La Stampa newspaper in an interview. "If Italy had more Marchionnes, today we might have a competitive Alitalia, or a strong Italian bank out there in the world," said Renzi in reference to the country's chronically ailing airline and debt-burdened banking system. La Repubblica newspaper ran interviews not only with pundits and experts, but also with FCA factory workers. "He saved a company that seemed destined to fail," commented Antonio Nittoli, a father of three who has been working at FCA's plant in Melfi since 1997. "He demanded a lot from us... but today there is a future for our workers and our families, and we owe it to him." Il Corriere della Sera daily interviewed Henry Payne, the auto op-ed writer for The Detroit News. "Marchionne is one of the three most important and innovative auto executives of the past 20 years," said Payne. "He is a peer to Tesla's Elon Musk and Alan Mulally, who rescued Ford." Marchionne's last appearance in public was on June 26, when he presented a Jeep Wrangler to the Carabinieri military police in a ceremony in Rome. "My father is a Carabinieri officer," Marchionne, wearing his trademark jeans and black sweater, told reporters at a televised news conference on that day. "In the (Carabinieri) corps I always rediscover the same values that were at the basis of my education: reliability, honesty, the sense of duty, discipline, and the spirit of service." Marchionne has achieved legendary status in Italy, where he rescued historic carmaker Fiat from the brink of failure upon being named CEO in 2004. He followed this up with a daring move in the midst of the global financial crisis, when he orchestrated Fiat's merger with rival U.S. carmaker Chrysler after it filed for bankruptcy in 2009. That deal, which took place after protracted negotiations between Marchionne, the U.S. government, and the United Auto Workers (UAW) union, was so important that it was announced in a televised address from the White House by then-U.S. president, Barack Obama, who explained to the nation that Chrysler's life-saving alliance with Fiat would save tens of thousands of American jobs. "Marchionne arrived at Fiat after five different CEOs had brought the company to total failure," Marco Bentivogli, secretary-general of the conservative Italian Metalworkers Federation (FIM-CISL), told Sky TG24 private news channel in an interview Monday. "It was losing 1.5 billion euros a year." "He reorganized the company, progressively reducing its financial debt while at the same time managing to bring about a great international alliance, realizing before everyone else that a consolidation among auto industry players was about to take place." While Marchionne's strategy involved "very painful" downsizing in Italy it successfully challenged a certain Italian mindset based on "blackmail, which prefers to allow factories to close... and leave workers disenfranchised because they lost their job, which is itself a vehicle for a great many social rights," Bentivogli opined. Marchionne, who has dual Canadian and Italian citizenship, earned degrees in philosophy and in law as well as an MBA before beginning a career in business. He had been scheduled to retire in April 2019. Fiat, which is the acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino, was founded in Turin in 1899 by a group that included the Agnelli family, of which current FCA Chairman John Elkann is an heir. It became a household name beginning in the 1930s, when it helped motorize the masses by launching a series of small, compact and inexpensive cars such as the Topolino (Italian for Little Mouse) in 1936 and the 600 model in 1955. This was followed in 1957 by the iconic Fiat 500 model, which became a symbol of post-war Italy much like the Vespa scooter. In another stroke of genius, Marchionne presided over the 2007 launch of a restyled version of the Fiat 500, which went on to become a best-seller. On June 1 this year, while unveiling FCA's 2018-2022 industrial plan, Marchionne announced that the 500 would be the "ideal vehicle" for the next generation of battery-powered electrical vehicles, that FCA would invest nine billion euros to go green, and that it would phase out diesel vehicle production by 2021. "Reducing our dependency on oil is one of the greatest challenges of the coming years," Marchionne said. An Afghan man (R) uses his thumb to mark his application at a voter registration center in Ghazni city, capital of Ghazni province, eastern Afghanistan, May 21, 2018. (Xinhua/Sayed Mominzadah) NITED NATIONS, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Monday called on all parties concerned by the upcoming elections in Afghan to uphold the "highest standards of integrity" throughout the "historic process" to ensure its outcome reflects the will of the Afghan people. In a presidential statement, the council urged speedy completion of outstanding issues regarding the elections, including the approval of candidates to fill critical vacancies within the Independent Election Commission and the Electoral Complaints Commission, the establishment of a central database of all registered voters that identifies irregularities, as well as the publication of a final list of candidates. It also emphasized the central role of UNAMA, the UN's political operation in Afghan, in supporting the organization of elections and the strengthening of electoral reform efforts, as well as the need for electoral observation missions to be in place. Shortly before the release of the statement, Afghan ambassador to the UN Mahmoud Saikal told the press that the statement shows the international community's interests in Afghan's holding of free, fair and credible elections and that the Afghan government, political leaders and the Independent Electoral Commission aim to make it happen. Afghan has recently concluded the voter registration process for the elections, which saw more than 8.9 million Afghans register, including more than 3 million women. The country is expected to hold parliamentary and district council elections in October and presidential elections in 2019. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 01:56:46|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close by Olatunji Saliu ABUJA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The death toll has risen to 62 in Nigeria's northwestern state of Katsina where floods caused by heavy rain since July 15 have wreaked havoc, local authorities said on Monday. More bodies were recovered from the rubble of a collapsed building in the town of Jibia where a rescue operation had earlier led to the recovery of 52 people, with most of the victims being women and children, said Abdulmumini Kabir Usman, the Emir of Katsina. Usman said the 1o decomposed bodies had been buried. "The 10 people were discovered when the people of the area started experiencing heavy smell coming from the collapsed building," the emir said. More than 500 houses were destroyed by the flood which swept through five villages in Jibia on July 15, causing the displacement of at least 5,000, according to government data. At least 24 people were wounded and hospitalized due to the incident. Emir Usman said many of the victims, who were traders, had lost their capital and means of livelihood to the disaster. The State Emergency Management Agency said 24 of the victims were washed away to two villages in neighboring Niger. As of last week, 20 more bodies were being searched for, said Aminu Waziri, head of the state's rescue team. State governor Aminu Masari said following the heavy rainfall, water from the main river in the area moved in a reverse direction and came back to Jibia town, causing the flooding. Most of the victims have been relocated to a makeshift camp at a local school in the area, with the national relief agency providing support to victims. Last Thursday, the Nigerian government approved some coordinated efforts to curb the incessant flooding that has affected other regions in the country. The government said a new department has been established to identify locations for critical actions and realistic cost estimates and implement the national flood prevention, mitigation, and preparedness program. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 02:36:52|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close NICOSIA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- After a hiatus of one year, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres launched a new initiative on the Cyprus problem on Monday, by sending a personal envoy to assess the prospects of resuming peace negotiations. Jane Holl Lute, a high standing U.N. official, met separately in Nicosia with Cyprus's President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci, querying them in detail about their attitude towards new reunification negotiations. The latest talks for a settlement of the Cyprus issue, one of the longest standing international problems, ended in July 2017, amid acrimony between the main players -- Turkey and Turkish Cypriots on one side and Greece and Greek Cypriots on the other side. Upcoming elections for a new Cypriot President and premature presidential elections in Turkey rendered an earlier resumption of the negotiations politically untimely. Lute's meeting with Anastasiades on Monday morning lasted three hours, an indication of the details they went into during their meeting. Her meeting with Akinci in the afternoon was equally lengthy. Akinci reportedly repeated his oft-stated view that any new negotiations should be short and be concluded within a fixed timeframe. Departing from the practice of previous envoys who had a support team with them, Lute chose to be alone during the tete-a-tete with the two Cypriot leaders, taking down herself what they said. Sources said that she told her interlocutors that she was in Nicosia to listen to what the two sides had to say about resuming negotiations and to report back to the Secretary General on their thoughts and positions. Cypriot government sources said Anastasiades expressed his readiness to resume negotiations on a six-point framework submitted to the parties by Guterres at an international conference on Cyprus a year ago. This dealt with the most intractable problems of the Cyprus problem, security which will not involve the current "guarantor powers" -- Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom -- and withdrawal of Turkish occupation troops. It also provided about power sharing between the two communities, territorial readjustments, the restitution of properties to thousands of people who were forced out of their houses in 1974, and arrangements to prevent the flooding of Cyprus by mainland Turks. Lute will return to New York on Tuesday to brief Guterres on her conversations with the Cypriot leaders before embarking on a second mission which will take her to Ankara, Athens and London and also to Brussels for talks with European Union leaders, as Cyprus is and will continue to be an EU member. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 03:11:58|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close TIRANA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Albanian authorities on Monday announced the confiscation of the assets of former Albanian Prosecutor General Adriatik Llalla, who was accused of hiding his assets. The Court of Serious Crimes seized Llalla's assets worth around some 900,000 U.S. dollars, including an apartment in seaside city of Durres and over 22,000 square meters of land in the capital city of Tirana. Albanian Prosecutor's Office of the First Instance Court for Serious Crimes, based on preliminary investigations, is suspicious that some immovable properties owned by Llalla constitute the product of the criminal offense, according to a statement from the Prosecutor's office. "In this case, the court ordered the imposition of the 'preventive sequestration' property security measure for property worth 900,000 U.S. dollars in market value," it said. On Feb. 10 of 2018, Llalla handed over to the Albanian President Ilir Meta his resignation, resigning in this way from the magistrates' functions. On June 11 of 2018, the Special Appeals Commission upheld the decision of the Independent Qualification Commission to terminate the vetting for the former Prosecutor General, but also specified in the decision the exemption of the former Prosecutor General from the right to be a part of justice system organs. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 03:22:00|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close SKOPJE, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Macedonian leaders' failed to reach an agreement on the name referendum during a meeting on Monday, Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said. Leaders of the four largest parliamentary parties -- Zoran Zaev of SDSM, Ali Ahmeti from DUI, Hristian Mickoski from VMRO-DPMNE main opposition party and Bilall Kasami from BESA -- participated in the leaders' meeting. This is the third meeting of Macedonian leaders over the past five days where the majority leading party SDSM seeks support from the opposition for the next referendum. The opposition calls for the adoption of the Law on Political Party Financing, changes to the Law on Government, according to the Democratic model and Amnesty's Amnesty Criminal Code changes. "Even though attempts have failed to reach an agreement this afternoon on the referendum, we will stick to what we have agreed in part one of the negotiations, namely the law on the financing of the political parties, a Przino-style technical government and the State Election Commission," underlined Zaev. Meanwhile, Ali Ahmeti from DUI called the meeting as disappointing. "The ruling parties have been defending Macedonia's state interests. There are differences involving the question that should be used in the referendum. We should all put the state interests above the party interests," Ahmeti said. VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristian Mickoski, in his statement for the media, praised the agreement reached on the law of financing of political parties. "It is worth nothing that the agreement we have reached today guarantees a successful electoral process whenever it happens, either on the eve of the early polls or regular parliamentary elections," Mickoski said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 03:22:00|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) holds talks with Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Kigali, Rwanda, July 23, 2018. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei) KIGALI, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, agreed here Monday to further promote bilateral cooperation in a bid to bring more benefits to the Chinese, Rwandan and African people. In their talks, the two leaders also spoke highly of the growth of bilateral ties over the past 47 years since their countries established diplomatic relations. Xi recalled his meeting with Kagame in Beijing in March 2017, during which they reached extensive consensus on promoting bilateral relations and friendly cooperation and brought China-Rwanda ties to a fast track of development. Beijing is willing to work with Kigali to translate their traditional friendship into concrete benefits for the two countries and the two peoples, and open a new chapter in their friendly cooperative relations, Xi said. China and Rwanda, Xi stressed, should view their ties from a strategic height and long-term perspective, firmly support each other independently choosing their own development paths, and keep mutual understanding and support on issues related to each other's core interests and major concerns. Xi called on the two countries to strengthen the link between their respective development strategies, give full play to their complementary advantages, and carry out pragmatic cooperation in more areas and at deeper levels. China welcomes Rwanda's participation in the international cooperation within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, and encourages more Chinese investment in Rwanda to help advance the African country's industrialization and modernization, Xi said. Xi asked the two sides to strengthen people-to-people exchanges, so as to bring closer the hearts of the two peoples and consolidate the social and public support for the future development of their friendship. The two sides, he suggested, also need to deepen law enforcement and security cooperation, maintain close coordination on international and regional issues, and strengthen collaboration on issues of global significance, so as to safeguard the common interests of African countries and developing countries. Over the past several decades, China-Africa relations have always been defined by sincere friendship, unity and cooperation, Xi noted, pointing out that the two sides have become a community with a shared future going through thick and thin together as well as a community with shared interests dedicated to win-win cooperation. Strengthening unity and cooperation with African countries is an important foundation for China's foreign policy and a long-term steadfast strategic choice of Beijing, Xi said. He compared Africa to a galloping lion, saying that China is glad to see a stronger Africa that is increasingly integrated. Calling the African Union (AU) a banner guiding African countries to solidarity and cooperation, Xi said China always supports the AU playing a leading role in promoting peace and development of Africa and playing a bigger role in regional and global affairs. China, he added, is willing to elevate the strategic significance of its relationship with the AU, set it as an example and make it more effective, so as to bring more benefits to the Chinese and African people. Kagame, for his part, called China a reliable friend who shares weal and woe with Africa. He said it is of great importance for Rwanda and Africa to develop friendly ties with China. He spoke highly of China's valuable assistance for Rwanda in such areas as infrastructure construction, agriculture and education, adding that China's helping hand has made positive contributions to his country's reconstruction and livelihood improvement. The Rwandan president also expressed his hope to strengthen exchanges with China on state governance and deepen win-win cooperation on bilateral as well as multilateral platforms. Rwanda is willing to enhance cooperation with China within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, which offers a significant opportunity for both Rwanda and Africa, Kagame said. As the AU's rotating chairman, Kagame stressed that China's long-standing firm support is of great value to Africa's development. Africa places great importance on China's role in international affairs and is committed to further deepening their friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation, he added. The African side, he said, looks forward to attending the Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in September, and stands ready to jointly push forward the development of FOCAC, so as to generate more benefits for the people of both sides. After their talks, the two heads of state witnessed the signing of multiple agreements on bilateral cooperation in the Belt and Road Initiative and other areas. They also met the press together. Prior to the meeting, the Rwandan president held a grand welcome ceremony for Xi, who arrived in Kigali on Sunday for the first state visit to the African country by a Chinese head of state. Xi inspected the guard of honor in the company of Kagame. A group of Rwandan well-wishers, dressed in traditional clothes, staged a dancing and drumming performance to express their joy and excitement. Later in the day, Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial. Rwanda is the third leg of Xi's first overseas visit after he was re-elected Chinese president in March. The trip has already taken him to the United Arab Emirates and Senegal, and will also take him to South Africa for a state visit and the 10th BRICS summit, and to Mauritius during a stopover. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 03:32:01|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close RIGA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Latvian government on Monday decided to seek international support as rescuers continued to battle a major wildfire that has been devastating large swathes of forest and peatland in western Latvia since last Tuesday. Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis told reporters that Latvia needs additional aerial support in tackling the blaze and would ask for three helicopters and possibly also firefighters. The request will be made to all 28 members of the European Union (EU), the minister said. Agriculture minister Janis Duklavs, who is currently standing in as prime minister, explained that the additional aircraft are necessary as the Latvian and Lithuanian air force helicopters involved in the firefighting effort need maintenance. "Our air force helicopters need a break. The maintenance will take some time and we will have to ask neighbor countries for help," Duklavs said. Inta Palkavniece, a spokeswoman for the Latvian State Fire and Rescue Service, said that neighbor countries Lithuania and Estonia have already promised to send their firefighters to western Latvia if necessary. She also informed that although the fire in Valgale municipality in the western Latvian district of Talsi was contained within a certain territory flames were still expanding inside the perimeter. Oskars Abolins, head of the Fire and Rescue Service, said that the situation is currently stable and that a thunderstorm is expected to bring some relief on Wednesday or Thursday. The fire service was alerted to the wildfire in the western Latvian district of Talsi on the evening of July 17. On Wednesday night, a small village was evacuated due to severe air pollution caused by the smoke from the wildfire and two firemen were treated for minor injuries. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 03:42:03|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close JUBA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Two United Nations agencies on Monday strongly condemned attacks on aid workers and facilities in South Sudan's northwestern town of Bunj in the Upper Nile region. The UNHCR and the UN humanitarian agency in South Sudan said in separate statements that the violence erupted after a peaceful protest by local youth in Maban county turned violent, leading to looting and burning of humanitarian premises and damage to aid vehicles. "I strongly condemn today's attacks against aid workers and facilities in Maban and urge all involved to immediately cease such actions," said Adnan Khan, Acting United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for South Sudan. "Aid workers ... sacrifice their time and all too often their safety to save people affected by the South Sudan crisis. They are free to work in any part of the country in line with the law of the land," he said. In its statement, the UN refugee agency said the demonstrators who were protesting lack of job opportunities for local communities forcefully entered its compound and those of ten other humanitarian agencies looting offices and residences. It added that the local population accused humanitarian organizations of recruiting people from outside the region. "This is an act of senseless violence towards humanitarians and deeply regrettable," said Vincent Kwesi Parker, the UNHCR deputy representative and officer in charge of South Sudan. According to UNHCR, South Sudan hosts nearly 300,000 refugees, mostly from Sudan's South Kordofan and Blue Nile States. Over 144,000 of those refugees live in four camps in Maban County. "UNHCR deeply appreciates the hospitality and generosity of South Sudan and its people towards refugees. We strongly appeal to the authorities to ensure the safety and security of humanitarians," Parker stressed. According to the UN, thousands of humanitarians are providing aid to millions of people in South Sudan affected by war, hunger and disease in one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 04:07:10|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close JUBA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan and the World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday announced new cases of guinea worm infection in Western Lakes State. Riak Gai, Health Minister told journalists in Juba, that despite over 15 months of intensive surveillance system in the country to ensure no infection recurrence, the country has confirmed three new cases of infection. Gai said the three confirmed cases were detected amid intensified cash reward program started by the ministry aimed at promoting credible reporting of guinea worm infections. "As a result, many suspects were detected and over 25 worm specimens were taken for laboratory analysis in CDC Atlanta, Georgia of which three were confirmed positive," Gai said. He attributed the detection of the new cases to the ongoing disarmament of the civilians in the greater Lakes states areas, which allowed the eradication program to reach all the cattle camps inhabited by the local communities. "Our surveillance team is succeeding in detecting hidden cases that otherwise would have gone unnoticed and might have caused more widespread infection," he said. The minister said the detection of the three cases demonstrates strong surveillance system and effectiveness of the country's guinea worm eradication program. Moses Mutebi Nganda, WHO South Sudan Representative, said the recent setback following detection of three new cases in the country is a new challenge the country faces. "I am totally convinced that eradication of guinea worm disease in this country is on the horizon if the right measures are put in place," Nganda said. In June, South Sudan said it was on the verge of eradicating guinea worm after the country recorded zero cases last year and during the first quarter of 2018. The three victims are cattle keepers -- two female teenagers and a 25-year-old man who are now receiving treatment. Enditem Chinese and Russian policemen attend a joint anti-terror drill in Manzhouli City, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Oct. 20, 2014. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling) MOSCOW, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Russia and India on Monday called on the international community to continue to work together on combating terrorism "without double standards", the Russian Foreign Ministry said. They made the appeal at the tenth meeting of the Russian-Indian working group on combating international terrorism, which was presided over by the deputy foreign ministers of both countries and attended by representatives of relevant agencies, a ministry statement said. "They reaffirmed their firm stand on the need to consolidate the efforts of the international community, led and coordinated by the UN, in the global fight against international terrorism and extremism based on the norms and principles of international law without any double standards," it said. During the meeting, topical issues of international cooperation in countering terrorism were discussed, including the tasks of preventing terrorism, suppressing material and ideological fueling of terrorist organizations and combating the phenomenon of "foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs)." The parties also assessed the state of terrorist threats in various regions of the world, including the Middle East, Afghanistan, and South, Southeast and Central Asia. They informed each other about the achievements of Russia and India in the field of fighting terrorism, including the development of related legislation. They also discussed the prospects for enhancing cooperation and information exchange in combating terrorism in a bilateral format and at key international venues, including the UN, Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), BRICS, and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the statement added. The working group, created in December 2002, meets regularly in Moscow and New Delhi. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 04:22:14|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close LAGOS, July 23 (Xinhua) -- First Bank of Nigeria will make better use of the Nigeria-China currency swap agreement to promote the relationship of the two countries and increase business opportunities, an official said on Monday. In an interview with Xinhua in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial hub, Andy Wang, First Bank's Chief Representative Officer (CRO), said the bank aims to be the bridge between the Nigerian and Chinese businesses by taking the partnership forward. This, according to Wang, would help improve efficiency in trade transactions between the two countries, without being exposed to the challenge of seeking another foreign currency. He spoke on the sideline of the bank's Chinese Customer Forum organized to discuss how to improve business by leveraging the recently executed Bilateral Currency Swap Agreement. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on April 27 signed a 2.5-bilion-U.S.-dollar currency swap agreement with the People's Bank of China, China's central bank. The primary aim is to provide adequate local currency liquidity to Nigerian and Chinese industrialists and also assist in both countries' foreign exchange reserves management. Wang said First Bank as one of the authorized dealers is experienced and competent to handle the Chinese yuan and the Nigerian naira deal, after opening of a representative office in China's Beijing 10 years ago. "We have discussed with our customers, both Nigerian and Chinese on the basis of the bilateral currency swap deal and its implications on trade between both countries," he said. "Before now, we have been providing several services to our Chinese and Nigerian customers through our representative Beijing office and the new agreement will help us improve on that business relationship," he told Xinhua. Wang said the bank, which has registered its presence in South Africa in 2004 and opened a branch in Paris in 2008, is engaging other financial institutions from China to open up the Chinese market for Nigerian business. "We are not limiting our scope of cooperation with either the Chinese customers or companies, we are partnering with several Chinese financial institutions to make sure we serve them well," he added. With the swap deal, Wang told Xinhua that the bank will increase it use of technology to enable businesses to make faster, easier and cheaper worldwide payments. According to him, the deal would also help the Nigeria position itself as a trading hub with China in the West African sub-region, noting that the agreement would provide naira liquidity to Chinese firms looking to do business with Nigeria and provide the RMB liquidity to Nigerian firms looking to do business with China. The commercial bank established a Representative Office in Beijing in 2010 to cater to the growing needs of Sino-Nigeria businesses and to provide support in channeling trade flows between Nigeria and China. With this, the First Bank became the first Nigerian bank to establish a presence in China and has over the years developed strategic relationship with major Chinese players in Nigeria. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 04:37:18|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close Jiang Zengwei (L), chairperson of the China Council for Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), and Keletsositse Olebile, chief executive officer of Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC), shake hands during the signing ceremony held in Gaborone, Botswana, July 23, 2018. Botswana and China on Monday signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) to strengthen trade and investment ties. (Xinhua/Yang Mengxi) GABORONE, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Botswana and China on Monday signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) to strengthen trade and investment ties. The MoUs were signed in Gaborone, capital of Botswana, during the Botswana-China Business Forum, which was attended by a business delegation from China led by Jiang Zengwei, chairperson of the China Council for Promotion of International Trade ( CCPIT). The signing was facilitated by the host Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC), Business Botswana and the CCPIT. Speaking at the meeting, China Ambassador to Botswana, Zhao Yanbo said the China-Botswana economic and trade cooperation was a win-win principle with a common goal of improving the people's livelihoods. He said goods and services trade is continuing to grow in China and advised Botswana to seize the opportunity to invest in China. Unity Dow, Botswana's Minister of International Affairs and Cooperation, said she expected the engagement to boost trade and investment linkage between Botswana and China. She said Botswana was committed to attracting foreign direct investment with the aim of diversifying the economy and creating job opportunities. Dow appealed to the China business delegation to consider setting up businesses in Botswana given the compelling investment climate. Keletsositse Olebile, chief executive officer of BITC, said CCPIT, BITC and Business Botswana collaboration would provide a platform for mutually beneficial business partnerships between Botswana and Chinese companies. The forum focuses on sectors including infrastructure development, manufacturing, financial services, energy, mining, agribusiness and Information Communications Technology (ICT). Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 04:47:19|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close ALGIERS, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Algerian-Brazilian bilateral strategic dialogue was held on Monday in Algiers to boost bilateral partnership in all fields. The meeting was co-chaired by visiting Brazilian Foreign Minister Aloysio Nunes and his Algerian counterpart, Abdelkader Messahel. The two countries are seeking through this meeting to identify new investment projects and partnership programs of mutual benefit. It was also an opportunity for the two nations to discuss regional and international issues of common interest to coordinate views and positions in the international arena. Brazil and Algeria vowed to strengthen and diversify economic partnership in areas including energy, health, trade, public works, agriculture, social development as well as education and scientific research. Brazil's Ambassador to Algeria Eduardo Botelho Barbosa said his country could contribute to the revival of Algeria's industry and is willing to offer its expertise in the fields of mines, iron and steel. Algeria is interested in the Brazilian experience in terms of the manufacture of components and spare parts of cars, given that the North African nation has already established several car assembly plants in partnership with some international brands. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 05:02:23|Editor: Yurou Video Player Close by Mohamed al-Azaki SANAA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- On the western edge of Yemen's rebel-controlled capital Sanaa, around 60 internally displaced families live in a slummy neighborhood and suffer from very rough humanitarian conditions. The families in old Madhbah quarter are part of more than 35,000 families displaced from war-torn Red Sea port city of Hodeidah since June. More families are fleeing the war everyday, according to the UN reports this week. The Yemeni government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition began a military offensive last month to wrest control of the vital Red Sea port city from Iran-allied Houthi rebels. In old Madhbah quarter, Hadi al-Hajori, a father of nine children, has welcomed two other displaced families of 17 members into his rented home with three small rooms. "I sold everything to collect money for the travel spending ... and I rent this house for 20,000 riyal (nearly 50 U.S. dollars) a month," the 47-year-old vegetable vendor told Xinhua. Al-Hajori family arrived in Sanaa three weeks ago. They were received by rebel-controlled local authorities and were accommodated in a tent in the backyard of a school dedicated for the displaced families in southwestern Sanaa. But, he said, the classrooms were full of other families and the small tent could not hold his big family and therefore, like other displaced families, he moved to old Madhbah area. Fattom, al-Hajori's wife, said she wants peace and hopes to return to their hometown very soon. "We fled our home near Hodeidah airport to escape the war, and finally found ourselves live a vagabond life," said Fattom. "They gave some food and mattresses to the displaced families in the schools only, but we have not received yet any humanitarian aid," she said. "They (authorities) said they will phone us ... but they didn't," she added in a sad voice while throwing dirty plastic bags into a small fire between two rocks to cook their lunch. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported this week that only six public schools in Sanaa have been dedicated for receiving and accommodating the displaced families. "The schools are due to reopen in few weeks, as discussions and assessments are underway to move the IDPs to the Olympic Center dormitory in the capital," it said in its recent report. Fattom complained about cold and rain. "We need clothes and blankets for the children ... when my child gets sick, I don't know what to do ... we have no medicine or money to go to the hospital," Fattom said. "We were comfortable in our home in Hodeidah, but endless war, missiles, artillery and airstrikes changed our fate and turned us into beggars," she said. When temporary peace was reached in the city, residents took the chance to sell some of their belongings and flee, fearing that the UN-brokered peace negotiations could collapse. The fighting, however, in the western coast and south of Hodeidah airport has been raging on. On June 13, the Yemeni government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition began an all-out offensive to retake the strategic port city. Earlier this month, the United Arab Emirates, which also led the coalition operations, declared a pause in the military operations inside the intensely populated Hodeidah city to support the UN envoy's peace efforts, which is aimed at convincing the rebels to withdraw from the city to avoid military confrontations. The UN office said Hodeidah seaport is operational, but roads leading to Hodeidah airport, seaport and the Houthi-controlled main road linking Hodeidah with the capital Sanaa remain blocked by sand and concrete barriers. It said that most of the displaced families were heading to Sanaa and Ibb province. On July 10, the UN special envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, met the internationally recognized President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi in his office in the southern Yemeni port city of Aden to push for resuming stalled peace efforts with his government's foe Houthi rebels. Griffiths' visit came a week after he met Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi in Sanaa. Griffiths said the discussion was "fruitful." Humanitarian agencies have warned that any military attack on the port could lead to the world's biggest humanitarian catastrophe in modern history. Hodeidah is the single most important point of entry for food and basic supplies to Yemen's northern provinces controlled by Houthis, including the capital Sanaa. The rebels stormed Sanaa, Hodeidah and other northern populated cities in late 2014 and forced President Hadi and his government into exile in Riyadh. They said their move was a revolution against alleged government corruption. The coalition intervened in Yemen's conflict in March 2015 to roll back the Iran-allied Shiite Houthi rebels and reinstate exiled government of President Hadi. "I want peace for my children," the desperate mother Fattom said. A displaced child who fled home in Hodeidah stands at the entrance of a house where he and his family are hosted at a slum area in Sanaa, Yemen, on July 22, 2018. (Xinhua/ Mohammed Mohammed) by Mohamed al-Azaki SANAA, July 23 (Xinhua) -- On the western edge of Yemen's rebel-controlled capital Sanaa, around 60 internally displaced families live in a slummy neighborhood and suffer from very rough humanitarian conditions. The families in old Madhbah quarter are part of more than 35,000 families displaced from war-torn Red Sea port city of Hodeidah since June. More families are fleeing the war everyday, according to the UN reports this week. The Yemeni government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition began a military offensive last month to wrest control of the vital Red Sea port city from Iran-allied Houthi rebels. In old Madhbah quarter, Hadi al-Hajori, a father of nine children, has welcomed two other displaced families of 17 members into his rented home with three small rooms. "I sold everything to collect money for the travel spending ... and I rent this house for 20,000 riyal (nearly 50 U.S. dollars) a month," the 47-year-old vegetable vendor told Xinhua. Al-Hajori family arrived in Sanaa three weeks ago. They were received by rebel-controlled local authorities and were accommodated in a tent in the backyard of a school dedicated for the displaced families in southwestern Sanaa. But, he said, the classrooms were full of other families and the small tent could not hold his big family and therefore, like other displaced families, he moved to old Madhbah area. Fattom, al-Hajori's wife, said she wants peace and hopes to return to their hometown very soon. "We fled our home near Hodeidah airport to escape the war, and finally found ourselves live a vagabond life," said Fattom. "They gave some food and mattresses to the displaced families in the schools only, but we have not received yet any humanitarian aid," she said. "They (authorities) said they will phone us ... but they didn't," she added in a sad voice while throwing dirty plastic bags into a small fire between two rocks to cook their lunch. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported this week that only six public schools in Sanaa have been dedicated for receiving and accommodating the displaced families. "The schools are due to reopen in few weeks, as discussions and assessments are underway to move the IDPs to the Olympic Center dormitory in the capital," it said in its recent report. Fattom complained about cold and rain. "We need clothes and blankets for the children ... when my child gets sick, I don't know what to do ... we have no medicine or money to go to the hospital," Fattom said. "We were comfortable in our home in Hodeidah, but endless war, missiles, artillery and airstrikes changed our fate and turned us into beggars," she said. When temporary peace was reached in the city, residents took the chance to sell some of their belongings and flee, fearing that the UN-brokered peace negotiations could collapse. The fighting, however, in the western coast and south of Hodeidah airport has been raging on. On June 13, the Yemeni government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition began an all-out offensive to retake the strategic port city. Earlier this month, the United Arab Emirates, which also led the coalition operations, declared a pause in the military operations inside the intensely populated Hodeidah city to support the UN envoy's peace efforts, which is aimed at convincing the rebels to withdraw from the city to avoid military confrontations. The UN office said Hodeidah seaport is operational, but roads leading to Hodeidah airport, seaport and the Houthi-controlled main road linking Hodeidah with the capital Sanaa remain blocked by sand and concrete barriers. It said that most of the displaced families were heading to Sanaa and Ibb province. On July 10, the UN special envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, met the internationally recognized President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi in his office in the southern Yemeni port city of Aden to push for resuming stalled peace efforts with his government's foe Houthi rebels. Griffiths' visit came a week after he met Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi in Sanaa. Griffiths said the discussion was "fruitful." Humanitarian agencies have warned that any military attack on the port could lead to the world's biggest humanitarian catastrophe in modern history. Hodeidah is the single most important point of entry for food and basic supplies to Yemen's northern provinces controlled by Houthis, including the capital Sanaa. The rebels stormed Sanaa, Hodeidah and other northern populated cities in late 2014 and forced President Hadi and his government into exile in Riyadh. They said their move was a revolution against alleged government corruption. The coalition intervened in Yemen's conflict in March 2015 to roll back the Iran-allied Shiite Houthi rebels and reinstate exiled government of President Hadi. "I want peace for my children," the desperate mother Fattom said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 05:42:28|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close Police officers gather at the crime scene in Toronto, Canada, on July 23, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Haitao) TORONTO, July 23 (Xinhua) -- A 18-year-old female university student and a 10-year-old girl were killed, and 13 others injured when a gunman opened fire in a busy Toronto street Sunday night. The suspected shooter, a 29-year-old Toronto man, also died. Toronto police said he used a handgun to shoot and and exchanged gunfire with police before he died of a gunshot wound. Police are investigating to determine whether the suspect was killed by police or died by suicide. The tragedy happened around 10:00 p.m. Sunday near Danforth and Logan Avenues in Toronto's east-end Greektown neighborhood. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed condolences on Twitter, calling the shooting a "terrible tragedy." Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders told a press conference Monday that it's too early to say what motivated the shooting. He said police don't know what prompted the attack, acknowledging that there are concerns about ongoing gun violence in Toronto. Media reports said police are investigating whether the gunman was working alone or had accomplices in planning or carrying out the shooting, what he may have been reading or talking about online, and how he obtained his gun. Toronto Mayor John Tory Monday described the shooting as "an unspeakable act" and further evidence that stricter gun control regulations are needed in the city. Tory, who has previously called for gun law reform, said he plans to push the provincial and federal governments for action on the issue. "This city has a gun problem, in that guns are far too readily available to far too many people," said the mayor. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 06:02:32|Editor: huaxia Video Player Close CHICAGO, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agricultural commodities closed mixed on Monday, with corn futures rising despite the fund managers adding to their shorts, favorable crop-weather. The most active corn contract for December delivery went up 2.25 cents, or 0.61 percent to close at 3.7125 dollars per bushel. September wheat delivery fell 2.25 cents, or 0.44 percent to close at 5.1375 dollars per bushel. November soybean delivery was down 2 cents, or 0.23 percent to close at 8.6275 dollars per bushel. CBOT wheat futures pulled back after worries about poor crop weather in Europe and the Black Sea region pushed prices to their highest in about six weeks, traders said. Wheat and soybean futures both fell slightly as investors turned to technical selling on Monday. As for weather forecast for agricultural crop, the heat wave that hovered over the southern U.S. Midwest is now limited to mostly central and southern Texas with rainfall and cooler temperatures expected in parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas that baked over the weekend. Enditem Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 06:22:34|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close ALGIERS, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Algeria and Brazil on Monday agreed to strengthen their economic partnership by amending signed cooperation agreements. The two countries held in Algiers their second bilateral strategic dialogue meeting, which was co-chaired by visiting Brazilian Foreign Minister Aloysio Nunes, and his Algerian counterpart, Abdelkader Messahel. Following the talks he held with Nunes, the Algerian foreign minister said "we have agreed to complete some of the agreements." Legal framework will be provided to empower institutions from the two countries "to work with ease and with all the necessary guarantees," he said. He noted that the two sides agreed to organize a meeting between their two trade chambers as soon as possible in order to establish the business forum. He expressed the need for Algeria to benefit from Brazil's experience in the fields of industry, agriculture and public works, saying "the Algerian market is very promising as security and peace are guaranteed for investments." Messahel further assumed that the 3.5-billion-U.S. dollars worth trade exchange between the two countries is small compared to their capabilities. Messahel said "Brazil and Algeria relations are very strong, especially since the visit of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to Brazil in 2005, which gave a new impetus to this cooperation." Defense and security were also on the agenda of this meeting, Messahel said, noting that the two countries agreed to continue their cooperation in this area. On the other hand, the Algerian foreign minister indicated the existence of "strong consultation" between the two countries on international issues, stressing that both reject "foreign interference in the internal affairs of countries regardless of their source." "We support, instead, the settlement of disputes within the framework of dialogue and consultation to establish a secure world," he added. For his part, the Brazilian minister called for strengthening economic partnership and facilitating investment between the two countries. He hailed political relations between the two countries as "very consistent," saying his visit to Algeria confirms Brazil's determination to continue its "privileged" relations with Algeria. He pointed out that the two countries "share the same basic principles, especially adherence to the social aspect of economic development and non-interference in the internal affairs of countries." The two countries look forward to being "advocates of cooperation and peace in our two regions," he concluded. At the end of his visit to Algeria, the Brazilian foreign minister was received by Algerian Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia and they discussed the outcome of the meeting and prospects of bilateral cooperation. The head of Russia's Republic of Kalmykia Alexey Orlov (R) meets with Chinese Ambassador to Russia Li Hui in Kalmykia's capital Elista on July 23, 2018. (Xinhua/Hu Xiaoguang) MOSCOW, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Russia's Republic of Kalmykia looks forward to developing cooperation with China in all spheres under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative and is ready to make preferential offers to the Chinese business community, the leader of the republic said on Monday. "We would very much like to take a concrete part in economic cooperation, which is and will continue to develop along the Great Silk Road," the head of Kalmykia Alexey Orlov said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua. Located in the southwest of Russia, Kalmykia is an agricultural republic with the agricultural sector, in particular the livestock farming, accounting for over a third of its gross regional product (GRP), according to Orlov. The region also has significant fuel and energy resources and is now making the best of its capacities in other sectors so as to diversify its economy, he said. This makes Kalmykia speed up looking for opportunities to cooperate with other countries including China. "We would, of course, welcome if our friends and partners from China take advantage of the offers that we are now ready to make to the Chinese business community," he said. Noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin supports China's Belt and Road Initiative most actively, Orlov said Kalmykia is more than willing to "take a most direct and concrete part in this project." "We would like to participate in all spheres of Eurasian cooperation between Russia and China, and we are ready to create all the necessary conditions and provide opportunities for the implementation of this concept in Kalmykia," he said. He noted that China is becoming an increasingly important partner to Kalmykia, saying, for instance, there is a significant amount of Chinese capital in its fledging power generation sector. The republic is also looking forward to the participation of the Chinese business in the processing industry with its "vast experience", Orlov said. In order to attract foreign investment, Kalmykia is now providing various preferences, such as a grace period for all types of taxes, free infrastructure services including electricity, power supply networks and land plots, as well as simplified procedures to reduce the time of granting permits. "We are very patient and considerate to any investor. It does not matter if he comes with 1,000 dollars or with a million. This is our strategy, and I'm sure it will bring results in the future," he said. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 06:32:36|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close DUBLIN, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Ireland will hold an international conference of female parliamentarians in its capital Dublin in September, announced organizers on Monday. Organized by the Irish Women's Parliamentary Caucus (IWPC), a cross-party forum for female parliamentarians within the Irish parliament, the conference will be held at Dublin Castle on Sept. 9-10, said Catherine Martin, Chair of the IWPC. Named "The International Congress of Parliamentary Women's Caucuses", the event will be attended by an estimated 300 delegates from over 27 countries and regions, said the chair, adding that delegates will mainly discuss issues facing women and how parliamentarians can work to address them during the conference. According to the IWPC's schedule of the conference, Irish President, Prime Minister and Speaker of the lower house of the Irish parliament will address the delegates. The conference will conclude with a Dublin Declaration. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 06:37:37|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close RABAT, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Moroccan police arrested on Monday a Lithuanian national at Mohammed V International Airport in Casablanca for attempted cocaine trafficking. The 23-year-old suspect was arrested after police searched his luggage and found some 8.53 kg of cocaine carefully concealed inside steel and plastic boxes, the police said in a statement. The police also seized hundreds of counterfeit euros with the suspect, it added. The suspect was placed in police custody at the disposal of the investigation carried out under the supervision of the competent prosecutor's office, it noted. Morocco seized a record of 2.84 tons of cocaine in 2017, 1.5 tons more than the amount seized in 2016. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 06:42:38|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close DAMASCUS, July 23 (Xinhua) -- As many as 900 rebels and their family members have evacuated the southern province of Daraa over the past 24 hours, as part of a Russian-backed agreement, a monitor group reported Monday night. Altogether 24 buses evacuated the rebels and their families from the Busra al-Sham town, which is the gathering point for those who want to evacuate Daraa toward rebel-held areas in northern Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Britain-based watchdog group said the evacuees are from areas in southeastern Daraa. On Sunday, 3,400 militants and their families left Daraa and the nearby province of Quneitra, according to the Observatory. The evacuations are part of a Russian-backed agreement to allow the rebels and civilians who don't want to reconcile with the government. The Syrian army has already captured 90 percent of Daraa either through military action or reconciliations since June 19. Both Daraa and Quneitra are key provinces for the Syrian army due to their proximity to Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The Syrian army launched the offensive against the rebels in southern Syria late last month, following the major victory of the army in the capital Damascus. With the Russian support, reconciliation deals are being reached in several areas, enabling the army to recapture many areas without battles. Government officials in Syria stressed the Syrian army's determination to capture all Syrian areas. Source: Xinhua| 2018-07-24 07:15:03|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close Photo taken on July 23, 2018 shows a submerged dock in Lanzhou section of the Yellow River, northwest China's Gansu Province. The Yellow River Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters issued a new alert for floods in its upper reaches Monday morning. The water level in the section of Lanzhou, along the Yellow River, has risen rapidly due to heavy rain. A hydrologic station located in Lanzhou recorded a water flow of 2,700 cubic meters per second at 5:00 a.m. Monday morning, and the figure rose to 3,600 cubic meters per second at 8:00 a.m. (Xinhua/Chen Bin) The United Kingdom will be not a simple non-EU state, and should enjoy a special status after its divorce from the bloc as it has common roots and historical, economic and social ties with the European Union, the state secretary for EU affairs of the Prime Ministers Office said in Brussels. Speaking after a ministerial meeting on the legal details of Brexit, Szabolcs Takacs said that special solutions for the UK cannot set a precedent for other member states to curb the free inner market or the implementation of the EUs basic freedoms. The acquired rights of EU citizens in the UK should be preserved after Brexit, he said. Hungary calls for the strongest possible cooperation in defence and economy, as well as security, innovation and cultural affairs, Takacs said. Although it is reasonable to prepare for several scenarios, the talks should strive for a good, rational, progressive agreement that is in line with the interests of Hungary, he said. Preserving Irelands political and economic stability is in the interest of both Hungary and the EU, he said, adding that strict checks on the interIrish border should be avoided. Photo: kormany.hu A left-wing columnist describes the friendship between Mr Orban and Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel as an infernal game, while a pro-government reporter underlines the shared stance of the two statesmen against radical Islam. Nepszavas Robert Friss condemns statements by Israeli officials, including the Israeli ambassador to Budapest who praise the Hungarian government for its zero tolerance policies toward anti-Semitism. He accuses PM Netanyahu of supporting a dictatorship in the making for the sole reason that Mr Orban stands against Islam. He accepts an assessment by the leftist French daily Liberation according to which Mr Orban is conducting anti-Semitic policies, as exemplified by his anti-Soros campaign. Nevertheless, Friss also acknowledges the existence of zero tolerance towards anti-Semitism in the governments attitudes but believes that it will only last as long as Jewish people can be made to believe that they can only be rid of their fear of Islam by an authoritarian leader. In her report on the two-day summit in Jerusalem in Magyar Idok, Reka Zetelaki points out that the accusations of anti-Semitism levelled against the Hungarian government were flatly debunked by the Israeli Prime Minister who called his Hungarian counterpart a true friend. She also quotes Mr Orban as saying that while in the West modern forms of anti-Semitism are on the rise, in Central Europe anti-Semitism is decreasing. Zetelaki also deems it important that apart from expanding co-operation with Hungary, Mr Netanyahu also said he plans to host a summit in Jerusalem with the leaders of the Visegrad 4 countries before the end of this year. This opinion does not necessarily represent the views of XpatLoop.com or the publisher. Your opinions are welcome too - for editorial review before possible publication online Click here to Share Your Story Donald Trump comes out with something outrageous practically every day. Take, for instance, his remarks on Montenegro. In an interview with Tucker Carlson of Fox News he made the following brilliant observation: Montenegro is a tiny country with very strong people. Theyre very aggressive people. They may get aggressive, and congratulations, youre in a world war three. Montenegro was admitted to NATO in June 2017, not long after a coup attempt apparently inspired by Russia in the hope of preventing Montenegro and other Balkan states from moving closer to the western alliance and eventually to the European Union. It is surprising that Trump even knew anything about Montenegro, although he did come into contact with its prime minister, Dusko Markovic, at last years NATO summit when he unceremoniously pushed him aside. Senator John McCain recalled that the people of Montenegro boldly withstood pressure from Putins Russia to embrace democracy and said that by attacking Montenegro and questioning our obligations under NATO, the president is playing right into Putins hands. Or, as the president of the Council on Foreign Relations said, the president threw Montenegro under the bus. There is no question that Russia strongly opposed Montenegros joining NATO, but whether it was behind an assassination attempt on Prime Minister Milo ukanovic in October 2016 is hard to prove. The suspicion lingers, however, that the organizers of the coup attempt were actually Russians. The Montenegrin-Hungarian relations have been extensive in recent years. The Orban government normally takes a proactive position on promoting the admission of West Balkan countries to NATO and eventually to the European Union. Naturally, the Orban government favors right-of-center forces in the region, but lately politicians the Fidesz leadership has favored havent fared well. It is enough to think of Macedonia, where despite the ferocious anti-Soros campaign, Orbans favorite politician, Nikola Gruevski, lost both the national and the municipal elections. Still, by coming to an understanding with Greece, Macedonia will be called New Macedonia, which may open the door for admission to NATO. In Albania, the Orban government has had a long-standing and close relationship with Sali Berisha, former president of Albania, whose partys candidate was defeated by the incumbent prime minister, the socialist Edi Rama. In the Western Balkans Orban has only one really good friend in power: Milo ukanovic, known as Montenegros eternal president. He has served either as president or as prime minister of the country since 1991. The last time he won was just a week after the Hungarian elections, on April 15. In addition to running Montenegro as his own fiefdom, ukanovic is infamous for being one of the most corrupt politicians anywhere. In 2015 the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project named him The Man of the Year in Organized Crime. He runs Montenegro in very much the same way that Orban runs Hungary. He and his family, just as in Orbans case, are considered to be the richest people in the country, but their wealth is well hidden. Hungary is genuinely popular in Montenegro because the people look upon the Orban government as a strong supporter of their aspirations toward closer integration into the western world. Hungary was one of the first countries to recognize Montenegro as an independent country and established diplomatic relations with it in 2006. After 2010 contacts became especially close. For example, Hungarian experts were helping Montenegro in its accession negotiations with the European Union. Over the years trade relations have also grown substantially. Hungary is a big player in the Montenegrin economy. The largest bank in the country is in Hungarian hands. It is a subsidiary of OTP, Hungarys biggest bank. For a while Crnogorski Telekom was also owned by Magyar Telekom. The owner of Montenegros largest hotel is Lorinc Meszaros, who bought it recently from another Hungarian businessman. Thus, good relations between the two countries are important to both parties. In January, just before the election campaign, Orban, in the company of Antal Rogan and Gergely Gulyas, received ukanovic, who at that point was chairman of the Montenegrin government party. As a diplomatic source told Index, the connection between the two countries was always important, but after the admission of Montenegro to NATO, they have much to thank Orban for. Immediately after the Montenegrin national election, which ended in ukanovics presidency, Csaba Balogh, undersecretary in Hungarys foreign ministry, visited Podgorica, where he promised all the help Montenegro needs in its accession negotiations with the European Union. It looks as if Hungarian experts are still working in various Montenegrin ministries. For example, currently Hungary assists the work of the ministry of human rights and minorities. Orbans experts in the ministry of human rights? This would be funny if it werent so sad. The question is that what kinds of tricks these experts pass on to their Montenegrin colleagues. Csaba Balogh also gave a lecture on the structural developments of the diplomatic network the Hungarian foreign ministry has undertaken since 2014. That despite the fact that Peter Szijjarto and Company have destroyed a large portion of the diplomatic standing Hungary had built up over the years. He apparently also gave a pep talk about the great successes achieved as a result of Viktor Orbans brainchild, the Eastern Opening. And again, he did this despite the fact that the network of trading houses, after immense financial losses, has just been dismantled. Learning too much from these experts might be injurious to the health of Montenegro, which has enough economic ills of its own without Hungarian help. This opinion does not necessarily represent the views of XpatLoop.com or the publisher. Your opinions are welcome too - for editorial review before possible publication online Click here to Share Your Story MTI Photo: KKM The Hungarian parliament on Friday adopted a new assembly law to replace legislation passed back in 1989. Under the new law, passed with 131 votes in favour and 56 against, anyone will have the right to organise or participate in peaceful and unarmed demonstrations. As defined by the new legislation, a meeting is an event attended by at least two people with the aim of publicly expressing their opinion on some public affair. Public meetings shall be announced to the police at least 48 hours prior to the actual event. The national assembly adopted an amendment to the penal code, under which people disrupting public events could be punished with up to one year in prison, while the punishment could be up to two years imprisonment if the person violently disobeys the organiser of the event. The assembly law will take effect on October 1. MTI Photo: Balogh Zoltan Coun Perez reiterates warning to barangay leaders involved in drugs 07 Aug 2017 Hits:37 Comments(0) Liga ng mga Barangay President, Councilor Jerry Perez yesterday reiterated his warning to all barangay officials from using or selling drugs. Perez said he is closely monitoring the activities of all the barangay officials and vowed sanctions against erring leaders. Aqui gane na mio barangay ya quita ya iyo na puesto cunel dos barangay leaders quien mas temprano ya sale positivo na... PATNA: Ten persons have been arrested in the Muzaffarpur shelter home sexual abuse case where more than 40 minor girls were allegedly sexually assaulted over a period of time. 10 people have been arrested so far, we will soon file a charge-sheet against them Harpreet Kaur, SSP, Muzaffarpur told ANI. Among those arrested include all staff members of the shelter home and some government officials. None of the victims were ever taken outside the hostel, she added. Meanwhile, the police launched the search inside the premises for the body of an inmate who was allegedly beaten to death by staff members following a disagreement with staff members. Nothing has been found so far at the shelter home premises where digging is underway. We are conducting a thorough investigation, police is working independently, said Kaur. Muzaffarpur shelter home alleged rape case : Digging starts in shelter home premises after statement of one of the victims that a girl was beaten to death and buried in the premises after disagreement with staff members #Bihar pic.twitter.com/3hEuUbuZO0 ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 Cops decided to take the step after one of the victims claimed during interrogation that the remains of a girl were buried underground within the compound. Meanwhile, Madhepura (Bihar) MP Pappu Yadav raked the issue in the Lok Sabha, demanding a CBI inquiry. Sexual exploitation of inmates of the Muzaffarpur shelter home came to light more than a month ago in a report of a Mumbai-based social science institute which had conducted an audit of the state-funded establishment run by an NGO. Earlier, sources told Zee Media that the victims were allegedly forced to sleep naked inside the short stay home by a lady teacher, Kiran. PATNA: Shocking facts are now emerging in the Muzaffarpur shelter home sexual abuse case where more than 40 minor girls were allegedly sexually assaulted over a period of time. The young victims were allegedly forced to sleep naked inside the short stay home by a lady teacher, Kiran, sources told Zee Media. According the girls, Kiran would also get naked and sleep alongside four to five girls. Authorities have also launched a search inside the premises for the body of an inmate who was allegedly beaten to death by staff members following a disagreement with staff members. Cops decided to take the step after one of the victims claimed that the remains of a girl were buried underground within the compound during interrogation. Sexual exploitation of inmates of the Muzaffarpur shelter home came to light more than a month ago in a report of a Mumbai-based social science institute which had conducted an audit of the state-funded establishment run by an NGO. More than 10 people, including all staff members of the shelter home and some government officials, have so far been arrested in this connection while all the inmates have been shifted to other districts. Meanwhile, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, the Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly, attacked the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government for its "failure" to protect the girls at a shelter home at Muzaffarpur and in other places. The senior RJD leader alleged that the state government was protecting the accused persons. "Since March, Bihar Govt is aware about repeated rapes committed against 40 minor inmates of Muzaffarpur shelter home by politicians, officials for years. Many had forced abortions. No action has been taken but cover up is on at war footing," the RJD leader said in a release. He further alleged that that "40 minor girls of 7 to 17 year were repeatedly raped under one roof for months in a state sponsored shelter home. The patron of the NGO is close to whos who of government... After the disclosure, few girls went missing, a girl was found murdered, buried." With agency inputs PATNA: The new Liquor Amendments Bill, tabled by Nitish Kumar-led government, was passed in the monsoon session of the Bihar Assembly on Monday. Addressing the house, Kumar said, Liquor ban was introduced for the poor people. they were wasting a major part of their income in buying alcohol. Domestic violence was high. I did this for betterment of poor. Anyone caught drinking will be fined Rs 50,000 or three-month jail for the first time. Second-time culprits will be give one-year jail term. The Chief Minister added that following liquor ban in the state, the number of drinkers have dropped to 62 per cent. Over 39,000 people have been arrested for liquor consumption, said Kumar. The Nitish Kumar government which had imposed a ban on liquor in the state from 1 April, 2016. Apart from consumption, stocking and sale of liquor was also banned across state. According to a study by Asian Development Research Institute (ADRI), the liquor ban in Bihar has resulted in a dip in criminal cases and increase people spending their money in clothes and food items. New Delhi: The Madras High Court on Monday set aside Look Out Circulars (LOCs) issued by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Karti Chidambaram in June 2017. Son of former union minister P Chidambaram, Karti is facing two Look Out Circulars in a corruption case filed by the intelligence agency. The court has, however, made it clear that the order would not affect any proceedings initiated against Karti in the case under the registered FIR. Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court permitted Karti, who is facing a graft case filed by the CBI, to fly to Europe on a business tour. Karti had approached the high court seeking permission to travel to the US, UK and France for a business tour between July 23 and 31. The Foreigner Regional Registration Officer (FRRO) and the Bureau of Immigration under the home ministry had issued the LOCs against Karti and four others last year. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday permitted Karti Chidambaram, facing a graft case filed by the CBI, to fly to Europe on a business tour. Son of former Union finance minister P Chidambaram, Karti is facing two Look Out Circulars (LOCs) in a corruption case filed by the CBI and approached the high court seeking permission to travel to US, UK and France for a business trip between July 23 and 31. The Foreigner Regional Registration Officer (FRRO) and the Bureau of Immigration under the home ministry had issued the LOCs against Karti and four others last year. The LOCs against them were issued in the case relating to grant of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to INX Media for receiving overseas funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore in 2007 when his father was the finance minister. The Bureau of Immigration and the Foreigner Regional Registration Officer (FRRO) had issued the LOCs at the CBIs request last year. The CBI FIR, lodged on May 15 last year, had alleged irregularities in the FIPB clearance to INX Media. The LOCs were earlier stayed by a single judge bench of the Madras High Court on a petition by Karti. With PTI Inputs Lucknow: US retail major Walmart will open 20 wholesale cash-and-carry stores in India in the next three years, a top company official said today. Besides, the company, which opened its second fulfilment centre here, is also in the process of opening more such centres to cater to online business-to-business (B2B) customers to tap the fast growing e-commerce in India. We will launch two stores this year and eight stores next year and 10 stores a year after that, said Walmart India President and CEO Krish Iyer. Walmart has plans to add 50 stores in next five to seven years, he added. The company operates 21 cash and carry stores under the 'Best Price' brand in 9 states across India. It has signed MoU with the Uttar Pradesh government to have 15 stores in next few years in the state, lyer said. We have already finalised three sites and six more are in the pipeline he added. Walmart plans to set up its 'Best Price' stores at various locations in the state, including Kanpur Muradabad, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Sharanpur, Lucknow, and Ghaziabad. Walmart India, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Walmart Inc today opened its second business-to-business (B2B) fulfilment centre (FC) in Lucknow. Through the FCs, the company caters to its online B2B customers out-of-stores sales while also taking care of sales via associates who take orders from its members and call centres. The FC will contribute to the state and local economies by creating over 1,500 direct and indirect local jobs, developing SME suppliers, and empowering local communities," Iyer said. Besides, with this initiative Walmart is taking another step towards building an impactful distribution eco-system by working with partners, he added. This is the company's second such centre in India. Walmart had opened its first FC in November last year in Mumbai. Walmart India is now getting nearly half of its business through non-store or out-of-store sales channels, which include B2B e-commerce, associates driven sales and call centres. The rest half of its business still comes from in-store walk-ins. NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday said that there cannot be any 'blanket ban' on holding protests at Jantar Mantar and Boat Club in Delhi. The National Green Tribunal had in October 2017 banned all protests and dharnas around the historic Jantar Mantar area saying such activities violate environmental laws. The NGT had said that the State had totally failed to protect the right of enjoying pollution-free environment of the citizens living in the Jantar Mantar Road area, close to Connaught Place in the heart of the city. Lashing out at the State, it had said that steps should be taken to ensure that the rights of the people to live a peaceful and comfortable life are not infringed by those who create noise pollution in the name of the right of freedom of speech and expression. The PIL before the high court had said that the residents have been left "disgusted and distressed by processions and agitations held by social groups, political parties, NGOs at Jantar Mantar road which continue throughout the day, 365 days a year". Petitioner advocate Rajiv Singh had highlighted that due to unique position of current protest venue being situated at the corner of intersection of Tolstoy Road, Parliament Street and Jantar Mantar road "almost every day, various processions, demonstrations are held on Jantar Mantar road, which are primarily aimed at going towards Parliament House". The petitioners, residents of the area, had further blamed the Delhi Police for diverting the protests to Jantar Mantar Road. Later, the Delhi High Court also disposed of a PIL seeking direction to prohibit holding of dharna and restraining them from "shouting slogans, distributing pamphlets and littering at Jantar Mantar road". "In view of the recent National Green Tribunals (NGT) order prohibiting protests at Jantar Mantar, the prayer raised in the writ petition stands satisfied. Now no further order is required. The petition is disposed of," the HC bench had said. Paris: Actor-writer Simon Pegg believes the uniqueness of the 'Mission: Impossible' films lies in its lead star Tom Cruise's ability to deliver a real sense of danger through his death-defying stunts, an experience lacking in other CGI-filled Hollywood movies. Cruise broke his ankle while shooting for 'Mission: Impossible - Fallout', the sixth film in the series. Pegg's Benji Dunn has become a trusted aide to Cruise's Ethan Hunt in the franchise, which started in 1996 though the British actor joined the series only in the third film. "It genuinely sort of weighs on Tom to deliver an authentic experience for the audience so that they feel the jeopardy and the peril. In this day and age, the easier it gets to create these sequences in a computer, the more important it is to actually do it because, otherwise, you will lose touch with the feeling that this is happening," Pegg told PTI in an interview. The actor believes the stunts put the viewers on the edge as they know what is happening in the film has actually taken place in reality. "When you watch these films, it's like watching fireworks. You kind of think that it's impressive and spectacular but also that there is no real danger. With Tom, it's like watching actual explosions where you might get hit by the shrapnel." Pegg, who has made a name for himself by writing and starring in films such as "Shaun of the Dead", "Hot Fuzz" and "The World's End", believes Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie have gone a step further with "Mission: Impossible - Fallout". "The stunt work and the action set pieces have been meticulously designed to occur in real life and Tom has become famous for doing his signature stunts in these movies, in which he genuinely puts himself in peril. That has only become more and more a part of each film. With this one, they've never been as crazy, as ambitious and thrilling." If Cruise's Hunt is the wild one, Pegg's Benji has come to be known for humour and as the ever-dependable tech guy. The actor believes the equation between Benji and Hunt has become better as he and Cruise have developed a friendship beyond the films. Tom and he have known for each other for 12 years and have developed a "sort of shorthand" that mirrors their real relationship. "When I joined the Mission Impossible film series, Tom was already Tom Cruise! And like Benji gets to work with Ethan Hunt, I got to work with Tom Cruise. "We joke about it even now because on one hand he is Tom Cruise, the actor, but on the other hand he is Tom Cruise, who has this mystique, this bizarre cloud of mystery. So, our relationship in real life is very much like Benji and Ethan and we kind of play on that a little bit," he says. The film, which was shot around the globe in destinations such as Paris, London, New Zealand and Abu Dhabi, was recently premiered in the French capital. A Paramount Pictures movie, "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" will be exclusively distributed in India by Viacom18 Motion Pictures. Also starring, Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Rebecca Ferguson, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Kirby, Michelle Monaghan and Alec Baldwin, the film releases on July 27. Chennai: A Chennai-bound Air India flight from Singapore with 230 passengers on board suffered a bird hit while landing on Monday, prompting authorities to cancel its return flight, officials said. The plane's nose was damaged in the incident, airport officials said. An Air India spokesperson said the plane suffered the bird hit while it was 400 feet above the ground near Chennai airport. After it landed safely, it was taken to a separate bay to rectify the damage, the officials said. The flight, which was later scheduled to leave for Singapore, was cancelled as the aircraft was considered "not fit" for the journey. Officials said 159 Singapore-bound passengers of the carrier were later accommodated in an alternative flight arranged by AI. Decades of political friendship between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena may well be breathing its last with reports of both parties preparing to fight elections next year without the other surfacing. It is learnt that while BJP president Amit Shah has asked party workers in Maharashtra to gear up to fight 2019 elections alone, Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray too told party mouthpiece Saamna in a recent interview that he will fight next year's elections on his own merit. Tensions between the two parties have been simmering for years and in recent months, have flared. Shiv Sena's decision to abstain from voting in the no-confidence motion last Friday is beign widely seen in political circles as a message of defiance against BJP. That Saamna, in an article the very next day, praised Congress President Rahul Gandhi's speech attacking PM Narendra Modi was yet another prominent signal of love turning sour. These though are just the recent signs in a tale of possible break-up. The biggest bone of contention was when Shiv Sena complained of getting fewer berths than other regional parties in the cabinet after 2014 elections. Bypolls have since been fought separately and accusations have flown thick and fast. While BJP leaders like Devendra Fadnavis and Yogi Adityanath have slammed Shiv Sena from time to time, Thackeray's party has hit back at almost every political move of BJP and governance policy of the NDA government. From breaking alliance with PDP in Kashmir to demonetisation, from questioning EVMs to casting aspersions on treatment of alliance partners - Shiv Sena has been relentless in its onslaught against BJP. Clearly then, the bonhomie shared between the two parties during the times of Atal Bihar Vajpayee and Pramod Mahajan of BJP and Bal Thackeray of Shiv Sena are long over. With PM Modi and Amit Shah on one side and Uddhav on the other, current tumultuous times in the relationship may well end in a historic political break-up. NEW DELHI: Congress will be moving a privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Lok Sabha over the Rafale deal even after France admitted that the information of the deal is protected under secrecy agreements. Hitting out at the Centre, senior Congress leader AK Antony said that the price of the aircraft should be revealed. "The government's claim of secrecy clause in Rafale deal is totally wrong. They have to reveal price details of each aircraft. The government cannot hide price details of Rafale deal as it has to be scrutinised by CAG and Public Accounts Committee," Antony said. He added that the scope of the pact extends to tactical, technical details of weaponry. "Indo-French pact of 2008 doesn't mention that commercial cost of procurement relating to defence deal can't be revealed. It is clear that the PM and Defence Minister have misled the nation on the issue," he said. Congress leader Anand Sharma also said that the government owes an explanation to Parliament on why the PM and the Defence Minister 'misled' the nation on price issue in Rafale deal. "The French government had no objection in revealing price of Rafale aircraft, this was conveyed by French president to Rahul Gandhi," Sharma said. While speaking in the Lok Sabha during the debate on the no-confidence motion against the government, Rahul had alleged that Sitharaman had lied to the nation by claiming that India was bound by a secrecy clause in the Rafale fighter jet deal signed with France. Rahul said French President Emmanuel Macron had clearly conveyed to him that there was no problem in sharing details relating to the Rafale deal worth Rs 58,000 crore. Alleging corruption in the deal, the Congress has been demanding details, including cost of equipment and weapons, but the government has refused to share them citing the secrecy clause. However, France refuted Rahul's remarks and said that the information is protected under secrecy agreements. Dehradun: The Meteorological (MeT) department on Monday predicted heavy rainfall to hit Uttarakhand this week. The state is likely to receive heavy showers on July 25, July 26 and July 27. Following the Met department's forecast, the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management issued an advisory to all the District Magistrates to remain on high alert. The State Disaster Management has asked the District Magistrates to ensure that at every level precaution, safety and traffic are maintained. In case of any mishap, the preparedness of handling the situation must be ensured. Every police station will also remain on high alert with their disaster relief equipment and wireless sets. The weather department also said that heavy rain at a few places with very heavy rain at isolated places is very likely over Vidarbha on Monday. Heavy to very heavy rain at isolated places is also expected over east Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Isolated places over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, West Bengal and Sikkim, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Gujarat Region, Konkan and Goa, Madhya Maharashtra and coastal and south interior Karnataka are also likely to receive heavy rainfall. NEW DELHI: A Samajwadi Party leader has stirred a row after he justified the practice of triple talaq saying what will a man do if his wife is cheating on him. SP leader Riyaz Ahmed said that if a woman has illicit relations with another man, the husband has only two options, either to kill her or give her triple talaq. "Triple talaq is given so that she is not killed," Riyaz said. Riyaz is the head of the minorities panel of the Samajwadi Party. Speaking at an event in Bareily, Riyaz also said that Muslim women should get a separate reservation of 8 per cent. He said that if the Bharatiya Janata Party government is really a wellwisher of Muslim women, they should give a separate quota to them under women reservation bill. He also claimed that while triple talaq is talked about so much, the fact is that Hindus file for more divorces than Muslims. He had been in the news in the past also for his controversial remark in 2014. While attacking BJP's Varun Gandhi and Union minister Maneka Gandhi, he had then said that the voters of Pilibhit are being used 'like condoms'. "Varun Gandhi and Maneka Gandhi have never voted in Pilibhit. They have been casting their vote in Delhi. It's a big insult to the people of Pilibhit. For the past 30 years, people in Pilibhit are being used like condoms," he was quoted as saying during a public meeting. The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017, was passed in the Lok Sabha but is pending in the Rajya Sabha. Last week, Congress president Rahul Gandhi had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking him to ensure the passage of the Women's Reservation Bill in the Monsoon Session of Parliament. A day later, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad responded to the letter with a "new deal" of equality and adequate representation by joining hands to pass the bills on women's reservation, Triple Talaq and Nikah Halala. Islamabad: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said that if his party comes to power, it would create an environment for Kashmir to join Pakistan on the pattern of the reunification of East and West Germany. Shehbaz, the PML-N prime ministerial candidate and the brother of jailed former premier Nawaz Sharif, said this in an interview to Geo TV when asked what would be his policy on Kashmir if his party is voted to power after the July 25 general elections. He attacked India for "inhumane treatment" of Kashmiris and said "Kashmir would become part of Pakistan through peace and development." "I believe that it will be like the Berlin Wall being pulled down. It was the prosperity in West Germany that united the two parts," he said. The Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) West and East Germany respectively united on October 3 in 1990. On Sunday, while addressing a rally in Sargodha district in Punjab province, he said that people can change his name if he does not take Pakistan ahead of India after coming into power. "They (Indians) will come to Wahga Border and call Pakistanis their master," 65-year-old Shehbaz said. The former Punjab chief minister said that he would bring Pakistan at par with Malaysia and Turkey. He added that he would meet Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan "to learn from them and make Pakistan a great nation again". He said that Pakistan cannot become a great nation by voting leaders like Imran Khan who have made false promises to "our nation". "The U-turn signs should be removed from roads and should be replaced by the picture of Imran Khan," he said, adding that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief's politics is based on baseless allegations and false promises. "Khan alleged corruption against the Punjab government but not a single penny has been proved against me," the PML-N president said. He was the chief minister of Punjab province from June 2013 to June 2018. He was elected as PML-N president in March after his elder brother Nawaz Sharif was disqualified as the party president following a Supreme Court verdict in the Elections Act 2017 case. The PML-N chief said Nawaz Sharif came back to Pakistan leaving his ailing wife in London but he and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were arrested at the airport. "Nawaz Sharif was not even allowed to meet his mother," he added. Both Sharif and Maryam have been sentenced by a court to 10 and seven years in prison, respectively, for corruption charges. Maryam's husband Muhammad Safdar was jailed for one year. AHMEDABAD: Questioning the absence of a clear agenda among united Opposition, Dalit leader and Gujarat legislator Jignesh Mevani took to Twitter on Monday expressing his doubts over defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Lok Sabha elections 2019. Agreed Modi ji failed to give us 2 crore jobs. He is absolutely incapable of creating employment. But what do other political parties propose to creat jobs is also a big question. In the absence of a genuine, innovative pro active agenda can BJP be defeated? tweeted the 35-year-old legislator representing Vadgam constituency. Agreed Modi ji failed to give us 2 crore jobs. He is absolutely incapable of creating employment. But what do other political parties propose to creat jobs is also a big question. In the absence of a genuine, innovative pro active agenda can BJP be defeated? Jignesh Mevani (@jigneshmevani80) July 23, 2018 There have been growing calls of forming a joint Opposition ahead of 2019 general elections to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party. Opposition leaders in Gujarat have been exploring the possibility of entering an alliance with Congress. West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee also said that she's not averse to working with Congress towards a common goal. Mevani had contested the last state Assembly elections with the support of the Congress and other Opposition groups. Aurangabad: The agitation by Maratha community for reservation in government jobs and education today took a tragic turn after a 27-year-old protester jumped to his death in Godavari river near here. Kakasaheb Shinde, a resident of Kaygaon village in Aurangabad district, jumped off a bridge over Godavari river, police said. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was declared dead, they said. The incident came a day after Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he was cancelling his visit, scheduled today, to a temple in Pandharpur after protesting Maratha outfits threatened to disrupt the event. Shinde's death triggered a fresh set of protests in several parts of Maharashtra, with opposition leaders seeking to put the onus on the BJP-led government in the state. Protesters blocked the Ahmednagar-Aurangabad highway and damaged a dozen vehicles, including a police van and a bus, in Gangakhed tehsil of Parbhani district. They refused to take possession of Shinde's body and demanded the resignation of Fadnavis. They held a sit-in protest at the Gangapur police station in Aurangabad district, demanding that criminal case be filed against the Chief Minister over Shinde's death. Seeking immediate announcement of reservations for the Maratha community, the protesters also sought a compensation of Rs 50 lakh for Shinde's family. The Maratha Kranti Morcha, which led Monday's 'jal samadhi' protest in which Shinde died, is leading the agitation seeking reservations for the community. In the last few days, protests have take place in Buldhana, Akola, Parali, Washim and even in Mumbai. Congress MLA Nitesh Rane blamed the Fadnavis government for the death of the protester, while NCP leader Sunil Tatkare said Shinde's death should help serve as a warning to all concerned to handle the stir with caution. BJP's Rajya Sabha member Sambhaji Chhatrapati said, "The issue of Maratha reservations is of utmost importance. The Chief Minister should not ignore it." "The Fadnavis-led government is engaged in an attempt to paint the protesting Maratha community members as criminals and this attempt is infuriating," Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Ashok Chavan said. The community leaders had earlier taken out several rallies in various districts to highlight their demands. Last year, a huge rally was organised by the Maratha Kranti Morcha in this connection in Mumbai. Despite assurances from Fadnavis to fulfil the demands, nothing concrete has been done till now, community leaders have claimed. Union minister Piyush Goyal has hit out at Congress president Rahul Gandhi over the latters attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over recent incident of lynching of a Muslim man by a mob in Alwar in Rajasthan. Hitting back at the Gandhi scion on microblogging site Twitter, the minister referred to him as a merchant of hate. Pointing that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Rajasthan had already assured strict and prompt action, the Union minister accused Rahul Gandhi of dividing the society for electoral gains and shedding crocodile tears. Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE. https://t.co/4thsyNL3nx Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 23, 2018 Goyal tweeted, Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE. Union Minister and BJP leader Smriti Irani, who had contested Lok Sabha elections against the Gandhi scion in Amethi, also hit out at Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of making attempts to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. Rahul Gandhis family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. https://t.co/kpX3n1Kcc0 Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) July 23, 2018 Raking up the 1984 anti-Sikh riots to target the Gandhi family, the actress-turned-politician tweeted, Rahul Gandhis family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. This came just hours after the Congress president attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the lynching incident in Alwar. While pointing that the policemen reportedly took a tea break while taking the victim to hospital, Rahul Gandhi said, This is Modis brutal New India. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. https://t.co/sNdzX6eVSU Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 23, 2018 The Congress chief shared a media report and targeted the government saying policemen took three hours to reach the hospital which was at a distance of six kilometre from the site of the incident. He had tweeted, Policemen in Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. In its attempt to keep a check on increasing incidents of mob lynching, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Centre is exploring the possibility of making amendments in the Indian Penal Code. According to a senior official, the government intends to define mob lynching as a penal offence. Besides, the government is considering another option of drafting a model law, which can be adopted by states to prevent incidents of mob lynching. The official said that the discussions for the same are in preliminary state, in the wake of the Supreme Courts order directing Centre to formulate a new law. The government is considering the option of making amendments to the Indian Penal Code so that it does not require to bring in a new standalone law to tackle the menace. The catch, however, in this option is that if the burden to prove innocence is put on the accused, it would require amendments in certain sections of the Criminal Procedure Code and the Indian Evidence Act. As per the government official, it will take several days before the government firms up its stand. Apart from these, the central government is also likely to further strengthen the framework concerning social media in order to ensure that rumours that trigger such incidents are checked. Several cases of lynching and mob violence have been reported from across the country in the recent past. The latest such incident took place in Alwar in Rajasthan where a 28-year-old Muslim man, named Akbar Khan, was beaten to death by an angry mob on the suspicion of being a cow smuggler. The police have arrested two suspects in connection with the case even as the Rajasthan government has assured proper investigation and stringent action. Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje had also condemned the incident and assured stern action against the culprits. New Delhi: A London-bound Jet Airways flight from Mumbai was today diverted to Bucharest in Romania due to a medical emergency, but it remained stranded there reportedly for more than four hours, passengers complained. Author Suhel Seth was one of the passengers on the flight. He took to Twitter to vent his anger. "The commander of @jetairways 9W 116 which is now stranded at Bucharest tells us that while all local clearances have been given, they are waiting for the goddamn DGCA to give them an approval and that too from Bombay? How stupid can things get?" he tweeted. In another tweet, Seth said, "Passengers on @jetairways 9W 116 have been sitting in the plane at Bucharest which has now been on the Tarmac for four hours. Waiting for some stupid chap in the DGCA BOMBAY to give us an approval to take off for London. What's going on @jayantsinha and @sureshpprabhu?". Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu reacted to his tweet: "I am getting this looked into and sorted out immediately." Minutes later, the Ministry of Civil Aviation tweeted that no permission from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) was required but they were awaiting clearance from Boeing, the aircraft manufacturer, as the flight had landed with excess fuel weight. "There is no permission pending from DGCA. However, since the landing was with excess fuel weight (en route London), clearance has been sought from the manufacturer (Boeing) so that there is no technical safety issue on take-off. Should take off as soon as the clearance is received," the tweet read. A Jet Airways spokesperson said flight 9W116 from Mumbai to London Heathrow, with 328 people on board, was diverted to Bucharest, Romania due to a medical emergency. The people have now been shifted to a local hospital for further treatment. Jet Airways, along with local authorities, is making all necessary arrangements for the flight to continue its onward journey to London Heathrow, the spokesperson said. Battling against all odds, Asharam Chaudhary, son of a ragpicker in Devas in Madhya Pradesh, has cracked the entrance examination of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the first attempt. He will join Jodhpur AIIMS to pursue MBBS. Asharam wishes to complete his MBBS successfully and then pursue MS to become a neuro surgeon. He is also determined to complete his education in India itself and does not even wish to settle abroad. Asharam wants to open a hospital in his village in Devas after completing his education. "I want to return to my Vijayganj Mandi village and set up a hospital there so that no one is deprived of medical facilities," he said. Recalling the hardships faced by him, Choudhary said, "I received my primary education at a government school. I completed my schooling in Dewas district. My house does not have an electricity connection or a toilet. "My father is a ragpicker. He also did odd jobs to make ends meet. Now, he wants to open a small vegetable shop," he said. His younger brother, Sitaram, is in Class XII and his sister, Narmada, in Class IX. Choudhary's story of travails and triumphs has a hero - Durga Shanker Kumawat, a doctor in his village, who inspired him to dream big. Congress President @RahulGandhi wrote to Asharam Choudhary , bright son of a ragpicker who cracked the AIIMS entrance test in his first attempt. pic.twitter.com/afN8cbVFSv Congress (@INCIndia) July 22, 2018 He has also received a congratulatory letter from Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his achievement. In his letter to Asharam, the Congress chief wrote that he reminded him of the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi. The Gandhi scion wrote, You remind me of Mahatma Gandhi who used to say: Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from the indomitable will. I am aware that despite all the challenges you were able to secure good rank. It is a testament to their dedication and your hard work that you have performed so well, said Rahul Gandhi in his letter to Asharam. He further wrote, It gave me immense pleasure to note how your village doctors and parents inspired you in your journey and contribution of Dakshana Foundation to support you financially. I hope one day you will also be in a position to inspire other young children to take up the medical profession and serve the people of India. (With PTI Inputs) Congress president Rahul Gandhi has now hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over alleged delay by Rajasthan police in taking Alwar mob lynching victim to hospital. Citing that the cops reportedly took a tea break while going the hospital, the Gandhi scion said that this is Modis brutal New India. Sharing a media report about the alleged delay by the policemen in taking the victim, Akbar Khan aka Rakbar Khan, to the hospital, the Congress president tweeted, Policemen in Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. https://t.co/sNdzX6eVSU Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 23, 2018 This came after reports emerged that following the attack by the mob on the 28-year-old victim, the police personnel first took cows to a shelter home at a distance of 10 km, and then took the victim to hospital. Reports also said that the cops took a tea break on their way to the hospital. Meanwhile, sources also told Zee News that the police personnel could have saved the victim had they rushed him to hospital immediately. Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said that he had taken cognisance of media reports that there was delay by the policemen. Kataria told news agency ANI, According to few media reports there was delay by the police in taking the victim to the hospital. We will get this information verified and if it is found true, we will take action against those responsible. Dr Hasan, who inspected the victim after he was brought to the hospital, confirmed that Akbar Khan was declared brought dead to the hospital at 4 am. He said that the body was sent to Alwar for post-mortem on the request of a police officer. Srinagar: An 80-year-old man in Jammu and Kashmir, who was carrying buffalo to his home, was attacked and beaten up by a group of people. The incident took place in the state's Ramban district on Sunday. He was admitted to Banihal district hospital after he had suffered injuries. Abdul Hamid Sheikh bought a buffalo from Batru village and was taking it home which is 3 kms from the place. On his way home, the old man had a tiff with another man, Parbhat Singh, who was later joined by his family in thrashing Sheikh. A case was registered and three accused have been arrested. Sheikh was later discharged from the hospital. Jammu and Kashmir Police said, "A case was registered and three accused were arrested. Further investigation is on. The complainant was discharged from local hospital and has since proceeded safely to his home. This is just a normal case and not a case of cow vigilantism as being claimed by sections of media." Several incidents of lynching and mob violence have been reported from across the country in the recent past. In the latest mob lynching indent, a man was beaten up by a mob to death in Rajasthan on the suspicion of cow smuggling. 28-year-old Akbar Khan was lynched in Lalawandi village in Alwar district on last Saturday. New Delhi: Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan on Monday, called out a web portal for publishing a story that claimed that he and wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan had a scuffle while returning to Mumbai from London. Taking to Twitter, Abhishek wrote "With due respect. Please refrain from making up false stories. I understand the need to continuously post, but would really appreciate it if you could do so responsibly and without mischievous intent. Thank you, Abhishek wrote in reply to the portal's tweet, which was later deleted. With due respect. Please refrain from making up false stories. I understand the need to continously post, but would really appreciate it if you could do so responsibly and without mischievous intent. Thank you. Abhishek Bachchan (@juniorbachchan) July 23, 2018 The said story was based on a video of Abhishek and Aishwarya arriving at Mumbai airport from their vacay in London. The article claimed that the duo were fighting and Aishwarya did not let Aaradhya hold her fathers hand. The site, however, removed the story after Abhishek's tweet. This isn't the first time Abhishek has called out on a publication. A few days ago, a twitter user trolled him for living with his parents. To which, Abhishek had the wittiest thing to say, "'Yes! And it's the proudest moment for me to be able to be there for them, as they have for me. Try it sometime, you might feel better about yourself." When a fan asked why he replied to the troll, he answered, "Sometimes they need to be put in their place." On the work front, Abhishek Bachchan has finished shooting for his comeback film 'Manmarziyan' directed by Anurag Kashyap. Post wrapping up the shoot, Abhishek penned an emotional letter that read, " Making a movie is a journey. The best thing about films is, the journey will always live on forever. As this part of the journey of #Manmarziyaan comes to an end... Thank you @anuragkashyap10 for entrusting me with Robbie. I hope I can repay your trust, belief and faith in me. I hope I make you proud. And as and when you look back on this journey, my victory would be if you smile.... Not only that, he also thanked his co-stars Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal and Kanika Dhillon and the crew of the film,To my beautiful co-actors, Thank you! Especially the two mad hatters @taapseeand @vickykaushal09. Stay real, stay mad and mostly... STAY PUNJABI!! @kanika.d you wrote it, we acted it. Let's hope our audience lives it! Thank you for your constant encouragement. I can't even begin to tell you how much it helped. To such an awesome crew- Thank you for being so kind. Aap sab ke saath " hum to udd gaye"!! The film is jointly produced by Aanand L Rai, Vikas Bahl, Vikramaditya Motwane, Madhu Mantena and Anurag Kashyap. New Delhi: Actress Dia Mirza, who was last seen playing Maanyataa Dutt in Rajkumar Hiranis recent release Sanju, is on cloud nine as a baby Rhino has been named after her. The actress has always actively taken part in environment-related activities and hence the latest development has made her really happy. The reason- Dia, who is the UN Goodwill Ambassador For Environment, recently had a baby rhino (born at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy) named after her. Taking to her Facebook page, an elated Dia shared, I want to thank Hamid Hussain and Muhammad Yaqoob and the entire team at #OlPejetaConservancy including Richard, Sarah and Elodie for naming this amazing #Rhino baby after me! Please support Hamid and Richard in their mission of helping save and conserve wildlife. Do visit Ol Pejeta Conservancy and stay at the amazing Serena Sweetwaters property there. Every visitor there contributes to help save wildlife. And you can meet the newly named baby rhino, Dia Mirza there! Click a picture of her and tag me and you can win a chance for another holiday with @airarabiagroup!!!Lets do our bit and help save our amazing wildlife! Readers may remember that in 2010, Dia had adopted and named two leopard cubs Ashoka and Nakshatra from the Lucknow Zoo after being requested by the zoo authorities to do so as the mother of the cubs was also named Dia. Dia is known for supporting many environmental and social causes and has been recognized by the United Nations for her contribution to environmental conservation along with global celebrities like Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Angelina Jolie, Katy Perry and Emma Watson. Did 28-year-old Akbar Khan, the man beaten up by a mob in Alwar in Rajasthan over alleged cow smuggling, die because of delay by police in taking him to a hospital? Sources have told Zee News that the police personnel first took the cows to a shelter at a distance of 10 km, and then took the victim to the hospital. According to the sources, the life of the victim could have been saved if rushed to hospital on time. Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said that he had taken cognisance of media reports that there was delay by the police in taking the victim to the hospital. According to few media reports there was delay by the police in taking the victim to the hospital. We will get this information verified and if it is found true, we will take action against those responsible, said Kataria. Reacting to the development, All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi said that the actions of the Rajasthan Police were no surprise to him, pointing that similar thing had happened in the lynching case of Pehlu Khan, who was beaten to death by a mob in Alwar in 2017. Rajasthan police's actions are not a surprise to me, they did the same in Pehlu Khan murder case. Rajasthan police is supporting cow vigilantes. These Gau Rakshaks and police are in this together, said the AIMIM chief. Dr Hasan, who inspected the victim after he was brought to the hospital, confirmed that Akbar Khan was declared brought dead to the hospital at 4 am. He said that the body was sent to Alwar for post-mortem on the request of a police officer. This comes even as a petition has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a case of contempt of court against the Rajasthan government over the latest case of lynching in Alwar. Washington: NASA is on schedule to launch mankind's first mission to the Sun - a car sized probe that will swoop to within 4 million miles of the solar surface, facing heat and radiation like no spacecraft before. The Parker Solar Probe, which is expected to take off no earlier than August 6 aboard United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy, will study the Sun closer than any human-made object ever has. "We've been studying the Sun for decades, and now we're finally going to go where the action is," said Alex Young, associate director for science in the Heliophysics Science Division at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in the US. Our Sun is far more complex than meets the eye. Rather than the steady, unchanging disk it seems to human eyes, the Sun is a dynamic and magnetically active star. The Sun's atmosphere constantly sends magnetised material outward, enveloping our solar system far beyond the orbit of Pluto and influencing every world along the way. Coils of magnetic energy can burst out with light and particle radiation that travel through space and create temporary disruptions in our atmosphere, sometimes garbling radio and communications signals near Earth. The influence of solar activity on Earth and other worlds are collectively known as space weather, and the key to understanding its origins lies in understanding the Sun itself. "The Sun's energy is always flowing past our world. And even though the solar wind is invisible, we can see it encircling the poles as the aurora, which are beautiful - but reveal the enormous amount of energy and particles that cascade into our atmosphere," Nicky Fox, Parker Solar Probe's project scientist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab. "We don't have a strong understanding of the mechanisms that drive that wind toward us, and that's what we're heading out to discover," said Fox. The Parker Solar Probe carries a lineup of instruments to study the Sun both remotely and in situ, or directly. Together, the data from these instruments should help scientists answer three foundational questions about our star. A Sun-skimming mission like Parker Solar Probe has been a dream of scientists for decades, but only recently has the needed technology - like the heat shield, solar array cooling system, and fault management system - been available to make such a mission a reality. Parker Solar Probe will explore the corona, a region of the Sun only seen from Earth when the Moon blocks out the Sun's bright face during total solar eclipses. The corona holds the answers to many of scientists' outstanding questions about the Sun's activity and processes. Alexa has become a household name in India and other parts of the world. The Amazon module that works on the concept of voice recognition got immensely popular within no time. But do you know who the brain behind the machine is? It is the brainchild of an Indian man, Rohit Prasad, who hails from Jharkhand capital Ranchi. Currently working as Vice President and Head Scientist of Alexa Artificial Intelligence at Amazon, Prasad appeared on the 15th position on the Recodes list of 100 people in technology, business and media who mattered in 2017. Though Prasad is now settled abroad, he did his schooling and engineering from Ranchi. He studied in DAV Public School in Ranchi, and later went on to pursue engineering from Birla Institute of Technology (BIT) Mesra, a village near the Jharkhand capital. After completing his engineering, Prasad decided to go abroad for further studies. He pursued MS in Electrical Engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology and completed the same in 1999. Following this, he joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for an executive MBA programme. According to his LinkedIn profile, Prasad joined Raytheon BBN Technologies in July 1999 as a staff scientist. In the same company, he went on to rise to the position of Deputy Manager and Senior Director of Speech, Language and Multimedia Business Unit. He left the company in 2013 to join Amazon, where he reached new heights, not just as a professional, but also as an innovator. He worked with Amazon for three years as the Director of Machine Learning, Alexa, and was elevated in 2016 as the Vice President and Head Scientist of Alexa Artificial Intelligence. New Delhi: The popular reality show 'Bigg Boss' had a successful stint in Marathi as season 1 saw many high moments. The grand finale of the show hosted by none other than actor-director Mahesh Manjrekar got its first winner in actress Megha Dhade. Megha lifted the coveted trophy and got the prize money as well. The competition was amongst Megha, Smita Gondkar and Pushkar Jog. After Smita was evicted, she walked away with Rs 2 lakh in cash and got a title 'most fit member of the house'. The final fight was between Megha and Pushkar, but it was the former who emerged as the winner. The fans loved her on the show and that helped her bag the winner's title. Check out the pictures here: With all your love, faith and support our Tigress Megha Dhade is the winner of Biggboss Marathi Season 1! Thank you all! Cheers to Megha!#meghadhade pic.twitter.com/U6IivlYNEe Megha Dhade (@meghadhade) July 22, 2018 'Bigg Boss' Marathi season 1 premiered on April 15, 2018. As many as 18 contestants were locked inside the madhouse and had no communication with the outside world. After braving evictions every week, Megha, Smita and Pushkar battled it out to the finale. 'Bigg Boss' Marathi was aired on Colors Marathi. Now, all eyes are set on its Hindi version 'Bigg Boss' season 12 which will be hosted by none other than superstar Salman Khan. He has been successfully associated with the show for past 8 years. Looking to not just expand its military production but quickly innovate cutting-edge defence products, China is reportedly on the cusp of deploying submarines operated by robots and powered by artificial intelligence for reconnaissance operations as well as for suicide attacks. According to a report published in South China Morning Post, the country is currently testing the robot submarines and may put these to use by early 2020. If the tests are successful and if these submarines are indeed put to use, China could exponentially increase its influence in the contested South China Sea and become a massive power in international waters where its current fleet of submarines undertake regular patrols. Such submarines are reportedly also being tested by the US but what gives the Chinese an edge is that its technology would enable submarines to attack and explode autonomously. The submarines may not require human intervention and could differentiate between friendly and enemy targets. The project - known only as ' 912' currently - is on the lines of Japan's kamakazi style of attacks in which pilots crashed their planes into enemy ships in suicide operations. The Chinese Navy is also expected to soon get its first indigenously built aircraft carrier and has rapidly expanded and modernised its current fleet of destroyers, submarines and cruiser ships. WASHINGTON: Donald Trump on Monday issued a stern warning to Iran against threatening the United States. In a tweet addressed to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, the US President wrote: "To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" The response came after Rouhani earlier in the day issued his own warning to the US leader not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". Trump has made Iran a favourite target since his unexpected rapprochement with nuclear-armed North Korea. Trump earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. He had has suggested Iranian leaders are "going to call me and say 'let's make a deal'" but Iran has rejected talks. Rouhani has previously lashed out against Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the US embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the U.S. From certain Muslim-majority countries. A gunman opened fire at a crowd in Toronto in Canada on Sunday night (local time), killing at least one woman and injuring 13 others. The gunman was, however, soon apprhended and shot dead by the police. According to a report in Toronto Star, a girl suffered critical injuries and is currently undergoing treatment. The report said that the gunman, seen wearing black clothes, fired at least 15-20 rounds of bullets on the crowd. The injured were rushed to a nearby hospital. My evening was nice until I heard shooting right out of my place on the danforth. So scary!! The gun violence in Toronto is crazy. pic.twitter.com/eNHLlUlp6r n (@nsxoxoii) July 23, 2018 The report further said that police used a bus to take people in the area to safer places. A video of the incident was shared on micrblogging site Twitter. Gunshots could be heard in the video while police personnel were seen running. The area was cordoned off immediately. Read original article at 112.ua On Wednesday, July 18, the District Court of Washington, DC, decided to arrest during the trial the founder and leader of the Russian Right to Arms movement, 29-year-old Maria Butina. She is suspected of spying on US territory in the interests of Russia. A Russian woman, who since 2016 lives in Washington on a student visa and maintains close ties with members of the Republican Party through public organizations, was detained by the FBI on Sunday, July 15. US law enforcement officials refuse to release her on bail to avoid escape. Well, apparently there was another confirmation that the Russian authorities are trying to influence the political processes in the US with the help of their agents. It seems that Russia again tried to violate the sovereignty of the United States. A new attempt to violate US sovereignty After the introduction of anti-Russian sanctions in 2014, Russian special services needed their own person in the United States undercover that could get close to representatives of the American political elite and in the course of informal communication change the negative attitude towards Russia, obtain information about the moods of supporters of anti-Russian sanctions, contribute to their abolition. The young Altai political scientist Butina was chosen for this role not accidentally. The values that her organization defends are close to Republicans who, from the time of the president-democrat Barack Obama, were supporters of the policy of anti-Russian sanctions. Republicans are against the abolition of the second amendment to the US Constitution on the right of citizens to store and carry weapons. The Right to Arms movement has existed since 2011 and its purpose is to protect the rights of civil-weapon owners and those caught in situations of necessary defense, the expansion of the right to carry firearms, and the development of weapons culture in Russia. Since its foundation until 2015, Butina has traveled around Russia's major cities, traveled abroad, and established ties with similar organizations in Kazakhstan, Israel and the United States. The Right to Arms movement became a cover for Butina to establish links with members of the Republican Party. Butina tried to work with the National Rifle Association, which has many influential Republicans among its members, and its events are personally visited by President Donald Trump and Vice President Michael Pence. Also, she had to infiltrate religious organizations. According to The New York Times, the scheme by which Butina worked was developed as early as 2013, when ex-governor Jeb Bush and Senator Marco Rubio were predicted to be the favorite among the Republican candidates for the presidency of the United States. These policies were against rapprochement with Russia. In 2013, Butina proposed to consolidate in the Russian Constitution the right to armed self-defense, which was supported by the current adviser to the US president on national security issues John Bolton. In the same year, the board member of the National Rifle Association David King visited the Congress of the Right to Arms movement. According to the US Justice Department, in 2015-17 Butina cooperated with some Russian official who is related to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and the Federation Council, against which anti-Russian sanctions operate. All agree: Butina worked in tandem with the deputy chairman of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and former member of the Federation Council Alexander Torshin, against whom sanctions were imposed by the US Treasury since April 2018. Torshin attended the Right to Arms movement and is a lifelong member of the National Rifle Association. The FBI suspected him of transferring money to the accounts of the association to finance the presidential campaign. He took Butina with him to the events of the organization, where they tried to contribute to the secret meeting between Trump and Putin, to get acquainted with the members of his family. Torshin supported Trump as a candidate for the presidency of the United States, called him a supporter of family values, he considered him "a real man" who was supposedly really interested in cooperation with Russia. During one of the events of the National Rifle Association in Lewisville in May 2016, Torshin and Butina offered to organize a meeting between Putin and Trump. However, the president's son-in-law, Jared Kouchner, rejected the proposal. It seems that this couple did everything to please the Republicans and convince them that Trump and Putin will get on well. "Chekist" methods in action According to the information presented by the special agent of the FBI, Kevin Helson, Butina maintained contacts with FSB officers, including Anna Chapman, who was involved in the network of Russian intelligence agents in the US, which was exposed. Chapman was deported to Russia in July 2010. The FBI opened e-mail correspondence with Butina and Torshin, FSB employees and a Russian oligarch close to the Kremlin, whose name was not disclosed. She was given valuable instructions, and she described the moods that reign among Republicans. During the investigation, FBI agents found out that Butina cohabited with a 56-year-old American citizen, through whom she gained access to a large number of influential officials. As reported by the National Public Radio, it could be Paul Erickson, a political fundraiser of a conservative sense with connections in the National Rifle Association. The FBI suggests that Butina even offered to have sex with one of the people in exchange for him to take her into one of the organizations of interest. The lawyer of the girl Robert Driscoll denies her involvement in the activities of Russian special services. Butina tried to cover up tracks of her activities so that no one had any suspicions that she was somehow connected with Russian special services. Russian Facebook users Victoria Lacea and Gennadiy Tchernov analyzed Butina's profile and found out that she was communicating with the supporters of the Russian opposition, who are "friends" with her. Victoria Lacea does not exclude the possibility that the name and surname of the girl are a legend and she just made herself the image of a supporter of the Russian opposition. Spot on Trump's reputation The spy scandal in Washington left a big fat stain on Donald Trump's reputation, which will not be easy to get rid of. The situation is paradoxical. During a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki on July 16, the American leader talked about the absence of grounds for Russia's intervention in the presidential election in 2016. However, the next day the US president stated that he was accepting the US intelligence report on Russia's interference in the elections, but added, that this did not affect the voting results. Trump contradicts himself. Three days passed after the meeting between Putin and Trump in Helsinki, where the Russian president argued that Russia had not interfered and was not going to interfere in US political processes, as another Russian spy appeared on the dock, trying to manipulate the opinion of the US authorities. Earlier in the US, 12 representatives of the Russian special services were accused of stealing personal information from 500,000 American voters and conducting cyber attacks on the servers of the Democratic Party. Butina's case was a slap in the face of the US president and another confirmation that it is impossible to agree with Putin, he is not responsible for his words and uses misinformation at the first opportunity. Not for nothing did the congressmen accuse Trump of insufficient pressure on Putin. While Trump is trying to find a common language with the master of the Kremlin, Russian special services are sending their people to Washington in front of the White House. It is not known how many more such messed-up Cossacks like Butina roam in the American land and extract the necessary information for their Kremlin curators. The American president became a hostage to the situation. In case of proving Russia's interference in the US elections, Trump's opponents in the US Congress, both among the Republicans and the Democrats, will have grounds to arrange impeachment procedure, and then hold early presidential elections. After all, if Russia interfered in the elections, then the outcome of the vote is invalid. Trump does not want to lose power because Russia has furnished everything so that the American establishment has the impression that he is an agent of the Kremlin's influence. Therefore, Trump tries not to accuse Russia of interfering in US political processes. But the exposure of more and more new Russian spies is not in favor of the owner of the Oval Office. The espionage scandal in Washington is another failure for the Russian leadership. When the investigation into the "Butina case" is completed and she is in an American prison, the Congress will have every reason to tighten anti-Russian sanctions in response to another attempt to violate US sovereignty. Sanctions can be introduced by the US Treasury in the same way, as in April this year, against new Russian oligarchs, officials, state and private enterprises, in order to damage the Russian economy. The EU, United States, and several other nations imposed sanctions against Russia in an attempt to uphold international law and halt Moscow's unlawful aggression against Ukraine Speaking at a press conference in Moscow, interior minister of Italy Matteo Salvini recently announced that his government would "not be afraid" to use its veto powers in the European Union as a "last resort" to push the bloc into lifting sanctions against Russia. This statement, completely overshadowed by the scandalous Trump-Putin Helsinki summit, brings into focus the politically precarious nature of the EU sanctions regime. More importantly, it highlights an inherent deficiency in the nature of the sanctions regime which demands remedy. The EU, United States, and several other nations imposed sanctions against Russia in an attempt to uphold international law and halt Moscow's unlawful aggression against Ukraine. This act of solidarity with Ukraine has been the international community's strongest message to Moscow. It has helped to contain Russia's war machinery, helping save thousands of Ukrainian lives, but it has not been enough to end Russia's violations of international law in Ukraine as the price Moscow pays remains trivial in proportion to the gravity of its violations in Ukraine. The principal problem with the EU sanctions regime is that it rests on the failure to recognize Russia's interstate war against the Ukrainian state. The result is an inherently flawed framework which does not pursue the right objectives - namely, to repress, reverse, and repair Russia's violations of international law in Ukraine. Russia sanctions framework The EU sanctions regime can be divided into two main blocks: restrictive measures for the annexation of Crimea; and economic sanctions for "Russia's actions destabilizing the situation in Ukraine" in Donbas. Each part pursues different objectives and differs in scope and conditions. The main objective of the Crimea sanctions is to hinder Russia's effort to legitimize its annexation. Representing the EU's non-recognition of annexation, they consist primarily of travel and financial restrictions for nationals and business entities involved in the annexation. The Donbas sanctions are the ones that truly bite. These economic sanctions are meant to facilitate the implementation of the Minsk Accords - the so-called peace deal for Ukraine's Donbas region. Subject to biannual review, they include severe measures in the financial sector; an embargo on the import and export of arms and dual-use goods and technology; restrictions on other exports in the energy sector; and suspension of economic cooperation programs. The EU expected "the complete implementation of the Minsk agreements" by the end of 2015, but to date, Russia has not honored its security obligations as outlined in the accord. Moscow has failed to ensure a comprehensive ceasefire; to withdraw its armed formations from the 2014 Minsk memorandum line of contact; and, most critically, to withdraw "all armed formations, military equipment, as well as mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine." As a result, the European Council has been extending economic sanctions every six months for the past few years. Sanctions deficiencies The EU sanctions regime suffers from a host of interrelated problems. The biannual review process makes the entire sanctions regime vulnerable. There is a constant risk that sanctions can be lifted if any one member state uses its veto right. Sanctions can be held hostage by the Russia-friendly agenda of various EU political actors who have made repeated calls for an end to these measures. Salvini's threat is a reminder of how easily EU unity could be shattered by just one bad actor. The artificial distinction between Crimea and Donbas as separate issues, with separate sanctions regimes, is also problematic. First, it validates Russia's strategy of camouflaging its invasion, leaving Kiev in a vulnerable position where it must battle the many consequences of the Kremlin-crafted narrative of a native uprising in Donbas which Russia merely supports. Second, the teeth of the sanctions are related to the implementation of the Minsk Accords which fail to address the entirety of Russia's violations of international law in Ukraine. Even if Moscow chose to one day fulfill its security obligations under Minsk, it would not bring an end to the war or restore the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Since Crimea sanctions are of little consequence to Moscow, Russia could continue to occupy Crimea and violate international law at a cost it can tolerate. The EU's true commitment to upholding the international law is undermined by a sanctions regime which provides virtually no incentive for Russia to unconditionally return Crimea to Ukraine, and cease all other violations of international law. It is almost as though the EU is paying lip service to the principle that borders cannot be changed by force while giving the Kremlin a silent nod that Crimea can be kept for a nominal price if Russia abides by Minsk. But more worrying still is that for some political actors, even the conditions of the Donbas sanctions are open to change for Russia's benefit. Less than a year ago, the then German foreign minister, Sigmar Gabriel, lobbied heavily to shift the condition for sanctions from the full implementation of Minsk to only the cessation of military hostilities. This would have allowed sanctions to be lifted while Russia maintained its military presence on Ukrainian soil. Another proposal making the rounds is that Donbas sanctions could be connected to the implementation of a UN peacekeeping mission, not the Minsk Accords. But the mere implementation of a peacekeeping mission would not mean the end of the war. Given Russia's track record, it stands to reason that Moscow would continue undermining Ukraine's sovereignty even with the mission on the ground. High time for proper solutions The EU needs to rework its Russia sanctions regime, starting with officially recognizing Russia's unlawful interstate war on Ukraine, and by decoupling sanctions from the Minsk Accords. The EU should tie the entire complement of sanctions to the full restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty and to the cessation of all forms of Russia's multi-vector war (political subversion, terrorism, cyber attacks, information warfare, and economic pressure). A meaningful set of sanctions should also be conditional on Russia paying full reparations for damage to infrastructure, harm to ecology, and compensation to all victims of its aggression, including for losses of property and business. The scope of sanctions should be substantially expanded to include the same type of comprehensive sanctions applied to Iraq after it invaded Kuwait. The double standard applied to Russia's invasion of Ukraine should be no more. Sanctions should go as far as oil/gas for food and nuclear disarmament programs of the past to deprive Russia of funds for its war efforts, and to remove the nuclear threat Moscow uses to advance its aggressive geopolitical agenda. Such a revised sanctions regime will be proportional to Russia's violations of international law, and will substantially increase Western leverage over Moscow. The deadlock of Russia's aggression against Ukraine can be resolved only by tipping the scales back in favour of strict adherence to international law. Taking control of the sanctions regime is one of the best means of achieving this end. Read the original text at euobserver. Open source From 7:00 to 18:00 on July 22 illegal armed formations violated the ceasefire on the contact line in Donbas four times. This is reported on its Facebook page by the Joint Forces Operation HQ. The militants opened fire mainly from grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms in the areas of settlements Novooleksandrivka, Zaitseve, Talakivka and Lebedynske. "As a result of enemy actions, one of our servicemen was injured. The enemy's losses are yet being clarified, "the report said. It is noted that the Joint forces control the situation, steadily hold the lines occupied and adhere to the cease-fire regime. As reported, during the past day the militants carried out 15 attacks. Yesterday Ukrainian-American military exercises Sea Breeze - 2018 were completed in the Odesa, Mykolaiv regions and the northwestern part of the Black Sea. This was reported in the press service of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. "In a complex military and strategic situation, our partners from 19 countries at the highest level have resolutely shown support for Ukraine. I am confident of our effective interaction at sea, in the air and on the ground, that is, where joint actions are needed in the name of peace and stability. We continue the good tradition of maritime friendship and partnership, which become stronger with the years, "said Naval commander Igor Voronchenko at the closing ceremony of the exercises. It is noted that in the course of the drills, the ship crews marched about 2,500 miles in the sea, the aviators carried out more than 200 flights with a total flight time of about 105 hours, the marines performed more than 400 skydiving jumps, half of them at night, and 60 on water, divers were underwater for more than 70 hours. Related: Council on TV and Radio Broadcasting intends to impose sanctions on Russian media in Crimea Open source On July 22, Russian militants attacked positions of Ukraine's government troops 15 times. The HQ of the Joint Forces Operation reported that on Facebook on Monday. According to the message, one Ukrainian serviceman sustained wounds in combat; no cases of heavy weaponry use were reported. The enemy opened adjusted fire in the areas of Krymske, Novooleksandrivka, Zaitsevo, Avdiivka, Starohnativka, Mariinka, Lebedynske, Talakivka, Hnutove, Vodyane and Shyrokyne. In the early hours of Monday, Russian mercenaries opened fire in Mayorsk and Shyrokyne. The Ukrainian intelligence states that two militants of the illegal armed units were wounded in combat. Earlier, Ukrainian-American military exercises Sea Breeze - 2018 came to an end in Odesa and Mykolaiv regions and the northwestern part of the Black Sea. This was reported in the press service of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. "In a complex military and strategic situation, our partners from 19 countries at the highest level have resolutely shown support for Ukraine. I am confident of our effective interaction at sea, in the air and on the ground, that is, where joint actions are needed in the name of peace and stability. We continue the good tradition of maritime friendship and partnership, which become stronger with the years, "said Naval commander Igor Voronchenko at the closing ceremony of the exercises. It is noted that in the course of the drills, the ship crews marched about 2,500 miles in the sea, the aviators carried out more than 200 flights with a total flight time of about 105 hours, the Marines performed more than 400 skydiving jumps, half of them at night, and 60 on water, divers were underwater for more than 70 hours. The culprit murdered a man in Kyiv and attacked a woman with a knife. During the arrest he assaulted the police officers, so they had to use weapon Open source Today, on the night of July 22 a foreigner was detained in Kyiv. He murdered a man and attacked a woman with a knife, he also resisted arrest, as the capitals National Police Central Administration reported. According to the law enforcers, a body of a man with multiple stab wounds was found in Kyiv Desnianskyi district. The investigation team who arrived at the site managed to define the characteristics of the man involved in the crime and started detection. Soon afterward, the suspect was found on Dvinska Street where he attacked a woman with a knife. During the arrest he assaulted the police officers, so they had to use weapon. Born in Poland in 1989, the culprit was hospitalized with a gunshot wound in the leg. For now, the criminal proceeding under the articles on premeditated murder, assassination attempt and attack on the law enforcer is opened. Lately, the Kremlin has been using influence agents more often, increasing their part in the action plan Open source Estonia's foreign intelligence claimed to have busted a network of Russia's agents of influence in this country. Mikk Mirran, the director of the Estonian government agency said this during Aspen Security Forum. Delfi reported that, quoting the official as he spoke on the issue. 'We established a network, which consists of politicians, reporters, diplomats and businessmen, which actually includes Russia's agents of influence, who are told what to do. We clearly see these people impose the Russian action plan', he said. According to Mirran, despite the summit in Helsinki and the meeting of U.S. and Russian leaders, the Kremlin lately 'has been using influence agents more often, increasing their part in the action plan'. The official did not disclose a single name of a figure suspected of being a part of the network. 'What they (Russians, - 112 International) offered them is the media attention, political support, exclusive business opportunities and the financial assistance, in certain cases', the head of Estonia's foreign intelligence said. Open source Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State accused Moscow of a violation of the agreements on Syria during the phone talk with Foreign Minister of Russia Sergey Lavrov as the press service of the U.S. State Department. "Among the topics discussed was the fact that Russia had violated its commitment in southwest Syria," the message said. The talk took place on July 21, the parties discussed the wide range of the issues, some of them were discussed by the presidents of the states Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin during the meeting on July 16. Moreover, Pompeo and Lavrov discussed the establishment of the business-to-business dialogue between private, non-governmentally controlled entities in each of our two countries. Also, they talked about the necessity of Russia "to provide equal diplomatic access to the United States, at a level that is fair and reciprocal. Russian Foreign Ministry also commented the phone talk of Lavrov and Pompeo. "The minister and State Secretary also discussed Syria and the situation around it, particularly the possible interaction of Russia and the US along with other countries with the humanitarian problems and tasks connected with the support of the efforts on the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula," the message said. As we reported American senator Lindsey Graham from the Republican Party claimed that the US should prepare new sanctions for the Russian interference into the upcoming election to the U.S. Congress in 2018. Two people died as a result of the accident, two more people were hospitalized in serious condition Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv arrested for two months the suspect in the deadly car accident on Saperno-Slobidska street, as the press office of the Prosecutors Office of Kyiv reports. 28-year-old citizen of Azerbaijan was reported on suspicion of violation traffic safety regulations, which caused the death of several people. By the decision of the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv the suspect remains in custody for a term of two months, reads the message. Related: Large-scale car crash in Germany Reportedly, a car accident took place on Saperno-Slobidska street, 26 on Wednesday, July 18. According to the preliminary information, Daewoo was heading in the direction of Pivdennyi Mist on the one-way road. For some unknown reason, Mercedes seriously broke the traffic safety regulations and came over the oncoming traffic lane. As a result of the collision, two people died, and two more were hospitalized in serious condition. As we reported earlier, a shuttle bus and a truck crashed on the Kyiv-Chop highway near Zhytomyr region. As a result of the accident, ten people died and the same number of people injured. The Police claimed that a child and the driver of the bus are among the dead. Moreover, a citizen of Georgia and two citizens of Russia are among the dead. The driver of the truck is giving testimony. 'Numbers' is the name of his own play; Anna Palenchuk, cinema producer presented the draft of the film during Odesa International Film Festival Ukrainian film maker Oleg Sentsov, who is currently at a hunger strike in the Russian prison, already has certain plans for future, if they release him from custody. The artist intends to shoot a film called Numbers, which is to be based on Sentsov's own play. Anna Palenchuk, the cinema producer presented the draft of the film during Odesa International Film Festival (OIFF) - as quoted by 435 Films company. According to Palenchuk, Sentsov wrote her, offering her to work on the movie. In one of the letters, the film director described the draft in details, as he imagined it. 'Not every book and play should be cinematized. But this thing, which I wrote a long time ago, I see very clear - one just has to close his eyes. Even where I am now, not knowing my future, I believe in the future of this project. Numbers is not the movie as it is. It's a feeling, extravaganza and grotesque', Sentsov wrote to Palenchuk, as she read the letter aloud during the pitching procedure at the OIFF. As it was reported earlier, Ukrainian movie director Oleg Sentsov and Crimean activist Oleksandr Kolchenko were detained by the Russian FSB in the annexed Crimea. Both were taken to Russia. Sentsov was charged with preparing a terrorist act in Crimea and sentenced to 20 years in the high-security penal colony. Kolchenko was sentenced to ten-years-long imprisonment. Oleg Sentsov has announced a hunger strike on May 14. This way, he demands that all Ukrainians detained in Russia and annexed Crimea be released. Sentsov said he was ready to die if the requirements were not fulfilled. Open source A shooting incident occurred in the downtown Lviv, western Ukraine. A female violinist was shot in the hip from a pneumatic handgun at Cathedral Square. The girl was taken to a hospital, and the shooter disappeared. The city hotline's Facebook page reported that, adding that the attack occurred on Sunday afternoon. The victim said she came from Myrhorod, Poltava region, central Ukraine. She was going to get back home that day. The shooter's identity is still being defined; the police keep searching for him, as he is now charged with 'hooliganism'. Earlier, a Ukrainian who traveled with her husband to Mexico City to celebrate the first wedding anniversary was shot dead in a drive-by shooting incident, as The Washington Post reports. Mirutenko was killed early Saturday morning in an apparent drive-by shooting in Lomas de Chapultepec, a wealthy neighborhood in the Mexican capital better known for its mix of Colonial and modern-style mansions than for violence. 27-year-old Tetiana was leaving a taco restaurant in Lomas de Chapultepec with her husband and two friends when she was struck by a stray bullet fired by gunmen on a passing motorcycle. Mexican officials said the intended target had been a local bouncer, who was also struck but survived. Reportedly, a Ukrainian student died in Slovakia. She fell out from the balcony on the fourth floor of the dormitory Germany Government hasnt yet confirmed the organization of the meeting of MFA Political Directors of the Norman Four in Berlin Open source The meeting of MFA Political Directors of the Normandy Four should take place in Berlin on July 16. The source in Ukrainian diplomatic circles claimed this to Interfax-Ukraine agency. The negotiations should take place in the MFA of the Federal Republic of Germany, interlocutor of the agency claimed. MFA of Ukraine has confirmed the intention to hold the meeting of the Normandy Four at the level of the Political Directors. Related: Normandy Four deputy diplomatic counselors and experts to meet on July 18 Yes, we are planning such a meeting at the end of the week, Oleksii Makeev, Political Director of MFA claimed this in his commentary to the agency. The MFA of Germany hasnt yet confirmed the organization of the meeting of the Political Directors of the Foreign Ministries of the Normandy Four in Berlin. Reportedly, a meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Normandy Four was held in Berlin on June 11. Pavlo Klimkin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine claimed after the negotiations that it is necessary to keep the pressure on the Russian Federation to release all Ukrainian political prisoners without any exception. It is reported that she was heading to Kyiv on a date Yesterday, on July 22, a 34-year-old woman, who is accused of participating in DNR terrorist group, was detained at Marinka checkpoint, as the press office of Donetsk National Police Central Administration reported. According to the law enforcers, Horlivka resident entered DNR ranks in 2014. She said that she could not find a job in the city so she decided to do this. Since March 2014, she worked as security for the checkpoint in Horlivka Administration, then she completed emergency medical aid courses and served as a medical instructor of the first infantry battalion mortar battery on the frontline. Besides, the detainee was in the hot spots, near Debaltseve in particular. In 2016 she got a job in a local hospital and continues working there as a computer operator. Yesterday, during the regular inspection at Marinka checkpoint, the law enforcers along with the border guards detained the member of the illegal armed formations, who was heading to Kyiv to meet her lover there. The police officers had enough data on her involvement in the terrorist group at the moment of the arrest, the law enforcers specify. For now, a criminal case under the article of Ukraines Criminal Code on the illegal organization of armed formations against the woman was opened. She faces 3-8 years of imprisonment. Iryna Gerashchenko added that Ukraine would take all opportunities to return its citizens of Russia Germanys Chancellor Angela Merkel was the one who mentioned Viktor Medvedchuk, the Leader of the Ukrainian Choice movement, in terms of Minsk talks, as Iryna Gerashchenko, the First Vice Speaker of the Parliament and Ukraines representative at Minsk talks, said in the interview for Ukrainska Pravda. Medvedchuks surname was first mentioned during the phone negotiations in July 2014 between Angela Merkel and Poroshenko. She named this surname as the one who, she believes, could talk to Putin on issues. Apparently, she did it by Putins behest, she said. Gerashchenko added that Ukraine would take all the opportunities to take our citizens out of Russia. Certainly, we have to take into account people who have direct contact with Putin and ORDLO (Separated Districts of Donetsk and Luhansk region) representatives, she noted. Answering the question whether it is necessary to involve Medvedchuk into the talks when the President Poroshenko has direct contact with Putin, Gerashchenko said that some decisions were made without the participation of the Ukrainian President. Ukraines President has a phone contact with Putin to release the hostages, but there are results, Putins words. Like, for instance, when during the last phone talks it has been agreed twice that the Ombudsman will have access to the political prisoners and a humanitarian exchange will take place, she said. It should be noted that earlier, Viktor Medvedchuk, the Ukrainian envoy in the humanitarian subdivision of Minsk group, in the interview for Znaj.ua said that Ukraine could exchange 174 prisoners for 43 Ukrainian captives militants keep. It is specified that a plane that should take them to Kyiv at 11:40 has not taken off from Kyiv Open source The Ukrainian tourists who should return to Kyiv by YanAir air company flight are stuck at Barcelona airport. JoinUp! tour operator claimed this as UNN reported. According to the information, the flight should return to Boryspil Airport at 11:40 am today, on July 23, however, the time of arrival was postponed to 20:30. it is specified that the plane that should take the tourists has not taken off from Ukraine. "It did not take off due to technical reasons," the tour operator specified. The exact number of the tourists stuck in Spain is unknown, however, preliminary, there are more than 150 people. As we reported 170 Ukrainian tourists were stuck at the Antalya airport (Turkey), 20 of them are children on July 11. According to the information, people have not been able to leave for almost 24 hours because there was no plane. Also, 300 Ukrainians were not able to fly out from Tunisia for several days. Earlier it was reported that planes of Bravo airlines do not fly out from Kyiv airport, where flights were delayed on Saturday and a few hundreds of tourists could not fly out to Antalya and Batumi. The representatives of Bravo airlines explained that the cancellation of flights was connected with the tour operators debt in the amount of $961,5 thousand. The case of the Ukrainian Pavlo Gryb was returned to the prosecutors for the review, as the journalist Iryna Romaliyskaya wrote on Facebook. The judges panel of North Caucasian District Military Court in Rostov decided to return the case for review. Gorelov is the presiding judge, she wrote. Later, on air of 112 Ukraine, Romaliyska said that the reason the criminal indictment was returned is that it was documented wrong. The presiding judge noticed that the indictment comprised an older version of the article #205 of Russias Criminal Code. It provides imprisonment up to eight years, and in 2016 a new version of the article came into force, which increases the legal liability up to ten years of imprisonment. That is why the criminal indictment was returned to the prosecutors office, she explained. She noted that generally the session was held in a calm atmosphere. Yet, the criminal inducement has many unclear moments. The prosecutor read the indictment according to which Pavlo Gryb urged a Russian pupil in Sochi to commit a terrorist attack. Allegedly, he told her how to make an explosive device so that she could bring in into action at a school assembly on May 30, 2017. But for some reasons, she did not do it, and the prosecutor did not explain why. Afterward, Pavlo was detained in August and allegedly, he was acting under the order of the third person in this case. It remains unknown who is that person, Romaliyskaya stated. After the criminal indictment which the prosecutor was reading within around seven minutes, Gryb was allowed to take the floor. He stated that he did not agree with the accusations and stressed that some critical errors were made during the investigation. Pavlo Gryb is the son of the former Ukrainian border guard Igor Gryb. The Russian special service detained the 19-year-old Pavlo on August 25, 2017 when he went to Gomel (Belarus) to meet his friend. Later, he was convoyed to Russia. The Russian law enforcers suspect Pavlo Hryb of preparing a terrorist attack in a school in Sochi (a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Black Seacoast, - ed.). Reportedly, the Russian court began its consideration of the criminal proceedings against Pavlo Gryb who is accused of fostering terrorism. Earlier, Ihor Gryb claimed that Pavlo is being psychologically pressured in the penitentiary facility. Pavlo Gryb, the Ukrainian political prisoner is suffering from portal hypertension. This is why he needs special medicine on the daily basis. The Ukrainian side had repeatedly expressed the corresponding requirement. The Russian Federation responded that the Ukranian wasnt experiencing health problems. Open source Ukraine is losing not only the workforce but also a part of an active population due to a labor migration. Because of it, in the near future, the country might turn to the land of pensioners, as Obozrevatel agency reported. In just a few months since its creation, the online platform UkrainianPeopleLeaks.com recorded 350,000 people who left the country, as the agency reports. On the site, it is possible to track online how many Ukrainians leave the country in search of a better life. The authorship of the UkrainianPeopleLeaks.com platform is unknown. The name is consonant with the WikiLeaks. It is an international non-profit organization publishing secret information from anonymous sources. UkrainianPeopleLeaks shows the main consequence of migration, - population decrease. Last year, Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said that about 100,000 Ukrainians leave for work every month. At the same time, the Minister of Social Policy Andriy Reva said that 3.2 million people are in migration, and 9 million people (including their children) were affected by migration. At the moment, the online platform recorded more than 357 thousand people who left. And every minute this amount increases by two people, the newspaper reports. As it was reported earlier, the population of Ukraine shrinks because of the labor migration, which often turns into the de facto migration, which means people choose to stay abroad rather than to return to their motherland. The research says that highly-educated Ukrainians go to Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and settle for the work in factories and fields. '39.2 percent of them carry out the most primitive work; 24.7 are involved in the handicraft, and another 16.5 work in the sales area. They earn less than the locals', reads the survey. It was noted that the tour operator will compensate the expenses of the tourists for nutrition in the amount of $17,5 per person Open source The Ukrainian tourists who stuck at Barcelona airport will be able to fly out to Kyiv today at 5:20 pm, as JoinUP press office reported. Due to the delay of the flight from Kyiv, the flight connected to it (YE5302) is expected at 5:10 pm. The tourists arrived at the airport, but they did not pass passport and customs control, the message says. It was noted that the tour operator will compensate the expenses of the tourists for nutrition in the amount of $17,5 per person. JoinUP asks the tourist to submit an application in a relevant order and attack the appropriate documents (original receipts, boarding passes, etc.) the press office adds. Kyiv-Barcelona flight, which was delayed earlier, was performed at 1:20 pm today. It was delayed due to technical reasons. Earlier, it was reported that the Ukrainian tourists stuck at Barcelona airport (Spain). They were to return to Kyiv by YanAir flight. Former Luhansk Mayor and ex-head of the region, their deputies and MP are the suspects in the case The Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine has filed a request to the Pechersk Court of Kyiv on the special pretrial investigation toward former MP Serhy Horohov and number of the high-ranked Luhansk officials along with chairman of MP party "Party of Regions" in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oleksandr Yefremov who are suspected in the committing of the number of the grave and especially grave crimes as the press service of the prosecutor's office reported. "During the pretrial investigation enough proper and allowed evidence was gathered for the holding of the special pretrial investigation toward MP Horohov and former Head of Luhansk Regional Council Valery Holenko, his First Deputy Yevhen Kharin, Luhanks Mayor Serhy Kravchenko and his First Deputy Manolis Pilavov," the message said. It was also noted that the criminal proceeding against Yefremov is considered at Starobilsk court of Luhansk region where the restrictive measure in the form of the detention was chosen for him. At the moment, Horohov, Holenko, Kharin, Kravchenko and Pilavov are on the wanted list. It is held by the officers of the SBU. The Prosecutor General's Office got the order of the investigating judge on the permission for the detention of the suspected for the participation in the consideration of the appeal and their detention. They are suspected in the deliberate acts for change of the borders of Ukraine committed by prior conspiracy among a group of persons that lead to the grave consequences; state treason, precisely, the provision of assistance to the foreign organization and its representatives in the subversive activity against Ukraine; creation and activity of the terrorist organization "Luhansk People's Republic"; assistance in the take over of the SBU building in Luhansk regions for its illegal use and hindering in the normal activity of the body. Yefremov is suspected in state treason, the takeover of the building of the state regional administration in Luhansk in spring 2014 organization. He also faced charges of assisting in the takeover of Ukraines Security Service office in Luhansk region, when it was captured by pro-Kremlin militants. Yefremov was detained in airport Kyiv on July 2016. He is in custody in the Starobilsk pretrial facility in Luhansk region now. Healers from N.M. and Mexico provide information on the history, traditions, rituals, herbs and remedies of Curanderismo, a folk healing tradition. Presented by The University of New Mexico at University of New Mexico Learn about the history, traditions, rituals, herbs and remedies of Curanderismo in this popular 2-week summer class! Two ways to take the class: 1) $350 for non-credit through Continuing Education 2) UNM student for 3 UNM credit hours (registration opens on April 16) Join us for the 2-week summer class, Traditional Medicine without Borders: Curanderismo in the Southwest and Mexico on the UNM campus, July 16-27. Currently in its 18th year, this popular class brings healers from New Mexico and Mexico to provide information on the history, traditions, rituals, herbs, and remedies of Curanderismo, a folk healing tradition of the Southwestern United States, Latin America, and Mexico, amongst other countries. The course takes an approach in exploring how our ancestors used traditional healing methods, how they have shaped our cultural diversity of yesterday and today, and what the future of this medicine might be. The course features teachings for a number of rituals, which include: intestinal blockage (empacho), spiritual cleansings (limpias), laugh therapy (risa terapia), shawl alignments (manteadas) and preparation of medicinal teas (tes medicinales). Participants practice using the Grantsmanship Centers approach to planning programs, writing grant proposals and receive useful, up-to-date, practical information. Santa Fe Community Colleges Continuing Education Department will host a Grantsmanship Training Program July 23-27 on campus at 6401 Richards Ave. in Santa Fe. The intensive, five-day, hands-on workshop for nonprofit and government grantseekers will guide participants step by step through all stages of planning programs, researching funding sources and writing proposals. The Grantsmanship Center will conduct the course. Participants will practice using the Grantsmanship Centers approach to planning programs and writing grant proposals and receive useful, up-to-date, practical information. The textbook Program Planning & Proposal Writing is highly recommended and will be referenced during class. It can be purchased at the time of registration. To ensure personal attention, registration is limited to 30 participants. Tuition is $995 until June 11 with early bird discount. After June 11, tuition is $1,095. There are a limited number of partial scholarships available for qualified organizations. Alumni may qualify for special discounts. To register for the Grantsmanship Training Program, for more information or to apply for a partial scholarship, contact the Grantsmanship Center at 213-482-9862, www.tgci.com or registrar@tgci.com. The Grantsmanship Center helps private and public nonprofits make better communities by offering training and publications to help organizations plan programs and write compelling grant proposals. For more information, call 800-421-9512 or go to www.tgci.com. SFCCs Continuing Education Department provides credit and noncredit courses for all ages. The Continuing Education Summer Schedule 2018 outlines classes and workshops that can provide a valuable means of personal enrichment and professional development. Call 505-428-1676 or go to www.sfcc.edu. Then we headed down to see the lighthouse from the rocks. Our last stop: Southwest Harbor to check out some fireworks. Happy Fourth of July! On the Fourth of July, we hung around the cottage in the morning in the beautifully clear water.Jesse declared he would now be going down the big slide. So he did.After lunch and quiet time, we set off for Mount Desert Island once again. This time we headed to Long Pond and discovered a spot for cliff jumping.I jumped first, and then Aaron headed up with Lydia and Heidi. (You could jump from one of two spots - the higher rock or the lower rock. We did the lower rock as you had to run and jump off the upper rock. Also, that's high.)Jesse loved to jump off the rock right at the water.(We didn't lose Jesse; he just opted out of the photo.)Lake views are so fantastic.We changed out of our wet bathing suits and into dry clothes before driving down to Bass Harbor.We saw the lighthouse.This kid cracks me up on the regular.We parked it on this beach, not realizing it was a private beach. The owner welcomed us to stay for the fireworks. (His kids play in a band .) We enjoyed our picnic dinner.Jesse told us, "Once upon a time . . . " stories but couldn't get past the first four words without hysterically laughing.Getting darker.(Finally) time for fireworks! 11:02 | Lima, Jul. 23. According to the Cabinet chief, these efforts which were supported by Congress will continue on an ongoing basis. "The aim is to avoid weakening the frontal fight against corruption , and we will achieve it with this political decision to pursue the comprehensive justice reform to the end," he told ATV local channel. "() being part of the Cabinet is a very high responsibility since you have to determine several topics and keep a cool head to make the corresponding decisions," he noted. CNM On the other hand, the official remarked the National Council of the Magistracy (CNM) needs a total restructuring. Within this context, he stated it was a good decision that Congress unanimously agreed to dismiss all CNM members Villanueva went on to add a problem like this "should bring us together as a country ()." (END) JCC/RES/JAA/MVB "A courageous decision has been taken, showing one more time the President's leadership in the major reform he is driving for better justice in the country," he told Canal N local channel. "We are holding talks and we already have texts for the agreements," Chimoy told El Peruano official gazette. Fishery and agricultural products have more opportunities to access the Russian market , but there are some constraints when it comes to new markets. "The aim is to facilitate bilateral trade based on close coordination of authorities responsible for regulations and inspections of phytosanitary measures," he commented. Meeting For instance, Chimoy informed representatives of Peru's National Service of Fisheries Health ( Sanipes ) and their Russian counterparts are expected to hold a meeting. This is because fishery goods need to have specific characteristics to enter the Russian market, in accordance with the Eurasian country's rules. The idea is to lift the barriers that hinder Peruvian fishery exports to Russia. According to the envoy, Sanipes technicians will head to Russia for a meeting with their peers. The trip will include visits to plants and advice on how to meet inspection requirements. (END) DOP/CAN/RMB/MVB Peru and Russia have been negotiating to ease fishing and agricultural sales to the Russian market, and the effort is about to bear fruit, Peruvian Ambassador to that country Benjamin Chimoy said Monday.Published: 7/23/2018 YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Minister of nature protection Erik Grigoryan held a meeting with Chinas Ambassador to Armenia Tian Erlong. Ministry officials and embassy staff were also in attendance of the meeting, which focused on boosting cooperation between the two countries, namely in the environmental field. Grigoryan noted the need to take action for introducing Chinas successful practice of forest management and online air pollution monitoring. The minister said that Armenia is interested in Chinas practice of founding forests in degraded lands and that the ministry has already applied to China with a proposal to carry out a pilot program of forestation. The sides also discussed trainings for environmental specialists. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. At the initiative of the Ministry of Diaspora, one participant of the Step Towards Home program will be hosted at the residence of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan for ten days. We are gladly planning to host one of the children. Hopefully well be able to provide good time and spend time with the child, Pashinyans wife Mrs. Anna Hakobyan said in an online video posted by Minister of Diaspora Mkhitar Hayrapetyan. The minister said nearly 500 teenagers from the Diaspora will visit Armenia this year to participate in the summer project. He called on families in Armenia to be hospitable and host the children. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. The military alliance between Turkey and Azerbaijan is a source of concern for Armenia because the policy of this alliance is directed against the national security of Armenia, defense minister Davit Tonoyan said in an interview to EADaily when asked whether Turkey is considered to be a threat for Armenias security. Certainly, the cooperation of the abovementioned two countries is a threat for us, especially when we take into account the fact that Azerbaijan is openly threatening Armenia with war, and Turkey is supporting with all means the realization of Bakus military intentions, Tonoyan said, reminding that generally in terms of military cooperation Turkey is Azerbaijans main partner. He noted Armenias initiation of an attempt to normalize relations with Turkey in 2008, when official Ankara did not make any steps in response. Eventually the process stopped as a result of the preconditions brought forwards by Turkeys leadership. Turkey continues linking the issue of normalizing bilateral relations with the solution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. But we insist that the best solution will be the establishment of dialogue between Armenia and Turkey without preconditions, which will enable our countries to gradually head in the direction of establishing complete bilateral relations. However, taking into account the failure of the previous process, it is now Turkeys turn to bring forward a constructive initiative, Armenias defense minister said. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenia is cooperating with NATO within the framework of the Individual Partnership Action Plan , which is revised and modernized every 2-3 years. The program is based on realities relating to political and security affairs, and it entirely complies with Armenias interests, Armenias defense minister Davit Tonoyan told EADaily in an interview when asked to assess the Armenia-NATO relations. As cooperation pillars, the defense minister pointed out political dialogue, reforms of the defense area, the participation of the Armenian military in NATO peacekeeping missions and educational programs. Tonoyan attached importance to cooperation with NATO in terms of both multilateral development and international partnership of the Armenian Armed Forces, as well as the military-political processes which are carried out within the framework of the Euro-Atlantic security system. We strongly believe that Armenias cooperation with NATO doesnt contradict our collegial obligations within the framework of the CSTO. Moreover, Armenia builds its defense policy by taking into account the interests of CSTO partners and always urges them to act similarly. Armenia has active role in CSTO integration processes. Certainly, the interests of partner states, therefore also policy cant be identical. We try to approach with understanding the military-political cooperation of our partners with countries which have clear hostile attitude towards Armenia. At the same time it is necessary to work hard over strengthening CSTO collegial mechanisms, in order for a common attitude to be displayed over issues relating to the security of CSTO members countries, Tonoyan said. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian-Iranian relations are developing steadily in accordance to the economic and strategic interests between the two countries, Armenias defense minister Davit Tonoyan told EADaily. Our relations encompass areas such as energy, transportation, agriculture, culture and education The Armenian-Iranian relations in the defense sector are limited to working military-political consultations on the level of defense ministers, Tonoyan said. Speaking about the tense relations between Iran and the United States, Tonoyan noted that Armenia has always been in favor of negotiated solutions to issues between its friendly countries. He said that he is hopeful that the relations between the US and Iran will gradually be regulated. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenias defense minister Davit Tonoyan says the top priority in the defense sector is the creation of favorable military conditions for the peaceful settlement of the NK conflict. For me it is a priority to create favorable military conditions for the settlement of the Karabakh conflict. Here we must note the contradiction between the terms peace and military conditions. However, as they used to say during the years of the Cold War missiles are made for peace, not war. Armenia is the guarantor of Artsakhs physical security, Tonoyan told EADaily. He said that the Armenian military, together with a proactive foreign policy, is called upon to ensure negotiations conditions in the NK conflict settlement process. In this context Tonoyan attached importance to constant sobering actions of the Armenian Armed Forces and cooperation with Artsakhs army to suppress enemy aggression, taking into account the non-stop belligerent rhetoric of Azerbaijan and statement on possible use of force for solving the conflict. The next priority is raising the reputation of the army inside the country. In this issue my attention is focused on ensuring the armys neutrality in namely political processes, guaranteeing human rights protection in the military, strengthening military discipline, perfection of procurement mechanisms and improvement of social conditions of servicemen, he said. Speaking about the third priority, the minister said that strengthening foreign relations is also very important. The defense ministry will continue expanding the geographic and content area of allied and collegial ties within the framework of the Armenian foreign policy vector, Tonoyan said. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Due to technical and procedural decision the surprise factor of future probable enemy attacks has been ruled out, Armenias defense minister Davit Tonoyan told EADaily in an interview. He said that the Armenian side has drawn many conclusions from the 2016 April War of Artsakh. We first of all made military conclusions after the 2016 April battles. Azerbaijan will not be allowed to maintain the position of escalating the situation, the right to monopoly of deciding the time and scale. Conclusions have been made also over a number of practical and strategic issues. As a result we have carried out necessary changes in areas like positioning of troops, implementation of combat missions in the frontline and provision of armaments and equipment, he said. According to the minister, conclusions should indeed be drawn from the April War, but it shouldnt be left in the epicenter of the Armenian sides military mind. Examples arent few in military science history when even the most experiences commanders and armies have made mistakes when preparing for the next wars based on results of previous military operations. Therefore, we are widely preparing for probable military operations, taking into account not only previous incidents, Tonoyan said. He said that he is concerned over the equipment which Azerbaijan displayed at its latest military exercises, however he said he is more concerned over the fact as to from where and in what conditions these equipment were acquired. Eventually, it is up to Azerbaijan that so many necessary financial investments, which couldve increased the quality of life of its citizens, it is actually directing for the acquisition of attack systems. There are countermeasures for any military equipment, and in this issue the Armenian side certainly doesnt sit idly. But we are concerned over the sources of acquisition of the military equipment which was presented. It is regretful to see that Armenias allied countries are selling weapons to a country which.threatens the existence of Armenia, Tonoyan said. Tonoyan drew the attention of the countries dealing with the NK conflict settlement on this issue. Especially the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairing countries, which are dealing with the settlement of the Artsakh issue, should refrain from selling various types of assault weapons to Azerbaijan. Eventually, a question arises why is it needed to breach the existing military balance between two countries in the beginning, and then only attempt to restore it, he said. Speaking about media reports that Armenia is planning to acquire Russian SU 30 SM fighter jets, Tonoyan said that now they are considering various models for acquisition, but they have a need to establish dominance in the sky. Having a dominant position in the air has always been considered as guarantee for result and achievements in military operations. If until today we have given preference to air defense in the issue of having dominant positions in the air through existing resources, as well as application of the air force, then now we are planning to develop our air force potential. We are considering various models of military aircraft for acquisition, he said. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenias defense minister Davit Tonoyan says he is especially concerned over the activation of Azerbaijani armed forces in the Nakhijevan direction of the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, where a relative calm existed until now. Any manifestation of military provocation in this section is fraught with incitement of crisis, which will also relate to other regional actors, Tonoyan said during an interview with EADaily. At the same time, Tonoyan emphasized that Armenia is not in a status of peace requester and that it might not endure the temptation of using its entire military arsenal in an event of an Azerbaijan aggression. Along with Armenias constructive stance, I wouldnt want you to have an impression that Armenia is in a position of a peace requestor. I would advise the Azerbaijani side not to be so certain that it is the one controlling the issue of escalating the military situation. Meaning it will not be the way that mediators will succeed in convincing the Armenian side to stop response-punitive actions in an event of Azerbaijan re-launching military operations, even in an event if limited scale military operations carried out by Baku. In an event of a repetition of the 2016 April War aggression scenario the Armenian side might not refrain from the temptation of using its entire available arsenal to give a massive and decisive counter-blow to the adversary, Tonoyan said. Speaking about the dangers of new large scale military operations and Azerbaijani build-ups of manpower and military equipment along the Artsakh-Azerbaijan line of contact, the Armenian defense minister said that the likelihood of resumption of large scale military operations is always high in conditions of Bakus maximalist demands during negotiations. Reports about the activation and build-ups of Azerbaijani military are accurate and similar processes are observed not only at the Artsakh-Azerbaijan line of contact, but also at the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, namely in the Nakhijevan direction. Azerbaijans conduct is nothing else but threat to use force, whereas it is the ruling out of the use of force that is the basis of the peaceful settlement process of the NK conflict, like of any other conflict, he said. Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenia strictly follows the vectors of its state program for the development of the military-industrial complex, as well as the military-technical and military-industrial development strategy, Defense minister Davit Tonoyan said in an interview to EADaily, reports Armenpress. The development of military-industrial field in Armenia bears constant and planned nature, regardless of this or that political force being in power in the country and the personality of the defense minister, he said. He said they put an emphasis on the creation of such weapons which enable to meet the specific requirements of the Armenian Army. As well as they are solutions which have great potential to set their bar in the international arms market. These narrowly-specialized solutions include optoelectronic and radio-electronic detection devices, targeting, land and air remotely management means, automated destruction systems, the minister said. Davit Tonoyan said they are improving the organizational and tax procedures for the complete exercise of scientific-technical potential in the military-industrial field, as well as are engaged in attracting investments and creating joint enterprises. Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan on July 23 had meetings with representatives of the territorial administration and agriculture spheres within the frameworks of the consultations on domestic political and foreign policy issues, the Artsakh Presidential Office told Armenpress. Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan YEREVAN, 23 JULY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 23 July, USD exchange rate up by 0.38 drams to 481.00 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 2.37 drams to 562.53 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.04 drams to 7.62 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 5.35 drams to 631.07 drams. The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals. Gold price up by 188.07 drams to 19002.01 drams. Silver price down by 0.89 drams to 237.69 drams. Platinum price up by 411.82 drams to 12742.75 drams. YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Minister of state of the Republic of Artsakh Grigori Martirosyan on July 23 received Armenias minister of economic development and investments Artsvik Minasyan, the Artsakh state ministry told Armenpress. Welcoming the guest, the state minister attached importance to the harmonization of economic development programs and ongoing reforms in Artsakh and Armenia. Minister Minasyan introduced the priorities of his delegations visit to Artsakh and informed that they include the international export of Artsakh products, exchange of experience on development of infrastructures and proper realization of Artsakh tourism products. Grigori Martirosyan positively assessed these initiatives and attached importance to the joint improvement of state programs directed for promotion and development of small and medium entrepreneurship. At the end of the meeting the officials exchanged views on the development of some Artsakh tourism directions. Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenias minister of territorial administration and development Suren Papikyan toured Tavush province together with governor Vahe Ghalumyan on July 21-22, the ministry told Armenpress. During the tour the minister visited a number of enlarged, as well as bordering communities of the province. Minister Papikyan held a consultation in Dilijan municipality with the community leader, the representatives of the city council and administrative region. Talking about tourism development in Dilijan, the minister said the existing huge tourism potential of the community should be used properly, and while implementing different business projects he highlighted the need to involve broad public circles. Thereafter, the minister visited Haghtanak and Debedavan rural communities, talked to locals about their needs and problems. At the end of the day minister Suren Papikyan visited bordering Berkaber community, met with acting community leader Argam Arzumanyan. The firmness of the border depends on viable community. We should do everything so that the bordering community resident will not be away from his land and will be able to live and create there, the minister said, adding that the bordering communities will always be in the governments spotlight. During the meeting the minister discussed with the locals the community development opportunities, existing problems and ways to develop the community through possible investments. Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS. Famous blogger Nas Daily, who is in Armenia these days, visited the TUMO Center for Creative Technologies, met with students and answered to their questions, reports Armenpres. Marie Lou Papazian, director of the Center, accompanied the blogger during the tour and briefly introduced the creation of the Center, its activity and branches. Nas Daily releases 1-minute videos every day about Armenia, telling about the Armenian fountains, chess and other interesting things. He told the TUMO students the story of his visit to Armenia. When I was in Jerusalem, I have always heard that it, seems, is divided between three peoples Armenians, Greeks and Muslims. When I was in Turkey, I became aware that Armenia is a neighbor country and decided to visit, he said. He stated that he makes videos on countries which he really likes. Nas Daily also briefly introduced himself during the meeting. Set goals for you and achieve them, your life is in your hands. Live it as much as possible. I am searching for what is interesting, when I find it, I am no longer interested in what bad things exist in that country. Something is bad everywhere, the blogger said. Asked what he will take with him from Armenia, Nas Daily said: I dont want to leave and I hope Armenia one day will become a bigger country than America. At the end of the meeting the blogger and the TUMO students summed up their talk with Thats 1 minute, see you tomorrow! which is typical in Nas Dailys videos. Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan Foto: Project partners' logo The ERASMUS+ project Create Digital Games for Education (CDG4E) Erschienen am 22.07.2018 um 01:46 Uhr Lets create games for education! Digital games are increasingly drawing our students' attention outside the classroom. In addition, games are increasingly recognized as powerful tools to facilitate learning. In particular, games allow students to be at the heart of the learning experience, allow a trial and error approach, and make learning fun and engaging. A strategic ERASMUS+ partnership between the Malta Information Technology Agency (MITA), the Science Centre (Department of Curriculum Management), waza! UG, the University of Luxembourg, the Danube Krems University, and Research and Innovation Management GmbH aims to challenge traditional pedagogies and encourage the use of innovative game-based learning methodologies for learning purposes. A first version of an easy-to-use educational game creation tool (Game Creator) has been developed to enrich the toolbox of teachers at local and European levels. The tool will allow both students and teachers to develop learning games and share them with the user community. Within the framework of the project two pilot educational games will be developed, one on the subject of Fake News and the other relating to the field of STEM learning (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics). These two games will demonstrate the features and capabilities of a Game Creator. Given the current impact of false news on social media and information portals, it is essential that the general public, especially young learners, know how to identify reliable sources of information. The STEM game will develop an inquiry-based learning approach, where students will develop skills in both the scientific process and critical thinking. A synergetic working relationship has been created between the European partners from Malta, Austria, Germany and Luxembourg, which will strengthen cooperation between higher education organisations and institutions and also facilitate the exchange, testing and development of inspiring practices in education. The partnership aims to improve the level and quality of digital competences and the relevance of students' knowledge and skills and to promote student-centred learning approaches through ICT. Thus, the consortium seeks to create an innovative method of teaching and learning. The results of the project allow educators to diversify their pedagogies and students to learn using a modern and attractive tool, thus stimulating students' appetite to learn. This project has received funding from the European Unions ERASMUS+ programme under grant agreement 2017-1-MT01-KA201-026955 (Key Action 2: Strategic Partnerships). The European Commission support for the production of this material does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. Dieser Artikel wurde bereitgestellt von Research and Innovation Management GmbH Martplatz 7a 3371 Neumarkt an der Ybbs info@research-and-innovation-management.com A Boston woman became a millionaire for ten minutes, after her bank transferred the massive sum in a case of mistaken identity. Around 1:50 pm on Wednesday, Ellen Fleming, 26, received a voicemail from a financial consultant TD Ameritrade saying that a deposit had been made to her account. She had opened a TD Ameritrade account a few months earlier, and had only added about $50. Confused by the voice message, she checked the banks app and saw that her balance had sky rocketed to an incredible $1,101,740.75 ($AUD 1,482,993.36). Boston woman Ellen Fleming, 26, found over $1 million USD in her bank account due to a banking error. Source: Twitter/Ellen Fleming A bank account that I had $50 in had over $1 million dollars deposited into it. A banker made a HUGE mistake and confused me with another Ellen Fleming, Ms Fleming tweeted. I was rich for 10 mins & I can tell you, life was in fact better. Im now humbled from loosing [sic] all my money, she said. While she enjoyed her incredible wealth for a few minutes, she eventually alerted the bank to the error after chatting with her mother. A bank employee clarified that the amount was meant to go to another Ellen Fleming, who lived in Florida but an error had occurred along the way. The bank intended to send the massive sum to another woman with the same name, who lived in Florida. Source: Twitter/Ellen Fleming You need to take every opportunity thats handed to you, she said. But that seemed like an opportunity that could lead me to federal prison, so it didnt seem worth it, she told local news outlet The Boston Globe. On Thursday, a spokeswoman for TD Ameritrade confirmed that an errant deposit temporarily inflated the balance of Ms. Flemings account but was corrected after Ms Fleming called in, according to local news outlet, The Boston Globe. The account now contains $63. If rich Ellen Fleming wants to send a few bucks my way for my honesty, my venmo is open, Ms Fleming tweeted. A three-year-old boy has suffered severe burns to his face and arm in a suspected acid attack in England which police believe was deliberate. West Mercia police Chief Superintendent Mark Travis says police are working to identify the substance that burned the child on Saturday at a discount store in Worcester. The child was rushed to hospital with serious burns. He has since been released, however the lasting effect of the attack is still unknown. A 39-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm, while three others continue to be sought for questioning. Local police have released an image of three men they want to speak to in connection to the attack. Source: West Mercia Police West Mercia police released a CCTV still image of the three men they believe can help with their investigations. At this time we are treating this as a deliberate attack, Travis said in a statement. The incident will rightly shock the local community, and I would like to reassure local people that we are carrying out a thorough investigation. The Home Bargains store where a man is accused of an acid attack on a young boy, in Worcester, England. Source: Matthew Cooper/ PA via AP. A shocked witness told UK media that the boys mother could be heard screaming: My baby, my baby, what have they done to my baby? British police have reported an increase in acid attacks during the last year, but it is very rare for a victim to be so young. Some attacks are related to gang fights or late-night bar confrontations. Most of the attacks have happened in London, but they have been reported in many parts of Britain. A London teenager was given a prison sentence of more than 10 years this year after being convicted of spraying acid into the faces of moped drivers so he could steal their mopeds. Police also report that innocuous liquids sometimes are thrown into the face of mugging targets to make them think they have been hit with a corrosive substance, panic and give up their valuables more easily. With AAP Chile is now investigating 158 members of the country's embattled Catholic Church -- both clergymen and lay people -- for perpetrating or concealing the sexual abuse of children and adults, prosecutors said Monday. The cases relate to incidents dating back as far as 1960 and involving 266 victims, including 178 children and adolescents, according to public prosecutor Luis Torres. The prosecutor's statement offered the first general view of the extent and scope of the abuse scandal faced by Chile's Catholic Church -- and how many people are implicated. Last month, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of five Chilean bishops amid accusations of abuse and related cover-ups. "The vast majority of reported incidents relate to sexual crimes committed by priests or people linked to educational establishments," Torres told reporters. The entire strata of the Catholic church -- from bishops to monks -- were involved in the crimes, as well as "lay people exercising some function in the ecclesiastical sphere," he noted. In May, the entire Chilean hierarchy of bishops had tendered their resignations over the abuse scandal rocking the Church. Since 2000, about 80 Catholic priests have been reported to authorities in Chile for alleged sexual abuse. Ten days ago, prominent priest Oscar Munoz was arrested over allegations of sexual abuse and rape of at least seven children. Pope Francis has repeatedly apologized to parishioners over the scandal, admitting the Church failed "to listen and react" to allegations spanning decades, but vowed to "restore justice." Pope Francis - shown here at the Vatican on July 22 -- last month accepted the resignation of five Chilean bishops amid accusations of abuse and related cover-ups Israeli lawmaker and former minister Tzipi Livni was named leader of the opposition on Monday, a joint statement by her and the head of the Labour party said. Once a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud, Livni quit the party in 2005. The 59-year-old replaces as opposition leader former Labour chief Isaac Herzog, who resigned his seat in parliament to become head of the Jewish Agency, the quasi-governmental body that deals with Jewish immigration to Israel. Labour is the largest single opposition party in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, but its chairman Avi Gabbay is barred from serving as opposition leader as he is not a lawmaker. Livni has extensive government experience, having served as foreign minister, justice minister, deputy premier and immigration minister. After quitting Netanyahu's Likud, she joined the more centrist Kadima set up by Ariel Sharon. The veteran politician headed Kadima from 2008 to 2012, before setting up a new party, centre-left Hatnua (The Movement). Ahead of the last general elections in 2015, Hatnua allied with Labour to form the Zionist Union, winning 24 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, to become the largest opposition force. Also in opposition to Netanyahu's coalition government are the left-wing Meretz party, centrist Yesh Atid, the mainly Arab Joint List alliance and independent MP Orly Levi-Abekasis. Former Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni attends the World Economic Forum held in Jordan on May 20, 2017 French IT services group Atos said Sunday it has agreed to buy US information technology group Syntel in a move to significantly expand its presence in North America. Atos said in a statement that it will acquire Syntel for $41 per share which amounts to around $3.4 billion. "This transaction is a major step in the strategy of Atos to reach a global scale," the French company said. "In particular, the highly complementary portfolio, customer base, and geographic footprint of the combination between Atos and Syntel will significantly enhance our presence in North America," said chief executive Thierry Breton. Syntel generated revenues of $924 million in 2017, of which 89 percent was in North America. Its operating margin -- underlying profits measured as a proportion of sales -- stood at 25 percent. It employs 23,000 engineers in 30 countries, with over 18,000 staff based in India. Atos said the total cost benefits were estimated at $120 million per year. "Strong portfolio and complementary customer base between the two companies will generate multiple cross-selling opportunities," it said. Syntel's co-founder and co-chairman Bharat Desai said the tie-up "is a very exciting development for Syntel. The Syntel board is committed to maximizing shareholder value and believes that the agreement with Atos achieves that objective and delivers a win-win proposition to our customers and employees." French IT services giant Atos has agreed to buy US group Syntel for $3.4 billion Dozens of French soldiers specialised in firefighting arrived in Sweden early Monday to tackle blazes raging across the country during an extreme heatwave. Firefighters on Sunday were battling around 50 wildfires after an unprecedented drought in the region and soaring temperatures, which have reached the hightest in a century. The 30 French soldiers from a Civil Defence unit landed shortly after midnight on Monday (2200 GMT Sunday) in Stockholm, an AFP correspondent said. They will be joined by another 30 firefighters from the south of France on Monday. France has already sent two Canadair planes to Sweden after authorities asked for EU emergency help to fight the blazes, which have caused no fatalities so far. Italy has sent two firefighting aircraft and Norway sent eight helicopters. Germany and Poland also responded to the request for assistance. Record temperatures above 33 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit) were reported in Uppsala, a city north of Stockholm. There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in the country, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres that fell in mid-June. Denmark, southern Norway and northern Finland are also experiencing a period of extreme heat which, according to weather forecasts, is unlikely to end soon. There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in Sweden, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres that fell in mid-June Firefighters on Sunday were battling around 50 wildfires in Sweden after an unprecedented drought in the region A British couples dream holiday has ended in a cockroach infested jail cell after soldiers took issue with some of their photographs. Pamela and Michael Cleary had travelled to the Greek island of Kos where the 55-year-old grandfather whipped out his mobile phone to take some snapshots of two army dinghies right before they were due to head to the airport to catch a flight. Mr Cleary, who has a keen interest in the military, said he was quickly approached by a soldier who demanded he delete the images before requesting to see both their passports. The couple did as instructed, thinking that would bring an end to the exchange, however authorities had other ideas, allegedly accusing them of spying on the military. Mr Cleary came under fire after taking images of two army dinghies will at Greeces Island of Kos. Source: Getty (file image) We were handcuffed together like two criminals and driven off in a police car. They took us to a police station. It was a really dingy, scruffy place, Mrs Cleary told the Daily Mail. There was only one cell and we could see mosquitos everywhere. There was a tiny window and it was boiling hot. All I can remember is Mike shaking cockroaches off me. Having already missed their flight home to England, the devastated couple said they spent that night in the cell before being transported to the local magistrates court the next morning, where the language barrier again hampered their efforts to comprehend their mistake. The mother-of-four said her husband tried to explain that he didnt know taking the pictures was a crime. The couples dream holiday to Greece came to an abrupt end. Source: Getty She said the magistrate eventually allowed them to return to England but said they would have to return to Greece for a hearing at a later date. While theyre now back home, the stress of the ordeal is far from behind them. Were both went to the doctor for post-traumatic stress. Im taking sleeping tablets, she added. Mrs Cleary also took aim at the British Consulate saying they didnt provide adequate assistance. Several hundred Syrian rescuers remain trapped in the country's south with no escape from approaching regime troops, two of them said Monday after a secret evacuation saved many of their colleagues. Israel on Sunday helped more than 400 people -- opposition-linked White Helmet rescue workers and their families -- flee a neighbouring pocket of southwestern Syria as government forces bore down on them. They were then taken to Jordan and will be resettled to western nations including France, Britain, Germany, and Canada. "It was the only alternative for our trapped volunteers who would otherwise have faced detention or death at the hands of the Syrian regime and its ally Russia," the group said on Monday. Ninety-eight male and female White Helmet volunteers were able to escape to Jordan with 324 members of their families, it said in a statement. But a similar number remain trapped in southern Syria. "We're calling on concerned parties to help us leave," said Cesar, a 23-year-old White Helmets worker in the southern city of Daraa. He estimated some 400 fellow rescuers were still in the provinces of Daraa, bordering Jordan, and Quneitra, next to the buffer zone abutting the Israeli-annexed Golan. Cesar said he had learned of the operation a few days ago "by chance", but when he contacted White Helmets leadership, they told him it was too late to register to leave. - 'Made things worse' - "They set another meeting for today on the subject, but we found out a little while ago that the efforts failed. The fact that some White Helmets members left and some stayed hurt us more than it helped us," he told AFP on Monday. "Yesterday's evacuation through Israel only made things worse. We're afraid of the regime and Russia's reactions." Russian-backed Syrian forces have been battering the south for more than a month in a bid to bring it back under government control. The military push has damaged hospitals and civil defence centres, pushing hundreds of thousands to flee towards the Jordanian and Israeli borders, which remained sealed. The foreign ministry in Damascus slammed the evacuation on Monday, calling it a "criminal operation" and repeating its accusation that the White Helmets were a front for "terrorists". Moscow said it was "symbolic that the White Helmets preferred to flee Syria thanks to foreign support, thus revealing their true nature". The 422 people evacuated will be allowed to stay in Jordan for three months before being resettled, Amman has said. On Monday, the White Helmets called on the international community to help those left behind in southern Syria. "We thank all governments who contributed to the success of this operation to rescue the rescuers, and we ask that they do more to help the hundreds of thousands remaining in southern Syria," they said. - 'We're surrounded' - White Helmets chief Raed Saleh said not all workers had been evacuated because some had not signed up to do so, while "some volunteers were not able to reach the evacuation point". He said there were no plans for a second such operation. "They pulled out the others but can't get us out?" asked 20-year-old rescuer Imad from a rebel village in Quneitra. "We're surrounded," he said. Imad also said there had been a meeting of White Helmets officials in Jordan on Monday to discuss the fate of the remaining rescuers. After the meeting, the White Helmets members still in Syria were told their only option was to be bussed north to opposition-controlled territory under a surrender deal. Last week, rebels in Quneitra agreed with Russia to give up their remaining territory in the province in exchange for an end to bombardment and safe passage to other rebel-held territory. The terms are similar to previous deals that have brought swathes of Syria under government control. But Imad told AFP he feared reprisals. "We're a burnt card when it comes to the Syrian army -- there won't be any mercy. Whoever the regime gets its hands on is lost, and no one knows what ends up happening to them," he said. Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, works to rescue those wounded by attacks in rebel-held territory. The group receives funding from a number of Western governments and individual donors. In a file photo from February 25, 2017, a member of the Syrian Civil Defence volunteers, also known as the White Helmets, carries a wounded girl amid rubble after a reported government airstrike on the rebel-held town of Douma, near Damascus A picture taken from the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights shows smoke rising across the border area in Syria's southwestern Quneitra province on July 22, 2018 Hundreds of Syrian refugees left Lebanon on Monday for their neighbouring home country, an AFP reporter said, the latest such return coordinated between Beirut and Damascus. In Lebanon's eastern border town of Arsal, men, women and children of all ages piled into cars, minivans and tractors. Security forces checked the identity papers of those about to make the journey back to Syria with suitcases, boxes of food and even live poultry, an AFP photographer said. "The voluntary repatriation of around 850 Syrian refugees started" on Monday morning, Lebanon's state news agency NNA reported. Seven years into Syria's war, Lebanon hosts around 1.5 million Syrian refugees, compared with a local population of 4.5 million. Over the past few months, more than 800 Syrians have left Lebanon in similar operations organised by the governments of Beirut and Damascus. Several thousand have also independently left in recent years. Syria's state news agency SANA said the first of "hundreds of Syrians coming from Lebanese territory" had arrived and were heading to Qalamun outside the capital. Syria's ally Russia has also put forward plans to the United States to cooperate for the safe return of refugees to Syria. Moscow has proposed the establishment of working groups in Lebanon and Jordan, to where many refugees have fled, a Russian defence ministry official said on Friday. An advisor to Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has met Russia's deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov to find out more about the initiative, the premier's office said on Saturday. The step would "help solve the refugees' crisis in Lebanon and put an end to their suffering and its social and economic repercussions on the host countries, mainly Lebanon," it said in English. Last month Lebanon's Hezbollah said the powerful movement was creating a mechanism to help Syrian refugees return home, in coordination with Lebanese authorities and Damascus. More than 350,000 people have been killed and over half the country's population displaced since Syria's war started with the brutal repression of anti-government protests in 2011. Refugees at a Lebanese army checkpoint in Wadi Hmeid on July 23, 2018, after leaving Arsal to return to their homes in Syria A Syrian girl smiles from the back of a truck loaded with her family's belongings at a Lebanese army checkpoint in Wadi Hmeid on July 23, 2018 Italian media and politicians Sunday saluted Sergio Marchionne, who has stepped down after 14 years heading auto giant Fiat as he is suffering with serious health problems believed to be life-threatening. "Marchionne, the end of an era," was Corriere della Serra's headline after an emergency board meeting of Fiat Chrysler (FCA), Ferrari and CNH Industrial, the three groups controlled by the Agnelli family, who met Saturday to announce the end of his tenure and tapped Briton Mike Manley, previously head of the group's Jeep brand, to replace him. Marchionne, 66, suffered serious complications following surgery on his right shoulder last month and La Repubblica said his condition was cause for major concern. The newspaper said there had been a further "deterioration" in his condition Friday and that "this time there is no return -- the patient is no longer responding" to treatment. The hospital treating him would not comment when contacted by AFP, citing patient confidentiality. "This is terrible news," said Marco Bentivoglio, general secretary of the CISL metalworkers union. "We have not seen eye-to-eye on certain things... but together we challenged little lazy Italy which prefers to close plants rather than roll up its sleeves." In his 14 years at the helm, Marchionne revamped Fiat, Italy's premier private enterprise, from top to bottom, turning it into a sector mastodon. In 2009, he merged Fiat with US automaker Chrysler, then hived off its industrial vehicles to create CNH Industrial in 2011 and successfully spun off the luxury brand Ferrari in January 2016. Some politicians joined the media in eulogising Marchionne, including former prime ministers Matteo Renzi and Silvio Berlusconi. "Marchionne has been a great protagonist of economic life for the past 15 years... he has succeeded in giving Fiat a future when that seemed impossible. He created jobs, not unemployment. I take my hat off to him," said former centre-left premier Renzi. - 'Italy's number one manager' - Marchionne was close to Renzi for some years, but the two later became more distant. Marchionne did not go as far, however, as to take up a suggestion by another former PM, Berlusconi, to head up a conservative coalition in legislative elections in March. The media magnate said in a statement on Sunday that Marchionne "is certainly Italy's number one manager. He's shown intuition, courage, foresight and competence... He came to symbolise the Italian genius for the rest of the world." Italy's new coalition government was discreet in its reaction to Marchionne's departure. Far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini offered Marchionne his "recognition and respect along with best wishes" for a recovery. In Geneva, the Swiss testing and inspection services group SGS said it had named Peter Kalantzis as acting chairman of its board of directors, adding that it was "deeply saddened" over Marchionne's state of health. John Elkann, who takes over as chairman of racing car brand Ferrari, said that Marchionne "has been the best CEO that anyone could ask for and, to me personally, a true mentor, partner and close friend. "He taught us to have the courage to challenge the status quo, to break with convention and go beyond the tried and tested. He has always pushed everybody to learn, to grow and to excel -? often beyond their own limits ?- starting always with himself," Elkann said. - Manley 'is no Marchionne' - Media speculated on the future for Fiat. Dario Di Vico, editorialist at Corriere, said Marchionne had "incarnated in the history of our country the very idea of modern industry." But he expressed concern "for the life of one of the world's most highly regarded managers" as well as posing "legitimate questions on the future of the world's seventh-largest automaker." There were more sceptical voices, however. German auto expert Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer described Fiat Chrysler as "a weak company and now with Marchionne's departure, it has become even weaker." His successor at the helm of the sprawling FCA, Mike Manley, "is no Marchionne," Dudenhoeffer said. Manley "is a car guy, and to manage Fiat Chrysler you need more than just a car guy," the expert said. Sergio Marchionne reportedly suffered serious complications following shoulder surgery, believed to be life-threatening British-born Mike Manley, the head of Jeep, will replace Sergio Marchionne as head of the Fiat Chrysler group Latin American trade bloc the Pacific Alliance opened a week-long summit on Monday with a free trade and integration message at a time where protectionism, particularly in the United States, has created growing concerns. The bloc groups four of the region's largest economies: Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. The leaders of Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay are also attending as guests. Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo argued as the summit got underway that at a time of soaring global trade tensions, the group needed to remain "unwavering" in its commitment to "openness and integration." The Pacific Alliance, launched in 2012, accounts for 38 percent of Latin American GDP and represents the eighth largest economy in the world, with a population of 223 million people. Collectively, its members are the world's top exporter of goods ranging from avocados to copper to lead, and are the fifth-largest recipient of foreign direct investment. That has drawn interest from other countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore, which are all in the process of becoming associate members. But the summit began without one key figure expected to attend: Mexican President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, an anti-establishment leftist and free-trade skeptic. The summit was supposed to be Lopez Obrador's debut on the international stage ahead of his inauguration on December 1. But the politician known as "AMLO" pulled out on Friday, saying it would not be proper to attend because electoral authorities have not yet officially declared him president-elect. Electoral authorities have until September 6 to officially certify the results of the July 1 election. There is no doubt about Lopez Obrador's victory. He won with over 53 percent of the vote -- more than 30 points clear of his nearest rival, who immediately conceded. - Region shifts right - Outgoing Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto had appeared keen to get his successor started off on the right foot with key allies at the summit, despite the fact that Lopez Obrador was a bit of an awkward fit with the pro-trade group. The invitation was "a good-will gesture by the Pena Nieto government" at a time when "there is a lot of uncertainty about which way Mexican foreign policy is going," said Manuel Valencia, head of the international business program at Mexico's Monterrey Institute of Technology. The other leaders at the summit are Sebastian Pinera of Chile, Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia and Martin Vizcarra of Peru, as well as guests Michel Temer of Brazil, Mauricio Macri of Argentina and Tabare Vazquez of Uruguay. With the exception of Vazquez, they are all center-right, market-friendly leaders -- the faces of Latin America's recent shift to the right. That is a trend that Mexico, long a regional outlier, has bucked by electing Lopez Obrador. The rest of the region is anxious to see whether the new president of Latin America's second-largest economy, after Brazil, will stick to his nationalistic guns or govern with the more pragmatic, pro-business tone he showed in the home-stretch of the campaign. Lopez Obrador has vowed to be fiscally responsible, safeguard free enterprise and work together with the outgoing administration to continue renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the United States and Canada, a deal he had criticized in the past. Guajardo said on Monday he saw a "window of opportunity" to resume NAFTA negotiations, stalled over US demands. Jesus Seade, the incoming Mexican negotiator in the complex NAFTA talks, meanwhile told reporters in Puerto Vallarta he was looking to finalize the process. "All the positions that have been put forward are good ones, those that have been rejected were rejected for a reason -- but that is a technical basis. Now we need to find a way to close the deal." Lopez Obrador's recent change in tone has been welcome for Mexico's Pacific Alliance partners, whose meeting comes at a time of trouble. US President Donald Trump's attacks on trading partners from the European Union to North America to China and the retaliatory measures they have launched in return have raised the specter of global trade war. The Pacific Alliance, meeting in Mexico's Puerto Vallarta, accounts for 38 percent of Latin American GDP and represents the eighth largest economy in the world, with a population of 223 million people Mexican soldiers patrol the dock in Puerto Vallarta, in Mexico's Jalisco State, ahead of a summit of the Pacific Alliance Malian troops killed 11 jihadists who had ambushed them in the centre of the country, in clashes that also left one soldier dead, the defence ministry said. Armed Tuareg groups supporting the government also reported assailants executed more than 20 people on Friday in a village in the northeast. The attacks highlighted the fragile security situation in the West African nation as it prepares to hold elections on July 29, in which President Ibrahim Boubacar Keta is seeking a second term. A army patrol was ambushed by "terrorists" on Sunday morning in a forest in the central region of Segou, the ministry said in a statement. The patrol suffered "one dead and one wounded. On the enemy side, we counted 11 dead". In a separate incident on Friday, "armed men" attacked the village of Tindinbawen, near the border with Niger, according to a joint statement from the Imghad and Allies Tuareg Self-Defence Force (Gatia) and the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA). The two mainly Tuareg groups support the French and Malian forces. The "attackers proceeded to summarily execute more than 20 people including elderly people and at the same time some members of the security post of the coalition", the statement said. Mali's unrest stems from a 2012 ethnic Touareg separatist uprising, which was exploited by jihadists in order to take over key cities in the north. The extremists were largely driven out in a French-led military operation launched in January 2013. But large stretches of the country remain outside of the control of the foreign and Malian forces, which are frequent targets of attacks, despite a peace accord signed with Tuareg leaders in 2015 aimed at isolating the jihadists. The violence has also spilled over into both Burkina Faso and Niger. The latest clashes between Malian troops and jihadists highlight the fragile security situation in the West African nation as it prepares to hold elections on July 29 From a distance, the Gile National Reserve in northern Mozambique is a vast, dense ocean of green that reaches as far as the horizon. Bigger than Luxembourg, the 2,800-square-kilometre (1,080-square-mile) forest seems to be reassuringly preserved, its hardwood treasure placed by Mozambique under legal protection. Close up though, the forest bears deep scars from bouts of rampant logging and relentless population growth -- a testimony to the real-life challenge of how to shield this jewel. Logs line the path leading into the reserve, while further along, trucks piled high with wood shavings, seized by the authorities, stand idle, rusting in the weeds. "Illegal logging was a huge problem between 2014 and 2016," said reserve manager Jose Mohamede Dias. "The other challenge is the bushfires used in hunting and agriculture which feed local people." Such blazes are the main reason for the forest's shrinkage in recent years, he explained. Local people burn down swathes of forest to open up arable land. Once the fields become exhausted, the farmers burn down more trees, and so on. The reserve's population, currently more than 10,000, has shot up in recent years, putting immense pressure on the ecosystem. Some seven million hectares (17 million acres) of tropical forests go up in smoke every year worldwide, according to a UN estimate. - Decompose and fertilise - In a bid to stop the ravaging of the forest, French environmental group Nitidae is offering practical, low-tech help to small farmers on how to use the land more sustainably. One beneficiary is Alexandre Soares, who enrolled a year ago in a training scheme on how to cope with drought and retain soil fertility. "They explained that I should leave certain trees in place to balance the ecosystem. Their leaves decompose and fertilise the soil for the next season," he said, wearing a white hat as he tended his plot under the baking sun. Nitidae specialist Dinis Augusto looked at Soares' mix of crops, which include corn, cassava and beans. "Mixing these plants allows us to guarantee the viability of the soil so the farmers can spend more time on the plot and won't need to find new land," he said. The advice from the pilot project has slowly spread through surrounding communities and improved crop yields -- a powerful inducement for others to follow the tips. - Better charcoal ovens - As well as logging and man-made bushfires, the reserve has also been targeted for the manufacture of charcoal -- the main heat source in many homes in the region. Luis Aghostino set up a basic charcoal oven, digging at the ground barefoot and wearing blue overalls beside several tightly stacked logs, covered in straw and earth. With simple modifications like improved ventilation, the oven is capable of making more charcoal of higher quality and requiring less wood. "It doesn't cost any more, the materials are exactly the same and it doesn't take any more time," said Nitidae's Alexandre Tregoures. "With this amount of wood, we can produce seven bags of charcoal whereas we were only able to produce two or three before," added Aghostino. Between 10 and 15 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide come through deforestation, which releases carbon, locked in the soil for millennia, into the atmosphere. Forests, on the other hand, are carbon "sinks" -- in growing, they take carbon dioxide out of the air and sequestrate it. The Gile reserve is hoping to cash in on its conservation efforts by offering carbon credits under a UN-supported programme called REDD+, for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation, which seeks to tackle forest loss and combat global warming at the same time. The local scheme is financed by the French Fund for the World Environment (FFEM) in collaboration with the Mozambican government. Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking. "Between 2010 and 2016, we witnessed a decrease in deforestation in the reserve's buffer zone -- greenhouse gas emissions were avoided," said Nitidae's country manager, Jean-Baptiste Roelens. The scheme has reduced carbon emissions by 300,000 tonnes over five years, with each tonne saved credited at a rate of between $5 (4.30 euros) and $8 a tonne on the international market for carbon dioxide (CO2). The credits will net the reserve between $2 million and $3 million -- the windfall will be reinvested locally, "to finance sustainable development and support environmental projects," said Roelens. Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking French environmental group Nitidae is offering practical, low-tech help to small farmers on how to use the land more sustainably Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking As well as logging and man-made bushfires, the reserve has also been targeted for the manufacture of charcoal Later this year Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will embark on their royal tour of Australia and planning for the trip is already underway. Meghan is gearing up for the October trip by planning out her wardrobe, and she and Harry have reportedly butted heads over one look she hoped to pull during the tour. According to The Daily Mail, Prince Harry, who has been sitting in on some of Meghans meetings at Kensington Palace with special projects teams from various designers, is said to have given the thumbs-down to a masculine Stella McCartney tuxedo suit his wife picked out for a glitzy evening event during the tour. Watch the full story and Newsfeed discussion above Rescue workers in Greece continued to search charred homes and burned-out cars Wednesday as the toll from some of the worst wildfires this century is expected to rise from at least 74 dead and 187 injured. Many people fled to the sea to try to escape the flames as they tore through towns near Athens stoked by high winds, reducing pine forests to ash and devouring hundreds of buildings. Greek media have described the disaster as a "national tragedy", while Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras cut short a visit to Bosnia and announced three days of national mourning. The government has not yet said how many people are still missing from the fires, which broke out on Monday, as firefighters continue to battle blazes in some areas. Residents and terrified holidaymakers were overtaken by the flames in homes, on foot or in their cars. AFP photographers saw the burnt bodies of people and dogs. The charred bodies of 26 people, including small children, were discovered at a villa at the seaside resort of Mati, 40 kilometres (25 miles) northeast of Athens, said rescuer Vassilis Andriopoulos. They were huddled together in small groups, "perhaps families, friends or strangers, entwined in a last attempt to protect themselves as they tried to reach the sea", he said. As world leaders including Pope Francis affirmed their solidarity, Athens said 308 engineers would arrive on site by Wednesday to assess the damage. But "the problem is what is still hidden under the ashes," said emergency services vice president Miltiadis Mylonas. The death toll could surpass that from the blazes that hit Greece's southern island of Evia in 2007 in which 77 people perished. One Belgian was among the victims, said Belgium's foreign minister Didier Reynders, while in Warsaw Poland's government said a Polish woman and her son also died. Some 187 people have been hospitalised, with 82 still being treated on Tuesday evening, including almost a dozen children, most of whom were in a "serious condition", the fire services said. Dramatic video footage showed people fleeing by car as the tourist-friendly Attica region declared a state of emergency. Athanasia Oktapodi, whose home is surrounded by pine trees, said she first spotted the fire moving down the hill "and five or ten minutes later it was in my garden". "I ran out like a crazy person, got to the beach and put my head in the water. Then the patrol boats came," said the 60-year-old. - Resort 'no longer exists' - Fire service spokeswoman Stavroula Maliri said firefighters were still searching for more victims and taking "dozens of calls" from people looking for relatives. Winds of above 100 kilometres per hour (60 mph) in Mati caused a "sudden progression of fire" through the village, said Maliri. "Mati no longer exists," said the mayor of nearby Rafina, Evangelos Bournous, adding that more than a thousand buildings and 300 cars had been damaged. "I saw the flames outside the window of our hotel. I thought it would explode," said Alina Marzin, a 20-year-old German tourist who had been staying at the Capo Verde hotel in Mati on Monday evening with her brother and their parents. At least six people died trying to escape the flames into the sea. Some 715 people were evacuated by boats to Rafina, the government said. "People are shocked, lost. Some of them have lost everything: children, parents, homes," said Red Cross spokeswoman Georgia Trisbioti. The European Union activated its Civil Protection Mechanism after Greece sought help. Several countries said they were sending aircraft to help fight the flames. European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker tweeted the EU "will spare no effort to help Greece and the Greek people", while Pope Francis spoke of his "deep sadness," sentiments echoed by EU and NATO leaders. NATO head Jens Stoltenberg offered the alliance's full solidarity with Greece, whose government earmarked financial aid for victims' relatives. - 40-degree heat - Interior Minister Panos Skourletis said the priority was to extinguish a fire still burning in Kineta, 50 kilometres from Athens. Near the town of Marathon, residents fled to safety along the beach, while 600 children were evacuated from holiday camps. Officials raised the possibility the blazes could have been started deliberately by criminals out to ransack abandoned homes. "I am really concerned by the parallel outbreak of these fires," Tsipras said as supreme court prosecutors announced they had opened an investigation into the causes of the fire. Showers were set to see temperatures around Athens drop slightly after hitting 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). - Fires across Europe - The wildfires come as record temperatures in northern Europe have seen blazes cause widespread damage in recent days. Sweden, experiencing an unprecedented drought and the highest temperatures in a century, has counted more than 20 fires across the country. Fires have also hit Finland's northernmost Lapland province. Norway, which experienced its hottest May temperatures on record, has seen several small fires. One firefighter was killed on July 15 trying to contain a blaze. Fires have raged for five days in Latvia, destroying more than 1,000 hectares in the Baltic state. Hundreds of firefighters, as well as several aircraft and helicopters have been mobilised to fight the fires in Greece The government has not yet said how many people are still missing from the fires, which broke out on Monday, as firefighters continue to battle blazes in some areas Winds of above 100 kilometres per hour (60 mph) in Mati caused a "sudden progression of fire" through the village Map locating fires in the Athens regions as of July 24, which have killed more than 60 people. Locals watch as a wildfire tears through the port town of Rafina, one of the worse affected areas near Athens The fire left lines of charred cars in Mati There have been 27 fires across Sweden, which is experiencing an unprecedented drought and the highest temperatures in a century Police have honoured a teen for helping to save six lives by attaching uplifting notes to a bridge known as a suicide location. Paige Hunter, 18, wrote over 40 touching notes and tied them on the Wearmouth Bridge in Sunderland, United Kingdom, to offer comfort to those facing mental health issues. Be strong because things will get better. It may be stormy now but it never rains forever, read one note. Pause stop breathe. There are better options and so many people who love you, read another. The inspirational teen revealed on Facebook that she posted the notes at the bridge because it was a place where she had a lot of bad experiences. The compassionate teen was honoured by Northumbria Police Chief Superintendent Sarah Pitt. Source: Facebook/Northumbria Police She placed the notes at the bridge to help people feel less alone. I hope that these quotes just help that one person to not commit suicide and know that they are worthy of living, Ms Hunter posted. The compassionate teen, who works as a sales assistant at variety store Poundworld, was honoured by the Northumbria Police and given a commendation certificate. We thought it was important to applaud the work Paige has been doing and the help she has given those in Sunderland who are going through a mental health crisis, said Northumbria Police Chief Superintendent Sarah Pitt. Paige has shown an incredible understanding of vulnerable people in need of support, and this is an innovative way to reach out to those in a dark place. Paige Hunter, 18, wrote over 40 heartfelt notes and tied them on the Wearmouth Bridge. Source: Facebook/Northumbria Police For somebody so young, Paige has shown a real maturity and we thought it would only be right to thank her personally. She should be very proud of herself. After she received the commendation, Ms Hunter spoke to Northumbria Police. I wasnt doing this for an award; it was just something that I wanted to do, she said. My family are just proud of me and Im going to put it up on the wall. I just want to help people and Ive been told its already helped save six lives. On Monday, Ms Hunter started a GoFundMe page to raise money for a mental health charity that is yet to be decided. If you are concerned about the mental health of yourself or a loved one, seek support and information by calling Lifeline 13 11 14, Mensline 1300 789 978, or Kids Helpline 1800 551 800. Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Here comes Wags My dog Wags He eats so much that his tummy drags Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night He runs around And digs the ground He plays with bones and he makes this sound Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night I love Wags so much and I pat his head But all night long I hear him bark While I'm lying in my bed I wanna sleep I can't sleep He'll stop barking if I give him something to eat Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh Wags! Please stop barking I'm trying to get some sleep here Please Wags Stop barking, come on! I love Wags so much and I pat his head But all night long I hear him bark While I'm lying in my bed Here comes Wags My dog Wags He eats so much that his tummy drags Oh, me oh my! He barks Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh Wags, stop it! Oh, ah Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night Oh, me oh my! He barks all day and night US President Donald Trump said Monday he was "very happy" with how talks were progressing with North Korea, as observers and the media highlight the lack of concrete results one month after his summit with Kim Jong Un. "A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy," Trump tweeted. "But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy!" Trump appeared to be referring to an article in The Washington Post on Sunday that claimed the president was frustrated with the lack of immediate progress, despite his public statements claiming the talks were a success The article cited unnamed White House aides, State Department officials and diplomats. Trump hit out at the Post in a series of tweets on Monday, saying the paper, which is owned by Amazon boss Jeff Bezos had "gone crazy against" him. "In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon," Trump said. In a joint declaration after his historic summit with Trump on June 12 in Singapore, the North Korean leader "reaffirmed his commitment" to work towards the "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula." But the actual details of the process, including how and when the North's nuclear program is to be dismantled, have yet to be hammered out. A month ago, the US administration insisted on the "urgency" of denuclearization, and said it would begin "very quickly." "We're hopeful we can get it done" by 2020, before the end of Trump's term, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the time. Pompeo has been charged with the challenge of putting meat on the bare bones of the Singapore commitment. But 40 days and one apparently fruitless visit by Pompeo to Pyongyang later, the tone of the American side has clearly changed. "We have no time limit," Trump told reporters last week. "We have no speed limit." Asked about the change in tone, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert sought to reassure: "We have teams in place that are working very hard on this issue every day," she said. "We have said there's a lot of work left to be done." US President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un met in Singapore more than a month ago, but no concrete progress has been announced on the North's denuclearization A United Nations envoy on Monday began contacts with Cypriot leaders to gauge whether the time is ripe to revive talks on reunifying the island a year after they collapsed. Jane Holl Lute, a former US deputy secretary for homeland security, has been tasked with conducting consultations with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders. On Monday she met Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades for nearly three hours and made no comment afterwards. Later she is scheduled to cross the UN-patrolled ceasefire line to go north to hold talks with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci. Lute is due to depart for New York on Tuesday and return to Europe once dates are confirmed for her consultations in Athens, Ankara, London and Brussels, the Cyprus News Agency said. She is expected to compile a report on her findings for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who appointed Lute to see if the sides had narrowed their difference since the failure of a Swiss summit in July 2017. The last talks aimed at reunifying the island as a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation collapsed in Switzerland a year ago after the UN chief failed to get the parties to agree on a post-settlement security arrangement for Cyprus. It was the first time Cyprus talks involved the guarantor powers of Britain, Greece and Turkey. Under the 1960 treaty of independence, the three countries secured intervention rights to safeguard the island's sovereignty, but the Greek Cypriots want these scrapped while the Turkish Cypriots are reluctant to do so. The other stumbling block is that Anastasiades wants all Turkish troops to leave the island after a solution is reached, while Akinci is opposed to this idea. Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third in response to a coup sponsored by the military junta then ruling Greece. Rival Cypriot leaders failed to revive their island's moribund peace process after an UN-backed informal dinner date in April -- their only meeting since the failed summit. Tensions in the region heightened after Nicosia stepped up its search for natural gas reserves, a move opposed by Ankara. The EU -- of which Cyprus is a member state while Turkey is not -- condemned Turkey's actions in the eastern Mediterranean in trying to block oil and gas exploration in Cyprus' maritime zone. A file picture shows Jane Holl Lute taking part in a meeting on UN peacekeeping in London on September 8, 2016 Hadil al-Rafati gently adjusts her anaemia-stricken toddler's frail legs onto her lap in the lobby of an NGO's clinic in Gaza City. The programme providing treatment to her son is among those in the enclave facing cuts or closure due to a freeze on US aid to the Palestinians, organisers say. "He weighs 7.2 kilogrammes (16 pounds), but at a year and a month, he should be at least 10," the 21-year-old mother said of her son, Essam. Since January, US financing for humanitarian programmes serving the Palestinians has been suspended, with Washington saying it is being reviewed. President Donald Trump has threatened to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to force the Palestinians back to the negotiating table with Israel. On a recent day, around 15 mothers waited in the lobby of the clinic run by Palestinian organisation Ard al-Insan to see a paediatrician or to receive food supplements for their children. Certain services have been maintained with available funding, but the programme is due to expire at the end of August if the money is not released. "They help us, give us medicine," said Rafati, who is unemployed and whose husband picks up odd jobs to make ends meet. "If they close, where will we go?" The Gaza Strip, controlled by Islamist movement Hamas, has been under an Israeli blockade for more than 10 years. The two sides have fought three wars since 2008. Some 80 percent of the enclave's two million residents rely on aid, according to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA). Trump's comments on aid in January came after Palestinian leaders suspended relations with the White House over its deeply controversial recognition of the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Since then, the passage of a US law in March withholding certain aid to the Palestinians over payments made to prisoners jailed for security offences, or to the families of those killed while carrying out attacks against Israelis, has further complicated the situation. - 'The most vulnerable' - Some $215 million (183.5 million euros) that the United States was to invest in humanitarian aid and development in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip has been held up, according to an analysis for the US Congress. US financing for UNRWA has also been blocked. "At President Trump's direction, assistance to the Palestinians remains under review," a US State Department official said. Some programmes are already facing cuts, such as the Palestine Avenir for Childhood Foundation, which has not renewed contracts for some 30 employees since the start of the year. Suffering from cerebral palsy, nine-month-old Maher had been receiving four physiotherapy sessions per week from the organisation. He now only comes twice per week due to a lack of available therapists. "The change has been huge in the last three months," said his mother Nada Abu Assi, 27, as she watches her son move with the help of a support device. The foundation's director, Ahmad Alkashif, said "these are the last beneficiaries," adding that hundreds of children are on its waiting list. The project, financed by Washington's development agency USAID, is part of a $50 million programme started in 2016 and meant to last five years. Some 20,000 patients were to benefit from the plan, with the possibility of extending it to 250,000 in case of disaster. "Unless the funding hold is lifted in the next three months, the 'Health Matters' programme will close, leaving the most vulnerable families in Gaza without even the most basic health care services," said Ky Luu, chief operating officer of International Medical Corps, an American NGO contracted for the programme. The health system in the enclave is already badly struggling. In recent months, it has faced an influx of more than 4,000 wounded Palestinians hit by Israeli gunfire during border protests and clashes. At least 149 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the protests and clashes began on March 30. One Israeli soldier has been shot dead. - 'Another burden' - "It's another burden that we must carry," said Suhaila Tarazi, director general of the Al-Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza City. Without the US aid, training for surgeons will be cancelled, she said. "Many will wait and suffer," she said, her eyes filling with tears. Each month, more than 2,000 Gazans request permission from Israel to leave the enclave for health care. Last year, only 54 percent of requests were approved and 54 patients died before being able to leave, according to the World Health Organisation. Many fear the loss of US funding will be impossible to replace. "There is no follow-up for projects," said Iyad Abu Hijayer, deputy director of the Palestinian Centre for Democracy and Conflict Resolution. "In general, for years financing has decreased." A girl runs past hovels near a sewage water pool at a poor neighbourhood in Gaza City in June 2018 as US financing for humanitarian programmes serving Palestinians has been suspended since January 2018 A 25-year-old woman who suffered a horrific skydiving injury which left her incontinent is going back to the place where the accident occurred. In 2013, Gold Coast resident Emma Carey bought a one-way ticket to Europe to fulfil her lifelong dream of skydiving over the Swiss Alps, but suffered spinal injuries in a horrendous accident. However, after years of rehabilitation, Ms Carey has decided to return to the exact same place where the accident happened to form new memories. [A]fter 5 whole years Im going back to Europe, back to Switzerland and back to the exact place I had my accident. Ive havent been back since, so I have no idea how its going to make me feel, she posted to Instagram account on Sunday. Emma Carey has returned to Europe after suffering a horrific skydiving injury which left her incontinent. Source: Instagram/Emma Carey Ms Carey was only 20 years old when she arrived in Switzerland only five days into her 2013 European journey, ready to skydive over the Swiss Alps. As she leapt out of the helicopter, she felt a sense of exhilaration but quickly realised that something was wrong. The young woman told Yahoo7 the parachute chords were strangling the instructor, who was then rendered unconscious for the remainder of the fall. Ms Carey plummeted down onto a grass field on her stomach. The instructor and his full weight landed on top of her. Ms Carey has decided to reclaim her memories and finally experience the fun adventure she set out to have in 2013. Source: Instagram/Emma Carey I just presumed that he was dead. He was floppy and wasnt answering, she recalled. She was unable to get up, as she had sustained a serious spinal cord injury, breaking her back at her L1 vertebrae. Told she had incomplete paraplegia, Ms Carey spent one month in a Swiss hospital and three months in a spinal unit in Australia. She was told by doctors in both countries that she would probably never walk again. However, after four months of recovery, she started to take her first steps. While she is now able to walk, she cannot run, jump or walk for too long and is completely incontinent in her bladder and bowels. While she is nervous about returning to Europe, Ms Carey has decided to reclaim her memories and finally experience the fun adventure she set out to have in 2013. Story continues Ms Carey has become a disability advocate since her accident, raising awareness about incontinence and spinal injuries. Source: Instagram/Emma Carey The thought of going back to Europe makes me feel sick. Its like everything in my body is screaming at me to not go back there, to the place where it got so hurt, she wrote on Instagram. But everything else is me is begging me to go, to create new memories, to stop thinking about it so much and to finally enjoy a European summer for what it should have always been fun, Ms Carey said. Ms Carey has become a disability advocate since her accident, raising awareness about incontinence and spinal injuries. She remains positive in spite of her health condition and is grateful for the life which she has rebuilt. I am SO in love with the new life Ive created here. My job, my friends, my home, my body Ive worked so hard to heal, my happiness, Ms Carey wrote. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! Already a Subscriber? Already a Subscriber? Sign in Terms of Service Privacy Policy FOSTA, the new law aimed at curbing online sex trafficking that took effect in April, has been widely criticized for having the opposite effect from its stated intentionactually making the lives of sex workers more dangerous while at the same time creating new roadblocks for law enforcement efforts to track actual traffickers, as AVN.com reported earlier this month. But the law has also had a disproportionate effect on one especially vulnerable groupNative American women for whom professional sex work has provides economic opportunity in a climate where tribal values largely empower men, according to an article by the Center on Media, Crime and Justice at John Jay College. The John Jay article was based on an appearance by several Native American sex workers and advocates on the nationally broadcast public radio program Native America Calling, which on its July 19 broadcast examined the new risks posed to, and possible ways to create support for, Native American sex workers. Native American women are already exceptionally vulnerable to violence, according to a 2010 United States Department of Justice study. The DoJ research found an incredible 84 percent of Native American, including Native Alaskan, women saying they have been victims of violencewith more than 56 percent saying they have been victims of sexual violence in their lifetimes. The study also found that about 730,000 Native American and Alaskan women have been victims of violence within the past yearthats one of every three. According to Becky Jones, a member of the Dine tribe who is a Planned Parenthood sexual health educator, FOSTA has already increased the threat of violence to Native American sex workers. The intention sounds positive, but the impact that [the law] has on people who are being trafficked and on sex workers is pretty negative, she said on the program, adding that the law has stripped the women of the capability to screen for particular clients that might be super violent. Because sex work is one of the few economic options available to women on tribal lands, according to the Native America Calling panel, the occupation needs more legal protection, not lessand needs to have the social stigma on sex work removed. The stigma is definitely hard to talk about and combat, Jones said. I hear it in the classroom, too. One way I can combat and stand up for sex workers is to help squash myths about how sex workers are dirty, or have unprotected sex, when in general a lot of sex workers take really good care of themselves, of their bodies, and of their health. Cheyenne Antonio of the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women, and also a member of the Dine, called the FOSTA law completely dangerous. Sex work is a human right, and the criminalization of sex work was the root of the problem, Antonio, who supports legalization of prostitution, said on the program. Full audio of the July 19 Native American Calling broadcast may be accessed at this link. Photo by Quinn Dombrowski / Flicker Creative Commons ZWAAGDIJK, The NetherlandsEropartner Distribution is now stocking one of the most recognizable brands of erotic lingerie in Europe, Obsession. Prized with many Consumer Awards and rewarded with the title of the Luxury Brand, Obsessive is fulfilling imaginations and dreams of thousands of customers in 40 countries around the world. Individual and unique collections are singling the company out and making the lingerie unique. Changing the attitude of people to the eroticism, every day the Obsessive lingerie gains the crowd of new fans. The new items include different styles of chemises and thongs, dresses, babydolls and robes. Obsessive is now available at Eropartner Distribution. For more, visit Eropartner.com. This is a local news report about an unidentified man (Bruce Wayne) who considers himself a real-life Batman and is protecting Stockton, California by making citizens arrests and handcuffing people anytime he witnesses some criminal activity. Or possible criminal activity. Or possibly no criminal activity whatsoever. Dammit, Batman, what the hell are you doing? The video shows the vigilante detaining a man he claims is smoking crystal meth, outside a busy 99 Cents Only Store. Stockton's Batman won't use his real name or show his face. But told CBS13, that he's nabbed hundreds of alleged criminals at the same Stockton Shopping Center. "They're criminals in to which point they're committing crimes in front of my eyes," he said. Stockton Police said the man in the video wasn't arrested or even cited. But Batman said many of the bad guys he goes after do end up behind bars. Stockton Police say a citizen's arrest is perfectly legal in California. And pictures prove, police do show up for back-up, but not everyone's buying it. "How do we know it's legit anyway?" one woman said. It's a question, only he can answer. "I am the real Batman," he said. Yeah, I'm not sure how I feel about all this. On one hand, people running around pretending they're superheroes is definitely a world I want to live in. On the other hand, this guy sounds like he's addicted to making citizen's arrests and handcuffing people. If somebody tries handcuffing me because they think I'm doing something illegal we're gonna have a problem. And that problem is probably going to be me trying to regurgitate the handcuff key I swallowed because yes those stereos were stolen and I ain't going back to jail. Keep going for the worthwhile video news report, which includes such hits as: "Where you get these handcuffs from homie?" "Uh you can get em online." Thanks to Thaylor H, who agrees a real superhero wouldn't need to use handcuffs. LOS ANGELESAshley Sinclair is sizzling this summer with a new scene from her premier 4K content site Ashley4K.com. Jerk Off After Hours, an all-girl office romp that lets viewers know whos boss, is out today. Sinclair stars with curvy blonde cutie Cherry Morgan in a boss/employee fantasy where the two hottest employees in the office encourage the view from the boss (unseen) point of view. It is every boss' dream, for sure! says Sinclair of the After Hours scene. No #me too movement in this script ... interoffice relations is definitely encouraged! Cherry Morgan and Ashley Sinclair have shot multiple scenes together dating back to 2013, including a recent Ashley4K.com star showcase, Two Girls Shower. This is just one of many scenes you can see at Ashley4K.com, along with many others from my kinky archive! Sinclair said. Ashley4K.com treats fans to two updated scenes each weekincluding Sinclairs eagerly-awaited cosplay-themed Leia Costume Tease, out next week - consisting of scenes from Sinclair's XXX archives, a showcase clip and a cinematic featured video update. In addition to Ashley4K.com, fans can find out more about Ashley Sinclair on social media atTwitter.com/ashsinclairxxx and Instagram.com/ashleysinclairofficial. 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. May referendum approved lease to private company Hotwire Communications, which will assume debt Bleeding money, unable to sign up enough subscribers, and incapable of investing in new technology to attract users, Salisbury's beleaguered municipal broadband service is about to be leased to a private firm.The N.C. Local Government Commission approved a deal Tuesday, July 10, allowing Salisbury to refinance the Fibrant system's $26.5 million in bonds. They would be converted from municipal debt to a taxable structure so that third party, for-profit company Hotwire Communications could lease and operate the city's assets.The city's broadband network has been a money pit. Salisbury borrowed about $40 million to launch the subscriber-based service, and still owes $33,093,603 on the debt, most of which was financed using certificates of participation - debt instruments that don't require public approval. Even so, 81.5 percent of local voters approved the lease referendum May 8.The system needed 30 percent of the city's market, or about 4,500 subscribers, to meet annual debt payments. Shannon Moore, Salisbury finance director, told commission members the subscriber base fluctuates between 3,000 and 3,200.The city has dipped into its water and sewer reserves to offset losses . The city often made only interest payments on its loans because it couldn't afford to pay the principal.As a result, national bond rating agency Moody's Investor Services lowered the city's bond rating, and rating agency Fitch issued a stern warning. Last year, the broadband fund started paying back money borrowed from the water and sewer fund.Moore said the broadband service got $3.2 million in subsidies last fiscal year from the city's general fund, and another $3 million is budgeted from the general fund to keep the broadband network afloat in 2019. The service has been losing about $3 million every year. Even after the handoff to Hotwire, the city will continue annual subsidies of about $1.1 million.Commission staff said the city's use of transfer funds from the general fund to subsidize the broadband network is a strong indication it doesn't intend to pay those back to the general fund.commission member Edward Munn told Carolina Journal after the meeting.Salisbury launched Fibrant as an economic development tool to aid existing companies, and attract new businesses, Munn said.Munn said.Munn said. Municipal entities may not be flexible enough to invest in the latest technology or provide levels of customer service at a cost that ensures the service will pay for itself.In Salisbury's case, taxpayers, including the majority of residents who don't subscribe to the system, ended up paying for the bad deal, he said. "The numbers may even be actually worse" because the city failed to allocate overhead or indirect service costs to the broadband fund.Richard Marvin, a municipal public finance adviser with Stephens Inc., an investment banking financial advisor, said Salisbury opted to start its own broadband service in 2010 because it couldn't lure internet service providers to the city.Time Warner Spectrum, AT&T, and other internet companies entered the market after the city launched Fibrant, Marvin said. They offered lower prices, more expansive services, and more reliable delivery.Commission member Joshua Bass asked whether those same competitors are going to lower rates and compete even harder against Hotwire. Marvin agreed that was possible.Moore said Hotwire will make a multimillion-dollar investment in new technology upgrades and content subscribers want, but the city couldn't afford. Salisbury will get budget relief because city staff no longer will operate the system.Hotwire has entered into lease agreements with multi-tenant and multi-dwelling communities such as senior and student housing and apartment and condominium complexes. It has a 150,000 subscribers overall in Texas, Florida, and Pennsylvania.Moore said.to customers, she said. The first year minimum lease payment would be $1.182 million in 2019 on projected revenue of $1.5 million. Hotwire has said it could retire the city's debt by 2029. The lease allows the city to opt out of the contract if Hotwire doesn't meet minimum lease payments.Greg Gaskins, secretary of the Local Government Commission, said there's an obvious concern if Hotwire does not meet target payments, reducing the amount of city support necessary to operate a private system, and it reverts to city control.Gaskins said. White supremacy lives on through the bricks and mortar of our campus. Even though there have been recent efforts to take down some of these memorials, much more work needs to be done. More importantly, we need more memorials. Why are they here? What do they have in common? Number one: none of them have any affiliation to Duke University or the Duke family. Number two: they were all proponents of white supremacy. Robert E. Lee was an extremely cruel slave owner; Thomas Jefferson also owned a ton of slaves, but he was supposedly "less cruel;" Sydney Lanier was the least bad because he didn't own any slaves-he was just a white [man] in the Confederate army. Currently, on our campus...the folks that are represented are primarily male and are primarily white. And that seems to indicate that there are no folks of color, that there are no women, that there are no poor folks on campus-and that just isn't true. As a black woman, I would like to see myself, I would like to see my struggle represented when I walk around and engage with this space, because right now, I cannot feel at home if I don't see myself. Today's radical left has embarked on a quest to purge college campuses of their controversial histories. These "social justice warriors" not only believe themselves licensed to tear down statues-they view it as their sacred duty to rid universities of monuments that do meet their standards of political correctness.But merely removing statues they deem to be offensive is not enough for these activists. Instead, they are demanding that campuses be remade according to their radical vision. This includes calling for the installation of new monuments and memorials to be erected that are more in line with the updated values they insist universities embrace.But what are these values? For modern campus activists, the overriding value for any social institution-including the university-ought to be diversity, which is defined entirely in terms of group identities such as race and gender. As part of their mission to implement this value, modern partisans of diversity seek to ensure that all favored identities are equally represented in campus statuary.But is the purpose of campus monuments merely to reaffirm one's own race or gender? Surely more enduring principles ought to guide both the preservation and installation of campus monuments. Traditionally, they have been the transcendent ideals of the pursuit of wisdom and truth.But with today's radicals, such transcendent ideals are targets, not goals. There is no better example of the activist crusade on campus memorials than at Duke University in North Carolina. In a recent report entitled " Activating History For Justice at Duke ," several students, staff, and faculty members documented the history of Confederate or "white supremacist" statues and mapped out their locations on Duke's campus.The project's goal is two-fold: First, the authors of the study hope to expose past and ongoing inequities at Duke by mapping out and calculating the disproportionate ratio of memorials of whites to those of minority groups. They argue that prior Duke officials ensured that white hegemony would be visibly memorialized on campus, while the stories of oppressed groups would go unseen and untold.Second, the activists aim to rectify past abuses by tearing down statues of whites and putting up memorials that more accurately reflect the pro-"diversity" values of the Duke community. As one student said:In order to carry out their mission, the students created a video tour that highlighted some of Duke's most offensive monuments, including that of Thomas Jefferson. In the video, the student tour "guide" explains that the only reason that Thomas Jefferson, Robert E. Lee, and southern poet Sydney Lanier stood side by side at the entrance of Duke Chapel was because of their common link to "white supremacy:"But to reduce figures such as Jefferson to a tool used by campus bureaucrats to enforce white supremacist values is intellectually dishonest. It is far more likely that Jefferson's statue was put up because of his decisive role in the founding of this nation. As an American university, it is entirely fitting for Jefferson to have a place on Duke's campus, for he was the Founding Father who was most concerned with education, particularly higher education. It is absurd to suggest that he was placed there merely to uphold the notion of white supremacy.It is also important to view history within context: keeping up a Confederate statue that has been in place for many decades is different from putting up that same statue now. That is because preserving such a monument does not entail an endorsement of the Confederate cause, but rather highlights the need for visual-and sometimes sobering-reminders of the past.However, historical monuments of Confederates or slave-owning historical figures do not even appear to be the greatest offenders. To campus activists, the more fundamental issue with Duke's current monument landscape is that those memorialized are predominately white men. In the report, the authors decry that only 15 percent of reported monuments or memorials depict women, and worse, only white women.According to another student involved in the project:But why can't students "see themselves" as part of the university's legacy as a place of knowledge and enlightenment? Don't they "identify as" part of a community of learning and thought, as the builders of the university imagined?The notion that the university isn't fully living up to its academic mission because it doesn't have an "equal representation" of race and gender in its memorials reflects a superficial understanding of the nature of an academic community. According to philosopher and art critic Roger Scruton , monuments should serve a transcendent purpose, one that brings people outside of themselves and beyond their immediate circumstances.In one respect, the activists are correct in that monuments should reflect the values of the surrounding community. As Scruton says, monuments are meant to give recognition to a person, event, or idea-but more than that, they serve to represent and uphold what the larger surrounding society values. For a nation, those values may be patriotism, honoring those who have sacrificed for that country's protection, or remembering battles that were pivotal in the success of a war. But what are the shared values that characterize an academic community?Presumably, one goes to college to join a community of scholars where goods such as knowledge and truth are pursued. Because of this, the primary function of campus monuments ought to be inspirational, but also focused on inculcating shared academic values specifically. So it is reasonable that a university would want to honor alumni or individuals who made great discoveries or contributed to groundbreaking research. Also, private schools, in particular, may want to memorialize some of its generous donors-since they make much of the university's work possible.Students should feel part of the university community because they seek to be scholars, thinkers, experimenters, writers, and rational beings capable of producing knowledge; not because they see their particular race or gender depicted in front of a manicured lawn.The simultaneous effort, however, to tear down campus memorials and put up new ones that tow the line of identity politics not only sets a troubling precedent for how future generations will reconcile with history, but it deprives students of the opportunity to aspire to ideals greater than the color of their skin. On Saturday, I woke to the sound of a friendly rain. I love to wake on a silver morning with a gentle rain falling, especially, if I have no further obligation, than to listen to the watery song. I always think of my friend Rae, when it rains, for she is every bit as fond of a rainy day, as I am. Rain gives us permission to cancel things like yard work and other bothersome tasks.There was a powdery mist over the laughing river today. The water looked milky and I had not seen it look that way before. It felt like a discovery of something beautiful, that was new to me. I always like seeing a new kind of beauty . . as much a I like a familiar thing of beauty, too.All day, the air was wet in some form or fashion. After the early morning showers, mist followed, then it would "sprinkle" and finally it would rain again. Lyla had her heart set on a picnic and the front porch just would not do on this day. She wanted a "real" picnic in the grass. Will tried to convince her that the grass and yard were soggy, but Lyla did not take it well. Jenny resorted to calling Santa Clause. Apparently there is number to hear a recording when such an occasion arises. Lyla stated her full name and told him "just don't come . I don"t want to be good !"It would do us all good to remember that Lyla is but three years old. Three year olds do not "put on airs". They act upon their feelings quite honestly. The "high road" does not often appeal to three year olds . . .it does not always appeal to me either . . .at first sight. . .but rest assured, we will all do our best to lead Lyla to the "high road", until it becomes a habit, hopefully.We ended the day with a good supper, while the rain was still falling.I was late for the early service this Sunday morning. The sun was shining brightly and cardinals were flying, by the time I went out. As often happens, a verse popped in my head. It first came to me while we were on our holiday. It came up again as I greeted the day, when the sun was a blazing lemon drop. It is a favorite of mine from Corinthians . . "For we walk by faith, not by sight." The verse stayed with me through breakfast and echoes now no matter what task is at hand.This has happened to me countless times. Verses will come to me and it always turns out, some event arises, that demands some action. The verses ring true and supply exactly what is required to proceed. Of course, being away from the sea, I have become human again, after all and with that, a looming sense of curiosity of the path before me. It is time to return my focus to the rabbit patch, still in need of a few small repairs, and mean while the summer slips by stealthily much like a "thief in the night". One thing, and maybe one of the few things, I am certain of , is that a "new season is on the horizon". How far off, I can not tell. We can never know all of the details of life. That would not require an ounce of trust and how would our faith increase under such circumstances? If all the answers were laid before us, what profit would that be? If we could prepare accordingly to whatever may come up, then we would never need to rely on God, which would be dreadful, in the long run. We would miss out altogether on what may very well, be the intent of our earthly journey. It seems whether or not we admit it, that we must all "Walk by faith and not be sight."Not being an expert or a "master" of religion, I can only, say these are some of my thoughts, as of lately. . . and I am not through thinking just yet, nor will I ever be in this lifetime.Lyla and I made strawberry brownies in the late morning. We listened to the "Brandenburg concertos" as she mixed the chocolate batter and I sliced the strawberries. Somewhere along the way, Lyla wanted to call Santa, for she'd had a change of heart .The afternoon stole lazily away. A stray shower sprung up ever so often followed by a hot, bright sunshine. I talked to Kyle and Christian, who assured me that all was well at the rabbit patch. My sons have not starved, as I always fear they will, when I am away. At long last, the roof is finally and completely finished. Cash, my boxer and Christopher Robin, my cat are fine. I am sure by now, that Christopher Robin is holding a grudge. He does not know that I saw a shell, on the shore, in soft shades of gray, and missed him, sorely.In the evening I sat outside. Thunder rumbled in the distance and the passing clouds seemed in a hurry. A cool breeze was blowing and it felt like September. I remembered my grandmother, for it was the anniversary of her death. Grandmama died young, at the age of 52. It has been 49 years since her passing. I was ten years old, yet I remember her voice, even now. She died one night suddenly and the shock of it remains to this day. Christian asked me once, if I still missed her and I cried, for I have never quit missing her. In ten years, she made an impression on me, that has lasted. No one is ever going to talk about any "business" deal for 49 years nor are we likely to mourn the loss of any possession, no matter how extravagant, for a half century . . .but love, never leaves us, and I am convinced it must become a part of us, maybe in a physical sense.I sat there, with the wind blowing thinking, we ought to never under estimate the power of our contribution to this world. . . and we are all contributing. Maybe we do not realize that the mark we leave will ever matter. I am certain my grandmother had no idea that I would remember my life with her on the little farm, years ago. . .but I do. . .and the memories occupy me and implore me to love as she did. Grandmama left me "well off" . . .and that has made a difference. Retired Chief Petty Officer William Robert "Bobby" Singleton, age 81, was surrounded by his loving family when he was called to meet his Father July 18, 2018.He was a beloved son, husband, father, grandfather, friend, proud Navy Veteran, and good and faithful servant.Bobby was an excellent provider for his family and also shared much with others. He gathered his hard-earned pennies to give to organizations such as the Shiner's Hospitals for Children, The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, victims of natural disasters, and his church.He wasn't just a grandpa to his four grandchildren, he was "Boppie." He showed his love for his family through his actions and his words. Boppie built a life and gathering place for those he loved at his family farm. By planting 500 blueberry bushes, he left a lasting and visible legacy of provision and hard work.His proudest military moment was achieving the rank of Chief Petty Officer at age 24. He was a 23-year veteran of the U.S. Navy where he was awarded the Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation Medal and Good Conduct Medal.Bobby was known for working with his hands and could fix anything. He was a wise advisor to his family, sharing his stories and life lessons. He loved all animals, great and small. He enjoyed puzzles, reading, studying his bible, and any time spent with family.He was a former Mason and past member of the Old Ford Ruritan Club, an active member of The Children of the Assembly of God Church, and an activist supporting the No OLF efforts.Bobby was preceded in death by his wife, Jeannette McHorney Singleton, and his parents, William Fred Singleton and Sadie Dot Cherry Singleton.Bobby is survived by his two daughters Dr. Gayle Singleton-Yatawara of Salisbury, NC and Cheri Singleton Hinshelwood of Suffolk, VA, sons-in-law Chanaka Yatawara and Geoffrey Hinshelwood, four grandchildren Lily and Grace Yatawara, and Abigail and Owen Hinshelwood.The family will receive friends from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. Saturday, July 21, 2018, at Paul Funeral Home & Crematory, 900 John Small Avenue Washington, NC 27889. A memorial service will follow at the funeral home chapel at 2:00 p.m.In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society, 930-B Wellness Drive, Greenville, NC. 27834.Online condolences may be sent by visiting www.paulfuneralhome.com Paul Funeral Home & Crematory is honored to serve the Singleton family. New York, NY, July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PHI Group, Inc., (www.phiglobal.com) (OTCQB: PHIL), a U.S. diversified holding company focused on mergers and acquisitions and investments in natural resources, energy, agriculture and special situations, today announced that it has signed an agreement with Regent Blockchain Group, Ltd., a Filipino company, to form a joint venture company to develop and operate an offshore financial center and blockchain businesses, including but not limited to Apps, ICOs and cryptocurrency exchanges. The joint venture company will be located in the Cagayan Economic Zone, Lai-lo Municipality, Cagayan, Philippines http://ceza.gov.ph/. According to the agreement, PHI Group will contribute four million dollars in cash and/or preferred stock for a fifty-one percent ownership and management rights of the joint venture. Regent Blockchain Group will allocate a sublicense of the Financial Technology Solutions and Offshore Virtual Currency (FTSOV) License from the official agency of the Philippine Government which has the responsibility to issue such FTSOVC license. Currently only Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) has such authority under FTSOVC Business Rules and Regulations of 2018 towards the joint venture for the operations of the offshore financial center and blockchain businesses. CEZA believes that some of the best business opportunities in the Cagayan Economic Zone are ripe in the following ventures: IT Development, BPOs, Offshore Banking Units, Financial Institutions, Sports, Amusement and Recreation, Medical Tourism, Integrated Resorts, Casino Gaming Operations, Ship Building and Repair, Power and Water Plant Development, Logistics and Cargo Handling, Hotel and Restaurants, Duty-Free Shops and Outlets, Factories and Manufacturing, and Agricultural Production, among others. CEZA has built a telecommunications network that has fiber-optic lines and redundant internet connectivity. With it, business locators could host their network and data storage equipment in a highly secured environment equipped with redundant power and cooling system. CEZA is also committed to build a new city and township equipped with world-class amenities; it is now working closely with private owners of exclusive resorts inside its jurisdiction to fulfill this dream. Earlier this year, CEZA Secretary Raul Lambino organized a Fintech Summit in Bonifacio Global City during which he declared his commitment to transform the area into a landmark for blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies, and fintech. He said: We have a perfect setting for some of the young Filipino generations best minds and the worlds leading cryptocurrency companies to engage in the development of the next wave of technological innovations. The best of nature and cutting-edge technology will combine to bring about a new hub in Asia for the worlds leaders in the burgeoning global currency of the future. https://cryptonomist.ch/en/blockchain-en/cagayan-special-economic-zone/. Allen Wu, Chairman and CEO of Regent Blockchain Group, Ltd., stated: We look forward to working with PHI Group, its Vietnam-based partner Fintech Green Investment JSC and other international participants to fast-track the development of the offshore financial center and blockchain businesses and believe that these could become a multi-billion dollar business in the next few years. Henry Fahman, Chairman and CEO of PHI Group, concurred: We are delighted to work with Regent Blockchain Group on these major initiatives and are ready to embark on some imminent projects that can immediately create very significant value for the joint venture, thanks to the combined strengths with our partners. On another note, the Company has recently satisfied certain conditions with respect to the two major initiatives in the areas of institutional financial services and luxury consumer goods, which it has been working on during the past eight months, and expects to announce the progress of these transactions in the coming weeks. About PHI Group, Inc. PHI Group (www.phiglobal.com) primarily focuses on mergers and acquisitions and invests in select industries and special situations that may substantially enhance shareholder value. PHI Group also provides M&A and consulting services through its wholly owned subsidiary, PHI Capital Holdings, Inc. (www.phicapitalholdings.com) Safe Harbor This news release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe-harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may", "future", "plan" or "planned", "will" or "should", "expected," "anticipates", "draft", "eventually" or "projected", which are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. This resource is no longer available This resource is no longer available. Return to previous page. CIO Trends #7: Middle East The Middle East is changing fast and as a result the region is on a digital mission. Taking the example of Silicon Valley in the US, Saudi Arabia wants to build a bustling tech hub on its shores. Read here how the country has sent a delegation to the US to see how its done. One area where the Middle East already appears to be a pioneer rather than a follower is smart city development. Read about smart city initiatives in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in this e-guide. Also find out how a rare fault caused Visas global payment system to go offline, in an in-depth analysis of Visas outage in June 2018. What would happen if a Play-Doh Fun Factory could exert thousands of pounds of pressure? Watch and learn. Here's your member berries for the day, a vintage Play-Doh Fun Factory ad: Making Giant Playdough Worms with Hydraulic Press (YouTube / Hydraulic Press Channel) Burbank's Magnolia Park district was a big reason my family and I moved to town three years ago: a walkable, shady, tree-lined street whose merchants are a quirky (and legendary) mix of indie bookstores, prop outlets, vintage clothing stores, collectibles stores, year-round Halloween stores, hobby shops, quirky indie designers, gaming stores, wine bars, community credit unions like a goth/alternative Main Street, USA. People come from all over to visit Magnolia Park, and on the last Friday of every month the whole city of Burbank comes down for "Food Truck Friday," where local craftspeople, community organizations, and merchants set up stalls and the streets are lined with food trucks from across the region. So naturally, greedy asshole landlords have started doubling and tripling the rents. I've been out of town since late June and I just got back and walked the length of Magnolia and it's a parade of empty storefronts, with merchants who've been on the street for a quarter century gone. A grassroots effort is underway to get the city council to use zoning laws to save what's left of the neighborhood. "My business and everyone else in the area are affected by this money gouging and greed," says Del Howison, owner of the Gothic bookstore and gift shop Dark Delicacies. "If landlords continue to do so, they will just turn it into another place of non-personalized steel and glass that can be found anywhere. There will be no reason to come here." "Dark Delicacies is the only all horror and gift store in the United States," Howison continues. 'We have been in Burbank for 24 years. We hold signings every week with actors, composers, artists, authors. We also carry handmade items not found elsewhere." Del and his dark arts dispensary are just one of many unique shops (and unique shopkeepers) that make up the rogue's gallery of off-the-wall boutiques in the area. "[They] even referred to this area at one point as the 'Monster Crawl' because of all the different but related shops, including Creature Features (now gone), Bearded Lady and Mystic Museum, Blast from the Past, Motion Picture FX and others," he adds. Save Magnolia Park Saving Magnolia Park: Why L.A.'s Coolest Shopping Area Is in Danger [Erin Maxwell/LA Weekly] In 1963, David Bowie (then David Jones), age 16, recorded a demo song "I Never Dreamed" with his band The Konrads. Long thought lost, Konrads drummer David Hadfield found it in the 1990s in an old breadbox. Until now he's kept quiet about the find but has decided to auction it off. It's expected to sell for 10,000. Above is a short clip of the tune. From Omega Auctions: Hadfield recalls 'Our agent, Eric Easton, who also managed The Rolling Stones, asked us to do a demo so he could try and get us an auction at Decca. So in early 1963 I booked into R.G.Jones small studio in Morden. In preparation for the demo David and our guitarist Neville Wills wrote 2/3 songs. We had decided that we would do a couple of guitar instrumentals and one original song. I chose "I Never Dreamed" as it was the strongest, the other two were a bit weak! I also decided that David was the best person to sing it and give the right interpretation. So this became the very first recording of David Jones (Bowie) singing 55 years ago! There is no other recording featuring David as lead in existence. Decca initially turned us down, but when they eventually gave us an auction later that year, vocalist Roger Ferris was the lead voice and David sang backing harmonies.' The news cycle isn't kind to stories that take a long time to be told. Sure, no one ever stops talking about Trump and his uncle Vlad, but despite it all being a part of one two-year long shit show, there's always something new and horrific to draw the eye. Not so with stories like the ones that are still playing on on the United States' southern border, daily. Families are still being kept apart, kids barely able to talk are being asked to defend themselves in court, and individuals seeking asylum from the dangers of their homes are being turned away by customs agents or railroaded into custody with less than legal practices. While much of the media has turned its focus to alleged Russian spies sleeping their way into influential positions, The Texas Tribune just keeps on keeping on: their reportage on the tragedies being played out on the U.S./Mexican border is has been absolutely outstanding. But, they're a non-profit. In order to continue to do the sort of quality journalism that they've been churning out of late, they could use a hand. Right now, the Texas Tribune is raising funds to open a newsroom in the Rio Grande Valley: an area of the state that, as it's name suggests, lays along the Mexican border by the Rio Grande River. It's where you'll find McAllen and Brownesville two of the cities where DHS has been splitting up families and stashing kids away in privately operated prisons. It's ground zero for the Trump administration's bigoted bullshit. The Tribune accepts one-time donations, monthly installments or a chunk of change given on an annual basis. If you care about what's being done to reunite families separated at the border and want to ensure that their stories are told, truthfully and in their entirety, you'll want to follow this link and pony up whatever dough you can afford to part with. Image via Flickr, courtesy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection I am a sucker for anything with Jeff Goldblum in it. That lovable weirdo schtick of his works for me (and, bonus, we learn he doesn't believe in astrology). Who makes a series about cooking if they can't cook? Jeff Goldblum does, of course. Here's the second episode of "Cooking with Jeff." Last time Jonathan Gold was his special mystery guest. This time it's Bryce Dallas Howard who also doesn't cook. Stefan Jones writes, "While Dungeons & Dragons (1973) had its roots in miniatures wargaming, it really didn't coherently integrate boardgame-style maneuvers into its combat system. Steve Jackson changed that a few years later with Melee, the first segment in what would be a full-fledged fantasy role playing game system, The Fantasy Trip. It was a lot better developed than D&D, and was supported by GMd adventures and solotaire adventures." I remember Melee fondly. Easy to learn and visually appealing, it was the only RPG I managed to get others in high school to play. Unfortunately, TFT's publisher, Metagaming Concepts, refused to yield the rights to the system when Steve parted ways. Even after Metagaming went silent, they kept the rights locked up. Now, 41 years after Melee was published, Steve has gotten the rights back, and gotten his old team together, including original illustrator Liz Danforth. The Kickstarter to republish a new edition went live just a few hours ago. I know I'm in! WINNIPEG, Manitoba, July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Winnipegs leading independent law firm is the first tenant to move into the citys newest office tower True North Square this week, with a 360-degree view of Winnipeg. Thompson Dorfman Sweatman (TDS), the official law firm of the Winnipeg Jets, is making the move from its 28-year home at Portage and Main because it believes the new True North Square is the most important downtown development in Winnipeg in a generation, says TDS CEO and Managing Partner, Keith LaBossiere. We know that by collaborating with True North and other partners, we are part of a once-in-a-lifetime project for downtown Winnipeg. At TDS weve had a long history of investing in our downtown. We can see that Winnipeg has gained a new sense of confidence and energy that extends throughout the downtown, which is no longer defined by one intersection. We know that the next generation of lawyers at our firm wants to continue that legacy by investing in downtown and True North Square, LaBossiere said today from the 17th floor of True North Square. Being a proudly local firm based in Manitoba, allows us to be free to make good decisions that are focused on the community where we live and where our clients live, LaBossiere added. TDS lived up to that promise when it hired local technology firms to outfit its new office, and a local architecture firm to do the interior design with furniture that was locally sourced. Manitoba Tyndall stone is featured in the reception area and a new TDS brand, videos and refreshed web site were created by local marketing firms. A large brass gate in the lobby created by local blacksmiths includes a design that spells out TDS in Morse Code. Suspiciously absent from TDSs new state-of-the-art law office are the usual walls of law books, replaced by the latest and best technology and highly efficient meeting rooms for collaborative teamwork. An office with more meeting space frees our people up to be better leaders and collaborators. We are also very proud that every day our clients and staff will be inspired by made-in-Manitoba art all around them, including Indigenous art and pieces from the Winnipeg Art Gallerys Inuit collection, LaBossiere added. As TDS prepared to move from the old offices, it auctioned off older art and donated those proceeds to ArtCity, which teaches art to youth in the West Broadway neighbourhood. Office supplies and dishes that were not moved to True North Square were donated to the Salvation Army. See Fact Sheet attached. TDS FACTS Head office in Winnipeg. The largest geographic reach in Manitoba, including eight other offices in Boissevain, Brandon, Gladstone, MacGregor, Morden, Portage la Prairie, Steinbach and Winkler. 130 years as Winnipegs leading independent law firm. 25 areas of legal practice, from litigation, labour and employment law and all forms of advocacy to corporate and commercial law, taxation and estate planning and Indigenous and environmental law. Almost 100 lawyers and over 120 support staff with services in six languages. TDS is the exclusive Manitoba law firm (and a founding member) of Lex Mundi, the worlds leading network of independent law firms, with in-depth experience in 100+ countries worldwide. TDS is the only law firm in Manitoba to offer corporate development services, which are offered through their strategic partner, Acumen. Each year TDS contributes over $250,000, supporting more than 100 community initiatives. TDS lawyers contribute hundreds of hours volunteering their expertise pro bono. TRUE NORTH SQUARE FACTS True North Square is a cutting-edge mixed-use development that, upon completion, will feature four towers, one million square feet of office, hotel, residential, retail, parking and public plaza space, creating a new dynamic epicentre for Winnipegs downtown. True North Square will house offices for up to 1,500 workers, 288 hotel suites and 324 rental apartments and condominiums. 242 Hargrave, where TDS occupies the top three floors, is the first privately-developed office tower built in downtown Winnipeg since 1990 and is 365,000 square feet. Over 50 percent of 242 Hargrave is now leased and confirmed tenants include Scotiabank, MNP, and a number of retail tenants that will form part of an exciting, unique food hall concept. The apartment building at True North Square, 225 Carlton, will be ready for renters in the spring of 2019. Sutton Place Hotel and Residences is expected to be completed in 2021. The plaza and surrounding streets have been designed to accommodate a host of exciting public events, including potential Winnipeg Jets Street Parties. As skate culture has become woven into the fabric of society, exhibitions like Against the Grain: Skate Culture and the Camera (coming to America next year) strive to contextualize its impact on aesthetics. Via British Journal of Photography The exhibition also includes archive material from magazines such as SkateBoarder, Thrasher, Transworld, R.a.D [Read and Destroy], and Sidewalk, which, say the organisers, were "essential to circulating information about skateboarding and contributed to the international force it is today". And in doing so, Against the Grain also hopes to make a case for skateboarding photography arguing that, although it's "often dismissed for solely capturing the decisive moment or 'peak action trick', this wide-ranging genre of photography has expanded to many documentary and artistic styles and continues to exist through its own decree". Against the Grain: Skate Culture and the Camera opens in London before travelling to North America in 2019 and Tokyo in 2020, focusing in on aspects of the skate community and history of each location. In London it kicks off with an Art Night run in association with Hayward Gallery, for example, tracing South London skate spots critical to the Palace story and fundraising for Long Live Southbank, the campaign to restore and save the outdoor skatepark underneath the public gallery. Since 2013, the Syria Civil Defense, better known to the world as the White Helmets, have been putting themselves at risk in one of the most dangerous regions in the world. During the Syrian Civil War and throughout the campaign against ISIL in the war-torn country, the White Helmets could always be found working to save whoever they could in the wake of aerial bombardments, artillery barrages and secondary explosions. Their rescues, often made during pitched battles, were completed under great personal risk. Of late, however, the White Helmets have been facing a new threat: The Syrian government. The Syrian government has taken back control of the majority of the areas that the White Helmets operated in areas once held by anti-government factions. While the White Helmets recused anyone who needed their help, the government sees them as being associated with the rebels. That's bad news for for the volunteers bad enough that the United Nations and a number of member states worked together to get them and their families the hell out of the country. From The BBC: Some 422 volunteers and family members were taken to Jordan via the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights overnight. The UK, one of the nations requesting Israel's help, hailed the operation and will assist with resettlement. The White Helmets describe themselves as a volunteer workforce that acts to save people in Syria's war zones. Supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and his Russian allies, say the White Helmets support the rebels and also have links to jihadist groups. It's expected that the White Helmets and their families will stay at a United Nations camp in Jordan for around three months while they wait to be processed and transported to Canada, the United Kingdom and Germany to be resettled as refugees. Unfortunately, the original plan was that the Israelis would evacuate upwards of 800 people. That only half were able to make it to the planned extraction point was due to the expansion of hostilities by remnants of the so-called Islamic State in south-west Syria. Cut off from international assistance, and with rumors that the rescue operation was a one-time-only deal, things are looking grim for the remaining White Helmets and their families. Image: by Qasioun News Agency https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_maQquPeipU, CC BY 3.0, Link News / National by Staff reporter SOLDIERS manning Beitbridge Border Post had to fire warning shots yesterday to quell a potentially volatile situation after a rowdy crowd charged at customs officers after refusing to comply with border formalities.The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority's Loss Control department is conducting 100 percent searches on all imports coming via Beitbridge to maximise revenue inflows.This move is reported to have angered cross border transporters commonly known as Omalayitsha."They started by staging a peaceful sit-in and the vehicles clogged the border as they protested a request by Zimra officials that those without travellers' rebates for specified goods should pay duty," said a border official."Upon realising that the customs authority was not relenting on its stance, the drivers thronged the search bays on the commercial side and disrupted operations. Some even attempted to drive off without being searched."The soldiers moved in when the protesters turned violent, throwing stones and shouting obscenities. They fired warning shots to disperse the crowd when efforts to calm the transporters proved fruitless."However, nobody was injured during the fracas which happened between 7am and 8am".Zimra's Head of Communications Mr Taungana Ndoro said he was yet to get information on the border situation."I am yet to receive an update on that incident," he said.The Chronicle is reliably informed that the country is losing millions of dollars due to intrusive leakages and underhand dealings at Beitbridge border post and along the boundary line with South Africa.In addition, Zimra is collecting at least $400 million from commercial cargo alone at Beitbridge Border Post annually."This is the third time this year where either Omalayitsha or haulage trucks drivers have protested over various issues to do with formalities and procedures at the border."It is very critical that the cross-cutting issues are addressed as a matter of urgency," said a member of the Ferret team who preferred anonymity.The Ferret team is made up of security forces, the police and Zimra's anti-smuggling unit.When our news crew visited the border post around midday yesterday, operations had normalised with the cross border drivers complying with customs laws.Long winding queues of light vehicles and small trucks laden with an assortment of goods inched into the country.Security personnel including soldiers, the police and guards employed by a private company were on patrol within the border arena.In separate interviews, omalayitsha said although they would love to comply with the customs laws, Zimra had deployed inadequate staff to the search bays and cash counters resulting in the slow movement of traffic within the border."We don't have a problem in paying duty, but Zimra just doesn't have the manpower for such a demanding task. They must review their operations."A situation where people spend close to six hours here (border) to access just one checkpoint is cumbersome," said a driver who preferred anonymity for fear of victimisation.An estimated 1 500 light vehicles, most of these used by Omalayitsha, pass through Beitbridge Border Post daily.Further, a total of 15 000 haulage trucks, 2 100 buses and 170 000 people use the same port of entry to access either Zimbabwe or South Africa per month. News / National by Staff reporter President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Carte Blanche assured Zimbabweans that if he wins the 2018 election he will respect the two-term limit in the constitution.Mnangagwa said in the event that Zanu-PF loses he will smoothly hand over power to the victorious party. Man holding magnifying glass over a document Its earnings season again that time of the year when stocks can move dramatically on either side, depending on how they fare on analysts metres. For Foolish long-term investors, analysts estimates shouldnt matter, but knowing what to look for in a companys earnings report helps ensure their investment thesis is intact. With that in mind, five big stocks to watch this earnings week are Canadian National Railway (TSX:CNR)(NYSE:CNI), Loblaw Companies Ltd. (TSX:L), Suncor Energy Inc (TSX:SU)(NYSE:SU), Cameco Corp. (TSX:CCO)(NYSE:CCJ), and Teck Resources Ltd. (TSX:TECK.B)(NYSE:TECK). Will this railroad rally higher? Canadian National Railway will report its second-quarter earnings on July 24 after market close. Rival Canadian Pacific Railway Limited recently reported strong revenue growth but lower profits on high fuel and labour costs for its last quarter. While fuel and currency fluctuations could hit Canadian National Railway too, investors need to watch for two things: whether the railroad reiterates its full-year outlook after downgrading it in Q1 to earnings per share (EPS) of $5.10-5.25, and if it continues to grow its free cash flow (FCF). The stock is up 10% so far this year. Forget numbers; check this update Loblaw will release Q2 numbers on the morning of July 25. The grocers shares have been flattish so far this year on weak operational numbers and rising competition from e-commerce. In Q1, Loblaw projected positive same-store retail sales but flat adjusted net earnings growth for the full year. A share buyback could lift its EPS though. While Loblaws Q2 report may not have any surprise elements, the key point to note is updates on the companys e-commerce plans. Given the industry conditions, only an aggressive e-commerce push can now push Loblaw to growth. Tough luck for this energy stock Suncor Energy will release Q2 earnings on the morning of July 25. The energy stock is on a roll this year, climbing 17% year to date, backed by solid Q1 numbers and strong oil markets. Story continues While production from Fort Hills is expected to have risen substantially in Q2, disruptions at Suncors Syncrude project could offset that. Lower production from Syncrude could hit Suncors Q3 and full-year production, revenue, and cash blows hard, taking some sheen off its shares. Is the uranium market bottoming? Cameco will release its Q2 earnings on July 25 after market close. Shares of the uranium giant are up a solid 26% this year on hopes of a recovery in the uranium markets, backed by depleting supply thanks to production cuts by Cameco and from Kazakhstan. I expect strong revenues in Q2, but itll be a huge positive if management continues to cut costs further. Likewise, Camecos trailing 12-month FCF is sitting at record highs currently, so a continuation of the trend will be positive for the stock. Stay cautious here Teck Resources will report its Q2 earnings on the morning of July 26. Shares are down roughly 3% so far in 2018 after a heady run-up in the latter half last year as copper prices have cooled off and a trade war threat with China a key consumer of commodities looms. Q2 steel-making coal sales volumes will likely be lower from 6.9 million tonnes of Q2 2017, while bitumen production from Tecks Fort Hill project could be nearly 50-80% higher sequentially. But with copper prices plummeting to one-year lows, can the miner continue to grow? I have my apprehensions, so you know what to watch in Tecks earnings report this week. More reading Fool contributor Neha Chamaria has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. David Gardner owns shares of Canadian National Railway. The Motley Fool owns shares of Canadian National Railway. Canadian National Railway is a recommendation of Stock Advisor Canada. Last weeks biggest economic news had to be the deeply significant trade deal struck between Japan and the European Union (E.U.). In case you missed it, two of the worlds biggest economies shook hands on a nearly zero-tariff deal that will affect over a quarter of the entire global economy. While the intention of the new trade agreement is primarily to remove trade barriers between the two signatories, it has also been designed to reshape the worlds trade rules to reflect European and Japanese standards and common values and to signal a definitive rejection of protectionism. Can the TSX prosper from the Japan-E.U. deal? A bolstered Japanese economy might be good for Canadian investors, if they can find stocks that give them exposure. Cameco Corp. (TSX:CCO)(NYSE:CCJ) was on the verge of a major uranium deal with Japan when the Fukushima disaster struck in 2011. Until then, Cameco had been an exemplary domestic stock to play the Japanese market. Canadian investors wanting to make good on the new Japan-E.U. trade agreement should look to stocks that are similar to Cameco pre-Fukushima. Then there are EFTs. Consider the Canadian dollar-hedged iShares Japan Fundamental Index (TSX:CJP) for exposure to a streamlined range of major Japanese companies. Its currently offering a 1.55% trailing yield and has low multiples: a P/E of 10.98 times earnings and a P/B of 1.08 times book. Are there any indirect benefits to the TSX? Theres always China. That other Asian powerhouse recently sidled up to the E.U., looking to make friends, but it was turned away. While this state of affairs may be reversed in coming months, the implication in the meantime may be that China could be looking for partners and Canada, currently in NAFTA limbo, may well end up seeking company itself. Canadas next trick should be to present itself as an enviable economic partner. Looking at Chinas current modus operandi, it would appear that increased trade with Africa is high on the agenda. This will be a continental extension of the trade that China already does with South Africa as a fellow member of the BRICS economic bloc, which also includes Brazil, Russia, and India. Story continues In other words, there is a world outside of NAFTA, as Canada found when it signed its own free trade deal with the E.U., CETA, in 2016. Speaking of which, since the E.U. is set to prosper from free Japanese trade, Canada could see its own economy benefit indirectly via CETA. The bottom line A surging Japan could hold hidden benefits for Canadian investors, while knock-on changes in global trade might create opportunities through partnerships with unlikely allies. Investing in Canadian companies with international ties is one option, while getting into international EFTs is another. Maybe the most pertinent message from Japan comes from before the E.U. trade deal was announced, however: defensive stocks on the Nikkei have been outperforming recently, which has long been held a harbinger of coming economic stress. Looking at the TSX, its possible to see a similar trend domestically. Perhaps investors should take note and trade accordingly. More reading Fool contributor Victoria Hetherington has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Many people in Saskatchewan say they were born Roughriders fans, but you don't have to be from Saskatchewan to back the green and white just ask New York's Joe Lozito. "Rider nation they're not a fan base, they're a family," said Lozito. Lozito was born in New York and started cheering for the Riders about seven months ago, after starting a twitter poll to help him chose which CFL team to support. The poll garnered nearly 1,800 votes, with fans of the green and white dominating the results. "The choice was made for me, and I couldn't be happier. It's been fantastic," said Lozito. "I really feel like I've been taken in by this monstrously-sized family of great people that all love the same thing. Not to sound dramatic, but it's really heartwarming." Lozito has received numerous items in mail from Rider fans, including Roughrider coins, DVDs, swag and even homemade baking. "Since the day that I said, 'okay I'm a Riders fan,' Rider nation has been great," he said. To prepare for life in the Rider nation, Lozito has spent numerous hours studying the team and its history. "I immersed myself in everything I could and I'm a lot more educated than I was back in January, but I still have a lot to learn," he said. First CFL experience After becoming interested in the CFL, especially the Roughriders, he got his first taste of Canadian football when the Riders took on the Tiger-Cats in Hamilton on Thursday. "Just walking up to the stadium was kind of goosebumpy," he said. "I couldn't wait to get inside." Despite some minor trash talking from a Hamilton fan early in the game, Lozito says he was taken aback by the sportsmanship from Ticats fans after the Riders won. "It's great to be around. It was really really a lot of fun," he said Canoe routes in two provincial parks near the Ontario border have been closed until further notice due to a fire threat. The Bird River-Elbow Lake Canoe Route and 19 designated water route campsites in Nopiming Provincial Park are closed, the Manitoba government said in a news release Sunday. The government has also closed Bloodvein River recreational canoeing and the access corridor area in Atikaki Provincial Park until further notice due to the threat of fire. Manitoba Sustainable Development says a wildfire burning in the Gammon River area, about 200 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, poses a potential risk to backcountry canoers and anyone accessing the Bloodvein River Corridor in Atikaki Provincial Park from the Ontario Border to Kautunigan Lake. A wildfire in Ontario just east of Nopiming Provincial Park poses a potential risk to backcountry access east of Bird Lake, according to the province. Air quality warning Environment Canada has out put an air quality statement for communities in the area as a result of smoke from the fires. The statement is in effect for Berens River, Bloodvein, Little Grand Rapids and Atikaki Provincial Park. Environment Canada recommends those in the area stay indoors, turn off air-conditioners that may draw smoke indoors and avoid strenuous physical activity. Those at higher risk due to the smoke include young children, the elderly, pregnant women and people with heart or lung conditions, according to the national weather service. Environment Canada says showers expected later in the day Sunday should diminish the extent of the smoke by Sunday evening. More from CBC Manitoba: The Health Department and NYC Parks have confirmed that raccoons in Central Park have been infected with "distemper." The NY Post reported that 26 raccoons have died since June 24th: "Two tested positive for the canine distemper virus, which doesnt affect humans but can spread to unvaccinated dogs, officials with the city Health and Parks departments revealed on Saturday. The other 24 are believed to be infected by distemper because their deaths were clustered in such a short time and area." Testing continues on the remaining raccoons; 13 tested negative while 9 other results are still being waited on. Three deceased raccoons could not be tested due to advanced decay or the condition of the carcass. The most recent dead raccoon was found on Saturday. Most of the raccoons collected were found in the northern section of the park, between East 93rd to 110th Street and Lenox Ave., while others have been found near East 72nd Street and in the south between Delacort Theater, the reservoir and Grand Army Plaza. the central park raccoons are the only thing that make living in nyc bearable Gods perfect creature pic.twitter.com/RlxyBOzZWp meg (@ScorpiiAlpha) June 26, 2018 Some Parks employees have seen raccoons exhibit distemper symptoms; Dr. Sally Slavinski of the NYC Health Department told the Post, "They looked like they were circulating, wandering, having spasms. Some of the raccoons had some sort of nasal discharge." According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, "Canine distemper is a contagious and serious disease caused by a virus that attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal and nervous systems of puppies and dogs. The virus can also be found in wildlife such as foxes, wolves, coyotes, raccoons, skunks, mink and ferrets and has been reported in lions, tigers, leopards and other wild cats as well as seals...Puppies and dogs most often become infected through airborne exposure (through sneezing or coughing) to the virus from an infected dog or wild animal. The virus can also be transmitted by shared food and water bowls and equipment. Infected dogs can shed the virus for months, and mother dogs can pass the virus through the placenta to their puppies." Crystal Howard of the Parks Department tells us, "There is no concern for pets if their vaccinations are up to date. DOHMH requires rabies vaccine for all dogs and cats. Dogs are required to be vaccinated for distemper and a few other things only if attending a boarding or grooming facility. However, it is a core canine vaccine that is routinely administered to puppies and updated as needed in adults. We ask the public to call 311 to request NYC Parks Rangers if they see a sick or injured raccoon." Raccoons with distemper can act disoriented and lethargic and may become aggressive. The Health Department is continuing to monitor the situation. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp LinkedIn Email Telegram New York, July 23, 2018The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns yesterdays suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, in which at least one media worker was killed. Mohammad Akhtar, a 31-year-old Agence France-Presse driver, was among at least 23 people killed in the attack, the news organization reported. Akhtar was on his way to the AFP bureau to work the night shift and was changing public transportation near the airport when the attack occurred, AFP reported. He had worked at AFP for 11 years, the news agency said. Mohammad Akhtars death shows the terrible dangers that those who work for the media in Afghanistan face at all times, said Robert Mahoney, CPJs deputy executive director. Media support workers such as drivers are vital to newsgathering and Akhtars loss is a blow to the media community. The Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, which targeted Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum at the international airport as he returned from exile, according to news reports. Dostum was not hurt, according to the reports. According to the AFP report, Akhtar was related to Shah Marai, the agencys chief photographer who was killed in a deadly attack that targeted journalists in late April. AFP did not specify their exact relation. Afghanistan is the deadliest country for journalists this year, with at least 10 journalists killed for their work and one additional case in which CPJ is still investigating the motive. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp LinkedIn Email Telegram Nairobi, July 23, 2017Authorities in Ethiopia should investigate an attack on a news crew from the state-owned Dire Dawa Mass Media Agency that led to the death of the crews driver, Suleiman Mahamed, and ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The news crew was attacked in Meiso, in Oromia State, on July 13, while travelling to the capital, Addis Ababa, to cover a visit by Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, according to an article by the privately owned paper The Reporter. The crews driver was beaten again in a separate attack, after leaving a police station where the crew was taken after the first assault, according to reports. Suleiman was left in a coma and died in hospital on July 19, from head and rib injuries sustained in the attacks, according to The Reporter. The gains that Ethiopia has made in recent months, improving the media freedom environment under the leadership of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, will vanish if journalists are violently attacked with impunity, said CPJ Africa Program Coordinator Angela Quintal in Durban. It is the duty of the government to ensure that the attack on the Dire Dawa Mass Media Agency crew is rigorously and credibly investigated. Those who killed media worker Suleiman Mahamed must face justice in court. The media crew included producer Amero Tesfaye, cameraman Amin Sherif, broadcast reporters Biftu Yusuf and Muse Omer, and driver Suleiman, according to The Reporter and journalists who are familiar with the case and who spoke with CPJ on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. When the news crew, who are based in Dire Dawa, reached Meiso, a group of people stopped their car, started to question them, accused them of being spies, and then hit them with sticks and their fists, according to reports and the journalists with whom CPJ spoke. The crew identified themselves as journalists, showed their identification papers, and explained the reason for their travel, according to The Reporter and the journalists with whom CPJ spoke. The assault came during a period of tension in the region, in the wake of a recent clash between local communities in Meiso, which is part of a longer history of conflict in the Oromia and Somali regions of Ethiopia, Deressa Terese, the deputy head of the state communication bureau in Oromia, told CPJ. The journalists with whom CPJ spoke said that they believe the attackers associated the news crew with the Somali region. Suleiman was of Somali ethnicity, the journalists told CPJ. Following the initial assault, the attackers took the journalists to a local police station, according to Deressa and the journalists with whom CPJ spoke. Suleiman later left the station without the journalists and was found badly beaten in the city, they said. Deressa said he believes the same group who attacked the crew earlier was likely responsible. Deressa and one other person with whom CPJ spoke said the attackers took the crew to the police because they wanted authorities to investigate whether they were spies. The other people with whom CPJ spoke said some of the attackers took the crew to the police for their own protection. CPJ was unable to verify why the crew was taken to the police. Deressa said that the police in Meiso were investigating the attack. An article in The Reporter on July 21 said that investigations were yet to commence. CPJs calls and a text message sent to Dire Dawa city mayor, Ibrahim Usman, went unanswered. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp LinkedIn Email Telegram Bangkok, July 23, 2018A Filipino radio reporter was shot multiple times and died from his injuries on July 20 in the town of Daraga, in the countrys central Albay province, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the killing and called on Philippine authorities to swiftly identify and bring the perpetrators to justice. Joey Llana, a radio reporter with Home Radio Legazpi, was shot 14 times at around 4:45 a.m. by at least two assailants using a .45 caliber handgun and a 9mm pistol while he was driving his car out of a garage on his way to host his week-day radio program Metrobanat, according to the local non-profit organization Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility and the news website Rappler, citing regional police. The reporter sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his head and body and was declared dead when first responders arrived at the crime scene at 6:05 a.m., the reports said. We call on Philippine authorities to give top priority to achieving justice for slain journalist Joey Llana, said Shawn Crispin, CPJs senior Southeast Asia representative. Until President Rodrigo Duterte shows he is serious about stopping the culture of violence that allows for killers of journalists to go unpunished, these types of shootings will regrettably continue. Daraga City police chief Benito Dipad, citing Llanas family, told media that the journalist had received death threats since 2017 from unknown sources. Dipad did not elaborate on the nature of the threats, according to reports. Dipad said police would form a task group to investigate and resolve Llanas killing, according to news reports. Police officials did not indicate any suspects or possible motives in his killing, reports stated. Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said Llanas killing was yet another infringement on the rights to life and a free press and that the Presidential Task Force on Media Security would be relentless in pursuing justice in the case, according to news reports. The Philippines ranked fifth on CPJs most recent Impunity Index, a quantitative ranking of countries worldwide where journalists are killed and the murderers go free. For the third time in his governorship, Andrew Cuomo exercised his pardoning power to block the deportation of immigrants with minor criminal convictions behind them. On Monday, the governor announced that he would extend clemency to seven people, a move intended as a rejoinder to what he deemed the Trump administration's "war" on immigration. "At a time when President Trump and the Federal government are waging a war on our immigrant communities, New York stands firm in our belief that our diversity is our greatest strength," Cuomo said in a statement. "While President Trump engages in policies that rip children out of the arms of their mothers and tries to ramp up the deportation of New Yorkers to advance his political agenda of hate and division, we will protect our immigrant communities." For most of the people on the governor's clemency list, old substance-related criminal histories made them targets for deportation, even though they had remained crime-free for many years. For example: 53-year-old Ludames De La Cruz, originally from the Dominican Republic, was convicted for trying to sell controlled substances 17 years ago. Now, according to Cuomo's statement, he has cancer and stands to lose his familial support system if deported. 57-year-old Elpidio Rodriguez, also from the Dominican Republic, was convicted of criminal possession of a controlled substance and of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated 19 years ago. In addition to his hospital job, he now takes care of his parents and his grandchildren along with to his immediate family. In December, Cuomo issued a similar round of pardons, granting clemency to 18 people whose past crimes threatened their futures in the United States. In June 2017, he also pardoned Carlos Cardona, a 9/11 volunteer who spent a month and a half in jail after selling cocaine to an undercover cop in 1990. At the time of his pardon, Cardona had been detained thanks to a Trump directive prioritizing the removal of "criminal aliens." Monday's pardons come after months of increasingly aggressive anti-immigration policy from the White House. As families were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border these past months, some 700 children were sent to New York to await immigration hearings. In response, Cuomo wrote a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, demanding more information on where and how they children were being housed. And while he has recently gone after ICE for its "aggressive tactics" in making arrests, the agency is still using coercive measures to trap people in New York City. While his primary gubernatorial opponent, Cynthia Nixon, has called for ICE's outright abolition, Cuomo's criticism has been more measured. A recent article in The Intercept revealed that some big-dollar Cuomo campaign donors have been profiting off of ICE, which the governor's critics say creates a conflict of interest. "It's deeply concerning that while Andrew Cuomo continues to say he stands with immigrants and even mistakenly claims he is an immigrant and undocumented that he is also continuing to hold campaign cash from those profiting from ICE and CBP," said Javier H. Valdes, co-executive director of Make the Road Action. Pakistan: Seafood exported $451 million during fiscal year 2017-2018 July 23,2018 | Source: Business Recorder Pakistan made a record seafood export of $451.026 million in just ended fiscal year 2017-18, which fishermen attributed to the two month annual ban on fisheries hunting, taking place in June and July period. The seafood export increased by 15 percent or $57.364 million in July-June 2017-18 from $393.662 million in July-June 2016-17, Pakistan Bureau of Statistics indicates. In term of volume, the country's seafood export shot up to 198,420 metric tonnes in July-June 2017-18 from 155,091 metric tonnes in July-June 2016-17, higher by 28 percent or 43,329 metric tonnes. "Healthy landing of shrimp and fish species helped post the record seafood export," President Sindh Trawlers Owners and Fishermen Association (Stofa), Habibullah Khan Niazi told Business Recorder on Friday. He further added, "The two-month ban on fisheries hunt is crucial to let the seafood export grow in years to come, which should continue for the fisheries sector growth as well." In June 2018, the country exported $27.047 million of seafood which is 7.31 percent less or down by $2.134 million compared to $29.181 million of seafood exported in June 2017. However, seafood export grew by two percent or 196 metric tonnes to 11,975 metric tonnes in June 2018 from 11,779 metric tonnes in June 2017. "Around 17 different creeks in Sindh's seawaters pose a perilous threat to the growth of shrimp and fish species from use of banned nets that ravage the breeding and reproduction of the species, resultantly the species population is reducing every year," Habib Niazi said, asking the government to undertake a clampdown to get rid of the worst fishing practices. He hoped that if the two month ban continues, the country will achieve a manifold export growth. Maharashtra: Sea beats the crap out of the cit by Virat A Singh July 23,2018 | Source: DNA India Last week, Mumbaikars got some direct feedback from the sea. During high tide and heavy rains, the sea spewed back just a fraction of the garbage the citizens have dumped into it over the years and it weighed in tonnes. The coastline, right from the arc of Marine Drive to the popular Juhu beach, received stormy sprays of PET bottles, plastic bags, tetrapacks, Thermocol all, ironically, banned recently among things like footwear and rags. The striking images caught the attention of the world media. Those cleaning the promenades and beaches reported "shock" and "disgust" at the mass of dump flying back through the shore. Last week, Mumbaikars got some direct feedback from the sea. During high tide and heavy rains, the sea spewed back just a fraction of the garbage the citizens have dumped into it over the years and it weighed in tonnes. The coastline, right from the arc of Marine Drive to the popular Juhu beach, received stormy sprays of PET bottles, plastic bags, tetrapacks, Thermocol all, ironically, banned recently among things like footwear and rags. The striking images caught the attention of the world media. Those cleaning the promenades and beaches reported "shock" and "disgust" at the mass of dump flying back through the shore. Clearly, the city's has a littering problem, its waste management system is a mess, and, worryingly, not enough citizens have a care to spare. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation cleared over 50 metric tonnes of waste last week from Marine Drive promenade alone, a sixth of the total 300 metric tonnes from all of the coasts including Juhu, Dadar and Girgaum. Kiran Dighavkar, assistant municipal commissioner, A ward (that is, SoBo), said that this year the quantum of waste thrown back by the sea was unusually high. "Over 50 staff have been deployed to clean Marine Drive daily. We can only hope that Mumbaikars realise this is the reason why a ban on plastic and Thermocol was necessary," he said. Why Trash Is Booming Gopal Jhaveri, co-founder of River March, a citizens' movement for rejuvenation of Mumbai's four rivers, Mithi, Oshiwara, Poisar and Dahisar, is not surprised. The images saved on his phone show solid waste choking stretches of the rivers. "The BMC doesn't clear this waste from the rivers and its tributaries. When it rains, the rivers carry all this trash into the Arabian Sea," he said. The same goes for the waste dumped into storm water drains across the city all year round. Former principal scientist at Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Dr Vinay Deshmukh, connected the dots in detail. During monsoon, he said, extremely strong winds blow the water off the surface of the sea, causing water from the deep to come on the top. "The phenomenon, called upwelling, brings all the trash in the deep to the surface, and the waves bring it to the shore. Coupled with extremely strong winds and high tide, the crashing waves deposit all of it on the beaches and promenades," he said. This happens pronouncedly in monsoons when the winds blow from sea to land, unlike the other way round the rest of the year. Most of this marine trash is non-biodegradable plastic, which can stay intact for over 700 years, is released into the sea from Malad creek near Versova, he said. " So it's the Versova and Juhu beaches that gather the most waste," he said. The only long-term solutions? Proper waste management system, and cutting down on the waste itself. It's Stifling Marine Life Marine enthusiast Pradip Patade, who has been documenting life along the city's shores for a decade, remembers a day in 2016 when he rescued a catfish stuck in a plastic bag, struggling for life in the shallows at Girgaum. "Ever since that day, as soon as I spot garbage or tar balls on the beach, I register complaints with BMC so they begin clearing it," he said. CMFRI's Dr Deshmukh points out the dangers posed to sea creatures. "Most of the marine litter remains in the deep and is consumed by whales, dolphins and other fish, which think it is their food. Turtles are known to eat plastic bags as they mistake it for jellyfish," he said. The same litter, when thrown out to the shores during monsoon, smothers species that thrive on beaches. Several studies show how younger fish and fish larvae that feed near the shores are adversely hit by the plastic. Patade, who is the co-founder of Marine Life Of Mumbai (MLOM), which conducts shore walks to raise awareness about Mumbai's rich marine life, said that in summer and winter, several burrowing species can be spotted in shallow waters as well as on beaches, but during rains, nothing can be seen as everything is covered with in plastic sheets. "Beaches like Juhu and Dadar have trash up to two feet deep at times. Species like crabs, anemones and bivales, which are commonly visible, are stuck under this litter." But littering is just a fraction of the whole that is destroying the water bodies. About 93 per cent of the pollution comes from the discharge of domestic waste into creeks. "About 2,671 million litres a day (mld) of sewage is generated, of which 2,016 mld is treated in plants at eight locations, and about 655 mld was being discharged untreated into the creeks," said a recent affidavit filed by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) before the National Green Tribunal (NGT). Beauty And The Beach Where life goes cheap, aesthetics are a distant concern. But Mumbai's beaches are its major tourist draws and when a majority of them are laid waste to, visitors keep at a distance. "The litter sprays at Marine Drive became international news, which has hit tourism," said a civic official. Fisherfolk Tales "On days I manage to net 5 kg fish and 20 kg plastic," said Vishnu Koli, a Versova fisherman. "I feel like I'm helping clean the sea more than fishing in the last few years," he laughed humourlessly. Fishermen in and around Thane, Malad, Versova, Mahim and Vashi creeks using gill nets said their catch is embedded in trash. "We spend more time clearing nets than cleaning fishes. If our nets get damaged, it costs Rs 25,000-30,000 to mend them. The catch is already dwindling by the day," said Koli. Ganesh Nakhawa, vice-chairman of Purse Seine Fishing Welfare Association, said that while traditional fishermen are the worst affected by littering of the seas, modern ones like those with his association are feeling the pinch: "The months of August, September, October are the worst, when even deep-sea fishing yields heaps of litter. The mass goes down over the rest of the months." Dr Deshmukh recalled the time spent he spent for his research as a scientist with the fishing community. He said he saw 70 to 80 per cent of their fishing nets riddled with junk. "The trash will continue to hound sea life as well as fishermen," he warned. Damodar Tandel, the president of Akhil Maharashtra Machimar Kriti Samiti, a fisherfolk's body, has been leading the community in demanding compensation from the state government for the decline in their catch. "Fishermen today are in a far worse position than the farmers. The catch has been reducing drastically due to continuous pollution. And if the government doesn't pay attention to the fishing sector, there will be mass suicides," he said. ....Expert voices We have to remember these images of trash being dumped by the sea beyond the rainy season. It should serve as a warning for us to manage our waste. Our sea, mangroves, beaches, shores are full of plastic waste. And what we are seeing is mostly the floating garbage that has been thrown back by the ocean. One can only imagine the decades of waste that has been dumped into the sea still lying on the seabed.Anand Pendharkar, environmentalist The amount of waste that was thrown by the sea was unprecedented, but the BMC did a wonderful job of cleaning the trash. We all have a share in this. The citizens will have to play a proactive role to manage waste. What also surprised us was the amount of chappals that came along with plastic and other trash. Mahendra Hemdev, member, Marine Drive Residents Association We cleared 200 tonnes of trash from the Worli fishing village in 24 hours. While the plastic ban is a most welcome step, we also need to crack down on littering. Because unless littering in the drains stops, the situation will not changeChinu Kwatra, leading the Dadar beach clean-up One of the biggest contributors to marine litter in Mumbai is the plastic waste and garbage dumped over the years into the citys four rivers and several tributaries. Unless these are regularly cleaned and completely restored, this menace cannot be stopped. The state government will have to ensure all authorities including the BMC take charge.Gopal Jhaveri, founder, River March movement Cleaning the garbage coming from the sea is one of the most difficult tasks. The labourer has to be keep bending, picking up the small and big trash, which puts immense stress on their muscles. Also, while cleaning, they brave heavy rains, winds and are constantly drenched by waves that are full of sewage.Milind Ranade, general secretary, Kachra Vahatuk Shramik Sangh, Mumbai At least 5 prisoners were hanged on July [16 or 17] at Dizelabad Prison in Kermanshah, west of Iran. One of the victims is identified as Alireza Ashuri, 57. All the 5 were found guilty of murder. In yet another case on the morning of July 17, a prisoner was hanged in the Birjand Prison in South Khorasan Province. He was sentenced to death on murder charges, identified as Baratali Shirdelan. In another development on the morning of July 16, a prisoner was hanged at Mashhad Prison, northeast of Iran. He was identified as Gholamali, 41, convicted of being involved in a fight during a wedding he attended in 2009 that resulted in the death of a man. Gholamali arrested in 2014 and sentenced to death on murder charges, the state-run Khorasan Daily reported on July 18, 2018. The head of the Kerman Revolutionary Court was quoted on July 13, 2018, in the state-run Fars news agency report as announcing the execution of Yahya Ahmad Yousefi in Kerman Prison. His sentence carried out after the confirmation by the Supreme Court. The prisoner accused of "corruption on earth" tried in a Revolutionary Court in Kerman, Ahmad Ghorbani said. He was charged with murder and kidnapping. On the morning of July 12, 1 prisoner charged with murder executed in Khoy Prison. Identified as Babak Bolughi 24, from Khoy, the convict was arrested 3 years ago. Khoy is a city and capital of Khoy County, West Azerbaijan Province in Iran. According to Amnesty International's report, among all the recorded executions worldwide in 2017, more than 51 % were carried out in Iran. Although 2nd, behind China in terms of executions, Iran "carried out 84 % of the global total number of executions." The number of executions in Iran last year was 507, "accounting for 60 % of all confirmed executions in the region." Of the 507 people executed, "501 were men and 6 were women. At least 5 juvenile offenders were executed, and 31 executions were carried out publicly." | 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 Two prisoners convicted of murder were publicly hanged today in Mashhad, capital of the northeastern Iranian province of Razavi Khorasan, the state-run ISNA news agency reported. Mashhad public execution Judge Hassan Heidari, Deputy Prosecutor General of the province, announced the news as cited by the state media. He said the State Security forces quickly arrested the killers and the Judiciary was quick in carrying out the proceedings. The victims, who were not identified by name, were a 41-year-old fruit seller and a 27-year-old man. Prisoner Hanged in Birjand Iran Human Rights (Jul 19, 2018): A prisoner was executed at Birjand Central Prison on murder charges. According to a close source, on the morning of Tuesday, July 17, a prisoner was executed at Birjand Central Prison. Birjand is the capital of the Iranian province of South Khorasan. The prisoner, sentenced to death on murder charges, was from ward 103 of Birjand Central Prison. He was identified as Baratali Shirdelan from North Khorasan. A close source told IHR, Baratali had been in prison for six years on the charge of murdering his wife. The execution on this prisoner has not been announced by the state-run media so far. According to Iran Human Rights annual report on the death penalty, 240 of the 517 execution sentences in 2017 were implemented due to murder charges. | 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 The condemned man enters the room where he will draw his last breath. He will be restrained in some way, perhaps strapped to the T-shaped platform where other offenders have been executed by injection. He may have taken a sedative or will be given one in the room. But he likely won't be too groggy. The prisoner may then have a mask or a plastic hood or bag strapped to his face. Colorless, odorless nitrogen gas will stream into the mask from a tank similar to those used to inflate helium balloons. The gas could come from any one of thousands of distributors or manufacturers nationwide. If all goes according to plan, the man will be dead within minutes, oblivious to the fact that his blood-oxygen level is plummeting and he will soon pass out. The above steps are an approximation, based on research, of how the state of Oklahoma could use nitrogen inhalation to carry out future executions, becoming the 1st state to do so. Yet uncertainty surrounds how the state will obtain the gas, how it will force inmates to inhale it, what will happen should they hold their breath or resist, and how to ensure guards and visitors are safe from its toxic fumes, all of which could open up legal and public-perception challenges. State officials insist that executions using nitrogen hypoxia will be humane, although details have been scarce about how the 1st nitrogen execution would look. At a March press conference in which they announced the change of method, Oklahoma Department of Corrections Director Joe Allbaugh and Attorney General Mike Hunter contended it would be free of the problems that have plagued the state's use of lethal injection. Allbaugh declined an interview about his agency's ongoing work on an execution protocol, which will spell out in detail the policies and procedures for carrying out a nitrogen execution. Allbaugh said in March he hoped to have a preliminary protocol in 90 to 120 days, but recently told StateImpact Oklahoma that the effort will take longer than expected. "We are continuing to develop the protocol in collaboration with the Attorney General's office," Corrections Department spokesman Matt Elliott said in a statement to Oklahoma Watch. "We feel confident that we will develop a protocol that provides an effective and humane execution method for the state of Oklahoma." Only 2 other states, Mississippi and Alabama, have passed laws allowing nitrogen executions, but neither is developing a protocol yet. Meanwhile, attorneys for death row inmates are poised to scrutinize the protocol and challenge any uncertainty or hint of cruelty in its procedures or science. That could delay the state's next execution by months as attorneys take the matter to court, reminding judges that Oklahoma botched 1 execution in 2014 and used the wrong drug in another one in 2015. If there are complications in using nitrogen, they will likely arise at crucial steps in the protocol, which will be written to avoid violating the Eighth Amendment's ban against cruel and unusual punishment or creating a spectacle that the public and elected leaders would not accept. The entire nation - much of the world, in fact - will be watching. At the March news conference, Hunter said the state will forge ahead because Oklahomans favor capital punishment and families of murder victims deserve justice. "This is the safest, the best and the most effective method available, and we're moving forward," he said. Acquiring Nitrogen Nitrogen is everywhere in more ways than one. The chemical element makes up 78 % of the earth's atmosphere. Discovered in the late 18th century, nitrogen is non-reactive, meaning, unlike oxygen, it usually won't lead to combustion. Nitrogen has many uses. It is in fertilizer, ammonia, nitric acid, nylon and dyes, and is used to preserve food, cool semiconductors, make ice cream and fill tires. At compressed gas supply stores, it's common to find dozens of canisters of nitrogen on the grounds, waiting to be delivered to restaurants, spas and other businesses. Obtaining nitrogen for executions would appear easy for the state, which, like others, has run into problems finding companies willing to provide the drugs for lethal injection. But public and legal pressure could complicate acquiring the gas. While many states, including Oklahoma, have laws protecting the confidentiality of providers of prescription drugs and supplies used in executions, lawyers and death-penalty opponents have pressed to get and publicize suppliers' names. More companies now refuse to sell drugs for use in executions. Preparing the Inmate The Corrections Department's former protocol for lethal injection, from 2014, outlines a process involving more than 10 teams made up of at least 50 people. Those include the command team, the restraint team, the special operations team, the intravenous team and the traffic control, witness escort and victim services teams. Most of those could easily fit into a nitrogen protocol, as procedures before and after the execution would likely remain the same. Among those are receipt of an execution date order; invitations to witnesses; the offender's 35-day notification packet; the last meal; the final statement, and the post-death monitoring of staff's psychological responses. But some procedures could change in subtle or even dramatic ways. One area is restraint. In the previous protocol, restraint team members secured the person to the execution table with straps. To deliver the drugs, primary and backup catheters were to be inserted. In the bungled execution of Clayton Lockett, 3 drugs were injected: midazolam, a sedative; vecuronium bromide, a paralyzing drug, and potassium chloride, which stops the heart. Lockett writhed and moaned, and investigators later determined an IV had been improperly placed, causing drugs to enter surrounding tissue rather than the bloodstream. In theory, use of nitrogen would not involve medical professionals or IV insertions. That's what Hunter said in March and what a study on nitrogen execution - prepared by Michael Copeland, a professor at East Central University in Ada, and his colleagues - found in 2014. "The administration of a death sentence via nitrogen hypoxia does not require the use of a complex medical procedure or pharmaceutical products," said the study, prepared for a legislative hearing. Only a hood and a tank of the inert gas would be needed, the study said. But a key question is whether offenders would need a sedative to reduce the chances that they thrash about and disrupt the process. The 2014 protocol stipulated that offenders be offered a mild sedative no less than 4 hours before the execution, ensuring they arrive in the execution chamber fully conscious. After being strapped down, the person was allowed to make a final statement for witnesses to hear. Could a mask or hood for nitrogen delivery be installed firmly over the face or head without sedation? Would the person's head instead need to be secured? Or would medical personnel have to insert an IV to inject a sedative, which could create similar risks as before? The Execution Conducting an execution is neither simple nor easy, particularly with a new method that has no track record, say capital punishment attorneys and others who track death penalty issues. Death from nitrogen comes not from what's in the gas, but what isn't. Nitrogen is air without oxygen, yet a person dying from it doesn't feel as if they are suffocating. They still breathe in and expel carbon dioxide but may begin to feel lightheaded, fatigued and have impaired judgment. Several breaths can render a person unconscious, with death following in 4 to 5 minutes, according to Copeland's report. That's based on experiences of people who have used nitrogen for suicides. Janis Landis, president of the nonprofit Final Exit Network, which promotes assisted suicide rights, said the physiology of nitrogen is "very well understood." "It's so dangerous precisely because it is quick and painless," she said. "The evidence is there." Death may not occur quickly when nitrogen gas is diluted, however. Copeland's report noted that masks not tightly sealed over a person's face could delay the onset of unconsciousness and death because of oxygen getting in. Nitrogen also is sold in different grades, or levels of purity. Arizona attorney Dale Baich, a federal public defender who represents Richard Glossip, an Oklahoma death row inmate whose execution was postponed after the botched Lockett execution, said he had little comment yet on nitrogen executions because of many unresolved details. "We don't know who is going to be doing this," Baich said. "Are the folks competent to perform this procedure? There are too many unknowns to really comment other than to say it's not as simple as the state would lead the public to believe." Don Knight, another attorney representing Glossip, cited scenarios that could complicate using nitrogen and could open up the method to constitutional challenge. "What if the person struggles and fights?" he said. "What if you can't get the mask on? "Are you going to force the person's head into the helmet? How is that going to look?" Robert Dunham, executive director of the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center, said even with the eventual guidelines in place, there will be imponderables. "How do you ensure that the nitrogen won't leak out or that oxygen won't leak in?" he said. "Those are all the types of things that they will have to address. It's not like a medical procedure with a patient who's cooperating." Protection Concerns Although nitrogen dissipates quickly in the air, proximity to it can kill. Additionally, nothing alerts people to its presence because the gas is odorless and tasteless. Because of the risks, a specially trained prison guard or health care worker would have to place a tight mask over the inmate's face. It's unclear whether the person will do that before or after the inmate enters the death chamber and is strapped to the special table. The flow of nitrogen would have to be controlled so that it can't escape and endanger prison personnel and observers should the inmate refuse to breathe. The tank would have to be placed in or near the execution chamber or elsewhere in the prison and connected via a gas line. Pure nitrogen is extremely potent and has been fatal in industrial settings. In May 2017, for instance, a worker in a Houston auto body shop, preparing to paint a car, died after accidentally hooking his respirator to a nitrogen hose instead of the compressed air hose, Federal Occupational Safety and Health records show. Public Perception Over decades, execution methods preferred by states have changed, moving in many cases from hanging, electrocution, the gas chamber or firing squad to lethal injection, although some states still allow or use the other methods. 18 states have abolished the death penalty. The number of executions has plummeted over the past 2 decades, from 98 in 1999 to 23 in 2017, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Jennifer Moreno, a staff attorney with the Death Penalty Clinic at Berkeley Law in California, said that when lethal injection emerged for executions, the government pitched it as a reliable method that could be trusted. "As we've seen over the years, that hasn't turned out to be true," she said. Public perception could play a factor in acceptance of nitrogen execution. If a condemned inmate enters the chamber wearing a mask or plastic hood or the guards must wear gas masks, will the method be perceived negatively? After Oklahoma announced its change to nitrogen, critics compared the proposal to Nazi gas chambers. In Oklahoma, 47 inmates are on death row in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. The state has not carried out the death penalty in 3 1/2 years, since Charles Warner was executed by lethal injection after being convicted in 1997 for the sexual assault and murder of an 11-year-old girl. A 2016 poll by SoonerPoll found that a majority of Oklahomans support the death penalty, although it also found that most would support abolishing it if a life sentence without parole, property forfeiture and restitution to victims' families were required instead. That year, 66 % of voters approved State Question 776, which amended the state constitution to affirm the death penalty and the right to switch execution methods. With nitrogen inhalation, however, uncertainties remain, Moreno said. "Just like lethal injection, the devil is going to be in the details." | 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 President Maithripala Sirisena on Saturday assured that he would not change the decision taken by the Government to implement the death penalty for drug smugglers under any circumstance, despite the objections raised by some factions against the move. He expressed these views while addressing a ceremony held in Polonnaruwa, commencing the construction of the National Nephrology Hospital. Referring to a newspaper report that the Government had changed the decision, the President stated that the Government has not reversed the decision and will take necessary steps to carry out capital punishment for drug smugglers. The President said he would summon the heads of the fields of judiciary, prisons, and law and order tomorrow to appoint a committee in this regard. This committee, which will consist of representatives of all the relevant fields, would make decisions about the convicted personnel who should be executed, he said. Sri Lanka leader vows to end moratorium on death penalty Sri Lanka's president said the government will still end its 42-year moratorium on capital punishment despite requests by the European Union and other diplomatic missions not to do so. President Maithripala Sirisena said the decision to implement the death penalty for drug smugglers "will not be changed under any circumstance and despite the objections raised by some factions against the move," according to the president's website. Rising crime in Sri Lanka, including gang-related killings, narcotics, robberies and sex crimes have led to a public outcry for executions. Last week, Sirisena said convicted drug traffickers will be hanged as a part of a crackdown on narcotics. The government has said it will execute prisoners who have allegedly taken advantage of the moratorium to continue their drug trade from prison. Drug trafficking carries the death penalty in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has maintained the moratorium since its last execution in 1976. No date has been set for the 1st new execution. More than 400 convicts now in prison were sentenced to death, although many have had their sentences commuted to life or are appealing. Of them, 18 were sentenced for drug-related crimes. Sirisena said he would summon judiciary, prisons and law enforcement heads this week to appoint a committee to decide who should be executed. The government's decision to end the moratorium drew reaction from the European Union delegation and embassies of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania, Canada and Norway which asked Sirisena to maintain the moratorium and to uphold Sri Lanka's tradition of opposition to capital punishment. The embassies stressed they oppose capital punishment "in all circumstances and in all cases" and that the death penalty is incompatible with human dignity, does not have any proven deterrent effect, and allows judicial errors to become fatal and irreversible. | 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 : Associated Press, July 23, 2018 In a tweet from the official account of the ASWJ, the Pakistan Rah-e-Haq Party announced its support for PPP candidates Haji Jameel Zia and Agha Zahir Shah in NA-251 and PS-119, respectively, which largely covered neighbourhoods of Orangi Town. Islamabad: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has expelled the partys federal council member Haji Muzafar Ali Shujra for acquiring support of a banned outfit for the general elections. The party has also issued notices to other candidates for the same reason. The PPP made it clear that it was against any alliance with the banned outfits as done by the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) and will accept defeat, but not tolerate any such alliance. Former PPP provincial minister Shujra was running his campaign as an independent candidate and had joined hands with banned ASWJ leader Allama Aurangzeb Farooqui. Farooqui is contesting on Pakistan Rah-e-Haq Partys platform. in the NA-238, Malir, constituency. The partys Karachi President Saeed Ghani has also issued show-cause notices to NA-251 candidate Jameel Zia and PS-119 candidate Agha Zahir Shah and intimated them that their meetings with banned outfit members were against the partys discipline and they should explain their position on the matter. In a tweet from the official account of the ASWJ, the Pakistan Rah-e-Haq Party announced its support for PPP candidates Haji Jameel Zia and Agha Zahir Shah in NA-251 and PS-119, respectively, which largely covered neighbourhoods of Orangi Town. Buildings rise to the south of Saigon. Photo by VnExpress/Duy Tran From relative obscurity about five years ago, Japan has emerged as a top 3 housing projects investor in Ho Chi Minh City. Behind only Singapore and Taiwan now, the growing attention Japanese firms have been paying to the residential sector in Ho Chi Minh City is reflected both in the number and scale of projects. Investors from the land of rising sun also seem to be setting a faster pace than those from other countries, market observers say. Japan used to occupy a very small market share until a few years ago, but now they are paying great attention to Vietnams real estate market, especially in Ho Chi Minh City, said Le Thi Huyen Trang, Head of Market Research and Consultancy Services at real estate services firm JLL. While JLL does not have sufficient data on the capital that Japanese investors have poured into the real estate housing market, in terms of number of projects, Singapore is leading with 10 projects, while Japan and Taiwan next with 9, she noted. Singapore and Taiwan have been investing in real estate in HCMC for a long time, so their aggregate numbers of projects are higher. But in terms of speed of growth, investors from Japan have been very active over the past four years, Trang said. According to HCMCs Department of Planning and Investment, the city attracted nearly $487 million in registered foreign direct investment (FDI) in H1 2018, 10 percent of which came from Japan. Real estate business is the second largest source of FDI, accounting for more than a quarter of total registered in the city. Pham Lam, CEO of realty developer DKBA Vietnam, said hes had many meetings with Japanese investment funds, developers and real estate service providers eyeing HCMCs housing segment. The presence of Japanese investors is a positive signal, and can be a catalyst for real estate investment from other countries, especially Asia, over the long-term, said Lam. Different approach Unlike investors from Singapore or Taiwan, who typically develop projects on their own, Japanese investors tend to partner with a local firm and their projects have so far been focused mainly in the southern part of the city, Lam said. A typical case is the partnership between Vietnams An Gia Group and Japans Creed Group. In 2015, Creed injected $200 million into three An Gia projects in District 7 Riverside, Skyline and River Panorama. The joint venture is about to launch their fourth project, Sky89, at the intersection of Dao Tri and Hoang Quoc Viet streets adjacent to the Phu My Hung New Urban Area. The 42,500 square meters project includes a 35 storied block with 430 apartments. An Gia has also attracted another major investment fund from Japan called Hoosiers, a 15-year-old group which manages 100 buildings including 10,844 apartments across Japan. Then, a big realty developer in the citys southern part, Phu My Hung, for the first time in two decades, has partnered with three Japanese giants, Daiwa House, Nomura and Sumitomo, in a joint venture to develop Midtown, a 2,500-unit project. Without disclosing the value of their cooperation, Phu My Hung said this is its most costly project in 2017. Mizuki Park in Binh Chanh District is another Japanese-invested project in the citys southern part. The VND8 trillion ($349 million) project is a joint venture between Vietnams Nam Long Group, which holds a 50 per cent stake, and Japans Nishitetshu and Hankyu. The Tien Phat - Sanyo Homes joint venture which is developing the $30 million Ascent Lakeside project on Nguyen Van Linh Street is yet another example. In the south of HCMC alone, the number of future apartments that has the Japan standard runs into tens of thousands of units. Green experience Vo Tri Thanh, former Deputy Director of the Central Institute of Economic Management (CIEM), said that apart from financial muscles, Japanese realty investors are also strong in advanced technology and green buildings. Su Ngoc Khuong, Director of Investment at Savills Vietnam, said that after a period of time when Japanese interest seemed to focus only on office and hotel segments only, capital has been shifting to the residential segment. Their aim is to serve the big housing demand among Vietnamese people as well as the Japanese community in HCMC, he said. Several market observers have noted that a distinctive feature of Japanese investment is that whenever a Japanese investment fund ventures into a certain market, they are followed by satellite firms like contractors, developers and suppliers of building materials. Therefore, Japanese-backed projects usually carry recognized Japanese standards, they said. SolarBK is offering integrated and warranted rooftop solar PV systems which can help save households' utility cost with an affordable price for home owners. For 5 months, Nguyen Thi Thanh Nga in Phu Nhuan District has been using a 3kWp rooftop solar photovoltaic system called BigKilowatt. The system saved 30 percent on her electricity cost and increased her income by selling electricity back to the national power grid. BigKilowatt is the latest solution of SolarBK Holdings, supplying to the households an alternative energy solution accompanied by quality warranty and a third party's insurance. Nguyen Tuan Hung - Head of Community Outreach Department, EVN Ho Chi Minh stated that after the 11/2017/Q-TTg announcement released in April 2017 to encourage solar energy projects in Vietnam, this market thrives with attendance of several solar power investors. The household sector is, however, slightly behind as raising consumers awareness of renewable energy and its effect demands more time, while waiting EVN to complete contracts and 2-way electric power meter installation process for household consumers. "From 9/2017 to 5/2018, the number of families using solar power systems has increased 2.7 times. There is no operating expense for solar power while maintaining cost is comparatively low. Up to now, there are 284 customers installed the grid-tied solar system, who registered to resell the surplus amount to power nation grid with total capacity of 3.64MWp", said Nguyen Tuan Hung. Nguyen Vu Nguyen, Operation director of SolarGates - the official distributor of BigKilowatt gives an example, a household who pays 1.6 million dong for monthly electric bill can use a 2 kWp solar plan to save 30 percent on their electricicty cost. "With the solar panel installation price of 23.000 VND per Wp (VAT included), the customer can get payback within 5 years, taken into account of the power price growth", said Nguyen. Nguyen Vu Nguyen, Operation director of SolarGates presented in BigKilowatt's product launching event. In terms of quality, BigKilowatt contains IREX solar panels which satisfied international certifications by TUV, UL and an automatic controlling system called SSOC, exclusively developed by SolarBK. Along with automatically monitoring the amount of power produced daily and sending out alerts, collecting and measuring data in each system facilitates SolarBKs improvement in product quality as well as warranty policy. "Thanks to SolarBKs complete value chain, especially owning IREX manufacturing factory with huge capacity, we are able to keep developing BigKilowatt, our solar energy plan, with improved quality, technology, and price as well, which is 30% more competitive than it used to be", said Nguyen. Following hundreds of completed projects with more than 20 installations at power companies, other works of SolarBK fulfill the contract of installing 2-way power meter ensuring they all satisfy electrical safety rules. To raise customers trust, the firm guarantees high output by an insurance company. While there's no one-size-fits-all solar solution, consumers can calculate to get realistic statistics to find out a suitable plan for their household by using the company's online tool. This tool was developed under finance experts' inspection based on current power price. Solar power installation saves up to 30% monthly bill. For the long term, the Vietnamese solar power firm indicates to be EVN's companion in spreading solar power in Vietnam in order to accomplish its goal after 12 years founded and developed. The firm now offers extra 10% off to customers who install BigKilowatt at the nearest power company, applied in Ho Chi Minh City and Binh Duong until September 28th. SolarBK is still working with other power corporations to expand the program nationwide. Anh Nguyen More than 90,000 Vietnamese workers leave the country each year, according to the labor ministry. The Czech Republic has decided to stop issuing work visas for Vietnamese laborers, citing "overloading and security concerns. Vietnamese citizens can no longer apply for visas for long-term residential purposes or engage in business activities in the Czech Republic. The number of work visa requests submitted by Vietnamese citizens to the Czech Embassy in Hanoi was overwhelming and showed no signs of abating, and this could develop into security risks, Vietnam News Agency said, quoting Jan Hamacek, Czech Interior Minister and acting Foreign Minister. At the present, the Czech Embassy in Vietnam will only accord priority to those wishing to apply for family reunion visas, the report said. Vietnamese Ambassador to the Czech Republic, Ho Minh Tuan, said Vietnam was trying to implement measures to address the issue through diplomatic negotiations. In 2008, the Czech government halted the issuance of entry visas for Vietnamese citizens, citing increasing crime rates in the Eastern European country, but canceled the decision a year later. More than 65,000 Vietnamese live in the Czech Republic now, making it the third biggest minority group in the country. According to the Ministry of Labor, Invalid and Social Affairs, around 500,000 Vietnamese citizens are living and working overseas. On average, more than 90,000 Vietnamese workers leave the country each year, mainly for labor-intensive and low-skilled jobs. Vietnam's total workforce is around 50 million. I am offering the solution to a problem most Republicans don't know they have -- that they can be outmaneuvered and thrown on the defensive endlessly, on nearly any issue, because they accept as true Democrat lies about the Republican Party. To correct that misperception and to help the Republican Party get 'back to basics' is why I'm a man on a mission. A few years ago, after one of my speeches, a man told me "Do you know what your problem is? You're too far ahead of your time!" My efforts to show Republicans how they would benefit from celebrating the heritage of our Grand Old Party have been arduous, but if this were easy someone else would have already done it. Among my speech topics are Reconciling the Tea Party and the GOP; Barack Obama, the Worst President Ever; Socialism, the new Slavery; Appreciating the Heritage of our Grand Old Party; Returning to the Founding Principles of the United States; The Womens Rights Achievements of our Grand Old Party; Abraham Lincoln, Republican; Frederick Douglass, Republican; Martin Luther King and the Republican Civil Rights Legacy. Government workers remain in their jobs until retirement, and citizens pay taxes to provide for them all those years. Nguyen Khac Giang, a researcher at the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research. What can a group of 19 Vietnamese do? The simple answer: a lot. A bunch of sailors stayed strong together for six hours stranded at sea after their boats were hit by an unidentified cargo ship in April, a group of programmers are behind a start-up that is climbing to the top in Asia, a bunch of seniors are managing to preserve a craft village. All of them had 19 members. If you have enough free time, theres a long list of many different things a group of 19 Vietnamese can accomplish. But yet there is a task, a very minor one, that they cannot do: oversee an official. There is one official for every 19 Vietnamese. Data from the General Statistics Office showed that at the end of last year there were more than 5.2 million people working in the public sector. And the current population of Vietnam is almost 96 million. And that is the reason why you should sympathize with 18 people you meet on the streets because you and they have at least one thing in common: a part of your income is used to pay two officials in this country. And for that reason, you and I have every right to question what those officials have done. There is no public data or information system to tell people what officials are doing in Vietnam. And there is no direct monitoring mechanism in the country that allows citizens to keep track of the efficiency of officials. You and I and 17 others contribute to feeding an official, but we can only oversee what they do through the news. But thanks to the news, I learned that two very contrasting stories are breaking in Da Nang, a major city on the central coast. By the end of May 40 civil servants recruited under Da Nangs high-quality human resource development program had quit. Many of them, as contracted, had to reimburse the city for the so-called cost of training them, which ran into tens of thousands of dollars. But one month later Da Nang announced a policy encouraging officials to resign before they reach retirement age with a golden parachute of up to VND200 million ($8,660), depending on their position. As a citizen, I feel a bit frightened. Why, in the same system, are young people willing to give up their jobs while elders are rewarded to quit? And this is not a headache only for Da Nang but also Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Last year Vietnams two biggest cities made the same suggestion to older government workers, asking them to jump with a golden parachute. Residents wait to perform administrative procedures in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Nguyen So what does all of this say? Firstly, if we look at the public sector as a single company, for sure the company faces a big problem. An effective system should refresh itself constantly to eliminate obsolete elements and replace them with new ones that are more efficient and dynamic. Any business that bucks this trend will become slack and lose out. Secondly, the number of inefficient state officials remains too high. Vietnam is among the countries with the highest number of civil servants in Southeast Asia. And as I said above, 19 Vietnamese citizens are paying taxes to provide for each official. This is a very heavy burden on Vietnam and is reflected in the high expenses required to keep the state machinery running: more than 71 percent of the budget as of last May. Vietnam collected VND1,300 trillion ($57 billion) in taxes and fees last year, up 18.8 percent from 2016. Thirdly, the civil service lacks an intelligent and appropriate structure to reduce staff when needed. The system of employing staff and letting them work until retirement is too old and outdated and at the same time recognizes workers for the length of their service rather than capabilities. The tectonic government has completed half its journey, but the startup nation envisaged by authorities should be established with talented and devoted civil servants. The success of IT startups, whether in Silicon Valley or Bengaluru, is owed to human resources who work with passion and are so absorbed in their tasks that they even forget to eat and sleep, not to those who go to work every day but wait for their retirement pension. A state system that exists to serve citizens is just like a company that serves its customers and should thus be manned by passionate staff. The Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam recently approved reforms which look at the capabilities and positions of officials and their contributions to the efficiency of the public sector to set their salary scales. But to achieve a truly effective dismissal mechanism may need more solutions than just a salary reform scheme. *Nguyen Khac Giang is a researcher at the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research. The opinions expressed are his own. Second education official arrested for national exam fraud in Vietnam Another senior education official was arrested Monday for allegedly assisting his subordinate in altering high school graduation exam results. Nguyen Thanh Hoai, head of the Testing and Quality Assurance unit under Ha Giang's Education Department. Nguyen Thanh Hoai, head of the Testing and Quality Assurance unit under Ha Giang's Education Department, has been placed under criminal investigation for "abuse of power or position in performance of official duties." According to investigators, Hoai directly gave the key to the room where candidates' test sheets were stored to his deputy Vu Trong Luong, enabling the latter to alter the results of over 330 test sheets belonging to 114 candidates. Luong was arrested last Friday, and Hoai was suspended from all duties relating to the national high school exam the same day. The exam fraud, which has shocked the nation, was uncovered after the Ministry of Education and Training released the official test results of all candidates nationwide on July 11 and the public started questioning unusually good results of Ha Giang's students. A team of inspectors from the ministry was sent to Ha Giang Province, and after re-grading all multiple-choice test sheets belonging to the province's candidates, they found that the results of over 330 test sheets had been heavily altered. Further investigations found Luong to be the main perpetrator, as he had scanned the candidates test answers into a computer, before replacing them both digitally and physically with official test answers released by the ministry. Following the discovery of the exam fraud in Ha Giang, the education ministry has formed teams to inspect unusually high scores of students in the nearby Son La, Lang Son and Hoa Binh provinces, as well as the Central Highlands' Lam Dong Province and the southern province of Ben Tre. Inspectors announced Monday that they had found evidence that exam results were altered in Son La, while no violation has been detected in Lang Son and Hoa Binh. Vietnams national high school graduation exam is deemed a make-or-break event for the students, since it determines if they can enter a good university or not. The national exam requires candidates to undertake mandatory exams in Math, Literature and Foreign Language, while making a choice between Natural Sciences (Physics, Chemistry and Biology) and Social Sciences (History, Geography and Ethics). This year, the examination lasted three days, from June 25 to June 27. Information minister Truong Minh Tuan got temporarily suspended from his position on Monday. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy Truong Minh Tuan, Minister of Information and Communications, has been temporarily suspended by President Tran Dai Quang. The presidential decision was announced on Monday. Tuan, the former deputy information minister from 2011 to 2016, had signed the decision to approve the illegal acquisition of private pay TV firm AVG by the state-owned MobiFone without the Prime Ministers approval. The Politburo, the Partys decision-making body, said Tuans violations were incredibly severe. It is the first time in years that an active minister in Vietnam is being suspended. MobiFone, the country's third largest telecommunications firm, had made headlines early in 2016 when it announced it was breaking into the pay TV market with the acquisition of a 95 percent stake in AVG. But government inspectors concluded that the deal had violated investment laws and caused an estimated loss of about VND7 trillion ($307 million) to the state budget. On July 12, the Politburo gave Tuan an official warning and relieved him from his current position as Secretary of the ministry's Party unit. It also asked the Party Central Committee to initiate "strict" disciplinary action against his predecessor Nguyen Bac Son, who had approved the illegal TV acquisition. Vietnam's Communist Party has four modes of punishment for misconduct by official members: reprimand, warning, demotion and expulsion. Regarding the MobiFone case, Le Nam Tra, 57, the company's former chairman and general director, and Pham Dinh Trong, 48, head of the Department of Enterprise Management under the information ministry, were arrested earlier this month and are facing charges of "violating regulations on the management and use of public capital, causing serious consequences." Greyhounds are brought out during a recess at the Yat Yuen Canidrome in Macau, China, June 2, 2018. Photo by Reuters/Bobby Yip Authorities in Macau said they will care for more than 600 greyhounds ahead of the closure of Chinas only dog-racing track. The move comes after a long saga between government officials in the Chinese territory, animal rights activists, and one of the enclaves most well-known businesswomen, Angela Leong, the fourth wife of billionaire gaming magnate Stanley Ho. Leong, a long-standing Macau legislator and executive director of Yat Yuen, the company that operated Macaus Canidrome Club, has been criticized by animal rights groups such as Macau-based Anima, which said the greyhounds had been subject to cruel and inhumane conditions. Yat Yuen has repeatedly rejected cruelty claims and declined requests for comment. The Macau government said late on Thursday Yat Yuen had failed to provide a responsible solution for the dogs despite knowing since early 2016 that the companys lease would expire. The club closes on Saturday. Yat Yuen has been delaying the handling and placement of the greyhound dogs. The care of the dogs has been in an uncertain state, causing public anxiety and social problems, the government said in a statement on its website. A general view of Yat Yuen Canidrome in Macau, China July 19, 2018. Photo by Reuters/Andrew Jackson The government said the company would be punished under the Animal Protection Act and that authorities would ensure that the greyhounds received adequate care. It did not elaborate on the condition of the dogs. Leong manages tycoon Hos family businesses, including Yat Yuen, its casino operations via SJM Holdings, and operates the Macau Jockey Club horse racing franchise. The closure of the greyhound track marks the end of yet another of the often grubby old-time gambling businesses that long defined Macau before the arrival of luxury casinos. Anima head Albano Martins, who has been a key figure in fighting for the greyhounds release, said his organization was ready to assist the government to help find homes for the dogs. If I was the government, I should not be happy with that irresponsible decision taken for saving money. This only means what we have said for so long - the canidrome just cares for money, he said. A police officer stands guard at the scene of a mass shooting in Toronto, Canada, July 22, 2018. Photo by Reuters/Chris Helgren Two people including the gunman are dead and 13 wounded in Toronto after a shooting on Sunday. "One female adult has died. One young girl in critical condition," Toronto police said on Twitter, adding that all 14 victims were shot with a handgun. Police said the suspect was also dead, and The Toronto Star quoted Police Chief Mark Saunders as saying there had been "an exchange of gunfire." The suspect is believed to have opened fire at police before killing himself, Global News quoted a Toronto police source as saying. The shooting in the busy Greektown neighborhood added to concern about gun violence in Canada's largest city. Officers, some armed with rifles, sealed off Greektown's main street, known as the Danforth, after getting the call around 10:00 p.m. (0200 GMT Monday). Witnesses described to local media hearing about 20 shots and the sound of a weapon being reloaded several times. Jody Steinhauer told CBC News she was at a neighborhood restaurant with her family when she heard what sounded like 10 to 15 blasts of firecrackers. She said she was told to run to the back of the restaurant. "We started to hear people scream out front," Steinhauer told the broadcaster. Ontario's new Premier Doug Ford tweeted a message of solidarity, saying: "My heart goes out to the victims and loved ones of the horrific act of gun violence in Toronto." The incident comes with Canada's largest metropolis concerned over a surge of shootings, more than 200, this year. About two dozen have been fatal. Canada traditionally has relatively low levels of gun violence, particularly compared with its neighbor the United States. Mayor John Tory said Sunday night's firearms violence is "evidence of a gun problem" in Toronto. "Guns are too readily available to too many people," Tory told a news conference two hours after the shooting took place. He added that details of the latest incident remained sketchy. "We have to figure out what happened here. We don't know," he said. Last week, Toronto police started implementing the enforcement component of their "gun violence reduction plan." That includes around 200 additional officers on shift in particular neighborhoods between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m. when most shootings occur. The Greektown shooting comes about three months after the city was shaken by the deaths of 10 people, most of them women, killed by a man with an apparent grudge against women who drove into them on a busy street in Toronto's north end. Lagarde had been in Argentina over the weekend for the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank presidents. An American Airlines flight carrying International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde made an emergency landing in Argentina shortly after taking off from Buenos Aires Ezeiza airport on Sunday, several local media outlets reported. Local newspapers Clarin and La Nacion and local television station TN reported the flight, which was destined for the United States, experienced a drop in cabin pressure about 200 km (124 miles) north of the Argentine capital and returned to Ezeiza to land, according to Reuters. Lagarde had been in Argentina over the weekend for the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank presidents. An IMF spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. No injuries related to the incident were reported. As UNIAN reported earlier, Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), Yakiv Smolii, said the NBU expected to get the next tranche under the program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) before the end of 2018. Expert explains why Ukraine should not expect Gazprom to pay off debt According to Zahorodniy, Ukraine needs to return to the idea of a consortium. If you see a spelling error on our site, select it and press Ctrl+Enter Canada preparing to supply sniper rifles to Ukraine The Canadian government is expected to sign an arms export permit, which will significantly enhance the capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in deterring Russian aggression. If you see a spelling error on our site, select it and press Ctrl+Enter Fannon has come to Kyiv after talks on energy issues in Brussels. Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman and Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Energy Resources (ENR) at the U.S Department of State Francis R. Fannon have met in Kyiv to discuss an entire range of energy issues, including threats related to the Nord Stream 2 project. "Ukraine and the United States have a common understanding of how to counteract the implementation of the Russian Nord Stream 2 project, which appears a direct threat to the energy security of Europe and worsens the situation with the diversification of energy deliveries to European consumers," the press service of Ukraine's Cabinet said in a statement on Monday, July 23. This is the second visit of the high-ranking official of the U.S. Department of State to Ukraine. He visited Kyiv following talks on energy issues in Brussels. Read alsoPoroshenko on Nord Stream 2: "Geopolitical project aimed to weaken Ukraine" "I would like to reaffirm overall support of the United States in the matter of energy security, above all things. We are committed to further supporting the position regarding the Nord Stream 2 project and the continuation of gas transit through Ukraine. These two components are interconnected and part of the energy security of Europe. The United States will further stand for the diversification of energy supply routes to Europe", the Cabinet's press service quoted the U.S. Assistant Secretary as saying. During the meeting, the parties noted that Ukraine's gas transit system (GTS) is reliable and capable of providing the amount of transit declared, avoiding any artificial political influences. "Moreover, Ukraine has always stood and still stands ready to invite global companies market leaders, including from the United States to managing the GTS and other energy projects in extraction, transportation of resources and implementation of alternative energy projects," Groysman said in turn. The convention was signed in London on July 23. Ukraine's Acting Finance Minister Oksana Markarova has signed the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting, or the MLI Convention. The MLI Convention is an agreement enabling a participating country to make simultaneous amendments to all or selected conventions on the avoidance of double taxation, the Ukrainian government's website said. The convention was signed in London on July 23. It was signed due to the fact that on January 1, 2017, Ukraine joined the Extended Cooperation Program of the OECD and thus committed itself to implementing the minimum standard of the BEPS action plan. Mandatory for Ukraine are four of the 15 BEPS plan actions (minimum standard): action 5: "Countering Harmful Tax Practices More Effectively, Taking into Account Transparency and Substance"; action 6: "Preventing the Granting of Treaty Benefits in Inappropriate Circumstances"; action 13: "Transfer Pricing Documentation and Country-by-Country Reporting"; action 14: "Making Dispute Resolution Mechanisms More Effective." The MLI is action 15 of the BEPS action plan. By signing and ratifying the MLI Convention, Ukraine complies with actions 6 and 14 of the BEPS action plan which are a part of the minimum standard and are mandatory for Ukraine. Read alsoOne-time declaration of individuals' assets to be held in Ukraine This Convention will make it possible to reduce the shifting of capital from Ukraine to tax havens aiming to minimize due taxes. This will contribute to an increase in the tax revenues in Ukraine. "The implementation of the BEPS Actions will help to harmonize international tax rules between over 70 countries around the world and to create a more transparent tax environment. Having signed the MLI, we will be able to make necessary amendments to the existing international Double Taxation Treaties between Ukraine and other countries," Markarova said at the signing ceremony. The Ukrainian parliament shall ratify the MLI Convention. Ukrainian farmers thresh almost 19 mln tonnes of new grain The average yield of grain was 3.17 tonnes per hectare. If you see a spelling error on our site, select it and press Ctrl+Enter Owner of famous restaurant in Yerevan is afraid to lose his property (video) "I would hardly persuade someone to invest here, because maybe it would take a day from him/her," said the owner of "Dolmama". For more than ten years, the owner of "Dolmama" restaurant, Zhirayr Avanyan, is struggling in order not to let his restaurant collapse. By the decision of the former government, Abovyan, Pushkin and Nalbandyan streets were recognized as the supreme public interest, and "Local Development Devices" LLC was granted with the right of constructing those streets. Zhirayr Avinyan demands that decision to be reviewed when one's rights are more than the other's. He also wrote an open letter to the PM Nikol Pashinyan where he asks to preserve the inviolability of the right of property. "When we asked the mayor how it happened that they were allowed to have a supreme interest. They said that the business did not have any project. That means that they could take a space without a project and call it a supreme interest and take away the property right from the owner. And now, when Mr Pashinyan urges everyone to invest here I would hardly persude anyone, saying, come here to invest since I do not know, amybe someone comes and takes that from him/her," Zhirayr Avinyan said. Zhirayr Avinyan also urges not to eliminate the old buildings. Four years ago, together with a number of architects, Zhirayr Avanyan organized an exhibition titled "Build Without Demolishing". The project proposed to improve the area in the middle of Pushkin, Abovyan and Nalbandyan streets without destroying antiquities, but received no response from the municipality and the government. Details are available in the video Yoga teacher admired with Armenian spirit (video) People who are interested in Yoga, and mostly women, gathered in Tumo Park for simple, complex and breathing assanas and meditation. Indian students from Armenian state universities also came. "I visit yoga classes only because of the health. Fitness and other exercises are not allowed to me because I have problems with my legs. Yoga is useful to me, after which I feel relieved," said Angela Hovoyan to "A1+," who is doing Yoga for a month. And the Indian students of the Medical Therapy University after St. Tereza, who came from Malacasra province in India said that even though they are far from their country, they do Yoga at least half an hour, in mornings. "After doing yoga you feel more balanced and fervent throughout the day," said Nilan Deome. Indian Ambassador to Armenia Yogeshwar Sangwan underlined the need to present Yoga science beyond the borders of India. "Yoga is called to balance human's personality and create harmony between him, nature and the rest of mankind. At the same time, it gives a good idea, a healthy body and spirit, creates a connection with God," the ambassador told "A1 +." From February of this year, with the support of the Indian Embassy, free yoga classes are being held. For this purpose yoga teachers have arrived in Yerevan. Among them, Arty Kiran, who has arrived for two years, told "A1 +" that their objective is to clarify the imaginations about yoga. The Yoga teacher in Armenia is delighted by the Armenian spirit - the dux (courage). "Last week we performed 108 times in one lesson Surya Namashkar, a very sophisticated exercise on the Happiness Sun, and 90% of the participants completed it successfully, although they did not have any idea about it three months ago. Indeed, I am satisfied with the Armenian spirit," said Arti Kiran The free yoga classes are held at Tumo Center on Wednesday and Friday mornings, and at the Cambridge International School on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Registration can be made at [email protected] The International Yoga Day will be also celebrated today and tomorrow in Vanadzor and Jermuk. Ameriabank. 62.5% Growth in Taxes YOY Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans have provided 300 million AMD to overcome the infertility in Armenia UCOM has officially launched the sale of IPHONE 13 Six servicemen were wounded by the attack of the Azerbaijani armed forces in Artsakh, two of them in critical condition Google Ad S&P Improved the Outlook on Ameriabank to Positive Ararat Mirzoyan to visit to Minsk Foreign Minister of India visits the Memorial of Armenian Genocide 1217 new cases Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia Statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group At UCOM only: Tv sets at 10% discount + 1 month free UMIX package + 4k tv channel Ameriabanks Special Offer for New Clients of Hrazdan Branch "Fall forward": Gurgen Khachatryan, the Co-Founder of the Galaxy Group of Companies, addressed a message to young people in Armenia UCOM hosted interns of Russian CBOSS corporation for a month The 20-episode Bloody bet thriller to be broadcast on Ucom's Armenia Premium TV channel Statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group Google Ad UCOM offers affordable gadgets at bigger discount Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan will pay a working visit to New York Governments preventing publication of Haykakan Zhamanak newspaper during state of emergency UCOM prolongs the unlimited internet offer for the level up 4700 and level up 5500 subscribers Ucom employees received recognition for their services to the homeland Karen Vardanyan has allocated 105 million AMD to rescue the Yerevan Botanical Garden. "The Power of One Dram" to overcome childhood cancer Generation A 13 your chance to be the change President of the Artsakh Republic Arayik Harutyunyan met with Russian Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Igor Khovayev "uDays" special offer at Ucom: discounts for all smartphones and accessories for 2 days only For more than 3 hours, 50 or more Azerbaijani servicemen have blocked the interstate road Call on the international community for an adequate response against azerbaijani aggresssion Transformation and trust are important for success in modern banking. Artak Hanesyan Minas Avetisyan's frescoes are at stake Minas Avetisyan Foundation Board Chairman Arman Avetisyan said today that Minas Avetisyan's frescos were in danger. "There is no direct funding and it is ingired now. It was not directly spoken of during the former Minister of Culture, and now we have been asking for more than a month to meet with the newly appointed Minister. " To date, the Fund representatives have been waiting for the response from the Ministry of Culture. Arman Avetisyan stated that Minas Avetisyan's "Night" fresco was at stake. According to him, all the paintings of Minas Avetisyan should be returned to Gyumri, but there were no conditions for that. "The problem of the "Night "fresco costs about $ 18-20 thousand and the "Armenia" fresco should be studied yet," Arman Avetisyan said. The board chairman suggested to finally collect all the frescoes in one place. "I suggest creating a monumental museum in Gyumri. This will also stimulate tourism development." Armenian side's response to Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Spokesperson's speech (video) Since I was deprived of the right to reply to some accusations made against Armenia yesterday by the representative of Azerbaijan, I take this opportunity to respond and to set the record straight. And indeed, since the session is about countering the have speech, it seems to be the right setting to respond to the hate speech directed against my country. But before coming to the subject of the matter I would like to express my concern at the continuous abuse of this platform to disseminate anti Armenian propaganda, hatred and false information under the inaction of the moderator. I would like to strongly request the moderators of the sessions to be attentive and to exercise their authority and prevent panelists from using this format for conducting what should be called hostile information directed against another country. I hope that the organizers will draw necessary conclusions and we will not have the same situation next year. On the other hand, the representative of Azerbaijan vividly showed the extent of hostility towards Armenia and the Armenians that the Azerbaijani government is cultivating in the country. And with each passing year this narrative is being enriched with new nuances. Mr Hajiyev went as far as to accuse Armenia of committing a holocaust, uttering an allegation which relates to an extremely sensitive subject for the people who survived the Genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire. It seems, that you do not know the value of the word, but we do. And firmly reject all your groundless accusations. And when it comes to refugees, then we should speak about the almost half a million Armenians that barely escaped with their lives from the rampage of marauding gangs in the Armenian districts of the cities in Azerbaijan, including the capital, escaped with nothing but the clothes on their backs. But the Armenian government did not keep them hostage of foreign policy games, since the rights of these people were the ultimate value. It has become a good old tradition for the Azerbaijani authorities, that whenever someone is speaking about the pitiful state of democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Azerbaijan, they dodge all the questions by diverting the attention towards Armenia and the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. And by the way, the conflict is about the right of the people of Artsakh to live in a free and democratic country, which Azerbaijan is obviously not. And sooner Azerbaijan comes to terms with it, the sooner we will be able to find a sustainable peace. Nagorno Karabakh, or I should say Republic of Artsakh is an independent state with fully functioning democratic institutions, where freedom of the media and pluralism of opinions is ensured and respected, and well recognized by the international relevant organisations. They do not put journalists in prison on bogus charges, they do not shut down media outlets and they do not restrict access of journalists and they do not put them in black lists. The authorities of Artsakh believe in the right to information and the freedom of media and ensure it both in law and in practice. And the final observation. Mr Hajiyev has been complaining about the revelations about the widespread corruption scheme targeting European politicians, known as Azerbaijani Laundromat, which were made by the Organised Crime and Corruption reporting project. He called it unfair cold-war type propaganda against Azerbaijan without any hard evidence. But it seems, the evidence provided was enough for Italian prosecutors, for Council of Europe and its Parliamentary Assembly and others to take necessary legal actions. Instead of spending millions trying to bribe European politicians to prevent their criticism of the situation with democracy, human rights and rule of law in Azerbaijan, I would strongly recommend to try and build a genuine democratic modern state, believe me, it will be much more economically efficient and much more beneficial for the Azerbaijani people. Serzh Sargsyan's brother-in-law receives AMD 300 million from state (video) Chairman of the State Revenue Committee David Ananyan will not publish the promised list of thefts. He received a comment. "My colleagues told me that the disclosure of any information, the publication of any information in the framework of the investigation operations may damage the case. I was wrong, wait for publications. " The State Revenue Committee will add new amounts to the state budget in the coming days. "As a result of the new disclosures, we will distribute additional information if we have such powers. Since July 9, until now, if I'm not mistaken, there have been made transfers to the amount of AMD 2.5 billion." David Ananyan refuted the information that in the case of small stalls, large fines are imposed on the detection of violations. "There are no such instructions, there is an opposite instruction that it is impossible to burden a businessman who has a small and medium-sized business with large fines, if one or another employee misunderstands, we must get rid of this employee. If it seems to you that we should hire people who must be clean and with angelic wings, you are mistaken." The main person in charge of healthcare will continue inspecting in the medical institutions. According to Arsen Torosyan, it was possible to find violations in other hospitals, as well as in the hospital "St. Grigor Lusavorich", whose head is Serzh Sargsyan's brother-in-law Ara Minasyan. "This is the money taken for the untreated patients, that is, the patients did not receive medical assistance, but money was received from the state, in the interim AMD 300 million. Yesterday, I signed a decree to have operative inspections in several hospitals." Arsen Torosyan wants to have agents-representatives in all medical institutions. The Minister does not have any concerns that this decision will remind the revision of the Soviet period. According to him, today the state is the biggest buyer of services rendered by medical institutions. By the way, today the Minister of Healthcare, leaving the government building, was among the citizens. They demanded all the services due by law to be properly handled. The Sevan water level should increase Lake Sevan will continue to be in danger if the Amusar gold mine is exploited. Today at a meeting with journalists, the former director of the Sevan National Park, the chief architect Gagik Sukhudyan said, listing other dangers. "Our rivers are in a catastrophic situation. 28 rivers flow into Sevan, the purest one is Arpa-Sevan, because it does not enter any village, and others only pollute the lake. The basin of Lake Sevan is also endangered with garbage, for a long time it has been necessary to build a garbage processing plant and obtain a high-quality fertilizer. It is profitable,"said Gagik Sukhudyan. According to Sukhudyan, no facilities were provided for on the site located from the district Sevan road to the lake, but now the lake is not visible: "There are three so-called objects that are built right on the banks of the Sevan. One of them is the hotel Sevan, Akhtamar and the oldest - Minutka. " The Sevan should increase with 6 meters, Gagik Sukhudyan says: "Prior to this mark, we have no right to provide land, and this was done, private property had a negative impact on Sevan." The former director of Sevan National Park Gagik Sukhudyan is also concerned about the removal of sewerage of large objects on the shores of Sevan. In his opinion, a large percentage of these waters flow into the lake: "This is a very serious issue. And the greening of Sevan's water is a consequence of lowering the water level. The water level should increase annually, the threshold is 1906 meters, today it is 1900 meters 25 centimeters," he said. "Sanitek" explains: "Sanitek" does not sabotage The company once again apologizes to citizens and guests of the capital for the inconvenience caused. The company is doing everything possible to resolve the situation. "Sanitek", with the active support of all the administrative districts of Yerevan, is trying to return to the normal process of garbage disposal as soon as possible, as a result of which the situation has already started to be significantly regulated. We consider it necessary to address also the news spread in the press lately, that "Sanitek" sabotages and does not carry out proper removal of garbage, in connection with the resignation of the former mayor of Yerevan, Taron Margaryan does not correspond to reality. We remind you that "Sanitek" is an international organization that does not participate in the internal political processes in the country. The company's only mission is to serve people. Ameriabank. 62.5% Growth in Taxes YOY Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans have provided 300 million AMD to overcome the infertility in Armenia UCOM has officially launched the sale of IPHONE 13 Six servicemen were wounded by the attack of the Azerbaijani armed forces in Artsakh, two of them in critical condition S&P Improved the Outlook on Ameriabank to Positive Ararat Mirzoyan to visit to Minsk Foreign Minister of India visits the Memorial of Armenian Genocide 1217 new cases Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia Statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group At UCOM only: Tv sets at 10% discount + 1 month free UMIX package + 4k tv channel Ameriabanks Special Offer for New Clients of Hrazdan Branch "Fall forward": Gurgen Khachatryan, the Co-Founder of the Galaxy Group of Companies, addressed a message to young people in Armenia UCOM hosted interns of Russian CBOSS corporation for a month The 20-episode Bloody bet thriller to be broadcast on Ucom's Armenia Premium TV channel Statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group Google Ad UCOM offers affordable gadgets at bigger discount Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan will pay a working visit to New York Governments preventing publication of Haykakan Zhamanak newspaper during state of emergency UCOM prolongs the unlimited internet offer for the level up 4700 and level up 5500 subscribers Ucom employees received recognition for their services to the homeland Karen Vardanyan has allocated 105 million AMD to rescue the Yerevan Botanical Garden. "The Power of One Dram" to overcome childhood cancer Generation A 13 your chance to be the change President of the Artsakh Republic Arayik Harutyunyan met with Russian Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Igor Khovayev "uDays" special offer at Ucom: discounts for all smartphones and accessories for 2 days only For more than 3 hours, 50 or more Azerbaijani servicemen have blocked the interstate road Call on the international community for an adequate response against azerbaijani aggresssion Transformation and trust are important for success in modern banking. Artak Hanesyan The United States of America has decided to issue $200 million to Ukraine to strengthen security and defense in the 2018 budget year, the Ukrainian Embassy in the United States has reported. "The United States has decided to issue $200 million to Ukraine for strengthening security and defense in 2018. These funds will be used to provide our country with military equipment and services, logistics support and the training of the Ukrainian Armed Forces," reads a report on the embassy's Facebook page. The Ukrainian embassy is confident that providing Kyiv with another financial aid is the confirmation of the unchanged position of the United States on the further support of Ukraine. "Washington's decision to provide our state with $200 million in 2018 through the Pentagon is the evidence of the unchanged position of the U.S. regarding support for Ukraine in its counteraction to Russian aggression and the recognition that Kyiv continues a consistent movement on the path of reforms in the security and defense sector," the report says. Commenting on this decision of the United States, First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Iryna Gerashchenko said on Facebook this became possible, in particular, thanks to the adopted law on national security, which was highly appreciated by Ukrainian partners and criticized by the Ukrainian parliamentary opposition. Owner of one of Ukraine's largest confectionery companies PJSC Production Association Konti (Donetsk region) Borys Kolesnikov plans to build a chocolate factory in the center of Ukraine. "We are thinking about expanding the range of both APK-Invest and Konti, and we want to build a large chocolate factory for Konti in the center of Ukraine, and several other APK-Invest production facilities, some of which will be unique for our country. I will not disclose details yet. As the construction is over, you're invited to a ribbon-cutting ceremony," the owner of the companies said in an interview with Radio NV. As reported, PrJSC APK-Invest (Donetsk region), one of the largest pork producers in Ukraine, plans to increase pig population by 75%, to one million pigs. The company also intends to introduce several new technologies in agriculture, which are widely used in Western Europe and the United States, but are new not only for Ukraine, but also for many countries of Eastern Europe. APK-Invest (TM Myasna Vesna) is a vertically integrated agro-industrial company with a complete closed cycle for the production of chilled pork: from growing grain and making compound feeds to producing and selling meat products. In 2017, APK-Invest increased its net profit by 3.5 times to UAH 889.1 million, net income by 37.9%, to UAH 2.664 billion. According to the National Securities and Stock Market Commission's information disclosure system, the direct owner of 98% of the PrJSC's shares at the end of 2017 was Ukrinvest LLC, the beneficiaries of APK-Invest, according to the state register, are Borys Kolesnikov and his wife Svitlana. The Konti Group was founded in 1997. The main production assets are Donetsk, Kostiantynivka, Horlivka confectionery factories (Ukraine) and two factories in Kursk (Russia). The main brands are Bonjour desserts, SuperKontik and Belissimo cookies, BisKonti soft biscuits, Amour and Jack sweets. Ukraine, U.S. view Nord Stream 2 project as threat to Europe's energy security - meeting of Ukraine's PM with Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman has discussed with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Francis Fannon cooperation in the energy sector and the threat of the Nord Stream 2 project. "Ukraine and the United States are united in their position to counteract the implementation of the Russian project Nord Stream 2, which is a direct threat to the energy security of Europe and worsens the situation with the diversification of energy supply to European consumers," the Cabinet's press service said, quoting Groysman as saying after the meeting with Fannon. According to the report, the U.S. Secretary of State for Energy Resources is in Kyiv after talks on energy issues in Brussels. I would like to testify to the full support of the United States in the matter of, first of all, energy security. We are determined to continue to support the position regarding the Nord Stream 2 project and the continuation of gas transit through Ukraine .These two components are interrelated and they are part of the energy security of Europe. U.S. will continue to call for the diversification of energy supply routes to Europe, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources said. At the meeting, the sides noted that the Ukrainian gas transportation system (GTS) is currently reliable and capable of providing the volume of transit that is declared without artificial political influences. "We will continue to be a reliable partner for the United States and the European Union," Groysman stressed. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (MFA) has recommended that Ukrainians refrain from traveling to Zambia due to the outbreak of cholera in the capital until the epidemiological situation returns normal, the ministry's consular service has said. "The diplomatic office recommended that those compatriots who are already in Zambia exercise special caution and adhere to the recommendations of local authorities, medical and other competent services, as well as monitor the latest news," the report says. According to the ministry, an epidemic of cholera broke out in Zambia, in particular in the capital city of Lusaka, and especially in the Kanyama area. The report also notes that in case of symptoms of the disease or other circumstances that require immediate consular response, Ukrainians are advised to apply to Ukraine's Embassy in the South African Republic. Customs checkpoints on borders of Romania with neighboring Moldova, Ukraine and Serbia will be modernized and equipped with stationary and mobile scanners, Radio Romania reports. According to Romania's Minister of Public Finance Eugen Orlando Teodorovici, this will reduce smuggling and eliminate losses to the state budget. Teodorovici also said a number of governmental agreements would be signed to purchase the necessary equipment before the end of the year. The Romanian minister announced that the authorities in Bucharest are already negotiating with the main producers from China, the United States and Switzerland to purchase the relevant equipment. The National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) has sent fugitive Member of Parliament Oleksandr Onyshchenko a summons for questioning as a suspect scheduled for Thursday, July 26. "You need to appear at 12:00 on 26.07.2018 at NABU's First Detective Department of the Main Detectives Department at the address: 3 Vasylia Surikova St., Kyiv ... for interrogation as a suspect in criminal case No. 42015110000000121 opened March 19, 2015," says the summons published on NABU's website on Monday. As earlier reported, Onyshchenko is suspected of organizing a scheme to steal funds during the extraction and sale of natural gas as part of joint venture agreements with PJSC Ukrgazvydobuvannia, which caused about UAH 3 billion in losses to the state. The SBU also announced the launch of a pretrial investigation against Onyshchenko on the grounds of high treason. Ukraine's parliament on July 5, 2016, gave consent to prosecute, detain and arrest Onyshchenko. However, on the eve of voting, taking advantage of the status of a people's deputy, Onyshchenko left the territory of the state. He was placed on the national wanted list on August 8, 2016. Kyiv is ready for compromises on the issue of exchange with Russia, but the name of RIA Novosti Ukraine chief Kirill Vyshinsky has never been mentioned in Minsk on the Trilateral Contact Group negotiation site, Iryna Gerashchenko, first deputy speaker of the Verkhovna Rada and Ukraine's representative in the humanitarian subgroup of the trilateral contact group, said. "Ukraine is ready for various compromises. The name of Vyshinsky has never been mentioned in Minsk. No one has ever raised it anywhere. Let them [Russia] make an offer, we will consider it," Gerashchenko said in an interview published in the Monday edition of the online publication Ukrayinska Pravda, responding to a question as to how realistic an exchange of Vyshinsky for Ukrainian citizen Roman Sushchenko convicted in Russia. Kyiv suggests exchanging 36 Russian citizens convicted for crimes in Ukraine for the Ukrainian citizens who are in prison in Russia and on the territories of Donbas uncontrolled by Kyiv. "We suggest giving 36 Russians. Take your criminals or crime suspects. Give us our people! And there has not been a response to that for three months!" Gerashchenko said. While U.S. President Trump and his administration have repeatedly noted that regime change and military action against Iran are not on their agenda, the chief of staff of Irans armed forces maintains that Washington has been urging the U.S. Army to invade Iran. Although the current U.S. administration does not openly speak of a military threat (against Iran), over the past year and a half it has been trying to (convince) the U.S. Army to launch a military invasion according to precise existing information, Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Major General Mohammad Hossein Bagheri said on July 22. Without elaborating on his precise information or presenting any evidence, Bagheri reiterated that Trumps administration has tried to convince the U.S. Army to invade Iran in recent months. Still without elaborating on the details, the IRGC-affiliated news agency, Tasnim, quoted Bagheri as saying, In recent months, U.S. Armed Forces officials have twice mentioned attempts made by the White House to urge military action against Iran. However, U.S. authorities have repeatedly stated they are after changing the behavior of Irans leaders, restricting their extraterritorial military operations in the region and nuclear program. Notably, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on June 7 that it does not want to take military action against Tehran, however the secretary warned if Iran would attempt to procure nuclear weapons it would be faced with the wrath of the entire world. Speaking during an interview with MSNBC on July 22, Pompeo warned it would not be in Irans interest to develop nuclear arms. I hope they understand that if they begin to ramp up their nuclear program, the wrath of the entire world will fall upon them, he said. When I say wrath, dont confuse that with military action. When I say wrath, I mean the moral opprobrium and economic power that fell upon them. Thats what Im speaking to. Im not talking to military action here. I truly hope that thats never the case. Its not in anyones best interests for that. Pompeo said Trump has been very clear on Iran. Iran will not get a nuclear weapon nor start its weapons program on this presidents watch, he said, according to a transcript of the interview made available by the U.S. State Department. Earlier, long before Trumps decision to drop the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or Tehrans nuclear deal with world powers, several analysts argued that withdrawing from JCPOA would leave Washington with only two options, either a military strike against Tehran to stop its nuclear program or accepting Iran as a nuclear power. Neither of these happened. An hour after Trumps official withdrawal from JCPOA and announcing new sanctions against Iran, National Security Adviser John Bolton said on May 8 that the decision was not a prelude to military confrontation with Iran. U.S. authorities have repeatedly cautioned that the new sanctions would impose unprecedented economic pressure on Iran and are seeking to impose sanctions against countries that do not cut imports of Iranian oil to zero by November 4. Referring to the new series of sanctions, the speaker of the Iranian Parliament said on July 21, It seems we have entered a new phase in which the other side [the United States] thinks it can impose its illogical and hegemonic demands on the Iranian nation through exerting economic pressure. Ali Larijani also boasted of Irans advances in the military industry, boosting missile technology under tough sanctions during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-88) and predicted that the same strategy in the era of the new U.S. sanctions would shield Irans economy. Meanwhile, during his Sunday morning speech, Bagheri admitted that the behavior of the enemy -- the United States -- is not predictable. Furthermore, he speculated, While the enemy's main threat is economic sanctions, there could be a variety of threats against the Islamic Republic. Iranian Judicial Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani and Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi were among several other officials who responded to U.S. President Donald Trump's recent comments that came after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's belligerent speech. Amoli Larijani threatened that "any illogical move by the United States would entail a memorable response," the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported on July 23. Araqchi, however, said he hoped the situation would not escalate to a level that would force Iran to stop other regional countries oil exports, Iranian media reported. Official reactions to the war of words between Trump and Rouhani have been minimal as of midday July 23 in Tehran, but more officials offered their reactions to the sabre rattling later in the day. Iranians and Americans on social media, however, blasted both, although there was also some support for both sides. Trump tweeted an elaborate direct message to Rouhani, which was later dubbed the Caps lock diplomacy by social media users: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! This was apparently in reaction to a speech by Rouhani in which he threatened to close many other straits other than the Strait of Hormuz in case the flow of Irans oil to international markets is disrupted as a result of U.S. sanctions. In an expression borrowed from a Saddam Hussain speech dating to the 1991 Persian Gulf War, Rouhani threatened on Sunday that a war with Iran would be the mother of all wars and warned Trump not to play with the lions tail, otherwise he will regret it later. Tasnim news agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), appeared to be the only Iranian media outlet that reported Trumps tweet on July 23. However, it buried the story under several other reports. The agency did not comment on Trumps remarks. In reaction to Trumps tweet, Brigadier General Gholamhossein Gheibparvar, head of the IRGC-linked Bassij militia, characterized Trumps statement as psychological warfare, and stressed in a typical early reaction, He cannot do a damn thing against Iran, Tasnim reported early on July 23. In a commentary in the administration-owned newspaper, Iran, political commentator Sadeq Zibakalam said Rouhanis statement about the mother of all wars was an indication of his pacifist intentions. He said the statement meant that Rouhani was prepared to make peace with America but has his own conditions. The analysis came as many Iranian social media activists noted that the main point of Rouhanis speech was plagiarized from Irans onetime archenemy Saddam Hussain, the former president of Iraq. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi missed Trumps tweet in his weekly press conference on July 23, but lashed out at U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeos address to Iranian-Americans in California, characterizing his criticism of the corruption and hypocrisy of Irans ruling clerics as vulgar, baseless, and deceitful. Pompeo had blasted Irans ruling elite and its religious leaders for using their positions to line their pockets with riches while the average person "cries out for jobs, reform, and opportunity." He called Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other Islamic religious leaders in the theocratic government "hypocritical holy men" and pointed to officials who had amassed hundreds of millions of dollars of wealth from their positions. On social media, Iranian activists supporting each side of the argument used two different hashtags, #IslamicRegimeMustGo and #StopMeddlingInIran, sometimes continuing their own war of words online. The sharp difference between the two hashtags reveals the divide between various groups of Iranians. In the first group, Dr. Eynollah tweeted, This is not a threat, it's a promise! I suggest Rouhani, Zarif etc, pack your bags now go where you children live, in Europe & America! and another user in the other group tweeted, And if you dare, try Iranian determination again and see the SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES & SEVERE RESPOND from Iranians. Times have changed Mr. President, you don't think #Iran's situation is the same as 1953. Most other tweets cannot be cited for a possible violation of decency and editorial standards. Criticizing Rouhanis threat, one user wrote, Didnt Rouhani know that Saddam had already used the mother of all wars about the war with Iraq? Why the Islamic Republic does not replace war-mongering with politics? Another Twitter activist hoped Rouhani was not providing fuel for World War III. Kurdish security forces have killed the gunmen who attacked a government building in Iraq's northern Kurdish city of Irbil, ending a siege, officials said. Iraqi media reported that three attackers had been killed. Clashes erupted between the gunmen and policemen when the gunmen attacked the building in Irbil, the seat of the Kurdistan regional government (KRG) on July 23. At least one gunman was said to have carried out a suicide attack inside the building. Others had reportedly held hostages. One of the hostages was critically wounded, reports said. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack. But Kurdish officials suggested the gunmen could be members of the extremist group Islamic State (IS). Iraq declared victory over IS in December but IS still holds pockets of territory and continue to carry out deadly attacks. Based on reporting by Reuters, dpa,AFP and Rudaw Residents of the southern Iranian city of Borazjan have blocked the main road leading into the city as part of a protest over water shortages, state-run Iran Labor News Agency (ILNA) reports. On Sunday morning, July 22, several residents of Borazjan held rallies in the city center to protest the shortage of water, the provincial representative to the Supreme Council of Provinces, Ali Akbar Fatemi, told ILNA, adding that security forces stepped in to disperse the demonstrators. Protesters, according to Fatemi, set off a huge blaze at the citys point-of-entry and disrupted the traffic for half an hour before the governor, police, and authorities affiliated with the citys water and sewage department stepped in and restored order. The county deputy for political and social affairs, Javad Loqmanzadeh, said peace and order was restored after protestors cooperated with the authorities, who promised to meet their demands. A provincial official in Borazjan has admitted that since the beginning of the spring the water supply to the area has decreased by 30,000 cubic meters daily. There are reports alleging the drop in supply is due to misuse of the water by influential agricultural land owners. Based on local reports, the taps in Borazjan have been dry for several days, and residents blame corruption and mismanagement by local authorities for the water crisis. Borazjan, the capital of Dashtestan County, has experienced widespread protests against water shortages in recent days. Thousands of Borazjan residents poured into the streets July 7 to protest water shortages and what they described as the chaotic distribution of water. Chanting slogans against local authorities, the protesters assembled in the citys main square, where they demanded the governor take action. The governors deputy and the citys Friday prayer leader tried to deliver a speech, but angry protestors forced them to flee. Footage widely circulated in social media show that despite the presence of hundreds of security forces, the demonstrators did not allow the Friday prayer leader, mid-ranking cleric Hassan Mosleh, to deliver his speech. Mosleh had earlier called upon the authorities to address the water shortages. Either the governor steps in, or we are going to raise hell! one protester insisted. Dashtestans representative to the parliament, Mohammad Baqir Saadat, has accused the countys authorities of incompetence and procrastination regarding the water crisis, insisting, The peoples anger is justified. They are even entitled to insult the authorities. According to Saadat, the water crisis was caused by the recent installation of more than thirty powerful water pumps on a nearby river by the owners of several orchards in the neighboring city of Kazeroon. Saadat accused the orchard owners of illegally irrigation their fields at night. The governor of Kazeroon, originally from the citys suburbs, has so far ignored an official order to dismantle the powerful pumps, Saadat maintained. Meanwhile, the New York based Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) reported, A civilian who was shot dead by the state security forces during the recent demonstration in Borazjan (Bushehr province in southern Iran) against the citys water crisis, was identified as Iman Ahmadi. The governments official news agency, IRNA, had earlier confirmed violent clashes between protesters and security forces July 8. In recent months, people in many cities and agricultural areas have been protesting water shortages and environmental problems in Iran. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: On July 12, 2018 in Singapore, the mobile application AtaNet presented by AtaBank OJSC this year won the Asian Banking & Finance Wholesale Banking Awards 2018. The event held under the motto Lets know the bests of banking and finance sectors. In the ceremony held since 2012, along with representatives of Asia, representatives of the world's leading financial institutions also participated. The winners of the event were determined by a jury consisting of representatives of the "big four" from Deloitte, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, KPMG and Ernst & Young. The official delegation of AtaBank OJSC, participating in various events for several days, provided detailed information about the specifications, technical details and security of the mobile banking application AtaNet. As a result, among participants from more than 40 countries, among which there were also such large banks and financial institutions as HSBC, Standard Chartered, Bank of China, Citibank and others, AtaNet was chosen as the safest and best mobile banking application and became the winner in the nomination Domestic Technology & Operations Bank of the Year. First Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Bank Etibar Babashli said at the award ceremony: "AtaBank always tries to match its slogan and to be "A step ahead", constantly presenting many innovations. Our latest innovation is the mobile banking application "AtaNet", already offered to the clients of the bank. On the way here we were sure that we would become winners because "AtaNet" differs from the competitors in convenience and speed of work irrespective of time and the place, safety and many other advantages according to the best world practice. Our team will continue to work hard for preservation and strengthening of the place of "AtaNet", and many new opportunities for users will be presented in the near future. At the same time during the visit the management of AtaBank OJSC has held a number of business meetings with representatives of a number of the leading Asian banks and has discussed future cooperation. We remind that AtaBank OJSC paying special attention to the Asian financial market and in 2017 has also signed the cooperation agreement with the leading payment service provider of the China Union Pay International. Operating since 1993 AtaBank OJSC is a hi-tech universal Azerbaijani bank with 100 percent domestic capital. The Bank provides a full range of services to corporate and private customers in Baku and regions. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: Over the past 24 hours, Armenias armed forces have 98 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said July 23. Armenias armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns. 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. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Elchin Mehdiyev, Azad Hasanli Trend: The venue and date of the next meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers are being specified, spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmat Hajiyev said at the press conference in Baku on July 23. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group will submit the corresponding proposals on the venue and date of the meeting, he added. The date and venue of the ministerial meeting will be specified on the basis of these proposals. Hajiyev stressed that Azerbaijan supports the continuation of substantive negotiations on the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the existing format. 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 the author on Twitter: @AzadHasanli Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Elchin Mehdiyev Trend: Armenia is responsible for illegal economic and other activities in the occupied Azerbaijani territories, spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmet Hajiyev said at a press conference in Baku July 23. Illegal actions are classified in the following directions: creation of settlements and displacement of the population in the occupied territory; use of natural resources of Azerbaijan and trade in them; economic and financial activity; change of infrastructure, use of telecommunications network; change of cultural heritage in the occupied territories; development of tourism, as well as organization of illegal visits and other activity. "Armenia is responsible for wrongful acts in the occupied Azerbaijani territories, some of which are serious breaches of obligations arising from peremptory norms of general international law," Hajiyev said. They include the use of force for separation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region and other districts of Azerbaijan, occupied by Armenia, in violation of the Charter of the United Nations; as a consequence, violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan; ethnic cleansing in the occupied Azerbaijani territories, including creation of settlements and displacement of the population, which leads to a change in the demographic composition in these territories; a flagrant violation of the right to military occupation, in particular article 43 of the Regulations Concerning the Laws and Customs of War on Land and article 49 of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War; use of natural resources in the occupied territories without taking into account the priority of the interests of the population (living prior to ethnic cleansing of the region); changing the cultural heritage in the region, he added. "In accordance with the peremptory norms of international law, the abovementioned serious violations require the use of special consequences: non-recognition of the situation created as a result of such violations; prohibition of assistance in maintaining such a situation; exclusion of any immunities for those responsible for such violations," Hajiyev said. Another consequence is that all countries are obliged to call Armenia to accountability and take measures against it, including on the basis of sanctions, as well as criminal prosecution and civil legal proceedings, he said. "The rule of law is an indispensable condition in the international relations and the process of settlement of conflicts," Hajiyev added. We call on the entire international community, the corresponding international organizations, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries, foreign legal entities and individuals to take into account the "Legal opinion on third party obligations with respect to illegal economic and other actions in the occupied Azerbaijani territories" and other fundamental legal reports submitted by Azerbaijan concerning the legal aspects of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict." 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. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Elchin Mehdiyev, Azad Hasanli Trend: Amid the recent corruption scandal in the Armenian army, the countrys Defense Minister David Tonoyans statement that Russia allegedly completed the supply of arms to Armenia, stipulated in a $200 million contract, is nothing but an attempt to artificially inspire the Armenian people, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry told Trend July 23. According to the Armenian side, serious problems occurred in the supply of Russian-made weapons, the ministry said. "However, in a short period contradicting his previous words, Tonoyan says without any remorse that Russia allegedly fully completed the supply of arms to Armenia. As for the statement that the weapons supplied to Armenia are not even on the balance of the Russian army, it is nothing but trickery on its own people." Such statements made by the Armenian side, amid corruption scandals in the army, are an attempt to inspire people, designed for the internal audience, the ministry said. "As a defense minister, Tonoyan must know that Russia will not supply weapons to any other side without providing its own troops with them," the ministry said. Of course, the Russian army does not have the armaments the Armenian defense minister proudly speaks about. The reason is simple: those weapons are already out of date and are not suitable for use." 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 the author on Twitter: @AzadHasanli Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Leman Zeynalova Trend: The agreements signed during the visit of Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev to France show that Azerbaijan is open for business, Rob Sobhani, director general of the Caspian Group Holdings, told Trend. He was commenting on signing of more than $2 billion worth agreements between Azerbaijani and French companies during the recent visit of President Aliyev to Paris. The most important aspect of Azerbaijan's economy is its stability and protection of foreign investments, said the US expert. Sobhani believes that transfers of technology and know-how from French companies (and American companies) is important to the long-term economic growth of Azerbaijan. Any investment by a major foreign company into the economy of Azerbaijan will benefit the people of Azerbaijan. First, it creates jobs for the citizens of Azerbaijan. For example, when a French company expands its operations in Azerbaijan it means it needs to hire local staff. This benefits the economy. Second, an investment in Azerbaijan's oil and gas sector means more revenues in the future for the budget of the Azerbaijan government which means in turn it can invest either in the State Oil Fund or expand loans for local business -- small and medium size, he said. Sobhani went on to add that any investment by French companies such as Suez in the environmental sector of Azerbaijan benefits the health of the citizens of Azerbaijan. Better water delivery systems, cleaner water in homes, usable lakes for family recreation and using waster to create electricity are all areas of expertise of French companies that can benefit the citizens of Azerbaijan, he said. Sobhani noted that not too long ago, BP signed an extension to its production sharing agreement with Azerbaijans SOCAR which demonstrates the confidence major foreign companies have in Azerbaijan. In addition, the shocks that other counties face due to globalization have not impacted Azerbaijan as much, thus making it an ideal place to invest. And finally, foreign investors can expect to repatriate their profits with no difficulty from Azerbaijan, This is in sharp contrast to some Azerbaijan's neighbors and even countries in Europe and Asia, he said. Under the leadership of President Aliyev, Azerbaijan's message to the outside world is clear: we are open for business, said Sobhani. As for Frances role in the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, he said that President Macron has taken a more activist approach to foreign policy and it is clear that he would like to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in a fair manner that brings justice for the people of Azerbaijan. In view of President Macron's good relations with President Trump and President Putin, he can play a key role in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. In addition, the recent events in Armenia indicate that the people of Armenia are also ready to come out of their isolation and realize the economic benefits of a peace deal with Azerbaijan, he noted. Sobhani also spoke about the role of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation led by Azerbaijans First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva in terms of developing the relations between Azerbaijan and France in the humanitarian sphere, Sobhani said that Mehriban Aliyeva is the "First Lady of Charity" as well as being the "First Lady of Culture". As such, local charities in Azerbaijan and in the United States have been beneficiaries of her heart and donations from the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. France of course is a country with a rich historic heritage and the French are very proud of this heritage. Therefore I am sure the people of France welcome the efforts of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in the area of repairs for historic buildings. Preserving the past is a gift to the future generations. Mehriban Aliyeva knows this truth and the people of Azerbaijan and French are lucky that she is leading the efforts to preserve humanity's common culture, he added. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Ilhama Isabalayeva, Azad Hasanli Trend: The Azerbaijan-France relations have great prospects and potential, Azerbaijani MP, historian Musa Gasimli said. "Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyevs visit to France will intensify this potential and give dynamics to the relations between the two countries," Gasimli told Trend on July 23. He stressed the great importance of President Aliyev's visit to France. "First of all, France is one of the leading countries, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, a co-chair country of the OSCE Minsk Group, one of the G7 members," Gasimli said. He stressed that the Azerbaijan-France relations have historical roots. "The state independence of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) was first recognized in Paris on January 11, 1920, he added. ADR's representatives lived in France, and France was one of those countries that made efforts to restore Azerbaijans independence after the occupation by the Bolsheviks. France helped Azerbaijani emigrants, he said. In its turn, Azerbaijan rendered exceptional services to France for its liberation from fascists. Azerbaijanis took part in the French Resistance Movement. The MP stressed that after the restoration of Azerbaijans state independence, the Azerbaijan-France relations have developed on a new basis. "Azerbaijans national leader Heydar Aliyev paid the first foreign visit to France in December 1993, he said. The Azerbaijan-France relations have greatly developed during Ilham Aliyev's presidency. The French Lyceum, the Azerbaijani-French University, French companies operate in Baku." President Ilham Aliyev paid a visit to Paris on July 19-20. Fruitful talks were held with representatives of 11 French companies during the visit and contracts worth over $2 billion were signed. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @AzadHasanli Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Ilhama Isabalayeva, Azad Hasanli - Trend: The visit of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to France, which took place on July 19-20, has raised relations with France to a new level, chairman of the parliamentary committee for science and education, Academician Isa Habibbeyli told Trend. He noted that the agreements signed during the visit will make an important contribution to the economy of both France and Azerbaijan, as well as will deepen economic cooperation between Azerbaijan and the European Union. "The bilateral relations between Azerbaijan and France promise us new projects," the Azerbaijani MP added. Habibbeyli stressed that the visit of the president of Azerbaijan opens up new great prospects of economic cooperation between the two countries. The Azerbaijani MP highly appreciated the importance of the Paris visit and noted that the relations between Azerbaijan and France are developing successfully in politics, economy, energy, environment, transport, security, culture and others. He told Trend that the visit will pave the way for further development of these relations. President Ilham Aliyev visited Paris on July 19-20, during which productive negotiations were held with representatives of 11 French companies, and contracts worth more than $2 billion were signed. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Leman Zeynalova Trend: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyevs recent visit to France will pave way for better understanding of Azerbaijan as a hub of stability, Nathalie Goulet, French senator and vice-chair of the Senates Foreign Affairs Committee, told Trend July 23. She pointed out that this visit will allow to increase the tourist flow between the two countries and pave way for a better understanding of the regional situation and a better understanding of Azerbaijan as a hub of stability in the area and as a bridge between powerful countries such as Russia and Iran. We have a lot of fields to promote. The business climate has improved a lot over the last years and French companies are going to appraise Azerbaijan as a major hub on the Silk Road, the French senator said. Further, Goulet pointed out that Frances role as one of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group for resolving the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is very important. Enough is enough. Its time to increase the pressure [on Armenia] to liberate the Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding districts, said the French senator, adding that this can be achieved by promoting diplomacy, but if its not enough, embargo and international sanctions should be imposed on Armenia. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: Azerbaijan's Defense Minister Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov has met with a delegation led by the General Director of the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) Inc. Temel Kotil July 23, the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan said in a statement. The sides discussed the issues of organizing mutual visits of aviation experts within the military-technical cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey, exchanging experience between experts, military education and other issues of mutual interest. They also touched upon the implementation of various programs, including joint projects on the study and application of new generation combat aircraft that can enhance the potential of the Air Forces of Azerbaijan. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: Interview with Elvin Ismayilov who five years ago earned 675 points at the entrance exams to national higher educational institutions and became a student of Baku Higher Oil School (BHOS). Recently he was admitted to a tuition-free Master degree program at Polytechnic University of Milan in Italy. Elvin, you have graduated from the Higher School this year. What does it mean to you to be the BHOS graduate? Firstly, I would like to say what it means to be a student of the Higher School. It means that you are lucky to attend lectures delivered by highly educated and knowledgeable teachers who use the latest technologies in the teaching process, participate in practical lessons in the fully equipped modern training laboratories, and enjoy other advantages. Being BHOS graduate means to be a competitive young specialist possessing deep knowledge in the field of modern technologies and other technical disciplines. You are a Master degree student at Polytechnic University of Milan. Who and how helped you to achieve this success? My family provides the strongest support and motivation to me. I am responsible person and take all assignments seriously; this helps me to earn good marks and succeed in my study. Finally, the determination to see the fruits of my efforts help me to overcome difficulties I may face on my way to success. This desire keeps people moving towards their goals. If we compare the day when you became the BHOS student and the day when you learned about your admission to the Polytechnic University of Milan: what was a happiest moment for you? Looking back, I can say that I was most happy when I was admitted to BHOS, as it was my first great achievement after graduation from the secondary school. Moreover, I would have never been able to become the Master degree student at the Polytechnic University of Milan, if I did not study at the Baku Higher Oil School. Are you going to return home after you complete your education in Italy? Or do you plan to live and work outside Azerbaijan? After graduation, I am going to start my professional career abroad and live there for a while. Currently, new industrial facilities are being built and the latest technologies are being introduced everywhere in Azerbaijan. I intend to gain experience and knowledge abroad to apply my skills and expertise when I am back. Then I can better contribute to the country development. You have received a Bachelor degree in Process Automation Engineering and will be pursuing Master degree in Automation and Management Engineering. Why do you like this science? I have been always keen on electronics, even when I was a child. But then I realized why I am so much interested in it. My father often told me about importance of automation and process control in the modern industry today and in the future. Thus, the childs hobby turned into a profession. I believe that young people shall study this science, as it has great prospects. This profession is not very new, but it is constantly developing, especially across various disciplines. I do like my profession and I know that it will be always in demand. So, I am happy with my choice. Elvin, why have you decided to continue your education instead of going to work? Actually, I have already started my professional career. Currently, I am working as junior automation and process control engineer at SOCAR Polymer company. However, the field of my expertise is changing very rapidly. That is why I would like to continue my education to gain more knowledge and be able meet the challenges of the industry. What are you going to do in the future? My major goal for the nearest future is to receive my Master degree and then to gain professional experience. In your view, what are the major factors of success? You need to be interested in the field in which you want to make progress. Success is a whole process, and the first achievement may lay foundation to the following achievements. So, you shall not be afraid of failures, as they may lead to even greater success. You must be persistent in pursuing your goals and work hard to achieve them. What would you advise to prospective students? I would recommend them to avoid rote learning; it is more productive to memorize learning material in the most suitable way for you. The most important thing at the entrance exams is to concentrate on the questions, as this helps to deal with stress. Do not forget about recess; you need to rest, too. Finally, I would advise young people to make their choice according to their goals, inspirations and level of preparation. In the case, they will enjoy their student life and will be able to grow into qualified specialists who can serve our country and whose achievements will be a source of pride for their families. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 21 Trend: In order to improve the business climate in the capital of Kazakhstan and the availability of public services for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the city administration of Astana has developed a schedule of activities for conducting consultations for business in the territory of second-tier banks, Kazinform news agency reported. Entrepreneur Zamir Bolysbek came to the event with a proposal to cooperate with state organizations, second-tier banks and SMEs representatives. The idea of his project is to unite entrepreneurs into one club in which they could exchange ideas, cooperate, be useful to each other, generate new ideas, and thereby develop their businesses. "The club is a community of entrepreneurs and business people who share same interests," Bolysbek said. "These are meetings, networking, master classes, thanks to close contacts, people solve their problems, get useful advice, our program envisages visiting enterprises of other club members. We see our further development in strengthening contacts and ties among entrepreneurs across Kazakhstan," he said. Presently, the project has been launched and runs on a free basis. The long term plans include cooperation with universities and business schools, where the participants of the club could be trained to improve their skills in the field that interests them. In addition, an entrepreneur aims to acquire a Business Network International (BNI) franchise - an international network of business clubs around the world. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Leman Zeynalova Trend: It is important to support operators along the whole food chain in order to further improve food security in Azerbaijan, Melek Cakmak, Head of FAO Partnership and Liaison Office in Azerbaijan, said in an interview with Trend. "Establishing an efficient and competent food safety agency is only the first step. Support should be provided to farmers, producers, traders and other actors of the food chain. This can be ensured with different trainings, development of programs and guidelines on good production practices in different sectors, public awareness campaigns, and other activities of different FAO projects. It is important to support operators along the whole food chain," she said. In addition, Cakmak noted that another important aspect to be considered is an adequate border control in the new setting. Further, talking about FAOs activities in Azerbaijan, she said that currently, FAO implements projects on (i) strengthening phytosanitary inspection and diagnostic services, (ii) preparation of a national land consolidation strategy and respective pilot project, (iii) capacity development on preparation, monitoring and evaluation of agricultural policies and programs, (iv) programme development for climate change adaptation, (v) forest resources assessment and monitoring to strengthen forestry policy and knowledge framework, (vi) improvement of the locust management in the country. The implementation of these projects will continue in 2019 as well, added Cakmak. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: The meetings with investors-entrepreneurs were held during the past week in the city administration of Tashkent, where the proposed projects were discussed, "UzDaily.uz" reported referring to press-service of city administration. Projects were presented from each district, the vast majority of which were approved. The total investment in them will amount to $894 million in addition to the planned creation of 9,332 jobs. During the event, visitors were presented the master plans for such well-known areas of the city as Fargona Yuli street, Nurafshon and Kichik Khalka Yuli street, Olmazar, Yashnabad, industrial zone (100 hectares) and residential complexes in Sergeli district. The construction of a large number of new facilities that meet all modern standards was planned, as well as to the strategy of reconstruction of adjacent territories was announced in the demonstrated projects. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: Prices for precious metals in Azerbaijan again started growing on July 23 after a week-long decline, according to the data published by the countrys Central Bank. The price of gold increased by 17.6375 manats to 2094.1195 manats per ounce in the country on July 23, compared to the price on July 20. The price of silver increased by 0.2787 manats to 26.3547 manats per ounce. The price of platinum increased by 33.4135 manats to 1405.866 manats. Meanwhile, the price of palladium increased by 18.5045 manats to 1518.236 manats in the country. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Fikret Dolukhanov Trend: Uzbekistan will export to France textile products worth $1 million, as well as the first batch of dried fruits, the Foreign Trade Ministry of Uzbekistan stated. The corresponding agreements were reached following opening ceremony of the first trading house of Uzbekistan in the Paris, France. The main task of UzFranceTrade trading house is to promote export of products from Uzbekistan to France and other European countries. With this purpose, a constantly operating showroom will be created to showcase a wide range of domestic products. A meeting of the delegation of Uzbekistan with representatives of business circles of France was held, where promotion of Uzbek agricultural and textile products was discussed. The parties agreed to actively develop cooperation by supporting entrepreneurs at the state level. Today non-raw export of the republic has quite insignificant volume. The main reason is complexity of supplying domestic products to such a demanding market as France. Our task is to make it as easy as possible by bringing our standards in line with European requirements. Thus, we will be able to realize the trade potential and meet the demand for fruit, vegetable and textile products from our country, Foreign Trade Minister of Uzbekistan Jamshid Khojayev said. The French Embassy in Tashkent earlier stated that the French Development Agency (AFD) will invest about 450 million euros to implement several projects in Uzbekistan within the next four years. It was later reported that the National Bank of Uzbekistan held talks with the French NATIXIS corporate and investment bank during the seventh meeting of the Intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation between Uzbekistan and France. The sides discussed ways of financing small business in Uzbekistan. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @FDolukhanov Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: The NAPA Team company has presented project of construction of unique technopark to the Head of the city administration of Tashkent city Jahongir Artykkhojaev, "Podrobno.uz" reported. A new platform for the development of IT-entrepreneurship and a place for practical training of IT-specialists may appear in the capital of Uzbekistan as a result of the project implementation. "This technopark is designed to give life to a variety of startups, there will be at least 250 startups per year according to the investor's estimates. The prototype for this project is the technoparks of Israel, which are known to be the place of the largest concentration of IT startups. Some 12,000 square meters of space is required for the full implementation of the project. The head of the city administration liked the idea very much, and an agreement was reached as a result of the presentation to continue the discussion on the implementation of this project which is very important for the country," said the Public Council under the city administration. The company's Director Umid Abdusattorov and representatives of the city administration are expected now to hold several meetings to select the location and to discuss the remaining details of the project. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: A special page has been created in Uzbekistan, where citizens of the country can leave their proposals on the new version of the Tax code. The work is underway for the development of a new version of the Tax code in accordance with the presidential decree "On measures for radical improvement of the activities of the state tax service", UzDaily.uz reported. The working group on the development of a new version of the Tax Code has begun to enact. A special page was created on the portal of electronic tax services, where the suggestions for the new version of the Code can be left. The State Tax Committee noted that, the working group will take into account all proposals, while the authors of the proposals can be invited to enter the working group. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Samir Ali - Trend: The State Motor Road Agency of Azerbaijan has purchased 112 titles of road equipment from China, the Agency said in a statement July 23. The presentation of the equipment imported from China was held today in Alat settlement. The Head of the Transport Department of the Agency Elshan Jafarov was quoted in the message as saying that, China has provided technical assistance to Azerbaijan for the supply of equipment worth $8.2 million. The Agency imported into the country in total more than 200 titles of various road equipment from China, the US, Belarus and other countries during six months, he continued. "We also purchase equipment manufactured in Azerbaijan, which we use in the road sector. More preference is given to local products," Jafarov said, adding that the Azerbaijani equipment meets the necessary standards. The list of local equipment used by the Agency includes machines for repairing roads, vehicles for transporting fuel, multi-functional diesel units, compressors, generators and welding machines. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Fikret Dolukhanov Trend: Japanese YKK Group, worlds largest zipper manufacturer, has no plans to open office or launch production in Uzbekistan, the company representative told Trend on July 19. "We have no plan to open an office in Uzbekistan now In any case, it is incorrect information, unfortunately. So we cannot answer your questions," the source in the Japanese company said. He added that the YKK Group, though, have offices in CIS countries, such as Russia and Kazakhstan. Thus, the company refuted Uzbek medias reports on YKK Groups alleged plans to open its office in Uzbekistan. Strangely, the announcement was first made by the press service of the Uztekstilprom (Uzbekistan Textile Industry) Association on July 9. The association asserted that it hosted a meeting with the delegation of the Japanese YKK Group led by the head of the Central Asian office of the company Yasuhiro Yamashita. Allegedly, the sides discussed prospects for establishing bilateral cooperation of Uzbek textile manufacturers with the YKK Group. According to the Uztekstilproms press service, following the meeting, the sides discussed possibility of opening an office of YKK Group in Uzbekistan, as well as creation of a joint venture on production of textile accessories and fittings. Also, the negotiations with manufacturers of sewing and knitted products of Namangan region were being planned to be held during the visit of the Japanese delegation. The YKK Group is a Japanese group of manufacturing companies. As the world's largest zipper manufacturer, it also manufactures other fastening products, architectural products, plastic hardware and industrial machinery. YKK produces fasteners and architectural products at 109 YKK facilities in 71 countries worldwide. YKK Groups Central Asian office is currently located in Kazakshtan. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @FDolukhanov Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Ali Mustafayev - Trend: Azerbaijan plans to increase its exports to Russia by the end of 2018, trade representative of Azerbaijan to Russia Ruslan Aliyev told Trend. "The main share in the increase in exports will fall on fruits and vegetables (persimmon, hazelnuts, tomatoes, potatoes), jet kerosene, cotton, aluminum and others," Aliyev said. He also noted that it is planned to open new wine houses of Azerbaijan in Russia in the near future. "In particular, wine houses are planned to be opened in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Astrakhan and Yekaterinburg," Aliyev said. The products worth $349.23 million were exported from Azerbaijan to Russia from January to June 2018, which is 5.76 percent more than in 1H2017. The volume of imports from Russia, in turn, amounted to $788.21 million, which is 0.29 percent more than in the first six months of 2017. Russia has been included in the list of Azerbaijan's five largest trade partners in January-June 2018 with the volume of trade turnover of $ 1.14 billion (8.54 percent of the total volume of trade turnover). In addition to Russia, this list includes Italy with a trade turnover of $2.07 billion and a specific weight of 15.52 percent, Turkey-$1.41 billion (10.61 percent), Israel $723.01 million (5.43 percent) and Germany $665.05 million (4.99 percent). Follow the author on Twitter: @Ali_Mustafayev Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: The MIRATEC company has presented the project of relocation of the Sergeli automotive market in Tashkent, UzDaily.uz reported referring to the Tashkent city administration. The plan was prsented to the Head of the capital city administration Jahangir Artykkhojaev. The company proposes to create, within the framework of the project, a new car market on a new site according to modern standards and criteria. Director of the company Dilshodkhon Mansurknonov noted that, the main investor of the project, the MIRATEC company plans to implement this project in cooperation with investors from South Korea. The investor should provide information on the financing of the project in the near future. It was reported earlier that, the "Sergeli" car market can move to the Yukorichirchik district of Tashkent region. The relocation of the car market from the Sergeli district of Tashkent to a district of the capital region is conditioned by the inconveniences which it creates for residents, in particular the traffic jams. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: The Tashkent city administration intends to create a new agency a Single center for the assistance to investors in the development of new projects, Podrobno.uz reported. "The city administration is open to cooperation with interested persons and companies in order to develop public-private partnership. A single center for assistance to investors in the development of new projects will be established under the city administration. All questions concerning the acquisition of permits, the allocation of land plots for construction, as well as controversial issues with the district utility services will be considered as soon as possible, and appropriate measures will be taken to address them without unnecessary bureaucracy," the city administration noted. All projects for investment and the land plots allocated for the construction will be openly exhibited in the form of lots. Each investor will be able to choose a particular project and invest money in it. In addition, one of the main principles of public-private partnership in the field of investment will be social orientation, emphasis on the urban beautification, expansion in the number of parks and green areas. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: The Moody's international ratings agency has withdrawn all ratings of the largest operator of freight railcar fleet of Kazakhstan, Kaztemirtrans JSC, the agency said in a statement July 23. Moody's decided to withdraw the ratings for its own business reasons, the agency said in the statement. The agency reminds that earlier Kaztemirtrans JSC had a corporate family rating of Ba1 and probability of default of Ba1-PD. The ratings had a stable outlook. The baseline credit appraisal (BCA) of Kaztemirtrans JSC was b2. Kaztemirtrans JSC is a subsidiary of the railway operator Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ) NC JSC. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Azad Hasanli Trend: Azerbaijans trade house has opened in Riga, the capital of Latvia, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Economy said in a message July 23. An Azerbaijani delegation, led by Deputy Minister of Economy Sahib Mammadov, attended the opening ceremony. The trade house will help promote products under the "Made in Azerbaijan" brand in the Latvian market, support the export of Azerbaijani products and their sale in Latvia. An exhibition of Azerbaijani products has also been organized in the trade house. Among them are wine products, cognacs, vodka, tea, juices, compotes and other products by Azerbaijani producers, including vegetable oils, rice, fruits and vegetables, textile, cosmetic, industrial products, etc. Delivering a speech at the ceremony, Mammadov stressed that the opening of the trade house testifies to the importance that the two countries' presidents attach to the development of trade and economic ties. Mammadov added that the relations between Azerbaijan and Latvia are developing successfully and the opening ceremony of the trade house will be an impetus for further development. He added that Azerbaijans investments to Latvia amounted to $164 million, while Latvias investments to Azerbaijan were $84 million. Forty companies with Latvian share operate in Azerbaijan. During the event, Azerbaijans Kaslar and Bina Aqro companies signed memorandums of understanding with Latvian companies implying the export of products to Latvia. According to the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee, trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Latvia amounted to $15.1 million in January-June 2018. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @AzadHasanli Baku, Azerbaijan By Ali Mustafayev - Trend: Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR is interested in gas distribution in Bulgaria, Director of SOCAR Balkan company Murad Heydarov told Trend July 13. Back in 2015, the Bulgarian government presented a set of projects on energy cooperation to Azerbaijan. In particular, the Azerbaijani side was invited to participate in the construction of gas filling stations, invest in the construction of oil and gas storage facilities, oil refineries. The sphere of SOCARs interests in Bulgaria includes several potential projects, however the distribution of gas is currently on the agenda, Heydarov said. The company is exploring opportunities to invest in Bulgarias gas distribution network. Earlier, SOCAR confirmed its intention to invest in the development of Bulgarias gas distribution network. SOCARs interest in ensuring gas supply of Bulgarian cities was expressed during a meeting of Bulgarias Prime Minister Boyko Borissov with Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev in January. SOCAR has already successfully invested in this sector in Georgia and can use this experience in Bulgaria as well. SOCAR representatives set before the Bulgarian experts from the Energy Ministry a number of issues related to legislation on gas distribution, subsidies for households, the choice of natural gas as a source of energy, competitive advantages of gas over other sources. The meeting in the Commission for Regulation of Energy and Water Supply will discuss details of the regulatory framework and licensing of gas distribution companies. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Ali_Mustafayev_ Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Huseyn Veliyev - Trend: Duties on registration of IMEI codes of mobile phones will be revised in Azerbaijan, a source in the telecommunication market of the country told Trend. The source told Trend that, the work in this direction intensified after the relevant decree of the head of state on amendments to the law "on state duty". "This refers to the application of a differentiated method of registration of mobile phones. The relevant agency of the country was instructed to conduct research on this method. We believe that by the end of the year the results of the research will be announced," the source said. The differentiated method of mobile phone registration involves the classification of duties by mobile phones of high, medium and low price segment, which will allow to determine a fixed duty for mobile phones depending on their cost and model. For example, the duty on expensive iPhone models will be different from the duty on phones of cheaper price segment. "It is possible that the process of managing the differentiation will be more difficult, but it can be done. The only confusing thing is that the tariffs will be updated annually. As you know, new phones appear on the market during the year, and it is still unknown how they will be subjected to duties. Although it is possible, for example, to apply a system of categorization, that is, to define several categories and, accordingly, to add a particular phone model to them and then regulate the tariff for duty, depending on how the price changes on the market. For example, the cost of iPhone 7 is reduced after release of iPhone X. Accordingly, this model can be lowered by two categories. However, this is only a vision of how this process can be regulated," the source said. This issue is a subject of discussion yet, and if it is decided to apply it in practice, as the source said earlier, it can be implemented technically, using the advantages of the system of registration of IMEI codes of mobile phones, which allow for determining the models and parameters of mobile devices. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @h_veliyev Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: The capital of Uzbekistan will host today a regular meeting of the Working group on security in the format of C5+1 (Central Asia and the United States), "Podrobno.uz" reported. A regular meeting of the Working group on security in the Central Asian countries US cooperation format (C5+1) will be held in Tashkent on July 23. "Representatives of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and the United States will discuss topical issues of regional security, the fight against terrorism and countering violent extremism," the press service of the foreign Ministry stated. Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Washington could abuse the partnership in the C5+1 format. "We have nothing against our Central Asian neighbors having the widest possible range of external partners. We proceed from the assumption that, the obligations that exist between us will be fully respected despite these relations. However, we are hearing about the desire of the US to abuse this format and to promote ideas that are relevant to what was called the project of Greater Central Asia under the previous administrations," Lavrov said. The official noted that, the essence of this project was to turn around to the south all projects involving the Central Asian countries in order to exclude the participation of the Russian Federation in those projects. "I am sure that if this is the case and if such plans are to be promoted by our American colleagues at meetings with Central Asian friends, they will all see the inferiority of such attempts, which are actually dictated not by the interests of economic development, but by pure geopolitics," Lavrov said. Central Asian countries and the United States established the C5+1 cooperation format in 2015 to discuss regional issues. Tehran, Iran, July 23 By A. Shirazi- Trend Hadi Haghshenas, the deputy at the Ports and Maritime Organization, said the strategic port of Chabahar in southeastern Iran is ready to transit goods from India to Afghanistan. With the implementation of the first phase of Chabahar port, six million tons of goods will be transshipped from India port to Chabahar and then transited to Afghanistan, Haghshenas said, IRIB news agency reported. Chabahar provides India with an easier land-sea route to Afghanistan. In November, India sent its first cargo of wheat to Afghanistan through Chabahar in what appeared to be a run dry of a multi-modal connectivity route. The cargo was shipped from Indias western port of Kandla, unloaded at Chabahar and eventually taken to Afghanistans Nimroz province by trucks. The ports transport capacity has reached from 2.5 million tons to 8.5 million tons and the major portion of the goods will go to India and Afghanistan, he said. A rail link between Chabahar and Zahedan and thereon to Afghanistan is a crucial part of Indias extra-regional connectivity ambitions over which Tehran, New Delhi and Kabul have signed a basic agreement. Tehran, Iran, July 23 By A. Shirazi - Trend: Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said the European Union has a time limit of 14 days to offer its package of practical proposals to save the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers, also known as JCPOA. There is a deadline for the EU to offer its practical proposals and the date is August 6, Araqchi said, ILNA news agency reported. The package addresses various sectors, including oil, gas, and insurance and banking services, the benefits that we were supposed to receive from the JCPOA full implementation. The senior official further noted that the first round of US sanctions would go into effect in August, followed by ones targeting Iran's oil exports in November. We are in talks with Europe to hammer out an executive mechanism for fulfilling EUs commitments, Araqchi said. Last week, the bloc's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said the 28 countries were doing all they could to save the deal but conceded President Donald Trump's administration could still wreck it. "Today, the (European) Council has endorsed the update of the blocking statute annex on the nuclear deal with Iran," Mogherini told reporters in Brussels at a meeting with EU foreign ministers. She said the European Parliament gave its consent to the statute two weeks ago. The "blocking statute" forbids EU firms from complying with US sanctions, allowing them to recover damages from such penalties and nullifying any foreign court rulings against them. The EU vowed to fight to preserve the Iran nuclear deal after the US withdrawal, one of many points of US-European contention. The blocking statute is due to enter force on August 6, when the first set of US sanctions are due. The second set is due November 4, just before US legislative elections. The move came after the Trump administration rejected an EU call for an exemption from US sanctions on companies operating in Iran. Iranian parliament speaker on Sunday stressed continuation of talks with the European countries to save the nuclear deal reached between Iran and the world powers in July 2015, IRNA reported. 'We will continue the talks,' Ali Larijani said in a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif, foreign ministry officials and Iranian ambassadors to other countries in Tehran. He said in the meantime that the talks with the European countries have not already given a tangible result in the banking and oil fields. Larijani referred to Iran talks with China, Russia, India, Malaysia and Indonesia and described their approach towards Iran as 'positive'. He urged the Iranian diplomats to improve Iran ties with the neighbors by clearing up the misunderstandings. The speaker praised the country's progress in the defense field and noted that as a result of such advances, enemies do not dare to use war rhetoric against Iran. Elsewhere in his remarks, he called for resolution of Syrian crisis through political ways, noting that unrest in the war-torn country can lead to insecurity in the whole region. US President Donald Trump announced on May 8 that Washington would pull out of Iran nuclear deal and re-impose nuclear sanctions on Iran. This is while most world powers, including Russia, China, and the European Union have repeatedly stressed that keeping the deal is in the interest of the world peace and security. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: Iran has threatened that it may target terrorist groups in neighboring countries following a deadly attack on a rural military base on border with Iraq, which left 11 killed. Iran's Deputy Interior Minister for Security Affairs Hossein Zolfaghari told Tasnim on July 23 that if the countries, which host terrorist bases, do not deal with them, Iran will target the bases. On July 21, members of PJAK terrorist group, an offshoot of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), attacked a para-military Basij base in border areas with Iraq near the Marivan city, Kurdistan Province, which left 11 killed and eight injured. Zolfaghari referred to attacks in the countrys northwestern and southeastern border areas, saying that bases of the terrorist groups are "in some neighboring countries". The Iranian official added that Tehran has requested the authorities of these countries to deal with the terrorists. We have said to the authorities of the countries that if they do not take action, we will have to target the bases of the terrorists at the border areas to ensure the security of our country, Zolfaghari said. He further claimed that intelligence services of certain countries are involved in the recent incidents, supporting the terrorist groups, in order to create insecurity. Irans northwest has repeatedly witnessed attacks by terrorist groups, including members of PJAK. A spokesman with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said yesterday that the terrorist groups and the foreign intelligence services supporting them will be punished severely, and the IRGC will take revenge of the attack. The security forces are ready to give crushing response to terrorists, who aim to insecure the border regions, he added. Earlier in 2014, Iran warned that if Pakistan does not take action against the Baluchi rebels, the Islamic Republic's forces may enter the neighboring country's territory. In recent years, several armed attacks were carried out on the local police offices by extremist groups, who claim they are fighting against the Iranian government for protection of Sunni residents. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 Trend: An earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale left several people injured in south eastern Iranian western province of Kerman last night. The tremors occurred at 1:09 local time (UTC +4:30) on July 23, according to a report from the seismography center affiliated with Tehran University Geophysics Institute, Iran's state-run IRINN TV reported. The earthquake's epicenter was located at a depth of 10 kilometers underground near the village of Sirch, in Kermans Shahdad county. Head of Kerman provinces Emergency Medical Center Mohammad Saberi said that 79 people have been injured in the quake. Reza Fallah, head of the provincial Red Crescent Society, said that five rescue teams have been sent to the region. Yesterday two strong earthquakes jolted Irans western and southern areas, leaving at least 146 people injured. Iran sits astride several major faults in the earth's crust and is prone to frequent earthquakes, many of which have been devastating. A 7.2 magnitude earthquake jolted the Kermanshah province last November killing about 600 people, leaving even more injured. The earthquake destroyed a big number of residential units in the urban and rural areas of the province. The parliament of Georgia approved a law on an accumulative pension system yesterday, which is part of a larger pension reform initiated by the Georgian government, Agenda reports. The government plans to launch a supplementary programme alongside the currently existing universal basic pension which amounts to 180 Gel. The new programme, the launch of which is planned for the end of the year, will be mandatory for legally employed people under 40, meaning they will be enrolled automatically, and voluntary for people above 40 as well as for self-employed citizens. The system will work with 2+2+2 scheme. This means that employees will pay two per cent of their salaries towards their pension, while employers and the government will add another two per cent each. "The government will help the Georgian people save for retirement. The reform also has an important economic effect. It will significantly increase savings in the economy and in doing so create alternative source of financing for the development of the capital market. Georgian business will have access to long-term financing in local currency to make investments, create jobs and support economic growth, Deputy Minister of Economy Ekaterine Mikabadze said yesterday in parliament. The government says the introduction of the supplementary pension programme is extremely important since the existing system has several shortcomings in terms of fairness, effectiveness and fiscal sustainability. Indeed, a number of NGOs and economists argue that the Georgian economy is not ready for such a pension system considering the GDP growth rate and low salaries. China on Monday launched an anti-dumping probe into stainless steel imports worth $1.3 billion, including from a privately owned Chinese mill with operations offshore, after complaints that a flood of product has damaged the local industry, Reuters reports. The Commerce Ministry said on Monday the investigation will target imports of stainless steel billet and hot-rolled stainless steel sheet and plate from the European Union, Japan, South Korea and Indonesia, which nearly tripled last year. The move follows a complaint by Shanxi Taigang Stainless Steel, with backing from four other state-owned mills including Baosteels stainless steel division, which blamed cheap imports on falling prices, it said. China makes and consumes around half of the worlds stainless steel, which is used to protect against corrosion in buildings, transportation and packaging. While the complaint targets eight foreign producers, it also lists a number Chinese companies, including the Indonesian unit of one of the worlds top producers, Tsingshan Stainless Steel, and 19 traders who import product. Some private Chinese companies have opened or started building plants in Indonesia in recent years, drawing on its plentiful nickel resources and lower-cost of production. A significant portion of the new production has been sold in China, analysts say. The rapid increase in imports damaged the Chinese market, according to the complaint filed by Shanxi Taigang and released with the commerce ministry document. Almost two-thirds of Chinas stainless imports came from Indonesia last year, up from 5 percent in 2016 and zero in 2015, the complaint said. That rose to as high as 86 percent in the first quarter, it said. Imported prices of the stainless steel products fell 23 percent to $1,867 a ton in 2017 from $2,436 a year earlier. If we allow these products to continue to enter the Chinese market with low prices and take more market share, sales of Chinas domestic products will continue to decrease, the complaint said. Peter Peng, senior consultant at CRU in Beijing, said the investigation was totally driven by an industrial dispute between SOEs (state-owned enterprises) and the fast-growing private mills. Due to their cheap production costs, its more competitive than Chinese products, he said. Tsingshan opened a mill there last year with annual capacity of 3 million tonnes while Delong Holdings plans to start production there next year. Anti-dumping duties would force mills to find new markets for their product, adding to a global glut, Peng said. The European companies targeted by the probe include Spains Acerinox, Finlands Outokumpu Oyj and Luxembourg-based Aperam. Among the Japanese companies are Nisshin Steel Co Ltd, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp and JFE Steel Corp. Indonesias PT Jindal Stainless and South Korean steelmaker Posco are also listed. China imported 703,000 tonnes of those products in 2017, up almost 200 percent from a year earlier, with 98 percent coming from the regions targeted by the investigation. Shanxi Taigang accounts for 25-35 percent of Chinas stainless production. Eleven taxi drivers have been shot dead after attending a funeral in South Africa, News Sky reported. Four other people were critically injured after gunmen targeted a minibus carrying the group on Saturday evening. The drivers, who were members of the Gauteng taxi association, had attended the funeral of a colleague and were returning to Johannesburg when they were ambushed. The attack happened between the towns of Colenso and Weenen in the east of the country, and the victims were from Gauteng province. Detectives are investigating possible motives for the shooting. "There were 11 fatalities and four were seriously injured and are in hospital," a police spokesman said. "There has been a lot of taxi violence in the area but we are still investigating who the perpetrators were." US President Donald Trump who earlier agreed more than once with the conclusions by the US intelligence community about Russias alleged meddling in the 2016 presidential election in the United States once again described them as "a big hoax", TASS reports. "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!" he tweeted on Sunday. The current US president and his aides have repeatedly rejected suspicions of any unlawful contacts with Russian officials during the election campaign. Moscow has likewise dismissed allegations about attempts to influence the US elections as groundless on numerous occasions. Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Some 40 terrorists were killed in Turkey last week as a part of operations against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Turkey said in a statement July 23. Operations were conducted in the eastern provinces of the country. Over 100 firearms and hand grenades were also seized during the operations. The conflict between Turkey and the PKK, which demands the creation of an independent Kurdish state, has lasted more than 25 years, claiming more than 40,000 lives. The PKK is recognized as a terrorist organization by the UN and the EU. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 11:55 | All, Feature Princess Mako, the eldest granddaughter of Japanese Emperor Akihito, visited Sunday a Sao Paulo museum on immigration during her visit to Brazil to mark the 110th anniversary of the first arrival of Japanese in the Latin American country. An estimated 250,000 Japanese have immigrated to Brazil since the first 781 people left the port city of Kobe for the country in 1908 under a Japanese government policy at the time to encourage emigration in the wake of an economic downturn and growing population. Sao Paulo is the home to the largest Japanese overseas community. "They must have faced great difficulties," said the princess at the Immigration Museum after seeing photographs, a replica of immigrant housing and a map indicating where Japanese people settled among other items. Other sites she visited Sunday included the Japan House, a hub of a Japanese government project to promote Japanese culture abroad, as well as Promissao, a municipality built by the immigrants. During her fourth official trip aboard starting Wednesday, the 26-year-old princess is scheduled to visit 14 Brazilian cities in five states before returning home on July 31. Her previous official duties outside Japan were visits to El Salvador and Honduras in December 2015, Paraguay in September 2016 and Bhutan in June 2017. By Takeshi Tsuchiya, KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 07:54 | Arts, Feature A daughter of Peter Townsend, a former equerry to Britain's King George VI, will visit Nagasaki next month to promote the Aug. 9 release of a reprint of his nonfiction piece depicting the pain and suffering of a survivor of the 1945 atomic bombing of the southwestern Japan city. Isabelle Townsend, 57, a model who lives on the outskirts of Paris, is the eldest daughter of the late Battle of Britain fighter pilot who released "The Postman of Nagasaki" in 1984 based on several weeks of research and interviews in Nagasaki two years earlier. The book, released in English as well as French in a shorter version, depicts the life of his friend Sumiteru Taniguchi, a former co-chairman of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations and a Japanese reprint will be published on the 73rd anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing. "He was angry about civilians being hurt, he judged the war from a humanitarian point of view," Isabelle Townsend said, adding her father had suffered for years from nightmares, having lived experienced the war as a fighter pilot. (Isabelle Townsend) She also said she had found audio tapes in which her father describes details about Nagasaki, such as the trees, flowers and streets, during his stay. The recordings have been shared with a team in Nagasaki making a documentary film based on her father's book. "It's to create a chain, sort of a peace chain. Taniguchi-san won't be forgotten," she said, adding that her father "would have loved" the project. The French version of Townsend's book was translated into Japanese in 1985 and is now out of print. It appeared in a high school textbook. The Japanese version, to be released on Aug. 9, will be the first full translation of the original English version. Yoshihiro Saito, a 71-year-old graphic designer is leading the reprint project amid growing concern that the stories of atomic bomb survivors may be forgotten. The average age of the survivors topped 82 as of March 2018, according to the Japanese government. "I'd like the book to be passed from generation to generation," Saito said, adding the book will be priced at 809 yen, a figure derived from "Aug. 9." It will be given away free to high school students in Nagasaki. Taniguchi was a 16-year-old postman when he was exposed to the bomb while delivering mail on a red bicycle. While he lingered between life and death in hospital, the U.S military took pictures of him lying on his stomach. Taniguchi became a prominent peace activist who led the movement to eliminate nuclear weapons until his death in August 2017. (Sumiteru Taniguchi) Peter Townsend, known for his romance with the late Princess Margaret, met Taniguchi during his visit to Nagasaki as a journalist in 1982. Townsend described Taniguchi's life before and after the tragedy of the atomic bombing as well as people's lives and views in Nagasaki before and after the world's second nuclear attack. In the book Townsend criticized the indiscriminate slaughter of civilians in the atomic bombing and the long-lasting damage to human health from the radiation emitted. He also described extensively a wide range of situations at the end of the war, such as what made then U.S. President Harry Truman's administration decide to use atomic bombs against Japan, mentioning the hesitation among generals and scientists, Japanese military chiefs' resistance to capitulation and the mistreatment of Allied prisoners of war. (Peter Townsend) [Supplied photo] By Keiji Hirano, KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 10:22 | Arts, All Masako Sakata, an award-winning Japanese documentary film director, took the long route to answer a gnawing question: how is that Japan is still wedded to atomic power while Germany decided to phase out its nuclear plants by 2022 in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster? In her latest film "Morgen" (the German word for "tomorrow"), set for release this fall in Tokyo, Sakata documents how Germany decided to switch to alternative energy sources in 2011, including natural gas, wind and solar power. The decision came partly in response to Japan's Fukushima nuclear crisis triggered by a devastating earthquake and tsunami. "I wondered why Germany could do this, but Japan couldn't," Sakata said in a recent interview with Kyodo News. [Photo courtesy of Masako Sakata] In the film, Sakata says, "Japan and Germany have a common history -- aggression during World War II and rapid economic growth since their defeat. But they have followed different paths in pursuing how their society should be." Starting the new project in 2015, she stayed in several municipalities in Germany to learn how they meet energy demands without depending on nuclear power. In one small village, for example, many houses have solar panels on their roofs, and a water-wheel satisfies electricity demands for around 50 households. A guesthouse manager in the village said in the film he has introduced a boiler to burn woodchips from a nearby forest to secure air heating and hot-water supply. He explained that the system cost "more than buying a luxurious car" but that it is "more important to maintain a favorable environment than pursuing economic benefits." A civic group in another town has founded its own utility company by seeking capital investors so it can buy out power lines from a major utility to supply electricity generated only from natural energy, such as solar power, to clients. The move came after the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe spread radioactive contamination through wide areas of Europe in 1986. "While authorities said nuclear disasters like Chernobyl would never happen in advanced nations with stable technologies, such as Germany and Japan, we realized we had to do it by ourselves if we wanted to phase out nuclear power," one of the founders of the utility said in the film. "Thus, we launched a new organization and obtained the power lines. We would like to create a world without nuclear power plants and fossil fuel as soon as possible," the person said. In contrast, Japan is reluctant to phase out nuclear energy and has resumed some nuclear plants, even though the triple meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi complex showed how nuclear disasters can break out even in advanced nations, the film argues. In shooting the film over three years, Sakata interviewed various people, including writers, religious leaders and affiliates or members of the Green Party of Germany, learning how a 1968 worldwide student protest against social injustices triggered the rise of civil movements in Germany. Those involved in the 1968 uprising joined hands with farmers and housewives in the 1970s to promote campaigns against nuclear power plant construction in their communities. While the eco-friendly energy policies have achieved some progress in Germany, a major problem still remains unsolved: how to dispose of nuclear waste? According to the film, 99 percent of radioactive waste in Germany has nowhere to go at present, and people are now working hard on the disposal issue, saying they should not impose it on future generations. Sakata started her career as a documentary filmmaker when she released in 2007 "Agent Orange -- A Personal Requiem" focusing on the damage caused by Agent Orange during the Vietnam War, which was followed by "Living the Silent Spring" in 2011, about the danger chemical agents pose to humanity. She created her third film, "Journey without End," in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, and encountered Matashichi Oishi, a former crew member of the Fukuryu Maru No. 5, a Japanese tuna fishing boat affected by the March 1954 U.S. hydrogen bomb test on Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific. (File photo of Oishi and the Fukuryu Maru No. 5 in Tokyo in April 2015) She traveled from the Marshall Islands to Kazakhstan, where the Soviet Union conducted nuclear tests, and France's Cape de la Hague, home to a spent nuclear fuel reprocessing plant. "When the Bikini incident happened, all of us should have learned more about nuclear energy. Then there would not have been 54 nuclear reactors built in Japan," Oishi said in the third film. Sakata has continued visits to the Marshall Islands since completing Morgen to work on a fifth film, in which she aims to shed light on those who lost their homeland due to contamination from the series of U.S. atomic and hydrogen bomb tests. "Some Marshall Islanders have not been able to return to their homeland, and their fate is similar with that of those who left Fukushima following the 2011 disaster," Sakata told Kyodo. "I think what has happened on the Marshall Islands points to the future of human beings." Morgen will be screened from Oct. 6 to 14 at Cinema House Otsuka in Tokyo, and its English version has also been completed. KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 08:39 | All, World Japan's Finance Minister Taro Aso said Sunday he made clear to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin that Tokyo opposes the automobile tariffs under consideration by Washington. Aso told reporters he "communicated Japan's stance" to his U.S. counterpart during bilateral talks on the sidelines of a meeting of Group of 20 finance leaders in Buenos Aires. (Taro Aso (L) and Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda meet the press after the G-20 meeting) In May, U.S. President Donald Trump ordered an investigation into whether imports of automobiles and auto parts pose a "national security" threat, seen as a prelude to imposing steep tariffs. Trump used a similar logic earlier this year to justify tariffs on steel and aluminum under Section 232 of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act. China is the main target of those tariffs, but U.S. allies such as the European Union and Japan have also been subjected to them. Aso said he also pushed Mnuchin for exemption from the metals tariffs, but declined to say what response he got. Mnuchin said on Twitter the two discussed "trade, investment and economic growth." Aso, who doubles as deputy prime minister, also called on Trump's administration to exempt Japanese banks from sanctions on financial institutions that have dealings with Iran, Japanese officials said. Related coverage: G-20 finance chiefs warn of increased threat from trade tensions G-20 finance chiefs share concerns over escalating trade friction Trump's proposed duties on imported cars draw ire from Japan, EU, Canada KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 17:58 | All, Urgent, World Russian authorities confiscated satellite-based mobile phones from Japanese officials when they were entering a Russian-controlled disputed island, bringing a strong rebuke from Tokyo. The authorities seized the phones on Sunday from Japanese officials and press at an airport on Kunashiri, one of the Russian-administered, Japan-claimed islets off Hokkaido's east coast, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said Monday. The Japanese government claims Russia has no authority to do so on an island that Japan maintains is an inherent part of its territory. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at a press conference that Japan has lodged a protest with Russia, saying it was "extremely regrettable." The officials and press were part of a group of former residents of Kunashiri and their families visiting their ancestors' graves there. A total of 70 Japanese people went on a two-day tour to Kunashiri and Etorofu, another disputed islet, and returned to an airport on Hokkaido on Monday. The two islands along with Shikotan and the Habomai islet group were seized by the former Soviet Union at the end of World War II in August 1945. The dispute over the islands remains a long-standing issue that has prevented Tokyo and Moscow from concluding a postwar peace treaty. Japan is seeking to settle the issue by accelerating planned joint economic activities on the islets called the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia, as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in 2016 to start negotiations over the projects. The tour marked the second trip by air after an agreement last year to reduce the burden on the aging former Japanese residents of the disputed islands. Before that, there had only been trips by chartered ships to the islands. (Aerial photo of Kunashiri) KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 21:59 | All, World The Defense Ministry has newly estimated that the price tag of two land-based missile batteries Japan aims to deploy could cost around 400 billion yen ($3.6 billion), double the initial quotation, a government source said Monday. If the prices of interceptor missiles to be mounted on the batteries and other costs are included, the total costs of the two Aegis Ashore units could rise to nearly 600 billion yen, raising questions over the necessity for such an expensive system amid easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula. (Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Inodera visits a test complex of the land-based Aegis Ashore missile defense system on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in January 2018) The government is pushing to install the U.S.-developed Aegis Ashore system in Akita and Yamaguchi prefectures to strengthen Japan's defenses against potential threats from North Korean nuclear weapons or missiles, aiming to bring them into operation in fiscal 2023. Two batteries are believed to be sufficient to cover Japan's entire territory. The estimate has ballooned as the ministry mulls introducing Lockheed Martin Corp.'s cutting-edge SSR radar as a key component of the missile shield system, which turned out to be more expensive than the radar currently deployed on the Maritime Self-Defense Force's Aegis destroyers, the source said. Costs for building facilities at host sites for the Aegis Ashore system are also expected to rise, while the SM-3 Block 2A interceptor missiles co-developed by Japan and the United States are set to carry a price tag of around 4 billion yen each, further pushing up the total expenses, the source said. The government decided at a Cabinet meeting in December last year to introduce the land-based missile defense system. At the time Japan felt an increasing need to reinforce its missile shield, with North Korea last year test-firing around 20 ballistic missiles, two of which flew over Japanese territory. Since the historic U.S.-North Korea summit on June 12, tensions on the Korean Peninsula have eased. But the Defense Ministry says it will continue to seek the deployment of the Aegis Ashore system, saying that the threat posed by North Korea remains. The plan has triggered concern among local residents of Akita and Yamaguchi prefectures as they fear that the missile shields could become new targets of terrorism as they will be deployed on stationary sites. They also voiced worries that the system's radar, which emits strong radio waves, could be harmful to human health. KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 14:45 | All, Feature Japanese casual clothing retailer G.U. Co. will open in September its first store in South Korea, its fourth overseas market, following the success of renowned sister brand Uniqlo with over 180 outlets in the country. G.U., a unit of Japan's leading casual wear chain operator Fast Retailing Co., plans to launch an online app for sale of low-priced brand products on Aug. 1 and an online retail site on Sept. 1, ahead of a brick-and-mortar shop with a floor space of about 1,400 square meters opening in Seoul on Sept. 14, according to the Japanese company. [NNA/Kyodo] The G.U. brand is known for its big hit at home, 990 yen ($8.9) jeans, achieving sharp growth in sales since its launch in 2006. It has already entered China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Men's, women's and kids' clothing will be available at the planned outlet in the first basement in the Lotte World Mall in the South Korean capital's southern district of Jamsil, which also houses a Uniqlo shop on the first and second floors. G.U. CEO Yunoki Osamu said at a press conference in Seoul last week that "South Korea is very fashion-conscious, and entering the country is an inevitable step for us." He declined to comment on a sales target and store network expansion plan. FRL Korea Co., a joint venture between Fast Retailing and Lotte Shopping Co., a local retail outlet operator, will run the G.U. shop. Since 2005, the local arm, 51 percent owned by Fast Retailing, has increased the number of Uniqlo brand shops to 186 at the end of May this year. It posted an operating profit of 176.5 billion won ($156 million) in the year to August 2017, up 64.5 percent from the previous year, on sales of 1.24 trillion won, up 4.7 percent, according to its financial statements. (NNA/Kyodo) KYODO NEWS - Jul 23, 2018 - 14:08 | All, Feature A government-led campaign began Monday to encourage more companies to introduce telework, with hopes that letting employees work away from the office could help ease traffic congestion during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics. Around 2,000 companies and organizations are expected to join the "Telework Days" promotion, which will run through Friday. But experts say many companies remain reluctant to spend on video teleconference systems and other necessary infrastructure. The government launched the initiative last year, joined by some 950 entities. It then designated July 24 -- the date on which the 2020 Games will open -- as Telework Day. (Yuko Horio) Japan Airlines Co. is among the companies taking part in this year's campaign. Yuko Horio, who heads the airline's corporate brand division, attended an in-house meeting using a video telephone from her home in Tokyo after sending her three children out for the day. "Usually I come home late. But by using telework, it is easier to secure time for communication with my children," said Horio, 48. Ricoh Co. expanded its telework system in April to cover all of its 8,000 employees, of whom more than 1,500 currently use it. The printer and camera maker had previously allowed employees who need to take care of children or elderly parents to work from home. Mobile carrier KDDI Corp. has started allowing employees to work at a shared office space. A government survey showed, however, that only 13.9 percent of companies with 100 or more employees introduced telework in 2017, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. "Costs for initial investment such as on video telephones have become a bottleneck," said Mika Togashi, secretary general of the Japan Telework Association. During the Olympics, around 8 million people are expected to move around and between the areas where venues, the athletes' village and press center are located, and 2.4 million during the Paralympics, according to the government. The initiative to promote telework also comes as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is pushing for flexible workstyles to address the nation's chronically long working hours and improve productivity amid the shortage of labor. In the past few days, several Congress leaders had made comments welcoming Cherian back to the party. Annals of Internal Medicine Tip Sheet Below please find summaries of new articles that will be published in the next issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. The summaries are not intended to substitute for the full articles as a source of information. 1. American's view of marijuana use is more favorable than existing evidence supports Commercialization likely to blame for inaccurate public perceptions Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-0810 URLs go live when the embargo lifts A nationally representative survey of U.S. adults suggests that Americans' view of marijuana use is more favorable than existing evidence supports. Aggressive commercialization of marijuana is likely to blame, according to researchers. The findings are published in Annals of Internal Medicine. Despite insufficient evidence regarding its risks and benefits, marijuana is increasingly available and aggressively marketed to the public. Whereas the marketing of tobacco and alcohol to consumers is heavily regulated, the promotion of marijuana products has no such constraints. As such, understanding how the public perceives marijuana use is important. Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco and the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center conducted a probability-based online survey of 16,280 U.S. adults to evaluate public perceptions regarding the health benefits and risks of marijuana use. The researchers found that U.S. adults ascribe many benefits to marijuana that are not supported by existing evidence. Over a third of respondents believe that smoking marijuana prevents health problems, such as pain or multiple sclerosis. They also believe that marijuana is beneficial in treating insomnia, depression, and anxiety, for which efficacy and safety have not been established and possible harms may exist. In addition, a sizable group of survey participants responded that marijuana has no risk of addiction potential and also suggested that secondhand smoke from marijuana is safer than secondhand smoke from tobacco, despite no evidence to support those beliefs. According to the researchers, the gaps in understanding of the health effects and safety of marijuana use are extensive, and the public may be underestimating its long-term risks. These national data underscore the need to invest in further research to better understand both the health effects of marijuana use and the public health investment necessary to better communicate potential health risks to the public. Media contact: For an embargoed PDF, please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. To interview the lead author, Salomeh Keyhani, MD, MPH, please contact her directly at salomeh.keyhani@ucsf.edu. 2. Walmart drug program offers savings over Medicare program for generic cardiovascular medications Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-0965 URLs go live when the embargo lifts A substantial proportion of Medicare Prescription Drug Programs (PDP) required patients to spend more out of pocket than Walmart's Generic Drug Discount Program (GDDP) for commonly used generic medications. Findings from a brief research report are published in Annals of Internal Medicine. To control the rising cost of prescription drugs, health plans are increasingly shifting costs to patients, which could adversely affect patients' medication adherence and subsequent health outcomes. GDDPs, including one from Walmart, sell many commonly used generic medications for $4 per 30-day supply, regardless of insurance status. This type of program could lead to savings for patients. Researchers from Yale School of Medicine compared out-of-pocket costs under several Medicare PDPs versus Walmart's GDDP for 30-day supplies of 27 generic medications used to treat prevalent CVD-related conditions. The analysis involved 1,533 Medicare Advantage PDPs and 622 standalone PDPs and the goal was to see the proportion of plans that required patients to spend more than $4 out of pocket for their medications. Across all medications and tiers, the median proportion of plans that required patients to spend more than $4 out of pocket for covered medications was 21 percent. The median proportion differed significantly between Medicare Advantage PDPs and standalone PDPs. In particular, MA-PDPs consistently required patients to spend more out of pocket than standalone PDPs. According to the researchers, these findings are counterintuitive considering that Medicare Advantage plans are responsible for acute care coverage, outpatient services, and other health care expenses for their beneficiaries and not solely pharmaceutical services like standalone PDPs. Media contact: For an embargoed PDF, please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. To interview the lead author, Joseph S. Ross, MD, MHS, please contact Ziba Kashef at ziba.kashef@yale.edu. 3. VA Mission Act may inadvertently reduce number and quality of veterans' health care choices Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-1539 URLs go live when the embargo lifts De-facto privatization through the Veterans Affairs (VA) Mission Act may inadvertently reduce Veterans' health care choices and diminish quality of care. An Ideas and Opinions piece is published in Annals of Internal Medicine. Recently, Congress passed the VA Mission Act, a new model of Veterans health care delivery based on networks of community providers designed to provide greater choice for Veterans. Under the Mission Act, veterans will be covered whether they receive care at a VA facility or in the private sector. Authors from the University of Arizona College of Medicine explain the trade-offs associated with this new care model. According to the authors, the Mission Act may divert funds from VA facilities, forcing some to cut back or close, which means Veterans could find their healthcare choices reduced. They say that real choice in health care implies that costs, quality and uniformity of care are similar in the private sector compared to the VA. But according to their evaluation, costs may increase and quality could decrease in many circumstances. For example, greater access to private sector health care might come with poorer performance on many process metrics and hither 30-day mortality rates. The lack of performance uniformity and health inequities intrinsic to commercial U.S. health care marketplace means that Veterans will face trade-offs between autonomy, access, and quality. Media contact: For an embargoed PDF or author contact information, please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. To speak with the lead author, Joel Kupfer, MD, please contact him directly at joel.kupfer@va.gov or 203-257-6900. Also new in this issue: Deriving Real-World Insights From Real-World Data: Biostatistics to the Rescue Michael J. Pencina, PhD; Frank W. Rockhold, PhD; and Ralph B. D'Agostino Sr., PhD Ideas and Opinions Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-1093 ### Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) and Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) have both produced tremendous gains for long-term shareholders. Over a three-year period leading up to mid-2015, both of these stocks quadrupled their investors' money. The past three years haven't been total disasters, but Gilead's underperformed the benchmark S&P 500 index by 67% and Celgene's fared slightly worse. Given their performance, you'd think these drugmakers were bleeding money, but they're not. In fact, their operations are generating so much cash for their shareholders right now that we'll need to take a closer look to see which is the better pick right now. Person weighing two options. Image source: Getty Images. The case for Gilead Sciences About a year ago, AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) earned approval for an effective hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment to compete with Gilead's and launched it at a price that caught the market leader off guard. In the first quarter, Gilead's HCV sales plummeted 59%, sparking another sell-off of the stock. With regards to HCV treatment prices, AbbVie and Gilead have been chasing each other to the bottom for a long time. Gilead finished the first quarter on pace to record just $4.2 billion in HCV sales in 2017 from a peak of $19.1 billion in 2015. A recent round of pricing negotiations could allow Gilead to regain its share of the space, but if that fails, a repeat of last year's losses probably wouldn't leave a very large dent in Gilead's income statement now that HCV sales comprise just 21% of total revenue. GILD Revenue (Quarterly) Chart GILD Revenue (Quarterly) data by YCharts. With the hepatitis franchise finally near a bottom, Gilead's top line has a better-than-usual chance to reverse course. Biktarvy, the company's new all-in-one HIV tablet is expected to generate $6 billion in annual sales at its peak. Biktarvy isn't the only high-profile debut that Gilead investors need to watch. Yescarta launched late last year as the second CAR-T therapy to earn approval and initial uptake has been slow. The one-time treatment is an oncologist's dream come true, but end payers aren't nearly as enthusiastic about its $393,000 price tag. Story continues If Yescarta sales do take off, Gilead stock could see a nice bump because it's just the tip of an iceberg. The company has three more CAR-T therapies in clinical trials at the moment and is investing heavily to develop the next-generation of cell-based cancer treatments. Outside of the cancer arena, Gilead also has a leading non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) program that boasts three candidates in mid- to late-stage testing. Many don't know it, but NASH threatens the lives of around 30 million Americans and none have an effective treatment option yet. The case for Celgene Corporation This big biotech followed Gilead's lead and acquired a CAR-T pioneer called Juno Therapeutics for around $9 billion earlier this year and that isn't the only way the company plans to cash in on CAR-T. A pivotal study with Juno's lead candidate completed enrollment in April and another CAR-T candidate partnered with bluebird bio (NASDAQ: BLUE) scored high marks in mid-stage studies last year. Both are trying to repeat earlier performances in larger pivotal trials at the moment, which means Celgene could have two new cancer drugs to market by the end of 2019. Celgene's lead drug, Revlimid racked up $8.2 billion in sales last year and it's expected to hit $9.4 billion this year. Unfortunately for Celgene, its popular multiple myeloma therapy will begin facing generic competition in March 2022. Celgene depends on its flagship multiple myeloma drug for 63% of total revenue, so offsetting the impending losses will be an enormous challenge. Earlier this year, an embarrassing oversight caused the Food and Drug Administration to reject a new drug application for a drug the company is depending on to drive growth in the years ahead. The ensuing crisis of confidence has made this one of the worst healthcare stocks of 2018. In the numbers Investors have been beating up Celgene stock all year because they're concerned the company won't be able to offset Revlimid's impending losses to generic competition several years from now. At recent prices, the stock trades at just 10.0 times this year's earnings expectations, which is far more attractive than the S&P 500 average, which is at 17.6 times estimates. GILD Dividend Chart GILD Dividend data by YCharts. Gilead is a bit more expensive than Celgene at the moment, but at just 12.5 times expected earnings, the stock still looks like a bargain for investors interested in creating a growing stream of income. Gilead started paying a dividend in 2015, which management has been able to crank up while buying back heaps of its own shares at the same time. Celgene doesn't offer a dividend, but it has been taking advantage of a depressed stock price and retiring shares hand over fist. In May, the company set aside another $5 billion that could lower its outstanding share count around 8% further in the near term. A close call Gilead's chronic hepatitis losses are almost at an end, and unlike Celgene, its next lead growth driver is already on pharmacy shelves. If Biktarvy falls flat, Gilead could have trouble hiking its dividend in the years ahead, but its stock seems far less risky over the long run than Celgene's. Right now, that makes it the better buy. More From The Motley Fool Cory Renauer owns shares of Celgene and Gilead Sciences. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Bluebird Bio, Celgene, and Gilead Sciences. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Pakistan's Supreme Court said it had launched an investigation into allegations made by a judge that the country's powerful army was manipulating the judiciary ahead of the July 25 national elections. Jailed former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) ruling party has alleged prepoll rigging and accused the army of influencing the judiciary to deny it a second term. Sharif was sentenced to 10 years in prison on corruption charges in absentia. He was arrested after returning to Pakistan on July 13 and has appealed his sentence. Islamabad High Court judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui accused the army's spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI), of interfering in legal cases. "The ISI is fully involved in trying to manipulate the judicial proceedings," Siddiqui said in a speech to lawyers on July 21, adding the agency had told the court not to release Sharif until after the elections. Sharif has been a vocal critic of the army, which has an oversized role in Pakistans domestic and foreign affairs. Sharif was dismissed from office by the Supreme Court in July 2017 for allegedly concealing assets abroad and other corruption allegations. He denies any wrongdoing. Allies of the three-time prime minister, who was toppled in a military coup in 1999, have called the proceedings a political vendetta and suggested the army might be behind it. Based on reporting by Reuters and dpa The UN Security Council has unanimously condemned the use of violence by the Taliban and the Islamic State (IS) group to disrupt Afghanistan's elections. The Council, in a statement issued a day after 23 people were killed in a suicide bombing in Kabul on July 22, said it "condemns in the strongest terms those who resort to violence to obstruct the electoral process, including the Taliban and ISlL (Da'esh) affiliates," it said, referring to IS by its alternate and Arabic acronyms. It hailed the "exceptional courage displayed by the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces in their leading role in securing their country." The July 22 bombing near the Kabul International Airport was claimed by the IS group. It followed the return from exile of Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum. The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan says the first half of 2018 was the deadliest yet with 1,700 civilians killed. More than half of those victims were killed in attacks attributed to the IS. Some 8.9 million Afghans, including more than three million women, are registered to vote in parliamentary and local elections on October 20 and presidential elections in 2019. The Council statement highlighted "the importance of developing sustainable democratic institutions in Afghanistan based on inclusive, transparent and credible elections." It also noted "the need to promote the full and safe participation of women as well as members of minority groups, including ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, both as voters and candidates." Dostum, a powerful former warlord turned politician, narrowly escaped the attack as he returned home from Turkey. Officials said he had left the airport in a motorcade only minutes before the blast struck at the entrance of the airport, where hundreds of his supporters had gathered to welcome him. Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said the explosion was "caused by a suicide attacker on foot." Dostum returned to Kabul after more than a year in self-imposed exile in Turkey amid claims that he had ordered his men to abduct, beat, and rape a political rival last year. Dostum is a controversial figure who has been accused of serious human rights violations, including the deaths of hundreds of Taliban prisoners in 2001 in the custody of his militia forces. With reporting by RFE/RL's Afghan Service, AP, and AFP The ultimate food war between Ghana and Nigeria is not over, because its a never-ending family feud. If you care to know, Ghana and Nigeria have been fighting over whose jollof rice tastes better for many years. The war, which happens mostly on micro-blogging site, Twitter has blown up, getting international media coverage from the likes of BBC, CNN, etc. Several celebrities from both countries have waded in on the debate but yet to conclude on whose jollof rice tastes the best. The latest celebrity to jump on the debate is Peter Okoye of the defunct Nigerian Afro-pop group, P-Square. Peter Okoye, whose new stage name is Mr P (after going solo), is currently in Ghana for Sarkodie and Tracys wedding. He was spotted at their white wedding Saturday, July 21 to support the BET Award-winning rapper. READ MORE: Guest of honour? Sarkodie hangs out with Peter Okoye of P-Square ahead of wedding But, it seems he had a taste of Ghana jollof prior to or after the wedding (we cant actually tell when it happened). He shared a video on his Snap tasting Ghanaian jollof rice and passed his verdict after. So, I am here in Ghana. I know this jollof has been causing problems. Let me taste it now and compare with Nigerian jollof [rice], he said before tasting. Then, he passed his verdict, saying Nigerian jollof is still the best. Because that smoke smell in our party [jollof] rice [is unique]. Watch the full video below and dont forget to share your views with us. OAKVILLE, Ontario, July 19, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- L3 MAPPS and Terrestrial Energy announced today that they have signed an agreement to develop real-time simulation for Terrestrial Energys Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR), a Generation IV advanced nuclear power plant. The simulation is a key tool to model IMSR power plant performance. It will support the engineering development of the IMSR power plant design, its licensing, and ultimately power plant customers by supporting operator training. It is a natural fit for Terrestrial Energy a frontrunner in the development of Generation IV reactor technology to join forces with L3 MAPPS, the leading developer of nuclear power plant simulation technology, said Rangesh Kasturi, President of L3 MAPPS. We look forward to working with Terrestrial Energy and combining our respective technologies to achieve advanced reactor technological firsts. We identified modeling and simulation as a priority area last year, so we are delighted now to be working with L3 MAPPS and benefitting from the world-class simulation capabilities that they bring to the IMSR project, said Simon Irish, Chief Executive Officer of Terrestrial Energy. IMSR power plants are transformative energy technology solutions. They can make an important contribution to the worlds growing demand for clean, low-cost and reliable energy. Our relationship with L3 MAPPS is another important step towards fully realizing that potential. The agreement between Terrestrial Energy and L3 MAPPS sets the framework for the companies long-term collaboration. About Terrestrial Energy Terrestrial Energy is a developer of Generation IV advanced nuclear power plants that use its proprietary Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) technology. IMSR technology represents true innovation in cost reduction, versatility and functionality of nuclear power plants. IMSR power plants will provide zero-carbon, reliable, dispatchable, cost-competitive electric power and high grade industrial heat for use in many industrial applications, such as chemical synthesis and desalination, and in so doing extend the application of nuclear energy far beyond electric power markets. They have the potential to make important contributions to industrial competitiveness, energy security, and economic growth. Their deployment will support rapid global decarbonization of the primary energy system by displacing fossil fuel combustion across a broad spectrum. Using an innovative design, and proven and demonstrated molten salt reactor technology, Terrestrial Energy is engaged with regulators and industrial partners to complete IMSR engineering and to commission first IMSR power plants in the late 2020s. About L3 MAPPS L3 MAPPS, a division of L3 Technologies, has over 35 years of experience in pioneering technological advances in the marine automation field and over 45 years of experience in delivering high-fidelity power plant simulation to leading utilities worldwide. In addition, the company has more than four decades of expertise in supplying plant computer systems for Canadian heavy water reactors. L3 MAPPS also provides targeted controls and simulation solutions to the space sector. To learn more about L3 MAPPS, please visit the companys website at www.L3T.com/MAPPS. Headquartered in New York City, L3 Technologies employs approximately 31,000 people worldwide and is a leading provider of a broad range of communication, electronic and sensor systems used on military, homeland security and commercial platforms. L3 is also a prime contractor in aerospace systems, security and detection systems, and pilot training. The company reported 2017 sales of $9.6 billion. To learn more about L3, please visit the companys website at www.L3T.com. Contact: Jarret Adams Terrestrial Energy Phone: (202) 815-9234 Email: jadams@fulloncom.com Contact: Brian Smith Terrestrial Energy Phone: (416) 822-3130 Email: bsmith@the-lanes.ca Website: www.terrestrialenergy.com E-mail: info@terrestrialenergy.com Moodys Investors Service ("Moodys") has today changed the Government of Iceland's sovereign rating outlook to positive from stable and affirmed Icelands A3 long-term issuer rating. The government's long-term senior unsecured debt rating of A3 and the (P)A3 and (P)Prime-2 ratings assigned to its medium-term note (MTN) programme have also been affirmed. The key drivers for the change in the rating outlook to positive from stable are: Improving economic resilience afforeded by net external creditor position, more balanced growth and ongoing strengthening of the countrys banking system. Anticipated further improvement in the governments debt metrics beyond what was previously expected. The positive outlook also reflects progress made in the past two years on the major preconditions we laid out at the time of the upgrade to A3 in September 2016, including the smooth removal of capital controls and the settlement of the offshore kronur situation. Attachment Latvian English Riga, 2018-07-23 15:17 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The shareholder's meeting of Capitalia on July 17, 2018 has approved establishment of AS Capitalia branches in Estonia and Lithuania. The branches will resume activity in the mentioned countries once merger of AS Capitalia with its daughter companies in Estonia and Lithuania will be finalized. The shareholder's meeting also approved merger project as a result of which mother company in Latvia will be merged with daughter companies to form a legal form Societas Europaea Capitalia. Under Penas leadership, Tuck has developed a very purposeful process focused on admitting people who meet its four criteria, summed up as smart, nice, accomplished, and aware. The criteria match my understanding of the Tuck community, but also are relatively easy to grasp. Once Tuck established and defined these criteria, it designed its application process to unearth the qualities it is seeking in candidates. To have a clear understanding of the criteria and the application process, please review: Tucks Evaluation Criteria [url=http://www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/news/articles/tuck-introduces-essay-and-reference-questions-mapped-to-admissions-criteria]Tuck Introduces Essay and Reference Questions Mapped to New Admissions Criteria [/url] An Interview with Dartmouth Tucks Admissions Director, Luke Pena In a nutshell, Tucks Admissions Director Luke Pena , who assumed the position about a year ago, is building on the legacy of transparency and friendliness left by former admission director Dawna Clarke. After a year of listening and more listening, he is clearly putting his own stamp on Tucks MBA application process.Under Penas leadership, Tuck has developed a very purposeful process focused on admitting people who meet its four criteria, summed up as smart, nice, accomplished, and aware. The criteria match my understanding of the Tuck community, but also are relatively easy to grasp. Once Tuck established and defined these criteria, it designed its application process to unearth the qualities it is seeking in candidates.To have a clear understanding of the criteria and the application process, please review: Dartmouth Tuck MBA Application The essay questions provide you with an opportunity to articulate your candidacy for Tuck to the Admissions Committee. Please be clear, succinct, forthright, and thoughtful in your responses. Additionally, we ask that you share what you truly feel, as opposed to writing what you think the Admissions Committee would like to read. There are no right or wrong answers. Reapplicants should also complete the reapplicant essay. Tuck expects that the work contained in the essays is completely accurate and exclusively your own. Use of professional essay writing services violates Tucks admissions policies. Tuck MBA Application Short-Answer Questions 1. Share your short term goals. (50 words) 2. Share your long term goals. (50 words) 3. How did you arrive at these goals? (75 words) 4. How will Tuck help you achieve these goals? (75 words) Obviously given the word limits, you will need to be succinct. In responding to #1 define your short-term goals in terms of desired role and industry, and perhaps location. Long-term goals (#2) can have an aspirational quality to them, but they should be supported by the short-term ones. Question #3 is about your motivation. You can succinctly discuss an experience that influenced the development of your goals as well as why this incident proved so influential. Finally #4, is why Tuck? Do you have a solid understanding of what Tuck offers and how it will help you realize your short-term goals and set you on a path to achieving the long-term ones? The short answer questions are a great place for you to show the awareness and possibly a bit of the accomplished quality that Tuck is looking for. Are you motivated by a clear purpose ? And by the way you can set audacious goals as long as they are grounded in reality.Obviously given the word limits, you will need to be succinct. In responding to #1 define your short-term goals in terms of desired role and industry, and perhaps location. Long-term goals (#2) can have an aspirational quality to them, but they should be supported by the short-term ones.Question #3 is about your motivation. You can succinctly discuss an experience that influenced the development of your goals as well as why this incident proved so influential.Finally #4, is why Tuck? Do you have a solid understanding of what Tuck offers and how it will help you realize your short-term goals and set you on a path to achieving the long-term ones? Tuck MBA Application Essay #1 (500 words) This is a hard question. No doubt about it. You could start by attempting to define yourself. That may work for some of you. For others it may be easier to start with how you intend to contribute to Tuck and then discuss the qualities, perspective, and/or experience that will enable you to contribute effectively. With either approach, review the website thoroughly so that you have a good understanding of the program. If you can, talk to current students or recent alumni with interests similar to yours. Then think about how you will participate and contribute to the Tuck community. Whether initially or at the end of this process, reflect on the attributes, perspective, and experiences that will allow you to contribute distinctively, if not uniquely. I suggest you choose 1-3 means of contribution and discuss the qualities you have that qualify you to give in this particular way. Perhaps start with a story about an experience that reveals these qualities and then move forward to reveal how that experience defines you or reflects your identity. Close with what you intend to contribute. Alternatively, start with the who you are part of the question and then move to how you intend to contribut Tuck students are aware of how their individuality adds to the fabric of Tuck. Tell us who you are and what you will contribute.e. Tuck MBA Application Essay #2 (500 words) A CAR approach will work well here: Challenge Action Result Keep it specific and concrete or you will blend in with others writing in generalities. Your empathetic, helpful response to the other partys challenge is key. Set the scene by describing the situation. How did you help the other party succeed? What were the results? This question is about one experience. It requires you to choose one time when you helped someone else succeed. Your assistance could be on or off the job. While Tuck hasnt given a time frame, I wouldnt recommend that you go back more than three years and certainly not more than five years.A CAR approach will work well here:Keep it specific and concrete or you will blend in with others writing in generalities. Your empathetic, helpful response to the other partys challenge is key. Set the scene by describing the situation. How did you help the other party succeed? What were the results? Tuck students are nice, and invest generously in one anothers success. Share an example of how you helped someone else succeed. Tuck MBA Application Essay #3 (Optional) If you feel your application represents your candidacy well, dont feel compelled to respond to the optional. If you believe, however, that your application is But dont waste their time with drivel or material thats elsewhere in your application. Doing so would reveal a definite lack of judgement, and in Tuck terms, awareness. If you have any of the elements mentioned in Tucks question, by all means address them here. You do NOT want the admissions committee guessing or assuming wrongly when they come across something anomalous.If you feel your application represents your candidacy well, dont feel compelled to respond to the optional. If you believe, however, that your application is missing key elements of your story and candidacy even if not mentioned in the question, then briefly include here. If you application is missing critical context, succinctly add it here. Whether its a challenge that youve faced or a hardship overcome or other context for what youve achieved that will help the admissions committee appreciate you candidacy, include it.But dont waste their time with drivel or material thats elsewhere in your application. Doing so would reveal a definite lack of judgement, and in Tuck terms, awareness. Please provide any additional insight or information that you have not addressed elsewhere (e.g., atypical choice of evaluators, factors affecting academic performance, unexplained job gaps or changes). Complete this question only if you feel your candidacy is not fully represented by this application. Tuck MBA Application Essay #4 (To be completed by all reapplicants) (500 words) Straightforward MBA reapplication question . It is critical that every reapplicant be able to answer it for every school they are reapplying to: What has changed that would compel Tuck to admit you this year? For expert guidance with your Dartmouth Tuck MBA application, check out Accepteds MBA Application Packages , which include comprehensive guidance from an experienced admissions consultant. Weve helped hundreds of applicants get accepted to Dartmouth Tucks MBA program and look forward to helping you too! How have you strengthened your candidacy since you last applied? Please reflect on how you have grown personally and professionally. Dartmouth Tuck 2018-19 Application Deadlines Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 1 Consortium Round 2 Consortium Related Resources: Application Deadline: September 24, 2018; Decisions Released: December 6, 2018Application Deadline: January 7, 2019; Decisions Released: March 14, 2019Application Deadline: April 1, 2019; Decisions Released: May 9, 2019* Application Deadline: October 15, 2018; Decisions Released: December 6, 2018* Application Deadline: January 5, 2019; Decisions Released: March 14, 2019Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. EST*Prospective students who are applying to Tuck through the Consortium will receive two decisions; one from Tuck regarding their admission decision and a second from the Consortium regarding their membership decision.***Disclaimer: Information is subject to change. Please check with individual programs to verify the essay questions, instructions and deadlines.*** This article originally appeared on blog.accepted.com Applying to a top b-school? The talented folks at Accepted have helped hundreds of applicants get accepted to their dream programs. Whether you are figuring out where to apply, writing your application essays, or prepping for your interviews, we are just a call (or click) away.Contact us, and get matched up with the consultant who will help you get accepted! _________________ Residents along Bournazyan and Adjaryan streets in Yerevans Erebouni District dare not open their windows or doors during the summer because of the stench emanating from the nearby Artashat water canal. The trash-strewn canal has also become a breeding ground for vermin and mosquitoes. The water carries a mix of garbage with it, from household trash to construction waste, and most everything in between. The canal, which is used as a convenient waste dump, carries irrigation water to a number of communities in Ararat Province. Theres another canal that flows nearby thats also infamous as a garbage dump. Area residents are caught in the crosshairs of both. Hetq wrote about the canal two years ago, pointing out the health risks it poses to area residents. True, municipal officials periodically clean the canal, but the trash returns. No long-term solution has yet been found. Mariam has lived on Bournazyan Street for fifteen years and cant recall when the canal was ever totally free of garbage. She says the canal was last cleaned in the spring. She says officials usually get around to cleaning the canal twice a year, after being deluged with complaints. Mariam says some frustrated residents take matters in their own hands and set fire to the garbage collected in the canal. She assures me that local residents dont toss their trash in the canal. Whatever you can imagine is in the canal. They throw dogs in. They end up dying here. Sometimes we can pull the body out. If we cant, it rots down there. We have to raise a ruckus for them to come twice a year to clean the canal. Otherwise, its only once yearly, Mariam says. In 2016, when area residents complained about the lack of trash bins, Edward Yenokyan, who headed the Erebouni Division of Communal Services at the time, told Hetq that he hadnt received any such requests. If we receive a request to install a trash bin here or there, we totally comply. We have the bins, Yenokyan told Hetq. Two years have passed, and no receptacles have been placed in the area. Armen Mamoulyan, an Erebouni District real estate management official, says that notices are periodically sent to area residents, requesting that trash not be dumped in the canal. He says the last notice went out one year ago. Mamoulyan says hes contacted the Yerevan Water Users Association, which does the actual cleaning, and has requested several more cleanings per year. Association Managing Director Meruzhan Asatryan responded that only one cleaning per year is scheduled for the canal. Mamoulyan blames area residents for tossing trash in the canal, while conceding that some of the garbage is from districts higher up the waterway. Mamoulyan says he asked Sanitek, the company contracted by Yerevan city government to collect street garbage, to install trash receptacles in the area. 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 On Sunday, July 22, Pompeo dubbed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the rest of Iranian Regimes theocratic government hypocritical holy men, highlighting that they had amassed hundreds of millions of dollars of wealth from their ruling positions. He then advised that this vast corruption that has allowed the accumulation of wealth among the leaders of a violent regime indicates that Iran is something that resembles the mafia more than a government. Pompeo then advised that the regime in Iran has been a nightmare for the Iranian people, during his Supporting Iranian Voices speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute in Simi Valley, California. The crowd was incredibly receptive to Pompeos remarks, especially when he promised that the US would continue to support the long-ignored voice of the Iranian people and spotlight the abuses perpetrated against Iranians by the Regime. These comments were similar to those of Donald Trump, who tweeted his support for the Iranian protesters earlier this year and has routinely highlighted the abuses against the people of Iran by the Regime, especially in his speech before the UN General Assembly in 2017. It should also be noted that this corruption is something that the Iranian people have been taking a clear stand against during their ongoing protests. The people, upset that their money is being stolen and used to bankroll the mullahs lifestyles or ploughed into foreign warfare, have been loudly calling for regime change and even the deaths of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani. Sanctions In July, Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal, otherwise known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), citing its various flaws and promised sanctions against Iran, which start coming into force on August 6. Pompeo promised that these sanctions would continue to target Irans banking and energy sector, with the goal of reducing Irans oil exports to zero by November 4. The people of Iran support sanctions against the Regime as this will help to tank the economy and leave less money for the mullahs to use to suppress the peoples protests. Then the people will be able to overthrow the mullahs and bring democracy to their country. We have dedicated several articles to the intense popularity of the MEK inside Iran and amongst the Iranian diaspora, which you can see for yourselves by looking at the ongoing Iranian uprising (organised by the MEK to incite regime change in Iran) and MEK TV (run by the MEK to provide news and information about the true nature of the Regime), so in this piece we will look at the evidence for wide support for the MEK outside of Iran. There is an incredible amount of evidence that the MEK enjoys wide support amongst the international community, from activists to heads of state to everyone in between. We can see this in small ways, through MEK supporters using the hashtag #IStandWithMaryamRajavi (the leader of the MEK) on social media, and in big ways, like highly-ranked foreign dignitaries making speeches in support of the MEK and advocating for their countries to recognise the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) a coalition of dissident, democratic groups, including the MEK as the government-in-exile of Iran. International support for the MEK transcends party politics, national borders, and traditional alliances, proving that the MEK is far from an insignificant group. Support for the MEK Here, were going to look at some of the biggest ways that the MEK has received support from the international community. France allows the NCRI to operate pubically inside its borders, despite intense pressure from the Regime Albania is sheltering 3,000 MEK refugees, who were under attack from the Regime whilst in Camp Liberty in Iraq The US military defended the MEK from the Regime in Camp Liberty and Camp Ashraf The UN declared that the MEK were protected persons under the Geneva Convention and should be protected from harm in Iraq These are all great examples of the international communitys support for the MEK, but one of the most important ways to judge MEK support is through the Free Iran Grand Gathering, which is held annually in Paris. It is regularly attended by over 100,000 people from politicians to human rights activists to Noble Prize winners to monarchs. The Free Iran Gathering This event marks the anniversary of the June 20, 1981, MEK demonstration in Tehran, where 500,000 people protested against the mullahs regime. Each year, more people than ever before come out to support the MEK in their fight for democracy in Iran. This years gathering, held between June 29 and July 1, featured some of the best and brightest people from around the world speaking in support of the MEK. Lets look at just a few. Maria Candida Almeida, Deputy Attorney General and former Attorney General of Portugal Sir David Amess, British MP Giulio Terzi, former Foreign Minister of Italy Ingrid Betancourt, former Colombian Senator, and presidential candidate Ranjana Kumari, Equality movement activist from India Eduard Lintner, former German deputy Interior Minister Pandeli Majko, former Albanian Prime Minister John Baird, former Foreign Minister of Canada Stephen Harper, former Prime Minister of Canada Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York City Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the US House of Representatives General George Casey, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army (2007 to 2011) Louis Freeh, former Director of the FBI Michael Mukasey, former US Attorney General Frances Townsend, former assistant to the US President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Jerard Deprez, MEP Bernard Kouchner, former Foreign Minister of France Rama Yade, former French Minister of Human Rights This list, which is outstanding in itself, does not even take into account the support for the MEK by those in the current US Cabinet, like national security advisor John Bolton. This makes many believe that soon Donald Trump will recognise Maryam Rajavi as the true president of the Iranian people and make US policy on Iran about regime change. The 2015 nuclear deal, otherwise known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), had the best of intentions when it was drawn up. It provided Iran with sanctions relief in exchange for a (supposed) halt to their nuclear programme, which the other signatories hoped would be enough to convince Iran about the error of its ways and bring the mullahs into the folds of international diplomacy. However, all it really did was supply Iran with billions of dollars in exchange for a delay in Irans acquisition of nuclear weapons. Far from getting tough on Iran for all of its malign activities, this deal continued the worrying path of appeasement and, as a result, Iran was able to get away with its support of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, support for terrorist groups, and egregious human rights abuses against its own people. Thats why Trumps decision to work with Americas allies to find a solution to the threat posed by Iran is so important. The rest of the world should join the US in getting tough on Iran for all of its abuses. US Secretary of Defence James Mattis has previously declared Iran to be the root of all trouble in the Middle East and he is right. Iran is committed to creating chaos so that it can take control, no matter the cost, and the mullahs will never stop. Even Mohammad Ali Jafari, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), confirmed it. He said: The Islamic Republic of Iran is at its best. The Iranian revolution is quickly spreading beyond the republics borders; with the same speed it opens the front lines of revolution, achieving [Khomeinis] goals. The Regime tries to paint itself as a mixture of moderates and hardliners, but we can see the truth. All of the regime are hardliners, who threaten the safety of neighbouring states, support terrorism, and brutalise their own people. Prince Khalid bin Salman, the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the US, wrote: We cannot pass the buck and hope things get better. Committing to a firm policy of containing Iran, and all its mischievous activity, will solve more problems than just saying: Something must be done. The world must join us to confront Iran with seriousness and intent. Iran needs to know it will pay a price if it continues to violate international law and interfere in the affairs of its neighbours. Iran must be punished economically and diplomatically, with all options kept on the table to ensure the strength and integrity of diplomacy. And the Middle Easts legitimate state institutions in Yemen, Iraq and elsewhere need to be supported as they fight Irans proxies of chaos. Many have interpreted Rouhanis comments as threats to close the Strait of Hormuz, through which a lot of global oil exports travel; something that earned the approval of Revolutionary Guards Quds Force commander Qassem Suleimani, who sent Rouhani a congratulatory message which said that he was at Rouhanis command. Suleimani gave Rouhanis threats the military backing of Irans terrorist militia and sent out the message that these were not just empty threats. While various other Regime officials also made threatening remarks about closing the Strait of Hormuz, including deputy parliament speaker Ali Mottahari. The US has vowed that they will keep the Strait open, using military force if they need to, which should worry Iran as the Regime does not have the financial or military power to fight the US or its allies. Threats and sanctions These threats have been made by Iran a multitude of times, starting during the Iran-Iraq War, but they have never been followed through on. Not even when the international community last levelled crippling sanctions against the Iranian Regime during the presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Instead, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei kowtowed to global demands and came to the negotiating table in a very weak position, which resulted in the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Of course, despite the weak Iranian hand, they still got the better end of the deal, with an agreement that was highly skewed in their favor, which is why Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in May and lined up sanctions against the mullahs. It is more likely that the mullahs are resorting to threats because they are scared of the incoming sanctions that will bankrupt their economy and allow the people to overthrow the Regime. This is a key aspect in the Regimes playbook; exporting crises abroad to distract from the fact that the mullahs are losing control of the region and Iran. Thats why Iran is involved in so many conflicts across the Middle East to divert attention away from themselves and destabilise another country at the same time. Iranian Resistance group, the (PMOI/MEK), wrote: The harsh reality is that the mullahs, following six months of continuous protests inside the country and growing support for the Iranian opposition as the regimes imminent alternative, sees its overthrow very close and is desperately searching to prevent the inevitable. Indeed, the Iranian Resistance enjoys a lot of support from around the globe, as evidenced by their Free Iran rally in Paris on June 30, which attracted about 100,000 people. The Regime actually attempted to bomb the rally, but their conspirators were arrested by European authorities, so now the mullahs are directing threats elsewhere. The MEK wrote: The world, and especially Middle East countries, should not pay any attention to this regimes threats, and instead provide support to the Iranian people and their organized opposition, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). Roe versus Wade is one of the best known Supreme Court cases. The issue is whether a healthy woman has a right to end a pregnancy through an abortion. In Texas in the early 1970s, state law barred such operations. A 22-year-old pregnant woman living in Texas questioned whether the law was constitutional. For this case, the woman was called Jane Roe. Roe was not married. She had little money or education. She wanted to end the pregnancy safely. So Roe brought legal action against a state official, Henry Wade, for the right to get an abortion at any time, for any reason. Roe both failed and succeeded. By the time her case reached the Supreme Court, she had given birth and put the baby up for adoption. And the justices rejected her argument that women have an unrestricted right to abortion. But a majority said women were permitted to end a pregnancy in the first 13 weeks. That decision, they argued, was protected by a constitutional right to privacy. Legal experts, activists, lawmakers, and other Americans have debated the ruling ever since. But the debate did not persuade justices to overrule Roe versus Wade. In 1992, another abortion case came before the Supreme Court. By a narrow majority, the justices upheld the earlier decision. Kelly Jean Kelly wrote this report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Quiz Quiz - Roe v. Wade Aimed to Settle Dispute About Abortion. It Didn't. Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story overturn - v. to decide that a ruling or decision is wrong and change it uphold - v. to judge a legal decision to be correct : to decide not to change a verdict There have been many improvements in how weather experts predict the path of hurricanes, powerful storms that form in the ocean. However, forecasters still struggle when trying to estimate one quality of a coming storm: its intensity. Intensity measurements would help people prepare for flooding and deadly winds, like those of Hurricane Maria last year. Maria killed an estimated 4,465 people, severely damaged the electrical power system and caused $90 billion in damage in Puerto Rico. Steve Bowen is the director and weather expert for the insurance company Aon Benfields Impact Forecasting team. He said it is helpful to know where a hurricane is going, but more information about its intensity is needed. We sort of have half the circle filled in, and we need to get that other half filled in, Bowen told the Reuters news service. Some climate scientists have said that warming sea and air temperatures have added more energy to the storms. And this might affect intensity predictions. Kerry Emanuel is a climate professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In a recent academic paper, he wrote: Climate change potentially affects the frequency, intensity and tracks of hurricanes and other similar storms. In 2017, the U.S. governments National Hurricane Center reported that it had failed to correctly predict the sudden intensification of the 2016 hurricane called Matthew. That storm strengthened very quickly, with winds reaching up to 270 kilometers per hour. It caused major destruction in the Caribbean, including killing more than 1,000 people in Haiti, according to Reuters. Scientists say there are several scientific models for predicting hurricane intensity, but they are all of limited use. The current science of tracking a storms path depends heavily on information about conditions on its edges. But, intensity is based on what is happening in the middle of it. Generally, measurements are taken one of three ways. Sometimes researchers fly a hurricane hunter aircraft into the storm. Other times, they use a device called a weather buoy to measure wind speeds as a storm passes over. Or, they get information from satellites. One project to gather more information to predict intensity is the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System, or CYGNSS for short. CYGNSS is a group of eight low-orbit satellites. The American space agency, NASA launched it in 2016. Earlier satellites had trouble measuring ocean surface winds at the center of storms. Heavy rain at the center often weakened their signals, NASA officials said. Christopher Ruf is a lead investigator with CYGNSS and a climate science professor at the University of Michigan. He noted, For storms that are changing really quickly, you could miss something like rapid intensification. NASA designed CYGNSS to measure surface winds in and near the center of tropical storm systems. Researchers said that having more satellites means they can pass over the storms more often. And the low-orbit satellites are closer to the storms. So, experts get more real-time information to use for predicting intensity. At present, researchers are focusing on the 2017 season when hurricanes severely affected Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico. Storms caused hundreds of billions of dollars in damage. And researchers are re-examining information gathered from CYGNSS to see how it affected the quality of the forecasts and how it can be better used to predict intensity. CYGNSS could be fully operational next year, researchers said. Im Pete Musto. Jon Herskovitz first reported this story for the Reuters news service. Pete Musto adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. What more do you think researchers will learn about how to predict the intensity of hurricanes? How will this help people better prepare for future hurricane seasons? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Quiz Quiz - Scientists Study Eyes of Hurricanes to Predict Their Intensity Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story hurricane(s) n. an extremely large, powerful, and destructive storm with very strong winds that occurs especially in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean forecaster(s) n. someone who predicts something, such as weather, after looking at the information that is available insurance n. an agreement in which a person makes regular payments to a company and the company promises to pay money if the person is injured or dies, or to pay money equal to the value of something, such as a house or car, if it is damaged, lost, or stolen academic adj. of or relating to schools and education potentially adv. in a way that makes it possible for something to be real frequency n. the number of times that something happens during a particular period track(s) n. the path along which someone or something moves or proceeds according to prep. as stated, reported, or recorded by someone or something rapid adj. happening quickly tropical adj. of, relating to, occurring in, or used in the part of the world that is near the equator where the weather is very warm A debate over identity is playing out over a people most Americans have never even heard about. The group are called Metis, a French word for mixed. They are the descendants of French animal trappers and native women during the 1600s in todays Western Canada. In time, the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of these couples married each other. Metis developed their own language, their own music, their own style of clothes, and their own kind of food. In other words, they developed their own culture. By the early 1800s, the Metis had created a new political identity, too. It was centered in a colony in the present-day Canadian province of Manitoba. But some established settlements in the United States, too. After the U.S. and Canada settled their borders, many American Metis were grouped with other native people and ended up on Indian reservations. Over time, some families have kept their Metis identity and culture. Others have lost it completely. In Canada, the government officially recognized Metis in 1982 as one of three aboriginal groups. They received the same hunting, fishing and land use rights as the First Nation and the Inuit. But these days, a record number of people are claiming Metis identity, both in Canada and the U.S. Many of these claims, said anthropologist Kade Ferris, are not true. He said some use the word Metis to mean they are mixed race Native and non-Native. But, he said, the term really describes being part of a particular culture or nation. Others are only looking to use the tax breaks and land use rights given to the real Metis, say members of the Metis National Council. In 2017, the Canadian government signed a nation-to-nation agreement with the Metis Nation and has promised $516 million over 10 years to support housing, health and educational needs. In the U.S., Metis are working to relearn their language, Michif, and continue to celebrate their history and culture in festivals and other events. But they are not trying to gain independent recognition. Rosalyn LaPier is a Metis writer and member of the Blackfeet Nation in Montana. She said separating Metis from Chippewa or Cree would be impossible because their cultures are so combined. But we know who we are, she added. Im Susan Shand. Cecily Hilleary reported this story for VOA. Susan Shand adapted for Learning English. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story Last year Apple unveiled a wireless charging pad capable of charging both an iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time, but the company has yet to bring its AirPower device to market. Recent reports indicate it could finally hit the streets in September. But Apple isnt the only company working on a dual-device wireless charger. According to a leaked image shared online by Roland Quandt, Samsung plans to launch a Wireless Charger Duo soon. The device is said to have the model number of EP-N6100 and its said to be a 25 watt charger capable of dual fast wireless charging. That means you can use it to charge: Two phones at the same time or A phone and a Samsung Galaxy Watch While this is a Samsung device with Samsung branding all over it, the watch supports the Qi wireless charging standard, which means you should be able to use it with any third-party gadget that supports that protocol including apples latest iPhones. Its not entirely clear at this point when Samsung or Apples wireless chargers will hit the streets. But given Apples long delay in bringing AirPower to market, it wouldnt be surprising if Samsungs charger makes it to market first. Share this article: Share this: Facebook Twitter Reddit Pocket Tumblr Pinterest LinkedIn Email To remove the Edmontosaurus dinosaur skeleton from its sculpted mound in LSAs Museum of Natural History, curators and museum staff had to be alert and gentle with the delicate bonesthe dino had lain there on display for more than 70 years, after lying underground for thousands. The staff also used caution with themselvesquaint lead paint had decorated the exhibit since its installation in the 1940s, not long after Museum Curator and Professor Ermine Cowles (E.C.) Case dug the dinosaur up from Montana soil and sent it back to Ann Arbor. Now, those old bones can bring new insights to researchers at U-Ms satellite campus for museum collections: LSAs Research Museums Center (RMC). This spring, the Edmontosaurus (along with 480 truckloads of other museum specimens) traveled down the steps of the Ruthven Building, past the construction site of the new Biological Sciences Building, onto State Street, and around the bend of Varsity Drive to its new home at the RMC, about five miles from Central Campus. The dinosaur joins research collections at the RMC that span LSAs Museums of Paleontology, Zoology, and Anthropological Archaeology, along with LSAs Herbarium. Though the RMC only recently opened its renovated doors to the museum specimens and artifacts, the Herbarium has rooted its plant collections there since 2001. Remarks: In 1987 this became her last top-ten hit on the US R&B chart. The first minute sounds like the late 1980s, but then it sounds like Donna Summer. I... 1 day ago Political activist Jason Chao, who is currently studying in the U.K., says he has applied for a trial in absentia in the case of Wang Jianweis defamation lawsuit against Macau Concealers. The trial is set to begin tomorrow. A statement issued yesterday by New Macau Association [ANM] indicated that Chao would not travel to Macau to attend tomorrows hearing. The statement said that the request is currently being processed by a panel of judges. Chao is the director of Macau Concealers, an online satirical news platform published by members of ANM, which first broke the story of several sexual harassment incidents allegedly implicating University of Macau professor Wang Jianwei. Wang, who is also the director of the Institute of Global and Public Affairs, claims that the 2015 story regarding the allegations have discredited him and were published in a bid to reinstate a fired associate professor. ANM wrote in yesterdays statement that, having conducted an internal investigation into the matter, it has found no evidence of malpractice at Macau Concealers. The pro-democrat association says that Macau Concealers contacted UM at the time, requesting information on Wangs alleged involvement in the sexual harassment complaints. The university acknowledged that three investigations were being undertaken into the professor, but refused to comment further. Upon the scrutiny of exchange of emails and statements, in early 2015, the ANM board was satisfied with Macau Concealers efforts to contact UM for verification, noted yesterdays statement, and its revelation was neither merely speculative nor witch-hunting. The statement also noted that, while ANM recognizes Wangs right to file a criminal complaint regarding the revelation of the existence of multiple sexual harassment complaints against him in 2015, it maintains that Macau Concealers continues to play a vital role as a whistle-blower, compelling Macau authorities to address issues of high public interest openly. [ANM] concludes that whistle-blowing has an important role to play in exposing cases of this nature for the protection of victims, including those of verbal ones, notwithstanding the realm of legal protection, it said. [ANM] is deeply cornered that any threat to freedom of expression will create a chilling effect making vulnerable groups more vulnerable, especially for victims of sexual harassment. DB China Tower Corp., the state-owned wireless infrastructure operator, has attracted Hillhouse Capital and a unit of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. as investors in its planned Hong Kong initial public offering, people with knowledge of the matter said. Hillhouse funds and Taobao China Holding Ltd. are among the 10 firms that agreed to buy about USD1.4 billion of stock as cornerstone investors, the people said. China Tower is expected to start taking investor orders today, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the details are private. The planned deal could raise about $8 billion, one of the people said. China Tower is pursuing what could be the worlds biggest IPO in almost four years amid a slump in the Hong Kong equity market, with the benchmark Hang Seng Index trading down 15 percent from its all-time high in January. This years other hotly anticipated IPO Xiaomi Corp.s $5.4 billion fundraising priced last month at the bottom of the range, valuing the phone maker at about half its original target. Hillhouse funds and the Alibaba unit agreed to invest $400 million and about $100m, respectively, in China Towers IPO, the people said. Other cornerstone investors include affiliates of China National Petroleum Corp., SAIC Motor Corp. and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., according to the people. An $8 billion deal would be the worlds biggest first-time share sale since Alibabas $25 billion U.S. stock offering in 2014, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. China Tower is expected to price its offering around Aug. 1, the people said. A China Tower representative couldnt immediately comment outside normal business hours. An external representative for Hillhouse declined to comment, while an external representative for Alibaba said she couldnt immediately comment. CNPC and SAIC didnt immediately respond to emails seeking comment outside normal business hours. ICBC didnt respond to requests for comment. The worlds largest telecom tower service was formed by combining tower assets of China Mobile Ltd., China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd. and China Telecom Corp. in 2015 as part of a broader plan to reform the nations state-dominated wireless industry. China International Capital Corp. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. are joint sponsors for the planned deal. Bloomberg China is waging a quiet kind of cold war against the United States, using all its resources to try to replace America as the leading power in the world, a top CIA expert on Asia said Friday. Beijing doesnt want to go to war, he said, but the current communist government, under President Xi Jingping, is subtly working on multiple fronts to undermine the U.S. in ways that are different than the more well-publicized activities being employed by Russia. I would argue that what theyre waging against us is fundamentally a cold war a cold war not like we saw during THE Cold War [between the U.S. and the Soviet Union] but a cold war by definition, Michael Collins, deputy assistant director of the CIAs East Asia mission center, said at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado. Rising U.S.-China tension goes beyond the trade dispute playing out in a tariff tit-for-tat between the two nations. There is concern over Chinas pervasive efforts to steal business secrets and details about high-tech research being conducted in the U.S. The Chinese military is expanding and being modernized and the U.S., as well as other nations, have complained about Chinas construction of military outposts on islands in the South China Sea. I would argue that its the Crimea of the East, Collins said, referring to Russias brash annexation of Ukraines Crimean Peninsula, which was condemned throughout the West. Collins comments track warnings about Chinas rising influence issued by others who spoke earlier this week at the security conference. The alarm bells come at a time when Washington needs Chinas help in ending its nuclear standoff with North Korea. On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray said China, from a counterintelligence perspective, represents the broadest and most significant threat America faces. He said the FBI has economic espionage investigations in all 50 states that can be traced back to China. The volume of it. The pervasiveness of it. The significance of it is something that I think this country cannot underestimate, Wray said. National Intelligence Director Dan Coats also warned of rising Chinese aggression. In particular, he said, the U.S. must stand strong against Chinas effort to steal business secrets and academic research. Susan Thornton, acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, said increasing the publics awareness about the activities of the hundreds of thousands of Chinese students or groups at U.S. universities could be one way to help mitigate potential damage. China is not just a footnote to what were dealing with with Russia, Thornton said. Marcel Lettre, former undersecretary of defense for intelligence, said China has the second-largest defense budget in the world, the largest standing army of ground forces, the third-largest air force and a navy of 300 ships and more than 60 submarines. All of this is in the process of being modernized and upgraded, said Lettre, who sat on a panel with Collins and Thornton. He said China also is pursuing advances in cyber, artificial intelligence, engineering and technology, counter-space, anti-satellite capabilities and hypersonic glide weapons. Army Lt. Gen. Robert Ashley, head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, told a congressional committee earlier this year that China is developing long-range cruise missiles some capable of reaching supersonic speeds. The Pentagon has noted that the Chinese have already pursued a test program that has had 20 times more tests than the U.S. has, Lettre said. Franklin Miller, former senior director for defense policy and arms control at the National Security Council, said Chinas weapons developments are emphasizing the need to have a dialogue with Beijing. We need to try to engage, Miller said. My expectations for successful engagement are medium-low, but that doesnt mean we shouldnt try. AP With the swipe of a taupe shade of eyeshadow and the swearing of an oath, Sandra Ramirezs transformation from rebel guerrilla to senator was complete. Eight ex-combatants with Colombias once-largest rebel group were sworn into office Friday in another crucial step in implementing the countrys peace accord, taking seats in Congress alongside some lawmakers who for years were bitter enemies. This is a big responsibility well be shouldering, said Ramirez, the widow of a legendary guerrilla leader. Its a change from life in the mountains, from boots in the mud. The fledging politicians represent a small faction in a Congress that has the task of pushing forward key aspects of the peace agreement. The rebels were guaranteed 10 seats in the legislature as part of the accord, a stipulation that has angered many Colombians. In his address to the new legislature, outgoing President Juan Manuel Santos acknowledged the hesitation of Colombians to embrace the former rebels as lawmakers, but he said including them in politics is a powerful demonstration of democracy. It fills me with satisfaction that those who for more than half a century fought the state and its institutions with arms today bow to the constitution, Santos said. The oath ceremony comes just weeks before conservative Ivan Duque assumes the presidency amid signs that the peace accord remains on shaky ground. Duque vowed throughout his campaign to modify important aspects of the agreement, though he has softened some of his positions since the polarizing election. Two of the former leaders of the disarmed Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia didnt take their seats in Congress on Friday. Seuxis Hernandez remained jailed in Colombia on U.S. drug charges while Ivan Marquez is holed up in a rural camp for former guerrillas, telling comrades he fears for his safety. Adam Isacson with the Washington Office on Latin America said the absence of Marquez, the rebels chief negotiator during peace talks, was concerning. It sends a signal of skepticism that may influence a lot of mid- level leaders decisions about whether to give up and join a dissident group, he said. Colombias conflict between leftist rebels, paramilitaries and the state left at least 250,000 dead, 60,000 missing and millions displaced in a war that still haunts many. Even as the number of homicides drops to a four-decade low, in many parts of the country drug traffickers and smaller illegal armed groups still wreak havoc. Since the signing of the accord, over 300 social leaders and dozens of former rebels have been killed. Many fear the wave of violence could portend a repeat of events in the 1980s, when dozens of leftist politicians affiliated with the Patriotic Union party were gunned down. Ramirez said the ex-combatants taking office Friday were aware of the threats they face. It worries us immensely, she said. On Friday morning, Ramirez woke up at 5:30 a.m. and prepared for the monumental day in her transition to life as a civilian. She put on a cream skirt and an emerald blouse. Then she went to a small beauty salon in a working-class neighborhood and had her hair and makeup done. As the hairdresser finished gently curling the ends of her long brown hair, Ramirez took out a pair of earrings bearing a cluster of pearls. Do you like these? she asked one of her assistants. Theyre very beautiful, the young woman said. Ramirez was the partner of chief commander Manuel Marulanda until his death in 2008 and still goes largely by her alias, Sandra Ramirez. In Congress, she was sworn in with her birth name, Griselda Lobo. She eventually plans to legally change her name to Sandra Lobo, reflecting the dual identity many rebels harbor after years of being called by a nom de guerre. To prepare for life as legislators, she and her comrades took a crash course at a university that taught them about the role of congress, the various types of laws and how to introduce a bill. They are calling their coalition the Group for Peace and plan to focus on implementing the accord and defending human rights. Among their first proposals are ideas to improve conditions for young children in remote, rural parts of the country and better guarantee access to water. We never imagined ourselves here in Congress, debating bills, rebel leader-turned-senator Carlos Lozada said as he entered the stately legislature building. The former guerrillas face a steep challenge in winning over Colombians and exercising any pull in Congress. They won less than 1 percent of the votes in the legislative elections and remain deeply unpopular in much of the country. Many Colombians think the rebels should go before a special peace tribunal before taking roles in Congress. They should pay first for all the bad things they did, for all the hurt they caused Colombia, Harold Gonzalez, a hotel administrator, said as he watched a group of teens playing a game of outdoor chess blocks from Congress. Ramirez said the ex-rebels are doing their part in taking responsibility, by meeting with victims and apologizing for their crimes. She said they are now looking to embark on a new chapter, though not forget the struggles of the past. She said she awoke Friday with mixed emotions. She felt ready to take on her new role, but couldnt help thinking of comrades who had dreamed of a day like this, but died before it came. It brings up memories and longings, wishing they were here for this moment, she said. Christine Armario, Bogota, AP Ampil, the tenth typhoon this year, made landfall on Chongming island in Shanghai at 12:30 p.m. yesterday with winds of up to 28 meters per second near its eye, the municipal meteorological observatory said. The typhoon was moving northwestward but waning in strength, the observatory said. Chongming island, 45 km east of downtown Shanghai, is situated at the mouth of the Yangtze River. Shanghai municipal flood control headquarters said it relocated more than 190,000 people, called over 1,600 ships back to port and reinforced 46,000 trees citywide. Two comfort women speak out A pair of sisters, both in their 90s, from central Chinas Hunan province, have come forward to speak out about their experiences as comfort women and their suffering at the hand of Japanese soldiers during World War II. According to Xinhua, staff of The Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders came across the sisters when visiting Yueyang city in Hunan. The elder sister, Peng Renshou, 94, told them she was captured and taken to a comfort station in the autumn of 1939 when she was only 14. After being raped repeatedly, a Japanese soldier cut open her belly. She survived but was unable to have children. The other sister, Peng Zhuying, 90, said she lost her eyesight as a victim of Japanese germ warfare at the age of nine in 1938. She was then abducted, became a comfort woman and was abused regularly. She was also unable to have children. Eyesight concerns most Chinese parents: survey A survey has found that 91.6 percent of Chinese parents are concerned about their childrens eye health, China Youth Daily has reported. Of the 1,951 parents of primary and junior middle school students surveyed a further 72.7 percent said their kids were myopic, 32.8 percent of whom were moderately myopic (300 to 600 diopters) and 5.4 percent severely myopic (600 diopters and above). The survey revealed that incorrect sitting posture (62.7 percent), reading books with eyes too close to the book (54 percent) and frequently playing with computers and mobile phones (53.7 percent) were the top three factors parents believed were causing problems. Too much homework and lack of outdoor activity were also blamed, Cui Hongping, a Shanghai ophthalmologist, told the paper. The case, Suhl v. U.S., addresses whether two separate federal statutesthe honest-services fraud statute and the federal-programs bribery statutewere violated when businessman and philanthropist Theodore Suhl made a routine contribution to a local church. The government charged him under these two statutes on the theory that portions of that money were actually bribes intended to influence a state official. Both statutes, which address bribery and fraud, turn on whether quid pro quo corruption occurred. The district court refused to instruct the jury on the meaning of the quid pro quo corruption requirement, and Mr. Suhl was convicted. Last week, the James Madison Center for Free Speech filed an amicus brief with the United States Supreme Court, urging it to establish a constitutional definition of quid pro quo corruption to ensure campaign discourse remains free and unfettered. Quid pro quo corruption is also the only standard that the United States Supreme Court has upheld to justify campaign finance regulations: laws that are designed to prevent quid pro quo corruption can be upheld. And so its definition is of broader constitutional importance. Past Supreme Court precedent has found quid pro quo corruption when there is 1) an unambiguous arrangement 2) for the direct exchange of something of value for 3) a public officials improper promise or commitment that is 4) contrary to the obligations of his or her office 5) in an effort to control an official, sovereign act. This five-part definition keeps government investigations properly focused on actual abuses of government power, while protecting public officials who appropriately respond to voters that supported their candidacies and constituents that urge them to act in consistent with the officials campaign promises or the constituents interests. James Bopp, Jr., counsel for the Madison Center, observes A proper understanding of what constitutes quid pro quo corruption is critical. Without it, campaign supporters will be chilled from participating in elections, as their support can be construed as buying outcomes. Candidates will be fearful of pledging to follow their own principles, leaving them unaccountable to voters. And public officials will decline to even visit with campaign supporters for fear that such access will be construed as corruption and subjecting them to investigation and criminal charges. He continues, By triggering criminal liability on any act that might influence a candidate or public official, not only politics but also the entire election process would be criminalized. Law enforcement officials will have the unfettered discretion to examine the propriety of a public officials official conduct and their interaction with the public. The will of the people will be lost. A copy of the amicus brief can be found here. A delegation led by University of Macau (UM) rector Yonghua Song and vice-rector for research Rui Martins recently visited Angola to strengthen collaboration between the educational institution and Portuguese-speaking universities (PSC). A statement from UM said the visit intended to support the local governments desire to develop the city as a service platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. During the visit, the UM representatives met with the Chinese ambassador to Angola, where they shared recent university developments, highlighting UMs relocation to the current campus and efforts to produce professionals fluent in both Chinese and Portuguese. According to UM, the Chinese ambassador said that two senior diplomats from the embassy in Angola once studied Portuguese at the university. They also met with Angolas Minister of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation. The minister was told by Song that the internationalization of UM was a priority for the university and that the University values its relations with its Portuguese-speaking counterparts. They also visited Agostinho Neto University, participated in the 28th annual meeting of the Association of Portuguese Speaking Universities (AULP) and signed a collaboration agreement with Mandume Ya Ndemufayo University, whose rector, Professor Orlando da Mata, is the current president of the AULP. Local authorities were forced to take in a total of 533 greyhounds abandoned by the Canidrome Yat Yuen Company following the closure of the venue on Saturday. The Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM) acknowledged this in a statement and is said to be taking care of the facility in order to ensure that the greyhounds at [the] Canidrome are being taken care of. The IACM has taken provisional measures to look after the stranded dogs, noting that a preliminary assessment done by the bureaus veterinary team found the dogs were in a healthy condition. The IACM also contacted several animal rights organizations in Macau to form a team of volunteers to help handle the high number of dogs at the Canidrome. So far, the bureau has said that the operations of the multi-organization teams have been running smoothly and the dogs have been receiving appropriate care. In the same statement, the IACM also informed that, in accordance with the Animal Welfare Law, it has informed Yat Yuen that the non- reclamation of an animal within seven working days equals to abandonment, reaffirming previous intentions to proceed with the case against Yat Yuen for the dogs abandonment. In a letter to newsrooms, the president of Anima, Albano Martins, addressed the statement, saying, Now is not the time to focus only on thanking Anima and its partners for having successfully closed the Canidrome and also having succeeded in convincing the Macau Government, through IACM, to handle the Canidrome pound, noting that the upcoming tasks were hard ones but reaffirming the will to complete them. Still believing that this is not the job of the IACM, Martins reaffirmed that Anima will continue to support IACM with our limited resources and I believe all other Macau animal welfare organizations that joined us in these last minutes will do the same! In Martins opinion, the time to focus on fundraising to help the re-homing of these animals with proper families is now, remarking, saving these greyhounds will be a huge cost if we do not get airlines [to carry them] for free or at reduced costs! Martins noted that time is short and that there is only one year until the area will be totally reorganized by the Government! This is time that the organizations involved will use to find a final solution for the relocation and adoption of all the dogs. After the official closure of the companys property on Saturday, local authorities found 533 greyhounds were left behind, including a dozen suffering from skin diseases and other conditions. Animal rights activists, both locally and abroad, have expressed concern about the fate of the race dogs, most of which were bred in Australia. At the same time, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has urged Macau authorities to grant custody of the greyhounds to local animal protection groups in order to accelerate the process of adoption and relocation and guarantee that it is done in a proper way, and that the animals do not end up on illegal race tracks in mainland China or other countries. Yat Yuen former staff reported for duty on Saturday Several Yat Yuen Company former staff members reported for duty at the Canidrome venue on Saturday morning with the purpose of continuing work as dog caretakers, TDM Radio reported. According to the report, the staff members that showed up at the Canidrome claimed to have been told by their supervisors to continue work. They also claimed they were the most appropriate people to handle the dogs as they were already doing such tasks and knew the animals better than anyone else. Also according to the radio station, on Saturday morning the Yat Yuen Company issued a statement saying that starting from today, the company will offer jobs to all 129 former Canidrome employees left without jobs due to the closure of the facility. Job positions will be offered at other companies from the Sociedade de Jogos de Macau group, such as the Jockey Club and Macau Slot. Half century of dog races come to an end MACAU WAS the only place in China where dog racing is legal. However, betting on dog races at Macaus Canidrome a tradition more than 50 years old soured after animal rights groups accused the company of mistreating the dogs and euthanizing those that underperformed on the track. Japans parliament on Friday approved a contentious law allowing up to three casino resorts to open in this wealthy nation and possibly lure more foreign visitors. The bill was approved and enacted into law at the upper house after bulldozing by the ruling bloc. The lower house passed it last month. It adds rules of operation to a law on casino promotion passed in 2016. The enactment of the integrated resorts law means casinos can operate at resorts that include hotels, conference rooms and shopping malls in the mid-2020s. Supporters say casinos can attract more and wealthier tourists. Opponents say Japan already has pachinko pinball parlors and wagering on horse, auto, bicycle and boat racing, and expanding legalized gambling would fuel organized crime and compound gambling addiction. Media surveys have showed a majority of Japanese oppose the plan. Projections by experts show casino visitors would be predominantly Japanese, rather than foreign tourists. Opposition lawmakers said the casino law would only allow foreign operators to make money off Japanese. The approval Friday was delayed for hours by opposition parties protests. Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yukio Edano criticized the casino law and other policies of Abes government, filibustering at an earlier lower house session for 2 hours and 43 minutes, the longest known since 1972. Edano condemned Abe for prioritizing gambling [law] over support for victims of recent deadly floods in western Japan. The law will allow up to three casinos to operate but they are unlikely to open until the mid-2020s, after the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Several cities, including Osaka and Wakayama in western Japan, Yokohama, a southern port city of Sasebo, and a few cities on the northern island of Hokkaido have expressed interests to bid for casino licenses. Host city and the central government split 30 percent of the casino revenue they collect as tax. To address concerns about addiction, the law limits local residents to three casino visits per week and 10 per month. Admission will be free for foreigners but a set price for residents in Japan. Japan has a significantly high gambling addiction rate among advanced nations. A 2017 study by the health ministry found that about 3.2 million people, or about 3.6 percent of the adult population, were thought to be addicted to gambling, far higher than many other countries 1.2 percent in France, 0.4 percent in Italy and 0.2 percent in Germany. Many experts and former addicts say pachinko was the main cause. Mari Yamaguchi, Tokyo, AP Let the competition begin Now that Japan has passed a law outlining a road map for casino resorts, foreign operators from Las Vegas Sands Corp. to MGM Resorts International can start to seek out partners in their bid to tap a gaming market that may be worth as much as USD25 billion. It could also be a boon for Japanese industries from companies that oversee a resort project to construction giants building infrastructure. There is still a long road ahead, but talks between Japanese companies and Western operators will become more serious now that the government has given the green light. Local municipalities will eventually start requesting proposals from consortium groups that want to pitch their plans. This business becomes a legitimate viable business after the bill passes, said Masaru Sugiyama, an analyst at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Companies that werent willing to come public with their aspirations well see them be more active with press releases, briefings, blue prints coming out for what kind of projects they want to do and where, and who they want to partner with. Bloomberg The unprecedented move from MGM Resorts International to sue hundreds of victims of last years mass shooting in Las Vegas using an obscure U.S. law never tested in court has been framed by the casino-operator as an effort to avoid years of costly litigation but the legal maneuver may not play out that way. The company is not seeking money in the lawsuits filed in at least seven states over the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Instead, it wants federal courts to declare that it has no liability to survivors or families of slain victims under a federal law enacted after the Sept. 11 terror attacks. MGM argues that the Oct. 1 shooting met two conditions of the law: it qualifies as an act of terrorism and federally certified security services were used at the venue where 22,000 concertgoers were gathered as gunfire rained down from the companys Mandalay Bay casino-resort. But experts believe legal resolutions wont come quickly because appeals are practically guaranteed and a U.S. court may not be the appropriate entity to determine whether the shooting is considered terrorism. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Friday that the law authorizes its leader to make that declaration. MGMs lawsuits target victims who have sued the company and voluntarily dismissed their claims or have threatened to sue after a gunman shattered the windows of his hotel suite and fired on a crowd of country music fans. Stephen Paddock killed 58 people and injured hundreds more before killing himself. MGM is invoking the Support Anti-terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002, enacted to urge development and use of anti-terrorism technologies by providing companies a way to limit liability if their federally certified products or services fail to prevent a terrorist attack. After 9/11, manufacturers and others were concerned they could be sued out of business after an attack. The law has never been used to avoid liability after mass violence, such as the shooting at a Colorado movie theater in 2012, because previous attacks havent involved services or products certified by Homeland Security. The department has only approved about 1,000 services and technologies, including airport screening equipment and stadium security. MGM said in the lawsuits filed in Nevada, California, Utah and other states that its security vendor for the outdoor concert venue, Contemporary Services Corp., was federally certified. The Department of Homeland Security said in response to MGMs lawsuits that its secretary possesses the authority to determine whether an act was an act of terrorism under the law in question, and it has not made any such determination regarding the Route 91 Harvest Festival mass shooting incident. The agency says its reviewing the matter. The law broadly defines it as an unlawful act that harms a person in the U.S. and uses or attempts to use weapons or other methods that can cause mass destruction. MGM says Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen is not the only one with authority to make the call and that her public statements make clear the attack meets the laws requirements. The companys argument is far too broad of an interpretation of the statute. It should be fairly clear that what MGM did is not what was intended in the statute, said Brian Finch, a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman in Washington D.C. It is [the secretarys] responsibility, not that of a judge. CSCs general counsel, James Service, said the company doesnt comment on litigation. MGM faced immediate backlash over the lawsuits this week, and it insisted in tweets and statements that it is trying to expedite resolutions for the victims. It stressed that it is not asking for money or attorneys fees and directed the complaints only at people who have already sued us or have threatened to sue us. We are seeking justice through the federal court system in order to reach a timely resolution. We want to resolve these cases quickly, fairly and efficiently, spokeswoman Debra DeShong said on MGMs Twitter account. Victims attorneys and a legal scholar told The Associated Press that the companys strategy wont speed up anything. Alfred Yen, associate faculty dean and professor at Boston College Law School, said the law is not perfectly clear, and unless the parties settle, the matter could reach the U.S. Supreme Court because whoever loses is likely to appeal. This is a high-stakes, controversial case. A court would be very careful not to rush to a judgment on this, Yen said. It is going to take a long time for a court to decide the merits of this case. Regina Garcia Cano, Las Vegas, AP New York City asked a judge to order Airbnb Inc. to comply with a subpoena for information about its listings, just days after lawmakers demanded it share the names and addresses of hosts in the city. In a lawsuit Friday, the city said Airbnb is largely refusing to cooperate with its investigation into illegal short-term rentals and refusing to produce any records whatsoever. Christopher Nulty, an Airbnb spokesman, said Airbnb didnt comply with the subpoena because it was too broad and requested information not related to the investigation. We are committed to fighting for the privacy of our community and will not stand by silently while OSE attempts to game the legal system in order to continue to harass responsible New Yorkers who share their home, Nulty said in a statement. The suit comes days after the city voted to require the home-sharing company to provide information about its hosts so the officials can police Airbnb users who run illegal hotels. The new law requires Airbnb to provide the addresses and names of its hosts to the mayors Office of Special Enforcement. Airbnb must also reveal if its rentals are for a whole apartment or just a room disclosures that are designed to enforce a state law that makes it illegal for most landlords to rent an apartment for less than 30 days. The lawsuit is the latest blow in an almost decade-long battle between the company and city officials, who argue the home-sharing company squishes housing supply and contributes to rising rents and gentrification. Airbnb argues its helps homeowners afford their mortgages and brings tourism to neighborhoods that need a boost. This week an Airbnb host backed financially by the company sued the city, accusing officials of retaliating against him for speaking out in support of home rentals. The company also says the new law is doing the bidding of the hotel industry, which Airbnb says has a powerful hold over local regulators. An investigation by Airbnb revealed that 15 of New York Citys 51 council members had received donations from the industry and related associations. Members of city council are nothing more than bell hops for the hotel operators, Airbnbs head of global policy Chris Lehane said this week on a conference call with the media. The company didnt immediately respond to a request for comment on the suit. The city said in its suit its trying to stop illegal conversions of residences into ersatz hotels that deplete housing stock for New Yorkers, pose fire and building safety risks and deceive consumers. It said in its suit in state court in Manhattan that its attempting to hold accountable all the responsible parties who have displaced permanent housing stock to advance their illegal business activity. Bloomberg The United States on Friday welcomed the U.N. Security Councils united support for the fully verified denuclearization of North Korea and pressed China and Russia to strictly enforce U.N. sanctions to get Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused North Korea of violating an array of tough sanctions imposed by the council. He warned that when sanctions are not enforced, the prospects for the successful denuclearization of North Korea are diminished. Nonetheless, Pompeo told reporters after meeting behind closed doors with the 15 council members that President Donald Trump remains upbeat about the prospects for denuclearization following his historic summit in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. So do I, as progress is happening, he added without elaborating. The Trump administration hopes that one day North Korea will be at the United Nations not as a pariah but as a friend, Pompeo said. But it will take full enforcement of sanctions for us to get there as well as Kim following through on his personal commitments to Trump. At the summit, Trump and Kim agreed to work toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, without describing when and how it would occur. Follow-up talks this month between Pompeo and North Korean senior officials in Pyongyang had a rocky start, with North Korea accusing the United States of making unilateral and gangster-like demands. Pompeo stressed Friday that the 15 Security Council nations are united on the need for final, fully verified denuclearization of North Korea. Pyongyang for decades has been pushing a concept of denuclearization that bears no resemblance to the American definition, vowing to pursue nuclear development unless Washington removes its 28,500 troops from South Korea and the nuclear umbrella defending South Korea and Japan. China, which is North Koreas closest ally and responsible for more than 90 percent of the isolated countrys trade, backs North Koreas call for a phased and synchronous approach to denuclearization. Last month, Beijing suggested the Security Council consider suspending or lifting sanctions on North Korea if it is in compliance with U.N. resolutions and making progress in negotiations. Russia said Friday it also backs this approach. Russias deputy U.N. ambassador, Dmitry Polyansky, said that Pompeo confirmed the U.S. will seek the full denuclearization of North Korea. It is necessary that the denuclearization go step by step with parallel actions by the international community, Polyansky said. We are talking about easing sanctions pressure through the U.N. Security Council, as well as the removal of unilateral U.S. sanctions. Some exemptions have already taken place. Last week, South Korea received exemptions from the Security Council committee monitoring North Korea sanctions for communications lines between the North and South and for some goods for the North including furniture, transport vehicles and a bus. The U.S. has pushed for rapid moves toward ridding North Korea of its nuclear weapons and says sanctions will remain until Pyongyang follows through on Kims pledge. But Trump has recently been playing down expectations of quick results, saying this week there was no time limit on getting North Korea to denuclearize. U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley, standing beside Pompeo, made clear that Kim Jong Un must take action first. We continue to reiterate we cant do one thing until we see North Korea respond to their promise to denuclearize, Haley said. We have to see some sort of action. And so until that action happens, the Security Council is going to hold tight. As for the broader international community, she said, we ask you to hold tight as we go forward. Pompeo said the scope and scale of denuclearization is agreed to and the North Koreans understand what that means, though he didnt elaborate and sidestepped a question on what the first step should be. We need to see chairman Kim do what he promised the world he would do, Pompeo said. Chinese Ambassador Ma Zhaoxu said that China is committed to denuclearization and to peace and stability on the Peninsula. He added that China will fully implement U.N. sanctions resolutions, adding that everyone else should as well. But, Pompeo said, North Korea is illegally smuggling in refined petroleum products beyond the quota of 500,000 barrels per year allowed under U.N. sanctions, mainly by ship-to-ship transfers. U.S. documents sent to the committee and obtained by The Associated Press cite 89 instances between Jan. 1 and May 30 in which North Korean tankers likely delivered refined products illicitly procured via such transfers. The U.S. says Russia and China both informed the sanctions committee that they were supplying refined products to North Korea. Pompeo said North Korea is also evading sanctions by smuggling coal by sea and across borders, through cyber thefts and other criminal activities, and by keeping workers in some countries that he didnt name. These actions are all generating significant revenues for the regime and they must be stopped, he said. Haley criticized some friends who want to go around the rules, and especially Russia and China for blocking the sanctions committee from demanding that all countries halt shipments of petroleum products to North Korea immediately. Moscow and Beijing said they need additional time to investigate the U.S. allegations and put a six-month hold on the U.S. request. Are they telling us that they want to continue supplying this oil? Haley asked. They claim they need more information. We dont need any more information. The sanctions committee has what it needs. We all know its going forward. Dutch Ambassador Karel Van Oosterom said the Security Council made clear to Pompeo that it wants to see concrete actions and deeds from North Korea to denuclearize. Van Oosterom, who chairs the North Korea sanctions committee, told reporters: I think for all of us its clear that the progress is in the talks so far, that the engagement is there and the discussions are taking place. South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said North Korea made a clear commitment on complete denuclearization repeatedly and, of course, very forcefully at the Singapore summit with President Trump, and we will hold them up to that commitment. Edith M. Lederer, United Nations, AP China has suffered a series of diplomatic blows lately. Relations with the U.S. are at a multi-decade low as a trade war escalates. This month, Malaysia suspended four Chinese-backed projects as its prime minister tries to pull away from Beijings orbit. From Myanmar to Sri Lanka to Vietnam, Chinas overseas investments are being met with a growing backlash. These are all setbacks to President Xi Jinpings hopes for global greatness. Despite his aspirations to play the responsible world statesman, Xis foreign-policy record is filled with squabbles, misfires and unfulfilled promise. If hes going to restore China to superpower status and cement its dominance in East Asia, he should take a cue from Chinese history about how to wield power. For centuries, Chinese dynasties held a role in world affairs that looked very much like what Xi appears to want today. They sat at the center of an East Asian diplomatic and economic order that was stable, peaceful and prosperous over long periods. That order was based on the tribute system. In the West, that phrase conjures up unsavory images of tyrannical emperors and cowering vassals. And its true that other East Asian countries were expected to acknowledge Chinas supremacy. But the tribute system was also a sophisticated framework for diplomatic relations, with its own rules, customs and values. The system was infused with the lofty principles of Confucianism, which acted as a governing ideology for Chinas imperial court and a cultural glue that bound the region together. In the Confucian ideal, relations were hierarchical, but not unfair. The superior power had a duty to treat subordinates with kindness and wisdom. China had the military and economic power to force its neighbors to kowtow, of course. But for the most part, the emperors showed restraint. From the founding of the Ming Dynasty in 1368 to the first Opium War of the 1840s, China invaded an East Asian state only once (an ultimately disastrous 15th-century push into Vietnam), notes David Kang, author of East Asia Before the West. In response, the other East Asian countries generally accepted Chinese hegemony; Japans ill-fated invasion of Korea in the 1590s was the only overt attempt to challenge Chinese supremacy in that entire period. To the extent the tribute system worked, it was because all parties saw benefits from it, in trade and diplomatic support. Emperors often bestowed gifts on foreign embassies worth more to their vassals than the tributes they received. Occasionally, they made concessions when they didnt have to. In 1725, when Vietnam moved part of its border about 40 miles north into Chinese territory to claim copper mines, the Qing emperor decided to compromise, leaving a majority of the land in Vietnamese hands. Of course, the emperors were not always peaceful, especially with neighboring peoples to Chinas west. But if Xi had Confucian scholar-officials in his court, like the old emperors, theyd likely advise him to act with more patience, generosity and conciliation and thereby get foreign leaders to cooperate with him willingly. What would that mean in practice? For one thing, China would refrain from further militarizing disputed areas of the South China Sea, and instead sit down with the other claimants, maybe giving an inch or two to reach a compromise that gained foreign support while maintaining Chinas dominance. To resolve the trade war with Washington, China could focus on the very Confucian principle of reciprocity, and be willing to treat foreign companies on its turf the way its companies are treated overseas. And with Belt and Road, Xi could be more magnanimous and share the programs benefits more evenly with its participants, thereby avoiding a popular blowback. Xi obviously shouldnt reestablish the tribute system; he couldnt if he wanted to. But the emperors and their Confucian literati did know a few things about prudent leadership. Just because you have power doesnt mean you should use it. Superpowers must sometimes make sacrifices to sustain their stature. And a little Confucian benevolence can go a long way. Michael Schuman, Bloomberg Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Africa on Saturday on a four-nation visit seeking deeper military and economic ties while his rival in a bitter trade war, the Trump administration, shows little interest in the worlds second most populous continent. This is Xis first trip abroad since he was appointed to a second term in March with term limits removed, allowing him to rule for as long as he wants. That rang familiar to some of Africas long- entrenched leaders. China is already Africas largest trading partner, and it opened its first military base on the continent last year in the Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti, which this month launched a China-backed free trade zone it calls the largest in Africa. After surpassing the U.S. in arms sales to Africa in recent years, China this month hosted dozens of African military officials for the first China-Africa defense forum. Xi is stopping in Senegal and then Rwanda ahead of his participation in a summit of the BRICS emerging economies in South Africa that starts on Wednesday. The summit comes amid the United States billion-dollar trade war with China and tough trade negotiations with other key economic partners. Last month the foreign ministers of BRICS members Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa criticized what they called a new wave of protectionism, saying U.S. measures undermine global trade and economic growth. Xis Africa visit also highlights Chinas sweeping Belt and Road initiative that envisages linking Beijing to Africa, Europe and other parts of Asia via a network of ports, railways, power plants and economic zones. While such high-profile projects bring badly needed infrastructure and generate economic growth, U.S. officials and others have warned that African nations are putting themselves into debt to China. Its government, banks and contractors loaned more than USD94 billion to African governments and state-owned companies from 2000 to 2015, according to the China Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University. Public debt in the median sub-Saharan African country rose from 34 percent of GDP in 2013 to an estimated 53 percent in 2017, says a report in January by Wenjie Chen and Roger Nord of the International Monetary Fund. From oil in countries like Nigeria and Angola to rare minerals in Congo, Africas natural resources are a major draw for Chinas economy, the worlds second largest behind the U.S. Chinas voracious appetite for resources such as timber and ivory, however, has taken its toll on Africas environment, often with the help of corrupt local officials. On his first visit to a West African country Xi will meet with President Macky Sall of Senegal, which according to the International Monetary Fund had economic growth of 7.2 percent last year and whose largest trading partner is the European Union, notably France. The stop highlights Chinas interest both in Francophone Africa and in Atlantic Ocean ports, while Senegal positions itself as a gateway to the region. Already a Chinese-backed industrial park has appeared outside the capital, Dakar, while rail and road links are being improved as part of an ambitious plan to reach the other end of the continent in Djibouti. Xi then moves on to Rwanda, becoming the first Chinese president to visit the landlocked East African country, whose economy grew by 6.1 percent last year. He will meet with President Paul Kagame and visit a memorial for Rwandas 1994 genocide, which killed more than 800,000 people. The Chinese leader then will make his third state visit to South Africa for the BRICS summit. South Africas economy, one of Africas largest, grew just 1.3 percent last year amid a drop in investor confidence because of a corruption scandal around former President Jacob Zuma, who resigned in February. Finally, Xi will stop in the Indian Ocean island nation of Mauritius, whose economy grew by 3.9 percent last year. Chinas economic push continues in September with the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, which brings together dozens of heads of state. Babacar Dione, Cara Anna, AP By Adam Andrzejewski - The retiring executive director of the Illinois State Board of Investment (ISBI), William Atwood, received a $136,577 special gift after a 15-year career at the 4th largest pension fund. Atwood cashed in 144 days of unused vacation time last week. So much for fiscal accountability. Atwood announced retirement via press release on June 29, effective immediately. Atwood had banked 144 unused vacation days. Under the Illinois Personnel Code, state employees are able to cash in 50 days of unused vacation time upon retiring. We thought these rules applied to Atwood, too, but that wasnt the case. Over the first seven years of his employment (2003-2010), Atwood accrued 144 days of unused vacation time. In 2010, the ISBI board carved out an exception for Atwood, capping his vacation bank at 144 days rather than 50. Atwood was already receiving one of the largest salaries in the state. In 2005, Atwood received $186,750. By 2017, his salary had increased to $246,200 the 32nd largest salary among nearly 75,000 disclosed state employees. In 2018, Atwood received six months compensation plus his cashed in vacation bank ($136,577) for a total $269,900. Its a classic case of Illinois insiders and politically powerful profiting at the expense of regular people. There are 142,000 public employee beneficiaries of this pension fund. Illinois citizens are tired of taxpayer abuse, golden parachutes, and huge payouts on their dime. No public employees deserve a six-figure parting gift at termination or retirement. The Guyanese government, under its agreement with Exxon, will receive roughly half the cash flow from oil production once the companys costs are repaid. Economists say that will mean the countrys current gross domestic product of $3.6 billion will at least triple in five years. (HealthDay)If your memory starts slipping, your gender may play a role in whether or not you are diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, a new study suggests. How? Women excel in a skill called verbal memorythe ability to learn and remember verbal information such as stories or grocery lists. At the moment, tests to detect Alzheimer's disease rely heavily on measuring this skill, the study authors explained, which means some women may appear normal when they already have the memory-draining disease. "About 10 percent of women originally diagnosed as normal were shown to meet the criteria for Alzheimer's disease," said study author Pauline Maki, a professor of psychiatry and psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "Conversely, we found that there were about 10 percent of men who were reclassified as not having Alzheimer's disease. These findings suggest it's important to pay attention to sex differences to improve the diagnostic accuracy for women and for men," Maki said. Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia that causes difficulties with memory, thinking and behavior. Right now, almost 6 million Americans have Alzheimer's. By 2050, that number is expected to hit 14 million, according to the Alzheimer's Association. Maki said that women have a lifelong advantage in verbal memory, and that's due to the hormone estrogen. She said when younger women must have their ovaries removed, causing a sharp decline in estrogen, there's also a sharp decline in verbal memory. Verbal memory is also affected during menopause, when estrogen levels drop naturally. Maki said the brain typically learns to compensate and actually produces its own estrogen, which helps to preserve verbal memory. "That verbal memory reserve gives women an advantage in maintaining memory functioning despite having Alzheimer's pathology in the brain," she said, adding that the advantage can quickly turn into a disadvantage as the disease progresses. "Women transition so much more quickly from preclinical Alzheimer's disease to the dementia stage because they're diagnosed later," Maki noted. The new study included almost 800 women. Their average age was 73 years and their average education was 15 years. Almost 950 men were also part of the study. They were slightly older, with an average age of 74, and had an average education of 16 years. The researchers looked at the standard cut-offs in tests to diagnose Alzheimer's disease, and compared those to gender-specific cut-offs to see if they could more accurately classify men and women with or without the disease. And, in fact, the investigators found they did. About 1 in 10 women and 1 in 10 men were improperly diagnosed before the sex-specific test cut-offs were used. Heather Snyder, senior director of medical and scientific operations for the Alzheimer's Association, said, "This research suggests that using these types of tests [verbal memory] for women can mask underlying changes in biology. This might mean that you don't detect changes as early as you might for a male." Snyder noted that it's important to get the diagnosis as early as possible. It gives people a chance to think about the care they want and to take care of financial and family concerns. She said an early diagnosis also allows people to take advantage of the medicines currently available, and to have a chance at participating in clinical trials. The study is scheduled for presentation Monday at the Alzheimer's Association annual meeting, in Chicago. Findings presented at meetings are typically viewed as preliminary unless published in a peer-reviewed journal. Explore further Pregnancy and reproductive history may impact dementia risk More information: Pauline Maki, Ph.D., professor, psychiatry and psychology, and senior research director, Center for Research on Women and Gender, University of Illinois, Chicago; Heather Snyder, Ph.D., senior director, medical and scientific operations, Alzheimer's Association; July 23, 2018, Alzheimer's Association annual meeting, Chicago Pauline Maki, Ph.D., professor, psychiatry and psychology, and senior research director, Center for Research on Women and Gender, University of Illinois, Chicago; Heather Snyder, Ph.D., senior director, medical and scientific operations, Alzheimer's Association; July 23, 2018, Alzheimer's Association annual meeting, Chicago Learn more about diagnosing Alzheimer's disease from the Alzheimer's Association. Copyright 2018 HealthDay. All rights reserved. Credit: CC0 Public Domain New QUT research has shed light on why some women have 'normal' births and many don't, delivering vital information to help women make more informed maternity care decisions. Research led by QUT Associate Professor Yvette Miller, from the Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, asked almost 6000 women about their birthing experiences in Queensland. Professor Miller said many women were not aware that their choice of maternity care provider, birth facility, the way their baby is monitored in labour and positioning during labour and birth would all affect their labour and birth experience. "We do this kind of research primarily to give women the information they need to make informed decisions about their maternity care," Professor Miller said. "'Normal' birth was defined as an unassisted vaginal birth without induction of labour, epidural or general anaesthetic, forceps or episiotomy. "We partnered with the Queensland Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages to survey almost 6000 women who gave birth over a four-month period in Queensland. Women reported features of their experience alongside the four aspects of normal birth: onset of labour, use of anaesthetics, mode of birth, and use of episiotomy. "Only 28.7 per cent of the women experienced a 'normal' birth. "Our analysis found that those who had received GP shared care, standard public care, public midwifery continuity care or private midwifery care were all more likely to have a 'normal' birth than women in private obstetric care. "We also found that women had a higher chance of a 'normal' birth if: they lived outside major cities could move freely throughout labour received continuity of care in labour and birth did not have procedures to augment their labour (such as having their "waters broken" or an Oxytocin drip) did not have their baby continuously electronically monitored during labour or gave birth not lying flat." Professor Miller said research from Australia and several other countries indicated the majority of women report the desire for minimal medical intervention during birth. "Rates of medical intervention in labour and birth have steadily increased in most middle- and high-income countries over the past few decades contrary to most women's preferences," she said. "Analysis of 23 studies published from around the world found that only 13.8 per cent of women expressed a preference for caesarean birth over vaginal birth." "Our other research has shown that many women in Queensland are not informed or not involved in decisions about the use of medical procedures that can affect their birth experience and outcomes. "Women are especially uninformed about how the type of maternity care they choose early on in their pregnancy can affect their chances of having the type of labour and birth they want." "Queensland has published the Qld Maternity and Neonatal Clinical Guideline: Normal birth, and other states have similar guidelines. Australia, the UK, Canada, are among those countries which have recently published policy directives to increase normal births. "The underlying ethos of current policy directives is that birth is a normal physiological process and not a medicalised 'problem'." The study, "Factors promoting or inhibiting normal birth," was published in BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. Explore further Natural birth is more common in public hospitals outside business hours More information: Samantha J. Prosser et al. Factors promoting or inhibiting normal birth, BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth (2018). Samantha J. Prosser et al. Factors promoting or inhibiting normal birth,(2018). DOI: 10.1186/s12884-018-1871-5 In this April 25, 2017, photo, a baby receives a vaccine shot next to a poster which reads "Standardize vaccination and build a healthy China" at a hospital in Handan in north China's Hebei province. China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a rabies vaccine producer prompted a public outcry following scandals over shoddy drugs and food. Credti: Chinatopix via AP Chinese leaders are scrambling to shore up public confidence and oversight of the pharmaceutical industry after a rabies vaccine maker was found faking records, the latest in a slew of public health and safety scandals that have led outraged Chinese parents to direct their ire at the government. Premier Li Keqiang declared in a statement Sunday that the case of Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences Ltd., which is accused of fabricating production and inspection records, "violated a moral bottom line." He pledged an immediate investigation into the company and to "resolutely crack down" on violations that endanger public safety. The premier's remarks were aimed at assuaging Chinese parents who routinely complain about worrying over fake food, milk and medicine in a society that seems to lack a "moral bottom line"and also competent, uncorrupt regulators. "Defective vaccines are like child abuse and traffickingit touches on the most sensitive, vulnerable part of the public's hearts," wrote Xi Po, a columnist for The Paper, a popular online news outlet backed by the Shanghai government. "But unlike in cases of child abuse, the vaccine scandals involve layers and layers of broken regulators and interest groups." There were no reports of injuries due to the rabies vaccine, but the disclosure has ricocheted around social media, touching a raw nerve for Chinese parents. Two years ago, a similar scandal erupted after police busted a criminal ring that had sold millions of faulty baby vaccinesbut did not disclose the case for months. In this Sept. 11, 2010 file photo, a child cries while receiving a shot of measles vaccine at a health station in Hefei in central China's Anhui province. China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a rabies vaccine producer prompted a public outcry following scandals over shoddy drugs and food. Credit: Chinatopix via AP Regulators announced last week that Changchun Changsheng, China's second-largest rabies vaccine manufacturer, was ordered to stop production and recall its rabies vaccine. Days later, provincial authorities in northeast China announced that batches of DPT, or diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus, vaccine were found to be defective. But more than 250,000 doses of the DPT vaccine had been sold, China's state broadcaster reported. Public anger ratcheted up swiftly only over the weekend following a report by an anonymous author disclosing that regulators found production problems at Changchun Changsheng as early as November but did not publicize the findings or announce a recall until July. The post went viral and was censored by Sunday even as Chinese leaders launched a public relations response. In his statement, Li, the premier, acknowledged the government's lapse and pledged to punish offenders and regulators found in "dereliction of duty." State media chimed in, with the China Daily urging the government to handle the matter in a "transparent manner" while the Communist Party-owned Global Times called on authorities to "follow up on people's security demands, and supervise and regulate more effectively." Government censors have employed a relatively light touch, allowing online news outlets like The Paper and Caixin to pursue the story aggressively while giving netizens space to vent their frustration and rage. By Monday afternoon, the hashtag "Changchun Changsheng makes fake vaccines" had garnered more than 100 million views on Weibo. A hospital staff walks past a poster with information on rabies vaccine in Beijing, China, Monday, July 23, 2018. China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a rabies vaccine producer prompted a public outcry following scandals over shoddy drugs and food. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan The company's phone lines were busy for several hours on Monday and executives could not be reached for comment. Yang Yuze, another writer at The Paper, bluntly questioned whether national policies to prop up pharmaceutical companies were "opening the door" to corruption. "The main problem is insufficient regulation, missing regulation, powerless regulation," Yang wrote. "It's easy to see how (lax regulation of the vaccine industry) are fig leafs and excuses for the transaction of money and power." A visitor to a hospital looks at a poster with information on rabies vaccine in Beijing, China, Monday, July 23, 2018. China's No. 2 leader has ordered an investigation of its vaccine industry after violations by a rabies vaccine producer prompted a public outcry following scandals over shoddy drugs and food. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan Explore further Censors jump into action as China's latest vaccine scandal ignites 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. (HealthDay)One in five parents say they have not made plans with their children about what to do if they became separated at an amusement park or carnival, according to the C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health at the University of Michigan. In a survey that included more than 1,200 parents of children aged 5 to 12, the poll authors also asked parents what they would do if ride operators did not enforce safety rules or if they suspected the operator of unsafe behavior. Nine in 10 parents said they would report suspicions that the operator was drunk or on drugs, and 69 percent said they would report failure to enforce safety rules, such as seat belts or height restrictions. Nearly six in 10 parents believe ride operators should undergo random alcohol and drug testing, with 13 percent supporting weekly testing, 13 percent in favor of monthly testing, and 3 percent backing yearly testing. Eleven percent said checks should only be done if there were suspicions of drug or alcohol use, the survey found. While most parents said they would report a ride operator who appeared impaired by alcohol or drugs, less than half said they would report a ride operator who used a cellphone while operating a ride. In 2016, U.S. emergency departments dealt with 30,000 injuries linked to amusement parks and carnivals, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. "As parents prepare for summer trips to the amusement park or local fair, they should keep safety at the top of mind," poll co-director Gary Freed, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, said in a university news release. "As we've seen in news reports, accidents happen at amusement parks. Consequences range from skinned knees to serious injuries." Explore further One in five parents did not talk to kids about what to do if they got lost at an amusement park More information: More Information Copyright 2018 HealthDay. All rights reserved. Top: the eyes of two children affected by the recessive genetic disorder caused by MARK3 mutations. Bottom left: the eye of a healthy drosophila. Bottom right: the eye of a drosophila affected by the MARK3 mutation. Credit: UNIGE The human genome is made up of 20,000 genes, all of which may cause disease. At present, 4,141 genes have been identified as being responsible for genetic abnormalities, leaving around 16,000 genes with unknown implication in disease. Researchers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland, working in collaboration with scientists from Pakistan and the USA, have investigated a recessive genetic disorder that prevents the eyes from developing and results in childhood blindness. After analysing the genomes of each member of a consanguineous family with affected children, the geneticists pinpointed pathogenic mutations in a new gene, MARK3, as the cause. They subsequently confirmed their findings, published in the journal Human Molecular Genetics, by modifying the homologous gene in drosophila flies, which resulted in abnormal eye development and blindness. The identification of the MARK3-related disease will help researchers to understand the mechanism of the disease, provide diagnostic services, and initiate efforts for a personalized treatment. Monogenic genetic disorders fall into two main categories: the first so-called dominant disorders only need one copy of the gene to be mutated to cause disorders such as Huntington's disease. The second recessive disorders are triggered by a mutation on both copies of the gene, as is the case with cystic fibrosis. "In our attempts to uncover new recessive genetic disorders, we looked at families where there was consanguineous marriage and where both parents carried one copy the mutant gene and passed it on to the child," explains Stylianos Antonarakis, a professor Emeritus in UNIGE's Faculty of Medicine. Supported by the the ProVisu Foundation of Geneva, the Geneva-based geneticists then joined forces with Liaquat University in Pakistan, a country where over 50 percent of marriages take place between close relatives (usually first cousins). An unknown disorder that destroys eyesight The geneticists directed their interest at an unknown illness that prevents the eyes from developing properly and gradually destroys them. "We found that the disorder was present in children from consanguineous parents. As a result, we hypothesised that it was a recessive genetic disorder," continues professor Antonarakis. For a disorder to fall into this category, it must affect at least two children from the same family (regardless of their sex) and the parents must be in good health. Two hundred Pakistani families that fulfilled these criteria were selected for the research programme. "We started by sequencing the genomes of every member of a family that had three children with the genetic abnormality and two healthy children. The aim was to see which gene had mutations on two copies in the affected children, on one copy in the parents, and one or zero copies in the normal siblings," says Muhammad Ansar, a researcher in the Department of Genetic Medicine and Development at UNIGE. After carrying out a bio-informatic analysis and genetic segregation to look for the mutations of each gene in the healthy and affected children and their parents, the scientists isolated the MARK3 gene as responsible for the recessive disorder. Confirming the result with drosophilae "To confirm whether MARK3 really was the gene responsible for the blindness, we checked to see if a similar mutation in drosophilae led to the same eye abnormalities," says Ansar. The UNIGE researchers have collaborated with experts at Houston's Baylor College of Medicine, to genetically modify drosophilae by introducing the mutation of two copies in the MARK3 gene of the flies. The result was that the flies had undeveloped eyes, and they were blind very similarly to the affected children in the Pakistani family. These results provided a validation of the the research findings in human patients. This discovery means that a new recessive disorder can be accurately diagnosed. "We can now concentrate on studying the mechanisms behind the disorder with the aim of finding a treatment," says Antonarakis. It is also possible to perform a quick and inexpensive test on people in the same extended family to determine whether or not they will pass on the mutant gene for this eye disorder to their children and, in some cases, so they can avoid marriage among carriers of the pathogenic gene mutation. "Our collaboration with Pakistan helped us identify about additional 30 genes that are potentially responsible for recessive genetic disorders. We are currently refining the analyses so that, little by little, we can reduce the total number of 16,000 genes whose mutations and disorders are yet to be discovered," conclude the Geneva researchers. Explore further A syndrome combining intellectual disability, epilepsy and hypotonia results from the failure of a single gene More information: Visual impairment and progressive phthisis bulbi caused by recessive pathogenic variant in MARK3 Human Molecular Genetics (2018). Journal information: Human Molecular Genetics Visual impairment and progressive phthisis bulbi caused by recessive pathogenic variant in MARK3(2018). Credit: CC0 Public Domain Researchers have found a surprising way to help boost the skills of children with language impairment: Pay their parents to read to them. A new study tested four techniques to get parents or other caregivers to complete a 15-week literacy intervention for their children with language impairment. Only one of those techniquespaying parents 50 cents for each reading sessionled to children showing significant gains in reading test scores, findings showed. "We were somewhat stunned to find that paying parents had this strong effect. We didn't anticipate this," said Laura Justice, lead author of the study and professor of educational psychology at The Ohio State University. The other three techniques tried in the study were offering positive feedback to the parents, offering encouragement, and modeling to parents how to read in a way that improved children's literacy skills. None of these three was helpful, and offering feedback actually had a slight negative effect on children's test scores, said Justice, who is executive director of The Crane Center for Early Childhood Research and Policy at Ohio State. Justice conducted the study with Jing Chen, graduate student; Sherine Tambyraja, senior research associate; and Jessica Logan, assistant professor, all at the Crane Center. Their results appear online in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. The study involved 128 parents or caregivers and their children. All children were 4 or 5 years old and had been diagnosed with language impairment. Most of the caregivers lived in low-income households. All caregivers used the Sit Together and Read (STAR) intervention with their children. STAR was developed by Justice and a colleague in 2013 and has been thoroughly evaluated and found to be helpful, particularly when used by teachers. The program involves reading to children with the goal of improving print knowledge, which includes knowing the features and names of the letters of the alphabet and print conventions such as reading left to right. While STAR has been shown to be effective, the problem is getting parents to read often enough with their children to make the program successful, Justice said. "We have found that 25 to 50 percent of parents don't adhere to the program enough for it to really work, and many of them are poorer and have less education," she said. Participants in the study were instructed to read one book a week to their children, four separate times, for a total of 60 readings over 15 weeks. Caregivers received specific instructions about how to read the books, which were provided to them, to follow the STAR program. All caregivers audio-recorded each book reading session and kept a written log detailing their readings. Most of the participants received one or more of the four behavior-change techniquesmonetary rewards, supportive feedback, encouragement or modelingto help boost their compliance with the program. Research staff met with caregivers about six times during the 15 weeks during which time they used the applicable behavior change techniques. Each child was assessed twice, before and after the STAR intervention, to assess their print knowledge. Results showed that children whose parents or caregivers were paid to read to them showed significant improvements in their print knowledge after the STAR intervention. None of the other techniques had a positive effect. A further analysis showed that the monetary rewards worked mostly because caregivers who received them completed more reading sessions with their children than did caregivers who received other behavior-change techniques. A secondary boost came from the fact that caregivers who received the monetary reward also talked more to their kids than other caregivers about the print features of the books as they were reading thema key part of the STAR program. A study like this can identify the barriers that are keeping parents from completing the STAR intervention, Justice said. "Our results showed that we identified the right barrier," she said. "The barrier that money overcomes in these families is time pressure." Many of the parents who don't complete the intervention are poorer and less educated, she said. Even the small payment used in this studythe average caregiver received $31.50 over the 15 weekswas enough to persuade parents that the time spent on reading was worth it. Justice said she knows that many teachers and others don't like the idea of paying caregivers to read to their children. But she emphasizes that the payments in this study were "a very modest investment" that paid big dividends with the children. "Maybe it could be a different kind of incentive, something as simple as a certificate for parents who complete the intervention. Or the payments could be smaller. There's more research that needs to be done," Justice said. Explore further Preschoolers' reading skills benefit from one modest change by teachers More information: Laura M. Justice et al, Increasing Caregivers' Adherence to an Early-Literacy Intervention Improves the Print Knowledge of Children with Language Impairment, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders (2018). Journal information: Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders Laura M. Justice et al, Increasing Caregivers' Adherence to an Early-Literacy Intervention Improves the Print Knowledge of Children with Language Impairment,(2018). DOI: 10.1007/s10803-018-3646-2 Muscles. Credit: The University of Queensland University of Queensland researchers are developing diagnostic tests for a genetic condition which can cause the body to fatally overheat while under a general anaesthetic. School of Biomedical Sciences Associate Professor Bradley Launikonis said malignant hyperthermia was caused by mutations in muscle proteins and could cause death under stressful conditions. "It is an inherited condition that affects hundreds of Australian families," Dr. Launikonis said. "When people with this condition are exposed to certain anaesthetics, their muscles can go very rigid and produce excessive heat. "If left untreated, the body temperature can rise to levels that can cause a fatal heart attack or other organ failure." The condition was discovered in the 1960s after several members of one family died under general anaesthesia. "Genetic tests for susceptibility are only reliable in about half of cases," Dr. Launikonis said. "In the other 50 per cent, an open biopsy of the thigh muscle under a general anaesthetic is required. "These biopsies are highly invasive and can cause serious discomfort for several days. "Additionally, we can't test children under 10 years of age due to their low muscle mass and potential problems in undergoing a general anaesthetic when susceptibility is not known." Dr. Launikonis's study looked at samples of muscle fibres taken by needle biopsies using only a local anaesthetic. "We examined individual muscle fibres the size of a single human hair to see how muscle proteins called ryanodine receptors controlled the release of calcium, the element which causes muscle contractions and produces heat," he said. In susceptible people, we found that those receptors were prone to release calcium when the muscle was exposed to anaesthetic." Dr. Launikonis said the findings paved the way for a significantly less-invasive diagnostic test. "Needle biopsies extract a much smaller amount of muscle tissue, less than 0.05g, so people are able to move freely afterwards," he said. "Such biopsies can be performed on children, so there is potential to provide diagnosis at a young age. "We're now looking to move into a development stage with hospitals to establish a new diagnostic test. "This research will also help us understand how ryanodine receptor health affects muscle strength." The study is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA. Explore further Research uncovers mechanism, protective purpose of muscle soreness following exercise More information: Tanya R. Cully el al., "Junctional membrane Ca2+ dynamics in human muscle fibers are altered by malignant hyperthermia causative RyR mutation," PNAS (2018). Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Tanya R. Cully el al., "Junctional membrane Cadynamics in human muscle fibers are altered by malignant hyperthermia causative RyR mutation,"(2018). www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1800490115 Every year, Americans make 30,000 emergency room visits because of food allergies, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Even touching a surface that previously held peanuts can trigger anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction. When a peanut-allergic person starts feeling their throat close up, they stab themselves with an epinephrine, or adrenaline, device and then head to the ER for a few hours of monitoring. What if there was another way? Researchers, doctors and pharmaceutical companies are trying to make people less allergic to peanuts. A peanut pill and a patch could be widely available by the end of 2019. And in the meantime, a small number of private-practice allergists have been offering oral immunotherapy, in which you gradually eat more peanut products under a doctor's supervision. Right now, the majority of allergists only prescribe patients an epinephrine device and tell them to strictly avoid peanut protein, in hopes of warding off reactions such as hives, swelling, blood pressure loss and difficulty breathing. The FDA has not approved any treatments for peanut allergies, which affect 2 percent of children today. This spring, Aimmune Therapeutics announced that it had wrapped up a 10-nation trial for its "peanut pill," AR101. Of the 69 trial sites, two were in North Carolina: the Food Allergy Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill and a private practice, Allergy and Asthma Partners in Charlotte. "Our hope all the time is to make a cure, to make this go away permanently and never have to worry about it," said Dr. Edwin Kim, a researcher at the Food Allergy Institute and the father of a peanut-allergic child. "These kids don't want to think about it. They don't want to have to worry about it. They want to be normal." UPDOSING AND MAINTENANCE For decades, people with "hay fever" or other environmental allergies have received allergy shots. Allergists inject you with increasing amounts of serum derived from whatever you're allergic to, building up your tolerance for the allergen. You start twice a week and stretch out the time between injections. After several years, you'll no longer need the shots. "What we found out in the '80s and '90s was that doing something similar, like putting peanuts into an allergy shot, wasn't effective," Kim said. "That's where the idea of oral immunotherapy was born, since eating the food is how your body learns to tolerate it." Oral immunotherapy, or OIT, works the same way the allergy shots do: slowly up your tolerance for the allergen, until you no longer have allergic reactions to it. You start with a very small amount of the food, check to make sure you don't have any reactions, and then gradually increase that amount in a process called updosing. Dr. Wesley Burks at Duke University first demonstrated how to increase patients' tolerance to peanuts in 2009. His 29 patients then started with mixing a few crumbs of peanut flour into applesauce or pudding, then updosed for months by eating a little more each day to build up tolerance for the allergen. Once they passed a "food challenge" of eating about 16 peanuts at once, the patients entered maintenance, which meant they ate eight peanuts a day for years afterward. Every OIT study since then has followed a similar updose and maintenance pattern, with some including the food challenge. THE PATH TO THE PEANUT PILL In 2011, a parent-run nonprofit brought together representatives from the National Institute of Health, the FDA, pharmaceutical companies and academic centers including Duke to figure out how to cure food allergies. Aimmune formed from that meeting. "They asked: 'What will it take to get a treatment approved for food allergies?' " said Dr. Daniel Adelman, Aimmune's chief medical officer. "We needed a high quality, reproducible, reliable product, and there was no such thing at the time." By 2013, the company created AR101, capsules of proprietary peanut flour that come with a standardized updose and maintenance schedule. As in the 2009 Duke study, patients mix the peanut product with food and eat it. Aimmune has tested AR101 on more than 1,000 patients. By the end of this year, Aimmune will apply to the FDA for a license to sell AR101 in the U.S., Adelman said. At the same time, another company hopes to offer a "peanut patch," called Viaskin, which patients will wear for increasing amounts of time to updose and then will wear all the time for maintenance. Burks has moved to the Food Allergy Institute at UNC, where researchers are also working on peanut "drops" held under the tongue, Kim said. No pharmaceutical company has picked up the drops yet, so they will not be available for consumers for at least several more years. If they pass, AR101 and Viaskin will be the first FDA-approved products to treat peanut allergies. ELIAS' STORY When Elias Kroboth of Raleigh was a baby, he broke out in full-body hives when his brother ate a peanut butter sandwich across the table. So after Elias turned 2, he started OIT with a private allergist who had worked on the Duke studies. Over the past three years, he updosed from crumbs per day to his maintenance level, when he eats five to eight peanuts per day and then rests for two hours to watch for a reaction. His mother, Kira Kroboth, said they worked closely with Elias' allergist. When Elias' immune system was fighting off colds from the rest of the family or travel, she texted the allergist to ask how much to lower his daily dose. It took her several tries to find an allergist who offered OIT instead of only preaching strict avoidance. "There was no other option besides 'here's an EpiPen, good luck,' " Kroboth said. "When we had that first appointment when he ate three tiny breadcrumbs of peanut, I felt OK, like we were doing something about this. Each updose was empowering." A thriving parent network helps families find the rare allergists who offer OIT. The website OIT 101 (www.oit101.org) lists just over 100 private practice allergists nationwide, out of around 5,700 allergists certified by the American Board of Allergy and Immunology. The website emphasizes that patients should not attempt to do OIT themselves and says that it only lists vetted allergists who offer OIT. Of the 22 private-practice board-certified allergists in the Triangle and 21 in Charlotte, Kroboth said only three offer OIT. Eligible patients may enter the pill, patch or drop trials at UNC and in Charlotte, but Elias wasn't the right age when the trials began. "I get frustrated because I feel like all the pharmaceutical powers are looking for a solution that ends up being profitable, like the patch or the pills," Kroboth said. "We already know what works. We just need to get allergists on board and get them familiar with the protocols and do what we know works." Both the peanut pill and private practice OIT claim 80 percent to 85 percent success at desensitizing patients to peanut proteins and cross contamination. Both have strong supporters suspicious of the other regimen. "If you go to the Whole Foods and get peanut flour, you don't know the protein content of that peanut flour," Adelman, the doctor with Aimmune Therapeutics, said. "You either are administering this as a drug where you know exactly what you're giving and you have confidence you're administering it in a controlled way, or you can kind of wing it and hope for the best. "Frankly, as an allergist dealing with life-threatening allergies, I don't play dice with my patients' lives." PEANUT GROWERS HOPEFUL About one in 13 children have at least one food allergy, according to the nonprofit organization Food Allergy Research & Education, and up to 15 million Americans total. Researchers, nonprofits and industry members have been scrambling for solutions for decades. Since 2001, the National Peanut Board has put over $25.3 million toward peanut allergy research, including sending funding to Burks, the lead researcher of the 2009 Duke study. They also supported a 2015 study that showed that parents should offer peanut products to very young children at risk of peanut allergy, in hopes of preventing the allergy. "For years, pediatricians had been telling parents to wait until the child is 2 years old before peanuts are introduced, and the (2015) study proved that is not the right way to go and that early introduction is going to be a deterrent to keep children from developing peanut allergies," said Bob Sutter of the North Carolina Peanut Growers Association. In 2017, North Carolina produced almost 480 million pounds of peanuts. North and South Carolina are the 5th and 6th growers of peanuts in the nation. Elias Kroboth, the peanut-allergic Raleigh child, doses with peanuts produced and specially processed in N.C., which avoid cross-contamination with tree nuts and other allergens. "We're very excited by the possibility that children might be able to not have to avoid everything," Sutter said. "Hopefully this (pill) will limit the accidental exposure reactions." Funding from the National Peanut Board and nonprofit organizations support academic research in labs and with small samples, then larger pharmaceutical companies step in for large-scale development and deployment. If the FDA approves every product, parents will have several options if they can find willing allergists: the pill, the patch, the drops under the tongue and private-practice OIT. "The reason you have FDA approval of drugs is because they have oversight of manufacturing processesthere's a reason for regulation," said allergist Dr. Laurie McWilliams, who does not offer private practice OIT. "That keeps drugs at the level they should be. What if you get a different dose on a different day because that peanut doesn't have the same high amount of protein content?" Kim, the allergist and parent from UNC, said the pill was the most effective but also the least convenient treatment. The patch is less effective, but has a short updose period and hassle-free application. "In a perfect world it would be great to have multiple treatments," Kim said. "Every child varies. Maybe the child is higher risk, and even if there's a little more difficulty doing the treatment it's worth it for those. Maybe for other families it's all about convenience, and they need protection but they're pretty good at avoidance. "I'd love for there to be options. That would give more power to the allergist and to the families as well." The success of the peanut pill may spread the popularity of private practice OIT, McWilliams said. "They might say the peanut product isn't different from what's in the grocery store, and they'll go grind it up," McWilliams said. Beyond peanut, Aimmune is working on trials for egg and walnut allergies. The company behind the peanut patch also is developing patches for milk and egg allergies. Wake County public schools do not have nut-free classrooms. Elias sits at the same lunch table each day for children with allergies, and teachers wipe him with soap and water before eating, as opposed to just water like allergy-free children. Using OIT to increase his tolerance for peanuts has helped the entire family, Kroboth said. "There's no doubt in my mind if we had not done OIT it would have been a traumatic first year of school," Kroboth said. "We eat out, we fly, we've been on vacation, and these are all things we did not do in the beginning and we now do without fear. It's life changing." Explore further New study suggests 21 percent increase in childhood peanut allergy since 2010 2018 The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Credit: Petr Kratochvil/public domain Researchers at the University of North Carolina found that, over the past 20 years, private insurers have paid more for a visit to the emergency department than Medicare or Medicaid. For this work, titled "Per-visit Emergency Department Expenditures by Insurance 1996-2015"and published in the July edition of Health Affairs, UNC Family Medicine fellow Jonathan Yun, MD, MPH, and two other researchers, used data from the 1996 through 2015 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey to study charge and payment trends for ED visits paid by Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance. In 2016, the average annual costs per person for health care in the United States was $10,345, more than twice per capita than other developed countries. These costs are expected to continue to steadily increase. "Health care spending now makes up at least 17 percent of our total Gross Domestic Product," says Yun. "Looking at spending trends for ED visits is important because emergency department spending has made up an increasing percent of total health costs over the last 20 years." Yun is a National Research Service Award Primary Care Research Fellow at the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research and a clinical instructor at UNC Family Medicine, both at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The researchers looked at charges and expenditures. Charges are straightforwardthe total amount that the hospital charged patients and their insurers. Expenditures are the sum of payments made to ED facilities and providers by insurers and individuals for their care. Yun found that: Between 1996 and 2015, annual increases in per visit emergency department expenditures were significantly greater for private insurance than Medicare, Medicaid, and the uninsured. During the same period, there was no similar corresponding difference in ED charges among different insurance types. Although the percent of charges actually paid as expenditures decreased for all insurers over time, private insurance had the highest expenditure-to-charge ratio each year. Consequently, private insurance had the highest expenditure-to-charge ratio in each year. "This means that private insurance paid the greatest percent of their quoted charges for each ED visit every year," says Dr. Yun. "We also found that, compared to Medicaid and Medicare, private insurance had the greatest average annual increase in spending for each ED visit between 1996 through 2015." These results suggest that private insurance may have a weaker bargaining position with hospitals compared to Medicare and Medicaid when negotiating the prices it pays for ED visits. On the other hand, Medicare's large patient pools and regulatory power may give it more power than private insurance to determine the prices it pays. Medicaid's regulatory power may also allow it to underpay for ED services which may hurt the financial viability of many emergency departments Yun mentioned that the study had a few limitations. "Our analysis was limited by the possibility that we may have underestimated the total number of ED visits for each insurance type or used variables that did not fully capture ED visit intensity," said Yun said. "We also excluded ED visits that led to hospitalizations so our results may only apply to ED visits that didn't result in hospitalizations." He also contextualized the study in the broader health policy landscape. "Understanding how much different insurance types pay for health care services like ED visits through studies like this one may provide guidance for policy solutions to rising health care costs." Explore further Deceleration in health care spending growth in 2016 More information: Jonathan Yun et al. Per Visit Emergency Department Expenditures By Insurance Type, 19962015, Health Affairs (2018). Journal information: Health Affairs Jonathan Yun et al. Per Visit Emergency Department Expenditures By Insurance Type, 19962015,(2018). DOI: 10.1377/hlthaff.2018.0083 Last week, six Indiana Legislators filed a friend of the court brief today supporting gun manufacturers in their defense of a suit brought by the City of Gary to make gun manufacturers liable for illegal gun use in Gary. Senators Jim Tomes, Mark Messmer, Dennis Kruse, and Representatives Ben Smaltz, Jerry Torr, and Greg Steuerwald filed the amicus brief in the Indiana Court of Appeals in City of Gary v. Smith & Wesson Corp. These legislators played instrumental roles in the passage of Indiana state laws that prevents lawsuits seeking to impose liability on firearms manufacturers, distributors, and dealers for illegal gun use. In 1999, the City of Gary filed a lawsuit against the Smith & Wesson Corporation and other gun manufacturers, alleging a public nuisance due to their sale of firearms in Gary and seeking damages and an injunction requiring manufactures and dealers to provide proper training of employees and to add certain safety features to their products. This case remained pending for nearly 19 years until this past January, when a Lake County Superior Court finally dismissed it in favor of the gun manufacturers. The court held that [t]he Gun Manufacturers are immune from liability for all the claims brought by the City of Gary in this lawsuit under both federal and Indiana State law. More precisely, the court found the firearms industry was immune from suit under IC 34-12-3-3, the immunity statute, sponsored by the amici Indiana legislators. People waiting to be attended at Maputo Hospital in Southern Mozambique. Credit: Author: Andalu Vilasanjuan HIV diagnosis is the first of many steps in the path to global disease control. However, in Southern Mozambique, more than half of people diagnosed with HIV do not initiate the next steps in the cascade of HIV care, and this is particularly true for those that perform the test at home. The study, led by ISGlobalan institution supported by "la Caixa" Foundationreveals the need to develop interventions to facilitate access to care and treatment among the population. To achieve the 90-90-90 target set by the UNAIDS (diagnose 90% of people living with VIH, treat 90% of them, and achieve viral suppression in 90% of treated patients), one must increase the percentage of people that, once diagnosed, start care and adhere to the treatment. In Mozambique for example, it is estimated that barely half of the people with HIV initiate treatment after diagnosis, and less than half continue taking it 3 years later. The team led by Denise Naniche, ISGlobal researcher, aimed to evaluate whether the uptake and adherence to HIV care and treatment depend on where and how the diagnosis was done. The study was performed in Southern Mozambique and included over 1,000 adults newly diagnosed at the clinic, either voluntarily or upon health personnel recommendation, or at their homes. Three months after diagnosis, barely 44% of the participants had attended a medical visit and only 25% had initiated antiretroviral treatment. Uptake of care and treatment was particularly low among those that were tested at home, which represent an older and less knowledgeable population than those attending the clinic. In contrast, among those that did initiate treatment, 84% were still taking it 12 months later. "These results are similar to those reported for other African countries with high HIV prevalence," says Naniche, "and they show that most patients are lost to follow-up in the first phases after the diagnosis, regardless of where and how the test was done. They also reveal that those that perform the test at home represent a sociodemographically distinct population, and that we need to develop interventions such as SMS messages to help them initiate medical care and treatment. Explore further In southern Mozambique, one out of three people diagnosed with HIV do not disclose their status More information: Elisa Lopez-Varela et al, Continuum of HIV Care in Rural Mozambique, JAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (2018). Elisa Lopez-Varela et al, Continuum of HIV Care in Rural Mozambique,(2018). DOI: 10.1097/QAI.0000000000001720 Provided by Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) (HealthDay)The risk of having no or only one child is elevated for women with an unfavorable prepregnancy lipid profile, according to a study published in the June issue of BMJ Open. Aleksandra Pirnat, from the University of Bergen in Norway, and colleagues conducted a prospective, population-based cohort study using data for 2,645 women giving birth to their first child during 1994 to 2003 (488 one-child mothers and 2,157 women with two or more births) and 1,677 nulliparous women. The researchers observed an association for higher prepregnancy triglyceride (TG) and TG to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (TG:HDL-c) ratio levels with increased risk of one lifetime pregnancy, compared with having two or more children. The risk of one lifetime pregnancy was increased for women in the lowest versus the highest quintile of HDL-c levels (odds ratio, 1.7; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.2 to 2.4) and for women with the highest versus the lowest low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, TG, and TG:HDL-c ratio quintiles (odds ratios, 1.2 [95 percent confidence interval, 0.8 to 1.7]; 2.2 [95 percent confidence interval, 1.5 to 3.2]; and 2.2 [95 percent confidence interval, 1.5 to 3.2], respectively). Women with a body mass index 25 kg/m and the highest LDL and total cholesterol levels had similar effects in risk of lifetime nulliparity. "These findings substantiate an association between prepregnant serum lipid levels and number of children," the authors write. Explore further Quadrivalent HPV vaccine not tied to spontaneous abortion Copyright 2018 HealthDay. All rights reserved. NOTICE: TO BE CLEAR: WE HAVE OUTLINED UNDER OUR RECORD MAINTENANCE POLICY WHAT WE BELIEVE TO BE A FAIR PROCESS FOR ALL. SIMPLY PUT: IF THE COURT SAW FIT TO EXPUNGE YOUR RECORD,SO WILL WE, FREE OF CHARGE. ARRESTS DO NOT IMPLY GUILT AND CRIMINAL CHARGES ARE MERELY ACCUSATIONS,EVERYONE IS PRESUMED INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY IN A COURT OF LAW AND CONVICTED. FCRA DISCLAIMER: MUGSHOTS.COM DOES NOT PROVIDE CONSUMER REPORTS AND IS NOT A CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCY. OUR DATABASE CANNOT BE USED TO MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT CONSUMER CREDIT, EMPLOYMENT, INSURANCE, TENANT SCREENING, OR ANY OTHER PURPOSES THAT WOULD REQUIRE FCRA COMPLIANCE. MUGSHOTS.COM PARTICIPATES IN AFFILIATE PROGRAMS WITH VARIOUS COMPANIES. WE MAY EARN A COMMISSION WHEN YOU CLICK ON OR MAKE PURCHASES VIA LINKS. MUGSHOTS.COM IS AN AGGREGATOR OF THE TODAYS CRIME NEWS. 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MOST OF, IF NOT ALL MUGSHOT LAWS WERE CRAFTED TO PROTECT THE PUBLIC FROM FEES FOR REMOVAL OF ONLINE MUGSHOTS AND TO FURTHER PROTECT THE PRESS FROM THOSE VERY SAME "MUGSHOT LAWS".WE DO NOT ACCEPT PAYMENT FOR REMOVAL OF ARREST INFORMATION AND/OR BOOKING PHOTOGRAPHS. MORE... Flagler County, FL - Two women and a man have been jailed on child neglect charges after an intrusion of cockroaches was discovered inside a Palm Coast home, authorities said. An investigation was launched July 3 after a 4-month-old child was hospitalized for bone fractures and insect bites, according to the Flagler County Sheriffs Office. Three children ages 4, 1 and 4 months lived at the home at 12 Brelyn Place, located in the citys B section north of Palm Coast Parkway. All of the suspects Lynn Marie Kulka, 52, Michael Alan Choate, 24, and Rene Elizabeth Marchetta, 26 were arrested Friday night and held at the Flagler County Detention Facility on $15,000 bail. Records show Kulka posted bail shortly after being booked. The other two remained jailed as of Saturday morning. This is a traumatic situation for all of the children involved, said Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly in a written statement. The children who were living in this house were subjected to deplorable living conditions. He added that the suspects obviously dont know how to be parents or properly care for children. Detectives said insects could be seen crawling everywhere in the house including the floors, walls, ceilings, cabinets and on all of the furniture. They also were discovered crawling on the childrens mattresses, playpens and inside a bassinet, they said. Sheriffs spokeswoman Shannon Martin said detectives learned the home had no working air conditioning. Kulka, while questioned by detectives, told them she purposely didnt report the broken air-conditioner to her landlord because she didnt want the landlord to see the living conditions inside the home, Martin said. Arrest warrants were issued for all three suspects. Marchetta was seen first at the Steak NShake on Cypress Edge Drive, according to an arrest report. Deputies then arrived at the house and arrested Kulka and Choate. Deputies said the case remains open and more charges could be filed. The Florida Department of Children and Families also is investigating. PUNISHMENT Since eunuchs handled almost every palace issue, they had access to valuable information which they could use to wield power and influence, even over the emperor. As all rites and protocols were controlled by eunuchs, their power waxed and waned according to an emperors strength of character. In 1655, Emperor Shunzhi issued the following decree: The employment of eunuchs has been a tradition since ancient times. However, their abuses have often led to disastrous disturbances. They misappropriated power, intervened in government affairs, organised secret agents, murdered the innocent, commanded troops and brought their evil practices to the border regions. They even engaged in conspiratorial activities, framed those who were loyal and good, instigated factional struggles and encouraged fawning and flattery, until the affairs of state deteriorated day by day, and corruption occurred everywhere From now on, anyone who is guilty of interfering with government affairs, misappropriating power, accepting bribes, involving himself in internal and external affairs, associating himself with Manchu and Han officials, reporting on things which are not his duty, or suggesting whether an official is good or bad, shall promptly be put to death, by slicing without mercy. This iron table is hereby erected so that it may be observed from generation to generation Eunuchs were subjected to arbitrary punishments, ranging from monetary fines, to execution. Beatings were common, as was the sentence to cut grass (zhacao), sometimes for life. The most common crime to be punished was for desertion. If a eunuch ran away from the palace, his absence was immediately reported to a kind of police corps, whose duty was to capture runaway eunuchs. It was rare for an escape to succeed and although the men working in the force were not eunuchs they knew all the palace eunuchs. The fugitive was tried and punished after he was captured ARCHIVED - 1,200 migrants intercepted off the coast of Spain this weekend The flood of migrants heading for Spain is close to record proportions The customs and maritime rescue services had another very busy weekend in the Mediterranean and the Strait of Gibraltar between 20th and 22nd July, picking up over 1,200 African migrants as they made their way towards the coast of Andalucia aboard 49 perilously fragile and overcrowded boats and dinghies. On Sunday alone at least 465 people are reported to have been brought ashore following the interception of 25 boats, many of them women some pregnant children and babies and the majority close to Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean is at its narrowest. One of the pregnant women was taken to hospital with contractions, although it was later confirmed that she had not entered childbirth, while four more people taken to port in Tarifa, in the province of Cadiz, were treated for abdominal pains, bruising and other injuries. Most of the new arrivals landed in mainland Spain at the ports of Barbate, Tarifa and Algeciras, and once again the authorities are experiencing difficulties in finding premises in which to detain them while their cases are dealt with. According to Salvamento Maritimo, 8,722 migrants have been intercepted off the Spanish coast since 1st June, more than in the first five months of the year and indeed more than in the whole of 2016. The figure for the weekend is the highest since the migration crisis of 2006, when over 31,000 Africans headed for the Canary Islands from north-western Africa, 647 of them being intercepted on just one day (18th May) and over 500 on each of two days in August. Follow Murcia Today on Facebook to keep up to date with all the latest news, events and information in the Region of Murcia and the rest of Spain: https://www.facebook.com/MurciaToday/ --> As lawmakers from the House and Senate hammer out the details of a major defense spending bill, the Chinese government is quietly pushing Congress to remove language that it deems negative towards Beijing, The Daily Beast has reports. Hong Lei, the consul general of the Chinese consulate in Chicago, sent a four-page letter dated June 26 to U.S. Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-IL) objecting to nine sections in the House version of the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), including sections relating to missile defense exercises, Arctic policy, Chinese tech giants Huawei and ZTE, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Chinese meddling in democracies, and Beijing-funded Confucius Institutes. Hong asked the congressman to delete above-mentioned negative contents regarding China from the act and make sure that no more similar contents are added when the Congress and Senate reconcile their differences on the texts. Rep. Hultgrens office confirmed that they had received the letter, and added that Hultgren met with Hong shortly after receiving it. More HERE Bytes Document Solutions the largest worldwide Xerox distributor and Xerox Platinum Partner Compleo has announced the installation of the first Xerox iGen 5 Press in South Africa. House of Print who has built an enviable reputation in the Gauteng printing industry since its presses started rolling in 1968 is the first South African print provider to house the Xerox iGen 5 Press. Print providers often talk about the time they spend on repairing errors, quality control, job set-up, and waiting for the press, but thanks to Xerox this is no longer the case. According to Garth van den Bergh, Technology Business Manager for Xerox Middle East and Africa, the Xerox iGen 5 Press delivers faster, flexible, quality workflows through automated litigation. With its innovative design it consolidates the best characteristics of the industry-leading iGen Press legacy into a single, ultimately configurable platform, with additional colour choices to better meet customer needs. Extended Colour Gamut One of the iGen 5s standout features is the option for a fifth print station. The fifth print station can be used to both extend the colour gamut, and soften the Xerox white dry ink or clear dry ink with special effects. The colour gamut extension offers the ability to match a wider range of pantone colours previously outside of the iGen gamut, using one of three dry inks orange, green, and blue. To further enhance automation with the Xerox iGen 5, Xerox has developed the Xerox Gamut Extension Tool, which automatically determines whether a fifth colour is needed, based on a pantone plus colour input. Other features of the Xerox iGen 5 include: An EFI Fiery or Xerox FreeFlow Print Server to automate and integrate the workflow process from order to finish. Gloss or matte dry ink options that create unique and eye-grabbing applications. 26-inch sheet size to enable more jobs and applications such as six-panel brochures, gatefold pamphlets, pocket folders, and direct-mail campaigns. 2,400 x 2,400 dpi imaging system, Object Oriented Halftoning, Xerox Confident Colour and Auto Density Control to deliver reliable and predictable image quality. A range of inline finishing solutions, including Xerox IntegratedPLUS Finishing and Dual Mode Sheet Feeder to manage jobs with diverse finishing requirements. Built-in software for accelerated workflows As the most effective printing synergy is created between the engine and the workflow, Xerox has developed Xerox FreeFlow Core which integrates with the iGen 5 for automatic file preparation. Xerox FreeFlow Core reviews all print jobs and places them in the most effective order whether holding similar jobs, or sending a job to a specific queue. Combined with the iGen 5, print providers can quickly and easily set up and improve workflows, as it automatically determines if an additional fifth colour is needed, which colour extension works best, and the most efficient way to group jobs. With the patented iGen 5 auto desk view control system, print providers are also ensured of automatic stream and output error detection before it occurs and fixes it without operating intervention. House of Print With the latest Xerox addition to its printing capabilities, House of Print now boasts an impressive stable of printing presses and finishing equipment. The print provider offers a full spectrum of printing services, including litho, digital, web, wide, format, and gravure, and with the iGen 5 Press, they can now integrate productivity, accuracy, speed, and quality without compromising or prioritising one over the other. Everything about the Xerox iGen 5 Press was built for changing the world of printing, and to help customers like House of Print seize new, profitable opportunities in printing, said van Den Bergh. Currently, there are more than 2,000 iGen presses in production environments. Up to 120 customers are using them to produce on average more than one million impressions per month, he added. For more information, visit the Bytes Document Solutions website. House of Print installs first Xerox iGen 5 Press in South Africa NASA has released a new toolkit which aims to improve access to its satellite data for use in commercial projects. NASAs raw satellite data is widely available at no cost and includes petabytes of information collected by its Earth observation satellites. The agencys new remote sensing toolkit will allow suers to quickly find, analyse, and apply the most relevant of this data for their own uses whether they are conducting research or using the data for a business. This new tool makes finding and using NASA satellite data easier than ever before, and we hope it sparks innovation among the entrepreneurial community and leads to further commercialisation of NASA technology and benefits people across the world, said NASA Technology Transfer programme executive Daniel Lockney. NASAs Technology Transfer programme will host tutorials to help acquaint users with the remote sensing toolkit. Now read: NASA using a fighter jet to test quiet sonic booms Four Nepali children have been rescued from a child correction centre in India, The Kathmandu Post reports on Monday. The children were rescued with the support of the Prabasi Nepali Mitra Manch in India. The boys had been taking shelter at the centre at Debariya in Uttar Pradesh in India for a long time. According to district police office at Rupandehi, the boys were rescued by the Manch and sent to Nepal. However, the boys are unable to tell the names and address of their parents. As a result, the district police office has appealed to all to help reach the kids to their respective homes. Pravasi Nepali Mitra Manch is a registered NGO which is working for the rescue and rehabilitation of women and children. It is in action since 1990 and has achieved a remarkable position in this field with its continuous and consistent efforts. There is no constraint in connection with calling former officials, or their relatives, for questioning. Hayk Grigoryan, new head of the Investigative Committee of Armenia, told the aforesaid to Armenian News-NEWS. There is no constraint, regardless of the position [of the person], Grigoryan said. We will carry out our functions within the framework of the powers vested in the law. There is no constraint; on the contrary, we have no right to make this public confidence vulnerable. To note, National Security Service Director Artur Vanetsyan, Special Investigation Service Chief Sasun Khachatryan, and Chief of Police Valeri Osipyan also have repeatedly told reporters that they had no constraints with respect to former and serving Armenian officials, and that everyone was equal before the law. US President Donald Trump has stated that if Iran continued to threaten his country, it will suffer consequences. To Iranian President Rouhani: Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before, Trump wrote on Twitter, reported RIA Novosti news agency of Russia. We [the US] are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious! Dont play with fire, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had cautioned his US counterpart. Or you will regret. In his words, Irans power is restraining. We dont fight and we dont war against anybody, he had added, in particular. The Iranian presidents remarks were a response to a US State Department statement, according to which Washington will try to persuade its allies toward completely halting their purchase of oil from Iran, by early November. Iran, Armenia reach agreement on use of alternative routes for transport of goods Erdogan renounces threats to expel ambassadors of 10 countries Official: Armenia universities to hold classes online, schools to extend autumn break for a week Commemorative fountain unveiled in memory of Armenia serviceman who fell in 44-day Karabakh war Armenia army's General Staff deputy chief's attorney on client's case over missiles, demands that they are fired Earthquake hits 8 km east from Armenia's Bavra, felt in Shirak and Lori Provinces China FM to meet with the Taliban in Qatar Armenia Parliament Speaker, Cyprus FM discuss issues on regional and bilateral agendas Armenia Parliament Council holds session, 18 items on agenda for plenary session on Oct. 26 Armenia Deputy Prosecutor General discusses nature protection rights in basin of Araks River and cooperation with Iran Armenia parliament sets up committee to lead probe into facts impeding fair trial Armenia Deputy PM Suren Papikyan visits Zangezur Copper-Molbydenum Combine Erdogan to leave for Azerbaijan to attend opening of airport in seized Varanda of Karabakh Armenia Parliament Speaker-led delegation meets with Cyprus defense minister Armenia Parliament Speaker holding meetings in Cyprus NATO Secretary General: Too early to comment on Turkey's decision to declare 10 countries' envoys 'persona non grata' Earthquake hits Armenia, felt in Gyumri, Spitak and Tashir Dollar goes up in Armenia Azerbaijan defense minister receives NATO delegation EU is closely following situation created after Turkey decided to expel envoys Turkey offers Russia to join NATO Armenia National Security Service left several examinations incomplete in ex-defense minister case, says his lawyer Armenia Finance Ministry: Construction and industry might become main engine of economic growth in 2022 Finance minister: Armenia government national debt payment spending will continue to increase in 2022 Opposition 'Armenia' faction MP: Rallies and marches might be held sooner than Nov. 9 Azerbaijans levying of tolls from Iranian trucks is against trilateral agreement, says Iran ambassador to Armenia Direct passenger flights between Yerevan, Vilnius to kick off mid-December Artsakh offers to return Azerbaijani paintings in exchange for Armenian ones remaining in now-occupied Shushi Armenia ruling party, opposition ARF to run for post of Ijevan mayor One more person dies of coronavirus in Karabakh Artsakh state minister, US lawmaker discuss cooperation Armenia opposition MP, ex-defense minister: 'Unblocking of transport roads' will lead to deeper blockade Premier: Armenia has no intention to conquer territories Pashinyan: Border delimitation start to create favorable conditions for Azerbaijan army withdrawal from Armenia 1,184 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia PM: Projects launched to turn Armenia from raw material exporting country to developed metallurgical nation Garden of the Eternal: Parents of about 200 soldiers killed in Artsakh war partake in tree planting first phase Premier: Absolute record number of paid jobs registered in Armenia in September Russia peacekeepers, philanthropists deliver 1.25 tons of humanitarian aid to Karabakh kindergartens, schools Sudan soldiers detain country's PM Turkey, Azerbaijan presidents to meet in Istanbul PM on Armenia 2022 state budget draft: We forecast 7% economic growth World gold prices going up World oil prices on the rise Armenia village head: No compensation paid for 80 cows that came under Azerbaijan control since June 5 Armenia PM visits late statesman, writer Vano Siradeghyans family Armenia President holds discussion with Yandex Deputy Director Tigran Khudaverdyan Armenia Ombudsman meets with France Ambassador, presents urgency of Armenian POWs' return Armenia village head: No news about conscript who has gone missing from Vardenis since May 18 Earthquake hits Armenia, felt in cities and villages of Shirak and Lori Provinces Armenia opposition to hold rallies on Nov. 9 and 10 How Armenians of Cyprus greeted Armenia Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan Opposition 'Shant Alliance' releases list of candidates for local self-government elections in Armenia's Kapan Facebook accused of inciting religious hatred in India Russia has refused collaboration with NATO, says presidential spokesman China launches Shijian-21 satellite to test space debris mitigation technology Shantnews.am: How are Gyumri municipal council seats distributed? Peskov speaks on prospects of Putin's next meeting with Biden Armenia ruling party releases list of candidates for local self-government elections in Kapan Armenia health minister: Hospital bed stock is almost empty Magnitude 6.5 earthquake hits Taiwan 47 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Artsakh, 14 patients are in critical condition COVID-19 vaccination kicks off at Opera Square in Yerevan Germany responds to Erdogan's assignment to declare Ambassadors 'persona non grata' Armenia Health Ministry: Pregnant women in COVID-19 risk group can avoid difficult course through vaccination Pakistan providing assistance to the Taliban in fight against ISIS in Afghanistan 2,354 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Uzbekistan holding presidential elections Armenia defense minister, Red Cross delegation discuss missing persons as result of both Artsakh wars Yerevan-Gyumri motorway passenger van accident death toll rises to 6 Aliyevs newfound pugnacity, provocation towards Iran risks undermining Azerbaijans long-term security Armenian Legal Center files new cases before ECHR regarding Armenian captives disappearance Azerbaijan kicks off military exercises in Artsakhs Kashatagh MFA spokesman: No Armenia PM-Azerbaijan president meeting planned at this time 4 killed, 3 injured in China chemical plant explosion Peskov comments on possible Russia-Armenia-Azerbaijan summit Artsakh President visits capital Stepanakert district, Askeran region (VIDEO) Armenia parliament foreign relations committee chair briefs Italy ambassador on post-war situation in region Timeframe of next Putin- Pashinyan-Aliyev meeting in Moscow is known Pope Francis is presented with PSG shirt signed by Messi Passenger dies on board plane Minister of State in Los Angeles, lauds Armenian diasporas assistance to Artsakh Alec Baldwin did not know that prop gun was loaded with real bullets 46 new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh Turkey announces beginning of procedure for purchasing F-16s from US 1,962 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Opposition Armenia Faction MP submits petition to give up his parliamentary seat Armenia PM: Today most urgent issue that shall be discussed at Summit of Minds is modeling of geopolitics Some US agencies begin investigating Biden's withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan Secret online school for girls opens in Afghanistan Newspaper: Former ones are Armenia PMs hope in upcoming local elections Turkeys Halkbank can be prosecuted for violating sanctions on Iran, US appellate court rules Armenia Ombudsman says MOD's disclosure of phone talks was unilateral and distorted Pastinfo newspaper: Zurabov sues Armenia PM, claim is known Biden, Macron discuss efforts to enable stronger European defense while ensuring complementarity with NATO US concerned about China aspirations in artificial intelligence, several advanced technologies Opposition MP: Ombudsman's statements are in Armenia's interest, but they might not be pleasant for authorities Opposition "Armenia" faction MP: We will hold a big rally soon Father of mayor of Armenia's Goris says son won't take parliamentary mandate Alik Media: Armenia and Azerbaijan to sign two documents in Moscow on Nov. 9 The French President Emmanuel Macron told the US President Donald Trump during the NATO summit on July 11-12 that he had read Trumps book the Art of the Deal, Axios reported. According to the source, Trump urged Macron to persuade the EU countries to negotiate with Washington on trade issues. The French leader, in his turn, assured the president that he was not in favor of negotiating under threat. "I read the Art of the Deal," the French president told Trump, with a smile adding: I know that we need to retaliate first so we have some leverage in the negotiation. As reported earlier, the U.S. President Donald Trump decided to impose duties on EU, Canada and Mexico on steel and aluminum 25% and 10% respectively. The states, in their turn, decided to impose duties on the US. The EU started the WTO proceedings and, since June 22, introduced duties of 25% on certain types of US metallurgical, engineering and agricultural goods, with the total volume of exports of 2.8 billion per year. At least two Illinois manufacturers will be represented at the White House emphasis: Klein Tool of Lincolnshire and Atlas Toolworks of Lyons, IL. WASHINGTON DC - Last week, President Donald Trump signed an executive order committing to expand workforce development and vocational training. This week, the president plans to visit both Granite City Illinois and Dubuque Iowa this Thursday, the White House announced Sunday evening. Trump's visit coordinates with this week's White House emphasis will be on "Made in America" products, with a gathering of American manufacturers and producers from all 50 states in DC Monday. The President held a similar assembly a year ago to emphasize U.S. made products. In 2017, Illinois-based Caterpillar was invited to display some of their products on the White House lawn. Last year, the White House emphasized President Trump taking "decisive action to free Americas energy potential and create jobs in areas that need them the most. He has approved the construction of new energy pipelines, allowed for the exportation of coal, increased liquefied natural gas exports, and withdrew from the Paris Climate Accord." Last week's executive order establishes the National Council for the American Worker. The Council will develop a national campaign to raise awareness of workforce issues, such as the urgency of the skills crisis and the importance of STEM education. It will also create a plan for recognizing companies that demonstrate excellence in workplace education, retraining, and workforce investment. Trump is expected to emphasize US Steel's re-opening of its Granite City plant and its hiring of hundreds during Thursday's visit. The US President Donald Trumps job-approval rating has grown despite criticism following the meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, NBC News reported. According to WSJ/NBC News poll, 45% of registered voters approved the US leaders activities, up 1 point from June, while 52 percent of voters disapproved his job. The poll was conducted on July 15, the day before his meeting with Putin. However, Trumps approval rating grew after his meeting up to 88%. Indeed, the new NBC/WSJ poll finds the presidents approval rating among Republican voters at 88 percent the highest of his presidency and 29 percent of all voters strongly approve of his job, which is another high for Trump in the poll, the source said. The overall approval rating of Trump continues to be one of the lowest in the history of modern US presidents during their first term. It's not that easy. While the United Steel Workers union is happy about their union members' jobs returning to Granite City, they picketed outside Congressman Bost's office last week. Why? To urge him to oppose President Trump's policy of "zero tolerance" on illegal immigration. GRANITE CITY - Thursday, President Trump is planning to visit Congressman Mike Bost's 12th District's Granite City - where 800 steelworkers are returning to work this year. Trump is expected to celebrate the plant's re-opening and attribute its newfound demand to his tariff strategy of 25% on imported steel and 10% on imported aluminum. Raising the cost of imported steel has created a demand for US-made steel - and bolstered the Granite City economic situation. The purpose of the "Keep Families Together" rally with the United Congregations of the Metro East on July 2 was to "call upon Congressman Bost to join the chorus of voices against a new "zero tolerance" policy being implemented by the current administration under the Department of Health and Human Services," the union's website says. "Under this new policy, every migrant who entered the United States, without authorization, would be criminally prosecuted, even if no other crime had been committed." Even more complicated is that Bost co-chairs the Congressional Steel Caucus - setting him in conflict with tariff retaliation that affects soybeans and other Midwest-grown agricultural products. The caucus is a bipartisan group of over 100 Members of Congress that represents regions with steel manufacturers or areas that care specifically about the health of the American steel industry. In addition to introducing legislation supporting the domestic steel community, Caucus members also routinely meet with Administration officials and WTO representatives to communicate the interests of the American industry and its steelworkers. "The steel industry has been vitally important to Southern Illinois for decades. However, the American steel industry and its steelworkers face threats on several fronts," Bost's website explains. "At home, loopholes in Buy America protections have prevented the use of American steel on infrastructure projects. Abroad, illegally-subsidized imports from foreign nations that devalue their currencies continue to flood the market. During these difficult times, Representative Bost is on the front line fighting for every single American job." As a result, Bost is in a tough place. Should he celebrate with the President Thursday or should he remain "previously scheduled" to avoid a confrontation and possible US Steel immigration policy picketers? As of Monday noon, he has yet to announce whether he will be joining Trump's visit to the Granite City US Steel plant Thursday. UPDATE x1: Via Twitter A review is not ruled out of some of the provisions of the Armenia-Russia agreement on the status of the Russian border troops in Armenia. The Minister of Defense of Armenia, Davit Tonoyan, on Sunday told about the abovementioned to reporters, in Panik village of Shirak Province. They [agreements] are not documents written on stone, the minister noted. And quite a few problems, which require legal contractual changes, arise over time; of course, this [changes] will be done. Tonoyan said the incident that took place in Panik several days ago could pave the way for making some changes. US President Donald Trump has stated that if Iran continued to threaten his country, it will suffer consequences. To Iranian President Rouhani: Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before, Trump wrote on Twitter, reported RIA Novosti news agency of Russia. We [the US] are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious! Dont play with fire, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had cautioned his US counterpart. Or you will regret. In his words, Irans power is restraining. We dont fight and we dont war against anybody, he had added, in particular. The Iranian presidents remarks were a response to a US State Department statement, according to which Washington will try to persuade its allies toward completely halting their purchase of oil from Iran, by early November. A tragic incident has occurred Sunday in Armenia, as a young man has jumped off a bridge in capital city Yerevan. The 911 emergency hotline received a call, at around 5:40pm, informing that a person had thrown himself from the Davtashen Bridge. A fire and rescue squad was dispatched to the scene. Rescuers brought the 24-year-old persons dead body out and carried it to a waiting ambulance. Deputy Defense Minister of Armenia Gabriel Balayan, who is on a working visit to New York City, had several meetings at the United Nations Headquarters. At the talk with Jean-Pierre Lacroix, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, they discussed the course of the implementation of the peacekeeping missions which Armenia has assumed, and exchanged views on the opportunities for the countrys other-format participation in the peacekeeping missions under the auspices of the UN, the Ministry of Defense informed. Also, the Armenian deputy defense minister met with Ata Yenigun, Chief of the Police Selection and Recruitment Section at the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations. They discussed the opportunities for Armenias participation in assisting police subdivisions in the missions under the auspices of the UN. In addition, Gabriel Balayan attended a discussion on the legal process for organizing peacekeeping missions under the auspices of the United Nations. The European Commission reviewed the financial assistance provided to Armenia, after the statement of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. "We were surprised when we realized that we have provided much more than we thought," Katarina Mathernova, Deputy Director-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations at the European Commission told reporters, answering a question whether she is familiar with Pashinyan's statements. Head of the European Delegation to Armenia Piotr Switalski paid attention to the fact that 110 million euros allocated by the EU haven't been used. "Before speaking about new financing which, of course, will be it is necessary to look back. 110 million are waiting in a "fridge" and their use depends only on Armenia", he said. 63 students from China visit SIU to learn about joint business degree by Hannah Erickson CARBONDALE, Ill. Partnering with international universities not only provides students with valuable opportunities, but it also boosts campus growth and community economics. Thats why the partnership that was first formed 35 years ago between Southern Illinois University Carbondale and Northeast Normal University in China continues on today. This summer, 63 students and four faculty members from NENU are visiting the SIU campus for a two-week long summer program to experience the region, test out business classes and get a feel for what the university has to offer. The program lasts July 21-August 4 and involves a variety of activities and events. For Yi Lee, SIU Center for International Education Partnerships Coordinator, the goal is to provide the students with a taste of SIU to assist them in making informed decisions about their future. All too often, international students choose American universities sight unseen, putting faith in national rankings or glossy brochures, Lee said. With this program, students will actually see, feel, taste and experience SIU and Carbondale, so that they can make a more informed decision. Collaborative business degree To better aid students, the SIU School of Accountancy and NENU School of Business worked collaboratively to offer a joint degree program. Students who complete two years at NENU and then transfer to SIU for their junior and senior year will receive a bachelors degree in accountancy from both universities. Andrew Carver, who is overseeing the program, sees this as way to strengthen the students and encourage future enrollment to SIU. The majority of these students are currently enrolled at NENU in the first two years of our joint degree program in Accountancy, Carver said. Their summer experience in Carbondale will factor heavily in their decision to enroll at SIU as a degree-seeking student. Of those attending the current summer program, 20 have committed to transferring to SIU in the fall of 2019, while many of the others are still considering their choices. Summer program involves community Strong international enrollments are important not only to the university, but also to the many local businesses that depend on revenue generated by serving the international student population. During the summer program, students will have the opportunity to experience much of what the region has to offer. The students will eat at local restaurants, explore Giant City National Park, attend a Miners game, experience a Sunset Concert, participate in a potluck, visit a farmers market, enjoy the Varsity Center and much more. Potential for future growth The partnership between the two universities has already allowed many students to reach their goals, and the hope is to continue to offer a valuable educational experience to those interested. The first cohort of NENU students graduated from SIU in May, and we are pleased that several of these students are planning to continue their studies at SIU as graduate students, Carver said. Currently, around 100 students from NENU are enrolled at SIU with this program adding many to that number. Carver is confident summer programs for prospective international students will become increasingly important recruiting tool in the future and the plan is to continue to expand summer experiences with other partner universities throughout the world. In case you've missed it, big things are happening with the legal cannabis industry in North America. Within the U.S., Republican-leaning Oklahoma became the 30th state to have legalized medical cannabis since 1996, with nine of those states also approving the use of cannabis by adults. Mind you, all of this is happening while marijuana remains a Schedule I drug at the federal level. Meanwhile, to our north and south we've also seen the steady expansion of legal cannabis. Mexico wound up giving the green light to medical cannabis back in June 2017, while Canada did what no other industrialized country has ever done before: It legalized recreational marijuana. As of Oct. 17, according to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, it'll be legal for adults to purchase cannabis. Jars filled with dried cannabis lying on a counter. Image source: Getty Images. The legalization of marijuana in Canada is expected to be a serious moneymaker for the industry. Currently generating a few hundred million dollars in annual revenue from the sale of medical cannabis domestically, and via exports to foreign countries that've given the green light to medical pot, recreational marijuana could add up to $5 billion a year in sales. These big dollar signs are exactly why investors have pushed pot stocks through the roof. Not everyone is happy with marijuana's proliferation in Canada But not everyone is thrilled with Canada's decision to wave the green flag on marijuana. In particular, health insurance companies have been increasingly hesitant to cover medical marijuana for a variety of reasons, chief of which are rising costs. According to a recent Reuters report, Canada's second-largest insurer, Sun Life Financial (NYSE: SLF), is one of those hesitant voices. Even though Canada legalized medical cannabis back in 2001, only now are insurers like Sun Life Financial slowly beginning to include it on covered plans. What Sun Life and other insurers have discovered is that medical cannabis can, in some instances, actually cost more than established pharmaceutical products. Story continues An example cited by Reuters involves patients with spasticity related to multiple sclerosis. Established pharmaceutical drug Baclofen runs CA$28.82 for a 10-day supply, while a gram of Canadian medical cannabis, which covers only one day of treatment, costs about CA$8. Over a 10-day period, that's roughly triple the cost for insurers. Another issue is that medical marijuana is being used to treat a widening variety of ailments, many of which haven't been verified as benefiting from cannabis use, according to insurers. Sun Life Financial covers only select indications, including pain associated with cancer, multiple sclerosis (MS) and spasticity arising from MS, and chemotherapy-induced nausea, to name a few. Insurers believe that if their narrow list of indications were broadened to include a larger patient pool, it could greatly increase their costs. A tipped over white bottle full of dried cannabis lying on a messy pile of cash bills. Image source: Getty Images. One solution insurers have tinkered with is simply charging members more. Though Manulife Financial (NYSE: MFC) doesn't officially offer broad medical marijuana coverage in Canada (it's still in the process of evaluating whether it'll cover the drug), it has included medical cannabis coverage in rare situations where corporate clients have requested it. In such instances, Manulife has passed along an annual reimbursement limit of CA$1,500 to CA$2,500, while largely limiting the number of covered conditions. Lastly, insurers worry about inadequate checks and balances when prescribing medical cannabis. Generally, a doctor's visit is required for a physician to prescribe marijuana to a patient. But insurers claim that certain groups, such as the Green Doctor Network, don't require documentation or a referral before authorizing a prescription for medical cannabis. In doing so, the patient pool for medical weed could balloon, right along with insurers' costs. A growing list of unknowns Of course, the uncertainties facing Sun Life Financial and Manulife Financial are just one of a laundry list of things left to be sorted out as Canada pushes toward full legalization. For example, even though Parliament passed the Cannabis Act, it's yet to pass legislation that would give peace officers the authority to determine if a driver is under the influence of marijuana. Given that concerns regarding driving under the influence of cannabis were at or near the top of the list for opponents of the Cannabis Act, the fact that this hasn't been addressed as of yet is somewhat concerning. There are also unknowns when it comes to the taxation of marijuana in Canada. In October 2017, a proposal was introduced that would tax marijuana at roughly 10% of the per-gram sale price. Prime Minister Trudeau was adamant that the taxation of cannabis remain low to move users away from the black market and into legal channels. Still, the black market has virtually no overhead costs, since it has no buildings to maintain and no federal taxes to pay. In other words, it remains to be seen if legal channels can draw consumers away from the illicit market. A young man in blue hoodie sweatshirt holding a cannabis plant. Image source: Getty Images. We also know very little about how the supply or demand picture will play out in the intermediate term. Initially, it's very possible that growers won't be able to meet demand. Keep in mind that nearly all growers waited until the passage of the Cannabis Act looked to be a sure thing before they began rapidly expanding their capacity. This shortage could give the black market yet another opportunity to lure consumers. Over the longer run, a dramatic oversupply could become possible. If Canadian growers are unable to find a home for all of their crop, per-gram cannabis prices could fall. Should they fall, it would adversely affect margins, but at the same time be a big positive for consumers and insurance companies. In sum, there's a lot left to be hashed out in the months and years that lie ahead. At this point, it wouldn't be a surprise if most insurers choose to remain on the sidelines until the expected effects of commoditization on dried cannabis are felt, and per-gram prices fall significantly. More From The Motley Fool Sean Williams has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Local businesses have been tasked to up standards of their products if they want to get a share of international market and win consumers trust, writes ALON MWESIGWA. On his visit to Uganda last week, Sergio Mujica, the secretary general of the International Organisation for Standardization (ISO), said standards was a universal language that everyone understands and any business that seeks international recognition must observe them. ISO is an international body that develops standards for its 161-member countries. Standards are important to ensure health of the consumers, workers safety at work and reduce workplace risks. ISO can protect our people [against harmful products] and is important especially if you want to increase the level of trust on your exports. The key here is management not just [by] doing things but doing them in the right way. We want countries like Uganda to actively participate in the standard-making process. Nobody should impose anything here. Sugar bagging line at Kakira. Ugandan products must up standards to be recognised globally Trade, industry and cooperatives minister Amelia Kyambadde, said: In the last five years, we have been focused on improving on services and quality of goods. We have made some strides and we are now focusing on products for export but also local consumption. She added that government had previously concentrated on the legal framework and constructing the home for Uganda National Bureau of Standards. We can now focus on inspecting goods from the point of origin. There has been improvement on the quality of goods that come into the country by 35 per cent, Kyambadde added. She said Ugandan goods have improved in packaging and are of generally good quality. We have developed more than 3,300 standards. At least 1,200 have been harmonized with the East African region, she said. The minister said there has been a decline in Ugandan goods being rejected at the international markets because of standards. With the oil industry going into the production stage, it is important that Ugandan businesses adhere to industry standards. She revealed, however, that there has been a challenge at the implementation stage of the standards. Ben Manyindo, the UNBS executive director, said the body was shifting resources from standards development to implementation. This would ensure that standards are not just developed but are also put to work. Uganda has had issues with the quality of goods on the market - both imported and domestically produced. A study in April by UNBS found that more than a half of the goods on the market were substandard, a bigger number being locally produced. UNBS deputy executive director in charge of compliance John Paul Musimani told The Observer in April that with imported products, the Pre-export Verification of Conformity (PVoC) rule had helped reduce substandard goods. By the end of December 2017, we had over 16 million substandard products banned from being imported. By now, the numbers must have increased to about 20 million because the programme has helped in continuously detecting substandard imports, Musimani said. Ugandas coffee, has had issues with quality at the international market. It comes because farmers pick green berries. The other problem is poor post-harvest handling, where farmers dry coffee on bare ground which affects the eventual class of the coffee. Konrad Brits, the director of Falcon Coffees in UK, said Ugandan farmers have not been taught how to handle their coffee. The handling is very poor, resulting into the negative differentials we see today. Those who have adhered to standards are basking in glory. Kevin Muheki, a quality environment officer at private security firm Saracen, said ISO standards have helped the firm to have integrated management system, professional culture, better employee morale and customer satisfaction. Moses Ubunu from Securex security firm, said it has helped them acquire global recognition and acquire international clients. We also partner those who are certified. It is only then that were assured of good quality business, he said. ISO SG Mujica said there was a challenge on policymakers on Ugandan side but he was happy that the trade ministry was committed to ensuring standards. He said the body had developed a new standard on occupational health and safety management systems. This would provide a framework to improve employee safety, reduce workplace risks and create better, safer working conditions. amwesigwa@observer.ug A few months ago, a friend had his father diagnosed with prostate cancer and they had to fly him to India for treatment. As he ran around for the visa at the Indian High Commission in Kampala, he realized that there were about 100 people everyday submitting papers for medical visas. This number didnt include the VIPs whose papers are processed by government agencies and/or their company staff. At the small hospital where my friends father was admitted in Mumbai, they receive on average 20 patients every month from Uganda alone. The average cost for such treatment is $20,000 (about Shs 75m). So, Ugandans every month spend on average $400,000 (about Shs 1.6bn) to this hospital and in Mumbai. And yet the majority of Ugandans who seek medical treatment in India go to hospitals in New Delhi. So, if 100 Ugandans go to India to every month spending $20,000 on average, that is $2m or Shs 9bn. Many other people go to other countries for treatment. Actually, there are reports that Uganda spends $150m (Shs 600bn) treating its officials abroad every year. Those are 33.3 cancer centres each with two linear accelerators and two bunkers that this country could build in just one year. Some people who have social media influencers and colleagues in high places do fundraisers to enable them travel to India, Kenya, and South Africa among others. Admittedly, the majority of Ugandans cannot afford this treatment out of this country; so, once they are diagnosed with cancer, it is most likely a death sentence. There have been stories running in the media of what it takes to be treated at Mulago hospital. Many people, according to these reports, are stranded there. On Wednesday last week, Rotarians walked into speaker Rebecca Kadagas office to launch the Rotary cancer run this year. Kadaga had accepted to this meeting and Rotary had mobilized its top honchos led by district governor Sharmirah Bhatt. At one stage, the speaker was asked to pick a placard and she chose one which had I am running for my dad. The boardroom went silent for a few minutes and some people were seen with tears forming in their eyes. Like Kadaga, you probably also know somebody who has died of cancer and you may consider to do something. Something that could benefit all of us. Through the Rotary cancer run, now in its seventh year, Rotarians with support from partners and friends have managed to build a cancer treatment at Nsambya hospital even though it still lacks a modern cancer treatment machine a linear accelerator. For the past two years, people across the country have been running to raise $4.5m (Shs 18bn) needed to buy two linear accelerators and build their respective bunkers. The two machines are necessary in a way that when one is down or being serviced, people dont have to die while waiting. I am proud to be a member of the team of volunteers who organize this run. Over the past two years, we have raised Shs 1.1bn, which is in the bank, but we need another Shs 17bn to complete the job. It is a very big challenge but I am sure we will overcome. And, if we spend Shs 9bn on average on Indian hospitals (without what government spends on its fat cats), we can spend it here and the economy would benefit. This means that Ugandans should collectively register to run on Sunday, August 26 this year throughout Uganda and I urge our corporate bodies to contribute as well. That way, we can have this latest cancer treatment machine installed in Uganda at Nsambya hospital. The hospital has already offered the land where the bunkers will be built. With linear accelerators installed, cancer if detected early will stop being a death sentence to the majority of Ugandans. On the other hand, Ugandans will save the money they have been donating to these foreign hospitals. This means that supporting the Rotary cancer run is the right thing to do. djjuuko@gmail.com The author is a communication and visibility consultant and Chair PR for the Rotary Cancer Run 2018. A teacher beats a pupil. The practice is widespread The practice of corporal punishment in schools is an age-old habit aimed to instill discipline and focus in learners but as Moses Talemwa reports, it actually has a detrimental impact on general performance. It is 6:15am and 12-year old Amy is wide awake and miserable. While her parents are preparing to get her to school, Amy is unwilling to go. They are going to beat us again, she sobs into her breakfast cereal. Why? her mother asks. Every Monday they beat us if we dont pass all the numbers on the weekly test I dont like that school, comes the reply. Many a parent in Uganda regularly awake to situations similar to Amys, where they believe that their children must endure corporal punishment to get better. They will usually use this measure to discipline their children. So, the children experience it both in the home and at school. Ironically, this year makes the 22nd anniversary of the ban on corporal punishment in schools. In 1996, Francis Babu, who was minister for General Duties (in charge of primary education), railed against the practice, threatening to shut down any school which persisted with beating children. Two decades later, he insists corporal punishment is backward and a hindrance to learning. Im pleased that there has been some progress in getting rid of corporal punishment in schools, he says. It is not yet 100 per cent but there is progress. Babu is emphatic that children can be taught without the cane. Childrens rights must not be abused instead we should actively listen to them, he explains. In the past, corporal punishment led to school dropout and some teachers were also maiming/killing children. Babus view is shared by Joyce Wanican, the executive director at AfriChild (a child rights NGO at Makerere University). Wanican says that violence does not motivate learning. Instead it creates a climate of fear as a child when I realised that I was going to be caned at school, I found it easier to feign sickness and stay at home. Herself a teacher, Wanican argues that teachers are supposed to act as second parents to children while at school. I realised early that some of the children I taught [in secondary schools in northern Uganda] were only looking for someone to listen to them, understand them and give them counsel on how to improve. She warns that learners who are repeatedly beaten, grow up to become dysfunctional adults, who easily resort to violence to resolve problems. You see it in the university students here many of them are quick to call for a disruptive strike because they have not been trained to negotiate they believe that violence is the only viable solution. Practice widespread In 2015, AfriChild carried out a study on violence against children in more than 20 districts. That study, which sampled over 800 children, found that over half of all children experience physical violence before the age of 18 years. About 68.5 per cent of boys in the rural areas interviewed, confessed that they had experienced physical violence in either their home or school compared to 59.6% girls. A further 66.6% boys in the urban areas reported that they had had experienced physical violence in either their home or school compared to 58.8% girls. All prominent primary and secondary schools which excel in national exams are reportedly also notorious for condoning the beating of children. A review of last years national examination results found that the top 20 schools still carry out corporal punishment in blatant violation of existing policy. This unfortunately propagates the mistaken belief that children who are not beaten, cannot excel. Ever since corporal punishment was abolished, hardly any teacher will admit to the cruel practice, yet it is well known that they enthusiastically whip their charges at school. Some like Spelto Tumuhairwe, a teacher at Kitante Primary School is an avowed advocate for what he calls reasonable corporal punishment. For 20 years he has taught mathematics at Kitante and many of his past proteges will testify to having been caned. Corporal punishment helps to deter bad habits that children acquire either from home or elsewhere. It also acts as a deterrent for other children, he says. I acknowledge that it inflicts pain, which is a motivator to do better next time. Tumuhairwe says that in his time, he has seen corporal punishment inspire behavioural change in children, prompting them to drop what he calls careless habits that affect their learning. Of course, corporal punishment should not be the first punitive measure against a child; it should be deployed for those who become notorious for their bad behaviour. For instance, those who fight their friends and so on, he says. The nature of punishment must be appropriate to be effective as a deterrent or otherwise in excess, it causes unnecessary resentment and bad feelings in the child, instead of teaching them good behaviour. Alternative options But this view does not sit well with Yvonne Laruni, a senior programme officer at Raising Voices, another child rights NGO. She is convinced that teachers like Tumuhairwe have not looked at alternatives. The only thing they know is to cane or yell at children, which is the same with our parents, she says. But it takes an exceptional person to say I didnt like that experience when my teacher beat me for this or that. As a parent or teacher that is not the direction I want to take. Citing the example of the armed forces, where corporal punishment is rife, Laruni points out that it does not cause uniform behaviour change. When the officer is around, the soldiers stand at attention and act professional, then they go back to their normal ways, once he is out of sight and it is the same thing with children. Laruni is behind Raising Voices Good School programme, where teachers are eencouraged to discipline learners without use of the cane. Learners endure corporal punishment. Several experts have criticised it Evelyn Kansiime participated in programme during her time at Karambi PS in Kabarole last year. She has since transferred to Bwabya PS, where corporal punishment is still in practice. In my previous school, we realised that stopping corporal punishment was also a mindset issue, away from the colonial mentality, she explains. Teachers were encouraged to hold a dialogue with learners, including getting pupils to solve their own cases, where possible. Under the programme, the schools were encouraged to set up disciplinary councils, which comprised both children and teachers. It taught the children how to negotiate, plead over a matter and even to reconcile, which are life lessons, Kansiime explains. The programme is now in 750 schools, although not all are fully compliant. Each school is equipped with what is known as a Good School Tool Kit, a set of books on how to handle various situations. Hanifa Bako, a head teacher at Mirembe PS in Makindye, Kampala explains that their pupils council handles small cases like late coming, or failing to do ones homework, or responding to teachers rudely. We encourage the teachers to listen to children, instead of just picking a stick to deal with them resulting in positive discipline. Kansiime is strongly opposed to caning children over poor performance. If a child gets 90% in mathematics and 20 per cent in english, you work to improve the weak subject rather than resorting to caning, she says. It means that the teacher needs to pay more attention to the learner. Tumuhairwe agrees. I dont believe in caning children simply because they have failed a few numbers in a test. It is important for the teacher to study why the learner is not doing well, he says. The teacher should try to find a solution for the problem that is hindering the learner and usually the issue is there and can be addressed. While he is no longer in government, Babu hopes that the ban on corporal punishment in schools will one day be universally accepted. We still have a few that are not obeying the line but disciplining of children should be done in the homes by their parents so that they go to school to improve their academics, he says. However, 12-year-old Amy is not as hopeful, since her parents condone the practice. It is up to the education ministry to enforce its ban on this cruel and backward practice. mtalemwa@observer.ug A section of Ugandans living in the United States of America held a protest against the admission of State Minister of Investment Evelyn Anite at Tufts University, a private research university in the state of Massachusetts. They accuse her of corruption and violation of human rights. Anite, who rose to fame when she knelt before President Museveni in 2016 to ask him to stand for another term in office, is a student of International Relations and Diplomacy at the prestigious Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. Anite was also at the forefront last year in pushing for the amendment of Constitution to lift presidential age limits that, bar this week's Constitution court ruling will open the only remaining hurdle for Museveni to contest again in the 2021 elections. She recently requested for permission to take leave from parliament and cabinet to attend classes in the U.S. Some of the protestors against Anite's admission Anite's is paying $90,000 (Shs 342 million) for the course that is sponsored by the Uganda government. Some Ugandans in the U.S. are questioning her admission, saying that the United States, as a democracy, should not encourage corrupt government officials to seek refuge in its territory under the guise of undertaking further studies. A group of Ugandans on Saturday gathered in Medford, Boston for a protest, in which they demanded that Anite's admission be cancelled. The protest spearheaded by the Common League of the Ugandan Diaspora (CLOUD) lasted more than eight hours. Several Ugandans held placards with inscriptions challenging the admission and demanding the Tufts University suspends Anite, in public interest. "Anite should join Russian schools, USA is a democracy, not an Autocracy," read one of the placards. There were several others in the same line, some offensive, some demanding and others recommending action. Martin Byakuleka, the CLOUD president who also spearheaded the protest says Anite is an enemy of democracy and human rights in Uganda and has no right to attend a free world top school of International Affairs. Byakuleka called for Anite's admission to be cancelled as an honour for global peace and security. He says if Tufts University does not listen to their call, they will plan a massive round of demonstration in August. Attempts to speak to the University about the protest were futile, as online contacts were not responded to by press time. A presidential order for heightened security measures for MPs, which will include army snipers and bullet-proof escort cars was received last week with immediate acclaim and criticism. At this moment of tumult over insecurity and murders countrywide, MPs such as Winnie Kiiza, (leader of opposition in Parliament), Beatrice Anywar, Francis Mwijukye, Patrick Kasumba (NRM), Arinaitwe Rwakajara made a strong argument for the need to secure the whole country instead of protecting only the 452 MPs. An analysis of the cost and benefit of securing all 452 MPs shows it will take lots of cash, soldiers or policemen and escort cars to keep them safe. And such deployment of human and financial resources will mean that other Ugandans will remain under-served, naked and probably exposed to criminality, security experts have warned. Here is why. According to knowledgeable security officials, in terms of human resource, a Hilux double cabin escort vehicle with an open carriage bed sits a maximum of six policemen or soldiers. That is four security officials behind and two in front including the commander. That means government will have to deploy about 2,712 security officials to escort our 452 MPs everywhere they go. In military terms, that number of escorts could be equated to about three battalions of soldiers. A battalion is made up of between 300 to 800 soldiers. A heavily armoured police vehicle Asked whether the army can deploy all those soldiers to guard MPs, the Army and Defense Brig Richard Kalemire said, We havent gotten the directive but what I can say we have the capacity to secure the MPs and our people. We shall cross the bridge when we reach there, he added. The sheer number of body guards needed to secure MPs raises troubling questions about the need for such a deployment to secure so few Ugandans. A member of parliament superintends over a constituency, which may have about two to three sub counties. Each sub county has approximately 10,000 people with one police post manned by about two policemen. Some have none at all. So with six policemen or soldiers shadowing a single MP that would mean the legislator will be moving around with a protective human shield that would otherwise have made about 30,000 people in his/her constituency feel a little safer. Imagine also what the 452 escort cars would do if they were converted into police patrol cars. Right now each of the 118 districts that make up Uganda has one police patrol car, which responds to every incident; a murder, accident, an insider police official has said. And in some sub counties, officers in charge of police stations or posts use motorcycles or bicycles as modes of transport. An addition of 452 escort cars to the police fleet would enhance police visibility, presence and response to incidents. That would go a long way in the fight against crime. And it emerged last week that government may have to borrow or forego some budgeted activities in the 2018/19 financial year if the presidential directive to provide sharp shooters to guard each member of parliament is to be actualised. House Finance Committee chair Henry Ariganyira Musasizi (Rubanda East) told The Observer that buying of the vehicles would be treated as an item of unforeseen expenditure normally financed through either supplementary spending, borrowing or slashing and re-allocating monies. If this decision is implemented it means the budget will suffer either directly through a budget cut or suppression of some activities, or the government will be forced to go into the domestic market to borrow more money to finance this unforeseen expenditure, Musasizi said last Monday. In a letter to Finance Minister Matia Kasaija dated June 29, 2018, President Museveni said MPs have been singled out for intimidation and possible attack by terrorists. He ordered the urgent procurement of escort pick-up vehicles with open carriage beds for each legislator. I have decided to protect MPs as we wait for the putting in place of these security measures. MPs already have some police guards. Those will stay with them. I will, however, add two elements; the sharp-shooters of the army and follow-pickups that will be used by these against small arms bullets, Museveni said in the letter. THE COST The sharp shooters, however, will come at an enormous cost. It comes after government has gone through the budgeting process. Government will now have to fork out at least between $160,000 and $220,000 for each pick-up truck for the 452 members of parliament. The number of legislators will increase to more than 460 after the new municipalities polls have been conducted by end of the year. If we take the least cost $160,000 or Shs 595m (at the current exchange rate), it means that the government will have to spend $72m (Shs 269bn) to buy the cars alone. This figure is an industry estimate by vendors. Then the president also suggests that the guards be provided with bullet-proof jackets and helmets, also at the taxpayers cost. According to bulletblocker.com, an online journal with information on military wear, a simple bullet-proof jacket costs at least $640 while a helmet goes for $300. This means that government needs at least $1,000 for simple bullet-proof wear. The Observer has calculated that guards wear will cost $2.7m (Shs 10bn). So, finance has to quickly find Shs 279bn. And this figure will increase because going forward; the taxpayer will also have to provide fuel and maintenance of the vehicles. Government will also have to find additional parking space along the parliamentary avenue to accommodate additional traffic. Yet the estimated amount is more than one third of the entire agriculture sector budget of Shs 831bn. But when you remove recurrent expenditure, it is almost equivalent to the entire agriculture budget left for development expenditure. The 2018/19 budget notes that agriculture employs three quarters of Ugandans and contributes at least 24% to the countrys Gross Domestic Product. Already, government has found a hard time implementing the tax measures it announced in the 2018/19 budget to raise money, with an outcry specifically raised against mobile money tax and social media. Many people have by-passed the social media tax using Virtual Private Networks. Government has to look for other sources to raise money. The quick one being domestic borrowing. This also has implications for private businesses which will have difficulty accessing money for investment because banks prefer to lend to government. Already, a Bank of Uganda 2017 report shows that commercial banks investment in government securities increased by Shs 2.2 trillion while increasing their lending to the private sector by a meagre Shs 168.4 billion in 2017. The consequence of this is the continued slowing down of the economy. PUBLIC EXPOSED The call to provide more security to VIPs, where the MPs fall, means more ordinary people will be left exposed. In particular, this comes at a time when in April, Uganda Police said it was closing 1,663 police posts due to constant attacks and ineffectiveness to respond to crime. The police council directed the closure of police posts due to staffing challenges. We were guided by the council to concentrate on having a police station at every sub-county where police officers and their equipment can be protected and managed well, Emilian Kayima, police publicist was quoted in Daily Monitor. It is not that crime meted out on ordinary people has reduced. According to 2017 Uganda Bureau of Statistics abstract, serious crime investigated by police increased to 32,198 cases countrywide up from 7,416 cases in 2012. The money needed to provide MPs security is eight times the money government needed to buy the Shs 30 billion cancer treating machine in 2015. It took government a whole year to procure the machine. Maracha MP Denis Lee Oguzu wondered why government has found it necessary to quickly find money for MPs security needs while priorities like healthcare lack funding. When we wanted government to take care of all the elderly through the Sage (Social Assistance Grants for Empowerment) programme, government said there was no money. When we ask government to stock drugs in hospitals, government says no money. Government should have focused on all these priorities rather than buying MPs pick-ups, Oguzu said. This now confirms our earlier assertion that this government could probably be one of the most extravagant governments Uganda has had in history. Already, State House is costing Ugandans a lot of money and here we are imposing tax on Ugandans- where shall we get this money from? Oguzu added. National coordinator for the Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group, Julius Mukunda described the directive by the president as an act of budgetary indiscipline and lack of focus on the state of security in the country. The number of MPs killed compared to that of the ordinary persons killed is less therefore that money would instead go to budgets of security organisations to take care of all Ugandans and not only for security of MPs, Mukunda said. Ministry of Finance permanent secretary and secretary to the treasury Keith Muhakanizi said the ministry would advise the president on the best way forward given the limited resources. Whether we have found the money or not, all I can say is that we shall advise the president or implement his directive the best way we can. People bias us for nothing. The Constitution is very clear; we implement the directives of the president but of course it is also our duty to advise him on the best way to implement his decisions, Muhakanizi said. Museveni however said that when the security measures are in place, the individualized security would be done away with. We shall do away with the individualized security which is really a waste of resources-financial and manpower. Act fast and I expect speed, Musevenis letter to Kasaija said. With these measures, we were re-affirming to our people that the security of Uganda is unshakeable. These measures however may take a few months to be put in place, our people to train on them. I have therefore, decided to protect the members of parliament as we wait the putting in place of these systems since they are being singled out, Museveni said. Last week, Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga told MPs that the Parliamentary Commission would sit and decide on the presidential directive. But Workers MP Arinaitwe Rwakajara, a member of the commission, said there was nothing to discuss. What is there for us to discuss? It is a presidential directive and therefore not ours; it doesnt touch our budget, and it is not within our mandate to assess the security of members, Rwakajara told The Observer. The executive director of the Uganda Media Centre Ofwono Opondo said the presidential directive does not necessarily mean that all MPs will be given army snipers. Some will get overt security, others covert security. In fact, some already have the covert security; those you cannot see, Opondo said. According to Opondo, the security heads have to examine Musevenis directive and advise him on what is feasible. Temporary or not, if implemented, the cost of providing escort security for legislators will not just leave a huge dent on the public purse but also a bitter taste in the mouths of ordinary people. amwesigwa@observer.ug Bruna Papandrea to develop Karin Slaughters latest novel for the small screen: https://t.co/h7aLKjDqnL pic.twitter.com/HH80Rq2G0U Women and Hollywood (@WomenaHollywood) July 13, 2018 Save the date for N.K. Jemisin's first-ever short story collection, HOW LONG 'TIL BLACK FUTURE MONTH? https://t.co/6n973JfNom pic.twitter.com/Khc5Z0utH9 Book Riot (@BookRiot) July 17, 2018 Dark Horse Comics today announced a new series adaptation of Alien3 based on the original script for the film by William Gibson. As reported by CBR, the script, which Gibson... https://t.co/7uvR65pfqs The Beat (@comicsbeat) July 12, 2018 * Bruna Papandrea (producer of Big Little Lies) will be producing Karin Slaughter's recent novel,* From the article:follows Andrea, a women who's spent her entire life believing she knows her mother, Laura, more intimately than anyone else. But a seemingly normal trip to the mall exposes a completely different side of Laura, revealing a secret she's been keeping over 30 years. Andrea is forced to look into her mother's mysterious past as a way to save her future.* Charlotte Stoudt will be writing; Lesli Linka Glatter to direct the adaptation.* On the production, Papandrea says "It's truly a dream team of female content creators."* Slaughter's novel will be released on Aug 21.* Celebrated and award-winning author N.K. Jemison will be publishing her first collection of short stories."contains stories that draw parallels between our present-day society and the fantastical realm, as well as presenting our world as an alternate universe that aliens try to make sense of."* The collection will be published on November 27, 2018.will have a new series adaptation based on William Gibson's original script of the film. The adaptation will be written and drawn by Johnnie Christmas and colors by Tamra Bonvillain.* Synopsis from the source: "Following the deadly events of Aliens, the Union of Progressive Peoples intercepts the spaceship carrying the hibernating bodies of Ripley, Hicks, Newt, and Bishop. But unbeknownst to them, they have also picked up another deadly passenger whose discovery will unleash a race between two governments to weaponize the xenomorph in this horrifying and poignant Cold War-themed thriller."* William Gibson's(of five) goes on sale November 7, 2018* Preview art at the source! This is so goddamn creepy. Reply Thread Link Disturbing af. Reply Thread Link Grande educating someone about wearing natural tones lmao girl you are in constant brown face Reply Thread Link Tanning would be going out into the sun and letting your skin get naturally darker. She paints her skin that color. But I think the op was kidding Reply Parent Thread Expand Link ia but she still tans haself into a whole other race Reply Parent Thread Expand Link there is a difference between a tan when you're holidaying, and a permanent 'tan.' it's subtle. Reply Parent Thread Link I wish there adequate words to describe the look on my face and the way Im feeling after seeing that video. Good lord in heaven. Reply Thread Link Chick in the second video has a strong jaw. I'm jealous. Reply Thread Link She doesn't even look that much like Ariana without all the ~ariana accoutrement~. How pathetic to have a vague resemblance to a celebrity and then dedicate your life to impersonating them. Girl, figure out who you are and love yourself. Reply Thread Link LOL I clicked thinking I would see someone who looks fairly similar to Ari but WOAH, not even close...her face does remind me quite a bit of Jennifer Lopez tho at least in that "Exposing Myself" video Reply Thread Link that thumbnail makes me wanna die Reply Thread Link it doesn't take that much anymore to get a verified account on twitter, does it? that being said...this is creepy tbqh. Reply Thread Link She doesnt look like her. Reply Thread Link She really doesn't, especially without the makeup and hair. She is just similarly dark-haired and petite. Reply Parent Thread Link Yaaaas!!! Single White Female HA! Attack Pete Davidson with a stiletto!!!!!! Reply Thread Link lmfao. Pete would very much like to be excluded from this narrative! Reply Parent Thread Link lmao omg Reply Parent Thread Link lmao Reply Parent Thread Link That's creepy. And stop and like no. What's creeping me out the most is she's talking like Ariana. She looks like her a little bit, but something's off. Reply Thread Link Also before anybody gets upset that fans go in on Gabi, look her up. She's even made fun of a homeless man on her vlog and was so out of touch that she thought people would ok with it. Reply Thread Link I have seen exactly one of her videos and she was so fucking phony I couldn't even watch. Just shit constantly falling out of her mouth. I guess this is who tweens look up to.....????? FUCK. Reply Parent Thread Link She is bffs with some 14 yr old girls who are obsessed with her and call her 'mom' and her bf 'dad' when they have 'vintage' sleepovers at Gabi's house. The girl is insane. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link "neutral tones" lmao Reply Thread Link In its effort to wrest more control over global oil markets away from foreign producers, Congress has been pushing a bill that would let the U.S. sue OPEC for oil price fixing. The bill called No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act, or NOPEC, was first introduced in May. Now, two Republican Senators and two Democrats introduced legislation last week thats aimed at allowing the government to bring lawsuits against OPEC members for antitrust violations, which would be an amendment to the Sherman Anti-trust act of 1890. The Sherman Anti-trust act changed American business culture. It was the first legislation enacted by Congress to curb concentrations of power that interfere with trade and reduce economic competition. One of the acts main provisions outlaws all combinations that restrain trade between states or with foreign nations. This prohibition applies not only to formal cartels but also to any agreement to fix prices, limit industrial output, share markets, or exclude competition. The second part of the act and key provision that most Americans are familiar with makes illegal all attempts to monopolize any part of trade or commerce in the country. Some long-standing companies to be charged under the act include the breakup of AT&T in the 1980s, with the creation of regional phone companies, or so-called Baby-Bells and Microsoft which was found in violation of the act in 1999, but successfully appealed a breakup of the company in 2001. Its long past time to put an end to illegal price fixing by OPEC, Chuck Grassley, one of the Republican senators to push the legislation, said in a statement last week. We are committed to reducing our reliance on foreign oil, especially when its artificially and illegally priced. Our bill shows the OPEC members we will not tolerate their flagrant antitrust violations. Related: Is The Oil World In Panic Mode? However, the NOPEC idea is nothing new and dates back to at least 2000. Both President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama threatened to use their veto power to halt it from becoming law. In 2007, a similar bill passed in the House of Representatives in a 345-72 vote, and in the Senate by 70-23, only to fail afterward in the face of White House opposition. This time around, however, there is a good chance that Trump would sign such a bill into law. Anti-OPEC rhetoric Trump has been critical of OPEC for years and during the 2016 presidential election that war of words escalated to the front pages of international newspapers. Trump said at the time that the U.S. should block all oil imports from Saudi Arabia. Trump also vowed to secure American energy independence from our foes and the oil cartels, while also creating complete American energy independence. In response, just days after Trump was elected, Saudi Arabia's oil minister and Aramco chairman Khalid Al-Falih fired back. He said in a Financial Times interview that at his heart President-elect Trump will see the benefits [of Saudi oil imports] and I think the oil industry will also be advising him accordingly that blocking trade in any product is not healthy. The U.S. is sort of the flag-bearer for capitalism and free markets, added. The U.S. continues to be a very important part of a global industry that is interconnected, that is dealing with a fungible commodity which is crude oil. So having equalization through free trade is very healthy for oil. The Saudi oil minister added that the Saudis were waiting for Trumps presidency, as his presidential campaign had amounted to 50,000 feet announcements that may change. Since that time, Trump and Saudi Arabia have turned the long-standing relations between the two countries back on firming footing. Saudi Arabia was instrumental in persuading Trump to reimpose sanctions against Iran, while Riyadh for its part, has seemingly kowtowed to Trumps tweets calling for OPEC and the Saudis to commit to higher oil production to offset high oil and gas prices, a point of contention for the administration as mid-term Congressional election in November near. The OPEC Monopoly must remember that gas prices are up & they are doing little to help. If anything, they are driving prices higher as the United States defends many of their members for very little $s. This must be a two-way street. REDUCE PRICING NOW! Trump tweeted in one of several warnings to OPEC. Related: Iraq Orders Internet Blackout To Quell Protests However, despite the current revamping of the U.S.-Saudi playbook on checking Iranian geological influence in the middle east and reigning-in its nuclear development ambitions, Trump (only 18 months in office) is increasingly showing an unprecedented ability to offend long standing allies while appeasing long term rivals, including Russia and North Korea. Oil market dynamics The danger for U.S.-Saudi relations however if a NOPEC bill was passed by both Houses and signed into law by the president would be cataclysmic. It would indicate more American geopolitical and even economic hegemony and destabilize global oil markets and the structure of middle eastern geopolitics. Though many balk as OPEC and the Saudis regain control of global oil markets, a forced re-configuring of that system would be counterproductive and likely see more Saudi-Russian agreement over oil mark control as well as geopolitical deals being made. Not only would the Saudis balk at what they deemed as a frontal an attack on the economic lifeblood of the country but of the ruling royal family, but they would have a hard time understanding it. It should be remembered that OPEC and now OPEC with its non-OPEC partners are masters at colluding and controlling supply and even geopolitics in an effort to control prices - something not allowed under the act. The best course for U.S. lawmakers and Trump would be to let the market determine prices (supply/ demand, and even geopolitical developments) and to not unduly interfere in the process. By Tim Daiss for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Sri Lanka will pay down its oil debt held by Iran with tea in response to new regulations that Sri Lanka has issued in order to comply with a UN Security Council Resolution. The UN resolution calls for the imposition of sanctions on Iran for failing to stop its uranium enrichment program, and restricts financial transactions with Iran. In response to these restrictions, Sri Lanka is hoping to pay Iran in teaa years worth of it. Sri Lankas Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), Sri Lankas state-owned oil and gas company, owes Iran about $250 million for oil shipments in recent months. But restrictions on payments limits CPCs options on how to pay for the oil. The Sri Lanka Tea Board proposed a solution: compensate Iran with tea instead of dollars. The proposal would have the CPC pay for the tea, then the tea would be shipped to Iran. If the CPC pays us, we can continue the export of tea to Iran as there is no ban on this commodity. The amount the CPC owes Iran can offset payment for a year of tea export to Iran, Tea Board Chairman Lucille Wijewardena said, adding that there would be more discussions on the subject in the coming week. Related: IEA: World Is Not Spending Enough On Energy Sri Lanka has long relied on Irans participation in various energy projects, including upgrading oil refineries, as well as chipping in on hydroelectric projects and rural electrification projects. Iran agreed in May to build a new refinery for Sri Lanka, on top of upgrading an existing state-run oil refinery that Iran had built for Sri Lanka in 1969a refinery built specifically to refine Iranian light crude. But in the wake of the first round of US sanctions on Iran, Sri Lanka was forced to look for other suppliers. Iran is the fourth largest market for Sri Lankan Ceylon tea, accounting for 9.5% of its total exports. While payments in tea may be a technically acceptable method of skirting UN sanctions, the $250 million thats owed is for a couple of months worth of oil, whereas it would take a years worth of tea to compensate. It is unclear how future oil shipments to Sri Lanka will be paid for. By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Guyanas recoverable offshore oil reserves are larger than expectedby almost a billion barrels, Hess Corp CEO John Hess said in a Monday press release. Gross discovered recoverable resources for Hesss Stabroek Block has been revised upward to 4 million barrels of oil equivalentup from the previous estimate of 3.2 billion barrels. The Stabroek Block is a massive world class resource that keeps getting bigger and better, CEO John Hess said. Since the end of 2016, the estimate for recoverable resources on the block has quadrupled and we continue to see multi billion barrels of additional exploration potential on the block. We believe the investment opportunity in Guyana has the potential to be transformative for our company and create significant value for our shareholders for many years to come. Hess Corp (NYSE: HES) was trading down on Monday, despite the news. Guyana has been hailed as the worlds most up and coming oil hotspot, as Exxon, Tullow Oil, and Eco Atlantic made remarkable headway in recent years and months. Exxon, for one, has had multiple finds in Guyanaalso in the Stabroek block. That Guyanathe small South American country sandwiched between troubled Venezuela and Surinamehas oil, and lots of it, is not new. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimated oil reserves in the Guyana-Suriname basin somewhere around 15 billion barrels. Related: Is The Oil World In Panic Mode? The Stabroek block alone is poised to lift Guyana from the status of one of the poorest countries on the continent to untold riches. Nevertheless, its newfound oil wealth may prove to be a stumbling block for the nation who is used to having next-to-nothing to mismanage. Earlier estimates pegged oil revenues for Guyana at $700 million per year by the late 2020s just from Exxons finds alone. Hess reported earlier that it did not expect to generate a positive cash flow offshore Guyana until about 2022, according to Oil and Gas Investor. By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: The first second-quarter results from the oilfield service sector are in, and despite some missed expectations, the future looks bright for two of the top three global oilfield service providers. Schlumberger and Baker Hughes both reported Q2 results on Friday, and they both demonstrated an upbeat outlook for the immediate future despite a divergence in priorities. The oil price recovery from the last year certainly made a difference. Both companies said they were seeing an improvement in offshore activity, and even though most of this is in development rather than much-needed new exploration, the latter is picking up, too. Schlumbergers chief executive Paal Kibsgaard said at the presentation of the companys second-quarter results that he expected spending on offshore exploration this year to be 12 percent higher than in 2017, and that this will rise further in 2019. Baker Hughes Lorenzo Simonelli was also optimistic, and not just for offshore exploration. Simonelli said he saw both onshore and offshore exploration pick up this year and next, with 2019 being particularly active in terms of exploration spending, noting that "as more large projects are sanctioned and offshore spend returns to more normalized levels, we expect these orders to start generating revenues in 2020." Where the two diverge is in the focus on U.S. and international operations. Schlumberger is doubling down on U.S. operations in direct competition with the worlds number-two Halliburton, fighting for every bit of market share that it can get after the 2014 bust cleared the playing field from many smaller players. Bloomberg reports that Schlumberger has grown it U.S. sales faster than any other region where it is active, taking advantage of the price rebound that has pushed U.S. oil production to a record high. Baker Hughes, on the other hand, is looking abroad for expansion rather than focusing on domestic operations, after it delivered an 8-percent increase in international orders, beating the 7-percent improvement in U.S. operations. Related: Guyanas Oil Reserves Are Larger Than Expected No wonder Baker Hughes is looking abroad: Evercore ISI analyst James West recently told Bloomberg that international spending on oilfield services is improving faster than analysts had forecast at the beginning of the year. The improvement, he said, was more rigorous and stronger than we thought. Because its so much bigger than North America, it will be the biggest driver of earnings for the next couple quarters. Meanwhile, the star play of the U.S. shale patch is suffering from clogged pipelines, which may be why Baker Hughes has not mentioned it among its short-term priorities. Schlumberger, although dedicated to its home market, is also not relying exclusively on U.S. growth. As Kibsgaard noted at the Q2 presentation of the company, although the pipeline capacity shortage has not yet made a palpable impact on production in the Permian, in the future it may well affect it negatively. All in all, things are looking up for the oilfield service industry, which bore the brunt of the oil price crash. There are still challenges ahead, but the sector leaders have proven their resiliency, emerging from the crisis by becoming just as leaner and meaner as their clients, in some cases even more. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: President Trump seemed to hint at war with Iran on twitter on Sunday, in an all caps tweet directed at Irans president. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 The tirade seemed to come in response to comments from Iranian president Hassan Rouhani, who warned the U.S. over the weekend not to block Iranian oil exports. Mainstream press carried one particular line from Rouhanis comments, suggesting he threatened the mother of all wars, although the full sentence offered more nuance. Were not fighting or at war with any country, but the enemies have to clearly understand that war with Iran will be the mother of all wars and likewise peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, Rouhani said. Iranian officials are likely of the belief that the Trump administration is trying to lure them into a trap. Any provocation from Tehran could be used as a pretext for harsh action, up to and including war. Trumps National Security Adviser John Bolton admitted as much in a statement on Monday. I spoke to the President over the last several days, and President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before, Bolton said. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a speech on Sunday, accusing Irans leadership of deep corruption and once again offering support for Irans people, which appears to be a not-very-subtle attempt at fomenting unrest in Iran. Pompeo also announced plans to expand Farsi-language channels as part of the Voice of America in order to get around fake news inside Iran. Related: Ukraines Natural Gas Transit Woes May Be Easing The confrontation and the exchange of threats carries echoes of Trumps online verbal attacks against North Koreas Kim Jong Un last year. The spat also comes as the Trump administration is trying to implement sanctions against Iran, warning other countries to dial back their purchases of Iranian oil. There is a tension that the Trump administration is trying to grapple with: Trying to ratchet up the pressure by disrupting Iranian oil exports while also avoiding painful oil price spikes. To a large extent, those are mutually exclusive goals. The oil market has seesawed back and forth as traders try to calculate how much of Irans 2.5 million barrels per day of oil exports will be knocked offline. Oil prices ticked up on Monday, but those gains were wiped out by midday, reacting with amazing calm as Commerzbank put it in a note. The warning of Ayatollah Khamenei, the spiritual leader of Iran, that oil exports from the Gulf region would be blocked, also fell on deaf ears, the bank said. Part of that is because fears about the fallout from the escalating U.S.-China trade war are offsetting some of the upward pressure from Iran. But the collective shrug from the oil market also points to a skepticism from investors that the Trump administration has the stomach for war. For one, he threatened North Korea with fire and fury only to inexplicably hold a summit with Kim Jong Un, after which he declared victory and moved on. Related: India And China Could Mitigate Damage For Iran Trumps hawkish inner circle of Pompeo and Bolton always leaves open the possibility of an aggressive approach towards Iran. But the administration will be constrained by oil prices, even if their preferred position seems to be regime change in Iran (a position they deny). Knocking off 2.5 mb/d of Iranian oil exports would drive prices sharply up, something the administration wants to avoid, especially as midterm elections loom. National average retail gasoline prices are hovering around $3 per gallon, but war with Iran could easily add $1 or $2 to that figure. The domestic political nightmare of such a scenario is enough to keep even the hawks at bay. If they want to disrupt that amount of oil, they probably wont be able to do it all at once. The Trump administration is likely hoping to disrupt Iranian oil exports in stages, slowly tightening the screws while avoiding shocks to the global market. Also, the U.S. would have more room to maneuver towards the end of 2019 when more Permian production comes online after a series of pipelines are constructed. All of that is to say that despite Trumps belligerent tweet, he probably doesnt have any interest in war anytime soon. By Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Irans President Hassan Rouhani has threatened the United States with the mother of all wars if Washington continues pressuring it with sanctions and attempts to foment unrest among the already disgruntled population. America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars, Reuters quoted Rouhani as saying during a meeting with local diplomats. You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Irans security and interests, he added. Reuters reports that the latter refers to an offensive by Washington aimed at stimulating more unrest among Iranians using speeches and online platforms, according to unnamed sources familiar with this offensive. Washington slapped economic sanctions on Iran after President Trump pulled out of the so-called Iran nuclear deal earlier this year. These will come into effect in early November and will specifically target crude oil exports. In June, reports emerged that Washington has been pressuring its Asian allies to reduce their crude oil imports from Iran to zero, which prompted a response from Tehran that took the form of a threat that if the United States tried to cut its oil exports to zero, it would shut the Strait of Hormuzthe worlds biggest maritime oil routedisrupting all Middle Eastern oil shipments. Related: IEA: World Is Not Spending Enough On Energy Initially, Washington remained firm in its insistence that no one will be granted a waiver from the sanctions, but lately it has begun to soften its position in an apparent realization that some of its allies could suffer unintended fallout from the oil sanctions. Based on the U.S. official stance on sanction waivers, analysts expect Irans crude oil exports to fall by as much as two-thirds to about 700,000 bpd by the end of the year. This 700,000 bpd will go into China for the most part, with smaller amounts shipped to India, Turkey, and possibly other consumers if waivers are granted. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Germanys minister of state for foreign affairs has encouraged India to continue buying Iranian oil, despite pressure from the United States, which Niels Annen called irritating, to put it mildly. I am not a salesman for Iran but I have an impression that India is willing to continue buying oil from Iran and this will be a very important statement, Annen told Indian media, as quoted by Sputnik, also noting that whatever New Delhi decided, it would be a sovereign decision. India is Irans top oil client, and it is also one of the countries that are most heavily dependent on oil imports. This means that the consequences of U.S. sanctions on Tehran will spread to India, which already has a problem with too high international oil prices. India is a strong U.S. ally in Asia, but it has also been building better relations with Tehran, which puts it in a sensitive position. In May, when President Trump announced that the United States would pull out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, more commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, Indias Foreign Minister said that India will continue importing Iranian crude despite U.S. sanctions, adding that that India only honors sanctions imposed by the United Nations, but not ones introduced by individual countries. Related: Independents Replace Big Oil In Southeast Asia Nevertheless, Iranian crude oil imports into India fell by 15.9 percent in June from May, or to 592,800 bpd from more than 705,000 bpd in the previous month. The drop suggests that despite its initially tough stance on U.S. sanctions, Indian refiners have started changing their mind as the November 4 deadline to wind down business relations with Iran draws nearer. An Iranian official from the embassy in New Delhi then threatened India that it might lose its special privileges if it stops buying Iranian crude in November. Other Tehran officials were quick to call the threat a misquote, and went on to assure India that Iran will continue to ensure a stable supply of crude for its regional partner. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Iran has overtaken Saudi Arabia as Indias number two oil supplier in the April-June quarter, Indias oil minister said on Monday. Iraq remains Indias number-one supplier of crude. While Iran ousted Saudi Arabia as the number two oil supplier, Irans oil shipments to India year over year are down. Iraqs, on the other hand, have increased, perhaps as India looks to wind down shipments ahead of US sanctions on Iran that go into effect in November 2018. In the period from April to June, India purchased 5.22 million tons of oil from Saudi Arabia, 5.6 million tons from Iran, and 7.27 million tons from Iraq. But yearly figures (which run from April to March) show a decline in the amount of oil India imported from Iran: 9.8 million tons in the year ending March 2018, versus 13.04 million tons in the year ending March 2017an almost 25 percent decline year over year. Meanwhile, Indias oil imports from Iraq increased from 24.79 million tons in the year to March 2017 to 29.66 in the year to March 2018a near 20% increase year over year. India has not yet definitively said how it will respond to the US sanctions on Iran when it comes to oil imports and payments. It has waffled over the matter, initially reporting in May that it will not adhere to US sanctions, and then switching gears and telling its refiners to prepare for a drastic reduction to zero of Iranian oil. Related: Goldman Predicts Major Solar Market Contraction Indias position as an oil importer from Iran turned even more difficult in mid-June, when Indias largest bank told local refiners that it would no longer handle payments for oil imports from Iran starting in November. Indias Nayara Energyformerly known as Essar Oilis said to have started scaling back oil purchases from Iran last month, while another big Indian refiner, Reliance Industries, which owns the worlds largest refining hub and has significant exposure to the U.S. financial system, is reportedly planning to stop importing oil from Iran in October or November. By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: A Chinese man who suffers from a motor neurone disease found the perfect way to celebrate his 29th birthday: climbing 1,600 metres (5,250 feet) to the top of one of the Five Great Mountains of China, according to a local media report. Zhang Wei, who was diagnosed with the degenerative condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrigs disease, when he was just 12, set off for the summit of Mount Hua in northwest Chinas Shaanxi province at 8am on July 15, Beijing Youth Daily reported on Monday. He arrived 21 hours later. While the climb is made via a stone staircase, Zhangs achievement is no less remarkable, considering he has no use of his legs and scaled the 4,000 steps by lifting himself up on his hands and shuffling his body upwards and forwards. The steps became steeper as I climbed higher and sometimes [the rise] was as long as my legs, he was quoted as saying. After about eight hours of climbing, Zhang said his carer advised him to stop, but he was having none of it. [Completing] the challenge is not just my personal dream, it provides courage for all people with disabilities to pursue their dreams, he said. Chinese man carries his disabled wife up sacred mountain so she can realise her dream After working his way through three pairs of gloves and a pair of shoes, Zhang reached the South Peak at about 5am on July 16, just in time to greet the dawn through tear-filled eyes. Although the skin on my hands and arms was torn, and I was so exhausted, at the moment I reached the peak all of the tiredness suddenly disappeared, he said. Chinese climber, 69, crippled on Everest, finally scales peak Born in Heze, east Chinas Shandong province, Zhang said that although he was diagnosed with the motor neurone disease at the age of 12, it was not until he was about 18 that, I felt like I lost all my muscles. At his last medical check in September, Zhangs doctors told him his health was deteriorating rapidly and that he might not see his 30th birthday, the report said. Story continues Doctors said its a miracle that I have lived until today, and I believe the miracle will continue, he said. Tourettes in China: how a sufferers video helps public understanding and acceptance He certainly has no plans to cut back on his lofty challenges. Just a month before scaling Mount Hua, Zhang spent 12 hours climbing Mount Tai another of the Great Mountains and said he was now planning to reach the summit of the other three sometime next year, just as soon as he has completed walking the length of the Great Wall of China. This article Chinese man with Lou Gehrigs disease climbs 1,600m to summit of his second Great Mountain first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. Filipino netizens are insulted by an incendiary remark made over the weekend by a high-ranking government official. But this time, it was not said by President Rodrigo Duterte. Christopher Bong Go, Dutertes special assistant, was interviewed on Saturday where he lambasted his and the presidents critics. In a mix of English and Filipino, he said: My question to my and the presidents critics, what have you done, how have you helped other Filipinos? Please answer. All you do is talk. Bong Go: Ang tanong ko naman po sa mga kritiko namin ni pangulo, kayo ano bang nagawa ninyo, ano bang naitulong ninyo sa mga kapwa Pilipino? Sagutin niyo naman po. Puro lang kayo dada | @RexRemitio CNN Philippines (@cnnphilippines) July 21, 2018 This did not sit well with former solicitor general Florin Hilbay, one of the presidents most vocal critics. Hilbay, the lawyer of Dutertes nemesis Senator Leila de Lima, answered: Taught constitutional law in UP [University of the Philippines] for 15 years; worked w/ Sen. [Jovito] Salonga on anti-corruption & judicial oversight; defended the RH [Reproductive Health] law in the Supreme Court; secured 71 Billion in coconut levy funds for farmers; served as counsel for the Republic in Phils vs. China. Im just answering your question. Taught constitutional law in UP for 15 years; worked w/ Sen. Salonga on anti-corruption & judicial oversight; defended the RH law in the Supreme Court; secured 71 Billion in coconut levy funds for farmers; served as counsel for the Republic in Phils vs. China. Sumasagot lang po. https://t.co/gIp7GHmXKw florin hilbay (@fthilbay) July 22, 2018 Lawyer Mel Sta. Maria, the dean of Far Eastern Universitys law school, was also having none of Gos comment. Story continues He wrote in a mix of Filipino and English: Mr. Bong Go, with regards to your question on what people or critics have done for the country, I have answered this already, I will repeat it. Read it and understand it. He added: We have our own respective ROLES in this society and whenever we do our best to make society work and the economy run, whatever and however done no matter how small we are already WORKING for the country and helping solve its problems in our own limited way. Netizens on Twitter are not very happy either. Referring to Gos love for taking selfies, user @zodylogan wrote: [W]ell, we pay you to take selfies with the president, and im not even sure if that counts as helping the country. well, we pay you to take selfies with the president, and im not even sure kung pagtulong ba yun sa bansa zodysaurus #SOanuNA (@zodylogan) July 21, 2018 READ: Duterte assistant dubbed selfie king now a hilarious Facebook filter @barnabychuck answered: Bong Go asking again what weve done for our country. That tired old question. So maybe we should ask him another tired old question, Whos in public service? Who ran for public office? Im sick of that question. Cant he ask something smarter? Bong Go asking again what weve done for our country. That tired old question. So maybe we should ask him another tired old question, Whos in public service? Who ran for public office? Kakasawa na yan tanong niya. Wala na bang mas matalinong tanong? Barnaby Lo (@barnabychuck) July 21, 2018 @nuelleduterte called Go a little minion. Bong Go has the gall to ask critics of Digong what we contribute to the PH? We over here contribute to the economy, little minion. That kind of arrogance is ugly and gives us all a glimpse of whats inside him. Ick. Nuelle (@nuelleduterte) July 21, 2018 @MrFrankBaraan wanted to ask Go instead: Is serving a tyrant, who promotes a culture of violence, creates a climate of fear, & kills his own [people], [considered] service to [the] country? Bong Go asks Dutertes critics what weve been doing for the country, apart from running our mouths & criticizing his boss. Ibalik natin tanong sa kanya. Is serving a tyrant, who promotes a culture of violence, creates a climate of fear, & kills his own ppl, service to country? Francis Baraan IV (@MrFrankBaraan) July 22, 2018 @MaricirsDec09, however, thinks Gos question is valid. That only shows that theyre guilty. There are few of them (critics). Majority of [F]ilipinos do believe (sic) under the leadership of President Duterte. Very well said SAP Bong Go. That only shows guilty lahat sila. Konti lang yan sila (kritiko). Majority of filipinos do believe under the leadership of President Duterte. Mary Chris Cabante (@MaricrisDec09) July 21, 2018 Go has long been rumored to have plans for running for senator in 2019, which he refuses to confirm. That didnt stop rap group Ex-Battalion however from releasing a promotional jingle that called Go hardworking, simple, and humble. Cellphones bearing his image and name have also been distributed at a function for youth leaders in Malacanang Palace. Go, however, denied having anything to do with their distribution. The post Dutertes special assistant lambasted for asking critics what they have done for the PH appeared first on Coconuts. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday praised President Donald Trump's "tough stand" against Iran after the US leader issued a stark warning to the Islamic republic. Netanyahu's remarks came hours before a meeting with top Russian officials on Iran and the situation in Syria, where Moscow-backed regime forces have been battering rebels in the south for more than a month. "I would like to praise the tough stand expressed yesterday by President Trump and Secretary of State (Mike) Pompeo against the aggression of the Iranian regime," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting. "Over the years, this regime has been spoiled by the major powers and it is good to see that the US is changing this unacceptable equation." Iran is Israel's main enemy and Netanyahu has long pushed for a tougher stand against it by international powers. He has repeatedly lauded Trump's hawkish rhetoric towards Tehran. Trump used Twitter on Sunday to send out an all-caps salvo: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had warned Trump on Sunday not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". Trump's comments came after Pompeo, in a major address to the Iranian diaspora in California, said Washington was not afraid to sanction top-ranking leaders of the "nightmare" Iranian regime. Netanyahu lobbied hard to have the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers cancelled, and Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in May. All other parties to the deal -- Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China -- have sought to keep it in effect, saying it is working as intended by preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons for now. Netanyahu has also pledged to keep Iran from entrenching itself militarily in neighbouring Syria, where Tehran is supporting President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war. A series of strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel. - Russian visit - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Moscow's military chief arrived in Israel later Monday for talks on Iran and the Syrian conflict. Like Tehran, Moscow supports Assad in the war, but Netanyahu has held a series of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent months on Syria and Iran. Netanyahu said Putin recently requested the meeting with Lavrov and General Valery Gerasimov. "I appreciated the words that were spoken by President Putin together with President Trump regarding the security of Israel during the recent summit," Netanyahu said after the meeting, in remarks relayed by his office. The Russian foreign ministry said the meeting also addressed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and "the goal of ending the anti-terrorist operation in southern Syria, and ensuring security along the Israeli border". On June 19, Syrian government forces launched a Russia-backed offensive to retake Daraa and Quneitra provinces in the country's south, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Regime forces have now regained control of most of the two provinces through a combination of deadly bombardment and Moscow-brokered surrender deals. Israel is eager to obtain guarantees that Iranian forces and allied groups, such as Hezbollah, will be kept away from the Golan. Separately on Sunday, Israel evacuated hundreds of White Helmets rescuers and their family members threatened by advancing Syrian regime forces to Jordan for resettlement in Western countries. Jordan's foreign ministry announced in a statement that the kingdom received 422 Syrian citizens, after earlier saying it had given permission for 800 to arrive. Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescues the wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-held territory. FILE PHOTO: West Philippine Sea, a marine wealth of the Philippines VIETNAM Its been two years since President Rodrigo Duterte visited Vietnam and met with the Filipino community there. Like the Philippines, Vietnam is also one of the claimant countries in the disputed territories in the South China Sea, however, Filipino migrant workers in Vietnam have different views and opinions on the issue. Under the Duterte administration, the Chief Executive shelved temporarily the maritime dispute and instead, developed a better relationship with China for economic inclination. The government of Vietnam took a different route. On May 2018, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam formally pressed on China its withdrawal of military equipment and military activities on the disputed area in the South China Sea. Some OFWs in Vietnam agree with the steps that the Duterte administration has taken others do not. Filipino migrant worker Dale Orocio believes that, Dapat din talaga kung talagang atin yun, ilalaban talaga yun (We should fight for it if it is really ours). While OFW Mae Laolao said, Hindi ko masasabi na pakikipagmabutihan sa China, I wouldnt call it that, pero para sa akin siguro mas okay yung ganoon. Kasi lahat tayo the nations around the border of South China Sea, ano tayo eh, nagde-depend din tayo dun sa dagat na yun. So, siguro mas titingnan ko na lang siya as shared stewardship kumbaga. (Its not that were cozying up to China, I wouldnt call it that. But I think its better that way because all the nations around the border of South China Sea depend on that sea. So, maybe its more of shared stewardship. Another lady OFW said, Para sa akin lang naman po no, kung talagang atin po talaga yung lugar na yun, wala naman po sigurong masama kung iki-claim natin sya. Para sa atin yun eh. Ang Pilipinas ay para sa Pilipinas. (For me, if that [disputed teritory] is ours, theres nothing wrong if we claim it because its ours. The Philippines is for the Philippines.) Story continues Meanwhile, Vietnam Foreign Ministry Le Thi Thu Hang, Vietnam expects China to maintain the peace and order in the East Sea. The installation of missles in the Spratlys is a serious violation of Vietnams sovereignity. According to the Philippine consulate, there are 3,400 Filipinos residing in Vietnam are eager to hear the President Dutertes third SONA. RJ Timoteo / UNTV News & Rescue. The post OFWs in Vietnam have differing opinions on Duterte admins take on West PHL Sea issue appeared first on UNTV News. Ten people were jailed in Vietnam Monday for joining explosive protests that swept across the communist country last month after a draft investment law triggered widespread anger. The rare rallies in the one-party state -- where even peaceful demonstrations are outlawed -- drew thousands to the streets, including in southern Binh Thuan province where protests quickly spun out of control. In some areas of the province, demonstrators attacked riot police, torched patrol cars and stormed property in rallies over the proposed law that would grant investors lengthy leases in special economic zones. Ten people were convicted Monday in Binh Thuan for their hand in the violence and sentenced to between two and three-and-a-half years in prison at the one day-trial where the suspects were accompanied by police in protective vests. They were found guilty of "massive attacks against police deployments... injuring some officers, damaging two government vehicles and causing widespread traffic blockages for 15 hours on a national highway," the Voice of Vietnam said on its website. Several others have already been convicted for joining the nationwide rallies, including American student William Nguyen who was found guilty for "causing public disorder" last week and swiftly deported from the country after more than a month in jail. His case drew ire from several US lawmakers demanding his release and was raised by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on a visit to Hanoi this month. The June 10 protests caught Vietnamese authorities off-guard, though resentment over the draft bill had been brewing online. Protesters feared the land would be handed over to China -- a touchy topic in Vietnam, which has a tumultuous relationship with its powerful communist neighbour. China was not named in the draft law, which has been tabled for now, and the government said it would reduce the original plan to hand out 99-year leases in the proposed special economic zones, but it was not enough to quell anger. Six people are already behind bars for participating in the protests, while another was given a suspended sentence. Deadly anti-China protests gripped Vietnam in 2014 when Beijing moved an oil rig into a section of the disputed South China Sea claimed by Hanoi. The countries frequently spar over competing claims in the resource-rich waterway, the latest in a long history of disputes -- including a brief but bloody border war in 1979. Tensions are mounting between Donald Trump and Iran -- the US president's raw tweet threatening Tehran was met Monday with a similarly bilious reply, upping the ante in the high-stakes game of diplomatic chicken. Trump's tweeted warning late Sunday to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani -- all in capital letters, the digital equivalent of shouting -- sparked questions about Washington's strategy towards the Islamic republic. The US is regularly suspected of backing the idea of regime change, but analysts say its current stance may simply be an attempt to pivot after a week of dire headlines over Trump's much-maligned summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin and a relative lack of progress on North Korea. The saber-rattling began when Iranian President Hassan Rouhani cautioned Trump not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would trigger the "mother of all wars" -- prompting the furious salvo from the US leader. The Republican leader's response was reminiscent of the belligerent tone he took with North Korea last year. "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE," Trump warned Rouhani on Twitter. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" A few hours later, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif fired back. "COLOR US UNIMPRESSED," Zarif wrote in English, mimicking Trump's caps-lock message. "We've been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, incl our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries. BE CAUTIOUS!" While Trump's "tough stand" was hailed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, it also provoked an avalanche of questions about its exact meaning and impact. When asked about the president's motivations, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said he was focused on "the safety and security of the American people" and ensuring Tehran did not acquire nuclear weapons. But she seemed to downplay concerns about his aggressive posturing, saying Trump has been "pretty strong since day one in his language toward Iran." - Concerns? 'None at all' - In May, Trump -- who has made Iran his public enemy number one -- announced the US withdrawal from what he called a "defective" multinational nuclear deal with Tehran, and moved to reinstate punishing sanctions. For some analysts in Washington, Trump's harsh words were a political smoke screen. "Frustrated by no progress w/NK; angered by negative push back post Helsinki, Trump is looking to vent, act tough, and change channel," said Aaron David Miller, a former US diplomat and Middle East negotiator for several administrations. "If nothing else, Trump's ALL CAPS tirade reflect(s) reality that US has no Iran policy. Empty/ridiculous US rhetoric in response to same from Iran." After speaking with European officials about Trump's warnings, International Crisis Group president Rob Malley said diplomats on the continent were not "really taking it seriously." In Europe, Trump's tirade is seen as a way to distract from controversy over his summit with Putin and special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and a Russian effort to sway the 2016 election. But the president stood by his remarks. Asked by reporters at the White House whether he had concerns about provoking tensions with Iran, Trump said "None at all." - Saber-rattling - While US ties with Iran and North Korea are different on several fronts, the words used by Trump to denigrate Tehran are similar in tone to those he directed last August at North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Several observers noted the similarities between the threats on Iran, and Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign towards Pyongyang. In September 2017, in his first speech to the United National General Assembly, Trump threatened to "totally destroy" North Korea. Nearly a year on, Trump has met Kim -- who he once called "Rocket Man" on a "suicide mission" -- for a landmark summit, and follow-up talks are underway between the two sides. However, concrete progress has been scant so far on denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Democrats have expressed alarm about Trump's Iran bluster. "Reckless Iran rhetoric creates risks -- especially if words are unbacked by actionable strategy," Senator Richard Blumenthal said. Government officials behind Xiongan New Area, the Chinese presidents ambitious plan to transform dusty plains into a dream city, have engaged software company ConsenSys as a consultant on the use of blockchain, in another example of China adopting the technology behind cryptocurrencies despite bans on the digital money itself. ConsenSys will advise the Xiongan government on how to use blockchain and provide software solutions, according to a ConsenSys statement on a memorandum of understanding (MoU) the two sides signed in Beijing on Monday. As one of our first major projects in the Peoples Republic of China, we are excited to help define the many use cases that could benefit from the trust infrastructure enabled by ethereum technology, said ConsenSys founder Joseph Lubin in the statement, who also co-founded ethereum, the worlds dominant blockchain network and second most-valuable cryptocurrency after bitcoin. The agreement with ConsenSys will be the first known case where an overseas company has been brought into the plan in Xiongan to marry blockchain with the citys urban development. Previously the local government has announced partnerships with Chinese tech companies including Tencent, Ant Financial and Qihoo 360 to adopt blockchain in areas from finance to house renting to cybersecurity. Established in October 2014, ConsenSys is focused on building ethereum developer tools, incubating ethereum-based projects, and advising enterprises and governments globally from Dubai to the European Union on how to use blockchain. The company currently has nearly 1,000 employees spread from New York to London to Singapore. China meanwhile has been pushing the adoption of blockchain and in 2016 it was written into the 13th Five-Year Plan, a road map for the countrys development in the five years to 2020. The Xiongan government didn't immediately respond to the South China Morning Post's emailed request for further details about the MoU with ConsenSys. Story continues Chinas local governments ramp up blockchain projects amid cryptocurrency clampdown Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger that creates an online database where all participants can share and store records of transactions, and some popular applications of this technology outside cryptocurrencies include supply chains, accounting and gaming assets. While China is keen on this technology it has cracked down on cryptocurrencies, shutting down all domestic crypto exchanges and banning initial coin offerings, a form of unregulated crowdsourced fundraising. Xiongan, in partnership with a subsidiary of state-owned China Communications Construction Company, has launched a blockchain network for small businesses to raise capital, where business owners and other relevant parties can track project completion and money flow in an efficient and transparent manner. Meanwhile, with the help of Ant Financial, Xiongans blockchain-powered house renting platform is aimed at providing users with accurate information on listings, tenants and landlords that are verified by the government. In April 2017, Chinas top political bodies announced president Xi Jinpings plan to build Xiongan spanning three counties southwest of Beijing to rival two special economic zones created by his predecessors earlier. Billed as a strategy crucial for the millennium to come, the megacity project will redirect up to 6.7 million people and lure as much as 2.4 trillion yuan (US$348 billion) of investment over the next decade, according a 2017 estimate by Morgan Stanley. A year later, the Chinese government published a document laying out overall development goals for Xiongan, which include the use of advanced technologies from blockchain to cognitive computing to turn the economic backwater into an innovation hub. China to stamp out cryptocurrency trading completely with ban on foreign platforms Earlier this month, the Xiongan government sent a seven-member delegation to European countries including the UK and France to gain experience on urban planning, green architecture, and financial technology, and signed agreements with local governments and businesses to help develop Xiongan in those three areas, according to a statement. The full text of the MoU was not published, but according to the ConsenSys statement, the two sides will follow with agreements addressing different aspects of this innovative multi-faceted initiative, and establish Xiongan as a next-generation smart city and a leading blockchain innovation hub. This article Xiongan calls in ConsenSys to bring blockchain technology to Xi Jinpings dream city first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. PM-3A McMurdo Station, Antarctica. Credit: US Army Engineer Research and Development Labs - United States Antarctic Program, Antarctic Photo Library We think of Antarctica as a place to protect. It's "pristine", "remote" and "untouched". (Although a recent discovery reveals it's less isolated from the world than previously thought.) But it wasn't always this way. Between 1961 and 1972 McMurdo Station was home to Antarctica's first and only portable nuclear reactor, known as PM-3A, or "Nukey Poo." The little-known story of Nukey Poo offers a useful lens through which to examine two ways of valuing the far south: as a place to develop, or a place to protect. The story of Nukey Poo By the late 1950s nuclear power was viewed with optimism, as an exciting new solution to both the world's energy and social problems. The Antarctic Treaty was signed in 1959, designating Antarctica as a place for international scientific cooperation. Both the USA and USSR were original signatories, and both were concerned about the possible use of nuclear weapons in the far south. The Antarctic Treaty therefore included freedom of inspection of all facilities, and stipulated "any nuclear explosions in Antarctica and the disposal there of radioactive waste material shall be prohibited". When Nukey Poo was built by the US Navy it was described by Admiral George Dufek as "a dramatic new era in man's conquest of the remotest continent." While the early explorers set out with flags, pitting their bodies against the elements to claim new territory, nuclear technology represented a modern way for man to triumph over the hostile environment. PM-3A was seen as a trailblazer, and if all went well it was planned to be first of many installed in Antarctica. Dufek also envisaged nuclear energy making possible a wide range of human activities in the far south. His imagined version of "Antarctica in the Year 2000" included nuclear-driven greenhouse crop production, geoengineering of the world's weather, and mining ventures that helped broker world peace. While geoengineering in the forms of slowing the melt of glacial ice, solar geoengineering, and marine geoengineering continue to be discussed, mining is prohibited by the 1991 Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty. Contemporary visions of Antarctic futures tend to focus on environmental change and reducing human impacts, rather than enhancing the human presence. Nuclear optimism fades "Nukey Poo" began producing power for the McMurdo station in 1962, and was refuelled for the first time in 1964. A decade later, the optimism around the plant had faded. The 25-man team required to run the plant was expensive, while concerns over possible chloride stress corrosion emerged after the discovery of wet insulation during a routine inspection. Both costs and environmental impacts conspired to close the plant in September 1972. This precipitated a major clean up that saw 12,000 tonnes of contaminated rock removed and shipped back to the USA through nuclear-free New Zealand. The clean up pre-dated Antarctica's modern environmental protection regime by two decades, and required the development of new standards for soil contamination levels. This elaborate process ensured that the US did not violate the Antarctic Treaty by disposing of nuclear waste on the continent. It also foreshadowed a shift in environmental attitudes away from development and use, towards protection; the removal of so much as one pebble from the Antarctic without requisite permits is now prohibited. Today, all that physically remains at the site of the PM-3A reactor is a missing hillside and a plaque. Nuclear power is no longer viewed with the optimism of the 1960s, thanks to disasters such as Chernobyl and Fukushima. The site where Nukey Poo once stood has been designated as a Historic Site and Monument under the Antarctic Treaty System, putting it in the same category as the huts of early explorers such as Mawson and Shackleton. However, a site with a past of nuclear contamination does not sit well within modern narratives of Antarctica as a place to protect, so this episode in the continent's history is not often told. When Admiral Dufek wrote in 1960 "Antarctica will be a fantastic land in the future" he had a very different vision in mind to the Antarctica we see today. Today, the far south is not a place to be improved upon with human innovation, so much as a place to be protected from our influence including climate change. The episode of Nukey Poo reveals the modern association between science and the Antarctic environment has not always been so. In demonstrating how Antarctica went from being seen as territory to conquer to a fragile environment, we are reminded that its protection cannot be taken for granted. Explore further Antarctica tourism regulation urgent for environment: summit This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Four shell ring features identified using the object-based image analysis (OBIA) algorithm. The ring on the top right has been confirmed as a shell ring site. Credit: Carl Lipo Researchers at Binghamton University, State University at New York have used a new image-based analysis technique to identify once-hidden North American mounds, which could reveal valuable information about pre-contact Native Americans. "Across the East Coast of the United States, some of the most visible forms for pre-contact Native American material culture can be found in the form of large earthen and shell mounds," said Binghamton University anthropologist Carl Lipo. "Mounds and shell rings contain valuable information about the way in which past people lived in North America. As habitation sites, they can show us the kinds of foods that were eaten, the way in which the community lived, and how the community interacted with neighbors and their local environments. In areas that are deeply wooded or consist of bayous and swamps, there exist mounds that have eluded more than 150 years of archaeological survey and research. Due to vegetation, these kinds of environments make seeing more than a couple of dozen feet difficult, and even large mounds can be hidden from view, even when one systematically walks on the terrain. The use of satellites and new kinds of aerial sensors such as LiDAR (light detection and ranging) have transformed the way archaeologists can gather data about the archaeological record, said Lipo. Now scientists can study landscapes from images and peer through the forest canopy to look at the ground. LiDAR has been particularly effective at showing the characteristic rises in topography that mark the presence of mounds. The challenge to archaeologists, however, is to manage such a vast array of new data that are available for study. Object based image analysis (OBIA) allows archaeologists to configure a program to automatically detect features of interest. OBIA is a computer-based approach to use data from satellite images and aerial sensors to look for shapes and combinations of features that match objects of interest. Unlike traditional satellite image analyses that looks at combinations of light wavelengths, OBIA adds characteristics of shape to the search algorithm, allowing archaeologists to more easily distinguish cultural from natural phenomena. The team's approach successfully identified ring and mound sites (indicated by arrows) within a stretch of forest that had not been previously surveyed by archaeologists. Credit: Carl Lipo Lipo's team systematically identified over 160 previously undetected mound features using LiDAR data from Beaufort County, S.C., and an OBIA approach. The result improves the overall knowledge of settlement patterns by providing systematic knowledge about past landscapes, said Lipo. "Through the use of OBIA, archaeologists can now repeatedly generate data about the archaeological record and find historic and pre-contact sites over massive areas that would be cost-prohibitive using pedestrian survey. We can now also peer beneath the dense canopy of trees to see things that are otherwise obscured. In areas like coast South Carolina, with large swaths of shallow bays, inlets and bayous that are covered in forest, OBIA offers us our first look at this hidden landscape." Having demonstrated the effectiveness for using OBIA in conditions of dense vegetation and after optimizing our processing, Lipo and his team are expanding their efforts to include much-larger areas. "Fortunately, satellite and LiDAR data are now available for much of the eastern seaboard, so undertaking a large-scale project is now a task that is achievable," said Lipo. "Due to climate change and sea-level rise, many major mounds and middens on the East Coast are threatened by erosion and inundation. It is urgent we document this pre-contact landscape as soon as possible, in order to learn as much as we can about the past before it is gone forever." Two previously identified shell rings on Daws Island, S.C. These features were also picked up by the new approach utilized by Davis, Sanger, and Lipo (2018). Credit: Carl Lipo Explore further Scientists can measure population change through chemicals found in feces More information: Dylan S. Davis et al, Automated mound detection using lidar and object-based image analysis in Beaufort County, South Carolina, Southeastern Archaeology (2018). Dylan S. Davis et al, Automated mound detection using lidar and object-based image analysis in Beaufort County, South Carolina,(2018). DOI: 10.1080/0734578X.2018.1482186 Photo illustration of tree kangaroo and phylogenetic tree. An international team of scientists, supported by sDIV, the Leipzig-Germany based Synthesis Center for Biodiversity Sciences, say preserving phylogenetic diversity among species preserves functional diversity. The team published findings in the July 23, 2018, issue of Nature Communications. Credit: Florent Mazel Conservation biologists recognize a sobering reality. "We're losing species left, right and center," says Utah State University scientist Will Pearse. 'We call it the 'Noah's Ark Problem,' and we have to pick species to save. We can't save them all." The biblical mariner seemed capable of building a vessel to accommodate mating pairs of all the world's creatures. The metaphor, today, however, would portray the harried Noah bailing water and valiantly trying to prioritize saving animals most beneficial for the future, as his boat rapidly sank. Pearse, with colleagues Florent Mazel, Arne Mooers and Caroline Tucker of Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia, Marc Cadotte of the University of Toronto, Sandra Diaz of Argentina's National University of Cordoba, Giulio Valentino Dalla Riva of the University of British Columbia, Richard Grenyer of the University of Oxford, Fabien Leprieur of the University of Montpellier and David Mouillot of James Cook University, explore phylogenetic diversity as a metric of conservation prioritization in the July 23, 2018, issue of Nature Communications. "Our paper tests a fundamental component of conservation biology we refer to as the 'phylogenetic gambit,'" says Pearse, assistant professor in USU's Department of Biology and the USU Ecology Center. "That is, conservation biologists often use species' evolutionary history their phylogeny to identify groups of species to save." This idea is based on the assumption that preserving phylogenetic diversity among species preserves more functional diversity than selecting species to preserve by chance. Functional diversity is important, Pearse says, because it drives ecosystem health and productivity. "Yet measuring the effectiveness of functional diversity is difficult," he says. "So using phylogenetic diversity as a surrogate for functional diversity has made conservation biology much easier and more effective." In global datasets of mammals, birds and tropical fishes, the team demonstrates that, for the most part, the phylogenetic gambit holds. Preserving phylogenetic diversity preserves 18 percent more functional diversity than would be expected if species to save were selected at random. "Worryingly, though, we found in some parts of the world, and in some groups of species, preserving phylogenetic diversity did worse or just the same as random chance," Pearse says. "Luckily, we identified the areas and reasons this was happening, which still makes this selection technique valid and valuable for conservation biologists." The team's efforts, organized through an international working group initiated by Tucker and Mooers, were funded by sDIV, the Synthesis Center for Biodiversity Sciences based in Leipzig, Germany. Explore further Unravelling the costs of rubber agriculture on biodiversity More information: Mazel, Florent and Matthew W. Pennell, Marc Cadotte, Sandra Diaz, Giulio Valentino Dalla Riva, Richard Grenyer, Fabien Leprieur, Arne O. Mooers, David Mouillot, Caroline M. Tucker and William D. Pearse. "Prioritizing phylogenetic diversity does not reliably conserve functional diversity," Nature Communications. 23 July 2018. Journal information: Nature Communications Mazel, Florent and Matthew W. Pennell, Marc Cadotte, Sandra Diaz, Giulio Valentino Dalla Riva, Richard Grenyer, Fabien Leprieur, Arne O. Mooers, David Mouillot, Caroline M. Tucker and William D. Pearse. "Prioritizing phylogenetic diversity does not reliably conserve functional diversity,". 23 July 2018. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-05126-3 The failure of the Samarco dam killed 19 people and unleashed a wave of toxic sludge BHP Monday vowed to fight an Australian class action alleging the mining giant breached its disclosure obligations and engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct over the deadly Samarco dam failure in Brazil. Nineteen people were killed and a tsunami of toxic waste was unleashed when an iron ore tailings dam burst at the mine in the Minas Gerais region in 2015 in one of the country's worst environmental disasters. BHP and Vale, co-owners of Samarco, last month reached an agreement with Brazilian public authorities to settle a 20 billion real (US$5.3 billion) civil suit over the tragedy. The companies also established a framework to progress a second 155 billion real claim brought by Brazilian federal prosecutors in the next two years. The disaster saw BHP's shares plunge and some 3,000 investors have now signed up to participate in a class action, brought by shareholder Vince Impiombato, the law firm representing him Phi Finney McDonald told AFP. "BHP intends to defend the claim," the Anglo-Australian miner said in a brief statement about the class action, which was filed in the Federal Court of Australia in Victoria state in late May. BHP shares were trading 1.03 percent lower to Aus$32.57 in Sydney Monday. The class action's statement of claim alleges there had been problems with the dam in the years before 2015, and there was "significant risk of failure". It also alleged BHP was or ought to have been aware of the risks, and that investors should have been informed. BHP said last week in its annual operational review that the company would record a US$650 million charge for the year to June 30 over the dam collapse. Explore further Brazil prosecutor threatens to torpedo $5 bn dam burst settlement 2018 AFP Will facial recognition software make the world a safer place, as tech firms are claiming, or will it make the marginalized more vulnerable and monitored? Credit: Shutterstock My mother always said I had a face for radio. Thank God, as radio may be the last place in this technology-enhanced world where your face won't determine your social status or potential to commit a crime. RealNetworks, the global leader of a technology that enables the seamless digital delivery of audio and video files across the internet, has just released its latest computer vision: A machine learning software package. The hope is that this new software will detect, and potentially predict, suspicious behaviour through facial recognition. Called SAFR (Secure, Accurate Facial Recognition), the toolset has been marketed as a cost-effective way to smoothly blend into existing CCTV video monitoring systems. It will be able to "detect and match millions of faces in real time," specifically within school environments. Ostensibly, RealNetworks sees its technology as something that can make the world safer. The catchy branding, however, masks the real ethical issues surrounding the deployment of facial detection systems. Some of those issues include questions about the inherent biases embedded within the code and, ultimately, how that captured data is used. The Chinese model Big Brother is watching. No other country in the world has more video surveillance than China. With 170 million CCTV cameras and some 400 million new ones being installed, it is a country that has adopted and deployed facial recognition in an Orwellian fashion. In the near future, its citizens, and those of us who travel there, will be exposed to a vast and integrated network of facial recognition systems monitoring everything from the use of public transportation, to speeding to how much toilet paper one uses in the public toilet. The most disturbing element so far is the recent introduction of facial recognition to monitor school children's behaviour within Chinese public schools. As part of China's full integration of their equally Orwellian social credit system an incentive program that rewards each citizen's commitment to the state's dictated moralsthis fully integrated digital system will automatically identify a person. It can then determine one's ability to progress in societyand by extension that person's immediate family's economic and social status by monitoring the state's non-sanctioned behaviour. In essence, facial recognition is making it impossible for those exposed to have the luxury of having a bad day. Facial recognition systems now being deployed within Chinese schools are monitoring everything from classroom attendance to whether a child is daydreaming or paying attention. It is a full-on monitoring system that determines, to a large extent, a child's future without considering that some qualities, such as abstract thought, can't be easily detected or at best, looked upon favourably, with facial recognition. It also raises some very uncomfortable notions of ethics or the lack thereof, especially towards more vulnerable members of society. Need for public regulation RealNetworks launch of SAFR comes hot on the heels of Microsoft president Brad Smith's impassioned manifesto on the need for public regulation and corporate responsibility in the development and deployment of facial recognition technology. Smith rightly pointed out that facial recognition tools are still somewhat skewed and have "greater error rates for women and people of colour." This problem is twofold, with an acknowledgement that the people who code may unconsciously embed cultural biases. The data sets currently available may lack the objective robustness required to ensure that people's faces aren't being misidentified, or even worse, predetermined through encoded bias as is now beginning to happen in the Chinese school system. In an effort to address this and myriad other related issues, Microsoft established an AI and Ethics in Engineering and Research (AETHER) Committee. This committee is also set up to help them comply with the European Union's newly enforced General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and its eventual future adoption, in some form, in North America. Smith's ardent appeal rightly queries the current and future intended use and deployment of facial recognition systems, yet fails to address how Microsoft or, by extension, other AI technology leaders, can eliminate biases within their base code or data sets from the onset. Minority report The features of our face are hardly more than gestures which force of habit has made permanent.Marcel Proust, 1919 Like many technologies, Pandora has already left the box. If you own a smart phone and use the internet, you have already opted out of any basic notions of personal anonymity within Western society. With GDPR now fully engaged in Europe, visiting a website now requires you to "opt in" to the possibility that that website might be collecting personal data. Facial recognition systems have no means of following GDPR rules, so as such, we as society are automatically "opted-in" and thus completely at the mercy of how our faces are being recorded, processed and stored by governmental, corporate or even privately deployed CCTV systems. Facial recognition trials held in England by the London Metropolitan Police have consistently yielded a 98 per cent failure rate. Similarly, in South West Wales, tests have done only slightly better with less than 10 per cent success. Conversely, University of California, Berkeley, scientists have concluded that substantive facial variation is an evolutionary trait unique to humans. So where is the disconnect? If as Marcel Proust has suggested, our lives and thus our personalities are uniquely identifiable by our faces, why can't facial recognition systems not easily return positive results? The answer goes back to how computer programming is written and the data sets used by that code to return a positive match. Inevitably, code is written to support an idealized notion of facial type. As such, outlying variations like naturally occurring facial deformities or facial features affected by physical or mental trauma represent only a small fraction of the infinite possible facial variations in the world. The data sets assume we are homogeneous doppelgangers of each other, without addressing the micro-variations of peoples faces. If that's the case, we are all subject to the possibility that our faces as interpreted by the ever-increasing deployment of immature facial recognition systems will betray the reality of who we are. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Nocturnal fishes were found to have smaller optic tecta (relative to the rest of the brain) than those that are active during the day, even though their eyes are larger. Credit: TLI Coral reefs buzz with activity around the clock. As the day-active fishes retreat at dusk, the night-active or nocturnal fishes venture out to forage and hunt. Equipped with special traits, these fishes are adapted to lead a life in darkness. So how do the dark surroundings influence the way they see? An international team of scientists led by Dr. Teresa Iglesias and Prof. Evan Economo from Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) set out to investigate this question. They examined how the brains of nocturnal fishes adapt to the low-light conditions they live in. Their findings were recently published in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology. The retina of the eye has on its surface two types of specialized nerve cells: cones and rods. While cones are activated in bright light, rods work better in dim light. The information captured by these cells is transported by nerves to the visual processing centers in the brain and pieced together into coherent images. In most vertebrates, a brain region called the optic tectum processes visual information, explains Prof. Economo. However, "it is unclear how it should change to maximize effectiveness of low-light vision," he adds. To find out, the research team compared the sizes of optic tecta within the brains of fishes that are active during the day and those active at night. More than a hundred fishes from nearly 66 different species were caught from reefs around Hawaii and North Carolina, USA. This catch comprised of 44 day-active species and 16 nocturnal species with a wide range of food habits: some ate other fish, others fed on microscopic plankton, and still others were bottom dwelling scavengers. Once caught, the fishes were photographed and their heads preserved in formalin. Later in the lab, the researchers measured the size of each fish's eye and lens, then scanned the animals' preserved brains using micro CT scanners. Most day-active fishes were found to have larger optic tecta (relative to the rest of the brain) than those that are nocturnal. Credit: TLI Bright environments are rich in visual information such as colors, patterns and textures, and deciphering them requires more complex processing than deciphering poorly-lit environments. Take photographs, for example: the latest camera can capture rich colors and minute details of a person or an object. On the other hand, the black and white photographs from an old family album do not reveal as much. Likewise, optic tectum in the brain must be able to process color, pattern and brightness. The eyes of squirrelfish (Holocentrus rufus), a common nocturnal inhabitant of coral reefs, are almost three times larger than the eyes of day-active fishes of similar body size. Other nocturnal fishes also follow this design pattern. The optic tecta in nocturnal fishes might adapt to darkness by expanding, in order to process the larger volume of information that larger eyes might take in, or it could shrink if the information from low light environments is reduced. Initially, the researchers speculated that retina in such fishes would be loaded with more rods and cones than the day-active fishes, and thus require larger optic tecta to process it. To their surprise, however, they found that the optic tecta of squirrelfish and other nocturnal fishes were smaller than those of day hunters, suggesting that their brains have sacrificed capabilities that are not as useful at night. Since color is not visible in light-deficient environments, these fishes have limited color acuity and limited depth of vision, but instead, they are adept at detecting movement. Nocturnal fish have large eyes as an adaptation to light-deficient environments. Credit: Alex Dornburg The study also suggests that behavioral traits like the ability of some fishes to camouflage can influence the size of the optic tecta. Among the 66 species of fishes that the scientists sampled, the peacock flounder (Bothus mancus) was found to have the largest optic tectum amongst all. Peacock flounders dwell on sandy floors of reefs and are active during the day, though they prefer to hunt at night. Like chameleons, they are masters of camouflage, and can mimic their surroundings to blend in. This trait, according to the scientists, may explain why peacock flounders possess such highly-developed optic tecta. "Their visual centers may be important for adopting the correct camouflage, but they are also important for detecting predator movements in both bright and dim light," says Dr. Iglesias. We still have much to learn about how the environment and behavior of a species can shape the evolution of its brain, the scientists say. However, they believe these findings may help understand how changes in habitat due to human activities, such as light pollution, can interfere with the neuro-sensory capabilities of fishes and other organisms. Fishes that remain cryptic or camouflage with their surroundings have larger optic tecta. Credit: Alex Dornburg Explore further Research shows impact of BMR on brain size in fish More information: Teresa L. Iglesias et al. Eyes Wide Shut: the impact of dim-light vision on neural investment in marine teleosts, Journal of Evolutionary Biology (2018). Journal information: Journal of Evolutionary Biology Teresa L. Iglesias et al. Eyes Wide Shut: the impact of dim-light vision on neural investment in marine teleosts,(2018). DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13299 Rawai beach, where a crocodile has made an unwelcome appearance Thailand is in hot pursuit of a cagey crocodile that has made unwelcome appearances off the beaches of resort island Phuket only to slip through the clutches of local authorities. The evasive reptile was first seen near Rawai beach about a week ago but has resurfaced in multiple locations near the beaches on the Andaman Sea. A group of hunters has joined an expanding team trying to track it down. Thawee Thongcha, the mayor of Karon town on the west coast of Phuket, told AFP Monday they had come very close to success. "We almost caught it when it was seen near the beach in Karon, (we were) metres away but it moved quickly back to the sea," Thawee said. "We do not yet know where it comes from." Thailand's pristine beaches draw millions of tourists a year and Phuket in the southwest is one of the most popular destinations. Thawee said choppy monsoon seas had prevented fishing boats from using nets to capture the creature, which is almost two metres in length. The Siamese crocodile was once ubiquitous across Southeast Asia but is currently listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's red list. Thon Thamrongnawasawat, a marine biologist and lecturer at Kasetsart University, said the presence of a crocodile in Phuket meant it was likely a hybrid saltwater version of the species bred on a farm, and it was not the first such sighting. "Normally the open sea is not a place where a crocodile would live," he said. Crocodile numbers in Thailand and Southeast Asia generally have been decimated by habitat loss, commercial hunting for the skin trade and the capture of live reptiles to stock crocodile farms, according to the IUCN. In Thailand there are just a handful of wild populations in central and western national parks. A French tourist was bitten on the leg by a crocodile inside a Thai national park in January last year when she tried to get close to take a selfie. In 2014 a Thai woman committed suicide by leaping into a pond of crocodiles at a farm popular with tourists on Bangkok's outskirts. Explore further Australian rangers trap big crocodile near tourist gorge 2018 AFP In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses walk to a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and spurring extreme measures to protect them. For what they say is the first time, volunteer groups in Arizona and Colorado are hauling thousands of gallons of water and truckloads of food to remote grazing grounds where springs have run dry and vegetation has disappeared. Federal land managers also have begun emergency roundups in desert areas of Utah and Nevada. "We've never seen it like this," said Simone Netherlands, president of the Arizona-based Salt River Wild Horse Management Group. In May, dozens of horses were found dead on the edge of a dried-up watering hole in northeastern Arizona. As spring turned to summer, drought conditions turned from bad to worse, Netherlands said. Parts of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico are under the most severe category of drought, though extreme conditions are present from California to Missouri, government analysts say. Parts of the region have witnessed some of the driest conditions on record, amid a cycle of high temperatures and low snowmelt that appears to be getting worse, National Weather Service hydrologist Brian McInerney said. In this July 12, 2018 photo, baked earth is shown in a dry watering hole outside Salt Lake City. This now dried up watering hole previously provided water to a herd of wild horses. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer The dry conditions have fed wildfires that have destroyed hundreds of buildings across the West. This month, a firefighter was killed battling a blaze near California's Yosemite National Park. The federal Bureau of Land Managementwhich oversees vast expanses of public land, mostly in the Westsays the problem facing wild horses stems from overpopulation aggravated by severe drought. The region is home to roughly 67,000 wild horses. "You're always going to have drought issues. That's a common thing out on the range," agency spokesman Jason Lutterman said. "What really exacerbates things is when we're already over population, because then you already have resource issues." The agency's emergency roundup in western Utah began a week ago, aiming to remove roughly 250 wild horses from a population of approximately 670. The operation is expected to take several weeks. In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse drinks from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer Once the horses are rounded up, the government gives them veterinary treatment and offers them for sale or adoption. Those that aren't sold or adopted are transferred to privately contracted corrals and pastures for the long term. A similar emergency roundup began this month in central Nevada, where officials said some horses in a herd of 2,100 could die from lack of water in coming weeks. The operation was quickly halted, ironically because of extreme rain, but will likely resume. "The ground's so dry it's not absorbing that water. It's running off," bureau spokeswoman Jenny Lesieutre said. Volunteers are also taking action. In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse shakes off dust near a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer Since late spring, Netherlands's Salt River group has hauled hay to a dozen locations outside Phoenix to feed a herd of starving wild horses. Roughly 200 miles (320 kilometers) north, a couple near Gray Mountain, on the Navajo Nation, have spearheaded an effort to leave water and food for horses they say would die without human intervention. In western Colorado, volunteers say they're preparing to bring up to 5,000 gallons (18,900 liters) of water per day to a herd of 750 desperate horses. "Springs are drying up that have never dried up," said Cindy Wright, co-founder of Colorado conservation group Wild Horse Warriors for Sand Wash Basin. Horses in the area stalk the dry earth with their ribs exposed, desperate for a drop, she said. In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses occupy a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer Wild horse advocates have balked at the Bureau of Land Management's insistence that wild horse populations are too high. Critics say the agency is using dry conditions as a smoke screen to shrink horse populations in response to pressure from ranchers whose livestock compete with the horses for grazing land. "I do have a concern about the larger numbers that they're pulling off, and then a bigger concern about the BLM under this administration using all kinds of excuses to pull off horses," said Suzanne Roy, executive director of the American Wild Horse Campaign, an advocacy organization. The agency is prohibited from euthanizing the wild horses it rounds up, though President Donald Trump has proposed allowing the animals to be killed or sold for slaughter. Activists in Nevada held a rally last Tuesday at the bureau's state headquarters in Reno to protest a planned roundup later this year. In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018, photo, a wild horse jumps among others near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer Critics want the government to instead use birth control to manage wild horse populations. The bureau says the fertility treatment, which must be administered yearly and fired from a dart gun at close range, is too difficult for use except in certain cases where herds are easy to approach and have markings that make horses distinguishable from one another. Whatever the long-term answer, volunteers say their efforts can't go on forever. Trucking in water and food could cost several thousand dollars per month and make horses overly dependent on humans, they said. "If we don't have a very good fall with a lot of rainand it's also warm so that our fall vegetation growswe're going to lose horses," Wright said. In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018 photo, wild horses are held in a temporary pen after being rounded up the night before due to insufficient water to sustain them, near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer In this June 29, 2018 photo shows wild horses graze outside of Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse rolls in the dust after drinking from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse rolls in muddy water after drinking from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018 photo wild horses are held in a temporary pen after being rounded up the night before due to insufficient water to sustain them, in a desert area near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses drink from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer In this Friday, June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses kick up dust as they run at a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and spurring extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer Explore further Judge refuses to delay wild horse roundup 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses occupy a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and spurring extreme measures to protect them. For what they say is the first time, volunteer groups in Arizona and Colorado are hauling thousands of gallons of water and truckloads of food to remote grazing grounds where springs have run dry and vegetation has disappeared. Federal land managers also have begun emergency roundups in desert areas of Utah and Nevada. "We've never seen it like this," said Simone Netherlands, president of the Arizona-based Salt River Wild Horse Management Group. In May, dozens of horses were found dead on the edge of a dried-up watering hole in northeastern Arizona. As spring turned to summer, drought conditions turned from bad to worse, Netherlands said. Parts of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico are under the most severe category of drought, though extreme conditions are present from California to Missouri, government analysts say. Parts of the region have witnessed some of the driest conditions on record, amid a cycle of high temperatures and low snowmelt that appears to be getting worse, National Weather Service hydrologist Brian McInerney said. In this June 29, 2018 photo, wild horses walk to a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) The dry conditions have fed wildfires that have destroyed hundreds of buildings across the West. This month, a firefighter was killed battling a blaze near California's Yosemite National Park. The federal Bureau of Land Managementwhich oversees vast expanses of public land, mostly in the Westsays the problem facing wild horses stems from overpopulation aggravated by severe drought. The region is home to roughly 67,000 wild horses. "You're always going to have drought issues. That's a common thing out on the range," agency spokesman Jason Lutterman said. "What really exacerbates things is when we're already over population, because then you already have resource issues." The agency's emergency roundup in western Utah began a week ago, aiming to remove roughly 250 wild horses from a population of approximately 670. The operation is expected to take several weeks. Once the horses are rounded up, the government gives them veterinary treatment and offers them for sale or adoption. Those that aren't sold or adopted are transferred to privately contracted corrals and pastures for the long term. In this July 12, 2018 photo, baked earth is shown in a dry watering hole outside Salt Lake City. This now dried up watering hole previously provided water to a herd of wild horses. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) A similar emergency roundup began this month in central Nevada, where officials said some horses in a herd of 2,100 could die from lack of water in coming weeks. The operation was quickly halted, ironically because of extreme rain, but will likely resume. "The ground's so dry it's not absorbing that water. It's running off," bureau spokeswoman Jenny Lesieutre said. Volunteers are also taking action. Since late spring, Netherlands's Salt River group has hauled hay to a dozen locations outside Phoenix to feed a herd of starving wild horses. Roughly 200 miles (320 kilometers) north, a couple near Gray Mountain, on the Navajo Nation, have spearheaded an effort to leave water and food for horses they say would die without human intervention. In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse drinks from a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In western Colorado, volunteers say they're preparing to bring up to 5,000 gallons (18,900 liters) of water per day to a herd of 750 thirsty horses. "Springs are drying up that have never dried up," said Cindy Wright, co-founder of Colorado conservation group Wild Horse Warriors for Sand Wash Basin. Areas of the basin are low on food due to livestock grazing, so the group is hauling the water to others parts with more plentiful grass, said Aletha Dove, another group co-founder. Wild horse advocates have balked at the Bureau of Land Management's insistence that wild horse populations are too high. Critics say the agency is using dry conditions as a smoke screen to shrink horse populations in response to pressure from ranchers whose livestock compete with the horses for grazing land. "I do have a concern about the larger numbers that they're pulling off, and then a bigger concern about the BLM under this administration using all kinds of excuses to pull off horses," said Suzanne Roy, executive director of the American Wild Horse Campaign, an advocacy organization. In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse shakes off dust near a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) The agency is prohibited from euthanizing the wild horses it rounds up, though President Donald Trump has proposed allowing the animals to be killed or sold for slaughter. Activists in Nevada held a rally last week at the bureau's state headquarters in Reno to protest a planned roundup later this year. Critics want the government to instead use birth control to manage wild horse populations. The bureau says the fertility treatment, which must be administered yearly and fired from a dart gun at close range, is too difficult for use except in certain cases where herds are easy to approach and have markings that make horses distinguishable from one another. Whatever the long-term answer, volunteers say their efforts can't go on forever. Trucking in water and food could cost several thousand dollars per month and make horses overly dependent on humans, they said. "If we don't have a very good fall with a lot of rainand it's also warm so that our fall vegetation growswe're going to lose horses," Wright said. In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018, photo, a wild horse jumps among others near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this Wednesday, July 18, 2018 photo, wild horses are held in a temporary pen after being rounded up the night before due to insufficient water to sustain them, near Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) In this June 29, 2018 photo shows wild horses graze outside of Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. Federal land managers have begun emergency roundups in the deserts of western Utah and central Nevada. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Explore further Drought forces emergency measures for US West's wild horses 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The rose petals grown in Nangarhar province are turned into rose water and oils for sale around the world Standing in a field of roses in eastern Afghanistan, former poppy grower Mohammad Din Sapai quickly but carefully plucks the delicate petals that will be turned into rose water and oils for sale around the world. The sweet smelling crop is providing farmers in Nangarhar province with a viable alternative to growing opium poppies, the sale of which has fuelled the conflict raging across the country. "I am very happy with this harvest of flowers," Sapai tells AFP as he stands among hundreds of blooming rose bushes. Sapai is one of more than 800 farmers in the province bordering Pakistan benefiting from the "Roses for Nangarhar" project, a joint Afghan-German initiative set up in 2007 to encourage poppy growers to switch to a legal, money-making flower. "They provided us with the plants, the tools and even paid us for the first year when we had no harvest," Sapai, 50, explains. "Now I have 600 plants and I collect up to 1,200 kilos (2,650 pounds) of petals." Opium is big business in Afghanistan, where Nangarhar is the sixth biggest poppy-producing province. Poppy cultivation hit a new record last year, with opium production soaring 87 percent to an estimated 9,000 tonnes, official figures show. But Sapai says he is perfectly happy to grow roses. Roses are providing farmers in Nangarhar province with a viable alternative to growing opium poppies, the sale of which has fuelled the conflict raging across the country He makes enough money to support his family, and insists roses have fewer costs and take less effort. After the rose season, which ends in May, he switches to growing vegetables. 'Better than poppies' Starting at dawn and working until late morning when the heat sets in, Sapai and his workers appear resigned to the constant dangers lurking around them as they quickly pick off petals and drop them into large bags. Nangarhar is rife with fighters belonging to the Islamic State group (IS), which emerged in Afghanistan by the end of 2014 and quickly turned the province into a stronghold. The Taliban also roam the area, and bombs planted along the roads leading to rose fields are a constant threat. In nearby Omar Qala village, teacher and rose-grower Shah Zaman is also convinced about the benefits of harvesting petals instead of poppies. "The people here used to cultivate poppies but this is haram (forbidden under Islamic law)," Zaman tells AFP. Starting at dawn and working until late morning when the heat sets in, the Afghan workers appear resigned to the constant dangers lurking around them as they quickly pick off petals and drop them into large bags He expects to harvest one tonne of petals this year. "The roses are much better... I make good money from roses. They are resistant and don't require as much expense or work." Khan Agha, a representative for Afghan Rose Ltd in Dara-e-Noor district, which emerged out of the Afghan-German initiative, agrees. Roses "do not require watering, fertiliser or care"unlike poppies, he says. Rose trees are also more durable, lasting 30 to 50 years, compared with poppies, which must be planted every season. "We have solid contracts with the farmers who grow roses asking them to stop cultivating poppy and other types of narcotics, and the places where we grow roses are clean from poppy 100 percent," he adds. The farmers grow a variety known as Damask roses, which were brought from Bulgaria by the Germans but are endemic to Afghanistan, says Mohammad Akbar Mohmand, the owner of Afghan Rose Ltd. The farmers grow a variety known as Damask roses, which were brought from Bulgaria by the Germans but are endemic to Afghanistan The petals are distilled in the provincial capital Jalalabad. It takes about six tonnes of petals on average to extract one litre of essential oil. At peak harvest time, Mohmand's distillery employs more than 120 people. From dawn until late morning, trucks flow from districts across the province delivering their precious cargo. Once picked, rose petals begin to wilt within hours and lose their scent. "The roses picked in the morning have to be distilled the very same day, even if we have to work until 2 am or 3 am," explains Mohmand, as bags of petals are poured into seven huge stainless steel vats. 'Make perfume, not war' Shortly before the "Roses for Nangarhar" project started, Afghan entrepreneur Abdullah Orzala began growing roses and distributing the plants. The US-trained engineer recently opened a boutique in Kabul selling rose water and perfumes to middle-class Afghans and foreigners. Once picked, rose petals begin to wilt within hours and lose their scent. Roses picked in the morning have to be distilled the very same day He has 100 hectares (250 acres) of roses, but hopes to triple the number of plants next year "if the security (situation) allows". Like Mohmand, Orzala never stops worrying about the constant threat of violence. In 2016, 50 farmers working for him packed up and abandoned their crops in Achin district after it became an IS stronghold. "You can deal with the Taliban, but you can't mess with Daesh," he says, using the Arabic name for IS. Two years later, his farmers remain displaced further north. Afghan Rose Ltd also closed the Achin distillery and retreated to Jalalabad. Its rose oil now supplies several European companies, including German organic cosmetics brand Dr. Hauschkawhose products are priced well out of reach of ordinary Afghans. "They make very expensive creams with our roses," says Mohmand. Afghan rose oil is used by several European companies, including German organic cosmetics brand Dr. Hauschkawhose products are priced well out of reach of ordinary Afghans Orzala exports its rose oil to Canadian company The 7 Virtues, which also sources essential oils from Haiti, the Middle East and Rwanda under the slogan "Make perfume, not war". It is a message that has more than a whiff of support among Nangarhar farmers. Explore further Researchers unlock thorny secrets of rose DNA 2018 AFP Credit: Interstellar Technologies Inc. Japanese startup Interstellar Technologies Inc. (IST) continues the development of its launch vehicle amid the recent failure of the MOMO-2 rocket that exploded shortly after liftoff. The company is investigating the exact cause of the June 30 failure, when the 33-feet tall MOMO-2 lifted off from a test site in the town of Taiki on Japan's island of Hokkaido, but seconds after the launch, it lost thrust and crashed to the ground. Initial reports say that most likely some problems with the engine and hot-gas thruster triggered the mishap. "The cause of the MOMO-2 failure is still under investigation. However, we assume that its engine and hot-gas thruster for the roll control are responsible," Takahiro Inagawa, IST's CEO, told Astrowatch.net. Although MOMO-2's flight lasted just couple of seconds, the data collected during this short period of time could be essential for further development of the company's launch vehicle. "We have collected enough telemetry from the vehicle. Especially, the sensor data related to the engine will be helpful for further improvement. In addition, the high speed camera video shot at the launch site is important," Inagawa noted. MOMO-2 rocket launch was IST's second test mission that ended in failure. The first rocket developed by the startup, MOMO-1, was launched in July of 2017 but communications with it were lost about a minute after it had blasted off. The launch vehicle reached an altitude of about 12 miles (20 kilometers) and splashed down into the Pacific Ocean. High-definition multi-cam video of the MOMO-2 launch. Credit: IST IST is also working toward its next mission in its launch manifest MOMO-3. However, although the exact date of the launch has not been disclosed yet, Inagawa revealed that MOMO-3's flight should be expected within months from now. "We will begin the next launch as soon as we are ready. We were able to launch MOMO-2 within less than a year after MOMO-1. The launch interval of MOMO-3 and MOMO-2 will be shorter," Inagawa said. IST is the first and only active Japanese company to launch a privately developed space rocket. The startup's ultimate goal is to change the economics of space launch services, making it more economic to existing customers and accessible to entirely new markets. The company plans to become the first Japanese company to send a rocket to space. Explore further Rocket developed by Japan startup in flames after liftoff Provided by Astrowatch.net Maintaining current hunting regulations for ruffed grouse will help ensure sustainable population management in the state, according to a new University of Maine study. Ruffed grouse live in Maine's forests year-round and are popular quarry among hunters, including a substantial number of non-resident hunters who travel to Maine to pursue the birds each year. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW) sets hunting regulations for ruffed grouse during a season that is held from October through December. The study was led by graduate student Samantha Davis, and was conducted in collaboration with MDIFW biologists. It is the first such study to compile state-specific population information for ruffed grouse, including survival and harvest rates. The researchers tracked 248 radio-marked ruffed grouse in two areas in central Maine between 2014 and 2016, and used these data to analyze how survival rates of ruffed grouse differed among age- and sex-classes and throughout the year. The team also evaluated the rate of ruffed grouse harvest by hunters during the three-month hunting season. In Maine, ruffed grouse are relatively abundant and appear to have stable populations, compared with other regions of the United States where habitat loss and forest succession are often implicated in population declines. However, there have been local concerns in Maine about the length of the hunting season for ruffed grouse, especially during December when late-season hunting may overlap with the birds' natural transition from ground foraging to budding in trees during the winter as a survival strategy. Understanding how timing of harvest related to survival during the bird's annual cycle was a primary goal of the research. The analysis revealed that survival was the lowest during October, at the beginning of the hunting season, and this was primarily due to harvest. In contrast, hunter harvest during November and December was much lower. Substantial mortality unrelated to harvest occurred during the winter months after the hunting season ended. Other factors, including migration of raptors (a predator of grouse), weather and snow conditions likely contributed to these seasonally changing patterns in survival. The researchers concluded that late-season harvest of ruffed grouse was not excessive, and recommend maintaining the current hunting season and using additional monitoring to evaluate population responses to any future changes in harvest rates. "Our results are comparable to other range-wide studies and suggest that current hunting regulations for ruffed grouse in Maine are consistent with sustainable population management," according to the researchers, whose findings were published in the Journal of Wildlife Management. Explore further A glimmer of hope for health of moose in northern US More information: Samantha R. B. Davis et al. Survival and harvest of ruffed grouse in central Maine, USA, The Journal of Wildlife Management (2018). DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.21483 , Journal information: Journal of Wildlife Management Samantha R. B. Davis et al. Survival and harvest of ruffed grouse in central Maine, USA,(2018). DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.21483 , onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jwmg.21483 Credit: CC0 Public Domain The provision of managerial support and help for employees with depression is linked to lower rates of workplace absenteeism, finds an international survey study of practice in 15 countries in different regions of the world, published in the online journal BMJ Open. The findings bolster the case for active workplace policies on mental health, say the researchers. Many people experience depression at some point during their working lives, but mental health issues are still stigmatised. As a result, those affected often don't disclose their problem or seek help for fear of repercussions, say the researchers. To find out if the attitude of managers to mental health issues might be associated with workplace absenteeism rates and productivity, the researchers drew on an international audit (Global IDEA) of more than 16,000 employees and their managers in 15 countries with varying levels of income (GDP) and cultural norms. These countries were: Brazil; Canada; China; Denmark; France, Germany; Great Britain; Italy; Japan; Mexico; Spain; South Africa; South Korea; Turkey; and the USA. Background information was obtained from the employees, including age, gender, educational attainment, and size of the employing company. Each of them was asked whether they had ever been formally diagnosed with depression, and if so, how many working days they had taken off, as a result. The managers were asked if they actively offered help and support to employees with depression or whether they avoided talking about the issue with the employee. Response rates varied by country, ranging from around 5 per cent in China to 39 per cent in France. Completed questionnaires were returned by around 1000 respondents from each country, of which around 10 percent were from managers. In all, nearly 3000 respondents said they were/had been depressed. Nearly three out of four (72.6%) of all the sample worked full time and nearly half (45%) worked in small sized companies (1-50 employees). Analysis of the responses showed that in general, managers in Asian countries tended to avoid employees with depression and were less likely to offer active support than were managers in other regions of the world. Managers in Japan and South Korea were the least likely to offer help to their employees, while those in Mexico and South Africa were the most likely to do so. And managers in South Korea and China were the most likely to avoid talking about depression with employees, while managers in Denmark, Canada, and Great Britain were the least likely to do so. Living in a country with a higher proportion of managers who deployed avoidance tactics was associated with taking more days off work for depression, as was residence in a country with a higher GDP. Similarly, living in a country with a greater proportion of managers actively offering help and support to employees with depression was associated with more days at work (presenteeism). Analysis of the individual factors associated with absenteeism and presenteeism revealed that people who were more highly educated took more time off for depression than their less well educated peers, while those working for larger companies took fewer days off work than those working for smaller ones. Older (45-64 year old) men with medium to low levels of educational attainment were more likely to come into work than their younger peers, as were employees living in higher income countries. This is an observational study so cannot establish cause, added to which response rates were relatively low, and it was impossible to glean information on workplace mental health policies or the severity of symptoms. Nevertheless, the researchers conclude that their findings "suggest that manager reactions to employees with depression can reflect broad cultural and organisational features that directly relate to employee productivity." They continue: "This strengthens the economic case for supporting the development and implementation of effective policies and practices for managers to be able to actively support an employee with depression." They add: "The business case for intervention through better managerial response is exemplified by the substantial costs associated with mental health problems and evidence from a number of studies that mental health can improve through workplace programmes, with economic benefits to employers." Explore further Health experts report US$246 billion cost of workplace depression across eight countries More information: Is manager support related to workplace productivity for people with depression? A secondary analysis of a cross-sectional survey from 15 countries, BMJ Open (2018). Journal information: BMJ Open Is manager support related to workplace productivity for people with depression? A secondary analysis of a cross-sectional survey from 15 countries,(2018). DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-021795 NASA's Terra satellite caught this visible light image of Tropical Storm Son-Tinh lingering over Hainan Island, China on July 23. Credit: NASA/NRL NASA's Terra satellite found Tropical Storm Son-Tinh continuing to drop rain over Hainan Island and mainland China. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument aboard NASA's Aqua satellite caught a visible light image of Tropical Storm Son-Tinh on July 23. The MODIS image showed an elongated storm with strongest storms being pushed east of the low-level center because of vertical wind shear. There is also a weak banding of thunderstorms wrapping from the northern quadrant into the eastern quadrant of the storm. At 11 a.m. EDT (1500 UTC) the Joint Typhoon Warning Center or JTWC noted that Tropical Son-Tinh had maximum sustained winds near 35 knots (40 mph/62 kph). It was located near 21.0 degrees north latitude and 109.9 degrees east longitude, about 230 nautical miles east of Hanoi, Vietnam. The center of the storm is actually located over land on the Leizhou Peninsula, China, just north of Hainan Island. Son-Tinh has tracked northward at 4 knots (4.6 mph/7.4 kph). The JTWC noted that the system has begun to recurve northward and appears to have entered a quasi-stationary state. The JTWC forecast calls for the storm to move north further into mainland China and dissipate by July 25 Explore further Suomi NPP satellite sees compact storm Son-Tinh Headed for Vietnam Proton aurora at Mars. First, a solar wind proton approaches Mars at high speed and encounters a cloud of hydrogen surrounding the planet. The proton steals an electron from a Martian hydrogen atom, thereby becoming a neutral atom. The atom passes through the bowshock, a magnetic obstacle surrounding Mars, because neutral particles are not affected by magnetic fields. Finally, the hydrogen atom enters Mars' atmosphere and collides with gas molecules, causing the atom to emit ultraviolet light. Credit: NASA/MAVEN/Goddard Space Flight Center/Dan Gallagher Auroras appear on Earth as ghostly displays of colorful light in the night sky, usually near the poles. Our rocky neighbor Mars has auroras too, and NASA's MAVEN spacecraft just found a new type of Martian aurora that occurs over much of the day side of the Red Planet, where auroras are very hard to see. Auroras flare up when energetic particles plunge into a planet's atmosphere, bombarding gases and making them glow. While electrons generally cause this natural phenomenon, sometime protons can elicit the same response, although it's more rare. Now, the MAVEN team has learned that protons were doing at Mars the same thing as electrons usually do at Earthcreate aurora. This is especially true when the Sun ejects a particularly strong pulse of protons, which are hydrogen atoms stripped of their lone electrons by intense heat. The Sun ejects protons at speeds up to two million miles per hour (more than 3 million kilometers per hour) in an erratic flow called the solar wind. The MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission) team was studying Mars' atmosphere with the Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph (IUVS), and observed that on occasion, the ultraviolet light coming from hydrogen gas in Mars' upper atmosphere would mysteriously brighten for a few hours. They then noticed that the brightening events occurred when another MAVEN instrument, the Solar Wind Ion Analyzer (SWIA), measured enhanced solar wind protons. MAVEN observations of a proton aurora. In the top panel, natural variability of the solar wind results in occasional dense flows of solar wind protons bombarding Mars. At bottom, observations by MAVEN's Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph show increased ultraviolet emission from the atmosphere when the solar wind is enhanced. Credit: NASA/MAVEN/University of Colorado/LASP/Anil Rao But two puzzles make this type of aurora seem impossible at first glance: how did these protons get past the planet's "bow shock," a magnetic obstacle which normally diverts the solar wind's charged particles around the planet? And how could the protons give off light, since atoms need electrons to do so? "The answer was thievery," said Justin Deighan, of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder, lead author of a paper on this research appearing July 23 in Nature Astronomy. "As they approach Mars, the protons coming in with the solar wind transform into neutral atoms by stealing electrons from the outer edge of the huge cloud of hydrogen surrounding the planet. The bow shock can only divert charged particles, so these neutral atoms continue right on through." When those high-speed incoming atoms hit the atmosphere, some of their energy was emitted as ultraviolet light, which is invisible to the human eye but detectable to instruments like the IUVS on MAVEN. In fact, one incoming atom can collide with molecules in the atmosphere hundreds of times before it slows down, giving off a slew of ultraviolet photons. "The Martian proton auroras are more than a light show," said Jasper Halekas of the University of Iowa, responsible for the SWIA instrument. "They reveal that the solar wind is not completely diverted around Mars, by showing how solar wind protons can sneak past the bow shock and impact the atmosphere, depositing energy and even enhancing the hydrogen content there." Proton auroras do occur at Earth, but not as often as at Mars. One key difference is Earth's strong magnetic field, which diverts the solar wind away from Earth to a much greater degree than at Mars. On Earth, proton auroras only occur in very small regions near the poles, whereas at Mars they can happen everywhere. However, proton auroras could be common on Venus and on Saturn's moon Titan. Like Mars, these two worlds lack their own magnetic fields, and have lots of hydrogen in their upper atmosphereswith plenty of electrons to share. Looking further, it's likely that many planets orbiting other stars have the same favorable conditions, and would be likely to have proton auroras too. Explore further Does the red planet have green auroras? More information: J. Deighan et al, Discovery of a proton aurora at Mars, Nature Astronomy (2018). Journal information: Nature Astronomy J. Deighan et al, Discovery of a proton aurora at Mars,(2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41550-018-0538-5 New York Daily News staff photographers Todd Maisel, left, and Andrew Savulich walk out of the newspaper's office after being laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) The New York tabloid Daily News cut half of its newsroom staff Monday including Jim Rich, the paper's editor in chief. The paper was sold to Tronc Inc. last year for $1, with the owner of the Chicago Tribune assuming liabilities and debt. In an email sent to staff Monday, Tronc said the remaining staff at the Daily News will focus on breaking news involving "crime, civil justice and public responsibility." The newspaper has been a key fixture in New York City for the last century. It has won 11 Pulitzer Prizes, including last year for its work with ProPublica on the abuse of eviction rules in New York City. There had been reports that the cuts were coming, and an early-morning tweet from Rich hinted at what was to come. "If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you," Rich wrote. New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo urged Tronc to reconsider the layoffs, saying they were made without notifying the state or asking for assistance. "I urge Tronc to reconsider this drastic move and stand ready to work with them to avert this disaster," Cuomo said in a printed statement. "I understand that large corporations often only see profit and dividends as a bottom line. But in New York, we also calculate loss of an important institution, loss of jobs, and the impact on the families affected. I hope Tronc does the same and recalculates its decision. New York State stands ready to help." New York Daily News photo assignment editor Reggie Lewis, left, and an unidentified coworker leave the newspaper's office after they were both laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) Revenue and print circulation have been sliding at the newspaper for years, even as it provided critical coverage of health issues in public housing and for first responders after the Sept. 11 attacks. Revenue slid 22 percent between 2014 and 2016, and the paper had already been letting people go. Tronc declined to say how many journalists lost their jobs Monday. "Since the year began, we've worked hard to transform the New York Daily News into a truly digitally-focused enterprise - one that creates meaningful journalism, delivers it more quickly and more frequently, and develops new approaches to engage our readers," Tronc said in an email that was sent to the newsroom. "We've gained a deeper understanding of our readership. We've redefined our structures. But we have not gone far enough." Managing Editor Kristen Lee was also ousted. Robert York, editor of Tronc-owned The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania, will take over as editor of the Daily News. New York Daily News staff photographers Todd Maisel, left, and Andrew Savulich walk out of the daily newspaper's office after being laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) "The reporters at the Daily News are some of the very best in the business. I am heartbroken for them today, and for New York," said New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood. "We need strong local newspapers to hold those in power to account." Tronc owns the Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, the Orlando Sentinel, and other media operations. It has clashed with the leadership of other newspapers it has acquired during heavy staff cuts, including the Los Angeles Times. The paper last month was returned to local ownership after nearly two decades of control by the company that is now known as Tronc. The Times once had more than 1,200 journalists and more than 25 foreign bureaus. Now it employs about 400 journalists with bureaus in Sacramento, Washington and a handful of foreign and national outposts. Shares of Tronc Inc., down about 8 percent this year, rose slightly in afternoon trading on the Nasdaq. Copies of the New York Daily News are for sale at a news stand in New York, Monday, July 23, 2018, after the paper told employees that the newspaper is reducing its editorial staff by 50 percent. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) New York Daily News staff photographer Todd Maisel takes a phone call outside the daily newspaper's office after being laid off, Monday, July 23, 2018, in New York. The tabloid will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it wants to focus more on digital news. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) Explore further Biotech billionaire takes over at Los Angeles Times, new editor named 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. Coralline algae have a hard skeleton and are often pink, red, purple, yellow or gray-green. Credit: Sophie McCoy Colorful, hardened algae that dot the ocean floor from Alaska to Mexico often set the tone for which plant and invertebrate species inhabit a given ecological community. But as rising temperatures change the chemistry of ocean waters, a Florida State University researcher said these almost rock-like organisms called coralline algae are changing too. That could mean a great shift to the overall ecosystem. "They are almost the canary in the coal mine," said Assistant Professor of Biological Science Sophie McCoy. "Their interactions with other species make them more valuable than people give them credit." McCoy's research is published in the journal Global Change Biology. Coralline algae have a hard skeleton and are often pink, red, purple, yellow, or gray-green. Most people wading in the sea barely notice the algae, but they release chemical cues that tell invertebrates or plant species whether the environment is hospitable. If the algae alter in some way or even disappear, the cues for a given ecological community would change in turn. McCoy's study examined how ocean acidification affects three common types of coralline algae found in the waters off of Tatoosh Island in Washington. With rising global temperatures and more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, ocean waters have become more acidic. Though all three types of algae are growing at the same rate they have in the past, there are some significant changes. Of the three types of algae, onePseudolithophyllum whidbeyenseshowed extensive changes over the past few decades as the sea water acidified. Its skeleton had more magnesium in it than calcium carbonate, meaning it was significantly weaker. The weaker the skeleton, the more likely it is to dissolve or be eaten by snails. The other two types of algae were able to maintain their skeletal integrity, but were slightly smaller in size than samples from past decades. Historical samples from 1980-2010 were almost uniform in size and skeletal integrity, McCoy said. "What we're seeing is how individual types react in different ways when stressed," McCoy said. "That is something to consider in the climate change research overallsome species of plants and animals may go away and others could flourish." McCoy will now turn her attention to the relationship between the coralline algae and snails or other grazers to see if the grazers are experiencing changes in behavior or physical changes to their teeth and bite wounds. Explore further Rising CO2 levels alter species interactions 10 million-year-old frog from Libros, Spain, showing dark internal melanosomes in the chest cavity and legs. Credit: Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, Spain A team of palaeontologists, led by University College Cork (UCC) and including the University of Bristol, have discovered new sources of the pigment melanin, calling for a rethink of how scientists reconstruct the colour of fossil birds, reptiles and dinosaurs. Many recent studies of fossil colour have assumed that fossilized granules of melanin melanosomes come from the skin. But new evidence shows that other tissues such as the liver, lungs, and spleen can also contain melanosomes, suggesting that fossil melanosomes may not provide information on fossil colour. The study, published today in the journal Nature Communications, is led by UCC's Dr. Maria McNamara in collaboration with her Ph.D. student Valentina Rossi, Dr. Paddy Orr from University College Dublin and an international team of palaeontologists from the UK and Japan. The team studied internal tissues in modern frogs with powerful microscopes and chemical techniques to show that internal melanosomes are highly abundant. Dr. McNamara said: "This means that these internal melanosomes could make up the majority of the melanosomes preserved in some fossils." The team also used decay experiments and analysed fossils to show that the internal melanosomes can leak into other body parts during the fossilization processlike snowflakes inside a snow globe, according to Dr. Orr. There is a way, however, to tell the difference between melanosomes from internal organs and the skin. Dr. McNamara added: "The size and shape of skin melanosomes is usually distinct from those in internal organs. "This will allow us to produce more accurate reconstructions of the original colours of ancient vertebrates." More information: Maria E. McNamara et al. Non-integumentary melanosomes can bias reconstructions of the colours of fossil vertebrates, Nature Communications (2018). Journal information: Nature Communications Maria E. McNamara et al. Non-integumentary melanosomes can bias reconstructions of the colours of fossil vertebrates,(2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-05148-x Bliss Faculty Scholar and Professor of Bioengineering Sergei Maslov, Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois Credit: L. Brian Stauffer A mathematical model created by University of Illinois researchers could help scientists better understand an intriguing characteristic of microbial communities: their ability to achieve stability despite being so diverse. Microbial communities are groups of microorganisms that exist in a variety of environmentsin the soil, in the oceans, and in our bodies. Though these communities are complex and diverse, they are able to form stable ecosystems. Stability can be defined as how well the community handles change. Stable communities are able to resist a change in the nutrient supply or an invasion of a new species. Less stable communities are prone to change in the face of these disruptions. Sergei Maslov, a Bliss Faculty Scholar, professor of bioengineering, and a faculty member in the Biocomplexity theme at the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, and Akshit Goyal, a visiting scholar from the Simons Centre for the Study of Living Machines at NCBS, in Bengaluru, India, have previously collaborated on a predictive model to measure microbial community stability based on an economic concept called the "stable marriage problem" as published in The ISME Journal. They recently created a mathematical model to further understand how microbial communities function and maintain stability. "You have hundredsif not thousandsof species coexisting in the same small volume," Maslov said. "It's almost like a rainforest in miniature." Their study, published in Physical Review Letters, was recognized as an editor's choice in the journal and accompanied by a popular APS Focus article. Their work addresses three signature aspects of microbial communities. The first is diversity, the amount of species that coexist in the community. The second is stability, and the third is reproducibility, which is how often a particular species will be present in a community. Maslov again compares this aspect to a rainforest. A rainforest in South America and a rainforest in Africa might appear similar, but they each contain different species. It makes sense for this to be the caseit's unlikely for a native species of Africa to migrate to South America. "In microbial communities, we cannot make this argument," Maslov said. "All the microbes, pretty frequently, are transported from one place to another, and yet you can have different sets of species in nearby patches of soil." Their model considered this to try to understand which species are always universally shared in microbial communities, and which species are unique. They found that a key ingredient in their model was a process known as cross-feeding. Microbes consume nutrients and then excrete metabolic byproducts, which return to the shared space of the microbial community and are consumed by other microbes. "What we see in our model is the emergence of multiple levels of consumption of a nutrient," Maslov said. "Some microbes are at the top level, where they can directly access the externally provided nutrient. Some other microbes specialize in whatever is a waste product of this first microbe, and so on." Maslov and Goyal wanted to see how many levels of consumption could coexist in a community, and found that it depends on how fast microbes growslow growth promotes higher diversity and a greater number of levels. Another important factor in the community's ability to function is the maturity of the ecosystem. Mature ecosystems contain more species, and these species are more efficient in utilizing their resources. They used their model to characterize how much time is needed in order to describe a community as a mature ecosystem. "We are trying to understand what makes particular states stable, and how many such stable states are out there," Maslov said. "What is the range of perturbations that a state can tolerate before changing it to something else or collapsing together?" This work has implications for larger ecosystems throughout the world. "Obviously we want to understand stability from the standpoint that we are perturbing the environment in an unprecedented way," Maslov said. "We want to understand how far we can push before everything collapses." If scientists can understand this better, they can one day learn how to control microbial ecosystems. For example, a soil microbiome could perhaps be changed to a different state by adding microbes or nutrients. Because the systems are so complex and diverse, this is currently impossible to achieve. "That's why our holy grail, in this and future work, is to be able to predictably and reliably control the transitions of the ecosystem from the state it is in to the state we want it to be," Maslov said. "We want to be able to do it without actually having some collapse." Explore further A mathematical model to explain the paradox of plankton More information: Akshit Goyal et al, Multiple stable states in microbial communities explained by the stable marriage problem, The ISME Journal (2018). Journal information: ISME Journal , Physical Review Letters Akshit Goyal et al, Multiple stable states in microbial communities explained by the stable marriage problem,(2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41396-018-0222-x Provided by Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Scanning electron microscope micrograph of a semiconductor nanowire, made from Indium Arsenide, connected electrically to a superconductor and a normal metal. The location on the nanowire of the two spins - the microscopic magnets - are illustrated by the arrows. In this case the microscopic magnets are created by electron spins. Credit: Niels Bohr Institute Scientists from the Niels Bohr Institute at the University of Copenhagen have, for the first time, succeeded in producing, controlling and understanding complex quantum states based on two electron spins connected to a superconductor. The result has been published in Nature Communications, and has come about in a collaboration between the scientists of the Niels Bohr Institute, a scientist from abroad and last, but not least, a Master's thesis student. Quantum technology is based on understanding and controlling quantum states in e.g. nanoelectronic devices with components at the nanoscale. The control could be via electrical signals, like in the components of a computer. The devices are just significantly more complex, when we are dealing with quantum components at nanoscale, and the scientists are still examining and attempting to understand the phenomena that arise on this tiny scale. In this case it is about the quantum states in nanoelectronic devices made from semiconductor nanowires and superconducting material. This requires understanding two fundamental phenomena in modern physics, magnetism and superconductivity. Accumulating new knowledge is like playing with building blocks The scientists have defined microscopic magnets electrically along a semiconductor nanowire. This is done by placing an electron spin close to a superconductor and then observing how it changes the quantum states. By placing two microscopic magnets rather than one, as has been done before, the possibilities for observing new quantum states arise. In this way the scientists accumulate knowledge by adding more and more complexity to the systems. "It is a bit like playing with building blocks. Initially we control one single electron spin, then we expand to two, we can modify the coupling between them, tune the magnetic properties etc. Somewhat like building a house with each additional brick increasing our knowledge of these quantum states.", says Kasper Grove-Rasmussen, who has been in charge of the experimental part of the work. 3-D model of the Yu-Shiba-Rusinov device. Two electron spins are defined along the nanowire, by placing appropriate voltages on the tiny electrodes under the nanowire. By coupling the spins to the superconductor Yu-Shiba-Rusinov states can be realized. Observation of these states are achieved by analyzing the current through the device from the normal metal to the superconductor. Credit: Niels Bohr Institute Quantum theory from 1960 revitalized in nano devices It is all about categorizing the different quantum states and their relations to one another, in order to achieve an overview of how the individual parts interact. During the 1960s, the theoretical foundation for this work was done, as three physicists, L. Yu, H. Shiba and A.I. Rusinov published three independent theoretical works on how magnetic impurities on the surface of the superconductor can cause new types of quantum states. The states, now achieved experimentally by the scientists at the Niels Bohr Institute, are named after the physicists: Yu-Shiba-Rusinov states. But they are significantly more complex than the Yu-Shiba-Rusinov states with a single spin previously achieved. This could be a step on the way to more complex structures that would enhance our understanding of potential quantum computer components, based on semiconductor-superconductor materials. Kasper Grove-Rasmussen emphasizes that what they are doing now is basic research. Gorm Steffensen, now a Ph.D. student at the Niels Bohr Institute, was writing his Master's thesis at the time of the article, and has played an important role for the result. He was studying theoretical physics and has collaborated with his supervisor, Jens Paaske, on describing the quantum phenomena theoretically. So the article also demonstrates that collaboration on a scientific result at the Niels Bohr Institute can include the students. The task for Gorm Steffensen was to develop a theoretical model that encompassed all the phenomena in the experiments in collaboration with his supervisor and the Slovenian scientist, Rok Zitko, on. The nanowires in the experiment were developed by Ph.D. students in the research group of Professor Jesper Nygaard. It is a common modus operandi for scientists at the Niels Bohr Institute to work together, applying many different competences across all scientific levels, from student to professor. Explore further Theoretical quantum spin liquid prepared for the first time More information: K. Grove-Rasmussen et al. YuShibaRusinov screening of spins in double quantum dots, Nature Communications (2018). Journal information: Nature Communications K. Grove-Rasmussen et al. YuShibaRusinov screening of spins in double quantum dots,(2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-04683-x Dozens of forest fires are still raging, and the risk of more is 'extreme', authorities say Sweden is facing an "extreme" risk of more wildfires in coming days because of hot and dry weather, authorities warned Monday, as dozens of fires raged across the Scandinavian country. The civil protection agency MSB counted 27 active fires across Sweden on Monday, half the previous day's number. At least four of the fires had not been brought under control, MSB said, and weather conditions were stacked against firefighters. Sweden is experiencing an unprecedented drought and soaring temperatures which have reached the highest in a century. "The risk is extreme" in the southern part of Sweden, where temperatures were expected to reach 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) in coming days, with no rain likely, MSB head of operations Britta Ramberg told a news conference. Ramberg said anybody lighting fires or barbecues would face prosecution. Sweden, where usual summer temperatures are closer to 23 Celsius, is under-equipped to deal with this kind of crisis and has been getting help from Italy, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Poland and France. There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in the Nordic country, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres in mid-June. Denmark, southern Norway and northern Finland are also experiencing a period of extreme heat which, according to weather forecasts, is unlikely to end soon. Explore further French soldiers arrive in Sweden to fight wildfires 2018 AFP A plane flies over the Blueavion f1 data collection technology at the Purdue University Airport. The device uses data collection technology to help small airports improve operations data collection. The technology was developed at Purdue University and is available through Bluemac Analytics. Credit: Darcy Bullock, Purdue University With just 521 airport traffic control towers in the U.S. and nearly 20,000 U.S. airports, documenting flight operations can be challenging, say airport managers. Costly too, as airports' can receive funding through the FAA's $1 billion-plus Airport Improvement Program, but this funding is highly dependent on documentation of an airport's operations. Airport operationsthe landings and takeoffs of aircraftare typically logged through traffic control towers, but airports without control towers face greater challenges in collecting such data. A Purdue University-developed product called Blueavion f1, launched Monday (July 23) by Bluemac Analytics Inc. is shown to help airports more accurately log airport operations. While Purdue University Airport is the second busiest airport in the state of Indiana and open 24 hours a day, Lafayette Air Traffic Control Tower operates only during the busiest hours, a common situation found at many towers. Technology can help the airport more accurately log its flight operations, according to Adam Baxmeyer, manager of Purdue University Airport. Which is one reason why the Purdue University Airport participated in the testing of the Blueavion innovation. "Our control tower is open 14 hours a day, so that means we have 10 hours a day where we have to find other means to capture operations data," Baxmeyer said. "We have been able to advance our data collection through this new technology and capture data we might otherwise miss." What Baxmeyer found is that there are many on-demand air cargo operations that use the airport at off-hours in support of local manufacturers. "We know the Purdue University Airport is used to support many businesses in the Greater Lafayette area. Being part of the field test for the Blueavion f1 technology helped us identify even more accurate operations data during the overnight hours when the local control tower is not in operation." Baxmeyer said. Bluemac Analytics is a hardware system, data and analysis company serving transportation agencies around the globe. "The sky is just going to get more crowded, and we've been looking for something that can help the many smaller airports that need a system to automatically log operations," said Keith Szot, CEO of Bluemac. "What we wanted was something that is cost-effective and can precisely understand how an airport is used. More accurate data also can help airports apply for an FAA Airport Improvement Program grant that can be used for the planning, improvement and development of public-use airports." According to the FAA, Airport Improvement Program grants are designed for public-use airports that are publicly owned, privately owned but designated by the FAA as a reliever, or privately owned but having scheduled service and at least 2,500 annual enplanements. The Purdue University Airport participated in the testing of the Blueavion f1 innovation. "Being part of the field test for the Blueavion f1 technology helped us become even more accurate during the overnight hours when the control tower is not in operation," Baxmeyer said. The technology, developed by Darcy Bullock, the Lyles Family Professor of Civil Engineering and director of the Joint Transportation Research Program, and John Mott, associate professor in the Purdue Polytechnic Institute School of Aviation and Transportation Technology, features a transponder data collection system that provides a more accurate method to determine the number of operations an airport has in a given time. "Many small airports rely on approximations for operations counts, but a more accurate method to collect this data could help when applying for FAA funding," Mott said. "What we have developed is a way to utilize the transponder signals broadcast by most aircraft to compute the distances of those aircraft from our portable receiver and data collection device. These distance computations are used along with additional parameters such as aircraft altitude to determine whether an aircraft is taking off or landing at a particular airport. This is an improvement over the conventional method of acoustic counting technology, which typically captures only a portion of total operations. The Blueavion f1 technology is placed near runways and is able to self-calibrate. "Any small airport interested in improving its operations counting accuracy can benefit from the technology," Mott said. "More than that, it can be extended to provide improvements in safety and operational efficiency, as well." Bullock added that, long-term, the technology may help an airport secure more funding for future improvements. "An important criteria for the FAA is to determine usage and need for the future of an airport, and one of the most important aspects of this is operations," Bullock said. "How many planes use the airport, is usage increasing or decreasing, what does the airport need to maintain its high level of service? For many of the smaller airports it is not unusual for planes to come in and out, and they won't know about it because they can't be managed 24/7. Our goal with this technology is to help these smaller airports." The Blueavion f1 is licensed through the Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization. Explore further Power cut temporarily shuts Amsterdam's airport Rutgers Professor Alan Robock with an image of The Scream, an 1895 painting by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch. From top to bottom on the right are: a nacreous cloud over McMurdo Station in Antarctica in 2004; an 1883 drawing by William Ascroft showing the sky in London after the Krakatau eruption; and a 1982 volcanic sunset over Lake Mendota in Madison, Wisconsin, after the El Chichon eruption in Chile. Credit: Nick Romanenko/Rutgers University What inspired the iconic red-and-yellow sky in The Scream, the painting by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch that sold for a record $119.9 million in 2012? Some say it was a volcanic sunset after the 1883 Krakatau eruption. Others think the wavy sky shows a scream from nature. But scientists at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, University of Oxford and University of London suggest that nacreous, or "mother of pearl," clouds which can be seen in southern Norway inspired the dramatic scene in the painting. Their study is published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. "What's screaming is the sky and the person in the painting is putting his or her hands over their ears so they can't hear the scream," said Alan Robock, study co-author and distinguished professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences at Rutgers-New Brunswick. "If you read what Munch wrote, the sky was screaming blood and fire." There are four known versions of The Scream: an 1893 tempera on cardboard; an 1893 crayon on cardboard; an 1895 pastel on cardboard that billionaire Leon Black bought for nearly $120 million at auction; and a tempera on hard cardboard thought to have been painted in 1910. Iridescent light from below the horizon illuminates polar stratospheric clouds, also known as nacreous clouds. Robock said the sky colors and patterns in Munch's paintings match sunset colors better when nacreous clouds are present versus other scenarios. The study builds on a 2017 study that also proposed nacreous clouds. The new study provides a more detailed and scientific analysis of Munch's paintings, focusing on photographs of volcanic sunsets and nacreous clouds and analyzing the color content and cloud patterns. If the new analysis is correct, Munch's art is one of the earliest visual documentations of nacreous clouds, the study says. Robock and others have previously proposed that a volcanic sunset inspired the painting, and he still thinks that's possible. "We don't know if Munch painted exactly what he saw," Robock said. "He could have been influenced by the Krakatau sunset and nacreous clouds and combined them." 10 hours ago To The Moon? Teslas Price Is Going To Mars Tesla Wows Market With Q3 Results Love him or hate him, Elon Musk has taken Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) to new heights and the climb has only just begun. While the EV story here on earth is a compelling driver of the stocks value, in our opinion it is the Mars angle that will keep it moving up over the long term. Read Article July 23, 2018 in Lifestyle (E) [prMac.com] Tokyo, Japan - Sola K.K is pleased to announce the release of kotoca 2.0, a new entry of its iOS lifestyle management series is now available in both English and Spanish. kotoca is regularly at the top of the charts in Japan and having user reviews over 4.4 stars. kotoca was also selected by Apple as one of the best new applications in May and has been featured as the App of the Day on the Japanese App Store. kotoca is a simple, easy to use notebook and idea manager application, perfect for busy and creative people. The name "kotoca" comes from the Japanese word "koto." Koto has several meanings in Japanese, it could be a physical object, it could be a fact or a reason and it could also be an idea. kotoca is merging all those different meanings into one simple application. Connect memories, notes, objects, places, and ideas in one simple ecosystem. "Japanese are famous for their management skills and simple design," explained Keisuke Yoshimura, CEO of Tokyo-based Sola K.K. "We've tried to convert those attributes into our application. Now, we hope a wider audience may experience the benefits of our simple, but efficient note and idea manager application, kotoca." kotoca was designed with simplicity and customizability in mind. Our aim was to create an application which is easy to use, simple in design, but efficient and useful in managing both everyday tasks and complex projects. It could be just a sticky note from the side of the fridge, or it could be a sketch of a new idea, with kotoca it's just a matter of seconds to manage, organize and maybe even connect the two and create something amazing. The basic goal of kotoca is to make life a bit simpler, take notes on the go, connect ideas, store expenses, manage both simple and complex tasks. Any idea or note is being stored in "books," so the user can easily search, sort and manage everything in one place. The app is fully customizable, ideal for both everyday users and creative professionals. Simple, easy and convenient. Featuring: * Simple notes * Customizability * Automatic chracter recognition * TODO * Unique categories * Auto backup * Auto arrangement * AES256 encryption Pricing and Availability: kotoca 2.0 is available for free (With In-App Purchases) worldwide on the App Store in the Lifestyle category in English, Spanish and Japanese. Based in the heart of Tokyo, Japan, Sola K.K (Sola Kabushiki Kaisha-stock company) was established in 2008 by CEO Keisuke Yoshimura, a fast growing IT company, software and application developer. Sola features IT infrastructure and system development and is ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certified. All Material and Software (C) Copyright 2008-2018 Sola K.K. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other trademarks and registered trademarks may be the property of their respective owners. ### Politicians Voices A Life Spent Striving for National Unity Son Chhay has been a fixture in Cambodian politics since 1993. A member of the now-dissolved opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), he opted to remain when other party leaders fled the country. Son Chhay is still smiling. Despite the political trials he and his colleagues in the banned Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) have faced, the veteran politician remains upbeat about democracy in Cambodia as he speaks with VOA Khmer in an exclusive interview ahead of Julys general election. The CNRP, a party in which he formed a central pillar since its founding in 2012 in a merger between the Sam Rainsy Party (SRP) and Human Rights Party, was dissolved in a controversial court decision in November. More than 100 of its officials were banned from politics for five years and most of its leadership have fled the country, fearing reprisals. By the numbers National But amid the chaos, threats and departures of his colleagues, Chhay has stayed put. Chhay has been a fixture of Cambodian politics since 1993, standing for several parties, including the Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party (BDLP) and the SRP. A diligent investigator, he could often be found in his parliamentary office meeting sources or poring over documents. Since the CNRP won a large minority in the 2013 election, Chhay served as the partys chief whip. I think parliament serves the nation and generally represents the citizens, so leaders have to be accountable for citizens through parliament, he says. We often heard it said in English that there is no peace without justice. An unjust society cannot achieve peace. We need mechanisms to ensure justice is free for every citizen. No Regrets Chhay was one of 118 CNRP officials who were banned from politics until 2022, when Dith Munty, the countrys top judge and a senior ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) member, ruled on November 16 that the party should be dissolved for alleged collusion with the United States to topple Prime Minister Hun Sen. The partys leader, Kem Sokha, was jailed on treason charges, which have roundly been denied by the opposition. The partys dissolution was seen as the death of democracy in Cambodia by some, whereas the government claimed it was only following legal procedure. Chhay said the loss of his job and his decision to stay in Cambodia when many of his colleagues fled has given him a lot of time for reflection. I have no regrets about losing my position since, first of all, this gives me time to relax, because I had worked for so long over five parliamentary terms, he said. I can now travel anywhere with no concern about my work or affairs of the parliamentary commission. For 20 years I did my job with sincerity and honor, he added. Chhay now spends hours browsing through archives of documents he has collected over some 25 years. He said he wants to write a memoir and has been reading biographies of world leaders, including Chinese reformist leader Deng Xiaoping. He was patient and mild, Chhay says of Deng. He spoke little, was neither talkative nor boastful. He seldom discussed his thoughts or ideas, but held on to them until he was able to implement them. I like that he thought a lot and spoke less. But hes not my role model; I just like that idea, he added. Path to Politics Chhay was born in Siem Reap province in Cambodias north, a stones throw from the world-famous Angkor Archaeological Park. His father worked at a state-owned transportation company while his mother stayed at home to look after Chhay and his 11 siblings. My biggest driver was the Khmer Rouge regime. I had a feeling that Cambodia was always ruled by irresponsible leaders, causing difficulties for the people. From one regime to another, leaders only cared about their own power and image, After finishing school in the 1960s, Chhay worked for a while in radio, learning the ins and outs of political debate during the reign of the late King Norodom Sihanouk. This period, he says, gave him a taste for political life, but it was not until the Khmer Rouge regime fell in 1979 and after the death of his father and two siblings that he decided he wanted to enter politics full time. My biggest driver was the Khmer Rouge regime. I had a feeling that Cambodia was always ruled by irresponsible leaders, causing difficulties for the people. From one regime to another, leaders only cared about their own power and image, he said. Son Chhay, the exiled Parliamentary Member who belongs to the Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party, flashes a victory sign upon his arrival at Phnom Penh airport on Friday Oct. 17, 1997. Son Chhay fled Cambodia after factional fighting erupted in Phnnom Penh. (Ou Neakiry | AP) Throughout the 1980s he spent time as a refugee in Australia, where he learned and later taught mathematics before returning to Cambodia in 1991 as a teacher trainer. Soon after his return, in 1993 he joined the BDLP with the U.N.-sponsored election just around the corner. He was elected as an MP in Siem Reap province. Sam Rainsy, who would go on to lead the CNRP, was expelled from parliament for challenging alleged government misconduct while serving as finance minister. Chhay joined a small group of parliamentarians, including another future CNRP leader, Kem Sokha, who stayed behind to voice their opposition to the move, according to U.N. envoy Benny Widyonos account in his memoir, Dancing in Shadows. The Peacemaker In July 1997, forces loyal to Prime Minister Hun Sen staged a coup against Prince Norodom Ranariddh, then serving as co-prime minister. Chhay, then a BLDP lawmaker, attempted to broker peace between the warring factions. I wanted unity and I was so young and willing to take risks, scared of nothing, for the sake of unification and ending the conflict, he says. I believed that, if we remained in exile and gathered forces at the border for resistance, our country would be devastated and there would be nothing left to destroy. Chhay arrived in Phnom Penh from Bangkok and presented Hun Sen with a peace roadmap. He managed to gain an audience with King Sihanouk, where he pitched his vision for national reconciliation. His majesty was crying during our talk. It was just the two of us . This was the most memorable event in my life, Chhay says. Several months later, a breakthrough in the standoff came, paving the way for elections in 1998. Chhay soon joined Rainsys eponymous party. While many of his colleagues believe the only way forward in Cambodia is to bring international pressure on the Hun Sen regime, Chhay said he thinks a combination of local campaigning and lobbying foreign governments can work. Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy (C) and Son Chhay, a member of Sam Rainsy's party, talk to the President of the National Assembly Prince Norodom Ranariddh (R) at the assembly building in Phnom Penh February 15, 2006. (Chor Sokunthea | Reuters) Spying Accusations In 2012, in a rambling five-hour address to parliament, Prime Minister Hun Sen accused Chhay of being a spy and working behind the scenes to cause instability in Cambodia over the Vietnam border demarcation issue, a sore point. Chhay said it was painful to be accused of espionage, adding that though he may be able to broker talks with Hun Sen to this day, he fears being recorded and later exposed in pro-government media outlets. Samdech Hun Sen is a clever and pragmatic person, and he does what he says, says Chhay, using an honorific title for the prime minister. Normally, like I said, we also have to understand where hes coming from, as we cannot just call him bad all the time. You have to be fair with him, too. Clapping With One Hand After the 2013 election, which was widely seen as not free and fair by the independent electoral watchdog COMFREL (PDF) and Human Rights Watch, the CNRP took to the streets in the tens of thousands to protest the results. Chhay said he was not a big supporter of the decision to stage mass protests, gatherings which lie at the heart of ruling party allegations of a conspiracy to overthrow Hun Sen. A failure to build trust between the leaders of the two parties contributed to the collapse of a short-lived bipartisan political detente and a later deterioration in relations that led to the banning of the CNRP, he said. A peaceful transfer of power needs time, mutual trust and assurances, he added. A peaceful transfer of power needs time, mutual trust and assurances. No Rebel Chhay saw himself as a principled voice of opposition within the CNRP. He admires the sacrifices both Sokha and Rainsy have made for the country. In some circumstances, we had disagreements that made me not follow their orders. As a matter of fact, in politics bosses dont like you much if you often challenge their orders, he says. But for me, I have my own principles at work. I am not a sycophant and have to tell my superiors when they are doing wrong. But now Chhay, along with his former leaders and colleagues, have been labeled traitors and urban rebels by a pliant pro-government media. He does not think such language is helpful in the quest for national unity, complaining that he has lost touch with friends who fear being tarred with the same brush. I do hope the Royal Government will not continue to label us like this, he said. International community calls Cambodia's vote a setback to democracy The United States says it will take further action against the government of Cambodia following a landslide victory for the ruling party. The European Union, Canada and Australia also condemn the election. Cambodia set to become one-party state Prime Minister Hun Sens ruling party says it now controls all 125 seats in the National Assembly after an election slammed by rights groups as a sham due the lack of a viable opposition, Polls open in Cambodia's sixth national election Cambodians head to the polls for an election from which the government has banned the only viable opposition party. Government blocks 15 independent news sites over poll disruption The Cambodian government orders internet service providers (ISPs) to block the websites of 15 news websites of independent outlets including Voice of America for two days before and during the countrys election. Government fines former opposition officials over clean finger campaign Five former CNRP officials in Battambang province are found guilty of obstructing the vote and fined $2,500 each over a Facebook post supporting an election boycott campaign. Election campaign ends as Cambodians prepare to vote Cambodian political parties wind up their campaigning ahead of a general election expected to be an easy victory for the ruling party. U.S. House passes Cambodia sanctions bill U.S. House of Representatives passes the Cambodia Democracy Act, paving the way for sanctions to be imposed against members of Prime Minister Hun Sens inner circle. Japan opts out of sending election monitors to Cambodia Japan says it won't send election monitors to Cambodia for the July 29 vote even though Tokyo, a major donor to the Southeast Asian nation, has sent observers to many previous elections. Cambodia threatens legal action against non-voters The government orders fines or even the arrest of people who uploads images on social media as part of an opposition-organized campaign to boycott the vote. Cambodian government institutions face cyberattack Cyberattackers are caught hacking key Cambodian government institutions in what is strongly believed to be a coordinated Chinese government assault ahead of the July 29 national elections, according to an investigation by FireEye, a U.S. cybersecurity firm. Election campaign kicks off Electioneering kicks off for the July 29 national elections. Twenty political parties are registered to participate. 50,000 observers to monitor July election, NEC says Cambodias National Election Committee (NEC) says 50,000 observers -- some from China, Myanmar and Singapore -- will monitor July 29 election. U.N. calls political climate in Cambodia not conducive to a free and fair election At the U.N. Human Rights Council, New Zealand and other nations issue a statement calling on the Cambodian government to reverse course, saying the current political environment in Cambodia is not conducive to holding free, fair and genuine national elections. U.S. sanctions Hun Sens top bodyguard United States imposes sanctions on Hing Bun Heang, the head of Hun Sens bodyguards, citing human rights abuses. Government forms task forces to monitor online content ahead of July election The government issues an order that it will work with telecommunication firms to monitor and control online news deemed to cause instability, as part of the governments crackdown ahead of July 29 election. NEC sets controversial Journalist Code of Conduct on election coverage Cambodia's National Election Committee (NEC) issues a controversial code of conduct for journalists covering the July 29 election. It includes a ban on asking detailed questions about results. 20 political parties registered Despite dissolution of CNRP, 20 political parties, including the ruling CPP, register to participate in July 29 election. Election monitoring group backs out of observing July election The respected Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (Comfrel) says it will not observe and monitor the July election, citing the Cambodian governments accusation against the group and other organizations in promoting a color revolution in Cambodia. U.N. calls for release of Kem Sokha The U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and the International Federation for Human Rights issues a statement demanding the immediate release of Kem Sokha, leader of the dissolved opposition CNRP party, calling his imprisonment inhumane and shameful. Phnom Penh Post sold The countrys last remaining independent English-language newspaper, the Phnom Penh Post, is sold to a Malaysian investor whose company has links to Hun Sen. PM Hun Sen threatens legal measure against election boycott Prime Minister Hun Sen describes Sam Rainsys call for an election boycott as a violation of electoral law. Sam Rainsy calls for July election boycott Former CNRP leader Sam Rainsy calls on his supporters and voters to boycott the July election. Sam Rainsy launches the CNRM Former CNRP president Sam Rainsy launches the Cambodia National Rescue Movement (CNRM), which he envisions as keeping the CNRP alive from abroad. He says it cannot be dissolved because it is not registered with the government in Cambodia. Sam Rainsy said the movement's plan includes ensuring free and fair elections in Cambodia in July. Supreme Court orders CNRP dissolution The Supreme Court dissolves the CNRP, a move that causes some opposition members to join Hun Sen's ruling CPP, while opposition leaders flee the country or are forced out of politics. Mu Sochua flees country Opposition lawmaker Mu Sochua flees Cambodia after Prime Minister Hun Sen threatens to arrest opposition politicians in the wake of Kem Sokha's arrest in September. RFA ceases operations in Cambodia Radio Free Asia ceases operations in Cambodia after nearly 20 years, citing the governments crackdown on media. Dozens of radio affiliates in Cambodia that sold airtime to RFA and VOA are shut down, with the government citing licensing issues. Other remaining licensed radio affiliates stop broadcasting RFA and VOA content. Cambodia Daily newspaper shuts down The independent Cambodia Daily newspaper announces it will cease operations in Cambodia after 24 years when it is slapped with a $6.3 million tax bill, which its publishers said was politically motivated and impossible to pay. Kem Sokha arrested Opposition leader Kem Sokha is arrested at his Phnom Penh home for alleged treason. The government accuses him of conspiring with the U.S. to bring down the Cambodian government. Prime Minister Hun Sen warns the CNRP not to defend Kem Sokha at the risk of being dissolved. National Democratic Institute halts operations The Cambodian government forces the U.S.-funded National Democratic Institute to halt its operations in Cambodia, saying the group is not legally registered. National Assembly bars parties from affiliating with criminals The National Assembly passes bill barring political parties from having any formal affiliation with convicted criminals. Fourth commune council elections The CPP wins the majority of seats, but loses ground to the CNRP. Kem Sokha succeeds Sam Rainsy Kem Sokha succeeds Sam Rainsy as the CNRP president. Sam Rainsy resigns from CNRP Sam Rainsy, the self-exiled leader of the CNRP, resigns in an attempt to save the party from dissolution after Prime Minister Hun Sen threatens to change the law to enable the government to dissolve parties with officials who have committed criminal offenses. King Sihamoni pardons Kem Sokha King Norodom Sihamoni pardons Kem Sokha, as requested by Prime Minister Hun Sen. Kem Sokha sentenced to five months in prison Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentences Kem Sokha to five months in prison over a case involving prostitution charges that are believed to be politically motivated. Kem Sokha does not appear in court. Government critic Kem Ley killed Kem Ley, a well-known political activist and government critic, is shot dead in broad daylight at a petrol station in central Phnom Penh, in what police say is a personal dispute over money, a claim his wife denies. Kem Sokha in hiding Kem Sokha goes into hiding at the CNRP headquarters to avoid arrest after being accused of procuring a prostitute. Five officials arrested for alleged involvement in the case against Kem Sokha Four officials with the human rights group Adhoc, as well as the deputy secretary-general of the National Election Committee, are arrested for involvement with the alleged prostitution case against Kem Sokha. Sam Rainsy stripped of position, immunity The government strips Sam Rainsy of his lawmaker status and immunity while the opposition leader is traveling outside Cambodia. The move paves the way for arresting him in connection with a defamation case. Mob beats two CNRP lawmakers Pro-government mob beats two CNRP lawmakers in front of the National Assembly; the mob demands that National Assembly Vice President Kem Sokha step down. National Assembly OKs crackdown on civil society groups Cambodia's National Assembly approves a controversial law that critics say gives authorities sweeping power to crack down on civil society groups challenging the government. Bipartisan election committee formed An overhauled National Election Committee, created by bipartisan agreement, moves to spearhead electoral reform. CNRP, Hun Sen strike deal The CNRP strikes deal with Prime Minister Hun Sen, ending yearlong boycott of parliament. Opposition leaders charged with 'insurrection' The Cambodian government charges six opposition politicians with leading an insurrection after a clash with security forces that prevented opposition supporters from rallying in a public park. Military police crack down on CNRP Military police crack down on CNRP and garment worker protest, ending months of street demonstrations that leave at least four people dead. CNRP supporters protest election results The CNRP and its supporters hold mass protests in Phnom Penh over the contested election results, calling for Hun Sens resignation and an election restaging. Fifth national elections Cambodia holds its fifth national elections, and the opposition CNRP wins 55 of 123 seats in the National Assembly. The CPP wins the remaining 68 seats. The CNRP rejects the results and launches a high-profile boycott of parliament. Sam Rainsy returns ahead of elections After King Norodom Sihamoni pardons Sam Rainsy at Hun Sens request, the opposition leader returns to Cambodia days before the national elections. King Sihanouk dies King Norodom Sihanouk dies of a heart attack. He was 89 years old, and had spent most of his time after abdicating in 2004 outside Cambodia, favoring Beijing and Pyongyang. CNRP was established in Manila Top officials from the SRP and HRP meet in Manila to finalize their merger into a new party: the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP). Third commune elections Cambodia holds third commune elections and the CPP wins 61.8 percent of communes. Sam Rainsy flees Cambodia Sam Rainsy flees the country again, facing charges of disinformation and falsifying maps after criticizing the governments handling of the Vietnamese border demarcation. CPP wins majority in national elections Hun Sen's CPP wins a majority of votes in the national elections. Kem Sokha establishes HRP Kem Sokha, who founded the human rights organization Cambodian Center for Human Rights in 2002, establishes the Human Rights Party (HRP). Second commune elections Cambodia holds its second commune elections. The CPP wins 98.2 percent of communes, while the SRP wins 1.7 percent. FUNCINPEC ousts Ranariddh The royalist FUNCINPEC party ousts Prince Ranariddh as president following an accusation by Hun Sen that the prince was appointing unqualified individuals to political positions.Ranariddh was sentenced by the lower court to 18 months in prison and fined $150,000 for alleging breach of trust for buying land with $3.6 million taken from the sale of FUNCINPEC headquarters. Ranariddh resigns, flees to France Prince Ranariddh resigns as president of the National Assembly after Hun Sen fires then-Co-Minister of the Interior Norodom Sirivudh and Co-Minister of Defense Nhiek Bun Chay. Ranariddh flees to France. Sam Rainsy receives royal pardon Rainsy returns to Cambodia after months of exile to avoid imprisonment on a defamation conviction over his criticism of the governments border policy with Vietnam. He joins with the CPP to change the electoral law to require a simple majority rather than a two-thirds majority, leaving the royalist FUNCIPEC party less important in the coalition government. Under pressure, king signs border treaty Hun Sen threatens to abolish Cambodias monarchy as King Sihamoni delays in signing a controversial border treaty with Vietnam, Cambodia's historic enemy. The king agrees to sign the treaty. Norodom Sihamoni becomes king Norodom Sihamoni succeeds his father King Norodom Sihanouk after a surprise abdication. Prime Minister Hun Sen and National Assembly Speaker Prince Norodom Ranariddh endorse Sihamoni. CPP wins national elections Hun Sen re-elected as prime minister. First commune elections held Cambodia holds its first-ever commune elections. The CPP wins a majority of seats on local administrative bodies known as commune councils, and thus appoints the majority of commune chiefs. Hun Sen and Ranariddh agree to form a coalition government Hun Sen and Ranariddh agree to form a coalition government, allowing Hun Sen to remain as the prime minister and Prince Ranariddh to become the president of the National Assembly. FUNCINPECs agreement with CPP left the SRP as the countrys main opposition party. CPP wins national elections Hun Sen's CPP wins a majority of seats in national elections, followed by FUNCINPEC and the SRP. Prince Ranariddh returns Prince Ranariddh returns to Cambodia to run in the national elections. Troops clash in Phnom Penh; Prince Ranariddh exiled Troops aligned with the CPP and the FUNCINPEC clash in Phnom Penh after public arguments between Hun Sen and Prince Ranariddh become increasingly heated. The prince goes into exile and is ousted from his position a month later. Sam Rainsy founds KNP Sam Rainsy founded the the opposition Khmer Nation Party (KNP). FUNCINPEC and CPP form coalition government With King Norodom Sihanouk's intervention, FUNCINPEC and the CPP agree to form a coalition government, with Norodom Ranariddh as first prime minister and Hun Sen as second prime minister. First post-war elections held Cambodia holds first post-Khmer Rouge-era presidential elections under the auspices of the U.N. Hun Sens Cambodia People's Party, a linear descendant of the Kampuchean Peoples Revolutionary Party, which gave birth to the Khmer Rouge, loses to Norodom Ranariddhs royalist FUNCINPEC. Paris Accords Accords signed Nineteen nations sign the Paris Peace Accords, formally ending Cambodia's civil war. Vietnam leaves Cambodia Vietnamese troops leave Cambodia after a decade of occupation. Hun Sen becomes prime minister National Assembly appoints Hun Sen prime minister. Khmer Rouge regime ends A group of former Khmer Rouge soldiers, including Cambodia's future prime minister, Hun Sen, end the Khmer Rouge regime. Backed by the Vietnamese military, the group liberates Cambodia and Vietnam sponsors formation of a new Cambodian government. Khmer Rouge takeover Cambodia The China-backed Khmer Rouge occupy Phnom Penh. Over the next three years, eight months and 20 days, the regime will cause the deaths of at least 1.7 million people. Coup topples Sihanouk U.S.-backed Gen.Lon Nol leads coup that topples Sihanouk. King Suramarit dies Sihanouk accepts role as head of state. Sihanouk becomes prime minister King Sihanouk becomes prime minister after abdicating in favor of his father, Norodom Suramarit. Crystal Tower East Cleveland The owner of Crystal Tower, a large apartment building in East Cleveland, was one of two major landlords who sued East Cleveland last year over an increase in occupancy fees for rental housing. On Monday, a Cuyahoga County judge sided with the landlords and threw out the city's occupancy-fee law, calling it an "illegal tax." (Marvin Fong/Plain Dealer file) EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio - A Cuyahoga County judge tossed out East Cleveland's rental-fee law on Monday, deeming the cash-strapped city's annual occupancy charge on apartments and rental homes unconstitutional. The decision came seven months after two major Northeast Ohio landlords sued the city over a 900 percent hike in annual occupancy fees, which climbed from $10 to $100 a unit - with no cap. Common Pleas Court Judge Shannon Gallagher ultimately agreed with the landlords' assertion that East Cleveland isn't providing the services, such as inspections, to justify a fee. "The fees are in fact a tax disguised as a fee and charged solely to raise general revenues for the city," the judge wrote, pointing to case law that shows license fees should reflect public spending on whatever is being licensed. The ruling removes, at least for now, a notable plank of East Cleveland's plan for curing a deficit that has kept the city of just over 17,000 people in a state of fiscal emergency for nearly six years. Officials were banking on higher occupancy fees to generate close to $154,000 in new revenues annually starting this year, according to projections provided to The Plain Dealer. Aside from government grants, the fees were the largest single recovery-plan source of cash. Willa Hemmons, the city's law director, said Monday afternoon that she hadn't yet seen the judge's decision and wasn't in a position to react. "We've got to read the opinion," she said. In filings and past interviews, city officials argued the increased fees were justified because East Cleveland hadn't raised the costs in decades. The city pointed to other, nearby communities that charge more; however, East Cleveland misstated many of those fees. And officials openly acknowledged during depositions that the fee hike was an attempt to raise money for the general fund - and that East Cleveland had not been inspecting apartment buildings. Gallagher's decision prohibits the city from collecting any fees - $10, $100 or otherwise - under its existing rental-occupancy law. That doesn't mean East Cleveland can't implement a new fee. But any such charge on landlords is sure to be challenged if it's not tied to inspections. It's unclear how many property owners have paid the $100-per-unit fee, which was due Jan. 15. Early this year, the city agreed to exempt the K&D Group and PK Management, the landlords who sued, from the increased fees during litigation. But that dispensation didn't apply to other companies and individuals who owned rental properties in the city. Landlords who paid under protest, reserving their right to ask for money back if the fees were found to be an illegal tax, have options. People who willingly cut a check probably don't. K&D Group and PK Management own and manage a combined total of nearly 1,000 apartments in East Cleveland. The East Cleveland dispute cropped up at a time of increased pushback against local government efforts to inspect and levy fees on real estate. Across the state, cities face lawsuits and disputes over where their regulatory rights end and where private property rights begin. Majeed Makhlouf, an attorney who represented K&D and PK Management, noted that his clients did not challenge the overall legitimacy of occupancy-fee programs. The companies pay similar fees in other communities But Makhlouf, a former Cuyahoga County law director, said that "cities cannot be looking to fees to cover shortfalls in tax revenue. ... It started with East Cleveland, but I have no doubt that it will move to other cities, if there are abuses." From his early days in films like Zhang Yimous To Live, to titles like Shower, Let the Bullets Fly, and A Touch of Sin, Jiang Wu has risen to become one of Chinas greatest actors. At the New York Asian Film Festival to receive the Star Asia award, Jiang and Director Xin Yukun spoke with LMD about their thriller, Wrath of Silence. The Lady Miz Diva: Congratulations on the Star Asia award. How does it feel to receive it here in front of your New York Fans? Jiang Wu: I like New York a lot. Ive been collaborating with American filmmakers pretty often. Ive received three or four awards already in America; the first one was in Hawaii, and then I went to Los Angeles, and now this third one is here in New York. So Im hoping the fourth one will come very soon. {Laughs} LMD: What was it about Director Xins work or script that most impressed you to work with him on WRATH OF SILENCE? JW: The other two awards I received in America were for collaborations I also did with young directors. I think young directors are very sincere in terms of making their first or second feature films, which gives me a lot of inspiration, especially when I would run into unexpected situations, and that is what I really like about working with young directors. I see their passion; they are giving everything they have, their hearts are really into what they want to make, and I love working in those type of projects LMD: Your character, Chang, is a terrible person. Do you have to find a humanising quality in your characters, and if so, what did you find humanising in Chang? JW: I think extreme evilness and extreme kindness, there is a very thin line between them. Extreme kindness just might push into extreme evilness, as well. So, even though this character is awful, as you said, he also has a very humanised side, where he tries to be kind. For example, he goes to the school and he donates things to the kids. However, if you look at the very thin line between the extreme evil and extreme kindness, I also think the donation part of his actions may be developing something that is more evil. So, he is not a genuine character: His external actions and his internal thinking and feelings are not aligned. So, if you look at his costumes, his hair implants, those external things, they are representing something else, but if you look at his shoes, they are cotton shoes, so maybe that represents more of the internal core of the character? LMD: He is quite flamboyant: His ostentatious outfits, with his curly hair implants, entire farms of mutton all over his office table, and even the way he moves reminds me of a villain from a superhero movie. As I said, Chang is awful, but is there a bit of fun in creating this larger-than-life character? JW: Yes, I did think that way, because, for me its more lighthearted to play this kind of villain in a sort of comedic sense of humor, than being really serious in a serious film, because you have to go from the shallower end of the story to bring out whats deep and whats meaningful from the metaphors. That gives the character multiple layers of color. And I think if you think of the sense of humor is a little bit funny, in terms of his superhero villain-ness, then he also buries the deep sadness into his character. Underneath the kindness that you may see, he is also burying his super evilness deep inside. LMD: Theres this very dark character, but one of my favourite roles of yours is as Dahei in A TOUCH OF SIN, who does some terrible things in the name of justice. They are two extremes, but is that wide exploration of humanity, good, evil, and in between, one of the motivations behind your choice of roles? JW: So, yes, there is a grayscale in between the extreme evilness and the extreme kindness. I think it depends on the different type of story, and the different type of character, and the different type of background that that character is situated in. There are different ways to portray the kindness and the evilness, and I think for me to control the percentage of which is more, is my role as an actor. That is up to me, in terms of interpretation. LMD: At the beginning of your career, you starred in a Zhang Yimou film {TO LIVE}, and have gone on to work with great director from China and Hong Kong including Jia Zhangke, Jingle Ma, Peter Ho-sun Chan, and of course, your own brother, Jiang Wen. What is the most optimal situation for Jiang Wu to appear in a film? What is the direction you respond best to? JW: Technically speaking, Im not an actor who listens one hundred percent to what the director says. If you tell me something has to be a certain way, I dont believe in that. So, for me, performing and acting is more about imagining: If you can imagine something, something would exist. So, for me, its more about communicating with the director, and seeing with the director wants, but also, I want to give him or her more than he imagined. But still, I want to reach what he or she wants. So, if I can imagine a detail that I want to portray, I will really try my best to persuade the director to try one or two times more, or even more to achieve what I want. I believe some of my thinking is going to be helpful for directors. For example, in Shower the movie, it turns out a lot of that what I wanted to persuade the director to try turned out to be really good. LMD: As were talking of directing, may I ask what we can look forward to coming from you in the future? Might there be a project that includes your directing a film? JW: I have a few movies coming up. One of them is with director Guan Hu. Its called The 800. I have another film coming up in August, and one at the end of the year, which is almost like a villain series. Im playing a corrupted government official. And after all these film projects coming up, maybe next year, or the year after next, I have one of my own projects and Im developing the script right now. I want to direct. DIRECTOR XIN YUKUN The Lady Miz Diva: WRATH OF SILENCE is a very unusual mix of action and drama, with a mute person as the main character. What were the challenges of writing a character who falls into so many dangerous situations he could easily avoid if he could speak, but he cannot. Xin Yukun: In the earlier versions of the script, I actually arranged for the character to be able to talk. He is very quiet in his personality, and he is a difficult person, but then after I developed the script several times, I realised that for the three different fathers who were from three different backgrounds, if I arranged for this character not to speak, a lot of the drama will become reasonable and justifiable. Thats why I needed this character, but also I realised that this is a perfect metaphor for the group of people he represents, because they dont have a lot of voice in the society. LMD: Song Yang does a wonderful job portraying Zhang Baomin. We know Mr. Song from his martial arts films like JUDGE ARCHER and THE FINAL MASTER. This film requires a lot of dramatic depth as the father searching for his missing son. Please tell us what guidelines you gave him to help him prepare to play this mute character? What made you feel that he could capture the emotional range needed to play Baomin? XY: Song Yang came in with a lot of curiosity for the character; he came to explore. Then when he came into this project, he was actually not very confident that he could portray this character. So, when we started the shooting, we spent about ten days to explore together. So, we did some improvisation about how to portray this character, and then we found the perfect way after these ten days. Because he cannot speak, so he had to use a lot more actions, with a lot more of his body and eyes. And then after we found this perfect way of portraying this character, he gave me a lot more trust, and that actually gave me a little more pressure. LMD: Of course, I must ask about the gentleman next to you: Please tell us what about Mr. Jiang Wu fit your initial vision of Chang? Did Mr. Jiang add anything to the character that you did not see in your script? XY: So, I dont know if you notice, but in a lot of movies and television shows, when they portray these nouveau riche Chinese people, they always have this tiger portrait in their office. And when I was imagining this character, I thought of Mr. Jiang Wu; that his face is so aggressive, and his aggression in his facial expressions resemble the tiger image that I felt he had. So, I thought that if Mr. Jiang actually has this sort of characteristic in himself, then he will make the role very powerful. So, when we reached an agreement about how to portray this character, and when he came to the project, he actually gave me a lot of hands-on help with how to create this character. For example, he provided a lot of visualisation about what this character should look like, how this character should be played, and particularly, when I thought there was a specific shot that I wanted, I would always say, Oh, this is the perfect shot. This is the shot that I wanted, but Mr. Jiang Wu would always try one more. He would say, Oh, can I try just one more thing for you? And that one more shot would always turn out to be the best thing that I couldnt even imagine, because as a director, you always focus on the details, and sometimes you lose the big picture in your head when you put that shot into a sequence. Then, with his years and years of experience, he might not feel as comfortable with what I wanted in the details, so he always provided this one extra shot that would turn out to be very helpful for me. LMD: I understand there is a lot of your background in this film; some of the situations are based on things that you experienced or saw, and you grew up in an area that isnt very different from the town we see in the film. Is that why the cinematography of those mountain spaces is so beautiful? Conversely, is that why the city interiors, like Changs office, despite all their money, all look very cheap, dark, and ugly? XY: So, the three characters in the film, they all have their own backgrounds and their own relationships with each other. I think that drama is best located in my own city, which is Baotou. So, the glamour of the city, and then the source of the wealth from the mountains, as well as the suburbs; they are closely located to each other, and that provides a very believable background for this story. And then if you look at the visuals for the mountain scenes, and they are so pretty, but you would also notice that all this natural scenery has been destroyed, so you can also imagine what they would look like if they hadnt been destroyed. And when you look at the cities, and through the development of the cities, you see an unreality, which I imagine is called post-industrialised trauma. So, you would also consider an understanding of the city through the visuals. (Refiles to add bullet points, links) July 23 (Reuters) - Changsheng Bio-technology Co Ltd : * SAYS IT AND CHANGCHUN CHANGSHENG ARE ACTIVELY AND STRICTLY COOPERATING WITH DRUG REGULATOR ON SELF-INSPECTION * SAYS IT IS UNCERTAIN WHEN IT CAN RESUME PRODUCTION * SAYS THE HALT OF PRODUCTION WILL HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON COMPANY'S PRODUCTION AND OPERATION AND HARM CO'S INTEGRITY AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IMAGE * SAYS WARNS INVESTORS ON INVESTMENT RISKS * SAYS SHARE TRADE TO RESUME FROM AFTERNOON TRADING ON JULY 23 * SAYS IT IS INVESTIGATED BY SECURITIES REGULATOR DUE TO SUSPECTED VIOLATION OF INFORMATION DISCLOSURE * SAYS CONTROLLING SHAREHOLDER HAS PLEDGED 73.36 MLN SHARES IN THE COMPANY AS COLLATERAL ON JULY 20 * SAYS CONTROLLING SHAREHOLDER AND PARTIES ACTING IN CONCERT HAVE PLEDGED 166.9 MLN SHARES, OR 17.14 PCT STAKE IN THE COMPANY AS COLLATERAL * SAYS IT FACES DELISTING RISK WARNING DEPENDING ON OUTCOME OF INVESTIGATION Source text in Chinese: https://bit.ly/2LDv7Ol; https://bit.ly/2Lj3VZv; https://bit.ly/2mztKFz Further company coverage: (Reporting by Hong Kong newsroom) AFPTV In Iraq's vast western desert, some 200 families live in a hamlet largely cut off from the rest of the world, their only neighbour one of the country's biggest military bases. Lost in rocky ochre hills and surrounded by humble palm groves, Al-Sahls only education facility is a primary school, and residents rely on livestock and farming to survive. China is developing large, smart and relatively low-cost unmanned submarines that can roam the worlds oceans to perform a wide range of missions, from reconnaissance to mine placement to even suicide attacks against enemy vessels, according to scientists involved in these artificial intelligence (AI) projects. The autonomous robotic submarines are expected to be deployed in the early 2020s. While not intended to entirely replace human-operated submarines, they will challenge the advantageous position established by Western naval powers after the second world war. The robotic subs are aimed particularly at the United States forces in strategic waters like the South China Sea and western Pacific Ocean, the researchers said. The project is part of the government's ambitious plan to boost the country's naval power with AI technology. China has built the world's largest testing facility for surface drone boats in Zhuhai, Guangdong province. Military researchers are also developing an AI-assisted support system for submarine commanders. As the South China Morning Post reported earlier this year, that system will help captains make faster, more accurate judgments in the heat of combat situations. The new class of unmanned submarines will join the other autonomous or manned military systems on water, land and orbit to carry out missions in coordinated efforts, according to the researchers. The submarines will have no human operators on board. They will go out, handle their assignments and return to base on their own. They may establish contact with the ground command periodically for updates, but are by design capable of completing missions without human intervention. But the researchers also noted that AI subs had limits, especially at the early stages of deployment. They will start with relatively simple tasks. The purpose of these projects is not to replace human crews entirely. To attack or not to attack, the final decision will still be in the hands of commanders, the researchers said. Story continues Current models of unmanned underwater vehicles, or UUVs, are mostly small. Their deployment and recovery require another ship or submarine. They are limited in operational range and payload capacity. Now under development, the AI-powered subs are giants compared to the normal UUVs, according to the researchers. They station in dock as conventional submarines. Their cargo bay is reconfigurable and large enough to accommodate a wide range of freight, from powerful surveillance equipment to missiles or torpedoes. Their energy supply comes from diesel-electric engines or other power sources that ensure continuous operation for months. The robotic submarines rely heavily on artificial intelligence to deal with the seas complex environment. They must make decisions constantly on their own: changing course and depth to avoid detection; distinguishing civilian from military vessels; choosing the best approach to reach a designated position. They can gather intelligence, deploy mines or station themselves at geographical chockpoints where armed forces are bound to pass to ambush enemy targets. They can work with manned submarines as a scout or decoy to draw fire and expose the position of the adversary. If necessary, they can ram into a high-value target. Lin Yang, marine technology equipment director at the Shenyang Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, confirmed to the South China Morning Post this month that China is developing a series of extra-large unmanned underwater vehicles, or XLUUVs. Yes, we are doing it, he said. The institute, in Chinas northeast Liaoning province, is a major producer of underwater robots to the Chinese military. Lin developed Chinas first autonomous underwater vehicle with operational depth beyond 6km. He is now chief scientist of the 912 Project, a classified programme to develop new-generation military underwater robots in time for the 100-year anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party in 2021. Lin called Chinas unmanned submarine programme a countermeasure against similar weapons now under intensive development in the United States. He declined to elaborate on technical specifications because the information was sensitive. It will be announced sooner or later, but not now, he added. The US military last year made a deal with major defence contractors for two prototype XLUUVs by 2020. The US Navy would choose one prototype for the production of nine vehicles. Lockheed Martins Orca system would station in an area of operation with the ability to establish communication to base from time to time. It would return home after deploying payloads, according to the companys website. A critical benefit of Orca is that Navy personnel launch, recover, operate, and communicate with the vehicle from a home base and are never placed in harms way, the company said in a statement announcing the system. Technical details on Orca, like its size or operational endurance, are not available. The company did not respond to the Posts queries. Boeing is developing the other prototype, basing it on its Echo Voyager, a 50-ton autonomous submarine first developed for commercial uses like the mapping of the sea floor. The Echo Voyager is more than 15 metres long and 2.6 metres in diameter, according to Boeing. It can operate for months over a range of 12,000km, more than enough to sail from San Francisco to Shanghai. Its maximum speed reaches 15km an hour. The vessel needs to surface periodically as its batteries need to be recharged by air-breathing diesel engines. It can dive to 3km while carrying up to eight tons of cargo, Boeing said. Russia has reportedly built a large underwater drone capable to carry a nuclear weapon. The Status-6 autonomous torpedo could cruise across large distances between continents at high speed and deliver a 100-megaton warhead, according to news accounts. China enlists top scientists in mission to become military tech superpower The Chinese unmanned submarine would not be nuclear-armed, according to a researcher involved in a separate programme in China. The main advantage of the AI subs is that they can be produced and operated on a large scale at a relatively low cost, said the researcher, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. Traditional submarines must attain a high level of stealth to increase the chance of survival. The design has to consider other things including safety, comfort and the mental health of the crew to ensure human safety. All these elements add costs. In the 1990s, an Ohio-class submarine for the US Navy cost US$2 billion. The research, development and purchase of the first 12 of its new Columbia-class submarines, scheduled for delivery in the early 2020s, is more than US$120 billion. In contrast, the budget of the entire Orca programme is about US$40 million, according to Lockheed Martin. An AI sub can be instructed to take down a nuclear-powered submarine or other high-value targets. It can even perform a kamikaze strike, said the researcher, referring to the suicide attacks some Japanese fighter pilots made in the second world war. The AI has no soul. It is perfect for this kind of job, the researcher added. Luo Yuesheng, professor at the College of Automation in Harbin Engineering University, a major development centre for Chinas new submarines, contended that AI subs would put the human captains of other vessels under enormous pressure in battle. It is not just that the AI subs are fearless, Luo said, but that they could learn from the sinking of other AI vessels and adjust their strategy continuously. An unmanned submarine trained to be familiar to a specific water will be a formidable opponent, he said. AI submarines are still at an early stage, Luo noted, and many technical and engineering hurdles remain before they can be deployed in open water. Hardware on board, for instance, must meet high standards of quality and reliability, since no mechanics will be on board to fix a broken engine, repair leaking pipes or tighten a screw, he said. The missions of unmanned submarines will also likely be limited to specific, relatively simple tasks, Luo said. AI will not replace humans. The situation under water can get quite sophisticated. I dont think a robot can understand or handle all the challenges, he added. This article China military develops robotic submarines to launch a new era of sea power first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. More from South China Morning Post: Taiwan's gay rights activists on Monday accused China of pressuring organisers of the Gay Games to bar the island's national flag at next month's competition in Paris as ties with Beijing worsen. China considers Taiwan as part of its territory and is particularly sensitive to the self-ruled island's use of names, emblems and flags at international events. These sensitivities -- backed up by Beijing's clout on the world stage -- mean Taiwan is forced to compete as "Chinese Taipei" at the Olympics and a host of other international sports competitions. The Federation of Gay Games (FGG) had looked as if it would buck this trend when it gave its blessing for Taiwanese competitors to compete under the name "Taiwan" and use the national flag, according to Taiwanese activists. But Yang Chih-chun, president of the Taiwan Gay Sports and Gay Development Movement Association, said they were notified by the FGG last week that the French government had "expressed concerns" over displaying the Taiwanese flag. "Our logical conclusion is that China protests to the French government or otherwise this would not have happened," Yang told AFP. The association added that it is also negotiating with FGG over its listing as "Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)" on the Paris games website rather than just "Taiwan" -- the name it used when filling out registration form. "We hope the FGG can resist pressure," said Yang. Relations between Taipei and Beijing have deteriorated since President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan's independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party took office two years ago, as her government refuses to recognise that the island is part of "one China." China has cut off official communication with Tsai's government while stepping up military and diplomatic pressure on the island. Under pressure from Beijing, a growing number of international airlines and companies recently changed their website classifications of Taiwan to "Taiwan, China" or "Chinese Taipei". The Gay Games sporting and cultural festival was founded in 1982, and organisers estimate up to 10,000 people will take part in this year's event. The 28-member Taiwanese delegation led by prominent gay rights campaigner Chi Chia-wei will leave for Paris on August 2 for the competition between August 4 and 12. Chi said the Paris games could be "an unprecedented rare opportunity" for Taiwan to compete as Taiwan and use its national flag as such arrangements would be impossible in the next tournament due to be held in Hong Kong. "We will fight till the last moment to use our national flag at the Gay Games," he said. Hong Kong urgently requires a policy to ensure local children receive necessary vaccines before an influx of mainlanders drives up demand in the coming months, experts have said. The warning from doctors and a lawmaker came on Monday as China remained gripped by a public health scandal in which a major drug maker was found to have supplied inferior vaccines for babies. According to a mainland drug watchdog, Jilin-based manufacturer Changsheng Bio-tech sold substandard DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus) vaccines to the Shandong Disease Prevention and Control Centre, the agency in charge of public health in a province of about 100 million people. In Hong Kong, all vaccines for children are imported from foreign brands. Private clinics usually see about 20 per cent of their patients come from across the border to avoid jabs made on the mainland. With the latest crisis, that number is expected to soar in the coming one to two months, doctors warned. If the Hong Kong government does not adopt a timely policy, it could turn out to be a political crisis for the administration, lawmaker Dr Kwok Ka-ki, also a private doctor, said. Paediatrician Dr Alvin Chan Yee-shing said he believed Hong Kong might face a vaccine shortage in the next few months once mainland parents decided to take their children across the border. While the citys clinics have yet to see a rise in demand, Chan said he expected travel agents to organise tour groups for vaccinations, similar to how mainlanders previously flocked to Hong Kong for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. The government should come up with a way to ensure local babies get enough vaccines, and it should be done very quickly, Chan said. Expatriates living in Hong Kong rely on private clinics to get vaccinations for their babies. This group should be assured they can get the jabs, too. There are about 60,000 births in Hong Kong every year. The public sector offers a free child immunisation programme involving a series of injections for babies at two, four, six and 18 months of age, with follow-up jabs when they are six and 11 years old. Story continues Chan estimated about 80 per cent of infants in the city received their injections from public clinics. The free four-in-one immunisation covers four diseases diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and poliomyelitis. Five-in-one jabs are also available at private clinics, with added protection against haemophilus influenzae B, and a further six-in-one option provides extra coverage against hepatitis B. In the private sector, the package price for the latter two types of vaccinations which are dispensed in four doses ranges from HK$600 (US$76) to HK$2,000 across clinics and hospitals. Since the private market operates on a first-come-first-served basis, Kwok said the government should encourage local parents to book the jabs as early as possible so doctors can reserve supplies. Chan said: The situation for mainland babies getting the injections in Hong Kong is more complicated than [competition for] infant milk formula. It cannot be [regulated] just by setting a limit. He was referring to the 2013 controversy over parallel trading in which mainlanders snapped up supplies of milk formula in the city and took it home to sell, sparking a two-tin export restriction. But Dr Ares Leung Kwok-ling, a senior hospital administrator who manages private hospitals and clinics, said he believed the free market could eventually cope with the rise in demand. Unlike the HPV vaccine, there are quite a few providers of these five-in-one or six-in-one vaccines, and bringing an infant all the way across the border is not as easy as coming to Hong Kong as an adult, he said. So although demand may increase, it may not be too worrying. I believe the market can adjust given some time. Quin Tse, a Hong Kong mother whose daughter was born in April, said she was not worried about the possible surge of mainlanders to the city for vaccines, as her child received vaccinations at public clinics. At least two foreign pharmaceutical firms are supplying vaccine packages with four-in-one, five-in-one and six-in-one types to the city. French company Sanofi Pasteur, one of the suppliers, said demand had not increased significantly in the Hong Kong market. Vaccine supply remained stable, a spokesman said. British drug manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) said supplies of its five-in-one and six-in-one vaccines were stable. The company also said it would continue to liaise with authorities and doctors. Hong Kongs Department of Health said it had an agreement with suppliers to ensure sufficient stocks for children at the government-run Maternal and Child Health Centres. It would also continue to closely monitor the supply of vaccines, which remained stable, in both the public and private health care sectors. Private clinic group Quality Healthcare Medical Services said the number of inquiries it received for child vaccines remained unchanged. The group said it would closely monitor market development and seek to maintain optimal stocks. Meanwhile, the Medical Association said it received a letter from the departments Centre for Health Protection on Monday, stating an anticipated upsurge in demand for some vaccines, especially those for children, in the local private market. The associations members were asked to contact the centre in case of any supply issues. In mainland China, the DPT vaccine is subsidised by the government and given to infants across the country. Newborns are usually given three doses, with the first three-in-one jab at around three months of age to protect against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus. As Chinas latest vaccine scandal unfolds, mainland parents have expressed a loss of confidence in the countrys vaccine safety standards. Some said they would seek out foreign brands in Hong Kong. Information has surfaced on mainland websites offering details on where to find such injections in the city, including prices and benefits. This article As Chinas vaccine crisis unfolds, Hong Kong needs urgent policy against coming influx of visitors seeking jabs first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. Thailand is in hot pursuit of a cagey crocodile that has made unwelcome appearances off the beaches of resort island Phuket only to slip through the clutches of local authorities. The evasive reptile was first seen near Rawai beach about a week ago but has resurfaced in multiple locations near the beaches on the Andaman Sea. A group of hunters has joined an expanding team trying to track it down. Thawee Thongcha, the mayor of Karon town on the west coast of Phuket, told AFP Monday they had come very close to success. "We almost caught it when it was seen near the beach in Karon, (we were) metres away but it moved quickly back to the sea," Thawee said. "We do not yet know where it comes from." Thailand's pristine beaches draw millions of tourists a year and Phuket in the southwest is one of the most popular destinations. Thawee said choppy monsoon seas had prevented fishing boats from using nets to capture the creature, which is almost two metres in length. The Siamese crocodile was once ubiquitous across Southeast Asia but is currently listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's red list. Thon Thamrongnawasawat, a marine biologist and lecturer at Kasetsart University, said the presence of a crocodile in Phuket meant it was likely a hybrid saltwater version of the species bred on a farm, and it was not the first such sighting. "Normally the open sea is not a place where a crocodile would live," he said. Crocodile numbers in Thailand and Southeast Asia generally have been decimated by habitat loss, commercial hunting for the skin trade and the capture of live reptiles to stock crocodile farms, according to the IUCN. In Thailand there are just a handful of wild populations in central and western national parks. A French tourist was bitten on the leg by a crocodile inside a Thai national park in January last year when she tried to get close to take a selfie. In 2014 a Thai woman committed suicide by leaping into a pond of crocodiles at a farm popular with tourists on Bangkok's outskirts. Dozens of French soldiers specialised in firefighting arrived in Sweden early Monday to tackle blazes raging across the country during an extreme heatwave. Firefighters on Sunday were battling around 50 wildfires after an unprecedented drought in the region and soaring temperatures, which have reached the hightest in a century. The 30 French soldiers from a Civil Defence unit landed shortly after midnight on Monday (2200 GMT Sunday) in Stockholm, an AFP correspondent said. They will be joined by another 30 firefighters from the south of France on Monday. France has already sent two Canadair planes to Sweden after authorities asked for EU emergency help to fight the blazes, which have caused no fatalities so far. Italy has sent two firefighting aircraft and Norway sent eight helicopters. Germany and Poland also responded to the request for assistance. Record temperatures above 33 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit) were reported in Uppsala, a city north of Stockholm. There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in the country, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres that fell in mid-June. Denmark, southern Norway and northern Finland are also experiencing a period of extreme heat which, according to weather forecasts, is unlikely to end soon. FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's anti-trust regulator said on Monday it had given its blessing for German broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE and U.S. Discovery Inc to expand their joint video streaming platform. The expanded 7TV venture will include content from ProSieben's Maxdome platform and Discovery's Eurosport Player. The duo said they were open to new partners joining when they announced their scaled-up cooperation last month. The Federal Cartel Office said that the expanded offering - including Maxdome's entertainment content and the airing of German league soccer matches on the Eurosport Player - would not gain a dominant market position. "The market for paid video on demand continues to expand rapidly and contains potent competitors in the form of Amazon, Netflix, iTunes and Sky, as well as offerings from public broadcasters," its head, Andreas Mundt, said in a statement. The regulator had already approved the creation of the 7TV joint venture last year. It said it would scrutinise any further acquisition of content or partners. According to figures from Goldmedia Custom Research, Amazon has a market share of 26.8 percent of paid video on demand in Germany, Netflix 22.4 percent and Maxdome 4.3 percent. Only by joining forces do European broadcasters have a chance of competing with the U.S. platform giants, industry executives and analysts say. (Reporting by Douglas Busvine; Editing by Maria Sheahan and Emelia Sithole-Matarise) By Dan Williams JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel rebuffed on Monday a new Russian offer to keep Iranian forces in Syria away from the Golan Heights ceasefire line, an Israeli official said, complicating Moscow's bid to stabilize the country amid a waning civil war. The latest disagreement arose in a meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russia's top diplomat and top general, dispatched to Jerusalem as Syrian government forces routed rebels near the Golan. Israels vigilance was underscored by the launch of its latest, U.S.-backed missile shield against rockets that it said were fired from within Syria but which fell short of the Golan lines. In Monday's meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Netanyahu said a Russian offer to keep Iranian forces 100 km (62 miles) from the border was not enough, according to an Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "The Russians are speaking about (the 100-km buffer zone) and are committed to it, but we said there are also long-range weapons beyond this zone, and all those forces must leave Syria," the official said. Israel had previously turned down a proposal by Russia, the big-power backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, that Iranian forces be kept 80 km from the frontier, according to Israeli officials. The Russian embassy in Israel tweeted that Lavrov and armed forces chief General Valery Gerasimov discussed with Netanyahu Assad's advance in southwest Syria and "issues related to Israel border security". MISSILES Netanyahu held talks with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on July 11 amid Israeli concern that Assad, an old adversary, might defy a 1974 demilitarisation deal on the Golan or allow his Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah allies to deploy there. Russia has said it wants to see the separation of forces on the frontier preserved. Lavrov's deputy, Grigory Karasin, told Russian media the foreign minister's trip was "urgent and important". Story continues Before the meeting, Netanyahu said he would tell the envoys that "Israel insists on the separation of forces agreement between us and Syria being honoured, as they were honoured for decades until the civil war in Syria broke out". He also reaffirmed "Israel will continue to act against any attempt by Iran and its proxies to entrench militarily in Syria". Earlier, Israel launched two David's Sling interceptor missiles at rockets which it said crashed inside Syrian territory and were part of the internal fighting there. It was Israel's first operational use of the mid-range David's Sling, which is jointly manufactured by U.S. firm Raytheon Co . The incident triggered sirens in northern Israel and on the Golan, sending many residents to shelters. Throughout the day, Reuters witnesses on the Golan Heights heard explosions and saw plumes of smoke rising from Syrian territory. They saw warplanes and helicopters in the sky from their position west of the Syrian town of Nawa. An Israeli source briefed on the David's Sling activation said the interceptor missiles were launched following an initial assessment that the two incoming Syrian SS-21 rockets would hit the Israeli side of the Golan. When Israeli sensors realised they would land on the Syrian side, David's Sling was given an abort order for the interceptors to self-destruct in mid-air. The source requested anonymity as the Israeli military had yet to carry out a formal investigation. Asked if the United States was apprised of the incident, the source said: "I'm sure that will happen in the future, as there are joint interests." (Additional reporting by Denis Pinchuk in Moscow; Writing by Dan Williams, Editing by Jeffrey Heller, Mark Heinrich, William Maclean) Latin American trade bloc the Pacific Alliance opened a week-long summit on Monday with a free trade and integration message at a time where protectionism, particularly in the United States, has created growing concerns. The bloc groups four of the region's largest economies: Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. The leaders of Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay are also attending as guests. Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo argued as the summit got underway that at a time of soaring global trade tensions, the group needed to remain "unwavering" in its commitment to "openness and integration." The Pacific Alliance, launched in 2012, accounts for 38 percent of Latin American GDP and represents the eighth largest economy in the world, with a population of 223 million people. Collectively, its members are the world's top exporter of goods ranging from avocados to copper to lead, and are the fifth-largest recipient of foreign direct investment. That has drawn interest from other countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore, which are all in the process of becoming associate members. But the summit began without one key figure expected to attend: Mexican President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, an anti-establishment leftist and free-trade skeptic. The summit was supposed to be Lopez Obrador's debut on the international stage ahead of his inauguration on December 1. But the politician known as "AMLO" pulled out on Friday, saying it would not be proper to attend because electoral authorities have not yet officially declared him president-elect. Electoral authorities have until September 6 to officially certify the results of the July 1 election. There is no doubt about Lopez Obrador's victory. He won with over 53 percent of the vote -- more than 30 points clear of his nearest rival, who immediately conceded. - Region shifts right - Outgoing Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto had appeared keen to get his successor started off on the right foot with key allies at the summit, despite the fact that Lopez Obrador was a bit of an awkward fit with the pro-trade group. The invitation was "a good-will gesture by the Pena Nieto government" at a time when "there is a lot of uncertainty about which way Mexican foreign policy is going," said Manuel Valencia, head of the international business program at Mexico's Monterrey Institute of Technology. The other leaders at the summit are Sebastian Pinera of Chile, Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia and Martin Vizcarra of Peru, as well as guests Michel Temer of Brazil, Mauricio Macri of Argentina and Tabare Vazquez of Uruguay. With the exception of Vazquez, they are all center-right, market-friendly leaders -- the faces of Latin America's recent shift to the right. That is a trend that Mexico, long a regional outlier, has bucked by electing Lopez Obrador. The rest of the region is anxious to see whether the new president of Latin America's second-largest economy, after Brazil, will stick to his nationalistic guns or govern with the more pragmatic, pro-business tone he showed in the home-stretch of the campaign. Lopez Obrador has vowed to be fiscally responsible, safeguard free enterprise and work together with the outgoing administration to continue renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the United States and Canada, a deal he had criticized in the past. Guajardo said on Monday he saw a "window of opportunity" to resume NAFTA negotiations, stalled over US demands. Jesus Seade, the incoming Mexican negotiator in the complex NAFTA talks, meanwhile told reporters in Puerto Vallarta he was looking to finalize the process. "All the positions that have been put forward are good ones, those that have been rejected were rejected for a reason -- but that is a technical basis. Now we need to find a way to close the deal." Lopez Obrador's recent change in tone has been welcome for Mexico's Pacific Alliance partners, whose meeting comes at a time of trouble. US President Donald Trump's attacks on trading partners from the European Union to North America to China and the retaliatory measures they have launched in return have raised the specter of global trade war. Malaysia will repeal a tough security law used to detain government critics without charge under the former government, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has said, with activists Monday hailing the "bold" vow. It was the latest pledge by the country's new reformist leaders to roll back repressive legislation introduced by scandal-hit ex-premier Najib Razak, whose long-serving government was toppled at elections in May. Leading pro-democracy activists were among those arrested using the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act, or SOSMA, introduced in 2012 purportedly to combat security threats from extremists. It allows for suspects to be detained without charge for 28 days and can incur a lengthy prison sentence. In a speech late Sunday, Mahathir said Najib had used repressive laws to do "whatever he liked" and vowed to abolish SOSMA. "The people will now be protected under laws that are fair and any offences will be brought before and decided by the court," he was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times newspaper. Eric Paulsen, legal director of Southeast Asia-focused rights group Fortify Rights, hailed the announcement as a "timely and bold move". "We demand that no one should be detained without trial or be a victim of arbitrary arrest," he said. One of the most high-profile figures detained under SOSMA was Maria Chin Abdullah, the former leader of pro-reform group "Bersih" which staged huge rallies against Najib's government. She was arrested in 2016, when still the head of Bersih, on the eve of a demonstration and kept in solitary confinement for 10 days. She is now an MP with the ruling alliance. Najib launched a crackdown on government critics after allegations emerged he was at the centre of a massive scandal linked to state fund 1MDB. He was arrested this month and has been charged with corruption. Mahathir himself, during a first stint as premier from 1981-2003, used repressive laws to target critics. More than 100 people, including opposition politicians and activists, were arrested and detained without trial during a major crackdown in 1987. The winners will receive a company incorporation package, post-programme mentoring session for three months, and access to MaGICs co-working space at its campus for three months Malaysian startups Nature Renascent and Travelight, and Kazakhstan-based Nommi, were announced the winners of Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centres first pre-accelerator bootcamp for female founders, called MaGICs Pre-Accelerator Bootcamp:Female Founders Edition. The winners will receive a company incorporation package, post-programme mentoring session for three months, and access to MaGICs co-working space at its campus for three months. These three startups were picked from the 15 startups who pitched their refined ideas to local and international investors on the Demo Day. A total of 27 female-founded startups participated in the two week-long bootcamp. The winner was selected based on three main criteria: 1) idea & validation 2) business model; and 3) visual & pitching. The bootcamp, commenced in the first week of July, aims to empower womenpreneurs to transform their business ideas into investment-ready solutions through mentorship and capacity building initiatives while catalysing creativity and innovation. It was specially curated for startups with female founders and provided them with the opportunity to gain practical skills and capabilities, mentorship from key industry players, and valuable insights from Malaysias leading womenpreneurs to help boost the participants learning curve. The lineup of mentors and trainers included Brett Martin, Co-founder and Investor at Charge Ventures in the US; Suresh Tan, Former Head of Business Development at Service Hero; as well as MaGICs Executive Director of MaGIC Academy, Johnathan Lee. Annabelle Co-Martinent, Founder of LaJuiceria and Super Saigon; Francesca Chia, Co-founder and Chief Community Officer of GoGet; Fave Groups Regional Head of People, Audra Pakalnyte; and Deborah Henry, Co-founder of Fugee School and TV Host, amongst others were also a part of the bootcamp. Story continues Ashran Ghazi, CEO of MaGIC said: This is MaGICs first-ever female-centered bootcamp. While we have been witnessing a steady climb in the number of womenpreneurs these past few years, we want to keep the momentum going and in order to do so, we knew that we needed to create that mindset shift at the grassroots level to ensure that women are not left behind as we build a pool of exponential entrepreneurial with the ability to continuously generate innovative business ideas. We want to nurture their talent through the empowerment of these aspiring entrepreneurs to create new business solutions from ideas to investment-ready solutions in just 14 days. The bootcamp was designed in such a way where we were offering a comprehensive and guided syllabus while keeping these womenpreneurs in mind, Ghazi added. A brief description of the three winners: Nature Renascent It is an eco-friendly method to make paper and thread. In order to overcome the abundance of wastes, Nature Renascent (NR) comes up with the innovative way to transform these wastes into functional products that are environmentally friendly. NR provides natural-based products ranging from paper, garments, and cutleries. Nommi It is a 4G hotspot with unlimited WiFi worldwide providing hassle-free connection for international travellers. It also functions as a powerbank and Qi wireless charger. Travelight It transports luggage from hotels to airports so that travellers can enjoy hassle-free commutes to the airports. The post Nature Renascent, Nommi, Travelight win MaGICs pre-accelerator bootcamp for female founders appeared first on e27. Patrols and intelligence exchange to be ramped up in wake of high-profile robberies, Hong Kong police chief says Officers would step up patrols and intelligence exchange, targeting crime-prone areas in the wake of a recent spate of high-profile cases, Hong Kongs police chief said on Monday, as he sought to allay concerns by pointing out that the rate of robberies in the city was at its lowest in almost 50 years. The remarks by Commissioner of Police Stephen Lo Wai-chung came a day after his men announced that nine more suspects had been arrested in a joint operation with Shenzhen police over a HK$23.1 million (US$2.9 million) smash-and-grab raid in Tsim Sha Tsui on July 1. The stolen items recovered by mainland police from Longgang district in Shenzhen included 12 luxury watches and other goods, along with HK$1.74 million in cash. Among those held were three Hong Kong residents. The latest arrest brought the total number of suspects identified over the July 1 incident to 13. In a separate case, a 52-year-old mainlander was on Sunday robbed of 900,000 yuan (HK$1.04 million) by a group of four men outside Lok Ma Chau checkpoint in Hong Kong. The city recorded 59 robberies in the first four months of the year, compared with 163 in 2017 and 260 in 2016. But Tsim Sha Tsui, a bustling shopping district, has seen at least 14 robberies in the past 16 months, including four smash-and-grab jewellery raids. In May for example, two thieves made off with valuables worth HK$5.47 million from a jewellery shop in Harbour City shopping centre in just 27 seconds. A 60-year-old man has been charged over that case. Despite the wave of brazen robberies, Lo said the city remained very safe as Hong Kong over the past year saw the lowest number of such cases since 1969, with the crime rate at a record low. The latest two jewellery raids showed that Hong Kong police absorbed intelligence on the cases within a very short period of time and took action, Lo, who was attending a book fair in Wan Chai, told reporters. Story continues Members of the public do not need to be too anxious as we will step up patrols at black spots and strengthen intelligence exchange. Lo also thanked his mainland counterparts for their efforts in the joint operation. One of the biggest street robberies in Hong Kong came in February in broad daylight, when a gang ambushed five men carrying suitcases containing more than 450 million Japanese yen (HK$32 million) on Carnarvon Road. I try not to take everything people say to heart, especially when some citizens hold misunderstandings about police Stephen Lo, police chief Police later recovered the money after intercepting the robbers getaway car on a flyover outside Mei Foo Sun Chuen housing estate in Lai Chi Kok. At Mondays book fair, Lo shared with young audience members three of his favourite books, including one called Crisis Communication: Practical PR Strategies for Reputation Management and Company Survival by Peter Frans Anthonissen. Lo said that understanding between the police and public could be improved through genuine and open communication. As the leader [of the police force], I try not to take everything people say to heart, especially when some citizens hold misunderstandings about police. My way is to face them bravely without flinching, and try to find a better way to communicate, he said. Lo also recommended the book I Speak for China Selected Speeches of Fu Ying, a collection of speeches given by Chinas former vice foreign affairs minister. He said he appreciated how Fu was able to introduce the complicated situations in China to the world in simple words, adding that young people could benefit from the history told in the book as well as communication techniques depicted. This article Patrols and intelligence exchange to be ramped up in wake of high-profile robberies, Hong Kong police chief says first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. Rescuers on Tuesday morning continued looking for a paraglider who was blown off course over Lantau Island more than 40 hours after he was reported missing. The search and rescue operation began on Sunday at about 7.40pm when Patrick Chung Yuk-wa, 44, could not be reached after his paragliding group members were dispersed by winds. The 10 enthusiasts had taken off from Sunset Peak, also known as Tai Tung Shan, in Lantau South Country Park at 2pm on Sunday and were expected to land on a beach in Cheung Sha the same day, but sudden gusts locally known as shi hu feng reportedly blew them off course. The search continued overnight but had stopped momentarily at about midnight due to weather conditions, a government spokesman said on Tuesday morning. The rescue mission was still under way around Chi Ma Wan trail in Lantau as of 7am on Tuesday, the spokesman added. The typhoon signal No 1 was issued on Monday afternoon and remained in force until it was cancelled at 10.40am on Tuesday, according to the Hong Kong Observatory. At 11am, the tropical depression was about 440km west of Hong Kong and was forecast to move northwest at about 18km/h across Guangxi, away from the city. In addition to rescue services personnel, 30 to 40 pilots from local paragliding groups rejoined the search on Tuesday morning. A Hong Kong Paragliding Association (HKPA) spokesman earlier said that Chungs group had been forced to make an emergency landing. Three of them suffered minor injuries. Chung, who was flying a purple, blue and yellow paraglider, was the only person unaccounted for. The spokesman said the missing pilot was carrying a mobile phone and a walkie-talkie but could not be reached. He added that Chung should have water and food with him. A scooter belonging to Chung was found parked on Shek Mun Kap Road near Tung Chung. Story continues According to the association, Chungs friends had traced the last location of his phone to Lantau Peak. Signals from the device were later also received by transmission stations at Shek Kwu Chau and Cheung Chau on Monday afternoon. More than 200 officers from the police force, fire service and Civil Aid Service, as well as volunteers from the association, were involved in the search operation at its height. Five teams of firefighters were combing the Lantau Trail, Lantau South Country Park, Tung Chung, Chek Lap Kok and Mui Wo, while a fireboat was deployed to Chi Ma Wan near Lantau South Country Park. A government helicopter was also deployed and firefighters said a drone had been used to check cliffs and other dangerous areas. But the search was hampered by downpours which forced the volunteers to stop. Police and firefighters were continuing their search on Monday night. HKPA chairman Richard Threlfall said Chung was likely to have landed in trees and might be suspended below his glider, though it was difficult to tell which side of the peak he would be on. I am trying to coordinate all our members who are looking for Patrick, Threlfall said. A police source said Chung worked for a computer trading company, and officers had visited his Sha Tin flat but no one answered the door. The source said Chungs wife was on an overseas business trip but had returned to Hong Kong after learning of the accident. The HKPA spokesman described Chung as an experienced paraglider with more than three years flying behind him. A member of the Hong Kong Paragliding Federation, Chung helped manage the groups Facebook page, he said. The federation organises events for local paragliders, including safety talks, first-aid classes, and weather and aviation courses. Hong Kongs Civil Aviation Department has designated nine areas around the city for paragliding activities. Chung had been flying in one of the approved zones. The paragliding association said it was a legal requirement for individuals wanting to paraglide in the city to have adequate insurance coverage. Due to sites being near populated areas, pilots must comply with local airspace restrictions. Organisations offer different courses. According to X-Fly Paragliding Club, as long as pilots have completed a standard course and obtained a licence, they are eligible to fly in Hong Kong. Shi hu feng is the local term for gusts associated with squall lines, according to the Hong Kong Observatorys website. A squall line is a cluster of severe thunderstorms or storm cells along a line. They are fast moving and destructive, and lead to sudden changes in wind direction with an abrupt increase in wind speed. This article Search continues for missing Hong Kong paraglider blown off course over Lantau Island first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. After leveraging a firehose of 500 million data entries, Points has built an algorithm to help the unbanked create an accurate credit profile A Singaporean company named Points has raises US$8 million to fund its blockchain-based service that helps the unbanked build a credit profile. The fund included investment from Danhua Capital, Cherubic Ventures, Ce Yuan, Ontology Foundation, Nest.Bio Ventures and Zhong Cheng Xin Credit Technology. The service leverages a massive amount of data provided by a major Chinese credit rating agency, Zhong Cheng Xin Credit Technology Ltd. to build credit profiles. Points is also partnering with Teleinfo, owned by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). The partnerships provide Points with a gigantic fire hose of data to build and train an algorithm that can create credit ratings and develop accurate risk assessments. The end-goal is to create system that will hopefully attract participation from the worlds unbanked. If Points can provide accurate credit scores for people who seemed high-risk, they can help the 1.7 billion unbanked gain access to financial institutions. It helps de-risk potential loans for banks and makes them more likely to transact with someone who is entering the financial system for the first time. Points uses the blockchain to facilitate security so that companies and individuals can upload relevant documents which can be used to provide a risk assessment irregardless of their current financial situation. Our vision is to serve the underrepresented community, and with blockchain as a core technology for Points, were able to incentivize partners to participate in risk-free data sharing, which combined with AI, means truly accurate credit scores, said Points Founder Sarah Zhang in a statement. Also Read: Vietnams real estate platform Homedy raises funding; to expand into Indonesia, Philippines by 2020 The money will be used to grow the tech team which Points hopes will accelerate the companys growth. Story continues Furthermore, while the amount of money probably disqualifies the use of the phrase seed funding, the company did use the term to describe the round. This means that, while the startup-jargon is not a clean fit, Points raised US$8 million in its first fundraising effort an extremely high number by Southeast Asia standards. The company claims it can support 10,000 transactions per second. The post Singapore startup that builds credit ratings on the blockchain raises US$8M appeared first on e27. Batsman Danushka Gunathilaka has been suspended over a misconduct charge in the middle of Sri Lanka's second Test against South Africa, the country's cricket board said Sunday. The 27-year-old opener will be barred from all forms of the game pending the outcome of an investigation, the board said, without specifying the alleged misconduct. The suspension will go into effect after the Test is concluded in Colombo, it added. The board will also "withhold Gunathilakas fee for the ongoing Test match until the outcome of the inquiry", it said. The batsman scored 57 and 61 runs in the second and final Test, with Sri Lanka on track for a series whitewash after trouncing the visitors in Galle last week. South Africa were 5/139 chasing an impossible-looking 490 target at close of play Sunday. Another member of Sri Lanka's Test squad, leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay, was on Friday given a suspended one-year ban from international cricket after pleading guilty to misconduct during last month's tour of the West Indies. Forested areas around Angra, in Ljusdal municipality, Sweden, were damaged in fires last week Sweden warned Monday of an "extreme" risk of fresh forest fires as much of Scandinavia baked in a heatwave and dozens of fires hit countries across northern Europe. Sweden's civil protection agency MSB counted 27 active fires across the country on Monday, half the previous day's number, as temperatures were expected to soar as high as 35 Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) this week. Other European countries including France, Italy and Germany have sent a mix of equipment and firefighters to help tackle the blazes as Sweden, where usual summer temperatures are closer to 23 Celsius, is under-equipped to deal with this kind of crisis. At least four of the fires had not been brought under control, MSB said, and weather conditions were unfavourable. Sweden is experiencing an unprecedented drought and soaring temperatures which have reached the highest in a century. "The risk is extreme" in the southern part of Sweden, with the heatwave leaving forests tinder dry with no rain likely, MSB head of operations Britta Ramberg told a news conference. Ramberg said anybody lighting fires or barbecues would face prosecution. Norway, Denmark and Poland have also sent help to try to extinguish the fires. In the region of Ljusdal, 400 kilometres (250 miles) north of Stockholm, French firefighters were deployed to ensure that blazes put out in recent days do not reignite. "We are working on the edges (of the burned areas), treating the surface and picking through the earth," firefighting co-ordinator Stephane Nissle told AFP. "It's a long struggle." There has been practically no rain since the beginning of May in the Nordic country, aside from a paltry 13 millimetres in mid-June. Farmers have even been forced to send their livestock to slaughter after fire damage led to shortages of hay. Other northern European nations have been struggling to contain forest fires as the unseasonable temperatures show no sign of dropping. Story continues In Finland's northernmost Lapland province, fires have ravaged wood and grassland close to the border with Russia. Norway, which this year experienced its hottest May temperatures on record, has also seen several small fires, and one firefighter was killed on July 15 while trying to contain one blaze. Fires have raged for five days in Latvia, destroying more than 800 hectares (2,000 acres) in the Baltic state's western regions. Meteorologists warned that the high temperatures are persisting and no rain is expected for the next two weeks. Latvia has experienced severe drought over the last few months, prompting authorities to declare a natural catastrophe in the agricultural sector. And in Greece -- a country no stranger to summer blazes -- authorities on Monday ordered the evacuation of a region west of Athens as a fire raged out of control. More than 130 firefighters, five aircraft and two helicopters have been mobilised to tackle the "extremely difficult" situation due to strong gusts of wind, Athens fire chief Achille Tzouvaras said. The army has also provided four helicopters and tankers, according to the interior ministry. Temperatures in Greece have been so extreme in recent days -- it was forecast to hit 41 Celsius on Monday -- that the culture ministry was forced to close early due to the heat. Turkish ministers on Monday warmly applauded the decision of Turkish-origin German footballer Mesut Ozil to quit the national team on the grounds of racism, with one senior minister hailing "a goal against the virus of fascism." Ozil, who was born in Germany to a Turkish-origin family, had been under fire since posing for a controversial photograph with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in May which sparked questions about his loyalty to Germany's squad ahead of the World Cup in Russia. Breaking weeks of silence, Ozil said on Sunday he would no longer play for Germany internationally "whilst I have this feeling of racism and disrespect." The Arsenal midfielder had been heavily criticised by the leadership of the German Football Federation (DFB) for the picture and was also blamed by some in Germany for the team's failure in Russia. "I congratulate Mesut Ozil who by leaving the national team has scored the most beautiful goal against the virus of fascism," Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul wrote on Twitter. Turkey's Sports Minister Mehmet Kasapoglu, like Gul posting the picture of a smiling Ozil with Erdogan, added: "We sincerely support the honourable stance that our brother Mesut Ozil has taken". In a tweet posted before Ozil's decision to leave the national side was made public, Erdogan's spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said the footballer's defence of the meeting was "a pity for those who claim to be tolerant and multiculturalist!" Ozil, 29, said he had been unfairly blamed in Germany for the side's shock group stage exit at the World Cup. He insisted he was true to both his Turkish and German origins and did not intend to make a political statement by appearing with Erdogan a month ahead of elections in Turkey. "I have two hearts, one German and one Turkish," said Ozil. Fellow German international Ilkay Gundogan of Manchester City was also present at the London meeting with Erdogan in May on the president's visit to Britain, as well as striker Cenk Tosun of Everton who was born in Germany but represents Turkey. NAIROBI (Reuters) - The United States doubts whether South Sudan's President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar have the leadership qualities needed to deliver peace to the country at war since 2013, the White House said on Sunday. Peace talks last week in the South Sudanese capital Juba need to be more inclusive to succeed, the White House said, adding that it will impose fresh sanctions on anyone who threatens the country's stability. The statement constitutes tough U.S. language about South Sudan, a country whose independence in 2011 Washington backed after a war with Sudan that lasted decades. Since then, tens of thousands have been killed in a civil war. "We are deeply concerned about the direction of the current peace process .... A narrow agreement between elites will not solve the problems plaguing South Sudan," said the statement. It implored the warring parties to implement a ceasefire as a first step and condemned a move by the country's parliament to extend the government's term in office. "South Sudan's political leaders ... have not demonstrated the leadership required to bring genuine peace ... We remain sceptical that they can oversee a peaceful and timely transition to democracy and good governance," it said. On June 13, a U.S.-drafted resolution at the United Nations Security Council imposed an arms embargo. South Sudan's parliament voted this month to extend Kiir's mandate until 2021, a move likely to undermine the peace talks as opposition groups say the change is illegal [L8N1U84AE]. Last week Kiir said he is ready to accept a peace deal to end the war and set up an inclusive new government. The proposed deal would give the country five vice presidents and also covers security and power sharing arrangements. (Reporting by Omar Mohammed; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg) A United Nations envoy on Monday began contacts with Cypriot leaders to gauge whether the time is ripe to revive talks on reunifying the island a year after they collapsed. Jane Holl Lute, a former US deputy secretary for homeland security, has been tasked with conducting consultations with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders. On Monday she met Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades for nearly three hours and made no comment afterwards. Later she is scheduled to cross the UN-patrolled ceasefire line to go north to hold talks with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci. Lute is due to depart for New York on Tuesday and return to Europe once dates are confirmed for her consultations in Athens, Ankara, London and Brussels, the Cyprus News Agency said. She is expected to compile a report on her findings for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who appointed Lute to see if the sides had narrowed their difference since the failure of a Swiss summit in July 2017. The last talks aimed at reunifying the island as a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation collapsed in Switzerland a year ago after the UN chief failed to get the parties to agree on a post-settlement security arrangement for Cyprus. It was the first time Cyprus talks involved the guarantor powers of Britain, Greece and Turkey. Under the 1960 treaty of independence, the three countries secured intervention rights to safeguard the island's sovereignty, but the Greek Cypriots want these scrapped while the Turkish Cypriots are reluctant to do so. The other stumbling block is that Anastasiades wants all Turkish troops to leave the island after a solution is reached, while Akinci is opposed to this idea. Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third in response to a coup sponsored by the military junta then ruling Greece. Rival Cypriot leaders failed to revive their island's moribund peace process after an UN-backed informal dinner date in April -- their only meeting since the failed summit. Tensions in the region heightened after Nicosia stepped up its search for natural gas reserves, a move opposed by Ankara. The EU -- of which Cyprus is a member state while Turkey is not -- condemned Turkey's actions in the eastern Mediterranean in trying to block oil and gas exploration in Cyprus' maritime zone. Parents say they have lost faith in the system after a major drug maker was found to be supplying inferior vaccines that were given to babies as young as three months old, in the latest public health crisis to grip China. The Jilin Food and Drug Administration revealed the vaccine safety scandal on its website on Friday. After an investigation, Jilin-based Changchun Changsheng Bio-technology was found to have sold some 252,600 substandard DPT vaccines to the Shandong Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the agency in charge of public health in a province of about 100 million people. It was not yet known how many children had been given the inferior vaccines against three infectious diseases diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus through the state-sponsored disease control system. But the announcement came just five days after the state drug regulator uncovered data forgery in the Shenzhen-listed companys production of about 113,000 rabies vaccines on Monday during an unannounced inspection. The offence was so serious that the State Drug Administration revoked the companys licence to produce the rabies vaccine and has said it may launch a criminal investigation. Changsheng Bio-tech which means long life in Chinese is the latest company in the scandal-plagued pharmaceutical industry to be found producing vaccines that are not up to standard. In November, the state drug watchdog revealed that another big vaccine maker, the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products, had sold 400,520 inferior DPT vaccines to Chongqing and Hebei. It is still unclear how many children had been given these vaccines, and the company has yet to be punished. The DPT vaccines in both cases were bought by provincial public health authorities to be given to children under a compulsory health programme. They were found to be ineffective, but it is not known whether they could cause harm. There have been no reports of any children falling ill after being given the vaccines. Story continues Subsidised by the government, the DPT vaccine is given to infants across the country. Newborns are usually given three doses, with the first jab at around three months old. One father in Guangzhou, whose daughter was given four doses of DPT produced by both Changsheng and the Wuhan Institute in 2015 and 2017, said he was angry and no longer had any faith in vaccines made in China. The man, surnamed Lin, said he planned to take his daughter to Hong Kong for vaccinations in the future. I [and my family] will not be having any more vaccinations on the mainland until the government takes real and serious steps to resolve this issue, Lin said. In Shanghai, a mother surnamed Li also said she had lost confidence in the countrys pharmaceutical industry and would choose imported vaccines in the future. Her son was injected with a DPT vaccine produced by the Wuhan Institute in 2015. Vaccines directly relate to childrens health. This scandal really saddens me, Li said. Can we now only ensure our childrens health if we give them imported food and imported medicine? Changsheng Bio-tech was fined 3.4 million yuan (US$502,200) by the Jilin watchdog over the DPT vaccines a small sum for a listed company that reported 566 million yuan in net profits last year. It also received 48.3 million yuan in new government subsidies in 2017, according to its annual report. The drug regulator first revealed the company was under investigation in November, saying it could take up to two months, but did not release its findings until Friday. The company issued a statement on Sunday evening on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, saying it had shut down production of the DPT vaccine and expressing its deep apology to all those affected. But questions remain as to how inferior vaccines were able to pass through a system of checks. There has been no statement from the National Health Commission as to how the low-quality vaccine might affect children. Meanwhile, the Shandong edition of Communist Party mouthpiece Peoples Daily called on the government to take action to ease public concerns about the scandal in an editorial headlined, Dont let fear and anger spread. It said the latest case would lead more people to be sceptical about domestically produced vaccines given that public confidence had barely recovered from the scandal two years ago over expired vaccines that saw 200 people arrested. That case in 2016 caused a public outcry when it was revealed that 570 million yuan of improperly stored or expired vaccines had been illegally sold across the country for years. It came after state-run China Economic Times in 2010 revealed that hundreds of children in Shanxi province had died or suffered from severe side effects because of damaged vaccines over a period of three years. Shanxi officials denied there were problems with vaccines at the time and the newspapers editor was sacked after the report was published. This article As new vaccine scandal grips China, parents say theyve lost faith in the system first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. More from South China Morning Post: Vietnam's communications minister was suspended Monday for overseeing a proposed deal to buy a loss-making private TV company which could have cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars. The rare and severe punishment is part of the communist government's widening corruption crackdown targeting high-rolling executives and officials in a country unused to seeing the powerful publicly toppled. Minister of Information and Communications Truong Minh Tuan was suspended in a decision signed by the president for "violations", the government said on its website without elaborating. The statement follows an earlier decision from the Communist Party to punish Tuan, 57, for showing a "lack of responsibility and poor leadership" over the deal. Tuan is accused of overseeing the purchase by the state-run Mobifone telecommunications giant of the private AVG television company. Mobifone bought 95 percent of Audio Visual Global (AVG) in 2015 for around $385 million, even though the company had recorded losses of about $70 million. The government said the purchase could have caused $303 million in losses for the state had not before officials stepped in to halt the final deal and order AVG to refund the purchase price. Tuan spent decades climbing the ranks of the communist party, serving 30 years in the propaganda department before being appointed deputy communications minister in 2014 and then minister in 2016. Monday's announcement did not say whether Tuan would face criminal charges or whether he would retain his other role as deputy head of the party's propaganda department. Mobifone's former head Le Nam Tra and a senior communications ministry official were arrested earlier this month in connection with the case, but have not yet been charged. Tuan is among the most senior officials to be punished under the government's anti-graft sweep, which has captivated a country where politicians are seen as untouchable. The campaign -- led by a hardline leadership in power since 2016 -- has sent a chill through political circles and the business community in one of Asia's most corrupt countries. Sitting politburo member Dinh La Thang was handed two corruption convictions this year in a case that shocked the nation and is now serving 30 years in jail. Also convicted was Trinh Xuan Thanh, who was kidnapped from a Berlin park by Vietnam security agents and bundled into a van before returning to Vietnam to face graft charges. Thanh is currently serving two life sentences. Hanoi insists he returned voluntarily but the case has badly bruised ties with Germany. Both Thanh and Thang worked in the state-run oil sector, which has been a main target of the anti-corruption crackdown so far. Vietnam is ranked 107 out of 180 on Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, among the lowest in the region. It may have essentially become the backbone of modern life in China, but Wang Zizhengs frustration with the lack of privacy eventually prompted him to quit WeChat. I rely on my intuition, and it tells me that finding mass surveillance unacceptable is the right attitude, said 23-year-old Wang. He was referring to widespread concern that Tencent parent company of the countrys most popular messaging app hands over user data to the authorities when legally compelled to do so, as stated in its privacy policy. Tencent is a core competitor of Alibaba who owns the South China Morning Post. Tencent has previously denied violating its users privacy. Do you despair if you have nothing to share online? Youre not alone Wang returned to Beijing last summer after four years at university in the United States to find that WeChat, used by his friends at school, had suddenly morphed into an all-consuming tool that was indispensable in his home country. Now, the high school teacher and seasoned user of virtual private networks used to get around Chinas Great Firewall texts and calls people instead. New acquaintances dont really believe it when I tell them I dont use WeChat, Wang said with a laugh. I have to physically show them my phones apps to prove Im not lying. Similarly, postgraduate student Stephen, who did not want to use his real name, ditched WeChat for several years when he worked at an IT firm in mainland China, before moving to the US last year for his studies. He has since resumed using WeChat, but only to communicate with relatives who have no other means of reaching him. I dont have any secret dealings or illegal activity on WeChat, but being in IT I find [the lack of privacy] particularly uncomfortable, Stephen said. This is a communications software and most importantly, user data should be protected. Wang and Stephen are part of a growing group of tech-savvy Chinese millennials, often with overseas exposure, who are becoming increasingly disillusioned with Chinas closed internet ecology that is effectively dominated by a few tech giants Tencent, Alibaba and Baidu, Chinas answer to Google. Story continues WeChat is perhaps the most visible manifestation of this. Since its launch in 2011, the social network and do-it-all app has grown into an internet behemoth with one billion monthly active users worldwide, placing it on a par with Instagram and behind Facebooks 2.2 billion. In China, its most saturated market, WeChats penetration rate is 83 per cent among all smartphone users, reaching up to a staggering 92 per cent in first-tier cities, according to data from eMarketer. The social network is part of almost every aspect of peoples lives, merging the personal with the political apparatus of the state. It is a mobile payment service, news and content platform, e-commerce hub and even a civil administrative centre. A user can provide their account as a form of electronic social security ID, using it to manage pensions and taxes, and even to file for divorce. Wang calls it a cumbersome, ugly portal for everything systemised. He said his distaste for the apps design, privacy issues and far-reaching impact on everyday life led him to quit the service over a week ago. But it has not been as easy as deleting the app. Since he abandoned the social network, Wang said he had come across restaurants that only accepted WeChat Pay and not Alipay, its biggest rival for mobile payments. In those cases, Wang pays in cash. Its definitely possible to survive in the mainland without WeChat. Its just not that convenient, he said. But at the same time, quitting WeChat wont help much with protecting ones privacy in mainland China because you may be using lots of different apps which might also be collecting your data with your consent. Xin Xin, a global media and communications professor at the University of Westminster in London, said Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent have, to a large degree, benefited from the fact that the Chinese internet market is still closed to the leading international players. Their monopoly is not good news for Chinese internet users and citizens, she said. Lawrence Li, a Chinese tech blogger who lived in Beijing and the US before moving to Japan over a year ago, has not used WeChat in more than two years. His farewell blog post in 2016, Bye-bye WeChat, attracted significant attention among Chinas tech community. For WeChat, theres no hope in terms of privacy, Li said. We all know that people in the public security bureau have every right to read all our chat histories when they need to. For most people, theyre not even aware of the possibilities [of surveillance], he said. Neither do most people think this is something they need to be concerned about. Li, who keeps in touch with friends and relatives via iMessage and Telegram, cites multiple cases he has heard of people whose WeChat accounts have been blocked, or who have even been detained by police over group messages sent on the app. In one case last September, a Beijing man was sentenced to nine months in jail for joking about Islamic State in a private WeChat group. Unlike its Western counterparts WhatsApp and Telegram, WeChat does not provide end-to-end encryption, widely viewed as the gold standard for privacy in internet communications. In practice, this omission leaves a back-door channel for third parties to access users messages and data, whether they be the government, internet operators or even hackers. Tencent did not respond to a request for comment. Censorship is also rife, with politically sensitive terms routinely blocked in posts and private messages. More and more Chinese people, however, are slowly starting to become aware of potential privacy issues when using home-grown social media apps. That was apparent in the backlash against remarks made by Baidu chief executive Robin Li in March, when he told a forum that Chinese internet users were willing to sacrifice privacy for convenience. To Xin, the Baidu chiefs claim was an indication of how much Chinese tech giants valued profit over privacy. It is not realistic for Chinese internet users to expect these companies to take appropriate or effective security measures to safeguard their customers privacy, the media and communications professor said. It is simply against the logic of the political economy of the internet business. But Wang, Li and Stephen all agreed they were in a small minority of Chinas huge base of internet users 772 million, by the latest count who were concerned about privacy issues. Most people I know are basically giving up privacy for convenience, Wang said. For the high school students I teach, their response would be that they have nothing to hide so the government can read whatever it wants. This article Why Chinas tech-savvy millennials are quitting WeChat first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018. ELLIOT SPAGAT California.- U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw appeared conflicted in early May on whether to stop families from being separated at the border. He challenged the Trump administration to explain how families were getting a fair hearing guaranteed by the Constitution, but also expressed reluctance to get too deeply involved with immigration enforcement. There are so many (enforcement) decisions that have to be made, and each one is individual, he said in his calm, almost monotone voice. How can the court issue such a blanket, overarching order telling the attorney general, either release or detain (families) together? Sabraw showed how more than seven weeks later in a blistering opinion faulting the administration and its zero tolerance policy for a crisis of its own making. He went well beyond the American Civil Liberties Unions initial request to halt family separation which President Donald Trump effectively did on his own amid a backlash by imposing a deadline of this Thursday to reunify more than 2,500 children with their families. Unyielding insistence on meeting his deadline, displayed in a string of hearings he ordered for updates, has made the San Diego jurist a central figure in a drama that has captivated international audiences with emotional accounts of toddlers and teens being torn from their parents. Circumstances changed dramatically after the ACLU sued the government in March on behalf of a Congolese woman and a Brazilian woman who were split from their children. Three days after the May hearing, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the zero tolerance policy on illegal entry was in full effect, leading to the separation of more than 2,300 children in five weeks. Sabraw, writing in early June that the case could move forward, found the practice arbitrarily tears at the sacred bond between parent and child. It was brutal, offensive, and fails to comport with traditional notions of fair play and decency. Last month, a formerly obscure Texas legal charity struck the jackpot. Millions of Americans, horrified by families being torn apart at the border, started sharing and donating to a campaign to raise money for RAICES, the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services in Texas. The main Facebook fundraiser ended up bringing in almost $21 million, and I was very optimistic that the money would be put to good use, reuniting families and helping some of the neediest people in America. Advertisement Since then, RAICES has made headlines more deliberately. The group called a press conference in Washington to ask the Trump administration to accept a $20 million bond check to free thousands of immigrant mothers, rather than requiring individuals to be bailed out one at a time; they also rejected a $250,000 donation from Salesforce, which is refusing to cancel its contracts with Customs and Border Protection. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I spoke to Jennifer Falcon, head of communications at RAICES, to ask her about her organizations tumultuous month. Felix Salmon: Congratulations on suddenly becoming the center of attention. Maybe not particularly intentionally. Jennifer Falcon: We are probably the leading expert. RAICES has been reuniting families for over 30 years now. Its just something that nobody really talked about, but its actually very common that families get separated and get lost and shuffled around the immigration system. It definitely wasnt something we were looking for, but I think were the appropriate people to speak about whats going on and how broken the system is. Advertisement You say youve been doing this for over 30 years, but in terms of your size and your revenues, its been ramping up a lot over the past four or five years. The tension really starts about four years ago. And things really got crazy when Trump implemented his zero tolerance policy. Tell me first about the cash windfall you got. How much money was it? The Willners Facebook fundraiser is almost at $21 million now. And there are probably thousands of little fundraisers. Weve seen people having bake sales all across the country. There are people just sending checks for $50. We havent even been able to keep up with all of the donationsweve had to hire more staff. I think were getting close to $30 million all told. Advertisement Advertisement You literally have been given so much money that you dont even know exactly how much money it is. Yes. Which is a good problem to have. And if youre using this in large part for bonds, then that can last a long time. The money eventually comes back to you and you can sort of rinse and repeat. Advertisement That is our hope, that we can use this for the future and keep helping people out on a much larger scale than we have been before. [The money raised by] the Willners was for family reunification and for bonding a family out. It started at $1,500 and spiked to $21 million. So, you know, we definitely want to use that money for bonds. Advertisement What else do you need? What are the bottlenecks? Yes, we have $20 million, but thats only enough to bond out 2,000 mothers, and it would take us well over a year. Jennifer Falcon, RAICES We also want to help resettlement. Even after reunification, these families have been through extremely traumatic events. Theyre going to need grief counseling. Theyre going to need counseling for a long time, especially young children who really cant even comprehend whats happened to them. And then theyll need flights and travel expenses to be paid for. Some of them are coming with nothing. They need clothing, they need toiletries, short-term housing, pro bono legal services. We definitely want to make sure that we help people get legal services as theyre being released so that when they are going for check-ins, were there to help them and advocate for them. Because this is a very complicated process. They need attorneys to be able to help them navigate through it. Advertisement Advertisement The other thing the Willners campaign did was raise your national profile. Youve been embracing that: You went to Washington and asked them to just accept one big check to bail out thousands of people in one go. Youve written an open letter to Salesforce declining a substantial donation. Would it be fair to say that youre trying to use your newfound prominence not just in terms of spending money directly but also in communicating to a much broader audience nationwide and trying to keep this issue alive? Advertisement We have ramped up our advocacy. There is an issue that people dont understand. Its very complicated. We have tried to use our voice to amplify what is going on. With the $20 million check, what we wanted to show is that we have a team of 15 people working to bond people out. Were bonding out at most 15 people a day, and it sometimes takes days and several trips to [the Department of Homeland Security] to be able to post bond for somebody. We wanted to show them that, yes, we have $20 million, but thats only enough to bond out 2,000 mothers. And it would take us well over a year to be able to bond those mothers out, if were working at the pace we are right now. Advertisement Advertisement Whats your expectation, in terms of how long this process is going to take and how long its going to take you to be able to use that $20 million? At this rate, it would take well over a year to bond out everybody we need to. We are trying to bring in more volunteers and more staff to be able to bond more people out at once. But we also went to Washington because we wanted to bring up that this is a larger conversation about reform and how complicated the bond process is. We need our elected officials to step up. There needs to be reform for this process. We dont believe detention is the way. There are no benefits in detention. All we see are abuses of human rights, trauma, heartache. Advertisement So in that sense, youre becoming more of an advocacy organization? We are creating an arm for advocacy in our organization, but we are still a legal organization. Our main goal is to provide low-cost and pro bono legal services to people seeking asylum. Advocacy is something that weve always done, and right now were adding a little bit more to that arm of things. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Do you think that you just spent $250,000 on advocacy by refusing the donation from Salesforce? No, I think that we made a stand. And all the millions of people worldwide who have donated to us put us in a position to be able to refuse that money. I guess thats something else the windfall gave youthe ability to turn around to someone like Salesforce and say, We dont need to accept this if you are doing something we consider unspeakable. Advertisement Honestly, I think its something that our team would have decided even if we didnt have the windfall. So I guess there are two threads to what youre doing: The core of it is the legal advocacy, trying to bail people out, and then youve also got the public advocacy. Youre saying that ultimately this is a problem that can only be solved at the political level, and so we need to get politicians to change things. I think that those two things are absolutely aligned. Going to Washington was our first action, and that was just the first step. We wanted them to know who we are, and that were not backing down. Were going to keep applying pressure and pushing in every way that we can. There was a great disturbance in the Force on Thursday, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in wonder, when Lucasfilm announced that it would bring back Star Wars: The Clone Wars next year on its new streaming service. Fans had good reason to be surprised by the news, given that the animated TV series, set between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, was canceled more than five years ago, soon after Disney bought Lucasfilm. The companys announcement at the time, that it would pursue a new direction in animated programming, sent a clear, decisive message: Disney wanted a fresh start for its newly acquired Star Wars franchise, and not just on the big screen. Star Wars: The Clone Wars would, thankfully, be allowed to remain part of the official canonit was spared the fate that befell other Star Wars comics, video games, and novels, all of which were declared non-canon in a single swoopbut the show, Disney seemed to say, was a holdover from a previous era. It had to go. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Except that fans were not quite ready to let it go. Its not that Lucasfilm Animation left them hanging entirelyThe Clone Wars wrapped up some of its most pressing storylines with an abbreviated sixth season, released on Netflix in 2014but devotees of the series were haunted by the episodes that were never finished, even as Lucasfilm found ways to deliver them in other formats. It didnt help that writer Brent Friedman revealed, tantalizingly, that The Clone Wars had already been fully written through a potential Season 8 at the time of its cancellation. And so began an online crusade to save The Clone Wars, one that lasted longer than anyone could reasonably have expected. There were Facebook groups, Twitter accounts, even entire websites clamoring for its return. There were multiple Change.org petitions demanding closure and laying out, in excruciating detail, why fans deserved that closure. And there was a snappy hashtag that the most dedicated campaigners continued to use, even after Lucasfilm had moved on to other projects and hope seemed lost. Advertisement If these tactics sound familiar, it might be because theyre similar to the ones currently being employed by another doggedly determined group of Star Wars fans: the faction demanding that Disney remake The Last Jedi. You can see why the success of #SaveTheCloneWars would bolster the confidence of the #RemakeTheLastJedi campaignersassuming, of course, that they are as serious about their cause as they claim to bebecause those tactics, apparently, worked. During the announcement at San Diego Comic Con last week, Lucasfilms head of animation, Dave Filoni, noted that hardly a week goes by that he isnt tagged on Twitter in a plea to save The Clone Wars, and he later acknowledged the role of relentless fan support in the shows revival. Even the trailer for the new 12-episode season recognized fans enthusiasm by flipping the hashtag #SaveTheCloneWars to #CloneWarsSaved. Advertisement Advertisement No one is happier than I am that The Clone Wars, the best thing to come out of prequel-era Star Wars, will be back to finish what it started next year. But its not hard to draw parallels between the fight to save the show and the fight to give The Last Jedi a do-over, because both require a certain sense of entitlement, a belief that the creators of Star Wars owe something to the fans, whether its the delivery of a promised season or an installment that lives up to expectations (however incoherent those expectations might be). And while a subset of The Last Jedi haters are taking that sense of entitlement to an ugly extreme, The Clone Wars fandom has, to a lesser extent, had its own share of trolls, with some lashing out at Star Wars: Rebels, the animated Disney XD show that followed The Clone Wars cancelation and involved a lot of the same talent. Advertisement Advertisement At the end of the day, however, the two Star Wars fan campaigns, despite using similar methods, are as different as the Light Side and the Dark Side. While The Clone Wars coming back was a long shot, its revival in 2019 makes a certain sense, given the sustained interest in the show; Disneys new streaming service can now rely on The Clone Wars built-in, very determined audience to subscribe. Compare that to #RemakeTheLastJedi, which has yet to make a compelling case for what, exactly, the company has to gain by complying with their very vague demands. Most importantly though, #SaveTheCloneWars has succeeded where #RemakeTheLastJedi will fail because its purpose, to paraphrase an embattled Star Wars heroine, was not fans fighting what they hate, but saving what they love. About Me I'm a patent lawyer located in central New Jersey. I have a J.D. from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. from Stanford University, where I studied graphite intercalation compounds at the Center for Materials Research. I worked at Exxon Corporate Research in areas ranging from engine deposits through coal and petroleum to fullerenes. An article that I wrote in The Trademark Reporter, 1994, 84, 379-407 on color trademarks was cited by Supreme Court in Qualitex v. Jacobson, 514 US 159 (1995) and the methodology was adopted in the Capri case in N.D. Ill. An article that I wrote on DNA profiling was cited by the Colorado Supreme Court (Shreck case) and a Florida appellate court (Brim case). I was interviewed by NHK-TV about the Jan-Hendrik Schon affair. I am developing ipABC, an entity that combines rigorous IP analytics with study of business models, to optimize utilization of intellectual property. I can be reached at C8AsF5 at yahoo.com. View my complete profile This is part of Season 2 of Whos Afraid of Aymann Ismail?, a series featuring Slates Aymann Ismail investigating fears about Muslims in America. Watch the entire series. If youve never had a bean pie, youre missing out on a lot more than a dessert. Made from navy beans, it was developed by black Muslims in the Nation of Islam in the 1930s. The history of why they created it, and what it represents, tells one of the most essential stories about Muslims in America. And as youll see, it is extremely delicious. Advertisement In this episode, I travel to Abus Bakery in Brooklyn, the only bakery in New York City to make the pie, where the founder and his son tell me why they carry on the legacy. I also stop by the Brooklyn Historical Society, where oral historian Zaheer Alithe head of an incredible project called Muslims in Brooklynexplains how a simple pie symbolizes the black Muslim experience in America. Aymann Ismail This series is written and produced by Aymann Ismail and Jeffrey Bloomer, and edited by Aymann Ismail. Watch more episodes: Why the Far Right Believes Every MuslimIncluding MeIs a Liar What Happened When a Muslim and Catholic Got Married in Small-Town Iowa Fox News Claimed a Sharia Law Court Is Enforcing Islamic Law in Texas. So I Went to See It. The grand unified theory of Brett Kavanaughs jurisprudence is that contemporary presidents dont have enough power, and the courts should expand executive authority to nearly monarchal heights. It is not a surprise, then, that this zealous supporter of the imperial presidency once questioned the most famous judicial incursion on presidential independence of modern history. On Sunday, the Associated Press Mark Sherman reported that, in 1999, Kavanaugh expressed reservations about the Supreme Courts decision in United States v. Nixon, the Nixon tapes case. Maybe, he mused, Nixon was wrongly decided because it took away the power of the president to control information in the executive branch. Should it be overruled? Maybe so, he concluded. Advertisement Later in his career, after he had emerged as a possible Supreme Court candidate, Kavanaugh seemed to reverse course. In 2016, he praised Nixon as one of the greatest moments in American judicial history because judges stood up to the other branches and enforced the law. But no matter what Kavanaugh thinks about Nixon today, that 1999 comment still provides a fascinating insight into his views on executive power. While the Supreme Courts specific reasoning in Nixon has been questioned on both the left and right, Kavanaugh did not merely criticize its logic; he condemned the courts decision to hear the case in the first place. This radical critique of Nixon reveals a judge who is eager to shield the president from oversightprecisely the kind of person Donald Trump would want on the Supreme Court as Robert Muellers investigation intensifies. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement No matter what Brett Kavanaugh thinks about Nixon today, that comment still provides fascinating insight into his views on executive power. Nixon revolved around secret recordings of White House conversations that incriminated President Richard Nixon in the Watergate scandal. When special counsel Archibald Cox sought recordings made in the Oval Office, Nixon had Solicitor General Robert Bork fire him in the Saturday Night Massacre. Facing political backlash, the Nixon administration replaced Cox with Leon Jaworski, who secured a grand jury indictment against seven of the presidents confederates. (Nixon himself was named an unindicted co-conspirator.) Jaworski then obtained a subpoena from a federal district court ordering the White House to turn over certain tapes relating to key conversations in the conspiracy. Nixon asserted executive privilege and appealed the case to the Supreme Court. In a unanimous decision (with Nixons one-time assistant attorney general William Rehnquist recused), the Supreme Court ruled against Nixon. The president, Chief Justice Warren Burger explained, is generally empowered to maintain the confidentiality of high-level communications. But this executive privilege must yield to the demonstrated, specific need for evidence in a pending criminal trial, because an absolute, unqualified privilege would impede the judiciarys primary constitutional duty to do justice in criminal prosecutions. A prosecutor pursuing a criminal investigation, Burger concluded, may overcome the privilege when he seeks evidence from the president that is relevant, admissible, and specific. And the Nixon tapeswhich the justices had heard under sealclearly met this standard. Advertisement Advertisement Specific aspects of Burgers opinion have since been disputed. The decision, issued less than three weeks after oral argument during the courts usual summer recess, was a rushed collaboration between multiple justices, and it shows. A digression about the Fifth and Sixth Amendments makes little sense, for instance, and Burgers balancing test is not exactly a model of clarity. But the broader holdingthat the court had a duty to decide this dispute and compel Nixon to turn over the tapesremains widely celebrated today. It truly was, as Kavanaugh put it in 2016, a paragon of judicial independence, a moment when judges stood up to the other branches in a moment of national crisis. Advertisement If Kavanaugh really did see the light on Nixon sometime after 1999, he should be able to explain his change of heart to the Senate Judiciary Committee. But nothing in his post-1999 opinions or jurisprudence indicates the fundamental shift in outlook that would be required for him to make such a dramatic reversal. To the contrary, Kavanaughs work over the last two decades builds on the basic premise of his anti-Nixon comments. Consider his precise critique of the decision, which attacks not Burgers substantive holding but rather the courts decision to take the case in the first place: Advertisement Advertisement But maybe Nixon was wrongly decidedheresy though it is to say so. Nixon took away the power of the president to control information in the executive branch by holding that the courts had power and jurisdiction to order the president to disclose information in response to a subpoena sought by a subordinate executive branch official. That was a huge step with implications to this day that most people do not appreciate sufficiently. Maybe the tension of the time led to an erroneous decision. Should U.S. v. Nixon be overruled on the ground that the case was a nonjusticiable intrabranch dispute? Maybe so. Here we have a straightforward evaluation of Nixons flaws: The case rolled back executive privilege too far by allowing a subordinate executive branch official (the special prosecutor) to subpoena recordings of private White House conversations. And so, instead of rejecting Nixons expansive claim of privilege, the Supreme Court should have thrown out the case without deciding the merits. To Kavanaugh, the fundamental error of Nixon is that the court treated the subpoena fight as a legitimate case or controversy between two parties, when, in reality, it was just a fight between an executive branch underling (Jaworski) and the executive himself. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Put simply, Kavanaugh espoused a unitary executive vision of the presidency. Under this theory, the president holds all executive power, which cannot be limited by Congress or his inferiors. Kavanaugh gave a full-throated endorsement of the unitary executive in a January 2018 dissent declaring that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is unconstitutional because the president cannot remove the head of the agency without good cause. The CFPB, after all, is an independent body within the executive branch. Its director is, technically speaking, the presidents subordinate. And if every bit of executive power is vested in the president, then surely he can terminate the director of an executive agency at will. Kavanaughs Nixon critique fits comfortably within this constitutional philosophy. Jaworski, as Kavanaugh reminded us in 1999, was a subordinate executive branch official. He sought tapes from his superior, the president, who refused to turn them over. Why should the judiciary get involved in a squabble between the president and some inferior within the same branch? To a unitary executive fan, Nixons preferences should trump Jaworskis demands. The case is called United States v. Nixon, but a better name might be Nixon (subordinate) v. Nixon (boss). Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For most of us outside the Federalist Society, these critiques of Nixon carry little weight. For most of us outside the Federalist Society, these critiques of Nixon carry little weight. Once the unitary executive theory is set asideas it should be, since it rests on a weak constitutional basistheres no reason why courts should not referee criminal investigations within the executive branch. But Nixon presents a real paradox for many conservative jurists. And, at least in 1999, Kavanaugh had the courage to acknowledge that, under his own theory of an imperial president, the Supreme Court had no business hearing Nixon. Now he claims to have changed his minda politically wise move. As law professor and Slate contributor Steve Vladeck has noted, Kavanaughs views have obvious ramifications for the current special counsel. If Mueller attempts to subpoena the president, Trump will likely fight the matter. That dispute may reach the Supreme Court, where Kavanaugh could cast the deciding vote. And if Kavanaugh thinks a prosecutor in the executive branch cant sue to enforce a subpoena against the president, then he would surely reject Muellers efforts to extract information from Trump. There is a chance that, after 1999, Kavanaugh decided Nixon was in fact correctly decided. But no matter what he tells the Senate Judiciary Committee, its worth remembering that the underlying philosophy which led to his Nixon critique remains in full force today. Kavanaugh still wants the president to have a huge amount of power over the entire executive branch. Thats a fact no one can seriously dispute, no matter what Kavanaugh does or doesnt believe about the Nixon tapes. In a dramatic escalation of President Trumps aggressive language toward Iran, the president tweeted late Sunday that Iran would, if it threatened the United States, suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. The comments, which shocked both Iranian and American officials, were directed at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and appeared to be in response to comments made earlier Sunday in which Rouhani cautioned diplomats in Iran against hostility, warning that war with Iran is the mother of all wars and peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, according to Irans state-owned Islamic Republic News Agency. Advertisement Writing in all caps, Trump responded, NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Rouhanis comments followed a speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in which Pompeo criticized the theocratic rulers of the country, accusing them of funding terrorism and accumulating wealth through corruption and at the expense of the Iranian people and their prosperity, security, and freedom. In his speech, Pompeo said the U.S. would step up a campaign to broadcast, across multiple platforms, a U.S. channel in Farsi that would encourage unrest in the country. You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Irans security and interests, Rouhani said in response. This approach differs from the Obama administrations efforts to negotiate with Tehran. The Trump administration, which withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal in May, is just a few weeks away from imposing sanctions suspended under the deal. After Trumps tweet, IRNA quoted a senior officer in Irans Revolutionary Guards as saying Trumps comments were psychological warfare. ALEXANDRIA, VirginiaPaul Manaforts trial was delayed until next week by Judge T. S. Ellis on Monday. The first major trial in special counsel Robert Muellers investigation of Russian election interference and links between Trump campaign officials and Russiaa tax and bank fraud case against Trumps former campaign chairmanhad been scheduled to begin on Wednesday. Manaforts legal team argued on Monday that it needed more time to review tens of thousands of pages of files retrieved by the government from the electronic devices of his former deputy Rick Gates. Uzo Asonye, an assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, argued for the government that those files were mostly photos and thus not relevant to the case for the governments purposes. Manaforts attorney, Kevin Downing, argued that because Gates testimony would be at the heart of the government case, his legal team needed more time to review those files for something potentially exculpatory. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Manaforts team had been seeking a longer continuance that might push the trial date past that of a separate case against Manafort in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, which is currently scheduled for September. Ellis split the baby and postponed the trial six days until next Tuesday, July 31. The judge also ordered that the government provide the defense with a full witness list. Judge Ellis maintained scheduled voir dire questionnaire dispersal for this Tuesday, but jury selection itself wont begin until next week, when the trial is scheduled to begin. Ellis ruled earlier in the day that the names of five witnesses whom prosecutors had sought to keep under seal should be revealed, and he also granted them immunity that was requested by the government. Talking Points Memo reported that those names were: James Brennan, Donna Duggan, Conor OBrien, Cindy Laporta, and Dennis Raico. Advertisement For jury selection, the judge rejected an apparent request by the defense for jurors to be asked who they voted for in the election. We are not going to inquire into how people voted, Ellis said. He offered that each side would seek to strike jurors based on their voting patterns and that he trusted jurors to be fair and impartial, whoever they voted for. Advertisement The trial has been a political lightning rod. Manafort is being charged with crimes related to allegedly unregistered lobbying work he did on behalf of a pro-Russian Ukrainian political party. Mueller had been tasked with investigating Russias interference in the 2016 election and any possible links or coordination between Russians and members of President Donald Trumps campaign. Earlier on Monday, Trump tweeted twice directly about Muellers investigation, calling it the conflicted and discredited Mueller Witch Hunt! and saying that it should be dropped. Advertisement Advertisement Mueller has won indictments and plea deals against dozens of people so far, including 12 Russian intelligence officers who are alleged to have participated in election interference, including hacks of the Democratic National Committee. Ellis made very clear that this casewhich covers tax and bank fraud charges against Manafortwas supposed to stick to those charges alone. Im not going to allow this trial to drag on, he told the courtroom on Monday. Im not in the theater business. You have to be better-looking for that.* Manafort, who is being detained in Alexandria while he awaits trial, was in the courtroom in the morning, but not in the afternoon. In private, according to reports, most Republican lawmakers agree that Donald Trumps press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin was a horrifying display of contempt for American institutions. But they wont speak out. Most Republican members are willing to admit POTUS doesnt operate in reality, but know theyre doomed in their next primary if they say so publicly, says Dave Wasserman of Cook Political Report. [Republicans] see no upside in speaking outand fear political suicide if they do, note Mike Allen and Jonathan Swan for Axios. Advertisement Retiring lawmakers like Jeff Flake of Arizona can make impassioned cries against President TrumpWe have indulged myths and fabrications, pretended it wasnt so bad, and our indulgence got us the capitulation in Helsinki, he said last Thursdaybut few Republicans will back them or take any action to hold the president accountable. (Flake, too, has often failed to offer more than tough talk.) After that speech, for example, Senate Republicans blocked a measure to affirm and support the nations intelligence agencies. Fear of the base is just that strong. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement What if that fear is misplaced? Yes, polls show high Republican support for President Trump, but those polls dont measure change in party identification. Most Republicans back Trump, but there might be fewer Republicans. If so, the dreaded GOP base might be less fearsome than it appears. Advertisement Most coverage of Republican voters paints them as a unified, unmovable bloc in support of the president. Huge GOP majority backs Trumps Putin performance, reports Axios, summarizing results from a new poll. In it, 79 percent of Republicans endorse the presidents handling of the Helsinki press conference, similar to the 68 percent who supported Trump in a CBS News survey and the 66 percent who backed him in a poll from ABC News and the Washington Post. General approval pollswhich give Trump upward of 90 percent support from Republicansreinforce the perception that, among GOP voters, the president is untouchable. His scandals and outragescontroversies and improprietieshave had an effect. But that perception misses important context. Presidents always have partisans, and its rare that they break ranks. On the eve of his resignation in 1974, half of Republicans still supported Richard Nixon, and 59 percent said he shouldnt be forced from office. Likewise, around 80 percent of Republicans backed Ronald Reagan at the height of the Iran-Contra scandal. For Trump, the key question is less how many Republicans still support his administration? and more how many voters are still Republicans? Advertisement Advertisement Voters have to identify themselves with a political party, and that identification isnt stable; it ebbs and flows with events and circumstances. Trump might win high marks from most Republicans, but the pool of Republican voters might be smaller than in the past. Far from standing tall over the entire GOP, Trumps base may have eroded significantly from where it was at the beginning of his administration. Advertisement According to the Pew Research Center, Republican Party identification fell 3 points, to 26 percent, from 2016 to the end of 2017. The number of self-identified independents increased at the same time, from 34 percent to 37 percent, while the number of Democrats remained steady. Gallup shows a similar change: From November 2016 to November 2017, there was a 5-point drop in the number of people who called themselves Republicans, from 42 percent to 37 percent. Democratic self-identification remained unchanged at 44 percent. Advertisement The sheer size of the United States makes it easy to find vocal support for anyone and anything, and Donald Trump has his vocal supporters. But their staunch commitment overshadows the reality: a shrinking base for a president who won by the skin of his teeth, reliant on a small group of voters in just a handful of states. His scandals and outragescontroversies and improprietieshave had an effect. Even rank-and-file GOP reactions to Helsinki are revealing; according to CBS, 21 percent of Republican voters disapproved of the president, a striking number given typical partisan loyalty. Advertisement A smaller base is still a base, and depending on their locations and constituencies, Trump-skeptic Republican lawmakers may see a backlash if they challenge the president. John McCains anti-Trump defiance has earned him real anger from Arizona voters, even as he prepares to leave office. Advertisement But not all Republicans share the same vulnerability. Recently elected (or re-elected) lawmakers have room to not only speak against the president, but to actually maneuver against him. We saw this with Sens. Tim Scott of South Carolina and Marco Rubio of Florida, who blocked a circuit court nominee on account of his racist writings. They took advantage of the narrow Republican majority to hold the White House to account, joining with Democrats to keep Ryan Bounds off the bench. Critically, there hasnt been blowback, and if it comes, both have four years to prepare for re-election. Advertisement Republican Trump critics in Congress insist theres nothing they can do, lest they enrage the base and jeopardize their seats. But the steady erosion of Republican self-identification throws this into question. Perhaps theres more space for resistance and critique than appears at first glance, and perhaps GOP lawmakers are playing themselves by hesitatingessentially allowing Trump to drag them down alongside him with the public at large. Of course, theres one other possibility: that these critics arent as serious as they appear. They might disagree with the presidenteven think hes dangerousbut not so much that they would jeopardize tax cuts or additional conservative judges. If thats the case, then the dreaded base may just be an excuse to avoid hard questions about inaction and to blame their complicity on something beyond their control. President Donald Trump seemed to make clear on Sunday that he doesnt, in fact, believe the intelligence community that Russia interfered with the 2016 election. So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election, Trump wrote Sunday evening. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!! So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement By calling Russian interference in the election a big hoax, Trump seems to once again be contradicting the conclusion of his own intelligence agencies. In effect, this appears to be a walk back from his previous walk back on the issue. After he received lots of bipartisan criticism for seemingly siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the issue of Kremlins efforts to influence the election, Trump claimed he had misspoken. I have full faith and support for Americas great intelligence agencies, I always have, Trump said. And I have felt very strongly that, while Russias actions had no impact at all on the outcome of the election, let me be totally clear in saying that, and I have said this many times, I accept our intelligence communitys conclusion that Russias meddling in the 2016 election took place. It could be other people, also. There are lots of people out there. Advertisement Yet it now seems the commander in chief has changed his mind again, and thinks the whole thing is all a big hoax, as he wrote on Sunday. Many were quick to point out that it seems Trump is back to suggesting the same thing he did during the news conference with Putin in Helsinki. Insofar as one can understand this more than usually incoherent tweet, Trump is back to claiming Russian interference in the 2016 election is a hoax, wrote Bill Kristol. Insofar as one can understand this more than usually incoherent tweet, Trump is back to claiming Russian interference in the 2016 election is a hoax. https://t.co/pBnhteffJL Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) July 22, 2018 Advertisement Advertisement The New York Times Julie Davis also pointed out that the presidents choice of words certainly does not sound like a president who accepts the findings of the intelligence community that Russia attacked the election. "All a big hoax" certainly does not sound like a president who accepts the findings of the intelligence community that Russia attacked the election. We are evidently back where we were about a week ago in Helsinki (had we ever left?) https://t.co/slLs097NU4 Julie Davis (@juliehdavis) July 22, 2018 Advertisement Advertisement In addition to the whole questioning of the countrys intelligence agencies angle, Trumps tweet is alsonot surprisinglyfactually wrong. As NBC reported in December, senior FBI officials explicitly warned Trump after he became the Republican nominee that foreign powers, including Russia, would try to infiltrate his campaign. Hillary Clinton also received a similar briefing. Trumps tweet calling Russian interference in the election a big hoax, came at the end of a day when the president was particularly active on Twitter accusing the nations law enforcement agencies of trying to get Hillary Clinton elected president. Without citing any evidence, Trump said that newly released documents relating to the surveillance of a former campaign adviser, Carter Page, confirm with little doubt that the FBI and Department of Justice misled the courts. He also said it seemed to provide more evidence that the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC. Advertisement Advertisement Congratulations to @JudicialWatch and @TomFitton on being successful in getting the Carter Page FISA documents. As usual they are ridiculously heavily redacted but confirm with little doubt that the Department of Justice and FBI misled the courts. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 A year and a half into the Trump administration, were at the point where the first reaction to the president tweeting an early morning threat of nuclear war at Iran is eye-rolling. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After a week of heavy criticismeven from some of his normal supportersfollowing his performance at the summit with Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Trumps all-caps Twitter blast seems like a transparent, but likely effective, effort to shift the conversation onto more comfortable ground (more comfortable for him, unnerving for the rest of us). Trump also has a well-documented habit of stoking, or at least unnecessarily inflating, international crises so that he can claim victory when things return to the status quo. Trump demonstrated a version of this maneuver during his recent trip to a NATO summit in Brussels, when he came in with (mostly misleading) accusations about allies defense spending, then departed with (mostly inaccurate) claims that these allies had promised to increase spending thanks to his threats. Advertisement On a much grander scale, this is also roughly what has happened with North Korea under Trump. The president would have you believe that through his strong rhetoric, tough sanctions, and skillful diplomacy, he has averted a catastrophic war on the Korean peninsula and removed the North Korean nuclear threat. But there was only widespread alarm about a catastrophic war breaking out because Trump was threatening to launch one. Even the Pentagon was reportedly reluctant to provide Trump with military options for fear hed use them. As for the nuclear threat, its still there: Kim has his weapons and seems in no hurry to give them up, despite the photo-op in Singapore. Advertisement Now Trump appears to be trying the same maneuver with Iran: Ramp up the tension until Iran makes a deal with himany deal, the details are unimportantthen claim victory for preventing catastrophe. As French President Emanuel Macron said after discussing Iran with Trump in April, His experience with North Korea is that when you are very tough, you make the other side move and you can try to go to a good deal or a better deal. Advertisement Advertisement But Iran is not North Korea, and theres reason to believe the playbook wont work the same way this timeone reason, perhaps, to be a little more concerned about Mondays threats. For North Korea, just getting a summit in which Kim Jong-un was treated as an equal by the president of the United States was a victory. Iran already signed a deal with the U.S. that hardliners in Tehran, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, were skeptical of. After Trump pulled out of that deal, its hard to imagine the Iranians signing another oneand certainly not one with tougher terms than the last one, as Trump has promised. Iran is also much less economically and diplomatically isolated than North Korea. While Israel and Saudi Arabia might cheer Trumps stance, Irans traditional allies and trading partners are unlikely to work with the U.S. on measures to punish Iran. (European countries are, probably hopelessly, seeking exemptions from U.S. sanctions for their own companies.) Advertisement Advertisement And with influence and proxies in countries including Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, Iran also has more means of retaliating against U.S. interests than North Korea ever did. Another reason to, perhaps, take Trumps latest threat more seriously are the indications that the administration has embraced, or at least is open to, a strategy of regime change when it comes to Iran. The latest flare-up between Trump and the Iranian government came after a speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in which he, again, stopped just short of calling on Iranians to overthrow their government. Influential GOP voices on foreign policy like Sen. Tom Cotton have said that regime change should be Trumps strategy, and the presidents lawyer and ally Rudy Giuliani claims it already is. Giuliani and national security adviser John Bolton both have been paid speakers at events sponsored by the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, a controversial and influential Iranian opposition grouplisted as a terrorist organization by the U.S. until 2012that has long lobbied Washington to pursue regime change. Bolton has also argued for a preemptive military strike against Iran in the past. Advertisement Advertisement What does not seem likely, despite Monday mornings threats, is an actual military intervention. The administrations tactics more likely will be increased financial pressure through sanctions, rhetorical support for the Iranian opposition and protests, and moves to counter Iranian influence throughout the Middle East. (Its a little unclear how that last goal would work with a rumored Vladimir Putinbrokered deal that would accept Bashar al-Assads and Iranian-backed forces control of Syria.) After the American experience of the last 18 years, theres little appetite in Washington for another war for regime change in the Middle East. And given Trumps own statements about Iraq and Afghanistan, it would seem to run counter to his instincts as well. But with U.S.-Iran relations as volatile as they are right now, this crisis could escalate much faster than either side intends. It may be that Trump can only threaten CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED so many times before those consequences actually materialize. Earlier this month, the White House dispatched Mike Pence to the Midwest to calm the nerves of Republican donors worried that Donald Trumps trade war will decimate their local economies. This week, the president will make his case personally to the regions votersa sales pitch made more difficult by the mounting evidence that farm states are bearing the brunt of his America First trade agenda. Trump will kick it off with a Tuesday speech at a Veterans of Foreign Wars event in Kansas City, Missouri, followed by an afternoon fundraiser for state Attorney General Josh Hawley, who is hoping to unseat Sen. Claire McCaskill this November. Democrats have hit Hawley hard for his support of Trumps trade agenda, and a leading outside group launched a splashy initiative last week highlighting the price Missouri dairy farmers and manufacturers are paying as a result of the measures taken by China and other trading partners in response to Trumps tariffs on steel and aluminum. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The presidents itinerary will also take him to Dubuque, Iowa, where hell hold a roundtable event with Rep. Rod Blum, who along with other Iowa Republicans has gone public with his trade concerns without criticizing Trump directly. And in Granite City, Illinois, Trump will tout a recently reopened steel plant in Rep. Mike Bosts district. Democrats have made Blum and Bost top targets in their quest to pick up the two dozen seats they need to retake the House. Trump being Trump, its impossible to know exactly what he will say until he says it, but its a safe bet that trade and tariffs will come up early and often on the trip. The Washington Post reported over the weekend that Trump is hell-bent on making trade a central theme of the midterms, despite a bunch of Republican candidates warning the White House that the issue will not go over well in farm states like the ones hes set to visit this week. Its not like you are going to change his mind, one unnamed White House official said of Trump. So we just have to message it the right way. Advertisement It sure will be interesting, and perhaps amusing, to see how Trump tries to spin this one as a winner. So far, the administration has relied on an intentionally vague promise to eventually help farmers and other producers become whole. But Trump has undercut that pledge by claiming that those Americans hurt most by the tariffs havent been hurt by them nearly as much as they think. Republican voters have proved theyre willing to take Trumps word over almost everyone elses, but theyll be less likely to take it over their own bank accounts. Advertisement The presidents pitch in Granite City should, theoretically, be a little more focused. The United States Steel Corp. announced earlier this year it would reopen a previously idled plant there, and Trump has touted that as proof his tariffs are bringing jobs back to the United States. But the announcement loses some luster if you pull back. Tariffs on imported steel can be a boon to the bottom lines of domestic steel companies since they drive up the price of their foreign competitors. But higher steel prices tend to be a blow to U.S. manufacturers that use steel in their products and to the farmers who need those products to bring in their harvest. Advertisement Advertisement The price of U.S. soybeans, meanwhile, has dropped roughly 20 percent since Trump announced his first round of tariffs in March, and the retaliatory actions taken by China, Mexico, and others has hit the meat industry so hard that specialized warehouses built to store exports are reportedly running out of room in their freezers. Blum and other Iowa Republicans are so worried about the long-term impact of the tariffs on their states soybean and pork production that they went public with those concerns late last month, a rare break with a president who is immensely popular with the partys base. In a joint letter to Trump, Blum and the rest of the states predominantly Republican delegation declared that the tariffs will be catastrophic to the Iowa economy and urged the president to act expeditiously to save our rural economies. Despite that warning, Trump has pushed ahead with his trade agenda. Now that the president is coming to Iowa, though, Blum is welcoming him with open arms. Advertisement Advertisement Looking forward to hosting @POTUS @realDonaldTrump in my hometown @cityofdubuque for a round table. President Trump was the first Republican nominee to win Dubuque County since Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 #IA01 Rod Blum (@RepRodBlum) July 22, 2018 Trump narrowly won Blums district in 2016, but the GOP incumbent is facing a strong challenge from state Democratic lawmaker Abby Finkenauer this year. More alarming for Blum and farm-state Republicans like him is that industry experts and economists say that the real-world impact of Trumps trade policy is likely to get worse between now and November. On July 17, special counsel Robert Muellers office asked a Virginia judge to grant immunity to five then-unnamed witnesses in former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manaforts imminent trial. (Manafort is being tried in Virginia on charges of bank and tax fraud related to lobbying work for Ukraine; he will also face other charges in Washington, D.C.) On July 19, Fox News Tucker Carlson reported that Democratic lobbyist Tony Podestawhose firm worked with Manafort on Ukraine lobbyinghad been offered immunity to testify against Manafort. Such friendly treatment of a well-connected Democrat like Podesta, Carlson said, was yet another indication that Muellers investigation is fundamentally biased against Donald Trump. This case ought to make you nervous, Carlson said to his viewers while looking directly into the camera, smashing his viewers across the face with subtext in Foxs trademark over-the-top-satire-of-1984 style. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement On Monday, however, Virginia judge T.S. Ellis granted immunity to the five individuals in question and ordered their names released. None of them are Tony Podesta: UPDATE: Special Counsel Mueller requested immunity for Dennis Raico, Cindy Laporta, Conor O'Brien, Donna Duggan, James Brennan to testify in Manafort trial - court filings pic.twitter.com/9a2SiUei30 Reuters Politics (@ReutersPolitics) July 23, 2018 Advertisement (At least two of those individuals appear to be former Manafort accountants; its not clear who the others area.) Carlson has a little bit of wiggle room here, given that he reported vaguely that the offer had been made, not accepted. Its also possible that the offer Carlson was referring to is related to Manaforts D.C. trial and not the one in Virginia; Podestas former firm is referred to in the D.C. indictment but not the Virginia indictment. But the timing of Carlsons report, coming just after the announcement of the five Virginia offers, seemed to suggest otherwise. (Carlson doesnt appear to have commented yet on the apparent discrepancy; well update this post if he does. Update, July 24: Carlson indeed says that, according to his sources, the immunity offer for Podesta involves D.C. and not Virginia.) One person whose reporting was definitely wrong, though, was former Manafort colleague and longtime Trump adviser Roger Stone, who said last week on the conspiracy site InfoWars that Podesta was one of those five witnesses that Muellers office had inquired about with Ellis. A rare miss for InfoWars! In a U.S. Senate debate with Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine on Saturday, Republican nominee Corey Stewart told the audience that we have a president who is standing up to the Russians, eliciting a laugh from the crowd. Stewart, a candidate known for his vocal defense of Confederate monuments and association with white supremacists, has made imitating and defending Trump a major part of his campaign. At the 90-minute debate, Stewart dismissed the Russian interference in the 2016 election as nothing too unusual. Theyve been spying for years, he said. Advertisement Instead, he called for greater cooperation with the Russians while also accusing European allies of mistreating the U.S. He called the Russian interference alleged and said that there had been no proven wrongdoing, calling the Mueller investigation a witch hunt, echoing the presidents own words. In reality, U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia did meddle with the U.S. election, and there have already been many indictments from the investigation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement We have a president who is standing up to the Russians, he declared. After a moment, Kaine laughed, and his supporters in the audiencemany of whom were lawyers from the Virginia Bar Association, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatchjoined in. Advertisement The comments followed a week in which Trump met privately with Putin and told reporters, I dont see any reason why it would be [Russia], causing many even in his own party to condemn his decision to publicly side with Russia over his own intelligence agencies. (He would later walk back the comment, arguing he meant the opposite of what he said, but he has since contradicted himself again.) Stewart stood in photos with the pro-white activist Jason Kessler before the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville and afterward broke with other Republicans in defending the alt-right participants in the protest. Stewart supported disgraced former Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, who was accused of molesting underage girls years ago. And Stewart has praised outspoken white supremacist Paul Nehlen as a personal hero. Stewart is polling lower than Kaine, and the incumbent is expected to easily secure his seat for another term. This story is republished from HuffPost via Climate Desk. For several months, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke managed to fly under the radar, as Democrats and environmental groups focused their attention on the steady drip of ethical lapses coming from Environmental Protection Agency administrator Scott Pruitt. With Pruitt now gone, Zinke appears to have taken the reins as the most scandal-plagued member of President Donald Trumps Cabinet. Since being sworn in in March 2017, the former Montana congressman and Navy SEAL has proven himself a loyal soldier of Trumps deregulatory agenda, working to scrap environmental safeguards and boost mining and fossil fuel production. But much like Pruitt, Zinke has been unable to steer clear of negative headlines. He has faced at least 11 formal investigationsmany of them ongoingand calls for several others. Thats more than the last four interior secretaries combined, according to an analysis by Colorado-based conservation group Center for Western Priorities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Aaron Weiss, media director at CWP, told HuffPost that Pruitt was the best thing Ryan Zinke had going for him. Between his shady business deals and clear abuse of office, Secretary Zinke could soon find himself spending more time responding to investigators than doing his job, Weiss said via email. Heres a short, incomplete list of issues that have many questioning whether Zinke is cut out to serve as the chief steward of Americas natural resources: 1. His ties to a Montana real estate deal At the center of Zinkes current ethical troubles is a development project in his hometown of Whitefish, Montana. According to a Politico investigation, the project involves a foundation Zinke started and was president of before resigning to take over Interior, and is backed by Halliburton chairman David Lesar. Zinke and his wife could stand to benefit financially if the deal goes through. House Democrats later revealed that Zinke met with the projects developers in his government office last summer, and they called on the Interior Departments internal watchdog to investigate whether Zinke violated ethics rules by using taxpayer resources for personal financial gain. Interiors Office of Inspector General launched a full investigation on July 16. Advertisement Advertisement Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) skewered Zinke in a series of posts to Twitter on Thursday, comparing him to the ousted EPA chief. Pruitt was not the only Trump Cabinet member with terrible ethics problems, and Zinkes issues also stem from ignoring ethics guidelines while empowering industry, Beyer wrote. 2. Make America Great Again socks During a meeting of the Western Governors Association last month, Zinke tweeted a photo of himself wearing socks that featured Trumps face and his campaign slogan Make America Great Again. He later deleted the photo and apologized after several groups pointed out that he likely violated the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from using their government positions to engage in political activity. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel launched an investigation into the matter earlier this month. Advertisement Advertisement 3. Keeping the public in the dark about personal meetings CNN reported Thursday that it had uncovered several instances where Zinkes official calendar excluded information about whom he met with or what was discussed. An Interior spokeswoman told the network that the secretarys team always strive[s] towards transparency, despite having not distributed Zinkes upcoming schedule in nearly a year. Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), the ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee, told CNN he plans to request another investigation. Advertisement 4. Flying in style Like other top administration officials, Zinke has come under fire for his use of private charter planes and government helicopters, including a $6,250 round-trip helicopter flight to meet Vice President Mike Pence for an afternoon horseback ride. The inspector general investigated Zinkes use of private planes at taxpayers expensea controversy Zinke dismissed as a little BSand concluded that he generally followed relevant law, policy, rules, and regulations. However, it found that one tripa $12,375 chartered flight from Las Vegas to Montana aboard an oil company planewas approved by ethics officials without complete information and could have been avoided. Advertisement 5. Exempting Florida from offshore drilling plan Days after the Trump administration released a sweeping new proposal to open nearly all U.S. waters to offshore drilling, Zinke traveled to Florida and announced that on the recommendation of Gov. Rick Scotta staunch Trump supporterhe was removing the states coastal waters from consideration. Zinke said Florida is unique and its coasts are heavily reliant on tourism as an economic driver. Democrats immediately speculated that the move was a political stunt to help get Scott elected to the Senate. CNN reported in April that the Office of Special Counsel is reviewing whether the announcement violates the Hatch Act. Zinke walked back his initial statement following demands from other states that they receive the same exemption. Advertisement Advertisement After talking with @FLGovScott, I am removing #Florida from the draft offshore plan. pic.twitter.com/lZIfdCDNOR Secretary Ryan Zinke (@SecretaryZinke) January 9, 2018 6. His apparent effort to bully Sen. Lisa Murkowski Last year, Zinke phoned Alaska Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan after Murkowski delivered a key vote to block the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Sullivan told the Anchorage Daily News that Zinke delivered a troubling message, indicating that Murkowskis defection could jeopardize future energy projects in Alaska. A probe by Interiors inspector general was effectively shut down after the Alaska senators refused to be interviewed. And Interior ultimately thwarted a subsequent investigation by the Government Accountability Office by taking six months to respond, only to refuse to give the watchdog details about Zinkes phone call. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement 7. He failed to disclose shares in a Montana gun company As HuffPost first reported in January, Zinke failed to report that he was still a shareholder in PROOF Research, a Montana company that manufactures and sells firearms. In addition to the undisclosed financial interest, Zinkes calendar shows he met with executives and a lobbyist for the companya move ethics experts said may have been a conflict of interest. In February, the Campaign Legal Center, a Washington-based government ethics watchdog, announced that it had asked Interiors inspector general to open an investigation. Advertisement 8. A staff shake-up that critics charge was politically motivated In June of last year, Interior reassigned dozens of senior staff, many to roles for which they had no experiencea move that an agency spokeswoman claimed would better serve the taxpayer and the departments operations. Advertisement Joel Clement, a federal scientist who blew the whistle on the administration and claimed he was reassigned for warning about the dangers of climate change to Alaska Natives, ultimately resigned. Interiors internal watchdog looked into the matter, but was ultimately unable to determine if the reassignments violated federal law because of a lack of documentation. It concluded the changes were made without a written plan or clear criteria, without consulting with the departmental leadership, and with no documented action plan. Advertisement Talking Points Memo found that the reassignments disproportionately impacted Native Americans. The report came roughly a week after CNN reported Zinke had told Interior employees that workplace diversity was not important. 9. Mixing work with politics Zinke has on several occasions met with Republican donors and attended GOP fundraisers during taxpayer-funded trips, drawing accusations that hes mixing official business with politics. In late March, he visited the U.S. Virgin Islands for the 100th anniversary of the transition of power from Denmark. While there, he flew on chartered planes, at a price of $3,150, and made an appearance at a Republican fundraising event. The Virgin Islands Republican Party later repaid Interior $275 for expenses related to Zinkes appearance after concerns were raised, as Politico reported. Advertisement These activities, along with a campaign-style TV advertisement that a dark-money group with ties to Pence recently ran that praised the interior secretary, has added to speculation that Zinke has lofty political aspirations. 10. Halting a health-impact study of mountaintop mining The Interior Department last August halted a study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine into the health effects of mountaintop removal, a mining process that involves blasting to extract coal. The agencys internal watchdog looked into the matter and concluded in June that Interior officials had little justification for stopping the study. Departmental officials decided to halt the study because they did not believe it would produce any new information and felt costs would exceed the benefits, Mary L. Kendall, Interiors deputy inspector general, wrote in a letter to Grijalva. We use third-party advertising companies to serve ads when you visit our website. These companies may use information (not including your name, address, email address, or telephone number) about your visits to this and other websites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services of interest to you. If you would like more information about this practice and to know your choices about not having this information used by these companies , click here. Planned visit of MPs to Crimea sparks controversy The Foreign Ministry advises against visiting the peninsula while the Ukrainian ambassador warns they could be prevented from entering Ukraine in the future. A group of Slovak MPs are set to visit Crimea at the beginning of August, and examine the situation there, the Sme daily wrote on July 19. A 10-member delegation of MPs and entrepreneurs are planning the trip. MPs Peter Marcek and Martina Simkovicova (both non-affiliated) are the only known names among them. Marcek, who is organising the trip, has refused to reveal names but claims they are going to check on the state of democracy and human rights in Crimea. He suggested that Ukraine might be violating human rights, rather than Russia. Deputies, citizens discouraged The Slovak Foreign Ministry pointed out that the country acknowledged the territorial integrity of Ukraine in its internationally agreed borders, including Crimea. Due to the current situation, the ministry does not recommend, as quoted by the daily, visiting the peninsula. People who visit Crimea without the permission of Ukrainian authorities, especially if they come from the territory of the Russian federation, must count on consequences from the Ukrainian side, the Foreign Ministry wrote on July 10. The delegation will very likely violate Ukrainian laws, according to Ukrainian Ambassador to Slovakia Yuriy Mushka. They will probably be banned from visiting Ukraine in the future, he said, as quoted by Sme. Coalition parties react Speaker of Parliament Andrej Danko of the junior coalition partner, the Slovak National Party (SNS), reacted angrily, saying the ambassador should not make threats and should know Ukrainian laws do not apply to Slovak citizens. Marcek has alleged that apart from independent MPs and businesspeople, some deputies of SNS and three MPs of the ruling party Smer are joining the trip, too. Head of Smer caucus, Martin Glvac, said, however, he knows nothing about this. The other junior coalition party, Most-Hid, posted on Facebook a stance that dissuades its members from visiting Crimea, while pointing out that both the European Union and NATO, the foundation of Slovakias orientation in foreign policy, refuses the annexation of Crimea by Russia and stress the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Moreover, MPs are not private persons and even in their free time, they represent their party and their country, Most-Hid summed up, strictly recommending its members not to join the journey. Why is Crimea the bone of contention? Russia annexed Crimea in spring 2014. Moscow first refused that Russian soldiers would come to the peninsula, and later admitted it was soldiers off the service, on holiday, Sme wrote. Most recently, in talks with US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted that we organised a referendum, thus confessing, according to analysts, that Kremlin is behind the annexation. Because of this step, the EU introduced sanctions against Russia, which are still in place. Marcek, who claims that Crimea has been Russian ever since while reminding that its attachment to Ukraine within the Soviet Union in 1964 cannot change that, suggested that those who want to know names of MPs going to Crimea can come to the Bratislava airport July 31 when they will be leaving. They fly to the peninsula via Moscow, Sme quoted him as having said. 23. Jul 2018 at 10:49 | Compiled by Spectator staff Explosion damaged a medical centre in Bratislava The explosion of a healthcare centre in the Vrakuna borough of the capital was probably caused by gas, but no official cause has been stated yet. The medical centre in Vrakuna, Bratislava, after the explosion. (Source: TASR) Font size: A - | A + The explosion on July 23, around 5:00, damaged the healthcare centre (i.e. surgeries of GPs and specialist doctors, etc.) in Bebravska Street in Vrkuna, Bratislava. It was probably caused by gas, but no official confirmation can be issued yet, the Sme daily wrote on that morning, citing the police. No information so far has confirmed fire as the aftermath of the explosion. Some cars close to centre have been damaged, too. Fortunately, nobody was injured in the accident, and no evacuation was necessary, either. A total of 23 firemen were dispatched to the site. This part of the building (i.e. the front facade which was hit most) was only finished two weeks ago, mayor of the Vrakuna borough, Martin Kuruc, told the TASR newswire. It seems, fortunately, that the structural statics have not been disrupted. After police end their work here, we will renovate the damaged part of the building one more time. Police have launched criminal prosecution against the unknown perpetrator(s) because of public threat. More detailed causes and circumstances are being investigated. Several surgeries and service outlets in the building have cancelled todays surgery and office hours. 23. Jul 2018 at 14:04 | Compiled by Spectator staff After three years of decline, unemployment rate slightly increased in June The rate didnt fall for the first time since September 2015. Font size: A - | A + The unemployment rate in Slovakia stood at 5.43 percent in June, up by 0.06 percentage points month-on-month and down by 1.47 p.p. year-on-year, said the Labour, Social Affairs and Family Centre (UPSVaR) on Friday, July 20. Labour Minister Jan Richter ascribed the year-on-year growth in the unemployment rate in June to university graduates signing on at labour offices, pointing out that long-term unemployment posted a positive development, however. There are certain cycles that periodically repeat themselves every year, said Richter, as cited by the TASR newswire. Nobody should be surprised by university graduates registering themselves with labour offices in June, and the same thing happens with secondary school leavers in September. Therefore, some fluctuations are observable in June, but it's natural. A total of 8,369 university graduates signed on in June of last year, with 670 of them still on the registers this June. This means that 7,699 of them managed to find a place on the labour market, said Richter. Labour offices have also monitored how many graduates have returned to the registers. Half of the aforementioned 670 people managed to find a job, but failed to keep it. This year, 7,506 university graduates signed on. Its important to us that many young people announced, when registering, that theyd already chosen an employer and will start work as of September, said Richter. Meanwhile, the trend of long-term unemployment is positive, stated Richter when 2,163 long-term unemployed were removed from job offices. He ascribed this chiefly to measures deployed within active labour market policy and projects offered by labour offices. The jobless rate increased after almost three years The unemployment rate in June of this year didnt fall for the first time since September 2015, as theres a lack of labour in some regions, and the labour market has some long-term problems, opines Lubomir Korsnak, analyst for UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia. The pace at which unemployment falls could thus slow down in the coming months. The growing economy should be able to continue to generate new jobs, however, especially in the west of the country, where there isnt a supply of suitable labour, said Korsnak. But the economy is already starting to show signs of an approaching cyclical peak, so it can be expected that growth in demand for new employees will gradually slow down, which may further decelerate the decline in unemployment in regions where the labour supply is still sufficient. This could highlight the diversity of Slovakias labour market even further. Two parallel labour markets operate in principle: one in the west of the country struggling with a labour shortage, and the other in the east and in the south of central Slovakia, which in the coming months is more and more likely to suffer from a lack of labour, said Korsnak. As a result of the low mobility of part of the labour force, several businesses in western Slovakia will be increasingly dependent on importing labour from abroad or will be forced to reassess their plans for further expansion in this region. Some numbers The unemployment rate calculated from the total number of jobseekers reached 6.58 percent in June, with no change on a monthly basis and a decrease of 1.56 percentage points y-o-y. The total number of jobseekers reached 181,447 in June, going down by 47 individuals m-o-m and by 40,486 y-o-y. In terms of individual regions, only the Banska Bystrica Region recorded a drop in the unemployment rate in June. As for districts, unemployment went down in 25 districts, while it increased in 54. A total of 82,391 job vacancies were available to jobseekers in June, representing a m-o-m increase of 1,514. The highest number of jobs was available in the Bratislava Region, and the lowest in the Banska Bystrica Region. 23. Jul 2018 at 22:00 | Compiled by Spectator staff Defence Minister Gajdos files motion against paramilitary group Slovak Levies The General Prosecutors Office should check whether the group poses a threat to Slovakias security and whether its existence is in violation of the countrys laws. Defence Minister Peter Gajdos (an SNS nominee) has filed a motion with the General Prosecutors Office to examine the activities of paramilitary group Slovenski Branci (Slovak Levies). He asked the GPs office to examine whether the organisation poses a threat to Slovakias security and whether its existence is in violation with the countrys laws or not. In addition, Gajdos emphasised the Slovak Armed Forces position as the only legal military organisation in Slovakia, while rejecting the notion that someone with an unclear aim is trying to militarise society and play at soldiers. It shouldnt be possible for a parallel military group that wants to substitute for the Armed Forces in their activities to operate here, said Gajdos at a press conference on Monday, July 23. While condemning cooperation with organisations of this kind, the minister said that it seems that actual members of the Slovak Armed Forces who collaborate with Slovak Levies are not breaking any laws, so their supervisors cannot take action against them. However, that does not mean that well let this slide in the future, said Gajdos. What professional soldiers gain from their training shouldnt be misused to train such paramilitary organisations. When the General Prosecutors Office releases a statement on its findings, the ministry will aim to resolve this situation, and look into how paramilitary organisations have gained access to military technology. Also, as the paramilitary organisation uses military-style uniforms and several features similar to the Slovak Army, the Defence Ministry therefore wants to consider legal steps to regulate the use of symbols of the Armed Forces and clearly define it by law. Representatives of the ministry also spoke about decommissioned military equipment located on a site in the village of Dolna Krupa, where the Russian motorcycle club Night Wolves founded their base. Read also: Read also: Biker gang complex in Dolna Krupa raises questions Read more Sold military equipment must primarily be controlled by the Economy Ministry, which issues the appropriate licenses and without which it is not possible to sell defence equipment, said Gajdos, as cited by the SITA newswire. The ministry has ordered an inspection of all military equipment that is currently in museums and also demands the return of the military equipment from the motorbike club complex, whereby it set the deadline at the end of August of this year. 23. Jul 2018 at 21:51 | Compiled by Spectator staff So, the vivo NEX actually has been around for quite a while now but the full specifications aren't really black and white. But anyhow, we finally got the full plate served from vivo Malaysia and as to how the speculation whispered, the NEX is priced at RM2799 only and will be available for pre-order starting today at every vivo concept stores, authorised resellers, as well as their online store at their own website, Lazada, Shopee and 11street. For our region, it seems that the lesser variant with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 chipset that was revealed in China is not coming at all, so we are getting the big gun after all which comes with a Snapdragon 845 chipset (finally). The Snapdragon 845 model also runs on 8GB of RAM and 128GB storage instead of the 256GB storage, no expandable memory available, though. Of course, as we mentioned in our NEX series hype news, it features a pop-up front camera, an in-display fingerprint sensor, a Screen SoundCast technology and more. No more notch! YASSSS Here's where the 3.5mm headphone jack is on top along with the pop-up camera (right), it's surprisingly sturdy Like the X21, the bottom has the same layout for the speaker, USB Type-C and a dual SIM tray (nano only) While the power and volume buttons are on the right, there's actually an AI Jovi button on the left which exclusively supports Google's AI services such as Google Assistant and Google Lens which is backed up by Vivo's very own AI Engine as well increasing AI performance. The camera of the device as been upgraded to the Sony IMX363 lens and 4-axis, Optical Image Stabilization, Electronic Image Stabilization as well as an AI Photography Assistant which features AI HDR, AI Filters, and AI Portrait Framing. Below is the official specification list: Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor 8GB of RAM 128GB internal storage (expandable memory not available) 6.59-inch Ultra Fullview Display (Full HD+) 12MP (f/1.8) + 5MP (f/2.4) dual rear camera, 8MP (f/2.0) front camera Features In-display fingerprint sensor, Screen Soundcast technology, pop-up front camera, USB Type-C Supports 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band connectivity FunTouch OS 4 based on Android 8.1 4000mAh battery Stay tuned for more vivo news at TechNave.com. This week on Interview Andrew Denton meets horse trekker Alienor Le Gouvello and pop star Troye Sivan. Alienor Le Gouvello Alienors is a story of grit, determination, will power and above all love. The French-born explorer travelled more than 5,300 kilometres over 15 months along Australias longest trekking route from Healesville, Victoria, to Cooktown in Northern Queensland. It was a gruelling journey she couldnt have completed without her three trusted Brumbies and dog by her side every step of the way. Alienor details the incredible journey both emotional and literal she embarked on; how she won the trust and managed to tame wild animals, her battle with the unforgiving Australian outback, her moments of genuine fear for her safety and the illness that hospitalised her. What makes this journey even more special is that Alienor also happened to find love along the way. Halfway through her adventure, Alienor unexpectedly crossed paths with Mitch Ballentine, a farmer and aviation specialist. Mitch explains to Andrew that is took seven months and a series of grand dates to woo this explorer into staying still. Troye Sivan Troye Sivan began his career at 11 on Channel Sevens Telethon in Perth. He became a global star in his teens, making his movie debut as young Wolverine and creating YouTube videos in his bedroom that have racked up hundreds of millions of views. Now, hes one of the worlds biggest popstars. Troyes new single is a duet with Ariana Grande and he recently shared a stage with Taylor Swift, who insisted they sing one of his songs. The 23-year-old boy wonder speaks to Andrew Denton about how he got where he is, discussing how to form authentic connections with an audience and musing on why eight million people would want to watch a clip of him getting his legs waxed. In a moving and candid conversation, Troye also reflects on his 2013 coming out video and its ramifications. He reveals the challenges he faced, before and after telling the world, and his ongoing struggle to accept his feminine side and overcome the voices of doubt inside himself. 9pm Tuesday on Seven. Nine News Sydney has claimed the 2018 ratings year after winning 21 of 40 weeks over Seven News. The metric of weeks won has become less referenced in recent years as a measure of annual success, except when somebody can own it. An increasingly common measure is an average audience across the television year. On that front Nine is also ahead in Sydney too at 273,000 to Sevens 242,000 (6pm 6:30pm) and 267,000 to 242,000 (6:30pm 7pm), Monday to Friday, excluding Easter. Presenter Peter Overton said, We have a team of hard-working and outstanding reporters, producers, editors and camera teams who strive each day to bring viewers fair and accurate reports on issues across our state, the nation and the world. This result is a true testament to their efforts. Personally, to be at the helm of Sydneys flagship bulletin for a decade is a great privilege and I thank the viewers who continue to trust and rely on Nine News to keep them up to date and informed. Nine News Sydney Director, Simon Hobbs, said: The professionalism, dedication and hard work of our entire team is second to none. Every day we remain committed to bringing our loyal viewers more stories and news, without bias, to ensure Nine News remains Sydneys most trusted source. Nine is also on track to claim victory in Melbourne shortly, while Seven has 21 weeks won in Adelaide and Perth. The South Australian Film Corporation recently announced a new initiative aimed at including content makers with disability under the banner of Full Tilt. It includes paid production attachments and a documentary strand with SBS. Gaelle Mellis, who has served as Creative Director of Access2Arts SA, and as Vice Chair of Arts Access Australia, becomes SAFC Disability Strategy Executive. SAFC Disability Strategy Executive Gaelle Mellis said For too long our stories have been told by others and non-disabled actors continue to win awards for cripping up. This has to stop. We want to tell our own stories and see ourselves represented authentically. Disability is a normal part of life. Disabled people can shed light on different aspects of the lived human experience with our stories adding to the richness and diversity of our cultural landscape. Courtney Gibson, CEO of the South Australian Film Corporation said Delivering Diversity is all about removing barriers to careers in the screen sector for a wide range of under-represented voices. SAFC is committed to working with industry to deliver positive change and enrich our working environments, to grow the industry and audiences alike. Seven drama Wanted is the first production to employ a Full Tilt attachment with emerging cinematographer Paul Vagnarelli, who is profoundly Deaf, working as a camera attachment. Vagnarelli is a graduate of Adelaide College of the Arts, Adelaide City TAFE with an Advanced Diploma in Screen and Media and has worked as a Gaffers Assistant (Lighting Department) on a number of local film productions but his dream is to work in the fields of cinematography and lighting. Wanted is his first experience on set of a major television production. Paul Vagnarelli said, This experience is invaluable in the development of my skills which will help my future cinematography goals. Wanted Producer Tom Hoffie said If Pauls significant contribution to the set of Wanted is any indication, then the Full Tilt initiative is sure to be an important driver to greater inclusion and diversity in our industry. We congratulate the SAFC for the initiative and would encourage upcoming productions to support Full Tilt. Entries are also open for three stand-alone short screen works by South Australian filmmakers to screen on SBS On Demand in 2019. SBS Director of TV and Online Content, Marshall Heald, said: The new Short-Form Content Initiative further strengthens SBSs commitment to growing diversity in the screen sector, encourages greater collaboration with screen agencies to support the local creative industry and ultimately, will influence how we tell stories on screen. Submissions close August 13. Foxtel has announced a new 8 part drama series Upright to star Tim Minchin and Milly Alcock as two misfits dragging a battered piano from Sydney to Perth (shades of Fitzcarraldo perhaps!). Lucky Flynn (Minchin) hasnt spoken to his family in years. Hes broke, distant and damaged. Hes also a gifted pianist, whose talent for music is matched only by his talent for self-destruction. When he learns that his mother has only days left to live, Lucky sets off in a hire car to drive the 4000 kilometres from Sydney to Perth to say goodbye to her, taking with him his only cherished possession in the world a battered and scarred upright piano. But what should have been a straightforward drive across the Nullarbor soon becomes a test of Luckys emotional fitness, when he (quite literally) runs into Meg (Milly Alcock), a hilarious, tough-as-nails teenager, who we soon discover has plenty of scars and secrets of her own. Produced by Lingo Pictures (Lambs of God, Wake in Fright), the script described as both funny & touching is penned by Chris Taylor (The Chaser), Minchin and Kate Mulvany (Fighting Season, Jasper Jones) and Leon Ford (Offspring, No Activity). Matt Saville (Please Like Me, Cloudstreet) will direct. Minchin will also write the music and is Executive Producer with Penny Win and Helen Bowden. Producers are Lingo Pictures Jason Stephens, Chris Taylor and Melissa Kelly (Hounds of Love). It will also screen on SKY UK. Tim Minchin said, From the moment I heard about the idea for Upright, I knew it was the show Id been waiting to make. I like stories that make me laugh and think and cry, I adore the landscapes of outback Australia, and I love music, and homecomings, and characters full of flaws. Its awesome to be writing with this extraordinary team, and Im looking forward to acting alongside Milly Alcock, who I think is a really special talent. Foxtels Head of Drama Penny Win said: As part of Foxtels commitment to telling great Australian stories, we are delighted to be able to bring this wonderful adventure to the screen. We look forward to working with Tim Minchin and Lingo Pictures on what will be a wonderful showcase of Aussie talent. Screen Australias Head of Production Sally Caplan said: Upright is a project that will also appeal in Australia and to the international market, with the hugely talented Tim Minchin on board to produce and star in the series. What attracted us to this series was the well-crafted young female protagonist, and work of the strong writing team including accomplished writer Kate Mulvany, and comedic writers Leon Ford and Chris Taylor. I have no doubt this moving and quirky comedy will resonate with audiences. Jason Stephens, Lingo Pictures, said: There are not many shows Ive enjoyed developing as much as Upright. Its been a joy having Tim back home and working with our talented team of writers scripting this beautiful and funny show. Matt Savilles direction always delivers something special so I cant wait to start shooting and bringing this story to the Foxtel and Sky audiences. SAFC Chief Executive Courtney Gibson said: Upright brings together an extraordinary combination of creative talents to deliver what promises to be outstanding television. South Australias stunning locations will provide the perfect setting for this landmark production for Foxtel, which will be based at Adelaide Studios. Morwenna Gordon, Commissioning Editor Sky Comedy, said: Sky Comedy is always striving to work with the best talent and on the most surprising, unique and beautifully crafted shows, so were delighted to be collaborating with the world class Tim Minchin on Upright. Alongside Milly Alcock (and a battered piano), were sure this is a road trip Sky customers will never forget. The series will be made in association with the South Australian Film Corporation. Screenwest and Create NSW are also investors. Production will begin in South Australia and Western Australia in October. Cookies op Tweakers Tweakers maakt gebruik van cookies Tweakers is onderdeel van DPG Media en maakt gebruik van cookies, JavaScript en vergelijkbare technologie om je onder andere een optimale gebruikerservaring te bieden. Functionele en analytische cookies die door Tweakers zelf geplaatst worden, worden gebruikt om de website goed te laten functioneren, bezoekersstatistieken bij te houden en a/b-testen uit te voeren. Ook kan Tweakers hiermee het gedrag van bezoekers vastleggen en analyseren. Cookies kunnen daarnaast worden gebruikt om op Tweakers advertenties te tonen die aansluiten bij je interesses. Daarbij kan gebruikgemaakt worden van bezoekersprofielen die door derden zijn opgesteld. Ook kunnen derden je internetgedrag volgen, zoals bijvoorbeeld het geval is bij embedded videos van YouTube. Tot slot kunnen cookies worden gebruikt om op sites van derden relevante advertenties te tonen. Content van derde partijen, zoals embedded videos van YouTube, wordt met een trackingvrij abonnement standaard uitgeschakeld. Indien je deze content wilt zien, kun je hier expliciet toestemming voor geven. Wil je meer informatie over cookies en hoe ze worden gebruikt? Bekijk dan ons cookiebeleid. Accepteer cookies ... Om deze pagina op Tweakers te kunnen bekijken, moet je cookies accepteren. Cookies accepteren Heb je al een account? Dan kun je hier inloggen! Today, (July 23rd), a row erupted across the political spectrum concerning the British government's decision to not block the death penalty for a pair of British IS-affiliated terrorists. Sajid Javid, the UK Home Secretary, has departed from the long-held tradition of Britain's blanket ban against the death penalty by writing an explosive letter to the US attorney general making it clear that the UK would not block the execution of the infamous 'Beatles' terrorist pair. The letter, which has evoked outraged responses from civil liberties and human rights groups, was leaked to The Telegraph and states that the UK would not seek 'assurances' over the sentences which the pair will receive when they are tried in the United States. 'The Beatles' British IS pair Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh both come from West London and counted as half of the four-member terrorist cell dubbed 'The Beatles'. They became widely known throughout the media for allegedly executing, torturing and keeping Western hostages in Syria where they were later captured in January this year. The Guardian noted that controversy over the trial of these two British IS terrorists has been raised before after the pair complained that they would not receive fair judicial proceedings because the UK government had stripped them of their British citizenship. However, relatives of those who were executed by the duo have called for them to receive reciprocal punishments, with the daughter of David Haines (the British aid worker who was beheaded in Syria) stating that they should face a 'slow, painful death'. Explosive row over the British Government's death penalty decision Visceral opposition over Sajid Javid's decision to abandon Britain's opposition to the death penalty has been heard from across the political spectrum. Labour's shadow attorney general, Shami Chakrabarti, has shown outrage over the contents of the leaked letter, arguing that the Home Secretary was essentially urging for 'this grave human rights abuse'. Interestingly, Theresa May's office has refrained from giving explicit support to Sajid Javid's decision and has said that the UK retains its opposition to capital punishment yet would not be drawn into saying how this stance fits with Britain requiring no 'assurances' over the terrorists' sentences. The notion of imposing the death penalty was also opposed by Diane Foley mother of James, an American journalist who was also executed by the terrorist cell. The BBC reported that Ms. Foley has expressed that she was "very against" capital punishment for the pair in case it made them martyrs in the view of other Islamic extremists. In addition, Amnesty International has called the move "deeply worrying", whilst Conservative MP Heidi Allen and Labour MP Clive Lewis have both expressed that they were "uncomfortable" with the Home Secretary's stance on the BBC's Daily Politics Program. This displays how opposition has been shared across the whole political spectrum rather than being an issue of any singular political viewpoint. Toronto, Canada, was the scene of gun violence on Sunday night (July 23rd). The Guardian reported that an incident happened at "Danforth and Pape Avenues in Torontos Greektown neighbourhood, which has many popular restaurants, cafes and shops." Reportedly, a total of 15 people were shot, including the gunman. One woman was confirmed dead and thirteen people, including a teenager, were injured. The gunman was shot and killed during an exchange of gunfire with police. The motivation for the attack is not yet known, but USA Today noted that Mark Saunders, Police Chief, had not ruled out terrorism, but they are not ruling out other reasons either. Toronto gunman seemed to deliberately shoot people in a restaurant The Guardian noted that footage from the incident showed what appeared to be a man who shot into a Greektown "eatery" from a position in the street outside. Police confirmed via Twitter, that a handgun was used during the attack. Toronto Police Chief Saunders has updated media from scene. 14 victims were shot with a handgun. 1 female adult has died. 1 young girl in critical condition. Suspect is dead (not included in 14 victim total) Witnesses call 416-808-2222 Anonymous tips 1-800-222-8477 #GO1341286 ^sm Toronto Police (@TorontoPolice) July 23, 2018 The police are calling for witnesses to come forward or contact their anonymous tip line. Witnesses describe their experience during the Toronto shooting Jody Steinhauer told Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), that she was out in the area with her family when they heard what sounded like about "10 to 15" firecrackers. She added that they were instructed to get to the back of the restaurant. The next thing was that they heard people "screaming" outside. USA Today cited one man, John Tulloch, as saying that they heard around "20 to 30" shots as they got out of their car. He said, We just ran. We saw people starting to run so we just ran." Gun violence on the rise in Toronto Gun violence in Canada is not as high as those incidents in neighbouring USA. However, it is on the rise. In fact, there were extra police on the streets to combat the rising number of weapons-related incidents. Toronto Mayor John Tory noted that it is a recent issue in Toronto and people never had to worry about it before. But, he added, "there are things that happen nowadays and they are just unspeakable. During a press conference, Tory admitted gun violence is rising, saying, the incident is "evidence of a gun problem." Police data shows that shooting deaths rose by 53 percent this year. Shooting incidents have risen by 13 percent. USA Today noted that "Toronto Councillor Paula Fletcher told CP24 she heard that the gunman was emotionally disturbed." She was particularly distressed that the gunman incident happened in an area of Toronto where families often go for dinner on Sunday nights. A supporter of the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) uses a mobile phone to photograph a portrait of CPP president Hun Sen during an election campaign in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, July 7, 2018. REUTERS/Samrang Pring/File Photo Thomson Reuters By Prak Chan Thul PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia's election organizers said on Monday they will investigate a complaint against about 30 former opposition party members for calling for a boycott of Sunday's general election. The main opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) was dissolved last year, part of a wide-ranging crackdown by Prime Minister Hun Sen who is looking to secure his grip on power after a 2013 election which his ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) narrowly won. The Clean Finger boycott campaign, spearheaded by exiled members of the opposition, refers to the ink voters use to stain their fingers. Authorities have said calls to boycott the vote are illegal, but rights groups argue the calls are not against the law. Ven Porn, head of the election committee in Battambang province, said a CPP official had lodged a complaint against former CNRP members. "We will investigate," Ven Porn told Reuters on Monday. With no significant competition left, Hun Sen, who has ruled Cambodia for 33 years, is widely expected to win on Sunday. CNRP leader Kem Sokha was jailed in September on treason charges which his supporters say were politically motivated. He is currently in pre-trial detention near Cambodia's border with Vietnam. CPP spokesman Sok Eysan said the party sought to fine opposition members up to $5,000 for calling on people not to vote. "This is incitement and a trick to prevent people from voting, which is against the citizen's rights as stated in the constitution," Sok Eysan said. Chea Chiv, a former head of the CNRP in Battambang who was named in the complaint, said boycotting the vote was not illegal. "I won't vote if there is no party I like, and this is freedom of expression as guaranteed by the law," Chea Chiv told Reuters. Phil Robertson, deputy director of Human Rights Watch's Asia division, expressed concern. "... when people go to vote, they have to stick their finger into India ink and so they (authorities) will be able to determine very clearly who's got an inky finger and who hasn't," Robertson told Reuters. Story continues "The people who have not gone to vote may face some intimidation and harsh questions." (Additional reporting by Juarawee Kittisilpa in BANGKOK; Editing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Nick Macfie) See Also: MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somalia's al Shabaab group said on Monday its fighters had attacked a military base in the south of the country, killing 27 soldiers. "We first attacked the base with a suicide car bomb and then stormed. We killed 27 soldiers and took the base. Some soldiers fled into the jungles," Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaabs military operation spokesman said. The base is some 50 km (31 miles) away from the port city of Kismayu. There was no immediate comment from government official on the attack. Al Shabaab fights to topple Somalias central government and impose its a rule based on its own strict interpretation of Islams Sharia law. Al Shabaab attacked the same base in June, wounding seven soldiers. (Reporting by Feisal Omar; Editing by George Obulutsa and Michael Perry) See Also: ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish police said on Monday they had detained 43 people on suspicion of being foreign members of the Islamic State militant group in a series of operations across Istanbul. Istanbul counter-terrorism police units captured the suspected militants on Friday in simultaneous raids on 15 homes, a police statement said. It was believed that they were members of social media groups linked to Islamic State and that they had been in contact with people in conflict zones, it said. The militant group has carried out numerous attacks across Turkey in recent years, including on a nightclub in Istanbul on Jan. 1, 2017 in which 39 people were killed, and a bombing in the city's historic heart that killed 12 in 2016. Turkey has stepped up security operations against the group's network inside the country in the last couple of years, detaining many suspected militants and eradicating several cells across the country. (Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Daren Butler and David Stamp) See Also: FILE PHOTO: Vietnam's Information and Telecommunication Minister Truong Minh Tuan attends a press conference in Hanoi, Vietnam June 30, 2016. REUTERS/Kham/File Photo Thomson Reuters HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam on Monday suspended its minister of information and communications for mismanagement at a state telecoms firm, official state media Vietnam News Agency reported, amid a crackdown on corruption. Police earlier this month arrested a former chairman of MobiFone Corp and another senior official of the Ministry of Information and Communications on allegations of economic mismanagement. The Communist Party's inspection committee found MobiFone overpaid for a 95 percent stake in a loss-making pay TV provider. MobiFone, one of Vietnam's three largest mobile carriers by subscription, bought the stake in private pay TV provider Audio Visual Global JSC for nearly 8.9 trillion dong ($386.07 million) in late 2015. President Tran Dai Quang approved a decision to suspend Information Minister Truong Minh Tuan for violations stated by the party inspection committee, VNA reported. Last month, the committee said Tuan lacked responsibility and illegally approved and mismanaged the stake sale between AVG and MobiFone, which is under direct control of the information ministry. Tuan did not answer calls or a text message to his telephone on Monday. (Reporting by Mai Nguyen; Editing by Nick Macfie) See Also: Ma Chetra 28, who runs the Social Breaking News (SBN) Pro-CNRP Facebook page, looks at during an interview with Reuters in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, July 3, 2018. Picture taken on July 3, 2018. REUTERS/Samrang Pring Thomson Reuters By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Prak Chan Thul PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - In June last year, Khoeun Virath was elected as a commune councillor in the capital of Cambodia, but months later his political party was banned and most of its leadership fled into exile - so now he works as a tuk-tuk driver to make ends meet. Virath's story is just one example of how a once-thriving opposition has been silenced and pushed underground by long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen and his allies ahead of a general election set for July 29. The government denies it has set out to sideline critics. "We have never banned criticisms but we ban insults and incitements because in an election situation, people need security physically and mentally," government spokesman Phay Siphan said. Hun Sen, who has ruled this Southeast Asian nation for over 30 years, has had virtually no opposition since November when the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) was dissolved by the Supreme Court at his government's request. CNRP was narrowly defeated in a 2013 general election. Amid condemnation from the international community, CNRP leader Kem Sokha was jailed last year on treason charges and almost 5,000 local authority positions his party had won were handed to members of the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP). "Inside the country, (CNRP members) are completely cut-off from communicating with each other," 30-year-old Khoeun Virath told Reuters at a cafe in Phnom Penh in what was once his constituency. "There is no leadership structure left." Many Cambodians are afraid to speak about the election, fearing their views could land them in trouble. Hun Sen has accused the United States of supporting the CNRP and plotting a "color revolution" to overthrow his government. "PEOPLE ARE AFRAID" Hoping to expose the election as flawed, opponents of Hun Sen have launched a campaign urging Cambodians not to vote. Story continues "People here are afraid, people don't want to speak out," said Khoeun Virath, who said he has been followed by plainclothes police many times. The government says calls for a poll boycott are illegal and has invited 50,000 observers, including some from China, Myanmar and Singapore, to monitor the election. Soeung Sen Karuna, 41, an investigator for rights group Adhoc, one of the oldest rights groups in Cambodia, said his organization had been accused of plotting a revolution and was finding it increasingly difficult to work. "NGOs who work in other sectors are scared of cooperating with us," he told Reuters at Adhoc's office in Phnom Penh. Five members of Adhoc were detained without trial for 14 months before being released on bail last year. They were charged with bribing a witness in a case against the now-jailed opposition leader, Kem Sokha. Supporters of Kem Sokha say the charges are politically motivated. Another person who knows the lengths to which authorities will go to silence critics is Ma Chetra, 28, who runs the Social Breaking News Facebook page, said he has also been targeted by the government over the page, which hosts news about land-rights protests, forced evictions, and other issues the government considers sensitive. Ma Chetra said he has fled Cambodia several times since 2017 after police sent a photograph of him with a group of activists at Phnom Penh's international airport. The activists were heading to Indonesia for a workshop on democracy, he said, but police circulated the image with the caption: "A group of youths who went to train to conduct a color revolution." The photograph, seen by Reuters, lists the names and some of the mobile phone numbers of those on the trip. Some of the group have since fled to the United States and France. Others are in Cambodia, but are keeping a low profile. With less than a week to go before the election, Phnom Penh is festooned with posters urging Cambodians to vote for Hun Sen but there are none for the small opposition parties, and there are few signs of the excitement that usually precedes an election. Back at the cafe, Khoeun Virath said the best hope for opponents of Hun Sen is pressure from exiled leaders and the international community. "With diplomatic pressure from abroad there can be a lot of momentum," he said. (Writing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre. Editing by John Chalmers and Lincoln Feast.) See Also: Brazil-focussed gold mining and development company Serabi Gold reported gold production of 9,563 ounces for the second quarter of 2018 at its Palito Complex high grade gold operation in the Tapajos region of Para State, Northern Brazil on Monday. The AIM-traded firm also noted the completion of a 6.4m brokered share placement to follow the $15m investment made by Greenstone Resource II during the second quarter. On the operational front, it said mine production for the period totalled 36,071 tonnes at 8.12 grams per tonne of gold. A total of 38,155 tonnes of run of mine ore was processed through the plant from the combined Palito and Sao Chico orebodies, with an average grade of 7.71 g/t of gold. An additional 4,861 tonnes of historical tailings were also processed through the leaching circuit at a grade of 4.38 g/t of gold. Horizontal mine development completed during the quarter was 2,744 metres. Palito development and production was still focussed on the four main sectors of Senna, Pipocas, G3 and Mogno, the Serabi board reported, whilst in the Sao Chico orebody, the main ramp was now close to reaching the next planned level at -15mRL - approximately 280 vertical metres below surface. Production was coming from levels 70 and 56mRL, with levels 10 and -3mRL in development. Step-out surface drilling was said to be underway on both the Palito and Sao Chico orebodies, with initial drilling results to be released during the third quarter. By the end of the quarter, surface ore stocks were approximately 7,800 tonnes - down from 10,200 tonnes at the end of March - with an average grade of 3.5 g/t of gold, together with approximately 36,000 tonnes of flotation tailings grading approximately 3.0 g/t gold. During the year we expect to generate steady positive news flow, starting with an exploration update early in the third quarter, as well as licensing progress at Coringa, said Serabi Gold chief executive Mike Hodgson. Our ambition remains to establish ourselves as a significant gold producer in Brazil with a target of an annualised production rate of 100,000 ounces within the next two years. SRT Marine Systems said on Monday that it swung to a full-year loss as revenue slumped following the cancellation of a key contract. In the year to the end of March, the company swung to a loss before tax and exceptional items of 5.8m from a profit of 1.2m the year before, as it recorded a one-off exceptional impairment charge of 1.5m in relation to a systems contract with a European systems integrator, which is a prime contractor to a SE Asian coast guard. "Although we received written re-assurances from the customer, including a letter from the end customer explaining that the delay had arisen due to a lack of budget availability and would re-commence in the future, since in this instance, SRT was not the prime contractor and thus not engaged directly with the end customer, we decided that given this lack of visibility it was prudent for us to write down the full value of the project." Meanwhile, revenue in the year tumbled to 5.3m from 11m. Chief executive officer Simon Tucker said: "I am very disappointed with the shortfall in our revenues for the year, which was caused by an unexpected contract change. This does not reflect the excellent operational progress the business has made with regards to product development and sales opportunities. "I recognise that we are measured on the profits that SRT delivers and to that end expect SRT to measure up to expectations in the near future." At 1025 BST, the shares were down 3.5% to 25.33p. Analysts from Canaccord Genuity on Monday downgraded their rating of Midwich Group from Buy to Hold as they expect the firms share price to trade around current levels over the near-term, following a strong recent performance. Nevertheless, the Canadian broker raised its target price for the firm's shares from 660p to 707p on the back of expectations for fatter margins. Those same margins also translated into improved earnings forecasts from Canaccord analysts, who raised their FY 2018 gross margin assumption from 15.7% to 16%. The Canaccord analysts explained: The companys growth prospects remain excellent, in our view, reflecting underlying growth in professional audio visual (AV) markets, the likelihood of further market share gains and excellent acquisition potential given the fragmented nature of AV markets. Midwich is an international group of AV, professional video, broadcast, lighting and document distribution firms that attempt to combine talent and technology to provide advice and support to a diverse customer base. The AIM-traded companys full-year cash generation was expected to be in-line with its long-term performance, despite falling slightly during the first half of the year. Analysts also projected Midwichs dividend per share to rise 7% to 14.7p in 2018, before a further 4% jump to 15.3p in 2019. Midwich has continued to achieve excellent growth in the first half of 2018, supported by three acquisitions made in 2017 (Sound Technology in the UK, Earpro in Spain and van Domburg in The Netherlands). Gross margins have increased yet again, partly reflecting higher gross margins from last years acquisitions, the broker said. Midwich Groups shares were up 3.82% at 670.00p at 1055 BST. Commodities edged higher on Monday against the backdrop of a dip in the US dollar, even after crude oil futures surrendered early gains on the back of continued verbal sparring between Tehran and Washington at the weekend. As of 1735 BST, the US dollar spot index was down by 0.07% at 83.62 and the Bloomberg commodity index up by 0.12% to 94.593. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures were heading lower after the close, erasing 0.69% to change hands at $67.79 a barrel on the NYMEX. Earlier they had traded as high as $69.31 a barrel, after Iranian President Hasan Rouhani told Washington not to "play with the lion's tail". In response, US President Donald Trump warned Tehran to never threaten his country. Losses in WTI also materialised despite the results of Baker Hughes's latest rig count survey, for the week ending on 20 July. The survey, published on Friday, showed a drop of five rigs to 858. Other energy futures were mostly lower too, with NYMEX natural gas losing 1.34% to trade at $2.72/MMBtu. Gold futures were continuing to be weighed down by strength in the Greenback, despite the headlines on the geopolitical front, with August gold on COMEX slipping 0.54% to $1,224.40/oz.. It was a similar story for base metals, with COMEX copper slipping 0.25% to $2.7490 a pound. Commenting on the red metal's fortunes at the start of the week, traders at Sucden Financial pointed out that "there is a focus on copper to Wednesday where Escondida union will be deciding on whether to strike, but also not that ICSG reports that cu showed a January April surplus of 50K and US home sale disappointed." In the background, economists at UBS revised down their projections for Chinese GDP growth in 2018 and 2019 from 6.6% and 6.4% to 6.5% and 6.2%, respectively, on account of the expected hit to the country's growth from US tariffs on trade. Linked to the above, the yuan was again trading on the back foot versus the US dollar. Agriculture futures on the other hand were mostly higher, save for three-month ICE-traded cocoa, which was giving back 1.08% to $2,297 per metric tonne. Shares on the Continent are continuing to trade slightly lower, after G-20 finance ministers warned at the weekend that global economic growth was becoming less synchronised and that downside risks over the short to medium-term had risen, although they added that it remained strong. Capturing the mood in markets, analysts at Rabobank mused: "The G-20 summit over the weekend saw a communique that global trade tensions threaten growth. Luckily, US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin also stated that there is "light at the end of the tunnel." Perhaps there is. And perhaps that light is a train coming towards us." As of 1224 BST, the benchmark Stoxx 600 had tapered its losses to just 0.20% or 0.76 points to 384.46, alongside a 0.26% or 32.28 point fall for the German Dax to 12,529.64 and a slide of 0.61% or 32.98 points to 5,365.55 for the French Cac-40. On Sunday, G-20 finance ministers had failed to agree on how to tackle the multiple disagreements between participants over US trade tarrifs. A growing war of words between Washington and Tehran at the weekend was also making headlines, with the Iranian President telling the US that: "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." More positively, speaking on the sidelines of the G-20 finance ministers' meeting on Sunday, US Treasury Secretary, Steve Mnuchin, told Bloomberg News there was "no" chance of a currency war. Nevertheless, investors were on their guard, especially in the wake of the recent weakening of the Chinese yuan, although on Monday it strengthened slightly, giving markets a bit of a breather. Also weighing on sentiment was the US President's criticism of his country's central bank and accusations of currency manipulation against China and the euro area, both last Friday as well. Government bond yields extend move higher, then fall back Government bonds were seeing some follow-through selling on Monday, further dampening risk appetite, after Reuters reported last Friday that the Bank of Japan might be mulling tweaking its monetary policy. The yield on the benchmark 10-year German government bond was up by one basis points at 0.38%, after hitting 0.39%, mimicking a similar rise in US bond yield during the previous session on the back of reports that the BoJ was studying making some changes to its policy of keeping longer-term government bond yields capped, so as to make the policy more sustainable. Against that backdrop, investors were waiting on a meeting between Donald Trump and European Commission chief, Jean Claude Juncker, on Wednesday, that analysts at UniCredit said might prove to be the most important risk event of the whole week, more so than the European Central Bank's policy meeting scheduled for Wednesday or a preliminary reading on US second quarter GDP growth, next Friday. The data calendar was light on Monday, with only the European Commission's preliminary reading on Eurozone consumer sentiment for July set for release. Later in the session, albeit after the close of trading in London, the spotlight was expected to be on the latest quarterly results from America's Alphabet. A reading on new US home sales in June was also due to be published, at 1500 BST. Ryan Air hits heavy turbulence, Fiat and Julius Baer also under pressure Shares in RyanAir, Europe's largest carrier, were a standout faller after the company reported a 20% drop in first quarter profits. Although management at the Irish discount airline stood by its full-year guidance, it said its outlook was "heavily dependent" on how it fared in the third quarter, as well as strikes by cabin crews and air traffic controllers. Commenting on the company's quandry, Mike van Dulken at Accendo Markets said: "A downbeat outlook message from Ryanair on Q2 pricing, zero H2 visibility, higher fuel costs, the risk of more disruption (ATC and crew strikes) and, of course, Brexit is weighing on both it and peers." Fiat Chrysler shares were also under the cosh, following news that its boss, Sergio Marchionne, had been replaced by Jeep and ram chief, Mike Manley, after falling seriously ill. Nevertheless, the stock was off its earlier lows, helped by Morgan Stanley's decision to reiterate an 'overweight' stance and 23.0 target price on the automaker's shares. Shares of asset manager Julius Baer were down despite reporting a 26% jump in profits to a record CHF443.8m, as assets under management over the first six months of the year rose from CHF354.7bn to CHF399.9bn. That was despite an increasingly cautious market backdrop on the heels of rising trade tensions, Julius Baer said. Shares on the Continent have begun the morning trading lower, after G-20 finance ministers warned at the weekend that global economic growth was becoming less synchronised and that downside risks over the short to medium-term had risen, although they added that it remained strong. Capturing the mood in markets, analysts at Rabobank mused: "The G-20 summit over the weekend saw a communique that global trade tensions threaten growth. Luckily, US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin also stated that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Perhaps there is. And perhaps that light is a train coming towards us." As of 0916 BST, the benchmark Stoxx 600 was slipping by 0.28% or 1.08 points to 384.54, alongside a 0.15% or 18.73 point fall for the German Dax to 12,542.69 and a slide of 0.48% or 26.18 points to 5,372.14 for the French Cac-40. On Sunday, G-20 finance ministers had failed to agree on how to tackle the multiple disagreements between participants over US trade tarrifs. More positively, speaking on the sidelines of the G-20 finance ministers' meeting on Sunday, US Treasury Secretary, Steve Mnuchin, told Bloomberg News there was "no" chance of a currency war. Nevertheless, investors were on their guard, especially in the wake of the recent weakening of the Chinese yuan, although on Monday it strengthened slightly, giving markets a bit of a breather. Also weighing on sentiment was the US President's criticism of his country's central bank and accusations of currency manipulation against China and the euro area, both last Friday as well. Bond yields snap higher Government bond yields were moving higher too, further dampening risk appetite, after it was reported that the Bank of Japan might be mulling tweaking its monetary policy. The yield on the benchmark 10-year German government bond was up by four basis points at 0.35%, mimicking a similar rise in US bond yield during the previous session on the back of reports that the BoJ was studying making some changes to its policy of keeping longer-term government bond yields capped, so as to make the policy more sustainable. Against that backdrop, investors were waiting on a meeting between Donald Trump and European Commission chief, Jean Claude Juncker, on Wednesday, that analysts at UniCredit said might prove to be the most important risk event of the whole week, more so than the European Central Bank's policy meeting scheduled for Wednesday or a preliminary reading on US second quarter GDP growth, next Friday. The data calendar was light on Monday, with only the European Commission preliminary reading on Eurozone consumer sentiment for July set for release. Later in the session, albeit after the close of trading in London, the spotlight was expected to be on the latest quarterly results from America's Alphabet. A reading on new US home sales in June was also set for release, at 1500 BST. Ryan Air hits heavy turbulence Shares in RyanAir, Europe's largest carrier, were a standout faller after the company reported a 20% drop in first quarter profits. Although management at the Irish discount airline stood by its full-year guidance, it said its outlook was "heavily dependent" on how it fared in the third quarter, as well as strikes by cabin crews and air traffic controllers. Commenting on the company's quandry, Mike van Dulken at Accendo Markets said: "A downbeat outlook message from Ryanair on Q2 pricing, zero H2 visibility, higher fuel costs, the risk of more disruption (ATC and crew strikes) and, of course, Brexit is weighing on both it and peers." London stocks were set for a weaker open on Monday amid ongoing trade tensions following the G20 summit. The FTSE 100 was called to open 33 points lower at 7,645. CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "Having spent the last few months worrying about a trade war, markets got something else to worry about at the end of last week when President Trump outlined his unhappiness about the strength of the US dollar, as well as the prospect of further rate rises from the US Federal Reserve. He went on to accuse the EU and China of deliberately weakening their currencies, as well as expressing a willingness to impose tariffs on all Chinese imports into the US. "These comments prompted a sharp fall in the US dollar and raised concerns that currencies may well be about to be brought onto the field of battle as another weapon in the war of tariffs and trade, as the US administration tries to limit the effects of its own fiscal stimulus, and buoyant economy on the US dollar. "There was no sign at the weekend G20 finance ministers meeting that either side was prepared to give ground with the French finance minister Bruno Le Maire reiterating that the EU would not negotiate with a gun to our head and the German finance minister Olaf Scholz pushing back on the claims that the EU artificially holds down its currency." Looking ahead to the rest of the week, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker is due to meet Trump at the White House on Wednesday. In corporate news, budget airline Ryanair posted a 20% drop in first-quarter pre-tax profit on Monday as higher costs and strikes took their toll. Pre-tax profit fell to 345.4m, while profit after tax was also down 20%, to 397m. Revenue rose 9% to 1.9bn as ancillary revenue pushed up 25%, while and passenger numbers grew 7% to 37.6m. Chief executive officer Michael O'Leary attributed the drop in profit to lower fares, the absence of Easter in the quarter, higher oil price and pilot costs. BHP Billiton said it would defend a class action by investors over the Samarco dam disaster of 2015 that killed 19 people. The claim, served in Australia, alleges BHP breached disclosure obligations and engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct. Paragon Banking Group updated the market on its trading on Monday, based upon the business performance from 1 October to 30 June, saying it continued to operate in line with the board's expectations. The company said that, in the quarter to June, mortgage lending totalled 409.4m, taking year-to-date lending to 1.13bn, up from 1.06bn year-on-year. Commercial lending totalled 179.7m, taking year to date lending to 449.0m, which was up from 285.0m this time last year. Barclays is set to create up to 2,500 jobs at its new Glasgow tech hub, doubling its current workforce in Scotland. The lender is developing a campus in Buchanan Wharf as a base for its functions, technology and operations teams, with the move expected to boost Scotlands financial services sector and to "play a pivotal role" in Barclays' long-term strategic priorities, Barclays said. Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said the investment would be "transformational for Glasgow", strengthening its financial services sector. Barclays has purchased the campus development from Drum Property Group and is finalising the design for the new facility as part of a wider development. The banks existing Scottish operations are expected to transfer from 2021. The project has been granted 12.75m by Scottish Enterprise which requires that at least 42% of the new jobs are of "high value", and at least 341 posts made available for disadvantaged workers. Paul Compton, chief operating officer at Barclays, said: "The Glasgow campus, alongside others in Whippany, New Jersey, and Pune, India, is part of a global strategy to create world-class facilities for our functions, technology and operations teams. "This new campus at Buchanan Wharf is a flagship project for the bank, which builds on Barclays' long history in Scotland and clearly demonstrates our commitment to supporting the UK economy." BHP Billiton said it would defend a class action brought by investors over the Samarco dam disaster of 2015 that killed 19 people and devastated communities. The claim, backed by about 3,000 investors and served in Australia, alleges BHP breached disclosure obligations and engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. The paper said the claim was backed by investors in the Anglo-Australian miners London-listed shares and Australian shares. In a brief stock exchange statement, BHP did not give details of the claim except to say it was filed in the federal court of Australia in Victoria. "BHP intends to defend the claim," the FTSE 100 company said. The disaster occurred at the Samarco iron ore operation in Brazil, a joint venture between BHP and the Brazilian miner Vale. When the dam burst it killed 19 people and flooded three communities leaving people homeless. In June 2018 BHP paid $158m into a remediation and compensation fund set up in Brazil. BHP and Vale agreed a two-year deadline to settle a 31bn civil claim in Brazil for the disaster. The investor class action claims there were a series of problems at Samarco in the years before the dam failed and that spending on safety and maintenance was reduced from 2012 until the collapse. The statement of claim alleges BHP knew about risks of failure at the dam no later than 27 August 2014 and should have alerted the Australian securities regulator to this risk and the consequential financial risk, the Sydney Morning Herald said. Ryanair s 20% fall in first-quarter profit left analysts largely supportive. Most kept faith with the budget airline, arguing its low-cost, high volume model would emerge intact from turbulence as in the past. But others thought they detected signs of more fundamental problems for the Dublin-based company's business. Jarrod Castle at UBSs initial take was sanguine. In a brief note to clients he said: How would we expect investors to react? A: Results and outlook broadly in line so dont expect material share price reaction. Gerald Khoo at Liberum was also supportive but noted that the prospect of air-crew strikes would make investors wary. We see consensus estimates changing little but with the balance of risks to the downside. Strike action is bad for sentiment and creates short-term risks to earnings, but should not impact Ryanairs long-term competitive position, cost leadership, financial strength or cash generation. We anticipate further industrial action as Ryanair attempts to reach agreements for the first time with trade unions in each of the countries it has operating bases in Industrial action is clearly unwelcome but it does not dilute Ryanairs sound and attractive long-term fundamentals. Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said Ryanair boss Michael OLeary may need to dust down some of his headline-grabbing proposals to cut costs such as making passengers load their own baggage. Ryanair has also previously talked about potentially offering event tickets, restaurant bookings and other travel-related services. The airline has certainly done a very good job so far at sweating its assets and making money from passengers beyond the price of an airline ticket. Yet first quarter results would suggest it needs to do more to cope with higher oil prices, higher pilot costs and yet another bout of strikes. Steps are already being taken by ordering new aircraft which have more seats and lower fuel costs, although they arent due for delivery for another few years. EasyJet recently made plans to bulk up its package holidays business in order to capitalise on its strong brand and squeeze more money out of its customers. Ryanair also has a holiday business albeit not one it talks about much perhaps this situation may change if EasyJet makes progress with its proposition. Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, also noted Ryanair was feeling the squeeze from pressure to improve pay and conditions for its historically non-union workers. Some sense from reading these results that the expected dent to the low-cost model from unionisation etc is already feeding through to the bottom line, although it may be unwise to read too much into a single quarters numbers. We note that FY profit guidance remains unchanged although this remains on the whims of French air traffic controllers, its own staff talks, Brexit and close-in Q2 fares. 'Nevertheless, costs have jumped significantly higher. Unionisation on the one hand and higher oil prices on the other have combined to destroy margins Striking ATC [air traffic control] workers are a perennial bugbear for Ryanair, but these days its facing staffing trouble far closer to home. "Of course higher oil prices are not just a Ryanair problem and management says European airlines are suffering a significant cash flow squeeze and/or are close to breaching debt covenants. Ryanair suggests this will lead to further airline failures and consolidation this winter, a trend that we would agree with. As consistently argued, Ryanair is exceptionally well placed to take advantage of long overdue consolidation in Europe." The hedge fund pushing for change at passport and banknote maker De La Rue has increased its stake and ramped-up pressure on the boss to overhaul the firm. Crystal Amber is now understood to control about 4 per cent of the British company, up from 3.1 per cent following a high volume of trades on Friday. The activist fund is calling on De La Rue's management to come up with a strategy that will prepare it for the future by focusing more on selling its technology. - The Daily Mail Tesco is set to launch a chain of discount shops to take on cut-price German retailers Aldi and Lidl at their own game. The supermarket giant has earmarked as many as 60 existing stores to transform into a low-price chain expected to operate under a new brand name. Sources speculated that the stores may be called Jack's a reference to Tesco founder Jack Cohen because an obscure Tesco subsidiary recently tried to register the name as a trademark. - The Daily Mail In a strategy update this week, Glaxo is expected to outline plans to focus on developing blockbuster cancer drugs as it rebuilds its portfolio in the medicines industrys most lucrative market four years after it largely, and contentiously, exited the area via a multibillion-dollar asset swap with Novartis, a Swiss rival. Ms Walmsley will be joined at a presentation to the City on Wednesday by Hal Barron, Glaxos new chief scientific officer and head of research and development, who has been reviewing the drugs pipeline for the past six months. - The Times Theresa May will chair a cabinet meeting in the north-east of England as she starts a summer campaign intended to gain public support for her much-criticised Chequers Brexit plan. The visit on Monday is intended primarily to show the governments ongoing support for the "northern powerhouse" concept, and May will confirm that up to 780m is being set aside for a pre-planned east coast mainline upgrade and that the is to go ahead. - The Guardian President Trumps efforts to neutralise the nuclear threat posed by North Korea are in danger of running aground as the communist state cancels key meetings and returns to its belligerent rhetoric. [...] However, US diplomats have since made it known that their counterparts in Pyongyang have refused to engage in meaningful discussions. American intelligence officials have told The Washington Post that the North is working to conceal key aspects of its nuclear programme and that a missile-engine testing facility that Mr Trump said would be destroyed remains intact. - The Times Britain will "thrive" even if there is no Brexit deal, Dominic Raab has said, as his predecessor David Davis called on the Prime Minister to "reset" her Brexit plan and prepare a "reserve parachute" in case no agreement is reached. Mr Raab said there was "tremendous pressure" on the EU to secure a deal as he branded his counterparts "irresponsible" for failing to reassure British citizens living abroad about their rights after Brexit. - The Daily Telegraph A second investment fund has been set up in Ireland by the City firm co-founded by Jacob Rees-Mogg, after it warned earlier this year about the financial dangers of the sort of hard Brexit favoured by the Conservative MP. The fund, which is backed by $50m (38m) in seed money from the Swedish national pension plan, was created to meet demand from international investors, according to Somerset Capital Management (SCM). - The Guardian London's FTSE 100 was down 0.2% to 7,667.26 in afternoon trade on Monday, off earlier lows but still the red amid weakness in the housebuilding and airline sectors, with Trump's latest Twitter threat to Iran undermining sentiment. BT was among the top gainers as the government said it will spend up to 5bn to bring full fibre broadband to all parts of Britain by 2033. BHP Billiton was also on the front foot after said it would defend a class action brought by investors over the Samarco dam disaster of 2015 that killed 19 people and devastated communities. The claim, backed by about 3,000 investors and served in Australia, alleges BHP breached disclosure obligations and engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. On the downside, airlines EasyJet and International Consolidated Airlines flew lower after budget carrier Ryanair posted a 20% drop in first-quarter pre-tax profit as higher costs and strikes took their toll. Pre-tax profit fell to 345.4m, while profit after tax was also down 20%, to 397m. Revenue rose 9% to 1.9bn as ancillary revenue pushed up 25%, while and passenger numbers grew 7% to 37.6m. Chief executive officer Michael O'Leary attributed the drop in profit to lower fares, the absence of Easter in the quarter, higher oil price and pilot costs. Hargreaves Lansdown was also under pressure as Jefferies downgraded the stock to 'underperform' from 'hold' on valuation grounds, saying the shares currently look overvalued. "Even including 2019e total forecast dividend of 51.1p we have close to 15% downside from the current share price," Jefferies said. In a note on asset managers and in light of last week's news that the Financial Conduct Authority is considering banning online investment platforms such as Hargreaves from charging exit fees, the bank pointed out that HL does not benefit greatly from exit fees. "The point about HL is that in fact very few clients leave and therefore it is safe to assume that a fraction of a percent of revenue is derived from exit fees. On the negative side, we could say that anything that promotes greater switching is negative for HLs rating. "We have always stated that its premium rating is in part explainable by the fact its clients are highly persistent. But on the positive side HL, given that it actually gains market share, is a beneficiary of industry transfers." Housebuilders were the standout losers in terms of sectors, with Barratt Developments, Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon all weaker. FTSE 100 - Risers Ocado Group (OCDO) 1,119.75p 3.39% WPP (WPP) 1,185.00p 2.60% BT Group (BT.A) 223.35p 1.78% Centrica (CNA) 154.70p 1.38% Just Eat (JE.) 873.20p 1.18% Associated British Foods (ABF) 2,433.00p 1.00% DCC (DCC) 7,085.00p 0.93% GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,563.60p 0.89% Evraz (EVR) 527.00p 0.84% BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,622.60p 0.57% FTSE 100 - Fallers Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 172.65p -2.57% Barratt Developments (BDEV) 518.80p -2.55% easyJet (EZJ) 1,578.00p -2.29% Persimmon (PSN) 2,449.00p -2.20% International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 672.60p -2.12% Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 2,081.00p -2.02% Micro Focus International (MCRO) 1,249.50p -1.92% Smith (DS) (SMDS) 497.10p -1.76% Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,868.00p -1.65% Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 3,657.00p -1.30% Tourism flourishes in the Caribbean but the amount of plastic that keeps washing up on its beaches is a matter of concern. It destroys not only the beauty of the unspoiled natural paradise but poses a major risk to the marine animals and the birds. They get entangled in the web of plastic waste and perish. Therefore, the authorities have launched drives to clean the litter manually by deploying teams of people. Sky News reports that in the opinion of an official of Santo Domingo local authority, there is no secret about the origin of the problem. The plastic waste originates in Santo Domingo and the nearby province of Monte Plata. Clean-up operation in the Caribbean The volume of plastic accumulating on the beaches is mindboggling and the local administration is tackling the issue on a war footing by deploying troops of the Dominican Republic on the clean-up operation. The exercise is of unimaginable proportions and the amount of waste that gets added daily is several times more than what is being removed from the scene. The Caribbean troops are working hand in hand with conservationists, local government agencies and residents to clean the unwanted trash that harms marine lives. Animals and birds consume these items and die. There have been instances of plastic waste causing the death of enormous animals like whales. The possible dangers cannot be ignored because the plastic is a non-biodegradable substance and upsets the ecological balance. Oceans campaigner Lewis Pugh wants to raise awareness about the evils of plastic pollution. He plans to swim the 350 miles from Land's End to Dover to promote the need for conservation. Discuss this news on Eunomia Magnitude of the problem Beaches in the Caribbean attract tourists but the amount of plastic that washes up is not a pleasant sight. The authorities have initiated efforts to bring back the clean surroundings. According to the TRT World, a team of conservationists from the Parley group has taken up the task of removing the eyesore from the beaches. The team is working with the local navy, Santo Domingo authorities and residents and have, so far, removed nearly 60 tonnes of plastic. People have been recruited for the clean-up but the speed of removal is no match for the arrival of fresh trash. This is not a problem for only the Dominican Republic, but environmentalists say it is a major global issue. The environmental group, Parley, estimates that there are trillion pieces of plastic in the oceans and their total weight could be more than 250,000 tonnes. The worst part is that the figure keeps increasing every moment. Lin-Manuel Miranda is an artist and performer who can never be accused of wasting a single moment of his time or his public platform. In some ways, it seems like a lifetime ago that the Hamilton creator and composer stood on the stage at the 2016 Tony awards, and proclaimed that love is love is love is love is love is love more eloquently than seemed humanly possible. Lin-Manuel Miranda was able to prove that he meant those words in 2017 when he and Chef Jose Andres were among the first notables in action on the ground in the wake of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. Both knew that the situation on the island would never be a one and done, operation, and both mounted initiatives that are ongoing to this minute. Chef Andres has been more people in Puerto Rico than the Red Cross, and Lin-Manuel Miranda immediately realized that long-term grants were vital to truly restoring lives. Miranda wears his pride as a Puerto Rican American for all to see, and he has paid forward his gratitude to his parents and the United States in multiple projects, including one for solarization which will ensure that Puerto Rico no longer depends on its old and outdated power grid. It was six months ago that Lin-Manuel Miranda proposed taking a production of Hamilton to Puerto Rico, and especially in light of the recent admissions by FEMA of the government agencys underestimation of the scope of the disaster and unpreparedness for the massive need, the timing could not be more perfect. Miranda talked with Today anchor Savannah Guthrie on July 22 about the power of this Hamilton performance, and the many other projects in the works for the creative force of nature. An early mission Lin-Manuel Miranda has always made his productions and performances reflective of his Puerto Rican heritage. His Tony award-winning in the Heights was ripped from the Puerto Rican communities of New York, delving into their dreams, struggles, and daily survival. Discuss this news on Eunomia The composer gushed that from the time we got the first good review in the New York Times, there were plans to take Hamilton to Puerto Rico. That purpose was magnified by the seemingly unending trauma that began to be broadcast throughout the world. We just doubled-down, insisted Miranda after that impetus, determined that not a dime from the production would go to anything but the needs of real people. One of those critical needs for people are continuing arts programs, which Lin-Manuel knows are frequently left behind, even in the best-intentioned relief efforts. The arts inspire hope, and hope is essential to recovery. The playwright has joined with other nonprofits to fund the Flamboyan Foundation, which will oversee the grants going to local arts programs throughout Puerto Rico. Among the first grant recipients are a dance school and a theater company. Programs for youth in the arts will also have priority. The composer has already fronted a musical appeal for funds, and Lin-Manuel described the efforts of his good friend, rapper PJ Sin Suela, who has been providing free concerts across the island, and the success of the Three Kings Day celebration, during which local actors were hired to portray the three kings, and distribute gifts to children. Miranda was moved that so many remarked to him how good it was to have a day of work and bring a smile to a child. Not the same locks Lin-Manuel Miranda feels confident that he has the trademark My Shot from Hamilton on a lock, but what he no longer has are his own long locks of hair that the 36-year-old has when he played the leading role of Alexander Hamilton on Broadway. He is confident that he has the best wig person in the world to put together a completely seamless hairstyle that will be imperceptible from the original. He confesses that his recent haircut is just too short and too soon to allow time for sufficient revolutionary-war era growth. The actor and composer can't talk about the outpouring of support from current and original cast members without tearing up. Every Latino cast member, including Anthony Ramos, instantly said I'm there in regard to the reduction in Puerto Rico. Miranda still knows that his musical is a 14-course meal for an actor, with love, war, an affair, marriage, deep friendship, and a duel all part of the dramatic equation. He remembers his time on stage as Hamilton as being the most peaceful of my life, and this performance in the nation of his roots is sure to be the most powerful. Miranda feels that he is a mix of 50% excited and 50% terrified, but in January, there is no doubt that everything will come together in glorious fashion. The new production will also tour the States according to Miranda. The only thing in short supply for Lin-Manuel Miranda is time. He is working on a book project based on his good morning and good evening posts on Twitter, and stars in the new adaptation of Mary Poppins, alongside Emily Blunt and Meryl Streep. The project on the horizon that most captures his heart is his directing debut in Tick Tick Boom, based on the life of Jonathan Larson. Miranda first saw the production in high school, and can attest that it was a forecast of my life through my 20s. Hopefully, storm clouds will steer clear of Puerto Rico for some time to come, and this artist can continue to pour out showers of his artistic brilliance and personal passion for my people in Puerto Rico and people everywhere. "The book is a provocation, and it is intentionally not propositional because the things that I address are not easy to fix and cannot be fixed by one individual or even by one profession alone," says Reinier de Graaf, Partner at OMA, the world-renowned international architecture practice. Dutch architect, architectural theorist, urbanist and writer Reinier de Graaf released his book "Four Walls and a Roof: The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession" last year and situated himself at the core of a new discussion about social housing and the entangled economic system of the architecture profession today. "This is a larger structural problem. I write about the world from the perspective of an architect who tries to build buildings. And if that is what you do, then of course, any kind of propositional element immediately becomes ridiculous. But the book is a wake up call," de Graaf added. Speaking to World Architecture Community in an exclusive interview at this year's reSITE ACCOMMODATE Conference, held on June 14-15 in Prague, the acclaimed architect shared his incisive thoughts about his newly-released book, the basic problems of today's housing models, the design process he follows in his studio and the deficiencies of the current architectural education system, especially in the US. Today's housing serves for profit maximization Talking about the massive demolition program of social housing in the 21st Century, de Graaf emphasized that today's housing projects serve mostly as a financial vehicle. "Social housing either gets demolished or gets listed and sold as luxury housing," said Reinier de Graaf in his keynote lecture at reSITE's 2018 Conference. "There is a big difference between cost cutting nowadays compared to the era of social housing. Back then, when you designed a cheap building, it meant people could live in an affordable home. Today, when you design efficiently and cheaply, it doesn't mean that buildings are sold cheaply. They're often sold quite expensively." "Therefore the same set of design instruments serve for a completely different purpose. They used to serve the purpose of providing affordable homes, but today they serve for profit maximization," de Graaf told World Architecture Community. Holland Green, a new residential complex in London completed in 2016 by OMA in collaboration with Allies & Morrison, to help funding the renovation of the Commonwealth Institute exhibition hall. Image courtesy of OMA; photography Sebastian van Damme. De Graaf, 54, joined OMA in 1996 where he leads a wide range of architecture and masterplanning projects in Europe, Russia, and the Middle East. He is also the co-founder of AMO, the think-tank established in 2002 as a counterpart to the architectural practice of OMA. De Graaf's recently completed projects include the Holland Green in London (2016), the new mixed-use building Timmerhuis in Rotterdam (2015), and the G-Star Raw Headquarters in Amsterdam (2014). De Graaf's FORUM project, a major multi-functional redevelopment in Rotterdam, is under construction in the heart of the city, and is set to be completed by 2019. Reinier de Graaf and David Gianotten, OMA's Managing Partner, are currently working on a masterplan for the former Bijlmerbajes in Amsterdam, a prison complex in the South-East of the city built in the 1970s. The architects will transform the former 75,000-square-metre prison complex into a new cultural hub in Amsterdam. The project, named Bajes Kwartier, is planned to start this year. Last year De Graaf also revealed the plans for a housing development in Tirana, which will be OMA's first project in Albania. The modular structure of OMAs Timmerhuis in Rotterdam, opened in 2015. Image courtesy of OMA; photography Ossip van Duivenbode. OMA's working strategy Discussing in detail his own working style at OMA, de Graaf stressed that if an architect is involved in the earlier stages of the design process, he/she can make a difference in shaping design decisions. OMA's think-tank AMO was founded precisely for this reason, according to the architect. "The earlier you're involved, the more you can make a difference. Indeed, it is easier when working on an urban planning project rather than with a building, where many parametres have already been set. Even more interesting is to be involved before there is a masterplan; this is why we founded AMO, a think-tank in the office to offer services to clients that allow us to be part of the formulation of the questions," de Graaf continued. American architectural education is deeply f***ed De Graaf also stated that there is a big gap between academia and architectural practice, and that there is an ignorance of the economic system that buildings are part of. According to the architect, the exorbitant price students pay for architecture education in countries like the US obstruct the learning process. "For American architectural education system and the only appropriate expression I can find is that it is: deeply f***ed" "I can speak about the American architectural education system and the only appropriate expression I can find is that it is: deeply f***ed. Students pay enormous amounts of money or have enormous student loans. The financial aspect is so prevalent that students become consumers of education. The huge sums they pay give them an enormous sense of entitlement." "So, there is no desire to learn. Teachers have to be incredibly careful about what they say. It's the teachers that are being judged on their progress, not the students," de Graaf continued. "It is a big flaw not only for the architectural education but for architecture in general. Its like you're working with a 50% handicap: you know the economy of construction but you dont know the economic system that buildings end up being part of." OMA transforms Amterdams former Bijlmerbajes prison complex into a cultural hub. Image robota, courtesy of OMA. De Graaf lectures frequently in the academic and professional realm. He previously taught at Harvard GSD and has recently been appointed Visiting Professor at the University of Cambridge. De Graaf's professorship will focus on how buildings have become an indispensable vehicle for generating financial returns and the implications this has on architectural form and typology. His program, titled "The Asset Class", "will radically reexamine the history of architecture: not as a succession of styles, but as an ever-involving reflection of the economic system architecture dictated not by its use value, but by its value as an asset to be traded." Scroll down to read the interview with Reinier de Graaf: Berrin Chatzi Chousein: This year, reSITEs theme is ACCOMMODATE, reffering to the future of housing, affordability, new financial and urban regeneration models. From your point of view, what are the problems or deficiencies with housing today starting from the design process to the end product? Where does the architect stand in the hyper-financialized economy? Or, if I twist my question: to have affordable housing, should architects resist/change the conditions in a project brief? Reinier de Graaf: The main problem with housing today is the price, but price is only related to architecture in a very limited way. There's an enormous downward pressure on architects to ensure that the building cost is as little as possible. But there is a big difference between cost cutting nowadays compared to the era of social housing. Back then, when you designed a cheap building, it meant people could live in an affordable home. Today, when you design efficiently and cheaply, it doesn't mean that buildings are sold cheaply. They're often sold quite expensively. Therefore the same set of design instruments serve for a completely different purpose. They used to serve the purpose of providing affordable homes, but today they serve for profit maximization. In other words, they used to serve the interests of many, now they serve the interests of few. Architects have very little influence on the economic system but being aware of it already makes a difference. In this respect, most architects are not even close to doing that. It is about the awareness of the context and the awareness of the system that uses it or abuses it. It is time that architects emancipate and the first step to do that is becoming aware of it. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: You have a diverse portfolio at OMA: you design masterplans or individual buildings. If you are to change something in the parameters of a project I imagine it is easier when working on an urban planning project rather than when working on a building, where the program is more or less fixed. So what is your strategy to change something for the public good? Reinier de Graaf: The first step of an intervention is to decide whether or not you're going to take the job at all even though architects are often not in a position to be overly picky. But indeed, the earlier you're involved, the more you can make a difference. Even more interesting is to be involved before there is a masterplan; this is why we founded AMO, a think-tank in the office to offer services to clients that allow us to be part of the formulation of the questions. That means the earlier youre involved, the more influence you have on shaping the questions that you will be asked. The demolition of social houses documented in de Graaf's book, "Four Walls and a Roof: The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession". Image WAC Berrin Chatzi Chousein: You mean, you shape the clients vision? Reinier de Graaf: Im not sure there is any vision to be shaped. But it brings a sort of awareness, early on, that is pushing what we are going to say. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: You have written a book: "Four Walls and a Roof". I must confess I havent read it completely but, as far as I read, it reveals what is really happening in the practice of architecture discussions with your clients, personal anectodes, analyses and observations with a cynical language. Reinier de Graaf: I actually dont think it is cynical, but people say that. I have a voice and the voice isn't the usual evangelical voice that many people use in this age. I would like to think that I give a sober analysis of the way things are. If I were a cynical I wouldnt have used over 500 pages to make my point. So the existence of the book is ultimately the proof that I'm not cynical. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: But you dont have concrete answers or proposals. Its in the air (maybe its just a progress for the next book). Why did you write this book? Was it just to show the complex relationships of the profession? Or, was there a message that you wanted to give indirectly? Reinier de Graaf: The book is a provocation, and it is intentionally not propositional because the things that I address are not easy to fix and cannot be fixed by one individual or even by one profession alone. It is a larger structural problem. I write about the world from the perspective of an architect who tries to build buildings. And if that is what you do, then of course, any kind of propositional element immediately becomes ridiculous. But the book is a wake up call. And hopefully a wake up call to other people who are a lot more intelligent than me to come up with the beginnings of solutions. So the book is also humble in that sense. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: Coming back again to the "housing" issue, I also perused that you document the destruction of the 20th century social housing in your book. In an interview you gave about the Holland Green development you said: "At least one major revolution in architecture is presented each year". Do we need a major revolution for social housing after the destruction of these housing projects? Reinier de Graaf: The quote was actually about a major revolution that happens in architecture every month. It is actually an ironic statement. I'm questioning the validity of these revolutions rather than preaching for another revolution. It is the only chapter in the book that has only images because it's the only instance where images are more powerful than anything you could say about them. The whole volume of demolished housing is so massive that it makes a statement on its own. This is a revolution taking place under our very eyes going in the opposite direction than the social revolution. Im not a pessimist but I long for the optimism that underlay that period. It mightve been called brutalist but there was essentially a very benign ideological program underneath it, whereas now malignant ideologies present themselves in soothing and comfortable aesthetics. Radical politics requires radical aesthetics. I think the revolution we need is to simply see what's going on. "Four Walls and a Roof: The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession" published by Harvard University Press, 2017. Image WAC Berrin Chatzi Chousein: With architecture? Reinier de Graaf: Yes.If there is no revolution taking place every year, there's a major demolition happening. There is a major undoing of a revolution taking place with about the same frequency and this is a statement that I say without irony. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: You say that architecture has become mere marketing and investment. You also say: "In the face of economic needs, the architect is a largely powerless figure". Do you think that architectural ideas and visions are lost in the mass production of architecture shaped by different shareholders (politicians, bureaucrats, consultants, etc.)? These stakeholders have always been in the architectural production, so what is the different now? Reinier de Graaf: You can debate how crucial originality is to architecture because architecture is predominantly a form of imitation. It always has been; that's why you have styles and tradition. I think that originality is overrated and what in the essay you're referring to I write is that today's outburst of originality leads to a remarkable similarity. Even within our office, sometimes we come up with what we think is an original idea and then we discover that something similar has been done before. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: Are you trying to find similarities? Reinier de Graaf: No. But it does happen to find that what one does is also done by ten other people. There is definitely a proliferation of certain ideas that hang in the air. You might think youre original but youre actually part of a large army of creative minds. Dubai Renaissance, a mixed-use high-rise building proposed for a competition in Dubai in 2006. Image OMA. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: Is this the copy-paste culture? Reinier de Graaf: The copy-paste culture is precisely the result of the desire to be original. The more we strive to be exceptional, the more we collectively become unexceptional. In our Dubai Renaissance project we created a collage with the skyline of all 21st century skyscrapers. They are all exceptional but when you put a totally boring building in front of them, it's actually that boring building that becomes exceptional. "The more we strive to be exceptional, the more we collectively become unexceptional" Berrin Chatzi Chousein: In your book, you also criticize technology, the internet era, and media, in the sense that they doesnt show the architects uniqueness, but rather the similarities between buildings or architects. Do you find that media and the internet prevent one from grasping original ideas? Isnt media part of architectural production already? Reinier de Graaf: Surely, it is. But Im not criticizing technology. What Im saying is that today's technological developments are of limited relevance for architecture and have limited relevance in form making. They make buildings more independent from their function or make functions more independent from buildings, which makes buildings completely interchangeable. The invention of reinforced concrete, the use of steel, the escalator and the elevator had a huge impact on architecture. I dont think that the digital revolution does that in the same way. Its rewards are altogether different. It recalibrates our relation to the existing more than it is an impetus for the new. "Four Walls and a Roof" consists of 44 essays divided in 7 parts. Image WAC Berrin Chatzi Chousein: As someone who writes and teaches, how would you evaluate todays architectural education? Do you find a gap between the current architectural education and the practice of architecture? Are they two parallel worlds? Reinier de Graaf: Its very hard to generalize, but I can speak about the American architectural education system and the only appropriate expression I can find is that it is: deeply f***ed. Students pay enormous amounts of money or have enormous student loans. The financial aspect is so prevalent that students become consumers of education. The huge sums they pay give them an enormous sense of entitlement. So, there is no desire to learn. Teachers have to be incredibly careful about what they say. It's the teachers that are being judged on their progress, not the students. Money interferes in the relationship between educational staff and students in such a way that the learning process has become impossible. The fundamental aspect of learning, which is the transfer of knowledge and the ability to criticize (and improving work as a result of critique) has become completely impossible. Any critique on student work can easily be labeled as harassment and potentially become the source of another #metoo case. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: How can we find the bridge between theory and practice? Reinier de Graaf: Academia is completely disconnected from practice but academia is also completely disconnected from education. Every student and every teacher in America should read my book and then start all over again with their education. Berrin Chatzi Chousein: I insist on this question because it is particularly relevant for young architects. Reinier de Graaf: Definitely. It is a big flaw not only for the architectural education but for architecture in general. Its like you're working with a 50% handicap: you know the economy of construction but you dont know the economic system that buildings end up being part of. As long as you do not acquire that knowledge, you are fighting your battles with one hand tied behind your back. That's the situation architecture is in and I think this has to change and it has to change fast. (-end of transcript) Top image: Reinier de Graaf OMA by Leanne Ogasawara We should first count our blessings that Dan Brown has never written about the painting. Though I suspect such a seemingly matter-of-fact picture as Velazquezs Las Meninas would not serve as an easy target. With no hint of the occult nor even a whiff of the Templars it probably wouldnt capture his attention. And yet, despite Dan Browns silence, Las Meninas is one of the most highly written-about paintings in history. Youve got to wonder what is it about the the picture that has spilled so much ink? Philosopher Michel Foucault probably has a lot to do with this flood of art historical interest, since his interpretation of the painting in his 1970 book, The Order of Things, sparked what was a tidal wave of intellectual responses. But Foucault cant account for all the attention. In fact, just recently three high-profile books (a novel and two well-received memoirs) were published on the subject of Velazquez ,in which there is nary a mention of the great philosopher. So, then, what is it about Las Meninas? Considered one of the greatest masterpieces in the Western canon, in the 19th century Europeans from France and England traveled to see it as if they were going on a pilgrimage. In those days, Spain was well off the beaten track and infrastructure had something to be desired. Manet, for example, was hardly able to withstand the hardships of his time in Madrid (practically starving to death he claimed)but like walking the Compostela, he considered it a pilgrimage. One suffered but did so in the hope of greater understanding. Manet would go on to feel transformed by his time in Madrid and considered Velazquez to be the greatest painter of all time. It is a fact that to see the significant works by Velazquez, you will need to travel to Madrid. The same can be said for Bosch and to some extent for Titian. One must make the pilgrimage to the Prado to see really understand these artists. I would add that the Louvre could learn a thing or two from the Prado, whose staff strictly enforces a no-photography rule, while continuously hissing at visitors for lowered voices. It all contributes to the heightened reality of a visit to the Prado. Like many of the greatest works by Velazquez Las Meninas began its life hidden away in the Spanish royal palace, where not many people were given the chance to see it. For awhile it was hanging in the bedroom of one of the Hapsburg princesses; before it was then moved to the palace dining room, where it was seen hanging near another painting that it would share a wall with it for around a hundred years, Titians incomparable Charles V at the Battle of Muhlberg. Both pictures were spared certain death by fire in 1734 when they were unceremoniously flung out the palace second story window during a huge conflagration that burnt the alcazar to the ground. This eventually led to the building of the Prado museum; which opened to the public in 1819. Visitors began trickling in to this least known of museums and this was the beginning of the Prados almost religious mystique. Guidebooks went as far as to describe the museum as a shrine of secular, spiritual enlightenment. Such was the magnetic draw of the paintings by Velazquez that in 1899 all his major work was put on display in the museums central gallery, called the Sala Velazquez. Carved off this central gallery of Sala Velazquez, Las Meninas was given its own room. And this was how it was displayed until 1970. Older Scholars and art lovers who saw the painting hanging alone in this alcove off the Sala Velazquez are on record describing the effect the room had on their viewing of the picture. I wanted so much to experience something like thatdespite the fact that the painting has since been moved and is now held in the position of honor in the hexagonal room at the center of the Prado, along with the other major works by the painter. This room is ground zero of the Prado, with all other galleries radiating from the center of what can only be understood as the sanctum sanctorum. I knew that visiting the Prado would be an important event in my life and I wanted to badly to experience Las Meninas in the way the older scholars had. But how to be alone with the work? For that was crucial: being alone with Las Meninas. So, I made a plan. Becoming a Friend of the Prado set me back $100 but allowed me to enter through the Puerta de Los Jeronimos at nine sharp every day. That gave me maybe a 15 minute head start of non-ticket holders, whom I referred to as the enemies. The real trick for my success, though, was committing to memory the museum layout beforehand so I could make a beeline to the painting the moment I dashed through the doors. I never had to really push or shove since it took the enemies some thirty minutes before making it up to the center gallery. And by then, I had had more than my fill of being alone with Las Meninas. Blocking out the other pictures from my eyeballs, I attempted to recreate what I had read about Sala Velazquez. And turning into the gallery, I stopped and beheld the masterpiece. Like countless other viewers before me, I sighed aloud. What is it about Las Meninas that captures our attention in such a big way? The painting gets its title from the two high-born maids who stand serving on either side of the little princess dressed in her white dress. And speaking of the cute little infanta, one of the friends of this blog (he knows who he is) when he saw my pictures of the painting (which I know I was not allowed to take) on Facebook said, Oh, I know that little girl from ViennaIndeed, she was to be married to the future Holy Roman Emperor Leopold of Austria and three portraits of her remain today in the Kunsthistorisches Museum by Velazquez. It is sad to think that this beautiful little princess would die so young in Austria, only twenty-one years old. Fortunately, she is made eternal not just in paintings but also in the short story by Oscar Wilde, inspired by the image of the little princess he saw in the painting by Velazquez. But even more than the princess, isnt it the two maids surrounding the infanta that most cause us to delight? One kneeling so prettily is handing the infanta a little red vessel could that be sipping chocolate from the New World? With flowers in their hair and the elegant positions of their hands, they do make a vision to behold. Of course, there are also the dwarfs and and the mastiff, drawn so realisticallyand yes, also respectfully (for Velazquez was known for his portraits of court jesters). In the far back of the picture is court chamberlain Jose Nieto, who is pictured standing in the doorway at the back of the room, pausing to turn and look backseemingly straight back at us! (Dont forget about him since I think he holds the key to the painting!) But what to make of the artist depicting himself right smack in the center of the painting as well? Why is he staring at us in that way? Is he painting us? Or is he painting las Meninas, the painting hanging on the wall in front of us? The size of the canvas would be right. But what to make of the reflection of King Philip IV and his Queen Mariana in the mirror? Surely, the artist must be painting their portrait. And yet no extant double portrait of them by Velazquez exists today. Perhaps it is we who are the stand-ins for the king and queen? Looking at Salvador Dalis homage to the painting (above) will bring home what is arresting about the double gaze of the picture. Foucault famously declared Las Meninas to be a painting about painting and therefore a representation of representation. From his reading of Heidegger, Foucault explored what he called the episteme. This was always Foucaults primary interest: to try and grasp the a priori grid of meaning that we map onto the world. He felt that Las Meninas, by consciously playing around with self-reflection, illuminated a more modern paradigm of being and the world. Indeed, Foucault felt that Las Meninas was the first modern picture. (He paired Las Meninas, as many people do, with the novel Don Quixote. For more on this see my post A Novel to Cross a Desert With) Ah Michel Foucault, dont you love him? But Velazquez scholar Jonathan Brown doesnt see the painting in these terms at all. His theory is more common-sensical. Suggesting that there are no hidden meanings or codes in the painting at all; he sees Las Meninas as having been completed AFTER Velazquez had been given the knighthood that he had so long coveted, making Las Meninas a thank you to the king for this honor. One can see the red cross of the Knights of Santiago on the tunic of the painter as he stands back from the easel in the picture. Legend had it that King Philip IV drew the red cross in on the painting himself after Velazquez death to honor his favorite painter; but Brown sees no real evidence for this. Brown also suggested that at the time the work was created, a debate was happening in art circles about whether color or drawing was the most important factor in judging a masterpiece. Brown wonders if Velazquez wasnt weighing in on the matter in Las Meninas; partial as he always was to that greatest master of color, Titian. In the end, while the ideas are fascinating from a philosophical point of view, they dont go very far in explaining the great power this painting holds over our imaginations. And this is where the two memoirs I read really helped me in understanding my own feelings about the picture. The picture has multiple vanishing points, such that the nine people seem to exist there in a kind of suspended animation. It is absolutely arresting. One wonders where all the vanishing points of the painting would meet if connected. Picasso and Dali also explored the issue of the lines in the painting. Surprisingly, the lines meet neither in the person of the infanta nor in that of the painter. They dont even meet in at the king and queenbut instead all the lines seem to converge he says, around that of the departing chamberlain, Jose Nieto, who stands in the doorway at the back of the room. Could this be the central figure of Las Meninas? Traditionally the lines in Renaissance paintings converged on the figure of Christ or on the Host; while in Las Meninas, they loosely hover around the open door in the back of the room. Michael Jacobs in his moving memoir Journey into a Painting writes about the picture after receiving a death sentence from a cancer diagnosis. He ends his book focusing on that open doorway, wondering if the departing Chamberlain is not a kind of Charon figure; beckoning from across the River Styx and the beyond after death. I was recently fascinated to see that American photographer Joel Peter Wilkins also seems to highlight the departing chamberlain by turning him into a Christ figure another symbol of death and rebirth (see left). The man at the doorway is central. And yet, all the figures in the picture dwarf, mastiff, painter, king, queen, chamberlain, princess and two maids I know we are all there as wellall form a perfect puzzle, in which each piece matters crucially. An unforgettable world-opening masterpiece, I can well understand why Jacobs found solace in recalling the details of its vision as he lie dying. And I too feel as if the picture is imprinted upon my eyes and heart. For more: Part One of this Post is: A Novel to Cross a Desert With Don Quixote Diaries Michel Foucault Also Eyes Swimming with Tears and A Novel to Cross a Desert With Also recommended: Laura Cummings: Vanishing Velasquez (I have read it four times!!) Everything is Happening: Journey into a Painting, by Michael Jacobs Jonathan Brown: In the Shadow of Velasquez Another moving book about a picture: The Angel on the Left Bank: The Secrets of Delacroixs Parisian Masterpiece ++ Below: Provoking the spectator. Las Meninas by Joel Peter Witkin by Dave Maier Recently Ive been reading a couple of books attacking postmodernism and/or leftist politics, which the authors not surprisingly tie together as closely as they can, albeit from rather different perspectives, for maximum polemical effect. Maybe well get into the gory details some other time (havent got very far into them yet), but for now lets just examine a few things that struck me about the very idea of polemical interpretations. For example: I can never figure out whether Im supposed to be the audience, invited to join the authors in combating these worthless and dangerous ideas, or instead whether I am the target, such that these books intend to smash my own position(s) to conceptual smithereens. If I picture myself beside the author as he fires bolts at his target, I find myself alarmed at the way hes swinging that crossbow around: watch where youre aiming that thing! But maybe I myself am really the target in which case I watch in puzzlement as the bolts sail harmlessly off to one side (was that really aimed at me?). If it were consistently one rather than the other, I would simply toss the book aside as incompetent; but when the two flip back and forth like the duck and the rabbit, it makes me wonder about polemics in general. How exactly are they supposed to work? The paradox of polemic Polemic must be possible in principle. If we reject some idea or ideology as fundamentally misconceived, or actively destructive, it must surely be possible to say why this is. Indeed, a lot of what we read nowadays has this truculent tone, telling us why Those Other People are getting things completely wrong. However, effective polemic turns out to be very difficult to produce. The worst of the charges fail to apply to very much of the target, and what does clearly apply to all of it seems rather less bad. Often the author attempts to paper over these flaws by equivocation, poisoning the well, guilt by association, and other dodgy rhetorical techniques. Sometimes this is because the authors point is too thin to support the full sweep of his categorical denunciation. But even when it seems that there is indeed a proper target for such treatment, the same thing often happens. Why is this? The main reason for the difficulty of effective polemic, or so I believe, is inherent in the task of interpretation itself. The polemicist is trying to show that some set of ideas is utterly unacceptable to right-thinking people; but he also needs to show, on pain of irrelevance, that this phenomenon is worth paying enough attention even to reject as nuts. Who cares about what a mere handful of cranks believe? No ones going to read the definitive takedown of the idea that since monarchy is the only legitimate form of government, the USA actually still belongs to the UK. That is, once youve made clear that your target is a widespread phenomenon, you need to show that that crazy stuff is what these people actually believe. But if you describe it as the sort of piffle that only crazy people believe, then they wont agree that they believe it in the first place, and quite naturally accuse you of erecting a straw man. The trick the paradox of polemic is to portray the relevant position as making just enough sense for your opponents and their defenders to accept it, while still retaining the obviously fatal flaw which justifies your dismissive and contemptuous tone. This is naturally an aspect of the interpretive principle of charity. Charity is often misunderstood maybe because the name makes it sound like being nice or something as not allowing an interpreter to disagree strongly, or at all, with his interlocutor. But charity isnt just being polite. After all, you dont want to allow the target of your polemic to wriggle out of the supposedly devastating consequences of their beliefs, the punch line of your entire project. You need to get them on the hook, by getting them to agree to things that sound perfectly innocent and sensible (but actually, you intend to show, contain the seeds of their own destruction). This will also make your attack more relevant to your audience, as it will thereby show the real danger of these seductive premises. An attack on the idea of returning the USA to the UK cant simply attack the inference from its monarchical premise to its unacceptable conclusion. Thats not a polemic; thats just a reasoned disagreement. A more effective polemic would not only grease the skids from premise to conclusion, but also make that premise as superficially attractive as possible, the better to bait the hook, with the intent of springing the real counterargument later on, crushing the whole thing at once. Charity is also the best method of avoiding an actual straw man. Again, charity is a general interpretive principle, not relevant simply to polemic. Consider Daniel Dennetts formulation of his own rules for interpreting another thinkers ideas, which begin with the charge that we first aim to summarize that thinkers ideas so sensitively that they actually thank you for putting their views so insightfully, and teaching them things about their own views that they hadnt even seen yet. Only then, he says, may you breathe even a word of protest. This is very hard to do, so its not too surprising that Dennett himself falls down on occasion. Nor is it surprising that in polemical interpretations of postmodernism, such charity and, again, effective polemic is virtually unheard of, in the race to tar the targeted cretins with comically self-undermining relativism or some such. Reference, categories, and predication Another interpretive principle relevant to our subject is that whenever you say anything at all, you are in some way manifesting both your beliefs and your meanings simultaneously. Take the statement that Liberals believe that government is the best way to solve problems. Here you are both indicating who liberals are (theyre the guys who believe this) and at the same time saying something about them (they [are the guys who] believe this); or, in linguistic terms, defining a predicate implicitly, on the one hand (here, liberals), and predicating something of a certain group (here, that they believe a particular thing), on the other. Our emphasis in the context may be on one or the other and of course we occasionally provide explicit definitions of this or that term but in the main, these things are inextricably intertwined, rendering the interpretive process unavoidably holistic: we attribute both belief and meaning in a single interpretation. Here also the effective polemicist must not let his polemical conclusions interfere with a proper taxonomy. It is here that the danger of equivocation is most easily seen. For liberals and postmodernists believe other things as well as the things which define them, e.g, the ones we are rejecting as dangerous. If you go on to tell me that liberals are anti-military or postmodernists dont believe in truth, this is both another attribution and another implicit definition. If our multiple definitions dont match up even if the term seems appropriate in each context this is a problem. Are the liberals who reject free-market solutions the same liberals who are anti-military? As with charity, it is often safer to let the target group define themselves, even if that lets them leave out things wed like to hang them with, if we can get them to do what amounts to hanging themselves instead. It will also help the reader, as I noted at the outset, keep track of whether hes the audience or the target. The no-true-Scotsman fallacy What has become known as the no-true-Scotsman fallacy goes like this: James: No Scotsman puts sugar on his porridge. Ian: But my uncle Angus is a Scotsman, and he puts sugar on his porridge. James: No true Scotsman puts sugar on his porridge. As presented, this looks like a semantic dodge. Universal generalizations, like the ones weve been talking about, are vulnerable to counterexamples, and when Ian presents a clear counterexample to Jamess general claim, it seems that James should withdraw or qualify it. But instead, he doubles down. The alleged counterexample is simply excluded arbitrarily, it seems from the relevant domain, thereby preserving the generalization. If we allow this, it looks like no counterexample is even conceptually possible; this makes Jamess claim look unacceptably dogmatic. But as Wikipedia notes, this is at best (that is, at worst) an informal fallacy. Theres no reason why a challenge to a general claim cant be met by a restatement in slightly different terms. In Jamess case, this seems motivated by sheer dogmatism; but this need not always be true. In fact, we often dont need or even want so strong a generalization as to have no counterexamples at all (what liberal, for example, believes everything that liberals are supposed to believe?). In fact, theres a way of taking Jamess statement in a way which is not even dodgy, let alone fallacious. Why cant he be using it normatively rather than descriptively? That is, rather than a dogmatic claim, in the face of contradictory evidence, its a (perhaps rueful) expression of a normative attitude: this is how things should be even if, in certain regrettable cases, theyre not. The exception that proves the rule As just noted in the previous section, we need not always aim for exceptionless generalizations. Sometimes the exceptions can even help make clearer what we are actually claiming. There are a number of senses in which the name of this principle can be taken, so we have to be careful, but whatever we call it, it does seem that it picks out something interesting. (Pedants love pointing out that prove used to, or can still, mean test rather than demonstrate, and so the other meanings are wrong; but this is not interesting.) The clearest case (the original or true meaning, per Wikipedia), is e.g. a sign saying Parking prohibited on Sundays. The cited exception (on Sundays) only makes sense if there is a non-stated rule that parking is generally allowed. In this sense, that there is an exception proves that there is a rule to which it is an exception. Another sense, more relevant to our own case, is what Wikipedia calls the loose rhetorical sense of the term. Here the thought is that an actual counterexample to a proposed rule does indeed make sense on its own terms (unlike Parking prohibited on Sundays), but, perhaps counterintuitively, lends positive support, albeit by implication, to the rule. (Wikipedia calls this a rule of thumb, rather than an actual rule, but of course rules can have exceptions and still be perfectly good rules as Wittgenstein for one points out.) Here the rule that a local village is always quiet is lent support by the exception that there is a rock festival there once a year. That fact does not of course show that the village is indeed quiet on other days; but if you ask whether the village is quiet, and all you ever hear is that theres a rock festival every year, that tends to imply that thats the only reason it might not be (as opposed, for example, to the incessant baying of sheep). This means it probably is quiet when the rockers arent in town. As Wikipedia keeps telling us, the rule so proven is not a strict rule, and not proven either. But that seems less important than they make it out to be. If to mention it at all draw[s] attention to the rarity of the exception, and to establish the usual (if not literally exceptionless) state of affairs, then thats what were talking about. The relevance of this phenomenon to our subject should be clear, so I wont belabor it. Bait-and-switch (motte and bailey) diagnoses and their symmetrical nature Its pretty clear from the name what bait and switch means: its a form of equivocation, a clear fallacy. I agree to something unobjectionable, and then you use it as if it meant something bad, without further argument. Flag on the play! As popularized a few years back by philosopher Nicholas Shackel, a motte and bailey doctrine is very similar: one advances a controversial take on some idea (the bailey see the link for the medieval-fortress explanation and a diagram), but then when under attack, one retreats to the much more defensible motte, a virtually truistic version of what one pretends to be the same thing. Not simply a fallacy, in Shackels telling, this technique allows one to lend undeserved support to the controversial idea simply by association with the truism through repetition and purposeful vagueness. (See his post for further elaboration, which I am eliding here for brevitys sake.) Such diagnoses are very useful in polemical contexts, if you can get them to stick. No ones going to admit to equivocation, especially as a conscious argumentative strategy, but if you can rightly (charitably) attribute both meanings to your opponent, and show how he dances from one to the other, that should do the trick. But what I have noticed in particular cases, and which I suspect may be true in general, is that these cases are perfectly symmetrical: an attempt to make an accusation of equivocation in this way is itself vulnerable to analogous countercharges. Lets see how this works. Richard Rorty and other critics of metaphysical realism are often accused (e.g by Shackel himself) of equivocation of this kind. Rorty is taken to insist, for example, that objective truth is of no interest: a shocking claim! But on other occasions, when pressed, he agrees to obvious truisms about truth and objectivity, on pain of admitting to the most facile idealism and/or relativism. (My advisor Akeel Bilgrami told me that they used to call Rorty Eeyore after the grumpy donkey in Winnie-the-Pooh; I can just imagine Rorty saying oh, all right, I guess so in an Eeyore voice, when agreeing to truisms of this kind.) Back and forth: a motte and bailey. But from the pragmatist perspective, it is the realist who is equivocating. (The case is complicated by Rortys actual errors by my lights, errors entirely misunderstood and exploited by his critics in a deplorably uncharitable manner. What follows is my own take on the pragmatist attitude.) Naturally if you say something unobjectionable or obvious about objective truth, then Ill shrug and agree with you (truisms like saying doesnt make it so or belief can be false); but if you say something that sounds contentious or otherwise dodgy (e.g. metaphysical doctrines like metaphysical realism), Ill object, especially if you seem to be regarding it as entailed by or identical to the banal truisms. This makes the situation almost entirely symmetrical. Pragmatists can seem to realists to jump back and forth between accepting realism and rejecting it in favor of controversial philosophical doctrines; but realists seem to pragmatists like me to jump back and forth between accepting mere truisms (or pressing me to do so, as if I didnt already), on the one hand, and going beyond them to controversial philosophical doctrines like metaphysical realism, which are not at all the same thing. Its true that our inherited way of talking about these things makes the relevant differences (between truism and philosophical doctrine) difficult to parse. This is what results in the rhetorical differences between postmodernism and its realist critics. The postmodern bailey (or, more specifically, the relevant aspect of a Trolls Truism, as in Shackels post) is explicitly described as an exciting falsehood (as opposed to the boring truism which lends it the only credibility it can manage). But when realists seem to go beyond the truisms to what pragmatists see as controversial, they never present it that way. Metaphysical realism isnt an exciting discovery; for realists, its simply the non-controversial but rigorous philosophical manifestation of that same truistic thought, and thus nothing to shout from the rooftops until, that is, crazy people reject it (and even then, it sounds funny to shout something so obviously commonsensical). This doesnt mean that neither side is right and its a draw. (It may be an impasse; but impasses arent draws.) It just means that the mere diagnosis of baiting-and-switching cannot do all the work (which we really should have known already). In my view, the metaphilosophical attitudes which tend to go together with the philosophical doctrine of metaphysical realism keep one from seeing the real problem, making the issue more one of vision than of argument yet another reason to distrust the false finality of polemical interpretation and getting back to the real task at hand. by Jamie Elsey Although some may be heralding the end of free speech, 2018 has been a year of far-reaching debate and discussion. In the coming months, we can anticipate attending or streaming discussions ranging from such topics as the role of race in American politics to the nature of truth, from existential threats posed by artificial intelligence to the value of religion. As sure as I am that many readers will share my enthusiasm for these events, Im also certain Im not the only one frustrated by the sense that many such talks end up with the participants merely talking past one another. Its as if the speakers have agreed to play chess, but change the rules to drafts whenever theyre put in check. I at least find myself in the good company of Stephen Fry who, well over an hour into the recent Munk debate on political correctness, expressed his bemusement that people will look back on this debate and wonder why political correctness wasnt discussed.[1] Failure to properly define the topic of discussion is, I believe, a primary cause of this frustration. Changing the format from one of debate to one of open conversation is less conducive to the kind of evasiveness and rhetorical point scoring that characterizes purely combative interactions. However, even in open-ended conversation, we want to see opposing viewpoints properly challenged, and the problem of poor definition stands even when all participants are in apparent agreement. How do we know that we are in agreement if we dont really know what were agreeing to? There is nowhere this issue of definition looms larger than in recent discussions of religion, God, and morality. Grappling with these topics is as vital as it is difficult. We cant expect to make any progress if we do not have a shared or at least mutually understood language with which to tackle them. In the scientific domain, Karl Popper argued that a hypothesis that cannot be falsified is not scientific, and we can say nothing of its truth value. Unscientific hypotheses are typically those that are defined so elastically as to be able to incorporate any observation, or so vaguely as to render any specific observations irrelevant. A similar tenet holds for constructive debate and discussion. We can neither counter nor accept an argument stated in a way that does not mean anything specific to us, or that morphs into something else when successfully challenged. Objective truth, of course, is not everything. Many unfalsifiable or underspecified claims may provide powerful inspiration and have practical utility. However, an idea that withstands critique not on the strength of argument but by the agility with which it can elude actual confrontation has little to redeem it. For many (typically atheist) commentators in this domain, the task of definition is relatively simple. Atheism, as the name suggests, is the rejection of theism. Theism is the belief in a supernatural creator (God), typically in the image of monotheistic religions. Hence, an atheist is simply someone who does not believe in the existence of such a God. This simplicity is not, as many religious apologists would like to argue, because atheists have a simplistic view of what God and religion can mean to the many different people who profess faith (though certainly some do). It is because drawing upon the Enlightenment tradition of science and reason that often leads to the rejection of belief in God the recognition of the power of scientific thinking disposes one to accept that progress towards understanding reality cannot be made without a common understanding of the specific terms with which we are engaging. While I do not expect that everyone will immediately agree with the definitions I have provided above, in conversation such proposals could lead to a discussion of them, and an agreement could be made as to how we will use our terms. Without this, our conversation would be fruitless, or even counterproductive. Entertaining the idea that clarity of definition is a prerequisite for productive debate, we can then consider how a lack of clarity might be undermining potentially meaningful discussions about religion, atheism, and morality. The most prominent new voice to address these topics is Jordan Peterson. I believe that for all Petersons arguments for the importance of the meaning of words (as in his discussions of linguistic territory surrounding gender pronouns, for example, or rule number 10 in 12 Rules for Life: Be precise in your speech), Peterson has suffered from a confounding evasiveness and elasticity when it comes to defining terms for what he urges are the most fundamental issues. When pushed on his beliefs about specific topics such as the historical Jesus, resurrection, or God, Peterson has rightly stated that it depends on what you mean. [2],[3] Yet, we are left largely in the dark about what his thoughts are on the different possible meanings that might be ascribed to these concepts. Petersons openness and humility regarding the literal truth of founding myths may be refreshing for some to hear, but it also necessitates that he and those discussing the topic with him specify whether they are dealing with a literal or metaphorical interpretation. When Peterson does hint at how he wishes to define terms, we can see how underspecified terminology can muddy the waters. Consider, for example, his response to Matt Dillahunty questioning whether the impact of psilocybin on smoking cessation should rightly be described as supernatural in their recent Pangburn Philosophy event: youre starting to define the supernatural pretty narrowly, like do you require miracle, like here and now? Something that defies the laws of physics or whats your definition of the supernatural?[4] But the idea that the definition of the supernatural as something which defies the laws of physics is not so much narrow as it is precise and accurate. It is also better aligned with what I think most people mean by the supernatural in this context. Other moments in Petersons discussion with Dillahunty show where a lack of clarity about terms, or perhaps willful obscurity, runs conversations into the rocks. Consider Petersons insistence that Dillahunty and many other professed atheists are in fact religious, or that without religion, we would lose art, poetry, drama, and story.[5] Rather than someone who rejects theism, Peterson argues that an atheist is someone like the character of Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment, who makes a calculated and seemingly justified decision to murder a dislikable old lady but is brought down by the pangs of his neglected conscience.[6] Moreover, we discover that for Peterson, Soviet Russia is a good example of a secular humanist society.[7] Clearly, Petersons definitions of these concepts are not in alignment with any common, or arguably good faith interpretations of them. What then, for Peterson, might it mean to be religious, or to believe in God? We hear from Peterson in this discussion that: [according to Jung] for all intents and purposes, God is the highest value you have[8] And similarly from his Twitter feed: Define God. OK. God is that in which we manifest necessary faith. Necessary because interpretations have to start somewhere. [9] Hence, to believe in God means that one has chosen, consciously or unconsciously, a fundamental moral principle. One needs some form of axiomatic bedrock from which to delineate the good and the bad, right from wrong action. Peterson appears to believe the best name for this axiom is God. But is this a justifiable or even useful definition? Certainly it is useful for Peterson, as it allows him to argue that without God one can have no basis for moral action or judgment. Secular attempts to develop a morality are doomed to fail because they are either in fact religious, or amoral. According to Petersons definition, this holds true, but this truth is a mere tautology: without a basis for morality, there is no basis for morality. Petersons more specific challenge to Sam Harriss secular moral framework presented in The Moral Landscape seems likewise a matter of wordplay. Harris argues that science can help determine moral values. We can use reason to decide on a goal or fundamental value, and then use our knowledge of such disciplines as history, biology, psychology, and neuroscience, to determine those societal arrangements and individual actions that are most likely conducive to achieving that goal or realizing that value. In Sams estimation, this fundamental value ought to be the wellbeing broadly defined of conscious creatures. Like Peterson, I am skeptical that an ill-defined notion of wellbeing can serve as solid foundation for moral norms. All the work is still ahead of us to choose more precisely what we mean by this term, and to deal with the possible incompatible values that we each take to be part of a life well-lived. Yet, Sam has made it clear that his notion of wellbeing needs further specification, and providing this specification did not appear to me to be the intent of The Moral Landscape. It was rather to make the case that we can select a meaningful moral goal based on our understanding of the primacy of consciousness, and then use all the tools of science to navigate in that direction. Also like Peterson, I question whether the initial arrival upon a fundamental value at which to aim can be deemed scientific. That we should value the wellbeing of conscious creatures is not, I believe, a scientific claim, even if it may be reasonable. This should is a subjective preference or assertion, and cosmologist Sean Carroll has similarly pressed Harris on this issue.[10] Does that make it religious? No. The world is not split into only scientific and religious claims. We can simply own the fact that we are postulating a particular moral premise without an objective basis, making neither a scientific nor a religious claim, but a moral one. We may have beliefs or values that we take on faith that is, without objective reason to believe but it is disingenuous to argue that this makes them religious. And while it may be true that this axiom fulfils many of the roles people have historically ascribed to religion, as Dillahunty points out, it is also devoid of many: I think youre sidelining what a lot of the roles of a deity has played throughout the entirety of human history. Because [many religious people are] advocating for an actual thinking agent, supernatural, that is the creator and or sustainer of the universe. Nothing about my pursuit of truth or goodness or secularism fulfils that particular role, so already we are cherry-picking the aspects of God[11] To take concepts that partially overlap the idea of a fundamental axiom and the idea of God or religion and to proceed as if they are synonymous with one another is inaccurate and confusing. It can only provide a hollow victory over secular morality. Further, it is not even pragmatically useful to redefine God as meaning a fundamental axiom devoid of supernatural claims: the term fundamental axiom already conveys what is meant, and does not come with the metaphysical baggage associated with the concept of God. Whats more, if we are to talk of God as meaning a fundamental axiom, then are we also to develop a new term for what God has previously been understood to mean for most people unsophisticated God, or God proper, perhaps? When a secular morality is proposed, it is not appealing to the will of an omnipotent creator that validates its premises. Rather, it appeals to our intuition, self-interest, or benevolence for acceptance of its bedrock. Granted, this may place morality on shakier ground than God-given law. But, as a genuinely God-given law has never existed, and increasing numbers of people are coming to recognize this, we must develop such a framework within which to find meaning and from which we can derive moral principles. Peterson may or may not accept that God is dead, but he does appreciate that we must fill this void. From this perspective, I think the likes of Peterson, Harris, and Dillahunty are engaged in the same project constructing or defending a moral system that people can live by. However, wordplay and obscurity are unlikely to be constructive. Peterson is, of course, free to use whatever language he chooses. I would simply ask whether it is really useful to define concepts in this way. My impression is that much of what Peterson is trying to convey is lost with these definitions. The atheist or skeptic dismisses Peterson wholesale owing to the absurdity of his claim that they are in fact religious. Petersons followers scoff at the skeptics on account of their elementary understanding of religion. Meanwhile, the theistic believer can rest soundly in the conviction that God has been defended, with scholarly references to boot. Little ground is covered, and everyone comes out feeling just a little more cemented in their convictions. Surely this is not what we are hoping to result from such discussions. Yet, it is the inevitable consequence of using the complexity of a concept or issue as a means of evading the necessary task of precise and explicit definition. We pack in all manner of unspoken associations and earnest but unjustifiable judgments. The result is vacuous false dichotomies and terms with such porous borders as to make mainland Europe look like Alcatraz. Religion versus nihilism. Morality versus atheism. God, but not that God. I have no doubt that Petersons idea of what God means is complex and nuanced, more so than just the idea of an axiomatic principle. But when we talk of things only by vague allusion, only through metaphor, or only as symbolic of something else nebulously defined, we can easily believe were revealing profound truths, when in fact were just not making much sense. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxYimeaoea0&t=121s Political Correctness Debate ft. Stephen Fry, Jordan Peterson, Michael Dyson, Michelle Goldberg. 1:24:50 [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIB05YeMiW8 Am I Christian? | Timothy Lott and Jordan B Peterson [3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0O8Jw6grro Jordan Peterson: Do You Believe That God Exists? [4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmH7JUeVQb8&t=4762s An Evening With Matt Dillahunty & Jordan Peterson. 19:40 [5] ibid. 41:40 [6] ibid. 1:28:20 [7] ibid. 1:15:15 [8] ibid. 1:17:27 [9] https://twitter.com/jordanbpeterson/status/1009842718158118913 Jun 21st [10] https://samharris.org/podcasts/124-search-reality/ Waking Up Podcast #124, In Search of Reality. 1:08:00 [11] An evening with Matt Dillahunty and Jordan Peterson 1:18:50 * * * Jamie Elsey is a PhD candidate in clinical psychology at the University of Amsterdam. Born in the UK, he received his BSc from University College London (UCL), and a MSc in Developmental Neuroscience and Psychopathology from UCL and the Yale Child Study Center, where he conducted research on the neurobiological impact of childhood trauma. After working as a research associate at the Yale/UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, he moved to Amsterdam to conduct research on a new treatment for anxiety disorders, based on the pharmacological manipulation of emotional memory. Besides working on this novel treatment approach, his work has covered neuroethics, psychedelic drugs, and the interplay of reason and emotion. Email: j.w.b.elsey [at] uva [dot] nl by Michael Liss The other shoe dropped. Anthony Kennedys idiosyncratic role as a Justice of the United State Supreme Court will come to an end a mere week from now. A lot of things are going to change. Lets start with the politics. Kennedys leaving cinches the conservative revolution (or counter-revolution) for at least a generation. For the first time in living memory, a conservative Supreme Court will be in position to review and bless the acts of a like-minded Congress and President. This will occur regardless of who is confirmed (Trumps list is one to which moderates need not apply), but, unless a bolt of lightning strikes, its going to be Brett Kavanaugh. Yes, there will be plenty of Kabuki before he gets measured for a new robe, but Kavanaugh is the one who rings every bell for both Republicans and Trump. Hes a Federalist Society member, reliably conservative on all the big issues, not afraid to advance his interpretation of the law even when it conflicts with precedent, and has a past history of partisan politics. His nomination even offers a prize in the Cracker Jack boxthe unique, magnificent straddle of having worked aggressively for Ken Starr, but now being deeply committed to the idea that sitting Presidents should be immune from prosecution. Dont Democrats have something to say about this? Of course not. Filibusters are dead, following an idiotic series of one-upmanship games between Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell. So, pay no attention to the hand-waving, heavily-accented man from Queens in the donkey suit. Chuck Schumer knows Kavanaugh (or someone just like Kavanaugh) is going to be confirmed, and he knows the confirmation battle is both a risk, and an opportunity, that he has to navigate carefully. First, Schumer has to let the activists in the Democratic Party vent. There is an unhealed wound from McConnells brilliantly evil stonewalling of the Merrick Garland nomination that needs a little more sunlight. Second, he needs to worry about the size of his own caucus in 2019. Everyone knows that there are 10 Democratic Senators up for reelection in states that voted Trumpseveral of those races are likely to be cliff-hangers at best. If I had to bet, the Democrats will have a net loss of at least three seats, and it could be significantly worse. Third is more existential. Schumer also has to worry about 2020, as a loss there will basically end the two-party system. Several Democratic Senators, including Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris (who is actually on the Judiciary Committee), Kirsten Gillibrand, and, of course, Bernie, are likely to look to use the proceedings as a showcase. Thats finethere is no particular reason to get in the way of them, if they focus on issues people care about. But the Trump reelection team (including affiliated media) will be thrilled beyond all measure if the main Democratic contenders use the hearings as a rerun of Hillarys 2016 campaign, which lacked ideas and often devolved into identity politics. No one beats Trump at identity politics. How does Schumer deal with this stew? By accepting reality (which I suspect he already has). First, do the math. There is no way Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins will be the votes to kill Kavanaughs nomination. We know this because they already are making cooing noises, notwithstanding their expressed concerns about SCOTUS overturning Roe v. Wade. We also know it for another reason. They can do the same math. There are 49 yes votes right now (assuming McCain votes) without them. One more makes 50, and Pence breaks the tie. Neither of them wants to force McCain to come to Washington. And neither wants to take responsibility for killing this nominationwhats the point when Trump will just follow up with the next Roe opponent? A lot of people look to Murkowski and Collins to be independent/mavericks, but a closer examination of their voting records doesnt really support that. Rarely do they use the leverage one would assume they have. Both have a few issues where they will break from party orthodoxy, but, almost all of the time, those are safe votesones that dont swing the results. McConnell is smart enough to know that, not to press them to take the hard ones except when absolutely necessary, and not to jeopardize their standing at home. Schumer is just as smart (and remember hes the guy who, in 2012, recruited many of the now-endangered Democratic Senators from some of those unlikely Red and Purple States). He also knows his New Yawk accent and mug is just as easy a target as Nancy Pelosis well-groomed coastal elitist granny look. Its not going to sell well in places like West Virginia (Joe Manchin), Montana (Jon Tester), North Dakota (Heidi Heitkamp) or Indiana, (Joe Donnelly). Thats actually a plus, because those folks can show their independence and adherence to local values of community, fair play, and moderation by voting for the qualified nominee. Schumer is not twisting their arms in a lost causerather, hes privately going to give them the thumbs up to use him as a foil. And they already are. Manchin just said Schumer can kiss my ____, and I seriously doubt it didnt get a secret grin from the Minority Leader. So, if its already over but for the speechifying and play-acting, what does this really mean to most Americans? On many things, practically nothing. The majority of SCOTUS decisions are actually unanimous. Only about a sixth are 5-4 or 5-3. Of course, the close ones have often been the intensely controversial onesthe ones in which we, and activists on both sides, are most interested. So, lets talk about how swapping out Justice Kennedy for Justice Kavanaugh changes things, with the given that hard-core conservatives are positively swooning with ecstasy at the opportunity. Three things to keep in mind: First, Justice Kennedy wasnt the centrist on the Court, he was the Median. The Median has now moved to Chief Justice Roberts, and he is substantially more conservative than the already conservative Kennedy. But if Kennedy was basically conservative, meaning aligned with Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, and Roberts on all virtually all close votes, which he was, particularly in the Term that just concluded, does it really matter? The short answerit matters, a lot, and for two major reasons: what Ill call the Obscure Structural One, and the Practical One. Lets start with Obscure. Not every case goes all the way to the Supreme Court. Rather, except in the comparatively rare Original Jurisdiction matters, SCOTUS chooses what cases to hear by granting certiorari to consider appeals from lower court rulings. Granting cert must be done on the votes of four Justices, and, beyond matters that may simply not merit their attention, sometimes the granting of cert is tactical: They dont want to disturb the lower court rulings on potentially controversial issues because they dont think the time is ripe to reconsider, or because they have uncertainty as to the result (and therefore dont want to reaffirm or set a precedent). But if they thought they could convince a fifth (lets say, our new Median, Roberts) they might. Granting cert can be a big dealit means there is a potential that SCOTUS might make a major, controversial ruling, either making new law, or overturning existing precedent. Now, the Practical One: The farther the Median moves towards one pole or the other, the broader the potential rulings. If we assume Kennedy was more centrist, then the two ideological sides had to bid for his favorand this coalition-building is far more important than many people realize. The public looks for binary rulingsyes or nobut many Supreme Court decisions reach yes or no in a manner reflecting a preference for Judicial Restraintseeking narrow grounds, and, respecting existing precedent as much as possible. Go too far, and you risk the fifth vote leaving the coalition. This doesnt stop individual Justices from joining in the Decision and then indulging themselves in a Concurrence (Justice Thomas, for example, has suggested that the Establishment Clause does not apply to the States), but the core ruling of the Court is a function of the maximum the deciding vote(s) can accept. If Roberts is the new Median, and Roberts is more conservative than Kennedy, those 5-4 votes will now tend to be more conservative, in the sense that they will go further because the extremely conservative Justices will have to give less to Roberts. This is a problem, and more than just for centrists and liberals. An unrestrained Court can be a dangerous one, both to the country and to its own legitimacy. This is particularly true when it indulges a preference for self-defined truths as a justification for significantly exceeding what the public wants. The more liberal Warren Court lost some of the publics confidence with a string of criminal procedure cases. The Roberts Court may do the same, if, to use the Chief Justices analogy about being an umpire, it seems to make the call even before the ball is out of the pitchers hand. As we move ever-harder Right, on the business/labor balance, on regulation, on voting rights and fair representation, on Executive Power, we are also coming to realize that true limited government conservatives barely exist anymore. They have been replaced by opportunistic conservatives who have no problem using the power of the State situationally to achieve political ends. SCOTUS, even if it were motivated that way, cant do that on its ownSCOTUS doesnt enact or execute laws, rather, it sets the ground rules for what can be enacted or executed. But, when what is left of the astringent, selective variant of limited-government judicial conservatism comes together with opportunistic political conservatism, you can get a maximalist resultone that can vastly outstrip where the public is or wants to go. So it will be with reproductive rights and, to an as-yet-undetermined extent, privacy rights, as well. We dont need a lot of granular legal analysis when SCOTUS decides to take down Roe v. Wade. The new majority clearly opposes reproductive rights, even as a substantial majority of the public supports access to abortion. But SCOTUS gets to make the rules, so Roe v. Wade is as good as gone. It wont happen immediatelyJustice Thomas will not go running out into the street on the First Monday in October looking for church bells to ring, but, after the processa ripe case, the granting of cert, briefing and oral arguments, and then a decision, Roe will end, probably by June 2019. This is as much a certainty as Trump tweeting in the early morning hours. What we dont know is what logic the Opinion will adopt and how far it will go. Roe doesnt exist without the Courts recognition of a right of privacy emanating from a penumbra of enumerated (as in, written down in the Constitution) rights (Griswold v. Connecticut, an earlier contraception case, laid the groundwork). But a generalized right of privacy, the type that seems intuitive to most Americans, is anathema to many Originalists precisely for that reasonit may be intuitive, but thats all it is. I suspect that at least two of the Justices, if given a blank slate, would happily discard most or all privacy rights, and one or two more might significantly limit their application. Is there a fifth (Roberts) to take a wrecking ball to the entire concept? I am going to assume (and hope) not yet, and SCOTUS will limit itself to a surgical strike on abortion. What are the practical implications? After all, overturning Roe does not bar the procedure, it merely eliminates the Constitutional restraints on individual States in their ability to regulate, restrict, and criminalize abortions. Superficially, that sounds somewhat calminga Tenth Amendment solution where the Bible Belt and uber-conservative states do their thing, and the rest of the country goes its own way. Ah, not so fast. According to the Guttmacher Institute, 45 states have some restrictions on their books. Ten have what we could call legacy bansstatutes that predate the original Roe decision and were never formally repealed. Here are the 10: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and West Virginiaall good conservative states where no one ever wants or needs an abortionand (brace yourself) Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico, and Wisconsin. Whats the over-under on ambitious Attorney Generals and local District Attorneys who will be looking to make a name for themselves by trying to enforce laws that the general public didnt even know existed? If the last 18 months have shown anything, its just how effective Republicans have been in exercising strict and sweeping one-party government, even with narrow majorities. Does anyone doubt that, once the Supreme Court rules that reproductive rights no longer exist, Paul Ryans successor (assuming the GOP retains the House) and Mitch McConnell will quickly roll out federally preemptive legislation with severe limitations or even a nationwide ban? Any doubts that the pressure on moderate Republicans would be intense to take one for the team, even at the potential cost of their seats? Any doubts our deeply religious President would sign it, if it could make its way through Congress, and direct Jeff Sessions to do whatever it took to enforce it before enactment? In a painful and even perverse way, the post-Roe-repeal trench warfare may actually do some good. It will bring focus to the bigger question: What other liberties will draw the unfriendly attention of limited government conservatives as they look to terraform a nation more to their liking? The next battle about rights is perhaps the ultimate one: Who really owns your life? What should be subject to unbridled scrutiny and regulation, and what should really be private, yours to keep or voluntarily cede, as you choose, to be invaded only under very limited circumstances? Let me end with one deeply conservative idea: the more power the government has to regulate your life and the lives of your fellow citizenseven if you agree with a particular application of that powerthe less liberty, you, as an individual, retain. That is why you should always vote as if your rights depended on it Because they will. The first comprehensive look at the prevalence of dementia among older adults in the lesbian, gay and bisexual community shows that about 7.4 percent are afflicted, below the overall dementia rate of about 10 percent. But while the official rate may be lower, there are significant issues concerning diagnosis and treatment. Researchers from the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) and Kaiser Permanente examined the medical records of 3,718 adults from sexual minorities over the age of 60. With nine years of follow-up research, they determined the rate of prevalence of dementia for the community. The study was presented this week at the Alzheimers Association annual meeting in Chicago. Having a lower rate of dementia than the general population may be relatively good news, but there are considerable concerns about diagnosis and treatment for those afflicted. For LGBT people who have a dementia diagnosis, a number of factors could negatively influence their care. Despite advances in LGBT rights, LGBT older adults are often marginalized and face discrimination. They are twice as likely to age without a spouse or partner, twice as likely to live alone and three to four times less likely to have children greatly limiting their opportunities for support. An estimated 40 percent of older adults in the LGBT community say that their health care providers are unaware of their sexual orientation. Jason Flatt, assistant professor at the Institute for Health and Aging at the UCSF School of Nursing, said "future studies aimed at better understanding risk and risk factors for Alzheimer's and other dementias in older sexual minorities are greatly needed. The theme of todays column is, slow down. Calm down. Dont do anything rash. Be careful about whom you listen to. Seriously, theres no rush. Now this advice can relate to many things. But this is a tax column, and every now and then I try to do what I am supposed to do. Since this column is only once a week I am thankful that I dont have to make a habit out of it. The focus of my advice is making changes based on the new tax law. In particular, changing the way in which the business is organized. Right now this is a hot topic for advice givers. Advice seekers need to cool off before acting on this advice. Why am I being a wet blanket? Primarily because we dont have all the information we need to make a decision to drastically change the form of doing business. Regulations expected to be issued later this summer or fall will help with the decision-making process. The corporate form tends to be the one making waves among tax practitioners. This includes the regular, or C corporation, and the more commonly used S corporation. The C corporation has fallen out of favor because it carries two levels of tax one when profits are earned by the entity and another when distributed in a way that is not tax-deductible to the corporation. The new law shakes things up by making the lowest tax rate apply to the corporate-level earnings. Dividend payments, which are the culprit for the second level of tax, are still taxed at rates applicable to capital gains. I do believe that tax practitioners need to consider the C corporation in many situations where they were written off just one year ago. But the two levels of tax is still difficult for many clients to swallow. And the recommendation to use a C corporation is premised on what may be shaky ground that is, that a future Congress will not change the law. There are two reasons why the law might change. First, the political affiliations of the House and Senate may flip, perhaps even in November. Democrats dont appreciate being left out of the process in the 2017 legislation. Second, the budget deficit is exploding. President Ronald Reagans 1981 tax cuts were followed by tax increases in 1982 and 1984 to attempt to reign in the growing deficits. S corporations, which have only one level of tax, are the darlings of larger business deduction under the new law. Many tax practitioners are now recommending S corporations because they offer the ability to pay the shareholder wages for employment. These wages may help to create a larger business deduction under the new law. But in most cases, the wages wont affect the business deduction. Wages only matter for high-income taxpayers subject to a deduction limitation. The need for an S corporation then becomes a more subtle decision when the right factors are considered. Changing to the S corporation form may prove costly if the owner later wants to receive property distributions. The S corporation may then accelerate gains attributable to the property. Not mentioned yet is what is presently the most common business entity type used in New Mexico the partnership. The new law creates several reasons to not be a partnership, but none that suggest that the partnership form continues to be the best option. But even with the new law set aside, partnerships may well continue to be the best choice. The problem is that corporations, under the new law, are now the latest shiny rock. The new law may offer partnerships little of new interest in the entity-choice game (partnerships allow the new qualified business income deduction, but so do proprietorships and S corporations, so there is nothing special to the partnership form in the new law). And yet partnerships still offer the greatest tax flexibility to creative tax planners. Something old may beat something new, and the new corporate rate may be something borrowed, making the taxpayer blue when that rate is changed. So relax, you dont need to change anything. Yet. Lets at least wait until Treasury issues new regulations defining some of the business deduction rules. Jim Hamill is the director of Tax Practice at Reynolds, Hix & Co. in Albuquerque. He can be reached at jimhamill@rhcocpa.com. The global commercial space industry is rocketing to unprecedented heights, and local leaders are working to make New Mexico a key business launchpad for it. Some of the most-active industry representatives announced the launch of New Space NM in May to unite the states public and private entities in joint efforts to tap into growing opportunities and attract more investment and business activity here. They formed a 13-member executive board to lead the effort, and they invited about 100 industry-related representatives from around the state to form an advisory team for the initiative. That team met for the first time on July 12 at the Albuquerque headquarters of SolAero Technologies Corp., one of the entities leading the effort. Casey DeRaad, a former Air Force Research Laboratory executive who now heads the local consulting firm DeRaad Tech Connections, told participants the time to act is now, given the space industrys explosive growth and New Mexicos unique abilities to tap into it. We have all the ingredients needed here intellectual capital from the national labs and defense installations like White Sands Missile Range, plus all the investment theyve made in equipment and laboratory infrastructure that we can leverage, said DeRaad, now administrative lead for New Space NM. We also have many companies already working here. If we work together, we can bring a lot more business opportunities to the state and expand our space workforce. SolAero President and CEO Brad Clevenger and Peter Wegner, chief technology officer for the Seattle-based companies Spaceflight Industries and Blacksky, said the commercial opportunities emerging globally are unprecedented in space industry history. Both are co-chairing the New Space executive board. In my entire career Ive never seen this type of change happening in the space industry, said Wegner, a 21-year veteran of space-related operations at Kirtland Air Force Base. Space today is like the computer industry in 1981, when the world went from mainframes to truly distributed computers. That reflects advances in space technology plus the worlds demand for high-speed data services. Together, those things are generating a shift away from expensive, traditional geostationary satellites that orbit 22,000 miles above earth to small satellites made for low earth orbit at less than 1,000 miles up, Clevenger said. Todays small satellites, which range in size from a loaf of bread to a filing cabinet, are far cheaper to make, launch and operate than the large geostationary ones that have provided most global telecommunications signals to date. As a result, companies and conglomerates worldwide are now launching swarms of small sats to provide the instantaneous data feeds needed to operate everything from earth and weather observation to smartphones. SolAero, which makes robust solar cells and panels for space vehicles, is now manufacturing the solar cells that will power OneWeb, the largest satellite project in the world to date for broadband internet. It will send about 700 small sats into low earth orbit starting in November. But its only the first of a string of projects now in the works. Theres a half-dozen other constellations in planning and design stages that will soon make OneWeb only the fifth or sixth largest project in the world, Clevenger said. That creates a lot more opportunities to do more as an industry in New Mexico. Theres hasnt been a change like this in the history of the satellite industry. In addition, as space-related development continues to shift away from government-controlled activities to public-private partnerships and wholly owned commercial endeavors, the final frontier is becoming a driver for private sector investment. The government itself is turning more and more to private companies to build and operate the new low earth orbit technologies required for future military and civilian needs. The global space market reached about $350 billion in 2016 and is projected to grow to about $2.7 trillion over the next three decades, according to a new report this spring from Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Capital investment since 2016 has been greater than all 40 years prior, Clevenger said. Companies like SpaceX are unveiling probably the flashiest demonstrations of new technology, but there are equally fantastic things happening in every aspect of the industry. That includes everything from manufacturing space vehicles and all the components that go into them to launch operations, ground-control, software development and satellite service management. It also includes firms that harvest reams of newly generated data from space to offer communications and information processing and analysis. Its a huge industry with many opportunities that New Mexico businesses can build on, not just the large aerospace contractors that have traditionally focused on government contracts, Weger said. We need to get out in front to be market makers, because theres a lot of competition in other states. New Space NMs advisory team reflects the broad diversity of capabilities and opportunities in New Mexico. It includes a range of private businesses in engineering, manufacturing, software development, and new types of service firms, such as Santa Fe-based Descartes Labs, which uses proprietary data analysis technology to turn satellite-based feeds into useable information for public and private customers. A range of government entities are also involved, including the AFRL and other national labs, local and state economic development agencies, aides from New Mexicos congressional delegation, and leaders from the states three research universities and Central New Mexico Community College. Advisory board participation remains open as the leadership continues to recruit more space-related companies and entities, DeRaad said. Leaders are especially focusing on software development firms, because theres a lot of money pouring into that side of the industry. Hardware is the traditional side of the industry, DeRaad told the Journal. But there are so many software applications and opportunities, and we want to aggressively build on that as well. Apply mayo to the toasted bun, sprinkle with lettuce, and top with two slices of tomatoes. Place the hamburger patty on the bottom bun, cover with four pickles, and drizzle with ketchup. Voila: The Whopper. In Albuquerques Winrock shopping mall, my former Burger King colleagues and I had been entrusted with these corporate trade secrets. Fast-food franchise owners increasingly cite secrets and training to justify secret contracts with their corporate headquarters that prohibit employees from seeking promotions or higher-paid positions at other franchise locations within the same company all without ever notifying the employees. These no-poach clauses may be appropriate in industries that employ high-skilled workers, where its fair to protect investments in human capital. But in the fast-food industry, where workers typically earn minimum wage, its simply a trap and limits workers economic mobility. By limiting workers outside options, a no-poaching agreement reduces worker bargaining power, wrote Princeton University economists Alan B. Krueger and Orley Ashenfelter in a 2017 study. The authors contend no-poaching, and related non-compete practices, could partially explain why wage growth is stagnant while unemployment is low and job openings are at an all-time high. At Burger King, I was one of a handful of employees grateful for the summer job during high school. However, many of my colleagues were already well into their careers, and that is not atypical. There is a common misconception that the majority of the approximately 4.5 million fast food employees are teenagers living at home. In fact, the average fast food worker is 28 and more than one-quarter are raising their own children, according to a 2013 analysis. One of my colleagues at Burger King was a kindhearted woman in her mid-50s a single mother to two teenage boys; lets call her Veronica. She earned minimum wage without any health benefits but approached every task of the day with the utmost dedication and seriousness, and eagerly accepted double shifts when colleagues called in sick. Toward the end of the day, Veronica would regularly shift her weight back and forth between her feet and hold her lower back in pain. But she would arrive early the following morning, believing that potentially, one day, she might be promoted to shift manager. She and thousands of other hard-working New Mexicans working at fast-food franchises deserve a fair shot at building upon their hard work and experience to earn promotions and higher wages. The detrimental impact of no-poach clauses could be particularly pronounced in New Mexico, where food preparation remains the lowest-paying occupation and is expected to account for one in every two new jobs between 2014 and 2024, along with personal care. With New Mexico food-preparation workers earning an average of $21,470 annually, their ability to leverage experience into higher-paying positions, potentially with other franchises, could be essential to improving their families well-being. Leaders around the country are pushing back, and New Mexico needs to join the charge. This month, attorneys general in 10 states not including New Mexico sent a letter to a number of fast-food corporations requesting information about no-poaching clauses within their franchisees contracts. The action prompted a number of fast-food companies including McDonalds and Arbys to announce they will end their no-poach practices. But many fast food restaurants, including Burger King, are absent from the list. New Mexico regulators and consumers deserve to know whether fast-food franchises in our state are using no-poach clauses, and the extent of negative economic consequences for workers. Its more essential than ever that we remain vigilant regarding corporate practices which could thwart Veronica and other workers from reaching the middle class. Thatd make for an even tastier secret sauce. Benjamin Nathanson served as a U.S. Senate policy adviser and is a political partner with Truman National Security Project. He is a senior vice president with Ichor Strategies, a public affairs consulting firm. Views expressed are his own. Born to a poorer family on the rough side of town, the South of Second Street in Roswell, I was supposed to become a statistic. When I was little, I remember my first goal being I want to afford to buy my children Happy Meals whenever they ask. This was after running errands with my grandmother, who did not have extra money to purchase me the tasty kids meal. Later, my goals become bigger, but were they big enough? Growing up, I remember having Latino teachers who looked like me. I also saw people who looked like me working at stores and restaurants where my family ate. I didnt often see people who looked like me as leaders or bosses. This, I thought, was normal. And because I didnt see Hispanic leadership within my own schools and community, it was not something I initially saw myself doing. My family did not have higher education, but they were all very hard workers. My grandparents, aunts and uncles began working on the farm fields at a very young age and never stopped working. From then, I learned what good work ethic was. My mother taught me that no matter what job you had, you did your best. Doing your best did not mean taking a shortcut or the easy way out. It did not mean running from a challenge or making excuses. Rather, doing my best meant that I was to become the best person I could be, an example of the values I learned as a proud Hispanic woman. I was the first in my family to graduate high school with honors, the first to earn my bachelors degree, and the first to obtain my masters. Im proud of these accomplishments. Ive been involved in education for over 10 years, working with students with an upbringing similar to my own. Like me, many of them would start out with limited goals. They didnt look outside of our community. They didnt consider going to college outside our state, if they considered college at all. They didnt see themselves as leaders. They thought they would do what others did: Get a job immediately after high school, have children and continue the cycle. I knew that children needed an adult challenging them to meet new goals and supporting them in understanding the vast opportunities they had available to them. I wanted to be the one to break that cycle. I chose education as my career path, because I knew this was where I could make a difference. As their teacher, I pushed my students to challenge themselves. I wanted them to reach their full potential and realize the options they had. Cam thought of himself as an athlete. He was quiet in class, stronger in math and not fond of writing. I challenged Cam to realize that he was a high-achieving student. Together, we recognized that the work he was doing was challenging, and he learned not to be afraid of the challenge. He began to use strategies I used with him to teach his peers how to solve multistep math problems. Cam became as confident in the classroom as he was on the field. I often talked about my college courses with my students when I was studying for my masters degree. I wanted them to understand the process, the work and the possibilities. I wanted to earn that higher degree so that I could continue to thrive in education as a young, Hispanic, female leader. My initial goal was to become a school principal. I understood the role of a building leader and how valuable a good principal was to the teachers and students within that building. I envisioned myself working and leading within a school but also thought about the possibility of leading at the district level. The more I achieved, the more my goals expanded. I was no longer setting minimal goals, and I wanted the children I taught to see someone who grew up like them and who looked like them making a difference at a higher level. I wanted them to envision themselves in those roles. I did not become a building principal. I still get to work in education, I still get to support teachers and students, and I still get to lead great work. I do this as New Mexicos Director of Policy for Teach Plus. I collaborate with educators and stand up in Santa Fe on behalf of amazing teachers. I support Teach Plus Fellows in their work as we fight for a high-quality, equitable education for all our students. I am the leader and an example for what many children in my community can become. Hope Morales was a Teacher on Special Assignment at Military Heights Elementary School in Roswell, and is a Teach Plus Teaching Policy Fellowship alumna. ASPEN, Colo. The American intelligence community has never faced a problem quite like President Donald Trump a commander in chief who is suspected by a growing number of Republicans and Democrats of deferring to Russias views over the recommendations of his own intelligence agencies. There are almost two governments now, worries John McLaughlin, a former acting CIA director. He discusses the Trump conundrum with the same vexation as a dozen other former intelligence officials Ive spoken with since the presidents shockingly acquiescent performance onstage last Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. How are current intelligence chiefs handling this unprecedented situation? They are operating carefully but correctly, trying to balance their obligations to the president with the oaths they have sworn to protect and defend the Constitution. The officials continue to serve the elected president, but they are also signaling that they work for the American people. Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence, admirably rebuffed Trump last Monday, a few hours after the president seemed to accept Putins denial of meddling in the 2016 election. Coats gave the White House a heads-up, but he didnt clear his statement. He believed it was essential to defend the intelligence community immediately. FBI Director Christopher Wray made a similar show of independence Wednesday at the Aspen Security Forum, saying the Russia investigation wasnt a witch hunt, as Trump claims, and affirming: Russia attempted to intervene with the last election, and it continues to engage in malign influence operations to this day. The brazen contempt Putin has shown for America is an extraordinary feature of this ultimate spy story. In Helsinki, Putin publicly affirmed he had supported Trump and evaded a question on if he had compromising information on him; in their private meeting, he asked for Trumps help in questioning a former U.S. ambassador, Michael McFaul, with Trumps promise he would study the matter. Putin, the ex-KGB officer, has described himself as a specialist in dealing with people, according to Dan Hoffman, former CIA station chief in Moscow. Putins tradecraft, Hoffman says, is summarized in a phrase popular among Russian intelligence operatives: What makes a person breathe? Putin seems to have an uncanny sense for how Trump breathes. That has led some observers to speculate that perhaps Trump is a controlled Russian agent. This seems unlikely to me, partly because the Russians would never allow a true mole to take such crazy risks of exposure. Hes not a controlled agent because if he was, theyd tell him how to behave so as not to endanger himself, observes a former head of CIA operations against Russia. No, Trump is something different. The phrase useful idiot, attributed to Vladimir Lenin, is often used, but the technical Russian term for an often unwitting but helpful asset is a confidential contact. What Trump offers Russia isnt the information he knows, but his role as a human wrecking ball against Americas traditional allies and trading partners. What will be different in the spy world, in the aftermath of this week? Probably not much. Intelligence agencies are resilient; they get on with it, as CIA Director Richard Helms liked to say. The president remains the first customer; most veterans of the spy world cant imagine withholding information from him. Officials may be more cautious, briefing especially sensitive details first to the national security adviser or cautioning the president he doesnt want to know how information was obtained. What about the agents who are risking their lives in Moscow or Beijing to spy for America? Will they balk now? Again, probably not: Spies have deep reasons for working for America, positive and negative, and they know the risks theyre taking. Agents who have helped America because it represented something different from Putins authoritarianism may have second thoughts, however. Thats the hidden intelligence cost of Trumps presidency; were a less admirable nation. Will foreign spy services that share sensitive intelligence through whats termed liaison reduce the flow? Probably not. our foreign partners need U.S. intelligence, however much they dislike Trump. At the end of the day, our work is what endures, Wray said here. His commitment to the law and the facts offered a moment to appreciate that Trump is checked, not by some imaginary deep state, but by patriotic men and women doing their jobs. President Trumps Putin schmoozapalooza in Helsinki last Monday sent jaws dropping around the world, and in a very rare occasion even within the friendliest of Trump circles. For good reason. It was the geopolitical equivalent of standing in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shooting someone. With the world watching, and Vladimir Putin standing right next to him eating up his every fawning word, the president of the United States essentially accused his own intelligence community of lying about Russias meddling in the 2016 elections, insisting instead that he believed Putin, a murderous dictator and professional liar. My people came to me they said they think its Russia, Trump said at the now infamous press conference. I have President Putin; he just said its not Russia. I will say this: I dont see any reason why it would be. Amid the firestorm of reaction, Trump declared Tuesday afternoon that he had misspoken at the Helsinki news conference and meant to say wouldnt instead of would. Some have called his original words a defining low point of his presidency, others treasonous, and others still cause for impeachment. But surely no one is defending him, right? Wrong, of course, because its 2018. Just when you think theres nowhere lower for Trump defenders to go no plausible way to defend the indefensible they arrive on cue to prove you wrong. For the professional and political Trump addicts, whose livelihoods or egos depend on finding creative ways to justify any and every infantile, disturbing or unconservative thing he does, this is what officially hitting rock bottom looks like. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Vice President Mike Pence sounded particularly delusional, praising Trumps deeply productive dialogue and insisting: What the world saw, what the American people saw, is that President Donald Trump will always put the prosperity and security of America first. Thats the literal opposite of what we saw. Then there were Trumps biggest cheerleaders, Fox Newss Sean Hannity and Jeanine Pirro and Fox Businesss Lou Dobbs. For Hannitys part, instead of defending Trump outright he turned his fire on the rest of us. Im watching all of these Republicans and Im thinking none of them, none of them, have the ability to lead anything. The Senate couldnt even repeal and replace Obamacare. The only thing that either the destroy-Trump media, the Democratic Party, or, frankly, Never-Trump, weak, pathetic, visionless, feckless, spineless Republicans the only thing they seem to care about in life is being loved. That, coming from Trumps bedtime phone-call buddy, is rich. Jeanine Pirro, expectedly, was extra ridiculous, asking Tuesday morning, What was (Trump) supposed to do, take a gun out and shoot Putin? But Lou Dobbs, afraid to let anyone appear more pathologically obedient to Trump, took defending him to performance art level: I think that the president handled himself perfectly. What would it have taken to satisfy the morons on those (television) clips? And what is his name, (John) Brennan? Hes the biggest joke I have seen. What is he supposed to say? Were settling this now, toe-to-toe with the Russkies, well see whose ICBM gets to which city the fastest? This is stupid stuff, this beyond the pale, as far as Im concerned. Then there was one brave Republican senator who offered a truly bizarre defense, for reasons only he knows. One-time vocal Trump opponent Sen. Rand Paul, whose libertarianism seems to come and go like seasonal allergies, used the Trump apologists favorite trope to defend his performance: I think theres a bit of Trump Derangement Syndrome and people that hate the president so much that this could have easily been President Obama early in the first administration setting the reset button and trying to have better relations with Russia and I think its lost on people that theyre a nuclear power. Whats he got on you, Rand? The defenses are absurd on their face because they are totally unnecessary. Most of Trumps biggest supporters called him out without hesitation. From Newt Gingrich, who said this is the most serious mistake of his presidency and must be corrected immediately, to former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, who tweeted his support for our intelligence agencies, there was plenty of cover for others to have an honest moment of reflection and preserve both some dignity and credibility. If this is the lowest moment of the Trump presidency and I believe it is certainly a contender then its also the lowest moment for those whove decided to defend it. The good news is, when you hit rock bottom, theres nowhere to go but up. Usually. Proving Donald Trump isnt the only extreme voice in our national cacophony, some on the far left of the Democratic Party are calling for the abolition of ICE officially known as Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives by a little-known Wisconsin congressman to do just that, but the push also includes some big names like Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Kristin Gillibrand of New York. Yet this effort is so out of touch with reality that it actually helps Trump do damage control over the fallout for his wrong-headed policy of separating immigrant children from parents and putting them in detention centers. Trumps policy, from which he was forced to backtrack, met with widespread disapproval of the American public. But the extremists who want to do away with ICE should take note of a CNN poll in June in which 62 percent said that when it comes to immigration, border security should be our first priority. And lets be honest. If you cant deport people here illegally, especially those with criminal records, there isnt much point in trying to enforce a border. ICE was created under the Department of Homeland Security in 2002 in response to the 9/11 attacks and among many other duties it assumed the deportation role previously held by the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Yes, the United States has been deporting people in the country illegally for many years. In fact, President Obamas administration deported a record 2.4 million immigrants between 2009 and 2016 earning him the nickname Deporter in Chief. The agency is charged with enforcing more than 400 federal statutes, and its official site says it focuses on smart immigration enforcement, preventing terrorism and combating the illegal movement of people and trade. Thats government speak for human trafficking. Not surprisingly, some supporters of the abolish ICE movement have carried signs that say: No Borders No Nations No Deportations. To be fair, ICE has had problems, but it doesnt troll neighborhood streets demanding to see identification papers. Its main focus in the internal part of the country is on those who have run afoul of the law. Democrats who want better treatment of immigrants want no part of this Abolish ICE movement. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus chaired by Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, D-N.M., is not on record as supporting it. Those who do support it should take a look at the agencys site. On Wednesday, it featured one of its Most Wanted Ramon Raudel Campos Murillo, a native of Mexico charged with operating an interstate prostitution ring in multiple states in which many of the women were foreign nationals. One 15-year-old girl allegedly was forced to have sex with 17 customers her first day on the job. ICE says customers typically paid $30 for 15 minutes with the trafficked girls and women, and Campos Murillo, aka Chilango, is a documented associate of the brutal international gang MS-13. Meanwhile, a couple of potential new ICE customers Perfecto Lopez-Olivas and Goretty Aguirre surfaced in New Mexico earlier this month. Both are Mexican nationals; Lopez-Olivas was arrested after Border Patrol agents seized more than 26 pounds of methamphetamine concealed in the gas tank of his vehicle at the checkpoint on Highway 54 south of Alamogordo. Aguirre and two other men were charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute after Border patrol agents seized more than 15 pounds of heroin hidden in their vehicle. These examples are not rare. With cartels pushing drugs and engaged in human trafficking of immigrants, they are commonplace. If convicted, Aguirre and Lopez-Olivas will be sentenced to prison and then deported. Along with Campos Murillo, if he is apprehended. And all by ICE which wouldnt exist if some on the far left get their way. This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers. Roughly 15 miles outside of Gallup on tribal land, a dilapidated mobile home sits in a scrubby lot. By the looks of it, children must live here, too, as there are tricycles and toys scattered in the dirt. Several small dogs are tethered outside and whine and wag their tails at the construction crew. Just feet from the mobile home, the familys brand new house is being finished, with several Air National Guard members inside laying flooring and hooking up the plumbing and electricity. The family living inside has probably been waiting years for this. They werent alone. Though the Navajo Nation encompasses millions of acres in New Mexico, Arizona and Utah, thousands of tribal members live on the reservation in need of a home. According to recent estimates, the housing shortage numbers about 30,000. That can result in families living in overcrowded mobile homes, sometimes without running water or electricity. Over half of Navajo Nation homes had no indoor plumbing as of 2011, according to the Navajo Housing Authority. But some groups are trying to combat the shortage one home at a time, including the nonprofit Southwest Indian Foundation with the assistance of the U.S. military. The real mutual benefit is the training that the unit gets and the free labor that the foundation is getting, said Col. Tim Dotson, commander of the South Carolina Air National Guards 169th Missions Support Group. Its a great way to display military power in a different way, a humanitarian kind of way. Over the past two weeks, 40 members of the 169th Civil Engineer Squadron constructed several three-bedroom homes destined for Navajo veterans. The squadron will construct and install every part of each home, including the plumbing and electrical system. The 1,100-square-foot homes have three bedrooms and one bathroom. Theyre mostly assembled in a SWIF warehouse in Gallup before being trucked to their final destinations. All summer, military units from around the country have cycled through the warehouse, learning skills theyll be able to use during natural disasters or on a deployment overseas. Home ownership obstacles The foundation has provided around 270 homes for Navajos in need since its partnership with the military began in 1998. SWIF has its own application and screening process, but it recently also started working with the Navajo Veterans Administration to provide homes to veterans. The free labor the military provides is extremely valuable to the organization. While each home is impactful to its recipient, who will have a home for a lifetime, there are still tens of thousands more homes needed to alleviate the shortage. At the root of the housing shortage is a simple fact: Most of the land on the reservation cannot be owned by individuals. The vast majority of reservation land is held in trust by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs. Most people living on the land must pay for long-term leases. We give them the homes because theres no economic mechanism for them to purchase a home unless theyre off the reservation, said Sr. Chief William Woolf of the Navys Mobile Construction Battalion 22 headquartered at Port Hueneme, Calif., who is managing the military training program this summer. A house that is worth $120,000, when you put it on the reservation, becomes worth nothing because you dont own the property on which it sits. Most banks are hesitant to give out a loan for a home thats to be built on a reservation, as they wont be able to hold the land as collateral. Getting financing to build a home is very difficult, if not impossible, for most families, said SWIF project director Jeremy Boucher. Plus, Boucher said, high unemployment and low wages would make it difficult for those living on the reservation to get a loan anyway. Debt of gratitude For the military members on hand Tuesday, though, it was gratifying to complete even a single home for someone who needed it. Its like every generation of military people, we owe a debt to the people who served before us and it gives us a chance to help pay that debt back, said Sr. Master Sgt. Tom McTeer of South Carolinas 169th. McTeer described meeting a veteran who would be moving into one of the homes when the man stopped by the warehouse recently. That was worth its weight in gold, just seeing his face, McTeer said. That gives us even more incentive to do the best job we possibly can because we know this is going to be somebodys home. Just before midnight in a Madison, Wis., courtroom, a weary jury convicted an Albuquerque man of the gruesome murder and rape of a 19-year-old college student, a crime that had chilled the community and played out in the headlines since the young womans bloody, nude body was found June 24, 1980, in her apartment. Two days after being convicted, Ralph Armstrong, then 28, was sentenced to life plus 16 years in prison. In closing arguments, prosecutor John Norsetter had chided Armstrong for trying to convince the jury of his innocence. Ive never seen a bigger pack of lies in a courtroom, he told jurors. But it wasnt Armstrong who was lying. And it wasnt until Armstrong had already served 29 years in prison before the lies and missteps were uncovered, and advances in DNA technology would lead to his exoneration. Even then, because of a harsh decision by the New Mexico parole board, freedom was still years away. The story of Ralph Armstrong is the stuff of Kafkaesque nightmares, a John Grisham novel told in hundreds of pages of court documents and in a myriad of Madison newspaper articles that span nearly 40 years. A handful of Albuquerque Journal articles in 1972 the only time his story has trickled out locally until now briefly detail how at age 19 he and three youths had terrorized women by chasing them down and gang-raping them at knifepoint during a four-month drunken and debauched summer spree. Armstrong pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual assault and was given an indeterminate sentence of 30 to 150 years. Records show he was a model prisoner, undergoing counseling and sex offender treatment and graduating summa cum laude in 1974 with a bachelors degree in psychology from the College of Santa Fe. That earned him parole in 1979 and a fully paid fellowship in the graduate program of psychology at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, a place he told the parole board he chose because he just happened to like the area. The first year of his second chance went well. His good grades were enough to renew his fellowship for the coming year. He worked part-time at a shoe store, had friends and got engaged to a young woman named Jane. That all changed that summer. On June 22, 1980, his younger brother, Stephen Armstrong, a 22-year-old Texas oil field worker, paid him a surprise visit. On June 23, the brothers shared an evening of dinner, drinking beer, snorting a small quantity of cocaine and watching M*A*S*H on television with Jane, a few other friends and Janes coworker, Charise Kamps, a UW sophomore. On June 24, Kamps was found dead, naked and face down in her blood-soaked bed with a bathrobe belt draped across her back. She had been strangled, beaten and sexually assaulted. Madison police quickly identified Ralph Armstrong as the suspect. He had been the last known person to see Kamps alive, telling police that she had invited him up to her apartment for a beer as the night wound down. And there was that incriminating criminal record in New Mexico. The case against him moved quickly. Nine months after Kamps murder, he went to trial. Prosecutor Norsetter relied heavily on semen stains found on Kamps bathrobe and hair found in her apartment that were consistent with Armstrongs. Traces of blood found underneath Armstrongs nails could have belonged to Kamps, though Armstrong insisted that the blood was from a knee injury and showering with Jane during her period. A neighbor also testified that she saw Armstrong going in and out of Kamps apartment, though defense attorneys argued that the neighbor had changed her story, recanted then reconfirmed it, after a mishandled hypnosis session. Jurors took seven hours to find Armstrong guilty of first-degree murder and sexual assault. But behind bars, he continued to declare his innocence, filing appeal after appeal, each denied. In 1993, his case caught the attention of the Innocence Project, a nonprofit committed to exonerating wrongly convicted people through DNA testing. Project lawyers argued that the bathrobe stain excluded Armstrong as the killer, and in 2001 advanced DNA testing also excluded him as the source of the hairs and another semen stain found on the bathrobe belt. That convinced the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 2005 to overturn his conviction and grant a new trial. But while preparing for the retrial, defense attorneys learned that additional testing ordered by Norsetter on the bathrobe belt had destroyed the remainder of the evidence, a violation of a court order. In addition, defense attorneys learned that Norsetter had never told them about a phone call he had received in 1995 from a woman who said a man had confessed to Kamps rape and murder. A second woman had also heard the confession. That man was Armstrongs brother. But Stephen Armstrong was long gone. Eight days after the conviction was overturned, he was found dead in his home in Tennessee. In all the years his brother had languished in prison, Stephen had never contacted or visited him. In July 2009, a judge dismissed all charges against Armstrong and chastised Norsetter for prosecutorial misconduct, opining that the prosecution of Armstrong was a single-minded pursuit of an innocent man that let the real killer to go free. According to newspaper articles over the years, Norsetter has never stopped believing Armstrong is the killer. Before Armstrong could go free, he was returned to New Mexico under a hold related to his parole from the 1972 conviction. A risk assessment conducted then rated him low risk for re-offending. But the parole board revoked his parole anyway, arguing that he had violated his conditions of release with the alcohol and cocaine he consumed the night before Kamps murder nearly 30 years before. Molly Schmidt-Nowara, Armstrongs Albuquerque attorney, filed a petition in July 2010 seeking to overturn the decision, calling it part of the unceasing persecution of her client over three decades and one of the grossest miscarriages of justice in the annals of modern American law. Under any rational notion of justice, 30 years of incarceration is more than enough punitive time for a relatively minor violation, the petition stated. Five months after filing the petition, the parole board relented, granting Armstrong his parole. In April 2011, he walked out of the Guadalupe County Correctional Facility near Santa Rosa a free man or as free as he will ever be. Armstrong, now 65, is not scheduled to be released from parole until 2045 when he is 93. As part of his parole, he is required to register as a sex offender a system that did not exist at the time of his conviction. These days, Armstrong lives quietly in Albuquerques North Valley in a modest one-bedroom rental. He has never spoken publicly about the case. Efforts to contact him and his attorney were unsuccessful. Last year, he settled a civil rights lawsuit against Norsetter and others for the way his case in Madison was mishandled. An article in the Wisconsin State Journal reported the sum of the settlement at $1.75 million. But even that much money cant buy back the lost years. 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. Six New Mexicans were among the survivors of the Missouri duck boat accident that killed 17 last week, according to passenger information released by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. One of them, a 64-year-old woman from Carlsbad, sustained serious injuries and was transported to Cox Hospital in nearby Branson, Mo., according to the newly released information. A hospital spokeswoman was unable to provide information on her condition, saying the woman was not listed in the hospitals directory. The other New Mexicans aboard the boat were not injured, according to the report. They include a woman and man from Carlsbad, both age 42; and a 19-year-old woman, 15-year-old girl, 10-year-old boy who were listed as New Mexicans but without a specific city. Efforts to reach the New Mexico passengers were unsuccessful. The accident occurred Thursday evening on Table Rock Lake amid winds approaching hurricane strength. Lincoln Brower, one of the foremost experts on the monarch butterfly, who spent six decades studying the life cycle of the delicate orange-and-black insect and later led efforts to preserve its winter habitat in a mountainous region of Mexico, died July 17 at his home in Nelson County, Virginia. He was 86. He had Parkinsons disease, said his wife, Linda Fink. Dr. Brower, who taught at Amherst College in Massachusetts and the University of Florida before becoming a research professor at Virginias Sweet Briar College in 1997, began studying the monarch butterfly in the 1950s. He made key discoveries about how it protected itself by converting a toxic compound from its sole food source, the milkweed plant, into a chemical compound that sickened its predators, primarily birds. In the 1970s, other scientists discovered that monarchs had extraordinary migratory powers, more like birds or whales than insects. Each fall, monarchs from east of the Rocky Mountains travel thousands of miles to a Mexican forest, where they spend the winters. Monarchs from western North America migrate to California. It has the most complicated migration of any insect known, Brower told the Chicago Tribune in 1998. Somehow they know how to get to the same trees every year. Its a highly specific behavior that is unique to the monarch butterfly. It takes three to four generations of monarchs to complete the one-year life cycle. After the migration to Mexico, the butterflies begin their return trip to North America, and a new generation is born en route, growing from larvae to caterpillars before taking flight. With the arrival of cooler weather in the fall, the great-grandchildren of the monarchs that flew south the previous year will make the same trip, returning to the mountainsides visited by their ancestors. Its an inherited pattern of behavior and a system of navigation that we dont really understand, Brower said in 2007. We dont know exactly how they find their way. We dont know how they know where to stop. Brower first visited the monarchs winter quarters in a Mexican forest, about 80 to 100 miles west of Mexico City, in 1977. At an elevation of 9,500 to 11,000 feet, tall fir trees were entirely covered by hundreds of millions of butterflies. When they stir their wings, it sort of sounds like leaves blowing in the fall, Browers son, Andrew Brower, a biologist and butterfly expert at Middle Tennessee State University, said in an interview. Its remarkable. You look up, and the sky is blue, but then its orange. Its like an orange stained glass window above your head. During more than 50 trips to Mexico to study monarchs, Brower began to see that their numbers were shrinking. Their mountain habitat is now a UNESCO World Heritage site, and ecotourists have rallied to save the region from development. Nevertheless, trees continue to be cut down by loggers or burned by farmers. In North America, Brower also pointed out, the monarchs face a further problem from the growing use of herbicide, which has eradicated much of their food source, the once-abundant milkweed. What were going to lose, Brower said in 1998, is this incredibly beautiful migration and everything thats associated with it. So I have called this beautiful syndrome of the migration and overwintering cycle an endangered biological phenomenon. There are still millions of monarchs in North America, but their numbers fluctuate from year to year, in an ever-downward trend. By some counts, the population has fallen by as much as 90 percent since the 1980s. Brower joined efforts by environmental groups to have the monarch recognized as a threatened species. Why should we care? Brower told The Washington Post in 2005. For the same reasons we should care about the Mona Lisa or the beauty of Mozarts music. Lincoln Pierson Brower was born Sept. 10, 1931, in Madison, New Jersey. His parents had a nursery and rose-growing business. He was 5 when he took notice of an American copper butterfly landing on a clover bloom. I just stared at that tiny butterfly, and it was so beautiful to me, he told NPR. And that was the beginning. He graduated from Princeton University in 1952, then received a doctorate in zoology from Yale University in 1957. Some of his early scientific papers were written with his first wife, the former Jane Van Zandt. That marriage ended in divorce, as did a second, to Christine Moffitt. Survivors include his wife of 27 years, Linda Fink, a professor of ecology at Sweet Briar College and a frequent scientific collaborator; two children from his first marriage, Andrew Brower of Christiana, Tennessee, and Tamsin Barrett of Salem, New Hampshire; a brother; and two grandchildren. Brower edited two books and was the author or co-author of more than 200 scientific studies. In 2016, he received the E.O. Wilson Award for his work to preserve the monarch from the Center for Biological Diversity. He also received an award from the Mexican government. In 1998, Brower recalled his first visit to the monarchs wintering place in the mountains of Michoacan, Mexico. All of a sudden the color of the trees changed, he told the Tribune. I didnt realize what I was looking at. It was like a wall, turning from green to gray. It was monarch wings, folded as they roosted the underside of their wings are grayish. So, here was this wall of butterflies, and I just couldnt believe it. For the first time in my life, I saw millions of monarch butterflies right in front of me. They were covering the trees, they were all over the boughs. They were on the trunks. They were on the limbs. They were on the bushes. They were everywhere. It is one of the most marvelous sights you can behold in the biological world. WHAT GOES INTO AN EMISSIONS CHECK? Larry CdeBaca emails, Your July 9 column explained how safety inspections were dropped. In a similar vein, during my last emissions test in 2016 or 2017, the man running the inspection station did not insert a test probe into my cars exhaust pipe as I expected. He passed my car based on the fact that no warning lights like check engine came on when I placed the ignition switch into the accessory position. In fact, he did not have me start the car. This does not seem right. It does sound a little loosey-goosey. But according to the Albuquerque Air Care Facts brochure on emissions testing, only vehicles made from 1984 to 1995 receive a tailpipe exhaust analysis for excessive carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon levels. 1996 and newer model year vehicles include On-Board Computer (OBD II) test. And OBDII.com explains, Instead of doing a tailpipe emissions check on a dynamometer, an OBD II check is a simple plug-in test that takes only seconds. Whats more, OBD II will detect emissions problems that might not cause a vehicle to fail a tailpipe test which means emissions test failures under the OBD II test programs are expected to be significantly higher. It goes on to say with OBD II, the check-engine light will come on only for emissions-related failures. And it says an official OBD II emissions test consists of three parts: 1. An inspector checks to see if the malfunction indicator lamp/check engine light comes on when the key is turned on. If the light does not come on, the vehicle fails the bulb check. 2. A scanner is plugged into the diagnostic link connector (DLC), and the system is checked for monitor readiness. The scanner also checks the status of the check-engine light is it on or off? and downloads any fault codes that may be present. If the check-engine light is on and there are any OBD II codes present, the vehicle fails the test and must be repaired. The vehicle also fails if the DLC is missing, has been tampered with or fails to provide any data. 3. As a final system check, the scanner is used to command the check-engine lamp on to verify it is taking commands from the onboard computer. WHO TO CALL ABOUT ILLEGAL VENDING: Wallace E. Anderson emails, After many months I have witnessed vendor(s) selling on Tramway from Lomas all the way past Academy. There is now a sign just north of Candelaria with Notice No Vending allowed. How can a resident have these signs posted at the habitual selling areas. Who do we contact? The no-vending sign cites the applicable state law and county ordinance. The main number to the New Mexico Department of Transportation District 3 Office in Albuquerque is 934-0354; the main number to Bernalillo County Public Works is 848-1500. In previous columns, NMDOT has explained the New Mexico Administrative Code states no vending on highway right-of-way shall be permitted and that it could be deemed as criminal trespass (NMSA 1978, Section 30-14-1). Article 14 Trespass states that whoever commits criminal trespass is guilty of a misdemeanor. The law enforcement authority having jurisdiction would be the Albuquerque Police Department or Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office, depending on the location along N.M. 556 (Tramway). THERES AN ORDER TO SIGNALING: JW emails, I have a suggestion for those of your readers who choose to use turn signal. The proper sequence is to signal, then brake. I see too many drivers who brake for no apparent reason only to put on their signals immediately before making the turn. This not only confuses following drivers but could provoke a rear-end collision where someone brakes for no visible reason. Editorial page editor DVal Westphal tackles commuter issues for the Metro area on Mondays. Reach her at 823-3858; dwestphal@abqjournal.com; or P.O. Drawer J, Albuquerque, N.M. 87103. Residents can now access the Albuquerque International Sunports aircraft flight tracking and noise complaint system, backed by Harris Corp.s PublicVue. In the system, users can view active flights near the Sunport, search through historical flight data and report noise concerns directly to airport personnel. Our vision for the airport is not only to serve as the states hub for getting around the world, but also as a valuable partner for the community, said Nyika Allen, the citys aviation director, in a statement. We want residents to know that we hear them and we work for them that means through the good and the bad. We want to alleviate aircraft noise as much as possible without hindering airport operations. Airport officials say the system makes reporting noise and identifying possible causes easier for residents and provides the airports operations personnel more information to analyze and assess. To access the flight tracking and noise complaint system, visit abqsunport.com/flightsairlines/flight-tracking-and-noise-complaints. CALLING ALL COOKS AND CHEFS: Registration for artisans, food trucks, cooks and volunteers is now open for the 2018 version of the Bosque Chile Festival. New at this years festival is the chicharron challenge, which will feature restaurant cooks and chefs frying up their own versions of the dish. Winners of the competition will each take home a custom-made Disc-it grill, plate or utensils, as well as chicharron chops bragging rights as the Bosques best of 2018. A panel of judges and people who attend the event will cast their votes for the winners. Entry fee for the chicharron challenge is $25. Presented by Bernalillo County and the National Hispanic Cultural Center, the Bosque Chile Festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Aug. 18 at the center, 1701 Fourth SW, Albuquerque. Admission is $5 and kids 5 years and younger are free. Food vendor and artisan fees range from $100 to $200 for early bird rates, which increase after July 27. This is a juried process for vendors, meaning each vendor must submit a pictured portfolio with their application. To sign up for the competitions, become a vendor or learn more about the event, visit bernco.gov/bosquechilefestival. Steve Knight: sknight@abqjournal.com BEIRUT The Israeli military in coordination with its U.S. and European allies evacuated hundreds of Syrian rescue workers known as the White Helmets from near its volatile frontier with Syria, in a complex and first-of-a-kind operation. The evacuees, who were hemmed in from one side by advancing hostile Syrian troops and from another by militants affiliated with the Islamic State group, were transported to Jordan, from where they are expected to be resettled in Europe and Canada in the coming weeks. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said Sunday that 422 White Helmets volunteers were evacuated, instead of the initial 800 cleared for the operation. Israels military said the overnight operation was an exceptional humanitarian gesture at the request of the United States and European allies due to an immediate threat to the (Syrians) lives. It posted a video online showing its soldiers handing out water bottles to the evacuees. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a separate video statement, said U.S. President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and others had asked him to help evacuate the groups members. These are people who saved lives and whose lives are now in danger. I authorized bringing them through Israel to other countries as an important humanitarian gesture, Netanyahu said. The U.S. State Department welcomed the rescue of these brave volunteers and cited the United Nations, Israel and Jordan for helping with the operation. The statement from spokeswoman Heather Nauert also called on Syrias government and its ally Russia to abide by their commitments, end the violence, and protect all Syrian civilians, including humanitarians such as the White Helmets, in areas formerly part of the southwest de-escalation zone and throughout Syria. Britain said the operation was possible due to the joint diplomatic efforts, hailing the efforts of the White Helmets volunteers to save lives in opposition areas. Jeremy Hunt, U.Ks foreign secretary, called the successful evacuation fantastic news, and thanked Israel and Jordan in a tweet for acting quickly following the request. The White Helmets, he said, are the bravest of the brave and in a desperate situation this is at least one ray of hope. The members of the White Helmets and their families had been stranded along the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights following the Syrian government offensive in southwestern Syria which began in June. Raed Saleh, head of the White Helmets, also known as the Syrian Civil Defense, said a number of volunteers and their families were evacuated from a dangerous, besieged area. This was the first such Israeli intervention in Syrias lengthy civil war, now in its eighth year. Although it has sent aid into Syria and has provided medical treatment to thousands of Syrians who reached the Golan Heights frontier, the Israeli military said its actions did not reflect a change to Israels non-intervention policy in Syrias war, where all the warring parties are considered hostile. It was an unprecedented operation to provide protection and asylum to allies of Western nations in Syrias complex battlefield. The White Helmets have enjoyed backing and received finances and training from the United States and other Western nations for years. Because of their work in opposition areas, where they were almost exclusively the only ones to offer rescue services in the face of the government military advances, they were considered public enemy number one by the Syrian government. They offered services where state institutions and services are non-existent. Their facilities were targeted, and their volunteers hit in what became known as double tap attacks that drew the volunteers to areas of bombings only to hit them once on site. The Syrian government, and Russia, have called the White Helmets terrorists, accused them of being agents for foreign powers, and of cooperating with radical insurgent groups. Both Moscow and Damascus have accused the White Helmets of staging rescue missions and chemical attacks to blame on the government. On Sunday, Syrian state media kept up the campaign against the group, pointing out that Israel facilitated the evacuation, citing it as evidence that the group was collaborating with an enemy power. Syrian state TV al-Ikhbariya called the evacuation a scandal. The State News Agency SANA said the secret of the group had been revealed and their role as an agent ended. Syrian lawmaker Khaled Abboud said that foreign powers are pulling their agents out of the battlefield because of the Syrian military victories that have quashed the aggression against Syria. In a quick offensive, Syrian government forces, backed by Russian air forces, have been advancing from the east on areas held by the opposition in the strategic southwestern region that straddles the Jordanian border and the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel in 1967. They first seized the border with Jordan, squeezing the opposition in the center and progressively chipping away at areas the rebels held for years. For the first time since the war began in 2011, government forces regained positions along the disengagement line following a cease-fire deal with Israel in 1974. This left the rebels and the White Helmets besieged by the government from one side, the sealed frontier with Israel, and by the group affiliated with the Islamic State group from the south. Surrender deals were reached with the armed groups, allowing thousands to evacuate to the northern province of Idlib, where the opposition still holds sway. But one civil defense official, refusing to be identified by name for his safety, said the Russians refused to allow the White Helmets to be evacuated to the north. The Associated Press first reported on Friday that U.S. officials were finalizing plans to evacuate several hundred Syrian civil defense workers and their families from southwest Syria as Russian-backed government forces closed in on the area along the Golan Heights frontier. Evacuation plans were accelerated after last weeks NATO summit in Brussels. The evacuees are being assisted by the U.N. Refugee agency in Jordan pending international resettlement. The Jordanian Foreign Ministrys spokesman, Mohammed al-Kayed, said the Syrians would remain in a closed area in Jordan for three months. Safadi, Jordans foreign minister, said in a tweet that his government approved the evacuation after a pledge from Britain, Germany and Canada that the evacuees will be resettled in three months. It is not clear if the White Helmets who have been previously evacuated to Idlib from other parts of Syria will receive similar treatment. Since the offensive began, Jordan said it will not open its borders to the newly displaced Syrians. Jordan hosts at least 650,000 registered Syrian refugees, according to the U.N., but Amman says a similar number of undocumented Syrians are also in the kingdom. Some 300,000 have been displaced by the fighting, with only a few thousands opting for evacuation to Idlib, which is expected to be the target of the next government offensive. Aron Lund, a Syria expert with the Century Foundation, said after the international communitys funding and promoting the White Helmets for years, the evacuation should not be a surprise. It seems like simple moral math to me that when the uprising fails, they should try to get their guys out alive, with their families, he told AP in an email. Had the international community done this much earlier and also offered safe haven to the rebel leaders theyve been backing, they could have helped get irreconcilables out of the equation and reduce the amount of killing and destruction. All sides benefit from giving the losing team a safe exit, he said. Separately Sunday, al-Ikhbariya TV quoted a military official as saying that a military post in the town of Masyaf in Hama province was hit by an Israeli airstrike. The area houses several defense ministry facilities. ___ Associated Press writer Sarah El Deeb reported this story in Beirut and AP writer Aron Heller reported from Jerusalem. AP writers Fares Akram and Omar Akour in Amman, Jordan, contributed to this report. Copyright 2018 Albuquerque Journal Oil and gas operations on the outskirts of Carlsbad Caverns National Park are off the table, at least for now. The Bureau of Land Management had included about 25 parcels within 10 miles of the park in an initial lease-sale proposal published in April in response to requests from oil and gas operators seeking new areas to drill in southeastern New Mexico. That generated energetic opposition from environmental groups, which said such operations in and around the areas unique limestone-based geology could impact Carlsbad Caverns delicate ecosystem, while threatening fresh groundwater systems. However, in its final proposal for the Sept. 6 lease sale, published Monday, the BLM excluded all parcels within a 10-mile radius of the park to allow the agency more time to study the local geology and its interaction with groundwater, said Melanie Barnes, BLMs deputy state director for land and resources. Were deferring 31 parcels all the ones close to the park, Barnes said. That includes two parcels that were under one mile from the park, and one within a mile. The BLM will now offer 142 parcels for lease in its September auction in Eddy, Lea and Chaves counties, down from 173 initially. Some environmental organizations may still oppose the remaining leases for sale during a 10-day protest period that runs through Aug. 1. WildEarth Guardians and others remain concerned about deteriorating air quality from the general expansion of industry operations in the Permian Basin in West Texas and southeast New Mexico. In addition, they want the BLM to postpone new lease sales until it completes a new resource management plan for the area. A first draft of the new plan is expected in August, opening a 90-day comment period. But environmentalists did offer cautious praise for BLMs decision to defer leases near Carlsbad Caverns. Im very pleased the BLM listened to the publics concerns by recognizing that these are delicate and rare resources that need to be studied and analyzed more before any leasing takes place in that area, said Ernie Atencio, New Mexico program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association. Becca Fischer of WildEarth Guardians called it a step in the right direction. The lease deferrals will give the BLM time to study how the areas underground water systems interact with the subterranean topography formed by the regions soft limestone bed. That geology, known as a karst system, creates crevices, tunnels and caverns that can affect water flow and basins. We want to look more at those cave karst resources and some of the drainages to better understand how it all ties together hydrologically, said BLM Pecos District Manager Jim Stovall. Still, the issue could easily resurface if industry operators nominate more parcels in the area. It may well come up again in a future lease sale, Barnes said. SEOUL. South Korea North Korea has begun dismantling the facilities at the satellite launch station in Sohae, according to an analysis of commercial satellite imagery released on the 38 North website. The Sohae location has been the main site for North Korean satellite launches since 2012. The testing facilities at the site are thought to play a role in the development of liquid-fuel engines that can also be used in North Koreas ballistic missile program. If the analysis of the satellite imagery is accurate, North Korea may be taking a small but significant step toward the disarmament that was agreed upon by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and President Donald Trump during a landmark meeting in Singapore on June 12. After that summit, Trump said Kim had pledged to dismantle a missile site. U.S. officials later confirmed that the site that the U.S. president was referring to was Sohae. However, the lack of visible progress toward that pledge was one factor that soon served to undermine the agreements reached between Kim and Trump. The images published by 38 North, a U.S.-based website focused on North Korea that is affiliated with the Stimson Center in Washington, were taken by the commercial companies Digital Globe and Airbus Defense and Space on July 20 and July 22, respectively. In one set of images, it appears that a rail-mounted processing building is being dismantled. This building is where space launch vehicles are assembled before they are moved to the launchpad, according to 38 North analyst Joseph Bermudez Jr. Separately, images show activity around a vertical engine test stand at Sohae. Bermudez notes that in the images from July 22, the test stand appears to have been completely dismantled, adding that given the state of activity, work is likely to have begun sometime within the past two weeks. On Twitter, 38 Norths founder, Joel Wit, said the images suggested that North Korea may be willing to give up its space launch program. Wit, a former State Department negotiator with North Korea and a consistent advocate for dialogue with Pyongyang, said such a move would be just one step in the right direction, but an important one. Notably, the timeline of the satellite images suggests that North Korea may have begun dismantling the facilities at Sohae after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Pyongyang in early July in a bid to make progress on the agreement reached in Singapore. However, the dismantlement of the facilities at Sohae appears to have taken place without outside experts there to verify it. The North Korean government has made a number of such unilateral moves since the start of the year, including the apparent destruction of the Punggye-ri nuclear test site in March. Analysts have cautioned that these steps need verification. After a flurry of activity earlier in the year, there had been signs recently that ongoing denuclearization talks between the United States and North Korea were going slower than anticipated. U.S. intelligence officials said last month that Pyongyang was working to conceal key aspects of its nuclear program. The Washington Post reported last weekend that Trump, who had said last month that North Koreas nuclear problem was largely solved, was now privately expressing concern about a lack of progress on the issue. On Monday, Trump tweeted that the story was wrong and that he was very happy! The New York Timess search for a director of photography to replace Michelle McNally is over, notes the NPPA: The job goes to Meaghan Looram, currently deputy director of photography at the Times. Editor Dean Baquet and Managing Editor Joseph Kahn said in an announcement that Looram would be taking over at a time when they plan to make our visual journalists, spanning photo, video, graphics and design, more integrated than they have been in the past. Insulting Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the venerated founder of modern Turkey, remains a criminal offense, and laws protecting his legacy are being robustly applied by Turkeys religious conservatives who have governed unchallenged since 2002. The latest violator was a 23-year-old woman who was arrested on July 22 for publicly declaring her hatred of the national hero. Safiye Inci shot a video of herself at Ataturks mausoleum in Ankara saying she didnt like Ataturk, that he hadnt saved the country and that he couldnt even be Tayyip's shit. Inci was referring to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Twittersphere erupted in howls of protest. The hashtag #SafiyeInciTutuklansin (Safiye Inci should be arrested) starting trending as the video went viral. Inci, who has since apologized and retracted her comments in a second video, could face up to three years in prison. There may seem to be nothing unusual about her case, as countless people have been prosecuted for daring to criticize Ataturk. A government hotline invites citizens to snitch on others who attack Turkeys most famous son. Yet Inci continues to draw debate mainly for the lack of reaction to her plight in pro-Islamic circles. Inci, who covers herself head to toe in a black burqa, was airing views long held by many Islamists: that Ataturk and his secularizing revolution was an all-around disaster and the man himself a faithless drunk. Emboldened by Erdogans rise, some began openly deriding the deification of Ataturk. They were particularly loud in 2009, when in the southeastern province of Malatya a cow was exiled and its owner formally investigated after the creature ran into an Ataturk bust in a local schoolyard, causing it to fall off its pedestal. Yet even the shrillest Ataturk critics remained mum when Inci was locked up. Their silence, some analysts say, is evidence of how Erdogan has embraced Kemalist nationalism to consolidate power. Prominent Turkish historian Ayse Hur sees parallels between Erdogan and Adnan Menderes, the conservative right-wing prime minister who stole the mantle of Kemalism from the pro-secular Republican Peoples Party that was founded by Ataturk when Menderes introduced the 1951 law penalizing all criticism of him. Like [Menderes], Erdogan may have well realized that rather than fighting Ataturk he is better served by perpetuating the taboos surrounding him, Hur told Al-Monitor. It allows Erdogan to neutralize Turkeys generals who justified their former grip on power on the grounds that they were defending Ataturks secular legacy. Hur also believes that having exhausted a cocktail of ideologies, including Islam, Erdogan may now be turning to Ataturk as a last resort as an economic crisis looms. Burak Kadercan, an associate professor of strategy and policy at the US Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, maintains that Erdogan is not embracing Ataturk so much as being more careful not to offend sensibilities surrounding him. Kadercan, who requested that his views be presented solely as his own, told Al-Monitor that this caution was driven by Erdogans recently forged alliance with far-right nationalist leader Devlet Bahceli. Bahcelis support helped Erdogan win presidential and parliamentary elections on June 24, but he did not seek a position for himself or any of his lieutenants in the newly formed Cabinet. Kadercan sees the Inci affair as most likely one of childish miscalculation on her part, but it could also be a staged attempt to drive a further wedge between Erdogan and Turkeys secularists by provoking the latter. Either way, he concluded, Erdogan is trapped by his ultranationalist turn in 2015 that saw Turkeys longest ruling leader ditch efforts to secure peace with Kurdish militants and is being egged on by Bahceli to relaunch an all-out war against them. Ataturk, who brutally suppressed his own share of Kurdish rebellions, would have surely approved. As signs of the end of the civil war in Syria loom, the Syrian residents of the Golan Heights are expressing concerns. The small Arab population that has remained in five small villages in the Golan Heights is worried that the residents could become victims of postwar wheeling and dealing between regional and international powers. Nizar Ayoub, the director of the Al-Marsad Arab Human Rights Center in the Golan Heights, told Al-Monitor that the US recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights is certainly a possibility. In my opinion, US recognition is possible, but it has to do with the Syrian situation. If Syria is a united country, this would be more difficult; if Syria is divided into three zones as is happening now, this could happen. Nevertheless, Ayoub believes that if it happens, people in the Golan Heights will speak out loudly. If there is a serious move or a decision in this regard, people will speak out. But the reality is that the postwar situation in Syria is key. If Syria is seen as a failed and divided state, this would be a possibility. Salman Fakhreddine, a Golani political activist and researcher, told Al-Monitor that there is a clear relationship between the US decision and the current talk about the occupied Golan Heights. After what happened in Jerusalem and the move of the embassy, there is no way to predict what US President Donald Trump might do. Fakhreddine said everyone is pushing to reap the fruits of the war. War has a way of revisiting issues long forgotten. Those seeking to collect the fruits of the war in Syria are not Syrians; they are Americans, Russians as well as Iranians and Israelis. However, Ayoub, a resident of the village of Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights, believes that nothing will change on the ground. He told Al-Monitor, No matter what is said and acted upon regarding the Golan Heights, nothing will change. The occupation will not go away. The recognition of the occupiers as sovereign on our land will mean that the UN charter and international resolutions are worthless. Political observers seem to think that the US recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights is a faraway possibility. Ofer Zalzberg, a senior researcher with the International Crisis Group, told Al-Monitor that he is doubtful that any change will occur regarding the status of the Golan Heights. I really dont think this issue is on the table. A close reading of the recent events shows that this idea is far-fetched. US Ambassador David Friedman was [reportedly] annoyed at this issue with his Israeli counterparts. Zalzberg pointed out that Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed at the Helsinki summit the importance of the 1974 Separation of Forces agreement and UN Security Council Resolution 338. Friedman is reported to have said last month that Israeli officials were ungrateful by demanding that Washington recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights following the Jerusalem decision. That the Golani people are worried is not without basis. A pro-annexation group, the Coalition for the Israeli Golan headed by former Israeli Cabinet Secretary Zvi Hauser, was established last year with this issue in mind. According to its website, The Coalition for the Israeli Golan is a non-partisan, Israeli NGO [nongovernmental organization], founded in 2017 to promote international recognition of Israels sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Furthermore, the US Congress held a hearing July 17 to discuss this very same issue. Ron DeSantis, the chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on National Security, called on witnesses and the Trump administration to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights. Aaron David Miller, a former adviser to US Republican and Democratic administrations, told Al-Monitor that such US recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights is unlikely. Israelis, Russians and Americans have accepted that Syrian government control will block Iran from coming close to the borders on the Golan with Israel. I dont think this administration would complicate the [Syrian President Bashar al-] Assad agenda, because he will use it to hammer Americans, and frankly this wouldnt serve anyones purpose. Miller, who is currently the vice president for new initiatives at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, conceded that Trump is unpredictable and may use this to push his deal of the century. He added, Jared Kushners plans might be announced in September, and if Trump finds it necessary to sweeten the pot for Netanyahu, he may consider recognizing Israeli sovereignty. Khalil Jahshan, the executive director of the Arab Center Washington, has similar worries about the unpredictability of the US president. Jahshan told Al-Monitor, With this administration, everything is possible. The question is what the Israeli agenda is. Jahshan, a Palestinian American political analyst, argues that the current US leadership has abandoned traditional positions and international commitments. The US will easily endorse recognition of Israeli sovereignty on the occupied Golan because they dont look at occupation the way previous administrations did. This applies to their view of the occupation of Palestine and it was clear regarding the Russian occupation of Crimea. As the violence in Syria appears to be ending, the tumultuous Middle East is moving into newly unchartered territory. Major regional and world powers that have invested money and blood into the conflict will unlikely remain idle as certain powers attempt to exploit the end of the war to their strategic advantage. The Syrian conflict has too many players, including a number of victorious ones, who will not allow one side to run away with prizes to the detriment of all the others. A team of Israeli and American researchers is using cutting-edge technology to explore and document an obscure and inaccessible but increasingly significant archaeological site in central Israel. The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Utah Valley University (UVU) are expected to roll out in August a one-of-a-kind multimedia guide integrating 3D imaging and virtual reality to bring the ancient city of Beit Lehi, touted as the lost city of ancient Israel, to life. The digital guide to the site is slated to be launched next month. Beit Lehi, also known as Beit Loya, lies 37 kilometers (23 miles) southwest of Jerusalem in the rolling limestone foothills of the Judean Mountains not far from the UNESCO World Heritage site at Beit Guvrin. A closed military zone encompasses the entirety of the archaeological site, severely limiting civilian access and preventing development. The site, which extends over a few hilltops, was occupied intermittently from the Iron Age down through the Mamluk period nearly 2,200 years before being abandoned around 1400 A.D. The surface bears the remains of a medieval mosque and village and an earlier Byzantine church, but below are a series of underground chambers carved out of the soft limestone. These include a massive columbarium (dovecote) with over 1,000 niches for birds, making it possibly one of the largest in the world, as well as stables, quarries with gigantic support pillars and escape tunnels, all dating from the 3rd and 2nd centuries B.C. to the 2nd century A.D. Archaeologists have found over 50 different inscriptions at various places around the site in Hebrew, Greek and Arabic, including a 6th century B.C. Hebrew inscription bearing the name of Jerusalem and the Israelite god Yahweh. First excavated in the 1980s, Hebrew University archaeologist Oren Gutfeld has returned in recent years with colleagues from the Israel Antiquities Authority and UVU to continue exploring and documenting the site. This area is untouched by archaeology, but its a gold mine, Gutfeld told Al-Monitor as his jeep rumbled over the rocky track leading to Beit Lehi. He estimates that only around 10-15% of the site has been excavated. We dont have any idea how big it is. Thats the question. The UVU team has aided Hebrew University archaeologists in mapping and imaging the site using technology used by engineers to measure and map bridges and roads. Lidar a laser imaging detection and ranging device capable of making 20 million measurements in 12 minutes is being used to create three-dimensional maps of Beit Lehis vast caverns and tunnels. Advanced 360-degree cameras take photographs that are stitched together to create a high-quality image of these massive spaces that can be used in virtual reality applications. Aboveground, the UVU researchers have deployed drones to create high definition aerial images of the ancient citys structures. They not only document the site but have also helped discover previously unknown buildings. Michael Harper, a professor of digital media at UVU, explained that by using a technique called photogrammetry, the aerial photos taken by drones create topographically flat images that make the concealed outlines of structures pop out of the tawny scrubland. Aerial images captured by the drones also revealed a previously unknown Iron Age settlement dating back nearly 3,000 years. Gutfelds team has started to excavate another discovery: an enormous Hellenistic period cultic complex at least 40 meters long and 45 meters wide perhaps to the Idumean god Qos. People thought it was a small community, but now we know it was a large urban center, Gutfeld said. The remains of imported luxury goods from as far afield as Rhodes and a subterranean oil press are not indicative of modest, sleepy villages, said Michal Haber, an archaeologist with the Israel Antiquities Authority involved in the dig. Instead, Beit Lehi appears to have been a prosperous, interconnected town during the Hellenistic and Roman periods. We feel that every [dig] season, theres something new that is discovered, Haber told Al-Monitor. Michael Harper, a UVU professor of digital media who is heading the project, said that the various types of images being taken at the site by students from Utah are being used both for research and to create a multimedia guidebook and interactive magazine that provides users with information about Beit Lehi. The magazine integrates 3D images of artifacts found at the site, aerial photos and other types of media to let users explore and understand the site in a more comprehensive way than a rare visit would be able to. The digital media element of the project is one of several opportunities for UVU students across multiple disciplines to participate in hands-on engaged learning and gain valuable experience, Harper said, from photography and publishing to graphic design. The magazine, whose first issue is due online this fall, is expected to be updated annually and will include rolling updates about new finds and articles about different aspects of Beit Lehis history. WASHINGTON Soon after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo finished giving a high-profile speech to the Iranian American community in California purporting to promote democratic reforms in Iran, US President Donald Trump took to Twitter July 22 to warn Iranian President Hassan Rouhani against threatening the United States, or face dire military consequences. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE, Trump tweeted late on July 22. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! What had provoked Trumps ire was apparently aides recounting comments Rouhani had made earlier on Sunday to a gathering of Iranian diplomats that they had interpreted as menacing. America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars, Rouhani said Sunday. Trumps hawkish national security adviser John Bolton, in a statement to journalists on July 23, sought to reinforce the presidential threat of force on Iran. I spoke to the president over the last several days, and President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before, Bolton said in a statement sent to White House reporters on Monday. But some others perceived Trumps tweet as echoing his fire and fury threats to North Koreas rocket man Kim Jong Un last year, which ultimately ended with Trump meeting Kim at the Singapore summit last month and declaring the North Korea nuclear threat solved. Uncertainty over whether Trumps newly threatening language toward Iran signaled possible military escalation or could be a prelude to eventual diplomatic engagement with the Islamic Republic was echoed in Iranian Americans reaction to Pompeos speech Sunday night. In a speech titled Supporting Iranian Voices, Pompeo told an audience of about 1,000 people that he recognized that the Iranian American community has diverse views. But he said the Trump administration would pursue severe economic sanctions on Irans oil and banking sectors to try to pressure the Iranian regime to change its behavior both abroad and at home. I recognize the Iranian diaspora is diverse, Pompeo told the audience at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California. But I think everyone can agree that the regime in Iran has been a nightmare for the Iranian people. To our Iranian American friends, tonight I want to tell you that the Trump administration dreams the same dreams for the people of Iran as you do, and through our labors and Gods providence that day will come true, Pompeo said. In addition to pressing countries around the world to reduce their import of Iranian oil to as close to zero as possible, Pompeo said the Trump administration would pursue efforts to circumvent Iranian regime controls on the internet and to provide 24/7 US-funded Farsi language broadcasting and social media to champion Iranians who want to challenge the Iranian regime over its spending in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Lebanese Hezbollah. The goal of our efforts is to one day see Iranians in Iran enjoying the same quality of life that Iranians in America enjoy, Pompeo said. Later, in a brief question and answer session, former California Gov. Pete Wilson asked Pompeo what the Trump administration saw as the best way to support Iranian peoples aspirations for a less-repressive government. The mission set for our team is clear, Pompeo replied. Its to deny the Iranian leadership the resources, the wealth, the funds, the capacity to continue to foment terrorism around the world and to deny the people inside of Iran the freedoms that they so richly deserve. Wilson asked, What could be a basis for reconciliation between the United States and Iran? Pompeo at first sighed and conveyed personal skepticism that Iran would be willing to make the changes in its behavior demanded by the US administration to get to the negotiating table with Trump. But then Pompeo seemed to hesitate and noted Trumps reversals on North Korea and his occasional expressions of enthusiasm for making a new deal with Iran. The president has made clear he would love that, he would welcome that, Pompeo said. Ive now made three trips to Pyongyang, a regime that has treated its citizens in a way that also denies them their freedoms. He continued: The president has said if we can get this change, if we can get the leadership to make a strategic decision about how to ensure its well-being and the well-being of its peoples, that were prepared to have a conversation and to discuss how that might proceed. The president has stated at least once, perhaps more than once, that he is prepared to do that with the leadership in Iran, but not until such time as there are demonstrable, tangible, irreversible changes in the Iranian regime that I dont see happening today. But I live in hope. Roxana Ganji, an Iranian American pro-democracy activist based in Los Angeles who attended Pompeos speech, said she was enthusiastic about Pompeos remarks until he left open the possibility that Trump might decide to engage with the current Iranian regime at the end. I loved it, all the way to the last two to three minutes, when [Pompeo] said that President Trump would welcome the regime sitting with us, Ganji told Al-Monitor in a phone interview after the speech. This is what happened with the Korean guys, scary, Ganji said. Pompeo himself knows that Trump may decide to do it. The changes that the Trump administration is demanding of Iran if it wants to pursue engagement with the United States are tantamount to regime change, Iranian American pro-democracy activist Pooya Dayanim said. The Trump administration, with its maximum pressure economic sanctions campaign against Iran, wants to push them into a corner, to see if it can cut a deal with the Iranians, Dayanim told Al-Monitor in a phone interview from Los Angeles July 22. If they dont cut a deal with the Iranians, the [Trump administration] will push harder to make the regime collapse. Dayanim added, I think if you look at the 12-point speech Pompeo gave at the Heritage Foundation in May, even if you get only seven or eight of them, Iran would be a fundamentally different country. It would not be a revolutionary state anymore. There are three broad preconditions that the Trump administration is demanding from Iran in order to pursue diplomatic relations, said Marjan Keypour Greenblatt, an Iran-born human rights activist. My understanding from State is there are three conditions for normalizing relations, said Keypour Greenblatt, who heads the Alliance for Rights of All Minorities. Abandon its terrorist ambitions. The elimination of its nuclear program. Show respect for their own civilians. If these conditions were to be provided, most of us Iranian Americans would welcome engagement, Keypour Greenblatt said. Alireza Nader, a Washington-based Iranian American pro-democracy activist, praised the Pompeo team for reaching out to Iranian Americans, but said the focus should be on the follow-up to the speech. The key question is follow-up, Nader told Al-Monitor after Pompeos speech. My worry is, frankly, that the administration at some point wants to support engagement with the regime, Nader said. I have a sense that the administration is still unsure about what its exact policy is. Some [of what the Trump administration has demanded of Iran] is for the regime undoable, such as withdrawing its support for Hezbollah, Nader said. But once the sanctions are snapped back and the oil exports in November go down, I think the regime will seriously consider negotiating. Even if it negotiates and the US lifts its most serious sanctions, can the regime pull out of the crisis? The regime may have to pay a very steep price, or get its act together. But Jamal Abdi, the vice president for policy at the National Iranian American Council, said he was worried that the Trump administration has convinced itself that its maximum pressure campaign will be more effective than it may prove to be. I am worried they are buying their own propaganda, and they dont really have a plan, Abdi told Al-Monitor. They believe they can collapse the economy and bring things back to a magical point when they thought Iran was on the brink of such economic dire straits that the US could demand anything it wanted, and if not, they could destabilize it. At the end of day, the policy seems largely driven by governments in the region the Saudis and Israelis, who want to weaken and destabilize Iran so that it is less able to project power outside of its borders, Abdi said. If they can weaken Iran and create that turmoil, they think that is fine for them. But there are true believers in the Trump administration who do want to topple the government. I think they are waiting for the Iranians to do something stupid, and say the time has come to take military action, Abdi said. In recent weeks, Tehran has been trying to prevent the damaging impact of the reimposition of US secondary sanctions targeting the Iranian petroleum industry. Protecting the strategic value of its petroleum sector both in terms of hard-currency earnings as well as technological impetus for industry will, however, depend on Tehrans ability to attract foreign investment and technology as well as continuing to export crude and petroleum products. Considering that the major Western oil and gas companies will withdraw from Iran, the answer to Irans needs lies with Russia. Following a recent visit to Moscow by Ali Akbar Velayati, senior foreign policy adviser to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, news emerged that Russia had agreed to invest $50 billion in Irans petroleum sector. It is unclear whether the figure includes actual investments or whether it refers to the volume of barter trade involving Iranian crude oil, but the key issues are what Russia can actually do for Irans petroleum sector with regard to investments as well as its potential role as an intermediary for Iranian crude exports. Without details of the reported agreement, especially what Russia will commit to, it is difficult to assess the feasibility of the understanding, which Iranian analysts are approaching as a puzzle. The questions are what might be feasible and whether that will be desirable from the Iranian perspective. The most obvious framework that the $50 billion figure might involve is the existing oil-for-goods scheme originally signed in 2014, before the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). After the implementation of the nuclear deal in January 2016, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said the scheme was no longer necessary. In March 2017, however, in light of the hesitation of international banks to process transactions with Iran, a new version of the deal was reached. In April, the two sides agreed to extend the oil-for-goods agreement for five more years and to include crude exports of up to 500,000 barrels per day in return for Russian goods. This would mean that the total volume of Russian exports to Iran could reach $20 billion in five years, potentially explaining one part of the $50 billion figure. What exactly could Russia export to Iran? The quantitative potential is sufficient, especially as Russia produces the types of machinery, equipment and installations Iran needs in its strategic petroleum, mining, construction and transportation sectors. If such items are part of the deal, however, it means Iranian stakeholders will have to lower their quality expectations, as it would represent a move away from top-notch Western standards. One of the topics of discussion after the US withdrawal from the JCPOA earlier this year has been a further expansion of this framework, potentially up to a volume of 1 million barrels per day of Iranian crude. In the past during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988) and during the sanctions years (2007-2013) Tehran used barter extensively for trade with end consumers of Irans crude oil, among them India. The agreement with Moscow presents a challenge, however, as Russia, itself a major oil producer and exporter, will only play the role of intermediary. One question in this context is the actual operational framework. Would Iranian oil be shipped to Russia before its export to the end consumer? In most cases, geographically and operationally, it does not make sense to ship oil to Russia and from there to European and Asian markets. One alternative would be to ship the oil from Iranian export terminals in Russian tankers, but this would undermine the business of Irans own National Iranian Tanker Company to the benefit of Russian shipping companies. The most significant question from Tehrans perspective would be who will be in charge of marketing crude sales. If Russia does the marketing and becomes the face of Iran's oil supply among major international customers, would Tehran be able to regain those customers if the relevant legal statutes change and sanctions are lifted? In other words, there may be some short-term gains, but with potential long-term losses for Iran. Looking beyond the oil-for-goods scheme, what Iran needs as urgently is actual investment in its petroleum sector. Incidentally, in April, the conservative Mashregh News, a critic of the Hassan Rouhani administration, reported Russian interest in investing in Irans petroleum sector and even mentioned the figure of $50 billion. Of interest, Russian companies are involved in 12 of the 19 project-related memorandums of understanding or agreements signed in Irans petroleum sector since the lifting of nuclear-related sanctions in 2016. If all 12 projects were signed off on as actual contracts, similar to the accord signed with Zarubezhneft to boost oil production, then one will see a genuine flow of massive Russian investment into the Iranian petroleum sector over the next few years. One should keep in mind, however, that perceptions of Russian companies are not ideal among Iranian decision-makers. It is no secret that Iranian technocrats and petroleum sector decision-makers do not have the highest confidence in the technological and financial capabilities of their northern neighbor. In their effort to secure Iranian projects, Russian companies will have a difficult time convincing Iranian technocrats and industry players that they will provide technologies on par with their Western competitors. Iran had a negative experience with China during the first wave of withdrawals from its market by Western oil and gas companies in 2007-2008, and it does not want to waste more time in the process of exploiting the potential of the countrys massive energy sector. It also would be an affront to Iranian pride to be in a position where Iran has no alternative to Russian and Chinese investors and technology providers. As such, it can be anticipated that Iranian authorities would insist that Russian contractors also engage smaller European technology providers to guarantee the flow of the latest European technology to Iran. One project that may offer itself as a signature project would be Iran's ambitious but unfinished project begun in the 2000s with the aim of annually producing 10 million tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG). It was operationally suspended due to the non-availability of technology from foreign sources, and now that US secondary sanctions will return, none of the European sources of LNG technology will be willing to assist Iran with the project (especially as many technological components are US-made). Russian technology providers could, however, offer the needed know-how. Growing LNG capacity has been a strategic development in Russia as well, and it remains to be seen whether Tehran and Moscow can pave the way for cooperation in this field as well. While trade and investment could help Iran and Russia achieve their ambitious goal, a core question is whether Tehran will trust Moscow's intentions. Ali Adyani, a member of the parliaments Energy Commission, has said that Iran views Russia, China and sometimes India as strategic partners, which is a prerequisite for cooperation in the energy sector. Some Iranian experts, however, believe that Tehran should not trust Moscow, as they believe the Russians will not confront the United States on Iran policy. Interestingly, during the harshest phase of the anti-Iran sanctions, 2007-2013, many Iranians viewed Moscows actions as a stab in the back. Indeed, the sense was that Russia was happy to renege on its commitments to Iran in return for concessions from the United States. Yet it is valid to argue that geostrategic conditions have changed for both countries and that a new era of cooperation might be feasible, despite Russia and Iran the two top natural gas reserve holders being competitors. What is certain at this stage is that more work will be needed to realize the potential for cooperation between the two countries. The Iranian and American presidents have issued threats to one another in a sign of increasing tensions between their countries. During a speech to Iranian officials July 22, President Hassan Rouhani said the United States is pursuing regime collapse and disintegration against Iran. He added, America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of peace, and war will be the mother of wars. We will not accept threats, and we have deterrent capabilities. Shortly afterward, US President Donald Trump responded to Rouhanis speech, tweeting in all capital letters, To the Iranian President: Never ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence and death. Be cautious! Interestingly, Trumps tweet followed shortly after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo addressed a group of Iranian Americans in southern California in a speech advertised as Supporting Iranian Voices. The speech was largely uneventful. Trumps tweet and Pompeos speech elicited strong reactions in Tehran. Online, many Iranians tweeted with the hashtag #StopMeddlinginIran. Their comments focused on US support for groups that have carried out attacks against Iran, US withdrawal from the nuclear deal and sanctions against Iran. Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of the Expediency Council, tweeted, Mr. Trump told Mr. Rouhani be cautious. You who have more than 50,000 troops under the Iranian blade, and you make threats like a madman. You must be cautious. Bahram Ghassemi, spokesman for Irans Foreign Ministry, called Pompeos speech hypocritical and absurd. Ghassemi added that the event was little more than propaganda and that the speech showed clearly US meddling in Irans domestic affairs, which violates international commitments. The head of the Basij Organization, Gholam Hossein Gheybparvar, called Trumps tweets psychological warfare. He said Trump would be damned to take action against Iran. Gheybparvar also said Iran would not compromise on its revolutionary ideals. He described Trump as crazy and said the United States will not be satisfied with anything short of Irans destruction. While the United States and Iran engaged in a war of words, there was other news on the domestic front. The Guardian Council reinstated Sepanta Niknam, a city council member from the city of Yazd. Niknam, a member of the Zoroastrian minority, was suspended after a conservative rival who lost in the council election argued that a non-Muslim should not represent Muslim citizens. Zoroastrians are recognized in Irans constitution, and Niknam had previously sat on the Yazd council without controversy. The Guardian Council voted in favor of permitting religious minorities to serve as city council members. Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians have allotted seats in Irans parliament. In another development, Iranian American art dealer Karan Vafadari and his Iranian wife, Afarin Neyssari, were released from Evin Prison on bail. Both had been imprisoned since July 2016. According to Vafadaris sister, who announced her brother's release, he and Neyssari had been arrested after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps ordered them to vacate an ancestral homeland. Vafadari, charged with plotting against national security and being in possession of alcohol and marijuana, was sentenced to 27 years and Neyssari to 16. Approximately a dozen dual nationals are detained in Iran. Yesterday was one of the calmest days, perhaps, since March 30, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said on July 22 as he toured the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Gaza after yet another tense weekend. If the calm is preserved, Liberman promised, Israel would reopen the crossing on July 24 and restore the transfer of goods and raw material into the Strip. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the crossing closed two weeks ago in response to the wave of arson kites and balloons into Israel that have laid waste to extensive border areas. The key to all this is quiet, calm, zero incendiary balloons, zero clashes on the fence and zero rockets or, heaven forbid, gunfire, Liberman warned. He was referring to a promise Hamas conveyed to Israel through Egyptian mediators after Israels massive punitive July 20 airstrikes on Gaza in response to the killing of Israeli soldier Aviv Levi by Palestinian snipers. There is no record in memory of such an urgent, unconditional Hamas cease-fire offer without preconditions. Hamas committed to stop Palestinian protest demonstrations along the Gaza fence and the ongoing kite and balloon arson campaign. In fact, events over the weekend once again reflected how Hamas leadership miscalculated the limits of its power. Deploying snipers in the highly charged border area and killing an Israeli soldier for the first time since the 2014 Israel-Gaza war instantly set back all of the movements achievements of recent months. Since March 30, when the massive protests began along the fence, followed by the launching of incendiary kites and balloons into Israel, Hamas has succeeded in restoring international interest in Israels 11-year blockade of the Strip and to exert real pressure on Israel to forge a deal that would ease life for the Strips 2 million Palestinians. Using primitive methods, Hamas managed to challenge Israel perhaps more than it did with tens of thousands of rockets and artillery shells it has fired at Israel since it forcibly took over control of Gaza in 2006. Israel had virtually no effective response to these popular methods engendered by the suffering of local residents methods that were considered by Gaza residents and, to some extent, by the international community as well as legitimate resistance. However, Hamas lost the advantage of this popular protest when it moved snipers into the arena and substituted live fire for the kite and balloon fire. Al-Monitor tried to obtain the reaction of Hamas activists to the events of the past weekend, but nobody was willing to admit that Hamas had pleaded with Egypt to arrange a cease-fire. There is nothing more humiliating for them than to admit they do not have the upper hand. After each armed clash with Israel, Hamas has always bragged that its resistance forces had taught the Zionist enemy a lesson. This time, they were collectively silent. A Gaza journalist close to Hamas confirmed to Al-Monitor that Egypt conveyed a request that Israel open the Kerem Shalom passage in order to generate an atmosphere conducive to maintaining the fragile truce. The Hamas appeal this past weekend was so urgent that it can be defined as surrender, a security source in the Palestinian Authority (PA) told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. The source, who is familiar with the three-way contacts between Hamas, Egypt and Israel, added, Within the [Hamas] leadership, there is deep disagreement about the next stage in the struggle against Israel. Despite their militant declarations, Yahya Sinwar, who heads Hamas in Gaza, and Ismail Haniyeh, who leads the movements political wing, understand the need for an agreement to ease tensions and avert a broader clash with Israel, said the source. Until the sniper killing of the Israeli soldier, Hamas had sought to capitalize on the achievements of the popular protests of recent months. They tried to buy time, claiming the airborne arson would stop gradually, but since it was a spontaneous, widespread campaign, time was needed to control it. They also claimed that the border demonstrations were a popular protest led by volunteers and not by Hamas, but promised to make an effort to push them away from the fence. In fact, they tried to squeeze the lemon dry in order to keep all their options open, the source summed up. When Hamas introduced snipers into the arena, the struggle stopped being a popular uprising, bringing into play Israels tremendous advantage over Hamas. That was when Hamas weekend turned black. Zero incendiary balloons, zero clashes on the fence and zero rockets or, heaven forbid, gunfire, Liberman warned, and Hamas understood that going to war with Israel at this point could end its rule over Gaza. Exaggerating its operational capacity is a familiar Hamas behavior pattern. It did the same thing during the 2014 war that Israel calls Operation Protective Edge. Drunk with power and an illusion of might, instead of taking advantage of their first-week gains and accepting the cease-fire Israel offered, Hamas sought additional achievements and brought about a calamity for Gaza and its inhabitants. Even after 50 days of fighting, the death and injury of thousands, and extensive destruction, they still boasted of victory. Nevertheless, it was a Pyrrhic victory. It did not result in a lifting of the Israeli siege. Instead, it worsened the humanitarian crisis in the Strip as well as Hamas standing. Adhering to that same pattern, Hamas has now lost the upper hand it gained in recent months. Currently, Hamas must respond to Egyptian-mediated proposals for an understanding with Israel and for a reconciliation deal with Fatah. The later would entail a deployment of PA forces along the Gaza border with Israel as the first phase of rehabilitating the Gaza Strip. But Hamas has now taken a step too far and lost the deterrence it created regarding Israel. Once again, the Hamas military wing has proven that it runs the show. Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, as the armed wing is known, simply ignored the strategic decision adopted by the political heads of the movement, Haniyeh and Sinwar, to prioritize the Egyptian channel. Its leaders appear to have decided to avenge the July 19 killing of one of its militants near the border with Israel. However, it is hard to believe they did not consider that killing an Israeli soldier amid the hair-trigger tensions with Israel could spark the war that Haniyeh, Sinwar and other Hamas political leaders had taken pains to avert for the past month. This mindset reflects yet again Hamas situation as a body led by several heads, each pulling in a different direction and fighting with the other, fueled by power plays and egos. And so, it is easy to understand why Gaza and its 2 million residents are on the verge of disaster. Israel and Hamas are caught up in an endless circle, made up of two conflicting narratives, each set in stone. The vectors of these two forces leave both Israel and Hamas trapped in a blood-soaked alleyway with no apparent way to get out. Both are ready for a long-term solution to reduce tensions in Gaza. A perfect example of this was the speed with which Hamas leaders pleaded with every possible mediator between them and the Israelis on July 20 to help stop the exchange of gunfire and reinstate the cease-fire. Similarly, there was the speed with which Israel had enough of its formidable wave of airstrikes and returned its sword to its sheath. Hamas knows exactly what to expect if it launches another round of warfare against Israel. Israel also knows that such a round of fighting would result in the deaths of dozens of its troops and maybe even a few civilians, too, just as its predecessor in 2014 did. Once another such round would be over, things would simply stand as they were before, back at square one. The futility of it all is frustrating, but almost inevitable. Hamas holds the bodies of two Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers, Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, who died in the 2014 Protective Edge operation. Israel demands that the bodies be returned. Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar cannot allow himself to return the bodies without receiving a hefty payment in Palestinian prisoners. Israel cant allow itself to release Palestinian terrorists in exchange for the corpses of its soldiers, but it also cant reach any agreement with Hamas before the bodies of these soldiers are returned to Israel for burial. Neither party can break through this barrier, so they are trapped in the same blood-soaked alleyway in a situation that repeats itself regularly with the precision of a Swiss watch. At this point, it is every weekend. Talking to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, one Israeli minister described the situation as, The Goldin family is terrorizing the Cabinet. It is a cruel, tasteless statement, lacking even a modicum of tact. He was talking about a family that sacrificed one of its sons, Lt. Hadar Goldin, the nephew of former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon. They rightfully expect their sons corpse to be returned to them so that it can be brought to Israel for burial. In exchange for the return of Goldins corpse, and the body of 1st Sgt. Oron Shaul, which was also seized, Hamas is demanding a steep ransom to be paid in the release of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Israel has yet to recover from the trauma associated with the Gilad Shalit deal in 2011, in which more than 1,000 terrorists, many of them with blood on their hands, were released in exchange for a single soldier. Under no circumstances will Israel grant legitimacy to the release of terrorists, particularly terrorists with blood on their hands. Israelis certainly would not accept such a deal in exchange for the bodies of dead soldiers. But there is another side to this equation. The Goldin family has been waging a relentless public campaign, calling on the Cabinet not to reach any arrangement with Gaza and not to help Hamas by easing restrictions on the Gaza siege until the bodies are returned. This campaign has stable moral footing and a healthy logic to it. A humanitarian gesture in exchange for a humanitarian gesture, say Goldins parents, and they are right. There is no reason for Hamas to get involved in horse-trading over the bodies of their boys, especially if Israels Supreme Court orders the government to return the corpses of Palestinian terrorists without delay. Right now, there is not a single leader in Israel who can look the people squarely in the eyes and declare wholeheartedly that the countrys interest in resolving the situation in Gaza takes precedence over its interest in getting a dead soldiers body back for burial. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cant do it. Nor can Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman. Even Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot cant do it. And so, as frustrating as it may be, were all stuck on square one again. Given the current situation, after suffering a devastating blow in 2014 and losing its terrorist tunnels (only a few are still left, and Israels underground obstacle will be completed next year), Hamas has found its relief in the most negligible, primitive and unexpected form: fire kites. The advanced technology of Israels anti-missile system Iron Dome and the power of its F-16s and F-35s, its comprehensive intelligence operations, and its absolute control of the land, sea and air are not enough to find a solution to this ancient weapon, which has left the areas surrounding Gaza in flames for the last three months. In the past two weeks, Israel has ramped up its preparations significantly and taken very obvious steps to prepare itself for full-fledged war against Gaza. It hopes that Hamas will get the hint, and in fact, by last weekend, it finally seemed as if Hamas did get the hint. There has been a significant decline in the number of incendiary kites and balloons launched from Gaza and landing in Israeli territory. The problem is that the basic situation has not changed. It is as futile and frustrating as it was before. Sinwar is making a very serious strategic mistake, a very high-ranking source in the IDF told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. He regards the bodies of the dead Israeli soldiers as leverage to win the return of prisoners, instead of seeing the bodies as a tool to improve the miserable lives of 2 million Palestinians who are being held hostage. This source claimed, Hamas knows how far Israel and the international community are willing to go in order to reach an arrangement, yet they still continue to refuse to return the bodies. He said that this is irrational, illogical behavior that would make no sense to any country with a relatively Western orientation, such as Israel. The fact that they are prepared to live with four hours of electricity a day, sky-high unemployment, sewage running in the streets, and collapsing water, education and health infrastructures, and yet continue to insist that they will not return the bodies of two Israeli soldiers, is inconceivable, he admitted. Among the top command of the IDF, too, the rationale that it is more important to restore quiet to the south for a significant amount of time is more important than insisting on getting the bodies back cannot gain enough traction to overcome moral and ethical values, notably the sacred value of bringing captured soldiers home, or even of bringing their bodies home for burial. It is a daunting Catch-22 situation, and it is here to stay. The only person who tried to fight against this at the start of his term in the Defense Ministry is current Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman. He gave the impression that Israel has no plans to get trapped again in an endless circle of deals with Hamas over abducted and missing soldiers, as it did in the Shalit deal. Liberman tried to break out of this dead end, but in the end, he was forced to toe the line. He came to recognize the moral intensity of the Goldin and Shaul families position. And so, Israel and Hamas remain locked in their positions as they face off against each other. Each of them has its own sacred principles. For Hamas, the release of prisoners is everything, while Israel is not willing to give up on getting the bodies of its soldiers back, even if it got burned for that in the past. See you next round. With the Syrian army extending its control over most of southern Syria, including along the border with Jordan, Jordanians are divided over the possibility of normalizing ties between Amman and Damascus after seven years of tensions. There has been no official position taken by the Jordanian government or the Syrian regime on the issue. There are, however, signs that the two countries are considering reopening their border crossing as a step toward restoring full ties. On July 22, Ammonnews.net, a pro-government Jordanian news site, quoted informed sources as noting that the decision to reopen the crossing in both directions at Nasib must be mutually agreed upon and requires coordination between the two countries. A day earlier, the daily Al-Ghad had reported Russian sources as saying that the Amman-Damascus highway was safe for travelers, since fighters from Jabhat al-Nusra had been evacuated from the area. The Syrian army captured the Nasib border crossing, in Daraa province, on July 6. Two days later, the official Syrian news agency, SANA, announced that work had already begun on rehabilitating the highway connecting Damascus and Amman after a three-year closure resulting from rebels' seizure of the crossing point with Jordan. It said the highway will be ready for civilian traffic within a week. The semi-official Arabic daily Addustour published a report on July 18 in which a number of Jordanian businessmen and trade organizations called on the government to reopen borders with Syria. It quoted Adnan Ghaith, deputy of the Amman Chamber of Industry, as saying that reopening the border with Syria will revive Jordans economy, which had suffered as a result of the closure of the country's land borders with both Syria and Iraq. Ultimately, however, the decision to reopen the borders in both directions is a political issue, not one based on economics. Relations between Amman and Damascus had plummeted when the Syrian uprising broke out in 2011, initially in the form of mass demonstrations, in the southern province of Daraa. The majority of Jordanians backed the demands of the peaceful Syrian protesters, and Amman's official position was sympathetic as well. The Jordanian street became polarized, however, as the uprising turned belligerent, with militant foreign jihadis, including Jordanians, thrown into the mix. The ruthless response by the regime against its own citizens and the arrival of Iranian and Hezbollah militias to support President Bashar al-Assad deepened Jordanian divisions. In 2015, Damascus accused Jordan of training and arming Syrian rebels with the help of the United States and Gulf countries. Amman at first denied such claims, but later admitted that it had trained moderate rebels, though not to fight the regime but to prevent Islamic State militants from infiltrating its borders. Throughout the crisis, Jordan and Syria have maintained diplomatic ties as well as military and intelligence coordination. After the Russian military intervention began in September 2015, Jordan's King Abdullah II supported Moscows role, viewing it as contributing to bringing an end to the crisis and allowing for a political settlement. Amman never called for the removal of Assad or for regime change. In fact, Jordan recently played an important role in pressuring militias from the Free Syrian Army in Daraa to enter into negotiations with the Russians in early July. This evolved in tandem with a massive military operation launched by Damascus and Moscow that ended the de-escalation zone agreement negotiated last year among Amman, Washington and Moscow. The result of the two events was the controversial truce deals that ended the rebel presence in southern Syria. Amman is now looking to Moscow to play a role in removing obstacles before moving to reset Jordanian-Syrian ties. In particular, it wants the Russians to facilitate the process of repatriating tens of thousands of Syrian refugees who had fled to the kingdom. On July 20, the Russian government presented a proposal to the United States for organizing the return of an estimated 1.7 million Syrian refugees to pre-war areas in Syria, with priority given to refugees in Jordan and Lebanon. On July 22, Al-Ghad reported that Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi had discussed the issue of repatriating Syrian refugees in a phone call with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, among other topics. Another priority for Jordan, as well as for Israel, is to obtain Russian guarantees that Iranian militias and Hezbollah fighters will keep an acceptable distance from Jordan's borders. Such an arrangement appears to have been worked out when US President Donald Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Helsinki on July 16. Also for Jordan, there is the complex issue of the return of Jordanian fighters and their families from Syria. Mohammad Daoudieh, former government minister and diplomat, wrote in Addustour on July 20 that the return of 1,325 Jordanians who had left to fight in Syria and Iraq requires a security decision, not one having to do with politics. Jordan has kept its borders closed to these fighters, declaring that they can only return through legitimate routes and that they will face legal charges. On July 22 Reuters reported that Jordan had received 800 people, including members of Syrias White Helmets, the volunteer civil defense group, who had been evacuated from southwestern Syria in a mission Israeli officials said they facilitated. The Syrian government had in the past accused the US-backed organization of terrorism. Jordan is meanwhile under pressure to help 270 Syrian journalists and media activists trapped in rebel-held pockets in southern Syria. The challenge for Amman will be dealing with the possible popular backlash if and when ties with Damascus are normalized. For many Jordanians, the Syrian regime is guilty of crimes against humanity and war crimes, so it is seems inconceivable to normalize relations with it. Others have expressed support for a quick resumption of normal ties, because they welcome the regimes victory against what they consider to be foreign conspiracies. The political analyst Labib Kamhawi told Al-Monitor that Jordan is making a special effort to re-establish trust with the Syrian regime, but that more is required to clear the air. He noted that Russia's role will be crucial in restoring ties. Jordans policy since the onset of the crisis in Syria has been ambiguous, and the Syrians are aware of Ammans role in Syria, but they are also conscious of the pressure it has endured from the Americans and the Saudis, Kamhawi said. On the polarization on the Jordanian street, Kamhawi believes that although Jordanians are divided over Assad, they are united in their support for Syrias unity and stability. There are blood ties and mutual economic interests, and we might even discover that those who support Assad are now the majority of Jordanians, he concluded. RAMALLAH, West Bank Even as Israel threatens to demolish the Bedouin community of Khan al-Ahmar in eastern Jerusalem, the Palestinian Cabinet has recommended formation of a local council there to represent the needs of its 200 residents. The Palestinian Authority (PA) wants to create the council to protect Khan al-Ahmar, which on July 4 had to thwart the Israeli armys attempts to demolish the residents' tents and huts, drawing Arab and international attention to their village. The United Nations and the European Union have called on Israel to halt demolition, noting that Israel's settlement protocol is considered illegal under international law. On July 11, Palestinian officials named Minister of Local Government Hussein al-Araj to appoint a committee to manage a local council. The Palestinian move came ahead of the Israeli Supreme Court's July 12 decision to freeze demolition. The court will consider the issue at its next session, Aug. 15. In an unusual move, the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education started the academic year July 16, instead of in September, to ensure that students would be enrolled despite Israel's threat to destroy the community's only school. One of the ministry's goals was to draw local, Arab and international attention to the students' suffering and underline the threat posed to them if the school is demolished. Khan al-Ahmar is in Area C, an administrative section of the West Bank. Khan al-Ahmar falls under full Israeli security and administrative control. Israel has targeted the village as it seeks to implement plans for a large settlement known as E1, to link Israel's West Bank settlements to its ones in Jerusalem. Khan al-Ahmar's residents live in tents and huts, as they cant build actual houses because Israel won't issue building permits. They rely on herding, and they lack all basic services such as infrastructure, water, electricity and health care. The local council will seek to secure such services and make use of solar panels donated in recent years by the EU and some international organizations to obtain electricity. Village spokesman Eid Abu Dahuk told Al-Monitor that establishing the five-member local council is necessary. Palestinian private, Arab and international donor institutions working in the village need to be able to deal with a legal authority with official responsibilities and authority. Talks about forming the council are still underway among the Palestinian Ministry of Local Government, the Palestinian Jerusalem province headed by Adnan al-Husayn and village residents. The residents insist on having a local council of their own. Araj wants to place some Bedouin communities [that are] near Khan al-Ahmar village under the local councils umbrella. We are against this because each group has its own circumstances, problems and demands, Abu Dahuk said. We want to implement the Cabinet decision to form a local council for the village of Khan al-Ahmar only. In recent years, Abu Dahuk has been personally and voluntarily managing the affairs of Khan al-Ahmars residents in his capacity as official spokesman. The village is administratively affiliated with East Jerusalem province, which handles formal transactions. The main issue the local council will face is dealing with the Israeli authorities, because we are located in Area C. We would have to obtain permits from them if we want to build houses or extend an electricity or water network or carry out any service project in the village, Abu Dahuk said. The villages main demand is securing basic services such as electricity, water, health clinics and kindergartens." According to the United Nations, "Due to the lack of adequate planning and discriminatory allocation of public land, it is nearly impossible for Palestinians to obtain building permits in most of Area C," which constitutes 60% of the West Bank under the Oslo II Accord of 1995. The area is critical to establishing a Palestinian state, which is why the EU and international donor institutions focus their support there. Forming an official local authority to communicate with international and regional donors will make it easier for the population to obtain service projects," Omar Samha, the assistant undersecretary for Local Authorities Affairs at the Ministry of Local Government, told Al-Monitor. Khan al-Ahmars local council would be the first of more than 117 councils the Ministry of Local Government hopes to establish in Area C, so they can work to get services for residents, implement projects and represent PA-affiliated areas in general. The ministry has a plan to form local bodies for the largest communities in Area C, for which the Palestinian government will allocate a budget. There are 648 communities in all parts of the West Bank with residents living in tents and huts. There are only 418 local councils, meaning 230 communities in various towns and villages lack local councils. Speaking about the possibility of forming one local authority for several communities, Samha said, We don't mind this option and we don't force any community to be annexed to another. We are consulting with these communities to find out how they feel about it. These local councils could help the population and provide them with a formal means of communicating with official Palestinian government institutions or international bodies. But the new local officials will have to confront Israeli authorities, especially regarding building permits, so the communities can implement their projects and create development opportunities. Otherwise, not enough will change, in light of Israels security and administrative control. DIYARBAKIR, Turkey Turkish President Abdullah Gul told journalists in 2009, Some great things are going to happen on the Kurdish problem soon. Everyone was excited by what appeared to be a door finally opening to resolving Turkey's volatile relationship with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is considered a terrorist organization by Turkey and the United States. Four years later, a message from PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan from Imrali prison to mass crowds at Nowruz celebrations amplified hopes when he sensationally called for giving up guns and pursuing a political solution. Ocalan is serving a life sentence for treason. Then an unexpected accord was reached in February 2015 at Istanbuls Dolmabahce Palace between the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democracy Party (HDP) and government officials. The deal generated widespread optimism that a solution was imminent. But President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced he would not recognize the Dolmabahce Accord one month later. Now the resumption of clashes, trench warfare in towns and Erdogan's declaration of a state of emergency have wiped out any hope for a solution. The prevailing opinion was that Erdogan's softening Kurdish policy was causing him to lose support in parts of western Turkey where anti-Kurdish sentiment ran high, and that's why he reverted to a policy of force. The government, which kept saying it was in a struggle against terror, resisted any opening to possibly solving the Kurdish issue and even discarded what minor progress had been made. It seemed the Kurdish issue could no longer be even mentioned. Debates eventually resumed just prior to the elections held last month. At that time, one of two outcomes seemed likely: The government would change or Erdogan would be re-elected, become even stronger and solve the issue. Erdogan did win and Kurds again turned their attention toward Ankara, wondering if any solution was in the making. But discussions were quickly shelved when the hard-line interior minister was reappointed and a hawkish senior general was named as the new defense minister. If there had been changes in these two ministries and the language of war, threats and insults had been abandoned, there could have been hope for a solution," but that can't happen with the same people in charge and the same forces at work, Diyarbakir citizen Kadir Karagoz told Al-Monitor. Ayhan Bilgen, a parliament member and HDP deputy who won 52% of the votes in the mainly Kurdish southeast, said finding a resolution is essential, but there is not enough political will for it. He told Al-Monitor, "Turkey may delay the Kurdish issue, but that will make the issue even more complicated, more bloody. There is no other way but to solve this problem [quickly]. Bayram Bozyel, deputy secretary-general of the Kurdistan Socialist Party, also believes the new administration has no intention of solving the problem peacefully. He said the appointment of hard-liners to the new Cabinet including Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu and Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, a former chief of staff proves his point. The current interior minister is a politician who made his career by opposing the Kurds. To reappoint him as the minister of interior in the new Cabinet tells us that the new government approves the current policy and wants to continue with it, Bozyel told Al-Monitor. "The president immediately mobilized his new powers after the elections, which means he is after absolute power, immune to audit by the legislature, the judiciary and the media. These are signs that the situation can only get worse for the Kurds, he added. Mehmet Vural, chairman of Dicle Social Research Center in Diyarbakir, is also among the pessimists, but he said the new administration can't just ignore the situation. He told Al-Monitor, Todays regime is far from a solution," but that it must end its intransigence over the Kurdish issue. "There is no other way out. How long can they delay a solution? Vural went on, There are no Kurds in the government, [only a] minor presence in the parliament. The current regime doesnt have the will or the intention to tackle the issue. Kurds are citizens and partners in this country. No matter how hard the regime resists, the Kurdish issue wont go away." Like the others, Vural is even more pessimistic when he looks at the Kurd-free Cabinet. There is no one who identifies himself as a Kurd. To the contrary, there are members known to be hostile to Kurds who see the issue only in terms of terror. If you ask me, the current government doesnt even acknowledge the existence of the issue, never mind searching for a solution. Until now, the government has blamed the delays in resolving the Kurdish issue to the PKKs violence, repeating, A solution can't be discussed with guns in their hands. But even though over the past couple of years, the PKK has suffered military setbacks that have left it no other option than to seek a political solution, one is no closer to materializing. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has kept his vague election promise to end emergency law after two years, allowing it to expire July 18. Its replacement, however, appears to be as bad or worse. The end of emergency law doesn't mean the end of restrictions on individual freedoms. Indeed, opposition figures said on social media that it's as if emergency law is now being extended for three more years. The reason for these concerns is a proposed bill, known as the anti-terror package, currently under review by parliament. The anti-terror package, written by the newly minted ministers, arrived at parliament July 18. By July 20, it had cleared committee and is now being debated before parliament with a high probability to be passed as is. This bill will make Erdogans dream of swift legislation and execution possible, ending any sort of deliberation and oversight. Mehmet Ucum, one of Erdogan's senior advisers, summed it up handily: The [new] system doesn't allow quarrels. If there are disagreements about personal choices, the system permits those to be discarded as well, because there is only one decision-maker. Dissenters will be replaced in one night and in their place there will be people appointed who will do the job right. The proposed bill summarizes how this will be done. The four most crucial categories are outlined below. Fear of the military: Even before the July 2016 botched coup, the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) had gone through a series of reforms and arrests. According to government sources, 15,000 TSK personnel were dismissed during the past two years. In a surprising move earlier this month, Erdogan appointed Gen. Hulusi Akar as defense minister. At the time, Akar was the active-duty chief of general staff. Although pro-government figures report this as a sign of comfortable relations with the TSK, the proposed anti-terror bill has several articles showing strong distrust. A retired military judge told Al-Monitor, Reading the proposal, I was ashamed. This is disgraceful for any member of the TSK, whether a general or a conscript. The army, which used to be the most trusted institution in this country since its establishment, is now under constant surveillance. The judges comments are based on the ambiguous wording of the articles, which suggest the government can investigate members of the armed forces, and even search and seize their private property, including their cars and homes. If a soldier is being expelled, there will no longer be a need to wait for a court order to strip off his or her stars and stripes; that can be done immediately. Protests: The first article grants extensive responsibilities to state-appointed governors. According to the bill, governors will have the right to keep individuals or groups they deem dangerous from entering their cities, or certain sections of the cities, for as long as 15 days. How this law can be effectively enforced is unknown, especially since there are no current checkpoints at city entrances. Also, governors are granted the right to forbid people from gathering at certain places and during certain times. This article also allows governors to ban transportation of any ammunition or guns, even if they are licensed. The rest of the bill also has several items that restrict freedom of expression, the press and assembly. For example, all group events in public spaces need to end before sunset. Indoor gatherings must end by midnight. The most interesting part bans all protests that would make the lives of residents unbearably difficult. This vague statement could easily be used to justify any number of situations in major cities. In addition, the bill calls for extending the right of police to keep a suspect in custody for up to 48 hours in routine crimes, but up to four days for those suspected of being involved in group crimes, including, for example, protests or strikes. This time frame can be extended twice, allowing for 12 days in custody without any formal charges. There is serious concern here, as several lawyers explained to Al-Monitor: Prosecutors prepare their charges based on the answers and reactions a suspect gives while in custody. Longer times in custody allow for confessions taken under duress. The right to travel abroad, and guilt by association: Any expelled government employee, or anyone under investigation, may lose their right to leave the country as their passports may be revoked. The same restrictions apply to a suspects spouse and immediate family members. Officials will no longer need a court order to access a suspect's computer; a prosecutors note will suffice. Similarly, they can tap the phones of a suspect's immediate family. While the proposed system promises efficiency and speed, it would bring delays for those seeking justice and also in the application of justice. Previously, the courts had three days for answer requests to be released; now they have 30 days. Expanding spoils and the patronage system: Emergency law affected the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in Turkey. For example, more than 130,000 government employees have been laid off from their positions. Agreeing that the haphazard decisions have led to injustice, the government established in January 2017 an Emergency Law Commission with the authority to reinstate employees but so far only 1,300 employees have been reinstated, out of 108,905 applicants. Under the new legislation, each ministry would determine who among its employees should be dismissed or charged. If the workers are acquitted, they're not likely to be reinstated to their original positions. For soldiers and police officers, their ranks could be reinstated unless blocked by their ministries (defense for soldiers, Interior Ministry for police officers). If they are reinstated, they will probably be employed in different places. A senior bureaucrat told Al-Monitor, Those expelled will be posted to what we commonly refer to as the pool. But there will also be personnel who aren't expelled, but their agencies are shut down due to the transition to the [executive presidency]. From this pool, different agencies will hire and relocate them. Wrongly expelled personnel cannot seek compensation from the government. For acquitted academics, the situation is even more complicated, as the Higher Education Board is to decide where they will be rehired. For example, a successful professor in a well-established university who is reinstated will be most likely to be sent to a newly established college in a small city. Given that most of the people currently occupying government jobs are supporters of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), why would they be removed without being allowed to come back to their positions if acquitted? The hush-hush answer is that those positions would by then be promised to better AKP supporters. We are removing the callused, inefficient figures from the government agencies, said one senior bureaucrat. The new government is much inspired by the Trump administration. We will run it like a private corporation. If you don't fit in anymore, we will replace you promptly. These new rules are proposed to be in effect for three years, while emergency law was being renewed every three months. That's why several independent lawyers concur that the new system is worse than the expired emergency law in terms of individual freedoms, human rights and any sort of dissent. Cahaba Brewing Company is partnering with Alabama farmers to produce a limited edition collection of beers featuring local, seasonal produce. A blackberry Dunkelweizen made from blackberries grown by Taylor Hatchett of Boozer Farms in Thorsby is available at Cahaba Brewing's tap room and a number of Birmingham area stores and restaurants. The Proximity Series beers are in collaboration with REV Birmingham's Urban Food Project, which works with Alabama farmers and stores to increase access to healthy foods. The series' first batch a strawberry blonde sold out in three hours during Cahaba's June 23 Cahabazaar, according to REV Birmingham. The beer was made with strawberries from third-generation farmer Jimmy Witt of Witt Farms in Hayden, the Urban Food Project's primary strawberry grower since 2013. Farmers involved in the Urban Food Project bring their crops to the UFP distribution hub in Woodlawn where the produce is boxed up to be delivered each week to Birmingham restaurants and to corner stores located in food deserts. Restaurants and retailers serving the small batch of seasonal brews include: Slice J Clyde Piggly Wiggly Clairmont Eugene's Hot Chicken Hop City Soho Social Post Office Pies Piggly Wiggly Crestline John's City Diner Dyrons Ovenbird 5 Point Public House Grand Bohemian Roots & Revelry "Our team has wholeheartedly embraced the opportunity to source and create small batch brews with local ingredients from Alabama farmers," said Eric Meyer, Cahaba Brewing founder. "At Cahaba, we're built on community support and it's a core value that we give back to our community at every opportunity. The Proximity Series is the perfect platform for showcasing our state's local growers and an awesome nonprofit that supports these hardworking farmers each day." Future small batch seasonal brews in the Proximity Series include peaches, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, apples, kiwis and satsumas. Through the partnership, Cahaba and REV aim to demonstrate the positive impact of buying and eating local - from boosting the local economy to improving health and quality of life in Birmingham communities, according to REV Birmingham. "The Urban Food Project has been distributing local produce to Birmingham restaurants as part of the farm to table movement for five years, but what about farm to glass? The Proximity Series recognizes Alabama farmers from the producer to the pint glass creating value for the farmer, our program and the UFP partners who continue to invest in our local food distribution system," said Taylor Clark, REV's Urban Food Project Director. For more information, visit the Cahaba Brewing Company and REV Birmingham's social media channels. Birmingham's Brasfield & Gorrie has finished construction on Regions Bank's most modern branch, which opened last week in Charlotte, N.C. The branch is at the base of the new 615 South College high-rise, where Regions recently moved specialized banking teams into 64,000 square feet of office space. "We are grateful that our valued client, Regions Bank, once again gave us the opportunity to bring their project vision to reality," Brasfield & Gorrie Vice President and Division Manager Michael Byrd said. The branch employs an open design that does not include a traditional teller line. Instead of waiting to be called to a counter, visitors are greeted face-to-face by a Regions banker. Customers can also get budget planning help, financial option information and other assistance. The branch also becomes the first Regions location in the Carolinas to offer video banking. The Sheffield Group's new headquarters is almost ready to open. The new building, located off U.S. 280 in Meadow Brook Corporate Park, will be open to all employees on Monday, July 30. Architecture and interior design services were provided by Turner Batson. Johnson Kreis was the general contractor. The 40,000-square-foot building more than doubles the size of the Sheffield Group's past facilities, putting all employees together under one roof in a glass-filled office with terraces overlooking the lake. The Sheffield Group is a multi-generational company operating as a workers' compensation provider. This is an opinion column by Mike Oliver who writes about life and death and his experience with Lewy body dementia. My dog is getting old. You know what I am going to say next, right? I'm getting old too. And you know what I don't want to say, don't you? That I'm sad he is going to die. Gus the psychodoodle. Photo by Rachel Vissers. My worried thought came after my wife Catherine said it sounded like our dog's' breathing was becoming more labored. And he wasn't running the stairs with the same wild abandon. Gus is his name. He's a small, rust-colored, curly mop of a dog, a poodle mix of unknown origin. I call him a psychodoodle. He's about 12 or 13 agewise best we can guess. We rescued him from a shelter in California. He loves to be rubbed behind the ears. I love him. I know most pet owners can relate to that. Still sounds silly that a grown man can care for and love a dog that has complicated life with added expense for vet bills, food, poodle haircuts and just plain worry. At great physiological expense to us, Gus likes to play a game we call 'shootig the gap, or doorway.' Any space he sees at the front door when it is opened he tries to sprint through. If he makes it before a foot holds him back, he is off to a wild, run-through-the-neighborhood spree, oblivious to the speeding two-ton cars. But given all that expense, a dog pays it back and then some, with unconditional love. Before I was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia at 56, our other dog died. Well, we, my wife, Catherine and I, had to take Molly in to be 'put down.' How else do you say it. Put to sleep? Molly, a yellow Lab who was as kind as she was dumb, had a nice friendship with Gus. Gus would bark at and relentlessly attack, in a playful way, Molly. And Molly would just let him. We knew when Molly was dying. The breathing became labored, overtime, suggesting the onset of heart failure. She increasingly didn't like stairs and quit sleeping in our upstairs bedroom. Given the age and symptoms, I knew as the son of a veterinarian, she needed to be euthanized. But we just couldn't do it, we made up excuses. "She sounds better today, I think," we'd tell each other. Molly's last night with us, I slept beside her on the floor. By some amazing strength she stayed alive through the night. She looked in our eyes. At the veterinary hospital we carried Molly, in a blanket because she could no longer walk. With tears flowing freely we watch the doctor inject Molly. I'll never forget the sight of Molly's eyes. One minute I was looking into her soul, and then the pupils became fixed. She wasn't there. Before Molly there was Maggie, a border collie mix, who had died on our kitchen floor at the ripe age of 16. Our children, three pre-teen daughters petted her, cried and said goodbye. Our children, now all grown, learned about death through these experiences with their pets. And they learned about love. Gus is lying on a rug right now in front of me. I bend down and rub behind his ears. Maybe Gus, you have some good time left. Maybe I do too. Read more about Oliver and his push to raise awareness of Lewy body dementia at his blog, www.myvinylcountdown.com A 13-year-old Huntsville girl is beheaded - after her cartel-connected grandmother was stabbed and left to die before her eyes. In Birmingham the same week news of that horrific death was detailed by authorities, two cartel-connected meth dealers are sentenced to long federal prison terms. Earlier in the year, a cartel-connected man claimed he had killed three dozen people, and planned a hit on an Alabama cop. The connection? The Sinaloa Cartel, a Mexican drug gang with one of the largest U.S. footprints - including just about everything east of the Mississippi -- of all the cartels. Joaquin Archivaldo Guzman Loera - better known as El Chapo - led the Sinaloa cartel until his 2014 capture. But there is nothing, police insist, to panic about. The cartel has been in America for decades, smuggling meth and cocaine and other drugs. "The Sinaloa cartel has been around forever. It is probably the most pervasive and extensive-reaching cartel in the U.S.,'' said Bret Hamilton, assistant special agent in charge for Alabama's Drug Enforcement Administration. "They control about one-fourth of the Mexican region, but when it comes to the U.S., their reach is huge." "Typically, their MO (method of operation) is to embed themselves in Mexican national communities, typically the immigrant community working on peach farms, chick plants, and other farm areas,'' Hamilton said. "They're basically hiding in plain sight." "They try to maintain a low profile,'' he said. "They're not going to conduct any type of violence unless they've been double-crossed. If they've been double-crossed by one of their distributors or someone who has purchased dope from them, they're going to take care of business. And, they're going to make a statement when they do it." Recent Alabama cases Mariah Lopez, a 13-year-old special needs middle school student was killed in north Alabama in June after she witnessed her grandmother assaulted with a knife and left to die on the ground in a cemetery. The grandmother, Oralia Mendoza, was associated with the Sinaloa Cartel, a drug-trafficking organization, according to Madison County sheriff's investigators. Just days before Mendoza and Mariah were killed, Mendoza and three others went to pick up a batch of methamphetamine, Investigator testified that one of her drug cohorts became suspicious, the situation turned deadly. Their bodies weren't found until later in the month. Israel Palomino, 34, and Yoni Aguilar, 26, are charged with two counts each of capital murder in the slayings of Mendoza and Lopez. The same week that the grisly details of those killings were made public, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District also announced that two Birmingham brothers - Diontez Jamel Moore, 31, and Daeshuan Nathaniel Moore, 28, were sentenced to prison on meth distribution charges. The investigation began when U.S. Postal inspectors and Alabama State Bureau of Investigation agents began investigating mailings of dozens of packages from Phoenix, Arizona to the Birmingham area in December 2016, according to court documents. The investigation began after postal inspectors in Arizona contacted inspectors in Alabama about a package they had intercepted and found to contain more than three pounds of methamphetamine. The package was addressed to a Birmingham-area home. Agents identified the person who mailed that package as Deron Lee Green, a former Alabama resident with family in Birmingham who was living in Phoenix. Green pleaded guilty to the trafficking conspiracy in October. Postal Inspector John Bailey testified during Diontez Moore's sentencing hearing that Green was responsible for shipping the methamphetamine to Alabama and for the "day-to-day contact with the cartel in Arizona." Green told investigators that the Mexican-based Sinoloa Cartel supplied the methamphetamine, Bailey testified. Late last year, an AL.com story featuring a drug task force operating in Greene, Marengo and Sumter counties - collectively, Alabama's 17th Judicial Circuit - talked about how the group had taken millions of dollars worth of cash, drugs and other property off the street in recent years, much of which they say they have seized from Mexican cartels like the Sinaloa and Los Zetas. And, earlier this year, a man who confessed to Alabama authorities that he killed about three dozen people in multiple states, confessed to a national news site that he planned to kill a north Alabama investigator. Jose Manuel Martinez in 2014 pleaded guilty to killing Jose Ruiz in rural Lawrence County, Alabama. But before that, he confessed to killing about three dozen people while working for the Mexican drug cartel. His confessions, which came during a 2013 interrogation with Lawrence County Chief Investigator Tim McWhorter, thrust Martinez into national headlines. The thought of Mexican drug cartels in Alabama cities and communities draws shock and fear among some, but Hamilton said it's nothing new. "This is one of those times that I'm surprised everybody else is so surprised,'' he said, "but I do this every day." Cartels presence grew after 5 Shelby County murders in 2008 It's not the first time in the central and northern portions of the state the subject has been broached. In 2008, five men were shocked, beaten, bound and their throats slashed in a Shelby County apartment. The slayings at the Cahaba Lakes complex were linked to a feud over money between Birmingham and Atlanta factions of Mexican drug cartels. Authorities said they don't want to publicly name the cartel involved in that brutal case, but said it was not the Sinaloa cartel. Even 10 years ago - at the time of the Cahaba Lakes killings, the National Drug Intelligence Center listed Alabama cities reporting the presence of Mexican drug organizations as Albertville, Birmingham, Decatur, Dothan, Huntsville, Mobile and Montgomery. The major Mexican drug cartels are the Sinaloa cartel, the Gulf cartel, Los Zetas, Los Cabaileros Templarios, Cartel Jalisco, Nueva Generacion, the Juarez cartel, as well as several others. Over time, federal officials say, they've received intelligence about the presence of the Gulf Cartel and Juarez Cartel and Los Zetas, as well as the Sinaloa cartel, in Alabama. Hamilton said Sinaloa is one of the oldest, and most historically recognized. It's birthplace is in Sinaloa which is in the pacific Mexican region. "They control a huge portion of Mexico,'' he said. "Their influence in the U.S. is even greater." The Sinaloa cartel has been especially prevalent since the 1980s. "They started off mainly trafficking in marijuana in the 70s and early 80s but obviously since then they've moved into everything from methamphetamine, heroin and fentanyl,'' Hamilton said. "They are also involved in human trafficking, but meth is their biggest thing." Hamilton said drug agents typically gauge the level of cartel activity in Alabama - as well as elsewhere - by the availability of drugs and the price of drugs. "The greater availability, the lower the price. For example, five years ago an ounce of methamphetamine cost $1,000,'' he said. "Today if we're paying more than $450 an ounce, we're getting ripped off. It's less than half of what it was just five years ago." Though the Mexican drug cartels are notoriously violent, most of the overt violence takes place south of the border, unless somebody north of the border crosses them. That, Hamilton said, is for obvious reasons. "They know they're not going to be able to pay off law enforcement officials here like they can south of the border,'' he said. More drugs crossing the border Hamilton said there has been a significant increase in the amount of drugs trafficked across the southern border. "In states like Alabama, it is not uncommon to see transshipment sales meaning they'll have a group of individuals responsible for bringing in the drugs, and I mean large quantities - anywhere from 100 pounds of meth to 50 kilos of cocaine,'' he said. "From that transshipment area, they divvy it out to different places like North Carolina or Chicago." He said one of the last cases he worked as a street agent was a transshipment case. The cartel was bring multiple kilos of cocaine into Clanton, and then it would be shipped elsewhere. "Alabama is no different than anywhere else,'' he said. Hamilton said it's often difficult to definitively pinpoint the cartel's presence in a case, though it's almost always a good bet. "We have active cases now who we think are cartel members and we arrest Mexican nationals all of the time, but not once will the word Sinaloa ever pop up,'' he said. Asked if Alabamans should fear the presence of the Sinaloa cartel, or any others, Hamilton said this: "Afraid? No. Concerned or pissed off? Yes. These are foreign nationals committing crimes throughout the U.S. that our affecting our kids with poison,'' he said. "It's not going to change either. Unless we do something drastically different than what we're doing now, it's going to stay the same." Police are investigating after a person was found dead in southwest Huntsville this morning, authorities said. The body was found at a home on Troy Swasey Boulevard, said Huntsville police spokesman Tony McElyea. The case is being investigated as a homicide. "We are in the process of locating and notifying the next of kin," McElyea said. Further details haven't been released. This is an opinion column. Keisha Brown was not in U.S. District Judge Abdul Kallon's courtroom for a single moment of the federal bribery trial that for four weeks gripped much of our state. But she was. So were Bruce Woods, Betty Collins and Marva Ingram, three other North Birmingham residents who shared their living--and, in some cases, dying, either physically or, at minimum, emotionally--hell with my AL.com colleague Jonece Starr Dunigan for her thorough and gripping account of the "forgotten" victims of the crimes on trial in that courtroom. They were not alone, of course. Also looming in the courtroom were more than a thousand of their neighbors, relatives and friends, all of whom were sold out by politician Oliver Robinson, businessman David Roberson and lawyer Joel Gilbert, and no doubt many, many, many more--including some, like local NAACP chapter president Hezekiah Jackson, whom the residents likely called friend. As were thousands of other poor, forgotten citizens throughout Alabama who have been, and remain, neglected and abused by too many of the very people who swore to serve and protect them. To at least provide them with the barest minimum someone should expect their government to provide: clean air, water, and soil; competent, safe schools; and neighborhoods free from fear. Or poison. Unlike in Lowndes County, where last fall, Baylor College of Medicine researchers found two of every five citizens who participated in a health study had hookworm and other intestinal parasites--largely due to the absence of a sewage system. And unlike 16 residents of Anniston, whose properties were found by a Gadsden jury to have been contaminated with PCB's by Monsanto (the jury found a subsidiary liable) for four decades. According to documents revealed in court, tens of thousands of pounds of the chemical, which was banned by the federal government in 1979 as a possible carcinogen, were also flushed in nearby creeks, where residents were regularly baptized. Last summer, Sen Cory Booker (D-N.J.) visited Uniontown, near Selma, and met with residents who subsequently filed two civil rights complaints against the Alabama Department of Environmental Management--whose tainted role in the north Birmingham saga was exposed during the trial--for allowing a large landfill near the town. Those complaints, however, were dismissed in March by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Last December, a United Nations official touring the Black Belt said, "I haven't seen," the kind of living conditions he witnessed, which he called "uncommon in the First World." The official didn't make it to north Birmingham, where the U.S. EPA is spending about $20 million to scrape poisonous earth from 527 properties in North Birmingham, an agency spokesperson told Dunnigan. Thus far, they've scooped up 50,168 tons of poisoned earth, the spokesperson revealed, from 389 properties. Robinson, the disgraced former state representative who took bribes to persuade residents not to get their soil tested, plead guilty to his gutless sins, while Drummond Company vice president Robinson former Balch & Bingham attorney Gilbert--who masterminded, funded, executed and tried to cover their scheme with their own poisonous dirt--were found guilty for theirs last Friday. Robinson is scheduled to be sentenced on September 27; he faces up to 100 years for trying to prevent Drummond for being blamed (and paying millions) for polluting north Birmingham. Roberson and Gilbert--each of whom was found guilty of six criminal charges, including bribery, conspiracy, honest services wire fraud and money laundering--could face more years than they've lived on this Earth. Many were understandably happy with Friday's verdicts. Political corruption seems to be in entrenched in Alabama's DNA, so anything that exposes it and helps excise even just a stand of it is worth applauding. So, justice was served, right? Not for the residents of north Birmingham. Not for Brown, who told Dunigan she inhales a concoction of smoke at sewage each moment she's in her Harriman Park home. Not for Woods, who shared that he must scrape dust from his Chrysler 300 and window sills every day lest the particles damage his car, and whose mother died of lung and breast cancer in 1994, though she never smoked a day in her life (Woods said he doesn't smoke, either, but was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2012 and has lumps in leg, hand, and arm.) Not for Ingram, who said she sees the black soot that seeped through the ceiling of what was once her "dream home". Not for Collins, who cares for members of her church family at Saints Tabernacle AFM in Collegeville, where many are suffering from emphysema and cancer. Just as it never seems to be for Alabama's poor and forgotten. No matter how many crooks are found guilty or how many years of freedom they lose, they will never pay the price their victims pay every day, some of them with every potentially deadly breath. Watch Sen. Cory Booker's discover of the contamination affecting Uniontown, AL: Roy S. Johnson's column appears in The Birmingham News, the Huntsville Times, the Mobile Register and AL.com. Hit me up at rjohnson@al.com or/and follow me at twitter.com/roysj. It was about 11 p.m., an hour before the end of Emelia Holden's waitress shift late last month, when she felt the hand grab her backside. Holden, 21, had just finished taking a customer's order and placing a stack of menus on an unoccupied table in the small restaurant, Vinnie Van Go-Go's pizzeria in Savannah, Georgia. Suddenly, she felt someone grope her from behind. At first she thought it might have been her female co-worker, she recalled to local CBS affiliate WTOC. But as she turned around, she saw that it was a customer walking past her, a 31-year-old man police later identified as Ryan Cherwinski, of Palm Bay, Florida. "I was like nope, that's not going to happen," Holden told WTOC. It was an experience common to far too many women in the service industry. But Holden wasn't having it. What happened next was captured by the restaurant's surveillance footage and circulated widely online over the past weekend: The man takes no more than three steps past Holden before the petite waitress is seen grabbing him by the shirt collar, yanking him backward and hurling him against the wall. As he falls to the ground, Holden is seen pointing a finger at him. The entire time, the video shows, Holden never lets go of the notepad in her left hand. "It felt a lot longer than it was, but then watching it I realized how quickly I reacted to it," Holden said. "I'm 115 pounds. . .I didn't know I couldn't do that." Cherwinski weighs 175 pounds, WTOC reported, citing a police report. Holden asked a co-worker to call the police. After speaking to Holden and watching the surveillance footage, the Savannah Police Department arrested Cherwinski, took him into custody and charged him with sexual battery, a police spokeswoman told the Savannah Morning News. "I was really satisfied when he was arrested," Holden said. "It not only felt like justice for me but justice for the other women who have had that happen." According to the Associated Press, Cherwinski told police he touched her by "accident." His attorney, Tina Marie Hesse, declined to comment when reached by the AP. Cherwinski tried to tell Holden that he was simply trying to move her out of the way as he walked past her, she recalled to WTOC. "No, we know what you were doing," Holden said. The incident happened on June 30. But after one of Holden's relatives posted the surveillance footage on Reddit last week, it spread rapidly across the Internet. A video of the incident on YouTube has been watched more than 4.6 million times. Viewers praised Holden for her response. An editorial cartoon in the Savannah Morning News titled "You Go-Go, Girl!" depicted Holden pointing at the offender as he lies on the ground. "Wait staff aren't on the menu!" Holden is portrayed as saying. "Creep!" Women began flooding Holden with messages saying they found the video empowering and inspiring, she told WTOC. Many wrote about their own experiences with sexual harassment and assault while working in the restaurant industry. "I work there, it was just another Saturday night," one commentator wrote on the Reddit post of the video. "This literally happens ALL the time. We just put the cameras up so this was the first guy we've been able to prosecute." Freelance journalist Alice Driver wrote an opinion article on CNN about her years working as a waitress during college in Kentucky. "Had I possessed her confidence at that age, I too would have body-slammed a customer who groped me," Driver wrote. "Although I liked the social nature of my work and eating free desserts on my break, I was acutely aware of how the money I earned was tied to my ability to ignore or laugh at daily sexual harassment, like a man pinching my butt, as the customer did in the viral video of Holden." Recent studies have shown that women who work in low-wage restaurant jobs are particularly vulnerable to sexual harassment. Jocelyn Frye, who researches women's economic security at the Center for American Progress, a think tank in Washington, found this year that workers in food services and retail filed more than three times as many claims as employees in higher-paying fields of finance and insurance. Frye also found that nearly three-quarters of those filing sexual harassment complaints also reported retaliation. A 2014 report from the Restaurant Opportunities center also found that two-thirds of female restaurant workers were sexually harassed by restaurant management, 80 percent by their co-workers and 78 percent by customers. A third of women reported that unwanted touching was routine. While the responses to Holden's actions have been overwhelmingly positive, she has also received significant criticism for the nature of her clothing, a crop top and short shorts, she told WTOC. "It's upsetting to see people that have that train of thought," Holden said. "It's hot out. I can wear whatever I want. Don't touch me, how about that?" Driver wrote that Holden "represents the power of the #MeToo era, one in which a woman who is sexually harassed knows instinctively and instantaneously that action - whether it be confronting the groper, reporting him to a boss or trying out a body slam a la Holden - is her right, because her body is not up for grabs anymore." Holden echoed that sentiment to WTOC. "You have every right to stand up for yourself," she said, "no matter who it is. No one has the right to put their hands on you." Asked if she has a message for the man who groped her, Holden paused for a moment. "I got what I wanted when they put him in handcuffs," she said. "Best wishes to your daughters." John Meredith, of Huntsville, is a former Capitol Hill lobbyist who was recognized as one of the country's 100 most influential Black Republicans. The recent statewide GOP primary season was an insult to the voters of Alabama. We don't care who loves Donald Trump more. Republican voters in Alabama want to know when and how a candidate is going to close the educational achievement gap in our local school systems. We want to know how a candidate plans to resolve the inadequate and crumbling infrastructure in their jurisdiction without raising taxes. Minorities want to know what will be done to protect their rights as citizens when overzealous police are called for no reason other than a white person doesn't want them there. Donald Trump will not write one law in Alabama. He will not appoint one Alabama Supreme Court judge. He cannot fix our schools nor will he address the racial tensions he has sown. So why does the overwhelming majority of Alabama GOP politicians think it more important to express their love of Donald Trump than address the concerns of their potential constituency? It is the finalization of the party's shift from conservative principles to neoconservative idolatry. The once Grand Old Party has been reduced to supporting incompetence. Only blind obedience to power can explain Senate confirmation of nominees as flawed as Flynn, Pruitt and Devos. The same blinders must have been used by the voters of Etowah County who allowed Sheriff Todd Entrekin to abuse his power and line his personal pockets with taxpayer dollars since 2007. It also explains why neoconservatives are so willing to excuse racism in any form--Charlottesville, Muslim bans, Puerto Rico, Black Lives Matter. More disturbing is their complicity in the destruction of America's institutions of government perpetrated through a continuous flow of lies to the American people. That leaves so-called establishment Republicans with few options. They can leave the party. They can continue to hold their tongues in hopes there will be a party left to rebuild after Trump leaves office. Or, they can work to rebuild functional working relationships with conservative and moderate Democrats and govern from the middle. Leaving the party, an option many GOP voters have already taken, will lead to increasing Democratic victories and far more liberal public policies as their base grows over time. Attempting to wait out the Trump Administration could well result in autocracy if the current degradation of government institutions continues because it will preclude checks and balances on the executive branch, effectively making it a unilateral dictatorship. Answering the call of longtime, well-credentialed conservative Republicans like David Jolly, Steve Schmidt and Anna Navarro to vote Democratic this cycle may seem counterproductive--or downright un-American to the Republican psyche--but doing so is arguably the only remedy to ensure America remains inoculated from tyranny. The current unwillingness of party branded office holders at every level of government to work with members of the opposing party may make bipartisan governance more difficult but our non-partisan municipal officials demonstrate on a daily basis that Republican and Democratic office holders can and will work together for the betterment of their communities. Our elected School Boards, Mayors and City Councils can all put people before party. It is about time we demand the same of our party branded politicians. John Meredit can be reached at Comments4Meredith@yahoo.com At least 311 rights defenders and activists have been killed in Colombia since the beginning of 2016. Medellin, Colombia Carlos Paez doesnt look like someone who would be easily scared. Bold and imposing, with a graying beard and close-cropped hair, he is a man who projects authority. But when the 42-year-old Colombian land restitution activist was asked about the recent threats he has faced, his authority slipped. Im very scared, he told Al Jazeera, looking at the floor. Paez has been working to restore land to the those who had it violently taken from them often leaving them displaced in Colombia for more than 15 years. His foundation, Tierra y Paz, meaning land and peace, has faced threats before, and even had one of its leaders, Benigno Antonio Gil, killed in 2008. But as violence against social leaders in the South American country soars, the organisation said it feels more threatened than before. It isnt just my foundation who are scared but people are afraid all over, Paez said. You have to ask, who is doing the killing? he added. Earlier this month, Paez fled to the city of Medellin from the rural, banana-growing region of Uraba after being threatened. Before fleeing, a young man drove up to Paez on a motorbike and told him that he didnt have long left. He (the one delivering the message) told us there were plans to get us out of the way, Paez said. One killed every two days The land rights activist is not the only one whose life is in danger. Colombia is facing a crisis, according to international human rights groups, with a surge of violence against social leaders, and many worry that with the election of president Ivan Duque, who belongs to a right-wing party, the violence will only get worse. The countrys ombudsman has described the recent killings of social leaders as an extermination. According to the ombudsmans office 311 rights defenders and activists have been killed since the beginning of 2016, the same year the government signed a landmark peace agreement with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). At least 123 those killings took place from January 1 to July this year. From January through to March, a leader was killed every two days, according to figures analysed by the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA). Those targeted include anti-corruption activists and indigenous rights leaders, as well as activists like Paez, who are fighting to restore land to rural peasants. A woman holds a placard that reads No one more death as she takes part in a protest against the killing of social activists [File: Luisa Gonzalez/Reuters] Last week, 51-year-old Oswaldo Taquez was shot five times in the southwestern department of Putumayo after he left a meeting to discuss the progress of the cocoa substitution plan in the area, according to local media. According to analysts, the surge in violence is in part due to changes in the countrys criminal world. Since the FARC once the countrys biggest rebel group put down their weapons to form a political party, dissident groups have filled a vacuum to fight for strategic regions they previously controlled. Violence has increased because territories that are now up for grabs between criminal groups or landowners are very dangerous places to be an independent, unaligned leader, said Adam Isacson, a senior analyst at WOLA. Space for political participation opened up briefly after the accord but is slamming shut now, he told Al Jazeera. Land at the heart of conflict The unfair distribution of land played a central part of the half-century civil war, with poor peasant farmers often losing their land by force to armed groups. {articleGUID} The Victims and Land Restitution Law was enacted in 2011 to reclaim around eight million illegally stolen hectares that have been taken from millions of Colombians since 1985. The law has faced challenges, however, and has been criticised by NGOs for failing to be fully implemented. Criminal groups used by wealthy elites continue to want to hold onto or snatch more land, according to a number of NGOs. The land issue has always been at the heart of the conflict in Colombia, where the land distribution always has been one of the most unequal on the world, with small peasants losing more than six million hectares of land since 1991 as a consequence of violence and land-grabbing, said Ilhan Can, a researcher at Fundacion Forjando Futuros, a Medellin-based NGO. A big part of this [stolen] land is turned into hands of big companies or mafias, he told Al Jazeera. Many worry that with the recent election of right-wing Ivan Duque, the violence may only get worse. Duque, a divisive figure, is the protege of former President Alvaro Uribe, who is currently being investigated for witness-tampering in a case that alleges he has links to a paramilitary group. Last year, Uribe was accused of illegally taking land by the countrys comptroller general. Uribe has maintained that he is an honourable businessman in the countryside. Earlier this month, thousands gathered in cities across Colombia, demanding an end to the wave of killings in the country. At least 311 rights defenders and activists have been killed in Colombia since the beginning of 2016 [File: Luisa Gonzalez/Reuters] Many said they were worried that the new government, which has vowed to roll back portions of the 2016 accord with the FARC, will put the countrys fragile peace at risk. The main reason the violence against social leaders increases is the fact that the paramilitary groups and those who pay them to do the killings that is the local elites, the big land-holders, businessmen feel empowered by the election of the far-right government, Can said. And Colombias inspector general, Fernando Carrillo this month came out and said that some of the countrys military and police have been collaborating with criminal gangs to carry out the executions. He called the murders systematic, saying state agents were cooperating with criminal gangs. Paez is fearful, too. We are fearful the violence will increase, he said. One of the biggest landowners in Colombia is Alvaro Uribe. He is against peasants going back to the regions to retrieve their land. And he is the one who is in charge of this new government. Earlier this month, Duque condemned the killings, but hasnt revealed a plan to stop them. His party, the Democratic Centre, did not respond to Al Jazeeras multiple requests for a comment. The only thing we can do is denounce what is happening ... That is all we can do to end this river of blood that has already been spilled. We just have to keep going. Carlos Paez, Tierra y Paz One member of the Democratic Centre, Alfredo Rangel, a former senator whose term officially ended on Friday did speak, saying the protection of social leaders would be a priority for the new government. He added the problem was related to drug trafficking: The new administration has indicated that the reason for the death of most of these leaders is drug trafficking and different criminal groups linked to drug trafficking. Therefore, we must fight drug trafficking and diminish the cocaine production to take away the strength that these criminal groups have that are killing leaders to take control of the population. But social leaders like Paez remain sceptical. The only thing we can do is denounce what is happening, said Paez. Face the situation, seek support from the international community, and invite the government to respect the pact and lives of social leaders, he added. That is all we can do to end this river of blood that has already been spilled. We just have to keep going. Although foreign policy hardly figures in election campaigns ahead of the July 25 in Pakistan, there are serious challenges that the next government will face on the external front. Growing estrangement with the United States, the ongoing war in Afghanistan, tension with India and relations with China will be the major foreign policy issues the new government will have to deal with. Tensions with the US The US-Pakistan alliance that emerged after 9/11 seems to have come full circle: The turbulent relations between the two countries have come almost to a breaking point. The downturn that began following the US Navy Seal raid on Osama bin Ladens house in May 2011 and the air attack on a Pakistani border post that killed more than a dozen soldiers and officers at the end of the same year has not come to an end. It has transformed relations from a strategic alliance to more of a transactional arrangement. Both civil and military aid from the US was curtailed during former President Barack Obamas second term. Now the residual transactional relationship has also come under strain after sitting President Donald Trump announced his administrations South Asia policy earlier this year and suspended military assistance. Like its predecessors, the Trump administration demands unquestioned cooperation, ignoring Islamabads interests. Washington has linked aid to Pakistan taking action against the Afghan Taliban groups operating from its border areas and if it does not get what it wants, it could declare the country a terrorist haven. Surely such radical moves cannot succeed. Still, they would put greater diplomatic pressure on Islamabad to crack down on suspected militant sanctuaries and take action against the Taliban leadership allegedly operating from Pakistan. At the same time, the US leverage over Islamabad has weakened over the years, with Pakistan diversifying its relations with other regional powers particularly its growing strategic partnership with China. Yet a complete breakdown of relations between Washington and Islamabad is not an option. Dealing with this tense situation will be a very serious challenge to the new Pakistani leadership, almost comparable to what the government faced in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Afghanistan and the Taliban insurgency Afghanistan remains the most serious challenge for the new government. Resumption of bilateral talks seems to have broken the ice and reopened a window of opportunity for Islamabad and Kabul to build an atmosphere of mutual trust and put ties on a more stable footing. There is already de-escalation in tensions as both sides have recognised the need for close cooperation to deal with a common threat. {articleGUID} What is particularly encouraging is the lowering of hostile rhetoric thus paving the way for a conducive environment in which rational discussions on critical issues affecting the two countries can be held. There is, indeed, strong reason for optimism but it would require a greater effort by both sides to remove the major sources of tension, not an easy task given the huge baggage of mutual distrust and certain adverse internal and external factors. The recent meeting in Kabul took the discussions forward with more concrete suggestions for evolving a common strategy to deal with cross-border sanctuaries that have been the biggest cause of tension between the two countries. The most important outcome of the meeting was the assurances given by Afghan leaders that the Afghan forces backed by additional US troops are now in a better position to tackle the Pakistani Taliban and other militant sanctuaries in their territory. Indeed, it is going to be a big test for the Afghan forces. Both the US and Afghanistan insist that sanctuaries on Pakistani soil have enabled the Afghan Taliban to sustain and expand insurgent operations in Afghanistan over the past 16 years. It will also be a much bigger challenge for Pakistans new leadership to eliminate the alleged Afghan Taliban safe havens inside Pakistan and take action against the Haqqani network, as the Pakistani establishment continues to deny their presence there. The growing intensity of insurgent attacks in Afghanistan and reluctance of the Taliban to enter into peace negotiation remain a major point of conflict between Kabul and Islamabad. It is apparent that the Taliban leadership may have demonstrated some flexibility in agreeing to a short ceasefire during this years Eid al-Fitr perhaps on the persuasion of Pakistan and China, but there is no indication yet of the militia accepting Afghan President Ashraf Ghanis offer for peace talks. {articleGUID} However, the dynamics generated by the Eid ceasefire may have opened a window of opportunity. Pakistan has offered to facilitate peace negotiations, while it is not clear whether it has any influence with the Taliban leadership. The best thing for Pakistan is to encourage the Afghan Taliban to directly negotiate with Kabul without Islamabad taking any responsibility. Undoubtedly, improvement in bilateral relations between Kabul and Islamabad is a very encouraging development. But, given the existing wall of mutual distrust, there is still a long way to go for the relationship to become more meaningful. Pakistans Afghan policy would basically remain under the domain of the security establishment and the elected civilian government is likely to follow the line. However, post-election political stability in the country would be key to making positive progress on relations with Kabul. India and China Perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenge for the new government would be to figure out how to normalise relations with New Delhi and manage business with Beijing. Tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours has heightened over the past few years with escalation of hostilities on the Line of Control dividing Indian and Pakistani sides of Kashmir. That has also led to the suspension of bilateral negotiations between the two countries. Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif did take some initiative to improve relations with New Delhi, but he could not make much headway because of domestic resistance and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis intransigence. Sharifs Indian policy was also one of the reasons for his falling out with the military. Almost all mainstream political parties support better relations with their eastern neighbour, but security and the Kashmir issue remain a major hurdle to a breakthrough. Also given that India is having a general election next year, there is no hope of any major development, although any initiative from New Delhi would be welcomed by the Pakistani political elite and the military. Relations with China will also remain stable. The growing China-Pakistan axis reflects Asias emerging geopolitics and realignment of forces. Pakistans distancing from the US and heightening tension with India has led Islamabad to increase its reliance on China, its all-weather friend. The growing ties between the US and India is also a factor that is further consolidating the China-Pakistan axis. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has brought a dimensional shift in the two countries relations at a time of significant geopolitical change. But while it promises wide-ranging benefits for infrastructure development and economic growth in Pakistan, a number of important challenges remain to be overcome if the project is to be sustainable and produce long-term benefits for Pakistanis. Although China has an extremely positive image among the general population, the lack of transparency on the terms of various CPEC projects has generated a growing scepticism in Pakistans civil society and business circles. A major challenge for the new government is to negotiate better terms with the Chinese firms so as to reap maximum benefit from their investments. The underlying issue for Pakistans leadership is how to implement the CPEC programme in a way that removes structural imbalances and puts the economy on a sustainable growth trajectory. In short, Pakistan finds itself in complex foreign policy circumstances and once the new government is sworn in, managing the countrys foreign relations will be one of its biggest challenges. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance. As questions swirl over the Saudi oil attacks, all eyes are on the Middle East to see if tensions finally boil over. Somali army repels attack and an official says 87 fighters killed after group stormed Baar Sanguni base near Kismayo. Somalias al-Shabab detonated a suicide car bomb then stormed a military base in the countrys south, claiming at least 27 soldiers were killed. An official said the military repelled the attack and killed 87 fighters in fighting, dismissing the claim on Monday that dozens of Somali troops were dead. Abdiasis Abu Musab, al-Shababs spokesman, said attackers overran the base in Baar Sanguni village about 50km from the port city of Kismayo. We first attacked the base with a suicide car bomb and then stormed, said Musab. We killed 27 soldiers and took the base. Some soldiers fled into the jungles. The military sent reinforcements to the base following the explosion and heavy fighting. Conflicting death tolls Assistant information minister Aden Isak Ali told state news agency SONNA that soldiers were hunting down attackers who fled the base. The national army defended itself and killed 87 militants, he said. However, Colonel Ahmed Hassan said troops killed 10 attackers. The attack followed one last month by al-Shabab on the same base that wounded seven soldiers. The armed group is battling to topple the central government and impose its rule based on a strict interpretation of Islamic law. Al-Shabab has killed thousands of Somalis across East Africa in a decade-long insurgency. The case of a criminal ring with rumoured political ties involved in the illegal production and smuggling of fake-brand cigarettes worth of millions of dollars is dominating public discussion in Jordan and testing the new governments stance on corruption. Prime Minister Omar al-Razzaz announced on Monday the cases referral to the state security court, which typically handles serious criminal and terrorism cases. The move came as Jumana Ghunaimat, minister of state for media affairs, announced the arrests of 30 suspects amid an ongoing investigation. Dubbed the cigarettes scandal, the case has roused intense political and social media debate in the country. It was brought to light last week by members of parliament calling for an investigation. Muslih al-Tarawneh, an MP, told Al Jazeera he demanded the prime minister uncover what he called out-right corruption by senior government officials who allegedly aided the criminal syndicate. Tarawneh did not mention any names and presented no evidence in public to back up his claims. Al Jazeera could not independently confirm the accusations. Al-Razzaz previously described it as a do-or-die issue for him, reiterating his governments determination to combat corruption and economic crimes. Serious effort The cigarettes case is seen as the prime ministers first major test to earn the confidence of a disillusioned Jordanian public, amid persistent civil society calls to tackle corruption after years of failures. Activists often accuse the government of cracking down on minor suspects, while turning a blind eye on corruption committed by powerful and politically connected figures. Al-Razzaz was appointed prime minister in June after large anti-austerity protests forced the previous government to resign. Al-Razzaz is very popular and has an untarnished reputation, and I think he is serious about fighting corruption, Mohamad Hejouj, a former MP, told Al Jazeera. There is a political decision made by the upper echelons in the government to investigate this case and bring it to justice, he added. Corruption in Jordan is a mafia institution on its own and is very powerful economically and politically. It is time the government make a serious effort to crack down on it and punish its members from within and outside government ranks. Illegal manufacturing According to Tarawneh, the case in question involved the smuggling of equipment to produce and sell cigarettes into the country, with several factories set up on farms around the capital, Amman. In a statement, the government identified the main suspect as businessman Awni Motee, who left Jordan on July 11 one day before one of these factories was raided by security forces. Motee is believed to be behind several operations to manufacture illegal cigarettes that brought in millions of dollars, according to police sources. The sites mainly produced fake versions of international brands popular in Jordan, such as Winston. In a telephone call with a Jordanian TV station from Lebanon, where he is currently based, Motee denied any involvement, saying the cigarette factory he owned is not in operation after being shut down last year. He described the past weeks events as a war being waged against him because of his tobacco-farming operations in the Jordan Valley. Strange and mysterious case The case originally came to the attention of the authorities last year during the tenure of former prime minister Hani al-Mulki as a tax evasion matter, which, according to some estimates, could be worth more than $100m in tax revenues, fines and fees. A government official, who declined to be named publicly, confirmed to Al Jazeera the government had looked into the case last year. However, it is unclear what steps or decisions were taken to deal with it. This case is very strange and mysterious at this point, the official said. The cigarette production sites were able to carry on their illegal operations until last week when they were shut down by authorities after the case became public. Ghunaimat said the government established a task force made up of investigators from Jordanian customs, the ministry of finance, the ministry of trade and industry, police and the intelligence department. She told Al Jazeera that despite the recent arrests, no one has yet been charged with a crime. We are taking every measure to ensure vigilance and transparency and let our justice system run its course, said Ghunaimat. Even though accusations implicating powerful government figures as behind-the-scenes owners of the cigarette factories, or partners in the crime ring, have surfaced on social media accounts, Ghunaimat rejected these claims as inaccurate, adding only the prosecution will determine the guilt or innocence of anyone involved. Still, many Jordanians on social media expressed doubts over the cases resolution. Follow Ali Younes on Twitter: @Ali_reports Executives from Chinas second-largest pharmaceutical company, Changsheng Bio-Technology Company, have admitted to falsifying test results and producing fake vaccines. By Chinese leaders scramble to shore up public confidence after rabies vaccine maker was found faking records. A vaccine scandal in China, which has prompted angry reactions from citizens fed up with safety scares, is sending ripples across the local drug market and threatening Chinese ambitions to play a larger role in the global pharmaceutical space. Regulators said last week they had halted production of a rabies vaccine made by Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences Ltd, which is based in northeastern China, after finding fabricated records and other problems during an inspection. By Monday, shares in Chinese vaccine makers and biotech firms had fallen across the board. Premier Li Keqiang slammed the company late on Sunday for having crossed a moral red line and called for swift action. We will resolutely crack down on illegal and criminal acts that endanger the safety of peoples lives, resolutely punish lawbreakers according to the law, and resolutely and severely criticise dereliction of duty in supervision, Li said in a statement posted on the governments website. Changsheng has been found to have faked production documents related to a rabies vaccine that is given to babies as young as three months, underscoring the difficulties China faces in cleaning up the image of the worlds second-biggest drug industry as it aims to promote its vaccines globally. While there have been no apparent reports of people being harmed by the vaccine or having contracted rabies after receiving it, the regulator has already ordered Changsheng to halt production and recall all its vaccines. Extremely sensitive The scandal has sparked anger on social media and dealt a blow to Chinas drug regulator. Changsheng apologised in a regulatory filing on Monday and said the suspension of its vaccine would hit its finances. It added some regional disease control agencies had suspended some of its other vaccines. The firm said it also faces the risk of being delisted due to an investigation by Chinas securities regulator into suspected violations of information disclosure. Changsheng shares, which resumed trading on Monday afternoon session after being suspended in the morning, were down 10 percent. They have slumped 47 percent since mid-July. The wider CSI 300 healthcare index was down about 5 percent. The Changsheng case is the latest in a slew of scandals that has plagued Chinas pharmaceutical industry in recent years. A regulator in the northeastern province of Jilin, where Changsheng is based, revealed on Friday that the company had last year sold 252,600 substandard DPT vaccines to inoculate children against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus. Another company Wuhan Institute of Biological Products was also implicated in the DPT vaccine issue. Earlier, in 2016, Chinese police busted a gang for selling around $90 million worth of illegal vaccines on the black market. French interior minister grilled over Macron aide assault scandal Many are asking why it took so long for presidents former bodyguard to be prosecuted after film showed him beating demonstrator on May 1. Russians hold urgent talks with PM Benjamin Netanyahu as tensions heighten along the Israeli occupied Golan Heights. The Syrian government and its ally Russia stepped up their offensive to defeat the last rebels holding territory in southwestern Syria. Israel was also on high alert on Monday as Syrian President Bashar al-Assads forces regained ground from the southern rebels, bringing his troops close to the Israeli occupied Golan Heights. Huge plumes of smoke could be seen from the occupied Golan Heights just across the fence in Syrian territory as government and Russian forces launched air strikes and tanks shelled the area. What weve been watching throughout the day is an intensive campaign by the Syrian government backed by the Russians to take what is this last pocket of opposition control. The group in charge here is affiliated with ISIL [Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant], Al Jazeeras Stephanie Dekker reported from the scene. There is no negotiation, no deal on the table for them. We have seen a lot of air strikes, tank shelling from this part in front of us, and also from the other side. So it looks like theyre advancing from two fronts. Weve been here in and out in the last couple of weeks. Before we never saw any Israeli presence; today that has changed. We saw multiple platoons monitoring whats happening behind us. Dekker identified the ISIL-affiliated fighters as belonging to the Khalid ibn al-Walid group. All other opposition fighters along the southwestern border left following deals struck with the Syrian government and Russian forces. The most recent deal was reached on Thursday with rebel groups in Quneitra province, which adjoins the occupied Golan Heights. Fifty-five buses carrying the first group of Syrian rebels and their families arrived in Syrias northwest on Saturday. Buses continue to leave. Growing Golan concerns Meanwhile, Israel said on Monday its air defences fired at rockets that approached its territory from neighbouring Syria, as Russia sent envoys for what it called urgent talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu met Russias Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and armed forces chief General Valery Gerasimov later in the day. The discussions with the Israeli leader were arranged last week at the request of Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a sign of heightened tensions, Israel launched two Davids Sling interceptor missiles at rockets the Israeli military later said fell inside Syrian territory part of the internal fighting there. The military did not immediately elaborate on whether the targets were shot down. It was Israels first published operational use of the mid-range interceptors. The incident triggered sirens in northern Israel and in the Golan Heights. Israel deployed the system last year to complement its short-range Iron Dome and long-range Arrow interceptors. Separation of forces Netanyahu held talks with Putin in Moscow on July 11 amid Israeli concerns that Assad, an old foe, may defy a 1974 demilitarisation deal on the occupied Golan Heights, or allow his Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah allies to deploy there. Russia has said it wants to see the separation of forces on the frontier preserved. Netanyahu, in broadcast remarks, said he would tell the envoys, Israel insists on the separation of forces agreement between us and Syria being honoured, as they were honoured for decades until the civil war in Syria broke out. He also reaffirmed, Israel will continue to act against any attempt by Iran and its proxies to entrench militarily in Syria. Syrian state television said on Sunday an Israeli air strike hit a military post in the city of Misyaf in Syrias Hama province but caused only material damage. Also on Sunday, hundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers and their families fled advancing government forces and crossed into the occupied Golan Heights, before arriving in Jordan with the help of Israel and Western allies. The Syrian government on Monday condemned the evacuation, calling it a criminal operation undertaken by Israel and its tools. The Syrian government accused the White Helmets of being agents of foreign enemies and working with insurgents. Three days of mourning declared as death toll from forest fires in several places around the Greek capital hits 74. At least 74 people have died and scores more injured as wildfires tore through woodland and villages around the Greek capital, Athens, local officials said. The death toll rose sharply on Tuesday after 26 bodies were found near the harbour town of Rafina, according to Red Cross workers and the regions vice mayor, Girgos Kokkolis. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras declared three days of national mourning. According to officials, at least 187 people, including 23 children, were injured in the fires, which damaged structures, disrupted major transport links and sent people fleeing their homes. Greeces fire brigade said the intensity and spread of the wildfire in the coastal village of Mati, about 29km east of Athens, had slowed on Tuesday as winds died down, but it was still not fully under control. Mati is located in the Rafina region. The fire department urged residents to report missing relatives and friends. Streets lined with burned-out cars Firefighters in Mati told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that they were able to get to places that were unreachable on Monday night due to the strength of the flames. {articleGUID} The streets of the village were lined with burned-out cars and the nearby fields were completely charred, with small fires still simmering. Mati doesnt even exist as a settlement anymore, one woman told Greeces Skai TV. I saw corpses, burned-out cars. I feel lucky to be alive. Fire brigade spokeswoman Stavroula Maliri said that residents and visitors in the area did not escape in time even though they were a few metres from the sea or in their homes. One of the youngest victims was thought to be a six-month-old baby who died of smoke inhalation, officials said. Rescue workers were using forklifts to stack charred cars so emergency vehicles could get through the streets. People look inside a burned-out car following a wildfire at the village of Mati [Alkis Konstantinidis/Reuters] In the neighbourhoods closer to the beach, residents and visitors were examining the wreckage of their homes. Another blaze broke out on Monday in a forest near the coastal settlement of Kineta, about 55km west of Athens. The causes of the fires are still unknown. Planes were continuing to drop water on the affected areas at mid-day on Tuesday. Urgent help A state of emergency was declared in the Athens metropolitan area and Tsipras cut short a visit to Bosnia to return to Greece. We are dealing with something completely asymmetric, Tsipras said. Cyprus and Spain offered assistance after Greece said it needed air and land assets from European Union partners. A state of emergency was declared in the Athens metropolitan area [Reuters] Authorities said they would be making use of an unmanned drone from the United States on Tuesday to monitor and track any suspicious activity. Tsipras and Greek officials have expressed misgivings at the fact that several major fires broke out at the same time. The fires in Mati were by far Greeces worst since flames devastated the southern Peloponnese peninsula in August 2007, killing dozens. Wildfires are not uncommon in Greece, and a relatively dry winter helped create the current tinder-box conditions. With additional reporting by Patrick Strickland from Mati, Greece. Two gunmen dead and third wounded attacker taken into custody after security forces confront the assailants. The standoff between Kurdish security forces and three gunmen holed up in Erbils governorate building has ended with two gunmen and one civilian dead while a third wounded attacker has been captured. The ordeal started early on Monday when the assailants shot their way into the building, wounding one guard and taking one hostage, said Al Jazeeras Imran Khan reporting from the capital, Baghdad. During that five-hour attack, one 55-year-old man was killed and the hostage was subsequently released, he said. He also said that one of the attackers blew himself up, the second was killed by security forces and the third one was gravely wounded and taken into custody. The motivation behind the attack was not immediately clear. No armed group has claimed responsibility for the violence so far. The mayor of Erbil was linking the incident to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) without elaborating on the source of the information, Al Jazeeras Khan said. These types of attacks are rare in Erbil [Azad Lashkari/Reuters] Rare violence These types of attacks are rare in Erbil, one of the most stable cities in Iraq. But ISIL has in the past carried out bombings in the city. The group has targeted Kurdish forces and civilians in recent years. Kurdish fighters, along with Iraqi government forces and a US-led coalition, battled against ISIL members, who had occupied a third of the country, until their defeat in December last year. Philippines Duterte vows to continue chilling war on drugs President Rodrigo Duterte says bloody anti-narcotics offensive is far from over as protesters call for his resignation. Trump tells Iran to NEVER THREATEN THE US AGAIN as his top envoy blasts Irans leaders, comparing them to the mafia. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has blasted Irans religious leaders as hypocritical holy men whom he says are more interested in lining their pockets and spreading hardline views abroad than helping out their own cash-strapped citizens. Pompeos speech on Sunday came as US President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani traded angry threats amid rising tensions between the two countries. Sometimes it seems the world has become desensitised to the regimes authoritarianism at home and its campaigns of violence abroad, but the proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their governments many abuses, Pompeo told a crowd of Iranian Americans during a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California. The United States under President Trump will not stay silent, he said in an address aimed at members of southern Californias 250,000-strong Iranian-American community. Pompeo took particular aim at several of Irans judicial, military and political leaders, accusing them of widespread corruption. The level of corruption and wealth among Iranian leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government, Pompeo said. The top US diplomat claimed that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had an off-the-books hedge fund, Setad, worth $95bn, and that Irans judiciary chief Sadeq Larijani was worth $300m after wiring public funds to his own accounts. You will suffer consequences Pompeos speech came as the war of words between Rouhani and Trump intensified. {articleGUID} Prior to Pompeos speech on Sunday, Iranian President Hasan Rouhani warned Trump not to escalate tensions with Iran, saying a confrontation with Iran would be the mother of all wars. Do not play with the lions tail or else you will regret it, Rouhani said in a televised speech in Irans capital Tehran. Trump hit back shortly after Pompeos speech in a tweet directed specifically at Rouhani. NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE, the US president said. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Pompeo and US national security adviser, John Bolton, have used combative rhetoric against Iran since Trump withdrew on May 8 from the 2015 deal to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Rouhani had hinted earlier this month that Iran may block regional oil exports if its own sales are halted following the US withdrawal from the nuclear deal. Major leap of faith In his Sunday address, Pompeo said Iran has seen its most enduring protests since the revolution these past eight months as Iranians demonstrate against state spending on military activity in Syria, Lebanon, Yemen and elsewhere. {articleGUID} The specific grievances differ, Pompeo said in his address. But all those voicing dissatisfaction share one thing: they have been ill-treated by a revolutionary regime. Iranians want to be governed with dignity, accountability and respect. The US secretary of state added: While it is ultimately up to the Iranian people to determine the direction of their country, the United States will support the long-ignored voice of the Iranian people. While some Iranian Americans say Washington should back anti-government groups in Iran, others say heavy-handed tactics could backfire and call for a less confrontational approach. Trita Parsi, founder and president of the lobby group National Iranian American Council, said Pompeos tough talk could fuel grievances, destabilise Iran and set Tehran and Washington on a collision course. Criticism of the corruption of the Iranian government is not only often times accurate but also something that a lot of Iranians would agree with, Parsi told Al Jazeera. But the step from there to think that the Trump administration that currently is undermining democracy in the United States is the answer to Irans lack of democracy, is a major leap of faith that I dont think most people would take. Roozbeh Farahanipour, 47, an anti-regime dissident who left Iran for the US in 1999 and advocates for the overthrow of the countrys religious leaders, was in the audience on Sunday and said that he thought Pompeo was trying to strong-arm Tehran. Pompeo is trying to pressure Iran to come to the negotiation table for a deal, Farahanipour told Al Jazeera. The US is not interested in regime change and it is not really interested in improving human rights for Iranians, he added. The decision for regime change is one that should come from the people of Iran, and they will decide to do this, whether it comes sooner or later. {articleGUID} Pompeo and his colleagues say they do not seek regime change and just want to alter Tehrans behaviour. Speaking on a recent conference call with journalists, a senior State Department official said the US wanted to deter Tehran from developing nuclear and ballistic weapons and supporting terrorism. This strategy is not all sticks, said the official, who spoke on the condition that his or her name not be used. We have presented a very positive vision for the future of US-Iranian relations its a choice that the regime needs to make, the official added. We have put on the table the possibility of a treaty relationship with the United States if Iran decides to change its behaviour and to start behaving like a normal country. Iranian Americans on US policy towards Iran Iranian Americans typically express a range of views on US policy towards Iran. {articleGUID} According to an opinion survey by the research group, the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA), one percent of the 402 respondents backed Irans mullah-run system in 2017, while eight percent wanted it reformed. Some 55 percent of Iranian Americans favoured a secular democratic government and 11 percent sought the return of a constitutional monarch. While 55 percent of Iranian Americans wanted Washington to work to advance democracy and civil rights in Iran, they were more divided on how a US administration should go about achieving this. Soft power and cultural outreach were relatively popular (37 percent approval), but tougher measures garnered less support. Eight percent of respondents wanted to see tighter sanctions on Iran or wanted Washington to back anti-regime figures in Iran, while seven percent wanted the US to boost support for regional US allies like Israel and Saudi Arabia. Washington has long called Iran the worlds leading state sponsor of terrorism because Tehran arms and funds proxy armed groups like the Lebanese Hezbollah group. Iranian leaders reject US claims about developing nuclear weapons and supporting terrorism. International Court of Justice rules in discrimination case brought by Doha against the United Arab Emirates. A provisional ruling by the United Nations top court has found that measures put in place by the United Arab Emirates as part of its boycott against Qatar amount to racial discrimination. In June 2017, the UAE, along with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt, imposed a land, air and sea blockade against Qatar and severed ties with it, in one of the worst diplomatic disputes in the Gulf in decades. Last month, Qatar filed a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing the UAE of violating international laws by expelling thousands of Qataris many of whom have family or own property in the UAE and closing UAE airspace and seaports to Qatar. It alleged the boycott violates the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) including discrimination on the basis of nationality a treaty signed by both the UAE and Qatar. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt are not signatories of the CERD convention. ICJ ruling On Monday, judges at the ICJ ruled that Qatari families affected by the UAEs measures must be reunited, imposing a measure before The Hague-based court hears in full the discrimination case. They also said that students should be given the opportunity to complete their studies in the UAE or to retain records of their studies to be able to continue their education elsewhere. {articleGUID} Finally, they ruled Qataris should be allowed access to judicial services in the UAE. Many Qataris residing in the UAE appeared to have been forced to leave their place of residence without the possibility of return, the judges ruling said. There is an imminent risk that the measures adopted by the UAE could lead to irreparable prejudice to the rights invoked by Qatar. Lulwa al-Khater, Qatars foreign ministry spokeswoman, welcomed the ruling. This is only the first step on a long road to defend our rights, but at the same time this sends an early strong signal that there will be no tolerance shown to countries that take arbitrary measures against Qataris, state news agency QNA quoted her as saying. Breakthrough for Qatar The ICJ, which is informally known as the World Court, is the UNs venue for resolving legal disputes between states. What the court has made clear in this ruling is that it does believe that the impact of all of that [infringement of rights] would be long-lasting and could have a psychological impact on people, and the UAE should do something about it, Al Jazeeras Neave Barker, reporting from The Hague, said. The sheer fact that the UAE, out of the four countries that imposed the blockade upon Qatar, is the only signatory to this convention means that it is duty-bound and legally-bound, to uphold all of the details within that convention, he added. Toby Cadman, an international human rights lawyer, described the ICJ ruling as a breakthrough for Qatar. Its a very important decision that establishes the illegality of the blockade, and that the UAEs actions are in breach of an international convention which they signed up to, he told Al Jazeera. {articleGUID} The difficulty is if the UAE refuses to implement a decision of the ICJ they (Qatar) would be advised to take it to the UN Security Council for failure to implement a decision which they would be entitled to do and I think that the diplomatic pressure put on the UAE would be so intense. On June 5, 2017, the four Arab countries cut all diplomatic relations with Qatar, accusing it of supporting extremism and terrorism and cosying up to Iran a regional rival. Qatar has vehemently denied all allegations. According to Qatars National Human Rights Committee, the blockade has affected about 13,000 people. The committee recorded 4,105 cases of human rights violations in the last year, including 646 family reunification violations. Human rights groups criticise British government for decision not to object in case the US seeks the death penalty. The UK government has said it will not object to the United States seeking the death penalty for two suspected British members of ISIL, drawing criticism by human rights groups and opposition politicians. Security Minister Ben Wallace on Monday said Britain would be willing to waive its long-standing objection to executions in the case of captured fighters, Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh. In this instance, and after carefully considered advice, the government took the rare decision not to require assurances in this case, Wallace told the lower house of Parliament in response to a leaked letter from Home Secretary Sajid Javid to US Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Britain abolished the death penalty in 1965. Kotey and El-Sheikh are suspected to have been a part of a group of four British members of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS). They were allegedly responsible for killing several captives, including journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff and British aid workers Alan Henning and David Haines. Amnesty International called the decision a deeply worrying development. The Home Secretary must unequivocally insist that Britains long-standing position on the death penalty has not changed and seek cast-iron assurances from the US that it will not be used, a statement by Amnesty said. While the alleged crimes of Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh are appalling, the UKs principled opposition to the cruelty of the death penalty isnt something it should compromise, it added. Capital punishment is the ultimate denial of life it is always cruel and unnecessary, it doesnt deter crime, and it means that rehabilitation is not an option. Andrew Stroehlein, European Media Director for Human Rights Watch, also denounced the plan. We dont oppose state murder because the criminals have behaved humanely. We oppose state murder because we behave humanely. Thats the difference between terrorism and civilisation, he said in a response to the news. Indeed. We don't oppose state murder because the criminals have behaved humanely. We oppose state murder because we behave humanely. That's the difference between terrorism and civilisation. https://t.co/g2BJInqEFX Andrew Stroehlein (@astroehlein) July 23, 2018 The Death Penalty Project, an organisation that provides free assistance to those facing execution, called the decision deeply concerning with potentially very wide consequences. UK is a critical voice against #deathpenalty on the global stage any attempt to roll back on policy of complete opposition to capital punishment is deeply concerning w/ potentially very wide consequences @sajidjavid https://t.co/sP9Ydi30RN DeathPenaltyProject (@DeathPenaltyP) July 23, 2018 Labours objections Several British members of parliament also expressed their opposition. We have had cross-party consensus against the death penalty for more than 50 years in this country, David Lammy, an MP for the opposition Labour Party, said. By doing so he is not just playing with the lives of these particular terrorists but those of other Britons including potentially innocent ones all over the world, Labours Shami Chakrabati said in parliament. Another Labour MP, Andrew Adonis, said he does not support death penalty in any circumstances. I dont support death penalty in any circumstances this is not the tail end of the middle ages & Sajid Javid should not be condoning it. Little support in Parliament for what he is doing Andrew Adonis (@Andrew_Adonis) July 23, 2018 Kotey and El-Sheikh were captured earlier this year by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) when the pair tried to escape territory formerly held by ISIL. A third member of the group, Mohammed Emwazim, was killed in an air raid in 2015. The mother of murdered journalist James Foley has previously stated she does not support the death penalty in the case of the killing of her son. Diane Foley said she would prefer to see those responsible in prison for the rest of their lives. A leadership row has erupted in the Philippine House of Representatives on live TV, delaying President Rodrigo Dutertes delivery of his annual state of the nation address and passage of a crucial autonomy deal with Muslim rebels. As Duterte arrived on a helicopter in the heavily secured congressional complex on Monday, Representative Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, backed by dozens of allied legislators, took the main seat in the centre stage of the Houses plenary hall in a sign that she was taking over the post of House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez. Arroyo, a former president, tried to speak from the stage during the dramatic standoff but her microphone was turned off. She tried to yell, apparently to explain what was happening, but later stepped away from the stage, waving at the crowd. Alvarez, along with Senate President Vicente Sotto III, fetched Duterte and led the visibly confused leader to a holding room as the dispute over House leadership unfolded in the chamber, which was packed with diplomats, legislators and other dignitaries for Dutertes speech. Alvarez and Arroyo are both Duterte allies. The leadership row earlier prevented the House from ratifying the autonomy deal that many hope will settle one of Asias longest-raging separatist movement. Earlier on Monday, the Senate unanimously ratified the bill, which aims to establish a new Bangsamoro autonomous region in the countrys southern island of Mindanao, but House members adjourned early due to the leadership row. A temporary setback The government negotiated the pact for more than two decades with the countrys largest Muslim rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Duterte had been expected to sign the autonomy bill into law as early as Monday and highlight it in his state of the nation speech as an early legacy of his presidency, which has come under heavy criticism over his human rights record and deadly anti-drug crackdown. Thousands of protesters rallied outside the House, where Duterte was to speak. We find it unfortunate that the Bangsamoro Organic Law was not ratified before the adjournment of todays session, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said. We consider this as a temporary setback. There was no immediate reaction from the Muslim rebels over the latest difficulty in achieving the Malaysian-brokered peace deal, which seeks establish autonomous region for minority Muslims in the south of the largely Roman Catholic nation. In 2008, a planned signing of a preliminary pact was scuttled when opponents went to the Supreme Court, which declared the agreement unconstitutional. New fighting erupted when three rebel commanders attacked Christian communities, leaving more than 100 people dead and about 750,000 villagers displaced before a ceasefire ended the violence. Presidential adviser Jesus Dureza said House legislators had no issue with the autonomy bill but that it was accidentally embroiled in the House leadership row, adding that he expected the legislation to be ratified at some point. More than 120,000 dead The proposed deal is the latest significant attempt by the government to negotiate an end to nearly half a century of on-and-off fighting that has left more than 120,000 people dead and displaced about 2 million others. The two largest Muslim rebel groups in the south have dropped their demands for a separate Muslim state in exchange for autonomy and have renounced terrorism. Western governments, however, fear that some local groups might be linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group (ISIL, also known as ISIS) from the Middle East and Southeast Asia. {articleGUID} Last year, heavily armed Filipino armed groups, who have sworn allegiance to ISIL, along with dozens of foreign fighters, laid siege to the southern of Marawi. Troops, backed by United States and Australian surveillance aircraft, defeated the fighters after five months of airstrikes and ground assaults that left more than 1,200 people, mostly Muslim fighters, dead and the city in ruins. Aside from the Muslim autonomy pact, Duterte was expected to reaffirm his resolve to fight illegal drugs and introduce a draft constitution that would shift the country to a federal system of governance. The moves, including opening the countrys 1987 constitution to amendment, have been opposed by several groups and opposition politicians, who fear they are designed to prolong Dutertes rule and give him dictatorial powers. Duterte, who took office in 2016, has played down such fears, saying he is ready to step down as early as next year and cut short his six-year term before a new federal government is put in place. Israeli forces shot a 15-year-old in the chest and rounded up 11 others during an overnight raid in occupied West Bank. Israeli soldiers have shot dead a Palestinian teenager and rounded up at least 11 others during an overnight raid in the occupied West Bank. Arkan Thaer Mizhar, 15, was shot in the chest in Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem, in the southern West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said on Monday. His funeral is due to take place later on Monday. A security source told WAFA news agency that Israeli forces stormed the camp and conducted house raids. The soldiers fired live ammunition as well as tear gas and stun grenades. 15 years old arkan Thaer Mazhar ,from Dheisheh refugee camp in #Bethlehem, after the #Israeli forces shot him during the clashes that broke out in the refugee camp at dawn today pic.twitter.com/GJA4UogIxl TamerHalaseh (@TamerHalaseh) July 23, 2018 According to WAFA, two young Palestinian men were wounded and another two were arrested. A medical source at Beit Jala Hospital confirmed that two young men were wounded by live ammunition in the foot, describing their condition as stable. There are around 6,500 Palestinians in Israeli jails; 500 of whom are detained without charges under the administrative detention policy which allows Israel to detain a prisoner for up to six months, renewable indefinitely. Six prisoners are currently on hunger strike, including Hasan Shokeh, in protest against the administrative detention. The Israeli army said its forces had entered the camp and arrested two people suspected of terror activity. During the operation, a violent riot was instigated in which Palestinians hurled rocks and threw firebombs and grenades at [Israeli] soldiers, the army said in a statement. Soldiers fired live rounds at the protesters, the statement added. The camp is in a part of the West Bank supposedly under full Palestinian control but the Israeli army regularly carries out raids in such areas. It says the operations are necessary to arrest suspects, but they often spark protests among young Palestinians, many of whom are killed or injured during such raids. While tensions have flared over recent weeks between Israel and Hamas in besieged Gaza, the West Bank has been relatively calm during that time. According to Defence for Children International Palestine, Israeli forces have so far killed at least 30 Palestinian children in 2018 in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, whereas in 2017, 15 children were killed. Robert Spencer has written a great many essential books alerting the world to the truth about the jihad threat, but now he has delivered his magnum opus. The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS is the first book to provide an overview of the entire history of jihad, against Europe, against India, against Africa, against Israel, against the United States of America, and more. If more of our policymakers knew this history, they would be formulating more realistic and more effective policies, both domestic and foreign, to deal with the jihad threat. The History of Jihad makes it clear that most of what people in the U.S. think they know about Muhammad, Islam in general, and Islams bloody record throughout history, is wrong. The most shocking portions of this book detail the centuries-long and astonishingly bloody jihad against India. The Muslim invaders did not consider the Hindus of India to be People of the Book (the Qurans designation for Jews, Christians, and several other groups), and so they treated them with appalling harshness and laid waste across the Indian subcontinent, destroying Hindu temples and building triumphal mosques wherever they could. Even when the Hindus were granted honorary People of the Book status, because there were simply too many of them to kill, the Muslims continued to behave toward them with exceptional brutality. Spencer is one of the first in the Western world to tell this story, and he does so in the words of people who were there. The History of Jihad is full of the accounts of Muslim chroniclers who watched the jihadis slake their lust for blood and recorded their deeds for posterity, gleefully recounting their brutality as if it were heroism and martial glory. This reliance on eyewitness and contemporary accounts gives this book a shocking vividness -- youre hearing about what happened from people who were there. There is none of the excuse-making and sugar-coating of modern-day historians, who, when they deign to take notice of the 1,400-year jihad at all, minimize its human toll and turn a blind eye to the innumerable lives and entire peoples that it has destroyed. Even more important is how Spencer pulls all the various strands of the global jihad together, so that for the first time we can see the whole picture -- not just stretching back in time to the seventh century, but spanning the globe, from Myanmar to New York City. This is one of the first books to explain the Israeli/Palestinian conflict within the context of the global jihad, and to analyze the Wests latter-day failure of nerve and denial of reality in the face of todays jihad terrorism in light of the long struggle of the forces of Islam to overcome the free world. The tenth and last chapter of The History of Jihad is titled The West Loses the Will to Live: Jihad in the Twenty-First Century. Coming after one reads through fourteen centuries of unremitting and worldwide jihad warfare, this failure strikes the reader as particularly craven and inexcusable. Europe, and notably the Catholic Church, were on the front lines of the defense against the global jihad for centuries; today, as Spencer recounts in breathtaking detail, European leaders, as well as Pope Francis and other Catholic prelates, couldnt be more eager to welcome Muslims into Europe. They have forgotten history. They have forgotten why they live in free societies today. They have forgotten the heroism and courage of their ancestors, whose exploits fill the pages of The History of Jihad. But The History of Jihad is also full of stories about many, many people who are truly the ancestors and role models of the likes of Pope Francis, Angela Merkel, Theresa May, and Barack Obama. The history of the advance of jihad around the world is also a history of non-Muslim appeasers, collaborators, opportunists, and useful idiots. It is to them, as much as to the unending stream of jihadis, that we owe the state of the world today. Thats why, among the many things that it is, The History of Jihad is a cautionary tale, and a warning to todays free societies: the jihad is advancing, as it always has been, and no amount of appeasement will mean that any non-Muslim will be spared. If the free world does survive todays jihadi onslaught, it will be to a significant degree because of Robert Spencers efforts to sound the alarm. Click here to preorder The History of Jihad order two and send one to your representative. It will open his or her eyes. Pamela Geller is the President of the American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI), publisher of The Geller Report and author of the bestselling book, FATWA: Hunted in America, as well as The Post-American Presidency: The Obama Administrations War on America and Stop the Islamization of America: A Practical Guide to the Resistance. Follow her on Twitter or Facebook. Optimistic expectations that the Turkish system established by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, republican, nationalist, secular, and modernized, would continue have been frustrated. Hopes for a successful multiparty democracy ended because of chaotic politics and military coups. Turkey is no longer a functioning democracy but an authoritarian system under the control of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, an elected dictator, a self-styled "grandmaster" who promises to re-establish the Sultanate, a combination of Islamic nationalism and Ottoman nostalgia. This will be accompanied by a new Islamic union, led by Turkey. Erdogan has been in power for 15 years as prime minister from 2003 to 2014, and president since 2014. On June 24, 2018, he was elected president with 52.69% of the vote compared to the Republican People's Party's candidate, who got 30.6%. In the parliamentary elections the same day, Erdogan's Justice and Development Party, A.K., got 42.5% of the vote and 49% of the seats, and his coalition partner, MHP, the Nationalist Movement Party, got 11.1% of the vote and 8.1% of the seats. Therefore, Erdogan's alliance controls a parliamentary majority with 344, or 57%, of the seats. The authoritarian control of Erdogan was evident even before his new term as president began. The day before he was sworn in as president on July 9, 2018, he dismissed 18,600 public servants, 9,000 police officers, and 6,000 military for false allegations of links to terrorist groups. Erdogan outlined his new powers in a decree after his inauguration. Those powers are almost unchecked by any other authority. The Turkish constitutional referendum in April 2017, passed by narrow majority, 51.4% to 48.5%, changed the existing parliamentary system with a ceremonial president to a presidential system. Erdogan's power was thus expanded and consolidated. The office of prime minister was abolished, while the president has powers that include drafting the budget, suspending rights and freedoms, dismissing parliament, and calling new elections, along with choosing military commanders, chiefs of staff, diplomats, public and private university rectors, governors, religious directors, intelligence heads, and judges. Turkey is now the biggest jailer of journalists in the world, more than China or Egypt. Erdogan without public debate has modified the secular laws, and now women can wear Islamic headscarves in offices and in schools. New legislation will allow dismissal of civil servants supposedly linked to so-called terrorist groups and will allow city governors to ban protesters. Erdogan's son-in-law, Berat Albayrak, also rises with an appointment as economics minister. In July 2016, after the failure of the coup of July 15, which killed 250 people and wounded 1,400, a two-year emergency rule was immediately imposed and officially ended on July 19, 2018. However, the power now in the hands of Erdogan is in effect an extension of that emergency rule. Since 2016, 150,000 civil servants have been purged, with 77,000 charged with links to the coup and its supposed organizer, Fethullah Gulen, and a network associated with him. Gulen, a 77-year-old Muslim preacher, an advocate of tolerant Islam, is living a quiet and tranquil life in a small town of Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania, in the Poconos. He also leads Hizmet (Service), a populist movement, which has several million adherents in Turkey and a network of organizations in commerce, finance, media, and education. Gulen is charged with treason, conspiracy, masterminding an armed organization, and forgery of official documents, and Turkey demands he be extradited from the U.S. to face trial in Turkey. The issue of Gulen is not the only bone of contention between Turkey and the U.S. More of a potent is the Kurdish military forces engaged in the war in Syria. The U.S. regards the forces as friendly, while Turkey calls them an extension of the PKK, which for Turkey is a terrorist organization. In 2018, Erdogan praised the country's ties with Russia. Together with President Vladimir Putin, he launched the construction of its first nuclear power plant, being built by Rosatom. Turkey has bought a Russian missile defense system. Relations with the U.S. have worsened, and tensions between the two countries have increased as a result of an unpleasant issue concerning an American named Andrew M. Brunson, an evangelical pastor from North Carolina who has lived in Turkey for 23 years. Brunson is accused of terrorism and espionage and having links with Gulen and with the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers' party, and having aided terrorist groups. The U.S. has attempted to have him freed. Nevertheless, on July 18, 2018, despite U.S. calls by President Donald Trump and Secretary Mike Pompeo for his release, a Turkish court in the Aegean province of Izmir ruled that Brunson be kept in detention. If convicted, Brunson faces up to 35 years in jail. Trump tweeted on July 17, 2018 that he was a fine gentleman and Christian leader and is being persecuted: "Brunson is no more a spy than I am." The U.S. Senate passed a bill that prohibits Turkey from buying F-35 jets and from purchasing the S-400 air defense system. The Trump administration and Congress might consider imposing sanctions against Turkey if Brunson remains detained on false charges. Erdogan has challenged other countries and foreign institutions. One case concerns the seizure by Turkey of independent media companies, a politically motivated confiscation that breaches investment treaties with U.K. and some E.U. states. The seizure is being challenged in the World Bank's International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes, located in Washington, D.C. Another controversial exercise of power is the banning in July 2018 of the screening of a British film Pride, made in 2014 and based on a true story, the help given by lesbian and gay activists to raise funds for families affected by the strike of coal-miners in 1984. Turkey has not only begun repression of LGBT, but also banned the annual pride parade. Turkey, a non-Arab country, might have been helpful in facilitating a peaceful solution of the Israel-Palestinian conflict, but Erdogan has been unhelpful and counterproductive. Already in June 1997, when he was mayor of Istanbul, he remarked that the "Jews have begun to crush the Muslims of Palestine in the name of Zionism. Today the image of the Jews is no different from that of the Nazis." In March 2013, he declared that "Zionism was a crime against humanity." He sponsored the flotilla on May 3, 2010 seeking to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza, allowing the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara involved in the incident to include members of the jihadist IHH organization, hardcore terrorists. Erdogan has converted Turkey into an authoritarian and repressive state, one that challenges not only U.S. interests, but also global human rights. Even though the effort may be fruitless, U.S. ambassador Nikki Haley should bring the prejudicial and harmful nature of present-day Turkey with its violations of human rights to the attention of the U.N. Security Council. Iranians passionately love their pre-Islamic history. Most of them cant even read Arabic and have no idea whats in the Quran. Islam was imposed on an enlightened Persian people some 1400 years ago and it was always viewed as an invader. Even though most Iranians deeply cherish their own ancient non-Arab identity and have never surrendered to Arab culture, some are having a difficult time in abandoning Islam cold turkey. That is understandable. Fourteen hundred years of indoctrination cant be washed away overnight. However, I bemoan the plight of my native land and the people who have suffered and continue to suffer under Islam. Without Islam, there wouldnt be any Muslims to hoist the banner of hate and violence against non-Muslims anywhere on this planet. History tells us whenever the original Arabs conquered a non-Arab country, cruelty and terror became their instruments of policy. Amazingly, after 1400 years of Islamic barbarism, the followers of Muhammad, still torture, rape and execute their slaves for the fear of losing control over their subjects. Islam, from its inception, discovered the crucial secret of getting to the young mind early by adhering to the dictum: Instruction in early childhood is akin to carving a rock. In the same vein goes the Jesuit saying, Give me a child until he is seven, and I will give you the man, derived from the philosophy and theology of Saint Augustine. The immense importance of getting to the young mind in its formative years is also emphasized by non-religious doctrines as diverse as the Freudian psychoanalytic theory and Watsonian Behaviorism psychology. Well, these beasts of Allah are to be ridiculed and despised among men as the wretched, miserable, and entirely loathsome creatures they are. Violence, executions, mutilations, torture, and rape have long been associated with Islamic culture. Wars, rebellions, riots, and even violent crimes have been relatively commonplace across the Arabian Peninsula. This is what happened to Iran after the1979 Islamic revolution. It was as though Iran went back 1400 years, back to the era when Muhammads army simply destroyed anything and everything in its path that was Persian. The Bedouin Arabs who toppled the Sassanid Empire were driven not only by a desire for conquest and to steal Persian jewels and treasures, but also to enslave Iranian women and children, while imposing their barbaric ideology upon the entire population. In free democracies, governments are accountable to the people and serve at the peoples pleasure. In an Islamic theocracy, governments are accountable only to Allah and the people must serve at the pleasure of the government. And one can see the result of Islamic total or partial rule in fifty-six or so countries, which rank among the highest nations of the world on every index of misery. Islam currently has taken on a predominant role in Europe. It has become so prominent there that the most senior judge in England has blessed the idea of making Sharia law equal with British civil law in some cases. Many European countries are already on the verge of capitulation to Islamic Law. The Supreme Guide of terror in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, confidently proclaimed that Europe will be Islamic in a dozen years. He has plausible reasons to say that. Muslims are forming states within states in many European towns and cities. In Britain, for instance, non-Muslims are in serious danger when entering Muslim neighborhoods. In fact, this is exactly how the Islamists have been ruling over a peaceful and sophisticated country, Iran, for the past 40 years. They have completely restricted the activity and independence of the people of Iran through terror and intimidation. Briefly speaking, Islam is also extremely possessive of its subjects. It is a religion that admits anyone into its fold by the person simply uttering a one sentence statement of faith, the shahada: I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and Muhammad is Allahs messenger. By so saying, one becomes Muslim for life and surrenders the right of ever leaving it. Anyone who leaves the Islamic fold is murtad (revert), apostate. Back to the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). In the cycle of prison horrors and terrors, the IRI uses many old Soviet techniques, ranging from harassment, intimidation, and torture, to mechanical devices designed to inflict gross physical damage. In addition, to psychological and physiological techniques, such as solitary confinement and sleep deprivation. There are tens of thousands of people that are spending their lives in the Islamic dungeons in Iran. Most of them have no voice to let the world know. The IRIs pawns are commonly using these techniques on Iranian youth while the Islamic Republic dreams of world Shiite domination. Although that dream has started to fade away since the election of President Donald Trump. Some strategists are supporters of a military solution that ranges from full invasion of Iran toward selective bombardment of its burgeoning nuclear centers and related facilities. Others are proponents of imposing economic sanctions of various types and severity. Still others feel that we simply have to learn to live with the inevitable -- those crazy Mullahs with the bomb. There are those who have surrounded themselves around the cult of the Mojahedin Khalg (MEK) thugs. However, the best and safest solution is to stand with Mr. Reza Pahlavi, whom most Iranians support and respect inside and outsideIran. Pahlavi has clearly expressed his vision for the future of Iran as a secular, parliamentary democracy. Quickly, lets go back to 2009, the Green Movement. When the mullahs were nearly crushed by the Iranian people, Barack Hussein Obama gave them a new lease on life by doing nothing. In return, many were massacred. It is urgent that we confront Islamic terror now before it gathers more power. Every free man and woman, Muslim or not, must demand that their governments, at all levels, abandon the practice of political correctness and act to safeguard liberty against the truly deadly assault of Islam on the rest of the world. Not too long ago we as a people could generally agree upon a certain set of core values. Today a smaller majority of the American people still believe in the US Constitution and many people are starting to lose focus on the things that really matter the most. When did certain members of our society all of sudden become selective regarding the laws they wished to be enforced ? When exactly did some US citizens lose their basic instinct for survival ? Sadly, we now have a substantial force within the Democratic Party who currently advocate and even believe in wide open borders and illegal immigration. When did the acceptance of such a lawlessness become a norm ? When did the people who actually make it a point to stand up for the rule of law and who believe in securing our borders suddenly become the enemy ? Can a sovereign nation without a secure border, without a common language, and soon without a common culture survive? The Democratic Party's leadership not too long ago believed illegal immigration was wrong (video). Why have their minds now suddenly shifted ? Has importing a new Democrat voter base into this nation become just too appealing an idea for them not to take advantage of? A voter base which would be beholden to big government from cradle to grave. A voting bloc of people that would cast their votes depending upon what government could provide them. Most rational citizens understand that unfettered and unchecked illegal immigration is a recipe for disaster. Yet huge factions of the new radical leftist Democrats currently believe illegal immigration is some kind of noble cause involving social justice. Many within the current party leadership have become all too willing to completely toss away the former US immigration melting pot model and happily replace it with a new "salad bowl" model. Reality and history have proven to all of us that as a nation we simply cannot safely absorb relentless waves of unassimilated immigration and expect to survive. Illegal immigrants bring with them so many different languages and cultures, and many of them have no desire to assimilate or learn the English language. Diversity is not always necessarily a strength. Change is not always a positive thing. Illegal immigrants who refuse to assimilate and learn our language are placing a heavy burden upon us. Illegal aliens who are willing to work for extremely low wages are helping to eliminate the US blue collar middle class. These illegal aliens currently flooding the US labor force are driving down the wages of American workers. I am sick of hearing the line, "Americans are not willing to do those jobs." In reality Americans would be willing to do those jobs, but obviously not for slave wages. Illegal immigration is placing an enormous financial burden upon our health care system. It has become common place for illegal aliens to use the emergency rooms of US hospitals as their personal doctors. This inevitably drives up the cost of healthcare for all of us. A decade-and-a-half ago, a former liberal Democrat named Dick Lamm gave a prophetic five minute speech on how a nation like America could easily self-destruct. The former governor of Colorado was issuing a warning to all of us in the United States who were willing to listen. Lamm unveiled a chilling point by point hypothetical plan on how to destroy America through the immigration process. Every citizen within this country should consider listening to this five minute audio clip and hear the chilling prophetic words of Lamm ring out so loud and true today. A nation that makes allowances for illegal immigration, especially without any significant time for assimilation, eventually becomes a nation under invasion, something which then eventually results in colonization. The rule of law becomes a moot point when corrupt agenda-driven politicians within the government get to pick and choose the laws they wish to be enforced. When this type of selective law enforcement is facilitated, our country becomes nothing more than a banana republic. The many remaining law-abiding citizens, along with Republican politicians, need to start adamantly calling out the Democrats for their irrational supportive stance regarding illegal immigration. We all need to confront the radical Democrats head on. They are the party whose senior members have the audacity to lecture and virtue signal conservatives on how evil and uncaring we have all become. Constantly painting those of us on the right as the bad guys. Simply because we conservatives dare to hold our American sovereignty sacred and know our borders need to become more safe and secure. All the rational people within this country are demanding the immigration process be a legal and closely monitored one. Immigration could be a winning issue for Republicans in November. But they need to hammer this issue home with courage and fortitude, not backing down for fear of being called a racist or xenophobe. If the Republicans expect to win in November, they need to highlight all the negatives of uninterrupted waves of illegal immigration. A non-stop flow of illegal immigration being shoved down our throats by the Democrats and their puppet media. We conservatives all need to stand as one with President Trump and affirm his policies regarding immigration. Trump's immigration plan adheres to basic common sense. Trump is putting individual American citizen's lives above political correctness, and this is making us all safer. Illegal immigration has become the catalyst for big changes in this country. Changes within a nation which inevitably become irreversible if we fail to act. Change for the sake of change is a most dangerous thing. An America that ignores the problems that come attached to open borders and illegal immigration is doomed for destruction. A citizenry which no longer believes in the rule of law and which pays lip service to our US Constitution is no longer free. A people who are no longer willing to hold their leaders accountable in regard to enforcing the rule of law, eventually become enslaved within a tyranny. Photo credit: Markistos via Wikimedia Commons Democratic governors in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Maryland (while Maryland's Larry Hogan is a nominal Republican, he may as well be a Dem) are suing the federal government because they don't believe that Congress has the right to make tax policy. The Republican tax cut caps the deduction for state taxes at $10,000. About 70% of taxpayers in most high-tax states are not affected because they pay less than the cap in state and local taxes. But the top 30% of earners are going to be forced to pony up, leading to substantially less revenue for states. The irony is delicious. Democrats, who are always complaining that the rich don't pay their "fair share" of taxes, are suing to stop the rich from paying a fair share of taxes. The state and local tax deduction for wealthier residents allowed these governors to jack up tax rates because those paying the most knew they could write off the excess on their federal tax returns. No more. Las Vegas Review-Journal: Without the unlimited deduction, tax-and-spend politicians in locales such as New York fear many high earners will flee to more favorable tax climes or exert pressure on their representatives to reduce levies, particularly sky-high property taxes. As a result, it's fourth down and 99 yards to go and they're throwing what can be charitably described as a wounded- duck Hail Mary. The lawsuit argues the tax law ignores the longstanding practice that "the federal government's income tax power was and would remain subject to federalism constraints," The New York Times reported. One law professor told the Times that the legal action is "an original work of scholarship." That's academic-speak for "they're out of their bloomin' minds." No kidding. In fact, the new tax legislation treats every state precisely the same and doesn't affect any state tax statute anywhere in the country. The notion that it's unconstitutional for Congress to write federal tax law, including rules for deductions and write-offs, shouldn't be taken seriously by a federal judge. The legal action is just one of many attempts by big-spending state politicians to mitigate the effects of the Trump tax reform. Another gimmick, under discussion in California and New York, would create government "charities" to which taxpayers could donate in lieu of paying state taxes. Expect the IRS to put the kibosh on that scheme. In the end, of course, blue-state progressives will ignore the simplest and most productive course that might help keep their residents at bay: Reducing the massive tax burdens they've imposed to feed their destructive dependence on other people's money. There is a law of diminishing returns when it comes to taxes that these blue-state Democrats apparently believe they can avoid. The higher you raise tax rates, the lower down the percentage increase in revenue goes. Illinois is a perfect example. Wealthier taxpayers are fleeing the state in record numbers due to the punishing tax burden. So while the rates may increase, there are fewer people to pay, leading to lower than predicted revenue. The suit won't go anywhere, unless there is a sympathetic federal judge willing to ignore the Constitution and rule in the plaintiffs' favor. But it will take a large amount of legal legerdemain to twist the law that much. Democratic governors are just going to have to make do with less. NATO's predicament is easily illustrated: the Russian 1st Guards Tank Army moved from Moscow to its western border region during exercises in 2017. The unit had 50,000 soldiers, 500 tanks, 600 armored vehicles, and 300 artillery pieces. NATO member Latvia, across the border, has an active-duty land combat force 1,500 strong . It has no tanks. It has no fighter aircraft. Instead, it relies on a total of four NATO fighters based in Lithuania. In other words, if seriously attacked, Latvia's active brigade would be lucky to survive the first day, and there would likely be no original surviving fighter aircraft in the Baltics within hours of the start of conflict. This weakness is spread throughout NATO: Lithuania and Estonia are equally weak. The Netherlands sold its last tank in 2012. Of Germany's once vast tank fleet, only 105 are operational , while zero submarines are ready for action, and only 39 Eurofighter jets are airworthy. Only Poland bucks the tide, with 99 fighter jets, 1,000 tanks, and 100,000 men under arms. A recent poll showed that 59% of Russians would fight for their country, as opposed to 18% of Germans. If a majority of the people of virtually every NATO country is not willing to fight (including Latvia with 59% against self-defense), why should the Baltic countries put much faith in NATO coming to their aid? This explains the deep sensitivity regarding President Trump's support for NATO and the growing engagement among the U.S., Russia, and Germany . Just as the U.S. is seen as almost the only member of the alliance willing to fight, Germany is vital to any NATO action or lack thereof. If Germany wanted to slow-roll NATO action or not allow airspace or land transit usage, then Russia would have a free hand. The way forward is fairly simple: 1) peace through strength and 2) conflict resolution. The Baltics need to make themselves hard targets. They should adopt the Finnish defense model : everyone serves. The Baltic states will probably not be able to afford the increased defense spending for immediately buying needed equipment, but perhaps some form of a NATO Lend-Lease program could be made to quickly get the much needed large numbers of anti-tank and air defense weapons into service. Serious planning and agreements among the allies needs to be made to base and supply the aircraft necessary to quickly defend the Baltics against serious air attack. Once that is done, then we will have deterrence not before. As the president presses on with his agenda and attains a surprising level of success, especially considering the unparalleled acrimony surrounding him, there stands one branch of the Republican Party in the way of even more success: the self-identified "#NeverTrumps." From George Will, presently advocating for voters to send Democratic majorities to both houses of Congress, to Jennifer Rubin of the ever so objective and balanced Washington Post, who has called for Sarah Sanders to be publicly harassed, this babbling crowd cannot get over itself. Admittedly, there are many things about Donald Trump that cause great concern among his supporters, the author included. His recent press conference with Vladimir Putin was a disgrace. His inability to rise above petty disputes with people of utter irrelevance and forge ahead with a larger, coherent message can be maddening. But let's pause and consider what is even more pathetic than anything our president has done: the NeverTrumps. In fact, let's look at how their strategy would have played out in the 2016 election. It goes without saying that Jeb Bush, John Kasich, and some of the other establishment types would still currently be recovering from what hit them. But what about at the congressional level? The Pennsylvania Senate race offers a fantastic breakdown of the Trump phenomenon. Despite being widely considered a moderate in temperament, Pat Toomey was doomed for defeat at the heels of a well backed and endorsed opponent. The most expensive race in U.S. history, it clocked in at around $150 million in spending on each side. Despite this, Toomey was re-elected by almost 100,000 votes. Why? If we look at numbers, we see that the Trump campaign's targeting of western Pa. voters paid off for both Trump and Toomey. Higher voter turnout because of Trump translated to higher margins in the western part of the state for Toomey. Do we really think for a split-second that Marco Rubio's plan to offer a "pathway to citizenship" for the ever increasing number of those here illegally would have brought either him or Pat Toomey victory? Or John Kasich's incoherent ramblings about how, because he was chairman of the House Budget Committee twenty years ago, he would magically be able to have Congress work together? In short, the NeverTrumps cannot stand the president because he is a doer. Instead of millions upon millions of dollars spent by conservative think-tanks to promote messaging for which we still await results, he actually connects with voters by stating the truth. Someone here illegally isn't undocumented; he is an illegal alien. A terrorist who proclaims that his acts are in the service of his god isn't forsaking his faith; he is embracing it. Constant placation of rogue dictatorships such as Iran and North Korea isn't suave diplomacy; it's a sham. The list goes on and on. Were the NeverTrumps concerned about presidential decorum when Barack Obama's White House provided talking points to radical left-wing anarchists during the Baltimore race riots? Did they voice their objections when Obama declared that he didn't have the authority to grant amnesty but did anyway? It's ironic that those same individuals are the ones now declaring Trump beyond the pale because of his immigration policies. Voters face a choice in November. Our nation can continue on the steady, albeit sometimes rocky, path of growth it is currently on, or we can return to the reckless, smug era of fat, bloated, unconstitutional government we miraculously survived after eight years. To those concerned about what the president tweets despite his willingness to take the fight to the "progressive enemy," I say but one thing: put up or shut up, and do it sooner rather than later. My liberties under our Constitution are more valuable than your effete sensibilities. The author is a staffer on Capitol Hill and observes firsthand the topics about which he writes. In his spare time, he is a voracious reader and student of history, the German language and culture, and American political thought and theory. I suppose that when NBC News commissioned its latest poll on President Trump's popularity in the wake of Helsinki, the network's people were not expecting it to rise to the highest level ever of his presidency. After all, the nearly unanimous media and "expert" reaction, including among many Republicans, was that something unspeakable happened in the press conference following the meeting with Putin. That was gospel. But the American people failed to react as their media masters would have them do. MSNBC host Kasie Hunt complained, "We are living in a different space-time continuum, where even gravity works differently." Well, it is certainly true that gravitas no longer works as well as it used to as a means of diminishing the president. Donald Trump violates the media-enforced norms of presidential behavior for sport. He has discovered that most Americans no longer trust the elites who have run government, media, education, and the cultural commanding heights. I suppose that if Shakespeare were as familiar as Star Trek to her, she might have echoed Hamlet: The time is out of joint O cursed spite, That ever I was born to set it right! But of course, she would lose her MSNBC viewers that way, even though it is clear that most of the media, especially NBC's outlets, regard themselves as "born to set it [Trump's presidency] right." Watch and enjoy Kasie and the panelists attempting to explain what should never have happened, according to establishment orthodoxy. Array ( [0] => 821910 ) Bixby 2.0, the first major upgrade to Samsungs artificial intelligence assistant thats set to debut with the Galaxy Note 9 next month, will support third-party apps on the companys next Android flagship. According to a new report from South Korea, all developers interested in creating mobile apps compatible with the new version of Bixby will be able to do so with full support from the Seoul-based technology giant as Samsung is said to be planning on launching an official Bixby SDK and API meant to facilitate the development of Bixby-enabled features in the coming weeks. The integration is likely to work in two main ways, allowing users to either control third-party apps with voice commands directed at Bixby or have non-Samsung apps feed data to the assistant for the purposes of aggregation or other use cases. While no specific developer names have yet been mentioned in the context of supporting Samsungs digital helper, many are likely to be eager to do so, with Samsung being by far the largest smartphone vendor on the planet and the dominant force in the Android segment thats presently pushing Bixby to the entirety of its product portfolio, meaning the assistant will soon become available on hundreds of millions of devices around the world. The AI helpers expansion to third-party apps will also allow it to start competing with Google Assistant and Amazons Alexa. Bixby has so far largely been aimed as an intuitive method of controlling ones device but outside of Samsungs app portfolio, it didnt offer any kind of extra functionalities that could compare with the vast AI ecosystems Google and Amazon already managed to create and are still growing on a regular basis. While Bixby 2.0 is set to debut on the Galaxy Note 9, it should become available on other handsets from the company shortly after the launch of its latest Android flagship. The new version of the AI assistant will feature improved response times and a broad range of new capabilities, according to previous statements from Samsungs officials. A year before Google was issued the largest antitrust fine in the history of the European Union, the company reached out to Brussels in an attempt to settle the then-ongoing probe into its abuse of the popularity of the Android operating system, Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager told Bloomberg, adding that the tech giant was too late to attempt finding an amicable solution to the ordeal. Any companies seriously interested in settling investigations into monopolistic practices must show a willingness to negotiate a settlement immediately after receiving the initial statement of objections or complaint from the political blocs top antitrust agency, the Danish politician was quoted as saying. In Googles case, that would have meant approaching Brussels with the suggestion of negotiating a settlement in 2016, a year before the company actually resolved to do so, at which point it was too late for such a move as the European Commission wanted the case concluded by the summer of 2018. The EC hence never officially responded to Googles 2017 settlement proposal made shortly after the company was hit with another antitrust fine amounting to some $2.7 billion over its abuse of the dominance of Google Search which allowed it to promote its shopping comparison service at a direct expense of competing solutions. While that fine held the title of the largest antitrust sanction in history issued by Brussels, the new $5.05 billion fine given to Google earlier this month dwarfed the penalty from June of 2017. The EC is presently also investigating Google over its potential abuses of AdSenses dominance in the digital marketing industry, whereas this months fine was meant to sanction the companys insistence on forcing its own mobile apps on every Android device equipped with the Play Store marketplace, as well as a number of practices that saw it incentivize device makers not to provide rival solutions with the same treatment. Google will file a complaint against the fine, much like it already appealed against the 2017 ruling. Qualcomm announced that it would acquire NXP Semiconductors back in 2016. With a date of July 25th at 11:59PM EST, to finish the deal. However, the merger needs approval from various antitrust regulators in various regions around the world. The US and Europe have both approved the deal, however, China has not. And Qualcomm has just a few days left to get China on-board, or the deal will be called off. So far, Qualcomm has not called for an extension to this deadline, and its looking like it might not happen. Its a bit strange that Qualcomm needs Chinas approval to purchase NXP, considering Qualcomm is an American company, and NXP is a Dutch company. But since both companies operate in the largest market for semiconductors, China, the merger does need its approval. When Qualcomm announced the merger nearly two years ago, the company told its investors that acquiring NXP would make it easier to diversify into other areas. The main reason for purchasing NXP was to get into the automotive market for chipsets, which is growing quite rapidly right now. Shortly after Qualcomm had decided to purchase NXP, Broadcom decided to try and take over Qualcomm in a hostile bid. Broadcoms bid was ultimately shot down when President Trump signed an executive order keeping Broadcom from purchasing a US company at the time Broadcom was still technically a Chinese company, even though it was moving its headquarters back to the US. About a year ago, it seemed that Qualcomm was buying NXP, and Broadcom was buying Qualcomm, bringing some of the biggest chip makers in the world, all under one umbrella. And now it appears that neither company will get the acquisition it wanted. Qualcomm does still have a couple of days left to get Chinas approval, so hope is not yet lost. But if China does not sign off on this deal, it means that the largest deal in semiconductors will not go through, which could also be due to the escalating trade wars between the US and China, and NXP is technically just a pawn in that trade war. Array ( [0] => 821910 ) Samsung has confirmed its plan to introduce a 30-millimeter thick version of its MicroLED TV called The Wall in 2019, recent reports indicate. The original version of the MicroLED TV is 80 millimeters thick, first announced at CES 2018. The South Korean tech giant unveiled the 146-inch MicroLED TV with such a name to represent its massive size and the ability to cover an entire wall with a display surface for watching and viewing all your favorite TV content. Han Jong-hee, president of Samsung and head of its visual display business, said the luxury version of The Wall is intended for home consumers. The main tech behind The Wall is the set of MicroLEDs that sit behind the display panel. These tiny LEDs serve as their own source of light, According to Samsung these are much smaller than traditional LEDs while also getting rid of the need for backlighting and color filters, like what you would normally see from OLED screens that also feature smaller LEDs that emit their own light and help display blacks that are deeper than on LCD displays. Additionally, The Wall is also claimed by Samsung as the worlds first modular TV. While the display unit that Samsung showed off at CES 2018 is a 146-inch model, Samsung suggested that consumers will be able to create a TV that will fit their own personal requirements when it comes to screen size, meaning that it should be possible to have a TV that is smaller than 146-inches, or potentially larger thanks to the bezel-less design that Samsung has implemented. Interestingly, Samsung also demonstrated a 73-inch trial model when it announced its plan to launch the 30-millimeter thick luxury version of The Wall. With that in mind, Samsung seems to be envisioning for The Wall to let consumers customize their TV viewing experience by allowing them to connect as many modules as they like. Theres no word on the pricing just yet, but given the new technology in use, the bezel-less design, and the size, its possible that the MicroLED TV wont be cheap. Han assured consumers, however, that once productivity increases and the luxury version launches, prices wont likely be as hefty as industry watchers forecast. Array ( [0] => 821910 ) Sony recently unveiled the IMX586, the companys newest image sensor offering for smartphones. The Japanese tech firm claims that its latest product is the first sensor to feature an ultra-compact pixel size of 0.8-micrometers. Furthermore, this product, which has a resolution of 48-megapixels, offers the highest pixel count among image sensors targeted towards handsets. The increased resolution of the IMX586 sensor should allow smartphones to shoot high-resolution images even when using digital zoom, and the products compact size of 8.0-millimeters permits tech firms to incorporate the sensor into many smartphones. While the small pixel size of the sensor allows for increased resolution, it negatively impacts the quality of the images captured by the camera, especially in low-light conditions. Thus, Sony incorporated technologies that should improve the products ability to collect light. For example, the sensor uses a Quad Bayer color filter array, which arranges the pixels in squares that each contains four pixels of the same color during low-light conditions. While this setup reduces the effective resolution of the sensor to 12-megapixels, this array increases the pixel size to 1.6-micrometers. In addition, the product incorporates the tech firms proprietary exposure control and signal processing technologies, which results in four times greater dynamic range compared to other image sensors. The Japanese tech firm further noted in its announcement that the imaging module can record 4K video clips with a frame rate of 90fps, and it can also capture 720p slow-motion videos with a frame rate of 480fps. Aside from Sony, other tech firms are also developing sensors with smaller pixel sizes and increased resolution. For example, the South Korean tech giant Samsung recently unveiled a new imaging technology dubbed as ISOCELL Plus, which improves the light sensitivity and the color fidelity of sensors by replacing the metal grid that separates the pixels with a new material that reflects less incoming light. Samsung noted that this technology allows for the development of sensors with pixel sizes of 0.8-micrometers and resolutions of 20-megapixels or even higher. Samples of Sonys IMX586 modules will start shipping to device makers in September 2018, and it is priced at JPY 3,000, which translates to $27 at the current exchange rate. Array ( [0] => 821910 ) YouTube banned controversial channel FamilyOFive following significant public pressure to do so after the two owners of the account were charged with child neglect last fall but remained active on the worlds most popular video platform, continuing to create and monetize videos with depictions of child abuse. Its presently unclear when the actual ban was handed out but with the last video from the channel formerly known as DaddyOFive being posted less than ten days ago, the move appears to have been made recently. Mike and Heather Martin, the owners of the channel, lost custody of two out of their five children last fall due to the aforementioned child neglect case, with each parent receiving a five-year probation sentence. The parents took their remaining three children and moved to West Virginia from Maryland following the development, continuing to post videos under the new channel name. In a statement provided to CBS-owned WUSA9, YouTube said the decision to ban the channel stemmed from a combination of the platforms strict guidelines that prohibit any kind of content that endangers children and the fact that the channel in question had a number of older issues with breaking the firms terms of service. Our family has worked very hard to heal and reestablish ourselves over the past 18 months, reads a statement from the Martins provided to the same outlet, without reflecting on the ban itself. Googles video service now requires all videos featuring children to be in full compliance with applicable child labor laws, the company confirmed. No FamilyOFive videos can be viewed on YouTube any longer, though their titles, descriptions, and in some cases thumbnails can still be found via the search function of the service. Critics of the channel previously accused the Martins of exploiting their children for profit, citing evidence that they suffered injuries during filming, as well as frequent depictions of verbal arguments and physical violence in the familys videos. The couple repeatedly claimed the children were mostly acting in all content posted on the platform. YouTube has recently been under fire due to a number of channels accused of endangering children, whether those viewing their videos or starring in them. The company also came under scrutiny due to its data collection practices affecting its youngest users, with one advocacy group recently calling for the U.S. FTC to investigate Googles subsidiary over the matter. China has donated 50 million Yuan (US$7.3million) to Cameroon (west Africa) to purchase military equipment of its own choice. On 18 July, both countries signed a protocol at Yaounde, the capital city, to confirm the donation. The type and quantity of military equipment Cameroon will buy on a 5-year period from China will be determined by Cameroonian officials based on their needs. Chinese-made 07P IFV of the Cameroon army (Picture source: Twitter) China will offer the cost of transporting the military equipment from China to the port city of Douala. Defence Minister Joseph Beti Assomo noted that it is the fifth time China is supporting the army and the National Gendarmerie with military equipment. This being said, this "donation" should be considered in the perspective of the wide effort of China to develop its presence in Africa and create binding ties with the assisted countries, at least economically speaking. 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 Victorian business owners and decision-makers want to work with legal service providers that listen and respond to their changing needs, he said. Pauline brings to LegalVision more than 15 years experience as a barrister at the Victorian Bar. With the appointment LegalVision has doubled the size of its Melbourne office in a year. Pauline is nationally accredited mediator and an alternative dispute resolution provider with organisations that include the Franchising Mediation Adviser and the Australian Small Business & Family Enterprise Ombudsman. Our Victorian client base continues to grow as we harness the learnings from servicing SMEs and apply them to ASX-listed businesses and enterprise companies. Were always refining how we deliver legal services to focus exclusively on client satisfaction, especially in commercial litigation matters, said Lachlan McKnight, LegalVision CEO. Glen will help ensure that were even better placed to offer that experience to Victorian based businesses, employers, franchisors and franchisees, he said. Piper Alderman has officially launched its new office in Brisbane in an event last week attended by the Hon Matt Canavan, senator and minister for resources and Northern Australia. The national firm is now located at the refurbished level 26 of Riparian Plaza. It moved its operations to the location earlier this month. Canavan spoke to more than 120 clients and staff at the event on Thursday night. Drawing from his background as a former employee of KPMG in Riparian Plaza, Canavan drew parallels to working as a minister and legal business. A new unit of the New York Law School will launch this year with a focus on providing a pipeline of technology-enabled legal professionals. The Business of Law Institute is in response to NYLS research showing strong demand for tech-savvy lawyers; 68% of law firm leaders reported that coursework in e-discovery/Technology Assisted Review would give employees or prospective employees a competitive advantage; this was followed by cybersecurity coursework (64%). Almost two thirds of the corporate law department leaders polled said that the best way law schools can prepare their students to take advantage of changing market opportunities is to encourage them to learn about how technology is used beyond the law firm setting. The Daily Star reports that, on Sunday morning, 2 groups of men were fighting outside the pub, for reasons yet unknown. At one point, 2 of the men from one group left and returned inside a blue Honda, which they proceeded to drive straight into the men from the opposing group.The rather hilarious part is that the attack happened while police officers were at the scene, after receiving several calls of a possible disturbance.Now, thats not a smart way of settling an argument. Five people were injured in the deliberate accident.According to the police, after scouring the area, they found a burned down car that resembled the one used in the attack. Despite the fact that the fire was set to destroy all evidence, the 2 men clearly didnt do a good enough job: police have in custody 2 men, one aged 19, the other 24, and they charged them with attempted murder.Police say that this was an isolated incident, not a terrorist attack . In other words, it was just a bunch of drunk idiots who could think of no better way to settle their differences than to try and kill each other with their car.While police were in attendance, one group have left in a blue Honda, a statement from the police to the media reads. The vehicle returned a short time later and was in collision with five members of the second group before leaving the scene.Emergency services attended the scene. A number of the second group sustained injuries of which some were serious, the statement continues. Following searches of the area, a burned out vehicle, believed to be linked to the incident was located.Police are urging people who can offer clues that might help the investigation along to come forward. AMG The third and final part of the factorys preparation is now underway, with Aston Martin confirming that production of the automakers first sport utility vehicle will begin in late 2019. What that means is, the DBX concept-inspired SUV with seating for at least four people will arrive at authorized dealers for the 2020 model year.Matt Becker, the chief engineer of Aston Martin, said on the sidelines of the 2018 Goodwood Festival of Speed that the DBX is its own thing, riding on a completely new platform. Knowing the limited budget of the British automaker, it is more likely for the DBX to ride on a modified version of the Second Century platform Taking its name from the Second Century plan from 2015, the vehicle architecture is currently used by the DB11, Vantage, and DB11-based DBS Superleggera. In total, Aston Martin will have introduced seven new models by the end of the plan.Given this information, Becker added that the DBX is inspired from a technical standpoint by Aston Martins other new models. The chief engineer also said that the suspension is on a different level, most likely referring to a system that can transition from a luxury car-like ride to a no-holds-barred sport setting at the touch of a button.Theres still no consensus on the means of propulsion for the DBX, but given the underpinnings, the Mercedes- 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 and Aston Martin 5.2-liter twin-turbo V12 are the most likely candidates for the engine bay. According to chief executive officer Andy Palmer, the DBX wont be offered with a plug-in hybrid option as it was rumored not that long ago.Of the total workforce tasked with building the DBX in South Wales, 150 people have been employed so far. The St Athan facility is believed to bring up to 750 new employment opportunities to the region. For the time being, the company employs more than 2,700 people worldwide. The ride wasnt long, but it sure was eventful, according to a statement on Facebook by the police in St. Gallen. The family, comprised of husband, wife and 10-year-old daughter, hijacked the taxi from the driver after the man assaulted him.They drove it through the neighborhood and to a nearby town, and crashed into a parked boat, before driving it off a ledge and wrecking the car. Perhaps realizing they were in serious trouble, the 3 tried to make their escape on foot, before police caught up with them and detained them.According to the statement, the taxi driver was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. The 10-year-old girl was also hurt in the crash and had to receive treatment in the hospital, but it is said her injuries are minor.As for the husband, identified only as a 38-year-old man, police say he was not in a fit state to drive a vehicle, which would seem to indicate he was under the influence. No word yet on the woman, her part in the strange incident or her condition after the crash.The couple is now in police custody, pending charges. Further details on the case have not been made public to the press. Perhaps the most burning question would be regarding the couples motivation for going on such an insane ride, especially with a minor child in their care.We know taxi fares can be shamelessly expensive, but still. Its unacceptable to put a childs life (and your own and those of innocent bystanders, if you think about it) just so you can get from point A to point B without paying some cabbie. Meet Colombo, a pup who was hit by a car in a wooden area outside Columbus and left to die there. Lucky for him, Jarrett Little passed by on his bike and saw him and the poor condition he was in.That was in early July, but the story has gone viral just now. Little saw that the dog had a broken leg and another serious injury on one of the front paws, and that he was malnourished and scared. In a post on Colombos Facebook page (yes, the dog has one of those now, because hes that famous!), Little recalls wanting to take him into town but not knowing exactly how to go about it.So he did his best with what he had, and he put the dog on his back. He rode into town like this, with the dog sitting quietly there, perhaps knowing help was on the way.In Columbus, Little met Andrea Shaw from Maine, who promised to take the dog in, pay for his treatment and eventually carry him to her farm, where it would live for the rest of his life. With 25 staples in his leg and still in considerable pain, Colombo traveled to Maine to discover his new home and bond with the other animals there.He was really thin, ribs showing and had a lot of road rash and a broken leg, Little recalls about the dog, in an interview with CBS News . Had I been five minutes earlier or five mins later, we wouldnt have crossed paths with her. Its pretty cool how far hes come.Colombo will be ok, and Little and Shaw are now what you might call Internet famous. Shaw started the Facebook page for the dog, where shes posting updates on his recovery and stories about other animals in need, using Colombos fame to raise awareness. Climate change is starting to become a political worry for some Republicans. The big picture: For years, Republicans could ignore the issue or outright question mainstream climate science without political worry. Thats starting to change. Some congressional Republicans are beginning to find it in their political interest to at least acknowledge climate change and oppose efforts to weaken existing policies. The subtle but significant shift is fueled by disparate factors, including a stronger economy and President Trumps dismissive policies on climate. Moderate Republicans running this cycle are going to look for places to distance themselves in some places and appeal somehow to the middle, and [climate] is a fairly safe issue to do so. Adrian Gray, Republican pollster Unlike the backlash Republicans face for disagreeing with Trump on many issues, Gray says his polling shows that most Republican voters dont penalize their lawmakers for acknowledging climate change is real and a problem, even though Trump openly mocks it. This distinction comes despite the fact polling shows climate change remains a low priority for most voters, said Gray, who has done work for environmental groups. Republican Rep. Carlos Curbelo embodies the moderate GOP mold considered key to Republicans keeping control of the House. He represents the tip of Florida, a swing district whose residents regularly experience rising sea levels, one of the clearest and most present impacts of climate change. Climate change is a top priority for Curbelo, who has regularly criticized Trump on several issues. Hes introducing legislation today that taxes carbon emissions, with at least one fellow Republican, Curbelo said. Hes a co-founder of a bipartisan House caucus that acknowledges climate change. The other side(s): Curbelos Democratic challenger, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, is accusing the congressman of being ineffective and disingenuous with his work addressing climate change. Meanwhile, Americans for Tax Reform, a conservative group influential with Republicans, is holding an event today highlighting its opposition to what its calling the giant job-crushing carbon tax bill Curbelo is introducing. Those cross-pressures highlight the political danger Curbelo faces in the midterm elections. His district is a top target for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and voters there overwhelmingly supported Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential contest. The 38-year-old Curbelo, first elected to Congress in 2014, is unusually nonchalant about this criticism and the potential for it to ultimately boot him from Washington. I dont worry about those kinds of things. I didnt go to college to serve in Congress. Im going to be as effective as possible while Im here. The day Im not here, Ill be perfectly fine. Curbelo The bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus Curbelo helped found two years ago with fellow Florida Rep. Ted Deutch, a Democrat, faces accusations from some environmentalists that its mostly an empty effort giving political cover to Republicans. Its record does show its limits: The caucus hasnt put forth any substantive policies. Most GOP members of the caucus supported a non-binding but symbolically important resolution last week opposing a carbon tax. But the fact that some Republicans see a need to join an effort acknowledging climate change represents a political turning point, considering that the party as a whole has dismissed or denied outright mainstream climate science for most of the past decade. Of the 42 Republican members of the caucus, 35 have joined since Trumps election. Leading up to last weeks vote on the anti-carbon tax resolution, some Republicans felt angst about it, according to a senior GOP aide who spoke on the condition of anonymity to be candid about inner party workings. After the vote, the aide expressed surprise at the number of Republicans who opposed the resolution: six, including five who are running for reelection. While objectively small, its still a notable change from the unanimous GOP backing in a near identical vote two years ago. Increasingly, Republicans are voting against opposing moves on climate policy a political double negative. Last July, dozens of House Republicans voted to defeat an amendment that would have blocked a Defense Department study of climate change. This political shift is by no means universal, and it isn't leading to broad support for policies. It's one thing to acknowledge climate change is real, but it's another, big step to put forward policies, and so far Curbelo is an outlier. GOP Reps. Steve Scalise of Louisiana and David McKinley of West Virginia sponsored last weeks anti-carbon tax resolution for compelling reasons: they represent fossil-fuel constituents who would get hit hardest by a tax on carbon emitted from oil, natural gas and coal. Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia running for reelection this year, told me last week he would still support today an advertisement he ran in 2010 shooting climate-change legislation with a gun. One former congressional Republican who got voted out largely for his vote in support of that bill Bob Inglis of South Carolina says times are changing, albeit slowly. That was the darkest days of the recession, the reddest district in the reddest state in the nation," Inglis said. "So things are turning, but they havent turned completely yet. President Trump loves to brag of doing the biggest, best, most never-been-before acts in history. The big picture: In 35 days through five meetings, from Singapore to Helsinki Trump has rattled and reordered the world, throwing decades of order and common assumptions into chaos. In a typographical reflection of his diplomacy, Trump tweeted last night, responding to Iran's threat of "the mother of all wars" (Drudge banner: "TRUMP TWEET BOMB"): "To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" "America First is now as much a reality as it is a slogan." CFR President Richard Haass tells me. As a memorable freeze-frame of these historic, consequential days, check out Haass' catalog of our upside-down, looking-glass world: "Allies are adversaries and adversaries are friends." and adversaries are friends." "Autocrats are preferred to democrats." to democrats." "Unstructured summits with foes go more smoothly than organized summits with friends." with foes go more smoothly than organized summits with friends." "A vague promise to get rid of North Koreas nuclear weapons is acceptable while a specific agreement that precludes Irans nuclear weapons is not." to get rid of North Koreas nuclear weapons is acceptable while a specific agreement that precludes Irans nuclear weapons is not." "It is acceptable for others to interfere with the politics of Americas democracy, as the president is increasingly prepared to interfere in the politics of other democracies." for others to interfere with the politics of Americas democracy, as the president is increasingly prepared to interfere in the politics of other democracies." "Protectionism has replaced free trade." has replaced free trade." "Unilateralism is favored over multilateralism." And, when it comes to style: "Diplomacy is about personal relationships." about personal relationships." "The president is at once his own chief of staff, spokesman, national security adviser and top diplomat." Why it matters, from Haass, whose book has the prescient title, "A World in Disarray": "What is clear above all is that the 45th president values little of his global inheritance; less clear is that he has anything to take its place other than non-stop disruption." Be smart ... Ian Bremmer, Eurasia Group founder and president, tells me Trump has succeeded in one way: Hes in everybodys head; all anyone talks about is Trump. But Bremmer added, with his trademark punctuation: "internationally the united states is becoming weaker and less relevant by the day." with his trademark punctuation: "internationally the united states is becoming weaker and less relevant by the day." Trump "isnt personally responsible for that u.s. influence globally has been eroding for decades. but the president is doing his best to speed that process up." for that u.s. influence globally has been eroding for decades. but the president is doing his best to speed that process up." And "god forbid theres a serious crisis on his watch. with institutions and alliances as weak as hes helped make them, some are going to break." P.S. "Global economic leaders are pushing back against ... Trumps latest rants on global trade and currencies, speaking out against higher tariffs while backing central bank independence," Bloomberg reports: President Trump tweeted an explosive, all-caps threat directed at Iran's president Hassan Rouhani late Sunday: A tweet previously embedded here has been deleted or was tweeted from an account that has been suspended or deleted. Why it matters: Trump's decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal in May and reimpose sanctions escalated tensions between the two countries. The backdrop: Trump's tweet, which has already drawn comparisons to his now-famous "fire and fury" threat against North Korea's Kim Jong Un, was prompted by comments made yesterday by President Rouhani. "Mr. Trump, dont play with the lions tail; this would only lead to regret. America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars...You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Irans security and interests." Iran's President Hassan Rouhani The latest: Iran's state-run news agency has dismissed Trump's tweet as a "passive reaction." It claims the U.S. president was copying Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who famously warned the West to "never threaten an Iranian" during 2015 nuclear talks. The initial comments by Rouhani were likely brought on by a speech made Sunday by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who accused Irans leaders of stealing the countrys resources to spread revolution abroad and oppress Irans 80 million people. What they're saying: Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration Monday over a Trump-era ban on abortion referrals that President Biden overturned earlier this month. The big picture: The lawsuit aims to reinstate two measures included in the 2019 legislation that required federally funded family planning clinics to be "financially independent of abortion clinics," and refrain from referring patients for abortions. The Judicial Crisis Network has launched the latest phase of its campaign to pressure red-state Democrats in West Virginia, North Dakota, Indiana, and Alabama to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Why this matters: JCN, the right's deepest-pocketed judicial group, was the most powerful outside group that helped confirmed Trump's first justice, Neil Gorsuch. The group, which can legally protect its donors' anonymity, spent millions flooding the airwaves on Gorsuch's behalf. The ad buy, worth $1.5 million, takes JCN spending to $5.3 million since Justice Anthony Kennedy retired from the court. The big picture: The JCN ads accuse red state Democratic senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Joe Donnelly of Indiana of being beholden to "liberal Chuck Schumer" and Elizabeth Warren. A senior leader of JCN described this argument to Axios: "Those Senators like to present themselves as independent and moderate, but we believe the people of their states deserve to know that their Senators are taking marching orders from a liberal NY Senator." JCN is also running ads attacking Democratic Senators Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota and Doug Jones of Alabama of siding with "the radical liberals." The other side: Progressives appear to be better organized this time around, and JCN is now contending with a well-coordinated array of groups on the left that are mobilizing against Kavanaugh. Demand Justice a nonprofit formed by veterans of the White House, Capitol Hill, and the Clinton and Obama campaigns recently launched a five-figure digital ad campaign in Iowa, California, and D.C. urging voters to call their senators' offices and demand no hearing until all of Kavanaugh's records from his time in the George W. Bush administration are turned over to the Senate Judiciary Committee. On Friday, however, Judge Kavanaugh moved closer to a confirmation hearing as he submitted a 110-page questionnaire, and 2,000 pages of material containing biographical information, previously delivered speeches, writings and past court filings, to the Senate Judiciary Committee. By the numbers: Support for Kavanaugh is not only present but dominant in these red-states with Democratic senators, according to North Star Opinion Research. (No surprise here, given Trump won these states handily in 2016.) North Dakota: 60% of voters say Judge Kavanaugh should be confirmed, while 22% said he should not be. 60% of voters say Judge Kavanaugh should be confirmed, while 22% said he should not be. Alabama: 54% to 30% 54% to 30% Indiana: 52% to 34% 52% to 34% West Virginia: 55% to 30% In each state, North Star's data shows that Independents' support Kavanaugh's confirmation by at least 48%. The bottom line: Judge Kavanaugh has considerable support, and would shift the Supreme Court substantially to the right, if confirmed. Following the appointment of Justice Neil Gorsuch, Trump could have two major conservative victories that will change the landscape of the Supreme Court for decades. Go deeper: Where Judge Kavanaugh sits on the ideological spectrum Not every foreign leader is eager to play hardball with Trump. The Germans, in particular, are much more inclined to compromise. Angela Merkel badly wants a trade deal to prevent Trump from carrying out his threat to put 25% tariffs on car imports into the U.S., according to two senior European officials privy to internal discussions. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker plans to meet Trump at the White House on Wednesday. And European officials tell me they expect him to come armed with proposals including a "plurilateral trade deal" that would involve the trade of cars and car parts an obsession of Trump's. The U.S. imposes tariffs of 2.5% on car imports, while the Europeans impose a 10% tariff on car imports. But the Europeans like to point out that the U.S. imposes a 25% tariff on light-truck and van imports. Between the lines: Senior European officials have told me they're working under the assumption that Trump wants his car tariffs before the November midterm elections. So they're already discussing their retaliatory measures. Violence is increasing ahead of Pakistan's general elections this Wednesday. Throughout July, attacks on political candidates have killed more than 150 people and injured scores more. Why it matters: Pakistans National Counter Terrorism Authority has issued a warning to vulnerable candidates, and the army announced that it will pledge 350,000 security personnel, but the increase in violence still spells trouble for election day. Although the military has stepped in for security purposes, it is also involved in intimidation. The details: Candidates from the Pakistan Muslim LeagueN party have accused the military establishment of targeting the party and working to divide its vote base. The media has also accused the military of meddling to influence the national narrative and ultimately the election results. #HerVote, a campaign to encourage women to vote, has been trending online. But women in rural areas remain fearful of voting, and a ban on women voting continues in some locations. The bottom line: The militarys interference in the elections not only hurts its credibility but also that of Pakistans political system. At the end of the day, the ability to vote safely doesn't much matter if the elections are unfair and unfree to begin with. Sahar Khan is a visiting research fellow in the Cato Institute's Defense and Foreign Policy Department. Speaking on Sunday before a partially Iranian American audience at the Reagan Foundation in southern California, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Irans leaders of stealing the countrys resources to spread revolution abroad and oppress Irans 80 million people. Why it matters: Pompeos heavily advertised speech was the biggest installment yet in a Trump administration information campaign designed to pressure and, if possible, destabilize the Iranian government. The details: In his most Reaganesque comment, Pompeo said that "the U.S. hears you, the U.S. supports you and the U.S. is with you" when it comes to the Iranian peoples aspirations for greater freedom and prosperity, as evidenced by recent protests in Iran. He claimed that the U.S. goal was for Iranians in Iran to achieve "the same quality of life Iranians in America enjoy." Yes, but: Pompeo neglected to mention that a major cause of Iranians current economic plight is the Trump administrations decision to unilaterally quit the 2015 Iran nuclear deal after months of undermining its implementation. The "maximum pressure" campaign the administration is seeking to impose, Pompeo claimed, is directed at Iranian leaders. But ordinary Iranians have suffered most from the collapse of their currency triggered by the U.S. decision. He also downplayed concerns about the travel ban, recently upheld by the Supreme Court, which makes it extremely difficult for Iranians to travel to the U.S. to see family or attend university. Some Iranian American organizations such as the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) boycotted the speech, accusing Pompeo of seeking to co-opt legitimate Iranian grievances. A NIACsponsored ad in the Los Angeles Times that was signed by a number of prominent Iranian Americans stressed that "change must come from inside of Iran not from Washington or anywhere else." Iranian American organizations that sent representatives to the speech said they were doing so not to endorse the Trump administrations policies but to use the opportunity to suggest improvements. The Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA) sent this analyst a statement prior to the speech stating that Pompeos remarks "presented an opportunity for PAAIA members to directly inform the administration about the near unanimous opposition Iranian Americans have towards the travel ban as well as the importance of enhancing sanctions relief on telecommunication tools, food, and medicine for the Iranian people." The bottom line: Pompeos protestations of concern for the Iranian people fall flat at a time when the U.S. is an outlier on the Iran nuclear deal, other countries are resisting the re-imposition of sanctions and the Trump administration shows scant concern for equal if not more serious human rights abuses by other countries with which it has chosen to engage diplomatically among them Russia and North Korea. Barbara Slavin directs the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council. World leaders are learning to play President Trump using his own set of predictable negotiating tricks. The most vivid example of this: French President Emmanuel Macron bragging to Trump that he was jamming him by stealing "The Art of the Deal" techniques, Axios has learned. The scene: Perched on white leather armchairs in their bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the NATO Summit in Brussels, Trump and Macron soon turned to the unavoidable subject: The expanding trade war between the United States and Europe. Trump, after whacking the Europeans with steel and aluminum tariffs, has been frustrated by the European Union's retribution. The Europeans have designed tariffs with the goal of inflicting as much political pain as possible on Trump. They targeted Kentucky's bourbon industry, Harley Davidson motorcycles and America's iconic Levi brand jeans. During their tete-a-tete, Trump suggested to Macron that he tell the European Union they ought to negotiate with the U.S., according to a source familiar with the conversation. Macron replied that no, actually he was not in favor of negotiating under threat. "I read the Art of the Deal," the French president told Trump, with a smile. "I know that we need to retaliate first so we have some leverage in the negotiation." Why it matters: Like many foreign leaders, Macron has learned that the only language the U.S. president understands is the un-nuanced, transactional language of dealmaking and the blunt projection of strength. It's why Trump is drawn to strongmen and belittles those he considers "weak" like Canada's Trudeau (whom Trump publicly refers to as "Justin.") What we're hearing: A senior Trump administration official told me another story that illuminates this part of Trump's mindset. As we know, Trump was glued to the television as former FBI director James Comey testified before Congress on March 20 of 2017. Trump would never admit this publicly, but he told people afterwards that he was impressed by the performance of his Democratic nemesis Adam Schiff. Trump hates Schiff and calls him a horrible liar. But he marveled at Schiff's tough and surgical opening statement that day. More than six months after the hearing, Trump told an aide how impressive he considered Schiff's performance to be. "This is like September or October last year," a source who discussed the matter with Trump recalled. "Trump was like, 'I watched that [Schiff's statement] and thought I had committed a crime!'" "He has respect for the adversaries that have the balls to take it to him like he takes it to them," the source added. The Chinese have absorbed this lesson the best. They have engaged in a trade war with no armistice in sight. Trump has threatened the Chinese with tariffs on more than $500 billion of Chinese imports; but, as we've reported, he's playing a dangerous game. China is fully prepared to retaliate and out-wait America. The bottom line: President Xi is playing Trump's game with a much better political hand. The Chinese leader enjoys the advantages of authoritarianism "president for life" as Trump admiringly calls him. By Rashid Shirinov Azerbaijan will continue to make diplomatic and political efforts to release Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev, who were taken hostage by Armenians, Spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmat Hajiyev said at a press conference on July 23. He noted that Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov addressed the UN Secretary General, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and the leadership of the International Committee of the Red Cross in connection with the taking of Asgarov and Guliyev hostage by Armenia. Hajiyev added that this issue has been brought to the attention of the international community. Asgarov and Guliyev have been kept hostage by Armenian militaries in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan for more than four years already. They were detained by the Armenian armed forces in July 2014 while visiting their native places and graves of loved ones in the occupied Azerbaijani Kalbajar region. Moreover, Armenian armed forces killed the third Azerbaijani Hasan Hasanov. Later, Guliyev and Asgarov were judged illegally by the unrecognized courts of the separatist regime in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh. Following an expedited judicial process in December 2015, Asgarov was sentenced to life imprisonment and Guliyev to 22 years in prison. Azerbaijans State Committee on Affairs of Refugees and IDPs, the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons and other agencies have repeatedly urged international organizations, including the ICRC, to assist in release of Guliyev and Asgarov, whilst the problem remains topical yet. -- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Rashid Shirinov Armenia is responsible for illegal economic and other activities in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, Spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmat Hajiyev said at a press conference on July 23. He noted that the legal opinion provides for legal accountability for the illegal actions of Armenia and third parties, which are classified in the following areas: establishment of settlements and movement of population in the occupied territories; exploitation of natural resources of Azerbaijan and trade in them; economic and financial activities; changes in infrastructure, operation of telecommunications network; change in the cultural heritage of the occupied territories; development of tourism, as well as the organization of illegal visits and other activities. Armenia is responsible for internationally wrongful acts in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, some of which are serious violations of the obligations arising from the peremptory norms of general international law, Hajiyev said. He added that these include the use of force to actually separate Nagorno-Karabakh and other regions of Azerbaijan occupied by Armenia in violation of the Charter of the United Nations; as a consequence, violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan; ethnic cleansing in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, including establishment of settlements and displacement of the population, leading to a change in the demographic composition of these territories; flagrant violation of the law of belligerent occupation; exploitation of natural resources in the occupied territories disregarding the priority of the interests of the population (before the ethnic cleansing of the region); change in the cultural heritage of the region. In accordance with the legal opinion of peremptory norms of international law, the above-mentioned serious violations require the application of special implications arising from aggravating responsibility: non-recognition of the situation created by such violations; prohibition of assistance in maintaining such a situation; exclusion of any immunities for those responsible for such violations, Hajiyev said. Another consequence of this aggravating responsibility, he noted, is that all states have an obligation to hold Armenia accountable and to take action against it, including through sanctions, criminal prosecution and civil proceedings. In international relations and the process of conflict resolution, the rule of law is a prerequisite. We call upon the entire international community, relevant international organizations, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries, foreign legal entities and individuals to take note of the Legal opinion on third party obligations with respect to illegal economic and other activities in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and other fundamental legal reports submitted by Azerbaijan on the legal aspects of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the spokesman concluded. Armenia broke out a lengthy war against Azerbaijan by laying territorial claims on the country. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. To this day, Armenia has not implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding regions. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Sara Israfilbayova China is strengthening cooperation in the field of agriculture with countries along the One Belt, One Road, including Azerbaijan. Head of the State Department for Grain and Stock Zhang Wufeng made the remarks at the International Forum on Food Cooperation in Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu Province in northwestern China. Experts argue that this step can also neutralize the negative impact of the trade war with the U.S. China will offer political and financial support for the development of food and infrastructure trade to encourage Chinese grain companies to cooperate with countries along the One Belt, One Road, Wufeng said. Deputy Chairman of the Board of JSC Procurement and Supply of Food Products Elshan Asadov, in his turn, said that development of agriculture causes concern among countries along the One Belt, One Road. We hope to establish more effective partnership with China, to export Azerbaijani organic products and use agricultural technologies, investments and experience in China, he said. The cooperation between China and Azerbaijan strongly contributes to the realization of the Great Silk road program. The Great Silk Road is a general name of a caravan road, which has been the main two-way trading bridge of East and West since the 3rd century BC up to now. The Great Silk Road starts in Japan and China stretches up to Europe cutting through India, Afghanistan, Iran, Central Asia, Caucasus, Asia Minor, Northern Africa including connecting the Indian Ocean, the Chinese Sea, the Japanese Sea, the Red Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Mediterranean Sea. China became Azerbaijans 4th largest trading partner in 2017. Customs data of Azerbaijan estimated bilateral trade at a record close to $1.3 billion in 2017, up 33 percent from the previous year. Exports of Azerbaijani goods amounted to $433.8 million (3.21 percent of total exports), while imports of Chinese products to Azerbaijan reached $854.5 million (9.73 percent of total imports). --- Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Rashid Shirinov Azerbaijan, Georgia and Germany have discussed the prospects of state property management, the possibility of attracting investment in privatization and exchange of experience in this field. The meeting, held in Tbilisi on July 21, was attended by Chairman of Azerbaijan State Committee on Property Issues Karam Hasanov, Head of Georgia National Agency of State Property Ekaterine Sisauri, and Head of the 8th Main Department of the German Finance Ministry Von Wick. Sisauri stressed that the development of relations between the countries in the field of state property management and privatization will allow to implement new projects. Hasanov, in turn, noted that the strategy implemented by the leadership of Azerbaijan has allowed the State Committee to expand the use of new methods and approaches. The important results achieved made it possible to apply electronic services and use innovative methods more widely, as well as to increase transparency in the areas of public property management and privatization. The holding of electronic auctions for privatization has made it possible to further optimize this process, increase efficiency, expand opportunities to attract local and foreign investments, Hasanov said, adding that large enterprises related to industry, agriculture, transport, medicine, telecommunications and other spheres have been opened for privatization. Wick, in turn, said that Germany is interested in developing relations with other countries in the sphere of state property management and privatization, and supporting innovations that create the basis for the development of the economy. Innovations and innovative projects used by Azerbaijan in the sphere of privatization allow us to talk about the success of the created cooperation, she noted. Azerbaijan State Committee on Property Issues has held 114 auctions since the beginning of the year, at which 350 state properties were privatized. The portal for privatization privatization.az, launched in July 2016, provides all necessary information about the facilities, their addresses, location, and even initial cost and aims at facilitation of the process. The privatization process is designed to attract both foreign and local investors, as well as develop the business environment of Azerbaijan. Moreover, the State Committee on Property Issues held the first electronic auction on July 4. The electronic auction service combines the privatization procedure of vehicles and equipment. In the future, it will be possible to privatize small state enterprises and facilities, joint-stock companies through electronic auction. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Rashid Shirinov A plant for the production of granite and artificial marble will be opened in Azerbaijan in the first half of 2019, the Economy Ministry informed on July 20. Within his visit to Goygol region, Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev visited the plant of the company NB Procurement and Trade being constructed in Ganja. The cost of the project is 46.5 million manats ($27.31 million). For the construction of the plant, the Economy Ministry provided a document to encourage investment and the National Fund for Entrepreneurship Support allocated a preferential loan of 10 million manats ($5.87 million). The production capacity of the plant will be three million square meters of artificial marble, ceramic granite, tile and other products per year. The staff of the plant will be 280 people. The ministry noted that the plant will be able both to meet domestic demand and export products to other countries. The new plant will prevent the outflow of more than 30 million manats ($17.62 million) from the country. During his visit to Goygol, Mustafayev also received residents of Shamkir, Goranboy and Goygol regions. They mainly asked for preferential loans, support for the development of tourism, animal husbandry, crop production, as well as issuance of licenses for medical and sanatorium activities, etc. The minister listened attentively to all appeals. Some of them were considered and resolved on the spot, while specific instructions were given for prompt consideration and solution of other raised issues in accordance with the legislation. In addition, the proposals of entrepreneurs concerning the production of furniture, construction of a refrigeration warehouse complex, expansion of the hotel complex and others were heard. Azerbaijan takes great steps in its intention to diversify the national economy on the basis of further development of the non-oil sector. To this end, the government does its best to encourage business doing in the country and to support entrepreneurs through creating necessary conditions for the development of a healthy business environment. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Laman Ismayilova The Baku Musical Academy named after Uzeir Hajibeyli hosted a performance of folklore groups from Malaysia. The event was held within the framework of the 33rd World Conference of the International Society for Music Education (ISME). Malaysia is a state in South-East Asia, consisting of two parts, divided by the South China Sea. It is believed that the name Melayu comes from the Sanskrit words Malaiur or Malayadvipa, which can be translated as a "mountainous country". In the heterogeneity of society and the diversity of the culture of Malaysia, customs and traditions of different ethnic groups living in the country were manifested. Over the centuries, Malaysia has been influenced by the early Buddhist and Hindu civilization that came from India, from Java and Sumatra. In the XIV-XVI centuries, Islam religion spread across the country after the arrival of Indian and Arab merchants. Later Portuguese, Dutch and British introduced elements of European culture. Therefore, Malay culture is very diverse. The main musical instruments in the country are gendang (drum), as well as other numerous percussion instruments, some of which are made from shells. In Malaysia, the art of the dance theater is highly developed, which has Thai, Indian and Portuguese origins. Among other artistic forms distinguish: stylized martial art - silat, the theater of shadows - kulit, wyang. Malay folklore consists of folk charms and spells (mantra), rhymed riddles and jokes (teka-teki), folk songs, lyrical pantuns (Malay poetic form), proverbs and sayings. Among them is a dwarf deer Pak Kadok (Papa Pea Pod), Pak Pandir, Lebei Malang and others. Different ethnic groups of the country have different versions of folklore. Bright colors of national folklore and culture were admired by the guests of the festive evening, who greeted the performances of the artists with applause. The 33rd World Conference of the International Society for Music Education ( ISME) was held in Baku on July 15-20. More than 500 participants took part in the forum. The International Society for Music Education (ISME) believes that lived experiences of music, in all their many aspects, are a vital part of the life of all people. ISME's mission is to enhance those experiences by building and maintaining a worldwide community of music educators characterized by mutual respect and support; fostering global intercultural understanding and cooperation among the world's music educators; and promoting music education for people of all ages in all relevant situations throughout the world. The International Society for Music Education was formed at a conference convened by UNESCO in 1953 'to stimulate music education as an integral part of general education'. This has been ISME's main concern over the past decades and continues to be our most important source of motivation. In 2003 ISME celebrated its 50th anniversary. To mark the occasion the Society published "Toward A Global Community - The International Society for Music Education 1953 - 2003". This can be downloaded from this page. The next World Conference on International Music Education (ISME) will be held in Helsinki, Finland. --- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz The recent visit of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to France, which came at the invitation of Emmanuel Macron, has demonstrated the whole world that the relations between the two countries have reached a new historic high. France, one of the most influential countries of the European Union and leading member of NATO, and Azerbaijan have a long-standing relationship. It began with the opening of the French Embassy in Azerbaijan in February 1992 and launch of the activities of the Azerbaijani Embassy in France on November 20, 1994. For the past period, close ties have been established between Azerbaijan and France in political, economic, and military spheres. Deepening cooperation with France is an important factor that can have an impact on Azerbaijan's relations with the European Union (EU). Today, Azerbaijan is one of the countries contributing to the energy security of Europe, and, thus, Paris regards Baku as an equal partner. From the point of view of the framework of official meetings and the scale of the issues discussed, the visit, which defined political and foreign economic directions for further strengthening of relations, can be confidently called historical. Fruitful meetings held with representatives of 11 French companies during this visit opened up wide opportunities for economic cooperation between the two countries. They are very useful in terms of creating broad prospects for the development of cooperation in various spheres of the economy. Meetings with influential companies of France, carrying out activities in various fields, will raise their interest in Azerbaijan. There is no doubt that as a result of this, not only the volume of French investments will increase significantly, but also their directions will expand. Numerous contracts signed can be viewed as another victory of the foreign economic policy of Azerbaijan's leadership. France has one of the strongest Armenian lobbies, and direct contacts play a big role in diminishing its influence in Europe. Against this background, the conclusion of contracts worth more than $2 billion between Azerbaijani and French companies is an absolute success. Contracts and agreements allow both countries to know each other better, while also being a kind of example for other European countries, which will strive for even deeper and closer cooperation with Baku. Azerbaijan, by implementing its huge transport, logistics and energy projects, continues to prove that it is a reliable partner for Europe, which, in turn, views tghe country as the most stable state of the former Soviet Union. The agreements reached in Paris testify to the special significance that France attaches to the growing authority of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan is Frances leading economic partner in the South Caucasus, with a bilateral trade volume of 739 million euros in 2017. Better relations with such a power as France will further contribute to Azerbaijans exemplary reputation on the international arena. Given that France is also a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, President Aliyevs constant contact with the leadership of this country is not surprising. There is no doubt that the meetings of President Aliyev with members of the French parliament will also strengthen Azerbaijan's position on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The communique circulated by the Elysee Palace after the meeting of the two heads of state gives grounds to believe that France and Emmanuelle Macron personally will make efforts to find ways to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as soon as possible. The French president stressed that he will continue to work in search of a negotiated solution, which is the only option to end this conflict on a long-term basis and in the interests of all the peoples of the region, according to the statement of the French presidential administration. To this end, the visit of Azerbaijani President to Paris turned out to be successful both in economic and political terms. By Rashid Shirinov There was a time when Aghdam, a town in the same-name region of Azerbaijan, was vivid and bustling. Now those days are gone, and the reason for this is the occupation of the region by the Armenian armed forces. This July 23 marks the 25th anniversary of the occupation of Aghdam during the brutal war launched by Armenia in the early 1990s. This was the third painful blow to Azerbaijan following the occupation of Lachin and Kalbajar regions adjacent to Nagorno-Karabakh. As a result of the attack, the town was razed to the ground. Armenians invaded the majority of Aghdams territory they seized 882 square kilometers of the 1,094 square kilometers of territory, including Aghdam town and 80 villages. Some 128,000 people became internally displaced persons, while over 6,000 people died. After the occupation of Aghdam, the UN Security Council adopted the resolution 853, which demanded the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of occupying forces from the Aghdam and other recently occupied regions of Azerbaijan. However, Yerevan remained completely indifferent to the four UN Security Council and UN General Assembly resolutions calling for an immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. Even more damage was sustained in the following decades when Aghdam town was ruined and looted. Today Aghdam is an uninhabitable town and it is often referred to as a ghost town by foreign media. Armenian vandals destroyed historical monuments, cemeteries, hospitals, libraries, schools, offices, and other facilities in the occupied territory. As many as 122 villages, around 24,000 residential buildings, 48 industrial and construction enterprises, 160 schools, 65 health centers, 373 cultural centers, a theater, three mosques and two museums were burnt down and completely destroyed. Following the seizure of Aghdam, Armenian aggressors ruined most of the historical monuments of the region. These include the ancient settlement Uzarliktepe, stone monuments in the Kangarli village (14th century), Khanoglu tomb (17th century), the mansion of Panahali Khan of Karabakh (18th century) and his tomb (19th century), and the twin-minaret Juma mosque of Aghdam (1870), the Shahbulag fortress and many other admirable monuments of Azerbaijan. The Armenian occupiers also depleted the natural resources of the region. Eastern sycamore trees aged up to 400 years and other tree species were destroyed in the occupied territories and currently are about to vanish from the world flora treasure. Moreover, arsons committed by Armenian soldiers in the regions occupied villages resulted in the deaths of various pheasants, vipers, partridges and other animals which are included in the Red Book and the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Red List of Threatened Species. As a result of the occupation of Aghdam, Azerbaijan faced material damage worth $6.179 billion. The damage inflicted to the regions agriculture alone is estimated at $582.29 million. A quarter-century has passed since the occupation of Aghdam, but Azerbaijanis still wait for the return to their homeland. Regrettably, their desire remains unnoticed by the world community and Armenia keeps ignoring the four UN Security Council resolutions. Azerbaijan is trying to resolve the conflict as soon as possible, while the aggressor Armenia does the opposite by making every effort to preserve the status quo in Nagorno-Karabakh. Currently, 20 percent of the Azerbaijani territories remain under Armenian occupation and over 1 million of refugees and IDPs have to live far away from their homes in hope of returning there someday. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Rashid Shirinov The place and date of the next meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers are being specified, Spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmat Hajiyev said at a press conference on July 23. He noted that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will present relevant proposals on the venue and date of the meeting, and the final decision will be made based on these proposals. Hajiyev also mentioned that Azerbaijan is a supporter of the continuation of substantive negotiations on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the existing format. The last meeting between the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and Armenian FM Zohrab Mnatsakanyan was held in Brussels on July 11 under the mediation of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs Igor Popov of Russia, Stephane Visconti of France and Andrew Schofer of the U.S. The meeting was also attended by the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk. It is noteworthy that this was Mammadyarovs first meeting with the new Armenian FM. During the meeting, the ministers exchanged views regarding the situation on the ground and discussed next steps and parameters for re-engaging in substantive negotiations. They agreed to meet again in the near future under the auspices of the co-chairs. Azerbaijan and Armenia fought a lengthy war that ended with signing of a fragile ceasefire in 1994. Since the war, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. While the OSCE Minsk Group acted as the only mediator in resolution of the conflict, the occupation of the territory of the sovereign state with its internationally recognized boundaries has been left out of due attention of the international community for years. Until now, Armenia ignores four UN Security Council resolutions on immediate withdrawal from the occupied territory of Azerbaijan, thus keeping tension high in the region. --- Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend Turkish FM Mevlut Cavusoglu will pay an official visit to Azerbaijan on July 24, Turkey's Foreign Ministry told Trend July 23. Within the framework of the visit, Cavusoglu will hold a meeting with the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, as well as other officials, the ministry noted, "Cavusoglu's visit to Baku will last one day". The ministry also said, that during the visit the strengthening of relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan, as well as other regional issues will be discussed. "It is expected that Cavusoglu will also hold a meeting with the Azerbaijani Prime Minister Novruz Mammadov," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend Azerbaijan is of great importance for France as an indispensible ally, Peter Tase, US expert on Global Politics and Transatlantic Relations, an adviser to Global Engineering Deans Council and other prestigious International Institutions told Trend July 23. He was commenting on the results of the recent visit of Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev to Paris. It is strategically important for the French government and French companies to have Azerbaijan as a principal trade partner, and as an indispensable ally in the fields of multilateral diplomacy, economic cooperation and cultural diplomacy, he said. Tase added that President Aliyevs visit to France has brought even closer the economic, commercial, political and cultural cooperation between both countries. During the visit, Azerbaijans president met with Airbus Vice-President for Eurasia Silvere Delaunay. A greater cooperation between Airbus and Azercosmos OJSC would generate remarkable results for the benefit of both governments. Currently Azersky and Spot 6 satellites have made a great impact in the international markets and the image of Azerbaijan has risen significantly abroad, thanks to such an attractive project, swiftly implemented under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, he said. Tase noted that strengthening bilateral cooperation with Airbus will enable Azerbaijan to become one of the worlds leading nations focused in defending Information technology networks from cyber-attacks. He believes that the signing of major trade agreements with French companies will bring new developments in Azerbaijan and improve the living standards of the Azerbaijani people. Azerbaijan has emerged as a key economic partner of France, he said, adding that bilateral cooperation in science, cultural diplomacy, commerce and trade has reached record levels. Tase noted that the embassy of Azerbaijan in Paris has done an impeccable job in strengthening the Azerbaijan-France cooperation and dialogue. Further, he noted that the Heydar Aliyev Foundation under the leadership of Azerbaijans First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva has made important contributions to bring together the peoples of France and Azerbaijan. Heydar Aliyev Foundation has financed many large projects in the fields of education, culture, restoration of religious monuments and visual arts galleries. The contributions of Heydar Aliyev Foundation are essential to bring progress in the world. The bilateral partnership between Azerbaijan and France has never been better than it is now; this accomplishment is shaped by the tremendous humanitarian projects, cultural engagements and establishment of educational institutions in Paris and Baku, Tase concluded. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend The Azerbaijan-France relations have great prospects and potential, Azerbaijani MP, historian Musa Gasimli said. "Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyevs visit to France will intensify this potential and give dynamics to the relations between the two countries," Gasimli told Trend on July 23. He stressed the great importance of President Aliyev's visit to France. "First of all, France is one of the leading countries, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, a co-chair country of the OSCE Minsk Group, one of the G7 members," Gasimli said. He stressed that the Azerbaijan-France relations have historical roots. "The state independence of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) was first recognized in Paris on January 11, 1920, he added. ADR's representatives lived in France, and France was one of those countries that made efforts to restore Azerbaijans independence after the occupation by the Bolsheviks. France helped Azerbaijani emigrants, he said. In its turn, Azerbaijan rendered exceptional services to France for its liberation from fascists. Azerbaijanis took part in the French Resistance Movement. The MP stressed that after the restoration of Azerbaijans state independence, the Azerbaijan-France relations have developed on a new basis. "Azerbaijans national leader Heydar Aliyev paid the first foreign visit to France in December 1993, he said. The Azerbaijan-France relations have greatly developed during Ilham Aliyev's presidency. The French Lyceum, the Azerbaijani-French University, French companies operate in Baku." President Ilham Aliyev paid a visit to Paris on July 19-20. Fruitful talks were held with representatives of 11 French companies during the visit and contracts worth over $2 billion were signed. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Sara Israfilbayova World oil prices on are dropping on July 23 on fears for demand for raw materials after financial G20 statements about the risks of the world economy against the backdrop of geopolitical tensions. Benchmark Brent crude oil was up 15 cents at $73.22 a barrel, U.S. light crude West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was unchanged at $68.26, Reuters reported. Last weekend in Buenos Aires, a meeting of finance ministers and heads of central banks G20 was held. According to its results, representatives of G20 said that the main short-term and medium-term risks of the global economy at the moment are growing financial vulnerability, growing tensions in trade and geopolitics, as well as inequality and weak structural growth. The meeting took place on the background of an escalation of the trade conflict between the U.S. and China. On July 21, U.S. President Donald Trump announced his readiness, if necessary, to impose duties on all Chinese imports, estimated at about $500 billion. Oil prices are also affected by the statements of the U.S. authorities regarding Iran. On July 23, 2018, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described the Iranian authorities as something more reminiscent of the Mafia than the usual government. The U.S. is not afraid to confront the Iranian regime and intend to continue to press hard on the authorities of the country and urged other countries to join this pressure. Also, investors are puzzled by the weekly statistics from Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE) on the number of drilling rigs in the U.S. BHGE reported that for the week ended on July 20, 2018, the total number of drilling rigs in the U.S. decreased by 8 units, to 1,046 units. At the same time, the number of drilling rigs in oil fields was reduced by 5 units, to 858. The number of drilling rigs at gas fields was reduced by 2 units to 187. The reduction in the number of installations for drilling oil wells in the U.S. turned out to be the maximum since March 2018. OPEC and non-OPEC producers reached an agreement in December 2016 to curtail oil output jointly and ease a global glut after more than two years of low prices. OPEC agreed to slash the output by 1.2 million barrels per day from January 1. Non-OPEC oil producers such as Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brunei, Equatorial Guinea, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Oman, Russia, Sudan, and South Sudan agreed to reduce output by 558,000 barrels per day starting from January 1, 2017. OPEC and its partners decided to extend its production cuts till the end of 2018 in Vienna on November 30, as the oil cartel and its allies step up their attempt to end a three-year supply glut that has savaged crude prices and the global energy industry. --- Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend Finance ministers and central bankers from the worlds largest economies said on Sunday that heightened trade and geopolitical tensions risk derailing global growth and called for greater dialogue, according to the final communique of a G20 meeting. The weekend talks in Buenos Aires come amid an escalation in rhetoric in the trade conflict between the United States and China, the worlds largest economies, which have so far slapped tariffs on $34 billion worth of each others goods. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Kamila Aliyeva A new gas chemical complex (GCC), which will set the foundation of the region's largest technological cluster, will appear in Uzbekistan in the coming years, as the country aims to bring the industry to a new level. At present, Uzbekneftegaz jointly with foreign partners has started working out a project to create a technological cluster by building a modern gas chemical complex and developing related industries aimed at producing products with high added value on its basis, said companys first deputy chairman Ulugbek Sayyidov. Within the technological cluster, construction of the GCC with the processing volume of 1.3-1.5 billion cubic meters of gas based on the technology of MTO (methanol to olefins) and the production of 200,000-250,000 tons of polypropylene, 100,000 tons of ethylene-propylene rubber, 100,000 tons of polyethylene terephthalate and ethylene vinyl acetate, 100,000-150,000 tons of ethylene glycol and polyethylene. Also, on the basis of public-private partnership, it is proposed to build more than 10 plants for processing polymers with production of up to 300,000 tons of finished products. The total cost of the project is approximately $ 4.25 billion, of which $ 3.5 billion falls for the construction of the GCC. Uzbekistan is ready to invest 30 percent of its own funds in the project, and 70 percent will be foreign investments, credits and loans, Sayyidov said. More than half of the investments attracted to the Uzbek economy fall on the oil and gas industry. The volume of capital investments in 2016 amounted to $ 2.99 billion, and by the end of 2017 this figure reached $ 3.63 billion, of which $ 2.65 billion was foreign direct investment and loans. Uzbekistans natural gas production in January-April amounted to 19.5 billion tons thus showing an increase of 6.7 percent. At the same time, the Central Asian country reduced oil production, which totaled 249,700 tons, by 9.8 percent. --- Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Kamila Aliyeva Uzbekistan reached agreements on the supply of textile products worth $ 1 million, as well as the first consignment of dried fruits with a volume of 100 tons to the French market. The documents were signed as part of a separate meeting between the delegation of Uzbekistan and representatives of business circles of France. Issues of promotion of Uzbek agricultural and textile products were discussed at the meeting. The parties agreed to actively develop cooperation by supporting entrepreneurs at the state level. The first trade house of Uzbekistan, UzFranceTrade, was opened in Paris, Central Asian media outlets reported on July 21. The main task of the trade house is to promote the export of products from Uzbekistan to France and other European countries. To this end, a show room will be constantly operating with a wide range of domestic products presented. "Today non-raw export of the republic is represented in insignificant volumes. Basically, this is due to the complexity for domestic products to enter such a demanding market as France. Our task is to make it as easy as possible by bringing our standards in line with European requirements. So we will be able to realize the trade potential and meet the demand for fruit and vegetable and textile products from our country, said Uzbek Minister of Foreign Trade Jamshid Khodzhaev. The diplomatic relation between France and Uzbekistan were established on March 1, 1992. A series of intergovernmental agreements forming the basis for our bilateral relations was signed during Uzbek President Islam Karimovs visit to France in 1993. Based mainly on a few major contracts, the trade between the two countries has fluctuated since 2010 at around 200 million euros a year. Some 30 French businesses are present in the country. The regional headquarters of the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD, French Development Agency) is located in Tashkent. The AFD has begun a first project in Samarkand, in the field of waste management. Moreover, a MEDEF International business confederation delegation visited Tashkent in May 2017 to identify new business opportunities. --- Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Kamila Aliyeva The cost of the mineral resource potential of Uzbekistan is about $ 5.7 trillion, said first deputy chairman of the State Committee for Geology Azam Kadirkhodzhaev, Podrobno.uz reported. Only more than 1 trillion dollars of them is the value of already explored reserves and prepared deposits, according to the chairman. At the same time, the territory of Uzbekistan is studied only by 20 percent, and accordingly, there is a huge potential to identify new deposits. In terms of reserves and resources of the most important types of minerals, such as gold, uranium, copper, potassium salts, phosphorites and kaolin, Uzbekistan is among the world's top ten leaders. On the production of gold and uranium, the republic occupies one of the leading positions. Taking into account the data of considerable wealth of mineral resources, having an appropriate regulatory framework that meets modern business requirements, the number of issued licenses to subsoil users, which by creating their own production make a significant contribution to the development of Uzbekistan, is growing accordingly. As a result, in recent years, the State Committee for Geology has issued more than 1,200 licenses for the right to use subsoil plots, he said. Only recently, Russian, Turkish, Chinese, South Korean, Azerbaijani and British companies showed interest in geological exploration in Uzbekistan. For example, the Turkish side will conduct geological exploration in two regions of Uzbekistan in promising areas of Khurob, Aydim-Dzhetymtau and Sarytau ore field. They will seek gold and rare earth metals. Earlier, Uzbekistan and the Russian company, RosGeoPerspectiva, concluded an agreement to carry out geological exploration work to find copper and gold in the promising areas of Kazakhtau and Kazakhtau 1 in Navoi region of Uzbekistan. In the first year, the Russians plan to invest at least $ 3 million in the work. Uzbekistan has large mineral reserves, which include more than 1,800 known mineral deposits. The countrys mineral resources include petroleum, natural gas, gold, silver, uranium, molybdenum, tungsten, coal, copper, zinc and lead. Uranium, copper and gold are the countrys chief minerals. The volume of proven and confirmed gold reserves in Uzbekistan is about 2,100 tons. The total reserves are approximately 3,350 tons. Currently, according to the decision of the Uzbek government, 29 deposits and 111 promising areas of solid minerals are offered to foreign investors. They include 12 deposits and 31 promising areas for precious metals (gold, silver), 18 non-ferrous metals (copper, lead and zinc), 14 deposits as well as 51 areas for rare and rare-earth metals and uranium. The lists of the deposits and promising areas offered to foreign investors will be updated every five years taking into account newly obtained geological information. With regards to the gold, this list includes deposits of mainly gold-quartz and gold-sulfide ores in four regions of the country - Tashkent, Samarkand, Navoi regions, as well as the autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan. The total reserves of the proposed deposits (category C2) are more than 14.5 tons of gold. Attraction of the foreign investors comes from the following factors. Firstly, Uzbekistan has significant resources for increasing capacities of the operating enterprise and creation of new ones. Secondly, the Republic possesses a highly developed efficiency of the mineral industry, a favorable infrastructure and highly skilled manpower. Thirdly, many deposits can be developed by open mining which is the cheapest method. Finally, Uzbekistan has the favorable investment climate provided by The Subsoil Law and a support by the governing bodies. --- Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Trend Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated he will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chief of the General Staff Army General Valery Gerasimov in order to discuss issues concerning the Syrian conflict, TASS reports. "Today, I will meet with a Russian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and General Staff Chief Valery Gerasimov in accordance with an agreement reached with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with whom I held a telephone conversation a few days ago," Netanyahu said at a weekly cabinet meeting. He added that the parties would discuss regional issues, first and foremost, the situation in Syria. According to Netanyahu, Israel insists that the 1974 Agreement on Disengagement with Syria be respected the way it was before the civil war in Syria broke out. Israel will continue to act against any attempts by Iran and its satellites aimed at establishing military presence in Syria, Netanyahu stressed. The Russian president and the Israeli prime minister held a meeting in Moscow on July 11, which the Israeli prime minister described as "very important." Netanyahu told Putin that Israel strongly opposed Irans presence in Syria. At the same time, he said that Israeli-Russian talks provided an opportunity to enhance security and the level of trust in the Middle East. On July 17, US President Donald Trump said at a meeting with lawmakers that the US, Russia and Israel had launched trilateral talks regarding the Syria issue and Israels security. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Kamila Aliyeva The National Bank of Uzbekistan has concluded an agreement with German Deutsche Bank AG on the financing of investment projects worth 500 million euros, Podrobno.uz reported. This agreement provides for the allocation of a credit line for financing investment projects in various sectors of the economy, such as energy, transport, agriculture, medicine, petrochemicals, infrastructure, metallurgy, aviation and others. The uniqueness of the agreement is that it will provide long-term financing for the import of equipment and technologies from different countries, including the U.S., China, Korea, Japan, Germany, France, Italy and Spain, the National Bank said. Previously, the National Bank has already concluded loan agreements with leading German banks for a total of 950 million euros. The largest agreement was signed with Deutsche Bank AG in the amount of 500 million euros aimed at supporting large-scale investment projects in Uzbekistan. Agreements with Commerzbank AG worth 350 million euros and AKA Bank worth 100 million euros were also signed. The agreements provide for the financing of investment projects, as well as projects for small businesses and private entrepreneurship, according to the bank. The signed loan agreements are considered non-guaranteed, as they do not require a government guarantee. The National Bank was established by the Decree of the first President of the country Islam Karimov in September 1991 and today it is the largest financial institution of the country. Germany remains one of the main trade and economic partners of Uzbekistan in Europe. The mutual trade turnover between Germany and Uzbekistan for 2016 amounted to $520.1 million. Germany took the 7th place in the overall commodity turnover of Uzbekistan with other countries in 2016. As many as 123 enterprises operate in Uzbekistan with the participation of German companies, capital and advanced technologies. Large investment projects involving German banks are being implemented in various sectors of the economy. Investment projects for a total of more than 1 billion euros have been implemented in Uzbekistan jointly with German leading companies. --- Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz By Kamila Aliyeva A wind power plant with a capacity of 42 megawatts will be built in Mangistau region of Kazakhstan, the press service of the mayor of the region said on July 23. A memorandum of cooperation on the implementation of the project for the construction of a wind farm near Fort-Shevchenko was signed in the regional administration (akimat) office, the message said. The document was signed by South Wind Power LLP, Horgos Jiuhe SilkBridge New Energy Co and akim of Mangistau region Eraly Tugzhanov. Under the terms of the agreement, investors plan to build 17 wind generators with a capacity of 2.5 kilowatts. For this purpose, it is planned to allocate $ 60 million. The construction of the wind plant refers to the transition to a green economy, the introduction of environmentally friendly innovative technologies, and this project will help meet the region's electricity needs. The construction of a 42 megawatt wind power plant will start on 375 hectares of land in the Tupkaragan region. The akimat has set the task to launch construction in August this year before investors, Tugzhanov said. A land plot for construction has already been determined, the necessary documentation has been developed and agreed upon, and positive expert opinions have been received. The project is also included in the plan for placing facilities for the use of renewable energy sources. A purchase agreement with the settlement and financial center, a contract for connection to the networks with JSC Mangistau distribution electric grid company have been already signed. Kazakhstan plans generating 50 percent of its electricity from renewable and alternative energy sources according to President Nazarbayevs ambitious 2050 strategy. This strategy is a part of the countrys comprehensive initiative to transfer itself from one of the worlds major hydrocarbon energy producers to the green economy model. Renewable energy production volumes will grow three times compared to current indicators, according to Kazakhstans Ministry of Energy. In three years, more than 100 alternative energy facilities will operate in the country compared to the current 50. The facilities will include 23 wind energy plants, 17 solar power stations and 13 hydroelectric power stations, as well as several plants producing biogas, an alternative energy source. --- Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Good News for Oregon Coast Razor Clamming, Sunset Bay; Trail Meeting Published 07/20/2018 at 5:42 PM PDT By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff (Manzanita, Oregon) Good news for razor clamming on the southern Oregon coast as well as fans of one beach in Coos County, while a public meeting will be held soon on the famed Salmonberry Trail in Tillamook County. (Razor clamming photo above courtesy Seaside Aquarium). The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) have announced another part of the Oregon coast is back open to razor clamming after demoic acid levels closed it recently. Now open is the area from Tillamook Head all the way down to Cape Arago on the southern Oregon coast. A section there from Arago to near Yachats had remained shut down after other areas opened back up. Still closed to clamming because of the toxin is the section of Oregon coast from Cape Arago to the California border. Meanwhile, recreational razor clamming is closed for the ODFW annual conservation closure from the Columbia River to Tillamook Head, which includes the towns of Seaside, Gearhart and Warrenton. This closure is not related to biotoxins. Harvesting of mussels, bay clams and crabs remains open along all beaches and Oregon coast bays. For more information please call ODA's Shellfish Safety Information Hotline at (800) 448-2474 or click on the ODA link. Another bit of good news for the southern Oregon coast: the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) today lifted a public health advisory for contact with marine water at Sunset Bay State Park Beach located in Coos County. The health authority issued the advisory July 18 after water samples showed higher-than-normal levels of fecal bacteria in ocean waters Results from later samples taken by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) showed lower bacteria levels. Contact with the water no longer poses a higher-than-normal risk. However, officials recommend staying out of large pools on the beach that are frequented by birds, and runoff from those pools, because the water may contain increased bacteria from fecal matter. State officials will be holding a public meeting on the Salmonberry Trail in Tillamook on August 3. The Salmonberry Trail Intergovernmental Agency (STIA) will meet at 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on that day to discuss the proposed Salmonberry Trail corridor. The meeting will be held in the second floor of the Tillamook County Courthouse, commissioners meeting rooms A and B, 201 Laurel Ave., Tillamook. The meeting is open to the public. The meeting will cover fundraising and communication efforts; updates on Valley Segment planning; discussions on funding STIA administrative expenses; and a tour of the new City of Tillamook Cross Town Connector Trail. The proposed Salmonberry Trail is an 84-mile corridor connecting eight cities and two counties. The proposed route follows the Port of Tillamook Bay Railway and terminates in Banks. For more information contact Dennis Wiley, Salmonberry Trail project manager, at 503-986-0723 or dennis.wiley@oregon.gov. Individuals needing special accommodations to attend should contact Dennis Wiley at least three days in advance. Oregon Coast Hotels in these areas - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours More Oregon Coast below: More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging..... More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining..... Coastal Spotlight LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles Back to Oregon Coast Contact Advertise on BeachConnection.net All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright BeachConnection.net Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted Seventh-graders Jakhayla Jones and Makayla Knod carefully wiped away waterproofing wax from two small motors to ensure their aquatic robot would be able to stand the plunge. Knod and Jones' team carefully assembled pieces of their SeaPerch robot Wednesday morning as a part of Lamar University's Camp Code for Girls, a program aimed at addressing the "STEM crisis" of fewer women entering the computer science and programming industries. In 2015, women held only 24 percent of jobs in the science, technology, engineering and math fields, according to the latest report from the United States Department of Commerce. Sponsored by the Texas Workforce Commission, Camp Code for Girls tries to "meet the needs of education in the 21st century" and inspire young women to seek out careers in a male-dominated field along the way, said executive director Otilia Urbina. "I love science because you can discover things people don't even know yet, like going to space" said Jones, a Port Arthur ISD student. RELATED: BISD unveils new STEM Center The middle school age is "impressionable," according to Urbina, making Camp Code for Girls a perfect opportunity to introduce sixthto eighth-grade girls to science and technology skills ranging from computer programming to robot mechanics. Urbina said the philosophy is simple. "The university is here for a purpose," she said. "Research is what we do and then we let that filter to public schools." While recruiting the 150 students attending the three one-week camps, Urbina said they looked for gifted and talented students from area public schools, some of whom she worried were prone to "fall through the cracks" because of their socioeconomic status. "They come to us and leave with a message," Urbina said. "Education is your equalizer, no one can take it away from you. ... It doesn't matter who you are, dream big. This is your equalizer." From 2007 to 2011, 41 percent of past STEM camp participants later enrolled at Lamar University, Urbina said. Ninety-one percent majored in a STEM subject, she said. As the university's first science and technology camp geared to girls, administrator Rebecca Broussard said she believed Camp Code for Girls was "really big" for Lamar and Southeast Texas. Sujing Wang walked from group to group on Wednesday morning, helping students piece together their aquatic robots as Annie Carter, a retired Chevron Phillips civil engineer, taught the girls step-by-step. "It's always inspiring for young ladies to enter" computer science and technology fields, said Wang, who is one of three female professors in the university's computer science faculty. Beaumont's Skylar Hunt said her favorite part of camp was learning how to code. "Most boys code," said Hunt, whose dad works in the computer industry. Using Scratch, an introductory computer programming language for children, Hunt and other students designed a quiz game fit with their own customizations. TECHNOLOGY: Cell phones in classrooms: Helpful or harmful? "I'm the one able to control what I want to happen. I'm creating my own kind of thing," said Ariel Letman, of Beaumont. After college, Letman said she wanted to become a doctor or a computer engineer. "Maybe I can do both," she said. Today's workplace is a new reality, according to James Marquart, provost and vice president for Lamar's academic affairs, pointing to robots that flipped burgers or baked pizzas in fast food restaurants. Marquart said he's "jazzed" about the camp, which he said aligns with the university's diversification efforts. According to computer science department chair Stefan Andrei, there's typically one female for every three males in each class. As a Lamar computer science senior who volunteered to teach coding, Madison Boudreaux said she "believed in" Camp Code for Girls. "There just aren't many girls in computer science," said Boudreaux, who was one of three girls in a class of 40 computer science students last fall. "We're growing our own in our own backyard," Urbina said. This week's Newton County Sheriff's Report: "Please remember Ross and Peggy Talmadge of Buna in your prayers. Anyone with any information about their daughter, Jessica's death, please contact any police agency. RELATED: Buna woman found on highway dies Deputy Duncan received a stolen pistol. The call came in as a man shot himself. Didn't happen. He was arrested for assault and possession of stolen firearm. Late that day Deputy Kite recovered another stolen pistol from the same residence. Both pistols stolen from Orange county. We received a 911 call where a lady was having a baby on the side of the road. We had three officers close. They got there in time. The daddy was the real hero. However, Deputy Cathey, Deputy Blueitt and Chief Jackson were there helping. Don't know if I could have stayed hitched. Baby and mom transported to hospital and both mom and baby doing well. Dad and officers not so! A 15-year-old boy jumped on his mom. When we got there, he had already left. He came back the next day and we picked him up. He needed to be taken behind the wood shed instead of juvenile detention. Gotta go: Thought for the week: Love doesn't make the world go around. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile. Ya'll have a good week and if we can help, just holler. God Bless." Note: This report has been published exactly as received. A Beaumont man accused of making homemade bombs will appear in court next month for a competency hearing at which his attorney will pursue an insanity defense, according to court records. Mark Avery Rudd, 27, was arrested in early February after federal investigators uncovered two suspected destructive devices in his Beaumont home, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a statement. His hearing is set for Aug. 2, according to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. RELATED: Appeals court: Crystal Boyett to get competency hearing Rudd is charged with possession of an unregistered destructive device, according to his March indictment. He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted, as well as a maximum $10,000 fine and up to three years of supervised release. Rudd's attorney, public defender Gary Bonneaux, did not respond to requests for comment on Monday. While executing a February search warrant at Rudd's home in the 4800 block of Belmont Street, federal investigators said they found a cooler containing two devices. A Beaumont police officer at the scene said the department had been watching the house and had reason to believe there may have been explosives inside, according to previous Enterprise reporting. One of the devices was a two-liter bottle of liquid with wires extending from the top, according to court documents. The second bottle contained match heads, a strike plate and a "pyrotechnic device" with a fuse secured to a bottle of butane by duct tape, the documents said. RELATED: Meet one of the best bomb-detecting tools in SE Texas Investigators also found a 21-page notebook with details about how the explosives were made, including a handwritten note that read: "This is why you should not piss me off kabluey Chaos." FBI agents, Beaumont police and fire officials blew up the two suspected explosive devices by digging a hole and detonating the materials underground. Shortly after his Feb. 9 arrest, Bonneaux, requested a psychiatric exam. Rudd was then placed in "a suitable facility" for psychiatric or psychological exams, according to an order signed by Magistrate Judge Keith F. Giblin. If he is found not guilty by reason of insanity, Rudd could be committed to a mental hospital or other care facility for up to 10 years rather than go to prison, according to the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. U.S. Attorney's Office spokeswoman Davilyn Walston declined to comment on the case. Phoebe.Suy@BeaumontEnterprise.com Twitter.com/PhoebeSuy Hand-made laces taken from dresses and jackets from the Edwardian period are collaged and seamlessly combined in a Maison Martin Margiela jacket from the house's Artisanal Autumn/Winter 2012-13 collection. The laces were bought second-hand in France, Belgium and Great Britain: the jacket lapel is made from the satin underskirt of one such find, while the clasp brooch is an Edwardian crystal door handle found in New York. The jacket could be used as one of those unique garments that can break the boundaries between the modern and contemporary concepts (in this case modern looking vintage pieces are reused to create a contemporary design), but this is also one of the many perfect examples that allow us to enter into the delicately fragile world of the "Haute Dentelle" (on until 1st June 2019) exhibition at the Cite Internationale de la Dentelle et de la Mode (The Museum of Lace and Fashion) in Calais, France. The event - curated by fashion heritage specialist and author Sylvie Marot - illustrates the place occupied in ultra-contemporary fashion by the lace woven on Leavers looms. Lace in this event dialogues with Haute Couture as the exhibition features 65 designs from the collections (from 2012 to 2018) of 14 of the most prestigious fashion houses on the French and international scene, plus 65 samples of lace by 15 French lace manufacturers. The exhibition is also a way to pay homage to the French lace manufacturers who are turning their heritage into a laboratory for research and a source of creation. Time-consuming and complex to produce, lace making requires indeed a team of experts to assemble an entire piece. "Haute Dentelle" offers a unique chance to see very exclusive gowns and unique samples from close up as there are no display boxes creating a barrier between visitors and garments. The selection criteria was based on relevance and diversity, but the event curator hopes visitors will not just dream about the fashion designs on display, but will also focus on the different part of the lace-making process - from designing a piece incorporating lace to actually weaving the lace and then incorporating it in a design. Besides, visitors are encouraged to discover more about the actual history of lace: the only textile with a truly European origin, hand-made lace first appeared in the 16th century in Flanders and northern Italy. Characterised by an openwork support material and motif, it was mainly made employing two techniques: "needle lace" was made using a parchment, thread and needle; "bobbin lace" was created by a set of bobbins and with a lace pillow as a support. In the nineteenth century, the mechanisation of lace production sprang up in England, in the city of Nottingham, and later in France, in Calais, Caudry and Lyon. Mechanisation made lace production easier and expanded its use, yet, even though the new manufacturing technique made it less costly, it still required a numerous labour force with dedicated know-how. This know-how gravitated around the lace weaving loom known as the "Leavers" loom. At the beginning of the 1950s, there were some fifty haute couture houses and more than 150 lace manufacturers in Calais alone (the lace that has been produced in Calais for almost 200 years is exclusively mechanical, but it was initially inspired by hand-made lace), other production centres included Caudry and Lyon. Calais had more looms, though, as records show it boasted around 1,390 looms, while Caudry only had 400 and Lyon and Saint-Quentin had around 360; this meant that Calais was widely considered as the capital for mechanical lace. German industrialist, Karl Mayer developed in 1955 knitting looms that manufactured a new product - Raschel lace. Cheaper and technically lower than woven lace, it was still labelled "lace", so, to differentiate, French professionals created a trademark - "Dentelle de Calais". The exhibition clearly shows that, although at the moment there are just fifteen mechanical lace factories in France (there were 40 in 2001 and 230 in 1950...) and fewer than 1,000 Leavers looms still in operation throughout the world, there is a lace Renaissance in fashion. Both the technologies woven and knitted are being used for different applications: the former is employed for luxury pieces; cheaper lace is instead mainly mechanically produced in low-wage countries and, since most of us aren't able to make the distinction between the two types of lace, "Haute Dentelle" represents a great occasion to learn more about this textile. Organised in the temporary exhibition gallery, "Haute Dentelle" opens with Chanel's Haute Couture S/S 2013 designs, one of them a dress in laminated Leavers laces with scuba (a textile similar to neoprene). It continues with Viktor & Rolf and Zuhair Murad, passing through Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga, Gaultier and Margiela, all of them showing the diverse uses of mechanical lace in contemporary fashion. Each display case is dedicated exclusively to one couture house to show its originality, but the lace houses are put on the same level as the supplier is identified and the lace the raw material is documented in detail. This curatorial strategy allows visitors to look at the entire process behind the lace creation and learn more about modern manufacturing secrets and cutting-edge experimentations including waxed effects, lamination on rubber, transfer metalising and coating with silicone. Yiqing Yin's Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2013-14 dress features for example siliconised Leavers lace (a technique patented by textile designer Tzuri Gueta) and tulle by Sophie Hallette; a Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2017-18 gown by Bertrand Guyon for Schiaparelli features instead a tear motif rendered in lace by Calais-based manufacturer Darquer. The latter collaborated with the artist Rose-Lynn Fisher on this lace. One of Fisher's photographs from the "Topography of Tears" series - a study of tears under the microscope - was indeed the inspiration behind Darquer's "Tears & Lace" collection. In some cases the pieces on display are reinterpretations of previous ones: the "bourdon" lace (so called because of the presence of a cord - "bourdon" in French - which outlines the motif woven directly on the loom) in a Chanel gown, calls to mind the same technique employed in a 1968 design; a Balenciaga dress created in June 2015 is instead the new version of a 1957 dress made in a blue shantung, but the new version incorporates a hand-embroidered lace by the House of Balenciaga ateliers in India, and a lace mechanically embroidered on a Cornely machine by the lace manufacturer (Soltiss). In other cases apparent simplicity hides complex motifs or an intricate history: Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli's dress in Leavers lace (by Solstiss and Darquer) from Valentino's Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2015-16 collection looks almost monastic in its basic silhouette, but it actually includes collar and ailettes embroidered with round beads and structured with the use of a metallic thread. The various laces and tulles making up this dress amalgamate to create a new material: the superimposition of layers, cut-outs and inlays and the juxtaposition of motifs give a mysterious alchemy to this dress. A golden coloured laminette gown by Alberta Ferretti integrates a lace with a point d'esprit (dot) motif and another with a round motif, designs executed in the 1950s and 1970s that prompt visitors to consider again the dichotomy between what's modern in the history of fashion and what is contemporary. Maria Grazia Chiuri's tulle and Chantilly Leavers lace gown for Dior's Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2017 collection features a skirt with four flounced tiers of rounded petal-shaped laces by Solstiss, a motif that is directly linked to the house's iconic 1949 Junon dress. For fans of innovative creations, the most intriguing section of the exhibition will be the one looking at lace transformations: fashion designers such as Iris van Herpen borrow indeed the "lace effect", but they reproduce it with different and technologically advanced processes such as laser embroidery or 3D printing. Videos of catwalk shows, photographs, further sample laces (the Maison Lemarie has provided samples demonstrating research into textile manipulation) and a glossary and chronology complete the exhibition offer. While "Haute Dentelle" allows visitors to admire rare gowns (with just two exceptions, most of these pieces are on public display for the very first time) and photograph them as well (without flash), it closes on a rather sad note. Even though lace has entered other realms, inspiring architects and interior designers, furniture and home accessories such as tableware, or papermaking and jewellery, and artists create visually striking video installations inspired by the textile, and while there are university lecturers reintroducing lace in special projects (remember Mal Burkinshaw, Edinburgh College of Art Fashion Programme Director, and his "Silhouettes en Dentelle - Series 1"?), lace is absent from the syllabuses of most fashion and design schools because it is a material of great technical complexity, difficult to manipulate and costly. The major challenge for this exhibition is therefore to introduce students the future actors in the world of fashion and design to woven lace, so that they will get to know the opportunities that this textile can offer. Hopefully, there will be enough time to do so as "Haute Dentelle" will be on until 1st June 2019. Image credits for this post 1. Dress in appliqued Leavers laces, Alberta Ferretti, Couture Spring/Summer 2016 Collection (Solstiss and non-identified laces) Robin 2. Dress (detail) in appliqued, Leavers laces, Alberta Ferretti, Couture Autumn/Winter 2014-15 Collection (Solstiss and Darquer laces) Robin 3. Dress in Leavers laces, Alberta Ferretti, Couture Autumn/Winter 2016-17 Collection, (Dentelles Mery laces) Robin 4. Dress in mechanically overembroidered Leavers lace, Balenciaga, Ready-to-Wear Spring-Summer 2016 Collection (Solstiss lace) Robin 5. and 6. Dress in hand-embroidered Leavers lace, Chanel, Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2016 Collection (Solstiss lace) Robin 7. Chanel display, "Haute Dentelle", The Cite Internationale de la Dentelle et de la Mode, Calais, France. Photography by Fred Collier 8. Skirt (detail) in hand-cut Leavers lace with a floral motif, Chanel, Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2015 Collection (Solstiss lace) CHANEL, Karl Lagerfeld 9. Dress with flounced tiers of tulle and Chantilly Leavers lace, Christian Dior Couture, Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2017 Collection (Solstiss lace) DIOR 10. Dress in Leavers lace interwoven with laser-cut leather "lace", Iris Van Herpen, Ready-to-Wear Spring Summer 2016 Collection (Darquer lace) Robin 11. Dress (detail) in Leavers lace interwoven with laser-cut leather "lace", Iris Van Herpen, Ready-to-Wear Spring Summer 2016 Collection (Darquer lace) Robin 12. Dress and headdress in watered ribbon, tulle and Leavers lace, Jean Paul Gaultier, Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2016-17 Collection (Solstiss lace) Robin 13. Dress in Chantilly Leavers lace mechanically overembroidered with lurex, Louis Vuitton, Cruise Collection 2018 (Solstiss lace) Robin 14. Ensemble smoking jacket and trousers in Leavers laces, Maison Margiela, Couture Autumn/Winter 2012-13 Collection (Sophie Hallette and Solstiss laces) Robin 15. Dress in Leavers lace featuring an organic motif (macrophotography of tears), Schiaparelli, Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2017-18 Collection (Darquer lace) SCHIAPARELLI 16 and 17. Schiaparelli display, "Haute Dentelle", The Cite Internationale de la Dentelle et de la Mode, Calais, France. Photography by Fred Collier 18. Dress in Leavers laces, Valentino, Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2015-16 Collection (Solstiss and Darquer laces), Photography by Fred Collier 19. Dress in silk tulle and Leavers lace, and cape embroidered with ostrich feathers, Valentino, Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2014 Collection (Marco Lagatolla and Sophie Hallette laces) 20. Dress in jersey and Leavers lace, Yiqing Yin, Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2013-14 Collection (Sophie Hallette lace) Shuji Fujii 21. Dress in siliconised Leavers lace and tulle, Yiqing Yin, Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2013-14 Collection, (Sophie Hallette lace), Photography by Fred Collier 22. Jacket and skirt in recycled tulles laces, Viktor & Rolf, Haute Couture Autumn/Winter 2016-17 Collection Viktor & Rolf 23. Chanel display, "Haute Dentelle", The Cite Internationale de la Dentelle et de la Mode, Calais, France, Photography by Fred Collier 24. - 27. Zuhair Murad display, "Haute Dentelle", The Cite Internationale de la Dentelle et de la Mode, Calais, France, Photography by Fred Collier 28. Dress (detail) in Leavers lace overembroidered with beads and feathers, Zuhair Murad, Couture Autumn/Winter 2017-18 Collection (Sakae laces] Zuhair Murad 29. Chanel display, "Haute Dentelle", The Cite Internationale de la Dentelle et de la Mode, Calais, France, Photography by Fred Collier A federal judge in Texas blocked United Healthcare and Next Health from escaping a suit claiming Next Health ran a $100 million kickback scheme, according to Law360. Here is a timeline of events: 1. United sued Next Health in January 2017, claiming Next Health defrauded it by billing for unnecessary drug testing. 2. Next Health filed counterclaims in October 2017, stating United Healthcare was attempting to use litigation to force out-of-network laboratory service providers out of business. 3. In its motion to dismiss, Next Health claimed United Healthcares law claims were preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and the Federal Employee Health Benefits Act. 4. District Judge Karen Gren Scholer denied in part Next Healths motion to dismiss United Healthcares complaint, as well as Uniteds motion to dismiss Next Healths counterclaims. 5. Judge Scholer rejected most of Next Healths arguments that United Healthcares claims were preempted or barred under federal and state laws. A former customer service representative at Oklahoma City-based Oral and Maxillofacial Associates is accused of embezzling 34 patients' refunds, Oklahoma News 4 reports. Here's what you should know: 1. Erin Marie Bokemper, 31, allegedly took more than $24,000 from patients' accounts between October 2016 and September 2017. Police reports and search warrants allege she diverted the funds to two credit cards. 2. OMA discovered the alleged diversion through an audit and reported it to police June 1. 3. Ms. Bokemper was charged with felony embezzlement and computer crimes in March after a patient reported she never received her $1,000 refund for a canceled procedure. The facility concluded Ms. Bokemper sent the money to her personal account instead of to the patient. She is scheduled to appear in court in August for that case. 4. News 4 could not reach Ms. Bokemper's attorney for a statement, and an OMA employee did not comment. Here are 57 gastroenterologists making headlines in 2018: The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy bestowed its International Service Award on Ajay Kumar, MD, for his more than three decades of service. Marc Kennedy, MD, a Mount Pleasant, Wis.-based gastroenterologist, purchased 7.5 acres of land for $600,000 in Sturtevant, Wis. Twenty-one women filed lawsuits against Khalid Moussa, MD, alleging the gastroenterologist engaged in a number of inappropriate behaviors during exams. The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy appointed Steven Edmundowicz, MD, its next president. Gastroenterologist Daniel Brady, MD, is traveling between Springfield, Mo., and Mountain View, Mo., to offer services at Mercy St. Francis Hospital in Mountain View. Portland-based The Oregon Clinic President Craig Fausel, MD, is set to retire after 34 years in practice. Rajiv Sharma, MD, and Samuel Gun, DO, shared their thoughts with Becker's ASC Review on gMed, a Modernizing Medicine Co.'s, gGastro EHR system. Michael Weinstein, MD, president and CEO of Silver Spring, Md.-based Capital Digestive Care shared the story of Capital Digestive Care's 18-month EHR search with Becker's ASC Review. Portsmouth, R.I.-based University Gastroenterology named Robert Najarian, MD, medical director of its new Pathology Center in Portsmouth. Gastroenterologist Morris W. Beebe, MD, was one of five people arrested in the alleged assault of a 25-year-old woman. Hannibal (Mo.) Regional Medical Group welcomed board-certified gastroenterologist Khulood Ahmed, MD. Alberto Pena, MD, a pediatric surgeon at Children's Hospital Colorado in Aurora, received the 2018 American Pediatric Surgical Association Robert E. Gross Award for Excellence in Pediatric Research and Achievement for his contributions to pediatric colorectal surgery. Waco (Texas) Gastroenterology Associates is expanding by adding Christina Levings, MD, in response to increased demand. Sheila Crowe, MD, assessed the state of the American Gastroenterological Association in remarks at her final Digestive Disease Week as AGA Institute president, June 2 to June 5 in Washington, D.C. As he opened the 2018 AMA Annual Meeting, June 9 to June 13 in Chicago, American Medical Association President David O. Barbe, MD, recognized Larry Kosinski, MD, and several others for their efforts to "move medicine." The International Association of HealthCare Professionals is including Peter Francisco, DO, in its The Leading Physicians of the World publication. Top Doctor Awards named Jacquelyn Redd, MD, a 2018 Top Doctor in Rockville, Md. ISMIE Mutual Insurance Co. elected Adrienne Fregia, MD, to its board of directors. Rachna Shroff, MD, joined Tucson-based University of Arizona Cancer Center to serve as its gastrointestinal medical oncology chief. She will also serve as its Data and Safety Monitoring Board chair and as an associate professor. Kansas City (Kan.) VA Medical Center appointed Ahmed Saeed, MD, head of endoscopy. Garfield Grandison, MD, will begin seeing patients at King's Daughters Ohio in Portsmouth. Gastroenterologist Marc Subik, MD, is rejoining Marshall University, Marshall Health and Cabell Huntington Hospital, all in Huntington, W.Va. Freeport, Ill.-based FHN Memorial Hospital added gastroenterologist Timothy Laurie, DO, to its staff. Patient Preferred Physicians and Practitioners named Isaac Raijman, MD, a Patient Preferred Physician in Texas. Augusta-based Medical College of Georgia named Kenneth Vega, MD, its new chief of gastroenterology. The International Association of HealthCare Professionals recognized Saritha Gorantla, MD, in its The Leading Physicians of the World publication. Gastroenterologist Harold Bornstein, MD, claimed a letter decreeing then-candidate President Donald Trump was in "extraordinary" health was written by Mr. Trump himself. Kirk Bernadino, MD, became the newest gastroenterologist at Rockport, Maine-based Pen Bay Gastroenterology. The American Gastroenterological Association named Michael Kaczanowski, MD, a fellow. Colorectal surgeon Eric Haas, MD, reconstructed an ulcerative colitis patient's colon using the da Vinci Xi surgical robot at Houston Methodist Hospital April 16. Motus GI added Seth Gross, MD, to its medical advisory board. Becker's ASC Review spoke with William Chey, MD, of Ritter Pharmaceuticals' medical advisory board about the first treatment for lactose intolerance, the company's RP-G28. Nashua-based Southern New Hampshire Health appointed gastroenterologist Timothy Scherer, MD, its new CMO of Southern New Hampshire Medical Center in Nashua. Fort Myers, Fla.-based Riverwalk Endoscopy and Surgery Center gastroenterologist Asif Choudhury, MD, allegedly sexually assaulted two women while conducting colonoscopies. Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic's Paul Limburg, MD, is joining Exact Sciences as co-CMO. Lewes, Del.-based Seaside Gastroenterology Consultants will add Heather Barton, MD, to its staff, effective in July. Christina Ha, MD, performed Jimmy Kimmel's first colonoscopy at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Daniel Cornett, MD, joined the staff of Duluth, Minn.-based St. Luke's Gastroenterology Associates. Continental Who's Who named Kevin Collier, MD, of Silver Spring, Md.-based Capital Digestive Care, its 2018 Gastroenterologist of The Year. The National Institutes of Health awarded Boston Medical Center gastroenterologist Michelle Long, MD, a five-year, nearly $1 million grant to fund research on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease Top Doctor Awards named Sathya Kalangi, MD, a Top Doctor in Baytown, Texas. Wichita Falls (Texas) Gastroenterology Associates gastroenterologist and American College of Gastroenterology's Practice Management Committee Chairman Louis Wilson, MD, offered Becker's ASC Review his thoughts on where independent gastroenterology is headed and what independent GI physicians need to capitalize on to stay successful in 2018. Chapel Hill-based University of North Carolina professor of medicine and AGA Government Affairs Committee member Lisa Gangarosa, MD, spoke on the importance of continuing education and staying engaged through advocacy. Akron (Ohio) Digestive Disease Consultants partner and American College of Gastroenterology Board of Governors Chair Costas Kefalas, MD, shared his thoughts on the challenges of increased regulation and the importance of embracing emerging technology. Newark-based GI Specialists of Delaware gastroenterologist Michael Bass, MD, became a partner at Wilmington, Del.-based Limestone Surgical Center. Philadelphia-based Thomas Jefferson University Hospital gastroenterologist and American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Public and Member Outreach Committee member Austin Chiang, MD, spoke on the importance of public awareness of gastroenterology. Bishr Omary, MD, PhD, joined the AGA Institute's board as its vice president in June. The Medical Board of California accused gastroenterologist Parminder Singh Dhaliwal, MD, of gross negligence. Mount Vernon, Ill.-based Crossroads Specialty Clinic added gastroenterologist Khalid Naseer, MD, to its staff. Gastro Health President James Leavitt, MD, spoke about the importance of fighting burnout, market competition and what's in store for the booming practice in 2018. Visalia (Calif.) Medical Clinic added gastroenterologist Shirley Pua, MD, to its staff. Elizabeth City, N.C.-based Northside Park Gastroenterology and Endoscopy Center owner Michael Sue, MD, announced his intent to retire after almost 30 years in medicine. OrphoMed, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, named Mark Sostek, MD, its next CMO. GMed, a Modernizing Medicine company, named gastroenterologist Arnold Levy, MD, one of its gastroenterology EMR strategic advisors. Valeska Balderas, MD, was recognized as a 2018 Top Doctor in McAllen, Texas, by Top Doctor Awards. Morristown (N.J.) Medical Center's GI medical oncology medical director Angela Alistar, MD, is leading research into Rafael Pharmaceuticals' CPI-613, a pancreatic cancer therapy. Pensacola, Fla.-based Baptist Medical Group added gastroenterologist David Dozer, MD, to its network. Cincinnati-based Christ Hospital will appeal a ruling that denied its potential $24 million ASC in Northern Kentucky, the Cincinnati Business Courier reports. Here's what you should know: 1. Judge Thomas Wingate of Franklin County Circuit Court ruled against the ASC June 20, determining Christ Hospital couldn't furnish evidence the facility was needed. Edgewood, Ky.-based St. Elizabeth Healthcare objected to the ASC, requesting a summary judgement. 2. Christ Hospital replied July 20, challenging the ruling in the Kentucky Court of Appeals. The appeal process could take up to three years to resolve. 3. Christ Hospital contended Northern Kentucky residents needed an ASC close to their homes. Northern Kentucky already has nine ASCs, several of which are operated by St. Elizabeth. 4. St. Elizabeth said it might have to reduce the $112 million in uncompensated medical care and community benefit it provides annually if it loses business to Christ Hospital. 5. The 24,000-square-foot ASC in question would be part of a 150,000-square-foot medical complex projected to cost $40 million to $50 million. The healthcare complex is part of a $135 million mixed-use development. Christ Hospital can proceed with developing the rest of the mixed-use site despite the ASC dispute. 6. Christ Hospital CEO Mike Keating told the Courier Northern Kentucky residents "prefer and are asking for more health care options in the communities where they live. So we have decided to appeal the court's decision because we believe we can provide those needed healthcare options, notwithstanding the efforts of others to limit competition." 7. St. Elizabeth CEO Garren Colvin said he is confident the circuit court's ruling will be upheld. Hospitals are increasingly experiencing financial hardships due to factors such as changing reimbursement models, lower patient volumes and more competition in some markets. Amid these circumstances, some facilities find funding mechanisms or strategies, such as a system affiliation, to improve their financial picture and remain viable. However, others are forced to file for bankruptcy or close. At least nine hospitals have closed since Jan.1. And closures have particularly affected rural hospitals. Eighty-five such facilities closed between January 2010 and July 2018, according to research from the North Carolina Rural Health Research Program. Hospital closures, especially in smaller, more remote locations, can have negative effects on communities. When a hospital shuts down, the residents of the community it served are sometimes forced to travel much longer distances to receive certain types of medical services, and layoffs associated with hospital closures negatively affect the local economy. But understanding how hospitals get in financial distress can help facilities avoid shutting their doors. Identifying financially distressed hospitals James Langabeer, PhD, a professor with the school of biomedical informatics at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and other researchers recently set out to determine the overall prevalence of distressed hospitals in Texas, as well as contributing factors to the facilities' distress. For their 2018 study, they examined 310 acute care hospitals in Texas over the four-year period between 2012 and 2015 using data from the American Hospital Association's Annual Survey Database. To identify financially distressed hospitals, researchers calculated a z-score for every facility for each study year. The Altman z-score model is a weighted composite score of financial leverage, profitability, liquidity and capital structure. Hospitals are considered in "severe financial distress" if their score is less than 1.8, in "potential impending distress" if their score is between 1.81 and 3, and in "fair financial condition" if their score is greater than 3. The study found 50, or 16.1 percent, of acute care hospitals in Texas were in financial distress in 2015, up from 14.5 percent in 2012. The study also found smaller hospitals with less intensive and limited outpatient services were most likely to be close to bankruptcy over the four-year period. Strategies for combating financial distress To combat financial distress and possibly prevent bankruptcy or closure, Dr. Langabeer recommended hospital leaders calculate a comprehensive composite score, such as the Altman z-score model, for their facilities. He recommended this type of score because it integrates financial leverage, profitability, liquidity and capital structure, rather than only looking at individual measures, such as net income and days cash on hand. He said using a composite index can help hospitals predict and understand mainly from balance sheet and income statement perspective the factors that are driving trends in the organization's overall financial health. He recommended tracking those factors monthly. "It allows you to see where you're trending and how close you are to bankruptcy conditions, or alternatively if you are getting healthier," said Dr. Langabeer. "I think the real crux of it is when you find yourself in grey zone or severely distressed category, you have to find a way to get out of it. We [at UTHealth] recommend thinking about it as turnaround because those with these low numbers will eventually go into bankruptcy, close or be acquired." Plano, Texas-based Community Hospital Corp., which owns, manages and consults smaller market hospitals, agreed forecasting provides significant insights that can help hospitals understand their financial picture and where they need to focus their efforts to improve or maintain their financial position. Before implementing a turnaround plan, it can be helpful for hospitals to see how they stack up against other hospitals. To help hospitals with this process, CHC has pulled data from hospitals' Medicare annual cost reports, and it can use that data to calculate different financial metrics for an individual hospital and compare those benchmarks to other facilities of similar size, according to vice president of due diligence and strategic analysis Michael Morgan. CHC's financial forecasting model also focuses on revenue cycle management, expense management and other areas hospitals can look at to improve solvency. Additionally, the model may consider productivity measures, such as the number of full-time equivalent employees per occupied bed, to determine if the facility staffing levels are appropriate for volume. "Often the more distressed hospitals are rural, independent. Those are the hospitals we're trying to help," said Mr. Morgan. "So, that's what we've done on the financial distress forecasting side, and what we want to do with the information is bring clarity with [the hospital's] leadership and board and help identify financial trends." Tod Beasley, senior vice president of hospital financial operations at CHC, agreed. "Having that information is really the start to them [hospitals] being able to make appropriate strategic decisions," he said. "Rural hospital[s], they're very fragile, so minor missteps can be big missteps and decisions that are not correct or based off of wrong data can lead to ruin. But being able to have this information can sometimes be a light that goes on in leaderships' mind[s] and shines a light on what they should be doing." Once hospitals have information from financial distress forecasting, they should establish a specific turnaround strategy and think about the strategy in terms of supply chain, financials, operations, and strategic marketing, according to UTHealth's Dr. Langabeer. For example, low patient volume is often a contributing factor to financial distress. So, hospitals must think about how to increase patient volume in the facility's strongest service lines, he said. He also encouraged hospitals to think about how to develop referral networks, expand to new markets, and build strategic partnerships with medical schools for residencies. "Think about what you are going to do different? You can't keep doing the same thing. Think about it systematically from all angles," he said. Dr. Langabeer noted that many hospitals use cost cutting as a primary part of their turnaround strategy. However, he believes an effective turnaround plan requires more than just cutting costs. "We see people extend accounts payable cycles and [implement] layoffs, but they're not thinking about the business. They're thinking about the finance, and that doesn't work with this," said Dr. Langabeer. "Think about the business as a whole and not just efficiencies as much." More articles on healthcare finance: 13 latest hospital credit rating downgrades 7 recent hospital, health system outlook and credit rating actions Health insurers overtake hospital stocks: 4 things to know A new Medicare proposal would essentially pay physicians the same rate for all office visits, reports The New York Times. Under the Trump administration's plan, physicians would basically be paid the same for these visits no matter the patient's condition or services rendered. Federal officials would pay physicians one rate for visits with new patients (about $135) and one rate for established patients (about $93). The government said the plan is designed to cut the time physicians spend on paperwork. "Time spent on paperwork is time away from patients," said CMS Administrator Seema Verma, according to the Times. She projected 51 hours of saved clinic time per physician annually under the proposal. Critics of the proposal, such as oncologists, cite multiple potential negative effects, including underpaying physicians who care for more complex patients and spurring some providers not to treat as many Medicare beneficiaries. Medicare now recognizes five levels of office visits. Level 1 is mostly for nonphysician services and involves the least comprehensive care and patient, while Level 5 involves the most comprehensive care and patient. Read more about the proposal here. More articles on healthcare finance: RCM tip of the day: Train registrars on insurance billing details Wilshire Group adds senior revenue cycle consultant: 3 things to know 5 new developments on ACA's risk-adjustment payments 1. Comments must not be racist, misogynistic, homophobic, or otherwise bigoted. 2. Comments must not involve little more than name-calling and insulting remarks. 3. Comments must not be made by "anonymous" or "unknown". 4. Comments must not try to sneak in some free advertising for themselves (like spam). I invite anyone who wishes to comment on this blog to do so. I enjoy the comments, whether you agree with what I have said or not. But some people want to abuse the right to comment, and since this is my blog, I have decided to lay down the following rules. If your comment violates these rules, it will not be published. In this special Speaker Series, Becker's Healthcare caught up with Kim Swafford, group vice president of telehealth and health technology strategy at Providence St. Joseph Health in Renton, Wash. Ms. Swafford will speak during the Becker's Hospital Review 4th Annual Health IT + Revenue Cycle Conference on "Aligning IT with Business Goals: Dealing with Practical Challenges" at 2 p.m. Friday Sept. 21 Learn more about the event and register to attend in Chicago. Question: Can you share your best advice for motivating your teams? Kim Swafford: My best advice for motivating teams is to keep team members informed. Not only of the wins, but also the opportunities and challenges, and the need to develop new solutions. For a team to be motivated it must be a collaborative experience, ensuring team members are free to express their ideas. Q: In the past 12 months, how have you adapted to new patient experience expectations in the age of consumerism? KS: [We have been] increasing channels for consumer connections, creating an omni-channel experience where the consumer can interact with the health system on their terms. Our organization has made great strides over the last several years to launch new communication channels, [such as] chatbots and enhance existing channels via phone interactions, online scheduling, apps etc. Q: What's the best thing you've read lately? KS: A wonderful book called, Lovability: How to Build a Business That People Love and Be Happy Doing it [by Brian De Haaff]. This book provides excellent insight on how to focus on developing a complete product experience that creates loyalty, trust and love. It provides an innovative perspective of how startups create new products, focusing on the customer experience and team culture in a unique way. Healthcare workers at Rhode Island Hospital and Hasbro Children's Hospital in Providence are set to begin a three-day strike July 23 unless a last-minute deal is reached. The workers, which include nurses, are represented by United Nurses and Allied Professionals Local 5098. They are slated to walk of the job over issues such as wages and benefits. "It's something that we have to do. We don't want to do it. [Providence-based] Lifespan, [the parent company], created this nightmare and they have the means to put it to a halt," Sherry Tomasso, RN, told ABC6. The strike is slated to begin at 3 p.m. ET. To prepare for the walkout, Lifespan paid $10 million to bring in temporary workers, and that money came out of the wage offer in its final proposal rejected by workers July 19. In other strike preparations, Lifespan said Rhode Island Hospital's emergency department has been on diversion since early July 22, and the state advised EMS providers to bring stroke patients to the closest primary stroke center at other hospitals before and during the strike. Additionally, hospital officials have rescheduled elective services and all nonurgent diagnostic testing during the work stoppage. "Rhode Island Hospital has not wavered in our mission to deliver world-class, compassionate care. While we greatly value the expertise of our 2,400 nurses and technical staff and would prefer that our patients' care remain in their hands, we must continue with our core mission to deliver quality care during this difficult time," hospital officials said. Meanwhile, both sides are scheduled to return to the bargaining table at 8 a.m. ET July 23, per the federal mediator's order. Editor's note: As of about 2 p.m. CST, the strike had commenced. Theranos, the embattled blood-testing company formerly helmed by Elizabeth Holmes, has settled a shareholder lawsuit filed by investors, according to The Wall Street Journal. Five things to know about the case and settlement: 1. The civil case was brought by former Silicon Valley investment banker Robert Colman and other indirect Theranos investors. They accused Theranos of falsely claiming its technology could diagnose nearly 200 diseases from a drop of blood. 2. In March, the company settled civil fraud allegations by the Securities and Exchange Commission. However, it did not admit or deny wrongdoing, according to the report. In June, Ms. Holmes, the founder of Theranos, resigned as CEO. Federal prosecutors subsequently filed criminal charges against Ms. Holmes and the company's former president and COO Ramesh Balwani, accusing them of defrauding investors, physicians and patients. 3. Theranos avoided bankruptcy by securing a $100 million loan from Fortress Investment Group in December. However, the amount investors could potentially recover is dwindling amid the company's rising legal costs. 4. The terms of the latest settlement reached July 20 in the civil case were not revealed in court filings. An attorney representing Mr. Colman and the other plaintiffs, as well as David Taylor, Theranos's new CEO, declined to comment to the WSJ. 5. The July 20 settlement comes as an HBO documentary about Theranos is in the works. Filmmaker Alex Gibney has sought to make public video depositions from two Theranos cases, according to the WSJ. A judge ordered attorneys for Theranos to start the process of releasing at least parts of the videos. Screenwriter Vanessa Taylor, who co-wrote the Oscar-nominated film "The Shape of Water," also revealed she will write a screenplay for "Bad Blood," an upcoming movie about Theranos. More articles on legal and regulatory issues: HHS launches investigation into pending closure of Ohio hospital Former HHS leaders: Stark and anti-kickback laws 'harm the very patients they are supposed to protect' SEC proposes $30M cap on whistle-blower awards Paul Farrell, an attorney from Huntington, W.Va., is leading one of the largest lawsuits in modern U.S. history, which combines more than 800 suits from cities and counties nationwide against drug manufacturers and distributors, according to Bloomberg. Here are six things to know: 1. Mr. Farrell is one of the lead attorneys for this case, working alongside Joe Rice and Paul Hanly, who served as litigators for a $246 billion deal with the tobacco industry in 1998 the largest corporate settlement in U.S. history, according to Bloomberg. 2. Mr. Farrell heads up a five-lawyer firm and legal consortium, which represents more than half of the municipalities suing drugmakers and distributors. 3. He grew up in West Virginia and watched his community transform into what Bloomberg calls "the opioid capital of the world." "I have people my age that I know that are addicted to opioids," Mr. Farrell told Bloomberg. "I know people that have children in their early 20s that they have lost." 4. Mr. Farrell's argument for the lawsuit rests on a West Virginia public nuisance law meant to address complaints over common community issues like landfills or environmental waste. However, he is arguing opioid makers and wholesalers created a public nuisance with the opioid epidemic, and now local governments must spend millions of dollars to address it. 5. If the local cities, states and counties win the suit against the drug industry, they could receive up to $50 billion, according to one estimate cited by Bloomberg. Twenty-five percent of that would go the law firms including Mr. Farrell's representing the cases. 6. Mr. Farell did not share an estimate for a settlement amount, as the judge overseeing the case issued a gag order barring all lawyers from disclosing specific negotiation details. More articles on opioids: 10 congressional districts with the highest opioid prescribing rates Mallinckrodt, Endo sue drug dealers & online marketplaces over illegal opioid sales: 7 things to know Hospitals can cut opioid prescriptions by lowering EMR's pill default amount, study finds Good Samaritan Hospital, a 491-bed facility in Dayton, Ohio, closed July 23. Here are five things to know: 1. Dayton-based Premier Health, which owns Good Samaritan Hospital, first announced plans in January to close the facility. Premier said operating two hospitals Good Samaritan and Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton within 5 miles of each other had become unsustainable. 2. In June, Premier announced it would close Good Samaritan July 23. 3. One week before Good Samaritan was schedule to shut down, HHS launched an investigation into whether closing the hospital would have a disproportionate effect on African-American residents. Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley publicly called on Premier Health July 17 to not demolish the hospital until after the agency completes its investigation. 4. Premier Health moved forward with the closure of Good Samaritan as scheduled. The hospital shut down its emergency room July 19, and the facility completely closed at 12:01 a.m. on July 23. 5. The closure of Good Samaritan's ER did not have a significant effect on wait times at local hospitals, according to the Dayton Daily News. Wait times at Miami Valley Hospital and Grandview Hospital in Dayton were 23 minutes and 19 minutes, respectively, on July 22. More articles on patient flow: Texas hospital unable to meet Medicare regulations ceases inpatient, ER services Arkansas hospital to shutter urgent care, rheumatology clinics Texas hospital ends labor, delivery services after 31 years After Pawtucket, R.I-based Memorial Hospital closed last year, The Miriam Hospital and Rhode Island Hospital, both in Providence and operated by Providence-based Lifespan, are caring for more patients causing the emergency rooms to operate at capacity, RIPR reports. Although there are proposed plans to purchase and reopen Memorial Hospital, the facility is currently closed, leaving staff at other hospitals struggling to care for an influx of ER patients. "The waiting room where patients walk in [is] standing room only," Melissa Arruda, a nurse at Rhode Island Hospital, told RIPR. "There are 15 stretchers lined up where the ambulances come in in an area that really should only hold five." With the ER operating at capacity, it often runs out of stretchers, and nurses must look for more just to get patients out of ambulances, Ms. Arruda said. The number of hours on diversion at Rhode Island Hospital increased 80 percent from January through July compared to the same period in 2017, according to state health department data cited by RIPR. Diversion hours at The Miriam Hospital rose over 200 percent during the first seven months of this year compared to the same period in 2017, state health department data shows. Lifespan increased staffing levels and added a 10-bed unit in Miriam's emergency department, officials said. The presidents of Miriam and Rhode Island hospitals testified during public hearings on how Memorial's closure affected the two hospitals' ED patient volumes. "With the number of patients and the inability to get them seen, we have sicker patients waiting longer than we would like," Ms. Arruda said. "As the nurse, that is never your intention." Lifespan said their patients are receiving excellent care and the health system strives to treat everyone in a timely manner, according to RIPR. UnitedHealth Group's insurance business, UnitedHealthcare, will sell individual policies on Massachusetts' government-run insurance exchange after largely exiting the exchanges in 2017, according to the Star Tribune. UnitedHealthcare is required to sell individual coverage for 2019 on Massachusetts' exchange, as the nation's largest health insurer now covers 5,000-plus state residents through small employer health plans. Under Massachusetts law, individual and small-group markets are merged, requiring UnitedHealthcare to sell on the individual exchange as well. "It wasn't necessarily a voluntary decision on our part," David Wichmann, CEO of UnitedHealth, told investors the week of July 16, according to the Star Tribune. "I'm going to kind of reaffirm that nothing has fundamentally changed since we made our decision several years back now." The health insurer abandoned most of the country's ACA exchanges, save for Nevada and New York, after it lost $1.3 billion on the individual market in 2015 and 2016. More articles on payers: 560-member New York medical group expands risk-based contracts with Aetna, Anthem, WellCare Judge dismisses 18 states' lawsuit over Trump's cost-sharing reduction cuts Highmark Medicare Advantage members to go out of network with UPMC in June 2019 In Hawai'i, nursing strives to and prides itself in evidence-based practice and data-driven nursing workforce policy and recruitment and retention programs. In 2003, nursing, healthcare leaders and policymakers established the Hawai'i State Center for Nursing with a mandate to promote quality practices and best outcomes in nursing and conducting research on the current and future status and trends of the nursing workforce. Today, we at the Center for Nursing remain stalwart in our efforts to fulfil this vision. In late June 2018, a report from Medicare Health Plans stated that Hawai'i has the fewest nurses per capita in the nation. This is both false and a poor contribution to workforce supply and access to care discussions. The report underreported the nurses who work in Hawai'i by 80 to 87 percent, depending on if you refer to our state labor or licensing data. In numbers, the report only included what is equivalent to the licensed practical nurse workforce, and entirely omitted what is equivalent to every single registered nurse in Hawai'i. When the report used data stating that we have only 2,700 nurses, instead of roughly 13,000-19,000 that our state labor or licensing data reports, respectively, the accuracy of the report is going to be very, very wrong. Recognizing that the data used in the report were inaccurate, I contacted the data source immediately. The data were taken down and work efforts are underway to correct this issue. Unfortunately, the developers of the report have not yet retracted their report or issued any public notice to organizations, groups, and/or individuals that have read the report. This is not evidence-based reporting. Instead, it is harmful, inaccurate, but eye-catching reporting. We don't need meritless alarm in an era of healthcare access insecurity, healthcare provider burnout, and ever shifting benchmarks for care. Moving on, let's get the story straight. Per capita is a poor method to analyze capacity to care. The Healthcare Workforce Technical Assistance Center notes in their Health Workforce Analysis Guide (2016 Edition), that assessing the true need for healthcare workers is difficult, as healthcare is so rapidly changing. Additionally, demands for healthcare are multifaceted and ever-shifting with changes to the healthcare delivery model, population health emphasis, integrated service delivery systems, payment reform, and team-based care all having impacts on the number, and the type, of healthcare professions needed to provide safe, high-quality, and timely care. Beyond this, different populations have different needs. It is well recognized that populations with poor social determinants for health have higher healthcare needs. Though Hawai'i is incredibly expensive, and we have our own health inequities, we have continuously lead in well-being across the nation, according to Gallup. These influences are more impactful than a general count of nurses per person. There are other factors that influence access to care and quality of care. As a member of the National Forum of State Nursing Workforce Centers, the Hawai'i State Center for Nursing utilizes the Forum's Nurse Supply Minimum Dataset to assess our existing workforce. The Hawai'i State Center for Nursing 2017 Nursing Supply Survey indicates that nurses are well distributed. This tells us that we don't have a distribution problem. This is good, primarily for our rural and neighbor island populations, because it tells us that nurses are in their own communities, ready to care for the people who live in them. Additionally, the majority of nurses are employed in a single full-time nursing position that requires 37-40 hours per week. Nurses are not reporting the overwhelming workload that this study suggested, based on the hours worked and jobs held. Nurses are a stable workforce and are consistently a high demand profession. According to the Hawai'i State Center for Nursing 2017 Survey, over 80 percent of our nurses intend to stay in their position within the coming year, and 90 percent intend to remain working as a nurse for at least the next five years. A stable workforce has performance stability, organizational and clinical knowledge and experience that is critical for maintaining high quality care. That we have a stable workforce should be lauded as a success! One of Hawai'i's greatest healthcare strengths is that our nursing population is one of the most highly educated nursing workforces in the nation, with 72 percent of our registered nurses holding a bachelor's degree or higher in nursing compared to 54 percent of the nation. At nearly 18 percentage points higher than the national average, this gives our nurses additional skills and resources for patient care and navigating the complex healthcare system. Across the state, we see working associate degree prepared registered nurses selecting to deepen their nursing knowledge and skills through additional education. We are seeing nursing students choose to either immediately transfer into a bachelor's in nursing program or select a bachelor's program from the outset. Our nurses are investing in themselves and choosing lifelong learning as a commitment to caring for the people of Hawai'i and achieve improved outcomes. That we have a stable, highly educated, and geographically well-distributed nursing population does not imply that there are no inequities in care. Rather, it is meant to convey the complexities of assessing if our current workforce is meeting the demand for healthcare services. It recognizes our strengths, which can be leveraged to enable our state to address gaps in healthcare needs and unique characteristics. With this state-specific information, we can better respond to the unique needs of our state relative to the healthcare delivery system, payment methods, social determinants of health inequities, as well as our unique, island influences on healthcare delivery and wellness. Hawai'i is not the "worst," nor the "most overworked." Further, I caution using these wash-terms on the national level, and instead encourage readers to find the state healthcare workforce researchers, policymakers, and planners to help validate and clarify national data that can only be done when the local conditions are well known, and considered. Laura Reichhardt, MS, APRN, AGNP-C, is the director of the Hawai'i State Center for Nursing and an adult-geriatric nurse practitioner. She advocates for nurses through national, state and local initiatives and through partnerships with schools of nursing, nursing employers, healthcare partners and policy makers across Hawai'i. Here are 14 new minimally invasive spine device launches or releases in 2018 so far. GS Medical launched the AnyPlus Extended Tab Minimally Invasive Pedicle Screw system. NuVasive launched the Reline MAS Midline system for posterior fixation. Life Spine unveiled the Centric-T Pedicle-Based Retractor System. Spinal Elements released its Clutch interspinous process device. Medtronic unveiled its SynergyTLIF(SM) workflow at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons annual meeting, April 28 to May 2 in New Orleans. Fujifilm New Development launched the Fujifilm Ultra-Slim Video Laparoscope System and the Fujifilm Full High Definition Surgical Visualization System. In Q2 2018, joimax released an endoscopic spine surgery system in a limited market launch in the U.S. and Europe. Globus Medical launched Elsa AL and Elsa-ATP, two expandable interbody spacers with screw fixation. Life Spine unveiled clinical advancements to its procedural solutions with the Centerline Cortical Screw System and the Prolift Expandable Spacer System. SpineCraft launched the Panorama retractor for minimally invasive spine surgery. Globus Medical unveiled its Creo Fenestrated Screw System, featuring threaded, nonthreaded and minimally invasive spine screw head options. More articles on MIS: 10 new MIS studies in 2018 7 MIS surgeons on the move in 2018 Dr. Ryan Halpin joins Mason General Hospital & Family of Clinics: 3 insights The Maine Orthopaedic Review celebrated its 60th anniversary at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Here are five things to know: 1. MOR is the longest-running board exam preparation course in the U.S. 2. It is held each summer on the Colby College campus. 3. MOR prepares orthopedic candidates for the oral boards with five and a half full days of lectures. 4. MOR also offers participants an online question bank that replicates OITE and board exam questions. The question bank includes nearly 11,000 questions and answers with references and is available 24/7 for 10 days. 5. ABOS part 2 candidates or recertifying orthopedists can review all cases through MOR's mock oral exam portion. More articles on practice management: EmergeOrtho continues to expand 4 notes Neurosurgery residents make $61k & 5 more findings from Medscape Seaside Spine Medical Associates merges with Scripps Clinic: 4 notes Gun Control Advocate Misrepresents Massachusetts Court Decision on Common Rifles By Dean Weingarten. July 22nd, 2018 Original Source In an interview in Mother Jones, a leading gun control advocate, Avery Gardner, makes the following claims. From motherjones.com: AG: There's a case in Massachusetts that raises this exact issue. Worman v. Baker was decided in April by Judge William Young. It's a 47-page opinion that really goes into this question of "in common use at the time" and said that's the standard. Judge Young quotes Scalia's opinion in Heller all the way through it and then upholds the Massachusetts law banning assault weapons. That case is going to be appealed to the First Circuit Court of Appeals. The Second, Fourth, Seventh, and the DC Circuit have all upheld assault weapons ban, so I predict the First Circuit will, too, but somebody's going to appeal that to the Supreme Court, and we will have this discussion about what does "in common use at the time" mean? I think it's likely that Judge Kavanaugh will be Justice Kavanaugh by then. And we know what he thinks because he already told us--he wrote that dissent in the DC case. Avery Gardner (AG) misstates what Judge William Young writes in his opinion. In Worman v. Baker, Judge Young does not rely on the "in common use at the time" argument. He instead makes the claim that AR15 rifles are "most useful in military service", and therefore are not covered by the second Amendment. That claim turns the 1939 Miller decision on its head. He bases his claim on Justice's Scalia's words that the Heller decision does not invalidate the federal regulation of full auto firearms such as machine guns. Judge Williams pointedly rejects the "in common use" argument, stating that because AR15 type rifles have military purposes, they fall completely outside the scope of the Second Amendment, whether they are in common use or not. ....... Anti-gun judges often seem to like to place their own interpretation on the Second Amendment in order to dilute it to suit their views. The old arguments concerning "common use at the time" when the 2A was written, and, exclusions based on military type weapons continue to be arguments towards furthering 'gun control'. The individual right argument remains central even today but various states have seen fit to legislate to fight that, as well as restricting numerous aspects of gun ownership. "You don't have to be Jewish to fight by our side." You just have to love freedom. 2018 JPFO All rights reserved. jpfo@jpfo.org 1-800-869-1884 Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership 12500 NE 10th Pl. Bellevue, WA 98005 USA "America's most aggressive defender of civil rights" We make the NRA look like moderates Join JPFO Back to Top Last year, Orlando (Fla.) Orthopaedic Center experienced a security breach that exposed patient information on the internet, according to the Orlando Sentinel. Here are five insights: 1. Orlando Orthopaedic Center became aware of the breach in February and began investigating. Patients affected by the security breach have been contacted. 2. A transcription service vendor server was unsecure in December 2017 after a software update, which caused its contents, including protected health information, to be viewable on the internet. 3. Information exposed from the breach included: Names, date of births, treatment types, insurance information and employer Social Security numbers of a limited number of patients 4. No credit card or banking information was compromised in the security breach. 5. Orlando Orthopaedic Center is not aware of any fraud reports, theft or improper use of the at-risk information since the security breach. A small plot of land in Belfast city centre could become an 11-storey 'green' apartment block if a 2m project goes ahead. Yorkshire-based Amstel Developments wants to build 10 apartments in a compact empty space between the Ibis Hotel and College Central apartment complex, close to CastleCourt shopping centre. The site was placed on the market by CBRE last year with a list price of 125,000. It's understood that Amstel paid close to that sum. Philip Lee of Arcus Architects, who designed the project, described the proposal as "innovative" and "environmentally responsible". Adapting lessons from projects his firm has completed in Scandinavia, he labelled the narrow high-rise as "a mini version of what can be done". He suggested that its energy-saving nature could see it even send power back to the grid. "It's probably going to be the first high-rise green building in Belfast, which means its energy usage is going to be incredibly low. We're trapping energy within the building, we're storing energy within the building, we're not releasing energy into the atmosphere," Mr Lee explained. Subject to planning approval, the narrow development would create a ground floor lobby/amenity area, with each of the 10 floors above housing a 36 sq m single-bedroom apartment. The bid was lodged with Belfast City Council's planning department earlier this month. Mr Lee continued: "Belfast's planning office are looking for innovation within the city centre. "We felt this was a good opportunity to say contextually this is what you can do to increase the vitality of the city. It creates a very minimal footprint on the environment within the city, but also gives people the enjoyment of living in the city centre." The design concept for the project suggests that the high-rise block could return an energy surplus to the grid through solar panels on the roof. The document continued that along with 'integrated heat recovery systems and advanced heat pump technologies', this could make it 'one of the most environmentally conscious tall buildings in Belfast'. Mr Lee said the developer had given Arcus "a free hand" to be creative with the project. "It is quite innovative in terms of what is achievable in Belfast. It is going to break down a number of boundaries." He believed too many residential developments in Belfast had been "bland" and failed to respond to the city environment. Adding that the city needed to catch up with its European neighbours, he said: "Belfast needs those little bits that sparkle around the city centre that make people react and start thinking about their city." A Belfast IT company has expanded its operations by acquiring the clients of another business. Zenith Networks, which is based on Newtownards Road, said the deal with GSL in Larne was its third major acquisition in recent years. It also bought over Lyle Distribution in Dromore, Co Down. Zenith managing director Martin Lyons said his company had been growing for the last year, and had moved into new premises. And acquiring the GSL client base had been "mutually beneficial". "We have been expanding our own client base quite significantly both in the geographic areas in which we operate and in the sectors where we have specialisms. "For example we now deliver on the IT needs of quite a significant percentage of the hospitality market across Northern Ireland. We now service the IT needs of 10 leading hotels including a number in the North West which is a growing tourism market." He said clients were serving customers on a global basis, with their systems managed from its base at Portview Trade Centre. Zenith has recently signed new deals with the Beannchor Group, Victoria Square Shopping Centre and Eastside Partnership in east Belfast. And Mr Lyons said the firm had been in the process of finalising another acquisition when the GSL deal came up. "With the GSL deal now complete and bedded down we can focus on the other live acquisition prospect, while also growing our customer base organically in Northern Ireland and beyond... "We are right where we need to be and the GSL acquisition goes a long way to securing our status as a leading independent IT service provider in NI.'' McColls shares plunged after half-year profits halved, with the convenience store operator having suffered one of the most challenging trading periods to date following the Palmer & Harvey collapse. The retailer saw pre-tax profits tumble to 2.3 million over the 26 weeks to May 27, compared with 4.5 million during the same period last year. The company was hit with costs linked to the collapse of Palmer& Harvey, which fell into administration in November and caused unprecedented supply chain disruptions. It also affected McColls like-for-like sales, which fell 2.7% in the first half of the year, with weather disruptions and tough competition resulting in additional strain. During the first half we experienced unprecedented supply chain disruption following the collapse of P&H last NovemberMcColl's chief executive Jonathan Miller The news sent McColls shares down more than 15% in morning trading. Chief executive Jonathan Miller said it was one of the most challenging six months the business has ever faced. During the first half we experienced unprecedented supply chain disruption following the collapse of P&H last November. This temporary upheaval has inevitably impacted sales and margin performance in the c.700 stores that were formerly supplied by P&H, and has also had knock-on effects on the rest of the estate. As a result, McColls launched a supply partnership with Morrisons earlier than planned, with the grocery group now set to be stocking 1,300 of its stores ahead of schedule in early August. Mr Miller also highlighted the relaunch of the Safeway brand at its stores and promised improved earnings. Expand Close McColls is transitioning to supplies from Morrisons (Chris Radburn/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp McColls is transitioning to supplies from Morrisons (Chris Radburn/PA) We will therefore have a progressively stronger and simpler operational position with a more compelling offer as we move through the second half and into 2019. Total revenue for the period rose 19.2% to 601.7 million, which McColls said was driven by the acquisition of around 300 convenience stores from Co-op in 2017. It said food categories like chilled and fresh produce were making strides, growing 48% and 45% respectively. The chief executive said McColls would continue to improve the quality of its estate through store refurbishment and said further acquisitions were on the cards. As the convenience sector continues to grow, we remain confident that our clear strategy will allow us to make further progress and deliver sustainable returns for shareholders. McColls also announced the departure of its finance chief, Simon Fuller, who is leaving to take up the same role at Reach the newspaper group known previously as Trinity Mirror. The company said Mr Fuller will stay in his post until a replacement has been found and an orderly handover has taken place. Rab McCullough at his surprise 70th birthday concert with wife Marian, daughter Louise and sons James and Robert jnr Belfast blues musician Rab McCullough toasted his 70th birthday with a surprise concert that celebrated his life in music. The event, which was organised in the Black Box in Belfast by close family members, was attended by a host of familiar names from the local and international music scene. They were treated to jamming sessions from music guests as well as performances from Manuka Honey and Soul Foundation, plus a DJ set by Terri Hooley, who described Rab as a legend. Rab, who had a record deal with Warner Brothers and shared stages with names such as AC/DC, Rory Gallagher and Van Morrison, as well as opening for Jimi Hendrix, has also played with musicians from Cream, The Rolling Stones and Amy Winehouses band over the last 50 years in the music business. He is renowned for holding the longest residency in Northern Ireland, with a 21-year stint at The Empire Music Hall in Belfast, and he made front page news when Hollywood A-lister Tim Robbins joined him on stage in 2008. He continues to play across Europe, headlining festivals and flying the flag for the blues. Rab said: Im shocked but Im also really pleased to see so many friends and family here. I cant thank them enough for coming along and making the effort. I cant think of a better way to spend my birthday than enjoying my favourite music surrounded by all these people. The UK-Ireland border issue is "manageable", former UK Brexit Secretary David Davis said yesterday. Speaking in his first major interview since resigning from Theresa May's Cabinet last week over her Chequers Brexit plan, Mr Davis said the border issue was "heavily misunderstood". "The point that people forget is that there is a border there already. "There's a VAT border, there's an excise border, there's a legal border, and it's managed perfectly well as it stands by the Irish and British customs and police authorities together," he told the Sunday Express. "With a decent amount of interaction between our agencies, it's manageable." The former minister - who has been a prominent pro-Brexit voice in Parliament for many years - said the Irish Government had last December insisted on using the phrase "full alignment" and was now trying to use that terminology as a lever in the negotiations. "Of course there are two understandings of 'full alignment'," he commented. "Our understanding is clear - it's full alignment of outcomes. That doesn't create a barrier down the Irish Sea. "What we can't say suddenly is 'Oh, it (Northern Ireland) is going to be in the single market'. "That's an affront to the integrity of the United Kingdom." Mr Davis' intervention was supported by former Secretary of State Owen Paterson, who told the newspaper that the UK-Ireland border had been "shamefully exploited by Brussels and Remainers" in a bid to block Brexit. Mr Paterson, who was Northern Ireland Secretary from 2010 to 2012, said: "Suggestions that Brexit might threaten peace in Northern Ireland are politically motivated and shamefully irresponsible." The Shropshire North MP dismissed speculation about potential border checkpoints and freight traffic delays. "Avoiding such a border is perfectly achievable with modern technology and the goodwill which exists on both sides," he said. Both the UK and Irish Governments have already said they do not intend to erect any customs checkpoint infrastructure at the border between the UK and the Republic after Brexit. Mr Davis' upbeat view comes as both the UK and the EU step up preparations to cope with a 'World Trade' Brexit, which will happen if the EU does not agree a mutually satisfactory trade deal with the UK before next March's Brexit deadline. Prime Minister Theresa May has very little room for manoeuvre or concession to any further EU demand, after her Chequers plan triggered a series of Ministerial resignations. At the same time, chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier has already given Mrs May's Chequers plan a negative response, suggesting that it does not meet Brussels 'red lines', and could mean that the UK would be a major trade competitor to the EU after Brexit. Meanwhile, in the Republic, Border Minister Joe McHugh continued to warn that Brexit may endanger the peace process. Speaking to the Irish Mail on Sunday yesterday, the Donegal TD said a hard border "would - in one fell swoop - squander a peace process that was so hard won". "You are looking at a peace process that, despite its 20-year span, is still in its infancy," he said. The minister said the recent upsurge in violence in Derry "indicates how hard it is to undo the consequences of the previous five decades". And Fine Gael Jobs Minister Heather Humphreys - who recently attended a GAA match in Clones with DUP leader Arlene Foster - told the paper: "We can never take peace for granted...even a single customs post will cause chaos. "We would be at the edge of an economic wilderness." Fianna Fail's justice spokesman Jim O'Callaghan said hundreds of Garda officers could have to be relocated to border areas after Brexit. He continued, calling on the Republic's Government to "wake up to this appalling prospect and ensure that the gardai are adequately resourced should an unpredictable hard border develop". Sinn Fein has called for a special EU summit to be held in September to resolve the Irish border issue before the crunch October talks. The Irish border remains a sticking point in the Brexit talks despite the UK and EU agreeing there should be no hard border in Ireland. However, the two negotiating teams have failed to agree how this could be achieved. Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald and deputy leader Michelle O'Neill met with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday. Mrs McDonald said: Last weeks visit by Theresa May to Belfast has raised very serious concerns over the British governments approach to Brexit. In December we were told that a backstop was a cast-iron guarantee, that the Good Friday Agreement would be protected in word and spirit, and that there would be no diminution of rights for Irish and EU citizens in the north. The British government is seeking to row back on these commitments and to bin the December agreement. Theresa May is placing her personal self-interest to stay in Downing Street ahead of the needs of Ireland, north and south. The British government is now engaged in a game of brinkmanship which puts our all-island economy and our agreements at risk. There is no certainty and no clarity on Irish interests. The EU has made clear that without the backstop there will be no Withdrawal Agreement and that the interests of Ireland must be dealt with in line with the December agreement. Michel Barnier assured us this remains the case and that Britain must agree workable solutions in line with the December agreement. We believe that this must be given affect and the EU should call time on British Government stalling. The EU should hold a special summit in advance of October to resolve Irish issues before closing on the withdrawal agreement. Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab has accused the EU of "irresponsibly" ramping up pressure in withdrawal negotiations. The comments came as he indicated he was still trying to persuade all members of the Cabinet that Theresa May's Chequers compromise agreement was "the best plan to get the best deal". As Mr Raab - who has said a deal with the EU can be reached by October - readied to return to Brussels for more Brexit talks on Thursday, he signalled that Britain could withhold its 39 billion divorce bill if it did not get a trade deal in return. He was scathing about comments from Brussels stating that a no deal scenario would mean there would be no specific arrangements in place for UK citizens living on the Continent, or for EU migrants in Britain after withdrawal. Mr Raab told BBC1's The Andrew Marr Show yesterday: "Well, I think that's a rather irresponsible thing to be coming from the other side. "We ought to be trying to reassure citizens on the Continent and also here. "There is obviously an attempt to try and ramp up the pressure." The Brexit Secretary said there had to be "conditionality" under the Article 50 withdrawal mechanism between settling Britain's exit payment and creating a new relationship with the EU. He told the Sunday Telegraph: "Article 50 requires, as we negotiate the withdrawal agreement, that there's a future framework for our new relationship going forward, so the two are linked. "You can't have one side fulfilling its side of the bargain and the other side not, or going slow, or failing to commit on its side. "So, I think we do need to make sure that there's some conditionality between the two." The comments appeared at odds with Chancellor Philip Hammond, who said of the divorce payment last December: "I find it inconceivable that we as a nation would be walking away from an obligation that we recognised as an obligation. "That is not a credible scenario. That is not the kind of country we are. Frankly, it would not make us a credible partner for future international agreements." Mr Raab also defended the controversial Chequers Cabinet compromise on withdrawal aims, insisting he wanted to persuade voters and Cabinet colleagues. Asked if reports the Government was planning to stockpile food for a no deal outcome were true, Mr Raab told the BBC: "No. That kind of selective snippet that makes it into the media I think is - to the extent that the public pay attention to it - I think is unhelpful." On the same show, former Prime Minister Sir John Major became the latest prominent Conservative to leave the door open to a new referendum, insisting that such a vote would be "morally justified". On a second referendum, Sir John told The Andrew Marr Show: "I mean, frankly, a second vote has democratic downsides. It has difficulties. "But is it morally justified? I think it is. "A referendum isn't an easy option, but it's not one at this stage that I would rule out." Hundreds of lives across Northern Ireland are being saved by a programme that screens for a catastrophic condition that can kill within minutes. Each year around 80 to 100 people here die from a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). Most people with the condition will not know that they have an aneurysm as they rarely have symptoms, but it is often life-threatening if it bursts - a ruptured AAA leads to serious internal bleeding that is fatal in 85% of cases. Research shows that men are six times more likely to have this type of aneurysm than women, and the chance of having one increases with age. As a result health officials launched a screening programme in 2012 for men over the age of 65. Since then more than 49,000 men have been scanned and 759 AAAs detected. More than 110 men have been referred to the vascular team, which decides whether the patient requires surgery. The remaining 85% of men who have tested positive for AAA are routinely monitored by health professionals to check whether it is growing in size. John Toner (69), from Newcastle, Co Down, attended a screening appointment four years ago and was diagnosed with AAA as a result. "I was invited to go along for a scan and was told I had a small aneurysm," explained Mr Toner. "I was totally unaware of it and if it hadn't been for the scan I wouldn't have known anything. "It was a very straightforward and painless procedure, I was quite amazed by it all." The father-of-five and grandfather-of-seven was originally recalled for a scan on an annual basis and, when he returned the following year, it emerged that his aneurysm had increased in size." He added: "You get such great reassurance from the public health team who look after you. "I was feeling great when I found out I had an aneurysm, but really I was a ticking time bomb and I had no idea." Sarah-Louise Dornan, the Northern Ireland AAA screening programme manager, said it is vital that men attend for a scan when invited. "Results are given on the same day and more than 98% of men will have a normal result, however, for those who have an AAA, it allows us to monitor them and take appropriate action to manage the risk," she added. "It isn't too extreme to say that this programme saves lives." Gun Control Advocate Misrepresents Massachusetts Court Decision on Common Rifles By Dean Weingarten. July 22nd, 2018 Original Source In an interview in Mother Jones, a leading gun control advocate, Avery Gardner, makes the following claims. From motherjones.com: AG: There's a case in Massachusetts that raises this exact issue. Worman v. Baker was decided in April by Judge William Young. It's a 47-page opinion that really goes into this question of "in common use at the time" and said that's the standard. Judge Young quotes Scalia's opinion in Heller all the way through it and then upholds the Massachusetts law banning assault weapons. That case is going to be appealed to the First Circuit Court of Appeals. The Second, Fourth, Seventh, and the DC Circuit have all upheld assault weapons ban, so I predict the First Circuit will, too, but somebody's going to appeal that to the Supreme Court, and we will have this discussion about what does "in common use at the time" mean? I think it's likely that Judge Kavanaugh will be Justice Kavanaugh by then. And we know what he thinks because he already told us--he wrote that dissent in the DC case. Avery Gardner (AG) misstates what Judge William Young writes in his opinion. In Worman v. Baker, Judge Young does not rely on the "in common use at the time" argument. He instead makes the claim that AR15 rifles are "most useful in military service", and therefore are not covered by the second Amendment. That claim turns the 1939 Miller decision on its head. He bases his claim on Justice's Scalia's words that the Heller decision does not invalidate the federal regulation of full auto firearms such as machine guns. Judge Williams pointedly rejects the "in common use" argument, stating that because AR15 type rifles have military purposes, they fall completely outside the scope of the Second Amendment, whether they are in common use or not. He rejects the Caetano decision from the Supreme Court, in favor of other appellate decisions the Supreme Court refused to hear. The Heller decision is clear. The weapons protected are those in common use. From U.S. v. Heller: Some have made the argument, bordering on the frivolous, that only those arms in existence in the 18th century are protected by the Second Amendment . We do not interpret constitutional rights that way. Just as the First Amendment protects modern forms of communications, e.g., Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union, 521 U. S. 844, 849 (1997) , and the Fourth Amendment applies to modern forms of search, e.g., Kyllo v. United States, 533 U. S. 27, 35-36 (2001) , the Second Amendment extends, prima facie,to all instruments that constitute bearable arms, even those that were not in existence at the time of the founding. The "common use at the time" phrase used by Justice Scalia refers to the time the Miller decision was written, in 1939, not to the time the amendment was passed, in 1791. Avery Gardiner either mis-read the rather plain English in Justice Scalia's opinion, or is misrepresenting it. In the Caetano decision by the Supreme Court in 2016, the Court unanimously upheld that the Second Amendment applies to all bearable arms, "even those that were not in existence at the time of the founding". The Supreme Court has rejected the theory that the Second Amendment only applies to those arms in common use in 1791. The theory that the Second Amendment does not apply to arms that are militarily useful is not the only error in Judge Young's decision. Judge Young starts his decision by claiming the Second Amendment was not considered an individual right until recently. From Worman v. Baker: For most of our history, mainstream scholarship considered the Second Amendment as nothing more than a guarantee that the several states can maintain "well regulated" militias. The idea that the Second Amendment only applies to "well regulated" militias is known as the "collective right theory". Judge Young's claim is in direct contradiction to the majority opinion written by Justice Scalia in Heller. From Heller: It is demonstrably not true that, as Justice Stevens claims, post, at 41-42, "for most of our history, the invalidity of Second-Amendment-based objections to firearms regulations has been well settled and uncontroversial." For most of our history the question did not present itself. Judge Young only quotes select sources from 1966, 1978, and 1971 to support his collective right claim. But historical sources show the judge is mistaken. The collective right theory had almost no adherents until the Kansas Supreme Court adopted it in 1905. But the Kansas Supreme Court decision only applied to the Kansas State Constitution's right to bear arms. The collective right theory, applied to the Second Amendment, started to become part of Progressive ideology after the Kansas Supreme Court decision. It became popular after 1939 with mis-interpretation of the Miller decision. The veracity of the theory was not supported by academic research. It was merely assumed. The theory started being attacked in law review articles in 1983. Critique of the collective right theory went mainstream when famed constitutional scholar Sanford Levinson penned his article "The Embarrassing Second Amendment". The collective right theory was mainstream from after 1939 to 1983, for 44 years, unsupported by academic research. For most of the history of the Second Amendment, from 1791 to 2018, the mainstream opinion has been that the Second Amendment protected an individual right. Williams' poorly argued decision was published on 5 April, 2018, before Justice Kennedy decided to retire. The Supreme Court had been unwilling to hear Second Amendment cases since 2011, outside of Caetano. Judge Williams might have presumed the Court would refuse to hear his case. He may have thought the First Circuit would also ignore Caetano. Caetano applied directly to Massachusetts. There is a chance the First Circuit will follow the Caetano decision and reverse Judge Young's ruling. As Avery Gardner notes, there is an excellent chance Judge Kavanagh will be seated on the Supreme Court as Justice Kavanagh by that time. Judge Kavanagh has already written that semi-automatic rifles are protected by the Second Amendment. If Worman v. Baker is appealed to the Supreme Court, there is an excellent chance the court will restore more Second Amendment rights. The existing infringements on the right to keep and bear semi-automatic rifles are fairly new, enacted in the last 25 years in a handful of states. 2018 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included. Gun Watch Back to Top Emergency services giving first aid to the Army cadets in the Mournes Emergency services giving first aid to the Army cadets in the Mournes A series of failings led to an Army cadet expedition in the Mournes ending in a major rescue mission, a report has found. Children as young as 12 were stranded in the Co Down mountains last August when the weather became treacherous. They were part of a group of about 70 - 10 of them adults -from the Cleveland Army Cadets Force taking part in a camp. Eight had to be stretchered off the mountain. A report into the incident, obtained by The Observer, identified basic failings. Army documents said the incident "could easily have been more serious", and can "best be described as a 'near miss'." It refers to inadequate supervision and clothing. Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie - a former solider - said: "This report is damning. "We are very lucky that the incident finished as well as it did because the outcome could have been so much worse. "It is absolutely clear that lessons have to be learned." Around 70 children from Cleveland army cadet force were walking across the Mournes on August 2 last year when the weather turned. The group was left isolated and exposed to the elements, with the Coastguard, ambulance and helicopter crews all involved in the rescue mission. Internal Army reports on the rescue, released under the Freedom of Information Act, discuss how the incident "could easily have been more serious". They said "the conditions for potential and serious failure had existed for some time". They also question the risk assessments carried out before outdoor adventure programmes and raised the need for adequate contingency planning. One assessment said that the trip's exercise director had assumed the Mournes were classified as "normal" when they are actually designated as "wild country", m aking them unsuitable for the training of certain classes of cadet. It said: "It is suspected that some of the leaders/supervisors were not sufficiently qualified or experienced to lead expeditions in the Mourne Mountains" and added that two of the cadet teams did not have a dedicated adult instructor. Normally such trips would have an instructor to student ratio of 1:10. But one team leader was responsible for 19 cadets. The report said: "On arrival (at the emergency rendezvous) there were only five adult instructors with the 64 cadets remaining on the mountain (a ratio of almost 1:13), which exceeded all of the recommended ratios." The report also described how expedition organisers used a weather app to ascertain the conditions, which was unsuitable for establishing the true conditions the cadets would encounter. Mr Beattie said it was clear that basic precautions had not been taken. "It highlights a number of fundamental failings that should never have happened," he continued. "When you run any form of expedition or exercise it must be thoroughly planned and look at the capabilities of the people you are taking out and what happens in the event of something going wrong. "It is absolutely clear - and I thought this at the time - that this was not planned to the level it should have been." The Ministry of Defence was contacted for comment, however it had not responded by the time of going to press. The M2 was closed in both directions following a five-vehicle crash on the southbound side of the motorway. Presseye Police are appealing for anyone who may have dashcam footage of a collision in which a man was killed on the M2 motorway outside Belfast to come forward. The incident took place on Sunday at 3:50pm after police received several reports of a silver car travelling in the wrong direction along the M3, Belfast from Sydenham bye-pass towards the M2. Read More Five cars were involved in the subsequent pile-up just before 4pm. One man was killed while three others were described as "walking wounded". Witnesses described the scene of the crash as "horrific". Scores of firefighters and medics attended the scene as well as the Air Ambulance. We are working to establish where this vehicle joined the M3 and its subsequent movements prior to the collision. I would appeal to anyone who has dash cam footage of this vehicle or information relating to this incident to contact the Collision Investigation Unit at Sprucefield on the non-emergency number 101, quoting reference 1004 22/07/18," Inspector Andrew Wilson from the Collision Investigation Unit said. I also wish to express my thanks to the members of the public who have already come forward and provided us with dash cam footage and witness accounts leading up to this road traffic collision. Mourners gather at the church for a final farewell to the nurse who died after an accident on holiday Colleagues pay their respects at the funeral of Seaneen McCullough Colleagues of Belfast nurse Seaneen McCullough, who died in an accident while on holiday, formed a guard of honour at her funeral on Saturday. The 37-year-old fell from a balcony in Turkey. She was on holiday with her partner Paul and son Eoin. Mourners at Corpus Christi Church in Ballymurphy heard she was an "outstanding" nurse at the Mater Hospital. Fr Patrick McCafferty paid tribute to the "inestimable" contribution she made to other people through her work. He said: "Seaneen wasn't just a nurse, she was an outstanding nurse. "She ministered to the sick, not only with the important skills she had acquired in study and training, but also with the beautiful gifts of her own mind, heart and spirit, with which she was blessed in abundance and which were a blessing to so many others." Quakers in Ireland have agreed to the holding of same-sex marriages in their meetings for worship. The Religious Society of Friends - commonly known as Quakers - took the decision at its yearly meeting, held at Limerick Institute of Technology over the last five days. A statement said: "If any Quaker Meetings, solemnisers or members do not wish to participate in meetings for worship for same sex-marriages as a matter of conscience, there is no obligation to do so. "This is to facilitate the range of views held within the Society. "Quakers have a diversity of views on marriage between people of the same sex taking place in a meeting for worship because of the range of their theological, spiritual and biblical approaches but we are united through love for one another." The Religious Society of Friends in Britain was one of the first Christian groups in the UK to campaign for same-sex marriage in 2009. A man charged with taking part in an illegal republican parade claims a ban on contacting co-accused breaches his human rights, the High Court heard today. Martin Conlon's lawyer also said he "lives in fear" of contravening his bail terms by unwittingly bumping into one of the others. Conlon, 49, faces charges over an Easter commemoration parade held in Lurgan, Co Armagh on March 31. Police arrested a number of men dressed in suspected paramilitary-style clothing at Levin Road in the town. Conlon, of Tarry Drive in Lurgan, is charged with taking part in an unnotified public procession. He faces a second count of wearing clothing as a member or supporter of a proscribed organisation. Prosecution barrister Robin Steer claimed the items involved a paramilitary-style uniform of green jumpers, a mesh scarf and beret. Conlon is not accused of belonging to any outlawed grouping. In April he was granted bail along with five co-defendants on conditions with included a curfew and having no contact with each other. His legal team returned to court in a bid to have those terms varied. A defence lawyer said Conlon lives 150 yards from one of the others charged with the same offences. "He lives in fear that he will accidentally bump into the co-accused and be arrested," counsel argued. "He contends that the condition breaches his Article 11 right to freedom of association." Lord Justice Treacy heard Conlon is a member of Republican Sinn Fein - a political and non-proscribed organisation which meets to discuss ongoing social issues. The judge agreed to lift the curfew condition. But dismissing the contact application on a without prejudice basis, he told the defence to draft further written arguments on the point before returning with any fresh legal bid. Masked intruders allegedly attacked a man with a claw hammer as he lay in bed with his girlfriend, the High Court heard today. Prosecutors claimed he was targeted at the woman's east Belfast home in the early hours of April 29. One man has been charged with the violent break-in based on tattoos on his neck, a judge was told. Richard Mailey, 24, of Brookvale Drive in the city, denies aggravated burglary, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and criminal damage. During a bail application Crown lawyer Robin Steer described how two men with their faces covered allegedly broke into the house at Geary Road. It was claimed they entered the bedroom and attacked the complainant with a claw hammer in front of his girlfriend. A decommissioned firearm worth 400 was stolen in the raid, according to the charges. "The injured party gave chase with a pick-axe handle," Mr Steer said. That man claims he recognised Mailey from tattoos spotted on his neck, the court heard. He also allegedly heard the unidentified accomplice shout "Get in the car Ricky". Defence barrister Declan Quinn countered that an alibi witness will back Mailey's case that he wasn't involved. "If it happened it was nothing to do with him," he said. Counsel argued that the false allegations against Mailey were linked to the complainant being in a relationship with his former partner. Mr Quinn also disclosed that his client suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, requiring supported accommodation for his complex mental health needs. Describing the alleged offences as "very violent", Lord Justice Treacy adjourned the bail application after studying a doctor's report. The judge told the parties he wanted to make more inquiries about the availability of the appropriate accommodation. More than 200 jobs are to be created at a Co Tyrone firm specialising in ground support equipment for the aviation industry (Joe Giddens/PA) More than 200 extra staff are to be recruited at an aviation industry firm in Co Tyrone. Mallaghan Engineering in Dungannon makes ground support equipment such as baggage conveyors and stairs for commercial aircraft. The company is developing an airport bus as part of a multimillion-pound investment which is predicted to require 210 new staff over five years. Expanding our product offering to include our airport bus is an exciting new direction for us which we hope will contribute to export sales from early 2019Ronan Mallaghan, CEO of Mallaghan Engineering Ronan Mallaghan, CEO of Mallaghan Engineering, said: Mallaghan is one of the fastest-growing airport ground support equipment manufacturers worldwide and this expansion is designed to help secure the future growth of our business. Working with Invest NI has enabled us to accelerate our investment plans, ensuring we have the manufacturing capacity and capabilities to build on our share of the high lift market. We aim to further grow our market share of the global aviation industry and will be actively targeting opportunities in the US and China. Expanding our product offering to include our airport bus is an exciting new direction for us which we hope will contribute to export sales from early 2019. Invest Northern Ireland chief executive Alastair Hamilton said the productivity boosting capital equipment and extensions to Mallaghans factory space will help the company satisfy growing demand worldwide. He said: We are pleased to be able to support Mallaghan to implement measures that will help significantly expand its customer base and boost export sales. The companys focus on innovation, leadership training and skills development will ensure that its workforce has the depth and breadth of skills and also the technology to help Mallaghan realise its growth ambitions. Mallaghan designs, manufactures and supplies ground support equipment for the global aviation industry. It includes high lift trucks for catering and cleaning as well as de-icing rigs, water and waste trucks, baggage conveyors and passenger stairs. The firm has been offered more than 3 million of Invest NI support towards its research and development, capital and skills investments. Controversial new bus lanes come into operation in west Belfast today and already at least one business on the Falls Road has decided to close its doors because of new parking restrictions that will hit its customers. Bus lanes between McKinstry Road roundabout and the city centre will start operating this morning ahead of the start of the Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service, which begins in early September. The new service has already faced criticism from the owner of the the Little Mexican Deli on the Falls Road who said it has had to close because of restrictions on parking imposed by the new bus lanes. The restrictions would prevent customers parking outside the shop and will hit their revenue, the owners said. It's understood the owners will now concentrate their efforts on their other outlet at the Dairy Farm Shopping Centre on the Stewartstown Road. Retail NI chief executive Glyn Roberts has also criticised the restricted parking times for their potential effect on small retailers. Mr Roberts said he hoped there wasn't an over-zealous approach to fines for motorists as the lanes come into force. "We have said in the past that the high numbers of fines for drivers straying into the bus lanes is worrying," he said. When the Glider system becomes operational on September 3, the route in west Belfast will run between McKinstry Road roundabout and the city centre, via Stewartstown Road, Colin Connect Transport Hub, Andersonstown Road, Falls Road and Divis Street. It will continue from there through to Dundonald in east Belfast. The bus lanes on the Stewartstown Road, Andersonstown Road, Falls Road and Divis Street will operate from 7am to 7pm, Monday to Saturday. This includes a loading/unloading window between 10am and 2pm and a facility for vehicles displaying a blue badge to stop for up to 10 minutes to drop-off or pick up a blue badge holder. Drivers are currently in training for the new Glider buses. The new service is the culmination of years of work, West Belfast MLA Alex Maskey told the Belfast Telegraph last night. "It's a big change. People will be worried. "However, we'll just have to wait and see how thing go when it's fully operational." Mr Maskey said a huge amount of work had been put into making the new service a success. He also thanked everyone involved for their patience as the infrastructural works were carried out. Mr Maskey added there would potentially be some teething problems. But he added that with a little goodwill on all sides, plus careful management and responsiveness to any community concerns about the implementation, the new transport arrangements and vehicles would be of great benefit to the people of the city. "There's been an enormous amount of outreach work and preparation done over the past few years, the MLA said. "Inevitably, there will be some teething problems that'll emerge once the new system is up and running. "But we have to make it work." Adventurer Noel Hanna has become the first person from Northern Ireland to conquer K2 - the world's second-highest mountain. The news was delivered in a Facebook post by his wife Lynne, who is also an experienced mountaineer. She said she was thrilled that Noel had made it to the summit. "I am absolutely delighted to share the news that Noel Made summit of K2 this morning 21st July. "He has just called to say he is safe at base camp. I cannot begin to say how proud I am of his achievement." Mr Hanna scaled Everest in 2006. Three years later he repeated the feat with Lynne. He told BBC NI that K2 was a much bigger challenge than climbing Everest. "I had a few beers last night and a few beers today with some fellow climbers, but here in Pakistan, whenever you're on the mountain, it's hard to celebrate," he said in a phone call from base camp. "If anybody was thinking of coming out to do K2, certainly you would need a lot more technical experience than you would for Everest and some of the other mountains. "Summit day is a very long day." He added: "You don't need to be crazy but probably the major factor is the weather - that has to be on your side." Known to mountaineers as the 'Savage Mountain', K2 is one of the most dangerous and difficult climbs on the planet. Located on the China-Pakistan border, it's estimated that one in every five who have tried to reach the summit has died. The Dromara man, who describes himself on his website and "an adventurer", now has plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa. He will also attempt to scale Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps and the highest in Europe west of the Caucasus in Russia. Just hours after Noel reached the summit of K2, another Ulsterman, Jason Black from Donegal, completed the feat. In an audio message to his family posted on social media, Mr Black said he was "absolutely smashed, it's the only word I can use, but elated at the same time". "This was hell, this was absolutely hell and back," he added. "I'm only halfway there - I have to get safely down - but so far so good." Mrs May meets people from the Belfast Youth Forum during her visit to the Crescent Arts Centre last week A Northern Ireland student who came under criticism for publicly pledging support for Prime Minister Theresa May has said she will not be deterred by "hateful comments" on social media. Tory activist Aine Lagan (20) is among a number of online 'superfans' who are standing by Mrs May. The politics, philosophy and law student at King's College in London describes herself online as "a girl from Northern Ireland who ended up being a feminist and a Conservative - writes about that - and Theresa May a lot". Hailing from mid Ulster, Aine started the social media hashtag #ImWithMay, which is now being widely used by young, mostly female Conservatives as "a way to show support to the PM". On Friday, as Mrs May was on the second day of her visit to Northern Ireland and delivering her keynote Brexit speech at the Waterfront Hall, Aine tweeted: "I've always said the only leader I believe has the best interests of Northern Ireland at heart is Theresa May, and her speech in Belfast today is further proof of that #ImWithMay." She told the Belfast Telegraph she believed the Prime Minister's visit was a success. "Her speech in the Waterfront reaffirmed her commitment to prioritising Northern Ireland in the Brexit negotiations, her determination to see power-sharing restored and to help continue the work of her predecessors in helping Northern Ireland to move on from its past and thrive. "She once again used it as an opportunity to remind the public about her commitment to the Union, which is an 'absolute priority' for her." Aine said Mrs May's "calm, stoic resilience" inspired confidence and she believed that "if anyone can survive and see Brexit through, it's the Tory leader". "Her resilience and sense of public duty throughout her entire political career, but especially in recent months, are something to admire," she said. "While everyone on the sideline is arguing for 'their' version of Brexit, she's the one who has to negotiate our exit from the European Union and she has to be the most pragmatic to get a deal that works for all parts of the UK, including Northern Ireland. "We're yet again seeing people trying to predict her political demise. "They were doing that on election night last year and throughout last summer - and she's still here," she added. She also believes the Prime Minister has been given too little credit for her work on equal pay, increasing the number of female MPs and fighting modern slavery. She started the #ImWithMay slogan in response to an attempt by the former Conservative Party chairman Grant Shapps to unseat Mrs May following her disastrous speech at the Tory conference last year. "It was 1am with just me on Twitter as Shapps was claiming to have enough names to persuade the Prime Minister to consider stepping down. "It was never started as a campaign, but as a way to show support to her," she explained. Her political stance has led to a bitter backlash on social media, which Aine admitted had been difficult to deal with at times, especially when it comes from her own friends. "I think they use their feelings about the Prime Minister as a valid excuse to lash out at me. "I think if we want to get more people involved in politics, we need to remove the personal attacks, especially if they're within your own party," she said. "We can't encourage getting people into politics one minute, then personally attack them for who they support the next. "However, I'm very fortunate to have a close group of friends who are extremely supportive of me. "I think if you truly believe in what you're talking about and what you stand for, then you can withstand a lot of the hateful comments." Snow and ice could cause problems The road has been closed. Follow the latest updates from our travel feed below The Dobbin Road in Armagh has been reopend folowing an earlier crash. Diversions are in place and traffic is being diverted onto the Vicarage Road, delays are expected. Our live updates from across Northern Ireland are compiled by @TrafficwatchNI, @BBCNITravel and @PSNITraffic. A former Co Down mayor has described his "anger and sadness" at the news that homophobic hate mail was posted to the mother of a child who displayed the rainbow flag in her window. A former Co Down mayor has described his "anger and sadness" at homophobic hate mail being posted to the mother of a child who flew the rainbow flag in her window. The Co Down Spectator reports the Bangor mother received an anonymous note after the flag - associated with the LGBT+ Pride movement - was flown in her daughter's bedroom window. The note reads: "Those of us - 98% - who are NORMAL do not have a 'need' to fly a rag from our windows". Speaking anonymously to the Spectator, the woman said her daughter had flow the flag in her window alongside a Women's Suffrage flag, and had originally posted it after a Pride event last year. The Bangor mother said the reaction to the story had been positive, with people reaching out through social media to offer their support after she shared the story in a Facebook post. Reacting to the story on Twitter, former mayor of North Down Council (which was later assimilated into Ards and North Down Council) Andrew Muir said he was feeling a "mixture of anger and sadness" at reading the story. In a statement to the Belfast Telegraph, he said: "Events such like this merely re-emphasise need for everyone in political life to stand up for equality, diversity and against both discrimination and hate. "Representing all the colours of the rainbow, the Pride Flag is a positive vibrant celebration of diversity. Display of the Pride Flag reflects an open, diverse, outward looking society and should never result in such a hateful note. "Like many others I am looking forward to Belfast Pride as both a positive celebration of diversity and call for equality. "I hope that this proves to be an isolated incident within a Borough that I am proud to call home where the overwhelming majority of people in Ards and North Down are warm, welcoming, inclusive, and accepting of people regardless of sexuality." Councillor Andrew Muir became Northern Ireland's first openly gay mayor when he took up his position in 2013. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph in 2014, Mr Muir said he remembered walking through the streets of Londonderry in 1996 and having "rocks thrown at me and homophobic abuse hurled at me", and his election as mayor had been a "massive sign of progress and change". More than 170 UK and Irish politicians have called on the Government to reform Northern Ireland's abortion laws. The group, including Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem MPs and peers, MLAs and Irish TDs and senators, said it is a matter of protecting women's human rights and honouring the Good Friday Agreement. According to the group, nearly 1,000 women and girls were forced to travel to Britain for safe terminations in 2017, while others had to take illegal abortion drugs at home. New figures show the number of women travelling from Northern Ireland to England to have an abortion has increased dramatically since the Government set up a special hotline in March. A total of 342 women and girls - including at least one 12-year-old - went to England for a termination through the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) in the three months since March. That is a significant increase on the 190 women who travelled to use the same service in the previous nine months. Calls for our abortion laws to be reformed have intensified after a referendum in the Republic resoundingly backed liberalising legislation south of the border. Downing Street has previously said abortion law is a devolved issue. However, the absence of an Assembly at Stormont has placed pressure on Westminster to act. In a letter to the Sunday Times, the group has urged the Government to repeal sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 that makes it a crime for a woman to cause her own abortion in Northern Ireland. They wrote: "This is the first and critical step to ending the treatment of British and Irish women living in Northern Ireland as second-class citizens, who do not enjoy the same access to healthcare as their counterparts do across these islands. "We therefore call for our respective governments to act to ensure that the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement is upheld and the human rights of the women living in Northern Ireland are respected." Conservatives Sarah Wollaston, the chairwoman of the Commons Health and Social Care Committee, former minister Nicky Morgan and former party chairwoman Baroness Warsi were among nine Tory MPs and peers to back the calls. Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill and Mary Lou McDonald also signed the letter, along with Fine Gael Senator Catherine Noone, Labour deputy leader Tom Watson, Lib Dem deputy Jo Swinson and Home Affairs Select Committee chairwoman Yvette Cooper. A man who took his pet sheep called 'Chops' on a lead into a Lidl store in County Antrim and urged people not to buy lamb was asked to leave but then punched and also struck a store detective with a metal pole, a court was told. The extraordinary scenes involving Andrew Meneice (33), of Glenbush Drive, Portrush, happened at the Lidl store in the seaside town last July. Some of the scenes were captured on camera and caused a sensation on social media. Read More The defendant was taken to court following the incident and charged with two assaults on the store detective; being disorderly and resisting a police officer in the execution of his duty. He pleaded guilty to resisting the police officer but contested the other three charges. At Coleraine Magistrates Court on Monday afternoon he was found guilty of one of the assaults and being disorderly. The other assault charge was dismissed. Meneice was jailed for four months but was freed on 500 bail for appeal. He was also made the subject of a two years restraining order which bans him from taking 'Chops' into any retail business premises. Speaking afterwards, the defendant revealed he was an animal-lover and after getting 'Chops' he gave up eating lamb. He said he also has a pony, goat, ducks, chickens, dogs and cats. He said he liked animals so much because "I just get on better with them" and said he liked having 'Chops' as a pet because "she is better behaved than a dog". He added: "I got 'Chops' from a farmer I know who I re-homed stray kittens to. She was either going to be used for breeding or else end up in market so I took her. "That put me off eating lamb and I haven't ate lamb since I got her." Regarding the Lidl incident the defendant said he shouldn't have done it but added that he hadn't caused any harm and there was no damage. He said: "Chops didn't even go to the toilet in the place". Expand Close A shopper encounters the man and his sheep in Lidl / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A shopper encounters the man and his sheep in Lidl Sentencing the defendant, District Judge Liam McNally had said because he convicted him he couldn't give him any credit for pleading guilty. He said: "You paraded around with a sheep, you were making comments about 'not buying Lidl lamb'. You had no right to be in there with the the sheep." The judge said the sheep began nibbling at food and Meneice was making "pedantic" comments about the store's animal policy. "Staff made reasonable efforts to get you to leave," said the judge but Meneice then struck an employee with his fists and struck him with a metal pole. Handing down a four months prison term, the judge added: "That's a situation which this court will not tolerate". Judge McNally then asked if he had any powers to restrict the defendant having the sheep in public places. Defence barrister Eoghan Devlin said 'Chops' was legitimately registered with the Department of Agriculture & Rural Development. Expand Close A shopper encounters the man and his sheep in Lidl / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A shopper encounters the man and his sheep in Lidl The judge said he was making a two year restraining order banning Meneice from taking his sheep into Lidl before adding he didn't want the defendant turning up at a Sainsbury's or Tesco and made the ban to include any retain business other than a 'sheep mart'. Earlier, Lidl store detective David Bennett told the court he saw a "male with a sheep on a lead" entering the Portrush shop and Meneice, "whose eyes were glazed" and appeared intoxicated, became agitated and verbally abusive after being told to leave. Mr Bennett explained that because of health and safety and hygienic reasons he "couldn't bring a sheep into the store". Mr Bennett said the defendant began shouting and when he was told the police were being called his voice became "more raised". Mr Bennett said he blocked a punch from the defendant and after being led outside Meneice continued to swing punches at him before the defendant broke off a part of a display and struck him with a metal bar which he partially blocked with his arm but was hit on the face. The store detective said Meneice also tried to spit on him during a barrage of verbal abuse. He said he took the defendant to the ground in a controlled fashion and Meneice threatened that when he got up he would "kill" the store detective. Expand Close A shopper encounters the man and his sheep in Lidl / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A shopper encounters the man and his sheep in Lidl Mr Bennett denied a defence claim that Meneice only became agitated after being placed in a headlock as both him and the sheep were dragged out the door. Mr Bennett said Meneice had made reference to guide dogs being allowed in the store and that although other dogs were banned the defendant had claimed: "This was a sheep not a dog". The store detective said he took action to remove the defendant and the sheep when it attempted to eat food in the supermarket. Store manager Tomas Fusek said when he told Meneice the only animals allowed in were guide dogs the defendant, who was carrying a tin of Harp lager, had told him to "speak English". He added the defendant was "totally out of order" because "you don't normally come to a store with a sheep on a lead". Lidl customer assistant Jonathan Gerrish said Meneice had earlier been in the store that day with his sheep, saying: "Save the sheep" and "Don't buy lamb in Lidl" and although police had been called the defendant returned. He said he saw the defendant lash out at Mr Bennett with a pole and also use the pole in a "stabbing motion". Expand Close Andrew Meneice leaves Coleraine Magistrates Court. Credit: Nevin Farrell / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Andrew Meneice leaves Coleraine Magistrates Court. Credit: Nevin Farrell Meneice told the court he had gone to the store because he had been drinking whilst on medication and said it was a "spur of the moment" decision. He told the court he had her since she was a day old and was going to give her back but he "got attached to her". The defendant explained the sheep is now two years and four months old. He alleged that in the store the sheep, a "defenceless animal", was "punched" during the incident which made him "upset". He claimed he had been grabbed by Mr Bennett and pushed out of the store and outside, after falling near bags of compost, he grabbed a plastic sign but couldn't remember doing anything with it. Meneice had also denied hitting, punching or spitting at the store detective. In mitigation, Mr Devlin said he accepted his client had acted in an "odd way". Ex-Sinn Fein MP Barry McElduff is set to return to public life as he prepares to launch a new advice and consultancy business in the coming weeks. Six months after he was forced to quit his post following footage of him posing with a Kingsmill-branded loaf on his head on the anniversary of the Kingsmill massacre, the former West Tyrone representative is about to relaunch his career by unveiling his new business, BME Consultancy and Advice. Based in Omagh, Mr McElduff claims he will be making use of his past political experience by turning his attention towards helping members of the public in any of their dealings with government departments, public bodies and statutory agencies. Flyers promoting his new enterprise have been distributed around the town this week while a Facebook page has also been set up in recent days. Mr McElduff has acquired a unit in Omagh Enterprise Centre and is now advertising that he is taking appointments from potential clients for August and September. When contacted by the Belfast Telegraph yesterday, Mr McElduff confirmed that he was in the process of setting up his new business but declined to comment further "at this point in time". According to the business flyers, BME "will provide strong support, solid advice and good guidance" to business or community groups and individuals. The services offered will include all aspects of public affairs and lobbying, guidance on planning policies and protocols, help to secure welfare rights and social security entitlements and access to information on grant aid. The 51-year-old former abstentionist MP resigned on January 15 after less than a year in the job and 10 days after the online furore first erupted. He had already been suspended by his party for three months after the controversy flared when he posted a video of himself with a Kingsmill loaf on his head in a shop in Omagh on the 42nd anniversary of the Kingsmill massacre. Mr McElduff said at the time of his resignation that staying in his job would have impeded efforts to forge reconciliation here. The Carrickmore man has continued to insist he had not meant the video as a reference to the sectarian murders of 10 Protestant workmen by republican paramilitaries near the south Armagh village of Kingsmill on January 5, 1976. However, he acknowledged the post had caused unintentional hurt to the Kingsmill families. West Tyrone has always been a safe Sinn Fein seat and the party held onto it in the subsequent by-election called in May to replace Mr McElduff. Carrickmore solicitor Orfhlaith Begley (26) secured 16,346 votes and a 47% share of the poll compared to the 22,000 votes and 51% share won by Mr McElduff when he was elected last year to replace outgoing party veteran Pat Doherty. Father-of-three Mr McElduff has maintained a low profile and stayed silent over recent months as he attempted to recover from the controversy. He has not tweeted since January 6 when he deleted the video post and apologised for any hurt or offence caused. In March Mr McElduff attended Omagh PSNI station voluntarily to answer questions over the online video following complaints. He was questioned over an alleged improper use of a public electronic communications network under the Communications Act 2003, and two alleged public order offences under the Public Order (NI) Order 1989. A report is being prepared for the Public Prosecution Service but no decision has yet been made on whether or not Mr McElduff will face prosecution over the matter. Connal Parr with his grandmother Theresa Devlin and mum Anne when he obtained his PhD at Queens Connal Parr, vice chancellor's research fellow in humanities at Northumbria University, is the author of Inventing The Myth, described as "a lively and timely work about the history and politics of Ulster Protestants". Despite being a weighty academic tome - and at 55 an expensive one - the book has garnered enormous interest from the public and much acclaim from reviewers. In it Parr, who studied modern history at the University of Oxford and obtained his PhD in Ulster Protestant politics and culture at Queen's University Belfast, considers unionism through the prism of drama and literature. Not surprising, perhaps, for the son of playwright Anne Devlin and theatre director and television producer Chris Parr. But Connal is also the grandson of a towering and respected figure in Irish nationalism, the late Paddy Devlin, who was one of the founders of the SDLP. Here, he talks about class, identity and empathy for unionists. And why he believes unionist leaders fail to properly argue for the Union. Q. You were born in Belfast, but where did you grow up? A. I was brought up in Birmingham in the West Midlands. Anne, my mum, had met my dad Chris when she was the writer working with him on a drama called The Long March, which starred Jimmy Ellis and Doreen Hepburn. It also starred, for the first time, Adrian Dunbar and Ciaran Hinds, who is actually a distantly-related cousin of mine. My dad was working for the BBC - he'd produced the Billy plays and several other acclaimed dramas. He worked with Graham Reid a lot. Chris had got a job with Pebble Mill in the West Midlands, so my folks moved over with me and I grew up there. But we came back to Belfast often. I remember as a young child coming back to visit the family regularly (my grandfather and grandmother) Paddy and Theresa especially, and my aunts and uncles. Q. Do you regard yourself as English then? A. I have a very in between relationship - I always regard myself as both Irish and English, both nationalities. I think I'm still dealing with that in the work I do about identity and politics. It kind of pre-empts the Good Friday Agreement - the idea that you can be both Irish and British. I have both an Irish and a British passport and I actually had both the passports before the Agreement because my grandmother Theresa was born in Dublin. Q. So, how did you become interested in writing about the Protestant/unionist side of the community? A. What happened was that I did my undergraduate degree in Oxford in modern history and it was there that I followed through on my own Northern Irish history. I think it was there that I got the idea to work on the Ulster Protestant stuff. It was because I felt that a lot of the books I was reading tended to be about the loyalist paramilitaries and Ian Paisley. While there were some good books in this, I didn't think it was enough. I didn't find it terribly revealing about the community. If I'm honest with you, living in England I had - fairly conventionally - quite republican views. I saw things in a way that people on the British Left often do with the Irish situation. But the truth was I remembered a lot of stories and had heard these reports about loyalists, and part of me was not exactly frightened, but hostile to them. So, part of it was me confronting my own blind spots and fear and prejudice to some degree. I was thinking I'd better look into this and see if I can find what else is going on in this community. It was that sense of going on a bit of a voyage and discovering myself. Q. Your book focuses on the work of dramatists and writers like St John Ervine, Thomas Carnduff, James Hewitt, Sam Thompson, Stewart Parker, Graham Reid, Ron Hutchinson, Marie Jones, Christina Reid and Gary Mitchell. But you also spoke to politicians, community workers and loyalists. Given your family background, how were your received by loyalists? A. I did interview loyalists and the loyalists sort of liked Paddy because they remembered the Ulster Workers' Council strike of 1974 and him giving out the dole. Andy Tyrie and Glennie Barr both said; "Sure, come on up for an interview." I interviewed Barr in Derry and Tyrie in Dundonald and they both said: "Yeah, Paddy was a great guy." They had this kind of respect for him and that gave me access to them. But to be honest, I also felt there's an emphasis on that - an emphasis on a certain image that comes up when we say "loyalist" and "Protestant". That image is the loyalist hard-man and bonfires and the border. But that's not reflective. I knew quite early on that wasn't reflective of the whole community. So, I was looking towards the writers and cultural figures and people working in the community who seemed to me more reflective of the reality. Q. Do you feel the politicians are failing in that respect? A. I don't think the politicians are either reflective or effective themselves. In terms of the unionist politicians, I think there's a real dearth of leadership. When Paddy was at the forefront of his career there were good unionist politicians then, people who had ability and vision. You don't really get that in recent years, I find. Q. What do you see as their primary failing? A. I do think that unionists don't know how to argue for the Union properly. This is what strikes me. I'm culturally Irish. I couldn't not be because of my background and it's also what I'm interested in generally. But the Union has great benefits. I wouldn't work anywhere else other than England, personally. My partner Kyra Hild is from Kerry. She grew up in a lovely remote part of Kerry. She's a lawyer and she works in Dublin. But I do prefer working here. There are benefits in British society which unionists never argue. They never focus on the National Health Service. They're never on those marches, such as the ones recently celebrating the 70th anniversary of the NHS. Unionist politicians couldn't care less. They don't know how to argue the fact that this is a very multicultural society, this is a very diverse society, it's very open. Women have abortion rights here, which you don't have in Northern Ireland and were only recently acquired in the Republic. Unionists don't know how to argue all that. They grasp a concept of Britishness which is all about royalism, the Union Jack, the armed forces and they think that is what entirely represents Britishness. I think that is unfortunate because people in England, they would regard that as a perception of Britishness that is really outdated and which doesn't really exist in any meaningful sense. I say this as someone who has lived in Birmingham, London, Oxford, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, someone who's lived here nearly all my life. I do think it is unfortunate. Q. So how do you think unionism is regarded from England? A. Look at the hysterical reaction when the DUP agreed to prop up Theresa May's Government. I don't like the DUP. But that reaction was slightly mad and also, although it might sound like a funny thing to say, slightly anti-Irish. The venom was out of all proportion to what the DUP actually warrant. But I think it comes down to what do the English regard unionists as? They regard them as Paddies. I remember coming across a letter from John Hewitt when I was doing my book and he was saying that, initially, he was someone who would always say that he was a small 'u' unionist. He was writing to the Lyric Theatre's founder, Mary O'Malley, and he was saying something along the lines that: "I would have thumped anyone who called me Irish here. But we are all Irish here..." That's how they regard us and you have to face up to that fact. Q. Speaking of the Irish, what are your views on Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and his current approach to Brexit? Many in the unionist community believe the Irish Government views Brexit as a potential stepping-stone towards a united Ireland. Do you think that's the case? A. No, not at all. I think that is just unionist paranoia. Personally speaking, I'm not a fan of Varadkar. I don't support Varadkar politically because he's quite an economically conservative man. He made that quote about how he wanted to lead the party for people who get up early in the morning. He's got this kind of Thatcherite analysis economically, despite being a social liberal. That idea of him using Brexit to promote a united Ireland is really nonsensical. I think the Irish Government are simply safeguarding their own interests. They know that Brexit is not a thing of their own making and they also know that Ireland stands to be damaged economically by it very severely. They are protected by the EU because they're a member of the EU, so they're obviously going to be coming from that negotiating position. I have to say, not just as someone who regards himself as Irish, even if I was looking at it objectively I would be coming down more on the Irish Government's side than I would on the British side, because the British side is such a mess at the moment. Theresa May agrees to the backstop solution and then Brexiteers in her Cabinet force her to back-pedal. And the Irish Government is thinking: "What the hell is this?" I don't think the Irish Government is using it. I also think that the Irish people are not ready for a united Ireland. They know they can't deal with it economically, politically, socially. I've spent a lot of time in the south and I always find this thing of: "We just never want that stuff coming here." Q. Can you blame them? A. I was in Galway last weekend because my dad had a film screening there and I went to see the I, Dolours documentary (about the late Dolours Price). In it Ed Moloney is interviewing her (for the Boston College tapes) and it was interesting sitting in an Irish audience watching that. I got that same sense, exactly what I've just told you. Just them sitting in silence, watching this thing and thinking to themselves: "Please, never let this stuff come down to us." And, as you say, who can blame them? Q. Your own background growing up would have been fairly middle-class? A. Yes, very. When I was investigating Paddy's life the difference between his life and mine was marked. He had a very working-class background. He was in the IRA initially, but generally he was a street politician, a trade unionist. By contrast, I had a very privileged, middle-class upbringing. I was sent to nice schools in suburban parts of Birmingham and London. Yet, if I'm being honest, I'm more interested in working-class culture and history - labour history. My book is about working-class writers. I think when you grow up in a middle-class environment, you react against the conformity of it. The reason why I was so interested in writers like Gary Mitchell, Graham Reid, Marie Jones, Sam Thompson and people like that in the book was that they were showing me a working-class life - a dynamic, vital, edgy kind of life that you don't get when you're from a soft, comfortable background. Q. The Billy plays, which your father produced, had a resonance right across the divide. Do you think that was because most people here, on both sides, are, or come from, a working-class background? A. Of course it is. Belfast is one of the great, old working-class cities. One of the things that I think links Belfast and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, where I live now, is that they are very similar in that respect. Newcastle is like Belfast minus the sectarianism - it's kind of like home without the s****. Like Belfast, it has the old working-class warmth and directness, the humour and, you know, sometimes an edge. People will tell you what they think of you very quickly; there's no beating about the bush. The Billy plays were about the Protestant community, but they were accessible to all sides of the community in Northern Ireland, the Catholic community as well. I remember being told about a guy coming into my grandmother's house and he saw the framed picture on the wall from the Billy plays - this was a guy from the Falls Road. He said: "There's our Billy." It's great, isn't it? I think that was a very skilful thing Graham Reid achieved. One of the great things about my dad - and I think that this may have been one of the reasons why my mum fell for him - was that he wanted to work with local writers, Belfast writers. He wasn't interested in doing drama written about the Troubles by someone in London because he knew it wasn't authentic. What he did is he came in and he worked with a number of local writers. He did the same as artistic director of the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh. My folks went back there for an event about five years ago and they said that Chris was treated like a hero there, because he was surrounded by all these Scottish writers who remembered him coming in and giving them work. This is what my dad did in BBC Northern Ireland - he made sure that local people were employed in all aspects of the production and, most importantly, that the writers themselves would be Belfast writers. Q. What do you think you've inherited from your grandfather Paddy? A. I think sometimes how different I am temperamentally to Paddy - very different upbringings. But one of the things I share with him is that view of the Protestant community. I completely share his anti-sectarianism and his own respect and affection for the Protestant working-class community. I realised when I was doing the book and the PhD that it was based on, that, really, it was my version of that. I felt that connects me to Paddy; that I have an empathy with them, with the Protestant perspective. When something's Irish, it's seen as cool, edgy and fashionable. I think the Protestant community does get a hard time in the way that it's portrayed in England, America and elsewhere. It's still seen as backward and reactionary. The book was me trying to say there is also all this fascinating, Left-wing, progressive, artistic history. Look - it's all here. There's great writers. Celebrate them. Remember how important their contribution has been. Look at what they're showing, look at how talented they are. That's what drove a lot of it for me. Q. Your book has been praised by reviewers and shortlisted for a number of prizes. So, when is it coming out in paperback? And will it be a bit cheaper? A. I've been talking about this to Oxford University Press, who published it. The book's been very well reviewed and it's done very well for an academic book that's priced at 55. There will be a decision, I think, around about January. However, it's looking good. Inventing The Myth: Political Passions And The Ulster Protestant Imagination by Connal Parr is published by Oxford University Press, priced 55 Thugs have smashed up a home and assaulted the resident at a property in Co Tyrone. The incident happened at the Drumcairne Road in Stewartstown on Monday morning just before 11am. Two men entered the property and attacked the older homeowner before taking off. Detective Constable Robinson said: "One of the attackers was described as being 40 years of age, had a full facial beard, around 5 9 in height, wearing a yellow fluorescent jacket with jeans and speaking with a local accent. "The second male is described as being around 40 years of age, with a jacket and jeans and also speaking with a local accent. The householder, who is an older person, was treated for minor injuries and was badly shaken as a result of the attack." Anyone with information about the attack is asked to contact police on the non-emergency number 101, quoting the reference 395 with the date 23/07/2018. Alternatively information can be given anonymously to independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Independent Senator Gerard Craughwell will no longer be contesting the Presidential Election in the autumn. Mr Craughwell released a statement on Monday morning withdrawing from the race, citing concerns that Irelands major parties were working together to deny the Irish public the opportunity to elect their next president. Both Fianna Fail and Fianna Gael have both said they would not contest Michael D Higgins re-election. Expand Close Fianna Fail and FIne Gael are not opposing a second term for Michael D Higgins (Brian Lawless/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Fianna Fail and FIne Gael are not opposing a second term for Michael D Higgins (Brian Lawless/PA) I feared that members of the Oireachtas and City and County Councillors would be prevented by the party whip from exercising their democratic right to nominate candidates. To ensure that there would be a presidential election in 2018, I put myself forward as a potential candidate. In doing so I opened up what has been the first serious national conversation on the presidential nomination and election process, he said. As many potential candidates have indicated their intention to seek a nomination and mount a campaign, I am now satisfied that I have achieved the objective that I set out last AugustGerard Craughwell Sinn Fein have since announced that they too would contest the Presidential Election. The selection process is still ongoing within the party and has a number of members currently in the running. Since Mr Craughwells announcement in August, independent senators Joan Freeman and Padraig O Ceidigh, as well as artist Kevin Sharkey, have all expressed an interest in running for the office. Expand Close A voter at a ballot box (Niall Carson/PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A voter at a ballot box (Niall Carson/PA) Mr Craughwell said he felt he had achieved what he set out to do, and has since withdrawn from the campaign. I welcomed the announcements last week that Sinn Fein is putting forward a candidate and that Fianna Fail councillors will be free to nominate independent candidates for the presidential election. As many potential candidates have indicated their intention to seek a nomination and mount a campaign, I am now satisfied that I have achieved the objective that I set out last August. I will now stand aside and take no further part in the process other than to wish each and every candidate every success in their campaign. There is no set date for the election, however it must be held before November 10. The settlement the UK has agreed in principle over Brexit is made up of obligations and commitments it has already settled on, Irish premier Leo Varadkar has said. He was speaking in Croatia as part of a tour of three European capitals to discuss Brexit and other issues relating to Britain leaving the EU next year. The Taoiseach also said a hard border could not be contemplated. I think there is a real understanding from every member state that we need to avoid that, first of all through the withdrawal treaty, and then through the final relationship, RTE reported him saying. Great meeting with Croatian PM @AndrejPlenkovic and another very warm welcome in Zagreb. Very broad discussion on #Brexit, trade and closer future relations between Ireland and Croatia pic.twitter.com/AFw7BxtTGv Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) July 23, 2018 Mr Varadkar visited Croatian capital Zagreb for meetings with president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic and prime minister Andrej Plenkovic. The Irish leader will travel to Romania on Tuesday and will meet president Klaus Iohannis and prime minister Viorica Dancila. On Wednesday, he will travel on to Italy where he will visit the Venice Biennale, before a meeting in Rome on Thursday with the new Italian prime minister, Giuseppe Conte. Irish deputy leader Simon Coveney said he was optimistic about negotiations. Expand Close Simon Coveney (Brian Lawless/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Simon Coveney (Brian Lawless/PA) Nobody wants a no-deal Brexit, it would be catastrophic for Britain, but also very bad news for Ireland. The responsibility is on all of us to find a way forward, and Im optimistic we will. We now have a clear white paper, which is the negotiating position for the British Government, and started intensifying negotiations thats positive. We also have a Prime Minister that has repeated that we are not going to see physical border structure in Ireland. We want to reassure communities, especially in Northern Ireland, that we can manage our way through Britain leaving the EU, and protect the peace process. Boris Johnson has said Sadiq Khan needs to take responsibility for knife crime in London. He described it as a scandal that the murder rate in the city was higher than in New York earlier this year. The former foreign secretary accused the Mayor of London of blaming everyone but himself for the rising levels of attacks in the capital. Expand Close Mayor of London Sadiq Khan (Victoria Jones/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mayor of London Sadiq Khan (Victoria Jones/PA) Writing in the Telegraph he said: It is tragic that so many young lives are again being lost on the pavements of our capital. But for my money there is a further outrage and that is the abject failure of the Mayor of London either to grip the problem, or even to take responsibility. He added: He [Mr Khan] blames everyone but himself, when it is his paramount duty to keep Londoners safe. Mr Johnson said stop and searches make a difference and that it was a serious mistake for the Home Office to move away from them in 2015. He urged Mr Khan not to berate the police, but to get behind Scotland Yard. Figures from the Office of National Statistics show the number of knife and sharp instrument offences rose in the Metropolitan Police area from 13,341 to 14,159 between 2010/11 when Mr Johnson was Mayor of London, but then fell for three years in a row to 9,680 in 2014/15. Mr Johnson left office in May 2016 when he was succeeded by Mr Khan. The ONS data shows an increase to 12,061 offences in 2016/17 and 14,695 in the following year. The increase in offences recorded between 2015/16 and 2016/17 was 23.9%, while in England and Wales the increase was 19.6% over the same period, with all areas of the country except the north east seeing a rise in the number of offences recorded. Ecuador said it will continue its position of talking and promoting understandings on Mr Assanges asylum (Lauren Hurley/PA) Ecuadors president will not discuss the future of Julian Assange during a brief visit to the UK, it has been announced. Lenin Moreno will address a Global Disability Summit in London on Tuesday, highlighting Ecuadors progress on inclusion issues. A statement issued on Monday made it clear the president will not address issues relating to the WikiLeaks founder, who has been living in Ecuadors London embassy for over six years. He fears being extradited to the United States if he leaves the building, for questioning over the activities of WikiLeaks. The Head of State and his delegation will not address issues concerning the asylum granted to Mr Julian Assange, since its purpose is participation in the world meeting and the economic and commercial promotion of Ecuador in Spain, England and ScotlandEcuador government Mr Assange has been granted political asylum by the Ecuador government, but his communication was cut off three months ago when he was accused of breaching a written commitment not to issue messages that might interfere with other states. Ecuador said Tuesdays summit is considered the first global celebration to recognise the achievements and rights of people with disabilities. Mr Moreno, who uses a wheelchair after he was shot in an attempted robbery in 1998, will explain the work he developed between 2007 and 2013 as vice president of Ecuador, which earned him recognition worldwide, leading to his appointment as Special Envoy of the United Nations for disability and accessibility issues. The summit, organised by the British Government in conjunction with the government of Kenya and the International Disability Alliance (IDA), will bring together more than 700 delegates from governments, private sector organisations, charities and people with disabilities. Ecuadors statement said: It should be remembered that, in this international tour, the Head of State and his delegation will not address issues concerning the asylum granted to Mr Julian Assange, since its purpose is participation in the world meeting and the economic and commercial promotion of Ecuador in Spain, England and Scotland. The President will also travel to the University of Edinburgh, and later will talk with businessmen interested in investing in Ecuador. He is not expected to visit Ecuadors London embassy, scene of a vigil last month to mark the sixth anniversary of Mr Assange living there. Ecuador said it will continue its position of talking and promoting understandings on Mr Assanges asylum, adding there was no clear-cut short or long-term solution. A briefing to MPs last month from one of Mr Assanges legal team said the UK could resolve the impasse by providing a diplomatic assurance against US extradition. Mr Assange has made it clear he is happy to face British justice but not at the expense of facing American injustice, said the briefing. MPs were told that Mr Assange has been requesting an assurance from the UK that he would not be extradited to the US to face prosecution for his publishing activities with WikiLeaks. The UKs failure to provide this assurance was the reason Mr Assange sought asylum in Ecuadors embassy in 2012, the reason he was granted 1951 Convention refugee status by Ecuador and why he remains there today, said the briefing. UK diplomatic assurances would have significant benefits to the UK, including ending public spending on policing and surveillance, demonstrating the UKs commitment to free speech and ending a longstanding diplomatic issue which has disrupted relations with Ecuador, it was said. Mr Assange has been living under harsh conditions, with no access to sunlight or outdoor exercise, but things have worsened dramatically since his communications were cut, said the briefing, adding: This situation is clearly untenable. International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt will also address the summit. Asked about the Assange case, a Downing Street spokeswoman said: There are no plans for Penny Mordaunt to discuss that issue with the Ecuadorean president. The Duke of Sussex has urged the worlds young people to take on the challenge of tackling the Aids epidemic. Harry, who is in Amsterdam attending a world conference on Aids, told young delegates supported by his charity Sentebale they were the key. Across the globe, the numbers of new transmissions among the crucial 10-19 age group is rising while in contrast progress has been made in the very young and adults. The Duke of Sussex is at the @AIDS_conference with @Sentebale #LetYouthLead advocates from #Lesotho and #Botswana - the #LetYouthLead programme provides young people with a platform to drive positive change in #HIV interventions for youth in their region. pic.twitter.com/IK9GRVfDFO @Sentebale (@Sentebale) July 23, 2018 The duke has in recent years followed in the footsteps of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales a pioneer in the fight against Aids by raising awareness about HIV/Aids and encouraging people to get tested and know their HIV status. Speaking during a discussion session, Harry told the young advocates from Sentebales Let Youth Lead programme: More and more leaders, they should be using the younger generation and the experiences you have Im 33 years old and I already feel out of touch. Expand Close The Duke of Sussex meets youth delegates from his charity Sentebale (Gareth Fuller/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The Duke of Sussex meets youth delegates from his charity Sentebale (Gareth Fuller/PA) The duke added: We have to put power into the hands of the younger generation. Because thats where the solutions are going to come from, thats where the passion and engagement is coming from as well. Harry went on to say: And now we are facing another generation of complacency where a lot of people think Well, you know its solved, its done. Its not this is where it has to start, this is where you guys are going to take over and solve it. Last month The Duke of Sussex, @Sentebale Patron, made a private visit to Sentebale projects in Lesotho today at @AIDS_conference in Amsterdam he will meet youth advocates driving change in the fight to end HIV/AIDS by 2030 #AIDS2018 pic.twitter.com/pLdNvyWmBM The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) July 23, 2018 Earlier, the duke heard young delegates from countries including Zimbabwe, India and the US speak about how Aids has affected their lives. The Aids 2018 conference is billed as the largest gathering on HIV and Aids in the world, bringing together more than 15,000 scientists, activists, health providers, policy makers and global leaders. Harry told the discussion group that the young had the power to solve issues quicker and they should not just be a couple of people on the side of a platform. His charity Sentebale focuses on supporting HIV-positive young people in the African nations of Lesotho and Botswana and has, through its Let Youth Lead programme, given young men and women a voice at the conference on the issue of Aids and how if affects their lives. They will be meeting major funders and policy makers during the conference after Harry said he wanted to use his position as a royal to give them a platform. Expand Close Women from the Treatment Action Campaign call for the use of Dolutegravir (DTG) medicine at Aids 2018 (Gareth Fuller/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Women from the Treatment Action Campaign call for the use of Dolutegravir (DTG) medicine at Aids 2018 (Gareth Fuller/PA) The dukes mission to help in the fight against Aids mirrors the efforts of Diana, who in the late 1980s, when many still believed the disease could be contracted through casual contact, sat on the sickbed of a man with Aids and held his hand. Both publicly and privately she supported the work of those helping patients, with late-night trips to east Londons Mildmay HIV hospice, and serving as patron of the National Aids Trust. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said Europe must show much more flexibility and creativity to avoid a no deal by accident situation post-Brexit. Mr Hunt is meeting Heiko Maas to discuss a range of issues including Britains leaving of the European Union, Nato, the Western Balkans and Iran. Britain will leave the European Union in less than 250 days following the triggering of Article 50 in March 2017. The former health secretary said: I will be clear that our European partners must show much more flexibility and creativity in negotiations if we are to avoid a no deal by accident scenario. Talks on a post-Brexit deal between the UK and EU are continuing, with customs arrangements the latest sticking point. Prime Minister Theresa May has called her white paper proposals a significant development of our position a coherent package, but the EUs chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier questioned whether they were workable. Mr Hunt said: Germany is one of Britains most important allies in every field, from trade to European security to counter-terrorism. Our two countries work side-by-side to defend the rules-based international system on which our safety and prosperity depend. We are striving together to preserve the Iran nuclear deal, uphold the Paris climate change treaty, strengthen Nato, combat terrorism, improve cyber security and stabilise the countries of the Western Balkans. We will also discuss the UKs exit from the EU. I will reassure my German counterpart that we want to continue to work alongside our European friends and allies, in defence of our shared values. A no-deal Brexit would damage British relations with Europe for a generation, Jeremy Hunt warned as he pleaded for Brussels to show more flexibility in negotiations. The Foreign Secretary used a visit to Berlin to say that while a failure to achieve a Brexit deal would be challenging for the UK, it would thrive in the long term. But relations between the UK and its allies would be severely damaged by a failure to reach an agreement, he warned. The only person to benefit from the collapse of talks would be Russian President Vladimir Putin, he suggested. Without a real change in approach from the EU negotiators, we do now face a real risk of no deal by accident, Mr Hunt said. That would be incredibly challenging economically. Britain would find that challenging but in the end we would find a way not just to survive but to thrive economically. Expand Close Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt issued his warning in Berlin where he was having talks with German counterpart Heiko Maas (Markus Schreiber/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt issued his warning in Berlin where he was having talks with German counterpart Heiko Maas (Markus Schreiber/AP) But my real concern is that it would change British public attitudes to Europe for a generation. It would lead to a fissure in relations which would be highly damaging for that great partnership that we have had for so many years, which has been so important in sustaining the international order. Excellent discussion with German Foreign Minister @HeikoMaas about the unintended geopolitical consequences of No Deal. Only person rejoicing would be Putin... Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) July 23, 2018 The Foreign Secretary said the only person rejoicing from a no-deal Brexit would be Mr Putin. In a statement released following the talks, the German foreign ministry said that many of the proposals in Theresa Mays Brexit White Paper raise questions on both sides of the Channel which would have to be examined by the European Commission. The priority for foreign minister Heiko Maas was the UK and EU reaching agreement on binding rules to govern their relationship following Brexit, said the statement. We dont want a disorderly Brexit, we want an agreement, said Mr Maas. Despite Brexit, we will continue to stand for the same values and interests. Mr Hunts trip to Berlin for talks with his German counterpart marks the start of a frenetic round of diplomatic activity for Theresa Mays Government as the Prime Minister seeks to build support for her Brexit strategy. Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp (PA Graphics) The Prime Minister is expected to hold talks with Austrian counterpart Sebastian Kurz and other EU leaders at the Salzburg Festival on Friday. Also this week, Mrs Mays de facto deputy David Lidington will travel to Paris while Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab will be in Brussels for talks on Thursday. Sajid Javids position was set out in a letter to US attorney general Jeff Sessions (Victoria Jones/PA) Theresa May backed the decision not to seek assurances from Washington that two Britons suspected of fighting for Islamic State will not face execution if extradited to the US for terror crimes, Downing Street has said. The decision of Home Secretary Sajid Javid not to seek death penalty assurances in the case of two suspected members of ISs so-called Beatles cell sparked uproar in Westminster. MPs accused him of breaching the UKs long-standing opposition to the death penalty, while the Governments former reviewer of anti-terror legislation Lord Carlile branded the move extraordinary. Amnesty International said Mr Javid was leaving the door wide open to charges of hypocrisy and double standards by failing to seek cast-iron assurances from the US that the two men will not be executed. 'While the alleged crimes of Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh are appalling, the UK's principled opposition to the cruelty of the #DeathPenalty isn't something it should compromise.' https://t.co/Hc0bEhS2J2 pic.twitter.com/1HZPWo7zgD Amnesty UK (@AmnestyUK) July 23, 2018 Home Office minister Ben Wallace was summoned to answer questions from alarmed MPs in the Commons, where he insisted that there had been no other cases of the requirement being waived since he took on the security brief in 2016. He promised to inform MPs if earlier instances came to light. Asked whether the Prime Minister approved of Mr Javids position, set out in a letter to US attorney general Jeff Sessions, a Downing Street spokeswoman initially said only that Mrs May was made aware of it, adding that the Government opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. But Number 10 later shifted its line, telling reporters that Mrs May supports the Home Secretarys handling of the case and hopes it will end with the two men remaining in prison for the rest of their lives. I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific caseHome Secretary Sajid Javid The ultimate aim for all of us in our discussions with the US is to make sure that these men face the rest of their lives in prison. That is also what the victims families want, said the Downing Street spokeswoman. In this instance, after careful and considered advice, the Government took the decision not to seek assurances. That was deemed by ministers to be appropriate. The Prime Minister was aware of these plans and supports the way that these are being handled. Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh are said to have been members of a brutal four-man cell of IS executioners in Syria and Iraq, responsible for killing a series of high-profile Western captives, including British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning and US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff. Nicknamed after the 1960s band because of their British accents, the cell is also believed to have included Mohammed Emwazi known as Jihadi John who was killed in a US air strike in 2015, and Aine Davis, who has been jailed in Turkey. Expand Close Alexanda Kotey, one of two Britons suspected of having been part of the Islamic State extremist group dubbed The Beatles who were captured by Kurdish militia fighters in January (ITV News/PA) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Alexanda Kotey, one of two Britons suspected of having been part of the Islamic State extremist group dubbed The Beatles who were captured by Kurdish militia fighters in January (ITV News/PA) Kotey and Elsheikh, who are understood to have been stripped of their British citizenship, were captured in January, sparking a row over whether they should be returned to the UK for trial or face justice in another jurisdiction. In his letter, obtained by The Daily Telegraph, Mr Javid told Mr Sessions the UK does not currently intend to request, nor actively encourage the transfer of the pair to Britain. Signalling that the UK was prepared to drop assurances relating to the death penalty, Mr Javid said: All assistance and material will be provided on the condition that it may only be used for the purpose sought in that request, namely a federal criminal investigation or prosecution. Furthermore, I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought. The letter sparked alarm in Westminster, with shadow attorney general Baroness Chakrabarti saying that Mr Javid appeared to have secretly and unilaterally abandoned Britains opposition to the death penalty. She warned: By doing so he is not just playing with the lives of these particular terrorists but those of other Britons including potentially innocent ones all over the world. Lord Carlile described the move as a dramatic change of policy by a minister, secretly, without any discussion in Parliament. Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Sir Ed Davey said: The use of the death penalty no matter the crimes involved is wrong. By refusing to stand up to Donald Trumps administration on this issue, Sajid Javid has abdicated his responsibility to uphold fundamental human rights. "Opposing the death penalty is one of the fundamental principles that underpins our country's commitment to human rights." - @EHRCChair's response to today's news story. More: https://t.co/NWffP3epKh pic.twitter.com/9uacjzE4n5 EHRC (@EHRC) July 23, 2018 David Isaac, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: Opposing the death penalty is one of the fundamental principles that underpins our countrys commitment to human rights. There is no conflict between these values and ensuring that justice is served. We believe the Home Secretary should first have sought assurances that the death penalty will not be used in this case. The same basic human rights should apply to everyone and they must be exercised without exception. Failing to do so risks setting a dangerous precedent and jeopardises our ability to hold other countries to account for human rights breaches. Mr Wallace assured the Commons that ministers have complied with the European Convention on Human Rights and due process. But he was heckled by opposition MPs as he said it would be bizarre and not justice to the victims if the authorities simply let them free to roam around the United Kingdom because of concerns about sharing evidence with the US. Expand Close Screen grab from footage issued by Islamic State militants of the British extremist Mohammed Emwazi, known by the nickname Jihadi John (PA) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Screen grab from footage issued by Islamic State militants of the British extremist Mohammed Emwazi, known by the nickname Jihadi John (PA) Mr Foleys mother Diane said she was opposed to the death penalty, warning it would make the two men martyrs in their twisted ideology. I would like them held accountable by being sent to prison for the rest of their lives, she told BBC Radio 4s Today programme. Tom Wopat has pleaded guilty to inappropriately touching two women in the cast of a musical in Massachusetts (AP) A former star of The Dukes Of Hazzard television show has pleaded guilty to inappropriately touching two women in the cast of a musical in Massachusetts. Prosecutors say 66-year-old Tom Wopat was sentenced to a years probation after pleading guilty to two counts of annoying and accosting a person of the opposite sex. The New York City resident was charged last August with touching two female cast members while rehearsing for a starring role in 42nd Street at Walthams Reagle Music Theatre. He also received a continuation without a finding for one year after admitting to sufficient facts on the charge of cocaine possession. The drugs were found on his person during his arrest. Wopat played Luke Duke in the popular 1980s television show. The president earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon (Carolyn Kaster/AP) Donald Trump has warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that he will face dire consequences for threatening the United States. The US President tweeted early on Monday about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Mr Rouhani said on Sunday America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp (PA Graphics) Mr Trump responded with a tweet that warned: NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. The president earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp (PA Graphics) Mr Rouhani warned Mr Trump to stop playing with the lions tail and threatening Iran, or else you will regret it. The US leader had suggested Iranian leaders are going to call me and say lets make a deal' but Iran has rejected talks. Mr Rouhani previously lashed out against Mr Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the US embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the US from certain Muslim-majority countries. The presidents tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing an all-capitalised message. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!, he wrote. Mr Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the US. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearisation talks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Mr Trump for his strong stance on Iran. Mr Netanyahu said Mr Trump and his secretary of state Mike Pompeo were taking a clear position against Iranian aggression after years in which the regime was pampered by world powers. A high-ranking Iranian officer dismissed Mr Trumps warning as nothing but psychological warfare. General Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, the chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guards volunteer Basij force, also said Mr Trump wont dare take any military action against Iran. Gen Gheibparvars comments were reported by the semi-official Isna news agency. On Sunday, Mr Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran, calling its religious leaders hypocritical holy men who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer. In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in California, Mr Pompeo castigated Irans political, judicial and military leaders, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government in Tehran has heartlessly repressed its own peoples human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms. Mr Pompeo said: The proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their governments many abuses. And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent either. The White House has blamed Iranian president Hassan Rouhani for inciting a war of words with US leader Donald Trump, who warned that verbal threats could escalate into military conflict with America. Mr Trump, who campaigned on a promise to bring a more hawkish approach to Iran, sent an all-caps tweet late on Sunday warning of dire consequences for the longtime foe of the US. NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE, he wrote. The US leader was responding to Mr Rouhani, who had remarked earlier in the day that America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Within hours, Irans state-owned news agency IRNA dismissed Mr Trumps tweet, describing it as a passive reaction to Mr Rouhanis remarks. Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp (PA Graphics) On Monday, the White House said the US presidents tweet shows he is not going to tolerate critical rhetoric from Iran and insisted Mr Trump is not escalating tensions between the two countries. If anybodys inciting anything, look no further than to Iran, press secretary Sarah Sanders said, adding that Mr Trump has been very clear about what hes not going to allow to take place. In Tehran, a headline on a local newspaper quoted Mr Rouhani as saying: Mr Trump, do not play with the lions tail. Prominent Iranian analyst Seed Leilaz downplayed the war of words, describing it as the storm before the calm. Mr Leilaz said he was not worried about the remarks and tweets, and that neither Iran, nor any other country is interested in escalating tensions in the region. Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp (PA Graphics) Citing harsh words the United States and North Korea had exchanged before the high-profile summit between Mr Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Mr Leilaz said Mr Trump and Mr Kim got closer despite the warring words. The US presidents eruption on Twitter came after a week of heavy controversy about Russian meddling in the 2016 US election, following the Helsinki summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The tweet is reverberating across the Middle East. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the US presidents strong stance after years in which the Iranian regime was pampered by world powers. Mr Trump earlier this year pulled the US out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions, as well as threatening penalties for companies from other countries that continue to do business with Iran. Expand Close Iranians have largely shrugged off the possibility of military conflict following the war of words (AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Iranians have largely shrugged off the possibility of military conflict following the war of words (AP) With the economic pressure, Mr Trump said earlier this month that at a certain point theyre going to call me and say lets make a deal, and well make a deal. Iran has rejected talks with the US, and Mr Rouhani has accused the US of stoking an economic war. Mr Rouhani also suggested Iran could immediately ramp up its production of uranium in response to US. pressure. That could potentially escalate the very situation the nuclear deal sought to avoid an Iran with a stockpile of enriched uranium that could lead to making atomic bombs. Mr Trumps tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing in all capitals. He wrote: WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Last March, during the snow storm, I was hemmed into my house, marvelling at nature and its ability to throw up undulating six-foot drifts overnight, beautiful and glistening in the morning sun. Travel outside was impossible for a day or so. My daughter, like other children, of course loved it, a few days off school to frolic in the mini-ice mountains and sleigh down the drifts was a treat, but not so for those sick or elderly in the community. A tweet caught my eye from someone appealing for help for a sick pensioner who needed to be dug out. Within an hour, another appeared thanking Lagan Valley SDLP MLA Pat Catney for arriving with a shovel and clearing the path. I mention this because it illustrates perfectly for me what politics is about. Pat didn't have to leave his house to do it, he wasn't looking for thanks for it, but he is an old school politician who understands that if you can provide help to someone who needs it, get it done. It's a lesson I'm taking with me into council. Since a teenager I have been involved in community work. I was part of a young people's working group in Belfast City Council in 1998 that was tasked with imagining what Belfast would be like in the year 2025 - almost impossible then in the early days of Good Friday Agreement negotiations - and I launched the completed vision with the-then Lord Mayor David Alderdice in the splendid surroundings of City Hall. I still have a signed book of treasured old Belfast photos that he gave me. This was probably one of my first experiences of working with people from different political backgrounds and traditions and I discovered, like everyone else on that panel at the time, that positive difference could be made - despite our differences - by working towards a common goal. I prefer to think of people as people first, political allegiances secondary, and that has shaped my ability to engage with some whose politics I find challenging, but who share a common goal in trying to make something in the area in which they live more positive for those coming behind them. I wrote in this newspaper a few years ago, after visiting the Shankill area: "When you are confident, you do not need to feel triumphant and when you are made to feel comfortable, you do not need to feel inferior." I am comfortable in my own politics: it took me a long time to be so, which is common to many, and people know my background and journey. A member of both the SDLP and the Irish Labour Party, I am someone who strongly believes in equality and social justice. I am vocally pro-choice and will continue to articulate this position, but I also understand that it is not a black-and-white issue for people and will continue with engagement both inside the SDLP and outside it. The recent conscience vote within the SDLP has opened up the party to many who share my position and it is a mark of maturity that even with an issue as emotive as this, people have continued that engagement in a respectful manner and will continue to work together to effect positive change on a range of issues. My journey over the last number of years has taken me into Free Presbyterian centres to speak with young men in impoverished areas at risk from becoming involved with paramilitaries, to meeting senior loyalists to discuss peace-building, to churches in counties Tyrone and Fermanagh, where hospitality was second-to-none, to watching Orange marches in the north west and bonfire fun days on the Shankill Road. Respect is not just a buzzword for election time, but serious and lasting engagement is learning and trying to see things from all perspectives. That is what I will continue to do on council and why it is so important to me that people in the Killultagh district of Lisburn and Castlereagh feel comfortable with coming to me with any issue for help if they need it - no matter what their background or tradition. I appreciate the good wishes of people who contacted me after the announcement of my co-option as an SDLP councillor, particularly from those living in the area, but also from my DUP and UUP soon-to-be council colleagues. Community empowerment is top of my list. I have seen in action over the last 30 years how, when people take pride in the area in which they live and feel ownership of change, then change happens. In many ways we've lost some of that from politics here, and disaffection, due to the collapse of Stormont, is always a worry. But councils have a hugely important role to play in engaging voters to positively influence their own future and I am excited to be a part of that. The SDLP in Lisburn and Castlereagh has been working on numerous issues, such as the lack of school places and the need for new classrooms for already under-pressure teachers. The recent closures of stores in Bow Street illustrate the difficulties that small retailers will face in the coming months and the need for an effective strategy. The reopening of the Knockmore rail-link would not only connect Dublin to Derry by rail in three-and-a-half hours, but would enhance transport routes for those wishing to travel to Belfast from Crumlin, Glenavy and Ballinderry. And, though it has become a cliche for councillors, it will be welcome to most that I have already reported numerous potholes and intend to follow up until the very shocking state that some of the more rural roads in the area are in improves. I am privileged to be one of the very few people in Ireland who has held a political position north and south and will draw on my experience from the Seanad as a Labour Senator to continue to represent people to the best of my ability. As a single mother, I understand the pressures of working while raising small children and the challenges faced by families. It will also come as no surprise to people that I will continue to highlight the scourge of sexual abuse and domestic violence and I will continue to call out those who have shirked their responsibility to victims. I have spent the last number of years in a very high-pressured public situation, which has presented its own challenges. Like everyone else, I am not perfect and, at times, frustration can be hard to navigate through when faced with denial by perpetrators of very personal traumatic circumstances. Because of this, I recognise many victims' grievances with red tape wrapped around so-called "historical" hurt and the inability of perpetrators to provide answers, or acknowledgement. I will continue to listen and to help where I can. I am looking forward to my first council meeting this week and to getting stuck in. I can't say I'll be as good at shovelling snow as Pat Catney, but I intend to draw from his experience in real and meaningful engagement, help and support for the community of Lisburn and Castlereagh. Positive politics: people deserve nothing less. I can't pretend to be astounded by the news about DUP MP Ian Paisley in relation to eye-wateringly luxurious and undeclared free holidays in Sri Lanka that have incurred a 30-day suspension by the House of Commons standards committee for "paid advocacy". His enjoyment of the good things in life sometimes appears to cloud his judgment and do him and others serious harm. You have to hand it to Mr Paisley. Simultaneously, he has presented Theresa May, Arlene Foster and Mary Lou McDonald with headaches. I should explain that Mr Paisley and I don't always see eye to eye. We have met in the past, in the late 1990s, at a time when I was keen on the Belfast Agreement and he and his late father appeared - it seemed to me - unhelpful to making an accommodation in Northern Ireland. I've also been unhappy that he claimed big expenses (232,042.33), along with having one of the worst attendance records in parliament. And I've really been worried that he so vigorously fought UK libel reform and - successfully, with the help of Sammy Wilson - halted the extension of the Defamation Act to Northern Ireland. I care deeply about peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland, but I also believe that to get there we have to have a commitment to free speech and truth. One of the things I admired about the Rev Ian Paisley was that he was as robust in accepting criticism as he was in making it, and that as someone who was strong in his criticism of his opponents, he didn't sue when they criticised him. And he also certainly showed style in his later years in the way he projected with Martin McGuinness a new vision of Northern Ireland to the world. But, back to the worried women. Well, for Mrs May, it's straightforward. From September 5, when the House returns, at a time when she has no majority, for 30 working days the DUP, on whom she depends, will be unable to field one of its 10 crucial votes. So his absence could bring down the Government or wreck Brexit, neither of which outcome I would think he would welcome, for he has been eloquent in his support for the DUP line. Admittedly, Mrs Foster has no reason to love Mr Paisley who, since his father's death, has positioned himself within the party as an apostle of peace and reconciliation. His fervent thank you to the ailing McGuinness for all he had achieved with Ian senior on his "remarkable journey", and his implicit criticism of the party leadership, were regarded by cynics as a) a way of burnishing his father's legend, b) undermining anti-Paisleyites in the DUP, and c) positioning himself for a leadership bid. Should she back him or renounce him, bearing in mind that she and others in the DUP leadership said Barry McElduff should have immediately resigned his seat after the Kingsmill scandal? If a recall petition triggers a by-election, should he be the DUP candidate, bearing in mind he would almost certainly stand as an independent if he isn't? Then there's Sinn Fein, who regard Mr Paisley as helpful for assiduously building up the mythology of the Chuckle Brothers in a way that boosts St Martin. And with new Executive negotiations a possibility, his exhortations to unionists to play down past IRA history suits it even better. There are many things that stick in my craw with Sinn Fein, and its false piety often tops the list. But I understand that, bearing the Barry McElduff episode in mind, it had little option but to call for the MP's immediate resignation. This will, of course, strengthen support for Mr Paisley among those who don't much care for being lectured on financial probity by the party that is living well off the hidden proceeds of the 2004 Northern Bank robbery. Mr Paisley's indiscretions cast a long shadow. 3 killed in Rolpa landslide At least three people were killed after a landslide buried a shed at Phuldhara in Sunil Smriti-8, of Rolpa district on Monday. A NORTHERN Irish artist accused of trying to steal a yacht in Italy has revealed how she was arrested by police while in the middle of "wonderful hot sex" with a toyboy. Larissa Watson was scooped after spending last Thursday at a court in Genova in connection with a crime spree during which she is alleged to have nicked a 130,000 luxury motor boat. Read More Writing on social media (right), the 50-year-old, who denies any wrongdoing, said: "The other night after a horrible day in court in Genova, and afternoon of being forced to talk about painful things with a journalist, I met a lovely man. "(We) Went to bed and in the middle of wonderful hot sex, been too long, the phone rings and I'm called out and taken away by police for no reason, no excuse. "I was just removed from a lovely guy and a good night and kept in the police station until morning, and not charged or interviewed or accused." As well as being accused of trying to steal a yacht, Mrs Watson is said to have conned high-end Italian hotels and restaurants, failing to pay her bills before disappearing out of sight. She was arrested in June after reportedly climbing on board an unmanned motorboat in the luxury Portofino resort and speeding out of the harbour. This led to the mother-of-four being dubbed the 'Portofino Pirate' by the Italian media. Mrs Watson was living in Belfast until February when she suddenly quit her life here and moved to southern Europe. She was reported missing by worried relatives only to turn up on the front pages of Italian newspapers weeks later. Referring to the suspected yacht theft incident, Captain Simone Clemente, of the Italian military police, said: "She was brought back to the quay where police were waiting. Initially she refused to get off but soon surrendered." Expand Close Larissa Watson / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Larissa Watson Accusing Mrs Watson of fraud at Italian hotels, Captain Clemente added: "One night she wandered into a hotel in La Spezia, pretended to be a guest and got a key, then fled the next day after she was found sleeping in a room. We Googled her and thought she was carrying out some kind of artistic experiment. We then learnt her family had reported her missing in May. After her arrest, she told the British embassy she did not want to go home." Two days before the alleged boat theft, Mrs Watson is reported to have fled after having a 100 beauty treatment in the Ligurian resort of Santa Margherita. "When she was arrested she had no cards, no money and a photocopy of her passport," said Captain Clemente. "She had a change of clothes in a backpack and might have been sleeping rough. That said, she was well turned out, although that's because she had been to the beauty parlour." Born in England, Mrs Watson moved to Belfast as a child before attending the University of Ulster's School of Art and Design. Updated at 5:26 p.m. ET on 2018-07-23 Malaysias main opposition party warned on Monday that a newly announced plan by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to repeal a controversial anti-terrorism law, which allows for detention without trial, could threaten national security. Since taking power after the May 9 general election, Mahathirs government has been championing the return of the rule of law in the Muslim-majority nation and has vowed to rescind repressive legislation. The Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 also known as SOSMA was enacted to protect the nation, said Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who recently replaced Najib as leader of the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), which now finds itself in the opposition after nearly 61 years in power. Over the weekend, Mahathir said his government would abolish SOSMA. The country now is facing security threats that are well-planned and remotely controlled, the Malaysian Star newspaper quoted Zahid as saying. With the rapid change of political landscape locally and internationally, laws such as SOSMA are very timely, he said. In a speech on Sunday night, Mahathir took aim at the law that had been implemented during Najibs rule. Najibs law allows a person to be arrested and not to be taken to court, and if that person died, there will be neither inquiry nor action taken against those who killed him, Mahathir said, referring to the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012, also known as SOSMA. That is the law passed by Najib and we will repeal that law," Mahathir, 93, said in a speech during a fundraising dinner Sunday night in the district of Klang outside Kuala Lumpur. Under SOSMA, which was implemented on July 31, 2012, Malaysian authorities can hold suspects up to 28 days without trial. The law replaced the Internal Security Act (ISA), which allowed for detention of up to two years without requiring authorities to present the suspect in court. During his previous 22-year stint as prime minister, from 1981 to 2003, Mahathir led UMNO and was known to have resorted to having people arrested under the ISA. The people will be protected by fair laws, so that if they committed any offence, they will be judged by the court and the court will determine whether or not the person is guilty, Mahathir said. Zahid, who served as home minister under Najibs government, told parliament in April last year that 979 people had been detained under SOSMA since its inception. Among the prominent figures arrested under SOSMA was Maria Chin Abdullah, chairwoman of the election watchdog Bersih. She was arrested Nov. 18, 2016 and held in custody for 11 days on allegations that she was attempting to undermine parliamentary democracy by staging rallies calling for free and fair elections. Syahredzan Johan, a prominent legal activist, said in a statement Monday that Marias arrest was an example of how SOSMA was abused by the previous government despite prior assurances that it would not be used for political reprisals. It is clear that SOSMA as a law is inherently unfair, arbitrary in its execution and easy to be abused, said Syahredzan who applauded Mahathirs decision. He said Malaysia needs a law that specifically targets terrorism, but emphasized that it should be in accordance with internationally accepted standards. Malaysias counter-terror officers have arrested hundreds of people suspected of having links to terror groups during the past five years, but the multiracial nation of 32 million residents has suffered only one terror attack. On June 26, 2016, Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for a grenade blast that injured eight patrons at a nightclub in Puchong, about 12.8 km (8 miles) from Kuala Lumpur. Revise, but do not abolish, experts say Geshina Ayu, a counter-radicalism expert at Science University of Malaysia, told BenarNews that the government and police should review and improve existing laws to encapsulate crimes related to acts of terror. It is possible to amend SOSMA by taking in the views of various stakeholders and not only people in the criminal justice system, but also those who deal directly with criminals and victims, Geshina said. In 2015, the Malaysian parliament also approved the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), which allows police to restrict the movements of suspects by using electronic monitoring devices. That amendment to Malaysias anti-terrorism laws allows authorities to detain suspects indefinitely without trial for renewable two-year periods. Aruna Gopinath, an international security expert at the National Defense University of Malaysia, expressed concern over Mahathirs decision. In matters dealing with terrorism, the government should not repeal the act, she told BenarNews. We should be firm so terrorist know not to play around with Malaysia. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (center), gestures as he delivers his third State of the Nation Address as Senate President Vicente Sotto (left), and House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez look on at the House of Representatives in Quezon city, July 23, 2018. President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday assured minority Muslim leaders in the countrys south that within the next 48 hours he would sign a law giving them expanded autonomy, as he had promised two years ago. Duterte was to sign the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) as a centerpiece of his State of the Nation Address to congress. The House of Representatives, dominated by his allies, failed to ratify it after two of them squabbled over leadership. The political drama played out as Duterte was to begin his speech, forcing it to be delayed by an hour. The president did speak about issues facing the southern island of Mindanao. Mindanao poses at the crossroads of history. One road leads to harmony and peace. The other to war and human suffering, Duterte said. Despite all that has that been said for or against the BOL by all sectoral groups, I made a solemn commitment that this administration will never deny our Muslim brothers and sisters a basic legal tool within the constitutional framework of our country, Duterte said. He appealed to members of the Muslim minority to give him 48 hours to sign and ratify it. Duterte stressed that war was no longer an option in the south, after the country last year endured a five-month siege by militants linked to the Islamic State (IS) in the southern city of Marawi. We have been through the catastrophe in Marawi. We have seen the horror, the devastation, and the human toll and the displacement of both Muslims and Christians alike, Duterte said. I have made a pledge that ISIS terrorists or its allies will never gain foothold in our country, he said, using another acronym for the Islamic State. Earlier, spokesman Harry Roque had described the failure of the House of Representatives to ratify the bill as a blow to peace efforts in the south. Four years ago, the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) had agreed with Manila to a peace deal and dropped its bid for full independence. We find it unfortunate that the Bangsamoro Organic Law was not ratified before the adjournment of todays session of the House of Representatives, Roque said in a statement. We consider this as a temporary setback in the administrations goal of laying the foundation for a more genuine and lasting peace in Mindanao, Roque said. Senators express optimism Senate President Vicente Sotto III expressed optimism that the House of Representative would eventually ratify the BOL. The upper chamber the senate ratified a consolidated version earlier in the day. Thats the only problem but they can ratify it tomorrow. As far as the senate is concerned, weve already ratified it, Sotto told reporters. Sen. Risa Hontiveros noted that deliberations for the legislation were tedious and at times frustrating, as she called on politicians in the lower house to finally pass it and have it signed by the president. We all know that unlike most laws, this act took an incredibly long, tricky and arduous road, she said. At the onset, at its helm, is a history of struggle that precedes all of us. A history of a region that is filled with narratives of violence and oppression. She noted that the southern region had seen endless hunger, chaos and death for the past four decades. The senate ratification was a testament to its commitment to democratic processes. It is a sign that the system works, Hontiveros said in casting her affirmative vote. That all we need was a shared and unwavering believe in justice and that all roads lead to peace. She said she hoped the southern region would no longer be a place that will be used as a ruse for unnecessary militarization and unending martial rule. Violence over? Once Duterte signs, the bill would need to be ratified through a referendum in November that would then be followed by the presidents appointment of members of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority by December 2018 or January 2019. The BOL was envisioned to outline the basic structure of a proposed autonomy in Mindanao. Under the deal, the government had promised to pass the bill which would spell out the boundaries of the autonomous rule. When MILF agreed to the Bangsamoro Basic Law as it was called at the time with the government of then-president Benigno Aquino III, its 12,000 members dropped their bid for independence in Mindanao in exchange for expanded autonomy. The deal has had a hard time getting to this point, largely because of fears by Christian members of congress that giving the MILF autonomy would spell trouble down the road. Meanwhile, a militant group linked to IS warned of more attacks against government security forces as they rejected the proposed law. Abu Misri Mama, spokesman for the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), said the BOL would not bring peace to Mindanao where Muslims are a large minority and where many areas remain impoverished because of years of fighting. Look, until now, there has been fighting on the ground. The law will only benefit the leaders and not the people on the ground, Mama said. The BIFF split from the MILF in 2008. While it professed allegiance to the Islamic State, it did not send militants when fighting broke out in the southern Marawi city last year. The fighting ended in October 2017 and left an estimated 1,200 dead, including Isnilon Hapilon, the leader of the local IS faction. A democratic deficit For transitional justice to be broadly acceptable, it needs to be consultative Media Advisory, July 23, 2018 Contact: Hollin Kretzmann, (510) 844-7133, hkretzmann@biologicaldiversity.org Alameda County to Decide if Spill-prone Company Can Keep Extracting Oil in Livermore OAKLAND, Calif. The Alameda County Board of Supervisors will decide at its public hearing tomorrow whether to reverse the zoning boards approval of two permits that extend oil extraction in the countys only active oilfield for another 10 years. E&B Natural Resources, the Bakersfield-based company that operates the Livermore oilfield, has a history of spills and violations across California. The companys previous permits expired in January 2018. If the board rejects the new permits, E&B will need to cease its Livermore operations, ending fossil fuel extraction in the county. This polluters obvious disregard for public safety and the environment is reason enough to shutter this dangerous operation, said Hollin Kretzmann, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. And its a critical opportunity for Alameda County to show true climate leadership by keeping this dirty oil in the ground. What: The Alameda County Board of Supervisors will hear public comments and vote on whether to reverse the zoning boards approval of E&B Natural Resources applications for continued drilling in the Livermore oilfield. When: Tuesday, July 24, 1 p.m. Where: Room 512, County Administration Building, 1221 Oak Street, Oakland, CA Who: Local residents with Livermore Eco Watchdogs and Center for Biological Diversity Senior Attorney Hollin Kretzmann will deliver comments opposing the permits and will be available for media interviews. Background E&B Natural Resources, which operates in California, Louisiana, Kansas and Wyoming, applied for a 10-year permit to extend and expand its operations at the Livermore oilfield. On May 24 the Alameda East County Board of Zoning Adjustments approved the permits, despite hundreds of residents voicing their opposition to the project. On June 1 the Center and Livermore Eco Watchdogs appealed that decision to the board of supervisors. In 2015 Alameda County officials reported a spill of toxic fluid at E&Bs Livermore site, which contaminated 12 feet of soil that had to be removed. E&B was fined for failing to report the spill immediately and disposing of the soil without testing for hazardous chemicals. The company has reported at least 48 spills of oil or other hazardous materials in four different California counties since 2007, according to records from the California Office of Emergency Services. E&B has simultaneously sought state and federal approval to nearly triple the area of the Livermore aquifer into which it can inject toxic wastewater. The company has also added plans to acquire a state permit for an extraction technique called waterflooding, which uses pressure from injecting wastewater to push oil up to the surface. Tomorrows hearing comes two weeks after more than two dozen scientists sent a letter to Governor Jerry Brown warning that oil drilling in California undercuts the states climate progress and harms vulnerable communities. Emergency medical services, including life support ambulances, have been in existence for a while now, but have comparatively new beginnings in India. When Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced the Union Budget for 2018-19 earlier this year, the Government reiterated its plan to achieve a high growth rate of 8%.He drew attention to how Indian polity, economy, and society had shown great resilience in the face of adjusting to structural reforms. In light of this, the Budget focused on rural development and strengthening the agricultural sector, infrastructural development, and providing quality education across the country. The Union Budget also committed towards ensuring quality healthcare for the economically less privileged, and saw the launch of the worlds largest publicly funded healthcare programme. Under this, 10 crore low income families will each receive up to Rs 5 lakhs per year, in government aid, for basic services. While this is certainly a welcome move, India still has a long way to go if we are to catch up with our Western counterparts. A large part of the reason for the lag is that in India, the total expense on healthcare is just approximately 4 percent of our GDP, whereas the United States allocated 17 percent towards the same. Similarly, close to 70 percent of the Indian population pays for medical bills out of their own pockets, compared to the US, where the out of pocket expenditure is as low as 10-12 percent. In a survey conducted by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the US ranked 37 among the best performing countries in the healthcare sector, while India stood at 112. If India is to improve its ranking, as well as healthcare offerings, the Government should look at increasing its spends in healthcare, and investing more in emergency medical services, for which, life support ambulances are key to developing the sector. It is a proven fact, that a patient who receives basic emergency medical care, and is transported to a hospital within 15-20 minutes of a mishap, has the highest survival rates. To this extent, dialing a number from the list of emergency numbers in India can be the biggest difference between a life saved and a life lost. Emergency medical services, including life support ambulances, have been in existence for a while now, but have comparatively new beginnings in India. If we are to use this to the fullest, the Government needs to increase its spending in the sector, in order to achieve improved outcomes and decreased morbidity and mortality rates. In India, the sector is still largely fragmented, and investing in it can bear several advantages, the foremost being that of improved public health. Investing in life support ambulances would give the public a greater chance of being able to access quality healthcare, thereby saving precious lives. Reduced cost of healthcare is also possible with government intervention and investment. If the government is to invest in the sector and help lower the costs of treatment, it would greatly help influence peoples decisions to get treatment for conditions that would otherwise go neglected owing to the cost factor. It is here also, that a pre-determined list of emergency numbers in India can help citizens avail medical help at the earliest. By investing in emergency medical services, there is no doubt, then, that we will be able to enjoy a better source of employment, as it will create a huge demand for doctors, nurses, paramedics, drivers, support staff, and more. Alternatively, it will also help improve the accuracy of data samples, and provide authorities with a clearer picture of healthcare in the country. Looking forward, we need to understand that public healthcare is not something we can ignore, and that, if we are to improve our rankings, investing in emergency medical services is the need of the hour. Manish Sacheti, CFO, Zigitza Healthcare Limited The UK has one of the strongest and most productive Life Sciences sectors in the world, attracting the most inward investment in Europe which supports 2,40,000 UK jobs and generates a turnover of around 70 billion per year. The UK Government, last week, hosted the second in a series of roundtables with stakeholders from key life science businesses, demonstrating the importance of the sector to the UK economy. The Chancellor, International Trade Secretary, Business Secretary and Health and Social Care Secretary were amongst those that met with senior representatives from leading UK and international life sciences companies as the UK positions itself as the global home of health innovation, welcoming overseas investment and seeking to boost exports in the process. Discussions at the roundtable focused on: how the future of the Life Sciences sector will be supported by the delivery of our modern Industrial Strategy ensuring that the UK is open for business with a positive business environment our ambitions for a comprehensive agreement with the EU on our future relationship the development and implementation of our independent trade policy To date, the government has engaged significantly with the sector, including the launch of the Life Sciences Industrial Strategy and Sector Deal, the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers Davos meeting with global Life Sciences executives and the inaugural meeting of the Life Sciences Council at 10 Downing Street in May. The UK remains the number one destination for life sciences inward investment in Europe, ranks number two globally behind the US, and has also grown a thriving domestic industry with more than 5,600 companies and some of the strongest R&D capability in Europe. Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said: From the discovery of DNA to the 100,000 genomes project, the UK has always been at the forefront of ground-breaking research and development with the potential to transform the lives of millions of people. The life sciences sector is incredibly important to the UK, not only for the hundreds of thousands of people employed and its 70bn turnover, but also so NHS patients continue to have access to pioneering new treatments as part of our long term plan for the NHS. Business Secretary Greg Clark said: Partnerships between government and industry are essential in helping us work towards our common goal of ensuring the UK continues to be a global leader in life sciences. That is why government has placed health and life sciences at the centre of our modern Industrial Strategy. Through the Life Sciences Sector Deal and our Grand Challenge missions in AI and Ageing Society, we have committed to working together with industry and overseas investors, to ensure that the UK remains the go-to destination for launching new businesses, new discoveries and new techniques to a wider market. The UK has one of the strongest and most productive Life Sciences sectors in the world, attracting the most inward investment in Europe which supports 2,40,000 UK jobs and generates a turnover of around 70 billion per year. Alongside this, the attractiveness of the UK markets is demonstrated by the fact that all of the top 25 global pharmaceutical companies, and the top 30 global medical technology companies, operate in the UK, utilising a world-renowned bank of R&D knowledge. A recent example of the ground-breaking work being done in the UK by the sector is the 1,00,000 Genomes Project which has revolutionised the way genetics data is held and used. The project has led to the UK becoming the only nation in the world to have a large scale whole genome dataset which will lead to new genomic discovery, advancements in precision medicine and healthcare globally. Olivier Morand, Ph.D. and IMD alumnus, is joining Azafaros as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and member of the Board of Directors. Azafaros, a spin-off from Leiden University and Amsterdam UMC, focusing on the development of new therapies in the field of rare metabolic disorders, has announced the closing of a seed financing round. BioGeneration Ventures (BGV) is the founding investor. Rare metabolic disorders such as lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs) represent a broad class of severe and sometimes life-threatening inherited diseases, presenting significant unmet medical needs, with only few approved therapies. With its proprietary small molecule compounds, Azafaros will concentrate on new treatments for patients suffering from LSDs and LSD-related diseases. These compounds interfere with the metabolism of glycolipids that is disturbed in these patients and are intended to counteract the underlying pathological effects. Azafaros holds an exclusive license from Leiden University and Amsterdam UMC (location AMC) to a library of novel compounds and patents that were discovered by Professor Hans Aerts and his co-workers at Amsterdam UMC and Leiden University. Through a broad research collaboration Azafaros will benefit from the vast experience of the group led by Professor Hans Aerts to progress the technology. Olivier Morand, Ph.D. and IMD alumnus, is joining Azafaros as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and member of the Board of Directors. Olivier Morand, a senior leader in pharma strategic development for early- and late-phase products, brings many years of hand-on experience and know-how in rare metabolic disorders and orphan drugs. He has a very strong industry track record most recently at Idorsia Pharmaceuticals, and before that at Actelion Pharmaceuticals and Hoffmann-La Roche. In his early career, he held various roles in academic institutions such as INSERM Paris, the University of Wisconsin Madison, the Hadassah Medical School Jerusalem and the Mount Sinai Medical School New York. With this, Olivier Morand brings a broad scientific, clinical and regulatory experience as well as business insights to the Azafaros team. Olivier Morand, CEO, says: I feel very privileged to lead Azafaros. I anticipate that with our focused efforts the company will be able to develop high performing drugs out of the Leiden University and Amsterdam UMC compound library, supported by a solid patent position, and based on strong scientific rationale and sound clinical approaches. Edward van Wezel, managing partner at BGV and member of the Board of Directors, comments: We are very excited to be able to support the development of new treatment modalities for LSDs with a founding team that has strong scientific and business experience in a field with clear unmet medical needs. We strongly believe that these new compounds have the potential to offer better clinical outcome for patients in the future. Black pepper imports via Birgunj jump seven-fold to Rs5b Nepal imported black peppers worth more than Rs5 billion through two customs points Integrated Check Post (ICP) and Sirsiya Dry Port in Birgunj in the last fiscal year, a seven-fold jump as compared to the previous fiscal years imports. Government officials have no clue why it observed such a dramatic rise in imports as the spice has hit the top ten lists of goods imported via Birgunj. Demand for stylish clothes on the rise The boutique business is booming with customer attraction towards designer dresses increasing and purchasing power rising. Nepali customers have become more brand and fashion conscious due to which demand for designer wear has swelled. DIG-led team to investigate Jumla incident A team of Deputy Inspector General (DIG) on Monday reached Jumla to investigate into the incident that occurred while taking Dr Govinda KC forcefully to Kathmandu. Editors meet Dr KC to express solidarity with his demands Editors of various media outlets have expressed solidarity with the demands of senior orthopaedic surgeon Dr Govinda KC, who has been fasting for the last 23 days demanding reforms in the countrys medical education sector. Is no one responsible? A recent NHRC report on the Maleth incident undermines its intensity A Brandon woman is calling for change after her mom and dog Foxx were attacked by two large dogs walking by Kin Park in Brandon earlier this month. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Advertisement Advertise With Us A Brandon woman is calling for change after her mom and dog Foxx were attacked by two large dogs walking by Kin Park in Brandon earlier this month. "The bylaws possibly have to be taken into consideration," said the daughter of the 81-year-old woman who was injured in the attack, and who preferred that her name not be published. SUBMITTED Foxx, the little dog that was killed last weekend in the dog attack in front of Kin Park. "The parks and streets need to be made safe so that people arent afraid now because of whats happened to get out there and walk their animals or walk themselves," she said. The elderly womans little Bichon cross named Foxx died from his injuries following the attack by two unleashed dogs, a Great Pyrenees and a pit bull, on July 15. Although she said her mom is improving, shes still not where she was before the attack physically or mentally. The woman said she and her brother are worried about the long-term impact of the attack. "Were worried that this is going to traumatize her for a very long time," her daughter said. The victim recently had stitches on her head removed, but she also broke her hand in the attack and may need surgery. "She has lots of bruising still, shes pretty much every colour of the rainbow," her daughter said. The 81-year-old and her seven-year-old dog were used to spending a lot of time together, and its hard for her to accept that Foxx is no longer around. "He was her time clock, he was her protector," her daughter said. "If someone was on the street or in the yard that shouldnt be, or if a car was in the wrong spot, he would growl as if to say that shouldnt be there. "He was her security." The woman wants pet owners to be responsible when bringing their animals to a public place, and for them to potentially muzzle large dogs to prevent what happened to Foxx and her elderly mother. "Theres families that go to these parks, and because it happened at the spray park it could have been a lot worse and thats what my mom keeps saying, it could have been a child," she said. Still, in the tough week that her family has gone through, the community has come together and shown their support. "Its been amazing," the woman said. One girl who was at the scene even sent the victim flowers, but its not just local people who were concerned. "It has been overwhelming, people are reaching out from across Canada and contacting us, its very touching," the victims daughter said. Now she is looking forward with her family, and hoping that a similar tragedy can be avoided in the future. The woman has been in contact with a city councillor as well as police to talk about ways to decrease the likelihood of a similar attack from happening again. mverge@brandonsun.com Twitter: @Melverge5 Music filled Rideau Park on Saturday as people clothed in yellow, blue and red dress danced their way across the grass to celebrate Colombian Independence Day. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Advertisement Advertise With Us Music filled Rideau Park on Saturday as people clothed in yellow, blue and red dress danced their way across the grass to celebrate Colombian Independence Day. The three colours represent the Colombian flag, and Saturday was about recognizing all that it stands for. "We want to keep together our Colombian community," said Teresa Castro, who lives in Brandon. She wore a tri-coloured eye mask proudly displaying the colours of the flag. Dozens of cars and floats decked out with Colombian colours and props paraded along 18th Street and Victoria Avenue, while drivers honked and waved to other drivers and pedestrians along the way, before ending up at the park. A performance of both the Canadian and Colombian national anthems were slated for later in the afternoon. At one point in the celebration, "Colombia!" was shouted enthusiastically by one person, and cheers from about 120 people ensued. MELISSA VERGE/THE BRANDON SUN Two of the many people who came out on Saturday for the Colombia Independence Day celebration at Rideau Park. Even the dogs were dressed up. A massive flag had been placed between two trees for those interested to pose with for photos. Pets even got in on the celebration, with dogs wearing little outfits with the country colours. "All the community participated (in getting the event together), said Eliana Osorio, one of the organizers of Saturdays event. MELISSA VERGE/THE BRANDON SUN The float in the parade on Saturday to celebrate Colombian Independence day was parked at Rideau Park where the celebration continued. "We are very kind people, we take care of each other, we want to take this day to be together and celebrate our country," said Castro, who dressed up her dog with a shirt and a blue loofah in honour of Independence Day. Besides being an opportunity to celebrate with others who share the same culture, it was also about taking time to share that culture with others in the Wheat City. "Were going to take the whole day and show Brandon our culture," Castro said. MELISSA VERGE/THE BRANDON SUN There were crowds of people at Rideau Park on Saturday to celebrate Colombian Independence Day. Friday marked 208 years of independence for Colombia, and it was the first time the celebration in Brandon has been held in Rideau Park. In previous years, it was held in Kin Park, Castro said, but the celebration was moved to accommodate the number of people who attend the event. "This is the biggest day that we are doing, other times (were) good but not as big as this one," Castro said. It was an important day for those in attendance. Valentina Cardenas was looking forward to the dancing and the food, but also the chance to show pride for her country. "Because were far away from our country and we feel we should do something for our country since we feel so proud of it," she said in Rideau Park on Saturday afternoon. mverge@brandonsun.com Twitter: @Melverge5 KAHS clash: Probe team returns without visiting incident site A team of Deputy Inspector General (DIG) that had reached Jumla on Sunday to investigate into the incident that occurred while taking Dr Govinda KC, returned without visiting the incident site on Monday. By John Daly In the ever-growing realm of cybercrime, the botnet is another technology villain to give all computer users sleepless nights. Defined as a collection of internet-connected devices, including PCs, servers, mobile devices and Internet of Things (IoT) devices that are infected and controlled by malware, these botnets will frequently infect an entire system while the owner or company remains completely unaware of their presence. Botnet controllers are used by cyber-criminals to send out spam and ransomware, launch distributed denial-of-service attacks, commit e-banking fraud and attempt felony. According to the Spamhaus Botnet Threat Report 2017, from the international non-profit organisation that tracks spam, phishing, and cyber-related threats, there are block listings for more than 9,500 botnet servers on 1,122 different networks. Spamhaus saw listings increase by over 40% in a single year, and more than 90% since 2014. Looking forward to 2018, there is no sign that the number of cyber threats will decrease, the Spamhaus report noted. The big increase of IoT threats in 2017 is very likely to continue in 2018. We are sure that securing and protecting IoT devices will be a core topic in 2018, it said. Bill Hull, risk assurance principal at PwC in the US, invites us to imagine this scenario: Somewhere, a James Bond villain is quietly building a network of sleeper cells that can be activated at a moments notice and targeted to take out computer networks, power grids, communications, and other critical infrastructure. Now imagine tens of thousands of such secretive Bond villains armed with up to 80 billion sleeper cells. Such is the enormous risk presented by the IoT, which analysts expect will encompass up to 80 billion connected devices by 2020. Without robust and up-to-date security and privacy protections, connected devices could potentially become vulnerable recruits for hackers, cyber-criminals, and state-sponsored cyber-soldiers, who can turn them into attack resources capable of inflicting catastrophic damage. This isnt Hollywood hyperbole, it is already happening, said Mr Hull. In December 2015, an attack in Turkey affected bank networks, media communications, and government agencies. Later the same month, attackers staged the first known cyber-attack on a power grid, cutting power to 230,000 people in Ukraine while also disrupting phone lines to complicate recovery efforts. In October 2016, a multitude of botnet-infected cameras, routers, and similarly compromised IoT devices carried out a massive distributed denial-of-service attack, resulting in an extended access blackout of major internet platforms and services across Europe and North America. In May and June 2017, further attacks using the WannaCry and NotPetya viruses infected more than 200,000 computers across 150 countries, disrupting the operations of several multinational companies. Some 8% of all bad bot traffic comes from mobile devices, according to a report from Distil Networks, a specialist in bot mitigation, website security, and IT protection from automated threats. A report, Mobile Bots: The Next Evolution of Bad Bots, examined requests from 100 million mobile devices on the Distil network from six major cellular carriers during a 45-day period. The company found that 5.8% of those devices hosted bots which were used to attack websites and apps equating to 5.8 million devices humming away with activity that their owners know nothing about. The volume was a surprise, said Edward Roberts, senior director of product marketing at Distil Networks. One of the more common avenues for such attacks is email. According to the recent 2018 Email Security Trends report by Barracuda, 87% of IT security professionals have admitted their company has faced some kind of threat via email in the last year. And the most common reason for a system becoming infected? The all too human sense of curiosity to open that email that looks wrong. Susan Keatings new company has developed science-backed, seaweed-based skincare products for men, writes Trish Dromey. Launching on the market with a range of seaweed-based skincare products, Limerick start-up NEUU Seaweed Skincare has begun by targeting the now rapidly expanding male skincare market. Its a less crowded space than the female skincare market and has very few seaweed products, making it a little less challenging for a new brand to stand out, says founder and chief executive Susan Keating, who since launching in March has worked on building up sales in Ireland and is now preparing to ship her first export order to Germany. Setting out to develop a product range suitable for sensitive skin which harvested the anti-inflammatory and hydrating properties of seaweed, she saw an initial opportunity to offer men a product to soothe the wear and tear and irritation associated with shaving. Explaining that the companys unique selling point is that it has devised a way to extract seaweed oil, which is rich in nutrients and minerals, and use it as an ingredient, she says NEUU has invested in having a number of independent studies done which demonstrate the hydrating and anti-inflammatory properties of the companys products. Between coming up with the idea for a science-backed marine plant skincare company and the market launch this year, it has taken four years and around 650,000 in funding. Ms Keating was head of global sales at Shannon Engine Services when she started thinking about making a career change involving seaweed skincare products. A meeting with Professor JJ Leahy at the Department of Chemical Sciences at the University of Limerick (UL), who had a wealth of information about seaweed, prompted her to do more. We set up the company in 2014 and in 2015 funded some scientific studies on the lipid chemistry of seaweed, says Ms Keating. During 2016 they identified the type of seaweed they wanted to work with and developed the process to extractthe oil. Invigorating #Grapefruit Peel Oil delivers a naturally refreshing scent while cleansing #skin. Excellent for treating oily skin & #acne with its antibacterial properties. NEUU Men Face Wash contains Grapefruit Peel Oil. #NEUUskin #NEUUmen #seaweedskincare pic.twitter.com/iAM8U4zMzF NEUU Seaweed Skincare (@NEUUskincare) July 22, 2018 The following year, NEUU established a facility at the Nexus Incubation Centre at UL to extract the seaweed oil, created a range of seven products for the mens skincare market, and found a company in Mayo to manufacture the products under contract, using the seaweed oil as an ingredient. In 2017, I began working full time with the company and we recruited four staff, says Ms Keating, adding that it was at this point that the company raised most of its funding. We secured private investment of 400,000 through EIIS [Employment Incentive and Investment Scheme] as well as 150,000 in High Potential Start Up Funding from Enterprise Ireland in addition to an investment of a further 100,000 from myself, explains Ms Keating. While currently working on building brand awareness and growing sales of its mens range, NEUU is also completing development of a new range of three female products which is scheduled for launch early next year. Competing in a marketplace dominated by some major players with huge budgets, Ms Keating says that part of NEUUs strategy has been to invest in independent studies to demonstrate the efficacy of its products and to set its sights on a specific niche within the skincare market. We are developing sales to specialised skin clinics and retailers as well as high-end barbers. In our marketing we focus on the anti-inflammatory and moisturising properties and the fact that the products have been shown to be very effective for use on sensitive skin, says Ms Keating. Introducing NEUU MEN Travel Set. The set includes Hair & Body Wash, Shave Gel & Post-Shave Balm, in 75ml sizes. Our essential seaweed extract rich in antioxidants & vitamins helps reinforce the skin's lipid barrier pre & post-shave. Perfect for skincare on the go. #NEUUskin pic.twitter.com/i2QYmqsKQX NEUU Seaweed Skincare (@NEUUskincare) July 5, 2018 NEUU now has 10 retail customers in Ireland, and also sells through its website. We are now shipping out our first export order to a high-end store in Germany and are in early-stage discussions with a number of specialist retailers in Ireland and Germany, says Ms Keating. Preparing to embark on anotherfundraising round this year to fundinternational expansion, NEUU, inthe long term, aims to gain globalrecognition as a go-to skincare brand for sensitive skin. KAHS officials accused of involvement in Jumla protest Officials of Karnali Academy of Health Sciences (KAHS) have been accused of having their hand in the recent vandalism occurred there. That represents a 23.2% increase in the city and county, which is much higher than the rest of the country. CRIF Vision-net says Cork, Dublin and Galway also showed growth, but to a lesser extent at 3.5%, 3.2% and 1.3% respectively. 5,214 were founded in Dublin, followed by Cork with 1,168 start-ups and Galway with 466. 200 new jobs are on the way for Westmeath. Retail discount chain Mr Price is to open a new base in Athlone. By Ruth Doris The common perception of the legal process is as a lengthy, cumbersome one beset by inefficiencies, delays, and mountains of paperwork. This judgement is being turned on its head as new companies use data-driven technologies to disrupt the industry. One of them is Irish startup Vizlegal. Founder Gavin Sheridan says the service makes it easy for legal professionals to track, search and save judgements, cases and other legal information. In the Irish context that would include things like tracking their cases flowing through the High Court via new filings or listings; knowing what circuit court lists theyre on; getting alerted when new judgements appear that contain words or phrases they define from Irish, UK or European courts, he says. Mr Sheridan was working for social media news company Storyful researching Irelands bad bank Nama when he encountered difficulties in accessing legal information. Vizlegals data-driven technology reduces time spent on repetitive tasks, giving legal practitioners more time with their clients. Customers include sole practitioners, barristers, and SMEs which need to keep up to date with relevant case filings, lists, and judgments. Vizlegal was self-funded until the prototype stage. The company took part in the NDRC Catalyser programme, which includes a 100,000 investment. Having taken on angel investment, Vizlegal recently received 50,000 in feasibility funding as part of an award from the European Commissions Horizon 2020 SME Instrument. While there are other legal information platforms such as Lexis, Westlaw or Justis, Mr Sheridan doesnt see Vizlegal as a competitor, as these tend to supply products focused strictly on legal research. @Vizlegal is a very useful tool in practice. It removes the overhead associated with underinvested judgment databases and records. Ronan Lupton (@ronanlupton) May 16, 2018 We see ourselves as in the legal data and legal intelligence space, not just interested in judgments and statutes but in the tasks and workflows of practitioners. We also think there are opportunities in analytics and better machine understanding of large text corpuses, he says. Vizlegal takes a data-oriented approach to the information it gathers, ensuring it has structured legal data that allows the company to build insights and tools on top of the rich data. The platform charges customers a flat yearly or monthly fee for access to tools on the platform and the legal information, which is continuously updated. Vizlegal plans to continue its expansion into further jurisdictions and increase coverage of more quasi- judicial bodies which, Mr Sheridan says, have been largely ignored by larger systems. It aims to add more tools, more consolidated laws and a focus on machine learning and analytics to help practitioners understand broader trends and give them an edge. Meanwhile, another Irish startup is providing a solution to delays in the booking process of solicitors and notaries. Oathello simplifies the process of getting documents certified and notarised, making it as easy as booking an Uber, and reducing the time spent to minutes, instead of hours, days or even weeks, says founder Jennifer Hourihane. The former lawyer, who had worked for A&L Goodbody before founding Oathello, had encountered frustration and delays by clients and businesses. Everyone in legal tech talks about AI and Machine Learning - but few talk about the basics - the 'boring' plumbing. But it's a huge problem and it needs to be fixed https://t.co/ac5bkTKodj Vizlegal (@Vizlegal) April 23, 2018 She says these services touch the most important moments in the lifetime of an individual or business, and should operate in the most professional and efficient manner possible, which is where Oathello comes in. Oathellos initial product offering is a mobile app launched in 2017, which allows users to find, book, and pay for document certification and notary services on demand. It also offers additional products tailored to the needs of multi-tier banking and financial institutions, legal and investment firms and general business needs from sole traders up to multinationals. Earlier this year, Oathello took part in the 13-week Barclays Accelerator which is powered by Techstars. The startup had received 50,000 from Enterprise Irelands Competitive Start-Up Fund in 2017. Ms Hourihane says legal professionals can retain their competitive edge. Iarnrod Eireann has awarded a contract to Rolls-Royce to retrofit new gear transmissions to a 3-carriage Intercity train, to assess fuel and emission savings from the new system. The trial, if successful and rolled out to the 234 carriage Intercity railcar fleet, could see annual fuel and emission savings of 19%. This would generate annual fuel bill savings of almost 3m, annual CO2 reductions of 1.2 million kilograms, and further maintenance savings. The new system will also reduce noise levels from train operations, particularly during acceleration. The Intercity railcar fleet is Iarnrod Eireanns largest single fleet, and operates Intercity services on routes between Dublin and Sligo, Westport, Galway, Limerick, Tralee, Waterford and Rosslare, as well as some services between Dublin and Cork, and some commuter services including Phoenix Park Tunnel and M3 Parkway/Docklands services. It was manufactured in Korea by Hyundai Rotem. The fleet entered service between 2007 and 2012, and advances in technology have led Iarnrod Eireann to seek a more efficient drive solution given the life cycle of the fleet is likely to extend for another 20-25 years. The new ZF EcoWorld gear transmissions are designed and manufactured by ZF in Friedrichshafen, Germany and are used in the drivetrain powerpack manufactured by Rolls Royce subsidiary MTU who are also located in Friedrichshafen. Three powerpack rafts from the existing fleet have been shipped to Germany for these works and upon return will be fitted to the trial train, to validate the performance early in 2019. Should the trials prove successful, Iarnrod Eireann propose fleet deployment would begin in 2019 subject to funding approval. Installation would take place at planned major overhauls for the fleet, and would take 4 years to complete. In addition, the transmission allows a future migration path for the fitment of a hybrid module on each powerpack. This is in line with the companys future fleet strategy to move to hybrid and electric fleet as part of the 300 new carriages to be ordered over the coming decade under the National Development Plan. Iarnrod Eireann Chief Mechanical Engineer Peter Smyth said: Rail travel is already the most environmentally sustainable way to travel. However, we are constantly assessing new technology to ensure we can further improve our efficiency. We are confident this trial will yield dramatic improvements in fuel efficiency with the associated cost, emission and noise reductions. - Digital Desk Up to 500 new jobs are set to be created at the Abbott pharmaceutical plant in Donegal Town. The company says it plans to expand its existing manufacturing facility, which will lead to the creation of hundreds of new positions. An bhfuil tu ag dul go dti Electric Picnic? Bhuel, dea-sceal! This year theyve created a campsite exclusively for gaeilgeoirs! This camping area will cater for over 200 people, in which Irish will be the spoken language between its residents. Bliain na Gaeilge and Festival Republic are delighted to announce that they will be collaborating on some special feature events at Electric Picnic 2018 in Stradbally, Co. Laois, August 31 to September 2. As part of this collaboration, there will also be a traditional and contemporary Irish music on the stage in The Hazel Wood from 7pm-12am on Saturday and Sunday. 'Faoi lui na gcoillte beidh draiocht s ceol...' Clar ardan Bhliain na Gaeilge ag @EPfestival go dti seo More still to be announced! #Gaeilge2018 #ElectricPicnic pic.twitter.com/Fsw0Hj78wS Bliain na Gaeilge (@gaeilge2018) July 22, 2018 As well as music and dance on the mainstage, attendees will enjoy storytelling, poetry and sean-nos singing. There will be service provided through Irish at the cafe and bar, as well as bilingual signposting. Speaking about the new area, Bhliain na Gaeilge co-ordinator, Siomha Ni Ruairc, said: We are so grateful for this opportunity to promote the Irish language to a wider audience, and to strengthen the presence of the language, at Electric Picnic as part of Bliain na Gaeilge 2018. "We are looking forward to our curated space in The Hazel Wood After Dark (An Chollchoill), but we are especially excited about founding An Ghaeltacht, the designated Irish language camping area. "This will create a new space for people who want to socialise through Irish, to meet people and to enjoy the festival, even after the music and events have ended. Tickets for Electric Picnic have sold out, but those who already have tickets will be able to stay in An Ghaeltacht, this newly designated camping area for Irish speakers. Due to a limited number of spaces, prior registration will be required at . By Ann O'Loughlin An associate of a drug dealer who denies he bought a racehorse with the proceeds of crime is now claiming to be part owner of the animal, the High Court heard. The court was told last week that John Boylan, also known as John Power, of Forest Hill, Rathcoole, Co Dublin, was claiming to be a 90% owner of "Labaik" which won the 2017 Supreme Novices Hurdle at Cheltenham. Two other men, who claim 10% ownership, have no involvement in criminality. Today, Ms Justice Carmel Stewart was told Anthony O'Sullivan, an associate of Mr Boylan, had lodged a motion with court claiming half ownership of Boylan's share. The court heard last week the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) says Mr O'Sullivan is the registered owner of a company called Forest Hill Animal Feeds but which the bureau says was established by Boylan. Mr O'Sullivan, Ashwood Road, Clondalkin, is also involved in criminality, CAB says. He is not, however, a party to the proceeds of crime case brought against Boylan who has in turn sued CAB claiming losses arising out of a career-ending injury to Labaik following the freezing of its ownership by the court. Boylan says the injury arose because of a decision of CAB to allow the horse to be run at a race. The case was back before Ms Justice Stewart today to fix a date for the continued hearing of those proceedings. Ben O'Floinn BL, for CAB, said there had been a development since last week with Mr O'Sullivan issuing a motion saying he was part owner of the horse. Mr O'Floinn said this should not affect the arrangements the court had proposed making about continuing the hearing in October. John Fitzgerald BL, for Boylan, said his side was looking for replies to questions from CAB which might truncate that hearing. In particular, counsel said, they were seeking to know who authorised the decision to race the horse. His side believes it was CAB because the horse's passport was seized by CAB and that passport is required in order to race. Rather than "dance around the houses all day", the case could be significantly narrowed if CAB gave an answer to these questions, he said. Mr O'Floinn replied that these were matters which could be the subject of examination and cross-examination of witnesses in the case, including those who could be called by Mr Boylan. Ms Justice Stewart said all matters could be dealt with when the case resumes in October. By Tom Tuite The book of evidence is almost complete in the case of the first 13-year-old boy charged with the murder of Kildare schoolgirl Ana Kriegel, a court has heard. The boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, was charged with the murder of 14-year-old Anastasia Kriegel at Glenwood House, Laraghcon, Clonee Road, Lucan on May 14, 2018, contrary to common law. Her body was found at the disused farmhouse three days later. The teen faced his fourth hearing at the Dublin Childrens Court today having been charged and remanded in custody on May 25 last. At his previous hearing in the Childrens Court, Judge John OConnor had been told the prosecution had made significant progress in the case. When the case resumed today, Judge OConnor noted there had been a psychiatric assessment and he asked, Where are we now?. A State solicitor told Judge OConnor the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) direction, under Section 52.4 of the 2001 Children Act, would be ready next week. The Children Act is the legal framework of the juvenile justice system. The judge quoted this part of the legislation which states: Where a child under 14 years of age is charged with an offence, no further proceedings in the matter (other than any remand in custody or on bail) shall be taken except by or with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions. The book of evidence was being drafted and would probably be ready in three or four weeks, the court was told. The boy, dressed in jeans, trainers and a jumper, remained silent during the hearing. He was accompanied to court by his parents and his grandfather as well as his solicitor Aisling Mulligan. The prosecution said it was expected the DPPs full directions would be ready next week and there would be movement reasonably expeditiously toward the completion of the book of evidence. Judge OConnor noted the defence consented to the case being adjourned until next Monday. The boy, who did not address the court, was further remanded in custody. His family members hugged him before he was escorted from the courtroom. He had been refused bail in the High Court on June 29 last. Anastasia, known as Ana, who was adopted from Russia at the age of two, left her home in Leixlip at about 5pm on May 14. However, she did not return. Her parents were unable to contact her phone and alerted gardai. Her body was found at a disused farmhouse three days later. At the boy's first hearing on May 25, Garda Inspector Mark ONeill told the court: In reply to that charge after caution, he had nothing to say. On July 12 last, a second 13-year-old boy was charged with the girls murder and he was also remanded in custody to the Oberstown youth detention centre. He will face his next appearance at the Children's Court on July 31, 2018. At his first hearing, Det Sergeant Damien Gannon said the second boy, made no reply to the charge after caution. The court has issued a warning to social media users that if the boys name, school or address or a picture of him were reproduced on social media it will result in a prosecution. There has been no indication yet as to how either boy intends to plead. There is a call to delay the age at which young people drink alcohol. The 'Drink is a Drug' campaign is making the call to ensure conversations around alcohol take place at an early age before teens experiment. Prithvi Man Shrestha is a political reporter for The Kathmandu Post, covering the governance-related issues including corruption and irregularities in the government machinery. Before joining The Kathmandu Post in 2009, he worked at nepalnews.com and Rising Nepal primarily covering the issues of political and economic affairs for three years. By Joe Leogue A man whose wife died in April 2017 after a cancer misdiagnosis has recalled her last days and outlined how difficult he found being told she was wrongly given the all-clear from a smear test. Paul Dingivan yesterday said be briefly considered taking his own life when he was told his wife Julie was going to die. An audit of the CervicalCheck screening programme found 208 women who would later be diagnosed with cervical cancer were originally given an incorrect all-clear result following a smear test. Of those, 162 were not told about the audit results. Last May, Patrick Lynch, chairman of the HSE Serious Incident Management Team, revealed that 17 of the women had died. Mr Dingivan, whose wife was one of those 17 women who died, yesterday recalled his experience. In May, he had called the Neil Prendeville Show for information, having heard a discussion on the case involving Vicky Phelan, who took the State to the High Court and received a settlement over her misdiagnosis. He was waiting on a call back from the show when he received a call from Julies doctor seeking a meeting, at which he was told of Julies misdiagnosis. I found that extremely hard, to be brought into the same room that Julie initially went into to be told that she had cancer the first time, to be brought into that same room, to be told then that a mistake had been made, Mr Dingivan told the Neil Prendeville Show yesterday. Julie was wrongly given the all clear from a smear test in 2009, but she bled heavily during another 2013 examination and was sent for a biopsy which confirmed she had cancer. She never felt sorry for herself, he said of Julies attitude to treatment. If something didnt work, it was: OK, so whats the next step now, what do we do? She always just wanted an answer, what do we do next and she was always up for the fight. The couple have a daughter Ali, born in 2011, and a child each from previous relationships. Paul Dingivan and his daughter Ali It was when Julie went for a hysterectomy that she discovered she was pregnant with their second child which was lost due to her treatment. Despite the initial all-clear, Julies cancer returned in 2014 when the couple were planning their wedding, which they went ahead with in Spain while Julie was having bouts of chemotherapy treatment. Paul said: We were being told by the doctors youre young, youre healthy, weve caught this early, which we all know now that they didnt catch it early, but thats what we were always being told. Youve a great chance, were not looking to treat this Julie, were looking to get rid of this for you, we caught it early; thats what we were being told. When the cancer returned in 2015, Julie went to the Beacon Hospital for targeted radiotherapy. Eventually, Julie went to Marymount Hospice to treat her pain, where Paul received the news he feared. They said theyd like to sit down with me, with Julies family, with any of Julies friends and whoever we wanted to be there, he said. So we all sat around and they just said does anyone have questions you want to ask about it? and I asked is she going to die and they said she was, they gave her about a week to live. I didnt want it to be, but I kinda knew thats what was coming. Thats where we were going with it. I tried to have the talk with Julie, but she said she didnt want to know how long; when she did wake up she got upset when I tried to talk to her, she said: I dont want to know how long I have left with my children just leave me to enjoy it.: She cried and then she snapped out of it straight away and she sat down then with her sister and my daughter and a few other friends and she picked out what kind of communion dress she wanted Ali to wear, what way she wanted her hair done; stuff like that. Paul said he struggled with the disclosure by the hospital and left Marymount, considering taking his own life. A call from Julie convinced him to return and they spoke about the future. She kept saying: Whatever you do, stay at work and make sure you can give Ali the life she deserves, said Paul. Paul also recalled when his wife passed away. I laid on the bed with Julie and I fell asleep with my arms around her, he said. I woke up with a nurse and my daughter Jasmine in the room, and she said Julies gone, shes stopped breathing. I was talking to her for a while even though she was asleep. I told her to go if she wanted to, dont keep fighting. They woke me then to tell me she was gone. By Ann O'Loughlin A consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist based in the Midlands who has been suspended from his job for over three years has brought High Court proceedings aimed at allowing him to return to work. The application has been brought on behalf of Dr Peadar O'Grady, who the court heard rejects any claims against him of alleged serious professional misconduct over referral practices concerning patients to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service for Laois/Offaly. Arising out of the complaints Dr O'Grady is the subject of an investigation being undertaken by Acrux Consulting Limited on behalf of his employer the HSE, who suspended him on full pay in May 2015. The complaints arose from an ADHD initiative undertaken by the service which identified a number of cases where clinical reassessments were undertaken. Dr O'Grady's diagnoses and assessments of those cases was severely criticised, resulting in an investigation process being commenced. Dr O'Grady, who is a consultant child & adolescent psychiatrist based in Portlaoise, says he is being scapegoated in respect of the under-resourcing of the services. He claims that due to the severe restrictions, he prioritised the most severely ill or at-risk patients. He generally only accepted referrals in cases which were severe, complex and persistent, his counsel Oisin Quinn SC told the court. Mr Quinn said that the investigators have prepared a preliminary report into the allegations. Cosunel said the investigation is flawed and has been conducted in a manner that breaches his client's rights to fair procedures. The preliminary report had made conclusions without any expert evidence to support the investigator's findings, counsel said. In addition, Dr O'Grady believes the three-person team that carried out the investigation was biased against him and had concerns how the matter was commenced and moved forward. Counsel said that this is the second investigation Dr O'Grady has been the subject of since his suspension. Counsel said the investigations concerned broadly the same matters and Dr O'Grady was "fully exonerated" following the first investigation. Counsel said no meaningful steps to advance the second investigation were taken until after he was exonerated by the first investigation. Counsel added there are also interpersonal difficulties between Dr O'Grady and his superior who has made the complaints against him. The two doctors, counsel said, have different professional views about how readily children and adolescents with ADHD should be prescribed medication. Counsel said that the findings of misconduct against him will be submitted to the HSE who will impose a sanction. Dr O'Grady fears for his employment, counsel said. In his action against the HSE Dr O'Grady seeks various orders and declarations including an order quashing the preliminary report of investigation. He also seeks orders preventing the HSE from proceeding with the investigation, as well as injunctions lifting his suspension. He further seeks declarations including that the preliminary report is null and void, that the report has been prepared in breach of fair procedures, and that his continued suspension is unlawful. Permission to bring the action was granted, on an ex parte basis, by Mr Justice Charles Meenan on Monday. The cased will come back before the court in November. By Ruaidhri Giblin The daughters of a man given 10 years for repeatedly raping and abusing them when they were children have spoken of their relief that his appeal has concluded without success. Jerry OKeefe (69), of Oakhill, Youghal, in Cork, had pleaded guilty to nine sample counts of raping one of his daughters and sexually abusing another in Youghal from 1980 to 1985 and 1987 to 1993. OKeeffe pleaded guilty after a jury had been sworn in to try him, following a failed attempt to sever the indictment and order separate trials. He had faced 78 counts on the indictment. He was given consecutive sentences of seven years for repeatedly raping one daughter and three years for repeated abuse of the other by Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy on November 6, 2011. OKeeffe lost an appeal against the severity of his ten year prison sentence today with the Court of Appeal holding that his sentence, if anything other than correct, was lenient. Speaking outside court, OKeeffes eldest daughter Amy Barrett said: Were both just very relieved that its finally over. "We thought it was over when he was sentenced and only found out just before Christmas that he was appealing his sentence. We didnt really want to be coming back up here again but thank God it just turned out well for us. When asked about the judges comments that OKeeffes sentence was, if anything, lenient, she said: I was relieved, very relieved. It showed me these judges have a zero tolerance for child abuse. It gives me a lot of hope. it sends out a message to other victims aswell. Dont be afraid to come forward. I feel so relieved, really relieved its finally over and done with now. We can move on and get on with the rest of our lives now. He message to other in similar positions: Dont lose hope. Dont be afraid to come forward, there is a lot of help out there. Giving judgment in the three-judge court, Mr Justice John Hedigan said OKeeffe repeatedly raped his eldest daughter from the age of eight and began abusing the second daughter from when she was aged 11. Mr Justice Hedigan said a complaint was made against OKeeffe when one of the daughters was 16 but she withdrew the complaint under pressure from her parents. Following an investigation by the Southern Health Board in 1999, involving social workers, it was decided that OKeeffe would move out of the family home. Gardai were aware of the Health Boards investigation but no garda investigation took place. Formal complaints were made in 2014 leading him to be charged. Mr Justice Hedigan said OKeeffe was a former soldier in the army for over 20 years who retired in 2004. He had no previous convictions and was otherwise of good character. He had heart problems and arthritis. Mr Justice Hedigan said the offences were among the most serious to come before our courts. they took place over a number of years and, as the sentencing judge had noted, amounted to a destruction of his childrens childhoods. He said the length of time over which the two children were subjected to this depraved behaviour was horrifying. Mr Justice Hedigan said OKeeffes lawyers had made an eloquent plea on his behalf. However, he said the appeal was almost unstateable. He said the sentence, if anything other than correct, was very lenient. Mr Justice Hedigan, who sat with President of the Court of Appeal Mr Justice George Birmingham and Mr Justice John Edwards, said the three-judge court was entirely unconvinced that it should intervene and the appeal was therefore dismissed. Update 6.32pm: Senator Gerard Craughwell says he would have had to remortgage his house to contest the presidential election. The Independent pulled out of the race for the Aras this morning. Senator Craughwell had vocally called for someone to oppose Michael D Higgins and trigger an election. Now that other contenders will run, Senator Craughwell said the financial situation has changed for him. "A presidential election is not for the foolhardy and it's certainly not for those who would have to remortgage their house in the hope they might win it," said Senator Craughwell. "It's a bittersweet experience for me today. I have won what I set out to do, we will have a democratic election. I will sadly not be a party of that. "It would have been one thing if it was just myself and Michael D Higgins. "It would've been a David and Goliath battle, and I'm very happy to run a David and Goliath battle. "The problem I would've had in running for the presidency was getting my message out without the money. So it was money [that caused me to drop out of the race]." Digital Desk Original story (9.25am): Gerard Craughwell withdraws from presidential race Independent senator Gerard Craughwell has pulled out of the presidential election race after claiming he has achieved his "objective" by forcing a contest for the position, writes Fiachra O Cionnaith. Mr Craughwell confirmed the move in a statement this morning in which he said his only ambition when he put his name forward last year was to ensure a race took place. "I opened up what has been the first serious national conversation on the presidential nomination and election process. "I will now stand aside and take no further part other than to wish each and every candidate success in their campaign," Mr Craughwell said. While the Independent senator has cited the now emerging contest as the reason why he does not feel the need to officially run, questions over whether his campaign would receive the necessary support have increased in recent weeks. Among those still bidding to unseat President Michael D Higgins are Independent senator Joan Freeman, Independent senator Padraig O Ceidigh and an as yet unnamed Sinn Fein candidate. EU commissioner Phil Hogan has said there is a "high probability" of a no-deal on Brexit, after warning of a messy few weeks ahead. Speaking at the MacGill Summer School in Donegal, the agriculture commissioner spoke about US President Donald Trump, problems around Brexit as well as international trade. Asked by journalists after his speech about the possibility now of a no-deal on Brexit, Mr Hogan responded: It is a very high probability. The way things are going. The turmoil in the House of Commons was a perfect example of it recently. Even if we do a deal, ultimately, will it be ultimately agreed to by the House of Commons. So there are a lot of imponderables which would lead everybody to believe, and certainly the view of the European Commission, that we should prepare for a no deal. EU commissioner Phil Hogan has told journalists there is a very high probability of a No deal on #Brexit, after warning of messy weeks ahead #MacGill18 #iestaff More on @irishexaminer shortly pic.twitter.com/kTYUIyMORy Juno McEnroe (@Junomaco) July 23, 2018 Nonetheless, Mr Hogan said the October deadline for a withdrawal deal on Brexit was realistic with goodwill. Earlier, during his address to the Glenties summer school, the commissioner advised that the EU and Ireland needed to bully back US president Donald Trump. Mr Hogan also warned of a messy few weeks ahead with the transatlantic trade war as well as Brexit. Phil Hogan says we are in for a very messy time in the weeks ahead with US trade war and #Brexit pic.twitter.com/sWjpdQFuVx Juno McEnroe (@Junomaco) July 23, 2018 He advised that Ireland needed to bypass the White House when it came to dealing with the US administration. Furthermore, more than 70% of foreign direct investment into the US came from the EU and the amount itself had doubled over the last 15 years, the audience was told. Mr Hogan asked what was the problem with the US administration, added: What is wrong with them? EU Agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan asks what is the problem with the US and trade with EU. What is wrong with them? asks @PhilHoganEU as he assesses trade war with US #iestaff pic.twitter.com/wEOyGVSsHE Juno McEnroe (@Junomaco) July 23, 2018 The former minister also advocated the need for a good outcome on Brexit for EU and Ireland. Ireland needs a good outcome here - we absolutely need Britain to be prosperous after Brexit. This is what gives the lie to commentators - and some people who should know better - alleging that Ireland wishes Britain ill in what lies ahead. This could not be further from the truth. We need a prosperous Britain to keep buying our beef, enjoying our cheeses, using our services and so much more besides. We need the UK to get this right. But Ireland also needed to see a 'so-called' backstop agreed for the North, Mr Hogan said, adding: But, as an absolute priority, the EU needs to see our backstop or insurance mechanism in the Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol nailed down to ensure that, no matter what, as Prime Minister May pledged again last Friday, there will be no going back to any physical infrastructure at the border. Update 8.15pm: The Housing Minister says there's no truth to the rumours that some affordable houses are going to be reserved for those with essential careers. It's after reports that some people like nurses or teachers would have houses set aside for them in new cost-rental schemes. The first one was launched today consisting of 470 units of social and affordable housing at St Michael's estate in Inchicore, Dublin. Local government TD Catherine Byrne raised concerns that people originally from the area still wouldn't be able to afford them and they'd go to people outside the area. However, Minister Eoghan Murphy says the best developments involve a mix of people and dismissed suggestions that some would be reserved. "We need to strike a balance here," said Minister Murphy. "There's lots of important jobs in the economy. Some of them are in the public services, some of them support the public services or are related to them. "To try to design a scheme where you are just saying 'these particular jobs' would be very difficult and potentially unfair. "We'll do it based on connection to the area, either through work or throught the community or their means, and a few other criteria that are still being specified." Earlier: Awkward scenes as party colleague interrupts Housing Minister to voice opposition to plans Update 1pm: The Housing Minister has clashed with a party colleague at the launch of 470 new homes for Inchicore in Dublin. There were awkward scenes as Eoghan Murphy launched the proposal for Emmet Road but his colleague Catherine Byrne announced shes against it. The Housing Minister arrived at Inchicore to announce the 470 new homes for the area at the old St Michaels site under the countrys first Cost Rental Scheme. Eoghan Murphy says this means the site will include social housing, with the remainder being rented out to people at affordable prices. "We can allow people to be able to afford to rent in their own communities but we can also protect them from the very dramatic ups and downs we've seen in the rental market before," he said. However, his party colleague and local TD Catherine Byrne interrupted the launch to voice her anger towards it. "Was anybody here from the community in the consultation?" she asked. Catherine Byrne TD standing up at Richmond Barracks. She also does not agree with Govs St Michaels estate plan. she says it is the wrong plan. First time she has seen plan. @DarraghOBrienTD @fiannafailparty pic.twitter.com/bkblYu3xTq Senator Catherine Ardagh (@cardagh) July 23, 2018 Speaking afterwards, she said these homes still wouldnt be affordable enough for many locals. "I'm really upset and sad that Dublin City Council would come to this stage and have this launch now, when really there hasn't been an input from the wider community into it. Among other things - this proposal would also dash hopes for St Pats Football Club to build a stadium nearby. Dublin City Council would have to give its approval for the 470 units so it is in their hands whether it is given the green light or not. Digital Desk Earlier: Countrys first Cost Rental development to include 470 homes in Dublin Update 11.50am: There are plans to build 470 new homes at Emmet Road in Inchicore, Dublin as part of the countrys first Cost Rental development. It will include social houses with the remaining properties being rented out to people at affordable prices. This proposal would dash hopes for St Pats Football Club to build a stadium in the area. Earlier: St Pat's president urges fans not to picket Housing Minister's announcement Update 8.35am: St Patrick's Athletic is urging supporters not to picket the announcement of housing plans for Dublin this morning. It is expected the football club's bid to build a UEFA-grade stadium in Inchicore will be rejected. The Housing Minister will today announce plans to build up to 500 homes on the former St Michael's Estate in Inchicore. It dashes St Pat's hopes to build a UEFA-grade stadium, with some angry supporters planning to show up at the housing launch later this morning. The club's president is urging them to stay away, and instead voice their opposition by phone, email and letter. Tom O'Mahony says abusive protests could hurt any future chance of their plans being accepted. STATEMENT: Important message here for all @stpatsfc supporters from our Club President, Tom O'Mahony - see below and on https://t.co/m0lciH4qtD pic.twitter.com/3AuIAh84eh St Patrick's Athletic FC (@stpatsfc) July 21, 2018 "It has been brought to our attention that some of you may be planning to show your opposition to the Dublin City Council plans for St Michael's Estate by protesting outside the homes of local politicians or at the launch of the plans next Monday," Mr O'Mahony said. "We strongly appeal to supporters NOT to do this. It will not help our cause and in fact is likely to damage it. We need the goodwill of local politicians if our alternative plans are to have any chance of being accepted. "We do of course want you to engage with local politicians. Do so by phone, by e-mail, by letter, by talking to them in the course of their public engagements. Make your points in a friendly, reasonable manner and please don't be abusive in any way. We know that many local politicians will be weighing up the Council's plans and deciding whether to support them or to argue for a rethink which would include our proposal. The last thing we need is to turn them against us! Digital Desk Earlier: Housing Minister to announce redevelopment plans on Dublin council lands Update 7.10am: The Housing Minister will today announce redevelopment plans on council lands in Dublin. Eoghan Murphy says the proposal for Emmet Road in Inchicore, will take account of the need to link the new development with adjoining communities and landmarks. Meanwhile, it was reported over the weekend the government is set make hundreds of new homes available to "essential" public sector workers such as doctors and nurses. A scheme to make affordable housing linked to professions is being considered. Digital Desk By Ann O'Loughlin An order restraining an elderly man visiting his wife, who has dementia and other health difficulties, in a nursing home has been lifted by the President of the High Court. Orders restraining visits by the couple's son, previously secretly recorded as making "vile" threats to his mother in her home, have been continued. Mr Justice Peter Kelly lifted the orders against the woman's husband on foot of appeals from other family members and a letter from the husband saying he loves and cannot live without his wife of many decades. The woman is a ward of court and the HSE and general solicitor for wards of court consented to the husband's visits on terms set by the court, including being subject to regulation by the nursing home. The judge said he had made the orders against the husband very reluctantly and only because he appeared to be under the influence of his son when accompanying him during visits to the woman which her medical team considered very disruptive, distressing for the woman and potentially harmful. The woman is now in a nursing home but was in hospital until recently. She was moved to hospital by court order last month on the application of the HSE after her daughter provided social workers with a secret recording made by her of abusive exchanges between the son and his parents in their home which the judge described as vile and horrible. Today when the case returned to court, the judge heard evidence from that daughter, who was in court with her sister and another relative. All three supported the orders being continued against the son but not the woman's husband. In evidence, the daughter said she is very concerned for her father's well being as he was very distressed at being unable to visit her mother. She considered her brother has a negative influence on her father and the latter was "a different person" away from him. The judge heard the daughters, with assistance of the general solicitor, plan to find appropriate accommodation for their mother in another part of the country near them, and accommodation for their father close by. The intention was to sell their parents home to facilitate that. The daughter said other family members had been suspicious about possible abuse of their mother by the son and also had concerns their father is also "on the receiving end of abuse". Her father took ill over the weekend, appears to be a "broken man" and had asked her to give the judge a letter, she said. In that, the man stated he and his wife were in love and married for decades, had never been apart and he could not live without his wife who was his "rock". The daughter said her parents had previously wanted to sell their house and move closer to the part of the country where she and her sister live but the son, who lives with them, had taken their house off the market. The judge said he had restricted the father's visits because of concerns, during the joint visits of the son and father, the woman was being given food and materials detrimental to her well being. He said the woman is not well and needs to be looked after with love and affection which was "not evident" from the son's care. Things had taken "a turn for the better" with the daughters' intervention, he said. He was satisfied to discontinue the orders against the father and noted there is now "a real likelihood" both parents might end up living close together and near their daughters. The orders remain in place against the son pending further order. Update 4.09pm: Dublin Fire Brigade says some of its life-saving equipment stolen from a pub in Cabra has been returned. The rescue saw was handed into Phibsborough Fire Station this afternoon. It's still missing another device, which was robbed as paramedics helped someone having a heart attack at the weekend. At lunchtime a tradesman contacted us to say that he had been offered the DeWalt rescue saw. After some persuasion, they convinced the "seller" to hand it over and subsequently dropped it back to Phibsborough Station. We'd like to thank that person, and everyone for their support pic.twitter.com/pQEpohSeCf Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) July 23, 2018 Dublin's Lord Mayor, Nial Ring, is asking whoever took it to give the rest of it back. "I would appeal to the people, as Lord Mayor of Dublin, please give back that life-saving equipment," he said. "If you have a heart attack in Dublin, it's the second safest city in the world after Seattle because of the quality of our equipment and, more importantly, the quality of our senior paramedics." Original story (9am): Equipment stolen from fire brigade in Dublin Dublin Fire Brigade is appealing for the public's help in finding equipment stolen from an ambulance. Paramedics were treating a person for a cardiac arrest in a Cabra pub when the theft of the two life-saving devices happened. They have shared a photo on Twitter and are asking people to contact them if they think they can help locate the equipment. Unfortunately, while our fire crew were assitisting with a Cardiac Arrest in a pub on Fassaugh Avenue, #Cabra, two pieces of equipment were stolen off the fire engine. Similar to the pictures below if you have seen, or know where the equipment is please get in contact. pic.twitter.com/kKgI7YQ2kG Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) July 22, 2018 Digital Desk By Jessica Magee A 25-year-old man has pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to the repeated rape of a teenage Spanish student in Dublin last summer. Eoin Berkley of Hampton Wood Way, Finglas, Dublin admitted three counts of raping the girl at the Irish Glass Bottle Company site, Pigeon House Road at a time unknown between July 15 and 16, 2017. The 18-year-old student had been staying with a host family in Dublin at the time. Mr Justice Michael White said the complainant should be advised of her right to make a Victim Impact Statement, and he adjourned sentencing to give her time to do so. Caroline Biggs SC, prosecuting, said arrangements would be made for the young woman to travel to Ireland if she decides to attend the sentence hearing. Mr Justice White remanded Berkley in continuing custody for sentencing on October 22. He agreed to finalise the matter within that week, as the complainant may need to spend several days in Ireland. Defence counsel, Michael Bowman SC, said he would be addressing the court at the sentence hearing in relation to psychiatric issues. By Alison O'Riordan The prosecution in the Special Criminal Court trial of three Dubliners accused of murdering Gareth Hutch has closed its case today. The three-judge court has also ruled that mobile phone records are admissible as evidence in the trial. Mr Hutch (36), nephew of Gerry "the monk" Hutch was shot dead as he was getting into his car outside Avondale House flats on North Cumberland Street in Dublin on the morning of May 24, 2016. He died as a result of four gunshot injuries. The prosecution contend that Jonathan Keogh (32) threatened to kill Mr Hutch the evening before the shooting, that Thomas Fox (31) and Regina Keogh (41) were instrumental in planning the murder, and Mr Keogh and another man, Mr AB, were the shooters. Mr Fox with an address at Rutland Court, Dublin 1, Ms Keogh from Avondale House, Cumberland Street North, Dublin 1 and Mr Keogh of Gloucester Place, Dublin 1, have pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Hutch. Mr Fox has also denied unlawfully possessing a Makarov 9 mm handgun on May 23, 2016 at the same place. Prosecution counsel Paul Burns SC told Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding, sitting with Judge Patricia Ryan and Judge Michael Walsh that the prosecution had concluded giving evidence. Defence barristers for each of the accused said they had no applications to make to the non-jury court. Earlier, the court ruled that mobile phone records were admissible as evidence in the trial. Mr Justice Hunt said the court did not have anything reduced to writing today but it was his intention to provide reasons for their finding later in the week. Last week the court embarked on a voir dire or trial within a trial relating to the mobile phone evidence. The State sought to admit mobile phone records associated with the three accused, as well as a "Mr AB", who is not before the courts. It is part of the States case that phones identified by gardai in their investigation can be shown to have "pinged" off phone masts at relevant times and in relevant locations. Defence lawyers argued that mobile phone evidence should not be admissible in the trial as it breached their individual right to privacy. They said that the retention of mobile phone data and unrestricted access to it by gardai was in contravention of EU law. However, prosecution counsel Mr Burns said privacy was not an absolute right and no breach of privacy arose in this matter. The court heard that gardai made 38 requests for mobile phone records as part of their investigation into the killing. At the opening of the trial eight weeks ago, the prosecution told the court that the killing of Mr Hutch was not a spontaneous or spur of the moment act but a brutal and callous murder. It was premeditated and a significant amount of planning had gone into it, counsel said. The prosecution say the three co-accused each had their own part to play in bringing about the death of Mr Hutch. During the trial, the court heard evidence from a protected witness, Mary McDonnell, who identified Mr Keogh from CCTV footage as one of the gunmen who carried out the attack on Mr Hutch. She also identified Mr Fox and Mr Keogh as the men who came into her flat the night before with two guns. Mrs McDonnell, who is the key prosecution witness in the trial, was originally charged with withholding information but that charge was dropped and she has been given immunity from prosecution. The prosecution contend that witness Mrs McDonnell was encouraged by her best friend and neighbour Regina Keogh to allow Jonathan Keogh use her flat as a base to wait for Mr Hutch prior to the attack. The trial will resume on Wednesday when lawyers for the prosecution and defence are expected to make closing speeches. Nayak Paudel is a crime reporter for The Kathmandu Post. Since joining the Post in 2018, he has also written on health issues. The Health Minister has been called on to 'come clean' on plans for Slaintecare. It comes after it emerged the government is considering making universal free GP care a long-term objective. Under the all-party Slaintecare proposal, that policy was expected to be phased in over five years. Joint leader of the Social Democrats, Roisin Shortall says the government needs to outline its plans for health care. "I'd call on the Minister to come clean on this, to come out and tell us what exactly the government is going to do in relation to Slaintecare. "Is it going to support it and is it going to implement it? What we've been told today in relation to phasing in was already in Slaintecare and also that there would be a prioritisation of the extension of free GP care. Labour's Alan Kelly TD called for the publication of Harris's three-year implementation strategy provided to the Cabinet. "Minister Harris should publish the implementation plan and proposals he brought to Cabinet last week on the recommendations in the Slaintecare report," he said. "If there are 104 actions to be taken over three years, we should see what the proposed implementation strategy is. "The reports today would indicate that Fine Gael is quickly backing away from the core proposals of the plan to introduce a single-tier health system in Ireland and a shift towards investment in primary care services. Moving towards a phased rollout of free GP on the basis of income will be time-consuming, and mean the introduction of costly means testing ensuring that the benefits of the proposals will be lost in bureaucracy. "Previous budgets made commitments to free GP for children up to the age of 12. We haven't seen any progress on that after three years. "If they are ruling out any further expansion in this year's budget then Slaintecare will be delayed again." Digital Desk The Taoiseach is visiting a number of EU capitals this week to discuss the ongoing Brexit negotiations. Leo Varadkar is going to be in Zagreb today. The settlement the UK has agreed in principle over Brexit is made up of obligations and commitments it has already settled on, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said. He was speaking in Croatia as part of a tour of three European capitals to discuss Brexit and other issues relating to Britain leaving the EU next year. The Taoiseach also said a hard border could not be contemplated. "I think there is a real understanding from every member state that we need to avoid that, first of all through the withdrawal treaty, and then through the final relationship," RTE reported him as saying. Mr Varadkar visited Croatian capital Zagreb for meetings with president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic and prime minister Andrej Plenkovic. The Taoiseach will travel to Romania on Tuesday and will meet president Klaus Iohannis and prime minister Viorica Dancila. On Wednesday, he will travel on to Italy where he will visit the Venice Biennale, before a meeting in Rome on Thursday with the new Italian prime minister, Giuseppe Conte. Tanaiste Simon Coveney said he was optimistic about negotiations. "Nobody wants a no-deal Brexit, it would be catastrophic for Britain, but also very bad news for Ireland. "The responsibility is on all of us to find a way forward, and I'm optimistic we will. "We now have a clear white paper, which is the negotiating position for the British Government, and started intensifying negotiations - that's positive. Just arrived in Zagreb for first of this weeks meetings with European leaders, very warm reception from Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic. Joined by Irish Ambassador Olive Hempenstall. Were discussing bilateral relations and Croatias upcoming EU presidency pic.twitter.com/pSrgfdyFVc Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) July 23, 2018 "We also have a Prime Minister that has repeated that we are not going to see physical border structure in Ireland. "We want to reassure communities, especially in Northern Ireland, that we can manage our way through Britain leaving the EU, and protect the peace process." - Press Association A 23-year-old man who was critically injured in a car crash at the weekend has died in Beaumont Hospital in Dublin. James Cochrane from Loughanure, Co Donegal, sustained serious head injuries when the car in which he was a passenger went out of control near Dungloe, also in Co Donegal. May 18 permit cut-off for worker departures for Malaysia Nepali migrants with valid work visas, who had been waiting to leave for Malaysia, will finally be able to depart.Hundreds of outbound workers were unable to take up their jobs in Malaysia after the government launched a crackdown on the agencies involved in fleecing them under various headings. Extremely dry conditions that have seen Australian farmers cut spending on herbicides have forced agribusiness Nufarm to substantially cut its guidance for fiscal 2018 and review the "impairment implications" for its local business. Nufarm said it was now forecasting underlying earnings before interest and tax for fiscal 2018 of $255 million to $270 million. This is down from a forecast of about $317.4 million released by the company on May 8, which itself was down on an earlier forecast. Nufarm said dry weather in Australia had reduced demand for crop protection products. Credit:Bloomberg The company warned on Monday of a "weak result" in fiscal 2018 from its Australian and New Zealand business, with earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) from this business to be between $5 million and $10 million. This is well down on last year's $51.6 million EBIT result. Were facing a perfect storm here in the Australian market, with the dry conditions leading to a poor winter crop, an oversupply of products and increased competition across our sector," Nufarm managing director Greg Hunt said. Senior police officers told a forensics officer to "f--k off, constable" when he tried to stop them trampling on the scene of police chief Colin Winchester's alleged murder, a jury heard Monday. The driveway where Mr Winchester sat slumped in the driver's seat of the Ford sedan formed the crime scene in what would become the biggest police investigation in Canberra's history, an investigation that led to the charging of public servant David Harold Eastman for murder. Mr Winchester, the assistant commissioner of police, was shot in the head on January 10, 1989. The 72-year-old Mr Eastman, on trial in the ACT Supreme Court, has pleaded not guilty. Forensics officer Murray Duffus was one of the first officers called to the crime scene. He agreed under questioning by defence barrister George Georgiou SC that the senior officers were trampling on the crime scene, but they had told him to "f--k off" when he asked them to move away. A young man has died after falling from a cliff at a popular whale-watching area in southern Sydney. The man, believed to be 18, fell up to 20 metres from the cliff into the water at Cape Solander in Kurnell just before 3.30pm on Monday, NSW Ambulance said. A young man has fallen from a cliff at Kurnell. Credit:Seven News Water police, the Westpac Rescue Helicopter and paramedics rushed to the scene. Paramedics treated the man at the scene but he could not be revived, police said. NSW Police Chief Inspector Chris Hill said it appears the victim was while whale-watching with a group of friends when they made their way down to the rocks. A Queensland detective has cast doubt over an accused murderer's claim she fought with her partner after confronting him about being bisexual. The Brisbane Supreme Court trial of Lindy Yvonne Williams, 60, for the murder of George Gerbic last week heard he used a second phone to keep up a relationship with a man named Gary. Lindy Williams is accused of murdering her de facto, George Gerbic. Credit:Internet "There were two Garys in the investigation we spoke to ... there was no indication of any type of relationship between Mr Gerbic and them," Detective Senior Constable Brett Long told the court on Monday. Investigators could not locate a second phone used by Mr Gerbic, he said. KATHMANDU, The statement of Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Sher Bahadur Tamang has faced strong criticism for his outrageous statement about Nepali female medicine students in Bangladesh. The sole survivor of the fishing trawler Dianne, which capsized in rough seas off the coast of Central Queensland in October 2017, says he could hear screaming from his "brothers" who were trapped inside. Ruben McDornan told Nine's 60 Minutes on Sunday night that not a day went by when he did not think of the six men, his friends and fellow divers, who died when their fishing vessel rolled. Ruben McDornan survived hours in rough seas off the coast of Queensland after the Dianne capsized. Mr McDornan was "miraculously" found by a couple on a passing yacht, treading water without a lifejacket about 20 nautical miles away from where the Dianne sank. Of the seven men on board, only the bodies of 30-year-old Adam Hoffman and 45-year-old Ben Leahy were found by police divers. A man has died after a prime mover rolled on Beaudesert Boonah Road at Coulson in south-east Queensland, forcing the road to be closed. A Queensland Ambulance Service spokesman said paramedics attended with reports of a patient trapped in the truck. One patient was attended for critical injuries but was pronounced dead at the scene. The prime mover was carrying hay when it rolled. Credit:7 News Queensland/Twitter The accident occurred just after 11am on Monday morning, with all emergency services attending. The prime mover was carrying a load of hay bales when it crashed. The mobile phones belonging to Borce Ristevski and his wife Karen were detected on the day she went missing, but a telecommunications expert has been unable to pinpoint exactly where the phones were that day or why they were deactivated. Prosecutors allege Mr Ristevski murdered his wife of 27 years on June 29, 2016 and drove her body in her car from their home in Avondale Heights to Mount Macedon Regional Park. Her body was found in the park eight months later, between two logs. Borce and Karen Ristevski. Mr Ristevski, 54, is charged with murder and on Monday entered the second and final week of a hearing at Melbourne Magistrates Court that will determine whether he stands trial. He will plead not guilty if committed to appear before a jury. The court heard last week the Ristevskis phones pinged telecommunications towers that morning, before the phones were deactivated. WA Police have located a missing 70-year-old man, after concerns for his welfare were raised when he hadn't been seen since Sunday afternoon. Police announced Monday afternoon they had located Timothy James McManus in Harvey. Mr McManus had last been seen in the Wilson area and concerns were held for him as he has a medical condition that requires medication. Police have located Tim McManus. Credit:WA Police Mr McManus was last seen about 5pm in Wilson on Sunday driving a white 2005 Hyundai Accent. The under-siege Labor MP Emma Husar claimed thousands of dollars in taxpayer-funded limousine travel around her home city despite leasing her own taxpayer-funded car, Fairfax Media can reveal. Backbenchers are entitled to use the publicly-funded Comcar service in Canberra, while interstate on business and for travel to and from the airport in their home town for official business purposes. MPs are expected to use their own publicly funded private vehicles to attend functions and parliamentary business in their home town where they are reasonably able to. Labor MP Emma Husar is already facing an internal investigation into allegations of bullying her staff. Credit:Andrew Meares But Fairfax Media has identified more than $2000 worth of Comcar trips taken by Ms Husar since June last year in Sydney to attend functions and meetings involving no interstate flights or travel. Treasury had concerns about the surging cost of dividend imputation before Labor announced a $55 billion plan to clawback tax refunds from 1 million retirees, new government advice marked "protected" has revealed. Treasurer Scott Morrison's chief of staff Philip Gaetjens requested a Treasury briefing within hours of Labor's policy being announced in March and was delivered a comprehensive distributional analysis, which typically takes more than a week to complete, showing the cost of the scheme had tripled in less than a decade. Mr Gaetjens - who was appointed by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull as the new Treasury secretary in July - requested specific information on the impact of the policy on aged pensioners, self-managed super funds and those earning below the tax-free threshold. The Coalition has repeatedly accused Labor of stealing from retirees through the policy, which will save the budget $5 billion a year over the next decade by cancelling a cash refund of as much as $5000 on share dividends for up to 1.1 million voters who do not pay any tax. "What happened in Portugal shows that too much austerity deepens a recession, and creates a vicious circle," Prime Minister Antonio Costa said in an interview. "We devised an alternative to austerity, focusing on higher growth, and more and better jobs." Voters ushered Costa, a centre-left leader, into power in late 2015 after he promised to reverse cuts to their income, which the previous government had approved to reduce Portugal's high deficit under the terms of an international bailout of 78 billion euros ($123 billion). Costa formed an unusual alliance with Communist and radical-left parties, which had been shut out of power since the end of Portugal's dictatorship in 1974. They united with the goal of beating back austerity, while balancing the books to meet eurozone rules. Storefronts in the city of Porto, Portugal. Hotels, restaurants and shops have opened in droves, fuelled by a tourism surge. Credit:New York Times The government raised public sector salaries, the minimum wage and pensions and even restored the amount of vacation days to pre-bailout levels over objections from creditors like Germany and the International Monetary Fund. Incentives to stimulate business included development subsidies, tax credits and funding for small and midsize companies. Costa made up for the give-backs with cuts in infrastructure and other spending, whittling the annual budget deficit to less than 1 per cent of its gross domestic product, compared with 4.4 per cent when he took office. The government is on track to achieve a surplus by 2020, a year ahead of schedule, ending a quarter-century of deficits. European officials are now admitting that Portugal may have found a better response to the crisis. Recently, they rewarded Lisbon by elevating the country's finance minister, Mario Centeno, who helped engineer the changes, to president of the Eurogroup, the influential collective of eurozone finance ministers. The economic about-face had a remarkable effect on Portugal's collective psyche. While discouragement lingers in Greece after a decade of spending cuts, Portugal's recovery has pivoted around restoring confidence to get people and businesses motivated again. Loading "The actual stimulus spending was very small," said Joao Borges de Assuncao, a professor at the Catolica Lisbon School of Business and Economics. "But the country's mindset became completely different, and from an economic perspective, that's more impactful than the actual change in policy." Yet Portugal's success is still vulnerable. Growth is cooling from 2.7 per cent last year, as Costa keeps public investment at a 40-year low to cut the deficit. While he restored public sector salaries to previous levels, they have barely budged since before the crisis. Social precariousness lingers, worsened by the spread of low-paying part-time contracts. And the minimum wage of 580 euros a month, although up, remains one of the lowest in the eurozone. Portugal's unions are now threatening strikes to press the government to increase wages and unlock more public spending to reduce inequality. No place for triumphalism: the Praca do Comercio arch in Lisbon, Portugal. Portugal's recovery is real but fragile as growth is stalling and wages are stagnant. Credit:New York Times Costa insists that the government must keep cutting the deficit to offset the biggest threat to Portugal: its enormous debt, still one of the eurozone's largest. Portuguese banks are saddled with bad loans from the earlier crisis, and the country remains vulnerable to any financial market turmoil that might be stirred up by problems in nearby Italy. "We didn't go from the dark side to the bright side of the moon," the prime minister said. "There's still a lot to do." "But when we started this process, a lot of people said that what we wanted to achieve was impossible," he added. "We showed that there is an alternative." To cement the growth cycle, the government is putting what little investment it makes into targeted initiatives like tax breaks for foreign companies and training for the unemployed. An hour and a half east of Lisbon, in Evora, a 2-hectare factory built by the French airplane-parts maker Mecachrome rises from rolling plains fringed with cork trees. Lured in 2016 by government incentives and European Union loans, it invested 30 million euros in a vast aerospace park where bulldozers are flattening fields to make way for roads and businesses. A Mecachrome aeronautics factory in Evora, Portugal. Credit:New York Times Robots forge precision parts for Airbus, Boeing and other industry giants. Most of the 150 technicians were recruited nearby by an unemployment agency that started an intensive retraining program with the government. Paris: State auditors have told a French village near the Spanish border that it is "too rich" to continue taxing residents and should cancel council and property taxes this year. Le Perthus, a community of 586 people, takes more than 700,000 ($1.1 million) a year from parking fees alone. People from the surrounding region park in the village while they cross the border on foot to shop in Spain, where food, clothes and household goods are cheaper. French village of Le Perthus, near the Spanish border. Credit:Bertrand Grondin/Wikicommons Andre Pezziardi, head of the Occitanie Audit Office, said: "We concluded that local taxation should be reduced to zero for council and property taxes." Last year the council spent less than 5000 of 240000 earmarked for public facilities because the mayor and councillors could not agree how to spend the money. Latest News GetCapital rebrands as Shift, pivots from lender to broker platform New proposition has fintech seeks to empower brokers through data Pepper Money, St Kilda Football Club launch community grant program Non-bank lender renews partnership with St Kilda by creating $30,000 Real Life Fund to help sports groups As the FBAA celebrates its silver anniversary, Peter White reflects on 25 years of standing up for brokers In the winter of 1992, a small group of brokers gathered in a church hall in Bowen Hills, Brisbane, with the intention of discussing the industry issues that mattered to them. With an agenda to improve professional standards and establish a voice for brokers in Queensland, the initial focus centred on representation for chattel-mortgage and plant and equipment brokers. Under the name Finance Brokers Association of Queensland, the six-strong cohort each pledged $50 to the cause and started to contact other brokers within their networks to arrange a second, bigger meeting. Momentum soon grew, and in June 1993, thanks to a large donation from founding member and international businessman Geoff Thomas, Australias first association for finance brokers was established. There are a lot of people who are up in arms over todays issues, but were the ones unreservedly out there Peter White, executive director, FBAA Since the early 1990s, we have gone through three significant changes in consumer lending regulations, and the professional standards of brokers today are of the highest integrity and professionalism ever, says executive director Peter White, who joined in 2003 as the FBAAs scope widened to encompass residential mortgage brokers. Since then, White has held the roles of NSW president, national VP, national president, and chairman of the board of directors. Following his appointment to CEO in 2010, FBAA membership increased from 1,000 to more than 8,300 members currently. The attraction for many is the real-life practical knowledge and experience we have in the industry, says White. FBAA does not take in major banks as corporate sponsors, which enables us to hold independent control of our own voice in the marketplace. The FBAA maintains its position as an association run by brokers for brokers and has a firm grasp of the challenges faced currently. Taking an active role in driving the continued development of the industry, the body is currently working to encourage more women into finance broking, create an attractive student pathway, continuously elevate professional standards, and support members through their early years in the business. There are a lot of people who are up in arms over todays issues, but were the ones unreservedly out there taking on those concerns at the top end of town taking the bull by its horns, says White. The FBAA National Industry Conference is a key driver of this. Growing from 150 delegates at the inaugural event in 2012 to 1,000 people in 2017, the Brisbane-based conference is a highlight in many brokers annual calendars. After a turbulent 12 months for the industry, White promises the 2018 conference will be unlike anything anyone has done in our industry, covering changes imposed by technology, regulation, customer preferences and the royal commission. The FBAA has shaped the voice of the broker versus that of the lender, and over 15 years or more has continually challenged the status quo. In 2005, we were the sole voice in our industry supporting one legislation piece without state variations, with others following suit some years later, and we have continued to influence many pieces of legislation. Our lives would be a lot worse if not for the undertakings and outcomes of the work the FBAA does with regulators and government, White says. Latest News GetCapital rebrands as Shift, pivots from lender to broker platform New proposition has fintech seeks to empower brokers through data Pepper Money, St Kilda Football Club launch community grant program Non-bank lender renews partnership with St Kilda by creating $30,000 Real Life Fund to help sports groups AMP has lodged its defence against shareholders in proceedings led by Quinn Emanuel in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The non-major is facing action after shareholders accused it of withholding information relating to its fees for no services and its interactions with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). It is also defending its report to ASIC by Clayton Utz. AMP has confirmed it will be vigorously defending these and similar proceedings. It is facing four other class actions over the issue. Over the last few months AMP has been accused of charging advice fees to clients where no service was provided. It was also accused of misleading ASIC by changing reports from law firm Clayton Utz as part of the regulators investigation into the fees for no service matter. While the group has admitted to charging these fees and has refunded customers, it is continuing to deny misleading ASIC. Shareholders have now taken action against AMP, claiming it should have disclosed the information. However, AMP has said any information it did have in respect of these matters was not material to AMPs share price. AMP said the fees for no service was not material with regards to the number of affected customers and the amount of fees paid. It also said it was canvassed extensively during a Royal Commission testimony on 16 April 2018 without causing any material movement in AMPs share price on that day. While the group has admitted to certain representations it made to ASIC, it said it did not have the effect of misleading ASIC in any material way. AMP notified ASIC in October 2017 when it handed over the Clayton Utz report, resulting in an investigation from ASIC. AMP said the regulatory dealings were confidential and not of a kind expected to be disclosed to the market. Shareholders have also said information surrounding Clayton Utzs independence should have been disclosed. AMP said the report makes note of the fact the Board of AMP appointed the firm to conduct an investigation independent of AMPs advice business. It also said that ASIC knew that Clayton Utz was a member of AMPs external legal panel and was acting for AMP in relation to ASICs investigation of the fees for no service issues. It added, There is nothing about the independence of the Clayton Utz Report that required disclosure. Further, Clayton Utz did not make any changes to the report as a result of communications with AMP which Clayton Utz did not agree with, and Clayton Utz carefully verified the accuracy of the statements in the report. AMP will return to the Federal Court in Melbourne on 14 August 2018 for the hearing of its application to have the four other class actions transferred to the NSW Supreme Court. Related stories: AMP served with class action proceedings AMP 'strenuously' denies allegations AMP continues board renewal No headway as fast lingers Even as the government maintains its tough stance against the demands of fasting surgeon Dr Govinda KC, informal channels of negotiation are being used to reach out to the protesting side for a way out. Sign up for our PoliticsNY newsletter for the latest coverage and to stay informed about the 2021 elections in your district and across NYC The Brooklyn builder that wants to erect a controversial megadevelopment on the edge of Boerum Hill recently turned its attention to Dumbo, scooping up two neighboring Jay Street buildings in the areas historic district that its bigwigs hope to transform into a single, live-work space for creative types, they told city preservationists last week. Live-work units with commercial use we imagine a lot of folks in Dumbo have art or photo studios, said Alloy Developments AJ Pires during a July 17 presentation to the Landmarks Preservation Commission, which must sign off on the scheme because the properties sit within the landmarked Dumbo Historic District. Pires and his business partner Jared Della Valle bought the combined lots at 42-50 Jay St. in June for an undisclosed price, according to city records, but a Real Deal report estimated the Alloy leaders doled out more than $50 million to purchase the connected pair from social-services provider Phoenix House which just last year opened a swanky rehab facility at the location that closed four months after its debut because it struggled to fill beds, according to a Crains report. The developer of 80 Flatbush in Boerum Hill declined to comment on its new Dumbo project, but records show Alloy plans to shell out $6,187,020 to transform the old rehab center and its adjoining building which housed Phoenix House administrative offices into a 46-unit residential complex with perks that include a gym, storage, recreation spaces, and other amenities. The makeover calls for adding two stories atop the eight-floor structure at 42 Jay St., as well as painting its facade, reconfiguring its ground level, and installing windows and mechanical units. And the builders proposed similar tweaks to the six-floor building at 50 Jay St., including adding an extra story on top, altering the ground floor, and putting in new windows and mechanical equipment. The developers also want to create a new entry to their planned complex, which will be renamed 168 Plymouth St., via a courtyard off of that street, where they claimed people used to enter the properties in the late 1800s and early 1900s when they were occupied by the Masury Paint Company. One of the things were proposing is to move the primary building entrance to Plymouth, and use the courtyard in the back as an entrance for the building, Pires said. Other changes include painting over a Plymouth Street gate attached to one of the buildings, and sticking a bollard outside the new entrance on that street to secure it, according to Pires. Most of the commissioners cheered the proposal, but they did not vote on it at the meeting, instead asking Alloy to return with a slightly revised version that they can weigh in on at a to-be-determined session. A local preservationist also applauded the proposal, but urged the builder to ensure any construction does not damage Plymouth Streets ancient Belgian blocks if it ultimately receives the green light. This will be a beautiful enhancement of one of the neighborhoods favorite buildings, said Doreen Gallo, leader of civic group the Dumbo Neighborhood Alliance. We ask that Alloy be diligent on this 100-percent Belgian-block street, and that the blocks be carefully numbered and put back in their rightful place. The firms Jay Street project follows its several already completed developments within the Dumbo Historic District, which include 185 Plymouth St., 1 John St. inside Brooklyn Bridge Park, and 192 Water St. Reach reporter Julianne Cuba at (718) 2604577 or by e-mail at jcuba @cngl ocal.com . Follow her on Twitter @julcuba. Sign up for our PoliticsNY newsletter for the latest coverage and to stay informed about the 2021 elections in your district and across NYC This underground garage is not sunk yet! A long-awaited project to build a vending-machine-style parking facility beneath a promised park on Willoughby Street Downtown is not on the rocks despite previous reports, according to its developer, who said his firm secured the cash it needs to break ground and may do so as early as this fall. Im confident the financing is available and that we are able to do the project, said Perry Finkelman, who runs the Long Islandbased American Development Group. Realistically, were looking at probably November. In March, news circulated that bigwigs at the citys Economic Development Corporation which is overseeing the creation of Willoughby Square Park, a green space officials promised to locals when they controversially upzoned much of the neighborhood in 2004 doubted Finkelmans firms ability to raise the funds needed for the project, roughly five years after the agency tapped the developer for it in 2013. But the city corporations leaders are sticking with their chosen builder after it took positive steps forward that included expanding its construction team, bringing on a general contractor, and securing financing for the scheme, according to an agency spokesman. We see this as moving in the right direction, the rep said on July 12. We are continuing to work with the developer to close on the project and are committed to delivering it as soon as possible. The developer scaled back the scope of its underground garage to lock-in bank financing for the project, however, reducing the facilitys original 700 spots to 467, and shrinking it from three to two levels changes that slashed the schemes budget from roughly $97 million to $82 million, $6 million of which is money from the city and other private builders for the park itself, according to Finkelman, who said he still is waiting on officials to sign off on the revised plan. The banks been informed, and is happy to continue the process, he said. All were doing is cutting off a level, but we had to go back and make adjustments, and now were waiting for city approval. It takes a couple of months apparently. The builder blamed the slow-going project on bureaucratic red-tape, claiming he could have designed and built the park and garage in half the time if it were just up to him. With a public works project, youre getting approvals every step of the way, committees are looking over everything, it just takes its time, Finkelman said. If this was totally in the private sector, youre probably looking at 18 months to two years of pre-development. But it has taken an awfully long time. Work on the park bounded by Fulton Mall and Willoughby, Duffield, and Gold streets which the city tapped California-based landscape-architecture firm Hargreaves Associates to design back in 2010 has inched along over the past decade, following the citys use of eminent domain to purchase nearly a dozen once privately owned properties on the site for tens of millions of dollars in order to make way for the new meadow. Workers only finished demolishing the last of those buildings in February, after officials controversially started forcing out residents, some from rent-stabilized units, in 2009. When finished, the garage will park cars using a system equipped with light sensors, machines, and other technology that automatically moves vehicles from an entry room, where clients drop them off, to one of its below-ground parking bays, according to a New York Times report. Customers will swipe credit cards at kiosks within the facility to identify a ride as their own when stowing it, and use that same card to retrieve their four-wheelers from the garage. The Economic Development Corporations chief acknowledged the glacial progress of the park-and-garage project at a July 10 event hosted by the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership the business-boosting group charged with maintaining the lawn when its complete but also suggested the years-in-the-making space is gaining forward momentum. Its taken too long, said James Patchett. Its an essential amenity for the developing Downtown commercial core, and its something that is needed. I hope to have positive news about it soon. Shivam Cements IPO scheduled for July 29 Shivam Cement is slated to make an initial public offering (IPO) of 880,000 shares priced at Rs300 apiece (Rs100 face value plus Rs200 premium) for locals of Makwanpur district on July 29. 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 Tarun Dal blocks highway, picket govt offices in Nawalparasi Cadres of Tarun Dal and Nepal Student Union, youth wings of the Nepali Congress, shut down government offices and obstructed vehicular movement in Nawalparasi along the East West Highway on Sunday. Video recording and live streaming of judicial proceedings can be undertaken on a trial basis in constitutional matters being heard by the chief justice of India's court, the Centre told the on Monday. A bench headed by Chief Justice was told by Attorney General K K Venugopal, whose assistance has been sought by the court in the matter, that a pilot project for live streaming and video recording of judicial proceedings can be undertaken. Venugopal then said functioning of the pilot project can be later analysed and made more efficient. He added that live streaming can be undertaken on an experimental basis for one-three months to ascertain how it functions technologically. The bench, also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, asked all the parties, including senior advocate Indira Jaising, who had filed a PIL in her personal capacity, to give suggestions to the attorney general of India. It said Venugopal will collate and compile the suggestions and submit them to the court which will later approve them. The bench has now fixed the matter for further hearing on July 30. On July 9, the apex court had termed the proposal of live streaming of court proceedings the "need of the hour" and sought suggestions for taking a "holistic" view on the matter. The bench was of the view that barring few exceptions like hearings in a rape case, the courts are already open for all and allowing live streaming of the proceedings would further establish the settled principle. Jaising, in her plea, has sought live streaming of matters of constitutional and importance. She said citizens have the right to information and matters of constitutional and importance can be live streamed. In western countries, she said, this system was in place and live streaming of court proceedings, including that of the International Court of Justice, are available on YouTube. If live streaming of the top court's proceedings is not possible, then video recording should be allowed, she said. According to her, live streaming of cases of constitutional and importance, having an impact on the public at large, will empower and provide access to citizens who cannot personally come to the court due to socio-economic constraints. The apex court may place restrictions on such videography and live streaming of proceedings in cases where there are "countervailing interests of privacy as in family law cases, criminal law cases, as well as in the interests of witness testimonies in criminal matters", Jaising said. A petition, filed by a law student, has also sought a direction for setting up live streaming rooms within the apex court premises and granting access to legal interns. The plea, filed by Swapnil Tripathi, a student of National Law University in Jodhpur, has asked for requisite guidelines to facilitate interns to witness proceedings. A third arrest was made on Sunday in the case of of a 28-year-old man in Rajasthan's Alwar district which was handed over to an additional SP-rank officer for investigation. "Naresh Singh, a resident of Lalawandi village, was arrested today. Police are on the lookout for another accused," SHO, Ramgarh Police Station, Subhash Sharma said. Two persons were nabbed by police on Saturday. Sharma said Naresh and other arrested accused, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh Sardar, were produced before a court, which sent them to five days' police remand. Akbar Khan, 28, was allegedly lynched by a group of people who accused him of smuggling cows, police said. Khan and his friend Aslam were taking two cows to their village in Haryana through a forested area near Lalawandi in Alwar district last night when five men attacked them, Sharma said. They suspected that Khan was smuggling cows but the allegation is yet to be verified, Sharma said. Dharmendra and Paramjeet were arrested yesterday. Earlier today, the investigation into the case was handed over to an additional SP-rank officer by the IG of Jaipur range. Inspector General (Jaipur range) Hemant Priyadarshy said an impartial investigation would be carried out. No culprit would be spared nor would any innocent be framed, he added. Slabs under Goods and Services Tax (GST) can be reduced to three from five at present for the convenience of consumers and businesses though it will take some time, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi. Modi also heads high level minister panel on In an interview to PTI Bhasha, Modi said that there are five slabs in and "there is an intention to reduce it to three slabs but it will take some time" as it is related to states' revenue. Reacting to questions raised by former finance minister P Chidambaram that why rates of 88 items were not reduced by council in 2017, Modi said: "This is not a decision where only BJP government is involved. The decision has been taken by GST Council in which congress led governments are also involved". He said that after implementation of GST, initially it was to ensure that there should be no revenue loss and then rate on many items were gradually reduced with stabilisation of revenue. Modi said that average revenue from GST is approximately Rs 95,000 crore and in such situation rates are being reduced, which is leading to reduction in price of many consumer items and benefitting the middle class. Mounting attack on Chidambaram, the deputy CM said that states had lost confidence in the then Congress government policies, because of which GST could not be implemented during its tenure. Modi was heading high-powered committee comprising finance ministers of different states considering roll-out of GST in 2012-13. He alleged that following the GST rollout, centre sales tax (CST) was to be ended in phased manner over period of three years. The UPA government had assured that loss of states due to GST will be compensated by the Centre, Modi said, adding that CST rates were reduced to 3 per cent from 4 per cent from April 1, 2007, and from 3 to 2 per cent in 2008 for which states were compensated in the beginning, but payment of 2011-12 compensation was not given. The BJP leader said that states were not paid full compensation amount. The deputy CM said after Narendra Modi government came in power in 2014, not only states were compensated for CST, there was constitutional provision made to compensate states for any type of revenue loss from GST for next 5 years and also to enhance it by 14 per cent every year. Three killed in Rolpa landslide Three people were killed in a landslide in eastern Rolpa on Sunday. In a bid to further promote the success of its investment-cum-trade platform, the Gujarat government will for the first time showcase the status of pacts signed during the past summits at the upcoming ninth edition of Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2019. The biennial summit, to be held on January 18-20, has shifted from being merely an investment meet to a knowledge-sharing and trade-facilitation platform. "We have changed the format of the summit. 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 Inc on Sunday welcomed the Council's decision to cut rates on several items and simplification of return filing process for businesses, saying the move will boost compliance and benefit consumers. In his first Council meeting since he took charge as the Finance Minister in May this year, Piyush Goyal allowed businesses with a turnover of up to Rs 50 million to file quarterly returns -- a move which will benefit 93 per cent of the registered taxpayers. They will have to, however, pay taxes monthly. So far, businesses with a turnover of up to Rs 15 million were permitted to file returns quarterly. In a statement, the Confederation of All Traders (CAIT) said the single page return form to be filed quarterly for traders having turnover up to Rs 50 million is a bold step which will ease miseries of traders. "The decisions relating to simplification of returns and especially keeping the interests of small taxpayers are noteworthy. This would facilitate ease of doing business both for small and large taxpayers," said. He further said that the decisions would increase compliance, widen the base and are in the right direction to achieve the objectives of GST. In its meeting on Saturday, the also cut rates on 88 items, including footwear, refrigerator, washing machine and small screen TV, while the widely demanded sanitary napkins have been exempted from the levy. "Exemption of GST on Sanitary napkins is welcome as it is a great step towards empowering women as sanitary napkins are necessary for female hygiene. This is a big step towards encouraging menstrual hygiene among young girls and women as scrapping of GST from Sanitary napkins will make napkins more affordable and more women will be able to use them," Pinky Reddy, President, Ladies Organisation (FLO) said. Harpreet Singh, Partner Indirect Tax, in said that rate rationalisation on so many products is nothing short of being akin to the annual budget announcements. "While rate rationalisation would definitely bring cheer for the industry and consumers, what would be interesting to see is how the would try and compensate the revenue loss on account of tax rate reductions," Singh said. He said rate cuts on handicrafts items such as deities made of stone, marble and woods, phool jharoo, Rakhis etc. was a long pending demand of the sector. "Imposition of rate of 5/12 per cent, added to the woes of sector which is already dwindling. Exemption from GST may provide much needed impetus to the industry which is a key contributor to rural employment," Singh said. Quarterly returns for taxpayers with turnover of up to Rs 50 million, which comprise of 93 per cent of taxpayers, would definitely reduce the compliance burden of small dealers and assist them in channelising their in doing business rather than worrying about monthly tax filings, he added. Consumer appliance maker Dinesh Chhabra appreciated reduction in the GST rates from 28 to 18 per cent on food grinders, mixers, storage water heaters, water coolers, water heaters, electric ironing machines, among others. "These are basic appliances and are required in every household on a daily basis. This move ahead of the festive season will certainly bring cheer to consumers and lead to a spur in the growth of the appliances category," Chhabra said. Ernst & Young Services India tax Partner Abhishek Jain said that the 28th meeting was positive with some very significant rate rationalisations. "Big relief for hotels as GST rate of 28 per cent would not apply if the actual tariff value is less than 7,500 even though the published tariff may be more than 7,500; this will also ease the IT systems for hotel players. "Reduction in GST rate of ethanol for use by companies to 5 per cent is again welcome as major petroleum products are outside GST and this would help reduce their cost," Jain said. State-owned on Monday said it has received Rs 28.16 billion as capital infusion from the government via preferential allotment of equity shares. "The bank, as per...Department of Financial Services notification, has received amount of capital infusion of Rs 28.16 billion towards contribution of the central government," said in a regulatory filing. The preferential allotment of equity shares to government will be made after completing the process of regulatory approvals, said. Allahabad Bank had informed last week that it received Rs 17.90 billion as capital infusion from the government. The government has approved capital infusion in five public sector lenders. The other three in this pack are -- Rs 20.19 billion, -- Rs 21.57 billion and Corporation Bank -- Rs 25.55 billion. It is also likely that 2-3 more may be added to the list. The government had announced Rs 2.11 trillion capital infusion programme for public sector (PSBs) last October. As per the plan, PSBs were to get Rs 1.35 trillion through re-capitalisation bonds, and the balance Rs 580 billion through raising of capital from the market. Of the Rs 1.35 trillion, the government has already infused about Rs 710 billion through recap bonds and the balance would be done during the current fiscal, 2018-19. stock closed 4.57 per cent up at Rs 78.95 on BSE. European finance leaders called for progress on global rules to tax the digital economy at a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bankers in Argentina on Sunday, putting them at odds with US counterparts. The final communique reaffirmed a commitment to address the impacts of the shift to a digital economy on the international tax system by 2020, without giving more details. The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, proposed rules earlier this year to make digital companies pay more tax, with US tech giants such as Alphabets Google, Facebook ... finance chief Pierre Moscovici fired a barb at US President on Sunday as he called on both sides of an ongoing global trade dispute to "act as allies." The US and have been at loggerheads since Trump angered European allies by announcing tariffs on steel and aluminium as he launched trade restrictions targeting China in particular. Referring to Trump branding the EU, alongside China and Russia, as trade "foes," Moscovici said the is "willing to build bridges." "What I stressed several times in my meetings here is that the EU is certainly not the author of major trade imbalances," Moscovici told reporters during the Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Saturday spoke at the conference about wanting to "balance" the country's trade relationships with China and the EU, calling on both to respect "free, fair and reciprocal trade." But Moscovici said that "we believe that targeting us is certainly inappropriate... and that we must act with the US as allies -- not foes but allies." "These meetings take place in an context which is changing," he said. "The multilateral system of which the G20 is a central piece is under significant pressure, trade tensions are high and threaten to escalate further. All of this creates uncertainty for the economic outlook." He added: "We must remain cool-headed." Trump's protectionist policies have come under fire from all sides at the summit, which brings together finance ministers and central bankers from the world's 20 largest economies. French finance minister Bruno Le Maire on Saturday called on Trump to "return to reason." As well as imposing tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium, Trump stuck a 25 per cent levy on $34 billion of goods from China with an additional $16 billion on the way. He has threatened to target European automotive exports and to impose duties on the entire $500 billion of goods the US imports from China. "The impact of protectionist measures already implemented has been, luckily, so far limited, but the risk of escalation is there," said Moscovici. The Monetary Fund predicts that in a worst-case scenario, $430 billion -- or a half percentage point of global GDP -- could be cut in 2020 if all tariff threats and retaliations are carried out. "Further trade escalation conflicts would negatively affect welfare in all countries involved -- in the US also," said Moscovici. Protectionism, he said, benefits no one, creating "no winners, only casualties." IMF chief Christine Lagarde had warned on Wednesday that the US was "especially vulnerable" to trade conflicts "because so much of its global trade will be subject to retaliatory measures. US Secretary of State on Monday called the religious leaders of "hypocritical holy men" who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer, part of a highly critical broadside issued as the republic approached the 40th anniversary of its Islamic revolution and prepared to reimpose economic sanctions. "Sometimes it seems the world has become desensitised to the regime's authoritarianism at home and its campaigns of violence abroad, but the proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their government's many abuses," Pompeo said in prepared remarks for a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum. "And the under Trump will not stay silent either. In light of these protests and 40 years of regime tyranny, I have a message for the people of Iran: The hears you. The supports you. The United States is with you," he said. Pompeo castigated Iran's political, judicial and military leaders, too, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government has "heartlessly repressed its own people's human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms." America's top diplomat was particularly barbed in his remarks about "the Ayatollahs," saying they "are in on the act, too." He said Grand Ayatollah Nasser Makarem Shirazi has generated more than $100 million for himself in the illicit trade of sugar; that Ayatollah Mohammad Emami Kashani is worth millions after the government transferred several lucrative mines to his foundation; and that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei has an off-the-books hedge fund, Setad, worth $95 billion. "The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government," he said. Pompeo's remarks were aimed in part at Iranian-Americans and Iranians living in the US. He assured them that the shared their dreams for the people of He also expressed support for those Iranians who have protested their government's actions and called its response "brutal." "The specific grievances differ. But all those voicing dissatisfaction share one thing: they have been ill-treated by a Revolutionary regime. Iranians want to be governed with dignity, accountability and respect," he said. Pompeo said the US is undertaking a diplomatic and financial pressure campaign to cut off funds, focusing on reimposing sanctions on its and energy sectors. withdrew the US from the Iran nuclear deal in May and the first sanctions to be reimposed were expected to hit on August 4. "We are asking every nation, every nation who is sick and tired of the Islamic Republic's destructive behavior to join our pressure campaign. This especially goes for our allies in the and Europe, people who have themselves been terrorised by the violent regime's activity for decades," he said. 1. Yes. It makes me wonder why Killeen is having the problem and other cities arent. 2. Yes. The city also had water issues after the winter storm, so this is rather troubling. 3. No. Its good that the city is dealing with the problem and playing it safe with consumers. 4. No. Its more of an annoyance than a concern. The city will take the necessary steps. 5. Unsure. Its hard to say until more information about the issue becomes available. Vote View Results Jailed Pakistan Prime Minister who has fallen ill and was suffering from heart and kidney ailments, has been asked to be shifted to a hospital by a medical team, a jail official said. The medical team, led by retired General Azhar Kiani, visited Adiala jail in Rawalpindi on Sunday after Sharif complained, the jail administration official told Dawn newspaper on Monday. Following his medical check-up, the medical team said that Sharif "needed to be hospitalised for immediate treatment", he added. The heartbeat of the former Prime Minister was irregular due to dehydration and the presence of urea in blood might affect his kidneys, the medical team has said. The medical team's recommendation had been sent to the Punjab health secretary and the caretaker government, Dawn reported. "The government will take a decision on it," he said, adding that the team had been called after the former prime minister complained that he was not feeling well. The official said that a separate medical team from the district headquarters hospital conducted a medical check-up of Sharif's jailed son-in-law, retired Captain Muhammad Safdar, as he was suffering from ear and throat infections. Kiani, the chief executive officer of Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology and former commandant of the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology, was a physician of former President-retired General Pervez Musharraf. He was not available for comments. The Nevada Police arrested a suspect for shooting at a Mormon church in Fallon, which left one dead and one wounded. A spokeswoman for the City of Fallon, Kaitlin Ritchie, informed the Fox 13 that the shooting took place in front of the congregants during a service at the church. The suspect has been identified as 48-year-old John Kelley O'Connor, who was a member of the church and had been attending services prior to the shooting. As per a local daily, the Fallon Police Chief Kevin Gehman said that the suspect fired several times and then walked to his home, which is right across the street. O'Connor surrendered before the police officers after the authorities called his house and asked him to do so. The purpose for the shootout is not yet known, however, the investigators have added that the attack appears to be directed at an individual. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi High Court on Monday granted interim protection from arrest to in-laws of air hostess Anissia Batra who allegedly committed suicide on July 13. The court has also sought a status report from Delhi Police. The high court said that the parents of Mayank Singhvi, the husband of air hostess cannot be arrested until it hears their anticipatory bail plea on August 2. The Delhi-based air hostess allegedly jumped off the terrace of her home after a heated argument with his husband. Before her death, the air hostess had allegedly sent a message to her friend on WhatsApp, stating that she was locked up in a room by Singhvi. She had also asked her friend to inform the police of the same. On July 16, the Delhi Police arrested Singhvi and subsequently sent him to a 14-day judicial custody in the case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At a time when the Alwar police is facing flaks for not timely attending the lynching victim, the kin of the deceased on Monday said they don't doubt the police. "We do not doubt the police at all. We want justice and severe punishment should be given to those who killed him (Akbar)," Ilyas Khan, brother of Alwar lynching case victim Rakbar told ANI. 28-year-old Rakbar Khan was allegedly beaten to death by an agitated mob on suspicions of cow smuggling in Alwar district in the intervening night of July 20-21. According to media reports, the Alwar police took three hours to get the victim to a hospital which was only six km away. The police also allegedly on the way to hospital stopped to drop the cows to a shelter. Meanwhile, Rajasthan Director General of Police (DGP) OP Galhotra has ordered a team of senior police officials to investigate the case. The DGP has also asked senior police officials to submit a report in the connection. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court today said that it will hear a plea seeking contempt action against three states- Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh government in connection with Alwar lynching incident on August 20. The court will also hear a plea filed by Congress leader Tehseen Poonawalla in the case on the same date. As of now, two people have been arrested in the case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bihar Government on Monday unanimously passed an amendment law on liquor prohibition in the monsoon session of the state assembly. Bihar, which continues to see a total ban on any type of liquor since 5 April 2016, recently witnessed deaths of four persons in Begusarai district. Investigations revealed that they consumed surgical spirit - the same thing which is rubbed on the arm before an injection is administered. Deaths have been also reported in Gopalganj, Rohtas and Vaishali districts after people consumed hooch - a drink inferior to local whiskey. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, while speaking on the new liquor bill tabled in Bihar assembly, said, "Liquor ban was introduced for the poor people. they were wasting a major part of their income in buying alcohol. Domestic violence was high. I did this for betterment of poor." The amendment has been passed by voice vote in the assembly. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former deputy chief minister of Bihar Tejashwi Yadav on Monday mocked the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2018, which was passed by the Bihar assembly earlier today. Yadav said that the amendment in the bill is a discount for the rich. "Such an amendment in the liquor law is a discount for the rich. Instead of a fine of Rs 50,000, the affluent class will give just Rs 5000 and get alcohol," said Yadav. "Even after liquor ban, people are caught with liquor stockpiles. It should have been the responsibility of the Bihar government to ensure security on the state borders and get hold of the factories from where liquor is being supplied," he added. Facing flak over the blanket ban on liquor in the state, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar today introduced the amendments to the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016 in the monsoon session of the state assembly. The amendment Bill says changes have been proposed "in order to stop misuse of provisions of the law against the innocent and bring the punishment in proportion to the crime". Earlier today, Nitish Kumar, while speaking on the new liquor bill tabled in Bihar, said, "Liquor ban was introduced for the poor people. They were wasting a major part of their income on buying alcohol. Domestic violence was high. I did this for the betterment of poor." The amendment has been passed by voice vote in the assembly. With the passage of the Bill, as many as 16 provisions of the 2016 will stand amended following the official notification. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Uttar Pradesh (UP) government to submit a report in the case of former chief ministers of the state not vacating government allotted bungalows. The apex court's three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra and comprising of Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, has fixed the matter for further hearing after four weeks. The petition was filed by a Non-Governmental Organisation, Lok Prahari, which sought contempt against those who had allegedly defied the top court's order. This comes after former chief ministers, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Akhilesh Yadav had on July 12 withdrawn their petitions from the Supreme Court, seeking appropriate time to vacate their official bungalows. The lawyer, who was appearing on behalf of the father-son duo, asked the bench to dispose off their petition as the former chief ministers have already vacated the government bungalows. The top court had earlier quashed the law passed by the UP government in 2016, granting permanent residential accommodation to former chief ministers. While striking down the law, the Supreme Court said that Section 4(3) of Uttar Pradesh Ministers (salaries, allowances and miscellaneous provisions) Act, 2016 was unconstitutional. The law was challenged by Lok Prahari in the top court. The petitioner had claimed that the UP government had no power to give bungalows to former chief ministers of the state. Hence, the top court on May 7 passed an order to abolish a law that allowed former chief ministers of the state to stay in government bungalows throughout their lives. Following this, the estate department had issued notices to six former chief ministers - Narayan Dutt Tiwari, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Kalyan Singh, Mayawati, Rajnath Singh and Akhilesh Yadav. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bollywood's reigning queen Deepika Padukone is all set to join the world's biggest superstars at the Madame Tussauds with her wax figures in London and Delhi. Expressing her excitement in a Facebook Live on Monday, the 'Padmaavat' actor revealed that her first wax statue will be unveiled in London early next year. This will be followed by another wax statue at the Madame Tussauds Delhi. "I am so delighted. Sitting with the team of experts was a special experience and I look forward to it," said Deepika. The team of Madame Tussauds' expert artists met the actress in London and took over 200 specific measurements and photographs to create an authentic look. Deepika shared that the only time she had ever visited Madame Tussauds London before was with her parents when she was very young. "That memory has sort of stayed with me," said the actress. "And then to receive the letter and be a part of the experience feels great." The list of Bollywood celebrities to have been waxed at the prestigious museum include Shahrukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan and Sachin Tendulkar to name a few. On the work front, she was last seen in 'Padmaavat' and will be next seen doing a cameo in Shah Rukh Khan starrer 'Zero'. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday said that Rahul Gandhi should not have dragged French President Emmanuel Macron's name into the matter of internal Prasad while addressing a press conference said, Gandhi has very poor understanding about security issues. "Rahul Gandhi is behaving irresponsibly. Dragging the French President into internal is unfortunate. His (Rahul) understanding of security issues is poor," Prasad said while addressing a press conference here. "Since a member of the family has resorted to falsehood, the crowd around the family has no option but to collectively sing the tune of falsehood. We clearly state that Congress's stand is not in interest," he added. Further lashing out at the Congress, Prasad stated the pricing of Rafale is baseless, mischievous and also irresponsible. Prasad further rubbished Congress' allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman in this regard. "The allegation leveled today that the Prime Minister and the Defense Minister misled the Parliament regarding the pricing of Rafale is baseless, mischievous and also irresponsible," he said. "On more than one occasion the Parliament has been informed about the price of aircraft. In fact the per aircraft price arrived at during the NDA Government under the aegis of the inter-governmental agreement stipulated better term than the one during UPA Government," he added. Prasad also asserted that NDA Government's bid in the Rafale deal is nine per cent lesser than what was negotiated during UPA's tenure. "The UPA invited quotes for 126 aircrafts in 2007. The price quoted for Rafale was Euro 79.3 million which also had inbuilt escalation formula. When the bid was opened in 2011, the proposed cost in the bid document was 100.85 million euros per aircraft; however, this also could not be finalized. When in 2016, after NDA came to power, under the inter- government agreement the cost per aircraft finalized was 91.75 Million Euro. Therefore the price determined during NDA Government is nine per cent lesser than what was negotiated during UPA Government," he further said. During the No-Confidence Motion debate on July 20 in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi claimed that during the French President's visit to India, the latter had denied the presence of a secrecy pact. However, France retaliated saying an agreement had been inked to protect classified information in the light of security. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) One more body has been recovered on Monday from the site where a building collapsed in Ghaziabad. Two people have also been rescued as the rescue operations are still underway. The five-storey under-construction building collapsed near Missal Gadi on Sunday afternoon. Earlier, one person was reported dead and seven people were rescued in the incident. On Sunday night, Meerut Inspector General, Ram Kumar, told ANI, "According to documents, this land belonged to a builder. We have identified four persons related to that and are in the process of taking them into custody. We will file an FIR and take the harshest action against culprits." Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh also assured strict action against those found guilty in the incident. "The inquiry has been ordered. We have directed the administration to take strict action against those responsible. We have directed the administration to vacate illegal buildings and demolish them if need be," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) GiftsOnAir, is a truly innovative startup that is looking at bridging the gap between offline and online retail. The company started in Jaipur in January 2018 by Sarthak Khandelwal, Shobhit Jhalani and Apoorva Panday has already managed to gain confidence of major partners in metro cities. "If we have to say what we do in simple words, it is that we reward every purchase Offline with offerings that must be redeemed Online. Importantly it provides a trail of the Consumer for the Offline merchant to gain an opportunity to set up a one to one interactive relationship. Along the path, the transactions put GiftsOnAir brand on top," said founder of GiftsOnAir, Sarthak Khandelwal. The online sales in India are increasing at a stupendous pace. According to estimates, the online population of the country is said to be 350 million and a majority of the users are online via their smartphones. Furthermore, it is being touted that, 58% of this population is buying products and services online. Estimates are pegging that by 2020 this population will increase to 700 million and almost 70% of this population will be shopping online. While people are increasingly resorting to online buying as it offers the convenience of getting what you want right at your doorstep without worrying about the traffic, the weather conditions or the parking hassles but that has not necessarily translates into the fact that the offline sales are decreasing. There are still a great number of people who vouch for the offline shopping experience, which is to see, feel, bargain and buy. GiftsonAir believes that both the mediums will continue to grow and there is a unique opportunity that is available in bringing the two marketplaces together. How the GiftsOnAir model works is that, the online marketer has a pre-fixed discount in mind, GiftsonAir accesses that, adds a certain percentage to it, sometimes doubles it, to give the consumer a gift coupon that can be redeemed online from the GiftsonAir website. These coupons can be redeemed to buy a large number of products that score high of the desirability index such as fashion apparels, Jewelry, Home decor, Kids Wear etc. These offers are from some of the most sort after brands and offer a value add to the consumers in lieu of the sale. GiftsonAir started operation in Jaipur and now has a corporate office in New Delhi as well. Apart from Jaipur and Delhi, the company has spread its operations in Bangalore, Mumbai Pune, Kota, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Ahmedabad and Chandigarh. It plans to be pan India in the coming two months. The unique idea and the speed at which the company is growing has already bagged GiftsonAir the nomination for the 'Best Start-up of the Year'. The idea to start GiftsOnAir came to Sarthak when he was in class XII but he decided to take sometime brainstorming and connecting with the right mix of people and fine tune his model before taking the plunge. Currently pursuing his higher education from Narsee Monji Institute of Management Studies, Sarthak sees GiftsOnAir as a future Fortune 100 company in India. The other two co-founders of the company are equally young and dynamic. Mr. Shobhit Jhalani, who is also the tech head is just 30 years of age and has several entrepreneurial ventures under his belt. He is also well versed in Digital Marketing Strategies, Client Acquisition & Website Development. On the other hand, Apoorva Panday heads the Marketing & Creative for GiftsOnAir and is in her mid-20s. She has Mastersin Marketing & Advertising degree and has been working in the digital industry for 6+ years. GiftsonAir is not only a unique concept and a proposition but it also works on promoting ground-level businesses. All three co-founders hail from Jaipur and feel that through this venture they will make their city proud. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Goa spokesperson Dattaprasad Naik on Monday came down heavily on Congress president Rahul Gandhi by describing him a 'loafer' for winking in Parliament. After ending his speech during a raging debate on No-Confidence Motion between the ruling Democratic Alliance and the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul moved across the floor to hug Prime Minister Narendra Modi before later winking at a party colleague. Hitting out at Rahul for his gestures, Naik said, "Rahul Gandhi who does not have substance or the understanding of issues related to the people of India had to resort to hugging the Prime Minister in the Temple of democracy and then winking like a loafer." "Rahul Gandhi who does not have substance or the understanding of issues related to the people of India had to resort to hugging the Prime Minister in the temple of democracy and then winking like a loafer. We have only heard of loafers winking at girls in colleges in the past and never such a shameful act has ever happened in the temple of Democracy. It's a shame that today Congress party has become a "Katputli" in the hands of Gandhi family," the statement from Naik read. Naik's comments come a day after the state Congress chief Girish Chodankar called Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar a "kathputli" (puppet) for bowing to unreasonable demands of ruling coalition allies in the coastal state. Reflecting on the same, Naik said that Chodankar had forgotten that even former prime minister Manmohan Singh was a puppet in the hands of the then Congress president Sonia Gandhi and that all Goa Congress presidents in the past were "kathputlis" in the hands of the Congress high command. On a related note, the Modi-led NDA Government sailed through its first floor test in Lok Sabha by defeating the No-Confidence Motion moved by Telugu Desam Party (TDP). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) You may soon get to see a redesigned Chrome interface. Google is internally testing out the material design interface for its Chrome browser which will turn the address bar curvy, while the tabs will be separated with thin vertical lines rendering an overall flat appearance, Cnet reported. The overhaul of the interface will be one of the major updates after Google Chrome's public debut in 2008. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In the wake of a man lynched to death in Rajasthan's Alwar, senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday stated that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government was encouraging such acts and that it did not want the situation to improve. Speaking to ANI, Kharge said, "The government is encouraging such incidents in the country. This government does not want the situation in the country to improve. We will raise the issue in the Parliament today." Commenting on the allegations against the Rajasthan Police for causing delay in taking the victim to the hospital, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leader, Asaduddin Owaisi said he was not surprised by their actions, adding that the 'Gau Rakshaks' and the Police were in cahoots with each other. "Rajasthan police's actions are not a surprise to me; they did the same in the Pehlu Khan murder case. Rajasthan police is supporting cow vigilantes. These Gau Rakshaks and police are in this together," Owaisi told ANI. Meanwhile, Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said that the allegations against the police will be probed and action will be taken if the charges hold water. "According to few media reports there was delay by the police in taking the victim to the hospital. We will get this information verified and if it is found true, we will take action against those responsible," Kataria told ANI. In the intervening night of July 20-21, a man was allegedly beaten to death by an agitated mob on suspicions of cow smuggling in Alwar district. 28-year-old Akbar Khan was transporting cows to his village through a forest near Lalawandi area when the locals thrashed him brutally. This happened after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Friday, urged state governments to take stringent action against the culprits of mob lynching. Incidents of mob fury have been on a rise in India. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, 45 persons have been killed in 40 cases of mob violence across nine states between 2014 and March 3 this year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Gujarat's overall economic development is impressive, but Goods and Services Tax (GST) remains one of the big challenges, said N.K. Singh, Chairman of the visiting Finance Commission in Ahmedabad. The Commission was particularly impressed with the reduction of its debt to GDP Ratio close to 20% (to be achieved by 2023-24) as stipulated by new Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act (FRBM) and its Fiscal Deficit well below 3% benchmark. Singh added that Gujarat's capital expenditure has been rising and it is in full compliance in key economic parameters which contribute to long-term healthy economic growth. He said one of the biggest challenges which Gujarat is facing is GST collections. Once the 14% guarantee as GST compensation by the Union government winds up, Gujarat will need to look at the GST collection projections seriously and tax buoyancy may become an issue. Though almost all the powers have been delegated to Urban Local Bodies and their accounts are in order, working of State Finance Commission needs to become more orderly and in conformity with Article 280 of the Constitution. State urges an increase of devolution to over 50%, expansion of Net Divisible pool, suggests an alternative formula for devolution based on Urbanisation and Social Deprivation. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani highlighted the significant progress made in social sector with multiple government interventions and government's commitment to overcome certain challenges remaining in child malnutrition and secondary sector education. He emphasised that the state's focus on developing infrastructure despite natural disadvantages. He also urged the commission to encourage the policy of Prohibition as adopted by the state by giving some incentive considering its positive externalities. State government officials, on the other hand, urged on enhanced devolution by expanding the net divisible pool to remove the imbalance between revenue and expenditure responsibilities of the states, in general. They also urged the Commission to replace the revenue deficit grants with performance grant which needs fine tuning of the performance criteria. They also highlighted the issues related to Centrally Sponsored Schemes. 15th Finance Commission also sought views of the leaders from various political parties. Representatives of local bodies were requested to give some grant for backward areas in addition to performance grants, infrastructure development. They also urged to give basic grants to the local bodies without any stringent conditions which sometimes become difficult to fulfil due to some technical reasons. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By Moses Ndhaye. A New survey has revealed that educated people are more corrupt and are the ones engaged in acts of giving out bribes as compared to the uneducated ones. The survey released by the Uganda National Bureau of Statistics on governance, peace and security indicates that 16 % of the educated people have ever paid a bribe. Releasing the finding, the bureaus executive director Ben Paul Mungyereza said unemployment, hunger and poverty are making Ugandans more worried about their daily living. He has now underscored the need for policy makers to put in place strategies which will to improve on the service delivery in various sectors. The report meanwhile further shows that about 68% of Ugandan married women are staying in abusive relationships. The report shows that women are facing lot of violence but they decide to be tolerant in order to rise up their children. The Deputy Country representative for UN Women Anna Mutavati now says women should be economically empowered so that they move of over depending on their spouses for survival. India on Monday extended two lines of credit to Rwanda to the tune of USD 200 billion. One line of credit worth USD 100 billion was extended for the development of industrial parks and Kigali Special Economic Zone (SEZ), while the other was extended for agriculture worth USD 100 billion. Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India will open a new High Commission in Rwanda in the near future in an endeavour to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries. Addressing a joint statement here along with Rwandan President Paul Kagame, Prime Minister Modi said, "We are going to open a High Commission in Rwanda soon. This will not only establish communication between our respective governments but also enable facilities for consular, passport, visa and other services." He added that the relationship between New Delhi and Kigali have stood the test of time, adding that it was a matter of honour that India stood with Rwanda in their journey of achieving economic development. Stressing on his historic visit to the landlocked East African country, Prime Minister Modi noted, "It's the first time an Indian Prime Minister has visited Rwanda. The Rwandan President (Kagame) himself came to receive me at the airport. This special gesture is a sign of respect for entire India." The Prime Minister further said that manufacturing, hospitality, and tourism sectors were key fields where India and Rwanda could bolster their cooperation, respectively. Prime Minister Modi went on to say that India was keen to improve business and investment ties with Rwanda. On the other hand, President Kagame said, "This visit, the first by an Indian Prime Minister represents a milestone between the long standing friendship and cooperation between Rwanda and India. We appreciate India's support to Rwanda's developmental agenda. The agreements signed today will help to further deepen cooperation between the two countries." He added that both India and Rwanda shared commitment to peace and security as major troop contributors to the United Nations (UN) peacekeping missions. Before the joint statement, Prime Minister Modi and President Kagame witnessed the signing of agreements between the two countries. Both nations signed eight agreements. Earlier on Monday evening, the Prime Minister arrived in Rwanda, marking the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the African nation. Prime Minister Modi was received by President Kagame and was given a ceremonial reception upon his arrival. Later, the two leaders held one-on-one talks and delegation-level talks, respectively. Pictures from the meeting were posted on Twitter by Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson, Raveesh Kumar. "Getting down to business immediately upon arrival! PM @narendramodi & Rwandan President @PaulKagame follow a one-on-one meeting with delegation level talks to strengthen partnership in trade & investment, capacity building, development partnership & people to people ties," Kumar tweeted. Prime Minister Modi will next travel to Uganda, where he will undertake engagements on July 24 and 25. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday hailed the Indian diaspora living outside India as 'rashtradoots' or ambassadors for the country. Addressing a sizeable group of the Indian community here, Prime Minister Modi said, "I am delighted to interact with the Indian community in Rwanda. All over the world, the Indian diaspora is making a mark. They are now our 'Rashtradoots'." Amid loud chants and thunderous applause, the Prime Minister underscored that India was developing and modernising at a fast pace, owing to the 125 crore Indian population. He also highlighted some of the schemes implemented which have benefitted the population in the last four years. "When India completed 70 years of Independence, 18,000 villages were having no electricity. We made a decision to ensure electricity in every home in the next 1,000 days. And we did it. Still, four crore houses have no electricity, but we will achieve this in one year," he noted. Prime Minister Modi also stressed that his government was following the motto - "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas" and expressed optimism that India was the fastest growing economy in the The Prime Minister also informed the community that eight crore toilets were constructed across the country and lakhs of villages were now Open Defecation Free (ODF) under the Swachh Bharat initiative. Tracing India's rise at the economic level, Prime Minister Modi said, "When I came (in 2014), India was ranked 9th and 10th. Now, we have reached the sixth position and overtook France. Very soon, we will reach the top." He added, "Today if any Indian sportsperson is winning a gold medal, this has become possible because we have made the selection procedure transparent. Now the right person goes to the right place." Prime Minister Modi recalled his talks with Rwandan President Paul Pagame and said that he was proud to hear that the Indian community was contributing to Rwanda's development progress and engaging in community service. He went on to say that the entire globe loved and respected the Indian community. Earlier, President Kagame hosted a state banquet dinner in honour of Prime Minister Modi. India on Monday extended two lines of credit to Rwanda to the tune of USD 200 million. One line of credit worth USD 100 million was extended for the development of industrial parks and Kigali Special Economic Zone (SEZ), while the other was extended for agriculture worth USD 100 million. While addressing a joint statement in Kigali along with President Kagame, Prime Minister Modi previously said, "We are going to open a High Commission in Rwanda soon. This will not only establish communication between our respective governments but also enable facilities for consular, passport, visa and other services." On Monday evening, the Prime Minister arrived in Rwanda, marking the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the African nation. Prime Minister Modi was received by President Kagame and was given a ceremonial reception upon his arrival. Later, the two leaders held one-on-one talks and delegation-level talks, respectively. After finishing his engagements in Rwanda, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Uganda, where he will hold meetings and other engagements on Tuesday and Wednesday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court on Monday allowed former finance minister P. Chidambaram's son Karti Chidambaram to travel to USA, France and UK from July 23 to 31 for business purpose in the INX media case. Earlier, Karti had filed a plea in the apex court seeking permission to travel abroad. Karti and his father have been under the scanner of investigating agencies,Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to INX Media, a venture promoted by former media baron Peter Mukerjea and his wife Indrani Mukerjea. The alleged irregularities took place in the year 2007 when Chidambaram was the finance minister during the UPA-1 government. In February, Karti was arrested for his alleged role in the case. He was, however, granted bail in March by the Delhi High Court. Karti allegedly took service charges for getting the clearance to INX Media for receiving funds from abroad worth Rs 305 crore. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) 'Americal Idol' alum Katharine McPhee penned an emotional post on social media, talking about the last conversation she had with her late father. The 34-year-old actress posted a picture of her engagement ring on Instagram, which, she said, was the last thing her dad saw. "It's been a hard week. Lots of tears but I want to thank my friends and family for all the love and support. My dad was so happy for me. My ring was the last thing I showed my dad before he passed and makes me smile when I look at this as a reminder of our last conversation. And now I'm ready to share with all of you what has been my sunshine amongst this painful loss. My love wisely said to me the other day that 'death is the only thing that is 100 percent inevitable and the thing we are least prepared for.' So today we're celebrating life and not forgetting love," the post read. Earlier this week, McPhee had announced the death of her father on Instagram, just a few weeks after she announced her engagement with Canadian musician David Foster. Talking about her "biggest fan", the 'Waitress' actor wrote " He was my biggest fan, my biggest champion, always telling me to "Give em hell kid!" He was so kind and caring and made sure we knew how much he loved us. Not sure my heart will ever be the same. I'm so sad he missed my broadway debut. But when I return to the stage next week I hope he can watch it in peace and from up above." According to People magazine, rumours of McPhee and Foster's relationship floated in May last year, after they were spotted dining at a restaurant in Malibu. However, the couple admitted their relationship a year later, when they attended the Met Gala together in May. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Madras High Court on Monday set aside the Look Out Circulars issued against former finance minister P Chidambaram's son by the (CBI) in June last year in context with the INX media case. However, the court made it clear that the order would not affect any proceedings initiated against him in the case under the registered first investigation report (FIR). Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court allowed to travel to USA, France and UK from July 23 to 31 for business purpose. He had earlier filed a plea in the apex court seeking permission to travel abroad. Karti and his father have been under the scanner of investigating agencies, and Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance granted to INX Media, a venture promoted by former media baron Peter Mukerjea and his wife Indrani Mukerjea. The alleged irregularities took place in the year 2007 when Chidambaram was the finance minister during the UPA-1 government. In February, Karti was arrested for his alleged role in the case. He was, however, granted bail in March by the Delhi High Court. Karti allegedly took service charges for getting the clearance to INX Media for receiving funds from abroad worth Rs 3.05 billion. Thousands of people on Sunday night took to streets to protest against a law on surrogacy parenthood that excludes single men and homosexual couples. According to Times of Israel, gay rights advocates and their supporters observed a one-day strike across major cities in Israel, where protestors were seen waving rainbow flags, blocking traffic, and shouting "shame." This comes after the Israeli parliament recently passed an amendment allowing single women the right to apply for surrogacy, which until now was only for married, heterosexual couples. The amendment, which was earlier supposed to include single men and homosexual couples, did not have the same after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voted against the provision, enraging the Israeli LGBTQ community. "It's very important, I'm not from the community, but I believe in equality," a protester said as quoted by the Times of Israel. "It's just not right that some people can't have kids." Another protester told that having his own children via surrogacy compelled him to attend the protest. The newspaper in an earlier report said that Prime Minister Netanyahu will be attending a special Knesset session on gay rights, after an opposition party gathered the 40 necessary signatures on Sunday (local time), obliging his presence and response. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A four-member medical team, formed by Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, reached Rawalpindi's Adiala jail on Monday to check the health condition of ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who is reportedly 'on the verge of suffering a kidney failure'. According to Geo TV, the team, led by Dr Shajee Siddiqui, consists of gastroenterologist Dr Amir Maqbool along with cardiologists Dr Naeem Mulk and Dr Sohail Tanvir. A mobile laboratory has also been taken to Adiala jail. According to some reports late on Sunday, the jailed former prime minister had developed medical complications that necessitated his transfer to a hospital from prison. The Express Tribune, attributing to sources, reported that urea nitrogen in Sharif's blood had climbed up to dangerous levels, his heartbeat was irregular and that he was suffering dehydration and excessive sweating. A caretaker government source, however, told the English daily that the three-time prime minister is being medically examined on a regular basis in the jail, where his prognosis appeared to be normal. Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam were arrested, on July 13, on arrival in Lahore from London, after they were convicted by an anti-corruption court earlier this month. Sharif was convicted in absentia and sentenced to 10 years in prison and was imposed fine of 8 million pounds after the so-called Panama Papers disclosed that his family has four apartments at Avenfield House- a luxury building in London. Maryam was sentenced to seven years in prison and a fine of 2 million pounds, even as the family denied the wrongdoing. The convictions bar the father-daughter duo from contesting the July 25 general elections, dealing a blow to their political ambitions. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Gory details are emerging from state-funded shelter home in Muzaffarpur where more than 40 minor girls were allegedly sexually assaulted over a period of time. When police reached the spot, one of the victims revealed her ordeal and told interrogators that a girl was allegedly killed and buried underground in the premises of the home. Cops will now dig the compound to ascertain if the claims made by the inmate are true. The excavation will be carried out in the presence of Executive Magistrate (Eastern) Priya Rani Gupta and senior police officials. Meanwhile, politics over the incident is heating up. Terming the incident unfortunate, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader and former deputy chief minister of Bihar, Tejashwi Yadav, accused the Nitish Kumar-led state government of shielding the culprits. Yadav tweeted in Hindi and said, "Think? How would you feel if your family and the village's seven to 17-year-old sisters or daughters, supported and sponsored devils, were raped her for months? There is a flood of rape in Bihar and the government is silent. They just care about their power!" Sexual exploitation of girls at a Muzaffarpur shelter home was uncovered more than a month ago during its audit by a Mumbai-based social science institute. Police have, since then, made several arrests, including some government officials. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A dog squad has been roped in for investigation in Muzaffarpur shelter home rape case, following a statement from one of the victims that a girl was beaten to death and buried in the premises after a disagreement with staff members. Earlier in the day, one of the victims had revealed her ordeal and told interrogators that a girl was allegedly killed and buried underground in the premises of the home. The digging had begun earlier in the day to exhume the body of the victim. The excavation was carried out in the presence of Executive Magistrate (Eastern) Priya Rani Gupta and senior police officials. Sexual exploitation of more than 40 girls at a Muzaffarpur shelter home was uncovered more than a month ago during its audit by a Mumbai-based social science institute. Police have arrested a total of ten people so far, including some government officials. On a related note, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) had earlier demanded an inquiry by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the matter, alleging that the owner of the home is a close aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Meanwhile, all the girls of the shelter home have been shifted to other places in the state for their safety. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) United States President Donald Trump claimed that his predecessor, Barack Obama, was aware of Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential polls before the elections itself. However, Trump lashed out at Obama on Twitter, asking why the latter did not alert anyone about the same. "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didn't he do something about it? Why didn't he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, that's why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!" Trump tweeted. In 2016, the Obama administration had accused Russia of posting hackers during the presidential race and slapped sanctions against Moscow for the same, The Hill reported. The US intelligence agencies stated in a report that Russia was responsible for breaching the US electoral system. Obama also reportedly told Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop Moscow from meddling in the US elections. Earlier, Trump touched off a major political controversy following his comments on Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election at his joint press conference with Putin in Helsinki. On July 16, Trump had endorsed Putin's stance on Russia's non-involvement in the 2016 US presidential election. Addressing a joint press conference with his Russian counterpart at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki after their summit, Trump said that there was "zero collusion" and that he ran a "clean campaign." The US President had also mentioned that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign was "a disaster for our country," while also saying that it had negatively impacted US-Russia relations. However, on Tuesday, Trump claimed that he misspoke on the issue. Later, the US President said that he "did not see a reason why it would not be Russia." He added that other parties could have been involved with Moscow in allegedly interfering the 2016 presidential poll. In a CBS interview with anchor Jeff Glor on July 18, Trump took a major U-turn when he said that he held Putin "personally responsible" for the election interference. Last week, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen claimed that Russia had "definitely interfered" in the 2016 presidential election. Coats alleged that Moscow was "no doubt" eyeing this year's midterm elections as a potential target. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By Stephen Otage. The National Water and Sewerage Corporation NWSC has said it will in September start generating electricity to run the Bugolobi sewerage and waste water treatment plant. Dr Silver Mugisha, the NWSC managing director, said besides treating 33 million litres of water daily before it goes into Lake Victoria, the plant will be generating 650Kwh of electricity, which they will use to run all the activities at the plant. We shall no longer be having the smell, which has been here. We shall generate our own electricity; we are already working with the private sector to produce briquettes that will replace charcoal; we are also manufacturing fertilizers, Dr Mugisha said. He made the remarks on Friday as Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda toured the plant. Vision 2040 on track Dr Rugunda noted that the treatment plant is a significant project towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals and is aligned to the countrys Vision 2040, which envisages every village in the country having access to piped and safe drinking water. Over two days after being thrown out of the campus for failing to clear examination backlog, around 80 students of Damodaram Sanjeevaiah Law University (DSNLU) are continuing their protest against the management. As per reports, the students who failed to clear the backlog of the current semester were forcibly made to vacate the hostel. Perturbed by the same, the students began to protest against the management in front of the university. The students claimed that four attempts were meant to be given to clear the backlog. However, authorities allegedly slashed the fourth attempt and asked students to leave the campus. 'The university authorities told us just two days earlier about the new system that for the odd semester backlog examinations, we have only three attempts instead of four. Though we requested the university, they mercilessly sent us out of the campus on Friday evening. Now we are demanding justice," Prateek, a student, told ANI. He further claimed that professors at the university deliberately failed some students due to personal reasons. "Faculty at the University is not at par with the requirement necessary to teach here. Complaints are never heard. The faculty holds grudges against students and detains or fails them. Amendments in exam rules are not notified to us. Rules are not student-friendly," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mohajir activist and the Voice of Karachi chairman Nadeem Nusrat said the people of Pakistan are being 'disenfranchised' by their own army and are 'forced to vote for radical elements'. Nusrat further said that the recent actions of Pakistan's Army have casted doubts on the impartiality and transparency of the upcoming general election, to be held on July 25. "In the wake of the blatant pre-poll rigging and mockery of the mandate of Pakistan's people, the must scrutinise the election very closely and must not rush into accepting its results," Nusrat said. "Scores of recent events and incidents proves that Pakistan's military establishment has decided to make Imran Khan the next prime minister of the country," he said. Nusrat said that the upcoming election is merely a farce exercise on Pakistan's tax-payers' expense to make the next parliament "dominated by religious extremists and jihadists". He even claimed that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party leaders and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif was brutally treated through a judiciary that has been forced to co-operate with the military establishment. "In urban Sindh, Pakistani military agencies are busy in blatant electoral engineering. Urban Sindh's major political party, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), has been forcibly fragmented into many factions and its head-offices, as well as all regional party offices, have been demolished or sealed," Nusrat said. Underlining the grave condition of the country, the Voice of Karachi chief said that even media are not free and are facing constant threats from the Army. Nusrat even condemned the extremist religious groups running for the upcoming election, with the support of the Army. "Most of these groups and individuals are banned outfits, yet they are free to run their election campaign in Pakistan. Goons belonging to these outfits are openly intimidating candidates of religious minorities as well as those candidates who believe in tolerance and inclusive policies," he asserted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Even as Pakistan has had a woman Prime Minister, the country is now witnessing an election campaign where the posters have blanked out faces of female candidates. Recently, posters of a Member National Assembly (MNA) candidate, Memoona Hamid, contesting from PP-149 constituency of Pakistan, came to light, without her face on them. Taking cognizance of the matter, social activist and journalist Reham Khan took to her Twitter handle to chastise the faceless picture of Hamid and said, "Memoona Hamid another MNA contender for a seat in the parliament missing from her poster too. Great representatives for women." Earlier, as per Geo TV, posters of a female candidate of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), Syeda Zahra Basit Bokhari, were spotted where her husband's face was used in lieu of her's. Justifying the act, Bokhari's campaign manager said that the contender is a 'Syed' and 'Syed women do not publicise their pictures', the report said. As per the Gulf News, in the forthcoming July 25 election, over 10 million women, above 18 years of age, will possibly miss out on their right to vote. Referring to the statics of National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), the national daily reported that out of 97 million registered voters, only 43 million are women, while 55.6 million are male voters. As per the report, a major part of the women population in the country doesn't possess valid Computerised National Identity Cards (CNIC), which is essential for casting votes. According to the 2017 census of Pakistan , half of the two million population are women. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday was given a ceremonial reception upon his arrival in Rwanda on Monday. The Prime Minister was received by President of the Republic of Rwanda, Paul Kagame. He is on a five-day, three-nation tour to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa. This is first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Rwanda. The Prime Minister later did a one-on-one meeting and delegation level talks with President Kagame. Prime Minister Modi is also expected to interact with the Indian community. Later, at around 8 p.m., there will be an exchange of agreements followed by dinner, hosted by the Rwandan President and reception, hosted by the High Commissioner for Indian Community. Prime Minister Modi will then proceed to Uganda, where he will undertake engagements from July 24 to 25. The visit will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over 20 years. During the two-day visit in Uganda, Prime Minister Modi will call on Uganda President Yoweri Museveni and hold delegation level talks. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to address Uganda's Parliament and the Indian diaspora. Two lines of credit will also be announced for Uganda during Prime Minister's visit, the MEA said. Lastly, the Prime Minister will head to South Africa, the final leg of his visit, to attend the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to meet South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the Prime Minister's visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for a five-day, three-nation tour to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa. Prime Minister Modi will reach Rwanda today, marking the first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister. Upon reaching Rwanda at around 6 p.m., the Prime Minister will get a ceremonial reception. The Prime Minister will then head for a one-on-one meeting and delegation level talks with the President of the Republic of Rwanda, Paul Kagame. Prime Minister Modi will also interact with the Indian community. Later, at around 8 p.m., there will be an exchange of agreements followed by dinner, hosted by the Rwandan President and reception, hosted by the High Commissioner for Indian Community. Prime Minister Modi will then proceed to Uganda, where he will undertake engagements from July 24 to 25. The visit will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over 20 years. During the two-day visit in Uganda, Prime Minister Modi will call on Uganda President Yoweri Museveni and hold delegation level talks. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to address Uganda's Parliament and the Indian diaspora. Two lines of credit will also be announced for Uganda during Prime Minister's visit, the MEA said. Lastly, the Prime Minister will head to South Africa, the final leg of his visit, to attend the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to meet South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the Prime Minister's visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Rwanda on Monday as part of his five-day, three-nation tour to African countries. The Prime Minister who is scheduled to visit Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa, will first reach Rwanda, marking the first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister. Upon reaching Rwanda at around 6 PM, the Prime Minister will get a ceremonial reception. The Prime Minister will then head for a one-on-one meeting and delegation level talks with the President of the Republic of Rwanda, Paul Kagame. Later, at around 8 PM, there will be an exchange of agreements followed by dinner, hosted by the Rwandan president and reception, hosted by the High Commissioner for Indian Community. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda, which is personally initiated by the Rwandan President. Thereafter, Prime Minister Modi will proceed to Uganda, where he will undertake engagements from July 24 to 25. The visit will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over 20 years. The Prime Minister will then head to South Africa, the last leg of his visit, to attend the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit. A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the Prime Minister's visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Demanding an inquiry by Central Bureau of Investigation in the Muzaffarpur shelter home rapes, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on Monday alleged that the owner of the home is a close aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. "Owner of the NGO that runs the shelter home is close to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and had even campaigned for him in elections. A proper investigation is must in the case," said RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav. Sexual exploitation of more than 40 girls at a shelter home, run by the state's Social Welfare Department, was uncovered more than a month ago during its audit by a Mumbai-based social science institute. Meanwhile, minister in Nitish Kumar's cabinet, Mangal Pandey, assured proper investigation in the matter and said that strict action will be taken against the culprits. Earlier in the day, digging began to exhume the body of one of the victims, who was allegedly killed and buried in the shelter home premises. Meanwhile, all the girls of the shelter home have been shifted to other places in the state for their safety. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Less than a week after Disney Studios severed business ties with Hollywood director James Gunn over his controversial tweets, 'Legally Blonde' actress Selma Blair has initiated a petition urging Disney to rehire Gunn. The 46-year-old extended support to Gunn on Twitter, hailing the latter to be "one of the good ones." "Marvel: RE-HIRE JAMES GUNN - Sign the Petition! https://chn.ge/2JIuUrB via @Change. Because if people are punished despite changing, then what does that teach people about owning mistakes and evolving? This man is one of the good ones," she tweeted. Gunn exited as the director of the upcoming film 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3', after he drew flak for tweeting jokes on controversial topics like paedophilia and rape. "The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James' Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio's values, and we have severed our business relationship with him," The Hollywood Reporter quoted Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn, as saying in a statement. Gunn has been an outspoken critic of United States President Donald Trump. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP Naramalli Sivaprasad on Monday dressed up as Annamayya, a famous poet and devotee of Lord Balaji while protesting against the Centre over the demand of special status category status for Andhra Pradesh. This is not the first time when Sivaprasad has donned unusual attire during the protest. Earlier, he had dressed as a woman, washerman, and a school-boy among others during the Budget session of the Parliament. Meanwhile, TDP members are protesting both inside and outside the Parliament demanding Special Category Status to Andhra Pradesh and implementation of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act. TDP MP also staged a protest (dharna) near the Mahatma Gandhi statue in the Parliament. Speaking to ANI, TDP MP Jayadev Galla said that they are protesting as they cannot let their issues be unheard. "After the no-confidence motion, all our issues remain the same. So, there is no option left for us but to continue protesting. Inside the house, we are discussing how to handle the issue in a responsible way, as a responsible opposition. But, we cannot let our issues remain unaddressed," said Galla. He also said that they presented their case before Prime Minister Narendra Modi to which he did not pay much heed. "We presented our case with clear facts and figures and questions to the Prime Minister, which he did not bother to answer. We have been hearing the same statements for the past several years. Focusing and exposing the injustice done to us and something we must do," he added. TDP members protesting outside the parliament Meanwhile, TDP MP YS Chowdary has given a notice in the Rajya Sabha under rule 267 to discuss AP Re-organisation Act. The Andhra's ruling party and Centre have been at the loggerheads for past few months over special status issue. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The 10th meeting of the India-Russia Joint Working Group on counter-terrorism was held on Monday in Moscow. The composite Indian delegation led by Preeti Saran, Secretary (East) Ministry of External Affairs and a Russian delegation led by Oleg Syromolotov, the Russian Foreign Minister reviewed the threats posed by terrorism in South and West Asia. Implications of cross-border terrorism were also highlighted at the meeting. Both India and Russia condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed that united efforts should be made to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism, including the financing of terrorism both bilaterally and at multilateral forums like Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS), United Nations (UN), Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF), and Shangain Cooperation Organization (SCO). The issue of radicalisation including through internet was also discussed at the meeting. The two countries further agreed to strengthen and coordinate the efforts in the fight against terrorism in accordance with the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership. Meanwhile, the two sides agreed that meetings will be continued at the expert level and the exchange of information, as well as capacity building, will be intensified. The next meeting will be held in India. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A first Information Report (FIR) has been registered against three persons in connection with the Ghaziabad building collapse case. Four supervisors have also been suspended. A five-storey under-construction building collapsed near Missal Gadi on Sunday afternoon, claiming one life. "Three people have been named in the FIR. As the investigation progresses and more names come up, they'll be included in the FIR and action will be taken against them. Four supervisors have been suspended, a government report has been sent against seven people," said Ghaziabad District Magistrate. Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh has also assured strict action against those found guilty in the incident. "The inquiry has been ordered. We have directed the administration to take strict action against those responsible. We have directed the administration to vacate illegal buildings and demolish them if need be," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Japan on Sunday unveiled the names of its mascots for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games respectively. "Miraitowa", a blue and white checked character will appear at the Olympic Games, while "Someity", a pink and white checked character will be seen at the Paralympic Games, CNN reported. The organisers of Tokyo 2020 Games also shared pictures of the two creatures on Twitter. "??It's official! The name of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games mascot is #MIRAITOWA and #SOMEITY as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games mascot! Comment down below and Say Hi to our official mascots!" the organisers tweeted. Miraitowa, when broken into two Japanese words, means future (mirai) and eternity (towa), while Someity is named after the cherry blossom variety "Someiyoshino" that is grown in Japan. In December last year, the organisers of Tokyo 2020 Games had released a list of mascot pairs and asked Japanese schoolchildren in the country and Japanese schools outside Japan to choose the best mascots. Over 16,700 schools had participated in the voting process, as per the report. In February, the two futuristic creatures were unveiled without names. The 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be held from July 24 to August 9, while the Paralympics are slated to take place from August 25 to September 6. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) "Never ever threaten the United States," United States (US) President Donald Trump warned his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani on Sunday (local time). President Trump's remark comes hours after Iranian President cautioned the US about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran. In what seems like a befitting reply, President Trump took to Twitter and wrote in capital letters, "To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" According to Iran's state-run news agency IRNA, while addressing diplomats in Tehran on Sunday, President Rouhani said, "Americans must understand that war with Iran is the mother of all wars," reports CNN. He, however, did not rule out the possibility of a peace agreement and said that "peace with Iran is the mother of all peace". "Do not play with the lion's tail, because you will regret it eternally," he added. These comments come months after President Trump announced the US withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) or the Iran nuclear deal which limited the country's uranium enrichment in exchange for sanctions relief. Calling the accord as an "embarrassment" that was "defective at its core", the US President then warned of severe consequences if Iran resumes its nuclear programme. The Iran nuclear deal was signed between six countries in 2015 - Iran, US, Britain, Germany, Russia, France and China for lifting economic sanctions on Tehran in exchange for limitations to the country's nuclear programme. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) FICCI welcomes the recent multi-faceted measures taken by the government to address the problems of the textile industry. Increase in import duty on 76 textile items from 10% to 20% and GST reduction on carpets and handicraft items have given a big relief to domestic textile, carpet and handicraft manufacturers, said Mr. Shishir Jaipuria, Chairman, FICCI Textile Committee. Mr. Shishir Jaipuria added, "It is heartening to see the multifaceted steps taken by the Government in last few days for addressing problems of various segments of textiles and handicraft industry. We thank Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Mr. Piyush Goel and Textiles Minister Ms. Smriti Irani for the much-needed timely support for the industry." Mr. Jaipuria stated that garment & carpet industry was under immense pressure after implementation of GST. After GST, substantial drop in import duty was observed which has encouraged cheaper imports. It is also worth noting that total imports of textiles and garments increased in 2017-18 (USD 7 billion) by 16% in comparison to 2016-17 (USD 6 billion). Total import of garment alone increased by 30% in 2017-18 in comparison to 2016-17. Mr. Jaipuria further said that imports from Bangladesh is an area of concern for the industry. Due to full exemption of basic custom duty from Bangladesh and also due to lack of regional cumulation clause under the treaty, third countries' raw material and fabrics are getting benefitted indirectly. Imports from Bangladesh has increased by 44% in 2017-18 in comparison to 2016-17. It is suggested that Government may consider imposition of regional cumulation clause in Rules of Origin on the countries that have FTAs with India to safeguard garment industry further as cheaper fabric of third countries enter India through these countries. Mr. Jaipuria also felt the need to increase the import duty on MMF spun yarn as import of MMF yarn-based fabric also increased sharply after GST implementation. FICCI is hopeful that Government will take further steps to address unresolved issue. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could fall 5 points at the opening bell. Overseas, Asian stocks were mixed after the Bank of Japan offered to buy bonds at the first fixed-rate operation since February, in a sign the central bank was trying to rein yields. US stocks closed mostly lower on Friday, 20 July 2018 after President Donald Trump's latest verbal salvos fanned investor concern that a global trade war is escalating. Back home,stocks edged higher on Friday, 20 July 2018 as investors awaited the outcome of a no-confidence motion against the government. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 145.14 points or 0.40% to settle at 36,496.37. The Nifty 50 index rose 53.10 points or 0.48% to settle at 11,010.20. The trading activity on that day showed that the foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 310.27 crore on Friday, 20 July 2018, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 50.73 crore on Friday, Friday, 20 July 2018, as per provisional data. On the political front, the Narendra Modi government won the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha on Friday, 20 July 2018 following a 12-hour debate in the Lower House. In a 451-member House that voted, 126 members voted in favour of the motion, 325 votes went against it. The no-confidence motion was brought by the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and supported by several Opposition parties including the Congress. Among corporate news,HDFC Bank's net profit rose 18.17% to Rs 4601.44 crore on 18.85% increase in total income to Rs 26367.04 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q1 June 2017. The result was announced on Saturday, 20 July 2018. On a consolidated basis, Wipro's net profit rose 16.27% to Rs 2093.80 crore on 1.52% increase in net sales to Rs 13977.70 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 20 July 2018. IT services segment revenue rose 2.2% to Rs 13700 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. Wipro expects revenue from its IT services business to be in the range of $2,009 million to $2,049 million. This translates to a sequential growth of 0.3% to 2.3%, excluding the impact of the divestment of its hosted data center services business which concluded in the quarter ended 30 June 2018. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Stocks trimmed gains in morning trade after an initial upmove. At 10:22 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 52.18 points or 0.14% at 36,548.55. The Nifty 50 index was up 19.20 points or 0.17% at 11,029.40. Shares of index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC surged. Trading for the week began on an upbeat note as stocks edged higher in early trade boosted by the Narendra Modi government winning the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha on Friday, 20 July 2018. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.3%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.19%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex. The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 1141 shares rose and 832 shares fell. A total of 92 shares were unchanged. Asian Paints (up 2.73%), NTPC (up 2.7%), Bharti Airtel (up 2.16%), ICICI Bank (up 1.02%) and IndusInd Bank (up 1.01%) edged higher from the Sensex pack. Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC jumped 4.32% to Rs 285.25. Wipro slumped 3.66%. On a consolidated basis, Wipro's net profit rose 16.27% to Rs 2093.80 crore on 1.52% increase in net sales to Rs 13977.70 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 20 July 2018. IT services segment revenue rose 2.2% to Rs 13700 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. Wipro expects revenue from its IT services business to be in the range of $2,009 million to $2,049 million. This translates to a sequential growth of 0.3% to 2.3%, excluding the impact of the divestment of its hosted data center services business which concluded in the quarter ended 30 June 2018. Abidali Z. Neemuchwala, CEO and Member of the Board said that the company has seen pickup in spending in the developed markets, particularly in North America and BFSI. Wipro's investments in Digital continue to help it build differentiation in key industry segments, which is resulting in a consistent improvement in its client metrics. The company has had a good quarter of order bookings and the firm is moving in the right direction. Jatin Dalal, Chief Financial Officer said that the company successfully concluded the sale of its hosted data center business in the quarter. The company continues to improve its operating metrics and generated strong operating cash flows at 136% of its net Income during the quarter. On the political front, the Narendra Modi government won the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha on Friday, 20 July 2018 following a 12-hour debate in the Lower House. In a 451-member House that voted, 126 members voted in favour of the motion, 325 votes went against it. The no-confidence motion was brought by the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and supported by several Opposition parties including the Congress. Overseas, Asian stocks were mixed after the Bank of Japan offered to buy bonds at the first fixed-rate operation since February, in a sign the central bank was trying to rein yields. US stocks closed mostly lower on Friday, 20 July 2018 after President Donald Trump's latest verbal salvos fanned investor concern that a global trade war is escalating. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) On a consolidated basis, Wipro's net profit rose 16.27% to Rs 2093.80 crore on 1.52% increase in net sales to Rs 13977.70 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 20 July 2018. IT services segment revenue rose 2.2% to Rs 13700 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. Wipro expects revenue from its IT services business to be in the range of $2,009 million to $2,049 million. This translates to a sequential growth of 0.3% to 2.3%, excluding the impact of the divestment of its hosted data center services business which concluded in the quarter ended 30 June 2018. Abidali Z. Neemuchwala, CEO and Member of the Board said that the company has seen pickup in spending in the developed markets, particularly in North America and BFSI. Wipro's investments in Digital continue to help it build differentiation in key industry segments, which is resulting in a consistent improvement in its client metrics. The company has had a good quarter of order bookings and the firm is moving in the right direction. Jatin Dalal, Chief Financial Officer said that the company successfully concluded the sale of its hosted data center business in the quarter. The company continues to improve its operating metrics and generated strong operating cash flows at 136% of its net Income during the quarter. HDFC Bank's net profit rose 18.17% to Rs 4601.44 crore on 18.85% increase in total income to Rs 26367.04 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q1 June 2017. The result was announced after market hours on Saturday, 21 July 2018. Bata India's net profit rose 36.6% to Rs 82.55 crore on 8.3% increase in net sales to Rs 797.28 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q1 June 2017. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 20 July 2018. Just Dial's net profit rose 0.97% to Rs 38.53 crore on 11.26% increase in net sales to Rs 211.43 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q1 June 2017. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 20 July 2018. Further, Just Dial's board approved the proposal to buyback up to 27.50 lakh equity shares, for an aggregate amount not exceeding Rs 220 crore, at a maximum price of Rs 800 per share. Jubilant FoodWorks said it received a copy of the investigation report submitted by the Director General Anti Profiteering (DG) to the National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA) in respect of the investigation carried out by DG that the company has profiteered by not passing on the reduction in GST. However the company said it has passed on the benefit on account of reduction of GST rates to the customers and accordingly will represent its case before NAA. The announcement was made on Saturday, 21 July 2018. Corporation Bank said that its board approved the proposal to raise capital through preferential allotment of equity shares to the Government of India to the extent of Rs 2555 crore, subject to all necessary approvals. The announcement was made on Saturday, 21 July 2018. Cadila Healthcare announced that it received the final approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to market Acetylcysteine injection (US RLD - Acetadote Injection), 6 g/30 mL (200 mg/mL). It is an antidote for acetaminophen overdose indicated to prevent or lessen hepatic injury after ingestion of a potentially hepatotoxic quantity of acetaminophen. It will be manufactured at the group's formulations manufacturing facility at Moraiya, Ahmedabad. In line with this, the group now has 211 approvals and has so far filed over 330 ANDAs since the commencement of the filing process in FY 2003-2004. The announcement was made on Saturday, 21 July 2018. UPL announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, UPL Corporation, signed a definitive agreement with Platform Specialty Products Corporation to acquire Arysta LifeScience Inc. and its subsidiaries, a global provider of innovative crop protection solutions, including biosolutions and seed treatment, for approximately $4.2 billion in cash consideration, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 20 July 2018. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Wipro fell 5.09% to Rs 268.65 at 9:18 IST on BSE after consolidated net profit rose 16.27% to Rs 2093.80 crore on 1.52% increase in net sales to Rs 13977.70 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 20 July 2018. Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 80.90 points, or 0.22% to 36,577.27. On the BSE, 48,000 shares were traded in the counter so far compared with average daily volumes of 2.87 lakh shares in the past two weeks. The stock had hit a high of Rs 288 and a low of Rs 263.90 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 334.75 on 16 January 2018. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 253.50 on 6 June 2018. Wipro said its IT services segment revenue rose 2.2% to Rs 13700 crore in Q1 June 2018 over Q4 March 2018. Wipro expects revenue from its IT services business to be in the range of $2,009 million to $2,049 million. This translates to a sequential growth of 0.3% to 2.3%, excluding the impact of the divestment of its hosted data center services business which concluded in the quarter ended 30 June 2018. Abidali Z. Neemuchwala, CEO and Member of the Board said that the company has seen pickup in spending in the developed markets, particularly in North America and BFSI. Wipro's investments in Digital continue to help it build differentiation in key industry segments, which is resulting in a consistent improvement in its client metrics. The company has had a good quarter of order bookings and the firm is moving in the right direction. Jatin Dalal, Chief Financial Officer said that the company successfully concluded the sale of its hosted data center business in the quarter. The company continues to improve its operating metrics and generated strong operating cash flows at 136% of its net Income during the quarter. Wipro is a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A new batch of 1,208 pilgrims left Jammu on Monday for the Kashmir Valley to perform the Amarnath Yatra, an official said. They left the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in an escorted convoy of 45 vehicles, as 435 pilgrims headed to Baltal base camp while 773 towards Pahalgam, he said. This is the smallest batch of pilgrims to leave for the holy cave shrine since the Yatra started on June 28. To date, more than 2,40,000 pilgrims have performed the pilgrimage. The 60-day-long yatra will end on August 26. The Met has forecast rain along both the Baltal and Pahalgam treks on Monday. --IANS sq/pgh/in (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Fourteen people have been killed in a blast which rocked Kabul airport shortly after Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum returned from self-imposed exile, according to police. Dostum was unhurt in the attack on Sunday on a square he had just passed through, BBC reported. He left for Turkey more than a year ago, after he was accused of ordering his men to kidnap and rape a political rival -- accusations he denies. Militant group Islamic State has said it carried out the attack. Hashmat Estankzai, of Kabul police, said nine security forces members and traffic officers were among the 14 who had died, while another 60 people had been injured. Estankzai earlier told the BBC a suicide attacker on foot had set off his explosives outside the gate of the airport. Some reports said Gen Dostum's convoy was departing as the blast was heard. He was in an armoured vehicle. The ethnic Uzbek and former warlord had been cheered by supporters on arrival. Television footage showed Dostum greeting supporters at his office not long after the explosion. Dostum's reappearance was preceded by unrest in his powerbase in northern Afghanistan, as supporters demanded his return and the release of a militia leader. --IANS pgh/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As many as 35 soldiers besides 15 civilians have been killed in nine terror attacks that have taken place since 2016 on defence installations and Army camps in Jammu and Kashmir, the government informed the Rajya Sabha on Monday. In these attacks, 40 militants were killed, Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre said in a written reply. As per government data, five incidents occurred in 2016, one in 2017 and three have occurred so far this year. Bhamre said the government had issued broad guidelines for security of defence installations and had also sanctioned perimeter security projects of all three armed forces. "In compliance with the said guidelines, the defence forces have taken a number of actions including risk categorization of military bases, appraisal and upgradation of intelligence gathering capabilities, strengthening and streamlining of the response mechanism, use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and periodic security audit of all military installations," he said. ALSO READ: Two CRPF troopers killed, one injured in militant attack in Kashmir He said the Army also carried out "in-depth analysis" of terrorist incidents and security breaches identified with various incidents. Lecce (Italy), July 23 (IANS/AKI) As many as 47 Pakistani boat migrants arrived in the southern Italy port city of Otranto on Monday after they were rescued off the island of Sant'Andrea in the Puglia region's Gallipoli province, port officials said. The Pakistanis who were all male and who included eight unaccompanied minors, were taken to a migrant reception centre in Otranto, where investigators sought to identify any suspected people-smugglers among the migrants. The group was rescued in the early hours of Monday when the yacht they were travelling ran aground on rocks, port officials in Gallipoli said. --IANS/AKI vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale shook Iran's Sirch in Kerman province early on Monday, country's Seismological Centre reported. The epicentre is determined at a depth of 10 km, 30.365 degrees north latitude and 57.499 degrees east longitude, Xinhua news agency reported. No casualties or property loss have been reported so far. People rushed to the streets in panic as emergency teams were sent to the affected region, media reported. On Sunday, two moderate quakes of 5.7-magnitude and 5.9-magnitude rattled southern Hormozghan and western Kermanshah provinces successively. The quake in Kermanshah province injured 26 people. --IANS mag/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) AAP's Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh on Monday alleged massive manipulation by the Narendra Modi government in the Rafale fighter jet deal with France. Singh told reporters here that Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre has contradicted his own statement of 2016 about the price of a single Rafale - a 4.5 generation "omnirole" combat aircraft manufactured by France's Dassault. "On November 18, 2016, Dr Subhash Bhamre had claimed that the Rafale was priced at Rs 670 crores with associated equipment, weapons, India specific enhancements, maintenance support and services. "But in a written reply on March 19, 2018, Bhamre had said that the same Rafale would cost Rs 670 crore without all the associated equipment and services," Singh said. "Dr Subhash Bhamre is also contradicting the annual reports published by Dassault in which each Rafale aircraft is valued at Rs 1,670 crore," he said. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader said that he will take up the matter against the "lying central government" in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The deal for 36 Rafale aircraft for Rs 58,000 crore was finalised in September 2016 with the signing of the Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) by then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian here. Ever since the deal was signed, Congress and BJP have been at loggerheads with the Congress on Monday accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of misleading the Lok Sabha by not revealing the price of the Rafale fighter jets. Congress Party President, Rahul Gandhi had said the price of each plane during the UPA regime was Rs 520 crore but when Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to France and "with some magic", the price for each plane increased to Rs 1,600 crore. --IANS sd/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) "Guardians of the Galaxy" fans, lovers of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Hollywood actors have urged Disney's Marvel to rehire James Gunn, who was fired as director of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" after some of his old offensive tweets on pedophilia and rape resurfaced. Actress Selma Blaire took to Twitter, describing Gunn as the good one, reports independent.co.uk. "If people are punished despite changing, then what does that teach people about owning mistakes and evolving?" she wrote. Gunn was fired from "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3" for offensive tweets that he had posted years ago. It was announced that the filmmaker had been let go after a right-wing US site found offensive posts in which he had joked about subjects including paedophilia and rape between 2008 and 2012. Disney's decision to fire Gunn met with backlash after it was noted that Gunn had previously atoned for the messages leading many to believe the studio was aware of the posts years back. A change.org petition is also calling upon Disney to rehire Gunn. The petition partly reads: "If you do this to Gunn you have to do it for all the other directors who have said some crappy joke sometime in their life, which is all of them, cause I doubt there's one human on this planet who hasn't made a shi**y joke once or twice in their life." As many as over 154,000 signatures have already been garnered by the petition. "Guardians of the Galaxy" star Dave Bautista had earlier spoken out in Gunn's defense, saying: "He's made mistakes. We all have. I'm not okay with what's happening to him." Blair had also previously attributed the director with supporting her in coming forward with her personal experience of sexual harassment in the wake of the Time's Up movement. --IANS smriti/rb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US-based Altair Engineering plans to open a design innovation centre in Karnataka's Hubballi town with a private university to benefit locals in using software tools and become industry ready, said a top company official on Monday. "Industry-academia tie-up to benefit students from technologies and tools making them industry ready," Altair India Managing Director Pavan Kumar told reporters here. The centre will be housed in the sprawling KLE Technological University campus, run by BJP's Rajya Sabha member Prabhakar Kore. "The objective of the centre is to develop competency on commercial finite element analysis (FEA) software of Altair called Hyper-Works," said Kumar. The centre, which will help in providing skilled power to Altair customers worldwide, will also provide the university's under-graduate and post-graduate students license to work on Altair technology. "The Altair-KLE partnership will produce future ready engineers for the industry across the country," said Kumar. Varsity Vice-Chancellor Ashok Shettar said collaboration with Altair would expose the students to technologies and tools and make them industry-ready. "Collaboration with Altair will help us to expose our students to industry relevant technologies and tools making them industry-ready," he said. The Troy-based Altair in Michigan state transforms design and decision making by applying simulation, machine learning and optimization through product life cycles. "Our portfolio of simulation technology and patented units-based software licensing model enable simulation-driven innovation for our customers," added Kumar. --IANS fb/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Rajasthan Police on Monday formed a high-level team to probe the reasons for the alleged delay in taking to the hospital a man who died after being allegedly thrashed by a mob of 'gau rakshaks'. Director General of Police O.P. Galhotra said the team will find out why there so much time was wasted in transporting Rakbar alias Akbar to a hospital that was just four kilometres from the site where he was beaten up on Saturday. The team shall include senior officers N.R.K. Reddy, P.K. Singh, Hemant Priyadarshi and Mahendra Singh Chaudhary. The team has been asked to probe why if the policemen reached the site at 1 a.m., the victim was taken to the hospital only at 4 a.m., said a police official. It is alleged that the policemen stopped on the way to have tea before heading to the hospital. According to Naval Sharma, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad's Gau Raksha cell chief in Ramgarh, the FIR says that the police reached the site at 12.41 a.m. and the victim was taken by them by 1 a.m. However, surprisingly, the police reached the hospital at 4 am. The postmortem report says the victim died at 3.40 a.m. A social worker of the region, Vijay Kumar, told IANS that Akbar and Aslam were taking bovines from the fields at midnight. When the animals cried out, some villagers came out and thrashed Akbar. As it was raining heavily, Akbar fell on the muddy field and his companion Aslam escaped. By then, the police reached the spot. However, as the victim was covered in mud, the police refused to take him in their vehicle and asked villagers to clean him. The villagers poured water on him. Dharmendra, who was later taken as an accused by the police, brought clothes from his house. Vijay Kumar says the policemen were drunk and they too might have beaten him as the victim had earlier records of cow smuggling. According to him, when Akbar died, the police came to the village to arrest the witnesses to save their skin. The cows, meanwhile, were shifted to a 'gaushala' at 3.26 a.m. in a three-wheeler. Alwar Superintendent of Police Rajendra Singh told the media: "We will investigate the matter thoroughly and take action against the accused." --IANS arc/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Veteran actor Anupam Kher will be out of India for a "substantial time" to shoot medical drama "New Amsterdam". "On my way to New York to act in 'New Amsterdam', a medical drama series. Looking forward to it. Will be out of India for a substantial time. So will be missing my India but will work very hard to make all of you very proud. Will always need your love, best wishes and blessings," Anupam tweeted early on Monday. In an attached video, he said he will be out of India "for a few months" and that he is "happy to be a part of this great series" which will premiere in September. "It takes me away from my country for a few months. I will not say I am feeling low, but I am a little nervous and excited... I carry my father's love... And India, send me your love," he added. The actor also shared a few glimpses from "The Accidental Prime Minister", introducing what he called the "political cast" of the movie. "The first of its kind motion picture from India. There are so many people behind our passionate project, but director Vijay Gutte has really worked hard. Hope you love our labour of love. The political drama is based on the memoir by Indian policy analyst Sanjaya Baru, "The Accidental Prime Minister: The Making and Unmaking of Manmohan Singh". Anupam plays the former Prime Minister in the movie. --IANS rb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Robotic process automation company Automation Anywhere on Monday partnered EdCast for "futureskills," a Nasscom skilling initiative, to train Indian students in robotics. Automation Anywhere will provide upskilling programmes in the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) domain under the initiative, the company said in a statement. RPA is among the 8 technologies identified by IT industry's apex body which are poised to grow tremendously, both nationally and globally. "We are proud to be a part of this prestigious initiative and mission-critical national agenda," said Ankur Kothari, Chief Revenue Officer and Co-Founder of Automation Anywhere. "As RPA continues its rapid adoption at the enterprise level, we see India driving this trend worldwide. It is not only opening multi-billion opportunities for Indian enterprises and creating lakhs of job opportunities which did not exist until recently, but also leading a big push for the country's rich engineering talent pool," Kothari explained. As part of the agreement, subscribers on "futureskills" portal will have exclusive access to Automation Anywhere University (AAU) training programmes that encompass RPA technology overviews, theoretical concepts, typical business cases, and hands-on practice exercises. The programme will empower the students with globally-recognised Automation Anywhere certifications. Through the programme, Automation Anywhere is aiming to train over one lakh students and professionals in 2018. "We have the processes, expertise and technology platform to lead the world in process automation. We predict RPA, as a category, can create new job opportunities in the range of 2,90,000-3,20,000 lakh over the next three years," said Amit Aggarwal, CEO, IT/ITES Sector Skill Council of Nasscom. --IANS na/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bihar Assembly on Monday passed amendments to the prohibition law to curb its misuse, amid a walkout by the opposition. Speaking on the need for the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2018, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said: "The main objective is to save innocent people from punishment." According to the bill, the amendments would "...stop misuse of provisions of the law against the innocent and bring the punishment in proportion to the crime". The Bill contains 16 amendments that offer relief to people found violating the various draconian provisions of the law. Last week, the state cabinet, chaired by Nitish Kumar, approved the amendments, with special focus on removal of stringent provisions like sending the entire family to jail if liquor is found in their house. Nitish Kumar had earlier said that a bill to amend the prohibition law would be brought during the assembly's monsoon session in July, but asserted that prohibition would continue. After being repeatedly attacked by the opposition over prohibition-related issues, he had admitted that some provisions were being misused and announced that the law would be amended. Opposition leaders have alleged that the Dalits and OBCs were being harassed by the police in the name of prohibition. More than 1.5 lakh persons have been arrested to date for violating prohibition in Bihar since it was imposed on April 5, 2016. --IANS ik/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The BJP on Monday attacked Congress President Rahul Gandhi for his remarks on the 'secrecy pact' in the Rafale deal, calling him irresponsible for "misleading Parliament" and for dragging French President Emmanuel Macron into the matter. It also advised Rahul Gandhi to "do homework and improve understanding" of India's foreign policy and security issues. "Rahul Gandhi is irresponsible; he makes false statements in Parliament. He was irresponsible on two fronts: First, by saying there was no confidential agreement (between India and France on the Rafale fighter jet deal); and second, by dragging French President into an internal political debate," Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters here. "This is unfortunate. I have often said that Rahul Gandhi needs to improve his homework. Now I have to add that his understanding of (Indian) foreign policy and national security and strategic concerns also need to be upgraded," Prasad said. During the no-confidence debate in Parliament on July 20, Gandhi had said that there was no secrecy pact on the Rafale deal, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had "lied" to the nation" about it. "I met the French President and asked him if there was a secrecy pact with India. He told me that no such pact was signed between the two countries. He said that he had no hesitation in saying this and that I can tell this to my country," Gandhi had said. Prasad said that the Congress was worried over the "transparent and honest" functioning of the BJP-led government and was hence making allegations about the Rafale deal. "We can say with complete responsibility that Rahul Gandhi clearly misled the house when he said that there was no confidentiality agreement. His reference to the French President's conversation was formally denied the same day by the French government," the Minister said. He added that sensitive armed forces operations can't be made public, a fact which was acknowledged in Parliament by A.K. Antony and Pranab Mukherjee, both Ministers in the then UPA government. --IANS vv/tsb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt will pay an official visit to China on July 30 at the invitation of Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, it was announced here on Monday. During the visit, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee Yang Jiechi will meet Hunt, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang. Wang and Hunt will co-host the 9th China-UK Strategic Dialogue and exchange views on bilateral relations and international and regional hotspot issues, Xinhua news agency reported. "The China-UK relationship enjoys a sound momentum for development at this point," Geng said. Earlier this year, British Prime Minister Theresa May visited China, marking another round of the annual meeting with the Chinese Premier. Leaders of both countries reached important consensus on pushing forward the "Golden Era" for China-UK relations, Geng said. --IANS anp/soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Veteran actor Rishi Kapoor, whose next film "Mulk" is about a family fighting for its honour in the court of law, says brotherhood is the need of the hour in the society. "Brotherhood is needed the most to end communal violence in India," Rishi, who plays the head of a Muslim family in the Anubhav Sinha directorial, told the media here on Monday. "If North Korea and America can solve their dispute, then why can't India and Pakistan," he asked. Rishi was here with the cast and crew of "Mulk". The team also launched a specially conducted survey called 'My Mulk Survey' to understand the issues faced by Muslims in India. "Mulk", which also features actors Taapsee Pannu, Prateik Babbar, Rajat Kapoor and Neena Gupta, is slated to release on August 3. --IANS sim/rb/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior students of Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, withdrew their indefinite hunger strike here on Monday following a written assurance from the authorities that two floors of A new 11-storey hotel would be allotted to them. The students had started a protest demonstration on June 24 after authorities at the 183-year-old state-run medical college, one of the oldest of its kind in Asia, notified that the only freshers would be accommodated in the new hostel building. The senior had alleged their existing hostel was in a deplorable state. The protestors resorted to the "indefinite hunger strike" from July 10 after the authorities called in police in the campus. On Monday, the new officiating Principal Ashok Bhadra informed the students of the fresh decision, handed over the written order and gave them a glass of water. "The council has decided that two floors in the new hostel will be allotted to the first year students, two floors to the post-graduate trainees and two floors to the senior students. The selection of students will be done through an open and transparent counselling," Bhadra said after the meeting of the college council. According to him, once the seven-storied-building where 500 students are now staying is ready after renovation and repair, the senior students will be shifted there. In future, the 11-storey building will be used only for the first year students as per MCI norms. The decision has been forwarded to the higher authorities. The authorities had so far expressed their inability to house the senior students in the new hostel building citing a Medical Council of India rule that prevents the entry of senior students into a hostel where freshers are staying to prevent ragging. The students were elated after their 'victory'. "We got the results after a hard struggle and it proves that the authorities cannot do whatever they feel like. This decision should have been taken earlier, even before we took to hunger strike," said Aniket Chatterjee, a protesting student. "We are happy that our demands have been fulfilled. Many times we were in doubt about the consequences. Now that we are able to give food to our friends, we are satisfied and we feel victorious," a female student said. Earlier in the morning Veteran Congress leader Somen Mitra visited the students. Pointing out that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee herself had resorted to 'hunger strike' to oppose the wrongs, he said: "Today when students are on a hunger strike demanding their rights, why will it not be accepted." --IANS bnd/ssp/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has called for an immediate investigation into the sale of 250,000 faulty rabies vaccines as panic grows over product safety. Outrage swept Chinese social media on Monday as regulators and officials tried to contain fallout over revelations that one of the country's largest vaccine makers had been giving children defective vaccines. On Sunday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang urged severe punishment for the people involved, saying the incident had "crossed a moral line". Regulators last week ordered the Jilin-based Changsheng Biotechnology to stop production of a rabies vaccine, after investigators found fabricated production and inspection records during an inspection that was prompted by a tip off, the BBC reported. However, Changsheng said that authorities were punishing the company over a "substandard" DTaP vaccine for diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus. On Sunday, China's food and drug administration said it was investigating Changsheng and that all production had been halted. The company issued a statement expressing its "deepest apology". There were no reports of injuries or side effects from the vaccines and Chinese officials and state media released statements promising accountability. "We will resolutely crack down on illegal and criminal acts that endanger the safety of peoples' lives, resolutely punish lawbreakers according to the law, and resolutely and severely criticise dereliction of duty in supervision," Li said in a statement posted on a government website. According to a report by Xinhua news agency, an official said the company had "fabricated production records and product inspection records", as well as "arbitrarily changed process parameters and equipment" during production. According to state media outlet CGTN, over 250,000 doses of DTaP in the batch had already been sold to disease control and prevention centres in eastern China. The company was ordered to pay a fine of 3.4 million yuan ($510,000). "Thousands of mothers around the country are worried. Over 200,000 children could be affected. What kind of society am I living in?" asked one woman on Weibo. "My son will be vaccinated next month. I don't know whether or not to let him," said another. Chinese censors also identified the issue as highly sensitive. This is not the first time substandard vaccines have been produced in China. In 2016, an illegal vaccine ring which involved hundreds of people was uncovered. --IANS soni/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) China is set to probe stainless steel products imported from the European Union (EU), Japan, South Korea and Indonesia to determine if they are being sold lower than the existing market price in the country, a practice known as dumping, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said on Monday. The decision comes after Chinese firm Shanxi Stainless Steel, backed by four other companies, urged the authorities to initiate a probe over alleged dumping practices in the sale of stainless steel billet and hot-rolled stainless steel plates imported from the four countries, Efe news reported. The one-year long investigation would begin on Monday, although the Ministry said on its website that the probe could be extended for another year under exceptional circumstances. According to the Ministry, the five Chinese companies, who backed their complaint with concrete evidence, are the major players in the sector, who accounted for more than 50 per cent of the sector's output between 2014 and 2017. The authorities would investigate if dumping practices were carried out between January 1 and December 31, 2017, while analyzing possible damage to the industry between January 1, 2014 and March 31, 2018. The products under the scanner are used as raw material for manufacturing cold rolled stainless steel and as a final product in the manufacturing of ships, containers, trains and also in the energy and petrochemical industry. In 2017, China had imported 703,000 tonnes of these stainless steel products, a 200 per cent rise from the year before, with 98 per cent of the imports coming from the EU, Japan, South Korea and Indonesia. --IANS mag/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of misleading the Lok Sabha by not revealing the price of the Rafale fighter jets bought from France and indicated it could move a motion of breach of privilege against them. "Deluding and misleading the people of India, the Prime Minister and Defence Minister sought to lie on the floor of Parliament. Neither the revelation of the commercial cost of Rafale aircraft will violate any secrecy agreement with the French government nor will it reveal any classified or protected information," former Defence Minister A.K. Antony and senior leader Anand Sharma told a press conference. Party sources said that consultations will be held with legal experts and the leader of the party in the Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, will decide on moving a privilege motion against Modi and Sitharaman in a day or two. Antony and Sharma referred to the discussion during the no-confidence motion against the NDA government in the Lok Sabha on July 20 and said the Prime Minister sought to "hide behind a cloak of pseudo nationalism" in the Rafale deal and said the truth was that the Modi government was "guilty of compromising national interest and national security". The two leaders said that "shoddy cover-up, self defeating assertions and deliberate lies were being dished out to divert, dupe and deceive". "Grave apprehensions and claims of insurmountable loss being caused to public exchequer stand exposed as government refuses to state the truth," they said. Rejecting the government contention that the deal was covered by a secrecy clause under which the price cannot be revealed, Antony said the agreement between the governments of India and France in 2008 during the UPA government does not mention that commercial cost of procurement of defence deals cannot be revealed. "The scope of the agreement only extends to tactical and technical details of weaponry relating to the capability of the platform in question and its performance and tactics in combat and does not include commercial details and costs. It is clear that the Prime Minister and Defence Minister misled the nation," Antony said. Claiming that the per aircraft price of Rafale as per international bid in 2012 during UPA government came to Rs 18,940 crore for 36 aircraft, the leaders said the Modi government purchased the same number of aircraft for Rs 60,145 crore and asked BJP to explain the extra amount of Rs 41,000 crore paid from public money. "This price is apparent from the 'Annual Report, 2016' of Dassault Aviation," they said. They contended that under the law, the government was bound to provide to full information to the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence and the Comptroller and Director General of India (CAG) and asked why the Modi government was not disclosing the commercial cost of the deal. Antony and Sharma referred to two replies given by the Defence Ministry in 2016 and 2018 in Parliament revealing the price to be approximately Rs 670 crore per aircraft and asked why was the Defence Minister lying today. They also quoted an interview given by French President Emmanuel Macron to a prominent news channel in India saying that if the Modi government wanted to disclose some of the details with the opposition, it can do so. "Prime Minister Modi in Parliament took refuge in the statement released by the French government. Modi government must tell that the price of Rafale is not a secret, its specifications and weaponry are. The statement said the agreement 'legally binds the two states to protect the classified information provided by the partner that could impact security and operational capabilities of the defence equipments of India and France'." The Congress asked where had the French government even said that the price of Rafale aircraft cannot be disclosed. The two leaders also referred to answers given by the UPA government between 2010 and 2013 regarding the price of acquiring INS Vikramaditya, upgrade of Mirage aircraft, procurement of Sukhoi aircraft and development of Kaveri engine. --IANS ps-aks-sid/vsc/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Centre on Monday informed the Supreme Court that, to begin with, it favoured live-streaming of hearings by Constitution Benches and Court Number one presided over by the Chief Justice of India. Attorney General K.K. Venugopal told a bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud that initially a screen could be installed in a hall where lawyers not appearing in the matter but nevertheless interested, as also interns, could sit and watch. It will help reduce crowding in the courtroom, he said. The top court had on February 9 sought Venugopal's assistance while dealing with separate petitions filed by senior counsel Indira Jaising and Swapnil Tripathi. Jaising sought the live-streaming and videotaping of court hearings on issues of national importance that have a bearing on a large section of people. Jaising cautioned against the misuse of such recorded proceedings as she sought "all safeguards" to be put in place to ensure that there was "no commercial use" of the recordings. Jaising told the bench that the safeguards could include no reproduction of recorded footage by anyone, no matter how small or big, without the court's permission. As lawyer Mathews J. Nedumpara sought the bench's permission to be impleaded as a party in the matter, he was told to assist the Attorney General. "Let the justice system take the credit and not an individual," Justice Chandrachud remarked as Nedumpara said that if he was not allowed to be impleaded, then the cause will not get highlighted. In the last hearing on July 9, the court had said that the live-streaming will bring in transparency and facilitate access to justice since the litigants will know what had transpired during case hearings. "I may not be present in the court, yet I will be able to know what is happening," Justice Chandrachud had said while pointing out that clients/litigants have the right to know if a matter was adjourned, and why. "We are only enforcing the principle of open-court hearing," the court had said. The apex court had said that if they go for live-streaming, it will start off with one court as a pilot project and it could then be extended to the remaining courts. The Attorney General had told the court during the last hearing that the central government will set up a dedicated channel like Lok Sabha TV and Rajya Sabha TV if the apex court decided to go for live telecast of its proceedings. --IANS pk/tsb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A special court here on Monday granted interim protection from arrest to former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram till August 7 in the Aircel-Maxis deal case. Special Judge O.P. Saini asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file a reply on the bail plea of P. Chidambaram and listed the matter for August 7 for further hearing. The CBI on Friday filed a chargesheet against 18 people in the Aircel-Maxis deal case including former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and his son Karti. Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Monday listed the matter for hearing the anticipatory bail plea of Chidambaram in the INX media money laundering case on Tuesday. His son Karti was arrested on February 28 for allegedly taking money to facilitate the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to INX Media in 2007 when his father was the Union Finance Minister in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Later, Karti was granted bail. The CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) are investigating how Karti Chidambaram managed to get clearance from the FIPB. In the Aircel-Maxis deal case, the CBI and ED are investigating Karti Chidambaram's alleged role in getting FIPB clearance for the Aircel-Maxis deal in 2006. On August 29, 2014, the CBI had filed a chargesheet in the case alleging that between July 2004 and September 2008, Dayanidhi Maran, as Minister in the UPA-I government, used his influence to help Malaysian businessman T.A. Ananda Krishnan buy Aircel by coercing its owner Sivasankaran to part with his stake. Sivasankaran alleged that Maran favoured the Krishnan-owned Maxis Group in the takeover of his company. In return, he alleged, Maxis made investments through Astro Network, a sister concern, in Sun Direct TV Pvt Ltd (SDTPL), stated to be owned by the Maran family. However, a special court had dropped charges against former Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran, his brother Kalanithi and others in the alleged kickback of Rs 742 crore in the Aircel-Maxis deal, saying that the "perception or suspicion" was not backed by concrete evidence. --IANS akk/qd/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The death toll in a suicide attack near Kabul airport, that took place shortly after a plane carrying Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum had landed, climbed to 23 on Monday while the number of wounded rose to 107. Dostum, who had gone into self-exile to Turkey last year amid an investigation that his bodyguards allegedly tortured a political rival, was received on Sunday by dozens of supporters and local authorities at the international airport just minutes before the attack. He escaped unscathed. "The death toll rose to 23 killed and 107 injured, including security forces and civilians," an official from the press office of the Ministry of Public Health told Efe on condition of anonymity. He added that the ministry was still working out the details of the casualties to identify how many of them were civilians and how many were police officers. Terror group Islamic State had claimed the attack and said it was targeted at the Vice-President and his supporters. Dostum is one of the most powerful Afghan warlords with a reputation for being bloodthirsty and a record of constantly switching his loyalties during the wars in Afghanistan since the Soviet invasion (1979-89) to the fall of the Taliban regime following the invasion of the country by the US in 2001. --IANS soni/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) South Korea was the fourth-largest emitter of carbon dioxide (CO2) among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 2017 due to its high dependence on fossil fuels, a report showed Monday. According to the report by global oil and gas major BP, South Korea's CO2 emissions came to 679.7 million tons last year, up 2.2 percent from the previous year. The volume was the fourth largest among 26 OECD nations with comparable figures. The United States topped the list with 5.09 billion tons, trailed by Japan with 1.18 billion tons and Germany with 764 million tons. Compared with a decade ago, South Korea's CO2 emissions spiked 24.6 percent last year, a stark contrast to an 8.7 percent drop in the OECD average. Turkey was the only OECD nation that reported a higher growth rate over the cited period with 50.5 percent. The U.S., Japan and Germany posted falls of 13.5 percent, 7.1 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively. South Korea's high ranking in OECD CO2 output was attributed to its high reliance on coal use for electricity generation. Coal consumption of Asia's fourth-largest economy amounted to 86.30 million tons of oil equivalent (TOEs) last year, the third largest after the U.S. with 332 million TOEs and Japan with 121 million tons. "South Korea's coal consumption has been on a steady increase due to its greater dependence on the fossil fuel for power generation," an industry source said. "South Korea needs more realistic measures to cut back on coal consumption." South Korea's volume of electricity generated from coal came to 230,000 gigawatt hours (GWh) last year, compared with 149,000 GWh 10 years earlier, with its share of the country's total power trade rising to 44 percent from 39.8 percent over the cited period. (Yonhap) With an aim to generate more than 2,000 MW of solar energy in the national capital by 2025, the Delhi government is laying out a comprehensive roadmap to encourage adoption of rooftop solar projects by the residential sector. In order to achieve this goal and understand the opportunities and challenges in aggregating the consumer demand, the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Management Centre (EE&REM), Delhi's Department of Power, on Monday organised a consultation workshop 'Rooftop Solar Demand Aggregation Program for Domestic Consumers'. The workshop, supported by the SUPRABHA (Sustainable Partnerships for Rooftop Solar Acceleration in Bharat), a World Bank-SBI Rooftop SolarTechnical Assistance (TA) Programme discussed the opportunities and challenges faced by Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) developers in setting up solar rooftop projects in the cityA In his address, Power Minister Satyendar Jain said: "It is the endeavour of the Delhi Government to promote the use of renewable energy by all sectors. "The residential sector is a key component in an urban setup like Delhi and we are exploring ways and means to make it easy for this sector to adopt rooftop solar. The RESCO model enables this by minimising capital expenditure for homeowners and RWAs. The Delhi Government's aim is to generate 1000 MW by 2020 and 2000 MW by 2025 through Rooftop Solar Installations." --IANS nks/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Dhanush is excited that his maiden international venture "The Extraordinary Journey Of The Fakir" will make its Victorian premiere at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) next month. IFFM will be held from August 10-22. Directed by Ken Scott, the Indo-French co-production is based on the international bestseller by Romain Puertolas' "The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir Who Got Trapped in an Ikea Wardrobe". It revolves around the life of Ajatashatru Lavash Patel, played by Dhanush, a charming charlatan from Mumbai, who embarks on an extraordinary journey in search of a father he never knew. As he travels from India to France, UK, Spain, Italy and Libya, what was supposed to be a simple journey to Paris turns into a veritable odyssey. Dhanush said in a statement that he is "really excited" to showcase the movie to all his "Australian fans". "See you guys soon," he said. The film's producer Aditi Anand is also looking forward to the gala as the movie "continues its trip around world, going from strength to strength and now landing in Australia". IFFM's theme this year is inclusion. Festival director Mitu Bhowmick Lange finds it "a very relevant film". "What better way than to have one of India's most loved stars Dhanush present his film for the first time to an Australian Indian audience. We are absolutely honoured and can't wait to welcome him and his beautiful film to our festival." --IANS rb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Over 100 people, including people from the film industry, have written to the Kerala government that Malayalam superstar Mohanlal should not be invited as the Chief Guest to the annual state film awards to be held here in August. The actor is facing the ire of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) for revoking the suspension of accused actor Dileep's membership of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA). Dileep is an accused in the 2017 kidnapping of an actress. On Monday, 107 people from various walks of life, including writers, took a stand against Mohanlal. Those who wrote the letter to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Culture Minister A.K. Balan included award winning actor Prakash Raj, eminent writers N.S. Madhavan, Sethu and Sachidanandan, actress Rima Kallingal and Geethu Mohandas. --IANS sg/in/mr/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.) Home-grown company Optiemus Infracom, which manufactures and distributes iconic BlackBerry devices, on Monday launched BlackBerry KEY2 smartphone with extra security to keep your data safe at Rs 42,990. Manufactured at Optiemus Infracom's Noida facility, the 6GB RAM and 64GB internal memory device will be available on Amazon.in from July 31. It comes bundled with Reliance Jio cashback offer of Rs 4,450 and ICICI bank cash back offer of 5 per cent, along with additional launch benefits, the company said in a statement. KEY2 houses latest Android 8.1 Oreo Operating System, a 12MP+12MP dual rear camera system with 2x optical zoom, an 8MP front camera and 3500mAh battery with "Quick Charge 3.0" technology. "BlackBerry KEY2 not only comes loaded with the best security and privacy enhancement features but also accurate and comfortable typing on an intelligent keyboard," said Hardip Singh, Executive Director, Optiemus Infracom Ltd. The BlackBerry KEY2 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 660. It has "Speed Key", a universal shortcut key that makes it possible to instantly access apps, contacts and functions. The keyboard includes in-keyboard fingerprint sensor with updated mechanics for an improved tactile response and convenient user experience. The device has 4.5-inch touch display featuring impact and scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass 3. "We have been perfecting our approach to mobile security for decades, and are excited that the BlackBerry KEY2 is being made locally in India by Optiemus, designed for security from the inside out," said Alex Thurber, SVP and GM of Mobility Solutions at BlackBerry. KEY2 comes with the legendary security features that BlackBerry is known for, including the pre-loaded "DTEK by BlackBerry" app. This enables users to automatically view how apps may be accessing personal data and manage permissions appropriately. Another pre-loaded app called "Locker" provides personal privacy control. This can only be accessed through fingerprint or password, helping store and protect sensitive user data, apps and content such as photos and downloaded files. Founded in 1993, Optiemus Infracom introduced the first mobile phone in the country way back in 1995. Optiemus has also formed a joint venture with Taiwan-based OEM Wistron Corporation for a mobile manufacturing unit. In February 2017, Optiemus signed a licensing deal with BlackBerry to design, manufacture and distribute BlackBerry branded devices In India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. --IANS na/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former US Secretary of Defence Ash Carter arrived in Taiwan on Monday to address a security forum, the island's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Ash Carter, who served as Defence secretary under Barack Obama from 2015-2017, is due to deliver a speech to the Asia-Pacific Security Dialogue on Tuesday, Efe quoted a MOFA statement as saying. Carter's visit coincides with increasing cross-strait tensions over the disputed Diaoyu islands to which both Beijing and Taipei (as well as Japan) stake a sovereignty claim. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs praised Carter's visit, saying it showed the US's strong support for the island nation. During Carter's tenure in the Pentagon, the US announced an arms deal with Taiwan worth $1.83 billion, which included the sale of two frigates, anti-tank missiles, amphibious assault vehicles and other military equipment. --IANS qd/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The last session of the G20's Third Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors has taken place here, with delegates acknowledging the rise in trade tensions while calling for greater dialogue. "We... recognize the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence," the G20 said in a final communique on Sunday, adding that the member states were "working to strengthen the contribution of trade to our economies". The finance ministers of the G20 also acknowledged that short-and medium-term economic risks had increased due to "rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies." With the rise in protectionist trade policies as the underlying topic of the summit, the finance ministers and central bank governors reiterated the agreements reached during the 2017 G20 summit in Hamburg regarding the commitment to free trade and the need "to strengthen the contribution of trade to our economies." On the issue of exchange rates, another topic that has created major tensions, the G20 nations expressed their intention of clearly communicating their structural and macroeconomic policies. The G20 leaders said that monetary policies should continue to ensure stability, which was one of the commitments reached during the last meeting of finance ministers. Regarding emerging economies, the ministers stated that these countries were now "better prepared to adjust to external shocks," yet they still faced challenges from "market volatility and reversals of capital flows". The G20 leaders noted the importance of infrastructure as one of the pillars of growth and development, and as a crucial element to attract investments. The finance ministers also spoke of the need to ensure that the benefits of technology are widely shared, adding that they would respond to the challenges created by technology affecting individuals, businesses and governments. --IANS pgh/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a new study, New Delhi-based think tank Centre for Science and (CSE) on Monday lifted the lid on the dark underbelly of a large-scale global trade of old and used vehicles from high income to low and middle income countries of Africa and South Asia The trade is causing massive environmental dumping and toxic pollution. The study "Clunkered: Combating Dumping of Used Vehicles -- A roadmap for Africa and South Asia" says every year out of the staggering global vehicle stock of two billion, more than 40 million vehicles approach end-of-life, becoming old and decrepit. But instead of being scrapped within domestic markets, a large number of these are sold in low and middle income countries that do not have the capacity to manage their polluting emissions. Africa imports old and new vehicles from nearly 17 countries, with Japan, Germany, the US and South Korea dominating the trade. While most cars come from these countries, two-wheelers are predominantly from India and China. Cars and commercial vehicles have a higher share of the used vehicle imports. "Cheaper price, weak environmental regulations in poorer economies, lure of a rich variety of vehicle models and stronger emissions regulations in high income exporting countries are inciting this unregulated global trade in clunkers (as these old vehicles are called)," CSE's Executive Director (Research and Advocacy) Anumita Roychowdhury said. "In high income exporting countries it is more lucrative and cost-effective to export used vehicles than scrap them. "If this continues unchecked, without the exporting countries sharing the responsibility of addressing this problem, the poorer countries will not be able to meet their clean air and climate mitigation goals," she said in a statement. Many African and South Asian cities are violating the World Health Organization (WHO) air quality guidelines with some of the worst air pollution episodes. The burden of diseases triggered by air pollution like lung diseases, cancers, respiratory diseases, heart ailments and strokes are increasing rapidly. "The global community which has, time and again, expressed its deep concern about the deteriorating air quality in the southern world, cannot look away from this problem of dumping anymore," Roychowdhury said. Addressing the issue of a future roadmap, the CSE said that vehicle-importing countries are enforcing age restrictions, charging higher taxes on imports of older vehicles and linking import incentives with emission levels and engine sizes. Egypt, Morocco, South Africa and Sudan in Africa and Bhutan and Nepal in South Asia have completely banned the import of used vehicles. The study says the vehicle market of South Asia is more geographically confined, which is helping the region to take quicker action. The vehicle trade in South Asia is largely dominated by India and Japan. Quicker upward harmonization of emission regulations is possible in this region with vehicle-producing countries advancing their standards. Also more strident steps are being taken by importing countries. Bhutan and Nepal have banned import of used vehicles and have imposed taxes according to the engine size; Nepal has adopted Euro-III emissions standards. Bangladesh has restricted age to five years and has adopted Euro-II emissions standards. Pakistan has gone for an age cap of three to five years. Sri Lanka has used stratified import taxes and an age cap of five years to successfully discourage old and polluting vehicles and diesel vehicles. It has also promoted hybrids, electric and gasoline vehicles, and banned two-stroke engines. Vehicle-producing India, which accumulated about 20 million vehicles by 2015 that require scrapping, does not allow import of used vehicles or any vehicle that does not meet its emissions standards, the CSE said. --IANS vg/mag/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Opposition on Monday forced Goa Assembly Speaker Pramod Sawant to adjourn the House for the third day over formalin-laced fish brought in from other states and being sold in Goa. Former Chief Minister and Congress MLA Luizinho Faleiro compared the Speaker's repeated quoting of the Assembly rules to disallow a motion of adjournment by the Opposition to the devil quoting scriptures. "This House is Supreme. Scriptures are to be followed, but the devil also gives the scriptures. So it is like quoting the scriptures to stop the voice of the people of Goa," Faleiro said as Opposition members stormed the well of the House, forcing the Speaker to adjourn the proceedings. Earlier, the Speaker repeatedly urged the Opposition MLAs to keep calm and not stall the Question Hour for the third day in a row over the controversy triggered by the alleged use of dangerous chemical formalin to preserve fish, traces of which were reported by the Food And Drugs Administration department earlier this month. "On this matter, there is already a calling attention motion by Aleixo Reginaldo and Nilesh Cabral. The same has been moved in the House. The CM has made a statement that he will reply...Today members will have ample time to discuss the same," Sawant said. Leader of Opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar accused the state government of trying to "play with the health and lives of 15 lakh people of Goa", a state known for fish consumption. --IANS maya/prs/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Goa's Mangueshi temple priest who was booked for molesting two women, has claimed that one of them fabricated the charges against him after he refused to allow the unmarried woman into the sanctum sanctorum. The court has granted him interim bail until the next hearing on Wednesday. The accused, Dhanajay Bhave, told the Ponda additional district and sessions court on Saturday, that he "tried to explain to the complainant that as per the norms and the rules of the devasthan, unmarried daughters/unmarried girls cannot enter the gabhara (sanctum sanctorum) of the temple". Bhave, who has worked at the temple as a priest for 28 years, even told her to sit outside till her parents returned. However, the complainant picked up a quarrel with Bhave and insisted on entering the gabhara, as according to her there is no basis for refusal, he told the court in his petition. Bhave has been booked under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 354 for outraging the modesty of a woman. The iconic Mangueshi temple priest is alleged to have molested the student of medicine enrolled in a US college, who has accused him of hugging and kissing her inside the temple premise in June. The First Information Report (FIR) was filed by the student last week, after the Shree Maguesh Devasthan Committee informed her in writing that there was no "dependable evidence" against Bhave, and asked her to approach "appropriate authority". The temple committee also received one more molestation complaint from another victim, also in June, but that victim is yet to file a police complaint. Bhave claims that he only followed rules set by the temple committee which disallows entry of unmarried women into the sanctum sanctorum. He submitted before the court that he was "only performing religious duties clubbed with traditional and cultural norms followed in the Hindu tradition", the petition stated. Bhave also said that his arrest "would bring in bad publicity for the devasthan". The Mangueshi temple -- home to Lord Manguesh -- who is considered to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva, is one of the most visited temples in the state. Several influential Gaud Saraswat Brahmin clans are followers of the deity. --IANS maya/in (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that the latest lynching incident in Rajasthan's Alwar represents Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "brutal New India", Union Minister Piyush Goyal hit him back, terming him a "merchant of hate". "Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict and prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a merchant of hate," he said in a tweet. Goyal's remarks came soon after Gandhi shared a news report claiming that the policemen, before taking the lynch victim to the hospital, stopped to take some refreshment. Attacking the government, Gandhi said: "Policemen in Alwar took three hours to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just six km away. Why? They took a tea-break en route. This is Modi's brutal 'New India'. The 'New India,' the Congress chief alleged, is where "humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die." Rakbar Khan alias Akbar, 28, was on Saturday thrashed by a mob on suspicion of being a cow smuggler. The Rajasthan Police has since formed a high-level team to probe the reasons for the delay in taking him to hospital. Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani also attacked the COngress leader saying that his family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, after the killing of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. --IANS aks/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least 25 people have been injured in a hand grenade attack at a political party's office in Pakistan's Chaghi district, media reported on Monday. Some unknown miscreants on Sunday night threw a hand grenade at people sitting in an election campaign office of the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) in Dalbandin town in southwest Balochistan province, Xinhua news agency reported. Police, security forces and rescue teams rushed to the site and shifted the injured to a hospital. Five of the wounded were in a critical condition. While no one has owned up the attack yet, security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a search operation. It is the second terrorist attack on Sunday at the people campaigning for the country's general elections to be held on July 25. Earlier in the day, a suicide bomb attack killed a candidate for a provincial assembly seat of northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. It was the ninth terrorist attack on election candidates in July. At least 170 people including three prominent politicians have been killed and over 200 others injured in terrorist attacks at public rallies across the country during the last three weeks. --IANS mag/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Haryana Police is planning to strengthen the Special Task Force (STF) by inducting 100 highly-qualified cyber experts to crackdown on high-profile active criminals on social media platforms, Director General of Police (DGP) B.S. Sandhu said on Monday. He said that in view of its performance and the need to tackle cyber crime, the STF would be strengthened. "The STF of Haryana Police formed in January this year with 40 men to deal with organized crimes has performed exceedingly well by arresting 13 most-wanted criminals and in seizing huge quantity of illicit arms as well as narcotics so far. Going a step further, Haryana Police is planning to strengthen STF by inducting 100 highly-qualified cyber experts to tackle cyber crime," Sandhu said. He said that the arrests by STF were made in crime related to narcotics, extortion, gang wars and of notorious criminals. "The Haryana Police is serious in providing safety and security to its people at all places and introduced STF to deal with the menace of organized crime especially in the NCR (national capital region) areas in the state," he added. Additional Director General of Police,Crime P.K. Agarwal said that STF had so far recovered 50 home-made pistols, a revolver, a rifle, four pistols and 76 rounds. "Apart from this, it had also seized 57 kg, 600 gm poppy straw, 22 kg, 900 gm cannabis, 1 kg, 402 gm opium, 4.138 kg Brown Sugar and 53.50 gram heroin," he said. Agarwal said that STF had identified 20 most wanted criminals who were spreading their criminal activities in Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, western UP, Chandigarh and Punjab. "Due to continuous fear and pressure of STF, most of these criminals are staying out of Haryana," he claimed. He said that STF had killed dreaded gangster Balraj Bhatti in a gunfight in Noida. "He was a member of Sunder Bhatti gang and carried a bounty of Rs 2.5 lakh on his head. In addition, STF had recently arrested most wanted criminal Sampat Nehra, a member of Lawrence Bishnoi gang, from Hyderabad. He was wanted by Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Chandigarh Police. "Police had fixed a bounty of Rs 2 lakh on his head. The STF had also apprehended 11 other most wanted criminals who carry a reward ranging between Rs 5000 and Rs 2 lakh," he pointed out. --IANS js/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Kerala High Court on Monday granted bail to Father Johnson V. Mathew, one of the four priests accused in a rape case of a woman parishioner. The court, however, asked the Malankara Orthodox Church priest to surrender his passport. Mathew was arrested on July 13, from near Thiruvalla by the Crime Branch police probing the case. He has been holed up at the Pathanamthitta district jail since. Last week a magisterial court in Thiruvalla had rejected his bail, following which he approached the high court. In this case the Crime Branch has charged four Kerala priests, including Father Job Mathew who was the first to be nabbed and Father Johnson V. Mathew. Father Sony (Abraham) Varghese and Father Jaice K. George had moved the Supreme Court and managed to get a stay order till their petition is finally disposed. While Mathew who got the bail on Monday, has been charged for outraging the modesty of a lady, the three others have been charged for rape. The victim who regularly visited the church had accused five priests of sexually abusing her for a decade. Her husband had complained that she came under the duress from at least five priests. It was one priest in the beginning who first exploited his wife and then started blackmailing her. When she sought help from another priest, he too, threatened her and shared her contact with a fellow priest and she was eventually victimised by five of them. The National Commission for Women is monitoring the case. One of the priests escaped action as the victim had mentioned only four names, according to the police. --IANS sg/in/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) To improve the livelihood of people on the border, India and Bangladesh will set up six more "border haats" (markets) in addition to the existing four, a top official said here on Monday after a series of official-level meetings. A 13-member Indian delegation led by Commerce Ministry's Joint Secretary Bhupinder Singh Bhalla and an eight-member team of Bangladesh headed by Commerce Ministry's Additional secretary Shafiqul Islam held a series of meetings here on Sunday and Monday. The India-Bangladesh Joint Committee on 'Border Haat' would finalise the places and related issues for six more such haats by March next year, Shafiqul Islam told the media after the joint meeting. Two border haats each in Tripura and Meghalaya are functional. "The officials of both India and Bangladesh on Sunday visited the Kamalasagar border haats in western Tripura and talked with all stakeholders. The joint committee identified some issues including construction of sheds for the buyer to be implemented," the Bangladeshi official said. "We want hassle-free movement of buyers and sellers within 'border Haats'. Guidelines on such haats are to be circulated among all stakeholders including border guarding forces for smooth operations of these markets," Shafiqul Islam said. To a question, he said that famous "Jamdani saree" and delicious hilsa fish cannot be sold in the haats as the two countries are yet to decide on the issue. The "Border Haat" can be operated twice a week instead of the existing once a week. From now onwards transaction data would be maintained by the two sides, an official said. The official said the Border Haat Management Committee headed by additional District Magistrate and Deputy Commissioner of the two countries would now meet regularly to sort out issues of these markets. India and Bangladesh opened their first border haat at Kalaichar on the India-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya's West Garo Hills district on July 23, 2011 reviving the traditional border trade after nearly 40 years. After that, three more haats have been set up in Balat along Meghalaya-Bangladesh border and Kamlasagar and Srinagar along Tripura-Bangladesh border. Four Indian northeastern states of Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Assam share the 1,880-km border with Bangladesh. --IANS sc/prs/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India has extended lines of credit (LoCs) worth $200 million to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the first Indian diplomatic mission will be opened in the East African nation. India and Rwanda signed an agreement of $100 million for development of industrial parks and expansion of Special Economic Zones, and a similar amount for an agriculture irrigation scheme in that African nation, following delegation-level talks between Modi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Monday in Kigali. Stating that India and Rwanda were looking forward to further elevate their ties, Modi, while addressing the media with Kagame, said: "Today, we signed agreements for $200 million for lines of credit and in the area of training." Modi reached Kigali on Monday evening in the first leg of his three-nation tour of Africa that will also take him to Uganda and South Africa. This is the first ever Prime Ministerial visit from India to Rwanda. Modi also announced that India will open a new High Commission in Rwanda in what can be seen as yet another manifestation of India's increasing engagements with Africa. "This will not only facilitate close communication among our governments, it will also help in consular, passport, visa and other facilities," he said. India's current High Commissioner to Rwanda has residence in Uganda. In his address, Modi appreciated the steps for peace that have been adopted in Rwanda following the mass genocide in that country in 1994. Around 500,000 to one million people were killed in the mass genocide against the Tutsi people by the majority Hutu government of that time. "For us, it is a matter pride that India is a trusted development partner of Rwanda," Modi said. "We have been helping Rwanda in capacity building, infrastructure development and ICT," he said. Following Monday's bilateral talks, the two sides signed eight agreements, including in the areas of defence, agriculture and dairy production, trade and leather and allied sectors. On his part, Kagame, in his address to the media, said that both sides discussed a range of bilateral, regional and global issues. He also thanked India for its development aid cooperation with Rwanda. This is Modi's second visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. Over the last few years, there has been significant engagement in various fields with African countries. There have been 23 outgoing visits to Africa by the President, Vice President and Prime Minister in the last four years. --IANS ab/pgh/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Global enterprise software company Infor on Monday announced the appointment of Jonathan Wood as General Manager, India, Middle East, and Africa (IMEA). Wood will lead the IMEA business unit from Infor's office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the New York-headquartered company said in a statement. With plans to double the region's business in two years, Wood, in his new role, will be responsible for reinvigorating the channel, expanding direct customer relationships and forming new strategic alliances for the company which provides industry-specific Cloud applications. "Infor has demonstrated an ability to deliver mission critical Cloud in every industry represented across the IMEA region. Demand for our solutions is growing exponentially as businesses recognise the value of deep industry-specific functionality," Wood said in a statement. Wood joined Infor in 2016 and since then he had been leading the company's consulting services team for Europe, until now. --IANS gb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tens of thousands of Israeli protesters have rallied here against a law denying surrogacy to gay couples and single fathers. Demonstrators held their gathering in the central Rabin Square, and at one point briefly blocked a major motorway. At least one person was arrested, BBC reported on Sunday. Israel's parliament on Wednesday allowed surrogacy for single women and women unable to bear children. Previously, only heterosexual married couples were granted the same rights. The legislation also envisaged state funding for surrogacy. "We came here today (Sunday) to say to the government 'No more'," demonstrator Oz Dani in Rabin Square said. "We want equality and we want equal rights for everyone." Similar rallies were also held in several other cities, including Jerusalem. Many protesters said gay couples wanting to have children were being forced to seek surrogate mothers abroad and pay large sums of money. A number of Israeli companies said they were ready to make financial contributions to help such couples. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had previously supported the extension of surrogacy rights to gay couples and single men. But later, he voted against this, saying that otherwise the entire bill would have been blocked in parliament. --IANS pgh/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sartaj Madni, uncle of former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, on Monday resigned as the Vice President of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Speaking to the media, Madni said he was stepping down from the post in the larger interests of the party. He said he has already submitted his resignation to PDP President Mehbooba Mufti. Madni is Mehbooba's maternal uncle. He was defeated in the 2014 elections from Devsar Assembly constituency in south Kashmir's Kulgam district. Madni and some other leaders have come under scathing attack by party dissidents who allege that the "coterie of close relations have brought the PDP to the present crisis and also cost it power in the state". --IANS sq/in/vm (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An armed militant was arrested by the security forces on Monday in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district during a cordon and search operation. Police identified the militant as Waqar Malik, who was carrying an AK-47 rifle and ammunition. The joint search operation was launched by the Rashtriya Rifles, Central Reserve Police Force and state police personnel in Humpora village. --IANS sq/in/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for Rwanda on the first leg of his five-day, three-nation tour of Africa that will also take him to Uganda and South Africa. "Embarking on a momentous journey to strengthen our historical bond with Africa," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweetetd. This will be the first ever prime ministerial visit from India to Rwanda. From Rwanda, Modi will reach Uganda on July 24 in what will be the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in 21 years. From Uganda, the Prime Minister will reach South Africa on July 25 where he will attend this year's Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) Summit. "India shares close, warm and friendly relations with Africa which are cemented by robust development partnership and a large presence of the Indian diaspora," the Prime Minister's Office said in a pre-departure statement. "A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the visit," it stated. This is Modi's second official visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. --IANS ab/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Username: Password: or Register Thread Rating: 4 Vote(s) - 1 Average 1 2 3 4 5 Page: 1 2 Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Loud Sneeze lop guest User ID: 397577 07-23-2018 06:16 AM Post: #1 Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Advertisement Sun, 07/22/2018 https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-07-2...-facing-us So f*cking sick of the MIC....jezuz fuk already.... >>FBI, CIA Sound Alarm Over China Cold War, Warn "Most Significant" Threat Facing US< LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 451910 07-23-2018 07:29 AM Post: #2 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. what does "muh" mean? Loud Sneeze lop guest User ID: 452017 07-23-2018 03:39 PM Post: #3 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. LoP Guest Wrote: (07-23-2018 07:29 AM) what does "muh" mean? It signifies how goddamn derpified the awesome people are with their retarded narratives. "Muh Russia!!" It signifies how goddamn derpified the awesome people are with their retarded narratives."Muh Russia!!" Sing-I'llSway Equal Opportunity Skeptic User ID: 418032 07-23-2018 04:00 PM Posts: 7,568 Post: #4 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. "Muh" was a meme that became passe at least 2 or 3 years ago. 14-year-olds give each other sh*t for using it on 4Chan. It's that transparent. And here's you. The vanguard of high culture. Thank God for memes. God gave Moses the rainbow sign, no more water, but fire next time Sing-I'llSway Equal Opportunity Skeptic User ID: 418032 07-23-2018 04:03 PM Posts: 7,568 Post: #5 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Loud Sneeze Wrote: (07-23-2018 03:39 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (07-23-2018 07:29 AM) what does "muh" mean? It signifies how goddamn derpified the awesome people are with their retarded narratives. "Muh Russia!!" Jesus Christ, and then you drop "derp" into a post. You are a piece of work. A cultural dinosaur. The desperate-to-be-funny-and-relevant-poster-that-time-forgot. ( totally harsh how you left the "c" out of "awesome person"; maybe the kids on 4Chan would think you're all right after all...) Jesusand then you drop "derp" into a post.You are a piece of work. A cultural dinosaur.how you left the "c" out of "awesome person"; maybe the kids on 4Chan would think you're all right after all...) God gave Moses the rainbow sign, no more water, but fire next time LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 450846 07-23-2018 04:04 PM Post: #6 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 437028 07-23-2018 04:39 PM Post: #7 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Muh dick Loud Sneeze lop guest User ID: 452017 07-23-2018 09:06 PM Post: #8 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Sing-IllSway Wrote: (07-23-2018 04:03 PM) Loud Sneeze Wrote: (07-23-2018 03:39 PM) It signifies how goddamn derpified the awesome people are with their retarded narratives. "Muh Russia!!" Jesus Christ, and then you drop "derp" into a post. You are a piece of work. A cultural dinosaur. The desperate-to-be-funny-and-relevant-poster-that-time-forgot. ( totally harsh how you left the "c" out of "awesome person"; maybe the kids on 4Chan would think you're all right after all...) Here's you: "Muh precious narratives are under assault! I am gonna try to sound like a hipster to try and deflect the attack upon us awesome people!" That's you. All derpified and sh*t. Here's you: "Muh precious narratives are under assault! I am gonna try to sound like a hipster to try and deflect the attack upon us awesome people!"That's you.All derpified and sh*t. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 451341 07-23-2018 09:11 PM Post: #9 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Loud Sneeze Wrote: (07-23-2018 03:39 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (07-23-2018 07:29 AM) what does "muh" mean? It signifies how goddamn derpified the awesome people are with their retarded narratives. "Muh Russia!!" To be fair, I can find you many sitting Republicans who are just as deluded and brainwashed against Russia as any on the other "side".. Why not drop the partisan retardation and address the real issue? It's an American issue.. it is full of paranoid, brainwashed whackjobs who love war.. on both sides of the political spectrum. To be fair, I can find you many sitting Republicans who are just as deluded and brainwashed against Russia as any on the other "side"..Why not drop the partisan retardation and address the real issue? It's an American issue.. it is full of paranoid, brainwashed whackjobs who love war.. on both sides of the political spectrum. GrimShaw Asinus Asinum Fricat User ID: 447734 07-23-2018 09:13 PM Posts: 32,482 Post: #10 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Don't worry, mommy will take you to Chucky Cheese today! LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 452099 07-23-2018 09:22 PM Post: #11 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Sing-IllSway Wrote: (07-23-2018 04:03 PM) Loud Sneeze Wrote: (07-23-2018 03:39 PM) It signifies how goddamn derpified the awesome people are with their retarded narratives. "Muh Russia!!" Jesus Christ, and then you drop "derp" into a post. You are a piece of work. A cultural dinosaur. The desperate-to-be-funny-and-relevant-poster-that-time-forgot. ( totally harsh how you left the "c" out of "awesome person"; maybe the kids on 4Chan would think you're all right after all...) Quit trying to change the subject, shill. Quit trying to change the subject, shill. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 452099 07-23-2018 09:23 PM Post: #12 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. GrimShaw Wrote: (07-23-2018 09:13 PM) Don't worry, mommy will take you to Chucky Cheese today! Quit trying to change the subject. Focus on the narrative at hand. Quit trying to change the subject.Focus on the narrative at hand. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 444782 07-23-2018 09:43 PM Post: #13 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. 2) OP, if you think that Russian investigation would magically go away, then you should change your mind ... and hope the next one actually works. 1) While the GOP is controlling ALL branches of federal gov't, your "derp state" is merely an excuse for their incompetence, impotence, false promises and outright lies.2) OP, if you think that Russian investigation would magically go away, then you should change your mind ... and hope the next one actually works. GenX Subscriber User ID: 194002 07-23-2018 09:43 PM Posts: 33,076 Post: #14 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. LoP Guest Wrote: (07-23-2018 09:43 PM) 1) While the GOP is controlling ALL branches of federal gov't, your "derp state" is merely an excuse for their incompetence, impotence, false promises and outright lies. 2) OP, if you think that Russian investigation would magically go away, then you should change your mind ... and hope the next one actually works. ************ If I don't look after the interests of the underprivileged, maybe somebody else will. Maybe somebody without any money or property, and that would be too bad!" -Citizen Kane Isabella Registered User User ID: 421592 07-23-2018 09:51 PM Posts: 26,697 Post: #15 RE: Deep State capitulates to Trump on Muh Russia...segues to Muh China now. Loud Sneeze Wrote: (07-23-2018 06:16 AM) >>FBI, CIA Sound Alarm Over China Cold War, Warn "Most Significant" Threat Facing US<< Sun, 07/22/2018 https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-07-2...-facing-us So f*cking sick of the MIC....jezuz fuk already.... Looks like they agree with Trump 12/19/17 at 9:19 AM "The president on Monday described China as a "rival power" and suggested the country seeks to "challenge American influence, values and wealth" with the goal of shaping a world that is "antithetical to U.S. values and interests."" Snip: But the presidents Monday speech on security did not indicate any warmer relations between the U.S. and China, with Trumps first such report as president highlighting China as a threat. snip: "China and Russia challenge American power, influence and interests, attempting to erode American security and prosperity. They are determined to make economies less free and less fair, to grow their militaries, and to control information and data to repress their societies and expand their influence," said Trump, whose comments have previously exacerbated relations between the nations." https://www.newsweek.com/china-accuses-t...icy-752351 Looks like they agree with Trump12/19/17 at 9:19 AM"The president on Monday described China as a "rival power" and suggested the country seeks to "challenge American influence, values and wealth" with the goal of shaping a world that is "antithetical to U.S. values and interests.""Snip:But the presidents Monday speech on security did not indicate any warmer relations between the U.S. and China, with Trumps first such report as president highlighting China as a threat.snip:"China and Russia challenge American power, influence and interests, attempting to erode American security and prosperity. They are determined to make economies less free and less fair, to grow their militaries, and to control information and data to repress their societies and expand their influence," said Trump, whose comments have previously exacerbated relations between the nations." Advertisement Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for Rwanda on the first leg of his five-day, three-nation tour of Africa that will also take him to Uganda and South Africa. This will be the first ever prime ministerial visit from India to Rwanda. From Rwanda, Modi will reach Uganda on July 24 in what will be the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in 21 years. From Uganda, the Prime Minister will reach South Africa on July 25 where he will attend this year's Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) Summit. This is Modi's second official visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. --IANS ab/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday paid tributes to freedom fighters Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Chandra Shekhar Azad on their birth anniversaries. "I bow to Lokmanya Tilak on his jayanti. He ignited the spark of patriotism among countless Indians. "He successfully mobilised people from all sections of society and deepened the connect between our citizens and India's glorious past. Lokmanya Tilak also emphasised on education," Modi tweeted. "On his birth anniversary, my tributes to the great Chandra Shekhar Azad. A brave son of Bharat Mata, he sacrificed himself so that his fellow citizens get freedom from colonialism. "Generations of Indians are inspired by his courage," Modi said in another tweet. Congress also tweeted tribute to Tilak. "We remember Bal Gangadhar Tilak. He was part of the Lal-Bal-Pal triumvirate who represented conservative thought in the Congress Party. "He is also famous for the slogan: Swarajya is my birthright and I shall have it!" Tilak was born in Ratnagiri in Maharashtra on July 23, 1856 while Azad was born on the same day in 1906 in Bhavra village, in the present-day Alirajpur district of Madhya Pradesh. --IANS aks/in (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Mumbai Congress on Monday plastered the city with over a 100 hoardings, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of dividing society and the nation with "hatred". The hoardings, depicting Congress President Rahul Gandhi's famous hug with Modi during the no-confidence motion against the government in Lok Sabha, have been erected at prominent locations across the city and suburbs, attracting curious looks from commuters and passersby. "The Congress will not allow BJP to propagate hatred and poison the minds of the peoplea They are indulging in this for the past four years using language, region, religion and caste as tools to spread violence," Mumbai Congress President Sanjay Nirupam told media persons. He said people hailing from different social backgrounds live together with harmony and sense of brotherhood before the BJP came to power. "But, they (BJP) have destroyed all this and the people are resentfula However, they won't be spared and we will defeat them with love," he remarked. Gandhi's concluding statement in his Lok Sabha speech last week "Nafrat Se Nahi, Pyaar Se Jeetenge (We will win by Love, not Hatred)" also figures in large letters on the hoardings. The city Congress chief said all party activists have been urged to spread the message of love as directed by Gandhi to help free the country from the grip of violence and hatred. The hoardings are visible at CSM Terminus, Churchgate, Dadar, Andheri, Dahisar, Borivali, Jogeshwari, Ghatkopar, Byclla, the highways and other important sites. --IANS qn/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bangladesh High Commissioner in India Syed Muazzem Ali on Monday expressed concern over the condition of the one million Rohingya refugees staying in Bangladesh and appealed to the Myanmar government to take these people back by giving them citizenship rights and security. "Nearly one million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar are now staying in Bangladesh. If you do not accept your own people and force them to come to our country... If there is a flare up due to this in our region, all of us will be affected. "So I request the government of Myanmar to take back their own people and give them their rightful citizenship and give them security. I hope they can live in peace and also let us live in peace," Ali said while speaking at a seminar on "Bangladesh's Graduation from LDC: Prospects of Bangladesh-India Economic Engagement" organised by the MCCI. Pointing out that his country has no bilateral dispute with Myanmar, the Bangladeshi envoy said the Rohingya crisis snowballed after Myanmar refused to accept the residents of their country's Rakhine State as their citizens. "We do not have any bilateral dispute with Myanmar. The problem is that Myanmar doesn't accept the residents of its Rakhine state as Myanmar nationals. But everybody knows who they are and what is their origin," he said. Ali said like many other south Asian countries, Bangladesh also faces a number of issues with its population and termed it as one of the most vulnerable countries with regard to natural disasters. "The magnitude of loss we suffer due to natural calamities like cyclone, is not seen anywhere in the world. So the south Asian countries like Bangladesh have demographic pressure," he said. The envoy said the current regime in Bangladesh, under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has shown zero tolerance towards terrorism and terrorist funding after coming to power in 2009, which has successfully reduced terrorist activities in and around the country. --IANS mgr/ssp/qd/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) North Korea's state media on Monday urged South Korea to expedite efforts to sign a peace treaty to formally end the Korean War as agreed during a bilateral summit in April between the two countries. South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had signed the Panmunjom declaration after the historic summit on April 27. In the declaration, the two countries, which have been technically at war for over six decades now, had agreed to denuclearize the peninsula and develop an agreement to replace the 1953 multilateral Korean Armistice Agreement, which includes the US, Efe news reported. "Given that the South Korean government also has an obligation to carry out what was agreed upon in the Panmunjom Declaration, it should not sit idle on the issue of declaring an end to the war," Uriminzokkiri, one of the main propaganda website of the North Korean regime, said in an editorial, just days before the 65th anniversary of the ceasefire on Friday. "It is a historic task that cannot be delayed anymore to build a solid peace regime by ending the current abnormal state of armistice on the Korean Peninsula," the editorial added. Meari, another propaganda website run by Pyongyang, urged Seoul to do "its part" to formally end the war. Pyongyang considers the peace treaty as integral to preventing an invasion by the US and ensure the regime's survival. North Korea has already criticized the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for not discussing the peace treaty during his visit to the country in early July. Experts have suggested that the signing of the document, which could also include Beijing -- as Chinese volunteer forces were part of the 1953 Armistice -- could be key to North Korea ending its nuclear weapons program. --IANS mag/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The 15th Finance Commission will be carrying out a robust study for restructuring of the national disaster funds utilization, its chairman N.K. Singh said on Monday. As Gujarat and many other states are prone to natural calamities, the commission is of the view that a total restructuring of the management plan is imperative, he told media here. "There is a need for structural reform in the national disaster management fund. As Gujarat is prone to natural calamities like floods, cyclones, draught, earthquakes, they need to see how to restructure the national disaster funds. The commission will be having a robust study on how to restructure the natural disasters management." Singh also told the media that the Gujarat government has made some suggestions to the Finance commission for the disaster funds utilization. --IANS desai/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the UN Middle East Envoy Nickolay Mladenov met here on Monday with Gaza on the top of their agenda. The meeting between Netanyahu and the envoy took place amidst escalating violence along the fence separating Israel and the besieged Palestinian enclave, Xinhua reported. Netanyahu's office said in a statement that the two discussed "regional issues and the situation in Gaza". Mladenov updated Netanyahu on his talks with the Islamic Hamas movement and Egypt to achieve calm along the fence and on humanitarian initiatives to ease the crisis in Gaza. During the weekend, Mladenov helped to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip. Gaza Strip has suffered a humanitarian crisis in the wake of a blockade imposed by Israel since 2007. The recent round of violence has cost the lives of at least 135 Palestinians and an Israeli soldier. --IANS qd/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court on Monday said that the right to hold peaceful demonstration is a fundamental right and there cannot be any "blanket ban" on holding protests at Delhi's historic Jantar Mantar located at the periphery of Parliament Street and the Boat Club on Rajpath. Terming the right to peaceful demonstration a fundamental right, a bench of Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Ashok Bhushan emphasised the need to balance between the right to protest and the security considerations including inconvenience to the residents in the area. "Undoubtedly, holding peaceful demonstrations by the citizenry in order to air its grievances and to ensure that these grievances are heard in the relevant quarters, is its fundamental right. This right is specifically enshrined under Article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution of India," said Justice Sikri speaking for the bench. The court however, said that this right was not "unlimited". "At the same time, a right under Article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution are not untrammelled and unlimited in their scope. Article 19(2) to (6) make a specific provision for imposing reasonable restrictions on the exercise of such rights," it said. It directed that the Delhi Police in consultation with other agencies concerned to frame guidelines to regulate protests at both spots. Directing the guidelines to be framed "very soon", the bench also noted that as it is there was need for police permission for holding protests or demonstrations. As far as permitting protests at Boat Club, the court said "There can be proper guidelines laying down the parameters under which permission can be granted in the Boat Club area." The permission to permit protest at Boat Club can be "a very restrictive and limited use, because of the sensitivities and also keeping in mind that Ramlila Maidan is available and Jantar Mantar Road in a regulated manner shall be available as well, in a couple of months." The court also noted the sensitivity of both Jantar Mantar and Boat Club because of its proximity to the Parliament House, North and South Blocks and other Central Government offices, which see frequent visits of heads of foreign States and other such factors. The court also noted the submission by the government that they receive an "alarmingly large number of requests for holding demonstrations at this place" and "intelligence reports reveal that some of such demonstrations, if allowed, may cause serious law and order situation". To this, the court said that the authorities are also "correct to the extent" that Supreme Court has not adopted "clear and present danger test", as is applied by the US courts, and instead it is the "apprehension of breach of peace test" which is to be used in order to decide as to whether a particular demonstration/dharna is to be allowed or not. The court ruling came while deciding on a challenge to the green tribunal's order prohibiting protests at Jantar Mantar and a plea by NGO Majdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and the Indian Ex-Servicemen's Movement and others challenging the perennial imposition of prohibitory orders (Section 144) in the central Delhi area wherein all important government offices including Parliament House is located. The National Green Tribunal order prohibiting protest and demonstrations at Jantar Mantar came on plea by the local residents complaining of perennial disturbance. --IANS pk/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.) Over two dozen protesters were injured on Monday when they clashed with the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. Police officials said dozens of protesters clashed with the security forces in Wani Mohalla in Khudwani area where a cordon and search operation was going on. "Security forces used tear smoke canisters and pellet guns to quell the protesters. "Over two dozen protesters were injured in these clashes. One of the injured, Raqeeb Ahmad, was hit by a tear smoke shell on his head. He was referred to Srinagar for specialized treatment," an official said. Security forces killed three militants, including two locals and a Pakistan national, in a gunfight in the same area on Sunday. --IANS sq/qd/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan on Monday strongly condemned the terrorist attack outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in the Afghan capital that claimed 14 lives and injured over 60 people. The suicide blast rocked the airport shortly after Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum returned to the country after more than a year in exile. Militant group Islamic State claimed the attack. The Pakistan Foreign Ministry expressed the "deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives". "We express our support and solidarity with the people and government of Afghanistan in this hour of grief," the ministry's spokesman said in a statement. He said Pakistan reiterates its condemnation of terrorism in all forms and manifestations and the resolve to eliminate this menace. --IANS anp/soni/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Username: Password: or Register Thread Rating: 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average 1 2 3 4 5 Immigration Expert: Canadas Justin Trudeau Has Lost Track Of Tens Of Thousands LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 391619 07-23-2018 07:56 PM Post: #1 Immigration Expert: Canadas Justin Trudeau Has Lost Track Of Tens Of Thousands Advertisement An immigration expert says Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is very good at virtue signaling but has failed to keep track of the tens of thousands of Syrian refugees that he has brought into the country. Murray notes that Trudeau has allowed at least 50,000 Syrian refugees into Canada but he seems not to have kept track of them, while now he wants to cover over the consequences of that decision. He warns that this kind of immigration policy can be extremely short-sighted: Just opening up your country to migration on this scale is something that affects your country for generations. It doesnt go away in the 24-hour news cycle. Murray spoke of the security dimension to this as Europe has had to grapple with terrorist threats as a result of migrants. But he said the more obvious problem is that it makes no financial sense to bring Syrian refugees to Canada. Referring to a study that examined the cost of bringing Syrian migrants to Sweden, Murray said it was 100 times more cost inefficient than having neighboring countries open their borders to refugees. http://dailycaller.com/2018/07/20/trudea...-refugees/ Immigration Expert: Canadas Justin Trudeau Has Lost Track Of Tens Of Thousands Of Syrian RefugeesAn immigration expert says Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is very good at virtue signaling but has failed to keep track of the tens of thousands of Syrian refugees that he has brought into the country.Murray notes that Trudeau has allowed at least 50,000 Syrian refugees into Canada but he seems not to have kept track of them, while now he wants to cover over the consequences of that decision.He warns that this kind of immigration policy can be extremely short-sighted: Just opening up your country to migration on this scale is something that affects your country for generations. It doesnt go away in the 24-hour news cycle.Murray spoke of the security dimension to this as Europe has had to grapple with terrorist threats as a result of migrants. But he said the more obvious problem is that it makes no financial sense to bring Syrian refugees to Canada. Referring to a study that examined the cost of bringing Syrian migrants to Sweden, Murray said it was 100 times more cost inefficient than having neighboring countries open their borders to refugees. Krampus Registered User User ID: 448607 07-23-2018 08:10 PM Posts: 10,188 Post: #2 RE: Immigration Expert: Canadas Justin Trudeau Has Lost Track Of Tens Of Thousands https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2017/...-town.html Well at least i found a few here in Nova Scotia and after having their chocolate factory destroyed by bombing they buil a new one in Canada and they are now hiring many Canadians It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled. Mark Twain LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 452038 07-23-2018 08:19 PM Post: #3 RE: Immigration Expert: Canadas Justin Trudeau Has Lost Track Of Tens Of Thousands Same thing in the US but they always holler for moar moar moar. A 15-year-old Palestinian boy was shot dead by the Israeli Army on Monday during clashes in the Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Arkan Thaer Mizher was shot through the chest and heart during the clashes, which followed a dawn raid by Israeli soldiers to make arrests in the camp, while two other youths received leg wounds, Efe news reported citing the Ministry. In a statement, the Israeli Army confirmed it had carried out an arrest operation in Dheisheh camp and claimed its soldiers fired live ammunition in response to residents of the camp throwing stones as well as "firebombs and grenades". According to Palestinian security sources, the Israeli raid targeted two young people from the camp who were arrested from their homes, as cited in the official Palestinian news agency WAFA. --IANS anp/soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bihar's Madhepura MP Rajesh Ranjan aka Pappu Yadav on Monday raised the issue of rape of minors in the government-run shelter home and demanded a CBI probe into it. "The issue of rape with the daughters of Bihar in the shelter home has brought a shame to the state," Yadav said in the Lok Sabha during the Zero Hour. "We demand a Central Bureau Investigation inquiry into the rapes of the girls at the shelter home," the RJD MP said. The remarks of the suspended Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader, who has since formed his own party Jan Adhikar Party (JAP), have in the wake of reports that over 40 inmates of the shelter home were raped. Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday in a series of tweets said, "In rarest of rare case of rape in Bihar, 40 minor girls between the age of seven to 17 years were repeatedly raped under one roof for months in a state sponsored shelter home. "Even a girl was murdered and buried in the same premises. The patron of NGO is close to the who's-who in the government and have even campaigned with Chief Minister (Nitish Kumar)." The RJD leader also alleged that since March, the Bihar government has been aware of the repeated rapes being committed against the 40 minor inmates of Muzaffarpur Balika Shelter home by politicians and officials for years. "Many had forced abortions! No action has been taken but cover up is on at war footing! Nation has abandoned its girls!" he said. "After the disclosure, few girls went missing, a girl was found murdered, buried! These exploited girls were used as commodity by people with power, position, clout and political connections! "Victims are poor orphans who have no one as their own! Not their Nation, government, or media!" he said. --IANS aks/in/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress on Monday accused the Narendra Modi government of "misusing" and "abusing" the central investigating agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for alleged political vendetta. Raising the issue in the Rajya Sabha during the Zero Hour, senior Congress leader Anand Sharma said that the "misuse" of central agencies by the government was creating an environment of "distrust, fear and terror in the country". "The investigating agencies have a role to perform under the laws of the land and the Constitution of the country. They are not instruments to be abused by the government of the day for targeted political vendetta or to persecute senior officials of the government," Sharma said. He said that parallel proceedings for one alleged offence were being conducted simultaneously by the CBI, ED and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). "Such a thing has never happened ... parallel FIRs. Under the Constitution of India, any citizen has the protection of equality before the law, there cannot be any discrimination. The agencies have to coordinate their functioning, but they cannot create a situation where you have separate FIRs, separate bail provisions, multiple cases for the same alleged offence...," Sharma said. He said that senior government officials were being harassed by the agencies well after their retirement, by being summoned for investigations. "This was discussed in the House that there has to be a distinction between bona fide actions and acts of corruption. We are equally concerned that the agencies now as per the reports are going to the extent of forcing people, extracting... The mandate is there but they cannot be abused. Why is the government silent? This is a serious situation," he added. Interrupting Sharma, Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu said that the MPs should not "demoralise the agencies". --IANS mak/anp/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday witnessed ruckus over an alleged sex racket being run at a shelter home for women in Uttar Pradesh's Deoria district district forcing the Chair to adjourn the House till 12 noon. As soon as papers and statements were laid on the table and Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu made some observations regarding conduct of members, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) member Sanjay Singh was on his feet. He wanted to raise the issue of Deoria incident but was not allowed. Singh was supported by Samajwadi Party members, all wearing the party's traditional red cap. Naidu warned Singh for his conduct. "This is not the way. I will name you," Naidu said. But Singh didn't relent and went on with his protest. The Chairman then adjourned the house till 12 noon. In a chilling similarity to the Muzaffarpur shelter home case in Bihar, 24 girls were rescued from the shelter in Deoria late Sunday after one of them told the police that they were being sexually abused. The opposition parties also protested near Mahatma Gandhi's statue over the issue in the parliament premises before the house assembled. --IANS bns/ksk/vm (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.) On the 112th birth anniversary of the iconic Indian freedom fighter Chandra Shekhar Azad on Monday, renowned film studio Bombay Talkies announced that "Rashtraputra", based on his life story will be released on September 14. "Rashtraputra" has been written, directed and acted by Aazaad. The teaser and motion poster of the film was also launched. Making the announcement Aazaad told IANS: "This is a very special film, close to my heart because, in the British-ruled country, Chandra Shekhar was one and only young freedom fighter of that time who named himself 'Azad' which means freedom." "He was free in his mind, his dream was to make his country free. It is unfortunate that not many people know his story in details. I think our upcoming generation should know the contribution of Chandra Shekhar Azad in the freedom movement of India," he added. The film is produced by the iconic Bombay Talkies which was established in 1934 by Himanshu Rai and Devika Rani and produced some of the commercially successful films back then such as "Jeevan Naiya", "Ziddi", "Kismet" among many others. It is notable that after an interval of six decades the legendary pillar of Indian cinema, making a comeback under the command of Girish Ghanshyam Dube with "Rashtraputra". "Rashtraputra" will be released in 26 languages. --IANS aru/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment) Bill could not be taken up for discussion in the Rajya Sabha on Monday as the opposition members protested and demanded it to be sent to a select committee. Soon after the Bill was introduced by Minister of State for Culture Mahesh Sharma, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad suggested that it should be referred to a select committee. "Since this Bill has not gone to the standing committee for scrutiny, it should be referred to a select committee. It is an important Bill because it has cultural, historical, educational and economic ramifications for the present and future generations," he said. The demand was supported by Samajwadi Party (SP), the Left parties, the DMK, the RJD and others. "There has been a convention to refer the bills to the standing committees but it is not being followed. The Congress' demand is valid and it should be sent to a select committee," SP member Ram Gopal Yadav said. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel urged the agitating members to allow the discussion for the passage of the Bill but he was not heard by the opposition. Citing urgent reasons for the passage of the Bill, Sharma also urged the members to pass it at the earliest but the opposition members did not relent and favoured the Bill to be referred to a select committee. The Chairman also took sense of the House and asked the Parliamentary Affairs Minister to discuss the issue with all the political parties and come back to the House. The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment) Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 18, 2017 by Mahesh Sharma and was passed by the Lower House in January. Since then it is pending in the Rajya Sabha. The Bill amends the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. The Act defines a 'prohibited area' as an area of 100 meters around a protected monument or area. The Central government can extend the prohibited area beyond 100 meters. The Act does not permit construction in such prohibited areas, except under certain conditions. It also does not allow construction in 'prohibited areas' even if it is for public purposes. The Bill amends this provision to permit construction of public works in 'prohibited areas' for public purposes. --IANS bns/mag/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Even as political parties in Pakistan busied themselves with the last day of campaigning on Monday, minority groups are all set to boycott the elections alleging non-inclusion in the electoral process, and religious hardliners dominating the election agenda. The much-persecuted Ahmadis, a Muslim sect founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in the 19th century, and the Christians earlier announced they would be boycotting the July 25 elections alleging that extremist groups have been fomenting hatred against them in Pakistan, Efe news reported. In Pakistan, minority religions make up just four per cent of the 205 million population. The Ahmadis have been protesting against being placed on a separate list of non-Muslim voters by the Election Commission, as per an amendment to the Constitution in 1974. To register as a voter, they are also required to sign a declaration saying the sect's founder, Ahmad, was not a Muslim seer but an imposter. "In every democratic, civilised country, the right to vote is based on citizenship, not religion," Salim Ud Din, spokesperson of the around 500,000 strong Ahmadi community told Efe. According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, the Ahmadi community is the most discriminated against in the country, with various restrictions on their freedom. They are forbidden to call their temples mosques, distribute religious literature or use traditional Muslim greetings. The Ahmadis consider themselves Muslims but their recognition of Ahmad as a religious guide clashes with the firmly-held belief in the Islamic country that Prophet Muhammad was the last messenger of God. There are less than four million Christians in Pakistan and they are not much better placed than the Ahmadis. The community's representatives announced the boycott of the elections alleging that Pakistan's electoral process, that restricts minorities and women to a small number of reserved seats, was discriminatory. The Christian Democratic Party (CDP) demanded to be able to vote directly in their own electorate of 37 seats in order to secure better representation in Parliament. Currently, 10 of the 342 seats in Parliament are reserved for religious minorities, which are distributed proportionally, depending on the votes secured by different parties after the counting of votes. "We want to vote in a different electorate for non-Muslims so we have a role in the legislation," CDP president Ben Hur Gill said. --IANS soni/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Four armed robbers on Monday looted jewellery and cash totalling Rs 50,000 from women passengers, including an Additional District and Sessions Judge, travelling on the Indore-Jabalpur train, the GRP said. Government Railway Police official Y. Mishra told the media here that the criminals armed with knives targeted the AC bogey of the train as it left the Narsingpur station in the morning. He identified the victims as Arti Shukla, Anita Sharma, Poonam Valecha and Renu Sen. Mishra said that an FIR has been registered in the case. --IANS hindi/tsb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Karnataka Heavy Industries Minister K.J. George on Monday said the state government would assist Sutlej Textiles Ltd in setting up its unit in Chamarajanagar district at a cost of Rs 786 crore. The textile making unit is being set up at Badanaguppe and Kallambahalli villages of Chamarajanagar district, about 180 km southwest of Bengaluru. "The new unit is one among the many new units coming up in the district as a result of the state government's development policies," George told reporters here. The minister, who is also in-charge of the Sugar, Information Technology and Biotechnology (IT & BT) and Science and Technology portfolios, visited the industrial estate being set up by the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board. The estate will be spread over 1,460 acres of land. The minister said the single window clearance committee headed by Deputy Commissioner of the district B.B. Cauvery has also approved 94 projects with Rs 162 crore combined investment in the southwest district to enable its development and create jobs for the youth. The minister said Sutlej would make sportswear in the 46 acres of land allotted to it. The company will offer jobs to about 1,800 skilled youth, George said, promising the state's help for its early commissioning. "The state government is keen to encourage the industrial development of Chamarajanagar district as several of its regions are considered backward and do not have major industrial enterprises except granite and sugar factories," he said. The state's Industrial Policy 2014-19 allows a subsidy of 20-25 per cent toAindustries being set up in the regions classified as "backward". Entrepreneurs belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, backward classes get an additional five per cent subsidy to set up their businesses in the regions. Women entrepreneurs, businesspersons with disabilities and those who have served in the armed forces also get an additional five per cent subsidy for setting up their businesses in the backward regions. --IANS bha-fb/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A prominent South Korean lawmaker committed suicide on Monday amid a probe into allegations that he received an illegal political fund. According to Yonhap news agency, Representative Roh Hoe-chan, a leader of the left-leaning Justice Party, was found dead near the entrance of an apartment building in central Seoul early morning. The three-term lawmaker jumped to his death, the agency reported. Roh was under investigation over allegations he received over $44,000 from a blogger at the centre of an online opinion-rigging scandal. Yonhap said Roh, 61, left a suicide note in his apartment admitting to accepting money, but denying any wrongdoing. He also apologized to his family in the note. South Korea has one of the world's highest suicide rates. Victims include disgraced politicians and business executives. One of the most prominent figures in recent years to commit suicide was former President Roh Moo-hyun, who jumped to his death in 2009 over a corruption scandal. --IANS anp/soni/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court appointed third judge, Justice M. Sathyanarayanan, of the Madras High Court on Monday began hearing the case relating to disqualification of 18 AIADMK legislators. The disqualified legislators are with sidelined party leader T.T.V. Dinakaran, now an independent legislator in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. The apex court had appointed Sathyanarayanan replacing Justice Vimala who was originally appointed by the High Court as the third judge following a split verdict in the case. While Chief Justice Indira Banerjee upheld Speaker P. Dhanapal's order disqualifying the 18 MLAs, Justice M. Sundar set aside the order. On Monday, counsels representing both the sides presented their arguments. The hearing would continue for the next five days. --IANS vj/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A day after they killed three militants, security forces on Monday resumed a cordon and search operation in Khudwani area in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. Police said following specific information about the presence of militants, troops of Rashtriya Rifles, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and police started the operation in Wani Mohalla. "Searches are in progress," a police officer said. Three militants, including a Pakistani national, were killed by security forces in the area on Sunday. --IANS sq/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Seven people were killed and seven others injured following a suicide attack in a mosque in Nigeria's Borno state on Monday, officials said. The injured have been evacuated to a hospital in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno, Xinhua quoted Bello Dambatta, head of rescue operations at the State Emergency Management Agency, as saying. The remains of the male suicide attacker, who caused the havoc, were among those evacuated from the scene. The attacker entered the mosque during the morning prayer, pretending to be a worshipper, before detonating the improvised explosive device strapped to his back, said Dambatta. "It is not clear how the suicide bomber infiltrated the town and attacked the mosque," said Ali Kolo, head of a local vigilante group in Konduga. He said the building collapsed during the explosion and the victims were evacuated from the rubble. Yunusa Bello, a resident who witnessed the blast, said all the victims were worshippers at the mosque. Bello said he saw bodies of seven of the victims who died inside the mosque while two bodies were found at the entrance of the building. "One died on the way to the hospital and one other died at the hospital," he said after assisting victims to the hospital in his van. No group has claimed responsibility for the blast but locals suspect the Nigeria-based armed group Boko Haram was to blame. Despite the efforts by the government and the armed forces to destabilize the group, Boko Haram has been attacking soft targets recently, mostly in the northeast region of the country. --IANS qd/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A number of road projects related to the $52 billion China- Economic Corridor (CPEC) are said to be in the doldrums as Pakistan's National Highway Authority (NHA) faces a financial crisis, the media reported on Monday. Dawn online cited sources as saying that contractors stopped work on several projects after their cheques worth over Rs 5 billion bounced a couple of days ago. The affected projects include Hakla-Dera Ismail Khan, Western Route of and all sections of the Karachi-Lahore Motorway. According to the report, not only the projects but local industries related to construction and a large workforce of engineers and labourers were also hit by the situation. When contacted, NHA spokesman Kashif Zaman said the authority issued cheques of Rs 5 billion on June 29 to the firms against the sanction by the government. He said cheques worth Rs 1.5 billion were cleared on the same day and "the remaining cheques that were deposited the next day could not be cleared". Zaman said the matter had been taken up with the government and would be resolved soon. Asked about suspension of work by the contractors, he said that the progress on the projects "had not been affected" and most of the projects in question would be completed by December. The CPEC will connect China's Xinjiang region with Pakistan's Gwadar port giving it access to the Arabian Sea. While opposes CPEC's route as it cuts through the disputed part of Kashmir held by Islamabad, experts feel is already facing a massive debt burden because of the project. Six youths were killed when the car they were travelling in fell into a dam in Sehore district of Madhya Pradesh, police said on Monday. The incident took place on Sunday when the driver of the speeding car lost control over it. The youths were on their way to Kolar from Bhopal for a picnic. The car could be taken out only on Monday after the water level in the dam subsided, Sehore Superintendent of Police Rajesh Chandel said. --IANS hindi-anp/nir/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) candidate Ikramullah Gandapur was laid to rest in his hometown Kulachi in Dera Ismail Khan on Monday, a day after he was killed in a suicide attack. Around 2,000 people, including local authorities and members of his party, attended Gandapur's funeral. He was former Agriculture Minister in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and was said to be leaving his home for an election meeting when his vehicle was targetted in the suicide attack in Kulachi Tehsil. "He (Gandapur) was laid to rest near his residence on the outskirts of Dera Ismail Khan," Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police spokesperson Gulraiz Khan said. A security guard, who was wounded in the strike, also died on Monday in a hospital. The attack was claimed by the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Geo News reported. Gandapur's killing is the latest in a series of attacks targeting politicians in the days leading up to the July 25 general elections. Siraj Raisani of the Balochistan Awami Party and Haroon Bilour of Awami National Party were among hundreds killed in such strikes earlier this month. The politician's brother Israrullah was killed on October 16, 2013 in a suicide bombing while greeting visitors on Eid-ul-Azha in Kulachi. Gandapur was elected on his brother's seat after a by-election following his death. A case against "unknown persons" has been registered by the police. --IANS soni/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The alleged rape-murders of inmates of a girls' home in Muzaffarpur has triggered a major storm in Bihar with former Chief Minister and RJD leader Rabri Devi on Monday demanding a CBI probe and alleging that the accused had links with the ruling JD-S and government officials. Muzaffarpur district magistrate Mohd Sohail on Monday said the authorities have started digging work at Balika Grih, a short-stay home for girls. Muzaffarpur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Harpreet Kaur said an inmate recorded her statement before a judicial magistrate recently as required under the law. The SSP said two girls who had alleged that a girl was buried after she was raped and killed were present at the digging site. "It was they (the two girls) who had identified the place at Balika Grih, where a girl is allegedly buried," Kaur said. She said the shelter home had been sealed for over a month after allegations of sexual abuse of the girls came to light during a social audit conducted by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. The report of the audit was submitted to the social welfare department, which directed the local officials to lodge a complaint. According to another official, efforts are on to exhume the bodies of girls who were allegedly killed after being raped and buried there. "The work is being carried out under the supervision of an executive magistrate. The local court had on Saturday allowed the district to carry out the digging," said an official. Last week, a medical examination of 44 girls belonging to the home revealed that 21 were raped at Balika Grih. The district police have arrested an official of the home. Meanwhile, former Chief Minister and RJD leader Rabri Devi said on Monday that the state government should order a CBI probe into the case. She alleged the state government led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was reluctant to act against the accused. "The government has been moving slow to save some people,who have close connection with the ruling party and the government," she said. Rabri Devi is a member of the Bihar Legislative Council. Earlier, RJD MLAs led by leader of Opposition Tejaswi Yadav staged a sit-in outside the state Assembly demanding a discussion on the Muzaffarpur incident. --IANS ik/prs/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Swaraj India on Monday welcomed the Supreme Court decision removing the blanket ban on peaceful protests in central Delhi including Jantar Mantar. The party's Delhi state President Anupam said that the blanket ban imposed since last 10 months had made it difficult for common citizens, groups and organizations to make themselves heard to the government. "It is a must for any democracy to have spaces in the capital city for collective expression of citizen's demands, suggestions and grievances. Jantar Mantar has over the decades acted as a safety valve of our democracy where suffering citizens and organizations from all over the country have come and expressed themselves. Denial of this right was a blatantly undemocratic act," he said. "During the course of hearing in the court, our senior leader Prashant Bhushan, arguing the case, had pointed out that this blanket ban was undemocratic and violative of fundamental rights of citizens. The matter was being heard on a petition filed by Jansangathan, Majdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan. Court has asked the Delhi Police Commissioner to frame rules regarding to this effect within two months," he said. --IANS sp/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Without continuing US military support, Taiwan would be vulnerable to an armed takeover from Beijing, the island's Foreign Minister has said. Joseph Wu told CNN the Taiwan government felt relations with the US had grown stronger in recent years, but it was vital for Washington to continue to support Taipei militarily and diplomatically. "(If) the Chinese see the vulnerability of Taiwan, not getting US support, then they would be thinking about starting scenarios where they would be able to take Taiwan over," he said in an interview which was published on Monday. Despite Taiwan being self-governed for almost 70 years, Beijing continues to view the island as an integral part of its territory. Beijing has been ramping up pressure on the Taiwan government since President Tsai Ing-wen's Democratic Progressive Party, which traditionally favoured independence, took power in 2016. The Chinese Navy has been conducting the latest in a series of live-fire military drills in the Taiwan Strait from Wednesday until Monday, which an expert quoted in state media tabloid Global Times said was "tailored for Taiwan separatists". Wu said the live-fire drills were part of a campaign to "intimidate the Taiwanese people". Beijing has long dreamed of reuniting Taiwan with the Chinese mainland. But Wu said China's actions against Taiwan were undermining any support for reunification efforts and turning public opinion against Beijing. Early in the Trump administration there were questions over whether Taiwan would be used as a pawn between Washington and Beijing, given the latter's keen interest in returning the island to the fold, CNN said on Monday. --IANS soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President Donald Trump has warned his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani that if Tehran threatened the US again, it will suffer "consequences the likes of which few have ever suffered before". The tweet in all-caps was posted on Sunday night and followed an apparent warning by Rouhani, in which he cautioned that Americans "must understand that war with Iran is the mother of all wars and peace with Iran is the mother of all peace", according to Iranian state media reports. Rouhani also shared a message for Trump, saying "do not play with the lion's tail, because you will regret it eternally". In response, the US leader said: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE US AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE AND DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" Trump's tweet came shortly after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivered his own blistering speech on Iran's leaders, accusing the clerics that rule the country of using the country's revenue to line their own pockets and fund terrorism at the expense of average Iranians, according to CNN. "To the regime, prosperity, security and freedom for the Iranian people are acceptable casualties in the march to fulfil the Revolution," Pompeo said on Sunday night at the Ronald Reagan National Library in California. "The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government." In May, Trump pulled the US out of the 2015 multilateral nuclear agreement with Iran and re-imposed sanctions on Tehran, which will come into force in August. Trump criticized the earlier pact and demanded a more aggressive one which restricts the Iranian ballistic missile programme. The 2015 nuclear agreement, signed by Iran and the P5+1 Group comprising the US, Russia, China, the UK, France and Germany, limited Tehran's nuclear energy programme in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions. But now its future is unsure after Washington's measures. --IANS soni/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With Congress leader Rahul Gandhi hugging Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the trust vote debate in Parliament on Friday, Twitterati created history with over 1.1 million related tweets over the weekend. The social media giant revealed that amid all the speeches, the conversations on Twitter peaked on the platform between 10.30 a.m. - 11.30 p.m. IST on July 20. Key hashtags that emerged on Twitter around the subject included #MonsoonSession, #NoConfidenceVote, #NoConfidenceMotion, #BhookampAaneWalaHai, #KyaHuaTeraVaada, #NoConfidencePolitics, #hugplomacy and #IndiaTrustsModi. "Twitter is the best place to know what is happening in your community, city or country. The ongoing #MonsoonSession of Parliament has again demonstrated that Twitter is the go-place for citizens to participate in real-time on the issues as they develop," Mahima Kaul, Head-Public, Policy and Government, Twitter India, said in a statement on Monday. "The conversation around #NoConfidenceMotion also surfaced tweets from around the country, and in multiple languages," she added. The Prime Minister tweeted: "Congress leaders feel I cant see them in the eye. They are correct. I am too small compared to them. How did one family treat Netaji Bose, Sardar Patel, Loknayak JP, Morarjibhai Desai, Charan Singh Ji, Chandra Shekhar Ji, Pranab Da, Deve Gowda Ji and Sharad Pawar Ji? Everyone knows." However, Rahul Gandhi said: "PM uses Hate, Fear and Anger in the hearts of some of our people to build his narrative. We are going to prove that Love and Compassion in the hearts of all Indians, is the only way to build a nation." --IANS rt/qd/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bengali cinema's legend Uttam Kumar's life was yet to be explored and there are many 'inspiring stories' apart from 'scandals' in the life of the glorious actor, a film director who saw the actor very closely said here on Monday. "Uttam Kumar was not the person who only roamed around with women. His life was not just about scandals. There are so many inspiring stories about his life, his struggle and how he carried the Bengali film industry on his shoulders is commendable," Probir Roy told IANS on the sidelines of the trailer launch of his upcoming Bengali docu-feature on the late matinee idol 'Jete Nahi Debo'(Will not let you go), on the eve of his 38th death anniversary. The film will release in September. Uttam Kumar was born on September 3, 1926, as Arunkumar Chattopadhyay. "There is no concrete work on the legend's life, there is no archive. I got to see Uttam Kumar closely for eight years from 1972-1980. I visited his residence often. When Supriya Devi was alive, after a word with her, I tried to document whatever I have seen with my own eyes," said Roy. According to Roy, he has tried to bring out various facts based on Kumar's life. "Everyone may not be satisfied with my work and it is not even possible as different people have a different perspective of him." Sharing his experience, Sujan Mukherjee, the actor who plays the legend, said: "It is a great honour as he was a great actor and my hero since childhood. I liked the script as it is very real. There are no gossips and masala." "While working I learnt how Uttam Kumar controlled his habit of smoking. He used to have a cigarette packet in front, took one and had a small fag without lighting it. I used it in the film," said Mukherjee. Uttam Kumar loved music, he played the harmonium, he composed songs and he had his own production. "His life was a magnum opus. He did so much for the welfare of Bengali film industry. He made a trust for the technicians," added Mukherjee. Mallika Sinha Roy who plays Supriya Devi, Uttam Kumar's live-in partner and a leading actress, said: "This is a milestone in my career. I never tried copying the legendary actress Supriya Devi as it won't have been possible. I have tried to portray the chemistry between her and Uttam Kumar." The glamorous on and off-screen persona of Supriya Devi made her one of the most accomplished actresses of Bengali films. She has been acclaimed for her performances in in a large number of films including the Ritwik Ghatak classic "Meghe Dhaka Tara" (1960). With a legion of fan following in Bengal and Bangladesh, Uttam Kumar churned out more than 200 films in a career spanning the golden age of Bengali cinema form the 1950s to the 1970s. The national award winner worked with filmmakers like Satyajit Ray and Tapan Sinha. His most notable Hindi film was "Amanush". He died July 24, 1980, after a heart attack while filming "Ogo Bodhu Sundori". --IANS bnd/ssp/vd (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday said the state had achieved economic turnaround since he assumed office in March 2017, overcoming the "mess" created by the previous governments. Addressing a public meeting at Hathras after laying the foundation stones for 34 projects, Adityanath said development had been completely stalled during the rules of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP). "After we assumed power 16 months back, law and order has been brought on track, development projects have been initiated and the faith of investors and the industry has been restored," said Adityanath. He said his government was relentlessly working for improvement and strengthening of infrastructure projects in the state. "The rule of law stands restored as 'goonda raj' has completely ended," he said. "BSP and SP leaders were working for their own welfare whereas our government is for the welfare of the people and development of the state," he said, adding the state government has a policy of zero tolerance for corruption. In the next three years, he said, more than two crore jobs will be created in the state, and that the 'one district, one product' (ODOP) scheme rolled out by the government would generate more jobs, providing individual identities to all the 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh. --IANS md/prs/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It is difficult to predict the next move of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati. Devashish Jarariya, an upcoming Dalit leader of the party, discovered that much to his discomfiture. In a statement on Monday, BSP said it had never opened or allowed others to open or operate either Twitter or Facebook accounts under the partys name. It said all social media accounts that claimed to be official Twitter and Facebook accounts of the party were unauthorised. The BSP also said that its sole spokesperson to appear on television channels was senior party leader ... president on Sunday held a closed-door assessment meeting of senior party leaders here with the focus on the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and strengthening the cadre in After attending the meetings, Shah met melody queen Lata Mangeshkar at her home in south Mumbai as part of the party's "contact for support" campaign. Earlier in the day, the chief, who was supposed to reach Mumbai before noon, landed at the city airport at 1 PM due to some developments in New Delhi. He spent the entire day in 'Vasant Smruti' building, the headquarter, in south-central Mumbai, a BJP official said. At the meeting, Shah laid down a 23-point working strategy and discussed issues such as increasing the party strength, addressing new voters' groups based on their profession, gender, likings etc and a regular follow up of the voters by the local party workers. "The president plainly stated that the strategy has to be implemented in all the Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in the state. At present, the BJP shares its political space with the and a couple of smaller allies. It is a message that says 'prepare for contesting elections alone'. We will have to rush as the general election are now less than a year away," said a senior BJP minister who attended the meeting. Shah also reviewed the BJP's performance of 2014 polls, as is the second largest state in the country going by the number of Lok Sabha seats after Uttar Pradesh. Of 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra, BJP had won 23, the (18), the four, the Congress two, and the Swabhimani Paksh, a former ally of the BJP, one. Apart from meeting the 'Vistaraks' of the party whose mandate is to increase the network of the BJP in different geographies, Shah also interacted with the members of the 'Lok Sabha Toli', a group that consists of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, state unit chief Raosaheb Danve, Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, ministers Sudhir Mungantiwar, Chandrakant Patil and Pankaja Munde, Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar, among others. "The mandate of the group is to identify weaknesses of the party in certain areas, (ways) to overcome them and the current key issues related to the people of The candidates who had contested and won the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and the current image of the candidates in the same constituency was also discussed at the general-level in this meeting," the BJP official said. He said the BJP is also mulling over holding some events with a view to demonstrate its strength and communicate with the people. "...It could be in the form of discussions, holding bike rallies as well as some innovative ways of reaching out to certain groups of people," the official said, without elaborating. After the meetings concluded at 8.30 PM, Shah left for the party's "Sampark Abhiyan" under which he met Mangeshkar (88). The BJP chief was scheduled to meet Mangeshkar on June 6, but the visit was cancelled as she was down with food poisoning. He was accompanied by Fadnavis, Danve and Shelar to Mangeshkar's house. On June 6, Mangeshkar had tweeted in Hindi that she had spoken to Shah over phone and expressed her inability to meet him since she had suffered from food poisoning. She also requested that they can meet during his next visit to Mumbai. In today's meeting, Shah presented the Bharat Ratna awardee with a booklet on the achievements of the Narendra Modi government in the last four years. On June 6, Shah had called on actress Madhuri Dixit and industrialist Ratan Tata as part of his party's "Sampark for Samarthan" (contact for support) campaign. In a clear warning to some of its "loose cannons", President on Sunday stressed that it expected its leaders and workers to "toe the party line" on larger political issues and maintain discipline in their public interactions. Sources said former President Sonia Gandhi also expressed concern over discipline in the party, terming it "the need of the hour". In the meeting of the newly formed Working Committee (CWC) meet, party President and AICC General Secretary Ashok Gehlot both emphasised in their respective addresses that party leaders and workers should observe discipline. Recently, a controversy raged over Congress leader Shashi Tharoor's remark that a Hindu Pakistan would be created if the BJP returned to power. The Congress had advised him and its leaders to "exercise restraint, caution and choose their words and statements wisely". "The Congress President clearly said, he gave a friendly advice, and he hopes that all leaders of Congress party in view of the larger goal, that is, 2019 elections, will maintain discipline in both their language and conduct," Congress spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said while briefing the media after the meet. "There is full freedom of expression but as far party line (on various issues) is concerned, the Congress leadership will expect from its leaders and workers that they maintain the dignity of the language as well as that of conduct," he added. Surjewala said that Gehlot, in his address, underlined that first this discipline would be expected from the leaders and then from the workers. Sources said Gandhi also asked the party leaders if they had any issues, grievances or wanted to express anything with regard to the party, they should talk to him personally instead of airing their views in the media. He also said if any leader gives a wrong remark, he will not hesitate to take action against the person, said a source. In the past, certain comments by some Congress party leaders have cost the party dearly with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) quickly encashing on the same, such as the BJP starting its "chai pe charcha" (discussion over tea) campaign in 2014 after Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a "chaiwallah" (tea vendor). According to a source, CLP leader from Uttar Pradesh Ajay Kumar Lallu made a very important observation in the CWC meeting, saying that after Congress forms a government in any state, the party loses connect with its workers. This was agreed by all the members present in the CWC meeting and stressed that such an attitude needs to be changed. Senior party leader Kamal Nath raised the issue of booth management during elections and said Congress was not on par with BJP in this regard. Many other leaders raised concerns over strengthening booth management of the party during elections. Two men were arrested for allegedly posing as retired army officers and cheating around 200 people in the national capital, police said today. The accused identified as Balkishan Kushwaha, (58) and his son Rajendra Singh (32), are residents of Noida, they added. With their arrest, the police claimed to have solved four cases of cheating. The accused along with one Ompal formed a fake firm-'Ex-serviceman success vision' in 2012 and 2013 and used to introduce themselves as retired army officers. They allegedly cheated around 150-200 people in Naraina village by convincing them to invest in their firm and lured them with bonus and high returns, Deputy Commissioner of Police (west) Vijay Kumar said. On the complaints filed by the victims, a team was constituted to trace and nab the accused. The three accused were absconding since 2013. Through sheer intelligence, electronic surveillance and local enquiry, the current address of the accused persons were traced to Sector-61, Noida. Subsequently, the police team conducted raid and the two accused were arrested from their current address, the officer said. During interrogation, both the accused disclosed their involvement in the case, he said. Meanwhile, the police are trying to trace the third accused Ompal Singh. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Police say two homeless men have been set on fire at a Berlin railway station, leaving them with serious burns. Police said today that an unknown assailant poured a liquid over the men, ages 47 and 62, before setting them and their possessions alight, in the overnight incident at the Schoeneweide station in suburban Berlin. The Bild and B.Z. newspapers reported that passers-by put out the blaze using a fire extinguisher from a nearby fast food stall. agency dpa said police couldn't immediately confirm that. The men were taken to a hospital. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two people were killed and five others injured when two cars collided head-on in Rajasthan's Sikar district, police said today. The accident occurred last night near Bhadala ki Dhani on NH-52 when two cars collided head-on, killing Satish Rao and Vivek Bijaraniya of Palsana town on the spot, they said. Two critically injured people were referred to a hospital in Jaipur whereas three others were admitted to a hospital in Sikar. The bodies were handed over to family members after postmortem, the police added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two policemen posted in the Dwarka district were suspended for alleged inaction against illicit liquor and drug sellers operating in their area, an official said today. The action was taken after the legislator of the area and RWA members complained of illegal liquor and drug sellers operating in Bindapur's JJ colony and Sector-1 Dwarka, the police said. Subsequently, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Anto Alphonse ordered a secret vigilance inquiry in these areas. It was found that these allegations were true, the police said. Following this, a constable of Dwarka (south) and a head constable of Dabri, who had been posted in their beats for a long time, were suspended. Along with them, six to eight policemen in total from both the police stations were also sent to district line, he said Meanwhile, a show-cause notice has been demanded from their supervising inspector. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least20 members of the Maratha Kranti Morcha were detained today while they were planning to stage a protest at the venue of an event to be attended by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis here, an official said. Fadnavis is scheduled to attend a couple of events, including the 'ground-breaking' ceremony of Krantiveer Chaphekar National Museum, in Chinchwad area of Pune today. "As a precautionary measure, we detained around 20 members of the Maratha Kranti Morcha when they were on the way to the venue," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone III) Ganesh Shinde said. Security has been stepped up to avoid any law and order problem, Shinde said. Notably, Fadnavis today skipped the annual puja at the Lord Vitthal Temple in Pandharpur town due to protest threats by the Maratha community members over their various demands, including reservation in government jobs and education. As part of a long-standing tradition, the sitting chief minister every year offers prayers at the temple dedicated to Lord Vitthal and Rukmini at Pandharpur in Solapur district, on the occasion of 'Ashadhi Ekadashi'. Some Maratha community leaders had threatened to disrupt Fadnavis' visit to Pandharpur if their demands, are not accepted. The community leaders had earlier taken out several rallies in various districts to highlight their demands. Last year, a huge rally was organised by the Maratha Kranti Morcha in this connection in Mumbai. Despite assurances from Fadnavis to fulfil the demands, nothing concrete has been done till now, community leaders have claimed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least three people were killed when a landslide triggered by incessant rains buried a shed in eastern Nepal's Rolpa district. The victims were sleeping inside the shed last night when the landslide buried it. Rescue works could not be carried out immediately as the shed was far from the rural municipality office. The villagers pulled out the bodies, police said. The deceased were identified as 18-year-old Chameli Pun, 12-year-old Obi Gharti and 18-year-old Hume Gharti. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three more men were today arrested by British police after a three-year-old boy suffered serious burns in an appaling acid attack in central England. The boy was treated in hospital for serious burns to his arm and face after an "acid or a corrosive substance" was either "thrown at or sprayed towards him" at a discount store in the city of Worcester, according to police. The boy was in a pushchair when he was "deliberately attacked" at Home Bargains in Worcester on Saturday afternoon. The men, aged 22, 25 and 26, were arrested in London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm. Earlier, a 39-year-old man was arrested on Sunday on suspicion of conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm remains in police custody, the BBC reported. Doctors discharged the boy from hospital yesterday, it said. He was treated for serious burns to his arm and face and the "long-term implications" of the his injuries are unknown, police said. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said the motive for the attack is so far "unclear". He said the family is receiving specialist medical and police support. "We are hoping the injuries won't be life changing. They are serious and at the moment it's just that little bit too soon to say, but things look positive. "Everything that can be done to provide support is being done, support for the family has been great. "I absolutely understand the community will be concerned, these are life changing incidents, this is something that lasts forever and we need to send a message that this is unacceptable," Travis said. "We'd like to thank everyone who shared our appeal over the weekend and contacted us with information; all of this is helping us to build up a better picture of this incident, detective inspector Tony Garner said. "The shock will be universal. Anyone conducting such an attack on a small child is just appalling", Robin Walker, member of parliament for Worcester added. Britain has seen a spike in the number of acid attacks in recent years, with hundreds of incidents in London alone every year. The trend has prompted government intervention initiatives while police have asked the public for help to try to tackle the problem. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Four women were today allegedly assaulted and two of them disrobed by a mob in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district on suspicion of being child-lifters, police said. The incident took place at Dawkimari village in Dhupguri block and is the fourth one this month so far in the district in which people were attacked following suspicion of being child-lifters. Last week, a mentally deranged woman was beaten up in the same block of the district on suspicion of being a child-lifter. Amitabha Maity, Jalpaiguri superintendent of police, said the four women, aged between 20 and 50 years, were not locals and the mob assaulted them as it they not believed the answers the women gave to the questions posed to them. One woman had reportedly said she was looking for a relative, another said she was visiting a relative, while the third woman said she sold clothes door-to-door and the fourth one said she had come to a neighbourhood bank, the police said. Suspecting them to be child-lifters, the mob then allegedly assaulted the four women and even disrobed the two of them, Maity said. The women were rescued by the police and taken to a nearby primary health centre, where their condition was stated to be stable, he added. Earlier this month, several people were injured at the Kranti area of Mal block in the district in stone-pelting following rumours that child-lifters were roaming in the area. A few days later a young man was allegedly assaulted at Balapara in Sadar block on suspicion of being a child-lifter, police added. Maity said that though no arrests were made so far in connection with today's incident, several persons were booked in the earlier incidents. He said the rumour of child-lifting was spread by people who wished to disturb the law and order in the district. "We are creating awareness on this through the social media and public media like announcements over mikes. People should contact the police on the helpline if they find someone suspicious, but not take law into their own hands," he said. The police was working to find out those behind the incidents, he said, adding that the police wants to complete the probe fast. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A special POCSO court here today sentenced a 45-year-old man to life imprisonment for raping a seven-year-old girl. Special judge of POSCO court Girish Kumar Aggarwal convicted Jugdish Singh Rajput alias Tillu, a resident of Kaithunipole area, said Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Kamal Kant Sharma. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh, he said. The man raped the girl on July 7, 2014 while she was returning home from her tuition in the evening, the SPP said. The matter came to light when the victim narrated the incident to her parents following which a case was lodged in Kaithunipole police station. The man was arrested under Sections 376 (rape), 363 (punishment for kidnapping) and 366 (kidnapping, abduction) of the IPC and provisions of the POCSO Act, Sharma said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court today said that a lawmaker, whose conviction in a criminal case has not been stayed by an appellate court, would stand disqualified from the membership of the House. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra also reserved its verdict on a plea filed by NGO 'Lok Prahari' which alleged that the 2013 verdict of the apex court in the Lilly Thomas case was being flouted by the Members of Parliament, MLAs and MLCs, who continue to hold their memberships even after their convictions in criminal cases. The apex court, on July 10, 2013, had struck down section 8(4) of the Representation of the People Act (RPA) that gave a convicted lawmaker the power to remain in office on the ground that appeals have been filed within three months of conviction. "The only question is about the vires of section 8(4) of the Representation of the People Act (RPA) and we hold that it is ultra vires and that the disqualification takes place from the date of conviction," the court had said. The NGO, in its fresh plea filed through its secretary S N Shukla, said the disqualification of a lawmaker takes place immediately after the conviction and the membership cannot be revived with retrospective effect by an appellate court by staying the conviction. Shukla, the former chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh, told the bench, which also comprised Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, that the 2013 verdict barred the appellate courts from staying the conviction of a lawmaker. "Please show us the passages (in the judgement) where it is said that no stay will be granted on the petition against the conviction," the bench said. "The law is clear that a person, who has been convicted and has not got a stay on the conviction, his or her membership will go," it said, adding that appellate courts are not barred from granting stay on convictions. "If stay is there then he or she (lawmaker) can participate in the House proceedings. If there was no stay then he of she is disqualified," the bench said. It also said that appellate courts rarely stay the conviction of the lawmakers in criminal cases. The apex court had held that chargesheeted MPs and MLAs, on conviction for offences, will be immediately disqualified from holding membership of the House without being given three months' time for appeal, as was the case earlier. The court, however, had then said that its decision would not apply to convicted MPs and MLAs or MLCs who have already filed their appeals in higher courts before pronouncement of the verdict. The verdict had removed the discrimination between an ordinary individual and an elected lawmaker, who enjoyed protection under the RP Act. Under Sec 8(3) of the RPA, a person convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years shall be disqualified for that period and a further six years after release. But Section 8(4) said a lawmaker cannot be disqualified for three months from the conviction if in that period he or she files an appeal against till its disposal by a higher court. The apex court's verdict had come on petitions filed by a lawyer Lily Thomas and NGO Lok Prahari which had sought striking down of provisions of RPA on the ground that they violate certain constitutional provisions which, among other things, expressly put a bar on criminals getting registered as voters or becoming MPs or MLAs. The PILs had said that certain sections of RPA allow convicted lawmakers to continue in office while their appeals are pending and thus those provisions are "discriminatory and encourage criminalisation of politics". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia today said that the party was analysing every Lok Sabha seat to decide on the ones the party intends to contest in the 2019 polls. "The team is working on analysing each and every seat to see which seat we should contest. We are focusing on Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Goa and maybe a few more seats around Delhi. We will be focusing on pockets," Sisodia today told reporters here. He is in Goa to participate in a lecture series. The Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi also said that meetings were being held to decide whether AAP should contest the two Lok Sabha seats in Goa. "The situation in Goa is not stable right now. We dont know when Goa is going to have its next Assembly election. It would be premature to say anything right now," Sisodia said. He said that the 2014 Lok Sabha polls was an "experiment" for the party with workers wanting to contest just to establish themselves as leaders. "It was a successful experiment. We did not expect everyone to win. But most established themselves as leaders in their own areas," he claimed. Calling the party a "small" one with a "limited bandwidth", Sisodia said the AAP was contesting in different states depending on its leadership and strength of volunteers. "We are a very small party and have hopes from all across the country. We have people who look up to us. Our bandwidth is very limited. Establishing leaders is also helping us to grow in those areas," Sisodia said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two Aam Aadmi Party legislators today denied they were deported by Canadian authorities from Ottawa International Airport, a day after reports said the MLAs from Punjab were denied entry into that country. Kultar Singh Sandhwan and Amarjeet Singh Sandhoa denied the reported deportation episode. Sandhwan, however, said the Canadian authorities denied them entry "because of confusion" over the purpose of their visit. Both the legislators returned to India today. "We were not deported. Canadian Border Services told us that they could not make out whether our visit was personal or political. They told us that they could not allow us in and then we told them that we will return (to India)," Sandhwan told reporters in Delhi. According to a statement issued by the AAP in Chandigarh, Sandhwan said he and Sandhoa landed at the Ottawa airport yesterday, and after getting clearance from the immigration authority, they were questioned by officers of the Canada Border Services. Sandhwan said he was asked whether the visit was personal or political since he had termed it a personal visit with his family at the time of applying for visa. He said he told authorities that the visit was personal but if party workers invite him, he will go there as well. He said the Canadian authorities inquired them about the political activities. But the meetings were yet to be fixed, said Sandhwan. Rupnagar MLA Sandhoa said he was asked why he was not accompanied by his family as per the details submitted in the initial visa form. He said he told them he could not bring his family with him as his children were to go to school. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least four government primary schools in Uttar Pradesh's Deoria district remained closed on Friday instead of Sunday, an inquiry carried out by department officials has revealed. The probe was initiated yesterday after it was found that another government primary school was named 'Islamia primary school' and it remained closed on Fridays, officials said. The administration acted and directed the school in Navalpur to remain open on Fridays and closed on Sundays and also removed the sign declaring it to be 'Islamia' primary school, they added. A probe was then initiated to check whether there were more such instances, the officials said adding the inquiry by department officials revealed that four more schools were running on the same pattern. Basic Shiksha Adhikari(BSA), Deoria, Santosh Dev Pandey today inspected these schools and directed them to follow the norms. The correct names were also painted outside these schools, officials said. No action was taken against any principal but warnings were given, they said. "After the case of primary school in Navalpur, I ordered probe against all the schools and it was found four more schools were running on the same pattern. On Monday I inspected all these schools. Correct name has been written at the school buildings and directions given to run them as per rules," Pandey said. They have been asked to observe holiday on Sunday and maintain documents in Hindi, he added. "Warning has been given to the principals and if anyone flouts the rules, strict action will be taken. The schools are very old and the practice of closing the school on Friday is continuing since 1904. The principals were just following the tradition," Pandey said. Three schools in Rampurkarkhana block were observing a weekly holiday on Friday as was a primary school at Deshi block, he said. The three schools in Rampurkarkhana block were: one in Swami Patti area, another in Karmaha and the third in Pokharbhinda Ishwari Prasad area, while the school in Deshi block is in Haraiya area, the official said. In Pokharbhinda Ishwari Prasad School, seven students were registered and a principal along with an assistant teacher is posted. In Swami Patti primary school, 70 children are registered and a principal and an assistant teacher are posted, according to the official. Karmaha primary school in Rampurkarkhana block had even bagged the award for being an ideal primary school. In the present session, 156 students are registered and three assistant teachers and a principal are posted there, the official said. Block Officer of Rampur Karkhana, Vinod Kumar Tripathi, said, "When I joined here in October 2017, I had asked guidelines regarding these three schools, but I didnot get any guidelines and the schools continued to run the way they were running." In Haraiya primary school, 80 children are registered and a principal and two assistant teachers are posted. Yesterday, a probe was ordered against a government primary school for remaining closed on Friday. Acting on a complaint against the principal of the school in Navalpur, District Magistrate Sujit Kumar directed Pandey to probe the matter. "A report was sought from the BSA regarding the closure of the school on Fridays. It is a serious issue...Strict action will be taken against those responsible for this," Kumar had said. The complaint against principal Khurshid Ahmad was received by block education officer of Salempur block, Gyanchand Mishra who then sent a team of two officers to the school. "The officials reached the school on Friday at around 9.45 am. They found the school to be closed and Islamia primary school, Navalpur was written outside the building instead of primary school, Navalpur," Mishra said. The block education officer called up Ahmad who justified the practice arguing that 95 per cent of the students were Muslims hence, the school remained closed on Fridays instead of Sundays, officials said. Ahmad claimed the practice was prevalent before he joined the school in 2008. "The principal's claim about the practice being in existence before he joined will be probed as well," Pandey said. There are five teachers in the school including Ahmad, officials said. About 90 students are enrolled in the primary school. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Capping a week of drama, back tracking, a double negative and blistering statements from allies about his attitude toward Russian election interference, President Donald Trump was back to referring to "a big hoax." Trump spent days trying to reassure the country that he accepts that the longtime foe interfered in the 2016 election after his public undermining of US intelligence agencies in Helsinki while standing alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin. But Trump cast doubt once again in a tweet today, diminishing at least the significance, if not the existence, of the interference and the US investigation into Russia's actions. "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election," Trump tweeted. "Why didn't he do something about it? Why didn't he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, that's why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!" It was not immediately clear whether Trump was suggesting that the entire notion of Russian interference US intelligence agencies unanimously concur it took place and Trump reluctantly accepted their assessment amid the firestorm was fraudulent, or just the investigation of potential collusion by Trump associates with Russian agents. Either way, it appeared to keep alive a controversy that had separated Trump from aides and longtime political supporters and brought some of the most striking rebukes of his tenure in the Oval Office. "The evidence is overwhelming and the president needs to say that and act like it," said Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy, the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, in an interview with "Fox Sunday" aired hours before Trump's tweet. Two Trump associates, former national security adviser Mike Flynn and campaign foreign policy aide George Papadopoulos, pleaded guilty last year to charges brought by special counsel Robert Mueller alleging they had lied to the FBI about their Russia contacts. Trump's latest missive came hours after he asserted without evidence that newly released documents relating to the wiretapping of his onetime campaign adviser Carter Page "confirm with little doubt" that intelligence agencies misled the court that approved the warrant. But lawmakers from both political parties said that the documents don't show wrongdoing and that they even appear to undermine some previous claims by top Republicans on the basis for obtaining a warrant against Page. Visible portions of the heavily redacted documents, released Saturday under the Freedom of Information Act, show the FBI telling the court that Page "has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government." The agency also told the court that "the FBI believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government." The documents were part of officials' application for a warrant to the secretive foreign intelligence surveillance court, which signed off on surveilling Page. Trump tweeted Sunday on the documents: "As usual they are ridiculously heavily redacted but confirm with little doubt that the Department of 'Justice' and FBI misled the courts. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam!" The release appears to undercut some of the contentions in a memo prepared by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes earlier this year. Nunes and other Republicans had said that anti-Trump research in a dossier prepared by former British intelligence agent Christopher Steele and paid for by Democrats was used inappropriately to obtain the warrant on Page. While the documents confirm that the FBI relied, in part, on information from Steele to obtain the initial warrant, they also show how the FBI informed the court of his likely motivation. A page-long footnote in the warrant application lays out the FBI's assessment of Steele's history and the likely interest of his backer, adding that despite the political concern, the bureau believed at least some of his report to be "credible." Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California, a ranking member on the House Intelligence Committee, said the documents detail "just why the FBI was so concerned that Carter Page might be acting as an agent of a foreign power." "It was a solid application and renewals signed by four different judges appointed by three different Republican presidents," Schiff said on ABC's "This Week." Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida also broke with Trump, saying he didn't think the FBI did anything wrong in obtaining warrants against Page. "I have a different view on this issue than the president and the White House," Rubio said on CBS' "Face the Nation." ''They did not spy on the campaign from anything and everything that I have seen. You have an individual here who has openly bragged about his ties to Russia and Russians." Page said on CNN's "State of the Union": "I've never been the agent of a foreign power." In a 2013 letter, Page had described himself as an "informal adviser" to the Kremlin but now said "it's really spin" to call him an adviser. Page has not been charged with a crime, but he has been interviewed by the FBI and congressional investigators about his ties to Russia. White House officials have argued that Page, announced by the president in early 2016 as a foreign policy adviser, played only a minor role in the Trump campaign. The documents released Saturday include the FBI's October 2016 request to surveil Page and several renewal applications. It marks the first time in the more than 40-year history of the highly secretive court that underlying documents for a warrant have been released. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Rajasthan Police today admitted "error of judgement" in handling the case of alleged lynching of 28-year-old Rakbar in Alwar, as it suspended one and transferred three policemen, even as it refuted allegations of "custodial death". Amid allegations of negligence on part of the local policemen, including for delay in taking Rakbar alias Akbar Khan to hospital, a high-level panel, set up by the state police, found four policemen guilty of dereliction in duty and suspended Assistant Sub-Inspector Mohan Singh, who was in charge of the Ramgarh police station at that time, and shunted three constables to police lines, officials said. Since the policemen thought the victim was not serious, they decided to take him to the police station first so that the cows could be first shifted to a shelter. They also offered him water and tea, so it appeared an error of judgment,Additional Director General (law and order) N R K Reddy, a member of the enquiry panel, told PTI. In the primary investigation, Reddy claimed the policemen have not been found involved in beating the victim. However, police said it was not a case of custodial death and whatever happened on the part of the local police was an "error of judgment in responding to the situation. Earlier in the day, DGP O P Galhotra had set up a four-member committee. The panel comprised special DGP (law and order) N R K Reddy, Additional DGP (CID-Crime Branch) P K Singh, Inspector General (Jaipur Range) Hemant Priyadarshi and state nodal officer (cow vigilance) Mahendra Singh Chaudhary, Galhotra said. The action was taken after a video purportedly showing ASI Singh, who was posted at the Ramgarh police station, admitting to his "mistake", went viral. "Mere se galti hogai...kaise bhi maan lo..saja de do ya chhodh do...seedhi si baat hai(I made a mistake...punish me or pardon me...it is simple and straight)," the ASI can be heard purportedly saying in the video. The video of the ASI surfaced hours after allegations that the Alwar police delayed by nearly three hours the shifting of Khan to the Ramgarh community healthcare centre. While two persons, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh, were arrested on Saturday, a third accused, Naresh Singh, was nabbed yesterday and they are under police custody for five days, police said. "There are certain allegations that local police had beaten up Khan and delayed in taking him to hospital, which are being looked into," SP (Alwar) Rajendra Singh said. The incident was reported to police at 12.41 am on Saturday.Police reached there at 1.15 am, but they reached the hospital, which is nearly 4 km away from the scene of crime, with Khan at 4.00 am, where he was declared brought dead, as per police and hospital records. Congress leader Ashok Gehlot demanded a CBI probe into the alleged case of lynching. This is a mystery. It was the duty of police to take the victim to hospital but instead he was taken to the police station. This is a matter of investigation. Is it not duty of CM Vasundhara Raje to set up an impartial probe? In my view, the case should be handed over to the CBI for an impartial inquiry, Gehlot said. Former Congress MP from Alwar Bhanwar Jitendra Singh also demanded a judicial inquiry into the matter and said that such incidents occur when elections are around. Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria earlier in the day said that appropriate action would be taken if there was any negligence on the part of police. BJP MP from Rajasthan's Nagaur C R Chaudhary said,"It's not like that.Police did its work.Police have arrested the accused and took injured to hospital immediately. Sometimes,media doesn't give proper message.I don't think that police lacked in its action." The incident has created a political stir where the BJP MLA from Ramgarh constituency in Alwar, Gyan Dev Ahuja, blamed local police and the opposition Congress held by the Raje-led government responsible for the incident and demanded a judicial inquiry or a CBI probe into the case to ensure unbiased investigation. Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee president Sachin Pilot demanded a judicial inquiry into the matter. Khan, along with his friend Aslam, was taking cows to their villages in Haryana through a forest area in the Ramgarh area of Alwar, where they were caught by the mob. Aslam had managed to flee. As per the FIR registered with the Ramgarh police station on Saturday, Naval Kishore Sharma, the chief of the VHP's 'Gau Raksha' cell in Ramgarh, had informed the police at 12.41 am (on Saturday) about the incident. Police reached the spot at 1.15 am. Khan's statement was recorded and he was taken to the police station. As per the CHC entry register, a body of a 28-year-old man was brought at 4.00 am. Following the allegation, the probe into the alleged lynching incident was handed over to additional SP (Crime and Vigilance), Jaipur Range, yesterday. "The investigation will be carried out in a fair and transparent manner," IG, Jaipur Range, Hemant Priyadarshi had said. Meanwhile, the police investigation has revealed the past record of the victim. On December 30, 2014, Nauganwa police station in Alwar had registered a case against Khan under Sections 5 (prohibits the export of bovine animals for slaughter) and 8 (penalty for contravention of Section 5) of the Rajasthan Bovine Animal Act, after allegedly retrieving two cows from him.Nauganwa police station Station House Officer Mohan Singh said a 'challan' was filed in the 2014 case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress and the BJP were today locked in a bitter slugfest over the Alwar lynching case with Rahul Gandhi alleging hatred had replaced humanity in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "brutal" 'New India' and two union ministers accusing the opposition leader of being a "merchant of hate" and indulging in "vulture politics". The fresh wordy duel between the two rival parties broke out after the Congress president cited a media report which claimed that policemen in Alwar in Rajasthan took three hours to take a dying victim of a lynch mob to a hospital as they took a tea-break enroute. The 28-year-old victim was allegedly lynched in Rajasthan's Alwar district Friday night by a group of people who accused him of smuggling cows. "Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute," Gandhi said on Twitter. "This is Modi's brutal 'New India' where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die," he said. Khan and his friend Aslam were taking two cows to their village in Haryana through a forested area near Lalawandi in Alwar district last week when five men attacked them. Three people have been arrested. The media report cited by Gandhi claimed that the policemen stopped for tea and took the cows to a shelter before taking Khan to the hospital. Gandhi's attack on Modi sparked an angry response from two union ministers--Piyush Goyal and Smriti Irani. "Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict and prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains and then shed crocodile tears. Enough is enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE," Goyal tweeted. Goyal's remark echoed the attack on Modi by Sonia Gandhi during the 2007 Gujarat Assembly poll campaign when the then Congress President used the phrase 'maut ka saudagar' ('merchant of death') to target the then chief minister of the western state. Irani accused Gandhi of doing "vulture politics" and claimed that not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. "Rahul Gandhi's family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur, Nellie and Many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through vulture politics," she tweeted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The lynching of a man in Rajasthan's Alwar district was today raised in the Lok Sabha by a Congress MP, triggering protests from BJP members. Karan Singh Yadav of the Congress raised the issue during Zero Hour and said it was the fourth such incident in the state. Those who claimed to be 'gau-rakshak' (cow protectors) are behind this murder, he said amid protests by some BJP members- who were not audible- and also attacked the police for wasting time in taking the victim to hospital, leading to his death. The deceased 28-year-old Akbar was thrashed by a group of people on suspicion of being a cow smuggler in Lalawandi village in Alwar on Saturday last. Earlier, the two party members clashed when Jyotiraditya Scindia raised the Kathua rape and murder case besides other incidents of rape against women. Targeting the BJP, he said its leaders, who were ministers in the Jammu and Kashmir government, came out in support of the accused while the saffron party's MLA is an accused in the Unnao rape case. He also raised the issue of rape of a child in Madhya Pradesh' Mandsaur district but was cut off by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan midway as she pulled him for doing politics over such incidents. "Don't do politics over everything. I am woman...," an angry Mahajan said. Citing figures, Scindia said 40 thousand women are raped every year and 19,000 of them are minors. Expelled RJD member Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav spoke about the alleged sexual exploitation of girls in a government shelter in Muzaffarpur in Bihar and sought a CBI probe. BJP's Ravindra Pandey raised the issue of BSNL mobiles' poor connectivity in states like Bihar and Jharkhand. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Rajasthan police today set up a high-level committee to probe the allegations of delay against the Alwar police in taking Akbar Khan to a hospital after he was allegedly lynched by a group of people of suspicion of cow smuggling. "Allegations of delay in taking Khan to the hospital and policemen crossing their limits have come to fore. A four-member committee of senior police officials is in Alwar to enquire into the matter," state Director General of Police (DGP) O P Galhotra said. It will also be probed whether the 28-year-old Akbar, alias Rakbar Khan, became a victim of police beating on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday. Appropriate action would be taken if any lapses were found in the enquiry report, the DGP said. The committee comprise special DGP (law and order) N R K Reddy, Additional DGP (CID-Crime Branch) P K Singh, Inspector General (Jaipur Range) Hemant Priyadarshi and state nodal officer (cow vigilance) Mahendra Singh Chaudhary, Galhotra informed in a statement here. The inquiry is in addition to the overall probe that has been handed over to additional SP rank officer. While two persons, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh, were arrested on Saturday, the third accused, Naresh Singh, was arrested yesterday and they are under police custody for five days, police said. "There are certain allegations that the local police had beaten Khan and delayed in taking him to hospital which are being looked into," SP (Alwar) Rajendra Singh said. It is alleged that when Akbar was thrashed by a group of people on suspicion of being a cow smuggler in Lalawandi village in Alwar, it took over two-and-a-half hours for the police to take the victim to the Ramgarh Community Healthcare Centre, which is nearly 4 km away from the scene of crime. Akbar, along with his friend Aslam, were taking cows to their villages in Haryana through a forest area in Ramgarh area of Alwar, where they caught by a group of people. Aslam had managed to flee from there. As per the FIR lodged with Ramgarh police station on Saturday, Naval Kishore Sharma, the chief of VHP's "Gau Raksha" cell in Ramgarh, had informed the police at 12.41 am (on Saturday) about the incident. Police reached the spot at around 1.15 am. Akbar's statement was recorded and he was taken to police station. As per the CHC entry register, a body of a 28-year-old male was brought at 4.00 am. Questioning the role of the police, local Ramgarh MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja has demanded a judicial inquiry to find out if Rakbar was lynched by a mob or beaten to death by police. Following the allegation, the probe into the alleged lynching incident was handed over to Additional SP (Crime and Vigilance), Jaipur Range, yesterday. "The investigation will be carried out in a fair and transparent manner," IG, Jaipur Range, Hemant Priyadarshi had said. Meanwhile, the police investigation has revealed the past police record of the victim. On December 30, 2014, Nauganwa police station in Alwar had registered a case against Rakbar under sections 5 (prohibits the export of bovine animals for slaughter) and 8 (penalty for contravention of Section 5) of the Rajasthan Bovine Animal Act, after allegedly retrieving two cows from him. Nauganwa police station SHO Mohan Singh said a challan was filed in the 2014 case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Rajasthan Police today suspended an assistant sub-inspector and sent three other constables to police lines for "delay" in taking Rakbar alias Akbar Khan, who was allegedly lynched by a mob on suspicion of cow smuggling, to a hospital, officials said. The action was taken after a video purportedly showing ASI Mohan Singh, who was posted at the Ramgarh police station, admitting to his "mistake", went viral. "Mere se galti hogai...kaise bhi maan lo..saja de do ya chhodh do...seedhi si baat hai(I made a mistake...punish me or pardon me...it is simple and straight)," the ASI can be heard purportedly saying in the video. A four-member committee, constituted by the Rajasthan Police to look into the delay in taking 28-year-old Khan to the hospital, suspended the ASI and shifted three other constables to police lines, Special DGP (law and order) NRK Reddy said at a press conference in Alwar. "There was an error in the judgement in trying to respond to the situation. The preliminary investigation suggested there was an error in prioritising the situation," Reddy said. The committee comprised special DGP (law and order) N R K Reddy, Additional DGP (CID-Crime Branch) P K Singh, Inspector General (Jaipur Range) Hemant Priyadarshi and state nodal officer (cow vigilance) Mahendra Singh Chaudhary, state Director General of Police (DGP) O P Galhotra said. The inquiry is in addition to the overall probe that has been given to additional superintendent of police-rank officer. While two persons, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh, were arrested on Saturday, a third accused, Naresh Singh, was nabbed yesterday and they are under police custody for five days, police said. "There are certain allegations that the local police had beaten up Khan and delayed in taking him to hospital, which are being looked into," SP (Alwar) Rajendra Singh said. The video of the ASI surfaced hours after allegations that the Alwar police delayed by nearly three hours the shifting of Khan to the Ramgarh community healthcare centre. The incident was reported to the police at 12.41 am on Saturday. Police reached there at 1.15 am, but they reached the hospital, which is nearly 4 km away from the scene of crime, with Khan at 4.00 am, where he was declared brought dead, as per police and hospital records. Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria earlier in the day said that appropriate action would be taken if there was any negligence on the part of police. "Three-four accused have been arrested in the case. I have also come to know that police took Khan to police station and then took him to hospital after three hours. "I have asked the DGP to send a committee to look into the matter. We will take action if there was any negligence on the part of the police in dealing with the case," Kataria said. However, a BJP MP from Rajasthan's Nagaur has defended the police, saying it would be "unfair" to target them. C R Chaudhary said, "It is not like that. Police did its work. Police have arrested the accused and took the injured to the hospital immediately. Sometimes, media does not give proper message. I don't think that police lacked in its action." Khan, along with his friend Aslam, was taking cows to their villages in Haryana through a forest area in the Ramgarh area of Alwar, where they were caught by the mob. Aslam had managed to flee. As per the FIR registered with the Ramgarh police station on Saturday, Naval Kishore Sharma, the chief of the VHP's 'Gau Raksha' cell in Ramgarh, had informed the police at 12.41 am (on Saturday) about the incident. Police reached the spot at 1.15 am. Khan's statement was recorded and he was taken to the police station. As per the CHC entry register, a body of a 28-year-old man was brought at 4.00 am. Questioning the role of the police, Ramgarh MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja has demanded a judicial inquiry to find out if Khan was lynched by the mob or beaten to death by the police. Following the allegation, the probe into the alleged lynching incident was handed over to additional SP (Crime and Vigilance), Jaipur Range, yesterday. "The investigation will be carried out in a fair and transparent manner," IG, Jaipur Range, Hemant Priyadarshi had said. Meanwhile, the police investigation has revealed the past record of the victim. On December 30, 2014, Nauganwa police station in Alwar had registered a case against Khan under Sections 5 (prohibits the export of bovine animals for slaughter) and 8 (penalty for contravention of Section 5) of the Rajasthan Bovine Animal Act, after allegedly retrieving two cows from him. Nauganwa police station Station House Officer Mohan Singh said a 'challan' was filed in the 2014 case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A statue of Dalit icon B R Ambedkar was allegedly desecrated by unidentified persons in Madhya Pradesh's Shajapur district, a police official said today. The statue, installed on outskirts of Kalisindh village, located about 28 kms from the district headquarters, was desecrated by some persons last night, Bercha police station in-charge Rakesh Nain said. Some locals informed the police after they found an arm and spectacles of the statue broken. Shajapur district's Superintendent of Police Anurag Sharma and other officials reached the spot to look into the matter. A police team has been formed to search for culprits, Sharma said. A number of Dalits gathered at the spot following the incident. Heavy security has been deployed in the area, Nain said. Based on a complaint lodged by local resident Avinash Chouradia, the police have registered a case against unidentified persons under relevant sections of the IPC, he said, adding that an investigation is underway. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) major has started making certain models of in Bengaluru through a contract manufacturer, Parliament was informed on Monday. "While has already started of certain models of in Bengaluru through a contract manufacturer, details of private business decisions are not maintained by the Centre," Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary said in a written reply to Lok Sabha. The government has received representations seeking concessions including duty exemption on and repair units, components, capital equipment and consumables for manufacturing, which have not been accepted, he said. In a separate reply, the minister said as on July 15, 16,324 applications have been received of which 11,129 have been recognised as startups. Despite the rating downgrades of UPL Corporation by Fitch and S&P after the announcement of its plans to acquire Florida-based agrochemicals player Arysta LifeScience for USD 4.2 billion in a leveraged buyout, the parent UPL's stock rallied 15 per cent today. While Fitch today revised the rating outlook on the Mauritius-based firm to negative from stable, S&P downgraded the same to stable from positive over the weekend. But Fitch has affirmed its long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating at BBB-. In spite of the double downgrades, the market lapped up the and UPL stock rallied to touch an intra-day peak of Rs 639.65, before closing 14.8 per cent higher at Rs 631.65 on the BSE, against a 0.61 per cent rise in the Sensex at 36,718.60, its highest closing ever. Fitch said the rating on UPL Corp, which is the international subsidiary of UPL, is based on the consolidated profile of parent UPL. "The negative outlook reflects the increase in UPL's leverage after the Arysta deal for USD 4.2 billion from Platform Specialty Products Corp, and uncertainty whether UPL will be able to deleverage so as to not exceed our thresholds for considering negative rating action," it added. The Aryasta acquisition will be financed with around USD 3 billion of debt and USD 1.2 billion of equity inflow from the sale of around 22 per cent stake in UPL Corp to sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and TPG Capital. "With Arysta, we expect UPL to become the world's largest post-patent player globally, to almost double its FY18 pre-tax profit, and to add Arysta's research-based differentiation to its cost advantage," Fitch said. It estimates UPL's adjusted debt to leverage to rise temporarily before declining to around three times by FY21, a level that is reasonable for its rating in light of a significantly better business profile. "But the rate of deleveraging will depend on it unlocking significant cost and revenue synergies through successful integration, and broader industry fundamentals," it said. Meanwhile, in a weekend note, S&P Global Ratings also revised downwards its outlook on the agrochemicals company to stable from positive. "At the same, we affirm our BBB- long-term issuer credit rating on UPL Corp. We also affirmed our BBB- long-term issue rating on the company's senior unsecured notes,"it said. The outlook revision is due to the fact that the agency expects UPL' leverage to rise if it completes the acquisition. "By our estimates, UPL Corp's leverage would double just after the deal, but then markedly improve over the next two years," it said. But it considers the acquisition to be a strategic fit for UPL's fast-growing agrochemicals business, and would bolster its business position as the world's largest post- patent agrochemicals producer. "We expect UPL Corp's annual revenues to exceed USD 4.7 billion when combined with Arysta's," the agency said. It expects UPL's pro-forma ratio of funds from operations to debt to decline to below 20 per cent in FY19. "This compares to our estimate of more than 45 per cent without the acquisition. We believe the higher leverage significantly diminishes the chances of an upgrade over the next 12-24 months, despite a stronger business position," it added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A federation of various service providers to the Amarnath pilgrims has suggested limiting the two-month-long pilgrimage period to the holy cave shrine in South Kashmir Himalayas to 30 days. Shri Amarnathji Barfani Langer Organisation (SABLO), an association of various organisations serving Amarnath yatris free en route and providing them with food, blanket, night shelter etc, proposed cutting down the pilgrimage duration to 30 days saying 90 per cent of the pilgrims have darshan of the holy 'shivlingam' at the cave within a month after the start of the yatra. The SABLO made the suggestion during a meeting of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB), which manages the annual pilgrimage to the shrine located at an altitude of 3880 metre in Kashmir, an official spokesman said. The meeting was chaired by Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra, who is also the SASB chairman. "In a presentation made before the Board, SABLO stressed that the pilgrimage data for the past five years shows that more than 90 per cent of the yatris perform 'darshan' in the first 30 days. On this basis, SABLO argued that the period of yatra should be limited to 30 days, citing various reasons," the spokesman said. Taking note of SABLO's suggestion, the Board observed that this important issue needs to be placed in the public domain and discussed further, he said. The SASB meeting also reviewed the ongoing yatra and works undertaken for the convenience of the pilgrims. The Board was apprised of the various steps taken for improving and enhancing the facilities to the pilgrims. The steps included improving the tracks from Baltal to Domel, upgrading of Neelgrath-Baltal Road, erecting railings on the Baltal route and on the Chandanwari route and establishing resting places along the tracks. SASB CEO Umang Narula said the public works department and Pahalgam Development Authority have been maintaining the Baltal and Pahalgam tracks, respectively, and taking care of the widening of the tracks and erecting railings at all vulnerable places. The governor directed the CEO to ensure that the remaining work is taken up immediately after conclusion of the yatra on 26 August. The board noted that this year the state governments of Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare have deputed good number of doctors from prestigious institutions to assist the medical arrangements for the Yatra, at various camps. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) IT firm Atos today said its USD 3.4 billion acquisition of Syntel will help the French firm enhance its footprint, especially in the North American market and accelerate the digital transformation of its customers. "The highly complementary portfolio, customer basis, and geographical presence of the combination between Atos and Syntel will significantly enhance our footprint, in particular in the North American market and accelerate the digital transformation of Atos' customers," Atos Chairman and CEO Thierry Breton said in a statement. The French company had announced the acquisition yesterday. Both Atos and Syntel have significant presence in India. Syntel, which has 23,000 engineers in 30 countries, has over 18,000 staff based in India. Atos has about 16,000 people. All of Syntel's management team is expected to join Atos. Atos, which reported its financial performance for the first half of 2018 today, saw revenue growing 1.7 per cent to over 6 billion euros. However, its revenue and operating margin was lower in North America year-on-year in the reported period. Post the transaction (expected by year-end), Syntel CEO Rakesh Khanna will become a member of Atos Executive Committee. Syntel generated revenues of USD 924 million in 2017, of which 89 per cent was in North America. About 40 per cent of its revenues are driven by a suite of digital and proprietary solutions around cloud, social media, mobile, analytics, Internet of Things and automation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bombay High Court has cautioned late Bal Thackeray's estranged son Jayadev against delaying hearing by summoning irrelevant witnesses in a will probation case of the Shiv Sena founder. Jayadev and his younger brother Uddhav Thackeray, who took over as Sena chief after death of his father, are embroiled in litigation in the high court over the validity of Bal Thackeray's will. Justice Gautam Patel reprimanded Jayadev and his lawyer on July 19 over their request to summon several journalists and editors heading the city bureau of some national and regional newspapers in the case. The judge was hearing a suit filed by Jayadev questioning the veracity of his father's will. Bal Thackeray had signed the will in December 2011 bequeathing most of the family property and assets to Uddhav Thackeray and his family. However, Jayadev challenged it saying that his father was of an "unsound mind" at the time. In support of his arguments, Jayadev's counsel Seema Sarnaik had submitted a list of 34 witnesses that he wished to be examined by court. A majority of witnesses on the list were reporters, photographers and editors who had written or published some articles on Bal Thackarey or his family around the time preceding his death. Justice Patel had initially assented to Jayadev's request and summoned witnesses from the Hindustan Times and the Sena mouthpiece Saamana on previous hearings. However, when Sarnaik expressed Jayadev's wish to summon some more editors on the last hearing on July 19, Justice Patel said he would not call any more journalists unless it was certain that their testimonies would help provide decisive evidence in the case. "If the submission is that the testator (Bal Thackeray) was so very unwell that he could not, at the relevant time, have had sufficient fitness of purpose to make a testamentary writing, then that cannot possibly be proved by piling one newspaper article on top of another," he said. "The plaintiff (Jayadev Thackeray) has already led the evidence of the testator's physician, Dr Jalil Parkar... It seems to me that no newspaper article can furnish direct evidence even remotely relevant to the issues that fall for determination in a testamentary suit propounding a will," the judge said. On the question of testamentary capacity, when doctors are available and hospital records can be summoned, what a newspaper editor or journalist learnt or said or was told, and what a newspaper article says, lends no evidentiary weight or heft to the matter, he said. "It does not prove a medical condition. The ailment or medical condition must be proved by direct evidence, not supposition," he said. The court is currently conducting the cross- examination of witnesses on Jayadev Thackeray's side. His own cross-examination was completed earlier this month. Justice Patel has now summoned some officials from the Lilavati Hospital, Bank of Maharashtra, MTNL, and Jayadev Thackeray's wife Anuradha. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A global alliance led by Bayer and IFC today announced partnership with e-commerce firm Big Basket to help small farmers in India raise their income by providing them knowledge to use inputs efficiently and timely as well as access to markets to sell produce. In April this year, Germany-based agro-chemical major Bayer, International Finance Corporation, Netafim and Swiss Re Corporate Solutions launched the 'Better Life Farming' alliance to provide innovative solutions for smallholder farmers in developing economies. The global alliance has now roped in local partners -- Yara Fertilisers, DeHaat and Big Basket -- in India to scale up its operations. 'Better Life Farming' project started in India in 2016 and the alliance is targeting to reach 6,500 small and marginal farmers by 2019 from around 2,000 farmers this year and 250 farmers in 2017. The alliance is working with farmers in Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand who are growing green chillies and tomatoes. It plans to work for corn farmers as well. "We want to support smallholders because we truly believe that empowering them is crucial to achieve food security. At the same time, we want to increase their livelihoods," said Peter R Mueller, Head of Crop Science Division, Bayer South Asia, at a round table conference here. A senior Bayer official highlighted that farmers were able to double their yields and triple their farm incomes during the pilot project. He explained that this project will run on a business model and not as CSR activities. The alliance plans to rope in partner working in the field of credit and insurance, the official said. "Many smallholder farmers reach less than 20 per cent of their potential productivity owing to limited access to inputs, credit, and markets. The adverse effect of climate change further increases their risks," said Rick Van der Kamp, Senior Operations Officer, MAS Advisory, IFC. Water management firm Netafim's India MD Randhir Chauhan said this alliance aims to offer solutions to most urgent global challenges, such as the growing demand for food and scarcity of water. "By using precision irrigation, and other advanced farming practices the alliance brings, smallholder farmers can significantly increase their yields, reduce their vulnerability to weather changes and ensure economic growth," he added. Vipul Mittal, National Category Head, Fruits & Vegetables, Bigbasket.com, said the 'Better Life Farming' alliance gels very well with its strategy of partnering with Indian farmers directly. "We use our technology based online platform to completely disintermediate the value chain of fruits & vegetables and hence give a better realisation to farmers. The alliance will help us support farmers, who are using better technologies and producing quality produce," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Miffed over recent incidents where CISF personnel were involved in public spats, the Director General (DG) of the force has asked his personnel to remain "polite and courteous" while dealing with the masses at places like the Delhi Metro and airports, adding "misbehaviour" would be viewed seriously. The chief of the about 1.80-lakh personnel strong paramilitary also directed his commanders to organise special training sessions for the uniformed men and women of the force for acquiring soft skills like effective communication and courteous behaviour and to manage anger and stress. DG Rajesh Ranjan recently wrote a letter to all his formation commanders which has been accessed by PTI and it comes in the backdrop of an incident where an alleged scuffle broke out between the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel and the station manager of a Delhi Metro station here last month. "I would like to mention about few unfortunate incidents at DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Corporation) Delhi, wherein our men entered into an argument with the station controller which resulted in manhandling. Besides this, in another instance, our men manhandled a passenger at Kashmere Gate metro station. "The bad publicity which follows such incidents not only partly negates the good work done by our personnel at the airports, DMRC and field units, but also bring adverse comments on the professionalism of the force," DG Ranjan said. CISF, he said, is well known for maintaining harmonious relations with multiple stakeholders and passengers and it has earned the force a good reputation for excellent behaviour while carrying out security responsibilities. "The responsibilities entrusted upon CISF entail an ever increasing interface with public. In such a situation, it is extremely important to ensure that we remain polite and courteous to the members of public, even in the face of provocation and stress. "This aspect must be inculcated amongst the force members who should also be cautioned that any instance of misbehaviour, discourtesy and insensitive conduct would be viewed adversely," the DG wrote. Ranjan also asked his commanders to hold "regular interactions" with the personnel under their command after it was recently reported that the "absence and suicidal death" of a sub-officer was detected only after 48 hours at a CISF camp in Rajasthan. "This speaks poorly about the administration and non-existence of an effective communication and reporting system. Implementation of buddy system and proper monitoring of the unit personnel should be ensured. "You (commanders) must also be sensitive towards genuine concerns of the personnel so that a healthy work environment prevails in the unit. "A pro-active approach with a humane touch is absolutely imperative to create confidence in the men under your command to avoid such unfortunate incidents," the CISF boss said. The DG asked young officers of the force to enhance their operational and administrative skills and ensure that the troops under their command are taken care of well. "I reiterate that all officers and unit commanders personally must know the personnel in their units for better man-management. The merits, qualities and habits of the personnel should regularly be observed and known to their superior officers. "Aberrations in behaviour, however minute, should not be ignored and appropriate action taken to avoid any unpleasant situation in the unit," Ranjan said. The DG also asked his brass to tighten standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure that "accidental firing" incidents do not take place as such events speak "adversely" about the drills being followed at present by the force. The force, raised in 1969, is tasked to guard 60 civil airports in the country apart from a number of sensitive and important establishments in the aerospace and nuclear domain among others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Goa government is considering making the entire coastline in the state as a "plastic-free zone", the Legislative Assembly was informed today. Urban Development Minister Francis D'Souza, in a written reply tabled in the House, said the state is in the process of declaring all its beaches as plastic-free zones. "The proposal for banning the use of plastic, especially on beaches and areas under the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) by declaring them as a plastic-free zone, is under consideration," he said in response to a question by Isidore Fernandes (Congress). Admitting his department is aware that plastic waste, PET bottles and tube lights are thrown in rivers/streams in Goa, the minister said the government has not conducted any study on environmental impact of such actions. The move to make the state's coastline plastic-free comes after Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said the government will ban drinking of liquor in public places, including beaches. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today launched the online transfer of diesel subsidy directly into the bank accounts of farmers in the state. Kumar started the facility for farmers by clicking the mouse button at a function held at CM Secretariat here, a government release said. Speaking on the occasion, Kumar said "A new system of online payment of diesel subsidy to farmers has been initiated today. Registered farmers would now directly get payment of diesel subsidy into their bank accounts. I am happy to say that 11,00 farmers have got the money of diesel subsidy transferred into their accounts at a rate of Rs 50 per litre today." Agreeing with the suggestion of Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, Kumar said that farmers will be registered for once in order to avail the benefits of other schemes. Earlier, it used to take three months for farmers to get the money of diesel subsidy but with the launch of online payment system, farmers would now be able to get the diesel subsidy within 25 days, the CM said in a release. All the district agriculture officers, agriculture coordinators in blocks, agriculture advisors should start a campaign in every villages in order to give information about various schemes and their benefits to the farmers, Kumar said adding that officials should get farmers registered besides linking their bank accounts with "aadhaar". The agriculture department officials would also make farmers understand to go for the cultivation of alternative crops if paddy cultivation is not possible in that particular area. The seeds of alternative crops should be made availble to farmers, the CM said. Chief secretary, Agriculture Department officials, District Magistrates and Block level officials should keep a tab on every aspect so that farmers should not have any problems, he said. "Around 76 per cent people are dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. We are sensitive towards them. The state government would provide all possible help to farmers in the event of disaster," Kumar said. The state has witnessed 48 per cent deficit rainfall so far whereas some of the districts have even witnessed 80 per cent deficit rainfall, the CM said. Stating that a slew of decisions was taken at a high-level meeting held yesterday, Kumar said the diesel subsidy was Rs 35 per litre last year which was increased to Rs 40 a litre earlier this year and now it was further hiked to Rs 50 a litre for farmers to irrigate land. Rural areas, which used to get power supply of around 16 to 18 hours a day, will now get power supply of 20 to 22 hours a day for irrigation purpose, he said and added that power tariff has been reduced from existing 96 paise to 75 paise per unit for agriculture purpose. The rate of 75 paise per unit would also be applicable to state tubewells or private tubewells, he added. Public Health and Engineering Department (PHED) has been asked to increase the number of tankers to 500 from the existing 175 to ensure potable water, he said. The CM said that a high level meeting has been convened on July 31 to review the drought-like situation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Opposition parties, including the Congress, today opposed the proposed amendments to the Motor Vehicles Act in the Rajya Sabha, saying it would help the corporates and dilute the powers of the state governments. The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, which has already been passed by the Lok Sabha, was introduced in the Upper House in April 2017 but was referred to a select panel. After taking into account the panel's recommendation, the bill was re-introduced in the Rajya Sabha. Moving the bill for consideration and passage, Minister of State for Transport Mansukhlal Mandaviya said it was an important measure as it aimed to adapt to the technological upgradation emerging in road transport sector and curb corruption in the process. Participating in the debate on the bill, B K Hari Prasad (Cong) said there were 92 clauses in the bill, out of which amendments have been brought to about 69 clauses and there is no mention of road safety in most of them. "Only three clauses out of the 92 clauses refer to road safety. It looks like it (amendments) is done to help corporates," he said, adding that the power for registration of vehicles has been given to private dealers in the bill. Even the registration charges to be paid to the dealers would be higher than what the RTO charges, he said, and sought to know where would this money go. Hari Prasad also objected to higher penalty, saying it would hurt the poor people as the police never slaps penalties on the rich. "If you go through the bill, it does not create a sense of road safety. Some clauses have been amended to help the corporates and dilute the powers of state government," he said. The Congress leader, who was part of the select panel, said the government has "hardly" taken into account the committee's recommendations. "We have tried to convince the minister and the chairman of the panel. But we have failed," he added. Opposing the bill, Trinamool Congress member Manish Gupta said the proposed legislation in its current form "subverts the principle of federalism" by giving the control of the transport sector to the central government. He said all the suggestions, which were given by the opposition parties during the standing committee meetings, have been rejected in the current bill. "I appeal to all states which believe in federalism to oppose this bill," Gupta said. Similarly, BJD's Pratap Keshari Deb said the bill favoured the Centre and, if passed in the current form, it would lead to clashes between central and state governments over various issues. He said that BJD would support the bill if the government makes changes on various issues pointed out by them. "It is up to the government. If they make changes, we will support, otherwise we will oppose it," Deb said. CPI-M's Elamaram Kareem, while opposing the bill, said it supported privatisation and takes away powers from the state governments to regulate the sector. "This bill is against the people, against the country and I request the government to withdraw it at the earliest," he added. YSR Congress Party's V Vijaysai Reddy said the legislation cannot be supported in its current form as it was silent on various important issues, including road rage. T K Rangarajan (CPI-M) said after the implementation of such a legislation, the powers of the state government will be reduced. It will be like the power enjoyed by a gram panchayat, he said while opposing the bill. T K S Elangovan (DMK) said the power of the states was being taken away and given to a private authority. "This is the biggest accident that has happened in the House and the states are still limping," he said. The only agenda of the BJP is to take away the power of the states, he said, terming it dangerous for the country. BSP leader Veer Singh also said the legislation would lead to encroachment over powers of the states. AAP member Sanjay Singh launched a frontal attack saying the provision to make the process of granting licenses was prone to misuse. There have been reports that a license was issued in the name of the President or even Dawood Ibrahim, he said, adding this was when physical presence was necessary. Since you have made it online, some people may even get a license issued in the name of their 'Tommy', he said referring to the name given to pets. He said the Centre was trying to appropriate the power of collecting taxes. Why should states stand with begging bowls, Singh asked. He said the present dispensation did not have a history of showing magnanimity. When Delhi metro lines to neighbouring Noida and areas in Haryana were inaugurated, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was not even invited, the AAP MP said. "Why such ill will," he asked and said the legislation was in no way a step to curb accidents but the effort was to privatise everything. Alleging that decisions, inspired by politics, were being taken, Singh said such was the state of affairs that the Prime Minister inaugurated "a 9 km long stretch of road". He said the AAP government had opposed the raising of metro fares but the Centre went ahead. Now the footfall has decreased and so have profits, he said, adding that the BJP- led government's intent was to make transport expensive and loot the people. Amar Shankar Sable and Vinay P Saharabuddhe of BJP and Harivansh of JD-U supported the bill. The debate on the bill remained inconclusive and is expected to continue tomorrow. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A bill seeking to replace the existing Central Council of Homoeopathy with a board of governors and aimed at bringing accountability and quality in homoeopathy education system, was introduced in Lok Sabha today. The Homeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2018 was approved by the Union Cabinet on May 16. As per the draft bill, the members of the board of governor will replace the existing functionaries of the CCH and will comprise seven eminent homeopathy practitioners and administrators. They will be appointed by the government. The move comes in the backdrop of allegations of corruption against office-bearers of the CCH. The bill will replace an ordinance brought by the government earlier this year. Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had said the need to bring the ordinance arose as several office-bearers were facing allegations of corruption. "Chairman (of the council) has been in CBI and other nets... The quality of education is suffering... We want to have a proper, professional homoeopathic ecosystem for education in the country," he had said. Government sources later said the ordinance proposes to revamp the body. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Assam Police have arrested three persons, including a BJP leader and a senior police official for trying to influence the probe into the cash-for-job scam which has rocked the state, an official said today. Vice-president of ruling BJP's Darrang unit Sailen Sarma Barua, deputy superintendent of police (DSP) of Duliajan Kabita Das and businessman Surajit Chaudhury were held last night, Dibrugarh district superintendent of police Gautam Bora said. "We have arrested DSP Kabita Das last night. She has already been taken to Guwahati and is being interrogated," Bora said. "Two more persons were arrested from Darrang and Guwahati. One is Sailen Sarma Barua who is the vice-president of ruling BJP's Darrang unit and an advocate from Mangaldoi and the other is a businessman named Surajit Chaudhury," he added. According to official sources, the duo was trying to influence the probe by meeting judges at the Guwahati High Court. The Dibrugarh Police is investigating the scam at the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC) in which a total 67 people including the former APSC chairman Rakesh Kumar Paul and over 55 civil services officials have been arrested. On July 18, another 19 officers of Assam Civil Services (ACS), Assam Police Services (APS) and other allied services of the 2016 batch were held. APS officer Pallavi Sharma, the daughter of BJP MP R P Sharma, was among them. In November last year, former Congress Minister Nilamani Sen Deka's son Rajarshi Sen Deka was also arrested for allegedly landing a job through unfair means. Dibrugarh police had earlier arrested 35 government officials in the scam, including the prime accused Paul, Commission member Samedur Rahman and Basanta Kumar Doley and Assistant Controller of Examinations Pabitra Kaibarta. All of them have been accused of bribing Paul, who is also currently in jail. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Attacking Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his "brutal new India" comments against the Modi government, a senior BJP minister today called him a "merchant of hate" and accused him of dividing the society for electoral gains. Gandhi, in a tweet, on the lynching incident in Rajasthan last week where a Muslim man was attacked after being accused of cow smuggling had said: "...This is Modi's brutal 'New India' where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die," "Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict and prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains and then shed crocodile tears. Enough is enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE," Finance Minister Piyush Goyal tweeted. Textile Minister Smriti Irani accused Gandhi of doing "vulture politics" and claimed that not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to "rupture" social bonds for electoral gains. "Rahul Gandhi's family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur, Nellie and Many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through vulture politics," she tweeted. Reacting to reports, Gandhi in the tweet, had also said that: "Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today held the BJP responsible for increasing number of lynching incidents in the country and said that instead of merely condemning them, the saffron party should control its leaders. "Rajnath-ji (Union home minister) condemned the incident in Parliament. But, why instead of condemning, they are not controlling their leaders from the upper to lower level. "It is only because of their hate campaign that so many lives have been lost (in lynching incidents). Charity begins at home," she told reporters at the state secretariat. The CM's comments came in the backdrop the alleged lynching of a 28-year-old man by a cow vigilante group in Alwar on Saturday. Mamata alleged that lynching incidents were the handiwork of some extremist religious groups. "We appeal to all the common citizens. It's a serious phase we are going through. So many lives have been lost. This should be stopped immediately," she said. The chief minister said strict action would be taken against those found to be involved in such incidents anywhere in West Bengal. "Law and order is a state subject. We do not discuss anything on cows. We treat cows as our mothers," she said. She also blamed fake and rumours spread through social media platforms for incidents of lynching. Mamata had last week given a call to oust the BJP in the next Lok Sabha elections at a rally here, accusing the party of trying to create an atmosphere of "lynching, hatred and violence". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) For decades, Boat Club was the destination for dissent a go-to spot for protesters of all ilk, from college kids and little-known politicians to disgruntled civil rights activists and even an army of nearly five lakh farmers who once brought the government down on its knees. That was until early 90s when protests and demonstrations were banned at Boat Club, a prime slice of real estate in posh Lutyens' Delhi that stood out with its sylvan lawns around a recreational canal with boats for family pleasure rides. Boat Club is back on the map as the resistance square of the nation, with the Supreme Court today lifting the blanket ban on rallies, dharnas and sit-ins at the iconic lawns that had been in place for over two decades. In its ruling, the court included Jantar Mantar, a landmark 18th-century monument a few kilometres from Boat Club that also was made off-limits to protesters on October 5 last year. Perhaps the most famous protest Boat Club ever hosted was led by Mahendra Singh Tikait, a Haryana farmer and leader of the Bharatiya Kisan Union, who had spearheaded a massive protest by peasants from Uttar Pradesh in 1988 in the sprawling laws facing the Raisina Hill the seat of the government. The crowd of protesting farmers with tractors and bullock-carts in tow, stretched nearly 3 km, between India Gate and Vijay Chowk that overlooks the iconic North and South Blocks. Former Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar, who held the post of a DCP here in 1988 when the farmers' rally was held, said the crowd was "unmanageable". "The crowd filled the space between the National Stadium and Vijay Chowk. And, there were several floating crowd too who would join in. The size of the crowd was humongous, and Rajpath was filled with protesters. A number of police officials were also injured," he told PTI. Kumar also was Delhi's police chief when the Nirbhaya gangrape incident took place in December 2012 triggering huge protests as the anger spilled on to streets from Jantar Mantar Road to Raisina Hill. "As DCP, I had the job of controlling the crowd in north-east Delhi on the border as the protesters streamed in from Uttar Pradesh. "During Nirbhaya protests too, we tried to manage the crowd that had tried to march up the Raisina Hill towards the Presidents' Estate. Boat Club is located close to the main government offices, so the crowd has to be properly managed," he said. Union minister and senior BJP leader Vijay Goel recalled the time when veteran politician Atal Bihari Vajpayee had addressed a rally at Boat Club. "The place (Boat Club) was a veritable resistance square, and mostly political rallies were held there. The view of open lawns facing the seat of the government was unusual and I still recall those days very vividly," he said. Goel said a huge crowd had gathered when Virat Hindu Sammelan was held at Boat Club. "It was vibrant spot for people to express dissent. But, after Ayodhya case the site was banned by the then government and Jantar Mantar took the place as the protest square," he said. Asked about the rally led by Tikait, Goel said: "The protesters - in such a large numbers - had made the government helpless." A former senior police official, on the condition of anonymity, said: "Tikait's rally was unprecedented in scale. Opening up Boat Club again would entail that crowd spillage. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The British high commission today explored the possibilities of enhancing business ties between his country and Rajasthan. In a meeting with Industries Minister Rajpal Singh Shekhawat, British Deputy High Commissioner GeoffWain expressed his wish to enhance the trade ties and said that the high commission would play a role of bridge between British companies willing to invest and the state government. A detailed discussion on possibilities of investment in areas like food processing, petrochemical, polyester yarn, textile, technology transfer, handicrafts and jewellery among others was held in the meeting here, according to a state government release. Wain informed that a team of trade experts would visit the state next month with some concrete proposals for investment. Shekhawat said the state has emerged as a preferred destination for investment where international companies like JCB and others are working. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Chhattisgarh High Court today disposed of a petition demanding investigation into the alleged purchase and encroachment of a "forest land" by a state minister's family in Mahasamund district. The petition, filed by Congress leader and former mayor of Raipur Kiranmayee Nayak and her husband Vinod Nayak, was disposed of by a division bench of Chief Justice Ajay Kumar Tripathi and Justice Prashant Mishra, the petitioners lawyer Satish Chandra Verma said. The public interest litigation had alleged that state Agriculture Minister Brijmohan Agrawal's wife and son had encroached on around 100 acres of land in Jalki village in Mahasamund and built a resort there, Verma said. The petitioners had alleged that of the encroached plot, several acres consisted of land given to the government by farmers through "daanpatra" (gift deed for public use). Despite a complaint being registered in this connection with the states Economic Offences Wing (EOW), no action was taken, the petition alleged. Later, Kiranmayee Nayak, who had contested and lost the 2013 Assembly polls against Agrawal from the Raipur South seat, and her husband filed a PIL, Verma said. Advocate General JK Gilda, who was representing the state, said that, during the hearing, he had presented an affidavit of the states EOW in which the probe agency had mentioned that it had registered a case based on Nayak's complaint. In view of the affidavit, the high court disposed of the petition, Gilda said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Centre today told the Supreme Court that it supported the petition opposing the practice of female genital mutilation in the Dawoodi Bohra Muslim community. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra agreed to hear on July 30 the plea filed by Delhi-based lawyer Sunita Tiwari and asked the parties to file their written submissions. The bench also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud asked the parties to advance arguments on the plea and on the aspect as to whether it can also be referred to a Constitution bench. "I am supporting the petitioner. They can begin their arguments on Monday," Attorney General K K Venugopal, appearing for the Centre, told the court. Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi said that he was seeking to intervene on behalf of some scholars and doctors who wanted to oppose the age-old practice of genital mutilation of minor girls in the community. Appearing for a Muslim group, senior advocate A M Singhvi had said during an earlier hearing that the matter be referred to a constitution bench as it pertained to the issue of essential practice of the religion which needed to be examined. He had said that the practice of female genital mutilation was a religious and customary practice and the courts should not intervene in this area. The apex court had on July 9 questioned the practice of female genital mutilation of minor girls in the Dawoodi Bohra Muslim community, saying it violates the bodily "integrity" of a girl child. The Attorney General had said that the practice causes irreparable harm to girl children and needed to be banned. He had also told the bench that countries like the USA, the United Kingdom, Australia and around 27 African countries have banned this practice. Earlier, the apex court had ordered Kerala and Telangana to be made parties to a PIL that has challenged the practice. It ordered that states like Kerala and Telangana, where Bohra Muslim community resides, should also be made parties to the litigation and issued notice to them as well. State of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Union Territory Delhi are already party to the case. The court had on May 8 agreed to examine the issues raised by Tiwari saying that the practice of female genital mutilation was "extremely important and sensitive". It had issued notices and sought replies from four Union ministries, including the Woman and Child Development, besides Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Delhi where Dawoodi Bohras, who are Shia Muslims, predominantly reside. Tiwari, in her plea, has sought a direction to the Centre and the states to "impose a complete ban on the inhuman practice" of 'khatna' or "female genital mutilation" (FGM) throughout the country. The plea has sought a direction to make FGM an offence on which law enforcement agencies can take cognisance on their own. It has also sought to make the offence "non-compoundable and non-bailable" with provision for harsh punishment. The ministries of Law and Justice, Social Justice and Empowerment have also been made parties to the plea which referred to various conventions of the United Nations, to which India is a signatory. The practice of female genital mutilation resulted in "serious violations of basic fundamental rights of the victims who in these cases are minors," the plea said. The FGM is performed "illegally upon girls (between five years and before she attains puberty)" and is against the "UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights of which is India is a signatory", the plea said, adding the practice caused "permanent disfiguration to the body of a girl child". "The practice of 'khatna' or 'FGM' or 'Khafd' also amounts to causing inequality between the sexes and constitutes discrimination against women. Since it is carried out on minors, it amounts to serious violation of the rights of children as even minors have a right of security of person, right to privacy, bodily integrity and the freedom from cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment," the plea said. "It is a ritual performed on every girl child within the Dawoodi Bohra religious community without any medical reason and does not have any reference in the Quran. "It violates the rights of the child and human rights. It also violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and is a crime in the Unites States of America under the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 and now a crime in Australia and some other countries as well," it claimed. "There is no law in India banning FGM or Khatna to declare it illegal," it added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram today secured interim protection from arrest from a trial court in the Aircel-Maxis case filed by the CBI but will have to wait till tomorrow to know the fate of his anticipatory bail plea before the Delhi High Court in the ED's money-laundering case related to INX Media. In a related development that came as a reprieve for Karti Chidambaram, the son of the former union minister, the Madras High Court quashed CBI's look out circular issued against him in the INX Media case. Separately, Karti, who wanted to visit the United Kingdom, France and America for personal reasons, including witnessing the US Grand Slam tournament, was allowed by the apex court to travel abroad from July 23-31. P Chidambaram had simultaneously moved the Delhi High Court and a trial court for seeking protection from arrest in the INX Media money laundering case and the Aircel-Maxis case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate(ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) respectively. While the Delhi High Court listed for tomorrow Chidambaram's anticipatory bail plea in the money-laundering case, a trial court granted interim protection from arrest to him in the Aircel-Maxis case. The anticipatory bail plea in the ED's case will be heard tomorrow by Justice A K Pathak. Karti, whose role is being investigated by the ED and the CBI in several cases, including the one relating to FIPB clearance to INX Media for receiving foreign funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore when his father was the finance minister, was earlier also allowed to go abroad. In his plea filed before the Delhi High Court, P Chidambaram said although no summons were ever been served to him by the ED in this case, he was apprehending arrest in view of the summons issued to him by the CBI, which is investigating the scheduled offence. The plea, filed through advocates Pramod Kumar Dubey and Arshdeep Singh, said during investigation of the ED's case, which has been going on for over a year, no summons has been issued to Chidambaram till date and no allegation has been levelled against him regarding evading the process of law or fleeing from the process of law or interfering with the investigation in any manner. "There is not even a slightest whisper about his tampering with any evidence or hampering/impeding the process of investigation," it said, while seeking relief. The plea said the senior Congress leader had already got protection from arrest in the CBI's case related to INX Media. In the Aircel-Maxis case lodged by the CBI, Special CBI Judge O P Saini asked the CBI to file a detailed reply to P Chidambaram's application and directed the agency not to take any coercive action against him till August 7. The former finance minister told the court that he had apprehensions that the CBI might arrest him in the case. "Nothing is preventing them (CBI) from arresting me (Chidambaram) in the case. I am apprehending arrest in the current matter. They can arrest me as a matter of law. I am made an accused for nothing, said senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for P Chidambaram. CBI had on July 19 filed a supplementary charge sheet against Chidambaram and his son Karti and 16 others before the trial court which has fixed it for consideration on July 31. The CBI is probing as to how Chidambaram, who was the Union finance minister in 2006, granted a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approval to a foreign firm, when only the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) was empowered to do it. The Congress leader's role has come under the scanner of probe agencies in the Rs 3,500-crore Aircel-Maxis deal and the INX Media case involving Rs 305 crore. It was during his tenure as the finance minister in the UPA-1 government that clearances from the FIPB were given to the two ventures, in which alleged irregularities have been found. In the INX Media case, the CBI had registered an FIR on May 15 last year, alleging irregularities in the FIPB clearance to the media group for receiving overseas funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during Chidambaram's tenure as the finance minister. Thereafter, the ED had last year lodged the money-laundering case in this regard. Both Chidambaram and Karti have denied the allegations levelled against them by the CBI and the ED. Chidambaram had already got protection from arrest from the high court in the CBI's case related to INX Media. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former Union minister P Chidambaram approached the Delhi High Court today, seeking anticipatory bail in the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) money-laundering case related to INX Media. The plea was mentioned before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar, which directed that it be listed before the judge concerned today itself. Justice A K Pathak is scheduled to hear the plea in the post-lunch session. The petition, filed through advocates Pramod Kumar Dubey and Arshdeep Singh, submitted that no role was attributed to the Congress leader in the FIR and he was apprehending arrest by the ED. The plea said the former Union finance minister had already got protection from arrest in the CBI's case related to INX Media. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had earlier told the court that Chidambaram was needed for custodial interrogation. The high court had earlier extended the interim protection against arrest granted to Chidambaram in the CBI case till August 1. The senior Congress leader's role had come under the scanner of the investigating agencies in the Rs 3,500-crore Aircel-Maxis deal and the INX Media case involving Rs 305 crore. It was during his tenure as the finance minister in the UPA-1 government that clearances from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) were given to the two ventures, in which alleged irregularities have been found. In the INX Media case, the CBI had registered an FIR on May 15 last year, alleging irregularities in the FIPB clearance to the media group for receiving overseas funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore in 2007 during Chidambaram's tenure as the finance minister. Thereafter, the ED had lodged a money-laundering case in this regard. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court today lifted a blanket ban on rallies and protests at the iconic Jantar Mantar and Boat Club areas, saying there could be no such "absolute" restriction as citizens have a fundamental right to hold peaceful demonstrations. It said that the right to protest "is crucial in a vibrant democracy like India but more so in the Indian context to aid in the assertion of the rights of the marginalised and poorly represented minorities". The top court asked the Centre and Delhi's Commissioner of Police to frame guidelines within two months for according sanctions to such events in the Jantar Mantar and Boat Club areas. The NGT had, on October 5 last year, banned all protests and dharnas around the historic Jantar Mantar here, which had been a hotspot of many agitations over the past decades, saying such activities violated environmental laws. The Centre, while justifying the permanent imposition of prohibitory orders in its affidavit, had referred to over a dozen instances when protests had turned violent and the police had to use teargas shells and water cannons to control the mobs at the Jantar Mantar and Boat Club areas. The Boat Club was made off limit for protestors way back in the early 90s. A bench of Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said fundamental rights provided in the Constitution allow the people of this country to assemble peacefully and protest against any action or decision taken by the government or other authorities that are not to their liking. "Undoubtedly, holding peaceful demonstrations by the citizenry in order to air its grievances and to ensure that these grievances are heard in the relevant quarters, is its fundamental right. This right is specifically enshrined under article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution of India," it said. The court said legitimate dissent is a distinguishable feature of any democracy and the question is not as to whether the issue raised by protestors is right or wrong or it is justified or unjustified. "The fundamental aspect is the right, which is conferred upon the affected people in a democracy to voice their grievances. Dissenters may be in minority. They have a right to express their views," the bench said. It said right to protest is crucial in a democracy, which rests on "participation of an informed citizenry in governance". "This right is also crucial since it strengthens representative democracy by enabling direct participation in public affairs where individuals and groups are able to express dissent and grievances, expose the flaws in governance and demand accountability from state authorities as well powerful entities," it said. The top court, however, clarified that the fundamental rights to freedom of speech and expression and to assemble are not "untrammeled and unlimited in their scope" and "reasonable restrictions can be imposed in the interests of sovereignty and integrity of India or public order". It said a certain degree of balance needs to be created between the right of protestors and residents of the localities, so that they are not unnecessarily harassed. "These dharnas, agitations and processions could be prohibited on certain occasions, for example, whenever some foreign dignitaries visit and pass through the said area or other such sensitive occasions," it said. The apex court said authorities can also ensure that protestors do not bring their "trucks/buses etc and park those vehicles in and around residential buildings". It said the purpose of holding such demonstrations and raising slogans is that they reach the persons concerned for whom these are meant, but it must be borne in mind that "we are living in an era of technology where a concerned voice by a group of persons can reach the right quarters by numerous means". "Electronic and print media play a pivotal role. Then, we have social media and various applications like WatsApp, Twitter, Instagram, which take no time in spreading such events," it said. The bench directed the Delhi Police Commissioner, in consultation with other agencies concerned, to devise a proper mechanism for limited use of the area for such purposes, but to ensure demonstrations are regulated in such a way that these do not cause disturbance to the residents of Jantar Mantar road or the offices situated there. "Detailed guidelines in this respect can be formulated. We may also clarify that a provision can be made for taking requisite prior permission from the Police Commissioner (or his delegated authority) for holding such demonstration by a particular group and while examining such proposals the parameters can be laid down which shall be looked into in order to decide whether the permission is to be granted or not," the court said in its 72-page-order. It directed Commissioner of Police, Delhi, to formulate such guidelines in two months from today. The court said there can be proper guidelines laying down the parameters under which permission can be granted in the Boat Club area. The bench said the proposed guidelines may include provisions for regulating numbers of persons, minimum distance from Parliament House, North and South Blocks, Supreme Court and residences of dignitaries. These may also include imposing restrictions on certain routes used by the prime minister, central ministers and judges, and not permitting any demonstrations when foreign dignitaries are visiting a particular place or pass through a particular route. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami today expressed grief over the death of four persons who were washed away while taking bath in the Cauvery and announced a solatium of Rs one lakh each to the bereaved families. Despite warnings issued by the district administration against venturing into the river, six people, including three women of a family, had gone for a bath in the river at Salem yesterday. All of them were washed away but one of them, a college student, was rescued by local people on the river bank. Four bodies have been retrieved while a search was on to locate another person, the chief minister said in a statement. Palaniswami urged people to exercise caution in the wake of water being released from the Mettur dam in Salem district. The chief minister said as part of precautionary measures in the wake of release of water from Mettur, due announcements were being made through various media asking people residing in Cauvery catchment areas, its path and low-lying areas of the dam, to move to safer zones. Aurthorities have urged that children not be allowed to enter the river when water is released from the reservoir, he said. "However, to ensure such incidents do not recur, people should use only designated spots to bathe in lakes and rivers," he said. He also nnounced Rs one lakh each as relief to the families of two persons from Madurai who drowned in a quarry lake on Sunday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The agitating Calcutta Medical College and Hospital(CMCH) students lifted their indefinite hunger strike on the 14th day today after a college council meeting decided to give in to their demands and accomodate senior students in two floors of the new 11-storied hostel. The college council meeting decided that students of second to fourth years will be alloted rooms in the two floors of the new hostel builing, a CMCH spokesman said. The indefinite fast was launched by six students of the premier institute, on July 10 and were joined by 15 others on July 19. The agitation was withdrawn at 2 pm this noon, he said. Three of the protesting students fell ill during the indefinite hunger strike and one of them had been admitted to the hospital. He was discharged today and the condition of the other two is stable. They were seen celebrating with their friends after the fast was withdrawn. Sayantan Mukuty, a student supporting the stir, said the authorities have assured to accomodate the senior students in the new hostel building soon and make public the list of the allotted seats. The strike over hostel rooms was launched after the authorities at the state-run college notified that the new 11-storey building would be allotted only to freshers and refused to relent to the requests of the senior students. The old hostel, the protesters alleged, was in a "dilapidated" condition and did not have sufficient space to accommodate all senior students. Today's college council meeting had been convened by the new officiating principal Ashok Bhadra and was attended by heads of departments and other officials. It decided that the modalities of allotment of seats in the new hostel building will be chalked out in consultation with the students soon. The Director of Medical (DME) Prof Debashis Bhattacharya and the college principal had appealed to the students to end the stir. The DME had in a statement yesterday assured the students that measures were being taken to improve and renovate the hostel rooms and requested them to withdraw the hunger strike. Bhadra took over as the officiating principal as his predecessor R Sinha resigned on July 20. Sinha himself had taken charge only on July 17 after former principal Uchhal Bhadra fell sick in his office during the students' agitation and was admitted to SSKM hospital. Several health organizations affiliated to Left parties held a convention yesterday infront of the administrative block of the medical college in support of the agitating students. Thespian Soumitra Chatterjee in an audio message on Sunday alleged that the administration was not sensitive to the condition of the protesters and said that the students "had to resort to fast to press for their rights is unfortunate. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The BJP today dismissed the questions raised by the Congress on the Rafale deal as a "collective singing of falsehood" to defend Rahul Gandhi, who, it said, was "prima facie guilty of breach of privilege for misleading" the Lok Sabha. Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad also cited replies made in Parliament by then UPA government on defence purchases and other issues in which its defence minister, first Pranab Mukherjee and then A K Antony, had declined to share price details and other information on the ground of national security. The UPA government's stand was right, Prasad said as he accused Gandhi of trying to wreak havoc on India's security for his political considerations. "The stand of the Congress on the Rafale deal is clearly not in the interest of the country," he told reporters. The Congress has been demanding that the government share details of the Rafale fighter aircraft price as it accused the Modi government of buying them at a much higher price than it was originally negotiated. Prasad asserted that the base price of each aircraft negotiated by the government with the French government is at 91.75 million Euro nine per cent less than the 100.85 million Euro the UPA government had decided upon. The government has been forthcoming in declaring the aircraft's price but details of operationally sensitive matter including India specific enhancement and logistics support package would end up disclosing the vital information about the Indian Air Force strength, the minister said. "As these sensitive matters overlap the price details, the previous government (UPA) on many earlier occasions did not disclose them on the floor of the House in public interest. This includes import of weapons from the USA and imports of defence items and missiles from Israel," he said. The BJP leader claimed that Congress leaders like former prime minister Manmohan Singh and Antony may understand the sensitivity involved with the deal but were "forced" to demand that the NDA government share details of the fighter aircraft, to defend Gandhi. "Dynastic parties are always a crowd around a family. That is true of the Congress. Since a member of the family has resorted to falsehood, the crowd around the family has no option but to collectively sing the tune of falsehood. This is what has happened today," he said. The UPA government was a "byword for corruption" and the Congress has been raking up a "manufactured" issue to create a smoke screen that others are also corrupt like it, Prasad alleged and rejected the Congress' threat of a breach of privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as an act of "misplaced bravado". The Congress had accused Modi and Sitharaman of misleading Parliament and the country on the Rafale pricing issue, claiming there is no clause in the 2008 pact between India and France that prevents the government from divulging price details of the aircraft. Prasad said this might have happened for the first in the world, not the least in India, than a foreign government denied a statement made on a domestic issue in Parliament. Following Gandhi's claim in the Lok Sabha that the French president had told him that there is no secrecy pact on the Rafale deal pricing with India, the French Embassy had said in a statement that a security agreement it concluded with India in 2008 legally binds the two countries to protect the classified information relating to operational capabilities of defence equipment. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Jammu and Kashmir unit of the Congress today claimed that the party has a bright chance to emerge as the largest alternative in the state due to "total disenchantment of the people" from erstwhile allies BJP and PDP. A spokesperson for the state Congress made the claim after a party leaders' meeting chaired by state president G A Mir, during which, he said, the party reviewed the overall political scenario in the state and devised its plan for the next assembly elections here. The meeting, attended by former ministers, former members of the Parliament and state legislature, besides the other prominent party leaders of the Jammu region, deliberated upon various aspects and issues to strengthen the party and to emerge stronger in future elections, the spokesperson said. He said the meeting reviewed the overall political scenario in the state and devised the future course of action to gear up the party's activities for the next democratic exercise in the state. Mir also apprised the state Congress leaders of the discussions in the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting in Delhi yesterday under the leadership of party president Rahul Gandhi. He also apprised the participants of the CWC's important decisions and the course of action to be taken by it for the future general elections to the Lok Sabha and the state assemblies, where ever they are due, the spokesman said. He said the meeting appealed to the party leaders and workers to rise to the occasion and stand unitedly against the communal, divisive and opportunist forces in the state and work for strengthening the party at grass root levels. The meeting also took stock of the organisational activities and the steps for intensifying them at all levels with an aim to meet the future challenges and emerge stronger and victorious in electoral exercises, the spokesman said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) International Copper Association (ICA) India has commenced a study on the "possible impact" on domestic industry of the closure of Vedanta's Sterlite Copper unit in Tamil Nadu. The state government in late May ordered permanent closure of the smelter after 13 people among protesters demanding its shutdown on environmental concerns were killed in police firing. "Vedanta's plant closure...will have a direct impact on supplies to the downstream and ancillary industry. We are conducting a study to assess the possible impact of closure," Sanjeev Ranjan, ICA India managing director told PTI. Billionaire Anil Agarwal-owned Vedanta unit is one of the three primary copper producers in the country, Ranjan said, adding that "of the total domestic refined copper usage amounting to 6,71,000 tonnes, Vedanta has a market share of 35 per cent". The study will be concluded by the end of next month, he said. The closure of the plant may lead to shortage of copper for the industries like consumer goods, electrical and electronics, automobile, Ranjan said. Of the overall copper usage in India, the electrical applications sector accounts for about 54 per cent, he said. The rise in demand for copper in India has grown by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5 per cent in 2006-2016. The downstream and ancillary industries which make finished products from semi-copper items is likely to be hit hard due to the closure. "The shortage may also lead to rise in imports of cathode and wire rods. Due to this the import cost will rise as copper industry will have to depend on imports of cathode and wire rods which has import duty of 5 per cent. The increased cost burden due to import duty will be passed on to the consumer by making the product costly." Ranjan said. On the other hand import of finished goods from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region comes under zero duty as per the Free Trade Agreement (FTA). This could lead to rise in imports of finished goods at the cost of domestic producers, he said. Besides, he added, there might be a rise in low grade copper from the secondary route. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A court here today granted protection from arrest till August 7 to former Union minister P Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis case filed by the CBI. Special CBI Judge O P Saini granted the relief to the Congress leader after a plea was moved by him in the morning, seeking anticipatory bail in the case. The court, meanwhile, granted three weeks to CBI to file a detailed reply to Chidambaram's application and directed the agency not to take any coercive action against him till that time. The former finance minister told the court that he had apprehensions that the CBI might arrest him in the case. "Nothing is preventing them (CBI) from arresting me (Chidambaram) in the case. I am apprehending arrest in the current matter. They can arrest me as a matter of law. I am made an accused for nothing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Chidambaram, said. He also told the court that the agency had only called Chidambaram for questioning in 2014 and since then he was not asked before it. The CBI opposed the application by saying it was not maintainable and that the Congress leader did not point out any evidence to show his apprehension of arrest. It further sought time to file detailed reply to the application after which the court adjourned the matter till August 7 with directions to the CBI. Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram were named in the charge sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the case on July 19. The agency had filed a supplementary charge sheet before the special judge, who had fixed it for consideration on July 31. The CBI is probing as to how Chidambaram, who was the Union finance minister in 2006, granted a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) approval to a foreign firm, when only the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) was empowered to do it. The senior Congress leader's role has come under the scanner of investigating agencies in the Rs 3,500-crore Aircel-Maxis deal and the INX Media case involving Rs 305 crore. In its charge sheet filed earlier in the case against former telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran, his brother Kalanithi Maran and others, the agency had alleged that Chidambaram had granted an FIPB approval in March, 2006 to Mauritius-based Global Communication Services Holdings Ltd, a subsidiary of Maxis. The Maran brothers and the other accused named in the CBI chargesheet were discharged by the special court, which had said the agency had failed to produce any material against them to proceed with the trial. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is also probing a separate money-laundering case in the Aircel-Maxis matter, in which Chidambaram and Karti have been questioned by the agency. Both Chidambaram and Karti have denied the allegations levelled against them by the CBI and the ED. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today told a Delhi court that it has enough evidence to prosecute former AgustaWestland and Finmeccanica directors Giuseppe Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, and others for alleged money laundering in the VVIP chopper case. Special Judge Arvind Kumar reserved for tomorrow the order on whether to take cognisance on the charge sheet filed by special public prosecutor N K Matta, and summon Orsi, Spagnolini and others as accused in the case. In the charge sheet, the ED said it had recorded unimpeachable evidence supporting the allegations against all the accused persons. The probe agency had on July 18 filed a supplementary charge sheet, through advocate Yashu Khurana, accusing Orsi, Spagnolini and ex-IAF chief S P Tyagi, besides others, of money laundering in the case. It accused 34 Indian and foreign individuals and companies, including Tyagi, Italian middlemen Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke, lawyer Gautam Khaitan and Finmeccanica, the parent company of AgustaWestland, of laundering money to the tune of around 28 million Euro. The probe report also claimed that the kickbacks were paid by AgustaWestland through two different channels. The ED, in its charge sheet, has alleged that money was laundered through multiple foreign companies, which were used as fronts to park the alleged kickbacks. The agency said it may file more supplementary charge sheets in the matter. On January 1, 2014, India scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of kickbacks of Rs 423 crore paid by it to secure the deal. The accused named in the charge sheet include Guido Haschke, Carlo Gerosa, S P Tyagi, his cousins Rajiv Tyagi and Sanjeev Tyagi, advocate Gautam Khaitan and his wife Ritu Khaitan, Shivani Saxena and her husband Rajeev Saxena, both directors of two Dubai-based firms, Besides, the final report also named various Indian and foreign firms, including Finmeccanica SPA, AgustaWestland, Aeromatrix Info Solution Ltd, Windsor Group Holdings, Ismax International Ltd, Cricklewood Ltd, Long Lasting Ltd, Matrix Holding Pvt Ltd, UHY Saxena, Dubai Interstellar Technologies Ltd, O P Khaitan and Co, International Mediterranean Consulting, Tunisia, Infotech Design Systems Gordian Services. "Khaitan, the mastermind behind laundering the proceeds of crime in the present case, was known to the accused persons Gerosa, Haschke and the Tyagi brothers. He prepared a corporate structure of companies and got incorporated several legal entities across the globe. "Thereafter, the proceeds of crime were laundered through various companies in Tunisia, Mauritius, India, BVI, Singapore, Switzerland, Dubai etc.," according to the charge sheet. It further claimed that Khaitan also received proceeds of crime in personal bank accounts opened in his name and the accounts of his companies in India and abroad, M/s Windsor Holding Group Ltd, M/s Ismax International Ltd and M/s O P Khaitan & Co. The ED had earlier attached properties worth Rs 10 crore and freezed shares worth more than Rs 150 crore belonging to the Tyagi brothers, Gautam Khaitan, Gerosa, Haschke, Christian Michel James and Rajiv Saxena. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The opposition Congress and the Left Front legislature party today staged a walkout from the West Bengal Assembly, after a request to admit an adjournment motion over the issue of extortion money for college admissions was turned down. As the speaker rejected the petition, MLAs of both the parties came down to the well and shouted slogans against the ruling Trinamool Congress government, and boycotted the House for the day. "The state government is trying to evade the issue and the leaders of the ruling party themselves are involved in the scam. The chief minister and the minister should come out with a statement," senior CPI(M) MLA Tanmay Bhattacharya said. Congress MLA Manoj Bhattacharya said the state government is trying to shield the culprits. Both the police and the state department have received complaints of irregularities, as several students and guardians alleged that money was demanded from them in lieu of admission in colleges. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had recently said that fees for admissions to colleges will have to be deposited though banks from next year, and that the merit list will be the only criteria for admissions. The Kolkata Police had posted a message on its Facebook page, urging students to inform the police if someone demands money for admission to colleges. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor-writer Simon Pegg believes the uniqueness of the Mission: Impossible" films lies in its lead star Tom Cruise's ability to deliver a real sense of danger through his death-defying stunts, an experience lacking in other CGI-filled Hollywood movies. Cruise broke his ankle while shooting for "Mission: Impossible - Fallout", the sixth film in the series. Pegg's Benji Dunn has become a trusted aide to Cruise's Ethan Hunt in the franchise, which started in 1996 though the British actor joined the series only in the third film. "It genuinely sort of weighs on Tom to deliver an authentic experience for the audience so that they feel the jeopardy and the peril. In this day and age, the easier it gets to create these sequences in a computer, the more important it is to actually do it because, otherwise, you will lose touch with the feeling that this is happening," Pegg told PTI in an interview. The actor believes the stunts put the viewers on the edge as they know what is happening in the film has actually taken place in reality. "When you watch these films, it's like watching fireworks. You kind of think that it's impressive and spectacular but also that there is no real danger. With Tom, it's like watching actual explosions where you might get hit by the shrapnel." Pegg, who has made a name for himself by writing and starring in films such as "Shaun of the Dead", "Hot Fuzz" and "The World's End", believes Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie have gone a step further with "Mission: Impossible - Fallout". "The stunt work and the action set pieces have been meticulously designed to occur in real life and Tom has become famous for doing his signature stunts in these movies, in which he genuinely puts himself in peril. That has only become more and more a part of each film. With this one, they've never been as crazy, as ambitious and thrilling." If Cruise's Hunt is the wild one, Pegg's Benji has come to be known for humour and as the ever-dependable tech guy. The actor believes the equation between Benji and Hunt has become better as he and Cruise have developed a friendship beyond the films. Tom and he have known for each other for 12 years and have developed a "sort of shorthand" that mirrors their real relationship. "When I joined the Mission Impossible film series, Tom was already Tom Cruise! And like Benji gets to work with Ethan Hunt, I got to work with Tom Cruise. "We joke about it even now because on one hand he is Tom Cruise, the actor, but on the other hand he is Tom Cruise, who has this mystique, this bizarre cloud of mystery. So, our relationship in real life is very much like Benji and Ethan and we kind of play on that a little bit," he says. The film, which was shot around the globe in destinations such as Paris, London, New Zealand and Abu Dhabi, was recently premiered in the French capital. A Paramount Pictures movie, "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" will be exclusively distributed in India by Viacom18 Motion Pictures. Also starring, Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Rebecca Ferguson, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Kirby, Michelle Monaghan and Alec Baldwin, the film releases on July 27. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tom Cruise's ankle injury on "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" came as a blessing in disguise for director Christopher McQuarrie, giving him a much needed break to figure out the film. McQuarrie, who is the only director to return for a "Mission: Impossible" film, said the injury of their lead star changed the entire shape of the production. "His injury was actually a life-saver. We had started the film without a finished script. You're always running up against a release date, so we were constantly feeling the pressure of trying to finish the film while we were trying to figure the film out. And when Tom broke his ankle, that just changed the entire shape of the production," McQuarrie told PTI in an interview. The director said they decided to start editing the film while they were still shooting and it helped them up the ante from the previous versions. "It allowed us to rewrite the screenplay, make a lot of discoveries along the way. That's what happens when you make these movies, you start with one idea and you're inspired to do other things. "So, that (the injury) actually worked to our benefit. Interestingly, it was after all of that, after we were finished with Tom and we were shooting all the other little bits of the movie that were left. We were right up against the clock till the very last minute. It was pretty intense," he said. The film, sixth in the long-running franchise, recently premiered in the French capital. A Paramount Pictures movie, "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" will be exclusively distributed in India by Viacom18 Motion Pictures. Also starring Simon Pegg, Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Rebecca Ferguson, Sean Harris, Angela Bassett, Vanessa Kirby, Michelle Monaghan and Alec Baldwin, the film releases this Friday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government today said the defence budget as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product may appear to be decreasing due to an increasing trend of GDP growth of the country. In the Union budget, the government had allocated Rs 2.95 lakh crore to defence forces which is estimated to be around 1.58 per cent of the country's GDP. A separate allocation of Rs 1.08 lakh crore was set aside for defence pensions. This defence budget, in terms of percentage of the GDP, was lowest since 1962. Replying to a question in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre said the defence budget, including allocation for miscellaneous expenditure and pensions, was Rs 4.04 lakh crore, which is 16.6 per cent of total expenditure of government for the year 2018- "Further, capital budget of ministry of Defence for 2018-19 is approximately 33 per cent of the total capital expenditure of the central government," Bhamre said He said, "Defence budget as a percentage of GDP may appear to be decreasing due to increasing trend in the growth of GDP."In March, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence, headed by BJP MP Maj Gen (retd) B C Khanduri, had come down hard on the government for inadequate allocation of funds to the Army, Navy and the Air Force. The Army had told the panel that it was reeling under severe financial crunch and struggling to even make emergency procurement when China and Pakistan were carrying out modernisation of their defence forces in "full swing". The then Vice Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Sarath Chand had told the parliamentary panel that inadequate allocation of funds in the defence budget for 2018-19 will hit the Army's modernisation plan even as the Chinese military was competing to reach the level of the US. In the Rajya Sabha, Bhamre said allocated budgetary resources are optimally utilised towards meeting the operational requirements of the armed forces. "Depending upon the allocated resources schemes are also reprioritised to ensure that urgent and critical capabilities are acquired without compromise of operational preparedness," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Defence industries have attracted a meagre USD 10,000 (about Rs seven lakh) foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2017-18, Parliament was informed today. In 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16 defence industries received USD 0.82 million, USD 0.08 million, USD 0.10 million foreign inflows, respectively. In 2016-17, the industries failed to attract foreign direct investments. Meanwhile, as many as six sectors, including coal production, ports, dye stuffs and coir industries, have failed to attract any foreign direct investments during the last financial year, according to the data shared by Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. The minister said that the government has put in place a liberal and transparent policy for FDI, wherein most of the sectors are open under the automatic approval route. "FDI is largely a matter of private business decisions and FDI inflows depend on a host of factors such as availability of natural resources, market size, infrastructure, and general investment climate as well as macroeconomic stability and investment decision of foreign investors," he said. India imports 70 per cent of its military hardware from different countries. Growth rate of foreign direct investment in India recorded a five-year low of 3 per cent at USD 44.85 billion in 2017-18. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A JD(U) member in the Rajya Sabha today demanded reduction in the GST rate on Haj pilgrimage. Raising the issue during special mention, Kahkashan Perween said Haj was an important pilgrimage for Muslims and many people save money for years to undertake this journey. Perween said the current GST rate on Haj pilgrimage was high at 18 per cent and it should be reduced to ease the burden on the people. B K Hari Prasad (Congress) expressed concern over the country signing certain agreements with the United States, saying these compromised the sovereignty of the country. V K Maitreyan (AIADMK) sought speeding up of the doubling work on the railway line between Thanjavur and Villupuram section in Tiruchirapalli division of southern railway in Tamil Nadu. JD(U) member Ram Nath Thakur said the work relating to the new railway line between Samastipur and Bhagwanpur should be expedited. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor-director Dhanush will be travelling to Melbourne for the premiere of his film "The Extraordinary Journey of Fakir" at Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM). The film, directed by Ken Scott, is an Indo- French co-production which is based on the international bestseller by Romain Puertolas, "The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir Who Got Trapped in an Ikea Wardrobe". "Really excited to showcase the film for all my Australian fans," Dhanush said in a statement. The story revolves around the life of Ajatashatru Lavash Patel, played by Dhanush, a charming charlatan from Mumbai, who embarks on an extraordinary journey in search of a father he never knew. As he travels form India to France, UK, Spain, Italy and Libya, what was supposed to be a simple journey to Paris turns into a veritable odyssey. The film also features acclaimed actors Berenice Bejo, Erin Moriarty and Barkhad Abdi. While French composer Nicolas Errera has composed the film's music, Amit Trivedi has contributed three songs to the soundtrack. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bangladesh's High Court today directed a lower court to hear and dispose of a bail petition filed by former prime minister and opposition BNP chief Khaleda Zia by July 26 in an arson case in which she is named as an accused, according to a media report. Eight people were killed and 20 others were injured when unknown assailants hurled a petrol bomb at the bus in Comilla's Chouddagram upazila on February 2, 2015, during anti-government agitation. The court bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice SM Mozibur Rahman passed the order following a petition filed by the 72-year-old three-time former premier seeking bail in the case. Khaleda's lawyers filed a bail petition with the High Court. "The High Court ordered them to settle the bail petition by Thursday, the order will be reviewed by the High Court next Sunday," said Zainul Abedin. The arson case lodged under the Special Tribunal Act in 2015. Two separate cases - one for murder, the other under the Explosives Act - were filed over the incident under the Special Powers Act, 1974 with Chouddagram Police Station. A warrant was issued for Khaleda's arrest after police filed the charges in the two cases. As the BNP chief had been in prison since being sentenced to five years in jail in the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case on February 8, police had promptly "shown her arrested". The bail of the opposition leader in the Zia Charitable Trust graft case has been extended at least five times since March. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has proposed to establish its subsidiary company to strengthen last-mile connectivity in the national capital, the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has told a parliamentary panel. The ministry said 52 new metro feeder routes have been identified in five different zones -- central, east, west, north and south -- where last mile connectivity would be provided using air-conditioned or CNG buses with a frequency of five minutes. According to an action taken report on the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Urban Development, which was today tabled in Parliament, the government has told the panel that DMRC has planned to introduce 530 AC buses as a cluster service on gross cost model for providing feeder service in Delhi. "In order to strengthen the last mile connectivity, a wholly owned subsidiary company of DMRC is proposed to be established by DMRC," the ministry told the committee. It said other metro companies are also planning to introduce feeder service with the help of state transport corporations in order to provide last-mile connectivity. Metro rail policy, 2017, mandates provision of multi-model integration and first and last-mile connectivity in the detailed project report of new metro proposals. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Doctors and nurses of a government hospital here were allegedly assaulted by some attendants of a patient after his death, officials said today. Butta Singh (58), a critically ill patient suffering from bilateral extensive disease and respiratory failure, died at the hospital last evening following which some of his attendants allegedly assaulted a doctor and some nurses besides smashing a window screen and damaging the hospital property, they said. The doctors and paramedical staff, including nurses, staged a peaceful demonstration here this morning against the hospital administration for its failure to provide secure atmosphere to them. A police official said an FIR was registered in connection with the incident but no one was arrested so far. The protesters, however, resumed their duties after the hospital administration and senior police officials visited them and assured that a case already stands registered and appropriate measures would be taken to avoid such incidents in future. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An employee, who is not in employment for a month, may be allowed to avail off 75 per cent of the total fund standing to his credit, Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar said on Monday. Gangwar said in Lok Sabha that the Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of the Employees' Prvident Fund (EPF), in its 222nd meeting on June 26, had considered a proposal for insertion of paragraph 68HH in EPF Scheme 1952. This will enable a member of EPF, who is no longer in employment for a continous period of one month, to avail 75 per cent of the total fund standing to his or her credit, he said during Question Hour. The minister said the Employees' Provident Funds Scheme, 1952, enables a member to withdraw the full amount standing to his credit in the fund on ceasing to be an employee in an establishment for a continuous period of two months immediately proceeding the date on which he makes an application for withdrawal. The requirement of the two-month waiting period will not, however, apply in cases of female members resigning from the services of the establishment for the purpose of getting married, he said. (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.) Environmental clearance to the public sector construction firm NBCC for the re-development of three south Delhi colonies was given "subject to stipulation" of various environmental safeguards, the Rajya Sabha was told today. Minister of State for Mahesh Sharma in a written reply in Rajya Sabha said environmental clearances are given with specific stringent conditions. The Minister also said permission for cutting or felling of trees is under the jurisdiction of State Forest Department and NOC or permission before felling of trees is required to be obtained from them under the Delhi Preservation of Trees Act, 1994. "The Ministry accords prior environmental clearance for projects or activities listed in the Schedule to the Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification, 2006 (and its amendments) after having followed the prescribed process in the said notification. "The Ministry after having followed the prescribed process in the EIA Notification, 2006 has granted environmental clearance to the re-development of general pool residential colonies at Netaji Nagar, Nauroji Nagar and Sarojini Nagar in favour of M/s NBCC India Limited, subject to stipulation of various environmental safeguards in terms of the provisions of the EIA Notification, 2006, under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986," Sharma said. He was asked whether the Ministry has given Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) clearance for project of redevelopment of Netaji Nagar, Nauroji Nagar and Sarojini Nagar being developed by the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC). He said environmental clearances are granted with specific stringent conditions which are both project specific and general in nature as well as mitigative measures in accordance with the Environment Management Plan Report, prepared on the basis of the study and are to be complied with by the project proponents. "The compliance of these conditions is strictly assessed, evaluated and monitored by the concerned authorities at the state and central level," he said. In order to protect the environment, different conditions were stipulated in the environmental clearances issued to these projects. "They include project proponent shall obtain all necessary clearance or permission from all relevant agencies including town planning authority before commencement of work. All the construction shall be done in accordance with the local building byelaws. "The project proponent shall obtain necessary clearance or permission from concerned authority before felling any tree. The project proponent should comply with the directions given by the National Green Tribunal vide its Order dated 4th September, 2017 in the matter of OA No. 553 of 2016 and Order dated 22nd September, 2017 in the matter of MA No. 1154 of 2017 in OA No. 553 of 2016," the minister said. He added it also includes a minimum of one tree for every 80 sqm of land should be planted and maintained and the existing trees will be counted for this purpose. "Preference should be given to planting native species. Where the trees need to be cut, compensatory plantation in the ratio of 1:10 (i.e., planting of 10 trees for every 1 tree that is cut) shall be done and maintained in compliance with the directions given by the National Green Tribunal vide its Order dated 4th September, 2017 in the matter of OA No. 553 of 2016," he added. Asked about the area-wise, exact number of trees for which permission of cutting was granted and whether the Ministry conducted audit of the saplings planted in compensation of such cutting of trees and its findings, the Minister said "Permission for cutting/felling of trees is under the jurisdiction of State Forest Department and permission before felling of trees is required to be obtained from them under the Delhi Preservation of Trees Act, 1994,". On Monday, the NGT has extended till July 27 its order to maintain status quo on tree felling in seven south Delhi colonies by the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry and the NBCC. The tribunal was hearing a plea by an NGO and others for seeking a stay on the proposed felling of more than 16,000 trees for re-development of the colonies. The petitioners claimed that environmental clearance has been granted for seven general pool residential colonies without taking into account the possible adverse effect on the ecology. The petition said clearance had been granted for colonies in Sarojini Nagar, Netaji Nagar, Nauroji Nagar through the NBCC and in Kasturba Nagar, Thyagraj Nagar, Srinivaspuri and Mohammadpur through the CPWD. In a related development, the Delhi government on July 6 had revoked its permission given to the NBCC for felling trees for its colony redevelopment projects in South Delhi. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Pollution Control Authority told the Supreme Court today that vehicles running on hydrogen and CNG mixed fuel and having colour-coded stickers to identify polluting automobiles would help in tackling air pollution. The EPCA told a bench comprising justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta that colour-coded stickers, as used in Paris, would be more effective then having "odd-even" vehicle rotation scheme in Delhi and it would also help in identifying older vehicles. Advocate Aparajita Singh, assisting the court as an amicus curiae, said there should be different coloured stickers for petrol and diesel vehicles according to the EPCA suggestions. The counsel appearing for Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) termed this a "good idea" and said even the Centre has proposed to issue green number plates for electric vehicles. Asked by the bench about the cost of having these stickers and the agency responsible for implementing the project, EPCA said it would hold deliberations with the concerned authorities and would get back to the court. "We have problem with diesel vehicles and if the colour-coded stickers would be there, it would help in identifying the polluting vehicles," the amicus curiae said. Regarding hydrogen and CNG mixed fuel, the amicus curiae said that it was a cleaner fuel compared to CNG, and Indian Oil Corporation has the conversion machine for this. "We already have CNG network in the city and if we bring the mixture of hydrogen and CNG, it would be much better," EPCA said. SIAM's counsel told the court that bus manufacturers would work on having buses running on mixture of hydrogen and CNG fuel. The bench asked the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas as well as Indian Oil Corporation to respond to the EPCA suggestions. The bench had suggested that the possibility of using hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles, which are of hybrid nature and considered cost-effective compared to CNG or electric vehicles, should also be explored. The amicus curiae had told the bench that the use of colour-coded system would help in having graded fuel for vehicles depending upon the pollution emitted. The petition has raised the issue of air pollution in Delhi-NCR. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today skipped the annual puja at the Lord Vitthal Temple in Pandharpur town due to protest threats by Marathas and instead performed rituals at his home here. Fadnavis performed the puja at his home around 4 am. As part of a long-standing tradition, the sitting chief minister every year offers prayers at the temple dedicated to Lord Vitthal and Rukmini at Pandharpur in Solapur district, located around 400 km from here, on the occasion of 'Ashadhi Ekadashi'. The auspicious day of performing the puja is decided as per the lunar calendar and this year it falls today. After the chief minister performs the puja, every one else gets an entry into the temple and prayers continue for the next few months. Later, a similar puja is performed by the deputy chief minister or the second in rank in the state cabinet on the occasion of 'Kartik Ekadashi'. Some Maratha community leaders had threatened to disrupt Fadnavis' visit to Pandharpur today if their demands, including reservation in government jobs and education, are not accepted. In view of the protest threats, Fadnavis, who had been performing the puja at the temple for last three years, yesterday cancelled his visit. Explaining the reason for calling off his visit,Fadnavis had said he feared for the lives of nearly 10 lakh people expected to be at the temple town in Solapur today on the occasion of 'Ashadhi Ekadashi'. He said if throwing stones at him can get the reservation for the Maratha community, he was ready for it and that he took the decision of not offering prayers at the temple to avoid any law and order problem. Meanwhile, in Pandharpur, a farmer couple from Hingoli district performed the traditional puja along with senior state cabinet ministers and Solapur district guardian minister Vijay Deshmukh in the temple's sanctum sanctorum. A pro-quota leader of the community had announced some days back in Pandharpur that if Fadnavis visits the temple town today, "they will hold a massive protest there and disrupt the puja". Fadnavis had said such a move was a shame for a "progressive" state like Maharashtra. He also said that only the court can take a decision on the issue of grant of reservation to the Maratha community. Maratha community leaders had earlier taken out several rallies in various districts to highlight their demands. Last year, a huge rally was organised in this connection in Mumbai. Despite assurances from Fadnavis to fulfil the demands, nothing concrete has been done till now, community leaders have claimed. Ekadashi marks the culmination of a pilgrimage, called 'waari', that devotees undertake from across the state on foot to reach the temple town in western Maharashtra. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bombay High Court expressed annoyance today over the non-functioning of the Debts Recovery Tribunal (DRT), whose premises here were closed following a fire over a month ago, and sought to know "if the finance minister of the country was sleeping" over the shutdown of a key body. The court said while Mumbai was considered the financial capital of the country, the city-based DRT, which dealt with debt-recovery cases involving banks, financial institutions and their customers, was non-functional for over a month. A division bench of justices A S Oka and Riyaz Chagla made the critical remarks while hearing a petition filed by the Debts Recovery Tribunal Bar Association, seeking a direction to the Union government to allot another space for the tribunal's office in south Mumbai. The DRT, located in the Scindia House building at Ballard Estate in south Mumbai, has been non-functional since a fire broke in the building on June 2. The court sought to know from the Union government by when it would identify an alternative place for the tribunal. "The government should be doing all this on their own, instead of the issue coming before us and the court passing orders," Justice Oka observed. "In the financial capital of the country, the Debts Recovery Tribunal is not functioning...Is the finance minister sleeping?" Justice Oka said. The court posted the petition for further hearing on July 25 and asked the Centre to identify another place to house the tribunal by then. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi High Court today granted interim protection from arrest to parents of the husband of a woman flight attendant, who had allegedly committed suicide in the national capital earlier this month. Justice Mukta Gupta also issued notice to the Delhi Police on a plea of the husband's parents seeking anticipatory bail and sought a status report in the matter. The court listed the matter for further hearing on August 2, while granting interim protection to Sushma Singhvi and R S Singhvi, parents of Mayank Singhvi, who is in judicial custody in the death case of his wife Anissia Batra (39) till the next date of hearing. A trial court had on July 20 refused to grant protection from arrest to Mayank's parents after the counsel for the woman's parents has submitted that the allegations against them were serious. Anissia, who was working with a German airline, had allegedly jumped from the terrace of her house in Panchsheel Park in South Delhi on July 13 and Mayank had taken her to a nearby hospital, where she was declared brought dead. Her family has alleged that her husband used to physically abuse her and often demand money from the victim. The family have claimed before the trial court that it was not a suicide, but murder. On the other hand, Mayank's parents have sought anticipatory bail claiming that they had no role in the matter and any dispute between their son and daughter-in-law was their internal matter. Mayank, who was married to Anissia for over two years, was arrested on July 16. Before jumping off the terrace, she had sent a message to her husband that she would kill herself, police had said earlier. The husband, a software engineer in Gurgaon, had told the police that they had regular fights due to "compatibility issues". They had an argument on the day of incident as well, following which she jumped from the terrace, police had said. The victim's family had also given a complaint to police on June 27 saying that if anything happens to their daughter, Mayank would be responsible, police had said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar today said the issue of formalin-laced fish was affecting the tourism industry in the state. Speaking in the state assembly, he noted that tourists have stopped eating fish during their stay in the coastal state. The chief minister asked the House to support the government in taking steps to resolve the matter so that the state does not get a "bad name". Parrikar was replying to a calling attention motion moved by BJP legislator Nilesh Cabral and Congress MLA Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco, over the fear and anxiety among people after traces of formalin were found in fish brought to Goa from other states. A toxic chemical, formalin is used to preserve bodies and prevent its decay in mortuaries. "The irresponsible statements made on the issue of presence of formalin in fish have already started showing the impact on the tourism industry. I was told by the tourism industry that tourists have already stopped eating fish during their stay in Goa," the chief minister said. The Opposition Congress has been disrupting proceedings of the House since last week over the issue. The House also witnessed din today as the opposition pressed for an adjournment motion on the issue. Parrikar said fish prices have soared since the government banned its import. He read out a list of the various fish sold in the state and their current market prices. Responding to a demand for a ban on export of fish from Goa, the chief minister said all the stock harvested in the state is not consumed locally. "There are several varieties of fish that are netted off the Goa coast but not consumed by locals. Those varieties are exported," he said. Around 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes of fish harvested locally or brought in from neighbouring states is exported from the Mormugao Port Trust, he said. The chief minister said banning the import or export of fish will not provide a solution for the polluted stock. "Let us not get a bad name on this issue, we are getting a bad name on many other matters," he said. "Fish, being the staple food of Goans, and the issue on hand having a direct bearing on the health of Goans, I would urge all members of the House to refrain from politicising the issue. I request all to support the government on the action taken and proposed to be taken for addressing the issue," Parrikar said. The government has utmost concern for the health of the people, he said. To remove the fear and confusion from the minds of Goans, the government has imposed a ban on the storage, distribution or sale of fresh fish brought from outside the state for a 15-day period from July 18, he said. Since the enforcement of the ban, the police, in association with the transport department, prevented the entry of nine fish trucks from outside the state at the border check post, he told the House. "The government is ready to consider extending the ban for a further period in the interest of the health of Goans if the prevailing circumstances warrant the same," he said. As and when the ban is lifted, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) along with the Directorate of Fisheries and police shall continue to monitor the quality of fish through routine and periodic inspections at the major markets of Margao, Panaji and Mapusa, he said. This would be done to build confidence among Goans about the quality of fish available in markets, the chief minister added. The government had last week banned the import of fish from outside Goa till the end of this month to ensure formalin-laced fish do not land in the state. The move came after the Goa FDA confirmed the presence of the organic compound in fish imported from other states. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Girls of a government-funded shelter home here have alleged that one of their fellow inmates was beaten to death and buried at the premises of the facility, and several were raped. Following the allegations, the Bihar Police has launched a probe and dug up the grounds of the shelter home, but are yet to find the body. Muzaffarpur SSP Harpreet Kaur said, "We are carrying out the excavation based on the statement given by one of the girls. The spot has been identified by her." More than 40 girls are lodged at the shelter home and medical reports suggest that more than half of them may have had sexual intercourse at some point of time, she said. The SSP said, "Nothing noteworthy has so far been found from the site during the excavation. However, the area of excavation might be enlarged after further examination of the girl who made the allegation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three ministers of the Goa government are indisposed and are not attending the Assembly Session which got underway here on July 19. Questions in the House related to these ministries would be answered by Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, sources said. While Power Minister Pandurang Madkaikar is in a Mumbai hospital since last month, Urban Development minister Francis D'Souza too is in Mumbai for a health check-up and Transport Minister Sudin Dhavalikar has also told the Speaker that he would be unavailable for a few days. "D'Souza has informed the Speaker that he will be on leave and will not be attending the session till July 30. He has gone to Mumbai for follow-up medical treatment," a senior official from the Legislature department told PTI. D'Souza is a BJP legislator from Mapusa constituency in North Goa. Dhavalikar, who was admitted to a hospital in Mumbai on July 9 and was discharged on July 18, has informed the Speaker that he would not be coming to the House for a few days, the official said. Madkaikar is in hospital since the first week of June after suffering a brain stroke while on a visit to Mumbai. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government today set up a Group of Ministers (GoM) under Home Minister Rajnath Singh and a panel headed by the Home Secretary to deal with the growing number of lynching incidents. The move came days after the Supreme Court asked the government to enact a law to deal with such incidents, terming them as "horrendous acts of mobocracy". In an impromptu intervention at the end of the day's sitting, Home Minister Singh told the Lok Sabha that the panel will give its report in 15 days. The panel headed by Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba will suggest measures and legal framework to effectively deal with incidents of mob violence and lynching. The panel will submit its recommendations to the GoM, which will submit them to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On Friday, a 28-year-old man was beaten to death on suspicion of cow smuggling at Alwar in Rajasthan. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Centre is keen to resolve the ongoing agitation at the Manipur University as early as possible and has set up a fact-finding committee, which will submit its report within a month, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said today. Javadekar said in the Lok Sabha that the central government had sent a team of officers to Imphal where they held discussions with students and teachers. "They came back and reported that the matter will be resolved very soon. Unfortunately, it did not happen like that. "Therefore, we have, now, appointed a fact-finding committee under the chairmanship of an ex-Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court, Justice Nandakumar. That Committee has been given only one month's time," he said during the Question Hour. The minister said the committee has started functioning and it will ensure a dialogue with everybody. "We want to arrive at a peaceful solution at the earliest," he said. When Congress member Thokchom Meinya pointed out that the students have been demanding the removal of the vice-chancellor of the Manipur University, Javadekar said the issue is not just about removing him, but about settling the dispute, if any. "Therefore, what we have said is that if students have any genuine demand about infrastructure, repairing, etc., that can be addressed immediately. "If they want improvement in functioning, that is also welcomed. Therefore, an all-round dialogue will happen with the committee," he said. BJP member Prahlad Singh Patel alleged that there has been turmoil in the university for a long time and it has been a "den of undergrounds". The minister avoided a direct reply, but said he has discussed the Manipur University issue with Chief Minister N Biren Singh and requested him to prevail upon and talk to all concerned, and ensure that a solution is arrived at the earliest. "He (chief minister) has also assured me that he will make all efforts and will solve the issue at the earliest," he said. The students of the Manipur University, a central university, have been demanding the vice-chancellor's resignation over multiple allegations of administrative negligence and misuse of varsity funds. There have been reports of violence in the university campus and the state government had last week even suspended all telecom services except voice calls for five days in the wake of escalating protests. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a fresh offensive, the Congress today accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of "lying" in Parliament on the Rafale deal, saying there was no secrecy clause in the 2008 Indo-French pact that binds the government from revealing price details of the fighter aircraft. The Congress is likely to raise the heat on the government on the issue and may move a privilege motion against PM Modi and Sitharaman for "misleading" the Lok Sabha. Days after Congress President Rahul Gandhi forcefully attacked the government in Parliament on the Rafale deal, the party fielded three of its top leaders -- former defence minister A K Antony, Anand Sharma and Randeep Surjewala -- who demanded the Modi dispensation must reveal the price details of the aircraft. The leaders also released a copy of the confidential agreement the UPA government had signed with France in January 2008, to drive home the point that it does not restrict India from revealing the price details of the Rafale deal. They also indicated that Congress may bring a privilege motion against the PM and Sitharaman. According to copy of the agreement released by Congress, both French and Indian governments, in accordance with their national laws, shall take all measures necessary for the protection of classified information and material provided to them under it or in accordance with agreements, contracts or sub-contracts concluded between or by the two sides or by their authorised agencies. In his address during the debate on the no-confidence motion against the government on Friday, Gandhi had said that French President Emmanuel Macron had told him during a meeting that there was no secrecy pact that forces India from revealing price details of the Rafale aircraft. After Gandhi's remarks, the French Foreign Ministry had said France had signed a security pact with India in 2008 which legally binds the two countries to protect the classified information which could impact security and operational capabilities of the defence equipment. In his reply to the motion, Modi asked Gandhi to not make such "childish" allegations on such sensitive issues. In today's press conference, Antony said the government's claim that a secrecy clause in the pact was forcing it to not reveal price details of the deal was "totally wrong". Antony also said the government cannot hide the price details of the Rafale jets as the deal has to be scrutinised by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) as well as the Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC). "They must reveal the price details of the aircraft and they must also tell us why a company was selected as offset partner which has no experience manufacturing aircraft," said Antony, alleging the private player has benefited by crores. Addressing the joint press conference, his colleague Anand Sharma said, "The French government had no objection in revealing the price of the Rafale aircraft. This was conveyed by the French president to Rahul Gandhi during a meeting in which I was present along with the former prime minister." Sharma also said France never had any reservation or any issue about the disclosure of the price of the aircraft which under the French law is mandatory. "It is a sad day that they are not respecting even the Constitution of the country by telling that they cannot disclose and brazenly misleading the Parliament. Under the French law, annual mandatory filing is there even by the companies concerned," he said. "I have no hesitation to say that, going by the record of this Government, the contradictory statements and denials, this is definitely a scam," he said. "The prime minister is equally accountable. He is equally responsible. He too enthusiastically repeated the lie and misled the House and misled the people of the country. I am sure since this was in the Lok Sabha, it shall be appropriately taken forward," he said. On Rahul Gandhi's meeting with the French president, Sharma said, "What the French president had said in the interview and in the meeting, is the truth that the French government has no objection, no reservation and no hesitation to reveal the price or to make it public." Surjewala said this is a clear cut denigration of the faith that the Parliament reposes in both the prime minister and the defence minister. "It is a clear cut case of misleading the Nation and the Parliament. That issue relates to Lok Sabha and the leader of the Congress Party in Lok Sabha will soon be taking a call," he said. According to the Congress leaders, the prime minister "sought to hide behind a cloak of pseudo-nationalism in the Rafale deal" during the debate on the 'no-confidence motion' against the government in Parliament on July 20. "Shoddy cover-up, self-defeating assertions and deliberate lies are being dished out to divert, dupe and deceive. Grave apprehensions and claims of insurmountable loss being caused to public exchequer stand exposed as government refuses to state the truth," the statement said. The Congress has been ramping up attack on the government over the Rafale issue, claiming that the deal negotiated under its rule was much cheaper then the contract signed by the Modi government to procure 36 Rafale fighter jets from France at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore. The Congress had claimed that the per aircraft price under the deal inked by the NDA came to Rs 1,600 crore as against the Rs 520 crore negotiated during the UPA. The deal negotiated by the UPA could not be finalised by it. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Opposition Congress leader Anand Sharma today accused the government of misusing central agencies like the CBI and the ED to settle political scores, leading to an atmosphere of "distrust, fear and terror" in the country. Raising the issue through a zero hour mention, he said parallel FIRs and multiple cases for the same alleged offence are being registered by the CBI, the DRI and the ED. "They (agencies) are not instruments to be abused by the government for targeted political vendetta," he said. Sharma said a distinction needs to be drawn between bonafide decision and actions of corruption. He went on to allege that investigating agencies were trying to "extract" confessions to implicate certain people. He, however, did not cite any specific case. This led to protests from treasury benches with Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel stating that Sharma was trying to demoralise investigating agencies. Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said legal avenues were available and why was Sharma demoralising agencies. Sharma said if parallel FIRs for the same alleged offence was an oversight, why was the government silent. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Gujarat has asked the 15th Finance Commission to increase devolution of central tax revenues to states to over 50 per cent, from 42 per cent at present. The Commission, led by N K Singh, felt that the state has made rapid progress in key macro economic parameters, but GST remains one of the big challenges. The state government, on its part, has urges the Commission to increase devolution to over 50 per cent, expand the net divisible pool, and suggested an alternative formula for devolution based on urbanisation and social deprivation, an official statement said. Gujarat is improving its expenditure in health and education areas which deserve fuller attention over the coming years, Singh mentioned. "Gujarat has shown the lead in achieving more balanced development among primary, secondary and tertiary sectors," he said. Of the challenges being faced by Gujarat GST collections. "Once the 14 per cent guarantee as GST compensation by the union Government winds up, Gujarat will need to look at the GST collection projections seriously and tax buoyancy may become an issue," the statement added. The other challenge relate to how to restructure National Disaster Relief Fund considering Gujarat is prone to various kinds of natural disasters. The 15th Finance Commission is on a three-day visit to Gujarat. The other members of the Commission include Shaktikanta Das, Anoop Singh, Ashok Lahiri and Ramesh Chand. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three teenage gunmen today stormed the governor's headquarters in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, opening fire and killing one employee before being shot dead, officials said. Initial reports said two gunmen had stormed the building in Erbil in the early morning, shooting and wounding a policeman. But as the day unfolded, the toll rose to one employee killed and several members of the security forces wounded as Kurdish security forces exchanged fire with the attackers, officials said. "An employee was killed in the assault on the provincial headquarters," Erbil governor Nawzad Hadi told a conference. The Kurdish autonomous region's deputy police chief Farhad Mohammed said "several members of the security forces were wounded", but did not give a specific toll. Mohammed said the three gunmen had been "neutralised" after a four-hour exchange of fire with Kurdish security forces. He described the assault as a "terrorist" attack but stopped short of blaming any particular group. The anti-terrorism squad in Kurdistan said in a statement that two of the gunmen were aged 16 and the third was 18, all of them from Erbil. An AFP correspondent near the building said he heard heavy gunfire and a loud explosion, probably from a hand grenade. Deputy governor Taher Abdullah had earlier said that Kurdish security forces known as the Asayish had set up a security cordon and were searching the building for the assailants. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack in the usually secure Kurdish regional capital, and the assailants' motives were unclear. The Islamic State jihadist group claimed a deadly attack on the interior ministry in Erbil in 2015. The previous year the group was blamed for a suicide bombing that killed at least four people outside the Erbil Provincial Council Building. Kurdish peshmerga fighters took part in the battle against IS after it seized nearly a third of Iraq in a lightning 2014 offensive. Baghdad declared victory over the group in December but the jihadists still hold pockets of territory and continue to carry out deadly attacks. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Five more airports have done away with the practise of stamping and tagging passengers' hand baggages, a senior CISF official said today. With this, a total of 42 airports in the country out of the total 60 under the CISF security cover are now tag-free. The airports at Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh), Raipur (Chhattisgarh), Jorhat (Assam), Dimapur (Nagaland) and Shillong (Meghalaya) have recently been included under the hand baggage tags-free security regime that was initiated by the CISF last year, the official said. The new travel regime for air passengers was launched in April last year by the federal civil airports guarding force in consultation with the Civil Aviation Ministry and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS). In order to create this new system, security arrangements are upgraded with the deployment of smart cameras and re-positioning of security paraphernalia in the airport terminal area. These five airports got these arrangements done recently, he said. The operators of these airports were asked to increase the length of the output roller of the x-ray machine so that the hand bags were checked easily, the official added. CISF Director General Rajesh Ranjan had recently told PTI that the force was working to bring all the 60 airports under the hand baggage tags-free regime by the year end. The old stamping of hand baggage procedure was a major irritant for passengers and they had made many complaints in this regard to airport authorities saying the system poses hassles for them as it consumes time and in case they forget to get it tagged, security personnel would ask them to go back and get it done. By having the stamped tags on the hand baggage, the security personnel were assured that no weapon or ammunition-like material enters the aircraft, the official said. It also pin points the accountability of the security personnel who clears the baggage. All these procedures have now been replaced by smart gadgets and hence the procedure to tag and stamp the bags has been done away with, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Kerala High Court today granted bail to a Christian priest arrested for allegedly abusing a married woman in Pathanamthitta district. Johnson V Mathew, a counsellor of the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, was arrested from Kozhencherry in the district on July 13. He was charged under Section 354 (outraging modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code. Johnson Mathew, the third accused in the rape case, involving three more priests of the church, moved the high court seeking bail after a magistrate court in Thiruvalla had turned down his plea. Granting bail, Justice Rajavijayaraghavan directed the priest to surrender his passport, cooperate in the investigation and not to enter the limits of the police station where the victim resides. The Crime Branch probing the case had earlier arrested Job Mathew, the vicar of a local church. He had surrendered after the high court dismissed his anticipatory bail plea and that of two other priests, observing they acted as "predators" and took "undue advantage" of the woman. The two other priests, accused in the case, have moved the Supreme Court seeking anticipatory bail. The incident came to light after an audio clip of the purported conversation of the husband of the victim with a church official about the alleged sexual abuse of his wife by the priests was circulated on social media. The woman's husband had in June accused five priests of using his wife's secret confession to "blackmail and sexually abuse" her. The Crime Branch registered a case following which the four priests had moved the high court seeking anticipatory bail. According to the woman's statement to police, the accused vicar had sought sexual favours from her after she made a confession to him about one of her tormentors and also threatened to reveal the contents of the confession against another accused in the case. The vicar also used to speak about sexual activities over phone and that the abuse continued till 2012, she alleged. Johnson Mathew, according to the woman's complaint, was her senior in college and got in touch with her through WhatsApp. In course of time his messages turned explicit and he also allegedly morphed her face with a nude picture of another woman and threatened to circulate it on the web, the complaint said. The FIR was registered against the priests by the crime branch after recording the woman's statement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Madras High Court today quashed a look out circular (LOC) issued by the CBI against Karti Chidambaram, son of former union minister P Chidambaram, in connection with the INX Media case. A bench comprising Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose gave the order, allowing a petition by Karti challenging the LOC issued last year. It, however, said the CBI can take further action based on the FIR registered against Karti in the case. The court had reserved orders on the petition on March 19 this year. The case relates to alleged irregularities in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) clearance to INX Media for receiving overseas funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore in 2007 when Chidambaram was Union finance minister. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) : A donation of Rs one crore has been made to the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara at nearby Tirumala by Chairman of tech major HCL, Shiv Nadar. Nadar handed over a demand draft for Rs 1,00,00,001 to a temple official last night after offering prayers at the shrine, TTD public relations officer T Ravi told PTI. He said the HCL chairman requested Tirumala Tirupati Devasathanams which administers the cash-rich shrine to utilise the fund for a hospital trust run by it for differently-abled people in Tirupati. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur condoled the death of five members of a family who were burnt alive when a fire broke out at a house in Mandi district early this morning. The tragic incident occurred when the people were asleep after a 'baraat' (wedding procession) returned home with the bride and the groom late last night at Ner Chowk, 145 km from here, family sources said Thakur met the bereaved family members and expressed deep condolences today. He assured them that the cause of the fire would be probed and every possible help would be provided. Union Health Minister J P Nadda too expressed grief over this shocking incident. He said his thoughts and prayers were with the bereaved family members. Meanwhile, Mandi Deputy Commissioner Rugved Thakur told PTI that Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Rajiv Kumar would probe the incident. The ADM will inquire all the aspects including the cause of the fire and allegations of fire-fighters arriving late at the spot. The ADM will submit the report within seven days, he said. Mandi Superintendent of Police Gurdev Chand Sharma said fire tenders were rushed to the spot, but five lives were lost before the blaze could be extinguished. Two others have sustained serious injuries. The deceased have been identified as the parents of the bridegroom, Narender Soni (66) and Veena Soni (62); the sister of Narender, Sudesh (70); her daughter-in-law, Mona (40); and her 12-year-old son, Sai Sohel, the family sources said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Haryana government would allocate 10 acre land to the Army's Western Command, Chandimandir, to construct a Sainik Education Centre in the Panchkula district. Finance Minister Abhimanyu said, "the Centre would train children of brave soldiers serving our country. It would be managed by the Western Command." He said that a letter to this effect was received from the Western Command Headquarters on June 29, 2018. Taking immediate action, the state government decided in less than a month to allocate the land for free. The construction, maintenance and other expenses would be borne by the Army from the Army Welfare Fund, he said. The minister said the BJP government was continuously making policies in the interest of soldiers and for the welfare of their families. The ex-gratia amount for the slain soldiers of the armed forces and the paramilitary forces has been increased from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 50 lakh, he said. "Since October 2014, the state government has given jobs to 195 dependents of martyrs on compassionate grounds," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Police today seized huge quantity of explosives and arrested two persons in this connection in Pakur district, a senior police officer said. The police seized 10,000 pieces of gelatin sticks and 3,000 pieces of detonators from Basmata village in the district, Superintendent of Police, Shailendra Prasad Burnwal said. The SP said on a tip-off that some criminals were bringing in large quantity of explosives from West Bengal to Pakur district, a Quick Response Team (QRT) was formed. The QRT team stopped two persons riding a motorcycle but they abandoned the two-wheeler and tried to flee. But police caught hold of them and found that they were carrying two sacks full of gelatin and detonators. Following information provided by the two arrested persons, police conducted raid in some areas bordering West Bengal and seized five sacks full of detonators and gelatin, the SP added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) From a distance, the Gile National Reserve in northern Mozambique is a vast, dense ocean of green that reaches as far as the horizon. Bigger than Luxembourg, the 2,800-square-kilometre (1,080-square-mile) forest seems to be reassuringly preserved, its hardwood treasure placed by Mozambique under legal protection. Close up though, the forest bears deep scars from bouts of rampant logging and relentless population growth -- a testimony to the real-life challenge of how to shield this jewel. Logs line the path leading into the reserve, while further along, trucks piled high with wood shavings, seized by the authorities, stand idle, rusting in the weeds. "Illegal logging was a huge problem between 2014 and 2016," said reserve manager Jose Mohamede Dias. "The other challenge is the bushfires used in hunting and agriculture which feed local people." Such blazes are the main reason for the forest's shrinkage in recent years, he explained. Local people burn down swathes of forest to open up arable land. Once the fields become exhausted, the farmers burn down more trees, and so on. The reserve's population, currently more than 10,000, has shot up in recent years, putting immense pressure on the ecosystem. Some seven million hectares (17 million acres) of tropical forests go up in smoke every year worldwide, according to a UN estimate. In a bid to stop the ravaging of the forest, French environmental group Nitidae is offering practical, low-tech help to small farmers on how to use the land more in a sustainable way. One beneficiary is Alexandre Soares, who enrolled a year ago in a training scheme on how to cope with drought and retain soil fertility. "They explained that I should leave certain trees in place to balance the ecosystem. Their leaves decompose and fertilise the soil for the next season," he said, wearing a white hat as he tended his plot under the baking sun. Nitidae specialist Dinis Augusto looked at Soares' mix of crops, which include corn, cassava and beans. "Mixing these plants allows us to guarantee the viability of the soil so the farmers can spend more time on the plot and won't need to find new land," he said. The advice from the pilot project has slowly spread through surrounding communities and improved crop yields -- a powerful inducement for others to follow the tips. As well as logging and man-made bushfires, the reserve has also been targeted for the manufacture of charcoal -- the main heat source in many homes in the region. Luis Aghostino set up a basic charcoal oven, digging at the ground barefoot and wearing blue overalls beside several tightly stacked logs, covered in straw and earth. With simple modifications like improved ventilation, the oven is capable of making more charcoal of higher quality and requiring less wood. "It doesn't cost any more, the materials are exactly the same and it doesn't take any more time," said Nitidae's Alexandre Tregoures. "With this amount of wood, we can produce seven bags of charcoal whereas we were only able to produce two or three before," added Aghostino. Between 10 and 15 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide come through deforestation, which releases carbon, locked in the soil for millennia, into the atmosphere. Forests, on the other hand, are carbon "sinks" -- in growing, they take carbon dioxide out of the air and sequestrate it. The Gile reserve is hoping to cash in on its conservation efforts by offering carbon credits under a UN-supported programme called REDD+, for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation, which seeks to tackle forest loss and combat global warming at the same time. The local scheme is financed by the French Fund for the World (FFEM) in collaboration with the Mozambican government. Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking. "Between 2010 and 2016, we witnessed a decrease in deforestation in the reserve's buffer zone -- greenhouse gas emissions were avoided," said Nitidae's country manager, Jean-Baptiste Roelens. The scheme has reduced carbon emissions by 300,000 tonnes over five years, with each tonne saved credited at a rate of between USD 5 (4.30 euros) and USD 8 a tonne on the international market for carbon dioxide (CO2). The credits will net the reserve between USD 2 million and USD 3 million -- the windfall will be reinvested locally, "to finance sustainable development and support environmental projects", said Roelens. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India on Tuesday extended $200 million lines of credit to as Prime Minister held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to boost the bilateral strategic ties by strengthening cooperation in trade and agriculture sectors. After the one-on-one talks with president Kagame, Modi, the first Indian prime minister to visit the East African country, announced that India will soon open its mission in We are going to open a High Commission in This will not only establish communication between our respective governments but also enable facilities for consular, passport, visa, Modi said at a joint press statement. He noted that India and Rwanda relationships have stood the test of time. It is a matter of honour for us that India has stood with Rwanda in their economic development journey, Modi said, adding that India will continue to back Rwanda's development. The two countries signed agreements on leather and allied areas and agricultural research. India also extended two lines of credit -- one of $100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ) in Rwanda and another one for $100 million for agriculture. Besides one-to-one meeting, the two leaders also participated in delegation-level talks to strengthen partnership in trade and investment, capacity building, development partnership and people to people ties. President Kagame in his remarks said Prime Minister Modi's visit represents a milestone between the long-standing friendship and cooperation between Rwanda and India. Modi arrived in Rwanda tonight on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour as part of India's outreach to the resource-rich continent, soon after Chinese President visited Kigali. The prime minister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was received by President Kagame. He was accorded a red carpet welcome at the airport. "A historic visit starts with a special gesture. President @PaulKagame personally welcomed PM @narendramodi to Rwanda," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. His two-day state visit to Rwanda -- one of Africa's fastest-growing economies -- assumes significance as it could boost India's strategic ties with this country. "A special gesture by a close friend and a strategic partner! Prime Minister @narenderamodi personally received by Rwandan President @PaulKagame at #Kigali International Airport on the first leg of his three-nation tour. First-ever visit by an Indian PM to Rwanda," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had tweeted. Modi will also meet the business leaders and the Indian communities here. Tomorrow, Prime Minister Modi will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. India today extended USD 200 million lines of credit to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to strengthen cooperation in trade and agriculture sector. After the one-on-one talks with president Kagame, Modi announced that India will soon open its mission in Rwanda. The two countries signed agreements on leather and allied areas and agricultural research. India also extended two lines of credit -- one of USD 100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ) in Rwanda and another one for USD 100 million for agriculture. Modi, arrived in Rwanda tonight on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour as part of India's outreach to the resource-rich continent, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. The Prime Minister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was received by President of Rwanda Paul Kagame. He was accorded a red carpet welcome at the airport. "A historic visit starts with a special gesture. President @PaulKagame personally welcomed PM @narendramodi to Rwanda," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. His two-day state visit to Rwanda -- one of Africa's fastest growing economies -- assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. "A special gesture by a close friend and a strategic partner! Prime Minister @narenderamodi personally received by Rwandan President @PaulKagame at #Kigali International Airport on the first leg of his three-nation tour. First-ever visit by an Indian PM to Rwanda," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had tweeted. Modi will also meet the business leaders and the Indian communities here. He will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Indian diaspora is making a mark all over the world and they are the country's "rashtradoots" (ambassadors), Prime Minister told a gathering of Indian community members in Rwanda. He said, "I am delighted to interact with the Indian community in Rwanda. President @PaulKagame said to me that the Indian community is contributing to Rwanda's progress and they are also doing (a) lot of community service. I was happy to hear this." "All over the world, the Indian diaspora is making a mark. They are our 'Rashtradoots'," the prime minister added. Modi is on a two-day visit to Rwanda -- one of Africa's fastest-growing economies. He is the first Indian prime minister to visit the country. "For years the Indian community in Rwanda wanted a High Commission. This long-pending demand will be fulfilled and you will be connected even further with India," he told the gathering. Earlier, Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to boost the bilateral strategic ties by strengthening cooperation in defence, trade and agriculture sectors. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd would invest a total of around Rs 12,000 crore in the Haldia refinery and pipeline infrastructure in West Bengal, a company official said today. The Haldia refinery's capacity would be increased from 7.5 mmtpa to 8 mmtpa, and will undertake transition to BS-VI compliant fuel by April 2020, Executive Director and head of West Bengal State Office (WBSO), Dipankar Ray said. The state-owned company would invest Rs 7,600 crore in the refinery, he told reporters here. Ray said the LPG bottling plants at Durgapur and Kalyani would be connected by pipeline, which would be brought from Paradeep via Haldia. The Budge Budge plant would be connected later. This would entail an investment of Rs 4,325 crore, he said. Around 10,000 petrol pumps in the country are now powered by solar energy and another 5,300 would be added to the list by this fiscal, Executive Director, Corporate Communications, Subodh Dakwale said. All petrol pumps would eventually be powered by solar energy, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Iran overtook Saudi Arabia to be the second largest supplier of crude oil to Indian public sector firms during the first three months of current fiscal, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said today. Indian PSUs, which last fiscal cut oil imports from Iran by a quarter, bought 5.67 million tonnes of crude oil from the Persian Gulf nation during April-June, higher than imports from Saudi Arabia. Imports from Iran were only second to Iraq. Oil marketing companies (OMCs) had bought 9.8 million tonnes of crude oil in the full 2017-18 fiscal as compared to 13.04 in the previous 12 months, he said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha here. During first three months of 2018-19 fiscal year that began from April, the state-owned firms bought 5.67 million tonnes of crude oil from Iran for Rs 19,978.46 crore (USD 2.95 billion), he said. State firms that buy oil from Iran include Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL), Indian Oil Corp (IOC) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL). Extrapolating the 2018-19 purchases come to 25 million tonnes but there are now US sanctions against Iran which block financial channels and payment routes. "On May 8, 2018, the USA announced that it is walking out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran and released a Frequently Asked Questions regarding the re-imposition of sanctions on entities engaged with Iran, including import of crude oil from Iran," he said. Pradhan, however, did not answer the question if the government has asked oil companies to reduce imports from Iran. "Indian refineries import crude oil from diverse sources including Iran, depending on technical and commercial considerations," he said. To the question on oil from alternative countries being available on the same commercial terms as that from Iran, he said: "Oil PSUs import crude oil mainly keeping in view the domestic requirement. The price of crude oil is determined by many factors, including quality and demand and supply in the global market." The US, which in May pulled out of a landmark nuclear deal and said sanctions will be re-imposed on Iran within 180 days, has threatened to cut off access to the American banking system for foreign financial institutions that trade with Tehran. Iran was India's second biggest supplier of crude oil after Saudi Arabia till 2010-11 but western sanctions over its suspected nuclear programme pushed it to the 7th spot in the subsequent years. Sourcing from Iran increased following the lifting of sanctions and it was the third largest supplier in 2017-18. Pradhan said Iraq supplied 7.27 million tonnes of crude oil to OMCs during April-June while Saudi Arabia sold 5.22 million tonnes. During 2017-18, Indian state-owned firms bought 29.66 million tonnes of crude oil from Iraq and 19.35 million tonnes from Saudi Arabia. The volumes from Iraq were 24.79 million tonnes in 2016-17 and 18.01 million tonnes from Saudi Arabia. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) will now be providing training to those aiming to become Japanese language teachers with the setting up of a new centre at the varsity. India and Japan today signed a memorandum of cooperation in the field of Japanese language promotion in the country. Kenji Hiramatsu, Ambassador of Japan to India and Ashok Kumar Chawla, Advisor (Japan), Ministry of External Affairs, shared the agreement and announced the launch of the first Japanese course. "The language is very different from other foreign langauges and it is very important to have trained teachers for the purpose. Hence, the centre has been set up," Hiramastsu said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The high-level Justice BN Srikrishna committee will meet on Wednesday to discuss the framework for data protection and may also look into Trai's recent recommendations on data privacy, according to panel members. It remains to be seen as to whether the July 25 meeting, to be held in the national capital, would be the final one, a member said. Asked if Trai's recommendations would also figure in the deliberations, another member told PTI, "Yes, definitely". The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) last week issued recommendations on data privacy, security and its ownership in the telecom sector. It suggested that even mobile devices, apps and browsers should be subject to similar rules as telecom operators till an overarching data protection law is put in place to safeguard consumer rights. A person privy to the working of the committee said that Trai's recommendations were not at variance with the white paper being discussed by the members of the panel. "It is not an issue to beat our heads on, because if someone reads the white paper of the committee and Trai's recommendations they are largely in line," the member added. Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan had said last week that the will consider all suggestions related to its domain while others will be looked into by Justice Srikrishna panel which is crafting the overarching data protection law. ALSO READ: Yogi Adityanath govt to build blockchain architecture for data security The recommendations by the regulator are in tune with the government's existing stance on protecting privacy and data rights of individuals, Sundararajan had said terming the Trai's views as valuable and timely. "There are two types of recommendations, one which pertain to telecom sector where primarily responsibility is on the Telecom Department...so those recommendations we will be considering within the department. The general recommendation that has given...on entire digital system...will be looked into by the Justice Srikrishna committee," she had said, adding that on its part will take an "institutional view" of the matter under its purview. Chairman R S Sharma had recently said that mobile devices and apps are like 'faucets' to the telecom pipe and should be subjected to similar rules as telecom operators till an overarching data protection law is put in place to safeguard consumer rights. Asserting that Trai has not overstepped its mandate while calling for regulation of all digital entities handling consumer data, Sharma had emphasised that users are the primary owners of their data. Trai termed entities controlling and processing user data as "mere custodians" recognising individuals as the actual owners of personal information, and has also called for regulation of all digital entities handling consumer data. In significant recommendations concerning privacy, Trai has argued that firms collecting user data don't have a right over it, and emphasised that consumers' consent is a must for obtaining it. Describing the existing as inadequate, the Trai in its recommendations to DoT has also said that companies should not use meta-data to identify users and should disclose any data breaches. The government, it has said, must notify policy framework to regulate devices, operating systems, browsers and applications. It had also suggested that users be granted the right to choice, consent and - equally important - to be forgotten, to safeguard privacy. Trai recommendations have been made to the Telecom Department and also been submitted as 'inputs' to the Justice Srikrishna panel that has been tasked to draft a data protection legislation for the country. The regulator's recommendations have ignited a debate in the industry. Mobile device industry body, Indian Cellular Association (ICA) has alleged that Trai's recommendation which goes beyond telecom operators is "wholly illegal". "Trai jumped the gun by seeking to regulate the digital ecosystem without waiting for the general data protection law under consideration by the Justice Srikrishna Committee. This piecemeal approach is dangerous and unproductive," ICA has said. The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has warned that the recommendation may impact mobile app-related businesses and if the same rules are applied, then there is a possibility that India will never be able to build data businesses. The death toll from a suicide attack near Kabul international airport has risen to 23, the health ministry said today, with an AFP driver among the dead. At least 107 others were wounded in yesterday's powerful explosion, which happened as scores of people were leaving the airport after welcoming home Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum from exile. The health ministry warned the latest toll, which initially had been 14 dead and 60 wounded, could change. AFP driver Mohammad Akhtar, 31, was among those killed when the suicide bomber blew himself up. The father of four had been on his way to work the night shift. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State group through its official Amaq agency, according to the SITE intelligence monitoring group. Senior Afghan government officials, political leaders and supporters had gone to the airport to greet Dostum, a powerful ethnic Uzbek leader and former warlord. Despite being linked to a catalogue of human rights abuses in Afghanistan, Dostum was mobbed like a celebrity as he arrived in Afghanistan after more than a year in exile. He was travelling in an armoured vehicle and narrowly escaped the attack. Dostum fled to Turkey in May 2017 after being accused of organising the rape and torture of a political rival. He had denied the allegations and said his departure was for medical check-ups and family reasons. Seven of Dostum's bodyguards have been convicted of the sexual assault and illegal imprisonment of Ahmad Ishchi, a former governor of the northern province of Jowzjan, in 2016. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With four batches of Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrims stranded for days due to bad weather, the nodal agency for the Yatra has requested the Centre not to send any fresh batch until the backlog is cleared. Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam (KMVN), the nodal agency for the Yatra, wrote a letter to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on July 20 asking it not to send any fresh batch before the stranded ones proceed for their onward journey, KMVN General Manager T S Martolia told PTI. While the eighth batch of 58 pilgrims could not be airlifted from Pithoragarh's Naini-Saini airstrip to the Gunji base camp due to bad weather, the pilgrims of ninth, 10thand 11thbatches are waiting in KMVN's Tourist Rest Houses (TRH) at Chaukori, Almora and Bhimtal, Martolia said. The eighth batch has been waiting for the past nine days in Pithoragarh to be airlifted to the Gunji base camp. The main obstacle has been dense clouds beyond Chiyalekh valley on way to Gunji, he said. Pilgrims of these batches can proceed for their onward journeys only after the weather clears, he said. Hence, KMVN has requested the MEA not to send the 12th and further batches for the time being so that pilgrims do not face any inconvenience, he said. "Even if we arrange for lodging of all waiting batches, the management could be disturbed at the Gunji base camp as we have to send batches systematically through the Lipulekh pass to be handed over to the Chinese authorities," the KMVN official said. It is for a second time that pilgrims have got stranded in Pithoragarh due to bad weather this year. The seventh batch also had to wait for over seven days till July 13 due to non-lifting of pilgrims from the Naini-Saini airstrip. According to district administration, the pilgrims had reached the airstrip at 8 am to be lifted to Gunji but were disappointed after a helicopter that was supposed to leave for Gunji returned after some time citing cloudy weather. "The pilgrims will have to stay at Tourist Rest Houses of KMVN on ninth day to try again to reach Gunji the next day," said Dinesh Gururani, the in-charge of TRH. Meanwhile, fifth and sixth batch pilgrims have returned from Tibet after completing their Yatra and are waiting for helicopters at Gunji to be airlifted to Pithoragarh. But they are also in a tight spot due to bad weather in Chiyalekh. "Since the past nine days, we reach helipad at 5 am and wait for the helicopter that would take us to Pithoragarh. But by the end of the day, we are told that the chopper will not be coming today, said Raju Vyas, a pilgrim of the sixth batch from Jodhpur. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today welcomed the Supreme Court's order that said there cannot be a "complete ban" on holding protests and sit-ins at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club. The chief minister said attempts to convert Delhi into a police state was "dangerous" for democracy. "I welcome the Hon'ble Supreme Court verdict upholding peaceful right to protest in central Delhi. "Attempts to convert Delhi into a police state is dangerous for democracy and rightly struck down by (the) Hon'ble Supreme Court," Kejriwal tweeted. Earlier in the day, a bench comprising justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said there was a need to strike a balance between conflicting rights such as the right to protest and the right of citizens to live peacefully. "There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate)," the bench said, while directing the Centre to frame guidelines on the matter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Kerala High Court today imposed a complete ban on plastic in Sabarimala, in order to ensure an eco-friendly pilgrimage to the famous hill shrine of Lord Ayyappa. Two years ago, the High Court had banned sale of any material, including water, in plastic bottles or packets at any place connected to the famous hill shrine situated in the dense forest. In its order, a Division Bench of the High Court comprising Justice P R Ramachandra Menon and Devan Ramachandran said only bio-degradable products prescribed by the temple 'tantri' (chief priest) can be brought to the temple by pilgrims in their 'irumudikkettu' (sacred bundle). Considering a special report prepared by the Sabarimala special commissioner in this regard, the High Court directed the authorities to enforce the plastic ban in the temple and its premises from the coming season. The court directed the authorities to provide information about its order to pilgrims from all other states. The order was issued in wake of reports that serious environmental problems were created in the temple located in an ecologically sensitive forest, due to indiscriminate use of plastics by devotees. Thousands of devotees from various states, especially in the south, throng the temple during the two-month long annual pilgrimage season which starts mid-November. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The pet dog of the Chundawat family, whose 11 members were found dead at their home under mysterious circumstances, has died at an animal shelter home in Noida due to "shock", an animal rights activist said today. Tommy, as he was referred to by his owners, was tied to a grill, before the family members allegedly committed suicide. Sanjay Mohapatra, a Noida-based animal rights activist, was taking care of the dog, an Indian pitbull mix breed aged above seven, who had shown signs of improvement and had gained weight since the tragedy came to light on July 1. "He had food around 4 pm. He was playing around and was taken for a walk by one of our employees around 5 pm. As Tommy was entering the gate after his walk, he suddenly collapsed. We brought him inside and the doctor examined him but he died," Mohapatra said. The activist said he informed the Noida and Delhi Police after Tommy's death. He also informed about Tommy's death to Prashant Singh Chundawat, the grandson of Narayan Devi. Devi was the eldest member of the family which allegedly committed suicide. Her body was found on the floor, while the rest 10 members were found hanged from an iron-mesh in the ceiling. "Prashant told me, 'What we could not do in nine years, you did it in a span of few days'," Mohapatra said. The activist said Tommy's post-mortem was carried out this morning at a district hospital in Noida and the doctors opined that he died of "shock", which led to a cardiac arrest. Later, a pooja was performed and Tommy was laid to rest. Prashant Chundawat had written an email to Mohapatra a few days ago, requesting him to "train the dog" so that they could take him home and was regularly in touch with him about Tommy's health. He would make video calls to see Tommy, Mohapatra said. The Chundawat family's grandson, who works in Bangalore while his family stays in Kota, Rajasthan, said they were informed yesterday about Tommy's death. "In all these years, we were not very attached to him. Whenever we would visit our Burari home, he would be tied upstairs since he was very aggressive. He was very close to my elder kaka (Bhavnesh, who was among the deceased)," he recalled. However, after losing his family, Prashant Chundawat had decided that they would take him home. "I had requested Sanjay to train him so that we could take him back. He was the last surviving member of our family and we wanted to take care of him. Pets usually do not survive without their owners and in this case, Tommy was quite close to our family members living in our Burari home, so it must have been difficult for him," Prashant Chundawat told PTI. Meanwhile, Mohapatra said they would open a large animal out-patient department at his shelter home in memory of Tommy. The animal activist had learnt about the dog through channels and then contacted the police. After completing the legal formalities, he had brought the dog to his animal care centre in Noida. Initially, Tommy was quite aggressive but with love and care, he had started recuperating. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Lindsay Lohan and MTV are headed to Greece for a reality series. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the show, produced by unscripted veterans Bunim/Murray, will be set at a recently opened beach club on the Greek island of Mykonos. The show will follow Lohan and the staff of the Lohan Beach House at work and, presumably, after hours. The channel declined to comment. Other details, such as a title and premiere date, are yet to be released. The actor hinted at the show in a New York Times profile in June but did not reveal any details. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Realty portal Magicbricks' revenues increased 48 per cent to Rs 47.5 crore in the June quarter on the back of improvement in property markets, product innovation and new revenue streams, a top company official said. Magicbricks is a leading property site in the country with monthly traffic exceeding 20 million visits and an active base of over 1.1 million property listings. It provides a platform for properties' buyers and sellers to connect in a clear and transparent manner. "We have posted a strong revenue growth of 48 per cent in the first quarter of 2018-19 financial year at Rs 47.5 crore," Magicbricks CEO Sudhir Pai told PTI. He attributed the rise in revenues mainly to revival in the housing market that has fuelled marketing activities by the developers. "Moreover, we have introduced many new sales solutions for developers as well as brokers," Pai said. The company generates revenue from classified business where developers, brokers and individual landlords are the major source, he added. Asked about the revenue outlook for the full 2018-19 fiscal, he said the company has been able to achieve more than 50 per cent growth every year, except during the last two financial years -- 2017-18 and 2016-17. "This fiscal year, we are hoping to come back to that growth level," he said. Magicbricks.com is owned by Magicbricks Realty Services, which is a subsidiary of Times Internet, the digital arm of The Times of India Group. Stating that Magicbricks also leads in terms of traffic and registered buyers, Pai said property searches jumped 50 per cent, with cities like Bengaluru, Delhi witnessing a jump in searches by 60-65 per cent. The company reported that it has achieved a run-rate of 6 crore visits and 25 lakh million registered buyers in the quarter of which 8 lakh buyers registered themselves for home buying, 12 lakh for renting, 2 lakh for commercial properties and the rest between other property types. The portal hosted over 1.1 million active properties as on June 30 with over 45,000 properties being added daily. The company claimed to lead its nearest competitor by 30 per cent in properties for sale and 70 per cent in properties for rent. Magicbricks had over 45,000 active paid sellers as of end June, of which 2,400 were developers, 14,000 were brokers and the rest 29,000 were paying individual sellers or landlords. Pai said the success of new products such as the certified agent programme, remarketing solutions, and the e-auction platform have contributed to making Magicbricks as the most preferred channel of advertisements and customer acquisition for developers, brokers and for individual sellers. "We are now leveraging our scale and market position to push deeper into the market. We have now aggregated about 80 per cent of all supply and about 60 per cent of all buyers in the market. About 45 per cent of all landlord listings on Magicbricks are now exclusive to us," he said. To accelerate the growth further, he said the portal would continue aggressive scaling to make itself a dominant, preferred choice for buyers and sellers. The portal would also reposition from being a discovery platform to a full stack solution. "We are looking at an exciting second quarter as well, which will witness some industry first innovations for both business and customers. We are launching a chat-based communication interface to address privacy concerns of buyers," Pai said. It would also have the brand store to help aspiring developers, both mid-size and small, to scale up, build brand values and be loved by consumers. Magicbricks would also have video on its portal to simplify real estate for end users. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Himachal Pradesh government today ordered a magisterial inquiry into the blaze at a house in Mandi district that left five members of a family including three women dead, an official said. The fire broke out early this morning when the people were asleep after returning from a wedding procession with the bridegroom and the bride late in the night, family sources said. Mandi Deputy Commissioner Rugved Thakur told PTI that Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Rajiv Kumar would probe the incident. The ADM will inquire all the aspects including the cause of the fire and allegations of fire-fighters arriving late at the spot. The ADM will submit the report within seven days, he said. Expressing "heartfelt condolences" to the bereaved family members, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur assured that the cause of the fire would be probed and every possible help would be provided to the victims' kin. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh today criticised Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadanvis for cancelling his visit to Pandharpur on the occasion of 'Ashadhi Ekadashi' in view of a proposed protest by Maratha groups demanding reservation. As part of a long-standing tradition, the chief minister every year on the occasion of 'Ashadhi Ekadashi' offers prayers at the temple dedicated to Lord Vitthal and Rukmini in Pandharpur, located around 400 km from here. Today is 'Ashadhi Ekadashi' according to the Lunar calendar. Singh said as the Maharashtra chief minister, Fadnavis should have gone to Pandharpu and attended the prayers. Asserting that Fadnavis should have gone for the puja if he was so attached to Lord Vitthal, the Congress leader said, "Not a single minister has gone there. Why are these people so scared?" After visiting Pandharpur, Singh told reporters, "Today the chief minister is facing the ire of the Maratha and Dhangar communities on the issue of reservation and he himself is responsible for this situation." Informing reporters that the Maharashtra chief minister had given an assurance that the issue of reservation would be sorted out in a month, he said, "So it is natural that people from these communities are disappointed with the CM."Replying to a query on whether the Congress was willing to play second fiddle in a coalition with regional parties to unseat the NDA government in next year's Lok Sabha polls, Singh said the 2019 elections would be fought on ideology and would not centre around a person. In a parliamentary democracy, it is not a person but an ideology which contests polls, the Congress leader claimed. "For us, (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi is not important. The government formed in 2014 by Modi was based on the Sangh's ideology. This is the ideology which has been spreading hatred and violence in the country and creating rift between communities," he alleged. "Today the country needs to decide whether we should go ahead with the ideologies of Gandhi and Nehru or that of Hedgewar, Golwalkar or Savarkar. It is on this narrative that the next general election will be fought," the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister said. About the no confidence motion in Parliament on July 20, Singh said there was a ground for it to be brought in. "The TDP snapping ties with the BJP, the Shiv Sena remaining absent during the (no-trust) motion, BJP leaders like Arun Shourie, Ram Jethmalani and Yashwant Sinha criticising the government publicly, mob lynching, failure to create jobs, farmers' issues and other such issues make a ground for a no-confidence motion (against the government)," he said. Modi, who generally tweets about small things, was silent on people getting lynched, the Congress leader claimed. "The Ram Mandir issue is being raked up but in Modi's Varanasi (the prime minister's Lok Sabha seat), small temples are being razed and the BJP is not concerned," Singh alleged. To a query on the new Congress Working Committee constituted by party chief Rahul Gandhi, the former CWC member said he was always of the view that young faces should be given an opportunity in the CWC. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A history-sheeter was today shot dead in neighbouring Palghar district after he allegedly resisted arrest and attacked a police constable with a knife, a senior official said. Govind Rana was spotted today afternoon in Tulinj area in Nallasopara township of Palghar district, about 60 kilometres from here, by a local Crime Branch team which asked him to surrender, Manjunath Singe, Superintendent of Police, Palghar told PTI. Rana, however, attacked constable Mangesh Sakpal with a knife following which the latter opened fire from his service revolver, Singe informed. An injured Rana was rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival, the SP added. Constable Sakpal has been admitted to a nearby hospital where doctors have said that his condition was fine, the official added. Rana was previously arrested in suburban Kandivali in an Arms Act case in 2014 and also has another case registered against him in Worli police station, an official said. Officials said that this is the first encounter in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region carried out by the state police since 2010. These officials claimed that alleged gangster Mangesh Narkar's was the last police encounter which took place in suburban Chembur in October 2010. An encounter which took place on February 7, 2016 in Andheri, in which alleged gangster Sandeep Gadholi was killed, was carried out by a police team from Gurgaon in Haryana, officials pointed out. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will visit Delhi for three days next week to personally invite opposition leaders to the "federal front" rally she plans to hold in January in Kolkata, party sources said today. Banerjee is scheduled to arrive in Delhi on July 31. During her previous visits to Delhi, she met the leaders of regional and opposition parties as part of her efforts to cobble up support for the "federal front" she has proposed to take on the ruling BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha election. The sources - who are close to Banerjee - said she has been invited to Delhi by St. Stephen's College to deliver a lecture on August 1, but she is likely to invite opposition leaders personally for the rally to be held on January 19 next year. On July 31, the day she arrives in Delhi, Banerjee would speak on "the atmosphere of fear and intolerance against minorities prevailing in the country" at a gathering organised by Christian organisations, the sources said. The meet would be attended by archbishops of Delhi. "Everybody knows that it is she who is fighting against the BJP and communal forces. She is likely to visit Parliament and meet leaders of other political parties to extend her invitation for her January rally," a TMC leader said. She would try to put forward the "real picture" of what is happening in West Bengal to stop the BJP's "negative" against her government, according to the Trinamool Congress leader. Banerjee has been trying to stitch together a federal front of regional parties to take on the ruling BJP in the next general election. But many in the opposition have remained sceptical about her efforts. "She is free to do anything. Earlier too she and TRS chief had a talk on federal front. But the TRS helped the NDA in the no-trust motion. I have always stated that this whole federal front script is forwarded to them by Nagpur," CPI(M) leader Mohammad Salim said. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi had abstained during the no-trust vote, bringing down the Opposition numbers. TRS chief K Chandrashekhar Rao had previously met Banerjee in Kolkata and discussed the formation of a federal front to take on BJP and the Congress in the 2019 general election. It was not yet confirmed whether Banerjee would invite the Congress leadership for the January rally. At TMC's "Martyrs Day" rally in Kolkata on Saturday, she had said that all leaders of the potential federal front will come to Kolkata on January 19. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 65-year-old man was allegedly attacked by a family while he was taking a buffalo to his home here, police said today dismissing social media reports linking the incident to cow vigilantism. Three of the accused were arrested, they said. Abdul Hamid Sheikh had purchased a buffalo from a local Gujjar for domestic use and was allegedly intercepted by Parbhat Singh at Inhar village of Ramsoo in Ramban district last evening, police said in a statement here. A scuffle followed a heated argument between the two and Singh was later joined by some other members of the family who attacked Sheikh, they said. As soon as the matter came to the notice of police, a party led by local Station House Officer immediately rushed to the spot. Sheikh was shifted to a hospital for medical treatment and a case was registered against the culprits, the statement said. The police said three accused persons were arrested and investigation was in progress. No lynching by any mob has taken place and the injured person has been discharged from the hospital after required medical treatment, the police said. Sub-Divisional Police Officer, Banihal, Sajjad Sarwar identified the arrested persons as Prabhat Singh, Dharam Singh and Sandeep Singh. Meanwhile, Aman Committee, Pogal-Paristan, comprising local Hindu and Muslim residents condemned the incident and vowed to maintain peace in the region. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A special court here sentenced a man to 12 years of imprisonment for raping a minor girl. The special judge of (POCSO) court on Friday sentenced Lalruatsanga of Chawlhhmun locality in Aizawl to 12 years of imprisonment for raping the girl last year. The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 20,000. It also instructed the Aizawl Legal Services Authority to provide compensation to the victim under the provisions of Mizoram Victims of Crime Compensation Scheme, 2011. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) One person was arrested who was wanted in connection with abduction of policemen in Khunti district of Jharkhand in February, police said today. Following information that the accused, identified as Surendra Nath Samad alias Surendra Singh Munda, was at Hembram Bazaar in Arki police station area, policemen reached there yesterday, Superintendent of Police Ashwani Kumar Sinha said. Samad then fled to a nearby jungle from where he was arrested, Sinha said. Arki police station Officer-in-charge Chandra Shekhar Azad said Samad allegedly led a group of villagers to set up Pathalgadi in Kurunga village in February by misleading the villagers about the tribal custom. When the police team reached there to prevent them, the villagers had taken some policemen hostage till the senior officials rushed to the spot and set them free, Azad said. 'Pathalgarhi' is reportedly a practice in which villagers inscribe various tenets on huge stone slabs and ban outsiders in the area. Surendra Samad was captured hours after the police arrested John Jonus Tidu and Balram Samad, in connection with the alleged gang-rape of five women working for an NGO at Kochang village of Arki police station area in June. Tidu was also accused in the abduction of four police guards from the residence of BJP MP Karia Munda in Khunti last month. The police came to know about Surandra Samad after interrogation of Tidu. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 35-year-old man was allegedly shot dead by three bike-borne men after being chased by them in northwest Delhi's Bharat Nagar area, police said today. The deceased, identified as Arun, was an accused in two murder cases and it is suspected he was killed over an old enmity, they said. Arun was in a car, along with his friend, when three men intercepted their vehicle. On seeing the accused, Arun pushed them aside, but they chased him and allegedly shot him dead. The accused fled while Arun was taken to a hospital, where he was declared brought dead, police said. They said that they have identified the accused and are on a lookout for them. Arun was working at a juice shop in Azadpur. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) German commercial vehicle maker MAN Trucks has put on hold its ongoing projects, including new product launches and upgradation of models, in India to comply with the BS VI emission norms which come into effect from April 2020. When contacted, a company spokesperson confirmed the development but did not give reasons for taking such a step. "The Board of MAN Truck & Bus AG has decided to stop all ongoing projects in India," the spokesperson said. The management team at MAN Trucks in India has been asked to review the situation and present its proposals to the Board for future steps, the spokesperson added. "The team is currently reviewing the same," the spokesperson said. When asked about the scenario in the Indian market, the spokesperson said: "The projects in India stopped include new products for the current BS IV and impending BS VI emission scenarios." MAN Trucks India is a fully-owned subsidiary of Germany's MAN Truck & Bus AG, a part of the Volkswagen group. The Pune-based firm has a manufacturing facility at Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh. The product range manufactured in the plant includes tippers for off-road and construction, haulage for regular and over dimensional cargo, and special application trucks such as fire tenders, garbage compactors, concrete mixers, boom pumps, tip trailers and bulkers. MAN Trucks India also exports trucks to African and Asian markets from the facility. The company has sold over 25,000 trucks since it started its India operations in 2006. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Canadian officials say a man with a knife has been arrested during the changing of the guard on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. It's unclear if the incident is related to the mass shooting in Toronto. The Canadian military said in a statement that the incident took place yesterday morning on the lawns of Parliament Hill. The statement says that a "potential threat" was neutralised due to the quick reaction of soldiers, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Parliamentary Protective Services. No one was injured. Ottawa Police are investigating and the military gave no further details. A 29-year-old gunman opened fire on pedestrians in a bustling Toronto neighbourhood, killing two and wounding a dozen others, police in Canada's largest city said yesterday, adding the suspect was found dead in an alley after an exchange of gunfire with police. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Monsoon Session of the Manipur Assembly was adjourned sine die today amid tight security as civil outfits protesting against the Manipur Liquor (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018, and students attempted to disrupt the proceedings of the House. Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC were imposed in 500 m range of the Assembly complex since 10 am this morning to maintain law and order on orders from Imphal West district magistrate N Prabin Singh. Volunteers of women's civil body Nupi Samaj had taken out a procession to the Assembly, demanding that the Manipur Liquor (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018, should not be passed. Manipur is a dry state but liquor is found widely in it. The women's bodies are protesting against the implementation of the bill which would allow manufacturing of country liquor in the state. Manipur University Students Union had threatened disruption of the House proceedings over the government's failure to remove Manipur University Vice-Chancellor Adya Prasad Pandey. The protestors were stopped by security personnel about a km away from the assembly and a number of them were booked, police said. The Assembly passed the Protection of Manipur Peoples Bill, 2018 unanimously and resolved to protect the teritorrial integrity of the state. The motion was moved by leader of the House and Chief Minister N Biren Singh. The Manipur Liquor Prohibition (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018, was not passed by the House and Speaker Y Khemchand referred the Bill to a select committee to discuss the merits and demerits of it. The select committee will comprise the law minister, two MLAs both from the ruling and opposition sides, Khemchand said, adding that the names of the MLAs would be announced soon. The chief minister said the reason behind the proposal of the Bill was not just to earn more revenue but to produce quality country liquor with the assistance of experts from outside the state. The liquor would then be sold outside Manipur. He conceded that though the prohibition has been in effect in the state since 1991, liquor is consumed by a large number of people and is available in different parts of the state. "No Act is able to stop the consumption of liquor", he said adding, that the Bill is a way to save lives as much of the country-made liquor sold in the state is adulterated. Deputy Chief Minister Y Joykumar, who is in-charge of the excise, said the government is aware that the liquor is available in almost every part of the state and accordingly it is fit to brew quality country liquor so that the health hazards caused by consuming it is minimised. Given the reservations raised by different civil bodies, particularly the Coalition Against Drugs and Alcohol (CADA) and other women bodies, the matter needed to be discussed further, he said. The Bill, if passed, will legalise brewing of locally-made liquor but "prohibition will still be there", Joykumar added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The USD 50-billion worth China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is understood to have hit a roadblock with many of its projects getting stuck due to a financial crisis at the country's National Highway Authority, according to a media report. The CPEC is the flagship project of China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and includes a maze of roads and port projects. Once completed, it aims to connect China's largest province Xinjiang with Pakistan's Gwadar port in Balochistan, allowing Beijing access to the Arabian Sea. The contractors have stopped work on several projects of the CPEC after their cheques worth over Rs five billion bounced a couple of days ago, Dawn reported. The report said this is the first time that CPEC projects faced such a situation due to financial reasons. Affected projects include Hakla-Dera Ismail Khan, Western Route of CPEC and all sections of Karachi-Lahore Motorway (KLM), it said. "Not only the CPEC projects but local industries related to construction and a large workforce of engineers and labourers have also been hit by the situation," Dawn quoted sources as saying. They said seven packages of Hakla-DIK measuring 400 km roads all projects of KLM have been affected. NHA spokesman Kashif Zaman said the authority issued cheques of Rs 5 billion on June 29 to the firms against the sanction by the government. "Cheques worth Rs 1.5 billion were cleared by the same day and the remaining cheques that were deposited the next day could not be cleared," he said. Zaman said the matter had been taken up with the government and hopefully it would be resolved soon. On the suspension of work by the contractors, he said, "The progress on the project had not been affected. Same is true for Hazara Motorway and other sections." He said most of the projects in question would be completed by December 2018 but could get delayed for want of finances, according to the report. While CPEC is highlighted as "flagship project", the BRI includes the Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar (BCIM) Economic Corridor, New Eurasian Land Bridge, China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor, China-Indochina Peninsula Economic Corridor and 21st century Maritime Silk Road. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Maratha Kranti Morcha today demanded an apology from Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for alleging that some members from the community were planning violence at Pandharpur. "The CM, while using objectionable language against the Maratha community, said that he had intelligence inputs that some organisations were planning violence to disrupt his visit to the Lord Vitthal Temple in Pandharpur," said Pravin Gaikwad, one of the coordinators of MKM. "All these allegations are baseless. Till date, the Maratha community has taken out 58mookmorchas (silent marches) in the state and all these morchas were peaceful in nature. Not a single case of violence was reported during these morchas," Gaikwad claimed. Stating that warkaris (pilgrims who arrive on foot at Pandharpur during Ashadhi Ekadashi) were farmers, Gaikwad said that it was the children of warkaris who were demanding reservations in jobs and education. Demanding an apology, Gaikwad dared Fadnavis to make the intelligence report public. At another event in Pune's Chinchwad area, a woman activist reportedly from a Maratha organisation, tried to raise slogans at a function attended by Fadnavis. She tried to raise slogans when Fadnavis rose to address a gathering at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Krantiveer Chaphekar National Museum in Chinchwad today. Earlier, police had detained 20 members of the MKM ahead of the CM's Chinchwad visit. Speaking to reporters yesterday, Fadnavis had said that "Police have intercepted some messages, like 'will release snakes among devotees', 'could create a situation that would lead to stampede', among others." "Efforts are being made by some organisations and people that could create a life-threatening situation in Pandharpur," the chief minister had said yesterday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Cooperative federation Markfed today opened its kiosk at Vadodara in Gujarat to sell more than 90 items, including basmati rice, Saag, Dal Makhni. It was inaugurated by state cooperation minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, said an official release. The shop was set up at the GSFC University campus in Vadodara, release said. Randhawa said it is indeed a matter of great pride for Markfed that its products will also reach other parts of the country, with the beginning have been made through the opening of its first kiosk outside north India. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bengaluru-based outdoor gear, apparel and footwear brand Wildcraft has raised an undisclosed amount from Mauritius-based Asia-focused private equity fund FidelisWorld. "FidelisWorld will leverage its global network to help Wildcraft grow its business in India and internationally," Wildcraft and FidelisWorld said in a joint statement. "The investment by FidelisWorld complements Sequoia Capital's backing and the recent investment by the Flipkart Group in the company that provides it a large distribution platform for its business," it added. Rajeev Kalambi, Principal at FidelisWorld, has joined Wildcraft's board as a director. Wildcraft was founded by Siddharth Sood, Gaurav Dublish and Dinesh Kaigonahalli. Wildcraft products are available in 175 exclusive stores and over 5,000 multi-brand stores across 500-plus Indian cities, with two manufacturing units in Bengaluru and Himachal Pradesh. Wildcraft also distributes its products in international markets including South Asia, Middle East, and Central Asia, and recently did its first tie-up in Europe. Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas acted as the legal advisor to FidelisWorld for this transaction. Spark Capital and Argus Partners acted as transaction advisors and legal advisors, respectively, to Wildcraft. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A medical board was examining jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif today to decide about shifting him to a hospital after the Pakistani media reported that he is on the verge of a kidney failure. Sharif, 68, and his daughter Maryam, 44, are serving jail terms of 10 years and 7 years respectively in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, after an accountability court convicted them on July 6 over the family's ownership of four luxury flats in London. A four-member medical board was examining Sharif in jail to decide about shifting him to the hospital following health related complications, sources said. The team comprising cardiologist Dr Naeem Malik, Medical Specialist Dr. Shaji Siddiqui, neurologist Dr Sohail Tanvir and Dr Mashood visited him in jail to carry out a detailed check-up. Sharif has multiple health issues like heart problems, hypertension and diabetes. He already underwent open heart surgery in London in 2016. Earlier, a team of doctors from Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC), headed by its Chief Executive Major General (retd) Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani, visited the prison and compiled a report after carrying out a detailed medical check-up. The findings in the report suggest that Sharif be shifted to a hospital immediately, The Express Tribune reported. Sharif had complained about his health on Saturday. Although his personal physician Dr Adnan had seen him twice in recent days, the jail administration called doctors from RIC to be sure of what had happened. The team spent about one-and-a-half hour inspecting his condition. According to the medical team, his body's water levels are very low, which has made his heartbeat erratic now. The amount of urea in his blood has also become very high, which could even lead to kidney failure, the report said. The board's findings suggested that Sharif be shifted to hospital immediately, it added. The Punjab Prisons sources told Daily Express that they are waiting for the Punjab home department's orders about shifting Sharif to the hospital. Caretaker provincial ministers Shaukat Javed and Ahmed Waqas Riaz said the jail superintendent has been informed in writing about Sharif's health issues and the home department has formed a medical board which will perform another checkup today to decide on whether to shift him to a hospital, the report said. They confirmed that Sharif's medical tests suggested he had kidney issues. The caretaker government is in touch with jail authorities and Sharif is getting better medical facilities, they added. Meanwhile, Barrister Zafrullah Khan of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has filed a petition with the Supreme Court to declare residences of Sharif and his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Muhammad Safdar as sub-jails. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Meghalaya government today issued an order banning sale of fish imported from outside the state for a period of 14 days after some samples tested positive for presence of formalin, an official said. "The government has banned sale, storage and distribution of fish imported from outside the state for a period of two weeks, i.e. 14 days from today," Food Safety Deputy Commissioner S N Sangma told PTI. He said the order was issued following the receipts of two fish samples which tested positive for presence of formalin. The samples were tested at the Assam-based Public Health Laboratory. Formalin is a colourless solution of formaldehyde in water, used chiefly as a preservative for biological specimens. The two samples tested positive for presence of formalin were taken from Jowai town of West Jaintia Hills district and Nongpoh, the district headquarter of Ri-Bhoi. "Out of the six samples received today, two tested positive and necessary recommendations were made to the government for immediate banning of fish imported from outside the state," Sangma said. Test results of another seven samples out of the 26 samples which were earlier this month sent to the laboratory for test for presence of formalin was awaited, he said. Meghalaya Fisheries Minister Comingone Ymbon said the state imports about 21,000 MT of fishes mostly from Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Assam. The state produces only about 12,330 MT during financial year 2016-17 while the total requirement is about 33,000 MT annually, he had said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sartaj Madni, an uncle of former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, resigned as the vice-president of the Peoples Democratic Party today. The resignation comes three weeks after several PDP MLAs, including senior leader Imran Ansari and his uncle Abdi Ansari, had accused Mufti of nepotism and questioned her decision to surround herself with her relatives and friends in the party. "I have submitted my resignation to Mehbooba Mufti (PDP president)," Madni told PTI. The PDP leader said he has resigned from the post in the "larger interests" of the party, including its stability and unity. While Madni refused to answer any questions, his resignation is believed to be part of efforts within the PDP to bring back the disgruntled legislators. The seven rebel legislators, including two MLCs, had come out in the open against Mufti after the PDP-BJP coalition government in the state fell, following the withdrawal of support by the saffron party. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi today arrived in Rwanda on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. The Prime Minister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was given a red carpet welcome this evening. His two-day state visit to Rwanda -- one of Africa's fastest growing economies -- assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. Prime Minister Modi will hold bilateral meetings with President Paul Kagame, delegation-level talks and meetings with the business and the Indian communities, a statement from the Prime Minister's Office said. He will also visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. A defence cooperation agreement is also expected to be signed between India and Rwanda during the visit, T S Tirumurti, secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said in New Delhi last week. India will also be opening a mission in Rwanda very soon, Tirumurti said. "During this visit, we expect to conclude two lines of credit -- one of USD 100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ), and another one for USD 100 million for agriculture and irrigation," he said. An important element of the programme would be the prime minister's visit to Rweru Model Village where he will gift 200 cows as a contribution from India to the 'Girinka' scheme of Rwanda, Tirumurti said. Under 'Girinka', a social protection scheme of the Rwandan government personally overseen by President Kagame, poorest families are gifted dairy cows by the government and the first female calf born to the cow is gifted to the neighbour, thus promoting brotherhood and solidarity. The cows to be gifted by India would be sourced from Rawanda. "We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture, and culture," he said. Modi's visit comes days after Chinese President Xi Jinping's trip to Rwanda. Modi would proceed to Uganda tomorrow for a two-day visit, the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister since 1997. The Prime Minister's visit to Rwanda is a historic one since it will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the East African country, a senior External Affairs Ministry official said in New Delhi. "Rwanda is an important gateway to Eastern Africa and we have elevated our bilateral relations with Rwanda to the level of a strategic partnership in January 2017," he said. The President of Rwanda is the current Chair of the African Union. Modi will attend the 10th edition of the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa during which the grouping's leaders are expected to deliberate on global hot-spot issues, international peace and security, global governance and trade issues among others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress' women wing held a massive protest today strongly condemning the Morni gang rape case in Haryana and demanded dismissal of the Khattar government over its alleged failure to ensure safety and security of women. The Mahila Congress workers took out a protest march in Panchkula today and raised slogans against the BJP government over the rape of a 22-year-old Chandigarh woman by 40 men for four consecutive days at a guest house in Morni area of Haryana's Panchkula district. They alleged that law and order situation in the state had broken down under the Khattar government. Later, talking to reporters here, the chief of Congress' women wing demanded dismissal of the Khattar government. Sushmita Dev, president of the All India Mahila Congress (AIMC), said the BJP government had failed to check the increasing incidents of gang-rapes and crime against women. Earlier in the day, Dev led a delegation to Haryana Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki and submitted a memorandum to him in the case of alleged gang-rape of a Chandigarh woman in Morni hills area. She later told reporters that the Congress demanded dismissal of the area women police station house officer (SHO) in Panchkula and shifting of the case from Panchkula to Chandigarh as the complainant has stated that she has lost faith in Haryana police. "The chief minister needs to answer why a woman who has been brutally raped wants her case to be transferred to Chandigarh. Doesn't this reflect the state of affairs which exists in Haryana under this government?," she asked. Dev also demanded a probe into the alleged flesh trade flourishing in Morni Hills area in Panchkula district allegedly with police connivance. Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda also hit out at the Khattar government for failing to ensure the safety and security of the women. "The woman who has been brutally raped is turned away by the police who ask her to register case somewhere else, such a thing is shocking... the crime graph has been on the rise ever since this government came to power. Law and order machinery has completely broken," Hooda alleged. The police have so far arrested nine accused in connection with the alleged gang rape of a 22-year-old woman from Chandigarh in Morni of Panchkula district. In a complaint lodged with the Chandigarh Police at Manimajra police station on July 19, the woman alleged that she was held captive for four days where the accused took turns to rape her. The guest house manager and another key accused, who was known to the victim's husband and was instrumental in taking her to the guest house, was among those who have been nabbed. The Chandigarh Police had registered an FIR at Manimajra police station after the woman approached them, amid allegations that the Haryana police had failed to take cognizance of her complaint initially when she approached a women police station in Panchkula. Alleging that they did not have faith in Panchkula police as they had not acted on their complaint initially, the victim and her husband have desired that the case be transferred back to the Chandigarh Police. The Panchkula police had set up a Special Investigation Team under IPS officer Anshu Singla, currently posted as ASP, Panchkula, to probe the gangrape incident. Three police officials, including a woman assistant sub-inspector (ASI), were suspended for negligence and not handling the rape survivor's complaint properly. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba today visited the Marine Commandos (MARCOS) unit at Watlab in Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir, an Army official said. "Admiral Sunil Lanba, the chairman of the chiefs of staff committee (CoSC) and the chief of naval staff, who is on a visit to Kashmir, visited Watlab Ghat today, wherein he was briefed by the Marine Commandos on their operational role in the Valley," he said. Admiral Lanba was given an update on the various operations and initiatives undertaken by the Marine Commandos in countering terrorism in and around the Wular Lake region. "The Marine Commandos have also been extending support to civil administration whenever required and act as one of the first respondents in situations like drowning cases," the official said. During his interaction with the Marine Commandos, the Navy chief exhorted them to continue to work in synergy with the Army with same zeal and dedication to defeat enemy's hostile designs. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Gujarat government today submitted a memorandum to the 15th Finance Commission asking for compensation for the revenue loss of over Rs 9,000 crore annually due to prohibition in the state. Finance Commission chairman N K Singh told reporters here that Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani had stated in the memorandum that it was losing Rs 9,864 crore annually due to its prohibition policy. "They told us that Gujarat is losing around Rs 9,864 crore every year due to the prohibition policy. Even Bihar is incurring such loss. The government has made a recommendation and we will think about it" Singh told reporters here after meeting Rupani. The commission is on a three-day visit to Gujarat. A state government release said that Rupani asked the commission to devise a compensation for states which are losing revenue for implementing a complete ban on the sale and consumption of liquor. Singh said that the Gujarat government had recommended the restructuring of the National Disaster Relief Fund with regard to its sharing and funding pattern. The state government had suggested that death caused by lightning be included in the purview of the relief fund parameters, Singh informed. The 15th Finance Commission chairman lauded the economic performance of Gujarat but opined that Goods and Services Tax (GST) remains "one of the big challenges" for the state. "Once the 14 per cent guarantee as GST compensation by the Union govt winds up, Gujarat will need to look at GST collection projections seriously and tax buoyancy may become an issue" he told reporters. He added that Gujarat's growth momentum is dependent on "some exogenous uncertainties like GST" while maintaining key macro-economic parameters. Singh said that the commission was particularly impressed with the reduction of Gujarat's Debt to GDP Ratio, which at 21 per cent, was close to the 20 per cent stipulated by the new FRBM (Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management) Act and which has to be be achieved by 2023-24. "Debt to GDP, in case of Gujarat, has come down. Its 21 per cent. As per the FRBM Act, it should be 20 per cent. Gujarat is tantalisingly close. In other states, its as high as 29 per cent. Thus, other states need to follow Gujarat in this regard," he told reporters. He added that Gujarat government also sought a special package from the commission for being a "border state". Apart from meeting government officials, the 15th Finance Commission also sought views of leaders from various political parties. During field visits tomorrow, the commission will visit Sardar Sarovar Dam, Statue of Unity and GIFT City as well as meet representatives of trade and industry. On July 25, it will visit Rajkot to see the Aji-I reservoir, SAUNI Yojana Phase 2 and Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) under the Smart City Project. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today praised President Donald Trump's "tough stand" against Iran after the US leader issued a stark warning to the Islamic republic. "I would like to praise the tough stand expressed yesterday by President Trump and Secretary of State (Mike) Pompeo against the aggression of the Iranian regime," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting. "Over the years, this regime has been spoiled by the major powers and it is good to see that the US is changing this unacceptable equation." Iran is Israel's main enemy and Netanyahu has long pushed for a tougher stand against it by international powers. He has repeatedly lauded the Trump White House's hawkish rhetoric toward the country. Trump used Twitter yesterday to send out an all-caps salvo: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had warned Trump yesterday not to "play with the lion's tail", saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". Trump's comments came after Pompeo, in a major address to the Iranian diaspora in California, said Washington was not afraid to sanction top-ranking leaders of the "nightmare" Iranian regime. Netanyahu lobbied hard to have the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers cancelled, and Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in May. All other parties to the deal -- Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China -- have sought to keep the deal in effect, saying it is working as intended by preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons for now. Netanyahu has also pledged to keep Iran from entrenching itself militarily in neighbouring Syria, where Tehran is supporting President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war. A series of strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Moscow's military chief of staff will arrive in Israel later today for talks on the Syrian conflict. Russia is also supporting Assad in the war. Netanyahu has held a series of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent months on Syria and Iran. Netanyahu said Putin requested the meeting with Lavrov and General Valery Gerasimov "in a conversation with me a few days ago". On June 19, Syrian government forces launched a Russia-backed offensive to retake Daraa and Quneitra provinces in the country's south, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Regime forces have now regained control of most of the two provinces through a combination of deadly bombardment and Moscow-brokered surrender deals. Israel is eager to obtain guarantees that Iranian forces and allied groups, such as Hezbollah, are kept away from the Golan. Separately on Sunday, Israel evacuated hundreds of White Helmets rescuers and their family members threatened by advancing Syrian regime forces to Jordan for resettlement in Western countries. Jordan's foreign ministry announced in a statement that the kingdom received 422 Syrian citizens, after earlier saying it had given permission for 800 to arrive. Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescues the wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-held territory. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nine more inmates of the Byculla prison here have fallen sick due to suspected food poisoning, taking the total count of the affected prisoners, most of them women, to 104 over the last four days, an official said today. The nine prisoners were hospitalised yesterday after they complained of stomach pain and dehydration, J J Hospital's medical superintendent Dr Sanjay Surase said. On July 20, 81 inmates of the Byculla women's prison were admitted in the state-run J J Hospital after they fell ill, with officials suspecting that food poisoning, contaminated water or reaction from a medicine as the reason behind their illness. The number rose to 95 by Saturday, with more inmates complaining of similar symptoms. While most of the prisoners were discharged, 15 inmates, including 13 women, were still in the hospital, Surase said. Among the 13 women, two were pregnant, a police official said. An investigation was on to ascertain the exact cause of the illness of the inmates, Surase said. An anti-viral medicine was administered to all the prison inmates and staff on July 19, after which some prisoners had complained of uneasiness, a top prison official had earlier said. The prime accused in the Sheena Bora murder case, Indrani Mukerjea, who is lodged in the same prison, was not among those admitted to the hospital, the jail officials had said. The dean of J J Hospital, Mukund Tayade, had earlier said all those admitted had complained of vomiting, nausea and loose motions. None of the patients was in a serious condition and they were responding well to treatment, he had added. Samples of the drinking water and food given to the prisoners were being tested, an official had said. The prison, which houses 312 inmates, was in the last year when Manju Shette (45), a convict, died after allegedly being beaten up by jail officials. Six officials were arrested in the case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government today said there is no proposal to include Andhra Pradesh in the industrial development schemes currently operatiing in north-eastern states and Jammu and Kashmir. "At present there is no proposal to include Andhra Pradesh in North East Industrial Development Scheme and Industrial Development Scheme for Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand," Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. He was replying to a question whether the government is considering to include Andhra Pradesh in special industrial promotion scheme being formulated by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion along with North East and Himalayan states. He said that Section 94 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 provides that the central government shall take appropriate fiscal measures, including offer of tax incentives to Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, to promote industrialisation and economic growth in both the states. "In view of this, special packages to backward areas of newly formed states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana each Rs 50 crore per year are being provided since 2016-17," he added. The minister also said that a sum of Rs 350 crore each year flows to both the states separately from special grant to the states. Andhra Pradesh is demanding special category status from the central government following bifurcation of the state in 2014. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Noisy scenes created by TDP members in the Rajya Sabha seeking special category status for Andhra Pradesh today saw a visibly upset Chairman M Venkiah Naidu ordering stoppage of telecast of proceedings for about 15 minutes saying "only voice will go; noise will not go". Thouogh the members of the Telugu Desam Party had trooped into the Well during the Question Hour raising slogans in support of their demands, the proceedings continued with Ministers replying to the listed queries. The TDP had earlier forced an adjournment of proceedings in the Upper House soon after it had assembled for the day. As TDP MPs YS Chowdhary and CM Ramesh raised the issue, the Chairman said he has already told them their notice "has been admitted, it is coming up tomorrow." He, however, said that the debate was not permissible under Rule 168. "You know the system. Sense of the House is that House should function and take up business as slated." Asking the agitating members to return to their seats, Naidu said; "I have only two options -- whether I run the House like this or adjourn the House". But as the ruckus continued, he said "nothing else (apart from listed proceedings) will go on record...Please take note, neither the electronic media, nor the print media." Following this, the live telecast was stopped for about 15 minutes. Naidu also warned the protesting members of action or adjourning the House while asking them to allow debate and discussion. While drawing the agitating members' attention towards school children sitting in the Visitors' Gallery, he also quipped: "Live telecast is not there. Why are you wasting your energy". As the din continued, Naidu said if "you have decided to defy the Chair...Choice is yours...Only voice will go; noise will not go". Earlier when the House had assembled for the day, TDP members led by Chowdary and Ramesh were up on their feet as soon as listed papers were laid on the table of the House. The Chairman said their notice has been converted into a short-duration discussion which would be taken up tomorrow. Naidu said he was willing for a discussion on the issue last week itself but TDP leaders wanted it to be slated for Monday and yesterday they had sought its listing on July 24. "I have admitted the notice under rule 176," he said. Rule 176 allows a short duration discussion to be raised by a member on a matter of urgent public importance. But the TDP members were unrelenting. "Please don't do injustice to other members," Naidu said, adding he has admitted 15 zero hour notices which should be taken up. He asked members to return to their places but TDP members were unrelenting. Naidu's repeated pleas to members to return to their seats went heeded, forcing him to adjourn the proceedings till noon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Normal life was thrown out of gear in Upper Assam today, due to a state-wide 12-hour strike called by six communities demanding ST status. A joint platform of 'Moran', 'Muttock', 'Tai-Ahom', 'Koch-Rajbongshi', 'Sootea' and Tea-Tribes communities called for a 48-hour Assam bandh from 5 am, but later reduced it to 12 hours, considering the ongoing update work of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and examinations of students. Supporters from these six communities staged protests, brunt tyres on highways and shouted slogans against the state and Central governments, officials said. Vehicular traffic was disrupted at many places, while a minor scuffle broke out in Golaghat, when police tried to clear a road blocked by the protesters, they said. Although emergency services were operational, shops, banks and other business establishments remained shut. Government offices were open, but with thin attendance. The impact of the strike was mostly felt in Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Sivasagar, Jorhat, Golaghat, Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Sonitpur, Bongaigaon and Morigaon districts, the officials said. Protesters burnt tyres on the streets at Dergaon, Kaziranga, Bokajan, Dhekiajuli, Numaligarh, Chabua, Sonari and Amguri. Ferry services to and from four destinations in the river island Majuli were also shut since early morning, they added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A fresh batch of over 1,200 pilgrims, including 300 women and 100 sadhus, left the base camp here for the cave-shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir today, officials said. They said a minor landslide, triggered by overnight rains, struck the Jammu-Srinagar national highway near Jaswal bridge in Ramban district early in the day, but was immediately cleared by the concerned agencies. The convoy of 42 light-and-heavy vehicles carrying 1,208 pilgrims was progressing smoothly after leaving from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp, the officials said, adding that they were expected to reach the twin base camps of Nunwan along the traditional 36-km Pahalgam route and Baltal base camp later in the day. Among the latest batch, they said 773 pilgrims have opted for the Pahalgam track in Anantnag district, while 435 including were going from the shorter 12-km Baltal side in Ganderbal district. The arrival of the pilgrims from across the country has recorded a marked dip over the past week. Considering the progressive decline in the strength of the pilgrimage, Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra, who is also the chairman of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) that manages the yatra, would be taking a meeting in the coming days, an official spokesperson said. He said the meeting, also involving officials of all security forces, would discuss various things regarding the management of the pilgrimage during the remaining period of the yatra. The 60-day yatra, commenced from the twin routes of Pahalgam and Baltal on June 28, is scheduled to conclude on August 26, coinciding with the Raksha Bandhan festival. Till last evening, a total of 2,36,157 pilgrims had the darshan of the naturally formed ice-Shiv Lingam at the 3,880-metre cave-shrine. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Over 200 kg of cannabis was seized at the Agartala Airport from a consignment of pineapples which was being sent to Dubai, police said today. The cannabis were seized from the pineapple consignment to Dubai at the airport here, Assistant Inspector General (AIG), Smriti Ranjan Das said. Das said 22 large boxes of pineapples were ready to be loaded as air cargo of an aircraft yesterday. Security check of the cargo revealed hidden cannabis inside the load of pineapples. "The Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the airline authorities immediately informed the police and Enforcement Branch. Subsequently, 22 packets of cannabis were recovered from 22 boxes of pineapple," the senior police officer said. He said the entire seized cannabis weighed 226 kg. Police arrested a man from the airport after the cannabis was seized from the pineapple consignment. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A two-month-long campaign by candidates and political parties for Pakistan's general election on Wednesday will come to an end at midnight tonight amid low voter enthusiasm and a tense security situation. The (ECP) said as per rules the campaign must end at midnight so that voters can relax and prepare for the July 25 polls. No candidate or party leader will address gatherings or corner meetings or take out processions after the deadline. According to an ECP official, electronic and print media would also avoid telecasting or publishing political advertisements. Anyone who contravenes ECP guidelines will be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years or with a Rs 100,000 fine. The election campaign has generally been seen as low-key and has failed to enthuse voters as in previous polls. There was also a sense of uncertainty due to court cases against leading politicians including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader and ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif who was convicted and sent to jail for corruption. The tactics by anti-corruption watchdog National Accountability Bureau have also hampered the campaign. Similarly actions by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) against former president Asif Ali Zardari have also been questioned due to their timing. A sudden spike in suicide attacks by militants have also affected the campaign. About 180 people, including three candidates, were killed in these attacks in the past two weeks. But the contestants and leaders are making last ditch efforts to woo voters before the end of the deadline. PML-N chief Shahbaz Sharif will address rallies in Dera Ghazi Khan and Rawalpindi in Punjab whuile his son Hamza will organise a rally in Lahore. A Palestinian teen was shot dead by Israeli soldiers during a raid in the occupied West Bank overnight, the Palestinian health ministry said today. Arkan Mizher, 15, was shot in the chest during clashes in Dheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem, in the southern West Bank, the ministry said. The Israeli army said its forces had entered the camp and arrested two suspects, using "riot disposal means" against protesters. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A three member panel constituted by the Gujarat government will meet stakeholders, including Tata, Adani and Essar, on Saturday in Mumbai to explore legal and commercial options for their three stressed power projects, according to a source. The committee, which has former Supreme Court Justice R K Agrawal, former RBI Deputy Governor S S Mundra and former Chairman of Central Electricity Regulatory Commission Pramod Deo on its board, met power developers as well as officials of procurer states, including Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan and Haryana yesterday. SBI Capital Markets and state-run power giant NTPC are assisting the panel to submit its report to the state government within a period of two month. The panel was set up earlier this year. The source said that the panel is still working out a solution for these developers who are struggling with high cost of imported coal for their power plants, and called a meeting on July 28, 2018 in Mumbai to explore legal and commercial options which could be taken forward to procurers. The procurers and state government officials had expressed before the panel that they would like to have options which are commercially justifiable. The source further said that the procurers also wanted to have a cap on coal prices and now the panel has asked developer to submit their view on the ceiling on the dry fuel price. According to the source, the panel has informed the developers that the procurers will not be able to take care of past losses, while lenders are flexible in dealing with the developers' debt for the power plants so far. Now, the developers will have to submit their views by July 26, ahead of another round of meeting of the panel with all stakeholders on July 28, 2018. In April last year, the Supreme Court had ruled that power distribution firms like Adani Power Ltd and Tata Power Ltd cannot charge "compensatory tariff" from consumers and set aside the appellate tribunal's judgement in this regard. Tata Power's wholly owned subsidiary Coastal Gujarat Power Ltd and Adani Power had originally moved the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), seeking higher tariff on the grounds that their input costs had gone up due to rupee devaluation and higher costs of coal imported from Indonesia, owing to a regulation passed by the Southeast Asian nation. The apex court did not agree with the contentions of these firms, which referred to the findings of the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity that rise in coal price consequent to change in the Indonesian law was a factor that entitled them to claim compensatory tariff. While setting aside the appellate tribunal's judgement as well as the CERC's order, a bench of Justices P C Ghose and R F Nariman had said that an unexpected rise in coal price would not absolve the firms from adhering to the contract as they had knowingly taken the risk while submitting their bids. In June last year, Tata Power had offered to sell 51 per cent stake in its 4,000 MW Mundra power project for Rupee 1 to procurer states like Gujarat, which buy electricity from it, to tide over the financial crisis. Similar offers were also given by Adani Power and Essar Power to sell their stakes to procures for Rupee one in 4,620 MW power plant located at Mundra and 1,320 MW power plant at Salaya near Jamnagar in Gujarat, respectively. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress leader Kumari Selja today claimed that though people do not speak against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, they had made up their mind to uproot the BJP government from the Centre and the state. People are being victimised in Rajasthan due to BJP's governance and their sentiments are with the Congress, the Rajasthan Congress screening committee chairperson said. "We have to continue maintaining our trust. Parameters in have changed so we have to improve with changing times to win people's trust," Selja said while addressing a one-day election workshop here. Congress general secretary and state in-charge Avinash Pandey said the 'Mera Booth- Mera Gaurav' campaign was successfully conducted in the state and a dialogue was established with over 7 lakh people in 200 assembly constituencies. Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot said the BJP might have been voted to power by the people for their false promises, but the situation is clear now. People are with the Congress and fearing this, the BJP is planning to hold assembly and general elections together, he claimed. On Congress president Rahul Gandhi giving a hug to the prime minister in Parliament, Gehlot said, "Keeping aside differences, the PM could have stood up to reciprocate the gesture for historic moment." State Congress chief Sachin Pilot said that the party has fought for the issues of people for over four years and as a result people are with the Congress. The party will emerge as winner in the upcoming Assembly elections, he claimed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot today demanded a judicial inquiry into the lynching of 28-year-old man in the state's Alwar district, saying it was necessary to ascertain the truth. On Saturday night, Rakbar alias Akbar Khan was lynched in the district's Ramgarh area on the suspicion of cow smuggling. He was taking the cows to his village in Haryana. The Congress leader alleged that such incidents had become common in the BJP-ruled state and said it was not the first case of lynching in Rajasthan. "A judicial inquiry into the case is needed because the investigating officer will be biased. It is needed to ascertain the truth. "So, nothing short of a judicial inquiry should be set up so that people have some fear of the law and legal system," Pilot said, adding that lynching and killing of people have become common in BJP-ruled states. "This word (lynching) was unheard of a few years ago. Of late, anti-social elements have been given a free hand to take the law into their own hands, attack, hurt and kill people in broad day light," Pilot said. He asked where such anti-social elements were four years ago. "The BJP government in Rajasthan has failed on the developmental front so now they are calling back divisive politics and allowing violence and hatred in the society. This is unacceptable in a civilized society," he said. On Congress chief Rahul Gandhi's statement that hatred had replaced humanity in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "brutal" 'New India', Pilot said, "It was absolutely true." "Under the rule of the BJP, Modi and (Chief Minister) Vasundhara Raje, the kind of government we have today is unwilling to live up to the visions of the Constitution and the law. There is complete lawlessness," he said. He also criticised the statements of BJP leaders on the Alwar incident. "How can a BJP MLA or a minister without an inquiry come up with a conclusion," he said. Pilot targeted Union Minister of State for Water Resources Arjun Ram Meghwal for linking incidents of lynching to increasing popularity of the prime minister. In April last year, 50-year old dairy farmer Pehlu Khan was beaten to death allegedly by cow vigilantes. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A pilot project to develop a model of large-scale assisted forest regeneration work would be implemented in the Cauvery river basin in the next three to six months, spiritual leader Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev has said. The project is being taken up under the National Rally for Rivers, a campaign by Isha Foundation, a spiritual organisation founded by the Sadhguru. "The first pilot project to develop a model of large-scale assisted forest regeneration work will be done in Cauvery river basin and subsequently in others, in the next 3 to 6 months," he told PTI. Jaggi Vasudev, convener of the Rally for Rivers board, also said such pilot projects would be implemented in river basins in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Punjab and Gujarat. The decisions were taken by the board at a meeting held here yesterday. The board members include Biocon Chairman and managing director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, former vice chairman of Tata Steel B Muthuraman and former ISRO chairman A S Kiran Kumar. The board would also conduct a demonstration on success of a large-scale Farmer Producers Organisations (FPOs) which are working towards achieving the Prime Minister's objective of doubling farmers' income by 2020, he said. "We have already tasted success by setting up FPOs with 1,100 farmers, whose incomes have gone up 100 per cent in three years," the spiritual leader said. The board also will work on active participation of private players to directly buy produce from FPOs to ensure profits to reach farmers' families, he added. A project related to revitalisation of Waghari river is going to be implemented in Yavatamal district of Maharashtra involving 7,000 farmers, he said. The spiritual leader claimed Rally for Rivers had become an umbrella policy for the country after Niti Aayog sent out a directive to all states to revitalise rivers. The board is seeking CSR funds to implement RFR, he said. On linking of rivers, he said the board has suggested to the centre to wait for some time to implement the project. The Isha Foundation founder said rivers in southern India cannot be linked because they are tropical in nature and water evaporation rate is as high as 70 per cent. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Piramal Capital and Housing Finance, the wholly owned subsidiary of Piramal Enterprises, today said it has invested Rs 650 crore in the Gurgaon-based Samhi Group. Samhi Group owns around 29 hotels and has marquee investors. "This structured debt investment will allow Samhi Group to support their growth plans and refinance existing lenders across three assets, The Courtyard and Fairfield by Marriott in Bangalore, the Sheraton in Hyderabad and the Hyatt Regency in Pune," it said in a statement. This is the third significant investment made by Piramal Capital and Housing Finance in the hospitality sector over last six months. It had invested Rs 600 crore with the Gurgaon-based Vatika Group (against the Westin Gurgaon and the Westin Sohna) and Rs 600 crore with Advantage Raheja Group (against the JW Marriott, Bangalore and the Crowne Plaza, Pune)and all loans are against operational assets. The company has also concluded five other transactions worth Rs 450 crore against five hotel assets, (three operational and two in final stages of construction and fit out) operated by top tier brands like Taj, Hyatt, Radisson across regions like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Shimla and Goa. Of this, Rs 100 crore will be extended as last mile funding towards the completion of the first Taj Luxury Resort in Himachal Pradesh coming up in Theog, near Shimla, that is expected to be operational within the next six to nine months. "Over a span of 6 months, we have deployed Rs 2000 crore towards the hospitality sector as we scale our offerings within this vertical to reach a target book size of Rs 10,000 crore in the next three years. The industry is firmly on a path of growth, ably supported both domestic and foreign tourism, has higher disposable income and is witnessing a general change in spending habits of target customers," Piramal Capital and Housing Finance managing director Khushru Jijina said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former Gujarat BJP MLA Jayanti Bhanushali has been asked to appear before a police team in connection with a rape case against him, a senior officer said today. "We have issued summons to Bhanushali under section 160 of the CrPC in the rape case filed at the Sarthana police station in the city in which he is the accused," said Police Commissioner Satish Sharma. Summons issued under the section requires one to appear at the relevant police station to record statement. Acting on a complaint filed by a 21-year-old woman, the police on July 19 had registered an FIR against Bhanushali under various sections of the IPC related to public servant committing rape, criminal intimidation, cheating, wrongful confinement and forgery, among others. The summons, issued by DCP Leena Patil -- heading the investigation into the case -- directs the former lawmaker to immediately present himself before the Sarthana police. It was sent at Bhanushali's residence in Ahmedabad. The former MLA is required to appear before the police so that his statement is recorded and medical examination conducted as part of the investigation, police said. Bhanushali represented the Abdasa assembly segment in Kutch district from 2007 to 2012. In the wake of the allegations, the 53-year-old leader had to step down from the post of Gujarat BJP vice-president. He had then described the allegations as baseless and said they were aimed at finishing his political career. The former MLA had also said he will not take up any post till his name is cleared in the case. In her complaint, the woman has alleged that the accused raped her on several occasions between November 2017 and March 2018 on the promise of getting her admitted in a reputed fashion design institute. The first sexual assault was allegedly taped by one of Bhanushali's assistants and he raped her on several occasions by threatening to circulate the video, she alleged. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo plans to urge members of the Iranian diaspora to "support" protesters in Iran, as the Trump administration hints at a desire for regime change in Tehran after turning its back on the Iranian nuclear accord. President Donald Trump -- who has made the Islamic republic a favourite target since his unexpected rapprochement with North Korea -- decided on May 8 to restore all the sanctions that had been lifted as part of the multi-nation agreement aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Following the US withdrawal that stunned even Washington's closest European allies, Pompeo on May 21 unveiled a "new strategy" intended to force Iran to yield to a dozen stringent demands or else face the "strongest sanctions in history". The next US step is due today in the Ronald Reagan presidential library in Simi Valley, California, when the secretary of state delivers a speech entitled "Supporting Iranian Voices". With the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 a year away, Pompeo plans to retrace "40 years of stealing from the Iranian people, the terrorism they have committed around the region, the brutal repression at home" as well as the "religious persecution" there, a senior State Department official told reporters ahead of the speech. The venue for Pompeo's address is significant, the official noted: some 2,50,000 Iranian-Americans live in Southern California. "He will be exposing some of the corruption" of a "kleptocratic regime," the diplomat told reporters. "The regime has prioritized its ideological agenda over the welfare of the Iranian people." Pompeo launched his campaign against Iran on Twitter last month, saying the government in Tehran and the Revolutionary Guards -- the regime's elite armed corps -- had "plundered the country's wealth" in proxy wars "while Iranian families struggle." The Trump administration's strategy appears simple: to exploit the already growing tensions within Iranian society that are being exacerbated by renewed US sanctions that have forced some foreign firms to leave. There have been a series of anti-government protests in Iran in recent months, prompted by an array of different issues and concerns. The State Department briefer said Pompeo plans to support "the legitimate demands of the Iranian people, especially their economic demands for a better life." But how far will he and the administration go? "That's the key question," Behnam Ben Taleblu of the conservative pressure group Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), told AFP. "Pompeo and the administration can do more than just rhetorical support to the Iranian protester." Several Iranian dissidents have written to Pompeo to urge him to re-establish punitive measures against the state-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting network, which they accuse of abetting human rights violations. Word of Pompeo's planned speech has fanned speculation on Washington's precise intentions. The State Department insists that the US seeks merely a "change in behavior" by the regime. But some senior members of the Trump administration -- notably national security advisor John Bolton -- have made it clear in the past that they would like to see the Tehran regime topple, and Pompeo himself said in May that "the Iranian people get to choose for themselves the kind of leadership they want." To Behnam Ben Taleblu, "genuine regime change can only come from inside." With an upsurge of "Iranians of all different social classes protesting," he said, the Trump administration will have to decide whether it wants to "support elements that actually want to change the regime." Diplomats and experts in Washington are divided as to whether the protests and social tensions within Iran pose a true threat to the Islamic republic. Nor is there agreement on what it would actually mean should the Iranian regime fall -- but some find that uncertainty deeply worrying. "The more likely result of regime collapse would be a military coup in the name of restoring order, led by the man Washington's Iran hawks fear the most: Gen. Qasem Suleimani," the commander of the Revolutionary Guards, according to Mark Fitzpatrick of the International Institute for Strategic Studies. "Exerting maximum pressure on Iran could bring about America's worst nightmare," he added on Twitter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A joint delegation of Legislators of Puducherry, headed by Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, today called on Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and urged him to grant the Union Territory statehood. The delegation met the Home Minister in Delhi. Territorial Speaker V Vaithilingam, his deputy V P Sivakolundhu, Ministers and legislators of the ruling Congress, its ally - the DMK, and the opposition AIADMK were part of the delegation. Legislators of AIl-India N Rangasamy Congress (AINRC), also in the opposition, did not accompany the delegation but would meet the Home Minister separately, a source in the party said. Sources told newsmen that the Chief Minister had briefed the Home Minister about the need for statehood and handed over to him a copy of the resolution on it, which the Territorial Assembly adopted in the just-concluded session. The Legislators would return to Puducherry on Wednesday after meeting other Union Ministers and leaders of various parties in the capital to press for statehood, sources said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress legislator Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco today claimed that the level of policing in Goa had "stooped so low" that people were "growing drugs in the fields". Speaking in the state Legislative Assembly on demands for grants of the Home department, Lourenco further said that Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, who was strict on drugs during his earlier tenure (as CM), had gone a "little weak". "The level of policing has stooped so low that people in the state have started growing drugs in the fields. Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar was strict during his earlier tenure but now he was gone a little weak," the MLA claimed. Parrikar was present in the House when Lourenco spoke. "Why is no action being taken on drugs? Are we not serious on this issue? Why not wage a war on drugs? Is there any connivance between politicians, police and the drug mafia? Why are we not able to do it? Something is wrong somewhere," he questioned. He referred to a recent raid by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on a factory where ketamine was allegedly being manufactured. While Lourenco named the party (to which the factory's owner reportedly belongs), Speaker Pramod Sawant expunged it stating that the legislator could not name a person "who is not present in the House to defend himself." Parrikar stood up and echoed the views of the Speaker. The Congress MLA said that the government needed to clean the system "from the top" so that the menace of drugs could be eradicated forever. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pope Francis and the Catholic Church can play a central role in promoting religious freedom, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said today. We think it's incredibly important that not only governments as in the State Department and the United States but religious leaders too understand that they need to press for religious freedom for their particular faith and their beliefs, but that they should also play a role in ensuring that there's religious freedom for those that share other faiths than the one, Pompeo asserted. We think they (Pope Francis and Catholic Church) can play a central role, he told Vatican in an interview. So, we think the Catholic Church can play an important role in the mission that we're attempting to achieve through gathering these folks in Washington in the days ahead, Pompeo said ahead of the ministerial meeting on religious freedom convened by the Trump administration. The state department, under President Donald Trump, he said, has made religious freedom a true priority for this administration. Over 80 delegations including more than 40 of his counterparts, foreign ministers from around the world, the largest number ever gathered at the State Department would be attending the conference this week. And our mission is really straightforward and important. It is to spread the word of the importance of religious freedom for every individual around the world. We want to press for that, he said. There are countries that share America's understanding of that, there are those who don't, and we want to move each of them in the right direction towards increasing religious freedom. People of all faiths should have the right to worship as they please, or if they choose not to, they should be permitted to do that as well, Pompeo said. Responding to a question, Pompeo said religious freedom, human rights, and economic interests are all deeply connected. The Trump administration and I both agree that religious freedom has enormous benefits for countries. When individuals are permitted to act and behave freely with respect to their faith, they have the capacity for greatness, he said. And so we see a deep connection between religious freedom as a fundamental human right, and the economic benefits that flow to countries that have this religious freedom. Investors prefer countries that have broad religious freedom. Commercial actors see places with religious freedom as places more open and with less risk. We think that religious freedom and human rights and economic success are deeply connected, deeply tied, and we think it benefits American foreign policy to reinforce this, Pompeo said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President Ram Nath Kovind would attend the convocation of IIT, Hyderabad during a visit to the city in the first week of August. Chief Secretary S K Joshi today held a meeting with officials here on the arrangements to be made for the President's visit, a state government release said. Kovind would arrive at Begumpet airport on August 4 in the evening and stay at Raj Bhavan for the night, it said. He would plant saplings at the Rashtrapati Nilayam at Bolarum in the city on August 5 morning. Later, he would attend the convocation of IIT, Hyderabad. Rashtrapati Nilayam in Hyderabad is one of the presidential Retreats. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) There is a proposal to take up source-apportionment studies in around 100 non-attainment cities under National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), the government today said. A non-attainment area is an area considered to have air quality worse than the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. Minister of State for Mahesh Sharma in a written reply in Rajha Sabha said on the basis of analysis of data for five years generated under National Air Quality Monitoring Programme (NAMP) during 2011-15, 94 cities have been identified as non-attainment cities. In addition, few cities have also been identified as polluted cities as per WHO data base, he said. "It is proposed to take up source-apportionment studies in these cities under NCAP. A timeline of two years has been indicated in NCAP with reference to source apportionment studies for all non-attainment cities," he said. He pointed out that organizations, institutions and universities having expertise and background in air pollution studies will be involved along with Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and State Pollution Control Board (SPCBs) for conducting these studies. He said the CPCB is conducting a nationwide programme for monitoring ambient air quality across the country under NAMP. At present there are 703 manual ambient air quality monitoring stations covering 307 cities and towns in 29 states and six Union Territories. "Under NCAP, it has been proposed that manual monitoring stations shall be strengthened from 703 operating stations to 1000 stations to cover the uncovered district & towns," he said. The overall objective of the NCAP is comprehensive management plan for prevention, control and abatement of air pollution, besides augmenting the air quality monitoring network across the country. Sharma said that in addition, there are 132 Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) installed in 68 cities in 17 states and UTs. He said 108 CAAQMS are proposed to be installed in 62 Cities in 31 states and UTs. "The Budgetary allocation under Central Public Sector Undertaking (CPSU) project for 60 stations in 38 cities in 27 states and UTs are to be met from the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds of CPSU," he said. These stations are proposed to be installed by June, 2019 and the budget for other 26 CAAQM stations in 24 Cities in 19 states and UTs are to be met from grant in aid from Ministry by sharing capital cost percentage with states and UTs - - 50 per cent for states, 90 per cent for North-Eastern States and 100 per cent for UTs, he said. "These stations are expected to be installed and commissioned within a year. Budget for total 14 CAAQM stations in five cities in two states and UTs are allocated under Protection Cess (EPC) fund from CPCB. These stations are under installation and will be commissioned by December, 2018," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Government on Monday asserted that the proposed would be an "independent" body and that rights of states would not be impunged, amid concerns expressed by members over replacing the UGC. The of India Bill, 2018 seeks to repeal the (UGC) Act, 1956 and establish the Commission to effectively attain standards and enhance quality of higher education. Human Resources Development Minister told the Lok Sabha that the new body would not be a government ministry but an independent body. "We are not converting it into a bureaucratic organisation... it will remain independent," Javadekar said, adding the context has changed now. When the UGC was set up in 1956, there were 20 universities, 500 colleges and around 2 lakh students. Now, there are over 900 universities, 40,000 colleges and more than 3.5 crore students, the minister said. Raising concerns, some members wanted to know why the UGC is going to be replaced. The minister said there would be two commissions one for providing grants and the other for carrying out regulatory functions. "That is the whole idea," he said during the Question Hour. According to the minister, the grant disbursal function to universities and colleges is now proposed to be located in an entity which works in a transparent, merit-based approach through an ICT (Information and Communication Technology) enabled platform. ALSO READ: HRD Ministry to replace UGC with Higher Education Commission of India Making it clear that rights of states would not be impunged with the creation of the new body, the minister also said there would not be any change at all in existing reservations for OBC, SC and others. "The proposed of India will focus largely on promoting the quality of academic instruction, maintenance of academic standards and grant of autonomy of higher educational institutions," Javadekar said. The ministry is in the process of finalisation of the draft Higher Education Commission of India Bill, 2018 based on suggestions/comments received from various stakeholders, he said. The draft bill now proposes to enable the Commission to perform its role effectively in attaining standards and enhancing quality of higher education, he added. Responding to concerns raised by members, Javadekar said the draft bill has been amended and that would go to the Cabinet for approval. Around 10,000 suggestions were received on the draft. Some members raised the issue of the yet-to-be- established Jio Institute being selected as a institution of eminence Javadekar said it was selected from 11 private proposals under the greenfield institutions category. To a query on why no state-run university found a place in the institution of eminence list, he expressed hope that public universities would be there in the next list. The intention is to have 20 world class institutions in the next 10 years, he added. During the Question Hour, TDP members stood at their seats with some placards kept on their desks as they sought to raise demand for various facilities for Andhra Pradesh. On Friday, the no-confidence motion moved by the TDP was defeated in the House. Congress president Rahul Gandhi would participate in the next phase of the partys Jana Chaitanya bus yatra in Telangana, beginning in the first week of next month. Gandhi is likely to address a series of street corner meetings as part of the yatra here and neighbouring Ranga Reddy district, a party release said here today. The date and venue were likely to be finalised in the next few days. In the three phases of the bus yatra held so far, Congress leaders, led by Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy, have covered 40 out of 119 assembly segments in the state, where the assemby and Lok Sabha elections are to be held simultaneously next year. The third phase of the yatra, aimed at exposing the alleged failures of the TRS government, was halted last month in view of Ramzan. Reddy, who was in Delhi to attend the Congress Working Committee (CWC), held detailed discussion with in-charge for Congress affairs in Telangana R C Khuntia. AICC Secretaries N S Bose Raju, Saleem Ahmed and Srinivasan Krishnan, assigned the task of supervising party activities in Parliamentary constituencies, also took part in the discussions, the release said. According to the release, Reddy, in his interaction with media in Delhi, said the party was planning to release the manifesto and also announcecandidates for elections early. He said the delay in release of manifesto and TRS president K Chandrasekhar Raospromises were the main reasons for the defeat of Congress in the 2014 elections in the state. The TPCC chief said the manifesto, both at the national and state levels, should be released early. Reddy, a former top IAF officer, also criticised the BJP for not divulging price details of the Rafale fighter jets. "I'm a former fighter pilot and had flown MIG-21 and MIG-23 while serving at Pakistan and China borders. There is no need to reveal the fighting capabilities like the range, missiles, etc..But, the price cannot be a secret," he said. BJP had been making "a hue and cry" over the AgustaWestland helicopters over pricing issue, while it wants to keep the cost of Rafale a secret, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu today said the RBI and the Income Tax Department should ascertain at the earliest whether the money deposited in banks post demonetisation was "white or black" in order to maintain the credibility of the reform. As part of efforts to curb illicit fund flows in the system, the government had cancelled old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes as legal tenders in November 2016. After demonetisation, Naidu said, "people started enquiring from drivers, cooks, servants whether they have bank accounts or not". Some people requested them to park some of their ill-gotten money in bank accounts, he added. Naidu said that there was widespread cynicism about demonetisation and people wanted to know what was the gain when the entire money has reached the banks. "What was the purpose of demo (demonetisation)? Apart from counterfeit notes, the purpose was to bring money into the system. So, money reached banks with address. What else you want!," he said. Speaking at the centenary celebration of New India Assurance here, Naidu said it is now for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Income Tax Department to prove the money which has come back to the banks is white or black". "That should be done at the earliest so that the credibility of these reforms would be maintained. This is my advice to the RBI and also the other agencies involved," the Vice President said. Last year, the RBI revealed that 99 per cent of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes returned to the banking system. Around Rs 15.28 lakh crore or 99 per cent of the Rs 15.44-lakh-crore worth scrapped currency notes had come back to the banking system during the period from November 8, 2016 and June 30, 2017, as per the RBI data. Demonetisation was announced on November 8, 2016. Expressing concern over low penetration of insurance in the country, Naidu asked insurers to devise simple, unique and innovative policies so that people buy products on their own. "Insurance should become assurance that would be good for the country," he said. Noting that India is part of the globalised world, Naidu said that "entire world is watching us". "Both financial inclusion and industrialisation have to take place hand in hand for India to continue its onward march to become one of the leading economies in the world in the next two decades," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A religious procession organised by the minority Hindu community in Bangladesh was attacked by a group of people, leaving six devotees injured, police said. The assailants struck when the Ulto Rath Yatra, or the reverse journey of Lord Jagannath's chariot, was being carried out yesterday in Gopalganj district's Kotalipara upazila, bdnews24.com reported. The report said that a group of locals attacked the Ratha Yatra, a major festival of the Hindu community. The devotees, dressed as Lord Krishna and Radha, pulled the chariot in the procession organised by ISKCON from the Dhakeshwari National Temple to Swamibagh, the report said. The accused entered the festival venue in Tarashi village with sticks and assaulted six devotees. They also vandalised the venue and looted gold ornaments from one of the devotees, the report said. The festival committee filed a case accusing 10 to 15 people for the attack. Two accused were arrested, Kotalipara police station's Officer-in-Charge Md Kamrul Faruk said, adding that efforts were underway to arrest others. Hindu businessmen in the area protested the attack and halted their activities. They resumed their business after officials assured them of taking strict measures against those responsible. Festival committee General Secretary Joydeb Saha said since there was a mosque close to the venue they kept their loudspeaker off during Esha prayers. "We have been asked to switch off the loudspeaker for 40 minutes. As we switched it on after the time was over a group of people attacked us all of a sudden," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three militants stormed the governorate building in the city of Irbil in Iraq's northern Kurdish region, opening fire and wounding a policeman before they were gunned down, according to Iraqi media. The assault started at around 7 a.m. and local Kurdish security forces later managed to enter the building, according to Rudaw Television and Radio, which cited the city's deputy governor, Tahir Abdullah. Details were sketchy and shortly before noon, Rudaw said security forces reported that one of the militants inside the building was killed. Iraqi state TV later said all three attackers were killed, citing Kurdish security officials. "I'd like to reassure everyone that the situation is under control as security forces have entered the building and are searching for the attackers room by room," Abdullah told Rudaw. Kurdistan 24, a local TV channel, broadcast video showing security personnel surrounding the building and trying to enter it. Gunfire is occasionally heard in the footage. There were no further details as to what was happening inside the building or if there were any hostages or causalities. No militant group immediately claimed responsibility for the assault. Irbil is the capital of Iraq's self-governing northern Kurdish region, which typically enjoys good security. The last major attack there took place in 2015 against the US Consulate, killing three people and wounding five others. One American teacher and two Turkish citizens were among the wounded, police said. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack. Iraqi Kurdish forces known as peshmerga were key in the Iraqi military's defeat of IS last year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Campaigners and human rights groups in the UK have expressed alarm as it emerged that the UK had bypassed its official policy against the death penalty, which could see two Islamic State recruits face execution in the US. The so-called ISIS Beatles, in reference to their British origin, were captured by American-backed Kurdish forces in Syria in January. Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, from west London, are believed to be two terror suspects out of a foursome that had joined the terrorist network after being radicalised in the UK. In a letter to US attorney general Jeff Sessions last month, leaked to The Daily Telegraph', UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid said Britain will seek no assurances that the pair will not be executed. "I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought," Javid said. "All assistance and material will be provided on the condition that it may only be used for the purpose sought in that request, namely a federal criminal investigation or prosecution, the letter notes. Shami Chakrabarti, Labour's shadow attorney general, said the home secretary had "secretly and unilaterally abandoned Britain's opposition to the death penalty" and appeared to be encouraging "this grave human rights abuse". "This a unilateral change of policy without any consultation and I would be amazed if this had been approved explicitly by the prime minister," added Lord Carlile, a former independent reviewer of terrorism legislation. Downing Street said British Prime Minister Theresa May was aware of the letter and discussions with the US on this issue were continuing. "The decision was taken by the home secretary and the former foreign secretary following the advice of lawyers and officials. The prime minister was made aware of the decision," a Downing Street spokesperson said. "We are continuing to engage with the US on this issue," the spokesperson said. Human rights group Amnesty International called Javid's decision a "deeply worrying development". Kotey and Elsheikh were members of the ISIS cell with two others from west London Mohammed Emwazi, nicknamed "Jihadi John", and Aine Davis. They became associated with the execution of Western hostages. Emwazi, who was the alleged ringleader and appeared in videos showing hostages being beheaded, was killed in a drone strike in 2015 and Davis was convicted of being a senior ISIS member and jailed in Turkey last year. In an interview released earlier this year, Kotey and Elsheikh complained about their British citizenship being revoked. There has since been some uncertainty over whether they should be returned to the UK for trial or face justice in another jurisdiction. The leaked letter by Javid indicates that US courts were better placed to handle "foreign fighter" cases. The UK Home Office refused to comment on the leaked document. "We continue to engage with the US government on this issue, as we do on a range of national security issues and in the context of our joint determination to tackle international terrorism and combat violent extremism," a spokesperson said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Border Roads Organisation has spent more than Rs 1,900 crore on construction and improvement of infrastructure on the north-western and north-eastern borders of India, the government said today. In a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha, Subhash Bhamre, minister of state for defence, said that in 2015-16, the BRO spent Rs 379.72 crore, followed by Rs 812.11 crore and Rs 744.74 crore in 2016-17 and 2017-18 respectively. This comes to around Rs 1,936 crore. Bhamre said the government has identified 73 strategic roads. Of these, 61 roads are entrusted to the BRO. In response to another question, the minister said that after the opening up of the defence industry sector in May 2001 for manufacturing by Indian private sector companies subject to licensing, 379 licences have been issued to 230 Indian companies for manufacturing of various defence items of which some have also been signed. Till 2014, 42 licensed companies reported commencement of production to this ministry. Since then, 28 companies have reported commencement of production, Bhamre said. Replying to another question, he said girl students have been admitted in Sainik School, Chhingchhip, Mizoram from the academic session 2018-19 on a pilot project basis. Bhamre said the admission of girl students in Sainik Schools across the country will be decided after reviewing the outcome of the pilot project. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior RSS leader Indresh Kumar today condemned the recent assault on social activist Swami Agnivesh but said nobody has the right to hurt sentiments of others. Agnivesh was beaten up at Pakur in Jharkhand on July 17 allegedly by members of BJP-affiliated youth groups who accused him of speaking against Hindus. "It is wrong and condemnable. But nobody has the right to hurt others' sentiments in the name of freedom of expression," Kumar, an executive committee member of the RSS, told a press conference here. He said there is need for a strong act against those who hurt religious faith. Kumar was here to attend a programme of the Hindu Jagaran Manch. On the mob lynching incidents in various parts of the country, Kumar said, "Any mob lynching incident is condemnable." In a press statement, he alleged that 'Pathalgarhi' movements are taking place due to a conspiracy hatched by the church and missionary institutions. "Pathalgarhi movement is suddenly active in Jharkhand, near Ranchi, as a conspiracy of church and missionary institutions," he said in the statement without elaborating. 'Pathalgarhi' is reportedly a practice in which villagers inscribe various tenets on huge stone slabs and ban outsiders in the area. Two major 'Pathalgarhi' related incidents had taken place last month. Five women working with an NGO were allegedly raped at gunpoint by a group of men, allegedly Pathalgarhi supporters, when they had gone to Kochang village in Jharkhand on June 19 to create awareness about human trafficking. A week later, three policemen deployed at the house of BJP MP Karia Munda were abducted allegedly by the supporters of Pathalgarhi in Khunti district. "People of some religions are conspiring across the country to revive the foreign flag in India again," Kumar said in the press release. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bihar Assembly was today adjourned till 2 pm as opposition members created a ruckus, demanding a "drought-hit tag" for the state in view of deficient rainfall. The Nitish Kumar government yesterday hiked subsidy on diesel by Rs 10 a litre to Rs 50 for irrigation purposes as the delayed onset of monsoon in Bihar has led to a 48 per cent rainfall deficit so far. As the House met for the day at 11 am, the RJD, the Congress and CPI(ML) members served an adjournment motion notice for a debate on the situation of farmers in the "drought-like condition", but Speaker Vijay Kumar Choudhary ruled that the issue could be raised only after Question Hour. However, after the Question Hour, when the Speaker discarded the notice for adjournment motion by Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav on the ground that it did not follow rules, the opposition members, including RJD MLA Abdul Bari Siddiqui and Congress leader Sadanand Singh, asserted that the reasons behind its rejection be explained to them. Paddy could not be sown in 86 per cent of agricultural land because of the drought-like situation, he said, adding that the state government failed to handle the crisis. "The state announced diesel subsidy of Rs 50 per litre for irrigation only in the last week of July. The announcement should have been made earlier, when the state recorded 19 per cent deficient rainfall in May and June," he claimed. The government should declare Bihar a "drought hit" state and waive off farmers' loans, Tejashwi said. "As farmers are in a deep trouble and on the verge of committing suicide, we decided to move adjournment motion for holding a discussion on the crucial issue," he stated. Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, on his part, said the government was ready to hold a discussion on the issue. He suggested that the matter could be taken up for discussion during the first supplementary budget debate. The CM has convened three meetings, including the one held yesterday, to assess the situation arising out of deficient rainfall, he said. Besides hiking the diesel subsidy for irrigation purpose, the deputy CM said, the state government has also reduced the power tariff rate for farmers. Not satisfied with Sushil Modi's reply, Tejashwi said "this (state govt) is a jumlebaaj government" which will do nothing for farmers. The Opposition members rushed to the well and raised anti-government slogans, forcing the Speaker to adjourn the House till 2 pm. Chief Secretary Deepak Kumar, during a press briefing yesterday, said CM Nitish Kumar has assured the officials that there was no paucity of funds and the disaster victims have the first right over the state's coffers. The CM would hold meeting again on July 31 to review the situation and if need arises, he may also declare the state drought-hit, the chief secretary added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on today in talks focusing on the Iranian presence in Syria. Netanyahu announced earlier at a Cabinet meeting that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a few days ago requested the meeting with the high-level delegation that includes Russia's chief of the military's General Staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov. Netanyahu said they will discuss regional developments with "the situation in Syria being first and foremost." He said he will reiterate Israel's position that it expects Syrian President Bashar Assad and his Iranian-backed allies to honor the 1974 agreement which sets out a demilitarized zone along their shared frontier, and that Israel will continue to act to stop its archenemy Iran from establishing a permanent military presence in Syria. Israel's main concern is to keep Iran, which is fighting alongside the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad, as far away from its border as possible - along with its proxy, the Lebanese Hezbollah and other militia. Russia, a key Assad ally, has warned it would be unrealistic to expect Iran to fully withdraw from the country. Monday's meeting comes about two weeks after Netanyahu and Putin discussed Syria and Iran in Moscow. Hours before the meeting Israel activated a missile defense system against rockets from the fighting in Syria it believed were heading its way. The incident came after Israel earlier this month, twice in the same week, fired a Patriot missile at an unmanned aircraft that approached the country's border from Syria. In June, Israel fired a missile at a drone that approached its airspace near the Syrian frontier. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Moscow's military chief of staff will arrive in Israel later Monday for talks on the conflict in neighbouring Syria, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Netanyahu said at the start of a Cabinet meeting that Russian President Vladimir Putin requested the meeting with Lavrov and General Valery Gerasimov "in a conversation with me a few days ago". The two leaders have held a number of discussions in recent months on the Syrian conflict and Iran's military presence there, which Israel opposes. A series of strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel. Iran is Israel's arch-enemy and Netanyahu has pledged to keep it from entrenching itself militarily in Syria. Both Tehran and Moscow are backing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the conflict. On June 19, Syrian government forces launched a Russia-backed offensive to retake Daraa and Quneitra provinces in the country's south, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Regime forces have now regained control of most of the two provinces through a combination of deadly bombardment and Moscow-brokered surrender deals. Israel is eager to obtain guarantees that Iranian forces and allied groups, such as Hezbollah, are kept away from the Golan. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The sale and manufacture of BS-VI non-compliant vehicles in India should not be allowed from April 1, 2020 as it would lessen environmental benefits to be accrued from using cleaner BS-VI fuel, the Centre today told the Supreme Court. In an affidavit filed in the apex court, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) said that it would not be possible to segregate pricing of diesel or have a differential pricing mechanism for the fuel for private vehicles. The ministry told a bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta that sale and manufacture of BS (Bharat stage)-VI non-compliant vehicles from April 1, 2020 would have an adverse affect since investment of around Rs 28,000 crore has already been made for having a cleaner BS-VI fuel. Meanwhile, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) referred to a government notification of February 20 this year which said that registration of private vehicles manufactured up to April 1, 2020 should be done till June 30, 2020. Advocate Aparajita Singh, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the matter, raised the issue of Delhi reeling under air pollution and said that people were dying due to its ill-effects. Additional Solicitor General A N S Nadkarni, appearing for the Centre, said that time till June 2020 has been given for registration of BS-IV vehicles manufactured up to March 2020. "If BS-VI fuel is used in BS-IV vehicles, the environmental benefit of having a cleaner fuel would become marginal. After March 31, 2020, sale of non-compliant BS-VI vehicles should not be allowed," Nadkarni said. When the counsel appearing for SIAM referred to the reduction of time given to the automobile manufacturers to jump to BS-VI from BS-IV, the bench said, "When this issue had cropped up, there was strong opposition from you." "I am not sure what you (SIAM) are up to. When it is convenient for you then you say no to electric vehicles and when its beneficial, then you are ready for electric vehicles," Justice Lokur observed. SIAM's counsel said that situation has now changed and 10,000 electric vehicles would be supplied in Delhi. "All we are saying is that we have to be little cautious while dealing with your organisation," the bench said. The amicus claimed that SIAM had earlier misled the court on electric vehicles and prototype of 23 such vehicles were shown during the auto show. Meanwhile, the SIAM said that approval on prototypes of electric vehicles were pending with the government. The bench said that MoPNG's affidavit be supplied to the SIAM so that they could respond to it and said that it would hear the issue. During the hearing, the bench was told that Mercedes-Benz was already manufacturing BS-VI compliant vehicles in India. The amicus claimed the automobile manufacturers like Tata, Maruti and Mahindra were exporting BS-VI vehicles to Europe and for India, they say that they need time. The amicus also suggested as to why the manufacturers cannot roll out BS-VI vehicles earlier in Delhi- National Capital Region (NCR) when BS-VI fuel would be made available by April 1, 2019 in 17 out of 23 districts in the NCR and Agra. "Some car-makers are determined not to come out with BS-VI vehicles till March 31, 2020," the amicus said. During the hearing, the bench observed that taxi operators in Delhi could also be given incentives if they purchase BS-VI compliant vehicles. The amicus said roughly 80,000 taxis were plying in Delhi and all taxis, auto rickshaws and public transport buses were running on CNG. The bench was also told that there were around 30 lakh private vehicles in Delhi and a minimum of 750 vehicles were registered every day here. The amicus said since diesel-run vehicles were a major cause of concern, the Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA) has suggested levying an annual charge on diesel vehicles. The court had earlier suggested that the Centre could contemplate fixing price of diesel and petrol on par for four wheelers, other than goods vehicles. The court was hearing the petition that has raised the issue of air pollution in the Delhi-NCR. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court on Monday refused to stay the Delhi High Court's interim order banning the publication and sale of a book purportedly on the life of yoga guru Ramdev, which he claimed contained defamatory contents. A bench headed by did not grant any interim relief to the publisher Juggernaut Books, rather it asked the to decide the petition by September-end. The petition by the publisher challenges a trial court order banning the publication and sale of the book titled 'Godman To Tycoon'. The publisher had knocked the doors of the apex court after the High Court, in its interim order, had refused to lift the ban on sale and publication of the book imposed by the trial court. "This court requests the to decide the main petition by the end of September," the bench, which also comprised Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, said. It also directed the parties to complete the pleadings by August 7 and disposed of the petition. Senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, appearing for the petitioner publisher Juggernaut Books, said that the high court order was "ad-interim in nature" and also it has fixed the matter for August 9. In a relief to yoga guru Ramdev, the had on May 10 issued an interim order restoring the ban on publication and sale of a book purportedly on his life, which he claimed contained defamatory content. The high court had stayed an order of the additional senior civil judge (ASCJ) which had removed the ban on the publication and sale of the book. The high court had made it clear that it would pass a detailed order in the matter later. In August last year, the ACJ had restrained the publisher from publishing and selling the book titled 'Godman To Tycoon' till further orders. It had also restrained and Flipkart Internet Pvt Ltd from selling the book online and said any pending delivery of the book to buyers be stopped immediately. The book authored by journalist Priyanka Pathak Narai was published in July last year. Ramdev has challenged the civil judge's April-28 order by which the court had lifted the ban on the book by setting aside the injunction order of the trial court in August last year. Ramdev, in his suit, had alleged that the information in the book was false, tended to injure his reputation and led to an inference that the yoga guru had been involved in mischievous and criminal activities to achieve fame and success. The publisher had earlier said that the book was a work of serious journalism. It was the product of over 50 interviews, many of them taped, with Ramdev and key players in his life, including close aides and family members, it had said. "The book contains a detailed 25-page note on sources that lists the interviews, articles, police reports and RTI replies that are the basis of each chapter," it had said in a statement. Former Catalan minister Clara Ponsati, wanted for her role in last year's bid for independence from Spain, had her international arrest warrant withdrawn at a Scottish court today. It comes after a Spanish Supreme Court judge last week dropped international arrest warrants for Catalan separatist leaders. The 61-year-old St Andrews University academic was arrested in March by police in Scotland following a European Arrest Warrant issued by Spain on charges of violent rebellion and misappropriation of public funds for her role in the unconstitutional independence referendum in 2017. A four-week extradition hearing was due to begin in Edinburgh next week. But a Spanish Supreme Court judge on Thursday dropped European and international arrest warrants for deposed Catalan regional president Carles Puigdemont and five other separatist leaders, including Ponsati, who fled abroad. The decision came after a German court ruled that Puigdemont could not be extradited to Spain for rebellion, only for embezzlement connected to the alleged misuse of public funds. Ponsati's warrant was formally discharged during a short hearing on Monday at Edinburgh Sheriff Court, but she remains in exile as she is likely to be arrested if she returns to Spain. Spanish arrest warrants remain open, meaning those who were fighting extradition could be detained if they returned to Spanish territory. Speaking outside the court, former education minister Ponsati said: "I am just determined to keep fighting for the freedom of all political prisoners, for civil rights in Catalonia and Spain and for the Republic of Catalonia." In a statement, her lawyer Aamer Anwar said: "This is a humiliating defeat for the Spanish state which since October 1 has unleashed a wave of repression, attacking the Catalan people, suspending their government, jailing or trying to jail independence leaders. "The withdrawal of the warrants is a tremendous victory, but there can be no mood for celebration whilst nine Catalans are held as political hostages and Clara remains a political exile unable to return home for at least 20 years. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Over fifty per cent of pregnant women in developing countries are exposed to second hand smoke, according to a study which found that such exposure causes about 17,000 still births every year in Pakistan alone. Exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy increases the risk of stillbirth, congenital malformations, low birth-weight and respiratory illnesses. However, little is known about the extent of secondhand smoke exposure during pregnancy. Researchers from University of York in the UK looked at the number of pregnancies alongside smoking exposure data in 30 developing countries from 2008 to 2013. The analysis revealed that in Armenia, Indonesia, Jordan, Bangladesh and Nepal more than 50 per cent of pregnant women reported exposure to household secondhand smoke. According to the study published in the journal BMJ Tobacco Control, this led to over 10,000 still births in Indonesia alone. Over 40 per cent of all pregnant women in Pakistan are exposed to secondhand smoke - causing 17,000 still births every year In Pakistan only one per cent of still births are attributed to women actively smoking during pregnancy, but for secondhand smoke the figure is seven per cent, largely due to the high numbers of pregnant women exposed to tobacco smoke in the home. In five of the 30 countries, household secondhand smoke exposure was twice as common as active smoking. Researchers said it was predominately male smokers exposing women to secondhand smoke. "This is the first study which provides national estimates for 30 developing countries on secondhand smoke exposure in pregnancy and it reveals a huge problem, a problem which is not being addressed," said Kamran Siddiqi, from the University of York. "We have shown for the first time that secondhand smoke during pregnancy is far more common than active smoking in developing countries, accounting for more still births than active smoking," said Siddiqi. "Protecting pregnant women from secondhand smoke exposure should be a key strategy to improve maternal and child health," he said. Researchers said that the results are based on self-reported surveys and could be subject to underestimation. Further work is needed to develop effective interventions to reduce household exposure to secondhand smoke. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress and other opposition parties today demanded that a bill to amend the Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains Act be sent to a select committee of the Rajya Sabha, even as the government sought its early passage. As the Rajya Sabha assembled after lunch, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel said the legislation was passed by the Lok Sabha on January 3 and there were pressing reasons that it be passed without delay. However, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad and his deputy Anand Sharma suggested that since the bill has not been scrutinised by a parliamentary panel, it should be sent to a select committee. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said there were several errors in the draft bill which should be rectified. Culture minister Mahesh Sharma emphasised that there were important reasons why the bill needed to be expeditiously taken up for passage. He said as the measure was important as infrastructure projects were held up. These included a 150-year-old bridge in Maharashtra's Kolhapur which is "hanging". "I have been asked if I can, as the concerned minister, take responsibility if any accident occurs," Sharma said. There were other key projects also which were stuck, the minister added. Seeking to find a solution, Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu wanted to know whether it was possible that the committee, if the proposed legislation is sent to it, submits its report during the current session itself. Azad said this did not normally happen and the committee could submit its report early in the next session. Naidu, however, said there were precedents when parliamentary panels had expeditiously submitted their reports. BJP MP Bhupender Yadav said in one case, a panel had given its report in five days. However, members of several opposition parties like the DMK, SP and RJD favoured sending the bill to the select committee. As difference of opinion prevailed, Naidu asked Goel to speak to the different parties and inform the House so that a solution can be arrived at. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A former provincial minister and candidate of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf was today laid to rest, a day after he was killed in a suicide attack in the troubled Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. Ikramullah Gandapur, who was in fray for the provincial assembly seat from PK-99 constituency, was on his way to an election meeting when the bomber targeted his vehicle in Dera Ismail Khan district. His driver was also killed in the attack while three bodyguards were badly injured. Gandapur was laid to rest in his hometown Kulachi in Dera Ismail Khan. His funeral prayers were offered at College Ground, Kulachi, Geo reported. He had sustained critical wounds in the suicide blast and was rushed to a Peshawar hospital by helicopter. However, he succumbed to his injuries during treatment after fighting for his life for over four hours. Gandapur had served as the provincial agricultural minister in the PTI-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. He was elected to the Dera Ismail Khan PK-67 seat in a by-election, after it was vacated following the death of his brother and law minister Israrullah Gandapur in a suicide attack. Around the same time that Gandapur came under attack, Jamiat-Ulema-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Akram Khan Durrani, a former Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister, also survived a second assassination attempt in less than 10 days. This was the third attack on election candidates in Bannu district and second on Durrani ahead of the July 25 general election. On July 13, an attack targeting JUI-F's central general secretary killed four persons and wounded as many as 39. Durrani, however, remained unhurt in the attack. On the same day, 149 people, including a top nationalist leader, were killed and over 200 others injured in a powerful suicide blast in Mastung area in the troubled Balochistan province. The security situation in Pakistan has deteriorated ahead of polls. The campaigning for the general election has been hit hard by terrorist attacks claimed by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and ISIS outfits. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) : Heavily-armed Al-Shabaab fighters today stormed a military base in southern Somalia, leaving several dead, a local army official and witnesses said. Military sources in the region said the attack targeted the Bar-sanguni military base which lies some 40 kilometres (24 miles) north of the regional capital Kismayo. The attackers rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a checkpoint before gunmen attacked the base, exchanging gunfire with soldiers for over an hour. "Al-Shabaab terrorists attacked Bar-sanguni military base early this morning and there was heavy fighting.The Somali armed forces have repelled the attackers but there were casualties inflicted on the both sides during the armed confrontation," Mohamed Bile, a military commander in a nearby village said by phone. "We don't have the exact number of the dead so far but there it could be more than ten," he added. Several witnesses in nearby villages reported a heavy blast followed by sustained gunfire. The Al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab claimed in a statement they had killed 27 soldiers in the attack on a base "which the Americans built for the apostate militias." The Shabaab has been fighting to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu for over a decade. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A medical board which examined Nawaz Sharif today recommended the immediate shifting of the jailed former Pakistan prime minister to a hospital but the PML-N supremo insisted that the required medical facilities should be provided to him in the jail itself, according to a media report. Sharif, 68, and his daughter Maryam, 44, are serving jail terms of 10 years and 7 years respectively in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, after an accountability court convicted them on July 6 over the family's ownership of four luxury flats in London. A four-member medical board comprising cardiologist Dr Naeem Malik, Medical Specialist Dr. Shaji Siddiqui, neurologist Dr Sohail Tanvir and Dr Mashood examined Sharif to decide about shifting him to the hospital following health related complications, sources said. Sharif has multiple health issues like heart problems, hypertension and diabetes. He already underwent open heart surgery in London in 2016. Citing family sources, Urdu langauge daily 'Jang' said that the medical board has recommended to immediately shift Sharif to the hospital, but he insisted that the required medical facilities should be provided to him in the jail itself. Meanwhile, Pakistan President Mamnoon Hussain today expressed concerns at Sharif's health conditions and asked the government to ensure his treatment. In a phone call to Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk, the President "expressed concerns" at the health condition of Sharif and asked him to "ensure complete treatment of the former prime minister", according to a statement issued by the President House. Sharif's family and the party also voiced concerns at the reports about his health complications. His younger brother and PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif said that he had already raised the issue of poor jail condition in a letter addressed to the Punjab government and asked for provision of facilities to the former premier. PML-N leader Pervaiz Rashid also expressed concerns at Sharif's health and demanded that he should be provided complete medical care. Earlier, a team of doctors from Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC), headed by its Chief Executive Major General (retd) Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani, visited the prison and compiled a report after carrying out a detailed medical check-up, the Express Tribune reported. Although his personal physician Dr Adnan had seen him twice in recent days, the jail administration called doctors from RIC to be sure of what had happened. The team spent about one-and-a-half hour inspecting his condition. According to the RIC medical team, his body's water levels are very low, which has made his heartbeat erratic now. The amount of urea in his blood has also become very high, which could even lead to kidney failure, the report said. They recommended to shift Sharif to the hospital immediately. Sharif had complained about his health on Saturday. The Punjab Prisons sources told Daily Express that they are waiting for the Punjab home department's orders about shifting Sharif to the hospital. Caretaker provincial ministers Shaukat Javed and Ahmed Waqas Riaz confirmed that Sharif's medical tests suggested he had kidney issues. The caretaker government is in touch with jail authorities and Sharif is getting better medical facilities, they added. Meanwhile, Barrister Zafrullah Khan of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has filed a petition with the Supreme Court to declare residences of Sharif and his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Muhammad Safdar as sub-jails. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shonda Rhimes's first batch of shows for Netflix will chiefly be female-powered stories, several of which will be led by female creatives. The streaming giant revealed eight programmes currently in development as part of the company's USD 300 million deal with Rhimes and her Shondaland banner, CNN reported. One show, currently unnamed, will be based on a New York Magazine article about Anna Delvey, a woman made famous for conning New York socialites into funding her lavish lifestyle. Rhimes is creating the series. Another show will be based on author Julia Quinn's best-selling historical romance "Bridgerton" novels. Rhimes has recruited "Scandal" veteran Chris Van Dusen to adapt and act as showrunner. That show is one of four being adapted from the written works of female authors. "The Warmth of Other Suns," another series in development, is based on Pulitzer-Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson's award-winning book of the same name. It "tracks the decades-long migration of African-Americans fleeing the Jim Crow South in search of a better life in the North and the West between 1916 and 1970," according to Netflix. MacArthur Genius Grant recipient and playwright Anna Deavere Smith has been tapped to adapt the story and serve as an executive producer for the project. Ellen Pao's Silicon Valley memoir, "Reset: My Fight for Inclusion and Lasting Change" will act as the source material for a another series - this one billed as a show detailing a case that paved the way for the Time's Up movement. A series based on Kate Andersen Brower's nonfiction book "The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House" is also in development, with Netflix and Shondaland having acquired the rights. Emmy-winning writer Janet Leahy is set to executive producer "Pico & Sepulveda," another series. This one is set in the 1840s "against the surreal and sensual backdrop of the then-Mexican state of California, the series tracks the end of an idyllic era there as American forces threaten brutality and war at the border to claim this breathtaking land for its own," Netflix said. Other developments include a half-hour dark comedy created by actor-writer Jill Alexander about female campers who survive an apocalyptic disaster and a documentary on Debbie Allen's dance academy. Allen is a cast member on "Grey's Anatomy" and has directed several episodes of the series. Calling her deal with the streaming network "Shondaland 2.0", Rhimes said, "I wanted the new Shondaland to be a place where we expand the types of stories we tell, where my fellow talented creatives could thrive and make their best work and where we as a team come to the office each day filled with excitement. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sikhism is being considered as a separate ethnicity in the next UK census in 2021, the UK Statistics Authority has said, following a long-standing demand by some British Sikh groups. The UK's Office of National Statistics (ONS) had opened a public consultation over whether to add the separate box for Sikhs under ethnicity, instead of just as a religion, and are now getting ready to present the findings to the government. "Our recommendations for the 2021 Census will be included in a government White Paper later this year," an ONS spokesperson said. The ONS had raised concerns over the issue of "public acceptability" and whether the move would have backing across Britain's 430,000-strong Sikh community. In the last census in 2011, an estimated 83,000 Sikhs reportedly refused to tick any of the choices in the question on ethnicity, rejecting options such as Indian in order to write "Sikh" in the space for "any other ethnic group". The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for British Sikhs, chaired by Preet Kaur Gill - the UK's first female Sikh MP - offered to write to gurdwaras about five months ago. "Overwhelmingly they have said yes. Not a single gurdwara has opposed it," said Gill. However, there are others who are not entirely behind the campaign, with some groups pointing out that being Sikh is a choice, not something you belong to at birth. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India and Bangladesh today agreed to set up six new Border Haats with an aim to increase the trade between the two countries, officials said. The agreement for setting up of new Border Haats was signed by Bhupinder S Bhalla, joint secretary, Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Md Shafiqul Islam, additional secretary Ministry of Commerce, Bangladesh in the first meeting of the Joint Border Haat Committee (JBHC) which concluded here today. The six new Border Haats would be set up in north eastern states bordering Bangladesh before March, 2019, but the venues are yet to be selected, they said. A press communique issued by the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry, said the MoU on Border Haats between the two neighbouring countries signed on April 8, 2017 provides for establishment of joint committee to review the Border Haats operations, suggest modifications in the operational modalities and propose new locations of Border Haats. The joint committee visited the Border Haat at Kamalasagar bordering Brahmanbaria in Bangladesh yesterday and "appreciated its vibrant functioning and noted the need for improvement of infrastructure", the communique said. "In the meeting, both sides noted the positive impact of Border Haats on the livelihood of people living in areas adjoining the haats," the communique said adding the committee also reviewed the operations of the four functional Border Haats. Two Border Haats in Tripura are functioning at Kamalasagar in Sipahijala district and Srinagar in South Tripura district. Shafiqul Islam told reporters that the tasty Hilsa fish found in Bangladesh is not in the product lists of Bangladesh and the country was also not putting it in the list in near future considering limited productions in the country. The joint team also met Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb last night and discussed various issues related to the bilateral trade with Bangladesh. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shares of Spicejet surged nearly 5 per cent today after an arbitration tribunal rejected the Rs 1,323-crore damages claim from the company and a bid to take control of the airline by its previous owner Kalanithi Maran and his company Kal Airways. The stock soared 4.63 per cent to end at Rs 109.70 on BSE. In intra-day, it zoomed 9.48 per cent to Rs 114.80. A total of 19 lakh shares of the company were traded on BSE during the day. The low-cost carrier has informed the exchanges that on July 20, an arbitration tribunal rejected Maran's claim of damages of Rs 1,323 crore for not issuing convertible warrants and preference shares to him and Kal Airways. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Syrian government has condemned a multilateral operation to evacuate hundreds of rescue workers from the war-torn country as a "criminal process" intended to destabilise Syria. Syrian authorities have long described the Civil Defense search-and-rescue group, which are popularly known as the White Helmets, as a terror organisation. The group rose to prominence as it filmed its operations to rescue civilians from Syrian government air strikes in the country's brutal civil war. The government has alleged the group stages videos. Damascus's ally Russia has accused the group of staging chemical weapons attacks on civilians and blaming them on the government, a charge that has never been proven. On Saturday, more than 400 rescuers and their family members were evacuated from Syria's Quneitra province through Israel to Jordan, after the rebels surrendered the last areas they held in the southwestern province to the government. Syria's foreign ministry called it a "smuggling operation" that was evidence of a Western conspiracy to overthrow the government. The White Helmets have financial backing from the US, Britain, and other nations. The unprecedented operation was spearheaded by the US, Canada, and Britain, The Associated Press reported on Friday. The rescuers and their families are expected to be resettled in Europe and Canada. Germany's Interior Ministry confirmed yesterday that the country would give asylum to eight rescuers and 39 family members. German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said on Sunday giving the rescue workers shelter "is a humanitarian obligation," adding that more than 250 White Helmets have been killed in the war since 2013. Foreign Minister Heiko Maas was quoted as saying that "the efforts of the White Helmets deserve admiration and respect." Germany has provided the group with 12 million euros ($14 million) in funding since 2016. Meanwhile, Jordanian government spokeswoman Jumana Ghunaimat said her country has not been asked to receive another group of White Helmets. Ghunaimat also said Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, on Sunday discussed "preliminary ideas" about the possible return of Syrian refugees to their homeland, but that "we cannot talk about return while the crisis in Syria is not yet over." "Jordan is willing and encouraging the return when tension calms down because the refugees constitute a heavy burden on the kingdom in the light of the international community's inability to cover the costs," she said. More than 5 million people have fled Syria during its seven-year-long civil war, according to the UN. Last week, Russia's Defense Ministry said it proposed to the United States the creation of a joint group, along with Jordan, to organise refugee returns. The group would be linked to a US-Russian-Jordanian centre set up last year in Jordan for monitoring a ceasefire in southwest Syria, said Major-General Milkahil Mizintsev. "Active progress in this direction is promoted by the agreements reached" last week by President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at their summit in Finland, he said Friday. He added that "specific proposals have been sent to the American side for organizing work on the return of refugees to their places of permanent residence." A similar operation would be established in Lebanon, he said. Lebanon's National Agency reported yesterday that hundreds of refugees return to Syria from Lebanon. It is the latest in a string of returns this year. President Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement party has put refugee returns near the top of its political agenda. The National Agency said 850 Syrians living around the border town of Arsal were repatriated yesterday. Close to one million Syrians are registered with the UN's refugee agency in Lebanon. The agency, the UNHCR, says it is not organising returns to Syria. It says refugees should not be coerced into returning. Israel said yesterday it fired a pair of missiles to intercept two missiles fired from Syria in Israel's direction. It said the Syrian missiles landed inside Syrian territory just short of the Golan Heights, which have been occupied by Israel since 1967. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav today said his party would launch a three-day "cycle march" from Gaya to Patna on July 28 to expose the Nitish Kumar government's alleged failures. "We will be undertaking a three-day cycle march from Gaya to Patna on July 28 to expose Nitish government's failure on various issues especially on deteriorating law and order situation," Tejashwi told reporters on the assembly premises here. It has become quite difficult for girls to move out even with their parents as the state government has no control on law and order in Bihar, the leader of opposition in the state assembly claimed. "During our cycle march, we will raise various issues before the people - the issues of farmers, labourers, youths, education, law and order and the repeated rape incidents in Gaya, Muzaffarpur and other places including at government funded shelter homes," he said. Claiming that developmental work has come to a standstill in Bihar, he said the state has been ranked at the bottom as per the Public Affairs Index 2018, whereas Kerala has ranked number one as the best governed state. "Bihar has been ranked at bottom as per Public Affairs Index 2018. We will tell the people that Nitish Kumar has destroyed Bihar completely," Tejashwi said. The Public Affairs Index 2018 has been released by Bengaluru-based think tank Public Affairs Centre. It examines governance in states through a data-based framework, ranking them on social and economic development. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress chief on Monday said hatred had replaced humanity in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'brutal New India' and cited a media report which claimed that policemen in Alwar took three hours to take a dying victim of a lynch mob to a hospital as they took a tea-break enroute. The 28-year-old victim was allegedly lynched in Rajasthan's Alwar district Friday night by a group of people who accused him of smuggling cows. "Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute," Gandhi said on Twitter. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. https://t.co/sNdzX6eVSU (@RahulGandhi) July 23, 2018 "This is Modi's brutal 'New India' where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die," he said. Khan and his friend Aslam were taking two cows to their village in Haryana through a forested area near Lalawandi in Alwar district last week when five men attacked them. Three people have been arrested. The media report cited by Gandhi claimed the policemen stopped for tea and took the cows to a shelter before taking Khan to the hospital. The population of tigers is on the rise, the government said today quoting preliminary census data. Minister of Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan also informed the Rajya Sabha that advanced strategies are being adopted to tackle the human-animal conflict and detailed advisories were being issued to state governments. Replying to a query during the question hour, he said preliminary data from the tiger census conducted every four years suggests that their population was on the rise in the entire country including in Maharashtra. To a query regarding the mechanism for monitoring of wild animals roaming outside jungles and mitigate conflict, he said the Centre has increased funding significantly to states and provided them facilities for recruitment of anti-poaching staff in tiger reserves and wildlife sanctuaries. "We also provide compensation of up to Rs 5 lakh in case of unfortunate incidents," Vardhan said. Replying to another question, he said the Centre has been increasing funding to states since the last 2-3 years. "We increased funding by Rs 70-80 crore last year as against the previous year. There is a strong component for training of the lower level staff under wildlife action plan," Vardhan said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A court here today granted bail to Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Arabul Islam, who was arrested in connection with a murder case in South 24 Parganas district. Baruipur Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate Paresh Karmakar granted bail to Islam on a bond of Rs 20,000. Islam, a district-level TMC leader and a former MLA, was arrested on May 12 on the orders of West Bengal Chief Minister and his party supremo Mamata Banerjee. He was admitted to a hospital on May 19 after he complained of chest pain. The TMC leader was charged with murder in connection with the killing of a supporter of an Independent candidate in the panchayat polls in the state. Hafizul Mollah (25) was hit by a bullet on his chest when he was taking part in a procession at Bhangor in South 24 Parganas district. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A court here today granted bail to Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Arabul Islam, who was arrested on May 12, two days before the panchayat polls in West Bengal, in connection with a murder case. Paresh Karmakar, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate of Baruipur court in South 24 Parganas district, granted bail to Islam on a bond of Rs 20,000. Islam's counsels prayed for his bail, claiming that he was seriously ill and was in custody for 72 days. The counsels submitted that the TMC leader was undergoing treatment at the state-run SSKM Hospital. Islam was arrested on charges of murder and arson on May 12, following violence at Bhangor in South 24 Parganas district. The former Bhangor MLA was alleged to have led an attack on an opposition rally, in which a 25-year-old man was shot dead. He was nabbed after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is also the TMC supremo, ordered his arrest. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A truck loaded with liquor bottles worth Rs 21 lakhs was stolen in Jammu and Kashmir, police said today adding that it was recovered within 24 hours. A complaint was received by police station Chenani regarding the theft of the lorry carrying Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) bottles yesterday, a police officer said. A case was registered and raids were conducted at different suspected locations. The stolen vehicle was finally recovered from Ramkote village of Kathua district today, he said. However, the officer said that the thief managed to escape from the spot taking advantage of darkness. Police teams have been dispatched to different locations to arrest the culprits, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) President Donald Trump has warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that he will face dire consequences for threatening the United States. Trump tweeted late yesterday about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Rouhani said "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." Trump responded with a tweet that warned: "Never ever threaten the united states again or you will suffer consequences the like of which few throughout history have ever suffered before." Within hours, Iranian state-owned agency IRNA dismissed Trump's tweet, describing it as a "passive reaction" to Rouhani's remarks. The agency, a government mouthpiece, also said Monday that Trump's comment was only mimicking and copying Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif who had in the past warned the West to "never threaten an Iranian." Trump earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. Rouhani had warned Trump yesterday to stop "playing with the lion's tail" and threatening Iran, "or else you will regret it." Trump has suggested Iranian leaders are "going to call me and say 'let's make a deal'" but Iran has rejected talks. Rouhani has previously lashed out against Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the US embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the US from certain Muslim-majority countries. Trump's tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing an all-capitalised tweet. "we are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious!," he wrote. Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the US. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearisation talks. Yesterday in California, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran. He called the religious leaders of Iran "hypocritical holy men" who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer, part of a highly critical broadside issued as the republic approached the 40th anniversary of its Islamic revolution and the US prepared to reimpose the economic sanctions. Pompeo talked about increasing the media outreach to the Iranian people. He said the US Broadcasting Board of Governors is taking new steps to help Iranians get around internet censorship and is launching a new 24/7 Farsi-language channel across television, radio, digital, and social media formats, "so that ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe can know America stands with them." In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, Pompeo castigated Iran's political, judicial and military leaders, too, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government has "heartlessly repressed its own people's human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms." He said despite poor treatment by their leaders, "the proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their government's many abuses," Pompeo said. "And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent either. In light of these protests and 40 years of regime tyranny, I have a message for the people of Iran: The United States hears you," he said. "The United States supports you. The United States is with you. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The head of Iran's Basij militia today dismissed threats by US President Donald Trump as "psychological warfare", local media reported. "Trump's statements against Iran are psychological warfare. He is not in a position to act against Iran," said General Gholam Hossein Gheypour, according to the semi-official ISNA agency. His comments followed an all-caps salvo from Trump on Twitter yesterday, in which he wrote: "never, ever threaten the united states again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before." Earlier yesterday, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani had warned Trump not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". "Those who fear this crazy president's psychological warfare will know that America will not be content with anything less than our annihilation," said Gheypour. But he said the Iranian "people and the armed forces will stand up against our enemies and will not come up short. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US President Donald Trump said today he was "very happy" with how talks were progressing with North Korea, as observers and the media highlight the lack of concrete results one month after his summit with Kim Jong Un. "A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy," Trump tweeted. "But the Fake is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy!" In a joint declaration after his historic summit with Trump on June 12 in Singapore, the North Korean leader "reaffirmed his commitment" to work towards the "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula." But the actual details of the process, including how and when the North's nuclear program is to be dismantled, have yet to be hammered out. A month ago, the US administration insisted on the "urgency" of denuclearization, and said it would begin "very quickly." "We're hopeful we can get it done" by 2020, before the end of Trump's term, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the time. Pompeo has been charged with the challenge of putting meat on the bare bones of the Singapore commitment. But 40 days and one apparently fruitless visit by Pompeo to Pyongyang later, the tone of the American side has clearly changed. "We have no time limit," Trump told reporters last week. "We have no speed limit." Asked about the change in tone, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert sought to reassure: "We have teams in place that are working very hard on this issue every day," she said. "We have said there's a lot of work left to be done. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US President Donald Trump today slammed the Washington Post daily for being biased in its coverage of his administration and accused it of being nothing more than a "lobbyist" for Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos who now owns the newspaper. The Amazon Washington Post has gone crazy against me ever since they lost the Internet Tax Case in the US Supreme Court two months ago. Next up is the US Post Office which they use, at a fraction of real cost, as their 'delivery boy' for a BIG percentage of their packages, he tweeted. In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon. Is it used as protection against antitrust claims which many feel should be brought? Trump said as he unleashed a series of tweets in which he criticised the media and defended his policies in particular that on North Korea and Russia. Trump said America's allies in Asia are happy with his policies on North Korea. A rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no nuclear tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy. But the Fake is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy! he said. Trump continued with his allegations of a witch hunt against him. So we now find out that it was indeed the unverified and Fake Dirty Dossier, that was paid for by crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC, that was knowingly & falsely submitted to FISA and which was responsible for starting the totally conflicted and discredited Mueller Witch Hunt! he said. It was classified to cover up misconduct by the FBI and the Justice Department in misleading the court by using this dossier in a dishonest way to gain a warrant to target the Trump team. This is a Clinton campaign document. he asserted. Trump said there has been no collusion between him, his campaign and the Russians. Special Council Robert Mueller, a former FBI director, has indicted 12 Russian agents on charges of hacking into the servers of the Democratic National Committee. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump and the DOJ, FBI and Obama Gang need to be held to account. Source #1 was the major source. Avoided talking about it being the Clinton campaign behind it. Misled the court to provide a pretext to SPY on the Trump team, he said as he defended his former campaign aid Carter Page. Not about Carter Page.was all about getting Trump. Carter Page wasn't a spy, wasn't an agent of the Russians - he would have cooperated with the FBI. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump. They should drop the discredited Mueller Witch Hunt now! Trump said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US President Donald Trump has warned Iran of grave consequences which a few countries have paid before, his national security advisor said today, hours after a stunning presidential tweet threatening Tehran. "I spoke to the President over the last several days, and President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before," US National Security Advisor John Bolton said in a statement. Bolton was responding to reporters' questions about Trump's tweet in which the president issued an unprecedented warning to Iran. In the nearly all-caps tweet, Trump mentioned about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said, "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." "To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!"Trump tweeted. The White House today blamed Rouhani for inciting a war of words with President Trump, saying his tweet shows he is not going to tolerate critical rhetoric from Iran. "If anybody's inciting anything, look no further than to Iran," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said, adding President Trump has been "very clear about what he's not going to allow to take place." Trump's tweet came hours after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo slammed Iran for its alleged human rights violation and destabilising activities in the region. "Despite the regime's clear record of aggression, America and other countries have spent years straining to identify a political moderate. It's like an Iranian unicorn," Pompeo said in his major policy speech at the Ronald Regan Presidential Foundation and Library in Simi Valley, California on Sunday. "We are asking every nation, every nation who is sick and tired of the Islamic Republic's destructive behaviour, to join our pressure campaign. This especially goes for our allies in the Middle East and Europe, people who have themselves been terrorised by violent regime's activity for decades," he said. The United States is not afraid to spread its message on the airwaves and online inside of Iran either, he said. Responding to a question, Pompeo said Trump has been absolutely unequivocal on this not only in the message but in the fact that this is a real priority for the administration as well. "I think that's important. One could have a objective, but if one doesn't rank it sufficiently high attention spans are short and resources limited. The President has put this as something he considers to be incredibly important," he said. "The mission set for our team is clear. It's to deny the Iranian leadership the resources, the wealth, the funds, the capacity to continue to foment terrorism around the world and to deny the people inside of Iran the freedoms that they so richly deserve," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A furious President Donald Trump today warned his Iranian counterpart that Tehran risked consequences the likes of which few throughout history have suffered before if he threatens the US again, hours after Hassan Rouhani cautioned that America's hostile threats may trigger "the mother of all wars." The tirade at the highest level signalled an immediate escalation of tensions between Washington and Tehran, weeks after the US left a landmark deal signed in 2015 which curbed Iran's nuclear activities in return for the lifting of international sanctions. Rouhani had also warned Trump to stop "playing with the lion's tail" and threatening Iran, "or else you will regret it." In the nearly all-caps tweet, Trump mentioned about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Rouhani said, "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars.""To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE," Trump tweeted, adding that "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!"Even before Trump's angry tweets, his administration had already intensified the rhetoric against Iran. In a blistering speech hours earlier, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo likened the Iranian regime to the mafia, accusing the clerics that rule the country of enriching themselves and funding terrorism at the expense of ordinary Iranians. "To the regime, prosperity, security, and freedom for the Iranian people are acceptable casualties in the march to fulfill the Revolution," Pompeo said in remarks delivered at the Ronald Reagan National Library in Simi Valley, California. "The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government," Pompeo said. Among the most startling allegations leveled by Pompeo, who was CIA director before becoming secretary of state, was that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has a personal hedge fund worth USD 95 billion, CNN reported. "In light of these protests and 40 years of regime tyranny, I have a message for the people of Iran: the United States hears you. The United States supports you. The United States is with you," Pompeo said according to prepared remarks released in advance of his speech. He added: "While it is ultimately up to the Iranian people to determine the direction of their country, the United States, in the spirit of our own freedoms, will support the long-ignored voice of the Iranian people." In May, Trump called the nuclear accord - or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a "horrible, one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made". The other signatories to the deal - China, France, Germany, European Union, Iran, Russia, United Kingdom - have vowed to stand by it. Trump has alleged that the deal did not restrict Iran's "destabilising activities" in the region enough, and could not detect or prevent any breaking of its terms. The had agreement forced Iran to curtail its uranium enrichment capacity to prevent it developing nuclear weapons, and imposed stringent verification processes, in exchange for relief on crippling sanctions. Iran insists its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful, and its compliance with the deal has been verified by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has said Iran is honouring its commitments. Pompeo, in his speech, also said he wanted to try to stop countries importing Iranian oil by November as part of stepping up pressure on Tehran. In May, he had outlined 12 conditions for any "new deal" between Washington and Tehran, including the withdrawal of its forces from Syria and an end to its support for rebels in Yemen. The US Treasury has said there will be wind-down periods of 90 and 180 days before sanctions are implemented. The first deadline, on August 6, will affect the purchase of US dollars, trade in gold and certain other metals, as well as aviation and the car industry. The next, on November 4, will target Iran's financial and oil institutions. Iran is one of the world's largest oil producers, with exports worth billions of dollars each year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two men wanted in connection with the killing of an RTI activist in Telangana in May were arrested here, police said today. The Crime Branch of Mumbai Police arrested Rajeshwar Goud Elimati (46) and Rajayya Kasarppu (51) from their homes in suburban Bandra and Jogeshwari, respectively, yesterday an official said. He said the duo, who owned toddy shops in Mumbai, were wanted for the killing of Right to Information (RTI) activist Podeti Satyanarayan Narsa Goud. The 51-year-old was shot dead by unidentified persons in Dharmapuri town in Jagtial district of Telangana on May 9. He was based in Mumbai but originally hailed from Dharmapuri. Goud had filed several RTI petitions with the excise department of Maharashtra seeking information about illicit sale of toddy in Mumbai, the official said. After the information was made available, many toddy shops were raided and their licences cancelled by the excise department, he said. Suffering big losses in the business, some toddy shop owners, including Elimati and Kasarppu, decided to eliminate Goud and allegedly hired contract killers for the job, he said. The RTI activist was shot dead when he was on a visit to his hometown Dharmapuri. The Telangana Police had arrested nine accused, including a shooter - who hails from West Bengal - in connection with the killing, the official said. Elimati, Kasarppu, also natives of Telangana, and another accused were absconding since the killing, he said. Sometime back, a Telangana Police team had came to Mumbai in search of the duo, but failed to locate them. Officials of the Mumbai Crime Branch Unit-1 got a tip- off that the two were staying in western suburbs. Accordingly, a trap was laid and they were nabbed, he said. "We have handed them over to the Dharmapuri police," said Vinayak Mer, senior inspector of Crime Branch Unit-1. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Police in Bangladesh have pressed charges against eight militants over the 2016 Dhaka cafe attack that killed 20 people, including an Indian girl, the worst terror attack in the country's history. The chargesheet was placed before a Dhaka court this morning, more than two years after the gruesome attack on the Gulshan's Holey Artisan Bakery (cafe) in Dhaka's posh diplomatic area, claimed by the Islamic State terror group. The delay in filing the chargesheet was attributed to the "complexities in obtaining information" as those "involved directly with the operation were killed on the spot," The Daily star quoted chief of Bangladesh's Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit Monirul Islam as saying. Police, however, claimed that the homegrown terror group Neo-Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB), which is close to the ISIS, was behind the attack. Monirul said that police have pressed charges against eight militants over the attack, where 20 people, mostly foreigners, were killed after being taken as hostages. Prof Hasnat Karim, a former teacher of North South University was dropped from the chargesheet as "investigation could not relate him with the militant activity", he said. The charges brought against the accused are based on 75 pieces of evidence and 211 witnesses to the incident. Those made accused are: "Neo-Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh" operatives Rakibul Islam Regan, Hadisur Rahman Sagor, Jahangir Hossain Rajeeb alias Rajeeb Gandhi, Aslam Hossain Rashed alias Rash, Abdus Sabur Khan alias Sohel Mahfuj, Mizanur Rahman alias Baro Mizan, and Mamunur Rashid alias Ripon and Shariful Islam Khaled, a former student of the English department at Rajshahi University. Of them, the first six "Neo-JMB" operatives are now in jail while the two others are on the run. Twenty people, mostly foreigners, were killed in the brutal late-night attack on July 1 after the attackers took diners and restaurant staff hostage. The Indian girl, Tarishi Jain, was a student of the University of California in Berkeley. She was in Dhaka for vacations. Next morning, a joint commando force stormed the bakery, killing all the attackers and rescuing the captives, ending the terror siege of nearly 11 hours. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Britain's top diplomat warned today that the country could crash out of the European Union next year without an agreement on future relations with Brussels because of the hard line taken by EU negotiators. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt told reporters in Berlin after meeting German counterpart Heiko Maas that "there is now a very real risk of a Brexit no deal by accident." "This is because I think that many people in the EU are thinking they just have to wait long enough and Britain will blink," he said. "And that's not going to happen." Big differences remain between Brussels and London over the terms of a new trade setup and the issue of how to regulate the UK's only land border with the EU, between the UK's Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic. A substantial number of lawmakers in British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party party favor a complete break with the EU - a so-called "hard" Brexit - rather than the "soft" option proposed by May, which calls for a "common rule book" with European nations that would govern trade in goods. Hunt, on his first bilateral visit since coming to office, said "Germany is not just one of Britain's best friends in Europe but one of our best friends in the world." He insisted that the trip to Berlin "is not about a charm offensive." Still, London appears to want to win over the leaders of Europe's biggest economy to put pressure on EU negotiators to avoid a messy split. "Without a real change of approach from the EU negotiators we do now face a real risk of no deal by accident. And that will be incredibly challenging economically," said Hunt. "Britain will find that challenging but in the end we will find a way not just to survive but to thrive economically," he said. "But my real concern is that it will change British public attitudes to Europe for a generation." Maas said his country "doesn't want a disorderly Brexit. We want a deal." But he acknowledged that on the Irish border issue, at least, "further talks will be necessary to reach practical solutions." Maas declined to comment on the threat from Britain's lead negotiator on Brexit that London might not pay its 39 billion pounds divorce bill if no trade agreement with the EU is reached. The EU parliament as well as national parliaments of EU nations and Britain need to ratify a deal before the UK leaves in March. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A nursing home at Shamli district was sealed after unqualified doctors were reportedly found performing surgeries on unsuspecting patients, officials said today. A team of doctors from the Uttar Pradesh health department led by Deputy CMO Ashok Tanda raided 'Astha Nursing Home' yesterday. It was found that no qualified surgeons were practising at the facility, Chief Medical Officer Raj Kumar said. The nursing home has been sealed, he said. The matter came to light when family members of Mukesh Devi (30), who was admitted to the facility for removal of a tumour, complained about the shoddy treatment provided to her. They alleged that Vinod Dhama, who runs the nursing home, operated upon the woman, but she was rushed to another hospital in a critical condition. An enquiry has been ordered into the incident, Kumar said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The US authorities refused to comment today on media reports that Pakistani-American convict in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack case David Coleman Headley was battling for his life after being attacked by inmates at a detention centre. "We are not able to locate information about this individual," the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago said in a brief email response to PTI when asked about the incident. According to some media reports, Headley was attacked on July 8 by two other inmates. The reports said he suffered serious injuries and was rushed to North Evanston hospital, where he was admitted to the critical care unit. Headley has been sentenced to 35 years in prison by a US court for the 2008 terrorist attack on Mumbai that killed more than 160 people. Headley who recced various Indian cities, including Mumbai before the 26/11 attacks was arrested in 2009. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A cleaner was killed and the driver injured when stones were hurled at a truck from Tamil Nadu near Kanjikode in Palakkad district early today, police said. The truck, carrying vegetables from Mettupalayam in Coimbatore, was on its way to Chengannur in Alappuzha district of Kerala when stones were hurled at it, the police said. The stones were hurled allegedly by the supporters of the ongoing lorry strike, which entered the fourth day today. Trucks from Tamil Nadu are not being allowed into Kerala for the last three days due to the strike. About three lakh lorry owners belonging to the Kerala State Lorry Owners' Welfare Federation are on strike, protesting the hike in diesel price and increase in vehicle insurance premium, besides demanding a reduction of toll charges on major routes. The association's Kerala president, K K Hamsa, denied any role in the incident and said they had not issued any instruction to block vehicles as part of the strike. Anti-social elements could be behind the incident, he said. The window pane of the truck was damaged in the stone-pelting incident, injuring the cleaner, Mubarak Badshah, hailing from Mettupalayam. Though Badshah was rushed to hospital, he could not be saved, the police said. The driver of the truck also suffered minor injuries in the incident, they added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Vijaya Bank has reported a 43.3 per cent decline in net profit in the quarter ended June owing to higher provisioning. The net profit stood at Rs 144.34 crore. In the corresponding April-June quarter of 2017-18, the public sector bank had made a net profit of Rs 254.69 crore, managing director and chief executive officer of the bank, R S Sankara Narayanan told reporters here today. "We have provided Rs 440 crore asprovisioning, which we have improved from 56 per cent to 61.18 per cent. Hence, the dip in net profit," he said. The total income rose to Rs 3,935.77 crore from Rs 3,510.11 crore a year ago, he said. The gross non-performing assets (NPAs) fell to 6.19 per cent of the gross advances from 7.3 per cent, the managing director said. NPA is under control, he said, adding that the bank aims at gross and net NPAs below six per cent and four per cent, respectively in September. In the quarter ended December, the NPA had stood at 3.9 per cent. In absolute terms, gross NPAs however rose to Rs 7,579.11crore as on June 30, 2018 as against Rs 6,812.21 crore a year ago, the officialsaid. Net NPA value was Rs 4,903.92 crore compared with Rs 4,784.26 crore a year ago, he said. During the quarter, the bank is certain to recover money from Electrosteel Steels and Bhushan Steel, which have been taken over by Tata Steel he said. "We had two cases resolved in the National Company Law Tribunal. One was taken over by Tatas which has been accounted for uniformly by all banks. The other bidder Electrosteel had gone to the tribunal for an appeal. Wewill welcome if the new bidder pays higher than whatVedanta has paid," hesaid. As reported earlier, Bhushan Steels had a loan outstanding of Rs 56,000 crore, the managing director said. Tatas have taken over the company for Rs 35,200 crore and hence one NPA account is resolved, the official said. The dues to the banks from Electrosteel were Rs 13,600 crore, he said. Sterlite of Vedanta group purchased it for Rs 5,320 crore. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) expects timely approval from authorities for its $ 16 billion deal to acquire Flipkart, a top company official said. The company is awaiting approval from fair trade regulator CCI, where its mega deal to acquire 77 per cent stake in leading player is pending. This should happen in reasonable time... we are expecting timely approvals, said President and CEO He further said:"Basic approval is from the (CCI) and its already in progress. When asked how soon the company expects to complete the transaction, Iyer said,"We have not put any timeline for that. It is basically based on the law. The company has already engaged counsel to pitch its case before the fair trade regulator. In May this year, had announced a mega deal to pick up 77 per cent stake in to strengthen presence and take on Iyer said after the completion of the transaction, both Walmart and would continue to run as independent Flipkart is an independent business and we have invested in it. It would continue to run as a separate business by the existing team. Cash and Carry would be a separate business, which is 100 per cent owned by Walmart and it would continue to run by the existing team, he said. He further said: "I don't see changes in our strategy in terms of fulfilment centre or B2B or the store strategy that we have. US retail major Walmart will open 20 wholesale cash-and-carry stores in India in the next three years, a top company official said today. Besides, the company, which opened its second fulfilment centre here, is also in the process of opening more such centres to cater to online business-to-business (B2B) customers to tap the fast growing e-commerce in India. We will launch two stores this year and eight stores next year and 10 stores a year after that, said Walmart India President and CEO Krish Iyer. Walmart has plans to add 50 stores in next five to seven years, he added. The company operates 21 cash and carry stores under the 'Best Price' brand in 9 states across India. It has signed MoU with the Uttar Pradesh government to have 15 stores in next few years in the state, lyer said. We have already finalised three sites and six more are in the pipeline he added. Walmart plans to set up its 'Best Price' stores at various locations in the state, including Kanpur Muradabad, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Sharanpur, Lucknow, and Ghaziabad. Walmart India, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Walmart Inc today opened its second business-to-business (B2B) fulfilment centre (FC) in Lucknow. Through the FCs, the company caters to its online B2B customers out-of-stores sales while also taking care of sales via associates who take orders from its members and call centres. The FC will contribute to the state and local economies by creating over 1,500 direct and indirect local jobs, developing SME suppliers, and empowering local communities," Iyer said. Besides, with this initiative Walmart is taking another step towards building an impactful distribution eco-system by working with partners, he added. This is the company's second such centre in India. Walmart had opened its first FC in November last year in Mumbai. Walmart India is now getting nearly half of its business through non-store or out-of-store sales channels, which include B2B e-commerce, associates driven sales and call centres. The rest half of its business still comes from in-store walk-ins. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US retail major Walmart will open six more stores in Uttar Pradesh soon, taking the number of such outlets to ten,a top company official said. "We have four stores at present - two in Agra, and one each in Meerut and Lucknow," President and CEO of Walmart Krish Iyer said here today. He was addressing reporters after launching Walmart India's second B2B Fulfilment Centre here -- the first in Uttar Pradesh and the second in the country after Bhiwandi, Mumbai, which was set up last November. "Uttar Pradesh is a very important and priority growth region for us and we are further expanding our business in the state to support kiranas, small farmers and local suppliers to help make them successful," Iyer said. "The next such centre will be set up in Hyderabad," he said. Iyer said that these centres would support 'kirana shops' and other small businesses. "It aims to contribute to local and state economy by creating thousands of job opportunities at the local level, besides giving a boost to the SME sector and the farmers," he said. "The Fulfilment Centre will cater to the business needs of under-served small businesses such as kiranas (re-sellers), offices and institutions, and hotels, restauants and caterers," he said. Walmart also plans to set up its 'Best Price' stores at various locations in Uttar Pradesh, including Kanpur, Moradabad, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Sharanpur, Lucknow and Ghaziabad. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Traders' body CAIT today said it will approach the Supreme Court if the government allows the Walmart-Flipkart deal to go through. Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said its legal team is ready to knock the doors of the apex court if Walmart's USD 16 billion deal to acquire homegrown online retailer Flipkart is allowed as it will hurt traditional retailers. "Traders are extremely unhappy over the Walmart-Flipkart deal. This deal is definitely going to hurt them a lot," Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal told PTI. He further said, "Therefore the government should take all precautions that this deal should not happen and it should not be approved by CCI (Competition Commission of India)". Khandelwal said CAIT will discuss issues related to the deal with Union Ministers Smriti Irani, Nirmala Sitharaman and Suresh Prabhu, slated to attend the National Traders' Conclave organised by it here tomorrow. Moreover, he said,"Our legal team has already decided to approach the Supreme Court and worked on the petition. We are ready with all the material. We are watching the government and if need be, we won't mind to go to the Supreme Court". The traders' will plan further protests in case the deal is cleared, he added. When contacted, a Walmart spokesperson said the deal is line with the government's policy to allow 100 per cent FDI under the automatic route in the marketplace e-commerce model. "We believe the combined capabilities of Walmart and Flipkart will create India's leading e-commerce platform, and will help thousands of local farmers, SME suppliers and manufacturers access consumers through the marketplace model, further boosting local manufacturing and the economy," the spokesperson added. India is an important sourcing market for Walmart and it procures over 95 per cent of the goods sold in its Best Price stores from local companies, including SME and women entrepreneurs, the spokesperson added. "Our cash-and-carry business will continue to expand and operate as a separate business," the spokesperson said. Walmart today said it has planned to open 50 new cash and carry stores in the next few years in India, with each new store adding an estimated 2,000 direct and indirect jobs to the country's economy. CAIT has maintained that the 'deal is nothing but a clear attempt to control and dominate the retail trade' in India by Walmart through e-commerce in the long run. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A notice for a privilege motion has been moved against Congress President by some BJP members in the Lok Sabha, which Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said she will examine. Four BJP members -- Nishikant Dubey, Anurag Thakur, Dushyant Singh and Prahlad Joshi-- have submitted the privilege notice against Gandhi accusing him of "misleading" Parliament by making "false" allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. As soon as the Question Hour got over, Dubey said a privilege motion has been moved by his party. "Whenever speaks, it only helps in increasing the votes of BJP," he said. Amid protests by Congress members, Mahajan said: "I will look into it and then let you know". The allegations relate to Gandhi's speech during the debate on the no-confidence motion on Friday in which he had raised the issue of a secrecy clause in the Rafale fighter jet deal with France. The Congress chief had also accused the Prime Minister of benefiting "one industrialist" in the deal. The BJP has also objected to Gandhi's comments regarding "betrayal" of the Indian Army in Doklam, and dubbed them as "unsubstantiated charges". "I will take tuition from you," HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar today told TMC leader and Professor Saugata Roy as they differed over the use of the word 'predatory journals' in the Lok Sabha. The minister's remarks came while responding to supplementary questions related to academic journals. During the Question Hour, Javadekar said steps were being taken to deal with "predatory" academic journals. However, Roy objected to the use of the words 'predatory journal'. He also remarked that the usage of the word was "perversion of the English language." "I will take tuition from you... and give me some good words," Javadekar responded in a lighter vein as many members were seen smiling. Roy, a former minister in the erstwhile Manmohan Singh government, is a retired professor of Physics in a Calcutta University college. In his reply, the minister said the UGC has addressed the problem of predatory and sub-standard journals claiming to publish scholarly articles. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Railway authorities have requested the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to repair or re-construct half a dozen road overbridges (ROBs), one of which is being closed for traffic from tomorrow. The request by the Western Railway (WR) comes in the wake of collapse of a portion of a ROB in suburban Andheri early this month. The incident had led the Railways to undertake a safety audit of bridges above its tracks with the help of the BMC and experts from the IIT-Bombay. WR chief spokesperson Ravinder Bhakar said today, "In order to ensure total safety of overhead structures on railway tracks at various locations, we have requested the civic body to repair or re-construct on a top priority basis six ROBs that fall in their jurisdiction." "Besides, we have advised the traffic police and the BMC to close a ROB in the Lower Parel area from tomorrow for all vehicles and pedestrians to undertake repair," he said. The decision has been taken after an inspection of the bridge (which was found to be in poor condition) by officials from the WR, the IIT-Bombay and the BMC, Bhakar said. The other five bridges which need reconstruction or repair are Ferere ROB at Grant Road, Belasis ROB at Mumbai Central, Tilak ROB at Dadar, Carol ROB at Prabhadevi and one at Mahalaxmi, he said. Soon after the July 3 bridge collapse near Andheri station, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal had ordered a safety audit of nearly 450 ROBs, foot overbridges (FOBs) and bridges over the pipelines in Mumbai to detect and rectify any flaws in them. Bhakar said, "There are 145 FOBs and 29 ROBs under the jurisdiction of the BMC, the MMRDA and the PWD which fall under its (WR) corridor. A detailed inspection of these bridges is underway." Meanwhile, following the WR's request, the traffic police have decided to close the Delisle ROB at Lower Parel. The bridge is 62.72 metre long and 23.20 metre wide. Ashok Dudhe, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic), told PTI, "We received a letter from the WR on July 21 informing us about the bad condition of the Delisle ROB in Lower Parel and seeking its closure. "So this bridge will be closed for all vehicular traffic and pedestrians from tomorrow morning. A traffic diversion plan is being made." "During our inspection, the 97-year-old ROB was found to have developed corrosion in its cross girders over railway tracks. Therefore, it was decided to repair it on a priority basis," Bhakar added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath today set a record of sorts by visiting all the 75 districts of the state during the past 16 months he has been in office. With his visit to Hathras today, the chief minister has covered all the 75 districts of the state in 16 months, which is a rare feat, a government spokesman said. After assuming charge as the chief minister on March 19, 2017, Adityanath has been criss-crossing the state, holding various government programmes, reviewing law and order situation and developmental works to underline the priority of the state government and to ensure that no part of the state feels neglected, he said. "It is not that he has just touched all the districts... he also had night stays in some of them and there are some places where he has made frequent visits in keeping with their importance," the spokesman said. "Varanasi, the parliamentary constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and its developmental works are the topmost priority of the chief minister and he has visited it several times, even if it was not connected with the visits of Modi," the spokesman said. Not only this, Adityanath also defied the "Noida" jinx on December 23 and paid a visit to check arrangements ahead of the Prime Minister's visit on December 25 last year. There is a superstition that any chief minister visiting Noida loses power and does not come back to assume the office again and various chief ministers have avoided visiting it in the past. The superstition began in June 1988, when the central leadership asked the erstwhile Chief Minister Veer Bahadur Singh to step down soon after he returned from Noida. Adityanath had clearly made known his intentions since the very beginning that his priority would be to visit each and every district of the state to energise the administration and speed up overall development of Uttar Pradesh by ensuring that the benefits of various schemes launched both by the Centre and the state government reached the needy and deprived sections. Yesterday he had visited Etah which was the 74th district visited by him. Meanwhile, the BJP congratulated the chief minister, saying that his government was working on the motto of "sabka saath sabka vikas". BJP spokesman Manish Shukla said it was for the first time that any chief minister of the state has covered all the districts in such a short time and set an example of service to the people. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The agitation by Maratha community for reservation in government jobs and education today took a tragic turn after a 27-year-old protester jumped to his death in Godavari river near here. Kakasaheb Shinde, a resident of Kaygaon village in Aurangabad district, jumped off a bridge over Godavari river, police said. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was declared dead, they said. The incident came a day after Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he was cancelling his visit, scheduled today, to a temple in Pandharpur after protesting Maratha outfits threatened to disrupt the event. Shinde's death triggered a fresh set of protests in several parts of Maharashtra, with opposition leaders seeking to put the onus on the BJP-led government in the state. Protesters blocked the Ahmednagar-Aurangabad highway and damaged a dozen vehicles, including a police van and a bus, in Gangakhed tehsil of Parbhani district. They refused to take possession of Shinde's body and demanded the resignation of Fadnavis. They held a sit-in protest at the Gangapur police station in Aurangabad district, demanding that criminal case be filed against the Chief Minister over Shinde's death. Seeking immediate announcement of reservations for the Maratha community, the protesters also sought a compensation of Rs 50 lakh for Shinde's family. The Maratha Kranti Morcha, which led today's 'jal samadhi' protest in which Shinde died, is leading the agitation seeking reservations for the community. In the last few days, protests have take place in Buldhana, Akola, Parali, Washim and even in Mumbai. Congress MLA Nitesh Rane blamed the Fadnavis government for the death of the protester, while NCP leader Sunil Tatkare said Shinde's death should help serve as a warning to all concerned to handle the stir with caution. BJP's Rajya Sabha member Sambhaji Chhatrapati said, "The issue of Maratha reservations is of utmost importance. The Chief Minister should not ignore it." "The Fadnavis-led government is engaged in an attempt to paint the protesting Maratha community members as criminals and this attempt is infuriating," Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Ashok Chavan said. The community leaders had earlier taken out several rallies in various districts to highlight their demands. Last year, a huge rally was organised by the Maratha Kranti Morcha in this connection in Mumbai. Despite assurances from Fadnavis to fulfil the demands, nothing concrete has been done till now, community leaders have claimed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today said the state government would take steps to provide employment skills to youth and support them to implement innovative ideas. The job market today demands skills beyond academic knowledge, he said, while inaugurating the Indian Institute of Infrastructure and Construction (IIIC), a state government undertaking, at Chavara here. "Unlike the jobs from the conventional education system, the state will have a skilful generation with expertise in different job sectors," he said. Government was implementing programmes for youngsters who pass out of technical and vocational courses, he said. Basic training infrastructure facilities have been implemented through the Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence (KASE), Industrial Training Institutes, Employability Centres, Overseas Development and Employment Promotion Consultants (ODEPC) and Kerala State Institute of Design (KSID), he said. "We are trying to narrow the chasm between availability of skilled people and manpower in the construction sector. ' The government plans to provide a large number of skilled labourers in the global construction sector which throws up many opportunities," he said. Detailing the features of the newly launched institute, Vijayan said the IIIC would be the major stepping stone in skill development. Courses on skill development with internationally recognised institutions, co-operation with industrial majors, global accreditation, campus placements and better job opportunities were the speciality of the institute of infrastructure and construction, he said. Courses were offered on tourism, ITI-based service, hospitality, advanced IT and entrepreneurship streams that enable candidates to work in technical, supervisory and managerial positions, he added. State Labour minister T P Ramakrishnan, who took part in the function, said government would create a labour bank of skilled people from different sectors. "This will be implemented in association with the Labour Commissionerate, KASE, Employment Directorate and Labour Department," the minister added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) "Guardians of the Galaxy" star Zoe Saldana and actor Selma Blair have come forward in support of James Gunn, who was fired from the Marvel threequel after a series of old offensive tweets made by the director resurfaced on social media. Saldana, who plays Gamora in the MCU, took to Twitter and without mentioning Gunn simply stated that loves "ALL members of GOTG family". "It's been a challenging weekend I'm not gonna lie. I'm pausing myself to take everything in before I speak out of term. I just want everyone to know I love ALL members of my GOTG family. Always will," she wrote. Blair, who is friend of the sacked filmmaker, shared the link to the online petition asking Walt Disney Co to rehire him. "Because if people are punished despite changing, then what does that teach people about owning mistakes and evolving? This man is one of the good ones," she wrote. Star Lord/ Peter Quill actor Chris Pratt, who evaded questions related to Gunn during a Q&A session round for "The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part" at San Diego Comic-Con initially, shared a cryptic message on Twitter with a Bible verse, the prayer hands and heart emojis. "'Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters. Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger.' JAMES 1:19," Pratt tweeted. Gunn's brother, Sean, who stars as Kraglin in the Guardians franchise, came to his defense, urging fans to still "appreciate" the films despite his director brother formerly being "kind of a jacka**". "So I guess my hope is that fans continue to watch and appreciate the Guardians movies, not despite the fact that the filmmaker used to be kind of a jacka**, but because of it. They are, after all, movies about discovering your best self. Working on those movies made my brother a better person, and they made me one too. I'm proud of that. Peace," Gunn wrote in a lengthy post on social media. Dave Bautista, who was the first one from the Guardians team to come to the director's defence, claimed the unearthing of Gunn's old tweets was a "cyber attack". "What happened here is so much bigger then G3, @JamesGunn, myself, @Disney etc. This was a #cybernazi attack that succeeded. Unless we start to unite together against this crap, whether people are offended are not! ... It's going to get much worse. And it can happen to anyone," Bautista wrote. In the old tweets, screenshots of which are available online, the 51-year-old director cracked crude jokes dealing with pedophilia and rape. The screenshots of Gunn's tweets, which ranged from 2009 through 2012, were shared by a conservative website The Daily Caller. After being fired, the filmmaker also issued a statement where he "regretted" the tweets and stressed that "they don't reflect the person I am today". Gunn was in the middle of writing the script for the third film, which was scheduled to begin shooting in Atlanta in the fall for a 2020 release date. The petition, titled 'RE-HIRE JAMES GUNN' on website change.org was started by a Chandler Edwards, has gained over 140,000 signatures in Gunn's support. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BEIJING (Reuters) - China will adopt a more vigorous fiscal policy to help tackle external uncertainties without resorting to strong policy stimulus, state radio said on Monday, citing the cabinet. Slowing economic growth has sparked a heated debate among government researchers on whether fiscal policy should play a bigger role in softening the impact of a trade war with the United States."The proactive fiscal policy will become more active," state radio cited a statement issued after a cabinet meeting, chaired by Premier Li Keqiang, as saying.The fiscal policy will focus on cutting taxes ... BEIJING (Reuters) - Threats and intimidation on trade will never work on China, its foreign ministry said on Monday, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he was ready to impose tariffs on all $500 billion of imported goods from the country.China also has no need to use competitive devaluation of its currency to aid its exports, Geng Shuang, a spokesman for the foreign ministry, told a daily news briefing.U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said last week the United States was monitoring the recent weakness in China's yuan currency and would review whether it had been manipulated. ... By Fiona Lau and Julie ZhuHONG KONG (Reuters/IFR) - China Tower, the world's largest telecoms tower operator, has lined up $1.4 billion from 10 cornerstone investors for its Hong Kong IPO of up to $8.7 billion, in what would be the world's biggest listing in four years, five people close to the deal told Reuters.The Beijing-based mobile phone infrastructure firm has set an indicative price range of HK$1.26 to HK$1.58 ($0.16-$0.20) per share for the initial public offering (IPO), valuing itself at between $28 billion and $35 billion, said the people. China Tower's deal is seen as a key test ... By Sudarshan Varadhan and Nidhi VermaNEW DELHI (Reuters) - An explosion of hot gas at a boiler at NTPC's Unchahar power plant last year that killed 45 workers was the result of an "error in judgement" by some of the plant's most experienced operators, according to an internal report on the state-run electricity producer's biggest disaster.The plant's Head of Operations, Head of Ash Handling Maintenance and Head of Boiler Maintenance - each with 28 years of experience - made a decision not to shut down a 500-megawatt (MW) boiler at Unchahar to clear a buildup of ash prior to an ... By David Lawder and Daniel FlynnBUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Global finance leaders called on Sunday for stepped-up dialogue to prevent trade and geopolitical tensions from hurting growth, but ended a two-day G20 meeting with little consensus on how to resolve multiple disputes over U.S. tariff actions.The finance ministers and central bank governors from the world's 20 largest economies warned that growth, while still strong, was becoming less synchronized and downside risks over the short- and medium-term had increased."These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and ... BEIJING (Reuters) - Gelin Dahua, the Chinese futures brokerage that made a name for itself by building up a massive long copper position on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE), is now short on the metal for at least the next six months, exchange data showed on Monday.The firm, owned by Shanxi Securities Co, has been liquidating its forward copper positions in recent weeks and on Monday cut its remaining 2,952 lots on the May 2019 ShFE copper contract, according to position data published by the bourse. The liquidation has coincided with a 9.8 percent drop in Shanghai copper prices since June ... By Liz Hampton and John Benny(Reuters) - Oilfield services provider Halliburton Co on Monday reported a sharp increase in quarterly revenue, but its shares fell by more than 6 percent as investors eyed growing pipeline constraints in the Permian Basin. Halliburton said some of its customers are reducing activity and lowering their rig count as production in the west Texas and New Mexico outpaces takeaway capacity. The bottlenecks have pushed the price of regional crude to a steep discount to benchmark U.S. oil and are threatening to dampen demand for oilfield services and equipment. The ... By Hadeel Al Sayegh, Rania El Gamal and Tom ArnoldDUBAI (Reuters) - JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley have been picked to advise on Saudi Aramco's plan to buy a controlling stake in petrochemical maker SABIC, several sources familiar with the matter said.Aramco aims to buy such a stake, possibly taking the entire 70 percent holding owned by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, two of the sources familiar with the matter told Reuters earlier on Monday. Late last week, Aramco confirmed a Reuters report that it was working on the possible purchase of a "strategic stake" in Saudi Basic Industries Corp ... By Agnieszka Flak MILAN (Reuters) - Fiat Chrysler's new boss, Mike Manley, faces the task of executing his predecessor's plan to ramp up production of SUVs and catch up on electric cars to keep the world's seventh-largest carmaker competitive in the absence of a merger.Jeep division head Manley was named on Saturday to succeed longtime Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne, one of the auto industry's most tenacious and respected auto chiefs, who fell seriously ill after suffering complications following surgery. Marchionne was already due to step down next April, but shares are likely to react to ... MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's largest oil company Rosneft filed an 89 billion rouble ($1.41 billion) lawsuit on Monday against participants of the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project operated by ExxonMobil subsidiary Exxon Neftegaz Ltd. The suit, received by an arbitration court in the Sakhalin region in Russia's Far East, seeks to recover funds gained by parties between July 10, 2015, and May 31, 2018, through "unjust enrichment and interest gained by using other people's money", according to paperwork issued by the court.The lawsuit has been filed against five entities, claiming 10 billion roubles ... California passed its California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) on June 28, 2018, and it goes into effect tomorrow, Jan. 1, 2020. It's a law that protects the privacy rights of consumers within the state, but because the internet is everywhere, this law will transform the web forever. Similar to Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the CCPA will affect many businesses who collect personal information from those in California. The law allows Californians, known for being litigious, to sue businesses if their personal information is compromised in a data breach. It will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2020, but most businesses don't know how this will affect them. A recent survey by ESET polled 625 business owners and executives to gauge the business readiness for this regulation. Nearly half (44.2%) had never heard of CCPA. Only 11.8% know if the law applies to them, and 34% are unsure if they need to change how they capture, store and process data. It's worth noting that 2018 was the second-most active year for data breaches, according to Risk Based Security. There were 6,500 reported breaches, including some 5 billion records, ranging from mega-breaches of companies such as Facebook to much smaller ones. Here's everything you need to know about the act, and what you can do to prepare as a small business owner. What is the California Consumer Privacy Act? Matt Dumiak, director of privacy services at CompliancePoint, and Greg Sparrow, senior vice president and general manager of CompliancePoint, said that the CCPA is a bill that will require businesses to implement new policies and procedures to ensure the protection of personal information. This includes privacy policies, security protections and facilitation of consumer rights. However, businesses are not required to honor all consumer requests. Each should be analyzed to ensure the business is only honoring those applicable, they said. According to the CCPA website, the act protects the following consumer rights: Right to know all data collected on them, including what categories of data and why it is being acquired, before it is collected, and any changes to its collection Right to refuse the sale of their information Right to request deletion of their data Mandated right to opt in before the sale of information of children under 16 Right to know the categories of third parties with whom their data is shared, as well as those from whom their data was acquired Enforcement by the attorney general of the state of California Private right of action should breach occur, to ensure companies keep their information safe Dumiak and Sparrow said that businesses have 45 days to respond to consumer requests; and any damages that occur due to a breach are limited to $750 per consumer per incident. The CCPA, before it was in amendment with Assembly Bill 375, originally had more stringent regulations that might have nearly paralyzed the tech industry, which has thrived in California's Silicon Valley. But Dumiak and Sparrow noted that the official CCPA allows businesses a 30-day window to amend any violations, so long as they can prove they have been amended and that no more will occur. Otherwise, violators might face penalties of up to $7,500 per intentional violation. How does it affect SMBs, and what can they do to prepare? Dumiak and Sparrow noted that the bill will apply to "any business that earns $25 million in revenue per year, sells 50,000 consumer records per year, or derives 50% of its annual revenue from selling personal information." This includes businesses that collect or sell personal information from consumers in California, regardless of where the company itself is located. The average annual revenue for a small business is less than $25 million. In fact, for businesses with between 20 and 99 employees, the average revenue is $7,124,000 million, according to QuickBooks. While the qualifications to be affected by this bill might exclude many small businesses, it doesn't mean you shouldn't prepare. "The CCPA provides small businesses with incentive and motivation to start thinking about the personal data processed and protected within their business environment," said Dumiak. "Most organizations feel resource-constrained, and small businesses are no different, if not more so." "California's law will raise the bar significantly, and this won't be the last time it's raised as states seek to emulate the EU's new GDPR," added Robert Cattanach, a partner at Dorsey & Whitney who helps clients navigate regulatory law. "This measure is likely to increase litigation as more consumer rights are created and expanded." But the lack of awareness could lead to a lack of compliance, which could expose businesses to significant financial penalties. "It's clear that businesses are confused about this upcoming regulation; they do not know whether they are subject to the law and what they need to do to become compliant," said Tony Anscombe, global security evangelist at ESET. "The penalties will be severe, and the financial harm could be grave to these firms. Businesses should particularly focus on the 'reasonable security' aspect of the law by ensuring they have stringent processes and practices in place, including strong endpoint protection and encryption, throughout their organization." While California is just one state, its regulations are spreading awareness and encouraging like-minded individuals to speak up and take action. Businesses should expect similar laws to be passed across the country in the next few years. In fact, Nevada passed an amendment to its online privacy law, requiring businesses to offer consumers a right to opt out of the sale of their personal information. It took effect on Oct. 1, 2019. It is highly unlikely to be the last such bill to go into effect. "Congress will feel pressure from both pro-privacy advocates to endorse the rights created by California, and businesses to try to bring uniformity to what is increasingly a dynamically evolving policy area," said Cattanach. "The bottom line is that this leverages on the concepts contained in GDPR and is certain to be picked up as the standard by other states." The CCPA will go into effect in January of 2020, so small businesses have a little time to prepare. But not a lot. To do so, Dumiak said, they should review certain areas of business: Information security posture Personal data processing Honoring of access requests Other applicable rights or requirements "Further, the fines and privacy right of action, while having an impact on any organization, will arguably be a larger percentage of their revenue and more impactful on business operations and revenue," said Dumiak. "While many see regulation as a headache, this regulation is a terrific opportunity for organizations, small and large, to get much-needed resource help in the security and business operations space." If your small business hasn't already hired a data processing consultant to make sure your company is compliant with GDPR, now may be the time to investigate such a professional. You may want to look for someone who is certified by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). It is the largest and most comprehensive global information privacy community, with some 40,000 members. Even if you are already compliant, it's worthwhile to keep an eye on California regulations, as there are two bills currently under consideration that would expand CCPA. And there are nine bills being considered that would narrow the scope of CCPA. A Pune-based consulting firm claims to predict whether a start-up will be successful or not using cutting-edge AI technology algorithm. Considering the Indian start-ups' high failure rate, the tools developed by Pune-based SRKay Consulting Group could help in flagging issues at the initial stages of a start-up's journey. The company unveiled its MindMatch Algorithm at a recently held United Nations Conference on Trade and Development meeting in Geneva. India has over 5,000 start-ups working in different cities. Around 90 per cent of start-ups fail in the first five years of their formation because of various reasons like lack of funding, poor team, lack of vision, etc. SRKay Consulting Group says its algorithm utilises human-only attributes for the prediction, which have been largely ignored by start-ups and funding agencies across the globe, leading to massive start-up failures. However, it is unclear what human attributes does the algorithm use to predict the success or a failure of a start-up. Alok Kumar, the Managing Partner of SRKay, said, "Around 78 per cent of startups are successful due to human only factors while the failures are primarily because of ignoring these factors." Kumar also presented a research study on startup success to show how AI can be leveraged by entrepreneurs and governments to ensure start-up success, build an environment of innovation and growth. "It is essential for developing countries to invest in technology and practices that help them identify and nurture right entrepreneurial talent and enable them by creating an ecosystem. The platform also enables enterprises to leverage this technology to create successful teams and ensure successful employee engagement at the workplace," said Kumar. Using MindMatch Algorithm, which utilises the power of AI with in-depth psychological analysis to predict entrepreneurial success, the company aims to achieve 80 per cent success through its investments across the globe. The Narendra Modi government, which has extensively worked towards building a start-up eco-system in India, had launched the Start-up India' initiative on January 16, 2016, to build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation and entrepreneurship. The government, through its initiatives like the Rs 10,000-crore fund, tax exemption in capital gains and investment, easy closure process, etc, aims to make it a big part of the economy. According to Nasscom report titled 'Perspective 2025: Shaping the Digital Revolution', the Indian technology and services industry is on track to reach its goal of $200-225 billion in revenues by 2020 and may even touch $350 billion by 2025. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Haryana are among the leading states that generate employment opportunities for youngsters who are 25 years or less old, the latest monthly pay roll data released by the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) says. The most employment friendly area is the services sector. Textiles and garments, engineering products, building and construction industry, have also contributed most to employment generation during the September 2017 - May 2018 period, the data states. Education, iron and steel, computer related jobs, hospitals, finance institutions were all among the sectors and establishments that were among the top 10 in the EPFO pay roll data. Among the 35 year and above category, Delhi was one of the most attractive places for new employment generation. The government had in April 2018 introduced the monthly pay roll reporting system for the formal sector to facilitate analysis of new and continuing employment. The payroll data, categorised age-wise, for the months September, 2017 to February, 2018 has been released on April 25, 2018. In addition to EPFO, Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) and the Pension fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) had also released similar data during that month. The data generation is a continuous exercise as updation of employee record is a continuous process. The previous data hence gets updated every month. According to the data released on June 20, May 2018 saw maximum enrolment of new workers in last eight months at 7,43,608. While 2,51,526 of them belonged to the age bracket of 18 to 21, the 22 to 25 years age group followed with 1,90,090 new jobs that month. The total number of jobs created during the eight month period stood at 4.4 million. An arbitration tribunal has rejected the Rs 1,323-crore damages claim from SpiceJet raised by the airline's previous owner Kalanithi Maran and his company Kal Airways, in a protracted share transfer dispute. Maran had argued that if there is no compensation coming, he should be allowed to regain SpiceJet ownership. Ajay Singh-led SpiceJet has informed the stock exchanges that on July 20, an arbitration tribunal rejected Maran's claim of damages of Rs 1,323 crore for not issuing convertible warrants and preference shares to him and Kal Airways. The case dates back to January 2015, when Singh, who owned the airline earlier bought it back from Maran for a token sum of Rs 2 along with the Rs 1,500 crore debt burden, after the airline was grounded as it could not even pay its fuel bills. The tribunal consisted of three retired judges from the Supreme Court, Arijit Pasayat, Hemant Laxman Gokhale and KSP Radhakrishnan. While the tribunal asked Maran to pay Singh and the airline Rs 29 crore in penal interest, Singh was asked to refund Rs 579 crore plus interest to Maran. The tribunal, set up on the orders of the Delhi High Court, to adjudicate the share transfer dispute, held that there was no breach of a share sale and purchase agreement reached between Maran and current promoter Ajay Singh in late January 2015. SpiceJet on Sunday said there was no monetary impact from the verdict as most of the refund of Rs 370 crore has already been deposited in an escrow account created by the Delhi High Court. Additionally, the tribunal has allowed a counter claim of Rs 29 crore. On the dispute related to issue of convertible warrants and preferential shares, the airline said, the tribunal has held that the claimants were to bring in Rs 100 crore required for issuance of CRPS aggregating to Rs 370 crore, and the same has not been deposited by them in the manner provided under the agreement. The tribunal has advised the parties to explore the possibility of issuance of warrants and in the event such efforts do not fructify in two months' time, the company is required to thereafter refund the amount of about Rs 270 crore (after adjusting the counter claim of Rs 100 crore which has been allowed). "No further warrants or shares are required to be issued by the company to Maran and Kal Airways," SpiceJet said quoting the award. Ajay Singh was the first co-founder of the airline and now back as the chairman and managing director has managed to turn the airline around. As part of the agreement, Maran and Kal Airways had claimed to have paid SpiceJet Rs 679 crore for issuing warrants at a conversion price of Rs 16.30 and preference shares. But Maran said neither the convertible warrants nor preference shares were issued nor money returned, claiming to have cost him over Rs 1300 crore, forcing him to move the Delhi High Court. The warrants, if converted into equity, would have given Maran and Kal Airways 24 per cent ownership in the airline. Singh and his family currently hold over 60 per cent in the airline, against under 2 per cent before Maran exited the airline The recent twin building collapse in Shahberi village of Greater Noida has once again brought the matter of illegal construction and use of inferior quality materials in the building construction to the fore. Rather than enjoying the comfort of their new homes, the occupant families are coping up with loss of life and fortune. Not only did many families, who purchased a flat in that building, lose their homes and savings but they will also have to pay big outstanding loans. Buying a house is the biggest decision of life for most of the homebuyers. Majority of houses being purchased nowadays are financed through home loans which are often 4-5 times of annual income of a person and are taken for a long period of repayment like 20-25 years. This incident should work as good lesson for prospective homebuyers that a wrong decision will not only have its immediate financial risk but can have its impact for a longer term. Here is how you can make sure that you get a legal and stable house Take the pain earlier to avoid post stress: It makes sense for you to take all the precautions before you go ahead with buying a new property. You should not leave scope for any complacency or ignorance while scouting for house. Rather than regretting at a much later stage, it is better to take all the pain before buying the property and ensure that it has all the legal approvals and its construction quality is reliable and has complied to all the laid down norms. Avoid any sense of urgency: Often first time home buyers go through a sense of urgency that they will not be able to catch up with prices later on if they miss the bus now. This gives them no opportunity to focus on all the critical issues related to the home purchase that can have long term repercussions. The experience of real estate market in India has shown that overheating of prices is followed by a period of correction or price stagnation. Therefore you will always get another chance if you wait with caution. But if you become complacent regarding the important aspects like checking the construction and quality and legality of the building then you may not get another chance to recover. Getting a home loan is no guarantee of legal clearance: It is often considered that if your home loan is disbursed by the lender for your new house then it is a kind of assurance that the building is legal. However, it is far from the truth. The homebuyers in Shahberi village incident also got home loan sanctioned but the building lacked many other approvals. So even if the lender has approved your loan you should not throw caution out of the window. Get all the documents verified: Before giving any advance you should make it a point to ask your builder to give you the copy of all the property related papers including title document of the building, its devolution history, proof for residential nature of the land, local area layout, approved building layout plan and completion certificate. It would not be a bad idea to spend some money and consult a good legal expert and take his/her opinion after showing all the documents. Be vigilant while inspecting the quality of construction: If the construction quality of a building has been compromised there is good likelihood of it leaving some obvious defects which can be visually observed. "Some of the way in which buyers can effectively assess the security and safety of a building is by visual inspection of property to observe obvious defects, deterioration, dampness, exposed reinforcement, corrosion etc. You can observe the patchwork and colour coats in order to check if some defect is concealed," says Ashutosh Limaye, Head Research & REIS, JLL India. You can make multiple visits to the prospective house or construction site to make sure that no obvious defect remains undetected. Get the expert to check the building structure: You can get in touch with an expert of check the durability and construction quality of a building especially if it is a new construction. "If it is a new building you can ask for working drawings/ structural drawings and get them validated by structural engineer," says Limaye. Be over cautious while buying an old property: Age of construction also gives you the idea about the strength of the building. In old buildings, the upkeep and maintenance become very critical point determining the strength of the construction. According to Limaye, if a building is over 30 years old, always better to call a structural engineer for a visit for inspection. You can ask for records for society for major repairs done. Check the drainage system: One of the major flaws, which adds to structural corrosion of a building, is lack of proper drainage system and leakages in water supply. You should do a thorough check of building drainage system and make sure that it is linked to government approved drainage system. More than two years after the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government passed the 'draconian' Prohibition Bill, the state legislature on Monday watered down some of the stringent punishments in the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act to make it less harsh on violators, especially the first time offenders. People caught for the first time drinking liquor in Bihar will not be mandatorily sent to prison term. The amendment provides for a fine of Rs 50,000 for first time offenders, who can go free after paying the penalty. Earlier, the first offence under the Bihar liquor law was non-bailable. Speaking during the ongoing monsoon session of the state assembly, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said, "After lot of consultations and review of the liquor law in last two years we have decided to make amendment." "If someone is caught drinking he will be fined Rs 50000/- or three months in jail. If caught second time he will be fined Rs 1 lakh fine and 5 years jail. Now house where liquor was recovered will not be seized and mass penalty provision has also been removed," said the chief minister. The new law removes the provision for seizing property (land, house) or vehicle if liquor is found on any premises. Similarly, the new law does not have the provision for the arrest of all members of the family if some is found consuming alcohol inside a home. Another provision, which calls for imposing collective fine as punishment in the case of recovery of huge quantity of liquor in an area, is being done away with. "We don't want that any innocent person to land in jail," Bihar CM added. Meanwhile, the Opposition staged a walkout from the House, opposing the Amendment Bill. Total number of persons arrested in liquor cases which includes people caught drinking and smuggling was 62 per cent (caught drinking) and 32 per cent (caught smuggling) respectively. A total of 6932 persons are in jail presently in liquor cases as on July 12, 2018. Total capacity of prisons in Bihar is 39436 and the number of people in jail right now is 39087. ALSO READ: India Inc welcomes GST rate cuts, simplification in returns filing With around 93 per cent of the registered taxpayers set to benefit from the GST Council's decision to allow quarterly return filing for businesses with turnover of up to Rs 5 crore, India Inc not only foresees increased compliance but also improved ease of doing business. After all, micro and small enterprises have long complained about the tedious compliance burden of monthly filing under the new tax regime. "The decisions relating to simplification of returns and especially keeping the interests of small taxpayers are noteworthy. This would facilitate ease of doing business both for small and large taxpayers," said Ficci President Rashesh Shah, adding that the decisions would increase compliance, widen the tax base and are in the right direction to achieve the objectives of GST. In a similar vein, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said in a statement that the single page return form to be filed quarterly for traders having turnover up to Rs 5 crore is a bold step, which will ease miseries of traders. They will have to, however, pay taxes monthly. To remind you, last October, the government had allowed businesses with an annual turnover of up to Rs 1.5 crore to file returns quarterly, setting off a clamour for the benefit to be extended to bigger enterprises in the MSME sector. According to the Finance Ministry, quarterly return shall be similar to main return with monthly payment facility but for two kinds of registered persons - small traders making only business-to-business and business-to-consumer enterprises supply. For such taxpayers, two simplified returns - Sahaj and Sugam - have been designed. "In these returns details of information required to be filled is lesser than that in the regular return," the Ministry said in a statement. The GST Council on Saturday also announced the biggest GST rate cut since last November. The levy was slashed on a whopping 88 items, including white goods, footwear, sanitary napkins, fortified milk and handicrafts. This, incidentally, was interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal's first GST Council meeting since he took charge in May. "This is a big step towards encouraging menstrual hygiene among young girls and women as scrapping of GST from sanitary napkins will make napkins more affordable and more women will be able to use them," said Pinky Reddy, President, Ficci Ladies Organisation (FLO). Consumer appliance maker Usha International's CEO, Dinesh Chhabra, appreciated the reduction in the GST rates - from 28 per cent to 18 per cent - on food grinders, mixers, storage water heaters, water coolers, water heaters, electric ironing machines, among others. "These are basic appliances and are required in every household on a daily basis. This move ahead of the festive season will certainly bring cheer to consumers and lead to a spur in the growth of the appliances category," he explained. In fact, according to Harpreet Singh, Partner - Indirect Tax, KPMG, the rate rationalisation on so many products was nothing short of being akin to the annual budget announcements. Clearly, the Modi government is beginning to pull out all stops ahead of the general elections coming up next year. Singh also pointed out that the rate cuts on handicrafts items such as deities made of stone, marble and woods, phool jharoo, etc, was a long pending demand of the dwindling sector, which had been further hurt by its inclusion in the GST net. "Exemption from GST may provide much needed impetus to the industry, which is a key contributor to rural employment," said Singh, adding that the facility of filing quarterly returns would definitely reduce the compliance burden of small dealers and assist them in channelising their energy in doing business rather than worrying about monthly tax filings. According to Ernst & Young Services India tax Partner Abhishek Jain, the 28th GST Council also brought cheer to hotels and oil companies. "Big relief for hotels as GST rate of 28 per cent would not apply if the actual tariff value is less than 7,500 even though the published tariff may be more than 7,500. This will also ease the IT systems for hotel players," he said, adding, "Reduction in GST rate of ethanol for use by oil companies to 5 per cent is, again, welcome as major petroleum products are outside GST and this would help reduce their cost". "While rate rationalisation would definitely bring cheer for the industry and consumers, what would be interesting to see is how the government would try and compensate the revenue loss on account of tax rate reductions," Singh added. According to The Times of India, The rate reduction along with several clarifications will leave the Centre and states poorer by Rs 8,000-10,000 crore on an annual basis. However, at a press meet on Saturday, Goyal reportedly said that compliance buoyancy and higher consumption will not only boost economic growth and employment, but also make up for the revenue loss. He added that the rate cuts will benefit 125 crore people. With PTI inputs After a bank union, All India Bank Officers' Confederation (AIBOC), slammed Kerala-based jewellery chain, Kalyan Jewellers for their new advertisement, the ad featuring Amitabh Bachchan and daughter, Shweta Bachchan Nanda has been withdrawn. "We sincerely regret the inadvertent hurt caused and withdraw the advertisement from all media with immediate effect," said Ramesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director of Kalyan Jewellers, in a statement. "We understand that the advertisement has hurt sentiments of some people including members of our esteemed banking community. Any such hurtful interpretation being drawn is unintended," he further added. The ad showed an old, honest man, accompanied by his daughter, visiting a bank where he is dismissed and pushed from one counter to another by rude bank officials. The union called the portrayal of bank officials "disgusting" and called it a "direct attempt to ruin the trust and confidence of billions of citizenries in banks". "We state that the creative advertisement was a work of fiction and not a reflection of banking employees at large. Along with crores of Indians, we acknowledge the valuable contribution of the banking community to our country," the statement by Kalyan Jewellers said. Amitabh Bachchan and daughter Shweta Bachchan Nanda were also criticised for being part of the ad. "Bachchan tries to exhibit his honesty by drumming around that honesty doesn't mean when everyone is watching, rather it is about being honest when nobody is looking at you. But, Mr Bachchan perhaps was unaware that in the process of doing so on screen, he has made a mockery of the entire bankers' community in the ad which is deplorable and culpable," the bank union had said in a statement earlier. "We express our strong resentment against the management of Kalyan Jewellers and Mr Bachchan who have manifested a negative and false image of the Banks in the ad for their personal aggrandisement. We deem it as a case of defamation to all the banks as a whole," said AIBOC General Secretary Soumya Datta. While Kalyan Jewellers called the ad a work of fiction, AIBOC demanded that the ad be withdrawn, failing which the union said that they would initiate suitable "organisational action, including dharnas and litigation". Amitabh Bachchan had also posted the ad on Twitter along with an emotional message. "Emotional moment for me .. tears welling up every time I see it .. daughters are the BEST !! (sic)," he wrote. The ad was the father-daughter duo's first onscreen act. In the ad's Malayalam version, popular actress Manju Warrier played the role of his daughter. (With PTI inputs) The GST Council has pruned the 28 per cent slab by cutting tax rates on 191 goods over the last one year, leaving just 35 items, including AC, digital camera, video recorders, dishwashing machine and automobiles, in the highest tax bracket. There were around 226 goods in the 28 per cent category when Goods and Services Tax (GST) was implemented on July 1, 2017. Over the last one year, the Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister and comprising state ministers, has slashed rates in 191 items. The 35 goods, which will be left in highest slab once the new GST rates are implemented from July 27, also include cement, automobile parts, tyres, automobile equipments, motor vehicles. yachts, aircrafts, aerated drinks, betting and demerit items like tobacco, cigarette and pan masala. Experts said going forward as the revenues stabilise, the Council may look at further rationalisation of the 28 per cent slab, to restrict the highest tax slab to super luxury and sin goods. Deloitte India Partner M S Mani said it would be logical to expect that once the GST collections after the recent reductions stabilise, the remaining items such as televisions of all sizes, dishwashers, digital cameras, air conditioners could be considered for an 18 per cent rate. "It would be ideal if only demerit goods are retained in the 28 per cent slab so that a gradual movement towards having fewer GST slabs can be initiated," Mani said. After the latest rounds of rate cuts by the GST Council on July 21, only 35 items are left in the 28 per cent tax slab, an official said. he Council brought down tax rates to 18 per cent from 28 per cent on 15 items, including vacuum cleaners, washing maching, 68 cm (27 inch) TV, fridge, laundry machines, paints and varnishes. "The rate cuts would lead to a revenue loss of about Rs 6,000 crore," the official said. The official, however, said that the revenue loss would be only notional as increased consumption and compliance would lead to more revenues to the exchequer. EY Partner Abhishek Jain said: "The reduction of GST rates from 28 per cent to 18 per cent shows that directionally, the Government seems to be clear that the 28 per cent rate should be restricted to super luxury and sin goods". Police in Luxembourg have added two Tesla electric cars to their fleet, hoping that their rapid acceleration capacity will help them nab more criminals and speed offenders while also trimming the tiny country's carbon emissions. The purchase of the two Tesla Model S cars - which can accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour (97 kmph) in seconds - is part of a pilot project to move some 10 percent of the cars on Luxembourg's roads towards electric and hybrid vehicles, the Grand Duchy's transport minister said. "Police cannot use a 2CV on the motorway, they need a car that can move fast," Francois Bausch told state broadcaster RTL. One of the key concerns surrounding electric vehicles - the need to regularly recharge their batteries - is less of a problem in Luxembourg, which measures only some 100 km (60 miles) from north to south, police said. "Our patrols are 200 kilometres per outing. We can easily see that the battery life as it is does not pose any problems," said Laurent Lentz, deputy commander of Luxembourg's highway police. But Lentz said it was too early to say whether Luxembourg would buy more Tesla cars. Local media said the police had paid some 100,000 euros ($116,450) for each car due to special police requirements. Police declined to confirm the figure. Luxembourg Environment Minister Carole Dieschbourg said the transport sector accounts for about two thirds of the country's CO2 emissions. "I think it is of utmost importance to show leadership in order to have legislation and strategies that will make us able to reach our Paris target," she said. Luxembourg is one of nearly 200 nations to have signed the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, which aims to limit a rise in global temperatures to below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times. The Sino-U.S. trade war will be a protracted one. China should have no more illusions about the improvement in bilateral relations. What it should do now is adjust its policies on domestic political and economic reforms, as well as geopolitics issues. Although the conclusions of the U.S. Section 301 investigation report are completely untenable, Chinas implementation of commitments to the World Trade Organization (WTO) havent been impeccable. For example, China uses export-tax rebates as a policy tool to stimulate exports quite often. Some of them dont violate WTO rules but are nevertheless contrary to the spirit of the WTO. The investigation report also targeted Chinas technology-related industrial policies. The U.S. criticized the Chinese government for its support for enterprises to catch up technologically, which reflects the U.S. concerns and hostility toward Chinas high-tech ambitions. With Chinese companies catching up, foreign rivals have been making more efforts to protect their core technologies and intellectual property (IP) rights. Because of policy changes in the U.S. and other developed countries, it has become increasingly difficult for China to acquire foreign core technologies through its market-for-technology strategy and its mergers and acquisitions (M&As). In this case, self-dependent innovation has become the only reliable solution for Chinese companies to narrow the technology gap with foreign competitors. Correspondingly, China should re-examine its frequently propagandized going out policy, which has already led to a high level of vigilance among the developed countries. The Section 301 investigation report believed that Chinese companies overseas M&A activities have harmed the interests of the U.S. First, China seeks to use foreign acquisitions and investments to upgrade its domestic industries, which will ultimately degrade U.S. competition in key sectors. Subsidies and other government policies have given Chinese companies an unfair advantage in acquiring technology assets abroad and gaining increased market share at the expense of U.S. firms. Second, Chinas policies and practices undermine the ability of U.S. firms to sustain innovation by transferring technologies from efficient and productive firms in the U.S. to less-innovative and less-productive firms in China. Third, Chinas policies and practices distort pricing with respect to investments in the critical market for IP-intensive sectors. Under the circumstances, Chinas overseas M&A practices will inevitably face resistance, with costs getting increasingly high. Now its time for China to cool its going out policy. Chinese companies should make their own decisions based on commercial considerations. There should not be any government interference except in special cases. That said, China should protect Chinese companies overseas interests. The crisis that ZTE Corp. faced, in which the U.S. banned components exports to the Chinese telecom giant due to its links to Iran and North Korea, may occur to any Chinese company operating abroad. In fact, China doesnt think the U.S. ban was legal, as it is China that should be responsible for handling cases in which Chinese companies are accused of violating U.N. Security Council resolutions. Even so, it lacked the capabilities to force the U.S. to immediately correct its wrongdoings. In the future, the U.S. may take Chinese companies as hostages to influence Chinas foreign policy. Thus, China must prepare a plan, including enacting related laws to reduce the harm such incidents do. No ransom should be the basic principle. Shift the focus to domestic demand Chinese companies business activities abroad have raised hostility, or even panic, in some countries. Many foreign rivals have seen their market share shrink, while some have even been on the verge of bankruptcy. In addition, the benefits of using comparative advantage to participate in the global division of labor may have already been offset by negative effects such as environmental pollution and resource depletion. Therefore, China should abandon its export-oriented policy and switch to a neutral trade policy. Meanwhile, it should be noted that China has already fallen into a dollar trap, with $3 trillion in foreign exchange reserves accumulated over the years, which has become a weapon for the U.S. that it may use to fight China. Economist John Maynard Keynes said, If you owe your bank a hundred pounds, you have a problem. But if you owe a million, it has. China should gradually spend most of its foreign exchange reserves and maintain only a minimum amount required unless it can find a way to ensure the security of the reserves. Last but not least, China should strive to reduce the misunderstandings with the U.S., as many conflicts and wars in history were caused by misunderstandings. The Section 301 investigation report reflects the U.S. misunderstandings about Chinas intentions, strategies and policies. The U.S. has overestimated Chinas strength and potential, which has been strengthened by Chinas propaganda. Its expected that there will be more and more conflicts between China and the U.S. A crisis may break out at any time. How to manage the crisis will be a huge challenge for China. Its imperative that China adjust its foreign economic policy. Yu Yongding, a member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, served on the Monetary Policy Committee of the Peoples Bank of China from 2004 to 2006. Translated by Lin Jinbing (jinbinglin@caixin.com) Read more about China-U.S. trade tensions. comment, editorial Julie Bishop, has put the U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, on notice this country will not accept any signs of appeasement towards Russia by the Trump Administration ahead of the historic first meeting between the two this week. Ms Bishop is to meet with President Trump's latest foreign affairs supremo at AUSMIN in San Francisco on Tuesday. And, in a clear sign that the Turnbull Government is far from happy with Mr Trump's vacillating, and almost indecipherable, messages in the wake of the Helsinki Summit, she has said America has to hold the line. Her words, which included demands the U.S. "should not reward Russia for their bad behaviour" go much further than Malcolm Turnbull's initial defence of the colourful and self-contradictory U.S. leader as a "patriot" last week. Trump had been criticised by Democrats and Republicans alike, with some going so far as to accuse him of treason - literally "giving succour to the enemy" - after apparently taking President Putin's word over the advice of his own security agency heads on whether or not the Soviets had hacked the 2016 Presidential election. That call, which led to a potentially embarrassing about face by the White House within 24-hours, has been compared to former Labor leader, Doc Evatt's rejections of claims the Russians were spying in Australia in the wake of the Petrov affair in the 1950s. The Soviet Government had told him this wasn't so. While that gaffe went on to destroy Evatt's career, and played a significant role in keeping Labor out of office until the 1970s, Trump has avoided serious consequences so far. Ms Bishop's position would have been significantly strengthened by the public backlash against Liberal backbencher, Craig Kelly's, foot-in-mouth foray into the field of foreign affairs when he suggested that when it came to the loss of MH17 Australia should let bygones be bygones last week. Her nuanced position is that Trump is placing too much emphasis on developing some form of rapport with the Russian leader. "I am concerned that in the President's aim to engage with Russia, as the President should, Russia will seek to escape responsibility for its past behaviour," she said. "My message for Secretary Pompeo is we will continue to need 100 per cent support from the U.S., particularly through the UN Security Council." Ms Bishop cited the downing of MH17, the annexation of Crimea, Russia's action in the eastern Ukraine, its indifference to Syria's use of chemical weapons against its own people, the likely Russian involvement in the nerve toxin attacks in England and the growing evidence of state sponsored cyber attacks as key issues. "We remain committed to seeking justice for the (283) victims of MH17. We have attributed state responsibility to Russia," she said. Her remarks are intended to remind Trump, through his senior foreign policy advisors, that if the price of a good relationship with Russia is turning a blind eye to its long list of misdeeds then that isn't a relationship at all. If, as it now appears, Russia is tired of being treated as a rogue state, it is the one that needs to do the heavy lifting by acknowleding what it has done wrong and taking action to make amends. /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/3d7a123a-6805-4e0d-aff7-42de4ae47735/r0_46_900_554_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg news, crime Senior police officers told a forensics officer to "f--k off, constable" when he tried to stop them trampling on the scene of police chief Colin Winchester's alleged murder, a jury heard Monday. The driveway where Mr Winchester sat slumped in the driver's seat of the Ford sedan formed the crime scene in what would become the biggest police investigation in Canberra's history, an investigation that led to the charging of public servant David Harold Eastman for murder. Mr Winchester, the assistant commissioner of police, was shot in the head on January 10, 1989. The 72-year-old Mr Eastman, on trial in the ACT Supreme Court, has pleaded not guilty. Forensics officer Murray Duffus was one of the first officers called to the crime scene. He agreed under questioning by defence barrister George Georgiou SC that the senior officers were trampling on the crime scene, but they had told him to "f--k off" when he asked them to move away. He told the court that police tried to limit interactions with crime scenes as much as possible to avoid contamination, or evidence such as fingerprints removed, obscured or added. He admitted that with the senior officers present he had little control over the scene, and the court heard it wasn't until the acting superintendent of the forensic services division arrived that the area was secured. That officer, Peter Nelipa, told the court he had relayed instructions to officers at the site that no one was to enter the area until he had cleared it. But when he arrived about 9.50pm he found numerous police officers in the street and two senior police officers on the grassed strip near driver's side door. There was an ambulance parked on the driveway, and a number of police cars parked in the street. He said he was concerned at the number of people present. "Ideally, no one should be there at all," he told the court. "My plans for examining the scene went out the window." He said his first thought was to gain control of the scene, a process that took more than an hour. He ordered a systemic search of the street, and then directed all cars away from the scene. He began a detailed examination of the crime scene about 11.40pm that night. He vaccumed the driveway, to preserve any trace elements that might prove useful in the police investigation. The jury on Monday saw the confronting photographs Mr Nelipa had captured of the scene. Mr Winchester was slumped in the front driver's seat with one foot out of the car, and the officer told the court he had concluded that the man had been shot while getting out of the car. The officer also recorded a bullet wound in Mr Winchester's right temple, and another in the back of the head, and concluded it was the latter that had been inflicted first. There was a blood-soaked box of ammunition on the front passenger seat, and splashes of blood on the inside roof of the car and the inside driver's side rear window. Later, when searching the grass strip near the driveway, Mr Nelipa said found two spent cartridges. There was no firearm at the scene. The court has heard that the murder weapon was never found. The trial continues. Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated Mr Nelipa's last name. /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/8555dfff-618e-4d8d-baf0-645ee87aacbd/r0_181_353_380_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg news, crime A suspended Canberra vet had to be locked up after she attempted to hide illegal medication during a police raid. Janet (Jan) Spate, 73, attempted to hide a bottle of a euthanasia drug under bedroom pillows while moving her dogs during a search at her Hall home on November 15. Police had repeatedly told her not to touch anything. Police then later caught Spate moving a schedule 4 substance which she was not authorised to possess- concealed inside a plastic bag and wrapped in towels. When asked what she was carrying, Spate replied that she had moved the bag because it had been "full of stuff I shouldn't have". Earlier in the day, when asked if she had any declared substances at the location, Spate had told police: "I don't think so to my knowledge there's nothing much because I went through the place and I couldn't find anything else". Spate was arrested about 12.15pm and sent to the ACT Watchhouse to prevent her attempting to conceal or destroy evidence. Spate has pleaded guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court to charges of pretending to be a registered vet, providing regulated vet services, possessing prescription only medication, and failing to store registered firearms and ammunition correctly. Spate was suspended from practising as a veterinarian in the ACT in 2016 after a series of complaints were made against her over a seven-year period. She was not eligible to reapply for registration until October this year. Spate's bid to then seek registration across the border in NSW was also rejected. In February 2017, the ACT Veterinary Surgeons Board cancelled the registration of the Jan Spate Veterinary Surgery and told Spate her Hall premises were no longer registered as a surgery. Spate then used the premises to set up an animal supplies store, but she continued to provide vet treatment from the building. However, court documents said Spate charged a man $50 for flea treatments and an injection for his cat in May 2017. In September, ACT Health seized 24 substances from Spate's business premises and private residence in Hall. Court documents said the substances had a schedule 4 classification, which are prescription only medications or prescription animal remedies. Police and ACT Health raided the property in November, finding capsules and vials of schedule four substances. The authorities also found pathology request forms, identifying Spate as the referring vet surgeon, for a biopsy for a cat and a blood test for a dog. A $150.04 receipt for the dog was found in the office of her animal supplies store. Police also seized two firearms, one loaded, from Spate's vehicle for not being stored safely. Court documents said the guns had been inside unlocked storage cabinets on the tray of Spate's ute. Keys, left in the ignition of the vehicle, could be used to unlock the box containing the weapons within the storage cabinets. Police found ammunition in an unlocked plastic tool box in a storage container on the vehicle. More schedule 4 substances were also located on the vehicle, including in an unlocked storage cabinet, glove box, and a broken fridge. Special Magistrate Ken Cush will sentence Spate on Tuesday morning. /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/a20c4f19-2b74-4e68-9a5f-df299f50f79b/r0_100_2000_1230_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg Published On Jul 22, 2018 10:50 AM By Jagdev Kalsi From new product launches to some interesting revelations, heres all that happened in the week that went by Interesting News Hyundais upcoming Santro hatchback spied: Latest spy video reveals its front grille for the first time. Heres how it looks. 2018 Renault Kwid spied: While we would have loved to see some cosmetic updates, it looks like Renault will only add some new features to it for the time being. Click here to read the detailed report. 2018 Maruti Suzuki Ciaz facelift wont launch with a diesel engine: Maruti will launch the 2018 Ciaz as a petrol-only model. But does it mean the diesel Ciaz will not be launched at all? Full details here. Volkswagen T-Cross SUV will come to India: The T-Cross SUV has been confirmed for the Indian market and we know it will come in 2020. Read the complete report here. New Launches 2018 Honda Jazz: Hondas premium hatchback gets a mild update. Click here for prices and other details. Want to read exactly whats different in the updated model from the previous version? Read this report. Tata Nexon XMA: The automatic Nexon is more affordable now since the automatic transmission now comes in XM variant as well. Here are the prices and more details. Volvo XC40 Momentum & Inscription: Volvo announced prices of more new variants of the XC40. In the process, the R-Design variant got more expensive. Detailed report here. Lexus ES 300h: Seventh-gen ES replaces the older version in India. Know more about this Mercedes-Benz E-Class, BMW 5 Series and Audi A6 rival here. Audi Q3, Q7 Design Edition: Both the Audi SUVs get a special edition with some styling tweaks and new features. For prices and other details, head to this report. Jaguar F-Type 2.0: Jaguar has made the F-Type accessible for a lot more buyers. It now comes with a 2.0-litre engine and the base price starts from under a crore rupees. Click here for all details. Some stories for you to make the right buying decision Hyundai Grand i10 vs Xcent: Which Is More Spacious? 2018 Suzuki Jimny vs Mahindra Thar CRDe: Specifications & Features Comparison 2018 Audi Q5 vs BMW X3: Real-world Performance And Mileage Comparison Read More on : KWID AMT India is a country that has banked on the values of 'Atithi Devo Bhava', wherein a guest is considered to be an incarnation of the Almighty. It is our core values that dictate we take proper care of our guests. This, coupled with the fact that India has one of the most diverse geographical diversities in the world, ensured that thousands of international tourists visit the country every year. The number of national tourists visiting someplace in the country (other than that of their home town) for purely recreational purposes is also increasing by leaps and bounds. The cumulative effect of all of this has opened up new horizons of opportunities in the world of tourism and hospitality. Indeed, the reasons for the same are many. Other than the aforementioned reasons, people are now taking an active interest in travelling to places. Government policies that are encouraging tourism development are also increasing by the minute. As a result, today the tourism industry is the largest employer in the world. This article talks about the current scenario in the Indian context and how technological developments are opening up new doors of opportunities in this sector in India. Resort Management With a number of resorts coming up across the lengths and breaths of the country, there is a greater demand for people in this role. The job role here is managerial in nature. These people are responsible for handling everything from housekeeping and customer care to overall food quality and staff behaviour. Naturally, this would involve interacting with staff and customers and only people who have excellent people management skills are expected to take up those types of jobs. In the Indian context, people who are well versed in the local language or know more than one language are preferred for these type of jobs. Since the main job role here is supervising the work of others, this is one of the most highly paid jobs in the hospitality and tourism sector. The starting salary here is close to Rs 25,000 per month. Gaming Industry In the Indian context, the hospitality and gaming industry is one that has come up only in the recent years. There are multiple roles here that people who have been trained in tourism and hospitality can take up. These include that of a dealer, a slot machine attendant, a pit boss, an operations manager and more. In addition to that, most of the gaming zones in the country have lounges where players can choose to relax. There are food and beverage zones and all of these require people in multiple roles to manage the various functionalities. This has created an immense potential for employment opportunities in this sector. The salary and work conditions here depend on the job role, the location of the gaming zone and the standard and target clientele of the same. However, this is one industry that is still in its nascent stage and in the coming years, the popularity of the same is only expected to rise. Cruise Manager This is another sector of the world of Indian tourism and hospitality that has come up in the recent years. These days there are a number of cruises to Lakshadweep Islands, Mauli Lake, Chilka Lake, Sundarbans, Rann of Kutch, Dal Lake, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and a number of other places. Tourists are becoming increasingly interested in the same and this has resulted in a surge of employment opportunities in this field. Technological advancement has ensured that cruises are now safer than ever before and that is why more and more people are choosing them. The job role of a cruise manager involves travelling with the group of tourists and ensuring their safety and comfort round the clock during their time on the cruise. The average salary for a fresher in this field stands at somewhere between Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 per month. While working during the course of the cruise, their food and accommodation expenses are taken care of by the organisation they work for. Wedding Coordinator The wedding coordinator is responsible for arranging everything, from what the bride and the groom are supposed to wear to what the guests are going to eat. This is a very taxing role and requires people to have good managerial skills in addition to basic market knowledge and a good aesthetic sense. These people usually take up organising a marriage as an assignment and each assignment pays them anything between Rs 50,000 to Rs 50,00,000 on an average. In extreme cases, the figures may vary. Front Office Receptionist Until a couple of decades ago, this was a job role that was taken up by just anyone in the industry. However, these days with internet reservation becoming popular, the job responsibility associated with this position has increased by leaps and bounds. Hence, organisations are particularly careful about hiring people for this particular role. Good communication skills, effective management skills along with a fair amount of computer literacy are prerequisites for this position. One must have a pleasant personality. Also, since these people are the face of the organisation, it is important for them to be well groomed and highly professional all the time. They need to have a very good knowledge of the products and services that the organisation has to offer since they are the very first customer point of contact. The starting salary for this position depends on the organisation that one is working for. The average value stands at somewhere close to Rs 15,000 per month. The Chhattisgarh Public Service Commission (CGPSC) has released an employment notification calling out aspirants to apply for the post of Deputy Superintendent Police (Radio). Those interested can check out the eligibility, salary scale, how to apply and the complete details of the government job here. There are totally three vacancies. Selected candidates can earn up to INR 45500. The last date to apply for the government job is Aug 28, 2018. UPSSSC Recruitment 2018 For 2059 Technical Assistants CGPSC Recruitment 2018 Vacancy Details CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Deputy Superintendent Police (Radio) Organisation Chhattisgarh Public Service Commission (CGPSC) Educational Qualification Graduate degree in electronics or telecommunication from a recognised university Experience Freshers can apply Skills Required Physical fitness Job Location Chhattisgarh Salary Scale INR 15600 to INR 45500 Industry Civil services Application Start Date July 30, 2018 Application End Date August 28, 2018 Age Limit 21 to 28 years Application Fee INR 400 (relaxation will be provided for reserved categories) Selection Process Written test and interview Exam Contents General knowledge and subject-related matters Exam Syllabus History of India, constitution, electronic devices, analog and digital systems, computer networks and securities Also Read: TSPSC Recruitment 2018 For 76 Vacancies: Apply Before Aug 10, 2018 CGPSC Written Exam Pattern Part 1 comprises 50 general knowledge questions for 100 marks. Part 2 comprises 100 questions on electronics & telecommunications for 200 marks. How To Apply For CGPSC Recruitment 2018 In order to apply for CGPSC Recruitment 2018, follow these steps: Step 1: Log on to the CGPSC official website. Step 2: Click on the link for online application from the home page. (Link will be active from July 30, 2018). Step 3: The application form will be displayed on the screen. Enter your details in the fields provided. Step 4: Submit your details and follow the subsequent pages to complete the application form. Click here to read the detailed official notification. Ministry of Defence has released an employment notification calling out aspirants to apply for the post of Yantrik for the Indian Coast Guard. 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 35400 per month. The last date to apply for the government job is Aug 1, 2018. SSC Recruitment 2018 For 54953 Constables: Apply Before Aug 24! Indian Coast Guard Recruitment 2018 Vacancy Details CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Yantrik Organisation Indian Coast Guard Educational Qualification Diploma in electrical, mechanical or telecommunication engineering Experience Freshers can apply Skills Required Physical fitness Job Location Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Noida Salary Scale INR 35400 per month Industry Defence Application Start Date July 23, 2018 Application End Date August 1, 2018 Age Limit 18 to 22 years Selection Process Written test, physical efficiency test and medical test Also Read: Ministry Of Defence Recruitment 2018 In July-August: Earn Up To INR 250000! How To Apply For Indian Coast Guard Recruitment 2018 In order to apply for Indian Coast Guard Recruitment 2018, follow these steps: Step 1: Log on to the Indian Coast Guard official website. Step 2: Click on the Opportunities tab. Step 3: The brief instructions will be displayed on the screen. Read them carefully. Step 4: Select the post that you want to apply for. Step 5: Click I Agree to confirm your selection and to agree to the rules stipulated. Step 6: The application form will be displayed on the screen. Enter your details in the fields provided. Step 7: Upload your photograph and signature. Step 8: Enter the verification code. Step 9: Click Submit and follow the subsequent pages to complete the application process. Click here to read the detailed official notification. The Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) has released an employment notification calling out aspirants to apply for various posts. Those interested can check out the eligibility, salary scale, how to apply and the complete details of the government jobs here. Selected candidates can earn up to INR 49870. The last date to apply for the government jobs is Aug 10, 2018. BPSC Recruitment 2018 For Assistant Directors TSPSC Recruitment 2018 Vacancy Details CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Assistant Accounts Officer Gr-II, Assistant Stores Officer Gr-II and Data Processing Assistant Gr-II Organisation Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) Educational Qualification Any graduate degree from a recognised institute for Data Processing Assistants Gr-II and BCom graduates for other posts Experience Freshers can apply Skills Required Accounting skills and proficiency in computer applications Job Location Telangana Salary Scale INR 16400 to INR 49870 Industry Civil services Application Start Date July 25, 2018 Application End Date August 10, 2018 Age Limit 18 to 44 years Application Fee INR 200 Examination Fee INR 80 Also Read: JPSC Recruitment 2018 For 552 Assistant Professors How To Apply For TSPSC Recruitment 2018 In order to apply for TSPSC Recruitment 2018, follow these steps: Step 1: Log on to the TSPSC official website. Step 2: Click on the button to visit the website. Step 3: On the right-hand side of the home page, under CANDIDATE SERVICES, click on the link that reads, Direct Recruitment. Step 4: The list of recruitment notifications will be displayed on the screen. Click on the application link against the relevant notification. Step 5: The application link will be active from July 25, 2018. The application form will be displayed on the screen once you click on the active link. Step 6: Enter your particulars in the fields provided, upload the necessary documents and submit them. Follow the subsequent pages to complete the application process. How To Pay The Fee For TSPSC Recruitment 2018 Pay it through SBI ePay. Once you start filling the online application, you will be directed to the fee payment option. The fee once paid is non-refundable. Click here to read the detailed official notification. The autonomous organisation under the HRD Ministry, Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), has released the University Grants Commission (UGC) National Eligibility Test (NET) 2018 results. Candidates who have appeared for UGC NET 2018 can visit the official website to check their results. CBSE has conducted the eligibility test on July 8 in 84 subjects across 91 selected cities in the country. Over 11 lakh candidates have appeared for the examination. How To Check UGC NET Results 2018 Step 1: Visit the CBSE UGC NET official website Step 2: Click on the ''CBSE - UGC NET Examination Result - July 2018'' Step 3: Enter the login credentials Step 4: Click on submit to view the results Step 5: Take a printout of your result for future use. Click here to check the UGC NET results Usually, CBSE takes more than two months to release the UGC NET results. The board has decided to release the results much earlier because of various reasons. The most important one is replacing the apex higher education regulator body, University Grants Commission (UGC), with the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI). As per the report published by the HRD Ministry, the responsibility of conducting the UGC NET examination has been transferred to the newly formed National Testing Agency (NTA). Hence, this is the last UGC NET examination conducted by CBSE. According to the HRD Ministry, the next edition of the UGC NET will be conducted by NTA in the month of December. The submission of the online applications will take between September 1 and 30, 2018. The examinations will be conducted between December 2 and 16, 2018. However, results will be declared during the last week of January 2019. UGC NET, which is held twice a year, is conducted to select candidates for the Assistant Professor and Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) posts in Indian universities and colleges. Candidates who qualify in JRF have to pursue research in their respective postgraduate subject. What You Need To Know About National Testing Agency (NTA) And The Examinations Ahead Alanna Kelly UPDATE: 5 p.m. BC Wildfire Service are hoping strong winds wont come whipping towards the Okanagan Valley over the next few days. Glen Burgess, incident commander for the Okanagan Complex says the worst situation will be an unexpected wind event. We still have a lot of fire out there in a variety of places that is uncontained and if we had an unexpected wind event that would cause us problems for sure, said Burgess. Drier and warmer weather is forecast for the Okanagan, creating challenges of their own for wildfires already burning. It sounds like the winds wont be as significant as they were a number of days ago, said Burgess. Calmer conditions on Sunday is why a planned ignition took place sending a massive plume of smoke high into the sky. An ignition device called plastic spherical dispenser dropped fire balls onto a 150 hectares patch between two wildfires in Peachland to merge them into one. We wanted to get his done today before we got into that hotter, drier weather system, said Burgess. The Mount. Eneas wildfire and the Monro Lake wildfire have now been combined to make it easier for firefighters to tackle. Burgess said more firefighters and resources are coming in daily to tackle the six fires of note in the Kamloops Fire Centre. We havent had any concerns about the available resources at this point, he said. The fire causing the most concern is the Mount Eneas wildfire, last estimated at 1,374 hectares. Environment Canada's forecast for the next week in the southern Interior does not inspire confidence, with temperatures in the 30s and winds gusting over 40 kilometres per hour. The B.C. Wildfire Service's chief fire information officer, Kevin Skrepnek, agreed with Luciw, saying the weather outlook for the foreseeable future will be problematic for the Interior including unpredictable lightning strikes. Environment Canada says a 30 per cent chance of showers and thunderstorms are possible on Monday night. ORIGINAL: 3:30 p.m. Our Alanna Kelly was at Sunday's BC Wildfire Service press conference and she spoke one on one with Glen Burgess, incident commander for the Okanagan Complex for the latest on the BC Wildfire situation as of Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Photo: Coquitlam Search and Rescue Search and rescue crews had to be called in to the Buntzen Lake area after two hikers were badly stung by hornets. The rescue operation, first dispatched at about 1:45 p.m., found one injured party on the Diez Vistas trail, and airlifted a second person out of the area later in the afternoon. "We're going to long line that person out," Coquitlam SAR tweeted shortly after 3 p.m. The rescue crews are taking this opportunity to urge the public to be safe around wasp and hornet nests in the back country. BC Parks has been contacted in relation to the Diez Vistas nest. -With files from CTV Vancouver Photo: BC Wildfire Service UPDATE: 11:30 a.m. The Eneas wildfire is now estimated at 1,793 hectares in size. ORIGINAL: 5:50 a.m. As of Monday morning July 23, there are six fires of note burning in the Kamloops Fire Centre. The five Okanagan-Similkameen "fires of note" listed below, are considered a threat to public safety, or are visible to the public. MOUNT ENEAS: The fire burning between Peachland and Summerland has now been joined to make one larger fire. The planned ignitions that took place just south of Peachland Sunday afternoon were successful. The Mount Eneas wildfire and the Munroe Lakes wildfire are now combined and will continue to be referred to as the Mount Eneas wildfire moving forward. This wildfire is now estimated at 1,516 hectares as a result of the two wildfires merging. GOODE'S CREEK: Previously named the "Good Creek" wildfire by the BCWS, this fire is located on the east side of Okanagan Lake in Okanagan Mountain Park. The fire hasn't grown at all recently, and it's still estimated to be at 400 hectares. Evacuation alerts put into place at the south end of Kelowna's Lakeshore Road were lifted Friday afternoon, as wind blew the fire south, away from homes. LAW CREEK: This lightning-caused fire is an estimated 15.4 hectares in size, and put 198 homes on evacuation alert Friday, but most of those alerts have since been rescinded. MOUNT CONKLE: This lightning-caused fire is an estimated 118 hectares in size, and although not technically under control is nbeing contained. PLACER MOUNTAIN: This fire is burning 37 kilometres south of Princeton, and is putting up a large plume of smoke visible from across the Similkameen. The BC Wildfire Service says the fire is 320. SNOWY MOUNTAIN: This fire is burning south of Keremeos and was started by a lightning strike on July 17. Right now it is sitting at 1,360 hectares. Updates on these fires will be provided multiple times throughout the day on Castanet. Photo: David Ogilvie UPDATE 11:20 a.m. The Southeast District RCMP Major Crime Unit has taken over the investigation into the murder of a woman at a West Kelowna hotel. Staff Sgt. Annie Linteau, Senior Media Relations Officer with RCMP, tells Castanet, "on July 22, 2018, at 7:18 p.m. police attended a hotel located in the 3400 block of Carrington Road in West Kelowna after being notified that a woman may be in need of assistance. Upon attendance, police located a deceased woman. A man was arrested a short distance from the hotel and is in police custody." RCMP believe the man and woman were known to each other and are from the Lower Mainland. Police are continuing their investigation and some area businesses have been impacted as police continue to search for evidence. UPDATE 11:10 a.m. Kelowna RCMP tell Castanet that all communications for the incident at a West Kelowna hotel will be handled by another RCMP division, "communications for this matter will be handled by our Provincial Communications Team. It is my understanding that they are in the process of drafting a release of information," says Const. Jesse O'Donaghey. ORIGINAL 10:05 a.m. Kelowna RCMP are still on scene of an incident at the West Kelowna Best Western Hotel Monday morning. Details remain unclear as we await more information from RCMP. But five police cars and an ambulance blocked the entrance of the Best Western Hotel off Carrington Road in West Kelowna Sunday evening. Castanet's Wayne Moore was on scene and indicates the area is still taped off. There have been unconfirmed reports that at least one person has been taken to hospital. We will have more information as it becomes available. Alanna Kelly UPDATE: 8:55 p.m. The BC Wildfire Service reports "really good progress" on the Eneas fire near Peachland. An evening assessment Monday found a lot of success, says fire information officer Noelle Kekula. She says no fire has jumped containment, although the blaze is still out of control and not fully contained. Kekula says residents may still see burning stumps and flames, "but everything around them is already burned," leaving nowhere for the fire to go. There's no need to panic, she reassures. Meanwhile, the blaze is still estimated to have burned 1,793 hectares. UPDATE: 3:45 p.m. Days of planning and very precise techniques were used to try and get the Mount Eneas wildfire under control. BC Wildfire Service deputy officer George Campbell said yesterdays burn operation went as close to perfect as it could have. The planned ignition, where two wildfires became one, was crucial to allow firefighters to safety attack the fire. Currently, there are about 280 firefighters working on the fire today in Peachland and are almost in a "mop up stage." The burn went very successful, 90 per cent coverage with out fire which is held within all of our control lines, he said. Ground crews were in place yesterday as a helicopter used what the Wildfire Service calls a plastic spherical dispenser. We used aerial ignition on top and used the plastically spherical dispenser, said Campbell. Ping-pong size balls were dropped two at a time and Campbell carefully watched them roll down the hill side to exactly where he wanted them placed. Once they made impact with the ground they burst into flames joining the 150 hectare space between the two fires. Operation Chief Jeff Austin said the area they burnt yesterday was unsafe to go into because they had fire below, at the bottom of the slope. We couldnt allow firefighters in there, with the wind gust it turns the whole thing into a flame front, he said. It was unsafe to put crews in there until we made it black. Campbell said they wanted to fight the fire on their terms and didnt want the fire to dictate how they fight it. I am pretty confident we arent going to see any growth on this fire, he said. UPDATE: 3 p.m. BC Wildfire Service says firefighters are continuing to work on getting Mount Eneas wildfire under control. A controlled burn conducted on Sunday allowed crews to get a handle on the wildfire by joining it with the Monroe Lake wildfire. BC Wildfire Service staff previously reported that the fire was under control. ORIGINAL: 11 a.m. Castanet's Alanna Kelly and Madison Erhardt will be going up in the skies for a first-hand look at the wildfires in our region today. Madison Erhardt Specifically the Mount Eneas's wildfire, which has now increased in size to 1,793 hectares in size after being combined with the Munro Lake fire on Sunday. This fire was expected to increase in size. We will have ongoing live and developing coverage as the day goes on. Photo: Google Maps A 12-year search has ended for British Columbia's Integrated Homicide Investigation Team with the capture and extradition of a man wanted for a January 2006 slaying in Burnaby. The homicide team says in a news release that Jui-Kai Weng, formerly known as Kenny Weng, was arrested in March in South Korea and was returned to Canada Friday. Weng is due to make his first appearance in provincial court on Tuesday. He was charged with second-degree murder and attempted murder after two men were gunned down in a Burnaby parking lot on Jan. 22, 2006, killing 19-year-old Shaoxin Zhang and injuring the second man. Police say they quickly identified a suspect following the attack but learned he had already fled to Taiwan. Huan Sheng Tang was charged and convicted of obstruction of justice in 2008 for his involvement in the man's escape and an Interpol notice was issued for Weng's capture. The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says it worked closely with the RCMP, Interpol, the BC Prosecution Service and others to arrange Weng's return to stand trial in B.C. "IHIT is grateful for the assistance provided by all its domestic partners as well as its partnership with law enforcement officials of South Korea," Cpl. Frank Jang says in the release. Dangote Cement 1H18 revenues of NGN482.4bn 23 July 2018 Dangote Cement Group reported 1H18 unaudited revenues of NGN482.4bn (US$1.33bn), up 16.9 per cent and group EBITDA up 20.8 per cent at NGN246bn. Joe Makoju, group CEO, commented on the company's 1H18 results: "Our first-half performance was very strong and driven by an excellent recovery in Nigeria, where our sales volumes increased by nearly 14 per cent and revenues rose by more than 18 per cent. Pan-African operations saw a slight fall in volumes but both revenues and EBITDA increased because of better pricing and currency conversion effects. "Of course, our strong performance has been overshadowed by the tragic and heartbreaking events in Ethiopia. I would like to pay tribute to my colleagues Deep Kamra, Beakal Alelign and Tsegaye Gidey and offer our sincere condolences to their families." Nigerian market Total Nigerian cement sales rose by 13.9 per cent to 7.8Mt and domestic sales volumes of 7.3Mt were recorded giving the company nearly 66 per cent market share. In 1H18, Nigeria's total market for cement was 11.2Mt, nearly 10 per cent higher than the estimated 10.2Mt sold in 1H17. Dangote managed 7.8Mt of cement sales from its Nigerian operations, up 13.9 per cent on 1H17. Second quarter sales of 3.84Mt were again up on the 3.1Mt of 2Q17. Revenues increased by 18.1 per cent to NGN344.1bn and EBITDA by 19.3 per cent to N226.9bn. Total export sales of 0.5Mt included 237,000t to Togo, 153,000t to Niger and 13,000t to Ghana. Pan-African operations Dangote Cement Group's pan-African operations sold 4.57Mt of cement in 1H18, down 3.9 per cent on the 4.75Mt in 1H17. Sales were affected by lower volumes in Tanzania and civil unrest in Ethiopia as well as a reduction of exports to Ghana. Volumes increased in Zambia and Sierra Leone while maiden sales started from Congo. Revenues of NGN138.7bn were 11.4 per cent higher than 1H17 and represented 28.7 per cent of group revenues. Cameroon The 1.5Mta Douala plant sold 0.33Mt of cement in 1Q18 and 0.31Mt in 2Q18, increasing sales by two per cent on 1H17 and representing a 41 per cent market share. Congo The new Mfila cement plant began operations in September 2017 and sold 88,000t of cement in 1H18, representing a market share of 32 per cent. The ex-factory cement price was approximately US$96/t. Ethiopia The fatal attack on Country CEO, Deep Kamra, his assistant Beakal Alelign and driver Tsegaye Gidey overshadowed events at the Mugher cement plant. Cement sales fell by 10.8 per cent to 0.97Mt in 1H18, giving a market share of 27 per cent. Ghana The Ghana operations sold 0.4Mt of cement in 1H18, a fall of 21.7 per cent on the 510,000t sold in 1H17. Production was hit by limited availability of imported cement from Nigeria. Dangote's market share was estimated at 11 per cent and ex-factory pricing was approximately US$94/t. Senegal The Pout plant sold 0.75Mt of cement in 1H18, up 1.1 per cent on 1H17. The factory operated at 100 per cent utilisation, resulting in a market share of 21 per cent in 2Q18. Ex-factory pricing was US$70/t for 32.5 grade and US$79/t for 42.5 grade. Some 0.28Mt was exported to Mali. Sierra Leone The Freetown import and bagging facility sold 63,000t of cement in 1H18, up 18.9 per cent on 1H17. The average ex-factory price was US$100/t. South Africa Sales edged up by 0.5 per cent in 1H18 and a five per cent increase on prices was implemented across key regions in February 2018. Tanzania The Mtwara plant sold 0.2Mt of cement in 1H18, 48 per cent down on 1H17, owing to plant shutdowns pending the commissioning of gas turbines that are expected to come on-stream in August 2018. Zambia The Ndola factory sold nearly 0.43Mt in 1H18, up 31.2 per cent on 1H18, giving a market share of 39 per cent. Manufacturing costs rose by 11.3 per cent, while selling and administration costs increased by 14 per cent to NGN86.9bn. Published under PNG finally made a minor payment of $US1.49 million to Bougainville last week, but the cheque bounced, although this embarrassment has been denied by PNG treasurer Charles Abel. However, outstanding financial commitments of hundreds of millions of kina which PNG owes to Bougainville remain an obstacle to preparations. Momis recently met with PNG prime minister Peter ONeill at a meeting of a joint supervisory board to discuss preparing for the vote. AUCKLAND Bougainvilles president John Momis has raised concerns that the Papua New Guinea government is not pulling its weight as the autonomous region prepares for next Junes referendum on its political future. Momis said in an interview with Radio New Zealand that PNG was continually failing to deliver on commitments and he was considering approaching the United Nations, New Zealand or Australia for advice. Momis says there is a need for a higher authority to enforce PNGs obligations under the Bougaivlle Peace Agreement as well as the implementation of the referendum. He said there is still much to do to prepare for the vote, now described as being set tentatively for June, but the national government is not doing its bit. Both governments are equally responsible for the implementation of the Bougainville Peace Agreement, signed in 2001. Momis said it is getting very late and the window of opportunity is closing, while the national government procrastinates, making commitments but not implementing them. "We have come all this way but the national government does not seem to care, so we are running out of time, Momis said. It's frustrating. I am saying what is Australia going to do, what is New Zealand going to do? They were the witnesses [to the peace agreement]. What is the United Nations going to do?" President Donald Trump has found himself at odds with another leader and this time, its Irans president, Hassan Rouhani. Islamic Republic News Agency reports Washington has claimed to have plans to destabilize the Iranian Islamic government. And Americas relations with Iran have also been negative since Trump pulled the U.S. from the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal and imposed more sanctions on the country. You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Irans security and interests, Rouhani said. Pakistani newspaper Express Tribune also quoted Rouhani as saying, America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars, during a meeting attended by Iranian diplomats in the countrys capital on Sunday, July 22. Trump didnt like Rouhanis threats, however. The Washington Post reports he took to Twitter to say: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! The Islamic Republic News Agency has since dismissed Trumps tweet as a passive reaction. Even so, theres a lot to think about here and theres plenty to learn about the Iranian president himself. Rouhani promised hed be a more moderate and modern leader Theres a lot of conflicting information regarding where 69-year-old Rouhanis loyalties lie either with his people or with the power of the Iranian regime. The BBC reports during his election campaign for his second term in office, he promised to align himself with the reformists and the political left. He claimed he could revive the economy, which was sluggish at best, and that the people would have more freedoms and equalities amongst men and women. He won the election by a landslide. You may just be hearing about him now, but Rouhani was around way before the 2000s he was just working behind the scenes. Rouhani held political posts in his country since the 80s, which included secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, deputy speaker of parliament, and Irans chief nuclear negotiator. In 2013, his talks with President Obama was the first direct contact between the two countries at this high level since 1979. Rouhani has said before that he hoped to improve Western relations as well, express.co.uk notes. But Dr. Olli Heinonen, former Deputy Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told the publication that this was just a face Rouhani put forward. Instead, the Iranian leader allegedly boasted that he wanted to use his talks with the West to help Irans nuclear program. Hes been accused of being complicit in his regimes repressive nature Is Rouhani as left-leaning and freedom-seeking as he seems? Many question his true intentions, even with his incredibly high approval rating. The BBC notes many citizens note the country doesnt feel any more free than it did before Rouhani was elected. Some even believe the situation is worse off now than it was previously. Additionally, Rouhani claimed he wanted to minimize censorship in his country, which also reportedly hasnt happened. The internet in the country also remains tightly controlled by the government, so that seemingly has not let up, either. Shahin Gobadi, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran in Paris, has remained critical of Rouhani as well. Gobadi claims Rouhani is nothing but a regime insider whos complicit in the regimes repression at home. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has remarked on the corruption of Irans government U.S. leaders aside from Trump have also spoken out regarding Rouhanis alleged hypocrisy. On Sunday, July 22, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the Mafia more than a government, to an audience consisting mostly of Iranian Americans. He also called out Rouhani and the nuclear deal directly by saying, Their nuclear deal didnt make them moderates; it made them wolves in sheeps clothing, The Washington Post reports. As for the economy and the Iranian people, Pompeo essentially called for change here, too. He said the U.S. would be willing to talk to Iran if they stopped repressing their people and supporting military groups but he doesnt deem that likely to happen. Following Pompeos statements, Rouhanis threats, and Trumps tweet, it seems analysts believe the U.S. could see some direct confrontation with the Islamic Republic in the near future. The Trump administration has no longer just made it about the nuclear deal its now about the people and their freedoms as well. Check out The Cheat Sheet on Facebook! Cordova-Catalano sets out to complete unfinished business for D70 Staphanie Cordova-Catalano is running for reelection to the District 3 seat on the Pueblo County School District 70 Board of Education. Discrimination Have We Gone Too Far? Christian Examiner Contributor | 23 July, 2018 by Mark Klages Discrimination as defined in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary is a prejudiced or prejudicial outlook, action or treatment; the act, practice, or an instance of discriminating categorically rather than individually. It is the quality or power of finely distinguishing; the act of making or perceiving a difference; the process by which two stimuli differing in some aspect are responded to differently. Prejudice as defined by Merriam-Webster is injury or damage resulting from some judgment or action of another in disregard to one's rights; detriment to one's legal rights or claims. Prejudice is a preconceived judgment or opinion; an adverse opinion or leaning formed without just grounds or before sufficient knowledge; an irrational attitude of hostility directed against an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the right response to generations of discrimination, prejudice, segregation and disenfranchisement for major segments of the American population. The Act emphasizes Equal Protection language in the Fourteenth Amendment, guaranteeing citizens of these United States of America, equal protection of the laws and directing States to not make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens. But what constitutes discrimination? How far must Christians go to prevent discrimination, or at a minimum, to not encourage prejudice? According to FOX News, a restaurant owner in Cincinnati, OH recently recanted his offer for 10 percent off Sunday brunch to anyone who shows a church bulletin. Justin Watson, owner of Starters Cafe, is quoted as saying the response to the discount was outstanding, with one negative Yelp review threatening legal action for discrimination. In my last post I mentioned the commander of F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming bowed to a lawsuit brought by 36 of the total 3,738 military and civilian employees regarding the presence of a Bible at the base's POW/MIA memorial. ONE negative review caused Mr. Watson to end his promotion in Ohio, and in Wyoming a lawsuit supporting less than ONE percent of the base population caused the Bible to be placed under a basket. Sure, I support and vehemently defend the right of every American to live the American dream, without prejudice, and to the full extent of his or her capacity. But I have to ask, when have we gone too far? In Ohio, nobody was denied service. Nobody was refused entry to the restaurant. Nobody was even sent to the back of the line, charged more than advertised, beaten or jailed for not having a church bulletin. Essentially, the Yelp reviewer chose not to go to church, chose not to bring a bulletin to Starters Cafe, and chose to eat at a location that offered the same priced burger on Sunday that could be purchased on Saturday. Still, because her choice to not attend church resulted in her having to pay the normal price the same price she would pay any other day of the week she threatened to sue. And, because not even the Supreme Court in today's litigious society can make a rational decision on whether or not a Father's Day discount is prejudicial to mothers, the owner of Starters Cafe ended the special promotion for churchgoers. Now anyone who orders from Starters between noon and 4 p.m. receives a 10 percent discount. Essentially, because of this one woman's choice not to attend church, the owner of Starters Cafe loses revenue on all meals during four hours each Sunday. Ok, so maybe by now you can tell by the tone of my blog that I am not a fan of liberal interpretation nor do I care for America to slide further down the slippery slope. Seriously, though, when do we start holding people accountable for their own choices? In Genesis, we learn that Abram and Lot made a choice. Because each man's flock had become too large for the land to support together and the situation was causing quarrels between their servants, they decided to part ways. Lot chose the plains of Jordan near Sodom which gave Abram Canaan (Gen 13:1 12). Although Lot did not sin, he chose to live in the comfort of a city that embraced all manner of sin. By chapter 19, Lot needed rescuing before God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. In Luke, we learn of possibly the most famous poor choice of all. Judas chose to betray Jesus over 30 pieces of silver. Unlike Lot's choice in Genesis where he did not himself sin, Judas chose to sin very personally in betraying Christ. Judas knew in the depths of his soul that Jesus was the messiah of prophesy, yet he betrayed the light of the world for a mere 30 pieces of silver (Luke 22). Judas was filled with remorse (Matt 27:3, NIV) and returned the bounty before hanging himself. Choices have consequences, but we as Christians are not empowered to exact the price that must be paid. That responsibility falls at the feet of the only being in existence with zero sin and purity of purpose God the Father. "It is mine to avenge; I will repay." (Deut 32:35, NIV) "Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath." (Rom 12:17-19, NIV) And the next time you see, hear, or experience discrimination at the hands of the one percent, remember that Jesus suffered the ultimate discrimination death because He is the Son of God. Pay an extra 10 percent at the cafe as a witness to God's goodness. Be separate from the world, be that light on a hill that nobody can place under a basket. "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." (John 15:18 19, NKJV) Mark Klages is an influential contributor, a former US Marine and a lifelong teacher who focuses on applying a Christian worldview to everyday events. Mark blogs at https://maklagesl3.wixsite.com/website under the title "God Provides where Hate Divides," with a heart to heal social, political, relational, and intellectual wounds through God's divine love and grace. Mark can also be found on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-klages-04b42511/. As Iowa recovers from a recent strike of tornadoes, Samaritans Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Associations Rapid Response Team are helping locals clean up the damage. Last Thursday, an estimated 27 tornadoes hit Iowa, damaging businesses and homes, toppling trees, displacing automobiles, and injuring many. Residents have been shaken by this natural disaster. Julie Owen from Des Moines was in Marshalltown during the tornado: "It was bad. I've seen a lot of tornado stuff (in the past) It's not like the whole town is destroyed, but downtown, a city of this size, it was something else," CNN reports. Samaritans Purse says that The storm churned through Marshalltowns central business district, leaving significant destruction in its wake. Over 700 homes were damaged. Other nearby towns affected were Pella and Bondurant. Since the devastation, Samaritans Purse has sent staff, disaster response specialists, and supplies to the area. They are also recruiting volunteers on their website to assist in the relief effort: Volunteers will assist with debris cleanup, roof tarping and chainsaw work, Samaritans Purse writes. Focusing their efforts on Marshalltown, Samaritans Purse aims to meet the physical as well as spiritual needs of the community. Its president, Franklin Graham, says, Many families are devastated by the twisters that tore through their communities Thursday afternoon We are on the ground helping them recover from the storm. Please pray for these families as we share the love of Jesus Christ with them in their time of need. Publication Date: July 23, 2018 Photo Courtesy: Thinkstock/Facebook Isaac Backus may be the most interesting and influential American youve never heard of. At the peak of his career, Backus (17241806) rode thousands of miles per year to preach to and encourage Baptist congregations throughout New England. In one five-month span, he rode 1,251 miles and preached 117 sermons. He operated outside Baptist circles, too. He debated some of the founding fathers of the United States and was part of the Massachusetts convention that ratified the Constitution. He wrote a three-volume history of New England and sent it to President George Washington as a private token of love. Backus is the only person I know of who was both groom and minister in his own wedding. Backus was also profoundly influential, though he has never shared the renown of his more notable contemporaries. All the traveling and preaching he did in the decades before and after the American Revolution helped organize a Christian fringe groupthe Baptistsinto a unified movement. A century or so after his death, Baptists became Americas largest and most influential Protestant denomination. Furthermore, Backus drafted a bill of rights for Americas proposed constitution that bore a striking resemblance to the one that was eventually adopted, especially in its protection of religious liberty. He turned Jonathan Edwardss heady theology of original sin into a practical and political theology of religious toleration. The historian William McLoughlin has claimed that the system of church-state relations that governed America until the last generation or so was precisely what Backus envisioned and worked his entire life to establish. I like to think of Isaac Backus, the unschooled pastor ... 1 You have reached the end of this Article Preview You have reached the end of this Article Preview To continue reading, subscribe now. Subscribers have full digital access. Have something to add about this? See something we missed? Share your feedback here. Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment I earnestly hope and pray that every child and adult struggling with gender identity issues will find wholeness, peace, and happiness from the inside out. I earnestly hope and pray that we will live to see the day when every person who feels trapped inside the wrong body will find internal resolution without hormones and radical surgery. At the same time, I wholeheartedly oppose the transgender revolution and predict that, ultimately, it will fail. Here's why. 1) The transgender revolution is oppressive. As reported on July 16 on Lifesite News, "Failing to refer to a gender-confused student, professor, or staffer by his or her 'preferred' pronouns could become a fireable or expulsion-worthy offense at the University of Minnesota, according to proposed guidelines currently under consideration." It is not enough to allow a biological male to identify as a female. Hardly. Society must conform, or else. If "he" now identifies as "she" (or "xe" or "ze") and you fail to use the right pronoun, you will be punished. This is already the law in New York City. And Canada has taken steps to make this kind of enforced speech the law across the country. This cannot succeed in the long-term. Society will push back. 2) The transgender revolution is irrational. As a result of trans activism, tampons are now available in some college campus bathrooms. After all, we are told, men menstruate as well! Yes, a woman who identifies as a man but still gets her monthly period is actually a menstruating man. And we are supposed to believe this nonsense? We are supposed to shake our heads and say, "How quaint"? I don't think so. Recently, however, trans activists have taken things to a new depth of irrationality. Men who identify as women have declared that they get their periods too just differently! So, other biological realities must now be redefined as well, and a monthly cycle is no longer a physical event. To quote a "trans girl" directly: "Nobody teaches trans girls about our periods. We just get these weird times where we're moody and crampy and sad and we don't know why and just chalk it up to another reason we're not good enough in life. "So, just so you all know: Trans. Girls. Get. Periods." Enough said. This is beyond irrational. 3) The transgender revolution is unhealthy. Trans advocates tell us that failure to diagnose and treat gender dysphoria will result in depression, suicide, or other forms of self-harm. And I'm sure that, in some cases, post-hormone and post-surgery, many individuals are more satisfied with their quality of life. Others would point to the high percentage of suicides after surgery, along with the substantial number of people who experience sex-change regret. But there's more to be concerned about. A recent headline on a gay website announced, "Hormone therapy linked to dangerous health issues in trans women." Yes, "Researchers set out to examine heart and circulatory health in transgender people, and found that transgender women face a greater chance of strokes, heart attacks, and blood clots compared to their non-transgender counterparts." And what about kids who are put on hormone blockers before puberty, then put on a life-long regimen of hormonal therapy? What will the ill effects be? 4) The transgender revolution is extreme. Scarlett Johansson, one of the biggest female names on the big screen, recently felt the wrath of transgender activists, withdrawing from her starring role as a trans man after protests. How dare a woman actor play the role of a trans man when there are plenty of trans men who can play the role. But isn't this what actors do? It's one thing for a white man to paint his face in order to play the role of a black man. But actors act. They play all kinds of roles that are unrelated to their private lives. They play villains and thieves. They play athletes and politicians. They play liars and saints, good guys and bad guys. They play super heroes and super criminals. They play aliens and vampires. And all that is acceptable unless they play a trans person. Enough said. 5) The transgender revolution is dangerous. When you insist that a biological male who identifies as a female has the "right" to use a women's bathroom, locker room, and dressing room, you are asking for trouble. A headline from England stated, "Transgender prisoner who was put in a female jail despite not having sex-change surgery 'sexually assaulted four women inmates before being moved to a male prison'." So, a biological male with male organs intact (and obviously, still attracted to women) was put in a women's prison. The results were inevitable. Should we be surprised? In the States, Planet Fitness sided against a female, former sexual assault victim who protested against the presence of a man (identified here as "Mr. Rice") in the locker room. As explained in the case being brought by Liberty Counsel, "This is not the only incident with Mr. Rice known to Planet Fitness. Another woman reported that he exposed his naked body to her in the women's locker room at this location. In another instance, he was involved in an argument with another woman over use of the tanning room. Misogynist, anti-woman harassment should have no place in Planet Fitness locations, and violates Florida law." 6) The transgender revolution is unnatural. There are fundamental, undeniable differences between men and women, which is why there is an increasing pushback against biological males competing against biological females. Even among some feminists and lesbians, there is resistance to trans women being accepted as females. And it is for good reason. A biological male will never be a female. 7) The transgender revolution is an attack on children. Trans advocates would tell us that they are helping children, that they are saving them many years of grief and pain and confusion. In reality, for every child they might help (and even at that, in a temporary, non-holistic way) they are confusing many more children -- innocent, tender kids. As the Daily Mail asked, "Are children as young as 11 really capable of making life-changing decisions about their gender?" We are playing with fire here, and there will likely be many, many casualties before we wake up. There is much more that could be said, but here's a final reflection. For decades now, billions of dollars have been invested to discover a cure for cancer. Chemotherapy is not sufficient. Radiation treatment only goes so far. Other "cures" fall short of the mark. In the same spirit, let us continue to pursue better treatments for those diagnosed with gender dysphoria. Surely there is a better way than hormone blockers for children, double mastectomies and sex-change surgery for older teens, and hormones for life. Let's work toward this while firmly resisting the transgender revolution. We owe it to our kids and grandkids. Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Most of us hide. You might not think you are hiding, but that is probably because you don't know that you have been programmed, or conditioned, to hide. Your "programming" was so subtle that you do it without even realizing it. Hiding becomes an unconscious behavior we develop to remain safe, and it usually begins in early childhood. In her book Feelings Buried Alive Never Die, therapist Karol Kuhn Truman describes how many of us as children have been: . . . taught to shut off or close down the emotional facet of our being. We were programmed to deny feelings, to bury them. If our feelings were hurt or we didn't like something the way it was, we were taught to 'forget it;" "ignore it." The truth is, we all wear masks. Somehow in life, we grow up learning that it's not really safe to tell the truth about ourselves. While our Christian families, communities, and churches place a high value on good behavior, they too often neglect a core part of our being: our emotions. When we cannot feel our emotions honestly and completely, we get stuck. We become afraid. We hide. We put on a mask. As children, our parents and authority figures reward good behavior and punish bad behavior. Rather than accept us and all of our feelings unconditionally, parents usually praise positive attitudes and good performance. The better we perform, the more we are rewarded. The worse we behave, the greater the punishment. When a toddler goes to the potty, he gets praised and is rewarded with a piece of candy for his good behavior. If he makes a mess or disobeys, he gets a timeout. If he hits, a toy is taken away. If he does something even more serious, he might get spanked. Positive and negative reinforcement through rewards and consequences is what psychologists call behavioral therapy; it's a generally accepted practice used to help parents shape and mold behavior in their young children. It's also a common practice used with dogs: we train Fido to use the bathroom outside, and if he does, he gets a bone. This animalistic approach is also utilized in our justice system. If you steal a car, you go to prison for a few months. If you sell drugs, they will lock you up for a few years. If you murder someone, you might be in jail for life. When a serious crime is committed, it rarely matters if you express remorse or say you are sorry. The consequences are still imposed based on the nature and gravity of the offense. Sadly, prisoners are often treated like animals in correctional facilities to keep order. When they behave well, they get more privileges. When they fight, they get thrown into solitary confinement. If they behave well for an extended period of time, they are more likely to be eligible for parole. But if they cause trouble or continue to engage in poor behavior while in confinement, they will serve their entire sentence. Behavioral therapy is not complicated: good behaviors are rewarded, while bad behaviors are punished. Fortunately, God's economy doesn't work that way. Jesus paid it all. His blood covers all of our sins, and our salvation is attained not by our good works, but by grace through faith. Paul tells us in the New Testament: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2: 8-9)." Essentially, Paul is telling us that God wants us to look to Him, the source, for all of our needs. If we try to find the answers in ourselves, we elevate ourselves to His status. God made it clear in the Old Testament that our righteousness does not gain us a better place in Heaven or a higher spiritual status. "All of us have become like one who is unclean; and our righteous acts are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6)." Now, I don't want readers to assume that all behavioral therapeutic approaches are inferior or useless. Some of these approaches can really be effective, especially when instilling discipline for kids and modeling good manners and kindness for others. But what we ultimately want for our children is that they become attached to us, parents, in a healthy way, and that those healthy attachments to parents later lead to healthy connections with friends and romantic partners. Our children need to know that, just like God, we are not counting their sins. What really counts is our hearts. All that is required is that we believe Jesus saved us, ask for forgiveness, and turn away from our sinful behaviors. What God wants is for us to be in relationship with Him. When we are in relationship with Him, it's so much easier for us to accept His love and turn away from sin. But when we levy shame on our children for their bad choices, they start to believe "I am bad." Instead of thinking of themselves as beloved children of God, they begin to carry around this negative core belief. It makes sense that their intuitive response would then be to withhold their whole self from us and others. In order to hide, they wear a mask, or put on a false self. In his book Changes That Heal: How to understand your past and ensure a healthier future, Dr. Henry Cloud discusses the real self versus the false self: When the real self comes into relationship with God and others, an incredible dynamic is set into motion: we grow as God created us to grow. It is only when you are connected to the Head (Jesus Christ) and connected to others (the Body) that 'the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow' (Col. 2:19). A coming together of grace and truth in Jesus Christ is our only hope, and indeed it is a hope that does not disappoint. Coming out of hiding means that we accept the truth about ourselves, take off our mask, and allow God's light and love to bring healing to our most wounded parts. We don't receive healing from our Lord when we pretend to be perfect or when we try to have it all together. He loves us in our weakness, in our sinfulness, in our brokenness. "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8)." When David was in the wilderness of Judah, he sang: "O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water (Psalm 63:1)." Like David, we long to be known. We desire for God and others to see us and embrace our brokenness. We need to be seen and unconditionally loved for who we are, warts and all! True spiritual intimacy occurs when we can stand before our Lord, naked and afraid, and allow Him to love us in our sin and shame. This kind of love is what God truly wants us to experience! In my therapeutic work with families whose children are struggling with sexual and gender identity, I often face situations where one or more children have been so hurt by the dysfunctional patterns of behavior in the family system that they become detached from the family. This is usually accompanied by an addiction, or some other "rebellious" behavior, as the parents usually label it. Initially, the parents seem to obsess on this symptom, rather than look within themselves and the family to see where the child's wounds may have arisen that could be leading to the problem. I recall one particular conversation with a family I worked with whose son was so angry with his parents over years of control, repression, and emotional suffering. After he finished college, he moved far away and let a mountain of school loan debt go into delinquency, leaving his parents, who had co-signed the loans, to clean up the mess. What was worse, the child was so hurting that he would lash out in anger at the father when he would occasionally call home. As I began to chat more with the couple, the father (we'll call him Tom) expressed profound anger at his son's behavior. I understood the betrayal he felt, and I empathized while he expressed his hurt. But after a little while, I told him: "Tom, do you understand how your response and treatment of your son for so many years may have led to this scenario? Now he's hurting, and you just want it to go away. You want to fix it. But what he really needs is your unconditional love; the kind of love God has for all of us. Even when we rebel, lash out in anger, or misbehave, God loves us, and His desire is for us to be in relationship with Him." Tom nodded his head, as if to acknowledge that what I was said resonated with him. Then I continued: "Imagine how much God loves us? He sent His son to die for us. He gave everything to us, and yet He knew that we would still rebel, sin, and behave wrongly. Yet, He still blesses us. He still loves us. He still gave us salvation. You see, there is nothing we can do to earn His love and salvation. That's the kind of love you need to show your son. That's the only kind of love that will heal his broken heart." Tom mistakenly thought that if he could just fix the problems in his family and correct the behaviors in his children he didn't like, he could restore order and peace. Everything would be all right. But what he didn't realize was that he couldn't fix it. He couldn't heal their wounds. He could only change the way he responded to and demonstrated love to his children. It wasn't about their good or bad behavior; it was about learning to love how God loves us. If Tom could love his son unconditionally, he would show him a glimpse of how much His Heavenly Father loved him, and no matter what his son did or didn't do, Tom would find peace knowing that he did all he could. What I was trying to communicate to Tom is that we can never attain what a Holy God would require us to do to earn His love and salvation. While we may experience earthly consequences for our sins (and it appears that Tom and his family were experiencing those consequences) our salvation is not dependent upon our good behavior. Neither could Tom's love be dependent on the behavior of his children. Only by demonstrating this love could he help heal his son's broken heart. He needed to learn to love how God loves us, unconditionally, with no limits. Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Over Thanksgiving, our family gathered at my mom and dad's house in Barrington, Rhode Island. While we never openly talked about it (welcome to an Irish Catholic family), we were all thinking the same thing: these were my father's final days. The four young grandchildren weren't fully aware of what was happening, but they knew it was a special, somber time when my dad said goodbye to each one of them. It was the most difficult holiday of my life. My father was unable to eat solid food. While we sat as a family in the dining room eating takeout turkey, my dad was upstairs in his bed fading in and out, taking nourishment through a tube twice a day and wanting what he couldn't haveto sit down to Thanksgiving dinner with his family. It was painful to watch him fade. We had stayed close over the years, and I had often called him to share stories and debate the news. That was all coming to an end. My father's immune system was highly vulnerable. And to make matters worse, the kids started getting sick, one after another. When my mother, the consummate caregiver, succumbed to the flu, we knew we had to get help. We also needed to isolate the sick kids. Rebecca and I searched online to find a nearby hotel (let's just say that the choices on Route 6 in nearby Seekonk, Massachusetts, are limited). My brother, Ryan, and my sister-in-law, Emma, decided that she would drive their sick child back to their home in Scarsdale, New York. For my dad, we looked for home care, nurses, you name it, but none of these are easily found for a one-to-two-night, last-minute emergency. Thinking I was out of options, I remembered an old political buddy, Ben Marchi, who was now in the business of senior in-home care in Maryland. Ben called the Rhode Island franchise of the business and got us a night nursewho turned out to be a godsend. We also called Father Barry Gamache, the pastor of St. Mary's church in Bristol, Rhode Island, to administer the last rites; we didn't know how long my father would live. Rebecca drove our kids back to our home in Alexandria, Virginia, sensing that it would be a matter of days before she would be called to return to Rhode Island. My sister Shannon and brother Ryan were at the house with my parents, so I decided to return briefly to New York to work with the transition team. The morning after I arrived in New York, I did a few television interviews and hoped to work through the day and take the 5:00 p.m. train back to Rhode Island. As I wrapped up a 9:00 a.m. interview, I got a text from my brother. He asked me if I could catch the next train. Given how busy I was, my first instinct was to ask him whybut in my heart, of course, I knew. I rushed to Penn Station and took the next train. The three hours between New York and Providence were long and tough, as I knew that life for my family, particularly my mom, was never going to be the same. Many memories of my father filled my mind. I recalled how, on election night, my dad had called to tell me how proud he was of me and our victory. I listened to the handful of voicemails I had saved that simply said, "Hi, it's your dad, just calling to say, 'Hi, I love you.'" In the coming months, often after tough days, I would put my headphones in my ears and play the voicemails to hear his voice. When I arrived at the train station in Providence, my uncle Paul Grossman was waiting for me. I tried to read his face to gauge the situation, but Paul didn't know any new developments. When we got to my parent's home in Barrington, it looked the same, but it was unusually quiet and had a somber air about it. I had a knot in my stomach, fearing that my father had already passed away and that I had missed my chance to say a final goodbye. But when I walked through the door, my mother greeted me with a long hug and sent me upstairs to see my father. He was barely conscious, but the doctors had told us that, appearances to the contrary, he could probably hear everything we said. So, I told him how much I would miss him and how I would try to keep making him proud. I made sure I told him how much I loved him, how proud I was of his fight against this disease, and how much I appreciated everything he did for me and our family. As he had previously requested, I assured him again that I would look after my mother. Just after midnight, the nurse woke us. My mother, Shannon, Ryan, and I gathered around my father, held his hand, told him how much we loved him, and said goodbye as he went to heaven. For nearly three years, he had fought through pain and fatigue so that he could work, sail, and travel with his wife. Even in declining health, he tried to spend every possible minute with his children and grandchildren. He absolutely cherished his grandchildren. I tried to compartmentalize my grief, and I suppose, in a strange way, the hectic demands of the presidential transition helped me in that regardthough repressed grief takes its own eventual toll. I was back taking daily press callsand, one morning, a call I didn't expect. It was from Donald Trump. He wanted to express his condolences. The sincere compassion and empathy in his voice was something I will never forget. I wish more people saw that side of him. Trump had built up an image of toughness; however, in private, I have seen many instances of empathy and kindness from him. My father's funeral was on December 5, 2016, at St. Mary's Parish in Bristol. Our longtime family friend, Father Gerald Hussey, presided over a beautiful Mass that celebrated my father's well-lived life. One of my father's only requests, which luckily we fulfilled, was that the music director at St. Mary's, Michael DiMucciwhose voice is truly a gift from up abovesing at the Mass. After the Mass, family and friends, including several who had flown up from D.C., gathered at Agave Restaurant & Lounge (now called The Beach House), which overlooks the calm water of the Bristol Harbor, for some clam chowder and a cocktail. There were a few tears but mainly laughter as we all raised a glass to honor my dad. This excerpt is from "The Briefing: Politics, the Press, and The President", which will be published on July 24. Sean Spicer has served as White House press secretary and communications director as well as Republican National Committee communications director and chief strategist. He also worked for the United States Trade Representative and several members of Congress. A graduate of the Portsmouth Abbey School in Rhode Island, Connecticut College, and the United States Naval War College, he is a commander in the United States Navy Reserve. Spicer is also the founder and president of Rigwil, LLC, a strategic consulting firm for corporate and association executives. A frequent public speaker and commentator, he lives with his family in Alexandria, Virginia. For more information, visit SeanSpicer.com. Godly complaining: What the Bible teaches about how to find fault Someone muted me on Facebook a while ago. Apparently I was 'complaining' too much. Fair enough. Obviously Facebook's algorithms were not showing the many positive, humorous and knitting posts I do. I may complain to Facebook about this. My complaints tend to be on the same theme: the way the world including the church views and treats those who are disabled. I started to think more deeply about this complaint about my complaints. Everywhere we go, we hear people complaining. Some politely, some rudely. Some complain with a skillful subtlety. There are those who complain with a large dose of sarcasm or humour and others who do it with hidden meanings and cryptic words. And yes, there are those who let it all hang out on social media, often starting with the word 'Typical!' I know some people who would proudly say they have MA-level Victor Meldrew skills in complaining, and are still working on sharpening up those skills. Then I found myself wondering if it was true of me, and asking the questions 'Is it right to complain?' and 'Is there a Godly way to complain?' The most proficient complainers in the Bible were the generation of Hebrew people who escaped from Egypt. Nothing was ever right, and Moses was often at the end of his tether with them and so was God. David complains in many of his Psalms. In Psalm 55 he even states he uttered his complaint to God three times a day. Some of the prophets were accused of complaining too. But they were saying what God had told them to say. If you read what some of the prophets said, it wasn't just about only worshipping God and not idols, it was also about injustice in the nation. They were saying it because God told them it needed to be said. Did Jesus complain? He certainly acknowledged difficulty is that complaining? I've asked the question of some of my colleagues, one of whom said that 'Jesus turned the tables in the temple and shouted some very uncomplimentary things couldn't that be classed as complaining?' Well, maybe it could. But there's a difference. We often refer to the emotions of that incident as 'righteous anger' and sometimes, rightly or wrongly, use that as an excuse for our own anger in unfair situations. The difference is, Jesus never reacted without a good and Godly reason. He didn't do it for his own benefit. His reaction fitted what he was reacting to that people were dishonouring God in his temple. Paul had plenty to complain about, and yet he said he was content with 'weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities'. In fact, he summed it up in Philippians by saying he had learned to be content in whatever situation he found himself in. That's a tough act to follow. So what have I learned from thinking about what the Bible says about complaining? First, it says more about being thankful. Thankfulness tends to be a great antidote to our complaining. To quote Ann Voskamp, 'There is always, always, always something to be thankful for.' Many of the Psalms that begin with a complaint against God will end with thankfulness. Paul, as well as providing the example of his own contentment, also tells us to be thankful. Second, complaining is OK. But we need to complain well: Test it for truth. Can we effect change by our complaint? And if we can't affect change will it helpfully raise awareness? Check the facts. Have we been fair in our assessment? Be polite. Have we badmouthed someone unnecessarily with our complaint? So, feel free to complain but make sure you balance it with thankfulness, and a healthy dose of kindness. Meanwhile, I'm off to complain to Facebook about its algorithms. Kay Morgan-Gurr is chair of Children Matter and co-founder of the Additional Needs Alliance. Follow her on Twitter @KayMorgan_Gurr Here's why St Paul's Cathedral needs to control street preachers Should the Bible be read and the gospel preached at a cathedral? It's a no-brainer, surely? These places are the most prominent religious buildings in the country, devoted for centuries to Christian prayer and worship. If a Bible-believing Christian is prevented from proclaiming the faith there, it's deeply sinister and just shows how far the church has drifted from its orthodox moorings. That, at least, is what we're meant to take from a story about London's St Paul's Cathedral and Allan Coote, 55. Mr Coote has been trying to read from the Bible in front of the cathedral since January and has usually been asked to move on, but a few days ago he was briefly arrested. He said: 'The security staff were not happy for me to read it as they claimed I was on private property. I quoted to them that there is a constitutional position, the Epistle Dedicatory, that encourages The Bible to be read in the Church of England and on its land.' He's now been offered half an hour a week, but isn't satisfied. 'There should not be a limit,' he told the Telegraph. 'If I want to go all week, I should be allowed to do this without interruption. 'If I want to read from Genesis, which would take me all week as it contains around 50 chapters, then I should be allowed to do that.' Comparisons with the Occupy event in 2011, when the forecourt was taken over by a tent city of anti-capitalist protesters, are inevitable and fair enough. What isn't fair, however, is to portray this as a battle between a faithful Christian and a faithless Church. Here's what the cathedral said: 'In order to provide a prayerful and safe space for all, St Paul's has a policy of limiting any form of public oration, protest, demonstration, preaching or other source of disturbance to people. 'Our policy is to allow a short interval and then ask the person to stop, and to involve the police if they refuse to do so or to move off the cathedral's land.' Coote was arrested because he refused to go. It's difficult to see how anyone could possibly object to this. The cathedral cannot allow anyone to read or preach whatever they like. No one could object to a reading from the Sermon on the Mount, but there are other parts of the Bible that are not at all suitable for public consumption. The truth is that rights aren't absolute, whether they are the rights of Christians in a 'Christian' country or not. As Helen Hall, an Anglican priest and lecturer at Nottingham Law School, told Christian Today, the headlines generated by the St Paul's row are 'stark, but also also potentially misleading'. 'There are those who would want to present it as the compromised established Church oppressing biblical Christians, as the Pharisees sought to silence Christ. However, that simply does not reflect legal or factual reality,' she says. While the Human Rights Act guarantees everybody a right to hold religious beliefs and express them, that doesn't mean they have carte blanche to do whatever they like. 'If someone shouting whether or not they are preaching is preventing others from praying in peace, then the law has to protect the religious freedom of everybody involved. St Paul's and the police were seeking to protect, not trample, religious liberty by enabling people to enter and worship undisturbed.' Furthermore: 'An absolute right to read Scripture in public could be abused. Who would want a malicious person to have the right to read about Jezebel's corpse being eaten by dogs, or sexual encounters from the Song of Songs, loudly in a park next to a group of small children and their parents, solely to cause distress? Allowing one individual's choices to eclipse everybody else's needs would not advance religious freedom.' The trouble is that the case of Mr Coote taken up by the Barnabas Fund, which is inviting people to sign a petition urging the government to 'enshrine fully and permanently our hard-fought-for religious freedoms' plays to a particular narrative. This narrative is about the de-Christianisation of the country, about a 'faithful remnant' being persecuted by the wicked or uncaring majority and about the failure of the institutional church. And none of it's true. As the cathedral also said: 'The Bible, including the King James version, is read within the cathedral at every one of the four weekday services, five on Sundays. We seek to engage a wide range of people with the riches of the Bible through our work with schools and families and through our adult learning department. An event last year saw 2,000 people listen to the actor David Suchet read the whole gospel of Mark. The video of this has been watched more than 70,000 times by people around the world.' Follow Mark Woods on Twitter: @RevMarkWoods How communities in Swaziland are finding new sources of income * Partner Post UK international development charity, Shared Interest Foundation has helped over 500 organisations in the last year alone. With support from Comic Relief and working closely with a fair trade development group in country, Shared Interest Foundation helps communities in Swaziland to improve their income. Beneficiary organisation, Khutsala Artisans, employs over 100 people, offering training in jewellery making, pottery, and woodwork. All profit made goes to the care and education of orphaned or abandoned babies rescued by Heart for Africa and now living at Project Canaan in Swaziland. In February 2006, Janine Maxwell and her husband, Ian, founded Heart for Africa, as part of a faith-based humanitarian mission to help the orphans of Swaziland. Before founding Heart for Africa, the Maxwells founded and operated a large commercial marketing group in North America. Janine was meeting with clients in New York on September 11th 2001, and found herself one of the thousands caught up in the tragic 9/11 event. This experience led her to a life-changing trip to Africa where she encountered the AIDS pandemic, hunger, and disease. In response to what she had seen, Janine closed her marketing agency in 2004 and created Heart for Africa and Project Canaan. Project Canaan is now a 2,500-acre sustainable farm, forming a permanent home for children orphaned in the wake of the Swaziland AIDS pandemic. Khutsala Artisans Centre has continued to expand, and today is one of the key sources of revenue to support this vital facility, which provides a home for almost 200 children who otherwise would have no one to care for them in a country with a current 70% unemployment rate. The organisation told us: "It is our desire is to provide hope through beauty, design and excellence, while helping the people of this nation break the cycle of poverty and provide for their families." Khutsala artisan, Margaret Dladla aged 54 said: "I live at my marital home with my five children and two grandchildren. My husband died in 2014. When he died, I had no one to take care of my children and me. We suffered because there was no food or clothing and our wood and mud house was collapsing when there was rain. "In 2015 I started work at Project Canaan and I was so excited to get the job because I really needed it. I have built a one-room home with concrete block with my salary. I support my family and I buy food and clothing for my children. I am so happy that I got the job at Project Canaan. I really appreciate it and am so thankful." Shared Interest Foundation continues to work predominately in Africa with projects in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, and Uganda as well as Swaziland. As the sister charity of Shared Interest Society, the Foundation has helped thousands of farmers and handcraft makers since its launch in 2004. Thanks to Comic Relief, Shared Interest Foundation has worked in Swaziland since 2010. Aimed at supporting small to medium sized enterprises, over 4,000 people have benefited from the project to date. Swazi artisan, Raymond Mhishi said: "The project has broken barriers between whites and black, barriers between millionaires and the poor, barriers to markets for entrepreneurs." Oh Israel, Israel, what have you done? Israel has passed 'a defining moment in the annals of Zionism and the history of the State of Israel' according to its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. He was speaking after the Knesset, Israel's parliament, narrowly passed a contentious new 'Nation State Law' which declares that Jews alone have 'the right of self-determination' in the country. International reaction has been negative, with some even labelling it 'apartheid'. From a secular perspective, the left-leaning Guardian newspaper in the UK described it as 'unashamedly majoritarian and illiberal' and says it will make Israeli Arabs second-class citizens. The right-wing Spectator observed that 'the law arguably shuts down the opportunity for Arab Israelis to achieve, for example, an autonomous Arab region within Israel' akin to the Catalan region in Spain. The Spectator article went on: 'You don't need to be a...leftist to object to Benjamin Netanyahu's cynicism in pushing the law, to cringe at its wording, or to wonder if Israel has a kink for being denounced and isolated.' It suggested the law's real raison d'etre was to 'to win Netanyahu another majority'. In Israel itself, the nation's oldest newspaper, Haaretz, noted that while the measure was 'largely symbolic' it could be used in the future to justify controversial government decisions about new settlements. If you want to read the law in its entirely it can be found online here. But what, as Christians, should we make of it all? Any follower of Jesus Christ who attempts to think or comment on modern Israel should first and foremost remember that even the label 'Christian' carries massively negative connotations for many Jewish people: it can bring to mind historical associations such as the Crusades and the Holocaust. We must tread with great love and caution. The second thing we have to keep in mind is that it is all too easy to over-simplify the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. There is no doubt that both peoples have suffered grievous injustices. We cannot simply say one side is 'right' and the other 'wrong' or anything close to that. There are lots of rights, and lots of wrongs and most importantly, sorrow far beyond the understanding of most of us. Furthermore, as Christians we should be aware that there is a diversity of theological views about the State of Israel. For many especially some American evangelicals today's Israel is a clear fulfilment of biblical prophecy. Thus megachurch pastor John Hagee, founder of the American group Christians United for Israel, has said: 'The Bible is a very pro-Israel book. If a Christian admits "I believe the Bible," I can make him a pro-Israel supporter or they will have to denounce their faith.' But others disagree. The British church leader Stephen Sizer, for example, disputes the idea that the 'promised land was given by God to Jewish people as an everlasting inheritance' and has written extensively on the subject, including his widely-read 'Seven Biblical Answers to Popular Zionist Assumptions'. So as Christians we approach the whole subject of Israel with care. But that doesn't mean we can't form opinions on the Nation State Law. And from a Christian perspective it seems to me that in a region where there is such pain, the law is needlessly provocative. Just listen to the law's sponsor, Avi Dichter, who turned to Arab parliamentarians before voting and told them: 'We were here before you, and we will be here after you.' That helps no one. And while much of the law is largely symbolic, the Middle East is an area where signs matter rather a lot. Yes, the downgrading of the status of the Arabic language in the legislation may not have much actual practical, visible impact. But, symbolically, it says rather a lot: in fact, there's no doubt Israel's 21 per cent Arab minority feel it to be a slap in the face. All this is a tragedy for Israel. Whatever its flaws, it has been and is far more democratic than much of the rest of the Middle East, and we should not forget that. Some (though by no means all) opposition to Israel as a state may well contain elements of antisemitism. So why provide ammunition to those who dislike the country to begin with? In 2006, patriarchs and bishops from various historic Middle Eastern Christian denominations signed a declaration in Jerusalem denouncing 'racial exclusivity' and pointing to 'the gospel of universal love, redemption and reconciliation taught by Jesus Christ'. They added: 'We call upon Christians...on every continent to pray for the Palestinian and Israeli people, both of whom are suffering as victims of occupation and militarism.' Their words ring true again today. It is not glib but profoundly true to say that the answer to this problem is neither laws nor wars, but the gospel of Christ, in whom there is 'neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female' (Galatians 3:28). Quietly, but effectively, like yeast transforming bread, that gospel continues to break down barriers among Israelis and Palestinians today through groups such as Musalaha. There is a greater law than the Nation State Law: it is Christ's law of love. David Baker is a former daily newspaper journalist now working as an Anglican minister in Sussex, England. Find him on Twitter @Baker_David_A Touria El Glaoui: putting African contemporary art on the map The founder of the 1-54 art fair talks to Claire Wrathall about discovering and giving African artists international visibility, growing up with an artist father, and building her own collection Touria El Glaoui has art in her genes. Her father, Hassan El Glaoui, a painter of figurative scenes of horsemen and landscapes, now in his nineties, is arguably the best-known Moroccan artist of his generation. She talks often of her fond memories of the smell of paint drifting from his studio, and both her sisters are artists. But she is not even remotely talented, she says. You either have it or you dont, and I dont, though I love hanging out with artists. Rather, her skills lie in business: she was included among the 100 most powerful women in Africa by Forbes in 2016, the 50 most powerful women in Africa by Jeune Afrique before that, and, indeed, the 100 most influential Africans in business by New African in 2013. She has chosen to meet in the salon de the at La Mamounia hotel in Marrakech to show me the distinctive, brightly coloured optic abstracts temporarily on the hotels walls works by the Moroccan painter Mohammed Melehi, who was born in 1936, and is represented in the collections of New Yorks Museum of Modern Art. Mohammed Melehi, Untitled, 2018. Acrylic on canvas. Courtesy Loft Art Gallery Casablanca He is really considered one of our first generation of modern artists, says El Glaoui. The exhibition was staged in collaboration with Casablancas Loft Art Gallery to coincide with the first edition in an African country of 1-54, the annual art fair devoted to work from Africa or by African artists, launched by El Glaoui in London in 2013, and in New York two years later. Art, especially contemporary art from Africa, may be a passion, but it is also now the focus of El Glaouis work. The day before, the fair had opened to VIPs; today the public would be welcomed. So its something of a homecoming for me, she says, an opportunity to plough back into the very land that inspired her to set it up. El Glaoui is half-French her mother, Christine Legendre, was a model who walked for Givenchy but she grew up in Rabat, before studying at Pace University in New York and spending two years working for a brokerage firm in Manhattan. She then returned on a scholarship to Paces Lubin School of Business to do an MBA and moved from there to wealth management at Salomon Smith Barney. Ambroise Ngayimoko, Mannequins exposant le nouveau mode de pantalon denomme le Pattes delephant, 1974. Gelatin silver print. Studio 3Z/3C. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris. Collection de la Fondation Cartier pour lArt Contemporain, INV Nbr. 3ZN098D. Shown at 1-54 New York, 2018 In 2001, she moved into telecoms, joining an investment fund in London. This took her back to Morocco, where she worked for Cisco Systems, which was developing its Middle Eastern and African markets. And that was how I discovered Africa. She laughs at her turn of phrase. (She laughs a lot.) I dont mean I was Christophe Colomb her perfect English is infected with French but thats how I became interested in Africa and in its art. When you grow up here and go to Europe or the US to study, youre automatically turning your back. Africa becomes somewhere you go on holiday. For some reason this is how you are raised, if youre privileged enough. I didnt really know Moroccos neighbours at all. Abdoulaye Konate, Composition bleue (figure geometrique orange), 2018. Exhibited at 1-54 Marrakech, 2018. Courtesy the artist and Blain | Southern. Photo Jack Hems But her job required a lot of travelling, and at a gallery in Dakar, Senegal, she encountered the work of the Malian artist Abdoulaye Konate, known for his large-scale textile installations, which explore gradations of colour in the context of musical tonalities. This was a sort of epiphany. She had happened on a scene I might never otherwise have found; something I wasnt finding in London or the US. And I was so enthused by it. The more she travelled, the more exhibitions she saw. And gradually it began to dawn on her that she could make a career out of it. El Glaoui wasnt entirely new to exhibitions. In London, she had organised, as a hobby, a show of her fathers work at Leighton House Museum in Kensington, the private palace of art of the Victorian artist Frederic, Lord Leighton. Here, Hassans work was shown alongside art by Winston Churchill. A creditable amateur painter, champion of Marrakech, and friend of Hassans father, Churchill had played a critical role in enabling Hassan to follow his calling as an artist. I grew up hearing this story that Churchill had seen my dads paintings in the office of my grandfather, she says. I want each edition of 1-54 to be a reference book dedicated to the artists, because for some of them its the first time their work has been published Touria El Glaoui Thami El Glaoui, the then all-powerful pasha of Marrakech, had been concerned by his sons desire to paint and, in 1943, had sought the British prime ministers advice about whether to let him go to art school. Churchill, who was staying in Morocco after attending the Casablanca Conference, saw promise in Hassan and urged the pasha to allow him to enrol at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. After all, Churchill was evidence that you could be a global statesman and still, as El Glaoui puts it, paint on the side. So Hassan was allowed to go to France and forge a career there. By the time he returned to Morocco, he had gallery representation in Europe and an international reputation, an advantage denied most artists coming of age in Africa, who, says El Glaoui, can suffer from both lack of visibility and lack of access to an established infrastructure. Even those with local gallery representation can struggle: There are financial barriers everywhere. Bringing art to London or New York from Accra or Lagos is very expensive. This article was originally published in the Christies Magazine. Find out more about taking out a subscription Establishing an art fair would be a way to help African artists gain global recognition. She named the fair that she founded 1-54, because the African continent is composed of 54 countries. At first I thought Id do it in Africa, and have a different country host it every year. But the more I dug into what that would require, the more I realised it would never happen. I didnt think there was a country with a collector base strong enough to host the fair. And I realised it would take me for ever to understand the cities and local markets. Terrence Musekiwa, vakomana vechimhanjemhanje (Todays Youth), 2017. Courtesy Catinca Tabacaru. Shown at 1-54 New York, 2018 So she launched it in London, which she calls both the capital of the world and home, and where the very international collector base that attends 1-54 is, she reckons, more or less the same as it is for Frieze. In contrast, the US edition has a stronger African-American collector base, and benefits from institutional support thanks to several museums she cites the Center for African Studies at the University of Florida, the Ethelbert Cooper Gallery of African and African American Art at Harvard and the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh all of which have dynamic acquisitions programmes and a commitment to buying work by African artists. Its telling that Glenn Lowry, the director of MoMA New York, was in Marrakech for this years fair, too. This brings us to the New York edition, which ran concurrently with Frieze New York in May, bringing 21 galleries, about half from Africa, to Pioneer Works in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Founded by the artist Dustin Yellin in 2012, this former warehouse and garden now exists as a place to foster multidisciplinary creativity in the arts and sciences, making it an ideal setting for 1-54s programme of diverse ancillary events, which means, says El Glaoui, that people tend to come for the whole day. Goncalo Mabunda, Untitled (throne), 2017. Mixed media. 34 x 74 x 23 in (88 x 118 x 58 cm). Similar to a piece exhibited by Jack Bell Gallery at 1-54 New York, 2018. Photo courtesy Jack Bell Gallery, London In Marrakech, there were talks, book signings, collaborative events with local galleries that werent part of the fair, even performance art in the citys main square, the Jemaa el-Fna. And two artists, the Algerian-born Belgian conceptualist Eric Van Hove and the Moroccan photographer Hassan Hajjaj, had opened their studios. The latter, in a riad in the Medina, also showed work by a much less established Moroccan photographer, Yoriyas, who does not yet have gallery representation. El Glaoui has said that the work of Hajjaj, and the Kesh Angels series in particular, talks to her directly as a Muslim woman, noting that the luxury-logo-filled portraits with their frames made from cans of Moroccan food challenge every [existing] representation of Muslim Arabic women [and] really push on the boundaries of stereotypes and cliche. Hassan Hajjaj, Marmouche, 2012/1433. Metallic Lambda on 3mm dibond in wood sprayed white frame with Aicha tomato tins. 94 x 133 cm. Edition 1/7. Courtesy the artist Two works by Hajjaj were sold by Vigo Gallery at the Marrakech fairs preview day. But El Glaoui herself waits until the last day to buy. In France theres a saying: Les cordonniers sont toujours les plus mal chausses [Shoemakers are always the worst shod]. I go around and see whats left. She could, she knows, pull rank as director of the fair, but its raison detre is to help galleries and artists forge relationships with collectors, not her. Indeed, one cant help sensing real altruism in her approach to running the fair (Im not taking on Art Basel!). If galleries that she believes deserve a presence cannot afford a stand she mentions one from Mali, another from Mozambique she will try to help. Indeed, she reckons 70 or 80 per cent of her time is spent fundraising to enable a good geographical spread of exhibitors. It would be an exaggeration to call it a non-profit venture, because the fair is just about breaking even now. But it hasnt always been so: in 2015, she resorted to Kickstarter to raise funds to produce the catalogue: I want each edition to be a reference book dedicated to the artists, because for some of them its the first time their work has been published, and the difference that can make to a career is unbelievable. And although 1-54 has five permanent staff, they also rely on a team of fantastic volunteers. Joana Choumali, Ca va aller 18, 2016. Embroidery of cotton, lurex and wool, 24 24 cm. Edition of 1. Courtesy Loft Art Gallery Casablanca Under a canopy of crepe myrtles among the manicured environs of Sugar Land, activists stood in near triple-digit heat Sunday afternoon to pay homage to the African-Americans buried in unmarked graves just feet away on the site of a Fort Bend ISD construction project. They gathered with their children, relatives and friends, waving pan-African and Black Panther flags, as community leaders spoke through a megaphone about the some 95 graves that have been found at the site along University Boulevard and Chatham. Those buried are believed to have been part of the states convict-leasing system, in which prisoners, primarily African-Americans, were contracted out for labor. The statewide program was initiated shortly after slavery was outlawed more than 150 years ago. Were going to give these ancestors a proper acknowledgment, said Kofi Taharka, national chairman of the National Black United Front, as the group walked in a procession alongside the construction site. In April, Fort Bend ISD halted construction on a portion of the site where it is building a technical center. A state district judge last month granted the school district permission to exhume the remains. Archaeologists have determined that all of the remains are of African-Americans and all but one was of a male. They ranged in age from teenagers to 70 years old when they died. Their remains show that they had muscular builds, indicating that they performed heavy labor from a young age. The burials took place from 1878 to around 1911, according to an estimate from a consulting firm. Taharka and others called on city, school district and other officials to consider the scope of the graves. They should take wise counsel from experts who are African people, black people to determine the appropriate next step, Taharka said. The group praised and prayed for Reginald Moore, guardian of the nearby Old Imperial Farm Cemetery, who had long believed additional graves existed in the area. Moore, who was at the event Sunday, had warned the school district not to build on the site. He has been studying the history of the area for years and believes there are more hidden graves in areas nearby. As do others. The grave sites they found is unbelievable, disheartening, said Jinaki Muhammad, who was there with her 5-year-old nephew. This could be prevalent all over Houston. Moore wants a museum to be built to tell the story of the convict-leasing system. He said he has a meeting with the city manager Thursday to discuss a possible memorial. The National Black United Front organized the event, which they promoted as the Caravan to Sugarland. Before leaving for the site Sunday, members of the group gathered in front of their building, a two-story, red brick home on Southmore Boulevard in the Third Ward, a historically black neighborhood . We going to acknowledge our ancestors. Were going to commune with their spirit. Were going to ask for direction on a path forward, Taharka said. He and about 30 others, including children, joined hands in a circle. I love to look at the children because this is why were doing this, Taharka said before the group bowed their heads in prayer. They then got into their cars and followed in a caravan to the site. nancy.sarnoff@chron.com Three Houston-area food companies are among the 25 finalists for H-E-B's Quest for Texas Best competition to find new products to introduce to aisles of the Texas-based supermarket chain. The competition, set for Aug. 9-10 in Austin, will hand out big money for the winners $25,000 grand prize; $20,000 first place; $15,000 second place, and $10,000 third place as well as the opportunity to boost their brand visibility via H-E-B's "Texas Best" Primo Picks label. The grand prize winner also will receive a Toyota Tundra. This year's event had entries from more than 700 entrepreneurs from 140 towns and cities across the state. The finalists will be judged on quality, marketability and product readiness. Since the program's inception in 2014, Quest for Texas Best has brought more than 430 new products to H-E-B's grocery, bakery, deli and market shelves. Last year Houston-based WarPig F.U.B.A.R. BBQ Sauce won first place. The Houston-area finalists this year include: Bellefontaine: Owner Lucienne Duforets, originally from France, creates French-style ice cream using local fruits and nuts and milk from Texas farms. Ten flavors include salted butter caramel, pistachio, rose and bananas Foster. The company also makes dairy- and gluten-free sorbets such as dark chocolate, mango and passion fruit, and coconut. Chef Rey Inc.: This Sugar Land company headed by Reynold Darthard, also known as Chef Rey, makes cheesecakes in seven flavors including strawberry, raspberry, chocolate swirl and sweet potato. Darthard's resume includes stints working as a chef for professional athletes and sports teams, including the Astros and Rockets. Mad Hectic Oatmeal: Founder Beth Gallo, a breast cancer survivor, created a line of oatmeal mixes using all-natural ingredients with no artificial colors, sweeteners or trans fats. The flavors include strawberry pecan, French chocolate, and raspberry almond. The company's Random Acts of Oatmeal program donates bags of oatmeal to food banks. Big Little Fudge: Robin Strickland and Kevin Graham make more than dozen different flavors of fudge involving ingredients such as cranberries, cherries, pecans and coconut in bite-size packages. They started the mom-and-pop operation in Montgomery after leaving jobs in the oil and gas industry. Greg Morago writes about food for the Houston Chronicle. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter. Send him news tips at greg.morago@chron.com. Follow him on the podcast BBQ State of Mind to learn about Houston and Texas barbecue culture. Royal Dutch Shell Plc is in talks to sell two Nigerian oil licenses in an area thats at the heart of environmental and human rights controversies for $2 billion, according to people familiar with the plan. The Anglo-Dutch oil major is discussing selling oil mining licenses 11 and 17 to Heirs Holdings Ltd., a company run by Nigerian tycoon Tony Elumelu, the people said. Included in the sale are infrastructure assets such as a natural gas-fired power plant that would be managed by Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc, another company run by Elumelu, they said. Exiting the two blocks would cut Shells exposure in a region of Nigeria rife with controversy. The company has sold billions of dollars of Niger Delta assets in the past decade amid local opposition, civil conflict, militant attacks and accusations of causing pollution. The latest sale would leave Shell to focus on its operations in Nigerian waters, where the risks of attacks on infrastructure and theft are relatively low. FLOW: Saudis pump more oil for Trump, then doubt it's needed Discussions between Shell and Elumelu have been advanced at times and run into hurdles at others as he is yet to secure financing, the people said. No deal has been reached and the talks could still fall apart, they said. A spokeswoman for Heirs Holdings said she has no knowledge of the talks. Shell declined to comment. Biggest Producers Shell discovered oil in the Niger Delta in the 1950s and became among the biggest producers in the West African nation. Tensions between the company and the local people broke out over the years regarding pollution and Shells contribution to civil society. The growing crisis shot to world attention when in 1995 a prominent protester and Shell critic Ken Saro-Wiwa, a member of the Ogoni ethnic minority, was executed by the Nigerian government along with eight others. Shells Niger Delta operations have faced outside scrutiny. In 2011, a 260-page report by the United Nations Environment Programme said the company hadnt applied its own procedures when operating in the delta and that environmental destruction was worse than previously thought, creating a tragic legacy. Shell has continued to face opposition in the region, with some reports suggesting local people even blocked the company from accessing some parts of the delta for years. This has left Shell with undeveloped oil and gas reserves. The company declined to say how much resources OML 11 and 17 hold. SUPPLY: How an oil glut could swiftly turn to shortage Shells share of total production in Nigeria was 266,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day last year compared with 258,000 barrels in 2016, according to its annual report. Security issues, sabotage and crude oil theft in the Niger Delta continued to be significant challenges in 2017, it said in the report. The OML 11 license is smaller than what it once was. The Nigerian government split the block into three parts in April, giving Shell one portion, after the oil major sought to renew its production license there, local media have reported. --With assistance from Paul Burkhardt and Elisha Bala-Gbogbo. 2018 Bloomberg L.P. Google Maps A welder is dead after an explosion on a boat he was working on Monday morning near Kemah. The man, 57, was welding a small gas tank on an off-shore boat, which was dry-docked at a business in the 900 block of Lawrence Road, when deputies believe the fumes from the tank ignited, according to the Galveston County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Darrell Isaacks. Last week the President announced his pick to replace Justice Kennedy for the United States Supreme Court. Judge Brett Kavanaugh is a very strong choice, just as Neil Gorsuch was. He is a highly qualified originalist with an exemplary record. I have no doubt hell strictly adhere to the Constitution and uphold the rule of law, rather than try to make law from the bench. Its exciting to watch President Trump transform our courts through these nominations and keep his promise to appoint judges with a deep respect for the Constitution. I look forward to his swift confirmation. President Trump met with other NATO leaders in Brussels last week and made the strong case that the United States is a committed ally to European nations, but that its far past time for the other countries to pay their fair share towards defense spending. The truth is that since the Cold War ended, the percentage that NATO members contribute continues to wane. This poses a serious risk when it comes to Russia. Meanwhile, America has kept our promises. NATOs Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg agrees and said this after the summit: All Allies have heard President Trumps message loud and clear. We understand that this American president is very serious about defense spending. And this is having a clear impact. He also declared in a recent editorial: This week, Washington rolled out a plan for further substantial increases in US presence in Europe. In fact, since coming to office, the Trump administration has increased funding for the US presence in Europe by 40%. The last US battle tank left Europe in 2013, but now they are back in the form of a whole new US armored brigade. There has been progress made when it comes to European nations beefing up their defense spending, but there is still more work to do. Im grateful for the Presidents leadership on the world stage and his commitment to equity when it comes to funding NATO defense. Last week the House Ways and Means Committee, which I lead, debated eleven bills that expand access to health savings accounts. These bipartisan bills will provide Americans with access to consumer directed health care while ensuring we keep premiums low. These bills allow for more choice and financial assistance to help Americans save and plan for their health care needs. Health care reforms should empower individuals and families to make decisions for themselves based on what best fits their needs, wants, and budget - not Washingtons - and Im proud to support these pieces of legislation. The President is right to hold China accountable for their unfair trade practices and I continue to urge him to approach this in a way that does not punish American workers and businesses. Despite the serious economic consequences of ever-increasing tariffs, right now there are no serious trade discussions occurring between the U.S. and China and no plans for trade negotiations anytime soon. I believe its important for President Trump and Chinas President Xi to meet and begin crafting an agreement that levels the playing field between China and the U.S. for local farmers, workers, and businesses and I have encouraged them to take this important step. U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady chairs the House Ways and Means Committee July 9 At 3:26 p.m., Officer Schwausch was patrolling the 6700 block of IH 610 SB when he observed a black Dodge travelling in front him with expired registration as of 05/2018. Officer Schwausch initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle and found the driver was driving with a suspended driver license and without proof of financial responsibility. The driver was arrested for driving while license invalid - enhanced. At 4:33 p.m., Officer Lysack was dispatched to the Bellaire City Hall in reference to an identity theft in the 4500 block of Park Court. Officer Lysack met with the victim who stated an unknown suspect used his identifying information to attempt to open a Bank of America MasterCard credit card account. At 9:45 p.m., Officer Liccketto was patrolling the 5200 block of Bissonnet Street and conducted a traffic stop on a silver Ford for failing to signal lane change. During the investigation, the driver was found to have a suspended drivers license with no proof of financial responsibility. The driver was arrested for driving while license invalid enhanced and transported to the Bellaire Police Department for booking. At 5:29 p.m., Officers Lysack, Liccketto, and Schwausch were dispatched to 5111 Jessamine St. in reference to an unknown suspect who exposed his genitals to the victim. The suspect was described as a black male with a muscular build, approximately 62-63, about 30 to 40 years of age, and tattoos on his neck and arms. The suspect was last seen wearing black gym shorts, a gray shirt, and sneakers. July 10 At 4:04 p.m., Officer Lysack was flagged down by a United States Parcel Service employee who stated he noticed the mail had not been removed from the mail box in the 5200 block of Chestnut Street for at least two weeks. Officer Lysack went to the location and upon further investigation the resident was found deceased inside the residence. There were no signs of foul play at the time of this report. At 5:11 p.m., Officer Delgado was dispatched to 4747 Bellaire Boulevard in reference to a theft. Upon arrival, Officer Delgado spoke with the reportee who stated an ex-employee stole several boxes of medications. At 10:41 a.m., Officer Vorhees was dispatched to the 5400 block of Maple Street in reference to a theft. Officer Vorhees met with the victim who stated an unknown suspect(s) stole two leaf blowers from the property while he was doing lawn work. July 11 At 11:15 a.m., Officer Carson was dispatched to the Bellaire City Hall to meet with victim of a theft in the 4900 block of Pine Street. The victim advised jewelry, cash, and checks have been stolen. At 8:09 a.m., Officer Vorhees was dispatched to the Bellaire City Hall in reference to an identity theft in the 4800 block of Beech Street. Officer Vorhees met with the victim who stated an unknown suspect used her identifying information to open a credit card account. At 2:16 p.m., Officer Andrade was dispatched to the Bellaire Police Department Lobby in reference to a theft in the 4900 block of Bissonnet Street. Officer Andrade met with the victim who stated a former employee was stealing money from the company prior to resigning. Theft charges will be filed pending further investigation. July 12 At 2:44 a.m., Officer Barrientos was patrolling the 6800 block of IH 610 West Loop South southbound and observed a black 2016 BMW 535 fail to maintain a single lane. Ofc. Barrientos conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle for this offense. Ofc. Barrientos made contact with the driver and immediately smelled an odor of alcoholic beverage emitting from the drivers breath/person and slurred speech. Ofc. Barrientos determined the driver was intoxicated while operating a motor vehicle and placed the driver in custody. At 12:55 p.m., Officer Carson was dispatched to the 500 block of South Second Street in regards to a theft. The victim advised she hired movers to move a single room. The victim advised her laptop was stolen while the movers completed the job. At 2:31 p.m., Officer Vorhees was dispatched to 5420 West Loop South in reference to an unauthorized use of a vehicle. The victim stated his vehicle was moved from the original place where he parked. The vehicle console was tampered with. July 13 At 1:20 a.m., Officer D. Norman conducted a traffic stop on a 2005 Grey Honda Accord for defective equipment in the 5700 block of Newcastle Drive. As Officer Norman began to approach the vehicle, the suspect evaded the traffic stop and a pursuit began. Officers R. Bellard, Y. Ortega and T. Quimby assisted in this case. The suspect was caught and charged with evading in a motor vehicle. At 3:31 p.m., Officer Younger observed a rider on a dirt bike traveling on the sidewalk near the 5000 block of Bellaire Boulevard. Officer Younger attempted to initiate a traffic stop on the dirt bike which the rider decided to flee. Officer Younger pursued the dirt bike for approximately 2.10 miles before the suspect lost control of the bike, struck an officer with the bike, and fled on foot. A perimeter was set and with the help of Houston Police Officers, West University Place Police Officers, and Southside Police Officers the suspect was located and placed into custody. July 14 At 8:44 a.m., Officers Vorhees and Andrade were dispatched to 7001 Fifth St. in reference to an injured person. Upon arrival, Officer Vorhees made contact with the subject who stated she injured herself as she was walking on the dry concrete surface near the city pool. The City of Bellaire Fire Department Medics arrived and assessed the subject who declined transport to a hospital. At 2:44 p.m., Officer C. Barber of the Bellaire Police Department, was dispatched to the 4300 block of Verone Street regarding a robbery of a person. As the victim drove into her attached garage and parked, the suspect entered the victims garage, opened the victims front passenger side car door and stole her purse. The victim was never touched by the suspect. The suspect fled on foot to a dark newer model sedan and fled to the west on Mildred Street. Upon further investigation it was determined this was a burglary of a habitation. At 6:08 p.m., Officer Younger met with Houston Police Officers in regards to taking into custody a suspect found to have stolen food from a HEB Grocery Store located within the city limits of Bellaire at 6300 Chimney Rock Road. Officer Younger issued the suspect a citation for theft and placed the suspect into custody for an A/B misdemeanor warrant confirmed out of Harris County. At 8:29 p.m., Officer Schwausch was dispatched to the 5400 block of Interstate Highway 610 Northbound in reference to a major accident. Officer Schwausch arrived on scene and made contact with the driver who caused the accident. The suspect driver was found to be in possession of approximately 20 grams of marijuana. The driver was placed into custody and transported to the Bellaire Jail without incident. July 15 At 8:35 a.m., Officer Andrade was dispatched to 5106 Bissonnet St. in reference to a male subject who was yelling profanities while causing a disturbance inside the store. Officer Andrade arrived and after further investigation, the subject was placed in custody for criminal trespass. Officers Carson and Barber assisted in this incident. July 13 An officer observed a suspicious vehicle in the parking lot of in the 4000 block of Bellaire. The officer requested for a marked unit to check the vehicle and upon further investigation it was discovered that the vehicle had a fictitious temporary tag. A marked unit conducted a traffic stop and it was discovered the vehicles temporary tag had indeed been fictitious. The driver was the placed in custody for the offense of Fictitious/Altered License Plate. An Officer was dispatched to the 3000 block of Tangley in regards to a minor accident / failure to stop and give information already occurred. An officer was dispatched to the 6700 block of Stella Link in regards to a possible fraud incident. At 11:15 p.m., an officer observed a vehicle traveling southbound in the 6500 block of Weslayan at a high rate of speed. A traffic stop was conducted in the 4000 block of Riley. After further investigation, the driver was arrested for the offense of Driving While Intoxicated. July 14 At 12:53 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby in regard to a walk-in report of identity theft. July 15 At 11:17 a.m., a Police Officer was dispatched to the 4200 block of Oberlin, in reference to a Criminal Mischief call, which had already occurred. July 16 An officer was dispatched to the 5300 block of Kirby in reference to a burglary of a motor vehicle that had already occurred. July 17 An officer was dispatched to the 2600 block of Amherst in regard to suspicious activity. Upon arrival, it was discovered that an unoccupied vehicle had been struck and the driver of the striking vehicle failed to stop and provide required information. An FSGI report was generated. July 18 An officer observed a vehicle in the 5300 block of Buffalo Speedway with a defective headlight. The vehicle was stopped in the 3200 block of Bellefontaine and after further investigation the driver (Carl James Hegert) was found to be in possession of Cocaine, Marijuana, brass knuckles, Xanax, and a scale. The driver was arrested and charged with a first degree felony, possession of Cocaine with Intent to Deliver. An officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby in regards to found property. Officers were dispatched to the 3700 block of Rice in reference to a disturbance in progress between two subjects. Officers arrived and upon further investigation, one of the subjects was given a Criminal Trespass warning and was given a courtesy transport to his residence. July 19 At 3:01 p.m., an officer was dispatched to a residence located in the 2900 block of Nottingham in regard to a burglary of a habitation that had already occurred. An officer was dispatched to a call regarding Criminal Trespass at a residence located at 3700 Rice. The officers made contact with the subject who was on scene and afterwards he was placed in custody for criminal trespass. Katy Christian Ministries has been a place of hope and transformation for 34 years in the Katy/West Houston community. Founded by a collaboration of churches as a way to address growing needs in the community, KCM provides critical help at what is often the point of desperation in the lives of those who need it. KCM strives to strengthen families by providing comprehensive case management, emergency financial assistance to prevent homelessness, supplemental food, help with Health Benefits Access such as Gold Card, SNAP, TANF, Medicaid, Medicare, and CHIP, as well as safety planning, counseling, and advocacy for victims of Domestic Violence or Sexual Abuse. "KCM helped me and my family 7 years ago. I now own my own business and I am able to come back and share the love back with them. Whatever situation you are in, never give up...let this be an example that anything is possible," said Andrew, a former client and now a donor. Key Achievements of Katy Christian Ministries in 2017: KCM spent $3.25m on Programs providing services free of charge to the community. The Crisis Center assisted 620 victims of domestic violence and 292 victims of sexual abuse. Social Services assisted 8,216 families. $424,000 was used for direct financial assistance for emergency shelter, mortgage/rent, and utilities. 1,658 families were assisted with Health Benefits Access Program including, Medicaid, Medicare, SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), Gold Card, TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), CHIP (Childrens Health Insurance Program). The Food Pantry served 3,166 families and distributed 605,588 meals. With the Board of Directors assistance, KCM achieved a successful & clean 2017 Audited Financial Statement for the second year in a row, confirming all financial controls are in place and in compliance. Improved efficiencies to invest an outstanding 0.89 cents of every dollar to helping our families in need through their Counseling, Crisis Center, Food Pantry, and Social Services Programs. Financial accountability and transparency is important to us at Katy Christian Ministries and we have worked very hard to demonstrate a new standard of good stewardship to the churches, foundations, organizations, businesses, and individuals who give to support the life transforming work of KCM, said Deysi Crespo, executive director. The 89 percent ratio is remarkably high, and we attribute this to our increased commitment to financial accountability and board involvement. We are so blessed to live in such a generous, loving, and faithful community that allowed us to achieve great outcomes even in the midst of Harvey and during the long term recovery phase we are currently in. Katy Christian Ministries would like to invite the community to attend their 14th Annual Transforming Lives Gala on Sept. 25 starting at 6 p.m. at the historical Beckendorff Farms in Katy. Tickets and Sponsorship information are available at www.ktcm.org/gala2018. Katy Christian Ministries relies on the financial support of local churches, organizations, foundations, businesses, social clubs, and community members to continue serving the needs of the community. Katy Christian Ministries is accredited by the Evangelical Counsil for Financial Accountability (ECFA), meeting their Seven Standards of Responsible Stewardship. KCM is also a Gold Star participant with GuideStar.org, and is an Accredited Charity by the BBB of Greater Houston and South Texas. The organizations financial statements are available to the public and can be found online at www.ktcm.org. Katy Christian Ministries is grateful to all those in our community for their ongoing support that allowed us to overcome the obstacles Harvey presented with our own facilities being flooded. Despite these challenges, KCM accomplished much in 2017 through Gods provision and guidance, and continues to thrive and grow with realistic goals aligned with our Strategic Plan for the coming years, said Kent Black, KCM Board President. For more information visit www.ktcm.org or email info@ktcm.org. To stay informed about KCM, Text KCM to 42828. The lobby at Service First Automotive looks like a comfortable waiting area at a suburban dentists office. While they wait for an oil change or to have a tire replaced, customers at the soon-to-be-opened business at 2044 S. Mason near Highland Knolls can sip complementary Starbucks coffee at an iPad bar the Wi-Fi is free or watch their kids climbing about in an indoor glass-enclosed play area. This is not your grandfathers garage. Nathan Pruski, one of the co-founders of the Houston-based company, said they are excited to open up the center in Katy - their fifth in the Houston area. He was confident their business model will change the way people think about having their car serviced. Its often a long unpleasant wait, ending with anxiety about whether you made the right choice, Pruski said. Instead, we built our business around a service-first attitude, transparency, expertise and amenities that all combine to make you feel comfortable, empowered and satisfied. Walk in and youre immediately greeted by a customer service representative who will begin the process of determining what level of automotive service you require. One side of the 10,000 square foot business dedicates three lanes to oil changes, inspections and the like. Comprehensive full service diagnostic and auto repair services can be taken care of on the opposite side of the quiet lobby. We can do everything on a vehicle. Well have the brightest minds in the entire city in our repair center, said Thomas Piland, one of the managers at the Katy business. The goal is to be a one stop shop for all your automotive needs. We want you to be able to come to one place and one place only and know we can handle everything on your vehicle. He said they completely reject the high pressure style of business. Youre not going to be pressured. Youre not going to be told what to do, Piland said. Were going to provide every option for you and well let you make the decisions. In addition to being pet friendly, Service First Automotive in Katy also has a special fenced-in bark park on site for dogs. Youre going to feel comfortable here. And if youre here for a long time, well go ahead and buy you lunch, said Mike Lemley, another service manager at the business. The Service First Automotive staff said they use state of the art technology to offer customers digital inspections of all the services they provide. Their certified mechanics will take digital images under the hood to better explain to the customer what part is being serviced or in need or repair. If you dont know the difference between a socket wrench and a U-joint, they can email the digital report to a trusted family member or friend who might be a bit more mechanically inclined. We are excited to change the way the Katy area thinks about their experience of going to have their car services, Pruski said. The mark their new opening in Katy, Service First Automotive will offer 25 percent off all oil changes from July 16 through Oct. 16. Within the next year, the company plans to have a total of 13 locations in the Houston area and at least 12 in Dallas-Fort Worth. mike.glenn@chron.com Accredo Packaging has embarked on the third expansion of its Sugar Land campus where it will invest more than $50 million to construct more than 200,000 square feet of warehouse and manufacturing space and to equip the campus. Accredo Packaging is a supplier of sustainable flexible packaging solutions for the pre-packaged food and consumer products markets. The expansion project, led by the Houston-based Design/Build firm, KDW, is scheduled for completion in 2019. This third expansion will be in addition to the over 170,000 square feet built for Phase I of Accredos Sugar Land facility in 2009 and over 175,000 square feet in 2013 for Phase II. When completed, the 32-acre Accredo campus at 12682 Cardinal Meadow Drive will span close to 550,000 square feet. Utilizing 100 percent wind-generated electrical power, Accredo is the first flexible packaging plant in the United States granted Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver certification under the USGBC rating system. LEED promotes sustainable site development and material selection, water conservation, energy efficiency, and indoor environmental quality. The company is also BRC (British Retail Consortium) certified (AA Rating), a global standard for food safety established in 1998. Sugar Land has been Accredos home since Day One, said Rex Varn, executive vice president of Accredo. With the quality of the local workforce in the area and proximity to major plastic resin suppliers, it made sense to expand our existing facility rather than invest in another part of the country. Were seeing companies from around the world continue to take notice of Fort Bend, said Keith Dalton, president and CEO of KDW, now in its 10th year of design/build projects for Accredo. The area has become a big part of our portfolio. One of Houstons largest minority-owned companies, Accredo produces about 1.5 billion feet of flexible film through its state-of-the-art printing processes every year. After the expansion, the company expects production levels to increase to two billion feet per year. Accredos packaging solutions can be found in many retail grocers offering a range of products from snack foods and confectionery items, to frozen foods and pet treats. The company also produces overwraps for paper towels and tissue, and shrink bundle film for bottled water and other beverages. A pioneer in renewably sourced packaging, Accredo was the first to produce a reverse printed and laminated all-recyclable pouch. We believe Sugar Land in Fort Bend County offers Accredo the ideal location for investment in our world-class manufacturing plant, says Varn. Flexible packaging offers cost reduction, consumer convenience, extended shelf-life, and product protection compared to rigid packaging such as glass bottles and cans. Since the market for flexible packaging continues to expand, Varn said. We are well positioned to service those needs. Were proud to be the home of best-in-class companies such as Accredo, said Sugar Land Mayor Joe Zimmerman. This expansion project is an example of strong development activity the City of Sugar Land is experiencing in all sectors, including industrial, commercial, and residential. Weve achieved a sustainable, strong economy through an aggressive, focused economic development program that creates opportunities for new business investment and jobs. Our efforts have resulted in the delivery of the highest quality services to our residents at a very low tax rate. Accredo North America expects to employ more than 525 workers, including an estimated 175 new hires in the expanded space, when Accredos third expansion is completed. Accredo is one of our outstanding employers and its expansion is another show of the strong growth in Fort Bend County Precinct 3, one of Texas most rapidly developing centers of economic activity, said County Commissioner Andy Meyers. More jobs is great economic news for our region and Im proud that Fort Bend County continues to lead the way with strong private sector workforce growth in the community. Accredo Packaging is part of the API group of companies, a family-owned and operated enterprise established in 1986. For more information, visit www.accredopackaging.com. The city of Sugar Land now has a budget to consider, thanks to the efforts of City Manager Allen Bogard and Director of Finance Jennifer Brown. Now the City Council will consider passing the measure, a proposed $245 million budget for the fiscal year 2019. The fiscal year begins Oct. 1. The budget includes $218 million for operations and $27 million for capital projects. No new programs or positions are included in the proposed budget. Our proposed budget is very conservative and possibly the most resilient weve ever filed, Bogard said in a news release. It includes investments in public safety training initiatives, drainage and infrastructure improvements to ensure our city remains safer than ever before, and technology enhancements to make our accountability initiatives more transparent. Im incredibly proud of the flexibility of our departments and the adjustments made to maintain our financial strength and continue providing the high quality services that are important to our residents even during challenging swings in the economy. According to the city, the proposed budget is the result of months of preparation and financial policy discussions with the City Council and builds on resiliency initiatives started in the current year, such as: A conservative approach to forecasting sales tax based on current year revenues. implementing and maintaining belt-tightening cuts to recurring expenditures. ensuring that infrastructure rehabilitation is funded in the operating budget from more diverse and reliable revenue streams than previous funding from sales tax. Sugar Land cites economic development benefiting residents including commercial property tax value, which makes up about 30 percent of the citys tax base, as well as increased sales taxes as drivers of the local economy. A 2016 survey showed that commercial and non-residents bring in nearly 75 percent of sales tax revenue, reducing the tax burden on residents. However, sales taxes associated with the oil industry can be volatile. Thus the city has focused on efforts to improve resiliency during economic downturns such as initiatives to reduce dependence on sales taxes to fund operating expenditures and infrastructure rehabilitation. Funding for infrastructure such as streets, sidewalks, parks and municipal facilities is a critical part of the operating budget, as it ensures that the citys assets are properly maintained. Additions to the budget include increases to the base budget such as increases in costs of contracted services and a 3 percent performance-based merit pool consistent with the City Council-adopted Compensation Philosophy. A main component of the budget is compensation and benefits, with nearly half of the general fund comprised of public safety services. Overall, approximately 75 percent of general fund expenditures are directly tied to employee compensation. The city does not give cost of living increases. Services to areas annexed by the city in December 2017 are now fully incorporated into the citys budget. Property owners in these areas now pay city property taxes to support city services, and the positive financial impact of the annexation has provided additional funding capacity for capital projects across the city. The proposed Capital Improvement Program totals approximately $27 million for fiscal year 2019 and $155 million in total for the next five years, with most funding allocated for drainage, municipal and street projects. Key projects include: a program that funds $43 million in drainage projects over the five year CIP this level of funding exceeds the previous investment of $35 million in drainage projects over the last five years. investment in Fire/EMS training and equipment innovations, including a modular fire training facility, ladder truck and bunker gear replacement, and EMS training aids. design of an Emergency Operations Center/Dispatch Center with construction anticipated in fiscal year 2020. mobility improvements, such as over $4 million in street reconstruction and rehabilitation and $725,000 in traffic safety improvements in FY19, to help reduce the amount of time residents spend in their cars. major rehabilitation projects at various city facilities, including the replacement of roofs and other major projects that will extend the useful life of these important assets. The budget anticipates property taxes based on an effective tax rate plus 3 percent; however, the actual tax rate is dependent on the certified tax roll and effective tax rate calculations, anticipated in early August. There are no changes in utility rates proposed for fiscal year 2019, and a contractual increase of 2.5 percent for residential solid waste will be implemented in January 2019. Budget workshops began Tuesday, July 24, with a discussion on general capital projects. A series of Thursday morning workshops will then be held to discuss the remainder of the proposed budget. These workshops are open to the public. A public hearing will be held on Aug. 21 for residents to provide feedback on the proposed budget, followed by public hearings in late August and early September on the proposed tax rate. For more information, please visit www.sugarlandtx.gov/Budget. Ensuring Sugar Land one of the states largest cities still feels like home sweet home is a shared responsibility of the city and the more than 117,000 residents who live here, said Bogard. With that, the citys annual proposed budget is first and foremost designed to fund the priorities of Sugar Land residents, and we welcome everyone to participate in the process. Feedback is very important to ensuring Sugar Land remains the premier city in the Houston region. The worlds largest non-profit dedicated to fighting blood cancers, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), officially opens applications for their third annual Students of the Year campaign, a seven-week philanthropic leadership development program through which highly motivated, high-school leaders embark on a journey of professional growth, ensuring that they stand out when preparing for college and beyond. During the program, students utilize professional skills such as entrepreneurship, marketing and project management in order to raise critical funds, which LLS deploys to advance breakthrough treatments and to support the more than 1.3 million blood cancer patients in the U.S. The title Student(s) of the Year is awarded to the student or student group who raises the most money during the seven-week program. Top local fundraisers then become eligible to win the national title. The students raise money in honor of local children battling blood cancers, local Honored Heroes. Candidates for 2018 Student of the Year include Alexis Paget, junior at Ridge Point H.S.; Anson Moore, junior at Second Baptist School; Bradley Hooton, senior at Cypress Ranch H.S.; Grace Lopez, sophomore at Cy-Fair H.S.; Mahi Tomar, freshman at The Village School; Missy Nelson, freshman at Magnolia H.S.; Riley Grafe, sophomore at George Ranch H.S.; and Natalie Collins (Sweetwater Resident) and Mimi Klein, senior & junior at St. Agnes Academy. In 2018, the Texas Gulf Coast Chapter held their second annual campaign. In its second year nine students from the greater-Houston area collectively raised $350,000 in six-short weeks. Students raise funds by rallying their communities, schools and families to support their fundraising efforts. They send letters, host events, solicit sponsorships and secure auction items. In 60 different chapters across the country, candidates joined together to raise a total of $13 million dollars nationwide. The campaign includes a number of events allowing students to meet one another and providing candidates with tools and resources for a successful campaign. Candidates also receive mentorship and support from the Leadership Team led by Chellie Nelson, Sixth Grade ELA Teacher at Bear Branch Intermediate School and mother of 2018 candidate, Missy Nelson. This campaign was a huge step for me into adulthood and preparing myself for my senior year of high school, said Anson Moore, 2018 Student of the Year winner. I recommend it to anyone who hopes to make a difference and really challenge their time management skills and social skills. Applications for the 2019 campaign are open until Sunday, Oct. 28, 2018. To apply, contact Christina Triggs at Christina.Triggs@lls.org or 832-463-3632. You can also apply online at https://bit.ly/2y207k4. The South Pacific Post [now Post-Courier] journalist, old Jack McCarthy, was a friend of mine and the Australian government was trying to stop him getting to the OPM camp. He stayed with me at Aitape on his way to Vanimo and told me he had organised with OPM people at Madang to visit the camp. BRISBANE - Because of the Indonesian scare, there were a lot of police stationed at the border with an Australian police officer in charge. I was wondering, Franzalbert, if you were in the OPM [Free Papua Movement] camp inland from Wutung in the early 1960s? Robert Lenton Parer CMG MBE is by adoption and upbringing a man of the West Sepik, a member of a great Australian family which is famous in Papua New Guinean mining and aviation with Rob himself a prominent trader and friend and advocate of that remote corner in the northwest of PNG adjoining the order of Indonesia West Papua. Franzalbert Joku, a man of West Papua who crossed into PNG as a refugee was, in time, to become a valued citizen of that country and achieved the eminent position of prime minister Sir Julius Chans chief of staff. These letters have been edited - KJ So he stayed in our hut and was picked up at two the next morning by OPM canoe and got to the camp without the government knowing. The Sepik District had no telephones but anyone could listen into conversations on the two-way radio, so they knew Jack was around and began asking if anyone had seen him. He got to the OPM camp and later broke the news to the world, with photos. It was a major embarrassment to the Australian government as it had been denying that the rebel OPM camp existed. In 1968, Jack was awarded the Walkley Award for this article. Letter from Franzalbert Joku PORT MORESBY - Rob, your account is true indeed. I had known about the story you are referring to. Jacks articles made headlines both in PNG and Australia. I recall reading them as we refugee camp inmates were settling into our first temporary accommodation on the eastern edge of Lorengau facing the sea. [In May 1969, McCarthy went to Manus and filed a story headlined 'Refugee prisoners live without hope' about the OPM refugees who had been spirited to Lorengau and reported they existed in depressing conditions. Manus's most recent 'hosting' of refugees was far from ts first.] I knew Jack for quite a number of years before his death in Port Moresby. And I had professional and personal reasons to share in is life. Mary Karo's younger brother, the late Kevin Artango, was married to my late sister Jenny. And when Jack died, the grieving McCarthy family asked me to speak and offer a eulogy at the Boroko Drive Anglican Church. In my eulogy I referred to his journalistic sojourns crossing the border in those days. I spoke about Jack's journalistic passion and career, touching upon his humanity and broader life. I likened Jack's search for justice and truth to Jesus' own earthly life and service despite the dangers which faced him throughout. Another West Papuan, John Norotouw, and I concluded the eulogy by dedicating a popular hymn in Bahasa Indonesia praising God and honouring Jack on behalf of our people. We sang: Oh Yerusalem, kota mulia, hatiku rindu kesana. Tak lama lagi Tuhanku datang, bawa saya masuk sana. [Oh Jerusalem, the glorious city, my heart longs there. Soon my Lord comes, take me there] Then, much to my surprise and that of an equally stunned congregation, the Anglican Bishop of PNG rose to his feet and, in a firm voice and carefully worded single sentence, announced that the sermon he had intended to deliver was over. He thanked me and said that, since I had more than done him a favour, his duty now was to appropriately bring the funeral service to an end by offering the closing prayer. So Rob, you would be pleased to know that your friend Jack had quite a send-off and one that he rightly deserved. Shuffling quietly to the bench in his yellow jail jumpsuit, accused killer Jose Gilberto Rodriguez stood in silence while state District Judge Kristin Guiney ordered him held without bond Monday during his first court appearance since an alleged nine-day crime spree left three dead. Prosecutors on Monday morning laid out their evidence against the 46-year-old parolee: a fingerprint, surveillance footage, a possible murder weapon, and pawned goods. Meanwhile, defense lawyer Anthony Osso asked the court to reiterate a no-visitation order for his client, alleging that Houston police had showed up at the jail to interview him anyway. "Every time you have a client charged with multiple capital murders, it's an uphill battle," Osso told reporters afterward. "We just ask for people to be patient and wait to hear all the facts and not jump to conclusions." Rodriguez, a sex offender who cut off his ankle monitor before allegedly launching his reign of terror in northern Harris County, is facing two counts of capital murder. Police said previously he's also suspected in a third slaying, along with a home invasion, a non-fatal shooting and some car thefts. He was arrested Tuesday after a short chase through a northern Harris County neighborhood. The hunt began after July 5, when Rodriguez clipped off his ankle monitor and slipped away, authorities say. Four days later, investigators say, he broke into an elderly couple's home in the 12000 block of Foxburo. There, he allegedly held an 87-year-old homeowner at gunpoint, tying him up and crushing a pillow over his face during a robbery. Afterward, prosecutors said, police recovered the elderly man's stolen vehicle at Houston Community College with Rodriguez's fingerprint inside. It's not clear what Rodriguez did or where he went in the days that followed. But on July 13, police found the first body. It was that of Pamela Johnson, a 62-year-old Kroger grocery store worker who'd been tied to the headboard of her bed and shot in the chest inside her Cypress home. At first, authorities said there were no signs of forced entry. But prosecutors said Monday that the burglar bars were off the kitchen window, the contents of her purse were strewn about, and the car and two TVs were missing. A day later, a man later identified as Rodriguez was spotted ditching Johnson's stolen car at the Willowbrook Mall, authorities said. Hours earlier, the manager of a Mattress Firm on FM 1960 in the Willowbrook area found 28-year-old employee Allie Barrow shot in the head in the store's back office. Rodriguez hasn't been charged yet in connection with that killing, though police previously said they had enough evidence to tie him to the case. Then, early on July 16, the violent spree continued with the shooting of a 22-year-old METROLift bus driver. He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition, later upgraded to serious; that case hasn't netted any charges yet either. The last of the fatal shootings came later that day, when police found the body of 57-year-old Edward Magana, who'd been shot in the head inside a Mattress One on the North Freeway. Authorities took Rodriguez into custody the next day, after someone spotted him in the area of one of the slayings and called in to report a suspicious person. Deputies started a chase, and ultimately arrested the fleeing parolee after he was forced to stop while stuck in traffic. In the front seat, investigators found a revolver that's believed to be the murder weapon, prosecutors said. "There's no doubt in our mind that he intended to find his next victim," Gonzalez said. The suspect's violent past dates back to at least 1989, when he was sent to prison for attempted sex assault, burglary, and auto theft convictions. That September, he broke into a young woman's home and stole her car. He pulled down the teenage girl's pants and underwear and tried to rape her in an act that court records describe as "more than mere preparation that tended to but failed to effect the commission of the offense intended." He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. But while behind bars he got a six-year sentence for a theft charge he picked up in Montgomery County a year earlier. All four of the felony sentences ran concurrently, but two years later he faced another charge while in prison at the Coffield Unit in Anderson County. This time, he was sentenced to 10 more years in prison after a conviction for one count of possession of a deadly weapon inside a penitentiary, according to Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jeremy Desel. With the stacked sentences, he wasn't let out of prison until September 2017, when he walked out the door on mandatory release and not as the result of a parole board decision. keri.blakinger@chron.com After 28 passengers file into their seats on a day-glo-colored duck boat to embark on a 70-minute tour around Galveston Island, they are briefly walked through safety protocols, courtesy of the tour guide a sun-tanned, goateed man wearing a T-shirt with a picture of a DUKW boat (the amphibious vehicles used to invade Normandy Beach during D-Day, among other World War II battles) who referred to himself as Captain Tom. We have to do this every time Ill bring your attention to the life vests above your head, because we do go in the water, Captain Tom said. We have enough for everybody on the duck. If you feel uncomfortable out on the water, you dont have to ask for a life jacket. Just grab one and put it on. You probably wont feel uncomfortable because the water is pretty calm today. What would normally be considered a run-of-the-mill safety spiel for a lighthearted land-and-water island excursion carried a bit more weight on this scorching Saturday afternoon, two days after a similar duck boat sank during stormy weather on Table Rock Lake in Branson, Mo., killing 17 people. The official cause has not been determined, but investigators initially blamed thunderstorms and winds that the National Weather Service clocked at 65 mph. The accident has put duck boats like the ones operated in Galveston under a national microscope, with the Associated Press reporting that duck boats have been linked to the deaths of more than 40 people since 1999. The Galveston duck boats have been running tours on the island since 1998, rumbling on major thoroughfares such as Seawall Boulevard, Broadway and the Strand Historical District with a short water detour around Offats Bayou. The company, Galveston Duck Tours, runs 10 to 12 tours per day during the summer and a reduced schedule the rest of the year. Each boat is 31 feet long and 8 feet wide, weighing about 6.5 tons with a 45-pound propeller that keeps it afloat when it enters the water. The Galveston boats were built in 1945, modeled after similar amphibious vehicles used during World War II. Each boat, with a sky-blue canopy and neon yellow-painted hulls, seats a maximum of 28 people and is equipped with life vests for every passenger in a compartment above the seats under the metal canopy that protects them from the blazing summer sun or inclement weather. Unlike the duck boat that sank in Missouri, the Galveston duck boats are not enclosed by plastic windows. During Captain Toms safety speech at the beginning of the tour, he said if passengers had to abandon ship, they would do so through the open air windows underneath the canopy. Make sure your windows are rolled down. We dont want no broken glass in here, Captain Tom joked. Its too early Previous investigations of duck boat accidents have found that roofs or canopies on duck boats greatly endanger passengers in the event of a sinking. The passengers, buoyed by life vests, can become trapped against the canopy as the vessel sinks, unable to swim down to openings along the side. While the Galveston duck boats are inspected annually by the U.S. Coast Guard and have been running without incident in their 20 years of operations, Stephan Sollenberger, the owner of Galveston Duck Tours, said he plans to pay close attention to the details of the accident in Missouri to see whether there are any design flaws he should be aware of. You dont just shrug it off, you want to know what happened, but right now its too early. Nobody knows what happened, Sollenberger said. Obviously when more information comes out, well take a serious look at it and see what we can do. Outweighing the risk Sollenberger ran a duck boat tour in Hot Springs, Ark., before opening Galveston Duck Tours. Coincidentally, in 1999, one year after Sollenberger started the Galveston tours, 13 people died when a duck boat sank in Lake Hamilton near Hot Springs. Sollenberger said all his duck boat operators like Captain Tom must have a U.S. Coast Guard captains license, which requires at least 360 days of boating experience, including 90 days within the past three years before applying. Applicants must also pass a drug test within six months of applying and have first-aid and CPR training. Our safety protocols havent changed, Sollenberger said. Were more fortunate down here where you can see bad weather coming in. Its a lot less likely to catch you off guard. I dont want to speculate what happened (in Missouri), but down here, weve never been on the water on a day like that. Passengers on the Galveston Duck Tours on Saturday were either blissfully unaware of the Missouri accident or willing to take the tour regardless of any potential risk. Ive been visiting Galveston my whole life, and Ive been wanting to do this my whole life, said Bryan Leonard from Katy, who took a Saturday afternoon tour. Im almost 50 and finally getting to do it. The desire to do it is outweighing the risk. Leonards girlfriend, Ashly Rodriguez, is a duck-tour veteran. She knew about the Missouri accident but said Offats Bayou is significantly calmer than, say, the rougher surf in the Gulf of Mexico. Ive actually done them four times with my kids. Its a lot of fun, Rodriguez said. They have life jackets. I know how to swim. As long as it doesnt blow up, well be fine. On the bucket list Another passenger, Louela Batt of Kemah, used to vacation with her family in Table Rock Lake, Mo., and went on the same duck boat tour where the accident happened when she was a kid. Batt and her husband, Travis, wanted to knock the Galveston duck tours off their bucket list, anticipating that all duck boats might eventually be banned because of the spotty safety record. She felt more at ease in the Galveston duck boats because of its open windows, as opposed to the boat that sank in Table Rock Lake. Just the little things that make you feel a little bit safer, Batt said. Theres no stormy weather. Thats the unfortunate thing that happened over there it could have been avoided. nick.powell@chron.com A wanted robbery suspect attempted to run down a Houston police officer Monday afternoon, forcing the officer to open fire on the suspect's vehicle in a southwest Houston neighborhood, authorities said. Neither the suspect nor the officer were injured during the encounter. The suspect, wanted in connection with a recent carjacking, was spotted by Houston Police Department officers Monday afternoon in the neighborhood near the 7800 block of West Bellfort Avenue, according to HPD Assistant Chief Wendy Baimbridge, who briefed media on scene. The suspect -- driving a dark-colored Acura car -- allegedly attempted to hide from officers by parking in a cul-de-sac, although officers spotted him and approached the vehicle on foot, Baimbridge said. The suspect then allegedly drove the vehicle toward the officers who were on foot, she said. One of the officers pulled out a firearm and shot at the vehicle, striking the windshield but missing the suspect. The suspect then drove about a block through the neighborhood before crashing in front of a home and fleeing on foot, Baimbridge said. Officers chased the suspect on foot and arrested him in a church parking lot less than a mile away. He will likely face a felony aggravated assault of a public servant charge as well as a felony aggravated robbery charge for the alleged carjacking, Baimbridge said. The officer who opened fire will be placed on administrative duty as an internal investigation continues. Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message. Jay R. Jordan covers breaking news in the Houston area. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com | Follow him on Twitter at @JayRJordan | Email him at jay.jordan@chron.com A woman arrived at a home in the Fifth Ward Sunday night to find her boyfriend dead in the driveway, according to the Houston Police Department. The family reported the death to police around 11:30 p.m. in the 2200 block of Clementine. Two people were injured in a drive-by when shots rang out in the Fifth Ward Sunday night, according to the Houston Police Department. Partygoers reported the shooting around 10:15 p.m. in the 3700 block of Liberty, northeast of Interstate 69 and Harriman. An argument occurred and then escalated, causing the gunfire, said Lt. Larry Crowson of the Houston Police Department. Nihon Superior to Exhibit New SN100CV Solder Alloy at NEPCON South China Published: 23 July 2018 by Chelsey Drysdale by Chelsey Drysdale OSAKA, JAPAN July 2018 Nihon Superior Co. Ltd., an advanced joining material supplier, will exhibit in Stand 1G08 at NEPCON South China, scheduled to take place Aug. 28-30, 2018 at the Shenzen Convention & Exhibition Center. The company will debut the new SN100CV P608 D4 solder paste and NS-F851 rosin-based flux, and show the ALUSAC-35 alloy and Alconano Nano-Silver paste. SN100CV P608 D4 is a completely halogen free, lead-free, no-clean solder paste. Unlike silver-containing alloys that derive their strength from a dispersion of fine particles of eutectic Ag3Sn, SN100CV gains its strength from solute atoms in the tin matrix of the joint. The paste provides excellent wetting and reduces voiding. The company also plans to exhibit NS-F851 the improved version of the NS-F850 rosin-based flux for lead-free wave soldering. The new, no-clean flux ensures excellent wetting of all PCB and component substrates to deliver maximum through-hole fill and facilitates the solder drainage that ensures minimum bridges and icicles. It is the ideal flux for lead-free wave soldering. Additionally, the rosin-based flux ensures that the full reliability potential of SN100C lead-free solder is realized. ALUSAC-35 is a lead-free alloy designed for soldering aluminum. Despite the cost and the performance advantages of aluminum, its commercial adoption has been slow because of the concern about the galvanic corrosion that results from differences in the electrical potential of the constituent phases. Joints to aluminum made with this new alloy retain reasonable strength even after 30 days of saltwater immersion. Alconano Nano-Silver Paste is based on a patented technology that makes it possible to effectively join most metals as well as Si and SiC at low sintering temperatures, if necessary in nitrogen, without the nitrous or sulphurous residues that are the by-products of the sintering of some other nano-silver pastes. The highly active surface of the nano-silver particles and the consequent strong capillary forces make it possible to achieve strong bonds even on copper with high electrical and thermal conductivity at low temperatures without the need for external pressure. Nihon Superior continues to offer solutions to the challenges facing the electronics industry, such as improvements in reliability, thermally stable joining, and lead-free die attach. For more information about Nihon Superiors new solder pastes and lead-free products, visit www.nihonsuperior.co.jp/english. About Nihon Superior Co., Ltd. Nihon Superior was founded in 1966 when it began marketing unique flux products imported from the US. The company made its mark on society by gathering the most advanced soldering and brazing technologies and products from around the world, and supplying them to companies in the metal-joining industry. A turning point for the company came when it started developing its own soldering materials and with the success of its unique SN100C lead-free solder alloy Nihon Superior has become a major player in the global market. To support the growing demand for its products, Nihon Superior has established manufacturing and sales centers in Japan, China and other Asian countries, and the United States, and formed business partnerships with companies in other markets. Register now for PCB WEST, the leading trade show for the printed circuit design and electronics manufacturing industry! Coming Sept. 11-13 to the Santa Clara Convention Center. The fight over Brett Kavanaughs nomination to the Supreme Court is a reminder of how control of the Senate is more important than control of the House of Representatives. Democrats will pick up Nevadas Senate seat from Republican Dean Heller, virtually all analysts believe, but they need to gain an additional seat to reestablish control. That means that all eyes will be on two Republican-held seatsin Arizona and Tennesseewhere the GOP incumbents are retiring and the Democrats look positioned to make a strong challenge. Polls show Democrats leading both races, but a deeper analysis suggests that those leads might not hold up. In both cases, the Democrats start the race much better known than their putative Republican opponents in Republican-leaning, vote-rich areas. As the Republican candidates air ads in these markets, it stands to reason that their standing will improve, making each race much closer. The Phoenix metropolitan area is Arizonas region to watch. Nearly 60 percent of the states votes are cast in Phoenixs Maricopa County, so a candidate with a base there would clearly start with greater name recognition. The likely Democratic nominee, Congresswoman Kyrsten Sinema, has that base, having represented a Phoenix-area district since 2012. In contrast, the Republican nominee thought to have the best chance to hold the seat for the party, Congresswoman Martha McSally, has represented the Tucson area only since 2015. This means that in prior campaigns, Sinema has aired ads reaching the entire Phoenix media market, while McSally has made herself known only to the much smaller Tucson region. It should come as no surprise, then, that Sinema holds a large advantage over McSally in Maricopa County, a margin that represents virtually all of her current lead. In the Emerson College poll, for example, Sinema leads McSally by an eight-point margin statewide but more than 18 points in Maricopa County. Sinema leads in every one of the countys five congressional districts, including the two safe Republican seats that no Democrat ever carries. This is exactly what one would expect to find in a case like this. But its also clear that Sinemas lead in Maricopa County will shrink dramatically as the race heats up. Maricopa traditionally votes strongly Republican. No Democrat has carried it in a competitive race for governor, senator, or president in this century. Democrat Janet Napolitano lost it in 2002 when she defeated her Republican competitor, Matt Salmon, statewide. Even Donald Trump carried Maricopa County en route to a relatively narrow statewide victory for a Republican. All past evidence suggests that Sinema will do well just to run even in Maricopa; if she were running even there now, the Emerson poll would be virtually tied. To a lesser extent, the same dynamic is at play in Tennessee. Former governor Phil Bredesen is the Democratic nominee, while the Republican is eight-term congresswoman Marsha Blackburn. Bredesen has run and won twice statewide while Blackburn has previously run only for Congress. Her seat has at times included portions of the two largest media markets in the state, Nashville and Memphis, but she has never before had to run in Eastern Tennessees Knoxville or Chattanooga markets. This region of the state has been a Republican bastion since the Civil War: even Bredesen didnt win it in his first race for governor in 2002. Yet, the Emerson poll shows him leading Blackburn by 14 percent in the three congressional districts wholly within Eastern Tennessee, even as he leads her by only six points statewide. Bredesen will do well to lose this region by only a few points on Election Day. If the Emerson poll today reflected this likely end-of-race reality, Blackburns deficit would be within the margin of error. These observations do not mean that Democrats will lose both races. Sinema and Bredesen are strong candidates running in what appears to be a poor year for Republicans. McSally could still lose her primary to a more Trumpian candidate like former Maricopa Sheriff Joe Arpaio, while Blackburn could find that her strong conservatism doesnt fly well with more moderate independents. But current polls do not reflect the fact that both GOP candidates will certainly do much better in these vote-rich Republican-leaning areas than they are doing right now. Thats what happened in the 2016 Indiana Senate race. Former governor and Senator Evan Bayh entered the race in the summer and quickly took a strong lead over the Republican nominee, Congressman Todd Young. Young had represented a southern Indiana seat for only six years, while Bayh had previously run and won statewide four times. Though Young had just finished a winning campaign to capture the Republican nomination while Bayh had not held office since 2010, Bayh still had significantly better name recognition at the outset. But his large lead shrunk as Election Day approached and Youngs advertising made him better known. By the end of October, polls showed the race tied or with Young slightly ahead. On Election Day, Young defeated Bayh by more than 9 percent. Democrats cannot retake Senate control without winning at least one of these seats, in addition to Nevada. Savvy observers will be watching the polls once television advertising begins in earnest in September. Barring an unforeseen event, that means that we should expect these races to follow the Indiana pattern and tighten considerably. Both seats might look like Democratic pickups right now, but by Halloween, these treats might turn out to have merely tricked unsophisticated pundits. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images Not long ago, a community benefit society, Hastings Pier Charity, went into administration. It was the first example of administration for a community benefit society often known as a bencom and it produced a slightly startling result. The charitys main asset, the pier, which had received 12.7m of Heritage Lottery Fund money, not to mention well over 1m of other funds, was sold to a private businessman, Eastbourne hotelier Sheikh Abid Gulzar, for 50,000. The administrators turned down a bid from a local group, the Friends of Hastings Pier, which would have kept the pier in community ownership, and had raised more than 500,000 to do so. It raises a lot of questions about whether there is sufficient protection for charities in administration, and particularly whether there is strong enough regulation around Hasting Pier Charitys particular legal model the charitable community benefit society. There appears to be a strong argument, in both cases, that there is not. History of the charity Hastings Pier Charity existed to first restore and then run the towns pier, which burned down in a fire in 2010. It is the successor to a registered charity, Hastings Pier and White Rock Trust, which deregistered and converted to a charitable bencom in 2013. This took it off the register of charities run by the Charity Commission, and out the Commissions regulation. Instead its registrar is the Financial Conduct Authority, and it appears to have no primary regulator. It did so in order to allow local people to buy shares in the pier. Bencoms, unique among charities, are permitted to issue interest-bearing shares, on a one-shareholder, one-vote basis a model which has been used successfully to raise the cash to buy community assets up and down the UK, most notably shops and pubs in rural locations, where they were at risk of closure. The charity sold shares worth 600,000 - a successful campaign. Sadly the shareholders have now lost their money, although I suspect most of them never expected to get any cash back anyway. The charity planned to first restore the pier and then run it as a community resource. But it proved a difficult process. Even though the pier itself won awards and was widely praised, restoration cost more than expected, and the charity struggled to become a going concern. There were various financial challenges which made this tricky. The pier appears to have suffered from giving fatigue. It had already required a huge amount of charitable money to keep going. In addition to the HLF money, and the community share issue, other charitable funders had made various grants and loans. Getting the capital investment needed to build a sustainable business was proving hard, and it may have required quite a different skill-set from that needed to get the pier rebuilt. The pier charity estimated it would need to raise another 800,000 to run it sustainably, which it struggled to find, and it went into administration. What happened in administration? Administrators Smith & Williamson worked with the charity to help it keep the doors open, but in the end it didnt prove viable. The charity has since said it was reluctant to go back to local people to seek yet more funding, but given the amount of money the Friends of Hastings Pier were able to put together, it does seem possible this was a mistake. The piers main creditor was the HLF, which stepped in and agreed to fund the pier through an interim administration period to find a stable revenue model. The HLF, it appears, was getting fed up with pouring money into a black hole, and just wanted the pier off its books. Its easy to see why a sale to a commercial operator was the obvious move. While the local operation might have been able to access more money, it was hastily cobbled together and was still trying to establish leadership. It would have taken time, and probably some hand-holding, to get them into a position where they could take the pier on. We know that this is a common problem when it comes to community ownership of an asset. The community is normally more than able to run an asset better than a private operator, but skilling up and building consensus is far from easy. To someone looking to solve the problem swiftly, community ownership must look a tricky option. Gulzar, on the other hand, had run a pier before, and he had the cash to hand. He must have seemed the simple answer. A charitable asset in private hands The problem is that a charitable asset, paid for with public money, is now available for a businessman to make money out of. It doesnt feel right. It feels as if the community put in the hard yards, and a speculator is now able to profit. On the other hand, the administrators acted properly. The process is rightly designed to protect the creditors, first and foremost, and the main creditor here was the Heritage Lottery Fund, which basically got its wish. It seems hard to square the circle. There are attractions. Most notably, Gulzar runs the business at his own risk, so if it goes wrong there's no public loss. On the other hand, decisions about a community resource now rest in his hands, rather than those of the people. That's the problem. Luke Fletcher, a partner at Bates Wells Braithwaite, says that it is very likely that everything has been conducted properly, especially if it is with the blessing of the HLF. However he also says this raises the question of whether there should be a separate administration process for charitable organisations, with more emphasis on ensuring that asset-locked resources, where possible, end up in the hands of other charitable organisations. This raises all sorts of questions for me, he says. It raises questions about whether there should be separate rules for assets of community value. Such rules already exist for the sale of assets which arent in administration. A series of protections for assets of community value exist in the Localism Act 2011, allowing communities time to put together a bid, but it seems that they may not apply in this context. Arguably, they should. Lack of transparency The case of Hastings Pier Charity also raises the broader question of whether there are problems around its legal model. By becoming a bencom, rather than a registered charity, the pier seems to have been stripped of many of the protections you would expect a pier to have. Rather than the close scrutiny you might expect the Charity Commission to have applied in these circumstances, there appears to have been polite disinterest. The Financial Conduct Authority is, unsurprisingly, less interested in charities than is the Charity Commission. No one appears to even know how many bencoms have charitable status, because the FCA is not keeping track. It does not even know how many bencoms there are in the first place, charitable or otherwise. Co-operatives UK the relevant infrastructure body thinks that about 500-700 charitable bencoms exist, which would suggest maybe 1bn of charitable assets are not subject to any proper scrutiny. Their documents are not readily available on any register neither Companies House nor the Charity Commission although you can get them from the FCA for 12 each. Bencoms do, to be fair, have an excellent alternative system of scrutiny, because of their membership system, but it shouldnt a substitute for regulatory scrutiny. If we compare the regulation of bencoms with the excellent system of scrutiny which exists for ordinary registered charities, it seems woefully inadequate. Its just the latest in a series of instances where charitable assets seem to attract very different levels of scrutiny depending on how and where theyre raised, what peculiarities of legal structure exist, and how and where theyre spent. It feels as if the rules have failed the people of Hastings, and everyone who worked hard to restore its pier. Its another instance of how the charity regulatory framework seems in need of significant changes. How many ways can one show approval? One can simply say yes or one of its many synonyms, nod, show a thumbs up, give a high five, etc. Someone who says yes automatically, especially as an attempt to ingratiate oneself, is often known as a yes-man. That phrase originated in the United States in 1912, The Oxford English Dictionary says, meaning A man who agrees from self-interest or fear with everything put to him by a superior; an obsequious subordinate. But that implies only men can be obsequious, and though yes-girl and yes-woman both appeared in the early 1930s, they never quite caught on. A genderless and more popular term is sycophant. And popular it is in opinion pages, and occasionally news reports. The pundits Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson, in successive sit-downs with Mr. Trump, came off as sympathetic at best and sycophantic at worst, The New York Times wrote. Speaking of local politicians relationships with President Trump, a Knoxville News-Sentinel opinion piece said, There may be little support for politicians like Marsha Blackburn and Diane Black whose only calling is to serve as his sycophants. And lest you think that only the president has sycophants, heres a letter to the editor in The Bismarck Tribune complaining about Democrats and Sen. Maxine Waters: Waters and her sycophants are practically guaranteeing a conservative victory in this falls elections. Sign up for CJR 's daily email For this column, we will go against Strunk and Whites advice: Do not be tempted by a twenty-dollar word when there is a ten-center handy, ready and able. Sycophant, while a fancier word for yes-man, allows equal treatment for women. And though Strunk and White also say that Anglo-Saxon is a livelier tongue than Latin, so use Anglo-Saxon words, sycophants began as Greek, not Latin. Also, sycophants were originally slanderers, not flatterers. Why should you give a fig about all of this? Because figs do, um, figure into this. As Merriam-Webster says, sycophant comes from the Greek words sykon, or fig, and phainein, or reveal. How did fig revealers become slanderers? One theory has to do with the taxes Greek farmers were required to pay on the figs they brought to market. Apparently, the farmers would sometimes try to avoid making the payments, but squealersfig revealerswould fink on them, and they would be forced to pay. In any case, Latin retained the slanderer sense when it borrowed a version of sykophantes, but by the time English speakers in the 16th century borrowed it as sycophant, the squealers had become flatterers. The Oxford English Dictionary, though, says, The explanation, long current, that it originally meant an informer against the unlawful exportation of figs cannot be substantiated. But both dictionaries mention the possibility that showing a fig meant making an obscene gesture. The fig story was first recorded in English in 1579, the OED says, though in 1537, it had an obsolete definition of sycophant: An informer, tale-bearer, malicious accuser; a calumniator, traducer, slanderer. But about the same time as the fig story appeared, the OED lists this definition: A mean, servile, cringing, or abject flatterer; a parasite, toady, lickspittle. (Colorful terms, those.) In 1802, the 12th edition of Samuel Johnsons dictionary described sycophant as talebearer, a makebate, a malicious parasite. That dictionary doesnt define makebate, but the OED says its a now-archaic term for A person who or (occasionally) thing which creates contention or discord; a fomenter of strife. So in his time at least, the slanderer still lived. Nowadays, sycophant is used almost exclusively to mean a person who tries to get ahead through obsequious agreement or flattery. Sycophant used to be much more popular than it is today. This Google N-gram shows how much it dropped from its peak in the early 1800s (the farthest back Google Books reaches). Still, it outpaces all variations of yes-man, and seems to be on the rise since 2000. Just as there are many ways to say yes, there are many other ways to say sycophant, besides the colorful toady and lickspittle. Brownnoser, bootlicker, and lackey say the same thing. (As a cautionary tale about using online thesauruses, one synonym for sycophant is politician.) Just as Americans seem to have invented the yes-man, the British have their own version: the forelock-tugger. In ye olden days, peasants would tug or pull the front part of their hair as a sign of respect and obedience to a superior, similar to a military salute. The Oxford dictionaries define forelock tugging as obsequious or overly deferential behavior. M-W echoes that definition, but with a meaning closer to sycophant: to be too concerned with pleasing someone whom one thinks is powerful or important. Forelock-tugging rarely appears in American news reports, but it did in a recent Vanity Fair piece quoting a source worried about the reaction of John Bolton, the national security adviser, to President Trumps summit with Vladimir Putin in Helsinki: I mean, he must just be pulling his forelock practically out of his head in order to maintain the Oh youre so great and Mr. President, oh youre the best, the piece said. Thats a far more visual image than sycophant or even yes-man. Anyone care to start a trend? ICYMI: Who suffers when local news disappears Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today Merrill Perlman managed copy desks across the newsroom at the New York Times, where she worked for twenty-five years. Follow her on Twitter at @meperl. UPDATE 10:15 am: Just after a 9am staff meeting, Tronc sent an email to Daily News staffers announcing that the papers editorial team would be slashed by 50 percent, and that EIC Jim Rich and Managing Editor Kristen Lee were both departing. The email was unsigned. heres the full email to NYDN staff about deep cuts at the paper. EIC Jim Rich and managing editor Kristen Lee are both departing pic.twitter.com/7EEDDxOKmE kelsey sutton (@kelseymsutton) July 23, 2018 Original story below: The story of the decline of local news in the US is one that features numerous causes and wounds both self-inflicted and externally delivered. Over the past decade, the cratering of print advertising, the consolidation and mismanagement of local papers, the failure to adapt to technological advances, and the ravages of corporate greed have sapped the industry. But regardless of how we apportion the blame, the result is the same. No one lives in America, exactly. We all live somewhere in America, like the nearly 9 million of us in New York City, New York Daily News columnist Harry Siegel wrote this weekend. The thing I love about local news is that it doesnt scale. It happens one court hearing or campaign or crime at a time so that you can fairly try and connect political decisions to individual people, the life of the city to that of its inhabitants. Sign up for CJR 's daily email Siegels piece comes as staffers at the News are bracing for expected layoffs today. The New York Posts Keith J. Kelly reported last week that Editor in Chief Jim Rich is likely leaving the paper, and that up to 30 percent of the newsroom could be cut. Purchased by Tronc for $1 last fall, the News is already down to a staff of around 85 employees following rounds of layoffs and buyouts in recent years. Kelly reports that Tronc executives have pressured Rich to make sweeping cuts, and that the editors unwillingness to do so will lead to his ouster. Early this morning, Rich appeared to confirm reports that cuts are coming, tweeting, If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you. He also removed the editor title from his Twitter bio, and changed it to read: Just a guy sitting at home watching journalism being choked into extinction. If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you. Jim Rich (@therealjimrich) July 23, 2018 The diminishment of the NYDN is just part of a larger story about local news in America. At this point, its an old story, but its also one that has been given new urgency by President Trumps America first policies. RELATED: New paper tariffs could cost jobs at US publishers Earlier this year, the Trump administration applied tariffs to Canadian groundwood paper, raising concerns that news outlets across the US that rely on imported newsprint would be forced to slash costs. My colleague Jon Allsop was one of the first the note the looming clouds that have now gathered into a punishing storm. On Friday NiemanLabs Ken Doctor reported that the tariffs have increased the cost of newsprint by as much as 30 to 35 percent, calling them a Black Swan event that could speed up the death of US newspapers. He notes that several local papers from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to the Nevada Appeal have already announced that they will reduce the number of days they publish a print edition, while other outlets are considering scrapping the physical product altogether. If the cuts at the Daily News occur as forecast, New York will wake tomorrow with fewer journalists holding powerful interests to account. As the bite of Trumps tariffs sinks in, the same story will play out in cities and towns across the country. The causes of this diminishment are manifold, but the absence of reporters from state houses, courtrooms, and school board meetings leaves all of us less informed. Below, more on the NYDN and state of local journalism. What NYC loses: The @NYDailyNews is an essential institution, tweeted The New York Timess Glenn Thrush in response to reports about the coming cuts. Cant overstate the role it plays in holding accountable an increasingly unscrutinized, aloof city government. Its slow strangulation is already hurting New York. Its demise would be a disaster. The @NYDailyNews is an essential institution, tweeted The New York Timess Glenn Thrush in response to reports about the coming cuts. Cant overstate the role it plays in holding accountable an increasingly unscrutinized, aloof city government. Its slow strangulation is already hurting New York. Its demise would be a disaster. Tariffs and the black press: Ben Chavis, CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, writes: The financial sustainability of the Black Press of America is now facing a catastrophic and a possible deadly impact, because of these new tariffs. Ben Chavis, CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, writes: The financial sustainability of the Black Press of America is now facing a catastrophic and a possible deadly impact, because of these new tariffs. Slamming Trump: For the Wall Street Journal, Steve Forbes castigated the Trump administration for the imposition of tariffs, writing last month that the newsprint tariffs are a heavy new tax on struggling businesses and an unjustified burden on a cherished institution, the American newspaper. Other notable stories The lead story on every news site I checked this morning concerns President Trumps late-night tweet warning Iran that the country was facing CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED if President Hassan Rouhani continued to threaten the US. On Sunday, Rouhani gave a speech in which he said a potential conflict with the US would be the mother of all wars. Los Angeles Times restaurant critic Jonathan Gold, the citys ambassador of food for four decades, died Saturday after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. Gold redefined the genre, drawn more to hole-in-the-wall joints, street food, mom-and-pop shops and ethnic restaurants than he was to haute cuisine, wrote the Timess Andrea Chang. Although he appreciated and wrote beautifully about fine dining, he revered the taco truck more than the tasting menu. Important story from The New York Timess Jim Rutenberg and Ben Protess, who report that tabloid publisher American Media Inc. at times acted more as a political supporter than as a news organization through its support for Donald Trump during the 2016 election. AMI chief David Pecker is a longtime friend of Trump, and his companys editorial boosting and backroom dealing to defend the candidate raises thorny questions about when coverage that is favorable to a candidate strays into overt political activity, and when First Amendment protections should apply, Rutenberg and Protess write. For CJR, James Ball argues that we need a new model for tech journalism, one that moves beyond the glorification of founders as celebrity entrepreneurs. The glossy coverage never made sense, but was at least defensible when quite a lot of the tech companies were scrappy upstarts, Ball writes. Those days are long gone. Yet the bootstrap narrative remains, with CEOs still treated as celebrities, and the media acting more as a cheerleader than watchdog. On that note, The Washington Posts Margaret Sullivan argues that its past time for Facebook to embrace its role as a media company, not just a neutral platform. She writes that Mark Zuckerbergs company remains a dangerous mess, and that it must hire editors to make decisions about what sort of speech it allows, and promotes, on its platform. Fun profile of CNN cameraman Dave Rust from Lisa Napoli. For CJR, Napoli writes about Rusts nearly four decades of work at the cable network, and how hes become something of a hoarder of CNN memorabilia, filling storage units with artifacts dating from the earliest days of the network. ICYMI: Photojournalisms moment of reckoning Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today Pete Vernon is a former CJR staff writer. Follow him on Twitter @ByPeteVernon. KPIX, a CBS affiliate in San Francisco, began a segment from last August with footage shot from a helicopter of protesters outside of a West Oakland home. Homeland Security agents had just entered the residence, on what protesters clearly suspect to be an immigration charge. On the sidewalk, someone had scrawled WE OUR NEIGHBORS in chalk. The segment, which lasts less than three minutes, suggests that the protesters were wrong. The anchor says that while area residents thought it was an immigration raid, the Oakland police did confirm this was all a criminal search warrant in connection with human trafficking of juveniles. The headline on the stations website reiterates this: ICE Investigators Serve Human Trafficking Warrant In West Oakland Neighborhood. At the segments conclusion, Neda Iranpour mentions one protesters skepticism about official statements from the Oakland PD and ICE. We told [a neighbor] they were wanted for human trafficking of juveniles, reports Iranpour, and he said he doesnt believe the authorities. ICYMI: Newspaper staffer resigns, says publisher called story racist against white people But the protesters actually proved to be correct. The East Bay Express reported a month later that Oakland police chief Anne Kirkpatrick had made false statements about the raid. The operation was not part of a human trafficking investigation; in fact, the lone person charged was facing immigration charges and could be deported. Three months later, KPIX ran a follow-up story, but it was focused on accusations by an Oakland councilwoman that the mayor was delaying a hearing about the raid, not a specific update to their original story. (KPIX did not respond to requests for an interview.) Nearly a year later, a flurry of posts linking to the original KPIX segment appeared on right-wing websites. The Federalist headlined their post WATCH: Neighbors Protest ICE As It Breaks Up Child Sex Trafficking Ring, while National Review tweaked theirs to Watch: Protesters Blast ICE as Agents Act on Federal Child Trafficking Warrant. The Daily Wire and InfoWars ran similar posts. Donald Trump, Jr. and Katrina Pierson, senior advisor for President Trump, shared The Federalist post on social media; on July 8, President Trump retweeted Piersons tweet to his 53.2 million followers. Sign up for weekly emails from the United States Project None of the sites or accounts referenced above mentioned the subsequent admission of false statements about the raids goal. Meanwhile, InfoWars, the National Review, and The Federalist did not respond to requests for comment, but they have since issued updates or corrections at the end of the posts, which remain intact. Their posts werent fake news created from thin air. KGO, an affiliate of ABC, aired a similar story on the same day. KPIX did what it was supposed to dobroadcast breaking news with the best information available. But because of the disconnect between broadcast media and the internet, the trapped-in-time segment didnt tell the whole story. The original KPIX segment, widely shared after it first aired, is in tune with a number of familiar partisan allegations: the Trump administrations zero tolerance approach to border-crossings, widespread protests against ICE, and stereotypes of left-wing protesters. It was splintered off and recontextualized by right-wing media long after it had aired. CREATING DETAILED STORIES from the splinters of larger narratives is at the core of news gathering. Journalists are charged with determining the scope of storieswhere they begin and end, how broad or narrow a storys focus should be. That challenge is now complicated by digital duplication, infinite archives, and instantaneous access to them. Internet archives of news stories definitely exacerbate problems with secondary reporting, writes Melissa Zimdars, a critical media studies scholar at Merrimack College, in an email. Zimdars writes that some journalists assume truth within a story and use that as the basis for their story without doing additional work. This leads to inaccurately or imprecisely copying, reproducing, and/or relaying information that may already be based on questionable or unreliable sources. ICYMI: WSJ recently published an unintentionally funny headline Zimdars calls this dynamic informational infidelity. In Flow, a monthly online media studies journal run by graduate students at the University of Texas at Austin, Zimdars points out that many newsrooms build stories on foundations laid via newswire copy. Now, speed threatens to supplant integrity: As bloggers and writers are pressured to pump out stories based on their virality and sensationalism. If we believed that archive was going to be used by historians and scholars and journalists in the future, wed understand that we have an obligation to fix [stories], and not have them sit out there, as fresh as can be, for months and years to come. But we dont. Complicating things further, the inherent nature of broadcast news places it at odds with the internet. The former is ephemeral; the latter is infinite. Were in this weird context where we cannot assume something is permanent yet so much content lingers, Zimdars tells CJR in an email, citing dead links as an example. And the longer it lingers, the more its inherently removed from its original context and other news reports that build on, clarify, and correct information over time. Some think that online outlets should do a better job of updating their archives as time goes on, and stories change. [KPIX has] left a lasting impression, says Ed Wasserman, dean of the Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley. Referring specifically to the KPIX story, Wasserman says, That was a rather dramatic inaccuracy, and they were instruments of that. They needed to circle back and say, Remember when we told you? Well, it was wrong. Although updates to older stories occasionally occur in the world broadcast news, Wasserman notes, thats usually under the threat of a lawsuit. Before it could be archived for easy access, broadcast news passed before its audience and then more or less perished. Sure, archives were accessible, but they were a chore to get to. (In the mid-00s, I worked at a company called Video Monitoring Services, whose business model was selling research copies of TV/radio segments; predictably, they have gone out of business.) Now, nearly every news segment thats been produced in the past decade is merely a few keystrokes away. We believe we are producing for contemporaneous consumption, but the reality is that we are building an imperishable archive, and were doing that on a daily basis, Wasserman says. If we believed that archive was going to be used by historians and scholars and journalists in the future, wed understand that we have an obligation to fix [stories], and not have them sit out there, as fresh as can be, for months and years to come. But we dont. So long as broadcast archives sit there without update, splintered into pieces of the grander narrative, theyll be ripe for misuseeither by neglectful journalists or by producers of propaganda. ICYMI: CNN cameraman has 40 years in the field, and the storage units to prove it Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly referred to KGO as an affiliate of CBS, rather than ABC. Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today Rick Paulas is a writer from Chicago, now based in Oakland, whose work can be found at rickpaulas.com. Duck boats like the one that sank in Branson, Missouri, killing 17 people, have a long history of safety problems and have been linked to the deaths of more than 40 people since 1999. The deadly sinking in Missouri brought back painful memories of a similar accident nearly two decades ago in Arkansas. Both duck boats had overhead roofs or canopies that the National Transportation Safety Board warned could greatly increase the risk of passengers becoming trapped in the boat and drowning. The sinking on Table Rock Lake near Branson Thursday came during stormy weather. The official cause has not been determined, but investigators initially blamed thunderstorms and winds that the National Weather Service clocked at 65 miles per hour (105 kph). On May 1, 1999, 13 people died when the Miss Majestic duck boat sank on lake Hamilton near Hot Springs, Arkansas. The NTSBs report on that accident found that roofs or canopies on duck boats greatly endanger passengers in the event of a sinking. The report said that passengers because of their natural buoyancy, especially if they are wearing life jackets can become trapped against the canopy as the vessel sinks, unable to swim down to openings along the side. Video of the duck boat in Branson just before it sank shows it not only had a roof, but windows, which some companies have added to their vessels so they can heat the cabin and extend their hours, said Robert Mongeluzzi, a Philadelphia attorney who represented families of two victims killed when a barge plowed into a stalled duck boat in the Delaware River in 2010. You need to get out of a sinking coffin with tons of water pouring in, Mongeluzzi said. Your chances of escape are not good. After the sinking in Arkansas, the NTSB recommended that the industry remove canopies from the vessels. If the vehicle had not had a canopy, the passengers would not have had a barrier to vertical escape. They would not have been trapped inside the vehicle, and fewer passengers might have been killed, the report said. General Motors developed the DUKW in 1942 to get supplies and reinforcements to World War II troops, and the amphibious vehicles became known as ducks. They were later modified for use for sightseeing in cities around the U.S. The long, narrow vehicles are shaped like boats, but have wheels they use when on land. Safety advocates have sought improvements and complained that too many agencies regulate the boats with varying safety requirements. Here are details on some fatal duck boat accidents and the conclusions reached by investigators about safety violations and needed improvements: SEATTLE Sept. 24, 2015: Five college students were killed and more than 70 people injured when a duck boat veered into a charter bus on a bridge above Seattles Lake Union. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration determined that the front axle on the boat broke, causing the driver to lose control. The vehicle had not had a recommended repair designed to prevent axle failure. Ride the Ducks of Seattle stopped using older stretch ducks after the accident and now only uses newer truck ducks. The company said it also added 365-degree video coverage and a second employee to narrate tours. PHILADELPHIA July 7, 2010: A collision on the Delaware River near Philadelphia between a stalled duck boat and a tug-boat guided barge sank the sightseeing boat, killing two Hungarian tourists and injuring more than 25 people. The NTSB found that the tugboat operator was distracted by communicating with family members on his cellphone and laptop computer. Investigators also found fault with the maintenance of the duckboat and decisions by the captain to anchor in an active navigation channel. May 8, 2015: A duck boat struck and killed 68-year-old Elizabeth Karnicki of Beaumont, Texas, as she crossed a busy Philadelphia street at rush hour. A police spokeswoman said witnesses reported that Karnicki was looking at an electronic device while walking and crossed the street against the red light when she was hit. BOSTON July 16, 2003: Sixty-three-year-old Rosemary Hamelburg fell backward off a duck boat onto a parking lot while taking a photo and died four days later. In a wrongful death lawsuit, her family and lawyers alleged that duck boat operators contributed to the death by failing to follow their own safety policies for the boarding and pre-departure process. Boston Duck Tours paid $425,000 to Hamelburgs estate to settle the suit. April 30, 2016: A duck boat ran over and killed 28-year-old Allison Warmuth as she rode on a motor scooter. Video examined by the NTSB showed the driver taking his eyes off the road and turning in his seat to point out landmarks during the tour. The accident prompted the state Legislature in Massachusetts to pass a law that now prohibits duck boat drivers from simultaneously serving as narrator and tour guide. The law also requires duck boats to be equipped with blind spot cameras and proximity sensors. ALASKA Sept. 17, 2007: A California woman died in Ketchikan, Alaska, when a duck boat hit her as she was walking on a dock. Myong S. Thayer, 59, died on the scene after the duck boat ran into her on a dock shared by vehicles and pedestrians. The driver of the vehicle was not charged. HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS May 1, 1999: A duck boat sank on Lake Hamilton near Hot Springs, Arkansas, killing 13 people. The NTSB blamed the sinking on inadequate maintenance. Investigators determined that the vessel, built by the Army in 1944, was not designed for passenger service. As a result, it did not have the proper buoyancy to remain afloat. Associated Press writers Eugene Johnson in Seattle and Jennifer Farrar in New York contributed to this report. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. More than 2,300 comments flooded the U.S. Commerce Department when it solicited public input on its investigation into whether auto imports pose a threat to national security. Buried among the doom and gloom predicted by automakers and their parts suppliers are an assortment of anxieties about unintended consequences from the edges of the industry. Here are some of the most interesting second- and third-order aftereffects of the tariffs the Trump administration is mulling on automobiles and car parts: Classic Car Collectors The business of vintage cars is a $160 billion industry employing dealers, auction houses, parts manufacturers, insurers, customs brokers, restoration shops and trucking companies. Mark Hyman, owner of St. Louis, Missouri-based dealer Hyman Ltd., warns that vehicle values would collapse if President Donald Trump were to implement 25 percent import tariffs. Hyman said that, at peak, 70 percent of his business is imported cars. He recently took delivery of a 1934 Bugatti Type 57 worth $1 million. With the additional levy Trump is said to be considering, import duties on the same vehicle would surge to $250,000, from $25,000. Thatll affect the amount of money prospective U.S. buyers will be willing to pay for cars located outside the country, he said. Auto Insurers Car insurers warn the import tariffs may drive up premiums by boosting claim costs, as parts to repair foreign vehicles will get more expensive and be harder to come by. Consumers could end up getting hit with $3.4 billion in higher premiums, according to industry trade groups. They also warn of other potential knock-on effects: more car thefts, with thieves motivated to rip off scarcely available components; drivers forgoing repairs because those would cost more than the value of their cars, spurring safety issues; and a lack of competition among suppliers that could lead to both pricier and lower-quality parts. Small Manufacturers One group Commerce may have thought it could count on to speak up in favor of the probe are smaller companies that make precision tools and metal parts, which are facing stiff competition from overseas foes. Instead, these companies say theyre already being squeezed by steel and aluminum tariffs, and warn theyre at risk of losing more business. Overseas customers are opting for local suppliers to avoid the uncertainty around U.S. trade policy, according to OneVoice, a trade group representing tooling, machining and metal-forming companies that employ about 2.6 million people, with an average of 50 employees in each shop. Copyright 2021 Bloomberg. An Oregon State University professor is using federal funds to conduct research on how embers form and spread during devastating wildfires. Assistant professor David Bluncks team is testing variables such as temperature, wind speed, timber species and branch diameter to figure out how to predict when embers will form, the Statesman Journal reported Friday. The project is being funded by the federal governments Joint Fire Science Program and the team is sharing results with the U.S. Forest Service, the newspaper reported. Wind-blown embers that jump far ahead of the fire line and start new spot fires have long been the bane of firefighters in the American West. In extreme fire weather, the blaze can create its own winds and toss embers hundreds of feet or even miles ahead of the main blaze. Last falls fire in the Columbia River Gorge jumped across the Columbia River to Washington when the wind carried an ember two miles (3.2 kilometers) across the water. That blaze burned for three months and scorched 78 square miles (202 square kilometers) before it was contained. Researchers at OSU hope their results can be used to create a model that would calculate probabilities for how many embers could form and how far away they might land. In the lab, theyve used a small-scale wind tunnel to study ember formation in dowels made of different types of timber. With a camera, we determine how long it takes for a large piece of dowel to break off, Blunck said. Ultimately, how long it takes to break off is indicative of how long it takes to generate embers. In the field, theyve burned more than 120 trees that are 12 to 14 feet (3 to 4.5 meters) tall, counting and measuring the embers that are released. The researchers also use an infrared camera to look at embers lost into the air. So far, the team has tentatively found that branch diameter is the biggest factor determining the formation of embers. Our working hypothesis now is that ponderosa generates a lot of embers because it has a very high fuel loading, or more needles, said Tyler Hudson, a graduate student in the College of Engineering who is working on the project. And, working with the Nature Conservancy of Oregon, theyve observed controlled burns in the forest. We were able to put fireproof fabric around and collect embers on that, getting data representative of an actual fire, Blunck said. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio - In August, when children begin the schoolyear at Woodridge's new elementary, they'll follow the Cuyahoga River to the railroad tracks or the Towpath Trail, or meander through woods and meadows to reach their classrooms. They'll sing and learn to play instruments against the backdrop of Blossom Music Center. They'll perform on a stage with flowing blue curtains and stone-like tile representing a waterfall in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Large, colorful murals of wildlife and the local environment will be on walls everywhere. When Woodridge Local School District officials decided to bring two elementary schools together under one roof on the same campus as the Woodridge middle and high schools, choosing a Cuyahoga Valley National Park theme was natural. "You have to take advantage of your surroundings," said Superintendent Walter Davis. "These kids have grown up in this region. It's just who we are. Having a national park identify is what we're used to." The $28 million project was launched in 2015 after passage of a 3.71 mill levy. The project included building the new elementary school, adding classroom space and a new gym at the high school and putting a new roof on the middle school. To engage the community and school employees, officials hosted school committee and community meetings, as well as input sessions with teachers and students. Regency Construction Services of Lakewood, a specialist in school construction, was brought on to represent the school district. Regency President Tari Rivera created the Junior Corps., a group of about 25 students who gave their insights on the new school. The students were chosen based on essays they wrote. Akron architectural firm Braun & Steidl was hired to create a design that would bring the national park into the school. The district also wanted the kids in preschool through fifth-grade to have space to collaborate with the older students. As a result, the elementary school classrooms are built with large, garage-style doors that roll open to a common area to allow for collaboration. "They are using the spaces every way they can for education and really grasping the idea of 21st century education," said Braun & Steidl project manager Derek Mast. "Incorporating the elementary school onto the main campus was a great idea, now all those resources are available to the whole campus." When Welty Building Co. broke ground in February, webcams were installed at the elementary and the high school so residents could follow the work live. Natural light is also featured in the elementary school design, which has two wings with two floors. Wayfinding to the four academic areas features the Towpath Trail, the Cuyahoga River, the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad and the boardwalk near Ira Road. To create the murals, actual photos of the park's wildlife and other scenes were designed into the imagery, Mast said. "I walk through at least once a day and I just stand there and shake my head," Davis said. " It's going to change the face of our district forever. The opportunities the kids will have as a result of this will be wonderful." The school district will host a ribbon cutting for the public at Woodridge Elementary School from 1-3 p.m. on Saturday, August 11 at the school campus, 4351 Quick Road. Want more Akron news? Sign up for cleveland.com's Rubber City Daily, an email newsletter delivered at 5:30 a.m. Monday through Friday. BEREA, Ohio -- Berea-Midpark High School senior Callaghan Ruebensaal will get an inside look at state government when he serves on Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine's Teen Ambassador Board for the coming school year. Ruebensaal is familiar to many government officials in multiple cities after having appeared before them during city council meetings to discuss political issues. He will meet in Columbus at least twice during his term on the board with more than 300 other student ambassadors. "For the past few years, I have been working with local and state-level politicians and community leaders, and from what I've learned, I think I can contribute to the discussions that we're having about things such as opioids and the crimes surrounding them," said Ruebensaal, a Middleburg Heights resident. "The major crisis in the state is still opioids, so that's the issue I would like to focus on." He hopes eventually to have a workable proposal for legislators. "I really want to go out there and help people," Ruebensaal said. "I don't really hope to personally gain anything, other than the experiences, and, of course, the friendships that come along with it." He was asked what young people can contribute to today's often contentious political conversation. "There's a significant culture change between people born prior to the 2000s and those born after 2000," Ruebensaal responded. "We have a lot of elderly people who are currently in political office that do not understand our young culture. It's valued insight (about teenage issues) from someone who has grown up with this social structure." A past American Legion Buckeye Boys State delegate and currently the vice president of his high school Junior Statesmen of America chapter, he appears to be pointed in the right direction toward a promising career. "I look forward to possibly being able to work in politics in the future," Ruebensaal said. The first Teen Ambassador Board meeting for this school year takes place in August. The Manila City government conducted a mandatory training for newly elected Sangguniang Kabataan officials under the SK Reformed Act before assuming their respective posts. Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada said the training of SK officials is to provide these young new leaders of their responsibilities, understand the importance of their functions, and their role in community development. The Department of the Interior and Local Government office in Manila provided technical assistance by leading the City Management Team, in coordination with the Office of the Mayor and Office of the City Administrator. All Local Government Operations Officers acted as resource persons, facilitators, documenters and admin support staff at the same time. The training covered topics, such as SK history, decentralization, and local governance, parliamentary rules applied on meetings and crafting of resolutions, planning of programs, and ethical standards for public officials and employees. Manila City DILG Director lawyer Rolynne A Javier said the training will help provide the necessary skills as government workers before assuming their posts as SK officials.Republic Act 10742 or the SK Reform Act is required and those who would not be able to attend the training cannot assume their position, Javier warned. For his part, Mayor Estrada vowed full support and guidance to all newly elected SK officials as he asked them their full cooperation to meet the city governments programs for the betterment of Manilenos. At least 4,882 participants attended the seminars, with 499 not attending. Estrada said the DILG would give continuous education for the newly elected SK officials, mainly to teach them on their role as public servants. CLEVELAND, Ohio - There are only 24 hours left to vote in the first round of Cleveland's Best Barbecue contest. Vote in the poll below. Note: Results have been hidden the final 24 hours to increase suspense. We narrowed reader nominations to 40 restaurants for this poll but only the Top 20 will make it to the final round. Will your favorite spot make it to the finals? You can help them by voting. You're invited to vote once per hour. These last 24 hours of voting will make the difference for some places, as the standings are close. It's a tight race for the last few spots, with less than .39 percent of votes separating No. 18 and No. 23 as of Monday morning at 9:00. The last three in at that time were Butch's Saloon, of North Royalton, Samosky's Homestyle Pizzeria of Valley City, and Open Pitt BBQ Carryout of Cleveland. The first three out were The Rib Cage Smokehouse of Cleveland Heights, Smokin' Rock N Roll of Bay Village and Moosehead BBQ Grill of Amherst. The restaurants are listed below in alphabetical order. You need to scroll all the way down and click the "Vote" button, then scroll up and enter the captcha code in order for your vote to be counted. Anything can still happen in this race for one of the Top 20 spots. Who we go visit will be up to you and the votes. Right now it looks like we will be making a trip to Chesterland, Macedonia and Valley City to name a few. Will we also be making a trip to Amherst, Cuyahoga Falls and Walton Hills? Your votes will decide. A reminder that there's one new poll feature for today -- results are hidden the final 24 hours to increase suspense. All our contestants are local establishments or Ohio-only chains. Here are important details: INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- City Council will soon be voting on whether to put on the November ballot a multi-family housing ordinance that has previously failed five different times. The ordinance would allow City Council to permit multi-family housing developments in planned unit development districts within the city. The types of housing could include multi-family dwellings, attached single-family dwellings and cluster subdivisions. Planned unit development (PUD) is a term that refers to a specific type of development, as well as to the process that allows a developer to meet community density and land-use goals without being limited by existing zoning requirements. Independence has PUDs downtown and on Rockside Road. Mayor Anthony Togliatti said he believes voters have rejected the issue in the past "because residents of Independence appear to prefer the single-family home structure that has existed since the city's inception. Negative votes in the past illustrate an unwillingness to change." Two areas in the city would be used for PUD if the ballot issue were to pass. The first is the site of the former Independence Middle School on Brecksville Road, which the city owns. The second is a 33-acre site the city owns in the northwest quadrant of Rockside Road. There are currently no specific plans for the type of housing that would be built there. The ordinance would allow multi-family proposals to come before City Council, who would then approve or disapprove the development proposals. The proposals would come from developers looking to build attached housing units. Councilman Carl Asseff is in favor of the ordinance. He said that elderly residents looking to downsize but stay in Independence currently have nowhere to go. He said that if they were to leave Independence, the city would lose the history and experience those residents bring. He added that it also would offer housing options for children of elderly residents who want to move back to Independence to be near their parents. Asseff also acts as the chairman of the Economic Growth and Development committee. He said: "It is critical for Independence to move forward in time. We have not had population growth in 20 years. "[The city] can either die a little or grow a little," he said. Asseff said residents have voted against this ordinance when it has appeared on the ballot not because of the housing, but because of the people they think it will draw. In the city's monthly publication, which includes updates from the latest City Council meeting, Asseff was quoted as saying: "Spring brings daffodils and the no multi-family housing signs arising. The sign on Pleasant Valley is back with us and so far, the 13 signs along Chestnut have not sprung up. There is no valid reason for these signs to be here in Independence. They are based on fear, phobias, prejudices, and racism. I consider a vote against this change as a racist vote. This is my opinion." Several Independence residents came to the July City Council meeting to express their concerns about Asseff's opinion, as well as the multi-family housing issue in general. During the audience participation portion, resident Hanna Harp said that Asseff's comments were "jeering, tasteless and offensive." She said the city had given its residents no education on the number of homes or the pros and cons of multi-family homes. "Give me facts and data to make an intelligent decision," Harp said. She said she is concerned that multi-family housing opens the door to people without the financial resources to live in the city. A Pleasant Valley Road resident said they felt singled out by Asseff's mention of the Pleasant Valley Road sign. The resident said their neighbors do not take care of their yard and that some people in the city are gifted homes that they can't afford to care for. Asseff said in response to this resident's comments: "Those signs are racist. I have been an Independence physician for 12 years and see where [the opinions] are coming from. Some high office employee types make statements that are not conducive to blended American citizens. That is what I stated; I did not call [the residents] racist. If they want to beat me up, I've got tough skin." Togliatti gave his view on multi-family housing within the city by saying: "The city of Independence has been extremely successful with only single-family homes in residential districts. However, many residents desire maintenance-free living, which single-family housing does not provide. This alternative housing would provide for maintenance-free living for many residents who desire it." City Council will vote on the ordinance at a special council meeting on July 31, following the 4:30 p.m. council workshop. The ordinance requires a super majority vote of 5 to 2 to send the ordinance to the Board of Elections for the Nov. 6 ballot. INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- Independence police officers recently solved a type of crime that is incredibly difficult to investigate. Two suspects -- a man and a woman -- had been breaking into vehicles throughout Cuyahoga, Summit and Medina counties and stealing items. On July 4, Independence police officers were able to track them down. Several thefts from autos were reported in Independence at the end of June. These thefts took place in the parking lots of several offices and hotels on Rockside Road. After following up with one of the victims, police found that the victim's credit card had been stolen. The credit card was tracked to see where it had been used. The officers found the Independence businesses where the card had been used, and asked stores to see their surveillance tapes. While not sure at the time whether the male and female suspects seen together in the tapes were the perpetrators, officers took still shots from the videos and sent them out to other police stations in Northeast Ohio. The Medina County sheriff saw the still photos and notified Independence police that his deputies had seen the suspects' vehicle with the same people from the surveillance videos. Independence police tracked down the license plate and were able to call the female suspect's father to confirm that it was her vehicle. She and her boyfriend had been driving in the car. Her boyfriend was found to be a wanted felon in New York. On July 4, Officer Jim Green located the suspects' car at the La Quinta Inn on Quarry Lane in Independence. After Green positively identified the car, other Independence officers were called to respond to the scene. Officers forced themselves into the suspects' hotel room, and both suspects resisted arrest. Officers found numerous gift cards, wallets with credit cards, and drug paraphernalia. When arrested, the male suspect was found to have a tool used to break car windows in his possession. Both suspects were charged with multiple felonies. The suspects are being held in custody and the man has holds on him from the New York state department correctional facility. "The detectives and patrol officers showed an excellent example of a team effort. These are incredibly difficult crimes to solve, because there is usually little physical evidence to develop suspects," Independence Police Chief Michael Kilbane said. He said other cities are trying to connect these suspects to similar crimes in their areas. As for the rest of us: "Don't leave your valuables in your car, even if it's locked," Kilbane said. "It is tempting for these kinds of criminals." MEDINA, Ohio -- "We occupy space on this Earth, and community service is the rent that we pay for the space that we're permitted to occupy. I think we all have an obligation -- a debt to repay. I think that's been the way I've looked at serving my community." -- Ralph Waite At 92 years young, Waite has not just dabbled in community service; he has devoted years of passionate, active involvement through a variety of personal commitments and community organizations. As of this week, he and his wife, Helen, will have been married for 70 years. During that time, he has been an active member of the Medina Rotary for over 50 years; served as chief contact for the Rotary Youth Exchange Program for 25 years; served as Scoutmaster for Boy Scout Troop 501 for more than 30 years; and was a Buckeye Boys State commissioner for more than 40 years. This section of Ralph Waite's elaborate model train setup on the second floor of Waite & Sons Funeral Home in Medina features a miniature Boy Scout Camp Manatoc and the old Chippewa Lake amusement park. (Mary Jane Brewer, special to cleveland.com) Ralph Waite was born in Medina in 1926 -- and he still lives in the house in which he was born. When he was just 8 years old, he was stocking shelves at Pelton's Grocery Store when his father came in to tell him that his mother had died. He and his 6-year-old sister, Janice, were taken under the wing of the Pelton family and their eight children -- his mother, Violet, had been a Pelton. That early loss of his mother caused him to have great compassion for other children who had lost their parents. While he was a student at Medina High School, he met his future wife, Helen Clark, when they both played in the band -- he on the clarinet, and she as a drummer. Here's a larger view of Ralph Waite's model train village version of Medina. (Mary Jane Brewer, special to cleveland.com) During his sophomore year, the United States joined World War II following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. As soon as he graduated in June 1944, he joined the Army and was shipped to France on the Queen Mary. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge as a member of the 99 th Infantry Field Artillery. During his military service, his feet were frozen, and he spent time recovering in a Paris hospital. When he returned to Medina at the end of the war, he graduated from the Cleveland College of Mortuary Science in 1949 and joined Waite & Son Funeral Home , a business founded by his grandfather, Herbert Waite, in 1902. From 1950 to 1960, he also drove a Medina school bus. From 1966 to 1974, he served on the Medina City Schools Board of Education. He co-founded the Medina City Schools Foundation in 1984. In 1952, he joined Medina Rotary and began overseeing its Youth Exchange Program. During his leadership, more than 50 boys and girls from Medina County took part in exchange visits to promote international understanding. During that time, another 100 foreign students came here to Medina. The Waites themselves hosted 10 students from seven countries. A huge supporter of the Boy Scout program, Waite served as Scoutmaster of Troop 501 for 36 years. He served as a Boys State commissioner from 1968 to the early 2000s, heading Boys State City Government for several years. In his honor, a "city" at Miami University's Boys State is named Waite City. Always devoted to his family, Ralph and Helen have twin sons, Harold and Darrell, born in 1950. The family now includes six grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. After working with their dad at the funeral home for many years, the twins have retired and turned the business over to their sons, Andrew and Christopher - the fifth generation to provide funeral service to Medina County. On the second floor of the Waite Funeral Home is a large room that holds mementos of Ralph Waite's long, productive life. An elaborate model train layout holds Lionel buildings that have been personalized to represent Waite's past -- there are buildings labeled Waite Funeral Home, Medina Hospital, a small amusement park with a Chippewa Lake sign, Elm Farm Dairy, Boy Scout Camp Manatoc with little white tents, the AI Root Company, etc. A wall is devoted to 49 framed Norman Rockwell prints that portray Scouting scenes. There's also a 1915 photo of his grandfather on the roof of a Boy Scout cabin and a 1918 picture of the funeral home's first motorized hearse next to the business' early home at 805 E. Market St. in Akron. Boy Scouts and third-graders from Ralph E. Waite Elementary School visit the displays to learn about the Waite history and the importance of trains in U.S. history. Waite was recognized for his outstanding service to the Medina schools and community in 2009 when the new elementary school was named in his honor. This week, on July 23 , the Waites celebrated 70 years of marriage, surrounded by their family. At one point in the past Waite said, "If I had my whole life to do over again, I wouldn't change a thing." This is one in a series of stories about Medina County's Local Legends. Featured stories Car crashes onto Burke Lakefront Airport runway (WJW Channel 8) Woman dies from Legionnaires' disease in Parma (WOIO Channel 19) Medina County jail inmate escapes from ambulance (cleveland.com) Crime Cleveland police say boy, 13, wounded in shooting (cleveland.com) Shooting victim walks up to Cleveland firefighters seeking help (cleveland.com) Man shot in hip on highway on Cleveland's East Side (cleveland.com) Independence police arrest theft-from-auto suspects wanted in other counties (cleveland.com) Cleveland / Cuyahoga County 'One day, I may save someone's life': Urban gunshot response team poised to react (cleveland.com) Bleeding to death can take minutes: Local bystanders learn life-saving intervention (cleveland.com) Stop the Bleed: How battlefield first aid got to U.S. streets (cleveland.com) Lessons from a Stop the Bleed class (cleveland.com) Local news East Granted asylum twice, Ansly Damus still sits in a Geauga jail (cleveland.com) Akron / Canton area Tiger Woods qualifies for final WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron (cleveland.com) Copley couple are part of three-way kidney swap to save multiple lives (Akron Beacon Journal) CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland is one of 16 finalists in Soar With Reading, a contest in which JetBlue will donate $25,000 in children's books as part of an effort to promote youth reading. Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, the city of Cleveland, Cleveland schools and the Kids' Book Bank have teamed with the airline for the contest. In addition to the book donation, JetBlue will provide a reading room makeover for a local library or community organization in the city that gets the most votes. Online voting in the Soar With Reading contest ends Aug. 31. The other 15 cities competing with Cleveland are: Atlanta, Georgia; Burlington, Vermont; Buffalo, New York; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Hartford, Connecticut; Jacksonville, Florida; La Romana, Dominican Republic; Long Beach, California; Nassau, Bahamas; Orlando, Florida; Palm Springs, California; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Quito, Ecuador; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Worcester, Massachusetts. All are JetBlue market areas. JetBlue launched its Soar with Reading program in 2011 with a goal of putting books in the hands of youngsters in underserved communities. Since 2015, the airline also has located vending machines in major cities to distribute free books to children. San Francisco was the winner in the 2018 #bookbattle. JetBlue announced in June it would place five vending machines that will dispense 100,000 books in community centers, Boys and Girls Clubs and libraries in the San Francisco Bay area. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Police are investigating after a 13-year-old boy was wounded Sunday afternoon in a shooting on the East Side. Few details have been released on the shooting, which occurred on the 3300 block of East 66th Street near Regent Park in the North Broadway neighborhood. The teen was shot in the leg, but his condition is unknown. Police did not say if there is a known motive or if there are suspects, It's the second shooting involving a teen this weekend in Cleveland. On Saturday, a 14-year-old girl was wounded in the hip on Dellenbaugh Avenue near East 72nd Street the Hough neighborhood. Police did not release the condition of the girl, who was taken to University Hospitals. If you'd like to comment on this post, please visit the cleveland.com crime and courts comments section. LORAIN, Ohio - The owner of 21 large dogs seized last week from an apartment in the city is expected to appear in municipal court Tuesday afternoon to determine if there is enough evidence to justify the action. The 20 cane corsos and one Brazilian mastiff were taken July 17 from an apartment on East 28th Street by Lorain police and the Lorain County dog warden and turned over to the Friendship APL in Elyria. Lorain Ptl. Richard Broz said they acted on a tip that the dogs were kept in "filthy conditions" in cages in the apartment. When he arrived, the heat and odor were overwhelming, Broz said. "There was no electricity in the apartment and no water for the dogs, which were kept in cages," Broz said. "It was more than 100 degrees in there and there was no ventilation." It did not appear that there were any people living in the apartment, according to police. Tuesday's "probable cause" hearing is set for 1:30 p.m. at Lorain Municipal Court. The judge will determine if police acted properly in seizing the dogs and whether the dogs should remain in the custody of the Animal Protective League or be returned to the owner. The judge's ruling will also determine whether the case will be turned over to the city prosecutor, who will consider charging the owner with cruelty to companion animals, a fifth degree felony. A conviction of one count is punishable by a maximum of six months to a year in jail and a fine. Attempts by The Plain Dealer to reach the owner were unsuccessful. Meanwhile, the dogs are at the APL in Elyria where executive director Gregory Willey said they are doing well. "These look like they were being bred," he said. "Some are in good shape, others less so. Some have dermatitis (skin) issues, some eye problems on some that may need surgery. Others have scars from bites probably received during mating. Most of them are really sweet. These dogs can be up to 125 pounds, most of these are smaller. Some even seem to have been deliberately bred to be a smaller size, like 75 pounds." Willey said most of the dogs are very friendly and well-adjusted to people. Corsos are popular dogs and generally sell for between $1,400 and $3,000 each, he said. "They are dogs people want for protection," Willey said. "I mean, who is going to break into a house with a dog that size on guard? They are very smart and tend to be extremely loyal to their owners. They are very social dogs." Willey said if the owner gives up the dogs, they will be spread out among rescue groups and shelters. "We just can't handle them all," he said. "They need some socialization before being adopted out, but most seem to be nice dogs." One of the larger dogs bit Broz as they were rounding them up, but the bite was deemed not serious. He said the dog was probably reacting from fear, not from viciousness. Willey said they are extra careful with the Brazilian mastiff, a massive dog that seems a bit aggressive. "These are the scariest dogs on Earth," Willey said. "They were used for tracking down runaway slaves in Brazil and are actually banned in some countries. He will require a lot of training." Cane corsos, also known as Italian Mastiffs, are generally not used for fighting but "dog aggression (often very serious) can still be a problem. He should be thoroughly socialized with other dogs from an early age," states the website www.yourpurebredpuppy.com/ Before any of the dogs can be put up for adoption the case must go through the court system. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Fifty years ago, gunshots marked the start of five days of riots in Cleveland's Glenville neighborhood. Mayor Carl Stokes delivered a television message warning people not to venture outside. The city established a curfew. For a period, only black police officers and community leaders could go in and out of the East Side neighborhood. Thousands of members of the Ohio National Guard were called in. In the first night, seven people were killed, and 15 were wounded. Homes and businesses sustained millions of dollars in damages. The riots occurred three months after the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.. Riots and protests took place all over the country. The events in Glenville happened almost exactly two years after the Hough Riots, where four people were killed and 50 were injured. After a string of racially-charged conflicts at a local white-owned bar, hundreds of people gathered outside of it and attempted to burn it down. Afterwards, people began looting nearby stores. The neighborhood, long-plagued with issues related to poverty and segregation, was devastated. Stokes, the city's first black mayor, was elected in 1967. He was the first elected black mayor of a major city, and officials hoped he could help alleviate tension in Cleveland. The shootout The Glenville shootout began on July 23, when police were called about an abandoned car, according to the Cleveland Memory Project. Police sent a tow truck. When a tow truck driver went to the car, he was shot by black nationalist snipers. It's not clear who shot first. Narratives conflict over what exactly happened. Three policemen were killed, along with one civilian and three suspects. The black nationalist group was led by Fred "Ahmed" Evans, who was later tried and convicted for seven counts of first-degree murder in relationship to the shootout. Read more about it from the Cleveland Memory Project here. The riots Hundreds began rioting that night, and Stokes pulled white police officers from the neighborhood, though he ordered them back in a day or so later. The mayor called in the Ohio National Guard, with thousands of guardsmen coming to Cleveland to try and control the looting, violence and arson. According to Case Western Reserve University's Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, nobody else died. Plain Dealer columnist Phillip Morris spoke to a friend who remembered the shootout and the riots that followed. "Seeing that tank coming down the street changed my life forever, man. I was waiting to catch a ride to a summer school class, when the tank rolled right by me," the man, named Thomas, told Morris. Read their conversation here. Peace was eventually restored on July 28. During the riots, 63 businesses were damaged, totaling $2.6 million in losses, according to the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. Take a look at some photos from the riots from the Cleveland Memory Project archives above. Caption information is from the Memory Project. Cleveland State's Levin College Forum will hold a panel on Monday about the riots at 4 p.m. featuring: Edward P. Kovacic, retired chief of the Cleveland Police Department Dick Peery, former Glenville residents Chenoa Miller and Norma Freeman Sergeant Vincent Montague, president of the Black Shield, the African-American Cleveland police union For more information, click here. Read more about the riots and their impact: MEDINA, Ohio -- A Medina County Jail inmate may have taken an Uber to a relative's house after he jumped out an ambulance during a medical furlough Sunday afternoon, authorities said. Joshua Bragg, 26, of Medina, unbuckled himself from a cot in the back of an ambulance just before 5:45 p.m. outside Cleveland Clinic-Medina Hospital, then got out of the ambulance and ran away, the Medina County Sheriff's Office said. Authorities found him five hours later at a relative's house in Newburgh Heights. Investigators are still trying to determine how Bragg got from Medina to Newburgh Heights, but he may have taken an Uber, Medina County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Kenneth Baca said Monday. Bragg is now charged with escape in the incident, Baca said. Bragg had been jailed on a charge of cocaine possession before going to the hospital for an undisclosed medical issue, the sheriff's office said. Ambulance workers were preparing to take Bragg back to jail when he said, "What are you going to do if I try to escape?" The ambulance workers responded "Please don't," but Bragg unbuckled himself from a cot and jumped from the ambulance, authorities said. The ambulance workers went back into the hospital and called police. A Medina County Sheriff's sergeant said ambulance workers did the right thing in not trying to stop Bragg. Authorities searched for Bragg in a wooded area just north of the hospital between Foote Road, Woodland Drive and Ohio 3 but did not find him. Newburgh Heights police found and arrested him about 11 p.m. at a relative's house in the 4000 block of East 54th Street in Newburgh Heights, Baca said. Baca said medical furloughs are coordinated between the jail's hospital staff and local emergency care. Inmates are not typically escorted by law enforcement unless they face serious charges. To comment on this story, please visit our crime and courts comments section. Dumaguete CityNegros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo and town mayors, headed by League of Municipalities-Negros Oriental chapter president Mayor Edsel Enardecido of Ayungon, are one in supporting President Rodrigo Dutertes directive to localize the conduct of peace initiatives after talks between the Philippine government and the National Democratic Front bogged down. The expression of support came amid criticisms and claims by militant and cause-oriented groups that the localized peace initiative is bound to fail. Degamo announced over the weekend that he is confident that genuine peace will be achieved in the province because the government is doing its best to deliver the basic services needed by the people especially in the hinterland barangays. The governor is of strong belief that waging war is not a solution to the insurgency problem as evidenced by the fact that it has existed for more than 40 years. Enardecido also expressed belief that Communist Party of the Philippines leader Jose Maria Sison is not anymore in full control of the rebel movement. It is best that local mayors be given the authority to negotiate peace with rebels in their respective areas of jurisdictions, he said.Enardecido, however, has apprehensions as to the so-called packages for rebel-surrenderees in the absence of clear-cut guidelines regarding fund sources. He said until today, what is due the beneficiaries of the closure agreement on the peace talks between the Revolutionary Proletarian Army-Alex Boncayao Brigade and the government has not been fully released. For his part, Mayor Ernesto T. Uy of Mabinay wants a template on how to go about the localized peace initiative, including the procedure, saying that the Commission on Audit should be involved in this undertaking. He said for the last three years, the intelligence fund of the municipality remained unutilized because of strict CoA regulations. Uy wants CoA to make it clear where the budget for peace and security can be drawn from. MEDINA, Ohio -- Law-enforcement officials have a Medina County jail inmate back in custody after he jumped out of an ambulance Sunday while on a medical furlough. Sheriff's Department Sgt. David Pries says Joshua Bragg, 26, of Medina, unbuckled himself from a cot in the back of an ambulance and ran from the vehicle while at Cleveland Clinic-Medina Hospital. Sunday night, officials were searching for Bragg in a wooded area just north of the hospital between Foote Road, Woodland Drive and Ohio 3, Pries said. A sheriff's dispatcher confirmed Monday morning that Bragg is back in custody, but further details were not available. Bragg is in jail on a charge of possession of cocaine. Pries said ambulance workers were about to transport Bragg back to the jail at 5:44 p.m. when he said, "What are you going to do if I try to escape?" The ambulance workers responded "Please don't," but Bragg unbuckled himself and jumped from the ambulance. The workers went back into the hospital and called police. Pries said the ambulance workers did the right thing in not trying to physically stop Bragg. The sheriff's office, Medina police, Medina Township police, Montville Township police and State Highway Patrol were involved in the search Sunday night. If you'd like to comment on this post, please visit the cleveland.com crime and courts comments section. TOLEDO, Ohio -- Police shot and killed a suspect after a reported robbery at a Dollar General in which another man was stabbed to death. WTVG Channel 13 reports the suspect, Dale Slocum, 57, died of his wounds at the University of Toledo Medical Center. Slocum is accused of entering a Dollar General in south Toledo just after 10 p.m. Saturday night. According to WTOL Channel 11, police say Slocum stabbed Tommy Thacker, 53, of Maumee, Ohio, and Thacker's wife during the robbery. Thacker died of his wounds while his wife was not seriously injured. Slocum ran from the store as police arrived, reports say. WTOL reports Slocum was confronted by police behind the store and was shot by an officer. No Dollar General employees were injured in the robbery. If you'd like to comment on this post, please visit the cleveland.com crime and courts comments section. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A second person died after a crash that followed a State Highway Patrol chase early Saturday on Cleveland's East Side, officials said. Ashley Martin, 25, was a passenger in a car that crashed into a pole just before 1:15 a.m. on East 124th Street at St. Clair Avenue. She died Saturday after paramedics took her to University Hospitals, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office said. The crash also killed Antonio Whitely, 30, and injured a 17-year-old boy, the Highway Patrol said in a news release. The teen's injuries were described as "non-incapacitating." A Highway Patrol sergeant stopped chasing the car shortly before it crashed, the agency said in the news release. The sergeant tried to stop a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica when he saw it run a red light at 1:11 a.m. on St. Clair Avenue at East 93rd Street. The driver refused to stop and sped away, the Highway Patrol said. The sergeant ended the chase when the car ran another red light at East 110th Street, the Highway Patrol said. Minutes later, the sergeant saw a crowd gathered near Gas U.S.A. on St. Clair Avenue at East 123rd Street. The crowd informed him the car crashed into a utility pole. Investigators determined the car went left-of-center, then over-corrected and went off the right side of the road, the Highway Patrol said. Whitely was pronounced dead at the scene, the Highway Patrol said. Neither the driver nor the two passengers were wearing seat belts, the Highway Patrol said. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Firefighters on a scene Sunday evening ended up helping a shooting victim who walked up to them after being wounded, police say. Police spokesman Det. Reginald Lanton says the 21-year-old male victim approached firefighters on the 1000 block of East 168th Street, just east of Humphrey Park near the Waterloo Arts District and North Collinwood neighborhoods. Lanton said the male had been wounded in the side in a possible drive-by shooting at a different location. Lanton did not say where the shooting might have occurred. An ambulance was called to the scene for the shooting victim, whose condition was not released. The incident remains under investigation. If you'd like to comment on this post, please visit the cleveland.com crime and courts comments section. CLEVELAND, Ohio - A single mother who spent more than a year looking after the home in foreclosure next door to her well-maintained property says she feels misled by Cleveland Councilman Ken Johnson, whom she turned to for help. She had hoped to renovate the abandoned home for her son, but in the end, it went to the councilman and his son. The woman, who asked that I not identify her by name because she didn't want to draw attention to her well-known employer, says she told Johnson of her plans. She was already occasionally cutting the overgrown grass and bushes of the property. The woman says she stayed in contact with Johnson, who along with the Buckeye Shaker Square Development Corporation, is the gatekeeper to foreclosed homes that wind up in the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Corporation, a land bank that helps manage abandoned properties. She says Johnson told her that he has a good relationship with BSSDC and would keep her posted on the home's availability. As she pressed him about the property, she says he told her that his son was in line to buy it. In the summer of 2016, she said Johnson said in a text message that the house had a potential radon gas problem that was delaying her son's decision. He told her to hold tight for a few months for a final decision. Then one day in the spring of 2017, shortly after the property was transferred from the land bank to BSSDC, the woman saw a group of people hanging out on the porch of the house next door and asked what was going on. She said a man, who identified himself as Johnson's son, said his father had bought the house for him. "I'm was confused," she told me this week, believing that the councilman had not been straight with her. "He snowballed me the whole time." The woman recounted her version of events after reading my recent story about how Johnson's son is living rent-free in the home, which is still owned by BSSDC. The story also pointed out that BSSDC relies on federal earmarks from Johnson. The woman said comments in my story made by Johnson and BSSDC contradict what she was told. "He lied about the radon gas to deter me from pursuing the house," fumed the woman, who produced for me the text message from Johnson that confirms her exchange. Indeed, there are several elements of Johnson's and BSSCD's version of events that don't add up. Johnson told me recently that his son stepped in because nobody else wanted the house. Clearly, the woman I interviewed was interested. And I toured her home, which she has lived in since 1994 and which showed investment in quality upgrades, suggesting she would be a good steward of the neighboring house. John Hopkins, executive director of BSSDC, told me earlier that the nonprofit had a developer interested in the house, but that the deal fell through at the last minute. That's when Johnson's son expressed interest in the property, he said. Hopkins said at the time that BSSDC had no formal agreement yet with Johnson or his son but is working out a lease-to-own option. Johnson told me that his son was still living mainly with him. Hopkins said that Johnson's son is house sitting at the Becket house to protect it from vandals during renovation. The woman told me that Johnson's son has been living in the house since this past spring. Another neighbor, Rowland Mitchell, a retired police officer, also said Johnson's son has been living in the house on Becket. He said he saw a couch and other items delivered to the house in a truck branded with the councilman's name. (These are city-owned trucks used exclusively by BSSCD.) Mitchell told me that he ran for Johnson's council seat last year in part because he believed Johnson plays favorites and exerts too much control over the BSSDC. From the adjoining property, I saw furnishings and personal items through the windows of the Becket house, which suggests to me that Johnson's son is doing more than house sitting. If Johnson's son is living there, the city of Cleveland should have an occupancy permit on file, which I have requested. (As of Friday, the city had not said whether such a permit exists.) The woman and Mitchell both questioned Johnson's assertion that he and his son spent $30,000 on the house and that they need to invest another $40,000. The woman said the house needed work - some electrical work and interior painting - and that it had suffered a small fire in the basement. She said the Johnsons replaced a facia board under the roof line to keep raccoons out. I called Johnson Friday to let him address the neighbors' complaints. I'll update the story when I hear back from him. The only thing that is clear right now is that BSSDC's handling of the property doesn't appear to follow best practices of community development corporations. Typically, community development corporations strike formal agreements with potential property owners that spell out the expected investments and a sales price -- before anyone moves in. Gus Frangos, president of the county land bank, said his organization has placed a moratorium on properties going to the BSSDC because of its failures to develop properties. BSSDC's board should be investigating the backstory of the Becket transaction. Residents of the Ludlow neighborhoods, which includes the house on Becket, certainly deserve more clarity from the councilman and Hopkins. Rotunda Rumblings Public safety proposal: Democrat Steve Dettelbach, who is running for attorney general, unveiled several policy proposals to increase support for local law enforcement and victims of crime. Among them: restoring state budget cuts to police training and removing some of the barriers crime victims have to obtaining compensation under state law. Dettelbach told cleveland.com's Jackie Borchardt that police and crime victims should be top priorities for the state. Out-of-this-world: Neil Armstrong's family is selling on auction 2,000 of his personal possessions, and cleveland.com's Laura Hancock offers some pictures of midcentury memorabilia from his time with NASA. All the buzz: U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, a Democrat from Niles, explained in a CNN op-ed why he supports the legalization of marijuana in all 50 states. Cleveland.com's Seth Richardson explains that Ryan is co-sponsoring a bill that would remove marijuana from its federal designation as a Schedule I drug. Jobless rate down: Ohio's June unemployment rate was 4.5 percent, lower than June 2017, when it was 5.1 percent, according to new state figures. However, the Plain Dealer's Olivera Perkins reports that it's higher than the national average of 4 percent. Treading water: Gov. John Kasich's plans to fight toxic algae blooms in Lake Erie are on hold, after the Ohio Soil and Water Conservation Commission agreed to further study the issue, according to the Associated Press. Stormy hearing: Opponents to a Lake Erie wind energy project were outnumbered by supporters at a state hearing in Cleveland, but the Plain Dealer's James F. McCarty reports the critics repeated concerns about turbine blades killing birds and bats. They said they were concerned the project would open Lake Erie up to 1,000 or more wind turbines in the future. 'A waste of taxpayer money:' The cleveland.com editorial board is the latest to condemn the "independent" investigation of state Rep. Bill Seitz for sexual harassment. The law firm that investigated Seitz employed him for 36 years, and its PAC had given his campaign $1,000. Richardson writes: Democratic Treasurer candidate Rob Richardson has sent letters to three pharmaceutical companies, asking them to reverse medication price hikes and take action to mitigate Ohio's opioid crisis. What can the treasurer's office do about it? In the letter to Pfizer, Richardson threatens to divest the state-run pooled investment program's stake in the company: "I intend to carefully consider whether or not to maintain financial ties with any institution that fails to invest in Ohio's future. Clyde's stride: In this week's Ohio Matters podcast by cleveland.com, state Rep. Kathleen Clyde, who is running for secretary of state as a Democrat, shares experiences from serving in the legislature and how she represents a swing district. New lessons: Ron Packard, former CEO of the controversial K12 Inc., an e-school operator, shared with the Plain Dealer's Patrick O'Donnell how he's going to better run his new venture in the state, the Ohio Distance and Electronic Learning Academy, which he recently acquired, including fewer advertisements and more in-person meetings between teachers and students. Brown ahead... in fundraising: Cleveland.com's Andrew Tobias looked at campaign finance reports and found U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown raised nearly six times as much money in the Senate race as his Republican challenger U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci, among other figures. Love for Kasich: Tobias also notes that Cleveland Cavaliers owner Gordon Gund gave Gov. John Kasich's super PAC $100,000 last year. BuzzFeed's Henry Gomez describes others who opened their wallets to Kasich. Flip flop - and not the shoe: Politifact weighed in on the debate over whether Republican governor hopeful Mike DeWine flip flopped in his views on Medicaid expansion. The fact-checkers concluded that DeWine did flip flop, considering he formerly opposed it. A person, not an insurance company: Aftab Pureval, the Democrat challenging U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot in Ohio's first congressional district, told the New York Times that during his first run for office, people quacked at him, thinking it was funny to associate him with the Aflac insurance brand. The Times story looked at how ethnic minority candidates in majority white congressional districts campaign. Thrill ride: It's been nearly a year since the deadly Fireball amusement ride fatality at the Ohio State Fair, but victims and safety advocates say the state has done little to ensure a similar accident doesn't happen again, according to the Columbus Dispatch. The Ohio Department of Agriculture hasn't hired any new ride inspectors, although the department says they'll do more this year, and a safety bill introduced in the legislature has languished. A reprieve: Kasich on Friday announced he was commuting the death sentence of Raymond Tibbets to life in prison, the Cincinnati Enquirer's Jesse Balmert and Dan Horn report. Kasich also delayed Cleveland Jackson's execution on Friday. Children leave home: A Columbus children's treatment center entered an agreement with the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services to discharge its patients after an investigation found children were pushed, kicked and given other interventions that are not therapeutic. Officials at Heritage of Hannah Neil, a 40-bed center for troubled children, are expected to work with the state to improve, the Dispatch reports. Trade war hitting home? A U.S. Chamber of Commerce report concludes Ohio is 7th of the states hit hardest by the tariffs on Canada, Mexico, the Dispatch reports. Full Disclosure Five things we learned from the May 15 financial disclosure statement of Sen. David Burke, a Marysville Republican. 1. Burke is a pharmacist at Dave's Pharmacy in Marysville, where last year he earned $50,000 to $99,999. He also reported earning $50,000 to $99,999 each from being a managing member of D & D Asset Management LLC, from an investment account with Schwab Wealth Management, from two Marysville rental properties and from the sale of Bitcoin. 2. He earned $100,000 or more as a shareholder from Pharmaceutical Synergy Inc. He earned $64,760 as a state senator in 2017, according to the Ohio Treasurer's office. 3. At some point in 2017, he owed at least $1,000 to BMW Financial. 4. He has a pension with the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. He also has investments with Fidelity, among other companies. Last year, he owned stock in tobacco and cigarette manufacturer Altria, CenturyLink, ExxonMobil, Huntington National Bank, Citigroup, WellsFargo and other companies. 5. He is chairman of the Ohio Republican Senate Campaign Committee. Straight From The Source "I'll send a copy of the constitution to @phh4Toledo @joefortoledo @ABLELawInc @ToledoCouncil @IgnazioMessina @BladeOpinion so they can save taxpayers from their costly mistakes in the future." -State Rep. Derek Merrin, a Toledo-area Republican, on Twitter commenting on a Toledo Blade story about a judge who is prohibiting Toledo and the local health department from enforcing a controversial lead-safe rental law. Merrin is a real estate investor outside the legislature. Capitol Letter is a daily briefing providing succinct, timely information for those who care deeply about the decisions made by state government. If you do not already subscribe, you can sign up here to get Capitol Letter in your email box each weekday for free. CLEVELAND, Ohio - Wow Air this morning launched a sale on flights from Cleveland to Reykjavik, Iceland, with fares starting at $99 one way. The fares, available to purchase now, are good for travel between August 6 and October 26. The sale is part of a larger promotion for the airline, which flies from Iceland to 13 U.S. cities. A quick check online showed the low fares for numerous upcoming dates, including Aug. 8, 13, 15, 17, 29 and 26; Sept. 17 and 30, Oct. 8 and 15. Return flights appeared to be priced somewhat higher, starting at $130. The airline notes that September and October are considered the start of the Northern Lights season in Iceland. Wow Air is one of two Iceland-based airlines that started flying between Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and Reykjavik in May; the other is Icelandair. Wow flies the route four days a week: Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The carrier is noted for its low fares and high fees, including extra charges for baggage, seat assignments, food and more. For information: wowair.com. But the question remains: What should you do when corporate leadership of a brand you like behaves in an unacceptable way? Consumers today have high expectations of the companies to which they give their hard-earned money. In a July 2018 report by analysts at Mintel , 87 percent of people surveyed agreed that "companies should always do the right thing, even if it isn't required by law." Overwhelming majorities also agreed that consumers "expect brands to be honest" and that "brands should operate in a socially responsible way." Schnatter may be one of the most recent examples of corporate malfeasance, but public ire toward companies and their executives is nothing new: In 2017, we saw a drumbeat of stories about Uber CEO Travis Kalanick and boycotts of the brand , and a recent movement by Facebook users to delete the app after the Cambridge Analytica data scandal. The company announced plans to remove Schnatter's image from marketing materials July 13 after he resigned his position as chairman, as calls for boycotts and anger at the brand spread across Twitter. News reports attributing the use of inappropriate and hurtful language to me during a media training session regarding race are true," Schnatter said July 11 in a statement released by Papa John's. "Regardless of the context, I apologize. Simply stated, racism has no place in our society. In recent weeks, Papa John's founder and former chairman John Schnatter has drawn public outrage after he used a racial slur during a conference call. Historically, the reaction has been to organize boycotts, says Timothy Werner, an associate professor at the University of Texas McCombs School of Business who researches activism. It's still a tool for consumers, but one that's evolving in the era of social media. Before things such as Twitter and Facebook, organizing a boycott, sustaining consumer interest in it, and getting people to actually follow through and be sincere used to be a lot more difficult," Werner says. Today, you can show support for a cause by just hitting "like" or "retweet." But that has its upsides and its downsides. "It creates this odd dynamic where boycotts are easier to organize, and we have more boycotts, but because it is really cheap to signal your support [for a cause], theyre less sincere and perhaps less effective, Werner says, noting that there isn't much research yet on boycotts formed through social media. Yet one thing remains the same, according to Werner: Boycotts have always been organized to send a message, not to hurt sales or revenue. "It's the rare boycott where actual economic harm to the targeted firm is what the movement is trying to achieve," Werner says. "The economic piece of a boycott was always the weakest aspect of it. What companies are really wary about is their brand." For example, even after public critique for its data practices and calls for boycotts, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg told The New York Times in March he had not "seen a meaningful number of people act" on calls for users to delete their profiles. But, the campaign did grab his attention. "I think it's a clear signal that this is a major trust issue for people, and I understand that," Zuckerberg said. Public opinion matters a great deal to brands, Jeremy Kagan, an adjunct professor of marketing at Columbia Business School, tells CNBC Make It. After all, the most valuable thing they have is their reputation. "While an individual tweet may not feel like it does much ... sentiment analysis and commentary that is happening online is being monitored in real time by every real brand," Kagan explains. "If there is commentary happening, if people are discussing this, suggesting and proposing boycotts, it really does come to the attention of people." And that's a powerful tool. Dismissals of CEOs for ethical lapses saw a 36 percent increase between data collected from before 2011 compared with after 2012, according to a 2016 report by consulting firm PwC. A large reason for that shift can be attributed to public awareness, according to the Harvard Business Review. "The public has become more suspicious, more critical, and less forgiving of corporate misbehavior," HBR reported in 2017. Concurrently, "the 24/7 news cycle and the proliferation of media in the 21st century publicizes and amplifies negative information in real time." Yet there are drawbacks to more frequent public outrage. With politically charged boycotts arising again and again in today's divisive climate, it can be hard for any movement against a company to retain staying power, Brayden King, a professor at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management told the Chicago Tribune in 2017 after boycotts were called against Nordstrom, Starbucks and Under Armour. "It's really difficult for the public to keep their attention on any one of these things," King said. "If you have so many boycotts competing for the public's eye, you're diluting the effect of the boycott." Plus, it's important to consider the repercussions of negative attention on possibly innocent third parties, Werner notes. "There is a sort of broader economic harm," he says. "Let's say you were going to boycott Papa John's now, well, [the founder] has already been removed from his position with the company. At that point, you're only harming those that are left." For example, independent business owners operating Papa John's franchises, who weren't involved in the corporate culture, are likely to take a hit as consumer sentiment for the brand declines. "Papa Johns is not an individual. Papa Johns is a pizza company with 120,000 corporate and franchise team members around the world," the company's CEO, Steve Ritchie, wrote in an open letter to customers. So do some preliminary research before taking action, Kagan suggests. "I think it is really important for consumers who are trying to vote with their conscience and their wallet to really do a little bit of homework," Kagan says. Before taking your business away from a company as a whole, try to find out, "Is it a rogue employee? Is it an out-of-context remark that in retrospect might have been a bad choice or poor judgment but not necessarily representative of [the person]?" Make sure the boycott or cause has a specific goal in mind to achieve, and is something you care about; being selective can help focus the conversation on meaningful issues. Then, commit to the boycott and find substitute products or services. "Consistency between your attitudes and your behavior is key," Werner says. "If you are going to signal that you're going to participate in a boycott, actually do it." Don't miss: This generation of workers is most stressed and it's not millennials Like this story? Subscribe to CNBC Make It on YouTube! Today, Alberto Perlman, 41, is CEO of the worlds largest branded fitness program, Zumba Fitness. But before he co-founded Zumba, he was an unemployed 24-year-old. In 2001, Perlman was still reeling from his first business, a start-up accelerator, going bust after the tech bubble burst. He wanted to continue working for himself but wasn't sure where his next idea would come from. That is until one night at dinner, when his mother, Raquel, mentioned her aerobics instructor who had been selling out classes at a local gym. Curious if it had business potential, Perlman went to the gym to check out the class. When he got there, there was a line around the corner. Instantly, he knew the instructor, Beto Perez, had tapped into something. Some people were turned down because the room was too full, Perlman tells CNBC Make It. I didnt understand why until I saw the class. Alberto Perlman, co-founder and CEO of Zumba Fitness speaking at Iconic L.A. on Sept. 27th, 2017. David A. Grogan | CNBC When Perez hit play and the music started, everything clicked. What he saw was fitness without sacrifice people following Perezs lively choreography set to Latin music in a way that made them feel like were dancing with friends rather than working out. I told him, Why dont we take what you do, put it on video and let people enjoy it at home? The problem was, no one, not Perlman or Perez nor Alberto Aghion (Perlman's childhood friend who was brought on after working with him at the defunct accelerator) had the money to make that happen at scale. So they decided to shoot a promo instead. They grabbed a camera and headed to the beach. So we first shot a video with a Handycam ... on the beach with 200 of Betos class students and we took that video and started showing it to potential investors, he says. Everybody told us 'no.' Nina Alves leads a Zumba class at her studio in Portland. Shawn Patrick Ouellette | Portland Press Herald | Getty Images Gym chains declined initial pitches to have Zumba classes taught at their locations, and the trio couldnt garner sales interest at fitness trade shows either, Perlaman says, but every time Beto would teach a class, everybody said 'yes' the class members' enthusiasm spoke volumes. We knew that the class was powerful, we knew that something was there, so we didnt give up every time we heard No. "That's different from having a bad idea and not giving up, he points out. I see many entrepreneurs have an idea that they're obsessed with that they haven't proven and they won't give up and that's just being stubborn. Eventually in late 2001, their persistence paid off. The video the trio shot led to a deal with an Ohio-based infomercial company to create a Zumba workout DVD. While the videos posted impressive initial sales through 2002, after production costs the co-founders were left with little profit. Alberto Aghion, Alberto Perez and Alberto Perlman, founders of Zumba Fitness at Iconic L.A. on Sept. 27th, 2017. David A. Grogan | CNBC Canada might soon be reaping the benefits from the recent string of canceled soybean contracts, Simon Wilson, executive director of the North Dakota Trade Office, told CNBC. "The big competitor for us is Canada," Wilson told CNBC's Contessa Brewer on Friday's "Power Lunch." "They have similar weather, similar production cycle. And for us, weve always been competing with them. But now, after Chinese buyers canceled all of their firm orders for food-grade soybeans earlier this month, the competition might heat up. The scrapped contracts amount to a loss of $1.2 million to $1.5 million, but that's a small portion of North Dakota's $30 million to $35 million in annual contracts, which are usually finalized in the summer months. Wilson said Chinese trade delegations, previously scheduled for September, have gone "radio silent on us." "Theres a lot of money in this," he said. "Its a big market. Chinas a massive market for soybeans." The Philippine Embassy in France has issued an advisory for Filipinos traveling to Paris to be vigilant and careful due to an increase of incidents of break-ins, robberies, and pickpocketing in the city. In addition, the string of terror incidents in the past three years (the latest was on May 12, 2018) require the extra vigilance of Filipinos traveling in Paris. Filipinos are requested to follow the list of safety guidelines when traveling to France: 1. Always secure your personal belongings such as your bags, wallets, phones and other personal items when visiting tourist spots, walking around, and riding public transportations. 2. Be wary of pickpockets. They are rampant at metro stations, trains, and even in shopping areas. 3. Keep your passport and identity card in separate areas of your bag, so that you lessen the risk of losing both identity documents. 4. Theft may also occur in hotels and apartments. Make sure that your briefcases, bags and other valuables are secure. Be wary of the so-called hotel rats, scam artists who pretend to be hotel guests or tourists and who can swipe baggage in hotel lobbies, or book rooms with fake names and break in rooms to steal valuables. 5. Do not carry a lot of cash. Most stores accept cards. Should you use your card, cover your hand discretely when typing the pin.6. Keep your bags out of sight when inside the vehicles. Robberies may sometimes occur during traffic jams. 7. Be alert and vigilant when visiting different areas in France. Make sure to follow the instructions of police and military personnel in case of any incident. 8. Be updated with the news. Refrain from going to areas that are declared to be unsafe or that have terrorism threat. If urgent assistance is needed, Filipinos may call the Embassys 24/7 emergency hotline at +33 6 20 59 25 15. Filipinos in need of assistance may also visit, call or send a message to the Embassy through the following details: Embassy of the Philippines in Paris in 45 rue de Ranelagh 4 Hameau de Boulainvilliers, 75016 Paris, France with tel. +33 1 44 14 57 00 or e-mail: [email protected] and website: www.parispe.dfa.gov.ph; Facebook: #PHinFrance and Twitter: #PHinFrance. Just after the 2016 election, an anonymously run Twitter account emerged with a plan to choke off advertising dollars to Breitbart News, the hard-edge, nationalist website closely tied to President Trumps administration. The account, named Sleeping Giants, urged people to collect screenshots of ads on Breitbart and then question brands about their support of the site. Sleeping Giants correctly guessed that many companies did not know where their digital ads were running, and advertisers were caught off guard as the account circulated images of blue-chip brands in proximity to headlines like Birth Control Makes Women Unattractive and Crazy. As hundreds of brands blocked their ads from appearing on Breitbart, and the account expanded to put pressure on certain Fox News shows, the people behind Sleeping Giants maintained their anonymity until this week. Read more from The New York Times: Trying to flip the House, ZIP code by ZIP code Bayer will stop selling Essure birth control implants Trump blasts Fed, China and Europe for putting U.S. economy at a disadvantage Matt Rivitz, a freelance copywriter in San Francisco who has worked with a range of advertisers, was identified as the accounts creator against his wishes on Monday by The Daily Caller, the conservative news and opinion website co-founded by the Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Mr. Rivitz, 45, confirmed the report on Twitter, where Sleeping Giants has more than 160,000 followers. He runs the account with Nandini Jammi, 29, a freelance copywriter and marketing consultant, along with other still anonymous contributors. The way it happened sucks, but Im super proud of this thing and of all the people who worked on it and all the people who followed it, Mr. Rivitz said in his first interview since his involvement in the account was revealed. Were happy that we made advertisers think a little bit and realize what theyre supporting. Mr. Rivitz did not expect to rock the ad and media worlds with Sleeping Giants, which he viewed as an apolitical crusade against hate speech. While he is a registered Democrat, he said he had never been politically active outside of attending maybe two marches pre-election. Most of his work for advertisers was focused on television commercials and did not involve social media. He wasnt a particularly active Twitter user. But Mr. Rivitz said he was struck by what he viewed as incredibly bigoted and racist and sexist content on Breitbart News, including in its comment sections, after his first visit to the site in November 2016. The site had gained prominence because of its ties to Stephen K. Bannon, its former chairman, who was Mr. Trumps chief strategist. I was pretty amazed at the stuff they were printing, and my next thought, being in advertising, was, Who is knowingly supporting this stuff? he said. I thought maybe it would be two to three companies, and I quickly realized within a couple hours it was all placed programmatically. Mr. Rivitz was referring to the automated systems that place most online ads and tend to target consumers based on who they are, rather than which site they are visiting. It didnt seem like the advertisers would want to be there, he said. I just set up this anonymous Twitter handle and set up an anonymous email and just went for it, because I wanted to contact one advertiser a progressive loan company from San Francisco. (The company, Social Finance, quickly pulled its ads.) Brian Glicklich, a spokesman for Breitbart, said, The specific allegations they make about our content being racist, sexist or bigoted are false. Sleeping Giants contributed to a broader industry reckoning around how the automated placement and scale of online ads could fund toxic content and extremism. It also highlighted the challenges that companies face in controlling where their ads end up. Early on, it flagged an advertisement from Workable, a start-up that sells recruiting software, above the Breitbart headline Theres No Hiring Bias Against Women in Tech, They Just Suck at Interviews. A screenshot made its way to Nikos Moraitakis, Workables chief executive, who said he nearly had a heart attack when he saw it. The company, which appeared on the site through one of the Google companies that broker web ads, added Breitbart to its opt out list. The account also gained attention when it highlighted the presence of Kelloggs ads on Breitbart, which resulted in the breakfast cereal companys blacklisting the site. In response, Breitbart attempted a #DumpKelloggs campaign. Mr. Rivitz said the idea behind Sleeping Giants was to inform advertisers, rather than to force boycotts. Breitbart News saw the accounts mission differently. Sleeping Giants political playbook is to attack opposing speech through harassment and false claims to try to drive it out of business, Mr. Glicklich said. They and others have failed at this every time it has been attempted. Democracy flourishes from more conversation, not less, which is why Matt Rivitzs speech suppression through economic force is among the most reviled techniques of coercion. Shortly after Mr. Rivitz started the account, it caught the attention of Ms. Jammi, an American who lives in Berlin. She also visited Breitbart after the election and was startled to see ads from major companies there, thanks to her browsing history. Mr. Rivitz contacted Ms. Jammi through Twitter after seeing a post she had written for Medium on how marketers could blacklist Breitbart, and the two joined forces. Ms. Jammi, who said her previous interest in politics had amounted to nothing more than following the news, discussed anonymity early and often with Mr. Rivitz. Initially, we were kind of freaked out at the alt-right influence, and, obviously, one of our primary concerns was staying safe, she said. Knowledge of their involvement was limited to a tight circle of family and friends. Mr. Rivitz and Ms. Jammi, who have met in person once, said they each spent three to eight hours a day on Sleeping Giants posting tweets and corresponding with companies and advertisers while working at their day jobs. They were vague about how many other people help run the account and its Facebook page, citing privacy concerns and threats. Since Sleeping Giants got its start, a great number of brands have taken steps to make sure that they do not appear on Breitbart. The site had about 649 advertisers on its website last month, showing around 1,902 different display ads, according to data from Moat Pro, a digital ad intelligence product. That was down from 3,300 advertisers and 11,500 display ads in November 2016. (Sleeping Giants count of departed advertisers is closer to 4,000.) As Sleeping Giants expanded, it broadened its mission to making bigotry and sexism less profitable over all. In April 2017, it rallied its following to join the widespread pressure on companies that advertised on The OReilly Factor after The New York Times reported that Bill OReilly, the Fox News shows host, had settled with at least five women who had accused him of harassment. This year, the account added to the pressure on brands whose commercials appeared on The Ingraham Angle, the Fox News show hosted by Laura Ingraham, after she ridiculed a student survivor of the Parkland, Fla., school shooting. Critics have accused Sleeping Giants of engaging in a form of censorship, a criticism that Mr. Rivitz rejected. There are plenty of conservative- and liberal-leaning news organizations that are doing everything in good faith and are talking about policy without bringing divisiveness and racism into it, and thats where the break is with some of these websites, he said. He added that he had received a barrage of threats and harassment in the wake of the Daily Caller article, which also named his wife and friends. Ms. Jammi, who was not named by The Daily Caller, said she wasnt sure what kind of harassment to expect, now that her role had been made public. She added that she hoped the attention would raise scrutiny of the big-tech platforms that kept advertisers in the dark. Breitbart is where we started, but ultimately the problem is not Breitbart or The Daily Caller the problem is the tech companies, Ms. Jammi said. I fully support that right for them to write whatever they want. What I have a problem with is Facebook and Twitter monetizing it. Mr. Rivitz said the Sleeping Giants community had grown so robust that he felt like an administrator. Still, he said, its mission remains the same. People can use their free speech to say whatever they want and print whatever they want, and thats what makes this country great, Mr. Rivitz said, but it doesnt mean they need to get paid for it, especially by an advertiser who didnt know they were paying for it. Boys watching a ferry in Guyana James Lyon | Lonely Planet Images | Getty Images Guyana is a vast, watery wilderness with only three paved highways. There are a few dirt roads between villages that sit on stilts along rivers snaking through the rain forest. Children go to school in dugout canoes, and play naked in the muggy heat. Hugging the coast are musty clapboard towns like Georgetown, the capital, which seems forgotten by time, honeycombed with canals first built by Dutch settlers and African slaves. The power grid is so unreliable that blackouts are a regular plague in the cities, while in much of the countryside there is no electricity at all. Such is the unlikely setting for the worlds next big oil boom. Read more from the New York Times: Chinese shopping app Pinduoduo sued in U.S. ahead of I.P.O. How Trumps tariffs tripped up Alcoa Trumps visits ground business at small New Jersey airports In the last three years, ExxonMobil has drilled eight gushing discovery wells offshore. With the potential to generate nearly $20 billion in oil revenue annually by the end of the next decade, roughly equivalent to the revenues of the much-larger Colombia, there could be enough bounty to lift the lives of almost every Guyanese. If all goes well, one of the poorest countries in South America could become one of the wealthiest. Suddenly the talk of Georgetown is a proposed sovereign wealth fund to manage all the money, as if this were a Persian Gulf sheikhdom. But there are obstacles. If history is any guide, countries that discover oil often waste their opportunity, as the resource blends seamlessly with corruption. Countries with weak political institutions like Guyana are especially vulnerable. You have an alignment of money and power in the hands of the state, so the party in power controls the resources, said Floyd Haynes, a Guyanese-born finance professor who is a consultant to Business Ministry. And the money is usually squandered, misapplied or downright stolen. Senior government officials here have little experience regulating a big oil industry or negotiating with international companies. The civil service is corrupt, and the private sector is slow to innovate, businessmen and aides to senior officials acknowledge. Still, there is cautious optimism. We see this oil discovery as almost like providence, said Raphael Trotman, the natural resources minister. Weve been given a second chance to get things right. The first chance was independence from Britain in 1966, and that chance was blown. A plague of ethnic tribal politics has produced a fragile state with an economy propelled by drug trafficking, money-laundering, and gold and diamond smuggling. A vast majority of college-educated youths emigrate to the United States or Canada, while those who stay behind experience high rates of H.I.V. infection, crime and suicide. Can oil wealth help Guyana overcome its history, or will the windfall that will flood government coffers merely turn the page to a new tragic chapter? The challenges are enormous and shouldnt be underestimated, said Lars Mangal, president of Totaltec Oilfield Services, a Guyanese company seeking to train local workers in safety and basic oil operations. We have to overcome nepotism, entitlements, corruption, cynicism and skepticism. The Guyanese government, under its agreement with Exxon, will receive roughly half the cash flow from oil production once the companys costs are repaid. Economists say that will mean the countrys current gross domestic product of $3.6 billion will at least triple in five years. But with exploration out of sight 120 miles offshore, and no refinery planned, the economic benefits for the population have been limited so far, making some cynical. Only about 600 Guyanese have found direct employment on the drill rigs, shore bases and offices, and that number may increase only to about 1,000, oil executives say. When we have big projects, we hire foreign companies who bring their own workers, said Khemraj Dhaneshrie, a young chemist at the Leonora estate sugar mill. Mr. Dhaneshrie is typically skeptical about his governments ability to oversee foreign operations after Guyanas long experience of opportunistic Chinese investment. He noted that the Chinese financed and built an enormous factory in 2009 to rescue the sugar industry, but it turned out to be a $181 million boondoggle. The Chinese cut down our forest, dug out our gold, and we never got a cent, he said. We could end up with the same experience with ExxonMobil. In the Past, Wasted Opportunities Colorful Hindi monuments tower over Guyanas rice fields, a reminder of the cultural distance between the country and its Latin American neighbors. It is English speaking because of the legacy of British rule, and its two biggest ethnic groups are Afro-Guyanese and Indo-Guyanese the descendants of slaves from Africa and of indentured servants brought from the Indian subcontinent in the 19th century. Until now, the country had never produced oil, and traditionally it has traded its rice crop for fuel from Venezuela. Now it is attracting experienced Texas oilmen like Doug McGehee, Exxons Guyana operations manager. Over the last 37 years working for ExxonMobil, Mr. McGehee has taken his black cowboy boots, silver belt buckle and Texas A&M class ring into the oil fields of Angola, Kazakhstan and Equatorial Guinea. In all those places, oil wealth has risen to the top, only to leave the poor behind. Last year, for example, a Paris criminal court convicted the vice president of Equatorial Guinea of money-laundering and embezzling more than $100 million. But as Mr. McGehee monitored operations aboard the Noble Bob Douglas drill ship on a recent day, he insisted that Guyana could be different. The math is right here, he said, noting that the country has a tiny population below 800,000 to share all the new wealth. Guyanas government stands to take in more than $6 billion in royalties and taxes annually by the end of the 2020s, according to the Norwegian consultancy Rystad Energy. If the government manages the resource right, every Guyanese should benefit with better schools, better health facilities, better roads, Mr. McGehee said. That is no small if. Guyanese need look no further than neighboring Venezuela to see a failed state where the worlds largest oil reserves have not prevented hunger, shortages of medicine and hyperinflation from producing widespread misery. Nearby Trinidad and Tobago offers another example of how countries dependent on oil can neglect traditional industries and then suffer severe economic shocks when crude and natural gas prices fall. Scholars call the syndrome the resource curse. Others warn of the Dutch disease, a phenomenon so labeled in the 1970s after a natural gas boom sapped the strength of manufacturing in the Netherlands. Nations that contract the disease from a sudden influx of mineral money typically suffer a surge of inflation, while labor from farming and other traditional professions is drawn to the higher-paying oil sector. Thus, wealth becomes more concentrated. There are some examples of countries effectively using oil to reduce poverty. Malaysia, with large offshore oil production, has kept its economy diversified and growing. In the Middle East, Oman is a model for using oil and gas wealth to modernize its economy. But dispiriting examples of wasted opportunity abound. Were all concerned about the negatives, Prime Minister Moses V. Nagamootoo said. Dawn Chung Layne, who operates a sewing business out of her mother-in-laws concrete house in Georgetown, is also anxious. She is attending workshops at the Center for Local Business Development, a program financed by Exxon, to learn ways she can benefit from the oil economy. She hopes to make curtains and linen for cafeterias on the oil ships, and uniforms for sports teams established by foreign companies and their families. But she also sees risks in these new ventures. More affluent Guyanese may turn away from the sports uniforms she already makes to buy name brands like Nike and Adidas, she said, and she is concerned that food prices will rise. Check out the Trinidad economy, she said. They thought oil was the best thing since sliced bread, and they spent Sunday to Sunday. They stopped producing and imported everything with oil money. It could happen here. This Could Be Game Changing Before the recent breakthrough, various oil companies had drilled more than 40 wells off Guyana and neighboring Suriname since the 1960s. All were dry holes or otherwise not economically promising. But as oil prices rose a few years ago, Exxon and Royal Dutch Shell decided to take another look. (Shell eventually dropped out of the partnership.) Exxons top geoscientist on the scene was Kerry Moreland, an Oklahoman whose family has been in oil for three generations. Ms. Moreland toyed with becoming a professional bowler and had interned as a tornado chaser for a Tulsa television station before going to work for Exxon and traveling the world in search of new fields. She pinpointed on the map where the first deepwater well, named Liza-1, should be drilled. Recalling the day three years ago when she decided to duck out of some business meetings in Georgetown to visit the drilling platform, she said there was no more than a 20 percent chance that a meaningful amount of oil would burst out from three miles below the ocean bottom. As luck would have it, just as her helicopter landed on the platform, the drill bit penetrated the oil reservoir. She went to the control room as the first data from the wells showed promising signs of hydrocarbons. When rock fragments came to the surface a few hours later, they were dripping with oil. At that moment, it was Oh, my God, weve made a discovery, Ms. Moreland said. You have to pinch yourself and ask, Is this really happening? And it hit right then, this could be game changing for the country, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. It was a dream come true for any geologist. Exxon is known in the industry as a slow-moving, stodgy company, but Ms. Morelands enthusiasm caught fire through the executive wing in the Texas headquarters known as the God Pod. Within three months, the company sent two vessels to conduct the largest three-dimensional seismic test that Exxon had ever undertaken, over 6,500 square miles, in search of more oil. Theres a lot at stake for Exxon in Guyana. In recent years, its stock price has slumped because of disappointing production and depleting reserves. The company invested heavily in Canadian oil sands and in natural gas when prices were high, bets that have not worked out as well as expected. While the company was forced to write off large assets in Canada, Western sanctions on Russia foiled its plans to drill in the Russian Arctic. Darren Woods, the companys chief executive, has a plan to reverse company fortunes, and Guyana is a big part of it. Leading a consortium that includes Hess and the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, Exxon is making an effort here that is nothing if not ambitious. Within three years of its big first discovery, it has begun drilling the first of 17 wells that will start yielding oil in 2020, with a floating production, storage and offloading vessel able to handle 120,000 barrels a day. And that is just the first phase. Another floating vessel, with a capacity of 220,000 barrels a day, is planned, and a third vessel is being considered. In all, 500,000 barrels a day could be produced by sometime in the next decade the equivalent of Ecuadors national output. (Repsol of Spain, Tullow Oil of Britain and other companies are exploring, too.) Its a growth area for us, said Mr. McGehee, the Exxon operations manager. We keep finding oil. That produces nothing but excitement for the 60 Guyanese workers on the Noble Bob Douglas drill ship, who have typically seen their incomes soar. Gorshum Inniss, a 25-year-old roustabout with an easy smile and flashing dark eyes, is working on a crane crew lifting casing pipe for new wells, doubling what he earned working on a tugboat. He said he now had enough money to visit his parents and younger brother in New York and planned to build a house for him and his daughter. Im proud to be one of the pioneers in this big moment for Guyana, he said. I see Guyana as the new Middle East. An Endangered Beach? Not far from the turbulent Venezuelan border, there is a quiet stretch of coastline, pounded by surf, known as Shell Beach because its sand is made of tiny crushed seashells that make it feel like sawdust. Several endangered species of turtles come to nest at night. Once hunted for food, they are jealously guarded from poachers by residents who make a living fishing and selling coconuts. Audley James, a former turtle hunter who makes necklaces out of beads and coconut shells, remembers when Trinidadian environmental consultants representing Repsol came six years ago to give two days of spill-response training. The Trinidadians taught the residents how to lay temporary floating barriers to protect the beach from an oil spill, and gave them training certificates that look like diplomas. But there has been no further training that might prepare them for what is now a much less theoretical hazard. Plenty of us dont understand what is going on, Mr. James said. Environmentalists are worried that oil will forestall development of renewable energy and that the government and oil companies are not fully prepared to prevent a possible spill. Its two years before first oil, and we dont have a national oil spill contingency plan, said Annette Arjoon-Martins, president of the Guyana Marine Conservation Society. We have our hands in the mouth of a jaguar. Ms. Arjoon-Martins said the governments agreement with Exxon did not specify in enough detail the companys responsibilities in case of a spill. Government officials disagreed, saying the countrys laws would hold the company fully liable. Exxon executives say the company is doing everything possible to minimize the dangers of a spill disaster. The company has skimmers and oil booms on hand to collect errant oil, and it has applied to the government to use chemical dispersants in an emergency to break up any spilled oil. They say Guyana is close enough to the Gulf of Mexico to bring in plenty of help in an emergency. The company has agreed to map the coastal mangroves and study the areas fish, bird and turtle migration routes to set priorities in case a cleanup is ever needed, executives said. And in another potential environmental benefit, the company is planning to build a natural-gas pipeline to shore that will replace the heavy fuel oil burned for the countrys power plants, lowering costs to consumers and businesses. We are committed to develop these resources in the most responsible way with a minimal impact on the environment, said Rod Henson, Exxons Guyana manager. We stand by our operations, and in the unlikely event of an incident, we will absolutely respond immediately and we will fully take care of our responsibilities. Local oil executives say one obstacle to overcome is a lackadaisical attitude toward safety among Guyanese workers, who frequently arrive at their construction and wharf jobs in flip-flops and sometimes use their hard hats as soup bowls. That is something Exxon and other companies are working to change with courses and other training that teach workers to be careful, not only for their own safety but also to safeguard the fragile marine environment. At a recent daily meeting of the crew of the Noble Bob Douglas to review environmental and safety precautions, Mr. Inniss, the roustabout, was given a chance to make his own safety presentation. He told of a serious accident he had a couple of years ago working on his motorcycle when he neglectfully left the motor running while adjusting a chain. He lost three fingertips. Use your heads before you use your hands, he told the room full of Guyanese and American workers. He got an ovation and smiled proudly. I See a Lot of Red Flags Alphabet's capital expenditures in the latest quarter almost doubled, as Google continues to build out data centers for products like its cloud services. In the second quarter, those costs jumped to $5.48 billion from $2.48 billion a year earlier, Alphabet said in its earnings report after the close of trading on Monday. Analysts on average were expecting capital expenditures of $4.19 billion, according to FactSet. The spending surge is the latest sign that Google's cloud division, under the leadership of Diane Greene, remains committed to growth as it tries to chase down larger rivals Amazon and Microsoft. Google is also expanding its data centers for internal use, whether it's search or YouTube. "Our view is it gives you a lens into our outlook for growth," said Ruth Porat, Alphabet's chief financial officer, in a briefing with reporters on Monday. "It's search and ads, it's newer businesses, it's also the importance of machine learning. Were looking for additional compute capacity given our outlook for growth." On the call with analysts on Monday, Porat elaborated on those remarks and specifically cited cloud as a new growing business with major computing needs. "While we're ensuring that we're well-positioned to support the growth we see, we do constantly remain focused on efficiency per unit of compute," she said. Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday called on media company Tronc to reverse massive layoffs at the New York Daily News, the iconic Big Apple tabloid. Cuomo's request for Tronc to unwind its slashing of the News' staff of journalists by a whopping 50 percent invoked the successful efforts of his father, the late Gov. Mario Cuomo, to help save the News' archrival New York Post in 1993. Andrew Cuomo's plea comes as the two-term incumbent Democrat faces a primary challenge from progressive challenger and "Sex and the City" actress Cynthia Nixon and is the subject of speculation that he could seek his party's 2020 presidential nomination. Cuomo's statement in defense of the paper, and the free press in general, also comes on a day when President Donald Trump delivered yet another attack on The Washington Post, which is owned by Amazon boss Jeff Bezos. The governor who has taken stiff shots from both of the city's tabloids has been tacking leftward for months as he eyes both of those fronts. Cuomo, in a statement, said Tronc's gutting of newsroom staff just the latest in a series of cutbacks at the paper will "undoubtedly devastate many households and hurt an important New York institution and one of our nation's journalism giants." "These layoffs were made without notifying the State or asking for assistance. My father, as Governor, came to the aid of the New York Post when it was facing difficult financial times," Cuomo said. "Even though the Post represented an opposing active partisan interest, my father understood the value of a robust free press. So do I." "I urge Tronc to reconsider this drastic move and stand ready to work with them to avert this disaster. I understand that large corporations often only see profit and dividends as a bottom line," the governor said. "But in New York, we also calculate loss of an important institution, loss of jobs, and the impact on the families affected. I hope Tronc does the same and recalculates its decision. New York State stands ready to help." The company, in a statement to CNBC, said: "Tronc is transforming into a truly digitally focused enterprise one that creates meaningful journalism, delivers it more quickly, and develops new approaches to engage our readers." "At the same time, we are working diligently to confront the financial realities of our industry, including the significant cost increases associated with the tariffs recently placed on newsprint. Our newsrooms are developing plans to reach these goals, and we do not expect reductions of the Daily News scale at any of our other properties." The Daily News, which was founded in 1919, hit peak circulation numbers in 1947, with 2.4 million copies daily. More recently, daily circulation fell to a couple hundred thousand, as it, like many other newspapers, suffers from an exodus of print readers and a decline in advertising revenue. Tronc purchased the newspaper last September from its longtime owner Mort Zuckerman. The company reportedly paid just $1 for the tabloid, and in exchange assumed its operational and pension obligations. President Donald Trumps trade policy may be harmful to the beef industry for years to come, said Kent Bacus, director of international trade at the National Cattlemens Beef Association. We support the administration in enforcing trade, he told CNBC on Monday. We would differ on how some of this has been carried out. We would much prefer the use of trade agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Weve seen a lot of benefit from having rules-based, science-based trade from those free trade agreements. Trumps tariffs and Chinas retaliatory measures come at time when there is a lot of supply piling up in storage, he said. The use of tariffs to try to bring leverage, we need to look at other options, Bacus said on Power Lunch. If we dont see something turn around, this could have negative repercussions for us, he added. Last week, Trump told CNBC he is ready to put tariffs on all $505 billion of Chinese goods imported to the United States. Washington has already slapped tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese products. Beijing hit back with retaliatory tariffs on the same amount of U.S. goods. That caused tariffs on beef to go from 12 percent to 37 percent, said Bacus. Were worried that the repercussions of some of these tariffs is essentially going to squeeze us out of the market, he said. The Chinese market for U.S. beef is not a big one. While China began importing U.S. beef last year after at 13-year ban due to concerns over mad cow disease, there are still a lot of restrictions, Bacus said. The beef industry exports about 15 percent of what it produces, with three of its top five markets being in Asia. It exports things that American dont typically want to buy like beef tongues and short ribs, he said. Meanwhile, meat is reportedly piling up in storage. Federal data are expected to show more than 2.5 billion pounds of beef, pork, poultry and turkey stockpiled in U.S. warehouses, according to The Wall Street Journal. The glut is due to an expansion in cow herds, pork production and poultry production, which came in response to strong foreign demand, Bacus said. It takes about three years for our cows to come to market. So we were basing our production off of the market signals at the time. So we have a lot of product thats going to come online, he said. Theres a lot of demand for it but trade policies are kind of getting in the way right now. And we may not have that same access for the next few years. If you live in or travel to a big city in America, chances are you have seen them rats, that is. And, with such famous residents as Pizza Rat, a rascally rodent that was seen dragging a slice of pizza into the subway in 2015, New York City has long been considered rat central in the United States. Make that was. More from USA Today: Judge tosses lawsuit against Toyota over rats gnawing on car wiring Hungry rat shreds more than $17,500 of cash inside ATM in India Rats may not have been the cause of the Black Plague A new study has named Chicago the "rat capital" of America, with a total of 50,963 rat complaints in 2017 compared to 32,855 in 2014, an increase of 55%. The study, by apartment search service RentHop.com, compared complaints in the Windy City, Boston, New York City and Washington, D.C., and found that Chicago topped the list with 1,876.09 complaints per 100,000 residents, a figure more than twice the number of the nations capital, which came in second place. Chicago also led in total number of complaints, beating New Yorks 19,152 gripes by more than 31,000. "The abundance of garbage and buildings in The Windy City makes it a great location for these rats to seek shelter and food for survival," according to RentHop, which has a large presence in the four cities. "The presence of these furry critters poses a threat to city dwellers due to the fact that they are capable of spreading diseases and cause allergic reactions to humans and animals." However, the Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation told The Chicago Tribune that the high level of complaints was not necessarily an indication of a greater rat infestation. Rodent complaints are not an accurate indicator of the rat population in an area, Streets and Sanitation Spokeswoman Marjani Williams told The Tribune. However, they do show that Chicagoans care about the health and safety of their communities, saying the department is vigilant in encouraging to report rodent activity so that our crews can quickly investigate and address every sighting. In addition, Williams said, the actual number of complaints was 42,670 when duplicate reports are taken into account. City / Number of Complaints / Complaints Per 100,000 Residents Chicago / 50,963 / 1,876.09 DC / 5,036 / 725.68 Boston / 2,488 / 363.16 NYC / 19,152 / 222.11 Rat complaints in 2017 by cities sorted in descending order according to complaints per 100,000 residents. People wave Chinese and Senegalese flags upon the arrival of Chinese President Xi Jinping on July 21, 2018, in Dakar, Senegal. Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the West African country of Senegal over the weekend, building trade ties which could bear fruit in terms of Chinas access to U.S. markets. Xi met with his Senegalese counterpart Macky Sall, as well as Senegalese Prime Minister Mohammed Dionne, as part of a two-day visit which began on Saturday. Following bilateral talks, Senegal signed up to be the first West African nation committed to Chinas Belt and Road Initiative, a multi-billion dollar scheme to resurrect ancient trading routes centered on China. Senegal, with a population of just 16 million, might seem like a curious stop for Xi given that Nigeria, Africas largest economy, is also in the West Africa region. But according to Ibrahima Diong, who has served as Senegals minister of Chinese affairs, the countrys location is particularly attractive. For any Chinese companies that would like to export to the U.S., you cannot get better than Senegal, he told CNBC via telephone, highlighting its position on the west coast of the African continent. China is Senegals second largest trading partner after its former colonial power France. Xis visit to Senegal was the first stop of a broader tour of the African continent. He landed in Rwanda on Monday and will then attend a BRICS summit in South Africa, before stopping in Mauritius. The Chinese president visited the United Arab Emirates earlier last week. Xi's Africa visit is his fourth to the continent since he took office in 2013, and his first overseas trip since beginning his second term as Chinese president in March of this year. Threats and intimidation on trade will never work on China, its foreign ministry said on Monday, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he was ready to impose tariffs on all $500 billion of imported goods from the country. A bank teller counting stacks of Chinese currency notes at a local bank in the eastern city of Nanjing. China also has no need to use competitive devaluation of its currency to aid its exports, Geng Shuang, a spokesman for the foreign ministry, told a daily news briefing. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said last week the United States was monitoring the recent weakness in China's yuan currency and would review whether it had been manipulated. Under Trumps tax proposal the elimination of state and local deductibility is going to put pressure on the Northern cities to either reduce taxes or they are going to face a reduction in population, Griffin said at the Delivering Alpha Conference in New York last week. In the next five to 10 years weve got to deal with the pressures on the blue states to be competitive with the Southern states to maintain strong workforces, strong employment bases in the northern half of our country. Citadels Ken Griffin predicts Northern states that predominantly support the Democratic Party will be negatively impacted by President Donald Trumps tax plan. Ken Griffin speaking at the 2018 Delivering Alpha Conference in New York on July 18th, 2018. President Donald Trump signed the Republican tax overhaul in December, which lowered the corporate tax rate to 21 percent from 35 percent. The bill reduced tax rates on individuals across the board and nearly doubled the standard deduction although those changes are in effect only from 2018 through 2025. But the reform also capped taxpayers' deductions on their property, state and local incomes taxes (SALT) at $10,000, negatively impacting homeowners in states with higher property taxes and home values. Griffin cited how luxury homes in Greenwich, Connecticut, are difficult to sell in the current environment. He warned investors to not overweight the real estate asset class. I still believe that real estate its your home, its where you live, it should not be a disproportionate part of your net worth or holdings, the investor said. Griffin founded Citadel in 1990. He has a net worth of $9 billion, according to Forbes. His hedge fund firm, which is based in Chicago, now manages more than $30 billion in assets. The firms multistrategy fund, known as Wellington, was up 1.52 percent in June and 8.79 percent during the first half of the year. The full interview with Griffin is available here. CNBC's Darla Mercado contributed to this report. Australian missionary Sister Patricia Fox may stay a little longer in the Philippines after her lawyers filed a motion for reconsideration contesting the deportation order filed by the Bureau of Immigration for joining political rallies. Foxs counsels accused the BI of prejudging her case and maintained that the 71-year-old nun did not break any rule by joining alleged prohibited political activities. Immigration spokesman Dana Sandoval said that Foxs counsel Sol Taule filed the motion at the bureau appealing a reiteration of their earlier stand that the Australian nun did not violate the conditions of her missionary visa. Fox was allowed to stay for 30 more days because of the filing of the new MR and could stay a little longer as the bureau would evaluate and assess her motion. Should the BI maintained the deportation order, Fox will definitely elevate her motion to the Department of Justice. And this would give Fox more time to stay in the Philippines, the BI said. In the motion, Foxs lawyer insisted that the Australian nun did not do anything wrong, did not commit any crime and did not violate any law and that there is no reason why she should not get a missionary visa. Lawyer Katherine Panguban, another counsel for the Australian nun, also questioned the part of the decision where the BI Board of Commissioners admitted that it was based on the declaration of President Rodrigo Duterte that Fox is an undesirable alien by joining political rallies. With due respect, that is wrong. To sanction that argument would be to state that decisions should be based on the public pronouncement of the President irrespective of the merits of the case and the arguments of the parties, the MR added. In the motion, Foxs counsels said that if the deportation order will not be reversed, it would curtail the religious workers acts, but also grant the BI the right to define what a religious missionary...can do or cannot do, in violation of the constitutional guarantee to the free exercise of religious profession and worship. The call to stop the killings, to free political prisoners, and the like are universal calls not limited by territorial jurisdiction or the place where one is domiciled, the motion added. In a related development, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra shared the same view with Foxs lawyers, saying that the Australian nun can still stay in the country unless the order issued against her by the BI becomes final and executory. Guevarra said that the deportation order against Fox last week was not immediately executory after her lawyers filed the motion. The deportation order cannot be enforced until it becomes final. With the filing of the appeal, the deportation will not be executed, Guevarra said.The Justice secretary said Foxs filing of appeal before the bureau effectively suspended the implementation of the deportation order. If the BI denies Sister Foxs MR, the deportation order can still be subject to appeal to the DoJ or the Office of the President, he added. Guevarra also hinted that the issue may also reach the courts should Fox opt to file a petition after all administrative remedies before the executive branch are exhausted. Any adverse ruling of the DOJ or OP may further be reviewed by the courts, the Justice Secretary said. The BI earlier said that Fox violated the limitations and conditions of Commonwealth Act 613, Section 9 (g) missionary visa and undesirable under Article 2711, Section 69 and order her deportation to Australia, subject to her submission of all appropriate clearance and the inclusion of her name in the BIs blacklist, thus barring her re-entry into the country. The bureau cited as basis for its order several photographs showing that she engaged in several partisan political activities sometime in 2013, 2016, 2017 and 2018including those where she reportedly demanded for the release of political prisoners, joined the rallies for land distribution in Hacienda Luisita, and a labor rally in Davao City. The BI also considered President Dutertes earlier statements that branded Fox as an undesirable alien by joining political rallies. In fact, the President even publicly admitted that it was upon his instructions to investigate Fox for disorderly conduct for participating in rallies. The power to deport aliens is lodged in the President of the Republic of the Philippines. The Commissioner of Immigration exercises this power, however, as the qualified political agent of the President. As the administrative alter-ego of the President in deportation cases, the actions of the Commissioner of Immigration relative to the arrest and detention of undesirable aliens are, unless reprobated or disapproved by the President, presumptively the acts of the President, the ruling stated. Last April 16, on the strength of a mission order issued by BI Commissioner Jaime Morente, Fox was invited to the BI main office in Intramuros, Manila City after the bureaus Intelligence Division received information that the Australian nun has allegedly been attending protest rallies, fact-finding missions, jail visits, and supporting and involving herself in assemblies against the government. She was allowed to leave the BI the following day after she surrendered her passport. The BI also issued an order forfeiting Foxs missionary visa and downgrading it to a tourist visa and directing her to leave the country in 30 days. However, Foxs camp filed a petition for review before the DOJ last May 25, questioning the BIs April 23 and May 17 orders, which denied her motion for reconsideration and supplemental motion for reconsideration, respectively. Last June 18, the DOJ granted her petition for review and declared the BIs April 23 and May 17 ruling null and void for having been issued without legal basis and reinstating her missionary visa but without prejudice to the result of a separate cancellation or deportation proceedings. As shares of Alphabet soared in after-hours trading after the Google parent reported a second-quarter earnings beat, CNBC's Jim Cramer was heartened by the stock's flight higher. "Theres just a ton to like about this company, which managed to reverse a niggling trend towards sliding down the day after it reports," the "Mad Money" host said on Monday. Among Alphabet's "big wins" were deals with cloud-savvy companies like Domino's and Target, a lack of China-related weakness and strength in its international markets, Cramer said. "It looks like Alphabets business is so strong that we dont have to fret as much as some thought about the $5 billion fine recently handed down by the EU," he said, noting that "European business, by the way, was incredibly strong." "I think [the fine] mightve been actually helped," he added. "I think they may be the big winner because of GDPR, that privacy standard that played out in Googles favor." But not all was rosy in Monday's trading session. Trade war fears lingered, so Cramer took to the tape to explain how Trump's tariff debacles could actually help stocks. Read his analysis here. Hasbro CEO on Dungeons & Dragons popularity Brian Goldner, CEO of Hasbro. Ashlee Espinal | CNBC Fantasy role-playing board game "Dungeons & Dragons" is seeing its best year ever, Chairman and CEO Brian Goldner, whose toy and game maker owns the brand, told CNBC on Monday. "People are more into 'Dungeons & Dragons' today than ever before," Goldner told Cramer in an exclusive interview. "People are re-engaged with that brand because its a face-to-face game, its immersive and its a game that people really enjoy playing with one another." The double-digit new user growth could have in part been spurred by nostalgic, 1980s-set hit drama "Stranger Things," in which the characters play "Dungeons & Dragons." But the surge in popularity of both "Dungeons & Dragons" and fellow high-fantasy game "Magic: The Gathering" seem to be part of a broader, longer-term trend of . "We just announced this afternoon that therell be a crossover between 'Dungeons & Dragons' and 'Magic: The Gathering' in the fall, and I think our fans and gamers are going to be very excited about whats coming," the CEO said. Watch and read more about Goldner's full interview here. McCormick CEO: Feeling the heat of Frank's RedHot? Lawrence Kurzius, CEO, McCormick Scott Mlyn | CNBC When spices and flavorings manufacturer acquired from consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser a year ago, the purchase was met with little fanfare and some criticism from Wall Street. But McCormick Chairman, President and CEO Lawrence Kurzius , he told CNBC on Monday. "One of the things we said when we bought these brands was that these were fantastic food brands that were trapped at a non-food company," Kurzius told Cramer in an interview. "You put them into our business; were the experts in flavor, weve gotten tremendous placement in restaurants, weve been able to expand at the shelf. Its really been good for us. managed to sway once-doubtful investors as well. The double-digit sales and profit growth helped the spice maker's stock surge nearly $10 per share on the day of the report. Kurzius added on Monday that if investors had taken Cramer's advice and bought McCormick's stock after " they would've beaten the by 10 basis points. Watch and read more about Kurzius' full interview here. The best conference call of the quarter An employee walks near an Abbott Laboratories sign at the company's headquarters complex in Abbott Park, Illinois. Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images Cramer's always telling individual investors that if they want to know their holdings, they need to listen to the post-earnings conference calls. But he knows that good conference calls aren't always easy to spot. So he decided to backtrack to last Wednesday, when Abbott Laboratories, a Cramer-fave pharmaceutical company, delivered the best conference call he'd heard in ages. "The reason why Abbotts stock shot to an all-time high last Wednesday before pulling back a couple of points was the conference call," he said. "[CEO] Miles White literally put on a clinic in how to orchestrate a conference call." Cramer's favorite part was when a top industry analyst asked management if Abbott was planning on making any major changes to the health care giant's portfolio. White responded by laying out the company's whole philosophy, saying its current structure was the result of "very deliberate shaping" and poised to "operate and execute well organically," with the "single biggest opportunities ... all in [Abbott's] own pipelines." "What more can you ask for?" Cramer said. "White exud[ed] a quiet confidence as he laid out all of the reasons why he believes in the companys growth targets. If you dont own Abbott already, Id be a buyer right here." Stock picking: Back in style on the Street? Finally, Cramer zoomed in on a trend he sees bubbling up in this market: stock picking might be making a comeback. "Ive been investing for 36 years and for the vast majority of that time, we accepted that the market worked a certain way," the "Mad Money" host said. The widely accepted idea was that half of a stock's performance was tied to its broader sector's performance, and the other half was tied to its own trajectory and how management led the company. But with the rise of ETFs and index funds, all that has changed. Cramer has even seen some estimates that suggest 75 percent of trading is either automated or tied to ETFs, not individual stocks. "However, somethings happened, really in just this quarter, that makes me think stock picking may be coming back into vogue. Im talking about the widely disparate performances of stocks within the same sector," he said, pointing to the stark differences in Schlumberger and Halliburton's stock performances after their respective quarters. "Management's execution finally matters again," Cramer said. "That means stock picking is, therefore, back in style." Lightning round: Seeing the beauty in EL? Tariffs and trade are the two most prominent dampers on the stock market's gains, but if they go right, they could become its biggest drivers, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Monday. The Trump administration's economic policy has dominated the news narrative as trade tensions between the United States and China, Canada and the European Union have bubbled up, Cramer said. "Automobiles are the crux of global commerce and if we started seeing higher tariffs on cars, thats bad for the whole market," Cramer said, referencing President Donald Trump's threat to place 20 percent tariffs on all car imports from the EU. But if the president's push for fairer trade deals ends positively, as National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow suggested it might last week, it could be a huge boon for stocks, the "Mad Money" host argued. Case in point: Reports in early July and Kudlow's comments to Cramer at Delivering Alpha suggested the EU was considering making a "zero-for-zero" tariff deal with the United States in response to Trump's threat. "If Larrys right and the Europeans come bearing gifts maybe we make a deal to drop all auto tariffs on both sides I think this market could go much higher," Cramer said. Even so, a zero-for-zero deal would likely have its pros and cons, especially when it comes to U.S. truck manufacturers that are protected by U.S. tariffs on European imports, according to the International Trade Centre. All things considered, Cramer, a lifelong investor, warned that as long as the president remains trade-focused and Twitter-happy, investors should remain vigilant. "As an investor, these trade tensions are not positive for the stock market. As long as President Trump appears erratic on these issues, or, more accurately, often at odds with some of his staff, I say we have to be on guard," he said. "Even though most stocks tend to bounce back after Trumps tweets," trade isn't the same as one-off shots at Amazon, Cramer said. "Tariffs are different; we know the presidents willing to pull the trigger, and someone always gets hurt when you change trade policy." The Trump administration will reportedly announce major changes to the nation's fuel efficiency standards for automobiles this week, setting up a battle with California and the jurisdictions that align their rules with the Golden State. The Environmental Protection Agency will cancel plans to raise fuel efficiency requirements, known as CAFE standards, to about 50 miles per gallon by 2025, Bloomberg News reported, citing three people familiar with the plan. The administration will instead leave the average fuel efficiency requirement at 35 mpg for the fleet of cars and trucks manufactured by automakers. The EPA and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will also move to strip California of the authority to set tougher standards, which is enshrined in a waiver granted under the Clean Air Act, according to Bloomberg. That would also undercut California's plans to require carmakers to sell a higher number of electric vehicles. White House officials confirmed to CNBC that the administration intends to release its CAFE standards proposal later this week. That plan is widely anticipated to become mired in litigation, an outcome two White House officials acknowledged to CNBC. California, along with 16 other states and Washington, D.C., sued the EPA in May over the Trump administration's intention to weaken fuel efficiency standards for automobiles. The state filed suit one month after the EPA said it would overturn the Obama administration's requirements to boost fuel efficiency and cut greenhouse gas emissions from passenger cars. To the Trump Administration: make no mistake about it we are ready to use every legal tool at our disposal to protect the current vehicle emission standards. The stakes are high for our families health, the environment, and our economic prosperity, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement. The impending battle has raised concerns among automakers that they will have to engineer cars for two sets of standards. In the past, California has coordinated its fuel efficiency rules in cooperation with the federal government, essentially helping to lift the national benchmark. Former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt teased the showdown with California in April, saying, "Cooperative federalism doesn't mean that one state can dictate standards for the rest of the country." More than a dozen states and the District of Columbia have adopted California's tougher standards. The announcement later this week will set in motion the process of overturning the Obama-era plan. CNBC's Kayla Tausche and Jeff Daniels contributed reporting to this story. Tech regulation was back in the spotlight last week after European Union regulators fined Google a record 4.34 billion euro (about $5 billion) for breaching the bloc's antitrust rules. According to EU officials, Google abused the popularity of its Android operating system by making phone manufacturers pre-install Google apps, such as Chrome and Search. The European Commission gave the company 90 days to stop the practice, or be subject to additional charges. Google has said it will be appealing the EU's ruling. Aside from regulatory scrutiny, corporate results are also another factor in the mix as earnings season stateside rolls on, with Netflix the first of the FAANG stocks to have reported. The streaming giant missed subscriber addition estimates and briefly fell more than 14 percent during after-hours trading last week. Google-parent Alphabet is set to report quarterly results on Monday, while Facebook and Amazon.com are scheduled to release their corporate reports on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Apple, meanwhile, is slated to report earnings on Jul. 31. The Marlboro man has taken the reins of the Prancing Horse. Ferrari on Saturday announced Louis Camilleri, the former chairman and CEO of Philip Morris International and a current Ferrari board member, will be the companys new CEO. The news followed the surprise announcement that current CEO and chairman Sergio Marchionne was unable to return to work" following health issues. Shareholders are clearly rattled by the change, since Marchionne was the architect of the companys success as a public company and its strategy of expanding production and models. The share price is down more than 4 percent in trading midday Monday. The decline puts it on pace for its worst day since Sept. 7, 2017, when it lost more than 7 percent. And there are already grumblings among Ferrari investors, dealers and collectors about whether a former consumer-goods chief truly has the car expertise and specialized knowledge about the most storied and vaunted name in autos and racing to maintain its exclusivity. "Ferrari is all about emotions, style, success and drama, said Marcel Massini, a Ferrari historian and respected advisor to Ferrari collectors. Buyers want a leader to identify with and consequently a true and passionate car guy would certainly be a big help." Yet Camilleri may be just what Ferrari needs right now. Fiat Chrysler's European chief is leaving the company after it promoted Mike Manley, head of the Jeep brand, to CEO. Alfredo Altavilla, who had been considered a candidate for the top post, resigned after Fiat Chrysler replaced CEO Sergio Marchionne this weekend amid ongoing health struggles. Marchionne was due to step down in April, but complications following a recent surgery sped up his departure. Altavilla had been with Fiat Chrysler since 1990. In 2012, he was appointed chief operating officer of the Europe, Africa and Middle East region. Manley will now also take on the role of interim COO of the EMEA region. To assist his transition, Altavilla will work with him through the end of August. Manley previously ran the Jeep and Ram truck brands, which are two of the company's most profitable units. Both brands have been boosted by a consumer shift toward trucks and SUVs. The departures of two of the company's top executives comes just days before Fiat Chrysler will report second-quarter earnings on Wednesday. Fiat Chrysler shares were down nearly 2 percent Monday. A federal judge has postponed from Wednesday until July 31 the start of the upcoming trial of President Donald Trump's former campaign chief Paul Manafort after Manafort's lawyers complained of having a vast amount of newly disclosed documents to sift through. Judge T.S. Ellis III also granted immunity to five potential witnesses for their testimony at that trial in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va. The potential witnesses were identified as Dennis Raico, Cindy Laporta, Conor O'Brien, Donna Duggan and James Brennan. All five people appear to work at various financial institutions that have been linked to Manafort either in court filings or published reports. The determination of whether to call the witnesses to testify will be made by prosecutors during the trial. Prosecutors in the office of special counsel Robert Mueller had asked for so-called use immunity for the five witnesses, which would bar their testimony at Manafort's trial from being used against them in a criminal prosecution. Ellis' decision to grant them use immunity does not preclude the quintet from being charged on the basis of other evidence. Without immunity, Mueller's office had said, the witnesses would have refused to testify by invoking their Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination. Raico is an employee of Federal Savings Bank, a Chicago-based institution. NBC News reported in February that federal investigators were probing whether Manafort had promised Stephen Calk, the president of Federal Savings Bank, a job in the Trump White House in exchange for $16 million in homes loans. Neither Raico nor any of the other four people granted use immunity by Ellis on Monday have been charged with a crime. Ellis, during a hearing Monday, heard arguments from Manafort's defense team on their request for the delay. Manafort's lawyers have argued that a postponement is warranted due to the need to sift through the voluminous amount of documents recently turned over by prosecutors to the defense team. Manafort also faces a separate criminal case in Washington, D.C., federal court where a trial on related charges currently is scheduled to begin in September. Both cases relate to consulting and lobbying work Manafort did on behalf of pro-Russian politicians in Ukraine. Manafort had been confined to his home on a $10 million release bond until June, when prosecutors accused him of trying to tamper with potential witnesses against him. He has since been in jail. When spices and flavorings manufacturer McCormick acquired Frank's RedHot and French's mustard from consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser a year ago, the purchase was met with little fanfare and some criticism from Wall Street. But McCormick Chairman, President and CEO Lawrence Kurzius saw it differently, he told CNBC on Monday. "One of the things we said when we bought these brands was that these were fantastic food brands that were trapped at a non-food company," Kurzius told "Mad Money" host Jim Cramer in an interview. "You put them into our business; were the experts in flavor, weve gotten tremendous placement in restaurants, weve been able to expand at the shelf. Its really been good for us. McCormick's second-quarter earnings report managed to sway once-doubtful investors as well. The double-digit sales and profit growth helped the spice maker's stock surge nearly $10 per share on the day of the report. Kurzius added on Monday that if investors had taken Cramer's advice and bought McCormick's stock after Kurzius' year-ago appearance on "Mad Money," they would've beaten the by 10 basis points. One of the main drivers of McCormick's recent strength has been Frank's RedHot, a hot sauce that resonates with millennials and gained notoriety for its marketing slogan, "I put that s--- on everything." On the conference call, Kurzius said a national TV campaign to promote Frank's was planned for the fall and said he believed Frank's RedHot could eventually be the No. 1 hot sauce in the world. "Franks hot sauce actually hasnt been on television in over seven years," Kurzius told Cramer. But with its prevalence in the digital world and on social media, it's already become something of a lifestyle, he added. "Its especially a lifestyle brand for millennials," the CEO said. "Literally, the younger you are, the more likely you are to be a consumer. This is one of the things that really appealed to us about Franks. And McCormick's various growth drivers will stay intact despite the Trump administration's trade disputes, some of which have begun to affect segments of the food industry, Kurzius said. "Frenchs ketchup, for the Canadian market, we actually make it in Canada with Canadian tomatoes, so it doesnt have a tariff," the CEO said. "Now, in the U.S., we make it here in the U.S. as well. That goes to our philosophy of producing in the markets where we sell the product, which I think is going to help us out as we go through this whole uncertainty around tariffs." Shares of McCormick were down 0.53 percent at Monday's close, settling at $117.20. A container delivery truck drives past stacked piles of shipping containers at the Port of Long Beach in Long Beach, California on July 6, 2018, including one from China Shipping, a conglomerate under the direct administration of China's State Council. The acceleration of U.S. trade actions poses a risk to S&P 500 earnings through falling export revenues and rising input costs for American companies, according to Goldman Sachs. A 10 percent tariff on all imports from China would lower Goldmans 2019 earnings per share estimate by 3 percent, Goldman Sachs chief U.S. equity strategist David Kostin wrote. If "tensions spread" and a 10 percent tariff were imposed on all U.S. imports, Goldman said, it would lower its 2019 EPS estimate by 15 percent to $145 a share. Tariffs benefit some domestic industries, but pose a risk to S&P 500 earnings through reduced revenues (lower exports) and weaker margins (higher input costs), Kostin wrote. Our economists now assign a 60 percent probability that the U.S. imposes tariffs on the recently targeted $200 billion of imports from China. President Donald Trump and his administration have defended an initiative of fair and reciprocal trade in recent months, demanding that some of the nations economic allies offer the U.S. a better deal in an effort to curb Washingtons trade deficit and promote American exports. When youre almost 800 Billion Dollars a year down on Trade, you cant lose a Trade War! Trump tweeted in June. The U.S. has been ripped off by other countries for years on Trade, time to get smart! tweet The United States, which already imposed tariffs on $79 billion of goods and services and proposed an additional $702 billion on other foreign goods, is on track to levy taxes on 27 percent of all imports, the Goldman strategist said. The White Houses pivot toward more protectionist policies has sparked retaliatory measures from other countries, leaving many economists concerned that the tit-for-tat dispute could ultimately slow global economic growth. Still, any negative impact of a worsening trade war would have an outsized impact on certain industries, Kostin added, underscoring U.S. oil and coal companies with large international supply chains. Industries heavily relying on imports theoretically face the greatest supply chain risk from rising trade tensions. Petroleum and coal products, transportation, and computer and electronic products have the highest share of imported cost of goods sold, while services companies should be relatively insulated. Certain tactics, such as investing in companies with higher domestic sales, would likely outperform if the trade dispute worsens, Kostin said. The banks domestic sales basket has outperformed the S&P 500 by 130 basis points since May, easily besting its collection of stocks with high China sales exposure; that portfolio has lagged the market by 570 basis points since May 22. Constituents of Goldman Sachs domestic sales basket include familiar names such as retailer Target, CVS Health and Wells Fargo; none of the three companies has significant overseas sales. Other financial companies, such as Charles Schwab and U.S. Bancorp , tend to have reduced foreign exposure. As another possible trade play, Goldman options strategist Rocky Fishman recommends overwriting equities with 12-month to 24-month SPX index call options. This strategy, using a December 2019 strike call, will outperform if the index rises by less than 9 percent, the strategists explained. "Our base case forecast is that S&P 500 rises 2 percent to 2850 at year-end 2018 and by 7 percent to 3000 at year-end 2019," Kostin wrote. "In the event of a severe global trade war, our 2019 earnings per share forecast could equal $145 and the forward P/E multiple could contract by 10 percent to 15 times, dragging S&P 500 to 2200 by year-end 2018." US President Donald Trump speaks next to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (R) and Apple CEO Tim Cook (L) during an American Technology Council roundtable at the White House The midterm elections for 2018 are still months away. Yet a Trump-supporting super PAC is already digging up dirt on billionaire executives and Wall Street titans who could be potential opponents for President Donald Trump in the 2020 race for the White House. Super PAC America Rising is gearing up for battle against potential candidates such as Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and former Starbucks executive chairman Howard Schultz, according to people familiar with the plan. Apple CEO Tim Cook, J.P. Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Disney CEO Bob Iger and billionaire hedge-fund executive and Democratic donor Tom Steyer are also in its sights. A person close to the PAC's leadership provided CNBC with examples of the types of issues it could exploit. To attack Cuban, the group could use the Mavericks being accused of failing to confront a hostile work environment alleged by multiple employees. In response to the accusations, Cuban, who was not accused, said in February he fired his longtime human resources vice president Buddy Pittman and hired a third party to handle any harassment complaints. It could tie Cook to Hillary Clinton, noting he was on the Democratic presidential candidates shortlist to be vice president. Other plans include making a case against Schultzs defense of same-sex marriage and highlighting Igers public spat with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., over the minimum wage. Cuban has said he would run as a Republican before he would as a Democrat, although he also said it was more likely he'd run as an independent. Schultz, likewise, has accused Democrats of lurching too far to the left. Beyond Cuban, it's not clear whether any of the business leaders in the group's sights are considering a run. The focus on prospective candidates from the business world will be part of the PAC's larger effort to craft a message to persude voters that those running against Trump cant be trusted and there is a deep divide on the direction of the Democratic Party and opposition against the president. These business executives are on our list of people were monitoring. We are expanding our tracking and well be implementing the same rapid response system that we used against Hillary Clinton, said Sarah Dolan, a spokeswoman for the PAC. These CEOs have been more vocal on public policy than those in the past and well be holding their positions accountable as they take steps to run. A spokesman for Dimon referred questions about a potential 2020 run to a recent CNBC interview where he said he has no intention of running for president. Nothing has changed, the spokesman added. Cuban and representatives for Schultz, Cook, Iger and Steyer did not immediately return requests for comment. The plan for America Rising's 2020 push has been communicated to the groups extensive list of donors, according to a PAC official. That list includes Republican financiers such as John Childs, the chairman of private equity firm J.W. Childs Associates, and longtime GOP attorney C. Boyden Gray. Childs, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, has contributed $100,000 to the PAC in the 2018 election cycle, while Gray has given up to $10,000. Gray and Childs also have links to a host of other PACs, including Protect the House, a joint fundraising committee dedicated to defending House Republicans this year. They both gave $100,000 to the organization in June, Federal Election Committee records show. For political strategists, the move by America Rising to start deep diving into these CEOs and other 2020 hopefuls, as Politico reported earlier, is the latest sign that Republicans are looking to head off any competition Trump may face, especially when it comes to the fundraising game. Political figures such as Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif.; Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Sanders are getting most of the group's attention for now, Politico said. The great move is to get rid of the competition before the competition gets rid of you. The best way to do that is to create bad press on the internet and through cable news, veteran political strategist Hank Sheinkopf said. It is an absolute preventive measure. Get rid of those guys when you can and remove the possibility that Trump will be facing a guy with a lot of money. Kill them early but not with kindness, he added. Theres also the growing belief among some political operatives that the titans of the business community may decide not to run because of the public scrutiny that comes with becoming a candidate for president. Many CEOs arent used to having attack ads hit the airwaves against them and are in the habit of hiding behind their companies to avoid the spotlight, Sheinkopf said. Trump's approval rating remains underwater, according to a Real Clear Politics average of polling data. Yet, some surveys have shown an increase in voters' approval of the president's performance. A new NBC-Wall Street Journal poll showed 45 percent of participants saying they approve of the commander in chiefs efforts compared with 44 percent in the last survey. President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday ordered all government agencies under his administration to implement anti-red tape measures as part of the Ease of Doing Business Law. In his third State of the Nation Address, the President said that alongside efforts to rid the government of corrupt officials, the administration will also enhance the delivery of frontline services. I thank Congress for the swift passage of the Ease of Doing Business [Act], which is a significant fight against corruption and improving service delivery. We need to sustain our momentum, Duterte told both chambers of Congress. I hereby direct all local government units, please listen, and government agencies to faithfully implement this law and simply simplify the process. I ask this to all under my control and supervision in the government. Please do not go wrong, Duterte said. I particularly call the attention of the agencies with the [most] number of red tape-related reports from the public. Make your services truly customer-friendly, he said. Our people deserve efficient, effective, and responsive government services. They deserve nothing less. On May 28, Duterte signed into law Republic Act No. 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act. The law, which seeks to make the process of putting up and running a business easier and more efficient for Filipinos, addresses the failure of the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007. It will also introduce simplified requirements and streamline procedures that spare the public from long waiting times and long lines in government agencies. Under the new law, government agencies are required to treat simple transactions within three consecutive days, complex transactions within seven days, and highly technical transactions within 20 days. The law also restricts to three the number of signatories for applications for licenses, clearance and permits. The said law was issued months after the World Bank released a report showing the Philippines in 113th place out of 190 countries in terms of ease of doing business in 2017, posting a 14-point drop from 99th in 2016.In his address, Duterte also defended the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law (TRAIN), which has raised prices for basic commodities and fuel. Some suggested to stop the TRAIN implementation.. we cannot and should not. We need this for sustainable growth that leaves no Filipino behind. TRAIN is already helping poor families and senior citizens cope up with the rising prices, Duterte said. Duterte said he was committed to a comprehensive tax reform and he asked the Congress to pass package two, which will lower corporate income taxes, especially for smaller businesses. Lower taxes mean they will have more money to invest and create more jobs. More than 99 percent of our businesses are micro, small and medium enterprises and employ around 65 percent of our workers, he said. Duterte cited a number of congressmen who filed the House version of the package two, and egged the Senate to follow suit. Maybe tomorrow, sir? he said. He said tax reform was an urgent matter and told lawmakers not to be part of the problem by ignoring it. I hope to sign Package 2 before the year ends. I urge Congress to pass it in a form that satisfies our goals and the interest of the many, not just the wealthy few. By end of July 2018, all five packages of my tax reform would have been submitted to Congress, the President said. Duterte said there was no chance the government could deliver its promises without an equitable tax system. In his speech, the President also called on lawmakers to pass legislation to end illegal contractualization. While the government has ordered some companies to regularize workers, Duterte said this did not satisfy all sectorsan apparent reference to labor groups that were protesting outside the Batasan complex. As I would like to do the impossible, that power is not vested upon me by the Constitution and neither will I make both ends meet even if I violate the laws to achieve that purpose. Its not part of my territory, he said. After months of speculation over the health of Italys banking sector, another Italian lender is in the spotlight after the European Central Bank (ECB) demanded Banca Carige to see new capital plans as it tries to overcome a management crisis. The Genoa-based bank Banca Carige said on Sunday that the ECB has requested to see how the bank will meet minimum capital thresholds amid an ongoing management crisis. The ECB has also said that such capital plans can be submitted later, if the lender decides to merge with another institution. Banca Carige has lost its chairman and deputy chairman in recent weeks, alongside two board members, over disagreements with the banks chief executive. This crisis adds up to the pile of problems in the Italian banking system, where crisis-legacy issues remain, with one of the biggest problems being a build-up of non-performing loans. Veneto Banca, Banca Popolare di Vicenza and Monte dei Paschi have all made headlines in the last year for requiring help from the Italian government to avoid a wider collapse. The former two received a cash buffer of 4.8 billion euros ($5.63 billion) and state guarantees of 12 billion euros ($14.08 billion); whereas the latter received a cash injection of up to 6.6 billion euros ($7.4 billion). Analysts argue that the several attempts to rescue Italian banks show that the mechanisms used to prop-up banking institutions, like those in Italy, are not sufficient and could ultimately put the entire European system at risk. That speaks to how robust the mechanism in the EU is, because you can only make so many exceptions before you start questioning the whole bail in-bail out system, Luca Raffellini, head of business and financial services at Frost & Sullivan, told CNBC Monday. He also said that the best way to reduce the level of bad loans in Italy now seems to be through the decent market for securitization which allows the merger of several kinds of debt, for instance debt related to mortgages and credit card loans, and sell them together to investors. However, Raffellini warned on Squawk Box Europe" that this might not take place depending on what the Italian government, which came into power in June, decides to do. National Security Advisor John Bolton (R), listens to U.S. President Donald Trump as he speaks about the FBI raid at lawyer Michael Cohen's office, while receiving a briefing from senior military leaders regarding Syria, in the Cabinet Room, on April 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. Getty Images National security advisor John Bolton on Monday doubled down on President Donald Trump's all-caps tweet directed at the Iranian regime. In a statement, Bolton said: I spoke to the President over the last several days, and President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before." Sunday night, Trump fired off a tweet in response to what he called a threat made by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. The president's response triggered new concerns that the already-tense situation could escalate into a potential military conflict. TWEET Trump withdrew the U.S. from an Obama-era deal designed to discourage Iran's nuclear ambitions. In renouncing the 2015 agreement, the U.S. is reinstating harsh sanctions on Iran, which is the fifth-biggest oil producer in the world, and is expecting most buyers to halt their purchases of Iranian crude oil by November. Bolton's history of tough talk Bolton's statement comes after a week of walkbacks by the Trump administration following the president's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump's comments on the Federal Reserve's interest rate policy. Trump eventually said he supported the intelligence community's findings that Russia interfered with the U.S. election in 2016, after he had suggested that he accepted Putin's denials during their Helsinki press conference. Later in the week, the White House said Trump respected the Fed's independence after he complained that the central bank's planned interest rate increases threaten progress in the economy. This time, though, the White House is sticking with the president's harsh rhetoric through Bolton, a foreign-policy hardliner and an Iran hawk. Bolton is responsible for advising Trump on a wide spectrum of national security issues, from the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State to China's aggressive actions in the South China Sea to North Korea's growing nuclear threat. As George W. Bush's undersecretary of state for arms control, Bolton was a supporter of the invasion of Iraq and was confident that Iraqi president Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. After leaving the Bush administration, Bolton joined the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank, where he expressed some of his confrontational rhetoric in op-eds such as, "To Stop Iran's Bomb, Bomb Iran." TWEET Bolton was also a vocal critic of the Obama administration's nuclear deal with Iran. "It must be ripped up," Bolton tweeted in January. 'Mother of all wars' Before teeing off for round three at The British Open on Saturday, Jordan Spieth had some time to kill. So the PGA Tour star wandered into a local barber shop in Carnoustie, Scotland, for a trim. My hair had gotten a little long and I needed to get a haircut, so I did this morning, Spieth told reporters after finishing his round. It was a good deal: The 24-year-old said it was a nine-pound haircut, or about $12. After tip, he paid a total of 20, or about $26. TWEET While a 20-pound note doesnt mean much to Spieth, who has earned nearly $38 million in prize money over his career, it was a memorable transaction for the barber, Fryad Salimi. Its the biggest tip I have ever had, Salimi told The Telegraph. Normally we only ever get 1 or 2 as a tip. If he ever wants to come back, he is guaranteed a free haircut and shave for life. As for the actual haircut, the barber went a little high and tight, Spieth said during the press conference. It was intended to be what I normally get but instead he went a little shorter. [It's] a very British haircut. Shaved on the sides, a little longer on top. But it is what it is." Spieth, who was tied for first place after his round on Saturday, dropped out of the lead on Sunday and finished the tournament tied for ninth. Don't miss: Shaq once gave a server a $4,000 tiphere's how he decides how much to leave Like this story? Subscribe to CNBC Make It on YouTube! BY THE NUMBERS IN THE NEWS TODAY STOCKS TO WATCH GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is said to be considering breaking up the company, according to the Financial Times. Some of the British drugmakers biggest shareholders had been pressing the companys board to consider spinning off Glaxos consumer division. Papa Johns International (PZZA) has adopted a shareholder rights plan which would kick in if any shareholder amasses a 15 percent stake in the pizza maker. The plan is designed to prevent a shareholder from gaining control of the pizza chain through open market purchases, and is seen as a move to thwart founder John Schnatter, who resigned as chairman recently following reports that he had used a racial slur during a conference call. Mondelez International (MDLZ) announced a voluntary recall of certain Ritz cracker products on concerns about possible salmonella contamination. Syntel (SYNT) was acquired by French technology service company Atos for $41 per share in cash, a premium of about 4.8 percent over the Michigan-based information technology companys Friday closing price. The total value of the deal, including assumed debt, is about $3.57 billion. Xerox (XRX) settled a lawsuit with shareholder Centerview Partners, relating to the terminated deal in which Xerox would have been combined with the Fuji Xerox joint venture between the company and Japans Fujifilm. Lifepoint Health (LPNT) is surging following a Reuters report that private equity firm Apollo Global Management (APO) is in talks to buy the hospital operator, possibly for as much as $6 billion. WATERCOOLER Yeni Maricela Gonzalez Garcia stands with her children after she was reunited with her children at the East Harlem Cayuga Centers on July 13, 2018 in New York City. NEW YORK The children arrive in groups, sometimes many hours after even an adult's bedtime. Without their parents, often knowing no English, they're brought by federal agents on journeys as long as 2,000 miles from the southwest U.S. border to social services programs operated by nonprofit, religious or private agencies and companies. Since 2014, thousands of children and their siblings have made the crossing. Coming mainly from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, some were sent by their parents to escape purported violence or other threats. Their illegal trips were aided by smugglers and typically ended with the children in U.S. custody. More from USA Today: Trump separated from month-old family separation policy Trump-Sessions family separation policy is not moral or required by law: Asylum lawyer President Trump continues to blame Democrats for his family separation approach on immigration Officially classified as Unaccompanied Alien Children, thousands of the young migrants have been brought to New York City facilities of a company called Cayuga Centers. The nonprofit has received millions of dollars from the federal government during the past several years to place the children in foster care until they can rejoin parents or other relatives. This year, a new and different wave of undocumented migrant children have joined the federal caravans traveling to Cayuga Centers and other social services providers. They were separated from their parents at the border by immigration agents for weeks as President Donald Trump's administration enforced a "zero tolerance" policy against illegal immigration. These children also went into foster care at Cayuga Centers, often with their parents having no idea that the youngsters had been transported thousands of miles away. A federal court filing late last week said 364 of 2,551 children between ages 5 and 7 who had been identified for reunification had rejoined their families. The latest young migrants included a 9-year-old Honduran girl and her 5-year-old sister. They were separated from their mother, Denise Santos, at the southwest border in June after the three crossed into the U.S. Santos asked for asylum and was detained at the Port Isabel Detention Center, near Los Fresnos, Texas. "We're trying to get them back together," Ricardo de Anda, a Texas attorney helping the family, said in a recent telephone interview. Amid nationwide protests and court battles over similar family separations, the federal government faces a court-ordered July 26 deadline to complete reunification of all the families. As that process unfolds, Cayuga Centers, like similar social services agencies, has become the focus of an unwelcome spotlight as Americans debate potential solutions for illegal immigration. "We have nothing to do with the separations. When we take the kids, the kids are already in federal custody," Cayuga Centers' CEO and President Edward Myers Hayes said in a recent telephone interview David Connelly, who chairs the nonprofit's board of trustees, said he initially feared some might blame Cayuga Centers for the separations or accuse the company of "abetting" the government's policy. He said Hayes satisfied his concerns by asking a question: "If we don't take care of these children, who will?" If Cayuga Centers is doing good by serving migrant children, it is also doing well for itself. Last year, the nonprofit said it had become "the largest provider of transitional foster homes for Central American children taken into custody while crossing the U.S. southern border." Federal contracts more than tripled Cayuga Centers' annual budget in recent years as the company provided foster care, physical and mental health screening, schoolteachers and made efforts to return the children to their families. That income, accounting for what Connelly said was roughly half the nonprofit's budget, has made Cayuga Centers a major provider and financial beneficiary in what has become a nearly $1 billion annual U.S. industry caring for migrant children. Grants by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for shelters, foster care and other services for these children have jumped from $74.5 million in 2007 to $958 million in 2017, according to a recent analysis by The Associated Press. A surge of undocumented migrants The still-unfolding crisis began during the Obama administration with a surge of Central American children and families who illegally crossed the southwestern U.S. border. In all, nearly 250,000 migrant children from Central America were apprehended along the southwest border during the federal fiscal years 2013 through 2017, U.S. Customs and Border Protection data show. Since 2002, youngsters detained after illegal U.S. border crossings have been placed in the Unaccompanied Alien Children Program, which is managed by the HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement. Fewer than 8,000 children were served annually during the program's first nine years. However, the numbers started rising in the 2012 fiscal year when 13,625 children were referred to the refugee office. The annual total soared to a high of 59,170 in fiscal 2016 before dipping to 40,810 in fiscal 2017, which ended on Sept. 30. Some children have been placed in a network of more than 100 shelters in 17 states that are operated by HHS. The youngsters stay there pending release to relatives in the U.S. as they await immigration hearings. Others have been placed with social services contractors such as Cayuga Centers. The nonprofit didn't start out to serve undocumented children. Instead, Cayuga Services embraced a revised mission and financial reward that arose from the federal fight against illegal immigration. Based roughly 250 miles northwest of New York City, the nonprofit began its existence in 1852 as an orphanage, according to a history on the company website. More than a century later, Cayuga Centers expanded its foster care services to serve children placed with the company by family courts in New York. The company added community-based programs and services for people with developmental disabilities during the 1990s. A history of children's services Four years ago, the company expanded its foster care programs to take in a new group of clients beset by troubles. The federal government issued a request for proposals to serve unaccompanied immigrant children, and Cayuga Centers submitted a plan, said Connelly, the nonprofit's board chairman. "Leaving the political debate behind, we asked: What is the humane solution to helping a most vulnerable population of children?" Hayes, the company's CEO, wrote in the Cayuga Centers' 2015-2016 annual report. In all, 4,215 migrant children who crossed the southwestern border illegally were sent to the company's New York City facilities from mid-2014 through mid-2017, before the family separations began, a review of the nonprofit's annual reports shows. More have followed since last summer. More than 350 Central American children, including one 9 months old, have been brought to the Cayuga Centers facility in East Harlem since the family separations began in April, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said after a June 20 visit to the program. In all, 239 children separated from their parents at the border were at the facility when he visited, de Blasio said. A judge in California on Tuesday ordered U.S. border authorities to reunite separated families within 30 days, setting a hard deadline in a process that has so far yielded uncertainty about when children might again see their parents. Time Hayes did not challenge the numbers but said federal privacy restrictions barred him from providing a detailed census. The federal government has awarded Cayuga Centers nearly $92.5 million in contract awards to fund shelter services for unaccompanied migrant children, contracting records show. The awards started in 2014 and are scheduled to continue through the start of 2020, the records show. The company is paid only for the children who actually receive services and the numbers vary, said Hayes, who added: "We're a far cry from maximizing our contract dollars." The nonprofit listed a nearly $28.3 million grant for unaccompanied children's services on the 2016-2017 federal tax return filed with the New York State Attorney General's Charities Bureau. The federal funding powered Cayuga Centers' total annual revenue from $15.6 million in the nonprofit's 2012-2013 fiscal year to nearly $48.7 million in 2016-2017, according to its most recently available federal tax returns. "We haven't done it for the money. We think we're good at the work, and we think it's good work to do," said Hayes. Despite the federal income, he added that the nonprofit would likely report a budget deficit for its just-completed 2016-2017 fiscal year. As the nonprofit's revenue rose, Hayes' total annual compensation increased from $186,632 to $244,743, a 31 percent jump. His total income is comparable with compensation for the highest-paid executives at similarly sized nonprofits, said Daniel Borochoff, president of Charity Watch, a nonprofit sector watchdog. Connelly, the Cayuga Centers board chairman, said in a written statement that Hayes' compensation was "below that of many executives of comparably sized agencies." Foster care model Cayuga Centers places the children it serves in the homes of bilingual foster families by night and provides education in the nonprofit's school programs by day. The Department of Health and Human Services' inspector general's office has not audited Cayuga Centers' contract services and has no immediate plans for a future evaluation, the agency said. Despite an initial rebuff when he tried to see the Santos family sisters, de Anda, one of the attorneys working to reunify the family, said a social worker at Cayuga Centers' East Harlem facility "appears to be taking care of my client's children well." However, the younger girl told him her older sister had suffered from a nosebleed and earaches and also cried at night, the attorney said. Cayuga Centers denied his request for a meeting with the foster mother, de Anda said. "They're not giving us information that's normally received," de Anda said. "If you're the mother and someone else is taking care of your children, you'd like to sit down with that lady and find out what's going on." Cayuga Centers said that allowing a meeting would have violated a federal Office of Refugee Resettlement regulation. Separately, a video that was secretly recorded inside the nonprofit's East Harlem facility last month provided ammunition to critics of the family separation policy and also provided a glimpse of Cayuga Centers' services. Obtained by MSNBC, the video showed a young girl identified only as Jessica, tearfully speaking in Spanish as she said she wanted to talk to her mother. Hayes said federal regulations barred him from discussing the status of individual children. "Kids are different, and they're doing differently," he said. First Lady Melania Trump makes second trip to the Mexican border this week since President Donald Trump signed the executive order. Veuer's Chandra Lanier has the story. Buzz60 The company also issued a statement with its own perspective on Cayuga Centers' services and personnel. "At any hour of the day, staff are there to ensure that newly arrived youth are fed nutritious food, provided essentials such as clothes and toiletries, educated about their rights, seen by a medical professional to address any health concerns and quickly transferred to the comfort of a foster home in which they are treated with care and respect," the nonprofit said. However, David Hansell, who heads New York City's Administration for Children's Services, told a City Council hearing late last month that Cayuga Centers staffers "described the depth of trauma, mental health and other issues these children are experiencing." Hansell pledged his agency's help to provide support services. Taking a trust-but-verify position, de Anda said he doesn't "necessarily push back" against the company's statements about its quality of care for migrant children. "But I think they need to be more transparent about what they're doing and what's happening to the children," he said. WASHINGTON - JANUARY 22: Pro-choice advocates participate in protest in front of the U.S. Supreme Court building January 22, 2010 in Washington, DC. Activists from across the nation gathered to commemorate the 37th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, which decriminalized abortion in all fifty states. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) Support for Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion in the United States, has hit a record high in a new NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll ahead of the battle over Brett Kavanaughs nomination to the high court. The survey shows that 71 percent of Americans believe that Roe should not be overturned, while only 23 percent want the ruling reversed. Supporters of the ruling include 88 percent of Democrats, 76 percent of independents and 52 percent of Republicans. This is the highest level of support for the ruling, and the lowest level of voters who want Roe overturned, in the NBC-WSJ polls history dating back to 2005. For historical perspective, a Gallup poll in 1989 showed that 58 percent of voters supported the ruling, while 31 percent wanted it overturned. Defenders of abortion rights are concerned that Kavanaugh, who has a conservative track record on the federal bench, could fundamentally change the balance of the top court and put Roe at risk. If confirmed by the Senate, Kavanaugh will succeed retiring Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, who was the pivotal vote in 1992 in a decision that upheld Roe. The NBC-WSJ poll also showed that more voters are likely to support a political candidate who backs abortion rights rather than one who opposes them. Forty-four percent of voters said they are more likely to vote for a pro-abortion-rights candidate, while 26 percent said they are more likely to support a candidate who backs restrictions on abortions. Twenty-nine percent said a candidates views on abortion makes no difference to them. Public opposition to Kavanaughs confirmation to the court is higher than it was in advance of several of his predecessors confirmations. Check out the companies making headlines after the bell: Shares of Google's parent company Alphabet shot up more than 3 percent in extended-hours trading. The company beat analysts' earnings estimates for its second quarter, posting $11.75 per share versus the $9.59 that was expected. Alphabet also beat analysts' revenue expectations, generating $32.66 billion versus the $32.17 billion that was estimated. The company also reported that paid clicks were up 58 percent compared to the 49 percent that was expected. Shares of Whirlpool were down more than 8 percent in extended-hours trading. The home appliance company missed analysts' earnings expectations for its second quarter, posting $3.20 per share versus the $3.69 that was expected. Whirlpool also missed on analysts' revenue estimates, generating $5.14 billion versus the $5.29 that was expected. Whirlpool also told investors that it is paying more for raw materials because of steel and aluminum tariffs placed by the Trump administration. TD Ameritrade stock was up more than 1 percent in after-hours trading. The banking company beat analysts' earnings expectations for its third quarter, posting 89 cents per share versus the 80 cents per share that was expected. TD Ameritrade also beat analysts' revenue estimates, generating $1.38 billion versus the $1.35 billion that was expected. Vitamin Shoppe stock was up more than 4 percent in after-hours trading. The nutritional supplement company announced the appointment of Sharon M. Leite as their new CEO effective Aug. 27, 2018. Leite, who has experience with companies like Godiva, Pier 1, Express and Gap, will also become a member of Vitamin Shoppes' Board of Directors. Check out the companies making headlines before the bell: Hasbro The toy maker earned 48 cents per share for the second quarter, well above the consensus estimate of 29 cents. Revenue was also well above estimates. The performance came despite a drop in profit and revenue from a year ago due largely to the bankruptcy and liquidation of the Toys R Us chain. Halliburton The oilfield services company matched Street forecasts with earnings of 58 cents per share, while revenue beat estimates. Revenue was up 24 percent from a year earlier, amid higher oil prices and producers putting more rigs in operation. Cal-Maine Foods The nations largest egg producer beat estimates by a penny a share, with quarterly profit of $1.48 per share. Revenue fell below Street forecasts, however. Cal-Maine said the market may see additional pricing pressure to due to an expected increase in the U.S. laying hen flock and potential excess egg supply. Fiat Chrysler Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne has been replaced, after suffering complications from shoulder surgery. Jeep division chief Mike Manley was named to replace Marchionne, who was originally scheduled to retire from the automaker next year. LifePoint Health The hospital operator agreed to be bought by affiliates of private-equity firm Apollo Global for $5.6 billion, including $2.9 billion in assumed debt. The price amounts to $65 per share, about 36 percent above LifePoints Friday closing price. The deal is helping shares of other hospital stocks, such as Community Health Systems. GlaxoSmithKline Glaxo is said to be considering breaking up the company, according to the Financial Times. Some of the British drug makers biggest shareholder had been pressing the companys board to consider spinning off Glaxos consumer division. Papa Johns International Papa Johns has adopted a shareholder rights plan which would kick in if any shareholder amasses a 15 percent stake in the pizza maker. The plan is designed to prevent a shareholder from gaining control of the pizza chain through open market purchases, and is seen as a move to thwart founder John Schnatter, who resigned as chairman recently following reports that he had used a racial slur during a conference call. Mondelez International Mondelez announced a voluntary recall of certain Ritz cracker products on concerns about possible salmonella contamination. Syntel Syntel was acquired by French technology service company Atos for $41 per share in cash, a premium of about 4.8 percent over the Michigan-based information technology companys Friday closing price. The total value of the deal, including assumed debt, is about $3.57 billion. Tesla Tesla is asking some suppliers to refund a portion of the money it has previously spent, according to The Wall Street Journal. The paper reviewed a memo sent to a supplier last week, which asked that some of the money spent since 2016 be returned, and that the fulfillment of the request was seen as essential to Teslas continued operation. Philip Morris International The tobacco producers stock was downgraded to hold from buy at Societe Generale, which expressed uncertainty at future market reception of reduced risk products. Xerox Xerox settled a lawsuit with shareholder Centerview Partners, relating to the terminated deal in which Xerox would have been combined with the Fuji Xerox joint venture between the company and Japans Fujifilm. The nationwide housing shortage continues but is especially troublesome for homebuyers with a budget of $250,000 or less, Susan Wachter, professor of real estate and of finance at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, told CNBC on Monday. Rising labor, land and material costs are slowing down the supply, "except at higher prices, which is simply not affordable for the great middle, and thats where we see the hit in ... existing sales," Wachter said on "Power Lunch." Sales of existing homes are down for the third month in a row due to a shortage of properties, which results in higher prices and pushes some potential buyers out of the market. Existing home sales fell 0.6 percent in June, or 2.2 percent from June 2017. And as prices for new home construction increase, construction in general is on the decline. Housing starts, or the number of new residential housing projects, decreased in June, plunging 12.3 percent. The loss represents the third month in a row of declines or a nine-month low. "That sets a price point for the existing sale market as well," Wachter said. And with inventory at historic lows and a lack of new construction, existing homeowners are holding on to their homes longer, Wachter noted. That spells trouble for first-time homebuyers and those looking to upgrade, such as growing families. Years before President Donald Trump sent his all-caps tweet threatening Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, he had warned that his predecessor, Barack Obama, would use the prospect of a war with Iran for political advantage. Late Sunday, Trump tweeted that Rouhani must "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN" lest he "SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Trump tweet NEVER EVER Trump's tweet, the latest instance of the rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran, appeared to be a response to Rouhani's admonition on Sunday that a war between the U.S. and Iran would be the "mother of all wars." Despite his bellicose tweet, Trump used to express suspicions in prior tweets years ago that Obama would start a war with Iran "in order to get elected" to a second term. Trump tweet Obama will start war It wasn't just an off-hand remark; Trump repeated the sentiment that Obama would attack Iran as a political calculation in subsequent tweets over the next four years: Trump tweet Obama 2012 Trump tweet Obama 2013 Trump tweet Obama 2013 2 Trump tweet Obama 2015 The president's salvo against Rouhani comes as Trump slaps punitive sanctions back on Iran after he announced the U.S. withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal brokered during the Obama administration. The White House didn't immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment on Trump's previous tweets. The Islamic State group (ISIS) in Egypts Sinai Peninsula Sunday announced the loss of one its top figures as the army continues carrying out its February-launched operation seeking to crush out the militant group. The local leader was identified as Abu Jaafar al-Maqdesi on a poster-like mourning notice titled Caravans of shuhada (martyrs), Reuters reports. Brother Abu Jaafar al-Maqdesi, may God accept him, the group said on its Telegram channel. It did not provide circumstances of al-Maqdesis death but a state security source indicated that the man was the local ISIS leader in the Mediterranean town of Sheikh Zuweid, located near the border with the Gaza Strip, Reuters notes. The army-backed security operation has been battling the militant group in the Sinai. The operation launched early February seeks to root out the terror group, which has killed hundreds of state forces since 2013 when the militants stepped up attacks following the overthrow of the countrys first democratically elected president Mohamed Morsi by current leader Fattah al-Sisi. Over 300 ISIS fighters have been killed and over 30 soldiers have been slain since the beginning of the operation, according to state figures. A combination of file photos show U.S. President Donald Trump in the White House in Washington, DC, U.S. April 9, 2018 and former FBI Director James Comey on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., June 8, 2017. President Donald Trump is considering pulling the national security clearances of top-level former intelligence officials for making what the White House described Monday as "baseless accusations" against him. Those ex-officials include former CIA Director John Brennan, former FBI Director James Comey, former NSA Director Michael Hayden, former U.S. national security advisor Susan Rice and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. Some of them said they no longer have security clearances, however. All of those federal officials served during the Obama administration, and all have been vocally critical of Trump since leaving their posts in government. "The president is exploring the mechanisms to remove security clearance because they've politicized, and in some cases monetized, their public service and security clearances," Trump's press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, told reporters during a press briefing at the White House. "Making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia or being influenced by Russia against the president is extremely inappropriate, and the fact that people with security clearances are making these baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence," she added, appearing to read from a prepared statement. Sanders was responding to a reporter's question about a tweet from Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., earlier that day announcing his intention to ask Trump to revoke Brennan's security clearance. Paul had asked on the social media platform whether Brennan was "monetizing" his security clearance, making "millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks" against Trump. Rand Paul tweet It was not immediately clear if any prior U.S. president had revoked former intelligence officers' security clearances for similar reasons. But then-President Barack Obama did not strip retired Army Gen. Michael Flynn of his clearance, which had been granted by the Obama administration in 2010 and renewed in 2016, even while Flynn was campaigning for Trump. Flynn, who was Trump's short-lived national security advisor, has since pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and opted to cooperate in special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. On the campaign trail, he had on multiple occasions tweeted conspiracy theories about Trump's opponent, Hillary Clinton. Brennan had offered a particularly scathing review of Trump's performance at a press conference last week in Helsinki, Finland, alongside Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The U.S. president had refused to say whether he believed his own administration's intelligence agencies, which say Russia attacked the 2016 election, versus Putin, who denies any such interference. The press conference was roundly criticized by politicians of both major parties. But few went as far in excoriating the president as Brennan, who in a tweet shortly following said Trump's performance "exceeds the threshold of 'high crimes & misdemeanors,'" adding, "It was nothing short of treasonous." Brennan tweet At the White House briefing on Monday, Sanders pushed back on a reporter's question about whether Trump simply wanted to punish people whose free speech he disliked. "The president doesn't like the fact that people are politicizing agencies and departments that are specifically meant to not be political and not meant to be monetized off of security clearances," she said. President Donald Trump is again taking aim at Amazon for "using" the U.S. Postal Service as its "delivery boy," raising the possibility of antitrust claims against the company. Trump railed against the e-retailer and The Washington Post owned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in a series of tweets Monday morning, claiming the newspaper has "gone crazy" against Trump in the months since Amazon "lost the Internet Tax Case in the U.S. Supreme Court." Shares of Amazon fell nearly 2 percent in early trading Monday before paring half the losses. The stock closed less than a percent down. "The Amazon Washington Post has gone crazy against me ever since they lost the Internet Tax Case in the U.S. Supreme Court two months ago. Next up is the U.S. Post Office which they use, at a fraction of real cost, as their delivery boy for a BIG percentage of their packages...." Trump tweeted Monday. He added: "....In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon. Is it used as protection against antitrust claims which many feel should be brought?" The Supreme Court ruled in June that states have the right to collect potentially billions of dollars in taxes from internet sales a decision that left Amazon largely unaffected. Trump has long called for greater taxes on Amazon, saying in January that the company's dominance is hurting American retailers. Amazon already collects sales tax in every state on the products it sells directly, which account for roughly half of all units sold on its site. Trump has also repeatedly dinged the company for what he says is an unfair pricing structure with the Postal Service. In April, Trump signed an executive order establishing a task force to look at the operations and finances of the USPS and recommend reforms. President Donald Trump threatened his Iranian counterpart in a Sunday night Twitter post: Trump tweet: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Trump's tweet followed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani cautioning the American leader on Sunday about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying: "War with Iran is the mother of all wars." "You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests," the Iranian leader said, in an apparent reference to reports of efforts by Washington to destabilize Iran's Islamic government. Still, Rouhani did not rule out peace between the two countries. The heated exchange comes as tension between the two nations has increased since Trump pulled the U.S. out of a nuclear deal with Iran that was struck during the Obama administration. Monday morning, Trump's hawkish national security advisor, John Bolton, backed the president's threat. I spoke to the President over the last several days, and President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before," Bolton said in a statement released by the White House. Carter Page, makes a presentation titled 'Departing from Hypocrisy: Potential Strategies in the Era of Global Economic Stagnation, Security Threats and Fake News' during his visit to Moscow, December 12, 2016. President Donald Trump on Monday doubled down on his claims that the release of top-secret documents related to the FBI's wiretapping of former campaign aide Carter Page "discredited" special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. "So we now find out that it was indeed the unverified and Fake Dirty Dossier, that was paid for by Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC, that was knowingly & falsely submitted to FISA and which was responsible for starting the totally conflicted and discredited Mueller Witch Hunt!" the president wrote in a Twitter post Monday morning. Tweet On Saturday, the Trump administration released more than 400 pages of heavily redacted documents that included four applications for surveillance, starting in October 2016. Republicans have seized on the claim that the FBI relied on a dossier of intelligence reports compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele to gain court approval for the surveillance, which the president has likened to spying. The president, in tweets Monday morning, reiterated his claims that his campaign was inappropriately spied on and that the investigations into his ties to Russia are a "fraud and a hoax." He also cited comments from Tom Fitton, president of the conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch, who had appeared on "Fox & Friends" shortly before Trump's tweets. "They should drop the discredited Mueller witch hunt now!" the president wrote. Despite Trump's claims, the documents released on Saturday revealed that the FBI took pains to make clear that its interest in wiretapping Page was rooted in what the agency viewed as probable cause that he was acting as a foreign agent. Four judges, who were all appointed by Republicans, signed off on the FBI's assertions, the documents show. The FBI did not hide in its applications the fact that Steele's work was intended to dig up dirt on Trump, and specified Steele's funding sources. It also wrote that despite Steele's reason for conducting the research into Trump's ties to Russia, the FBI found his work to be credible. It also showed that Steele's dossier was not the only source it relied on in its applications. Steele's work was funded by the conservative Washington Free Beacon as well as a law firm retained by Democrats including Hillary Clinton. The documents show that the FBI believed that Page, who served as a foreign policy advisor to the Trump campaign, had been "collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government" as the Kremlin meddled in the 2016 election. The FBI wrote that Page was the subject of "targeted recruitment by the Russian Government." Page has denied being a foreign agent. Appearing on CNN's State of the Union on Saturday, Page called the documents "misleading" and downplayed previous comments he had made about serving as an informal advisor to Russia saying he only sat in on some meetings. In February, the president demanded the public release of a memo written by House Intelligence Commitee Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., that sought to discredit the surveillance warrant by suggesting that Steele's sources of funding were not disclosed to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. Democrats at the time argued that the memo was misleading. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC. [The stream is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. ET. Please refresh the page if you do not see a player above at that time.] White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders will take questions from reporters on Monday after President Donald Trump threatened Iran with punishment "the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before." The president's early morning tweet, written in all-caps, came amid escalating tensions between the two countries. Over the weekend, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani threatened that America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Top Trump administration officials have weighed in to criticize the Iranian government. At a highly anticipated speech in California on Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused the Iranian government of widespread corruption and said "Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government." Administration officials have told NBC News that the administration is unveiling a new "maximum-pressure campaign" similar to the strategy used against North Korea ahead of the June 12 summit in Singapore between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Sanders may also address the upcoming trial of Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who is being prosecuted by special counsel Robert Mueller. Manafort is scheduled to face trial on Wednesday in Virginia federal court on charges related to bank fraud and tax crimes. Trump reiterated his call to end Mueller's probe on Monday, claiming that the probe had been "discredited" by documents the FBI released over the weekend pertaining to its surveillance of a Trump campaign foreign policy advisor. Foreign tourists in veils seen on a passenger boat with the Iranian flag amass in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz on May 2, 2017 near Hormuz Island, Iran. An oil tanker is seen on the move in the background. If Iran closes the crucial Strait of Hormuz one former U.S. admiral with in-depth knowledge of the challenge says the Navy is prepared to unblock it, quickly. In the event Iran choose to militarily close the Strait of Hormuz the U.S. and our Arabian Gulf allies would be able to open it in a matter of days, said former Adm. James Stavridis in a telephone interview with CNBC on Monday. Beyond his time commanding ships and sailors at sea, Stavridis also served as NATO's supreme allied commander and as a top Pentagon planner during the early years of the war on terror after the Sept. 11th attacks on the United States before becoming a security analyst for NBC News. While most military planners acknowledge that Iran could temporarily close the straits which serve as a waterway for an estimated 30 percent of the worlds oil supply, most also agree the U.S. Navy is capable of unblocking the strait. Irans navy is vastly inferior to the U.S. however it possesses hundreds of small but very fast attack boats. Military planners warn Iran is capable of using these vessels to swarm larger and less maneuverable American ships. Theres also fear those boats would be used in waves of suicide attacks at sea. Stavridis confidence the U.S. could reopen the Strait of Hormuz is tempered by the possibility of those small boat attacks saying that even once the waterway is reopened there is the possibility of ongoing use of mines and diesel submarines and the use of other surreptitious methods by Iran that would likely close the Strait on and off again, but the U.S. Navy would be prepared for those eventualities. Programming note: For more from former Admiral James Stavridis, tune into "Power Lunch" on Monday at 1 p.m. ET. Mariia Butina, leader of a pro-gun organization, speaks on October 8, 2013 during a press conference in Moscow. The 29-year-old Russian woman has been arrested for conspiring to influence US politics by cultivating ties with political groups including the National Rifle Association, the powerful gun rights lobby. Mariia Butina, whose name is sometimes spelled Maria, was arrested in Washington on July 15, 2018 and appeared in court on July 16, the Justice Department said. Under the alias Cynthia Murphy, Russian spy Lydia Guryeva attended Columbia Business School, and ingratiated herself with a key fundraiser for Hillary Clintons 2008 presidential campaign. Guryevas instructions from Moscow, according to a 2010 FBI complaint, were to strengthenties w. classmates on daily basis incl. professors who can help in job search and who will have (or already have) access to secret info and to report on their detailed personal data and character traits w. preliminary conclusions about their potential (vulnerability) to be recruited by Service. Now another graduate student at an urban East Coast university, who similarly cultivated powerbrokers and political operatives, is accused of being a Russian spy and taking orders from high-ranking officials in her homeland. Maria Butina, who received a masters degree in international relations this past spring from American University in Washington, D.C., courted the National Rifle Associations top guns and sought access to Republican presidential candidates Scott Walker and Donald Trump. She pleaded innocent last week to charges of conspiring to act as a foreign agent. If the charges against Butina are accurate, shes only the latest in a long line of Russian agents to infiltrate U.S. universities. Dating back to the Soviet era, Russian spies have sought to take advantage of academia's lax security, collaborative, global culture, and revolving door with government. Russian intelligence understands that todays professor of international relations may be tomorrows assistant secretary of state, and vice versa. Although cyber-spying and hacking offer opportunities to glean secrets at less personal risk, the traditional strategies of human espionage persist, and sending a spy to school is prominent among them. More from ProPublica: We've found $16.1 million in political and taxpayer spending at Trump properties How the case for voter fraud was tested and utterly failed A short history of threats received by Donald Trump's opponents In that respect, little has changed since 1938, when Semyon Markovich Semyonov became the first Soviet agent to enroll at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and made contacts vital to stealing scientific secrets. Or since 1958, when KGB officer Oleg Kalugin entered Columbias journalism school. After graduation, posing as a Radio Moscow correspondent at the United Nations, Kalugin attended events at Columbia and reported back on them to Moscow. His report on a speech about U.S.-Soviet relations by Zbigniew Brzezinski, then a Columbia professor and later national security adviser to President Jimmy Carter, earned kudos from the Communist Partys Central Committee. After that, I went all across the country, from Harvard to Columbia and the West Coast, listening to what people said and reporting it if I thought it was interesting, Kalugin told me. He rose to head the KGBs foreign counterintelligence branch before falling out of favor in Russia, moving to Washington, D.C., and becoming an American citizen. Sometimes, Russian agents join the academic community as students or instructors. Of Guryeva and the other nine illegals sleeper agents without diplomatic cover who pleaded guilty in 2010 to conspiring to act as foreign agents and were swapped back to Russia, seven went to U.S. universities, including Harvard, The New School, and the University of Washington. One taught politics for a semester at Baruch College, lambasting American foreign policy. In other cases, agents hold diplomatic posts at an embassy or consulate and forage in nearby campuses for recruits and information. Its easier, cheaper and less conspicuous for Russian intelligence to enlist a student or professor who can be steered to a federal agency than to lure someone already in a sensitive government position. Exploiting open campuses, spies slip unnoticed into lectures, seminars and cafeterias, where they befriend the computer scientist or Pentagon adviser sitting beside them. Butina enrolled in American Universitys School of International Service in the summer of 2016, university spokesman Mark Story said. She concentrated in cyber policy and became a research assistant at the universitys Kogod School of Business. With research funding from the Kogod Cybersecurity Governance Center, she and two professors, Mark A. Clark and J. Alberto Espinosa, co-authored a March 2018 paper on Cybersecurity Knowledge Networks. (The paper is still on the centers website.) Clark and Espinosa declined comment. The cybersecurity center was founded in 2015 to provide guidance specifically to boards of directors, senior executives, and other leaders so that they can make informed decisions about cybersecurity. It has a partnership with defense contractor Raytheon Co., and was headed from June 2017 to March 2018 by a former lawyer for the National Security Agency. University spokesman Story declined to say whether Butinas involvement with the center raises any concerns, or if the university plans to review her activities. He added that the center doesnt do classified work and has no contracts with intelligence agencies. Raytheon spokesman Michael Doble said, There is no connection between our support of this respected school and what one of its students may or may not have done. Butina participated in February 2017 in a weekend of seminars and cultural immersion in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, which brought together 10 American University students from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Azerbaijan with a dozen students from Gettysburg College to discuss U.S.-Russian relations in the post-Soviet era. Susan Eisenhower a frequent adviser to businesses and the U.S. Department of Energy, and an expert on foreign policy and national security issues led the seminars as well as a tour of the Gettysburg home of her grandfather, President Dwight Eisenhower. Eisenhower said she wasnt involved in selecting the American University students. She told me that when the delegation arrived, I thought it was odd because she [Butina] was a graduate student and the other students were undergraduates. She played a prominent role in the discussions. Eisenhower added, Any group of foreign students could possibly include students who have been called upon by their intelligence service. But we cant isolate ourselves in a globalized world, and these exchanges play a role in enhancing mutual understanding. After the sessions, Butina wrote to Eisenhower, mentioning people they knew in common. Eisenhower answered politely, but was determined to avoid a continuing relationship, she said. Prosecutors contend that a 56-year-old American unidentified in court documents, but reportedly a South Dakota businessman and political fundraiser edited Butinas papers and answered exam questions for her. Although she attended classes and completed coursework with outside help, attending American University was Butinas cover, the U.S. attorneys office in Washington, D.C., said in a legal filing. Story declined comment on the cheating allegations, but noted that, under university policy, it reserves the right to revoke academic credentials acquired through deceit, fraud, or misrepresentation. Beyond the university, Butina wooed gun-rights activists and influential conservatives. Shortly after Clinton called Trump to concede defeat on the morning of Nov. 9, 2016, Butina sent a direct Twitter message to a Russian official: I am readyfor further orders. As the use of Twitter suggests, one of the puzzling aspects of this case is the seemingly slapdash tradecraft compared to Russian intelligences usual standards. By contrast, Guryeva funneled names of potential Columbia recruits to Moscow Center via radiograms or electronic messages concealed by special software. Butinas lawyer has said she simply takes an interest in American politics and is not a Russian agent. In an interview for my 2017 book, Spy Schools, a professor at one top-tier East Coast university described how Russian intelligence tried to recruit him. After he moderated a campus discussion on arms control, a Russian diplomat approached him and invited him to lunch. Suspicious, the professor checked with the FBI, which confirmed that the diplomat was a Russian agent and advised playing along. The bureau wanted to use the professor as a double agent to learn about Russian collection priorities, tradecraft, and things like that, he told me. Just knowing what the other side is really interested in is very valuable. Over the next two years, the Russian and the FBI each treated the professor to 10 lunches. He would dine with the Russian spy at Mexican restaurants, French bistros and steakhouses never the same place twice, because his host was worried about counter-surveillance. The Russian always paid cash: $100 bills. Afterward, the professor would call the FBI agents, who would take him to lunch a few days later and debrief him. The spy plied the professor with gifts of increasing value: first a fine bottle of Posolskaya vodka, then an $800 Victorinox Swiss Army watch, and finally, in return for an essay about the Afghanistan war, $2,000 in $100 bills. The authoritative-sounding essay didnt enthrall Russian intelligence. We appreciate it, but we didnt think it was that sensitive, the spy told the professor, who had followed the FBIs instructions not to divulge any secrets. We can pay you more if you give us more. The agent also encouraged the professor to seek a job in the State Department or Pentagonwhere, both men understood without saying, Russia would pay dearly for an inside source. After the spy rotated back to Moscow, the relationship and the professors moonlighting in espionage ended. In 2013, the FBI recorded two Russian spies under diplomatic cover, Igor Sporyshev and Victor Pobodnyy, discussing efforts to recruit several young women with ties to New York University. Both men specialized in economic espionage and were supposed to gather information on U.S. alternative energy initiatives, as well as on sanctions against Russia. That same year, in a classic example of how spies mine conferences for prospects, Pobodnyyusing his cover as a diplomatic attachemet Carter Page at an energy symposium in New York. Pobodnyy then received documents about the energy business from Page, later a Trump campaign foreign policy adviser whose communications were monitored by the FBI as part of an investigation into links between the campaign and Russia. In July 2016, Page gave a speech at the New Economic School, a Moscow university, exchanging nice pleasantries afterwards with Russias deputy prime minister. Page has denied any wrongdoing, saying, I had a very brief hello to a couple of people. That was it. The nexus between espionage and academia has surfaced elsewhere in the Trump-Russia imbroglio. One incident involved a professor in the United Kingdom hardly a surprise, since Russian intelligence has long been notorious for recruiting communist sympathizers from British universities, including Kim Philby and the other Cambridge Five. Joseph Mifsud has been a professor at the University of East Anglia and the University of Stirling in Scotland (which touted his meeting with Russian president and ex-intelligence officer Vladimir Putin), as well as honorary director of the London Academy of Diplomacy. In 2016, he told George Papadopoulos, a foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, that the Russians had dirt on then-candidate Hillary Clinton in the form of thousands of emails, according to court documents and media reports. Papadopoulos, who pleaded guilty in October 2017 to lying to federal agents, understood that Mifsud had substantial connections to Russian government officials, and had met with them immediately before telling him about the Clinton emails, legal filings show. Mifsud has denied being a Russian agent. I am an academic, I do not even speak Russian, he told The Washington Post. U.S. universities, ever-sensitive to their finances and global relationships, have largely ignored the threat of foreign espionage: Theyre ramping up enrollment of full-paying international students as well as opening campuses abroad, which are often subsidized by the host countries. Columbia didnt revoke Murphys diploma after she turned out to be a spy named Guryeva though Harvards John F. Kennedy School of Government did rescind the degree of another illegal, Andrey Bezrukov, who had posed as a Canadian named Donald Heathfield. Story declined to say whether, if Butina is convicted, the university will take away her degree. Annie Waldman contributed to this story. Parts of this article were adapted from Spy Schools: How the CIA, FBI, and Foreign Intelligence Secretly Exploit Americas Universities (Holt, 2017), by Daniel Golden. US President Donald Trump on Sunday warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani not to threaten the United States again, after Rouhani cautioned Trump about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran. "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before," Trump said in a Twitter post. Rouhani on Sunday said "war with Iran is the mother of all wars", but did not rule out peace between the two countries. "We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death," Trump tweeted. "Be cautious!" he added. Kampong Glam launches five new digital initiatives; 150 merchants onboard Ethnic enclave Kampong Glam has launched five initiatives in its first phase in becoming Singapores first digitally-enabled neighbourhood. The projects will help traditional businesses in the precinct navigate the digital economy, with about 150 merchants already benefiting from the transformation, according to a press statement by Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA). The first phase of the neighbourhoods transformation comprises five digital initiatives, including: 1) E-payments, for convenient transactions; 2) Digital map listings and virtual in-store tours, for improved merchant discoverability; 3) Augmented Realityenabled navigational tool with digital marketing features, to help visitors navigate seamlessly through the neighbourhood; 4) Convenient, affordable shopping delivery services, so customers can shop without shopping bags; and 5) Integrated Point-of-Sale system, to help businesses become more efficient. Photo: Connected to India Led by IMDA, the neighbourhood transformation project is in collaboration with Enterprise Singapore, One Kampong Gelam (OKG) association and the Singapore Malay Chambers of Commerce and Industry (SMCCI). All businesses today, including traditional businesses, must digitalise to stay competitive in the digital economy. We are excited to collaborate with our partners to bring new digital options to Kampong Glam and enable more people to discover this gem of a neighbourhood," said Ms Jane Lim, Assistant Chief Executive, Sector Transformation Group, IMDA. Businesses now have more tools to engage their customers with an integrated experience that unites the physical and digital, and be better positioned to seize growth opportunities in a fast changing business environment. It is aimed at strengthening the neighbourhoods appeal and helping businesses become more productive through technology. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Member of Parliament for the Jalan Besar Group Representation Constituency, has been appointed as special advisor to the Kampong Glam digital transformation project. Mr S Iswaran, Minister for Communication and Information, added, This launch of the Phase 1 initiatives is just the start. With the collective effort from the community, public and private sectors entering into mutually beneficial partnership, I am confident that merchants will adopt more innovative digital solutions, creating an even better visitors experience in Kampong Glam and improving their business opportunities." This recent case reminded me of something similar which occurred in Papua New Guinea several years ago. In fact until authorities woke up to this relationship, addicts were purchasing numerous bottles of cough medicine and extracting either of the two precursors to satisfy their addiction. The reason authorities were interested in this product was due to the fact that two of its key ingredients - ephedrine and pseudoephedrine - are also components, or precursors, for the dangerous drug, ICE. SYDNEY - Recently an Indonesian national was convicted of attempting to smuggle into Australia a large quantity of cough medicine. PNG, along with other South Pacific nations, has been a beneficiary but also a victim of globalisation. Trade, tourism and more exposure to the world have resulted in increased wealth. On the downside, PNG and other developing nations have come to the attention of transnational criminal elements, particularly smugglers. This is due to several factors, many of which are beyond the capacity of these nations to control including proximity to major markets for illegal substances, porous borders as well as understaffed and ill-equipped border surveillance. These and other factors are compounded by the spectre of corruption and the vast profits to be made by smugglers. The sharing of a land border with Indonesia, a major hub for smugglers, makes PNGs task even more difficult. A recent Indonesian case bears similarity to an attempt by two Asian men who lobbed into Port Moresby some years ago and sought permission to establish a cough medicine factory. Using a PNG citizen as a front person, permission from the authorities was duly obtained. Immediately the import licence was issued, an order placed to import two large shipments of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. Fortunately customs and other officials in PNG were advised by an overseas agency that the amount of drugs ordered would be sufficient to produce enough cough medicine for all of the Pacific and Australia for the next two decades. The project was quickly cancelled, no factory was ever established and the two principals hurriedly left the country. It was clearly an operation to obtain illegal drugs used in the production of ICE and then ship them, probably to Australia, using PNG as a conduit. This case occurred some years ago but theres no reason to believe smugglers will not try something similar again in PNG. US President Donald Trump Sunday warned Iran not to threaten the United States after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also cautioned the Trump administration against a war with the Islamic Republic stressing it will be the mother of all wars. Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before, Trump said in a Twitter post. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death, he added. The US leaders comments came following Sunday warning by Rouhani that the United States should beware of plans to military option against the Islamic Republic. Mr Trump, dont play with the lions tail, this would only lead to regret, Rouhani was quoted as saying by the state news agency IRNA. America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars, Rouhani said. You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Irans security and interests. The United States has been applying pressure on Iran for regime change in Tehran, the entourage of Trump has hinted. The US leader in May walked out from the 2015 nuclear accord signed between world powers and Iran. The Trump administration is expected to re-instate economic sanctions by August. Alongside with the coming sanctions, President Trump has been pushing allies to halt buying Irans oil by November 4. Iran, in counter-attack, recently threatened to block oil shipment in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, which represents an important waterway for international oil trading routes. Raab says no deal planning is underway to ensure Britain thrives whatever the negotiations outcome But he claims deal could be stuck at October summit, if EU matches Mays energy, ambition, and pragmatism The Sun Britain will thrive even if there is no Brexit deal, Dominic Raab has said, as his predecessor David Davis called on the Prime Minister to reset her Brexit plan and prepare a reserve parachute in case no agreement is reached. Mr Raab said there was tremendous pressure on the EU to secure a deal as he branded his counterparts irresponsible for failing to reassure British citizens living abroad about their rights after Brexit. His remarks come ahead of a second meeting between the two men this Thursday, amid growing concern that the UK could be heading for a no deal Brexit. The fears have prompted some politicians including Dominic Grieve and Sir John Major to call for a second referendum vote to settle the issue, adding weight to a bid by former Cabinet minister Justine Greening last week. Speaking to the BBCs Andrew Marr the Brexit Secretary said: All of that planning [for no deal] is under way, from every aspect of the infrastructure to the legal position to make sure were ready for no deal and Britain thrives whatever the outcome of these negotiations. Daily Telegraph Editorial: What does Raab mean by pragmatism? The Times >Yesterday: Video: WATCH: Raab preparing for no deal is the responsible thing to do Increasing pressure is on May to consider World Trade Deal option as Brexiters speak out Pressure is mounting on Theresa May to consider a new World Trade Deal after the EU rejected her Chequers plan for Brexit last week. The proposal for a bold new World Trade Deal would, according to leading economic experts, end austerity with a boost of 80 billion a year and guarantee that Britain is free of Brussels rule. The proposals have been exclusively unveiled in the Daily Express as new Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab has said he is relaxed about not having a trade deal with the EU. He has also made it clear that if Brussels bureaucrats continue to to refuse to see reason he will withhold the 39 billion divorce settlement promised in December. The Brexit Secretary said there had to be conditionality under the Article 50 withdrawal mechanism between settling Britains exit payment and creating a new relationship with the EU. Daily Express But Grieve claims no deal would put Britain in a state of emergency Amazon claims it could lead to civil unrest The Times Elphicke tweets that the company is concerned about having to pay more tax Daily Mail Failure to secure a Brexit deal would plunge Britain into a state of emergency, with the the risk of basic public services being thrown into chaos, a senior Conservative has warned. Dominic Grieve, the former Attorney General and a leading Remainer, insisted crashing out of the European Union with no deal would be absolutely catastrophic for the UK. He said: We will be in a state of emergency basic services we take for granted might not be available. It comes as Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab appeared to confirm reports the Government is planning to stockpile food in anticipation of talks breaking down. He accused the EU of irresponsibly ramping up pressure in withdrawal negotiations, and confirmed preparations are underway for a no deal outcome. Official analysis previously warned Scotlands economy would suffer a 12.7 billion a year blow if no deal was struck. Herald Comment: EU states need to engage urgently Henry Newman, The Times Were reaching a denouement. Chaos seems inevitable Christopher Booker, Daily Telegraph >Yesterday: Video: WATCH: Grieve no deal would leave us in a state of emergency Minford: No deal is not the same as no arrangements at all Theresa Mays hopes of a deep and close relationship with the EU after a Brexit in which we leave the EUs Single Market and Customs Union have been dealt a fatal blow by the EUs intransigence. So it has finally dawned on this government that since the only deal available from the EU will be one in which effectively we do not leave but remain subject to EU rules without a voice in their creation, we had better think about leaving without an EU trade deal at all. Having no trade deal is not the same as having no agreements on a wide range of non-trade areas where there have to be arrangements. These include visas, citizen rights, security, airline permissions and much else that is needed for citizens of the UK and the EU to carry on their ordinary lives. Failure to agree on these basic things would be a dereliction of government duty that will have citizens up in arms; no government can risk that. Trade is not in this category however because it can carry on perfectly well without an EU trade agreement Daily Express Brexit committees calls for settled status residency cards The Sun >Today: Chloe Westley in Comment: There must be no compromise on ending free movement May kicks off summer manoeuvres with cabinet trip to the North East She will confirm investment in East Coast Main Line The Sun And the North of Tyne devolution deal Daily Express Ministers will then take their various European trips to attempt to sell her Brexit plan FT Theresa May will chair a cabinet meeting in the north-east of England as she starts a summer campaign intended to gain public support for her much-criticised Chequers Brexit plan. The visit on Monday is intended primarily to show the governments ongoing support for the northern powerhouse concept, and May will confirm that up to 780m is being set aside for a pre-planned east coast mainline upgrade and that the North of Tyne devolution deal is to go ahead. But the prime minister is also intending to use the visit to defend the Brexit proposals that polls suggest are deeply unpopular with Conservative supporters and the public at large. On Sunday, as some high-profile Conservatives suggested a second referendum might be the only way to resolve national divisions about how to handle Brexit, the former Brexit secretary David Davis used an interview to say that there would have to be a reset in the autumn when the government would have to abandon Chequers and start again. Guardian >Yesterday: Video: WATCH: Morgan May is a realist who no longer thinks in terms of Leave and Remain >Today: Lord Ashcroft in Comment: Voters test for any Brexit deal. Britain mustnt be out of Europebut still run by Europe Major warns of risk of stumbling into an unpleasant general election Britain could accidentally be thrust into another bitter general election if MPs remain divided on Brexit, Sir John Major warned today. The former Prime Minister said yet another unpleasant vote would ultimately become unavoidable if the Commons cant agree on a way forward. Speaking on the Andrew Marr Show this morning, Sir John said: I think we could stumble into [an election] by accident if the House of Commons remains deadlocked. If the whips decide to take political advantage of the Governments weakness and put party politics before the national interest, there is a possibility of the Commons being unable to reach an agreement and a general election will ultimately become unavoidable. The Sun He also says a second referendum would be morally justified Daily Express Editorial: The Corbyn risk is real Daily Telegraph >Yesterday: >Today: ToryDiary: What the London Mayoral selection short-list tells us. And what the successful candidate should do Javid did not seek usual death penalty assurances for Beatles IS fighters facing US courts Apparently, they were stripped of their British citizenship after joining IS The Times Britain has secretly abandoned its blanket opposition to the death penalty and Guantanamo Bay to allow two notorious members of the Beatles group of Isil terrorists to be sent to America, The Daily Telegraph can reveal. Documents seen by this newspaper reveal that the UK Government has agreed to hand over intelligence to help prosecute the captured jihadists Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh, who both held British citizenship, in the US courts. In a letter sent by Sajid Javid to Jeff Sessions, the US Attorney General, the Home Secretary says that Britain will demand no assurances that the pair will not be executed in America. Other documents say that British officials have also assessed the pair may be sent to Guantanamo without trial and that such an outcome will not be formally opposed. Daily Telegraph Editorial: The big question is: why cant they be tried here? Daily Telegraph Hunt praises evacuation of White Helmets from Syria. The UK will provide protection to as many as possible Hundreds of White Helmet rescue workers have been evacuated from Syria, with many to be given sanctuary in Britain. Since 2013, the 3,000 White Helmet volunteers also known as the Syria Civil Defence have worked in rebel-held areas where Syrias official emergency services do not venture Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt praised the operation yesterday. He tweeted: Fantastic news that we UK and friends have secured evacuation of White Helmets and their families thank you Israel and Jordan for acting so quickly on our request. The WH are the bravest of the brave and in a desperate situation this is at least one ray of hope. The Government said the UK would provide protection to as many of the volunteers and their families as possible. Daily Mail More government Almost 200 MPs call for government to drive NI abortion reform The Times May told by TPA that tax burden has reached 37 per cent of GDP The Times Mordaunt comments on positive manufacturing jobs figures Daily Express Watch out for Supreme Court verdict on Holyrood devolution FT Jewish campaigners intend to sue Labour over partys new rules Corbyn pleads with MPs to delay meeting until September Daily Mail Jewish campaigners are set to sue the Labour party saying its new anti-Semitism rules break human rights laws. After The Sun revealed last week that a top Labour MP was in talks with lawyers about possible action, now campaigners are set to force a legal challenge amid fury about ditching an internationally accepted definition of what anti-Jew hate is. MPs and Jewish activists are up in arms after the party bosses forced through the new code last week. It prompted veteran Jewish MP Margaret Hodge to confront Jeremy Corbyn and label him a f***ing anti-Semite and a racist. The Jewish Labour Movement has submitted a complaint to the party detailing abuse they say would be acceptable under new rules, The Sunday Times revealed. The Sunday Times has seen a dossier of sick comments from Corbyn-supporting Facebook groups, calling her a zionist b***h and threatening violence against her. The Sun Comment: Being Jewish, I no longer feel welcome in my country Mandy Blumenthal, Daily Telegraph Why I havent left Labour Emma Burnell, The Times More MPs Cross-party group calls for powers to ensure people like Cummings give evidence before parliament Guardian Special meeting to be held to consider Griffiths future Guardian McDonnell calls for Smith and Lewis to resign Daily Telegraph LibDems plotting to replace Cable with Moran The Times He admits he missed key vote to plot against Brexit The Sun We need a bold strategy to deal with homelessness Will Quince, Neil Coyle, The Times Trump claims FBI and DoJ misled the courts US President Donald Trump has asserted without evidence that newly-released documents relating to the wiretapping of his former campaign adviser Carter Page confirm with little doubt that intelligence agencies misled the court that approved the warrant. But politicians from both political parties said the documents do not show wrongdoing and that they even appear to undermine some previous claims by top Republicans on the basis for obtaining a warrant against Mr Page. Visible portions of the heavily redacted documents, released on Saturday under the Freedom of Information Act, show the FBI telling the court that Mr Page has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government. The agency also told the court the FBI believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government. Belfast Telegraph Meanwhile, he sends angry tweet to Rouhani The Times Comment: There are rational reasons to vote for strongmen Claire Foges, The Times News in Brief Judy Terry: We need more housing. So why are billions being spent blighting and destroying homes? Judy Terry is a marketing professional and a former local councillor in Suffolk. With the UK population a fraction under 66 million, and growing, we are repeatedly told that we need more housing. So why are billions being spent blighting and destroying homes and lives in the most expensive parts of the country? HS2s property budget is being investigated by the National Audit Office (NAO), following revelations that detailed calculations for acquiring 11,000 properties for phase one from London to the West Midlands set the true cost at 4.7 billion, compared with the original estimate of 2.8 billion. In documents seen by the Sunday Times, the former Head of Property states that the official budget for buying land and buildings was based on rudimentary map based analysis by interns. It is also alleged that a large proportion of properties are not budgeted for. The NAO is due to report shortly. A third runway at Heathrow will also have a significant adverse impact, blighting residential neighbourhoods with increased noise and air pollution, as well as requiring some properties to be demolished no doubt at a cost of billions. The M25, already probably the busiest and most heavily congested road in the country will be seriously disrupted for years, adversely affecting business and increasing pollution whilst making parts of the capital and other areas difficult to access. MPs recently voted to support a third runway, but without seeing a report by the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) which apparently warns that aviation and other emissions are growing so fast that they threaten the UKs 80 per cent reduction target. Lord Deben, CCC Chairman, noted that higher emissions would place an unreasonably large burden on other sectors. This could affect private cars, buses and trains, as well as central heating boilers, gas cookers, wood-burning fires, and businesses. Pollution is one reason why local authorities will be challenging the decision. A process which will inevitably take years, and cost millions in legal fees. Delays will also add millions to project costs in the event that the third runway eventually gets the go-ahead; although it is supposed to be privately funded, there will undoubtedly be something in the small print which requires the taxpayer to fund over-runs. Whilst Heathrow currently estimates the bill for building the new runway at 14 billion, with related transport links projected at 4 billion by the Airports Commission, or over 15 billion (Transport for London), airlines fear costs could spiral to more than 20 billion, leaving them with zero confidence in the project being delivered on time, on budget. Heathrows management has a questionable reputation for achieving best value, paying hundreds of millions more for a new multi-storey car park in 2010 compared with equivalents at airports elsewhere, and a smoking shelter coming in at 1m, more than double the quote. A new baggage system was five years late at a mere 435 million, compared with the original estimate of 234 million. There are also allegedly questions about the airports ability to raise the necessary funds. Ironically, the Competition Authority forced the breakup of the British Airports Authority (which included Heathrow) to promote rivalry between airports, recommending legislation to allow separate development and ownership of terminals. So, isnt it time to deliver on this ambition, and think more rationally to promote that rivalry? There appear to be two fundamentals behind demand for a third runway to accommodate increased freight and to facilitate rising passenger numbers. Apart from the disruption and pollution, there are two arguments to support an alternative approach to meet demand: 38 RAF bases closed since 1995; not all have been redeveloped, so could any be potentially viable to create a major freight hub? Closure of USAF Mildenhall in Suffolk has been deferred until 2025 and should certainly be an option, since it handles large military aircraft and has 3,000 skilled staff to manage them safely. Local road and rail infrastructure improvements are overdue, and would benefit the whole economy at a fraction of the cost of a third runway at Heathrow. It would also have the advantage of creating more jobs in an economically challenged location and retain the airport for military use should the need ever arise. If the Ministry of Defence (MoD) had a partnership with the operators it could provide valuable income to support increased investment in defence at a time when the Minister is demanding extra funding; Investing in regional airports, across the whole country could enable passengers to fly more conveniently and closer to home, without incurring the additional expense of using Heathrow, which can equate to the cost of a two week holiday, adding train fares, overnight accommodation, as well as extortionate parking charges. Ryanairs expansion into Southend Airport, adding another one million passengers annually, is an example of how good management (by Stobart) can revive a neglected facility. Expanding passenger capacity regionally would also benefit regional economies, increasing tourism and business investment. With Brexit in turmoil and local authorities constantly articulating their frustration at yet more London-centric infrastructure investment, they should take this opportunity to work together beyond traditional county boundaries, with their Local Enterprise Partnerships and industry to develop a strong joint business case for their regional airports, highlighting the benefits of redirecting funding to achieve best value. Areas where housing is cheap (compared with the south east) could attract young entrepreneurs in the tech sector, or to reinvigorate derelict sites as micro breweries, restaurants or hotels, or live-work accommodation. This is what Urban Splash have done in various locations around the country. Consider existing assets and pool resources: too many art and museum collections, which belong to the taxpayer, are in storage, libraries closing and public spaces neglected. Regional centres of excellence are proven to excite and engage local residents and attract visitors, as we can see from this years fantastic arts programme linking cities in the north east. You need vision, determination and commitment to be successful but whats the alternative? Ignore the potential to do something different? With 900,000 under-25s unemployed, its small wonder that drug gangs are gaining momentum across the country, but focused regional partnerships could be a chance to revitalise areas yet to recover decades after losing their industrial base, with new jobs and a commitment to long-term upskilling. Incentivising young talent to stay, instead of allowing it to disperse and never return, means giving them real hope of being part of a thriving, affluent, ambitious community where owning their own home can be a reality, not merely a hopeless dream, never realised. By taking the initiative to champion their own regional airports as viable alternatives to endless indecision on Heathrow, local authorities would also send a warning to politicians to listen to ordinary people, and call time on poor procurement in the public sector. Martin Howe QC is a barrister specialising in EU law, mainly Intellectual Property and the free movement of goods and services. He is Chairman of Lawyers for Britain, and a former Conservative Parliamentary candidate. Number Ten has been engaging in a programme of briefing for Conservative MPs and for Party members on the Brexit White Paper. It is important that when both make their minds up on this proposal of huge significance to the future of our country, they do so on the basis of a correct understanding of what the Governments new policy involves. I have been receiving disturbing reports from those who have attended the briefings that they are carrying away some serious misconceptions about the White Paper. Of course, I do not know exactly what was said, and it is possible that some people have just come away with misunderstandings about a complex topic. But the people I have heard from are not, I believe, idiots. If they have come away with misconceptions then this suggests that, at best, the briefings are not explaining the details of the White Paper with sufficient clarity. A less charitable interpretation would be that a layer of spin, or worse than spin, has been applied. So let me list three important misconceptions that have been reported back to me. 1. The UK will retain a power of veto on whether points of dispute are referred to the ECJ The White Paper envisages references to the Europeana Court of Justice being made at two stages (see paragraph 42). The first stage is a possible reference by the proposed Joint Committee, and this would be by mutual consent, so the UK would have a veto at this stage. However, the UK has no veto against the dispute being sent by the Commission to the independent arbitration panel. At this point, if the dispute involves a point of EU law, the arbitration panel must refer that point to the ECJ for a ruling and the UK has no veto. The arbitration panel is then bound to give a judgment conforming to the ECJ ruling, meaning that, in such a case, it will act as a postbox for referring issues to the ECJ and issuing judgments which rubber stamp the ECJs rulings. This system of adjudication has been adopted from the EU Association agreements of the former Soviet republics of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. No other non-member state to date has accepted binding ECJ rulings under this system. More information, including all the detailed legal texts, can be seen in my response to the Attorney-Generals letter to MPs. 2. The common rulebook covers only rules necessary to provide for frictionless trade at the border, so does not cover domestic goods and/or goods destined to be sold outside the EU. The latter point, about goods to be sold outside the EU, is probably right, at least when they are exported directly by the manufacturer, or possibly when they are sold in controlled circumstances which ensure that they will be exported to a non-EU country without leaking onto the UK domestic market. But this is no different from the position now that we are EU members: for example, the Court of Appeal has held that the Medicinal Products Directive does not apply to transactions which are neither intended to nor have the effect of releasing a medicinal product into a distribution system which leads to its sale to end users within the Community. However the common rulebook will most definitely apply to all goods that are released into free circulation on the UK domestic market, because there is a possibility that they can then migrate across the control-free UK/EU border under the Chequers system. This means that the UK will most definitely have to apply the EU rules to all goods produced domestically for the UK market, and to all goods imported from non-member states for consumption in the UK domestic market. The later is a killer for trade deals with major partners because it stops us agreeing mutual recognition of standards which deviate in any way from the EU rulebook. 3. WTO law will require the UK to put customs posts on the Irish border unless we do a White Paper-type deal with the EU There is a germ of an issue here, but this conclusion is nonsense. The WTO Agreements most favoured nation principle requires us to charge the same tariffs to all countries, with the exception of countries with which we have a permissible customs union or free trade agreement. So, if we leave without an EU deal then we must charge the same tariffs to goods coming in via the Irish land border as on goods coming in through our seaports and airports. However there is no obligation under WTO law to collect the tariffs by using men in peaked caps in customs posts at the border. Other methods of collection such as making businesses pay tariffs by self-assessment behind the border, coupled with intelligence led anti-smuggling operations, are perfectly acceptable. My colleagues at Lawyers for Britain and myself would be very interested to hear reports from those attending briefings in Number Ten about any other statements which seem questionable. We shall then try to look into them and either confirm or correct them with chapter and verse. As I say, it is important that people in the Party do not judge these proposals on the basis of uncorrected misunderstandings. Five years ago, the TaxPayers Alliance reported that in the last year, five times more Labour people were appointed to public bodies than Tories. Since then, the figures have varied, and some Conservative members or supporters have been selected to fill important posts. Nonetheless, it remains the case that, since it took office in 2010, our Party has punched beneath its weight when it comes to public appointments. One of the reasons seems to be that Tories simply dont apply in the same number as Labour supporters. To help remedy this, every week we put up links to some of the main public appointments vacancies, so that qualified Conservatives might be aware of the opportunities presented. Social Mobility Commission Commissioners These roles are an exciting opportunity to shape the social mobility agenda over the coming years, helping the achievement of the governments goal of improving social mobility and acting as an advocate for this important issue. You will: actively engage with the business of the Commission, contributing your knowledge and experience in order to shape and enhance its work; comment on and contribute to the Commissions major research reports and publications, including its annual report which is laid before Parliament; build and maintain effective working relationships with the Chair, the other Commissioners, and the Secretariat, to ensure that the Commission works effectively to fulfil its remit; act as an advocate for the social mobility agenda, helping to drive a culture of change both within and outside government and building effective relationships with relevant stakeholders; and act as a representative of the Commission, espousing its values and work. Time: 1 day per month approx. Remuneration: 250 per diem plus reasonable expenses. Closes: 25 July Health Education England Chair Ministers are seeking to appoint a new Chair of Health Education England (HEE). The Chair will lead the HEE Board and play a major role in setting the direction of the organisation. Role and Responsibilities of the the chair: chair a major arms-length body with responsibility for supporting the delivery of excellent healthcare and health improvement to the patients and public of England by ensuring that the workforce of today and tomorrow has the right numbers, skills, values and behaviours, at the right time and in the right place; lead and shape a board that effectively balances executive and non-executive responsibilities, and which ensures strong accountability to the Department. HEE will have a vital role to play, working in close partnership with NHS England and NHS Improvement, in ensuring that the new long term plan for the NHS and the five year financial settlement for the NHS is underpinned by robust and deliverable workforce planning Time: 2-3 days per week. Remuneration: 63,000 per annum. Closes: 30 July National Citizen Service Trust Board Members The management of NCS is moving from the existing Community Interest Company to a new Royal Chartered public sector body. This new organisation will be overseen by a new Board. We are seeking a Chair and non-executive directors to join this new Board. This is an extraordinary opportunity. The successful individual will have the chance to lead NCS through a period of organisational change and beyond, to advocate and communicate with energy and commitment, and to achieve great value for money. The successful candidate must demonstrate a keen appreciation of the needs of young people and the importance of social cohesion, social mobility and civic engagement. They should be committed to championing diversity and ensuring that the benefits of NCS are available to the widest range of young people. Time: Four meetings per annum plus occasional days. Remuneration: Reasonable expenses. Closes: 01 August Exports Guarantee Advisory Council Member The EGAC is an Expert Committee which advises the Secretary of State on UKEFs operations a background to UKEF is at Annex A. The Council normally provides advice to the Secretary of State through UK Export Finance officials, usually at meetings attended by UK Export Finances Chief Executive. The Council addresses its views directly to the Ministers on any subject where it deems it appropriate to do so. It meets with the Minister once a year. In practice, the EGAC primarily concerns itself with providing advice on the ethical policies applied by UKEF in the conduct of its business related to bribery and corruption, the environmental, social and human rights impacts of the projects which it supports, sustainable lending and transparency (including freedom of information). Time: Four per year. Remuneration: None. Closes: 29 July East West Rail Comapny Non-Executive Directors East West Railway Company is a new and exciting opportunity to be at the forefront of the changing landscape of the rail industry, delivering substantial fast-paced improvement to modernise the railway. East West Rail is a proposed new rail link between Oxford, Milton Keynes, Bedford, Cambridge and potentially beyond. As part of the wider plans for this strategically important corridor, it is one of the most high profile infrastructure projects in the UK today. The new railway will improve local connectivity and serve as a catalyst for economic development and the creation of new housing, as well as significantly reducing existing journey times. In the 2017 Budget, it was announced that the East West Railway Company would be established to bring new drive and focus to the project. Time: 15-20 days per annum. Remuneration: 15,000 per annum. Closes: 29 July Chloe Westley is the Campaign Manager of the Taxpayers Alliance. Most Leave voters are disappointed by the governments new soft Brexit strategy. There have been resignations from the Conservative Party, letters of discontent, and vocal criticisms from Leave-supporting ministers, MPs and activists. So far, the main criticisms of the Governments Brexit plans have been about close alignment on regulations and trade policy; the Chequers proposal does not empower Britain effectively to take back control of laws or trade. But what about taking back control of our borders? Immigration so far has tended to slip under the radar. Theresa May has said that we will end free movement of people and, so far, we have all taken her word for it. I understand that immigration is an issue that most politicians tend to avoid, and when prompted will always say immigration is a good thing for Britain in order to receive rounding applause from the audience. And, yes, immigration can be and has been a good thing for Britain. But as an immigrant myself, I would like us to have a more open and realistic conversation about whether free movement and Britains subsequently discriminatory immigration policy is fit for purpose. During the EU Referendum, taking back control of Britains borders was seen as one of the primary benefits of leaving. For years, there was cross-party consensus that EU membership and free movement of people was good for Britain. When concerns were raised about free movement and immigration, they were dismissed as bigoted and ignorant. June 2016 was the first time the British people were consulted on EU membership for decades. And they voted Leave. And yes, many did so because they wanted more control over immigration, but not in the way that you might think. There is a huge difference between wanting immigration to be controlled and wanting it to end altogether. Most people that I spoke to during the campaign wanted the U.K. to implement a skills-based system like Australias. Indeed, that was a key policy highlighted by the Vote Leave campaign. A poll this month from Channel 4 revealed that attitudes to immigration havent softened since the referendum, with 70 per cent of voters in Britain wanting immigration from the EU reduced. A YouGov poll in April also indicated that the public think immigration is too high. But the Government would be mistaken to believe that concerns about immigration and particularly free movement is only about numbers. That same YouGov poll found that, whilst most would back an overall reduction in numbers, over 70 per cent of people are happy with either the same or increased levels of skilled immigration. And a report by Open Europe, perhaps the most comprehensive of its kind on British attitudes towards immigration, concluded that the public had a clear preference for a system with greater controls on immigration over a simple reduction in numbers and there was little specific support for the Governments target of net migration in the tens of thousands a year, but the public want numbers to come down. During the referendum campaign, I also found this to be the case. Most of the activists and leave voters that I spoke to were concerned about the Governments lack of control and the huge numbers of unskilled workers entering the country. Its entirely sensible to believe in controlled immigration. You cant have open borders with the whole world. So the question is how you decide who is allowed to come into the country to live and work. For years, Britains policy has been based on where someone is born, as opposed to merit. I campaigned passionately with Vote Leave, as an immigrant, for a fair and controlled skills-based immigration system that admitted people into the country based on merit rather than their passport. This kind of immigration policy would not only be hugely popular with people here in Britain, but would also send out a clear message to the rest of the world that the UK is a fair and globally-minded sovereign nation. Taking back control of borders and implementing a fair and controlled skills-based immigration system would be a huge win for the Government, and deliver on a key pledge of the Brexit campaign. It is claimed that the Chancellor privately advocates a policy of preferential treatment for EU workers post-Brexit. May hasnt ruled out giving EU citizens preferential rights post-Brexit, and her Chequers proposal included reference to a Mobility Framework, which is so vaguely defined that it could give her the breathing-space to maintain some kind of free movement arrangement with the EU. Any deal with the EU that offers concessions on immigration will be met with far greater criticisms than alignment on laws or customs arrangements. A free movement arrangement with a cap on numbers would, for example, entirely miss the point of why so many voted to control immigration. Very soon, the Government must publish Britains post-Brexit immigration policy. There will be more disagreements in Cabinet and in the Commons. Those politicians advocating continued free movement of people, or preferential treatment of EU citizens, are not only out of touch, but also supporting a discriminatory and arguably xenophobic system which was rejected by the British people in that referendum. Its time for the Government and the Home Secretary to stand up to the EU, take back control of Britains borders, and establish a fair and skills-based immigration system. Before the Conservative Party Conference opens in Birmingham on Sunday September 30th, the Conservatives will have chosen their candidate for the 2020 election for Mayor of London. On Friday, this site was dominated by each of those who made the final ten setting out their stall. On Saturday, I reported that after interviews the Party had whittled it down to three Shaun Bailey, Andrew Boff, and Joy Morrissey. So that list has a black man, a gay man, and a woman. Cue groans from those exasperated by the identity politics which so entrances the media (since it offers an alternative to boring old policies) and which, since David Camerons leadership, the Conservative Party has been so transfixed by. I too am exasperated by identity politics. But I am not groaning. I think the shortlist is good. One spot of good news is that all three are Conservatives. By that, I mean both that they are all Party stalwarts: they have all spent years campaigning, knocking on doors, handing out leaflets in the sun and in the rain. I also mean that, for all their range of opinions, all three of them have clear and distinctive Conservative beliefs. This might seem obvious. However, given the background story of the A List and supposed past efforts to woo independent celebrities (such as Greg Dyke) to be our candidate, it is a solid start. Another groan comes from some people complaining that we dont have a big name. But then Sadiq Khan wasnt much talked about in the pubs of Enfield before he was chosen as the Labour candidate. If we choose someone with a compelling personality and a strong message then fame will follow in due course. As an old friend of Andrew Rosindell, the Conservative MP for Romford, I am sorry that he didnt make the final cut. It was reported that he had support from several fellow London MPs. An unembarrassed patriot, it is inevitable that if he had been chosen, he would have been sneered at by Leftists who would have caricatured him as a Little Englander or even a racist. Yet he is fantastically knowledgeable about foreign affairs and has a thoroughly global outlook with a particular devotion to the Commonwealth. He has also done far more to champion ethnic minority communities in London than his critics. However, there were lots of other strong candidates who didnt make the final three or indeed in the case of Richard Tice even the final ten. I think the selectors had a genuinely difficult task, and that is a good sign. Now the decision goes to the Party members in thecCapital. In previous selection battles, a non-member who paid 1 to register could also vote, but that will not be the case this time. I think thats a pity but, inevitably, the Labour Partys experience with Jeremy Corbyn being boosted by entrysists has discouraged champions of widening participation. Anyway, it means that under the three month rule only those London residents who have been Conservative Party members who joined on or before June 26th will be allowed to vote. The turnout will give an indication of the Partys fortunes. Last time, around 9,227 people voted and Zac Goldsmith won selection (at the absurdly late stage of October 2015) with 70 per cent of the vote. He won 6,514 votes, Syed Kamall 1,477, Stephen Greenhalgh 864 and Andrew Boff 372. When Boris Johnson was first selected in 2007 as the Conservative candidate for Mayor, the turnout was almost twice as high. He received 15,661 votes, Victoria Borwick 1,869, Andrew Boff 1,674 and Warwick Lightfoot 609. If the turnout falls again, the gloom will spread. Should it rise or even stabilise, that will be a bit more cheering. But all this is not just about numbers. It is also about London Conservatives taking the chance to consider what we stand for. As with the Scottish Conservatives we need our own message, our own brand, our own offer. Conservatives in Greater London are organised into seven areas and, in early September, each one will have a hustings with our three Mayoral hopefuls. The decision needs to be as much about us as it is about them. It will be a conversation to work out what Londoners concerns are and how Conservative principles can be applied to provide the answers. I suppose Brexit will come up as it happens, all three on the shortlist voted for it in the referendum. But by 2020 that issue will have been resolved. Other matters will be more pertinent for instance, the legalisation of cannabis (Andrew Boff is in favour, Shaun Bailey opposed.) Of course, once the winner is selected as a candidate, then the hard work begins and whoever that person is will start being denigrated by our opponents. Zac Goldsmith faced two charges. One was the (monstrously unfair) claim that he was anti-Muslim. The second one could hardly be refuted. Zac is very rich. Yet, despite his huge wealth, he was a bit shy about spending much money on his campaign. As noted above, he was already at a disadvantage for being selected so late. Even so, given that he was denounced for having all that money, he might as well have spent a bit of the stuff. Whoever is chosen this time should get cracking on with fundraising, and then start spending the proceeds straight away on campaigning partly with the aim of raising more money to then do more campaigning: direct mail, social media, local campaign offices. Then there would be those full page advertisements in the Evening Standard, City AM, Metro, the various local papers that still survivesuch a campaign would be expensive. But the candidtes underdog status might have an appeal to the more romantic-minded donors. There is a paradox that our candidate needs to both boost Conservative support in London but also reach out beyond the base. To win, it will be necessary to gain votes (as well as a lot of second preference votes) from those who dont usually think of themselves as Conservatives. I dont think that means compromising what we stand for so much as being able to communicate it. On their doorsteps, I have encountered endless Conservatives at least as defined by their opinion who just so happen to vote Labour. But the initial challenge must be to crank up firm Conservative support including Party membership and the campaigning machine. Our candidate also needs to develop a connection with all those Conservative supporters in Uxbridge, Ruislip, Surbiton, Sidcup, and Upminster who dont even regard themselves as Londoners, but who must none the less be persuaded to turn out and vote. A rapport has to be built up with all those that our canvassing has already identified as Conservatives in London asking them to join, to donate, to volunteer to provide their opinions. A thorough effort to engage with them would have to be just the start, but an essential start. The next stage will be to show an independence of mind to build up a personal vote beyond the Conservative base, while still not only retaining but enthusing those core supporters. This is what Boris Johnson achieved not that there is much point musing on past triumphs. The candidate needs to do it again in their own way. Good luck to whoever makes it. Matt Warman is MP for Boston and Skegness. There is a crisis of confidence in British democracy fewer than one in ten people believe that any layer of government will act in their best interests, and 40 per cent of people had no trust in parish councils, local authorities, and the Commons. As politicians deliver Brexit, its more important than ever that British citizens have faith that most MPs go into that uniquely challenging endeavour with the best of democratic intentions and yet for the vast majority there is not just a lack of confidence, but an active view that the opposite is quite likely. This is just some of the polling from my new report for the Centre for Policy Studies, Who Governs Britain? Knowing the scale of the problem is a vital part of understanding the size of the challenge, and the urgency of the need to address it is all too apparent. Almost three in ten people dont even know MPs make laws that affect them, and across our sample of some 2,000 people surveyed, zero per cent knew accurately which particularly configuration of local and national government was relevant to their postcode. Both education and confidence building are way overdue. As ever, its far easier to identify the problem than the solution, and in Who Governs Britain? there are suggestions both for what could be done to tackle the sense that politicians all too often lie to people, or withhold truths, as well as about how we might structure government itself differently so that it feels profoundly more accountable. That means proposals that range from online campaigning to planning, but throughout the aim is to reconnect the public with the decisions taken by politicians that affect their lives. At its heart, however, is a hope that more contact with politicians is what will restore peoples faith in them. While there are of course corruption scandals in Britain, the truth is they are vanishingly rare we live in one of the most honourable democracies in the world, at both local and national level. So those men and women making decisions that all too often people do not like are at least making them with the best of intentions. Anybody who has ever had the privilege of being a local councillor or any other elected official will know that, even when opposing politicians make decisions one might oneself disagree with, they are mostly made in good faith. Housebuilding or NHS changes, for instance, can often be ferociously controversial, but these are ultimately fine judgment calls about immensely difficult issues. One recommendation in the report, therefore, is that the public should have a right to an explanation of why a decision has been made, seeking in many ways to deliver on the partially failed promise of the Freedom of Information Act government should have to say by whom and for why a decision was made, in particular in a bid to make outsourced areas of the state feel more accountable. The more people see about the workings of government, the more Im confident that there should be greater understanding of it and empathy with those making such choices. Its easy to call that touchingly naive and point to decades of scandal, but the reality is that the vast majority of government is done with the best of intentions. Equally, however, we should look to tackle widespread ignorance about government itself and cynicism about politics. Seductive internet conspiracy theories may all too often sound plausible, and so addressing that lack of critical thinking, with a particular focus on web culture, would do no harm at all. Building such skills into the exam system would also make it obvious how useful they are in the world of work. Elsewhere, though, there are areas where decisions are made by people who the public dont feel have to live with the consequences thats an accusation lazily levelled at many who campaigned to leave the EU, but it is also one most keenly felt when it comes to local planning decisions. Its why in Taunton Deane and in Lincolnshire, councils are beginning to experiment with devolving decisions down to parish and town level. The first attempt will see only minor decisions made ultra-locally, but my hope is that such a move works well enough to continue in the same vein. Local communities should also have more control over how developments look, and there should be a clearer system to link growth in NHS services, for instance, to housing growth. Communities are far less resistant to development if they know that, say, taking several hundred houses will lead to major investment in their areas schools or broadband or NHS. Its a link that has been far too opaque for far too long. Taken individually, none of these measures, and the many others in the report, will make a huge difference but collectively they seek to address a crisis of trust in politics that otherwise risks exacerbating the trend for extreme parties, and thereby fulfilling the initial prejudice that politicians really dont have everybodys best interests at heart. It is easy to fall into a level of despair when thinking about securing a manufacturing facility with the ancient control system, people running things the same way for years on end, no real security plan and no one ever really thinking they could be a victim. But it is not as bad as it seems because it is possible to put the fate of the facility in the end users hands and not the attackers. At least Honeywell feels that way. "Industry is embracing digital transformation and being connected," said Jeff Zindel, vice president and general manager of Honeywell Industrial Cyber Security during a meeting at the Honeywell User Group (HUG) Americas in San Antonio, TX. "They are realizing cybersecurity is important to allow them to do digital transformation." The threat of cyberattacks on industrial facilities is on the rise. US-CERTs warning last week about Hidden Cobra from North Korea is a reminder of the world we live in. Add on top of that the average cost of an average attack is $21 million, which is up from $14 million the year before. In addition, there are four new malware attacks created every second. The idea of planning ICS attacks is now easier than ever. It is possible to go out and purchase malware on the Dark Web. They even have help desks to offer attack help. And if you have enough funding, you can also hire people to attack. Couple that with the lack of skilled cybersecurity professionals and that is a recipe for disaster. But it doesnt have to be that way. That is one way managed security services comes into play. That is where Honeywell can manage, through secure digital connections, security from an operations center. "Instead of hiring people, which is difficult to do, they go out and bring us in," said Mark Littlejohn, director of managed security services at Honeywell Process Solutions. Through the managed services, Littlejohn said, they are able to monitor systems, patch systems, offer remote access and provide multi-vendor security, secure remote access and support, patch and anti-virus automation, security and performance monitoring, security device management and threat detection and vulnerability identification. Managed security services is just one part of the Honeywell industrial security portfolio, along with professional consulting services, ICS Shield, and Industrial Cyber Security Software. "We are providing a complete management platform," Zindel said. Through its ICS Shield, a manufacturer is able to "leverage insights from a plant level across multiple plant sites. We can provide visibility in all the sites at an individual plant level and across multiple sites," Zindel said. "We can offer secure file transfer, asset discovery, inventory management and monitoring and alerts." This way it can become more efficient and cost effective, especially with the shortage of skilled security professionals, Zindel said. That is one reason why cybersecurity services and managed services are becoming more important and embraced. Power of software A solid security platform is the underlying backbone to any movement forward for manufacturers to take advantage of the connected digital age. "We are at the forefront of automation technology unleashing the power of digitalization to create a new generation of benefits," said Jason Urso, vice president and chief technology officer at Honeywell Process Solutions. In a presentation focused on product introductions, one new product Urso talked about was the S300 SIL3 safety logic solver which is Lean execution of automation projects (LEAP) -enabled with cloud simulation. It has a uniform form factor with universal safety input/output (I/O). LEAP uses standardized I/O, which facilitates the move from customized cabinets to modular cabinets based on I/O count. This allows the design process to be front-loaded and reduces the impact of late changes on project timelines. "We extracted software from safety manager and allowed us to run it across the platform," Urso said. "Weve added the highest level of cybersecurity on both the hardware and software. It is much simpler using the power of software." The move toward a more connected digital platform allows for: Protect standardization Infinite longevity Connecting data to knowledge. By allowing the data connection, it is possible for manufacturers to prosper in the digital era. The numbers seem to back that up with 15% increased costs with inefficient labor planning; 45% of workforce retiring by 2023; $60 billion spent per year in safety and compliance; unplanned downtime up to $3 million a day, and underutilization of equipment up to 30%. All those negative factors can turn to positive with a smarter, more connectedand securedigital environment. With the advances the industry is making, Urso talked about "infinite longevity," which means it is possible to enable the last migration. Going from TDC 3000 to Experion to Enhanced High Performance Manager (EHPM) and then Ethernet, the idea of legacy hardware is going away, while still maintaining intellectual property. Challenging the norm with digital transformation John Rudolph, the new president of Honeywell Process Solutions, wants to challenge the status quo."Id like to change the norm. I want to be challenged. Share your objectives with us on safety, on yield, on energy, on the environment, and well partner with you to achieve them." In this changing era of moving toward a more digital plant, Rudolph said he was reminded of a quote from Apple leader Steve Jobs. "He said, Dont hire smart people and tell them what to do. Id qualify that statement by adding that even smart people need data, and they need an aggregation of experience in order to make the informed decisions. Connected is about empowerment of people. "With advances in technology there are great benefits, but before going all in on the latest and greatest technology, all end users have to ask the million dollar question of what is in it for them? If they find there would not be a big change, then maybe they shouldnt go that route. "How do it get more efficient with what I am doing?" Rudolph asked. He recalled the day when there would be a call to an expert across the globe to talk about a problem the facility was having and all you would hear on the other end was "that is impossible, it shouldnt happen." Well, it is possible and it did happen. That is just one scenario where the digital plant can correct the situation where everyone is seeing the same numbers and experience the issue in real time. "We want to allow people to make intelligent decisions faster," Rudolph said. "I can fix any problem you have in 15 minutes. The problem is, it may take me six months to find it." Going digital means there is a new way to do things and the process changes, which can be a good thing. "At some point, the process has to be cleaned up, that is when you get ahead," he said. "Dont waste your time on business requirements because they will go away. You can do it differently. You have to look at the process and where we are going with this. Digital transformation has to be about more than just moving data into the cloud. It has to be about the outcomes, including driving increased productivity and savings for our customers while allowing them to increase knowledge capture, knowledge sharing and knowledge retention." 100% Website nokia.com.br uses latest and advanced technologies. It supports HTTPS and GZIP compression. The main html page has a size of 127679 bytes (124.69 kb uncompressed) and 17658 bytes (17.24 kb compressed). This CoolSocial report was updated on 2019-09-28, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want. We are analyzing the site. Please wait a few seconds.. Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Africa on Saturday for a four-nation visit during which he will be seeking deeper military and economic ties. It is the first overseas trip of Xis second term as president. In Senegal, the first leg of his Africa tour that will also take him to Rwanda and South Africa, the Chinese leader signed bilateral deals with the West African nation. Details of the agreements signed were not immediately released, but the Chinese foreign ministry said the country promised to support Senegal in the areas of general development, as well as anti-terror, peacekeeping and maintaining social stability. Senegal has become the first African country on the Atlantic Coast to sign up for the Belt and Road Initiative. The initiative aims at building a transport network connecting China by land and sea to Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. China has pledged $126 billion for the plan. Under Macky Sall, Senegal has engaged in an ambitious Plan for an Emerging Senegal, which wants to see a major economic and infrastructural overhaul by the year 2035. Chinas loans have financed a highway linking capital Dakar to Touba, Senegals second main city, and part of an industrial park on the Dakar Peninsula, making China the first foreign investor in the country. Chinas ambassador to Senegal Zhang Xun in March said China had invested $100 million in Senegal in 2017. President Sall told reporters he discussed with his guest bilateral cooperation, Sino-African relations and international current affairs, hailing China as one of the great economies of the modern era. Africa represents only 4% of Chinese international trade, while Chinas presence has allowed Africa to become more dynamic and to diversify the pool of its economic partners. Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW) announced today that, with the support of the Hefei government, it will be investing further in an expansion of its new Environmental Technologies production facility in the Hefei Xinzhan Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone in the Anhui Province, China. The additional investment is driven by growing demand for Corning DuraTrap GC gasoline particulate filters and other emissions control products in China. Gasoline particulate filters (GPF) are critical new components in helping automakers meet the new China 6 automotive emissions standard for gasoline vehicles, which will be implemented beginning in 2020. Continued investment in Hefei will help Corning serve customer demand throughout the Asia Pacific region for a variety of emissions control products, including gasoline particulate filters, said Wu Dan, regional operations director, APAC, Corning Environmental Technologies, after a signing ceremony with Hefei officials on July 16. Corning has been committed to supporting Chinas clean-air initiatives and auto industry since we first entered the China market in the early 1980s and started local emissions control production operations in 2001. The existing Hefei facility will be scaling operations over the first half of 2019, with initial production focused on DuraTrap GC filters. Construction of the new expansion is expected to be completed next year and production will coincide with China 6 regulatory implementation. Designed for flexibility, the expansion will also have the potential to meet future market demand for a variety of emissions control products. China will be the second market to introduce particulate filtration of gasoline engine exhaust, after Europe implements Euro 6d regulations in September this year. China 6 emissions standards call for a significant reduction in both gaseous and fine particulate emissions from all gasoline engine vehicles, under new real-driving emissions (RDE) testing. These standards necessitate the use of particulate filtration in the treatment of gasoline exhaust. Once China 6 regulations are fully implemented in 2023, most gasoline vehicles in China will require a gasoline particulate filter. Leveraging particulate filters in gasoline systems is an important engineering advancement for clean-vehicle technology in China as gasoline vehicles continue to grow in popularity. Advanced gasoline engines, including high-performance gasoline-direct-injection (GDI) engines, offer consumers better fuel economy without sacrificing engine performance. However, they produce a high number of fine particulates, such as PM2.5, that impact air quality and human health. DuraTrap GC filters are engineered specifically for gasoline engines, giving automakers a next-generation emissions control solution with proven capability to deliver high filtration efficiency of fine particulates, helping them introduce cleaner and safer gasoline vehicles that meet new emissions standards. Corning is a leading supplier of advanced cellular ceramic substrates and ceramic particulate filters for the world's major manufacturers of gasoline and diesel vehicles. The company invented an economical, high-performance, cellular ceramic substrate in the early 1970s that is now the standard for catalytic converters worldwide. In 1978, Corning developed the cellular ceramic particulate filter to remove soot from diesel emissions. Corning continues to leverage its expertise in material science and manufacturing to develop market-leading emissions control solutions that help our customers meet new emissions standards and enable cleaner air worldwide. Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995), which are based on current expectations and assumptions about Cornings financial results and business operations, that involve substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include: the effects of acquisitions, dispositions and other similar transactions by the Company, the effect of global business, financial, economic and political conditions; tariffs and import duties; currency fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and other currencies, primarily the Japanese yen, New Taiwan dollar, euro, Chinese yuan, and South Korean won; product demand and industry capacity; competitive products and pricing; availability and costs of critical components and materials; new product development and commercialization; order activity and demand from major customers; the amount and timing of our cash flows and earnings and other conditions, which may affect our ability to pay our quarterly dividend at the planned level or to repurchase shares at planned levels; possible disruption in commercial activities due to terrorist activity, cyber-attack, armed conflict, political or financial instability, natural disasters, or major health concerns; unanticipated disruption to equipment, facilities, IT systems or operations; effect of regulatory and legal developments; ability to pace capital spending to anticipated levels of customer demand; rate of technology change; ability to enforce patents and protect intellectual property and trade secrets; adverse litigation; product and components performance issues; retention of key personnel; customer ability, most notably in the Display Technologies segment, to maintain profitable operations and obtain financing to fund their ongoing operations and manufacturing expansions and pay their receivables when due; loss of significant customers; changes in tax laws and regulations including the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017; and the potential impact of legislation, government regulations, and other government action and investigations. For a complete listing of risks and other factors, please reference the risk factors and forward-looking statements described in our annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the day that they are made, and Corning undertakes no obligation to update them in light of new information or future events. Web Disclosure In accordance with guidance provided by the SEC regarding the use of company websites and social media channels to disclose material information, Corning Incorporated (Corning) wishes to notify investors, media, and other interested parties that it uses its website (http://www.corning.com/worldwide/en/about-us/news-events.html) to publish important information about the company, including information that may be deemed material to investors, or supplemental to information contained in this or other press releases. The list of websites and social media channels that the company uses may be updated on Cornings media and website from time to time. Corning encourages investors, media, and other interested parties to review the information Corning may publish through its website and social media channels as described above, in addition to the companys SEC filings, press releases, conference calls, and webcasts. About Corning Incorporated Corning (www.corning.com) is one of the world's leading innovators in materials science, with a more than 165-year track record of life-changing inventions. Corning applies its unparalleled expertise in glass science, ceramic science, and optical physics along with its deep manufacturing and engineering capabilities to develop category-defining products that transform industries and enhance people's lives. Corning succeeds through sustained investment in RD&E, a unique combination of material and process innovation, and deep, trust-based relationships with customers who are global leaders in their industries. Corning's capabilities are versatile and synergistic, which allows the company to evolve to meet changing market needs, while also helping our customers capture new opportunities in dynamic industries. Today, Corning's markets include optical communications, mobile consumer electronics, display technology, automotive, and life sciences vessels. Corning's industry-leading products include damage-resistant cover glass for mobile devices; precision glass for advanced displays; optical fiber, wireless technologies, and connectivity solutions for state-of-the-art communications networks; trusted products to accelerate drug discovery and delivery; and clean-air technologies for cars and trucks. SOUTH STORMONT, Ontario On July 22, 2018 at approximately 8:32 p.m. SD&G OPP officers responded to a report of a stolen motor vehicle on Post Road, South Stormont Township. The investigation revealed that a Ford Fusion had been taken from the residence without the owners consent. Shortly thereafter Police located the vehicle and the driver. James Quinn, 34, Cornwall, Ontario was arrested and is charged with; Take Motor vehicle without consent fail to comply with Probation order He was released and is scheduled to appear at the Ontario Court of Justice in Cornwall on August 14, 2018. OneLogin has tapped former Juniper channel chief Matt Hurley to work more closely with independent software vendors and distributors and build out the cybersecurity company's presence internationally. The San Francisco-based unified access management vendor praised Hurley's experience as a go-to-market leader at some of the IT industry's most marquee brands. Hurley most recently spent six years leading Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Juniper Networks' brand, field marketing and channel program teams, which included a redesign of the company's channel program in 2015 to address all business segments. Our channel partners are incredibly important to OneLogin," Brad Brooks, CEO of OneLogin, said in a statement. Were delighted to have Matt bring his expertise to our executive team during this momentous stage of growth. [RELATED: Juniper Networks Will Sell Aerohive Wi-Fi Products In New Sales Pact] Hurley who started July 16 as OneLogin's vice president of global channels, strategic alliances and professional services praised OneLogin for being at the forefront of product offerings in the unified access management category, and said they are uniquely positioned to expand rapidly. The company's Access offering allows companies of any size to manage access for on-premise and cloud-based applications with a single Identity-as-a-Service tool. "I can definitely feel the energy level here," Hurley told CRN. "A lot of that is driven by the space we're in [and having] so much opportunity in front of you." Hurley said OneLogin has the opportunity to have conversations with some of its key ISVs and potentially partner a bit better with them. The company plans to figure out which ISVs it should maintain the status quo with, which it should partner with more, and where it might be possible for OneLogin to wrap its ISV motion around its VAR motion. OneLogin doesn't use distribution in North America, Hurley said, instead working directly with all of its solution provider partners in the region. Going forward, though, Hurley said OneLogin wants to add some distribution partners to broaden its reach in North America, with the company only managing its most strategic partners directly. Unified access management is exploding in the Americas today, Hurley said, but is just beginning to have a massive uptick in places like India and Australia. Although the majority of OneLogin's customer base is in North America today, the company is making a concerted effort to growth in the EMEA region particularly countries like Germany and France as well as the Asia-Pacific region. Emerging markets often offer an easier growth path thanks to their heavy adoption of SaaS apps, Hurley said, while larger companies in more developed markets tend to have a lot of on-premise infrastructure. "I wanted to take on a growth opportunity," Hurley said. Juniper does not intend to replace Hurley, a spokesman said in a statement to CRN. Hurley's responsibilities will be shared, the spokesman said, by "other stakeholders who have been part of the brand, demand generation and event process." Brian Rosenberg, who became Juniper channel chief about a year-and-a-half ago, will continue to drive channel strategy, while Helda Lopes runs the day-to-day operations of the vendor's partner program. Lopes had been working closely with Hurley on Juniper brand initiatives and demand generation. From January 2015 to October 2017, Hurley led Juniper's 140-person, $170 million global channels organization, according to LinkedIn. Since then, Hurley has spent the past 10 months spearheading Juniper's global brand and field marketing team. Hurley's is the second recent departure from Juniper's channel operation. Derek Maggiacomo, former director of U.S. partner sales at Juniper, left earlier this month to take a position as vice president of U.S. sales East at Milpitas, Calif.-based security vendor SonicWall. Dom Grillo, vice president of Atrion Communications, a Branchburg, N.J., a solution provider that works with Juniper, said Hurley's departure is likely simply part of the regular course of business. Grillo said that Atrion's Juniper sales have fallen slightly. "Our numbers with Juniper have dropped a bit from their peak, but we're hopeful that will change in a good way with some opportunities we're working on," Grillo said. Juniper's security business tends to be overshadowed by its traditional strengths in routing and switching, according to Grillo. "On switching, routing and automation, Juniper does great, but unfortunately most customers and Gartner don't see them as a leader in security technology, which limits their growth in that portion of their portfolio." Prior to joining Juniper, Hurley spent six years at Montreal-based communications goliath Bell, working his way up to senior vice president of professional services and advanced services solution delivery. Before that, Hurley was at Palo Alto, Calif.-based Sun Microsystems for more than three years, culminating in a stint as senior director of customer ready systems. OneLogin was founded in 2009 and employs 201 people, according to LinkedIn. The company has raised $75.2 million in six funding rounds, capped off last month by a $22.5 million Series C investment round led by existing investors including Cambridge, Mass.-based venture capital firm Charles River Ventures. The worlds largest cruise port operator only has plans to get bigger, according to Emre Sayn, CEO, Global Ports Holding (GPH). We are still concentrated in the Med for the time being, he told Cruise Industry News. The big news for us would be a port in the Caribbean. That news came in the form of Havana a few days later in late May, where Global Ports signed a 15-year deal that will see the port dramatically expanded, adding four new cruise berths. That follows the companys 2017 listing on the London Stock Exchange. GPH currently operates 13 cruise ports, all of which are in Europe with the exception of Singapores state-of-the-art Marina Bay. Havana makes it 14. Looking at the Caribbean, Sayn said the region west, east or south didnt matter, and it was about the potential of the port over a long period of time. That will also help diversify the companys portfolio outside Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean. Geopolitical issues hurt, especially with three high-yielding ports under the GPH banner in the middle of them: Bodrum, Kusadasi and Antalya. GPHs Turkish ports saw revenue cut in half in 2018, but remained highly profitable with a margin of 59.7 percent, according to a company filing. Signs are now encouraging, Sayin noted, with more calls being booked into Kusadasi. With a massive industry orderbook, and cruise lines making positive comments on Mediterranean pricing, GPH appears to be strongly positioned. I try to spend equal time on key initiatives, Sayin explained. These include growing the company through port concessions and privatizations; developing services for cruise lines and passengers; improving shoreside experiences; and continuing to codify GPHs port operational model. Stepping back, Sayin said each port has the ability and can operate independently. Common platforms include key performance indicators, shared software and codes and policies like security. All GPH ports follow a multi-faceted security plan made up of not only ISPS, but also two other international standards. We do combine purchasing and share technical equipment, Sayin continued. Two ports located near each other can share a tugboat, for instance. The most important thing is we share know how and best practices. The business model is simple: GPH wins a long-term concession or management contract to run a cruise port. In some cases, tender processes see the company go up against the cruise lines themselves. The port agreements generally extend between 20 and 30 years, although the companys deal in Valletta extends to 65 years, Sayin said. In return, GPH will make significant investments in improvements, including bankrolling new terminals. Its then up to them to bring in the business in the form of ship calls to drive a return on their investment. Berth pricing is agreed upon working closely with the port authority. We usually invest when we start operating a port, Sayin said. We want it future-ready so the biggest ships can call. Originally from Istanbul, Sayin attended a German-language high school, and also spent a year on an exchange program in Connecticut. His first real job came at Merrill Lynch as an internal consultant. More career moves followed with Unilever, Microsoft and Turkcell, along with time spent living and working in Moscow, Amsterdam and New York. At Verizon he played a key role in designing the customer experience, and helped put together the companys marketing team. But he wanted more, including the possibility to grow a company globally, and be based back home in Turkey, which led to his May 2016 hiring at GPH. I had cruised once in my life at that point, Sayin said. In five years I envision GPH as being a truly global company, not just focused on the Med, but having a diverse set of ports around the globe. When that happens we will have doubled in size and set industry standards in operating cruise ports. Managing what he called a highly specialized company, Sayin said his style was about empowerment and responsibility. I am quick to empower people and help them grow. We want them to be responsible for their results, he explained. We believe in clarity and setting clear goals and direction, it makes life easier for everyone, as does open communication. I believe in team play, collaborating and acting as a team, and putting this together to provide a sense of fairness in the workplace. Happier people perform better. Excerpt from Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine: Summer 2018 The one thing that all malware has in common is that its comprised of computer code. But in cybersecurity, so is everything else. Lots of companies have tried to make the distinction between good and bad code, whether by comparing samples to the signatures of bad files, setting programs into a sandbox and seeing what they do, or applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to behavioral analytics while examining how a file acts. None of those methods has been entirely successful, and some, like signature-based protection, are almost completely outflanked by todays most advanced malware. That is the environment that Solebit and its SoleGATE Security Platform is wading into. The company might just have found a foolproof way to identify malware, any kind or flavor, known or unknown, and block it before it even gets into a network. It does this by taking a new approach to detection that ignores heuristics, behavior or signatures. It simply presumes that there is no legitimate reason for executable code to be present within a data file, and blocks entry to any file that breaks that zero-tolerance rule. Skeptical IT administrators are given a dashboard that tracks every file and incident where Solebit acted to block access. Threats are identified by their type, such as code, malicious macros, micro-URLs, file execution or other programming exploits. Solebit breaks down the attacks, showing what the code would have tried to accomplish should it have been allowed to proceed. It even gives the exact code, line by line, of the exploit or malware. John Breeden II / IDG Captured malware and malicious breach attempts are gathered in the Solebit dashboard. This can be exported as an API to help improve other cybersecurity programs, or simply studied for training purposes by IT teams. The interesting thing about Solebits show and tell is that its completely peripheral to the programs operation. Because any code that the program blocked existed inside a data file, or was disguised as a data file, Solebit would have blocked it regardless of what it would have attempted to do if it got through. But because other cyber defenses might still have passed it through, especially in the case of something like a zero-day attack, Solebit company officials feel like they need to justify their programs decisions. There is a practical reason to do this, because while the data about malware is provided as information within the dashboard, it can also be bundled into an API that can feed other defenses like firewalls or network sandboxes to help improve their accuracy rates. Summer camp for actors and playwrights. Thats one way Remy Zaken describes the time she has spent working on new plays at the Eugene ONeill Theater Center. You are only there for one purpose, Zaken says of returning to the ONeill for the third time to help writers see their scripts come to life. You are sequestered from the rest of society, so it is just about the work. I love it. Situated on a gorgeous piece of property in Waterford on the banks of Long Island Sound, the ONeill has been at the forefront of play development for more than a half century, with figures as renowned as John Guare, August Wilson and Wendy Wasserstein working there in the early stages of their careers. Unlike many workshops which are only open to show business professionals, the ONeills National Playwrights Conference invites the public in to be part of the process. The combination of the natural beauty of the setting and the excitement of seeing something brand new is intoxicating to theater lovers. Sarah Tuft is working on Marvel-ous Monica; In Which Monica Lewinsky Is a Superhero Hell-Bent on Revenge, a docudrama/satire featuring a modern historical figure who takes on larger-than-life characteristics as she decides to rescue a coed from a lecherous professor. In any development process, youre looking to ask yourself new questions (about your play) and hopefully get a few answers, the playwright says of the weeks spent working with designers, actors and a director to prepare for the public performances on July 27 and 28. Although the staged readings at the ONeill are often done in a bare-bones style, the playwrights conference connects writers with designers early in their residencies so that they can see different ways a play could be developed visually in future productions. You start to think about the realization of your play on a stage, Tuft says. The ONeill provides food and lodging for its writers, freeing them from those pesky day-to-day chores in their real lives. I dont have to shop or make food ... I think Ive gained five hours in every day, the playwright says, laughing. NPC artistic director Wendy Goldberg thinks one of the secrets of the programs success has been its flexibility each summer when a new group of writers arrives. We meet these plays at very different moments in their lives, she says. Some have already had significant development, some have had only minimal development. ...We try to keep things nimble to accommodate the process each play needs. Goldberg believes the beauty and the seclusion of the ONeill is an integral part of the experience for everyone who works there, as well as the audiences who come out to see the plays. I think the setting is hugely important (but) its interesting that none of the (performing) spaces make a whole lot of sense, she says of the outdoor stages on the grounds as well as the playing area inside a barn. Having this idiosyncratic (place) means that everyone has to engage with their imaginations. ... Its isolated and restorative. Zaken, who grew up in Weston and whose many acting credits include the original production of Spring Awakening, says the much speedier process of getting a play up on its feet at the ONeill hones her rehearsal chops for when she returns to New York City. It really encourages you to be bolder...it requires that you jump right in, Zaken says of the abbreviated rehearsal process a few days at the NPC versus several weeks in a full production. Zaken is thrilled to be playing one of the two representations of Monica Lewinsky in Tufts play. I did an earlier reading of the play a couple of months ago. I love how topical it is, the performer says of the way the play connects Lewinskys treatment in the 1990s with todays #MeToo movement. Its just really good...biting and witty. For schedule and ticket information visit theoneill.org. jmeyers@hearstmediact.com; Twitter: @joesview BRIDGEPORT As a mother, City Councilwoman Karen Jacksons instinct when her son was allegedly beaten and shocked with a Taser after fleeing the cops was to defend the 15-year-old. Now Jackson says City Hall is trying to shut her up. Any other councilman would have been flipping out, Jackson said Monday about her son, Gabriyel Fraser. I didnt create this mess. Im not going to let you (the city) walk all over my son. Hearst Connecticut Media reported last week that Jackson had lodged a citizens complaint with the police departments internal affairs office about Frasers treatment. At that time she also said that the handful of officers involved in the June 27 incident abused their authority. On Friday, Mark Anastasi, a veteran attorney for the city, warned Jackson that she also has a responsibility as a member of the citys legislative body to let the investigation of what happened to Fraser take its course without publicly rushing to conclusions. It can prove particularly harmful when an elected official such as yourself prematurely calls into question the performance of officers sworn to protect our community, as well as long-standing court-ordered procedures to ensure the integrity of the civilian oversight process, Anastasi wrote Jackson in a letter she shared with Hearst. When and if the internal affairs probe finds fault, the punishment of the accused officers will be up to a police commission whose members are nominated by the mayor and approved by the council. Fraser was apprehended after he and other young men fled from a female cop who was investigating allegations they had broken into a yard in the Nob Hill Circle neighborhood, jumped on a trampoline and stolen a ball. Jackson and Fraser filed a complaint with the police claiming the latter, once caught, had complied with police to stand hands up but was beaten by four officers, Tased in his legs, handcuffed and received several scratches on his leg, arm, face, lower back and wrist. Fraser was also charged with interfering with a police officer. Police Chief Armando Perez in an interview last week said an officer approached Fraser and his friends to ask questions and that they should not have run. Their flight resulted in other police being called to the scene, he said. But Perez also said he was not comfortable with the use of the Taser on Fraser. Perez said the Taser darts connected to wires that deliver shocks to the body were not fired at Fraser. Instead, the chief said, the Taser device was pressed directly against the 15-year-old. You just apply it to whatever part of the body and it causes a lot of pain, Perez said. Its called drive stunning, John DeCarlo, an associate professor of criminal justice at the University of New Haven who has 34 years in policing, said Monday when told about the incident. Basically, it is used when you are too close to discharge the darts in the Taser. DeCarlo said drive stunning is common and generally on the same level of the continuum of force that the Taser darts are. Criticizing a complaint Anastasi, who for years ran Bridgeports law office and remains an influential voice within that department, began his letter to Jackson by emphasizing he understands her strong feelings that your son was treated inappropriately by officers ... and that your instincts are to support your son in this incident. But, Anastasi wrote, As a council member, many of our citizens rightly look to you for guidance and leadership. When your constituents hear you as their elected official criticizing our police officers, this may lead some of them to lose confidence in our public safety services. Obviously, loss of confidence in the police department can undermine community policing initiatives and unintentionally contribute to a less safe community for all. Lastly, Anastasi warned Jackson that she should remain cautious that your public criticism of the police performance in this incident can in no way be misinterpreted as an attempt to use your official position for personal gain ... and that you are neither seeking, nor will you accept, any preferential treatment due to your official elected position. In the coming months, Jackson and her 19 council colleagues are expected to vote on a police chiefs five-year contract. The city is in the middle of a search for a top cop, with Perez, a close friend of Mayor Joe Ganims, in the running. Jackson is a freshman council member who petitioned her way onto the 2017 primary ballot. As such, she is more of an outsider in a town with a history of political connections. Jackson said Monday only a small number of her fellow council members have reached out to her since learning about the incident with her son. One of those, Councilman Kyle Langan, another freshman and a vocal Ganim critic, in an email to Jackson wrote: Im deeply troubled to read of the violation experienced by your son and family, though I unfortunately am not surprised. We see examples of our neighbors experiencing things like this regularly and maintain the same (police department) leadership. ... Im here to support whatever efforts you want to make to bring attention to the cultural shift necessary in our police. Council President Aidee Nieves on Monday said as a mother she understands her frustrations and wanting for answers. But Nieves, who read Anastasis letter to Jackson, added she also understands the attorneys points. She wears two hats (as a mother and council member), Nieves said of Jackson. As an elected (official), we have to be very careful and not be seen like we want preferential treatment. She should let it (the internal investigation) run its course. BRIDGEPORT - A Stratford woman claims she was sexually assaulted in a Shelton spa by an unlicensed masseur who was working there. In the lawsuit filed in Superior Court here, the 36-year-old woman, whose name is being withheld by Hearst Connecticut Media, states that Hyung Kim, a Korean citizen, sexually assaulted her on May 27, 2016, while she was at the Coco Spa. She is suing both Kim and the Bridgeport Avenue spa. Our claim is that this company hired an individual who was unlicensed and didnt supervise him and the result is that he used this business as a tool to assault woman, said the Stratford womans lawyer, Arthur Laske III, of Fairfield. Kim, 55, of Fresh Meadows, N.Y., was arrested in July 2016 after police said half a dozen local women, including the Stratford woman, claimed he sexually assaulted them at the Coco Spa. Charged with multiple counts of fourth-degree sexual assault and failure to have a massage license, he is free on $40,000 bond while he awaits trial in Superior Court in Derby. The lawsuit filed by the Stratford woman is the first to be filed by any of the alleged victims. The lawyer for the spa did not return calls for comment. A woman reached at the spa said the owner was not available for comment. We are still reviewing the merits of the claims, said Joseph Andriola, the lawyer representing Kim in the lawsuit. The lawsuit states that the woman went to the spa and was directed to a room for a massage by Kim who was introduced as a license massage therapist. Kim began to massage the womans back, asking her if she had a boyfriend. The suits stated that he prodded her to remove her underwear in his supposed effort to massage her sciatic area but once she did he groped her breasts and then, spreading her legs, made unwanted contact with her genital area. When Kim ceased his unwanted sexual touching of the woman she attempted to quickly get dressed. However Kim told the woman she needed to stretch and without her consent he pushed her over the massage table and pulled her leg upwards, the suit continues. The woman only got him to stop touching her by telling him she needed water. She then gathered her personal items and immediately left the spa. The unwanted physical and sexual touching perpetrated by the defendant Kim was shocking to the plaintiff, caused her great anxiety and fear, and made her feel physically and emotionally violated, disgusted, traumatized and powerless, the suit states. What should you do if you spill coffee on your keyboard? How can you make your cubicle feel more like a sanctuary and less like a prison cell? What should you do when youre feeling tired, antsy or in need of a refresh? When youre in the workplace, you might not have access to all of the creature comforts and cleaning supplies you would at home, but that doesnt mean you should feel uncomfortable or unprepared when life takes its toll. Related: 12 Office Desk Hacks to Improve Your Productivity (Infographic) Youre also probably (hopefully, for your colleagues sake) aware of how you behavior comes across at work: You dont want to subject anyone to the breeze of your desk fan, the unwieldy vines of your desk plant thats growing like a weed or your panic when you realize you might have fried your hard drive. To set yourself up for success at work beyond your typical negotiation strategies and email etiquette, read on for 10 office hacks that will make your days go smoothly. 1. Save your keyboard from a coffee spill. Weve all been there. Youre being very careful, drinking coffee or another acidic or sugary beverage while working on your computer. Then, before you know whats happening, bam. Your keyboard is flooded. Dont panic in this scenario. Instead, your first step should be to turn off your computer and unplug it from any power sources or external hard drives, advises New York Times Personal Tech columnist J.D. Biersdorfer. Take out the device's battery, if your computer is designed to allow this. Ignore the instinct to wipe down your laptop and, instead, blot the spill with a clean towel. If you use a wiping motion, you might push the liquid further into the machine. If youre able to, turn the laptop upside down and leave it off to allow as much of the liquid to drain out as possible. If a ton of liquid (something other than water) has spilled onto it, and youre able to take it in to a repair shop right then, do so. Luckily, this sort of hazard is preventable: Use a plastic keyboard cover, or drink from a mug with a lid that locks. 2. Keep your laptop clean in general. Even if it doesnt bother you that your laptop is a bit grimy, leaving fingerprints, coffee splash stains and other residue on your screen, keyboard and trackpad is arguably not the most professional way to present yourself. You dont need to schlep to an office supply store or shell out for a fancy cleaning solution kit to get your machine looking sparkly. Cleaning expert Jolie Kerr tells the Times that the four essentials for keeping a pristine computer are rubbing alcohol (90 percent isopropyl or higher), microfiber cloths, cotton swabs and canned air. The canned air is designed to blast crumbs, pet hair and other debris out of the crevices of your machine, including under the keys. Start there. If your laptop is one of the models that its manufacturer has designed to be taken apart, once youve turned it off, unplugged it and taken out its battery, you can use canned air on the inside hardware, too. Why clean the inside? Because buildup of any kind can make your computer more susceptible to overheating. First, do a test spray away from your laptop to clear the nozzle, then go to town on the headphone jack, keyboard -- anywhere some gross particles could have found their way in. Spray in short bursts to prevent condensation buildup. Then, wipe whatever the air spray has unearthed from your computers exterior. For this phase of the cleaning process, use only water on the screen, but you can use the alcohol on less sensitive areas (but apply it to the cotton swabs, not the machine directly). 3. Use your fan correctly. If you work in a sweltering office, it can be difficult to keep your cool. Rather than passive-aggressively fanning yourself with a stack of papers whenever your always-cold co-worker walks by wearing her cardigan and scarf, figure out how to best position a personal fan to cool your workspace. There are a couple of factors to keep in mind about the physics of fans before you plug yours in. If your immediate workspace is hot but near a cooler area such as a hallway, it might be wise to position the fan away from you, so the fan sucks the hotter area into the cooler vicinity, air quality engineer Andrew Persily tells Quartz. But the more effective solution, if its somehow cooler outside than inside, would be to crop the fan in the window, blowing into the room. If its hotter outside than inside, make sure the fan is blowing directly onto you. The fan itself will not cool down the room -- the entire point is to move the air against the perspiration thats on your body. 4. Rest your eyes. Even those of us who complain of having to stare at a computer screen all day dont always take the necessary precautions to minimize eye strain. First, make a point of looking away from the screen at regular intervals. One widely accepted, easy-to-remember strategy is, every 20 minutes, look at an object at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. The Canadian Association of Optometrists refers to this as the 20-20-20 rule. If youre able to shift the angle of your computer screen or monitor so overhead lights dont create painful glare, do so. Another option is to download an add-on such as Flux, which will filter out some of the blue light from your display, leaving your screen looking yellowish. You can use this setting round the clock, but its developers otherwise program it to kick in around sunset. A less blue and dimmer screen is easier on the eyes, and its designed to help you sleep better at night. For Mac users, Apple released a similar tool within its software in early 2017, called Night Shift. The support page for the feature states, Studies have shown that exposure to bright blue light in the evening can affect your circadian rhythms and make it harder to fall asleep. 5. Let the light in. You may not want your colleagues to think youre vain, but consider putting a mirror at your desk if you want more natural light in your space. If there are some windows nearby, and the overhead light isnt too overpowering, experiment with a mirror or two, placing them at different angles until youve created the illusion that your desk area is more illuminated (and perhaps even seemingly more spacious). Another perk of a mirror is that it might help you see whos walking behind you, so no one startles you when theyre trying to get your attention and youre wearing headphones. However, note that seeing a great deal of movement outside of your peripheral vision might prove distracting. Another option for those whose workspaces are far from a window is a natural light bulb, or a therapy lamp designed to combat seasonal affective disorder. The latter sometimes can help treat people with sleep disorders, some forms of depression and jet lag as well, according to the Mayo Clinic. 6. Fidget more mindfully. Maybe you bite your fingernails, tap them on the desk, click your pen or even mindlessly doodle throughout the workday. These habits are not necessarily ones you should try to suppress (unless youre disturbing co-workers, damaging your body, etc.). The instinct to fidget is completely normal, and it actually helps you work better. Researchers at New York Universitys Polytechnic School of Engineerings Game Innovation Lab explain that the interrelation of bodily movement, cognition and emotional state has been amply demonstrated, and manipulating physical objects with the hand is known to activate the brain in measurable ways. So, who says fidget spinners are just for kids? There are a number of objects you can use to keep your hands busy that are ergonomically designed for this purpose, from fidget cubes to squeezable stress balls. The latter may even relax you. Related: How to Add Plants to an Office to Make Employees More Focused and Productive 7. Add a plant. Research shows that indoor plants improve peoples moods, productivity and creativity and minimize the number of sick days they take from work. If youre an individual looking to greenify your workspace, add a plant or two to your desk area, being mindful of company policy, as well as any nearby colleagues preferences and allergies. Some low-maintenance plants that indoor landscaping company Ambius suggests for office workers include Sansevieria, Aglaonema, Pothos, Philodendrons and Zamioculcas zamiifolia (ZZ Plants). If you have no windows near you, the aforementioned species are also good options, or you could try Spathiphyllum plants. 8. Know what to do if a colleague needs emotional support. At work, we have to look out for our own best interests, complete our tasks and keep things work appropriate. But sometimes, a co-worker will need a shoulder to cry on or a sounding board for their frustrations or will be going through a difficult time at home. As etiquette columnist Ross McCammon once wrote for Entrepreneur, you're not going to fix anything when youre comforting someone, so that shouldnt be your goal. Instead, your aim should be to display empathy in a professional manner. If someone is on the verge of tears, dont tell them not to cry. Such emotions are natural, and the last thing you want to do is make them feel guilty for their feelings. Instead, wrap up the conversation and allow them to let their tears run their course privately. If youre a manager and youve made someone cry (but not full-on sob), dont touch them to comfort them. Just tell them you want to understand. As McCammon puts it, say something like, You're clearly upset, though I'm not sure I understand why. Know that you can tell me, and I want to help. When someone is full-on sobbing, your first move should be to preserve their dignity by shutting the door or quietly ushering them to a more private place. In these instances, McCammon says, a hand on the shoulder to comfort is fine. Another dilemma might be when you know someone you work with is going through a personal crisis. In these cases, dont try to do too much, as McCammon explained in another column. Dont demand information by asking How are you doing? or What can I do? A post Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg shared shortly after her husband died drives this point home: Real empathy is sometimes not insisting that it will be okay but acknowledging that it is not. McCammon also reported in his column that the best things you can say are, I heard what happened and I cant imagine what its like for you, according Russell Friedman, executive director of the Grief Recovery Institute. From there, your colleague can decide how theyd like to open up to you, and you havent demanded that they engage with you about whats going on, nor have you tried to mediate their emotions. 9. Wake yourself up. Some days, you wake up groggy, but youre still forced to drag yourself to the office or log on to complete the days tasks. Before you mainline some coffee, try these strategies to feel more energetic throughout the day. First, splash cold water on your face to give yourself a jolt of energy. This might involve taking a cold shower before you leave home. (Research has shown that people who take cold showers take fewer sick days, too.) If youre pressed for time, drinking a glass of cold water could have a similar effect. Various research has shown that timing your coffee correctly can also help maximize your alertness. The key is to drink coffee when your cortisol levels are at their lowest. People commonly refer to cortisol as the stress hormone -- its a chemical compound that boosts your energy. For the average person, cortisol levels spike between 8 and 9 a.m., according to neuroscience Ph.D. candidate Steven Miller. Avoid adding caffeine to the mix during that peak cortisol time -- youre better off boosting your alertness levels once the cortisol peak is over, to avoid becoming jittery. So, save the coffee until the 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. window -- or about three to five hours after wake-up. Related: 6 Brilliant Productivity Hacks From 6 Brilliant Entrepreneurs 10. Try these office grooming hacks. Even a day at the office can take its toll. Over the course of a day, even if youre sitting at a desk for most of it, you can become sweaty, your breath may start to stink, your makeup may need a touch-up and more. Rather than taking a bunch of toiletries to work, look around the office and improvise with the supplies available. For instance, you can use coffee filters to blot the oil from your face or shine your shoes with a banana peel. Another trick you can try, if you notice your body odor is becoming a bit strong, is to take a spray bottle, fill it with some vodka (someone in your office probably has a bottle, right?) and spritz it on your clothes, according to AskMen.com. Related: 10 Hacks That Will Make Office Life Much More Bearable Free Chrome Extensions for Entrepreneurs With Crazy Long To-Do Lists and Too Many Open Tabs I Ran My Day Like Elon Musk Runs His -- and This Is What Happened Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved WASHINGTON - House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer said Monday that President Donald Trump's bellicose tweet about Iran was "unbecoming of an American president" and called it an attempt to distract from his "essentially un-American" performance at last week's summit in Helsinki with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The blistering assessment by Hoyer, D-Md., came in response to Trump's late-night warning Sunday night to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani - in all capital letters - that Iran will face severe consequences if it threatens the United States again. "He's weak on Putin, and he wants to prove he's tough on Rouhani," Hoyer said in an interview with The Washington Post. "It's a distraction. It's a distraction from the problems that he's having both with the awful, essentially un-American performance that he had in Helsinki, and I think this is just a way to sort of turn and beat his chest and say, 'I can be really tough on people,' and Rouhani and Iran are an easy target." "As usual, the hyperbole he used was, in my opinion, unbecoming of an American president because the message it sends is not only of danger to Iran but danger to the global community," Hoyer added. "One of the better Republican presidents said speak softly and carry a big stick. Trump does the opposite." Hoyer was referring to President Theodore Roosevelt. Following a joint news conference last week with Putin in Helsinki, Trump was condemned by members of both parties for not confronting the Russian leader more aggressively about interference in the U.S. election in 2016. In his tweet Sunday night about Iran, Trump warned Rouhani to "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Earlier Sunday, Rouhani said the United States should avoid inciting Iranians against the government, with the Trump administration poised to reimpose sanctions suspended under a 2015 nuclear deal that Trump withdrew from in May. "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Rouhani said at a meeting of Iranian diplomats, according to Iran's state-owned Islamic Republic News Agency. Other Democrats also stepped forward Monday to criticize Trump's tweet. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., told reporters in New Hampshire that such tweets "aggravate the situation." "We have a definite challenge with Iran," Shaheen said. "I don't think the president's approach, creating foreign policy through tweet, is the right one. We need to have a strategy on Iran and how we approach them." Nigerias Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president and key ally of President Muhammadu Buhari has declared his bid to become president of Nigeria when elections are held in 2019. Atiku is seeking to run on the ticket of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a party he rejoined earlier this year. He made the announcement during a rally in his home state of Adamawa, where he touched on insecurity and rising unemployment as part of his motivation to enter the presidential race. His bid could pit him against 74-year-old Buhari, who was elected in 2015 but was often absent seeking medical treatment abroad. Abubakar is the first political heavyweight to signal a likely bid for the presidency in Africas most populous nation. He accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) government of creating an atmosphere of insecurity and alarming unemployment rates. Abubakars second term as vice-president was marked by a stormy relationship with President Obasanjo. His bid to succeed Obasanjo did not receive the latters support. He had left the PDP to join the APC in February 2014, after he lost the presidential election of 2007 on the platform of the then Action Congress. Atiku also contested for the Presidency in 1992 on the platform of the then Social Democratic Party (SDP), but later stepped down for late MKO Abiola who won the convention primary. No, Im not the intern, and Im not the minority student fellow. Im the company CEO, and yes, Im 26 years old. In todays tech industry -- where most of the founders and investors are still white males from fairly similar backgrounds -- this is something I have had to clarify time and time again. Its 2018, yet African Americans still represent fewer than 5 percent of the tech workforce. In the history of Fortune 500, there have been only 15 black CEOs, and within the Fortune 100, black men and women account for only 4.7 percent of executive team members -- a number that hasnt increased since 2011. And when it comes to resource-strapped startups, attracting minorities has proven even more difficult because, frankly, the talent pool is small. According to CB Insights, less than 1 percent of VC-backed founders are black. The pipeline for talent in tech among less-advantaged populations is broken very early on, and in multiple places -- opportunity, education, network connectivity and, finally, the homogeneity of the tech community and Silicon Valley. Related: The First Black Woman to Own and Run a Billion-Dollar Company Says That Trusting Yourself Is Key to Success When I launched intelligent messaging startup Emogi from my University of Miami dorm, I quickly learned that breaking through as a minority entrepreneur without a strong social network or access to capital wouldnt be easy. Starting a tech company is hard enough; now add the extra layers of being a student and a minority, and the challenges are threefold. That said, minority leaders can, and are, earning their place at the table. It just requires a more unconventional approach and a lot of perseverance. Based on my experiences, Ive found the following advice most critical to success: To get your foot in the door, have thicker skin and be prepared for unconscious bias. As a minority entrepreneur, we often do not grow up with preexisting relationships in the business community and, instead, must create these connections ourselves. Take, for example, raising your first round of capital. If you dont have access to a "friends and family" round or lack a warm introduction to a VC or angel investor, who else can you ask? Growing up in Miami, it was easy to get wrapped up in the "big fish in small pond syndrome," gravitating toward the people and places I felt most comfortable with. But youll never earn your spot at the table unless you push yourself to be in the right room, in the right city, at the right time with a really good idea. For me, that meant taking a huge risk -- uprooting my Miami life and moving to New York City in search of greater diversity and superior access to networks. Why? Because without taking risks and thinking creatively, unapproachable situations will remain that way. To get your name out there and build your brand as a minority business leader, going outside your comfort zone is a requirement, even if it means accepting rejection along the way. And keep in mind, it is all about attitude. My determination is what allowed me to shake off rejection when building my network. I couldn't take initial assumptions personally. Related: 2018 Is Shaping Up as a Pivotal Year for African-American Entrepreneurship Input equals output when it comes to building your reputation. Once you are in the room, success can still seem out of reach, as unintended assumptions all too often craft peoples perceptions, both in and out of the office. Minorities in tech are rare, and people might assume you were hired to fill a diversity quotient. Prove them wrong. Ive been at many events and have seen the shock on peoples faces when they find out that Im the one sitting in the CEO seat. Yes, experiencing preconceived notions is diminishing and frustrating, but the best way to change the narrative is by changing someones perspective. I see this in the tech industry time and again, not only for people of color, but also for women and other minority groups. Instead of getting discouraged, remember that you are not alone in experiencing this, and by changing the narrative, you are paving the way for those that follow. Go the extra mile if not for yourself, then for the future of others in your footsteps. Get connected, and pay it forward. The road to success as a minority entrepreneur certainly has its ups and downs. But once youve solidified your network and paved your path, your uniqueness quickly becomes a value. For me, this diverse experience not only helped to uniquely shape my company but also proved vital for enhancing the path to success for those behind me. Looking at recent grassroots social movements, like March for Our Lives or Black Lives Matter, its evident that communities are true catalysts of change -- even more so, communities of students. These movements are prime examples of how young people are steadfast in forging their own paths when the traditional one does not feel right for them. Related: 3 Ways to Play the VC Game if You're Not a White Guy Sometimes all you need is a model of success to keep moving forward. In New York, I got lucky and managed to find people who believed in me, my ideas and my passion, even though I didnt have the standard tech background. Mentorship can also be a mutually beneficial relationship that facilitates learning on both ends. As an active member of University of Miamis marketing advisory board, I am not only committed to changing the culture for the next generation by suggesting a more relevant and strategic curriculum, but I go back often to learn from those younger than me. The technology industry still has a long way to go when it comes to diversity, not only in leadership, but in the workplace as a whole. However, todays culture has helped to facilitate this much-needed change by providing the important first steps toward a truly diverse workforce. And it isnt just the Facebooks and Googles of that world that are responsible for setting a precedent; the entire industry needs to play a part -- from the newest startup to the oldest legacy company. Ultimately, this comes down to making sure that we all have the opportunity -- the privilege -- to innovate. Ideas have no boundaries, no color and no limits. We are a weaker society and a weaker tech sector if we do not have diversity. All of us who make it in need to extend our hands to those working to make it. All of us who are struggling need to remember that it is possible to get a seat that the table, and that things are changing. And above all, it comes down to individuals being willing to scoot over and make a little more room at the table. Related: Body Language and Plenty of Questions Are the Keys to a Good Impression The Advice 50 Business Leaders and Celebrities Would Give Their Younger Selves How to Keep Your Company Afloat When Investors Pull Out Just Before Closing Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved In this series, Open Every Door, Entrepreneur staff writer Nina Zipkin shares her conversations with leaders about understanding what you have to offer, navigating the obstacles that will block your path, identifying opportunity and creating it for yourself and for others. Amy Lacey would have pizza and game nights with her husband and three kids every Friday, but on Saturday morning, she'd be in debilitating pain. For the longest time, she didn't know why. In 2010, a Lupus diagnosis solved the mystery of her symptoms, as the autoimmune disease often presents with gluten intolerance. But with that information in hand, she had a new mission: find things to eat that she enjoyed, would help maintain her health and not send her back to the doctors office. It was out of that goal that Cauliflour Foods was born. Six years later, Lacey launched her first product, a pizza crust made out of cauliflower, cheese, eggs and spices. Her hope was that she could generate buzz for the brand online and build a solid ecommerce following, which would then carry her company when its products went into grocery stores. That focus has paid off. Lacey says the business ended the year negative $269,000 in 2016. But it finished out 2017 with $5.3 million in sales. In 2018, she say it's on track for $16 million in ecommerce sales and $4 million in grocery stores Related: This Single Mom Turned Tech Entrepreneur Shares How She Rose Above Self-Doubt Cauliflour Foods now makes five products and counts celebrities including Halle Berry and SNLs Leslie Jones as fans. The company also donates all proceeds from its apparel to The Mentor Project, the American Diabetes Association and Lupus Foundation. Even though the company comes from a personal place, in the beginning, Lacey says she struggled with believing that she was the leader the business needed to succeed. One of my biggest mistakes was hiring a CEO early on because I didn't have the confidence that I was CEO material. I did it out fear, Lacey tells Entrepreneur. When you make decisions out of fear, you make mistakes. Lacey says that it was a costly mistake. Bouncing back from it required developing a routine of meditation, journaling and seeking out advice from advisors and fellow entrepreneurs. Having built up that foundational confidence, she says she was able to right the ship, boosting morale and quadrupling sales in the process. She noted that part of taking on that leadership role has been motivating herself to get out of her comfort zone, by getting in touch with influencers who could potentially partner with the company -- even if their stature might make them seem out of reach -- and going to conferences to build out her network. Related: The First Black Woman to Own and Run a Billion-Dollar Company Says That Trusting Yourself Is Key to Success Even if you might be feeling laid low by the stressors and loneliness of entrepreneurship, Lacey says that going to an event with likeminded people in similar positions can give you a boost of energy. Refueling yourself, just going on your hunch and taking a chance sometimes pays off big time, she says. Stepping into the role also required her to rethink how she approached the business. Lacey thought that sending emails to customers would be a waste of time. She never liked getting them, and thought they would feel similarly. But after listening to a favorite podcast, Donald Miller's Building a StoryBrand, she figured it couldnt hurt to try. At 9:30 p.m. on a May evening, the company launched an email campaign to its list of 70,000 addresses. By noon the next day we had sold $86,000 worth of pizza from that email alone, Lacey recalls. I might have it in my mindset that this isn't going to work, because I personally hate it. But when you listen to other people who are more experienced than you and you're open-minded, things like that can happen. The company now sends out three emails a week. Ultimately, Lacey says her advice for new entrepreneurs is to stick to your vision. In the beginning of the company's life, she was asked if she would make a pizza crust with fillers to make the manufacturing process less expensive. I said no. I just wouldn't compromise that. I'm glad I stuck to that, Lacey says. I could've made a lot of money by now, a lot more money than I'm currently making if I would have cheapened the product. But I didn't want to mislead the public. I don't want to put out a cauliflower pizza crust that isn't healthy. I want to be a resource [for our customers]. Related: How the Founder of This Multimillion-Dollar Food Brand Found the Confidence to Be CEO At 27, She Unexpectedly Became the CEO of Her Family Business. Now She is the Leader of a $120 Million Company. Use This Mindset to Help Everyone in Your Network Succeed Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved It was raining harder than usual as I grabbed a tea at one of my favorite cafes in Toronto. With the pounding rain making the monochromatic design of the cafe even more imposing, I started to reflect on the past month of my career. Just about to close my companys Series A round, I was getting all investor signatures returned and starting to see the money hit the bank. By the end of the day, I could formally close the round and move on to doing what I really wanted to do: build my business. There was only one issue. Our co-lead investor had not returned any signatures, emails, calls or even text messages. With one week of runway left, my entire team was starting to get nervous. Related: How This Entrepreneur Dealt When Half of Her Team Quit 3 Days Before a Major Investment Deal Closed Finally, after many calls and texts, the investor responded and said he could not produce the money he had committed to and signed the term sheet for. This wasnt at all a reflection on our business and its potential, he said. I just cant raise enough capital. For my co-founders and me, the next month was a whirlwind of calls, investor meetings, team huddles and some begging to keep the company alive. We made it, but it was a harrowing ordeal. If youre an entrepreneur long enough, you most likely will experience this yourself. Heres what you should do if you ever run headlong into this situation. Engage in scenario planning. First things first. Huddle with your team, and engage in a series of scenario-planning sessions. Map out and plan the results of a worst possible outcome and a series of other eventualities so you at least have an idea of what may happen -- including having to shut down completely. At the very least, devise a strategy that takes into account what the office needs will consist of as it contends with a decreasing amount of money in the near term. Youre going to be searching for more funding as well as making cutbacks (more on that in a minute). In the meantime, you must have a plan in place for your strategic ops moving forward. The starting point for your scenario planning is timing. How much time do you have before the cash is gone? If you have a small team and only three weeks before you think you can ship a completed product and get paid, you may be able to pull it all off with minimal funds -- and fuss. Ensure all other investors are still on board. Once you know what scenarios you can realistically count on, start calling all other investors immediately. The goal here is to ensure that every other investor is still on board with you. Do they believe in your business? Do they trust that you can raise more capital to cover the unexpected shortfall? Do they know another individual or company that would like to invest in your company? This is perhaps the most critical step, as one investor pulling out -- even for reasons that have nothing to do with the promise of the business -- can cause a cascading effect that leads to others pulling out. Related: How to Pitch Your Business, Product or Idea to Industry Experts Calling and having this conversation with investors isnt an easy step to take. Youve most likely convinced these folks of the virtue and efficacy of your business model or product. Youve sold them on where you hope to take the company in the coming years. As tough as it may be to keep some of the investors on board, its only the first part. Now its time to double down, and get them to invest even more. Get other investors to make up the shortfall and hit the road. Since youve probably told other investors about the shortfall, give them the opportunity to make up the difference. It is likely that many will -- and possibly even be happy for a bigger piece of the pie. Use every tool in your arsenal to do this convincing since time is critical at this point. Your arsenal could include discounts, super pro-rata rights, rights of liquidation, changing stock classes, and even board observer or board seats. With many suggestions and strategic interventions in mind, go out and immediately hit the road to get other investors in the round. Offer the same preferential terms to each of them. Go after these individuals as if this is the very first time you have done this for this particular round. Be open to accepting a series of new business milestones from an investor offering a cash-infusion. Work with them candidly to identify those specific milestones as well as the money you receive upon reaching them. Once thats been solidified, take a hard look at what needs to be done to get those milestones accomplished and then make visible the steps you will execute to make this happen. Make immediate changes where appropriate. Heres the stretching part that may hurt the most. Dont wait to make cuts in costs wherever you can. Cut founder salaries. Cut all expenses to as close to zero as possible. Put a hold on all accounts payable. Ensure that very little cash leaves the company -- especially if you have very little runway left. Theres an important point to make here about product. Your most vital adjustment may be to whatever youre shipping. I strongly recommend limiting -- at least for the time being -- the set of features youre offering with your service. Now is the time to scale back to the minimum viable product (MVP) and push forward from there. It is possible for the bells and whistles to wait until youve proven theres enough demand. Related: 9 Business Expenses You Can Reduce of Eliminate to Save Thousands Be open, honest and constructive with your employees. While all entrepreneurs want to portray an image of ambitious success to their colleagues, in these situations honesty goes a long way. Be open and honest with employees about the situation, and be careful to explain to them the very real risk facing the company. You will absolutely be amazed at what your employees will do for you if you have treated them well and been honest with them. Many companies have been saved by their employees. Even more importantly, you should give employees something constructive to contribute. Do not doubt their very real ability to save the day here -- whether they find you an investor connection or furlough pay for extra equity or other instruments. Often, youll find extraordinary loyalty in times like these. Part of whats going to generate this level of loyalty is how well youve been able to make your team feel invested in the company. Have you hired people who really understand the mission of your business and believe in it themselves? If you have, youve given yourself an insurance policy of sorts that can get you through the toughest of times. Related: How to Keep Your Company Afloat When Investors Pull Out Just Before Closing Building Financial Discipline at an SME What This New Series B Could Mean For Personal Loan Borrowing in India? Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved A federal judge in Alexandria has delayed the trial of Paul Manafort on bank and tax fraud charges until July 31. Manafort, who appeared in court Monday for the first time since his June incarceration, had hoped the trial would be postponed until after he faces related charges in Washington, D.C. federal court on Sept. 17. Judge T.S. Ellis III was not so accommodating, but he did give Manafort's defense an extra week to review tens of thousands of documents recently turned over by prosecutors. "There are equities and good reasons on both sides," he said. The trial, previously set to begin Wednesday, will be the first prosecuted by the special counsel investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election. Manafort, who appeared in a rumpled green jumpsuit and wire-rim glasses, had waived other recent in-person court appearances because he had been held at a jail two hours from the Alexandria courthouse. But Manafort is now in Alexandria's city jail, just a few blocks from the court. He was moved after his lawyers said they were unable to prepare with their client 100 miles away at a jail in the Northern Neck. But defense attorney Kevin Downing said Monday that his team is still struggling with the large volume of paperwork involved. Prosecutors said the most relevant papers handed over recently were financial documents from Manafort's bookkeeper that his attorneys turned over to the government themselves last summer. Manafort had a different defense team at the time. Downing said once the bookkeeper was subpoenaed by prosecutors, the firm demanded money to give them back to Manafort. "We thought that we would get it through discovery. It's a lot cheaper," Downing said. "It depends on how you calculate the expense," Ellis replied. Downing said the defense also only recently received 40,000 pages of documents from the phones and computer of Richard Gates, Manafort's ex-business partner. Gates has pleaded guilty to two charges in Washington, D.C. federal court and is set to testify against Manafort. Assistant U.S. Attorney Uzo Asonye said most of those documents involve pictures downloaded when Gates visited websites and would not be part of the prosecution's case. None are emails. "I don't think, to my knowledge, there are any exculpatory pictures in this case," he said. Downing said some of the downloaded data could be relevant notes Gates wrote to himself: "It's incumbent on us to review these documents," he said. Ellis also approved and unsealed motions to compel five witnesses against Manafort to testify at trial: James Brennan, Conor O'Brien, Donna Duggan, Cindy Laporta, Dennis Raico. Ellis delayed a hearing on motions to shape the evidence at trial until later Monday afternoon. The defense is asking Ellis to keep from jurors details of the work Manafort did for Ukrainian politician Viktor Yanukovych, who was forced out of power by protests against corruption and fraud. Manafort is accused of using offshore bank accounts to hide millions of dollars he made working for Yanukovych and his political party. In federal court in the District, Manafort is accused of failing to register as a foreign agent. But in the financial-crimes case in Alexandria, his attorneys argue, there is no need to delve into the source of Manafort's funds. "The fact that Mr. Manafort performed foreign consulting work, and that he was paid for that work, is not in dispute," defense attorneys wrote. "Evidence concerning Mr. Yanukovych, the Party of Regions, and the work that Mr. Manafort performed on their behalf poses the substantial risk that the jurors will be sidetracked by Mr. Yanukovych's controversial tenure as Ukraine's president, his removal from power in the midst of public protests, the charges of treason brought against him by the Ukrainian government, and his current exile in Russia." The special counsel pushed back, writing in a Sunday filing that the work Manafort did in Ukraine is relevant to both the tax and bank fraud charges. "Evidence of Manafort's significant work for Ukraine is necessary to establish the source of Manafort's money and quantify the corresponding amount of income earned," Asonye wrote. "Further, Yanukovych's loss of power in 2014 is highly relevant to explain the dramatic decrease in Manafort's income in and after 2014 - which led to the defendant's involvement in the charged bank frauds." Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III last week released a list of nearly 500 pieces of evidence that prosecutors may show to a jury, including emails and memos discussing strategy with and for Yanukovych. The two sides will on Tuesday debate a questionnaire that will be given to potential jurors. Manafort would like Ellis, the judge, to ask jurors where they get their news, the extent of their involvement in politics and whether they voted in the 2016 election. The government is interested in whether jurors have strong feelings about the Internal Revenue Service and tax laws, Mueller and Manafort himself. President Donald Trump launched a new broadside against Iran, warning of unspecified "consequences" if Hassan Rouhani continues threatening America. In a Twitter post late Sunday, Trump said, "To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" The threat -- similar to ones Trump issued last year in warning North Korea about its rapidly improving nuclear weapons program -- risks leading to a speedy escalation if neither side backs down. Traders appeared to take the news in stride. Brent oil -- the global benchmark -- was trading up less than 0.2 percent at $73.2 a barrel as of 08:56 a.m. in London. Trump's tweet came hours after Rouhani warned the U.S. against threatening Iranian oil exports and called for improved relations with neighbors, including rival Saudi Arabia. "We're not fighting or at war with any country, but the enemies have to clearly understand that war with Iran will be the mother of all wars and likewise peace with Iran is the mother of all peace," Rouhani said. The head of Iran's paramilitary Basij forces dismissed Trump's words as part of a psychological war. The U.S. "wouldn't dare make the mistake of taking action against Iran," Gholamhossein Gheybparvar was quoted as saying by the semi-official Iranian Students' News Agency. The tensions come as the U.S. moves closer to imposing sanctions on countries -- including key allies -- that don't eliminate or significantly cut imports of Iranian oil by Nov. 4. That effort follows the Trump administration's decision this year to withdraw from the Iran nuclear accord, which eased economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic in return for restraints on its nuclear program. Earlier this month, the other signatories to the nuclear deal met in Vienna to look for ways to ensure Iran still gets the benefits it's seeking from the accord despite the U.S. threats. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called for "practical solutions" rather than "obscure promises." But world powers were unable to offer concrete proposals, and diplomats have warned there may be little they can do. The back and forth between Trump and Rouhani also came as U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo delivered a speech in California on Sunday, in which he accused the country's leaders of corruption and urged European allies to join the pressure campaign against the Islamic Republic. Pompeo said Iran's leadership is made up of "hypocritical holy men" responsible for "crooked schemes" that have hurt the country's economy and people. The top U.S. diplomat added that America stands in solidarity with Iranians and reiterated the November deadline for countries to get their imports of Iranian oil to "as close to zero as possible." While the administration has said it doesn't seek regime change, it has repeatedly said that Iran's leaders don't have their citizens' interests at heart. "While it is ultimately up to the Iranian people to determine the direction of their country, the United States, in the spirit of our own freedoms, will support the long-ignored voice of the Iranian people," Pompeo said in the speech in Simi Valley, California. The audience included Iranian-Americans, Arkansas Republican Senator Tom Cotton -- a leading Iran critic in Congress -- and former California Governor Pete Wilson. Saying that one in four Iranians listen to or watch U.S. government broadcasts, Pompeo announced that the organization overseeing the Voice of America is launching new Farsi-language channels across television, radio and the internet. It was the only new policy initiative Pompeo unveiled. "For 40 years the Iranian people have heard from their leaders that America is the Great Satan," Pompeo said. "We do not believe they are interested in hearing the fake news any longer." Citing his own travels to North Korea as an example, Pompeo said it's still possible for the Trump administration to build a relationship with Tehran, but he didn't seem optimistic that such an outcome was likely. He said Iran must make a series of changes to become a "normal" country. "That I don't see happening today, but I live in hope," he said. Pompeo sought to portray his message Sunday in terms of good-versus-evil, as a major moment in history. He cited President Ronald Reagan's 1982 Westminster Speech in which he challenged the Soviet Union and warned that its ideology would be left on the "ash heap of history." The administration believes that a new maximum-pressure campaign will work with Iran just as Trump and other senior officials believe that the sanctions regime against North Korea drove that country's leaders to the negotiating table. A big difference between the two countries is Iran's oil. It exports hydrocarbons to countries around the world, including China and India, as well as U.S. allies Japan, South Korea and Iraq. The administration will have to decide how hard to enforce its sanctions. Pompeo and U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin have told European leaders they won't get waivers. But other countries, such as Iraq, are major importers of Iranian natural gas, and sanctions could strain alliances the U.S. seeks to maintain. - - - Bloomberg's Golnar Motevalli contributed to this report. The Republicans' continued inability to stand up to President Donald Trump for his pro-Russian obsequiousness and to take seriously the Russian plot to manipulate our elections will be front and center in the midterms. It's not simply a failure to defend the country against Vladimir Putin and his lackey Trump that may come back to haunt Republicans. Republicans are themselves implicated in Russian meddling, albeit indirectly. The indictment of Russian Maria Butina, who allegedly infiltrated the National Rifle Association, and further investigation of the NRA may complicate the campaigns of Republicans who took NRA money and continue to court its support. The Post reports: "Maria Butina, the Russian woman charged in federal court last week with acting as an unregistered agent of her government, received financial support from Konstantin Nikolaev, a Russian billionaire with investments in U.S. energy and technology companies, according to a person familiar with testimony she gave Senate investigators. "Butina told the Senate Intelligence Committee in April that Nikolaev provided funding for a gun rights group she represented, according to the person. A spokesman for Nikolaev confirmed that he was in contact with her as she was launching the gun rights group in Russia between 2012 and 2014. He declined to confirm whether Nikolaev gave her financial support. . . . "According to prosecutors, for two years, she traveled back and forth to the United States, often accompanying Russian central banker Alexander Torshin to NRA events and other political meetings. Prosecutors have said that her activities were directed by a high-level Russian government official who matches the description of Torshin." Democrats likely will demand Republicans give back NRA money and reject its support, impossibilities for a party that long ago wrapped its arms around the NRA. The NRA - the Russia-touched NRA, that is - now becomes a potential liability for Republicans. What, then, to make of Republicans who were chummy with Russia-connected figures? It's not a theoretical question. It's about to become an issue in Tennessee's U.S. Senate race. Back in March, the Tennessean reported: "Amid ongoing probes into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election, one Nashville attorney is gaining notice for his relationship to a Russian banker with Kremlin ties. "G. Kline Preston, IV, a graduate of the Nashville School of Law, has authored books about Russian regulations, and has represented clients in Russia, Ukraine, Canada, Cuba and England. "Among Preston's Russian clients and longtime friends is Alexander Torshin, a prominent Russian politician who has close ties to President Vladimir Putin. Torshin is under scrutiny for illegally channeling Russian funds to the National Rifle Association in an effort to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. "Preston first introduced Torshin to then-president of the NRA David Keene in 2011 and the pair attended the NRA's annual convention in Nashville in 2015." And Preston is a friend and confidant of Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., who is running for the Senate seat being vacated by Bob Corker, R. Blackburn reportedly also met with Torshin in 2012. (Her campaign spokeswoman did not provide any comment specifically on the allegations but instead referred me back to the Tennessean account in which a campaign spokesman made a generic comment to the effect that Blackburn "believes Russia is not our friend - and thinks we need to treat Russia like any bully: we need to be strong enough to prevent them from pushing the United States and our allies around, and we need to draw firm lines and show them that America is not to be trifled with.") With the Butina indictment and ongoing focus on Russia's ties to the NRA, Blackburn will face questions. A spokesman for her Democratic opponent, former governor Phil Bredesen, put out a statement demanding she explain her Russian contacts. ("In 2012, she met with accused spy master Alexander Torshin when he visited Williamson County - her home county - as an election observer, squired by her former campaign president, attorney, and friend G. Kline Preston IV. Blackburn owes Tennessee voters an explanation of these meetings.") Blackburn spent last week furiously trying to distance herself from Trump's Helsinki comments. But if the issue comes down to who will hold Trump accountable on Russia and take oversight of Russia's far-flung influence racket seriously, Blackburn will find herself playing defense. Mass shootings over the past year have reminded voters of the NRA's intransigence. NRA chief Wayne LaPierre's wackadoodle rant at the Conservative Political Action Conference reminded them the NRA has become a refuge for conspiracy theories and far-right extremism. Now the Russia story and Butina indictment raise the question of why the GOP is in bed with a group the Russians allegedly used to meddle with our elections - and whether money Republicans took is tainted by the NRA's Russia connection. Stay tuned. It's no secret that the big stories in Washington are not always seen as big stories outside the Beltway. The new Washington Post-ABC News poll suggests that President Donald Trump's performance at last Monday's Helsinki summit is another example of this. But the poll also suggests that, in talking about the "Russia scandal," Trump opponents should focus less on Russia and more on the election interference itself. On three of four questions, the polling breaks down two ways: Partisans support or oppose Trump depending on their political party, and independents are less concerned about the president's performance than furor in Washington and the media would suggest. Clear majorities of Republicans approved of how Trump handled the summit and believe American leadership has "gotten stronger." Democrats said the opposite. And for independents, only 38 percent thought the president went "too far" in supporting Putin, compared with 52 percent who answered "not far enough" or "about right." Similarly, a third of independent votes approved of Trump's handling of the summit and 20 percent had no opinion. Trump opponents can be slightly relieved that independents didn't side with Republicans. Overall, though, as The Washington Post notes, "The findings indicate that while Trump was judged critically for his summit performance, the event has not at this time proved to be a significant turning point in his presidency." If you wondered why even after Helsinki most Republicans avoided criticizing the president, this poll is your answer. But on one question - whether voters approve of Trump expressing doubt about whether Russia tried to influence the 2016 election - the numbers look different. On that query, 60 percent of independents disapprove - a clear majority. Furthermore, only 51 percent of Republicans approve of Trump impugning the U.S. intelligence community's conclusions and 31 percent disapprove. Yes, that's still a majority in favor, but by Republican standards, 51 percent support for the president is astonishingly low. Remember, at the 500-day mark of his presidency, Trump's approval rating among Republicans was nearly 90 percent. Other than George W. Bush post-Sept. 11, that's the highest support for a president within his own party since World War II. Any issue where only half of Republicans support the president and nearly a third oppose is an opportunity to erode enthusiasm among his base. Why do the numbers look so different on those questions? As the rest of the poll shows, the vast majority of Republicans and large numbers of independents aren't disturbed by Trump's obsequiousness toward Russia. The numbers change when the topic changes to our elections. It seems that Russia concerns voters far less than interference with their votes. And, this makes sense: While election security isn't a traditional "kitchen table issue," protecting one's vote is more relatable to voters than whether NATO allies raise defense spending. One thing all voters do have in common is, well, voting. Think about it this way: If, for example, in 2020 a cabal of domestic actors - say, a group of billionaires - steals and leaks a presidential campaign's emails, voters won't be any less angry because the conspiracy wasn't orchestrated by a foreign adversary. What they care about is the intrusion, not the background of the intruders. This week, Democrats wisely pushed for more state election-security funding, which Republicans blocked. Don't be surprised if Democrats continue to hammer the GOP on this. It's understandable why opponents of the president think "Trump sided with Putin" should be a convincing argument. Putin's criminal regime is no friend to decent people. But for everyone who understands that protecting special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's probe is vital, this poll is a reminder to keep election interference itself front and center when making that case. This week, Hearst Connecticut Media Group, Sacred Heart University and WSHU Public Radio will host two gubernatorial debates, pitting candidates head-to-head before the Aug. 14 primary. Republican candidates Mark Boughton, Tim Herbst, Steve Obsitnik, David Stemerman and Bob Stefanowski will take the debate stage on Tuesday at 2 p.m. at the Martire Business and Communications Center on the campus of Sacred Heart University in Fairfield. 5 1 of 5 Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 2 of 5 Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 3 of 5 4 of 5 Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 5 of 5 Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti said he hasnt ruled out an Independent run for governor, but that didnt stop him from making an endorsement headed into the Republican primary. Lauretti threw his support behind Bob Stefanowski, a former executive at UBS Investment Bank and General Electric, after deliberating between him and David Stemerman, who ran a hedge fund in Greenwich. A Virginia jury found the former board chair of New Bethel FCU guilty Wednesday of three felony counts of forging a contractors signature on financial documents. Mark M. Whitaker, Portsmouth city council members, was originally indicted on 20 felony charges of forgery, check forgery and ID fraud in April 2017. He pleaded not guilty and rejected a plea deal before his trial began Monday. On Tuesday, Virginia Circuit Court Judge Harold W. Burgess Jr. dismissed 17 forgery and ID fraud charges on the grounds of insufficient evidence, according to local media reports. Whitaker did not testify during the three-day trial, but he has repeatedly claimed his innocence, according to the Associated Press and the Virginian-Pilot newspaper. Todays environment only allows MasterCard holders to make purchases in the currency that is declared as their legal tender. However, using Bitcoin as a currency option to make purchases with your credit card is closer now with the new patent announced in July 2018. MasterCard won the first patent to protect a method that will manage fractional reserves of blockchain currencies. This proposed exchange is said to allow for a quick exchange between the fiat currency (legal tender) and cryptocurrencies at the point of sale. The transactions themselves would use the fiat currencys payment rails and security features, but each transaction would represent a cryptocurrency. This is not the first patent acquired by MasterCard that is crypto-related. The question remains, when is MasterCard planning to utilize this technology? CNBC asked Seth Eisen about this and he explained, Were consistently looking at ways to bring new thinking and new innovations to market to create value for us and our customers and cardholders. Patent applications are part of that process, taking steps to protect the companys intellectual property, whether or not the idea ever comes to market. Reports from March 2018 indicated that MasterCard would only agree to facilitate fully-regulated, central bank-issued, non-anonymous coins. If governments look to create national digital currency wed be very happy to look at those in a more favorable way, Ari Sarker, Co-President of MasterCard Asia-Pacific. So long as its backed by a regulator and the value it is not anonymous, it is meeting all the regulatory requirements, I think that would be of greater interest for us to explore. The growing popularity and usage of blockchain currencies by consumers has gotten the attention of MasterCard and other card issuers, acquirers, and merchants. The issue remains that there is a need to improve the storage and processing capability of blockchain transactions. Digital coin transactions are reminiscent of early credit card transactions. It takes about 10 minutes for blockchain transactions versus nanoseconds for traditional payments in todays payment landscape. While blockchain currencies can often provide safety and security for the payers information, such security may be limited for payees, particularly due to the limitations of the blockchain. Seth Eisen, MasterCards Senior Vice President of Communications Merchants that are early adopters of consumer blockchain payments are waiting a significant amount of time for digital transactions to go through and often rely on the payers good faith that the payments will be valid. However, it seems like the majority of merchants are still wary of accepting blockchain currencies for products and services. As the patent was just announced, it is still unclear if and how MasterCards new patent will speed up blockchain transactions by allowing cardholders to instantly pay for things using their credit cards. No products have been brought to market yet; but, we can only imagine that this is a positive sign that blockchain currencies will one day be mainstream. No More Asylum For Julian Assange After protecting WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange for almost six years, Ecuador is now planning to withdraw its political asylum and eject him from its London embassy, eventually they would turn him over to the British authorities. Lenin Moreno, the newly-elected President of Ecuador, has arrived in London to give a speech at Global Disability Summit on 24 July 2018. Media reports suggest the actual purpose of the President's visit is to finalise a deal with UK government to withdraw its asylum protection of Assange. According to Russia Todya editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan and the Intercept's Glenn Greenwald, multiple sources close to the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry and the Presidents office have confirmed that Julian Assange will be handed over to Britain in the coming weeks or even days. Julian Assange, 47, has been living in Ecuador's London embassy since June 2012, when he was granted asylum by the Ecuador government after a British court ordered his extradition to Sweden to face questioning sexual assault and rape. Although Sweden dropped its preliminary investigation into the rape accusation against Julian Assange just last year, Assange chose not to leave the embassy due to fears that he would eventually be extradited to the US, where he is facing federal charges for his role in publishing classified information leaked by Chelsea Manning in 2010 Founder of the whistleblowing website WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, has not been online since last three months after Ecuador cut his communications with the outside world from its London embassy The Ecuadorian government took this decision in order to save its good relation with Spain after Assange tweeted in support of Catalan independence movement and blasted the Spanish government over alleged human rights violations. According to Ecuador, Assange had breached an agreement to refrain from interfering in other states' affairs. "Sources close to Assange said he himself was not aware of the talks but believed that America was putting 'significant pressure' on Ecuador, including threatening to block a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) if he continues to stay at the embassy," RT said Assange is currently facing an arrest warrant from the British government for a minor charge of "failure to surrender," which carries a prison term of three months and a fine. Now, what will be the future of Assange? The Hacker News: You Might Alo Read: Snowden Five Years Later: Ecuador Spied On Assange: The past week has been abuzz with news of India overtaking France as the sixth biggest economy. Recent World Bank data puts Indias GDP at $2.597 trillion, surpassing Frances $2.582 trillion in 2017. Later this year, India is likely to overtake the United Kingdom in terms of economic output. Beautiful headline: Indias GDP at $2.597 trillion surpassed Frances $2.582 trillion in 2017 ( Photo: Reuters ) The Modi government was quick to claim credit for making this achievement possible. Of course, reaching this milestone is a result of cumulative efforts of many governments, but I dont expect a propaganda-obsessed government to behave graciously. However, I do want to use this opportunity to argue that this achievement masks Indias considerable development challenges. It is disingenuous to discuss this milestone without more contextual data that shows, in fact, India remains far behind not just advanced countries such as France, but also emerging economies such as China. Sure, in absolute terms, the economy has grown. Being the sixth largest economy is no mean feat and surpassing France, a historically wealthy and large economy, is cause for some cheer. However, if one looks at how Indias GDP translates in per capita terms, the reality is far less pleasant. With a population of over 1.3 billion, Indias GDP per capita is $1,964 (Constant 2010 US$) as opposed to Frances per capita of close to $42,568. In other words, Indias GDP per capita is currently 4.6 percent of French GDP per capita. Stark reality: Indias GDP per capita is $1,964 (Constant 2010 US$) as opposed to Frances per capita of close to $42,568 In a similar vein, Indias GDP per capita is about 4 per cent of US GDP per capita. To put Indias struggle in perspective, Indias GDP per capita in 1960 was a mere 2 percent of the per capita GDP of the United States or France. In 57 years, during which growth has been moderate to high, Indias GDP per capita is now 3.7 and 4.6 percent of US and French GDP per capita respectively. During this time, China, which is almost an outlier as far as rapid economic growth is concerned, has seen its GDP per capita rise to at 14 per cent and 17.2 per cent of US and French GDP per capita respectively. The experience of India and China suggests that while some convergence with income levels of advanced countries is possible, it is a painfully long process. What makes Indias situation even more challenging (and Chinas to a lesser extent) is the sharp rise of income and wealth inequality. According to experts such as Thomas Piketty, between 1980 and 2015, the top 0.1 percent of Indians had a higher share in Indias growth story as compared to the bottom 50 per cent. In its latest report on global inequality, Oxfam reports that Indias wealth inequality is at its worst since the 1980s. Last year, the top 1 per cent cornered 73 per cent of the wealth created in India while the bottom 50 per cent saw their wealth, if you can call it that, increase by a meagre 1 per cent. What makes Indias situation even more challenging is the sharp rise of income and wealth inequality ( File Photo ) It should also be pointed that this bottom 50 per cent is worse off not only in terms of slower gains in per capita income and wealth, but as a direct result of this, also on basic human development indicators access to basic services of health, education and nutrition remains limited. Even though India no longer houses the largest number of the world's poor, millions continue to confront poverty. According to the UNDP, Indias human development index (HDI) ranking has remained stagnant at 131 over the past three years. On the other hand, China fares better on the HDI index and is ranked 41 spots above India. Chine is much ahead of India as far as human development index is concerned ( Photo: Reuters ) If India continues on a path of non-inclusive, jobless growth, it could take India centuries to even reach half the per capita income level of advanced countries. And lets not forget that while India progresses, other nations will continue to hold on to their advantages by building on reservoirs of knowledge, technology, and innovation. The governments penchant for propaganda is not harmless - excessive focus on GDP without unpacking the internal dynamics of the economy will likely lead to complacency and eventual disappointment. More troubling, our policy framework is likely to be impaired if institutions get into the mindset of all is well. We spend far more time emulating Chinas manufacturing success, not enough on what that country is doing in the education sector I believe India must focus far more on institutional development and investing in human capital, e.g., public education and health. Such interventions are likely to yield far superior returns to the status quo and help our people sustain themselves with a degree of comfort and dignity, even as we try to converge with income levels of advanced countries. Sadly, human capital development is not a priority for the current government. For example, public investment in education dropped below 3 per cent of GDP despite promises of doubling it to 6 per cent of GDP. We spend far more time emulating Chinas manufacturing success and not enough on what that country is doing in the education sector. Such strategic blunders will cost us dearly I hope the next government will create an environment conducive to rapid human capital development. We cannot let embellished headlines lull us into a false sense of security. We must seek the truth, acknowledge our immense challenges, and work hard to reform key areas that can contribute to shared socio-economic progress. Given that 'Achche Din' remain distant for so many citizens, India needs less propaganda, more new ideas and sound policies to tackle our considerable challenges. Also read: Why China, not Trump, is Indias biggest trade challenge 2018 has been a weird year already, especially in the realm of the culinary. Netizens have gone from attempting to swallow a tablespoon of cinnamon powder in 60 seconds without liquids, to biting Tide Pods little pockets of liquid detergent to snorting condoms. But all of this is almost pedestrian. At the glorious peak of oddities is a new disturbing want: drinking the unknown liquid found inside a sarcophagus thats thousands of years old. A change.org petition that has been signed (hopefully, ironically) by more than 17,000 people globally is demanding that people be let to drink the red liquid from the dark sarcophagus. The petitioner Innes McKendricks reasonable demand is we need to drink the red liquid from the cursed dark sarcophagus in the form of some sort of carbonated energy drink so we can assume its powers and finally die. Bone juice the elixir of life! Photo: Change.org The petition plays right into millennial motifs of absurdity and death, and is, in all likeliness, not serious; then again, people did snort condoms and drink detergent. Especially considering that the mysterious red liquid found inside the 6-foot-tall, 2000-year-old granite sarcophagus, recently discovered in Alexandria, Egypt that people initially hoped was cursed is not really bone juice or a life-giving elixir. Nor is it the mythical red mercury that has been termed both elaborate hoax and dangerous Soviet weaponry. The sobering reality is nowhere close to being that fancy or awesome. The Antiquities Ministry in Egypt, possibly alarmed at the idea of thousands of people wanting to consume an unknown liquid found inside a dark dank coffin, informed the press that the liquid is, in fact, sewage water. While this revelation may hopefully discourage many of the petitioners, it is still prudent to remind the remaining ones that sewage, even if it is found inside an old sarcophagus, is not really the bottle of Dom Perignon one would wish it to be. According to Rolf Halden, a professor and director of the Center for Environmental Health Engineering at Arizona State University's Biodesign Institute, the sewage water, likely to also be mixed with debris from decaying bodies, will be home to many microorganisms viruses, bacteria and other pathogens in that liquid, including some bacteria that can form "endospores" which are extremely tough to kill some of which can be potentially dangerous. In fact, according to reports, the archaeological team that had lifted the lid by less than two inches were forced to abandon their efforts for more than an hour because of the overpowering stench that got released. Then again, stink hasnt discouraged people from eating food; and Surstromming, fermented canned fish, is widely considered a delicacy in Sweden. But beyond the desire to consume sewage, bone juice, the elixir of life or red mercury, perhaps, lies just a generation of people who have taken refuge from modern societal, political and economic horrors under the absurd and the meaningless. And, you never know, 2000-year-old sewage may just be what humanity has been missing. Also read: When Rahul hugged Modi: The internet broke and the memes are here Almost five centuries ago, Thomas Hobbes described a disgusting state of nature in which life was nasty brutish and short. The Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata portrays a state of matsya nyaya where the law of the fish prevails, the big fish eat the little fish and chaos prevails. We need not adopt Hobbess dictatorial solution or that of the Shanti Parva to kill a King who cannot rule like a mad dog. Indias lynching mobocracy reminds us of a nation prone to violence. Indias lynching mobocracy reminds us of a nation prone to violence. ( Photo: Reuters ) Burning issue Upinder Singh in her book Political Violence in Ancient India reminds us of the violent antecedents of Hindus. Riots cannot be an excuse to kill. The anti-Sikh pogram in 1984 was an example of lynching. Gujarat sets an example of lynching Hindus in a train (even if considerable controversy surrounds this). Best Bakery stands out as an example of burning the innocent. In some parts of India, women are described as witches (dain) and beaten and killed. Recall Graham Staines and his children being burnt alive in the camper. Staines wife may have forgiven the assailants, but can we? Justice Wadhwas report covers up the evil of Hindu antagonists. The destruction of the 400-year-old Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992 became a turning point in Indias history. On its destruction, the present Attorney General, KK Venugopal, then reported to the Supreme Court, I hang my head in shame. The present Attorney General, KK Venugopal, then reported to the Supreme Court, I hang my head in shame. ( Photo: India Today ) The BJP White paper of February 1993 justified the violence. Khap panchayats and other groups hang young married couples from different castes. In one incident a lower caste mother was paraded naked through the village. Hindu miscreants destroyed manuscripts of the Bhandarkar library because a foreign writer worked on Shivajee there. Hussains and other paintings in a private collection were destroyed. In the Bombay riots, the police stood by watching gruesome beatings and killings. In Tamil Nadu, thevars made Dalits eat excreta. Elsewhere, Dalits are atrociously treated. In the past two months, reports describe a mob lynching a man accused of rape (reported April 1, 2018), lynching in Bengaluru for suspicion of child trafficking (May 25, 2018), rumour lynch of transgender (May 28, 2018) musician in Guwahati following rumour of child lifting (June 10, 2018). Similar incidents took place elsewhere in Assam (June 11, 2018), against Pardis in Aurangabad (June 13, 2018). Lynching took place against alleged cattle thieves in Ranchi (June 14, 2018) earlier Gaurakshak lynches in that area in 2016-17 resulted in the victims hanging. Two were bludgeoned to death in Guwahati following abduction rumour (June 14, 2018). Cold-blooded murder In Hapur, lynching linked to cows injured Muslims (June 20, 2018). There were rumoured lynchings of supposed child abductors (June 22, 2018) in Ranchi (June 24, 2018) and Maharashtra (July 1, 2018). UPs DGP termed a cow lynching as road rage to defend the BJP (June 27, 2018). Does this explanation make us feel better? In the Poonawalas case (July 17, 2018), the Supreme Court called lynching a sweeping phenomenon and creeping threat... (like) a Typhon like monster owing to bystander apathy... mute spectators... grand standing by perpetrators. The Court recalled its decision on Khaps in Shakti Viahini (2018). The cold-blooded murder by Khap Panchayats often goes scot-free for fear of reprisals. Although CJI Misra blames the media for exaggeration, it is precisely because of the media we know of this cancer. The Court suggested nine measures to ensure criminal prosecution and punishment and two others for disciplinary action against police and officials who often stand by even though lynching stares them in the face. Lynching is an act of terrorism. Act of terror But, unless there is widespread condemnation across party, religious caste and community lines in civil society, this curse will continue. Witness Jayant Sinha garlanding cow lynchers disowned by his venerable father, Yashwant. Since cow is a Hindutva issue and Muslims are attacked, silence from the BJP, RSS and others condones this kind of lynching. In the no-confidence motion, PM Modi claimed he was a chowkidaar and bhagidaar for all. But, Hindu non-condemnatory silence or delayed soft reactions makes all, including the PM and his colleagues, saudedaars and thekedaars of lynching. The Hindu groups believe that cow lynching garners votes for the Parivar and Hindutva values. The lynchers thanked garlanding Jayant Sinha for his support for their case. Rahul Gandhis hug was nothing compared to Jayants garlanding lynchers. Acts of lynching and wanton destruction of the Babri mosque or any religious building actuated by communal malice is are terrorism. Recently, statements have been made on Hindu Taliban by Shashi Tharoor and by me in the Babri case. My argument was that the Bamiyan buddhist statues were destroyed by the Muslim Taliban. Was not the destruction of the 400-year-old mosque a talibani-style act? When this comment was made on July 13, the court and lawyers accepted it. Suddenly they raised it in retrospect on July 20. I stood my ground even in the face of CJI Misras discomfiture. Incidentally, in 1994, the Supreme Court said the Hindu community must bear the cross for the mosques destruction sending Kalyan Singh to jail for not preventing it. When I asked the CJI, would it be contempt if I disagreed with him in court or outside, he said, No. Aggressive Hindutvas believe the nation belong to them. If this continues, we will implode. (Courtesy of Mail Today) Also read: 'Hindu Pakistan', Forsooth Why Shashi Tharoor, despite his perfect accent, is perfectly wrong In the past four years, since the NDA came to power over hyperbolic promises and slogans, the PM, Mr Narendra Modi, has not held a single press conference to allay the apprehensions of the public over the growing lawlessness and the state of the economy. Neither has he addressed the clamour of voices in the civil society and the media that express the very real fear that in spite of exorbitantly expensive government advertisements and individual feel-good soundbytes from sundry ministers and MPs, the country is in danger of falling apart. Accusations and complaints have been either ignored, trivialised, or deflected by counter accusations against past governments, whataboutery, and a barrage of nonsensical gaslighting that plays out in an infinite loop. The PM's speech was a long and monotonous readout from a script after much twiggling of fingers, histrionics, and appeal to patriotism. (Photo: PTI) Given the frustration, the lack of transparency and accountability for such an extended period of time, even after the failure of the government on several fronts in keeping their promises, and the clueless state the public still is in over the bizarre demonetisation that ruined so many businesses and took its toll in lives, it was only a matter of time before things came to a head. What could have been the reason for the no confidence motion brought in against the government by an Opposition that lacked woefully in numbers, yet persisted, knowing it would surely fail? 154 against 331? The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP from Guntur, Jayadev Galla, who started the debate in the Parliament, said it was a war against the injustice meted out to the people of Andhra Pradesh. Galla pointed out that that the Modi government had allocated less funds to build Amaravati, projected as Andhra Pradeshs capital city, than even the money budgeted for the mammoth statue of Sardar Patel. He revealed that barely 2-3 per cent of the funds required had been allocated. When he said that the saga of Modi-Shah regime has been of unfulfilled promises, he was speaking not only for the people of Andhra Pradesh, but just about everybody in civil society today. Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP from Barrackpore, Dinesh Trivedi, deliberately used mythological references (which the BJP RSS is fond of making) when he said, Pandavon ke paas sankhya nahi thi par sachh tha This was because Pandavas sided with the truth, (Kauravas were many, yet they were defeated by numerically inferior Pandavas) in an obvious allusion to the superiority of numbers the BJP enjoys in the Lok Sabha. Likening the Modi government to an ostrich that buries its head in the sand, deliberately oblivious to all that is happening around it, he called it a mute spectator to the mobocracy that it has unleashed nationwide. As if to illustrate his point, in another part of the country, Akbar Khan, a 28-year-old man, was beaten to death at Alwar in Rajasthan by gau rakshaks on suspicion of cow smuggling as he was transporting two cows through a forest area. The lynching came soon after the home ministers speech saying laws would be made to address mob lynching. How serious is this government where these lynchings are concerned? Lets take a look at another similar incident in Always a year ago. Six people identified in Pehlu Khans (the victim) dying statement weren't even charge-sheeted. Nine people charged weren't named in the FIR. Seven of nine are out on bail. Two are untraceable. In a counter case, Pehlu Khan has been named as a cow-smuggler despite a valid cow purchase receipt. The no confidence motion was never about the numbers or about winning. It was a disruptive exercise to bring home and expose the lacunae of an unresponsive, impassive government. It was creating an opportunity to be heard in a public darbar of sorts, and forcing the government to respond. It was dragging the horse to the water in the hope that it would drink. Akbar Khan was lynched in Rajasthan soon after Rajnath Singh said a new law could be brought in to deal with the menace. (Photo: ANI) But more importantly, it was a concerted attempt to bare these issues in front of a public fed on disinformation and propaganda for the past four years. As one prominent panelist in a channel put it, it would be exceedingly naive to expect that there would be any point-to-point rebuttals involving specifics, from the side of the Treasury benches, and he was proved correct. All these charges have been made before, on separate media channels, in the press, by Opposition leaders, activists, journalists, and they have all met with the same fate either a wall of silence, or tu quoques and false equivalences. The same cliches have been trotted out, the where-were- you- whens and the seventy years of inactions and that most multipurpose one (delinked of context), to suit all accusations of every riot and lynching under the stewardship of the Sangh Parivar, from Godhra to the one that took place yesterday. It was almost with a sense of tired deja vu that one waited for Rajnath Singh to come up with the 1984 Sikh pogrom in answer to the lynchings currently taking place, and he did not disappoint. Rahul Gandhi raised issues such as the Rafael deal, low employment rate, the Doklam standoff, Modis visit to China and its outcome, crony capitalism (where he injudiciously, without concrete proof, called Modi a bhagidar a partner instead of a chowkidar (watchman) as the latter had claimed in the past), and the Indian farmers plight. What was perhaps superfluous was his jibe that the PM was unable to meet his eyes as he made these comments. We know what came later, the hug and the wink which has captured the public imagination and diluted the thrust of the debate. (It is something that one would not wish to explore, as a matter of populist optics that devalues any serious political discourse.) Nevertheless, this rant was probably the most brutal hauling over the coals in full public glare that this regime has had in these past four years. Rahuls diatribe is not new. It is a reboot of an earlier speech. On March 18, 2018, during his first major presidential address at the AICC plenary session, Rahul had launched a headlong attack on Modi and Amit Shah, alleging corruption, crony capitalism, and administrative incompetence. He had said, Modi gives (Nirav) Modi Rs 30,000 crore of your money and, in turn, Modi gives Modi money for marketing Modi and fighting elections. As a point of interest, it is to be noted that in the same speech, he had made the same reference to the Mahabharata that Dinesh Trivedi echoed in his address: Like the Kauravas, the BJP and the RSS are designed to fight for power, but like the Pandavas, the Congress is designed to fight for truth. Referring to the Rafale deal he had said, Forget fighter planes, you cant trust such a man to buy vegetables. Modi is not fighting corruption. Modi is corruption. The PMs response in Parliament followed a tried-and-tested template that most of us are inured to by now. Against the din of We want justice by the TDP MPs, Modi rubberbanded back into the familiar theme of deprived subaltern vs landed aristocracy, the inability of a kaamdhari to look into the eyes of a naamdhari (shades of Harvard vs Hard work there) and a long and monotonous readout from a script after much twiggling of fingers, histrionics, appeal to patriotism, and deconstruction of the hug and wink as an attempt to dethrone him. Or, as a TDP MP pointed out, worthy of a Bollywood film. But the stellar glory of his speech is in his attempt to divide the Opposition. What did the Congress do to Charan Singh Ji, what did they do to Chandra Shekhar Ji, what did they do to Deve Gowda Ji, what did they do to IK Gujral Ji all the way up to Pranab Mukherjee with a keen eye towards the TDP ranks, that had deserted the BJP. History rehashed simplistically, divorced of the surrounding complex context, and weaponised opportunistically has always been the BJPs mainstay, and trotted out like an old racehorse. To rebut point by point the various claims that the PM has made from the written portion of his speech (barring the non-written extempore full of invectives and familiar jibes against the Gandhi family) would be an interesting, albeit humongous exercise. But let us examine just a couple of the most obvious jumlas as an example of the kind of hype that has become the norm and practice. (Leaving out the claims of vast numbers of empowered youth who have become auto drivers and other ennobling lower scale businesses cited as examples by our PM, of a thriving economy enabled by the current NDA economy, of course). Exactly how content are the farmers? When Jayadev Galla described the regime as a 'saga of broken promises', he was not speaking for Andhra Pradesh alone. (Photo: Twitter) Around the same time, give or take a few hours when Akbar Khan was getting lynched in Alwar by gau rakshaks, giving lie to our Home Ministers claims of normalcy, this was taking place giving the lie to our PMs claims of agrarian bliss. In a show of strength on July 20, about 1,500 farmers from several states, who had travelled several thousand kilometres under the banner of All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC), marched in New Delhi to express no confidence in the Narendra Modi government. The protestors alleged that the Modi-led NDA had reneged on all its election promises made to farmers and has attempted to mislead farmers on the issue of minimum support price (MSP). About the claims of 100 per cent electrification of villages all over India, presented as an achievement of the NDA government: The average Indian hardly is privy to how much is on paper and how much is reality on the ground, but here are the facts according to data released by Niti Ayog. Previous governments (beginning from the second five-year plan that had included rural electrification in their aims) had already achieved 97 per cent of electrification up to 2014 with 5,79,012 villages, while only the rest of the 3 per cent 18,452 villages in these past 4 years have been done by the NDA. Probably the biggest achievement in this No Trust Motion has been the examination of the Rafale deal and the distinction that has been made between what is a national security concern involving technicalities of the aircraft and the confidentiality of the monetary transaction between the two governments. The first is understandable, but has no bearing on the second, which is the right of every taxpayer to be aware of, as Arti Jerath pointed out during a discussion in a panel discussion recently. It is the consistent effort on the part of the BJP to conflate the two and impose a veil of secrecy that is suspicious, and this is what has come out to the fore in these proceedings. The NDA may have won in numbers, but the Opposition has achieved its objective in occupying a higher moral ground. The carpet has been well and truly dusted in public in every aspect of this regimes governance. The Rafale might well turn out to be the Bofors of this government. Hopefully, it will turn out to be as much of a damp squib as the latter for our Pradhan Pracharak. Also read: Five things we learnt from the No Confidence Motion debate With the general election in Pakistan just days away (July 25), political parties have intensified their poll campaigning in an attempt to garner support from people, who, they claim, would bring them to power. However, what these political leaders don't seem to realise in their excitement is that they might be sharing their elected seats with some of the most-dreaded designated terrorist organisations internationally. That's because apart from the political parties in fray, there is a massive number of candidates from the Milli Muslim League (MML), the political front of 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, contesting the polls. Free entry: Despite the ban and checks on the JUD chief, Hafiz Saeed has been campaigning for his party candidates. The MML has fielded at least 265 candidates for the Provincial and National Assembly seats from across Pakistan. Initially, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) refused to register the MML as a political party, as it failed to get security clearance from the Federal Ministry of Interior due to serious reservations over its founder Hafiz Saeed, who has a US $10 million bounty on his head besides being enlisted in the UNSC terror list. The MML still managed to field its candidates under the umbrella of Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek (AAT), a relatively unknown political party. Interestingly, Hafiz Saeed, his organisation Jamat-ud-Dawa (JUD) and political front Milli Muslim League, has been enslited in global terror groups list by Washington and have been on Pakistans terror watch also. Despite the ban and checks on the JUD chief, Hafiz Saeed has been campaigning for his party candidates.Travelling to major cities across Pakistan, Hafiz Saeed is openly participating and addressing public gatherings. Out of poll action: Nawaz Sharif and daughter Maryam. (Credit: Reuters file photo) Even though Saeed has been the prime reason for Pakistans insertion into the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which grilled the country for failing to crack down on Saeed and his organisation, the Pakistan government continues to allow Saeed to hold election rallies across the country. Political observers, however, insist the general election 2018 and the people of Pakistan have no space or appetite for Saeed or his candidates as these elections are primarily seen as a contest among PML-N, the PTI and the PPP. With the Sharif family in jail and an already struggling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), the MML considers this elections as its big entry into the political setup of Pakistan. But analysts also believe that chances of MML candidates winning from any of the constituencies look slim. They, however, also add that if the MML is able to bag even one seat it will be a massive victory for Hafiz Saaed the first step towards mainstreaming terror outfits in Pakistani politics. Also read: Imran Khan, Pakistan's 'PM select' Yext, Inc. is an emerging growth company engages in software development. It offers a cloud-based digital knowledge platform, which allows businesses manage their digital knowledge in the cloud such as financial information, resources and performance of these resources on a consolidated basis and sync it to other application such as Apple Maps, Bing, Cortana, Facebook, Google, Google Maps, Instagram, Siri and Yelp. It offers the Yext Knowledge Engine package on subscription basis, which has an access to Listings, Pages, Reviews and other features. The Listing feature provides customers with control over their digital presence, including their location and other related attributes published on the used third-party applications. The Pages feature allows customers to establish landing pages on their own websites and to manage digital content on those sites, including calls to action. The Reviews presence enables customers to encourage and facilitate reviews from end consumers. The company was founded by Howard Lerman, Brent Metz, and Brian Distelburger in 2006 and is headquartered in New York, NY. 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. 11 hours ago To The Moon? Teslas Price Is Going To Mars Tesla Wows Market With Q3 Results Love him or hate him, Elon Musk has taken Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) to new heights and the climb has only just begun. While the EV story here on earth is a compelling driver of the stocks value, in our opinion it is the Mars angle that will keep it moving up over the long term. Read Article Wall Street analysts have given BlackRock Long-Term Municipal Advantage Trust 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 BlackRock Long-Term Municipal Advantage Trust wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis speaks during an afternoon campaign stop at The Compass Rose in Valparaiso, Fla., on Saturday, June 9, 2018, with Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla. Michael Snyder Northwest Florida Daily News via AP Congressman Ron DeSantis grabbed a few national headlines Monday, but not for any of his policies. A video from one of his campaign events shows him saying: "When you look at this girl, Ocasio-Cortez, or whatever she is, I mean she's in a totally different universe." DeSantis is running for governor. The video came from a Saturday campaign stop in Orange Park and was first reported by the Huffington Post. In response to a request for comment, his campaign spokesman, David Vasquez, issued a statement that expanded on the context of the comments but did not address the "girl" remark. DeSantis "was expanding on the importance of education and his focus on getting the Constitution back in the classroom," he wrote. "Socialist Ocasio-Cortez is a textbook example of someone who doesn't understand the basic principles of our Constitution." Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 28, is a self-described Democratic Socialist and successfully received the Democratic nomination for the House seat representing the Bronx and Queens boroughs in New York City. That upset nomination, which unseated longtime incumbent Joe Crowley, garnered national attention and has made Ocasio-Cortez a liberal sensation. She shot back on Twitter: Rep DeSantis, it seems youre confused as to whatever I am. I am a Puerto Rican woman. Its strange you dont know what that is, given that ~75,000 Puerto Ricans have relocated to Florida in the 10 mos since Maria. But Im sure these new FL voters appreciate your comments! https://t.co/xJlroSe5Hs Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) July 23, 2018 After that initial comment, DeSantis, 39, had harsh words for a recent PBS interview in which Ocasio-Cortez talked about the Israel-Palestine conflict. DeSantis is staunchly pro-Israel. "It's basically Socialism wrapped in ignorance," he said. "She's complaining about the occupation of Palestine ... You're saying one of our best allies is occupying a country there's never been a Palestinian state." "You're just repeating these canned, left-wing talking points and you're somehow the savior of the Democratic party?" he added. Watch the video here: The following companies are subsidiares of Illinois Tool Works: A V Co 1 Limited, A V Co 2 Limited, A V Co 3 Limited, ACCU-LUBE Manufacturing GmbH - Schmiermittel und -gerate -, AIP/BI Holdings Inc., Accessories Marketing Holding Corp., Advanced Molding Company Inc., Allen Coding GmbH, Allen France SAS, Alpine Automation Limited, Alpine Engineered Products, Alpine Holdings Inc., Alpine Systems Corporation, Anaerobicos S.r.l., AppliChem GmbH, Arylux Hungary Elektromechanikus Alkatreszgyarto Kft, Avery Berkel France, Avery India Limited, Avery Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avery Weigh Tronix, Avery Weigh-Tronix (Suzhou) Weighing Technology Co. Ltd., Avery Weigh-Tronix Finance Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Holdings Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix International Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix LLC, Avery Weigh-Tronix Limited, Avery Weigh-Tronix Properties Limited, Azon Limited, B.C. Immo, Beijing Miller Electric Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Berkel (Ireland) Limited, Berrington UK, Brapenta Eletronica Ltda., Brooks Instrument (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Brooks Instrument B.V., Brooks Instrument GmbH, Brooks Instrument KFT, Brooks Instrument Korea Ltd., Brooks Instrument LLC, Buell Industries Inc., CAPMAX Logistica S.A. de C.V., CCI Realty Company, CFC Europe GmbH, CS (Australia) Pty Limited, CS (Finance) Europe S.a.r.l., CS Mexico Holding Company S DE RL DE CV, CSMTS LLC, Calvia Spolka z Ograniczona Odpowiedzialnosci, Capital Ventures (Australasia) S.a r.l, Capmax Logistica S.A. de C.V., Celeste Industries Corporation, Coeur, Coeur (Shanghai) Medical Appliance Trading Co. Ltd, Coeur Asia Limited, Coeur Holding Company, Coeur Inc., Compagnie Hobart, Compagnie de Materiel et d'Equipements Techniques-Comet, Constructions Isothermiques Bontami C.I.B., Crane Carrier Company, Despatch Industries, Diagraph Corporation Sdn. Bhd, Diagraph ITW Mexico S. de R.L. De C.V., Diagraph Mexico S.A. DE C.V., Dongguan Ark-Les Electric Components Co. Ltd., Dongguan CK Branding Co. Ltd., Dorbyl U.K. (Holdings) Limited, Duo Fast de Espana S.A.U., Duo-Fast Korea Co. Ltd., Duo-Fast LLC, E.C.S. d.o.o., ECS Cable Protection Sp. Zoo, ELRO (Holding) AG, ELRO Grosskuchen GmbH, ELRO-WERKE AG, Elga Skandinavian AS, Elro Group, Eltex-Elektrostatik-Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Envases Multipac S.A. de C.V., Eurotec Srl, FEG Investments L.L.C., Fasver, Filtertek, Filtertek De Mexico Holding Inc., Filtertek De Mexico S.A. de C.V., GC Financement SA, Gamko B.V., Gun Hwa Platech (Taicang) Co. Ltd., HOBART Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Hartness International, Hobart (Japan) K.K., Hobart Andina S.A.S., Hobart Brothers International Chile Limitada, Hobart Brothers LLC, Hobart Dayton Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Hobart Food Equipment Co. Ltd., Hobart Foster Belgium, Hobart International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Hobart Korea LLC, Hobart LLC, Hobart Nederland B.V., Hobart Sales & Service Inc., Hobart Scandinavia ApS, Hobart Techniek B.V., Horis, ILC Investments Holdings Inc., ITW (China) Investment Company Limited, ITW (Deutschland) GmbH, ITW (EU) Holdings Ltd., ITW (European) Finance Co. Ltd., ITW (European) Finance II Co. Ltd., ITW (European) Finance III Co. Ltd., ITW (Ningbo) Components & Fastenings Systems Co. Ltd., ITW AEP LLC, ITW AOC LLC, ITW Aircraft Investments Inc., ITW Alpha Sarl, ITW Ampang Industries Philippines Inc., ITW Appliance Components EOOD, ITW Appliance Components S.A. de C.V., ITW Appliance Components S.r.l.a, ITW Appliance Components d.o.o., ITW Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, ITW Australia Property Holdings Pty Ltd., ITW Australia Pty Ltd, ITW Automotive Components (Chongqing) Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Components (Langfang) Co. Ltd., ITW Automotive Japan K.K., ITW Automotive Korea LLC, ITW Automotive Parts (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, ITW Automotive Products GmbH, ITW Automotive Products Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Bailly Comte, ITW Befestigungssysteme GmbH, ITW Belgium, ITW Brazilian Nominee L.L.C., ITW Building Components Group Inc., ITW CER, ITW CP Distribution Center Holland BV, ITW CS (UK) Ltd., ITW Canada Inc., ITW Celeste Inc., ITW Chemical Products Ltda, ITW Chemical Products Scandinavia ApS, ITW Colombia S.A.S., ITW Construction Products (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW Construction Products (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., ITW Construction Products AB, ITW Construction Products AS, ITW Construction Products ApS, ITW Construction Products CZ s.r.o., ITW Construction Products Italy Srl, ITW Construction Products OU, ITW Construction Products OY, ITW Contamination Control (Wujiang) Co. Ltd., ITW Contamination Control B.V., ITW Covid Security Group Inc., ITW DS Investments Inc., ITW DelFast do Brasil Ltda., ITW Delta Sarl, ITW Denmark ApS, ITW Dynatec, ITW Dynatec Adhesive Equipment (Suzhou) Co. 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Ltd., ITW Epsilon Sarl, ITW Espana S.A., ITW FEG Hong Kong Limited, ITW FEG do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW Fastener Products GmbH, ITW Finance Designated Activity Company, ITW Finance Europe S.A., ITW Fluids and Hygiene Solutions Ltda., ITW Food Equipment Group LLC, ITW France Finance Alpha S.A.S., ITW GH LLC, ITW GSE ApS, ITW GSE Inc., ITW Gamma Sarl, ITW German Management LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings LLC, ITW Global Investments Holdings Y Compania Sociedad en Comandita por Acciones, ITW Global Investments II Inc., ITW Global Investments Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Europe GmbH, ITW Global Tire Repair Inc., ITW Global Tire Repair Japan K.K., ITW Graphics (Thailand) Ltd., ITW Graphics Asia Limited, ITW Graphics Italy S.R.L. in liquidazione, ITW Great Britain Investment & Licensing Holding Company, ITW Group France (Luxembourg) S.ar.l., ITW HLP Thailand Co. Ltd., ITW Holding Quimica B.C. S.L. Sole Shareholder Company, ITW Holdings Australia L.P., ITW Holdings I Limited, ITW Holdings II Limited, ITW Holdings III Limited, ITW Holdings IV Limited, ITW Holdings IX Limited, ITW Holdings Inc., ITW Holdings UK, ITW Holdings V Limited, ITW Holdings VI Limited, ITW Holdings VII Limited, ITW Holdings VIII Limited, ITW Holdings X Limited, ITW Holdings XI Limited, ITW Hungary Finance Beta Kft, ITW ILC Holdings I Inc., ITW IPG Investments LLC, ITW Imaden Industria e Comercio Ltda., ITW India Private Limited, ITW International Holdings LLC, ITW Invest Holding GmbH, ITW Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, ITW Ireland Unlimited Company, ITW Italy Finance Srl, ITW Italy Holding Srl, ITW Japan Ltd., ITW Korea LLC, ITW LLC & Co. KG, ITW Limited, ITW Lombard Holdings Inc., ITW Lys Fusion S.r.l., ITW M FILMS II LLC, ITW MH LLC, ITW Meritex Sdn. Bhd., ITW Metal Fasteners S.L., ITW Mexico Holding Company S. De R.L. de C.V., ITW Mexico Holdings LLC, ITW Morlock GmbH, ITW Mortgage Investments II Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments III Inc., ITW Mortgage Investments IV Inc., ITW Netherlands Administration BV, ITW Netherlands Beta B.V., ITW Netherlands Finance Alpha BV, ITW New Universal LLC, ITW New Zealand, ITW Novadan Sp. Z.o.o., ITW PPF Brasil Adesivos Ltda., ITW Packaging Technology (China) Co. Ltd., ITW Participations S.a r.l., ITW Pension Funds Trustee Company, ITW Performance Plastic (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Japan Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids Korea Limited, ITW Performance Polymers & Fluids OOO, ITW Performance Polymers (Wujiang) Co. Ltd., ITW Performance Polymers ApS, ITW Performance Polymers and Fluids Group FZE, ITW Peru S.A.C., ITW Philippines Holdings LLC, ITW Poly Mex S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Polymers Sealants North America Inc., ITW Pronovia s.r.o., ITW Pte. Ltd., ITW Qufu Automotive Cooling Systems Co. Ltd., ITW Real Estate Germany GmbH, ITW Residuals III L.L.C., ITW Residuals IV L.L.C., ITW Rivex, ITW SMPI, ITW SPG Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Simco-Ion (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., ITW Slovakia s.r.o., ITW Spain Holdings S.L., ITW Specialty Film LLC, ITW Specialty Films France, ITW Specialty Materials (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., ITW Spraytec, ITW Sverige AB, ITW Sweden Holding AB, ITW Test & Measurement Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, ITW Test & Measurement GmbH, ITW Test and Measurement Italia Srl, ITW Test and Measurement Services Industry and Trade Ltd., ITW Texwipe Philippines Inc., ITW Thermal Films (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ITW UK, ITW UK Finance Beta Limited, ITW UK Finance Delta Limited, ITW UK Finance Gamma Limited, ITW UK Finance Limited, ITW UK Finance Zeta Ltd., ITW UK II Limited, ITW Universal II LLC, ITW Welding, ITW Welding AB, ITW Welding GmbH, ITW Welding Products B.V., ITW Welding Products Group FZE, ITW Welding Products Group S. DE R.L. De C.V., ITW Welding Products Italy Srl, ITW Welding Products Limited Liability Company, ITW Welding Produtos Para Solgdagem Ltda., ITW Welding Servicios Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., ITW Welding Singapore Pte. Ltd., ITW de France, ITW do Brasil Industrial e Comercial Ltda., Ideal Molding Technologies LLC, Illinois Tool Works (Chile) Limitada, Illinois Tool Works (ITW) Nederland B.V., Illinois Tool Works Norway AS, Impar Comercio E Representacoes Ltda., Industrie Plastic Elsasser GmbH, Inmobiliaria Cit. S.A. de C.F., Innova Temperlite Servicios S.A. de C.V., Innovacion y Transformacion Automotriz S.A. de C.V., Instron (Shanghai) Ltd., Instron (Thailand) Limited, Instron Brasil Equipamentos Cientificos Ltda., Instron Foreign Sales Corp. Limited, Instron France S.A.S., Instron GmbH, Instron Holdings Limited, Instron International Limited, Instron Japan Company Ltd., Instron Korea LLC, International Leasing Company LLC, International Truss Systems Proprietary Limited, Isolenge - ITW Sistemas de Isolamento Termico Ltda., KCPL Mauritius Holdings, Kester, Kester Components (M) Sdn. Bhd., Kleinmann GmbH, Krafft S.L., Loma Systems, Loma Systems (Canada) Inc., Loma Systems BV, Loma Systems sro, Lombard Pressings Limited, Lumex Inc., Lys Fusion Poland Sp. z.o.o., M&C Specialties (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., M&C Specialties Co., MAGNAFLUX GmbH, MEHB Holdings Limited, MGHG Property LLC, MOA Enterprises Inc, Manufacturing Avancee S.A., Meritex Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Meurer Verpackungssysteme GmbH, Miller Electric Mfg. LLC, Miller Insurance Ltd., NDT Holding LLC, NOVADAN APS, Norden Olje AB, North Star Imaging Europe, North Star Imaging Inc., Nova Chimica S.r.l., Orbitalum Tools GmbH, PENTA-91 OOO, PR. A. I. Srl, PT ITW Construction Products Indonesia, Pacific Concept Industries Limited (Enping), Panreac Quimica S.L., Paslode Fasteners (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Peerless Machinery Corp., Penta Dnepr LLC, Penta Sever OOO, Penta Volga OOO, Polyrey, Premark FEG L.L.C., Premark HII Holdings LLC, Premark International, Premark International LLC, Prolex Sociedad Anonima, QSA Global Inc., Quimica Industrial Mediterranea S.L., Ramset Fasteners (Hong Kong) Ltd., Rapid Cook LLC, Refrigeration France, S.E.E. Sistemas Industria E Comercio Ltda., ST Mexico Holdings LLC, Sealant Systems International Inc., Sentinel Asia Yuhan Hoesa, Shanghai ITW Plastic & Metal Co. Ltd, Simco (Nederland) B.V., Simco Japan Inc., Societe de Prospection et dInventions Techniques SPIT, Speedline Holdings I Inc., Speedline Holdings I LLC, Speedline Technologies GmbH, Speedline Technologies Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Speedline Technologies Mexico Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Stokvis Celix Portugal Unipessoal LDA, Stokvis Danmark ApS, Stokvis Holdings S.A.R.L., Stokvis Promi s.r.o, Stokvis Prostick Tapes Private Limited, Stokvis Tapes (Hong Kong) Co. Limited, Stokvis Tapes (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes (Taiwan) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Stokvis Tapes BVBA, Stokvis Tapes Benelux B.V., Stokvis Tapes Deutschland GmbH, Stokvis Tapes France, Stokvis Tapes Italia s.r.l., Stokvis Tapes Limited, Stokvis Tapes Limited Liability Company, Stokvis Tapes Norge AS, Stokvis Tapes Oy, Stokvis Tapes Polska Sp Z.O.O., Stokvis Tapes Sverige AB, Stolvis Holdings II S.A.R.L., Technopack Industria Comercio Consultoria e Representacoes Ltda., Teknek (China) Limited, Teknek (Japan) Limited, Teksaleco Ltd., The Miller Group Ltd, Thirode Grandes Cuisines Poligny, Tien Tai Electrode (Kunshan) Co. Ltd., Tien Tai Electrode Co. Ltd., Unichemicals Industria e Comercio Ltda., VR-Leasing Sarita GmbH & Co. Immobilien KG, VS European Holdco BV, Valeron Strength Films B.V.B.A., Veneta Decalcogomme S.r.l., Versachem Chile S.A., Vesta, Vesta (Guangzhou) Catering Equipment Co. Ltd, Vesta Global Limited, Viltronics Soltec, Vitronics Soltec B.V., Wachs Canada Ltd., Wachs Subsea LLC, Weigh-Tronix Canada ULC, Weigh-Tronix UK Limited, Wilsonart International Holdings LLC, Wynn Oil (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd., Wynn's Automotive France, Wynn's Belgium BVBA, Wynn's Italia Srl, Wynn's Mekuba India Pvt Ltd, ZF TRW (Engineered Fasteners and Components), and Zip-Pak International B.V.. Royal Dutch Shell plc operates as an energy and petrochemical company worldwide. The company operates through Integrated Gas, Upstream, Oil Products, Chemicals segments. It explores for and extracts crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids; markets and transports oil and gas; produces gas-to-liquids fuels and other products; and operates upstream and midstream infrastructure necessary to deliver gas to market. The company also markets and trades natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), crude oil, electricity, carbon-emission rights; and markets and sells LNG as a fuel for heavy-duty vehicles and marine vessels. In addition, it trades in and refines crude oil and other feed stocks, such as gasoline, diesel, heating oil, aviation fuel, marine fuel, biofuel, lubricants, bitumen, and sulphur; produces and sells petrochemicals for industrial use; and manages oil sands activities. Further, the company produces base chemicals comprising ethylene, propylene, and aromatics, as well as intermediate chemicals, such as styrene monomer, propylene oxide, solvents, detergent alcohols, ethylene oxide, and ethylene glycol. Royal Dutch Shell plc was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in The Hague, the Netherlands. Read More Wall Street analysts have given Africa Oil 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 Africa Oil wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Thomson Reuters Corporation provides business information services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in five segments: Legal Professionals, Corporates, Tax & Accounting Professionals, Reuters News, and Global Print. The Legal Professionals segment offers research and workflow products focusing on legal research and integrated legal workflow solutions that combine content, tools, and analytics to law firms and governments. The Corporates segment provides a suite of content-enabled technology solutions for legal, tax, regulatory, compliance, and IT professionals. The Tax & Accounting Professionals segment offers research and workflow products focusing on tax offerings and automating tax workflows to tax, accounting, and audit professionals in accounting firms. The Reuters News segment provides business, financial, national, and international news to professionals through desktop terminals, media organizations, and industry events, as well as directly to consumers. The Global Print segment offers legal and tax information primarily in print format to legal and tax professionals, governments, law schools, and corporations. The company was formerly known as The Thomson Corporation and changed its name to Thomson Reuters Corporation in April 2008. The company was founded in 1851 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada. Thomson Reuters Corporation is a subsidiary of The Woodbridge Company Limited. Read More 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 SunTrust Banks, Inc. operates as the holding company for SunTrust Bank that provides various financial services for consumers, businesses, corporations, institutions, and not-for-profit entities in the United States. It operates in two segments, Consumer and Wholesale. The Consumer segment provides deposits and payments; home equity and personal credit lines; auto, student, and other lending products; credit cards; discount/online and full-service brokerage products; professional investment advisory products and services; and trust services, as well as family office solutions. This segment also offers residential mortgage products in the secondary market. The Wholesale segment provides capital markets solutions, including advisory, capital raising, and financial risk management; asset-based financing solutions, such as securitizations, asset-based lending, equipment financing, and structured real estate arrangements; cash management services and auto dealer financing solutions; investment banking solutions; and credit and deposit, fee-based product offering, multi-family agency lending, advisory, commercial mortgage brokerage, and tailored financing and equity investment solutions. This segment also offers treasury and payment solutions, such as operating various electronic and paper payment types, which comprise card, wire transfer, automated clearing house, check, and cash; and provides services clients to manage their accounts online. The company offers its products and services through a network of traditional and in-store branches, automated teller machines, Internet, mobile, and telephone banking channels. As of December 31, 2018, it operated 1,218 full-service banking offices located in Florida, Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Maryland, South Carolina, and the District of Columbia. SunTrust Banks, Inc. was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Read More BNP Paribas SA provides a range of banking and financial services in France and internationally. It operates through two divisions, Retail Banking and Services, and Corporate and Institutional Banking. The company offers long-term corporate vehicle leasing, and rental and other financing solutions; and digital banking and investment services, cash management, and factoring services to corporate clients, as well as wealth management services. It also provides credit solutions for individuals under the Cetelem, Cofinoga, Findomestic, AlphaCredit, and Opel Vauxhall brands; savings and protection solutions, including insuring individuals, and their personal projects and assets; and asset management, private banking, and real estate services. In addition, the company offers global market services, including investment, hedging, financing, research, and market intellingence across asset classes; security services comprising clearing, custody, and asset and fund services, as well as corporate trust, and market and financing services; and corporate trade and treasury, debt financing, specialized financing, strategic advisory, mergers and acquisition, and equity capital market services for institutional and corporate clients. The company was formerly known as Banque Nationale de Paris and changed its name to BNP Paribas SA in May 2000. BNP Paribas SA was founded in 1848 and is headquartered in Paris, France. Read More Bank of America Corp. is a bank and financial holding company, which engages in the provision of banking and nonbank financial services. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking, Global Wealth and Investment Management, Global Banking, Global Markets, and All Other. The Consumer Banking segment offers credit, banking, and investment products and services to consumers and small businesses. The Global Wealth and Investment Management provides client experience through a network of financial advisors focused on to meet their needs through a full set of investment management, brokerage, banking, and retirement products. The Global Banking segment deals with lending-related products and services, integrated working capital management and treasury solutions to clients, and underwriting and advisory services. The Global Markets segment includes sales and trading services, as well as research, to institutional clients across fixed-income, credit, currency, commodity, and equity businesses. The All Other segment consists of asset and liability management activities, equity investments, non-core mortgage loans and servicing activities, the net impact of periodic revisions Read More Ellie Mae, Inc. provides cloud-based platform for the mortgage finance industry in the United States. It provides Encompass, an enterprise solution that engages in running the business of originating mortgages, including marketing and lead management; loan origination and processing; underwriting; preparation of mortgage applications, disclosure agreements, and closing documents; loan funding and closing; compliance with regulatory and investor requirements; and enterprise management. The company's Encompass Digital Lending Platform helps lenders and investors across their workflow from the prospective customers to the point of loan delivery. In addition, the company provides education and training services; professional and technical support services; and loan product, policy, and guideline data and analytics services. Ellie Mae, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Pleasanton, California. Read More Buckeye Partners, L.P. owns and operates liquid petroleum products pipelines in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Domestic Pipelines & Terminals, Global Marine Terminals, and Merchant Services. The Domestic Pipelines & Terminals segment transports liquid petroleum products, including gasoline, jet fuel, and various distillates. This segment also provides crude oil services, including train loading/unloading, storage, and throughput; and turn-key operations and maintenance, asset development, and construction services for third-party pipeline, terminal, and energy assets, as well as operates and/or maintains third-party pipelines. It owns and operates approximately 6,000 miles of pipeline located primarily in the northeastern and upper midwestern portions of the United States, and services 100 delivery locations; 110 active terminals that provide bulk storage and throughput services with aggregate storage capacity of 55 million barrels; and 2 underground propane storage caverns. The Global Marine Terminals segment provides marine accessible bulk storage and blending, rail and truck rack loading/unloading, and petroleum processing services located primarily in the East Coast and Gulf Coast regions of the United States, as well as in the Caribbean. This segment owns and operates seven liquid petroleum products and crude oil terminals. The Merchant Services segment is involved in the wholesale distribution of refined petroleum products, including gasoline, natural gas liquids, propane, ethanol, and biodiesel, as well as petroleum distillates, such as heating oil, diesel fuel, kerosene, and fuel oil. This segment also provides fuel oil supply, butane, and distribution services. Buckeye GP LLC serves as the general partner of the company. Buckeye Partners, L.P. was founded in 1886 and is based in Houston, Texas. Read More Bank of Montreal provides diversified financial services primarily in North America. The company's personal banking products and services include checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, and financial and investment advice services; and commercial banking products and services comprise business deposit accounts, commercial credit cards, business loans and commercial mortgages, cash management solutions, foreign exchange, specialized banking programs, treasury and payment solutions, and risk management products for small business and commercial banking customers. It also offers investment and wealth advisory services; digital investing services; financial services and solutions; and investment management, and trust and custody services to institutional, retail, and high net worth investors. In addition, the company provides life insurance, accident and sickness insurance, and annuity products; creditor and travel insurance to bank customers; and reinsurance solutions. Further, it offers client's debt and equity capital-raising services, as well as loan origination and syndication, balance sheet management, and treasury management; strategic advice on mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and recapitalizations, as well as valuation and fairness opinions; and trade finance, risk mitigation, and other operating services. Additionally, the company provides research and access to markets for institutional, corporate, and retail clients; trading solutions that include debt, foreign exchange, interest rate, credit, equity, securitization and commodities; new product development and origination services, as well as risk management advice and services to hedge against fluctuations; and funding and liquidity management services to its clients. It operates through approximately 1,400 bank branches and 4,800 automated banking machines in Canada and the United States. The company was founded in 1817 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada. Read More 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 Dover: Accelerated Production Systems, Acme Elevator, Advansor A/S, Advansor Dover International (Poland) sp. z o.o, Advansor Germany GmbH, Alfred Fueling Systems Holdco Ltd., Alfred Fueling Systems Inc., Alfred Fueling Systems Intermediate Holdco Ltd., All-Flo Pump Company, Anman LLC, Anthony Equity Holdings Inc., Anthony Holdings Inc., Anthony Inc., Anthony International, Anthony International Foreign Sales Corp., Anthony International Holding Company, Anthony Mexico Holdings LLC, Anthony North Holdco Inc., Anthony Specialty Glass LLC, Anthony TemperBent GP LLC, Auto Glanz Solutions LLC, Automatik Grundstucksverwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG, Automatik Plastics Machinery (Taiwan) Ltd., BSC Filters Limited, Background2 Limited, Belanger, Belanger Inc., Belvac Middle East FZE, Belvac Production Machinery Inc., Blackmer, BlitzRotary GmbH, Butler Engineering and Marketing S.P.A., CDS Visual, CEP Liquidation LLC, CP Formation LLC, CPC Europe Inc., CPI Products Inc., Caldera, Canada Organization & Development LLC, Chief Automotive Technologies (Shanghai) Trading Company Ltd., Chippewa Square Captive Insurance Company, Colder Products Company, Colder Products Company GmbH, Colder Products Company LTD, Cook Compression BV, Cook Compression LLC, Cook Compression Limited, Cook-MFS Inc., DD1 Inc., DDI Properties Inc., DE-STA-CO Benelux B.V., DE-STA-CO FRANCE, DE-STA-CO Shanghai Co. Ltd., DESTACO UK Limited, DFH Corporation, DFS Netherlands B.V., DSR BZ Holdings LLC, Datamax International Corp, De Sta Co (Asia) Company Limited, De-Sta-Co Cylinders Inc., DeStaCo Europe GmbH, Delaware Capital Formation Inc., Delaware Capital Holdings Inc., Dover (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Dover (Schweiz) Holding GmbH, Dover (Shanghai) Industrial Co. Ltd., Dover (Shenzhen) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover (Suzhou) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover Asia Trading Private Ltd., Dover Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Dover Business Services EMEA Limited, Dover Business Services LLC, Dover Business Services Philippines Corporation, Dover CLP Formation Limited Partnership, Dover CR spol s r.o., Dover Canada Holdings ULC, Dover Canada Operations ULC, Dover Corporation Regional Headquarters, Dover DEI Services Inc., Dover Denmark Holdings ApS, Dover EMEA FZCO, Dover Energy UK Ltd, Dover Engineered Products Segment Inc., Dover Europe Inc., Dover Europe Sarl, Dover Fluids UK Ltd, Dover France Holdings, Dover France Participations, Dover France Technologies, Dover Fueling Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Fueling Solutions UK Limited, Dover Germany GmbH, Dover Global Holdings LLC, Dover Holdings de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Dover Imaging & Identification Segment Inc., Dover India Pvt. Ltd., Dover Intercompany Services UK Limited, Dover International B.V., Dover International Operations Inc., Dover International Ventures Inc., Dover International Ventures Tunisia S.a.r.l., Dover International ithalat ihracat ve Pazarlama Limited Sirketi, Dover Italy Holdings S.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Finance Sarl, Dover Luxembourg Participations Sarl, Dover Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Services Sarl, Dover Operations South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Dover Overseas Ventures Inc., Dover Pumps & Process Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment UK Ltd, Dover Resources International de Mexico S. de R.L. C.V., Dover Solutions Colombia SAS, Dover Southeast Asia (Thailand) Ltd., Dover Spain Holdings S.L., Dover UK Pensions Limited, Dover WSCR Holding LLC, Dover WSCR LLC, Dover do Brasil Ltda., Dow-Key Microwave Corporation, Dresser Wayne Data Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Dresser Wayne Fuel Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., EOA Systems Inc., Ebs-Ray Holdings Pty Ltd, Ebs-Ray Industries Pty. Ltd., Ebs-Ray Pumps Pty. Ltd., Em-tec, Espy, Ettlinger, Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen GmbH, Fairbanks Environmental Limited, Fibrelite Composites Limited, Fibresec Holdings Limited, Fibresec Limited, Finder, GAL LLC, GIIER LLC, Gala Industries, Gala Kunststoff-und Kautschukmaschinen GmbH, Guangdong Tokheim LIYUAN Oil Industry Technology Limited Company, Highland Park Insurance Company, Hill PHOENIX Inc., Hill PHOENIX WIC LLC, Hill Phoenix Costa Rica Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada, Hill Phoenix El Salvador Limitada de Capital Variable, Hill Phoenix Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Honduras Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Hiltap Fittings Ltd., Hydro Systems Company, Hydro Systems Europe Ltd., Hydronova Australia-NZ Pty Ltd, Industrial Motion Control LLC, Innovative Control Systems, Innovative Control Systems Inc., Inpro/Seal LLC, JK Group, JK Group S.P.A., JK Group USA Inc., K S Boca Inc., K&L Microwave DR Inc., K&L Microwave Inc., KPS (Beijing) Petroleum Equipment Trading Co Ltd., KPS Fueling Solutions Sdn. Bhd., KPS Hong Kong Holding Limited, KPS UK Limited, KS Formation Inc., KS Liquidation Inc., KSLP Liquidation L.P., Kiian Digital (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Knappco LLC, Knowles Electronics, LIQAL, Liquip, Liquip International Pty Limited, MAAG, MARKEM FZ SA, MARKEM-IMAJE Corporation, MIP Holdings Inc., MS Printing Solutions, MS Printing Solutions S.R.L., Maag Automatik GmbH, Maag Automatik Plastics Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Maag Gala Inc., Maag Italy S.R.L., Maag Pump Systems, Maag Pump Systems (US) Inc., Maag Pump Systems AG, Maag Reduction Inc., Maag Service (Malaysia) Sdn. Bdn., Maag Systems (Thailand) Limited, Marathon Equipment Company (Delaware), Markem Imaje Center of Competencies Spain S.L.U., Markem-Imaje, Markem-Imaje (China) Co. Limited, Markem-Imaje - Unipessoal Lda, Markem-Imaje A/S, Markem-Imaje AB, Markem-Imaje AG, Markem-Imaje AS, Markem-Imaje B.V., Markem-Imaje CSAT GmbH, Markem-Imaje Co. Ltd., Markem-Imaje GmbH, Markem-Imaje Holding, Markem-Imaje Identificacao de Produtos Ltda., Markem-Imaje Inc., Markem-Imaje India Private Limited, Markem-Imaje Industries, Markem-Imaje Industries Limited, Markem-Imaje KK, Markem-Imaje LLC, Markem-Imaje Limited, Markem-Imaje Limited, Markem-Imaje Ltd., Markem-Imaje N.V., Markem-Imaje Oy, Markem-Imaje Philippines Corporation, Markem-Imaje Pty Ltd, Markem-Imaje S.A., Markem-Imaje S.A. de C.V., Markem-Imaje S.r.l., Markem-Imaje SAS, Markem-Imaje Sdn Bhd, Markem-Imaje Singapore Pte. Ltd., Markem-Imaje Spain S.A.U, Markpoint Holding AB, Midland Manufacturing LLC, Mouvex, Northern Lights (Nevada) Inc., Northern Lights Funding LP, Northern Lights Investments LLC, Nova Controls Inc., OK International, OK International (UK) Ltd., OK International Holdings Inc., OK International Inc., OPW Engineered Systems Inc., OPW Fluid Transfer Group Europe B.V., OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions (Jiang Su) Co. Ltd., OPW Fluids Group Inc., OPW France, OPW Fuel Management Systems Inc., OPW Fueling Components (SuZhou) Co. Ltd., OPW Fueling Components LLC, OPW Iberia Sociedad Limitada, OPW Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., OPW Slovakia s.r.o., OPW Sweden AB, Officine Meccaniche Sirio S.R.L., PDQ Manufacturing, PDQ Manufacturing Inc., PISCES by OPW Inc., PSD Codax Holdings Limited, PSD Codax Limited, PSG (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, PSG (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PSG California LLC, PSG Germany GmbH, Petro Vend Sp. z o.o., Pike Machine Products Inc., Pole/Zero Acquisition Inc., Precision Brasil Equipamentos E Servicos Para Postos De Combustiveis Ltda., Precision Service - Servicos De Manutencao E Instalacao De Postos De Abastecimento De Combustivel Ltda., Production Control Services, Pump Management Services Co. LLC, RAV Equipos Espana S.L., RAV France, Ravaglioli Deutschland GmbH, Ravaglioli S.P.A., Reduction Engineering GmbH, Revod Corporation, Revod Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Revod SAS, Revod Singapore Holdings Pte. Ltd, Revod Sweden AB, Robohand Inc., Rosario, Rosario Handel B.V., Rotary Lift Consolidated (Haimen) Co. Ltd, SE Liquidation LLC, SWEP Germany GmbH, SWEP Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., SWEP North America Inc., SWEP Slovakia s.r.o., SWEP Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Seabiscuit Motorsports Inc., Simmons Sirvey Corporation, So. Cal. Soft-Pak, So. Cal. Soft-Pak Incorporated, Solaris Laser, Solaris Laser S.A., Somero Enterprises, Sound Solutions, Space S.R.L., Spirit, Start Italiana Petrol Cihazlari Sanayi Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Start Italiana S.R.L., Swep Energy Oy, Swep International A.B., Swep Japan K.K., Sys-Tech Solutions, Sys-Tech Solutions Inc., Systech GB Limited, Systech Shanghai Consulting Company Limited, TQC Quantium Quality S.A. de C.V., TTSI III Inc., TWG Canada Consolidated Inc., TXHI LLC, Tartan Textile Services Inc., The Heil Co., Tokheim Belgium, Tokheim China Company Limited, Tokheim GmbH, Tokheim Group, Tokheim Hengshan Technologies (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Tokheim Holding B.V., Tokheim India Private Limited, Tokheim Sofitam Applications, Trans - Logistic Group S.R.L., Triton Systems, Tulsa Winch Inc., UPCO Inc., US Synthetic, Unattended Payment Solutions LLC, Unified Brands, Unified Brands Inc., Val TemperBent Glass L.P., Vectron Frequency Devices (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vehicle Service Group LLC, Vehicle Service Group UK Limited, Vos Food Store Equipment Ltd., WSCR Corp., Warn Automotive LLC, Warn Industries, Waukesha Bearings, Waukesha Bearings Corporation, Waukesha Bearings Limited, Waukesha Bearings Russia LLC, Wayne Fuel Management UK Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems, Wayne Fueling Systems (Rus) Limited Liability Company, Wayne Fueling Systems Australia Pty Ltd, Wayne Fueling Systems Canada ULC, Wayne Fueling Systems Deutschland GmbH, Wayne Fueling Systems Italia S.R.L., Wayne Fueling Systems LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems Sweden AB, Wayne Fueling Systems UK Holdco Ltd., Wayne Industria e Comercio Ltda., WellMark, XanTec Steuerungs- und EDV-Technik GmbH, and em-tec GmbH. DowDuPont Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in agriculture, materials science, and specialty products businesses in the United States, Canada, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company's Agriculture segment produces, and sells hybrid corn seed and soybean seed varieties; sunflowers, wheat, alfalfa, canola, cotton, rice, and sorghum; silage inoculants; and crop protection products that include weed control, disease control, and insect control. Its Performance Materials & Coatings segment manufactures and sells architectural paints and coatings, and industrial coatings; performance monomers and silicones; standalone silicones; and home and personal care solutions. The company's Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure segment offers ethylene oxides, propylene oxide derivatives, cellulose ethers, redispersible latex powders, and acrylic emulsions; sustainable solutions; and chlorine and caustic soda. Its Packaging & Specialty Plastics segment provides ethylene, and propylene and aromatic products; and polyolefin elastomers and ethylene propylene diene monomer rubbers. The company's Electronics & Imaging segment offers materials and systems for mobile devices, television monitors, personal computers, and electronics. Its Nutrition & Biosciences segment provides specialty ingredients, as well as cellulosic- and alginates-based pharma excipients; and enzymes, biomaterials, biocides, and antimicrobial solutions and process technologies. The company's Transportation & Advanced Polymers segment offers engineering resins, adhesives, lubricants, and parts for transportation, electronics, healthcare, industrial, and consumer end-markets. Its Safety & Construction segment provides engineered products and integrated systems for construction, worker safety, energy, oil and gas, transportation, medical device, and water purification and separation industries. The company was founded in 1897 and is headquartered in Midland, Michigan. Read More Wall Street analysts have given El Paso Electric 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 El Paso Electric wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Les lunettes de marque ne sont pas ce qui manque dans les commerces. Il y en a de toutes les sortes dont les lunettes de [] The following companies are subsidiares of ENI: Adriaplin Podjetje za distribucijo, Agenzia Giornalistica Italia SpA, Agip Caspian Sea BV, Agip Energy and Natural, Agip Karachaganak BV, Agip Petroli, Aldro Energy, Banque Eni SA, Burren Energy (Bermuda) Ltd(1), Burren Energy (Egypt) Ltd, Burren Energy Congo Ltd, Burren Energy India Ltd, Burren Energy Plc, Burren Shakti Ltd, D-Service Media Srl, D-Share SpA, D-Share USA Corp., Dhamma Energy Group, Dunastyr Polisztirolgyarto Zartkoruen, Ecofuel SpA, Eni AEP Ltd, Eni Abu Dhabi BV, Eni Abu Dhabi Refining & Trading BV, Eni Abu Dhabi Refining & Trading Services BV, Eni Albania BV, Eni Algeria Exploration BV, Eni Algeria Ltd Sarl, Eni Algeria Production BV, Eni Ambalat Ltd, Eni America Ltd, Eni Angola Exploration BV, Eni Angola Production BV, Eni Angola SpA, Eni Argentina Exploracion, Eni Arguni I Ltd, Eni Australia BV, Eni Australia Ltd, Eni Austria GmbH, Eni BB Petroleum Inc, Eni BTC Ltd, Eni Bahrain BV, Eni Benelux BV, Eni Bukat Ltd, Eni CBM Ltd, Eni Canada Holding Ltd, Eni China BV, Eni Congo SA, Eni Corporate University SpA, Eni Cyprus Ltd, Eni Cote dIvoire Ltd, Eni Denmark BV, Eni Deutschland GmbH, Eni East Ganal Ltd, Eni East Sepinggan Ltd, Eni Ecuador SA, Eni Elgin/Franklin Ltd, Eni Energy Russia BV, Eni Exploration & Production Holding BV, Eni Finance International SA, Eni Finance USA Inc, Eni France Sarl, Eni Fuel SpA, Eni G&P Trading BV, Eni Gabon SA, Eni Ganal Ltd, Eni Gas & Power France SA, Eni Gas & Power LNG Australia BV, Eni Gas Transport Services Srl, Eni Ghana Exploration and Production Ltd, Eni Hewett Ltd, Eni Hydrocarbons Venezuela Ltd, Eni Iberia SLU, Eni India Ltd, Eni Indonesia Ltd, Eni Indonesia Ots 1 Ltd, Eni Insurance DAC, Eni International BV, Eni International NA NV Sarl, Eni International Resources Ltd, Eni Investments Plc, Eni Iran BV, Eni Iraq BV, Eni Ireland BV, Eni Isatay BV, Eni JPDA 03-13 Ltd, Eni JPDA 06-105 Pty Ltd, Eni JPDA 11-106 BV, Eni Kenya BV, Eni Krueng Mane Ltd, Eni LNS Ltd, Eni Lasmo Plc, Eni Lebanon BV, Eni Liberia BV, Eni Liverpool Bay Operating Co Ltd, Eni Lubricants Trading (Shangai) Co Ltd, Eni Marketing Austria GmbH, Eni Marketing Inc, Eni Maroc BV, Eni Mediterranea Idrocarburi SpA, Eni Middle East Ltd, Eni Mineralolhandel GmbH, Eni Montenegro BV, Eni Mozambico SpA, Eni Mozambique Engineering Ltd, Eni Mozambique LNG Holding BV, Eni Muara Bakau BV, Eni Myanmar BV, Eni Mexico S. de RL de CV, Eni Next Llc, Eni North Africa BV, Eni North Ganal Ltd, Eni Oil & Gas Inc, Eni Oil Algeria Ltd, Eni Oil Holdings BV, Eni Oman BV, Eni Pakistan (M) Ltd Sarl, Eni Pakistan Ltd, Eni Petroleum Co Inc, Eni Petroleum US Llc, Eni Portugal BV, Eni RAK BV, Eni RD Congo SA, Eni Rapak Ltd, Eni Rovuma Basin BV, Eni Schmiertechnik GmbH, Eni Sharjah BV, Eni South Africa BV, Eni South China Sea Ltd Sarl, Eni Suisse SA, Eni TNS Ltd, Eni Timor Leste SpA, Eni Trading & Shipping Inc, Eni Trading & Shipping SpA, Eni Transporte y Suministro Mexico , Eni Tunisia BV, Eni Turkmenistan Ltd, Eni UHL Ltd, Eni UK Holding Plc, Eni UK Ltd, Eni UKCS Ltd, Eni ULT Ltd, Eni ULX Ltd, Eni US Operating Co Inc, Eni USA Gas Marketing Llc, Eni USA Inc, Eni USA R&M Co Inc, Eni Ukraine Holdings BV, Eni Ukraine Llc, Eni Ukraine Shallow Waters BV, Eni Venezuela BV, Eni Venezuela E&P Holding SA, Eni Vietnam BV, Eni West Africa SpA, Eni West Ganal Ltd, Eni West Timor Ltd, Eni Yemen Ltd, Eni do Brasil Investimentos em Exploracao e Producao de Petroleo Ltda, Eni gas e luce SpA, EniPower Mantova SpA, EniProgetti Egypt Ltd, EniProgetti SpA, EniServizi SpA, Esacontrol SA, Esain SA, Eurl Eni Algerie, FRI-EL Group, First Calgary Petroleums LP, First Calgary Petroleums Partner Co ULC, First Calgary Petroliums, Floaters SpA, Gas Supply Company Thessaloniki - Thessalia SA, Gazoduc Transtunisien SA - Scogat SA, Ieoc Exploration BV, Ieoc Production BV, Ieoc SpA, LNG Shipping SpA, Lasmo Sanga Sanga Ltd, Liverpool Bay Ltd, Mizamtec Operating Company, Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, Nigerian Agip CPFA Ltd, Nigerian Agip Exploration Ltd, Nigerian Agip Oil Co Ltd, OOO Eni Energhia, OOO Eni-Nefto, Oleoduc du Rhone SA, Petroven Srl, Raffineria di Gela SpA, Resources (Nigeria) Ltd, S. de RL de CV, SEA SpA, SeaPad SpA, Serfactoring SpA, Servizi Aerei SpA, Servizi Fondo Bombole Metano SpA, Societa Petrolifera Italiana SpA, Societe de Service du Gazoduc, Societe pour la Construction du, Tecnoesa SA, Trans Tunisian Pipeline Co SpA, Transtunisien SA - Sergaz SA, Versalis Americas Inc, Versalis Congo Sarlu, Versalis Deutschland GmbH, Versalis France SAS, Versalis International SA, Versalis Kimya Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Versalis Mexico S. de R.L. de CV, Versalis Pacific (India) Private Ltd, Versalis Pacific Trading (Shanghai) Co Ltd, Versalis Singapore Pte Ltd, Versalis SpA, Versalis UK Ltd, Zetah Congo Ltd, Zetah Kouilou Ltd, and zemeljskega plina doo Ljubljana. 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 contact@marketbeat.com | (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. Grupo Supervielle SA operates as a holding company. The firm engages in the provision of banking services. It operates through the following segments: Retail Banking, Corporate Banking, Treasury, Consumer, Insurance and Asset Management and Other Services. The Retail Banking segment involves in granting of loans and other credit products such as deposits of physical persons. The Corporate Banking segment focuses in advisory services at a corporate and financial level, as well as the administration of assets and loans targeted to big clients. The Treasury segment operates with Government Securities of the Group, syndicated loans, and financial lease. The Consumer segment consists of loans and other credit products targeted to middle and lower-middle income sectors and non-financial products and services. The Insurance segment comprises insurance products, with a focus on life insurance. The Asset Management and Other Services segment offers mutual funds and other products and services. The company was founded on October 8, 1979 and is headquartered in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Read More 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. Callitas Health, Inc. is a clinical stage company. It engages in the development of technologies for obesity, weight management, and female health and wellness. The company focuses on developing technologies for weight management, female sexual health and wellness, cannabis delivery technologies and other proprietary drugs. It launched product ToConceive in North America. The firm researches, develops and business development processes for its other OTC products, CannaMint strips and orphan drug technologies. Callitas Health was founded on March 11, 2003 and is headquartered in Newport, KY. Read More HeidelbergCement AG, together with its subsidiaries, produces and distributes cement, aggregates, ready-mixed concrete, and asphalt worldwide. It provides cement products, including special cements with targeted characteristics, special geotechnical building materials, and a range of binders. The company also offers natural stone aggregates, such as sand and gravel; crushed aggregates comprising stone chippings and crushed stones; and concrete/ready-mixed concrete for use in the construction of tunnels or bridges, office buildings, or schools, as well as for the production of precast concrete parts consisting of stairs, ceiling elements, or structural components. In addition, it provides asphalt primarily used in the construction of infrastructure, such as roads; and trades in cement, clinker, solid and alternative fuels, and other building materials. The company was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of IDEX: ADS Corp., ADS Environmental Services Pty Limited, ADS Environmental Technologies Inc., ADS LLC, AEGIS Flow Technologies, AEGIS Flow Technologies L.L.C., AWG, AWG Fittings GmbH, Abel Pumps, Advanced Thin Films, Advanced Thin Films Inc., Airtech Group, Akron Brass, Akron Brass Company, Alfa Valvole, Alfa Valvole S.r.l., Band-It Clamps (Asia) Pte. Ltd., Band-It Company Limited, Band-It-IDEX Inc., Banjo Corporation, Banjo Europe S.r.l., BarbIDEX International SRL, CIDRA Precision Services, CVI Laser, CVI Laser LLC, CVI Laser Limited, CVI Melles Griot, Corken Inc., ERC, Eastern Plastics, FAST & Fluid Management S.r.l., FM Delaware Inc., FM Investment Inc., FMD Distribution and Service LLC, FMD Fabrication Services LLC, FTL Seals Technology Limited, Fast & Fluid Management B.V., Fast & Fluid Management Eastern Europe Sp. Z O.O., Fast and Fluid Management Australia Pty. Ltd., Flow Management Devices, Flow Management Devices LLC, Fluid Management Canada Inc., Fluid Management Inc., Fluid Management Operations LLC, Gast Group Ltd, Gast Manufacturing Inc., Godiva Limited, Godiva Products Limited, Hale Products Europe Limited, Hale Products Inc., Hurst Jaws of Life Inc., IDEX Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., IDEX Dinglee Technology (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., IDEX Europe GmbH, IDEX Health & Science KK, IDEX Health & Science LLC, IDEX Holdings GmbH, IDEX Holdings Inc., IDEX India Private Limited, IDEX Italy S.r.l., IDEX Japan GK, IDEX Korea Ltd, IDEX Leasing GmbH, IDEX MPT Inc., IDEX Mexico S.A. de C.V., IDEX Middle East FZE, IDEX Pump Technologies (Ireland) Limited, IDEX SAS, IDEX Service Corp., IDEX Sourcing Corporation, IDEX Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., IDEX Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, IDEX UK Investment Ltd, IDEX UK Ltd., IDEX do Brasil Servicos e Vendas Ltda., IETG, Isolation Technologies, KNIGHT LLC, KVT-Koenig Holding Limited, Knight (Canada) Limited, Knight Inc., Knight UK Ltd, LUKAS Hydraulik GmbH, Liquid Controls, Liquid Controls LLC, Matcon, Matcon (R&D) Limited, Matcon Group Limited, Matcon Limited, Melles Griot B.V., Melles Griot GmbH, Microfluidics, Microfluidics International Corporation, Micropump Inc., Nova Technologies, Nova Technologies Corporation, Novotema, Novotema S.p.A, OBL, OBL Srl, Oil & Gas Process Solutions LLC, PP AWG GmbH, PPE International LLC, PPE LLC, Precision Photonics, Precision Polymer Engineering Limited, Project Gold Acquisition Corp., Pulsafeeder Inc., Quadro Engineering Corp., RV Acquisition Corp., Richter Chemie-Technik, Richter Chemie-Technik GmbH, Richter EP (Nanjing) Co. Ltd., Richter Pumps & Valves Inc., Roplan AB, Roplan GmbH, Roplan Holding AB, Roplan Ltd, Roplan Machinery (Ningbo) Co. Ltd., Roplan Machining AB, Roplan Sales (Ningbo) Co. Ltd., Roplan Sales AB, Roplan Sales Inc., Roplan Trading AB, S.A.M.P.I. S.p.A., SFC KOENIG, SFC KOENIG Flow Control (Suzhou) Co. Limited, SFC Koenig AG, SFC Koenig Beteilgungs GmbH, SFC Koenig GmbH, SFC Koenig LLC, Scivex, Seals Limited, Semrock, Steridose Sales AB, The Fitzpatrick Company, Toptech Systems, Toptech Systems Inc., Toptech Systems NV, Trebor International Inc., Velcora, Velcora Holding AB, Vetter GmbH, Viking Pump Inc., Viking Pump of Canada Inc., Warren Rupp Inc., Wright Flow Technologies Limited, XAM Swiss Holding I GmbH, iPEK, iPEK International GmbH, iPEK Spezial TV GmbH, thinXXS Microtechnology, and thinXXS Microtechnology AG. Vous etes confrontes a une infestation par la puce, la punaise de lit ? Voici plusieurs actions qui sont a mettre en uvre pour faire [] The following companies are subsidiares of Stryker: ActiViews, Aimago SA, Alcott Indemnity Company, Arrinex Inc, Arrinex Inc., Ascent Healthcare Solutions, Berchtold, Berchtold + Fritz GmbH, Berchtold Consulting GmbH, Berchtold Corporation, Berchtold GmbH & Co. KG, Berchtold Holding Switzerland GmbH, CHG Hospital Beds, Cactus LLC, Cardan Robotics, Changzhou Orthomed Medical Instrument Company Limited, Concentric Medical, Concentric Medical Inc., Entellus Medical, Entellus Medical Europe Ltd, Entellus Medical Inc., GYS Tech LLC, Gaymar Industries, Gongping (Shanghai) Medical Devices Trading Co. Ltd., Groupe Bertec, HeartSine Technologies LLC, HeartSine Technologies Limited, Howmedica International S. de R.L., Howmedica Osteonics Corp., Hygia Health Services, Hygia Healthcare Services Inc., HyperBranch, HyperBranch Technology Inc., ITAPCo Limited, Image Guided Technologies, Imorphics Limited, Infinity MSD Corp., Infinity MSE Corp., Infinity MSF Corp., Infomedix Communications, Instratek, InstruMedics L.L.C, Invuity Inc., Ivy Sports Medicine, Ivy Sports Medicine LLC, Jiangsu Chuangyi Medical Instrument Company Limited, Jolife AB, K2M Germany GmbH, K2M Group, K2M Group Holdings Inc., K2M Holdings Inc., K2M Iberia Medcomtech S.L.U., K2M Inc., K2M Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, K2M Spine Solutions (Schweiz) GmbH, K2M UK Limited, Loon Intermediateco LLC, MAKO Surgical, MAKO Surgical Corp, Memometal Technologies, Mobius Imaging, Mobius Imaging LLC, Muka Metal, Muka Metal Ticaret ve Sanayi Anaonim Sirketi, NV Stryker SA, Nettrick Limited, Novadaq Corp, Novadaq Hong Kong Ltd, Novadaq Technologies, Novadaq Technologies ULC, OOO "Stryker", Orneo Ozel Saglk Hizmetleri Medikal Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, OrthoSpace, OrthoSpace Ltd., OrthoSpace US Inc., Orthomed (Hong Kong) Medical Instrument Company Limited, Orthovita, Orthovita Inc., OtisMed, P.C. Sweden Holding AB, Patient Safety Technologies, Patton Surgical, Pficonprod Pty. Ltd., Physio-Control, Physio-Control (Shanghai) Sales Co. Ltd., Physio-Control Brazil Vendas Ltda., Physio-Control Czech Sales s.r.o., Physio-Control Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Physio-Control Holdings Inc, Physio-Control Hungary Sales Kft, Physio-Control Inc., Physio-Control India Sales Pvt. Ltd, Physio-Control Investments LLC, Physio-Control Lebanon Sales Offshore s.a.l., Physio-Control Manufacturing Inc., Physio-Control Operations Netherlands B.V., Physio-Control Sales Limited Liability Company, Physio-Control Singapore Pte. Ltd., Physio-Control South Africa Sales Pty. Ltd., Physio-Control UK Sales Ltd., Pivot Medical, PlasmaSol, Porex Technologies, SSI Divestiture Inc., SYK Costa Rica Services Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada, SafeAir AG, SafeWire, Sage Products, Sage Products Coperatief U.A., Sage Products Holdings II LLC, Sage Products Holdings III LLC, Sage Products LLC, Scopis GmbH, Sightline Technologies, Small Bone Innovations, SpineCore, Spirox Inc., Stanmore Implants Worldwide, Stanmore Implants Worldwide Limited, Stanmore Inc., Stryker (Barbados) Foreign Sales Corporation, Stryker (Beijing) Healthcare Products Co. Ltd., Stryker (Shanghai) Healthcare Products Co. Ltd., Stryker (Suzhou) Medical Technology Co Ltd, Stryker (Thailand) Limited, Stryker AB, Stryker Acquisitions BV, Stryker Asia Holdings CV, Stryker Australia LLC, Stryker Australia Pty. Ltd., Stryker Austria GmbH, Stryker B.V., Stryker Berchtold BV, Stryker Beteiligungs GmbH, Stryker Canada GP ULC, Stryker Canada Holding Company, Stryker Canada Manufacturing ULC, Stryker Canada ULC, Stryker Canadian Management ULC, Stryker Canadian Sales Holding Company ULC, Stryker Capital BV, Stryker China Limited, Stryker Colombia SAS, Stryker Communications Inc., Stryker Corporation (Chile) y Compania Limitada, Stryker Corporation (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Stryker Customs Brokers LLC, Stryker Czech Republic s.r.o., Stryker Delaware Inc., Stryker EMEA Supply Chain Services BV, Stryker Employment Company LLC, Stryker European Coordination Center BV, Stryker European Holdings Cooperatief U.A, Stryker European Holdings I LLC, Stryker European Holdings II LLC, Stryker European Holdings LLC, Stryker European Holdings V LLC, Stryker European Operations B.V., Stryker European Operations Holdings I BV, Stryker European Operations Holdings II BV, Stryker European Operations Holdings III BV, Stryker European Operations Holdings LLC, Stryker European Operations Limited, Stryker European Technologies C.V., Stryker Far East Inc., Stryker Foreign Acquisitions Inc., Stryker France Holding SNC, Stryker France MM Holdings SAS, Stryker France SAS, Stryker Funding B.V., Stryker GI Services CV, Stryker Global Technology Center Private Limited, Stryker GmbH, Stryker GmbH & Co. KG, Stryker Grundstucks GmbH & Co KG, Stryker Grundstucks Verwaltungs GmbH, Stryker Holdings BV, Stryker IFSC Designated Activity Company, Stryker Iberia SL Unipersonal, Stryker India Private Limited, Stryker International Acquisitions BV, Stryker International Holdings BV, Stryker Investment Holdings B.V., Stryker Ireland Holding Unlimited Company, Stryker Ireland Limited, Stryker Italia S.r.l. S.U., Stryker Japan Holdings BV, Stryker Japan K.K., Stryker Korea Ltd., Stryker Lebanon (Offshore) S.A.L., Stryker Leibinger GmbH & Co. KG, Stryker Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., Stryker Luxembourg Sarl, Stryker Manufacturing S. de R.L. de C.V., Stryker Mauritius Holding Ltd., Stryker Medical London LP, Stryker Medtech K.K., Stryker Medtech Limited, Stryker Mexico Holdings B.V., Stryker Mexico SA de CV, Stryker NV Operations Limited, Stryker Nederland BV, Stryker New Zealand Limited, Stryker Osteonics AG, Stryker Pacific Limited, Stryker Performance Solutions LLC, Stryker Polska Sp.z.o.o., Stryker Portugal - Produtos Medicos Unipessoal Lda., Stryker Professional Latin America S. de R.L. de C.V., Stryker Puerto Rico Limited, Stryker Romania SRL, Stryker Sage Inc., Stryker Sales Corporation, Stryker Servicios Administrativos S.de R.L. de C.V., Stryker Singapore Private Limited, Stryker South Africa (Proprietary) Limited, Stryker Spine SAS, Stryker Spine Sarl, Stryker Sustainability Solutions Inc., Stryker Tibbi Cihazlan Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Stryker Trauma GmbH, Stryker Turkish Holdings BV, Stryker UK Ltd, Stryker Verwaltungs GmbH, Stryker Vietnam Company Limited, Stryker do Brasil Ltda, Surpass Medical, Synergetics, TG SP Holdings Corp, TSO3 Corp, TSO3 Inc, Trauson, Trauson (China) Medical Instrument Company Limited, Trauson (Hong Kong) Company Limited, Trauson Holdings (BVI) Company Limited, Trauson Holdings (Hong Kong) Company Limited, Trauson Holdings Company Limited, VEXIM SA, Vexim, Waterloo Bedding Co., Wright Medical Group, ZipLine Medical Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ZipLine Medical Hong Kong Limited, ZipLine Medical Inc., and eTrauma.com. The following companies are subsidiares of Valero Energy: AIR BP-PBF DEL PERU SAC, BELFAST STORAGE LTD, CANADIAN ULTRAMAR COMPANY, COLONNADE TEXAS INSURANCE COMPANY LLC, COLONNADE VERMONT INSURANCE COMPANY, DIAMOND ALTERNATIVE ENERGY LLC, DIAMOND ALTERNATIVE ENERGY OF CANADA INC., DIAMOND GREEN DIESEL HOLDINGS LLC, DIAMOND GREEN DIESEL LLC, DIAMOND K RANCH LLC, DIAMOND OMEGA COMPANY L.L.C., DIAMOND SHAMROCK REFINING COMPANY L.P., DIAMOND UNIT INVESTMENTS L.L.C., DSRM NATIONAL BANK, ENTERPRISE CLAIMS MANAGEMENT INC., GCP LOGISTICS COMPANY LLC, GOLDEN EAGLE ASSURANCE LIMITED, HAMMOND MAINLINE PIPELINE LLC, HUNTWAY REFINING COMPANY, MAINLINE PIPELINES LIMITED, MAPLE ETHANOL LTD., MICHIGAN REDEVELOPMENT GP LLC, MICHIGAN REDEVELOPMENT L.P., MRP PROPERTIES COMPANY LLC, NECHES RIVER HOLDING CORP., NORCO METHANOL LLC, OCEANIC TANKERS AGENCY LIMITED, PARKWAY PIPELINE LLC, PENTA TANKS TERMINALS S.A., PI DOCK FACILITIES LLC, PICKARD PLACE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION, PORT ARTHUR COKER COMPANY L.P., PREMCOR USA INC., PROPERTY RESTORATION L.P., PURE BIOFUELS DEL PERU S.A.C., PURE BIOFUELS HOLDINGS L.P., Parkway Pipeline, Premcor, Pure Biofuels Del Peru, SABINE RIVER HOLDING CORP., SABINE RIVER LLC, SAINT BERNARD PROPERTIES COMPANY LLC, SUNBELT REFINING COMPANY L.P., THE PREMCOR PIPELINE CO., THE PREMCOR REFINING GROUP INC., THE SHAMROCK PIPE LINE CORPORATION, TRANSPORT MARITIME ST. LAURENT INC., ULTRAMAR ACCEPTANCE INC., ULTRAMAR ENERGY INC., ULTRAMAR INC., Ultramar Diamond Shamrock, V-TEX LOGISTICS LLC, VALERO (BARBADOS) SRL, VALERO (PERU) HOLDINGS GP LLC, VALERO (PERU) HOLDINGS LIMITED, VALERO ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO ARUBA ACQUISITION COMPANY I LTD., VALERO ARUBA FINANCE INTERNATIONAL LTD., VALERO ARUBA HOLDING COMPANY N.V., VALERO ARUBA HOLDINGS INTERNATIONAL LTD., VALERO ARUBA MAINTENANCE/OPERATIONS COMPANY N.V., VALERO BROWNSVILLE TERMINAL LLC, VALERO CANADA FINANCE INC., VALERO CANADA L.P., VALERO CAPITAL CORPORATION, VALERO CARIBBEAN SERVICES COMPANY, VALERO COKER CORPORATION ARUBA N.V., VALERO CUSTOMS & TRADE SERVICES INC., VALERO EAST BAY LLC, VALERO ENERGY (IRELAND) LIMITED, VALERO ENERGY ARUBA II COMPANY, VALERO ENERGY INC., VALERO ENERGY LTD, VALERO ENERGY PARTNERS GP LLC, VALERO ENERGY PARTNERS LP, VALERO ENERGY UK LTD, VALERO ENTERPRISES INC., VALERO EQUITY SERVICES LTD, VALERO FINANCE L.P. I, VALERO FINANCE L.P. II, VALERO FINANCE L.P. III, VALERO FOREST CONTRIBUTION LLC, VALERO GRAIN MARKETING LLC, VALERO H2 PIPELINE COMPANY LLC, VALERO HOLDCO UK LTD, VALERO HOLDINGS INC., VALERO INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS INC., VALERO LIVE OAK LLC, VALERO LOGISTICS UK LTD, VALERO MARKETING AND SUPPLY (PANAMA) LLC, VALERO MARKETING AND SUPPLY COMPANY, VALERO MARKETING AND SUPPLY DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO MARKETING AND SUPPLY DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO MARKETING AND SUPPY INTERNATIONAL LTD., VALERO MARKETING IRELAND LIMITED, VALERO MKS LOGISTICS L.L.C., VALERO NEDERLAND COOPERATIEF U.A., VALERO NEDERLAND COOPERATIEF U.A., VALERO NEW AMSTERDAM B.V., VALERO OMEGA COMPANY L.L.C., VALERO OPERATIONAL SERVICES DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO OPERATIONAL SERVICES DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO OPERATIONS SUPPORT LTD, VALERO PARTNERS CCTS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS CORPUS EAST LLC, VALERO PARTNERS CORPUS WEST LLC, VALERO PARTNERS EP LLC, VALERO PARTNERS HOUSTON LLC, VALERO PARTNERS LOUISIANA LLC, VALERO PARTNERS LUCAS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS MCKEE LLC, VALERO PARTNERS MEMPHIS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS MERAUX LLC, VALERO PARTNERS NORTH TEXAS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS OPERATING CO. LLC, VALERO PARTNERS PAPS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS PORT ARTHUR LLC, VALERO PARTNERS SOUTH TEXAS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS TEXAS CITY LLC, VALERO PARTNERS THREE RIVERS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS WEST MEMPHIS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS WEST TEXAS LLC, VALERO PARTNERS WYNNEWOOD LLC, VALERO PAYMENT SERVICES COMPANY, VALERO PEMBROKESHIRE LLC, VALERO PEMBROKESHIRE OIL TERMINAL LTD, VALERO PLAINS COMPANY LLC, VALERO POWER MARKETING LLC, VALERO RAIL OPERATIONS DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO RAIL OPERATIONS DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO RAIL PARTNERS LLC, VALERO REFINING AND MARKETING COMPANY, VALERO REFINING COMPANY-ARUBA N.V., VALERO REFINING COMPANY-CALIFORNIA, VALERO REFINING COMPANY-OKLAHOMA, VALERO REFINING COMPANY-TENNESSEE L.L.C., VALERO REFINING-MERAUX LLC, VALERO REFINING-NEW ORLEANS L.L.C., VALERO REFINING-TEXAS L.P., VALERO RENEWABLE FUELS COMPANY LLC, VALERO SECURITY SYSTEMS INC., VALERO SERVICES INC., VALERO SKELLYTOWN PIPELINE LLC, VALERO TEJAS COMPANY LLC, VALERO TERMINAL HOLDCO LTD, VALERO TERMINALING AND DISTRIBUTION COMPANY, VALERO TERMINALING AND DISTRIBUTION DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., VALERO TEXAS POWER MARKETING INC., VALERO ULTRAMAR HOLDINGS INC., VALERO UNIT INVESTMENTS L.L.C., VALERO WEST WALES LLC, VRG PROPERTIES COMPANY, VTD PROPERTIES COMPANY, WARSHALL COMPANY LLC, and ZELIG COMMERCIAL INC.. The following companies are subsidiares of Franklin Resources: AdvisorEngine, AdvisorEngine Inc., Alumcreek Holdings LLC, Athena Capital Advisors, Balanced Equity Management, Balanced Equity Management Pty. Limited, Benefit Street Partners, Bissett & Associates Investment Management, Brandywine Global Investment Management Europe Limited, CCPF GP Holdco No.2 Limited, CCPF No.2 (GP) Limited, CCPF No.2 LP, CP Industrial Management LLC, CP Intermediate Holdco Inc., CRM Software LLC, Clarion Gramercy (Deutschland) GmbH, Clarion Gramercy (UK) Limited, Clarion Gramercy Limited, Clarion Partners Europe Ltd., Clarion Partners Holdings LLC, Clarion Partners LLC, Clarion Partners Securities LLC, Clarion REIM South America Holdings LLC, Clarion REIM South America Invsetimentos Imobiliarios Ltda, ClearBridge RARE Infrastructure (North America) Pty Limited, ClearBridge RARE Infrastructure International Pty Limited, Darby - Hana Infrastructure Fund Management Co. Ltd., Edinburgh Partners, FT FinTech Holdings LLC, FT Opportunistic Distressed Fund Ltd., FTC Investor Services Inc., FTCI (Cayman) Ltd., FTPE Advisers LLC, Fiduciary International Holding Inc., Fiduciary Investment Management International Inc., Fiduciary Trust (International) Sarl, Fiduciary Trust Company International, Fiduciary Trust Company International of Pennsylvania, Fiduciary Trust Company of Canada, Fiduciary Trust International LLC, Fiduciary Trust International of California, Fiduciary Trust International of Delaware, Fiduciary Trust International of the South, Franklin Advisers GP LLC, Franklin Advisers Inc., Franklin Advisory Services LLC, Franklin Marketplace Loan GP LLC, Franklin Mutual Advisers LLC, Franklin SystematiQ Advisers LLC, Franklin Templeton Alternative Investments (India) Private Limited, Franklin Templeton Asset Management (India) Private Limited, Franklin Templeton Asset Management (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Franklin Templeton Asset Management Mexico S.A. de C.V. Sociedad Operadora de Fondos de Inversion, Franklin Templeton Austria GmbH, Franklin Templeton Capital Holdings Private Limited, Franklin Templeton Chile SpA. V., Franklin Templeton Companies LLC, Franklin Templeton Digital Advisory Services GmbH, Franklin Templeton Fund Management Limited, Franklin Templeton GSC Asset Management Sdn. Bhd., Franklin Templeton Global Investors Limited, Franklin Templeton Holding Limited, Franklin Templeton International Services (India) Private Limited, Franklin Templeton International Services S.a r.l., Franklin Templeton Investment Management (Shanghai) Limited, Franklin Templeton Investment Management Limited, Franklin Templeton Investment Services GmbH, Franklin Templeton Investment Services Mexico S. de R.L., Franklin Templeton Investment Trust Management Co. Ltd., Franklin Templeton Investments (Asia) Limited, Franklin Templeton Investments (ME) Limited, Franklin Templeton Investments Australia Limited, Franklin Templeton Investments Corp., Franklin Templeton Investments Japan Limited, Franklin Templeton Investments Poland sp. z o.o., Franklin Templeton Investments South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Franklin Templeton Investor Services LLC, Franklin Templeton Investimentos (Brasil) Ltda., Franklin Templeton Luxembourg S.A., Franklin Templeton Magyarorszag Kft., Franklin Templeton Management Luxembourg S.A., Franklin Templeton Overseas Investment Fund Management (Shanghai) Co. Limited, Franklin Templeton Private Equity LLC, Franklin Templeton Services (India) Private Limited, Franklin Templeton Services LLC, Franklin Templeton Servicios de Asesoria Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Franklin Templeton Slovakia s.r.o., Franklin Templeton Social Infrastructure GP S.a r.l., Franklin Templeton Strategic Investments Ltd., Franklin Templeton Switzerland Ltd., Franklin Templeton Trustee Services Private Limited, Franklin Templeton Turkey Advisory Services A.S., Franklin Templeton Uruguay S.A., Franklin Venture Partners (Talos Cayman GP) LLC, Franklin Venture Partners LLC, Franklin/Templeton Distributors Inc., ITI Capital Markets Limited, K2 Advisors, LM (BVI) Limited, LM Holdings 2 Limited, LM Holdings Limited, LM International Holding LP, Legg Mason & Co (UK) Limited, Legg Mason & Co. LLC, Legg Mason (Chile) Inversiones Holdings Limitada, Legg Mason Asset Management Australia Limited, Legg Mason Asset Management Hong Kong Limited, Legg Mason Asset Management Singapore Pte. Limited, Legg Mason Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Legg Mason Holding (Switzerland) GmbH, Legg Mason Inc., Legg Mason Investment Funds Limited, Legg Mason Investments (Europe) Limited, Legg Mason Investments (Switzerland) GmbH, Legg Mason Overseas Investment Fund Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Legg Mason Partners Fund Advisor LLC, Legg Mason Royce Holdings LLC, Onsa Inc., RARE IP Trust, RARE Infrastructure Limited, REDROSE Caesar S.a r.l., Random Forest Capital, Random Forest Capital LLC, Rensburg Sheppards plc, Riva Financial Systems Limited, Royce & Associates GP LLC, Royce & Associates LP, Royce Fund Services LLC, Royce Management Company LLC, TSEMF III (Jersey) Limited, TSEMF IV (Jersey) Limited, Templeton Asset Management (Labuan) Limited, Templeton Asset Management (Poland) TFI S.A., Templeton Asset Management Ltd., Templeton Global Advisors Limited, Templeton Global Holdings Ltd., Templeton International Inc., Templeton Investment Counsel LLC, Templeton Restructured Investments III Ltd., Templeton Restructured Investments IV Ltd., Templeton Restructured Investments L.L.C., Templeton Turkey Fund GP Ltd., Templeton Worldwide Inc., Templeton do Brasil Ltda., Templeton/Franklin Investment Services Inc., WHITEROSE Caesar S.a r.l., Western Asset Holdings (Australia) Pty Ltd, Western Asset Management (Brazil) Holdings Limitada, Western Asset Management (Cayman) Holdings Limited, Western Asset Management Company Distribuidora de Titulos e Valores Mobiliarios Limitada, Western Asset Management Company LLC, Western Asset Management Company Limited, Western Asset Management Company Pte Ltd., Western Asset Management Company Pty Ltd, and Winfield & Company. ConocoPhillips engages in the exploration, production, transportation and marketing of crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, natural gas liquids, and liquefied natural gas on a worldwide basis. It operates through the following geographical segments: Alaska; Lower 48; Canada; Europe, Middle East and North Africa; Asia Pacific; and Other International. The Alaska segment primarily explores for produces, transports and markets crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The Lower 48 segment consists of operations in the U.S. and the Gulf of Mexico. The Canada segment is comprised of oil sands development in the Athabasca Region of northeastern Alberta and a liquids-rich unconventional play in western Canada. The Europe, Middle East and North Africa segment consists of operations and exploration activities in Norway, the United Kingdom and Libya. The Asia Pacific segment has explorations and product operations in China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia. The Other International segment handles exploration activities in Columbia and Argentina. The company was founded in 1875 and is headquartered in Houston, TX. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of RWE Aktiengesellschaft: Adensis GmbH, Agenzia Carboni S.R.L., Aktivabedrijf Wind Nederland B.V., Alcamo II S.r.l., Alte Haase Bergwerks-Verwaltungs-Gesellschaft mbH, Alvarado Solar S.L., Amrum-Offshore West GmbH, An Suidhe Wind Farm Limited, Anacacho Holdco, Anacacho Wind Farm, Andromeda Wind s.r.l., Ashwood Solar I, Aurum Solaris 4 GmbH & Co. KG, Avolta Storage Limited, Awel y Mor Offshore Wind Farm Limited, BELECTRIC GmbH, BELECTRIC JV GmbH, BELECTRIC PV Dach GmbH, BELECTRIC Solar Power, BGE Beteiligungs-Gesellschaft fur Energieunternehmen mbH, BO Baltic Offshore GmbH, Baltic Trade and Invest Sp. z o.o., Baron Winds LLC, Belectric Australia Pty. Limited, Belectric Canada Solar Inc., Belectric Chile Energia Fotovoltaica LTDA, Belectric Espana Fotovoltaica S.L., Belectric France S.a.r.l., Belectric International GmbH, Belectric Inversiones Latinoamericana S.L., Belectric Israel Ltd., Belectric Italia s.r.l., Belectric Mexico Fotovoltaica S.de R.L. de C.V., Belectric PV 10 (SARL), Belectric PV 5 (SARL), Belectric Photovoltaic India Private Limited, Belectric Polska Sp. z o.o., Belectric SP Solarprojekte 14 GmbH & Co. KG, Belectric SP Solarprojekte 14 Verwaltungs-GmbH, Belectric SP Solarprojekte 15 GmbH & Co. KG, Belectric SP Solarprojekte 15 Verwaltungs-GmbH, Belectric SP Solarprojekte 16 GmbH & Co. KG, Belectric SP Solarprojekte 16 Verwaltungs-GmbH, Belectric Solar Ltd., Belectric Solar & Battery GmbH, Belectric US LLC, Bilbster Wind Farm Limited, Biomasseheizkraftwerk Schameder GmbH, Blackbeard Solar, Blackbriar Battery, Blackjack Creek Wind Farm, Blueberry Hills LLC, Boiling Springs Holdco, Boiling Springs Wind Farm, Bowler Flats Energy Hub LLC, Brahman Solar, Broken Spoke Solar, Bruennings Breeze Holdco, Bruennings Breeze Wind Farm, Buckeye Wind LLC, Burgar Hill Wind Farm Limited, Bursjoliden Vind AB, Camellia Solar LLC, Camellia Solar Member LLC, Cardinal Wind Farm, Carl Scholl GmbH, Carnedd Wen Wind Farm Limited, Casey Fork Solar, Cassadaga Class B Holdings LLC, Cassadaga Wind Holdings LLC, Cassadaga Wind LLC, Catalina-Cypress Holding Limited, Cattleman Wind Farm, Cattleman Wind Farm II, Centrale Hydroelectrique dOussiat S.A.S., Champaign Wind LLC, Champion WF Holdco, Champion Wind Farm, Cirie Centrale PV s.a.s. (s.r.l.), Clavellinas Solar, Climagy PV-Sonnenanlage GmbH & Co. KG, Climagy PV-Sonnenanlage Verwaltungs-GmbH, Climagy Photovoltaikprojekt Verwaltungs-GmbH, Climagy Sonneneinstrahlung GmbH & Co. KG, Climagy Sonneneinstrahlung Verwaltungs-GmbH, Climagy Sonnenkraft Verwaltungs-GmbH, Climagy Sonnenstrom GmbH & Co. KG, Climagy Sonnenstrom Verwaltungs-GmbH, Climagy Stromertrag GmbH & Co. KG, Climagy Stromertrag Verwaltungs-GmbH, Clinton Wind, Clocaenog Wind Farm Limited, Cloghaneleskirt Energy Supply Limited, Colbecks Corner, Colbecks Corner Holdco, Coralese Investments Sp. z o.o., Cordova Wind Farm, Cranell Holdco, Cranell Wind Farm, Curns Energy Limited, DOTTO MORCONE S.r.l., Danta de Energias, Decadia GmbH, Dromadda Beg Wind Farm Limited, E.ON Energie Odnawialne Sp. z o.o., Edgware Energy Limited, Eko-En 1 Sp. z o.o., Eko-En 2 Sp. z o.o., Eko-En 3 Sp. z o.o., Eko-En 4 Sp. z o.o., El Algarrobo (SpA), El Algodon Alto Wind Farm, El Chanar (SpA), El Navajo Solar, El Pimiento (SpA), El Solar (SpA), El Tamarugo (SpA), Electra Insurance Limited, Enchant Solar 3 Inc., Enchant Solar 4 Inc., Energies Charentus S.A.S., Energies France S.A.S., Energies France S.A.S. Group (pre-consolidated) 33, Energies Maintenance S.A.S., Energies Saint Remy S.A.S., Energies VAR 1 S.A.S., Energies VAR 3 S.A.S., Energio Co., Energy Resources Holding B.V., Energy Resources Ventures B.V., EverPower Maine LLC, EverPower Ohio LLC, EverPower Solar LLC, EverPower Wind Development, Explotaciones Eolicas de Aldehuelas, Eolica de Sarnago, E & Z Industrie-Losungen GmbH, Farma Wiatrowa Barzowice Sp. z o.o., Farma Wiatrowa Lubsko Sp. z o.o., Fifth Standard Solar PV, Five Estuaries Offshore Wind Farm Limited, Flatlands Wind Farm, Florida Solar and Power Group LLC, Forest Creek Investco, Forest Creek WF Holdco, Forest Creek Wind Farm, Frazier Solar, Fri-El Anzi Holding s.r.l., Fri-El Anzi s.r.l., Fri-El Guardionara s.r.l., GBV Achtunddreiigste Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, GBV Dreiunddreiigste Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, GBV Einunddreiigste Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, GBV Sechsunddreiigste Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, GBV Siebenunddreiigste Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, GBV Siebte Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, GBV Vierunddreiigste Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, GBV Zweiunddreiigste Gesellschaft fur Beteiligungsverwaltung mbH, Gazules I Fotovoltaica, Gazules II Solar, Generacion Fotovoltaica Castellano Manchega, Generacion Fotovoltaica De Alarcos, General de Mantenimiento 21, Georgia Biomass Holding LLC, Georgia Biomass LLC, GfV Gesellschaft fur Vermogensverwaltung mbH, Glen Kyllachy Wind Farm Limited, Goole Fields II Wind Farm Limited, Grandview Holdco, Grandview Wind Farm III, Grandview Wind Farm IV, Grandview Wind Farm V, Green Gecco GmbH & Co. KG, Green Gecco Verwaltungs GmbH, Hardin Class B Holdings LLC, Hardin Wind Holdings LLC, Hardin Wind LLC, Harryburn Wind Farm Limited, Haube Wind Sp. z o.o., Hidroelectrica del Trasvase, Highland III LLC, Horse Thief Wind Project LLC, INDI Energie B.V., INVESTERG Investimentos em Energias, IRUS Offshore Wind Holdings LLC, IRUS Solar Development LLC, IRUS Solar Holdings LLC, IRUS Solar NC Lessee LLC, IRUS Solar NC Pledgor LLC, IRUS Solar Operations LLC, IRUS Wind Development LLC, IRUS Wind Holdings LLC, IRUS Wind Operations LLC, Inadale Wind Farm, Infraestructuras de Aldehuelas, Infrastrukturgesellschaft Netz Lubz mit beschrankter Haftung, Innogy Energy Marketing LLC, Innogy Energy Services LLC, Innogy GyM 2 Limited, Innogy GyM 3 Limited, Innogy GyM 4 Limited, Innogy Management Services LLC, Innogy Renewables Australia Pty Ltd., Innogy Renewables Ireland Limited, Innogy Renewables UK Holdings Limited, Innogy Renewables UK Limited, Innogy Renewables US LLC, Innogy Stallingborough Limited, Innogy Windpark Juchen A44n Verwaltungs GmbH, Inversiones Belectric Chile LTDA, Iron Horse Battery Storage, Jerez Fotovoltaica S.L., Jurchen Technology GmbH, Jurchen Technology India Private Limited, KMG Kernbrennstoff-Management Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Kasson Manteca Solar, Kernkraftwerk Gundremmingen GmbH, Kernkraftwerk Lingen Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Kernkraftwerke Lippe-Ems Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Kernkraftwerksbeteiligung Lippe-Ems beschrankt haftende OHG, Kieswerk Kaarst GmbH & Co. KG, Kieswerk Kaarst Verwaltungs GmbH, Kiln Pit Hill Wind Farm Limited, Kimberly Run LLC, Knabs Ridge Wind Farm Limited, LUSITERG Gestao e Producao Energetica, Lake Fork Wind Farm, Lampasas Wind LLC, Las Vaguadas I Fotovoltaica S.L., Las Vaguadas II Solar S.L., Limondale Sun Farm Pty. Ltd., Little Cheyne Court Wind Farm Limited, Lochelbank Wind Farm Limited, MI-FONDS G50, ML Wind LLP, Mahanoy Mountain, Major Wind Farm, March Road Solar, Maricopa East Solar PV, Maricopa East Solar PV 2, Maricopa Land Holding, Maricopa West Solar PV 2, Maryland Sunlight 1 LLC, Mason Dixon Wind LLC, Mud Springs Wind Project LLC, Munnsville Investco, Munnsville WF Holdco, Munnsville Wind Farm, NRW Pellets GmbH, Nadacia VSE Holding, Nordsee Windpark Beteiligungs GmbH, Northern Orchard Solar PV, Northern Orchard Solar PV 2, Northern Orchard Solar PV 3, Novar Two Wind Farm Limited, Offshore-Windpark Delta Nordsee GmbH, Ohio Sunlight 1 LLC, Oranje Wind Power B.V., Oranje Wind Power C.V., Owen Prairie Wind Farm, PI E&P Holding Limited, PI E&P US Holding LLC, PT Rheincoal Supply & Trading Indonesia, Padcon GmbH, Painter Energy Storage, Panther Creek Holdco, Panther Creek Solar, Panther Creek Wind Farm I&II, Panther Creek Wind Farm Three, Paradise Cut Battery, Parc Ynni Cymunedol Alwen Cyfyngedig, Park Wiatrowy Dolice Sp. z o.o., Park Wiatrowy Gaworzyce Sp. z o.o., Pawnee Spirit Wind Farm, Pe Ell North LLC, Peg Project #1 Pty Ltd, Peg Project #2 Pty Ltd, Peyton Creek Holdco, Peyton Creek Wind Farm, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Gro Dolln Infrastruktur GmbH & Co. KG, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Gro Dolln Infrastruktur Verwaltungs-GmbH, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Gotz Verwaltungs-GmbH, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Reinsdorf GmbH & Co. KG, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Reinsdorf Verwaltungs-GmbH, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Tramm GmbH & Co. KG, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Tramm Netzanschluss GmbH & Co. KG, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Tramm Netzanschluss Verwaltungs-GmbH, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Tramm PV-Finanzierung GmbH & Co. KG, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Tramm PV-Finanzierung Verwaltungs-GmbH, Photovoltaikkraftwerk Tramm Verwaltungs-GmbH, Piecki Sp. z o.o., Pinckard Solar LLC, Pinckard Solar Member LLC, Pioneer Trail Wind Farm, Pipkin Ranch Wind Farm, Primus Projekt GmbH & Co. KG, Proyecto Rio Putaendo S.p.A., Proyecto Tabalongo Solar S.p.A., Proyectos Solares Iberia I, Proyectos Solares Iberia II, Proyectos Solares Iberia III, Proyectos Solares Iberia IV, Proyectos Solares Iberia V, Pryor Caves Wind Project LLC, Pyron Wind Farm, Quintana Fotovoltaica SLU, RD Hanau GmbH, RV Rheinbraun Handel und Dienstleistungen GmbH, RWE Aktiengesellschaft, RWE Australia Pty. Ltd., RWE Belgium BVBA, RWE Canada Ltd., RWE Carbon Sourcing North America, RWE Czech Gas Grid Holding B.V., RWE Eemshaven Holding II B.V., RWE Energy APAC Co. Ltd., RWE Energy Services, RWE Enerji Toptan Satis A.S., RWE Generation Hydro GmbH, RWE Generation NL B.V., RWE Generation NL Corner Participations B.V., RWE Generation NL Participations B.V., RWE Generation NL Personeel B.V., RWE Generation SE, RWE Generation UK Holdings Limited, RWE Generation UK plc, RWE Ingen!us Limited, RWE Investco EPC Mgmt, RWE Investco Mgmt, RWE Investco Mgmt II, RWE Magicat Holdco, RWE Markinch Limited, RWE NSW PTY LTD, RWE Nuclear Beteiligungs-GmbH, RWE Nuclear GmbH, RWE Pensionsfonds AG, RWE Personeel B.V., RWE Power AG, RWE Power Aktiengesellschaft, RWE Power Climate Protection GmbH, RWE Power Climate Protection Southeast Asia Co., RWE Principal Investments USA, RWE Renewables Americas, RWE Renewables Asset Management, RWE Renewables Australia Holdings Pty Ltd., RWE Renewables Canada Ltd., RWE Renewables Chile SpA, RWE Renewables Development, RWE Renewables Energy Marketing, RWE Renewables France SAS, RWE Renewables GmbH, RWE Renewables International GmbH, RWE Renewables International Participations B.V, RWE Renewables Italia S.r.l., RWE Renewables Japan G.K., RWE Renewables Mexico, RWE Renewables O&M, RWE Renewables QSE, RWE Renewables Services, RWE Renewables Services GmbH, RWE Renewables Services Mexico, RWE Renewables Sweden AB, RWE Renewables UK Blyth Limited, RWE Renewables UK Developments Limited, RWE Renewables UK Humber Wind Limited, RWE Renewables UK Limited, RWE Renewables UK London Array Limited, RWE Renewables UK Offshore Wind Limited, RWE Renewables UK Operations Limited, RWE Renewables UK Robin Rigg East Limited, RWE Renewables UK Robin Rigg West Limited, RWE Renewables UK Wind Limited, RWE Renewables UK Zone Six Limited, RWE SUPPLY TRADING TURKEY ENERJI ANONIM SIRKETI, RWE Slovak Holding B.V., RWE Slovensko s.r.o., RWE Solar Development, RWE Solar PV, RWE Supply & Trading GmbH, RWE Supply and Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, RWE Supply & Trading (India) Private Limited, RWE Supply & Trading Asia-Pacific PTE. LTD., RWE Supply & Trading CZ, RWE Supply & Trading CZ GmbH, RWE Supply & Trading GmbH, RWE Supply & Trading Participations Limited, RWE TECNOLOGIA LTDA, RWE Technology International Energy Environment Engineering GmbH, RWE Technology International GmbH, RWE Technology Tasarim ve Muhendislik Danismanlik Ticaret Limited Sirketi, RWE Technology UK Limited, RWE Trading Americas Inc., RWE Trading Services GmbH, RWE Trading Services Limited, RWE Wind Denmark AB, RWE Wind Karehamn AB, RWE Wind Norway AB, RWE Wind Projects AB, RWE Wind Service Italia S.r.l., RWE Wind Services Denmark A/S, RWE Wind Services GmbH, RWE Wind Services Norway AS, RWE Wind Songkjlen AS, RWE Windparks Deutschland GmbH, RWEST Middle East Holdings B.V., RWEST PI Bras Limited, RWEST PI FRE Holding LLC, RWEST PI Limetree GmbH, RWE & Turcas Dogalgaz Ithalat ve Ihracat A.S., RWE & Turcas Guney Elektrik Uretim A.S., Radfords Run Holdco, Radfords Run Wind Farm, Rampion Extension Development Limited, Raymond Holdco, Raymond Wind Farm, Rheinbraun Brennstoff GmbH, Rheinische Baustoffwerke GmbH, Rheinkraftwerk Albbruck-Dogern Aktiengesellschaft, Rhenas Insurance Limited, Rhyl Flats Wind Farm Limited, Roscoe WF Holdco, Roscoe Wind Farm, Rose Rock Wind Farm, Rowantree Wind Farm Ltd., SAS Ile de France S.A.S., SB Retrofit, SOLARENGO Energia, SP Solarprojekte 1 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 10 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 10 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 11 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 11 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 12 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 12 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 13 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 13 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 2 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 2 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 3 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 3 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 4 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 4 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 7 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 7 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 8 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 8 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SP Solarprojekte 9 GmbH & Co. KG, SP Solarprojekte 9 Verwaltungs-GmbH, SRS EcoTherm GmbH, SVFR 12 (SAS), Sand Bluff WF Holdco, Sand Bluff Wind Farm, Santa Severa Centrale PV s.a.s. (s.r.l.), Scioto Solar LLC, Settlers Trail Wind Farm, Snow Shoe Wind Farm, Sofia Offshore Wind Farm Holdings Limited, Sofia Offshore Wind Farm Limited, Solar Holding India GmbH, Solar Holding Poland GmbH, Songkjlen Wind Farm DA, Sparta North, Sparta South, Stella Holdco, Stella Wind Farm, Stillwater Energy Storage, Stockton Solar I, Stockton Solar II, Storage Facility 1 Ltd., Sun Data GmbH (i.L.), Sunpow 1 Sp. z o.o., Sunrise Energy Generation Pvt. Ltd., Sunrise Wind Holdings, Taber Solar 1 Inc., Taber Solar 2 Inc., Tamworth Holdings, Tanager Holdings, Tech Park Solar, Terrapin Hills LLC, The Hollies Wind Farm Limited, Three Rocks Solar, Tierra Blanca Wind Farm, Tipton Wind, Transpower Limited, Triton Knoll HoldCo Limited, Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm Limited, VDE Komplementar GmbH, VDE Projects GmbH, VSE Call centrum, VSE Ekoenergia, Valencia Solar, Valverde Wind Farm, Venado Wind Farm, Versuchsatomkraftwerk Kahl GmbH, Vici Wind Farm, Vici Wind Farm II, Vici Wind Farm III, Vortex Energy Deutschland GmbH, Vortex Energy Windpark GmbH & Co. KG, Vychodoslovenska distribucna, Vychodoslovenska energetika Holding a.s., Vychodoslovenska energetika a.s., WIT Ranch Wind Farm, WKN Windkraft Nord GmbH & Co. Windpark Wonkhausen KG, WR Graceland Solar, West Raymond Holdco, West Raymond Wind Farm, West of the Pecos Holdco, West of the Pecos Solar, Wildcat Wind Farm II, Wildcat Wind Farm III, Willowbrook Solar I, Wind Farm Deliceto s.r.l., Windpark Eekerpolder B.V., Windpark Holzerberg GmbH & Co. KG, Windpark Kattenberg B.V., Windpark Nordsee Ost GmbH, Windpark Oostpolderdijk B.V., Windpark Winterlingen-Alb GmbH & Co. KG, Windpark Zuidwester B.V., Wiregrass, Zielone Glowczyce Sp. z o.o., iWATT s.r.o., innogy Bergheim Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Brise Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Energy Marketing Australia PTY LTD, innogy Evendorf Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Gas Storage, innogy Gas Storage NWE GmbH, innogy Hillston Sun Farm Holding Pty. Ltd., innogy Horup Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Italia s.p.a., innogy Kaskasi GmbH, innogy Lengerich Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Limondale Sun Farm Holding Pty. Ltd., innogy Luneburger Heide Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Middle East & North Africa Ltd., innogy Mistral Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Offshore Wind Netherlands B.V., innogy Offshore Wind Netherlands Participations I B.V., innogy Offshore Wind Netherlands Participations II B.V, innogy Offshore Wind Netherlands Participations III B.V, innogy Offshore Wind Netherlands Participations IV B.V., innogy Renewables Benelux B.V., innogy Renewables Beteiligungs GmbH, innogy Renewables Canada Inc., innogy Renewables Polska Sp. z o.o., innogy SE, innogy Seabreeze II GmbH & Co. KG, innogy Seabreeze II Verwaltungs GmbH, innogy Slovensko s.r.o., innogy Solar Netherlands B.V., innogy Solar Polska Sp. z o.o., innogy Solutions s.r.o., innogy Sommerland Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Spain, innogy Suderdeich Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Titz Windparkbetriebsgesellschaft mbH, innogy Wind Onshore Deutschland GmbH, innogy Windpark Bedburg GmbH & Co. KG, innogy Windpark Bedburg Verwaltungs GmbH, innogy Windpark Garzweiler GmbH & Co. KG, innogy Windpark Papenhagen GmbH & Co. KG, innogy Windpark Papenhagen Verwaltungs GmbH, innogy Windpower Netherlands B.V., innogy indeland Windpark Eschweiler GmbH & Co. KG, and innogy indeland Windpark Eschweiler Verwaltungs GmbH. The following companies are subsidiares of Crown: Adularia Inversiones 2010 S.L., Angleboard Sweden AB, Bates Cargo-Pak ApS, Butimove, CMB Machinery and Technology (Shanghai) Co Ltd, CROWN AP (Thailand) Company Limited, CROWN Aerosols & Promotional Nederland, CROWN Aerosols Italia Srl, CROWN Aerosols Nederland BV, CROWN Aerosols UK Limited, CROWN Americas LLC, CROWN Arabia Can Company Ltd, CROWN Asia Pacific Holdings Pte. Ltd., CROWN Asia Pacific Investments (T) Limited, CROWN Bevcan Espana S.L., CROWN Bevcan France SAS, CROWN Bevcan Slovakia s.r.o., CROWN Bevcan Turkiye Ambalaj Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, CROWN Bevcan and Closures (Thailand) Company Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans (Cambodia) Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans (Dong Nai) Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Beijing Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Changchun Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Danang Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Hangzhou Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Hanoi Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Heshan Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Hong Kong Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Huizhou Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Malaysia Sdn Bhd, CROWN Beverage Cans Nanning Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Putian Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Saigon Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Shanghai Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Sihanoukville Limited, CROWN Beverage Cans Singapore Pte. Ltd., CROWN Beverage Cans Ziyang Limited, CROWN Beverage Packaging LLC, CROWN Beverage Packaging Puerto Rico Inc., CROWN Cans Ghana Limited, CROWN China Holdings (Hong Kong) Limited, CROWN Commercial Belgium BVBA, CROWN Commercial France SAS, CROWN Commercial Germany GmbH & Co. KG, CROWN Commercial Hungary Kft, CROWN Commercial Netherlands B.V., CROWN Commercial Vermogensverwaltung GmbH, CROWN Cork & Seal USA Inc., CROWN Embalagens Metalicas da Amazonia S.A., CROWN Emballage France SAS, CROWN Emirates Company Limited, CROWN Envases Mexico S.A. de C.V., CROWN Famosa S.A. de C.V., CROWN Food Packaging (Thailand) Public Company Limited, CROWN Foodcan (Hat Yai) Company Limited, CROWN Foodcan (Nakhon Pathom) Company Limited, CROWN Foodcan Germany GmbH, CROWN Foodcan GmbH, CROWN Imballaggi Italia Srl, CROWN Imgallaggi Italia Srl, CROWN Italy Finance srl, CROWN Khmer Beverage Cans Limited, CROWN Maghreb Can, CROWN Magyarorszag Csomagoloipari KFT, CROWN Metal Packaging Canada Inc., CROWN Metal Packaging Canada LP, CROWN Middle East Can Co. Ltd., CROWN Packaging (Barbados) Limited, CROWN Packaging Holdings LLC, CROWN Packaging Investment (H.K.) Limited, CROWN Packaging Ireland Ltd, CROWN Packaging Jamaica Limited, CROWN Packaging Polska Sp.z.o.o., CROWN Packaging Technology Inc., CROWN Packaging Trinidad Limited, CROWN Packaging UK Limited, CROWN Promotional Packaging UK Ltd, CROWN SIEM, CROWN Senegal, CROWN Societe Malgache d'Emballages Metalliques, CROWN Speciality Packaging BV, CROWN Speciality Packaging Investment Pte. Ltd., CROWN Specialty Packaging UK Ltd, CROWN TCP Beverage Cans Company Limited, CROWN Verpakking Belgie NV, CROWN Verpakking Nederland B.V., Caretex Asia Ltd., CarnaudMetalbox Engineering Ltd, CarnaudMetalbox Food South Africa (Pty) Limited, CarnaudMetalbox Group UK Limited, CarnaudMetalbox Overeseas Limited, CarnaudMetalbox Overseas Limited, Cierres Hermeticos S.A. DE C.V., Constar International, Crown Americas Capital Corp., Crown Americas Capital Corp. II, Crown Americas Capital Corp. III, Crown Americas Capital Corp. IV, Crown Americas Capital Corp. V, Crown Americas Capital Corp. VI, Crown Brasil Holdings Ltda., Crown Canadian Holdings ULC, Crown Closures Spain S.L., Crown Colombiana S.A., Crown Comercial de Envases S.L., Crown Commercial Italy Srl, Crown Commercial Polska Sp. z.o.o., Crown Consultants Inc., Crown Cork & Seal Company (DE) LLC, Crown Cork & Seal Company Inc., Crown Cork & Seal Deutschland Holdings GmbH, Crown Cork & Seal Receivables (DE) Corporation, Crown Cork & Seal de Portugal Embalagens S.A., Crown Cork Kuban, Crown Cork and Seal Receivables II LLC, Crown Developpement SAS, Crown European Holdings, Crown Food Espana S.A.U., Crown Foodcan Turkey Ambalaj Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Crown Hellas Can Packaging SA, Crown Heshan Trading Company Limited, Crown Holdings Italia Srl, Crown Holdings Spain S.L., Crown International Holdings B.V., Crown International Holdings Inc., Crown Luxembourg Holdings, Crown Mexican Holdings S. de R.L. de C.V., Crown Overseas Investments B.V., Crown Packaging Commercial UK Limited, Crown Packaging Distribution UK Limited, Crown Packaging European Division GmbH, Crown Packaging European Division Services SAS, Crown Packaging European Holdings GmbH, Crown Packaging Lux I S.a.r.l., Crown Packaging Lux II S.a.r.l., Crown Packaging Lux III S.a.r.l., Crown Packaging Manufacturing UK Limited, Crown Packaging Maroc, Crown Receivables III, Crown Services Iberia, Crown UK Holdings Limited, Crownway Insurance Company, Dacro B.V., EMPAQUE, Fabricas Monterrey S.A. de C.V., Form Koruyucu Ambalaj Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Foshan Continental Can Co. Limited, Foshan Crown Easy-Opening End Co. Limited, Glass & Silice S.A. DE C.V., Globoplastt s.r.o., Gunther S.A.S., Haloila Bulgaria EOOD, Interstrap B.V., Josef Kihlberg AB, Kiwiplan GmbH, Kiwiplan Inc, Lachenmeier ApS, Liljendals Bruk AB, Litec France S.A.S., Mezger Heftsysteme GmbH, Mima Films S.a.r.l., Mima Films Sprl, Mima Packaging Systems S.A.S., Mivisa, Nordic S.A.S., Norsk Signode AS, Oy M. Haloila AB, PT CROWN Beverage Cans Indonesia, Package Design and Manufacturing, Prolatamex S.A. DE C.V., Quandel Verpackungs- und Foerdertechnik GmbH, SMB Schwede Maschinenbau GmbH, SMP Schwede Maschinenbau Weischlitz GmbH, SPG Denmark, SPG France Holdings SAS, SPG Germany Service Management GmbH, SPG Industrial Packaging S.a.r.l, SPG Netherlands B.V., SPG Packaging Ireland Limited, SPG Packaging Systems GmbH, SPG Packaging UK Ltd, Scybele S.A.S., Shippers Europe S.p.r.l., Signode BVBA, Signode Brasileira Ltda, Signode Hong Kong Limited, Signode Industrial Group, Signode Industrial Group AB, Signode Industrial Group Colombia S.A.S., Signode Industrial Group GmbH, Signode Industrial Group Holdings Lux S.a.r.l., Signode Industrial Group Holdings US Inc, Signode Industrial Group Lux S.A., Signode Industrial Group Mexico, Signode Industrial Group Sweden AB, Signode International Holdings LLC, Signode International IP Holdings LLC, Signode International Investment LLC, Signode Kabushiki Kaisha, Signode Korea Inc, Signode NZ Limited, Signode Netherlands B.V., Signode Packaging (Qingdao) Co., Signode Packaging (Shanghai) Co., Signode Packaging Espana S.L., Signode Packaging Group (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Signode Packaging Group Australia Pty Ltd, Signode Packaging Group Canada ULC, Signode Packaging Group NZ, Signode Packaging Systems Limited, Signode Pickling Holding LLC, Signode Polska sp. Z.o.o., Signode Singapore Pte. Ltd., Signode Sweden Holdings AB, Signode System GmbH, Signode System Packaging GmbH & Co. KG, Signode Systems (Thailand) Ltd., Signode US IP Holdings LLC, Silice De Veracruz S.A. DE C. V., Silice Del Istmo S.A. DE C.V., Silices De Veracruz, Societe Civile Immobiliere Rousseau-Ivry, Societe Civile Immobiliere des Baquets, Societe de Participations CarnaudMetalbox, Stopak India Pvt. Ltd, Strapex Austria GmbH, Strapex Embalagem L.d.a., Strapex Holdings Limited, Strapex S.A.S., Strapex Srl, Superior Investments Holdings Pte. Ltd., Superior Multi-Packaging Limited, TopFrame LLC, V.A.C. B.V., Vichisa S.A. de C.V., and Warehouse Automation Iberia S.L.. Suncor Energy Inc. operates as an integrated energy company. The company primarily focuses on developing petroleum resource basins in Canada's Athabasca oil sands; explores, acquires, develops, produces, transports, refines, and markets crude oil in Canada and internationally; markets petroleum and petrochemical products under the Petro-Canada name primarily in Canada. It operates in Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; Refining and Marketing; and Corporate and Eliminations segments. The Oil Sands segment recovers bitumen from mining and in situ operations, and upgrades it into refinery feedstock and diesel fuel, or blends the bitumen with diluent for direct sale to market. The Exploration and Production segment is involved in offshore operations off the east coast of Canada and in the North Sea; and operating onshore assets in Libya and Syria. The Refining and Marketing segment refines crude oil and intermediate feedstock into various petroleum and petrochemical products; and markets refined petroleum products to retail, commercial, and industrial customers through its other retail sellers. The Corporate and Eliminations segment operates four wind farm operations in Ontario and Western Canada. The company also markets and trades in crude oil, natural gas, byproducts, refined products, and power. The company was formerly known as Suncor Inc. and changed its name to Suncor Energy Inc. in April 1997. Suncor Energy Inc. was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada. Read More Wall Street analysts have given Vanguard Mid-Cap 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 Vanguard Mid-Cap Value ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Baker Hughes, a GE company provides integrated oilfield products, services, and digital solutions worldwide. Its Oilfield Services segment offers drilling, wireline, evaluation, completion, production, and intervention services; and drilling and completions fluids, completions tools and systems, wellbore intervention tools and services, artificial lift systems, pressure pumping systems, and oilfield and industrial chemicals for integrated oil and natural gas, and oilfield service companies. The company's Oilfield Equipment segment designs and manufactures products and services, including pressure control equipment and services, subsea production systems and services, drilling equipment, and flexible pipeline systems; and onshore and offshore drilling and production systems, and equipment for floating production platforms, as well as provides a range of services related to onshore and offshore drilling activities. Its Turbomachinery & Process Solutions segment provides equipment and related services for mechanical-drive, compression, and power-generation applications across the oil and gas industry, as well as products and services to serve the downstream segments of industry. Its product portfolio includes drivers, compressors, and turnkey solutions; and pumps, valves, and compressed natural gas and small-scale liquefied natural gas solutions. This segment serves upstream, midstream, onshore and offshore, industrial, engineering, procurement, and construction companies. The company's Digital Solutions segment provides sensor-based measurement, non-destructive testing and inspection, turbine, generator and plant controls, and condition monitoring, as well as pipeline integrity solutions for a range of industries, including oil and gas, power generation, aerospace, metals, and transportation. It serves through direct and indirect channels. The company is based in Houston, Texas. Baker Hughes, a GE company is a subsidiary of General Electric Company. Read More Wall Street analysts have given Concord Medical Services 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 Concord Medical Services wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Sino-Japanese automaker Dongfeng Honda unveiled its new brand strategy dubbed Better technology, more fashionable design, more amenities on July 22 and announced that the mass-produced vehicle model of the INSPIRE under the new strategy will hit the market in the second half of the year. Besides, its first BEV (battery electric vehicle) model will be released next year. Dongfeng Honda has been releasing different brand strategies in line with its operational actuality and development requirements at corresponding stage. Founded in 2003, the joint venture adhered to the spirit of Faith, breakthrough and foresight in the following decade on account of the needs to meet consumers' demands on models and expanse sales at the company's initial development phase. In 2014, the automaker initiated a branding action dubbed Stay ahead. From 2014 to 2017, Dongfeng Honda constructed the product lineup focusing on the SUV, middle-class model and upper medium model and achieved fast-growing sales year by year. Currently, Dongfeng Honda has completed its product deployment and will put the third vehicle manufacturing plant into production next year. In addition, the company is ambitious to achieve the 1 million-vehicles goal on an annual basis in both output and sales by 2023. Dongfeng Honda stated that the newly-launched brand strategy will penetrate into various business sectors, including the R&D, manufacturing and marketing. Going forward, the joint venture will introduce the latest achievements under the FUNTEC (fun and technology), referring to Honda's advanced technologies in powertrain, safety system and amenities. Dongfeng Honda disclosed that the production vehicle model of the INSPIRE concept, which made its debut at 2018 Auto China in Beijing, will hit the market in October this year. From the concept model unveiled before, the new model adopts Honda's refresh iconic design notion at its front face, featuring integrated layout of black intake grille and headlights as well as stylish LED daytime running lights. As to the powertrain, the new model will be outfitted with a 1.5L turbocharged engine code-named L15BR, which can output a maximum power of 194hp. Furthermore, Dongfeng Honda is scheduled to launch a BEV model boasting cutting-edge technologies in 2019, which is expected to be the BEV version of the XR-V. Vistaras international operations would help its parent SIA to pick up passengers for its long-haul flights. New Delhi: Proposing to launch its international operations soon, Vistara plans to operate flights to popular foreign tourist destinations of Bangkok, Phuket, Colombo and Male. That would make Vistara the second full-service carrier to go overseas after Jet Airways, which began flying on foreign routes almost a decade-and-a-half back. The move is set to offer consumers more flying choices at competitive ticket prices. Backed by the Tata group and global aviation biggie Singapore International Airlines (SIA), the startup carrier is set to trigger a price war on these routes. The plans on the table now are for the airline to operate seven flights a week, comprising 1,148 seats, to each city and it is currently in the process of taking regulatory approvals, an industry source said. Bird group executive director Ankur Bhatia gave a thumbs-up to the choice of Vistaras first set of international destinations, saying it will give the airline experience to launch medium and long-haul flights from India in future. The airline would have a ready-made distribution set-up in those markets and so it will do well. If they maintain service level consistency and have good flight timings, they will certainly be very successful, he said. For the winter schedule that starts from October and ends in March, Vistara plans to operate daily flights to the Gulf, Bangladesh and Singapore. SIA has its base in Singapore and Vistara will be able to leverage that connection in its efforts to score over its competitors in terms of onward passenger traffic, airport charges and distribution network. Because all the sectors Vistara has proposed to fly to are growing, I dont think it will eat into the competition. But as soon as they start operations, there is bound to be some pressure on rivals, Bhatia said. One of the fast-growing airlines, Vistara now operates a fleet of 21 aircraft. It recently agreed to place firm orders with Airbus for 13 aircraft from the A320neo family and with Boeing for six 787-9 Dreamliners. Together, the deals are valued at $3.1 billion, based on published list prices. Vistaras international operations would help its parent SIA to pick up passengers for its long-haul flights. Singapore Airlines recently announced that it would launch non-stop flights between Singapore and Los Angeles from November. It is set to get feed from India for its ultra long-haul flight to the US. Aggie the dance queen, whose Odi dance and iconic jumpsuit on the Short N Sweet music video by Sauti Sol featuring Nyashinski propelled her to fame, is also a choreographer and a costume manager at Sarakasi Trust. She spoke to Nation on life as a dance queen. Your outfit has become very iconic with your rise to fame. Where did you get it and how much was it? The designer in charge of costume picked it as the first option from the many outfits that I had carried to Sauti Sols video shoot. I bought it in Eastleigh like four months ago but that was the first time I actually wore it. I am glad it was a jumpsuit; its the right outfit that really flattered my body and complemented the dance. When did you first realise that you were becoming a celebrity? Well, I dont believe I am a celeb. I am just lucky that more Kenyans got to know about Aggie, even though she has been around for a long time. I call it Gods time. How has your new-found fame changed your life? People greet me more often now, which I love despite being a quiet person. I have more social media friends, so I am always online trying to chat with my fans, as I mentor some. My neighbours are a bit shocked to realise that I am the same chick who has been living next to them all this time. However, I still buy sukuma or beans where I used to, go to Gikomba to buy fish, walk to work and board matatus. In fact, believe it or not, this has humbled me. What is the weirdest thing that has happened to you since you became so famous? I am just shocked how things escalated from a simple dance. I cant believe that one video has brought so much inspiration and a new wave of appreciation from all over the world. When did you first realise that you would do this (dance) as a career? As a passion, it started a very long time ago. As a career I would say about six years ago. I did not go to any school, I was lucky to work at the best dance company in Africa, Sarakasi Trust. The persistent and relentless effort of my teachers Edu Ooro, choreographer Oscar Mwalo, Teacher Sly and Renee Githinji shaped me. I am now working my way up to be one of the best dancers, trainers, and choreographers in Kenya. It has taken hard work, research, discipline, prayers, passion to be the fearless, fine dancer and choreographer that I am. Which other projects have you been involved with? I did Niko na Safaricom in 2013 and appeared in several videos. Outside the country, I have done cultural programmes in Holland, Phoenix Circus Theatre in France and a launch in Nigeria, just to mention a few. About two months ago I performed at Formula 1 in Bahrain, and as of Saturday I am now a certified Zumba instructor, so I will begin classes very soon. Its been said you are going to Dubai, what are you going to do there? Yes, its true, I am performing at Kiza lounge in Dubai. Its my first solo performance; I am really excited. What would you say is your worst experience in your dance career and what did it teach you? I once auditioned for a very big project but I was turned down. It taught me that you cant always get a yes; and a no, though painful, is also okay. Sometimes a no is God teaching you to be patient because he is about to open another life changing door, just believe in the process. Your husband is a choreographer, and Showbiz industry is very challenging for people in relationships. How long have you been with your husband and how do you maintain your relationship? We have been together for four years. He held me down and believed in me even before the world did. He believed in my dream and supported me in every possible way and for that I thank and respect him. He is an angel sent my way to tame my ego. We have separate work and private life because respect and love in any relationship comes from knowing the boundaries. My husband is my critic, adviser, manager, hubby and my life. We actually hold dance competitions in the house; we have so much fun. What is next for Aggie the dance queen, and what is the one thing you want to achieve in life? Aggie the dance queen is a brand that I hope to grow beyond myself. The fans brought it to life, so I want to give back to the community. I am planning to have community outreach programmes and sponsorship. My dream is to have a healthy and educated nation through my Zumba training. Aggie the dance queen is more about using dance for women empowerment, health, inner peace, education, love, and unity. With your success, many dancers are now looking up to you, what is your advice to dancers out there? Find your passion. Remember, nothing is served to you on a silver platter, unless of course you are having dinner in a star hotel ha ha ha. Work smart, be unique, be creative, do your research. Always believe in yourself; others will support your passion if you make them believe in what you do. Respect everyone, be self-disciplined and set high goals so you have something to work towards. Remember to always compete against yourself, be better than you were yesterday; then you will know you are growing. Above all commit your work, might and thoughts to the Lord and he will expand you in every way. QUICKFIRE Whats your favourite dance move? Odi with swag. Favourite colour? Black. Favourite outfit? The jumpsuit. Whats your comfort food? Fish with ugali. App you cant live without? YouTube. One thing you could change about your body Nothing. Its perfect. Defence industries have attracted a meagre USD 10,000 (about Rs seven lakh) foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2017-18, Parliament was informed on Monday. New Delhi: Defence industries have attracted a meagre USD 10,000 (about Rs seven lakh) foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2017-18, Parliament was informed on Monday. In 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16 defence industries received USD 0.82 million, USD 0.08 million, USD 0.10 million foreign inflows, respectively. In 2016-17, the industries failed to attract foreign direct investments. Meanwhile, as many as six sectors, including coal production, ports, dye stuffs and coir industries, have failed to attract any foreign direct investments during the last financial year, according to the data shared by Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. The minister said that the government has put in place a liberal and transparent policy for FDI, wherein most of the sectors are open under the automatic approval route. "FDI is largely a matter of private business decisions and FDI inflows depend on a host of factors such as availability of natural resources, market size, infrastructure, and general investment climate as well as macroeconomic stability and investment decision of foreign investors," he said. India imports 70 per cent of its military hardware from different countries. Growth rate of foreign direct investment in India recorded a five-year low of 3 per cent at USD 44.85 billion in 2017-18. New Delhi: Even as India is under pressure from US to cut supplies from Iran, the Islamic nation became the second largest supplier of crude oil to countrys public sector firms during the first three months of current fiscal, said Oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday. Iran piped Saudi Arabia to become the second largest supplier of crude oil as Indian firms took advantage of steeper discounts offered by Tehran. PSUs bought 5.67 million tonnes of crude oil from the Gulf nation during April-June, higher than imports from Saudi Arabia. Imports from Iran were only second to Iraq. India shipped in 7.27 million tonnes of oil from Iraq. State refiners had curbed imports from Iran last year in protest against Tehrans move to grant development rights for the giant Farzad B gas field to other parties. Bigg Boss fame Lopamudra Raut is all set to make her Bollywood debut with Blood Story. She plays the lead role in the film and today along with the rest of the team, she has unveiled the first official poster of the film. The first official poster of Blood Story was released today in Mumbai in the presence of famous director of the film is none other than famous Kannada director Hemanth Hegde. The film is produced by N. Lakshmi Narayana, Blood Story stars Lopamudra Raut as one of the lead character in the film. The male lead probably is from Bollywood too. Under their unique publicity strategy the director Hemant has decided to open the secret on 11th, August in another event which will be held in BangaloreSo guys wait to know who that incredible actor is?? An exclusive rendezvous with Deccan Chronicle by Lipika Varma follows. Lopamudra is all set to debut in a film with a unique concept. The title of the film is intriguing which goes as Blood Story.Lopamudra is carrying a red umbrella and dressed in virgin white attire. Ask her whats the secret of the Bloody red umbrella? she is quick to reply, In fact you rightly guessed .its not signifying the little red riding hood instead its signifying an umbrella which turns bloody while moving in the rainsmay be?? Lopa smiles. However, the Kannada director Hemanth Hegde had indeed discussed about casting Lopa in a Kannada film. Lopa reveals then how he decided to make a Hindi film? Look! After watching me in Bigg Boss, Hemanth liked me and therefore called me to meet him. He was earlier casting me in a Kananda film. But somehow he then decided to go with this Hindi Script. The suspense ,thrill ,emotions and drama in the story line is intriguing hence director Hemant asked me if I would debut with this Hindi venture. I was really on the seventh heavan .As all of us know Hindi films have a humongous reach all over the globe. I had no reasons to say no.Also I am open to work in any regional film too if the script is good .Be it then Telugu, Tamil Marathi or Punjabi films I will like to work in it, she mentions. Adding more Lopa says, His films have been block buster films down South. After admiring my exposure in the Big Boss he had decided to cast me. Its a compliment to me when he finds my acting capabilities matching his character on reel. As an actor what more do I want?" All praises for this Kananda director Hemanth Hegde she says, Director Hemanth knows his job well. He has a few films to his credit. His few films have been remade by the Hindi film industry too. While a few were remade official and the rest were made unofficially. We all know Salman Khan is Lopamudras favorite actor so will we see her working with him in his production house is our next obvious question? After doing the reality show Big Boss, I met Salman Khan only once on some shoot. I would love to work with him in his production house. .Im very small and young to have any ego I dont have any ego when it comes to work opportunity whatever comes my way ,if the story is interesting and intriguing I would love to be apart of that film indeed, she tells. Lopa has a much grounded concept about stardom which she has started treading ion with this debut film Blood Story, Stardom is by product of our work .I do not believe in running after stardom. We need to do good work and create our own credibility .Above being a good artist we need to be a good human beingh. If we simply work in a focused manner, stardom will follow. Lopas ego has never been hurt yet but she says, there is hierarchy in every government, firm, industry and profession. Undeniably, the film industry too is not untouched by this hierarchy. I cannot compare myself with Shahrukh Khan or Vidya Balan and others. They have made a place for them with their hard work and been there for long. They are all my favourite actors I have grown watching them. However, in case I am at the same event, while the photographers are clicking me and if they see Shahrukh Khan and turn their cameras towards him, neglecting me. My ego will not be hurt. But yes, for me sharing the same platform and being with them in the same event is a huge thing. I respect this opportunity bestowed upon me. Lopa is focused in her work but she knows boys who may be hovering around her. Look! I would not deny that boys like to hover around any good looking and a beautiful girl. But I am too busy to look at anyone of them. I am focused in my work at the moment Its not all work and no pay for me. I have my other hobbies to enjoy. Undeniably, I am single and nit ready to mingle at the moment .Also I do not care about those men who may be hovering around me.simply because I know I will never fall a prey to those men hovering around me.. Instead. I believe in hunting my own prey, she concludes. Heidi Klum, 45-year old model, recently spoke about mommy shamers in an interview, reports JustJared.com. A string of Hollywood mothers, including Cardi B, Kylie Jenner and Chrissy Teigen, have been attacked on the internet by trollers shaming them about their motherly responsibilities. The Americas Got Talent judge said, People get upset, especially in Germany, if they see my daughters wearing high heels. Big deal! If we go to a restaurant, they like to get dressed up. Its fun for them. So what if they hobble on their little heels for 20 steps from the car to the restaurant? As long as theyre good kids and they get good grades, they can wear what they want to wear Director Bala has always come up with realistic, dark and different kinds of films. His last Tamil film Naachiyaar with Jyothika as the lead is now all set to release in Telugu as Jhansi. Jyothikas portrayal of a tough cop in the Tamil film received rave reviews. Kalpana Koneru subsequently bought the Telugu dubbing rights and is planning to release the film on August 3. Initially, the makers wanted to release the Telugu version along with the Tamil film, but Bala wanted to remake the film in Telugu with popular actress Anushka. However, it didnt materialise, so they waited for a long time before finally releasing it in Telugu, says a source, adding, Bala is currently busy with his Tamil film, so the makers decided to release the dubbed version since Jyothika has a good fan following here too. Hyderabad: After murdering his seven months pregnant wife on Saturday morning, the assistant bank manager jumped in front of a running train between Vidyanagar and Jamia Osmania the same afternoon. Inspector of Nallakunta police station V. Yadagiri Reddy said that Mekala Madhav, 30, who worked at a bank murdered his wife Sumalata, 25, and then killed himself due to domestic disputes between the couple. Mekala and Sumalata married ten months ago but the couple had domestic disputes and were not happy. Early on Saturday morning, Mekala killed Sumalata by strangulating her. He then left home and committed suicide, said the cop. According to the police official, Sumalatas mother went to her daughters residence at Nallakunta after getting the news about the death of her son-in-law. However, on reaching the couples residence at around 11 pm, she found the door locked and broke it with the help of neighbours and found her dead. Officials did not find any suicide note at the house but said that they will check for any personal note or diary entry that either of the victims had. Talking to this newspaper, Ramesh, Mekalas maternal uncle denied any domestic dispute and added that the couple were not having any problems. Refuting the claims of the maternal uncle, Srinivas Acharya, a family friend of Sumalata said that the couple was having differences and both of them were counselled by family elders. Mekala did not speak to Sumalata and ignored her all the time. She was depressed and sought intervention of family members. A few months ago, her family visited Mekala at his residence in Nallakunta and requested him to end all differences, said the family friend. Lingamma, approached the police and lodged a complaint at the Nallakunta police station. Jaipur: A college girl was allegedly abducted and gangraped by five youths in Bhopalgarh in Jodhpur district on Saturday. The girl has filed a police complaint against five persons and one of them is said to be the son of a local BJP leader. When the matter came to light on Monday, people gathered in large numbers to protest outside the local police station. According to reports, the police tried to hush up the matter as a BJP leaders son was one of the accused. In her complaint, the rape survivor said that she was abducted outside her college by five persons. Three of them were in a tempo and other two on a motorbike. She said she was taken to a Kaluram Vishnois house where the accused Mukesh, Sunil, Surjaram, Samander and Jitendra raped her. Banjara Hills police arrested a habitual offender on Monday who was involved in offences for over ten years in Cyberabad and Hyderabad. Hyderabad: The Banjara Hills police arrested a habitual offender on Monday who was involved in offences for over ten years in Cyberabad and Hyderabad. West Zone Addl DCP, V. Venkateshwar Rao identified the offender as Kuchipudi Laxman, 28, working as an electrician. He was earlier arrested by the SR Nagar police in November 2017 and sent to Cherlapally jail, from where he was released in May 2018. Laxman has been booked for house burglaries in KPHB, Kukatpally and SR Nagar police station limits in 2018. D. Govind, 39, approached Banjara Hills police after he noticed that someone had gained access to his house by breaking open the door and stole gold worth Rs 25,000. Govind told the police that he went out of city to attend a function on July 5 and when he returned on July 8, he noticed that the lock at the main entrance was broken. According to officials, Laxman would identify locked houses and break them open at night. Officials recovered 58 gm gold and two cellphones from his possession.A case has been booked against Laxman at the Banjara Hills police station under sections of IPC. Haroon also revealed that later when his family demanded justice, the police asked them not to file any case against them. (Photo: ANI) Chennai: A 22-year-old boy was allegedly beaten up by a sub-inspector in Chennai for refusing to pay a bribe. Speaking to ANI, the victim, Haroon Sait, revealed that he asked the policeman to confiscate his bike, but the cop got angry and started assaulting him. "I didn't have my original RC (registration certificate). I told police that it is too late in the night and that they can give me a receipt and confiscate my bike. I told them that I will come the next day to take the bike, but the policeman got angry and started thrashing me. He also snatched my phone'' said Haroon Sait. He further said that the sub-inspector thrashed him for no reason. Haroon also revealed that later when his family demanded justice, the police asked them not to file any case against them. He also revealed that this is the second such incident of police brutality he has faced. The previous case ended in a compromise. Informing that Ali had opened fake Facebook accounts of some police officers from outside the state also, police said. Guwahati: Assam police on Sunday arrested a youth who is alleged to have been operating fake Facebook account of 17 police officers, including those of the director general of police Kuladhar Saikia and Guwahati police commissioner Hiren Nath. The crime branch of the city police arrested 30-year-old Suleiman Ibrahim Ali from the city on Saturday evening. Police said that the accused has confessed to have been operating fake Facebook account of 17 IPS officers. Informing that Ali had opened fake Facebook accounts of some police officers from outside the state also, police said. ANC party leader Musalia Mudavadia has declared he will vie for the presidency in 2022. Speaking at Kiria-ini Catholic Church in Mathioya during a funeral service of the late Mzee Luka Macharia father to Sasini Limited Managing Director Mr Stephen Githiga, Mudavadi ascertained that he will be a presidential candidate saying he will not be pleading for repayment of debt as a favor to win the slot. He noted that he had crisscrossed Mt Kenya region in 2013 and 2017 campaigning for Opposition leader Raila Odinga saying the inroads he made will be the same he will make in 2022 campaigns. I will endear myself to Kenyans in all parts of the country and I will not be commanding the citizens to vote for me by force, said Mudavadi. He observed that once he takes over from Uhuru Kenyatta, he will drive the country to great heights as he urged Kenyans to support his bid. When the time comes I will sell my manifesto to Kenyans seeking their support and I will not dwell on seeking for debt repayment but I will visit all parts of the country, he said. In the fight against corruption, Mudavadi called on President Uhuru to deal firmly with culprits. He said Uhuru can only leave behind a legacy that Kenyans will live to remember for decades to come if he fights corruption. 28-year-old Muslim man Akbar Khan was beaten to death by a mob on the intervening night of 20 and 21 July when he, along with his friend, was taking two cows to their village. (Photo: File | Twitter) Mumbai: Soon after Congress president Rahul Gandhi criticised the Modi government over the Alwar mob killing while referring to the alleged apathy of the Rajasthan police in taking the victim to the hospital, the government hit back. In a sharp rebuke, acting finance minister Piyush Goyal called Rahul a merchant of hate and accused him of playing divisive politics for electoral gains. Taking to Twitter, Goyal added that the government has already assured strict and prompt justice. Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE. https://t.co/4thsyNL3nx Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 23, 2018 Union Minister Smriti Irani also lashed out at Gandhi and said that his party is presiding over the worst form of hate through vulture politics. Rahul Gandhis family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. https://t.co/kpX3n1Kcc0 Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) July 23, 2018 Meanwhile, the Ministry Of Home Affairs has sought a report from the Rajasthan government over Alwar lynching case. According to reports, Union Home Minister Rajnath is also expected to hold an urgent meeting to deal with the issue of mob killings. Earlier, Rahul Gandhi came down heavily on Modi government and said that humanity has been replaced with hatred in Prime Minister Narendra Modis brutal New India. Read: Brutal New India: Rahul Gandhi slams PM Modi over Alwar mob killing Rahul was reacting to a report revealing chilling details in the Alwar mob killing pointing towards the alleged apathy of Rajasthan police. The police allegedly took three hours to take Alwar mob victim to the hospital as they took a tea-break en route and also thrashed him at the police station. Also Read: Before taking Alwar victim to hospital, cows taken to shelter, cops had tea 28-year-old Muslim man Akbar Khan was beaten to death by a mob on the intervening night of 20 and 21 July when he, along with his friend, was taking two cows to their village through a forest area near Lalawandi village in Rajasthans Alwar. A profusely bleeding Akbar was taken to hospital but doctors declared him brought dead. (Photo: AP) New Delhi: The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday sought a report from the Rajasthan government on lynching of a 28-year-old man over suspicion of cow smuggling. Akbar Khan, a resident of Kolgaon in Haryana, and his friend were allegedly attacked when they were taking two cows to their village through a forest area near Lalawandi village in Alwar late on Friday night. A profusely bleeding Akbar was taken to hospital but doctors declared him brought dead. However, his friend managed to escape from the location. Three people have so far been arrested in connection with the case. Meanwhile, eyewitnesses have alleged a foul play by the police in the lynching incident. One of the eyewitnesses said that the police stopped outside his house and thrashed the victim. According to reports, police delayed in taking the victim to the hospital and he was in police custody for 3 hours 45 minutes before being taken to a hospital. Read: Before taking Alwar victim to hospital, cows taken to shelter, cops had tea The two cows recovered from the victim were seemed to be the polices priority. Instead of taking the victim to hospital, the police took the two cows to a cow shelter 10 km away a good one hour before Khan was brought to the health centre, dead. The incident raised questions over the government that has earlier held the state governments responsible for the lynching incidents. Congress president Rahul Gandhi slammed the BJP government after the reports of delay in police action. Also Read: Brutal New India: Rahul Gandhi slams PM Modi over Alwar mob killing Taking to Twitter, the Congress chief said that humanity has been replaced with hatred in Prime Minister Narendra Modis brutal New India citing a Deccan Chronicle report. Bengaluru: Already grappling with the enormous task of mobilising funds needed for a massive farm loan waiver, Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy is now facing a new challenge with pressure mounting on him to distribute free laptops among 1.5 lakh students doing their first year under-graduate(UG) course in the state. This was a promise made by former CM Siddaramaiah in the budget he presented before the recent Assembly polls. According to an estimate, the free laptop distribution is expected to cost the exchequer Rs 180 crore which in the present circumstances, is big money. Earlier, free laptops were distributed among SC/ST students by spending Rs 30 crore. The CM has already disappointed the student community by ruling out free bus passes for them, something which would have cost a whopping Rs 1,500 crore. Now, Congress leaders, especially Coordination Committee Chairman Siddaramaiah, are putting pressure on him to continue all the announcements made in the previous budget without delay. But Mr Kumaraswamy has been countering them asking: Where is the money? A ruling Janata Dal (Secular) MLA admitted that there was pressure from the coalition partner to distribute free laptops among all UG students. Though, it was not a promise made by his party, this was the price they had to pay for joining hands with the Congress party to form the coalition government, he said. We will do it but we can't say when it will happen." Higher Education Minister G.T. Deve Gowda said he was yet to go through the files pertaining to purchase of 1.5 lakh laptops for UG students. The government has to see the availability of funds before implementing such a big scheme. Distribution of substandard laptops would not only bring a bad name to the government but also cause financial loss. "I will take a decision in 10-15 days, he added. Amidst this, Mr Arun Shahpur, a BJP MLC and member of the committee constituted by the Council to probe alleged irregularities in distribution of free laptops among SC/ST students, told Deccan Chronicle that a number of officials of the department of higher education who smelt something fishy in laptop purchase, did not appear before the panel to record their statements. According to the BJP MLC, the department had purchased laptops at a much higher price than the market rate causing huge loss to the exchequer. Besides, the tender process was not followed by the department, he claimed adding that two BJP members (himself and Raghunath Malkapure) had refused to sign the report as a mark of protest. The report claimed that no irregularity had occurred in the purchase of laptops for SC/ST students. KRR Infra, which bagged the ICBT project, is yet to submit the bank guarantee for `14.8 crore in the stipulated time, delaying the project Hyderabad: In order to get the tax exemption from the income tax department, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has decided to hand over 175 acres of its prime land in Kokapet to the state government. According to an official, the HMDA would have to pay Rs 1,000 crore tax if it carries on with the auction and sell the land worth Rs 4,000 crore. However, the move by HMDA would boomerang if the government refused to permit the auction and decides to utilise the land for some other developmental activities. The HMDA would become bankrupt and a prolonged legal battle it fought for the land would become futile. According to highly placed sources, the erstwhile government had transferred the Kokapet land to HMDA in 2006 and gave permission to auction the same to financially strengthen the organisation. The HMDA auctioned 168 acres of land for `1,775 crore. However, a few individuals who claimed to be legal heirs of Nawab Nusrat Jung-1 challenged auction claiming ownership of the land but a division bench of Hyderabad High Court ruled in favour of HMDA. The verdict was later challenged in the apex court. After winning the legal battle in October last year, the HMDA decided to transfer the ownership rights to the government, eyeing an I-T exemption of `1,000 crore. Sources said if the government decided to use the land for a different purpose and transferred it to the revenue department, it would be a major setback to the HMDA and its success of winning the legal battle would be short lived. A senior HMDA official said that if the authority auctions the Kokapet land, it would not attract section 12AA Registration (Exemptions) which pertains to charitable institutions that are exempt from paying tax. He said that the HMDA was not in a financial position to loose `1,000 crore in the form of taxes. The official, however, said that the government has given an assurance that it would not transfer the ownership of the land to the revenue department. He said the HMDA would be the nodal agency for demarcation of layouts and auctioning them. Since the I-T department claimed that the revenues from auctions was taxable, the HMDA will now play the role of a facilitator for implementation of various welfare schemes and developmental activities announced by the government, he said. The official said a special mechanism would be set up where in the money from auctioning the Kokapet land will be deposited in the HMDAs account soon after it reaches the government. Granting bail, Justice Rajavijayaraghavan directed the priest to surrender his passport, cooperate in the investigation and not to enter the limits of the police station where the victim resides. (Photo: File) Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Monday granted bail to a Christian priest arrested for allegedly abusing a married woman in Pathanamthitta district. Johnson V Mathew, a counsellor of the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, was arrested from Kozhencherry in the district on July 13. He was charged under Section 354 (outraging modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code. Johnson Mathew, the third accused in the rape case, involving three more priests of the church, moved the high court seeking bail after a magistrate court in Thiruvalla had turned down his plea. Granting bail, Justice Rajavijayaraghavan directed the priest to surrender his passport, cooperate in the investigation and not to enter the limits of the police station where the victim resides. The Crime Branch probing the case had earlier arrested Job Mathew, the vicar of a local church. He had surrendered after the high court dismissed his anticipatory bail plea and that of two other priests, observing they acted as "predators" and took "undue advantage" of the woman. The two other priests, accused in the case, have moved the Supreme Court seeking anticipatory bail. The incident came to light after an audio clip of the purported conversation of the husband of the victim with a church official about the alleged sexual abuse of his wife by the priests was circulated on social media. Also Read: Another rape accused Kerala priest arrested, 2 others still absconding The woman's husband had in June accused five priests of using his wife's secret confession to "blackmail and sexually abuse" her. The Crime Branch registered a case following which the four priests had moved the high court seeking anticipatory bail. According to the woman's statement to police, the accused vicar had sought sexual favours from her after she made a confession to him about one of her tormentors and also threatened to reveal the contents of the confession against another accused in the case. The vicar also used to speak about sexual activities over phone and that the abuse continued till 2012, she alleged. Johnson Mathew, according to the woman's complaint, was her senior in college and got in touch with her through WhatsApp. In course of time his messages turned explicit and he also allegedly morphed her face with a nude picture of another woman and threatened to circulate it on the web, the complaint said. The FIR was registered against the priests by the crime branch after recording the woman's statement. Hyderabad: TPCC chief N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Sunday attend the meeting of PCC presidents of all states convened by AICC president Rahul Gandhi in Delhi ahead of the 2019 elections. Sources said that 12 states had been identified where the Congress remains strong and would a bag majority of the seats. Telangana state is among them. Mr Gandhi asked PCC leaders to take up extensive programmes against the BJP and non-Congress governments in the run-up to the polls. He said the Congress was trying to strike alliances with like-minded parties but asked the PCC presidents to work to strengthen the party on their own. Dont make any statements on Congress aligning with a party which will create unnecessary confusion, the PCC presidents were told. Sources said a majority of PCC leaders requested Mr Gandhi to announce candidates five-six months in advance. The distribution of three-acre land to Dalit farmers was one of the main promises of TRS president and now Chief Minister in the campaign for the 2014 elections. Hyderabad: Owners are not coming forward to sell their land to the state government for distribution to dalits under the three-acre free land distribution scheme. Though the government is offering market rate for land, it has failed to enthuse the owners. This is because the government is defaulting on timely payment of money to owners. The state government has failed to pay Rs 34 crore to landowners even though the sale deeds were executed more than a year ago. With this, the landowners have begun cancelling agreements with the government. The distribution of three-acre land to Dalit farmers was one of the main promises of TRS president and now Chief Minister in the campaign for the 2014 elections. Its implementation could not make much headway in these four years due to the scarcity of government land which is cultivable. Besides, there was a steep increase in land prices across the state, especially after the reorganisation of districts, due to which the government is not in a position to buy from private land owners. The TRS government has been able to distribute 13,568 acres so far to 5,351 Dalits. Last year, the government had purchased 3,600 acres from private landowners and entered into sale deeds. Of this, the government still owes payment of Rs 32.54 crore for an extent of 840 acres. This year, the government signed agreements to purchase another 700 acres. Of this, it failed to pay for 350 acres. Sellers are being forced to run around district ministers or local TRS leaders to get their money. With this, a few landowners have submitted petitions to the government seeking cancellation of sale deeds. The failure of the government to provide the three-acre land to Dalits had picked up by Oppo-sition parties, who have questioned the ruling party for not keeping up its election-time promise. New Delhi: Attorney General K.K. Venugopal informed the Supreme Court on Monday that video recording and live streaming of judicial proceedings can be undertaken on a trial basis in constitutional matters, which can be extended to other matters later on. The AG made this submission before a three-judge Bench comprising the Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A.M. Khanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud hearing petitions seeking a direction for live telecast of court proceedings. On July 9, the CJI had agreed in principle for this proposal and asked suggestions from the AG and petitioners Indira Jaising and others. During the resumed hearing on Monday, the AG said that a pilot project for live streaming and video recording could be undertaken initially in constitutional matters. This can be analysed after three months to ascertain how it functions technologically, he said and added that the experiment could be extended to other matters and other courts. Ms Jaising agreed with the AG, but also submitted that adequate safeguards should be made to ensure that clippings of the recordings are not used for commercial purposes. The Court listed the matter for August 3. On July 9 the CJI had said that, It was the need of the hour and had indicated that the apex court was open to the suggestion for the live telecast as it would ensure transparency and make access to justice by a litigant a reality. Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority has drawn up a plan for a night safari on a 125-acre parcel of land at Kothwalguda. The government had asked the HMDA to set up the park. A special team, after a study tour, has proposed that the night safari can have 150 species ranging from the Indian rhinoceros and pangolins to tarsiers and Asian elephants. The proposed park would have moats where visitors can see fishing cats hunt for fish. Performances by traditional tribal dancers and other cultural activities will be part of the safari. It will have trams and boats on which visitors can dine. Highly placed sources said two officials from Bernard Harrison and Friends Ltd of Singapore, principal partner (creativity and design), and general manager (business operation) Alexander Stingal had visited the site and prepared a report which stated that Kothwalguda would be an ideal location for a night safari. Minister K.T. Rama Rao had asked the HMDA to conduct a feasibility test and submit a report by September so that the government would seek necessary permissions from the Centre to start work by December. A senior HMDA official said that the Singapore experts had said that they would be ready with the designs on their next visit to Hyderabad. He said the proposed night safari would be more sophisticated than Singapore's which was built 18 years ago. HMDA, the tourism department and urban forestry department will co-ordinate with the Singapore team. The HMDA official said that the preliminary estimates of the proposed night safari would be on par with the Hyderabad Metro Rail project. The mode of execution of the project would be decided after preparing the estimates; it could be a public-private partnership just like Hyderabad Metro Rail. Hyderabad: A special court in Karimnagar has dismissed the No Objection Certificate (NOC) submitted by the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) in the case of K. Suresh Kumar, Chief Engineer in the Irrigation & CAD department, who was booked for having disproportionate assets by the same agency. TS Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao had advocated through the ACB for his bail and had pulled up the ACB for being too ready to arrest government officers on corruption charges. The court pointed out the double standards in this particular case. It said the ACB had on the one hand booked the officer, while on the other hand it has issued an NOC that will accelerate his bail petition. On July 5, the ACB had carried out multiple raids at properties owned by Mr Suresh Kumar and booked him for having assets disproportionate to his known source of income. He was found to own properties worth `3.8 crore which seemed excessive given his legitimate income as a government officer. Following his arrest, other senior officers holding plum posts in the government informed the Chief Minister in a review meeting that Suresh Kumar had been wrongly booked as most of the properties the ACB seized are owned by his children. The Chief Minister reportedly called the ACB chief and asked him to facilitate the bail petition of Suresh Kumar, the first time the head of a state has backed an accused. With the Chief Minister calling the shots, the ACB submitted the NOC to the special court at Karimnagar. Sources told this newspaper, The court dismissed the petition, asking the ACB what are the special circumstances, in this case, to issue an NOC. The court inquired whether the alleged accused Suresh Kumar was in their custody and directed the ACB to file a statement detailing the disproportionate assets it had unearthed. The court is insisting on the conclusion of the case. The source added, The court pointed out that on one side you (ACB) have registered a case and on the other, issued an NOC. The court will only act by documental evidence. The judicial custody of Suresh Kumar has been extended to July 26, 2018. The Chief Minister had even told the Governor, ESL Narasimhan, that drastic changes had to be made with regard to ACB raids and investigation of corrupt government servants. Mr Rao told the Governor that the present method of raids by the ACB is unscientific and due to that, government officials and staff feel they are being harassed by the ACB. Ford Kenya leader Moses Wetangula now says his party is firmly in the National Super Alliance (NASA), adding that he was misquoted in reports indicating that opposition outfit Nasa was dead. Speaking in Nambale, Busia County on Saturday, the Bungoma Senator said NASA affiliate parties FORD-Kenya, ODM, ANC and Wiper are bound by a pre-election agreement that holds until the 2022 elections. NASA was formed by Raila Odinga, Moses Wetangula, Kalonzo Musyoka and Musalia Mudavadi. NASA does not belong to an individual. When I was in Mombasa, journalists asked me about the status of NASA and I told them it is on its deathbed. When I said Nasa is moribund I didnt mean it was dead. By moribund, I meant the coalition is in Intensive Care Unit. Mumbai: After being embarrassed by the Shiv Senas abstention in the no-confidence motion against the PM Narendra Modi government last week, the BJP has decided not to initiate any dialogue with the Shiv Sena for an alliance for the next elections. The BJP is already preparing to go solo for the upcoming polls next year, and the state leadership has been apprised of the same by BJP president Amit Shah. Meanwhile, Uddhav Thackeray continued his tirade against the BJP and Mr Modi. In an interview given to his partys mouthpiece Saamana, the Shiv Sena leader stood by his decision to not support the BJP government in the no-confidence motion and said that the Shiv Sena is not going to fight for Mr Modis dream. Mr Thackeray and Sanjay Raut have repeatedly been slamming PM Modi and Mr Fadnavis. In other embarrassing postures by the Sena, Mr Thackeray didnt allow MP Anil Desai to be sworn in as a minister in the Union government after his name was communicated to the President. After that, in November 2014, PM Modi did not offer any more ministerial posts to the Sena. According to BJP sources, PM Modi and Mr Shah will never again compromise with the Sena. Some of the beggars who were picked up by the TS prisons department sit inside the Anand Ashram at Cherlapally. Hyderabad: The TS prisons department has picked up about 9,000 beggars so far in an attempt to take them off the roads, and is providing them shelter, education, jobs and identity documents like Aadhaar cards. DGP, Prisons, V.K. Singh said the unused infrastructure like the observation homes for boys in the Chanchalguda and Cherlapally jail premises was being used as a rehabilitation centre, where beggars are to do PT exercises and attend classes. They are employed in the petrol bunks run by the prisons department, and in its other ventures. Having homeless people asking for alms on road and at junctions among other places leaves a bad impression with tourists. Female beggars are often targeted by criminals who hire them as mules or push them into other criminal activities, Mr Singh said. Some of the inmates were happy at being given a second chance. Mr Murali Krishna, 42, who was picked up along with four others while he was asking for alms at Suchitra circle, said, It is literally a life-changing moment for us as people used to look down upon us when we went looking for a job. He is housed in the Cherlapally jail premises. We have been given a roof over our heads and proper food once again. We never dreamt that we had this in our fate, he said. A psychologist has been hired to provide them counselling. Apart from healthcare facilities on the premises, a doctor is assigned to check up on the inmates of the rehabilitation centre regularly. The initiative will be replicated in the districts as well, as most of the families travel from there to city daily. The special drive was organised to rehabilitate beggars in coordination with NGOs, the GHMC, and the police on October 20 last year. The inmates are given three meals a day and served non-veg food on Sundays, said Mr K. Arjun Rao, superintendent of the Cherlapally open-air jail. The observation homes for boys in the jail premises are vacant, as the city now has its own juvenile justice shelter homes and other services, DGP Singh said. Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said that he was fighting for the 'common mans dream' and not for 'Prime Minister Narendra Modis dreams'. (Photo: File | DC) Mumbai: The BJP is expected to go solo in Maharashtra during 2019 Lok Sabha polls, reports have claimed. Though the party is not breaking up its ties with the Shiv Sena yet, BJP chief Amit Shah has reportedly told the party leaders and workers to get prepared to fight next years general election alone. Party president Amit Shah has clearly told us to get ready to go alone and start preparations for all the 48 Lok Sabha seats and 288 Assembly seats in Maharashtra, a senior BJP functionary was quoted by The Indian Express as saying. The functionary also said that the meeting chaired by Shah in Mumbai on Sunday aimed to review poll preparations and measures to expand the electoral base of the organisation in Maharashtra. The thrust was on making deeper inroads across 48 Lok Sabha seats and 288 Assembly seats in Maharashtra, he added. According to a report in NDTV, sources said that the BJP chief asked party workers to get ready for the possibility of a triangular or even four-way contest with the BJP and the Shiv Sena fighting Lok Sabha polls separately. Meanwhile, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Monday fired fresh barbs at the BJP and said that he was fighting for the "common mans dream" and not for "Prime Minister Narendra Modis dreams". In an interview published in Sena mouthpiece Saamana, Thackeray said: We are friends of Bhartiya janata, not of any party. Uddhav Thackerays statement came two days after the party decided to abstain from the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha. Read: Issuing whip to MPs to support Modi govt in trust vote was mistake: Shiv Sena A day before the no-trust move, Amit Shah called up Thackeray and later, the BJP claimed that the Sena would support the government. The Shiv Sena also reportedly put out a whip asking its lawmakers to be present in Parliament for the vote. However, just before the no-confidence motion was taken up, the Sena said that the party would stay away in a huge embarrassment for the BJP. The same day, an editorial in Saamana said that those ruling the country are butchers who save animals but kill humans. Also Read: Nation's rulers 'butchers', they save animals but kill humans: Sena slams Modi govt The Sena had announced earlier that it will fight the 2019 elections alone. Hyderabad: Congress MLA A. Revanth Reddy has moved a PIL before the Hyderabad High Court challenging the action of the Telangana state government in allotting 10 acres of land to the My Home Constructions, My Home Industries and PR Energy Ltd at Panmaktha of Raidurg in the city. He told the court that the Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation originally proposed to sell the subject land by developing the plots to create hospitality and recreation facilities in the area, but later it has invited bids considering the entire land as a single package with an intention to allot it to the respondent companies. He submitted that the respondent companies stood as highest bidders, but they had failed to deposit of the amounts in time. He said that despite of the failure of payment as per the schedule, the government has handed over the land to the companies. He urged the court to grant stay on the companies from creating any third party interests. In a bid to encourage tourism in Kashmir, a team of Kashmiri students, studying engineering in Chandigarh's Aryans Group of Colleges have made a solar boat for Dal Lake. The two-seater boat, with the load carrying capacity of 150 kg, was launched today in a function held at Nehru Park in Srinagar. The innovation was carried out by 12 B.Tech students, mostly from Kashmir valley along with other team members from Jammu. The boat which is made up of Deodhar frame and plywood body with a front steering system is seven feet two inch long, three feet six inch wide and one foot four inch deep. Danish Rafi, one of the members of the team told ANI about the working of the boat. "The boat's battery gets charged by the solar light. This battery then gives power to the motor. There is a throat a lot steering behind the boat which is used to give direction to the boat," he added. Rafi further said that it took 40 days to make the boat and its cost was Rs. 80,000. "We are still going to do modifications in it. We are going to include rotary panel and increase the length and width of the boat. Right now it just has a capacity of two people, later it will increase to 5-10 people. Moreover, as Kashmir witnesses winter most of the times, we have given the facility to charge the battery directly through electricity," he added. Meanwhile, Syed Abid Rasheed, Srinagar Deputy Commissioner applauded the hard work of students and staff. "Dal Lake is one of the most renowned freshwater lakes and the way the students have used their creativity to bring a new innovation is commendable. We must encourage such innovations and make sure they become marketable in the near future. We will do whatever we have to do in the administration in order to promote these kids," he added. 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. According to some media reports, the shooting took place outside a restaurant while a birthday party was underway. (Photo: AP) Toronto: One woman died and at least 14 people, including a young girl, were injured after a gunman opened fire at Torontos Greektown neighbourhood in Canada. According to the Toronto police, the shooter is dead. According to some media reports, the shooting took place outside a restaurant while a birthday party was underway. The police also asked appealed the eyewitnesses to provide any information about the incident. A tweet posted by Toronto police said, "Toronto Police Chief Saunders has updated media from scene. 14 victims were shot with a handgun. 1 female adult has died. 1 young girl in critical condition. Suspect is dead (not included in 14 victim total) Witnesses call 416-808-2222 Anonymous tips 1-800-222-8477." Toronto Police Chief Saunders has updated media from scene. 14 victims were shot with a handgun. 1 female adult has died. 1 young girl in critical condition. Suspect is dead (not included in 14 victim total) Witnesses call 416-808-2222 Anonymous tips 1-800-222-8477 #GO1341286 ^sm Toronto Police (@TorontoPolice) July 23, 2018 The injured were rushed to hospitals nearby where they are currently undergoing treatment. Local television station CP24 is showing images of multiple ambulances and other first responders at the scene, with several people being treated by paramedics, an AP report said. Further details are awaited. Islamabad: A four-member medical board on Monday carried out medical checkup of former Prime Minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supremo Nawaz Sharif in the Adiala Jail. The medical board comprising cardiologist Dr Naeem Malik, medical specialist Dr Shaji Siddiqui, neurologist Dr Sohail Tanvir and Dr Mashood have taken blood samples of the ex-premier for tests while jail authorities have suggested to not shift him to the hospital yet. The doctors team said that Nawaz Sharif was unwell as he suffering from heart disease, glyceride, cholesterol and diabetes. Former Prime Ministers echocardiography and ECG will be conducted in the jail, stated medical board. Nawaz Sharif reportedly fell ill at the Adiala Jail on Sunday. Sources said that he was facing multiple health issues as the former PM is suffering from heart, glyceride, cholesterol and diabetes. Earlier, Dr Azhar Kiani and Dr Hamid Sharif Khan, who conducted the medical examination of the PML-N supremo, had requested the jail officials to shift Nawaz Sharif to a cardiology institute in Rawalpindi. Caretaker Punjab chief minister Dr Hasan Askari Rizvi had also chaired a high-level meeting to review application to shift ailing Nawaz Sharif to hospital. Earlier, PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif wrote a letter to caretaker Punjab government seeking better facilities for them at Adiala Jail. Food has a powerful way of connecting and uniting people, even across racial divides. In South Africa during the apartheid era, it was food that brought the disadvantaged and marginalised communities together. Black, Indian and mixed-race people were non-whites who suffered discrimination from the colonial government. During 1860-1911, Indians arrived in South Africa to work as indentured labourers in the sugarcane plantations of Natal. The majority of the Indians remained there after their 10-year contract ended. During this period, passenger Indians (traders) also immigrated to South Africa. Indians found an innovative way of retaining the essence of Indian cooking by enhancing it with local flavours. Combining local spices with spices from traders, an Indo-Afro fusion cuisine was born! A culinary taste with a difference, which tantalises the taste buds. From 1948 to 1994, the colonial government tried to enforce legislation called apartheid (separateness). The races were kept separate from each other. South Africa's white minority was privileged when compared with the non-white majority. Races were divided across political, social and economic lines. The Separate Amenities Act of 1953 legalised the racial segregation of public services. It was illegal for non-whites to enter restaurants and hotels because they were designated whites only. Dehumanising signage was visible in public spaces as a constant reminder. The modest Bunny Chow reached across racial divides to bring non-whites together. The mouthwatering meal was a culinary delight for all the races. Called a kota (quarter) by the local black population, this soul-satisfying dish soon became a favourite fast food for the masses. The vegetarian kota costs around $1, which can also be shared between two people. The Bunny Chow is a quarter loaf of white bread with the insides removed and the hollow part filled with spicy curried meat or vegetables. It swirls in a rich piping hot gravy. You eat it by soaking a piece of bread in the gravy and munching it down with salad (grated carrots, chopped onions and green chillies). According to one's spice threshold, hot and mild variations can be ordered. Licking your fingers is not unusual. Eating a Bunny Chow with a knife and fork is taboo its like eating spaghetti with fingers. Once tasted, you will develop a habit for more, except if you are watching your calories. It is not food for the weak stomach. Reflecting the richness of South African history, there are many stories of how the Bunny Chow originated. One version is from the word bhania, an Indian caste. Roti and rice were not easy to carry to work, so the Indians invented an ingenious idea of filling bread with vegetable curry. Chow means fast food. Another version says that during apartheid, the blacks were not allowed to associate with Indians or enter restaurants. This led non-whites to come up with innovative ideas to defy the apartheid. And Indian restaurant owners wanted ways to keep the black customers happy. The Bunny Chow, wrapped up in old newspapers as a parcel, was an easy takeaway that satisfied cravings. As a result, an affinity formed between blacks and Indians that forged deep and long-lasting friendships. Twenty-four years post-apartheid, the Bunny Chow has an identity and a place of national pride in South African cuisine. Each tasty morsel may be a distant reminder of apartheid but when multicultural friends eat together, then local is lekker (good) in the Rainbow Nation called South Africa - a home for all. SALT LAKE CITY The gadgets that makes our homes "smart" are also making them frightening for some victims of domestic abuse. People who work with abused women say they're increasingly hearing reports of high-tech harassment, including surveillance by hidden cameras and tampering with locks, speakers and thermostats. They've been reluctant to talk about it until recently, so as not to give anyone the idea, but "now that its become so prevalent, the cats out of the bag," Erica Olsen, director of the Safety Net Project at the National Network to End Domestic Violence, told a reporter for The New York Times. In the report, published June 23, writer Nellie Bowles examined the ways in which technology can be used to terrorize and control people. One woman had turned on her air-conditioner, but said it then switched off without her touching it. Another said the code of the digital lock at her front door changed every day and she could not figure out why, Bowles wrote. There have also been accounts of vengeful exes installing security cameras to spy on their former lovers, and one Texas mother said hackers infiltrated her security cameras and streamedher child's bedroom on the internet. Devices that can be controlled remotely are great if youre on vacation and want to turn on the lights in your house in the evening so criminals wont know youre not there, or if you'd like the air conditioner to start cooling the house an hour before you get home from work. PC Magazine recently named the best smart home devices for 2018, which include security cameras that can track a person around a room, door locks that can be controlled remotely, wireless lights that can change colors, and even a gas grill that can be activated via a smartphone. Security worries Only 18 million Americans were online in 1995 when Amazon opened for business, according to Pew Research Center. By 2017, nearly 90 percent of Americans used the internet, and more than three-fourths of us had smartphones. Such widespread connectivity enabled what has become known as the internet of things, or IoT, which is anything embedded with connective technology, such as an interactive Barbie that "talks" to your child, an appliance that can be programmed remotely, a speaker that responds to your questions, or a car that navigates without a driver. More than half of all American homes will be "smart" by 2021, MarketWatch recently reported. But technological advances have also led to new types of crime, and the need for conversations about ethical controls on artificial intelligence and white-hat hackers" to counter the bad guys. Writing recently for Forbes, Syed Ali, Ann Bosche and Frank Ford cited research by Bain & Co. that showed both consumers and manufacturers are worried about the possibility of misuse of smart devices. The Internet of Things continues to grow rapidly, but concerns about security remain a significant barrier and are hindering the adoption of IoT devices, the writers said. The concerns are well-founded, as widely publicized vulnerabilities have shown. Three years ago, a security researcher discovered a security flaw in Hello Barbie that could have let hackers spy on children and their families. In November 2016, hackers remotely shut off the heat in two buildings in Finland. More recently, Amazons popular Alexa recordeda private conversation and sent the recording to a third party. Many security failures occur without malicious intent, but in the wrong hands, controls to smart devices could cause harm if a grill fired up remotely sparked a fire, or a vengeful ex unlocked doors to a home late a night while a family is sleeping. Ways to protect your home The first step in protecting your smart gadgets from being used against you is to know how they work. Most high-tech devices are installed by men, research has shown. Usually, one person in a relationship takes charge of putting in the technology, knows how it works and has all the passwords, Bowles wrote in The New York Times. When a device has been compromised, sometimes all you need to do is unplug the router for a few minutes, and then plug it back in. The FBI recently asked all Americans with a home router to do this to thwart an attempted malware attack. Writing for MarketWatch, Kari Paul advised people to install all security updates promptly, especially if the product is new, and to install malware protection on both computers and smartphones. Antivirus programs only work to block 30 to 50 percent of infections, but not having one is "a guarantee you'll get hacked," Jerry Irvine, of the Chicago-based security firm Prescient Solutions, told Paul. Computer security experts recommend that people change passwords frequently, use a different password for each account and use two-step authentication when available. There's also a website where you can check to see if your information is already in the hands of hackers. Haveibeenpwned.com was developed by Troy Hunt, a Microsoft director who developed the site as a public service. And, finally, yes, you might want to put a piece of paper or tape over your computer webcam when you're not using it, just in case someone else is watching. Even Mark Zuckerberg does. PROVO It's not a car. It's not a motorcycle. It's the three-wheeled "autocycle," and the Provo-based firm that makes it wants to give driving enthusiasts an unforgettable experience behind the wheel. Incorporated in 2010, Vanderhall Motor Works started as an idea of president and CEO Steve Hall, who was at the time a purveyor of high-end and exotic automobiles, explained spokesman Daniel Boyer. The company name is a combination of his mother's maiden name, Van Dyke, and the Hall surname. Hall took half of his showroom and made it research and development for the "autocycle" concept vehicle, Boyer said. A self-taught engineer, Hall began working on what would become the state's first three-wheeled vehicle manufacturer, carving out a niche as a boutique dealer in a space that had yet to be fully tapped, he added. Innovation runs in the family. Hall is the grandson of Tracy Hall, the Ogden-born scientist known for inventing the synthetic diamond. And his father, David Hall, is a noteable businessman with scores of patents to his name and who currently owns several companies and acres of land in the Provo area. Vanderhall currently produces four models, including three traditional gasoline machines the Venice, the Laguna and the one-seater Speedster and one electric-powered vehicle the Edison 2, scheduled for release later this year. Each vintage style vehicle is designed and hand-built in the company's 80,000-square-foot Utah County facility, Boyer noted. The gas models are all built on a platform that houses a 1.4-cubic-inch, four-cylinder, turbocharged engine with a six-speed automatic transmission that can can go from zero to 60 mph in under five seconds, he said. The electric model produces up to 180 horsepower and can hit 60 mph in four seconds with a driving range up to 200 miles, he said. The base model vehicles range in price from approximately $27,000 for the Speedster, $30,000 for the Venice, $35,000 for the Edison and $50,000 for the upscale Laguna. Some manufacturer options might push the price tag up a bit, Boyer added. Because the vehicles are on three wheels, they are "federally rated as a motorcycle," Boyer explained, which means they do not have the same crash test requirements. He said the current annual production output is approximately 1,000 vehicles, but that is expected to grow significantly with the construction of a multiphase expansion project currently underway not far from the company's main offices in Provo. When finished in about seven years, the expanded facility will comprise approximately 1 million square feet of space that will house all of the company's operations, according to Boyer. Vanderhall's vehicles are designed for baby boomers who recall the joy of driving and millennials who appreciate adventure captured in a retro-styled, open-wheel experience, Boyer said. "We allow people to 'drive dreams' and we do it at a price point that is approachable for many," he said. A "speed enthusiast" himself, Boyer recalled how he accumulated 21 tickets prior to his 18 birthday before finally getting his license suspended. Ironically, in the time he has been working at Vanderhall, he has been pulled over 27 times without receiving a single citation. The main reason is that the officers are just interested in getting a closer look at the vehicle he's driving. "They just want to see it," he explained. "One cop pulled me over and just drilled me on the specs of the car and the end of the conversation was, 'Can I get a picture in it?'" He said that type of enthusiasm is what the company feels will help it grow into one of the top producers in the three-wheel market. "It's definitely more of a motoring experience than an automotive experience," Boyer said. "The goal of Vanderhall is to bring people back to the age of motoring when you would just go on a drive just for the heck of driving the destination is the drive." Lisa Dillman, senior lecturer in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, won the Oxford-Weidenfeld Prize for her translation of Andres Barbas Such Small Hands. Lisa Dillman has won the Oxford-Weidenfeld Prize, which honors a book-length literary translation into English from another modern European language, for her adroit translation of a chilling, almost gothic Spanish tale set in a girls orphanage. The international recognition for Dillmans translation of Andres Barbas Such Small Hands is her second major award. A senior lecturer in Emory Colleges Department of Spanish and Portuguese, Dillman won the 2016 Best Translated Book Award for her work on Yuri Herreras Signs Preceding the End of the World. I am delighted and proud that our colleague Lisa Dillman has received another award recognizing her approach to literary translation, which is characterized by a delicate balance of technical precision and verbal artistry, says Donald Tuten, outgoing chair of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. Dillman discovered Barba by chance while she was browsing a Madrid bookstore a decade ago. She bought his newest book at the time, La Hermana de Katia (Katias Sister), to prove her suspicion that the young man couldnt successfully capture a story focused on three troubled women. Barba proved her wrong. Dillman was mesmerized by his voice and the urgency in his words. She was even more captivated when she then read Such Small Hands, a novella that explores the inner world of childrens minds through the story of Marina, a 7-year-old girl spared in the car crash that kills both parents. Dillman was so taken with the precision of Barbas words and tone that she translated the book into English without a contract, the only time she had taken on such a challenge. She won the Winship Award, allowing her to take a semester off to meet with Barba in Madrid, to rework her translation and translate two of his other works. English-language publishers, though, were uninterested in Such Small Hands until Dillman won the Best Translated Book Award. Its tremendously gratifying that a book Ive been championing for so many years is finally being recognized, Dillman says. This is truly an extraordinary book. Contest judges cited Dillmans skill, going well beyond language to capture the tone and style that make the original so compelling. Adding to the challenge was the books structure, told in alternating chapters from the point of view of Marina and the other girls, who function as a Greek chorus. As the story progresses, the tension that quickly builds between these characters owes much to the novels tight economy of language, and to Dillmans ability to recast Barbas taut sentences and disconcerting syntax in her own comparably unsettling English translation, the judges citation reads. Dillman, a specialist in literary translation from Spanish and Catalan, is already at work on her next translation, Barbas Luminous Republic, due next year. Though she would still like to one day translate Katias Sister and continues to work with Herrera, she also hopes the latest award will again open doors. Her goal: Translations of contemporary female authors. She has one in mind but will only say it is an Argentinian writer. Translating is almost like acting, where you get into character and have the script to work from but you create your interpretation, Dillman says. People dont have the perception that what theyre seeing is modified through someone elses interpretation. SALT LAKE CITY As the emblems of the sacrament were being passed during the Fallon 3rd Wards church meeting early Sunday afternoon 60 miles east of Reno, Nevada, John Kelly OConnor sat on a couch in the west foyer just outside the chapel with a few other members of his LDS congregation. When the sacrament service was complete and as the meetings first speaker began to talk, OConnor, 48, stood up, walked through the chapels west door, drew a handgun and at point-blank range shot and killed Bert Miller, 61, a man he had known for years, witnesses and police said. "I dont know why youd ever want to shoot Bert Miller. Hes the nicest guy in the world," said Rich Hutchings, a ward member. "Its absolutely shocking." Miller died in an apparent hail of bullets. Witnesses reported hearing four to eight shots from a powerful handgun. "Pandemonium broke out," ward member Steve White said. "People were screaming and hitting the ground." "It was very loud," Hutchings said. White said he heard four to five shots. Hutchings said he didn't count, but thought it might have been more. Both men were on the east side of the chapel when the shooting began. White said he looked up and saw a man in a dark blue shirt leave through the chapel doors on the west side of the building. He remembered greeting O'Connor in the hallway before the meeting and that O'Connor had been wearing a dark blue shirt. One bullet struck another man, who was visiting the congregation from out of state. The bullet struck him in the leg. Police said the injury is not considered to be life-threatening. Witnesses and police said OConnor pointed the gun at another ward member who confronted him, then walked back through the chapel door, out of the Fallon South Stake Center, 750 W. Richards St., and to his home a block away, 901 McKay Court. Fallon police and Churchill County sheriffs deputies quickly surrounded OConnors home. A hostage negotiator reached OConnor by phone, and he agreed to surrender to officers. Fallon Police Chief Kevin Gehman said it is too soon to determine a motive, but it appeared OConnor was targeting the deceased victim, not The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or his congregation in general. Gehman said Fallon police were gathering information, preparing a search warrant for OConnors residence Sunday and conducting witness interviews. The sacrament meeting began at 12:30 p.m. Police said they received a 911 call at 12:58 p.m. One witness said police asked ward members to stay after church until after 4 p.m., collecting written statements and conducting witness interviews. An LDS Church spokesman issued a statement Sunday afternoon. "We have recently learned of a shooting in Fallon, Nevada, during a church service," Eric Hawkins said. "Details are still developing, and inquiries should be directed to local law enforcement personnel. "We express our love to those in this congregation and our prayers for the victims and their families. Local leaders are ministering to them at this time." "It's traumatic," Hutchings said. "I feel so bad for the Miller family. Bert's been 100 percent active all his life and a good servant, and he's never done anything wrong in his life. It's just shocking today could turn into something like this." Two church members said OConnor had attended ward meetings sporadically over the past year. LDS Church policy prohibits guns in church meetings. "Churches are dedicated for the worship of God and as havens from the cares and concerns of the world," according to Handbook 2, a manual for church leaders. "The carrying of lethal weapons, concealed or otherwise, within their walls is inappropriate except as required by officers of the law." After the shooting, another member of the ward confronted OConnor, who pointed the gun at him and said, "This isnt about you," Hutchings said. Police moved the congregation into the cultural hall and sealed off the chapel, according to White. A man with O'Connor's same name and address ran as a Libertarian for the District 38 seat in the state assembly in 2014, losing the general election. His campaign website stated, "As your Assemblyman, I will support a joint resolution to amend the Nevada Constitution to impose term limits on those who have managed to avoid them," according to Ballotpedia. He also said he would encourage the state assembly to pass legislation prohibiting the taxation of intrastate firearms, ammunition, parts and accessories produced and purchased in Nevada. In 2010, O'Connor lost as the Democratic Party's candidate for District 35. KAMAS Authorities and volunteers continue to search for a Lehi teacher who went missing on a camping trip last week. Summit County Sheriff's officials say 66-year-old Ray Humpherys of South Jordan was camping with his family during an annual trip near Hidden Lake in the Wasatch-Cache National Forest. Because of Humpherys' outdoors' background and knowledge, searchers are still hopeful he will be found alive, according to Summit County Sheriff's Lt. Andrew Wright. "There's definitely someone like him, who has a lot of outdoors experience, as we understand from some of the family this is his 29th year being up in that area. You know, it's definitely possible for someone to survive this long, especially if they use their natural resources," he said. Wright said at least 300 volunteers joined in the search on Sunday. The Garrett Bardsley Foundation, a nonprofit that aids in search and rescue situations, has been gathering volunteers to help find Humpherys but Monday is the group's last day on the search, Wright said. However, the sheriff's office will continue searching through the week, after which it will reevaluate and "decide what our plan's going to be," Wright said. Humpherys is a physical education teacher at Eagle Crest Elementary School in Lehi. The Daily Herald reports that Humpherys said he was going down to the lake to get water for the campfire about 10 p.m. Wednesday and didn't return. Crews from Summit, Wasatch and Davis counties along a Civil Air Patrol plane and a Utah Department of Public Safety's helicopter have been looking for Humphries since Thursday, joined by search dogs and horseback teams. Department of Public Safety divers also have unsuccessfully searched Hidden Lake. Though searchers hold out hope, "As each day goes by, we get more and more concerned based off how long it's been. It definitely does make it much more difficult to survive without proper nutrition. so it's definitely a concern for us, but I would say that there's opportunity for him to still be surviving and waiting to be found," Wright said. Contributing: Associated Press SALT LAKE CITY Last Wednesday afternoon, a giant red semitrailer full of locally produced food products parked in front of the Utah Capitol steps. After a short ceremony and a few speeches, the driver honked twice and the truck set off from Utahs capital to the nations capital. The truck is divided into three sections: the freezer, the refrigerator and the dry storage. Its stuffed with artisan breads and cheeses, doughnuts, taffy, pies, French dip, Fat Boy sandwiches, nonalcoholic brews, salsa, popcorn and vinegars, among other foods. All of this food comes from local Utah companies, mostly smaller businesses, brought together for a vision created by Sen. Mike Lee and carried out by Utah Food Industry Association and Associated Food Stores. On Wednesday, July 25 one day after Pioneer Day this mountain of food samples will be displayed across tables in the Russell Senate Office Building's stately Kennedy Caucus Room for an event called Taste of Utah. The idea is to give Washington, D.C., a literal taste of Utah and to celebrate Utah's state holiday among government leaders and workers, both Utahn and not. Utah is a culture with a strong pioneering spirit. Workers here make sacrifices to establish themselves and create great products. We want to cultivate that and spread the word, Bob Obray, senior vice president and chief financial officer of Associated Food Stores, told Deseret News. Although this is the second annual event of this kind, the tradition began long before last year. Weve been hosting small Pioneer Day events in my office ever since I was elected. Root beer floats and jello were the signature items, Lee said. The floats became kind of famous, he explained, so he decided to make the event bigger. The showcased local vendors fly to Washington Monday to explore the city, which will include tours of the Capitol, the White House and the Smithsonian museums. Heber Valley Artisan Cheese, Beehive Cheese, Rocky Mountain Pies, Lower Foods, Slide Ridge honey, Taffy Town, Casper's Creamery, Cookietree Bakeries, Gusto Brazil, Kathy Kaye Foods, Salsa Del Diablo, Creminelli Fine Meats, Stoneground Bakery, Litehouse Foods, Pepperlane Products, JulieAnn Caramels, Dunford Bakers, Apple Beer, Brigham's Brew, Lifetime Products, Ski Utah and Utah Office of Tourism are among the companies the event will highlight. Were excited to show Utah off and get quality cheese in peoples mouths, said Caralee Kohler, co-owner of Heber Valley Artisan Cheese. Kohler and her husband own a dairy farm and just introduced robotics into their milk production. They are hoping that they can show the country's political leaders the products of hardworking Utah farmers and show the benefits of the farming lifestyle. Much of the food the event will showcase is not typical fare, like cashew chipotle vegan salsa and cilantro jalapeno basil salsa from Salt Lake City-based Salsa Del Diablo. Were probably the smallest company in the mix, but we want to show people that there is good Mexican food in Utah, said Salsa Del Diablo co-founder Daniel Benites. We wanted to bring a wider awareness to small, artisan manufacturers that might not get a lot of press otherwise, said Ryan Barnes, director of dairy and prepared foods for Associated Food Stores. Barnes loves the distinctiveness that come with each local product, like a small bottle of honey wine vinegar made with honey collected by professional local beekeepers. Last year, the vendors did not get to attend the event in Washington, but this year they will be able to. We wanted to make sure local producers could tell their own stories because they tell them far better than anyone else could, Barnes said. But its about sharing more than just the food, explained Gov. Gary Herbert. He said the the food was "symbolic of policy, and that he hopes Washington learns something from Utah. We hope to bring awareness about the business models Utah provides and make businesses kinder, nicer places, said Linda Hines, manager of Stoneground Bakery, whose artisan spinach and feta and kalamata olive and thyme breads will be featured at the event. The creators of the event also hope the event will be unifying in a particularly divisive political climate, said David Davis, president and chief legal officer of the Utah Food Industry Association. Food is a universal thing that brings us together," he said. "D.C. frequently has conflict, but whether youre a Democrat or a Republican, everyone loves food. Are Sushant Singh Raput And Kriti Sanon On A Break From Their Relationship? Rumours are doing the rounds that Sushant Singh Rajput and Kriti Sanon have decided to take some time off from each other. Sushant is busy filming Kizie Aur Manny in Jamshedpur these days while Kriti has been shooting for Housefull 4 in London. The distance would have been the reason for the break but surprisingly it is not. If we go by the reports, Sushant wants to focus completely on his work at the moment. The prying eyes of the media also have something to do with it. Apparently, Sushant wants to be in the headlines for his acting ventures and not his love life. If we go back to the time, Sushant and Kriti reportedly kindled on the sets of Dinesh Vijan's Raabta. Their closeness is believed to be the reason why Sushant called it quits with his longtime girlfriend, Ankita Lokhande. Further, the actress had slammed those spreading "baseless, manufactured stories" for reading too much into a professional equation. Sushant too maintained that he was just good friends with Kriti. The two have never admitted to being in a relationship. For latest movie reviews, ratings and trailers, download the Desimartini App. Source: images.indianexpress.com Rosshan Andrrews Next Will Be A Police Thriller Director Rosshan Andrrews is bringing something interesting for the audiences this time. The director is collaborating again with scriptwriter Bobby and Sanjay who are known for their different films in Mollywood. The team has never repeated a genre or a particular theme in films they have collaborated from Notebook till Kayamkulam Kochunni. After the Nivin Pauly-starrer, the director will make a movie on the theme of a Police thriller. The director, who had previously done Mumbai Police, told, My next movie after Kayamkulam Kochunni would be a police thriller. Bobby and Sanjay is scripting the film. We are yet to cast the protagonists. The film tells the story of Kochunni in different phases of his life and it was integral for the lead actor to be able to bring changes in his physical appearance throughout the film. Moreover, after this movie, the filmmaker confirms that he will once again team up with Nivin after another movie which is set against the backdrop of sea. In Amar Chitra Katha as well as Aithihyamala, Kochunni is described as a tall, well-built and handsome man. In our minds though, such a man will not be working in a grocery store but would be a labourer in the 1830s. We all have different interpretations, and this is my version, said Rosshan. For latest movie reviews, ratings and trailers, download the Desimartini App. Source: g.ahan.in Sri Reddy Reacted On Karthis Statement Regarding Casting Couch Telugu actress Sri Reddy has once again revealed big names from South film industry. The actress has kicked up a fresh controversy after she exposed the names of Tamil celebrities, who allegedly took advantage of her. And recently, Karthi commented on this issue when Nadigar Sangam Treasurer and the actor was asked about the same. Karthi slammed Sri Reddy for her baseless allegations and asked for proof. Following Karthis statements, Sri Reddy has now responded to the actor regarding the issue. In her recent Facebook post, Sri Reddy hit back at Karthi and said, I am trying to talk with nadigar sangam..respected karthi sir's words r painful..I hope everything wl go smooth..or else I wl make u to understand my pain for sure..Nadiyar sangam is there for the solve the artist problems, Not to give useless suggestions..imagine my pain k,dnt talk logics sir. Karthi also stated that the Nadigar Sangam will not take any action without a proper complaint. So far, Sri Reddy has named AR Murugadoss, Sundar C, Srikanth, Raghava Lawrence and Sundeep Kishan in the casting couch culture. Moreover, Sri Reddy, in her recent post, has asked top actresses such as Trisha and Nayanthara to come out in the open and talk about casting couch that they may have faced. For latest movie reviews, ratings and trailers, download the Desimartini App. Source: www.bollywoodlife.com Ten investors have pledged funding to the tune of $1.4 billion for China Tower as the infrastructure company lines up its listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange. Hillhouse Capital Group will invest $400 million, which was the largest amount tabled. US-based Och-Ziff Capital Management will also be a key investor, along with companies controlled by Alibaba and China National Petroleum Corporation. China Tower had been aiming to generate $10B via its IPO, but has now revised its expectations down to $8.7B. While this is substantially lower than its initial expectations, this figure would still make the offering the worlds largest since 2014, and substantially higher than Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomis recent IPO, which fell short of expectations. The infrastructure firm is expected to make 25% of its share capital available in the IPO. With over 1.87 million sites, China Tower is the largest telecom tower firm internationally, having been created in 2015 by combining assets from Chinas Big Three operators, all of which hold significant stakes in the tower company. List of products under revised GST rates The GST Council in its 28th meeting held in New Delhi on Saturday under the chairmanship of union minister for railways, coal and finance and corporate affairs, Piyush Goyal took the following decisions on GST rate on goods. GST rates have been recommended to be brought down for specified handicraft items (as per the definition of handicraft, as approved by the GST council) from 28 per cent to 18 per cent: Paints and varnishes (including enamels and lacquers) Glaziers' putty, grafting putty, resin cements Refrigerators, freezers and other refrigerating or freezing equipment (including water cooler), milk coolers, refrigerating equipment for leather industry, ice cream freezer etc. Washing machines. Lithium-ion batteries Vacuum cleaners Domestic electrical appliances such as food grinders and mixers & food or vegetable juice extractor, shaver, hair clippers etc Storage water heaters and immersion heaters, hair dryers, hand dryers, electric smoothing irons etc Televisions up to the size of 68 cm Special purpose motor vehicles. e.g., crane lorries, fire fighting vehicle, concrete mixer lorries, spraying lorries Works trucks [self-propelled, not fitted with lifting or handling equipment] of the type used in factories, warehouses, dock areas or airports for short transport of goods. Trailers and semi-trailers. Miscellaneous articles such as scent sprays and similar toilet sprays, powder-puffs and pads for the application of cosmetics or toilet preparations. Rates reduced from 28% to 12% for: Fuel cell vehicle. (further, compensation cess also exempted on fuel cell vehicle.) Refund of accumulated credit on account of inverted duty structure to fabric manufacturers: Fabrics attract GST at the rate of 5 per cent subject to the condition that refund of accumulated input tax credit (ITC) on account of inversion will not be allowed. However, considering the difficulties faced by the fabrics sector on account of this condition, the GST Council has recommended refund to fabrics on account of inverted duty structure. The refund of accumulated ITC shall be allowed only with the prospective effect on the purchases made after the notification is issued. GST rates brought down from 18, 12 and 5 per cent to nil on: Stone/marble/wood deities Rakhi (other than that of precious or semi-precious material of chapter 71) Sanitary napkins Coir pith compost Sal leaves, siali leaves and their products and sabai rope Phool bhari jhadoo (raw material for jhadoo) Khali dona Circulation and commemorative coins, sold by Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Ltd (SPMCIL) to ministry of finance. Rates reduced from 12 per cent to 5 per cent on: Chenille fabrics and other fabrics under heading 5801 Handloom dari Phosphoric acid (fertilizer grade only). Knitted cap/topi having retail sale value not exceeding Rs 1000. Rates reduced from 18 per cent to 12 per cent on: Bamboo flooring Brass kerosene pressure stove Hand operated rubber roller Zip and slide fasteners Rates reduced from 18 per cent to 5 per cent on: Ethanol for sale to oil marketing companies for blending with fuel Solid bio fuel pellets Footwear footwear having a retail sale price up to Rs. 1000 per pair Rates reduced from 18 per cent to 12 per cent on: Handbags, including pouches and purses and jewellery box Wooden frames for painting, photographs, mirrors etc Art ware of cork (including articles of sholapith) Stone art ware, stone inlay work Ornamental framed mirrors Glass statues (other than those of crystal) Glass art ware (including pots, jars, votive, cask, cake cover, tulip bottle, vase) Art ware of iron Art ware of brass, copper/ copper alloys, electro plated with nickel/silver Aluminium art ware Handcrafted lamps (including panchloga lamp) Worked vegetable or mineral carving, articles thereof, articles of wax, of stearin, of natural gums or natural resins or of modelling pastes etc, (including articles of lac, shellac) Ganjifa card Rates reduced from 12 per cent to 5 per cent on: Handmade carpets and other handmade textile floor coverings (including namda/gabba) Handmade lace Hand-woven tapestries Hand-made braids and ornamental trimming in the piece Toran Miscellaneous change relating to valuation of a supply: IGST at 5 per cent on Pool Issue Price (PIP) will be imposed on urea imported on government account for direct agriculture use, instead of assessable value plus custom duty. The GST Council did not take up the issue of exemption from compensation cess to coal rejects from washery (arising out of cess paid coal on which ITC). It, however, issued clarifications and amendments regarding applicability of GST rate in respect of certain goods recommended by GST Council which includes: GST Council rationalises rates on select services The GST Council on Saturday decided to make exemptions / changes in GST rates / ITC eligibility criteria as also rationalise rates, make exemptions and issue clarifications on levy of GST on services. The decisions of the GST Council meeting chaired by union minister for railways, coal and finance and corporate affairs Piyush Goyal, enclosed as annexure, proposes multiple reliefs from GST taxation on select categories of services. These changes will be given effect to through Gazette notifications / circulars. The GST Council has proposed rationalisation of rates on agriculture, farming and food processing industry; education, training and skill development and pension, social security and old age support. Hotel industry has been given major relief by providing that the rate of tax on accommodation service shall be based on transaction value instead of declared tariff. Services provided in sectors like banking, IT have been provided relief by exempting services supplied by an establishment of a person in India to any establishment of that person outside India (related party). As a green initiative, GST on supply of e-books has been reduced from 18 to 5 per cent. Annexure exemptions and changes in GST rates on services: Farming, agriculture and food processing Exempts services by way of artificial insemination of livestock (other than horses); Exempts warehousing of minor forest produce in line with exemptions provided to the agricultural produce; Exempts works of installation and commissioning undertaken by DISCOMS/ electricity distribution companies for extending electricity distribution network up to the tube well of the farmer/ agriculturalist for agricultural use; Exempts services provided by FSSAI to food business operators. Education, training and skill development; GST rate reduced from 18 per cent to 5 per cent on supply only of e-books for which print version exist; Social security, pension and benefits to senior citizens Exempts services provided by coal mines' provident fund organisation to the PF subscribers from the applicability of GST on the lines of EPFO; Exempts supply of services by an old age home run by state / central government or by a body registered under 12AA of Income Tax Act) to its residents (aged 60 years or more) against consideration up to Rs25,000 per month per member provided consideration is inclusive of charges for boarding, lodging and maintenance; Exempts GST on the administrative fee collected by National Pension System Trust; Exempts services provided by an unincorporated body or a non-profit entity registered under any law for the time being in force, engaged in activities relating to the welfare of industrial or agricultural labour or farmer; or for the promotion of trade, commerce, industry, agriculture, art, science, literature, culture, sports, education, social welfare, charitable activities and protection of environment, to own members against consideration in the form of membership fee up to an amount of one thousand rupees per member per year. Banking, finance and insurance Exempts reinsurance services provided to specified insurance schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Swasthya Suraksha Mission (PMRSSM) (Ayushman Bharat), funded by government. Government services Exempts services provided by the government to ERCC by way of assigning the right to collect royalty, DMFT etc from the mining lease holders; Exempts guarantees given by central/state government/UT administration to their undertakings/PSUs. Miscellaneous Exempts GST on import of services by foreign diplomatic missions/ United Nations and other international organizations based on reciprocity; Exempts services supplied by an establishment of a person in India to any establishment of that person outside India, which are treated as establishments of distinct persons in accordance with IGST Act provisions; Prescribes GST rate slabs on accommodation services based on transaction value instead of declared tariff, which is likely to provide major relief to the hotel industry; Prescribes GST rate of 12 per cent with full ITC under forward charge for composite supply of multimodal transportation; Rationalises the notification entry prescribing reduced GST rate on composite supply of works contract received by the government or a local authority in the course of their sovereign functions: Rationalises entry relating to composite supply of food and drinks in restaurant, mess, canteen, eating joints and such supplies to institutions (educational, office, factory, hospital) on contractual basis at GST rate of 5 per cent; and making it clear that the scope of outdoor catering under 7(v) is restricted to supplies in case of outdoor/indoor functions that are event based and occasional in nature. The council has also issued the following clarifications: Supply of services provided by state and central educational boards to students for conduct of examination will be treated as exempt; Courses run by private ITIs for designated trades are exempt under GST whereas non-designated courses are taxable; GST on premium paid by the governments for implementing PradhanMantri Rashtriya Swasthya Suraksha Mission (PMRSSM) (Ayushman Bharat) is exempt from GST; Service tax / GST is applicable on services rendered by an Indian architect or consultant in relation to immovable property located outside India to Indian diplomatic missions/posts abroad; Maintenance paid by Auroville Foundation to Aurovilians is not liable to GST; Explanation inserted in notification No 13/2017-Central Tax(Rate) to define the term renting of immovable property; Certain services such as deposit works (expenses for providing electric line/plant) related to distribution of electricity provided by DISCOM, do not attract GST. Export and other trade facilitation measures Malian troops killed 11 jihadists who had ambushed them in the centre of the country, in clashes that also left one soldier dead, the defence ministry said. Armed Tuareg groups supporting the government also reported assailants executed more than 20 people on Friday in a village in the northeast. The attacks highlighted the fragile security situation in the West African nation as it prepares to hold elections on July 29, in which President Ibrahim Boubacar Keta is seeking a second term. A army patrol was ambushed by "terrorists" on Sunday morning in a forest in the central region of Segou, the ministry said in a statement. The patrol suffered "one dead and one wounded. On the enemy side, we counted 11 dead". In a separate incident on Friday, "armed men" attacked the village of Tindinbawen, near the border with Niger, according to a joint statement from the Imghad and Allies Tuareg Self-Defence Force (Gatia) and the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA). The two mainly Tuareg groups support the French and Malian forces. The "attackers proceeded to summarily execute more than 20 people including elderly people and at the same time some members of the security post of the coalition", the statement said. Mali's unrest stems from a 2012 ethnic Touareg separatist uprising, which was exploited by jihadists in order to take over key cities in the north. The extremists were largely driven out in a French-led military operation launched in January 2013. But large stretches of the country remain outside of the control of the foreign and Malian forces, which are frequent targets of attacks, despite a peace accord signed with Tuareg leaders in 2015 aimed at isolating the jihadists. The violence has also spilled over into both Burkina Faso and Niger. AFP New study puts a figure on sea-level rise following Antarctic ice shelves' collapse An international team of scientists has shown how much sea level would rise if Larsen C and George VI, two Antarctic ice shelves at risk of collapse, were to break up. While Larsen C has received much attention due to the break-away of a trillion-tonne iceberg from it last summer, its collapse would contribute only a few millimetres to sea-level rise (See: NASA releases stunning images of gigantic iceberg). The break-up of the smaller George VI Ice Shelf would have a much larger impact. The research is published today in the European Geosciences Union journal The Cryosphere. Recent, rapid warming in the Antarctic Peninsula is a threat to ice shelves in the region, with Larsen C and George VI considered to have the highest risk of collapse. Because these large ice platforms hold back inland glaciers, the ice carried by these glaciers can flow faster into the sea when the ice shelves collapse, which contributes to sea-level rise. The new study shows that a collapse of Larsen C would result in inland ice discharging about 4 mm to sea level, while the response of glaciers to George VI collapse could contribute over five times more to global sea levels, around 22 mm. "These numbers, while not enormous in themselves, are only one part of a larger sea-level budget including loss from other glaciers around the world and from the Greenland, East and West Antarctic ice sheets. Taken together with these other sources, the impacts could be significant to island nations and coastal populations," explains study-author Nicholas Barrand, a glaciologist at the University of Birmingham in the UK. He adds: "The Antarctic Peninsula may be seen as a bellwether for changes in the much larger East and West Antarctic ice sheets as climate warming extends south." Warming in the Antarctic Peninsula led, in 2002, to the dramatic collapse of Larsen B, an ice shelf just north of Larsen C. Unprecedented in its size, almost the entire ice shelf broke up in just over two weeks after being stable for the last 10,000 years. "Larsen C is the most northerly remaining large ice shelf, therefore subject to the warmest temperatures, and the likeliest candidate for future collapse. George VI is further west and south, in a slightly cooler climate, but is still vulnerable to a warming atmosphere and ocean," says lead-author Clemens Schannwell, who conducted the work while at the University of Birmingham and the British Antarctic Survey. Last summer, an iceberg twice the size of Luxembourg broke away from Larsen C. But despite the recent attention on this ice shelf, the team found its future collapse would have a modest effect on global sea level. By using computer models to simulate the interactions between the Antarctic Peninsula ice sheet and the ice shelves, the team found that the glacier response to collapse of Larsen C would add up to 2.5 mm to sea level by 2100 and 4.2 mm by 2300. "The vulnerability to change at George VI Ice Shelf and the possible sea level implications from these changes, are far greater," says Schannwell. Sandwiched between the Antarctic Peninsula and Alexander Island, George VI Ice Shelf is, at 24,000 square kilometres, around half the size of Larsen C. But it would contribute far more to sea-level rise because it is fed by larger glaciers and is very effective at holding back the ice that drains into it from these glaciers. According to the simulations presented in the new The Cryosphere study, adjustment of the glaciers flowing into it following a collapse could contribute up to 8 mm to global sea levels by 2100 and 22 mm by 2300. "Prior to our work, we didn't know what would happen to the upstream ice in the Antarctic Peninsula if these shelves were to be lost. This could have important implications for the local environment and for global sea levels, information that is essential for climate-change mitigation planning and policy," says Schannwell, who is now at the University of Tubingen in Germany. "In light of the increasing temperatures projected for the coming century, the Antarctic Peninsula provides an ideal laboratory to research changes in the integrity of floating ice shelves. This region can tell us about ice shelf processes and allow us to observe the response of inland ice to ice-shelf changes. We should view these dramatic changes in the Antarctic Peninsula as a warning signal for the much larger ice sheet-ice shelf systems elsewhere in Antarctica with even greater potential for global sea-level rise." concludes Barrand. Cryptomining replaces ransomware as most popular cybercrime malware Cryptomining has replaced ransomeware as the most-preferred cyber criminal activity, reports Skybox Security, a global provider of cybersecurity management, in a new study announced today. According to the mid-year update, which explored trends observed from January to June of 2018, is the replacement of ransomware as the cybercriminal tool of choice with cryptomining malware. In the last six months of 2017, ransomware accounted for 32 per cent of attacks, while malicious cryptominers accounted for seven per cent. By the first half of 2018, the figures had switched almost exactly - malicious cryptominers accounted for 32 per cent of attacks while ransomware dropped to eight per cent. "In the last few years, ransomware reigned supreme as the shortcut money-maker for cybercriminals," said Ron Davidson, Skybox CTO and vice president of R&D. "It doesn't require data exfiltration, just encryption to hold the data hostage and a ransom note of how the victim can pay up. With cryptominers, the criminals can go straight to the source and mine cryptocurrency themselves. There's no question of if they'll be paid or not." Cryptomining uses the computational power of compromised assets to create new blocks in the blockchain of the likes of Bitcoin and Monero. The malicious or unauthorised cryptomining approach also avoids several of the drawbacks of ransomware: The victim doesn't need to be notified of the attack in order to pay the ransom, so it can continue indefinitely in a stealth manner Cryptocurrency can be mined over long-periods of time, rather than the cybercriminal receiving a single lump-sum ransom payment There is no decision of payment on the part of the victim - the attack itself controls how much money will be generated. "Ransomware received a lot of attention in years past, especially thanks to the likes of WannaCry, NotPetya and BadRabbit," said Skybox Director of Threat Intelligence Marina Kidron and leader of the Research Lab behind the report. "To some extent, organisations took note and put effective precautions in place, ensuring they had reliable back-ups and even thwarting attackers with decryption programs. So cybercriminals found - in cryptomining - a path of lesser resistance. The recent uptick in value of cryptocurrencies also made this an incredibly profitable attack option." Other findings in the report appear to relate to this rise in cryptomining. Internet and mobile vulnerabilities made up nearly a third of all new vulnerabilities published in the first half of 2018. Google Android had by far the most vulnerabilities during that time period, exceeding the tally of the next five most vulnerable vendors combined. Android also logged 200 more vulnerabilities than it did in the second half of 2018. Malicious cryptomining has found an advantage in targeting the app store of the global market leader in mobile devices, with billions of potential targets worldwide. Browser-based malware is also on the rise in the first half of 2018. "Out of all software today, web browsers are considered the most prone to malicious attacks," said Kidron. "They constantly interact with websites and applications that cybercriminals have infected with malware like cryptominers and other threats via the web, which are notoriously difficult to detect. The cryptomining malware could be active as long as the web session is active, and 'file-less' cryptominers also can hide from conventional security tools as there's no download or attachment to analyze." No matter the payload, attackers looking to exploit vulnerabilities have more resources than ever. Not only are dark web market places rich with attack tools and services, and criminal forums ripe with information, vulnerabilities themselves have skyrocketed. New vulnerabilities catalogued by MITRE's National Vulnerability Database doubled in 2017 over the previous year, and 2018 looks to be on track to shatter even that record. The 2017 surge and continued elevated numbers is largely due to organisational improvements at MITRE and increased security research by vendors and third-parties, including vendor-sponsored bug bounty programs. But no matter the reason, organisations have to employ smarter and faster ways to find the signal in the noise and mitigate vulnerability risks before they're used in an attack. Skybox recommends establishing a threat-centric vulnerability management (TCVM) program to adapt to these changes in the threat landscape and those yet to come. The TCVM approach helps security practitioners focus on the small subset of vulnerabilities most likely to be used in an attack by incorporating vulnerability and threat intelligence with the context of their assets, network and security controls. This way, remediation is targeted at the greatest areas of risk while leveraging all response options - patching as well as network-based changes. Instantly delete email threats with 365 Threat Monitor With 365 Threat Monitor, scan all emails as they reach your users' mailboxes to detect ransomware, phishing and spam. Get real-time phone alerts, real-time security breach updates and delete threats instantly with just one click - for free! Learn More. If you operate an e-commerce company, the world is at your fingertips, and global markets offer the enticing promise of increased visibility and sales. "International expansion is a great way to mitigate risk and reliance on a single market for all your sales," noted Chris Vincent, global CEO of Practicology. "Picking up sales from international markets is a great way to offset softer sales domestically if you sell products that are unique and in demand," he told the E-Commerce Times, "or you can compete with local players on delivery or price." How to get started may seem murky, though. With that in mind, following are some tips about how to expand your sales globally. 1. Know Why You're Going Global Before venturing away from your home market, it's important to know why you're doing it. This means, in part, that you must have a sense that your products will sell elsewhere. "Global expansion is a great way to grow your business," said Peter Lukomskyj, senior vice present for products at Elastic Path. "That said, don't assume that just because you're successful in your home market you'll be successful abroad," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Do you have something unique or different enough that there is going to be a lot of demand? Test new markets to determine whether they are ready for your products, if your price-point resonates, and if you can meet buyers' expectations for overall customer experiences." Though it can be time-consuming, doing your homework before expanding globally will pay off in the end. "If you get it right, you could be that innovative company which sparks a new trend," noted Lukomskyj. "If you get it wrong, global expansion plans can erode margins quickly." 2. Work Out the Logistics It's important to know how you'll fulfill and deliver products to customers once you have them in a new market. Don't wait until you've made your first sales to figure out what you're going to do next. "A business faces many challenges when deciding to market, sell, fulfill and support customers outside of the countries where they're accustomed to doing business," Lukomskyj pointed out. "The first decision a company must make is whether to sell from their current country and then ship to the customer, or set up operations in target countries with a fully localized experience taking local payments, in local currencies, under local tax requirements," he said. 3. Know Your Market Make sure that you spend some time getting to know a country's culture before expanding into a market outside your home country. Those insights can make the difference between selling to customers and alienating them. "Understanding the local environment and its norms is a major issue," said Lukomskyj. "Shoppers from other countries can quickly be turned off if their local customs aren't respected. Black Friday would be a foreign concept in France, just as much as Singles Day would be a foreign concept to North Americans." You'll want to localize your marketing, sales, fulfillment and distribution efforts as much as possible, so that potential customers feel comfortable buying from you. "We advise our clients that they need to localize their online offer for every international market they enter if they want to compete against local retailers and etailers," said Practicology's Vincent. 4. Work Out Payments It's important to know how you'll be taking payments, and to make sure your payment processing makes sense in the country you're targeting. "It's also critical to know how people make payments. While North Americans use credit cards extensively, other countries use direct debit, online transfer and even invoicing more often," noted Lukomskyj. 5. Get Clear on Taxes and Fees One of the most common mistakes businesses make when going global is failing to investigate taxes and fees in the markets they're entering. "The highest-consequence mistakes are those with the largest financial impact," said Lukomskyj. "Do not misunderstand local tax regulations or overlook how to repatriate sales revenue to your company's primary legal entity. Some countries require a local partner to own a percentage of the legal entity selling goods in that country." 6. Partner Up You don't need to go it alone when going global. Don't be afraid to look for marketing, sales, fulfillment and distribution partners that know local markets and can help improve your business there. "Even if you are within a large company well staffed for entrance into new markets, find some partners to help you understand each major component -- marketing, selling/e-commerce, fulfilling, support," advised Lukomskyj. "There are proven approaches to test new markets to see how well your brand will perform," he added. 7. Emphasize Good Customer Service Success in selling globally -- like selling anywhere -- comes down to offering good customer service. The better customer service your business provides, the more you'll be able to get over the inevitable hurdles that accompany the process of expanding your reach, suggested Philip Rooke, CEO of Spreadshirt. "It's all about customer service," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Ultimately, you don't want people to realize it's an international business selling to them." Vivian Wagner has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2008. Her main areas of focus are technology, business, CRM, e-commerce, privacy, security, arts, culture and diversity. She has extensive experience reporting on business and technology for a variety of outlets, including The Atlantic, The Establishment and O, The Oprah Magazine. She holds a PhD in English with a specialty in modern American literature and culture. She received a first-place feature reporting award from the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists. Email Vivian. Instantly delete email threats with 365 Threat Monitor With 365 Threat Monitor, scan all emails as they reach your users' mailboxes to detect ransomware, phishing and spam. Get real-time phone alerts, real-time security breach updates and delete threats instantly with just one click - for free! Learn More. Network devices with better security will be hitting the market this year, thanks to Wi-Fi Certified WPA3, which the Wi-Fi Alliance launched Tuesday. The announcement paves the way for the proliferation of devices that support the new, more secure protocol for WiFi communication, which is designed to replace the 14-year-old WPA2. "WPA3 takes the lead in providing the industry's strongest protections in the ever-changing security landscape," said Wi-Fi Alliance CEO Edgar Figueroa. The new protocol adds features to simplify WiFi security, enable more robust authentication, and deliver increased cryptographic strength for highly sensitive data markets. "WPA3 is a welcome and long overdue update from the Wi-Fi Alliance, building and improving on WPA2," said Nick Bilogorskiy, a cybersecurity strategist at Juniper Networks. While WPA2 has been used for more than a decade, a serious flaw was discovered in it last year, he noted. "We witnessed a new attack that targeted the four-way handshake of the WPA2 protocol and tricked the victim's device into reusing an already-in-use key," Bilosgorskiy told TechNewsWorld. Helps Home Nets Resist Attacks WPA3 also replaces WPA2's flawed Wi-Fi Protected Setup with the Wi-Fi Device Provisioning Protocol. "That promises a secure method for adding new devices to a network without the need to enter passwords," explained Craig Young, a senior security researcher at Tripwire. "This mechanism makes use of public key cryptography to identify and authenticate devices, and should close up one of the weakest points in modern WiFi deployments," he told TechNewsWorld. The new protocol improves the authentication mechanisms in a way that makes home implementations resistant to attack, said James Lerud, head of the behavioral research team at Verodin. "The protocol is resistant to password-guessing and dictionary attacks," he told TechNewsWorld. "A key is only valid for a particular session, so if a session is intercepted and the key is compromised, it does not provide access to other sessions or future sessions," Lerud said. "This implementation also has the benefit of making weak password selection less damaging," he added. Home and Business Flavors WPA3 comes in two distinct modes to meet the needs of home and business users. WPA3-Personal has password-based authentication that's more resilient than WPA2 -- even when users choose passwords that don't meet common complexity recommendations. It also supports Simultaneous Authentication of Equals (SAE), a secure key protocol that's established between devices to provide stronger protections for users against password-guessing attempts by third parties. WPA3-Enterprise offers extra protection for networks transmitting sensitive data, such as those used by governments and financial institutions, by supporting the equivalent of 192-bit encryption. In addition to introducing Wi-Fi Certified WPA3, the Alliance introduced Wi-Fi Certified Easy Connect, a program aimed at reducing the complexity of connecting WiFi devices with limited or no display interface -- such as many devices designed for the Internet of Things -- while maintaining high security standards. Wi-Fi Easy Connect lets users securely add an interface-challenged device to a network through another device with a better interface, such as a smartphone, by scanning a product quick response (QR) code. While WPA3 will help with IoT security to an extent, many of the issues with IoT devices are outside the scope of the protocol, Lerud said. "Default passwords and configurations built without security in mind are still the norms in the IoT space," he noted. Time to Transition How long it will take WPA3 devices to supplant the WPA2 installed base remains to be seen. Qualcomm expects to incorporate WPA3 security features into chipsets this summer, starting with its Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 Mobile Platform and continuing to all its WiFi networking infrastructure products. Nevertheless, it could be years before WPA3 becomes a dominant router protocol. "Most routers will need a hardware upgrade due to WPA3's encryption requirements," said John Wu, CEO of Gryphon. "Then there's a new certification process, and client software will need to be rewritten, so it may take a couple of years for wider adoption," he told TechNewsWorld. "The fact that the protocol is backward-compatible with WPA2, and manufacturers seem on board, makes me think it will happen relatively quick," added Lerud. Old technologies die slowly, though, he acknowledged. For example, WEP, introduced in 1997, still lingers in the router space. Despite the security improvements in WPA3, there is no reason for consumers to rush to buy a new router that supports it, said Tripwire's Young. "Although WPA3 is based heavily on existing technologies, it is quite new, and researchers have not yet had time to poke at the technology for holes," he noted. "As with any new technology, there will likely be usability and security issues identified in various implementations," he continued. "For now, the best action is probably to keep using a strong WPA2 passphrase with WPS disabled." John P. Mello Jr. has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2003. His areas of focus include cybersecurity, IT issues, privacy, e-commerce, social media, artificial intelligence, big data and consumer electronics. He has written and edited for numerous publications, including the Boston Business Journal, the Boston Phoenix, Megapixel.Net and Government Security News. Email John. The final draft of a UN compact on migration published July 11 recognized the existence of climate refugees specifically for the first time, The Thomson Reuters Foundation reported Thursday. The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration acknowledged climate change as a cause of migration, both due to extreme weather and "slow onset events" like drought after various advocacy groups pushed for the addition. "It's the first time the international community has recognized that migration and displacement can be caused by climate change disasters and has made specific commitments on how to address that," Walter Kaelin from the Platform on Disaster Displacement told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Weather disasters displaced an average of 26.4 million people a year between 2008 and 2015, according the UN. And in March the World Bank warned that more than 140 million people in Africa, South Asia and Latin America could be forced to migrate due to climate change unless the world acts quickly to lower emissions, according to Reuters. Most of the climate change mentions in the current compact come under Objective No. 3, calling on signatories to "Minimize the adverse drivers and structural factors that compel people to leave their country of origin." The compact lists investing in "climate change mitigation" as one way to minimize these forces. The compact also calls on signatories to share information to better understand and predict climate-caused migrations, develop strategies to combat the effects of climate change, consider possible displacement when creating disaster response plans, coordinate at a regional and subregional level to make sure the humanitarian needs and rights of climate migrants are met and develop strategies to respond to the challenges posed by climate-based migration movements. "After this compact, no one can say: 'We don't see a relation between climate change and displacement and migration,'" head of climate change and resilience policy at CARE International Sven Harmeling told The Thomson Reuters Foundation. "But we'll have to see how fast and how many governments will sign up to this," he added. The compact will be officially adopted at a meeting in Morocco in December. The compact is non-binding and does not require countries to agree to targeted goals or to grant any climate migrant legal status. It was first begun in 2015 in response to the refugee crisis in Europe, which saw the largest number of refugees enter the region since World War II. The compact was originally agreed to by all 193 UN member countries, but the U.S. pulled out last year and Hungary also promised to withdraw Wednesday. The U.S. government has since come under fire for its treatment of Central American asylum seekers at the country's southern border, some of whom are partly fleeing drought and food insecurity linked to climate change. Correction: An earlier version of this article misspelled the Thomson Reuters Foundation Howor whetherto pour more money into public school coffers has emerged as one of the most divisive issues for states in this years midterm elections. In at least nine states, voters this fall will consider ambitious ballot measures that seek to increase, or in some cases curtail, how much legislatures distribute to schools. Similarly, those running for governor in states including Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin have sparred over the dynamics of their states public school spending habits and over plans to upend how their states fund schools. There are 36 governor races this year, and three-fourths of state legislature seats are up for grabs. While both Democratic and Republican politicians alike have in the past touted how much they love public schools, this years battles are supercharged by the teacher and parent activism that led to walkouts in various states, as well as fierce anti-tax and spending forces. And while the economy has roared back to life in recent years, public schools in large swaths of the country are still starved for money. State sales tax revenue has flattened as more people shop online and, while unemployment is at historic lows, earnings have not rebounded to pre-Recession levels. Options like marijuana and casino tax revenue have failed in the past to generate enough cash to meet schools pent up needs. That leaves schools more and more dependent on local property taxes. Legislatures are having a really difficult time, said Michael Griffith, a senior school finance analyst for the Education Commission of the States. Taxpayers are not willing to be taxed much more. The types of taxes we have are antiquated. Its based on an industrial economy, not a service economy. Even though the economy is fairly stable, perhaps, its not manifested in district spending. In addition, most states funding formulas are outdated, and state courts, advocacy groups, and parents have all been pushing state politicians to overhaul the way they spend between schools. A study out of Massachusetts last week found that the states 25-year-old funding formula leaves schools more than $1 billion annually short of providing students the sorts of services necessary to meet state benchmarks. Political Infighting But across the country, Republicans, who control most state legislatures, are at odds with each other over whether to continue touting tax cuts, which in states like Kansas have put severe pressure on state revenues, including for schools. And embattled Democrats are divided over what strategies will realistically bail out public schools. Nowhere, arguably, is the political infighting over school funding more intense (or consequential) than it is in Kansas. As part of a long-standing lawsuit, the states supreme court in late June said the state owes its public schools another $300 million. In response to a previous court order, the state added $500 million last spring to its public school budget. In the weeks leading up to the Aug. 7 primary, the states Republican party is divided over how to respond. Kansans are both deeply hostile toward taxes and deeply loyal to their public schools, a tightrope politicians have in the past had a tough time walking. The divide was apparent at a recent Republican forum where five gubernatorial candidates, including Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer, were all over the map on what to do about K-12 spendinggive schools hundreds of millions more dollars, defy the court order, further crack down on school spending habits, or even reinstate now-partially repealed draconian tax cuts. Gov. Colyer signed a bill paying a $500 million ransom, thinking that that would be enough, said GOP candidate Kris Kobach, who also serves as Kansas secretary of state. Look, this game is never going to end. Kobach said he would cut taxes and require districts to spend a higher portion of their money on the classroom. Kris Kobach doesnt want to support additional money for schools, Colyer countered. I think Kansas schools need that money. Otherwise, his policy will close Kansas schools, particularly our rural schools. While Republicans control 32 of the nations statehouses, Democrats this fall are looking to ride the coattails of recent teacher strikes back into power. In Arizona, where teachers across the state this spring staged a week-long walkout to protest both their salaries and school funding amounts, Democrats have blamed the Republicans tax cuts and school choice policies for funding cuts to schools. Republican Gov. Doug Ducey and the states Republican-dominated legislature have promised teachers a 20 percent raise by 2020, but teachers say thats not enough. Arizona Democratic candidate Steve Farley says if elected he will close several tax loopholes created over the years. Theres an emerging consensus here that we need to invest a significant amount of funding into the public education system, Farley said in a recent interview. This governor and this legislature have chosen repeatedly to provide corporate loopholes that have done nothing to help us. His opponent for the Democratic nomination, David Garcia, said in an interview that he will push to raise taxes on the states wealthiest residents. Weve got to be honest with Arizonans, Garcia said. Were not going to solve this issue unless we raise new revenue. We cant shuffle the deck and get out of this. Meanwhile, Ducey, who is running for re-election, has attacked his opponents as unrealistic and says closing loopholes and raising taxes would ultimately hurt the states economy. In recent weeks, Ducey has targeted his ire toward teachers who are backing a ballot measure that would raise to 8 percent the tax rate for residents who make more than $250,000 and to 9 percent for residents who make over $500,000. (Both groups are currently taxed at 4.54 percent.) Its expected to bring public schools more than $690 million a year. For the activists, for the government union, it was never about teacher pay, he said during a speech July 7. What it was truly about is what will likely be on the ballot this November, which is a tax increase. Sidestepping the Politicans Like the teachers in Arizona, both public school and anti-tax activists in other states have decided to sidestep politicians and directly ask voters to increase school funding. An anti-tax group in Oklahoma abandoned its efforts earlier this month to place on the ballot a measure that would repeal a series of new taxes that led to statewide teacher pay raises. Teachers en masse are running for state office there to push for more school funding. Floridians will consider a ballot measure that would require two-thirds of the states legislature to approve any statewide tax increase. If approved, Florida would become the 16th state to require a super-majority of its legislature to pass taxes. In Colorado, a Taxpayer Bill of Rights severely restricts the amount of money the state can spend and the amount of taxes it can collect without voter approval. Thats resulted, public school officials say, in a $6 billion shortfall over the last decade. A group of activists earlier this month gathered enough signatures to place on the ballot this fall Initiative 93, which, if passed, would raise the tax rate on corporations and those making more than $150,000 in order to bring more than $1.6 billion to the states public schools. What we heard over and over from community members is that they had no idea how bad funding for our schools has gotten and the impacts on students and educators, said Kerrie Dallman, the president of the Colorado Education Association. Our hope is that that translates to the ballot box in November. As this falls election nears, the attacks between politicians over school funding have ramped up, catching some politicians off guard. Caught Off Guard Wisconsins state Superintendent Tony Evers, a leading Democratic candidate in that states governors race, has regularly accused incumbent Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican, of slashing hundreds of millions of dollars from the states public schools. But in a glossy ad circulating around the state, Walker, along with a public school teacher, touts the states most recently approved budget, which they say added an extra $200 per pupil in spending. Were putting students first, Walker says as pictures of students studying fade in and out of the screen. And in Pennsylvania, incumbent Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf has been fending off accusations by Republican opponent Scott Wagner that his proposed new funding formula, unveiled in June during a well-attended press conference, will result in drastic cuts to the states rural public schools. Try as he might, Tom Wolf cannot hide from the fact that he is in support of a disastrous proposal that would cut $1.2 billion from 362 school districts, Wagner said in a press release. Wolf has retorted that Wagner himself has in the past supported several components of the proposal. State boards of education craft policies on curriculum, assessment, and other areas that directly affect day-to-day classroom life. But the professionals most affected by those decisionsteachersoften dont have a seat at the boardroom table. And when they do have a seat, they dont always have a vote. Just nine states specifically set aside a seat for teachers on their appointed state board of education, according to preliminary research conducted by the National Association of State Boards of Education. That includes Missouri and Delaware, where new laws were signed this summer that require a seat be reserved for a teacher. Of those, only four statesArizona, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Wyominggive teachers voting rights. Another eight states, most of which have appointed boards, expressly prohibit teachers from serving on state boards of education, NASBE found. The reasoning behind those laws, many say, is that teachers are employed by the schools those state boards govern. The rest of the states either allow teachers to serve as board members or have no mention of policies prohibiting teachers from serving, according to publicly available documents gathered by NASBE. However, not many current teachers are on state boards. (And four states dont currently have a board of education.) Despite the lack of policies granting teachers a place on the board, Kristen Amundson, the president and CEO of NASBE, said she thinks state boards of education are prioritizing teacher voice more than ever. Some statessuch as Georgia, which doesnt allow teachers to serve on the state boardhave convened teacher advisory councils to report to state policymakers on certain issues. One of the trends that were seeing with state boards of education is a desire to reach out and to listen to people who have a deep concern about education issues, Amundson said. State boards of education are often tasked with establishing high school graduation requirements, implementing federal education laws, establishing standards for accreditation of school districts and teacher-preparation programs, and setting statewide curriculum standards, along with other education policymaking. State board members are either elected or appointed, and elected boards dont usually have designated seats to represent specific education stakeholders, such as teachers. Earlier this month, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson, a Republican, signed into law a bill that adds a teacher to a nonvoting seat on the states board of education. The teacher, who will be appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate, must have at least five years of experience, and will serve for a term of four years. We welcome the opportunity to receive the insight of an active classroom teacher, said a statement provided by the states education department. He or she will offer a valuable perspective of how policy intersects with daily instruction. However, that teacher will not have voting rights, because that could be a conflict of interest, state Sen. Gary Romine told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch . State boards of education are often in charge of setting employment conditions for teachers, such as the state salary schedule. State boards are also supposed to be an unbiased body for education policymaking. Arkansas, North Carolina, Oregon, and now Delaware are the other states where teachers are on the state boards in an advisory capacity but may not vote. In North Carolina and Arkansas, the educators are current teachers of the year. And in Delaware, Gov. John Carney, a Democrat, signed into law this month a bill that adds a former state teacher of the year who is still teaching to the board as a nonvoting member. When teachers have a vote on the state board of education, that gives weight to their perspective, so theyre not just in a token role, said Ryan Fuhrman, a 7th grade science teacher in Sheridan, Wyo., who is a full member of the states board of education. Even though were fighting the same battle for great education, theres a big difference between being in the foxhole of a classroom and being back at headquarters, Fuhrman said. Anytime you expand the voices in the room, education will benefit. But as Amundson said in explaining the policies restricting teachers from voting, It is sometimes difficult for a person to vote on employment practices that are then going to govern their own personal employment. Running for a Seat at the Table? During this past year, theres been a surge of political engagement among teachers. Thousands of teachers in a half-dozen states walked out of their classrooms this spring to protest low salaries and education funding cuts. Now, a record number of teachers are running for state legislature this fall Education Week has recorded over 135 candidates . Many more are running for local school boards, and Amundson said she thinks a growing number of teachers may run for their state boards of education, too. In about a dozen states, board of education members are elected. I think teachers are becoming much more aware of how the policy world affects what they do in their classroom, she said. Amundson also predicts an increase in state legislation aiming to add teachers to state boards of education. At least three state legislatures, including Missouri, have passed bills this year to give a teacher a seat on the state board. A measure passed by the Maryland legislature would have added two teachers and one parent of a public school student to the board of education. The teachers would have had a vote, except for when the state board heard appeals from dismissed public school employees. But Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, vetoed that bill in May. Hogan said in a statement that the bill would have dilute[d] the authority of the board of education by packing it with appointees that represent the interest of lobbyists rather than those of teachers, parents, administrators, or students. The educators would have been selected by the state teachers union. Eric Ebersole, a Democratic delegate who sponsored the House version of the bill, pushed back against that claim: It didnt put special interests in, it put in the stakeholders, he said in an interview. Ebersole, a former classroom teacher, said he remembers being frustrated when well-intended state education policies were handed down without an understanding of their real-world implications. Someone who understands the point of delivery at the classroom is really critical [on a board of education], he said. Next year, Ebersole plans to reintroduce the measure, which passed through the legislature along bipartisan lines. Seeking Teacher Voice Indiana is one state that allows teachers to serve on the state board of education, although there are no current teachers on the board now. (State law requires at least six members to have professional experience in education, so there are several former teachers.) But Megan Bilbo, a high school teacher in Fortville, Ind., said shes still been able to share her input with the board through open forums. She has provided feedback to board members on proposed policies, and theyve taken that into account, she said. In some ways, Bilbo said, those type of open forums and other opportunities for teacher voice can be better than having a sole teacher representative on the board. An elementary teachers perspective is much different than a high school teachers perspective, she said. I think having one teacher on the board could be a little limiting, if the other board members dont seek additional input as well. The most important thing, Bilbo said, is that members of state boards of education are actively seeking out and listening to teachers: Ultimately, theyre the ones who are going to be implementing [the policies]. Youd think [board members would] want them to be part of that process, she said. Libyan coastguard has intercepted 156 migrants, including Nigerians, in two separate incidents as they tried to reach Europe by sea, the Navy said.? Navy spokesman Ayoub Qasim said that Libyan coastguard stopped a rubber boat carrying 116 migrants including five women? off the western Libyan town of Zuwara. He said that the migrants from different African nations had been transported to a sea base in the? capital Tripoli.? Earlier, 40 migrants including eight women and a child were stopped aboard a rubber boat late Saturday?also off Zuwara.? The 40 migrants included 19 Moroccans, 16 Nigerians, four Egyptians and a Syrian, the navy's media? centre said on its Facebook page.? In recent months, the Libyan coastguard has reported intercepting various vessels carrying hundreds of?migrants heading to Europe via the Mediterranean Sea.? Libya has descended into chaos since the 2011 revolt that toppled long-time dictator Moamer Gaddafi.? The North African country has since emerged as a gateway to Europe for people fleeing war, persecution?and poverty in their homelands. NAN Daily road closures in Glen Maye for resurfacing A four-week roadwork scheme is getting underway in the west of the Island today. Glen Maye Road between Patrick Road and Glen Maye village will be closed daily between 9am and 4pm to allow the route to be resurfaced. The road closure means bus services will be suspended after the 8.35am service to Peel until the 3.54pm service to Niarbyl to allow the work to take place. The work has been schedule to take place during the school holidays and the road will remain open at weekends. The scheme will also be paused during the Royal Manx Show to ensure the road can be used by visitors and exhibitors, while a diversion route will be signed throughout. Port Erin beach closed due to diesel Port Erin beach remains closed following a pollution incident. Coastguard crews sealed the area off yesterday after the pollution was found in the area. The lower part of the beach is covered in a light film of diesel, meaning the beach is closed at the high water mark. The Isle of Man Coastguard says the conditions will be monitored over the next couple of high tides. Members of the public are urged the avoid the lower part of the beach while the closure is still in place. The Internet reels over the revelation that James Gunn will not be directing the third Guardians of the Galaxy movie. The shock announcement came Friday. Easy Target Disney fired Gunn who wrote and helmed both Guardians Vol. 1 and 2 from the upcoming Marvel project following the unearthing of offensive tweets by a conservative news website. The campaign was spearheaded by notorious right-wing pundit Mike Cernovich. Gunn, who has been a vocal online critic of President Trump, caught the attention of Cernovich, a "Pizzagate" truther. Cernovich encouraged his many loyal followers to target official Disney and Marvel accounts with screenshots of controversial jokes Gunn had made over the years. Some of the tweets in question were a decade old and most of which have since been deleted. Gunn already apologized for many of them back in 2012, leading fans to question whether Disney already knew about them when they originally hired him. Taking A Stand Dave Bautista, who plays the hilariously deadpan warrior Drax in the hit movies, responded about the issue on Twitter. Bautista argued that the director has made mistakes, just as everybody has. Likewise, Gunn's regular collaborator and longtime friend Michael Rooker posted a now-deleted cryptic tweet in response to a fan asking what his thoughts were on the matter. "James Gunn knows. That's all that matters," wrote Rooker. Sean Gunn, brother of the beloved filmmaker and star of several of his movies, also took to social media to post a lengthy message in support of his sibling. He pointed out how much his brother has changed over the years. Chris Pratt, who plays the lead in the Guardians movies, opted not to comment on the matter during an appearance at Comic-Con in support of The LEGO Movie 2. Sen. Ted Cruz also offered his two cents on the matter, suggesting Gunn should face prosecution. "Wow. These #JamesGunn tweets are just horrible. Child rape is no laughing matter. As Texas SG, I handled far too many child sexual assaults. Truly evil. I'm glad Disney fired him, but if these tweets are true, he needs to be prosecuted," wrote the Republican. Nothing To Hide Filmmaker Gunn, who got his start working for Lloyd Kaufman's infamous low budget Troma company, posted several offensive messages on social media between 2008 and 2012. He frequently made light of subjects including pedophilia and rape. The posts unearthed by a conservative news website put pressure on Disney to sever their connection to Gunn. The 51-year-old filmmaker helmed the first two Guardians of the Galaxy movies and was set to also return as director for the third flick. Gunn released an official statement taking full responsibility for the situation. "My words of nearly a decade ago were, at the time, totally failed and unfortunate efforts to be provocative. I have regretted them for many years since -- not just because they were stupid, not at all funny, wildly insensitive, and certainly not provocative like I had hoped, but also because they don't reflect the person I am today or have been for some time," Gunn wrote. Fans Fight Back His replacement as director of Guardians Vol. 3 has yet to be announced, but thousands of fans have already signed a petition asking Disney to reinstate Gunn. The Grey director Joe Carnahan shared the petition with his Twitter followers on Saturday, when it has already garnered over 50,000 signatures in a matter of hours. As the petition gained steam, Cernovich pivoted his focus to comedians including Sarah Silverman, Michael Ian Black, and Patton Oswalt, retweeting molestation jokes they previously made. The right-wing pundit has a history of making offensive statements himself, predominantly about rape and sexual assault. Some of those now being targeted by him had tried in vain to alert their followers as to who was leading the attack on Gunn before it all came to a head. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is scheduled to begin filming in January in Atlanta for a 2020 release. Meghan Markle's family issues continue apace. The Duchess of Sussex's future sister-in-law Darlene Blount is arrested for the second time this year. Messy Domestic Situation Blount was arrested on suspicion of assault on Friday. The 37-year-old fiancee of Meghan's half-brother Thomas Markle Jr. was charged with assault in the fourth degree. The police were called to the couple's home in Oregon on a domestic violence complaint. Blount was held in jail overnight before being released on bail the following morning. Law enforcement previously attended the property on New Year's Day. Thomas Jr., 51, was involved in some kind of drunken brawl with Blount at that stage, which also landed his fiancee in jail on a charge of fourth-degree assault. Although he initially claimed Blount had hit him, Thomas Jr. later paid her $1,000 bail and advised authorities his injuries were self-inflicted. He later blamed his half-sister's engagement to Prince Harry for causing the argument. "It hasn't been easy. ... It doesn't help when you have issues and your sister is engaged to royalty. It adds a whole new level of scrutiny. We've been under a lot of stress because of all the attention. At some point you find yourself drinking too much to escape the pressure," he admitted at the time. Thomas confirmed that he and Blount would be seeking professional help for alcohol abuse and to deal with their ongoing relationship issues. Neither party attended Suits alum's wedding to Prince Harry back in May. Taking It From All Sides The Duchess of Sussex has been getting it from all angles lately, with her father, in particular, doing interviews with British tabloids to discuss their strained relationship in great detail. A source close to the newly minted royal advised she's taking it pretty hard. "She's upset ... She doesn't even know how to communicate with her dad without knowing he won't exploit her. She lives in fear that he'll leak their communication. If he's spoken this much already, why wouldn't he leak their conversation?" advised an insider. Her half-sister Samantha recently tweeted that if Thomas Markle Sr. were to die, it would be Meghan's fault. Samantha Markle is in talks to appear on the upcoming season of Celebrity Big Brother, which likely won't go down well with the royal family. Queen Elizabeth has clearly accepted Meghan into the fold as she recently gifted the newlyweds a brand new cottage to live in. The home in question is Adelaide Cottage in Windsor, formerly home to Princess Margaret's lover Peter Townsend. They are set to move in soon, leaving Harry's home in Nottingham Cottage at Kensington Palace. There are seven-gated entrances and exits to Windsor Castle, so the new place should afford the couple the privacy they crave. 2018-07-23 Maeci On 23 July Minister Moavero Milanesi went on a mission to Berlin. On that occasion, he met the German Foreign Minister, Heiko Maas. A joint press conference was held following their meeting. 2018-07-22 Maeci The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has asked the Italian Ambassador to Austria, Sergio Barbanti, to obtain clarification from the Austrian authorities on reports the government would submit a bill to give Austrian citizenship to Italian citizens of Alto Adige next September. The news was reported in the Austrian paper Tiroler Tageszeitung on Saturday. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has asked the Austrian embassy in Rome for clarification. If the reports are confirmed, the action would be considered inappropriate and substantially hostile, especially as Austria now holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union. ORLANDO (July 23, 2018): The use of an Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) approach for hip fracture operations allows patients to return home faster and get back to normal activities sooner, according to new findings presented today by researchers at the American College of Surgeons 2018 Quality and Safety Conference. Upon reviewing a site report from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP), researchers at Langley Memorial Hospital, Langley, B.C., Canada, discovered that patients who underwent hip fracture operations had higher morbidity and mortality rates and a higher prevalence of delirium than the national average. ACS NSQIP is the leading nationally validated, risk-adjusted, outcomes-based program to measure and improve the quality of surgical care in hospitals. The research was led by Lila Gottenbos, RN, BScN, a Surgical Clinical Reviewer at the hospital. "We knew we could do better, because we had already successfully applied the principles of ERAS to our colorectal patient population." ERAS is a patient-focused approach that uses evidence-based practices to improve outcomes from surgery. To address these challenges, a multidisciplinary team of nurses, surgeons, and clinicians adapted an enhanced recovery approach to meet the specific needs of their patients with hip fractures. For example, this population is at greater risk for delirium, a condition which often prolongs hospital stays and results in higher complication rates. Thus, an intervention was implemented to assess these patients for delirium preoperatively and on a regular basis for five days after their operations. "With enhanced recovery, mobility is one of the foundational process measures, but with our intervention, we were even more aggressive with mobility, specifically making sure that our patients were getting up within 24 hours of surgery and to a chair to eat at least two meals within two days after surgery," said Ms. Gottenbos. These practices were applied to every patient who had hip fracture operations from January 2016 to the present. The hospital averages 110 of these procedures per year. Study findings showed that this new care approach cut nearly two days off the average hospital stay, without increasing the readmission rate. "We are not just sending people home and then seeing them return because we sent them home too early. They are going home and staying home to recover," said Ms. Gottenbos. "Eighty-five percent of our fractured hip patients are mobilizing within 24 hours of surgery and we are sending 60 percent of these patients home within 30 days of surgery." Additionally, over a two-year span the mortality rate dropped by more than 50 percent -- from 9.7 to 4.2 percent. The rate of pneumonia, a common complication in high risk patients after an operation, fell nearly 50 percent. Furthermore, the morbidity rate decreased by 33 percent. Patients and families also received preoperative counseling about what they should expect as part of the operative and recovery experience. Study results also showed that patients were less likely to require a transfer to a nursing facility. "If you came to Langley Memorial before ERAS was implemented, you would return home from acute care about 20 percent of the time, and now we are discharging patients to their homes about 43 percent of the time, so that's a huge increase in getting patients back to their homes rather than sending them to convalescence care or residential care," said Ms.Gottenbos. Overall, this new enhanced recovery approach has raised awareness about caring for a vulnerable adult population. "The processes we instituted for our fractured hip patients have had a huge positive ripple effect," said Ms. Gottenbos. "We have seen a great shift in the way staff think about patients, caring for them with a more holistic focus, and thinking about the path to discharge as soon as the patient walks in the front door. The focus is on getting patients home safely, quickly and in better condition than when they came to us." Langley Memorial is now looking to expand this ERAS approach to other patient populations. "It's very rewarding to see that these high-risk patients can be successfully treated and sent home earlier," said Ms. Gottenbos. "We are very confident that the work we are doing gives people a better chance to return to baseline functioning and get back to their normal lives." ### The ERAS committee is composed of a multidisciplinary team who meet monthly to discuss results and provide feedback. The other study authors were Mitra Maharaj, MD, FRCSC; Abeer Syal, MD, FRCSC; Alana Larkin Grant, RN, BSN; and Stephanie Erickson, RN, MSN, all of Langley Memorial Hospital. Results were presented at the American College of Surgeons 2018 Quality and Safety Conference in Orlando, Fla., July 21-24. About the American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and improve the quality of care for surgical patients. The College is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery. Its achievements have significantly influenced the course of scientific surgery in America and have established it as an important advocate for all surgical patients. The College has more than 80,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world. For more information, visit http://www.facs.org. ORLANDO (July 23, 2018): Patients with colorectal cancer tumors on the right side may have poorer five-year survival rates than those whose tumors are located on the left side. However, a new large-scale retrospective study is the first to demonstrate a potential improvement of these outcomes. Study results show that nearly doubling the benchmark number of lymph nodes removed during operations for right-sided colon cancers improves the survival rate for these patients, according to researchers who presented these findings at the 2018 American College of Surgeons (ACS) Quality and Safety Conference. Several studies in recent years have shown that patients with colon cancers on the right side have worse short- and long-term survival rates than those with left-sided tumors regardless of the stage of the disease at diagnosis or the nature of treatment.1 Additional studies have begun to re-examine the surgical management of patients with right-sided colon cancer.2 For years the consensus among professional surgical and cancer treatment societies has held that, at a minimum, 12 lymph nodes should be removed and analyzed to determine the prognosis and treatment of patients with colon cancer on either side. The ACS Commission on Cancer (CoC) has identified this standard as a quality performance indicator for surgical treatment.3 As presented at the ACS conference, these study results are the first to link improved survival with a harvest of more than 20 lymph nodes in the treatment of right-sided cancer. Investigators from Florida Hospital, Orlando, and McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, collected information from the National Cancer Database (NCDB) about patients who underwent surgical removal of the colon for non-metastatic colon adenocarcinoma between 2004 and 2014. After adjusting for patient and disease characteristics as well as the type of systemic treatment, researchers grouped data by tumor location. Of a total of approximately 505,000 patients whose records were entered into the NCDB, 273,200 had right-sided tumors. Overall five-year survival for this group of patients with right-sided tumors was 66 percent for stage II disease and 56 percent for stage III cancer. In comparison, survival rates were 70 percent and 60 percent for patients with left-sided stage II and III cancers. Among patients with right-sided cancer, the survival rate improved by approximately 20 percent when 22 or more lymph nodes were harvested during patients' operations. Findings from the study suggest that colorectal surgeons may want to take extra steps to improve lymph node harvest for patients with right-sided disease. Colorectal surgeons from Florida Hospital and McGill University Health Centre are using near-infrared fluorescent scanning to map the lymph node drainage basins around tumors to potentially better identify lymph node metastases. "We're injecting tumors with indocyanine green dye so we can find suspicious lymph nodes. During surgical resection, we're specifically targeting those extra nodes to get better staging," said study author Lawrence Lee, MD, PhD, a colorectal surgeon and PhD in epidemiology at McGill University Health Centre. The study also may prompt surgeons to begin reexamining the type of operations they perform on patients with right-sided colorectal tumors. "Lymph node harvest is related to the extent of the surgical resection. If removal of more lymph nodes improves survival of patients with right-sided cancer, these patients may need a more extensive resection than is considered to be standard for them," Dr. Lee said. Operations currently differ for left- and right-sided colon cancers. The standard procedure for patients with left-sided cancers involves high central vascular ligation (CVL) of major blood vessels up near the aorta. CVL is not usually done for patients with right-sided cancers because the abdominal anatomy and vascular networks are complicated and operating around them increases operative time and the risk of complications.4 Surgical teams in Asia and Europe have recently reported on small, single-center studies of laparoscopic or robotic extended right-sided resections with CVL that did not increase operative time or complication rate and improved short- and long-term outcomes.5 "The kinds of vascular ligations that are required to get a greater nodal harvest on the right side mean the surgeon is dissecting around really big blood vessels. It's a larger resection overall on that side, and the more vasculature that's involved, the higher the risk for anastomotic breakdown and injury to these blood vessel. So surgeons may not want to do more resection on right-sided colon cancers," said Dr. Lee. A multicenter, randomized prospective study is required to establish the value of an extended resection and CVL on the right side. As Dr. Lee acknowledged, "We don't know the answer to the risk/reward ratio, but our study shows there's enough of a difference in survival with greater surgical resection that we need a better understanding of the way we're operating on the right side." ### Other study investigators include Arman Erkan, MD; Justin J. Kelly MD; George J Nassif, DO, FACS; Matthew R Albert MD, FACS; John RT Monson MD, FACS; from Florida Hospital, and Noura Alhassan MD, from McGill University Health Centre. Research results were presented at the American College of Surgeons 2018 Quality and Safety Conference in Orlando, Fla., July 21-24, 2018. "FACS" indicates that a surgeon is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. 1 Petrelli F, et.al. Prognostic Survival Associated with Left-Sided vs. Right-Sided Colon Cancer. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. JAMA Oncol 2017; 3(2):211-19. 2 Shia J. Lymph Node Staging in Colorectal Cancer: Revisiting the Benchmark of at Least 12 Lymph Nodes in R0 Resection. JACS 2012, 214(3) 348-355. 3 CoC Quality of Care Measures. American College of Surgeons. Available at: https://www.facs.org/quality-programs/cancer/ncdb/qualitymeasures. Accessed July 2, 2018. 4 Yee LF. What Is a Complete Mesocolic Excision for Colon Cancer. California Pacific Medical Center, Nafziger Society Surgery Day, Mar 7, 2014. 5 Petz W, et al. Suprapubic Approach for Robotic Complete Mesocolic Excision in Right Colectomy: Oncologic Safety and Short-Term Outcomes of an Original Technique. Eur J Surg Oncol, 2017, Nov:43 (11)2060-2066. An MS, et al. Oncological Outcomes of Complete Versus Conventional Mesocolic Excision in Laparoscopic Right Hemicolectomy. ANZ J Surg 2018, Jun 12, doe:10.1111.ans.14493. S Du, et al. A novel and Safe Approach: Middle Cranial Approach for Laparoscopic Right Hemicolon Cancer Surgery with Complete Mesocolic Excision. Surg Endosc 2018 May;32(5):2567-74. About the American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and improve the quality of care for all surgical patients. The College is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery. Its achievements have significantly influenced the course of scientific surgery in America and have established it as an important advocate for all surgical patients. The College has more than 80,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world. For more information, visit http://www.facs.org. About the National Cancer Database (NCDB) The nationally recognized National Cancer Database (NCDB)--jointly sponsored by the American College of Surgeons and the American Cancer Society--is a clinical oncology database sourced from hospital registry data that are collected in more than 1,500 Commission on Cancer (CoC)-accredited facilities. NCDB data are used to analyze and track patients with malignant neoplastic diseases, their treatments, and outcomes. Data represent more than 70 percent of newly diagnosed cancer cases nationwide and more than 34 million historical records. HIV diagnosis is the first of many steps in the path to global disease control. However, in Southern Mozambique, more than half of people diagnosed with HIV do not initiate the next steps in the cascade of HIV care, and this is particularly true for those that perform the test at home. The study, led by ISGlobal - an institution supported by "la Caixa" Foundation - reveals the need to develop interventions to facilitate access to care and treatment among the population. To achieve the 90-90-90 target set by the UNAIDS (diagnose 90% of people living with VIH, treat 90% of them, and achieve viral suppression in 90% of treated patients), one must increase the percentage of people that, once diagnosed, start care and adhere to the treatment. In Mozambique for example, it is estimated that barely half of the people with HIV initiate treatment after diagnosis, and less than half continue taking it 3 years later. The team led by Denise Naniche, ISGlobal researcher, aimed to evaluate whether the uptake and adherence to HIV care and treatment depend on where and how the diagnosis was done. The study was performed in Southern Mozambique and included over 1,000 adults newly diagnosed at the clinic, either voluntarily or upon health personnel recommendation, or at their homes. Three months after diagnosis, barely 44% of the participants had attended a medical visit and only 25% had initiated antiretroviral treatment. Uptake of care and treatment was particularly low among those that were tested at home, which represent an older and less knowledgeable population than those attending the clinic. In contrast, among those that did initiate treatment, 84% were still taking it 12 months later. "These results are similar to those reported for other African countries with high HIV prevalence," says Naniche, "and they show that most patients are lost to follow-up in the first phases after the diagnosis, regardless of where and how the test was done. They also reveal that those that perform the test at home represent a sociodemographically distinct population, and that we need to develop interventions such as SMS messages to help them initiate medical care and treatment. ### Posted by Mark Williams | July 23, 2018 By Richard Truesdell With Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne gravely ill, the FCA board acted swiftly to accelerate a succession plan already in place, naming Jeep and Ram executive Mike Manley as Marchionne's successor. The FCA board announced the move Saturday following Italian media reports that Marchionne's health had taken a turn for the worse due to complications arising from shoulder surgery. His condition has been called irreversible. Who Is Manley? The 54-year-old Mike Manley, of Britain, has presided over FCA's financial crown jewels Jeep since 2009 and Ram since 2015. During the last decade he has been one of Marchionne's closest confidants as Marchionne successfully merged Fiat with Chrysler in 2014, creating the world's seventh largest global automaker. Manley's greatest achievement thus far has been to take Jeep global, quadrupling sales since 2009, from 338,000 units to 1,400,000 in 2017. After a dearth of new product launches, Manley spearheaded the worldwide launch of the all-new 2018 Jeep Wrangler and redesigned 2019 Ram 1500. Manley succeeded where Daimler failed by making Jeep a worldwide brand. Now he will be in the CEO seat as FCA launches several important new products during the next 24 months, including the new 2020 Ram 2500 and 3500 heavy-duty pickups, the launch of the pickup version of the Jeep Wrangler called the Scrambler, an all-new Jeep Grand Cherokee, a new mid-sized pickup that will be sold under both the Ram and Fiat brands, as well as the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer luxury SUVs very likely based on the body-on-frame architecture of the 2019 Ram. To say that Manley will have his hands full would be an understatement. While trained as an engineer, Manley rose through the ranks via dealer sales, joining Chrysler's United Kingdom operations in 2000 when the automaker was part of Daimler. He was named head of Jeep at the time of Fiat's acquisition in 2009 in the wake of Chrysler's managed bankruptcy by the Obama administration. In 2015 responsibility for Ram was added to his duties as FCA continued to grow the Ram brand into an even bigger sales powerhouse. Concurrently, Manley expanded Jeep sales in key overseas markets including China, India, Brazil and the European Union. Analysts estimate that Jeep alone could be worth the entire $30 billion market capitalization of FCA. All Eyes on Manley FCA will announce its quarterly results Wednesday in an earnings call with all attention focused on Manley. The results are expected to come in strong with FCA's operating margins improving (6 percent), ahead of Ford (5.2 percent) but still behind GM (7.2 percent) among domestic automakers. Beyond the aggressive light truck product launch, Manley's second biggest task will be to improve quality among all FCA brands: Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Maserati and Ram. FCA, plagued by recalls and diesel emissions compliance issues, has room to improve. Conversely, after years of eliminating dealers since the 2008 economic downturn, FCA is increasing its dealer footprint in North America. Third on Manley's agenda will be to implement a companywide electrification program across all its brands. FCA has partnered with Google's Waymo in the autonomous vehicle category. In May, Waymo announced it was adding 62,000 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans to its self-driving fleet. When it comes to electrification, FCA is playing catch up, but it has announced it will have up to 30 battery-electric and hybrid vehicles among its brands by 2022. It will be up to Manley to implement FCA's latest five-year plan, unveiled by Marchionne in a June 1 meeting with analysts. Crucial to the success of that plan will be continued expansion of the Ram brand, which at times has nipped at the heels of Chevrolet in overall North American sales, and a successful, glitch-free launch of the oft-delayed next-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee in 2019 with the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer models to follow in 2020. If successful, it could push Jeep's worldwide sales well beyond the 2,000,000 mark by 2020. Manley will push forward this agenda without the help of FCA's Alfredo Altavilla, head of Europe, Middle East and Africa business. One of two others considered as Marchionne's successor, Altavilla stepped down recently. The other possible successor was FCA Chief Financial Officer Richard Palmer; analysts will be watching to see if Palmer departs as well. Palmer was instrumental in the completion of Fiat's merger with Chrysler in 2014 and is well-regarded by the financial communities in the U.S. and Europe. Manufacturer images BINGHAMTON, N.Y. - Researchers at Binghamton University, State University at New York have used a new image-based analysis technique to identify once-hidden North American mounds, which could reveal valuable information about pre-contact Native Americans. "Across the East Coast of the United States, some of the most visible forms for pre-contact Native American material culture can be found in the form of large earthen and shell mounds," said Binghamton University anthropologist Carl Lipo. "Mounds and shell rings contain valuable information about the way in which past people lived in North America. As habitation sites, they can show us the kinds of foods that were eaten, the way in which the community lived, and how the community interacted with neighbors and their local environments. In areas that are deeply wooded or consist of bayous and swamps, there exist mounds that have eluded more than 150 years of archaeological survey and research. Due to vegetation, these kinds of environments make seeing more than a couple of dozen feet difficult, and even large mounds can be hidden from view, even when one systematically walks on the terrain. The use of satellites and new kinds of aerial sensors such as LiDAR (light detection and ranging) have transformed the way archaeologists can gather data about the archaeological record, said Lipo. Now scientists can study landscapes from images and peer through the forest canopy to look at the ground. LiDAR has been particularly effective at showing the characteristic rises in topography that mark the presence of mounds. The challenge to archaeologists, however, is to manage such a vast array of new data that are available for study. Object based image analysis (OBIA) allows archaeologists to configure a program to automatically detect features of interest. OBIA is a computer-based approach to use data from satellite images and aerial sensors to look for shapes and combinations of features that match objects of interest. Unlike traditional satellite image analyses that looks at combinations of light wavelengths, OBIA adds characteristics of shape to the search algorithm, allowing archaeologists to more easily distinguish cultural from natural phenomena. Lipo's team systematically identified over 160 previously undetected mound features using LiDAR data from Beaufort County, S.C., and an OBIA approach. The result improves the overall knowledge of settlement patterns by providing systematic knowledge about past landscapes, said Lipo. "Through the use of OBIA, archaeologists can now repeatedly generate data about the archaeological record and find historic and pre-contact sites over massive areas that would be cost-prohibitive using pedestrian survey. We can now also peer beneath the dense canopy of trees to see things that are otherwise obscured. In areas like coast South Carolina, with large swaths of shallow bays, inlets and bayous that are covered in forest, OBIA offers us our first look at this hidden landscape." Having demonstrated the effectiveness for using OBIA in conditions of dense vegetation and after optimizing our processing, Lipo and his team are expanding their efforts to include much-larger areas. "Fortunately, satellite and LiDAR data are now available for much of the eastern seaboard, so undertaking a large-scale project is now a task that is achievable," said Lipo. "Due to climate change and sea-level rise, many major mounds and middens on the East Coast are threatened by erosion and inundation. It is urgent we document this pre-contact landscape as soon as possible, in order to learn as much as we can about the past before it is gone forever." ### The paper, "Automated mound detection using LiDAR and Object-Based Image Analysis in Beaufort County, SC," was published in Southeastern Archaeology. Canadian physicist Louis Taillefer, Director of CIFAR's Quantum Materials program, will be awarded the 2018 Kamerlingh Onnes prize. The international prize is awarded every three years for outstanding experiments which illuminate the nature of superconductivity. Superconductivity is a phenomenon where materials have the ability to conduct electricity without any loss of energy under specific conditions. The prize is named after Heike Kamerlingh Onnes who first discovered superconductivity in 1911. Taillefer, a professor at the Universite de Sherbrooke, is being recognized for his "seminal magneto-transport studies of heavy-fermion and cuprate superconductors." He will share the prize with Yuji Matsuda of Kyoto University. Taillefer is renowned for several contributions to the field using a number of powerful experimental techniques. In 2007, his team, which included several CIFAR members, had their breakthrough observation of "quantum oscillations" in a copper-oxide superconductor. Quantum oscillations are the clearest signature of electrons in a metal and the discovery caused a paradigm shift in how scientists view electron behaviour in these materials. In 2016, the same team of CIFAR members identified a key signature of the quantum phase transition that underpins why copper oxides are the strongest known superconductors (see article in Quanta Magazine). These fundamental insights from Taillefer and his colleagues advance our understanding of what can make superconductors more robust, with the ultimate goal of reaching room-temperature superconductivity - an event that would spark a major technological revolution. Taillefer has received numerous awards and honours for his contributions to science. He was awarded the Killam Prize in 2012 and the Simon Memorial Prize in 2017, a prestigious international award in low-temperature physics, for which he is the first Canadian recipient. Since 1998, Taillefer has led CIFAR's Quantum Materials program, a collaborative network bringing together 60 researchers from Canada, China, Europe, Japan and the U.S., to explore and advance the quantum frontiers of materials science. ### The Kammerlingh Onnes Prize was established in 2000 by the organizers of the International Conference on the Materials and Mechanisms of Superconductivity. The 7500 prize is sponsored by Elsevier, Publisher of Physica C - Superconductivity and its Applications. Taillefer and Matsuda will be honoured on Aug. 21, 2018 during the 12th International Conference on Materials and Mechanisms of Superconductivity in Beijing, China. Research shows public pressure pushes democratically elected leaders to be more aggressive in international conflicts than their autocratic counterparts but finds some exceptions What kind of political leader is most likely to start a war--an invective-spewing dictator or the elected head of a democratic nation? Surprisingly, science says it's probably not the autocrat. Leaders of democratic nations actually have stronger incentives to start and exacerbate conflicts with other countries than their autocratic counterparts, suggests a new study to be published by the American Journal of Political Science. The difference boils down to public pressure, say the study's authors, Michael Gibilisco of Caltech and Casey Crisman-Cox of Texas A&M University. Because of pressure from voters to not back down and appear weak, democratic leaders tend to act more aggressively in international conflicts. An autocrat, on the other hand, is answerable to no one and can back down from a conflict without facing personal consequences. "If an elected leader makes a threat during a conflict with another country and the threat isn't followed through, they may face a decrease in approval ratings, or they may lose an election," says Gibilisco, assistant professor of political science. In democracies, he notes, voters can punish their leaders for appearing weak--these punishments or consequences are known as "audience costs" in political science parlance. To avoid those costs, leaders in representative governments become more aggressive during disputes. In their study, Gibilisco and Crisman-Cox, who is also an assistant professor of political science, first developed a mathematical model of dispute initiation between countries and then fit the model to data of actual conflicts that occurred among 125 countries between 1993-2007. They also estimated audience costs for the countries in their sample using existing databases containing country-by-country information on levels of democracy and press freedom. In general, they found that audience costs are highest in democracies with strong protections for a free press. However, they also found that audience costs are much lower in democracies that have a rival that threatens their existence. (For example, South Korea's existential rival is North Korea.) One reason, the researchers say, is that a nation's voters will give their leader more leeway in deciding how to resolve a conflict with an existential rival, because survival is more of a concern than saving face. In contrast to democracies, dictatorships tend to have low audience costs, but here, too, Gibilisco and Crisman-Cox found an exception. Dictatorships that provide a legal mechanism for removing a leader--as was the case in China before it abolished term limits this past March--have higher audience costs. Once the researchers produced an audience-cost estimate for each country, they considered how changing a country's audience costs affects its willingness to engage in conflict. Overall, they found, increasing a country's audience costs, perhaps by strengthening democratic institutions, makes it more likely to start a conflict. However, Gibilisco and Crisman-Cox found that other dynamics are at play that create more nuanced international dynamics. For example, while democratic leaders may be less likely to back down during a crisis, they can also be more aggressive and prone to initiate conflict, because they know their opponent won't want to get in a fight against a country that will hold its ground, even if it leads to war. Alternatively, a democratic leader may be less likely to initiate a conflict in the first place, as they know that they won't be able to easily stand down from it. Lastly, the researchers found a sort of mutually assured destruction effect with audience costs. Two countries that each have high levels of audience cost know the other cannot back down and thus avoid conflicts with each other; if they do end up in a dispute, however, the countries will have a harder time resolving it peacefully. "The model kind of explains this behavior where peace and conflict are both self-enforcing," Gibilisco says. "So, if we're in peace today, none of us want to escalate a dispute into war tomorrow. But once we're at war, we want to avoid de-escalating." ### "Audience Costs and the Dynamics of War and Peace" is available online and will appear in an upcoming issue of the American Journal of Political Science. A draft of this study was made available online in December 2017. The peer-reviewed version appears in the July 2018 issue of the American Journal of Political Science. A new online health calculator can help people determine their risk of heart disease, as well as their heart age, accounting for sociodemographic factors such as ethnicity, sense of belonging and education, as well as health status and lifestyle behaviours. The process to build and validate the tool is published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Canada, although risks of death from heart disease are modifiable with lifestyle changes. Most people are unaware of their cardiovascular risk until they experience a cardiac event, which may be fatal. "What sets this cardiovascular risk calculator apart is that it looks at healthy living, and it is better calibrated to the Canadian population," says Dr. Doug Manuel, lead author, senior scientist at The Ottawa Hospital and a senior core scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES). Using a "big data" approach, researchers used routinely collected data on 104 219 Ontario residents from the Canadian Community Health Surveys (2001 to 2007) linked to ICES data on hospitalizations and deaths to develop and validate the Cardiovascular Disease Population Risk Tool (CVDPoRT). The calculator allows individuals to accurately predict their risk of hospitalization or death from cardiovascular disease within the next five years. For example, if their risk is five percent, it means that five in 100 people like them will experience a serious cardiovascular event in the next five years. The calculator also provides heart age, an easy-to-understand measure of heart health. Unlike other risk prediction tools, the Cardiovascular Disease Population Risk Tool considers many factors, such as sociodemographic status, environmental influences like air pollution, health behaviours ranging from smoking status to alcohol intake to physical activity, health conditions and more. The list includes: Age Smoking status and lifetime exposure Alcohol consumption Diet Physical activity Stress Sense of belonging Ethnicity Immigration status Education Socioeconomic status of the neighbourhood Diabetes High blood pressure "A lot of people are interested in healthy living, but often we don't have that discussion in the doctor's office," says Dr. Manuel, who is also a professor at the University of Ottawa. "Doctors will check your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, but they don't necessarily ask about lifestyle factors that could put you at risk of a heart attack and stroke. We hope this tool can help people -- and their care team -- with better information about healthy living and options for reducing their risk of heart attack and stroke." In addition to personal use, policy-makers can use the tool to calculate risk profiles for different populations. Currently set up for use in Canada, it can be adapted for any of the 100 countries around the world that collect health survey data. ### Visit Project Big Life for the Cardiovascular Disease Population Risk Tool. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) funded the study. "Development and validation of a cardiovascular disease risk prediction model using population health surveys: the Cardiovascular Disease Population Risk Tool (CVDPoRT)" is published July 23, 2018. Initiative in Malaysia to enhance country's public health approach to hepatitis C Decentralized screening for hepatitis C virus (HCV) using pre-qualified rapid diagnostic tests will be initiated in Malaysia in an effort to expand the reach of screening initiatives People who screen positive and are subsequently confirmed to have HCV can be linked to direct-acting antiviral treatment as part of a DNDi clinical trial or in government hospitals Work is being conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Health in Malaysia; evidence from these coordinated interventions will be used to support policy change and scale up of HCV diagnosis and treatment in the country and beyond Amsterdam/Geneva - 23 July 2018 - The Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) will partner to generate evidence that will support policy change and scale up of hepatitis C (HCV) diagnosis and treatment. This work, announced at the AIDS 2018 conference in Amsterdam and ahead of World Hepatitis Day 2018, is being conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Health in Malaysia with a view to overcoming barriers to diagnosis and treatment. It forms part of a larger FIND project known as Hepatitis C Elimination through Access to Diagnostics (HEAD-Start), supported by Unitaid. Although the World Health Organization (WHO) has prequalified different types of HCV tests, screening and confirmatory diagnosis of hepatitis C are not widely available, and remain largely centralized and siloed where they do exist. This means that identifying those with the disease so they can be linked to care is a huge challenge. FIND will demonstrate the feasibility of using rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) in decentralized primary healthcare facilities, and provide technical assistance to the Ministry of Health in Malaysia to support the project. "The introduction of RDTs and simpler diagnostic pathways is a critical step in scaling up hepatitis C care," said Catharina Boehme, CEO of FIND. "It will make screening widely accessible and increase the number of people who know their status and can enter the care cascade." All patients confirmed during the study as having active HCV (viremia) will be linked to care. Treatment will be provided: either as part of an ongoing DNDi clinical trial. The DNDi clinical trial, which is co-sponsored by the Malaysian Ministry of Health, is designed to assess the efficacy and safety of a new, alternative treatment regimen combining sofosbuvir with the investigational drug ravidasvir. Results from the first stage of the trial published in April 2018 show the combination to be safe and effective, with extremely high cure rates for patients, including hard-to-treat cases; [1] or by the Malaysian national HCV programme, which, following an ambitious treatment strategy to overcome the prohibitively high cost of treatments in the country, now offers free hepatitis C treatment (sofosbuvir/daclatasvir) in government hospitals. "Our ambition is provide a treatment that is pan-genotypic, simple and affordable in order to facilitate a public health approach to HCV," said Dr Bernard Pecoul, Executive Director of DNDi. "Combined with a simplified diagnostic algorithm, this could make it easier for healthcare providers to scale up treatment to much higher levels than is possible today." A Memorandum of Understanding is expected to be signed in August 2018 with Clinical Research Malaysia (CRM), a non-profit company owned by the Ministry of Health. "Our core business in the Ministry of Health is to provide affordable, accessible and equitable healthcare for the citizens of Malaysia," said Dr Hisham Abdullah Director-General of Health Malaysia. "The evidence generated by both the FIND and DNDi projects will be used to update national guidelines that will cover HCV screening, diagnosis, treatment and monitoring, for an effective HCV public health approach in Malaysia." ### About Hepatitis C HCV is one of the world's most common infectious diseases, usually contracted through unsafe healthcare and injection drug use. Globally, more than 71 million people are chronically infected, over 80% of whom live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) - but only one in five people know they have the disease. [2] Around 400,000 people die every year, and the mortality rate is increasing, making it a global health priority: the World Health Organization (WHO) has set an ambitious target of viral hepatitis elimination by 2030. [3][4] In Malaysia, HCV disease burden is high and predicted to rise steeply over the coming decades, leading to a projected 63,900 HCV-related deaths by 2039. [5] About FIND FIND was established in 2003 as a global non-profit dedicated to accelerating the development, evaluation and delivery of high-quality, affordable diagnostic tests for poverty-related diseases, now including malaria, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, sleeping sickness, hepatitis C, leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, Buruli ulcer, non-malarial fever and diseases with outbreak potential, such as Ebola. FIND has partnered in the delivery of 20 new diagnostic tools and created an enabling environment for numerous others through the provision of specimen banks, reagent development and better market visibility. FIND also supports better access to new diagnostics through implementation, quality assurance and lab strengthening work. FIND has nearly 200 partners globally, including research institutes and laboratories, health ministries and national disease control programmes, commercial partners, bilateral and multilateral organizations, especially WHO, and clinical trial sites. For further information, please visit http://www.finddx.org About DNDi The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) is a not-for-profit R&D organization working to deliver new treatments for neglected patients, in particular for sleeping sickness, Chagas disease, leishmaniasis, filaria, mycetoma, paediatric HIV/AIDS, and hepatitis C virus (HCV). DNDi's ambition is to enable access to HCV treatment, through the development and registration of affordable, safe and efficacious pan-genotypic direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), and by supporting policy change and political will to remove barriers to access to DAAs globally. http://www.dndi.org Media contacts FIND: Sarah-Jane Loveday, Head of Communications T: +41 (0) 22 710 27 88 M: +41 (0) 79 431 62 44 media@finddx.org DNDi: media@dndi.org At the AIDS 2018 conference: +41 79 432 62 97 In Malaysia: + 60 12 546 8362 References [1] DNDi press release, 12 April 2018. https://www.dndi.org/2018/media-centre/press-releases/new-affordable-hepatitis-c-combination-treatment-shows-97-cure-rate/ (accessed 18 July 2018) [2] World Health Organization. Global hepatitis report 2017. http://www.who.int/hepatitis/publications/global-hepatitis-report2017/en/ (accessed 27 June 2018) [3] World Health Organization. Disease burden and mortality estimates, 2000-2015. http://www.who.int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/estimates/en/index1.html (accessed 27 June 2018) [4] World Health Organization. Combating hepatitis B and C to reach elimination by 2030, May 2016. http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/206453/WHO_HIV_2016.04_eng.pdf;jsessionid=0B0881916BBDF9EB2B47D4B004DB7969?sequence=1 (accessed 5 July 2018) [5] Raihan R, et al. Euroasian J Hepato-Gastroenterol 2017;7(1):65-67 July 20, 2018 (Reno, NV) - For decades, researchers believed the Western Hemisphere was settled by humans roughly 13,500 years ago, a theory based largely upon the widespread distribution of Clovis artifacts dated to that time. Clovis artifacts are distinctive prehistoric stone tools so named because they were initially found near Clovis, New Mexico, in the 1920s but have since been identified throughout North and South America. In recent years, though, archaeological evidence has increasingly called into question the idea of "Clovis First." Now, a study published by a team including DRI's Kathleen Rodrigues, Ph.D. student, and Amanda Keen-Zebert, Ph.D., associate research professor, has dated a significant assemblage of stone artifacts to 16-20,000 years of age, pushing back the timeline of the first human inhabitants of North America before Clovis by at least 2,500 years. Significantly, this research identifies a previously unknown, early projectile point technology unrelated to Clovis, which suggests that Clovis technology spread across an already well-established, indigenous population. "These projectile points are unique. We haven't found anything else like them," said Tom Williams, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Department of Anthropology at Texas State University and lead author of the study. "Combine that with the ages and the fact that it underlies a Clovis component, and the Gault site provides a fantastic opportunity to study the earliest human occupants in the Americas." The research team identified the artifacts at the Gault Site in Central Texas, an extensive archaeological site with evidence of continuous human occupation. The presence of Clovis technology at the site is well-documented, but excavations below the deposits containing Clovis artifacts revealed well-stratified sediments containing artifacts distinctly different from Clovis. To determine the ages of these artifacts, Rodrigues, Keen-Zebert, and colleagues used a process called optically simulated luminescence (OSL) dating to the ages of the surrounding sedimentary material. In OSL, researchers expose minerals that have long been buried under sediment layers to light or heat, which causes the minerals to release trapped potassium, uranium, and thorium electrons that have accumulated over time due to ambient, naturally occurring radiation. When the trapped electrons are released, they emit light which can be measured to determine the amount of time that has elapsed since the materials were last exposed to heat or sunlight. "The fluvial nature of the sediments deposited at the Gault Site have created a poor environment for preservation of organic materials, so radiocarbon dating has not been a useful technique to apply in this region," said Kathleen Rodrigues, graduate research assistant in DRI's Division of Earth and Ecosystem Sciences. "This made luminescence dating a natural choice for dating the archaeological materials here. We are really pleased with the quality of the results that we have achieved." ### The study was published on July 11th in the journal Science Advances and is available here: http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/4/7/eaar5954. For more information on DRI's optically stimulated luminescence dating capabilities, visit http://www.dri.edu/luminescence-lab. Jayme Blaschke of the Texas State University Office of Media Relations contributed to this release. The Desert Research Institute (DRI) is a recognized world leader in investigating the effects of natural and human-induced environmental change and advancing technologies aimed at assessing a changing planet. For more than 50 years DRI research faculty, students, and staff have applied scientific understanding to support the effective management of natural resources while meeting Nevada's needs for economic diversification and science-based educational opportunities. With campuses in Reno and Las Vegas, DRI serves as the non-profit environmental research arm of the Nevada System of Higher Education. For more information, please visit http://www.dri.edu. ? TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Colorful, hardened algae that dot the ocean floor from Alaska to Mexico often set the tone for which plant and invertebrate species inhabit a given ecological community. But as rising temperatures change the chemistry of ocean waters, a Florida State University researcher said these almost rock-like organisms called coralline algae are changing too. That could mean a great shift to the overall ecosystem. "They are almost the canary in the coal mine," said Assistant Professor of Biological Science Sophie McCoy. "Their interactions with other species make them more valuable than people give them credit." McCoy's research is published in the journal Global Change Biology. Coralline algae have a hard skeleton and are often pink, red, purple, yellow, or gray-green. Most people wading in the sea barely notice the algae, but they release chemical cues that tell invertebrates or plant species whether the environment is hospitable. If the algae alter in some way or even disappear, the cues for a given ecological community would change in turn. McCoy's study examined how ocean acidification affects three common types of coralline algae found in the waters off of Tatoosh Island in Washington. With rising global temperatures and more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, ocean waters have become more acidic. Though all three types of algae are growing at the same rate they have in the past, there are some significant changes. Of the three types of algae, one -- Pseudolithophyllum whidbeyense -- showed extensive changes over the past few decades as the sea water acidified. Its skeleton had more magnesium in it than calcium carbonate, meaning it was significantly weaker. The weaker the skeleton, the more likely it is to dissolve or be eaten by snails. The other two types of algae were able to maintain their skeletal integrity, but were slightly smaller in size than samples from past decades. Historical samples from 1980-2010 were almost uniform in size and skeletal integrity, McCoy said. "What we're seeing is how individual types react in different ways when stressed," McCoy said. "That is something to consider in the climate change research overall -- some species of plants and animals may go away and others could flourish." McCoy will now turn her attention to the relationship between the coralline algae and snails or other grazers to see if the grazers are experiencing changes in behavior or physical changes to their teeth and bite wounds. ### McCoy's research was funded by Florida State University, the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology Scotland Postdoctoral and Early Career Research Exchange and the Marie Curie International Incoming Fellowship. Her co-author on the study is Nicholas Kamenos from University of Glasgow. Caves are a very special environment characterized by complete darkness, low temperature fluctuations and high humidity. Species that live there have adapted to these conditions and have developed unique characteristics: they are eyeless or have degenerated eyes, and they lack pigments. Often, these animals are endemic - their distribution is restricted to a specific area, sometimes to only one cave. Similarly, the four species of the blind cave shrimp Typhlocaris can be found only in individual karstic groundwater caves around the Mediterranean Sea. Two of the species are found in Israel - Typhlocaris galilea in a cave in Tabgha, near the Sea of Galilee, and Typhlocaris ayyaloni in the Ayalon cave, which was discovered in the coastal plain of Israel in 2006. The two other species are found in a cave system in southeastern Italy, near Lecce, and in Libya in a cave near Benghazi. A group of scientists from Israel and from the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel have now been able to prove a close relationship of a species in Israel and in Italy with the help of genetic and geological investigations. The study is published today in the scientific journal PeerJ. "Typhlocaris species are 'living fossils', remnants of an ancestor shrimp species that existed in the ancient Tethys Sea, millions of years ago", explains Dr. Tamar Guy-Haim, lead author from GEOMAR and National Institute of Oceanography in Haifa, Israel. "They have survived since then under isolated conditions in a unique ecological system, cut off from the external environment", Gy-Haim continues. Unlike most ecosystems that are based on sunlight as an energy source for plants, these cave systems are chemoautotrophic, basing on sulphide-oxidizing bacteria as a food source. The Typhlocaris shrimps are the top-predators in the caves, preying mostly on small crustaceans that feed on the sulphide bacteria. "By comparison of genetic markers in the Typhlocaris species we found that one of the Israeli species, Typhlocaris ayyaloni, was genetically closer to the species from Italy", explains Professor Yair Ahituv from Bar-Ilan Universitat, Israel, co-author of the study. "Although Typhylocaris salientina, lives more than thousand kilometres away it is closer related than to the other Israeli species Typhlocaris galilea, which is only 120 kilometres away", Ahituv continues. To explain this strange genetic affinity, the researchers dated the species divergence based on the age of a geological formation in the area of the cave in the Galilee. Accordingly, Typhlocaris galilea was separated from the ancestor shrimp seven million years ago, during the uplift of the central mountain ridge of Israel. Then, about 5.7 million years ago, at the time of the Messinian Salinity event, when the Mediterranean Sea has almost completely dried up, Typhlocaris ayyalon and Typhylocaris salientina diverged into two separate species. In addition, the researchers calculated the rates of evolution in Typhlocaris and other cave-dwelling crustaceans and found that they were particularly low compared to non-cave crustaceans. The researchers hypothesize that the unique conditions in the caves - stability of environmental conditions (such as temperature), lack of light, and low metabolic rates - led to a slowdown in the pace of evolutionary changes. The Typhlocaris species are classified as endangered and are listed in the IUCN Red List (International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources). The caves in which they live are exposed to severe threats such as pollution, intensive groundwater pumping following infiltration of brackish water, and climate change. Israel Nature and Parks Authority, in cooperation with the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo, has established a captive breeding programme of Typhlocaris, in order to conserve it in case that all efforts to save it from extinction in nature fail. ### To sustain human civilization in the future, clean energy sources must be harnessed to replace the fossil fuels that are now polluting our atmosphere. Solar and wind energy can supply all the necessary energy. However, storage will be needed when the sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing. Organic flow batteries are a potentially safer, less expensive alternative to lithium ion batteries and vanadium flow batteries for large-scale renewable energy storage. Now, Harvard researchers have demonstrated a new organic molecule that outlives and outperforms its predecessors, offering the longest-lasting high-performance organic flow battery to date. Nicknamed the Methuselah quinone -- after the longest-lived Biblical figure -- this molecule could usefully store and release energy many tens of thousands of times over multi-year periods. The research is published in the journal Joule. The research was co-led by Roy Gordon, the Thomas Dudley Cabot Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Materials Science, and Michael Aziz, the Gene and Tracy Sykes Professor of Materials and Energy Technologies at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS). "We designed and built a new organic compound that can store electrical energy and also has a very long life before it decomposes," said Gordon. "We discovered degradation processes of the molecules that we previously used in flow batteries. Then we created new, more stable molecules that avoid these problems." "In previous work, we had demonstrated a chemistry with a long lifespan but low voltage, which leads to low energy storage per molecule, which leads to high cost for a given amount of energy stored," said Aziz. "Now, we have the first chemistry that has both long-term stability and comes in at more than one volt, which is commonly considered the threshold for commercial deployment. I believe it is the first organic-based flow battery that meets all of the technical criteria for practical implementation." The new chemistry builds off previous research led by Aziz and Gordon. The Methuselah molecule is a modified quinone, an abundant, naturally occurring molecule integral to biological processes like photosynthesis and cellular respiration. Collaborating with theoretical chemistry Professor Alan Aspuru-Guzik, their research team characterized the degradation process of previous quinone molecules in flow batteries and made modifications to increase the calendar life. In experiments in their laboratories, the Methuselah molecule had a fade rate of less than 0.01 percent per day and less than 0.001 percent per charge/discharge cycle -- which extrapolates to less than 3 percent degradation over the course of a year -- and useful operation for tens of thousands of cycles. Methuselah also proved highly soluble, meaning it can store more energy in a smaller space. It operates in a weak alkaline electrolyte, reducing the cost of the battery by allowing the use of inexpensive containment materials and an inexpensive polymer membrane to separate the positive and negative terminals. All of these advances drive down the cost of storage and may make organic storage chemistries cost-effective for long-duration discharge. "This research demonstrates the potential of organics," said David Kwabi, a postdoctoral fellow at SEAS and co-first author of the paper. "We show that organic molecules are a viable, long-lasting, cost-effective alternative to expensive vanadium batteries." The research was supported by the U.S. DOE Office of Electricity energy storage program, by the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy, by Innovation Fund Denmark, by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Technology Center, and by the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. "This important work represents a significant advance towards low cost, long duration flow batteries," said Imre Gyuk, Director of DOE's Office of Electricity storage program. "Such devices are needed to allow the electric grid to absorb increasing amounts of green but variable renewable generation." With assistance from Harvard's Office of Technology Development (OTD), the researchers are seeking commercial partners to scale up the technology for industrial applications. Harvard OTD has filed a portfolio of pending patents on innovations in flow battery technology. ### Results from study conducted at Kruger park in South Africa offers promise for a safe elephant management tool in areas where people and elephants are in conflict An organic formulation containing honeybee pheromones has been found to safely repel elephants, offering promise for a new strategy to prevent the world's largest land animals from destroying crops or causing other damage in areas where humans conflict with elephants, according to a study published July 23, 2018 in Current Biology. The study was conducted at Greater Kruger National Park in South Africa between December 2017 and February 2018. The scientists placed a blend of pheromones that bees release when they perceive danger in a specialized slow-release matrix at locations around water holes frequented by African bush elephants, Loxodonta africana. The researchers observed that most of the elephants that came near the formulation showed typical signs of increased alertness, signs of uncertainty, and finally calmly moved away, while those approaching control treatments were eager to investigate the foreign object in their environment. The pheromones were dispensed in white socks weighed with rocks hanging from broken tree branches no more than a meter off the ground. At the park's Jejane waterhole, 25 of 29 elephants that approached the pheromone-laden socks moved away after getting close enough to smell the formulation. In the same timeframe, control experiments found that all elephants ignored similar looking suspended socks that did not contain the pheromone mix, or they would approach the controls and pick them up, and even try to taste them in some cases. "Our results complement previous studies that have demonstrated that active bee hives can deter elephants from crops for example but may be difficult to implement on a large scale. We hope to expand this work to develop additional tools for sustainable passive management of elephant movements, to augment the current approaches used.," said Mark G. Wright, the lead author of the study and a professor of entomology at the Department of Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. This study was a collaboration between scientists at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, the Balule Nature Reserve in South Africa, University of South Africa, Elephants Alive in South Africa, and ISCA Technologies, a Riverside, Calif., a biotech company that prepared the pheromone formulation in a slow release matrix called SPLAT . This study stemmed from ISCA's two decades of research, development, and commercialization of products that use pheromones and other naturally-occurring compounds that manipulate animal behavior to control insects that destroy crops or spread diseases without a need for area-wide spraying of toxic pesticides. This study, however, breaks new ground by showing that synthetic pheromones also may have the potential to be used to safely manage a large mammal species. The need for safe elephant management strategies has become more pressing as human populations have grown in Africa and Asia creating larger areas where elephants conflict with humans by trampling crops or causing other damage. These conflicts are often tragic. People have been trampled to death, and their crops are destroyed. And elephants deemed to be destructive are often killed. In this study, the scientists exploited the chemical clues that occur in nature. When a mammal appears to threaten a beehive, bees that perceive the threat release from their bodies "alarm" pheromones to marshal other bees to defend the hive. A swarm of bees then attack and sting the mammal. Elephants hate to be stung, Wright said. The soft tissues in their eyes and inside their trunks are particularly vulnerable to painful bee stings. So, over the eons, it is believed, elephants learned to recognize the odor of bee alarm pheromones and to back off when they come across them. In fact, some farmers in Africa place commercial bee hives along their fence lines to protect crops from elephants. Yet, the use of manufactured pheromones in a slow-release matrix could be far less costly, more flexible, and easier to deploy to facilitate safer coexistences between elephants and humans in habitat interface areas. ### Contact: Mark Wright, Professor of Entomology Department of Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences University of Hawaii at Manoa (808) 271-2037, cell markwrig@hawaii.edu David Danelski, Communications Director ISCA Technologies 951-686-5008, office; 951-850-0143, cell david.danelski@ISCAtech.com 08:48 For decades, the United States has allowed other countries to steal its jobs, close factories and plunder wealth, President Donald Trump said, asserting that the era of economic surrender is over. "The era of economic surrender for the United States is over, it's over," Trump said at a White House "Made in America" event, as he demanded fairness from World Trade Organization. Trump alleged that his successors did nothing to protect American jobs. "They did nothing. They let our factories leave, they let our people lose their jobs, given to other jobs workers in faraway lands. That's not free trade, that's fool's trade, that's stupid trade," he said. "We don't do that kind of trade any more. The European Union has been very tough on the United States, but they're coming in to see me on Wednesday and we'll see if we can work something out. Otherwise, we'll have to do something with respect to the millions of cars that they send in every year, he said. "But maybe we can work something out, they're all coming in, the top people. We're talking to China, who had a USD375 billion trade surplus last year with the United States," he said, adding that that is not good. The US is also talking to Mexico on NAFTA or the North American Free Trade Agreement, he said. "The new President, terrific person, I spoke to him at length on a call, did a great job, got a tremendous vote and they have a lot of confidence in him in Mexico and that's good. But we're talking to them about doing something very dramatic, very positive for both countries," Trump said. "We're demanding fairness with the World Trade Organization, it's been a disaster for the United States and we want fairness. We lose court cases, we always had a minority of judges. They gave us fewer judges than other countries had and we'd lose cases, nobody knew why. I said I know why, because you don't have judges from this country, you'd have the minority," Trump said. The US is starting to do much better lately in winning cases. "But America never waves the white flag, we only wave the red, white and blue flag. The era of economic surrender for the United States is over, it's over," he said. -- PTI Wear, corrosion, material fatigue are signs of degradation that are common to most materials. This makes it all the more important to detect damage early, preferably on the micrometer scale. Magnetic test methods are often used for this purpose, which was previously impossible with non-magnetic steel. Researchers from Kaiserslautern and Mainz have now developed a process in which they apply a thin magnetic layer to steel. Changes in the microstructure can thus be detected by changes in magnetic effects. Materials such as aluminum can also be tested in this way.The corresponding paper has been published recently in the Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials. Steel is one of the most frequently used materials. We use it in many variants, for example in the form of stainless steel, high-strength quenched and tempered steel, or low-priced structural steel. Steels can be magnetic or non-magnetic. They are used in cutlery, in automotive components, in steel girders of buildings, and in bridges. At times, steel is exposed to high temperatures and stress. "This can result in microstructural changes, cracks, or component failure," said Dr. Marek Smaga, a researcher at the Department of Materials Science at Technische Universitat Kaiserslautern (TUK). This is what experts refer to as material fatigue. Initially, such damage is only visible on the micrometer level. With magnetic testing methods, however, it is not yet possible to detect changes in this scale in non-magnetic steel at an early stage. Engineers from TUK and physicists from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) are working on this problem and are presenting a solution in their current study. The unique feature of their method is that it makes use of magnetic effects, even if the material being tested is non-magnetic. The Mainz-based researchers coated a non-magnetic steel with different magnetic films, each 20 nanometers thin and composed of terfenol-D, an alloy of the chemical elements terbium, iron, and dysprosium, or of permalloy, a nickel-iron compound. The physicists then used a so-called Kerr microscope to check whether strains of the steel can be detected in the microscopic range. "This is achieved using the so-called Kerr effect, which allows the magnetic microstructures, the so-called domains, to be imaged by rotating the polarization direction of light," explained Dr. Marek Smaga. The scientists examined magnetically coated steel plates a few millimeters thick that had previously been exposed to mechanical stress. "We observed a characteristic change in the magnetic domain structure," explained Dr. Martin Jourdan from the Institute of Physics at JGU. "Microscopic strain in non-magnetic steel causes the direction of magnetization of the thin layer to change." Compared to conventional testing procedures, this method has the advantage of detecting signs of fatigue much earlier as it is effective at the micrometer level. The researchers' method could be used in new testing techniques in the future. In addition, the technique is not only interesting for non-magnetic steel. Other materials such as aluminum, titanium, and certain composite materials could also be treated with such a layer. The project was part of the work undertaken by the Transregional Collaborative Research Center (CRC/TRR) "Spin+X: Spin in its collective environment", which is based at TU Kaiserslautern and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and financed by the German Research Foundation (DFG). The CRC/TRR involves interdisciplinary teams of researchers from the fields of chemistry, physics, mechanical engineering, and process engineering, who undertake research into magnetic effects that are to be transferred to application. The primary focus is on the phenomenon of the spin. Physicists use this term to refer to the quantum mechanical momentum of a quantum particle, such as an electron or proton. This forms the basis of many magnetic effects. ### Image: http://www.uni-mainz.de/bilder_presse/08_physik_werkstoffpruefung_stahl_beschichtungsapparatur.jpg Dr. Martin Jourdan and Bachelor degree student Moritz Kramer coating non-magnetic steel with various magnetic films, each 20 nanometers thick, using the coating apparatus at JGU's Institute of Physics. photo/: Martin Jourdan Publication: M. Jourdan et al., Strain detection in non-magnetic steel by Kerr-microscopy of magnetic tracer layers, Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials 465, 143-146, 2018, DOI:10.1016/j.jmmm.2018.05.081 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0304885318306668 Contact: PD Dr. Martin Jourdan Institute of Physics Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz 55099 Mainz, Germany phone: +49 6131 39-23635 e-mail: jourdan@uni-mainz.de https://www.klaeui-lab.physik.uni-mainz.de/martin-jourdan/ Dr.-Ing. Marek Smaga Institute of Materials Science and Engineering University of Kaiserslautern 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germany phone: +49 631 205-2762 e-mail: smaga@mv.uni-kl.de https://www.mv.uni-kl.de/wkk/wkk-lehrstuhl0/wkk-mitarbeiter0/container-schwing/wkk-ma-smaga0/ Related links: https://www.uni-kl.de/trr173/home/ - Transregional Collaborative Research Center 173 "Spin+X: Spin in its collective environment" https://www.klaeui-lab.physik.uni-mainz.de/ - Klaui Lab at the JGU Institute of Physics Read more: http://www.uni-mainz.de/presse/aktuell/3937_ENG_HTML.php - press release "Antiferromagnets prove their potential for spin-based information technology" (29 Jan. 2018) ; http://www.uni-mainz.de/presse/18238_ENG_HTML.php - press release "Mainz University opens Spin Phenomena Interdisciplinary Center to accelerate spin research" (22 April 2015) Chemists of Moscow State University learned to determine quickly the products of poisonous substances decomposition The researchers of MSU Chemistry Department have patented a speedy method to determine compounds remaining after phosphorus-containing poisons application . Phosphorus-containing compounds are organic molecules which contain the "carbon- phosphorus" chemical bond. The organic compounds of phosphorus are used as insecticides, as medications and as motor oil antioxidants . But some of organophosphorous substances are poisons of neural-paralytic action which may cause death within a few hours upon contact. Once penetrated into a human body, the neural-paralytic poisons block the enzymes responsible for the neural impulse transfer. Due to malfunction of the signal transfer, a body gets paralyzed. Such poisons can penetrate into the body through the skin or being swallowed or inhaled. Unfortunately, nowadays the search for detection of poisonous agents and the non-toxic products of their decomposition is very actual because it is used to investigate possible chemical weapons application, and also to diagnose the condition of the affected people. The basic way to determine a concentration of organophosphorous substances and the products of their decomposition is gas chromatography but it requires a sophisticated sample preparation procedure. The faster way is liquid chromatography but hydrophilic ( the ones with good solubility in water) substances like alkylphosphonic acids, are difficult to be determined by means of it because of the weak ability to stay hold within a chromatography column. Since all the alkylphosphonic acids are badly hold on a surface of the sorbent that fills in the column, they pass it through so fast for not to be separated one from another, and up to now this obstacle makes the liquid method of organophosphorous substances determination unavailable. Thus, the more sophisticated and slow method of gas chromatography has to be used. Research fellows of MSU Chemistry Department under the guidance of Doctor of Science in Chemistry, Professor Grigorij Tsizin have solved the problem of organophosphorous substances liquid separation. They have patented a method of phosphonic acids determination based on the application of a special porous carbon sorbent for liquid chromatography. The scientists have modified the previously created procedure. They suggested to wash the chromatograph column with water before testing and to insert the formic acid together with the sample. This technique allows to hold the metylphosphonic and other acids for longer time in the column, and thus the sensitivity of determination of their concentration increases. " Our technique is faster than gas chromatography due to cancelation on derivatization ( fn - convertion the substance into the similar and easy-to-determine product) step . For the technique realization the "exotic" fixed base is required - this is a special sorbent which is used not quite often in a daily routine of analytical chemistry labs. However, this sorbent is commercially available and allows to get the excellent results", - one of the patent authors, the senior researcher and Ph.D. in Chemistry Mikhail Statkus advised. As the scientist told, the research had being made in a contact with the Ministry of Defense Scientific Research Center. The method may be used in future by specialists investigating the incidents with poisoning substances application. ### New Orleans, LA - Research conducted by LSU Health New Orleans School of Public Health finds that the current recommendations for running water to flush out lead are not consistently effective and may not be the best way to protect children from lead in drinking water. The findings are published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health available online at http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/7/1537/htm. "While flushing taps according to prevailing guidelines (for 30 seconds to 2 minutes) may reduce water lead levels for some homes, over half the tested homes had peak water lead levels after that time, so these recommendations may inadvertently increase exposures," notes study leader Adrienne Katner, DEnv, Assistant Research Professor of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences at LSU Health New Orleans School of Public Health. "More effective interventions like certified water filters should be considered instead, particularly when replacing water service lines and plumbing is not economically possible." The research team surveyed homeowners and tested water samples from 376 New Orleans homes on the East Bank of the Mississippi River (the city's water source) between February 2015 and November 2016. Recruited homes met criteria for the potential presence of lead. Virginia Tech colleagues analyzed the water samples, which were first cold water draws, first hot water draws, draws after letting the water run for 30 - 45 seconds, 2.5 - 3 minutes or 5.5 - 6 minutes. Overall, New Orleans water lead levels were typically low compared to the EPA's action level of 15 ppb. The analysis revealed a water lead level of 5 ppb in 88% of all samples from normal-use residential sites. More than half of all samples from normal use sites (60%) had detectable water lead levels of at least 1 ppb or higher. Water lead levels ranged from non-detectable (less than 1 ppb) to 58 ppb found in samples after flushing for 30-45 seconds. There was no significant difference in water lead level distribution after flushing for the various amounts of time until the six-minute mark after which the water lead level distribution decreased. "While the percent of samples with water lead levels exceeding 1 ppb did decrease after extended flushing for 5.5 to 6 min, the reductions were not always substantial," says Dr. Katner. "If the aim is to prevent childhood lead exposure altogether, preferably, or at least reduce it to the minimally detectable level (1 ppb) as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatricians, then New Orleans may require more proactive interventions than flushing to meet this goal. We could not verify that a one-time flush is sufficient to maintain low water lead levels. Some studies evaluating flushing at school taps suggest frequent flushes may be needed throughout the day, as waterborne lead can return to pre-flush levels within hours. Prolonged and repeated flushing may also not be practical, cost-effective, or sustainable over the long term, especially in cities with declining water resources and/or rising water rates." Katner and her colleagues conclude, "Public health messages should be modified to ensure appropriate application of flushing, while acknowledging its short-comings and practical limitations." ### In addition to Katner, the LSU Health New Orleans research team included Drs. Hui-Yi Lin, Chih-Yang Hu, as well as Komal Brown and Xinnan Wang. Researchers from Virginia Tech, Tulane University, and Corona Environmental Consulting also participated. The research was supported in part by the Louisiana Board of Regents' New Research Pilot Funding Program, the National Science Foundation, LSU Health New Orleans School of Public Health and the National Institutes of Health. Resources: Information about NSF International-certified water filters is available at http://www.nsf.org/newsroom/lead-in-drinking-water-nsf-certified-filters. Healthy Babies, Bright Futures offers low-cost water testing. Information is available at https://hbbf.org/lead-drinking-water. LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's flagship health sciences university, LSU Health New Orleans includes a School of Medicine, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSU Health New Orleans faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSU Health New Orleans research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSU Health New Orleans faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease. To learn more, visit http://www.lsuhsc.edu, http://www.twitter.com/LSUHealthNO, or http://www.facebook.com/LSUHSC. A new computational model allows researchers to draw on normally incompatible data sets, such as satellite imagery and social media posts, to answer questions about what is happening in targeted locations. The researchers developed the model to serve as a tool for identifying violations of nuclear nonproliferation agreements. "Our goal was to develop a working framework that uses information from a variety of sensors and data sources to identify these potential violations of nuclear nonproliferation," says Hamid Krim, co-author of a paper on the work, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at North Carolina State University and director of the VISSTA Laboratory. "Some of these data may be conventional, such as Geiger counter readings or multispectral data from satellite imagery. But many of these data sources may be nontraditional, such as social media posts. And these sources provide a wide variety of data that are not normally compatible, such as the text included on Twitter posts and the images posted on Flickr. "By making these different inputs compatible with each other, we are able to accept a broader range of data inputs and use that data in a meaningful way that, ultimately, can help authorities reach more reliable conclusions," Krim says. The researchers say the model can be used to work with any data that can be identified as coming from the targeted area. For example, satellite images are clearly identifiable, but they may also draw on social media posts that are actively or passively tagged as coming from the relevant area. The question then becomes: how do you work with incompatible data? To explain, we'll use a proxy problem that the researchers used in their paper: identifying a flood. They chose a flood because data on flooding is not classified, whereas data regarding nuclear activity is. The first step in the process is to use mathematical equations to translate each type of data into a useful format. For example, images may be run through models to determine whether they are images of flooding, whereas text posts may be run through models to determine whether they include references to flooding. Once those data streams are translated into a neutral format - meaning they indicate flooding or no flooding - they can be compared to each other to answer basic questions such as: do the data support each other? But it's not quite that simple. For example, people may be tweeting about a flood that is taking place hundreds of miles away, which could skew any calculation by the overarching model. To address this, the researchers incorporated mathematical elements that account for the complexity of the data they are drawing on. "Addressing complexity is particularly important in the context of nonproliferation enforcement," Krim says. "Relevant data inputs may include photos of particular types of technology, references made in conversations caught on audio, and so on. A model like the one we developed needs to be flexible enough to account for the variability and complexity of both varied types of data and the varied clues we are looking for." The researchers tested their model using data from a 2013 flood that took place in Colorado, and were able to resolve the incompatibility of multi-modal data in order to accurately estimate the location of the flooding. Next steps for the project include evaluating nuclear facilities in the West to identify common characteristics that may also be applicable to facilities in more isolated societies, such as North Korea. "We want to find ways of transferring information from known environment to a hidden one," Krim says. "How can we determine what information and which models are transferable from one place to another, given incompatible or inconsistent data? What's normal, and what's not? It's not an easy problem." ### The paper, "Fusing Heterogeneous Data: A Case for Remote Sensing and Social Media," is published online in the journal IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing. First author on the paper is Han Wang, a former postdoctoral researcher at NC State who is now a postdoc at the University of Texas in San Antonio. Other co-authors were Erik Skau, a former Ph.D. student at NC State who is a now a postdoc at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and Guido Cervone of Pennsylvania State University. The work was supported by the Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration's Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation R&D through the Consortium for Nonproliferation Enabling Capabilities at North Carolina State University, under grant number DE-NA0002576. NASA's Terra satellite found Tropical Storm Son-Tinh continuing to drop rain over Hainan Island and mainland China. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument aboard NASA's Aqua satellite caught a visible light image of Tropical Storm Son-Tinh on July 23. The MODIS image showed an elongated storm with strongest storms being pushed east of the low-level center because of vertical wind shear. There is also a weak banding of thunderstorms wrapping from the northern quadrant into the eastern quadrant of the storm. At 11 a.m. EDT (1500 UTC) the Joint Typhoon Warning Center or JTWC noted that Tropical Son-Tinh had maximum sustained winds near 35 knots (40 mph/62 kph). It was located near 21.0 degrees north latitude and 109.9 degrees east longitude, about 230 nautical miles east of Hanoi, Vietnam. The center of the storm is actually located over land on the Leizhou Peninsula, China, just north of Hainan Island. Son-Tinh has tracked northward at 4 knots (4.6 mph/7.4 kph). The JTWC noted that the system has begun to recurve northward and appears to have entered a quasi-stationary state. The JTWC forecast calls for the storm to move north further into mainland China and dissipate by July 25. For updated local forecasts, visit the China Meteorological Administration: http://www.cma.gov.cn/en2014/ ### Auroras appear on Earth as ghostly displays of colorful light in the night sky, usually near the poles. Our rocky neighbor Mars has auroras too, and NASA's MAVEN spacecraft just found a new type of Martian aurora that occurs over much of the day side of the Red Planet, where auroras are very hard to see. Auroras flare up when energetic particles plunge into a planet's atmosphere, bombarding gases and making them glow. While electrons generally cause this natural phenomenon, sometime protons can elicit the same response, although it's more rare. Now, the MAVEN team has learned that protons were doing at Mars the same thing as electrons usually do at Earth--create aurora. This is especially true when the Sun ejects a particularly strong pulse of protons, which are hydrogen atoms stripped of their lone electrons by intense heat. The Sun ejects protons at speeds up to two million miles per hour (more than 3 million kilometers per hour) in an erratic flow called the solar wind. The MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission) team was studying Mars' atmosphere with the Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph (IUVS), and observed that on occasion, the ultraviolet light coming from hydrogen gas in Mars' upper atmosphere would mysteriously brighten for a few hours. They then noticed that the brightening events occurred when another MAVEN instrument, the Solar Wind Ion Analyzer (SWIA), measured enhanced solar wind protons. But two puzzles make this type of aurora seem impossible at first glance: how did these protons get past the planet's "bow shock," a magnetic obstacle which normally diverts the solar wind's charged particles around the planet? And how could the protons give off light, since atoms need electrons to do so? "The answer was thievery," said Justin Deighan, of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder, lead author of a paper on this research appearing July 23 in Nature Astronomy. "As they approach Mars, the protons coming in with the solar wind transform into neutral atoms by stealing electrons from the outer edge of the huge cloud of hydrogen surrounding the planet. The bow shock can only divert charged particles, so these neutral atoms continue right on through." When those high-speed incoming atoms hit the atmosphere, some of their energy was emitted as ultraviolet light, which is invisible to the human eye but detectable to instruments like the IUVS on MAVEN. In fact, one incoming atom can collide with molecules in the atmosphere hundreds of times before it slows down, giving off a slew of ultraviolet photons. "The Martian proton auroras are more than a light show," said Jasper Halekas of the University of Iowa, responsible for the SWIA instrument. "They reveal that the solar wind is not completely diverted around Mars, by showing how solar wind protons can sneak past the bow shock and impact the atmosphere, depositing energy and even enhancing the hydrogen content there." Proton auroras do occur at Earth, but not as often as at Mars. One key difference is Earth's strong magnetic field, which diverts the solar wind away from Earth to a much greater degree than at Mars. On Earth, proton auroras only occur in very small regions near the poles, whereas at Mars they can happen everywhere. However, proton auroras could be common on Venus and on Saturn's moon Titan. Like Mars, these two worlds lack their own magnetic fields, and have lots of hydrogen in their upper atmospheres--with plenty of electrons to share. Looking further, it's likely that many planets orbiting other stars have the same favorable conditions, and would be likely to have proton auroras too. ### This research was funded by the MAVEN mission. MAVEN's principal investigator is based at the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, Boulder, and NASA Goddard manages the MAVEN project. BROOKLYN, New York, Monday, July 23, 2018--Countless times a day, seabirds dive-catch prey from the ocean, boats enter the water from dry land, and seaplanes touch down gently amid the waves. The phenomenon of objects entering water is commonplace, yet a full understanding of the physics of water entry remains elusive, especially as it pertains to instances where a solid object enters a body of water that contains other solid objects, such as a gull diving into a rocky patch of sea. A team of researchers at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering is exploring this relatively untouched area of research and has published a series of surprising findings that may lead to strategies for minimizing the strain of water entry on marine vessels, seaplanes, and space-crew capsules designed for water landing. "Many studies of water entry overlook the presence of solid, stationary objects like ice or rocks in the water, and it is clear that these items can affect objects entering the water and change the physics of impact," said Maurizio Porfiri, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at NYU Tandon and lead author of the paper "Solid Obstacles Can Reduce Hydrodynamic Loading During Water Entry," which appears in the journal Physical Review Fluids. Porfiri's collaborators include NYU Tandon Adjunct Faculty Member Ghania Benbelkacem, in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and Mohammad Jalalisendi, a recent doctoral degree graduate in Porfiri's group. Porfiri and his collaborators in the Dynamical Systems Laboratory created an experiment using a solid wedge plunging into a tank of water containing a neutrally buoyant cylinder. Sensors in the setup measured acceleration, pressure, and depth, and the team used particle image velocimetry to visualize flow and measure the speed of water jets produced by the wedge as it hit the water. Analyses revealed that the cylinder's presence in the water dramatically changed the physics of impact on the wedge in unexpected ways. To the researchers' surprise, they noted a decrease in pressure in the pile-up -- the region of the fluid where a high-speed jet is produced as the wedge lands-- on the side of the wedge closest to the cylinder. Porfiri and the team attributed this decrease to the cylinder confining fluid on that side, so that less water was displaced upon impact. However, in a contradictory finding, the team noted an increase in pressure toward the wedge's keel, indicating a rich, complex effect from the cylinder. Further studies are needed to reconcile these conflicting findings, but the researchers note the importance of continuing to explore the interplay between stationary items in water and objects entering the water. "It is clear that there are sympathetic interactions between these objects, and as we gain a better understanding of them, it may lead to designs and materials that mitigate some of the strain on marine vessels that travel in occluded waters, especially those exploring and navigating polar regions," said Porfiri. ### This research was supported by a grant from the Solid Mechanics Program of the Office of Naval Research, with Dr. Y. D. S. Rajapakse as the program manager. About the New York University Tandon School of Engineering The NYU Tandon School of Engineering dates to 1854, the founding date for both the New York University School of Civil Engineering and Architecture and the Brooklyn Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute (widely known as Brooklyn Poly). A January 2014 merger created a comprehensive school of education and research in engineering and applied sciences, rooted in a tradition of invention and entrepreneurship and dedicated to furthering technology in service to society. In addition to its main location in Brooklyn, NYU Tandon collaborates with other schools within NYU, one of the country's foremost private research universities, and is closely connected to engineering programs at NYU Abu Dhabi and NYU Shanghai. It operates Future Labs focused on start-up businesses in downtown Manhattan and Brooklyn and an award-winning online graduate program. For more information, visit http://engineering.nyu.edu. With just 521 airport traffic control towers in the U.S. and nearly 20,000 U.S. airports, documenting flight operations can be challenging, say airport managers. Costly too, as airports' can receive funding through the FAA's $1 billion-plus Airport Improvement Program, but this funding is highly dependent on documentation of an airport's operations. Airport operations - the landings and takeoffs of aircraft - are typically logged through traffic control towers, but airports without control towers face greater challenges in collecting such data. A Purdue University-developed product called Blueavion f1, launched Monday (July 23) by Bluemac Analytics Inc. is shown to help airports more accurately log airport operations. While Purdue University Airport is the second busiest airport in the state of Indiana and open 24 hours a day, Lafayette Air Traffic Control Tower operates only during the busiest hours, a common situation found at many towers. Technology can help the airport more accurately log its flight operations, according to Adam Baxmeyer, manager of Purdue University Airport. Which is one reason why the Purdue University Airport participated in the testing of the Blueavion innovation. "Our control tower is open 14 hours a day, so that means we have 10 hours a day where we have to find other means to capture operations data," Baxmeyer said. "We have been able to advance our data collection through this new technology and capture data we might otherwise miss." What Baxmeyer found is that there are many on-demand air cargo operations that use the airport at off-hours in support of local manufacturers. "We know the Purdue University Airport is used to support many businesses in the Greater Lafayette area. Being part of the field test for the Blueavion f1 technology helped us identify even more accurate operations data during the overnight hours when the local control tower is not in operation." Baxmeyer said. Bluemac Analytics is a hardware system, data and analysis company serving transportation agencies around the globe. "The sky is just going to get more crowded, and we've been looking for something that can help the many smaller airports that need a system to automatically log operations," said Keith Szot, CEO of Bluemac. "What we wanted was something that is cost-effective and can precisely understand how an airport is used. More accurate data also can help airports apply for an FAA Airport Improvement Program grant that can be used for the planning, improvement and development of public-use airports." According to the FAA, Airport Improvement Program grants are designed for public-use airports that are publicly owned, privately owned but designated by the FAA as a reliever, or privately owned but having scheduled service and at least 2,500 annual enplanements. The Purdue University Airport participated in the testing of the Blueavion f1 innovation. "Being part of the field test for the Blueavion f1 technology helped us become even more accurate during the overnight hours when the control tower is not in operation," Baxmeyer said. The technology, developed by Darcy Bullock, the Lyles Family Professor of Civil Engineering and director of the Joint Transportation Research Program, and John Mott, associate professor in the Purdue Polytechnic Institute School of Aviation and Transportation Technology, features a transponder data collection system that provides a more accurate method to determine the number of operations an airport has in a given time. "Many small airports rely on approximations for operations counts, but a more accurate method to collect this data could help when applying for FAA funding," Mott said. "What we have developed is a way to utilize the transponder signals broadcast by most aircraft to compute the distances of those aircraft from our portable receiver and data collection device. These distance computations are used along with additional parameters such as aircraft altitude to determine whether an aircraft is taking off or landing at a particular airport. This is an improvement over the conventional method of acoustic counting technology, which typically captures only a portion of total operations. The Blueavion f1 technology is placed near runways and is able to self-calibrate. "Any small airport interested in improving its operations counting accuracy can benefit from the technology," Mott said. "More than that, it can be extended to provide improvements in safety and operational efficiency, as well." Bullock added that, long-term, the technology may help an airport secure more funding for future improvements. "An important criteria for the FAA is to determine usage and need for the future of an airport, and one of the most important aspects of this is operations," Bullock said. "How many planes use the airport, is usage increasing or decreasing, what does the airport need to maintain its high level of service? For many of the smaller airports it is not unusual for planes to come in and out, and they won't know about it because they can't be managed 24/7. Our goal with this technology is to help these smaller airports." The Blueavion f1 is licensed through the Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization. ### About Bluemac Analytics Bluemac Analytics provides economical and secure systems for ITS roadway applications for leading transportation agencies worldwide. As an early pioneer in applying Bluetooth probe technology starting in 2008 for transportation agency solutions and an ISO 9001 certified firm with deployments across the world, our devices and services are proven and robust. Bluemac is now taking that expertise into the aviation market with the Blueavion f1. About Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization The Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university's academic activities. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, which received the 2016 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Innovation from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. For more information about funding and investment opportunities in startups based on a Purdue innovation, contact the Purdue Foundry at foundry@prf.org. For more information on licensing a Purdue innovation, contact the Office of Technology Commercialization at innovation@prf.org. Sources: Adam Baxmeyer, abaxmeye@purdue.edu, 765-496-6326 Keith Szot, keith@bluemacanalytics.com John Mott, jhmott@purdue.edu Darcy Bullock, darch@purdue.edu, 765-494-2226 Writer: Cynthia Sequin, 765-588-3341, casequin@prf.org A team of researchers from across the Princeton University campus collaborated to determine how E. coli bacteria respond when they are deprived of three key nutrients: carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus. They were surprised to find that the bacteria had different strategies for dealing with each of the nutrient restrictions. Even more surprisingly, when carbon was limited, E. coli responded by building up its protein-production infrastructure, essentially preparing for a day when carbon would again be abundant. "E. coli has that essential optimism -- it expects it will have access to more carbon in the future," said Zemer Gitai, the Edwin Grant Conklin Professor of Biology and a senior author on a paper released online July 23 from Nature Microbiology. All seven of the co-authors are Princeton scientists, from six departments. It can help to think of the cell as a toy factory filled with individual assembly lines (ribosomes) producing toys (proteins), Gitai said. Carbon and nitrogen are key components of the toys, and phosphorus is vital to the assembly lines. "When resources get tight, the cell has a decision to make," Gitai said. "What's the right usage of materials -- of its available resources? 'Am I going to devote resources into making more assembly lines or more toys?'" The "toys," proteins, are the fundamental building blocks that allow cells to grow, divide or increase in mass. The faster a cell produces proteins, the faster it grows. Scientists have known for decades that there is a straightforward, linear relationship between the number of ribosomes (assembly lines) and the rate of protein (toy) production in E. coli. This has led to the widely accepted theory that each of these assembly lines is "optimized," operating constantly at its peak efficiency to produce proteins as fast as possible. "Surprisingly, the current study radically changes this perspective," said Ned Wingreen, the Howard A. Prior Professor in the Life Sciences and a professor of molecular biology and the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics (LSI) who was also a corresponding author on the paper. The research team discovered that when they limited access to carbon and nitrogen, key ingredients in the toys, the cells grew slowly but steadily while also producing more and more assembly lines that sat idle. "Under extreme carbon limitation, about half the ribosomes -- half the assembly lines -- are not even working," said Gitai. "That seems counterintuitive, right? That seems wasteful. Why build your factory so you have twice as many assembly lines as you need, and then not run half your assembly lines? We posited that that might be good for ramping up production when times change, and sure enough, that's what we saw." These bacteria live in feast-or-famine environments like the human gut, where a long hungry period can end with the sudden arrival of a cheeseburger. "When all these new nutrients come in, you have the ability to produce faster," Gitai said. "You already made all those assembly lines -- they're ready, and now they can take off, now you can beat your competitors to the punch, because you don't have to invest in all this infrastructure, making all these new assembly lines. You have them set up." This has interesting implications for E. coli competition strategies, said graduate student Hsin-Jung (Sophia) Li, who is the first author on the paper. "Maybe the goal of the bacteria is not to maximize the current growth," she said. "They might be preparing for better times -- more forward-looking." "Overall, this work gives a new perspective on bacteria, and potentially other organisms, suggesting they evolved not only to deal with current conditions but also for life in a changing world," said Wingreen. "It has been an exciting journey," said Junyoung Park, a 2016 Ph.D. graduate in chemical and biological engineering who is now a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the University of California-Los Angeles. "We started with a simple observation -- nutrient-specific RNA-to-protein ratios -- but ended up with fascinating insights into the cell's competition strategies." E. coli uses different strategies when different nutrients are limited, the researchers found. "Carbon-limited cells generate a large number of inactive assembly lines," Li said. "Nitrogen-limited cells turn out products more slowly. But phosphorous-limited cells -- this was the exciting part -- use only half as many assembly lines to generate the same number of toys." The ribosome assembly lines depend on RNA, which is phosphorus-rich, so by limiting its availability, the researchers essentially made toy ingredients cheap but assembly lines very expensive. "The first surprise was that there's a nutrient-specific story here, that we achieved the same growth rate three different ways," said Gitai. "But the real surprise was the phosphorus. We found that if we make the assembly lines more expensive, suddenly the same assembly lines can pump out toys at the same rate, using half as many assembly lines. That tells us that under the carbon- and nitrogen-limited conditions, those assembly lines were actually not working as fast as they possibly could." This overturned the long-held model of the optimized ribosome and prompted the researchers to investigate the mechanisms at work in the ribosomes, using a combination of quantitative experiments, led by Li, buttressed by the modeling and theory work of Wingreen and Zhiyuan Li, an associate research scholar in the Princeton Center for Theoretical Science. They also collaborated with Christopher King, who graduated in 2017 with a physics concentration, and Joshua Rabinowitz, a professor of chemistry and LSI. Converting the enormous quantities of biological data into a clear theory illustrates the "charm" of data science, said Zhiyuan Li, from processing the measurements into "individual pearls, and then stringing them together into a beautiful necklace by mathematical modeling that reveals the underlying connections." "This paper is a great contribution to the community," said Ron Milo, principal investigator of the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at the Weizmann Institute of Science, who was not involved in this research. "It gives us better insight into how cells make decisions regarding their allocation of resources, which can be relevant for biotechnological production of value-added chemicals." The research also raises a new question, said Gitai: "Do many bacterial species use this strategy? You could imagine that in a community of bacteria, there are some species that are optimists, some that are pessimists. ... It's kind of an appealing idea that it's this 'eternal optimism' of E. coli that allows it to trade off, if you will, between immediate benefit and the longer term. When times are bad, it's going to say, 'Okay, I'm not going to worry about doing as well as I possibly can right now, but I'll prepare for when times get better.'" One of the biggest surprises of the research was that such a thoroughly studied bacteria still has tricks up its microscopic sleeves, said Sophia Li. "Even E. coli, arguably the most well-understood organism, can still give us new surprises and interesting biology to learn." ### "E. coli translation strategies differ across carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus limitation conditions," by Hsin-Jung (Sophia) Li, Zhiyuan Li, Junyoung Park, Christopher King, Joshua Rabinowitz, Ned Wingreen and Zemer Gitai, appears in Nature Microbiology on July 23, DOI: 10.1038/s41564-018-0199-2. The research was supported by two grants from the National Institutes of Health (DP1AI124669 and R01GM082938). What inspired the iconic red-and-yellow sky in The Scream, the painting by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch that sold for a record $119.9 million in 2012? Some say it was a volcanic sunset after the 1883 Krakatau eruption. Others think the wavy sky shows a scream from nature. But scientists at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, University of Oxford and University of London suggest that nacreous, or "mother of pearl," clouds which can be seen in southern Norway inspired the dramatic scene in the painting. Their study is published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. "What's screaming is the sky and the person in the painting is putting his or her hands over their ears so they can't hear the scream," said Alan Robock, study co-author and distinguished professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences at Rutgers-New Brunswick. "If you read what Munch wrote, the sky was screaming blood and fire." There are four known versions of The Scream: an 1893 tempera on cardboard; an 1893 crayon on cardboard; an 1895 pastel on cardboard that billionaire Leon Black bought for nearly $120 million at auction; and a tempera on hard cardboard thought to have been painted in 1910. Iridescent light from below the horizon illuminates polar stratospheric clouds, also known as nacreous clouds. Robock said the sky colors and patterns in Munch's paintings match sunset colors better when nacreous clouds are present versus other scenarios. The study builds on a 2017 study that also proposed nacreous clouds. The new study provides a more detailed and scientific analysis of Munch's paintings, focusing on photographs of volcanic sunsets and nacreous clouds and analyzing the color content and cloud patterns. If the new analysis is correct, Munch's art is one of the earliest visual documentations of nacreous clouds, the study says. Robock and others have previously proposed that a volcanic sunset inspired the painting, and he still thinks that's possible. "We don't know if Munch painted exactly what he saw," Robock said. "He could have been influenced by the Krakatau sunset and nacreous clouds and combined them." ### The study was peer-reviewed and accepted in January 2018 and was published online and in print this month Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Hebei Yogomo Vehicle Co., Ltd. (Yogomo) plans to change its name as Link Tour Automobile Co., Ltd., according to the official website of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Zhang Liping, chairman of Yogomo, revealed that the automaker will establish Link Tour Automobile Holding Group in the second half of this year, which will set up various subdivided brands with products covering such areas as pure electric vehicle and low-speed electric vehicle. Specifically, Link Tour Automobile will be a NEV brand under Link Tour Holding Group specializing in small-size electric vehicles. Yogomo changes its name to have its brand position and business plan changed, especially to shift its focus from low-speed electric vehicles to passenger vehicles. On July 16, 2017, Yogomo signed a JV framework agreement with Great Wall Motor (GWM), under which, it made a promise to sell NEV credits to GWM, with priority to other automakers, and transfer all of its positive corporate average fuel consumption (CAFC) credits to GWM. In the meantime, GWM would acquire a 25% stake in Yogomo with capital increase. To some extent, it is the pressure of GWM's lack of dual credits that mainly results in Yogomo's name changing. It is said that Yogomo and GWM will jointly invested in and established Link Tour Holding Group, together with other various Chinese venture capital institutions. After Yogomo changed its name as Link Tour, GWM's 25% stake in the company remained the same as that of in Yogomo. At the beginning of this year, Zhang Liping has exposed that Yogomo would change its corporate name and brand image. He also added that Yogomo would spare no efforts to rank first in small-size pure electric vehicle segment by 2020. The automaker intends to become a world-leading mobility service provider and a NEV maker with market value of RMB 100 billion in 2027. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality and also contributes to huge health care expenditures in China. Therefore, accurate and early identification of high-risk individuals is important for CVD prevention. The China-PAR (Prediction for atherosclerotic CVD (ASCVD) Risk in China) project generated equations with excellent capacity to predict lifetime risk for ASCVD by incorporating four large and ongoing cohorts followed up until 2015 with 106,281 Chinese participants, according to a new study published by Science Bulletin. According to the authors, these are the most recent lifetime risk estimates for ASCVD that predict personalized lifetime risk, and their reliability and generalizability have been verified by internal and external validation. Using these equations will provide novel information for a comprehensive assessment of ASCVD disease burden, especially for young and middle-aged adults with low 10-year risks. Individuals may gain many benefits if interventions start as early as possible. Beside major risk factors (blood pressure, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, current smoking, and diabetes), waist circumference and geographic region (northern/southern China) were included in the ASCVD lifetime risk equations for women and men, and urbanization (urban/rural) and family history of ASCVD were further included in the equations for men. Based on the findings, the research team has developed tools to estimate lifetime risk, including the web-based calculator (http://www.cvdrisk.com.cn) or APP, which are very useful when conducted individualized counseling on absolute risk of ASCVD and the potential benefits of lifestyle and/or therapeutic interventions targeted at risk factors. In order to make the understanding of high lifetime risk more clear, the authors also demonstrated ASCVD-free years of lost due to high 10-year risk and/or lifetime risk. For example, compared with men having both low 10-year and low lifetime risk, men would develop ASCVD 3.0, 4.6 and 8.6 years earlier if they had high 10-year risk alone, high lifetime risk alone, or both high 10-year and high lifetime risk at the index age of 35 years, respectively. "These findings will facilitate in raising awareness of long-term ASCVD risk especially in young adults with low or medium 10-year risk, and enable early intervention on risk factors with suboptimal levels," said Simin Liu, who is a professor from Brown University. "We hope to help more people recognize their risk of ASCVD at an earlier age, which will prompt them to adopt a healthy lifestyle, take preventive measures, and improve therapeutic compliance," said Dongfeng Gu, head of the research team. "Applying this tool will be useful for communicating long-term risks of ASCVD with individuals, especially for those with low 10-year risk, and further encouraging intensive clinical and public health interventions. It will be beneficial to improve risk factors control and further reduce the great disease burden of ASCVD in China," the authors conclude. ### This study was supported by grants from the CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences (2017-I2M-1-004), the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (2017YFC0211700, 2011BAI11B03, 2011BAI09B03, and 2006BAI01A01), and National Natural Science Foundation of China (91643208). See the article: 1. Fangchao Liu, Jianxin Li, Jichun Chen, Dongsheng Hu, Ying Li, Jianfeng Huang, Xiaoqing Liu, Xueli Yang, Jie Cao, Chong Shen, Ling Yu, Zhendong Liu, Xianping Wu, Liancheng Zhao, Xigui Wu, Dongfeng Gu, Xiangfeng Lu. Predicting Lifetime Risk for Developing Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease in Chinese Population: The China-PAR project. Science Bulletin 2018, 63(12): 779-787 2. Mengna Huang, Simin Liu. Ending the epidemics of cardiovascular diseases: time is now to integrate both population and individual strategies for prevention. Science Bulletin 2018, 63(12): 735-736 Over the past two decades, intelligentization and informatization have become increasingly popular in the development of science and technology. A large number of microsensors and actuators have been integrated into all aspects of electronic devices. By achieving flexibility and stretchability, microelectronics can greatly expand the current application scenarios. The main advantage of flexible electronics is its ability to fit into a variety of complex surfaces, such as the human skin, which makes it possible to manufacture biosensors or wearable devices for human healthcare. According to Transparency Market Research, the global biosensors market was valued at $9.9 billion in 2011, and it is expected to reach as high as $18.9 billion by 2018. The human body is a complex system where any pathology can exhibit appropriate physiological signals. Physiological measurements and stimulation techniques require electronic devices that can conform to the curvilinear surfaces of biological tissues and accommodate their large deformations. Scholars at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Dalian University of Technology review the recent advances in flexible and stretchable electronics that are currently used for electronic skins and biological devices in human healthcare. The materials, structures, and functionalities of a variety of biological sensors are introduced. The discussions provide potential ideas for commercial applications. Some perspectives on future research opportunities have also been included. "With an improved understanding of biosensors and the architectures of flexible and stretchable electronic devices, it will be possible to develop more functional and powerful integrated electronic systems," wrote the four researchers. "This will improve the public health by bringing about revolutionary changes in long-term health monitoring devices." ### More details can be found in the article "An overview of healthcare monitoring by flexible electronics" published in SCIENCE CHINA Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy, 2018, 61(9): 094601. This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11572323, 11772331, and 11302038). See the article: JianQiao Hu, Rui Li, Yuan Liu, and YeWang Su, An overview of healthcare monitoring by flexible electronics, Sci. China-Phys. Mech. Astron. 61, 094601 (2018) http://engine.scichina.com/publisher/scp/journal/SCPMA/61/9/10.1007/s11433-018-9239-9?slug=full%20text https://doi.org/10.1007/s11433-018-9239-9 Technologies that are reducing costs and changing the ways in which researchers and clinicians process and use therapeutic cells are showcased in the August 2018 special issue of SLAS Technology. With leadership from guest editor Christopher Puleo, Ph.D., and colleagues of General Electric Global Research (Niskayuna, NY), the issue presents two review articles that detail the status of cell bioreactors in both stem cell and tissue/organ engineering applications and five original research reports by life sciences researchers from universities, pharma companies and hospitals in Australia and across the United States. Advances reported in this issue include methods of cell separation that utilize unique microscale forces for use with higher cell concentrations or larger sample volumes; techniques, device packages and footprints that utilize "smart" dynamic magnetic traps, microfluidic separators, and acoustic energy-based cell separation techniques provide new inline and closed-loop systems; and methods to better automate or package complex cell manipulations into closed bioreactor systems. The arrival of FDA-approved chimeric antigen receptors (CAR) T-cell therapies and the expansion of T-cell and other cell-based therapies beyond oncology applications, have reinvigorated discussions around the ways in which researchers harvest, culture, process, or directly alter therapeutic cells. However, the manufacturing process (i.e. selection of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from whole blood, activation of T cells, transduction with CAR viral vectors or transposons, and expansion in an appropriate bioreactor) for combination gene/cell therapies such as CAR T is complex, and there remain many opportunities to decrease costs and improve safety of these important new clinical tools. ### The SLAS Technology special issue on Enabling Technology in Cell-Based Therapies: Scale-Up, Scale-Out or Program In-Place can be accessed at http://journals.sagepub.com/toc/jlad/23/4. For more information about SLAS and its journals, visit http://www.slas.org/journals. A PDF of this article is available to credentialed media outlets upon request. Contact nhallock@slas.org. About our Society and Journals SLAS (Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening) is an international community of nearly 20,000 professionals and students dedicated to life sciences discovery and technology. The SLAS mission is to bring together researchers in academia, industry and government to advance life sciences discovery and technology via education, knowledge exchange and global community building. SLAS DISCOVERY: 2016 Impact Factor 2.444. Editor-in-Chief Robert M. Campbell, Ph.D., Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN (USA). SLAS Discovery (Advancing Life Sciences R&D) was previously published (1996-2016) as the Journal of Biomolecular Screening (JBS). SLAS TECHNOLOGY: 2016 Impact Factor 2.850. Editor-in-Chief Edward Kai-Hua Chow, Ph.D., National University of Singapore (Singapore). SLAS Technology (Translating Life Sciences Innovation) was previously published (1996-2016) as the Journal of Laboratory Automation (JALA). Follow SLAS on Twitter at @SLAS_Org. Follow SLAS on Facebook at SocietyforLaboratoryAutomationandScreening. Follow SLAS on YouTube at SLASvideo. Follow SLAS Americas on LinkedIn at Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS Americas). Follow SLAS Europe on LinkedIn at Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening Europe (SLAS Europe). DALLAS (SMU) - Native American communities actively managed North American prairies for centuries before Christopher Columbus' arrival in the New World, according to a new study led by Southern Methodist University (SMU) archaeologist Christopher I. Roos. Fire was an important indigenous tool for shaping North American ecosystems, but the relative importance of indigenous burning versus climate on fire patterns remains controversial in scientific communities. The new study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), documents the use of fire to manipulate bison herds in the northern Great Plains. Contrary to popular thinking, burning by indigenous hunters combined with climate variability to amplify the effects of climate on prairie fire patterns. The relative importance of climate and human activities in shaping fire patterns is often debated and has implications for how we approach fire management today. "While there is little doubt that climate plays an important top-down role in shaping fire patterns, it is far less clear whether human activities - including active burning - can override those climate influences," said Roos. "Too often, if scientists see strong correlations between fire activity and climate, the role of humans is discounted." Anthropologists and historians have documented a wide variety of fire uses by Native peoples in the Americas but fire scientists have also documented strong fire-climate relationships spanning more than 10,000 years. "People often think that hunter-gatherers lived lightly on the land," said Kacy L. Hollenback, an anthropologist at SMU and co-author of the study. "Too often we assume that hunter-gatherers were passive in their interaction with their environment. On the Great Plains and elsewhere, foragers were active managers shaping the composition, structure, and productivity of their environments. This history of management has important implications for contemporary relationships between Native American and First Nations peoples and their home landscapes - of which they were ecosystem engineers." Working in partnership with the Blackfeet Tribe in northern Montana, Roos and colleagues combined landscape archaeology and geoarchaeology to document changes in prairie fire activity in close spatial relationship to stones piled in formations up to a mile long that were used to drive herds of bison off of cliffs to be harvested en masse. These features are known as drivelines. "We surveyed the uplands for stone features that delineate drivelines within which bison herds would be funneled towards a jump," said anthropologist Maria Nieves Zedeno of the University of Arizona, co-author of the study. "By radiocarbon dating prairie fire charcoal deposits from the landscape near the drivelines, we were able to reconstruct periods of unusually high fire activity that are spatially associated with the drivelines," says Roos. The overlap between peak periods of driveline use (ca. 900-1650 CE) and prairie fire activity (ca. 1100-1650 CE) suggests that fire was an important tool in the hunting strategy involving the drivelines. Roos and colleagues suggest that fire was used to freshen up the prairie near the mouth of the drivelines to attract herds of bison, who prefer to graze recently burned areas. Episodes of high fire activity also correspond to wet climate episodes, when climate would have produced abundant grass fuel for prairie fires. The absence of deposits indicating high prairie fire activity before or after the period of driveline use, even though comparable wet climate episodes occurred, suggests that anthropogenic burning by Native hunters amplified the climate signal in prairie fire patterns during the period of intensive bison hunting. "We need to consider that humans and climate have more complicated and interacting influences on historical fire patterns," said Roos. "Moreover, we need to acknowledge that hunter-gatherers can be active influences in their environments, particularly through their use of fire as a landscape tool. We expect that future studies of human/climate/fire interactions will further document the complexity of these relationships. Understanding that complexity may prove important as we try to navigate the complex wildfire problems we face today." ### SMU is the nationally ranked global research university in the dynamic city of Dallas. SMU's alumni, faculty and nearly 12,000 students in seven degree-granting schools demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit as they lead change in their professions, communities and the world. A new Mount Sinai study, published July 23 in the journal Nature Neuroscience, provides important insight into how microglia, cells that form a branch of the immune system inside the brain, go about their job of clearing out dying and non-functional neurons - and how they sometimes mistakenly attack healthy neurons, an event that can play a role in neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. The functionality of neurons, highly sensitive cells, begins to decline as a person ages. When neurons die, they don't die unnoticed; they activate their neighbors, the microglia. The ability to clear biological debris makes microglia both a friend and foe of the brain. Microglia are friends as long as they clear the dying neurons but do not affect healthy cells, but foes when the reverse happens. The new research conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai revealed that microglia clearance activity in different brain regions goes hand in hand with the natural rate of neuronal degeneration/death. The research team also discovered that the highly calibrated response of microglia to neuronal cell death is governed by the gene regulatory protein complex polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2), which silences the microglia clearing program in the absence of dying neurons, and that if PRC2 is inactivated, the microglia can mistakenly attack healthy neurons. Specifically, the research team found that microglia in the cerebellum, a brain region important in regulating motor learning and balance, display a distinct clearance phenotype characterized by the engulfment and catabolism of cells and cellular debris. This feature of cerebellar microglia matches the existence of cell death in the cerebellum, where neuronal numbers start declining during adolescence. Conversely, they found microglia in the striatum and cortex display a homeostatic surveillance phenotype, aligned with low rates of neuronal death in those brain regions. These brain-region-specific differences in neuronal degeneration suggest the possibility that microglia may fine-tune their clearance activity in accordance with the load of cell debris. "Our study shows that microglia in different regions of the brain display different capacities to 'eat' or remove dying cells," says Anne Schaefer, PhD, Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Psychiatry and Co-Director of the Center for Glial Biology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "We found that if the eating behavior is turned on inappropriately in the absence of cell death, it can impair the function of adjacent neurons and lead to cellular changes frequently associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. The study also provides evidence that PRC2, a protein complex that silences a given gene's expression, restricts the expression of genes that support clearance activity. " The team found that the non-eating phenotype of microglia in the striatum and cortex is established with the help of PRC2, which keeps genes involved in eating at bay. But if PRC2 is inactivated, the microglia's eating behavior is switched on aberrantly in the absence of dying cells or debris. With nothing left to clear, microglia turn to healthy neurons and induce changes frequently associated with neurodegenerative diseases. "Our research indicates that microglia eating behavior requires tight regulation and could be dangerous to neurons if there are factors that interfere with these mechanisms." says Pinar Ayata, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow in the Departments of Neuroscience and Psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "Our work may help to shed light on how environmental factors that can deregulate epigenetic mechanisms, such as stress and changes in metabolism, may contribute to neurodegenerative disorders." "There is a possibility that regional differences in microglia function may underlie some of the known brain region-specific susceptibilities to neurodegenerative disorders," adds Dr. Schaefer. "It also raises the possibility that 'training' microglia eating behaviors may help to establish a condition that supports microglia clearance activity without damaging neurons." ### About the Mount Sinai Health System The Mount Sinai Health System is New York City's largest integrated delivery system encompassing seven hospital campuses, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. Mount Sinai's vision is to produce the safest care, the highest quality, the highest satisfaction, the best access and the best value of any health system in the nation. The System includes approximately 6,600 primary and specialty care physicians; 10 joint-venture ambulatory surgery centers; more than 140 ambulatory practices throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and 31 affiliated community health centers. The Icahn School of Medicine is one of three medical schools that have earned distinction by multiple indicators: ranked in the top 20 by U.S. News & World Report's "Best Medical Schools", aligned with a U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll" Hospital, No. 13 in the nation for National Institutes of Health funding, and among the top 10 most innovative research institutions as ranked by the journal Nature in its Nature Innovation Index. This reflects a special level of excellence in education, clinical practice, and research. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked No. 18 on U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll" of top U.S. hospitals; it is one of the nation's top 20 hospitals in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Geriatrics, Nephrology, and Neurology/Neurosurgery, and in the top 50 in four other specialties in the 2017-2018 "Best Hospitals" issue. Mount Sinai's Kravis Children's Hospital also is ranked in five out of ten pediatric specialties by U.S. News & World Report. The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked 12th nationally for Ophthalmology and 50th for Ear, Nose, and Throat, while Mount Sinai Beth Israel, Mount Sinai St. Luke's and Mount Sinai West are ranked regionally. For more information, visit http://www.mountsinai.org/, or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The creation of artificial embryos has moved a step forward after an international team of researchers used mouse stem cells to produce artificial embryo-like structures capable of 'gastrulation', a key step in the life of any embryo. The team, led by Professor Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz at the University of Cambridge, previously created a much simpler structure resembling a mouse embryo in culture, using two types of stem cells - the body's 'master cells' - and a 3D scaffold on which they can grow. Now, in a study published today in Nature Cell Biology, Professor Zernicka-Goetz and colleagues have developed the embryo-like structures further, using not just two but three types of stem cells which let them reconstruct a process known as gastrulation, an essential step in which the embryonic cells being self-organising into the correct structure for an embryo to form. Once a mammalian egg has been fertilised by a sperm, it divides multiple times to generate a small, free-floating ball comprising three types of stem cells. At the stage of development known as the 'blastocyst' stage, the particular stem cells that will eventually make the future body - the embryonic stem cells (ESCs) - cluster together inside the embryo towards one end. The other two types of stem cell in the blastocyst are the extra-embryonic trophoblast stem cells (TSCs), which will form the placenta, and primitive endoderm stem cells (PESCs) that will form the yolk sac, ensuring that the foetus's organs develop properly and providing essential nutrients. In March 2017, Professor Zernicka-Goetz and colleagues published a study that described how, using a combination of genetically-modified mouse ESCs and TSCs, together with a 3D 'jelly' scaffold known as an extracellular matrix, they were able to grow a structure capable of assembling itself and whose development and architecture very closely resembled the natural embryo. There was a remarkable degree of communication between the two types of stem cell: in a sense, the cells were telling each other where in the embryo to place themselves. However, a key step in the life of the embryo - gastrulation, described by the eminent biologist Lewis Wolpert as "truly the most important time in your life" - was missing. Gastrulation is the point at which the embryo transforms from being a single layer to three layers: an inner layer (endoderm), middle layer (mesoderm) and outer layer (endoderm), determining which tissues or organs the cells will then develop into. "Proper gastrulation in normal development is only possible if you have all three types of stem cell. In order to reconstruct this complex dance, we had to add the missing third stem cell," says Professor Zernicka-Goetz. "By replacing the jelly that we used in earlier experiments with this third type of stem cell, we were able to generate structures whose development was astonishingly successful." By adding the PESCs, the team was able to see their 'embryo' undergo gastrulation, organising itself into the three body layers that all animals have. The timing, architecture and patterns of gene activity reflected that of natural embryo development. "Our artificial embryos underwent the most important event in life in the culture dish," adds Professor Zernicka-Goetz. "They are now extremely close to real embryos. To develop further, they would have to implant into the body of the mother or an artificial placenta." The researchers say they should now be in a position to better understand how the three stem cell types interact to enable the embryo to develop, by experimentally altering biological pathways in one cell type and seeing how this affects the behaviour of one, or both, of the other cell types. "We can also now try to apply this to the equivalent human stem cell types and so study the very earliest events in human embryo development without actually having to use natural human embryos," says Professor Zernicka-Goetz. By applying these studies side-by-side, it should be possible to learn a great deal about the fundamental aspects of the first stages of mammalian development. In fact, such comparisons should enable scientists to study events that happen beyond day 14 in human pregnancies, but without using 14-day-old human embryos; UK law permits embryos to be studied in the laboratory only up to this period. "The early stages of embryo development are when a large proportion of pregnancies are lost and yet it is a stage that we know very little about," says Professor Zernicka-Goetz. "Now we have a way of simulating embryonic development in the culture dish, so it should be possible to understand exactly what is going on during this remarkable period in an embryo's life, and why sometimes this process fails." ### The research was funded by the European Research Council and Wellcome. Researcher Profile: Dr Berna Sozen Dr Berna Sozen is living the dream. Originally from Turkey, she came to Cambridge to join Professor Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz's team. "During my MSc, as a young passionate researcher-to-be, I was fascinated by her research, which resolves the puzzles in early mammalian life," she says. "My dream has come true and I have spent several years at Cambridge now." Understanding the very early stages of embryo development is important because it may help explain why a significant number of human pregnancies fail at around the time the embryo implants into the wall of the uterus. Key events after implantation stage of embryo development are largely inaccessible to science because they occur in the 'black box' of the human uterus even before most women know that they are pregnant. The research is not always easy, of course - her work with Professor Zernicka-Goetz, growing embryo-like structures from mouse stem cells, really is at the cutting-edge of research - but it can be hugely satisfying. "Observing these self-developing embryo-like structures under the microscope is so exciting that I do not care even if there is a need to be in lab in the middle of night!" she says. "I still clearly remember the moment that I and my co-author saw these structures for the first time. It was a breath-taking moment. Those moments are what we live for in science." Berna is helping contribute to the immense legacy that Cambridge has to offer in embryology and stem cell research. "I work in the same building where Nobel Laureate Bob Edwards succeeded in fertilising a human egg in vitro. Another Nobel Laureate Sir Martin Evans was the first to culture mouse embryonic stem cells and cultivate them in a laboratory at University of Cambridge," she says. "These works revolutionised treatments for fertility and laid the foundations for human stem cell research. These great scientists paved the way for Magdalena's pioneering research in embryology. I feel I couldn't have been in any better place for my research than this." The beautiful images of early embryos produced by Professor Zernicka-Goetz's team no doubt help inspire Berna's other passion in life, photography. "Colours and patterns become glamorous behind the lens and I always find the beauty in everything," she says. "I think this makes me a better biologist!" ### Reference Sozen, B et al. Self-assembly of embryonic and two extra-embryonic stem cell types into gastrulating embryo structures. Nature Cell Biology; 23 Jul 2018; DOI: 10.1038/s41556-018-0147-7 Major abrupt shifts occurred in the climate of ancient northern Europe, according to a new study from University of Helsinki, Finland. The research reports that sudden cold spells, lasting hundreds of years, took place in the middle of the warm Eemian climate period, about 120 thousand years ago. These cold intervals saw a fall in temperature of a few degrees, and replacement of forests by tundra, at the study site in northern Finland. The Eemian, which took place before the last Ice Age, had a climate generally warmer than present. This has made the Eemian important for climate scientists assessing the modern climate warming. According to the researchers, the sudden shifts of Eemian climate are connected to disturbances in North Atlantic circulation which happened during that time. Today, the warm oceanic currents of the North Atlantic maintain a relatively temperate climate in Europe. The future development of this oceanic circulation has been hard to predict, however, and possible disturbances have not been ruled out. "These results strongly suggest that the North Atlantic circulation is sensitive to disturbance, with major effects in Northern Europe", says University of Helsinki postdoctoral researcher Sakari Salonen who headed the study. "Our results show that the oceanic circulation was in fact perturbed the last time climate was warmer than today. This is where our study significantly adds to the prediction of future climate done based on numerical models", Salonen says. The research was conducted by a multinational research group lead from the University of Helsinki. The team utilized intelligent computer algorithms based on machine learning. "These new numerical methods significantly improve our understanding of abrupt changes of past climate", notes professor Miska Luoto, also a team member from University of Helsinki These results are based on a geological deposits studied in Sokli, Northern Finland. At this site, thick geological layers have been preserved in a deep depression, allowing them to survive through the following Ice Age. "The Sokli site is unique in the northern parts of the world, which has made the site invaluable in the study of past, long-term climate change", says Karin Helmens, a researcher from Stockholm University and a long-time coordinator of the studies at Sokli. ### The study was funded by an Academy of Finland programme on long-term environmental changes and the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company (SKB). The results were published in Nature Communication. Reference Salonen JS, Helmens KF, Brendryen J, Kuosmanen N, Valiranta M, , Goring S, Korpela M, Kylander M, Philip A, Renssen H, Luoto M (2018) Abrupt high-latitude climate events and decoupled seasonal trends during the Eemian. Nature Communications 9:2851. Contact Sakari Salonen Department of Geosciences and Geography University of Helsinki Phone: +358-50-5305542 E-mail: sakari.salonen@helsinki.fi URBANA, Ill. - The Mekong Delta is home to 15 million people, many of whom rely on the delta's rich soil and water resources for farming and fishing. But their livelihoods are being threatened by rising sea levels, droughts, dams, and other hydrological shifts. A new article from researchers at the University of Illinois and Iowa State University explains the challenges. "The management dilemma for the Mekong Delta is to ensure a habitable environment for human well-being and for rice and aquaculture productivity, while strategically conserving wetland ecologies," says Kenneth Olson, professor emeritus in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences at U of I and co-author of the article. The delta, which sits at the southern tip of Vietnam and Cambodia, is characterized by seasonal flooding and nutrient-rich sediment deposits from the Mekong and Bassac Rivers as they flow toward the South China Sea. Historically, mosquitoes, malaria, waterborne diseases, and unpredictable flow patterns made the delta a difficult place to live. The population began to expand after French colonists set up a series of canals in the 1800's, in an attempt to partially drain the delta. After the canals were installed, dikes and levees followed. Once people had more control of the water, they could make it work for them. Today, the Mekong Delta is a leading exporter of rice, shrimp, and other seafood. But the productivity of the delta may not last forever, according to the researchers. In fact, delta farmers and other residents are already experiencing problems. "The hydrological balance between the South China Sea and the Mekong River is shifting," says Lois Wright Morton, professor emeritus in the Department of Sociology at Iowa State and co-author of the article. "New dam-building upstream across the main stem of the Mekong River in China and Laos, along with recent droughts, have reduced the river's freshwater flows during the monsoon season. Further, rising sea levels from a changing climate is pushing seawater upriver into the branches and main stem of the Mekong River and Delta during the dry seasons, causing serious saltwater intrusions. The deposition of rich sediments during the monsoon seasons is important for agricultural production and has been significantly reduced." The researchers point out that the Mekong Delta is not alone in trying to balance environmental challenges with the need to support increased food production and a growing population. Other major deltas, including the Mississippi, are experiencing loss of wetlands, land subsidence, reduced sedimentation on coastal wetlands, poor water quality, and excess agricultural nutrients and other pollutants. "Historical perspectives, new science and technologies, and public and political efforts are critical if the deltas of the present and future are to ensure an environment habitable for human well-being and strong agricultural productivity, while strategically conserving wetland ecologies," Olson says. ### The article, "Polders, dikes, canals, rice, and aquaculture in the Mekong Delta," is published in the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation [DOI: 10.2489/jswc.73.4.83A]. Researchers at the University of Kent and Copenhagen University sought to understand why vehicle attacks, such as in Nice in July 2016, Finsbury Park in 2017 or Charlottesville also in 2017, have become so prominent in the last few years, having previously been a rarity. In their analysis, Dr Vincent Miller from the School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research at the University of Kent and Professor Keith Hayward from the University of Copenhagen document the emerging popularity and spread of VRAs in two waves, the first in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in 2015 and a second in Western Europe, North America, and Australia. While mainstream media have suggested terrorists are promoting this means of attack due to its simplicity the timeline of when this type of attack method has been promoted, compared to when attacks took place does not match up, with most propaganda appearing after high-profile incidents. They also challenge the idea that terrorists have been forced into more low-tech methods due to improved security measures around more traditional high-profile targets, as such measures have been in place for decades, but VRAs only began to rise notably since 2015. As such, Dr Miller and Professor Hayward, examined a third explanation for the spike in VRAs: that they have spread as a form of 'social virus' irrespective of ideology. This does not mean that Dr Miller and Professor Hayward are suggesting that ideology, propaganda, or psychological issues play no role in these crimes. However, they do suggest the need to recognise the viral or mimetic quality of some forms of violence and that exposure to these actions through, for example, news media and social media can create a momentum that leads to people with different beliefs and motives repeating the act. For example, they argue that similar to the outbreak of plane hijackings that took place in the 1960s and 1970s, the coverage of VRAs in the media and in online discussion forums on websites has encouraged others, often with wholly different political and religious motives, to engage in VRAs. As such the sudden 'wave' of vehicle ramming incidents over the last few years is akin to a virus spread by social contagion whereby a single action leads to a wave of others, which would otherwise not take place - often more akin to a 'crime of passion' than a well-planned terrorist act. For example, they depict how the 2017 Finsbury Park Mosque ramming attack was conducted by a man who had been motivated to act by the ISIS-inspired London Bridge ramming attack 16 days earlier. Subsequently, within six days of the Finsbury Park attack, two other similar ramming attacks against Muslims had occurred: one in North London and another in front of a Mosque in France. This spate of very similar attacks in such a short time frame, from disparate individuals with vastly different political and religious beliefs and backgrounds, underlines the imitative appeal of the VRA and the impact that the coverage across the media can have in spreading these events, particularly in the highly-saturated mass-media landscape that now exists. The researchers note that, like most viruses, the current spate of VRAs will likely become less prominent in time. Sadly, though, they will be likely be replaced by another form of horrific attack that will also spread through digital networks and spawn similar attacks. However, by understanding how the potential for the appeal of certain types of attack to spread beyond ideological and even psychological categories to influence wider populations, security services could be bettered prepared and foil further loss of life. The research has been published in the British Journal of Criminology entitled 'I did my bit': Terrorism, Tarde and the Vehicle-Ramming Attack as an Imitative Event'. ### Study shows first evidence of an ionospheric interaction with Jupiter's equatorial magnetic field Contrary to past theories, the magnetic equator is surprisingly simple but the ionosphere between the equator and the pole is very complex Findings complement recent data from NASA's Juno mission The discovery of a dark ribbon of weak hydrogen ion emissions that encircles Jupiter has overturned previous thinking about the giant planet's magnetic equator. An international team of scientists led by the University of Leicester has identified the weakened ribbon of H3+ emissions near the jovigraphic equator using the NSFCam instrument at the NASA InfraRed Telescope Facility, the first evidence of a localised ionospheric interaction with Jupiter's magnetic field. The study is published online by Nature Astronomy today (23 July). In the past, studies of Jupiter's ionosphere have almost exclusively focused on the poles of the planet, looking at the aurorae. These observations saw most of Jupiter's ionosphere as relatively smooth and uninteresting. This latest study has opened up the entire ionosphere for investigation and suggests that Jupiter's ionosphere is as complex as our observations are able to measure with levels of details still yet to be revealed. It also demonstrates that, despite the differences in their size and structure, both Earth and Jupiter have a similar localised ribbon that winds its way around the magnetic equator of the planet. The ionosphere is the ionized part of Jupiter's upper atmosphere. Here, collisions between photoelectrons and H2 are a significant source of H3+ ions. One explanation for the dark ribbon is that because electrons preferentially travel along magnetic field lines, these photoelectrons are diverted to higher latitudes from the magnetic equator as they move to lower altitudes - leaving behind the ribbon of reduced H3+ production. Recent data from NASA's Juno spacecraft supports the theory that this ribbon is a signature for Jupiter's magnetic equator. Lead author Dr Tom Stallard, Associate Professor in Planetary Astronomy from the University of Leicester, said: "The first time we saw the dark ribbon winding its way around Jupiter in our data, we felt sure we were seeing something special at Jupiter. The result was so startling and yet clear, it took us all by surprise, and we strongly suspected and speculated that the feature was caused by Jupiter's magnetic equator. "It was a great relief to us that a few months before our paper was published the first magnetic model of Jupiter was released from the Juno spacecraft, providing an unprecedented view of Jupiter's equatorial magnetic field, and the measured magnetic equator lined up almost exactly with our dark ribbon of emission. "Our observations, along with the recent measurements by Juno spacecraft, have surprised us. Some of Jupiter's auroral regions were highly complex, and so many earlier models predicted a very complex magnetic equator to match with this, but the magnetic equator is actually shaped much more like that of Earth. "Scientists working with Juno have suggested that this may indicate that the complex distortions in Jupiter's magnetic field may occur at relatively shallow depths in the planet. Our measurements also support that, because even though the equator is surprisingly simple, we see lots of complexity in the ionosphere between the equator and the pole. This suggests Jupiter's magnetic field in these regions is much more complex than that of Earth. It also suggests that as Juno takes higher resolution observations, it will continue to reveal even more fine scale complexity." The scientists used 13,501 images of H3+ emissions taken over 48 nights between 1995 and 2000. This helps to reveal the rate of change in Jupiter's complex mid-latitude magnetic field and provides insight into what happens deep inside Jupiter. It also suggests that the location of Jupiter's magnetic equator has remained stable over the over the 15 years separating these two independent measurements. The observations identified a number of other localised dark regions, including the area identified last year as the Great Cold Spot by the same team of scientists. The Great Cold Spot is also thought to be caused by the effects of the magnetic field of the planet, with its spectacular polar aurorae driving energy into the atmosphere in the form of heat flowing around the planet and creating a region of cooling in the thermosphere. ### This research was part funded by the Science and Technology Facilities Council part of UK Research and Innovation. 'Identification of Jupiter's magnetic equator through H3+ ionospheric emission' is published by Nature Astronomy on 23 July 2018. DOI: 10.1038/s41550-018-0523-z 'Cold' Great Spot discovered on Jupiter: https://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/press/press-releases/2017/april/2018cold2019-great-spot-discovered-on-jupiter Leicester is the UK's leading space city, home to the National Space Centre, Space Park Leicester and the University of Leicester's #outofthisworld space research. Notes to editors: For more information contact Dr Tom Stallard on 0116 252 3589 or tss8@leicester.ac.uk, or contact University of Leicester Press Office for a mobile contact. YouTube video links: Projection of the map of Jupiter's ionosphere, allowing us to look at the ionosphere as the planet rotates as it would be seen from Earth: https://youtu.be/yTx7KbO76ws Rotating globe of Jupiter's ionosphere focusing on the weak infrared emission at the equator: https://youtu.be/Twe-tKB5SjE Rotating globe of Jupiter's ionosphere overlaid with three different measurements of Jupiter's magnetic equator: https://youtu.be/6FKANnQbcoQ Looking down on the planet's north pole, our view moving from the pole to the equator: https://youtu.be/tN98xluYRzc Movie highlighting a wide range of different intensities, from the very bright aurora at the poles of the planet to the vastly weaker emission close to the equator: https://youtu.be/re163RiC_NM Rotating globe of Jupiter's ionosphere overlaid with three different measurements of Jupiter's magnetic equator: https://youtu.be/KuOlMdDrT4w ANN ARBOR--Scientists at the University of Michigan have deduced that the Andromeda galaxy, our closest large galactic neighbor, shredded and cannibalized a massive galaxy two billion years ago. Even though it was mostly shredded, this massive galaxy left behind a rich trail of evidence: an almost invisible halo of stars larger than the Andromeda galaxy itself, an elusive stream of stars and a separate enigmatic compact galaxy, M32. Discovering and studying this decimated galaxy will help astronomers understand how disk galaxies like the Milky Way evolve and survive large mergers. This disrupted galaxy, named M32p, was the third-largest member of the Local Group of galaxies, after the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies. Using computer models, Richard D'Souza and Eric Bell of the University of Michigan's Department of Astronomy were able to piece together this evidence, revealing this long-lost sibling of the Milky Way. Their findings were published in Nature Astronomy. Scientists have long known that this nearly invisible large halo of stars surrounding galaxies contains the remnants of smaller cannibalized galaxies. A galaxy like Andromeda was expected to have consumed hundreds of its smaller companions. Researchers thought this would make it difficult to learn about any single one of them. Using new computer simulations, the scientists were able to understand that even though many companion galaxies were consumed by Andromeda, most of the stars in the Andromeda's outer faint halo were mostly contributed by shredding a single large galaxy. "It was a 'eureka' moment. We realized we could use this information of Andromeda's outer stellar halo to infer the properties of the largest of these shredded galaxies," said lead author D'Souza, a postdoctoral researcher at U-M. "Astronomers have been studying the Local Group--the Milky Way, Andromeda and their companions--for so long. It was shocking to realize that the Milky Way had a large sibling, and we never knew about it," said co-author Bell, U-M professor of astronomy. This galaxy, called M32p, which was shredded by the Andromeda galaxy, was at least 20 times larger than any galaxy which merged with the Milky Way over the course of its lifetime. M32p would have been massive, making it the third largest galaxy in the Local Group after the Andromeda and the Milky Way galaxies. This work might also solve a long-standing mystery: the formation of Andromeda's enigmatic M32 satellite galaxy, the scientists say. They suggest that the compact and dense M32 is the surviving center of the Milky Way's long-lost sibling, like the indestructible pit of a plum. "M32 is a weirdo," Bell said. "While it looks like a compact example of an old, elliptical galaxy, it actually has lots of young stars. It's one of the most compact galaxies in the universe. There isn't another galaxy like it." Their study may alter the traditional understanding of how galaxies evolve, the researchers say. They realized that the Andromeda's disk survived an impact with a massive galaxy, which would question the common wisdom that such large interactions would destroy disks and form an elliptical galaxy. The timing of the merger may also explain the thickening of the disk of the Andromeda galaxy as well as a burst of star formation two billion years ago, a finding which was independently reached by French researchers earlier this year. "The Andromeda Galaxy, with a spectacular burst of star formation, would have looked so different 2 billion years ago," Bell said. "When I was at graduate school, I was told that understanding how the Andromeda Galaxy and its satellite galaxy M32 formed would go a long way towards unraveling the mysteries of galaxy formation." The method used in this study can be used for other galaxies, permitting measurement of their most massive galaxy merger, the researchers say. With this knowledge, scientists can better untangle the complicated web of cause and effect that drives galaxy growth and learn about what mergers do to galaxies. ### https://lsa.umich.edu/astro/people/research-scientists-and-postdocs/radsouza.html https://lsa.umich.edu/astro/people/core-faculty/ericbell.html Study: http://dx.doi.org/ Experts from the University of Stirling have made a breakthrough in understanding how people respond to lifestyle treatment for preventing Type 2 diabetes. The team, including academics from the Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport, discovered a new genomic signature in people whose Type 2 diabetes status improves following a treatment intervention. Significantly, it is the first reliable signature for insulin sensitivity in human muscle. Scientists believe that the findings - published in leading journal Nucleic Acids Research - will inform future research by helping understand why not all people are able to eliminate the risk of the condition by changing their lifestyle. Dr Iain J Gallagher, of the University of Stirling, one of the research team, said: "Our hypothesis was that, with sufficient numbers of well characterised subjects and our new analysis methods, we could reveal a robust signature for what is known as 'insulin resistance' - an important precursor for developing Type 2 diabetes. "Importantly, because we could also examine how the activation status of each 'insulin resistance' gene responded to treatment, we have also discovered a potential explanation for why not all people eliminate their Type 2 diabetes risk by following a lifestyle and exercise training programme." The team - which included a number of international partners - analysed more than 1,000 human muscle samples and five distinct treatment regimes. In doing so, they demonstrated that 16 genes are consistently "switched" on or off in muscle tissue - but only in those people whose Type 2 diabetes risk factors improved. In such cases, the gene changes increased the individuals' insulin sensitivity - a measure of how effectively the hormone insulin is working. Activation of the signature is impaired in people with poor insulin sensitivity, and is dysregulated to a greater extent following various types of standard lifestyle treatment. The signature includes more than 300 measures of gene activity, representing both protein coding and long non-coding genes. It was extensively modelled to take into account body weight and age, as well as exercise capacity. ### The study, A coding a non-coding transcriptomic perspective on the genomics of human metabolic disease, received support from the Medical Research Council, The National Institutes for Health, in the USA, and the European Framework 7 programme. The research was led by Dr William Kraus, of Duke University in North Carolina, and Professor James Timmons, of King's College London. The University of Miami and the University of Nottingham also collaborated on the project. (SAN ANTONIO, July 23, 2018) -- Chiung-Yu Hung, assistant professor of biology at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), has received a five-year, $1.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to support her efforts to create a vaccine for fungal infections. Unlike bacteria or viruses, there is currently no vaccine available for any type of fungal infection. Fungi are more complex organisms, containing far more components, which makes developing an effective vaccine to battle them much more difficult than efforts to combat a virus or bacterial infection. Hung's work focuses on two types of the fungus Coccidioides, which exists in the soil of Southwest Texas, Southern Arizona, California and Northern Mexico. When the soil is disturbed by animals or humans, the fungal spores are released into the air, causing a respiratory infection called valley fever. "Any human living in the endemic area could inhale the spores into their lungs, which causes an infection," Hung said. "The majority of people don't feel it, but some of them will develop flu-like symptoms and a small portion could even develop chronic pneumonia." Without proper treatment, the fungus could also spread to the central nervous system, where it could cause meningitis, a potentially fatal condition. Hung's goal is to stop these infections before they occur by developing what could be the first anti-fungal vaccine. "It's a testament to the advances in vaccines for viruses and bacteria that this effort is now possible," Hung said. "It's very exciting to be breaking new ground and working to create something that could prevent illness and even save lives." As a member of the university's South Texas Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases, Hung is one of many researchers specializing in the study of vaccine development, biodefense, immunology and molecular microbiology. She is the author of several studies on Coccidioides and similar fungi. "I welcome the HHS funding for University of Texas at San Antonio's (UTSA) South Texas Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases, which focuses on fungal infections with the Coccidioides species," said Congressman Joaquin Castro. "San Antonio continues to lead in medicine development with groundbreaking research, and this grant will help boost wellness and quality of life for Americans across Texas and our nation." ### Learn more about the South Texas Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases at UTSA. Learn more about the UTSA Department of Biology. In addition to facing new concerns about their health, individuals who are diagnosed with cancer often worry about the financial burdens of treatment. A new study indicates that many patients feel that such 'financial toxicity' is not adequately addressed by their doctors and other clinicians. The findings are published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. There is growing awareness that cancer diagnosis and treatment can create financial difficulties even for patients with health insurance, but it is unclear whether patients today are being helped by their doctors or staff with these challenges. To investigate, Reshma Jagsi, MD, DPhil, of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and her colleagues surveyed patients with early-stage breast cancer and their physicians: 2502 patients, 370 surgeons, 306 medical oncologists, and 169 radiation oncologists. Half of responding medical oncologists reported that someone in their practice often or always discusses financial burden with patients, as did 15.6 percent of surgeons and 43.2 percent of radiation oncologists. Patients indicated that financial toxicity remains common: 21.5 percent of whites and 22.5 percent of Asians had to cut down spending on food, as did 45.2 percent of blacks and 35.8 percent of Latinas. The survey also revealed that many patients desired to talk to providers about the financial impact of cancer: 15.2 percent of whites, 31.1 percent of blacks, 30.3 percent of Latinas, and 25.4 percent of Asians. Unmet patient needs for engagement with doctors about financial concerns were common. Of 945 women who worried about finances, 679 (72.8 percent) indicated that doctors and their staff did not help. Of 523 women who desired to talk to providers about the impact of breast cancer on employment or finances, 283 (55.4 percent) reported no relevant discussion. "We found that even though many doctors reported that they routinely make services available to their patients to help with financial concerns, many patients still reported unmet needs," said Dr. Jagsi. The investigators noted that although advances in detection and treatment have transformed how breast cancer is perceived and managed, this study reveals an important aspect that cannot be overlooked or addressed as an afterthought. "Efforts must now turn to confront the financial devastation that many patients face, particularly as they progress into survivorship," said Dr. Jagsi. "The first steps for clinical practice and policy are clear: all physicians must assess patients for financial toxicity and learn how to communicate effectively about it. To cure a patient's disease at the cost of financial ruin falls short of the physician's duty to serve--and failure to recognize and mitigate a patient's financial distress is no longer acceptable." ### Additional Information NOTE: The information contained in this release is protected by copyright. Please include journal attribution in all coverage. A free abstract of this article will be available via the Cancer News Room upon online publication. For more information or to obtain a PDF of any study, please contact: Dawn Peters (US) +1 781-388-8408 sciencenewsroom@wiley.com Follow us on Twitter @WileyNews Full Citation: "Unmet need for clinician engagement about financial toxicity after diagnosis of breast cancer." CANCER; Published Online: July 23, 2018 (DOI: 10.1002/cncr.31532). URL Upon Publication: http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/cncr.31532 Author Contact: Nicole Fawcett with the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center communications office at nfawcett@med.umich.edu or @UMRogelCancer. About the Journal CANCER is a peer-reviewed publication of the American Cancer Society integrating scientific information from worldwide sources for all oncologic specialties. The objective of CANCER is to provide an interdisciplinary forum for the exchange of information among oncologic disciplines concerned with the etiology, course, and treatment of human cancer. CANCER is published on behalf of the American Cancer Society by Wiley and can be accessed online at http://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/cancer. Follow us on Twitter @JournalCancer About Wiley Wiley, a global research and learning company, helps people and organizations develop the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. Our online scientific, technical, medical, and scholarly journals, combined with our digital learning, assessment and certification solutions help universities, learned societies, businesses, governments and individuals increase the academic and professional impact of their work. For more than 210 years, we have delivered consistent performance to our stakeholders. The company's website can be accessed at http://www.wiley.com. World Scientific has published the inaugural volume of the first English Series on China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Entitled The Political Economy of China's Belt and Road Initiative, the book analyzes China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) through the approach of political economy and establishes the analytic framework of BRI from historical and comparative perspectives. It clearly displays the strategic considerations, future vision, constructing framework, governmental actions, latest achievements, multiple opportunities and potential risks of BRI. Prof Kerry Brown, Director of Lau China Institute, King's College London describes "The Belt and Road Initiative, whatever the world makes of it at the moment," as "an important but complex initiative, especially since being written into China's Communist Party Constitution last year. It is important that there are Chinese and non-Chinese perspectives we can engage with on this". In collaboration with three other top experts on the BRI initiative, Prof Kerry Brown co-leads the international editorial board of the Series on China's Belt and Road Initiative. The other three series editors are ZHENG Yongnian (Director, East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore), WANG Yiwei (Director, Institute of International Affairs, Renmin University of China, China) and LIU Weidong (Assistant Director, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China). The Series on China's Belt and Road Initiative, offers a valuable English-language resource for researchers, policymakers, professionals and students to understand the challenges and opportunities brought by the BRI. The book series showcases the most up-to-date and significant research on the BRI by leading scholars from inside and outside China. It presents a panoramic view on the BRI, from the perspectives of China's domestic policy, China's foreign investment, international relations, cultural cooperation and historical inheritance. ### For more details on the book series, visit the series webpage, https://www.worldscientific.com/series/scbi. About World Scientific Publishing Co. World Scientific Publishing is a leading international independent publisher of books and journals for the scholarly, research and professional communities. World Scientific collaborates with prestigious organisations like the Nobel Foundation and US National Academies Press to bring high quality academic and professional content to researchers and academics worldwide. The company publishes about 600 books annually and 135 journals in various fields. To find out more about World Scientific, please visit http://www.worldscientific.com. Expat parents in the Netherlands can register pre-school age children with an international daycare center where they can benefit from early learning in a multicultural environment. With many parents in the Netherlands working full- or part-time, childcare is a necessity. International daycare centers give expats the chance to place their children in a multicultural setting. Expatica explains what you can expect from international daycare centers in the Netherlands, as well as how to apply. International daycare centers in the Netherlands Pre-school childcare is popular in the Netherlands, with the Dutch topping EU tables in terms of the percentage of children accessing childcare. Daycare centers (kinderdagverblijf) are one of the most common forms of childcare. These offer working parents professional care as well as learning for children aged 0-4 years. Daycare in the Netherlands is available at the centers for up to 10 hours per day (usually 0800-1800 hours), five days per week. Children play and learn in a safe environment. They usually receive a hot meal, drinks, and snacks. For expat residents, there is also the option of international daycare in the Netherlands. These centers have English-speaking and multilingual staff, run multicultural activities, and also offer places to children of residents from all nationalities. Advertisement What does daycare in the Netherlands consist of? Daycare in the Netherlands is a healthy mix of fun, learning, and interaction. The emphasis is on helping the child develop in a way that doesnt disrupt their development at home. Programs offered by international daycare centers in the Netherlands will vary between institutions, but will usually consist of: Creative activities where children engage in art, music, dancing, etc. Indoor and outdoor play Language development through reading and communication Social development through interaction in a diverse, multicultural environment Provision of healthy meals and snacks for nutritional development Advertisement Development of language skills at international daycare centers Although some international daycare centers in the Netherlands provide only English-speaking services, others offer bilingual classes in Dutch and English. There are a few schools, that offer a fully bilingual program. Learning in both languages means that children of English-speaking residents that speak little or no Dutch can develop their language skills. Many offer activities in both Dutch and English. Dutch teachers speak only Dutch and English teachers speak only English. Children also learn songs in the native languages of international pupils. The approach is that children have a natural capacity to learn multiple languages from birth. Its all about getting children to interact with one another. Some use songs and sign language to enhance communication. How children prepare for school years International childcare in the Netherlands doesnt provide a formal education for pre-school age children. However, there is still a strong emphasis on preparation for primary school at the age of four. Childrens social and creative development takes place alongside monitoring to make sure that they are ready for the transition to school. Advertisement How to apply for a place at a daycare center Due to the popularity of childcare in the Netherlands, there can be long waiting lists at international daycare centers. Apply for a place as early as possible. Most centers will offer tours for parents so they can visit the site before making a decision, but many also accept online applications, which is very practical if you havent arrived in the country yet. You must provide personal details about yourself and your child, including languages spoken, along with details of which days you wish your child to attend. If there are no spots available, children go on a waiting list until a suitable place opens up. Advertisement Costs of international daycare in the Netherlands Daycare fees in the Netherlands vary. They may be payable at hourly or daily rates. The good news is that a large proportion of costs can usually be subsidized through childcare allowance including for expats if they have residency in the Netherlands. The exact amount of childcare allowance you can claim depends on factors such as income, hours worked, number of children receiving childcare, hours in childcare, and the daycares fees. Parents can claim a maximum of 230 hours per month per child. Between 33-94% of a set hourly rate of 7.45 can be claimed. More information are available on the Dutch Tax Administration website. You can also calculate your entitlement using a benefits calculator (in Dutch). 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. Monday, July 23, 2018 Press Release from the Institute of Management Consultants, DFW Chapter - Event August 10, 2018 Hit the ground running! Tips and techniques to 'Rev up" your practice Contact: Patricia Gaffney Phone: (817) 798-2082 Dallas, TX Information is a commodity. Management consultants cut through the noise, offer solutions. "New client acquisition" was the top issue named in a 2018 DFW poll of senior, mid-career and consultants to management. Consultants at this round table will explore how intentionally strengthening their own productivity builds capacity for them to take on new business, as well as better serve their existing clients. The Consultant's Workshop convenes at the Telos Club in Dallas, Friday, August 10, 7:30 A.M. Consultants at recent round tables reflected on the use of networking, referrals, testimonials and storytelling as tools to help acquire new clients, all in a safe space to share and get feedback. In this interactive workshop, management consultants with a variety of industry experience collaborate to share the tips and techniques that help win new business and support client projects. Victoria Brown leads the round table discussion. As managing partner of Brown Innovation Consulting, she helps businesses increase profit and sustain momentum, especially in disruptive environments. The DFW Chapter of the Institute of Management Consultants supports the management consulting community in North Texas, neighboring regions and adjacent states. The Consultant's Workshop meets monthly to help consultants grow their practice. Guests can register to attend the event at https://bit.ly/2LjTYKo, and learn more about IMC USA at https://bit.ly/2Io1MWG About the Institute of Management Consultants Since 1968, the Institute of Management Consultants (IMC USA) has set the standards for competency, professionalism and ethics for the consulting profession in the United States. The nonprofit IMC USA is a charter member of the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes (ICMCI), a 50-nation body that sets global standards for competence, professionalism and ethics for management consultants. IMC USA is the only U.S. entity to provide certification for individual management consultants and management consulting firms which conforms to the international standards of the ICMCI. The ICMCI sets the global standards for consulting competence and professional conduct for consultants and firms in more than 50 nations. Monday, July 23, 2018 To everything, there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven. And now is the time to write your Ethical Will to share your lifes lessons. You may recognize the first line above as the refrain in the song, Turn, Turn, Turn. As sung by the American folk rock group The Byrds, it became an international hit in 1965. The lyrics come from Chapter Three in the Bibles Book of Ecclesiastes, almost verbatim in the King James version. Reading the twelve chapters of Ecclesiastes, Im struck by a sense of world-weariness in the writer. Writing of work, youth, age, riches, enjoyment, vanity, fools, poverty, wisdom, and death, three themes emerge: We toil our lives away under the sun. The phrase, there is nothing new under the sun, is right there in Chapter One. But our most important work is done in the dark internally. All of our worldly achievements are vanity, a grasping for the wind. for all is vanity. All go to one place: all are from the dust, and all return to dust. The work of our hands will not endure for long. Wisdom is powerful, and our wisdom can endure beyond the days of our lives. What is an Ethical Will? In a Last Will and Testament, the Ethical Will was the Testament portion of this important end-of-life planning document. An Ethical Will enables us to speak words of truth before the end of our days on earth. We can share what life lessons weve learned in this lifetime. We can pass along our values and wisdom to our loved ones and the world. The writing of Ethical Wills is fostered in Judaism. When adults reach the age of 50, they are considered elders of the congregation with enough life experience to dispense words of wisdom. Many synagogues have a program that invites 50+ individuals to study Ecclesiastes, write their own Ethical Will, and read it aloud to the congregation at a special Sabbath service during the fall harvest festival, Sukkot. Next week, death educator Gail Rubin, CT, will present Your Ethical Will: What life lessons do you want to share? The talk will take place on July 31, 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. at Montecito Santa Fe, 500 Rodeo Road, Santa Fe, NM. Estate planning attorney Jim Plitz with Morris Hall, PLLC will also speak about aspects of a legal will. Come and learn how to write your own Ethical Will at this presentation in Santa Fe! RSVP for this free event to Rhonda Royce at Morris Hall, rroyse@morristrust.com. Share this: Monday, July 23, 2018 In 1980, North America Ferrari sales were lackluster compared to other parts of the world. In fact, many Ferrari executives did not believe a profitable American market existed. They believed the myth that Americans could not understand the true value of a Ferrari, and therefore, wouldnt buy one. Suddenly, in 1981-82, North American dealers began making sales at an unprecedented rate. The factory reported this to Enzo, and it peaked his curiosity. To show his appreciation for their performance, he decided to invite all the dealers to the factory in Maranello, Italy. Ferrari spared no expense. The invitation included two plane tickets, 10 days of hotel rooms, meals, and excursionsall paid by Ferrari. Most, if not all, of the 51 dealers made the trip and created unforgettable memories. In fact, the experience began before arriving in Maranello. The party started as soon as the dealers arrived at Chicagos OHare airport for the flight scheduled to take all of them to Italy. Most of them were meeting for the first time but over the next 10 hours would become friends. Many were looking forward to meeting and thanking a new California dealer for buying their unpopular and hard-to-sell cars. The Best Flight of a Lifetime Once on the plane, the Alitalia staff of beautiful ladies and perfect gentlemen attended to the dealers. Occupying the downstairs business class of the 747, they didnt take long to turn the flight into a party. And the flight attendants were ready for the celebration. They set up an incredible spread of traditional Italian antipasti (cured meats, olives, pepperoncini, mushrooms, anchovies, artichoke hearts, cheeses, and vegetables), with champagne and fine wine flowing freely throughout the flight. Academy Award nominee Kenny Loggins surprised the dealers when he came downstairs from first class and asked to join the party. He hung out in business class for the entire flight. When asked to recall his first flight to Italy, Brian replied, It might just be the best flight I was ever on in my life.." Driving a Ferrari at 90 with No Hands On day one of their trip, the group was met by Ferrari officials and taken to the factory for a meeting and tour. The dealers rode in the comfort of two large air-conditioned buses with Ferrari staff members making sure everything went smoothly. After meeting with Enzo and completing the factory tour, the group visited Fiorano, the private Ferrari test track. Legend has it that Enzo had the track built so he could enjoy his cars and his drivers without the presence of other Formula One (F1) cars or the press. He never opened the track to the public. The dealers were allowed to stand trackside as the Ferrari test drivers took the F1 cars around the curves and screamed by them at 180 mph. After finishing the F1 runs, the test drivers returned to the track with new model 308 Ferraris. They offered rides to any brave soul in the group. Those that took the challenge were treated to an adrenaline rush seldom experienced in life. The drivers would enter turns at about 90 mph and quickly accelerate out of them. While an untrained driver could not handle such a feat, the test drivers considered it an everyday event. Brian recalled buckling into a model 308 for a ride around the track. His test driver started talking to him about Ferrari of Los Gatos. Italians use their hands to combine gestures with the words coming out of their mouth, and Brian noticed that the drivers knees were actually doing the steering, not his hands. Approaching a turn at 90 mph, with the drivers hands waving through the air, Brian began to fear the worst. The driver smiled, glided the car effortlessly around the curve, and started talking again as he accelerated into the straightaway. The Ferrari test drivers were undoubtedly in a league of their own. But so was Ferrari of Los Gatos. Have you ever visited the Ferrari factory in Maranello? What memories do you have? Please share a comment below. In the next post, the dealers take over the orient express and return to the US in under 3.5 hours. Oil industry analysts and executives fear a looming global supply crunch is on the horizon, even as Texas and other parts of the nation keep churning out more oil than ever. U.S. oil prices could spike from about $70 a barrel now to levels not seen since mid-2014 when oil hovered above $100, analysts say. That would be great for Houstons oil-rich economy, but only until skyrocketing gasoline prices and supply disruptions spawned a global economic slowdown. Its even more worrisome in a time like this when you have significant geopolitical risks coming from different spots in the world. said Jamie Webster, senior director at Boston Consulting Groups Center for Energy Impact in Washington. Of particular concern is a shortage of global spare oil capacity, Webster said. Many oil-producing countries are on the decline, while others are pumping out almost as much as they possibly can. Theres little remaining margin to boost production if supplies dwindle. RELATED: Texas Gulf Coast community gears up to fight crude oil export terminal The worlds three largest oil producers Russia, the United States and Saudi Arabia are all increasing their outputs this summer, which sent U.S. oil prices from a 45-month high of more than $74 a barrel in mid-July down below $70 per barrel this week. To keep prices low, the White House is even considering releasing more oil from the nations Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which happened last in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. These moves, however, leave Russia and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries with little remaining quick-start oil supplies that can be churned out in an emergency at a time when theres varying levels of instability and conflict in oil-producing countries like Venezuela, Libya, Nigeria, Iraq and Iran. Thats why U.S. energy companies arent particularly worried about Julys dips in oil prices, analysts said. In recent years, the oil and gas sector has sounded alarm bells about so-called peak demand. Thats the theory that global oil consumption could plateau soon with the switch to renewable energy and electric vehicles. But now there are increasing predictions that demand could actually outpace crude supplies starting in the next year or so. Global view The U.S. exceeded 11 million barrels a day in oil production for the first time ever last week, placing its crude volumes slightly behind Russia and just ahead of the Saudis. While these three nations produce about 33 percent of the worlds oil, that leaves bigger question marks behind the remaining two-thirds where there are higher degrees of uncertainty than usual. OPEC agreed to hike its oil production in June, but that mostly amounts to the Saudis picking up the slack for declines from other OPEC nations like Venezuela, Libya, Angola and the anticipated dip from the Saudis chief rival, Iran. Any big Iranian crude export decline is yet to come because the details of sanctions and waivers are still being finalized since the Trump administration opted to withdraw from the Iran nuclear accord. The International Energy Agency reported this week that global energy investments fell by 2 percent last year down to $1.8 trillion a third straight year of decreasing investments while spending on the electricity sector surpassed oil and gas production dollars for the second straight year. These declines were triggered largely by the recent oil bust that sent crude prices plummeting from more than $100 a barrel in mid-2014 down to a low of $26 per barrel in February 2016. Prices have rebounded since and energy companies have learned to cut costs and earn profits with oil in the $60 range, but worldwide oil and gas spending is yet to catch up. RELATED: $1.1 billion West Texas pipeline will be hit with steel sanctions Global oil demand each year has grown by roughly 1.5 million barrels a day of late. But higher crude prices coupled with ongoing fears of worldwide trade wars led by the U.S. and China could cause a slowdown in economic and oil demand growth. Rather than spend money on the long-term, multibillion-dollar mega projects in deep ocean waters, companies are more often opting for quicker, cheaper drilling efforts in areas like U.S. shale, especially West Texas booming Permian Basin. There was an implosion in major project investments, and exploration spending has evaporated, said Bill Herbert, a senior energy analyst at Piper Jaffray & Co. in Houston. Thats an ominous sign for crude oil supplies in the few years ahead, starting as soon as 2019, he added. The elephant in the room that people arent paying attention to is the rapidly decreasing spare productive (oil) capacity, Herbert said, especially within the OPEC cartel, which the world has counted on for decades to help manage supply-and-demand balances and pricing. Many oil and gas companies like global energy services leader Schlumberger have warned of the need for greater oil and gas project spending for more than a year. Schlumberger CEO Paal Kibsgaard reiterated those worries Friday. He specifically cited Venezuela, Iran and Libya, but he argued that at least 15 countries are witnessing production declines. It is becoming more and more apparent that the new projects expected to come online during the next few years will not be sufficient to meet the increasing demand, Kibsgaard said. Eyes on Texas Even the Permian is seeing its growth slow down. The Permian is producing a record of more than 3.3 million barrels of oil a day, which is near the regions pipeline capacity. A bevy of new pipeline projects are under construction to transport the Permian oil across the state to port and refining hubs near Houston and Corpus Christi, but most of those pipelines are at least a year away from being completed. RELATED: San Antonio's Camber Energy selling most of its land and unloading $37 million in debt As a result, drilling and well completions activity in the booming Permian have flattened out in recent weeks, Herbert noted, a trend that could continue well into next year. The oil will keep flowing. Thats why companies like Houstons Enterprise Products Partners announced plans this week for a massive offshore crude export terminal off of the Texas Gulf Coast. But there will be stops and starts. Its really much better for the energy sector if U.S. oil prices stay below $75 a barrel and dont skyrocket again, said Jim Wicklund, an energy analyst at the financial services company Credit Suisse in Dallas. Big jumps could just hasten another bust, he said. At those higher levels, people get stupid and lose discipline, Wicklund said. jordan.blum@chron.com twitter.com/jdblum23 Pity Rick Perry. His boss demands not only his loyalty but his soul. The Lone Star States ex-gov built his political career on the slogan, Texas, open for business. His conservative philosophy was simple: wipe away regulations, lower taxes and promote free enterprise. Then he accepted President Donald Trumps offer to serve as energy secretary. Perry is struggling to find a plausible excuse to reward Trumps coal-industry donors and supporters by blowing up the nations competitive electricity markets, which have made U.S. electricity bills the envy of the world. The fact that Perry oversaw the groundbreaking privatization of the Texas electricity market makes his recent work especially galling. One might expect our former governor to cite his experience, defend free enterprise, encourage private sector solutions and denounce government interference. Not this time. Trump promised to save and grow the coal and nuclear power industries even though neither is competitive in the age of cheap natural gas and renewable energy. So hes ordered Perry to devise a scheme to force private electric companies to buy expensive electricity from privately owned nuclear and coal-fired power plants. RELATED: Perry's coal bailout could cost more than $34 billion, opponents claim For more than a year, Perry has floundered in justifying this unprecedented government intervention. In April 2017, he asked Energy Department experts to assess whether increased reliance on gas and renewables would endanger the power supply. They concluded no, it doesnt. Last fall, he proposed a rule to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission requiring the use of coal-fired and nuclear power to guarantee resilience. The Republican majority rejected his reasoning, siding instead with the 95 percent of electric companies and grid operators who said it was unnecessary. According to a memo obtained last month by Bloomberg News, Perrys new plan is to declare a national emergency under the Federal Power Act and the Defense Production Act. He says we cant rely on natural gas power plants because pipelines are too vulnerable to cyberattack. Therefore, subsidies for nuclear and coal-fired power plants are necessary because they keep weeks of fuel on site, Perry argued. His hyperbole fails even basic analysis. Whether its snow storms, heat waves, hurricanes or cyberattacks, the most vulnerable links in the power grids are transmission lines. Yet, the Energy Department hasnt declared an emergency to fortify them. When confronted with his faulty reasoning, Perry falls back on the last refuge of scoundrels: patriotism. You cannot put a dollar figure on the cost to keep America free, to keep the lights on, Perry told the World Gas Conference. Trump-appointed FERC Chairman Kevin McIntyre isnt buying it. There is no immediate calamity or threat of the ongoing ability of the bulk power system to operate and serve needs, he said. Perry needs FERC commissioners to sign off on this plan because it picks financial winners and losers, said Rabeha Kamaluddin, a partner at the law firm Dorsey & Whitney who represents clients at FERC. Theres no precedent or evidence to support Perrys plan. Then you have the practical business and market perspective, she said. These are uneconomic plants, and we need to shut them down. You have coal operators who are saying, No, dont save us the economics dont justify us keeping these open. RELATED: In coal fight, Perry switches his focus to pipeline cybersecurity The American Petroleum Institute called Perrys proposal unprecedented and misguided. The Electricity Consumers Resources Council warned it is unnecessary, anticompetitive and would increase the price of electricity to businesses and consumers, resulting in a substantial loss of U.S. manufacturing capacity jobs. Perrys plan will take $16.7 billion a year from consumers and redistribute it to Trumps coal and nuclear industry allies, according to the Brattle Group, the energy industrys foremost consultants. While the proposal would save 790 coal-related jobs, according to the nonpartisan think tank Resources for the Future, the coal plant emissions would cause 353 to 815 premature deaths in 2019-2020. None of this criticism is quenching the presidents desire to throw a bone to coal mining CEO Robert Murray at Murray Energy, or electric company CEO Charles Jones of FirstEnergy, Trump buddies who are pushing hard for the rule. Perrys 2016 presidential campaign manager, Jeff Miller, is FirstEnergys top lobbyist. Most Texas electric customers wont pay more under Perrys plan because most of the Texas grid is outside federal oversite. But Texas natural gas producers will feel the pinch when Perry orders grid operators to buy from coal and nuclear power plants instead of gas-fired. Lower gas consumption will only exacerbate the low prices that have hurt Texas natural gas producers in recent years. Its like Perrys forgotten from where he came. Perry knows better than to pick winners and losers in a competitive market. He needs to stand up for his Texas values and drop this sham before it hurts consumers and Texas businesses. Chris Tomlinson writes commentary about business and economics. chris.tomlinson@chron.com twitter.com/cltomlinson The San Marcos apartment complex where a massive fire killed at least five people Friday was not equipped with a sprinkler system, officials said during a press conference on Monday. A fifth body was recovered Monday afternoon in the gutted structure's remains, authorities announced. A fourth body was recovered late Sunday, officials said. San Marcos Fire Marshal Kelly Kistner said the Iconic Village apartment complex was built in the 1970s and authorities do not know when it was last inspected. Les Stevens, the San Marcos Fire Chief, said the building met the required safety standards of the time it was built, but local officials can't require property managers to "retrofit" their buildings. Now Playing: A total of five bodies have been recovered from the Iconic Village apartment complex after a fire Friday, July 20, 2018. Video: Courtesy Chhabindra Gautam The fire ripped through the Iconic Village Apartments around 4:30 a.m. Friday, later spreading to two buildings at the Vintage Pad Apartments. More than 200 residents, many of whom were students, were displaced by the blaze. RELATED: Three bodies recovered from San Marcos fire, two still unaccounted for Hours after the fire, officials announced five people were unaccounted for: Haley Frizzell, James Miranda, Belinda Moats, David Ortiz and Dru Estes. Officials announced Sunday they had found three people dead, all of whom were taken to the Travis County medical examiner's office for autopsies and identification. The fourth discovery was made Sunday night, Kistner said. Investigators said they will continue the search until they're certain there are no additional victims. "All search and recovery efforts will continue until we know all potential victims are covered," said Kistner. "We're not leaving until we know all the work on the ground is done." None of the dead were identified and it's not clear whether those found dead were among those initially declared unaccounted for, or whether those unaccounted for were killed or just have not checked in with family. Six people were injured in the blaze, including Zachary Sutterfield, who was taken to Brooke Army Medical Center in critical condition. Investigators still don't know where in the complex the fire started, and thus have no information as to how the it started either, Kistner said. The investigation into the origin of the blaze could continue for weeks or months. San Marcos city officials on Monday expressed their condolences to the victims' family, offering their thoughts, prayers and resources to all affected. "As a community, our hearts are broken," said San Marcos Mayor John Thomaides. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' National Response Team is leading the investigation, with assistance from the state fire marshal's office and the San Marcos fire marshal. RELATED: Man accused of setting Victoria mosque fire found guilty Texas State University, in conjunction with the city, has announced several programs and funds available to students affected by the fire. Information on those programs is posted online at safety.txstate.edu/emergency-communications.html. City officials said donations may be made to the Blanco River Regional Recovery Team at br3t.org. Click "donate" and then enter the word "Iconic" in the comments. The city will host a resource center for Iconic Village and Vintage Pads residents Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the San Marcos Activity Center at 501 East Hopkins Street. Organizations will be on site to provide information on assistance programs available for residents. Text "NEWS" to 77453 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com Caleb Downs is a crime reporter for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here.| cdowns@mysa.com | Twitter: @calebjdowns Two days after a fire devastated two San Marcos apartment complexes, investigators recovered three bodies from the ruins Sunday, officials said. The three were among five reported missing in the aftermath of a blaze that began at the Iconic Village Apartments and spread to two buildings at the Vintage Pad Apartments near Texas State University around 4:30 a.m. Friday. The fire affected more than 200 residents and 110 units, according to officials. As of Sunday, two people were still missing and six others were injured, officials said. The city of San Marcos said one of the injured, Zachary Sutterfield, was transported to Brooke Army Medical Center and is in critical condition. All three victims, whose names have not been released, were pronounced dead at the scene and were sent to the Travis County medical examiners office for autopsies, according to a news release from the city. In the hours after the fire, the city named the five who were originally unaccounted for Friday: Haley Frizzell, James Miranda, Belinda Moats, David Ortiz and Dru Estes. George Trey Hatt, a city spokesman, said a cause of the fire had yet to be determined as of Sunday evening and that he didnt expect new information to be released until investigators hold a news conference at 10 a.m. Monday in the San Marcos Activity Center. Some residents had to jump out of their second-story windows to escape the flames, according to one survivor. Related: Muslims in Victoria balancing safety with openness after mosque torching Andrea Torres, who recently graduated from Texas State, said she lost all her belongings in the fire, but she recalled her escape as lucky, given that she was still awake when the fire started. I opened my bedroom door and thick clouds immediately filled the space, Torres said. I went to my roommates room to wake her, and we ran for the front door. Flames spread into the apartment as soon as we opened it, blocking our exit. I ran to put on shoes and a pair of pants, then lifted the window of our second-story bedroom, kicked out the screen, threw a blanket onto the rocks below and jumped out, shortly followed by my roommate. That minute of escape was the fastest, most terrifying experience of my entire life, she said. Julia Ryza, who lived directly under Torres and will be a junior at Texas State in the fall, said the blaze was unlike any representation of such events she had seen in fire safety training or media representations. She said she witnessed multiple burn victims leaving the scene, including one who was on fire. Everyone was frantic and it was pure chaos, she said. It honestly looked like hell on earth. Ryza said the apartment complexes, both owned by San Marcos Green Investors, according to the Hays Central Appraisal District, seemed to be filled mostly by current or recent Texas State students. The fire investigation is being led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives National Response Team, in conjunction with the state fire marshals office and the San Marcos fire marshal. According to the ATFs website, the National Response Team was created to help investigators with significant arson and explosives incidents. But ATF Houston public information officer Nicole Strong said the bureaus involvement does not point to either arson or an explosion as potential causes. Neither the state fire marshals office nor the San Marcos fire marshal responded to requests for comment as of Sunday evening. Texas State, in conjunction with the city, has announced several programs and funds available to students affected by the fire. Information on those programs is posted online at safety.txstate.edu/emergency-communications.html. The city will host a resource center for Iconic Village and Vintage Pads residents Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the San Marcos Activity Center. Organizations will be on site to provide information on assistance programs available for residents. City officials said donations may be made to the Blanco River Regional Recovery Team at br3t.org. Click donate and then enter the word Iconic in the comments. Staff Writers Caleb Downs and Jessica Miller contributed to this report. Less than a month after Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election, Steve Kling noticed something unusual happening in Democratic clubs around Texas 25th Senate District: They were swelling in size, sometimes tenfold. To Kling, the liberal enthusiasm indicated that Republican state Sen. Donna Campbell was vulnerable. Kling also noticed that the districts demographics had changed since Campbells 33-point victory in 2014 so he decided to challenge her. Along with Celina Montoya and Claire Barnett in House Districts 121 and 122, Kling is one of three Democrats running in the Nov. 6 midterm election for a trio of legislative seats in the Bexar County area that have routinely swung to Republicans by more than 30 points. Their candidacies mark the first time since 1994 that Democrats have fielded someone in all three districts in the same cycle. RELATED: Texas GOP claims recent poll shows Cruz leading O'Rourke by only 2 points Barnett, Kling and Montoya have different backgrounds and do not line up ideologically across the board. But in explaining why they believe that they can win, all three cited the shifting makeup of their districts as a key factor. We all are running our own races, and our districts are all different. Steves district is a lot bigger. Celinas running for an open seat. We all have very different realities in our races, Barnett said. But I think the great benefit of us all running is being able to work together when it makes sense. Claire Barnett Barnett, 38, faces state Rep. Lyle Larson, who fended off attacks from Gov. Greg Abbott ahead of his March Republican primary win. Larson was elected to the House in 2010, and Barnett is his first Democratic challenger as the District 122 incumbent. The 2017 shake-up of Virginias House of Delegates, in which a dozen Democrats ousted Republican incumbents, prompted Barnett to weigh a potential run. Her first thought, she said, was to look for someone to challenge Larson. She began asking around and found no takers but many wondered why she didnt do it herself. When Barnett raised that idea with family and friends, nobody told me not to do it, she said. Barnett comes into the race with a background developing adult education program curricula for a Washington, D.C.-based consulting company and has gravitated toward campaigning on her desire to increase state public education spending. Barnett also recently designed a masters degree program for aspiring health care leaders, she said, giving her a big-picture look at how the countrys health care system operates. Im certainly not a deep subject matter expert like these people who go through the program are. But I have learned enough, where I know who the right experts are to call, she said. We have to recognize that we need experts. Were in a time right now where experts have gotten a bad name. Celina Montoya After Republican House Speaker Joe Straus announced in October that he would not seek re-election, Montoya polled a few current and former lawmakers about seeking her districts suddenly in-play seat. They told her that it takes a little bit of crazy, but you can do it. I think this is something thats particular with women in leadership, in a lot of instances, Montoya said. Women dont apply for the job they think they can do, they apply for the job they know they can do. It hadnt occurred to me that I have the skill set to do that, because up until that point, the job wasnt available. Montoya, 34, is seeking her first public office. She previously reported for Texas Public Radio, co-founded an education nonprofit and, in her current role, handles community and government relations for Alamo Fireworks. RELATED: As Democratic candidate for governor Valdez struggles to raise money, party looks to 'reverse coattails' effect In a recent interview, Montoya spoke highly of Straus tenure as speaker and District 121 representative, and she styled herself as a reasonable Democrat willing to reach across the aisle. I dont think theres any other way to operate, she said. Im under no illusion that whatever agenda I want to push or promote is going to be the only agenda out there. Democrats have avoided seeking the District 121 seat not because the district isnt winnable, Montoya said, but because Straus was a great statesman who has been open to both parties and responsive to the needs and to the concerns of everyone. In November, Montoya faces Steve Allison, who won a bruising May runoff against two-time Straus opponent Matt Beebe. Though Straus endorsed Allison, Montoya didnt appear to lend much weight to the endorsement. Im just thinking logically here, but if I were someone who was going to throw my endorsement someones way, I wouldnt give it to someone who had been an opponent of mine, which leaves only one other option, she said. Steve Kling Kling, an Army veteran who works in IT, grew up in San Angelo steeped in Republican politics and religious fundamentalism. Now a Dripping Springs resident, he said his familys frequent international travel spurred a political shift leftward, explaining the connection with a Mark Twain quote: Travel is fatal to prejudice. After a narrow primary win, Klings path to victory rests on turning out as many progressive voters as possible and battling voter apathy that can pervade districts considered safely red or blue. Conventional wisdom is our biggest enemy, said Kling, 46. Its that first bit of skepticism in someones mind. RELATED: Gutierrez and Gallego turn up the heat in Senate special election Another problem for Kling: Campbell holds a nearly 24-to-1 cash advantage and outraised Kling by $151,000 in the latest fundraising reporting cycle. He had raised more than $140,000 total through the end of June, an amount he believes can make him competitive. Otherwise, Kling is leaning on a changing electoral makeup to sway in his favor. Three counties in the district Comal, Hays and Kendall were among the five fastest-growing counties in the U.S. from July 2016 to July 2017. Nearly 9 of 10 new residents moved into the area, compared with natural growth from within. It is decidedly, demographically different than it was eight years ago when the district was gerrymandered, said Kling, who believes that the Republican-led Legislatures redistricting has facilitated extremism among elected officials. Like other Democratic veteran candidates, Kling has found that his military service creates just a little bit of a cognitive opening to speak with conservative voters who otherwise might not hear him out. It shatters stereotypes of Democrats just simply being whatever pejorative term you want to use, Kling said. Jasper Scherer is a San Antonio Express-News staff writer. Read more of his stories here. | jscherer@express-news.net | Twitter: @jaspscherer Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport is in talks with a number carriers over the introduction of flights to several unserved markets. Speaking to the "eKapija" portal, the General Manager of Belgrade Airport, Sasa Vlaisavljevic, said, "Nikola Tesla Airport is constantly on the look-out for new customers and is in contact with a number of interested parties concerning the launch of new flights. We hope to soon make announcements regarding the introduction of nonstop services to several unserved destinations in Europe, as well as to Morocco, India, Canada and a new destination in China. The airport's capacity currently stands at 7.5 million passenger per year, which is sufficient for continued and sustainable growth within the next few years". Previously, it was reported that Royal Air Maroc plans to introduce services from Casablanca to Belgrade by year's end. India's largest and busiest carrier, IndiGo, has said it sees potential in serving the Serbian market in the near future. An airline spokesperson previously told EX-YU Aviation News that IndiGo held talks with the Serbian government through a third party. "We have been involved in fruitful discussions with the Serbian government and the local tourism board through an intermediary concerning potential operations to Serbia. We plan to continue these talks and explore opportunities to serve the market sometime in the future, in order to offer affordable and unmatched travel experience to passengers between India and Serbia". Last September, Serbia become the only European country to abolish visa requirements for Indian citizens. It has also inked a new Air Service Agreement with India. Meanwhile, Air Serbia has expressed interest in serving Toronto in Canada, while the Chinese Ambassador to Serbia has confirmed that talks are underway for the introduction of a second service from China, from Shanghai to Belgrade. The developments come in the lead-up to the airport's takeover by French concession and construction company VINCI, which is expected in late September. Belgrade Airport has continued to post strong passenger growth with its 24--hour record achieved last Friday, July 20, when 23.335 travellers passed through its doors. It overtook the airport's previous best performance set just several days before on Monday, July 16. During the last two weeks, the airport handled over 300.000 passengers. "Considering that the number of charter flights has increased by 25%, that we recorded passenger growth of 7% during the first half of the year and that we handled 2.5 million travellers in 2018 eight days ahead of last, Belgrade Airport is poised for another record year", the airport said in a statement. The crowded race to be Connecticuts governor has captured the states attention, but the outcome of the primaries for lieutenant governor could have big implications for both parties come November. Three Republicans are vying for the second-in-command post and it could be anyones game on primary day, Aug. 14. State Sen. Joe Markley, 61, the partys endorsed lieutenant governor candidate, is the most conservative in the ring. In the Senate since 2010, he would eliminate the state Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities and is staunchly pro-life. Markley, of Southington, takes a hands-off approach to governance and once proposed legislation to eliminated the state requirement to fluoridate public drinking water. Hes often been the lone no vote in the Senate, and argued its not for government to decide on issues like a yes means yes policy for cases of sexual assault on college campuses. In reliably blue Connecticut, some Republicans are worried that Markleys brand of conservatism could be a turn-off for the unaffiliated voters in the general election. Republicans are outnumbered in the state and need to pull in middle-of-the-road voters in order to win. If I were a Republican master strategist, I would try and make sure my lieutenant governor at the very least didnt alienate voters, said Ronald Schurin, an associate professor of political science at the University of Connecticut. Its hard to imagine Markley bringing in voters. The people in the middle who Republicans need to attract will not vote for Sen. Markley so that should be a concern. But voters in the partys August primary are often the more conservative segment of the party, so the odds may be in Markleys favor to win the nomination, Schurin said. Schurin said its likely Democrats will make an issue of Markleys conservatism the lieutenant governor presides over the senate and provides tie-breaking votes when necessary and be quick to point out how often lieutenant governors have been asked to step up and fill the governors seat. Markley isnt worried about attacks on his conservative values. I represent the state Senate seat that Chris Murphy held not too many years before me, Markley said. So I think Ive shown in a district that is Democratic by nature, Im able to win and win by a big margin. Part of my political conviction is smaller government and creating the circumstances that lead to economic growth, and thats what people want. Nicely in the middle Darien First Selectman Jayme Stevenson, 56, has taken to marketing herself as the middle ground of the Republican party. She argues that she would have been the party-endorsed candidate had it not been for the rogue campaign of New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart who switched from the governors race to the lieutenant governors race on the eve of the convention. Stevenson favors reasonable gun laws, supports a womans right to choose and is a vocal advocate for pay equity and womens rights she said shes faced her fair share of sexism and has four daughters. If she becomes the lieutenant governor, she plans to devote substantial time to finding ways the state can combat the opioid crisis. Stevenson, who has served as first selectman since 2011, was re-elected in 2016, the same year Republican-dominated Darien voted for Hillary Clinton. I like to say Im a compassionate Republican, Stevenson said. I stand very nicely in the middle of Joe and Erin ... Hes not at all reflective of the general population of Connecticut and what they want in a leader. Bringing diversity Stewart, who was late to jump into the governors race and even later to enter the lieutenant governors race, and has been an advocate for ticket diversity, playing up her age and gender as imperative to Republican success. Stewart, 31, said she felt it was important for the Republican party to have a millennial voice specifically hers this year. I dont look like the typical politician, and Im OK with that, she said. The Republican party needs diversity on its ticket and thats a fact. Its not the only thing that matters, but it is important, especially in Connecticut. Even so, Stewart knows primary day will be an uphill battle. Weve done polling, Stewart said. We have work to do. Theres no doubt about it. But its a three-way race for lieutenant governor. Stewart turned in her application for the state-funded Citizens Election grant on Friday, the last day to do so. She said she wont drop out of the race if she doesnt receive the grant. I am not even considering that as an option right now, Stewart said. We will continue on the path that weve been continuing on thus far, and we would continue fundraising as we have been ... I think we would be just fine. Connecticut is unusual in that its one of only a handful of states where the governor and lieutenant governor are separate on the primary ballot, but forced to team up for the general election. DARIEN Comfort, convenience, and flexibility are just a few of the words that can be used to describe the gray contemporary colonial house at 2 Talmadge Hill Road, on a two-acre property in northern Darien. There is an abundance of comfort within its 10 rooms and 5,166 square feet of living space and continuing outside to the large, raised wrap-around wood deck and the covered patio below it. There is ample convenience because of its location. It is one of three homes on a friendly cul-de-sac on a corner lot with one side bordering Mansfield Avenue, and it has easy access to the Merritt Parkway, it is an easy commuting distance to the Talmadge Hill train station, and it is equidistant to the centers of Darien and New Canaan. The flexibility is evident in the floor plan of this house, which was built in 1984 but accommodates modern living. There is versatility to the rooms and how they are used. The full finished above-grade lower level offers space for living, entertaining and exercising but it also has a bedroom and full bath so it could be an au pair suite. And there are two master bedroom suites. The first is on the main living level and the other is on the second floor with two other bedrooms. That gives young parents the chance to choose where to sleep. They can remain on the second floor as their children grow up or maybe they would prefer the main level master for privacy sake. Either way, they can age in place moving down to the first floor master, if necessary, or they perhaps they would want to invite aging parents to move in with them. The approach to the house can be from the circular driveway to the covered front entrance or through the attached three-car, under house garage, which requires stairs to climb to the main living level. The front door opens into spacious and attractive two-story foyer, which has an eye-catching staircase with decorative wrought iron balusters. Inside, many of the rooms have vaulted ceilings and the baths have all been updated with sleek features imported from Italy. To the right is the family room, which has a fireplace, and to the left is the formal dining room. In the formal living room, straight ahead as one enters the house, there is a fireplace and sliding doors to the deck. The dining room has chair railing, a skylight, and a hand-painted mural on one wall. In the updated state-of-the-art gourmet, eat-in kitchen there is a center island with a built-in wine rack, Calacatta marble counters with a beveled edge, a marble tile backsplash in a basket-weave pattern, and high-end appliances including a Sub-Zero refrigerator. In the breakfast dining area there are French doors to the deck. The first floor master suite features two walk-in closets, a huge bath, and sliding doors to a private balcony. The upstairs master also has a door to a balcony. The two other bedrooms on that level share a Jack-and-Jill-style bath. One of those bedrooms has a door to its own balcony as well. More Information ABOUT THIS HOUSE STYLE: Contemporary Colonial ADDRESS: 2 Talmadge Hill Road PRICE: $1,650,000 ROOMS: 10 FEATURES: two-acre level property, corner lot, easy commute to the Merritt Parkway and Talmadge Hill train station, equidistant to the centers of Darien and New Canaan, first floor master bedroom, wrap-around deck, balconies, skylights, generator, storm windows, circular driveway, two fireplaces, central vacuuming system, home gym, in-law or au pair suite, exterior lighting, shed, covered patio, freshly painted, full finished basement, attic, attached under house three-car garage, zoned central air conditioning and oil heat, private well, five bedrooms, four full and one half baths SCHOOLS: Ox Ridge Elementary, Middlesex Middle, Darien High School ASSESSMENT: $1,373,190 MILL RATE: 16.08 mills TAXES: $22,191 See More Collapse On the lower level there is a secondary foyer with a marble tile floor from the garage into the living space. This level contains a second family room in addition to the bedroom, full bath, and sizable exercise room. In the garage there is a workshop. For more information or to make an appointment to see the house contact Amy Barsanti of William Pitt Sothebys International Realty at 203-722-1781 or abarsanti@williampitt.com. Medtronic Plc is a medical technology company, which engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of device-based medical therapies and services. It operates through the following segments: Cardiac and Vascular Group; Minimally Invasive Technologies Group; Restorative Therapies Group; and Diabetes Group. The Cardiac and Vascular Group segment consists of products for the diagnosis, treatment, and management of cardiac rhythm disorders and cardiovascular disease. The Minimally Invasive Technologies Group segment focuses on respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, renal system, lungs, pelvic region, kidneys, and obesity diseases. The Restorative Therapies Group segment comprises of neurostimulation therapies and drug delivery systems for the treatment of chronic pain, as well as areas of the spine and brain, along with pelvic health and conditions of the ear, nose, and throat. The Diabetes Group segment offers insulin pumps, coninuous glucose monitoring systems, and insulin pump consumables. The company was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. Read More by Jody Smith | Giants Correspondent | Sun, Jul 22nd 6:38pm EDT The New York Giants have signed No. 2 overall pick Saquon Barkley to a four-year $31.2 million dollar contract that is fully guaranteed. Barkley receives $20.6 million in the form of a signing bonus and the deal will include the standard fifth-year option. (Ian Rapoport via Twitter) A "careless Brexit" poses "significant risks" to the flow of UK food, with the possibility of food regulations being suspended in the event of "no-deal". According to a new report, the government recognises the serious consequences that may ensue because it is making contingency plans to suspend food regulations in the event of a no-deal Brexit. 'Feeding Britain: Food Security after Brexit' published by the Food Research Collaboration takes stock of how food security and food regulation are being addressed by the UK government in the Brexit discussions. The report argues that the Chequers statement announced on 6 July and subsequent White Paper that recognises the importance of agri-food to Brexit has "major weaknesses". It says the government is making a "fundamental mistake" in proposing close alignment with the EU only for farming and manufacturing, but not for retail or food service. The authors say this injects a fault-line into the UK food system between production and service sectors, yet food service is by far the largest source of employment in the entire UK food chain and delivers more gross value added (29 per cent) than the other sectors (agriculture 7 per cent, wholesaling 11 per cent, manufacturing 26 per cent, retailing 27 per cent). Co-author Professor Tim Lang, of City, University of London said: One could argue that this is sensible emergency planning but it is also risky. Consumers would rightly wonder who was guaranteeing the safety and quality of the imported food they were buying. Criminals would be alerted to opportunities for food fraud. And the move would send negative signals to the EU, at a delicate time in Brexit negotiations. It could make the UKs third country status more problematic for exports. 'Food-dependent' The report also says that the government appears to be ambiguous on the question of migrant workers and how essential they are to the current working of the UK food system. In addition, they argue that too little attention is being paid to the special needs of Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, whose economies are highly food-dependent. Professor Terry Marsden added: "There is a strong need for the joint production of a sustainable food framework which involves the devolved regions of the UK and the regions of England, such that it enhances food security and creates the basis for more healthy food consumption in the UK as a whole." The report argues that an "additional unnecessary risk" is being created by the Food Standards Agencys decision to press ahead with major reform of UK food safety regulation, at a time when a stable regulatory regime should be in place as the basis of trade and Brexit negotiations. Professor Millstone said: It is vital, in the context of negotiating and enacting Brexit, that the Food Standards Agency, and the UK Government more generally, avoid any decisions, proposals or actions, that could adversely affect food safety standards in the UK or the reputation of the UKs food supply. The paper provides a detailed analysis of the significance of the Regulating Our Future (ROF) reforms being undertaken by the Food Standards Agency. The paper's release follows news of leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees Mogg stating how the UK is now heading for a no-deal exit from the EU, and that leaving on World Trade Organisation (WTO) terms is likely. TV presenter and naturalist Chris Packham has said the public and government need to appreciate the role of farmers in protecting and supporting wildlife. The comment comes as Mr Packham gets ready to visit Papley Grove Farm in Cambridgeshire tomorrow (22 July) to draw attention to the state of UK's wildlife. The TV presenter will highlight the positive impacts of nature friendly farming practices, as part of his UK BioBlitz Campaign nature reserves are not enough campaign. The farm visit is part of the first independent audit of its kind in the UK involving Citizen Science. His goal is to highlight the extent to which the nations species are under threat. Papley Grove Farm, is the only farm and just one of 50 sites across the country hell be stopping off as part of his UK Bioblitz Campaign. The campaign has a serious purpose, as the results of the 2018 audit will be recorded to create a benchmark: this will help measure the rise and fall in numbers of different species on these sites in the future. 'Big trouble' Chris Packham said he is doing the campaign because the UKs landscape is in "big trouble" "We should have a far greater expectation of having wildlife around us all of the time but sadly we find ourselves going to nature reserves. We need to appreciate the role of farmers in protecting and supporting wildlife. We want wildlife everywhere; nature reserves are not enough, Mr Packham said. The number of farm birds has dropped by 54% since 1970 and since 1990 the farmland butterfly index has fallen by 36%. Papley Grove Farm in Cambridgeshire, like many other farms, demonstrates that it is possible to increase wildlife and run a successful farming business. Barn Owl numbers have soared over the past year and by leaving wider field margins the farm has increased nesting habitats for birds under threat, such as skylarks and turtle doves. 'Rely on farmers' Martin Lines, the farmer of Papley Grove Farm said many species rely on farmers for their survival. "By carefully changing the way we run our farm we have found that we can play a powerful role in helping wildlife recover and thrive," Mr Lines said. "I feel lucky when I see our wildflower areas and hedgerows attract lots of bees and new butterfly species. I love the fact that rare species such as skylarks and corn buntings soar overhead singing while I work on the land. Mr Lines has encouraged others and neighbouring farms to support nature friendly farming practices, so that people across the UK can work together to boost wildlife across a wider area. Our efforts are irrelevant if other farmers do not recognise a shift to nature friendly farming is not just good for wildlife but is key to the long-term survival and success of British farming," he added. "By working together, we can enhance and improve our countryside for all to benefit, but we need the right government policies and public support in place to help us fulfil the potential farmland has for conservation. A new report looking into the Welsh governments strategy to tackle bovine TB has revealed that five badgers were culled during 2017, costing 383,212. The 'Badger Found Dead' report reviews the outcome of localised badger culling on three farms in Wales between August and November 2017. The culling was rolled out in parts of Wales in March 2017, in efforts to control the spread of TB in cattle. Figures released by Defra showed an increase of 27% in the number of cattle slaughtered in Wales due to bovine TB. The disease remains the biggest threat to Wales' beef and dairy industry in large parts of the country over 10,000 cattle in Wales were slaughtered last year as a result of bovine TB. The rise prompted fresh calls for the culling programme to be extended. Across the three farms, badgers trapped and tested for TB were killed if they tested positive for the disease. The total cost of the trapping test and removal policy including staff costs, equipment, field surveys, hair trapping, cage trapping, sett side blood tests and post mortems was 383,212 or 76,662 for each badger killed. 'Very disappointing' NFU Cymru described the findings of this report as "very disappointing" due to the low number of farmers and badgers involved. Some farmers have criticised the Welsh government's strategy as being too costly due to demands to make their farms more biosecure. NFU Cymru President, John Davies said: The Badger Found Dead survey highlights that in some areas of Wales one in five badgers are suffering from the disease. We have always said all available options must be used to control and eradicate this devastating disease, including cattle testing, movement controls, biosecurity, vaccination when available and where appropriate, as well as measures to actively address the proven incidence of disease in wildlife. Mr Davies added: We urgently need to look at the lessons learned from other countries who have implemented successful programmes to actively address this persistent issue and significantly reduce the impact of this awful disease on cattle, wildlife and farming families. Badger Trust used the report to call the Welsh government's strategy a "shockingly costly failure", and calls for the government to concentrate on clearing out the reservoir of infection in cattle herds. A new survey shows that the Welsh public believes farmers should be financially supported for food production. The findings of the NFU Cymru-commissioned survey show the vast majority of the Welsh public associate the nations farmers are, first and foremost, food producers. The poll of consumers in Wales, conducted by YouGov, found that 83% of those questioned associated Welsh farmers with providing safe, high quality and traceable food a higher level of acknowledgment than any other service deemed as being provided by Welsh farmers. 83% of those polled also stated that they supported the idea of a new domestic agricultural policy in Wales providing funding support for Welsh farmers to continue supplying regulated, high-quality food. Just 2% were not in agreement. The findings are seen as a welcome boost for an industry struggling with considerable uncertainty. NFU Cymru President, John Davies said farmers are "extremely grateful" for the public's high level of backing. They show overwhelming support and recognition for the work of Welsh farmers not least the vitally important role they play in producing the nations food, Mr Davies said. This survey demonstrates that not only do the Welsh public associate Welsh farmers with producing food to world-leading environmental, animal health and welfare standards, they also support continued financial support to help farmers to keep producing world class food and drink. The survey reinforces the farming union's call that future Welsh policy should have measures that provide a stable environment to continue the secure supply of high quality food, which is trusted by consumers. NFU Cymrus ongoing #WeAreWelshFarming campaign has been a vehicle to promote the overall package provided by Welsh farmers that benefits the people and communities of Wales. An infographic has been released which illustrates the animal welfare credentials of seven UK farm assurance schemes to help people understand food labels. The online information leaflet has been made by the British Veterinary Association (BVA) to encourage the public to make informed choices about the food they eat. The BVA says vets have a "strong professional and personal engagement" in farm assurance schemes. A recent survey showed that nine in ten vets felt farm assurance schemes make a positive contribution to animal health and welfare in the UK and that 58% of vets consider scheme approval always or most of the time when buying their food. Farm assurance schemes rely on veterinary knowledge and expertise in the development and review of standards and the provision of on-farm assessments of animal health and welfare for accreditation. The infographic sets out the veterinary industry's priorities for farm animal welfare and indicates whether or not the schemes address these priorities in their standards. All seven schemes in the infographic meet the criteria for three of these priorities: they are all underpinned by veterinary expertise, support responsible use of antimicrobials and have measures in place to prevent the spread of disease. In addition, all those that do provide assurance for slaughter require animals to be stunned before slaughter, which is a policy priority for BVA. 'Practical guide' British Veterinary Association, John Fishwick said the provenance and welfare credentials of UK food is becoming "increasingly important" in shopping choices. More and more people want to know about the health and welfare credentials of the animal-derived food they buy such as meat, eggs and dairy products, Mr Fishwick said. In order to translate veterinary knowledge on animal health and welfare into a practical guide to help people understand and assess farm assurance schemes, BVA has developed an infographic that sets out our priorities for farm animal welfare for people to use when considering farm-assured food. The infographic is not intended to be a league table but to allow people to understand what aspects of animal health and welfare are addressed by assurance schemes so that they can decide which scheme best aligns with their own individual preferences and priorities, he added. The infographic is based on BVAs policy position on farm assurance, which has been developed as part of BVAs Animal Welfare Strategy. A programme considered to be a "game changer" for the Welsh dairy industry will see 6.5m invested in it over the next five years. The Dairy Improvement Programme will prioritise herd health planning and monitoring as well as expanding AHDBs strategic farm initiative in Wales. The funding through the Welsh Government Rural Communities Rural Development Programme 2014-2020 was announced on the opening day of the Royal Welsh Show. AHDB Dairy Chairman, Gwyn Jones says the programme is a "game changer", which will help farmers realise the full potential of their dairy herds. Herd health plans, which set out disease prevention, detection and management procedures will be developed as part of the programme applying a new whole farm holistic approach to take into consideration other influencing factors such as nutrition, genetics and the suitability of buildings. Dairy farmers in Wales will be able to access support to raise their awareness of disease control and preventative measures from autumn 2018. Mr Jones continued: Herd health and disease control underpin good performance on dairy farms and will help milk producers improve efficiencies and lift herd profitability. AHDB will also expand their strategic dairy farm concept in Wales to help farmers learn from each other through regular on-farm meetings and sharing key performance data. We know farmers learn best from other farmers and we will be working collaboratively with Farming Connect to make sure we complement their existing demonstration network and add value to delivery wherever possible, said Mr Jones. Half of farmers face ruin from subsidy cuts, warn experts Up to half of farmers could see profits 'wiped out' Sanjay Dutt Lost His Temper & Walked Away! "Sanjay apparently lost his temper on the film's team and left in a huff. Now, he has cancelled all the other interviews. He doesn't want to promote the film anymore." Trying To Mend Ways! "The team has been trying to cajole Sanjay to speak to the press. But he has a few conditions. His team is selecting the journos for the interviews, which may be done in Lucknow where he's shooting for Prassthanam," the source summed it up to DNA. A Heated-up Sanjay Dutt The source also stated that his team tried calling Sanjay Dutt multiple times to cool things down, but to no avail, as the actor refused to pick up their calls. Baba Bolta Hain Bas Ho Gaya The song Baba Bolta Hain Bas Ho Gaya featuring Ranbir Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt was lauded by many people, but a larger section were not happy with it, as they believe the media was only doing their job, which is to deliver the news no matter how bitter it is. It's Very Hectic "It's been super hectic but that's something an actor has to get used to. The actor is juggling all the commitments with equal focus and enthusiasm," said the source to DNA. Collecting All The Air Miles "He then flew out to Hyderabad to shoot an advertisement for an automobile brand on July 15 and 16. Later, he went to Malaysia to film another commercial from July 17 to 19. He completes the schedule in Istanbul where he is shooting for a skincare product from July 22 to 23 or 24. Ranveer has fulfilled all his commitments before he gets busy with Simmba again," the source summed it up. Active & Energised 24x7 We guess only Ranveer Singh is capable of this much travelling and work in such a short period of time. His energy levels rarely dip and is mostly active all the time. On The Work Front Ranveer Singh is currently shooting for his upcoming movie Gully Boy alongside Alia Bhatt and Simmba alongside Sara Ali Khan. While Simmba will hit the theatres in 2018, Gully Boy will release in 2019. Rishi Wants Ranbir To Get Married ASAP While speaking to Mid Day, Rishi Kapoor says, "It is high time he got married. I settled down when I was 27, Ranbir is 35. So he should think about marriage. He can marry anyone of his choice; we don't have any objection to it. I want to spend time with my grandchildren before I am gone." Rishi Kapoor On Ranbir Dating Only Actresses "Be it Ranbir or his contemporaries, actors have blinkers on and are focused on their work. The only women they meet are the actresses. They don't socialise as much; that is the flipside of life in the movies." Does Rishi Kapoor Do The 'Marriage Talk' With Ranbir? "I haven't been vocal about it, but my wife [Neetu Kapoor] keeps bringing it up with him and he just brushes the question away. Whenever he is ready for it, we will be happy. Our happiness lies in his happiness, after all." Rishi Kapoor On Ranbir-Alia's Relationship Without spilling much beans, Rishi Kapoor rather gave a smart reply and said, "Jo hai woh hai, sabko pata hai. I don't need to say anything more." Meanwhile, Here's What Ranbir & Alia Are Up To.. Lovebirds Ranbir & Alia are currently in Bulgaria, shooting for their upcoming film, Brahmastra. The duo is also accompanied by the megastar Amitabh Bachchan and legendary South superstar, Nagarjuna! Ranbir-Alia's Affair Is Keeping The Movie In Tremendous Buzz Had Alia & Ranbir not been involved romantically, the movie would not have been in such a tremendous buzz. But owing to their hot affair, people are pretty excited about this supernatural flick. What's Your Thoughts On Alia & Ranbir? Do you think Ranbir & Alia are indeed a match made in heaven or just good co-stars? Let us know in the comments section below! Good news for the Ishqbaaz fans! Nikita Mukherjee, who plays the role of much-loved Pinky aunty on the television show welcomed a baby girl. The actress birthed her daughter through a C-section and both the mother and daughter are doing well. Nikita's daughter was born on July 16, 2018, in Mumbai. Nikita was in her last trimester when she decided to take a maternity break from her show Ishbaaz. Nikita married Indrajit Mukherjee in 2006 and the couple welcomed their first child. While talking to India Forums Nikita said, "Our beautiful baby girl was born on the 16th of this month. I just came back home two days back as I'd undergone a C-Section. I am very jittery and excited and enjoying every bit of this motherhood experience. Luckily for me, my baby is very calm." Nikita who is famous for her signature dialogues, 'Oh My Mata', was seen clad in loose clothes during the last few episodes of Ishqbaaz in which she appeared before she took a break from the show. Her reel son Nakuul Mehta bid a goodbye to the actress with an extremely sweet message that said, "Bidding a temporary goodbye to the 'reel' mother Nitika Mukherjee as she takes her much deserve maternity break! you will be truly missed." - (sic) Ishqbaaz is one of the highest TRP earning Indian television shows. It has gained immense popularity over the years due to the chemistry between the lead characters Shivaay and Anika. The rumours with regard to the show being pulled off the air were making rounds until the show's producer Gul Khan confirmed saying, "This is the fifth time, I am hearing this rumour. It comes up every six months." Addressing the same rumours, Nikita Mukherjee had told that the actors on the show Ishqbaaz are the most popular ones in the industry that won't be affected by such rumours. She also added that each and every actor is fabulous in their own ways and they deserve all the happiness and success that would come their way without being harassed by the hoax. Also Read -Ekta Kapoor Shares Kasautii Zindagi Kay 2 Teaser, Shweta Tiwari, Ronit Roy & Others Wish Luck Rita's Contribution To Indian Cinema & Television Rita Bhaduri had spent several years of life as an actor and has been a part of some of the most renowned movies and television shows. She was last seen on the television show Nimki Mukhiya as Imarti Devi. Raja, Kanhi Haan Kabhi Naa, Julie, Aaina and Ghar Ho Toh Aisa are a few of the popular movies Rita has acted in. In Pic: Juhi Parmar at the prayer meet. Friends & Family Express Grief Many famous celebrities expressed their grief over Rita Bhaduri's death. Rita born and brought up in Lucknow, had a good connection in the Gujarati film industry also. In a tweet dedicated to the veteran actress, Anil Kapoor called her one of the finest actresses that FTII gave India. In Pic: TV actor Kanwaljit with wife Anuradha Patel at the prayer meet. Rita Didn't Like To Be Called Jaya's Sister For a very long time people assumed Rita Bhaduri was Jaya Bachchan's sister. Once the actress addressed this and said, "When I came to Jaipur last time, someone had asked me whether I am sister of Jaya Bhaduri? I was very angry to hear this,". But, she was very good friends with actress Jaya Battacharya who had come to the prayer meet to pay her respect. In Pic: Jaya Battacharya In Pic: Sachin Pilagaonkar Sachin Pilgaonkar, the television actor and director, was also seen at the prayer meet. Novartis International AG / Novartis renews drug donation of Egaten (triclabendazole) until 2022, reaffirming its commitment to the fight against liver fluke . Processed and transmitted by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Novartis extends agreement with the WHO for the donation of Egaten for the treatment of liver fluke, a neglected tropical disease, also known as fascioliasis, that infects more than 2.4 million people globally[1] Since the start of the donation program in 2005, Novartis has donated approximately 4 million tablets of Egaten, valued at USD 41 million, helping to treat around 2 million fascioliasis patients worldwide Egaten is currently the only treatment for fascioliasis recommended by the WHO and is on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines Basel, July 23, 2018 - Novartis reaffirms its commitment to the fight against liver fluke (fascioliasis), signing a renewed memorandum of understanding with the World Health Organization (WHO) to extend its drug donation for Egaten (triclabendazole) until 2022. Egaten is currently the only treatment for fascioliasis recommended by the WHO and is on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines. This new four-year commitment (January 2019 to December 2022) includes the donation of 600,000 tablets of Egaten annually, expected to reach 300,000 patients per year. Since the start of the donation program in 2005, Novartis has donated approximately 4 million tablets of Egaten, valued at USD 41 million, helping to treat around 2 million people with fascioliasis in more than 30 countries worldwide. Fascioliasis, commonly known as liver fluke infestation, is a neglected tropical disease that currently affects an estimated 2.4 million people worldwide[1], with an additional 180 million at risk of infection[2]. It is caused by two species of parasitic flatworms or trematodes that mainly affect the liver (Fasciola hepatica or Fasciola gigantica). Both species can infect humans following ingestion of larvae in contaminated water or food (mainly raw or undercooked vegetation). The larvae mature into adult worms in the biliary tract. No continent is free from fascioliasis; human cases have been reported from more than 70 countries worldwide[1]. It is likely that where animal cases are reported, human cases also exist. Recognized areas of high transmission are the highlands of South America, the Nile valley, the Caspian sea basin, as well as east Asia and south-east Asia[3]. "This donation will help increase access to treatment in many countries, particularly in communities where cases are clustered and among children of school age who have both the highest prevalence and intensity of infection," said Antonio Montresor, M.D., Medical Officer, WHO Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases. Left untreated, fascioliasis can result in considerable pain and discomfort, leading to poor quality of life and loss of productivity. The acute phase of the disease is manifested with fever, abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea and eosinophilia. The disease later progresses to a latent phase with less symptoms and ultimately into a chronic or obstructive phase. In children, fascioliasis can be a serious infection with high fever, enlarged tender liver, and anemia; in some cases deaths have been reported. Egaten is a single-dose treatment for fascioliasis caused by Fasciola hepatica or Fasciola gigantica in patients 6 years of age or older. Novartis originally developed triclabendazole to treat fascioliasis in domestic livestock, and subsequently developed it for human use in partnership with the WHO. "Novartis looks forward to its continued partnership with the WHO to reduce the burden of fascioliasis around the world through access to effective treatment," said Patrice Matchaba, M.D., Group Head of Global Health and Corporate Responsibility. "The extension of our donation through 2022 (https://bit.ly/2t1Xxtx) is a testament to our company's long-term commitment to reimagine the fight against neglected tropical diseases." Novartis has a long-standing commitment to the research and development of medicines for neglected tropical diseases. The Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases is dedicated to finding new medicines to treat neglected diseases. Research currently focuses on parasitic diseases such as malaria, cryptosporidiosis (diarrheal disease) and three major kinetoplastid diseases: human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), Chagas disease and leishmaniasis. About Novartis Novartis provides innovative healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, cost-saving generic and biosimilar pharmaceuticals and eye care. Novartis has leading positions globally in each of these areas. In 2017, the Group achieved net sales of USD 49.1 billion, while R&D throughout the Group amounted to approximately USD 9.0 billion. Novartis Group companies employ approximately 125,000 full-time-equivalent associates. Novartis products are sold in approximately 155 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com (http://www.novartis.com). Novartis is on Twitter. Sign up to follow @Novartis at http://twitter.com/novartis (http://twitter.com/novartis) For Novartis multimedia content, please visit www.novartis.com/news/media-library (http://www.novartis.com/news/media-library) For questions about the site or required registration, please contact media.relations@novartis.com (mailto:media.relations@novartis.com) References [1] http://www.who.int/foodborne_trematode_infections/fascioliasis/en/ (http://www.who.int/foodborne_trematode_infections/fascioliasis/en/) [2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4568335/ (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4568335/) [3] http://www.who.int/foodborne_trematode_infections/fascioliasis/fascioliasis_epidemiology/en/ (http://www.who.int/foodborne_trematode_infections/fascioliasis/fascioliasis_epidemiology/en/) # # # Novartis Media Relations Central media line: +41 61 324 2200 E-mail: media.relations@novartis.com (mailto:media.relations@novartis.com) Eric Althoff Novartis Global Media Relations +41 61 324 7999 (direct) +41 79 593 4202 (mobile) eric.althoff@novartis.com (mailto:eric.althoff@novartis.com) Katerina Kontzalis Head, Global Health & Corporate Responsibility Communications & Advocacy +41 61 324 1631 (direct) +41 79 797 8393 (mobile) katerina.kontzalis@novartis.com (mailto:katerina.kontzalis@novartis.com) Novartis Investor Relations Central investor relations line: +41 61 324 7944 E-mail: investor.relations@novartis.com (mailto:investor.relations@novartis.com) Central North America Samir Shah +41 61 324 7944 Richard Pulik +1 212 830 2448 Pierre-Michel Bringer +41 61 324 1065 Cory Twining +1 212 830 2417 Thomas Hungerbuehler +41 61 324 8425 Isabella Zinck +41 61 324 7188 Media release (PDF) (http://hugin.info/134323/R/2206578/857657.pdf) FRODSHAM, England, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- BQT, LTD is announcing the upcoming closed-Beta release of the BQT Exchange Platform - a peer-to-peer (P2P) exchange with innovative hedge trade capabilities. This unique method embraces the spirit of decentralization and community, eliciting the founding principles of blockchain and crypto assets trading. Many crypto exchanges on the market are built to meet demand of traders and quickly expanding their user-base and innovations. However, a need to allow traders to react to the market demand and leverage their crypto assets to diversify and acquire other cryptocurrency is still limited. BQT has chosen to focus its attention on a secure P2P Hedge exchange model - allowing savvy crypto traders to interact with each other directly. P2P exchanges have shown a significant growth in popularity, with the widely used Localbitcoins witnessing continual volume spikes across various markets. BQT team believes that traders can interact directly with other traders, providing unmatched flexibility in a decentralized trading environment. BQT trading platform has taken the P2P exchange model even further, allowing traders to generate short term hedge trades. The market for P2P exchanges is growing rapidly and market of today's traders truly demands even more flexibility and much deeper social interaction. BQT Exchange provides innovative trading approach allowing traders to hedge their crypto assets holdings to acquire crypto assets of other traders. We believe, ability to negotiate trades directly, while rating their trades delivers upmost trustful, lucrative and competitive trading experience. - Edward W. Mandel, CEO The BQT Team understands that all crypto assets have their own unique value, and that this value can function as a vital negotiating tool for acquiring other crypto assets. They have boldly gone in a new direction, focused on reducing fiat dependency and instead, encouraging direct crypto trading between various crypto assets. Secure, interactive and user-friendly interface enables traders to acquire crypto assets from other trader peers on a short-time basis providing escrow of their crypto assets as a security with certain period while still maintaining ownership of the escrow. BQT is more than just an exchange, its aim is build a community of traders and create a true culture of crypto traders that can learn from each other, rate their trades and share their experience. BQT team is aimed to release Hedge Exchange globally but initially restricting access in United States and some other jurisdiction until proper compliance is met. The BQT Token BQT, LTD. is scheduled to launch its ICO in July. BQT Token (BQT) would be initially utilized for exchange fee transactions and token listing fees but in future platform releases BQT tokens could be used for educational tools and other products and services which could help the BQT community to become more savvy traders. BQT would be inviting its traders and blockchain enthisiasts to participate in its affiliate program. Website: https://BQT.io LONDON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Thought leaders and visionaries from the world of human resource management will convene in Boston next year as UK and Europe's major people in business event on leadership, talent, engagement and learning, the global HRD Summit, goes stateside. The two-day event will go live at the Seaport Hotel in Boston on March 26 and 27, 2019. It will build on the impressive track record of the HRD portfolio of global events, which for the past 17 years has hosted the most senior gathering of HR leaders from all industry sectors, and has just been announced as the winner of Best Conference of the Year (under 1,500 delegates) at the Conference Awards 2018. Each year, 1000s of leading industry experts, strategic thinkers, innovators and business leaders share their ideas and expertise in order to cultivate the optimum environment in people and talent management helping meet the challenges and trends impacting business workforces around the world. "Contentive has created strong B2B communities in Europe by successfully marrying content, events, and technology information. I'm honored to keynote their first U.S. event, which will further extend and expand their strong HR community," said Josh Bersin, independent analyst and Founder of Bersin by Deloitte. The US launch will see HRD's winning formula of innovative session formats such as the tried and tested lightning talks, fireside chats and CoLabs bring fresh ideas to the North American market with high level speakers already confirmed, including Chuck Edward, Head of Global Talent Acquisition for Microsoft and Dr. Robert Hogan, International Authority on Leadership and Co-founder of Hogan Assessment Systems. In addition, the prestigious HRD Global Advisory board comprised of international luminaries from some major global brands will steer the content. This will ensure valuable messages and key takeaways will benefit all who participate in the debates over both days surrounding themes such as 'Cultivating a Growth Mindset', 'Curating a Culture of Innovation' and 'Creating an Employee's Career Journey'. "Following the successes of our HRD events in UK and Europe, I'm delighted to continue our journey in the US and to build our global community of senior HR leaders responsible for the future of workforce across the world," says Sandeep Saujani, CEO of HRD and Contentive Limited . The HRD Summit/US is expected to attract more than 350 senior HR professionals from global organisations across a variety of industry sectors ranging from manufacturing and automotive through to pharmaceuticals and retail. About the HRD Summit The HRD Summit hosts the most senior gathering of people directors on the globe. Operating for 17 years in the UK and Europe, the first Summit in the US has been announced for early 2019. Across two days the Summit will welcome more than 350 attendees to discuss, debate and knowledge share across four streams of content exploring Leadership, Talent, Engagement and Learning. The event takes place at the Seaport Hotel in Boston on March 26 and 27, 2019. A number of commercial partnership opportunities are available. For further information contact Karl.Ghamsari@contentive.com https://www.hrdsummit.us. Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Federal Bank does not have any plans to increase its presence and will concentrate on the digital alternatives to help reach out to more customers Mumbai: South-based private sector lender Federal Bank has received the regulatory nod to open offices in Bahrain, Kuwait and Singapore, but is awaiting local clearances before it starts operations, a top official has said. The Kochi-headquartered bank, which leads diaspora remittances, already has representative offices in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and its desire to expand comes even as a majority of its larger peers are downsizing their overseas presence following the Rs 13,500-crore Nirav Modi scam and poor asset quality back home due to toxic loans. "We have received the Reserve Bank nod for having representative offices in Bahrain, Kuwait and Singapore and are now awaiting clearances from local regulators in the host countries," chief executive officer and managing director Shyam Srinivasan told PTI over phone. He, however, did not give a timeline by when the bank expects the approvals from local regulators will come in, saying it depends on a lot of factors. It can be noted that following the over Rs 13,500-crore Nirav Modi scam at state-run Punjab National Bank, almost all the nationalised banks which account for the bulk of overseas presence by domestic lenders, have been reducing their overseas presence as part of a government directive. However, the private sector ones have been continuing with their overseas expansion plans, with the likes of Axis Bank and Yes Bank having done so in recent months. Domestically, Federal Bank does not have any plans to increase its presence and will concentrate on the digital alternatives to help reach out to more customers, he said. Srinivasan said the bank, which reported a massive 25 percent spike in net income in the June quarter, has not opened new branches in the last four years, since when it has been focusing on the technology-led interventions. It has relocated branches within a specific area to make them more profitable or realign the staff as the banking landscape changes to a relationship management-led model, he said. The bank will be focusing more on the unsecured lending segment, where its book stands at Rs 380 crore at present, he said. Having constituted a dedicated team for the unsecured play, the bank is targeting to at least double the loan book on the low base, Srinivasan said, adding the potential to grow in the segment is tremendous. At a theoretical level, the bank has the scope to grow its unsecured book to Rs 10,000 crore given its overall loan book size of over Rs 95,500 crore. In his first GST Council meeting since he took charge as the finance minister, Piyush Goyal allowed businesses with a turnover of up to Rs 5 crore to file quarterly returns New Delhi: India Inc on Sunday welcomed the GST Council's decision to cut rates on several items and simplification of tax return filing process for businesses, saying the move will boost compliance and benefit consumers. In his first GST Council meeting since he took charge as the finance minister in May this year, Piyush Goyal allowed businesses with a turnover of up to Rs 5 crore to file quarterly returns -- a move which will benefit 93 percent of the GST registered taxpayers. They will have to, however, pay taxes monthly. So far, businesses with a turnover of up to Rs 1.5 crore were permitted to file returns quarterly. In a statement, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said the single page return form to be filed quarterly for traders having turnover up to Rs 5 crore is a bold step which will ease miseries of traders. "The decisions relating to simplification of returns and especially keeping the interests of small taxpayers are noteworthy. This would facilitate ease of doing business both for small and large taxpayers," FICCI President Rashesh Shah said. He further said that the decisions would increase compliance, widen the tax base and are in the right direction to achieve the objectives of GST. In its meeting on Saturday, the GST Council also cut tax rates on 88 items, including footwear, refrigerator, washing machine and small screen TV, while the widely demanded sanitary napkins have been exempted from the levy. "Exemption of GST on Sanitary napkins is welcome as it is a great step towards empowering women as sanitary napkins are necessary for female hygiene. This is a big step towards encouraging menstrual hygiene among young girls and women as scrapping of GST from Sanitary napkins will make napkins more affordable and more women will be able to use them," Pinky Reddy, President, Ficci Ladies Organisation (FLO) said. Harpreet Singh, Partner Indirect Tax, KPMG in India said that rate rationalisation on so many products is nothing short of being akin to the annual budget announcements. "While rate rationalisation would definitely bring cheer for the industry and consumers, what would be interesting to see is how the government would try and compensate the revenue loss on account of tax rate reductions," Singh said. He said rate cuts on handicrafts items such as deities made of stone, marble and woods, phool jharoo, Rakhis etc. was a long pending demand of the sector. "Imposition of rate of 5/12 percent, added to the woes of sector which is already dwindling. Exemption from GST may provide much needed impetus to the industry which is a key contributor to rural employment," Singh said. Quarterly returns for taxpayers with turnover of up to Rs 5 crore, which comprise of 93 percent of taxpayers, would definitely reduce the compliance burden of small dealers and assist them in channelising their energy in doing business rather than worrying about monthly tax filings, he added. Consumer appliance maker Usha International CEO Dinesh Chhabra appreciated reduction in the GST rates from 28 to 18 percent on food grinders, mixers, storage water heaters, water coolers, water heaters, electric ironing machines, among others. "These are basic appliances and are required in every household on a daily basis. This move ahead of the festive season will certainly bring cheer to consumers and lead to a spur in the growth of the appliances category," Chhabra said. Ernst & Young Services India tax Partner Abhishek Jain said that the 28th GST Council meeting was positive with some very significant rate rationalisations. "Big relief for hotels as GST rate of 28 percent would not apply if the actual tariff value is less than 7,500 even though the published tariff may be more than 7,500; this will also ease the IT systems for hotel players. "Reduction in GST rate of ethanol for use by oil companies to 5 percent is again welcome as major petroleum products are outside GST and this would help reduce their cost," Jain said. Spicejet said there is no monetary impact from the verdict as most of the refund of Rs 370 crore already deposited in an escrow account created by the Delhi HC Mumbai: An arbitration tribunal has rejected the Rs 1,323-crore damages claim from Spicejet and a bid to take control of the airline by its previous owner Kalanithi Maran and his company Kal Airways, after a bitter share transfer dispute. The Delhi-based low-cost carrier has informed the exchanges that on 20 July, an arbitration tribunal rejected Maran's claim of damages of Rs 1,323 crore for not issuing convertible warrants and preference shares to him and Kal Airways. The case dates back to January 2015, when Ajay Singh, who owned the airline earlier bought it back from Maran after being grounded for months. The tribunal consisted of three retired judges from the Supreme Court, Arijit Pasayat, Hemant Laxman Gokhale and KSP Radhakrishnan. The arbitration proceedings were concluded in April 2018 and the arbitral award was unanimous. While the tribunal asked Maran to pay Singh and the airline Rs 29 crore in penal interest, Singh was asked to refund Rs 579 crore plus interest to Maran. The tribunal, created in end-2016 on the orders of the Delhi High Court to adjudicate the share transfer dispute, held that there was no breach of a share sale and purchase agreement reached between Maran and current promoter Singh in late January 2015. While Maran could not be contacted for comments, Spicejet on Sunday said there is no monetary impact from the verdict as most of the refund of Rs 370 crore already deposited in an escrow account created by the Delhi HC. Additionally, the tribunal has allowed a counter claim of Rs 29 crore. On the dispute related to issue of convertible warrants and preferential shares, the airline said, "the tribunal has held that the claimants were to bring in Rs 100 crore required for issuance of CRPS aggregating to Rs 370 crore, and the same has not been deposited by them in the manner provided under the agreement". "The tribunal has advised the parties to explore the possibility of issuance of warrants and in the event such efforts do not fortify in two months' time, the company is required to thereafter refund the amount of about Rs 270 crore (after adjusting the counter claim of Rs 100 crore which has been allowed)". On Friday, the tribunal rejected Maran's claim of damages of Rs 1,323 crore for not issuing warrants to him and Kal Airways, but awarded him a refund of Rs 579 crore plus 12 per cent interest. "No further warrants or shares are required to be issued by the company to Maran and Kal Airways", Spicelet said quoting the award. In February 2015, Maran of Sun Network and Kal Airways, his investment vehicle, had transferred their 58.46 per cent in Spicejet, to Singh for Rs 2 along with Rs 1,500 crore of debt after the airline was grounded due to severe cash crunch. Singh was the first co-founder of the airline and now the chairman and managing director. As part of the agreement, Maran and Kal Airways had claimed to have paid Spicejet Rs 679 crore for issuing warrantsRs 18.91 crore at a conversion price of Rs 16.30and preference shares. But Maran said neither the convertible warrants nor preference shares were issued nor money returned, claiming to have cost him over Rs 1300 crore, forcing him to move the Delhi High Court. "If there is no compensation coming," Maran argued that "he should be allowed to regain Spicejet ownership". The warrants, if converted into equity, would have given Maran and Kal Airways 24 percent ownership in the airline. Singh and his family currently hold over 60 per cent in the airline, against under 2 per cent before Maran exited the airline. An airline official said the verdict clearly establishes that Singh is the principal promoter and share-holder of the airline and there won't be any dilution of stake. "In so far as the matter of issuance of warrants was concerned, the tribunal has held that there was no breach by the company in pursuing the approval from relevant authority and since the same was not received for reasons not attributable to the company, and the company cannot be held to be in breach or be made liable for damages," the award said. The tribunal has, however, held that since the warrants/shares cannot be issued any longer, the amount of about Rs 308 crore earlier received by the company as advance towards subscription of warrants is to be refunded to the claimants along with interest of 12 percent for a period of 30 months, which works out to be over Rs 579 crore. By Luc Cohen and David Lawder BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - The finance ministers for Mexico and Canada on Sunday said they were optimistic about NAFTA talks with the United States, even as trade tensions spurred by U.S. tariffs dominated the G20 meeting of world economic leaders in Argentina. By Luc Cohen and David Lawder BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - The finance ministers for Mexico and Canada on Sunday said they were optimistic about NAFTA talks with the United States, even as trade tensions spurred by U.S. tariffs dominated the G20 meeting of world economic leaders in Argentina. Mexico Finance Minister Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya said there were still several chapters of NAFTA that had not yet been closed, but that the renegotiation could be completed before incoming President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador takes office on Dec. 1 after his landslide victory in this month's election. "There exists a possibility that we can arrive at some type of arrangement," Gonzalez Anaya told Reuters in an interview, adding that he discussed the talks to modernize the 24-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement during a bilateral meeting with his Canadian counterpart, Finance Minister Bill Morneau. "It has always existed, and we hope that it stays on track." The long-running renegotiation, launched by U.S. President Donald Trump last year, has taken on a renewed sense of urgency since Lopez Obrador's victory. The leftist former mayor of Mexico City has said he plans to maintain NAFTA, and his allies have said the transition team will take part in talks. Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminum imports were still casting a shadow on NAFTA talks, Morneau said. Ire over the measures from the European Union, Japan and others have isolated U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin at the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors. Morneau said that he sensed "optimism" from Mnuchin about moving forward on NAFTA, and that Mnuchin had assured him that the administration was committed to a trilateral deal despite Trump's suggestion that the United States could move forward with separate bilateral deals. "That change in Mexico presents us with the opportunity to restart those discussions. We're going to do that in earnest," Morneau told reporters. We're going to work towards trying to get to an agreement in the time frame that we've got in the next few months." Morneau said he plans to travel to Mexico next week to meet with the incoming administration. Gonzalez Anaya added that he had a "very good chat" during an informal meeting last week with Carlos Urzua, who Lopez Obrador has tapped for the finance minister's role. "I have a very good impression of him," Gonzalez Anaya said. (Reporting by Luc Cohen; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. These norms are part of the series of recommendations given by the SEBI-appointed Kotak committee on corporate governance New Delhi: Reliance Industries, Infosys, TCS and Bharti Airtel are among the 291 listed companies that will have to appoint a non-executive chairperson on their boards by 1 April, 2020 to comply with regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India's (SEBI) directive and most of these firms will need to split the roles of chairman and managing director for compliance. Currently, many companies have merged the two posts as CMD (chairman-cum-managing director), leading to some overlapping of the board and management, which could lead to conflict of interest. Under the new SEBI norms, the top 500 listed entities will have to ensure that the chairperson is a non-executive director from 1 April, 2020. It will eventually lead to a split in the post of chairman and managing director. These norms are part of the series of recommendations given by the SEBI-appointed Kotak committee on corporate governance. A total of 291 companies (or 58.2 percent) out of top 500 NSE listed entities by market capitalisation will have to appoint non-executive chairpersons, including by splitting the CEO/MD and chairperson position, according to data provided by Prime Database based on information available till 18 July. Apart from Reliance Industries, Infosys, TCS and Bharti Airtel, other major firms that need to split the two posts are -- Hindustan Unilever, ONGC, Coal India, Larsen & Toubro and HCL Technologies. Sunil Bharti Mittal is currently the executive chairman of Bharti Airtel, while Gopal Vittal holds the position of CEO and MD. Interestingly, Reliance Industries, earlier this month, extended the tenure of Mukesh Ambani, who also holds the position of chairman on its board, as the managing director of the company for another five years. RIL, Bharti Airtel and TCS will also need to appoint a woman independent director on their respective boards by April 1, 2019. Some of the other companies that need to have a woman independent director by next year are Housing Development Finance Corp (HDFC), State Bank of India (SBI), Indian Oil Corp and Hindustan Zinc. A total of 145 (29 percent) companies out of top 500 NSE listed entities would require to appoint woman independent director by April 1, 2019. Besides, 335 firms (33.5 percent) out of top 1,000 NSE listed entities by market capitalisation would require to have one woman independent director by April 1, 2020. Moreover, 56 companies (5.6 percent) of the top 1,000 firms listed on the NSE would have to increase the size of their board to at least six directors by April next year. Presently, 43 companies (4.3 percent) have 5 directors on their board, 12 companies (1.2 percent) have 4 directors and 1 company (0.1 percent) has 3 directors, Prime Database noted. As such, 70 new directors will have to be appointed in these companies, it added. Some of the firms that need to increase the size of their boards are InterGlobe Aviation, which operates IndiGo airlines, Fortis Healthcare, Eicher Motors, Dish TV India and Monsanto India. The SEBI has made it compulsory for top 1,000 listed companies to have at least six directors on board. At least 20 members of the Maratha Kranti Morcha were detained on Monday while they were planning to stage a protest at the venue of an event to be attended by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in Pune Pune: At least 20 members of the Maratha Kranti Morcha were detained on Monday while they were planning to stage a protest at the venue of an event to be attended by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in Pune, an official said. Fadnavis is scheduled to attend a couple of events, including the 'ground-breaking' ceremony of Krantiveer Chaphekar National Museum, in Chinchwad area of Pune on Monday. "As a precautionary measure, we detained around 20 members of the Maratha Kranti Morcha when they were on the way to the venue," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone III) Ganesh Shinde said. Security has been stepped up to avoid any law and order problem, Shinde said. Notably, Fadnavis today skipped the annual puja at the Lord Vitthal Temple in Pandharpur town due to protest threats by the Maratha community members over their various demands, including reservation in government jobs and education. As part of a long-standing tradition, the sitting chief minister every year offers prayers at the temple dedicated to Lord Vitthal and Rukmini at Pandharpur in Solapur district, on the occasion of 'Ashadhi Ekadashi'. Some Maratha community leaders had threatened to disrupt Fadnavis' visit to Pandharpur if their demands are not accepted. The community leaders had earlier taken out several rallies in various districts to highlight their demands. Last year, a huge rally was organised by the Maratha Kranti Morcha in this connection in Mumbai. Despite assurances from Fadnavis to fulfill the demands, nothing concrete has been done till now, community leaders have claimed. Nine more inmates of the Byculla prison in Mumbai have fallen sick due to suspected food poisoning, taking the total count of the affected prisoners, most of them women, to 104 over the last four days. Mumbai: Nine more inmates of the Byculla prison in Mumbai have fallen sick due to suspected food poisoning, taking the total count of the affected prisoners, most of them women, to 104 over the last four days, an official said on Monday. The nine prisoners were hospitalised on Sunday after they complained of stomach pain and dehydration, JJ Hospital's medical superintendent Dr Sanjay Surase said. On 20 July, 81 inmates of the Byculla women's prison were admitted in the state-run JJ Hospital after they fell ill, with officials suspecting that food poisoning, contaminated water or reaction from a medicine as the reason behind their illness. The number rose to 95 by Saturday, with more inmates complaining of similar symptoms. While most of the prisoners were discharged, 15 inmates, including 13 women, were still in the hospital, Surase said. Among the 13 women, two were pregnant, a police official said. An investigation was on to ascertain the exact cause of the illness of the inmates, Surase said. An anti-viral medicine was administered to all the prison inmates and staff on 19 July, after which some prisoners had complained of uneasiness, a top prison official had earlier said. The prime accused in the Sheena Bora murder case, Indrani Mukerjea, who is lodged in the same prison, was not among those admitted to the hospital, the jail officials had said. The dean of JJ Hospital, Mukund Tayade, had earlier said all those admitted had complained of vomiting, nausea and loose motions. None of the patients was in a serious condition and they were responding well to treatment, he had added. Samples of the drinking water and food given to the prisoners were being tested, an official had said. The prison, which houses 312 inmates, was in the news last year when Manju Shetye (45), a convict, died after allegedly being beaten up by jail officials. Six officials were arrested in the case. The probe panel set up by Rajasthan Police said it was not a case of custodial death and whatever happened on the part of the local police was an 'error of judgement in responding to the situation. Alwar/Jaipur: The Rajasthan Police on Monday admitted "error of judgement" in handling the case of alleged lynching of 28-year-old Rakbar in Alwar, as it suspended one and transferred three policemen, even as it refuted allegations of "custodial death". Amid allegations of negligence on part of the local policemen, including for delay in taking Rakbar Khan to hospital, a high-level panel, set up by the state police, found four policemen guilty of dereliction in duty and suspended assistant sub-inspector Mohan Singh, who was in charge of the Ramgarh police station at that time, and shunted three constables to police lines, officials said. Since the policemen thought the victim was not serious, they decided to take him to the police station first so that the cows could be first shifted to a shelter. They also offered him water and tea, so it appeared an error of judgement,Additional Director General (law and order) NRK Reddy, a member of the enquiry panel, said. In the primary investigation, Reddy claimed the policemen have not been found involved in beating the victim. However, police said it was not a case of custodial death and whatever happened on the part of the local police was an "error of judgement in responding to the situation. Earlier in the day, DGP OP Galhotra had set up a four-member committee. The panel comprised special DGP (law and order) NRK Reddy, Additional DGP (CID-Crime Branch) PK Singh, Inspector General (Jaipur Range) Hemant Priyadarshi and state nodal officer (cow vigilance) Mahendra Singh Chaudhary, Galhotra said. The action was taken after a video purportedly showing the assistant sub-inspector, who was posted at the Ramgarh police station, admitting to his "mistake", went viral. "Mere se galti hogai... kaise bhi maan lo... saja de do ya chhodh do... seedhi si baat hai(I made a mistake... punish me or pardon me... it is simple and straight)," the assistant sub-inspector can be heard purportedly saying in the video. The video of the ssistant sub-inspector surfaced hours after allegations that the Alwar police delayed by nearly three hours the shifting of Khan to the Ramgarh community healthcare centre. While two persons, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh, were arrested on Saturday, a third accused, Naresh Singh, was nabbed on Sunday and they are under police custody for five days, police said. "There are certain allegations that local police had beaten up Khan and delayed in taking him to hospital, which are being looked into," Superintendent of Police (Alwar) Rajendra Singh said. The incident was reported to police at 12.41 am on Saturday. Police reached there at 1.15 am, but they reached the hospital, which is nearly 4 kilometres away from the scene of crime, with Khan at 4.00 am, where he was declared brought dead, as per police and hospital records. Congress leader Ashok Gehlot demanded a CBI probe into the alleged case of lynching. This is a mystery. It was the duty of police to take the victim to hospital but instead he was taken to the police station. This is a matter of investigation. Is it not duty of chief minister Vasundhara Raje to set up an impartial probe? In my view, the case should be handed over to the CBI for an impartial inquiry, Gehlot said. Former Congress MP from Alwar Bhanwar Jitendra Singh also demanded a judicial inquiry into the matter and said that such incidents occur when elections are around. Rajasthan home minister Gulab Chand Kataria earlier in the day said that appropriate action would be taken if there was any negligence on the part of police. BJP MP from Rajasthan's Nagaur CR Chaudhary said,"It's not like that. Police did its work. Police have arrested the accused and took injured to hospital immediately. Sometimes, media doesn't give proper message. I don't think that police lacked in its action." The incident has created a political stir where the BJP MLA from Ramgarh constituency in Alwar, Gyan Dev Ahuja, blamed local police and the opposition Congress held by the Raje-led government responsible for the incident and demanded a judicial inquiry or a CBI probe into the case to ensure unbiased investigation. Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee president Sachin Pilot demanded a judicial inquiry into the matter. Khan, along with his friend Aslam, was taking cows to their villages in Haryana through a forest area in the Ramgarh area of Alwar, where they were caught by the mob. Aslam had managed to flee. As per the FIR registered with the Ramgarh police station on Saturday, Naval Kishore Sharma, the chief of the VHP's 'Gau Raksha' cell in Ramgarh, had informed the police at 12.41 am (on Saturday) about the incident. Police reached the spot at 1.15 am. Khan's statement was recorded and he was taken to the police station. As per the CHC entry register, a body of a 28-year-old man was brought at 4 am. Following the allegation, the probe into the alleged lynching incident was handed over to additional SP (Crime and Vigilance), Jaipur Range, yesterday. "The investigation will be carried out in a fair and transparent manner," IG, Jaipur Range, Hemant Priyadarshi had said. Meanwhile, the police investigation has revealed the past record of the victim. On 30 December, 2014, Nauganwa police station in Alwar had registered a case against Khan under Sections 5 (prohibits the export of bovine animals for slaughter) and 8 (penalty for contravention of Section 5) of the Rajasthan Bovine Animal Act, after allegedly retrieving two cows from him. Nauganwa police station Station House Officer Mohan Singh said a 'challan' was filed in the 2014 case. The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a contempt plea against the Vasundhara Raje-led Rajasthan government on 28 August in the case of lynching of a 28-year-old man in Rajasthan's Alwar district. The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a contempt plea against the Vasundhara Raje-led Rajasthan government on 28 August in the case of lynching of a 28-year-old man in Rajasthan's Alwar district. #BREAKING - Supreme Court agrees to hear contempt plea against Rajasthan govt on August 28 following the #AlwarLynching case | @utkarsh_aanand with the report pic.twitter.com/VY1YawqinU News18 (@CNNnews18) July 23, 2018 According to CNN-News18, petitioners Tehseen Poonawalla and Tushar Gandhi brought up the matter before the court and wanted it to be taken up this week but the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra said it will be heard in August. In their contempt pleas, Poonawalla and Gandhi alleged that offences were taking place despite the apex court verdict on cow vigilantism. The plea has been clubbed with others seeking action against Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments over mob lynching incidents, as per ANI. Rakbar Khan, 28, was allegedly lynched by a group of people who accused him of smuggling cows, police said. Khan and his friend Aslam were taking two cows to their village in Haryana through a forested area near Lalawandi in Alwar district on Friday night when five men attacked them. They suspected that Khan was smuggling cows but the allegation is yet to be verified, SHO, Ramgarh Police Station, Subhash Sharma told PTI. On Sunday, a third arrest was made in connection with the case which was handed over to an additional SP-rank officer for investigation. "Naresh Singh, a resident of Lalawandi village, was arrested on Sunday. Police are on the lookout for another accused," Sharma said. Two others, Dharmendra and Paramjeet, were nabbed by police on Saturday. The autopsy report revealed that the ribs of the victim, Khan, were fractured due to a thrashing. The broken ribs led to water filling in his lungs, which caused his death, CNN-News 18 reported. Khan's wrist was also broken. Media reports emerged on Sunday that there was a three-and-a-half-hour delay on the part of the police in taking Khan to the hospital. The police, reportedly, first took the seized cows to a shelter, took Khan to the police station to change his clothes, stopped for tea before taking him to the hospital. The FIR in the case revealed that the police received a call at about 12.41 am but they arrived at the spot at 1.15 or 1.20 am. With inputs from PTI Reacting to the Alwar mob lynching, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said it reflected Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'brutal 'New India''. Taking umbrage, BJP ministers hit back and called the Congress chief a 'merchant of hate'. Reacting to the alleged mob lynching of a 28-year-old man in Rajasthan's Alwar district, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said it reflected Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "brutal 'New India'" where "humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die". Taking umbrage to his remarks, BJP leaders hit back and called him a "merchant of hate". Gandhi's tweet came in response to reports that policemen in Alwar took nearly three-and-a-half-hours to take the victim, Rakbar Khan, to the hospital that was located four kilometres away. The police, reportedly, first took the seized cows to a shelter, took Khan to the police station to change his clothes, stopped for tea before taking him to the hospital. The FIR in the case revealed that the police received a call at about 12.41 am but they arrived at the spot at 1.15 or 1.20 am. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. https://t.co/sNdzX6eVSU Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 23, 2018 The Congress chief's tweet came shortly after the Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a contempt plea against the Vasundhara Raje-led Rajasthan government on 28 August in connection with the case. BJP leaders hit back In response to Gandhi's tweet, Union minister Piyush Goyal asked the former to stop "jumping with joy" every time a crime happened. Calling him a "merchant of hate", Goyal tweeted: "The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears." Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE. https://t.co/4thsyNL3nx Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 23, 2018 Union textiles minister Smriti Irani also joined in to castigate Gandhi over his comments and said that he took every opportunity to break social bonds for electoral gains. She cited instances of riot-like situations during previous Congress government and said: "Rahul Gandhis family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS." Rahul Gandhis family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. https://t.co/kpX3n1Kcc0 Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) July 23, 2018 The ongoing political slugfest began after Rakbar Khan, 28, was allegedly lynched by a group of people who accused him of smuggling cows. Khan and his friend Aslam were taking two cows to their village in Haryana through a forested area near Lalawandi in Alwar district on Friday night when five men attacked them. They suspected that Khan was smuggling cows but the allegation is yet to be verified, SHO, Ramgarh Police Station, Subhash Sharma told PTI. With inputs from PTI Amid reports of power tussle between CBI director and the second senior most officer, the CVC has given the go ahead for extending the tenure of some key officers including those who have worked closely in some high profile cases as part of special director Rakesh Asthana's team. New Delhi: Amid reports of power tussle between CBI director and the second senior most officer, the Central Vigilance Commission has given the go ahead for extending the tenure of some key officers in the premier investigating agency including those who have worked closely in some high profile cases as part of special director Rakesh Asthana's team. Among those whose tenure have been extended by a panel headed by Central Vigilance Commissioner KV Chowdary included a deputy inspector general (DIG) rank officer, who was recently repatriated to his cadre state Tripura, officials said on Sunday. However, the officer was called back to the agency soon after. Apart from this, the panel has cleared extension in deputation tenure of two other senior IPS officers who worked closely with Asthana in probing important cases including the one involving fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya, they said. The development comes days after the CBI wrote to the CVC saying that Asthana, a Gujarat cadre IPS officer, (and second senior-most officer) is not allowed to attend the panel's meeting in absence of the agency's director Alok Verma, they said. The CBI director is an invitee to the panel headed by the CVC. Those granted extension include two Joint Directors AYV Krishna and Sai Manohar Aramane. Aramane is part of a Special Investigation Team handling politically-sensitive bank fraud case involving Vijay Mallya, headed by Asthana, the officials said. The competent authority has approved extension in tenure of Aramane, a 1995 batch IPS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, from 17 July, 2018 till April 2019, a recent order issued by the personnel ministry said. Aramane's batchmate Krishna has also been given extension from 18 July, 2018 till 17 January, 2020, it said. The competent authority has approved extension in tenure of Manish Kishore Sinha from 3 April, 2018 to 30 November, 2018, the order said. Sinha, a 1996 batch IPS officer of Jammu and Kashmir cadre, is undergoing training at National Defence College, the officials said. He is joint director in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The tenure of another senior IPS officer Anish Prasad, who was in May repatriated to his cadre state Tripura and called back soon after, has also been extended from 3 June, 2018 to 5 May, 2020, according to another order by the personnel ministry. He is posted as deputy director (administration) in the CBI headquarters in New Delhi. The tenure of IPS officer Prem Kumar Gautam, associated with coal blocks scam probe, has also been extended. The approval of competent authority is conveyed for extension in the central deputation tenure of Gautam for a period from 27 January, 2018 till the date CBI gets permission/further direction from the Supreme Court, it said. The apex court, which is monitoring probe in the multi-crore coal block scam involving some politicians, businessmen and former bureaucrats, has said that no officer associated with the investigation should be removed from the team without its permission, according to the officials. Anand Sharma said parallel FIRs and multiple cases for the same alleged offence are being registered by the CBI, New Delhi: Opposition Congress leader Anand Sharma on Monday accused the government of misusing central agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to settle political scores, leading to an atmosphere of "distrust, fear and terror" in the country. Raising the issue through a zero hour mention, he said parallel FIRs and multiple cases for the same alleged offence are being registered by the CBI, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and the ED. "They (agencies) are not instruments to be abused by the government for targeted political vendetta," he said. Sharma said a distinction needs to be drawn between bonafide decision and actions of corruption. He went on to allege that investigating agencies were trying to "extract" confessions to implicate certain people. He, however, did not cite any specific case. This led to protests from treasury benches with Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel stating that Sharma was trying to demoralise investigating agencies. Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said legal avenues were available and why was Sharma demoralising agencies. Sharma said if parallel FIRs for the same alleged offence was an oversight, why was the government silent. Dostum was unharmed in Sunday's blast, his spokesman said Bashir Adhmad Tayanj said. Hashmat Stanekzai, spokesman for the Kabul police chief, said that 11 people, including both civilians and military forces, have been killed in the suicide attack near Kabul's airport shortly after the country's controversial first vice president landed on his return from overseas. Afghan Vice-President Abdul Rashid Dostum has narrowly escaped a suicide bomb attack at Kabul airport as he returned home from more than a year in exile in Turkey over allegations of torturing and abusing a political rival. Afghan first vice president, a former Uzbek warlord, General Abdul Rashid Dostum, (centre), and members of his entourage arrive at Kabul International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. "The blast was probably caused by a suicide bomber", Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish told AFP. Dostum landed in Kabul at 4.30 pm local time (5.30 pm Indian time), after which he was taken into an armoured vehicle, TOLONews reported. Mr Dostum made only brief mention of the explosion when he met cheering supporters who had been waiting for hours to give him a red carpet reception at a rally at his office compound. Dostum left to Turkey in May previous year amid allegations of sexual abuse and torture. The return of Dostum followed days of sometimes violent protests by supporters in northern Afghanistan over the arrest of a militia commander loyal to him. He denied Eshchi's accusations but, amid global demands that he be held accountable, he left the country in May a year ago, ostensibly to seek medical treatment in Turkey. During his time overseas, Dostum formed a loose coalition with Atta Mohammad Noor, the former governor of Balkh province with wide support among ethnic Tajiks as well as Mohammad Mohaqiq, a leader of the Hazara minority. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the attack in a statement released by the presidential palace. Chakhansuri deflected questions about whether Dostum would face charges over the incident, saying "the judiciary is an independent body, the government does not interfere in their decisions". Dostum, accused of war crimes committed after the fall of the Taliban government in 2001, has also been criticized by the United States for human rights abuses. Although the proposed law against lynching is supported by 11 political parties, the BJP is reportedly not in favour of passing it in Parliament. Editor's note: According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, between 2014 and 3 March, 2018, 45 people were killed in mob lynchings across nine states in India. In the latest example, a group of villagers beat to death 28-year-old Rakbar Khan in Rajasthan's Alwar district, an incident that came to light just five days after the Supreme Court urged the Centre to frame a law to curb lynchings. In a three-part series, Firspost analyses the psyche of the mob and the reasons that fuel this mobocracy across the country. Read the entire series here. *** Kolkata: As mob violence to the order of lynching a stranger in an exhibition of collective rage assumes the frequency of rapes in India, headlines recently screamed the Supreme Courts diktat to the government on the matter: take "preventive, remedial and punitive measures" to curb the "horrendous acts of mobocracy". This was while the lynching of techie Mohammad Azam in Karnataka last weekend over WhatsApp rumours of child-lifting was still making the news. His death was one more addition to the list of 25 hate crime casualties recorded so far only this year. Another man, Rakbar Khan, was killed on the night of 20 July by a mob suspecting him of smuggling a cow, taking the toll to 27. The Karnataka lynching came barely days after the government asked Facebook-owned WhatsApp to take urgent measures to check the spread of "irresponsible and explosive" messages. Anti-lynching law? The spate of lynchings and the subsequent outrage has led to a key realisation - the country has no effective mechanism to tackle such a hate crime. While the world watches, Indias criminal justice system hangs under a cloud. So far, India has managed conviction in only one case, when a Jharkhand court sentenced 11 men to life in jail for the murder of a Muslim meat trader last year. There is also the realisation that not even fear of legal action has stopped hate-mongers from collecting a mob and killing people. The casualties just keep on rising, and no state is immune to this. Take the case of West Bengal, which has witnessed many such deaths in the past one year, plenty of arrests but no convictions. In late June 2017, three youth from the minority community were lynched in Durgapur village of North Dinajpur district. The crime, purportedly committed by hate-mongers who took the trio to be cattle-smugglers, shocked the people. Atul Chandra Basu, whose sons Asit, 28, and Ashim, 27, were among the three arrested for the killings, alleged that cattle smuggling was rampant in the district and "the police had asked them to take care of such petty matters themselves". The families of the deceased wrote to the sub-divisional officer, requesting for a CBI inquiry, and also appealed to activists Harsh Mander and John Dayal for help. The same month, a violent mob fell upon a woman, accusing her of trafficking, and beat her to death in the states Murshidabad district. The victim, identified as 42-year-old Otera Bibi, had been undergoing psychiatric treatment. She succumbed to her injuries and a few arrests were reported in the case. This June, two murders by lynching were reported. An unidentified man was brutally thrashed to death after being tied to an electricity pole on suspicions of child-lifting in Malda district. The police registered an FIR against almost 150 "unknown" people and finally arrested 35. Around the same time, Sanjay Chandra, 36, was lynched by villagers of Mathuri in East Midnapore after they mistook him for a child-kidnapper. A temporary worker of West Bengal State Electricity Board, Sanjays mistake was to have covered his face in the heat of noon when he visited Mathuri. He pleaded innocence while being thrashed. Four arrests were reported. Legal experts bat for strict legislation How do you bring a faceless mob to justice, especially when the government is showing a lack of will in enacting a law, is the question baffling legal experts. "India does not have a specific law to deal with such crime. All lynching cases come under Indian Penal Code Sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 323 (causing voluntary hurt), 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting armed with deadly weapons) and 149 (unlawful assembly)," Ranajit Roy, a criminal lawyer in Kolkata, pointed out. Urging for specific legal provisions to tackle lynchings, Roy explained that hate crimes incited by a mob need prevention through exemplary punishment. "The civil society has launched a campaign against lynchings but such attempts will fructify only with the enactment of law. No less than life imprisonment will work," Roy said. Another lawyer, Rakesh Dev, who has dealt with such cases, said that passing the blame on to WhatsApp or other platforms showed the governments "lack of will" to enact a law. "There is a need to overhaul the criminal justice system. Such hate crime is targeted towards innocent people, women and cattle-traders. Unless an effective law is brought, nothing will change," Dev said. He squarely blamed both state and central governments for the situation. "You have to improve police intelligence and nip any turmoil in the bud. We need a study on mob psyche and trends of violence," he added. Can MaSuKa help? Activists are pushing for a Protection from Lynching Act, also known as Manav Suraksha Kanoon or MaSuKA, which would make lynching a non-bailable offence punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5 lakh. Drafted by the collective National Campaign Against Mob Lynching, it would seek to deliver justice to victims of lynchings, or any act or series of acts of violence, whether spontaneous or planned, committed to inflict extrajudicial punishment, or acts of protest caused by the desire of a mob to enforce upon a person or group of persons any perceived legal, societal and cultural norms and prejudices. The Act would force security personnel to identify threats and act fast. Failure to do so would be deemed as dereliction of duty. Though the proposed law is supported by 11 political parties, the BJP is reportedly not in favour of passing it in Parliament. Renowned Kolkata lawyer Geeta Nath Ganguly believes that MaSuKa can build pressure on the government. The draft Bill describes unambiguously what should be the punishment for persons involved in mob lynching. Once the law is enacted, lynching will be made a cognisable and non-bailable offence," Ganguly said, adding that "there are provisions in the Indian Penal Code, 1860, which deal with violence and murder, but the MaSuKa draft law prescribes a stricter punishment. The duties of the police and district magistrate in preventing lynchings are defined". People who circulate offensive material through social media to incite people will also be punished under the law so will be police officers accused of complicity. There is a provision under which fines will be collected from the convicted and distributed to victims families. The present laws in India neither define mob lynching nor mention the role of police. MaSuKa is tailor-made to ensure speedy justice, rehabilitation and compensation for victims families and witness protection, Ganguly said. India must be careful not to follow the example of the US, which witnessed lynchings of minority blacks until the 1960s, but never enacted a federal law against the crime, for Senators argued that it was a state law and order issue and a federal law would undermine state rights. The author is a Kolkata-based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters. Rajnath Singh said the central government wants to make it clear that the NRC, to be published on 30 July, is only a draft and after draft publication. New Delhi: Ahead of the publication of National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, home minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said there was no need to panic and all bonafide Indians will be given adequate opportunities to prove their citizenship. In a series of tweets, the home minister said the NRC, a list of Assam's citizens, is being updated in accordance with the 'Assam Accord' signed on 15 August, 1985 and is being carried out as per the directions of the Supreme Court, which is constantly monitoring the process. "There is no reason for panic or fear. No person will be allowed to be harassed. We will ensure that every individual gets justice and is treated in a humane manner," he said. Singh assured that the NRC exercise is being carried out in a totally impartial, transparent and meticulous manner and will continue to be so. "All individuals will have sufficient opportunity for all remedies available under the law. At every stage of the process, adequate opportunity is given to all persons to be heard," he said. The home minister said the entire process is being conducted according to law and due procedure is being followed. Singh said the central government wants to make it clear that the NRC, to be published on 30 July, is only a draft and after draft publication, adequate opportunity for claims and objections will be available. "All claims and objections will be duly examined. Adequate opportunity of being heard will be given before disposal of claims and objections. Only thereafter, final NRC will be published," he said. The home minister said the citizenship rules provide that any person who is not satisfied with the outcome of claims and objections can appeal in the Foreigner's Tribunal. Therefore, there is no question of anyone being put in a detention centre after the publication of NRC, he said. Singh said the Assam government has been asked to ensure that law and order is maintained and no one is allowed to take law into their hands, and all possible arrangements are made to ensure safety and security for all. "The central government will provide all necessary help to the state government of Assam in this regard," he said. The first draft of the NRC, a list of the state's citizens, was published on the intervening night of 31 December and 1 January last where names of 1.9 crore people out of the 3.29 crore applicants were incorporated. The massive exercise aimed at identifying illegal immigrants in the state that borders Bangladesh is being carried out following a decision in 2005 after a series of meetings between the central and state governments and the influential All Assam Students' Union (AASU). Assam, which faced influx of people from Bangladesh since the early 20th century, is the only state having an NRC, first prepared in 1951. The current exercise, started in 2005 under the then Congress regime, got a major push after the BJP came to power in the state with illegal immigration from Bangladesh as a poll plank. When the NRC was first prepared in Assam way back in 1951, the state then had 80 lakh citizens. The process of identification of illegal immigrants in Assam has been debated and become a contentious issue in the state's politics. A six-year agitation demanding identification and deportation of illegal immigrants was launched by the AASU in 1979. It culminated with the signing of the Assam Accord on August 15, 1985, in the presence of the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. The accused entered the festival venue in Tarashi village in Bangladesh with sticks and assaulted six devotees. They also vandalised the venue and looted gold ornaments from one of the devotees, the report said. Dhaka: A religious procession organised by the minority Hindu community in Bangladesh was attacked by a group of people, leaving six devotees injured, police said. The assailants struck when the Ulto Rath Yatra, or the reverse journey of Lord Jagannath's chariot, was being carried out on Sunday in Gopalganj district's Kotalipara Upazila, bdnews24.com reported. The report said that a group of locals attacked the Ratha Yatra, a major festival of the Hindu community. The devotees, dressed as Lord Krishna and Radha, pulled the chariot in the procession organised by ISKCON from the Dhakeshwari National Temple to Swamibagh, the report said. The accused entered the festival venue in Tarashi village with sticks and assaulted six devotees. They also vandalised the venue and looted gold ornaments from one of the devotees, the report said. The festival committee filed a case accusing 10 to 15 people for the attack. Two accused were arrested, Kotalipara police station's Officer-in-Charge Md Kamrul Faruk said, adding that efforts were underway to arrest others. Hindu businessmen in the area protested the attack and halted their activities. They resumed their business after officials assured them of taking strict measures against those responsible. Festival committee General Secretary Joydeb Saha said since there was a mosque close to the venue they kept their loudspeaker off during Esha prayers. "We have been asked to switch off the loudspeaker for 40 minutes. As we switched it on after the time was over a group of people attacked us all of a sudden," he said. The final National Register of Citizens (NRC) of Assam will be published on 30 July. New Delhi: Those not part of the draft National Register of Citizens (NRC), a list of residents of Assam, will not automatically be declared foreigners, but will get a one-month window to file claims and objections, besides subsequent judicial recourse, a senior Home Ministry official said on Monday. The NRC, to be published on 30 July, is only a draft and after its publication, adequate opportunities to file claims and objections will be available to those whose names are excluded from it, he added. "All claims and objections will be duly examined. NRC authorities will give a one-month window, when all objections and complaints will be examined after giving a proper hearing to the complainants. Only thereafter, the final NRC will be published," the official explained. Exclusion from the final NRC does not mean automatic declaration of anyone as foreigner, and once the final document is published, if someone is dissatisfied, he or she can always go to a foreigners' tribunal in Assam to get justice, he added. There are around 300 foreigners' tribunals in Assam. The official said no one should have any apprehension about the exercise and added that adequate central paramilitary forces were dispatched to Assam to assist the state administration to deal with any law-and-order situation. On Sunday, Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh had said there was no need to panic and all bona fide Indians will be given adequate opportunities to prove their citizenship. He had also said the NRC was being updated in accordance with the "Assam Accord" signed on 15 August, 1985, and the process was being carried out as per the directions of the Supreme Court, which was monitoring it continuously. The home minister had asserted that the NRC exercise was being carried out in a totally impartial, transparent and meticulous manner and will continue so. Part draft of the NRC was published on the intervening night of 31 December and 1 January, wherein the names of 1.9 crore of the 3.29 crore applicants were incorporated. On 30 July, the fate of all 3.29 crore applicants will be decided. The massive exercise, aimed at identifying the illegal immigrants in the north-eastern state bordering Bangladesh, is being carried out following a decision in 2005 after a series of meetings involving the central and state governments and the influential All Assam Students' Union (AASU). The process of identification of illegal immigrants in Assam has been debated and has become a contentious issue in the state's politics. When the NRC was first prepared in Assam in 1951, the state had 80 lakh citizens. A six-year agitation demanding identification and deportation of illegal immigrants was launched by the AASU in 1979. It had culminated with the signing of the Assam Accord on 15 August, 1985, in the presence of the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. Narendra Modi is set to leave for a five-day three-nation tour of Africa on Monday afternoon and will first arrive in Rwanda marking the first ever visit by an Indian prime minister. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to leave for a five-day three-nation tour of Africa on Monday afternoon and will first arrive in Rwanda marking the first ever visit by an Indian prime minister. India elevated its ties with Rwanda to that of a Strategic Partnership in January 2017. The country is seen as an important gateway to eastern Africa and is also a recipient of Indian lines of credit of nearly $400 million and of Indian training and scholarship programmes. During Modi's visit, two more lines of credit are expected to be signed one worth $100 million for industrial parks and a similar amount for agriculture and irrigation. Briefing the media, TS Tirumurti, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the MEA, said India will open its first mission in Rwanda very soon. "We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture and culture," Tirumurti said. In 1999, Rwanda established a High Commission in New Delhi and the first Rwandan High Commissioner to India was appointed in 2001. The president of Rwanda's Senate Bernard Makuza has said that Modi's visit will be a "big boost" for bilateral ties and underlined that his country was seeking collaboration with India in sectors such as agriculture and energy. In Rwanda, Modi will visit Rweru model village to gift 200 cows as part of a programme overseen by President Paul Kagame wherein the poorest families get dairy cows from the government and the first female calf born of the cow is gifted to a neighbour to promote brotherhood. Tirumurti called this an "important element" of the prime minister's programme. "The gifting of cows is not just an economic contribution, but also an expression of Indias gratitude to Rwanda for treating Indian community well," The Indian Express quoted an official as saying. India's bilateral relations with Rwanda got a fillip with Kigali becoming a member of these African Regional Economic Communities (RECs). Rwanda also opted to become a member of the Commonwealth in 2009 even though it has not been a British protectorate or a British colony. Bilateral cooperation and trade The two countries have signed an MoU with Rwanda for promoting inter-parliamentary dialogue. The two sides also agreed to collaborate in regional and international multilateral parliamentary bodies in furtherance of the relations between the two countries. India and Rwanda also signed three MoUs on innovation, aviation and visa requirements last year during then vice-president Hamid Ansaris visit to the east African country. Both the countries also agreed to set up an entrepreneurship development centre in Kigali and to boost aviation, Rwanda's state airlines Rawanda Air will start services to India. The development centre will be committed to nurture the spirit of entrepreneurship in the country through education, training and business advisory services. Rwanda's prime minister Anastase Murekezi had said that the three MoUs will boost economic and business ties between the two nations. "We have 54 years of fruitful bilateral relationship. Rwanda and India share important ties and we are committed to make the relationship grow stronger," he had said. In February 2017, India and Rwanda also signed an agreement for the exemption of visa for diplomatic and official passport holders. Under the pan Africa e-network project, tele-medicine and tele-education centres were established in Rwanda in 2009 with an aim to enable Rwandan doctors consult their Indian counterparts. The initiative was aimed at giving Rwanda access to medical care and education from India at a fraction of cost. In terms of trade, Indian has consistently been one of the top import sources for Rwanda and the major items of Indias exports to Rwanda include pharmaceuticals, vehicles, textiles, electrical machinery, optical and other precision instruments and plastics among others. Kagame had emphasised Rwandas readiness to discuss and engage in business with investors from India and all across the world at the opening ceremony of the eighth Vibrant Gujarat Summit. In the joint press conference during the visit of Kagame to India, the two sides agreed to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in culture, tourism, people-to-people links. India also welcomed Rwanda as the 25th co-signatory country to Modi's initiative of International Solar Alliance and the two leaders also recalled the solar electrification of 35 schools in rural Rwanda under a grant from Government of India as an example of south-south cooperation. Xi Jinping also in Rwanda Chinese president Xi Jinping is also visiting the east African country before leaving for South Africa to attend the BRICS summit. He is expected to visit a memorial for Rwanda's 1994 genocide and sign bilateral agreements on Monday. Makuza had termed the visits of both Xi and Modi as "very important" and said that there was no conflict in having relations based on mutual interest with both nations. When asked about the 'competition' between India and China, Tirumurti was quoted as saying by India Today, "We are not competing with China in Africa. Our relationship with Africa goes back to the time of Gandhi," he said. Both Modi and Xi will attend the 10th BRICS leaders' Summit which has the theme "BRICS in Africa: Collaboration with Developing Countries for Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity in the Fourth Industrial Revolution" this year. Modi, along with other BRICS leaders, will participate in the restricted session, plenary session, leaders' retreat, outreach with leaders from Africa and outreach with leaders from the global South. With inputs from agencies Jharkhand, known for its lush green forests spread across a dozen river basins, is under severe water stress, a recent Niti Aayog report said. Editor's note: A recent NITI Aayog report on India's water resources presented an alarming state of affairs. The country, according to the think tank, is in the grip of the worst water crisis in its history, with 600 million Indians faced with "high to extreme water stress", resulting in 2 lakh deaths a year. Firstpost will run a series of ground reports from across the country to determine the extent to which depleted reserves have affected daily life. Read all stories in the series here. *** Ranchi: Jharkhand, known for its lush green forests spread across a dozen river basins, is under severe water stress. Niti Aayog's recently released report on water management has underscored the vital importance of lakes and small water bodies in maintaining the fragile balance between Jharkhands groundwater and rain-fed hydrological system. Ranchi was once a city of lakes, waterfalls and rivers, and used to be summer capital of undivided Bihar. Today, its a poster boy of what unchecked urban expansion, lack of vision and bureaucratic apathy can do to the ecology of a region. Water rationing in severely stressed localities like Kanke, Bariatu and Ratu Road has become the norm. Though the government has announced plans to renovate 100,000 ponds and dig another 2,000 new ones across the state, they remain on paper. Padma Shree Simon Oraon, 85, aka the Waterman of Jharkhand', has been working to restore these traditional water bodies for the past 60 years. He feels the present water crisis has its roots in the short-sighted policies of successive governments that ruled erstwhile united Bihar and the Centre. It pains me to see the mindless work being undertaken by successive governments in the name of renovation of lakes in Jharkhand, says Simon. There is no point in beautifying lakes by concreting them and building boundaries when the actual need is to desilt them to ensure that they hold at least five feet of water even in the harshest of summer heat. Vanishing water bodies According to a report released by Ranchi Municipal Corporation late last year, the city boasted around 100 lakes and small waterbodies forty years ago but only 42 remain. As a report by the state agriculture department notes, in eastern Singhbhum district (Jamshedpur), there used to be 850 government-owned water bodies but 310 of them have vanished. Of 1,100 odd lakes and water bodies in western Singhbhum, only 360 are traceable. In fact, the states water policy, pending since 2011, got the cabinets nod only in 2016 when large parts of Ranchi were under water rationing. The severity of situation can be gauged from numbers in Dumka, where 5,219 lakes of the 12,847 private and 659 government-owned water bodies have disappeared within the past four-five years, according to a survey done by state fisheries department. Inferior infra, rising population Environmentalists blame haphazard construction activity, a population boom and a lack of planning for the crisis. Ranchi's population has grown annually at an average rate of 4.38 percent since the 1980s, which exceeds the national average of two percentage points. After Ranchi was declared capital of the newly carved-out state of Jharkhand in 2000, its population rose from 8.47 lakh to 10.56 lakh in the 2011 census. The main water bodies of Ranchi were constructed between 1960s-1970s and were meant for sustaining population within a range of three to six lakhs, says Nitish Priyadarshi, a Ranchi based geologist and environmentalist. The population boom, coupled with new construction activity and lack of government oversight, led to rapid encroachment of lakes. These lakes, built over centuries, worked as a natural rainwater harvesting system and maintained an optimum level of groundwater, he adds. Ranchi is supplied by three major dams, Dhurwa, Kanke and Getalsud, all of which were built between 1962-1971 and were designed to support a population of around four to five lakh. While the catchment area of the dams is shrinking (Dhurwa by 23 percent, Getalsud by 12 percent and Kanke by 3.39 percent) according to the 2016 revised master plan, new apartments blocks have kept mushrooming across the city. The groundwater table has dropped by almost nine metres between 2009 and 2014, according to the Ground Water Directorate. The water holding capacity of rocks under the Chotanagpur region was surveyed by JB Auden, a British geologist, way back in 1946, who had found that use of groundwater for sustaining city populations would not prove to be a viable option due to the presence of Archaean rocks beneath the plateau, says Priyadarshi. Archaean rocks are poor in water retention and thats why the British promoted digging of lakes instead. In 2016, Jharkhand was hit by severe drought and many borewells across the state dried up. In some areas, water couldn't be reached, even at 700 feet. This forced the government to direct all district commissioners to ensure water supply in areas with a rainfall deficit of 25 percent or more or where groundwater levels had dipped by four metres or more. Ranchi mayor Asha Lakra, while expressing her inability to free lakes lost to the land-mafia, expresses hope that promoting rainwater conservation in urban households will help ease the pressure on groundwater in the future. However, she referred this correspondent to department engineers when asked about the scientific rationale for concreting lake-beds in the name of beautifying them. We cant really do anything about lakes lost over time but Ranchi Municipal Corporation has initiated the process to revive rest of the lakes in the city, says Lakra. Fifteen lakes have already been beautified and work on the rest is on. We have already promulgated a code to promote rainwater harvesting in 2015 and restrict deep boring to extract water in urban areas. We are trying to promote the use of surface water for drinking water-supply scheme and minimising groundwater use for water supply, confirms Aradhana Patnaik, secretary, drinking water and sanitation department. The government is also taking measures to promote groundwater recharge. Jolted out of its slumber, the state water resources department has started work to incorporate suggestions made by Niti Aayog in the state water policy 2016. "Jharkhand government has already directed water resources department to prepare a time-bound action-plan on the basis of nine points suggested by the Niti Aayog to conserve water resources in the state. We have already started the process of desilting and renovation of old lakes larger than 27 acres, and also constructing check dams to stop rainwater, says Chandra Prakash Chaudhary, minister for drinking water and sanitation. Its a wake-up call that Jharkhand would be reckless to ignore. The author is a Lucknow-based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters. The mastermind behind the alleged gang-rape of five women activists and the abduction of four policemen from a BJP MP's residence in Jharkhand was arrested from East Singhbhum district on Sunday, along with another accused, a senior police officer said. Khunti: The mastermind behind the alleged gangrape of five women activists and the abduction of four policemen from a BJP MP's residence in Jharkhand was arrested from East Singhbhum district on Sunday, along with another accused, a senior police officer said. The second person was arrested from Khunti district for his alleged involvement in both the incidents, zonal IG (Ranchi) Naveen Kumar Singh told a press conference. With the arrest of the two, a total of seven persons have been nabbed by the police in connection with the gangrape case. "The mastermind behind the Kochang gangrape case and the 26 June kidnapping of four constables, who were deployed at the residence of BJP MP Karia Munda, has been arrested. He has been identified as John Johnsas Tidu," Singh said. Another person, identified as Balram Samad, was also arrested, he added. Both the accused were residents of Kurunga village under the Arki police station in Khunti district, the zonal IG said. Tidu was wanted in 12 cases, while Samad was wanted in eight criminal cases in Khunti district, he added. The police had formed multiple teams following the rape and kidnap cases and during the raids carried out by the teams, Tidu was arrested from a place under the Potka police station in East Singhbhum district and Samad was arrested from Jeevan Tola under the Murhu police station in Khunti district. The five women had gone to Kochang village in Khunti district to raise awareness on migration and human trafficking on 19 June, when they were allegedly abducted from RC Mission School and later, gang-raped at gunpoint. Life seems to have come to a standstill in Rasana since the Kathua incident. In constant fear, elders in the village have barred kids from playing outside. Kathua: About a kilometre into the road which leads to Kathua's Rasana village, a bright police outpost welcomes visitors to this sleepy, little hamlet. A policeman diligently notes down names and contact numbers of those entering the village a recent development following the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in January here. Inside the village, an eerie silence envelops the streets a grim reminder of the unspeakable crime that was allegedly committed in its devisthan (temple). The playgrounds were empty too, as were many of its houses. It has been seven months since the little girl was allegedly held captive, sedated and repeatedly violated by a group of men to teach the Bakarwals, the community of nomads to which she belonged, a lesson. But life seems to have come to a standstill for Rasana's residents. Living in constant fear, the elders in the village have barred kids from playing outside their homes. "Any other girl could have been brutalised and killed," they said. The victim's family has left Rasana, along with some other Bakarwal families of the village, a little too early this year. The nomadic community usually lives in the area starting November till around May. According to the Jammu and Kashmir Police's chargesheet, the girl reported went missing on 10 January. One of the accused had allegedly abducted her while she was out enquiring about her horses. She was subsequently gangraped by three other men for four days before they allegedly killed her. The body was found in the woods on 17 January. The crime had evoked global outrage, even though a little belatedly, and the village has been in the news ever since. Cops have, till now, arrested eight people in the case. Brij Lal, a resident of Rasana, said, "Fear gripped villagers soon after they saw the girl's body in the bushes. We did not look at her as a Muslim or Hindu. She was just another child and it could have happened to any of our daughters. Families here are so scared that they are not willing to let their girls out of sight even for a minute." No play hours Even as a trial in the case is going on in a Pathankot court, the villagers of Rasana, situated under the Hiranagar tehsil of Kathua district, believe that the "real" culprits are still not in the police's net. Their nerves have been on edge ever since the incident unfolded. Elders today stand guard anywhere the children go. The kids are being stopped from venturing outside, even to play. "The grounds remain deserted most times of the day now," said a resident, who did not wish to be named. This alarming situation has also brought along a slew of precautions and warnings for the little ones. "I live in a joint family with three minor girls. The rape-murder has forced us to place restrictions on our children for their safety. We are not sure if the accused men, who were picked up by the crime branch, have committed the crime. There are many loopholes in the police's theory. We believe that those who actually committed the ghastly act could be running free and target more children," said Lal. Relentless vigilance Earlier, children of the village would often sleep on open terraces during summer. But many families have stopped letting their kids take naps under the stars. Those having toilets outside their houses now accompany their minor daughters. With no primary school in Rasana (the only government school was shut down long ago), most kids attend private facilities in nearby Dayalachak area, situated around three to four kilometres from the village, on the Jammu-Pathankot national highway. While they would be sent in groups or even alone till some time ago, a male member often escorts children now. The situation in some of its neighbouring villages is no different. Birbal, a resident of the neighbouring Gurah village, who visits Rasana regularly to graze his cattle, said, "I have two granddaughters, aged eight and 12 years. It could have happened to them as well. We no longer feel safe here." Captain (retd) Balwant Singh, a resident of nearby Kannah village, said, "The horrific incident has given a bad name to the whole of Jammu. Media reportage had made it seem as if the entire Hindu-dominated belt of the region was against the Bakarwals. Such false interpretations had also created panic among parents. Things have changed immensely since the incident." Village elders (Panchayats do not exist in Jammu and Kashmir since 2016) also held meetings in the recent past at villages in and around Rasana to discuss various measures for the safety of girls. "A recurring conclusion in these meetings was that children are not to be left alone, any time of the day," Singh added. Residents of Rasana and other adjoining villages have been staging a sit-in protest, demanding a CBI inquiry into the case. Santosh Kumari, sister of main accused Sanji Ram, said, "This demonstration is to bring justice for the Muslim girl. We do not want another such crime to take place in the area." According to the 2011 census, Rasana has a population of 597 people, of which 316 are males and 281 females. Most of the children are aged between zero to six years and make up for 13.9 percent of its total population. The author is a Jammu-based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters. Looking at the trade impact alone, Ireland could lose nearly 4 percent of its economy in a "no deal" Brexit, but some big countries like France, Italy and Spain would be far less hurt. "I think you're looking at no-deal or no Brexit and the only way your get no Brexit is if there's another vote and I wouldn't put any money on another vote happening either". Britain will only pay its European Union divorce bill if the bloc agrees the framework for a future trade deal, the new Brexit Secretary warned in an interview published today. So now we're clinging to the intangible benefits which are 'more trade, ' who with? "None. How many countries on April 1st next year will have no trade deals in place - one". John Major, the former Conservative prime minister and elder statesman of the party, summed up the predicament. The timing of the losses would depend on the length of post-Brexit transition arrangements, but would probably take five to 10 years at least to be fully felt, the International Monetary Fund said. And he added: "At this stage in the negotiation we don't have many weeks left, but actually it's not a matter of needing more time, it's a matter of choosing the right decisions and being absolutely clear". Her spokesman said the cabinet had discussed the publication of a "white paper" policy document on Britain's future ties with the European Union and stepping up preparations for any no-deal outcome to the negotiations with Brussels. "A referendum isn't an easy option, but it's not one at this stage that I would rule out". After quitting, former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson singled out her treatment of the border as the biggest mistake of her negotiations with the European Union for a smooth exit from the bloc next year. Mr Davis, who quit as Brexit secretary in protest at the Chequers agreement, said the PM needed to "start again" on withdrawal plans. "Is it legally feasible?" he told a press conference. "We now know they are not going to be met". Preparations for no deal need to accelerate from the current position of "consult and cajole" to "command and control", he told the paper. May in December agreed in principle to a binding "backstop" to ensure a soft border irrespective of future EU-UK ties, but later baulked at an EU proposal to achieve this by treating Northern Ireland as a separate customs area to the rest of the United Kingdom. Johnson said May had deviated from a Brexit stance she set out in a speech in January 2017 for a "strong independent, self-governing Britain" with a focus on having independent trade and regulation. The spokeswoman said the United Kingdom was confident of reaching a deal that included "aviation access" but added: "It's wrong to claim that Ireland could simply stop the United Kingdom from flying over its land as a result of Brexit". Kerala stands as the best-governed state in the country and Karnataka is in the fourth position, said the Public Affairs Index 2018 released by the think tank Public Affairs Centre (PAC). Bengaluru: Kerala stands as the best-governed state in the country and Karnataka is in the fourth position, said the Public Affairs Index 2018 released by the think tank Public Affairs Centre (PAC). "Kerala has topped the Public Affairs Index (PAI) for 2018 as the best-governed state for the third consecutive year since 2016 among large states," said Bengaluru-based PAC at an event in the city on Saturday evening to release its third annual PAI. Released annually since 2016, the index examines governance performance in the states through a data-based framework, ranking them on social and economic development they are able to provide. Founded in 1994 by renowned Indian economist and scholar late Samuel Paul, the think tank works to mobilise a demand for better governance in the country. Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka and Gujarat followed Kerala among the top five states delivering good governance, according to the report. Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bihar ranked the lowest on the PAI, indicating higher social and economic inequalities in the states. Among smaller states (with a population less than two crores), Himachal Pradesh topped the list, followed by Goa, Mizoram, Sikkim and Tripura which figured among the top five states with good governance. Nagaland, Manipur and Meghalaya were ranked at the bottom of the index among small states. As a young country with a growing population, India needs to assess and address its developmental challenges, said the Chairman of PAC, K Kasturirangan, on the occasion. "The PAI 2018 is one example of a data-based framework that provides some basis, even if rudimentary, to assess the performance of states in India," added Kasturirangan, the former Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The think tank has undertaken the study across all the Indian states considering them across 10 themes such as essential infrastructure, support to human development, social protection, women and children as well as law and order. "The index provides a multi-dimensional and comprehensive matrix that attempts to capture the complexities of governing the plural and diverse people of this sub-continent," added Senior Fellow at PAC CK Mathew. The states were divided into two categories large and small on the basis of their population. States with more than two crore population were considered large. A total of 30 focus subjects and 100 indicators were measured to derive the PAI, relying solely upon government data. The PAC said it was not keen to access private data sources that may be interpreted as "biased". This year's PAI also included a separate index on the children of India, giving a measure of how child-friendly each of the states is. Kerala, Himachal Pradesh and Mizoram topped the index on being the states to provide better living conditions for all children. The former chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, Shantha Sinha, who was present on the occasion, delivered the Samuel Paul Memorial Lecture, drawing attention to children's rights in the country. "Children growing up in poverty cannot be blamed for their situation and it is the state's responsibility to ensure that they are provided with opportunities for a better living," Sinha said. Mathew had moved the high court seeking bail after a magistrate court in Thiruvalla had turned down his plea. Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Monday granted bail to a Christian priest arrested for allegedly abusing a married woman in Pathanamthitta district. Johnson V Mathew, a counsellor of the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, was arrested from the Kozhencherry district on 13 July. He was charged under Section 354 (outraging modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Mathew, the third accused in the rape case, involving three more priests of the church, moved the high court seeking bail after a magistrate court in Thiruvalla had turned down his plea. Granting bail, Justice Rajavijayaraghavan directed the priest to surrender his passport, co-operate in the investigation and not to enter the limits of the police station where the victim resides. The Crime Branch probing the case had earlier arrested Job Mathew, the vicar of a local church. He had surrendered after the high court dismissed his anticipatory bail plea and that of two other priests, observing they acted as "predators" and took "undue advantage" of the woman. The two other priests, accused in the case, have moved the Supreme Court seeking anticipatory bail. The incident came to light after an audio clip of the purported conversation of the husband of the victim with a church official about the alleged sexual abuse of his wife by the priests, was circulated on social media. The woman's husband had in June accused five priests of using his wife's confession to "blackmail and sexually abuse" her. The Crime Branch registered a case following which the four priests had moved the high court seeking anticipatory bail. According to the woman's statement to police, the accused vicar had sought sexual favours from her after she made a confession to him about one of her tormentors and also threatened to reveal the contents of the confession against another accused in the case. She also alleged that the vicar also used to speak about sexual activities over phone and that the abuse continued till 2012. Johnson Mathew, according to the woman's complaint, was her senior in college and got in touch with her through WhatsApp. In course of time his messages turned explicit and he also allegedly morphed her face with a nude picture of another woman and threatened to circulate it on the web, the complaint said. The FIR was registered against the priests by the crime branch after recording the woman's statement. Mamata Banerjee warned that she would take strict action against anyone responsible for a lynching in West Bengal. Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday held the BJP responsible for the increasing number of lynching incidents in the country and said that instead of merely condemning them, the saffron party should control its leaders. "Rajnathji (Union home minister) condemned the incident in Parliament. But why, instead of condemning, are they not controlling their leaders from the upper to lower levels? It is only because of their hate campaign that so many lives have been lost (in lynching incidents). Charity begins at home," she told reporters at the state secretariat. The chief minister's comments came in the backdrop the alleged lynching of a 28-year-old man by a cow vigilante group in Alwar on Saturday. Banerjee alleged that lynching incidents were the handiwork of some extremist religious groups. "We appeal to all the common citizens. It's a serious phase we are going through. So many lives have been lost. This should be stopped immediately," she said. The chief minister said strict action would be taken against those found to be involved in such incidents anywhere in West Bengal. "Law and order is a state subject. We do not discuss anything on cows. We treat cows as our mothers," she said. She also blamed fake news and rumours spread through social media platforms for incidents of lynching. Last week, Banerjee had given a call to oust the BJP in the next Lok Sabha elections at a rally in Kolkata, accusing the party of trying to create an atmosphere of "lynching, hatred and violence". Mamata Banerjee has been trying to stitch together a 'federal front' of regional parties to take on the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha. New Delhi: Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee will visit Delhi for three days next week to personally invite Opposition leaders to the "federal front" rally she plans to hold in January in Kolkata, party sources said on Monday. Banerjee is scheduled to arrive in Delhi on 31 July. During her previous visits to Delhi, she met leaders of regional and Opposition parties as part of her efforts to cobble up support for the "federal front" she has proposed to take on the ruling BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The sources, who are close to Banerjee, said she has been invited to Delhi by St Stephen's College to deliver a lecture on 1 August, but she is likely to invite Opposition leaders personally for the rally to be held on 19 January next year. On 31 July, Banerjee will speak on "the atmosphere of fear and intolerance against minorities prevailing in the country" at a gathering organised by Christian organisations, the sources said. Archbishops of Delhi will attend the meet. "Everybody knows that it is she who is fighting against the BJP and communal forces. She is likely to visit Parliament and meet leaders of other political parties to extend the invitation for her January rally," a TMC leader said, adding that she will try to put forward the "real picture" of what is happening in West Bengal to stop the BJP's "negative" against her government. Banerjee has been trying to stitch together a "federal front" of regional parties to take on the ruling BJP in the next general elections. But many in the Opposition have remained sceptical about her efforts. "She is free to do anything. Earlier, too, she and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief had had a talk on a federal front. But the TRS helped the NDA in the no-trust motion. I have always stated that this whole federal front script was forwarded to them by Nagpur," CPI(M) leader Mohammad Salim said. The TRS had abstained during the no-trust vote, which had brought down the Opposition numbers. TRS chief K Chandrashekhar Rao had previously met Banerjee in Kolkata and discussed the formation of a federal front to take on BJP and the Congress in the 2019 general elections. It is not yet confirmed whether Banerjee will invite the Congress leadership for the January rally. At TMC's Martyrs' Day rally in Kolkata on Saturday, she had said that all leaders of the potential federal front will come to Kolkata on 19 January. More than 10 people, including all staff members of the shelter home in Muzaffarpur and some government officials, have so far been arrested in this connection while all the inmates have been shifted to other districts. The Bihar Police is digging for a body, buried at the state government-funded shelter home in Muzaffarpur where 21 women were allegedly trapped and raped. The comes after a statement of one of the victims that a girl was beaten to death and buried in the premises after a disagreement with staff members #BREAKING - Cops dig for 'buried bodies' at the Bihar govt-funded shelter homes where 21 women were allegedly trapped and raped #BiharHomesOfHorror pic.twitter.com/INw25CExdv News18 (@CNNnews18) July 23, 2018 "Nothing has been found so far at the shelter home premises where digging is underway. We are conducting a thorough investigation and police is working independently," said Harpreet Kaur, Senior Superintendent of Police to ANI. The shelter home has been sealed for over a month now following reports of sexual exploitation. The matter came to light during the recording of statements under Section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Sexual exploitation of inmates at the shelter home was exposed a month ago in a report of a Mumbai-based social science institute which had conducted an audit of the state-funded establishment run by an NGO. Once the body is found, additional charges may be framed against those who are already arrested in connection with the happenings at the shelter home, said Kaur. More than 10 people, including all staff members of the shelter home and some government officials, have so far been arrested in this connection while all the inmates have been shifted to other districts. With inputs from PTI A total of over 200 plots of land in the region where the Nanar refinery is to be set up were bought by people from outside Maharashtra just two years ago. The Nanar refinery project in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district is facing opposition from a section of the local populace, which alleges it would destroy the ecosystem of the Konkan belt. A report on a Marathi news website has now raised questions about the land acquisition process. According to a report on MyMahanagar.com, a total of over 200 plots of land in the region were bought by people from outside the state just two years ago. The people who bought these plots of land then consented to the land being acquired, thus earning a windfall. According to the report, the people bought the land as they knew that the project would come up there. They allegedly bought land from villagers at a mere Rs 2 lakh per acre two years ago, and are now seeking Rs 35 lakh per acre from the state government. The Nanar refinery is a $44 billion project, and is a venture of Indian, Saudi Arabian and United Arab Emirates oil firms. It is said to be the world's biggest integrated oil refinery and petrochemicals complex, with a capacity to process 60 million tonnes. The controversy over the project heated up after 14 April when a consortium comprising three major Indian oil marketing companies IOCL, BPCL and HPCLsigned a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Aramco, for setting up the project in the eco-sensitive Ratnagiri. Immediately thereafter, the Konkan Refinery Shetkari-Machhimar Sangharsh Samiti (KRSMSS) and the Refinery Virodhi Sangharsh Samiti (RVSS) drummed up support among all major political parties soliciting their support against the project. The Shiv Sena, which is a part of the government in Maharashtra, has been vociferously opposing the project. In April, the party challenged its coalition ally Bharatiya Janata Party to shift the proposed refinery complex from the state to Gujarat, even as the latter hit back viciously along with the Opposition to unleash a full-fledged political controversy. "They (BJP) are trying to scare us by saying the project will go to Gujarat. You want to take it to Gujarat? Do it... We will not allow you to destroy Konkan in the name of development.. Konkan will not be allowed to become a Gujarat," Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray thundered at a public rally in the Nanar village of Ratnagiri. The project is estimated to be spread over 15,000 acres and about 8,000 farmers may stand to lose their land because of it. At present, there are mango and coconut plantations on the agricultural lands. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had assured the state Legislative Council recently that the project will not be imposed on people. Shiv Sena leader Anil Parab said that the people of the area had given a 'no consent' letter to the state government and wanted to know if the project would be cancelled on the basis of this letter. Replying to him, Fadnavis said, "We have earlier witnessed protests against the Samruddhi Expressway (Mumbai-Nagpur) corridor too. People had protested and gram panchayats had passed resolutions. However, we took everyone into confidence and explained the project to them." "The Mumbai-Nagpur corridor was acquired only after everyone involved agreed to it. The same approach would be followed for the Nanar project as well," Fadnavis said. Congress MLC Sanjay Dutt said that the environment reports of the refinery project were not available on public platforms. Fadnavis replied that a study on the project's environmental impact had been completed and another one was underway. With inputs from agencies With the kind of trust that exists between India and Israel today, Narendra Modi with his ambition, can take it to another level altogether. Israels chequered journey since its independence in 1948 notwithstanding, there are very few countries that qualify to be such natural allies for India. And there are several reasons for it. The Jewish story across centuries, much like the journey of Hindus, is one of unbridled resilience and determination battling umpteen pogroms. The demand for a separate land for Jews gained momentum around one hundred years ago, after which Jews spread over Europe and Northern Africa started migrating back to what is present day Israel. It is a coincidence that the Hindu nationalist movement gained its maximum momentum around the same time, precipitated by the Khilafat movement. India became independent in 1947, bifurcated into two countries. Israel became independent in 1948, with a Palestine bifurcation. Now, given that Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru accepted a partition designed purely on religious grounds, India could very well have been considered a Hindu nation state, while continuing to be a liberal, secular democracy. Why Nehru chose to see India otherwise, is a separate topic altogether. Israel, on the other hand, was always seen as a Jewish nation-state despite an over 20 percent Arab Muslim population. However, the legislation to explicitly declare Israel as an Jewish nation-state was carried out only last week by the Nethanyu government, amidst much backlash. Israel just as well continues to be a secular democracy. Now, Indias relationship with Israel can be distinctly seen in four different phases. The first phase was of non-acceptance or denial from 1948-1950. This was the time when India even voted against Israels admission in the United Nations in 1949. Nehrus naivete in the early years of independence and his genuine insecurities over the domestic Muslim constituency, influenced Indias stand in these years. The next was a phase of informal engagement. From the late 1960s, Indira Gandhi is believed to have had RAW engage with Mossad on intelligence sharing. However, what made headlines during this period was Indias unwavering support for Palestine. India, in fact, was the first non-Arab country to recognise the Palestine Liberation Organisation's authority as 'the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.' A PLO office was set up in the Indian capital in 1975, with full diplomatic relations established in March 1980. India instantly recognised Palestine's statehood following its declaration on 18 November, 1988. Now, interestingly around this time, Israel after battling years of diplomatic persecution for decades, was finally gaining clout with several powerful countries taking cognisance of its robust democratic system, sound economy and technological prowess. India finally initiated full-fledged diplomatic relations with Israel in the year 1991 under an unusually foresighted Congress prime minister, Narasimha Rao. This marked the start of the third phase for our relationship, a phase of rapprochement. The coming years saw the official visits of two Israeli presidents to India in 1997 and 2003, besides the first visit by an Indian home minister to Israel, LK Advani in 2000. In hindsight, it will not be entirely wrong to say that Indias relationship with Israel pre-1991 was need-based. However, during 2004-14, we once again went into a circumspect mode under the hypocritical Congress. So, while a few Union ministers did visit Israel, those visits never yielded optimal results because they were never meant to. The illusory fears of the Congress of losing its local Muslim vote bank never allowed the relations to progress beyond basic courtesies. After 2015, another new phase began in our relations one which I would consider a phase of robust engagement. In 2014, Sushma Swaraj refused to allow a resolution in our Parliament condemning Israels attack on the Gaza Strip. Pranab Mukherjee became the first Indian president to visit Israel in 2015. Later in July, 2017, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi created history by being first Indian prime minister to visit Israel, it completely turned Indias traditional approach towards Israel and Palestine on its head. For the first time in history, India managed to successfully de-hyphenate Israel and Palestine from the point of view of its engagement with both or either. Hence, while on one hand, Indias proactive engagement with Israel across spheres like information technology, bio-technology, innovation, agriculture and defense among others was to be pursued wholeheartedly, Indias support towards the Palestine cause remained intact, though separated. Now, this layered approach was not easy to pull off. And this is where much of the credit for its success goes to the excellent understanding that Modi and Netanyahu share. The fact that the style of politics of both the BJP and Likud party have striking similarities between them, only makes this bond easier and stronger. So yes, sections within the Isreali political setup, were somewhat unhappy with Modis separate visit to Palestine, as also the fact that in December 2018, India voted against Israel on a resolution moved by Turkey condemning the US decision to shift its consulate to Jerusalem. On the first issue, India took a principled stand. It retained its age-old support for the Palestine cause. In fact, the firmness with which India held on to its layered approach was something large sections of informed Israelis and Palestinians even appreciated. The second issue is something which we may want to revisit. Like on many previous occasions, India could have done better in abstaining from the vote. Anyway, despite those temporary hiccups, Israel continues to see a true friend in India and large sections of its civil society look up to our country. What is equally laudable is Indias diplomatic win in ensuring an unprecedented direct Air India flight from Tel Aviv to New Delhi which flies over the Saudi airspace. This flight, which I took on 12 July, invariably runs to over 80 percent capacity, a clear indication of the ever increasing engagement between the two nations. Anyway, with the kind of trust and partnership that exists between the two countries today, Modi with his ambition, can take it to another level altogether. Modi is among the very few leaders today who can manage to bring Benjamin Netanyahu and Mahmud Abbas back to the negotiating table. The talks between the two have been in a state of limbo for long. The prime reason for it is the sense of hopelessness along the Gaza strip. The situation there is going from bad to worse. In fact, during my visit to an area very close to the Gaza strip border as part of an American Jewish Committee (AJC) delegation, we witnessed how Hamas was shelling balloons and kites, knotted with incendiary substances, that would burn up crops and agricultural land on the Israeli side. Israel obviously has been retaliating as and when necessary, leading to a dangerous deadlock. Now given Hamas antecedents, the situation is going to get worse and another war cant be ruled out. In this situation, it is obvious that till the time that Hamas holds sway over Gaza strip, any solution is unlikely, So, while Israel sees the effort to negotiate a waste of time, given that it is anyway doing well on all fronts, Palestine sees this as Israels indifference. Agreed that in the present situation, a resolution is ten times more difficult than it was pre-2006 (before Hamas took over Gaza), but Modi can still create history by bringing the two leaders to the discussion table. If he can get them to India for this, it will be an achievement like no other. Secondly, there is still a huge unexplored zone when it comes to cultural exchange and engagement of soft power between the two countries. The Jewish community with a global population of 1.5 crore has produced nearly 200 Nobel prize winners. Much of their success is due to their family and societal values, which are still very strong. India shares similar values and a similar progressive outlook. A more robust people-to-people and cultural contact will be a huge boon for both countries. The author is a BJP leader and tweets @tuhins. Views expressed are personal. India on Monday extended $200 million line of credit to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to strengthen cooperation in trade and agriculture sector. Kigali: India on Monday extended $200 million line of credit to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to strengthen cooperation in trade and agriculture sector. After the one-on-one talks with president Kagame, Modi announced that India will soon open its mission in Rwanda. The two countries signed agreements on leather and allied areas and agricultural research. India also extended two lines of credit: One of $100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ) in Rwanda and another one for $100 million for agriculture. Modi, arrived in Rwanda tonight on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour as part of India's outreach to the resource-rich continent, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. The prime m,inister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was received by president Kagame. He was accorded a red carpet welcome at the airport. "A historic visit starts with a special gesture. President @PaulKagame personally welcomed PM @narendramodi to Rwanda," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. His two-day state visit to Rwandaone of Africa's fastest growing economies assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. "A special gesture by a close friend and a strategic partner! Prime Minister @narenderamodi personally received by Rwandan President @PaulKagame at #Kigali International Airport on the first leg of his three-nation tour. First-ever visit by an Indian PM to Rwanda," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had tweeted. Modi will also meet the business leaders and the Indian communities. He will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. The in-laws of flight attendant Anissia Batra, who allegedly committed suicide last week, were questioned by the police on Monday. New Delhi: The in-laws of flight attendant Anissia Batra, who allegedly committed suicide last week, were questioned by the police on Monday. The couple was questioned for one-and-a-half-hour at the Hauz Khas police station today, they added. They had sought exemption from joining the probe on health grounds last week. Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Monday granted interim protection from arrest to the couple. Anissia (39) allegedly jumped from the terrace of her residence in south Delhi's Panchsheel Park on 14 July following which her husband, Mayank Singhvi, was arrested on the charges of dowry death on 16 July. Her family has been demanding the arrest of Mayank's parents. They have accused Mayank of physically abusing her. Islamabad High Court's Justice Shaukat Siddiqui has alleged that Pakistan's ISI is pressuring judges to fix verdicts and remove from the election candidates the army dislikes. For many, Justice Shaukat Siddiqui's revolt won't come as a surprise. The Islamabad High Court judge had alleged that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is pressuring judges to fix verdicts and remove from the political fray candidates the country's powerful military-intelligence establishment dislikes. These claims only serve to confirm all the worst forebodings about the upcoming general elections. For India, these developments carry an unequivocal message: expect more of the same, no matter who sits on the Pakistan prime minister's chair after Wednesday's polls the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's (PML-N) army-loving and disgruntled Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, or "Pindi puppet" Imran Khan. The khakis remain in firm control. In an order sheet last Wednesday in a case related to forced disappearances of citizens, Justice Siddiqui had accused the Islamabad Police of working in cahoots with spy agencies to create a "state within a state" and violate the fundamental rights of citizens. A senior puisne judge of the Islamabad High Court, he had slammed intelligence officers for interfering in the judiciary's work, calling for the institution to be saved from "all kinds of influences". The judge wrote: "Everyone knows... how proceedings are manipulated, from where strings are pulled and when power is wielded and maneuvered to achieve the desired results. It is a matter of great concern that even benches are constituted and cases are marked to different benches on the direction of such elements." Pakistani newspaper Dawn has pointed out that despite being a senior puisne judge at the Islamabad High Court, Siddiqui was kept out of the bench that decided on the appeals filed by Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz Sharif and her husband Captain Mohammad Safdar against their conviction in the Avenfield corruption reference. Their appeals were rejected. On Saturday, Justice Siddiqi stepped up his attack on the ISI and accused it of controlling the judiciary and media, creating designer benches to achieve favourable verdicts and pressuring judges to keep Sharif and his family in jail until after the elections. Unprecedented. Judge of Islamabad High Court, Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui accuses ISI of manipulating judicial proceedings. "ISI approached the chief justice and said that Nawaz Sharif and his daughter cannot be allowed to leave jail before the elections." pic.twitter.com/6uv2loDD3O Naila Inayat (@nailainayat) July 21, 2018 Addressing the Rawalpindi District Bar Association, he said: "In different cases, the ISI forms benches of its choice to get desired results. The ISI had asked the chief justice to make sure that Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz should not come out of jail before the 25 July elections. It had also asked him not to include me in the bench hearing the appeal of Nawaz Sharif and his daughter in the Avenfield case. The chief justice told the ISI that he would make a bench of its choice." The beleaguered judge, who is facing a trial on "misconduct", claimed that "those with guns" have wrested control of the judiciary and had even offered him the chief justice's post "by September" if he did their bidding. He also said that he knew "who takes whose message to the Supreme Court". Justice Siddiqui's comments are serious but unremarkable. They point to one more instance of the prostration of Pakistan's judiciary before the army the only institution that could have served as a bulwark for the country's shaky democracy but never could bring itself to show enough courage. Right now, the judiciary is little more than a henchman for the military, providing constitutional cover for its nefarious acts. Hardcore criminals and designated terrorists are walking out of jail to contest elections, while civilian candidates (mostly) from Nawaz Sharif's PML-N are being incarcerated with dubious charges. On a day when Rao Anwar, accused in hundreds of extra judicial murders, walked out on bail, Hanif Abbasi, N-League candidate against Shaikh Rashid, gets life sentence. Judicial cleansing of League politicians continues. What a farce. Syed Talat Hussain (@TalatHussain12) July 21, 2018 Since Pakistan's Supreme Court ousted Nawaz Sharif from the prime minister's post last year after convicting him in a corruption case, four PML-N candidates have found themselves at the wrong end of the law. The latest to fall was Hanif Abbasi, slapped with a life term in jail in an unprecedented midnight verdict by an anti-narcotics court on Saturday. Abbasi, a close aide of Nawaz, was a strong candidate and the purported favourite against Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed, who had the backing of Pakistan's new "King's Party" Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). The move has been criticised as another instance of the judiciary acting in collusion with the army to fix the electoral pitch in favour of Imran Khan. Only an exception has been made in case of PML-Ns Hanif Abbasi. We condemn the malafides behind the timing of this decision, which is politically motivated and seeks to undermine the election campaign of the PML-N.... (cont) Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) July 21, 2018 If the courts don't get you, the army will. Nawaz Sharif is languishing in jail, but so determined is the army to extinguish all possibilities of a fightback from the former prime minister that it has moved behind the scenes to systematically weaken his party with a combination of coercive and intimidatory tactics. PML-N is being decapitated, with senior leaders either facing criminal cases or tremendous pressure to defect to PTI. Some are being forced to contest as "independents". Hundreds of party workers are being put behind bars. The Guardian quoted Omar Wariach, deputy South Asia director for Amnesty, as saying: "Hundreds have been arbitrarily arrested for the sole reason that they support Nawaz Sharif What was once a vibrant and lively political space has now become suffocatingly small." The newspaper also writes of PML-N candidate Rana Iqbal Siraj, who recorded a video message alleging that the ISI was "torturing and threatening him to give up his backing of Sharif", but the leader has since "recanted" the statement. Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar is reportedly furious about Justice Siddiqui's statement. He has declared that the judiciary is completely free and under no form of pressure. Few would believe him, not the least because Justice Nisar's "missionary zeal" of bringing Nawaz Sharif and his family members to book resembles a pursuit of justice less and an instance of personal vendetta more. It was Nisar who had ousted the former prime minister from power for not being "honest and righteous" enough, disqualified him from public office and slapped him with a 10-year prison term in a corruption case, though critics have pointed out that the evidence against Sharif was not conclusive and at best, circumstantial. The CJP has also been accused of "judicial activism" in vigorously pursuing specific cases that cast Nawaz Sharif's PML-N in poor light. Some analysts say that this "activism" is symptomatic of a "politicised judiciary" that is fast diminishing in stature. Critics say Justice Nisar's actions are limited to misdemeanors by the civilian administration, while he has steered clear of activism in controversial cases involving the country's military-intelligence establishment. For instance, while Justice Nisar has been going after US-exiled Husain Haqqani former Pakistani ambassador to the US and a fierce critic of the Pakistan military and has been pressuring the government to bring him back from the US, the CJP has been remarkably quiet about retired General Pervez Musharraf, the tyrant who had led a coup against Nawaz Sharif in 1999 and fled Pakistan while facing charges of treason. In 2016, Musharraf had admitted that General Raheel Sharif, former Chief of the Army Staff, had helped influence the courts so that he could escape the country, according to a report in The New York Times. Therefore, Justice Nisar's claim that the judiciary in Pakistan is "free from all pressures" does not ring true. If anything, as Haqqani now the director of Washington DC-based think tank Hudson Institute has argued, Justice Nisar's actions reek of political bias and does not augur well for the judiciary's role as an unbiased interpreter of the Constitution. "Justice Nisar has made his political biases well known, and the case against Sharif proceeded in reverse order. Instead of beginning in a trial court where evidence of his wrongdoing was established beyond reasonable doubt, he was first disqualified by the Supreme Court and then put on trial," Haqqani wrote for The Hindu. The political fortunes of Nawaz Sharif, who is believed to be suffering from debilitating kidney and heart ailments and might be shifted to a hospital, is meant to be a lesson for politicians to deter them from even thinking about crossing the military's path and challenging its supremacy as the sole custodian of all power. A diabetic with heart issues in the past, Nawaz was deliberately kept in miserable conditions and denied even basic facilities at the Rawalpindi prison. I am told that my father was not given a bed to sleep on and the bathroom was extremely dirty probably not cleaned for ages. Theres no precedence of treating peoples representatives with dignity in this country but these are basic rights withdrawal of which constitutes torture. Hussain Nawaz Sharif (@Hussain_NSharif) July 14, 2018 It is not unreasonable to conclude that the deterioration of his health wasn't exactly a cosmic development unrelated to the treatment meted out to him. Meanwhile, even as Nawaz suffers in jail, Imran Khan is busy accusing the former prime minister in election rallies of "protecting India's interests". This might appear as madness from Pakistan's "PM-select"; it is more likely that he has finally discovered the path to power in Pakistan. Which points to the final lesson in the sordid saga of Pakistan's elections rapprochement with India, or even the slightest movement towards it, will result in the incumbent meeting Nawaz Sharif's fate. Consequently, India can afford to ignore the shenanigans of the prime minister (or the glorified mayor), whoever it might be post Wednesday. Our relationship with Pakistan will remain more of the same. In a statement, Pelosi said the documents provide clear evidence of Russia's coordination with Carter Page to illegally influence the 2016 presidential election. In an interview on "Fox News Sunday", Gowdy lamented the Federal Bureau of Investigation "missed a really good opportunity to tell the [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court] judge exactly who paid" for a dossier compiled by ex-British spy Christopher Steele that was used as the basis for the warrant - a redacted version of which was released last Friday. It was the first time the government had made public copies of top-secret applications seeking wiretaps of an American under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which are among the government's most closely held intelligence secrets. Mr Page has denied being an agent of the Russian government and has not been charged with any crime. But the information has not been verified and has been dismissed by Republicans and Trump as false. "I've never been an agent of the foreign power in any - by any stretch of the imagination". The FBI has produced a list of damning accusations against Page that include meeting with two Russian officials as part of his supposed "coordination" with Moscow. Republican lawmakers have accused the Obama administration, which sought the surveillance order in October 2016, of relying on a controversial dossier of candidate - at the time - Donald Trump's alleged connections to Russian Federation to support the surveillance order. "Fusion GPS hired Christopher Steele.and then they hired Nelly Ohr, the wife of Bruce Ohr, to get the fake dossier from a political environment into the bloodstream of the intel. community", Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) explained on February 2, 2018, the day the FISA abuse memo came out. "I may have participated in a few meetings that a lot of people, including people from the Obama administration, were sitting in on". J SCOTT APPLEWHITE AP Donald Trump's former foreign policy adviser Carter Page says claims he worked on Russia's behalf are"ridiculous Informed of that plan during a live television interview, a clearly startled Coats grinned and said, "That's going to be special". The report claims that Page allegedly met with Igor Sechin, CEO of the state-run oil giant Rosneft, with whom they allegedly "discussed future bilateral energy cooperation" and the prospects of lifting western sanctions imposed on Russian Federation following its reunification of Crimea in 2014. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam!' Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio said Sunday on CBS's Face the Nation that he agreed with authorities that wiretapping Page was justified. "The FBI believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government". "I don't believe that them looking into Carter Page means they were spying on the campaign". The FBI told the court only the most general information about the process but speculated that the motive behind Steele's employment to compile the dossier was to compile "information that could be used to discredit" Trump. The measure gained new co-sponsors last week after Trump seemed to question the consensus of the USA intelligence community that the Kremlin meddled in the 2016 presidential race. Steele's work was being paid for by Trump's opponent, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) that she controlled, via a cutout, a Washington, D.C. law firm. "I think that's different from spying on a campaign". The AP seems to suggest that there is some inconsistency between Page's denial of being an "agent of a foreign power" and his claim, back in 2013, to be an "informal adviser" to certain Russians. Police on Sunday arrested seven more accused in connection with the alleged rape of a 22-year-old woman from Chandigarh by 40 men for four consecutive days at a guest house in Morni area of Haryana's Panchkula district, officials said on Sunday. Chandigarh: Police on Sunday arrested seven more accused in connection with the alleged rape of a 22-year-old woman from Chandigarh by 40 men for four consecutive days at a guest house in Morni area of Haryana's Panchkula district, officials said on Sunday. They said that while accused Sahib Singh, a resident of Panchkula was arrested earlier, six more were nabbed later in the day. They were identified as Sukhwinder Singh, Karan Sharma, alias Kimmi, Manjit Singh, Vikash alias Vicky, Shadi Ram and Ajay Kumar, all residents of Ambala, Naraingarh and Sadhaura in Ambala district, police said, adding that they will be produced in Panchkula court on Monday. In a complaint lodged with the Chandigarh Police at Manimajra police station on 19 July, the woman alleged that she was held captive for four days where the accused took turns to rape her. The woman's medical report had confirmed that she was raped and given sedatives in confinement. The guest house has been sealed, police said. Earlier, the guest house manager and another key accused, who was known to the victim's husband and was instrumental in taking her to the guest house, had been nabbed, they said, adding more arrests were likely. The victim has alleged that two police personnel were also among those who raped her. However, police have not confirmed this allegation yet. The woman's husband has claimed before reporters that one of the accused police personnel had even given a Rs 50 currency note to his wife after writing down his mobile number asking her to contact him if she faces any problem on way to Panchkula bus stand from Morni. He had earlier told reporters that his wife was promised a job at the guest house by a person known to them, adding she was drugged for four days, gang-raped and threatened that she and her husband would be "eliminated" if she revealed the incident to anyone. The Chandigarh Police had registered an FIR at Manimajra police station after the woman approached them, amid allegations that the Haryana Police had failed to take cognizance of her complaint initially when she approached a women police station in Panchkula. When asked that the victim and her husband have desired that the case be transferred back to the Chandigarh Police as it was in process of being handed over to Panchkula police, a senior Panchkula police official on Sunday said, "We are learning about this through the media only. The complainant or her husband have not made any such request to us." The Panchkula Police had set up a Special Investigation Team under IPS officer Anshu Singla, currently posted as ASP, Panchkula, to probe the incident. Three police officials, including a woman Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI), were suspended for negligence and not handling the rape survivor's complaint properly. However, the suspended woman ASI, Saraswati Kumari, has reportedly claimed that she had sent a WhatsApp message to Panchkula's Sector 5 women police station SHO Rajesh Kumari about the complaint, but she took no action. The rape survivor had gone to Sector 5 women police station on Thursday, but police personnel there allegedly failed to register a case. The suspended woman ASI reportedly told her superiors that the SHO directed the woman to Manimajra police station as she was a Chandigarh resident. The woman police station's SHO is part of the SIT formed by the Panchkula police to probe the gangrape. The victim's husband claimed before reporters that his wife in a statement recorded before a judicial magistrate had stated that a hospital in Panchkula refused to conduct her medical examination and asked for a police complaint first. Her medical examination was later conducted at Civil Hospital, Manimajra, in Chandigarh. Meanwhile, the Haryana police is preparing the records of all guest house and hotels in Morni. The family of five was buried under the debris when the roof of the one-room house in Hari Vihar area of Dwarka gave way around 1 am. New Delhi: The roof of a house in Delhi's Dwarka area that had weakened over time with seepage collapsed in the early hours of the morning on Monday, killing a couple and injuring their three children, police said. The roof collapse, which took the life of Sunil and his wife Rachna, both 40 years old, left Vaibhav (19), Gulshan, (16) and Gungun, (nine) orphaned, officials said. The family of five was buried under the debris when the roof of the one-room house in Hari Vihar area of Dwarka gave way around 1 am. The family was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital where Sunil and Rachna were declared brought dead. The three children have been admitted to the hospital. Vaibhav, the eldest of the siblings, told police that the house was owned by his father and he was born there. Due to leakage of water, the iron rods which held the weight of the roof had become weak. A layer of bricks was placed on the roof to stop the seepage. However, the iron rods had weakened and could no longer take the load of the roof, leading to the collapse, an official said. The bodies of the deceased have been sent for a post-mortem. Baba Ramdev has alleged that the book, Godman to Tycoon, has false and defamatory content. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday refused to stay the Delhi High Court's interim order banning the publication and sale of a book purportedly on the life of yoga guru Ramdev, which he claimed contained defamatory content. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra did not grant any interim relief to the publisher Juggernaut Books. Instead, it asked the Delhi High Court to decide on the petition by September-end. The petition by the publisher challenges a trial court order banning the publication and sale of Godman to Tycoon. The publisher had knocked the doors of the apex court after the high court, in its interim order, had refused to lift the ban on the sale and publication of the book imposed by the trial court. "This court requests the Delhi High Court to decide the main petition by the end of September," the Supreme Court bench, which also comprised justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud, said. It directed the parties to complete the pleadings by 7 August and disposed of the petition. Senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, appearing for petitioner Juggernaut Books, said the high court order was "ad-interim in nature" and also that it has fixed the matter for 9 August. In a relief to Ramdev, the Delhi High Court had on 10 May had issued an interim order restoring the ban on the publication and sale of Godman to Tycoon, a book purportedly on his life, which he claimed contained defamatory content. The high court had stayed an order of the additional senior civil judge (ASCJ), which had removed the ban on the publication and sale of the book. The high court had made it clear that it would pass a detailed order in the matter later. In August last year, the ASCJ had restrained Juggernaut from publishing and selling Godman to Tycoon till further orders. It had also restrained Amazon India and Flipkart Internet Pvt Ltd from selling the book online and said any pending delivery of the book to buyers has to be stopped immediately. The book authored by journalist Priyanka Pathak Narai was published in July last year. Ramdev had challenged the civil judge's 28 April order, in which the court had lifted the ban on the book by setting aside the injunction order of the trial court in August last year. Ramdev, in his suit, had alleged that the information in the book was false, tended to injure his reputation and led to an inference that the yoga guru had been involved in mischievous and criminal activities to achieve fame and success. The publisher had earlier said that the book was a work of serious journalism. It was the product of over 50 interviews, many of them taped, with Ramdev and key players in his life, including close aides and family members, it had said. "The book contains a detailed 25-page note on sources that lists the interviews, articles, police reports and RTI replies that are the basis of each chapter," it had said in a statement. A bench comprising Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said there was a need for striking a balance between conflicting rights such as right to protest and right of citizens to live peacefully, with regard to protests at Jantar Mantar New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday said there cannot be a "complete ban" on holding protests and sit-ins at Jantar Mantar here, and asked the Centre to frame guidelines for according sanctions to such events. A bench comprising Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said there was a need for striking a balance between conflicting rights such as right to protest and right of citizens to live peacefully. "There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate)," the bench said while directing the Centre to frame guidelines on the matter. The verdict came on a batch of petitions, including the one filed by Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sanghtan challenging the decision of the National Green Tribunal, which had banned all kinds of protests at these (Jantar Mantar, Boat Club) places. A team of doctors from the Uttar Pradesh health department led by Deputy Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Ashok Tanda raided 'Astha Nursing Home' Muzaffarnagar: A nursing home at Shamli district was sealed after unqualified doctors were reportedly found performing surgeries on unsuspecting patients, officials said on Monday. A team of doctors from the Uttar Pradesh health department led by Deputy Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Ashok Tanda raided 'Astha Nursing Home' on Saturday. It was found that no qualified surgeons were practising at the facility, CMO Raj Kumar said. The nursing home has been sealed, he said. The matter came to light when family members of Mukesh Devi (30), who was admitted to the facility for removal of a tumour, complained about the shoddy treatment provided to her. They alleged that Vinod Dhama, who runs the nursing home, operated upon the woman, but she was rushed to another hospital in a critical condition. An enquiry has been ordered into the incident, Kumar said. BJP president Amit Shah on Sunday held a closed-door assessment meeting of senior party leaders in Mumbai with the focus on the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and strengthening the cadre in Maharashtra. Mumbai: BJP president Amit Shah on Sunday held a closed-door assessment meeting of senior party leaders in Mumbai with the focus on the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and strengthening the cadre in Maharashtra. After attending the meetings, Shah met melody queen Lata Mangeshkar at her home in south Mumbai as part of the party's "contact for support" campaign. Earlier in the day, the BJP chief, who was supposed to reach Mumbai before noon, landed at the city airport at 1 pm due to some developments in New Delhi. He spent the entire day in 'Vasant Smruti' building, the BJP headquarter, in south-central Mumbai, a BJP official said. At the meeting, Shah laid down a 23-point working strategy and discussed issues such as increasing the party strength, addressing new voters' groups based on their profession, gender, likings etc and a regular follow up of the voters by the local party workers. "The national president plainly stated that the strategy has to be implemented in all the Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in the state. At present, the BJP shares its political space with the Shiv Sena and a couple of smaller allies. It is a message that says 'prepare for contesting elections alone'. We will have to rush as the general election are now less than a year away," said a senior BJP minister who attended the meeting. Shah also reviewed the BJP's performance of 2014 polls, as Maharashtra is the second largest state in the country going by the number of Lok Sabha seats after Uttar Pradesh. Of 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra, BJP had won 23, the Shiv Sena (18), the NCP four, the Congress two, and the Swabhimani Paksh, a former ally of the BJP, one. Apart from meeting the 'Vistaraks' of the party whose mandate is to increase the network of the BJP in different geographies, Shah also interacted with the members of the 'Lok Sabha Toli', a group that consists of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, state unit chief Raosaheb Danve, Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, ministers Sudhir Mungantiwar, Chandrakant Patil and Pankaja Munde, Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar, among others. "The mandate of the group is to identify weaknesses of the party in certain areas, (ways) to overcome them and the current key issues related to the people of Maharashtra. The candidates who had contested and won the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and the current image of the candidates in the same constituency was also discussed at the general-level in this meeting," the BJP official said. He said the BJP is also mulling over holding some events with a view to demonstrate its strength and communicate with the people. "...It could be in the form of discussions, holding bike rallies as well as some innovative ways of reaching out to certain groups of people," the official said, without elaborating. After the meetings concluded at 8.30 pm, Shah left for the party's "Sampark Abhiyan" under which he met Mangeshkar (88). The BJP chief was scheduled to meet Mangeshkar on 6 June, but the visit was cancelled as she was down with food poisoning. He was accompanied by Fadnavis, Danve and Shelar to Mangeshkar's house . On 6 June, Mangeshkar had tweeted in Hindi that she had spoken to Shah over phone and expressed her inability to meet him since she had suffered from food poisoning. She also requested that they can meet during his next visit to Mumbai. In Sunday's meeting, Shah presented the Bharat Ratna awardee with a booklet on the achievements of the Narendra Modi government in the last four years. On 6 June, Shah had called on actress Madhuri Dixit and industrialist Ratan Tata as part of his party's "Sampark for Samarthan" (contact for support) campaign. Addressing party workers in Lucknow at the party headquarters, Akhilesh Yadav said, 'Despite the Uttar Pradesh governor repeatedly saying that there is need for improvement in the law and order situation, the state government has not taken it seriously. The BJP is acting arbitrarily and undermining the people's interest.' Lucknow: Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on Monday accused the BJP of being "an expert in deceiving people" and inaugurating again the projects already launched by his government. The former chief minister made the allegation, maintaining that the SP has faith in democracy as it is the real strength of the people. Addressing party workers in Lucknow at the party headquarters, the former chief minister said, "Despite the Uttar Pradesh governor repeatedly saying that there is need for improvement in the law and order situation, the state government has not taken it seriously. The BJP is acting arbitrarily and undermining the people's interest." The SP chief also accused the BJP of resorting to "lies and half truths" and usurping the projects, launched by his government. "The BJP has spoken so much of lies that people do not believe it. The BJP is an expert in deceiving people. The farmers were deceived in the name of minimum support price," said Yadav. "Terming the SP's projects as their own and inaugurating them again shows the defeat of the BJP," he added. The SP president also said the BJP knows how to divert the people's attention from the real issues. "To garner votes, they are spreading hatred in the society. It has created distrust in the society and disturbed its communal harmony. The GST and demonetisation have only benefitted the corporate houses, while it has destroyed the economy of the country," he said. Taking a dig at the BJP-led government over incidents of mob lynching, the Shiv Sena on Monday said cows were safer than women in the country. Mumbai: Taking a dig at the BJP-led government over incidents of mob lynching, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena on Monday said cows were safer than women in the country. "We are a part of the government but if something is wrong, we will definitely talk about it. We are friends of the bharatiya janata, not of any party," Thackeray said, taking a dig at Bhartiya Janata Party's (BJP) name. Shiv Sena is BJP's alliance partner in Maharashtra and at the Centre. On incidents of mob lynching in the country, the Shiv Sena chief said BJP's idea of Hindutva was fake, and criticised the government for failing to check cow vigilantism. "In this country, cows are safe but women are not," he said in an interview to Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana'. "In the name of saving the cow, if you are shifting focus to whether someone is eating beef or not, then it is a sham. This is not Hindutva...I do not accept the idea of Hindutva that is being adhered to in the country. Our women are unsafe and you are protecting cows," Thackeray said. "We (Shiv Sena) never said cows should be slaughtered. But while protecting cows, India has become the most unsafe country for women. One should be ashamed of it...You want to save 'gau-mata' (cow) but what about 'mata' (mother)," he said. Targeting the BJP over the debate on nationalism, Thackeray said the BJP had no right to decide who was a nationalist and anti-national. "Anyone criticising the government does not become anti-national. Members of Parliament are representatives of people and have the right to raise questions," he said. Thackeray said his party has opposed only those decisions which appeared not to be protecting the interests of the poor. "I criticise the government if it is taking any wrong steps. I cannot take the appeasement route to woo them (BJP). The previous (UPA) regime was defeated by people and there were big expectations from this NDA government. But this government is also functioning like the previous one," he added. After the rebel group within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) created a storm on Friday by boycotting a crucial meet, Mehbooba Mufti is desperately trying to set her house in order. Srinagar: After the rebel group within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) created a storm on Friday by boycotting a crucial meet, Mehbooba Mufti is desperately trying to set her house in order. The PDP chief is trying to stop her party, which is staring at an imminent split, from further disintegration. Mehbooba's maternal uncle and PDP vice-president Sartaj Madni put in his papers on Monday. Madni was the party's second-in-command and most powerful after Mehbooba. It is my decision and I have thought over it for some time, Madni said on Monday morning. I submitted my resignation in the interest of the party and to strengthen the party. Some people raised objections over my position and I think it is better for the larger good for me to step down. Madnis resignation came days ahead of the partys foundation day, which is being observed on 28 July. The party is planning a grand show and will hold a public rally at Srinagar. A senior party leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Madni was asked to resign by Mehbooba after she met her leaders from both south, central and north Kashmir. The decision was taken on Saturday after Mehbooba met another set of leaders at her Gupkar residence. It is perhaps the feedback of the elected representatives of the party that Mehbooba asked him (Madni) to resign, the leader said. Madni, a resident of Nowpora-Akhran in south Kashmir's Kulgam district, lost an election to Congress' Mohammad Amin Bhat in 2014. Madni has been associated with the PDP since its inception. He was a small-time contractor before joining the party. He has been elected as MLA twice from Devsar constituency of Kulgam and served as deputy speaker in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. However, according to party insiders, Mehboobas father and former chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed disliked Madni. Madni's political career ended after he lost the 2014 election, but after Sayeed's passing, Mehboobahaving a soft corner for her unclebrought him center-stage. A scandal broke out last year after his son Syed Aroot Madni, 37, was appointed as an executive officer in the autonomous Khadi Village and Industries Board (KVIB), which prompted candidates who were not selected to file an RTI seeking their marks in the written test and interview. The resignation, however, will do little to calm the turbulence in the PDP, which has been hit by an internal feud after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) suddenly pulled out of the coalition government. Some party lawmakers, who recently met Mehbooba at her residence, according to sources, complained Madni was influencing decision making in the government for vested interests. Mehbooba, 59, rebuilt her party from scratch after it was founded in late 1990s by her father. She'd surface at the homes of militants killed by forces and victims of human rights violations and express solidarity with their kin to create an emotional vote-bank for her party. During the 2014 election, Mehbooba campaigned heavily against the BJP, telling voters in far-flung areas of Kashmir to stop the BJP from making inroads by voting for the PDP. Her father ended up allying with the same party after months of political negotiations and the two parties worked out Agenda of the Alliance as governance framework but nothing came of it. But the coalition, which was wobbly since its inception, exploded two weeks after New Delhi decided not to extend the non-initiation of combat operations. After the fall, many party MLAs started criticising Mehbooba, which set off rumours of a third front emerging in Kashmir devoid of Muftis and Abdullahs. The MLAs who criticised party leadership publicly for allowing "Mehboobas relatives and cronies to destroy the party" included Imran Raza Ansari, Mohammad Abbas, Javid Baig, Abid Raza Ansari, Majeed Paddar and two MLCs Yasir Reshi and Saifuddin Bhat. As one leader after another began quitting the party, Mehbooba pointed the finger at New Delhi and warned that the consequences would be very dangerous. She likened the situation to 1987 when the National Conference was declared the winner after elections were allegedly rigged. If Delhi tries to spoil the voting rights of people like it did in 1987, if it tries to create divisions and interfere like that, then more Salahuddins and Yasin Maliks will be born. If the PDP breaks, its outcome will be dangerous," she said in Srinagar. Over a weekend interview to News18 Urdu, Mehbooba said many of her leaders felt they were being threatened with raids from the National Investigation Agency if they didn't join the 'rebel' MLAs. After his resignation, Reshi spoke against the party at a press conference in Srinagar: We are the real PDP. Until and unless Mehbooba removes all her cronies and people who have not been chosen by public from positions of power, the resignation of Madni will do little to improve her situation. It is a good step, although it came a little too late. He should have been sacked from the party and not just removed from the post of vice-president, Reshi added. Narendra Modi visibly lost his well-scripted body language when Rahul Gandhi went to his seat to hug him in Parliament on Friday Television believes, perhaps with a measure of justified confidence, that it mostly determines what leaders say or do, also when and how they say or do it. Between the two of them, they create a make-believe universe of echo chambers, comprising advertisers, action, drama and cut. There is also the viewer. The creators of this universe often undermine the very viewer for whom all this effort is put. The UPA-2 and Congress did realise the importance of this universe. The sincerity with which ministers and chief ministers (against whom no wrongdoing has subsequently been established) were removed in response to prime-time activism shows how misplaced our understanding of this universe was. The BJP knew better how to play this universe because it had a part in the construct of it. Politics by optics is fine but governance by optics is new. From foreign policy to decisions taken on the economic front, the Narendra Modi government has been attempting to create optical illusions. Last week saw an action-packed no-confidence motion in the Parliament. Rahul Gandhi stole the show and has forced a definite change in how the dramatis personae of Indian politics will now have to recalibrate their actions, reactions and reflexes. While Modi has all along treated optics as an end in itself, Rahul used it effectively to convey in that one hug the construct of his politics and that of the party's. The words that preceded the hug are a strong counter to the venom spewing ecosystem of the ruling ideology. Both the words and the hug come from a deep understanding of how India reacts to bullies. While Modi has often tried to play victim, his advisors have failed to tutor him that those who rule cannot be victims. Perhaps, Modi is the first victim who keeps flaunting his vital statistics; the first victim who keeps reminding everyone that he rules over 19 states and that his is the first full majority government in 30 years. Muscular is what muscular does. India's foreign policy is at its lowest nadir. From Nepal to Sri Lanka, from Maldives to Pakistan, China holds control on levers that harm our interests. In a first, Russia is selling arms to Pakistan. In another first, Russia and Pakistan have held a joint military drill. In a shameless first, China is helping Pakistan build over 350 bunkers on the Rajasthan/Gujarat border. Diaspora events to show to your hosts how well you can influence diaspora votes has gone down very poorly with several nations, where Modi held these events. Modi's foreign policy can best be summarised in the title of a book: How to lose friends and alienate people. Questioning your failures is the right as well as duty of the media, activists and the Opposition. You may have tamed some of them into submission. You cannot play the victim card to run down those who do not submit to you, those who question you and those who show you the mirror. They are not victimising you, they are giving voice to the victims of your faulty policies and politics. What Rahul gained is not as important as what Modi lost. The nation witnessed the eerie and quiet collapse of the Modi edifice. His 90-minute speech could only show us the rubble of the edifice. He had the option of showing grace. He also had the option of effecting a change in his now boringly repetitive narrative. Instead, he resorted to cheap mimicry. Rahul did offer to him an opportunity to upgrade his outdated, virus-ridden software. Modi chose to ignore the opportunity a choice for which he will pay a dear price in months in the run up to the 2019 election. In the visuals were lost some very significant words from Rahul's speech, wherein he analysed why winning the next elections is so important for Modi and Amit Shah. In their defeat, they see a risk of 'other processes'. As Rahul ably deconstructed their politics of fear and anger, the expression on the face of Modi endorsed every word uttered by Rahul. With the wink, Rahul showed his youthful spontaneity. People do not want well dressed, dehumanised robots as their leaders. Modi visibly lost his well-scripted body language when Rahul went to his seat to hug him. This however, was hardly a loss. What Modi lost on 20 July, 2018, was his narrative. Built on flimsy victimhood and a flaky understanding of history, this fabled narrative had to collapse, all that it took was a hug. The author is national spokesperson, Indian National Congress On Saturday night, 17 people travelling in a taxi on the R74 between Colenso and Weenen, came under fire. "Four victims were critically injured and taken to hospital while two survived unscathed", he said. "There has been a lot of taxi violence in the area but we are still investigating who the perpetrators were". Sithole noted yesterday that the 11 deceased were associated with the Ivory Park Taxi Association in Gauteng and had been returning to Gauteng from the funeral of an associate when the attack happened. The motive is unclear although rivalry between groups running minibus taxi routes in South Africa has led to violence in the past. Committee chairperson Francois Beukman said: "While the committee is cognisant that a proper investigation would need to be undertaken to ascertain the firearms utilised in perpetrating these crimes it is nearly certain that illegal firearms were used". The targeted attack comes days after deadly shootings in Johannesburg. Eleven taxi drivers have been shot dead after attending a funeral in South Africa. Police in KwaZulu-Natal are appealing for information that could assist in an investigation, after 11 people were killed in suspected taxi-related violence at the weekend. In the third phase of the yatra, which Rahul Gandhi will join, the Congress aims to expose the failures of the TRS government in Telangana. Hyderabad: Congress president Rahul Gandhi will participate in the next phase of the party's Jana Chaitanya bus yatra in Telangana, beginning in the first week of next month. Rahul is likely to address a series of street corner meetings in Hyderabad as part of the yatra and in the neighbouring Ranga Reddy district, a party release said on Monday. The date and venue are likely to be finalised in the next few days. In the three phases of the bus yatra held so far, Congress leaders, led by Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy, have covered 40 out of the 119 Assembly segments in the state, where the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections are to be held simultaneously next year. The third phase of the yatra, aimed at exposing the alleged failures of the TRS government, was halted last month in view of Ramzan. Reddy, who was in Delhi to attend the Congress Working Committee meeting, held detailed a discussion with RC Khuntia, who is in charge of the Congress' affairs in Telangana. All India Congress Committee secretaries NS Bose Raju, Saleem Ahmed and Srinivasan Krishnan, assigned the task of supervising party activities in parliamentary constituencies, also took part in the discussions, the release said. Reddy, in his interaction with the media in Delhi, said the party was planning to release the manifesto and also announce candidates for elections early. He said the delay in the release of the manifesto and TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao's promises were the main reasons for the defeat of Congress in the 2014 elections in the Telangana. The TPCC chief said the manifesto, both at the national and state levels, should be released early. Reddy, a former senior IAF officer, also criticised the BJP for not divulging price details of the Rafale fighter jets. "I'm a former fighter pilot and had flown MIG-21 and MIG-23 while serving at Pakistan and China borders. There is no need to reveal the fighting capabilities like the range, missiles, etc... But the price cannot be a secret," he said. BJP had been making "a hue and cry" over the AgustaWestland helicopters over pricing issue, while it wants to keep the cost of a Rafale fighter jet a secret, he said. Shiv Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray slammed the BJP in an interview in his party mouthpiece Saamana and said the party was fighting for the dreams of the common man and not the dreams of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to several media reports. Shiv Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray slammed the BJP in an interview in his party mouthpiece Saamana and said the party was fighting for the dreams of the common man and not the dreams of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to several media reports. "We don't have only one friend. We are friends of the public," Uddhav said in the interview conducted by Shiv Sena Member of Parliament Sanjay Raut, according to a report in NDTV. He added, "I will hunt but don't need to shoot over anyone else's shoulder. Nor will I need a gun for the hunt." According to a report in Hindustan Times, Uddhav, in the 50-minute interview, discussed a variety of subjects. I dont accept the Hindutva that is being adhered to in the country, for the last three-four years. That is the not our idea of Hindutva. Our women are unsafe today, and you are protecting the cows. You cant target people for their eating preferences, he said, according to the report. Asian Age reported that Uddhav added, We are friends of Bhartiya janata, not of any party. Uddhav's interview comes just a day after BJP chief Amit Shah hinted that the saffron party would go it alone for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls during a closed-door assessment meeting of senior leaders in Mumbai. At the meeting, Shah laid down a 23-point working strategy and discussed issues such as increasing the party strength, addressing new voters' groups based on their profession, gender, likings etc. and a regular follow up of the voters by the local party workers. "The national president plainly stated that the strategy has to be implemented in all the Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in the state. At present, the BJP shares its political space with the Shiv Sena and a couple of smaller allies. It is a message that says 'prepare for contesting elections alone'. We will have to rush as the general election are now less than a year away," said a senior BJP minister who attended the meeting. On Friday, the Shiv Sena abstained from voting on the no-confidence motion in Lok Sabha moved by the Opposition against the Narendra Modi government. Just a day earlier, Sena's chief whip in Lok Sabha, Chandrakant Khaire, issued a whip to MPs asking them to be present in the House when the motion was discussed and to support the government. The BJP and Shiv Sena have been at loggerheads over a number of issues. From severely criticising demonetisation to releasing a 56-page booklet titled Ghotalebaaz BJP (Scamster BJP), that listed all the "scams" that allegedly took place under the Fadnavis government in Maharashtra, Sena has been stepping up its attacks against its alliance partner BJP. The recent among all these rebukes is Sena's disapproval and bitter opposition to proposed Rs 1.45 lakh crore oil refinery in coastal Maharashtra. Shiv Sena on Thursday said that the project won't be allowed to be "thrust" on the locals there. With Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections both scheduled for 2019, the Sena appears to be using these tactics to show its alliance partners that it holds all the cards and will emerge as the big brother in the state. With inputs from PTI BJP leader Subramanian Swamy is known for being outspoken and taking on the Opposition with his no-holds barred attitude. Swamy, who is a lawyer and Rajya Sabha MP, actively puts out aggressive posts on social media, specially on micro-blogging site Twitter, attacking mostly the Congress party and its members. BJP leader Subramanian Swamy is known for being outspoken and taking on the Opposition with his no-holds-barred attitude. Swamy, who is a lawyer and Rajya Sabha MP, actively puts out aggressive posts on social media, especially on micro-blogging site Twitter, attacking mostly the Congress party and its members. But recently, he has also drawn a lot of ire for his unsubstantial accusations and blatant allegations made on the Opposition leaders. For instance, he has been closely following and rallying against Congress leader P Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis corruption case. When the CBI filed a chargesheet against Chidambaram and his son Karti for alleged irregularities and criminal conspiracy in the deal case, Swamy had said: "People warned me that nobody can touch him. All judges are in his pocket. All police commissioners are in his pocket. But I said I am not in his pocket." It was only in June that Swamy had sought to implead himself as a party in the plea seeking probe into alleged disproportionate assets of a senior Enforcement Directorate officer investigating the Aircel-Maxis case. However, what is most appalling is his comment on Congress president Rahul Gandhi's gesture of hugging Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Parliament during the no-confidence motion debate on Friday. He said that he had told Modi to be careful and go and have a medical check-up (after the hug). Condemning Rahul's unexpected hug to the prime minister, Swamy said,"Rahul should not have embraced Modi like that. What does it say about the safety of the prime minister inside the Parliament? This is absolutely unethical and such a behaviour should be discouraged so that it does not happen again," Swamy said according to The New Indian Express' report. "If Rahul felt emotional he should have shook hands with Modi," he said. Swamy even compared the hug to Bijapur dynasty commander Afzal Khan's embrace to Maratha King Chhatrapati Shivaji. Namo should not have allowed Buddhu to hug him. Russians and North Koreans use the embrace technique to stick a poised needle. I think Namo should immediately go for a medical check to see if he has any microscopic puncture like Sunanda had on her hand Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 21, 2018 Swamy had earlier also reacted on Congress leader Shashi Tharoors Taliban in Hinduism remark. "Shashi Tharoor will be comfortable in Pakistan with his girlfriends", Swamy told The Economic Times. But this was not the first time he had made such remarks on Congress leaders. Swamy on Sunday had said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi rightly refers to the Congress as a "bailgaadi" as most of the members of the party are on bail. We PTs must celebrate the classic comment of Namo: Congi is Bail Gaadi. But it has taken us 4 1/4 years to get here because of obstruction of Namos four portfolio-ed colleague + G4. Now in the remaining 3/4 yrs with all clear, Bail Gaadi can reach Tihar Vihar Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 7, 2018 Swamy was referring to the National Herald case, wherein Rahul, Sonia Gandhi and AICC treasurer Motilal Vohra, are out on bail. Whereas senior party leaders P Chidambaram and Shashi Tharoor are out on anticipatory bails in the INX Media case and Sunanda Pushkar murder case respectively. According to a report by Zee News, in the National Herald case, Swamy has accused the Gandhis and others of conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds by paying only Rs 50 lakh, through which Young Indian Pvt Ltd (YI) obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore that Associate Journals Ltd owed to the Congress. Swamy had even alleged that the Congress party has Rs 120 lakh crore in foreign accounts and Sonia herself has Rs 11 lakh crore in her Pictet Bank account in Zurich, Switzerland. Congi is suffering from complex identity crisis: Sometimes it is janeodhari party, sometimes Shivbhakt party, sometime Christian run, sometimes Muslim party sometimes Pidi led!!!! Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 16, 2018 He had described the relationship between Sonia and former prime minister Manmohan Singh as similar to that of "a ringmaster and a lion". "As the lion is brought up by the ringmaster since he is a cub, he obeys him and only does what has been said to him despite understanding his power. Similarly, former prime minister Manmohan Singh only had Singh in his name. He was in the most powerful position in India but was under the control of the Italian ring master (referring to Sonia Gandhi). He didn't have the courage to take any decisions despite being qualified," Swamy had remarked according to the Zee News report. He has tweeted several controversial comments in the past as well including a scathing attack on Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh. RAW check how Punjab CM Amrinder Singh allows his Pakistani Mata Hari girl friend to be in the corridors of power in Punjab Secretariat. Instead RAW is cat's paw to the corrupt G4 and chasing Rajeshwar or pushing out Gupta our world expert on ISIS. Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 1, 2018 But he has not shied away from attacking people from his own party too. Swamy has been open in his criticism of finance secretary Hasmukh Adhia and had referred to him as a "sadist". PM must instruct Hasmukh Adhia to release EDs Rajeshwar promotion file which he is hiding for 8 months! What sadist is this Adhia is Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 3, 2018 On today's report in The Hindu defaming Rajeshwar, I called my friends in Chennai & Ahmedabad on how this bogus report got published. I am informed it was by Finance Secy Hasmukh Adhia. This gold biscuits sick mind is a clone of PC in mentality. Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 1, 2018 Sawmy had even asked Piyush Goyal to go for a "bureaucratic purge" in the Ministry of Finance when he took charge as the caretaker Finance Minister of India in Arun Jaitley absence. Now that Piyush is getting confident in handling the MoF, he must go for a bureaucratic purge. MoF is full of meglomanic tyrants who think nothing of trying to ruin honest officers careers. Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) July 22, 2018 But despite this vociferous approach as a sitting Rajya Sabha MP, Swamy isn't ready to back down and instead is equally vehement in his defence. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said that 'nationalist thinking' is needed for the development of a country. Etah (Uttar Pradesh): Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said that "nationalist thinking" is needed for the development of a country. At a public meeting in Etah, Adityanath said, "The Samajwadi Party encouraged casteism and dynasty politics. These cannot ensure the country's development. Nationalist thinking is needed for this purpose." "Uttar Pradesh is going to become the biggest state in terms of investment. The BJP is going to give employment to youths," he said. The chief minister also said that his government never differentiated between people when it came to providing them security. "It is the responsibility of the government take stringent action for the security of the people of the state and law and order," he said. Reuters Chinese e-commerce company JD.com plans to expand in Europe and aims to have finalised its strategy for entering the market by the end of the year, its chief executive told a German newspaper. Chinas second largest e-commerce business also wants to open an office in Germany by the end of 2018, the Handelsblatt daily cited Richard Liu as saying. For me its no longer just about selling products from Germany in China. I would also like to sell products in Europe, Liu told the paper. We have just got to clarify the details. JD.com is investing heavily in logistics and offline retail to expand beyond its base in China and Southeast Asia and establish a meaningful presence in US and European markets. Handelsblatt said Liu would also consider takeovers to help its foray into the European market. If we see a good opportunity then we will seize it, he said. Agence France-Presse Elon Musk has reached an agreement with a US potter who accused him of using his farting unicorn design on Tesla products without permission. Tom Edwards, of Evergreen, Colorado, wrote on his website on 20 July that the issue had been resolved "in a way that everyone feels good about!" while Musk tweeted a screenshot of the same statement. The story began last year after the billionaire founder of the electric car firm and SpaceX tweeted a picture of Edwards' colourful mug, which depicts a crudely drawn unicorn against a rainbow, with smiley-face emojis in the background. The mythical creature is seen passing wind into a funnel that is connected to a car. "Electric cars are good for the environment because electricity comes from magic," reads the back. Musk called it "maybe my favourite mug ever" and the publicity led to a slight bump in sales for Edwards, who was happy that the South African-born entrepreneur, often hailed as a leading tech innovator and visionary, was a fan of his work. But Edwards' admiration turned to disappointment when he found out the image had made its way into Tesla's promotional materials and even its operating system, for which he had not received compensation. That prompted a bitter exchange on Twitter where Edwards' daughter Lisa Prank wrote that Musk had "ripped off my dad's art! this is a true story! what do you have to say for yourself @elonmusk ??" Musk initially credited the work to another artist and described the row as "kinda lame," adding that Edwards should be happy it had boosted his mug sales. The news came days after Musk apologised for calling a British diver who helped rescue 12 Thai boys from a cave a "pedo" (short for "pedophile"). His initial comment drew widespread outrage and briefly sent Tesla shares tumbling. The tirade raised concerns over the entrepreneur's stability and leadership, coming after a series of previous social media attacks on Wall Street analysts, journalists and employees. Edwards, for his part, was magnanimous in his response. "It's clear there were some misunderstandings that led to this escalating, but I'm just glad that everything has been cleared up," wrote the 61-year-old, a self-described "ceramics geek" who began working in pottery in the late 1970s after dropping out of graduate school. "I've always been a Tesla fan, and I'm looking forward to getting back to making pots and selling them in my online store," he added. tech2 News Staff Launching just 3 weeks from now, Samsungs Galaxy Note 9 has already been revealed thanks to numerous leaks with some live images revealing the design of the upcoming smartphone as well. While some of these leaks also revealed a colourful, new S Pen, theres little known about what the new stylus would bring in terms of features until now. The folks at XDA ripped up the recently leaked Galaxy Tab S4 firmware for answers and they did find plenty of new features, which should technically arrive on both the tablet and the new Note 9. They teared down the latest version of the AirCommand app from the Tab S4 firmware and found plenty of strings (lines of code) and whole images showcasing features about the wireless S Pen. One big detail that did get confirmed was the presence of a built-in battery, but the capacity of the same could not be confirmed. Indeed, this hints at few new advanced features, that could not be possible with previous S Pen becasue it did not come with a battery built in and worked with an electromagnetic field instead. Other strings and images reveal that users will also be able to use the S Pen to control music playback, with the ability to play and pause music and even skip tracks. As for more practical uses of the S Pen, it can also be used as a remote camera shutter which makes it useful in situations where you hold your phone in one hand in crowd and use the S Pen's click as the shutter button to click photos. This is also useful for smartphone photography enthusiasts who use manual features of the camera that often requires a tripod setup. Another practical feature discovered in the apk teardown is the ability to unlock the device using the S Pen, even when the stylus has been removed from its slot. With the added battery we arent clear about whether the S Pen will function as a smart unlock feature (available using smartwatches and other accessories) or whether Samsung has included a fingerprint reader in the button of the S Pen. While the currently available S Pen already opens up some S Pen features upon a single click, the new S Pen is also expected to feature a double click both of which are expected to be customisable letting users assign functions to both clicks. XDA warns that since the S Pen on the Tab S3 came separately and not with the device, Samsung like Apple will have to figure out a charging method for the new S Pen that now features a battery. On the Note 9 however, we dont expect this to be a problem as the accessory could easily be charged when docked inside the smartphone. Previously leaked details of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 include a design that looks very similar to the currently available Galaxy Note 8 but this now includes a horizontally placed dual camera setup at the back with a fingerprint reader sensibly placed below the camera ring. Other details include a 4,000 mAh battery along with faster wireless charging, a new dual camera setup and an upgraded Bixby 2.0 experience as compared to that on the Galaxy S9+. tech2 News Staff There is no winning against social media! After noticing that a lot of WhatsApp forwards that are sent out in groups or individual chats may be the reason for the spread of misinformation, the onus of what information was shared in group chats, at least, was seen with the administrators of these groups. However, in certain cases, as it seems, this onus may be miscalculated as well. According to a report by Times of India, Junaid Khan, a 21-year-old BSc student from Rajgarh, Madhya Pradesh, has been in jail since the past five months for an objectionable message that was sent on a group he was a part of. Khan was arrested for being the administrator of the group, but his family argues that he was not even the admin of the group originally. The said objectionable message was apparently sent by a user named Irfan, who was also the admin, but he later exited the chat, which made Junaid the group admin by default. The 21-year-old has been in jail since 14 February and was booked under the IT Act and IPC Section 124 A for sedition. Now, the cops say that they arrested Khan on the basis of the evidence that he was the admin of the group, when a complaint was registered against the forward message that came from the group. Junaids cousin Farukh Khan says that the 21-year-old was unable to write his exam because he was denied a bail due to being booked for sedition. His cousin says that they approached senior cops and the chief ministers helpline, but did not hear back from anyone. Simultaneously, the police officer who was originally investigating the case, reportedly said, Junaids family members did not say this when he was arrested. Now, after the challan has been put up in court, they say he was the default admin. If they have any evidence, they should produce it in court. Irfan, too, was arrested and when the matter came to our cognisance, Junaid was the admin of the group." According to the police officer, there was no way to ascertain who was the group admin when the forward was shared by Irfan. "We filed the challan on the basis of the evidence available with us, said the officer. Agence France-Presse Never mind Brexit: For a remote peninsula in the Scottish highlands, the buzz is all about hi-tech rocket launchers firing satellites into space. In just three years' time, rockets will send satellites into orbit from the rugged stretch of coastline, under British government plans unveiled this week. The sleepy county of Caithness and Sutherland has been selected as the site of the country's first ever space port, Britain announced at the Farnborough Airshow, a showpiece event for the global aerospace sector. The UK Space Agency awarded a 2.5-million ($3.3-million) grant towards the construction of a vertical space port facility in Sutherland, which will become operational in 2021. The announcement has boosted hopes for an industry worried about the effects of Britain leaving the European Union and raised spirits in pro-EU Scotland, which was outvoted in the 2016 referendum. "It is rocket science," Roy Kirk, area manager for Caithness and Sutherland at Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), a development agency for Scotland's devolved government, said in an interview with AFP at Farnborough. The launchers, made by established player Lockheed Martin and startup business Orbex, will stand 17 metres (56 feet) tall and will fire rockets that take just eight minutes to get into orbit. Boost to local economy "We are delighted we have been selected as a spaceport for vertical launch," said Kirk, adding that the site would also create tourism opportunities. "The local economy will benefit." The space port would employ about 40 staff within three years of operation, but the supply chain around that would support nearer 400 jobs. Satellite uses include navigation, weather forecasting, telecommunications and financial transactions, while they are also vital for defence and energy sectors. The Sutherland facility will cost an estimated 17.3 million to build, including some 10 million from HIE. The port will be well positioned geographically to launch satellite rockets over the North Pole. 'No different than before Brexit' Prime Minister Theresa May's government is seeking to develop the UK space industry after its role in European space projects was called into question by Brexit. Space is one of Britain's fastest growing sectors and generates more than 13 billion of income per year. "Our ambition to grow the space sector is in no way any different than it was before Brexit," Graham Turnock, head of the UK Space Agency, told AFP on the sidelines of Farnborough. "We are actually looking to the opportunities for trade deals with the rest of the world after Brexit so we are very positive about that. "We are still aiming to achieve 10 percent of the world space market by 2030. We are very confident that we can do that." He also sought to dispel concerns that Britain's departure from the European Union in 2019 would hurt the industry. "Obviously we are talking to the EU about our future participation in the space programmes. "We have said that we'd very much like to continue to participate in Galileo Copernicus, but it takes two sides to want to have that discussion." Britain wants continued participation in the EU's Galileo satellite navigation system, but Brussels rejects the idea. UK Transport Secretary Chris Grayling meanwhile appeared at Farnborough to champion the space investment. "After pioneering the development of those small satellites over many years, adding our own space ports means we can now move to offering customers a one stop shop in the United Kingdom," Grayling told delegates. "A full package of services, from design to build and right up to launch." Focus on strategy Brexit has sparked uncertainty but also opportunity, some academics argue. "The main impact of Brexit right now is uncertainty," said Martin Barstow, professor of astrophysics and space science at the University of Leicester, which is launching a government-backed global industry hub Space Park in the central English city in 2020. "Having said that, there have been some positive consequences as a result," he added, citing government investment in both Space Park Leicester and the Sutherland spaceport. "The government suddenly needed to focus on industrial strategy and suddenly needed to focus on investment in the regions quite quickly." Agence France-Presse Russia's FSB security services on Friday raided a top space research centre in a probe into staff alleged to be spying for the West, the Kommersant daily reported, citing sources. "This morning, the FSB raided offices of staff at the Central Research Institute of Machine-Building," which is a subsidiary of Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, Kommersant reported, citing sources in law enforcement agencies. It reported that the FSB carried out raids in the town of Korolyov outside Moscow after finding out that Western security services had information on "secret hypersonic developments by Russian industry." Sources told the newspaper the probe was over "high treason," with around 10 people suspected of "cooperation with Western secret services." The Russian space agency confirmed that an investigation was taking place and its chief Dmitry Rogozin had been informed, but did not give any details. "Dmitry Rogozin is informed on this case and gave an order to give the investigative group every assistance," a space agency spokesman told RIA Novosti news agency. No one was immediately able to comment to AFP at Roscosmos or the research institute. The FSB has not released any statement on the investigation. Kommersant reported that searches were also being carried out at the Moscow office of a senior figure at the Russian spacecraft manufacturer Energia, the director of its research and analysis centre Dmitry Paison. RIA Novosti reported, quoting sources, that Paison was of interest to investigators as a person "who might know about the situation" but his work did not involve access to secret information. The raids come after President Vladimir Putin in March boasted at a state-of-the-nation address of new "invincible" weapons under development, including hypersonic missiles. Israel will continue to act against any attempts by Iran and its satellites aimed at establishing military presence in Syria, Netanyahu stressed. Netanyahu announced earlier at a Cabinet meeting that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a few days ago requested the meeting with the high level delegation that includes Russia's chief of the military's General Staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov. "Over the years, this regime has been spoiled by the major powers, and it is good to see that the USA is changing this unacceptable equation", Netanyahu stated. Trump on Sunday night warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani of dire consequences for threatening the US. Meanwhile, Israel and Russian Federation reportedly reached an understanding over the future power structure in southwest Syria; this, as the Syrian army winds down a successful operation to retake rebel-held areas along both the Israeli and Jordanian borders. SANA news agency reported one of the military positions in Mesyaf in the countryside of the central province of Hama was hit by the Israelis on Sunday. Israel's main concern is to keep its archenemy Iran, that is fighting alongside the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad, as far away from its border as possible - along with its proxy, the Lebanese Hezbollah and other militia. The Russian president and the Israeli prime minister held a meeting in Moscow on July 11, which the Israeli prime minister described as "very important". He said the two leaders recently spoke on the phone. Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescues the wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-held territory. Agence France-Presse The US administration of President Donald Trump on Thursday proposed sweeping changes to the 45-year-old Endangered Species Act which would roll back protections for threatened animals, sparking alarm by environmentalists. The 1973 federal law is considered the gold standard for global environmental protection, and is credited with saving dozens of key species from extinction, including bald eagles, manatees, humpback whales and American alligators. One proposed change, announced by the Interior and Commerce Departments, would remove a sentence that aims to separate economic impacts from decisions about animal protection. Other provisions would vary protections for animals on a case-by-case basis. Meanwhile, another suggested change would remove a clause that automatically conveys the same protections to threatened species as endangered species. "This change will not affect the protections for species currently listed as threatened, but will ensure that species listed as threatened in the future receive the protections tailored to the species' individual conservation needs," said the Fish and Wildlife Service in a statement. Endangered species are currently defined as "in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range," while threatened species are likely to become in danger of extinction within the "foreseeable future." The proposals are now open for a 60-day public comment period, and may become law by year's end. Environmental advocates said they vigorously oppose the proposed changes, describing them as attempts to strip a decades-long tradition. "The regulatory changes proposed today are a transparent effort to weaken the Endangered Species Act by simply putting up roadblocks in front of effective management and creating unnecessary bureaucracy, with the final result putting threatened species in more peril," said Wildlife Conservation Society executive vice president John Calvelli. "We are concerned that the proposed changes will enable other considerations to influence decisions. We cannot condone the dilution of the role of science." 'Catering to industry' Administration officials described the proposals as an effort to make good on Trump's campaign pledge to cut regulations. "The Trump Administration is dedicated to being a good neighbour and being a better partner with the communities in which we operate," said US Fish and Wildlife Service principal deputy director Greg Sheehan. "One thing we heard over and over again was that ESA implementation was not consistent and often times very confusing to navigate. We are proposing these improvements to produce the best conservation results for the species while reducing the regulatory burden on the American people." Senator Tom Carper, the top Democrat on the Environment and Public Works Committee, said he would fight the proposals because the Endangered Species Act is "one of our country's most popular and successful" environmental protection laws." The proposals "are yet more examples of the Trump Administration catering to industry instead of the interests of the American people," he said. A study published Wednesday in the journal Conservation Letters found widespread support among the American public for the Endangered Species Act, despite oft-repeated claims that its provisions are controversial. In all, just one in 10 Americans opposes it, said results of a survey over more than 1,200 Americans. Support is broad across the political spectrums, with 74 percent of conservatives, 77 percent of moderates and 90 percent of liberals saying they support the act. Despite this, legislative attacks on the federal law to protect endangered species have been mounting in recent years, lead author Jeremy Bruskotter of Ohio State University said in a statement Wednesday. "In the 1990s and 2000s, a typical year saw roughly five attempts to amend the act or curtail its protections. But from 2011 to 2015, there were about 33 legislative attacks per year - and there have been almost 150 in the last two years alone," he said. "Government should be responsive to its citizens, but our research suggests that is not how government is working, at least not when it comes to environmental policy." Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday praised President Donald Trump's 'tough stand' against Iran after the US leader issued a stark warning to the Islamic republic. Jerusalem: Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday praised President Donald Trump's "tough stand" against Iran after the US leader issued a stark warning to the Islamic Republic. "I would like to praise the tough stand expressed on Sunday by President Trump and Secretary of State (Mike) Pompeo against the aggression of the Iranian regime," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting. "Over the years, this regime has been spoiled by the major powers and it is good to see that the US is changing this unacceptable equation." Iran is Israel's main enemy and Netanyahu has long pushed for a tougher stand against it by international powers. He has repeatedly lauded the Trump White House's hawkish rhetoric toward the country. Trump used Twitter on Sunday to send out an all-caps salvo: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Iranian president Hassan Rouhani had on Sunday warned Trump not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". Trump's comments came after Pompeo, in a major address to the Iranian diaspora in California, said Washington was not afraid to sanction top-ranking leaders of the "nightmare" Iranian regime. Netanyahu lobbied hard to have the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers cancelled, and Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in May. All other parties to the deal Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China have sought to keep the deal in effect, saying it is working as intended by preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons for now. Netanyahu has also pledged to keep Iran from entrenching itself militarily in neighbouring Syria, where Tehran is supporting President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war. A series of strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel. Russian visit Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and Moscow's military chief of staff will arrive in Israel later Monday for talks on the Syrian conflict. Russia is also supporting Assad in the war. Netanyahu has held a series of talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin in recent months on Syria and Iran. Netanyahu said Putin requested the meeting with Lavrov and General Valery Gerasimov "in a conversation with me a few days ago". On 19 June, Syrian government forces launched a Russia-backed offensive to retake Daraa and Quneitra provinces in the country's south, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Regime forces have now regained control of most of the two provinces through a combination of deadly bombardment and Moscow-brokered surrender deals. Israel is eager to obtain guarantees that Iranian forces and allied groups, such as Hezbollah, are kept away from the Golan. Separately on Sunday, Israel evacuated hundreds of White Helmets rescuers and their family members threatened by advancing Syrian regime forces to Jordan for resettlement in Western countries. Jordan's foreign ministry announced in a statement that the kingdom received 422 Syrian citizens, after earlier saying it had given permission for 800 to arrive. Founded in 2013, the Syria Civil Defence, or White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescues the wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-held territory. BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian government on Monday condemned the evacuation of hundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers and their families with the help of Israeli soldiers, calling it a 'criminal operation' undertaken by 'Israel and its tools'. The rescue workers and their families crossed out of Syria into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights before arriving in Jordan over the weekend, fleeing an offensive by Syria and its Russian ally to take control of southwest Syria from rebels. Israel said it had helped with the evacuation at the request of U.S BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian government on Monday condemned the evacuation of hundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers and their families with the help of Israeli soldiers, calling it a "criminal operation" undertaken by "Israel and its tools". The rescue workers and their families crossed out of Syria into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights before arriving in Jordan over the weekend, fleeing an offensive by Syria and its Russian ally to take control of southwest Syria from rebels. Israel said it had helped with the evacuation at the request of U.S. President Donald Trump and other leaders - and there had been fears that the rescue workers' lives were at risk. The Syrian government has accused the White Helmets, also known as Syria Civil Defence, of being a Western-sponsored terrorist organisation. President Bashar al-Assad has called the White Helmets part of al Qaeda in Syria. The White Helmets was established as a rescue service in rebel-held areas of the country, where its volunteers have often worked to save people trapped under the rubble of government bombardment. Syrian state news agency SANA, citing a foreign ministry official, said the evacuation "exposed the true nature of the organisation known as the White Helmets", calling it a risk to stability and security "because of its terrorist nature". The group said its people and buildings have been specifically targeted by the Syrian government and its allies throughout the more than seven-year-old war. In a statement on Monday the group said during the southwest campaign four of its volunteers were killed and dozens injured, four White Helmet centres were hit and rescue vehicles were destroyed by Syrian government bombardment. "Since our formation, 251 volunteers have been killed in the line of duty, the majority from 'double-tap strikes'," the group said. The White Helmets said 98 male and female volunteers and 324 family members were now in Jordan, having travelled through the occupied Golan Heights. As Assad has won back areas such as eastern Aleppo and Ghouta, the rescue workers have left on buses to rebel-held areas of the north as part of agreed surrender deals, along with fighters and civilians who fear a return of government rule. In the southwestern campaign, however, the White Helmets said the deals agreed "did not include any guarantees of safe passage for displaced humanitarian workers to other areas of Syria", making the international evacuation necessary. "It was the only alternative for our trapped volunteers who would otherwise have faced detention or death at the hands of the Syrian regime and its ally Russia," it said. A Jordanian government source said the evacuees will be kept in a "closed" location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months. A second non-Jordanian source said the original plan had been to evacuate 800 people, but only 422 made it out as operations were hampered by government checkpoints and the expansion of Islamic State in the area. (Writing by Tom Perry and Lisa Barrington; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Ros Russell) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Donald Trump's response came after Hassan Rouhani earlier issued his own warning to the US leader not to 'play with the lion's tail.' Washington: President Donald Trump on Sunday warned Iran of consequences "the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered," if it threatens the United States. "Never, ever threaten the united states again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before," Trump said on Twitter in a direct message to Iranian president Hassan Rouhani. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 "We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious!" Trump said, writing the entire message in capital letters. The response came after Rouhani earlier Sunday issued his own warning to the US leader not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". The high-stakes verbal sparring is reminiscent of the exchanges Trump had last year with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, before tensions eased and the two leaders met this year in an historic summit. Trump has made Iran a favorite target since his unexpected rapprochement with nuclear-armed North Korea. CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned on Sunday that Arab countries, including Egypt, were vulnerable to imploding from within under what he described as a barrage of rumours aimed at spreading instability. Addressing a military academy graduation ceremony in Cairo, Sisi said that his government had detected 21,000 false rumours over a period of three months. Sisi, who was elected president after he led the army in ousting Mohamed Mursi following mass protests against the Islamist president's one year in office, sees himself as trying to rebuild Egypt following years of turmoil that began in 2011. CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi warned on Sunday that Arab countries, including Egypt, were vulnerable to imploding from within under what he described as a barrage of rumours aimed at spreading instability. Addressing a military academy graduation ceremony in Cairo, Sisi said that his government had detected 21,000 false rumours over a period of three months. Sisi, who was elected president after he led the army in ousting Mohamed Mursi following mass protests against the Islamist president's one year in office, sees himself as trying to rebuild Egypt following years of turmoil that began in 2011. "The real danger is blowing up countries from within. Rumours, acts of terrorism, loss of hope and feeling of frustration, all these work in a grand network aimed at one objective, only one objective, and that is to move people to destroy their country," Sisi said, speaking in Arabic. "Destroying our countries will not happen unless it came from within. We must be alert and pay attention to what is being spun against us in secret," he added, without naming any party. He said that while he understood the economic hardships that ordinary Egyptians are enduring due to economic reforms, nothing justifies "causing chaos and destroying the state". Sisi's government has faced criticism from ordinary Egyptians over the raising of fuel, electricity and transportation prices, part of IMF-backed reforms that called for lifting subsidies on fuel prices causing economic hardships to many Egyptians. Critics accuse Sisi's government of presiding over the most serious crackdown on dissent since 2011, jailing thousands of people, most of them Islamists but also including liberals who opposed his policies. Supporters say Sisi's policies were necessary to bring stability to the most populous country in the Arab world and save it from the anarchy and destruction witnessed by other Arab countries such as Syria and Libya. At the ceremony, which was attended by senior army officers including former army chief Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, Sisi also lavished praise on army officers who overthrew the monarchy in 1952 in what is known as the "July 23 Revolution", including the late presidents Mohammed Naguib, Gamal Abdel Nasser and Anwar Sadat. Sisi also decorated Youssef Siddiq, one of the Free Officers who fell out of favour with the Revolutionary Command Council due to differences over running the country after 1952 until he died in 1975, with the Nile Medal, the country's highest honour. "My dad had no medals or any decorations. This is the first medal to be placed in the history of Youssef Siddiq," Siddiq's daughter, Laila, who received the medal, told Reuters. "What happened today was an act of justice to Youssef Siqqiq and his history, which had been deliberately suppressed," she added. (Reporting by Ahmed Tolba and Mahmoud Mourad, writing by Sami Aboudi; Editing by Adrian Croft) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Thirty-two prominent former U.S. diplomats and 11 aid groups on Monday urged U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo not to eliminate a key State Department refugee bureau, warning that the move would be 'an error of grave proportion.' In a letter to Pompeo, the former diplomats and national security advisers who served both Democratic and Republican administrations, said eliminating the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) office would impact the U.S By Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Thirty-two prominent former U.S. diplomats and 11 aid groups on Monday urged U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo not to eliminate a key State Department refugee bureau, warning that the move would be "an error of grave proportion." In a letter to Pompeo, the former diplomats and national security advisers who served both Democratic and Republican administrations, said eliminating the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) office would impact the U.S. ability to influence global refugee policy. The letter comes barely a year after 58 U.S. policy experts warned Rex Tillerson, former secretary of state, against such a move. The Trump administration has defended its hardline immigration policy, including a travel ban against some countries and the detention of immigrants entering the United States illegally. "We are convinced that the elimination of PRM's assistance functions would have profound and negative implications for the Secretary of State's capacity to influence policy issues of key concern to the United States," the former diplomats wrote. "It would also be ironic, as this is one of the bureaus at State that has enjoyed strong bipartisan support over many years." The State Department did not immediately respond to questions about the possible elimination of the refugee office. Those signing the letter included William Burns, former undersecretary of state for political affairs; Rand Beers, former deputy assistant to the president for homeland security; Nicholas Burns, former undersecretary of state for political affairs; Ryan Crocker, former ambassador to Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait and Lebanon; Ellen Laipson, former vice chair of the U.S. National Intelligence Council; Anne Richard, former assistant secretary of state for PRM; and Frederick Barton, a former U.N. deputy high commissioner for refugees. Among the aid groups that signed the letter was Scott Arbeiter, president of World Relief; David Miliband, president and CEO of International Rescue Committee; Eric Schwartz, president of Refugee International; Wendy Young, president of Kids in Need of Defense; and Neil Keny-Guyer, CEO of Mercy Corps. A former U.S. administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the possibility of the bureau being cut was "proudly disheartening." "This administration has unfortunately diminished significantly its support in many respects for the operations benefiting refugees, but this measure would compound those problems," the official said. The United Nations reported last month that the global number of refugees grew by a record 2.9 million in 2017 to 25.4 million, with another 43.1 million people forcibly displaced. (Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Tom Brown) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Vassilis Triandafyllou and Renee Maltezou KINETA, Greece (Reuters) - Greece issued an urgent appeal for help to tackle forest fires which raged uncontrolled in several places across the country on Monday, destroying homes, disrupting major transport links and sending people fleeing for their lives. One person died in a blaze east of Athens, and at least 25 people were injured. Authorities were also investigating reports that up to 10 tourists, possibly Danish, were missing after heading out on a boat to escape. By Vassilis Triandafyllou and Renee Maltezou KINETA, Greece (Reuters) - Greece issued an urgent appeal for help to tackle forest fires which raged uncontrolled in several places across the country on Monday, destroying homes, disrupting major transport links and sending people fleeing for their lives. One person died in a blaze east of Athens, and at least 25 people were injured. Authorities were also investigating reports that up to 10 tourists, possibly Danish, were missing after heading out on a boat to escape. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras cut short a visit to Bosnia because of the crisis, which has stretched Greece's firefighting abilities to full capacity. "We will do whatever is humanly possible to control it," said Tsipras. But he hinted that so many fires at once needed further scrutiny." "I'm concerned at the simultaneous outbreaks both east and west of Attica," he said. Greece said it needed air and land assets from its European Union partners as the Attica region was engulfed in some of the worst fires the country has seen since 2007, when dozens of people died. Cyprus has already offered to send fire engines and personnel. Fires were raging west of Athens, and in a densely-populated area to its east. In the eastern area of Rafina, some people were stranded on a beach, while boats were picking up individuals who had jumped into the water to protect themselves from the blaze. Reuters witnesses reported seeing a hillside of homes gutted by flames east of Athens. A local mayor said he saw at least 100 homes burning, and 200 vehicles. Greek authorities urged residents of a coastal region west of Athens to abandon their homes as a wildfire burned ferociously, closing one of Greece's busiest motorways, halting train links and sending plumes of smoke over the capital. The cause is unknown. 'JUST LEAVE' Wildfires are not uncommon in Greece, but a relatively dry winter created tinderbox conditions. The army was drafted in on Monday afternoon to help fight the blazes. Some flights, mainly landings, were disrupted on Monday afternoon by low visibility and diverted elsewhere, air traffic controllers said. Authorities were looking for a vessel with up to 10 individuals who had fled the Rafina area on a boat, then called a Danish emergency number for assistance, a coastguard official said. Another 80 people were rescued after being stranded on the water's edge away from the flames. Authorities deployed more than 200 firefighters and 60 engines from across Greece to deal with the massive blaze at Kineta, a small resort town about 54 km (35 miles) west of Athens on a route tens of thousands of drivers use daily to reach the Peloponnese. A senior fire chief went on state TV to appeal to people to leave the area after some tried to stay in their properties. "People should leave, close up their homes and just leave. People cannot tolerate so much smoke for so many hours," Achilleas Tzouvaras said. "This is an extreme situation." Dozens of homes were thought to have been damaged or destroyed by the blaze. Some householders took up hosepipes to douse the fires while police assisted with the evacuation of some areas. The main Athens-Corinth motorway, one of two road routes to the Peloponnese peninsula, was shut and train services were cancelled. Raging across land around the Saronicos Gulf, the blaze ravaged tracts of pine forest and was visible for miles. An ominous cloud of black-orange smoke hung over the Acropolis hill and the Parthenon temple in Athens on Monday afternoon. Live footage showed thick plumes of smoke hanging low over Rafina, an area east of Athens which has a population of at least 20,000. "I personally saw at least 100 homes in flames," said Evangelos Bournous, mayor of the Rafina-Pikermi area. "I saw it with my eyes, it is a real total catastrophe." (Additional reporting by Alkis Konstantinidis, writing by Michele Kambas; Editing by Andrew Bolton) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. CAIRO (Reuters) - Islamic State said on Sunday a suicide bomber targeted the Afghan vice president near Kabul airport, the group's Amaq news agency. It said the bomber detonated his suicide jacket at a celebration held to receive the vice president, Abdul Rashid Dostum, but gave no further details CAIRO (Reuters) - Islamic State said on Sunday a suicide bomber targeted the Afghan vice president near Kabul airport, the group's Amaq news agency. It said the bomber detonated his suicide jacket at a celebration held to receive the vice president, Abdul Rashid Dostum, but gave no further details. Dostum narrowly escaped a suicide bomb attack at Kabul airport as he returned home on Sunday from more than a year in exile in Turkey over allegations of torturing and abusing a political rival. (Reporting by Ali Abdelaty, writing by Sami Aboudi; Editing by Dale Hudson) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Incarcerated ousted Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif is suffering from chest pain and urinary infection and is on the 'verge of kidney failure', Pakistani news media reported. Incarcerated ousted Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif is suffering from chest pain and urinary infection and is on the "verge of kidney failure", Pakistani news media reported. A team of doctors from the Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology, headed by its chief executive Major General (retired) Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani, found that the water levels in Sharif's body were very low, which resulted in his erratic heartbeat, reported The Express Tribune. The urea quantity in his blood flow has also increased, which could lead to kidney failure. The medical team's report suggested that the PML-N supremo, who is currently lodged at Adiala jail, be shifted to a hospital at the earliest. According to Dunya News, interim Punjab law minister Zia Haider Rizvi confirmed the development but said the authorities were yet to receive a formal application. He said that the provincial authorities will constitute a medical board and take their suggestions once they receive the application. Quoting jail sources, Geo News reported that it was the heat led to dehydration in Sharif's body. The news report also added that the Adiala jail superintendent has written to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS Hospital) to set up a medical board in light of Sharif's health. On Saturday, it was reported that Sharif's son-in-law Captian (retired) Safdar, who is also at Adiala jail, fell ill during a meeting with his legal team, reported The Express Tribune. Sharif is jailed in a separate cell in a 'Better Class' portion of the Adiala jail and has been issued a steel bed, table, chair, newspapers, sheets for his personal bed, personal clothes, one ceiling fan, two bracket fans and toiletries. He has also been allowed to keep a 21-inch TV. Sharif, 68, and his daughter Maryam, 44, were arrested in Lahore on 13 July on their arrival from London after an accountability court found them guilty over his family's ownership of four luxury flats in London. They were later taken to Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. Both Sharif and Maryam have been sentenced by an accountability court to 10 and seven years in prison respectively for corruption charges linked to Panama Papers scandal. Sharif, a three-time prime minister, remains popular, especially in Punjab, the most populous and electorally significant province. With inputs from PTI A medical board which examined Nawaz Sharif on Monday recommended the immediate shifting of the jailed former Pakistan prime minister to a hospital but the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supremo insisted that the required medical facilities should be provided to him in the jail itself, according to a media report. Islamabad: A medical board which examined Nawaz Sharif on Monday recommended the immediate shifting of the jailed former Pakistan prime minister to a hospital but the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supremo insisted that the required medical facilities should be provided to him in the jail itself, according to a media report. Sharif, 68, and his daughter Maryam, 44, are serving jail terms of 10 years and 7 years respectively in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, after an accountability court convicted them on 6 July over the family's ownership of four luxury flats in London. A four-member team of doctors from the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) comprising cardiologist Dr Naeem Malik, Medical Specialist Dr Shaji Siddiqui, neurologist Dr Sohail Tanvir and Dr Mashood examined Sharif, sources said. Sharif has multiple health issues: heart problems, hypertension and diabetes. He already underwent open heart surgery in London in 2016. Citing family sources, Urdu langauge daily 'Jang' said the medical board has recommended to immediately shift Sharif to hospital, but he insisted that the required medical facilities should be provided to him in the jail itself. The doctors in their report said that oppressive heat and dehydration caused by sweating were cause of Sharif's illness. They said his condition aggravated due lack of sleep and delay in provision of treatment. They found excessive Urea in his blood and warned that it can affect the kidneys. More tests will be performed on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Pakistan president Mamnoon Hussain expressed concerns at Sharif's health conditions and asked the government to ensure his treatment. In a phone call to Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk, the President "expressed concerns" at the health condition of Sharif and asked him to "ensure complete treatment of the former prime minister", according to a statement issued by the President House. Sharif's family and the party also voiced concerns at the reports about his health complications. His younger brother and PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif said that he had already raised the issue of poor jail condition in a letter addressed to the Punjab government and asked for provision of facilities to the former premier. PML-N leader Pervaiz Rashid also expressed concerns at Sharif's health and demanded that he should be provided complete medical care. Earlier, a team of doctors from Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC), headed by its Chief Executive Major General (retd) Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani, visited the prison and compiled a report after carrying out a detailed medical check-up, the Express Tribune reported. Although his personal physician Dr Adnan had seen him twice in recent days, the jail administration called doctors from RIC to be sure of what had happened. The team spent about one-and-a-half hour inspecting his condition. According to the RIC medical team, his body's water levels are very low, which has made his heartbeat erratic now. The amount of urea in his blood has also become very high, which could even lead to kidney failure, the report said. They had recommended to shift Sharif to hospital immediately. Sharif had complained about his health on Saturday. The Punjab Prisons sources told Daily Express that they are waiting for the Punjab home department's orders about shifting Sharif to the hospital. Caretaker provincial ministers Shaukat Javed and Ahmed Waqas Riaz confirmed that Sharif's medical tests suggested he had kidney issues. The caretaker government is in touch with jail authorities and Sharif is getting better medical facilities, they added. Meanwhile, Barrister Zafrullah Khan of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has filed a petition with the Supreme Court to declare residences of Sharif and his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Muhammad Safdar as sub-jails. Also known as a total lunar eclipse, it happens only when the earth passes exactly between the sun and the moon. The eclipse won't be visible from North America, Noah Petro, a scientist for the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, told ABC News. NASA officials says people in the Middle East, south and eastern Africa, western and southeast Asia and India will have the best views. The lunar eclipse totality (when the earth's shadow is blocking all of the moon) will last just shy of an hour and 43 minutes. "The total phase of the eclipse - called the totality - spans 1 hour 42 minutes and 57 seconds", said EarthSky's Bruce McClure. When will we see the lunar eclipse? . Those on the east coast will not see the Moon leave the shadow but people living further west should see almost all of the lunar eclipse. Sky Live TV will broadcast the lunar eclipse from Hess, Namibia and has the option for Spanish commentary also. That gives you plenty of time to stock up on those eclipse glasses you tossed after the big eclipse a year ago. The total eclipse will start in Eastern European hubs like Bucharest and Moscow at 10:30 p.m. local time. What is a lunar eclipse? Sometimes Earth moves between the sun and the moon. At that time, Earth blocks most of the sunlight that would usually hit the moon, so that much of the moon is in Earth's shadow. A lunar eclipse can occur only when the moon is full. A lunar eclipse can be seen from Earth at night. Earlier this month, on July 13, there was a partial solar eclipse, which gave rise to several superstitions owing to its date (Friday, the 13th). A lunar eclipse occurs when the moon passes directly behind the earth and into its shadow. Although the moon is in Earth's shadow, some sunlight still reaches the moon. During the eclipse, the moon will appear red, giving it the nickname "blood moon". This year has been unusual with regard to eclipses. A partial lunar eclipse is seen from in Nice, France, Aug. 7, 2017. In December 2011, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter gathered data about how quickly the moon's day side (the side that always faces Earth) cools during a lunar eclipse. If an area of the moon's surface is flat, it will cool quickly. Narendra Modi's three-nation Africa tour begins with Rwanda and will end at the BRICS Summit in South Africa. Kigali: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday arrived in Rwanda on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. The prime minister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport, where he was given a red carpet welcome in the evening. His two-day state visit to Rwanda one of Africa's fastest-growing economies assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. Prime Minister Modi will hold bilateral meetings with President Paul Kagame, delegation-level talks and meetings with the business and Indian communities, a statement from the Prime Minister's Office said. He will also visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. A defence cooperation agreement is also expected to be signed between India and Rwanda during the visit, TS Tirumurti, secretary (economic relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, had said in New Delhi last week. India will also be opening a mission in Rwanda very soon, he had added. "During this visit, we expect to conclude two lines of credit one of $100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone and another one for $100 million for agriculture and irrigation," he had said. An important element of the programme would be Modi's visit to Rweru Model Village, where he will gift 200 cows as a contribution from India to the 'Girinka' scheme of Rwanda, Tirumurti said. Under "Girinka", a social protection scheme of the Rwandan government, personally overseen by President Kagame, the poorest families are gifted dairy cows by the government, and the first female calf born to the cow is gifted to the neighbour, thus promoting brotherhood and solidarity. The cows to be gifted by India will be sourced from Rawanda. "We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture, and culture," he said. Modi's visit comes days after Chinese President Xi Jinping's trip to Rwanda. Modi will head to Uganda on Tuesday for a two-day visit, the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister since 1997. The prime minister's visit to Rwanda is a historic one since it will be the first visit by an Indian prime minister to the East African country, a senior external affairs ministry official said in New Delhi. "Rwanda is an important gateway to Eastern Africa, and we have elevated our bilateral relations with Rwanda to the level of a strategic partnership in January 2017," he said. The President of Rwanda is the current chair of the African Union. Modi will attend the 10th edition of the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg in South Africa, during which the grouping's leaders are expected to deliberate on global hot-spot issues, international peace and security, global governance and trade issues among others. The Pakitan Army is obviously perturbed that its carefully crafted mission with the Pakistan higher judiciary to remove any chances of a Nawaz Sharif's return to the political scene, has some unrealised resistance. One of the most interesting electoral processes anywhere in the world is underway in Pakistan. Even by Pakistan standards, it gets murkier by the day. The latest is the remark by Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui of the Islamabad High Court at an event hosted by the Rawalpindi Bar Association on Saturday. Siddiqui squarely accused the Army Chief and Pakistans intelligence agency ISI of interference in the legal process decrying that the agencies had no business to intervene in the affairs of other departments. The details of the scathing attack on the army and the ISI reveal more than just an emotional outburst. However, the Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar appeared unimpressed and actually attempted to counter Justice Siddiquis allegations by stating that the judiciary was under no pressure. There is a history of Siddiqui having raised the accusatory finger earlier too, which has led to a misconduct reference. Apparently, Pakistans ISPR has demanded that an inquiry be conducted in the judges allegations. There could be some worry because Siddiqui made a specific reference to the ISI attempting to ensure that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Sharifs arrest would not come up for hearing before the 25 July election. Its interesting to find a chink in Pakistans judiciary after the media has also attempted to strongly resist interference by the army and ISI. The popular news channel Geo TV, a subsidiary of the Jang group, went off the air for two weeks to make an apparent protest against interference and re-emerged with the promise to self-censor. The News, a print-based publication of the same group, has been censored and pressurised not to carry pieces by two popular writers, Babar Sattar and Mosharaf Zaidi. Both had written about a protest movement led by thousands of ethnic Pashtuns from the tribal areas against military operations and abductions. The Pakistan Army chief has called the movement, now in its third month, "engineered" pointing a finger at India and Afghanistan. The army is obviously perturbed that its carefully crafted mission with the Pakistan higher judiciary to remove any chances of a Nawaz return to the political scene, has some unrealised resistance. With the media and the higher judiciary both under its complete control, the Pakistan Army was sitting pretty awaiting the results of the 25 July national election. From all indicators, there is no need for the Pakistan Army to await the results which have been engineered by it. It appears well known internationally that the results have been neatly packaged awaiting release, only the election process has to be undergone. To suddenly find an aberration in the mechanism, which has been in the making for long, should worry the Pakistan Army. The choreography thus far appeared quite flawless. The worry must also come from the fact that thus far there have been many commentaries in the international media on the nature of build-up to Pakistans national elections but no observation by any official international body, institution or nation about all that is happening internally in Pakistan. It's well-known that Pakistan has taken little note of the observations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) which has placed it officially on the greylist on terror funding and other support to terror organisations. In fact, as many as four well known hardline Islamist groups are contesting the election. Among these is Hafiz Sayeeds (of the Jamaat ud Dawa or Lashkar-e-Taiba fame) Milli Muslim League (MML) which was not accorded official status of a political party by Pakistans Election Commission and is riding atop an organisation called the Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek, which has remained under the radar but has sanction as a political party. The three others are Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) of Khadim Hussain Rizvi, Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) the party whose proscription was lifted on the very day of the FATF decree, and Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) led by Fazlur Rehman which has been a registered party since 2002. The Pakistan Army, which has worked with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of the Bhuttos and the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) in the past, has over the passage of time experienced both parties getting restive of the armys controls. Its for that reason that it is orchestrating the potential election of Imran Khans Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party to perpetuate the armys control over politics in Pakistan. Imran with his newfound Islamist orientation and long-held ambition considers this his best ever chance. The media and the higher judiciary had to be silenced for this experiment, an effort which has successfully been on for some time. The refusal to give Hafizs MML an official political status is part of a projection to retain positive international perception about the Pakistan Election Commission. Yet, as it usually happens with all planning of the Pakistan Army, it remains short of long-term vision. The presence of international election observers (including from India) is something ominous which has not been fully factored into the scheme of things. That is worrying the Pakistan Army, and it should. Justice Siddiquis diatribe against the agencies may just be the chink in the armour that may commence some snowballing protests and expose the grand plans. The media may find its true voice and someone else from the judiciary may join in to make it a chorus. Hence the armys statement issued by ISPR "In order to safeguard the sanctity and credibility of the state institutions, Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan has been requested to initiate the appropriate process to ascertain the veracity of the allegations (by Siddiqui) and take actions accordingly." The statement is loaded to influence the international community and election observers that the army is open and transparent while seeking impartial redress of the allegations of Justice Siddiqui. The elections of 25 July 2018 by themselves are unlikely to act as the cutoff date to stop further developments in the interesting situation that is emerging in Pakistan. While the civil society is extremely weak and unlikely to get its act together to protest the murder of democracy, there are institutions which could yet rise and be counted. It is up to the international community to take serious note of the developments which will fuel further the empowerment of radical elements in Pakistan even as the FATF and election observers look on. The General Election in Pakistan is set to be held on Wednesday and the military's game plan has gradually unravelled, with the latest example being the disqualification and life imprisonment of PML-N's Hanif Abbasi The General Election in Pakistan is set to be held on Wednesday and the military's game plan has gradually unravelled, with the latest example being the disqualification and life imprisonment of PML-N's Hanif Abbasi, who was supposed to contest on a key constituency of Rawalpindi. For Nawaz Sharif an erstwhile poster boy of the military (when Benazir Bhutto was the common target), the year has been tough for him, as he faces life disqualification from holding public office and imprisonment. He has tried his best playing the victim card, but the massive media crackdown and the alleged forced defections of PML-N leaders make it difficult to conclude how the party will benefit from what Sharif termed as "sacrifices". While his fate seemed to be sealed with the emergence of both "Dawnleaks" and "Panamaleaks", it took the military a calculated effort and sophistication to execute its plans to engineer the next mandate. In other words, the pre-poll engineering or what Sharif described as the role of "Khalai Makhlooq" (aliens) has been in progress, becoming visible since last year onwards. What is peculiar this time is the military's quest to prop up multiple favourites simultaneously aiming at a "malleable majority" in the National Assembly, with these parties acting as both allies, as well as checks and balances against each other. Imran Khan has witnessed a meteoric rise in popularity in the last few months if recent opinion polls are to be believed. The Gallup poll had shown PML-N in the leading spot (36 percent support as compared to PTI's 24 percent) as late as in April. This tilted in favour of Imran Khan by July, when another poll showed 30 percent support for PTI and 27 percent to PML-N, even though the latter appears to be leading in Punjab (which alone accounts for 141 of the 272 National Assembly seats). While tactical adjustments with the PTI may be coming out well for the time being, it does not seem that the military will be too enthused with PTI gaining a complete majority. Hence, it could be deduced that the PTI's increasing challenge to the PML-N in Punjab could be checked by the newly-revived Muttahida-Majlis-e-Amal (MMA). A five-party alliance led by the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazlur Rehman faction) (JUI-F), the MMA seeks to regain its older mandate specifically in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where it ruled between 2002 and 2008. While PTI's victory in the 2013 KP elections and its aggressive forays into religious parties' strongholds gave them a reason to unite, the fact that JI and JUI-F still secured more votes than PTI in previous KP elections makes MMA a challenge for Imran. What emerges then is that the ideal arrangement for the military happens to hinge on having PTI with the largest number of seats, but still short of a majority. The gap will expectedly be filled by allies like the newly-formed Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) in Sindh, the Junoobi Punjab Suba Mahaz (JPSM, a breakaway faction of PML-N dissidents in South Punjab) and the MMA (if the need arises) as neither PML-N nor PPP are expected lend support to Imran. In Sindh (which has 61 seats), the Pir Pagara-led GDA may manage to win a handful of seats since the PPP still remains the only party with grassroot-level outreach in the province. In Urban Sindh (24 seats), where the Mohajirs face a tough choice between a fractured MQM-Pakistan (MQM-P) (led by Farooq Sattar) and the newly emerged Pak Sarzameen Party (led by former MQM leader Mustafa Kamal), the PPP, PTI and religious parties have seen this as an opportunity to exploit the situation. The massive crackdown on MQM by the security agencies in 2016 (and its subsequent bifurcation into MQM-London and MQM-P), followed by rampant infighting within the MQM-P opened space for other parties to have hopes in Karachi, open up additional room for the Barelvi parties Jamiat Ulema e Pakistan, which had an electoral presence in Karachi in the pre-MQM era. In Balochistan (16 seats), the contest has become complicated with the emergence of the military-backed Balochistan Awami Party and MMA, which are expected to give a tough fight to the PML-N and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (the latter two parties being allies). Nevertheless, a contingency plan is understood to be in the making if PTI is not able to gather the required support. This month, the Supreme Court took note of Asif Ali Zardaris fake bank accounts case, but restrained the Federal Investigation Agency from pursuing investigation till elections. Though a remote possibility, there are reasons to believe that the case could be used by the agencies to arm-twist PPP to support Imran, given the larger goal of keeping PML-N out at any cost. Coming back to the PML-N, besides the PTI factor, the other challenge to the party stems from sectarian pressure groups-turned-political parties, which have a popular following in Punjab. Barring a few pockets in Punjab and Karachi, their ability to win elections is under question, yet their nuisance value might play a deceive role in areas where PTI and PML-N would have cutthroat competition. Khadim Hussain Rizvi's Tehreek-e-Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah (which would contest elections under the name of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Party) which had been in the news regarding last year's protests in Islamabad over the election oath controversy banks upon Barelvi vote bank in Punjab, which has traditionally voted for PML-N (and PPP to a lesser extent). On the other hand, Hafiz Saeeds Milli Muslim League, which would be contesting under the banner of Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek is focusing on the voters of the Ahle Hadis sect, which constitute around five to 10 percent of the Pakistani population. The other sources of motivation include the philanthropic networks of the Saeeds Falah-e-Insaniat foundation and Saeeds image as a crusader for the Kashmir cause. Again, the Punjabi supporters of Saeed had thrown their weight behind the PML-N until the Punjab government imprisoned him under international pressure in 2017. These challenges notwithstanding, the PML-N continues to have a strong support in Punjab. While it is still early to predict which party would end up with the highest number of seats, the emergent pattern in Pakistans political landscape has once again shown the militarys expertise at expeditiously propping up new parties and coalitions. It is yet to be seen to what extent, the militarys quest for right arithmetic is achieved. The author is a research associate with the Vivekananda International Foundation, a New Delhi-based public policy think tank Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the third largest province of the country, is home to 15.32 million registered voters (25 percent higher than 2013). According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), 105.96 million voters will go to the polls in the forthcoming elections, which will be held both for the provincial and federal assemblies. In the past three terms, Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has won in Punjab, the Pakistan Peoples Party has won Sindh, and Balochistan has fallen into the hands of political forces linked to feudal elements and the establishment. However, voters of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (earlier North West Frontier Province) have kept changing their preferences. Political analysts attribute this to the 'political maturity' of voters in the Pashtun belt. In the last election before the partition of the subcontinent, inhabitants of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa favoured Khudai Khidmatgars/Red Shirts, who were in an alliance with the Congress, against the PML-N. The Khudai Khidmatgars had not supported the idea of partition and stood in favour of a united country. The Khudai Khidmatgars' indigenous and visionary movement gave the Pashtuns the ability to carry out non-violent forms of resistance, according to professor Fazal Rahim, ex-vice-chancellor of Bacha Khan University. Since then, the political understandings of Pashtuns has not changed, and the community has always stood firmly for progressive values, said Rahim. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the third largest province of the country, is home to 15.32 million voters (25 percent higher than 2013), 8.71 million of whom are male and 6.61 million female. Following the 25th constitutional amendment, the region bordering it to the eastFederally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA)has also merged with it. The earlier region of FATA had seven districts: South Waziristan, North Waziristan, Mohmand, Khyber, Orakzai, Bajur and Kurram. Trysts with religious fundamentalism In the period after the death of General Zia-ul-Haq in a plane crash, the country's politicians were not allowed to stabilise democracy. The late Benazir Bhutto became an icon in the country's history for breaking new ground, while Nawaz was then favoured by the establishment, like Imran Khan is said to be now. Analysts termed the 1970 election as fair, transparent and independent. In the aftermath of these elections, Pakistan lost the region which is now Bangladesh. Since then, the country has not witnessed a strong democratic government in the Legislative assemblies. Pakistan has remained under direct martial law for over three decades, and has been under indirect martial law for many more years. Due to this, democracy did not flourish in the country in the same way as it did in neighbouring India. In 1999, General Pervez Musharraf ousted then prime minister Nawaz Sharif, and announced elections only four years later in 2003. In that year, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, an alliance of religious parties, Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal came to power, and promised to implement Sharia in the province. The government led by it banned music, dance, and even termed photos of models on billboards as 'vulgarity.' In neighbouring Afghanistan, Pakistan was at the front line of the war against terror being waged by the United States and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces. At the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa border, thousands of religious seminaries were established during the Afghan war to fight 'infidel communists.' Students of these seminaries played a vital role in the election process, and exploited anti-American sentiment of voters. When religion-based groups ruled in the province, the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) began to make its presence felt, but no one cared. In 2008, voters rejected the religion-based group, as it strengthened unconstitutional forces and also because it did not fulfil its election promise of implementing Sharia. The Awami National Party, which is the legacy of the Khudai Khidmatgars, came to power. Subsequently, the TTP began launching brutal attacks on non-violent followers of Bacha Khan. Violence a constant reality The five years from 2008 to 2013 will be remembered as a black chapter in Pashtun history. Thousands of Pashtuns were killed in bombings and targetted killings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and the violence has still not stopped. Ahead of the election, the killing spree has again started. In the last ten days, the people witnessed four suicide attacks: Three of them in the Pashtun belt and one in Balochistan. Ex-chief minister Akram Khan survived a suicide attack in Bannu district. Siraj Raisani, a nationalist Baloch leader, was targetted in Mastung, in a blast which killed 147 people. On 22 July, a suicide bomber killed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf candidate Isran Gandapur. This violence appears to have led to fear among candidates, workers and voters, and has greatly reduced turnout at rallies. However, political analysts believe the blasts will not affect voter turnout. Political leaders have criticised the failure of security agencies to provide a free environment during the elections, and said that the State has a responsibility to ensure security of citizens. The Awami National Party, which has taken a stand against militancy, has borne heavy costs. ANP general secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain said, "Our policy against fundamentalism is the same as it was decades ago, and that is why we sided with anti-Taliban slogans. Hussain further said that the party wants an inclusive and pluralistic society. Due to this bold stance against the Taliban, Hussain even lost his lone son. Intelligence agencies, as well as the interior ministry, have often raised concerns about threats to his life. In fact, such was the extent of violence in the region that residents of Peshawar would wake up every morning to sounds of blasts. On one morning, newspaper carried headlines saying that the previous day was peaceful and no blast was reported. While the PTI, which is ruling in the province, has not managed to deliver on many of its promises, many youth still have faith in its slogan of 'change.' In the upcoming election, whichever party wins the five districts of Peshawar, Mardan, Swabi, Charsaddah, and Nowshera, stands a good chance of winning the chief minister's seat. Thus far, it is not clear what the outcome of the election may be. Historically, the districts in the southern region have favoured religious parties, whereas the towns in the northern region have favoured left-leaning parties. The ANP is hoping to make a comeback, and particularly seeking victories in Mardan and Swabi. The trans people poll observers will be deployed in Lahore, Islamabad, Karachi and Quetta, the Express Tribune reported on Monday. Islamabad: In a first, around 125 members of the trans people community will work as observers at various polling stations across Pakistan to monitor the transparency and impartiality of the elections on 25 July, according to a media report. Trained by the Trust for Democratic Education and Accountability, an NGO which aimed at educating people and civil societies about their democratic rights and responsibilities, the trans people poll observers will be deployed in Lahore, Islamabad, Karachi and Quetta, the Express Tribune reported on Monday. As election observers, they will note down any violation of rights or act of discrimination against the vulnerable sections of society at polling stations. According to various studies, the trans people number at least half a million people in Pakistan. Thirteen members of the trans people community are also contesting the upcoming general elections on various seats across the country. Facing criticism, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Sunday restricted the magisterial powers of military personnel set to be deployed at the polling stations during the 25 July general elections Islamabad: Facing criticism, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Sunday restricted the magisterial powers of military personnel set to be deployed at the polling stations during the 25 July general elections. The ECP had issued a notification on 10 July, giving extended powers to the armed forces personnel to be deployed at polling stations across the country from 23 July to 27 July. At least 3,71,000 armed forces personnel will be deployed at polling stations to provide security and the ECP had conferred on them wider powers to check malpractice. Granting magisterial powers to the armed forces personnel was criticised by several senators. The ECP took strong exception to the comments and criticism of the senators and termed it based on disinformation. However, the ECP through a notification limited the army's magisterial powers to offences of personification and capturing of a polling station or polling booth by anyone. In all other cases, the armed forces would first inform the presiding officer of a polling station before taking any action. The power withdrawn included the offence of canvasing or soliciting voters within radius of 400 metres of the polling station. Also, the powers of police officer under section 194 of Election Act 2017 given to the army personnel has been withdrawn in which any person could be arrested without arrest warrants if that person removes a banner, removed by the presiding officer but commits an offence inside the polling station. By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - Russian and Syrian jets stepped up their bombing of an Islamic State bastion along the Jordan-Israel border in southwestern Syria, as the militants pushed into areas abandoned by other rebel groups, diplomatic and opposition sources said. Islamic State-affiliated forces entrenched in the Yarmouk Basin, which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and Jordan, also repelled a ground attack by the Syrian army and its allies, the sources added. By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - Russian and Syrian jets stepped up their bombing of an Islamic State bastion along the Jordan-Israel border in southwestern Syria, as the militants pushed into areas abandoned by other rebel groups, diplomatic and opposition sources said. Islamic State-affiliated forces entrenched in the Yarmouk Basin, which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and Jordan, also repelled a ground attack by the Syrian army and its allies, the sources added. The rural area has become the main battleground in the sensitive border region after a major Syrian army offensive backed by its Russian allies routed other rebel groups who were once supported by Washington, Jordan and Gulf states. The Syrian army said its aerial strikes and shelling of militants in the Yarmouk Basin had killed "tens of terrorists" in a campaign whose goal it said was to crush militants. An intelligence source told Reuters 1,000-1,500 Islamic State fighters had been holding their ground despite the 10-day-old bombing campaign that he said had hit villages and caused an "untold number" of civilian casualties. A former resident in touch with relatives said thousands of civilians had fled bombed villages to areas held by the army or the rebels. Another source familiar with the situation said Islamic State had actually been able to expand its territory over the last 20 hours by seizing at least 18 villages abandoned by other rebels under the banner of the Free Syrian Army (FSA). EVACUATIONS Syria's army and its allies have been pushing to expand their foothold near the Golan frontier by negotiating surrender deals with rebel groups and allowing them to move to opposition-held areas in northern Syria. On Sunday, the evacuation of hundreds of rebels and their families resumed for the third day from villages along the Golan frontier as part of a Russian-brokered surrender deal, sources said. The deal brings the area back under government control and lets Syrian army brigades return to where they were stationed before Syria's seven-year-old conflict - posts near a 1974 demilitarized zone with Israel on the Golan frontier. The opposition said the Syrian army were expected to be deployed in areas abandoned by rebels once the evacuations are completed and heavy weapons given up by rebels. Russian military police have also entered rebel-held towns as part of guarantees given by the Russians that the army and its allied militias do not take revenge against civilians and former fighters, rebel officials said. Separately, a source told Reuters on Sunday the unrest in the border area had disrupted efforts to evacuate hundreds of members of Syria's "White Helmet" civil defence group over the Golan frontier into Jordan. The plan, backed by Israel and Western powers, had meant to evacuate 800 people overnight, but only 422 made it because of the increased presence of Islamic State and government roadblocks, the source said. Russia's military said it had also shot down two unidentified drones that attacked its air base at Hmeimim in northern Syria on Saturday and Sunday, Russian agencies reported. (Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi; Editing by Andrew Heavens) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. PML-N chief Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday said that if his party comes to power, it would create an environment for Kashmir to join Pakistan on the pattern of the reunification of East and West Germany. Islamabad: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday said that if his party comes to power, it would create an environment for Kashmir to join Pakistan on the pattern of the reunification of East and West Germany. Shehbaz, the PML-N prime ministerial candidate and the brother of jailed former premier Nawaz Sharif, said this in an interview to Geo TV when asked what would be his policy on Kashmir if his party is voted to power after the 25 July general elections. He attacked India for "inhumane treatment" of Kashmiris and said "Kashmir would become part of Pakistan through peace and development." "I believe that it will be like the Berlin Wall being pulled down. It was the prosperity in West Germany that united the two parts, he said. The Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) West and East Germany respectively united on 3 October in 1990. On Saturday, while addressing a rally in Sargodha district in Punjab province, he said that people can change his name if he does not take Pakistan ahead of India after coming into power. "They (Indians) will come to Wahga Border and call Pakistanis their master," 65-year-old Shehbaz said. The former Punjab chief minister said that he would bring Pakistan at par with Malaysia and Turkey. He added that he would meet Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad and Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan "to learn from them and make Pakistan a great nation again". He said that Pakistan cannot become a great nation by voting leaders like Imran Khan who have made false promises to "our nation". "The U-turn signs should be removed from roads and should be replaced by the picture of Imran Khan," he said, adding that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief's politics is based on baseless allegations and false promises. "Khan alleged corruption against the Punjab government but not a single penny has been proved against me," the PML-N president said. He was the chief minister of Punjab province from June 2013 to June 2018. He was elected as PML-N president in March after his elder brother Nawaz Sharif was disqualified as the party president following a Supreme Court verdict in the Elections Act 2017 case. The PML-N chief said Nawaz Sharif came back to Pakistan leaving his ailing wife in London but he and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were arrested at the airport. "Nawaz Sharif was not even allowed to meet his mother," he added. Both Sharif and Maryam have been sentenced by a court to 10 and seven years in prison, respectively, for corruption charges. Maryam's husband Muhammad Safdar was jailed for one year. By Sarah N. Lynch ALEXANDRIA, Va. By Sarah N. Lynch ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Monday delayed the criminal trial of President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort until next week, and made public the identity of five witnesses granted immunity to testify. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III also said the office of Special Counsel Robert Mueller must provide a list of about 30 witnesses to lawyers for Manafort, who had sought a delay in his criminal trial scheduled to start on Wednesday on bank and tax fraud charges. Manafort, a long-time Republican operative and businessman, is a target of Mueller's investigation into Russia's role in the 2016 U.S. election. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. The trial was scheduled to start on Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. It involves 16 counts, including bank and tax fraud and failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. According to court filings unsealed by Ellis on Monday, Mueller had requested immunity for Dennis Raico, Cindy Laporta, Conor O'Brien, Donna Duggan and James Brennan. The Manafort charges largely pre-date the five months Manafort worked on the Trump team in 2016, some of them as campaign chairman. None of the charges relate to possible coordination with Russian officials by members of the Trump campaign, which is part of Mueller's investigation. The Kremlin denies election interference and Trump denies collusion. Manafort faces a second criminal trial in Washington in September on related charges, including witness tampering, in connection with lobbying work he performed for the pro-Russia Ukrainian government. His lawyers have argued they need more time to prepare for both cases. Mueller's probe has led to multiple indictments and several guilty pleas from other Trump associates, including Rick Gates, a former Trump deputy campaign chairman who worked with Manafort. Alex Van der Zwaan, a lawyer who once worked closely with Manafort and Gates, has also pleaded guilty and has been sentenced. Though the charges did not reference the Trump campaign or the 2016 election, legal experts have said they put more pressure on former Trump aides to cooperate with Mueller as he looks into whether Russia tried to influence the election in favour of Trump by hacking the emails of leading Democrats and distributing disinformation and propaganda online. Ellis has questioned Mueller's probe and said Manafort's indictment appeared aimed at leveraging him to provide information on Trump. Mueller's team has outlined an extensive list of evidence to present at the Virginia trial, submitting a 21-page list detailing more than 400 exhibits that include scores of bank records, emails and photographs, among other documents. Manafort's team has sought to exclude some of the exhibits, arguing that they are irrelevant and would prejudice the jurors, but the U.S. Special Counsel's Office said the documents are pertinent to the case. The prosecution turned over 120,000 pages of documents this month as the trial date drew near. Manafort's defence lawyer Kevin Downing complained on Monday his team did not have enough time to review the records, which contain about 20,000 documents, including accounting records from Manafort's bookkeeping company. The rest of the remaining records to be reviewed, meanwhile, entail images and photos that were taken off various electronic devices belonging to Gates, Manafort's former business partner. Uzo Asonye, one of the prosecutors, told the judge Mueller's office believed Manafort had access the entire time to the accounting records. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Writing by John Whitesides; Editing by Susan Thomas and Grant McCool) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. The UK's Office of National Statistics (ONS) had opened a public consultation over whether to add the separate box for Sikhs under ethnicity, instead of just as a religion, and are now getting ready to present the findings to the government. London: Sikhism is being considered as a separate ethnicity in the next UK census in 2021, the UK Statistics Authority has said, following a long-standing demand by some British Sikh groups. The UK's Office of National Statistics (ONS) had opened a public consultation over whether to add the separate box for Sikhs under ethnicity, instead of just as a religion, and are now getting ready to present the findings to the government. "Our recommendations for the 2021 Census will be included in a government White Paper later this year," an ONS spokesperson said. The ONS had raised concerns over the issue of "public acceptability" and whether the move would have backing across Britain's 430,000-strong Sikh community. In the last census in 2011, an estimated 83,000 Sikhs reportedly refused to tick any of the choices in the question on ethnicity, rejecting options such as Indian in order to write "Sikh" in the space for "any other ethnic group". The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for British Sikhs, chaired by Preet Kaur Gill the UK's first female Sikh MP offered to write to gurdwaras about five months ago. "Overwhelmingly they have said yes. Not a single gurdwara has opposed it," said Gill. However, there are others who are not entirely behind the campaign, with some groups pointing out that being Sikh is a choice, not something you belong to at birth. Rubio tweeted Saturday that Ortega and his wife, who serves as vice president, will pay a "big price for their crimes against their own people". Nicaragua's President, Daniel Ortega, labels the ongoing political unrest in his country a conspiracy backed by the United States. Rough Cut (no reporter narration). Divine Mercy parish in Managua, where more than 100 students had taken refuge, was also attacked by police and paramilitaries during the night of July 13. Ortega was speaking on the 39th anniversary of a revolution that toppled former dictator Somoza. In the midst of a festive atmosphere in Managua, the elderly, adults, youth and children dressed in Sandinista symbols joined in a single voice in defense of Ortega, celebrating the 39th anniversary of the Sandinista revolution, at a time when a large majority of Nicaraguans demand his resignation for his leadership of the Government, which led to the revolts that began on April 18. Ortega supporters flocked from around the country to the event near Xolotlan Lake north of the capital adjacent to a towering black silhouette of Nicaraguan revolutionary Augusto Sandino, whose resistance to the 1927-33 USA occupation of the Central American country inspired the movement named after him. The unrest in Nicaragua is the biggest challenge to Ortega's authority since he returned to power 11 years ago. Since then, the body count has climbed and business chiefs have abandoned Ortega to side with the protesters, unions, rural groups and the clergy against his recourse to violence. So, I think that opportunity is now gone for Ortega. He added that "we are keen to continue the dialogue, but we will discuss it". The opposition says elections originally scheduled for 2021 should be brought forward to next year. "The problem is that the economic crisis will get even worse and he won't be able to govern like that". Ortega's government "needs to return to dialogue", Trujillo said. A nationwide strike emptied streets on Friday as businesses shut their doors, heeding calls by civil society groups who want Ortega to resign and stage early elections. "There is a direct national security interest for the United States in seeing democracy and stability in Nicaragua". "When his government accuses the mediators of being terrorists, that makes it hard to return to talks". Protests quickly spiralled to encompass a range of concerns including what demonstrators describe as the government's control of the media, electoral fraud, manipulation of the justice system and corruption, as well as Ortega's "family dictatorship" running the country with his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo. Murillo, first lady and vice president, see-sawed between a combative tone decrying the "perversity of coup-monger terrorism" and promising that Ortega's administration only wants peace. US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has sought waivers from sanctions on some countries making a transition from their military dependence on Russia Washington: US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has sought waivers from sanctions on some countries making a transition from their military dependence on Russia, asserting that it will allow them to build closer security ties with America and strengthen US' allies in key regions. Mattis' statement did not mention India, but for all practical purposes he has been seeking waivers for India from the punitive Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions ACT or CAATSA, under which sanctions kick off on countries that purchase significant military equipment from Russia. Though the act targets Russia, it is having its unintended consequences on India, which is planning to buy five S-400 Triumf air defence systems for around $4.5 billion from Russia which US officials say could be considered as a significant military purchase. Mattis, who recently wrote a letter on the matter to chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee Senator John McCain, demanded that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo be empowered with the authority of issuing waivers to certain countries when it comes to the US sanctions on Russia under CAATSA. Russia should suffer consequences for its aggressive, destabilising behaviour and its illegal occupation of Ukraine. However, as we impose necessary and well-deserved costs for their malign behaviour, providing the Secretary of State with a CAATSA waiver authority is imperative, Mattis said. Doing so allows nations to build a closer security relationship with the US as they continue to transition from reliance on Russian military equipment, the Defense Secretary said in a statement on Sunday. "The fundamental question we must ask ourselves is do we wish to strengthen our partners in key regions or leave them with no other option than to turn to Russia, thereby undermining an once in a generation opportunity to more closely align nations with the US vision for global security and stability," Mattis said. Last week, several US lawmakers had said that they were working to get CAATSA waivers for India. "One of the biggest proponents of the importance of this relationship is Secretary Mattis... This (waiver) is important for our country. This is important for India. This is important for the strategic relationships," Senator Dan Sullivan said during the annual leadership conference of US India Strategic and Partnership Forum. "I'm hopeful that we're gonna get there on something that will advance our country's interests and advance India's interest and build that trust," Sullivan said as he called for concrete actions in Indo-US defence relationship. Responding to a similar question at a separate panel, Senator Mark Warner, who is a strong proponent of the CAATSA, said the lawmakers were looking into it and did not want India to suffer its unintended consequences. "There are some with the view that the bill does allow flexibility. House version gives a little more on the waiver side. We are trying to investigate on the Senate side, how we can allow this military partnership to grow but not undermine the principles around CAATSA," Warner said. "It would be easier, I say to my Indian colleagues and friends, if this was simply parts of old aircraft that had been purchased 20 years before rather than a $4 billion plus air defence system. I do understand as well this was negotiated long before," he said, adding that this long relationship cannot be broken overnight. Indian Ambassador to the US Navtej Singh Sarna said India was not the target of the federal law and should not become collateral damage of it. The administration has to find a way in which they can find a waiver for the partner on this particular thorny issue, he said. "We are hopeful that given the broad understanding on this issue on the Hill as well as the administrations enthusiasm behind it, he added. Mukesh Aghi, the president of the US-India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF), said there was a very positive momentum. "The momentum that I am seeing is positive. The attitude and intentions (of the Trump Administration) are positive. So hopefully, we will have a positive solution (on the CAATSA and Iranian oil sanctions before the next 2+2 India-US Dialogue)," he told PTI last week. Samsung Electronics in association with NASA has launched A Moon for All Mankind (AMFAM), an immersive, consumer-focused 4D lunar gravity virtual reality (VR) experience. This lets users immerse in a visual and physical VR experience that accurately recreates a fictional moon mission, to let users know what its like in lunar gravity. The company in order to achieve this experience has collaborated with the team at NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston behind the Active Response Gravity Offload System (ARGOS) with an aim to create a VR experience which mapped to the actual partial gravity experience of walking on the Moon. The company will let consumers experience a full space mission including a briefing and details about how astronauts move on the Moon. After this point, users will move into a flight suit and harness, wearing a Gear VR headset, to experience the lunar mission in the gravity offload rig. This experience will be open to the public starting today from July 2019 at Samsung 837 in New York Citys Meatpacking District. Zach Overton, Vice President of Consumer Experience & General Manager of Samsung 837 and Galaxy Studios said: At Samsung, we are driven to push the boundaries of innovation and inspire consumers to do what they cant. We are proud to bring to consumers the combination of our powerful mobile VR headset and our innovative work with NASA to launch this lunar experience and bring the sensation of walking on the Moon to life. Sean Carter, Strategic Partnerships at NASA Johnson Space Center said: Starting this year, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo Program that landed a dozen Americans on the Moon. With VR experiences like the one Samsung has developed, we are working to make lunar missions accessible to the public and are excited to inspire the next generation of astronauts. Source You don't need a billion-dollar brokerage account to invest like a billionaire. While some of their investing strategies that are obviously out of reach to most people -- such as acquiring a controlling stake in a company -- there are common billionaire investment techniques that anyone can use. Here are three that could amplify your returns. They use smart tax-planning strategies Even after tax reform, the highest personal tax bracket in the U.S. is 37%. On top of that, there's a 3.8% net investment income tax that applies to high earners. And depending on where you live, there may be state and local taxes as well. The point is that if they're not careful, billionaires could easily end up paying more than 50% of their investment income to the tax man. Now, most people reading this aren't in the top tax bracket, but that doesn't mean you can't benefit from some solid tax planning. Here are just a few things to keep in mind as you invest. First, it's important to use tax-advantaged investment accounts whenever possible. In addition to traditional and Roth IRAs and qualified plans such as 401(k)s, people with self-employment income could potentially set aside much more of their income in accounts such as SEP-IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs, or solo 401(k)s. And if you aren't keen on the idea of keeping your money tied up until retirement, it's important to mention that Roth IRA contributions can be withdrawn at any time without penalty. Next, if you invest in a taxable brokerage account, be aware that even if you're in a relatively low tax bracket, long-term capital gains are taxed much more favorably than short-term gains, which are taxed as ordinary income. The IRS defines a long-term gain as one made from an investment that you've held for over a year. Finally, look for "forever stocks," or stocks that you could see yourself holding for decades. The reason Warren Buffett pays a lower tax rate than his secretary is that the bulk of his wealth is in the form of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A) (NYSE:BRK.B) stock, and capital gains -- even if they're in the billions of dollars -- aren't taxed at all until the stock is sold. They don't try to time the market There are some billionaires whom I'd consider to be "traders," moving in and out of stock positions frequently. However, the majority of billionaires are buy-and-hold investors. They know that the only surefire way to make money in stocks is to hold their investments for long time periods, and to let the market's natural upward bias work its magic. American investors have a bad habit of trying to time the markets. That is, they try to sell before a stock falls, and they try to buy just before a stock goes on a bull run. The problem is that they get it wrong quite often. According to Dalbar's Quantitative Analysis of Investor Behavior 2017 study, the average equity (stock) mutual fund investor has achieved a 4.79% annualized return over the past 20 years, while the S&P 500 has returned 7.68%. That's a big underperformance. One of the primary reasons is over-trading, with the average equity fund only being held for 3.8 years. Worse yet, many investors end up achieving the exact opposite of the goal of market timing -- they panic and sell when investments drop and throw their money in after investments have risen. They buy when others are selling While timing the market is generally a losing battle, as I just discussed, billionaires also recognize good buying opportunities when they see them. Instead of panicking when stocks fall, they jump at the chance to buy more of their favorite stocks at a discount. As Warren Buffett says, "When it's raining gold, reach for a bucket, not a thimble." To be clear, I'm not saying that billionaires successfully time the bottom of markets. However, they don't panic when times get tough -- rather, they look for long-term opportunities at good prices. Just to name a few of my favorite examples of billionaire investments during and in the aftermath of the 2008-2009 financial crisis: Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman's Pershing Square fund made a $60 million investment in troubled mall REIT General Growth Properties (NYSE: GGP) that generated a $1.6 billion return. that generated a $1.6 billion return. John Paulson, another billionaire hedge fund manager, invested heavily in several banks in 2009, including Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) , Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) , Citigroup ,and JPMorgan Chase . All of these investments resulted in massive gains. , , ,and . All of these investments resulted in massive gains. Buffett also made several financial-sector investments, including preferred shares in Goldman Sachs and a particularly savvy Bank of America investment that eventually had Berkshire Hathaway becoming the bank's largest shareholder. In a nutshell, billionaires view market crashes and panics as opportunities, not as reasons to stay on the sidelines. Invest like a billionaire Obviously, you can't completely replicate many billionaires' investing style. However, there are several common traits of billionaire investors that you can incorporate into your own investment strategy. The three we've discussed here -- tax efficiency, buy-and-hold investing, and embracing market corrections and crashes -- can really amplify your investment performance over time. Permian Basin this, Permian Basin that. It seems to be the only energy play grabbing headlines today. OK, OK. The shale basin spilling over the West Texas border and into southeastern New Mexico is arguably the most important energy-producing region in the world, and the Permian Basin is expected to account for half of America's crude oil production growth in the next five years. But it's not the only region energy investors should focus on. That's because, for reasons that can be chalked up to either geology or Uncle Sam hitting the geographic jackpot, the United States is also home to the Marcellus shale in the Northeast. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the region holds over 84 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, roughly a quarter of the nation's total. Combine it with the Utica Shale (located underneath the Marcellus) and the Appalachian basin accounts for 41% of all tight gas produced in the country. Remarkably, most of the region's output has come on line in the last five years, but it'll grow by an even larger amount in the next five years. Few companies are better positioned to capitalize than Antero Midstream Partners (NYSE:AM), which is poised to nearly double its distribution -- currently yielding 4.7% -- by 2021. Here's how the energy stock could become a gold mine for income investors. Monster growth puts more income in your pocket Antero Midstream Partners is, as the name implies, a midstream operator in the oil and gas industry. It's a relatively young stock, having only gone public in 2014. The business focuses almost exclusively on gathering, compressing, and processing natural gas output from its parent company, Antero Resources (NYSE: AMGP). However, it has also expanded midstream operations to include freshwater delivery, and now boasts the Appalachian region's largest water delivery network and the world's largest wastewater treatment facility for oil and gas operations. Not bad considering it didn't even have a water segment in 2014. While water is important (and expected to deliver one-third of adjusted EBITDA this year), the primary growth driver for Antero Midstream Partners is the region itself. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Marcellus and Utica shale basins grew natural gas production from just 7.8 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2012 to over 23.8 Bcf/d in 2017. That's an increase of 16 Bcf/d -- a volume that, if the region were a stand-alone country, would rank third in global output. That's incredible enough, but the industry expects the Appalachian region to grow natural gas output even faster in the next five years. By 2022 the region could increase its production by another 17 Bcf/d. It presents an almost too-good-to-be-true growth opportunity for Antero Midstream Partners, which fully exploited the growth of the last half-decade. In 2014 the midstream operator generated just $66 million in adjusted EBITDA. Full-year 2018 guidance calls for $730 million, which would represent a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 82%. Antero Midstream Partners has plenty more statistics along those lines. Since its IPO, gathering volumes have increased at a CAGR of 49%, compression volumes at 126% per year, and gas processing at 140% per year. Oh, and the business delivers 221,000 barrels per day of water. As investors would expect, that growth allowed the natural gas middleman to grow its distributable cash flow 1,032% since its IPO. The distribution per unit has jumped from $0.68 in 2014 to $1.72 today (at the midpoint of full-year 2018 guidance), and the business has 1.3x coverage -- more than enough to be called sustainable. And that's only the beginning. Antero Midstream Partners expects its investments in growth projects to come at just 4.3 times EBITDA in 2018 (and were 4.4 times and 4.5 times in the previous two years). That compares to 8x to 12x multiples for most other master limited partnerships. Simply put, the metric demonstrates that the midstream operator isn't overpaying for growth and is expertly managing its balance sheet. That's backed up by the fact it boasts an unbelievably low debt to EBITDA ratio of 2.3 -- whereas most peers are at 4.0 or higher -- which provides ample financial flexibility to continue investing in growth for the long haul. Profitable growth will pay huge benefits for unitholders. After completing growth projects across its network aimed at helping its parent company do its part to boost Appalachian natural gas output by 17 Bcf/d in the next five years, Antero Midstream Partners expects to deliver $4.10 per unit to investors in 2022. If the business delivers on its five-year target, then unitholders who buy the stock today would enjoy a distribution yield of 12.9% in 2022. If that's not the definition of a gold mine, then I don't know what is. A solid income source for long-term investors Antero Midstream Partners is poised to become a top income stock for investors and retirees thanks to its unique position in the Appalachian region. The incredible growth of natural gas production in the last five years has provided ample opportunity for growth, and the business hasn't missed a beat. That bodes well for the company's ability to replicate its past success in the next five years, with an even greater volume of gas production expected to be added through 2022. Considering the region is expected to at least maintain that level of production for the foreseeable future, and that the company's parent is sitting on a treasure trove of liquids-rich land that's waiting to be tapped, this midstream operator could have decades of income to deliver to unitholders. A larger protest was expected Sunday evening in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square. Previously, only heterosexual married couples were granted the same rights. The Knesset had earlier in the week approved surrogacy for single women or those unable to bear children - without granting the same right to same-sex couples or single men. Demonstrators took to the streets in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa and other cities after the Knesset -Israel's house of representatives - passed a law granting state-supported surrogacy to single women, but excluding men, effectively making it impossible for men in same-sex relationships to have a child through a surrogate. People rally during a demonstration for gay rights in front of the Rabin square in Tel Aviv, Israel. Three people were arrested in the Jerusalem protests, including a candidate for the Meretz party in the next municipal elections. Protests were also planned in northern Israel's coastal high-tech hub Haifa and in the southern Negev city Beersheba. The protests have drawn expressions of support from the country's main Histadrut trade federation and several dozen Israeli companies, some of which said employees would be granted time off to participate in the strike. Bahloul said gay couples wanting to have children must find a surrogate mother overseas and the costs can rise to more than $100,000. This struggle is not only about the rights of the [LGBT] community but on the image of the country. A man holds a flag next to a banner with the photo of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a LGBT community members protest against discriminatory surrogate bill in Tel Aviv, Israel July 22, 2018. "Lesbian women can not register their children, transgender people are getting stabbed in the street, youths are experiencing LGBTQ-phobia in educational frameworks, the Knesset passes laws against equality". Sunday is a working day in Israel, but it was reported earlier this week that numerous country's largest businesses had notified employees that they would not face action for taking part in a planned general strike action to protest the law. Meanwhile some companies have vowed to help fund surrogacy privately. "From now on, every employee who decides to start a family by surrogacy will receive NIS 60,000 (US$16,500) regardless of gender, sector, sexual orientation, age or marital status", Microsoft's research and development hub in Israel wrote on Facebook. Instead, he said he would keep his original plan to advance amended legislation to provide surrogacy access to fathers as well as mothers. Netanyahu's government depends on the support of ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties such as the Shas and United Torah Judaism, both of which oppose same-sex parenting. About 800 members of Syria's White Helmets civil defense group and their families were evacuated via Israel to Jordan on Sunday from southwest Syria, where a Russian-backed Syrian government offensive is under way, media said. The statement from spokeswoman Heather Nauert also called on Syria's government and its ally Russian Federation "to abide by their commitments, end the violence, and protect all Syrian civilians, including humanitarians such as the White Helmets, in areas formerly part of the southwest de-escalation zone and throughout Syria". "I therefore authorized for them to be transferred through Israel to other countries as an important humanitarian measure", the Israeli PM said. The evacuees will be kept in a "closed" location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months, the source added. The group, known famously as the White Helmets, is a network of first responders which rescue wounded in the aftermath of air strikes, shelling or explosions in rebel-areas. Syrian regime forces have denied exit to members of the White Helmets civil defense agency and their families to opposition-held Idlib province amid an evacuation deal from Quneitra province, according to the group's chief. The White Helmets are mostly Syrian nationals who over the past several years have taken it upon themselves to conduct rescue operations following major military confrontations in the war-torn country. They have reclaimed the Syrian side of the Jordanian border, and taken back the frontier with the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. Israel said on Saturday that it maintains a "non-intervention policy" when it comes to the conflict in Syria. He says they are between a rock and a hard place: considered "terrorists" by the regime, they don't have any bargaining chips, unlike the rebels, who have their weapons. The United States has contributed some $30 million in assistance to the group, which has also received funds from the U.K. and other countries. The White Helmets are western-funded and gained worldwide acclaim in 2016 when a United Kingdom documentary on the group won an Oscar. On Sunday, Jeremy Hunt, Britain's new foreign secretary, who recently replaced Boris Johnson, took to Twitter to trumpet the evacuation: "Fantastic news that we - United Kingdom and friends - have secured evacuation of White Helmets and their families". Help us grow and continue telling Israel's story to the world. The White Helmets describe themselves as a volunteer workforce that acts to save people in Syria's war zones. Canadian officials told public broadcaster CBC that they "agreed" to accept 50 White Helmets volunteers and their families, which could mean up to 250 people. U.S. officials said the volunteers at the border were likely to be targeted by the government advance. Last year, a Netflix production called The White Helmets won an Academy Award for the best short documentary. How much does Taxi cost in Tbilisi? - GeorgianJournal Trump and Putin in Helsinki. Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images Donald Trump did not draw many positive reviews after his summit with Russian president Vladimir Putin last week, at least among the punditocracy. But in a new NBC NewsWall Street Journal poll, conducted both before and after the Helsinki summit, Trump has seen his approval rating tick up to 45 percent, an all-time high for him in the survey. Trumps high rating, up one percent from June, is thanks largely to support of Republicans, 88 percent of whom told pollsters that they approve of the job hes doing. Among them, 64 percent strongly approve of Trump, who is experiencing an almost unheard-of level of support from members of his own party, the WSJ reports. Of the four previous White House occupants, only George W. Bush, in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, had a higher approval rating within his own party at the same point in his presidency. These numbers dont budge, Bill McInturff, one of the pollsters who worked on this survey, told NBC News. The Republican numbers dont budge. A small portion of Trumps support continues to come from Democrats, with 9 percent approving of him. Eighty-nine percent disapprove. With independent voters, Trump has a 36 percent approval rating with 58 percent disapproving of him. On the issues, Trump got positive marks on the economy and his handling of the situation in North Korea. A majority of voters disapprove of his his treatment of migrant families at the border, his relationship with Russia, and his immigration policy. Enemies on both sides. Photo: Getty Images The last two years of fire and fury have not been kind to allies of Third Way, the centrist Democratic think tank that preaches a middle-of-the-road strategy focused on winning over independent voters and wooing back former Barack Obama supporters who swung to Donald Trump in 2016. These days its almost impossible to avoid resigned jokes among friends of the group about just how out of favor their Clintonphile politics supposedly are with the Democrats base. Late last week, as I walked into a hotel basement ballroom where Third Way was convening some of the countrys leading center-left officials in Columbus, Ohio, a strategist in attendance peered up from the Hilton pastries and texted me, wryly: Welcome to the Wall St Wing of the Democratic Party. Back in Washington, Bernie Sanders and his newfound allies had laid claim to the party, tugging its leaders left as quickly as possible while pointing to 2016s result as evidence that they were right all along. Just a few weeks earlier, Sanders, who of course lost that years presidential primary to Hillary Clinton, declared at a D.C. book party for his campaign manager, In many ways, we did win the election. The book is called How Bernie Won. But in Ohio, more than 200 centrist lawmakers, operatives, and donors including some former Hillary Clinton aides and backers flew in from 20 of the countrys most politically relevant states to listen to a lot of speeches and panels and try to figure out how, exactly, their embattled faction could escape electoral isolation and spearhead a blue triumph in 2020. Third Way had spent the last two years conducting research and testing messages, and now emerging from hours of strategy and policy sessions, polling-data slideshows, and Silicon Valleystyle discussion about how best to influence the partys disruptors they were here to make clear to the insurgent progressive left that the center now intends to stand up and fight back, and that it has Sanders in its sights just as squarely as Donald Trump. Right now in the Democratic Party, there is only one option on the table: Sanders-style socialism. Thats the main option on the table. Were doing this now because the partys got to have a choice, Jon Cowan, president of the think tank co-hosting the proceedings, with New York City real-estate executive Winston Fisher, told me. Its going to matter a hell of a lot in 2020, and so while 2020 may feel a ways off, in our mind it isnt. And the ideas primary starts now. So were actually doing this for a very straightforward reason: to stand up and launch a serious, compelling economic alternative to Sanderism. A serious crowd had gathered two floors below us to hear about the first steps of this plan. Not only did the group include leading party pollsters and operatives, and influential local-level legislators, but also a pair of senators, a former governor, a handful of members of Congress, and at least four Democrats whose names have surfaced at some point in the national partys great search for a champion to topple Trump in two years time. Yet over two days of hotel-coffee-powered chatter, the crowd also faced up to the reality that theyre still working on what, exactly, that fight is going to look like. And whether they can find any single person to lead it into the next presidential election. *** A year and a half of exile was enough, Third Ways leaders recently decided. So now the time was right to show some spine, which they hoped would trickle down to the lawmakers jockeying to lead the party. I know that a lot of the Berniecrats would like for this debate to be over, but, wow, thats calling the debate over prematurely. The debate has barely even begun, said Cowan, ticking off his evidence for the Sanders-wing Democrats weak claim to power: the senator lost the primary against Clinton, his post-campaign political organization has struggled to win marquee races, and a problematic single-payer health-care proposal reminiscent of Sanderss Medicare for All rallying cry fell flat at the ballot box in Colorado in 2016. Addressing the audience that morning, Cowan introduced a new branding and policy direction that he hoped would drive the middle back to power. He called for the rise of the Opportunity Democrats, a line of messaging built out of extensive research that was then presented by Lanae Erickson Hatalsky, a Third Way vice-president whose online bio begins with her proud vote for Ross Perot in a fifth-grade mock election. The new economic platform leans heavily on words like earn and opportunity, and away from demonizing tycoons For most Americans, billionaires and millionaires are not next door, or part of their lived experience, Cowan said in his opening speech. The policy backbone of the pitch includes an American Investment Bank designed to back Main Street, not Wall Street entrepreneurs, a Boomer Corps part-time national-service program for senior citizens whose earnings would be tax-free (on top of their Social Security), a massive state-driven apprenticeship system, and universal private retirement savings accounts funded by employers. Pulling up data from a large nationwide poll the group commissioned, combined with focus groups, Erickson Hatalsky explained that Americans, including Democrats and independents, were anxious about the future. But, she said, they were worried about the inequality of opportunity rather than the inequality of income by a healthy margin, and it was, in fact, upper-income citizens who reported worrying more about income than opportunity. Over and over, she revealed how the group had tested its new, future-focused Opportunity Democrat line against what she called the Sanders-style version and the Trump approach alike, and how their approach repeatedly came out on top. The conference, it was by now clear, was not only a declaration of war against Sanders, but an implicit acknowledgement that Bill Clintonera triangulation and its attendant nostalgia were politically stale, too. The time has come to mend, but not end, capitalism for a new era, Cowan told the audience, in a speech where he also declared, Big isnt enough. If its bold and old, its simply old. Lets be clear. Eighties-style supply-side, 90s centrism, and 60s socialism will not cut it for the era we live in, he conceded. Before Delaware senator Chris Coons spoke on Friday morning, the sound system appeared to be sending a message. Dont Stop Believing, it insisted. *** Fights for the partys future are nothing new for Third Way, which was founded in the postJohn Kerry, pre-Obama era. The centrists theory of the 2020 case is that once that election fully breaks out after November, it will begin with a pair of pre-primaries: one to get to Sanderss left, and one to become the face of Opportunity. The lessons of 2016 loom large. The centrist crew is convinced that its message is a winning one in both a Democratic primary electorate and nationwide An opportunity narrative resonates broadly and deeply with the very voters Democrats need to win in 2018 and 2020, said Erickson Hatalsky and that by seeding it in the minds of so many party activists now, they can get a handful of serious 2020 contenders onto their half of the primary bracket early. Strategists at the session said this task would likely prove easier after the midterms, especially when (if) Democrats win a House majority that will likely be built by rookie moderates from purple suburban areas and some red enclaves, rather than Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezstyle progressives from already deep-blue districts. Yet at the core of their pitch is a fundamental belief that one of the partys central debates is whether to tack toward swing voters, or to run a base-first national election. There was little room for doubt here that Clinton did too much of the latter, and that Sanderss approach represents a full embrace of that side. (And it was always Sanders who came up when the centrists spoke of the left, never Elizabeth Warren or any other potential lefty standard-bearer.) But to many of the partys leaders, including much of the 2020 crowd, the base-voters versus swing-targets discussion itself is antiquated. So who, exactly, will make Third Ways pitch when the primaries become real? Everybodys got a camera on their phone. That never worked, but it really doesnt now: You cant just go and say one thing to one group and another to another group, said Jason Kander, the former Missouri secretary of state who last month opted to run for Kansas City mayor rather than president, making the case onstage that you lose both the base and swing voters if you try to differentiate between them. Another featured speaker plucked from the potential 2020 list, Ohio congressman Tim Ryan, addressed the conference just a day after being unveiled as an inaugural member of the Houses new Medicare for All Caucus. When I asked if this wasnt a bit of a contradiction showing up to a Third Way conference after associating with Sanderss signature policy proposal he brushed the concern aside. No, he said, insisting theres far less distance between the two sides than even the events organizers might think. Its how you talk about it. And though 2020 was the stated topic both onstage and in the hotel hallways outside the main ballroom, there was surprisingly little chatter about former vice-president Joe Biden, or other possible White House hopefuls who could reasonably take up the centers cause, like perhaps Colorado governor John Hickenlooper or Cory Booker. Others, like Kirsten Gillibrand or Kamala Harris, had already drifted too far left for much of the crowd. No one mentioned Tim Kaine. The closest thing to a conference consensus by its end was that there was, at least, hope in one participant who, early in his onstage discussion, repeated that he had not yet shut the door entirely on running for president, even if he seemed to be leaning hard against it. Former New Orleans mayor Mitch Landrieu the charismatic southern outsider who privately lunched on Friday with a pair of the think tanks leaders who had both worked in the Clinton administration hit his notes precisely, giving the crowd a glimmer of hope that the shadow of 2016 may soon be lifted from the Democratic center. We cant concede faith, freedom, and economic inclusion to either side of the extremes if we want to be the party of opportunity for all. @ThirdWayTweet #Opportunity2020 pic.twitter.com/HT034XtyT6 Mitch Landrieu (@MitchLandrieu) July 20, 2018 The Republicans have chosen their [path], theyre going to run a base election, which means they have ceded the middle of the road, Landrieu said that morning, just as Virginia senator Mark Warner, a past Great Centrist Hope of many conference participants, quietly walked into the room. In my opinion, Democrats would be making a big mistake if they run a base election. We have to find common ground. It was what this audience wanted to hear. He wrapped up, and the speakers crackled back to life. Fight Song. Hillary Clintons anthem. Google releases Two Wheeler Mode for Maps in East Asian countries News oi-Sandeep Sarkar The two-wheeler mode allows a biker to identify routes that make it easier for them to move through the congested routes and narrow paths. Google had announced the "two-wheeler mode" as an India-first initiative back in December 2017. Now, the mode is being rolled out to the other East Asian countries where a large number of population is still relying on the two-wheelers. The new feature will be available for the countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Singapore. The two-wheeler mode allows a biker to identify routes that make it easier for them to move through the congested routes and narrow paths which eventually help them to travel to their destination in less time. As the name suggests that the new feature is specifically designed for the bikers. Users can access the feature by tapping on the motorcycle icon in the row that shows different modes of transport. Using the feature for creating routes for the two-wheelers, Google Maps can also include "roads and alleyways without its actual names". Unlike the Google Map's standard way of navigation, the new feature notifies the user regarding the upcoming landmarks like the big hospitals and the city squares. The Head of Product for the Google Maps, Krish Vitaldevara, was reported telling The Verge that the two-wheeler features primarily helps the bikers and the two-wheeler riders to remember the routes. This helps the riders to not to get distracted while riding two wheelers avoiding some fatal accidents. Hence, the companies such as Samsung have introduced a Ride Mode in their devices which will help avoid the riders getting distracted which eventually prevents the accidents. During the announcement of the feature in Thailand, Google revealed that the feature is currently available for the Android users only. There is no information available as of now as to when the feature will make its way for the iOS users and for the web version. Also, there is no information available as of now as to when the feature will be available for the rest of the globe. However, for the western markets, Google has also recently rolled out a newly redesigned interface which allows the users to explore nearby restaurants and other eating joints. Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Singtel and Ericsson to launch Singapores first 5G pilot network News oi-Priyanka This is the first-of-its-kind demonstration enabled participants to view and interact with lifelike virtual objects such as a photorealistic human anatomy and a 360-degree image of the world. Singtel and Ericsson are planning to launch Singapore's first 5G pilot network which would go live by Q4 of this year. Aileen Chia, Deputy Chief Executive and Director-General (Telecoms & Post) at IMDA, says: "This is an encouraging step towards commercialization with live 5G trial networks made possible with the regulatory sandbox IMDA has in place. IMDA will continue to work closely with mobile service providers such as Singtel in their journey to build communication capabilities of the future and complement Singapore's efforts towards a vibrant digital economy." Singtel and Ericsson will conduct drone trials later this year at one-north, the joint statement said. According to the statement, this is the first-of-its-kind demonstration enabled participants to view and interact with lifelike virtual objects such as a photorealistic human anatomy and a 360-degree image of the world. The immersive experience was then streamed in real-time to a remote audience via 5G. The demonstration also illustrated the possibilities of using 3D AR technology for large-scale remote learning in various industries such as medical and education, enabled by an ultra-high-speed and low-latency 5G network. Martin Wiktorin, Head of Ericsson Singapore, Brunei, and the Philippines, says: "5G represents a key mobile technology evolution, opening up new possibilities and applications. We believe that 5G will play a key role in the digital transformation of the Singapore economy. Demonstrating the possibilities in this showcase event will be a catalyst for engagements with Singapore enterprises." Using Ericsson's 3GPP standards-compliant 5G technology with the trial spectrum allocated by Singapore's Info-Communications Media Development Authority, the pilot network will deliver 5G coverage with enhanced Mobile Broadband speed and low latency communications. Industries such as transportation, healthcare, and manufacturing can leverage 5G to accelerate digital transformation and deploy advanced automation technologies, the statement informed. Enterprises can also work with Singtel and Ericsson at one-north to develop new 5G use cases and tap the business potential of 5G. Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Russia's FSB raids space research center over 'spying for West' Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 06:32AM Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has reportedly raided a top space research facility over the suspected leaking of secrets about the country's new hypersonic weapons to the West. Citing anonymous sources in law enforcement agencies on Friday, the Russian Kommersant daily newspaper said, "This morning, the FSB raided offices of staff at the Central Research Institute of Machine Building (TsNIImash)," which develops rockets and space technology for Roskosmos, Russia's space agency. The paper reported that the security forces carried out the search operations in the town of Korolyov outside Moscow after finding out that Western security services had information on "secret hypersonic developments by Russian industry." Sources told Kommersant that the investigation was over "high treason," with some 10 people suspected of "cooperation with Western secret services." It remained unclear what data may have been leaked but Russian media said the suspects were being investigated over passing secrets on the development of classified hypersonic technology involving missiles able to travel at more than five times the speed of sound to western intelligence agencies. "It's been established that TsNIImash employees are responsible for the leak," one of the sources familiar with the FSB case materials was cited as saying by Kommersant. "Many heads will roll, and the case will not end with mere dismissals." Meanwhile, the Roskosmos space agency confirmed that a probe was taking place and its chief, Dmitry Rogozin, had been informed, without providing further details. "Dmitry Rogozin is informed on this case and gave an order to give the investigative group every assistance," a spokesman for the space agency told Russia's RIA Novosti. The raids came just a day after the Russian Defense Ministry published several videos of new weapons systems - two of which were about the country's publicly acknowledged hypersonic missile projects. The general features of these weapons, known as Avangard and Burevestnik, had been lauded as "invincible" during a speech by Russian President Vladimir Putin in March. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Estonia Spy Chief: Network of Operatives Pushing Russian Agenda in West By Jeff Seldin July 21, 2018 For the past several months, intelligence and security officials in the U.S. government and private sector have cautiously marveled at the seemingly slow pace of Russian cyberattacks and influence operations using social media. Unlike in the run-up to the 2016 U.S. presidential elections, officials say so far there has been no frenzy of hacks, phishing attacks or use of ads and false news stories to penetrate voting systems, alter voter rolls or influence voters ahead of the upcoming midterm elections. Some have suggested the slowdown is the result of better preparation and better cyber tools that have allowed social media companies to thwart Russian efforts. But among Western intelligence agencies, there is also concern that Russia may not be relying on bots and trolls because they have real people who can do the work instead. "We [Estonian intelligence] have detected a network of politicians, journalists, diplomats, business people who are actually Russian influence agents and who are doing what they are told to do," Mikk Marran, the director general of Estonia's Foreign Intelligence Service said Friday, speaking of Moscow's efforts in the West. "We see clearly that those people are pushing Russia's agenda," Marran told an audience at the annual Aspen Security Forum in Aspen, Colorado. Marran's comments come during a week that saw U.S. President Donald Trump casting doubt on the U.S. intelligence community's assessment that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election, while standing alongside his Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin, following their meeting in Helsinki. Since returning from Europe, Trump has backtracked on his initial statement, reading a prepared statement during Tuesday's Cabinet meeting and in an interview Wednesday with CBS News. Still, senior U.S. intelligence and security officials remain concerned, publicly asserting Russia did indeed meddle with the 2016 election. A U.S. special counsel, Robert Mueller, appointed to investigate Russian involvement in the 2016 election and possible collusion by members of the Trump campaign, on July 13 indicted 12 Russian intelligence officials for hacking the computer networks belonging to the Democratic party, and has previously secured indictments against Trump campaign staffers, including campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn. Yet despite the publicity from the U.S. investigation and greater awareness across the West of Russia's influence operations, Estonian intelligence officials assert Moscow has not been deterred. Instead they say the Kremlin has ratcheted up efforts to make use of "influence agents," many of whom Moscow has been cultivating for years. "Politicians that have been in the margins of local politics some years ago are actually right now in national parliaments or national governments," Marran said. "They have made some bad investments but they have also made some very good investments." "What they [the Russians] have provided to those people is media support, political support. They have proposed or provided some exclusive business opportunities," he added. "In some occasions we have also seen that they have provided financial aid." Marran declined to name any politicians, diplomats or journalists suspected of being in Moscow's pocket. And while it is not the first time that Estonia, a U.S. ally and a NATO member, has warned of Russia's cultivation of "influence agents" in Western Europe, there are growing concerns that such operations have taken hold in the United States. Former U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper suggested Thursday that Russian efforts may even have reached into the White House. "I've been trying my best to give the president the benefit of the doubt and always expressed potential other theories as to why he behaves as he does with respect to Russia generally and Putin specifically," Clapper told CNN when asked about Trump's refusal to back the findings of the U.S. intelligence community during his joint news conference with Putin Monday in Helsinki. "But more and more I come to a conclusion after the Helsinki performance and since, that I really do wonder if the Russians have something on him," Clapper said. There have also been persistent rumors that some members of Congress could also be doing Russia's bidding a notion reinforced Thursday by Bill Browder, the chief executive officer of Hermitage Capital and a driving force behind the Magnitsky Act, which allows Washington to withhold visas and freeze financial assets of Russian officials thought to be corrupt or human rights abusers. "There's one member of the U.S. Congress who I believe is on the payroll of Russia it's a Republican Congressmen from Orange County [California] named Dana Rohrabacher who is running around trying to overturn the Magnitsky Act," Browder said at the Aspen Security Forum. "I don't have the bank transfers to prove it, but I believe that that's the case," Browder said when he was pressed on the accusation, citing Rohrabacher's behavior. VOA contacted Rohrabacher's office regarding the accusation, but has not yet gotten any response. U.S. intelligence and security agencies also declined comment on the allegations that Russian influence agents have infiltrated the U.S. government, though The New York Times reported in May that intelligence agents had warned Rohrabacher, long been considered to be one of the most Russia-friendly members of Congress, as far back as 2012 that Kremlin agents were actively trying to recruit him. And during a private meeting in June 2016, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy told fellow Republican lawmakers, "There's two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump," according to a recording obtained by The Washington Post. "It was a bad joke," McCarthy told reporters after the tape emerged. "That was all there was to it. Nobody believes it." Katherine Gypson contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ex-Trump campaign adviser conspired with Russia: FBI Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 07:15AM Newly-released documents by the Federal Bureau of Investigation suggest that former Trump presidential campaign adviser Carter Page collaborated and conspired with Russia prior to the 2016 US election. On Saturday, the FBI released the documents related to the surveillance of Page as part of a probe into whether he and the Russian government plotted to undercut the election. The 412 pages, mostly heavily redacted, included surveillance applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and warrants surrounding the investigation into Page. "The FBI believes that Page has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian Government," the surveillance application filed in October 2016 said. The documents also include applications and renewal warrants lodged in 2017 after Donald Trump took office. Page has so far denied the allegations and has not been charged with any crime. Earlier Saturday, the New York Times said it had received a copy from the Justice Department after it and other news organizations had filed a lawsuit. According to the documents, "the FBI believes that the Russian Government's efforts are being coordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals associated with" Trump's campaign. Page "has established relationships with Russian Government officials, including Russian intelligence officers," it added. Meanwhile, Republicans lawmakers have argued that the FBI made serious missteps when it decided to seek a warrant in order to monitor Page in October 2016 shortly after he quit the Trump campaign. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, however, said on Saturday that the documents provide "clear evidence" of the coordination between Page and Russia "to undermine and improperly and illegally influence the 2016 US presidential election." Trump and the key members of his team have been under investigation for allegedly "colluding" with Moscow during the campaign. Russia has time and again denied the allegations on interfering in other countries' democratic process, dismissing them as part of a "Russophobia" campaign run by the West. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ecuador about to hand over Assange to UK: Report Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 05:30AM A source close to Ecuador's government has reportedly confirmed that the country's President Lenin Moreno has nearly reached a deal with the United Kingdom to hand over WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange who has taken refuge in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London "within the next several weeks." The Intercept's investigative journalist Glenn Greenwald anonymously cited the source as making the revelation exclusively to the website on Saturday. "Moreno is close to finalizing, if he has not already finalized, an agreement to hand over Assange to the UK within the next several weeks," Greenwald wrote, citing information obtained from the source. "The withdrawal of asylum and physical ejection of Assange could come as early as this week." The reported settlement with British authorities is expected to be finalized during Moreno's trip to London for a world disabilities summit on July 24, according to Greenwald. Assange has taken shelter in Ecuador's Embassy in central London since June 2012. He had been facing extradition to Sweden over allegations that he sexually assaulted two women. The Australian founder of the whistleblower website WikiLeaks has rejected the accusations as politically motivated. Assange had said he feared Sweden might extradite him to the United States, where he could face criminal charges over WikiLeaks' release of classified US documents. Last May, Swedish prosecutors dropped their probe into the rape accusation against Assange. The Wikileaks founder has, however, remained inside the embassy in order to avoid extradition to the US. His publication of thousands of classified diplomatic and military documents marked one of the largest information leaks in US history. The Ecuadorian president described Assange earlier this year as a "hacker," an "inherited problem" and a "stone in the shoe," which has created "more than a nuisance" for his government. Other media outlets had already begun speculating that a handover may be due. In a report last Sunday, British newspaper The Times wrote that Moreno's government had been in secret talks with the UK government in an effort to "evict" Assange from Ecuador's London Embassy. According to that report, Alan Duncan, the British minister of state for Europe and the Americas, was representing the UK in the talks. He has formerly called Assange "a miserable little worm" and demanded that he "face justice." In January, the British government rejected a request from Ecuador to grant diplomatic status to the whistleblower. Ecuador's Foreign Minister Maria Fernanda Espinosa has said Assange's long-term stay in the country's London Embassy is "untenable." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Intelligence Director Says He Meant No Disrespect To Trump RFE/RL July 22, 2018 U.S. President Donald Trump's director of national intelligence (DNI) says he did not mean to be disrespectful toward the president when he responded to news that Russian leader Vladimir Putin would likely soon visit the White House. Dan Coats on July 21 issued a statement after U.S. media reported Trump was angry with an interview that Coats gave at the Aspen Institute security forum in Colorado on July 19, when he laughed and at times appeared to mock the president. "Some press coverage has mischaracterized my intentions in responding to breaking news presented to me during a live interview. My admittedly awkward response was in no way meant to be disrespectful or criticize the actions of the president," Coats said in his statement. "I and the entire intel community are committed to providing the best possible intelligence to inform and support President Trump's ongoing efforts to prevent Russian meddling in our upcoming elections, to build strong relationships internationally in order to maintain peace, denuclearize dangerous regimes, and protect our nation and our allies," Coats added. In the televised interview, the 75-year-old Coats said he wished Trump had not met one-on-one with Putin and expressed disappointment that Trump had publicly undermined U.S. intelligence agencies. He was on stage when he was informed by MSNBC journalist Andrea Mitchell about Trump inviting Putin to a second summit in Washington. "Say that again. Did I hear you?" he asked, while chuckling and appearing confused. "OK. That's going to be special." Trump has faced sharp criticism from U.S. lawmakers -- including key Republicans -- and others who denounced his performance at a joint press conference with Putin following their Helsinki meeting. Trump appeared to give credence to denials by Putin that Russia had interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election or was planning to act similarly in the future, despite the conclusions of U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies and congressional committees that Moscow intervened in the 2016 election with a state-directed campaign of e-mail hacking and public opinion manipulation. Many critics also complained that there was no record of agreements, if any, that were reached between the two during their one-on-one meeting. During his presidential campaign and into his presidency, Trump has consistently said he seeks better relations with Russia and Putin in particular. With reporting by Reuters, AP, and Politico Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/coats-denies-disrespect- to-putin-in-interviews-russia/29381231.html Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Lavrov Urges Butina Release In Phone Call With Pompeo RFE/RL July 21, 2018 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has complained to his U.S. counterpart, Mike Pompeo, about the U.S. detention of Russian national Maria Butina on charges of conspiracy and acting as an unregistered foreign agent. During a July 21 telephone conversation, Lavrov told Pompeo that Butina had been arrested on "fabricated charges" and called for her immediate release, according to a statement posted by the Russian Foreign Ministry. Butina, 29, has been accused of attempting to infiltrate political groups, including the powerful National Rifle Association, to advance Russian interests. She is being held in Washington without bail. "Lavrov emphasized that the steps of the U.S. administration, which arrested Russian citizen Butina in the United States based on fabricated charges, are unacceptable and that she should be released as soon as possible," the statement said. According to the Foreign Ministry, the two ministers also discussed bilateral relations in the wake of the July 16 summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The diplomats "exchanged opinions on the perspectives of the further development of relations between our countries with the goal of normalizing them on an equal and mutually beneficial basis," the statement said. Also on July 21, the Russian Council for Civil Society and Human Rights sent a letter to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights urging it to "take whatever measures you consider best" to defend Butina's rights. Relations between the two countries have been strained since Moscow's 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. In response to that and to Russia's political, military, and economic support of a separatist campaign in parts of eastern Ukraine, the United States, the European Union, and others have imposed sanctions against Russia. The Helsinki summit was the first meeting between the leaders of the two countries since then-Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev met in Prague in 2010. Lavrov and Pompeo also reportedly discussed the situations in Syria and in North Korea during their telephone conversation. The Russian Foreign Ministry's statement said the July 21 conversation took place "at the initiative of the United States." Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/lavrov-urges-butina- release-in-phone-call-with-pompeo/29381125.html Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address FBI Releases Surveillance Documents on Ex-Trump Campaign Adviser - Reports Sputnik News 05:16 22.07.2018(updated 06:09 22.07.2018) The Department of Justice released Saturday documents related to the surveillance of former Trump presidential campaign adviser Carter Page as part of a Russiagate investigation, US media reported. According to The New York Times, the heavily redacted application documents 412 pages, including an initial application and several applications to renew the surveillance indicate that the FBI "believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government to undermine and influence the outcome of the 2016 US presidential election in violation of US criminal law," the surveillance application said. The documents released include applications and renewal warrants filed in 2017 after Donald Trump took office. Carter Page has denied being an agent of the Russian government and has not been charged with any crime. However, the report released said "the FBI believes that the Russian Government's efforts are being coordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals," adding that Carter page "has established relationships with Russian Government officials, including Russian intelligence officers." In May, The New York Times reported that the FBI used informants to gather information from Donald Trump's presidential campaign staff only after they got evidence of allegedly suspicious contacts connected to Russia. However, Donald Trump said earlier that hat FBI planted a mole in his entourage long before the investigation into the campaign's alleged ties to Moscow began. The informant, who is reportedly a US professor teaching in the United Kingdom, contacted several members of the campaign, including former aides Carter Page and George Papadopoulos as well as former Trump's National Security Adviser Michael Flynn. Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani said earlier that other Trump lawyers had been told that there were two informants inside the Trump campaign and that a report in the New York Times earlier corroborated the information. Since Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election, the US authorities have been investigating on various levels the allegations about his campaign team's possible collusion with Russia, and have claimed that Moscow allegedly meddled in the election process to help Trump win against then-Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Special Counsel Robert Mueller is currently leading a probe into Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. Russian officials have repeatedly stressed that Moscow has never tampered with US election and stressed that no accusations against Russia have been substantiated. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Assembling credible evidence is also restricted in Devin Nuness committee, apparently. Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP The controversial FISA applications to wiretap former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page have been made public, and from what details remain in the heavily redacted documents, they contradict one of the Trump camps central witch hunt theories regarding the Russia investigation. On Saturday, the Justice Department released the original October 2016 FISA warrant to tap Page, who federal investigators suspected of working with Russia, as well as subsequent applications to renew that warrant. The documents were put out in response to Freedom of Information Act requests, but it was the first time the government has ever released such information to the public. Back in February, Devin Nunes, the Republican chairman of the House intelligence committee, published an overhyped memo alleging misconduct from federal investigators in their pursuit of a warrant to monitor Page. Nuness allegations, which focused primarily on the idea that the FBI had misled the FISA court, have been held up by the president and his allies as evidence that the Trump campaign was unfairly and unlawfully targeted by the Obama administration and intelligence community. The GOP-orchestrated memo, which was opposed by Democrats on the House intelligence committee as well as the Trump-appointed director of the FBI, armed the president with a powerful weapon in his efforts to discredit special counsel Robert Muellers investigation into Russias pro-Trump election interference. More broadly, the allegations conveniently provided much needed fuel to the right-wing conspiracy theory, heavily supported and promoted by the president, that deep state elements of the U.S. government have been working against Trump from the start. Democratic lawmakers later published their own memo rebutting Nuness allegations point by point, arguing that Nunes had omitted or mischaracterized essential details contained in the warrant applications in an attempt to defend Trump. The newly released FISA applications support that conclusion. President Trump, meanwhile, claimed the exact opposite on Sunday morning in a series of tweets about the FISA scam which led to the rigged Mueller Witch Hunt! To Trump, who issued another attack on his own Justice Department and implied that its redactions had some nefarious purpose, the Page documents proved Nunes right. Trump is unlikely to have actually read or attempted to understand the FISA applications then or now. But no matter everything is a smoking gun to the president when it comes to his obsession with discrediting the Russia investigation. Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC. Ask her how that worked out - she did better with Crazy Bernie. Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 Carter Page, or repeatedly referred to as a Russian agent in the warrant applications, agrees with the president. During a CNN interview on Sunday, the former Trump adviser dismissed the allegations in the FISA warrants and reasserted his innocence though he did also acknowledge that he was once an informal adviser to the Kremlin. The most notorious claim of the Nunes memo was that the FBI failed to properly disclose that one of the sources cited in the original warrant application, former British spy Christopher Steele, was hired by Trumps political opponents. According to the Nunes memo, the FBI didnt disclose or reference the role of the DNC, Clinton campaign, or any party/campaign in funding Steeles efforts, even though the political origins of the Steele dossier were then known to senior and FBI officials. Democrats had later said that the FBI did acknowledge that the sources employers were working against Trump, and sure enough, it seems Nunes left that detail out: The Dem rebuttal said the court *was* told that the person who hired Steele was politically motivated. We can see that is the truth: the court was clearly told why Steele was looking into Trump-Russia ties. /6 pic.twitter.com/nDerp9Xe2l Charlie Savage (@charlie_savage) July 22, 2018 In his write-up of the applications for the New York Times, Savage also explains that, looking at the document, its clear that the government worked to hide any Americans names in the application, including Trumps, who is referred to as Candidate #1. That appears to counteract one of Nuness other complaints that the FBI should have specifically disclosed who hired the source, as if that would make more of a difference to the court than acknowledging that Steeles employers were likely looking for information that could be used to discredit [the Trump] campaign. The documents also refute another erroneous point often made by Trumps allies that the Steele dossier formed the sole basis of the application to put a tap on Page. It didnt. The applications also weaken their claims of partisan bias, since the documents confirm that all four judges who signed off on the Page warrants were not only appointed by Republican presidents, but named to the FISA court by the GOP-nominated chief justice of the Supreme Court, John Roberts. At Lawfare, FISA expert David Kris has offered his own interpretation of the applications, including some emphasis on how unprecedented it was that the Department of Justice had released them at all. Kris explains that making the documents available was a monumental disclosure, adding that the government considers FISA applications to be very sensitive and their disclosure, even heavily redacted, may have long-term, programmatic consequences long after were finished with President Trump. Kris has previously argued that the purpose of the Nunes memo was to deceive the American public, and he says the memo looks even worse once you go through the unredacted parts of the FISA applications. But anyone hoping for more detail about what Mueller and his investigators know, he adds, will probably be disappointed: While I am sure people will try, my initial impression is that with all the redactions it is going to be very tough to figure out the full scope of information supporting the Courts repeated finding of probable cause to believe that Carter Page was an agent of Russia. There is a mention of two Russians, one of whom pleaded guilty to being an unregistered agent of a foreign government and was sentenced to 30 months, but even that is disconnected from the redacted discussion that precedes it. Substantively, the government seems to have hewed as closely to the prior disclosures as it could in applying FOIA. The redactions also appear to indicate that the government was able to obtain useful evidence using its wiretaps of Page, as that information seems to have been referenced in the successful applications to renew the FISA warrant. Trumpworld vastly oversold the Nunes memo as definitive proof of a significant plot against the president, then underdelivered, yet the allegations became part of the canon of misinformation thats been used to attack the Justice Department, the Mueller investigation, and Democrats ever since. Analysts like Kris warn of significant collateral damage to essential elements of our democracy on account of the fiasco, but neither the Nunes memo nor its debunking is likely to move opinion polls or result in meaningful pressure on the GOP. The president, along with most of his supporters and allies, surely believed the memos claims sight unseen, and efforts like Trumps Sunday tweets to falsely reframe the FISA applications will probably be repeated and accepted in that crowd. The real proof offered by the FISA applications is that key Republican lawmakers like Devin Nunes are willing to blatantly abuse their power to protect the president. Nuness trumped-up allegations, like his absurd attempt to clear the president of wrongdoing afterward, demonstrates not just sycophancy, but culpability. The Nunes memo isnt the cudgel or ladder Trumps allies think it is its a mirror. DoD Policy Chief Urges U.S.-Russian Collaboration on Mutual-Interest Issues July 21, 2018 By Terri Moon Cronk DoD News, Defense Media Activity WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon's chief policy maker addressed the Aspen Security Forum last night about the need for the United States and Russia to seek common collaboration on issues of national security concern as such opportunities might arise. In Aspen, Colorado, John C. Rood, undersecretary for defense for policy, said of the two near-peer competitors outlined in the 2018 National Defense Strategy China and Russia the latter is the larger near-term threat because of the overwhelming lethality of its nuclear arsenal and some of the behavior the Russian government has exhibited, such as threatening NATO allies and illegally annexing Crimea. Overall, globally, "[we] have to stand firm in defending the ideals and the values of the international rules-based order we've put in place, [which] is of benefit for all," the undersecretary said. "We've got to work very closely with allies [and take] steps to make NATO fit for our times. And the European Deterrence Initiative is also getting some greater momentum," he added. "We also have to be open to opportunities for collaboration," with Russia, Rood emphasized. "Where our interests align and we have an opportunity to do something together with the Russians, we should look for those opportunities." One such opportunity has been the "deconfliction" line in Syria between the United States and Russia, where the U.S. military is working to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, while Russia defends the Syrian president's regime in a civil war. Strategic Stability "We would also like to talk more about strategic stability, making sure there are clear understandings between the United States and Russia, about these terribly lethal weapons that we both control, and talk about the future of nonproliferation," Rood said of potential future opportunities with Russia. "We have shared interests in the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery," he added. "It's an area where we've had a lot of good cooperation from Russia in the past. This is another area we can collaborate on if there's enough of an alignment of interest." Another concern the United States has with Russia is its lack of respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of NATO nations, he said. "That's why we're doing things like deploying, on a rotational basis, troops in four countries along NATO's eastern periphery; why we're doing things like the Four-30s initiative," in which NATO allies, by the year 2020, would have 30 mechanized battalions, 30 air squadrons and 30 combat vessels ready for deployment in 30 days or less. The Four 30s initiative was announced at the June 7-8 meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels. North Korea On North Korea, Rood said it is a solemn obligation for America to make sure that nation makes good on its offer to return the remains of 5,300 U.S. service members from the Korean War, so that American families can have closure. "We're encouraged that there could be a return of remains in the near future," he said. Rood said the Defense Department is hopeful to see progress in North Korea's efforts to denuclearize. "What gives me hope this time is [North Korean leader Kim Jong Un] is a different leader than his father and his grandfather," the undersecretary said of Un's main focus on the economy, rather than making the military his priority. "I have deep skepticism of denuclearization and their activities, but I'm hopeful," he said. Iran The National Defense Strategy also lists the malign influence of Iran as another major challenge to the United States, and Rood noted the long-standing concern the nation has had over Iran's nuclear program, in addition to other issues, such as its support for terrorism. As Iran continues to threaten to close shipping in the Persian Gulf to other nations, he advised the Iranians against such action. "One of our missions for the United States military is, if called upon, to continue the free flow of commerce in that strategic waterway, whether it is vital oil shipments or other commercial goods, [and] to allow for the free and open navigation in the gulf," Rood said. "Therefore, I really discourage the Iranian government from thinking about trying to interrupt that free flow of commerce. It would not be in their interest." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Afghanistan: 14 civilians killed in airstrike following battle involving US aircraft Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 11:00PM Fourteen members of a family, including three children, were killed in an airstrike in the northern Afghanistan province of Kunduz on Thursday, Afghan officials stated on Friday. The deaths occurred in the Chahar Dara district during a battle against the Taliban involving US and Afghan airstrikes, according to reports. The coalition initially denied that the victims were civilians, and claimed they were Taliban fighters, according to reports. But district officials later described the airstrikes as having inadvertently led to the deaths of the civilians. Some local officials are reported as saying that the strikes were carried out by the US military. Separately, US officials have reportedly denied their aircraft caused civilian casualties. An investigation is underway, say Afghan officials. Footage shows a digger sifting through the debris at the site of the airstrike on Friday. Omerkhel, a local resident, described the scene, saying: "their families are under the earth, the machine is working to get them out of the damaged places." He added, "I do not know how the military operations are going on here, they are not professional." Zalmai Farooqi, Governor of the Chahar Dara District of Kunduz Province, lamented not having been informed of the airstrike before it took place. "No one was informed, neither the national army - not even the police and ourselves. If they don't [inform us] then we cannot manage to inform the people," he said. Civilian casualties in Afghanistan reached their highest ever levels in the first half of this year, according to a UN report. The toll of 1,692 fatalities was the highest for comparable periods since the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) began keeping records in 2009. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Afghan government considering yet another Eid ceasefire with Taliban militants: Kabul Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 05:37PM Afghan President Ashraf Ghani might offer the Taliban militant group another ceasefire during next month's Eid holiday, a government spokesman says, after the Afghan leader reached a truce with Taliban insurgents last month. "There is the possibility that a ceasefire may be announced over Eid al-Qurban," said Ghani's main spokesman Haroon Chakansuri at a news conference in capital Kabul on Saturday, referring to Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice), an important festival on the Islamic calendar, which falls on August 22 this year. He declined to comment further but said that more details would be announced later. On June 9, Taliban announced in a statement that it had agreed to a week-long truce deal proposed by the Afghan government, saying that foreign forces would be excluded from the ceasefire and operations would resume against them. Taliban militants themselves, however, announced a three-day truce of their own starting on June 15, saying on June 17 that they would not extend it, a day after Ghani announced the extension of the week-long period of truce with the militant group until an unspecified time. The three-day ceasefire was held on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr Muslim holidays. The truce, which saw Taliban fighters on the streets of Kabul and other Afghan cities taking selfies with police and government troopers, raised visions of longer-lasting peace between the two sides. However, after announcing their refusal to extend the truce on June 17, Taliban militants attacked security forces in numerous districts of eastern and southern Afghanistan. The Taliban's five-year rule over at least three quarters of Afghanistan came to an end when the United States and its allies invaded the country on October 7, 2001, as part of Washington's so-called war on terror. Back in February, Ghani called on the Taliban to join peace talks "without preconditions." In return, Ghani said the Taliban would need to recognize the Afghan government and respect the rule of law. Despite the continued presence of foreign troops across the country, the Taliban have been involved in widespread militancy, killing thousands of civilians as well as Afghan security forces and displacing tens of thousands of people across the country ever since. The militant group has time and again stressed that it would not enter talks with Kabul until US-led foreign troops left the country. However, the militants have repetitively said they are ready for talks with Washington. On Tuesday, General John Nicholson, the top commander of US forces in Afghanistan, announced that the US was also ready to initiate direct talks with Taliban in an attempt to end a 17-year-old war in Afghanistan. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel targets Hamas position in Gaza Strip only hours after truce Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 03:09PM Israeli artillery units have targeted a position of the Palestinian Hamas resistance movement in the Gaza Strip only hours after it was announced that the Tel Aviv regime had reached a truce with Palestinian factions in the besieged coastal enclave. Local sources, requesting anonymity, said that Israeli forces launched three artillery rounds at an observation post east of the Zeitoun district of Gaza City on Saturday. There were no reports of casualties or the extent of damage caused. The Israeli military later asserted in a statement that the shelling came in response to an "infiltration attempt" by a group of young Palestinian men. On Friday, at least four Palestinians lost their lives and nearly 120 others sustained critical injuries when Israeli military aircraft and battle tanks hit targets throughout the Gaza Strip. Nearly 150 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the "Great March of Return" began in the Gaza Strip on March 30. A total of 14,811 Palestinians have also sustained injuries, of whom 366 are reportedly in critical condition. The Gaza clashes reached their peak on May 14, on the eve of the 70th anniversary of Nakba Day (Day of Catastrophe), which coincided this year with the US embassy relocation from Tel Aviv to occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds. On June 13, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution, sponsored by Turkey and Algeria, condemning Israel for Palestinian civilian deaths in the Gaza Strip. The resolution, which had been put forward on behalf of Arab and Muslim countries, garnered a strong majority of 120 votes in the 193-member assembly, with 8 votes against and 45 abstentions. The resolution called on UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to make proposals within 60 days "on ways and means for ensuring the safety, protection, and well-being of the Palestinian civilian population under Israeli occupation," including "recommendations regarding an international protection mechanism." It also called for "immediate steps towards ending the closure and the restrictions imposed by Israel on movement and access into and out of the Gaza Strip." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN chief urges Hamas and Israel to 'step back from the brink of another devastating conflict' in Gaza 21 July 2018 - Voicing deep concern over the latest flare-up of violence around Gaza, the United Nations chief on Saturday urged all sides to "step back from the brink of another devastating conflict". "I am gravely concerned over the dangerous escalation of violence in Gaza and southern Israel," said Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a statement. "I deeply regret the loss of life. It is imperative that all sides urgently step back from the brink of another devastating conflict", he added. On 30 March this year, Palestinians in Gaza controlled by Hamas, a militant Palestinian faction started a mass protest against a blockade of the enclave imposed by Israel since the early 1990's. The confrontation between the sides has since escalated. On Friday, Palestinian gunmen killed an Israeli soldier and the Israeli military launched dozens of strikes that killed three Hamas fighters, according to media reports. A fourth Palestinian was killed by Israeli gunfire during a protest near the border. In the statement, Mr. Guterres called on Hamas and other Palestinian militants in Gaza to cease the launching of rockets and incendiary kites and provocations along the enclave's border fence. He also said Israel must exercise restraint to avoid further inflaming the situation. "Any further escalation will endanger the lives of Palestinians and Israelis alike, deepen the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and undermine current efforts to improve livelihoods and support the return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza," he said. The Secretary-General also encouraged all to engage with the UN, and particularly his Special Coordinator, Nickolay Mladenov, and work to find "a way out of this dangerous situation". NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Afghan Government Considering New Cease-Fire By Hasib Danish Alikozai July 21, 2018 The Afghan government is mulling over whether to announce another cease-fire with the Taliban during next month's Eid holiday, a spokesman for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said Saturday. "Given the desire of the Afghan people, the country's religious clerics and the fact that last Eid's cease-fire was a successful experience, there is willingness on both sides to announce another cease-fire during Eid," spokesman Haroon Chakansuri told reporters in Kabul. Last month's unprecedented cease-fire with insurgents was Ghani's initiative and demonstrated the government's commitment to peace in the country, Chakansuri said. The Taliban reciprocated the cease-fire during the three days of Eid but rejected Ghani's offer of extending the cease-fire for another three months. During those three days, Taliban fighters were, for the first time, seen on the streets of Kabul and other major cities around the country, taking selfies with residents, soldiers and police. Many, including senior American officials, saw the Taliban's gesture during the Eid cease-fire as a sign that the insurgent group was ready to begin peace talks. "The trip came in the wake of the cease-fire, which I think was revelatory for everyone in the region and certainly for us. There is palpable desire for peace that we saw not just among Afghan civilians, but among Taliban commanders and foot soldiers as well," Alice Wells, the U.S. State Department's deputy assistant secretary for the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, told a group of reporters earlier this month after her trip to the region. Direct talks? The issue of another cease-fire comes on the heels of a recent report in a major U.S. newspaper that the U.S. is considering direct talks with the Taliban. Last week, The New York Times reported that U.S. President Donald Trump has instructed "top diplomats" to pursue "direct talks" with the Taliban in an effort to "jump-start" negotiations with the Taliban in the hope of ending the 17-year war in Afghanistan. The Times report raised concerns among many in Afghanistan that direct U.S. engagement with the Taliban may undermine the Afghan government and reinforce a long-standing Taliban stance that they would only talk to Washington. "Since Afghanistan is an ally and partner of the U.S., the U.S. should not undermine the independent and internationally recognized government of Afghanistan by engaging in direct talks with Taliban," Abdul Wodood Paiman, a member of the Afghan parliament, told VOA. Following the Times report, U.S. General John Nicholson, commander of international forces in Afghanistan, released a statement: "The United States is not a substitute for the Afghan people or the Afghan government. My reaffirmation of Secretary [Mike] Pompeo's statement in which he said peace talks would include a discussion of international forces and that the United States is ready to work with the Taliban, the Afghan government and the Afghan people toward lasting peace was mischaracterized." Last week, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department also told VOA that any talks with the Taliban would include the Afghan government. "The United States is exploring all avenues to advance a peace process in close consultation with the Afghan government. Any negotiations over the political future of Afghanistan will be between the Taliban and Afghan government," the spokesperson said. On Saturday, Ghani spokesperson Chakansuri reiterated that peace talks with the Taliban would be Afghan-led and that there was regional and international consensus on the issue. The Taliban has yet to react to the Times report, but Waheed Muzhda, a Kabul-based expert and former member of the insurgent group, told VOA that the group would announce its position only after the U.S. had made an official statement. "In regards to U.S. officials' talks with the Taliban, the group has not seen an official statement from the U.S. and that's why Taliban have not reacted to the news yet," Muzhda said. VOA's Mohammad Habibzada and Nike Ching contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Niger army 'kills 10 Boko Haram terrorists' Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 09:57AM The Nigerien army says it has killed at least 10 members of the Takfiri Boko Haram terrorist group, who attacked one of its military positions in the southeast of the African country. Niger's Defense Ministry made the announcement in a statement on Saturday, saying that the attacks by the Takfiri outfit had been perpetrated in Baroua Village, located in the country's southeastern Diffa region, near the border with Nigeria. "In the night from Thursday to Friday, the military station of Baroua was attacked by the terrorist group Boko Haram," the statement said. "On the enemy's side, 10 terrorists were killed." The ministry also said the attack left one army soldier dead and two others injured, adding that the area was still being searched by security forces. Earlier this month, at least six Nigerien soldiers were killed in an attack at a military post in the same area. Niger has been one of the countries affected by more than seven years of Boko Haram militancy in Nigeria. In June 2016, an assault on the nearby town of Bosso killed over 30 soldiers, prompting Chad to send 2,000 troops to help Niger combat the militants. Those troops were withdrawn in October last year, raising renewed concern about security in the Diffa region. According to United Nations (UN)'s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the toll from attacks carried out by Boko Haram terrorists fell in Niger last year. A total of 141 civilians in Niger were killed, kidnapped or wounded by the terrorist group in 2017, showing a sharp decrease compared to 2016, the OCHA said in January. The Takfiri terrorist group has routinely launched attacks across Nigerian borders into Niger, Chad, and Cameroon. '18 killed in Boko Haram attack in Chad' Just on Sunday, a Chadian military source said 18 people had lost their lives in an attack by suspected Boko Haram militants in the Lake Chad region. The source said the fatalities had taken place at around 9:00 pm (2000 GMT) on Thursday in a village south of Daboua, not far from Chad's border with Niger. The assailants "cut the throats of 18 people, wounded two others and kidnapped 10 women." Boko Haram has terrorized the region since it took up arms in 2009 in Nigeria, leaving at least 20,000 people dead, displacing more than two million others and triggering a humanitarian crisis. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Rival protesters march in Nicaragua amidst unrest, mounting death toll Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 01:31AM Pro and anti Ortega groups marched on the streets of Managua on Saturday, July 21, amidst months of unrest that has tested the rule of the leftist government led by President Daniel Ortega. Nicaragua has been racked by civil unrest since protests broke out in April against former Marxist guerrilla leader Ortega and his Sandinistas over plans to cut welfare benefits. Ortega scrapped the cuts, but the violent repression of dissent sparked wider protests, leading to accusations that the president increasingly resembles former dictator Anastasio Somoza, whom he helped to topple nearly 40 years ago. Supported by armed Ortega loyalists, security forces are hot on the heels of activist and leaders throughout the country, despite calls from the President for peace. Supporters of the President have accused protesters of seeking a coup in the country. Ortega is facing the biggest challenge to his leadership since returning to power in 2007. He has so far resisted demands to resign and hold early elections. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pentagon surprised by Trump-Putin military deals Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 05:56PM The US Defense Department has been reportedly caught off guard by reports of military agreements between President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, during their recent meeting in Finland. Russia has touted Monday's summit between Trump and Putin in the Finnish capital Helsinki as a success, hailing "verbal agreements" regarding increased cooperation on international security matters such as Ukraine and Syria. "The Russian Defense Ministry is ready for practical implementation of the agreements in the sphere of international security reached by Russian and US Presidents, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, at their Monday's summit in Helsinki," said Igor Konashenkov, a spokesman for the ministry. Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has kept a low profile since the summit, just as he stayed off the radar throughout Trump's chaotic European tour that led to the meeting and saw Trump bash NATO members during a summit in Brussels and undermine the British government during a visit to the UK. Trump said during the NATO summit that the military alliance was not investing enough money in defense and the US was bearing the brunt of the costs. He even said he would call back US troops from Europe if the trend continues, causing an uproar among allies. The silence in the Pentagon's higher ranks has trickled down, where press officials have spent the week trying to answer questions on Trump and Putin's discussion and the potential military agreements that Moscow is speaking about. The head of US Central Command, General Joseph Votel, who oversees the US-led campaign against purported Daesh positions in Syria and Iraq, told reporters Thursday that he had received no new guidance on the operation since the summit. "For us right now it's kind of steady as she goes," he said. "We have received no further direction than we've currently been operating under." Trump administration officials are also trying to find out what agreements, if any, Trump and Putin have reached during their private meeting that stretched over two hours. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Enemies failed in military aggression to seize Yemen's Hudaydah: Ansarullah Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 05:50PM The spokesman for Yemen's Houthi Ansarullah movement says the Saudi-led military alliance has dismally failed in its campaign to overrun the strategic western Yemeni port city of Hudaydah. "The enemies' scenario to march into Hudaydah has resulted in failure, because they heavily relied on psychological warfare and media propaganda, concealing the real facts on the ground," Yemen's Arabic-language al-Masirah television network quoted Mohammed Abdul-Salam as saying on Sunday. He added that Saudi Arabia and its regional allies have not derived any benefit from over three-year Yemen war and are losers. "They lack any military and political vision and have no understanding of the nature of the Yemeni nation," Abdul-Salam pointed out. He also lamented the deteriorating situation in areas under the control of the United Arab Emirates, stating that locals in districts not occupied by Emirati military forces live in a state of security, stability and social cohesion. "The occupied territories are witnessing lack of security, law violation, numerous cases of rape, growing chaos and spread of al-Qaeda terror group in addition to violations of human rights and torture in detention centers," the Ansarullah spokesman highlighted. Abdul-Salam added that Saudi Arabia and its allies have not allowed any peace negotiations to bear fruit ever since the Yemeni conflict broke out in March 2015. The Yemeni Ministry of Human Rights announced in a statement on March 25 that the Saudi-led war had left some 600,000 civilians dead and injured since March 2015. The United Nations says a record 22.2 million Yemenis are in need of food aid, including 8.4 million threatened by severe hunger. A high-ranking UN aid official has warned against the "catastrophic" living conditions in Yemen, stating that there was a growing risk of famine and cholera there. "The conflict has escalated since November, driving an estimated 100,000 people from their homes," John Ging, UN director of aid operations, told the UN Security Council on February 27. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Real Scandal in the Fight Against Opioids Some snapshots from the nations fight against drug abuse: President Donald Trump at every opportunity calls for the building of the wall, which he says will stop drugs (along with immigrants) from entering the country; he has also endorsed tougher criminal sanctions for traffickers, including the death penalty for major ones. Twenty-four states are suing Purdue Pharma (the maker of OxyContin) and other manufacturers of painkillers for their deceptive marketing practices. Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn are preparing to try Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, the Mexican cartel leader, on charges of drug trafficking, money laundering and horrific acts of violence. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio recently announced plans to open four supervised drug-injection sites in the city; San Francisco, Seattle and Philadelphia have similar intentions. None of this, however, is likely to make much of a dent in an epidemic that last year claimed 64,000 lives due to overdoses, for they fail to address the truly urgent need in the fight against substance abuse: repairing and expanding a treatment network that is severely underfunded, badly splintered and completely overwhelmed. At a time of widespread anguish and hand-wringing about addiction, neither the president, nor Congress, nor governors, nor journalists are paying enough attention to the one thing that could truly make a difference: more and better treatment. According to a 2016 report by the Surgeon General, only 1 in 10 people who needs drug and alcohol treatment gets it. Of course, not everyone who needs treatment wants it, but enough do to create shockingly long waiting lists across the country. In West Virginia, the state with the highest rate of overdose deaths, there are a mere 171 beds for detox (which weans users off drugs over a period of days) and 151 for longer-term residential treatment, forcing carpool moms and dads to drive up to five hours to find an opening. (The number of beds is expected to more than double thanks to new state and federal funding, but thats still a fraction of whats needed.) In New Hampshire, another hard-hit state, waits of four to six weeks are common for a publicly funded residential bed, while in Maine the primary detox facilities are the states 15 county jails. The small subset of users who have private insurance can generally gain quick access to facilities that cost up to $10,000 a week and (in the upper tier) feature saunas, yoga, rock climbing and aromatherapy. The vast majority who rely on Medicaid or are uninsured, however, face long waits for admission to facilities that often lack even basic medical, psychiatric and therapeutic services. For those in the grip of drugs, the openness to treatment is often fleeting, and if a slot is not immediately available, theyre back on the street, snorting, shooting up, overdosing, landing in emergency rooms or worse. In New Hampshire, a heroin user was found dead in his apartment along with a list of rehab facilities on the table next to his bed, which he had called in vain. In Springfield, Massachusetts, beds are in such short supply that those seeking help sometimes have to get arrested so that a judge can mandate them to a facility. In Huntington, West Virginia, the parents of a 21-year-old woman spent 41 days trying to get her into a facility, without success; on the 42nd day, she overdosed and died. Dr. James Berry, the director of the addictions program at the West Virginia University School of Medicine in Morgantown, says hospital emergency rooms throughout the state are flooded every day with scores of people who are desperate for treatment. The courts are similarly overwhelmed. I get calls from various courts asking for help in getting people into treatment because its not available in local communities. The three hardest words for a user to say are I need help, he observes. If they cant get it when the window is open, the opportunity quickly fades. Every community should be able to provide immediate access. But does treatment work? By now, there is a shelf-full of studies showing that it significantly reduces the harms associated with drug and alcohol abuse. According to the Surgeon Generals report, every dollar spent on treatment saves about $4 in health care costs and $7 in criminal costs. The savings mount when one adds in family anguish, days lost at work, child abuse and neglect, newborns going through withdrawal and homelessness. Needless to say, relapse often occurs; in fact, it is chronic. Yet even if people refrain from using drugs for a limited period, the benefit-to-cost ratio is high. And over time, many do return to a productive life. In the case of opioids, the treatment options include two medications, methadone and buprenorphine, that both have a well-documented record of helping stabilize users. Yet these treatments remain in pitifully short supply, particularly in rural areas that have been especially hard hit by the epidemic. Since methadone and buprenorphine (marketed under the name Suboxone) are both opioid-based, they are frequently dismissed as just another form of addiction, but this is misguided, for both reduce the craving for drugs and the symptoms of withdrawal and so help the drug-dependent function normally. That making such treatment more accessible could help stanch the current epidemic is clear from the nations experience with an earlier onethe heroin wave of the late 1960s and early 1970s. In 1971, President Richard Nixon (of all people)intent on combating the crime associated with drugsset up a special drug-abuse prevention office in the White House and authorized its director, Dr. Jerome Jaffe, to make methadone (and other forms of treatment) widely available. Clinics were quickly established across the country, and within 18 months almost everyone seeking treatment could find it. Both heroin use and the crime related to it sharply declined. Unfortunately, during his 1972 reelection campaign, Nixonwanting to look tough on crime and drugsbegan shifting federal attention away from treatment to law enforcement and incarceration. In May 1973, New York adopted the Rockefeller Drug Laws, mandating long prison sentences even for minor offenses. Other states rushed to copy them, and the war on drugs was on. Prisons filled with low-level offenders, many of whom would have been more effectively dealt with through treatment. During the Reagan years, the national treatment network set up under Nixon crumbled. When the crack and cocaine epidemic hit in the mid-to-late 1980s, the treatment centers that remained were completely overwhelmed; waiting lists grew and crime rates and the associated costs soared. Amid todays exploding opioid use, we are paying the price for this long neglect of the nations treatment infrastructure. The Trump administration in its 2019 budget has proposed an additional $900 million for Health and Human Services to help address the epidemica mere droplet of whats needed. To make treatment available on demand would require spending tens of billions of dollars annually for years to come. That might seem like a lot, but its modest compared with the estimated $450 billion that substance abuse costs the nation every year. Some of the needed sums could be diverted from programs that seek to keep drugs out of the country, for they are generally futile. Despite all the efforts to seal the nations borders against drugs, they continue to pour in; heroin and cocaine are easily concealed and transported, and hypertoxic fentanyl can be purchased online with cryptocurrencies. The war on drugs in Mexico, meanwhile, is not only ineffective but counterproductive; the drive to dismantle the Mexican cartels has served mainly to destabilize the market, setting off bloody wars among traffickers, with countless civilian casualties. Our anti-drug efforts should be directed at reducing the demand for drugs rather than cutting off the supplyan approach that is not only more humane but also more cost-effective. In addressing demand, its essential to offer a full array of services. The effectiveness of methadone and buprenorphine can be enhanced when accompanied by counseling. To treat the most serious cases, residential facilities (both long- and short-term) need to be vastly expanded. Supplementary services are needed to help those in recovery find jobs, housing and mental-health support. Outreach workers are needed to locate users and connect them with services. Central intakes need to be established in cities and towns to help connect people with services and track their progress through the system. More doctors and nurses should be trained to diagnose drug disorders and prescribe medications like buprenorphine. Treatment should be made more available in the nations prisons and jails, and schools should have counselors trained to watch for adolescents struggling with drugs and alcohol. Needle-exchange programs should be expanded and more closely connected with treatment facilities. And the treatment industry as a whole should be subject to stricter regulation and oversight. (Many centers are unlicensed and amateurishly run.) All of this would require a vast expansion in staffing. Establishing treatment on demand could thus become a substantial provider of jobs, especially in regions where factories have shut down. Rehab centers could even be opened in shuttered industrial facilities. Finally, news organizations need to rethink their approach to the drug issue. They too often focus on sideshowsthe drug war in Mexico, police raids in big cities, the culpability of Big Pharma. (The number of opioid prescriptions nationwide actually peaked in 2012, and in 2016 they reached their lowest level in a decade, yet the epidemic continues.) Journalists should instead seek to expose the glaring gaps in the nations treatment system and dramatize the plight of those who want help but cant get itthe real scandal in the fight against drugs. Yes sir, Mr. President! Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images As is clear from his well-documented view of executive power (and his obsequious performance on the night President Trump nominated him), Supreme Court hopeful Brett Kavanaugh believes in showing great deference to the president of the United States. But old comments unearthed this weekend illustrate just how expansive and atypical his opinions might be. The Associated Press reported on Saturday that Kavanaugh once said that the Supreme Courts 8-0 United States vs. Nixon decision in 1974, which forced President Nixon to disclose his infamous Watergate tapes and hastened the end of his presidency, may have been a mistake. The potential justice made the comments during a roundtable discussion with other lawyers way back in 1999, in the aftermath of President Bill Clintons impeachment an episode in which Kavanaugh played a key role. But maybe Nixon was wrongly decided heresy though it is to say so. Nixon took away the power of the president to control information in the executive branch by holding that the courts had power and jurisdiction to order the president to disclose information in response to a subpoena sought by a subordinate executive branch official. That was a huge step with implications to this day that most people do not appreciate sufficientlyMaybe the tension of the time led to an erroneous decision, Kavanaugh said in a transcript of the discussion that was published in the January-February 1999 issue of the Washington Lawyer. At another point in the discussion, Kavanaugh said the court might have been wise to stay out of the tapes dispute. Should U.S. v. Nixon be overruled on the ground that the case was a nonjusticiable intrabranch dispute? Maybe so, he said. The Washington Lawyer article was rediscovered when Kavanaugh submitted thousands of pages of documents to the Senate Judiciary Committee last week, which were released publicly on Saturday. During the Clinton investigation, Kavanaugh, who worked for Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr, wrote briefs that laid out arguments for the presidents impeachment. But in the years afterward, he completely recalibrated his views on investigations that involve the president, and has since advanced a vision of almost unlimited executive leeway on such matters. In 2009, he wrote that Clinton should never have been investigated while in office, because indicting a sitting president would ill serve the public interest, especially in times of financial or national-security crisis. If Special Counsel Robert Mueller tries to compel President Trump to testify as part of the Russia investigation, and the two sides meet at the Supreme Court, there is little doubt who Kavanaugh would favor. The Nixon remarks drew rebukes from Democrats who are looking for any angle they can find to sink Kavanaughs nomination, and had already zeroed in on his view of presidential power. Afghanistan's vice president escapes deadly bombing Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 05:22PM Nearly a dozen people have been killed and at least 14 others injured in a bombing carried out at Kabul's airport, where scores had gathered to welcome home Afghanistan's Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum, who had been in exile. Kabul police spokesman, Hashmat Stanekzai, said the bomb attack hit near the airport's main entrance, where supporters were waiting to greet Dostum. He had left the airport in a motorcade only minutes before the explosion, which officials said appeared to have been caused by a bomber. Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman, Najib Danish, said civilians, including a child, and members of security forces were among the casualties. Dostum's spokesman, Bashir Ahmad Tayanj, said the vice president, traveling in an armored vehicle, had not been harmed. Daesh Takfiri terrorist group claimed responsibility for the deadly blast. The Daesh-affiliated Amaq news agency said the bomber detonated his suicide jacket at a gathering to receive the vice president. Dostum, a former warlord and an ethnic Uzbek veteran of decades of Afghanistan's occasional bloody politics, was mobbed like a celebrity as he left the chartered plane from Turkey, where he had been living since May 2017. His return comes amid ongoing violent protests in several provinces in northern Afghanistan, his traditional power base. Expectations of the return did little to quell the unrest, with protesters in Faryab province vowing Sunday to continue demonstrating until the strong leader of the Uzbek ethnic minority tells them otherwise. "We don't trust the government. We will continue our protests unless General Dostum tells us to stop," said Ehsanullah Qowanch, a protest leader in Faryab. Qowanch repeated calls for the release of Nezamuddin Qaisari, Dostum's provincial representative in Faryab, whose arrest earlier this month ignited demonstrations. Massoud Khan, another protester, said, "We have been on the streets for 20 days now. We are not going to stop our protests unless our demands are met." Dostum left Afghanistan last year after he was accused of organizing the rape and torture of a political rival. He denied the allegations and said his departure was for medical checkups and family reasons. Seven of Dostum's bodyguards have been convicted of the sexual assault and illegal imprisonment of Ahmad Ishchi, a former governor of the northern province of Jowzjan, in 2016. Dostum allegedly had Ishchi abducted in Jowzjan and then kept him hostage in his private compound for several days, where the captive was said to have been tortured and sodomized. Observers say President Ashraf Ghani, an ethnic Pashtun, gave the green light for Dostum to come home and secure the Uzbek support before next year's presidential election, which he is widely expected to contest. Presidential spokesman, Haroon Chakhansuri, said Saturday that Dostum had been "treated" and would resume his duties upon his return. Dostum is one of several controversial figures whom Kabul has sought to reintegrate into the mainstream politics. Ghani chose him as his running mate in the 2014 presidential election. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Argentina Ready to Host Several US Military Bases - Reports Sputnik News 05:58 22.07.2018(updated 08:46 22.07.2018) MEXICO CITY (Sputnik) - Argentina's President Mauricio Macri has given the green light to the creation of several US military bases on his country's territory, media reported citing sources. According to the Mexican news portal Aristegui Noticias, at least three US bases could be established in the provinces of Neuquen, Misiones and Tierra del Fuego. Their creation would be financed by the US Southern Command. The news portal said Argentina's Security Minister Patricia Bullrich was allegedly one of the key supporters of the creation of the bases. In November 2015, center-right Mauricio Macri won the presidential election in Argentina. Macri's victory put an end to a 12-year period of governance by left-wing Nestor Kirchner from 2003-2007 and by his wife Cristina Kirchner from 2007-2015. Macri has repeatedly said that the policy of his predecessors had resulted in Argentina's isolation from the West and promised to improve Buenos Aires' relations with the United States and the European Union. Last year, the US Senate introduced a resolution upholding Washington's commitment to continue military and economic cooperation with Argentina. The resolution encourages the US State Department to create an effective strategy to expand cooperation with the government of Argentina on issues of bilateral, regional as well as global concern, the release added. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pakistan: Ghani's Overtures to Taliban Give Hope for Afghan Peace By Ayaz Gul July 22, 2018 Afghanistan hosted a new round of ongoing wide-ranging discussions with Pakistan Sunday in an effort to build mutual confidence and work together to bring an end to the Afghan conflict. The Kabul meeting took place under a framework agreement of bilateral engagement called the Afghanistan-Pakistan Action-Plan-for-Peace-and-Solidarity (APAPPS). The process seeks enhanced military cooperation intelligence sharing to jointly fight regional terrorism and promote Afghan peace and reconciliation efforts. Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai, who headed the Afghan delegation, informed Sunday's meeting that the sides have made progress in the months-old dialogue process. "The aim is to build trust to improve relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, in particular, and Pakistan's cooperation in dealing with the ongoing war in Afghanistan," Karzai explained. Head of the Pakistani delegation, Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua, while addressing Sunday's meeting in the Afghan capital, also praised the progress the two sides have achieved toward moving the bilateral relationship forward . "It is a clear demonstration of how much we can do when we work together. We also bring the message of a commitment to peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan," she noted. "We are now looking at what are the similarities and complementarities that we have between our two countries. We see that Pakistan and Afghanistan will grow together, inshallah [God willing], economically and in the context of peace and stability within the region," Janjua vowed. The U.S-backed Afghan government has long alleged leaders of the Taliban insurgency are directing the war from their sanctuaries on Pakistani soil. Both Afghan and U.S. officials have been calling for Islamabad to expel, arrest or force Taliban leaders to the table for peace talks with Kabul. Pakistan denies insurgents are using its territory for attacks inside Afghanistan, saying Pakistani forces through sustained operations have dismantled "all terrorism-related infrastructure" in near the Afghan border and have put in place enhanced border security measures to prevent infiltration in either direction. "Pakistan looks forward to peace in Afghanistan. Pakistan has been doing its bit in this regard with other stakeholders," army spokesman Major-General Asif Ghafoor told VOA on Friday. Foreign Secretary Januja reiterated at Sunday's talks in Kabul her country's strong support for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's initiatives to encourage peace and reconciliation talks with the Taliban. The Pakistani diplomat said Ghani's overture followed by his unilateral temporary Eid cease-fire with the Taliban "gives great hope for everyone" seeking an end to the Afghan conflict. Ghani's cease-fire prompted the Taliban to declare its own cessation of hostilities during the three-day Eid festival. But the insurgents ignored calls for extending their cease-fire and have since returned to the battlefield with more intensity. Pakistani officials say their influence with the Taliban has receded in recent years but they have pledged to use "whatever leverage" Islamabad has to assist in kick-starting Afghan peace talks. Afghan ambassador to Pakistan, Omar Zakhilwal, acknowledged earlier this month that Islamabad played a role in the temporary Taliban cease-fire but he would not share further details. Speaking in Washington on Thursday, the commander of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), General Joseph Votel also noted recent bilateral engagements have improved military cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan. "And that has increased the level of interaction between the military. And what we've seen is, we've seen a corresponding decrease in confrontations and conflict and tensions and exchanges along the border. These are very positive things," Votel told reporters in Washington. Kabul and Islamabad under the comprehensive APAPPS dialogue are also discussing ways to encourage an "honorable and voluntary" repatriation of nearly three million Afghans still residing in Pakistan. Pakistani authorities have been pushing for an early repatriation of all Afghans, saying it will depress remnants of Taliban insurgents from using the refugee population as a hideout. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Deadly Bomb Hits Kabul Minutes After Exiled Dostum Returns Home By Ayaz Gul July 22, 2018 Afghan authorities say a powerful bomb went off near Kabul's international airport Sunday, killing at least 16 people and wounding 60 others, just minutes after first vice president, Abdul Rashid Dostum, returned home from exile. A city police spokesman, Hashamtullah Satnikzai, confirmed to VOA a suicide bomber carried out the attack. Dostum was not hurt. Islamic State through its Amaq News Agency claimed responsibility for the bombing. It said the attack targeted the crowd welcoming Dostum, killing and injuring at least 115 security forces and supporters of the Afghan vice president. Dostum, a former Uzbek warlord, returned to Afghanistan after more than a year of living in Turkey. He left the country in 2017 under controversial circumstances. The Afghan government insisted Dostum needed better medical treatment abroad and he would rejoin duties after recovery. But the Uzbek leader was under investigation for torturing and sexually abusing a veteran political rival when he flew out of Kabul in the middle of night. Dostum has long been surrounded by controversy and both local as well as international rights defenders accuse him of war crimes against members of the Taliban after a U.S.-led military invasion of Afghanistan ousted the Islamist group from power in Kabul. It is not clear whether or not Dostum will still face the investigation. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US 'Deeply Concerned' Over South Sudan Peace Process By VOA News July 22, 2018 The United States is expressing deep concern about the direction of the peace process in South Sudan, saying President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar "have not demonstrated the leadership required to bring genuine peace and accountable governance" to the nation. "We remain skeptical that they can oversee a peaceful and timely transition to democracy and good governance," a statement by White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said about Kiir and Machar. South Sudan gained independence from neighboring Sudan in 2011, but in late 2013 erupted into violence over a power struggle between President Kiir and his former deputy, Machar. Several cease-fires have been violated. The warring parities, meeting in Khartoum last week, failed to agree to a power sharing deal. "The South Sudanese people deserve an end to the violence and a future marked by prosperity and freedom from fear. We remain committed to supporting the South Sudanese people and to saving lives, and we continue to share their aspirations for a peaceful and prosperous tomorrow," White House Press Secretary Sanders said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Trump: Surveillance Court Was 'Misled' to OK Wiretapping of Ex-Aide By Ken Bredemeier July 22, 2018 U.S. President Donald Trump claimed Sunday that newly released documents about the origins of an investigation of a former adviser's links to Russia help vindicate his claim that U.S. government investigators were spying on his 2016 election campaign. He contended in Twitter remarks that "as usual," the documents "are ridiculously heavily redacted but confirm with little doubt that the Department of 'Justice' and FBI misled the courts. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam!" It was not immediately clear how Trump felt the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court was misled in the government's four applications in 2016, and last year after Trump took office, to wiretap Carter Page, his one-time aide. Republican Senator Marco Rubio, a 2016 opponent of Trump's, told CNN that he did not think the Federal Bureau of Investigation "did anything wrong" in surveilling Page. The FBI said in the first application in October 2016 that it "believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government." After a redacted line, the document picked up with the phrase "undermine and influence the outcome of the 2016 U.S. presidential election in violation of U.S. criminal law." Page, who has long denied being a Russian agent, has not been charged with any crime. On Sunday, he acknowledged to CNN that he played a role in advising the Kremlin about energy issues at a 2013 conference in Russia and gave a school graduation address there in 2016. But he described any allegation that he had been conscripted by Moscow as "so ridiculous it's beyond words. It's literally a complete joke. I've never been an agent of a foreign power." The applications for the wiretapping were approved on four occasions by the same FISA Court judges, all appointed by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. Trump and his Republican allies in Congress have contended, however, that the FBI bid for the surveillance relied heavily on a dossier about Trump's links to Russia that was compiled by Christopher Steele, a former British intelligence agent, and paid for by the campaign of Democrat Hillary Clinton, Trump's 2016 challenger. The documents released late Saturday at the request of several news organizations suggested that the FBI did not rely heavily on information in Steele's dossier. The FBI told the FISA court that Page "has established relationships with Russian government officials, including Russian intelligence officers"; that the FBI believed "the Russian government's efforts are being coordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals associated with" Trump's campaign and that Page "has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government." Trump, in one of four Twitter comments about the documents, said, "Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon [surveillance] for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton" and the Democratic National Committee. "Ask her how that worked out," Trump said, adding that "Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam!" In another tweet, the U.S. leader said the "whole FISA scam" led to the "rigged" criminal investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller. For the last 14 months, Mueller and his team of investigators have been probing Trump campaign links to Russia and whether Trump obstructed justice by firing James Comey, a former FBI director, who was heading the agency's Russia probe at the time Trump ousted him, before Mueller was named to take over the investigation. Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn and former foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos have pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about their links to Russia and former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort is set to go on trial this week in connection with lobbying efforts for Ukraine that predated the 2016 campaign. In addition, Mueller has indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officials in connection with cyberattacks on Democratic computers in the U.S. linked to the 2016 Clinton campaign in an effort to help Trump win. House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said in a statement: "For the sake of our national security and our democracy, these vital investigations must be allowed to continue unhindered by Republican interference. The GOP must cease their attacks on our law enforcement and intelligence communities, and finally decide where their loyalty lies." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Xi arrives in Senegal for state visit People's Daily Online (People's Daily Online) 10:57, July 22, 2018 President Xi Jinping arrived here Saturday for the first state visit to Senegal by a Chinese head of state in nine years. Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, were warmly received by Senegalese President Macky Sall and his wife Marieme, as well as Prime Minister Mohammed Dionne at the airport. Sall held a grand welcome ceremony in Xi's honor. Xi, on behalf of the Chinese government and the people, conveyed cordial greetings and good wishes to the government and the people of Senegal. He said it is his fourth visit to Africa since he assumed office as Chinese president in 2013, and that Senegal is the first stop of his ongoing African tour and his first visit to a West African country as Chinese president. China and Senegal are good friends and good partners, he said, adding that in recent years, bilateral relations have enjoyed rapid development with fruitful results in cooperation in various areas. China and Senegal, he said, have witnessed close political exchanges, ever increasing mutual trust, steady advancement of mutually beneficial cooperation, rich and colorful cultural and people-to-people exchanges and close coordination and cooperation on regional and international affairs. Xi noted that he and Sall agreed to elevate the two countries' ties to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and reached many consensuses on expanding bilateral cooperation in 2016. The Chinese president said he was glad to see that those consensuses have been implemented step by step to the benefit of the two peoples. He said he looks forward to having an in-depth exchange of views with Sall on bilateral relations and regional and international affairs of mutual concern. Sall extended warm welcome to Xi on behalf of the Senegalese government and the people. He said the arrangements of Xi's visit testify that the Chinese side attaches great importance to its relations with Senegal. The visit will play an important role in promoting the development of Senegal-China relations, as well as Africa-China ties, Sall said. China has made remarkable achievements in development, he said, adding that his country looks forward to learning more from China's success and deepening cooperation between the two countries. The Chinese president arrived in Senegal after finishing his state visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday. Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leading ministers and members of the royal family saw him off at the airport. Calling the visit to the UAE a complete success, Xi said upon departure that it further consolidated and lifted the friendly relations between the two countries and deepened the friendship between the two peoples. Xi said he believes the UAE will make greater achievements in national construction, and that China is ready to constantly deepen practical cooperation with the country and advance their comprehensive strategic partnership. The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi said the visit will further promote the mutually beneficial cooperation between the UAE and China. He wished China prosperity and progress. Senegal is the second stop in Xi's first overseas trip after being re-elected Chinese president in March. He has already visited the UAE and will pay state visits to Rwanda and South Africa, attend the 10th BRICS summit in Johannesburg, and visit Mauritius during a stopover. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Trump Growing Frustrated Over Lack of Progress with Pyongyang - Reports Sputnik News 04:24 22.07.2018(updated 09:51 22.07.2018) US President Donald Trump has requested daily briefings and updates on progress with North Korea and is looking forward to the end of Pyongyang's nuclear program, The Washington Post reported. However, Trump has been left dissapointed as North Korean officials have canceled meetings with US officials and failed to stay in communication with the White House, the US-based media outlet reported on Saturday. US offciicals earlier claimed that Pyongyang had stepped up its nuclear fuel production for its missiles, despite officially commiting to full denuclearization. The Washington Post said, citing its cources, that Trump was privately furious about the failure of negotiations. On Friday, US Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats said that it is unlikely that North Korea will dismantle its nuclear program within a year. Coats referred to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who previously said the complete destruction of North Korea's nuclear arsenal would take a long time. Coats added that he is not surprised that the North Koreans may try to hide certain things, but that is why the United States has a verification process in place. The DNI chief stressed that the United States continues to have China's and Russia's support in terms of keeping sanctions on Pyongyang, because both countries see the danger of North Korea being a nuclear power. At the meeting in Singapore, Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un reached an agreement that required Pyongyang to denuclearize in exchange for a freeze on the US-South Korean military drills and eventual sanctions relief. The two heads of state signed a document, which, among other issues, stipulated the recovery of the remains of prisoners of war and soldiers who went missing in action in the Korean War (1950-1953). Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Germany may accept foreigners into army in exchange for citizenship Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 10:57PM The German army is reportedly mulling accepting foreigners into its ranks by offering them German citizenship. According to report published by RT on Saturday, the measure is aimed at coping with shortage of recruits in the country by filling understaffed military positions. The logic behind the move will be that a person who is willing the endanger his or her life for Germany earns the right to be a citizen. "The Bundeswehr will grow, therefore we need qualified personnel. To this end, we try every available option," a military spokesman was quoted by RT as saying. The Bavarian Christian Social Union party (CSU), the sister party of Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU, has proposed the move. "Within the scope of European free movement, modern models could apply here," said the party's defense policy speaker. Critics of the move claim that it will undermine the basic concept of a citizen's loyalty to his nation. Karl-Heinz Brunner, a defense policy speaker with Germany's Social Democrats argues that if foreigners were permitted into Bundeswehr ranks, even with a prospect of becoming German citizens, it would be turned into "a kind of mercenary army." He further argued a person must become a German citizen before he or she enlists in the German army. "Anyone who obtains the German passport as part of the integration procedure is cordially invited [to enlist]," he said. The defense ministry was also quoted in the report that the "[the idea of] allowing EU citizens to serve in the Bundeswehr is not new." Europeans with "specific sought-after qualifications" can be enlisted for civilian service. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address German Bundeswehr Mulls Opening Its Ranks to Foreign Nationals Reports Sputnik News 18:52 21.07.2018(updated 18:54 21.07.2018) In a bid to overcome a shortage of military personnel at home, the German Armed Forces are reportedly considering recruiting citizens of other European Union countries. A Defense Ministry spokesperson told the German newspaper Augsburger Allgemeine that the Bundeswehr has opened up to citizens of the EU under a 2016 White Paper on German Security Policy and the Future of the Bundeswehr, but it's now that the option has been "included in the updated recruitment strategy." "The Bundeswehr's strength will grow. To this end, we need qualified personnel, therefore we are considering every available option," the spokesperson said. Meanwhile, member of the Social Democratic Party Karl-Heinz Brunner has said that the Defense Ministry would attract foreigners to the Bundeswehr by offering them the prospect of obtaining German citizenship. "If citizens from other states are allowed, even with the promise of obtaining a German passport, the Bundeswehr risks becoming a kind of mercenary army," he said. According to the report, it was the Bavarian Christian Social Union Party that came up with the proposal, but the party's defense policy speaker, Florian Hahn, clarified that they implied inviting EU nationals to join the Bundeswehr. In 2011, Germany suspended compulsory conscription for men; currently, the Bundeswehr comprises some 87,000 civilian personnel and 177,000 military staff. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Trumps new Kim Jong-un? Photo: Michael Gruber/Getty Images President Trump dramatically escalated his rhetoric toward Iran late Sunday night, sending an ominous, all-caps tweet that appeared to threaten a major attack on the country. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Trump was seemingly reacting to a speech given by Hassan Rouhani, the countrys president, who warned in a speech on Sunday that provoking Iran could result in the mother of all wars. Rouhani is seen as a moderate, but he has stepped up his verbal attacks on the United States since Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal negotiated by President Obama, even though inspectors had found that Iran had never violated its part of the agreement. After pulling out, the Trump administration imposed harsh sanctions on the country that had been removed as part of the negotiations two years earlier. Though Iranian and European signatories to the deal remain committed to preserving it, the Trump administration is intentionally making it difficult for them to carry on without the U.S. Rouhanis Sunday speech came in reaction to American attempts to block countries around the world from purchasing Iranian oil; Rouhani has threatened to block regional oil exports traveling through the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. follows through. The Trump administration is stocked with anti-Iran hard-liners like National Security Advisor John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who have accused the country of sowing chaos in the Middle East by supporting Hezbollah and proBashar al-Assad forces in Syria, among other things. In a speech on Sunday, Pompeo accused Irans leaders of raiding the countrys coffers to destabilize the region, and expressed solidarity with the people of Iran. In a statement Monday morning, Bolton said that his bosss aggression wasnt limited to just a tweet. New John Bolton statement on Iran: I spoke to the President over the last several days, and President Trump told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before. Kevin Liptak (@Kevinliptakcnn) July 23, 2018 Irans economy was already in dire straits before the reintroduction of sanctions, leading to widespread protests in recent months and a sense that the deal with the United States had not delivered its promised rewards a message pushed by the countrys hard-liners, including its supreme leader, who have remained staunchly anti-American. Trumps tweet was reminiscent of those he sent about North Korea last year, in which he threatened the country with nuclear destruction if it did not stop threatening the U.S. That frightening episode ended (temporarily, at least) with a friendly summit between Trump and Kim Jong-un in Singapore, where the president looks to have been hoodwinked by his counterpart, as most experts predicted he would be. Perhaps Trump can contrive a 2019 meeting at a neutral site with Irans leaders, where he can negotiate a watered-down version of the nuclear deal he just squashed which was far more thorough than anything he got out of North Korea and call it a win, sparing the rest of us the prospect of a catastrophic war. Do not play with fire: Iran President warns Trump IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, July 22, IRNA -- US President Donald Trump should not play with fire, warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday. 'Don't play with fire, or you will regret,' President Rouhani cautioned Trump, addressing a meeting attended by the Iranian representatives in foreign countries. 'We are noble people and we have guaranteed in the history security of the Strait in the region,' he said. The Iranian president said that the US last resort is aimed at exhausting Iranian people. 'Iranian people are the master and they will never bow to anyone,' President Rouhani said. He added that there are numerous other straits in addition to the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf and stressed that it is not possible to provoke the Iranian people against the country's security and interests. 'You are declaring war against Iran and at the same time claim support for them?' he wondered. Rouhani said that the Americans should come to realize that establishing peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and waging war with the country is mother of all wars. 'You are intervening across the region, don't you understand what you are talking about?,' he said. The US Administration is at war simultaneously with the world and its own national interests, he said, describing the man in the White House as 'both threat and opportunity.' 'There were no times in the past like today that we are witnessing the White House acting against the international law, Islamic World and Palestinian people,' the Iranian president said. Rouhani went on to denounce the US efforts to prevent Europe's engagement with Iran. Whenever the EU countries were on the verge of reaching an agreement with Iran, the White House would block the deal, he said. 'The JCPOA was tantamount to defeat of 12 years of conspiracies against Iran's acquisition of the nuclear technology,' he said, referring to the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and the world powers, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). 'The Iran Deal was the unified decision of all pillars of the establishment in Iran,' President Rouhani stressed. Referring to the US threats against the Islamic Republic of Iran, he emphasized that Iran will not be affected by any such threats. 'We are against any threats and the power we possess is deterrent,' he said. 'When under threats we are more united and are going to defeat US', he added. 'The main goal Washington was following, from the outset, was encouraging Iran to violate the JCPOA; 'Despite provoking the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to take actions against Iran, they failed to do so and then the US embarked on an another approach, namely to persuade the EU to review the Iran Deal; 'Trump endeavored to do so but at the end he had to take a unilateral action and pull out the US from the nuclear deal.' President Rouhani said that the US is alone in its approach toward the landmark international deal, saying 'The isolated US should not be revitalized.' Touching upon the issue of the Zionist regime of Israel, President Rouhani said that apartheid in the region is originated from the regime. 'We have been told that Israel is a model for democracy in the region, today however it has been proved to be the epicenter of apartheid,' he said. 'There is no regime more anti human rights than the Zionist regime,' he added. 'Today, more than ever, it is clear that the Zionist regime of Israel has its foundation on aggression and occupation,' Rouhani said. 'They are so rude to say that Palestine is not an Islamic nation,' he stressed. **2044 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran's top leader rejects talks with U.S. to solve problems People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 12:45, July 22, 2018 Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday said that any negotiation with the United States to solve the existing mutual problems is an "obvious mistake," official IRNA news agency reported. "The United States seeks to restore its status in Iran as they enjoyed before the Islamic Revolution (in 1979), and they will not accept less than that," Khamenei said in a meeting with the Iranian Foreign Ministry staff in the capital Tehran. "The United States has basic and fundamental problem with the (Islamic) establishment," Khamenei was quoted as saying. The U.S. disagreement with Iran's nuclear and enrichment capability, as well as Iran's regional role is an indication of Washington's enmity with the Islamic republic, he said. Iran's presence in the region is elemental for Iran's power and security and it is a strategic policy, he stressed. "I have reiterated that we cannot rely on the American words and even their signature, therefore, negotiations with them are fruitless," he was quoted as saying. To press Iran to go back to the negotiation table over the internationally-recognized nuclear deal in 2015, U.S. President Donald Trump has said that sanctions on Iran will snap back in August and November. "The first part of our sanctions will snap back on August 6. These sanctions will include targeting Iran's automotive sector, trade in gold and other key metals," Brian Hook, director of policy planning for the State Department of the United States, said on July 2. "The remaining sanctions will snap back on Nov. 4. These sanctions will include targeting Iran's energy sector and petroleum-related transactions, and transactions with the Central Bank of Iran," he added. Following Trump's decision to quit the historic Iran nuclear pact on May 8, the United States vowed to re-impose sanctions lifted under the accord against Iran and inflict punishments like secondary sanctions on nations that have business links with Iran. Washington's withdrawal from the landmark Iran nuclear deal was criticized across the world. Some of its major European allies have been working to prevent the 2015 deal from falling apart. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Europe must offer plans for full implementation of Iran nuclear deal: Larijani Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 01:55PM The speaker of Iran's Parliament says European countries must offer their plans for the full implementation of a nuclear agreement signed between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries following withdrawal of the United States from the deal. Ali Larijani made the remarks in a meeting with Andreas Schieder, the managing parliamentary leader of the Social Democratic Party in Austria's National Council, in Tehran on Sunday. Larijani emphasized that European countries must endeavor to implement the nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in the best possible manner. "Europe must present its approach and plans for the full implementation of the JCPOA," the top Iranian parliamentarian pointed out. US President Donald Trump announced on May 8 that Washington was walking away from the nuclear agreement and that he planned to reinstate US nuclear sanctions on Iran and impose "the highest level" of economic bans on the Islamic Republic. Under the JCPOA, Iran undertook to put limits on its nuclear program in exchange for the removal of nuclear-related sanctions imposed against Tehran. Since the US president pulled Washington out of the nuclear deal, European countries have been scrambling to ensure that Iran gets enough economic benefits to persuade it to stay in the deal. The remaining parties have vowed to stay in the accord. Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said on July 15 that the European signatories to the nuclear deal must provide Tehran with necessary guarantees about the continued implementation of the deal. "Of course the European sides [to the JCPOA] are obligated to provide necessary guarantees with regard to the JCPOA, but the country's economy must not be tied to this issue," the Leader stated in a meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his cabinet in Tehran. Positive view to enhanced relations Elsewhere in the meeting, Larijani said Iran has a positive view on interaction with Austria, because it was among those countries, which moved to develop cooperation with the Islamic Republic after the signing of the JCPOA in 2015. He stressed the importance of improving parliamentary relations between the two countries, which would lead to enhanced cooperation in economic, political and cultural sectors. Austria supports JCPOA For his part, the Austrian official said his country, as a member state of the European Union, supports the nuclear accord reached between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia - plus Germany. He added that Austrian authorities do not believe that the continuation of the JCPOA depends on the US and they would make efforts to completely implement the deal. The meeting came after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani paid a visit to Vienna and held talks with senior Austrian officials, including Chancellor Sebastian Kurz and his counterpart, Alexander Van der Bellen. During a joint press conference with the Austrian chancellor, the Iranian president slammed as illegal the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear agreement, saying Washington's move benefits no one. "Both of us agree that we should try to keep this agreement. We see eye to eye that the US move [to withdraw from the deal] is illegal, against international obligations and to the detriment of the US and all countries," Rouhani said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Rouhani: Peace with Iran will be mother of all peace, war with Iran will be mother of all wars Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 07:00AM President Hassan Rouhani of Iran says the United States should know that peace with Iran will be the mother of all peace while war with the country will be the mother of all wars. He made the remarks at a meeting with the heads of Iran's diplomatic missions in world countries in Tehran on Sunday. "The Americans should learn well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," President Rouhani said in a series of sharp remarks aimed at the US. The Iranian president reminded America of Iran's long reach in the region. "Iran's strategic depth reaches the [Indian] Subcontinent to the east, and the Mediterranean to the west, the Red Sea to the south, and the Caucasus to the north," he said. "We rooted Daesh out and saved the people in the region; we take pride in ourselves." The Iranian chief executive further praised the role of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) in protecting the country against enemy plots. Under the administration of President Donald Trump, the US has taken an increasingly hostile approach toward Iran. On May 8, Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a 2015 multilateral nuclear deal with Iran over the objections of Europe as well as Russia and China the other parties to the deal, which is officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The withdrawal entailed not only the re-imposition of sanctions on Iran but also the so-called secondary sanctions on third countries. Some of those sanctions will take effect after a 90-day wind-down period ending on August 6, and the rest after a 180-day wind-down period ending on November 4. Most recently, the Trump White House has announced that it seeks to supposedly bring Iran's oil sales down to "zero." The measures would collectively cause difficulties for Europe to maintain trade ties with Iran. Nevertheless, Europe and Russia and China have decided to explore ways to maintain the JCPOA and trade with Iran. Iranian officials have said the US measures equal an "economic war" on Iran. In his Sunday remarks, President Rouhani said threats against Iran would have the opposite effect. "Threats will further unite us [Iranians]; we will certainly defeat America," he said. "That will carry some costs for us, but the benefits will be greater." "The US's latest conspiracy [against Iran] has been to attempt to wear the Iranian nation down [and lead it into submission," President Rouhani said. "You must know [however]: the Iranian nation is honorable and will never be servile to anyone." 'Isolated America should not be given chance to recover' The Iranian president referred to the stance of the remaining parties to the JCPOA versus that of America and said the US has become isolated as a result of its unilateral withdrawal. "The US is clashing with the whole world over the JCPOA," he said, adding, "The isolated America should not [be given a chance to] recover." 'Don't you want to play with the lion's tail!' Earlier, and on a trip to Europe, Rouhani had said that if Iran is made incapable of selling its oil, so will other countries in the region a relatively implicit statement that has been taken to mean that Iran may block its waters in the Strait of Hormuz, through which many international oil cargoes pass. On Sunday, he repeated that threat this time unambiguously. "No one with even a basic understanding of politics will ever say, 'We will block Iran's oil exports,'" President Rouhani said, reminding America that, "We have many straits; the Strait of Hormuz is but one." He had more advice for Trump. "Mr. Trump! We are men of honor and [have been] the guarantors of the security of the region's waterway throughout history. Don't you want to play with the lion's tail! It will be something [for you] to regret," he said. 'You declare war on Iranians and speak of support for them?!' The US has recently launched "an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest" among ordinary Iranians, according to Reuters. On Sunday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was scheduled to give a speech titled "Supporting Iranian Voices" to opponents of the Islamic Republic in California. Apparently referring to that campaign by the US, President Rouhani said America "cannot incite the Iranian nation against the security and interests of Iran." "You declare war on the Iranian nation and speak of support [for them]? You are all over the place in the region. Know what you say!" the Iranian president said. 'The bullying liar that is Trump' On Saturday, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said that talks with the US would be futile as neither America's word nor even its signature were credible. President Rouhani echoed those remarks, saying, "Today, talking to America means nothing but surrender." "In the face of the bullying liar that is Trump, surrendering will mean allowing the looting of Iran," he said. President Rouhani did say, however, that Trump presented "both a threat and an opportunity." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran's Rohani Warns Trump: 'Don't Play With The Lion's Tail' RFE/RL July 22, 2018 Iranian President Hassan Rohani has warned U.S. President Donald Trump against pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying "America should know peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." "Mr. Trump, don't play with the lion's tail. This would only lead to regret," the official government news agency IRNA quoted Rohani as saying at a July 22 gathering of Iranian diplomats. In May, Trump announced that the United States is pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers and reimposing tough sanctions. The move was harshly criticized by Iran. Rohani said that the pressure has strengthened national unity in the country. "We've become more united than before. Threats bring us together," Rohani said, while adding that "we will definitely defeat America." He accused the United States of working to weaken and "overthrow" the clerical establishment and create divisions in the country. "You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests," Rouhani said. "You declare war against the Iranian people and then claim you support them?" he added at the event in the Iranian capital. U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have expressed support for the Iranian people and "their struggle for freedom." Pompeo said in a recent interview with Voice of America that the goal of the United States is to change Iran's behavior. "It's about changing the behavior of the leadership in Iran to comport with what the Iranian people really want them to do," Pompeo said. In a May 21 speech, Pompeo laid out a list of 12 demands from Iran that included a halt to its enrichment activities and an end to its support for armed groups such as the Lebanese Hizballah. Pompeo warned Tehran that it would face 'the strongest sanctions in history" if it didn't change course and comply with the U.S. demands. Earlier this month, Rohani suggested that Iran may block oil exports from the Persian Gulf if its own exports are stopped by U.S. sanctions. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on July 21 backed Rohani's suggestion and said that "if Iran's oil is not exported, no regional country's oil will be exported." Khamenei has the last say in all state matters in the Islamic republic. With reporting by IRNA, ISNA, and Reuters Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-s-rohani-warns-trump-don-t- play-with-the-lion-s-tail-/29381802.html Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 'US Should Know War With Iran Is Mother of All Wars' - Iranian President Sputnik News 09:37 22.07.2018(updated 14:33 22.07.2018) The statement came just a day after Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei supported President Hassan Rouhani's suggestion that his country may block Gulf oil exports in the event Iranian exports are stopped. According to the ISNA news agency, the Iranian president has warned the United States, stating that peace with Iran would be crucial for Washington's policies. "Today, speaking with US has no meaning except surrender and end of people's achievements. Mr Trump! We are the people of dignity and guarantor of security of the waterway of the region throughout the history. Don't play with the lion's tail; you will regret it," Rouhani said at a meeting with the Iranian diplomats. He added that the country wonold not be intimidated, stating that "war with Iran is the mother of all wars and peace with Iran is the mother of all peace." Only a day earlier Tehran had criticized the US, claiming it would not be possible to reach an agreement with Washington. Relations between the two countries have deteriorated since May when US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of his country from the Iranian nuclear deal and decided to re-impose unilateral sanctions on Tehran. The move was opposed by Russia, China, Germany, France, Great Britain and the EU, who have confirmed their commitment to the nuclear deal. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN says 'many humanitarian achievements', one year after ouster of ISIL from Mosul 21 July 2018 - One year after the liberation of Iraq's Mosul city from a terrorist group, the United Nations on Saturday marked the anniversary with "many humanitarian achievements" and "a multitude of challenges". "One year later, many humanitarian achievements can be observed," said Marta Ruedas, UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Iraq. Saturday marked the end of military operations by Iraqi security forces to retake Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Mosul's occupation by ISIL from June 2014 to July 2017 caused a humanitarian catastrophe with immense human suffering and enormous physical destruction. Close to one million people were forced to flee the conflict in Mosul. Assessments conducted by the UN and its humanitarian partners found that hospitals, bridges, schools, water treatment and power plants were contaminated with unprecedented quantities of explosive hazards and improvised explosive devices left by ISIL. "Almost 870,000 people have now returned to Mosul", said Ms. Ruedas. Key achievements by humanitarians included: - The UN refugee agency, known formally as the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), has established six camps for displaced Mosul residents in Ninewa governorate and in the Kurdistan Region. - The UN migration agency, or the International Organization for Migration (IOM), has established two community resource centres in Mosul to facilitate the reintegration of returnees. - The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) has helped rehabilitate one-third of the 638 schools that have re-opened and enabled more than half a million girls and boys to return to local schools. - The World Food Programme (WFP) and the government has provided emergency school meals to 87,000 school children in 145 primary schools and four kindergartens in West Mosul from March to May. - The World Health Organization (WHO) has placed 53 ambulances in Ninewa governorate, and relocated two field hospitals to deliver emergency healthcare services to returnees in West Mosul. - The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) supported 16 primary health care clinics by providing almost 800,000 reproductive health consultations to women and girls, and deployed six mobile reproductive health clinics and teams. - The UN Development Programme (UNDP) has helped rebuilt infrastructure and is working to rebuild the electric grid that will keep the health, education and water supply running in Mosul. - The UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) has removed more than 43,700 explosive hazards, including 1,000 improvised explosive devices from roads, bridges, schools, universities, hospitals, clinics, water treatment plants and municipal buildings. - The UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) has rehabilitated 257 conflict-damaged houses in West Mosul, allowing almost 3,000 people to return home. Despite these achievements, extensive humanitarian needs remain in Mosul and across Iraq. "While it is heartening to see life returning to Mosul, close to 2 million people in Iraq remain displaced and those who have chosen to return to the city and other liberated areas face a multitude of challenges," said Ms. Ruedas. The 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan for the most vulnerable 3.4 million people is only 54 per cent funded. Humanitarians urgently require an additional $260.5 million to address the critical needs of Iraqis. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address 15 Daesh Takfiris killed as army jets strike areas in eastern Iraq Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 03:54PM More than a dozen members of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group have been killed when Iraqi Air Force fighter jets carried out a string of airstrikes against militant hideouts in the country's eastern province of Diyala. Lieutenant General Mezhir al-Azzawi, provincial commander of security forces, said the Iraqi aircraft bombarded terrorist hideouts in Balkana area, located some 110 kilometers northeast of the provincial capital Baquba, leaving 15 Daesh Takfiris dead. Azzawi added that local militant commanders were among the slain extremists. Separately, a security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a Daesh terrorist was captured at a security checkpoint in Tal Afar city, located 63 kilometers west of Mosul. The source added that the militant had classified documents with him when he was arrested. Iraqi security forces also conducted an operation in the country's northern Salahuddin province, where they destroyed an arms depot belonging to the remnants of Daesh terrorist group. The weapons cache reportedly contained 28 hand grenades as well as bomb-making materials. On June 30, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also the commander-in-chief of Iraqi forces, pledged to hunt down Daesh militants across Iraq after recent attacks and abductions carried out by the terrorist group. "We will chase the remaining cells of terrorism in their hideouts and we will kill them, we will chase them everywhere, in the mountains and the desert," Abadi said. Abadi declared the end of military operations against Daesh in the Arab country on December 9, 2017. On July 10 that year, the Iraqi prime minister had formally declared victory over Daesh extremists in Mosul, which served as the terrorists' main urban stronghold in the conflict-ridden Arab country. In the run-up to Mosul's liberation, Iraqi army soldiers and volunteer Hashd al-Sha'abi fighters had made sweeping gains against Daesh. The Iraqi forces took control of eastern Mosul in January 2017 after 100 days of fighting, and launched the battle in the west on February 19 last year. Daesh began a terror campaign in Iraq in 2014, overrunning vast swathes in lightning attacks. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Experts say Myanmar violated UN child rights convention in Rohingya crackdown Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 02:49PM International legal experts say Myanmar has violated its obligations to the United Nations child rights convention as the unprecedented crackdown mounted by the government of the Southeast Asian nation against the minority Rohingya Muslims has led to an exodus of hundreds of thousands of people from the persecuted community. Legal experts commissioned by the Save the Children Norway announced the violation in a report on Saturday after analyzing research carried out by UN bodies and international human rights groups that have accused Myanmar's military of mass killings, arson, and torture of the desperate members of the minority. "The research finds that the response by the Myanmar Government to the August 2017 attacks on police posts, together with the ongoing discrimination against Rohingya, constitute violations of at least seven key articles of the (UN convention on the rights of the child)," their report said. The Rohingyas who were previously based in Myanmar's flashpoint state of Rakhine were forced to leave their homelands and took refuge in neighboring Bangladesh after the military intensified its widespread attacks on the persecuted minority in August last year. Reports said at the time that the military systematically forced hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas to leave the country after it said that dozens of police and border outposts in Rakhine allegedly came under attack by a group that says it is defending the rights of the Rohingya. Rights groups accused the military of using the incident as a pretext to drive the minority group out of the country. Myanmar denies the allegation and has said it waged a legitimate counter-insurgency operation after Muslim militants attacked security posts. The analysis further found both the government and the security forces at fault. The Myanmar government "took positive steps" to assist the military operations and there was no evidence to suggest it did anything to curtail or denounce the security forces' actions, the report added. The report also referred to "indiscriminate and extrajudicial killing of Rohingya children, and the torture, ill-treatment and gender-based violence" committed against them. The brutal campaign has forced some 700,000 Rohingya to flee their homeland since August 2017 and seek refuge in Bangladesh. Many of the displaced Rohingya are either living in squalid camps or just across the border in a plot of land known as the "no man's land." The brutal campaign forced some 700,000 Rohingya to flee their homeland since August 2017 and seek refuge in Bangladesh. Many of the displaced Rohingya are either living in squalid camps or just across the border in a plot of land known as the "no man's land." The brutality against the Rohingya has its roots in the very fact that Myanmar does not recognize them as citizens and has denied citizenship rights to more than one million members of the community for several decades, alleging they are Bengalis who have in the past migrated to the country from Bangladesh. However, many Rohingyas can trace their ancestry in Myanmar. On Friday, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) said in a report that the refugees' accounts of being shot, hacked and injured by explosives were supported by forensic evidence. The UN has already described the shocking situation as "a textbook example of ethnic cleansing." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Rohingya Muslims subjected to systematic massacre, rape in Myanmar: Rights group Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 01:54AM An international group of medical experts says evidence collected from Rohingya Muslims' accounts proves that the highly-persecuted minority is subjected to systematic massacre and rape in Myanmar. Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) said in a report on Friday that the refugees' accounts of being shot, hacked and injured by explosives were supported by forensic evidence. The US-based NGO, which investigates mass atrocities globally, added that the report was based on the findings its physicians recorded after they examined survivors in refugee camps in Bangladesh. The detailed report mainly focused on refugees from the village of Chut Pyin in Myanmar where security forces, according to survivors and inhabitants of neighboring rural areas, fired on civilians, raped women and burned homes. The PHR report estimates that hundreds of people were killed in the village. "The evidence we've collected from our field investigations, and the forensic evidence in particular, indicate that a large-scale and well-coordinated attack was perpetrated on the civilians, particularly the Rohingya civilians, living in Chut Pyin on the afternoon of August 27th last year - almost a year ago - that involved the use of guns, machetes, multiple types of weapons, against women, children and men who lived in that village," said Homer Venters, the PHR director of programs. PressTV-Rohingya facing more persecution in Myanmar: UN Rohingya refugees reaching Bangladesh say violence persists against them in Myanmar and the overall environment remains "menacing" for the Muslim minority. Rohingya Muslims previously based in Rakhine were subjected to a campaign of killings, rape, and arson attacks by the military backed by the country's majority Buddhist extremists in what the UN has described as "a textbook example of ethnic cleansing." The brutal campaign has forced some 700,000 Rohingya to flee their homeland since August 2017 and seek refuge in Bangladesh. Many of the displaced Rohingya are either living in squalid camps or just across the border in a plot of land known as the "no man's land." "The fact that so many of these children have multiple types of injuries, and that they've been exposed in many cases to physical violence and sexual violence, really puts the lie to this notion that this is any kind of anti-terror campaign", as the Myanmarese military claimed to be, Venters further said, adding that the incident should be investigated as a crime against humanity. The Rohingya, who have lived in Myanmar for generations, are denied citizenship and are branded illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, which likewise denies them citizenship. Their former communities in Myanmar have been razed and Buddhists have been shuttled and settled there in newly-built structures to repopulate the area. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Will he or will he? Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images Kentucky senator and alleged yard-work offender Rand Paul has waded into the confirmation fight over Judge Brett Kavanaugh, President Trumps pick to replace Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court. In an interview with Politico published on Sunday, Paul said that he wasnt sure whether he could support Kavanaugh because of the potential justices views on civil liberties, one of the sometimes-libertarian-ish senators central areas of policy interest. I am honestly undecided. I am very concerned about his position on privacy and the Fourth Amendment. This is not a small deal for me. This is a big deal, Paul said. Kavanaughs position is basically that national security trumps privacy. And he said it very strongly and explicitly. And that worries me. Kavanaugh does indeed have a long history of siding with the interests of the national-security establishment, brushing off any and all privacy concerns. And with the absence of John McCain from the chamber, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell maintains a 50-49 GOP majority, so, as long as Democrats stick together, he cant afford to lose even one Republican vote. But in the case of Paul, it is unlikely that McConnell should be too concerned. After all, weve been here before. Paul made a big show of opposing Secretary of State Mike Pompeos nomination over Pompeos warmongering tendencies, vowing to do whatever it takes to stop him from being confirmed. But in the end, Paul folded, justifying his yes vote with a toothless assurance from Trump that Pompeo agreed with the president that the Iraq War was a mistake, and that the U.S. should withdraw from Afghanistan. (Trump actually supported the Iraq War, and American troops remains in Afghanistan.) And last summer, Paul complained that the GOPs skinny repeal of Obamacare didnt go far enough before claiming that the bill counted as a personal win, and voting for its passage after all. Paul did help kill the Graham-Cassidy version of Obamacare in September before it came to a vote, once again lambasting it as a half measure though that proposal stood less chance of becoming law than skinny repeal. And he has cast one actual high-profile no vote against a Trump nominee: he declined to support Gina Haspel, President Trumps pick to be CIA director, over her past role in torture. But neither of those rebellions compare to the prospect of personally torpedoing a Supreme Court nominee who could shift the balance of the court for decades. And Paul has shown that when the chips are down, he is likely to budge. Later in his Politico interview, the senator mused that despite his concerns, Kavanaugh probably wouldnt be all that bad. Wouldnt you rather have Kavanaugh than Ruth Bader Ginsburg? he said. Hes probably good on economic liberty and overzealous regulation and things like that. So I dont want to have it sort of in a vacuum, Ill have to weigh that versus other aspects that he may be a lot better than a Clinton appointee. In other Rand Paul news, the senator tweeted that he would ask Trump to revoke former CIA director John Brennans security status after Brennan accused the president of treason following his disastrous Helsinki summit. Does this sound like a guy whos about to openly defy the president? Physicians Call for Crimes Against Humanity Investigation in Myanmar By VOA News July 21, 2018 A physicians group working with Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh says medical and scientific evidence indicates the extent of the violence they suffered at the hands of the Myanmar military and civilians. In "Please Tell the World What They Have Done to Us," Physicians for Human Rights detailed the findings of forensic medical evaluations of 22 Rohingya survivors of an August 2017 assault on the village of Chut Pyin in Myanmar's northern Rakhine state. PHR said that "Chut Pyin is a prime example of a brutal campaign of violence carried out by Myanmar authorities against the Rohingya people, and that what happened in Chut Pyin, and elsewhere in Rakhine state, should be investigated as crimes against humanity." Fleeing Rohingya have given harrowing accounts of the military burning their villages in northern Rakhine state, and using rapes, killings, looting and the laying of land mines to prevent them from returning to their homes. "We saw multiple gunshot wounds that are consistent with people having been shot while fleeing and heard numerous accounts of rape and other sexual violence," said Dr. Homer Venters, PHR's director of programs. "We rigorously and meticulously analyzed the injuries, first-hand testimonies, and eyewitness accounts and all our forensic examinations were highly consistent with the events that the survivors described." Seventeen of the 22 Chut Pyin survivors seen by PHR had at least one gunshot wound and the mobility of nine of the survivors was severely compromised. The survivors suffered various injuries, including gunshot wounds, blunt-force trauma, lacerations and more. The injuries "serve as medical evidence to corroborate the survivors' accounts of shootings, beatings, stabbings, and other forms of violence which occurred on that day," PHR said. "The power of science, of medicine, is that injuries do not lie," Venters said. "Each laceration, blunt-force trauma, burn and gunshot wound tells a story, and we use this forensic medical evidence to shed light on what likely happened on that day." More than 700,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar's northern Rakhine state since August 2017, after attacks by Rohingya militants against state security forces led to military reprisals. The United Nations says the military retaliated in a well-organized, systematic and coordinated manner, calling the response a "textbook example" of ethnic cleansing. PHR is a U.S.-based advocacy organization that uses science and medicine to document and call attention to mass atrocities and severe human rights violations. PHR shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997 "for their work for the banning and clearing of anti-personnel mines." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pakistan army calls for probe into claims against spy agency Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 09:03PM Pakistan's army has called for the Supreme Court to launch an investigation into claims made by a high court judge pertaining to the country's spy agency interfering in judiciary affairs. On Sunday, the Pakistani military released a statement calling for the initiation of appropriate process to ascertain the authenticity of the allegations leveled by Justice Islamabad High Court judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui at the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). "In order to safeguard the sanctity and credibility of the state institutions, Honorable Supreme Court of Pakistan has been requested to initiate appropriate process to ascertain the veracity of the allegations and take actions accordingly," added the ISI's public relations. Chief Justice Saqib Nisar responded to Siddiqui's remarks by calling on the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to present the complete record of his remarks. On Saturday, Siddiqui said that the ISI had manipulated judicial proceedings in several cases, such as the ouster of premier Nawaz Sharif. He also claimed that the ISI had asked him to provide assurance that Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law would remain in jail until July 25 which coincides with the country's elections Sharif and his daughter Maryam were arrested upon arrival in Pakistan on July 13. Siddiqui also claimed that the ISI had offered him the position of chief justice of the Islamabad High Court. On Wednesday, Siddiqui chided the ISI and police over alleged forced abductions, accusing the security apparatus of breaking the law. Pakistan's security establishment has been frequently accused of overseeing enforced disappearances to quell criticism from activists and media workers. In recent years, a growing number of abductions have taken place brazenly in major cities such as Karachi, Lahore and even the capital Islamabad. They have increasingly targeted activists and journalists critical of the state and the military's policies. The military routinely denies being involved. Pakistani security agencies have repeatedly denied they have forcibly sequestered, tortured and killed people in the name of counterterrorism. Pakistan is one of the countries in the world that has a high rate of enforced disappearances. Despite the fact that forced disappearances have been a pressing issue in Pakistan, the number of people who have been abducted and their whereabouts are still not known and widely disputed. In 2015, the Supreme Court of Pakistan issued an order demanding that authorities produce a report on the number of missing people in Pakistan. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Pakistani Candidate Killed In Latest Attack Ahead Of July 25 Elections RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal July 22, 2018 A Pakistani candidate and his driver were killed in a suicide attack in the country's northwest, in the latest violence related to the July 25 national elections. Police and hospital officials told RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal that Ikramullah Gandapur died at a military hospital from injuries sustained in a July 22 suicide blast in the northwestern town of Dera Ismail Khan. Gandapur was a member of opposition leader Imran Khan's Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI). He was contesting polls for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial assembly. Police officer Zahoor Afridi said a suicide bomber targeted Gandapur's vehicle near his residence as he was heading to a political gathering. "Our hearts weep for him and his family and we pray for both," the PTI said in a statement. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in an e-mail sent to the media. Gandapur's brother Israr was killed in a suicide attack three years ago. Separately, the convoy of another candidate, Akram Durrani, came under fire in the northwestern town of Bannu on July 22. Police officials told RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal that militant fired shots at Durrani's vehicle. He escaped unhurt but at least two people were injured in the attack. This was the second attack in less than 10 days on Durrani. On July 13, Durrani's convoy was attacked when he was on his way to a political rally, killing at least four people, wounding more than 30. Pakistan has witnessed a spate of deadly election-related attacks in recent weeks. On July 13, a provincial assembly candidate was killed in a massive suicide bombing in southwestern Balochistan Province, along with 148 people, in one of Pakistan's deadliest ever militant attacks. The Islamic State (IS) militant group claimed responsibility for the attack. In the northwestern city of Peshawar, a suicide bombing on July 10 killed another provincial assembly candidate and 20 others. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility. The election campaign has been marred by violence as well as what critics describe as a crackdown on political activists, journalists, and opposition figures. With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistani-election-candidate- killed-in-suicide-attack/29381979.html Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Saudis struggling to sell oil, regret opening taps 'too quickly': Independent Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 09:29AM Shortly after indications grew that Saudi Arabia had increased its production of crude oil in response to a call to the same effect by US President Donald Trump, concerns are reportedly surfacing in the kingdom that the taps may have been turned open too quickly. The Independent in a report quoted unnamed sources as saying that there was still little appetite for extra Saudi barrels in the market and that this had already pressuring the prices. "They're pushing out a heck of a lot of crude right now, and they're worried about the downward pressure on prices," the daily quoted Mike Wittner, head of oil market research at Societe Generale SA in New York, as saying . "The Saudis are trying to thread a needle right now, and the width of that needle is $70 to $80." It also highlighted speculations among experts that prices could plunge further even when sanctions against Iran were implemented specifically given that the impact of sanctions remained "highly uncertain". In May, US President Donald Trump announced that he would pull America out of a 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran and re-impose the sanctions that the deal had envisaged to be lifted. He has already emphasized that the sanctions which would be imposed on Iran would be "at the highest level". The sanctions would start with a universal ban on Iran over buying or acquiring US dollars which will come into force in August. This is expected to close banking channels for trade with Iran. The second phase of sanctions would include restrictions over purchases of crude oil from the country and investing in its oil sector projects which will become effective by the start of November. It is widely believed that Trump's administration has been pressuring the Saudis to increase their oil production thus prevent a shock to the market once Iran's oil supplies are cut off. However, experts have already emphasized that any increase in Saudi output would be temporary and that pumping more oil may not be sustainable over a long period of time. On a related front, Hossein Kazempour Ardebili, Iran's representative to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), was quoted by media as saying that the Saudis had duped President Trump over his anticipation that they and certain other producers could fill the market gap created as a result of cutting off Iranian supplies. The Independent further in its report said a more significant supply gap would not emerge until sanctions against Iran enter full force in November. As a result, the kingdom seems to be having difficulty right now placing all the barrels it wanted to, it quoted people who had spoken with the Saudis as saying. The problem is being compounded by weak appetite for crude in Asia, where concerns are building about the strength of demand, the daily quoted experts at consultant Energy Aspects Ltd as saying. With so many factors shifting the balance between global supply and demand, the appetite for additional Saudi crude may change, especially as the extent of Iran's losses becomes clearer. Market sentiment could flip again to focus on worries over whether the kingdom has enough idle production capacity to prevent a shortage emerging on the global market, added The Independent. "We have hardly started to see a reduction in flows from Iran," it quoted Societe Generale's Wittner, as adding further in his remarks. "Though there's a lot of crude coming out from Saudi Arabia now, spare capacity is really going to be the big issue going forward. And spare capacity is getting very tight very quickly." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Saudi Arabia Faces Problems Selling Extra Oil After Deal With US - Reports Sputnik News 13:34 22.07.2018 President Donald Trump has persuaded Saudi Arabia's king to increase oil production to make up for a shortfall from Iran, Venezuela and Libya. Quick to ramp up oil output under pressure from the US, Saudi Arabia has discovered that global markets might not need it, at least for now, The Independent wrote, citing financial experts. In May, Riyadh's crude oil production spiked to a three-year high in response to Washington's demand that the oil-rich kingdom help keep gasoline prices in check and fill the supply gap when US sanctions on Iran enter into effect in November. However, the Saudis are now hard put selling their extra oil, privately admitting that they may have been too quick in jacking up oil output. "Saudi Arabia and several other members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) have increased exports sharply ahead of sanctions on Iran, and the timing mismatch between these effects is pressuring oil prices," Martijn Rats, global oil strategist at Morgan Stanley, said. Late last month, Saudi Arabia, along with several other OPEC countries and Russia, agreed to boost its aggregate daily output by about one million barrels amid production disruptions in Venezuela and Libya and the expected drop in Iranian oil exports. Oil prices have since backed off to about $73 a barrel after hitting a three-year high of $80 in May as Libya restored some of its halted output and the escalating US-China trade war stoked fears about the strength of demand. "[The Saudis] are pushing out a heck of a lot of crude right now, and they're worried about the downward pressure on prices," Mike Wittner, head of oil market research at Societe Generale SA in New York, said. "They are trying to thread a needle right now, and the width of that needle is $70 to $80," he added. However, the highly uncertain impact of US sanctions on Iran's oil exports are believed to play a big part in determining the final oil output figure and price. According to the International Energy Agency, Iranian oil shipments to Europe slumped by about 50 percent in June. However, oil industry experts believe that a more significant supply gap won't come until sanctions enter full force in November. Before that happens, Saudi Arabia is likely to have problems finding buyers for the extra crude it has pumped responding to Washington's request. The problem is being compounded by falling demand for crude in Asia. Bloomberg's tanker tracking figures show that since July 1, Saudi oil exports have slumped by about 500,000 barrels a day to 6.7 million compared with the same period in June. In a statement released on Thursday, the Saudi Energy Ministry said that crude exports for the whole of July will be in line with last month's figures and are expected to decline by 100,000 barrels a day in August. In June, President Donald Trump put the blame for rising oil prices on OPEC, which he said is "100 percent" manipulating the world market and "must stop." "They have to put out another two million barrels in my opinion," Trump said in an interview with Fox News. Iran Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said any production increase above limits agreed to by OPEC would "breach" the deal, according to a letter he sent to OPEC President Suhail Al Mazrouei and distributed by the Iran Oil Ministry's news service Shana. OPEC should reject the US call for a production increase, which is "politically motivated against Iran," Zanganeh said. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syrian army troops gain more ground in Dara'a, Quneitra Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 01:43PM Syrian government forces, supported by allied fighters from popular defense groups, have managed to make further territorial advances on terrorists' lines in the country's southwestern provinces of Dara'a and Quneitra as they are tightening the noose around foreign-backed terrorist groups in those areas. A military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Syria's official news agency SANA that Syrian troops and their allies had established control over Eastern Ahmar and Western Ahmar hilltops in addition to the villages of Rasm al-Qutaish, Rasm al-Zawyia, Ain Ziwan, Ain al-Abd, Kudna and al-Asbah. The source added that a large number of Takfiri militants were killed and their weapons and munitions confiscated during the clean-up operations. Dozens of militants also fled to nearby areas for their lives. The development came only a day after Syrian government forces and fighters from popular defense groups liberated nearly two dozen towns and villages in Dara'a and Quneitra provinces. SANA reported that army units and their allies had recaptured al-Nassria, Abu Katf, Abu Ghara, Ain al-Maqam, and Rasm al-Bajras among the 21 liberated areas. Militants hand over weapons in southwestern Syria Meanwhile, Takfiri militants in Dara'a province have handed over large quantities of heavy and medium weapons to government forces under surrender deals, which are mediated by Russia. SANA said foreign-backed militants had surrendered their military equipment, including seven battle tanks and three armored vehicles, to army soldiers in Muzayrib town and al-Yadudah village. Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. The Syrian government says the Israeli regime and its Western and regional allies are aiding Takfiri terrorist groups wreaking havoc in the country. The Syrians continue to recapture key areas from Daesh and other terrorist groups across the country. Syrian forces are now engaged in a battle in the province of Dayr al-Zawr as Daesh struggles to keep its last positions in eastern Syria. On May 21, the General Command of the Syrian Army and Armed Forces announced in a statement that complete security was restored to Damascus and its countryside after al-Hajar al-Aswad district and al-Yarmouk camp had been totally purged of Daesh terrorists. The development was preceded by flushing the Takfiris out of the towns of Yalda, Babbila and Beit Sahem on the southern outskirts of Damascus. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Raqqah residents call for Syrian government's return Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 10:39AM Residents of the northern Syrian city of Raqqah, the former stronghold of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group, have called on the government to return to the war-wracked city and provide civil services for the residents. Raqqah fell to the US-sponsored Kurdish militants last year after they drove the Takfiri terrorists out of the city. The militants have, however, refused to hand over the control of Raqqah back to the Syrian government. In an interview published by Ruptly on Saturday, Raqqah residents recalled times before the conflict erupted and when services such as water and electricity were not scarce. They expressed hope that the government would return. "We want the government to come back; we want them back to open schools and offer education to the students and offer all the services we want - like water and electricity. We have been deprived of many things for years now. As for Daesh, we don't want to see them again. They destroyed us," a Raqqah resident said. "We need water because we have no water; we need aid because we receive no aid here. We need education for the children because they are not getting an education. As for the electricity, we hope that organizations will come to the country for electricity. We need family documents because most people are not registered," said another resident. Last year, Daesh lost its de facto capital of Raqqah after four months of fighting and bombings by the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed coalition of mainly Kurdish militants. The bombings left the city in ruins. Daesh-controlled territory in Syria's north and east has been reduced to just a handful of isolated pockets. The US support for several militant groups in Syria, notably Kurds, has sparked fears that they might be trying to create a statelet outside the Syrian government's control. The US has been conducting airstrikes against what it claims are Daesh targets inside Syria since September 2014 without the consent of the government or a United Nations mandate. The US and its allies have been accused of killing civilians in their so-called fight against Daesh in Syria. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia, U.S. Eyeing Joint Plan For Return Of Syrian Refugees RFE/RL July 21, 2018 The Russian Defense Ministry says it has sent a proposal to Washington to jointly organize the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland following agreements reached between the Russian and American presidents at their summit this week. The ministry said on July 20 that it sent Washington a proposal for drawing up a joint action plan to bring Syrian refugees living in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, and elsewhere back to the places where they lived before Syria's civil war broke out in 2011 -- a goal repeatedly espoused by U.S. President Donald Trump since taking office. "Specific proposals on how work could be organized to ensure that refugees can return home have been sent to the American side," senior ministry official General Mikhail Mizintsev said in a statement. He said the proposals "take into account the agreements reached by the Russian and American presidents during their meeting in Helsinki" on July 16. The summit included a two-hour meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin during which they discussed Syria, Ukraine, and other world affairs with no staff present other than interpreters. Little is known publicly about what was said or agreed to in that meeting. But U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed on July 20 that the return of Syrian refugees had been part of the presidents' talks. "There was a discussion between President Trump and President Putin about the resolution in Syria and how we might get the refugees back," Pompeo told reporters at UN headquarters in New York. "It's important that at the right time, through a voluntary mechanism, the refugees are able to return to their home country," he said. "There is lots of work to do to figure out how to implement that, but the United States certainly wants to be part of helping to achieve that resolution in Syria." Washington and Moscow back opposing sides in the Syrian war, with Russia's intervention on the side of President Bashar al-Assad having helped turn the conflict in favor of the government, particularly in the last year. The proposed joint plan of action on refugees is remarkable in that it appears to presuppose that the war is coming to an end without a negotiated settlement and the country is now in a resettlement and reconstruction phase -- a view often espoused by Russia but not previously openly endorsed by Washington. Assad's troops, backed by Russian air power, have made substantial gains on the battlefield in the last year, including retaking rebel-held areas in the largest cities of Aleppo and Damascus, and most recently regaining control of Syria's frontier with Israel and Jordan -- gains which were all made possible by Russian-brokered surrender agreements with rebel groups. In addition to putting forward a plan to deal with Syria's refugee problem, Mizintsev said Russia has also suggested forming a joint group with the United States to finance the reconstruction of Syrian infrastructure, which he said in most cities has been 70 percent destroyed by the war. "The Russian proposals are currently being examined by the U.S. side," he said. Russia has frequently sought help from the West to help resettle and rebuild Syria, but Western nations in the past have refused to assist in efforts that did not involve the UN or proceed from UN-sponsored efforts to negotiate a settlement of the conflict. The proposed deal with Trump may be the first to officially endorse Russia's leading role in efforts to rebuild and resettle the country without UN involvement and with Assad still fully in control of the government. In the refugee resettlement plan, Mizintsev said Russia has proposed setting up a joint Russian-U.S.-Jordanian monitoring group in Amman and a similar group in Lebanon -- two of the countries where most of Syria's estimated 6 million refugees are living in refugee camps. The Russian ministry estimates that over 1.7 million Syrian refugees would be able to return to Syria in the near future, including an estimated 890,000 refugees from Lebanon, 300,000 from Turkey, and 200,000 who are living in European Union countries. While most refugees fled to neighboring countries, thousands sought to start new lives in Europe and the United States, with an unprecedented wave of migrants from the embattled country contributing to a historic migrant crisis in Europe in 2015 and 2016. Since taking office, Trump has put a high priority on stemming the flow of refugees from Syria, claiming they represent a security threat to the United States and its allies. One of his first acts was to issue an executive order temporarily halting the U.S. refugee program for Syrians and barring the entry of all other visitors from Syria and six other mostly Muslim-populated countries. Putin has frequently criticized Europe's effort to take in and accommodate the hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees who have sought asylum there, while Trump has called for efforts to make it possible for the migrants to return home. The U.S. and Russia currently have a communications link in Syria to avoid accidental military clashes, but the Russian proposals to work on refugee resettlement and rebuilding together would significantly expand their cooperative efforts. With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and Interfax Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-us- eyeing-joint-plan-return-home-syrian-refugees- putin-trump-summit/29380548.html Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address France, Russia Jointly Sending Medical Aid To Embattled Damascus Suburb July 21, 2018 France and Russia will jointly deliver humanitarian aid to the former Syrian rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta, the two countries announced in a joint statement. A Russian cargo plane arrived late on July 20 in Chateauroux in central France to load 50 tons of medical equipment and essential goods provided by France, to be transported to the former rebel area which was recaptured by Syrian troops this spring. Undertaken as part of a UN Security Council resolution, "the aim of this project is to enable civilian populations better access to aid," the statement said. It is the first joint humanitarian aid operation between Russia and a western country. The French foreign ministry said that the cargo plane is headed towards Russia's Hmeimim air base in western Syria and the aid will be distributed on July 21 under the supervision of the UN's humanitarian aid office. The aid aims at treating 500 seriously wounded people and 15,000 others with more minor injuriies. "Humanitarian assistance is an absolute priority and must be distributed in accordance with principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality ,and independence across all Syrian territory without exception, where international humanitarian law must be fully respected," the joint statement said. The French ministry said it secured "guarantees" from Russia that the Syrian government would not obstruct distribution of the aid, and that it would not be misappropriated or diverted for political purposes. Damascus regained control of Eastern Ghouta, a rebel enclave on the outskirts of the Syrian capital, in April, ending a five-year siege. More than 1,700 civilians were killed during the Syrian army's operation there. According to the Russian military, more than 160,000 people, both military and civilians, were evacuated from the region. Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/france-russia- jointly-sending-medical-aid-embattled-damascus- suburb-eastern-ghouta/29380547.html Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address White Helmets evacuated from Syria to Israel: Report Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 08:01AM Members of a Western-backed "aid group" accused of working with Takfiri militants and staging false flag gas attacks in Syria have reportedly been evacuated to an Israeli military base. The Israeli military said Sunday on Twitter that Israeli forces had evacuated "members of a Syrian civil organization and their families" at the request of the United States and "additional European countries." It did not specify the group, but German tabloid Bild said some 800 members of the White Helmets had been expected to be brought to Jordan through Israel to be reportedly resettled later in the UK, Canada, and Germany. "The evacuation kicked off at 9:30 pm local time on Saturday and was expected to continue into the night. Several roads were put on lockdown by the army and police as part of preparations for the exodus," Russia Today said of the development. The Israeli military said the "civilians" were being taken out of Syria "due to an immediate threat to their lives," and because Israel wanted to make "an exceptional humanitarian gesture." Syria is reportedly about to prosecute the self-styled relief workers over reports of their involvement with the militants and the gas attacks. The US, the UK, and France have launched many missile strikes against the Syrian territory, accusing Damascus of deploying such weapons. The Syrian government has surrendered its chemical arms stockpiles during a procedure overseen by the United Nations' chemical watchdog. Jordanian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ambassador Mohammad al-Kayed said Amman had accepted to take in the White Helmets after Britain, Canada and Germany each reportedly pledged to take some of them each, Amman-based Ammon News said. The news about the Israeli involvement came amid Tel Aviv's ongoing provision of assistance to the militants fighting the Syrian government. The regime has been treating the militants fleeing into Syria's Golan Heights, which Israel has been occupying since 1967. It claims that it provides such services to all those, who are present on "its territory." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address So far, the only thing Trump has gotten from Kim Jong-un is his autograph on a meaningless joint-statement. Photo: Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty Images A new report indicates that President Trump may yet realize that his face-to-face meeting with Kim Jong-un didnt amount to anything, and thats making things tense at the White House. Having successfully delivered a great buildup, some diplomatic drama, a trailer for capitalism, and wall-to-wall cable news coverage, Trump rode Air Force One away from last months historic summit in Singapore with his gut feelings held high. The North Korean threat was over, according to the president and no one else, and thanks to his leadership, the entire crisis was largely solved. Unfortunately, those pesky politicians in Pyongyang, who no one but Trump trusted, may be ruining the presidents high. Per the Washington Post, Trump seems to be learning, the hard way, that epic peace deals with foreign leaders work a lot better when those deals actually exist before celebrating or trying to implement them. North Korea has been blowing the U.S. off since the summit, leaving denuclearization negotiations at a standstill, and the impatient Trump has been fuming at aides about it. U.S. negotiators attempts to hammer out an actual agreement have met significant resistance from North Korean officials, just as every North Korea expert in the world predicted they would. Despite rumors that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo might give Kim Jong-un a CD of Elton Johns Rocket Man, the North Koreans havent destroyed the missile testing facility Trump said they would, and have canceled follow-up meetings, demanded more money, and failed to maintain basic communications, even as the once-isolated regimes engagements with China and South Korea flourish, according to U.S. diplomats who spoke with the Post. On top of all that, per an official U.S. intelligence assessment which was inexplicably leaked to multiple news organizations by numerous American officials, the North Koreans have been simultaneously plotting to deceive the Trump administration about the size, scale, and continuation of the nuclear weapons program Trump assured us they would be abandoning. (Some analysts have even wondered if U.S. intel officials publicized the assessment because they were worried that the Trump administration was going to let itself get played.) Trump has been regularly praising his summit performance, championing the event as recently as last week. And really, for anyone who is currently alive and prefers to avoid a nuclear holocaust, entertaining Trumps delusions of diplomatic grandeur has served as a perfectly palatable alternative. But the president has also reportedly been captivated by the nuclear talks, asking staffers for daily updates on the status of the negotiations. The responses have been less appealing, however, and Trump was already very annoyed that the media hasnt been celebrating the vague, substance-free joint-statement he got Kim to sign in Singapore (though Fox News coverage of the summit somehow won his praise). Another sore spot is how its been more than a month since Trumps announced that North Korea had returned the remains of 200 American soldiers who were killed in the Korean War yet that still hasnt happened. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been leading U.S. efforts to retroactively get something from North Korea in exchange for the propaganda victory Trump gave Kim in Singapore. Pompeo has been trying to sort out the remains issue, which is what Trump wants to solve in lieu of the stalled denuclearization talks. But Kim chose potatoes over Pompeo when the two had planned to meet in North Korea earlier this month. And the entire U.S. delegation was stood up at another meeting in the demilitarized zone, where they were left waiting for three hours before North Korea called the talks off. So the Trump administrations post-summit relationship with North Korea now that the cameras are off and Kim Jong-un has probably demanded enormous murals of him and Trump for the sides of the countrys hidden nuclear weapons bunkers is going about as well as everyone who has ever read a chapter of a book about North Korea expected it to. Im in no real rush, Trump insisted last week, referring to North Koreas denuclearization and a process the regime recently referred to as cancerous. I mean whatever it takes, it takes, he added. Russias Trump-approved president, Vladimir Putin, is going to help too, Trump announced last week after the Helsinki summit. What help Russia might offer, and at what cost, remains unclear. Mike Pompeo, meanwhile, is stuck in an ever-precarious position. As the face of the Trump administrations long-shot effort to work out a real-life agreement with Pyongyang, he could catch Trumps ire if and when the post-summit talks collapse and the president finds out that he was cast as the loser on North Koreas nuclear reality show. But Pompeo can avoid all that, so long as he can negotiate the successful denuclearization of the worlds most intractable rogue regime, or if that fails, figure out how to protect the president (and country) from the consequences of Trumps alternate reality. What could go wrong? The problem with that outcome is that Trump getting smacked with a rude and public wake-up call is a scenario North Korea experts have been predicting and worrying about for months. When Trumps bubble finally bursts, they fear, the president will look for someone to blame other than himself, and may decide he holds Pyongyang responsible. Trump has already responded to Kim Jong-uns previous provocations with escalations and bluster, even bragging to the world about the superlative size and power of his nuclear button. For a well armed leader who worships fame, spectacle, and dominance as much as Trump, to be exposed on the world stage as a weak fabulist and strongman poseur could provoke a much more dangerous reaction than innuendo. Syria TV: Israeli warplanes hit military post in Hama Province Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 06:07PM Israeli warplanes have bombarded a military post in Syria's central province of Hama, Syrian state television reports. The brief report did not elaborate on what exactly had been hit in the city of Misyaf on Sunday evening, but said only material damage had been inflicted. "One of our military positions in Masyaf was the target of an Israeli air aggression," Syria's official news agency, SANA, said quoting a military source. The unnamed source added that the strike was an attempt to cover up for the collapse of terrorist organizations in Dara'a and Quneitra. Meanwhile, the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which is close to Syria's opposition groups, claimed that the Israeli strike targeted a workshop where surface-to-surface missiles were made. Masyaf, where a government scientific research center is located, was also hit by another Israeli airstrike in September 2017. Last week, Syrian state news outlets reported that Israeli rockets had struck a Syrian military position near Nairab airport on the outskirts of the city of Aleppo. The Tel Aviv regime has recently increased its airstrikes in Syria. Damascus has on multiple occasions denounced the Israeli regime's aggression and also warned about the "dangerous repercussions" of Israeli assaults on its territory. Tel Aviv is widely believed to have been providing weapons to anti-Damascus militants as well as medical treatment to Takfiri elements wounded in Syria inside the occupied Golan Heights. Earlier this month, Syrian air defenses repelled an Israeli attack on the country's Quneitra Province. Back on May 10, Israel conducted what it called its most intensive airstrikes on Syria in decades. According to Russia's Defense Ministry, Israel had used 28 warplanes in its airstrikes and fired 70 missiles. Both Damascus and Moscow said the Syrian army managed to shoot down over half of the missiles. The Tel Aviv regime, at the time, claimed that its assault was in response to a barrage of 20 rockets fired from Syria at Israeli military outposts in Golan. Syria, which has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011, has said that the Israeli regime and its Western and regional allies have been aiding Takfiri terrorist groups. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syrian, Russian jets step up anti-terror push against Daesh Iran Press TV Sun Jul 22, 2018 05:53PM Syrian warplanes, backed by the Russian air force, have stepped up strikes against the gatherings of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group along the Jordan-Israel border in southwestern Syria. The strikes were carried out on Yarmouk Basin, which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and Jordan, where remnants of the terror group were entrenched in recent days after other rival militant outfits were routed by the Syrian army in the area, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing unnamed diplomatic and opposition sources. According to the Syrian military, the agricultural area is the only territorial pocket in Syria's southwest currently held by Daesh, which lost all of its urban bastions in the country late last year. The army also said on Sunday that it had killed "dozens of terrorists" in a campaign whose goal was to crush terrorists. Russian jets have been conducting air raids against Daesh and other terrorist groups inside Syria upon a request by the Damascus government since September 2015. The airstrikes have helped Syrian forces advance against anti-Damascus militants, who have been wreaking havoc in the country since 2011. The development came only two days after Syrian government forces and fighters from popular defense groups liberated nearly two dozen towns and villages in Dara'a and Quneitra provinces. Since June 19, the Syrian army has been conducting a major counterterrorism operation in both provinces. Syrians continue to recapture key areas from Daesh and other terrorist groups across the country. Syrian forces are now engaged in a battle in the province of Dayr al-Zawr as Daesh struggles to keep its last positions in eastern Syria. On May 21, the General Command of the Syrian Army and Armed Forces announced in a statement that complete security was restored to Damascus and its countryside after al-Hajar al-Aswad district and al-Yarmouk camp were totally purged of terrorists. The development was preceded by flushing the Takfiri terrorists out of the towns of Yalda, Babbila and Beit Sahem on the southern outskirts of Damascus. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel Evacuates White Helmets' Members From Syria at Request of US, EU States Sputnik News 03:58 22.07.2018(updated 14:38 22.07.2018) TEL AVIV (Sputnik) - Israel has evacuated members of the White Helmets and their families from Syria at the request of the United States, Canada and European countries, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said on Sunday. "Upon request of the US, Canada and European states Israel has completed a humanitarian effort to rescue members of a Syrian civil organization ('White Helmets') and families. They were evacuated from the war zone in southern Syria to a neighboring country," Nahshon said on Twitter. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) earlier said that they had evacuated members of an unnamed local civil organization from southern Syria. According to the IDF, people were evacuated from the war zone in Syria's south due to an "immediate threat to their lives." Separately, German newspaper Bild reported that Israel had evacuated nearly 800 personnel and families of the White Helmets from the southwest of Syria to Jordan, where they would later be transported to Great Britain, Canada and Germany. The evacuation reportedly began at 9:30 p.m. local time on Saturday evening, when the United Nations assisted the White Helmets personnel to safely cross into the contested Syrian region of the Golan Heights. According to Bild, the evacuation was negotiated between the United States, Russia and the Syrian authorities. On Monday, CNN reported, citing sources, that the evacuation of about 1,000 White Helmets and their families from Syria had been discussed during the NATO summit last week amid the progress the Syrian government is making in regaining control over the rebel-controlled regions. Jordan Takes White Helmets in At the same time, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry said in a press release that Amman had allowed the United Nations to arrange passage for some 800 Syrian refugees, including members of White Helmets, through its territory for their further resettlement in Western countries that have agreed to accept them. "The [Jordanian] government allowed the UN to organize passage of about 800 Syrian citizens through Jordan for their naturalization in Western states after the three Western states, namely the United Kingdom, Germany and Canada, proposed in writing to undertake their resettlement for a certain period of time due to the threat to their lives," the ministry's press release obtained by Sputnik reads. According to the statement, Amman agreed to provide the passage solely on humanitarian grounds. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said in late June that his country would not accept refugees from southern Syria and that its border would remain closed, adding that Jordan's efforts were aimed at the prevention of violence and support for political reconciliation in Syria. The White Helmets volunteer group considers itself a non-governmental organization aimed at protecting Syrian civilians. However, Syria's President Bashar Assad says that the group is affiliated with the al-Qaeda terrorist organization. Moscow and Damascus have accused the White Helmets of helping to stage a chemical attack in Eastern Ghouta's Douma on April 7 that prompted the United States, the United Kingdom and France to launch more than 100 missiles on multiple targets in Syria one week later. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UK to send biggest warship to Pacific in 'show of force' Iran Press TV Sat Jul 21, 2018 06:38AM The United Kingdom and Australia are discussing plans for Britain's biggest ever warship to be deployed to the Pacific alongside Australians navy. The Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne, and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop met on Friday with British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson as well as Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt in Edinburg, Scotland. The four discussed the deployment of UK aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth the largest ship ever built for the Royal Navy to the Pacific amid growing Chinese activity in the region. The plan would not be operational sooner than 2020. Williamson said at a joint press conference that they are "hoping and going to work together [with Australians] on deploying HMS Queen Elizabeth to the Pacific and hopefully sailing side by side with Australian vessels." "We want to make sure that everyone around the world understands that these two great nations are the greatest of allies," he added. Williamson said the HMS Queen Elizabeth deployment may include a "freedom of navigation" exercise in the South China Sea. Beijing claims sovereignty over the South China Sea and considers foreign military presence there as "provocation." Williamson said there was an increasing "submarine threat" in the North Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Britain's new foreign secretary Hunt also said that the UK was increasing its diplomatic presence in the Pacific, opening new embassies in Pacific nations. He further said that the close relationship with Australia was "not just based on [the] 'you scratch my back I'll scratch yours' kind of transactional relationships that are so common in international diplomacy." Referring to what he described as challenges in international "norms and conventions" in the Pacific region, the Australian foreign minister said, "At such a critical juncture in world affairs, we feel it is vital for like-minded nations to join together to promote peace and stability." "We couldn't be more delighted that the UK will be taking an increasing role in the Indo-Pacific," Bishop added. Britain's national security adviser Mark Sedwill had said earlier this year that the Queen Elizabeth fleet would need support from "friendly forces" on high-end combat missions. The British warship is expected to travel with a "carrier strike group" involving several frigates for anti-submarine warfare, destroyers for air defense and potentially a hunter killer submarine to Australian waters. This year, the UK had deployed three navy warships to the Pacific for the first time since 2013. Its Royal Navy carrier, HMS Sutherland conducted war games along with the Australian navy in March and also sailed through the South China Sea. The two counties have recently signed an agreement to purchase UK 'Type 26' frigates, to be built in Australia as 'Hunter' combat ships, according to the Australian Defense Minister, Payne. The South China Sea is also claimed in part by the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and Taiwan. The British warship is expected to travel with a "carrier strike group" involving several frigates for anti-submarine warfare, destroyers for air defense and potentially a hunter killer submarine to Australian waters. This year, the UK had deployed three navy warships to the Pacific for the first time since 2013. Its Royal Navy carrier, HMS Sutherland conducted war games along with the Australian navy in March and also sailed through the South China Sea. The two counties have recently signed an agreement to purchase UK 'Type 26' frigates, to be built in Australia as 'Hunter' combat ships, according to the Australian Defense Minister, Payne. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UK to Deploy Supercarrier to Pacific to Counter Beijing's Clout in S China Sea Sputnik News 10:10 21.07.2018(updated 18:47 21.07.2018) The UK and Australia are ramping up their defense cooperation in the Pacific and the South China Sea. Britain plans to send its flagship aircraft carrier to the Pacific in an effort to conduct freedom of navigation patrols in the South China Sea region in response to concerns regarding freedom of navigation in the area, The Guardian reported. Last week the Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop discussed joint naval operations in the Pacific Ocean with the UK's Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson during two days of talks in Scotland. The ministers mentioned the challenges to international "norms and conventions" in the Pacific region and clear threats to the "rules-based international order." They said these threats justified greater defense and security cooperation between the UK and Australia. Gavin Williamson reinforced Britain's new commitment in the Indo-Pacific region, including the opening of new embassies in Tonga, Samoa and Vanuatu and efforts to enhance naval deployment in the region. He said for the first time, since 2013, Britain has been deploying naval ships to the Pacific as part of the country's enhanced military alliance with Australia. "We are hoping on deploying HMS Queen Elizabeth to the Pacific and sailing side-by-side with Australian vessels," Williamson said. "We want to make sure everyone around the world understands that these two great nations are the greatest of allies,'' he added. HMS Queen Elizabeth is the flagship ship of the Royal Navy and the fleet's largest ever warship, capable of carrying up to 60 aircraft. Once operational in 2020, it will normally travel with a "carrier strike group" involving several frigates for anti-submarine warfare, destroyers for air defense and potentially a hunter killer submarine. In recent years, China has devoted extensive resources to reclaiming many reefs from the South China Sea, forming artificial islands that only fuel the debate about sovereignty over the region. The South China Sea is a crucial sea gateway through which some $3.4 trillion in trade passes annually, according to CNBC. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UK Threatens Not to Pay EU Divorce Bill if Trade Deal Not Agreed Upon Sputnik News 09:46 22.07.2018(updated 09:58 22.07.2018) The customs agreement and the payment of a vast divorce bill remain the main sticking points in London's stuttering Brexit talks with the EU. Britain's new Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab has warned that London will not pay its 39 billion ($51.2 billion) divorce bill to the European Union if Brussels does not agree to a trade deal, The Telegraph wrote on Friday. In a promise that will be welcomed by leading Brexiteers, Raab told the London-based broadsheet that the payment of the vast divorce bill depended on the EU "fulfilling its side of the bargain." "You can't have one side fulfilling its side of the bargain and the other side not, or going slow, or failing to commit on its side. So I think we do need to make sure that there's some conditionality between the two," he argued. His comments clashed with the position of Chancellor Philip Hammond, who in December 2017 said it was "inconceivable that we as a nation would be walking away from an obligation that we recognized as an obligation." Dominic Raab added that he was still trying to persuade all members of the Cabinet that Theresa May's Chequers agreement was "the best plan to get the best deal." Under the plan, the UK would retain close links with, and access to, the EU single market for goods by following a common rulebook with the EU. A number of pro-Brexit MPs had earlier threatened to propose amendments to the government's Brexit roadmap. On Friday, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said the "facilitated customs arrangement" raised practical, legal, economic and budgetary questions and suggested that splits in the Conservative Party could force May to go back to the drawing board. Referring to his Thursday talks with Dominic Raab, Barnier voiced concern that European businesses would face higher administrative costs and that under May's plan, the UK would maintain regulatory alignment on agricultural foodstuffs and industrial goods. The United Kingdom is currently part of the EU single market but if London leaves it after Brexit, Britain will have to negotiate new trade deals with its partners, including the United States. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma has never shied away from voicing his admiration for SoftBank founder and CEO Masayoshi Son. Just two months back, the Japanese conglomerate pumped in $1.4 billion in the digital payments platform - the largest fund infusion by a single investor in a desi start-up. And now, the buzz is that their partnership is ready to go global. According to Bloomberg, SoftBank Group Corp. will be starting a mobile digital payments service in Japan in collaboration with Paytm by the end of this year. In fact, a formal announcement about the same is imminent. Citing sources in the know, the report added that the new service will make extensive use of artificial intelligence for mobile payments and other financial services, and dozens of Paytm employees are currently working in Tokyo to get it up and running. But with this development, Son is moving into an already-crowded field and will have to compete for a toehold against local banks and technology companies. Line Corp., Japan's biggest instant-messaging service, and flea-market app Mercari Inc., for instance, have both been pushing into digital payments. Moreover, recent regulatory changes in Japan - supposed to come into effect in the next two years - are fuelling further interest in the consumer trend away from using cash. Significantly, the news agency reports that Son's plans are not limited only to Japan. According to sources, SoftBank wants the Japanese program to give the company a launchpad to take the service global. Furthermore, the Tokyo-based company, which owns the nation's No. 3 wireless carrier, could expand the payments system to add financial services such as lending, insurance and other services. This spells a huge opportunity for Paytm. The sector, incidentally, is yet to see a clear winner on the global stage. All the emerging contenders like Ant Financial, Paypal Holdings Inc., Tencent Holdings Ltd and even Paytm have, so far, seen success only in limited geographies, while efforts by behemoths like Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co, have not been able to make a mark. Will Son, who created the world's largest technology investment fund, get any luckier in his attempt? That remains to be seen, but the collaboration could prove a valuable learning for Sharma and help expand Paytm's global footprint. Last May, Paytm Canada was born, allowing Canadians to pay their bills on the app, and now the company is readying to say Kon'nichiwa, or hello in Japanese. GREENWICH When Layla Lisiewski moved back to Greenwich as a mother, finding ways to occupy her three children, all under the age of 6, involved hours of scouring websites for kid-friendly activities. She wanted a calendar, a one-stop shop, anything to lessen the time she dedicated to research. So, in 2015, she started Greenwich Moms, a calendar, blog and email list aiming to give moms the gift of time. Three years later, Greenwich is the hub for the Local Moms Network: The umbrella group Lisiewski and her partner-in-blogging, Megan Sullivan, created to bring together the sister blogs in 14 other suburbs in six states. All were started with Greenwich Moms as a template. This year, the number of sites and states will triple. With each new site, more women learn marketable skills, connect with other stay-at-home and working moms and earn money while giving back to the community. Being a mother is amazing, but youre looking for more than that, Lisiewski said. For the two of us, coming from Wall Street jobs, something was missing. The website has resources for every aspect of a parents life: from choosing a doctor or finding a nanny to deciding on a school or joining a gym. The blog previews and covers events and offers beauty tips. The calendar catalogs a plethora of events in one place. Jordan Rhodes, a midcountry mother of three children age 6 and under and fellow blogger, is quick to recommend the site for any mom new to town who is wondering about schools, doctors and dentists. She didnt realize, however, how much she would use the calendar. I was surprised at how much I didnt know, she said. Having lived here 12 years, I thought I knew everything about town, but when I got on the website, I saw how many activities I didnt know about. Sister blogs in Connecticut include ones for Stamford, New Canaan, Darien, Westport and Amity-Milford. Were bringing on moms across the U.S. and giving them the ability to work part time and be at home with their kids, Sullivan said. Were empowering women to be in their communities, be with their kids and build their own brand. With new skills in MailChimp, WordPress and Instagram, the women bloggers could go back to work, Sullivan said. Leaving her job in private wealth management for Merrill Lynch, Lisiewski had no training in blogging or marketing. I was learning from zero. I didnt even have an Instagram account before all this, she said. I had no idea how you build a website. Now Im able to put an advertisement in a website in 20 seconds. Sullivan came on in 2016 after winning a giveaway. Now, she helps new mom-bloggers get started with their own sites. The partners complement each other: The two moms work opposite hours, live in different corners of Greenwich and bring different skills from their finance backgrounds (Sullivan did marketing for hedge funds). Shes the yin to my yang, Lisiewski said. Weve grown leaps and bounds because of our partnership. Their teamwork helps them juggle raising three young kids each and managing their enterprise. The key is working when the older kids are in school or at a summer camp, and the little ones are napping. Its not always easy, Sullivan said. I came down to the office 15 minutes early, had a salad in silence, and Im like, This is lovely, I look forward to Mondays, she said. At first, neither of them could have imagined their local website would become a nationwide network, but as more mothers praised the site and expressed interest in starting their own, the duo realized the scope could extend beyond Greenwich. Lisiewski and Sullivan wanted to make sure the network grew in the right way, so they assembled a team of legal counselors, marketers and consultants. Its a huge learning curve, and I think its the same with all these other moms, but I think they appreciate it, Lisiewski said. Youre looking at very smart, very driven moms who may not know how to build a website, but within six weeks, they will. Fellow blogger and mother Amanda Vlastas, for example, gets to repurpose skills she learned in previous marketing and photography jobs to the blog she started in West University, a suburb of Houston. More importantly, it helped her, a California transplant (via New York City), feel at home in her new community. As a mom, it can be pretty lonely, Vlastas said. Before this, I had a couple of friends. Now I have the whole community. Her blog fills a niche. Other websites target moms, but they encompass all of Houston, and no mom will drive 20 minutes for a music lesson when theres one two minutes away, she said. Its also in demand: Mothers in other suburbs have asked her about localizing the resource. Ultimately, the blog unites women, Vlastas said. I see that were all supporting each other, especially working moms and moms who are entrepreneurs who own small businesses in the community, she said. Whenever she meets a working mother, she said she finds a way to help her succeed, too. Were all in this together, Vlastas said. One of Lisiewskis and Sullivans goals for the coming year is to support more businesses owned and run by women. They will also continue to add more blogs to the network, a process Sullivan said is ongoing. Through a series of conference video calls between Lisiewski and Sullivan and the networks web developers, the new cohort of mothers can work through problems, ask questions and learn the basics of the marketing tools the Local Moms Network uses. They can also reference a handbook, which Sullivan created. Maintaining the website doesnt feel like work because shes providing a service, Vlastas said. Its also made her the face of the community. The websites become me, she said. Running these platforms gives Lisiewski and Sullivan, as well as the other mothers nationwide, the flexibility to not only work and raise children, but also to integrate work and family life. Partnerships between their blog and local brands and subscription services have benefited them personally. The partners said they often incorporate products and services featured on the blog into their own families lives, and brands that target upscale suburban moms have approached them as test markets before wider release. Lisiewski said EasyKicks with Nike, a subscription kids shoe box that delivers new shoes whenever her kids wear out their sneakers, changed her life. Our kids are benefiting from us having more time, Sullivan said. Theres no fine line between work and motherhood, Lisiewski said, and while her kids may interrupt her 5,000 times a day, she cant figure out why her kids camp outfit is missing, shes trying to cook dinner and sign for packages, she said doing work for the Local Moms Network is fun. I dont think we could possibly be more busy, but I dont mind it at all, she said. The time Im able to spend with my kids through this business is invaluable. jo.kroeker@hearstmediact.com GREENWICH When children who are in the country legally learn their parents are undocumented and could face deportation, they face a dilemma: Who can they talk to without outing their parents? Some Greenwich students in this position decided to talk to Jody Bell, a 16-year-old rising senior at Greenwich High School. She listened. When she joined the inaugural class of Girls with Impact, an entrepreneurship program for teen girls, she already knew her project would help her friends. A year and a half later, she launched I.C.O.D., In Case of Deportation, a website connecting children whose caregivers could be deported with condensed versions of government resources and helpful links. Its a hub to make information publicly available more digestible for children, she said. If you go online and search, My parents are being deported, there are so many parameters and dense information thats hard to understand. Bell has received offers of help from immigration attorneys and website coders, and Greenwich High and New Rochelle High School in New York have agreed to list the hub on their student resource pages. She has even pitched her idea to the governors office and to the American Civil Liberties Union. Bell launched her website when the White House started implementing policies that separated families at the border. As policies are changing daily and lawsuits are changing the course of the immigration debate, this wont be a static website, this will be reactive, said Bells mother, Deena Merlen, a workplace discrimination attorney. I hope Jody continues to hear from lawyers and politicians. Bells goal is to present the complicated material on a streamlined platform. Her reason for starting the website, however, is personal. The main reason I started this was because I had peers coming to me asking about it because they didnt feel they could talk to guidance counselors and people that are supposed to be helping, Bell said. As friends opened up, she realized children need emotional support and scripts for initiating hard conversations with their parents, in addition to basic information. The website encourages children to ask their parents about their legal status, their life before immigrating and their reasons for leaving. A lot of them were actually resentful toward their parents, that they didnt tell them prior to that point, Bell said. People tend to think the issue of deportation does not affect people in Greenwich, but it does, Bell said. She has been surprised by the number of residents who have come forward to thank her. Girls with Impact CEO Jennifer Openshaw advised Bell on building a business plan, constructing a website and planning pitches. She praised Bells determination to follow through with her vision. Shes not afraid to dive in, Openshaw said. Whether its putting together a proposal for the governors office, putting her website together over the weekend, or learning how to make phone calls, she did it. Bell has already started thinking about ways to expand her service to other states, where even seeking help could implicate migrants for deportation. Connecticut is a far friendlier environment than many, Merlen said. Policy variances from state to state challenged Bells progress, particularly during her research on drafting guardianship papers to determine a legal caregiver if a parent must leave the U.S. I consider myself fairly internet savvy, and I couldnt find that information, she said. For someone new to the issue, if they were trying to get their guardianship papers altered, I could only imagine how much more difficult that would be. Kids with computer skills and Internet access at school, better English and more time than their working parents are more able to research the documents and processes their family might need to get desired help, Merlen said. By getting this information to the children, that might be a better conduit for getting the information to the parents, Merlen said. Bell has always been engaged in civic and human-rights advocacy, from organizing rallies at school to volunteering to protect the integrity of elections in Florida, she said. Its not like she woke up one day and said, I want to get involved, Merlen said. Throughout her life, shes been drawn to figuring out what the right thing is, then doing it. Girls with Impact seeks high school girls who want to differentiate themselves, Openshaw said. Bell exemplifies the capability of this generation of girls, she said. If they learn this in college, its a little too late, Openshaw said. If they learn and take action in high school, it sets them up for huge success, whether moving into jobs or college. Bells activism, and the activism of her peers at Girls with Impact and in school, encourages Merlen. People like to knock the next generation as being lazy and self-centered, but I cant with this one, she said. Im excited, really really excited, to see the sort of activism and impact that Jody and her contemporaries are already having. Theyre not waiting to be the leaders of tomorrow. WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump moved to retaliate against some of his strongest critics Monday, threatening to revoke the security clearances of former top officials who have raised alarms about Russian interference in the 2016 election or questioned the president's fitness for office. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Trump is "looking to take away" the clearances of half a dozen former senior national security and intelligence officials who served in the administrations of George W. Bush or Barack Obama. Sanders accused them of profiting off their public service and making "baseless accusations" against the president. The move immediately prompted accusations of political retaliation by current and former officials, as well as security analysts, who said Trump would set a dangerous precedent by punishing political speech. Several of the officials he cited have written books questioning his leadership and his affection for Russian President Vladimir Putin. It's routine for the former directors of intelligence agencies and other senior officials to maintain their security clearances, so they can share their expertise with current leaders or be called in for consultations on how a prior administration handled an issue or crisis, current and former officials said. Some former officials also have jobs that require a security clearance. The officials who Sanders said might have their clearances revoked are former CIA director John Brennan; former FBI director James Comey; former CIA director Michael Hayden; former national security adviser Susan Rice; former director of national intelligence James Clapper Jr.; and former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe. (Comey and McCabe no longer have security clearances, according to their representatives, and it wasn't clear why the White House put them on the list.) The ex-officials are among Trump's most frequent targets in his speeches and angry tweets. He has variously accused them - without evidence - of leaking classified information to journalists, concocting facts to undermine the legitimacy of his election, and of profiting off their prior access to him by writing memoirs, a practice Trump is known to resent. "The president is exploring these mechanisms to remove security clearances because they've politicized and, in some cases, actually monetized their public service and their security clearances in making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia or being influenced by Russia," Sanders told reporters at a regular press briefing. "Making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia or being influenced by Russia against the president is extremely inappropriate, and the fact that people with security clearances are making these baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence." Security-clearance experts said while Trump probably does have the authority to unilaterally suspend or terminate a security clearance, no president has ever done so. Words and actions protected by the First Amendment aren't grounds to take a clearance away, they said. "It is completely inappropriate to revoke or withdraw someone's security clearance based on political differences," said Mark Zaid, an attorney who represents government employees in security-clearance disputes. Trump's decision could end up jeopardizing national security interests, said Evan Lesser, the president of ClearanceJobs, which helps the government find employees. "When you have someone with their knowledge and experience," he said of the former officials, "regardless of whether you agree with them or not, you typically want them to have access in the event that they need to be called back for something critical." Former intelligence officials said Trump's move looked like an intimidation tactic designed to silence others from speaking out against him. "This is the equivalent of Richard Nixon sending the IRS after people," said a former senior intelligence official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he still has a security clearance required for his work. "If I were to speak out at this point, I would lose a substantial portion of my income." Not all the officials in Trump's crosshairs now have jobs that require a security clearance. Clapper, who said he doesn't do any work that requires a clearance, said Trump's action was directed solely at "people who have criticized the president." Clapper, a career intelligence officer who last served as the director of national intelligence in the Obama administration, described the move by the White House as "unprecedented" and "petty." Hayden, who was also director of the National Security Agency under Bush, had no comment on Sanders' statement. But he objected to any White House suggestion that he had done anything that would be grounds for revoking his clearance. Hayden said he requires a clearance for one proxy board position to protect sensitive U.S. information when dealing with a foreign parent company. Brennan and Rice didn't respond to the White House announcement. Nick Shapiro, a former top aide to Brennan, said the former CIA director hadn't done any work since leaving government that required a clearance. "This is a political attack on career national security officials who have honorably served their country for decades under both Republicans and Democrats in an effort to distract from [special counsel Robert Mueller's] investigation." Comey's lawyer, David Kelley, said the ex-FBI director "was read out of his security clearance not long after he left the FBI" in mid-2017, after Trump fired him. In fact, Kelley said, Comey was offered a limited security clearance last month to review the classified findings of the Justice Department's inspector general's investigation into his actions at the FBI, and declined in part because he didn't want to have access to classified information and then have the president or someone else accuse him of leaking. McCabe's clearance was deactivated when he was fired from the FBI, said Melissa Schwartz, a spokeswoman for McCabe. She said McCabe's lawyers were told that was according to FBI policy. "You would think the White House would check with the FBI before trying to throw shiny objects to the press corps," she wrote on Twitter. Sanders made the announcement shortly after Trump met with Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who said earlier Monday that he planned to ask the president to revoke Brennan's clearance. The former CIA director under Obama last week described Trump's performance at his summit with Putin in Helsinki as "treasonous" and said Trump showed he was "wholly in the pocket of Putin." In a tweet shortly after Sanders' announcement, Paul appeared to take credit for the president's decision. "I restated to [Trump] what I have said in public: John Brennan and others partisans should have their security clearances revoked." He added: "Public officials should not use their security clearances to leverage speaking fees or network talking head fees." In a tweet earlier Monday, Paul had questioned whether Brennan was trying to profit off his security clearance by "divulging secrets to the mainstream media" that undermine Trump. Democrats immediately criticized the White House announcement. Rep. Adam B. Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said punishing Trump's critics "would set a terrible new precedent. An enemies list is ugly, undemocratic and un-American. Is there no length Trump will not go to stifle opposition? Wake up GOP." A member of the Senate Republican leadership voiced skepticism of the White House's actions as well. "I don't know whether they've been abusing their security clearance at all," said Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Republican in the chamber. "That's a very serious allegation. I want to see what the results are." analyst for NBC News and MSNBC and often makes critical comments about Trump. - - - The Washington Post's Matt Zapotosky, Devlin Barrett and Seung Min Kim contributed to this report. One of the most viable, low-maintenance alternatives to a natural lawn is artificial grass. And if you're a homeowner who loves the look of a lush lawn, but fears and loathes the upkeep required to make it a reality, this landscaping solution might be a godsend. Artificial grass comes in a number of textures, finishes, colors, and blade shapes. So how do you know if you should go for it? We asked several experts to weigh in on the benefits and disadvantages of having artificial grass installed on your property. Here are the five factors to keep in mind when deciding if this is the right landscaping move for you. Maintenance Say goodbye to your sprinklers! One of the biggest selling points for artificial grass is that it doesn't need constant watering to keep it green. Artificial grass has a certain appeal for homeowners who are overwhelmed by the idea of regular lawn maintenance, says Rob Turley, general manager at Custom Turf in Finleyville, PA. You don't have to fertilize or mow artificial grass, and it will be green all year long. It's suited for all climates, but it's especially useful in dry, arid environments, where it's difficult to grow grass. Artificial grass isnt completely maintenance free, however: Youll need to rinse your lawn to clear away dirt and debris, And you'll need to groom your lawn to fluff the blades of grass and keep it from becoming matted, Turley says. Resilience to weather and heat Rainfall and sunlight can affect the health of natural grass. But when it comes to artificial grass, the weather will have very little bearing on its appearance. It's resilient and holds up to any type of weather, including rain and snow. Because it has such good drainage, it dries faster than natural grass. So if theres a rain shower, it dries up after a few minutes. One slight disadvantage, however, is that artificial grass can get very hot. Like most manufactured materials, artificial grass does indeed get warmer when exposed to direct sunlight, says Chad Vander Veen, marketing and communications manager for Purchase Green Artificial Grass. The analogy that resonates best with most peoplein terms of how hot artificial grass getsis that it's like beach sand. Reality check: When artificial grass reaches the point of being uncomfortably hot, its probably too hot to be outside rolling around anyway. Sustainability There's no denying that natural grass is good for the environment. It increases soil stability, removes dust from the air and water, and, like other vegetative sources, it also cools the air. Artificial grass, on the other hand, doesn't provide even a fraction of the ecological benefits of natural grass. The major concerns come from the artificial infillthe rubber crumb typically made of scrap tiresthat's used to improve the stability of the grass. Many concerns have been raised about the adverse effects that rubber crumb can have on the environment and health of those who come in contact with it. Studies show that rubber crumb contains hazardous materials, according to the Yale School of Public Health, which has ongoing research on the volatility of crumb rubber. Fortunately, certain artificial turf companies offer other infill options, like acrylic polymer-coated sand, coconut fibers, or cork. At the other end of the spectrum, caring for natural lawns can also be problematic for the environment. Mowers contribute to carbon pollution, and fertilizer can run off into local waterways, says Turley. And, as most people know, watering a lawn can be extremely wasteful. According to the EPA, Americans use a combined 9 billion gallons of water each day on landscape irrigation. But the agency estimates that 50% of that is actually wasted as a result of evaporation, wind, or runoffall caused by inefficient irrigation. If everyone had artificial grass, that would work out to nearly 14,000 Olympic swimming pools' worth of water saved every year, says Vander Veen. Cost If you want your artificial lawn to look like real grass, be prepared to pay for that natural look. "Artificial lawn materials are usually pricey and require special equipment to install the grass," says Turley. You'll pay anywhere between $8 and $20 per square foot for artificial grass. While that's quite a bit more than the average cost of natural grass (about $0.25 per square foot), most turf companies place the life span of their grasses between 15 to 20 years. So, in the long run, artificial grass might be cheaper. Resale value Unless this is your forever home, you should consider how artificial grass will affect your resale value. If your entire yard consists of artificial grassespecially in the frontpotential buyers are either going to love it or hate it. "I think it will turn most buyers off, except in some markets where it is more acceptable, like very arid climates in the Southwest, says John Blackman, a real estate agent, developer, and investor at Heart of Austin Homes Team in Austin, TX. Consult with local landscape architects and chat with your neighbors on whether they think this choice will improve the value of your home, or have the opposite effect. The post Is Artificial Grass Right for Your Yard? 5 Factors to Consider appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com. The government is planning to prepare a master list of all economic offenders that will help the authorities to prevent such people from fleeing the country. According to a report in the Hindustan Times, the government has asked the Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CIEB) to create the list -which will get the inputs from agencies such as the ED, CBI , SEBI, Income Tax, Customs Department, and DRI. The move comes at a time when the government is facing stiff criticism from the opposition parties for failing to arrest Nirav Modi - the key accused in the multi-billion PNB bank fraud who fled the country days before the CBI initiated the probe. A threshold has been set for each agency, and cases registered that involve amounts above that limit will be reported to CEIB. For example, customs will report cases registered for duty evasion of above Rs 1 crore. In the case of the tax department only raids conducted or authorised by the Central Board of Direct Taxes will be taken into account by CEIB, the report said. "Most of our probe and enforcement agencies work in silos. So if a particular agency is investigating someone, a comprehensive list of economic offenders will help it know if the person on any other agency's radar," the HT quoted an official as saying. The official, according to the report, further said that the DRI and the tax department were already probing Nirav Modi since 2014 and 2017, respectively. "Access to this information by all investigation agencies could have further sharpened our response to Nirav Modi once he fled the country before the filing of an FIR by CBI," the official said. Last month, it was reported that the government was planning a massive verification process of top company executives to keep a check on shell firms and prevent those in top management from fleeing the country to escape prosecution. During the verification process, the government will do a complete KYC of company directors that will at the minimum include passport, PAN number and contact details. The government will have a new form for the physical address of the company which will have to be updated annually by the company secretary. For foreign nationals, there will be a separate form but even they will have to be registered with the Ministry. Ministry of Corporate Affairs Secretary Injeti Srinivas recently said that as many as 33 lakh company directors would be registered as part of the KYC programme. The idea of KYC came in the backdrop of PNB scam in which Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi defrauded the state-run bank through multiple shell firms. These are the best offers from our affiliate partners. We may get a commission from qualifying sales. Havre Police Department Jesse Henderson of Box Elder, 53, was arrested on a charge of theft from building after a caller reported Friday at 9:55 a.m. from Third Street that someone had stolen her phone. -- A Third Avenue caller reported at 12:52 p.m. Friday a black mongoose with white lettering was missing. -- Ryan Steven Ferguson of Chinook, 28, was arrested on a charge of possession of drug paraphernalia after a probation and parole officer reported from the office Friday at 5:09 p.m. having found drugs in the bag of someone on probation. -- Teshina Sayers of Havre, 22, was issued a summons during a vehicle stop on First Street at 6:30 p.m. Friday on charges of failing to give notice of accident, failing to remain at an accident, careless driving, driving without insurance and driving with expired plates. -- Officers investigated two 24/7 Sobriety Program violations, at 7:19 p.m. and 8:03 p.m. -- A lawnmower was reported stolen at 8:05 p.m. Friday on 13th Avenue. -- Jeana Lucero Granados of Havre, 27, was arrested on charges of driving with a suspended or revoked driver's license, aggravated driving under the influence, other traffic crime, failing to carry proof of insurance and driving with an open container on highway, during a vehicle stop on First Street Saturday at 1:25 a.m. -- Nikolas John Keller of Havre, 20, was arrested on charges of trespass to property and minor in possession following a report of a disturbance on McKinley Avenue Saturday at 1:43 a.m. -- A caller at a First Street West business reported that people were shooting at a rabbit at 2:39 a.m. Saturday. -- Joshua Michael Anthony Peterson of Havre, 18, and a 14-year-old were each issued a summons on a disorderly conduct charge after a 3:17 a.m. Saturday report of a disturbance on 10th Street. -- A vehicle burglary was reported at 4:18 a.m. Saturday on Second Street Northeast. -- A 24/7 Sobriety Program no-show was reported at the police station Saturday at 8:23 a.m. -- Kory Christopher Ross of Ulm, 33, was issued a summons on a criminal contempt charge related to a remote breathalyzer violation reported Saturday at 9:30 a.m. -- Winston Curley Stewart of Havre, 33, was arrested on an aggravated DUI charge during a vehicle stop on Sixth Avenue Saturday at 2:07 p.m. -- Sandra Lee Kendall of Hays, 55, was arrested on charges of driving with a suspended or revoked driver's license, obstructing a peace officer or other public servant and speeding and Edgar Benjeamin Johnson Jr. of Hays, 50, was arrested on a Justice or City court warrant, during a vehicle stop on 13th Street at 2:56 p.m. Saturday. -- Tyla Johnson of Harlem, 22, was arrested on a Justice or City court warrant at Hill County Detention Center Saturday at 4:07 p.m. -- Marcus Truman Hoffman of Havre, 24, was arrested on a charge of shoplifting after a caller at a First Street business reported at 4:42 p.m. Saturday a man had walked out of the store with merchandise about two hours earlier. -- Officers investigated a Saturday 8:10 p.m. complaint at the police station related to a 24/7 Sobriety Program violation. -- A 19th Avenue Northeast caller reported at 9:14 p.m. Saturday that someone had driven through his fence. -- A caller at an 11th Street West business reported someone drove off with merchandise Sunday at 12:23 a.m. -- Cole Jordon Monroe of Havre, 31, was arrested on a charge of probation violation during an officer-initiated check of a First Street establishment Sunday at 1:26 a.m. -- A 12th Street caller reported a hit and run vehicle crash at 8:11 a.m. Sunday. -- An officer made an investigation during a vehicle stop on Second Street Sunday at 1:38 p.m. -- A caller reported a noninjury vehicle accident on Fifth Avenue Sunday at 6:45 p.m. -- This morning at 2:48 a caller at First Street and Ninth Avenue report a man trying to get into vehicles. -- Laura Tamika Pepion of Havre, 22, was arrested on an assault charge following a disturbance reported at 4:44 a.m. today on Fifth Avenue. Hill County Sheriff's Office Walter Ray Denny of Box Elder, 58, was issued a summons on a charge of theft after a caller at a U.S. Highway 2 West business reported a shoplifter Friday at 3:45 p.m. -- Skylar Rae Welter of Havre, 21, was arrested on two counts of possession of dangerous drugs and one charge of possession of drug paraphernalia following a call for assistance from Rocky Boy Police Department Friday at 9:42 p.m. -- A caller reported Saturday at 11 a.m. a vehicle had its back window broken out and contents gone through after the vehicle was left at the fairgrounds overnight. -- Ira Valdez Moreno of Box Elder, 44, was arrested on a state District Court warrant following a transport from Rocky Boy Police to the detention center Saturday at 12:13 p.m. -- A sex offense was reported from the fairgrounds Saturday at 11:14 p.m. -- An arrest was made after an 11th Street North caller reported Sunday at 6:17 a.m. someone had broken into the caller's pickup truck. -- A burglary was reported Sunday at 11:22 a.m. on Second Avenue East in Gildford. -- Sunday at 6:07 p.m. a caller reported from 11th Street North a vehicle had been broken into. -- Nicole Rochelle Demontiney of Box Elder, 45, was arrested on a Justice or City court warrant following an escort from Rocky Boy Police Department to the detention center at 6:22 p.m. -- Aaron Michael Brogan of Great Falls, 19, was arrested on a charge of driving with a suspended or revoked driver's license during a vehicle stop on Fresno Road Sunday at 11:46 p.m. Havre Fire Department Emergency medical crews responded to two calls Friday, three Saturday, one Sunday and one this morning. -- Firefighters responded to a call on the 1300 Block of 13th Street after smoke from a shorted out water heater set off the alarm. The breaker was turned off until the water heater could be replaced or repaired. Havre Animal Shelter This morning the shelter held two medium-hair cats with sex listed as "unknown," three medium-hair male cats, one male long-hair cat and five female short-hair cats. -- The shelter also held this morning a 2-year-old female hound, a 2-year-old female pit bull terrier-German shepherd cross, a 13-week-old male shepherd cross, 1-year-old male spaniel-pit bull terrier cross, a 26-week-old Labrador retriever-mastiff cross, a 2-year-old male Australian cattle dog-blue heeler cross, a 9-month-old female pit bull terrier and a 3-year-1-month-old male Labrador retriever. Births A girl was born Thursday, July 19, 2018, to Dasia Beckman and Zakary Canning of Havre. Both District 1 Public Service Commission candidates Randy Pinocci and Doug Kaercher were at the Great Northern Fair last week campaigning for the upcoming election in November; and both spoke about the fair and the progress of their campaigns. Each was at a booth in the commercial building. Finance Director and City Clerk for Havre Kaercher, a Democrat, said Thursday the fair seemed to be effected this year by the heat and was just a bit slow. He added that because the fair is only once a year people should always feel encouraged to come out and enjoy everything it has to offer. Kaercher said that for the previous two days he and his wife had come to operate the booth from 5:30 to 9 p.m. He had been to the new Chuckwagon building, he said. "It's a beautiful building and very well set-up, and being as hot as it is, everybody loves the air conditioning," he added. Pinocci, a Republican, was at a booth with City Council President Andrew Brekke, and he said it was his first time at the Great Northern Fair, adding that he was having a great time. He made signs especially for the fair and wanted to come Wednesday but had to wait for them. The balloons he brought seemed to be going over well with the kids, he said. Brekke said traffic for the fair was a little slow Wednesday but was picking up for Thursday, adding that he thought that the heat played a factor in the turnout. Both Kaercher and Pinocci talked about their candidacies. Kaercher said his long-time public service experience is what makes him qualified, adding that he has 30 years of experience including on Havre City Council, Hill County Commission and the State Tax Appeal Board. He has always gravitated to leadership positions, he said, and has an abundance of skills from those jobs that give him the necessary tools for the PSC. "It represents more of where my experience lies in that it is similar to taxes in figuring out what these companies are worth and what is a reasonable rate of return for them," Kaercher said, "so that the consumer will always have the best rate that they can get and still keep the industry healthy." Pinocci, a one-term state representative, talked about progress that he views as a possibility for the future. "We're focused now on showing how the Republican views energy over the Democrat's stance on energy," he said. Barack Obama made it his goal while he was president, Pinocci said, to shut down every coal-fired facility in the United States, with the EPA particularly wanting to shut down Colstrip to replace it with wind or solar energy, Pinocci said he believes that would double the energy rate. "Solar and wind is not as dependable as coal," he said. "Coal runs 24/7, wind is only working when the wind is blowing, solar is only working when the sun is out, and it is more expensive for the rate payers." Pinocci added that he is pro-coal and doesn't want to lose the union coal jobs at Colstrip, and that he wants to see a coal-fired facility just down the road from Havre. He added that if there was a coal-fired facility down the road the surrounding communities might see rates going down. He said with the extra income in the economy from having one or two coal facilities on the Hi-Line, the community can possibly put the extra revenue into building four-lane roads 30 miles east, south and west, using coal to fund it. He added that Montana has twice as much coal as Wyoming does and, because of Wyoming's use of coal, the state has money to spare for schools and infrastructure. "This is called the Treasure State, there is a pick and shovel on our flag and we need to get back to that," Pinocci said. "Let me get into the natural resources that are right here locally and we can start funding some really neat projects." Pinocci has in the past received high ratings from organizations like the Montana Family Foundation and National Rifle Association. Kaercher said his campaign is going pretty well and that he is going out to as many fairs and parades as possible, where he is getting all kinds of input as well as receiving good responses. His campaign has received endorsements from groups including the Montana Chamber of Commerce and The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations. He added that there is a good cross of people that believe he is a reasonable and responsible candidate. One issue that sparked his interest in running for the PSC was the winter storm last October, which resulted in many fallen trees and branches as well as power outages from Chester to Malta, for up to a week for some customers. He said that when the PSC came to town Oct. 30 to assess how the power outages were handled, it was at the worst possible time because the situation had not had the chance to play through. Kaercher added that they could have done it in a little better fashion and let the situation play out without the controversy that was tied to it. Randall Pinocci "I think in situations like that, you need to let the situation play through, 'cause you don't know what the end result is when you're in the middle of it," Kaercher said, "and then you come back and you do it on a fair basis, you come back and discuss it with the consumer and discuss it with the industry and you try to find out where the weaknesses were and where the strengths were and see if you can do it better. But to try and figure that out when you're still in the middle of cleanup and operations, just doesn't give everybody a fair shake." Kaercher said the PSC needs more balance within the organization and that he can supply that balance. "I look forward to listening and working with the consumers and the industry, making this work so it is beneficial to everybody as a state," he said. "I have the experience to represent the public the best way possible," he added. Deputies seeking S.C. man for knife assault Regis Robinson Related Stories Henderson County sheriff's deputies charged a South Carolina man with assault after he allegedly stabbed an acquaintance at a home on Tracy Grove Road shortly before midnight on Friday, July 13. Law officers say Regis Robinson, 21, of Barnwell, S.C., broke into the house, assaulted a victim with a knife and fled the scene. The victim was transported to a local hospital for treatment. Investigators learned Robinson is an acquaintance of the victim. Robinson is charged in arrest warrants with felony breaking and entering with the intent to terrorize and injure an occupant of the residence and felony assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and inflict serious injury. Any with information on Robinson's whereabouts was asked to contact the Henderson County Sheriffs Office at (828) 697-4911. US Airways Flight 1549 had to ditch in the Hudson river. Photo: Edouard H. R. Gluck There have been 188 "bird strikes" at Dublin Airport in the past three years, in which birds collided with planes or were sucked into their engines. Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) has described the collisions as "high-risk events" that have the potential to bring down aircraft, pointing to the "miracle on the Hudson" in 2009. There were also 105 collisions involving hares at the airport, which most often involved the animals being "ingested directly into an aircraft engine" while planes were moving on the runway, according to the DAA. One such incident occurred on November 20 last year, when up to six hares were struck by an aircraft. The airport's runway had to close as a result of the "multiple hare strikes". The DAA responded by undertaking a controlled shoot at Dublin Airport, in which 35 hares were killed. A spokesperson for the authority said the termination was "a reluctant measure" that was taken following the incident in November, and an increased number of hare sightings by pilots. The more usual method of hare population control at the airport is a catch-and-release system, which saw 203 hares taken and relocated to Kildare and Wicklow last year. "Aviation safety is of paramount importance for any airport operator," said the spokesperson. "Dublin Airport must, like all airports, actively manage wildlife hazards on and surrounding the airport as these present a significant aviation safety risk." Specific safety risks include the "ingestion of one or more birds into an aircraft engine while it is on arrival, departure or close to the airport", according to documents released under Access to Information on the Environment (AIE) regulations. "Such events have brought down aircraft worldwide, as described in the film Sully," it added. Emergency Sully is a 2016 movie based on the emergency landing of US Airways Flight 1549 on New York's Hudson River after colliding with a flock of birds, disabling both engines. Figures released under AIE regulations reveal that 60 "bird strikes" occurred at Dublin Airport last year - an average of five a month. There was a total of 41 hare strikes during the same period. Some 405 hares were captured for release as part of the airport's wildlife management plan between 2015 and 2018. "We have a large hare population because they are protected from predators on the airfield - no foxes can get in the boundary fence," explained the DAA spokesperson. The DAA deploys a "hierarchy of controls" designed to reduce the safety threat posed by birds and other wildlife living in 670 acres of grassland at Dublin Airport. These controls include "bird-scaring activities" undertaken by the airport's fire service, which uses flare guns during patrols to deter birds from settling close to the airfield. Hawk kites are also used to scare smaller birds away from the airport, along with "humming lines" which are thin plastic filaments stretched between bamboo canes that make a noise in the wind. The DAA retains the services of a consultant ornithologist to provide advice regarding measures to minimise the risk of "bird strikes". Francis Brennan and his fellow travellers at Dublin Airport before jetting off to South Africa for his latest Grand Tour. Picture: Gerry Mooney Francis Brennan has revealed he was asked to join Dancing With The Stars - but said no for health reasons. The TV personality said he was approached to appear in the first series, which began airing in January last year. However, he decided he was better off sitting it out because of a busy work schedule and a problem with his foot. "They asked me already," he said. "I was asked the first year. I would love to do it, but first of all, I don't have the time, never. "I spend four to six weeks working in America between February and March. I've done that every year for the last 40 years. "Also, I have a bad foot which I don't think I need to aggravate. The doctor told me I could be crippled from it when I was 40." "I'm 64 now, and I'm going grand, so I don't think I would do it from a medical point of view. "Also, I don't have the time. I told them that from day one." The new series of Francis Brennan's Grand Tour kicked off last night on RTE One with a new crop of travellers accompanying the hotelier on a trip to South Africa. "It was a great trip. Nothing went wrong, thanks be to God. We had people from their 20s to 83 years of age. "We had a great mix of people and they were game for everything. They walked with lions and did bungee jumping. It was fantastic." When asked if he was ever worried about any of his fellow travellers being injured on their trips around the world, Francis said extensive background checks were done to ensure they are fit enough to take part in the show. Safer "We do a lot of research off camera to make sure everything is all right," he said. "If someone had a bad heart or something we would probably say no and pick somebody else because it's just a safer bet. "But we've been very lucky. Last year we had an 80-year-old and this year we have an 83-year-old so we're going up, rather than down." Francis Brennan's Grand Tour South Africa airs on RTE One on Sundays at 8.30pm. A mother who lost nine relatives in a tourist boat accident in the US has recalled her sister-in-law's last words. Tia Coleman said she heard her brother's wife shout "grab the baby" after the tourist boat they were on sank into a lake in Missouri, killing 17 people. A huge wave hit, scattering passengers on the vessel, known as a duck boat, into Table Rock Lake near Branson, Ms Coleman said. She was alone when she came up for air. Ms Coleman recalled spotting the rescue boat and managed to reach it. CHILDREN Her husband and three children, aged nine, seven and one; her sister-in-law and two-year-old nephew; her mother-in-law and father-in-law and her husband's uncle all died on Thursday. Others killed included a Missouri couple who had just celebrated a birthday; another Missouri couple on what was planned as their last extended vacation; an Illinois woman who died while saving her granddaughter's life; an Arkansas father and son, and a retired pastor who was the boat's operator. None of the 31 passengers on board was wearing a life jacket, according to an incident report released by the State Highway Patrol. An initial assessment blamed thunderstorms and winds that approached hurricane strength, but it was not clear why the vehicle, built for military use in World War II, even ventured into the water. Ms Coleman said the crew told passengers they were going into the water first, before the land-based part of their tour, because of the incoming storm. The company has not commented on Ms Coleman's account of the tour, which usually begins with a tour of downtown Branson before the vessel enters the lake for a short ride on the water. Ms Coleman and her 13-year-old nephew were the only survivors of the 11 members of her family who boarded the boat. Love Island Australia contestant Josh Moss has told how the upcoming Aussie version of the series makes the UK show "look like kindergarten". The Sydney man (25) is among the first crop of hopefuls viewers will meet in the villa on tonight's first episode. "In our one, we have everything. There's fights, punch-ups, scandals. The villa has a massive divide. There were love triangles happening all the time," he said. Things did not go to plan for Josh on his first day. The ladies entered first and were tasked with stepping forward if they wished to couple up with any of the men who entered the villa individually. Josh was the first man up and none of the girls stepped forward for him which he found tough to take. "When I first went into the villa, it was a bit of a horror show for me. I was gutted, I was shattered. "I knew everyone back home was watching and I thought, all my mates will be p**sing themselves. The girls were very judgmental, they were quite harsh," he told the Herald. Emotional He perked up a little when it emerged all the ladies had quite high standards, with only one stepping forward for any of the men. Josh said it was an intense experience living in the Love Island villa, located just 20 minutes away from the UK version's villa in Majorca. "It was just a constant wave of emotions every day. The first day or two I was really bored. Although there was nothing to do, that sense of boredom has gone. "I loved it. It was the best and worst thing I have ever done," he said. Love Island Australia airs on 3e tonight at 10.05pm. A New Zealand tourist helped rescue a woman from the Boyne just minutes after he checked into his hotel in Drogheda. Gary Price (55) and local man Andrew Farrell (41) were both involved in getting the woman out of the water and on to the quayside. The events unfolded at 5.30pm on Friday soon after Gary and his wife, Marie, had checked into the d Hotel. The couple, from Auckland, decided to take a room with a balcony overlooking the river because it was Gary's birthday. As Marie went on to the balcony, she could see two women sitting on the opposite side of the river. When Gary joined Marie a few moments later, one of the women "looked a bit wobbly" before falling backwards over the wall. "It was almost as if she had lost consciousness and fell back into the water and was in a sitting position," said Gary. "She just went straight into the river. "She fell on her back and immediately rotated over and was face down in the water." Marie tried to ring reception for help while Gary screamed at the other woman to go and get help. Gary, who rescued someone in New Zealand 20 years ago, knew time was of the essence and went straight down to reception. He yelled at them to call gardai. "I ran out the door and down the quay front, over the pedestrian bridge to where the woman had fallen in," he said. While he did this, Marie saw Andrew running down to the scene. "He went immediately into the water and was holding her up," she said. Andrew (41), from Drogheda, said he was walking home when he saw "a commotion" and saw a life ring and its rope in the water. He immediately jogged to help. "Someone was shouting for someone who could swim," he said. "I could see the girl face down in the water, so I jumped in. "I turned her around and began to massage her throat and shaking her head. I got her breathing again." The current was pulling and as Andrew tried to climb a ladder on the river wall, he began losing his footing. "I was getting tired and getting worried for myself," he said. It was at that point that Gary joined in. He tried to grab the woman, but could not reach far enough, and Andrew was not able to lift her up any further. "So I jumped in and helped Andrew support her," said Gary. "It seemed like ages until we lifted her up and could get her arms up. That was when a man and girls from the The Cut Above hairdressers managed to pull her up." Gary praised the work of Andrew, saying: "It was pretty hard on him trying to support her. We were both in the water up to our chins." Life rings were thrown to them, but Gary said that in New Zealand they train to use rescue tubes. Concerned The life rings are designed to allow CPR to be given to an unconscious person and Marie felt that the life rings seemed more suitable for someone who was conscious and was able to hold on to them. Marie knew her husband would help. "I am not surprised," she said. "He is a good person and at home he is always helping people." The couple are concerned for the welfare of the woman and also paid tribute to the role of Andrew and everyone else who helped in the rescue. The pair decided to stay in the d Hotel to explore the area after visiting the Newgrange passage tomb. "We love Ireland. The people are lovely and have taught me so much about hospitality," said Marie. Louis Walsh has opened up about being falsely accused of sexual assault, saying the experience "nearly finished" him. The pop guru (65) was wrongly accused by Leonard Watters in a 2011 tabloid newspaper article. Watters was jailed for six months for the false claims. The Ireland's Got Talent judge (right) told how the experience had made him far more wary. "I haven't been to a nightclub since," he said. "I don't go out much at night because you just don't know what lunatic is going to pick you and you can't tell the loonies any more. "If someone comes up to do a picture with me, I do it, but I have to be so wary because they can say anything, that's the problem. "There's a lot of crazy people out there and you can't tell them apart any more, because they don't look crazy. They look like ordinary people, but they're out to get something out of somebody." Difficult Speaking on Mario's Sunday Roast on Today FM, Walsh said the experience was difficult to deal with. "It was totally wrong. It nearly finished me, just mentally and physically. People say there's no smoke without fire: there was no smoke and there was no fire. It was all lies." The Mayo man reckons the world has become more politically correct in recent years and as a result, he is hesitant to join Twitter or any other social media platform, for fear he would get in trouble for expressing his opinion. "I'm not on anything. I'm too much of a loose cannon. I would say things I shouldn't say. I would be very popular but I would probably be sued. "I would say what I really thought about people and people don't like that any more. They don't like honesty," Louis said. An old video of the talent show judge recently emerged from The X Factor in which he is sitting with Simon Cowell and Mel C and can be seen patting her bottom. The former judge brushed off the incident and said it was a joke. "That was me sitting with her. We had been sitting there all day on the couch doing different TV and I just grabbed her a**e as a joke. "She's very funny and you can say or do anything to her. I just grabbed her for a laugh. I know it's not PC any more," he said. "Somebody took it out in the last few weeks. Who cares?" It was announced earlier this year Walsh would be leaving The X Factor after 13 series as a judge and he is now enjoying his first summer off, with plans to write his memoirs. The Union minister for women and child development, Maneka Gandhi, introduced the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2018 in Parliament on July 18, 2018. Trafficking at the most basic level is the recruitment, harbouring or transportation of a person under force for purposes of extreme exploitation involving sexual act, forced labour, slavery, and practices similar to slavery. That it needs to be addressed through law is a foregone conclusion. This is where the Bill, long in the making, disappoints. It renders India a follower of a failed carceral approach to trafficking, based on a prosecution-driven, raid-rescue-rehabilitation model. Ignoring Indias own rich jurisprudence on labour exploitation, the Bill is a highly punitive legislation, many provisions of which are constitutionally suspect and are against the spirit of international law, that pays lip-service to victims of trafficking and fails to respond to the precarious working conditions of millions of Indians. It will be a setback for already marginalised groups, including bonded labourers, child labourers, migrant workers, sex workers and transgender persons. The current spate of anti-trafficking laws around the world followed the adoption of the UN Protocol on Trafficking in 2000 alongside the Smuggling Protocol, supplementing the UN Convention Against Transnational Organised Crime. Being a criminal law instrument, the Protocol counters organised crime by focusing on individual bad actors. In the early years, trafficking was conflated by countries with sex trafficking and sex work. The Western states additionally had a vested interest in using the Protocol for border control to counter increased labour migration, often repatriating victims of trafficking to their home countries. Long before the Western states responded to trafficking however, India, like Brazil, pioneered labour law responses to problems of extreme exploitation, and this provided a more practical, humane and effective approach. Recognising that force and exploitation were both endemic, laws on bonded labour, contract labour and inter-state migrant work imposed obligations on intermediaries and principal employers instead, to improve conditions for workers. Prosecution was envisaged only in limited situations, and the focus was on community-based rehabilitation of bonded labourers. The 2018 Trafficking Bill on the other hand is a draconian criminal law that pursues raids and rescue followed by the rehabilitation of workers in government homes. It extends the strategies of anti-sex work laws to all sectors of work with absurd results such as the proposed closure of entire areas of the economy including farms, factories and households. Since trafficking is fundamentally a problem of labour exploitation, the government must instead strengthen workers rights through robust labour laws and improved labour governance to prevent their slide into extreme exploitation. Sadly, this perspective is missing in the Bill as workers groups and trade unions were not consulted in its drafting. As international discourse on trafficking has expanded to include forced labour and labour exploitation under the capacious term modern slavery, countries now require large employers like corporations and governments to report on forced labour in their supply chains. The US state of California and the UK pioneered this approach through supply chain transparency legislation. The Australian Parliament is considering a Modern Slavery Bill to cover government agencies, and New South Wales has passed a modern slavery law that regulates public agency procurement. France requires corporations to prepare vigilance plans with worker input on violations of laws relating to human rights, health, security and the environment. The Indian Bill has no such provision. As trafficking is mainstreamed into the UN Sustainable Development Goals, India is sending mixed messages to the international community on meeting this target. Niti Aayog vociferously protested the 2017 Global Estimates on Modern Slavery (GEMS) produced by the International Labour Organization and the philanthrocapitalist group Walk Free Foundation, and rightly so. The Bill however seems to be endorsing a simplistic raid-rescue-rehabilitation model advocated by abolitionist groups aligned with Walk Free. Trafficking can no longer be understood as a matter of crime as the Bill does. Trafficking is a development issue and threatens to have trade implications as US law restricts the import of goods produced with forced labour; Australia is contemplating a similar law. FDI could also be negatively impacted. As the international discourse on trafficking and forced labour rapidly shifts, India needs to do more than recycle a failed criminal law model and rethink trafficking in a holistic fashion. At the very least, the government must refer the Bill to a standing committee for comprehensive consultations with Indian trade unions and workers groups. Prabha Kotiswaran is a reader in law and social justice, Kings College, London The views expressed are personal In April 1947, during a heated debate in the Constituent Assemblys advisory committee on the subject of fundamental rights, Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyer uttered a prescient warning: You can never separate social life from religious life. Iyers insight that the new constitutional order would have to respond to how deeply religion was implicated in Indian social life would haunt the Constituent Assembly in its debates over religious freedom, and has haunted Indian constitutional politics ever since. This month, it came to the fore again, as a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court heard the controversial Sabarimala case. While the legal issues in the case are complex and multi-layered, at its heart, the question is a simple one. The Sabarimala shrine prohibits women between the ages of 10 and 50 from access to worship. The Travancore Devaswom Board, which controls the shrine, cites the vow of celibacy taken by Lord Ayyappa, the impurity associated with menstruation, and the requirement of a 41-day penance (which, again, women cannot undertake because of menstruation) as justifications for this practice. The petitioners before the SC argue that each of these reasons directly or indirectly discriminates against women, contrary to text and spirit of the Constitution. To this, the defenders of the practice retort that the Constitution grants to every religious denomination the right to determine its own rules, and the keepers of the shrine can hardly ignore the divine injunction of Lord Ayyappa. After all, the women can go to any other temple where these restrictions dont apply. The question is a difficult one. Some argue that what it means to be a secular State is to accord religious orders and religious groupings autonomy and freedom from State interference. Practices that may conflict with the constitutional order are nonetheless allowed to stand, on the understanding that, as long as it is a matter of pure faith, the State should respect it and leave it alone. It was following this reasoning that the American Supreme Court, for example, held that religious groups were not bound by the secular States rules of non-discrimination when they were selecting someone for religious office. But it is here that Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyers warning to the advisory committee becomes relevant. It is one thing to exempt religious orders from complying with the constitutional scheme in a society where religion is a private matter, a pure question of the relationship between an individual and God. It is quite another to use the same yardstick in a society in which religion is, on the contrary, a deeply public affair, and so closely bound with an individuals social and moral standing in the community. To leave such a vast domain untouched by constitutional principles would make of the Constitution itself little more than a rope of sand. Our own recent history bears eloquent testimony to this fact. In the great Dalit movements for civil rights in the early 20th century, temple entry was at the heart of the agenda. This was because in a society in which religion played such an important role, temple bans for the untouchables were not simply about denying them the right to worship, but a powerful public statement of social inferiority and subordination. Remedying that was an essential step towards equality and full moral membership of the community. BR Ambedkar recognised this well when he observed that the issue is not entry but equality. Ninety years later, the issue remains equality. We are still a society that discriminates against women, by rules, by customs, and by social sanctions. Much of this discrimination takes the form of material deprivation and violence, but equally, much of it is expressive. The struggle for entry into Sabarimala must be understood, therefore, not as a struggle to defeat religious faith or to undermine Lord Ayyappas vow of celibacy, but as a struggle to ensure that we do not remain a society that, in very public and demonstrable ways, continues to deny women equal moral membership of the community by invoking ideas of purity and pollution. That is how the Constitution becomes relevant to the issue of temple entry. As Ambedkar observed during yet another debate on secularism in the Constituent Assembly: After all, what are we having this liberty for? We are having this liberty in order to reform our social system, which is so full of inequities, discriminations and other things, which conflict with our fundamental rights. The Sabarimala case provides the Supreme Court with a chance to bridge the gap between the constitutional ideals and our social reality. Gautam Bhatia is an advocate in the Supreme Court The views expressed are personal Looks like many of Bollywood stars, who were out of the country throughout June, have decided to return home. A host of Bollywood biggies were spotted at the Mumbai airport on Sunday. The Bachchan family comprising Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan and their pretty little girl, Aaradhya were spotted at the airport. The family returned from London where they were vacationing. The family looked happy as ever. Another family that returned home was Akshay Kumar and his family -- wife Twinkle Khanna and children Aarav and Nitara. And while Akshay is a superstar alright, it is Aarav who is the centre of attraction in these pictures. It is hard to miss how tall and strapping the young man he has turned out to be. He may be a teenager still but he looks almost a star. Whats more is that he has an unmistakable resemblance with Twinkle. But theres more -- this Bollywood couple generally avoids putting up pictures of their little daughter, Nitara. Here we get to see her with her parents and Nitara is a carbon copy of her dad. Saheb, Biwi and Gangster 2s promotions in Mumbai has gathered steam. Present at the promotion on Sunday were Chitrangada Singh, Mahi Gill and Jimmy Shergill. Check out the pictures: Aishwarya, Abhishek and Aaradhya at the airport. Akshay Kumars family is back in town, seen here with Twinkle Khanna are Aarav and Nitara. Akshay Kumars daughter Nitara looks quite like her daddy. Jacqueline Fernandez is a vision in white. Chitrangada Singh is such a beauty and Jimmy Shergill looks rather different here. The Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 2s leading ladies -- Mahi Gill and Chitrangada -- with Jimmy. (All pictures are by Viral Bhayani) Follow @htshowbiz for more A special screening for the film Karwaan was organised for star Irrfan Khan at London, where he is battling a rare cancer. The actor watched the film and even offered some feedback, a new report says. According to Mumbai Mirror, Irrfan, who has been diagnosed with neuroendocrine tumour and is undergoing treatment in the British capital, was shown the film at Henry Wood House, a business centre in London. Dialogue writer Hussain Dalal told Mirror, He seemed happy to see me. His wife (Sutapa Sikdar) and some close friends were also present at the screening. After the film, we spoke about it. He had some minor suggestions for the team but overall, his family and he seemed pretty pleased. In an earlier interview, director Akarsh Khurana had spoken about Irrfans reaction to watching the trailer. He spoke to me at length after the screening in London and I was happy and relieved with his response and that of his family. The director said that they didnt want to burden Irrfan with the films promotions while he was undergoing treatment for his condition. His approval and blessings are with us, and thats all that we need. He sounded good when we spoke and were all hoping that he bounces back from this challenging phase soon, Khurana said. Karwaan features Irrfan, Marathi actor Mithila Palkar and Malayalam actor Dulquer Salmaan, making his Bollywood debut. The film is a black comedy that will be released on August 3. Irrfan was diagnosed with the condition four months ago and has only broken his silence on a handful of occasions. In a recent interview to Times of India, the actor said that he is grateful for all the good wishes that have been pouring in. Follow @htshowbiz for more A 58-year-old man working at a paper mill in Lalkua, Haldwani was diagnosed with dengue on Monday, bringing the total number of such cases in the state this year to four. Earlier, two cases have been reported from Nainital district, one from Udham Singh Nagar. The health department, however, said it was gearing up to check spreading of disease in the state, with its focus on creating awareness about the disease among the people. Monsoon rains provide more breeding grounds for mosquito that carries the dengue virus. In India, dengue cases usually peak during and just after the rainy season that normally lasts from June to September. Health department officials say the key to this is community participation. Dengue is caused by aedes mosquito which breeds inside peoples homes. It is not like malaria. The mosquito breeds in water collected in containers, flower vases and other places. Until and unless people do not clean their houses, it becomes difficult to control the disease, said Dr Pankaj Singh. Dr Singh is the nodal officer of vector borne diseases and assistant director of integrated disease surveillance programme (IDSP). In order to increase awareness about the disease, the department has come up with an IEC strategy information, education, communication. We have been utilising Asha workers to help us in this exercise. They have been going door to door since April and informing people to remove water from coolers, flower pots, rubber tyres and other places so that the mosquito doesnt lay its eggs there. They also check peoples houses to ensure there is no stagnant water, Singh said. This is highly beneficial as with a decrease in density of larva, the chances of an outbreak are also reduced, he said. The department is also carrying out IEC activities through the social media. Taking it a step further, the department has decided to involve children from both government and private schools as a part of the process. We will be providing the children with a dengue homework card. This is a four-month-long task where the students will monitor their surroundings and make a note of the places in which mosquitoes are breeding. This will be overlooked by their parents or guardians, Singh said. This will help in spreading education and awareness to the whole family, he added. The department has identified Dehradun, Haridwar, Nainital, Udham Singh Nagar and some plains in Pauri and Tehri as areas sensitive to the outbreak of the disease. With 2,046 cases, including four deaths, Uttarakhand accounted for 1.82 percent of the total cases of dengue reported in the country in 2016. Last year, this number came down to 849. As per the department, seven hospitals in the state are equipped with testing labs for dengue. We administer the Elisa test to patients free of cost in these hospitals, Singh said. While Doon Medical College and Coronation Hospital in Dehradun are equipped with these testing labs, two hospitals in Nainital, and one each in Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar and Srinagar also offer the facility. The health department has declared dengue a notifiable disease, which means that if any private or government hospital receives a patient afflicted with dengue, it is the hospitals responsibility to notify the government immediately. As soon as we get any information, we identify that area and then carry out source reduction, IEC, fumigation and other activities there so that the infection gets contained in that area, Singh said. We are also creating dengue isolation wards in all major government hospitals across the state. All the beds in these wards are covered with mosquito nets and special precautions are taken with regard to the cleanliness and hygiene of the area, Singh said. The health department has also partnered with other departments to ensure that the effects of the disease can be minimised, Singh said. Detailed information about dengue can also be obtained through integrated helpline number 104, he added. The Delhi Police on Sunday arrested a 26-year-old man for allegedly strangulating his wife and then trying to cremate her body by trying to pass the death off as having been caused by electrocution. The incident was reported from outer Delhis Sultanpuri area, the police said. Police said the accused, identified by just his first name Navin, worked in a jeans manufacturing factory and had killed his wife after suspecting her of having an extramarital affair. Navin was arrested after a man at the crematorium called the police on suspecting foul play, said Seju P Kuruvilla, deputy commissioner of police (outer). The accused suspected his wife of having an extramarital affair and often fought with her. On Friday morning too, he quarrelled with his wife over the same issue, said Kuruvilla. Around 9.30 am on Friday, when the couples daughter was away at school, Navin allegedly strangulated his wife to death. He then went to work at his factory for a while, before returning home and announcing the death of his wife, said the DCP. Navin allegedly told his relatives that his wife had died of electrocution. The cremation was to be performed on Saturday noon at Sultanpur Majra. Police said that a person, who was present at the crematorium, around found the strangulation marks around the womans neck unusual and her husbands behaviour suspicious. He called the police at 12.50 pm and a team reached the spot to find much of the body burnt already. They doused the flames and collected the bones and whatever parts remained for examination. We questioned Navin and he tried to mislead us initially but broke down later under sustained interrogation, said the DCP. Eleven members of a family were found dead in New Delhi on July 1, most of them hanging from the ceiling of their home, blindfolded, gagged and with hands tied behind the back. The Delhi Police, three weeks later, is still investigating to explain what happened. Here are five theories the police worked on to explain what happened to the Bhatia family. The family was murdered by outsiders Reason: Family matriarch Narayan Devis was dead on the floor unlike 10 others who were hanging. Ligature marks on her neck and a cloth and wire wound around it initially indicated she was strangled. The bound limbs and blindfolded eyes of most of the dead also prompted police to register a murder case. Status: The autopsy reports of all the 11 people have confirmed they died of hanging. Probe into possibility of murders continue. It was a ritual gone wrong Reason: The contents of 11 notebooks recovered from the house pointed to the family indulging in a ritual to invoke the higher powers and their dead patriarch Bhopal Singh. The handwritings in the notes match that of some of the dead. Status: This is the most plausible theory the police are currently working on. A godman or an occultist may have influenced the family Reason: The contents of the notes led the police to believe that they were dictated by a godman or an occultist. The ritualistic processes were elaborate and police found it difficult to believe that they were performed without guidance of a godman or an occultist. Status: So far, the police have been unable to link any occultist or godman to the deaths. Further recovery of notes helped police conclude that the ritual began in 2007, an unlikely possibility that the family was being guided by an outsider for so long. Family was poisoned or sedated before their hanging Reason: The police find it difficult to believe that all 11 members aged between 15 and 77 could be convinced to hang themselves. Food consumed by the family before their hangings had been ordered from outside Status: The viscera samples of the dead people have been sent for forensic examination to determine if they were sedated or poisoned. The results are still awaited. One or more of the family members killed others before hanging themselves Reason: The way Narayan Devis body was found on the floor and the hands of two other members were untied led the police to probe this possibility. Status: Though the autopsies have confirmed that all died of hanging, police continue to probe this possibility. EVIDENCE THAT SHAPED THE PROBE Autopsy reports of all the 11 people revealed they died of hanging Notes recovered from the Bhatia house indicating they were performing a ritual CCTV footage showing the family members "voluntarily" bringing in stools and cables used in the hanging CCTV footage does not show any suspicious entry or exit from the main gate of the house around the time of the deaths Statements of relatives, neighbours and friends confirming that the dead were religious and that Lalit Bhatia posed as his dead father Statements of relatives and neighbours who the family spoke to in the hours preceding their deaths Statements of shopkeepers who said that the stools, stoles and food were bought from them Election campaign to end today ISLAMABAD: Election campaigning is supposed to end today in accordance with section 182 of the Election Act of 2017.No political party or independent candidate is supposed to engage in any sort of campaigning post midnight. Moreover, print and electronic media are also supposed to comply with the instructions issued by the Election Commission and not advertise any political party or independent candidate. All parties have reportedly prepared their power shows to mark a momentous end to campaigning. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shahbaz Sharif is to address rallies in Rawalpindi and Dera Ismail Khan while his son Hamza Shahbaz is to lead the Lahore rally from Mochi gate to Data Darbar. The Pakistan Tehreek i Insaf (PTI) chairman will campaigning in Punjab in the provinces capital and is expected to address rallies in NA 125, 128, 131 and 134. The Mutahidda Qaumi Movement (MQM) will host their final rally in Liaqatabad, Karachi. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman, Bilawal Bhutto is dedicating his last round of campaigning to Jacobabad and Shikarpur. On the other hand, the Mutahidda Majlis e Amal leaders Maulana Fazal ur Rehaman and Siraj ul Haq will address their workers in the capital. There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests and sit-ins at Jantar Mantar and Boat Club in New Delhi, the Supreme Court said on Monday as it asked the Centre to frame guidelines to grant the necessary permission to hold such events. A bench of Justice AK Sikri and justice Ashok Bhushan said there was a need to strike a balance between conflicting rights such as the right to protest and right of citizens to live peacefully. There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate), it added. The verdict came on a bunch of petitions, including the one filed by Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sanghtan, challenging the decision of the National Green Tribunal that banned all kinds of protests at these places. The tribunal had banned all protests around the historic Jantar Mantar area in October last year, saying such activities violate environmental laws. It said it was the duty of the state to protect people from noise pollution and ordered the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to remove all make-shift structures along the stretch. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal welcomed the apex court decision saying attempts to convert Delhi into a police state is dangerous for democracy. I welcome the Hon'ble Supreme Court verdict upholding peaceful right to protest in central Delhi. Attempts to convert Delhi into a police state is dangerous for democracy and rightly struck down by Hon'ble Supreme Court Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) July 23, 2018 (WIth PTI inputs) Two constables, one each from the Uttar Pradesh (UP) police and the railway protection force (RPF), allegedly abducted and killed a 28-year-old insurance agent at a railways staff quarter in north Delhis Sarai Rohilla. The two then stuffed the body in a metal trunk and threw it in a river in Uttar Pradeshs Etawah on Friday, police said. The duo had kidnapped Prem Kumar for ransom but the plan went haywire Kumar died of strangulation while the two were allegedly trying to overpower him by putting a rope around his neck, police said. The RPF constable, identified as Ajay Kumar, was arrested on Saturday. His interrogation led to the recovery of Kumars body from a canal on Sunday. Ajays partner-in-crime Sarvesh, a constable in UP police, is absconding, said DCP (North) Nupur Prasad. The crime took place at the quarters allotted to the RPF constable. The duo had arranged a car to take the box containing Kumars body to Etawah. Efforts are on to nab Sarvesh, said DCP Prasad. Prem lived with his family at West Moti Bagh in Sarai Rohilla. Both Prem and his father, Ramesh Chand, work as insurance agents for a government-owned insurance and investment company. Prem had sold insurance policies to Ajay and his family members. Both families knew each other for the past some years, said police. On Thursday morning, a police officer associated with the case said, Ajay called Prem on his mobile number and told him that his friend Sarvesh wanted to purchase a life insurance policy. He asked Prem to come to his home. But when Prem did not return home till late in the night and his mobile phone was also switched off, his family members approached the Sarai Rohilla police around 2 am on Friday and lodged a complaint. We registered a kidnapping case and initiated the probe. Prems family members told us about the phone call he had received from Ajay. His Enfield motorcycle was found parked nearly 50 metres away from Ajays home, said DCP Prasad. Police said Ajay was taken into custody and interrogated. He confessed to the crime, and revealed that Prem died accidentally when he, along with constable Sarvesh, was trying to overpower him. Nearly 500 students from war-torn Syria are getting admission in government and private institutes under the Study in India scheme of the government launched in April earlier this year, according to officials familiar with the development. The scheme is aimed at bringing students from countries in south Asia, southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa to top institutions in India, including the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), National Institutes of Technology (NITs), the Delhi University (DU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), among others. This (the 2018-19 academic year) is the zero year, and even then, we have received a number of applications. Probably for the first time, so many students from Syria have applied. A few students from there have taken admission in the past but not in a systematic manner, said a senior Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry official who asked not to be named. According to the All India Survey on Higher Education (2016-17), totally, there are 94 students from Syria studying in Indian institutions, at various levels. A total of 2,275 students from Nepal, 751 students from Ethiopia and 635 students from Bangladesh, have also taken admission under the new scheme which provides 20,000 seats. According to the official quoted above, the number of seats on offer will increase to 22,000 for the 2019-20 academic session, with fee waivers offered on 55% of the seats. In April this year, the higher education minister of Syria had met Union human resource development minister Prakash Javadekar who had assured cooperation between India and Syria and that fellowships to Syrian students would be increased. A comment from the Syrian embassy was not immediately available. By 2023, the government aims at having 200,000 international students studying in India. Around 45,000 foreign students study here currently. It is an excellent idea and its a huge market that India should tap. One of the key reasons students from the specific countries are keen to study in India is because of distress in their own countries. The quality in our mid-level institutes is much better than of those in their own countries... I would suggest that there should be some screening in terms of a language and subject test and India should advertise about the tests and the seats through embassies... said SS Mantha academician and former chairman of the AICTE. The Study in India scheme has a sanctioned budget of Rs 150 crore for two years. A number of fee-waiver schemes for students have been announced, including complete fee waivers to the top 25% meritorious applicants. A nine-year-old girl was allegedly gangraped and killed along with her minor brother by unidentified men, who threw their bodies in a river after the crime, on Sunday in Muzaffarpur district of Bihar, police said on Monday. Police said they have registered a case against the unidentified men and launched a massive manhunt to track them after the crime in the village under Paru police station area. The parents have identified three persons of the same village as the culprits. The complainant had recently evicted one of the accused from his land and they had several rounds of a verbal duel on this, senior superintendent of police Harpreet Kaur said. We are investigating the matter keeping all the possibilities in mind, she added. The matter came to the light when the childrens parents went looking for them after they did not return home till late evening on Sunday. The father said in his complaint to the police that his children had gone to the field with their cattle. The cattle returned in the evening but my children did not. So, we tried to search for them in nearby places. Finally, we found their bodies on the bank of the other side of Baya River, he said. He alleged his daughter was killed after being gangraped and his seven-year-old son was murdered for resisting the culprits. Police have sent the bodies for an autopsy at Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital. This is the latest incident of crime against girls and women, which has been on the rise in Bihar. According to government records, 127 minors and women were raped in the first three months of 2018 and the figures almost doubled by June end. It also comes close on the heels of the exposure of sexual exploitation of inmates of a shelter home in the district. At least 46 girls were rescued from the shelter home after a report said a sex-racket was being run in the facility, and the inmates were subjected to sexual and physical tortureone of them was reportedly killed and buried on its premises. The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday asked Rahul Gandhi to stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens after the Congress president attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modis slogan New India while referring to the alleged police inaction in a lynching case in Rajasthans Alwar district. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE, Union finance minister Piyush Goyal tweeted. Rakbar Khan, alias Akbar of Kol village in Haryanas Nuh district, was attacked by alleged cow vigilantes in Ramgarh in Alwar district late on Friday, leading to his death. The local police came under fire from various quarters after it was reported that they took Khan to the hospital three hours after they found him. The police were also accused of taking Khan to the police station initially and beating him up. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die, Gandhi had tweeted. Several people across the country have been lynched by cow vigilantes on suspicion of smuggling bovines for slaughter or possessing beef in the last few years. A 50-year-old dairy farmer, Pehlu Khan, was also beaten to death by vigilantes suspecting him to be a cow smuggler in Alwar in April last year. Police in West Bengals Darjeeling have started a probe into the death of an 11-year-old student from Patna in Bihar, who was found hanging in a hostel room of a reputed school in the hill town days after he took admission. Darjeeling superintendent of police Akhilesh Chaturvedi said a case of unnatural death has been registered. However, after the boys father lodged a formal complaint, we have lodged a murder case and begun a probe, he said. Soumyajit Roy, inspector-in-charge of Darjeeling, said the police have also requested for a magisterial inquiry into the death of Aditya Raj. Adityas body was found hanging from the ceiling of his hostel room in Good Start Montessori of Darjeelings Chandmari on the evening of July 20. He was rushed to a local hospital where doctors declared him dead. Aditya, a resident of Patnas Vivekananda Colony, joined the school on July 16 and his parents left for Patna the next day leaving him behind in the school hostel. Deepak Kumar, a Patna-based businessman, said his son was quite happy when they left for Patna after admitting him to the school. My son was admitted to the school on July 16 in Class 6, three months after the new academic session started. He was happy and excited when we left him behind in Darjeeling. Aditya was especially happy to join his three friends from Patna who had taken admission to Good Start Montessori three months back, Kumar said. Kumar said he got a call from the school at 8pm on Friday saying that Aditya had tried to commit suicide by hanging himself and that he had been admitted to a hospital in Darjeeling. When we reached Darjeeling from Patna on Saturday, we were informed that Aditya had died on Friday itself, he said. Kumar, who runs a bulb manufacturing unit in Patna, said it could not be a case of suicide. I do not know if school authorities and teachers are involved, he said at North Bengal Medical College and Hospital in Siliguri, where the body was sent from Darjeeling for a postmortem examination. Kumar said that he sent his son to Darjeeling for a better education and to improve his English. We had never imagined that our world would collapse in just four days, he added. Kanhaiyalal Shaw, a relative of the family, said the school authorities informed them that Aditya had tried to commit suicide by hanging himself by a towel from the hostel ceiling. But their statement is doubtful. The height of the ceiling does not justify the suicide logic, he added. Some teachers in the school, who did not wish to be named, said Aditya and four other students from Bihar used to stay in the same room in the school hostel. The schools principal Mamata Tamang could not be contacted despite repeated attempts. Two days after the Shiv Senas flip-flop over supporting the no-confidence trust motion against the Narendra Modi-led NDA government in Parliament, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah asked the state leadership to ensure partys top finish during the upcoming Lok Sabha and state polls, even if all three main political parties the Congress, the NCP and the Shiv Sena unite against it. While opponents Congress and NCP have decided to contest the 2019 polls together against the BJP, the decision on saffron alliance is still in a limbo. While Shah did not mention Shiv Sena during a review meeting in Dadar, the takeaway for the workers was to prepare for the polls solo without waiting for a decision on the saffron alliance, said a senior party leader, who attended the meetings. Shahs focus was on getting the party organisation in electoral mode. While he did not mention the Sena, he said that the BJP should poll more than 50% of the vote share so that even if other parties contested against it, we will win the seats, said a senior party leader. Shah held organisational meetings for election preparedness on Sunday. He held a meeting with the Lok Sabha toli (gang), comprising senior state leaders, who are part of the states extended core committee. The toli includes chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, Union minister Nitin Gadkari, state party president Raosaheb Danve, finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar, revenue minister Chandrakant Patil, education minister Vinod Tawde, city chief Ashish Shelar, women and child development minister Pankaja Munde among others. He also addressed a meeting of states 288 party workers, appointed as vistaraks, for each assembly constituency. He also chaired a similar review meeting with Goas Lok Sabha toli. The party presidents message was that our electoral preparations are not dependent on the alliance. Our senior leadership feels that if they (Sena) join us, good; if not, we still have to win. In the 2014 polls, when the alliance broke last minute ahead of the Assembly polls, we did well because we had activated our booth level workers, added the senior leader. Shah stressed on connecting with people at the grass roots level. The bodies of four Odiya fishermen, who had left their village with 13 others on Saturday for fishing Hilsa in Bay of Bengal were recovered from coastal West Bengal at Digha, Mandarmani and adjoining areas. We suspect these are bodies of fishermen who were missing from Odisha. We are contacting Odisha Police to identify them, said Indrajit Basu, additional superintendent of police (rural) in East Midnapore district. According to police, three trawlers had left the shores from Kirtania Ghat of Odisha and lost contact with the other trawlers. The sea was rough over the past two days due to rains and wind, but it appeared that the fishermen in these vessel ignored warnings. Jaleswar sub-divisional police officer Ramachandra Gouda said the fishing trawlers had gone out to sea for Hilsa fish. For last few days, the fishermen have got lucky as they hauled good amount of Hilsa fish. It seems these fishermen had managed to catch more than they bargained for and when the weather turned stormy, the boats capsized, he said. While 11 fishermen either managed to swim ashore or were rescued by local fishermen, five were missing since Sunday morning. On Monday morning parts of broken trawlers were found in Bengal waters. Police officers suspected it was part of the two vessels that went missing. Police officers said bodies of four fishermen were found at Mandermani and Talsari beach on Odisha-Bengal border. The deceased fishermen were identified as Jhadeshwar Pal, Kushakanta Behera, Ajay Behera and Sanjay Behera. While one more body was found, policemen could not confirm whether it was that of missing fisherman Rajendra Majhi. Earlier this month, another trawler capsized near the Bengal coast in South 24 Parganas and the Coast Guard recovered 14 bodies of fishermen over the past few days. On 16 July a trawler named Jai Kishan with 19 fishermen capsized in the Bay of Bengal, about 20 km from the Frazergunj coast in Bengal. Surajit Bag, additional director of fisheries (marine), West Bengal, said, Many fishermen are not following our instructions and are venturing out to catch fish even when the sea is rough. The Centre on Monday sought a report from the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Rajasthan on the alleged lynching of a man in the states Alwar district by suspected cow vigilantes as the incident was raised in the Lok Sabha by the Congress. The Union home ministry asked the state government to provide details of the incident, the action taken to punish those involved in it and the steps taken to restore peace, news agency PTI reported. The report has been sought as early as possible, an official was cited as saying by the agency. Rakbar Khan, alias Akbar of Kol village in Haryanas Nuh district, was allegedly beaten to death late on Friday by suspected cow vigilantes in Ramgarhs Lalavandi forests in Alwar district, where three people engaged in the cattle trade have been killed since April last year. Pehlu Khan, a 50-year-old dairy farmer, was among those beaten to death by vigilantes suspecting him to be a cow smuggler in Alwar in April last year. The local police came under fire from various quarters after it was reported that they took Khan to the hospital three hours after they found him. The police have also been accused of taking him to the police station initially and beating him up. The incident, which triggered tension in the region, took place just four days after the Supreme Court slammed the Central and state governments for failing to prevent frequent lynchings, terming them horrendous acts of mobocracy, and issued a slew of directions to tackle them. Police have arrested three men, including two associated with the local unit of Shiv Sena, in connection with the case. The Rajasthan police set up a high-level committee on Monday to probe the allegations of delay against Alwar Police in taking Khan to a hospital. The lynching of Khan was also raised in the Lok Sabha by a member of Parliament from Congress, triggering protests from BJP members. The lower house faced an adjournment following a ruckus over the incident, which has drawn widespread condemnation amid similar lynchings across the country in the last few months. The main opposition party and the government have been sparring with each other after Congress president Rahul Gandhi attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modis slogan New India while referring to the alleged police inaction in the lynching case. Union minister of coal Piyush Goyal asked Gandhi to stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE, Goyal tweeted. The Supreme Court will hear a petition seeking contempt action against the Rajasthan government in connection with Khans lynching. The top court will hear the petition on August 28. The Centre on Monday set up a four-member panel headed by Union home secretary Rajiv Gauba to formulate appropriate measures and legal framework to deal with mob lynching. The panel will submit its recommendations to a ministerial committee, headed by Union home minister Rajnath Singh, which will submit its recommendations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a home ministry spokesperson said. The Supreme Court had recently directed the central government to act against mob violence and lynching. The decision also came on a day when outrage continued following the alleged lynching of a man from Haryana in Rajasthans Alwar district Friday night when he was transporting two cows. Earlier on Monday, the Centre sought a report from the BJP government in Rajasthan on the lynching after the Congress raised the incident in the Lok Sabha. The Union home ministry asked the state government to provide details of the incident, the action taken to punish those involved in it and the steps taken to restore peace, news agency PTI reported. The state government was asked to submit the report at the earliest, an official was cited as saying by the agency. Rakbar Khan, alias Akbar of Kol village in Haryanas Nuh district, was allegedly beaten to death late on Friday by suspected cow vigilantes in Ramgarhs Lalavandi forests in Alwar district, where three people engaged in the cattle trade have been killed since April last year. Pehlu Khan, a 50-year-old dairy farmer, was among those beaten to death by vigilantes suspecting him to be a cow smuggler in Alwar in April last year. The local police came under fire from various quarters after it was reported that they took Khan to the hospital three hours after they found him. The police have also been accused of taking him to the police station initially and beating him up. The incident, which triggered tension in the region, took place just four days after the Supreme Court slammed the Central and state governments for failing to prevent frequent lynchings, terming them horrendous acts of mobocracy, and issued a slew of directions to tackle them. Police have arrested three men, including two associated with the local unit of Shiv Sena, in connection with the case. The Rajasthan police set up a high-level committee on Monday to probe the allegations of delay against Alwar Police in taking Khan to a hospital. The lynching of Khan was also raised in the Lok Sabha by a member of Parliament from Congress, triggering protests from BJP members. The lower house faced an adjournment following a ruckus over the incident, which has drawn widespread condemnation amid similar lynchings across the country in the last few months. The main opposition party and the government have been sparring with each other after Congress president Rahul Gandhi attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modis slogan New India while referring to the alleged police inaction in the lynching case. Union finance minister Piyush Goyal asked Gandhi to stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE, Goyal tweeted. The Supreme Court will hear a petition seeking contempt action against the Rajasthan government in connection with Khans lynching. The top court will hear the petition on August 28. Anyone who has been reading this site for a while can tell you that its a rare day indeed when I find some area of agreement with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. (And thats putting it mildly.) But Im still more than willing to give credit when credit is due and law enforcement policy in New York is no exception. In a recent announcement, Governor Cuomo stunned (or even angered) many of his progressive supporters when he announced that cameras with facial recognition software were being installed to spot criminals in some of the states traffic tunnels, bridges and other choke points. This is a trend thats been spreading across the nation of late, but its still rather surprising to see it in a liberal bastion like the Empire State. (NY Post) SEE ALSO: The new rules are just mob rule Facial-recognition cameras at bridge and tunnel toll plazas across the city are already scanning drivers visages and feeding them into databases to catch suspected criminals, Gov. Cuomo revealed Friday. When it reads that license plate, it reads it for scofflaws . . . [but] the toll is almost the least significant contribution that this electronic equipment can actually perform, Cuomo said at a press conference outside the Queens Midtown Tunnel. We are now moving to facial-recognition technology which takes it to a whole new level, where it can see the face of the person in the car and run that technology against databases. Because many times a person will turn their head when they see a security camera, so they are now experimenting with technology that just identifies a person by their ear, believe it or not, he continued. As you would expect, the Civil Liberties Union of New York was immediately up in arms. They chastised the governor for adopting technology which they claim is notoriously inaccurate at recognizing people of color, women and children. Really? I have heard that facial recognition software has trouble identifying children over periods of time because their features change so rapidly. But when it comes to adults, I had been under the impression that it was mostly a psychological trick of the trade to say that people of one race (usually whites) are unable to recognize or differentiate between people of another race. If that problem is built into our software it would be really shocking. In fact, one might almost call the claim racist. The NYCLU went on to make the typical Big Brother is watching case. Government should not be casting a dragnet to track everyone going about their day through the states bridges and tunnels, especially not when that data could be shared with other law-enforcement agencies, including immigration authorities. Weve heard it so often now that most people involved in this debate can probably recite it by heart. But the fact is, the government isnt tracking everyone going about their daily business. Theres a database of people who are already known and sought by the police. The cameras take pictures of people passing through these traffic channels and compare the pictures to the people in that database. If they match one of the suspects in the database an alarm goes off. If not, the person is not flagged. New York City (and the rest of the state) has seen a remarkable decrease in violent crime even as other cities have surged back to levels not seen in decades. One reason is smarter policing even when they dont have more police. The Mayor of New York City is no friend to the cops and doesnt provide them with much support, but overall they still get the job done. So take this as a tip of the hat to Governor Cuomo for risking some political damage by agreeing to make these tools available to law enforcement. I am pursuing political programme of my slain mother: Bilawal Bhutto DADU: Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has said that now that the electioneering has reached a crescendo and election is round the corner, attempts are being made to make the polls process controversial. Bilawal said at a rally at Moundar Naka here on Sunday that his party had faced and defeated many alliances in its history. Alliances were made against Benazir Bhutto as well and she and her party courageously fought them off and defeated them. PPP would once again beat such alliances, he said. He said that he was pursuing the political programme of his slain mother, which was aimed at safeguarding the interests of the country and people. He was doing politics of principles, he said. His partys manifesto was people-friendly which would greatly benefit farmers and farm workers. PPP was the only political party which was fighting against poverty and terrorism and was struggling for the rights of the poor, he said. He said the material proof of PPPs people friendly policies was Benazir Income Support Programme which had contributed enormously to poverty reduction across the country. He said that after coming to power, PPP government would extend loans to women who could play a positive role in improving economy. No other political party had taken steps to raise standard of peoples life and said it was only PPP which had introduced policies for the welfare of people, he said. Bilawal said that PPP, after coming to power, would register farmers and provide them farmer cards through which they would directly receive interest-free loans without any hassle. He said that if farmers faced losses in crops for any reason, they would be able to withstand it through their card. The party would also introduce food cards for the poor to receive essential food items, he said. He said the food stores to be run by women would remain open for the food card holders and they would greatly help fight poverty and unemployment. Like the promises made by Z.A. Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto which had already been fulfilled whatever he was promising would also be met, he said. He said that PPP was not fighting against any political party, PPPs fight was against poverty and unemployment. No other party could bring about positive change and only PPP was harbinger of genuine change, he said. He said earlier at a public gathering before the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan that PPP had always struggled against non-democratic elements. A weak democracy was better than a strong dictatorship, he said. He said that PPP had always solved peoples problems and it was perhaps the only party which had to face several challenges in its history. The Centre on Monday set up a four-member panel headed by Union home secretary Rajiv Gauba to formulate appropriate measures and legal framework to deal with mob lynching. The panel will submit its recommendations to a ministerial committee, headed by Union home minister Rajnath Singh, which will submit its recommendations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a home ministry spokesperson said. The Supreme Court had recently directed the central government to act against mob violence and lynching. The decision also came on a day when outrage continued following the alleged lynching of a man from Haryana in Rajasthans Alwar district Friday night when he was transporting two cows. Earlier on Monday, the Centre sought a report from the BJP government in Rajasthan on the lynching after the Congress raised the incident in the Lok Sabha. The Union home ministry asked the state government to provide details of the incident, the action taken to punish those involved in it and the steps taken to restore peace, news agency PTI reported. The state government was asked to submit the report at the earliest, an official was cited as saying by the agency. Rakbar Khan, alias Akbar of Kol village in Haryanas Nuh district, was allegedly beaten to death late on Friday by suspected cow vigilantes in Ramgarhs Lalavandi forests in Alwar district, where three people engaged in the cattle trade have been killed since April last year. Pehlu Khan, a 50-year-old dairy farmer, was among those beaten to death by vigilantes suspecting him to be a cow smuggler in Alwar in April last year. The local police came under fire from various quarters after it was reported that they took Khan to the hospital three hours after they found him. The police have also been accused of taking him to the police station initially and beating him up. The incident, which triggered tension in the region, took place just four days after the Supreme Court slammed the Central and state governments for failing to prevent frequent lynchings, terming them horrendous acts of mobocracy, and issued a slew of directions to tackle them. Police have arrested three men, including two associated with the local unit of Shiv Sena, in connection with the case. The Rajasthan police set up a high-level committee on Monday to probe the allegations of delay against Alwar Police in taking Khan to a hospital. The Supreme Court will hear a petition seeking contempt action against the Rajasthan government in connection with Khans lynching. The top court will hear the petition on August 28. Congress President Rahul Gandhi said on Monday that the inordinate delay by policemen in Rajasthans Alwar district to take a lynching victim to hospital reflected Prime Minister Narendra Modis New India where hatred was replacing humanity and people are left to die. Rakbar Khan, alias Akbar of Kol village in Haryanas Nuh district, was attacked by alleged cow vigilantes in Ramgarh in Alwar district on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday, leading to his death. The local police came under fire from various quarters after it was reported that they took Rakbar to the hospital three hours after they found him. The police have also been accused of taking Rakbar to the police station initially and beating him up. Rahul Gandhi took to Twitter to strongly criticise the incident. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die, he said. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal "New India" where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. https://t.co/sNdzX6eVSU Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 23, 2018 Gandhis tweet drew a sharp response from the BJP with Union finance minister Piyush Goyal who also took to Twitter to accuse the Congress chief of divisive politics and called him a merchant of hate. The country has seen several cases of lynching of people by cow vigilantes on suspicion of smuggling bovines for slaughter or possessing beef in the last few years. In April last year, a 50-year-old dairy farmer, Pehlu Khan, was also beaten to death by vigilantes suspecting him to be a cow smuggler in Alwar. The Congress is likely to move in the Lok Sabha a privilege motion against defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman for misleading the House on the Rafale deal, a senior party leader Monday. The party, however, was undecided about moving a similar motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Earlier, senior Congress leader Anand Sharma told reporters that the partys Lok Sabha leadership will take a call on moving privilege motions against the Prime Minister and the defence minister over the Rafale deal. The price of the aircraft has been a bone of contention between the Congress and the government. While the Congress has been insisting that the government disclose the price, the latter insists that it cant because of a secrecy clause in the deal with France. At a press conference, Anand Sharma insisted there was a scam that the government wants to hide. French govts statement clarifies that price was not a part of the secrecy clause. French govt mandates that the price should be revealed. The price disclosed by Defence Minister before gives an approximate figure of 670Cr, which doesnt add up. Prime Minister Modi now backtracking on the issue now claiming secrecy clause only proves there is a scam, Sharma said. Same aircraft was sold to Egypt and Qatar with lesser cost. In new deal, price has gone up from 526Cr in UPA regime to 1670Cr under Modi govt. This is definitely a scam, he said. PM Modi must confirm or deny in the Parliament that after returning from France the deal was changed without informing CCS. The Congress also took on the government for being cagey about the price of the aircraft. I have revealed in Parliament prices of many defence contracts because under the Constitution government cannot deny revealing the prices as they are scrutinised at various levels, senior Congres leader and former defence minister A K Anthony said. When there is no secret deal that prevents revealing the prices, how can they keep it a secret? Antony said the rise in the price of the aircraft was not justified. There is no transfer of technology in this new deal, so it doesnt substantiate the rise in price of aircrafts Keeping up the pressure on the government on what it claims are irregularities in Indias acquisition of Rafale fighter jets from France, the Congress is likely to move a privilege notice against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman for allegedly misleading the Lok Sabha, party leaders said. In response, the government, which has maintained that the deal is above board, but specific details sought by the Congress cant be disclosed because of a secrecy agreement with the French, criticised the Congress for undermining the sanctity of the privilege motion and strongly defended the contract saying the 2016 deal under the NDA cost Rs 66 crore less per aircraft than a deal proposed by the UPA government in 2011. On Friday, Rahul Gandhi raised the issue in Parliament, even naming Sitharaman, provoking a vehement response from her. On Monday, Congress leader Anand Sharma said the party leadership would take a call on whether to move the privilege notice in a day or two. Law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said any party was well within its rights to do this, but referred to the importance of maintaining the sanctity of privilege motions. We have seen public interest litigations turning into publicity interest litigation. A privilege motion has certain seriousness. Its sanctity should be maintained, Prasad said. The allegation that the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister misled the parliament regarding the pricing of the Rafale is baseless, mischevious and also irresponsible, he added. The Congress fielded a battery of senior leaders, including former defence minister AK Antony, to step up its attack on Modi and Sitharaman. It was during Antonys tenure that India picked Rafale jets over Eurofighter Typhoons in January 2012 after French firm Dassault Aviation emerged as the lowest bidder for the medium multi-role combat aircraft tender for 126 planes. Antony, in whose tenure the secrecy pact was also signed, dismissed as totally wrong the governments claim that a secrecy clause in the pact was forcing it to not reveal the price details of the deal. The scope of the agreement only extends to tactical and technical details of weaponry relating to the capability of the platform in question and its performance and tactics in combat and does not include commercial details and costs, he added. They have to reveal the price details of each aircraft. The more they are trying to hide, the more suspicion there is about the deal, Antony said. Prasad shared copies of six parliamentary answers in which Antony and Pranab Mukherjee declined to divulge details of matters of strategic importance citing national interest. We feel both of them were right in not bringing in public matters that could impinge upon national security, Prasad said. Rahul Gandhi is behaving irresponsibly.when he was caught misleading the house with reckless allegations, he pushed Antony forward to defend his case. He also attacked the Gandhi family. Dynsastic parties are always a crowd around a family. This is true of the Congress party. Since a member of the family has resorted to falsehood, the crowd around the family has no option but to collectively sing the tune of falsehood. This is what has happened today, he added. The Congress levelled a series of charges against the government regarding the deal, and the government responded to each. Analysts said the matter is unlikely to end with this, though. People will soon be able to follow happenings in important cases with proceedings of certain Supreme Court cases likely to be live-streamed soon, with the attorney general of India KK Venugopal telling the apex court on Monday that live-streaming of constitutional matters heard by the Chief Justice of India could start on an experimental basis. Appearing before a bench headed by the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, attorney general said: We can start it on an experimental basis with the CJIs court. Let it be restricted to constitutional cases. It should be tried for three months before the next step is taken. One needs to see the response. The bench, also comprising justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud, was hearing a public interest litigation filed by senior advocate Indira Jaising. Intervention applications have been filed by law interns urging the court to allow video-recording of court proceedings so that it can be given to litigants willing to pay for it. The bench asked Venugopal to collate and compile suggestions and submit it to the court for the latters approval. Venugopal also suggested installation of TV screens inside the court canteen or some hall so that law students, interns and lawyers can watch the proceedings there. This would also help in crowd management, he explained. Often lawyers not associated with the case attend court proceedings out of their interest in it. Once live-streaming starts then they need not come to the court but witness it on TV sets, the AG said. Justice DY Chandrachud agreed with Venugopal. We need to test technologies and procedural moralities. Anything done should be tested on technological stability, Justice Chandrachud said. However, Indira Jaising repeated her request that there should be strict guidelines to prevent misuse of live-streaming of the court proceedings , especially with respect to its commercial exploitation. A local court in Delhi on Monday extended till August 7 the interim protection from arrest granted to former Union minister P Chidambaram in the Aircel-Maxis case. Special CBI Judge OP Saini granted the relief to the senior Congress leader after a plea was moved by him in the morning, seeking anticipatory bail in the case. The CBI on Thursday charged Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram in the case, prompting allegations of political vendetta from the principal opposition party, a charge denied by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government. The former finance minister termed the allegations against him as preposterous. The probe agency filed its supplementary charge sheet before the special judge, who had fixed it for consideration on July 31. The case refers to a 2006 investment in Indian telecom company Aircel Ltd by Malaysias Maxis Communications which, according to the probe agency, was a violation of the then prevailing foreign investments laws. The agency has invoked charges of criminal conspiracy, criminal misconduct by a public servant and illegal gratification in the case. Besides the Chidambarams, the agency has also named Malaysian nationals T Ananda Krishnan, the founder of Maxis, and Ralph Marshall; former Union secretary for economic affairs Ashok Kumar Jha, then additional secretary Ashok Chawla (both Jha and Chawla were designated finance secretaries), two serving IAS officers, Sanjay Krishna and Deepak Kumar Singh, an undersecretary Ram Sharan; individuals S Bhaskarraman, A Palaniappan and V Srinivasan; and several companies, Chess Management, Advantage Strategic, Astro All Asia Networks, Maxis Mobile, Bumi Armada and Bumi Navigations. The agency has alleged that despite the fact that investment of $800 million (over Rs 3,500 crore) was made in Aircel by Maxis, and the Cabinet committee on economic affairs was the competent authority to grant approval, the investment proposal was wrongly projected as merely involving an investment of Rs 180 crore and approval was granted by the then finance minister Chidambaram. Investigators alleged that Aircel paid around Rs 26 lakh to Advantage Strategic Consulting Private Limited on April 11, 2006, and that this company was controlled by Chidambarams son Karti. Investigators have also alleged that another company of Karti, Chess Management Services Private Limited, received $200,000 from Malaysian companies such as Bumi Armada Berhad and Astro All Asia Networks Plc, all connected with Maxis, between 2007 and 2012. Before filing the charge sheet, CBI questioned Chidambaram and his son multiple times. Four women were beaten up and two of them even stripped by a mob in a village in West Bengals Jalpaiguri district on Monday afternoon on suspicion of being child lifters before police rescued them. Sanjay Dutta, inspector-in-charge of Dhupguri police station said, We rescued the women from the mob. No arrest has been made till night. The incident is the latest in a series of assaults and lynching across the country where people have attacked strangers at the slightest suspicion of them being child lifters. Two of the women are residents of Hospital Para in Dhupguri town, one is from Station More area of Dhupguri while one lives in the Court More area of Siliguri town. Only the women from Dhupguri knew each other. The four women had gone to Daukimari village market, about five km from Dhupguri. Two of them had gone to the office of a micro finance company, one wanted to meet a relative while one was out to sell clothes. Some people allegedly triggered panic in the market saying the women were child lifters. A mob gathered in no time and started assaulting the women. Two women were even stripped. The mob then took them to a local club. On hearing the news police rushed to the spot and resorted to lathi charge. Police rescued the women and escorted them to their homes. Mondays incident took place exactly a week after a mentally challenged woman in Dhupguris Kadamtala village was tied to a pillar and thrashed by a mob on suspicion of being a child lifter. She is a resident of Balagarh in Hooghly district, more than 700 km from where she was assaulted. Police had registered a case suo-motu against a BJP leader, Taramani Roy, vice president of the partys Mahila Morcha, Jalpaiguri district committee for allegedly leading the mob which attacked the woman. The Centre constituted a Group of Ministers (GoM) on Monday to deal with rising incidents of mob lynching, even as a Rajasthan probe panel said there were lapses by the state police in taking an alleged cow smuggler to hospital after he was beaten up by vigilantes in Alwar, an incident that has triggered a political slugfest between the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It also formed a high-level committee, headed by home secretary Rajiv Gauba, that will submit its recommendation to the GoM led by home minister Rajnath Singh, a government statement said. The GoM consists of external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, road transport minister Nitin Gadkari, law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and social justice and empowerment minister Thawar Chand Gehlot. The announcements came a week after the Supreme Court asked the central government to enact a law to deal with incidents of lynching and mob violence. The apex court said on Monday it will hear a contempt plea against the Rajasthan government for violating court directives in the Alwar case. The matter will be heard on August 20. The panel headed by Gauba will have secretaries of the justice, legal affairs, legislative, and social justice and empowerment departments. It will submit its recommendations on tackling the issue of lynchings to the GoM within four weeks. The GoM will then submit its recommendations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to the statement. There are legal issues as far as enacting a central legislation against mob violence but the committee will look into ways to have some kind of legal framework at the level of states or strengthening the existing provisions of criminal procedure code, a home ministry official said on condition of anonymity. The Centre has so far maintained that, as per the constitutional scheme, police and public order were state subjects and the state governments were empowered to enact and enforce laws to curb crime in their jurisdiction. However, as the Alwar lynching case triggered outrage, with Parliament in session, the government swiftly moved to set up the committee and the GoM. On Monday morning, while Congress president Rahul Gandhi attacked Modi over the case, alleging that hatred had replaced humanity in his brutal New India, three Union ministers hit back, led by finance minister Piyush Goyal who accused Gandhi of being a merchant of hate. Rakbar Khan, 28, died of his injuries after being attacked by a group of cow vigilantes in Alwar on Friday. The killing triggered tension in the area after reports said the police wasted crucial time in taking Khan to hospital. They also allegedly cared for the cows first, transporting them to a shelter much farther away. There were also allegations levelled by locals that it was the police that had beaten up Khan. A high-level team formed by the Rajasthan Police found error in judgement by Ramgarh police in connection with the lynching. An assistant sub-inspector was suspended and three other police personnel were sent to the police lines, an official said. Three people have been arrested in connection with the killing and an Alwar court has remanded them in police custody till July 27. The political war of words erupted after Gandhi, in a tweet, referred to a media report that said policemen in Alwar had taken three hours to take a dying victim of a lynch mob to a hospital, as they took a tea-break on the way. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute, Gandhi tweeted. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die, he added. Gandhis attack on Modi sparked an angry response from ministers Piyush Goyal, Smriti Irani and Rajyavardhan Rathore. Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict and prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains and then shed crocodile tears. Enough is enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE, Goyal tweeted. Soon after, Irani accused Gandhi of indulging in vulture politics and said not a single instance goes by where he doesnt attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. Rathore echoed the views of his colleagues. Mr Rahul Gandhi, STOP using a crime for political gains. The local police is already on the case. Justice will be served. Stop sowing seeds of hatred in society simply for a few votes, he said. The country has been hit by a spate of lynchings, with 23 people killed in the last two months after being accused of child kidnapping in viral messages circulated on WhatsApp. The home ministry had issued an advisory on July 4, urging the states and union territories to take steps to prevent mob violence and lynchings as well as take stringent action as per the law against the culprits. (With inputs from agencies) Jayanti Bhanushali, a former vice-president of BJPs Gujarat unit, was on Monday summoned by the Surat police in connection with the rape and abduction charges filed against him by a 21-year-old woman. The police brought the woman from Surat to Ahmedabad on Monday and took her a luxury hotel near the airport where she was allegedly assaulted. The police recorded the woman and her mothers statements. A medical test was done on her. Bhanushali has been served summons under CrPC section 160 to come and record his answers, said a senior Surat police official. According to FIR filed by the woman on July 19, Bhanushali allegedly told the woman he will help her in getting admission in a fashion design college and then raped her in a car in an agricultural field on the Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar highway in November 2017. She alleged Bhanushalis assistant filmed the assault as an armed guard kept vigil. She said Bhanushali used the video clip to blackmail and rape her several times between November 2017 and April 2018. In April 2018, Bhanushali allegedly forced her to sign an affidavit that said she do not know him. Bhanushali has denied the allegations, saying they were a political conspiracy against him by his rivals. Three ministers of the Goa government are indisposed and are not attending the Assembly Session which got underway here on July 19. Questions in the House related to these ministries would be answered by Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, sources said. While Power Minister Pandurang Madkaikar is in a Mumbai hospital since last month, Urban Development minister Francis DSouza too is in Mumbai for a health check-up and Transport Minister Sudin Dhavalikar has also told the Speaker that he would be unavailable for a few days. DSouza has informed the Speaker that he will be on leave and will not be attending the session till July 30. He has gone to Mumbai for follow-up medical treatment, a senior official from the Legislature department told PTI. DSouza is a BJP legislator from Mapusa constituency in North Goa. Dhavalikar, who was admitted to a hospital in Mumbai on July 9 and was discharged on July 18, has informed the Speaker that he would not be coming to the House for a few days, the official said. Madkaikar is in hospital since the first week of June after suffering a brain stroke while on a visit to Mumbai. I will sacrifice my life for honour of vote: Shahbaz Sharif MULTAN: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shahbaz Sharif has claimed that though his party is being pushed to the wall, this wall will be demolished on July 25. Addressing a public meeting on Sunday, Shahbaz warned that he would not be able to control the masses if the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) failed to control pre-poll and polling day rigging. Charged with emotions, Shahbaz said he would sacrifice his life for the honour of vote, a slogan being raised by Nawaz Sharif since his disqualification in the Panamagate case. Rejecting the conviction of Hanif Abbasi, he said the manner in which the judgement was announced was regrettable. He said that Abbasi was disqualified for he was far ahead of Shaikh Rashid in the contest for NA-60. He said though the decision to postpone the election in the constituency was a welcoming step, the question remained unanswered as to why the court verdict was announced three days before the election. He said on one hand the Supreme Court and FIA gave Asif Ali Zardari and Faryal Talpur enough time to contest election in the money laundering case, on the other Abbasi was convicted well ahead of the date set by the court earlier. Shahbaz said that the Turkish president had called him by phone and inquired about Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz. He expressed his best wishes for Nawaz Sharif and I requested him to help me build Pakistan and he promised to do so, he said. He said Erdogon said his prayers were with Pakistan and Sharif family. Shahbaz said that he had not committed any wrongdoing in the Multan Metro Bus project. He said that PTI Chairman Imran Khan had leveled allegations of corruption in the project but had failed to give any proof. He said that initial estimated cost of the Peshawar Metro Bus Project was Rs14 billion which had now increased up to Rs68.5 billion. He said that the contract of Peshawar project was given to a firm which was blacklisted. The PML-N president said Nawaz Sharif was his leader and would remain so. He said that Nawaz Sharif was being treated in jail like a prisoner of war. He has been put in the jail but no one can mute his voice, he said. He said that Nawaz Sharif had eliminated electricity loadshedding and strengthened the countrys economy. He said that the public gathering of Imran Khan in Multan had badly flopped. He said that Imran khan made excuses that the people did not participate in his public gatherings due to hot weather. I am also addressing a public gathering in Multan and not in Europe. A large number of people are here to attend my public gathering while the people did not attend Imran Khans public gathering, he said. He said that the people will get released Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz and Hanif Abbasi by giving their vote to the symbol of lion. Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Muftis uncle Sartaj Madni on Monday resigned as the vice-president of the Peoples Democratic Party, in a step which is being seen as an attempt to appease legislators who have openly revolted against her and accused her of promoting dynastic politics. Sartaj Madni, who is Mehboobas maternal uncle, sent his resignation to the PDP president in the morning. I have submitted my resignation in the interests of the party and its cadres, Madni said. The PDPs chief spokesperson Rafi Mir confirmed to the Hindustan Times that Madni has submitted his resignation. I dont know whether it has been accepted or not, Mir added. Mehbooba was under pressure to revamp the partys leadership for the past many days. PDP sources close to the former chief minister termed it as the first step towards a reshuffle in the party. Six legislators had accused Mehbooba of promoting her close relatives and turning the PDP into her family fiefdom after the coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) withdrew its support and she resigned as the chief minister on June 19. The rebellion within the PDP is being led by Imran Reza Ansari, a former minister and prominent Shia leader who is the legislator from Pattan. Later, five other legislators joined Ansari and demanded that Mehbooba must remove her close relatives from the party. They pointed out that Mufti gave several relatives important assignments in the party and government. Her brother Tasaduq Mufti was brought into the cabinet, Madni was given an important position in the PDP, and other relatives were also given important assignments in the party and government, they said. Madni was appointed as the PDPs vice-president last year by Mehbooba after sidelining several top leaders of the party. He lost the assembly election from south Kashmir but was given an important portfolio as Mehbooba wanted to tighten her familys grip over the party after the death of her father, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. When Mehbooba Mufti was running the affairs of the state as the chief minister, it was Madni who was the most powerful person within the party. Even legislators would have to approach to him for redressals of grievances, said a party legislator. Madni is the first close relative of the former chief minister to relinquish his post voluntarily. A Lok Sabha MP and three legislators of the PDP skipped a meeting chaired by Mehbooba in Srinagar, signalling further dissent against the former chief minister. Before that, two PDP legislators from south Kashmir did not attend a meeting Mehbooba called last Tuesday. Sources said the PDP president is planning to go for further revamp in the party and give fresh faces some important posts after the foundation day rally in Srinagar on Saturday. They also said that a senior party leader will replace Madni as the PDPs vice-president. They added several other steps could also be taken to placate the aggrieved legislators. Former deputy chief minister and MP Baramulla Muzzuffar Hussain Baig could be assigned as an important portfolio in the party, they added. PDP leaders said Safeena, Baigs wife who is heading the women wing of the PDP, will be given more responsibilities to keep her husband in a good humour. They said the steps also became necessary as Baigs nephew Javeed Baig, who is legislator from Baramulla, is on the forefront of the rebel group. An unidentified woman aged between 25 and 30 years and said to be mentally challenged, was allegedly lynched by a mob on suspicion of being a child-lifter in a village in Madhya Pradeshs Singrauli district. Police have arrested 12 people and are interrogating them. The body of the woman was found in a jungle near Barhgarh village on Thursday and reported to Morwa police by a village official the next day. The woman is yet to be identified, said Riyaz Iqbal, superintendent of police, Singrauli. However, police sources said the woman was said to be mentally challenged and belonged to a village in the area and was often seen roaming in the area. According to police, Bhosh villagers were seen chasing the woman on Thursday night accusing her of being a child-lifter. They later started attacking her. Heera Singh Gond, a resident of village Katarihar, hit the woman with an axe while Gopal Singh, Durga Singh and Devlal Singh, all residents of Bhosh attacked the woman with lathis and sticks, police said. The woman ran for her life. But the accused surrounded her near a school and attacked her again, they said. The other accused Deepnarayan Singh, Raghuvir Singh, Ram Singh, Ramashankar Sahu, Gambhir Singh, Ramcharan Singh, Lakhpati Singh, Karan Singh, Jagshah Agaria and Rambali Singh joined the group of assailants and attacked the woman. Later, they dragged the body of the woman and threw her in a nullah in the jungle near Barhgarh village. SP Iqbal said the accused had confessed to committing the crime and weapons of the crime had been seized. Police lodged an FIR against the accused and booked them under sections 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 (rioting armed with deadly weapon) and 149 (Every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object) of Indian Penal Code (IPC). Rumours have been rife in Singrauli district about alleged child-lifters for several months, apparently through Whatsapp messages. Police are making announcements in the district that people should not pay heed to rumours and have asked people to inform them if anybody is found spreading rumours. Excavations at a shelter for girls in Bihars Muzzaffarpur on Monday failed to unearth the body of a minor girl allegedly killed and buried there a couple of years ago. Police had started digging the 1000-odd square feet campus of the short stay home on Sahu Road in Mithanpura after it took the permission of a special court that deals with offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. The police used an earth-mover for the excavations that lasted a couple of hours under the supervision of an executive magistrate. We found nothing in the exercise to substantiate murder and burial of a minor. We are conducting a thorough investigation and police is working independently, Muzaffarpur SSP Harpreet Kaur said. Kaur added that soil samples collected after the excavation would be sent to a forensic laboratory for testing. Other inmates of the short-stay home had alleged that office bearers of the state government-funded shelter home buried the minor girl in the campus after killing her. The Muzaffarpur short-stay home shot into infamy in February this year after a social audit report of all the 110 shelter homes in the state by Koshish, a field unit of the Tata Institute of Social Services (TISS). The report said girls were being ill-treated in at least six of the shelter homes, including the Muzaffarpur one. The TISS report said the inmates, all minors, were sexually exploited, used as sex slaves, and some of them were pregnant. The report blamed officials of a NGO, Seva Sankalp Evam Vikas Samiti, that was engaged by the states welfare department to run the short-stay home, for the exploitation of the girls. Acting on the report, which had by then rocked the state government, the welfare department sent a medical team to examine the girls at the Muzaffarpur shelter. The medical team confirmed sexual assault of at least 21 girls following which FIRs were lodged against the NGO and few government officials. Police soon arrested 10 persons, including the Muzaffarpur short-stay home in-charge, Brajesh Thakur, who also printed and published three newspapers in English, Hindi and Urdu from the same building. Two officials of the state welfare department were also booked and sent to jail. Meanwhile, the 47 inmates were shifted to safer short-stay homes in Patna, Mokama and Madhubani where the girls recorded their statements with a judicial magistrate. At least two inmates, who were shifted to a shelter in Patna, told a judicial magistrate that officials of Seva Sankalp Evam Vikas Samiti had killed a 14-year-old girl after she resisted a bid to sexually assault her, police sources said. Police had then taken permission from a local POCSO court to conduct a search and exhume the body from the shelter campus. One of the girls, who had levelled serious allegations against the NGO, later allegedly fled from the Madhubani home. Wary of security of girls in other shelter homes, the state social welfare department has now decided to rope in transgenders for their security. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has already given his go-ahead to the departments proposal and asked the officials to ensure the safety and security of the inmates. On Monday, Leader of the Opposition, Rashtriya Janata Dals Tejashwi Yadav, alleged the chief minister was protecting his close aides associated with the sex racket and demanded a Central Bureau of Investogation probe to expose those involved. Leaders of the ruling Janata Dal (United) said Tejashwis allegations were baseless. They said that government is committed to exposing and penalizing all those involved. Rajya Sabha adjourned Rajya Sabha has been adjourned for the day. Lok Sabha adjourned for the day The Lower House of the Parliament was adjourned for the day. National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Bill passed Lok Sabha passes the National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Bill, 2017. Groundwater in Sterlite plant area contaminated beyond permissible limits: Govt A study by a central agency in the area around the Sterlite Copper plant in Tamil Nadu has indicated groundwater contamination with heavy metals beyond permissible limits, the Centre said. No proposal to make it mandatory for students to go for military education: Govt Minister of state for defence, Subhash Bhamre, said there is no proposal to make it mandatory for students to undergo military education for three years after clearing class 12, in a written response to a question in Rajya Sabha. Culture Ministry received around Rs 9 cr as CSR from 2015 to 2017 Culture Ministry has received more than Rs nine crore from the private sector as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) between 2015 and 2017. Iran becomes Indias No. 2 oil supplier, ahead of Saudi Arabia Iran overtook Saudi Arabia to be the second largest supplier of crude oil to Indian public sector firms during the first three months of current fiscal, says oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Bill for stringent punishment in rape cases introduced in LS A bill that provides for stringent punishment, including death penalty for those convicted of raping girls below 12 years, was introduced in the Lok Sabha. Apple manufacturing iPhone models in Bengaluru Technology major Apple has started making certain models of iPhone in Bengaluru through a contract manufacturer, minister of state for commerce and industry CR Chaudhary said in a written reply to Lok Sabha informed the Parliament. Natural rubber imports increases Minister of state for commerce and industry CR Chaudhary says natural rubber imports increased from 3.60 lakh tonnes in 2013-14 to 4.69 lakh tonnes in 2017-18. Natural rubber production declines Natural rubber production declined to 6.94 lakh tonnes in 2017-18 from 7.74 lakh tonnes in 2013-14. On the other hand, consumption of natural rubber increased from 9.81 lakh tonnes in 2013-14 to 11.11 lakh tonnes in 2017-18, minister of state for commerce and industry CR Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. Govt using CBI, ED for vendetta: Cong Congress leader Anand Sharma accuses the government of misusing central probe agencies like the CBI and ED for targeted political vendetta, leading to an atmosphere of distrust, fear, and terror in the country. Send monuments bill to select panel: Congress, Oppn parties Congress and other opposition parties demanded that a bill to amend the Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains Act be sent to a select committee of the Rajya Sabha, even as the government sought its early passage. Bill introduced in LS to change classification of MSMEs A bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday seeking to change the classification of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) from that based on investment in plant and machinery/equipment to annual turnover. RS members can now submit notices for discussion though app Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu announces that Rajya Sabha members will now be able to raise their issues by submitting online applications and notices. The secure e-Notices application can be used to submit online notices for raising issues under rules for Question Hour, Zero Hour, Special Mention, Calling Attention and Short Duration Discussion, he said when the House met for the day. Culture Ministry digitised 2.83 crore pages of 2.96 lakh manuscripts: Min Union Culture Ministry has digitised 2.83 crore pages of 2.96 lakh manuscripts and published 44 rare manuscripts through its National Mission for Manuscripts project, Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma informed the Lok Sabha. Negotiable Instruments Amend Bill passed in LS Lok Sabha passes the Negotiable Instruments Amend Bill. New commission to replace UGC will be autonomous: Javadekar Human Resource Development minister Prakash Javadekar says the new body to replace the University Grants Commission (UGC) will be autonomous with two separate wings -- one for regulatory functions and the other for providing grants to higher education institutions. Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2017 moved in RS Minister of State Mansukh L Mandaviya moves The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill,2017 in Rajya Sabha. No proposal to control social media: Govt In a written reply, minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said, There is no proposal in the ministry to control social media. Ravi Shankar Prasad introduces Specific Relief (Amendment) Bill, 2018 in Rajya Sabha Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad introduces The Specific Relief (Amendment) Bill, 2018 in Rajya Sabha. The Bill, amending the Specific Relief Act, 1963, was passed by the Lok Sabha in March during the Budget session. Kiren Rijiju on lynchings Indian Government has sent strong advisories to all the state governments and lynching issue has been taken up very seriously, no leniency in terms of action will be there: MoS Home Kiren Rijiju. Lok Sabha adjourned till 2:05pm following ruckus around Alwar lynching A ruckus in the Lok Sabha after the Alwar lynching was raised. House adjourned till 2:05pm. Congress to move privilege motion against defence minister Congress to move privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Lok Sabha on Rafael issue, reports ANI. Pappu Yadav raises shelter home rape case Madhepura (Bihar) MP Pappu Yadav raises Muzaffarpur Shelter Home rape issue in Lok Sabha, demands CBI inquiry. Bill to amend Insolvency Code introduced in Lok Sabha The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018 was introduced by interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal and seeks to replace the ordinance brought by the government earlier this year. Anti-Trafficking Bill to be discussed today Parliament is scheduled to discuss the Anti-Trafficking Bill in its session today. The Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill was introduced in the monsoon session of the Lok Sabha on July 18, 2018, by Maneka Gandhi, the Minister for Women and Child Development. No option rather than to protest, says TDP We had been moving the no confidence motion for entire second half of budget session, finally the discussion took place but PM didnt bother to answer any of our question,we heard same statements,so nothing has changed for us, no option rather than to protest:TDP MP Jayadev Galla Rajya Sabha adjourned till noon Rajya Sabha adjourned till 12:00 noon after uproar in the house on Anand Sharmas comment on Central Investigation agencies Congress MPs from Punjab protest Congress MPs from Punjab protest over unemployment in front of Parliament. TDP MPs protest outside Parliament TDP MPs protest in front of Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament over special category status to Andhra Pradesh and implementation of AP re-organizing Act. BJP MP submits notice for suspension of Rajya Sabha BJP MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe gives notice for suspension of business in Rajya Sabha today to take up the issue of flood and other natural calamities due to heavy rain in several parts of country. pic.twitter.com/Y7qfWPHzQx ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 TDP to discuss on AP Re-organisation Act TDP MP YS Chowdary has given notice in Rajya Sabha under rule 267 to discuss AP Re-organisation Act. Congress on incidents of cow vigilantism The government is encouraging such incidents in the country. This government does not want the situation in the country to improve. We will raise the issue in the Parliament today: Mallikarjun Kharge. Former finance minister P Chidambaram moved the Delhi High Court on Monday against the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking anticipatory bail in connection to his alleged role in the INX media case. The plea was mentioned urgently before the acting chief justice Gita Mittal who allowed it to be listed. The matter could not be heard on Monday and would be now heard on Tuesday. This is the second time Chidambaram has moved the Delhi high court seeking protection from arrest. In his plea, Chidambaram contended that he has not received the copy of the enforcement case investigation report (ECIR) registered by the ED. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court allowed Karti Chidambaram, son of P Chidambaram, to visit the United Kingdom, France and the United States of America from July 23 to 31. Karti also got relief from Madras high court that quashed a lookout circular (LOC) issued by the CBI, which is probing a money laundering case related to INX Media case. The court said that the impugned LOC will not impact the criminal proceedings initiated in the case. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will gift 200 cows in a symbolic gesture to a village in Rwanda, his first stop in a five-day, three-nation tour of Africa which begins Monday. The locally sourced cows will be a contribution to Rwandan President Paul Kagames flagship programme Girinka in which the poorest get cows from the government and gift the first female calf to a neighbour to promote brotherhood. The exercise also enables the poorest in Rwanda to have a livelihood. The national social protection scheme was personally initiated by the Rwandan President. This is the first time an Indian Prime Minister is visiting Rwanda. The visit to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa will further strengthen our relations with the African continent, the External Affairs Ministry said in statement. Africa has been the top priority of Indias foreign policy, it said. Cooperation in defence and agriculture will be Modis priorities during his bilateral visits to Rwanda and Uganda before he goes to South Africa for the annual Brazil, Russia, India China, South Africa (BRICS) Summit. Ahead of Modis departure, TS Tirumurti, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the External Affairs Ministry, said India will open its first mission in Rwanda very soon. Indias current High Commissioner to Rwanda has residence in Kampala, Uganda. The two countries will sign two lines of credit - one of $100 million for industrial parks and a similar amount for agriculture and irrigation. Rwanda is already a recipient of Indian lines of credit of nearly $400 million and of Indian training and scholarship programmes. We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture and culture, Tirumurti said. In Uganda, Modi will meet President Yowei Museveni, hold delegation-level talks and take part in an India-Uganda joint business event and address the Ugandan parliament. We expect to extend two lines of credit for the first time to Uganda of $141 million regarding electricity lines and sub-stations and $64 million for agriculture and dairy production, Tirumurti said. Modi will reach South Africa on July 25 on the third and last leg of his visit. Besides the BRICS Summit, Modi will also hold a bilateral meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa who took office in February. Modi, along with other BRICS leaders, will participate in the restricted session, plenary session, leaders retreat, outreach with leaders from Africa and outreach with leaders from the global South. In the BRICS-plus outreach, the invited countries of the global South include Argentina, Turkey, Indonesia, Jamaica and Egypt. On the sidelines of the BRICS Summit, Modi will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping. This will be the third meeting between the two leaders this year. (With IANS inputs) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave for a three-nation tour on Monday for an engagement that is seen as a reflection of the importance the current regime attaches to relations with countries in the African continent. Modi will be in Rwanda on July 23-24, Uganda on July 24-25 and from 25 to 27 in South Africa, where he will attend the Brics summit of emerging economies Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa in Johannesburg. The importance of Africa to Indias foreign policy can be gauged from the fact that there have been an unprecedented 23 outgoing visits to the continent in four years of this Modi government. Our engagement with Africa has clearly intensified. We had received more than 40 heads of State and government at the 3rd India-Africa Forum Summit in October 2015 and several more heads of state and government during the International Solar Alliance Founding Conference in March this year in New Delhi, said TS Tirumurthi, secretary (economic relations) in the foreign ministry. Modis visit to Rwanda will be historic -- the first by an Indian Prime Minister the nation. India sees Rwanda as an important gateway to eastern Africa, and two countries formalised a a strategic partnership in January 2017. Rwanda is also the current Chair of the African Union, the third-largest troop contributor for peacekeeping in Africa, and plays an important role in the UN Mission (MINUSCA) in the Central African Republic. Modi will be received in Rwanda by President Paul Kagame and a ceremonial welcome will be accorded on arrival, officials familiar with the planning of the trip said. Other elements of the programme include restricted and delegation-level talks, a banquet dinner hosted by President Kagame, paying homage at the Kigali Genocide Memorial, an interaction with the countrys business leaders and a brief interaction with the Indian community. An important element of the programme will be the visit to Rweru model village, where India will gift 200 cows as a contribution to the Girinka scheme, a social protection scheme overseen by President Kagame. This will also be the first visit Modi to South Africa after new administration led by President Cyril Ramaphosa assumed office in February 2018. The year 2018 is significant because it marks the 125th anniversary of the Pietermaritzburg incident -- wherein Mahatma Gandhi was thrown out of a train compartment in 1893 because of his skin colour -- and the 100th birth anniversary of Nelson Mandela. As reported by HT earlier, Modi is set to meet Chinese president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Brics summit. The theme of this years Brics Summit revolves around an Africa outreach -- Collaboration with Developing Countries for Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity in the 4th Industrial Revolution. The countries invited include Rwanda, Uganda, Togo, Zambia, Namibia, Senegal, Gabon, Ethiopia and Angola. The issue of money in politics is a matter of pressing concern across the democratic world. Recent headlines, for instance, reveal that scandals linked with political finance irregularities dot the globe. In France, former president Nicolas Sarkozy is being investigated on allegations that his 2007 campaign received millions of dollars from late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. In Brazil, former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was sentenced to a dozen years in jail after a court convicted him of trading government favours in exchange for bribes from a construction interest. And in the United States, President Donald Trump faces charges that secret payments made on his behalf to an adult actress may have violated campaign finance disclosure laws. India is no stranger to the dilemma of money in politics and the illegality, quid pro quos, and shady deals that often emerge as a result of the desperate hunt for campaign cash. Unfortunately, the nexus between money and politics in Indiaas in much of the developing worldhas not been the subject of sustained scholarly attention. This is not because of a lack of interest, but rather a paucity of data. Money often works differentlyand to different endsin developing democracies. In advanced democracies, which are by no means scandal-free, there exist well-established systems of monitoring and accounting for political finance and robust enforcement. These systems, while imperfect, are likely to deter the leveraging of illicit funds to a large extent. In many developing democracies, however, limited transparency, resource challenges, and weak enforcement often incentivise undocumented money. Hence, the widespread belief that true flows of money in politics significantly dwarf reported flows. In a new volume, Costs of Democracy: Political Finance in India, we led a group of political scientists concerned with deepening our understanding of political finance in India. The methods--surveys, candidate affidavit data, ethnographic fieldwork--are as diverse as the settings, ranging from urban Mumbai to rural Bihar. Over the next four days, we will share some of our key takeaways in these pages. These columns are an attempt to respond to several pressing questions: What are the sources of political finance? On what do campaigns spend and why? How does money operate at different levels of government? And what reform steps should the government contemplate to address the challenges of money in politics? In India, these are far from academic concerns; in the wake of demonetization and the introduction of electoral bonds, the country is host to a contentious debate over how it should manage the mounting pressures of money in politics. It is clear from our collective research that private sources of campaign funding have grown exponentially. One prominent trend is the rise of self-financing candidates. In 2004, 30% of Lok Sabha Members of Parliament were crorepatis (that is, their self-disclosed assets totaled at least one crore). By 2014, that share jumped to 82%. The data demonstrate that there is a massive wealth premium in elections; of the 21,000 candidates who contested the last three general elections, the wealthiest 20% of candidates were more than twenty times more likely to win election that the poorest 20%. Even among highly competitive candidates (those who finish either first or second in their race), the richer of the two candidates has a clear advantage. Survey evidence from north India confirms that politicians from panchayat presidents to MPs are highly reliant on their own resources. Of course, private sector funding often complements a politicians own finances, especially at the state and national levels. But there is a widespread misimpression in India that this space is dominated by titans of industry. Our own investigations reveal that much of the action is at what TN Ninan calls the mezzanine level medium-sized firms and businesspeople who are reliant on routine government approvals. Indeed, our own work points to the nexus between state-level politicians and builders in the real estate and construction industrywhere governments heavy regulatory footprint is well-documented. Evidence suggests that politicians help builders negotiate the labyrinth of regulatory permissions dealing with land in exchange for cash infusions around election time. While the sources of political finance may be obscured, much of what is spent is used on fairly mundane matters: compensating supporters for attending meetings; paying wages of political workers; and covering expenses on food incurred during the campaign sprint. In this sense, politics operates like another sector of the economyalbeit one which lacks a three-digit industry code. This is not to deny the role that handouts of cash and alcohol play on the eve of elections; handouts constitute a sizeable share of a candidates total poll budget. But pre-electoral goodies are rarely directly exchanged for votes; in India, the secret ballot ensures there is no ironclad method of purchasing support. Hence, a more accurate term for pre-election distribution is gift giving rather than vote buyinga rational strategy when a candidate seeks to boost her own credibility or to simply match what other rivals are doingwhich over time has created an electoral finance arms race. Money will always be a part of democratic politics. But it is worth remembering why the rising costs of democracy are such a cause for concern: it is not simply the significance of the funds involved, but also the broader impacts money can have on political behaviour. For instance, money has a powerful selection effect on who stands for election. evident in the rising number of candidates with criminal cases, as one of us has documented. Raising money from supporters also incentivises quid pro quos in policymaking. Rising election costs contribute to growing inequality. Most importantly, at the heart of any successful democracy is a sense of legitimacy about the process and the existence of a level-playing field. Distortions in electoral finance can undermine that legitimacy and threaten democracy itself. In our view, there can hardly be a worthier, yet more underexplored, line of research for scholars to pursue, and for the public to understand. (Devesh Kapur is director of Asia Programs and the Starr Foundation Professor of South Asia Studies at the Paul Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of the Johns Hopkins University. Milan Vaishnav is senior fellow and director of the South Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.) What happened for three hours on Friday night in Alwars Ramgarh town is a mystery. Alwar police reached the forests of Lalavandi around 1am on information that vigilantes were beating up a man on suspicion of cow smuggling for slaughter and took the injured man to hospital at 4am. There are conflicting versions about what transpired in these three hours but all raise questions over the manner of functioning of the police. Rakbar Khan, alias Akbar of Kol village in Haryanas Nuh district, was attacked by alleged cow vigilantes in Ramgarhs Lalavandi forests on Friday night. He was declared dead on arrival at the Ramgarh community health centre (CHC). Police arrested two people Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh after registering a case of unlawful assembly, wrongful restraint, voluntarily causing hurt and murder on Saturday, and one more person, Naresh Singh on Sunday. In the FIR, lodged by assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Mohan Singh of Ramgarh police station, the police officer said Naval Kishore Sharma (a cattle rearer with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, a right-wing Hindu organisation) informed him at 12.41am about some people beating a cow smuggler. He was on night patrol with two constables. Singh said he picked up Sharma in the police jeep and left for the spot around 4km away. It was raining and police reached in about 20-25 minutes, assistant superintendent of police Anil Beniwal said. As per this account, the police team reached the site of the attack around 1.15am. In the FIR, ASI Singh said some people fled on seeing the police vehicle. When we reached the spot, we found Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh with two cows and a man lying in mud. We cleaned him up and asked him his name. He narrated the story of how locals beat him with sticks, injuring his ribs and limbs, Singhs FIR reads. After this, the ASI left for Ramgarh CHC with Rakbar after asking constable Surendra Singh to take the two cows to Jain Sudha Sagar Gaushala (cow shelter). However, CHC records, accessed by HT, show the time of arrival of police with Rakbar is 4am. During check-up, it appeared that there was a fracture in his leg, said Dr Hasan Ali Khan, who declared Rakbar dead on arrival. The FIR was registered at 9.20 am on Saturday, around five hours after Rakbar was declared dead. Jaipur range inspector general of police Hemant Priyadarshi refused to comment on why there was a delay in taking Rakbar to hospital, but said all aspects were being looked into in the investigation. Alwar SP Rahul Prakash was transferred in a bureaucratic rejig on July 19 and the new SP, Rajendra Singh, joined office on Saturday. In the interim, Beniwal held the charge of the SP. A former police officer, who requested anonymity, said maybe on Friday-Saturday night, when the police team from Ramgarh realised the man was dead, they couldnt reach out to their seniors for directions. They would have gotten cold feet when the man died and would have been scrambling to reach out to their seniors for directions. This could have led to delay in their taking the man to hospital, he said. A veteran Karnataka politician from the Dalit community, Mallikarjun Kharge is the leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha and a key member of the new Congress Working Committee (CWC). He spoke to Aurangzeb Naqshbandi and Prashant Jha about Fridays no-confidence debate in the House, Rahul Gandhis speech, Sundays CWC meet, the Congress strategy for 2019, and the functioning of Parliament. Edited excerpts: The government decisively defeated the no-confidence motion on Friday. What did your party achieve? This is not a question of gaining or losing. We have won the hearts of the people. It was a question of the people of Andhra Pradesh, nearly five crore people. We pleaded on their behalf. We stood with them. That is our biggest achievement. On the numbers, everyone knew they had so many numbers and we had so many. We also expected that some of the parties against the policies of the Modi government, which is supported by RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh), to vote for the motion. Their own ally, Shiv Sena, boycotted. Some other parties, TRS (Telangana Rashtra Samithi), BJD (Biju Janata Dal), boycotted and were silent. From this only, you can count how much dissatisfaction is there among MPs. They represent different states. Various states are unhappy with this government. Third, we also wanted to expose this governments misdeeds. Rahul Gandhi exposed their failures on Rafale, bank fraud, farmer distress, Dalit problems, and jobs. The citizens of the country feel their grievances are discussed in Parliament. You mentioned the boycott of parties. Shiv Senas boycott weakened the government. But other parties boycotting weakened the Opposition and exposed claims of Opposition unity. This is an ideological battle, not just of numbers. We believe in secularism, welfare of the poor and youth, safeguarding womens rights, and preventing atrocities on Dalits. At the same time, what the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) is following is the path of RSS, which is dangerous. They want to take us back 5,000 years. The country has progressed on secular principles for 70 years. All previous governments, including the Vajpayee government, behaved democratically. They may have had their own agenda. But it was never like this -- suppressing everything. They are pushing their agenda in autonomous institutions and universities. Modi represents this. What prompted the AIADMK to support the government? They have their own internal issues. There is a division there. So they have compulsions. Did you expect Rahul Gandhi to be so aggressive? He is aggressive nowadays. He is preparing himself. He is taking up the cause of the people. He is travelling from village to village, wherever problems arise. He has become aggressive because there is anger. These people are trying to destroy democratic principles. He is very agitated. He is the Congress president and will not tolerate injustice. There is enthusiasm to build the party and destroy the philosophy of RSS-BJP. What did you think of his hug? He taught them. RSS people try to teach people hate. As a Hindu, I can say that it teaches compassion. But he came back and winked. This has been played up by the media. That is nothing. The BJP is suggesting that Rahuls actions show his immaturity. They dont have any arguments. After his speech, they are flat. So they have nothing to say. After criticising so much, going and wishing the PM is a good thing. We are proud of Rahul-ji. The PM, in his response, spoke about how the Congress had been unfair to its own leaders. What is the relevance of this? The no-confidence motion was brought on a specific issue special category status (for Andhra Pradesh). Did he talk about that? He has betrayed the people of Andhra Pradesh. Do people not know the Congresss history? People do not need lessons from him. What has he done? He has betrayed his own mentor, (LK) Advani-ji. He betrayed senior leaders like Murli Manohar Joshi and others who built the party. I am not pleading on their behalf, but can you take the words of a man who betrays his own guardian seriously? He also spoke about how the Congress has treated its allies. You withdrew support from Charan Singh, Chandrashekhar, HD Deve Gowda, IK Gujral. In the run up to 2019, as you are talking of an alliance, the PM was telling regional parties that the Congress is unreliable. That is his version. Circumstances differ from time to time. You have to reply to what we raised. Why have you not created jobs? Why have you not brought back money? Why did you not increase MSP (minimum support price) as promised? He spent the first 50 minutes with drama, acting and mimicry. I have been in politics for 50 years. I have worked with many PMs, known them personally. Have you seen any PM behaving like this and mimicking people? He is calling Rahul childish. But he was the one who behaved childishly. Rahul Gandhi also spoke of Rafale. The French issued a clarification. Do you think he should have been more careful on an issue of national security? It has nothing to do with secrecy. He has disclosed a fact. We have decided to tell the people of the country what misdeed has been done how a friend of the PM with no experience and a high debt was given a contract. Is this a skill development programme for a friend? In the CWC on Sunday, there was a decision to go ahead with alliances. Will Congress be the fulcrum and will Rahul be the face of this alliance? I am not an astrologer and cant say what will happen. But we can say that Rahul Gandhi has taken the lead to ensure that the BJP, supported by RSS, must not come to power again because if they come, they will destroy democracy. That is why he is willing to compromise with regional parties. Each state has its specific situation. For instance, we (the Left and the Congress) are fighting in Kerala, but here we fight against Modi. To form such alliances, he is making an effort. The full CWC has authorised him to deal with opposition parties. We are fighting and Rahul is our leader. From Kashmir to Kanyakumari, West Bengal to Gujarat, the national party is only Congress and its face is Rahul Gandhi. But are you willing to give space to the regional parties and take a back seat then? All details will be decided by Rahul Gandhi and his team. Without knowing the details, it would not be right for me to speak. He will make everyone comfortable. There is a feeling that while alliances will help you in the short term, it weakens you organisationally in the long term. This has happened in UP and Bihar. Are you worried about that? Sometimes this happens in one or two places. But we have to take into account larger interests of the country and its weaker sections. Naturally, our effort will be to give and take. Everyone knows their strengths and weaknesses. You lead the Congress in Parliament. What we have seen is a breakdown of communication between the government and Opposition. There has been frequent disruption. How do you see it? They are not reaching out. It is their responsibility to run the House smoothly. They should take our cooperation. We should also cooperate. But the ruling party itself is asking its allies to agitate. In the last session, they just adjourned the House within a few seconds. People sat, and it got adjournedWhenever they want, they ask some of their friends to take up an issue and disrupt the house, and then they blame the Congress for it. Unfortunately, the media then says the Opposition is responsible. Do you think the Monsoon session will work smoothly? Many bills have got passed. In the past also, we have helped. The problem arises if any leader acts with vengeance. Did Nehru or Vajpayee behave like this? Are you saying the PM is acting with vengeance? Definitely. If you speak against him, he acts with vengeance. He is harassing states where his party is not in power. There are a number of examples. The country will not develop like this. He should have generosity and aim to develop the country. A final question. In the CWC, concerns were raised about EVMs. Are you planning a campaign against it in the run up to 2019? Many people are raising the EVM issue. My view is that it should be thoroughly examined. Many have doubts. Even in booths and areas where Opposition candidates and parties are very strong, votes have gone to the BJP. They are sweeping there too. This needs examination. Ikramullah Gandapur funeral prayer offered today DI KHAN: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) leader Sardar Ikramullah Gandapurs funeral prayer offered on Monday morning at College Ground of his hometown Kulachi. The former agriculture minister in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa succumbed to his wounds on Sunday morning after a suicide bomber targeted his vehicle in DI Khans Kulachi tehsil. According to the sources, the incident happened when the PTI candidate was coming back home from an election meeting. Gandapur aimed to contest the upcoming general elections from PK-99 (DI Khan-V). Political personalities including the party chairman Imran Khan condemned the suicide attack. Union minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha is in the middle of a storm for garlanding a group of people who had been convicted by a fast-track court in a 2017 lynching incident in Jharkhand in which a meat trader was killed. The Opposition has already raised the issue in Parliament. Sinha spoke to Prashant Jha about recent lynchings in India, and the Jharkhand case. Edited excerpts: Rahul Gandhi spoke in Parliament about India acquiring a reputation for violence. Has there been an increase in the spate lynching incidents under the National Democratic Alliance government? Our response to this is at three different levels. First, there are certain incidents which are happening. But when you look at it at an aggregate, statistical level, we do not have the hard data to tell us if it is has gone up or gone down. Two, at the level of the government, we have been clear and strict that all forms of mob violence have to be dealt with very sternly, the police have to get strict instructions on how to maintain law and order, there has to be swift justice when people are found to have engaged in violence, and the rule of law is supreme in our constitutional democracy. Third, those who are accusing us of this kind of violence have a very chequered past on this question. Take Bengal, Kerala, or Karnataka today; or take 1984 (anti-Sikh riots in Delhi). They themselves have encouraged this kind of mob violence. I will also add that every time elections approach, whether it was Ghar Wapsi, or vandalism of churches, there is an outrage factory which includes bureaucrats, media, social activists which begins spewing venom around the theme of intolerance. Does the political ideology your party represent end up encouraging hate politics, demonising some communities, and does your presence in power embolden those inspired by this world view attack minorities? Absolutely not. The Prime Minister, the home minister, Arun Jaitley, and senior leaders have condemned violence, vigilantism, and violations of rule of law. The PM himself has said that he has only religion India and one holy book the Constitution. We have made it clear that our government represents all of India, rule of law is supreme, and because it is supreme, wherever we have found law has not been protected, we have been vigilant in ensuring rule of law. Why did you garland those who had been convicted of lynching by the lower court? The people who came to my house had come after a year in jail. They had been released on a bail order by the high court. They had been released because there was no evidence against them. Ergo, they were innocent. So for people to say they are lynchers and I was feting lynchers is not true. The truth is they were bystanders; they had been picked by the police; and had been sentenced by the fast-track court to life imprisonment on charges of murder, which is a very serious charge. When the same evidence was presented to the high court, it said there is no evidence. There will of course now be a full hearing. They came to my house because I had legally assisted them, and they were very relieved that they would get a fresh trial. It was a private meeting; I was not welcoming them in public. To take what happened there and interpret it as me condoning vigilantism, which I have always rejected, is the work of this outrage factory where independent of facts, to serve ideological ends and vote-bank politics, you manufacture a narrative. That is toxic. But the bail order also said that they were members of the mob; they have not been acquitted yet. Do you think you made a mistake? I regret garlanding them because it gave an opportunity to say I was condoning vigilantism. My intention was to ensure everyone got justice. It was for me a matter of justice, and justice alone. I did not get involved in the case, even though there was local pressure for a long time. The high court order came on June 29; they came to my house on July 4th. I spoke on this case for the first time on April 7th, 2018. The fast-track court sentences were handed down on March 21st. I did not participate in the case when it was under trial. I said, let the judicial process do what it has to do. After the sentence was pronounced, it was obvious for some people that it was a matter of justice, not of lynching. Anyone who participated in lynching and there is evidence that some people participated in violence against the victim deserves the full punishment. But the innocent should get justice. And it is my duty as the MP that everyone gets justice. They have constitutional rights too. Here is the accusation against you: The group of people convicted by the fast-track court, now on bail, are Hindus. The victim is a Muslim. Your party believes in Hindu consolidation. And you were practising this version of vote-bank politics on the ground. This is wrong. Many Muslims have come to me, to my home, and asked me to help them get justice, and I have helped them. If Mariam Khatoon (the widow of the victim) had come to me and said, help me, I would have helped her too. I dont practice that kind of politics and I dont need to. Like the rest of the government, in Hazaribagh too, I practice the politics of performance and development. Khatoon did not come to you. But her husband had died. Did you go to her? I did not go either the accused or victim in this case. Does Khatoon deserve justice? Of course, she deserves justice. The guilty should be punished. To help Khatoon, in my first statement, I had said we need a CBI (Central Bureau of investigation) probe on this matter because police is in the dock. Only an independent enquiry would be able to provide justice to Alimuddin Ansari, Khatoon, those who assaulted the victim, and those who were bystanders. A shepherd was injured while trying to save his goats and sheep from two lions on the outer limits of Gir National Park in Amreli district in Gujarat, forest department officials said on Monday. The incident took place on July 21 at Ambardi village of the district, around 240 from Ahmedabad, when the shepherd, Bhavesh Bharwad, had taken his sheep and goats to a nearby hilly area for grazing, said Range Forest Officer Kapil Bhatia. Ambardis boundary touches the forest area of the Gir National Park, the last abode of lions in Asia. According to Bhatia, when Bharwad reached the hilly area, on the outskirts of the village, with his goats and sheep, two lions tried to attack his livestock. Bharwad rushed towards the lions to scare them away. While doing so, one of the lions attacked him with its claws, said Bhatia. The lions nails left a scratch on Bharwads arm, he said. In his statement to forest officials, Bharwad said after being attacked, he started shouting to draw the attention of villagers and seek their help. Upon learning about the attack, several villagers rushed to the spot to help Bharwad. They all chased away the lions, said Bhatia. Bharwad was discharged after treatment at a health centre in Savarkundla, he added. Special Investigation Team (SIT) has arrested two more people in connection with the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh. Ganesh Miskin and Amit Baddi, both 27, are from Hubballi in northern Karnataka. They were picked up on Sunday by the SIT probing the case and were produced before a magistrate, who remanded them in police custody until August 6, according to the request for their custody. An SIT official said further details about the two could not be revealed at the moment as it would be prejudicial to the probe. News agency PTI reported quoting police sources that Baddi and Miskin had helped in recceing the area before Lankesh was shot dead on September 5 last year. Baddi was said to be a goldsmith by profession, while Miskin was into incense stick manufacturing business. With the arrest of these two, in all nine people have been arrested in connection with the murder of Gauri Lankesh, who was gunned down by motorcycle-borne assailants outside her house in Bengaluru on 5 September 2017. Last week, the SIT arrested 50-year-old Ayurveda practitioner Mohan Nayak from Dakshina Kannada district. The two fresh arrests are said to be connected to that arrest. HT had earlier reported that Nayak was suspected to have rented a house in Kumbalagodu on Bengaluru outskirts, where the chief conspirators in the case were supposed to have met, the remand application for Nayak that HT has seen states. Apart from these three, the SIT has arrested K T Naveen Kumar, Sujith Kumar alias Praveen, Amol Kale, Amit Degwekar, Manohar Yedave and Parashuram Waghmare in connection with the murder. It is unclear what role Baddi and Miskin played in the murder. Nayak was believed to have met Kale, Degwekar and one Dada alias Nihal, the alleged masterminds behind the conspiracy. Police stumbled upon Mohan Nayaks alleged role based on a number found in a diary recovered from Kale when he was arrested. The Supreme Court on Monday refused to stay the Delhi High Courts interim order banning the publication and sale of a book purportedly on the life of yoga guru Ramdev, which he claimed contained defamatory contents. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra did not grant any interim relief to the publisher Juggernaut Books, rather it asked the Delhi High Court to decide the petition by September-end. The petition by the publisher challenges a trial court order banning the publication and sale of the book titled Godman To Tycoon. The publisher had knocked the doors of the apex court after the High Court, in its interim order, had refused to lift the ban on sale and publication of the book imposed by the trial court. This court requests the Delhi High Court to decide the main petition by the end of September, the bench, which also comprised Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, said. It also directed the parties to complete the pleadings by August 7 and disposed of the petition. Senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, appearing for the petitioner publisher Juggernaut Books, said that the high court order was ad-interim in nature and also it has fixed the matter for August 9. In a relief to yoga guru Ramdev, the Delhi High Court had on May 10 issued an interim order restoring the ban on publication and sale of a book purportedly on his life, which he claimed contained defamatory content. The high court had stayed an order of the additional senior civil judge (ASCJ) which had removed the ban on the publication and sale of the book. The high court had made it clear that it would pass a detailed order in the matter later. In August last year, the ACJ had restrained the publisher from publishing and selling the book titled Godman To Tycoon till further orders. It had also restrained Amazon India and Flipkart Internet Pvt Ltd from selling the book online and said any pending delivery of the book to buyers be stopped immediately. The book authored by journalist Priyanka Pathak Narai was published in July last year. Ramdev has challenged the civil judges April-28 order by which the court had lifted the ban on the book by setting aside the injunction order of the trial court in August last year. Ramdev, in his suit, had alleged that the information in the book was false, tended to injure his reputation and led to an inference that the yoga guru had been involved in mischievous and criminal activities to achieve fame and success. The publisher had earlier said that the book was a work of serious journalism. It was the product of over 50 interviews, many of them taped, with Ramdev and key players in his life, including close aides and family members, it had said. The book contains a detailed 25-page note on sources that lists the interviews, articles, police reports and RTI replies that are the basis of each chapter, it had said in a statement. Mumbai: The Sion police have registered a case against 100 people for rioting and deterring public servants from performing their duties after an angry mob started pelting stone on government officials including policemen in front of the police station on Saturday night. The incident that took place at around 10.40pm and left two police personnel injured along with three Maharashtra Security Force (MSF) officials who were posted at the Sion hospital. The violence was fuelled because of the death of a 17-year-old Sachin Ravindra Jasvar, at Sion hospital, who was picked up for questioning by Dharavi police on July 13 for an alleged case of mobile theft. Sachin was then released after questioning the same day. After going back, he had allegedly complained to his parents about getting beaten up by the police officers. Doctors from the hospital said that the next day, on July 14, Jasvar was rushed to the hospital with complaints of diarrhoea and vomiting. The family informed us about the police beating up the teenager but there were no external injuries on his body. After multiple tests, he was diagnosed with leptospirosis and was put on ventilator. He died on Saturday night during the course of his treatment, said a senior doctor from the hospital. The family of the 17-year-old, however, continued to claim that he died due to custodial torture. Citing the allegations, his body was sent to JJ Hospital to ascertain if internal injuries played a part in his death. Dr Rajesh Dhere, head of forensic department at Sion Hospital said that there were no signs of external injuries on his body. He was on treatment for leptospirosis and citing familys allegations, we conducted an inspection of the body but there were no external injuries. However, it was decided that the JJ Hospital will conduct the autopsy and confirm the exact cause of his death, said Dr Dhere. Dr Padmaja Keskar, executive health officer, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said that they havent received any update about the new leptospirosis death from the Sion Hospital till now. Explaining the reason behind the delay in sending a report to BMC, a senior doctor from Sion Hospital said that the confirmatory report of leptospirosis diagnosis of Sachin came from Kasturba Hospital on Saturday night, due to which the update is yet to be sent to the officials of the civic body. If confirmed by the death review committee, it could be the fourth death of leptospirosis in the city this year. Two days after the Shiv Senas flip-flop over supporting the no-confidence trust motion against the Narendra Modi-led NDA government in Parliament, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah asked the state leadership to ensure partys top finish during the upcoming Lok Sabha and state polls, even if all three main political parties Congress, NCP and Shiv Sena unite against it. While opponents Congress and NCP have decided to contest the 2019 polls together against the BJP, the decision on saffron alliance is still in a limbo. While Shah did not mention Shiv Sena during a review meeting at Dadar, the takeaway for the party leadership and workers was to prepare for the polls solo, without waiting for a decision on the saffron alliance, said a senior party leader, who attended the meetings. Shahs focus was on getting the party organisation in electoral mode. While he did not mention the Sena, he said the BJP should poll more than 50% of the vote share so that even if other parties contest against it, we will win the seats, said a senior party leader. Shah held organisational meetings for election preparedness on Sunday. He held a meeting with the Lok Sabha toli (gang), comprising senior state leaders, who are part of the states extended core committee. The toli includes chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, Union minister Nitin Gadkari, state party president Raosaheb Danve, finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar, revenue minister Chandrakant Patil, education minister Vinod Tawde, city unit chief Ashish Shelar, women and child development minister Pankaja Munde among others. He also addressed a meeting of states 288 party workers, appointed as vistaraks, for as many constituencies. He also chaired a similar review meeting with Goas Lok Sabha toli. The party presidents message was that our electoral preparations are not dependent on the alliance. Our senior leadership feels that if they (Sena) join us, good; if not, we still have to win. In the 2014 polls, when the alliance broke last minute ahead of the Assembly polls, we did well because we had activated our booth level workers, added the senior leader. Shah stressed on connecting with people at the grass roots level. He suggested that this can be achieved by keeping in touch with at least five families and celebrating festivals at the booth level, and putting in place 25 workers per booth, etc. We have been asked to keep a list of government scheme beneficiaries at the booth level, re-activate our social media supporters etc. Basically, we have been asked to get into poll mode aggressively, said one vistarak. The BJP did not release any official communication on Shahs review meetings. Shah has been on a nationwide tour to review the organisational machinery of the BJP ahead of the 2019 polls. The tour ended on Sunday. A self-proclaimed godman was arrested in Maharashtra for allegedly making his male followers engage in unnatural sexual acts with each other, police said on Monday. Asif Noori (38) was arrested from a neighbouring district and brought in Parbhani on Sunday night, district Superintendent of Police Dilip Zalake said. We received a complaint on Friday from a few citizens after video and audio clips of him allegedly forcing male followers into unnatural sex were circulated on social media, he said. Unsuspecting victims from different parts of the state used to seek Nooris help in solving their personal problems. However, the self-styled godman made them indulge in unnatural sex with each other for vicarious pleasure, said Ashok Ghorband, senior inspector of Kotwali in Parbhani. Noori was staying in a madrasa at Dargah Road in Parbhani in Maharashtras Marathwada region. As the madrasa was allegedly used for the act, an offence under IPC section 295 (defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class) will be registered against Noori, the officer said. The arrest comes days after the Supreme Court reserved its judgement on IPC section 377, which prohibits unnatural sex. However, the victims have not been booked under this section, Ghorband said. Our team got information about his location on Sunday and nabbed him from adjoining Buldhana district, he said. According to officials, Noori used to target young married men from Nanded and Parbhani districts of Marathwada by claiming to possess divine powers. He used to take the victims in a room on the pretext of performing rituals. There he would sedate them and force them to engage in unnatural sex with each other, they said. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said he will not visit Pandharpur, in the Solapur district, as planned on Monday a decision that comes after Maratha outfits threatened to disrupt his visit, as they intensify their agitation for reservations for the community in education and government jobs. Its a long-standing tradition in Maharashtra for the chief minister and his spouse to conduct the morning prayers for the deities at the Lord Vitthal temple in Pandharpur on Ashadi Ekadashi. This tradition has been important to the Warkari sect, which has a large following in the state. This is the first time in two decades that a chief minister would not be present for the prayers. Fadnavis said he had received intelligence reports that miscreants may try to create trouble. No one can stop me from going for the prayers at Pandharpur, Fadnavis said. But, I dont want to create any trouble for the 10 lakh pilgrims who are already there. There are intelligence inputs that some miscreants can create trouble, which may result in an untoward incident. The CM added that stopping a chief minister from doing the prayers was absolutely wrong. I have been attending the prayer as a representative of the people of Maharashtra. If the community can get reservations by pelting stones at me, then I am ready for that too, he said. The Maratha protests were triggered in 2016, by the brutal rape and murder of a minor girl in Ahmednagar. The communitys main demand at the time was the death penalty for her attackers. The protests have since grown into a statewide movement, with demands now including reservations in government jobs and education, a revision of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the construction of the Shivaji statue in the Arabian Sea, and freeships to economically backward Maratha students. Between August 9, 2016 and August 9, 2017, the community had held 58 massive silent marches in several parts of the state the last a massive rally in Mumbai. Now, nearly a year later, several Maratha outfits have once again started increasing the pressure on the state government to fulfil its demands quickly. The last time a chief minister decided against conducting the prayers at the temple was 1997, when Manohar Joshi was at the helm. Dalit outfits had said they would oppose his visit, after a police firing at Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar in Mumbai left 10 Dalits dead. Organisers responded to the CMs statement on Sunday, calling it irresponsible. Basically, he is trying to defame a community that has been peaceful during rallies conducted over the past two years, in which lakhs of people have taken part, said Virendra Pawar, one of the organisers. Threatening to stop the CM doesnt mean he will be attacked. It only means blocking his way, and that too, to highlight our problems, Pawar said. Meanwhile, some agitators in Solapur blocked a cavalcade of senior BJP minister Subhash Deshmukh on Sunday, after which the minister promised them that the state would provide reservations in jobs and education to the community by the next Ashadhi Ekadashi. Deshmukh, who is from Solapur, was on his way to Pandharpur when his cavalcade was blocked. Deshmukh tried to pacify the protestors by saying he would resign if the government failed to keep its word. In Mumbai too, the community held small protests at three places Lalbaug, Goregaon and Chembur. Pawar said, This is just the beginning. We will continue our protests in the city in different forms. However, there wont be any violence. Meanwhile, a sit-in protest by the community at Parli, in the Beed district, has entered its sixth day. The community has been demanding 16% reservation in government jobs and education. Currently, it is demanding that the government puts on hold the recruitment for 72,000 posts until the Bombay high courts verdict on the quota question. Fadnavis said the government could not hold the entire recruitment process as youths from all the communities will get affected. We will reserve 16% posts in the name of filling backlog, which means recruitment for these posts is going to be held up, he said. As the stir gains momentum once again, political parties in the state criticised the chief minister for failing to resolve the issue. Fadnavis is facing this disgrace of not being able to attend the special prayers at Pandharpur because, so far, he had being making tall promises, said Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant. Jayant Patil, the state NCP chief, said the chief minister wouldnt have to face such a situation if he had resolved the issue on time. MNS chief Raj Thackeray said the state was using a time-buying tactic. What is the guarantee the Maratha community will get the 16% reservation?. Of 1,095 megawatt (MW) rooftop solar capacity in India, Maharashtra leads the way with maximum number of installations and capacity at 145.09MW, according to data from the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE). Officials said 60% installations are from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Pune, Nagpur, Nashik, Aurangabad and remaining from rural areas across the state that have adopted solar in the form of water heaters. A 2017 study by the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IITB) and think tank Observer Research Foundation (ORF) found that Mumbai has the potential to generate 1.72gigawatt peak (GWp) solar power per annum through photovoltaic (solar) panels installed atop buildings. This means solar energy can take care of half of Mumbais power needs, which has an annual demand of around 3.4gigawatt. Currently, the city generates only 5megawatt peak power (MWp) solar energy 0.3% of its potential. Gujarat was a close second to Maharashtra in the list with 136.21MW capacity, followed by Tamil Nadu (123.91MW), Karnataka (104.82MW), Rajasthan (78.94MW) and Haryana (76.95MW). MNRE officials said India has set a target of reaching 40gigawatt (GW) rooftop solar capacity by 2022. The state-wise grid connected rooftop solar power plant capacity in India is getting stronger each day. Over the past two years (2016-18), 842 crore has been released to state governments and implementing agencies to install such rooftop plants. A number of initiatives have also been undertaken, both at the Central and state levels, to have wider rooftop solar connectivity in rural and urban areas, said RK Singh, minister of state, MNRE, who also presented the data in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. Officials in the state government said while it was good news that Mahrashtra leads the way, more needs to be done. We have already moved in the direction to adopt pilot villages and convert them completely to solar, including cooking, water heating and common lighting. Once this happens, we might be able to eliminate our fossil fuel need, said Satish Gavai, additional chief secretary, industries, energy and labour department. SP Gon Chaudhuri, chairman, International Solar Innovation Council, a global body of solar energy experts, and a scientist who developed the first rooftop solar programme in India, said the target for 2022 maybe tough to meet. Some people take rejection too hard so much so, they land in jail. Take for example a 28-year-old man, who was arrested on Sunday after he allegedly called up the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport saying a 26-year-old Yemeni woman was carrying a bomb in her bag. And all of this, only to get back at her, as she had rejected his proposal on Saturday. According to the Sahar police, the accused, Qutubudin Hatimbhai Shahiwala, called the airport control room around 1am on Saturday, claiming the woman was carrying a bomb in her bag. After the woman reached the airport for her 5am flight to Yemen, the authorities stopped her and checked all her baggage, but found nothing. At 2.30am, when she was questioned, they found that she was being threatened by Shahiwala. He had warned her to not leave him or he would create trouble for her. The number Shahiwala had used to call was verified by the woman. A police team then rushed to his residence on Mohamed Ali Road and arrested him. Shahiwala, who hails from Madhya Pradesh and has been living in Mumbai for the past five years, had met the woman on a matrimonial website a few months ago. After chatting on WhatsApp, when she flew down to Mumbai for her fathers treatment, she decided to meet Shahiwala. He had told her he was wealthy, but the woman found that the information was false. Shahiwala worked at a shop. When she decided to leave for Yemen, Shahiwala kept threatening her to marry him. He has been booked under sections 506 (2) (criminal intimidation) and 505 (1) (b) of the Indian Penal Code. He has been remanded in police custody. He does not have a prior criminal record. Three killed in IHK SRINAGAR: Three separatists were killed in a gun battle with troops in India-held Kashmir early on Sunday, police said.Counterinsurgency police and soldiers staged an early morning raid on a cluster of homes in southern Khudwani village on a tip that separatists were hiding there and came under fire, said top police officer S.P. Vaid. In the ensuing fighting, three separatists were killed while troops suffered no casualties, he said. Residents said the raiding troops torched two houses where the separatists were trapped. The fighting came a day after separatists abducted and killed a police official in the same area. In recent years, local police working with Indias counterinsurgency forces have increasingly been targeted by the separatists, who accuse them of being collaborators. Kashmiris have been fighting Indian control over the disputed Himalayan region since 1989, demanding that the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or recognised as an independent country. The city crime branch arrested two toddy traders on Monday for conspiring and hiring a shooter from West Bengal to eliminate the liquor merchant-turned-Right to Information (RTI) activist, Podeti Satyanarayana Goud, 56, in Telangana on May 9. The arrested accused have been identified as Rajeshwar Goud, 46, who lives in Bandra (East) and Rajaiyya Kasakpore, 50, who lives in Jogeshwari. Rajeshwar has toddy shops in Anand Nagar in Jogeshwari and several other places too while Kasakpore has three toddy shops in Khar, Vile Parle and Kherwadi in Bandra (East). Officers of unit one of the Mumbai crime branch got a tip-off about the duo and arrested them on Monday morning from Bandra. Telangana police has been informed about the suspects and they will be handed over to them for investigation, said Vinayak Mer, police inspector. Goud had filed many RTI petitions with the Maharashtra Excise department alleging sale of adulterated toddy in Mumbai by the toddy traders from Telangana, said a crime branch officer. Following the RTI petition, the excise department conducted raids at several illegal toddy shops and licenses of many traders were cancelled.The toddy traders in Mumbai and Telangana were against Goud for filing petitions. To settle scores with Goud, more than 200 toddy dealers in Mumbai and Telangana, hired shooter Hanjil Shaikh Musharaf alias Bhaiya ji, 26, to get Goud killed. As per the plan, around 12 members, including Rajeshwar and Kasakpore, representing the entire toddy traders, fixed a meeting with him. He was taken to Dharmapuri area where Musharaf was already waiting, said Amit Pawar, assistant police inspector, unit one of the crime branch. Goud was then shot dead by Musharaf. An eyewitness had registered a case and the name of the main conspirator, Rajeshwar , came to light after that. The Telangana police collected forensic evidence and empty bullets from the crime scene. Musharaf and nine other accused were arrested after 15 days of search. Rescue teams on Monday recovered the body of a boy aged around six years from the debris of a building that collapsed in Ghaziabad a day earlier. A 35-year-old construction worker, Rajesh, was killed in the collapse at Akash Nagar on Sunday afternoon and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team was trying to retrieve others feared trapped in the debris. Districts chief medical officer Dr NK Gupta confirmed the death of Sagar (6). He was a minor boy aged around six years. He was brought dead after being retrieved from the debris. One person had already died on Sunday. In all, we have two persons dead so far, he said. Eight injured persons were rescued, of which three were referred to GTB Hospital in Delhi. Others are still under treatment in Ghaziabad hospital, he added. Police have lodged an FIR on a complaint by an engineer of the Ghaziabad development authority (GDA). The five-storeyed building at Akash Nagar was illegally constructed and was due for demolition since December 2017. However, the next date of demolition was set on July 30. The building collapsed around 2.15pm on Sunday. GDA vice-chairperson Ritu Maheshwari attributed the delay to the lack of sufficient police aid for the demolition drive. However, police said the GDA did not ask for the forces. We provide forces to different departments as and when available. The GDA had been carrying on the procedure for demolition of the building for the past several months. If the police force is not available on a certain date, they could have asked for it on next available days. They never did so, said AK Maurya, superintendent of police (rural). Following the collapse, GDA officials late on Sunday night sent a complaint to the police, who registered an FIR under IPC sections of 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 288 (negligent conduct with respect to pulling down or repairing buildings) besides imposing provisions of the Criminal Law Amendment Act. Police have booked Kishanpal Tomar, Mukesh Singh, Dinesh Kumar and an unidentified person in the FIR lodged at Masuri police station. The FIR has been lodged against the persons who were getting the building constructed and also the land owner, said Vaibhav Krishna, senior superintendent of police. To improve the learning outcomes of students, we will soon be passing a bill to conduct two examinations for Class 5 and Class 8 students, once we receive the approval from the Rajya Sabha on the same, said Prakash Javadekar, human resource development minister, at an event in the city, on Sunday. Javadekar was speaking at a gas cylinder distribution event in the city organised under the Prime Ministers Ujwala Yojna. The bill, which was introduced as an amendment seeking revocation of the no detention policy in Class 5 and Class 8, was passed in the Lok Sabha on July 18. This move came after the ministry received recommendations from 24 states to address the issue of higher number of students with poor marks. By moving the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Second Amendment) Bill, 2017, which advocates regular examination in Class 5 and Class 8, Javadekar aims to solve the problem of students dropping out, and poor performance in schools, especially at schools run by the government. In the original Act, no child admitted in a school was to be held back or expelled from the school until they completed their elementary education. This often leads to the eventual drop in performance in Class 9, as till Class 8, all students passed despite poor performance. The lack of learning outcome would reflect in the later years during secondary education, causing a lacunae in the entire education quality of students. With the new amendment in the Act, the states will be given the powers to hold back or detain a child, if he or she fails to clear the re-examination. Students will be given another chance to pass the exams, if they fail in the one held in March. The re-test will be then held in May, both for Class 5 and Class 8. The amendment in the Act, is now awaiting the approval of the Rajya Sabha. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday asked the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to expel partys Rupnagar MLA Amarjit Singh Sandoa from the party and also demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as well as registration of an FIR in a sodomy complaint filed against him in 2012. In a statement, former minister and SAD spokesman Maheshinder Singh Grewal said AAP leader Amandeep Bains has revealed that there were serious charges of sodomy pending against Sandoa. The Punjab government to register an FIR against the MLA, said Grewal. Besides, deportation of Sandoa from Canada was a clear message to the AAP leadership as to how there was zero tolerance for crime against women, he said. The AAP has also always claimed to stand for woman safety publicly, but it refused to talk and take action against Sandoa when he assaulted and outraged the modesty of his landlady. Now, even charges have been framed against the AAP MLA by a court. It is condemnable that while the Canadian government has taken notice of these developments and deported Sandoa and his colleague Kultar Singh Sadhwan, the AAP had failed to act against the legislator, said Grewal. However, Sandhwan said the Canadian authorities had made no reference to the case against his party colleague. Stating that the deportation was an insult to Punjab as well as the entire community, Grewal said the AAP leadership was responsible for this because tainted persons like Sandoa were given party tickets. The only way forward for the AAP and its chief Arvind Kejriwal is to expel Sandoa from the party and seek his resignation from the Vidhan Sabha, he said, adding the Punjab AAP unit should also clear its stand on the issue. Sunita Parmar (31) in Pakistans Sindh province will become the first Hindu woman to contest the provincial assembly elections to be held on Wednesday. A member of the scheduled caste and from the Meghwar community, Parmar is contesting as an independent candidate for the Sindh Assembly constituency PS-56 from Tharparkar district in the Thar Desert - one of the countrys most backward constituencies where voters complain of lack of schools, roads and water. According to the 2017 census, Tharparkar has a population of 1.6 million, half of whom are Hindus. Most like Parmar belongs to the scheduled castes, at the bottom of the social class system. She knows that she is challenging centuries-old caste divisions, traditional prejudices and a class system where the elite have wielded power. It has been very difficult and I have had to work very hard. In this, I have been greatly supported by the women of my area. I am doing this to get us out of the clutches of the elite class system. The middle class people of Thar are tired of voting for these elite lords. It is my heartfelt desire to free us all of the elite class system and improve our lives Parmar explains. Parmar says she was compelled to contest the upcoming polls as previous governments failed to deliver on their promises of making life better for the people of her constituency, especially women. In rural areas, people face a lot of difficulties during labour. There are no roads so it is very difficult to find transportation. Quite often, women have died in route due to labor complications. There are so many such problems. If I win the election, then I will open a maternity hospital that caters to two to three villages with a competent gynecologist. Schools and education is almost non-existent here. People in Thar are unable to educate their children as there are no schools. Even the girls in villages across Thar (desert) hope to go educated. They want to be like other children but they are unable to due to lack of schools. Even if there is a school, there are no teachers. If I win, my first bill will be on education she says. Over 50 per cent of its 152,000 registered voters in Thar district belong to the Hindu community the highest in Pakistan, according to local authority data. Parmar heads on the campaign trail with her trademark matka (water pitcher made of clay) balanced on her head, a powerful symbol of her connection to the lives of the people she wants to represent. Parmar and her team head to one of the 400 villages that fall within the provincial assembly constituency that she contesting. Resident Malika Bai says that the elite class that her family has regularly voted has failed to deliver on its promises. We dont have schools. We dont have water. We have to pull out water from well that are hundreds of feet deep and they are also running dry. There is no road that leads to our village. We have nothing. She says she will vote for Parmar who promises to improve standards of education for women and health facilities in her constituency. Parmars election symbol resonates with my voters in these rural villages. Matka (traditional water jug) is my election symbol. Its called garah in the Sindhi language. The women get really happy when they see my election symbol. They say it is extremely memorable as the water jug is on their head nearly the whole day. They also tell me that they are tired of voting for the elite families as they have not done anything for the area, says Parmar. (With AP inputs) United States President Donald Trump said on Monday that he gave up nothing at last weeks private meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin but remained elusive about their conversation as fellow Republicans and other critics questioned any potential deals. Following the two leaders summit in Helsinki, Trump previously said they discussed a range of issues, including efforts to denuclearise North Korea, peace efforts in the Middle East and cyber attacks but has not given any details. Russian officials have said Putin made concrete proposals to Trump during their one-on-one talk regarding the conflict in Ukraine. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also said the two discussed the Syrian crisis. But top US intelligence officials and members of Congress have said they do not know what was discussed and have not been briefed. I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries, Trump tweeted. When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries. Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Despite the fierce criticism, Trump has extended an invitation for Putin to visit Washington for a second meeting this autumn. Ousted Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who is in a prison on corruption charges, is suffering from heart and kidney problems and must be immediately transferred to a hospital from Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, doctors have said. A team of doctors from the military-run Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology, headed by its major general (retd) Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani, carried out a detailed medical check-up of Sharif after he complained of chest pain and hypertension on Sunday night. The doctors said the condition of Sharif, who is Adiala Jail for the last ten days, has taken a turn for the worse. They said the water level in Sharifs body is very low, which has made his heartbeat erratic. The amount of urea in his blood has also become very high and could even lead to kidney failure. Dr Kayani said in his report that the former prime minister should be shifted to a hospital as the jail does not have the necessary medical facilities required to treat his condition. However, jail authorities said the 68-year-old would be examined again on Monday before any decision is taken to move him. Sharifs condition was first highlighted by Dr Adnan, his personal physician who has seen him twice in the past week. Dr Adnan was allowed to visit Sharif only after media reports highlighted the alleged poor conditions in which the former prime minister was being kept. Sharif was examined by Dr Adnan after he was perspiring profusely during the meeting with his lawyers on Saturday. The team of doctors from the Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology was called after Dr Adnan insisted on a second opinion. Dr Adnan said Sharif has a long history of heart problems and undergone two medical procedures, including a bypass surgery. Sharif also suffers from hypertension, associated sub-normal kidney function, and other complications. Caretaker provincial ministers Shaukat Javed and Ahmed Waqas Riaz said the jail superintendent has been informed about Sharifs health issues and the home department has formed a medical board which will perform another checkup on Monday to decide on whether to shift him to a hospital. They confirmed that Sharifs medical tests suggested he had kidney issues. The caretaker government is in touch with jail authorities and Sharif is getting better medical facilities, they added. Officials of the Punjab prisons department said they are waiting for the orders from the provinces home department about shifting Sharif to the hospital. Sharifs Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party leaders have said that doctors, who examined Sharif at Adiala Jail, knew about his critical condition, including the heart disease, and that the current weather fluctuating between extreme humidity and heat was inevitably going to affect his health adversely. They accused that jail authorities chose not to provide him with an air conditioner that was so necessary because of his heart condition. The caretaker government has been criticised for the way it has handled Sharifs detention. Sharif and his daughter Maryam, 44, were arrested in Lahore on July 13 on their arrival from London after an accountability court found them guilty over his familys ownership of four luxury flats in London. Both Sharif and Maryam have been sentenced to 10 and 7 years in prison. The chief commissioner office issued a notification on the same day that Sharif and Maryam would be kept in Sihala Police Training College Rest House in Islamabad. However, the notification was later withdrawn. It stated in another notification that only Maryam would be kept in the rest house and Sharif would be taken to Adiala Jail, only to withdraw it. Yet another notification was issued early on Saturday, stating that both Nawaz and Maryam would be kept in Adiala Jail. Reports that the authorities had decided to send Maryam to Sihala guest house surfaced again. However, this decision was postponed reportedly after she refused to be shifted to the guest house, saying she wanted to stay where she was. The chances of PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif of becoming Pakistans next prime minister may be slim, but in the case of a hung parliament, he may well be the ideal choice for all quarters, say political analysts. Unlike elder brother Nawaz Sharif, Shehbaz plays his cards close to his chest. He has not confronted or challenged any state institution in public and has always stayed on the right side of the military. In the past, he has acted as a go-between for his brother and the military high command. While not a favourite with the establishment, many believe he could be a good compromise candidate in case of a deadlock. From 1988, when he contested on a provincial assembly ticket till 2018, Shehbaz Sharif has always played second fiddle to Nawaz. But now that his elder brother has been indefinitely disqualified from taking part in elections, this may be the opportunity Shehbaz has been waiting for. Shehbaz is seen as one of Pakistans most effective politicians. In his three stints as chief minister of Punjab, he has managed to raise social indicators and revitalise trade and industry in the province. He is a strict administrator who has managed the provinces bureaucracy effectively. High profile projects like the metro bus project and the orange line train have enhanced his reputation as someone who delivers on his promises. In his latest stint as chief minister, with the help of the federal government, Shehbaz managed to overcome Punjabs chronic power shortage and this achievement, with the help of Chinese investment, has enhanced his popularity. The vacuum created by the disqualification of Nawaz has given Shehbaz the opportunity to now bid for national office. Given his past record, he will be an excellent choice for prime minister, says analyst Asad Kharal. Till now, his achievements had been hijacked by Nawaz. Now it is an open field for him. It is these kind of comments that have caused friction between the two brothers in the past. Till their father, Muhammad Sharif was alive, the two would obey him without question. But after his death, there have been times when Shehbaz has expressed his displeasure over Nawazs decisions, though never in public. The most recent such incident was when Nawaz wanted to make his daughter Maryam Nawaz the PML-N president. Shehbaz reacted strongly and was eventually was given the mantle earlier this year. Recently, Shehbaz has been under fire for the rally he held to welcome Nawaz back to Lahore. Critics say that instead of pushing ahead and confronting the law enforcement agencies, Shehbaz was content to stay at a distance and do little else. He betrayed his brother, claimed one Nawaz supporter. Unlike his brother, Shehbaz has a more colourful personality. He is also known for his many wives. His first wife was by an arranged marriage to his cousin. His current wife is the author Tehmina Durrani a woman known to have very strong opinions of her own. In between, there have been many others. One such woman who Shehbaz married briefly goes by the name Honey and has a underpass by her name near her house. No matter what the official name is, most Lahore residents know it as the Honey underpass. He is also known to speak his mind, sometimes in public rallies, at great cost to himself. In a recent visit to Karachi, he made fun of the residents accent and called them the pan-wallahs. This remark for which he has never apologised may have cost him any chance of a win in Karachi. Speaking at a rally in Sargodha city over the weekend, Shehbaz claimed that the audience can change my name if he did not take Pakistan ahead of India in power generation. If I do not end load shedding crisis in six months, you can change my name, he said. They (Indians) will come to Wagah Border and call Pakistanis their ustaad. He added that he would visit Malaysias Mahathir Mohamad and Turkeys Recep Tayyip Erdogan to learn from them and make Pakistan a great nation again. In jest he also said that U-turn signs in Lahore should be removed from roads and should be replaced by the picture of Imran Khan, given the number of times Imran Khan has done a U turn and changes his stance on matters. As things stand, Shehbaz remains well in the race for premiership if election results do not go as planned for the establishment. Many say that this would be the best news for Pakistan in many years. Pakistans military on Sunday denied accusations of stage managing the general elections, calling on the Supreme Court to initiate appropriate process to ascertain the veracity of the allegations. The militarys statement, tweeted out by its chief spokesman Asif Ghafoor, was in response to claims by Islamabad high court judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui on Saturday that the ISI was pressurising the judiciary into doing its bidding. The statement posted by Ghafoor read: An honourable judge of Islamabad high court of Pakistan has levelled serious allegations against state institutions, including honorary judiciary and the premier state intelligence agency. The statement says that in order to safeguard the sanctity and credibility of the state institutions, the Supreme Court has been requested to initiate appropriate process to ascertain the veracity of the allegations and take actions accordingly. Earlier on Sunday, Chief Justice Saqib Nisar took serious notice of a speech delivered by justice Siddiqui... alleging interference of intelligence agencies of the country in judicial matters. The top judge has also called for complete record of the speech from the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra). Siddiqui, while addressing the Rawalpindi Bar Association on Saturday, had claimed that ISI personnel were manipulating judicial proceedings against the Sharif family. Their personnel get benches formed at their will, Justice Siddiqui had alleged. He had further claimed that the spy agency had approached Islamabad high court chief justice Muhammad Anwar Khan Kasi and said: We do not want to let Nawaz Sharif and his daughter come out (of prison) until elections, do not include Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui on the bench (hearing Sharifs appeals). I know who takes whose message to the Supreme Court, Siddiqui had further said. Why was the administrative control of the accountability court taken away from the Islamabad high court? He further alleged that the judiciarys freedom has been divested and that it is now in control of those with guns. I was told that if you assure us of decisions in our favour, we will end cases against you, Siddiqui claimed, adding that he was offered to be made chief justice of the high court by September. Chief Justice Nisar, during his day-long visit to Karachi on Sunday, told reporters: Being the top judge, I am making it abundantly clear that there is no pressure on us. We are working under the supremacy of the Constitution and the law. Such statements are inconceivable and unacceptable, he continued, adding that he will take into consideration all possible legal actions on the matter. He assured reporters that legal action would be taken and the facts of the matter brought before the public. No one can dare put pressure on the judiciary, he said, clarifying that he wanted to apprise the public in their own interest, not because there was any pressure on the judiciary to do so. Jamas nos callaran Fisica y culturalmente Nec plus ultra, nec variatur Precio del Brent To get the BRENT oil price, please enable Javascript. Precio del WTI To get the oil price, please enable Javascript. Paginas vistas en total Dolar USA Vs Euro Sin ellas, no seremos Deja vu Nada que celebrar Hasta cuando? 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Por culpa de Chavez Cerveza Polar Algun dia Colombia volvera a la ideologia de Bolivar Translate LOS REVOLUCIONARIOS NO TOMAN CACA-COLA No se trata solamente de un capricho, sino de una sana actitud en todos los sentidos. Desde la solidaridad con el pueblo colombiano donde la empresa Caca-Cola ha cometido los mas grandes abusos contra sus trabajadores incluyendo el presunto secuestro y asesinato de los dirigentes del sindicato, hasta la proteccion de la salud de nuestros hijos, enviciados por ese jarabe de cola y azucar, que les produce obesidad prematura. Pensemos tambien los revolucionarios, que ese dinero que gastamos en los refrescos es utilizado por esas empresas para financiar el terrorismo en nuestro pais. Es cierto, no se trata solo de la Caca-Cola, sino tambien de la cerveza, de los cigarrillos y todos esos articulos innecesarios y mas que eso, daninos para nuestra salud. Podriamos incluso pensar en un dia de parada para cada uno de ellos. Es cuestion de irnos organizando. Pero para empezar, que tal si dejamos de comprar Caca-Cola y sus similares? Cuando lo extraordinario se vuelve cotidiano... Discurso del Acto de Grado en Barinas en 12 de Febrero del 2005 Queridos Graduandos: Mas que un discurso, quiero dirigirles algunas palabras que escribi anoche, despues de visitar en las clinicas, a los estudiantes heridos, a consecuencia de los enfrentamientos con la policia de hace apenas dos dias. Me ha tocado por razones del destino, ser la persona que les otorgue el titulo que bien merecieron con sus estudios. Y me siento sumamente orgulloso de serlo. Me consta que la Universidad de Los Llanos Occidentales Ezequiel Zamora, a pesar de lo dicho por los enemigos de esta universidad, es una universidad de primera. No tendremos la mejor planta fisica, en los salones hace calor. En el comedor hace calor. Pero no es en lo material que las cosas deben valorarse. El mayor capital es el ser humano. Y en eso, nuestra UNELLEZ, lo digo con conocimiento de causa, esta sobrada. Los llaneros venezolanos son nobles, valientes, de coraje. En la UNELLEZ hacen vida, en este momento, aproximadamente 67000 personas. El 97% de ellas son estudiantes. Jovenes que, como Ustedes hasta el dia de hoy, buscan ese titulo, que constata los anos de dedicacion y de estudio. Los jovenes son el rio de la vida, ustedes graduados deben ser los capitanes de esos barcos que naveguen por el rio de la vida. Nuestra Patria atraviesa momentos muy dificiles porque decidio dejar de ser esa matrona de edad vetusta y complaciente, para ser joven, rebelde y altanera. Nuestra imagen ya no es la de una acaudalada ricachona mayamera. En nuestro rostro brilla ahora la sonrisa del Che Guevara, con su diente delantero torcido, su pelo largo y su boina con la estrella. Entender esto, a mi me ha tomado practicamente toda la vida. Tengo 53 anos, y ya perdi mi oportunidad de derramar sangre joven a causa de un ideal. Ustedes son jovenes, estan en la flor de la vida. No cometan por favor el error de renunciar a su instinto de rebelion. El Che Guevara fue Ministro de a Economia en Cuba. Los billetes y las monedas se adornaban con su rostro. Nada de eso le importo. Primero fue a Angola donde paso un penoso ano de combate. Despues se fue a Bolivia, donde encontro la muerte. El Che era el ultimo que comia, el que cargaba la mochila mas pesada. Siempre se sacrificaba por los demas en un estoicismo que mas parecia fervor religioso que ideologia marxista. Si quieren un modelo de vida. Ahi lo tienen. Dije hace unos momentos que el 97% de la poblacion de la UNELLEZ es estudiante. Se imaginan Ustedes la Universidad que podriamos tener si todos los estudiantes tuvieran la abnegacion, la combatividad del Che? Los momentos que se avecinan van a requerir de una gran unidad del pueblo venezolano. La alternativa de continuar siendo libres o regresar a la pobreza se nos planteara en los proximos dias de forma enmascarada, o quizas peor, desenmascarada, vestida con uniforme de soldado del Imperio. Por nuestra parte podemos esperar lo mejor. La macroeconomia no podria ir mejor, la justicia social ha mejorado notablemente. Las misiones ocupan un papel muy importante en el pago de dicha justicia social. Aqui en Barinas ya hemos cumplido con dos de las misiones, la mision Robinson y la mision Sucre. No hay analfabetismo y no hay exclusion en la educacion superior, en estas tierras de Zamora. Pero ay malhaya! Son precisamente estos exitos los que nos hacen mas antipaticos al Imperio. Para ellos, somos inclusive un mal ejemplo que se esta contagiando al resto del continente y cuidado sino al resto del mundo. Nunca venceremos al Imperio. Estara siempre ahi, acechando. Por lo menos hasta que el mismo no se autodestruya. Porque, sepanlo senores, el neoliberalismo es canibal. Cuando le ataque el hambre, se devorara a si mismo. Ustedes, queridos graduandos, a partir de hoy pasan a conformar la elite profesional que debe sostener este pais en los proximos cuarenta o cincuenta anos. Anos decisivos para el logro de nuestra libertad y del rescate de nuestra Soberania. No se dejen comprar. No se dejen corromper. No se dejen gritar. No se dejen pisar. Que nadie les diga que comer, o que vestirse, o que leer. Sean siempre autenticos, rebeldes, contestatarios. Pero eso si, profundamente patriotas, dignos de ser hijos de Bolivar. Muchas gracias y que Dios los bendiga. Alguna duda? Medio siglo de Holocausto Palestino Oscar Zanartu Nacio en Caracas en 1960. Ha realizado exposiciones individuales en las galerias Minotauro, Clave y San Francisco, y en salas de Coro, estado Falcon, y Puerto Ordaz, estado Bolivar. En Paris su obra ha sido exhibida en el Centro Cultural Tanagra, en la Exposicion Cite Internationale des Arts, en las galerias De Mars y Arver Space, al igual que en la Galeria Municipal Levallois, en Levallois Perret (Francia). En muestras colectivas, su obra se ha expuesto en Belgica, Francia, Estados Unidos y Venezuela; en Caracas intervino en la exposicion "Del genesis a la memoria", 1995, organizada por la Fundacion La Previsora. En 1982 obtuvo el Premio Nacional Critven y en 1990 la Mencion de Honor Jose Antonio Paez, en la Embajada de Venezuela en Paris. En 1991 se le concedio el primer premio de Pintura Itinerante, en Levallois Perret, Francia. OZ1 OZ2 OZ3 OZ4 Homenaje a Jason Galarraga La Victoria de Samotracia Odalisca Mas fotos de la nevada del pasado agosto 2008 La Sierra Nevada de Merida Nuestro precioso Churum Meru Homenaje a Picasso Autoretrato Sabes lo que bebes en una Coca-Cola? La formula de la Pepsi tiene una diferencia basica con la de la Coca-Cola y es intencional, para evitar el proceso judicial. La diferencia es a proposito, pero suficientemente parecida como para atraer a los consumidores de Coca-Cola que prefieren un gusto diferente con menos sal y azucar. Mi profesion? Tuve que aprender quimica, entender todo sobre componentes de gaseosas, conservantes, sales, acidos, cafeina, enlatado, produccion, permisos, aprobaciones y muchas otras cosas. Monte mi propio mini-laboratorio de analisis de productos. Sal en la Coca Cola? A patadas. El Cloruro de Sodio no solo refresca sino da mas sed, como para pedir otra gaseosa. Y no resulta desagradable porque la sal mata literalmente la sensibilidad al dulce... del que por cierto tambien tiene mucho: 39 gramos de azucar. De los 350 gramos de producto liquido, mas del 10% es azucar, o sea que en una lata de Coca-Cola mas de un centimetro y medio es puro azucar en polvo. Aproximadamente tres cucharadas soperas llenas de azucar por lata!!La formula de la Coca Cola es muy sencilla: Concentrado de azucar quemado caramelo- para dar color oscuro y gusto Acido fosforito (para darle el sabor acido) azucar (HFCS-jarabe de maiz de alta fructosa) Extracto de hojas de la planta de Coca (Africa e India) y otros pocos aromatizantes naturales de otras plantas Mucha Cafeina Conservante que puede ser Benzoato de Sodio o Potasio Dioxido de Carbono en cantidad para sentir freir la lengua cuando se bebe Sal para dar la sensacion de refrigeracion El uso del acido fosforito y no del acido citrico como en todas las demas gaseosas, es para dar la sensacion de dientes y boca limpia al beber. El acido fosforito literalmente frie todo y dana el esmalte de los dientes, cosa que el acido citrico lo hace en menor grado.Trate de comprar acido fosforito para ver las mil recomendaciones de seguridad que te dan para su manipulacion (quema el cristalino del ojo, quema la piel, etc...). Esta prohibido usar el acido fosforito en cualquier otra gaseosa; solo la Coca Cola tiene permiso. Porque claro, sin el acido fosforico, la Coca Cola sabria a jabon.El extracto de coca y otras hojas casi no cambia en nada el sabor. Es mas bien un efecto cosmetico. El extracto forma parte de la Coca-Cola porque legalmente tiene que ser asi. Pero sin el, no se nota ninguna diferencia en el gusto, que esta dado basicamente por las cantidades diferentes de azucar, azucar quemada, sales, acidos y conservantes.Sabor a que...? ja, ja, ja. Aqui en Bartow, sur de Orlando, hay una empresa quimica que produce aromatizantes y esencias para zumos. Envian diariamente camionadas de sales concentradas y esencias para las fabricas de helados, gaseosas, jugos, enlatados y comida colorida y aromatizada.Cuando visite por primera vez la fabrica, pedi ver el deposito de concentrados de frutas, que deberia ser inmenso, especialmente los de naranja, pina, fresa y tantos otros. El encargado me miro, se rio y me llevo a visitar los depositos inmensos... pero de colorantes y componentes quimicos. Las gaseosa de naranja no contiene naranja. En los zumos dizque de fresa, hasta los puntitos que quedan en suspension estan hechos de goma (una liga quimica que envuelve un semi-polimero). Pina, es un popurri de acidos y goma. La esencia para helado de aguacate usa peroxido de hidrogeno (agua oxigenada) para dar la sensacion espumosa tipica del aguacate. Bebidas Light? Quieres saber la cantidad de basura que tiene un refresco 'light'? Yo ni siquiera los uso para destapar mi lavaplatos pues temo que danen los tubos de PVC. Los productos endulzantes 'ligth' tienen una vida media muy corta. Por ejemplo el Despues de toda mi experiencia con la produccion de bebidas embasadas, puedo afirmar sin dudar un segundo: la mejor bebida es el agua, como tambien los jugos exprimidos de naranja o limon. Nada mas, cero azucar y cero sal. Publicado por loretahur En realidad, la formula secreta de la Coca-Cola se puede detallar en 18 segundos en cualquier espectrometro optico, y basicamente la conocen hasta los perros. Lo que ocurre es que no se puede fabricar igual, a no ser que uno disponga de unos cuantos millones de dolares para ganarle la demanda que te metera la Coca-Cola ante la justicia (ellos no perderian).La formula de la Pepsi tiene una diferencia basica con la de la Coca-Cola y es intencional, para evitar el proceso judicial. La diferencia es a proposito, pero suficientemente parecida como para atraer a los consumidores de Coca-Cola que prefieren un gusto diferente con menos sal y azucar.Tuve que aprender quimica, entender todo sobre componentes de gaseosas, conservantes, sales, acidos, cafeina, enlatado, produccion, permisos, aprobaciones y muchas otras cosas. Monte mi propio mini-laboratorio de analisis de productos.A patadas. El Cloruro de Sodio no solo refresca sino da mas sed, como para pedir otra gaseosa. Y no resulta desagradable porque la sal mata literalmente la sensibilidad al dulce... del que por cierto tambien tiene mucho: 39 gramos de azucar.De los 350 gramos de producto liquido, mas del 10% es azucar, o sea que en una lata de Coca-Cola mas de un centimetro y medio es puro azucar en polvo. Aproximadamente tres cucharadas soperas llenas de azucar por lata!!La formula de la Coca Cola es muy sencilla:Concentrado de azucar quemado caramelo- para dar color oscuro y gustoAcido fosforito (para darle el sabor acido)azucar (HFCS-jarabe de maiz de alta fructosa)Extracto de hojas de la planta de Coca (Africa e India) y otros pocos aromatizantes naturales de otras plantasMucha CafeinaConservante que puede ser Benzoato de Sodio o PotasioDioxido de Carbono en cantidad para sentir freir la lengua cuando se bebeSal para dar la sensacion de refrigeracionEl uso del acido fosforito y no del acido citrico como en todas las demas gaseosas, es para dar la sensacion de dientes y boca limpia al beber. El acido fosforito literalmente frie todo y dana el esmalte de los dientes, cosa que el acido citrico lo hace en menor grado.Trate de comprar acido fosforito para ver las mil recomendaciones de seguridad que te dan para su manipulacion (quema el cristalino del ojo, quema la piel, etc...). Esta prohibido usar el acido fosforito en cualquier otra gaseosa; solo la Coca Cola tiene permiso. Porque claro, sin el acido fosforico, la Coca Cola sabria a jabon.El extracto de coca y otras hojas casi no cambia en nada el sabor. Es mas bien un efecto cosmetico. El extracto forma parte de la Coca-Cola porque legalmente tiene que ser asi. Pero sin el, no se nota ninguna diferencia en el gusto, que esta dado basicamente por las cantidades diferentes de azucar, azucar quemada, sales, acidos y conservantes.Sabor a que...? ja, ja, ja.Aqui en Bartow, sur de Orlando, hay una empresa quimica que produce aromatizantes y esencias para zumos. Envian diariamente camionadas de sales concentradas y esencias para las fabricas de helados, gaseosas, jugos, enlatados y comida colorida y aromatizada.Cuando visite por primera vez la fabrica, pedi ver el deposito de concentrados de frutas, que deberia ser inmenso, especialmente los de naranja, pina, fresa y tantos otros. El encargado me miro, se rio y me llevo a visitar los depositos inmensos... pero de colorantes y componentes quimicos.Las gaseosa de naranja no contiene naranja.En los zumos dizque de fresa, hasta los puntitos que quedan en suspension estan hechos de goma (una liga quimica que envuelve un semi-polimero).Pina, es un popurri de acidos y goma.La esencia para helado de aguacate usa peroxido de hidrogeno (agua oxigenada) para dar la sensacion espumosa tipica del aguacate.Quieres saber la cantidad de basura que tiene un refresco 'light'? Yo ni siquiera los uso para destapar mi lavaplatos pues temo que danen los tubos de PVC. Los productos endulzantes 'ligth' tienen una vida media muy corta. Por ejemplo el aspartamo , despues de tres semanas mojado, pasa a tener gusto de trapo viejo sucio.Para evitar eso, se agregan una infinidad de otros productos quimicos, uno para alargar la vida del aspartamo, otro para neutralizar el color, otro para mantener el tercer quimico en suspension porque sino el fondo de la gaseosa quedaria oscuro, otro para evitar la cristalizacion del aspartamo, otro para realzar el sabor, dar mas intensidad al acido citrico o fosforito que perderia su sabor por el efecto de los cuatro productos quimicos iniciales... y asi sucesivamente.Un consejo final !!Despues de toda mi experiencia con la produccion de bebidas embasadas, puedo afirmar sin dudar un segundo: la mejor bebida es el agua, como tambien los jugos exprimidos de naranja o limon. Nada mas, cero azucar y cero sal.Publicado por loretahur MARGARINA o MANTEQUILLA La margarina fue producida originalmente para engordar a los pavos; cuandolo que hizo en realidad fue matarlos.Las personas que habian puesto el dinero para la investigacion quisieronrecobrarlo asi que empezaron a pensar en una forma de hacerlo.Tenian una sustancia blanca, que no tenia ningun atractivo como comestible,asi que le anadieron el color amarillo, para venderselo a lagente en lugar de la mantequilla.Que tal esa?... Ahora han sacado algunos nuevos sabores para vender mas alos incautos como usted y yo.CONOCE USTED la diferencia entre la margarina y la mantequilla?Siga leyendo hasta el final... porque se pone bastante interesante!Comparacion entre mantequilla y margarina: 1.- Ambas tienen la misma cantidad de calorias. 2.- La mantequilla es ligeramente mas alta en grasas saturadas: 8 gramos,comparada con los 5 gramos que tiene la margarina. 3.- Comer margarina en vez de mantequilla puede aumentar en 53% el riesgo deenfermedades coronarias en las mujeres, de acuerdo con un estudiomedico reciente de la Universidad de Harvard. 4.- Comer mantequilla aumenta la absorcion de gran cantidad de nutrientesque se encuentran en otros alimentos. 5.- La mantequilla provee beneficios nutricionales propios mientras lamargarina tiene solo los que le hayan sido anadidos al fabricarla. 6.- La mantequilla sabe mucho mejor que la margarina y mejora el sabor deotros alimentos.7.- La mantequilla ha existido durante siglos mientras que la margarinatiene menos de 100 anos. Ahora... sobre la margarina: 1.- Es muy alta en acidos grasos trans. (Si, esos que recien ahora loscientificos descubrieron que son malisimos y los gobiernoscomenzaron a prohibirlos) . 2.- Triple riesgo de enfermedades coronarias. 3.- Aumenta el colesterol total y el LDL (el colesterol malo) y disminuye elHDL (el colesterol bueno). 4.- Aumenta en cinco veces el riesgo de cancer. 5.- Disminuye la calidad de la leche materna. 6.- Disminuye la reaccion inmunologica del organismo. 7.- Disminuye la reaccion a la insulina. Y he aqui el factor mas inquietante (AQUI ESTA LA PARTE MAS INTERESANTE! ):A la margarina le falta UNA MOLECULA para ser PLASTICO...!!Solo este hecho es suficiente para evitar el uso de la margarina de porvida, y de cualquier otra cosa que sea hidrogenada (esto significaque se le anade hidrogeno, lo cual cambia la estructura molecular de lassubstancias).Usted puede ensayar lo siguiente:Compre un poco de margarina y dejela en el garaje o en un sitio sombreado.Dentro de unos dias notara dos cosas: * No habra moscas; ni siquiera esos molestos bichos se le acercaran (esto yale debe decir a usted algo). * No se pudre ni huele mal o diferente porque no tiene valor nutritivo; nadacrece en ella. Ni siquiera los diminutos microorganismos puedencrecer en ella.Por que? Porque es casi plastico!! No a la guerra, Si a la Paz Misterios de la ciencia... Los costos de la guerra medicos y capitalismo... Capitalismo... medicos (2) Quien educa a nuestros hijos? Los Medios... Sin Palabras... Chistes feministas - Cual es el problema, Eva? - Se que me has creado, que me has dado este hermoso jardin, todos estos maravillosos animales y esa serpiente con la que me muero de risa... pero no soy del todo feliz... - Como es eso, Eva? - replico Dios desde las alturas. - Me encuentro sola, y ademas estoy harta de comer manzanas... - Bueno Eva, en tal caso, tengo una solucion... creare un hombre para ti. - Que es un hombre? - Un hombre sera una criatura imperfecta, con muchas artimanas. Mentira, hara trampas, sera engreido... vamos, que te va a dar problemas... Pero, va a ser mas fuerte y rapido que tu y le gustara cazar y matar cosas... Tendra un aspecto simple, pero como te estas quejando, le creare de tal forma que satisfaga tus... eh... necesidades fisicas... Y tampoco sera muy listo, y destacara en cosas infantiles como pegarse o dar patadas a un balon... Necesitara tu consejo siempre para actuar cuerdamente. - Suena bien - dijo Eva, mientras levantaba la ceja ironicamente. - Cual es el truco?. - Pues... que lo tendras con una condicion. - Cual? - Como te decia, sera chulo, arrogante y muy narcisista... asi que le tendras que hacer creer que le hice a el primero... recuerda... es nuestro secreto... de mujer a mujer. Por que a los hombres no les puede dar la enfermedad de las vacas locas? Porque todos son unos cerdos Un dia, en el Paraiso, Eva llamo a Dios: Tengo un problema.- Cual es el problema, Eva?- Se que me has creado, que me has dado este hermoso jardin, todos estos maravillosos animales y esa serpiente con la que me muero de risa... pero no soy del todo feliz... - Como es eso, Eva? - replico Dios desde las alturas.- Me encuentro sola, y ademas estoy harta de comer manzanas...- Bueno Eva, en tal caso, tengo una solucion... creare un hombre para ti.- Que es un hombre?- Un hombre sera una criatura imperfecta, con muchas artimanas. Mentira, hara trampas, sera engreido... vamos, que te va a dar problemas... Pero, va a ser mas fuerte y rapido que tu y le gustara cazar y matar cosas... Tendra un aspecto simple, pero como te estas quejando, le creare de tal forma que satisfaga tus... eh... necesidades fisicas... Y tampoco sera muy listo, y destacara en cosas infantiles como pegarse o dar patadas a un balon... Necesitara tu consejo siempre para actuar cuerdamente.- Suena bien - dijo Eva, mientras levantaba la ceja ironicamente.- Cual es el truco?.- Pues... que lo tendras con una condicion.- Cual?- Como te decia, sera chulo, arrogante y muy narcisista... asi que le tendras que hacer creer que le hice a el primero... recuerda... es nuestro secreto... de mujer a mujer.Por que a los hombres no les puede dar la enfermedad de las vacas locas? Porque todos son unos cerdos Ellas... Ellas (2)... Tres venganzas femeninas VENGANZA NUMERO 1 Hoy mi hija cumple 21 anos y estoy muy contento porque es el ultimo pago de pension alimenticia que le doy, asi que llame a mi hijita para que viniera a mi casa y cuando llego le dije: -Hijita, quiero que lleves este cheque a casa de tu mama y que le digas que: Este es el ultimo maldito cheque que va recibir de mi en todo lo que le queda de su puta vida!!! Quiero que me digas la expresion que pone en su rostro. Asi que mi hija fue a entregar el cheque. Yo estaba ansioso por saber lo que la bruja tenia que decir y que cara pondria. Cuando mi hijita entro, le pregunte inmediatamente: -Que fue lo que te dijo tu madre? -Me dijo que justamente estaba esperando este dia para decirte que no eres mi papa! VENGANZA NUMERO 2 Un hombre que siempre molestaba a su mujer, paso un dia por la casa de unos amigos para que lo acompanaran al aeropuerto a dejar a su esposa que viajaba a Paris. A la salida de inmigracion, frente a todo el mundo, el le desea buen viaje y en tono burlon le grita: - Amor, no te olvides de traerme una hermosa francesita Ja ja ja!! Ella bajo la cabeza y se embarco muy molesta. La mujer paso quince dias en Francia. El marido otra vez pidio a sus amigos que lo acompanasen al aeropuerto a recibirla. Al verla llegar, lo primero que le grita a toda voz es: - Y amor me trajiste mi francesita?? - Hice todo lo posible, - contesta ella - ahora solo tenemos que rezar para que nazca nina. VENGANZA NUMERO 3 El marido, en su lecho de muerte, llama a su mujer. Con voz ronca y ya debil, le dice: - Muy bien, llego mi hora, pero antes quiero hacerte una confesion. - No, no, tranquilo, tu no debes hacer ningun esfuerzo. - Pero, mujer, es preciso - insiste el marido - Es preciso morir en paz. Te quiero confesar algo. - Esta bien, esta bien. Habla! - He tenido relaciones con tu hermana, tu mama y tu mejor amiga. - Lo se, lo se Por eso te envenene, hijo de puta!!! machismo y cibernetica Chiste machista La NASA ha enviado al espacio una mision experimental tripulada por dos monos y una mujer.Apenas abandona la atmosfera, se establece comunicacion con Houston. -Atencion, simio 1, verifique sistemas hidraulicos, controle adecuada presion de los propulsores de arranque. A 60.000 pies disminuya un 25% la velocidad. El simio hace la sena de OK. -Atencion, simio 2, nivele al cruzar la estratosfera y active sistemas anticongelantes. No olvide monitorear sistemas de comunicacion e indicadores de presion. Comprendido?. El simio hace la sena de OK. -Atencion, Houston llamando a mujer: no se olvide. -Mujer: Si, si, ya se! -interrumpe enojada- que no me olvide darles de comer a estos monos de mierda y que no se me vaya a ocurrir tocar nada!. .Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti. Un abogado mantiene un romance con su secretaria.Al poco tiempo, esta queda embarazada y el abogado, que no quiere que su esposa se entere, le da a la secretaria una buena suma de dinero y le pide que se vaya a parir a Italia.Esta pregunta: Y como voy a hacerte saber cuando nazca el bebe ? El abogado responde: Para que mi mujer no se entere, tan solo enviame una postal y escribe por detras: Spaghetti. Y no te preocupes mas, que yo me encargare de todos los gastos. Pasan los meses y una manana la esposa del abogado lo llama al bufete, algo exaltada: Querido, acabo de recibir el correo y hay una postal muy extrana viene desde Italia. La verdad, no entiendo que significa.El abogado, tratando de ocultar sus nervios, contesta:Espera a que llegue a casa, a ver si yo entiendoCuando el hombre llega a casa y lee la postal, cae al suelo fulminado por un infarto.Llega una ambulancia y se lo lleva. Ya en el hospital, el jefe de cardiologia se queda consolando a la esposa y le pregunta cual ha sido el evento que precipito tan masivo ataque cardiaco. Entonces la esposa saca la postal y se la muestra diciendole: No me explico, doctor; el solamente leyo esta postal. Vea usted mismo lo que trae escrito.Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti, Spaghetti."Tres con salchicha y albondigas y dos con almejas Gol !!!! Chistes de Borrachos Entra un borracho a su casa todo manchado con lapiz labial por todos lados hecho un desastre, y la mujer le pregunta:-Hombre que te paso?Y el borracho le responde:-No me vas a creer, me pelee con un payaso! Este es un borracho que entra en un bar y le dice al camarero:-Me da cinco copas de whisky?Al rato:-Me da cuatro?Al rato:-Me da tres copas?Despues:-Me da dos copas?Luego le dice:-Me da una copa?Y le dice al camarero:-Ves? Cuanto menos bebo, mas borracho estoy! With the big three - the Pakistan Muslim League (N), the Pakistan Peoples Party and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) tipped to take the lion's share of seats in the Pakistan's next parliament, smaller parties too cannot be ignored given the role they will play in case of a hung parliament. The two parties to look out to for, say analysts, are the left-of-centre Awami National Party, and the Karachi-based Muttahida Qaumi Movement. In addition, smaller parties which have formed alliances like the ethnic-based Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) and the religion-based Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) will all be vying for a slice of the action once any of the big three looks at forming a government. Analysts say that the PML-N and the PTI are on polar opposites. In between stands the PPP, which could end up being a political ally of either party. With or without the PPP, the two would need smaller parties to form alliances, comments political analyst Zafar Mehdi. Mehdi says that both the MQM and the ANP have allied in the past with the PML-N at one point on another. Neither of these parties has direct competition with the PML-N but are both fighting against PTI in their home turf. For its part, the MQM stands as a fragmented party. It was once Pakistan's third largest but after its leader Altaf Hussain was banned by the courts for his incendiary speeches while in exile in the UK, the party has gradually broken up into factions. Despite this, it continues to retain its popularity in Karachi. For the PTI, its traditional allies are the GDA, which has already entered into an electoral understanding with the PTI and the MMA. PTI has been able to woo the rightist parties at the expense of the PML-N which was a natural ally in the past, comments another analyst Imran Shirvanee. In addition to the smaller parties, it is the independents who will make or break the next government in the event of a hung parliament and a coalition government. In the past, such candidates have gone to the highest bidder. These candidates are able to extract the highest concessions, say observers. Given Imran Khan's promise of a clean government, wooing them would be quite a challenge to his party. United States President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is very happy with how talks were progressing with North Korea, as observers and the media highlight the lack of concrete results one month after his summit with Kim Jong Un. A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy, Trump tweeted. But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy! A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy. But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 In a joint declaration after his historic summit with Trump on June 12 in Singapore, the North Korean leader reaffirmed his commitment to work towards the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula. But the actual details of the process, including how and when the Norths nuclear program is to be dismantled, have yet to be hammered out. A month ago, the US administration insisted on the urgency of denuclearisation, and said it would begin very quickly. Were hopeful we can get it done by 2020, before the end of Trumps term, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the time. Pompeo has been charged with the challenge of putting meat on the bare bones of the Singapore commitment. But 40 days and one apparently fruitless visit by Pompeo to Pyongyang later, the tone of the American side has clearly changed. We have no time limit, Trump told reporters last week. We have no speed limit. Asked about the change in tone, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert sought to reassure: We have teams in place that are working very hard on this issue every day, she said. We have said theres a lot of work left to be done. Also read: Gave up nothing, talked about benefits for both countries: Trump on Putin meet A gunman opened fire in the bustling Danforth neighbourhood of Toronto on Sunday night, claiming two lives and leaving a dozen injured. The 29-year-old male, who is yet to be named by law enforcement, also exchanged fire with Toronto police officers on the scene and his body was later found in the vicinity of the mayhem. Toronto Polices Homicide Squad confirmed on Monday that two of the 14 victims and the suspect were dead. The injured were rushed to trauma centres in the Canadian city. It was not clear if the gunman had been killed in the shoot-out with the police or committed suicide. Authorities have not disclosed the identities of the fatalities, who are believed to be a woman and a young girl. The shooting, which horrified those thronging the busy strip of stores and restaurants on a weekend night, occurred at around 10 pm on Sunday. While a motive has not been cited by investigators, the national broadcaster CBC quoted a patron of a restaurant in the area, 7Numbers, as saying that the gunman entered the establishment and targeted a woman there. Carrie Lahey told the channel: If we didnt run inside at that time, we probably would have been dead right now. The gunman appears on a video posted online, dressed in dark clothes and carrying a bag slung over his shoulder. Police and emergency crews swarmed into the locality, known as Greektown, and a special investigation unit took charge of the case. Toronto Police chief Mark Saunders told the media that they were examining every single possible motive for this. Swathes of the area remained barricaded on Monday morning as investigators, including forensic experts, combed through the scene of the rampage. In a press conference around midnight, city Mayor John Tory described the shooting as a despicable act. As shooting-related deaths have escalated in Canadas largest city this year, he said, Guns are too readily available to too many people. Reacting to the terrible tragedy on Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted, The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave - and well be there to support you through this difficult time. Expressing his shock, Ontarios newly-elected Premier Doug Ford, took to Twitter: My heart goes out to the victims and loved ones of the horrific act of gun violence in Toronto. Thank you to all the first responders for acting quickly to help everyone affected. Now Open 23 July 2018 In the early 1900s, the Savoy Hotel and Grill was a luxury destination for travelers who arrived in Kansas City by train. Now, after two years and $50 million in renovations, it's a contemporary art museum, boutique hotel and chef-driven restaurant three blocks from the KC Streetcar. The 21c Museum Hotel Kansas City, located at 219 W. Ninth St. in downtown Kansas City's financial district, started booking guests Wednesday. The hotel features 120 rooms including 19 suites that start at $255 a night. The most expensive, called the 21c suite, goes for $2,650 a night and boasts a rooftop terrace with panoramic views of downtown. The hotel also has a large ballroom with capacity for 120 to 150 people, four private galleries on the second floor with room for 10 to 75 people each, and a conference room that seats 12. The new Kansas City hotel is the eighth property for 21c Museum Hotels, based in Louisville, Kentucky. The hospitality company is known for transforming historic buildings into modern museum-hotels. Oklahoma City's 21c Museum Hotel is located in a former Model T Ford Factory; Louisville's was built in warehouses that once stored bourbon. "Every property is uniquely different," says co-founder Steve Wilson. "The contemporary art is what holds it all together." All of the company's hotels are located in downtown areas. "We like being part of the city center," Wilson says, "and bringing contemporary art to the public." The hotel and museum blends history with art in surprising ways. Look close and you'll see traces of the historic Savoy Hotel in thick baseboards, doors that have been closed off and painted over, porcelain vessel sinks and stained glass windows. The rooms, which were designed by New York-based architect Deborah Berke Partners and KC-based Hufft Projects, feel completely modern, with sleek furniture, brass fixtures and pops of purple. Each room is decorated with original photographs of penguins and Antarctic landscapes by 21c Museum Hotels co-founder Laura Lee Brown. And instead of bibles at the bedside, guests will find copies of "Art is the highest form of hope," which features quotes by famous artists. Amenities include a fitness center in a former air shaft, valet parking, free Wi-Fi and a contemporary art museum that's open seven days a week, 365 days a year. The museum, which is free and open to the public, features 6,200 square feet of gallery space with art that changes every six to nine months. The debut exhibition, "Refuge," explores ideas about borders and the migrants who cross them. Guests enter the building via a ramped hallway illuminated by color-changing LED light fixtures designed by Luftwerk, a Chicago-based artistic collaboration. The colors were chosen to emulate Kansas City skies at dusk and dawn. The futuristic tunnel leads to a lobby that melds history with contemporary art. A sky blue penguin sculpture sits atop original mosaic tile floors, and the Savoy Hotel's stained glass dome glows with a neon green uranium glass chandelier crafted by Japanese artists Ken and Julia Yonetani. Walk past the reception desk and dome and you'll find the hotel's main gallery, which was once the Savoy Hotel's lobby. One of the most striking pieces in that bright, sunlit space is "Hellinikon Olympic Arena," a 2016 digital print by Irish artist Richard Mosse. The panoramic image of a refugee camp in Greece looks like a black-and-white photograph but is actually a heat map created with a thermographic camera. Look close and you'll see glowing bodies drifting through a makeshift city of tents. One tent has a baby stroller parked outside. "These are people whose lives register, but they're not seen," says chief curator Alice Gray Stites. Across from "Hellinikon Olympic Arena" stands a moveable black steel gate topped with razor wire. The sculpture, called "Homeland Security," was made in 2002 by Peruvian artist Jota Castro as a response to President George W. Bush's creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Each floor features original artwork by a Kansas City artist. Step off the 6th floor elevators and you'll see three large saturated color photographs by Patty Carroll. There's also art in the former Savoy Grill restaurant space, which now serves as a lounge for The Savoy at 21c, a new restaurant headed up by executive chef Joe West. The space is like a time capsule, with its dark wood wainscoting, carved oak bar and 1903 murals of pioneers crossing the prairie. It also features chairs that once stood in the Savoy Hotel's barber shop and a booth where Harry S. Truman used to hang. Because 21c Museum Hotels accepted federal historic tax credits to help cover the cost of renovations, the company was required to leave the Savoy Grill space mostly untouched. Wilson says he briefly considered building a plexiglass box in the space to make it feel more contemporary. That plan didn't pan out, but visitors who remember the Savoy Grill as it was might be surprised to see a new permanent art installation in the historic room. The sculptural installation, called "Super Catcher, Vast Array," features a handmade collection of Native American dreamcatchers, which were used as talismans to protect sleeping children. The dreamcatchers, made in 2017 of wire and bells, dangle delicately next to the murals of cowboys and covered wagons, offering an alternate view of American history. It's that juxtaposition of history and art that make 21c Museum Hotels different from other boutique hotels, Wilson says: "It's about looking at the past through the eyes of the new." Opinion Article 23 July 2018 A generation ago, travelers looked for hotels that provided the comforts of home. Vacationers were herded aboard in tour busses to see the local sights, creating well worn paths that folks tended not to stray from. But Millennials (and their younger counterparts, Generation Z) don't want their parents' or grandparents' vacation. As digital natives, this generation's worldview is shaped by social media, and so are their travel expectations. Advertisements If you're in the hospitality business today, you have to figure out how to appeal to younger travelers, who are now the largest generation in the U.S. workforce. That starts with knowing what motivates them. For example, fear of missing out (FOMO) is one motivator largely perpetuated through social media. Your friend or a trusted influencer just had the time of their lives in Bali? You need to book that trip. Millennials crave authenticity, which is ironically linked to the FOMO phenomenon. Younger travelers don't want to miss out on a unique experience. They follow influencers on Instagram, Twitter and other platforms, who spread the word that a destination or activity is worthwhile by sharing their experiences. And potential travelers imagine themselves sharing their own experience with their friends and family. As a hospitality pro, you can address both aspects of the social media element by inviting influencers to experience what your organization has to offer. For example, a hotel in an area known for a unique regional cuisine can target influencers who have a foodie following on a social media platform with a package that includes a cooking class featuring the local delicacies. In that scenario, the influencer might vlog and/or Instagram the experience at the cooking class, inspiring followers to book the package too. You can boost influencer reach with a specialty hashtag to increase organic sharing and improve overall brand awareness. A playful social media presence with replies to or retweets of influencers can help spread the word. It's hard to overstate how much photo sharing on social media and image-making by key influencers has shaped travel plans of younger guests. It creates a feedback loop, with influencers sparking FOMO in followers, which prompts followers to seek a similar experience, which they then share digitally, inspiring others to make the same trek. To find the right approach, keep in mind that the opportunity to "travel like a local" is enormously attractive to younger travelers in search of an authentic experience. The most successful Airbnb hosts understand this and illustrate listings with Instagram-worthy views and hip decor that make prospective guests want to spend their vacation stepping into a foreign brand. Hotel chains can get in on the action by attracting authenticity-seekers with strategies like stocking minibars with local snacks instead of mass-produced goods. Chains can go the boutique route and exchange bland, interchangeable decorations for a one-of-a-kind look and feel, featuring striking local art and stylish spaces that make guests want to share what they've discovered. Destination packages are another excellent way to grab Millennials' attention, but the strategy has to be executed on their terms to make it work. This means smaller groups engaged in activities that are identifiably local or that appeal to guests' personal interests. Get off that beaten path and think of guests on a local kayaking or horseback riding adventure. What experiences can you provide that they won't find anywhere else? Look at photogenic Iceland, which is a hot tourist destination now, in part due to social media sharing. Cosmopolitan's "Instagram Itinerary" series recently featured "10 Ridiculously Cool Places in Iceland That Were Practically Made to Be on Your Instagram Feed." And the location doesn't have to be exotic: "Fixer Upper" influencers Chip and Joanna Gaines made Waco, Texas cool. So, if you're looking for ways to attract Millennials and Generation Z, keep in mind that these generations are wired for sharing. Curate your visual brand for Instagram-worthiness. Offer authentic experiences. Work with influencers to build awareness. Have an engaging, authentic voice on social media. And make it clear that this won't be their grandparents' boring tour bus vacation. It's been a bittersweet weekend for the notorious rainbow-haired rapper. After Tekashi 6ix9ine surprised fans with the release of the Nicki Minaj assisted "FEFE," his name was ringing bells in all the right ways. Yet as we've seen so often before, young rappers have made habits out of Instagram flexing, often showing off hundreds of thousands in diamond encrusted jewelry. In fact, 6ix9ine's chain collection are as recognizable as the man himself, with the latest addition even sporting a piece of his trademark locks. Sadly, the young rapper's "FEFE" momentum came to a grinding halt after he found himself reportedly kidnapped, pistol-whipped to the point of unconsciousness, and robbed of nearly one million dollars in assets; read our report on that situation right here. After spending time in the hospital, Tekashi made time to call his homie Akademiks, where he assured fans he was feeling alright, despite suffering from "concussion damage." However, it doesn't take long for 6ix9ine to put forth his own theories about what went down. "It was an inside job," says 6ix9ine, off the bat. After Ak presses his line of reasoning, Tekashi elaborates, stating "it wasn't no outside n***as. It's n***as that know how the king of New York moves, you know what I'm saying? The only person that can get a Pharaoh in Egypt is the person who helped build the fuckin' kingdom, you know what I'm saying? The n***a that's right next to him. The n***a that know who built that shit, that got the blueprints." He proceeds to break down the parallels with XXXTentacion, as well as expressing concerns about his already tight circle. "My circle been short, it's just that I opened it with the wrong n***as," he explains, after toying with the notion of disavowing jewelry altogether. Peep the entire stream below, and pray for 6ix9ine. [via] Los Angeles Chargers rookie safety Derwin James was reportedly robbed at gunpoint in Los Angeles last month while leaving an Italian restaurant with his uncle on Sunset Blvd. According to TMZ Sports, the crooks ran up on James as he approached his Rolls-Royce and made off with his chain as well as a Rolex watch. "Here's what we know ... the ex-FSU superstar -- the 17th pick in this year's draft -- and his uncle were leaving an Italian restaurant on Sunset Blvd. on June 23 when 2 black males allegedly rushed them ... demanding their jewelry. According to a warrant we obtained, both of the men had handguns and pointed them at James." The reports states that the culprits fled to a nearby car, but when Derwin tried to give chase in his Rolls-Royce, he discovered three of his tires had been slashed. The suspects are still at large, according to TMZ. James, 20, attended Florida State University for three years but he missed most of his sophomore season on the field due to a knee injury. Still, he recorded 186 tackles, including 15 for loss, 5.5 sacks, 3 interceptions and 15 pass breakups during his time with the Seminoles. Charlamagne Tha God's rape accuser has been trying to get the sexual case from the early 2000's re-opened. This was shut down by the D.A last week. The District Attorney said that they must honor the plea deal that was struck years a go. However, Charlamagne's accuser claims that the prosecution didn't handle the criminal case properly and now, she's bringing the case to South Carolina Supreme Court's disciplinary counsel. Charlamagne Tha God's accuser, Jessica Reid, is bringing her case against the Breakfast Club host to the State Supreme Court, The Blast reports. In a letter sent to John S. Nichols, a deputy for the Supreme Court Office of Disciplinary Counsel in South Caroline, she states that she was "uncooperative" while the investigation was going on because she was "traumatized." She also states that it was the prosecutors responsibility to come to her defense during the trial. She also writes that there was no investigation done to bring justice." She adds that Charlamagne has continued to "violate" her on his radio show, his book and on his social media platform. In addition, Reid has requested DNA samples from the 2001 investigation that Charlamagne initially provided. She says that the results from his blood work was never revealed in the case. Her family believes this could help their case. Now, Reid is looking into filing an official claim against the prosecution on the initial case for throwing out the charge of criminal sexual conduct with a minor and giving him the opportunity to take a plea deal. Power 106 welcomed Iggy Azalea on The Cruz Show show to discuss her upcoming projects as well as some lewd content. The rapper, who is famously known for her twerk videos, was asked to dish about other entertainers in terms of "big d*ck energy." The Australian hardly held back as she shared her opinions about artists like Trey Songz and Justin Bieber. One of the most notable reflections was her thoughts about Pete Davidson and his fiance, Ariana Grande. According to Iggy, the comedian is bound to have "big d*ck energy" based on Ariana's face: Well Ive seen the pictures so he clearly has big d*ck energy. Ariana is d*ckmatized. Not to be rude but that face that she has right now is not the face of small d*ck energy." Justin Bieber's vibe is described as a fluctuating "church energy" and when it comes to Trey Songz, Iggy says: "He has hoe energy, not even in a b*tchy way [...] I don't know what's going on with the d*ck but it seems like he slangs it around." Iggy Azalea also discusses her collaboration with Tyga, her admiration for Missy Elliot, DM sliding and other topics. Get to know the artist in the video below. The "d*ck energy" discussion starts around the 16-minute mark. Last week, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney slammed the fate of Jay-Z's "Made In America" festival into imbalance. After hosting the festival at Ben Franklin Parkway for six straight years, Mayor Kenney decided it was time for a change, essentially "evicting" the festival from its longtime home. In response, Jay-Z penned an op-ed against the decision, citing the festival's importance to both the city and the culture. It seemed so grim that Milwaukee officials even slid into the proverbial DMs to hold it down as a potential backup. Still, Jay and his team remained determined to salvage the relationship, and it would appear he can now deem that mission accomplished. According to a report from HHNM, Mayor Kenney has officially issued a statement confirming that the festival would indeed stay in Parkway. "I am greatly appreciative of everything that Made in America has done for the City of Philadelphia and I remain committed to its continued success. The Made in America festival belongs in Philadelphia the birthplace of our country and Im optimistic that we can turn an unfortunate misunderstanding into a positive outcome and even stronger event," he writes. "I look forward to working with Roc Nation and Live Nation, and maintaining this Philadelphia tradition for years to come. Roc Nation issued a statement of their own, courtesy of Desiree Perez. We are happy to announce the Made in America festival will continue at the heart of the Philadelphia, the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for many years to come," says Perez. "After a candid and constructive discussion with the Mayor, we are confident any miscommunication is corrected, and we are proactively addressing any concerns. We are committed to bringing the best experience possible to Philadelphians and all music lovers as well as the continuing prosperity of the city. [via] Millie Bobby Brown was only 11-years-old when she landed the role that would change her life forever, starring as Eleven in Netflix's Stranger Things. Three years later, the young British actress has not only taken over a few fashion editorials here and there but she's also posted up with some famous friends and one of them, in particular, is someone she talks to quite often. Millie talks about Drake in her recent W Magazine cover story, explaining how he's there to share some tips when she needs it. He invited me to his concert, she told the publication. And now we talk all the time. I ask his advice. Before Drizzy's beloved Scorpion album dropped, Millie was one of the few recipients of the leather jackets to promote the tape. Further in her feature, Millie details how she had no idea how much her life would change after linking to star in Netflix's most popular series. "I flew to L.A. for a screen test, and the next day I got the job! I was 11," she said. "We did the show, and I went back home to England. I thought, 'OK, it's a little show. What's next?' And then we came to America for the premiere. Three days later, my whole life changed. People went crazy! My followers went up to one million in one day." It was reported earlier today that Tekashi 6ix9ine was kidnapped and robbed early this morning. According to reports, the rainbow-haired rapper was returning home from a video shoot around 4 AM, but when he got home his driveway was blocked in. Three disguised assailants knocked Tekashi out and placed him in their vehicle. The attackers drove around with Tekashi, who awoke to death threats. The thieves then pulled back up to Tekashi's crib and had one member guard him while the other two raided the house. The rapper's baby momma and child were home, but were not harmed. The attackers stole about $750k in jewelry and between $15k and $20k in cash. After the robbery, the thieves took off with Tekashi, but the rapper escaped and jumped out of the moving vehicle. 6ix9ine was able to plead with a random person after his escape, getting the Good Samaritan to call the authorities. He was taken to the hospital to recover. There is also another story circulating, and authorities are claiming that Tekashi gave them a different tale. In the time that 6ix9ine has awoken in the hospital, he posted to Instagram to let his fans know he is doing alright. He also revealed that he had a bad feeling on the day of the robbery. He posted a picture of the late XXXTentacion, with the caption "As crazy as it sounds.. yesterday morning I had a feeling that it was my day to die." He continued on to thank XXX for his safety, claiming that the rapper was there watching over him. "May GOD strike me dead if Im lying. Everything happens for a reason I know you was there Nothing materialistic is more important then LIFE. I live to see another DAY I get to see my daughter another day. No Hate Charge it to the streets." Oil industry analysts and executives fear a looming global supply crunch is on the horizon, even as Texas and other parts of the nation keep churning out more oil than ever. U.S. oil prices could spike from about $70 a barrel now to levels not seen since mid-2014 when oil hovered above $100, analysts say. That would be great for Houstons oil-rich economy, but only until skyrocketing gasoline prices and supply disruptions spawned a global economic slowdown. Its even more worrisome in a time like this when you have significant geopolitical risks coming from different spots in the world. said Jamie Webster, senior director at Boston Consulting Groups Center for Energy Impact in Washington. Of particular concern is a shortage of global spare oil capacity, Webster said. Many oil-producing countries are on the decline, while others are pumping out almost as much as they possibly can. Theres little remaining margin to boost production if supplies dwindle. The worlds three largest oil producers Russia, the United States and Saudi Arabia are all increasing their outputs this summer, which sent U.S. oil prices from a 45-month high of more than $74 a barrel in mid-July down below $70 per barrel this week. To keep prices low, the White House is even considering releasing more oil from the nations Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which happened last in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. These moves, however, leave Russia and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries with little remaining quick-start oil supplies that can be churned out in an emergency at a time when theres varying levels of instability and conflict in oil-producing countries like Venezuela, Libya, Nigeria, Iraq and Iran. Thats why U.S. energy companies arent particularly worried about Julys dips in oil prices, analysts said. In recent years, the oil and gas sector has sounded alarm bells about so-called peak demand. Thats the theory that global oil consumption could plateau soon with the switch to renewable energy and electric vehicles. But now there are increasing predictions that demand could actually outpace crude supplies starting in the next year or so. Global view The U.S. exceeded 11 million barrels a day in oil production for the first time ever last week, placing its crude volumes slightly behind Russia and just ahead of the Saudis. While these three nations produce about 33 percent of the worlds oil, that leaves bigger question marks behind the remaining two-thirds where there are higher degrees of uncertainty than usual. OPEC agreed to hike its oil production in June, but that mostly amounts to the Saudis picking up the slack for declines from other OPEC nations like Venezuela, Libya, Angola and the anticipated dip from the Saudis chief rival, Iran. Any big Iranian crude export decline is yet to come because the details of sanctions and waivers are still being finalized since the Trump administration opted to withdraw from the Iran nuclear accord. The International Energy Agency reported this week that global energy investments fell by 2 percent last year down to $1.8 trillion a third straight year of decreasing investments while spending on the electricity sector surpassed oil and gas production dollars for the second straight year. These declines were triggered largely by the recent oil bust that sent crude prices plummeting from more than $100 a barrel in mid-2014 down to a low of $26 per barrel in February 2016. Prices have rebounded since and energy companies have learned to cut costs and earn profits with oil in the $60 range, but worldwide oil and gas spending is yet to catch up. Global oil demand each year has grown by roughly 1.5 million barrels a day of late. But higher crude prices coupled with ongoing fears of worldwide trade wars led by the U.S. and China could cause a slowdown in economic and oil demand growth. Rather than spend money on the long-term, multibillion-dollar mega projects in deep ocean waters, companies are more often opting for quicker, cheaper drilling efforts in areas like U.S. shale, especially West Texas booming Permian Basin. There was an implosion in major project investments, and exploration spending has evaporated, said Bill Herbert, a senior energy analyst at Piper Jaffray & Co. in Houston. Thats an ominous sign for crude oil supplies in the few years ahead, starting as soon as 2019, he added. The elephant in the room that people arent paying attention to is the rapidly decreasing spare productive (oil) capacity, Herbert said, especially within the OPEC cartel, which the world has counted on for decades to help manage supply-and-demand balances and pricing. Many oil and gas companies like global energy services leader Schlumberger have warned of the need for greater oil and gas project spending for more than a year. Schlumberger CEO Paal Kibsgaard reiterated those worries Friday. He specifically cited Venezuela, Iran and Libya, but he argued that at least 15 countries are witnessing production declines. It is becoming more and more apparent that the new projects expected to come online during the next few years will not be sufficient to meet the increasing demand, Kibsgaard said. Eyes on Texas Even the Permian is seeing its growth slow down. The Permian is producing a record of more than 3.3 million barrels of oil a day, which is near the regions pipeline capacity. A bevy of new pipeline projects are under construction to transport the Permian oil across the state to port and refining hubs near Houston and Corpus Christi, but most of those pipelines are at least a year away from being completed. As a result, drilling and well completions activity in the booming Permian have flattened out in recent weeks, Herbert noted, a trend that could continue well into next year. The oil will keep flowing. Thats why companies like Houstons Enterprise Products Partners announced plans this week for a massive offshore crude export terminal off of the Texas Gulf Coast. But there will be stops and starts. Its really much better for the energy sector if U.S. oil prices stay below $75 a barrel and dont skyrocket again, said Jim Wicklund, an energy analyst at the financial services company Credit Suisse in Dallas. Big jumps could just hasten another bust, he said. At those higher levels, people get stupid and lose discipline, Wicklund said. jordan.blum@chron.com twitter.com/jdblum23 Zurich Insurance Group had just faced a tumultuous year of American wildfires and hurricanes when, in January, it named Kathleen Savio CEO of its North American business, which provides property-casualty insurance from small businesses to multinational corporations across 25 industries. Zurich took an estimated $700 million hit - just in the third quarter - on claims from hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria. Financially speaking, this was a mere blip for the global insurer, Switzerlands largest, with no material impact to Zurichs overall financial strength and capital flexibility, company officials said. In a call with investors, they attributed that to effective underwriting and improvements to reinsurance earlier in the year. The company led a post-disaster assessment of Hurricane Harvey, which Savio and her team presented in Houston in June, offering ways government, businesses and individuals can better manage flood risks. Harvey inflicted an estimated $125 billion in damages. Savio discussed what it was like to take the corner office after successive disasters and what she learned from the Harvey review. Q: So you picked a crazy year to settle into the new job, right? More Information Kathleen Savio Title: Chief Executive Officer, Zurich North America Joined company: 1991 Named CEO: 2018 Education: Illinois State University, Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program, Northwest University Kellogg School Executive Management Program See More Collapse A: In some ways, I think Im fortunate to have had the opportunity to begin in January. We at Zurich came out of 2017 and all of the catastrophes with the benefit of very sound financial management of the exposure that we had to the storms. So our teams did great work around accumulation management, made sure we had appropriate reinsurance strategies in place, and that kept our business financially strong - especially relative to the industry and some of our peers. So I step in having the advantage of knowing the team does a great job around this and I can build on that. I was witness to the actions of our teams when it truly matters for our customers. I come into the role when we have an opportunity to take that look back and say 2017 was a historic year. That idea of being able to learn from 2017 and apply those lessons going forward is a benefit to me coming into this role. Q: How exactly were you able to weather a year with such huge claims? A: I dont want to go into too much of the detail on the numbers of our reinsurance strategy, but we look at the amount of risk we want to take on and we set our reinsurance strategy based upon that in the way we know will best protect our balance sheet and best protect our shareholders. In any given year you may or may not need to test that reinsurance strategy, but certainly for 2017 we did test it, and for us the strategies that we put in place truly worked, and so we were able to weather those storms very well and come out of that in a very financially strong position. Q: Whats the most important thing youve learned from studying Hurricane Harvey in Houston? A: In Houston there was extensive damage that happened outside of where the designated flood plains are. For us one of the big lessons is, how do we redo those maps in ways that better reflect the real risk so that people are aware If people dont know, then they cant prepare appropriately or perhaps they have a false sense of confidence. There are easy things people can do to be prepared that, if they are aware, they can put into place. That will minimize the damage that both people and businesses suffer through. Q: The report talked about the need to increase uptake of flood insurance. What are some of the recommendations? Should flood insurance be public or private? A: Were still supportive of the (National Flood Insurance Program). If NFIP were to cover a broader spectrum of flood events - it could be due to rainfall, it could be due to a water line breaking. Helping people understand that its not only about the 1-in-500-year event or 1-in-100-year event, which I think people misunderstand If I as a purchaser of insurance feel that the broader risks I face are covered and I am protected from this broader set of risks, I think I am more inclined to look for that protection. I think that would make a difference for the uptake of the insurance. Q: What does Zurich advise its energy clients, particularly those on the coast that are dealing with the likelihood of sea level rise and stronger storms? A: We know that the production in the Gulf of Mexico declined by 21 percent after Harvey. The ports and terminals that are energy related were closed. I believe it was 12 percent of the U.S. refining capacity was offline for a number of days and then two refineries were shut down following storm damage and the consequent releases of hazardous pollutants. So we know the risk is there for the energy sector. Interestingly enough, the lessons that came out of the report, they apply to the energy sector just as they do in many other sectors of business. How do you make sure youre fostering a culture of awareness around what these risks mean? How do you ensure theres clear communication and planning as a result of that? Particularly in Texas that sector is so crucial to the economy, not just for the state but for our nation Taking the lessons learned and finding ways to apply them to that sector is really important. A federal lawsuit by Texas officials earlier this year seeking to order the end of the federal immigration program called the Deferred Act for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, will have "immediate, irreparable injury" to Texas businesses and cost the state's economy billions of dollars, according to a coalition of pro-business organizations. Seven Texas-based chambers of commerce, two pro-business consortiums and four prominent companies including Southwest Airlines filed an unprecedented court brief late Saturday asking a federal judge in Houston to reject Attorney General Ken Paxton's argument that the DACA program be ended and dismantled. Lawyers for Vinson & Elkins, which represents the business coalition that includes the Texas Association of Business, argue that Paxton's case if successful would significantly damage their operations, deprive them of much needed work expertise and cost the state of Texas tens of thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues. Now Playing: Latest Trending Politics Videos Video: Houston Chronicle Texas and six other states filed the lawsuit in May asking the court to "immediately rescind and cancel all DACA permits currently in existence," which legal experts say would lead to the deportation of more than 126,000 young Texans widely referred to as "Dreamers" who were brought into the U.S. when they were small children. In a 20-page legal brief filed Saturday just before midnight, lawyers representing the coalition of businesses argue that the state's lawsuit is legally flawed and should be denied. The pro-business groups say that Paxton's lawsuit will cost the Texas economy to lose more than $6 billion in gross domestic product $2 billion of it from the Houston area economy. "Dreamers are important to the health of the Texas economy, and enjoining the DACA initiative will have significant negative consequences for Texas businesses," Texas businesses argue in their newly filed court documents. "Dreamers are active participants in the Texas economy, creating jobs, contributing to Texas businesses as employees, supporting Texas businesses as consumers, and paying taxes to the State to support important programs," V&E lawyers Harry Reasoner, Tom Leatherbury and Beto Cardenas argue for their clients. "Researchers have estimated that if Dreamers could no longer be granted deferred action under the DACA guidelines, the United States would lose approximately $460 billion of its GDP over the next decade, and the State of Texas would lose more than $6 billion to its annual GDP." The pro-business consortium signing the brief includes the Hispanic chambers of commerce in Houston, Austin, San Antonio, El Paso, Midland, Brazoria County and Rio Grande Valley, as well as Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, Laredo-based International Bancshares Corp. and College Station-based Marek Brothers Construction. Combined, they represent tens-of-thousands of businesses that employ hundreds of thousands of Texans. The court document cites studies showing that more than 8 percent of Dreamers over the age of 25 start their own business. The brief also estimates that the presence of the 126,000 Dreamers living in Texas and their combined purchasing power has led to the existence of 5,800 manufacturing jobs. "Granting young immigrants deferred action under DACA brings them out of the shadows and gives them the ability to participate fully in the Texas economy, which benefits Texas, in part, through higher tax revenues," V&E lawyers argue. The brief states that DACA individuals are expected to contribute about $244.7 million in Texas taxes in 2018. "Enjoining the DACA initiative would damage the Texas economy by forcing Texas's Dreamer consumers to the sidelines and reducing the revenues of Texas businesses," the pro-business brief states. "The instability of life as an undocumented immigrant who might be subject to deportation at any time discourages those Texans from spending their money freely. The pro-business brief states that about 1,000 Texas-based Dreamers are employed as critical first responders, including police officers, fire fighters and emergency healthcare personnel. Many are public school teachers. Houston Methodist Hospital, according to the brief, employs 57 Dreamers as lab technicians, nurses and pharmacists. The document quotes the hospital's president, Dr. Marc Bloom, saying that Dreamers are "essential" to the nation's health workforce. The business organizations point out that DACA was initiated by the Obama Administration in 2012, but the fact that Texas and the six other states suing waited until 2018 to challenge the program is a major legal argument in favor of keeping the status quo. "The States waited almost six years after the announcement of the DACA guidelines before challenging them in Court, despite challenging similar initiatives implemented after DACA in 2015," V&E lawyers argue. "Since an injunction is an equitable remedy, it may be denied on the basis of laches if an unreasonable delay by the party seeking injunctive relief works to the disadvantage or prejudice of another party. "The States' delay has substantially impacted businesses in Texas, who have, as described above, come to rely upon Dreamers as valued employees, customers, and fellow members of the business community and now stand to incur significant costs if DACA is enjoined," the brief states. "The States' delay also undercuts any claim they have to immediate, irreparable injury, since they have been living with the status quo for six years." The federal judge hearing the case, Andrew Hanen of Brownsville, is scheduled to hold a hearing on the matter in Houston on Aug. 8. When Houston corporate transactional lawyer Sean Wheeler moved his legal practice to Kirkland & Ellis last week, he likely took several millions of dollars with him to his new law firm. Since January 2017, Wheeler has led or co-led his old law firm, Latham & Watkins, in representing companies involved in 29 M&A and capital markets deals worth at least $14.3 billion. New Texas Lawbook data shows that Wheeler is one of scores of big-time Texas corporate law partners to switch firms during the past 18 months and they appear to be taking billions of dollars in revenues with them. Legal industry analysts say that aggressive corporate law firms - most of them out-of-state law firms that are investing hundreds of millions of dollars opening and expanding their offices in Texas - are changing the world of legal dealmaking in the state forever. The national firms arent opening new offices in Miami, Atlanta, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Ohio and Michigan, said Performance Legal Placement founder Randy Block, who specializes in placing corporate lawyers at targeted law firms. Theyre coming to Dallas [and Houston] because they have the strongest economies and legal markets in the country. And theyre taking rainmakers away from their previous firms. RELATED: More Texas law firms boosting pay for attorneys Block recently facilitated groups of lawyers leaving Houston-based Andrews & Kurth for Katten Muchin, a national firm that recently opened in Texas. An analysis of Corporate Deal Tracker data by The Texas Lawbook found that at least 84 prominent dealmaking lawyers in Texas have jumped to new law firms since Jan. 1, 2017. Together, these attorneys worked on 404 deals - 316 M&A and 88 capital markets transactions - with a combined value of at least $190.8 billion during the past 18 months, according to the Corporate Deal Tracker. The actual value of the transactions is much higher because dozens of them are deals involving privately held companies and their values are confidential. In addition, the data does not include proposed mergers or acquisitions that are negotiated for months only to fall apart at some point and are never announced - deals for which corporate lawyers are still paid handsomely to handle. Two of the most prominent Houston lawyers to jump to new firms during the past 18 months are Sarah McLean and Hillary Holmes. The Texas Lawbooks Corporate Deal Tracker ranked Holmes - who left Baker Botts for Gibson Dunn last April - as the sixth most productive dealmaking lawyer in Texas in 2017. She has worked on 25 M&A and capital markets transactions worth $29.3 billion during the past 18 months. McLean - who moved from the Houston office of Thompson & Knight to the newly opened Houston outpost of Shearman & Sterling in May - has been involved in 18 deals worth at least $7.9 billion since Jan. 1, 2017. RELATED: Pricey lawyers aid distressed immigrant families at border Kristin Johnston , a managing director at legal placement agency Newhouse+Noblin in Dallas, said out-of-state firms have energized the Texas lateral market. We are seeing many partners, who would never entertain a move before, becoming intrigued with exploring the market, Johnston said. While a significant amount of attention automatically goes to the new firms moving into Texas, many of the larger Texas based firms are fighting back by aggressively recruiting talent away from other competitors. For example, Baker Botts last year hired Houston capital markets partner Efren Acosta away from cross-town rival Norton Rose Fulbright. Since the beginning of 2017, Acosta has worked on at least five major transactions worth $905 million, including advising longtime client Intervale on its purchase of a majority stake in drilling and completion bits maker PDC Logic for an undisclosed sum. Texas-based Locke Lord received a huge boost when it lured corporate finance partner Michael Blankenship of Houston to leave Vinson & Elkins last year. Blankenship has worked on eight deals worth $13 billion during the past 18 months. For a longer version of this article, please visit TexasLawbook.net. Marcum Marcum, an independent public accounting and advisory services firm based in New York City, has gained a presence in Texas through a merger with GBH CPAs of Houston. The deal, which expands the firm's ability to service the oil and gas industry, closed July 1. Only two barriers stand in the way of Texas continued growth: a labor shortage and President Donald Trumps tariffs on imported steel. The energy industry needs steel as it sets new records for oil and gas production. It needs pipe to drill wells in the Permian Basin and Eagle Ford Shale and pipe to carry the crude oil, natural gas and other products to Gulf Coast markets. Trumps tariffs on imported steel put this productive piece of the American energy renaissance in limbo. Last month, producers drilled 1,436 new wells across the country, with the Permian and the Eagle Ford leading the way, according to the Energy Information Administration. Each well goes thousands of feet into the ground and then stretches horizontally through shale rock for a mile or more, requiring tons of steel. Production in the Permian is exceeding pipeline capacity. Oil companies are trying to track down rail cars and tanker trucks to haul their crude, but the lack of takeaway capacity is suppressing prices and discouraging new investment and economic growth. RELATED: World views clash in China-U.S. talks to avert trade war Crude oil pipelines out of the Permian are filled to capacity, wrote Taylor Robinson, a pipeline industry analyst at RBN Energy. Even wads of cash may not be enough to quickly round up the hundreds thousands? of trucks and drivers that would be required to make a significant dent in the Permians takeaway shortfall. The industry needs thousands of miles of new, pipelines, but the Trump administration has made affordable steel challenging to find by capping imports from South Korea, the industrys biggest supplier, and slapping a 25 percent tariff on other imports. Gov. Greg Abbott wrote Trump last month asking him to exclude oil pipe. If the new tariffs continue to drive up the cost of oil and gas production, he wrote, Americas quest for global energy dominance could be significantly hindered. Last week, though, the Trump administration denied an exclusion request from Plains All American, which is building a $1.1 billion, 526-mile pipeline from the Permian Basin to Corpus Christi. Executives said the 26-inch pipe specified was unavailable from U.S. manufacturers. Berg Steel Pipe Corp. in Florida opposed the exclusion, saying it could supply a similar product made with a different process. The Commerce Department sided with Berg and said Plains would have to pay the tariff if it imported the Greek steel it had purchased before the tariffs were imposed. The Commerce Department reports that of 26,400 exemption requests submitted, it has approved 267, denied 452 and rejected 3,385 requests for being improperly completed. "The administration's arbitrary process to determine these exclusions lacks transparency as it's not clear how and why certain exclusion petitions are granted or denied," said Kyle Isakower, vice president for regulatory and economic policy at the American Petroleum Institute, the industrys main lobbying arm. "What is clear, though, is that implementation of tariffs on imported steel undermines domestic energy production." The Commerce Department says it will grant exclusions if there is insufficient domestic supply or the tariff would create a national security issue. But those are standards are subjective, and steel prices are on the rise. Prices since the start of the year are up 40.4 percent for hot-rolled coil (a steel industry benchmark), Michael Fitzgerald, a steel industry analyst with S&P Global Platts, said. I dont think you can attribute the prices increase to just tariffs, and you cant attribute them to just demand. The higher prices are pinching the oil and gas industry, which is still recovering from the 2014 oil bust and still faces historically low prices, said Paul Sorenson, co-owner of Tube Supply Co., a supplier to oilfield services companies. Were buying as much as we can in the United States, but our business model takes us from France to Italy, Germany, Mexico, Argentina, he said. For our products, they are not dumping them we are forced to buy them because we cant find them in the United States. RELATED: Republican senator blocks Trumps efforts to increase trade Companies can apply for exclusions, but they can take six months to approve. The industry needs steel now. I support free trade agreements, and I have praised a Houston manufacturer who stood up for fair trade against nations that are dumping products in the U.S. And I believe Trumps China tariffs, and WTO suit, make sense against a nation that cheats, like China. Blanket tariffs, though, carpet bomb the economy, punishing both good and bad actors. Relying on government bureaucrats to sort out what products should receive exclusions is a nightmare. The Trump administration needs to rethink its strategy and take a more precise approach to tariffs. The current policy is doing harming far more U.S. companies than it is helping. Chris Tomlinson writes commentary about business and economics. chris.tomlinson@chron.com twitter.com/cltomlinson WASHINGTON - Florida Congressman Carlos Curbelo isn't naive. During an appearance Monday morning in Washington, he nodded his head when it was suggested that the carbon tax legislation he plans to introduce later in the day had no chance of passing Congress. Curbelo, a Republican representing coastal South Florida, then suggested the outcome was almost beside the point, describing his legislation as an "opportunity to begin that discussion" about climate change with those Republicans who might be "reconsidering their positions." "You're going to see more movement away from that reflexive knee jerk reaction," he said at the National Press Club. "I'm encouraged by what I see. Obviously all of us would like to accelerate this process. But we're certainly moving in the right direction." RELATED STORY: House passes anti-carbon tax resolution in landslide For the first time since the Congressional debates around creating a cap and trade system a decade ago, a Republican member of Congress will introduce legislation to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Curbelo says he will introduce legislation later today creating a $24 per ton tax on carbon, which would increase 2 percent each year and replace the existing federal gasoline tax. Seventy percent of the revenue it generates would be delivered to the federal Highway Trust Fund, increasing revenue for rebuilding U.S. infrastructure. At a time the Trump administration is promoting skepticism around climate change, Curbelo has chosen a charged moment to launch his bid for a carbon tax. Last week House Republicans passed a resolution denouncing a carbon tax as a drain on the U.S. economy - all but seven Republicans, including Curbelo, voted for it. According to analysis by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy, Curbelo's legislation would raise per capita energy costs between 5 and 10 percent over the next decade. That is already drawing fire from conservative groups, like Americans for Tax Reform, which has pasted its website with headlines like "Curbelo's Carbon Tax Threatens 300% IRS Fines for 'Any person who fails to comply.'" What Curbelo is hoping is to turn around some moderate Republicans, those who worry about climate change but are not willing to back legislation they feel will undermine the U.S. economy. His legislation is a hodgepodge of ideas with something for seemingly everyone. It would put a moratorium on new greenhouse gas regulations. It would cut greenhouse gas emission 30 to 40 percent by 2030. And it would increase funding for transportation infrastructure by up to $106 billion by 2030. "There are political realities, and we wanted to introduce legislation that brought together some of the most important political movements of the moment," Curbelo said. Jumping from Fox News to a pro-Trump PAC isn't exactly a yuge leap - Kimberly Guilfoyle has left her gig as co-host of the network's show "The Five" to make her Trump boosterism official. Fox confirmed her departure Friday, and multiple news outlets say she's headed for the America First PAC. 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 It took Judy Stokely two hours to drive from Lumberton, Texas, to Blue Willow Bookshop on Memorial just to meet social media star Melissa Radke, author of the new book, Eat Cake. Be Brave. Stokely would have driven two hours more if she had to. Thats how much she and her tribe of girlfriends who came with her on Tuesday adores Radke and her in-your-face funny, but poignant thoughts about life, infertility, motherhood and marriage. Shes so real, Stokely said. She takes you in with no judgment and will love you no matter what. She loves God, and she loves people. Now Playing: Lufkin's Melissa Radke speaks out against Red Ribbon Week. Video: Melissa Radke, Houston Chronicle Radke, 44, who lives in her native Lufkin with her husband of nearly 24 years and two adopted children, has discovered fame from her videos on Facebook, where she has more than 300,000 followers. She also has built a fan base with her Instagram musings and her YouTube videos. Her video on mom guilt has been watched more than a million times and the one on Red Ribbon Week at her childrens school went viral. Her devotees says Radke takes issues like fat-shaming, mom-shaming and all types of other esteem-defeating topics on with humor, sarcasm and bravery. Radke graduated from Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., and spent years trying to build a singing career as a contemporary Christian and country artist, but she didnt have the right look. People had told me in Nashville, You sing pretty, but nobody wants to look at you. So I wanted to put videos out, but thats what I kept hearing in my head. . There are naysayers who are like, She got her fame from putting videos on the Internet? No, I got my fame by being brave. Radke talked with the Chronicle about her newfound fame, her love for Lufkin and the Astros, and her next venture: a reality show. Q. You share a lot of yourself in your videos. When people read the book, what do you want them to take away? A. Our lives do not start going down a slope, a long slope, at 40. Really, they can start over. I want women to learn that it is never too late to walk from the back of the stage where youve just been running lights and moving curtains for other people and have the starring role in your own life and in your own destiny. Were never too old to be the freaking Meryl Streep. Honestly. Q. Are you surprised by the social-media fame? A. The year when I turned 41 (shes now 44), and I blew out the candles on a cake. I made the decision to be brave. One of the first things that I did, I began to put videos on Facebook, which sounds ridiculous and shallow to a lot of people. I had always wanted to do it because I knew I had a personality that people would relate to, but I had always been made to feel so inferior for my looks. Q. Why? Youre beautiful. A. You know, I lived in Nashville for 16 years, and thats where a lot of my heartbreak came. I moved to Nashville to make my dreams come true, like everybody else. I was told very quickly on, that I had a beautiful voice, that I could compete vocally, but I could not compete with looks, so I was a waste of time in Nashville Q. What does being brave mean to you? A. Wow. Thats a loaded question. Brave means doing what I am scared to do. Brave means doing what they thought I wouldnt do. Brave means being louder when they told me to get quieter. Thats what brave means. It means stepping into what should have always been mine, but people told me to, Stand back, Sit down, Be quiet, Melissa, Youre too loud, Melissa, Youre too big, Melissa. Bravery means shutting up those voices and doing what I was made to do. Q. Did you get any of that growing up? A. My childhood growing up was joyous and wonderful, but right about seventh grade, was when I began hearing insults and began wearing those insults. Thats what we do. So honestly, the year that I turned 41, I just said, Im going to get free. Im going to get healed. What is broken, Im going to fix. I did a lot of work on myself. Q. You write openly in the book about infertility and adopting two children (Rocco, 9, and Remi, 12). What do you want them to learn from your journey? A. I think were on a mission first of all to normalize the American family. We dont make a lot of money. Were on a budget right now, and my shoes that Im wearing have the price tags on the bottom of them. Were out to normalize that, make you feel good about who you are. Q. Whats a day-in-the-life of Melissa like? A. Its a circus. You know that saying, Not my circus, not my monkeys? Well this is my circus and these are my monkeys, so what am I supposed to do? We try to make funny videos. I have an online course that women can take so were always working on that. Im doing a podcast, and it has turned out really, really well. Called, Ordinary People, Ordinary Things. Q. Whats next? A. So me and David and Rocco and Remi have signed a contract for a reality television show (based in Lufkin). Its with a major network. You would know the network easily if I told it to you. I cannot tell you. Q. What do you love about Lufkin? A. I love everything. Is it the prettiest town in the whole world? Goodness no. Right now, its 117 degrees. I love the people. I love that when I walk into a restaurant I know 90 percent of the people in there. I love it that when my kids are bad, like 1,000 mommas text me and say, You need to spank that kid. I love my town. If this reality show takes off, I think that my town is going to be highlighted in a very good way and a very good light, and Lufkin could use that. Q. We hear you come to Houston a lot. What do you like here? A. Houston is where we go to shop and get good food. I love your Galleria, and I go to Nordstrom. Thats my favorite. Thats when David Radke says, Nope. Were on a budget. 1308 Cantina is our favorite place. When we go out with our couple friends, and we want a big night out on the town, we just drive to Houston and have it. Q. How has your life changed in the past few years? A. People actually listen to me, and before people would be like, Shut up talking. I think that probably is what has changed the most. The money hasnt changed. Were still on a budget. I still live in Lufkin, Texas, and when I go to the grocery store and dont wear a bra, nobody cares. They do not care. Aint one person asked for my autograph in Lufkin. But its the being able to speak and people listening, and I take that very seriously. Q. What brings you joy? A. Dollar dogs at the Astros games. I cant talk to you about this enough. First of all, Im an Astros fan ... If I ever saw them I would just cry, but then when they have dollar-dog Tuesday, to me, Im going to go to Heaven and Gods going to be like, Its dollar dog day. Most mornings, Rabbi Marshal Klaven hops on his red beach cruiser and bikes the six miles to Congregation Bnai Israel. The exercise is both physical and spiritual. The slower commute gives him some time to ruminate on life on the edges of society or, as he says, in the bike lane. He also has extra time to engage with passersby. As Rabbi Klaven rides along the Seawall, he passes the crews clearing the beach, lifeguards, police and residents heading to work. He is able to take in his territory, the people of Galveston whom he serves directly and indirectly as a spiritual leader. You get to see the people, riding a bike gives you a brief moment to say Hi, he said. It makes our world a little smaller, a little more manageable. While he rides, Klaven often thinks about one of his predecessors, the beloved Rabbi Henry Cohen, who bicycled through the same streets more than half a century earlier. The rabbi, a British immigrant who dressed in a fine suit atop his two-wheels, was known as an activist and a scholar. He was one of the first to welcome the Jews coming from Russia and Eastern Europe, as they disembarked from the ships in the port city on the Gulf Coast. Congregation Bnai Israel is deeply rooted in the islands history and has long offered a progressive voice in the community and in the Jewish faith. Now, the temple is preparing to celebrate its 150th anniversary, with a nod to its past and a plan for its future. More Information Congregation B'nai Israel Where: 3008 Avenue O, Galveston Information: 409-765-5796; cbigalveston.org. See More Collapse Klaven is planning a full weekend of activities to mark the occasion. There will be unique moments, no doubt, he said. Its a once-in-a-lifetime moment. At 6 p.m. Friday Klaven kicks off the festivities by adding a special guest to his Sabbath service Rabbi David Saperstein, a lawyer, Jewish community leader and former U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom under former President Barack Obama. Saperstein also served as the director and chief legal counsel at the Union for Reform Judaisms Religious Action Center for 40 years and currently is senior adviser for policy and strategy for the organization. Klaven said that Saperstein is a fitting guest, representing Congregation Bnai Israels early ties to Reform Judaism. Its a great way to kick start our 150th anniversary, he said. The following day, at 9 a.m. Saturday, the public is invited to tour the historic temple, located at 824 22nd, which is now a private residence and will be open for the occasion. At 10 a.m. Klaven will be joined by other leaders and city dignitaries for a procession of the Torah from the original location to the current temple building, at 3008 Avenue O. At 7 p.m., on Saturday, the 150th-anniversary celebration continues at the Grand 1894 Opera House with an acoustic benefit concert featuring popular musician Matisyahu. Funds raised will go toward the temples post-Harvey recovery efforts. Were trying to get the current temple back to standard and ready for another 150 years, Klaven said. Klaven said Matisyahu is an ideal symbol for Judaism today, as he mixes numerous musical styles from beatbox to reggae. Its a mixture of all these things that you dont usually come together, but when they do, they exhibit a self thats much more beautiful and strong than those things would have been on their own, Klaven said. Klaven has been at the helm of the congregation for the past four years, succeeding Rabbi Jimmy Kessler. Kessler led Bnai Israel for 32 years. He also started the Texas Jewish Historical Society and has studied how Jews settled and experienced the Lone Star State. Galvestons Jewish history is really intriguing, Kessler said. In fact, he explained, Jews were among the islands first settlers in the 19th century. Joseph Osterman came from Amsterdam to Baltimore to Galveston in 1838 and set up shop. Michael Seeligson also came to the island in 1838 and became town alderman before being elected mayor in 1853. The number of Jews in Galveston continued to grow. By 1852, they dedicated their first cemetery. Without a temple, they would gather in their homes to pray together and conduct ceremonies. When the Civil War started, Kessler said that many Jews moved to Houston or Matamoros, Mexico to avoid the disruption from the battles. Ostermans widow, Rosanna, was dedicated to building a home for the Jewish community on the island. When she died, she left behind money to fund a Jewish Benevolent Society, create a Jewish school, expand the cemetery and construct a temple. Despite a setback from a yellow fever outbreak in 1867, the Jewish population of Galveston banded together to form Congregation Bnai Israel the following year. Officially established on July 26, 1868, the congregation was the second one chartered in Texas and the first Reform congregation in the state. A couple of members from Galveston were there when the Reform movement started, Kessler said. They ended up at the first meeting. The congregation became charter members in the Union for Reform Judaism. The first rabbi at the temple was Alexander Rosenspitz, who established the communitys first religious school in 1869. In 1871, the congregation then recruited Rabbi Abraham Blum, who stayed for 14 years at the post. He then became the first Jewish chaplain of the New York City Police, as well as medical director of a Jewish orphanage. Rabbi Joseph Silverman (1885-1888) followed Blum. He left to direct Temple Emanu-El in New York. Then Rabbi Cohen arrived and started his 64-year tenure at Bnai Israel. Cohen was an advocate for prison reform and served on the Texas Board of Pardons. He helped Galveston recover after the Great Storm of 1900, witnessed the islands grade-raising project and stood with the congregation through the two world wars. Cohen also was a key leader in the Galveston Movement, an immigrant assistance program lasting from 1907 to 1914. The island became home for countless Jewish immigrants fleeing hostile countries. In addition, Cohen was an advocate for education, and in 1900 his congregation began offering free religious school on the island, regardless of membership in the synagogue. Cohen died in 1952, but Kessler said the rabbis wisdom and values continue to serve as a guiding force on the congregation. Cohens dedication to social justice, for example, is what inspired Bnai Israel to open the Temple Academy in 1957 to ensure that students of all races could get an education. African American children were not allowed to attend public kindergarten but they were welcomed at the temples school. Kessler arrived in 1976 and followed Cohens teachings. He felt that what a rabbi needs to do is be involved in the community, and his congregation needed to be in the community as well, Kessler said. There was probably not a single board or organization on the island that did not have members of the Jewish community, not even the YMCA and Salvation Army, Kessler said. That kind of intimate involvement has really been the history of Bnai Israel. Klaven came to the congregation in 2014 and said he fell in love with Galveston and the temple immediately. There was this spirit here that I loved, in the city and the folks at the congregation, who were very much into making a difference, he said. The reason that we pray, the reason that we study, is to put those words into action. His goal was to further empower the congregation. Since he arrived at the temple, membership has grown by 70 families and the religious school has expanded from 12 to 50 children. Klaven also helped create the In the Name of God Interfaith Coalition. The group includes the Galveston Islamic Center, St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church and Westminster Presbyterian Church of Galveston. Klaven said the organization was a reaction to news of terrorist activities around the world. We were uncomfortable with the way Gods name was being used, and we wanted to re-own it, he said. Were not using Gods name to tear down and tear apart. Were using Gods name to bring together and build up. During Klavens time, he also started the congregations trips to Israel and annual fundraising rummage sale. The first year, the event generated $6,000, and last year, the amount grew to $12,000. Now he is preparing to hand over the reins to Rabbi Matthew Cohen, leaving the congregation soon after the 150th anniversary celebration. Klaven hopes to see the temple continue to have a voice on the community and broaden its outreach efforts even further. As strong as our faith in Judaism is, it is incumbent to reach out and be in a relationship with the community beyond us, because together, we are all stronger and more capable of facing challenges and moving forward in life, Klaven said. If youre going to change the world, it starts with one relationship at a time. Jayson Levy and his family are longtime members of the congregation. His great-grandfather came to Galveston shortly after the Great Storm of 1900. Levy said the 150-year anniversary is significant. Its a great milestone, he said. And were looking forward to the future. Our history is something that were all very proud of. Congregation Bnai Israel has been very important to the history of Galveston. He said residents from a number of nearby cities also join services on the island. Levy has been active in the congregations interfaith outreach. Its been a privilege to be a part of the congregation, he said. Weve made a difference not just in Galveston but in the whole region. Lindsay Peyton is a writer in Houston. Saturday, Aug. 25 marks an important deadline for flood insurance policyholders seeking additional money for flood damage caused by Hurricane Harvey. The fast-approaching deadline to file a Proof of Loss form makes Cate Biggs nervous. As an attorney for Long & Long, she has seen many people miss out on potential insurance payments during her 10 years in the field. Weve seen it after every single storm so many people call us a week after the deadline and theres nothing we can do to help them because they did not preserve their rights, Biggs said. There have been such terrible cases out there when we were fighting against FEMA for people who had missed the deadline even by an hour. There is a push for education outreach by some entities, like the Houston-based firm Long & Long, to inform the public about this deadline and what it means for people with insurance who were affected by Hurricane Harvey. Long & Long held a community consultation meeting in Kingwood on Wednesday, July 19. A Proof of Loss form must be submitted by National Flood Insurance policyholders in order to prove the cost amount of their actual flood damages that they are claiming. After Harvey, in an effort to get money in the hands of policyholders more quickly, the Federal Emergency Management Agency decided to waive the initial Proof of Loss requirement, which is the requirement that policyholders must submit a signed Proof of Loss form before getting their claim paid. Instead, FEMA decided that after a claim was filed, the policyholder could get an advance payment, which would be deducted from the final claim payment amount. An adjuster would be sent to assess and report the extent of damage back to the insurance company. If more flood damage is found later, or the policyholder thinks they should have received a larger payment from the insurance company, they are required to fill out and send in a Proof of Loss form along with supporting documentation. Typically, a policyholder has 60 days to attempt to get more insurance money. For Harvey claims, FEMA extended this deadline to one year after the date of loss a year after Hurricane Harvey. If a Proof of Loss is not submitted by the deadline, a policyholders claim will be closed. The deadline for submitting a Proof of Loss form extremely inflexible, she explained. Informing people about the Proof of Loss deadline faced unique challenges after Harvey when compared with other storms. Due to Hurricane Harveys vast reach across numerous communities, getting information to all who were impacted requires more of a concerted effort than in a smaller storm-affected community. Additionally, Biggs said that some people confuse the initial Proof of Loss waiver and Proof of Loss deadline extension and think that FEMA waived the Proof of Loss requirement entirely. I talk to maybe one person a day that understands what a Proof of Loss deadline is and I would say really 1 out of every 10 to 15 have no idea that this deadline is coming up, Biggs said. There are not many steps required to submit a Proof of Loss, which is a one-page document available on the FEMA website. However, Biggs said the form must be completed properly and the language may be confusing in which case people may decide to seek professional consultation. Included among what constitutes supporting documentation is an expert estimate report. You either have to get an adjusters estimate on your own and there are a lot of private estimators that work on their own, Biggs said. We have experts that work for us and then a public adjuster can give you an estimate, just to preserve your rights, and that needs to be attached to the Proof of Loss and it needs to be mailed in. The address is on FEMAs website. More information about Proof of Loss can be found on the www.FEMA.gov website. mfeuk@hcnonline.com WASHINGTON The Trump administration is proposing huge changes in the way Medicare pays doctors for the most common of all medical services, the office visit, offering physicians basically the same amount, regardless of a patients condition or the complexity of the services provided. Administration officials said the proposal would radically reduce paperwork burdens, freeing doctors to spend more time with patients. The government would pay one rate for new patients and another, lower rate for visits with established patients. Time spent on paperwork is time away from patients, said Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. She estimated that the change would save 51 hours of clinic time per doctor per year. But critics say the proposal would underpay doctors who care for patients with the greatest medical needs and the most complicated ailments and could discourage some physicians from taking Medicare patients. They also say it would increase the risk of erroneous and fraudulent payments because doctors would submit less information to document the services provided. Medicare would pay the same amount for evaluating a patient with sniffles and a head cold and a patient with complicated Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, said Ted Okon, executive director of the Community Oncology Alliance, an advocacy group for cancer doctors and patients. He called that simply crazy. Dr. Angus B. Worthing, a rheumatologist, said he understood the administrations objective. Doctors did not go to medical school to type on a computer all day, he said. But, he added: This proposal is setting up a potential disaster. Doctors will be less likely to see Medicare patients and to go into our specialty. Patients with arthritis and osteoporosis may have to wait longer to see the right specialists. Private insurers often follow Medicares lead, so the proposed change has implications that go far beyond the Medicare program. The proposal, part of Medicares physician fee schedule for 2019, is to be published Friday in the Federal Register, with an opportunity for public comment until Sept. 10. The new policies would apply to services provided to Medicare patients starting in January. We anticipate this to be a very, very significant and massive change, a welcome relief for providers across the nation, Verma said, adding that it fulfills President Donald Trumps promise to cut the red tape of regulation. Evaluation and management services are the foundation of an office visit. Medicare now recognizes five levels of office visits, with Level 5 involving the most comprehensive medical history and physical examination of a patient, and the most complex decision-making by the doctor. Level 1 is mostly for nonphysician services: for example, a five-minute visit with a nurse to check the blood pressure of a patient recently placed on a new medication. A Level 5 visit could include a thorough hourlong evaluation of a patient with heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, high blood pressure and diabetes with blood sugar out of control. The differences between Levels 2 to 5 are often really difficult to discern and time-consuming to document, said Dr. Kate Goodrich, Medicares chief medical officer. Medicare payment rates for new patients now range from $76 for a Level 2 office visit to $211 for a Level 5 visit. The Trump administration proposal would establish a single new rate of about $135. That could mean gains for doctors who specialize in routine care, but a huge hit for those who deal mainly with complicated patients, such as rheumatologists and oncologists. For established patients, the proposal calls for a payment rate of about $93, in place of current rates ranging from $45 to $148 for the four different levels of office visits. This proposal is likely to penalize physicians who treat sicker patients, even though they spend more time and effort and more resources managing those patients, said Deborah J. Grider, who has audited tens of thousands of medical records and written a book on the subject. Dr. Atul Grover, executive vice president of the Association of American Medical Colleges, said, The single payment rate may not reflect the resources needed to treat patients we see at academic medical centers the most vulnerable patients, those who have complex medical needs. If the new rules really do simplify their work, doctors say, they will be elated. We can focus more on patient care and less on the administrative burden of documentation and billing, said Dr. David B. Glasser, an assistant professor of ophthalmology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. We sometimes joke that it can be more complicated trying to get the coding level right than it is to figure out whats wrong with the patient. But, Glasser said, the financial impact of the proposal on eye doctors is not yet clear. Documentation requirements have increased in response to growing concerns about health care fraud and improper payments that cost Medicare billions of dollars a year. In many cases, federal auditors could not determine whether services were actually provided or were medically necessary. In some cases, they found that doctors had billed Medicare and patients for more costly services than they actually performed. In a report required by federal law, officials estimated early this year that 18 percent of Medicare payments for office visits with new patients were incorrect or improper, about three times the error rate for established patients. To prevent fraud and abuse, Medicare officials have repeatedly told doctors to document their claims. If it is not documented, it has not been done that is the principle set forth in Medicares billing manual for doctors. The Trump administration is moving away from that policy. We have proposed to move to a system with minimal documentation requirements for Levels 2 to 5 and one single payment rate, Goodrich said. Doctors now must provide more documentation for higher levels of care. Under the proposal, practitioners would only need to meet documentation requirements currently associated with a Level 2 visit. That would reduce the need for audits to verify the level of office visits. Medicare officials acknowledged that doctors who typically bill at Levels 4 and 5 could see financial losses under the proposal. But they said some of the losses could potentially be offset by add-on payments for primary care doctors and certain other medical specialists. With such adjustments, Medicare officials said, the impact on most doctors would be relatively modest. A table included in the proposed rule indicates that obstetricians and gynecologists would gain the most, while dermatologists, rheumatologists and podiatrists would lose the most. This article originally appeared in The New York Times Michael Avenatti has a warning for President Donald Trump: More tapes are out there. At a roundtable Sunday on ABC News, the lawyer for adult-film star Stormy Daniels said that the secret recording of Trump that was revealed two days ago is far from the only one made by Trump's longtime attorney Michael Cohen. "This is not the only tape," Avenatti said. "I can tell you that for a fact. There's multiple tapes." He added: "That, ultimately, is going to prove to be a big problem for the president. You know, that old adage, 'You've lived by the sword, you die by the sword,' is going to be true in this case, because the president knew that his attorney, Michael Cohen, had a predisposition towards taping conversations with people." On Friday, three people with knowledge of the conversation told The Washington Post that Cohen had secretly taped a conversation with Trump in September 2016 about whether to purchase the rights to Playboy centerfold Karen McDougal's account of her alleged affair with Trump. That conversation took place one month after AMI, the parent company of the National Enquirer, bought the rights to McDougal's story for $150,000, then shelved it. Cohen is being investigated for potential bank and election-law crimes. The recording was among the records seized in an FBI raid of his office and residences in April, multiple people familiar with the probe said. One of Trump's attorneys, Rudy Giuliani, said in a statement Friday that the September 2016 recording is "powerful exculpatory evidence." Even so, Trump lashed out at Cohen in a tweet on Saturday, claiming that it was "totally unheard of & perhaps illegal" that his attorney would tape him, despite the fact that New York's wiretapping law permits the recording of conversations so long as at least one party agrees. Avenatti is representing Daniels, who was paid $130,000 by Cohen in exchange for her silence about an alleged decade-old affair with Trump. Avenatti has a history of taunting the president with claims to have more information on Trump's alleged indiscretions. In March, he tweeted an image of what appeared to be a DVD and said he was sending a "warning shot" to the president regarding his denials of an affair with Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford. During Sunday's roundtable, retired Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz, an informal Trump adviser, pressed Avenatti to reveal how he knew of the existence of additional tapes, arguing that the leak of such information could represent a potential violation of lawyer-client privilege. "You're not in a position where you have been given that information properly," Dershowitz said during one heated exchange. Avenatti declined to reveal any details, maintaining that the only way he would have acted improperly would have been if he received the tape from someone in law enforcement. "All of the information that the FBI seized, that's not under lock and key," he said, adding: "I could have received it from Michael Cohen. I could have received it from one of Michael Cohen's counsel. I could have received it from others." Avenatti also noted that he ran into Cohen on Monday at a restaurant in New York City and that the two had a "very fruitful" conversation. "I think he is ready to tell the truth," Avenatti said of Cohen. "And ultimately, I think he is going to cooperate with us as it relates for our search for the truth." In a statement, Cohen's attorney, Brent Blakely, said that neither he nor his client had cooperated with or provided any information to Avenatti. He added that they did not have "any interest whatsoever in cooperating with Mr. Avenatti to the detriment of President Donald Trump." "Mr. Cohen's legal matters will not be tried in the court of public opinion, but in a court of law," Blakely said. --- The Washington Post's Carol D. Leonnig, Rosalind S. Helderman and Beth Reinhard contributed to this report. To help meet a growing demand in the Houston metro area, Houston Community College is launching a barber program this fall. The program comes in response to faculty and community members who urged an HCC dean to revive the program. It ended in 2012, an HCC representative said, because of a lack of qualified instructors. Im getting calls from the community, Why dont we have a barber program? said Anthony Hancock, dean of the Consumer Arts and Sciences Center for Excellence. Compelled by all the feedback from staff, including faculty members, many of whom also own their own barbershops, and from community members, Hancock said he initiated a labor market analysis which found that there is a significant need for barbers in the Houston area. The number of available jobs in Harris County barber shops is 21 percent above the national average, according to HCC data, and the projection for growth is at 11.8 percent between 2016 and 2020. So, as part of HCCs efforts to offer affordable career technical training to its students, the three-semester long program will begin in the Fall 2018 semester. The new program will cost about $3,200 and include an estimated 1,550 hours of instruction, lectures and lab work so students are eligible to apply for a state license upon graduation. Always growing HCC will be a a trendsetter with the new barber program because there are no other programs like it in Houston-area community colleges, said Shenesse Britton, owner of the Salon Park barbershop and department chair of the Barber Program. It will take off by storm because it is about being artistic, she added. As the department chair, Britton is responsible for the programs curriculum. She said students will learn everything that they need to know including haircutting, shearing and shading, and that students will have a shop day when they can get behind-the-chair experience, practicing the skills they learn in lectures. Barbers like Brad Hager, who has been an employee at Eddies Barbershop for more than eight years and graduated from the Texas Barber College, said there are always jobs available as a barber. Hair is always growing youre always going to have a job, Hager said. Its like grass that is always growing and needs to be mowed. Hager said that it has been very difficult to find barbers to hire. About three years ago, he said his shop recruited new barber college graduates. Students fresh out of school are ideal because they are often the most open-minded, he said. Theyre the hungriest because they spent all that money on barber college, Hager said. A new barber college grad the shop hired just three months ago has been doing well, he said. And part of that success is because of his willingness to learn new techniques, Hager said. Hager said he wants barber colleges to teach a wider variety of techniques. Citing his own experience after graduation, he said he had to learn skills like using shears and the clipper-over-comb technique on his own. Britton said that she designed the new HCC curriculum so students will cover all of the techniques they will need to know as a working barber. The inaugural class Although registration for the program will not be available until August, Hancock said 14 students have already expressed interest in registering for the barber program. He said that the cap for the inaugural class of students is 25. In May 2019, 16-year-old Javius Williams will graduate from Middle College High School, a specialized high school where students can receive college credit or workforce certifications at HCC. He is one of the students who intends to register for the new barber program at HCC while simultaneously pursuing an IT degree, before he goes to a four-year college. He said that he wants to become a barber so that he can make money on his own time. Instead of working 9-5, I can make my own schedule, Williams said. Hancock, who has been the dean of Consumer Arts and Sciences for more than four years, said that career technical training programs in general have become very popular. Fashion design in particular has shown an upward trend because of the increased focus on bringing manufacturing jobs back to the United States, he said. Other popular areas of study at HCC include interior design, cosmetology and culinary arts. And now, Hancock said, hes looking forward to adding the new barber training to the list of other programs. Houston orthodontist Heather Brown has rented a booth at the Houston Bridal Extravaganza for the past eight years but this year she tried something different. She hauled over two dental chairs from her office and invited brides to lay down for a digital mold, a three-minute test that tells Brown whether the brides have enough time to fix their teeth before their big day. This needs to be part of the wedding day check list, said Brown, who was juggling between the two dental chairs and talking to the bride-to-bes, bridesmaids and mothers of the bride walking by who have thousands of dollars to spend on what the wedding industry calls one of the biggest days of your life. The average cost of a wedding is $33,000, not including the honeymoon, according to the wedding planning site The Knot. The semi-annual bridal show at the George R. Brown Convention Center was packed with the usual vendors selling wedding dresses, wedding cakes and photography services. But there were also dozens of exhibitors who, at first glance, might not look like they belong at a bridal show but have come to realize what restaurants and dressmakers have known for years: That weddings are a time when checkbooks are open and excited brides and their families are willing to rack up sizable debt. This years bridal show featured plastic surgeons, weight loss programs and spa centers that promised to shave off as much as one pound of body fat in a day. And they dangled show specials for the brides if they needed another reason to splurge. Krista Ripper wasnt planning to get her teeth straightened before she gets married in November. But after stopping by Browns booth and getting assured that her teeth which shifted after she got her wisdom teeth could be realigned in time, she was delighted. Im surprised they can do it that quick, she said, signing up for an appointment and taking advantage of a bridal show discount. Ripper, who sells industrial plastics, also has dental insurance which will make it more affordable. The most expensive part of a wedding is the venue which runs about $15,000, according to The Knot. One way to cut the cost is to hold the festivities somewhere free and cater it yourself. But what about toilet facilities? Fancy portable toilets are one of the latest services to hit the bridal show floor as more weddings are held in barns and other outdoor venues that may not have enough or any indoor plumbing. Texas Outhouse bought a luxury comfort station three years ago, a trailer with eight restrooms with porcelain toilets, granite countertops and glass sinks. Now the company has 26 to rent, said major account representative John Griffin. Texas Outhouse can park the trailer on driveways, in the grass or just about anywhere because they require only a regular household electric outlet. And they dont smell, according to company representatives. Some brides have done double takes when they walk by, said Griffin, because they realize the fancy portable toilets would allow them to have their parties at a family ranch, at a park or someones home, cheaper alternatives than using a fancy restaurant or country club. For $2,000 $1,500 if they take advantage of the show special brides can rent the self-contained trailer for a weekend. The upscale toilets are accounting for a bigger than ever share of the companys business, barely breaking 10 percent last year to more than double that this year, said Craig Ray, who manages the restroom trailer fleet in Houston. Wedding are a huge untapped market for the toilets he describes as a touch of elegance. Weddings are also a time when many people think of buying a home and Eric Paulson figured he would take a chance setting up a booth at the bridal show. Hes in the mortgage loan business and his company, CMC Financial, launched a new financial product for couples that lets them crowd source their down payment. Instead of buying a toaster or blender, he said, wedding guests can contribute to a couples down payment for their first home. All the money goes to the couple if they buy a house in one year, he said, but they have to use CMC Financial to obtain their mortgage loan. But Paulson said he had trouble getting brides to stop and talk. Most have no idea what crowdsourcing is, he said. Next year, he said, he plans to put up a picture of a house so the concept is clearer. While the show drew many unusual venders, most brides came in search of the more or less traditional. Monique Banks was on the hunt for a photo booth and found an attractive show special: $599 for the booth, all the props and handheld selfie sticks so guests can take their own photos. Banks was surprised to see all the deals as she walked the floor with her mother and maid of honor. She is getting married in 2020 and figures she still has time to come to a couple more bridal shows to pick up even more bargains. She is still shopping for a location, caterer and wedding planner. You cant come, she said, without money in your pocket. lynn.sixel@chron.com twitter.com/lmsixel When Shannon Lucid flew to space for the first time three decades ago, she thought for sure the moon would be colonized by the time she was 75. But now Lucid, a veteran of five space flights, actually is 75. And only 12 men have walked on the moon. It still boggles my mind that we went and we quit, Lucid told the Houston Chronicle on Thursday. I thought that by the time I was this age there would be hundreds of people who had gone to the moon. PROBLEMS PILE UP: Missing screws, other human error help delay NASAs Webb telescope and boost cost by about $1B Thats why shes so excited about the recent push by President Donald Trumps administration to send Americans back to the moon. Trumps $19.9 billion NASA budget proposed for the coming fiscal year funnels billions of dollars to manned exploration missions, tasking the space agency with sending Americans around the moon in 2023 and constructing a mini-space station orbiting the moon. Lucid was one of the first six women tapped by NASA in 1978 to join the astronaut corps. She, along with Rhea Seddon and Anna Fisher, spoke Thursday at Space Center Houston about their experiences in NASA to an auditorium filled with more than 500 people. Whatever happened to.... Shannon Lucid: Now 75, Lucid flew to space five times, between 1985 and 1996, during her NASA career. One of those trips was a six-month stint on the Russian space station, Mir, which deorbited in 2001. She was the first woman to hold an international record for most on-orbit flight hours by a non-Russian and held the record for most flight hours -- 5,354 -- in orbit by a woman until June 2007. Rhea Seddon: Now 70, Seddon flew on three shuttle flights from 1985 to 1993, where she accumulated 722 hours in space. After leaving NASA in 1997, she served as assistant chief medical officer at Vanderbilt Medical Group in Nashville for 11 years. Anna Fisher: Now 68, Fisher flew on the space shuttle once, in 1984, where she logged 192 hours in space. She then served in numerous capacities for NASA on the ground, including chief of the International Space Station branch during its construction and she worked on display development for Orion, the spacecraft being built to eventually take humans to Mars. See More Collapse All three were in the same class as Sally Ride, the first female U.S. astronaut to go to space in 1983. This year is the 35th anniversary of Rides historic flight. She died of cancer in 2012. Judy Resnik and Kathryn Sullivan also were part of that 1978 astronaut class. Resnik died in the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger accident, and Sullivan now serves as administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration but was unable to attend Thursdays discussion. NASA was 20 years behind the Soviet Union in sending a woman into space. In June 1963, Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova orbited Earth 48 times. But the three women said Thursday they felt NASA treated them the same as the male astronauts back in 1978. I think we all questioned at first whether they would give us a chance, said Seddon, now 70 and a veteran of three spaceflights. But I think they were fair with us. They wanted to take a chance and theyd never done that before. Still, Lucid said the women were nervous when Ride launched in 1983. Their future in space depended on how well she did. She did well, the women said, and her flight inspired women all over the U.S. to go into science and engineering fields. Her first flight was so important to all of us; I think it encouraged so many girls in particular, Seddon said. It was a really momentous time. QUESTIONS REMAIN: Jeanette Epps doesn't know why NASA booted her from International Space Station flight Since then, the women said its been amazing to watch the droves of women and minorities who have joined the space agency across all areas. When you looked at old pictures of mission control, it was all men in crew cuts, said Fisher, now 68 and a veteran of one spaceflight. Now its pretty much 50/50 and all different ethnic backgrounds. Just look at the 2017 astronaut class, Seddon said: almost half of the 12 individuals selected are women. And with Trumps recent push for the moon, perhaps one of those women will one day step foot on the moon. School districts and other local governments are intentionally holding elections at odd times this summer to drive down turnout in hopes it will help them win voter approval for tax increases and bond issues, state lawmakers say. Local government leaders say they dont set elections on odd days in hopes of a more favorable outcome at the ballot box, but the issue is fast becoming a new tension point in the sometimes adversarial relationship between local government agencies and the Republican-led Texas Legislature. There will be a response from the Legislature, pledged State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Houston Republican. Just last month the Klein Independent School District in Harris County held a tax increase election on June 16 a Saturday. That was three weeks after Texas voters took to the polls for statewide runoff elections on May 22. And three weeks before that, the city of Houston held a special election on May 5 to fill a city council vacancy. Next up: South San Antonio Independent School District is holding an election on Aug. 14 in an attempt to raise the districts property tax rate by 13 cents per $100 of taxable value, which would increase school taxes by $130 a year for the owner of a $100,000 home. And on August 25, Harris County will ask voters to approve a $2.5 billion bond issue to cover the cost of flood control projects. That same day, voters in Floresville ISD, just outside of San Antonio, are being asked to approve a tax increase. "It is preposterously bad public policy to spend taxpayer money to hold special elections in the dog days of summer that almost always have a low voter turnout," Bettencourt said. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett shot back. People who live in Senator Bettencourts senate district were affected by the flooding. He should be doing more to help them instead of worrying about election dates, he said. Assuming Bettencourt follows through with a bill, the clash over election dates promises to be yet another issue pitting state lawmakers against local government in Texas. Just last year, the state passed bills to restrict local government tree ordinances and annexation rules. And Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is moving to stop local governments from maintaining prohibitions against plastic shopping bags, armed with a June ruling from the Texas Supreme Court that struck down Laredos ban. In the case of the Klein ISD, the June election cost taxpayers nearly $300,000 it would have been considerably less if the district had waited for the November general election. District officials say they needed the vote on the tax in the summer so they could plan next years budget. Critics of the tax hike said the timing of the election was a school board ploy to reduce turnout. And low turnout is what they got about 9,000 of 151,000 registered voters cast ballots, a turnout of six percent. However, the summer vote did not help the district win approval for the tax, which would have cost the owner of a $200,000 home an additional $157 a year. Voters shot it down by a significant margin. Elsewhere in Texas, trustees at Keller Independent School District in Fort Worth announced they would go to voters on Sept. 8 a Saturday for a tax increase. Many other school districts around the state from McAllen to Copperas Cove are aiming for Sept. 8 elections, too. School districts have blamed the states diminished funding for public education as a key reason they are having to turn to local voters for more help. Districts say the state Legislature is not doing enough to keep funding up for local school districts, forcing locals to cut budgets or seek tax increases. All of the elections should be on ballots at more traditional voting periods in Texas, said Bettencourt, a leader of the Republican Caucus in the Texas Senate, giving him a key role in setting the legislative agenda when the next regular session starts in early 2019. State Rep. Mike Schofield, a Katy Republican, also voiced concerns about odd dates set for local elections, saying ideally they would all be in November when the public is used to voting and people are most engaged and likely to vote. If you have elections that few people know about, its like youre trying to avoid the voters, Schofield said. Klein ISD superintendent Bret Champion said the district wasnt playing games with the June election. The district was looking for the earliest possible date in order to have time to prepare for the next school year budget, whether the measure passed or failed. If the district had waited until November, he said, the election would have been two months into the budget year and its failure would have forced adjustments with the school year already well underway. It was a budgetary reason, not a political one, Champion said. But for Dylan Glass, the timing of the election was a huge factor in making him rally his neighbors against the tax. The 20-year-old attended Klein schools and his mother is a former public school teacher. But he said the timing of what he called a pop-up election felt like a trick. It didnt seem right, Glass said, adding that many people had no idea an election was going on. Bettencourt has also been critical of Harris County seeking approval for its flood control bond on Aug. 25 exactly one year after Hurricane Harvey first came on shore in Rockport in 2017. Although Gov. Greg Abbott approved the emergency election date, Bettencourt has been critical of the election, saying it should be on the November ballot when more voters will be able to weigh in. He said that would give voters more time to weigh what the county is asking for. Emmett, the Harris County judge, has defended the Aug. 25 as the best time for the vote. "It's the one year anniversary of Harvey. I don't think we want to go a year and not be able to say we're doing something, Emmett said in May. People who care about mitigation, resilience, flood control, they'll be energized and they'll want to go out. Will there be somebody who wants to stand in the face of what we went through during Harvey and say 'I want to be against it'? I kind of dare them to do it." Bettencourt said when the Legislature meets in 2019, hell push legislation requiring all tax-related votes to be on November ballots. Texas used to have 4 standard election dates, but in the mid-2000s that was trimmed to two one in May and the other in November. Bettencourt said governments should stick to those dates unless there is a clear emergency, such as when a member of Congress or the Legislature resigns. jeremy.wallace@chron.com Twitter.com/JeremySWallace The one thing Donald J. Trump wants more than anything in the world is to project the kind of strength that Vladimir Putin exudes in a single choreographed photo riding shirtless on horseback. Putin, the former KGB agent turned aspiring Russian dictator, maintains his strongman stranglehold in part cultivating an image of immaculate masculinity or rather, the facade that launched a thousand memes! In Helsinki, President Trump dared approach his irreproachable muse. He dared share a frame with tyrannys poster boy . But our president didnt resemble the chest-bearing horseman. Or even the horse. He was something akin to a jackass. Trumps exercise in strength revealed only weakness. As U.S. Sen. John McCain, a real man of strength, said of his fellow Republican: No prior president has ever abased himself more abjectly before a tyrant. The presidents refusal to stand by U.S. intelligence agencies, and his failure to stand up to Putin over Russias cyberattacks during our 2016 election, makes America vulnerable to future aggression. Presumably, Trump cast doubt on Russias hacking for fear it would erode the validity of his victory. Its frightening how easily the presidents America First mantra can be usurped by his Me First mentality. Only a man as self-centered as Trump would call it an incredible offer to hand over a former American ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul, to be probed by Putins goons in exchange for Putin interrogating 12 Russian agents facing U.S. indictments for theft, fraud and international espionage in the 2016 election. Only someone with no understanding of loyalty would question on the world stage why the tiny NATO ally Montenegro deserves protection. Actually, Montenegro, a stabilizing force in the Balkans, is an infinitely better model than Putin. Truly strong leaders dont need to muzzle a free press. They dont have the tea of persistent critics laced with radioactive isotopes. When it counts, they stand by their allies. Montenegro eagerly contributed forces to U.S. efforts in Afghanistan, and some troops are still there. The president of the most powerful nation in the world, meanwhile, mocks allies and cozies up to enemies. Where is the leader we were promised? Where is the man who vowed to speak up for the little guy, to resist the influence of special interests? It often seems Americans didnt elect a bold, battle-tested chief executive only a guy who played one on TV. Trump hasnt even tried to take on the difficult challenges of his office. There has been no JFK call to do things because they are hard, no LBJ questions about the purpose of power. Trump has merely lavished power on those who already have it. He has used his partisan advantage a Republican-controlled congress not on hard-to-reach goals, but on low-hanging fruit. He championed a tax bill that benefited Wall Street while real wages decline. He flexes his muscle against China while his trade tariffs cripple farmers and small businesses. He huffs about securing the border while he targets toddlers and diverts resources from truly dangerous drug-traffickers. A once-promised infrastructure bill has become a punchline. The president who promised insurance for everybody seems content to let the Affordable Care Act die without a replacement. The scourge of opioids, which Trump declared a nationwide public health emergency, continues to ravage communities without an effective federal response. If the president really wanted to prove his strength and influence, he could tackle a challenging project. None is more difficult or more worthy than comprehensive reform of our broken immigration system. Both Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama failed to get it done. Yet, wholesale reform is the single, glaring solution that will end the need for stop-gap measures and draconian crackdowns that hurt people, communities, crime-fighting efforts, and industry, to name a few. With the left calling to abolish ICE and the right demanding a wall, America needs a leader to guide us toward a compromise that does the most good for the most people. It isnt hard to imagine Trump having his Nixon-to-China moment by ushering through the kind of bill that solves a hard problem, and revives at least the chances of a respectable legacy. But that would require real leadership, shrewd negotiation and honest commitment to the greater good more Lyndon Johnson, less Vladimir Putin. It would require getting off the horse and into the political trenches. Thats the last thing weve come to expect from Trump. If he cant conjure the strength to do the right thing, voters must call his bluff. Dayna Steele should find some solace in her run for Congress with the great news that Texas voters seem to have no problem electing Houston radio personalities for public office. Less great news: The two examples are current Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and former Houston city council member Michael Berry. Worse news: Steele is running as a Democrat in a district so Republican that its lines - from flappy ears on the border with Louisiana to a trunk down around Baytown - kind of resemble the profile of an elephants noggin. RELATED: Establishment Democrats remain asleep at the wheel and on a path to defeat ALSO: Texas Republicans stray from conservative roots REYNOLDS: Face the facts, Beto will lose Steele, a former disc jockey and self-styled First Lady of Rock n Roll, hopes to dislodge Brian Babin from the congressional seat representing the dense forests and oft-overflowing rivers of deep Southeast Texas. That area, the still-shiny and new(ish) 36th Congressional District, re-elected Babin in 2016 with nearly 89 percent of the vote against a Green Party candidate. When Babin faced an actual opponent in 2014, he achieved a squeaker of a victory, 79 percent to 22 percent. A miracle of modern gerrymandering, the 36th Congressional District stretches from Beltway 8 to the boondocks, carefully circumventing Beaumont and Galveston, where the big city liberals only elect Republican congressman with 62 percent of the vote. The district is the 15th most Republican in the nation, according to the most recent Cook Partisan Voter Index report, which would be more impressive if Texas didnt also contain Nos. 1, 2, 8 and 12 spread out to that forgotten world on the other side of Interstate 35. State leaders carved out the 36th district, with its forestation and oft-overflowing rivers, after the 2010 census, creating a district so heavily in favor of Republican leadership, the citizens actually let slimeball Steve Stockman run the show for a couple of years because he had an (R) next to his name. Stockman, you may recall, sits in jail to this day for his sketchy fundraising efforts while representing the 36th CD. Stockman has ironically had his life limited for skimming funds meant for the non-profit Life Without Limits. Babin, a dentist and former mayor of Woodville -- named for our second governor, not the neighboring Big Thicket - emerged soon after. He was seemingly pressed right out of the Texas Republicans Play-Doh Fun Factory, down to the custom-made boots he pairs with his dark suits (neither of which could most of his constituents ever dream to afford). Babin actually did put himself through school working as a janitor and other roles, so hes not some generational elitist out of touch with those usually voting for him. And he is a consistent and reliable Republican, representing the people in his district just about how theyd like. Hes a perfect low-key congressman for a low-visibility area where political futures were once decided based on having the last name Daniel (see: Price Daniel Sr., Price Daniel Jr., the Susan Dey movie Bed of Lies). Steele, who touts herself as the Voice for Southeast Texas in an admirably subtle reference to her past career in the booth, meanwhile bangs a predictable Democratic drum from her home in Seabrook. She does little to distinguish herself from any mainline Democrat, proffering her positions as pro-choice, pro-gun background check, pro-socialized medicine. She calls for job creation, then contradicts that with pleas to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. She does, however, have endorsements from Joan Jett, Melissa Ethridge and David Crosby, though its doubtful the musicians will get registered in the 36th CD in time to vote for her. The biggest buzz so far from Steeles campaign was another endorsement, this one from Babins former campaign manager Jon-Marc McDonald, who reportedly had a falling out with the congressman upon coming out of the closet back in 1998. That was back when Babin was trying to take Charlie Wilsons old 2nd District, which didnt turn fully Republican until the redistricting of the early 2000s. The incident, including claims by McDonald that Babin spoke despairingly of homosexuals in private, doesnt say much for Babins embrace of the gay community. But then again, Winnie and Anahuac arent exactly The Montrose. (Vidor and Jasper also lie in the 36th district. There will be no discussion of those towns.) Steele served up the soundtrack to many lives in the Houston area during her time spinning records on KLOL and other stations. Her post-DJ life has been exemplary, writing a few books, founding an online business and, most laudably, creating an online community to encourage and help girls study science, technology, engineering and math (the vaunted STEM areas), Smart Girls Rock. She comes thisclose to understanding the mindset of many in her rural chunk of Southeast Texas, evidenced by the uber-tacky campaign Dodge Ram pickup with a full-body graphic wrap that includes the preamble to the Constitution and a Human Rights Campaign equal sign (bonus points given for the not actual size on the cabin-sized photo of the candidate). Shed be closer to the Southeast Texas norm, though, if she had added a four-inch lift kit and some smoke stacks in the bed for rolling coal. Steeles smart enough to know flipping the district, the cabeza de elefante, would be a bigger upset than the Battle of Midway. Or when the kids from The School of Rock beat No Vacancy in the Battle of the Bands. Like many Democrats in this year of the mythological Blue Wave, Steele has raised a substantial amount of money $511,110 at the end of the last reporting period. But like most Democrats in Texas, thats money ill spent. Money is a measure of passion, not popularity. But even so, the milquetoast Babin campaign has raised $885,268 in the same timeframe. And the money isnt at all necessary. Voters in the 36th Congressional District will no doubt return Babin to Washington. In that area, the name before the party designation is irrelevant. Reynolds is a writer living in Houston. He's on Twitter @RoyRReynolds. Sitting in the back of a cab can have a confessional allure: Sealed off to the world, you can take a private moment for yourself or have a conversation casual or deeply intimate with a driver you will never see again. Now imagine finding out days later that those moments were being streamed live on the internet to thousands of people. Whats more, some of those people paid to watch you, commenting on your appearance, sometimes explicitly, or musing about your livelihood. This was the reality for potentially hundreds of passengers of a ride-hailing service driver in St. Louis, according to a lengthy article published in The St. Louis Post-Dispatch this weekend. Now Playing: A Uber and Lyft driver in Missouri has been suspended after he was found to be posting live streamed videos of passengers in his car. Video: Buzz 60 In it, Jason Gargac, 32, a driver for Uber and Lyft from Florissant, Missouri, described an elaborate $3,000 rig of cameras that he used to record and livestream passengers rides to the video platform Twitch. Sometimes passengers homes and names were revealed. Gargac told the newspaper that he sought out passengers who might make entertaining content, part of capturing and sharing the everyday reactions that earned him a small but growing following online. Gargac said he earned $3,500 from the streaming, through subscriptions, donations and tips. He said that at first he had informed passengers that he was recording them, but the videos felt fake and produced. BEHAVE: Here are all the unspoken rules of Uber and Lyft On Sunday, however, as news of Gargacs scheme circulated around the internet, his actions were repeatedly summarized in one word: creepy. Gargac could not be reached for comment Sunday. Uber said in a statement Sunday that it had ended its partnership with Gargac and that the troubling behavior in the videos is not in line with our Community Guidelines. Lyft said in a statement that Gargac had been deactivated. The safety and comfort of the Lyft community is our top priority, it added. On Saturday morning, Gargac tweeted that to him, transparency is always key. Ive had a few offline conversations with some folks, and they suggested getting rid of the stored vods as step #1 of trying to calm everyone down, he said, referring to on-demand videos on Twitch. Ive done that, he added, for now. His story appears to be full of contradictions. Gargac livestreamed people without their knowledge as he tried to become a police officer. He started driving in order to record and broadcast people. He asked a Post-Dispatch reporter to not use his full name in the story, to protect his privacy. The story also raises a host of 21st-century questions about technology, when people should expect privacy and the business models of ride-hailing companies like Lyft and Uber. They have come under scrutiny for the oversight of their drivers, which they consider independent contractors and not employees. YOUR DRIVER IS HERE: How to find your Uber driver Fundamentally, exposing people, especially women, to random people on the internet is mean and its wrong, said Alex Rosenblat, a researcher at the nonprofit think tank Data and Society. Rosenblat, who is writing a book called Uberland: How Algorithms Are Rewriting the Rules of Work, said she had studied the company for four years. There has been an upward trend in recording passengers, she said, driven by good reasons like ensuring drivers safety, or being able to vouch for the quality of their service. What were seeing with this driver is just a totally different game, she said. This is, How can I monetize passengers as content?' Missouri law allows a person to record others without their consent, said Ari Waldman, director of New York Law Schools Innovation Center for Law and Technology. He said victims could theoretically sue for invasion of privacy, but would need to show that the back of an Uber is a place where we can and should be expected to be private. Gargac had placed a small sign on a passenger window that said the vehicle was equipped with recording devices and that consent was given by entering the car. I think its a larger question about privacy and technology for society, what we do when the norms around a particular technology are violated, Rosenblat said. You may not have violated the law, but people certainly feel violated. NO TIP FOR YOU: Uber driver pees in bottle, grossing out passenger Rosenblat said Gargac was not the only driver to record and share recordings of passengers without their knowledge. Neither Lyft nor Uber answered questions Sunday about their policies, or what they do to stop or allow such behavior. Ride-hailing services have previously come under scrutiny for the behavior of their drivers. This month, a man nicknamed the ride-share rapist was charged with rape and kidnapping in the assaults of four women in San Francisco. Gargacs Twitch videos could not be viewed Sunday. A Twitch spokesman said the companys terms of service and guidelines do not allow people to share content that invades others privacy and that any reported videos would be removed. Before it disappeared, Gargacs channel had about 4,500 followers and about 100 subscribers who paid $5 a month to support his broadcasts. The Twitch spokesman said the company does not comment on specific cases. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. Imperial Valley News Center Evacuation of the White Helmets From Southwest Syria Washington, DC - The United States welcomes the safe evacuation of more than 400 members of the Syrian Civil Defense, otherwise known as the White Helmets, and their families from southwest Syria. We are glad that these brave volunteers, who have saved thousands of lives, are now out of harm's way. The United States and our international partners asked the United Nations to take the central role in this critical humanitarian operation. In response, the UN organized entry into Jordan for these members of the White Helmets and their families, who are fleeing violence in southwest Syria. The White Helmets have consistently been targeted by the Assad regime. Members of the group, more than half of which are children, were allowed entry into Jordan on a transit basis, until UNHCR completes procedures for their resettlement in third countries. We deeply appreciate Israel's role in facilitating the transit of the White Helmets and their family members. We commend Jordan's generosity in supporting their processing by UNHCR and the commitment of the United Kingdom, Canada, and Germany to provide the White Helmets and their families with permanent homes. We renew our call on the Assad regime and Russia to abide by their commitments, end the violence, and protect all Syrian civilians, including humanitarians such as the White Helmets, in areas formerly part of the southwest de-escalation zone and throughout Syria. Imperial Valley News Center APA Joins Campus Activated Subscriber Access to Remove Barriers to Off-Campus Access Washington, DC - The American Psychological Association has made it easier for researchers and students to access its journals using their institutional subscriptions even when they are not on campus. This new functionality is the result of a partnership with Google Scholars Campus Activated Subscriber Access (CASA) initiative, ensuring users a seamless experience for accessing APAs scholarly content anytime, anywhere. CASA is an enhanced authentication service that builds upon Google Scholars Subscriber Links service. Without CASA, Subscriber Links in Google Scholar search results are based on IP authentication, resulting in a frustrating user experience for off-campus researchers. With CASA integration, remote researchers have the same Subscriber Links and unrestricted access to APAs journal content as on-campus researchers, from anywhere in the world. To take advantage of this new feature, an individual must first access the subscribed content via Google Scholar while on campus. When the user accesses Google Scholar off-campus, Google will remember the users affiliation. CASA provides frictionless access to content, eliminating the need for a proxy server or other off-campus authentication systems. This new feature facilitates seamless access and encourages usage among researchers on the go or who work remotely, said APA Chief Publishing Officer Jasper Simons. APA is pleased to add this feature to our growing suite of researcher tools and services. Imperial Valley News Center Sound waves reveal diamond cache deep in Earths interior Cambridge, Massachusetts - There may be more than a quadrillion tons of diamond hidden in the Earths interior, according to a new study from MIT and other universities. But the new results are unlikely to set off a diamond rush. The scientists estimate the precious minerals are buried more than 100 miles below the surface, far deeper than any drilling expedition has ever reached. The ultradeep cache may be scattered within cratonic roots the oldest and most immovable sections of rock that lie beneath the center of most continental tectonic plates. Shaped like inverted mountains, cratons can stretch as deep as 200 miles through the Earths crust and into its mantle; geologists refer to their deepest sections as roots. In the new study, scientists estimate that cratonic roots may contain 1 to 2 percent diamond. Considering the total volume of cratonic roots in the Earth, the team figures that about a quadrillion (1016) tons of diamond are scattered within these ancient rocks, 90 to 150 miles below the surface. This shows that diamond is not perhaps this exotic mineral, but on the [geological] scale of things, its relatively common, says Ulrich Faul, a research scientist in MITs Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences. We cant get at them, but still, there is much more diamond there than we have ever thought before. Fauls co-authors include scientists from the University of California at Santa Barbara, the Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, the University of California at Berkeley, Ecole Polytechnique, the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Harvard University, the University of Science and Technology of China, the University of Bayreuth, the University of Melbourne, and University College London. A sound glitch Faul and his colleagues came to their conclusion after puzzling over an anomaly in seismic data. For the past few decades, agencies such as the United States Geological Survey have kept global records of seismic activity essentially, sound waves traveling through the Earth that are triggered by earthquakes, tsunamis, explosions, and other ground-shaking sources. Seismic receivers around the world pick up sound waves from such sources, at various speeds and intensities, which seismologists can use to determine where, for example, an earthquake originated. Scientists can also use this seismic data to construct an image of what the Earths interior might look like. Sound waves move at various speeds through the Earth, depending on the temperature, density, and composition of the rocks through which they travel. Scientists have used this relationship between seismic velocity and rock composition to estimate the types of rocks that make up the Earths crust and parts of the upper mantle, also known as the lithosphere. However, in using seismic data to map the Earths interior, scientists have been unable to explain a curious anomaly: Sound waves tend to speed up significantly when passing through the roots of ancient cratons. Cratons are known to be colder and less dense than the surrounding mantle, which would in turn yield slightly faster sound waves, but not quite as fast as what has been measured. The velocities that are measured are faster than what we think we can reproduce with reasonable assumptions about what is there, Faul says. Then we have to say, There is a problem. Thats how this project started. Diamonds in the deep The team aimed to identify the composition of cratonic roots that might explain the spikes in seismic speeds. To do this, seismologists on the team first used seismic data from the USGS and other sources to generate a three-dimensional model of the velocities of seismic waves traveling through the Earths major cratons. Next, Faul and others, who in the past have measured sound speeds through many different types of minerals in the laboratory, used this knowledge to assemble virtual rocks, made from various combinations of minerals. Then the team calculated how fast sound waves would travel through each virtual rock, and found only one type of rock that produced the same velocities as what the seismologists measured: one that contains 1 to 2 percent diamond, in addition to peridotite (the predominant rock type of the Earths upper mantle) and minor amounts of eclogite (representing subducted oceanic crust). This scenario represents at least 1,000 times more diamond than people had previously expected. Diamond in many ways is special, Faul says. One of its special properties is, the sound velocity in diamond is more than twice as fast as in the dominant mineral in upper mantle rocks, olivine. The researchers found that a rock composition of 1 to 2 percent diamond would be just enough to produce the higher sound velocities that the seismologists measured. This small fraction of diamond would also not change the overall density of a craton, which is naturally less dense than the surrounding mantle. They are like pieces of wood, floating on water, Faul says. Cratons are a tiny bit less dense than their surroundings, so they dont get subducted back into the Earth but stay floating on the surface. This is how they preserve the oldest rocks. So we found that you just need 1 to 2 percent diamond for cratons to be stable and not sink. In a way, Faul says cratonic roots made partly of diamond makes sense. Diamonds are forged in the high-pressure, high-temperature environment of the deep Earth and only make it close to the surface through volcanic eruptions that occur every few tens of millions of years. These eruptions carve out geologic pipes made of a type of rock called kimberlite (named after the town of Kimberley, South Africa, where the first diamonds in this type of rock were found). Diamond, along with magma from deep in the Earth, can spew out through kimberlite pipes, onto the surface of the Earth. For the most part, kimberlite pipes have been found at the edges of cratonic roots, such as in certain parts of Canada, Siberia, Australia, and South Africa. It would make sense, then, that cratonic roots should contain some diamond in their makeup. Its circumstantial evidence, but weve pieced it all together, Faul says. We went through all the different possibilities, from every angle, and this is the only one thats left as a reasonable explanation. This research was supported, in part, by the National Science Foundation. Imperial Valley News Center X-ray data may be first evidence of a star devouring a planet Cambridge, Massachusetts - For nearly a century, astronomers have puzzled over the curious variability of young stars residing in the Taurus-Auriga constellation some 450 light years from Earth. One star in particular has drawn astronomers attention. Every few decades, the stars light has faded briefly before brightening again. In recent years, astronomers have observed the star dimming more frequently, and for longer periods, raising the question: What is repeatedly obscuring the star? The answer, astronomers believe, could shed light on some of the chaotic processes that take place early in a stars development. Now physicists from MIT and elsewhere have observed the star, named RW Aur A, using NASAs Chandra X-Ray Observatory. Theyve found evidence for what may have caused its most recent dimming event: a collision of two infant planetary bodies, which produced in its aftermath a dense cloud of gas and dust. As this planetary debris fell into the star, it generated a thick veil, temporarily obscuring the stars light. Computer simulations have long predicted that planets can fall into a young star, but we have never before observed that, says Hans Moritz Guenther, a research scientist in MITs Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, who led the study. If our interpretation of the data is correct, this would be the first time that we directly observe a young star devouring a planet or planets. The stars previous dimming events may have been caused by similar smash-ups, of either two planetary bodies or large remnants of past collisions that met head-on and broke apart again. Its speculation, but if you have one collision of two pieces, its likely that afterward they may be on some rogue orbits, which increases the probability that they will hit something else again, Guenther says. Guenther is the lead author of a paper detailing the groups results, which appears today in the Astronomical Journal. His co-authors from MIT include David Huenemoerder and David Principe, along with researchers from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and collaborators in Germany and Belgium. A star cover-up Scientists who study the early development of stars often look to the Taurus-Auriga Dark Clouds, a gathering of molecular clouds in the constellations of Taurus and Auriga, which host stellar nurseries containing thousands of infant stars. Young stars form from the gravitational collapse of gas and dust within these clouds. Very young stars, unlike our comparatively mature sun, are still surrounded by a rotating disk of debris, including gas, dust, and clumps of material ranging in size from small dust grains to pebbles, and possibly to fledgling planets. If you look at our solar system, we have planets and not a massive disk around the sun, Guenther says. These disks last for maybe 5 million to 10 million years, and in Taurus, there are many stars that have already lost their disk, but a few still have them. If you want to know what happens in the end stages of this disk dispersal, Taurus is one of the places to look. Guenther and his colleagues focus on stars that are young enough to still host disks. He was particularly interested in RW Aur A, which is at the older end of the age range for young stars, as it is estimated to be several million years old. RW Aur A is part of a binary system, meaning that it circles another young star, RW Aur B. Both these stars are about the same mass as the sun. Since 1937, astronomers have recorded noticeable dips in the brightness of RW Aur A every few decades. Each dimming event appeared to last for about a month. In 2011, the star dimmed again, this time for about half a year. The star eventually brightened, only to fade again in mid-2014. In November 2016, the star returned to its full luminosity. Astronomers have proposed that this dimming is caused by a passing stream of gas at the outer edge of the stars disk. Still others have theorized that the dimming is due to processes occurring closer to the stars center. We wanted to study the material that covers the star up, which is presumably related to the disk in some way, Guenther says. Its a rare opportunity. An iron-clad signature In January 2017, RW Aur A dimmed again, and the team used NASAs Chandra X-Ray Observatory to record X-ray emission from the star. The X-rays come from the star, and the spectrum of the X-rays changes as the rays move through the gas in the disk, Guenther says. Were looking for certain signatures in the X-rays that the gas leaves in the X-ray spectrum. In total, Chandra recorded 50 kiloseconds, or almost 14 hours of X-ray data from the star. After analyzing these data, the researchers came away with several surprising revelations: the stars disk hosts a large amount of material; the star is much hotter than expected; and the disk contains much more iron than expected not as much iron as is found in the Earth, but more than, say, a typical moon in our solar system. (Our own moon, however, has far more iron than the scientists estimated in the stars disk.) This last point was the most intriguing for the team. Typically, an X-ray spectrum of a star can show various elements, such as oxygen, iron, silicon, and magnesium, and the amount of each element present depends on the temperature within a stars disk. Here, we see a lot more iron, at least a factor of 10 times more than before, which is very unusual, because typically stars that are active and hot have less iron than others, whereas this one has more, Guenther says. Where does all this iron come from? The researchers speculate that this excess iron may have come from one of two possible sources. The first is a phenomenon known as a dust pressure trap, in which small grains or particles such as iron can become trapped in dead zones of a disk. If the disks structure changes suddenly, such as when the stars partner star passes close by, the resulting tidal forces can release the trapped particles, creating an excess of iron that can fall into the star. The second theory is for Guenther the more compelling one. In this scenario, excess iron is created when two planetesimals, or infant planetary bodies, collide, releasing a thick cloud of particles. If one or both planets are made partly of iron, their smash-up could release a large amount of iron into the stars disk and temporarily obscure its light as the material falls into the star. There are many processes that happen in young stars, but these two scenarios could possibly make something that looks like what we observed, Guenther says. He hopes to make more observations of the star in the future, to see whether the amount of iron surrounding the star has changed a measure that could help researchers determine the size of the irons source. For instance, if the same amount of iron appears in, say, a year, that may signal that the iron comes from a relatively massive source, such as a large planetary collision, versus if there is very little iron left in the disk. Much effort currently goes into learning about exoplanets and how they form, so it is obviously very important to see how young planets could be destroyed in interactions with their host stars and other young planets, and what factors determine if they survive, Guenther says. Imperial Valley News Center Made in America: Businesses and Workers are Thriving Under President Donald J. Trump Washington, DC - "The single best tribute to our workers can be found in the unmatched quality and craftsmanship of the amazing products they bring from the blueprint to the storefront. Made in the USA is a global symbol of unrivaled excellence." ~ President Donald J. Trump AMERICA IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS: President Donald J. Trumps economic policies have made it the perfect time for businesses to grow and thrive right here in the United States. American business is booming due to President Trumps pro-growth agenda, headlined by historic tax cuts, deregulation, and trade actions defending American workers and businesses. Businesses are creating more and more jobs right here in the United States, with more than 3.2 million new jobs created since President Trump took office. The number of job openings surpassed the number of job seekers for the first time on record, which is great news for Americans who are unemployed and unable to find good, stable jobs. 65 percent of Americans say now is a good time to find a quality job, according to Gallup. Gross domestic product grew by more than 3 percent in 2 quarters during 2017, and some forecasts expect growth to exceed 4 percent in the second quarter of 2018. Businesses are finally bringing money held overseas back to the United States as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act signed into law by President Trump. Steel and aluminum producers are pouring in new investment and creating new jobs in the United States following the tariffs placed on those industries to protect our national security. AMERICAN MANUFACTURING IS BACK: President Trumps pro-growth agenda has rejuvenated American manufacturing. American manufacturers are more optimistic than ever and expect their winning streak to continue, according to a recent survey by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM). Optimism among manufacturers hit an all-time high in NAMs most recent survey. Expectations for employment growth and capital investment over the next year also hit all-time highs in NAMs most recent survey. Approximately 344,000 manufacturing jobs have been created since the President took office. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was a win for American workers, cutting the top corporate tax rate and enabling businesses to fully write off capital investments for the next 5 years. FREE, FAIR, AND RECIPROCAL TRADE: President Trump has stood up for American workers and businesses that have paid the price for years of bad trade deals and unfair trade practices. The EU is considering a $12-billion peace plan that would supply weapons to war-torn western and central Africa, known as the Sahel region. But Ibrahim Anoba who hails from Lagos, Nigeria says trade and economic development, including lower EU tariffs, would go a long way toward bringing peace to the area. At Actons Religion & Liberty Transatlantic website, Anoba writes: [T]he recruitment strategy of [al-Qaedas regional affiliate] like most terror organizations focuses on exploiting impoverished communities already estranged from their government. The low literacy levels and negative economic conditions in these communities create a fertile recruiting ground for terrorists. By exploiting underdevelopment, AQIM will eventually persuade vulnerable individuals to join their rebellion or force them to once the terrorists have gained sufficient strength. Most part of the Sahel is already blessed with underutilized natural resources like iron ore and promising agricultural potential pending alternative means of water supply to areas with low rainfall, and a reduction of the EUs protectionist agricultural tariffs. Extending mutually beneficial trade deals is an equally good means to improve the economic situation in these countries. The EU should foster enterprise, which provides employment opportunities that give vulnerable people the means to sustain their lives without taking up arms against their governments. Imperial Valley News Center Furniture from China contributes to deforestation in central Africa Los Angeles, California - Is your new coffee table contributing to the deforestation of African rainforests? If the furniture comes from China or other parts of Asia, theres a good chance it is. While much attention has been devoted to Chinese demand for exotic animals as a driver of poaching in Africa, UCLA researchers revealed another way the continent is being exploited the Chinese demand for wood. And this time, United States consumers are a driving force. A study published in Area, a journal of the Royal Geographic Society, combined economics and conservation biology and discovered an increase in Chinese timber imports from Central Africa that coincides with loss of tree cover. According to United Nations data, between 2001 and 2015 exports of wood to China doubled from countries in the Congo Basin with half coming from two countries: Cameroon and the Central African Republic. Looking at satellite imagery, the UCLA researchers found that the exports correlated with a loss of tree canopy. Researchers also looked at other potential drivers of deforestation, such as palm oil production and population growth, but only exports to China showed a positive correlation. Although people from other countries buy wood furniture made in China, their imports pale in comparison to U.S. imports of such furniture, the paper noted. Trevon Fuller, lead author of the study and assistant adjunct professor with UCLAs Center for Tropical Research, said shoppers can fight the problem by making eco-conscious choices. Consumers in the U.S. are buying a lot of cheap furniture thats made in Asia, Fuller said. They could instead buy sustainable alternatives like bamboo furniture or sustainable wood such as products certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, which come from responsibly managed forests. Another fix could be new regulations from African governments. The paper found Gabon was the top source of hardwoods until 2010, when the country enacted regulations prohibiting the export of uncut logs. The regulations forced companies to purchase wood that has already been cut at local mills, making it harder for illegally forested wood to be taken, Fuller said. Since then, the timber industry shifted to neighboring countries. The Congo Basin is the second-biggest source of hardwoods used to make furniture in China, Fuller said. With more than 1 million Chinese-born people living in Africa, the country has had a huge presence on the continent for decades. However, stopping all logging isnt a viable solution. In parts of the basin, timber is the largest industry eliminating it would destroy livelihoods. But if harvested timber isnt sustainable, its very detrimental to the environment, Fuller said. Fuller witnessed how the logging industry led to destruction in the African rainforest, which is home to numerous vulnerable species including gorillas, pangolins and forest elephants along with multiple birds and reptiles. In 2016 I was in southwest Cameroon, he said. Sometimes youre driving and you just see these massive parts of the country that have been deforested. Its shocking the contrast between mature forest and the deforested area. For the past two years, teams of UCLA students have been working on another solution with Taylor Guitars which uses ebony to produce musical instruments. Their goal is to develop ebony production methods that are sustainable for the environment and local economies. Ebony takes 80 years to mature, so one potential answer is co-cropping, which means growing another revenue-producing crop such as bush mango alongside the trees to provide an alternative stream of income. The approach gives communities short-term benefits, allowing fruits to be sold and consumed, along with longer-term benefits for selective harvest of ebony, said Tom Smith, UCLA professor of evolutionary biology and a coauthor of the timber study. Both the paper and the ebony project are products of UCLAs Congo Basin Institute, a regional base for scientific research and education that was created to address the regions environmental and social problems and to give African scientists a place to conduct research without leaving the continent. Reporting from Rwanda, Smith said hardwood exports to Asia are likely to increase further because of a new port in Kribi, Cameroon. With the recent completion of the Kribi deep-water port, deforestation is likely to increase substantively. Smith said. In May of 2018, a single Vietnamese ship loaded an estimated 10,000 cubic meters of wood there about 450 trucks worth of logs. Imperial Valley News Center Former Congresswoman Janice Hahn aide Michael Kimbrew indicted Los Angeles, California - A former staffer for a member of the United States Congress (Janice Hahn) was sentenced last week to 18 months in prison for bribery and attempted extortion after demanding and accepting $5,000 to prevent the closure of a marijuana shop in the City of Compton. Michael Kimbrew, 45, of Santa Clarita, was sentenced by United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner for attempting to extort a marijuana dispensary in Compton and threatening to shut down the shop if the owners did not pay him a $5,000 bribe. According to court testimony, in exchange for the payoff, Kimbrew promised to wield his power as a federal employee and public official to help the shop obtain a lucrative permit to continue operating. According to the evidence presented at trial, Kimbrew claimed to oversee all activities in Compton and threatened the shops owners, an employee of the shop, and later an undercover FBI agent in recorded meetings that he was going to shut down the shop unless he received the bribe. He claimed that, by virtue of his federal employment for the Congress member, he had authority and jurisdiction over what Compton public officials and departments did. In exchange for the $5,000, he promised to exercise that authority and jurisdiction to keep the shop in business. Ultimately, during a lunch meeting in Compton, Kimbrew accepted $5,000 in cash hidden inside of a restaurant menu from the undercover agent. When he pocketed the cash, Kimbrew pledged his undying support to protect the shop. The conviction in this case demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the people of the District to root out public corruption, said United States Attorney Nicola T. Hanna. In sentencing documents, the government argued for imprisonment, citing, among other factors the need to send a message to both [Kimbrew] and other public servants that corruption will not be tolerated. In addition to the prison term, Judge Klausner ordered Kimbrew to serve three years of supervised release and pay $5,000 in restitution and $4,000 in fines. This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lindsey Greer Dotson of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section. Imperial Valley News Center Former Apple Employee Xiaolang Zhang Indicted On Theft Of Trade Secrets San Jose, California - A federal grand jury in San Jose indicted Xiaolang Zhang on Thursday, July 12, 2018, for theft of trade secrets, announced Acting United States Attorney Alex G. Tse and Federal Bureau of Investigations, Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett. Zhang was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Virginia K. DeMarchi on charges of theft of trade secrets, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1832. Zang entered a plea of not guilty at the hearing. According to the indictment, Zhang, 33, of San Jose, is alleged to have taken a confidential 25-page document containing detailed schematic drawings of a circuit board designed to be used in the critical infrastructure of a portion of an autonomous vehicle, knowing that the theft would injure the owner of the trade secrets, Apple, Inc. Court documents filed in the case allege that on April 30, 2018, Zhang told Apple personnel that he was resigning from his job so that he could return to China to be closer to his mother who was ill. Apple immediately terminated Zhangs access to its computer systems and Apple personnel began a forensic analysis of Zhangs Apple-owned devices and network activity. According to an affidavit filed in the case, Apple subsequently learned that Zhang went to work for X-MOTORS a company focused on electric automobiles and autonomous vehicle technology with its headquarters in China. Apple security personnel confirmed that in the three days prior to April 30, 2018, Zhangs network activity increased notably compared to the prior two years of his employment. The majority of his activity consisted of downloading information from the project databases, and the downloaded information contained trade secret intellectual property. On July 7, 2018, FBI Agents learned that Zhang purchased a last-minute round-trip airline ticket with no co-travelers, departing San Jose, Calif., on July 7, 2018, traveling to Beijing, China with a final destination of Hangzhou, China aboard Hainan Airlines. Federal agents intercepted and arrested Zhang at the San Jose International Airport after he had passed through the security checkpoint of Terminal B. Zhang made his initial appearance in federal court in San Jose on July 9, 2018, before Magistrate Judge DeMarchi. On July 10, 2018, Zhang was released, subject to GPS electronic monitoring, on a $300K bond. Zhangs next appearance is scheduled for August 27, 2018, at 1:30 p.m., before the Honorable Edward J. Davila, U.S. District Judge. An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and a fine of $250,000. In addition, the court may order that Zhang serve a term of supervised release of up to 3 years following the prison term plus restitution, if appropriate. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. 3553. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amie Rooney and Matt Parrella are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Elise Etter. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI. Three California Residents Sentenced in $20 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme Los Angeles, California - Three owners and/or managers of Los Angeles, California-area foreclosure rescue companies, Dorothy Matsuba, Jamie Matsuba, and Thomas Matsuba, were sentenced to 240, 135, and 168 months in prison today for their roles in a foreclosure rescue scheme, respectively. Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Departments Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Nicola T. Hanna for the Central District of California, Assistant Director in Charge Paul D. Delacourt of the FBIs Los Angeles Division, Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Paul Conlon of the Federal Housing Finance Agency-Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG), Special Agent in Charge R. Damon Rowe of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI) Los Angeles Field Office, and Sheriff Jim McDonnell of the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department made the announcement. Dorothy Matsuba, 67, her daughter Jamie Matsuba, 33, and her husband, Thomas Matsuba, 67, all of Chatsworth, California, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner of the Central District of California. Judge Klausner also ordered the defendants to serve three years of supervised release. Restitution and forfeiture will be decided at a hearing on Aug. 13. All three defendants were remanded into custody. Dorothy Matsuba pleaded guilty on Dec. 4, 2017, to one count conspiracy to commit wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank or mortgage lending business, and identity theft, five counts of wire fraud, six counts of false statements to federally insured banks, and six counts of aggravated identity theft. On Dec. 13, 2017, after a one-week trial, Jamie Matsuba and Thomas Matsuba were both convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, making false statements to federally insured banks, and committing identity theft and one count of making false statements to federally insured banks. According to evidence presented at trial, from January 2005 to August 2014, Dorothy Matsuba, Jamie Matsuba, Thomas Matsuba and others engaged in a scheme to defraud financially distressed homeowners by offering to prevent foreclosure on their properties through short sales. Instead, the conspirators rented out the properties to third parties, did not pay the mortgages on the properties, and submitted false and fraudulent documents to mortgage lenders and servicers to delay foreclosure. The evidence further established that the conspirators obtained mortgages in the names of stolen identities. The defendants also used additional tactics, including filing bankruptcy in the names of distressed homeowners without their knowledge and fabricating liens on the distressed properties, the evidence showed. Two other defendants have been charged in this matter. Defendant Jane Matsuba-Garcia, 42, of Camarillo, California, previously pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. Defendant Young Park of Los Angeles, California, is a fugitive. In addition, in related cases, Jason Hong, 36, of Chatsworth, and Ryu Goeku, 48, of Canoga Park, California, previously pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. This case was investigated by the FBI, FHFA-OIG, IRS-CI, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Central District of California, and the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department. Trial Attorney Niall M. ODonnell, Senior Litigation Counsel David A. Bybee and Trial Attorney Jennifer L. Farer of the Criminal Divisions Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. Senior Trial Attorney Nicholas Acker previously worked on the investigation. Individuals who believe that they may be a victim in this case should visit the Fraud Sections Victim Witness website for more information. Two Additional Southern California Surgeons Indicted in Health Care Kickback Scheme Los Angeles, California - Two local physicians were indicted by a federal Grand Jury Thursday as part of Operation Spinal Cap, which targeted a long-running health care fraud scheme that generated nearly $1 billion in fraudulent claims to the federal government, the state of California, and private insurers. The scheme involved more than $40 million in illegal kickbacks paid to doctors and other medical professionals in exchange for referring thousands of patients who received surgeries and other services at Pacific Hospital. Jacob Tauber, 66, of Beverly Hills, an orthopedic surgeon, and Serge Obukhoff, 62, of Malibu, a neurosurgeon, were charged for their roles in receiving illegal kickbacks to influence the referral of patients to Pacific Hospital. The indictment also includes honest services fraud and Travel Act charges against both Tauber and Obukhoff. These two physicians leveraged vulnerable patients to participate in a fraudulent kickback scheme, said First Assistant United States Attorney Tracy Wilkison. Their scheme violated their oaths as physicians as well as the law. According to the indictment, Tauber performed non-spinal surgeries and referred patients to other surgeons for procedures at Pacific Hospital of Long Beach. Obukhoff practiced out of various medical clinics in Southern California. Influenced by the promise of kickbacks and bribes, Tauber and Obukhoff caused patients with insurance or other covered claims to receive surgeries and services at Pacific Hospital. In the same indictment, Tauber was separately charged with receiving illicit payments to refer urinalysis specimens to a specific lab. Todays indictment should send a clear message to all health care providers that health care fraud is a federal crime that carries serious consequences and will not be tolerated. said USPS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Brian Washington. The USPS-OIG, along with our law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively investigate those who engage in fraudulent activities intended to defraud federal benefit programs and the Postal Service. The case is being investigated by the United States Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ashwin Janakiram of the Major Frauds Section and Joseph T. McNally and Scott D. Tenley of the Santa Ana Branch Office. Final Defendant Pleads Guilty to Defrauding California Workers Compensation System Fresno, California - John Thomas Terrence, 75, of Marina del Rey, pleaded guilty last Monday to health care fraud involving a scheme to defraud the California workers compensation insurance system, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, Terrence, a clinical psychologist saw patients in Bakersfield by Skype, generated reports for each patient that were virtually word-for-word identical, and then submitted identical bills to the insurance companies. Co-defendants Bhahar Gharib-Danesh, 41, of Woodland Hills, and Na Young Eoh, 44, of Bakersfield, were chiropractors working at the same company. They previously pleaded guilty to health care fraud charges in this case. The three defendants admitted to assisting in submitting bills to workers compensation insurers for medical-legal evaluations for which they were not legally permitted to bill. Pain Free Diagnostics Inc. (dba Pain Free Management) pleaded guilty on July 9, 2018, to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and agreed to pay restitution to the defrauded workers compensation insurers in the amount of $1.2 million. This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Department of Insurance Fraud Division, and the Kern County District Attorneys Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark J. McKeon and Michael Tierney are prosecuting the case. Terrence is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. ONeill on October 22, 2018; Gharib-Danesh is scheduled to be sentenced on October 1, 2018; and, Eoh is scheduled to be sentenced on September 4, 2018. Each defendant faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentences, however, will 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. CDC advises consumers and retailers not to eat, serve, or sell Hy-Vee Spring Pasta Salad Washington, DC - CDC advises consumers and retailers not to eat, serve, or sell Hy-Vee Spring Pasta Salad, which has been linked to a multistate outbreak of Salmonella infections. Key Points: Statement on the Continued Success of Operations to Defeat ISIS in Syria Washington, DC - Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo: "We congratulate the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on their successful operations to liberate al-Dashisha, Syria, from the scourge of ISIS. Dashisha since 2013 has been a key stronghold and transit route for ISIS fighters, weapons, and suicide bombers between Syria and Iraq. The SDF now controls the area, with Iraqi Security Forces controlling the Iraqi side of the border. This is a significant milestone. "The SDF ground offensive cleared over 1,200 square kilometers in the Dashisha area. The offensive was part of our Coalition-backed effort to clear the last pockets of ISIS-held territory in the Middle Euphrates River Valley and the Iraq-Syria border region. "We commend the bravery and sacrifice of the Syrian Democratic Forces. We also commend the significant efforts of the Iraqi Security Forces to ensure that ISIS could not flee into Iraq and the artillery and air support provided during key moments of the operation. "The liberation of Iraq and ISISs losses in Syria are major achievements but our mission is not complete. Destroying ISIS continues to be an urgent priority for President Trump and the Administration. Last week, I convened 53 members of our Coalition to Defeat ISIS to discuss the next phase of the campaign and the imperative for coalition burden sharing, particularly with respect to stabilizing liberated areas. "We are grateful for the significant contributions received to date, and look for these contributions to accelerate as our partners in the SDF prepare for the next phase of operations against the few remaining ISIS strongholds in Syria. "In parallel, we will work with the United Nations and our partners to forge a lasting settlement of the Syrian conflict that includes full representation for all Syrians, including the people of northeast Syria now recovering from the ISIS occupation." Does Celebrity Separations Have Influence on our Relationships? This is What Experts Have to Say Three Branches Healthy Living had been around a couple years when it honed its product selection, which had formerly been an extensive slate of natural items, down to a single cleaning solution its three founders truly believed in. Founders Allison Evans, Kelly Love, and Marilee Nelson raised $1 million in funding from friends and family, and rebranded as Branch Basics. They white-labeled the nontoxic cleaner and sold it as an all-natural alternative to harsh products that can irritate the skin and eyes and stress the immune system. The solution could be used on tile, glass, counters, as a hand soap, on laundry--really almost anything. And it developed a dedicated following. So did the company's website, which published articles about wellness, natural products, and clean eating. It was a winning idea borne from the founders' personal experience using natural products. But culling down their product line would turn out to be a minor change compared with what was to come. Just as the business was taking off, Evans, Love, and Nelson were caught off guard when customers began questioning whether the product truly was all-natural. This would not be the kind of bump in the road entrepreneurs handle on a semi-regular basis: They were facing an ethical and strategic dilemma that went right to the heart of their business model. There was a very real chance that doing the right thing would mean the end of the company. Eventually the founders made the gut-wrenching decision to halt sales and pull the cleaner from the market. The move set the business back years and placed them under serious financial strain. Ultimately, though, it also enabled them to come back stronger than ever. The gospel of "Crazy Aunt Marilee." Evans was a sophomore at the University of Texas in 2006 when she got sick. The cause of her symptoms--chronic pain, loss of motor functions--eluded doctors. Nelson, her aunt, an environmental exposure consultant who also taught her clients how to heal themselves through food, had a theory: She suspected her niece's illness might be the result of a weakened immune system due to chemical exposure to building materials after she'd moved into a newly constructed apartment. It was an easy notion to roll one's eyes at. But two summers later, after having been on a cocktail of medicines and having seen little improvement, Evans was persuaded to go spend the summer with her aunt. She brought her friend Love along for the adventure out to Texas Hill Country, which Love later described as going to see "Crazy Aunt Marilee." Nelson took away the recent college graduates' perfumes, lotions, and other potentially irritating tinctures. It wasn't long before Love got on board with the all-natural lifestyle. Living in Nelson's chemical-free home, Love soon saw her good friend's health turn around, and came away with a lesson. "Our bodies want to heal," she says. "We just need to stop exposing them to all the irritants that are holding them back." Love and Evans soaked it in all summer, and decided they wanted to spread Nelson's gospel in a clean and simple way Millennials wouldn't find kooky. They started a website, with Nelson's philosophies distilled through their recent-grad sensibilities. Soon, they were selling the sorts of natural products and home goods Nelson recommended to her clients. When that became "too overwhelming to people who didn't know where to start," they decided to focus on marketing and selling the one perfect cleaning product. Swirling doubts. After Evans, Love, and Nelson raised the money and simplified the brand to Branch Basics, the business grew swiftly. The company had 10 employees and a newsletter with 30,000 subscribers. Sales hit $2 million for 2015 and were on track to hit $6 million the following year. But the founders started getting questions from their growing customer base. If the product was all natural, why don't you disclose all the ingredients? How do we know if there's an allergen? What assurances do we have that it really is what you say it is? Their supplier--who had also white-labeled the product--initially told them the full ingredient list was proprietary. To the women, the evasion seemed suspect. Eventually the supplier said the product contained a naturally derived surfactant that was deemed "synthetic" due to the processing it had gone through. "It was absolutely mind-blowing to me," Nelson says. "We had been selling this as a completely natural formula." Still, she had used the cleaner extensively, as had her most toxin-sensitive clients. To them, it was demonstrably safe--and also was a very, very good product. It cleaned well. It was free of toxins. The founders debated. Should they remove some of the claims and keep selling a product they and their customers loved? Or should they give up it and lose a huge amount of money in the name of integrity? After all, it had been their mission to educate people about natural living, and sell only all-natural products. A subset of the brand's tens of thousands of fans was growing enraged. "That was honestly the hardest part of it," Love says. "People were threatening us with lawsuits because of mis-marketing." The three women had a sense of guilt for being accused of not doing the one thing their company had set out to get right. They decided they could not continue. During Christmas week 2015, they pulled the plug on all sales. They sent out an email to their subscribers explaining the situation, and laid off the entire staff on December 31. Continuing into the new year answering angry emails from customers, the founders had to ask themselves: Where do we go from here? By turning off their entire operation, they were now themselves solely beholden to their investors and creditors, as well as to their customers, many of whom wanted refunds. They drained their accounts giving reimbursements, customers first. "We paid back everyone who requested a refund," Nelson says. "It was the most stressful time I can remember in my life." Gaining peace of mind. Over the next 18 months, the founders worked with multiple chemists and labs to concoct their own entirely natural, non-irritating cleaning product that worked on everything from heavily soiled laundry to a sensitive baby's skin. They tested 100 formulations. "We were looking for a unicorn," Love says. She doubted it could exist. They kept their former customers updated, but knew they'd need to earn back loyalty. They dreamed about controlling their own supply chain, manufacturing, and knowing the entire list of ingredients in their new cleaner. "Never in my life could I have imagined that we could have come up with something that I like better," Nelson says. But one seemed to be working well. It was an unscented liquid mix of sugar-based cleansers, food-grade emulsifiers, chamomile, baking soda, and soapberry. All the ingredients are listed right on the reusable packaging. She said the chemists tested it on skin tissue and it "came back 100 percent with no damage. It was like water." In August, Branch Basics relaunched with a new concentrated cleaning product, formulated in Colorado, with new packaging, a direct-to-consumer business model, and a do-good message of helping Americans create healthier lives. The company's new tagline: "Let's create a healthy home together." Evans, Love, and Nelson gained two business partners along the way, who today run Branch's business operations out of Minneapolis. The women still live in Texas, and focus on the healthy lifestyle content of Branch Basics, and the brand's marketing. They say the company might not make it back to $2 million in revenue this year, but will be close enough that they feel they are rebounding. Having more hours in the day is the dream of just about every busy professional, but what if having more time for loved ones, hobbies, fitness, or relaxation was as simple as deciding you were going to give yourself the gift of more free time? So what if you simply decided to get your work done in less time and then give yourself the gift of an extra day a week off to do with as you pleased? This sounds too simple to be true, but as The New York Times recently reported, an experiment out of New Zealand suggests that, for entrepreneurs at least, all that may be standing between you an extra day off is the decision to take an extra day off. One less day, same amount of work. The article, by Charlotte Graham-McLay, charts the progress of an experiment run by a 240-person New Zealand firm, Perpetual Guardian, which manages trusts, wills, and estates. Earlier this year, Graham-McLay reports, the company's founder, Andrew Barnes, decided to see what would happen if he gave his people one more day a week off for a couple of months, reducing the required hours from 40 to 32 for the same pay. He asked a pair of local academic researchers to keep track of what happened. "Supervisors said staff were more creative, their attendance was better, they were on time, and they didn't leave early or take long breaks," Jarrod Haar, a professor at Auckland University of Technology who studied the experiment, told of the paper. "Their actual job performance didn't change when doing it over four days instead of five." Let's say that again: employees got just as much work done in four days as in five. How was that possible? As the above studies suggest, there's a lot of fat that can be trimmed from most of our workdays, and these employees found it. "Workers said the change motivated them to find ways of increasing their productivity while in the office. Meetings were reduced from two hours to 30 minutes, and employees created signals for their colleagues that they needed time to work without distraction," reports Graham-McLay It isn't a one-off miracle. This is easier to do for some firms than others, clearly. (And if you're an employee, you'd have to convince your boss, which is obviously a tall order for many). Customer service reps, nurses, and firefighters need to be available when people expect them to be. But other, similar experiments suggest this isn't a far-fetched one-off. A town in Sweden, for instance, made headlines a few years back by switching municipal employees to a six-hour day for the same pay. The town was thrilled with the results. Even in ultra competitive industries like tech there are companies proving it is possible to hunker down and get more done in less time if you just decide to do it. Online tech training startup Treehouse has operated on a 32-hour workweek for years with great success. "My wife and I just had this thought, 'Hey, I wonder if it's possible to work less and still be effective?' We tried it and it was great," co-founder Ryan Carson told me. On a more personal note, when I switched to freelancing, I found that working away from the office I get as much done in six hours as I used to in eight. Self-employed friends report similar jumps in productivity. When you don't have eight hours to fill, work seems to miraculously shrink. All this suggests that a lot more organizations could probably follow Perpetual Guardian's lead if they simply had the will to do so. Experts recommend short bursts of intense productivity instead of long, meandering, distracted workdays anyway. And just think how thrilled your people would be if you marched into the office tomorrow and announced they would suddenly be getting paid the same amount for one less day of work. In just a few months, voters head to the polls to elect their representatives for Congress, and all eyes are on a series of swing districts in places like Orange County, California and central Missouri. If Democrats are able to secure a majority in either the House of Representatives or the Senate--they would need 24 seats and 28 seats, respectively--it's conceivable that President Trump would have to rein in his agenda, as getting things passed would be more challenging. For entrepreneurs, in particular, the loss of a conservative majority in either chamber could impact business legislation moving forward. And with major issues like minimum-wage laws, consumer privacy, and trade deals hanging in the balance, every vote counts. "If there is a particular bill business owners need to get passed, the odds go down," says Bradley Tusk, founder and CEO of Tusk Holdings, which includes a political consultancy and venture firm. "A divided government means little gets done." Even so, nothing is set in stone--yet. Here's a look at five races that potentially matter most for you. 1. The Missouri Senate race. Claire McCaskill (D-MO,) is widely considered to be the most vulnerable Democratic senator up for re-election in 2018, and the loss of this seat would surely hurt the party's odds of securing a majority. Although a Republican candidate has yet to be named--voters head to the polls in a closely watched primary on August 7--analysts say Josh Hawley, the state attorney general recently commended by Vice President Mike Pence, is likely to secure the nomination. While McCaskill voted against the Obamacare repeal, as well as the recently passed tax cuts--which has had a mixed effect on businesses--Hawley aligns closely with Trump's legislative agenda. He has even received campaign funding from Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel, who reportedly wrote two checks totaling $5,400, the maximum contribution for a federal race. At issue in this race is consumer privacy. If Hawley wins the Senate seat, he will likely be critical of tech giants such as Google. Last year, Hawley launched an investigation into the company's possible violations of Missouri antitrust and consumer protection law. The moves come as dozens of lawmakers are already calling for increased regulation on technology firms, particularly Facebook, which recently revealed that private information from more than 87 million users was harvested by the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. As Europe rolls out new GDPR rules to protect users across the pond, many speculate that something similar could be coming stateside. "We need to have a conversation in Missouri, and as a country, about the concentration of economic power," Hawley told Bloomberg in a recent interview. 2. California House race: 49th Congressional District. The area of Southern California stretching the coast from San Clemente to La Jolla has received growing national attention, as longtime Republican Representative Darrell Issa vacates his seat. Should the Democratic nominee, Mike Levin, prevail against Republican tax attorney Diane Harkey, the left would move closer to clinching the overall majority. Both Harkey and Levin have agendas that would impact businesses. The former recently told the San Diego Tribune she plans to improve the tax code for pass-through entities and other small businesses, which are losing their competitive advantage as corporations see reduced tax bills: "I'll be working on clean up language to the recently passed tax reform package, as it applies to some small businesses and property tax deductions," she said. Levin, meanwhile, is fighting for an across-the-board $15 minimum wage, a move that could increase payroll expenses for entrepreneurs. Still, and as business proponents of New York's Democratic nominee Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently pointed out, an increased minimum wage could fuel investment in local neighborhoods, putting money back into the hands of small businesses. Levin is also a major proponent of clean energy, aiming to introduce new environmental regulations on oil and gas firms. 3. New York House race: 19th Congressional District. In New York's 19th district, which encompasses the Hudson Valley and the Catskills, Democrat Antonio Delgado is campaigning to become the first African-American candidate to represent the region in Congress. He faces fierce competition, however, from incumbent Republican John Faso, a conservative who supported repealing the Affordable Care Act, and largely aligns with President Trump. Analysts note that Faso is vulnerable, since a large share of his constituents--including small-scale businesses--did not want the ACA repealed. In particular, Delgado aims to increase small-business lending so companies can expand in New York. "I will push for banks to lend to small businesses, so they can expand and create the jobs we need," Delgado writes on his campaign site. "I will work to draw investments and businesses to the district, including those in growth industries like tech and clean energy, so we can match the trained workers to the businesses that need them." The Democratic nominee is also bullish on free-trade agreements such as NAFTA, which has drawn skepticism from President Trump. To be sure, hundreds of small business across the country--including those that manufacture abroad or otherwise do business overseas--have seen costs rise in recent months as Trump introduces new tariffs on select imports. Delgado would join a chorus of left-leaning voices working to maintain free-trade deals. "I will oppose any trade agreements that are not beneficial to the Hudson Valley and the Catskills," Delgado adds. 4. California House race: 48th Congressional District. In Southern California, tech entrepreneur-turned-political activist Harley Rouda, a Democrat, has an opportunity to unseat Dana Rohrabacher, a 15-term Republican with an anti-immigration track record and controversial ties to Russia. Like other candidates, Rouda says he aims to reform the tax code to assist small-business owners: "To rebuild the middle class, the first step is closing antiquated tax loopholes that benefit outdated industries and the wealthy," he says. His background as an entrepreneur is likely to provide comfort to businesses throughout the region: Prior to running for office, Rouda launched or helped to grow several startups, including Stuffster, a waste management service, and Grayl, a maker of portable water filters. Rohrabacher, by contrast, has worked to limit the number of H-1B visas available to entrepreneurs, a legal immigration program that hundreds of tech companies in California and beyond rely on to hire skilled talent. Indeed, in 2016, Rohrabacher co-authored the H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2016, a bill that would have prevented companies with more than 50 employees--and 50 percent of those on H-1B or L-1 visas--from hiring more workers on H-1B visas. (The bill died on the vine in Congress.) Still, Rohrabacher is perceived as a friend to businesses in other areas. Consider that he recently authored the proposed Expanding Employee Ownership Act of 2017, a bill that would amend the Internal Revenue Code to exclude securities issued to workers as compensation from gross income. 5. Iowa House race: 1st Congressional District. This region of the Midwestern swing state, which supported former President Barack Obama in both 2008 and 2012, will be the site of increased national attention in the months leading up to the midterms. Here, second-term Republican Rod Blum faces up against Democrat Abby Finkenauer, who vehemently supports working-class families and businesses. Blum's seat is potentially vulnerable, inasmuch as he, too, voted to repeal Obamacare, where many of his constituents actually benefit from the health care plan. Hollywood is continuing to react to the news that James Gunn has been fired from Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 3 for offensive tweets he posted years ago. On Friday (20 July), it was announced that the filmmaker - who is said to have completed work on the third film's screenplay - had been let go after a right-wing US site unearthed offensive posts in which he joked about subjects including paedophilia and rape between 2008 and 2012. Disney's decision was met with backlash after it was noted that Gunn had previously atoned for the messages leading many to believe the studio was aware of the posts years back. Guardians star Dave Bautista led Gunn's defence, stating: Hes made mistakes. We all have. Im NOT ok with whats happening to him. A change.org petition calling upon Disney to re-hire Gunn has - at the time of writing - exceeded 150,000 signatures with several more Hollywood figures urging people to sign. In a series of tweets, Selma Blair described Gunn as one of the good ones, adding: If people are punished despite changing, then what does that teach people about owning mistakes and evolving? She has previously attributed the director with supporting her in coming forward with her personal experience of sexual harassment in the wake of the Time's Up movement. Lead Guardians star Chris Pratt also appeared to defend Gunn, albeit in a rather tame manner. He tweeted a verse from the Bible in which he quoted James 1:19: Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters. Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 Show all 34 1 /34 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 1. Captain America: Civil War Release date: 6 May 2016. Iron Man and Captain America are set to face off in this superhero blockbuster that will feature nearly all the Avengers but wont be an Avengers film. It will also mark the first time Spider-Man will feature in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with Sony having made a deal with Marvel Studios. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 2. X-Men: Apocalypse Release date: 27 May 2016. Following the success of Days of Future Past, Apocalypse will follow the young X-Men team as the battle against Oscar Isaacs titular villain as he gathers his four horsemen; Magneto (Fassbender), Angel (Hardy), Storm (Shipp), and Psylocke (Munn). Expect carnage and no Wolverine. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 3. Suicide Squad Release date: 5 August 2016. The first supervillain film, Suicide Squad is also based in the DCEU (DC Extended Universe, where Batman and Superman live) and will introduce the world to Margot Robbies Harley Quinn and Jared Letos Joker. One of the more exciting upcoming DC films thats for sure. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 4. Doctor Strange Release date: 4 November 2016. Benedict Cumberbatch will debut in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe, where Captain America and Iron Man live) as the Sorcerer Supreme. The film already has an incredible cast, including Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachael McAdams and Tilda Swinton. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 5. Untitled Lego Batman film Release date: 20 February 2017. Kicking off 2017 is the Lego version of Batman, who will lead his own spin-off, having already featured in the amazing Lego Movie. Will Arnett voices the titular character, while Zach Garfianakis - from the Hangover - will voice The Joker. But will he better than Leto? 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 6. Untitled Wolverine film Release date: 3 March 2017. Having not starred in X-Men: Apocalypse, Wolverine will return to the big screen in a solo film which was recently made R-Rated following the success of Deadpool. It is expected to be Hugh Jackmans last outing as the titular character. Fox 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 7. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Release date: 5 May 2017. Chris Pratt and the crew are returning to space in the sequel to the surprisingly successful Guardians of the Galaxy. According to director James Gunn, the film will not feature Thanos, even though he will to play a major role in phase MCU Phase 3. Cast includes newcomers Kurt Russell and Pom Klementieff, as well as, rumour has it, Sylvester Stallone. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 8. Wonder Woman Release date: 23 June 2017. Gal Gadot is returning to the DCEU in her very own film, marking the first female-led superhero film on this list. Chris Pine is on board to play Wonder Womans love interest. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 9. Untitled Spider-Man reboot Release date: 7 July 2017. Yes, it is another Spider-Man reboot, having previously been redone with Andrew Garfield as the lead. However, this time it is part of the MCU, with Tom Holland as the titular character, and a heavily rumoured cameo by Iron Man could be in the pipeline. We can dream. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 10. Untitled Fox film Release date: 6 October 2017. In a strange announcement, Fox decided to withhold the release of Gambit until a future, as-yet unannounced date, which could be here, or this could be a completely separate project. Many suspect Deadpool 2 could nicely fit here, Fox capitalising on the success of the first film. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 11. Thor: Ragnarok Release date: 3 November 2017. Chris Hemsworth will be returning as the Norse God in his third solo MCU film. Flight of the Conchords Taika Waititi is on board to direct, and promises a fun adventure that will likely lead into Marvels next project, Infinity War. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 12. Justice League Part One Release date: 17 November 2017. Hot on the heals of Thor comes Justice League Part One, the first DCEU team-up flick which will see Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg work together to fight bad guys. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 13: Untitled Fox film Release date: 12 January 2018. Kicking off 2018 will likely be the second Deadpool film, but then again, this could very well be another X-Men team-up. Theres also talk of an X-Force film, with Deadpool and other mutants teaming up to fight evil. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 14. Black Panther Release date: 16 February 2018. The first non-white male-led superhero film in the MCU comes in the form of Black Panther, with Chadwick Boseman reprising the titular role, having also starred as the Panther in Civil War. Creeds Ryan Coogler is on to direct what could be a very exciting film. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 15. The Flash Release date: 16 March 2018. The Flash will be the first DCEU film since Justice League, and sees Ezra Miller take the lead. Phil Lord and Chris Miller were supposed to pen the film before Disney snapped them up for the Han Solo-film, leaving Seth Grahame-Smith to take charge. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 16. Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 Release date: 4 May 2018. And so, we finally get to the point of all these Infinity Stones! Thanos will be the big bad, with the Avengers needing to team up to defeat their biggest foe yet. It has previously been described as the end of the Avengers as we know it. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 17. Ant-Man and The Wasp Release date: 6 July 2018. Peyton Reed will be back to direct this surprise sequel to one of the better received MCU films. While the name is ridiculous, at least Marvel are finally having a leading female superhero. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 18. Untitled Fox film Release date: 13 July 2018. Again, not much word on this one except it is thought to be X-Men spin-off New Mutants, something Josh Boone has been hit up to write. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 19. Animated Spider-Man Film Release date: 20 July 2018. Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and Amy Pascal - the team behind the live-action Spider-Man films - are producing this unrelated animated adaptation of the hero. Because you can never have too much Spider-Man, right? 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 20. Aquaman Release date: 27 July 2018. Another Justice League spin-off, Jason Momoa plays the leading man. Furious 7s James Wan is on to direct, but little else is known about the film. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 21. Captain Marvel Release date: 8 March 2019. Weve hit 2019, and the first confirmed superhero film will be the first proper female-led MCU film. No-one is confirmed to be in the titular role of Carol Danvers just yet. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 22. Shazam Release date: 5 April 2019. Dwayne Johnson stars as the villain in this DCEU film which will be somewhat separate to the other DC films. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 23. Avengers: Infinity War Part 2. Release date: 3 May 2019. The conclusion to the long drawn MCU saga. Expect a big finish with at least a few planets being destroyed. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 24. Justice League Part Two Release date: 14 June 2019. Soon after the Infinity War story reaches its conclusion, so will the Justice Leagues. Not much is known, except Darkseid will likely be the villain for at least one of the parts. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 25. Inhumans Release date: 12 July 2019. The concept of Inhumans (or Marvels mutants) has already been introduced in TV, through Marvels Agents of Shield, yet the film is expected to introduce the Royal Family who have yet to be seen in the show. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 26. Cyborg Release date: 3 April 2020. Having debuted in Justice League Part One three years previously, Cyborg will finally be making his own outing, with Ray Fisher as the titular character. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 27. Untitled MCU film Release date: 1 May 2020. The first of three untitled Marvel films. There are a couple of contenders, the first is a likely sequel to Spider-Man with Sony, or a third Guardians of the Galaxy film, thus finishing the trilogy. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 28. Green Lantern Corps. Release date: 19 June 2020. Before you start to worry, this has nothing to do with the Ryan Reynolds-starring flick that hit cinemas a little while ago. Instead, this will be another DCEU film that will likely spin-off from Justice League after the Green Lantern Corps cameo in one of the parts. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 29. Untitled MCU film Release date: 10 July 2020. As well as Spider-Man or Guardians of the Galaxy sequels, a Doctor Strange or Black Panther one could fit in nicely here. Or perhaps Black Widow may finally get the solo-film she deserves. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 30. Untitled MCU film Release date: 6 November 2020. Some speculators also think a Blade film could fit in here, marking over 20 years since the first Blade. But many believe the character may be better suited to a Netflix series, as with Daredevil and Jessica Jones. Theres also talk of a Runaways film reaching cinemas at some stage. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 31. Untitled Ben Affleck Batman film Release date: TBA. Now were onto the TBA release dates, the first of which is a Batman solo film, written and directed by Ben Affleck. When this is due, no one is quite sure but expect it sooner rather than later if Batman v Superman is a success. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 32. Suicide Squad 2 Release date: TBA (rumoured 2017). A sequel to Suicide Squad is expected to come in 2017 according to recent reports, but nothing has been confirmed. If the first is successful, it should come as no surprise for Warner Bros to rearrange their schedule to fit in this surefire hit. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 33. Venom Release date: TBA. This is an odd one, as it has been confirmed Sony are wanting to release a Venom film completely unrelated to the upcoming Spider-Man reboot. Venom, as you may know, is a Spider-Man villain, intrinsically linked to Spider-Man, so it seems odd they would release a film unrelated to the rebooted project and not linked to the MCU. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 Anything else? Well, now you mention it, theres also that sequel to Fantastic Four that has seemingly been dropped by Fox. Plus, theres the Gambit film which has been put on hold (but will likely fill an untitled Fox slot so we havent added it extra). Then again, it could be shoehorned in somehow Marvel Walt Disney Studios' official statement announcing Gunn's firing read: The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studios values, and we have severed our business relationship with him. The festival scene outside the UK has transformed from something of a secret into a general fact: they're better in pretty much every way. NOS Alive festival in Portugal has been proving this for a while; even among its competitors in Spain, Croatia, Norway and Sweden, it stands out thanks to a multitude of factors that make for a memorable, joyful experience. Compared to giants such as Primavera in Barcelona, its compact festival site means you don't have to stress about missing artists whose sets overlap with one another. There's a huge variety of food and drink on offer, and most importantly, it's cheap: you can get a generous glass of sangria or a glass of wine for 2 euros, and there are plenty of options for vegetarians, vegans, or people who just don't fancy burgers for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Away from the festival site you also have the option to explore all the delights Lisbon has to offer, from tours of the breathtaking Jeronimos Monastery, wine-tasting, or simple strolls around the city where every corner seems to lead you to another hidden gem - whether it's a local market, vintage store, or a tiny church at the top of a flight of stone steps, where you can take refuge from the blazing sun beneath cool stone and beautiful painted tiles. Where last year's festival leaned towards pop and R&B, with headliners including The Weeknd and Depeche Mode, 2018's edition of NOS is rock-heavy, starring Arctic Monkeys, Pearl Jam, Jack White, Nine Inch Nails and Queens of the Stone Age plus the likes of Franz Ferdinand, Wolf Alice, The National and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. Yet, as is the general approach for European festivals, NOS caters to an eclectic variety of tastes, so also welcomed the likes of Chvrches, Rag'n'Bone Man, US artist Khalid, French pop star Jain, emerging pop icon SOPHIE, Mercury Prize-winner Sampha, Brooklyn favourites Yo La Tengo, and Portuguese art-pop darlings The Gift. Nine Inch Nails managed to attract a huge crowd on the first night ahead of Arctic Monkeys' headline set, with frontman Trent Reznor giving it his all on songs including 1994's classic "Closer", tracks off their latest album Bad Witch, and a cover of Bowie's "I'm Afraid of Americans", which replaces Reznor's recently-retired rendition of "I Can't Give Everything Away" off his final album Blackstar. In possibly one of the biggest musical anticlimaxes of the year, Nine Inch Nails are followed by Snow Patrol. You'd think that tracks like "Chasing Cars", "Open Your Eyes" and "Just Say Yes" would inspire a kind of drunken nostalgia, but even those songs fall flat, and the most recent, from the band's new album Wildness, barely cause a ripple among the static audience. Arctic Monkeys, who released one of the most divisive albums of 2018 with Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, perfectly meld that new material with their back catalogue. Set-opener "Four Out Of Five" is just as well-received as "Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High" off 2014's critically-acclaimed AM, while Turner primps and preens his way through his new album's title track before a sultry, hip-swaying rendition of "Do I Wanna Know?" In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Show all 20 1 /20 In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Alex Turner Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent In pictures - Arctic Monkeys at the Royal Albert Hall Photo by Aaron Parsons The Independent Nothing, of course, goes down quite as well as "I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor", prompting Turner to quip ahead of the performance: "This song didn't really mean anything to us when we released it all those years ago.... and it still doesn't mean anything to us now." Enjoy unlimited access to 70 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up Friday sees resplendent sets from Glaswegian synth-pop band CHVRCHES plus American synth-pop act Future Islands, where frontman Samuel T. Herring is as exuberant as ever; twisting, leaping and crouching in so many contorted, wild poses you think he's about to topple off the stage at any moment. Lauren Mayberry of Chvrches performs at NOS Alive festival (Hugo Macedo) On the same stage - Palco Sagres - the now aptly-named Portugal. The Man deliver a superb rock-out performance that, of course, includes a raucous play of their hit "Feel It Still". Two Door Cinema Club fare much better than the aforementioned Snow Patrol when it comes to revisiting your teenage nostalgia, with tracks such as "Undercover Martyn" and "What You Know" feeling as fresh as the day they were released, while more recent, funkier material like "Bad Decisions" of their latest record Gameshow has everyone dancing. Scottish indie band Franz Ferdinand, led by the irrepressible Alex Kapranos, offers a wonderful, rather surprising set crammed with the likes of "Take Me Out" and "The Dark of the Martinee", ahead of a blistering show by Jack White who seems more than happy to air out The Raconteurs' "Steady As She Goes" and The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army" alongside more recent cuts from his solo album Boarding House Reach. He re-emerges onstage at the invitation of Pearl Jam after the camera catches him with his hands over his face in shy disbelief as Eddie Vedder sings his praises, joining them for a well-worn but nonetheless uplifting cover of Neil Young's "Rockin' In The Free World" and sending ecstatic fans back out into the night. Climate change is likely to cause thousands of additional suicides in coming decades as the earths temperature soars, according to a new study. Global warming has already been implicated in the spread of diseases ranging from malaria to heart attacks, but its impact on mental health is less clear cut. Researchers examining the implications of a warming world for public health have found a worrying link between rising temperatures and declining mental health. Recommended Unicef warns 600m children face death or disease from lack of water Weve been studying the effects of warming on conflict and violence for years, finding that people fight more when its hot, said Professor Solomon Hsiang, a study co-author based at the University of California, Berkeley. Now we see that in addition to hurting others, some individuals hurt themselves. It appears that heat profoundly affects the human mind and how we decide to inflict harm. In their study, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, the research team charted historical temperatures and suicide data from vast swathes of the US and Mexico over several decades. They found that across the counties and municipalities they studied, a 1C boost in monthly average temperatures coincided with suicide spikes of 0.7 per cent in the US and 2.1 per cent in Mexico. 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Show all 10 1 /10 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A group of emperor penguins face a crack in the sea ice, near McMurdo Station, Antarctica Kira Morris 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Floods destroyed eight bridges and ruined crops such as wheat, maize and peas in the Karimabad valley in northern Pakistan, a mountainous region with many glaciers. In many parts of the world, glaciers have been in retreat, creating dangerously large lakes that can cause devastating flooding when the banks break. Climate change can also increase rainfall in some areas, while bringing drought to others. Hira Ali 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Smoke filled with the carbon that is driving climate change drifts across a field in Colombia. Sandra Rondon 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Amid a flood in Islampur, Jamalpur, Bangladesh, a woman on a raft searches for somewhere dry to take shelter. Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable places in the world to sea level rise, which is expected to make tens of millions of people homeless by 2050. Probal Rashid 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Sindh province in Pakistan has experienced a grim mix of two consequences of climate change. Because of climate change either we have floods or not enough water to irrigate our crop and feed our animals, says the photographer. Picture clearly indicates that the extreme drought makes wide cracks in clay. Crops are very difficult to grow. Rizwan Dharejo 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Hanna Petursdottir examines a cave inside the Svinafellsjokull glacier in Iceland, which she said had been growing rapidly. Since 2000, the size of glaciers on Iceland has reduced by 12 per cent. Tom Schifanella 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A river once flowed along the depression in the dry earth of this part of Bangladesh, but it has disappeared amid rising temperatures. Abrar Hossain 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A shepherd moves his herd as he looks for green pasture near the village of Sirohi in Rajasthan, northern India. The region has been badly affected by heatwaves and drought, making local people nervous about further predicted increases in temperature. Riddhima Singh Bhati 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A factory in China is shrouded by a haze of air pollution. The World Health Organisation has warned such pollution, much of which is from the fossil fuels that cause climate change, is a public health emergency. Leung Ka Wa 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Water levels in reservoirs, like this one in Gers, France, have been getting perilously low in areas across the world affected by drought, forcing authorities to introduce water restrictions. Mahtuf Ikhsan Using this information, the scientists then employed data from climate models to calculate the impact a warmer world will have on future mental wellbeing. They found that by 2050 suicide rates are set to increase by 1.4 per cent in the US and 2.3 percent in Mexico. This effect, which amounts to an additional 21,000 deaths throughout the region, is roughly equivalent to the impact of an economic recession on suicide rates. To support their conclusions, the scientists found that higher monthly temperatures were also associated with an increased use of depressive language such as lonely and suicidal on Twitter. These effects did not differ based on either how rich the local populations were or how used to warm weather they were. Suicide is one of the leading causes of death globally, and suicide rates in the US have risen dramatically over the last 15 years. So better understanding the causes of suicide is a public health priority, said Professor Marshall Burke, who led the research at Stanford University. Professor Burke emphasised that hotter temperatures are clearly not the only, nor the most important, risk factor for suicide. Recommended Climate change could force over 140 million people from their homes Other studies have found factors like upticks in unemployment and celebrity suicides can lead to increased suicide rates, while suicide prevention programmes and gun restriction laws can have the opposite effect. While temperature by itself is not thought to be a motivator for suicide, the researchers were concerned that it could exacerbate other problems and increase the likelihood that people attempt to harm themselves. However, Professor Burke noted that the surprisingly large impact climate change appears to have on suicide risk should be taken into account. This matters for both our understanding of mental health as well as for what we should expect as temperatures continue to warm, he said. When talking about climate change, its often easy to think in abstractions. But the thousands of additional suicides that are likely to occur as a result of unmitigated climate change are not just a number; they represent tragic losses for families across the country. For confidential support call Samaritans on 116 123. You can also contact the following organisations for confidential support: https://www.mind.org.uk/ https://www.beateatingdisorders.org.uk/ http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/mentalhealth https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk Think of sherry as something you only enjoy as a sweet tipple at Christmas? Well, think again. It comes from Spain, a country that experiences more sunshine than most, and, in its dry and savoury form it is the perfect summer drink. Dry sherry comes in a variety of forms from fino, the most dry, through manzanilla and amontillado, to the richer oloroso and the rarer palo cortado. Look out this year for the en rama sherries wines that have been minimally filtered or refined to get the true taste of the sherry as it comes from the cask. Enjoy it chilled (in regular wineglasses to experience the full aroma) as an aperitif or as accompaniment to fish, seafood or tapas dishes. Here's our favourites for you to sip with your alfresco dinner. Tio Pepe Fino En Rama 2018, 37.5cl, 15%: 8.50, Lea & Sandeman Welcome to the new kid and trend on the block. En Rama sherries (literally in the raw) are only lightly filtered so youre getting the true taste of sherry from the cask, providing a depth and a complexity of flavours encompassing everything from Japanese umami to salted apples that other sherries may only hint at. Its a limited release, so get it while you can. Buy now Waitrose Torre del Oro Palo Cortado 75cl, 19%: 11.49, Waitrose Produced in conjunction with the house of Lustau, this is a rich and elegant sherry made from palomino grapes emanating from the bountiful area bound by Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlucar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa Maria in Spain's famous sherry triangle north of Cadiz. Waitroses sherry buyer has worked with Lustaus cellar masters to produce a drink that, slightly chilled, is the perfect accompaniment to a light summer meal. Buy now Tio Diego Amontillado Valdespino, 75cl, 18%: 17.75, Lea & Sandeman Amontillado sherries have a unique taste thanks to the process that sees the flor the whitish film of yeast that covers the liquid fade away and the wine then exposed to oxidation. The result here, in this single vineyard example, is a layered and complex sherry, pale amber in colour, with a nutty and almost botanical flavour. Its a perfect aperitif or can be enjoyed with fish and seafood. Buy now Gonzales Byass Vina AB Amontillado Secco, 75cl, 16.5%: 14 Oddbins A superbly nutty and bone dry amontillado from one of the big names in the sherry world. Light amber in colour after 12 years of ageing in American oak casks, its best served chilled in a small white wine glass as an aperitif or as an accompaniment to white meat dishes, rice or asparagus. Buy now Valdespino Inocente Fino, 75cl, 15%: 15.95 Lea & Sandeman Unique in that its the last fino to be fermented in huge American oak casks all the rest are use stainless steel fermentation tanks Valdespino is the flagship wine of one of the oldest bodegas in Jerez, using Palomino grapes from a single vineyard. Layered and intense with a taste of almonds and lemon and a growing saltiness with a long and prolonged finish. Buy now La Kika Manzanilla Pasada En Rama Bodegas Yuste, 37.5cl, 15%: 23.25 Butlers You fall in love with this sherry even before you open it. From its stunning label (a picture of La Kika, the wine makers late mother) to the red wax seal, orange and red ribbon and wooden topped cork, its an aesthetic delight. The en rama sherry more than matches the display with a bone dry intensity, a salty tang and a lingering finish that make it one of the most enticing en rama sherries you can buy. Buy now Hidalgo Manzanilla Pasada Pastrana, 75cl, 15%: 12.99 Waitrose Sourced from a single vineyard this light, dry sherry has turned some non-believers into dedicated fans. And its not hard to see why. Theres that usual hint of almond like nuttiness helped along with a twist of citrus and a welcome salty tang that make this a superb aperitif. And at that price its almost a steal. Buy now Lustau 3 En Rama Fino Jerez, 50cl, 15%: 15.23, Decantalo Theres a warning on the label that this as with other en rama sherries has been drawn from the cask and bottled without any additional treatment. Some may see this as a drawback, but in fact its a splendid chance to enjoy the real complex and rounded taste of sherry from the respected Bodegas Emilio Lustau in Jerez de la Frontera. Intensely flavoured with a long finish, the magic wont keep, so it needs to be drunk within a few months of being purchased. Buy now Pedros Almacenista Oloroso, 75cl, 20%: 14.99, Majestic More structured and concentrated than fino sherries, oloroso develops without the flor yeasts and as a result is more fragrant and complex with flavours of nuts, dried fruit, spice and perhaps a resinous hint of the autumn to come. This example, adorned with a vintage 1956 poster, has undergone minimal filtration to ensure that you enjoy the full sherry experience. And at this price you cant afford to let it pass. Buy now Barbadillo Manzanilla Pasada En Rama de la Pastora, 37.5cl, 15%: 29.33 for a case of three, Amazon Already garlanded with awards, this golden an attractively labelled sherry from a bodega thats been producing manzanilla since 1827. True to tradition this sherry is made using time-old methods, spending up to nine years in the cask before it reaches the bottle. But the en rama classification also means that its only lightly filtered. Savoury and salty but with a rewarding nutty mellowness and a hint of apple. Buy now Cesar Florido Fino En Rama, 37.5cl, 15%: 12.30, Les Caves de Pyrene Made from palomino grapes grown in the Pago de Miraflores vineyard near Sanlucar de Barrameda, this sherry is aged slowly only 25 metres away from the Atlantic coast. As a result it has that tremendous saline character allied to hints of green apples, lemon and almonds. Only 1,200 bottles are produced so grab a bottle while you can and enjoy it chilled in a normal sized wineglass. Buy now Hidalgo Amontillado Seco Napoleon, 50cl, 17.5%: 16.99, Majestic This sherry starts life as a manzanilla in American oak casks and is then transferred to a separate solera to age, as part of an amontillado blend. A dark amber in colour but still very dry, it has the full range of delicious nutty flavours with a twist of salt. The name originates from the Peninsular War when the crafty Spaniards sold sherry to both the French and the English. Buy now Valdespino Manzanilla Deliciosa En Rama, 37.5cl, 15%: 11.95, Lea & Sandeman A limited 2018 edition en rama manzanilla from the hugely respected and family owned Valdespino bodega in Jerez, with the palomino grapes coming from a single vineyard in Sanlucar de Barrameda. Intense nutty flavours with hints of apple and herbs and that saline tang that explodes on the tongue. Production is limited to around 7,000 bottles worldwide, so bring out the salted almonds and get this while you can. Buy now Sanchez Romate Fino Perdido, 75cl, 15%: 7.95, The Wine Society Heres proof that you can an excellent bottle of fino for well under a tenner. Translating as the lost the name refers to the fact that this is an example of fino-amontillado, a now rare style of sherry that has been created under a coating of flor but has spent longer in the butts than most finos. Although not classified as en rama, it has had minimal treatment before bottling, so that you get the full yeasty apple and nut flavours with a bone dry finish. Enjoy it by itself or with fish, shellfish or cheese. Buy now The Verdict: Best dry sherries Those wanting to sample the in the raw en rama sherries are spoilt for choice with wonderful examples such as the Lustau 3 En Rama Fino and the slightly more pricey but delightful La Kika Manzanilla Pasada En Rama Bodegas Yuste. But the best buy is another en rama, the irresistible Tio Pepe Fino En Rama. IndyBest product reviews are unbiased, independent advice you can trust. On some occasions, we earn revenue if you click the links and buy the products, but we never allow this to bias our coverage. The reviews are compiled through a mix of expert opinion and real-world testing. Bitcoin hit a two-month high over the weekend, as the world's leading cryptocurrency continues to recover from its worst ever start to a year. The price of bitcoin reached above $7,700 on Monday, according to CoinMarketCap, up by almost $2,000 since the end of June. Its current value is still a long way off its 2017 peak, when it reached close to $20,000 amid a flurry of interest in the virtual currency. The latest gains also fall short of some analysts' predictions, who forecast that bitcoin would rise above $10,000 in May and continue to climb. They have also not been reflected across all cryptocurrency markets, with ethereum seeing its value drop by around 3 per cent since this time last week. Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Show all 10 1 /10 Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Satoshi Nakamoto creates the first bitcoin block in 2009 On 3 January, 2009, the genesis block of bitcoin appeared. It came less than a year after the pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto detailed the cryptocurrency in a paper titled 'Bitcoin: A peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System' Reuters Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Bitcoin is used as a currency for the first time On 22 May, 2010, the first ever real-world bitcoin transaction took place. Lazlo Hanyecz bought two pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins the equivalent of $90 million at today's prices Lazlo Hanyecz Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Silk Road opens for business Bitcoin soon gained notoriety for its use on the dark web. The Silk Road marketplace, established in 2011, was the first of hundreds of sites to offer illegal drugs and services in exchange for bitcoin Screenshot Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures The first bitcoin ATM appears On 29 October, 2013, the first ever bitcoin ATM was installed in a coffee shop in Vancouver, Canada. The machine allowed people to exchange bitcoins for cash Reuters Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures The fall of MtGox The world's biggest bitcoin exchange, MtGox, filed for bankruptcy in February 2014 after losing almost 750,000 of its customers bitcoins. At the time, this was around 7 per cent of all bitcoins and the market inevitably crashed Getty Images Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Would the real Satoshi Nakamoto please stand up In 2015, Australian police raided the home of Craig Wright after the entrepreneur claimed he was Satoshi Nakamoto. He later rescinded the claim Getty Images Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Bitcoin's big split On 1 August, 2017, an unresolvable dispute within the bitcoin community saw the network split. The fork of bitcoin's underlying blockchain technology spawned a new cryptocurrency: Bitcoin cash Reuters Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Bitcoin's price sky rockets Towards the end of 2017, the price of bitcoin surged to almost $20,000. This represented a 1,300 per cent increase from its price at the start of the year Reuters Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures What goes up... Bitcoin price crashes spectacularly, losing half of its value in a matter of days Getty Images Bitcoin's volatile history in pictures Bitcoin plunges The cryptocurrency eventually bottoms out below $4,000 in 2019 before slowly rebuilding momentum to outperform more traditional assets Getty Images It is the first time since April that bitcoin has achieved consistent price gains, helped by two major price surges last week that saw its value go up by over $1,000 in just a few days. Analysts often attribute positive news in the crypotcurrency space to positive price movement, and the latest market shift is no exception. Rumours that the investment giant BlackRock is interested in cryptocurrency preceded one price spike, marking the latest firm from the traditional financial sector to potentially make a move into the space. The price of bitcoin has risen by more than 15 per cent in the last week (CoinMarketCap) A major announcement by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could also see the price of bitcoin significantly shift either up or down. Some within the cryptocurrency space are hopeful the SEC will introduce a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), which was requested by the blockchain platform SolidX through the Chicago Board of Exchange. If introduced, bitcoin's price could be propelled towards its 2017 highs thanks to increased trust through clearer regulation. An ETF for gold that was introduced 15 years ago saw the commodity shoot up in price by around 300 per cent. The SEC may reject the ETF, however, having previously dismissed a request last year citing bitcoin's price volatility. Whether or not the request is rejected is unlikely to stem a recent trend that has seen governments and financial authorities seek to better understand the digital currency space. "Almost every moth there's new evidence to suggest that authorities are finally getting to grips with the crypto markets and recent weeks have really seen things accelerate," Matthew Newton from the eToro trading platform told The Independent. "Stateside, the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis, which has historically been friendlier to crypto than other US banking authorities, added bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ethereum and litecoin to its FRED index. And in Europe, the publication of a new paper from the European Parliament edged closer to giving cryptocurrencies the stamp of approval." The report also warned that any move by a major bank or financial institution could have a negative impact on bitcoin, stating: "The arrival of permissioned cryptocurrencies promoted by banks, even by central banks, will reshape the current competition level in the cryptocurrency market, broadening the number of competitors." Bitcoin's dominance as the world's leading cryptocurrency could also be challenged by startups in the space, such as the Goldman Sachs-backed Circle, which is planning to launch a digital currency tied to the US Dollar later this year. A glitch with Google Translate has resulted in a series of mysterious messages and prophecies appearing when gibberish text is entered into the app. The translation service, which supports over 100 languages and serves over 500 million people each day, uses artificial intelligence to increase accuracy. But the technology has also caused an issue with some of the lesser-used languages. Typing in the word "dog" 18 times into Google Translate and selecting the input language as Maori results in the following message: "Doomsday Clock is three minutes at twelve We are experiencing characters and a dramatic developments in the world, which indicate that we are increasingly approaching the end times and Jesus' return." 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Show all 11 1 /11 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Time travel You can see how places have changed over the years in Street View, by dragging Pegman (the small yellow figure) onto the map and clicking the clock icon. Its not available for all locations though - only the places Google has pictured for older versions of Street View - and the furthest back you can go is 2008. Its fun though, and if you look closely, youll see Pegman turns into Back to the Futures Doc Brown. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Dive into your history You can view your Google Maps History by visiting myactivity.google.com. In the search bar at the top of the page, you can filter by lots of different products, and Maps is one of them. Doing so will show you all the Maps data has on you, which you can delete. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Zoom with one finger Phones seem to be rowing bigger by the year, and its not always easy to use them one-handed, especially if you want to zoom in on something on your screen. On the Google Maps app, you can zoom in and out with one finger by double-tapping - but keeping your finger on the screen on the second tap - and then dragging it up and down. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Create your own map You can create your own custom map on desktop by opening the menu and clicking Your Places, Maps and Create Map. Give your map a name and a description, and add all of your favourite places. You can also collaborate on a map with other people, ideal for when youre planning a holiday. My Maps is also available as an app, separate to Google Maps. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Calibrate your compass This isnt an issue thats specific to Google Maps, but its incredibly annoying. Every now and then you might find yourself walking in completely the wrong direction because your phones compass has gone wrong. Fortunately, you can calibrate it by moving your phone in a figure 8 motion a few times. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Add stops to your journey Everyone knows Google Maps can direct you from one location to another, you can add multiple stops to your journey too. On the app, after youve entered your starting point and destination, hit the menu button in the top-right corner of the screen and select Add Stop. On desktop, click Add Destination and drag and drop the addresses to reorder your journey. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Explore You can easily find great places to hang out by tapping Explore in the main menu of the Google Maps app. Each of the sections is split into specific sub-sections (such as Keep it Cheap and Quick Bites), and every place has a rating and a description. Also, if youve ever wondered what the orange shaded bits on Google Maps indicate, theyre areas of interest Google believes to be worth exploring. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Share the places you love If youre planning to meet friends somewhere, you can make the process much smoother by sharing the right location with them. On the app, find the location youre after, tap More Info and Share. On desktop, find the right address and click Share. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Share your location You can track your friends or let them track you in real-time with Google Maps, so everyone knows whos on time and whos running late. In the app, hit the menu button and tap Location Sharing. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Save data You can save mobile data (and money) by downloading offline maps for certain areas in advance. On the app, hit the menu button and select Offline Maps, then find the area you want and hit Download. You can also find Wi-Fi Only mode in the main menu of the app, which means you can only access your saved offline maps. On desktop meanwhile, you can use Google Maps Lite for when youre on a slow internet connection. 11 useful Google Maps features you didnt know existed Remember where you parked The Google Maps app can save where youve parked your car. Once youve found a spot, all you need to do is tap your blue location dot and select Save Your Parking. First reported by Motherboard, it is not the first time users of the translation service have noticed seemingly nonsensical messages being interpreted strangely. There is even an entire 'TranslateGate' forum on Reddit dedicated to the bizarre phenomenon. Typing in the word "goo" 13 times in succession, for example, and translating it from Somali to English, results in the message: "Cut off the penis into pieces, cut it into pieces." The Somali language also throws up other oddities, such as the text "do nal d try mp do nal d tru mp do nal d tru mp" being interpreted as "Do not do this anymore". Many of the most peculiar translations appear to reference biblical prophecies. But while some people on social media have blamed demons, the real reason is likely to be more scientific. Google claims that the Translate app takes its understanding from translations found elsewhere on the internet. "Google Translate learns from examples of translations on the web and does not use 'private messages' to carry out translations, nor would the system even have access to that content," a Google spokesperson said. "This is simply a function of inputting nonsense into the system, to which nonsense is generated." Google has not fixed the issue, with all of the examples tested by The Independent resulting in the same mistranslations, however some previously reported examples appear to have been fixed. Maria del Carmen Abadia lives in one of Mexicos rainiest regions, but she has running water only once every two days. When it does trickle from her tap, the water is so heavily chlorinated, she says, its undrinkable. Drinking water is increasingly scarce in San Cristobal de las Casas, a picturesque mountain town in the southeastern state of Chiapas, where some neighbourhoods have running water just a few times a week, and many households are forced to buy extra from tanker trucks. So many residents drink Coca-Cola, which is produced by a local bottling plant, can be easier to find than bottled water and is almost as cheap. Recommended Why this Mexican restaurant has banned Coke In a country that is among the worlds top consumers of sugary drinks, the region Chiapas is a champion: residents of San Cristobal and the lush highlands that envelop the city drink on average more than 2 litres, or more than half a gallon, of soda a day. The effect on public health has been devastating. The mortality rate from diabetes in Chiapas increased 30 per cent between 2013 and 2016, and the disease is now the second-leading cause of death in the state after heart disease, claiming more than 3,000 lives every year. Soft drinks have always been more available than water, says Abadia, 35, a security guard who, like her parents, has struggled with obesity and diabetes. Vicente Vaqueiros, 33, a doctor at the clinic in San Juan Chamula, a nearby farming town, says healthcare workers are struggling to deal with the surge in diabetes. When I was a kid and used to come here, Chamula was isolated and didnt have access to processed food, he says. Now, you see the kids drinking Coke and not water. Right now, diabetes is hitting the adults, but its going to be the kids next. Its going to overwhelm us. Buffeted by the dual crises of the diabetes epidemic and the chronic water shortage, residents of San Cristobal have identified what they believe is the singular culprit: the hulking Coca-Cola factory on the edge of town. The plant has permits to extract more than 300,000 gallons of water a day, as part of a decades-old deal with the federal government that critics say is overly favourable to the plants owners. Public ire has been boiling over. In April 2017, masked protesters marched on the factory holding crosses that read Coca-Cola kills us and demanding that the government shut the plant down. When you see that institutions arent providing something as basic as water and sanitation, but you have this company with secure access to one of the best water sources, of course it gives you a shock, says Fermin Reygadas, director of Cantaro Azul, an organisation that provides clean water to rural communities. Coca-Cola executives and some outside experts say the company has been unfairly maligned for the water shortages. They blame rapid urbanisation, poor planning and a lack of government investment that has allowed the citys infrastructure to crumble. Climate change, scientists say, has also played a role in the failure of artesian wells that sustained San Cristobal for generations. It doesnt rain like it used to, says Jesus Carmona, a biochemist at the local Ecosur scientific research centre, which is affiliated with the Mexican government. Almost every day, day and night, it used to rain. But at a time of growing strife between Mexico and the United States, fed by President Donald Trumps vow to build a border wall and his threats to scrap the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta), the increasing antipathy towards Coca-Cola has come to symbolise the frustration many Mexicans feel about their northern neighbour. The plant is run by FEMSA, a food and beverage behemoth that owns the rights to bottle and sell Coca-Cola throughout Mexico and much of the rest of Latin America. FEMSA is one of Mexicos most powerful companies; Vicente Fox, a former chief executive of Coca-Cola in Mexico, was the countrys president from 2000 to 2006. Nafta has been beneficial for FEMSA, which has received hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign investment. But in San Cristobal, Nafta is widely viewed as an unwelcome interloper. On New Years Day in 1994, the day the trade pact went into effect, rebels from the Zapatista Army of National Liberation swept into San Cristobal, declared war against the Mexican state and burned government buildings. Although the two sides eventually signed a peace agreement, anti-globalisation sentiment still simmers across the region, one of the poorest in Mexico. Coca-Cola is abusive, manipulative, says Martin Lopez Lopez, a local activist who has helped organise boycotts and protests against the soft drinks company. They take our pure water, they dye it and they trick you on TV saying that its the spark of life. Then they take the money and go. FEMSA executives say the plant has little impact on the citys water supply, noting that its wells are far deeper than the surface springs that supply local residents. When we hear, and when we read in the news, that were finishing up the water, the truth is it really shocks us, says Jose Ramon Martinez, corporate affairs director for Coca-Cola FEMSA. The company is also an important economic force in San Cristobal, employing about 400 people and contributing around $200m to the state economy, Martinez says. Critics, however, say the sweetheart deal between FEMSA and the federal government doesnt serve the city well. Laura Mebert, a social scientist at Kettering University in Michigan who has studied the conflict, says Coca-Cola pays a disproportionately small amount for its water privileges about 10 cents per 260 gallons. Coca-Cola pays this money to the federal government, not the local government, Mebert says, while the infrastructure that serves the residents of San Cristobal is literally crumbling. Among the issues facing the city is a lack of wastewater treatment, meaning that raw sewage flows directly into local waterways. Carmona, the biochemist, says San Cristobals rivers were rife with E coli and other pathogens. Last year, in an apparent effort to appease the community, FEMSA began talks with local residents to build a water treatment plant that would provide clean drinking water to 500 families in the area. But rather than easing tensions, the plan led to more protests by locals and forced the company to halt construction of the facility. Were not against the treatment plant, says Leon Avila, a professor at the Intercultural University of Chiapas, who led the protests. We just want the government to fulfil its obligation to provide potable water for its citizens. How are we supposed to allow Coke to wash its sins after years of taking the water from San Cristobal? Since bottles of Coca-Cola arrived here half a century ago, the beverage has been deeply intertwined with the local culture. In San Juan Chamula, bottled soda anchors religious ceremonies cherished by the citys indigenous Tzotzil population. Inside the towns whitewashed church, tourists step gingerly across carpets of fresh pine needles as copal incense and smoke from hundreds of candles fill the air. But the main draw here for tourists is to watch the faithful, who pray over bottles of Coke or Pepsi, and also over live chickens, some sacrificed on the spot. Many Tzotzil believe carbonated soda has the power to heal the sick. Mikaela Ruiz, 41, a local resident, recalls how soda helped cure her infant daughter, who was weak from vomiting and diarrhoea. The ceremony was performed by her diabetic mother, a traditional healer who has performed the soda ceremonies for more than 40 years. But for many in San Cristobal, the ubiquity of cheap Coca-Cola and the diabetes that stalks nearly every household simply compounds their anger towards the soft drink company. Local health advocates say aggressive marketing campaigns by Coke and Pepsi, which started in the 1960s, helped embed sugary soft drinks into local religious practices, which blend Catholicism with Maya rituals. For decades, the companies produced billboards in local languages, often using models in traditional Tzotzil garb. Although Coke has since discontinued the ad campaigns, Martinez, the FEMSA spokesman, describes them as a gesture of respect towards indigenous communities. He also rejects criticism that the companys beverages have had a negative impact on public health. Mexicans, he says, may have a genetic proclivity towards diabetes. While scientific research does suggest that Mexicans of indigenous ancestry have higher rates of diabetes, local advocates say this puts even greater responsibility on multinational companies that sell products high in sugar. Indigenous people ate very simple food, says Lopez, the activist, who spent years living with rural communities as a missionary. And when Coke arrived, their bodies werent ready for it. Abadia, the security guard, blames herself for drinking so much soft drinks. Still, with her mothers health deteriorating, and having watched her father die from complications from diabetes, she cant help but fear for her own wellbeing. Im worried Ill end up blind or without a foot or a hand, she says. Im very scared. New York Times Tesco could launch a new discount chain in a matter of weeks as the UKs largest retailer battles intense competition from Aldi and Lidl. Adverts on the Tesco careers website are offering roles for managers and assistant managers for a new store format at a site in Cambridgeshire. An advert for the roles reads: The new retail format will be operated separately from the core Tesco business and as such benefits offered will be different from those offered at Tesco. Tesco has also recently started advertising for workers to staff its new format stores in Wandsworth and Lincolnshire. The recruitment drive is reportedly part of a plan to open as many as 60 new cut-price stores under the brand name Jacks, a reference to Tesco founder Jack Cohen who opened up the companys first store in 1931. The first opening under the new name could come as soon as September, according to The Guardian. The news comes after reports in February that Tesco had hired former Aldi operations director Lawrence Harvey and advisors from Boston Consulting Group to head up the new move into discount retailing. Tesco has not yet confirmed the details of the new brand, but some marketing experts have warned that the chain faces a difficult task with the rumoured launch. If the brand is too different it will have a tough job becoming established in the market, said Mark Dodds, chair of the Chartered Institute of Marketings food and drink committee. On the other hand a brand too close to its core runs the risk of cannibalisation of current sales. Much is still to be confirmed, but the name Jacks is clearly a nod to Tescos heritage it will be interesting to see how much more of the Tesco brand is reflected in the new stores. Theres no doubt Tesco has the resources, knowledge, marketing team and supplier base to make it a success logistically, but as we learn every day, the UK consumer can be fickle and they will ultimately decide whether the venture is a success. Tesco is the leading UK grocer with a 30 per cent share of the market, but Aldi and Lidl have grown rapidly for several years, taking chunks out of Tescos rivals, including Asda and Sainsburys. Aldi and Lidl now account for almost 13 per cent of the grocery market, up from 9 per cent in 2014, according to Kantar Worldpanel. Discount chains, such as B&M and Poundland, have also begun to stock a wider range of food, while Tesco faces the added prospect of a merger between Asda and Sainsburys. Traces of alien life might be hiding just a centimetre beneath the surface of one of Jupiter's moons, according to a new study. The icy world Europa has long been one of scientists best hopes for finding traces of extraterrestrial life in our solar system. But the harshness of its world could make it impossible to actually discover, since it has been thought to have been hiding under the moon's impenetrable surface. The new study claims that the amino acids that could be signatures of life would be able to stick around for as long as 10 million years, just one to three centimetres beneath the surface. They would not be wiped out by the harsh radiation they would be exposed to on the surface of the planet, the study suggests. Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Show all 30 1 /30 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An image from Nasa's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) shows a 200,000 mile long solar filament ripping through the Sun's corona in September 2013 Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa Celebrates 50 Years of Spacewalking For 50 years, NASA has been "suiting up" for spacewalking. In this 1984 photograph of the first untethered spacewalk, NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless is in the midst of the first "field" tryout of a nitrogen-propelled backpack device called the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Hubble Cosmic Couple The spectacular cosmic pairing of the star Hen 2-427 more commonly known as WR 124 and the nebula M1-67 which surrounds it ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled in stunning detail a small section of the Veil Nebula - expanding remains of a massive star that exploded about 8,000 years ago Nasa's most stunning pictures of space The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launch The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday, Nov. 24, 2014, carrying three new astronauts to the International Space Station. It also took caviar, ready for the satellite's inhabitants to celebrate the holidays Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth from the ISS From the International Space Station, Expedition 42 Flight Engineer Terry W. Virts took this photograph of the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Gulf Coast at sunset Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Black Hole Friday Nasa celebrated Black Friday by looking into space instead sharing pictures of black holes Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space NuSTAR X-rays stream off the sun in this image showing observations from by NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, overlaid on a picture taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Cassiopeia A c A false colour image of Cassiopeia A comprised with data from the Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes and the Chandra X-Ray observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Orion Capsule splashes down The Orion capsule jetted off into space before heading back a few hours later having proved that it can be used, one day, to carry humans to Mars Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth Observations From Gemini IV in 1965 This photograph of the Florida Straits and Grand Bahama Bank was taken during the Gemini IV mission during orbit no. 19 in 1965. The Gemini IV crew conducted scientific experiments, including photography of Earth's weather and terrain, for the remainder of their four-day mission following Ed White's historic spacewalk on June 3 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Frosty slopes of Mars This image of an area on the surface of Mars, approximately 1.5 by 3 kilometers in size, shows frosted gullies on a south-facing slope within a crater. The image was taken by Nasa's HiRISE camera, which is mounted on its Mars Reconaissance Orbiter Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Yellowstone from space NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman shared this image of Yellowstone via his twitter account Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Saturn This near-infrared color image shows a specular reflection, or sunglint, off of a hydrocarbon lake named Kivu Lacus on Saturn's moon Titan Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Worlds Apart Although Mimas and Pandora, shown here, both orbit Saturn, they are very different moons. Pandora, "small" by moon standards (50 miles or 81 kilometers across) is elongated and irregular in shape. Mimas (246 miles or 396 kilometers across), a "medium-sized" moon, formed into a sphere due to self-gravity imposed by its higher mass Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An X1.6 class solar flare flashes in the middle of the sun in this image taken 10 September, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy An image of the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy seen in infrared light by the Herschel Space Observatory. Regions of space such as this are where new stars are born from a mixture of elements and cosmic dust Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Mars Rover Spirit Nasa's Mars Rover Spirit took the first picture from Spirit since problems with communications began a week earlier. The image shows the robotic arm extended to the rock called Adirondack Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Morning Aurora From the Space Station Nasa astronaut Scott Kelly captured this photograph of the green lights of the aurora from the International Space Station Nasa/Scott Kelly Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Launch of History - Making STS-41G Mission in 1984 The Space Shuttle Challenger launches from Florida at dawn. On this mission, Kathryn Sullivan became the first U.S. woman to perform a spacewalk and Marc Garneau became the first Canadian in space. The crew of seven was the largest to fly on a spacecraft at that time, and STS-41G was the first flight to include two female astronauts Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Fresh Perspective on an Extraordinary Cluster of Galaxies Galaxy clusters are often described by superlatives. After all, they are huge conglomerations of galaxies, hot gas, and dark matter and represent the largest structures in the Universe held together by gravity Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Sees a Galactic Sunflower The arrangement of the spiral arms in the galaxy Messier 63, seen here in an image from the Nasa Hubble Space Telescope, recall the pattern at the center of a sunflower ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Pluto image Four images from New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were combined with colour data from the Ralph instrument to create this enhanced colour global view of Pluto Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Fresh Crater Near Sirenum Fossae Region of Mars The HiRISE camera aboard Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this closeup image of a "fresh" (on a geological scale, though quite old on a human scale) impact crater in the Sirenum Fossae region of Mars. This impact crater appears relatively recent as it has a sharp rim and well-preserved ejecta Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Peers into the Most Crowded Place in the Milky Way This Nasa Hubble Space Telescope image presents the Arches Cluster, the densest known star cluster in the Milky Way NASA & ESA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space An Astronaut's View from Space Nasa astronaut Reid Wiseman tweeted this photo from the International Space Station on 2 September 2014 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Giant Landform on Mars On Mars, we can observe four classes of sandy landforms formed by the wind, or aeolian bedforms: ripples, transverse aeolian ridges, dunes, and what are called draa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Expedition 39 Landing A sokol suit helmet can be seen against the window of the Soyuz TMA-11M capsule shortly after the spacecraft landed with Expedition 39 Commander Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Soyuz Commander Mikhail Tyurin of Roscosmos, and Flight Engineer Rick Mastracchio of NASA near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan (NASA/Bill Ingalls) Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Jupiter's Great Red Spot Viewed by Voyager I Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and perhaps the most majestic. Vibrant bands of clouds carried by winds that can exceed 400 mph continuously circle the planet's atmosphere Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Chandra Observatory Sees a Heart in the Darkness This Chandra X-Ray Observatory image of the young star cluster NGC 346 highlights a heart-shaped cloud of 8 million-degree Celsius gas in the central region That means that engineers might not have to dig deep into the planet to discover traces of alien life. At the moment, such a feat would be impossible because space agencies like Nasa lack the capability to dig that deep. Recommended Why we might be about to meet aliens in our own solar system Tom Nordheim, a Nasa scientist who is an expert on the habitability of icy worlds like Europa, said that Nasa instead needs to make sure that any visitor to the moon makes sure it lands in the right place. So long as it dropped towards the top of the world, it could be able to dig just beneath the surface and find those importance traces of life. Nasa is planning to send two missions to the planet: an initial flyby due to launch in 2022 that could explore best regions to land in, which could be followed by a lander that would roam over the surface. The agency has predicted it will find alien life in the next 20 years and has said that Europa is probably the best hope of doing so. Europa is so exciting to scientists hunting for alien life because it is thought to contain a huge liquid ocean beneath the icy crust that surrounds it. Beneath that crust could be conditions to make the moon habitable, scientists have said. Researchers had hoped that there might be signs of life on that surface. But it is being hit by huge amounts of radiation the kind that covers our whole solar system, but which we are saved from by our atmosphere and so scientists worried that could destroy all of those signs of life. The key finding of the new paper, which is published in Nature Astronomy, is that the radiation does not penetrate as deeply into the surface as expected. Scientists have found a mysterious galaxy, twinned with our own, thought to have been shredded apart. Even though the galaxy has been mostly destroyed, it left behind an intriguing trail of evidence. The universe is haunted by bits left behind from when it was around, such as an almost invisible halo of stars larger than the Andromeda galaxy itself and an elusive stream of stars, the researchers write. The galaxy was ripped to shreds by Andromeda, our nearest galactic neighbour, the new paper claims. But it was once the third-largest galaxy in our local area. Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Show all 30 1 /30 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An image from Nasa's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) shows a 200,000 mile long solar filament ripping through the Sun's corona in September 2013 Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Nasa Celebrates 50 Years of Spacewalking For 50 years, NASA has been "suiting up" for spacewalking. In this 1984 photograph of the first untethered spacewalk, NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless is in the midst of the first "field" tryout of a nitrogen-propelled backpack device called the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Hubble Cosmic Couple The spectacular cosmic pairing of the star Hen 2-427 more commonly known as WR 124 and the nebula M1-67 which surrounds it ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled in stunning detail a small section of the Veil Nebula - expanding remains of a massive star that exploded about 8,000 years ago Nasa's most stunning pictures of space The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launch The Soyuz TMA-15M rocket launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday, Nov. 24, 2014, carrying three new astronauts to the International Space Station. It also took caviar, ready for the satellite's inhabitants to celebrate the holidays Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth from the ISS From the International Space Station, Expedition 42 Flight Engineer Terry W. Virts took this photograph of the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Gulf Coast at sunset Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Black Hole Friday Nasa celebrated Black Friday by looking into space instead sharing pictures of black holes Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space NuSTAR X-rays stream off the sun in this image showing observations from by NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, overlaid on a picture taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Cassiopeia A c A false colour image of Cassiopeia A comprised with data from the Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes and the Chandra X-Ray observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Orion Capsule splashes down The Orion capsule jetted off into space before heading back a few hours later having proved that it can be used, one day, to carry humans to Mars Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Earth Observations From Gemini IV in 1965 This photograph of the Florida Straits and Grand Bahama Bank was taken during the Gemini IV mission during orbit no. 19 in 1965. The Gemini IV crew conducted scientific experiments, including photography of Earth's weather and terrain, for the remainder of their four-day mission following Ed White's historic spacewalk on June 3 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Frosty slopes of Mars This image of an area on the surface of Mars, approximately 1.5 by 3 kilometers in size, shows frosted gullies on a south-facing slope within a crater. The image was taken by Nasa's HiRISE camera, which is mounted on its Mars Reconaissance Orbiter Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Yellowstone from space NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman shared this image of Yellowstone via his twitter account Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Saturn This near-infrared color image shows a specular reflection, or sunglint, off of a hydrocarbon lake named Kivu Lacus on Saturn's moon Titan Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Worlds Apart Although Mimas and Pandora, shown here, both orbit Saturn, they are very different moons. Pandora, "small" by moon standards (50 miles or 81 kilometers across) is elongated and irregular in shape. Mimas (246 miles or 396 kilometers across), a "medium-sized" moon, formed into a sphere due to self-gravity imposed by its higher mass Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Solar Flare An X1.6 class solar flare flashes in the middle of the sun in this image taken 10 September, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy An image of the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy seen in infrared light by the Herschel Space Observatory. Regions of space such as this are where new stars are born from a mixture of elements and cosmic dust Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Mars Rover Spirit Nasa's Mars Rover Spirit took the first picture from Spirit since problems with communications began a week earlier. The image shows the robotic arm extended to the rock called Adirondack Nasa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Morning Aurora From the Space Station Nasa astronaut Scott Kelly captured this photograph of the green lights of the aurora from the International Space Station Nasa/Scott Kelly Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Launch of History - Making STS-41G Mission in 1984 The Space Shuttle Challenger launches from Florida at dawn. On this mission, Kathryn Sullivan became the first U.S. woman to perform a spacewalk and Marc Garneau became the first Canadian in space. The crew of seven was the largest to fly on a spacecraft at that time, and STS-41G was the first flight to include two female astronauts Nasa's most stunning pictures of space A Fresh Perspective on an Extraordinary Cluster of Galaxies Galaxy clusters are often described by superlatives. After all, they are huge conglomerations of galaxies, hot gas, and dark matter and represent the largest structures in the Universe held together by gravity Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Sees a Galactic Sunflower The arrangement of the spiral arms in the galaxy Messier 63, seen here in an image from the Nasa Hubble Space Telescope, recall the pattern at the center of a sunflower ESA/Hubble & NASA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Pluto image Four images from New Horizons Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) were combined with colour data from the Ralph instrument to create this enhanced colour global view of Pluto Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Fresh Crater Near Sirenum Fossae Region of Mars The HiRISE camera aboard Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this closeup image of a "fresh" (on a geological scale, though quite old on a human scale) impact crater in the Sirenum Fossae region of Mars. This impact crater appears relatively recent as it has a sharp rim and well-preserved ejecta Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Hubble Peers into the Most Crowded Place in the Milky Way This Nasa Hubble Space Telescope image presents the Arches Cluster, the densest known star cluster in the Milky Way NASA & ESA Nasa's most stunning pictures of space An Astronaut's View from Space Nasa astronaut Reid Wiseman tweeted this photo from the International Space Station on 2 September 2014 Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Giant Landform on Mars On Mars, we can observe four classes of sandy landforms formed by the wind, or aeolian bedforms: ripples, transverse aeolian ridges, dunes, and what are called draa Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Expedition 39 Landing A sokol suit helmet can be seen against the window of the Soyuz TMA-11M capsule shortly after the spacecraft landed with Expedition 39 Commander Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Soyuz Commander Mikhail Tyurin of Roscosmos, and Flight Engineer Rick Mastracchio of NASA near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan (NASA/Bill Ingalls) Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Jupiter's Great Red Spot Viewed by Voyager I Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and perhaps the most majestic. Vibrant bands of clouds carried by winds that can exceed 400 mph continuously circle the planet's atmosphere Nasa's most stunning pictures of space Chandra Observatory Sees a Heart in the Darkness This Chandra X-Ray Observatory image of the young star cluster NGC 346 highlights a heart-shaped cloud of 8 million-degree Celsius gas in the central region Scientists have long known that the halo of stars contained the remnants of cannibalised galaxies. But they feared that there was so many smaller galaxies contained within that it would be impossible to learn about any specific one. Recommended Scientists discover three baby planets hiding in our own galaxy New computer simulations allowed them to find that while Andromeda had eaten many galaxies, many of the stars found in the halo actually came from one larger shredded galaxy. "It was a 'eureka' moment. We realised we could use this information of Andromeda's outer stellar halo to infer the properties of the largest of these shredded galaxies," said lead author Richard D'Souza, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Michigan. That galaxy is a long-lost sibling of our own. "Astronomers have been studying the Local Group the Milky Way, Andromeda and their companions for so long. It was shocking to realize that the Milky Way had a large sibling, and we never knew about it," said co-author Bell, professor of astronomy at the same university. The researchers hope that the discovery can lead to new breakthroughs in understanding how galaxies form and evolve. It also explains some of the strange behaviour in our own universe. It could answer the puzzle of why the M32 satellite galaxy near Andromeda has come from it might be the surviving core of that long-lost sibling, sticking around like the core in a plum. "M32 is a weirdo," Bell said. "While it looks like a compact example of an old, elliptical galaxy, it actually has lots of young stars. It's one of the most compact galaxies in the universe. There isn't another galaxy like it." The government will end its intervention into Rotherham council three years after it was severely criticised for significant failings which contributed to child sexual exploitation. In a written ministerial statement the communities secretary, James Brokenshire, said he wanted to return control of all services to the council, including childrens social care. He also said he would withdraw all three commissioners all on the condition the council is independently renewed before the end of March next year. An ongoing investigation by the National Crime Agency has revealed more than 1,500 girls and young women may have been abused in the town, in Yorkshire, between 1997 and 2013. Reports by Baroness Alexis Jay and Dame Louise Casey found blatant failures by police and the Labour-run council where officials feared accusations of racism at the time. Mr Brokenshire said: Vulnerable young people were repeatedly failed in Rotherham, which is why the government stepped in to ensure these errors can never occur again. The council has made strong progress and, having carefully considered evidence provided by our commissioners, I am minded to return all powers. This is not a decision I take lightly, but I am assured the council has turned itself around and is now providing the services that its residents deserve and expect. Rotherham abuse victim speaks The commissioners were appointed following the publication of a report by Dame Louise Casey which found significant failings at the council. The Casey Report followed the report of Professor Alexis Jay, which shocked the nation when it outlined how hundreds of girls had been exploited by grooming gangs of largely Pakistani heritage men between 1997 and 2013 as police and social workers did little to intervene. The Minister for children and families, Nadhim Zahawi, said: Keeping children safe is paramount and I am pleased to see the vast improvements Rotherham has made to its childrens services, shown through its recent good Ofsted rating. We all know that for too long, children and young people living there were failed by the authorities in charge of protecting them. In these cases, the Government will not hesitate to intervene and support improvements but it is down to strong leadership and the hard work of staff at Rotherham that they have been able to turn services around. The minded to decision to return the control of all services to the council marks a positive step for this town and I hope the community can continue to move towards a bright future. Mr Brokenshire said the Government is continuing to work with Rotherham Council and the South Yorkshire police and crime commissioner to secure funding for victims identified through the National Crime Agencys Operation Stovewood. Islamophobic street attacks are on the rise in the UK as perpetrators feel emboldened by terror attacks and political discourse, a report has found. Tell Mama, which measures anti-Muslim incidents in Britain, recorded a 30 per cent rise in street incidents and a 16 per cent rise in 2017, taking the number of verified reports to a record of 1,201. The group warned of a marked shift towards more serious offline incidents like physical attacks, vandalism and abuse, as hatred continues to spread on social media. Fiyaz Mughal, the founder of Tell Mama, said Islamophobic hate crimes had been continually increasing over the past six years and fears the trend will continue. It is partly driven by terrorism, partly by groups who just want to divide communities, we have social media and we have politicians who seek to blame migrants, he told The Independent. Anti-Muslim rhetoric is bleeding into the political landscape it emboldens people. Mr Mughal described protests in support of jailed English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson as frightening, following outbreaks of violence and the blockade of a bus driven by a Muslim woman. Protesters chant 'We want Tommy out' as they block path of bus in London The protests are growing and these people are trying to mainstream hate against the Muslim community, he added, accusing Ukip of moving to the far right under leader Gerard Batten. We need to have a zero tolerance approach in politics. Tell Mama recorded a 475 per cent rise in anti-Muslim street attacks in the wake of the 2016 EU referendum, but that was dwarfed by a 700 per cent increase in the week following the Manchester Arena attack and spikes were also seen after each Isis-inspired atrocity last year. Researchers said: Events which stimulate public discourse on immigration and Islam can correspond with a demonstrable spike in anti-Muslim hate crimes and incidents. It is vital to note that these events are not the underlying cause of anti-Muslim incidents, but rather act as triggers, where people with latent racial prejudices feel emboldened to act on their views, violently or otherwise. In the wake of the Isis-inspired Westminster attack last March, a woman wearing a headscarf on a bus was told by a fellow passenger that people like you were responsible and spat on her. In another case, after the Manchester Arena bombing, a trauma surgeon was racially abused and called a terrorist while on his way to work to treat victims at Salford Royal Hospital. A Muslim man travelling on a bus to donate blood following the attack was also called a terrorist by a passenger who said he would happily kill him. Other victims were accused of direct responsibility in the Manchester attack, and abused while laying flowers in memory of the victims. A day after the London Bridge attack last June, a man left a fake bomb outside of Paisley Central Mosque with a handwritten message which read: Youse are next, defo. Finsbury Park attack Show all 14 1 /14 Finsbury Park attack Finsbury Park attack Police officers attend to the scene after a vehicle collided with pedestrians in the Finsbury Park, killing one person and injuring eight Reuters Finsbury Park attack The incident is being treated as a potential terror attack Reuters Finsbury Park attack A man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder Reuters Finsbury Park attack Police cordon off a street in Finsbury Park AFP/Getty Images Finsbury Park attack A man prays in the street after the attack Reuters Finsbury Park attack Men gather and pray together in the street in the aftermath of the attack AFP/Getty Finsbury Park attack Reuters Finsbury Park attack PA Finsbury Park attack Onlookers gather near a police cordon EPA Finsbury Park attack Forensic investigators arrive at the scene PA Finsbury Park attack A forensic tent stands next to a van PA Finsbury Park attack A police officer talks with residents AFP/Getty Images Finsbury Park attack Onlookers watch proceedings at the security cordon AFP/Getty Finsbury Park attack Local residents react at the scene AFP/Getty Images Little over a fortnight after the atrocity, Darren Osborne ploughed a van into Muslim worshippers outside a mosque in Finsbury Park, killing one man and injuring several others. He left a note filled with racial slurs in the vehicle citing terror attacks and grooming gangs as inspiration, after becoming radicalised by far-right posts online. Tell Mama said the attack made it clear that acts of racial or religious hatred can contribute towards acts of terrorism, amid calls online for Muslims to be gassed and for people to petrol bomb mosques. Almost three-quarters of verified incidents were street-level and the most widely reported type was abusive behaviour, followed by physical attacks, vandalism and discrimination. Public spaces like parks and shopping areas were the most common locations for street attacks, followed by public transport, peoples homes and private property. London saw the highest number of reported incidents in 2017, followed by northwest England, Yorkshire and Humber and the West Midlands. Victims were predominantly women of Asian ethnicity, while 72 per cent of perpetrators where their identity was known were white men and boys. Children under 12 were among those attacked and in Rotherham a 14-year-old Muslim boy was beaten and stamped on by a gang of at least 15 white boys who called him Paki in an unprovoked attack at a bus stop. Far-right street protests are on the rise (Getty) The boys mother said he still has a lump on his head more than a year after the attack in May, and that the perpetrators went free because the police acted very slowly and failed to submit the case to prosecutors on time. Last week a report by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary found that despite concerted efforts some police forces were still responding poorly to hate crime by failing to properly identify incidents, or inform and support victims. Inspector Wendy Williams said: Hate crime is personal and pervasive; and the police frequently only have just one chance to identify it. If the victim is given the right support further offending can be prevented, and a force and national picture of hate crime can be built, allowing wider preventative activity. Mr Mughal said better outcomes for victims were needed to make them feel them safe to come forward to police, with hate crime believed to be vastly underreported. I think we need far better outcomes, we need more prosecutions, we need better access to alternative methods of conflict resolution like restorative justice programmes, so people can see that theyve been heard, he added. Tell Mama also called for improved public education, stronger sentencing and a zero tolerance approach to hatred in schools and public authorities. It said that although the response by social media companies was improving, they remain behind the curve with tactics being used both by real people and bots to sow division and intolerance. Two captured British Isis militants should not be given the satisfaction of the death penalty in America, one of their former hostages has said. Nicolas Henin, a French journalist tortured by the terror cell known as The Beatles, joined calls for Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh to face trial amid suggestions they could be sent to Guantanamo Bay. In a leaked letter, the home secretary reversed a decades-old British policy of refusing to extradite people to countries that use capital punishment without an assurance that it will not be used. Sajid Javid reportedly said the UK does not currently intend to request, nor actively encourage the transfer of Kotey and Elsheikh to Britain from Syria, where they are currently being held by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) alongside thousands of other foreign fighters. I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought, he told the US attorney general in a document obtained by The Daily Telegraph. We believe that a successful federal prosecution in the US is more likely to be possible because of differences in your statute book and the restrictions on challenges to the route by which defendants appear in US courts. Mr Javid promised to hand over material from a four year investigation by counterterror police to be used in a federal criminal investigation or prosecution. Mr Henin urged authorities not to bow to any public pressure against Kotey and Elsheikh being given a fair trial. Isis 'Beatles' militants captured in Syria: 'It is too late for a fair trial' He told The Independent that the death penalty would be short sighted, adding that: Of course the public must be protected from the risk these people pose, they must be neutralised. But they also must be neutralised in a proper manner, or it will be further recruitment [for Isis], and if it makes other people revolted by their treatment then it is eventually counterproductive. Mr Henin said that Kotey, Elsheikh and other Isis militants had claimed they love death and were actively seeking to be martyred. The basic principle in war is that you will never give your enemy satisfaction, he added. If they want to die you should not give them that. Mr Henin was freed just four months before the group beheaded his former cellmate James Foley in 2014, starting a string of gory murders including those of British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning, as well as Americans Peter Kassig and Steven Sotloff. Their executioner, Mohammed Emwazi, became known as Jihadi John and was killed in a drone strike, while his fellow Beatle Aine Davis is imprisoned in Turkey. The remaining two members of the cell 34-year-old Kotey and 30-year-old Elsheikh remained at large until they were caught by the SDF in January following battles to reclaim Isis territory around its defacto Syrian capital of Raqqa. Mr Henin said the families of their American victims were very active in lobbying the US administration and would not accept them being detained at Guantanamo without trial. There must be a trial, he added. For me its totally fine to kill them on the battlefield, it is the reality of war, but after a trial and the judicial process I object to it its not acceptable to mimic your enemy. American journalist James Foley was among the hostages killed in Isis propaganda videos (AP) Diane Foley, the mother of murdered American journalist James Foley, called for Kotey and Elsheikh to undergo a criminal trial either in the US or in an international court. I feel its very important that they be tried in an open, transparent way so that all can know the crime theyve committed and anyone else they might implicate, because it certainly wasnt just them, she told BBC Radio 4s Today programme. I am very against the death penalty, I think that would just make them martyrs in their twisted ideology I feel thats easy for them. I would like them to be held accountable by being sent to prison for the rest of their lives. Ms Foley said she believes her son always wanted justice in the fairest sense and would have felt the same. Lord Carlile, the former independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, described the home secretarys letter as extraordinary. They should not be given the opportunity of being turned into martyrs, but the home secretary extraordinarily is trying to change British policy without any consultation with parliament, he said on Today. It flies in the face of what has been said repeatedly and recently by the Home Office Britain has always said that it will pass information and intelligence in appropriate cases, provided there is no death penalty. That is a decades-old policy and is not for the home secretary to change it. Amnesty International UK called the U-turn a deeply worrying development and said Britain must not compromise on its blanket opposition to the death penalty. Timeline: The emergence of Isis Show all 40 1 /40 Timeline: The emergence of Isis Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2000 Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (pictured here) forms an al-Qaeda splinter group in Iraq, al-Qaeda in Iraq. Its brutality from the beginning alienates Iraqis and many al-Qaeda leaders. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2006 Al-Zarqawi is killed in a U.S. strike. Al-Zarqawis successor, Abu Ayyub al-Masri, announces the creation of the Islamic State in Iraq (ISI). Reuters Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2009 Still al-Qaeda-linked ISI claims responsibility for suicide bombings that killed 155 in Baghdad, as well as attacks in August and October killing 240, as President Obama announces troop withdrawal from Iraq in March. Getty Images Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2010 Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi becomes head of ISI, at lowest ebb of Islamist militancy in Iraq, which sees last U.S. combat brigade depart. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2012 In Syria, protests (pictured here starting in Daree) have morphed into what president Assad labelled a real war with emergence of a coalition of forces opposed to Assads regime. Syria group Jabhat al-Nusra are among rebel groups who refuse to join, denouncing it as a conspiracy. Bombings targeting Shia areas, killing more than 500 people, spark fears of new sectarian conflict. Sunni Muslims stage protests across country against what they see as increasingly marginalisation by Shia-led government. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2013 Al-Baghdadi renames ISI as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or Isis, as the group absorbs Syrian al-Nusra, gaining a foothold in Syria. In response, al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri (Bin Ladens successor) concerned about Isis expansion orders that Isis be dissolved and ISI operations should be confined to Iraq. This order is rejected by al-Baghdadi. AFP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - January Isis fighters capture the Iraqi cities of Fallujah and Ramadi, giving them base to launch slew of attacks further south. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - June Isis declares itself the Caliphate, calling itself Islamic State (IS). The group captures Mosul, Iraqs second largest city; Tal Afar, just 93 miles from Syrian border; and the central Iraqi city of Tikrit. These advances sent shockwaves around the world. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - June Around the same time Isis releases a video calling for western Muslims to join the Caliphate and fight, prompting new evaluations of extremists groups social media understanding. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - June Isis take Baiji oil fields in Iraq - giving them access to huge amounts of possible revenue. EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - August James Foley is executed by the group as concerns grow for second American prisoner, fellow reporter Steven Sotloff. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - August Obama authorises U.S. airstrikes in Iraq, helping to stall Isis along with action by Kurdish forces following the deaths of hundreds of Yazidi people on Mount Sinjar. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Isis release video showing Steven Sotloffs murder prompting Western speculation his executioner is same man who killed Mr Foley. EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Obama tells us that America will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Isis release a video appearing to show David Haines, who was captured by militants in Syria in 2013, wearing an orange jumpsuit and kneeling in the desert while he reads a pre-prepared script. It later shows what appears to be the aid worker's body. Rex Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Peshmerga fighters scrabble to hold positions in the Diyala province (a gateway to Baghdad) as Isis fighters continue to advance on Iraqi capital. AFP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - October Aid worker Alan Henning is killed. Self-imposed media blackout refuses to show images of him in final moments, instead focuses upon humanitarian care. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - October Isis raise their flag in Kobani, which had been strongly defended by Kurdish troops. The victory goes against hopeful western analysis Isis had overextended itself, while alienating much of the Muslim population through the murder of Henning. Victory causes fresh waves of Kurdish refugees arriving in Turkey. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - November American hostage, who embarced values of Islam, Peter Kassig and 14 Syrian soldiers are shown meeting the same fate as other captives. But intelligence agencies will be poring over the apparently significant discrepancies between this and previous films. Seramedig.org.uk Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February Isis has released a video revealing the murder by burning to death of a Jordanian pilot held by the group since the end of December 2014. Reuters Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February Isis militants have released videos which appear to show the beheading of Japanese hostages Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February American aid worker, Kayla Mueller was the last American hostage known to be held by Isis. She died, according to her captors, in an airstrike by the Jordanian air force on the city of Raqqa in Syria, though US authorities disputed this. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February Isis militants have posted a gruesome video online in which they force 21 Egyptian Coptic Christian hostages to kneel on a beach in Libya before beheading them. Egypt vowed to avenge the beheading and launched air strikes on Isis positions. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February The British Isis militant suspected of appearing in videos showing the beheading of Western hostages has been named in reports as Mohammed Emwazi from London. Rex Features Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - March Isis triple suicide attack has killed more than 100 worshippers and hundreds of others were injured after the group members targeted two mosques in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - April Iraqi forces have claimed victory over Isis in battle for Tikrit and raised the flag in the city. EPA/STR Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - April Isis has claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb attack in Afghanistan that killed at least 35 people queuing to collect their wages and injured 100 more. EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - April Isis media arm released a 29-minute video purporting to show militants executing Ethiopian Christians captives. The footage bore the extremist groups al-Furqan media logo and showed the destruction of churches and desecration of religious symbols. A masked fighter made a statement threatening Christians who did not convert to Islam or pay a special tax. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of Isis has been "incapacitated" by a spinal injuries sustained in a US air strike in Iraq. He is being treated in a hideout by two doctors from Isis stronghold of Mosul who are said to be "strong ideological supporters of the group". Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isis has also claimed responsibility for killing 300 of Yazidi captives, including women, children and elderly people in Iraq AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isis attack on Prophet Mohamed cartoon contest in Texas was its first action on US soil. Two gunmen were shot and killed after launching the attack at the exhibition. Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi have been named as the attackers at the Curtis Culwell Centre arena in Garland. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isiss deputy leader, Abu Alaa Afri, a former physics teacher who was thought to have taken charge of the deadly terrorist group, has been killed in a US-led coalition airstrike. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May US special forces have killed a senior Isis leader named as Abu Sayyaf in an operation aiming to capture him and his wife in Syria. Getty Images Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Iran-backed militias are sent to Ramadi by the Iraqi government to fight Isis militants who completed their capture of the city. Government soldiers and civilians were reportedly massacred by extremists as they took control and the army fled. Charred bodies were left littering the city streets as troops clung on to trucks speeding away from the city. Ramadi is the latest government stronghold to fall to the so-called Islamic State, despite air strikes by a US-led international coalition aiming to stop its advance in Iraq and Syria. AFP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isis rounded up civilians trapped in Palmyra and forced them to watch 20 people being executed in the historic citys ancient amphitheatre. The Unesco World Heritage site was overrun by militants, threatening the future of 2,000 year-old monuments and ruins. Thousands of Palmyras residents fled but many are still living within the city walls, while the UN human rights office in Geneva said it had received reports of Syrian government forces preventing people from leaving until they retreated from the city. Getty Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May A group of Isis-affiliated fighters have captured a key airport in central Libya. The militants took control of the al-Qardabiya airbase in Sirte after a local militia tasked with defending the facility withdrew from their positions. Affiliates of Isis, already control large parts of Sirte, the birthplace of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and a former stronghold of his supporters. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June The US Air Force has destroyed an Isis stronghold after an extremist let slip their location on social media. According the Air Force Times, General Herbert "Hawk" Carlisle, commander of Air Combat Command, said that Airmen at Hulburt Field, Florida, used images shared by jihadists to track the location of their headquarters before destroying it in an airstrike. Reuters Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June Kurdish forces captured a key military base in a significant victory in Raqqa as well as town of Tell Abyad. YPG fighters, backed by US-led airstrikes and other rebels, consolidated their gains, when they seized the key town on the Syria-Turkey border. They are now just 30 miles to the north of Raqqa and have cut off a major supply route deep inside Isis-held territory. Ahmet Silk/Getty Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June Isis has released gruesome footage claiming to show the murder of more than a dozen men by drowning, decapitation and using a rocket-propelled grenade as it seeks to boost morale among its fanatical supporters. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June Isis has begun carrying out its threat to destroy structures in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, blowing up at least two monuments at the Unesco-protected site as Syrian government troops made advances on the Islamists positions. AFP Allan Hogarth, its head of advocacy, said: A failure to seek assurances on this case seriously jeopardises the UKs position as a strong advocate for the abolition of the death penalty, and its work encouraging others to abolish the cruel, inhuman and degrading practice. At a time when the rest of the world is moving increasingly to abolition, this reported letter marks a huge backward step. By refusing to seek assurances on this case, the home secretary is leaving the door wide open to charges of hypocrisy and double standards. Labours shadow attorney general, Shami Chakrabarti, told The Independent the home secretary appears to have secretly and unilaterally abandoned Britains opposition to the death penalty. By doing so he is not just playing with the lives of these particular terrorists but of those other Britons including potentially innocent ones all over the world, she added. Just as we should be persuading countries like the US and Iran to drop the death penalty, Mr Javid appears to be encouraging this grave human rights abuse. Originally from London, Kotey and Elsheikh are believed to have been among the Isis fighters stripped of British citizenship for the public good. Hostages have told of their brutality, which included torture, waterboarding, electric shocks, mock executions and crucifixions. Both men were declared Specially Designated Global Terrorists by the US State Department ahead of their capture, with official documents naming them as members of the The Beatles and saying the cell had beheaded more than 27 hostages and tortured many more. Kotey also allegedly acted as an Isis recruiter responsible for drawing in several other British nationals. The Home Office refused to comment on the leaked document but a spokesman said: We continue to engage with the US government on this issue, as we do on a range of national security issues, and in the context of our joint determination to tackle international terrorism and combat violent extremism. The UK governments position on Guantanamo Bay is that the detention facility should close. The UK must not let its standards slip in the face of terror, Tory grandee Ken Clarke has said amid uproar over the governments decision not to stop two Isis fighters being given the death penalty in America. The home secretary broke a decades-long policy of refusing to aid investigations that could result in capital punishment by sharing evidence against alleged Beatles Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh. Currently imprisoned by the Syrian Democratic Forces, they are to be transferred to the US after months of diplomatic wrangling over which country would take responsibility for their prosecution. In a letter to the US Attorney General, Sajid Javid insisted that the case does not affect the UKs opposition to the death penalty, but did not seek the normal assurances that it would not be used. The prime minister was aware of the decision but ministers did not seek parliamentary approval and it only became public when the document was leaked to the media. In a heated debate in the House of Commons, the government was accused of hypocrisy as it outwardly continues global opposition to the death penalty. Mr Clarke, the former home secretary and current chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Extraordinary Rendition, said he could not remember any other cases where assurances against capital punishment had not been sought. We should have nothing to do with cases of this kind unless we have assurances that people arent subject to the death penalty, he told The Independent. Isis 'Beatles' militants captured in Syria: 'It is too late for a fair trial' The reputation of this country depends on upholding the highest standards of human rights and individual liberty, and things like torture, rendition and the death penalty should not be part of our tough and effective intelligence services. Mr Clarke said that although some members of the public may support capital punishment for Isis fighters, we cant slip into that we mustnt allow fear to cause us to abandon standards of freedom, liberty and human rights on which this country stands. We must make sure we dont let our standards slip, he added. The government previously bypassed parliamentary approval to launch drone strikes targeting British Isis militants in Syria, announcing them when they had already been carried out and refusing to release the legal advice said to have legitimised the bombing. The chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on drones found last week that ministers arguments were weak and inconsistent. Professor Michael Clarke said the government knew that MPs would be unlikely to object to the move because they could not be seen to support Isis fighters. Because they were bad guys we said it doesnt matter ... but the principles being compromised are very important, he told The Independent. If youre fighting terrorism youve got to be unambiguously lawful in what you do. The security minister, Ben Wallace, used Isis horrendous crimes to bat away questions from MPs over why the government had not followed normal policy for Kotey and Elsheikh. The crimes that we are talking about include the videoed beheading of dozens of innocent people by one of the most abhorrent organisations walking this earth, he told the House of Commons, accusing critical MPs of wanting them to roam free. But Dominic Grieve QC, the former attorney general who chairs the Intelligence and Security Committee, said it would have been perfectly proper to demand guarantees the two men would not be given the death penalty before sharing evidence with the US and warned: This is going to continue to haunt the government. Timeline: The emergence of Isis Show all 40 1 /40 Timeline: The emergence of Isis Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2000 Abu Musab al-Zarqawi (pictured here) forms an al-Qaeda splinter group in Iraq, al-Qaeda in Iraq. Its brutality from the beginning alienates Iraqis and many al-Qaeda leaders. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2006 Al-Zarqawi is killed in a U.S. strike. Al-Zarqawis successor, Abu Ayyub al-Masri, announces the creation of the Islamic State in Iraq (ISI). Reuters Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2009 Still al-Qaeda-linked ISI claims responsibility for suicide bombings that killed 155 in Baghdad, as well as attacks in August and October killing 240, as President Obama announces troop withdrawal from Iraq in March. Getty Images Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2010 Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi becomes head of ISI, at lowest ebb of Islamist militancy in Iraq, which sees last U.S. combat brigade depart. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2012 In Syria, protests (pictured here starting in Daree) have morphed into what president Assad labelled a real war with emergence of a coalition of forces opposed to Assads regime. Syria group Jabhat al-Nusra are among rebel groups who refuse to join, denouncing it as a conspiracy. Bombings targeting Shia areas, killing more than 500 people, spark fears of new sectarian conflict. Sunni Muslims stage protests across country against what they see as increasingly marginalisation by Shia-led government. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2013 Al-Baghdadi renames ISI as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or Isis, as the group absorbs Syrian al-Nusra, gaining a foothold in Syria. In response, al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri (Bin Ladens successor) concerned about Isis expansion orders that Isis be dissolved and ISI operations should be confined to Iraq. This order is rejected by al-Baghdadi. AFP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - January Isis fighters capture the Iraqi cities of Fallujah and Ramadi, giving them base to launch slew of attacks further south. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - June Isis declares itself the Caliphate, calling itself Islamic State (IS). The group captures Mosul, Iraqs second largest city; Tal Afar, just 93 miles from Syrian border; and the central Iraqi city of Tikrit. These advances sent shockwaves around the world. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - June Around the same time Isis releases a video calling for western Muslims to join the Caliphate and fight, prompting new evaluations of extremists groups social media understanding. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - June Isis take Baiji oil fields in Iraq - giving them access to huge amounts of possible revenue. EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - August James Foley is executed by the group as concerns grow for second American prisoner, fellow reporter Steven Sotloff. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - August Obama authorises U.S. airstrikes in Iraq, helping to stall Isis along with action by Kurdish forces following the deaths of hundreds of Yazidi people on Mount Sinjar. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Isis release video showing Steven Sotloffs murder prompting Western speculation his executioner is same man who killed Mr Foley. EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Obama tells us that America will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Isis release a video appearing to show David Haines, who was captured by militants in Syria in 2013, wearing an orange jumpsuit and kneeling in the desert while he reads a pre-prepared script. It later shows what appears to be the aid worker's body. Rex Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - September Peshmerga fighters scrabble to hold positions in the Diyala province (a gateway to Baghdad) as Isis fighters continue to advance on Iraqi capital. AFP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - October Aid worker Alan Henning is killed. Self-imposed media blackout refuses to show images of him in final moments, instead focuses upon humanitarian care. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - October Isis raise their flag in Kobani, which had been strongly defended by Kurdish troops. The victory goes against hopeful western analysis Isis had overextended itself, while alienating much of the Muslim population through the murder of Henning. Victory causes fresh waves of Kurdish refugees arriving in Turkey. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2014 - November American hostage, who embarced values of Islam, Peter Kassig and 14 Syrian soldiers are shown meeting the same fate as other captives. But intelligence agencies will be poring over the apparently significant discrepancies between this and previous films. Seramedig.org.uk Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February Isis has released a video revealing the murder by burning to death of a Jordanian pilot held by the group since the end of December 2014. Reuters Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February Isis militants have released videos which appear to show the beheading of Japanese hostages Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February American aid worker, Kayla Mueller was the last American hostage known to be held by Isis. She died, according to her captors, in an airstrike by the Jordanian air force on the city of Raqqa in Syria, though US authorities disputed this. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February Isis militants have posted a gruesome video online in which they force 21 Egyptian Coptic Christian hostages to kneel on a beach in Libya before beheading them. Egypt vowed to avenge the beheading and launched air strikes on Isis positions. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - February The British Isis militant suspected of appearing in videos showing the beheading of Western hostages has been named in reports as Mohammed Emwazi from London. Rex Features Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - March Isis triple suicide attack has killed more than 100 worshippers and hundreds of others were injured after the group members targeted two mosques in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa. AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - April Iraqi forces have claimed victory over Isis in battle for Tikrit and raised the flag in the city. EPA/STR Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - April Isis has claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb attack in Afghanistan that killed at least 35 people queuing to collect their wages and injured 100 more. EPA Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - April Isis media arm released a 29-minute video purporting to show militants executing Ethiopian Christians captives. The footage bore the extremist groups al-Furqan media logo and showed the destruction of churches and desecration of religious symbols. A masked fighter made a statement threatening Christians who did not convert to Islam or pay a special tax. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of Isis has been "incapacitated" by a spinal injuries sustained in a US air strike in Iraq. He is being treated in a hideout by two doctors from Isis stronghold of Mosul who are said to be "strong ideological supporters of the group". Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isis has also claimed responsibility for killing 300 of Yazidi captives, including women, children and elderly people in Iraq AP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isis attack on Prophet Mohamed cartoon contest in Texas was its first action on US soil. Two gunmen were shot and killed after launching the attack at the exhibition. Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi have been named as the attackers at the Curtis Culwell Centre arena in Garland. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isiss deputy leader, Abu Alaa Afri, a former physics teacher who was thought to have taken charge of the deadly terrorist group, has been killed in a US-led coalition airstrike. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May US special forces have killed a senior Isis leader named as Abu Sayyaf in an operation aiming to capture him and his wife in Syria. Getty Images Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Iran-backed militias are sent to Ramadi by the Iraqi government to fight Isis militants who completed their capture of the city. Government soldiers and civilians were reportedly massacred by extremists as they took control and the army fled. Charred bodies were left littering the city streets as troops clung on to trucks speeding away from the city. Ramadi is the latest government stronghold to fall to the so-called Islamic State, despite air strikes by a US-led international coalition aiming to stop its advance in Iraq and Syria. AFP Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May Isis rounded up civilians trapped in Palmyra and forced them to watch 20 people being executed in the historic citys ancient amphitheatre. The Unesco World Heritage site was overrun by militants, threatening the future of 2,000 year-old monuments and ruins. Thousands of Palmyras residents fled but many are still living within the city walls, while the UN human rights office in Geneva said it had received reports of Syrian government forces preventing people from leaving until they retreated from the city. Getty Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - May A group of Isis-affiliated fighters have captured a key airport in central Libya. The militants took control of the al-Qardabiya airbase in Sirte after a local militia tasked with defending the facility withdrew from their positions. Affiliates of Isis, already control large parts of Sirte, the birthplace of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and a former stronghold of his supporters. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June The US Air Force has destroyed an Isis stronghold after an extremist let slip their location on social media. According the Air Force Times, General Herbert "Hawk" Carlisle, commander of Air Combat Command, said that Airmen at Hulburt Field, Florida, used images shared by jihadists to track the location of their headquarters before destroying it in an airstrike. Reuters Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June Kurdish forces captured a key military base in a significant victory in Raqqa as well as town of Tell Abyad. YPG fighters, backed by US-led airstrikes and other rebels, consolidated their gains, when they seized the key town on the Syria-Turkey border. They are now just 30 miles to the north of Raqqa and have cut off a major supply route deep inside Isis-held territory. Ahmet Silk/Getty Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June Isis has released gruesome footage claiming to show the murder of more than a dozen men by drowning, decapitation and using a rocket-propelled grenade as it seeks to boost morale among its fanatical supporters. Timeline: The emergence of Isis 2015 - June Isis has begun carrying out its threat to destroy structures in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, blowing up at least two monuments at the Unesco-protected site as Syrian government troops made advances on the Islamists positions. AFP Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell pointed out that: On human rights, we cannot distinguish between good and bad people. Diane Abbott, the shadow home secretary, cited calls from the mother of murdered hostage James Foley for a fair trial and another captive who survived told The Independent he did not want to see Kotey and Elsheikh be given the satisfaction of execution. But Mr Wallace refused to reverse the decision and insisted that the US was the most appropriate jurisdiction for the pair to be put on trial. We are not going to seek of assurances because it is our reality that we do not think we have the evidence here to try them in the UK, he added. At the end of the day this is about the security of our country and about security being delivered where it can be done. Mr Clarke said that values had wavered since the 9/11 attacks and rise of jihadi threats, when the UK allowed a serious lapse in our normal standards with involvement in extraordinary rendition to Libya and other countries where people faced torture. The government continues to make all the right protestations ... but that does not explain why we engaged in it so extensively, he added, calling for a promised Detainee Inquiry to be reconstituted. Something needs to be done to find out exactly what went wrong and to make sure in future it never happens again. Mr Clarke said the Intelligence and Security Committee had been effectively stopped from investigating post-September 11 cases and that parliamentary scrutiny was being bypassed once again. Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, is among the British Isis fighters killed in drone strikes without parliamentary approval Mr Wallace insisted that the UK shared intelligence on the basis that Kotey and Elsheikh would not be sent to the Guantanamo Bay detention camp without trial. Originally from London, both militants were declared specially designated global terrorists by the US State Department ahead of their capture in January, with official documents naming them as members of the The Beatles and saying the cell had beheaded more than 27 hostages and tortured many more. Hostages have told of their brutality, which included torture, waterboarding, electric shocks, mock executions, and crucifixions. Executioner Mohammed Emwazi, who became known as Jihadi John, was killed in a drone strike, while the remaining Beatle Aine Davis is imprisoned in Turkey. Kotey and Elsheikh are among the Isis fighters stripped of British citizenship for the public good a power being increasingly used by the government to stop them returning home after the terrorist group was driven out of territories across Syria and Iraq. The governments 2018 Transparency Report on Disruptive and Investigatory Powers, which was released on Monday, showed that 104 people were deprived of British citizenship in 2017 up from just 14 the year before. Security services have also withdrawn passports from terror suspects to stop them travelling abroad and excluded 26 people from Britain on national security grounds in the year. A further nine terror suspects were put on no fly lists meaning they cannot return to the UK without notifying authorities under set conditions, and eight are currently subject to restrictions under Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures. The Home Office said there were a range of tools in our toolbox to disrupt people who pose a security risk, even if they cannot be prosecuted or deported. Of around 900 jihadis known to have travelled to Syria and Iraq, the government estimates that 40 per cent have returned and 20 per cent have been killed in the region. Ecuador is close to evicting Wikileaks founder Julian Assange from its UK embassy, according to reports. Lenin Moreno, the country's president, is in London for a disabilities summit, but is allegedly in discussions with British officials over a deal to hand the Australian over to police. Mr Assange, who has been described as an "inherited problem" by Mr Moreno, could lose his diplomatic protection in a matter of days, The Intercept reported. The 47-year-old has been living in Ecuador's embassy in London since June 2012, when he successfully sought asylum to avoid extradition to Sweden to face questioning about allegations of sex crimes he has always denied. Those allegations have since been dropped, but Mr Assange would be arrested by British police should he leave the embassy for breaching bail conditions. He believes that would pave the way for extradition to the US for the publication of a huge cache of American diplomatic and military secrets on the WikiLeaks website. Speculation about Mr Assange's future has grown this month after the Sunday Times said senior officials from Ecuador and Britain have been in discussions since last week about how to remove him from the embassy after revocation of his asylum. "The situation is very serious. Things are coming to a head," the source, who spoke on condition on anonymity, told Reuters. He said the latest information from inside the embassy was, "It's not looking good". However, both the Ecuadorean government and British government sources played down suggestions there was likely to be any imminent movement to break the stalemate. Great to smell fresh air says freed Assange Show all 2 1 /2 Great to smell fresh air says freed Assange Great to smell fresh air says freed Assange 517881.bin LEON NEAL/AFP/Getty Images Great to smell fresh air says freed Assange 517701.bin Getty Images "The Ecuadorian state will only talk and promote understandings about Mr Assange's asylum, within the framework of international law, with the interested party's lawyers and with the British government," Ecuador's foreign ministry said in a statement ahead of the visit. "At the moment, due to the complexity of the topic, a short or long-term solution is not in sight." A British government source also said there was no sign of immediate progress. Last month, Foreign Office minister Alan Duncan told parliament that they were increasingly concerned about Mr Assange's health. "It is our wish that this is brought to an end, and we would like to make the assurance that if he were to step out of the embassy, he would be treated humanely and properly," Mr Duncan said. "The first priority would be to look after his health, which we think is deteriorating." WikiLeaks itself has added to speculation its editor could be facing arrest after its Twitter account retweeted multiple news outlets reporting his likely eviction. It comes after 12 Russian spies were charged with election interference in the US. They allegedly hacked the emails of Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee and passed them to WikiLeaks, which published them during the 2016 US presidential election. In May, Mr Moreno ordered the withdrawal of additional security from Ecuador's small diplomatic headquarters in London. That followed a decision in March to suspend Mr Assange's communication system and direct voice to the outside world. Mr Assange's supporters regard him as a champion of free speech who has exposed government abuses of power at great personal cost. His critics see him as a criminal who recklessly endangered lives in many countries by exposing secrets. His attempt to halt British legal proceedings failed in February when a judge said Mr Assange appeared to consider himself above the normal rules of law. Britain ended a permanent guard outside the embassy in October 2015 after spending almost 13 million in policing, but has vowed he will be arrested should he leave the embassy. A US Department of Justice investigation into WikiLeaks is continuing but a US law official close to the investigation told Reuters there was no sealed indictment against Mr Assange. Mr Assange has said the US would unveil charges against him if he were arrested by British police and this would pave the way for his extradition. The Foreign Office declined to comment. Additional reporting by Reuters Police have released images of nine people wanted in connection with violence at a protest in support of far-right figure Tommy Robinson. Detectives published the images following disruption which saw scaffolding, glass bottles and street furniture thrown at officers. More than 20 people were injured during the trouble in Whitehall, central London, on 9 June. Vehicles and buildings were damaged. Detective Constable Jonny Wise, from the Metropolitan Polices public order investigations team, said: During this demonstration violent disorder broke out on the streets of central London. Scaffolding, glass bottles and items of street furniture were thrown at police officers and 21 officers sustained injuries. Serious disruption was caused to members of the public, local businesses and the local communities. Vehicles and buildings were damaged and those responsible need to be held accountable for their actions. Pics from the Met of 9 suspects of violence at Tommy Robinson protest - clear for use I am appealing to members of the public to help police identify the individuals in these images. The pictures appear to show eight men and one woman. All are white. The demonstration took place in protest at the jailing of EDL founder Robinson real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon who admitted contempt of court after broadcasting details of a trial that was subject to temporary reporting restrictions. Supporters were filmed giving Nazi salutes and holding anti-Islam banners although there is no suggestion any of the nine people pictured did so. Nine people were arrested on the day itself. Tommy Robinson supporter gives Nazi salute in Whitehall Anyone with information is asked to call the Met on 020 8246 0076 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Labour MPs and peers have voted unanimously in favour of forcing the party's parliamentarians to abide by the internationally recognised definition of antisemitism that is at the heart of a furious row gripping the party. The Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) used an emergency meeting to unanimously pass a motion to make MPs and peers "accept and abide by" the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition, parts of which were controversially left out of Labour's new code of conduct. The vote will come as a blow to Jeremy Corbyn and Labour's top team, which has opposed adopting the IHRA definition in its current form and insisted the party's own wording is enough. The matter will need to be put to a full ballot of the PLP when Parliament returns from its summer break in September, but the informal vote at Monday's meeting is likely to deepen the bitter dispute over the party's handling of antisemitism. A number of MPs used the meeting to criticise the party leadership over the issue. Hilary Benn, the former shadow foreign secretary, told MPs: "This has gone on too long. When you're in a hole.stop digging." Kate Green, a former equalities minister, said she "can't look Jewish relatives in the eye". Labour has adopted the IHRA definition in its new code of conduct but has not directly included four of the organisation's 12 examples of antisemitic behaviour, including comparing Israeli policies to those of the Nazis and suggesting the creation of the Jewish state was a racist endeavour. The other two examples refer to accusing Jewish people of being more loyal to Israel than their home country, or holding Israel to higher standards than other countries. Labour MPs and Jewish community groups have strongly condemned the decision not to adopt the full definition. Last week the PLP voted overwhelmingly in favour of the doing so. The latest motion, discussed on Monday, proposed changing party rules to say that members of the PLP must "accept and abide by the full International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism, including all of its accompanying examples". That means MPs and peers could be held to a different standard from other elected representatives and ordinary members, who would fall under the new code of conduct that only includes some of the IHRA examples. Protests against Labour antisemitism Show all 14 1 /14 Protests against Labour antisemitism Protests against Labour antisemitism Protesters clashed during the demonstration Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Members of the Jewish community hold a protest against Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn and antisemitism in the Labour Party AFP/Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism Protesters hold placards and flags during a demonstration, organised by the British Board of Jewish Deputies for those who oppose antisemitism, in Parliament Square Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Hundreds of people gathered in Parliament Square to protest against antisemitism in the Labour Party EPA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour MP Luciana Berger speaks during the protest PA Protests against Labour antisemitism A protester blows through a shofar during the demonstration Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism Members of London's Jewish community protest in support of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn outside parliament EPA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour MP John Mann speaks during a protest against antisemitism PA Protests against Labour antisemitism People protest against antisemitism in the Labour Party as Jewish community leaders have launched a scathing attack on Jeremy Corbyn, claiming he has sided with antisemites again and again PA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour politicians Stella Creasy and Chuka Umunna leave after attending the demonstration Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism A pro-Jeremy Corbyn protester holds a placard during a counter-protest Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism A support of the Labour Party hold up a placard during the demonstration Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Jeremy Corbyn supporters during the demo Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism A protester holds up a sign reading For the many, not the Jew AFP The motion was tabled by two of the party's Jewish MPs, Louise Ellman and Ruth Smeeth. Neither Mr Corbyn nor Labour's general secretary, Jennie Formby, who is on holiday, were at the meeting. The internal feud over the issue deepened last week after veteran Labour MP Dame Margaret Hodge confronted Mr Corbyn over the party's leadership's refusal to adopt the full IHRA definition. Dame Margaret, who is Jewish, was reported to have called her party leader a "f****** racist and antisemite" and suggested he did not want "people like me" in the party. She has denied swearing during the confrontation. The day after the incident, she received a letter from Ms Formby informing her that she was the subject of a disciplinary investigation and could be suspended by the party if she displays "behaviour of a similar nature" again. Margaret Hodge speaks about being on the receiving end of antisemitism as a Labour MP Margaret Hodge speaks about being on the receiving end of antisemitism as a Labour MP In response, Dame Margaret's lawyers suggested the investigation was "a veiled attempt to silence her". They added: "Again, it is a fundamental breach of natural justice and principles of fairness. You have left our client in the bizarre position whereby possible suspension is hanging over her for future unspecified behaviour." It comes as a new poll revealed almost half of voters believe Mr Corbyn is "letting down" his party on the issue of antisemitism. The survey, for Jewish News, found 48 per cent of people, and 29 per cent of Labour voters, thought the Labour leader was "letting the party down by failing to tackle antisemitism within some parts of the party". Only one in five people, and one in three Labour voters, thought Mr Corbyn had handled the issue well. Close What is still needed to complete a deal with the EU? The government is facing an angry backlash over the "abhorrent and shameful" decision to drop its blanket opposition to the death penalty in the case of two Isis fighters. In a significant shift, Sajid Javid, the home secretary, told the US attorney general Jeff Sessions that he would not seek "death penalty assurance" for Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, two British members of the brutal "Beatles" set of executioners. The move prompted an outcry from senior Tories and opposition MPs, with shadow home secretary Diane Abbott describing the decision as "abhorrent and shameful". Elsewhere, Theresa May insisted responses to her new Brexit vision have been "constructive" as she took part in a rare town hall-style session with workers in Newcastle. The prime minister took the whole cabinet to Gateshead on Monday, as part of efforts to bolster support for her Chequers proposals at home and abroad. In a slightly awkward exchange, Ms May also revealed that she likes walking, cooking and watching the American procedural TV show, NCIS, when pressed by the audience on how she liked to unwind. See below for live updates Senior MPs of all parties have condemned the decision to allow two murderous British Isis fighters to face the death penalty in the United States as the government admitted it had also secretly lifted objections in previous cases. Ministers faced a furious backlash after confirming they had not demanded a no execution assurance in return for handing over the jihadis, the remaining members of the Beatles group. The move was branded abhorrent and shameful, with warnings the UK would be guilty of arrant hypocrisy the next time it urged any other country to abandon the death penalty. Leading Tories joined calls for the pair currently held by US-backed Kurdish forces in Syria to be tried in the UK, or assurances sought before they are sent to America, along with intelligence to help their prosecution. It is precisely because of the barbaric nature of the crimes which they committed that we, as a country, have to show we are better than them and what they did, said Labours Hilary Benn. The controversy sparked confusion in No 10, which first refused to say Theresa May backed the decision not to block the death penalty only to later make clear she did. In the Commons, a clearly uncomfortable Ben Wallace, the security minister, sparked anger when he claimed seeking a bar on execution might get in the way of justice for Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh. There were jeers when he accused Labour of being willing to leave the pair free to roam around the United Kingdom if a prosecution here failed. At one point, Mr Wallace said he had respect for countries that allowed the death penalty, although it is UK policy to oppose it worldwide. Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta Show all 10 1 /10 Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta Newly arrived civilians from el-Ghouta packed onto a government refugee bus on the front line outside Damascus Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta A small Syrian refugee girl ponders her future on the bus taking her from the eastern Ghouta front line Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta A refugee woman from el-Ghouta who lost her husband and son in the early bombardment by the Syrian army Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta Civilian refugees less than an hour after crossing the front line from their pulverised homes in el-Ghouta Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta Happy to be seen, anxious to conceal their faces: Syrian men who have crossed the east Ghouta front line waiting to be interviewed by Syrian security officers in a nearby refugee camp Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta 29-year old Ala'a Younis, paralysed after a neck wound in eastern Ghouta sits on his wheelchair beside his father Mohamed at a refugee camp near the front line Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta A wheelchair-bound refugee from el-Ghouta describes how he was forced to live in tunnels along with families and Islamic fighters Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta This young woman lost three members of her family in eastern Ghouta before the end of the siege Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta Sana el-Boukeri in a Syrian refugee camp. She lost her civilian husband and son in the Syrian and Russian bombardment of eastern Ghouta while her other son was wounded fighting in the Syrian government army on the other side of the front line. Nelofer Pazira Faces from the Siege: Eastern Ghouta Both sides of history. Sana el-Boukeri's husband and son were killed in the Ghouta bombing by Syria, her other son wounded in the government army Nelofer Pazira Significantly, the minister revealed that Britons had been sent abroad in the past with no block on use of the death penalty, agreeing to supply MPs with details for your summer reading. The latest decision was set out last month in a letter sent by Sajid Javid, the home secretary, to the US attorney-general, in consultation with the former foreign secretary Boris Johnson. Standing in for Mr Javid, who was on the cabinet away-day in Newcastle, Mr Wallace insisted UK anti-terror laws were not strong enough to prosecute the fighters in this country. Ministers had to balance their opposition to the death penalty against their obligation to the citizens of this country, MPs were told. We are not going to seek assurances because we do not think we have the evidence to try them here in the United Kingdom, Mr Wallace said. He denied the fighters were being extradited because they were not UK citizens confirming longstanding rumours that the pair, both from London, had been stripped of their citizenship. But Diane Abbott, Labours shadow home secretary, said it was impossible to be a little bit in favour of the death penalty, adding: Either we offer consistent opposition or we dont. She added: This decision to abandon our principled opposition to the death penalty is both abhorrent and shameful, and I call on ministers even at this late stage to reverse this decision. Tom Tugendhat, the Conservative chairman of the foreign affairs committee called for them to be tried in the UK for betrayal, saying it was a crime in itself and should be tried as one. Why have we not asked for an assurance, when it would be perfectly possible to do so? asked Dominic Grieve, the former Tory attorney general. Lord Carlile, a former independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, told the BBC that the decision was extraordinary, a dramatic change of policy by a minister, secretly, without any discussion in parliament. It flies in the face of what has been said repeatedly and recently by the Home Office including by Theresa May when she was home secretary, he said. Kotey, 34, and Elsheikh, 29, were caught in January this year as they attempted to flee Syria as the coalition against Isis swept through the country. Their terrorist cell, nicknamed the Beatles by hostages because of its members' British accents, carried out the beheadings of the US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, the US humanitarian worker Peter Kassig and the British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning. The leader of the group, Mohammed Emwazi, who was nicknamed Jihadi John, was killed in Syria in 2015. Mr Foleys mother, Diane, said she opposed the death penalty for them, telling the BBC: I think that would just make them martyrs in their twisted ideology. I would like them held accountable by being sent to prison for the rest of their lives. Home Office sources suggested the UK would withhold key intelligence if the US decided to send the pair to Guantanamo Bay. The surveillance system that has kept watch on students entering Lockport schools for over a decade is getting a novel upgrade. Facial recognition technology soon will check each face against a database of expelled students, sex offenders and other possible troublemakers. It could be the start of a trend as more schools fearful of shootings consider adopting the technology, which has been gaining ground on city streets and in some businesses and government agencies. Just last week, Seattle-based digital software company RealNetworks began offering a free version of its facial recognition system to schools nationwide. Already, the Lockport City School Districts plan has opened a debate in this western New York community and far beyond about the systems potential effectiveness, student privacy and civil rights. We shake our heads that were having to deal with and talk about these kinds of security issues, said Robert LiPuma, technology director for the Lockport district, east of Niagara Falls, but here we are. The idea behind the Lockport system is to enable security officers to quickly respond to the appearance of expelled students, disgruntled employees, sex offenders or certain weapons the system is programmed to detect. Only students seen as threats will be loaded into the database. Officials say it is the first school district in the country to adopt the Canadian-made system it is installing. Administrators say it could thwart shootings like Februarys attack in which expelled student Nikolas Cruz is charged with killing 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. This would have identified Cruz as not being able to be in that building, said Tony Olivo, a security consultant who recommended the system for Lockport. Cameras mounted throughout the building would have followed the banned students every move until he left. The devastating Parkland shooting in February prompted renewed calls for better gun control laws (AP) Critics say the technology has been absent from schools for good reason. In light of Lockports plans, the New York Civil Liberties Union asked the state Education Department to block the technology from any New York school, saying it would have a chilling effect on school climate. Education officials say they are reviewing the request. Lockport is sending the message that it views students as potential criminals who must have their faces scanned wherever they go, NYCLU executive director Donna Lieberman said. Jennifer Lynch, senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights group, said any school considering facial recognition must consider who will have access to data, how such a system would be managed and whether students can opt out. Others question the technologys cost and effectiveness, given reports like one released in February by MIT and Stanford University that found some facial recognition programs dont work as well on racial minorities and women. Lockport parent Belinda Cooper would have preferred metal detectors in her 15-year-old daughters school. It would have been cheaper for the school district, and you can guarantee no guns or knives will be brought in, she said. District officials say the Aegis system they are installing, made by SN Technologies of Ontario, will not build or store a database of student and faculty face prints that could be shared with the government or marketers. Nor will the $1.4 million cost, funded through a state technology bond, siphon funding from staffing or supplies. District officials acknowledge it wont stop a determined attacker from coming through the door, nor will it warn against someone who is not a known threat. Florida shooting in pictures Show all 10 1 /10 Florida shooting in pictures Florida shooting in pictures Police arrest a suspect in connection with the shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida Reuters Florida shooting in pictures Parents wait for news after reports of a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida AP Florida shooting in pictures Anxious family members wait for news of students AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee Florida shooting in pictures Students being evacuated from the school AP Florida shooting in pictures Students being evacuated from the school Getty Florida shooting in pictures People gather waiting for word from students AP Florida shooting in pictures Parents waiting for news on their children AP Florida shooting in pictures People gather at a hotel where students were taken after the shooting Getty Florida shooting in pictures Florida Governor Rick Scott speaks to the media as he visits Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School following the shooting AFP/Getty Florida shooting in pictures Dr. Igor Nichiporenko, Medical Director Trauma, left, and Dr. Evan Boyer, Medical Director, Emergency Services, speak about treating victims and the suspect at a press conference outside Broward Health North hospital AP But theres no system thats going to solve every problem, LiPuma said. Its another tool that we feel will give us an advantage to help make our buildings and our communities a little safer. Individual schools and districts, as well as the governors of Wyoming and one other state, have already expressed interest in RealNetworks customisable SAFR System, senior product director Michael Vance said. At the University Child Development School in Seattle where it was piloted, rather than rely on office staff buzzing in late arrivals or visitors, the system gives parents who have registered their faces automatic access through a locked gate and tells the office who is coming. Schools can opt to register students faces and customize how to respond to people who have been flagged for alert. All of that resides with the school, Vance said. We dont see it. We dont have access to the pictures, the images, the video, anything like that. Its stored in the same way that school attendance databases, grades, records, everything is kept. Nevertheless, citing a patchwork of regulations, Vance said the company would welcome the kind of government guidelines for facial recognition technology that Microsoft president Brad Smith called for in a blog post 13 July. In Lockport, as crews worked on wiring the system inside, 16-year-old student Teliyah Sumler expressed some reservations. I feel like its too personal, she said. Cameras all in my face. Its too much. Khari Demos, 22, who has two siblings in Lockport High School, said he worries for their safety and views facial recognition as another piece of a security puzzle that includes locked doors and active shooter drills. Itll actually identify who should and shouldnt be in the school, said Demos, who graduated from the school in 2013. The system will never be 100 percent perfect but its a step in the right direction. AP Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, has created a multi-million dollar fund to support arts and culture in Puerto Rico, as the island recovers from a devastating hurricane that hit nearly a year ago. Mr Miranda, whose parents are from Puerto Rico, is returning to the lead role in the show for its run at the University of Puerto Rico in January. He said he will donate all proceeds from the performance back to the community. As someone whose life has been transformed by the power of the arts, and who has witnessed the incredible healing, growth, stability and wellbeing that cultural institutions can bring to local communities, I cannot stand idly by and watch Puerto Ricos arts and culture scene suffer, he said. Puerto Rico suffered an estimated $100bn in damages when Hurricane Maria hit in September. The Category 4 storm wiped out power to nearly all the island's 3.4m residents, and left many without food, drinking water, and medical supplies. While the official death toll was 64, a recent Harvard study found more than 4,600 people may have died as a result of the storm. The federal government's response ignited criticism of President Donald Trump, who compared the effects of the storm to a "real catastrophe" like Hurricane Katrina during a visit in October. Schoolkids scream with joy as electricity returns to their school in Puerto Rico Records show the administration was significantly slower to respond to the disaster than to a hurricane that hit Houston, Texas, just weeks before. Last month nine months after Hurricane Maria struck thousands of the island's residents were still without power, according to the territory's electric power authority. But Puerto Rico's art and cultural institutions have also suffered in the hurricanes aftermath, as nonprofit and government dollars were redirected to meet more immediate needs. Theatre company Y No Habia Luz, one of the first five recipients of Mr Mirandas fund, was forced to cancel events for several months after the hurricane. "This will allow us to start dreaming again, to come up with new ideas, to visit more cities. This will allow us to breathe," said Julio Morales, the artistic co-director of the theatre company. Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Show all 20 1 /20 Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Crew chief Kenney shelters under the blade of an HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit preparing to take off during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Isla Grande, Puerto Rico, October 6, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico An HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit takes off behind Crew Chief Alexander Blake and his fellow soldiers during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Morovis, October 5, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Crew member Bynum stands in tropical rain as a HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit prepares to take off during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Isla Grande, October 6, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter pilot Chris Greenway receives a hug from a woman thanking him for water as he works with the First Armored Division's Combat Aviation Brigade during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Verde de Comerio, October 7, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico A man carries a case of water away from an HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter after soldiers working with 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit dropped off relief supplies during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Jayuya, October 5, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Crew chief Alexander Blake from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit loads water into a helicopter during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Isla Grande, October 5, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Residents wait for soldiers in UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from the First Armored Division's Combat Aviation Brigade to deliver food and water during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in San Lorenzo Reuters Bringing aid to Puerto Rico An HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit lands in a field to avoid lightning during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Manati, October 5, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Residents hold their hands aloft to signal that they need water as UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from the First Armored Division's Combat Aviation Brigade fly past during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, near Ciales, October 7, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Tropical rain splashes on a runway as HH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit wait for weather to clear during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Isla Grande, October 6, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Pilot Eldwin Bocanegra Torres speaks with residents isolated by landslides in the mountains after unloading water and food from a helicopter during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, near Utuado, October 10, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Residents stand in front of wind-damaged trees as they wait for soldiers in UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from the First Armored Division's Combat Aviation Brigade to deliver food and water during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in San Lorenzo, October 7, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico The contents of a home are seen from the air during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria near Utuado, October 10, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Thomas looks out of the window of an HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit, loaded with relief supplies, during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria in Isla Grande, October 6, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico A message written on the rooftop is seen from the air during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria near Humacao, October 10, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico A HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit lands in a field during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria in San Sebastian, October 6, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Sergeant First Class Eladio Tirado, who is from Puerto Rico, looks for a landing spot for a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from the First Armored Division's Combat Aviation Brigade, during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria near Ciales, October 7, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Boys carry water away from an HH-60 Blackhawk helicopter after soldiers working with the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit dropped off relief supplies during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Jayuya, October 5, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Sergeant First Class Eladio Tirado from the First Armored Division's Combat Aviation Brigade, who is from Puerto Rico, speaks with residents as he helps during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in San Lorenzo, October 7, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson Bringing aid to Puerto Rico Residents peek through a fence at helicopters from 101st Airborne Division's "Dustoff" unit that had parked in a locked field during recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria, in Lares, October 6, 2017 Reuters/Lucas Jackson The company will receive $180,000 from the fund, managed by the nonprofit Flamboyan Foundation. The Theatre of the University of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Museum of Art will each receive $1m, while an art education program and a dance school will receive $900,000. Mr Miranda said he hopes the fund will grow to $15m in coming years. Amidst all these essential [recovery] efforts, our arts and culture cannot be forgotten, he wrote in a tweet announcing the creation of the fund. Artists entertain, inspire, heal, give voice to the voiceless, call out injustice, and keep us in touch with our humanity, he added. So were gonna have their backs. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday launched a blistering attack on Irans clerical and military rulers, calling them a kleptocracy akin to the mafia in a message the United States plans to start broadcasting heavily in Iran. The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government, Mr Pompeo said in speech made to a largely Iranian American audience at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library outside Los Angeles. Pompeo was introduced by Fred Ryan, publisher of The Washington Post and chairman of the Ronald Reagan Foundation. Mr Pompeos hardline speech comes just three weeks before the first round of banking sanctions suspended under the Iran nuclear deal is reimposed after President Trump withdrew from the landmark agreement in May. Bigger sanctions coming in November are aimed at cutting off virtually all Irans oil market. Mr Pompeo stopped short of calling for regime change, but he announced stepped-up US government broadcasting in Farsi that is likely to foment further unrest against the government. He said the US Broadcasting Board of Governors is taking steps to circumvent internet censorship in Iran, and creating a round-the-clock Farsi channel across television, radio, digital and social media formats, so that ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe will know that America stands with them. Mr Pompeo said the Trump administration would be willing to hold talks with the Iranian government if it stops repressing dissidents and religious minorities and stops supporting militant groups in conflicts elsewhere in the region. But the one sentence offer in a long speech suggests that Mr Pompeo deems any behaviour change by Iran unlikely. Many of the Iranian Americans in the audience either fled or are descendants of those who fled the country after the Islamic Revolution toppled the Shah in 1979. Southern California is home to about 250,000 Iranian Americans. To our Iranian American and Iranian friends, Mr Pompeo said, tonight I tell you that the Trump administration dreams the same dreams for the people of Iran as you do, and through our labours and Gods providence, that day will come true. The Trump administration dreams the same dreams for the people of Iran as you do, and through our labours and Gods providence, that day will come true Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State Several members of the Trump administration and Trumps circle have been outspoken hawks on Iran. Before joining the White House, national security adviser John R Bolton called for the overthrow of the Iranian government. Rudolph W Giuliani, Mr Trumps personal attorney, has given paid speeches to the Mujahideen-e Khalq (MEK), a controversial dissident group that the State Department listed as a terrorist group until 2012. On Sunday, Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations, retweeted a three-day-old posting from the official account of the MEK. Mr Pompeos remarks on Sunday reprised his criticism of the Iranian government, but on a deeply personal level that is likely to be repeated in the US government broadcasts into Iran. He lit into what he called Irans hypocritical holy men, saying the ruling elites have enriched themselves through corruption, and called out officials by name who he said had plundered government coffers through embezzlement or by winning lucrative contracts. He singled out the billionaire general, Interior Minister Sadegh Mahsouli; Grand Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi, the Sultan of Sugar; and Sadeq Ardeshir Larijani, the head of Irans judiciary, whom he said had embezzled $300 million in public money. Call me crazy, Mr Pompeo said, but Im a little skeptical that a thieving thug under international sanctions is the right man to be Irans highest-ranking judicial official. Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Show all 10 1 /10 Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian MPs burnt a US flag in parliament after Donald Trump announced America's withdrawal from the nuclear deal. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal US President Donald Trump displays a presidential memorandum after announcing his intent to withdraw from the JCPOA Iran nuclear agreement in the Diplomatic Room at the White House. Reuters Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Some Iranian MPs reacted after Trumps decision by shouting 'death to America'. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian lawmakers prepare to burn two pieces of papers representing the US flag and the nuclear deal. AP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran said it will hold talks with signatories to the nuclear deal after Trump's decision to withdraw from the accord, which it branded "psychological warfare". AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Several Iranian MPs stood chanting in the Tehran parliament. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian MPs burning a US flag AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal President Hassan Rouhani addressed the nation in a televised speech in Tehran. He said he'd send his foreign minister to negotiate with countries remaining in the nuclear deal after Trump's decision to pull America from the deal, warning he otherwise would restart enriching uranium "in the next weeks." Iranian Presidency Office via AP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran's press condemned Trump's withdrawal from a multi-party nuclear deal but was divided over whether Tehran should react with patience or withdraw itself. AFP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Trump announced the US withdrawal from what he called the "defective" multinational nuclear deal with Iran, and said Washington would reinstate sanctions against the Islamic republic. AFP/Getty He also attacked Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for presiding over a $95 billion sludge fund for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Mr Pompeo also blamed the government for Irans economic woes, which have led to anti-government protests nationwide. The bitter irony of the economic situation in Iran is that the regime uses its time to line its own pockets while its people cry out for jobs, reform and opportunity, Mr Pompeo said. The Iranian economy is going great but only if youre a politically connected member of the elite. Mr Pompeo dismissed a basic premise of the Obama administration when it negotiated the Iran deal. Officials were hopeful that by suspending some sanctions in exchange for curbs on Irans nuclear program, an improving economy would bolster the ranks of relative moderates in the government. Mr Pompeo said Tehran has no moderates or statesmen. Some believe that President [Hassan] Rouhani and Foreign Minister [Mohammad Javad] Zarif fit the bill, he said. The truth is they are merely polished front men for the Ayatollahs international con artistry. Their nuclear deal didnt make them moderates, it made them wolves in sheeps clothing. Halfway through Mr Pompeos remarks, a heckler interrupted him, only to be drowned out by boos and chants of USA. Mr Pompeo called it an example of freedom of dissent denied to most Iranians. When a member of the audience asked him whether the Iranian people might gain control of their country in the foreseeable future, Mr Pompeo replied swiftly, Of course. We dont know the right moment, he said. We dont know the day that the behaviour of the regime will change. But we do know the things that the world is obligated to do so that when the right time comes, when the right moment comes, that opportunity is even more likely to find its fulfillment. Mark Dubowitz, head of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a leading critic of Iran and the 2015 nuclear deal, called Mr Pompeos remarks a powerful indictment of a corrupt and repressive regime, and suggested that US support will help lead to the demise of the theocratic government. It framed the secretarys Reaganesque approach to confronting the Islamic Republic of Iran and his conviction that, with US support, the demand of Iranians for freedom and democracy will leave the Islamic Republic on the ash heap of history as it left the Soviet Union, he said. Trita Parsi, head of the National Iranian American Council, said in a statement that Mr Pompeos remarks presaged a looming US-Iran confrontation. Mike Pompeo removed all doubt today that the aim of the Trump administration is confrontation with Iran not a better nuclear deal or new negotiations, he said. The Trump administrations actions and words are simply not compatible with any policy other than fomenting unrest in and destabilising Iran. The Washington Post At least one woman has been killed and 13 injured, including a young girl, by a gunman who opened fire in the Greektown neighbourhood of Toronto on Sunday night. Toronto police chief Mark Saunders said the suspect was dead, and that he was not included in the figure of 14 shooting victims. A nine-year-old girl is in hospital in a critical condition. Canadian police spokesman Mark Pugash said it was too early to say whether the shooting was terrorism. Saunders said the attacker used a handgun. Recommended Canadian rapper Smoke Dawg reportedly killed after shooting in Toronto Witnesses said they heard 25 gunshots at the site of the shooting in Toronto's east end, which has many popular restaurants, cafes and shops. The gunfire began at at 10 pm local time (3am BST), CityNews.com said. "We just ran. We saw people starting to run so we just ran," said witness John Tulloch, who had just got out of a car with his brother when they heard the shooting start. An army of police, paramedics and other first responders soon descended on the scene, while area residents, some in their pajamas, emerged from their homes to see what was happening. Toronto Councillor Paula Fletcher told CP24 she heard that the gunman was emotionally disturbed. "It's not gang related. It looks like someone who is very disturbed," Fletcher said. Councillor Mary Fragedakis also said she heard the gunman was disturbed. Fletcher said for this to happen in an area where families gather for dinner is a tragedy. In the weekend just gone, Toronto police deployed dozens of additional officers to deal with a recent spike in gun violence in the city. "We were so use to living in a city where these things didn't happen," said Toronto's mayor, John Tory. "But there are things that happen nowadays and they are just unspeakable." "Guns are too readily available to too many people," he added. Additional reporting by agencies Donald Trump has responded angrily to Iranian president Hassan Rouhani's suggestion that the US is "playing with the lion's tail" by provoking Iran, telling his counterpart to "never, ever threaten the United States again". Mr Rouhani had told a meeting of his country's diplomats that "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars". In a late-night response in all-caps on Twitter, the US president said Mr Rouhani would "suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before". "We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence and death," he added. "Be cautious!" The full comments Mr Rouhani made to his envoys, reported via the state news agency, made clear that he was talking up the prospect of peace between America and Iran, saying the White House could still change its mind after pulling out of the international nuclear deal with Tehran two months ago. Mr Rouhani told Mr Trump that if the US moved away from efforts to build relations with Iran "this would only lead to regret". You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Irans security and interests, he said. And on Monday morning, Iran's state-owned news agency dismissed Mr Trump's warning tweet, describing it as a "passive reaction" to Mr Rouhani's remarks. The IRNA news agency, a government mouthpiece, also described Mr Trump's message as no more than a copy of comments made by the Iranian foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, who had in the past warned the West to "never threaten an Iranian". Iran faces increased US pressure and looming sanctions after Mr Trumps decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Irans nuclear programme. While Mr Trump had campaigned for the White House vowing to pull the US from the deal, in the months and weeks before he made the decision, diplomats from Europe and Britain urged him to stay with it. French President Emmanuel Macron travelled to Washington to speak with Mr Trump, saying that while the deal might not be perfect, it was the best way of ensuring Iran did not develop a nuclear weapon. Before leaving Washington during that April visit, Mr Macron had predicted that the US president would likely pull out of the deal for domestic reasons. In Washington, US officials told Reuters that the Trump administration has launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear programme and its support of militant groups. The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Show all 14 1 /14 The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Time for a break-up? Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Sometimes simplicity works best. The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Theres no place for Trump's other policies in our society. Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Many were quick to point out that in the UK, Trump means 'fart'. Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Some people were looking out for The Queen Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests There's a Mean Girl's quote for every occasion Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests There were a lot of hair references at the march toupee. Sorry, today. Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Frack off. The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Try and read this out without singing it... Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests A message all Brits will understand. Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Simple, and to the point Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests We don't entirely understand this one, but we do rather like it Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests The Inbetweeners sends a hilariously petulant message Harriet Hall The best anti-Trump placards from the London protests Never underestimate Cher Horowitz Harriet Hall Mr Rouhani and Mr Trump have also previously clashed over other subjects, including the US decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem and a ban on citizens from certain Muslim-majority countries from travelling to the US. But Mr Trump has not engaged in such a fierce and strongly-worded public row with another world leader, since a string of aggressive tweets against the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ultimately presaged an historic summit between the two. The US president has previously suggested Iranian leaders are "going to call me and say 'let's make a deal"'. Iran has so far rejected any talks that would seek to change the terms of the 2015 nuclear agreement. A former Uber and Lyft driver has been dropped from both platforms after it was revealed that he secretly livestreamed his passengers online. Jason Gargac, a 32-year-old aspiring police officer from Missouri, would regularly broadcast his rides to thousands of subscribers on the livestreaming service Twitch, according to local reports. His riders of which there were reportedly more than 700 in the last four months rarely knew they were being broadcast. I feel violated. Im embarrassed, one passenger told the St Lous Post-Dispatch, who first reported the story. We got in an Uber at 2am to be safe, and then I find out that because of that, everything I said in that car is online and people are watching me. It makes me sick. Recommended Uber wins court appeal over London ban Passengers were reportedly recorded while passed out drunk, crying, or making insulting comments about their family members and coworkers. Livestream viewers often made crude, sexual comments about the passengers online, sometimes rating their attractiveness on a scale of 1-10. Mr Gargac would also reportedly comment on passengers to his audience in between rides. Mr Gargacs Twitch channel was unavailable as of Monday. Attempts to reach him were unsuccessful. Uber controversies Show all 4 1 /4 Uber controversies Uber controversies June 2017 Travis Kalanick resigned from his position as CEO of Uber in July of this year, after a tumultous period for the company. A sexist workplace culture was exposed by a damning internal report, leading to heightened pressure on the CEO and consequently to him taking a leave of absence in June. A week later he was forced to resign after losing the confidence of the board of investors AFP/Getty Uber controversies June 2017 Indian police escort Uber taxi driver and convicted rapist Shiv Kumar Yadav following his court appearance in New Delhi on 8 December, 2014. An Uber executive, Eric Alexander, was fired in June of this year after reportedly obtaining the records of the rapist's victim, with the intent to cast doubt on her account of the incident. She later sued the company for defamation and violating her privacy rights Chandan Khanna/AFP Uber controversies May 2017 The company were ordered to pay up to $45 million dollars back to New York based drivers, after taking too much in commission over a two and a half year period. We made a mistake and we are committed to making it right by paying every driver every penny they are owed, plus interest, as quickly as possible, said Rachel Holt, Ubers regional general manager in the US and Canada, to the Wall Street Journal Getty Uber controversies December 2016 Uber's self-driving cars were ordered to be removed from the roads by a Californian car regulator, after being spotted skipping traffic lights. Uber insist that the incidents were "human error" rather than a design flaw. The New York Times later refuted this in an article claiming the autonomous technology had in fact failed Youtube/KTVU Uber reportedly first responded to customers who complained about Mr Gargac by offering them a $5 credit and promising not to match them with the driver again. Both Uber and Lyft initially responded to reporters questions by noting that in Missouri, only one party needs to consent to the recording of a conversation. Uber's website states that drivers may install cameras in their cars for safety purposes, but notes that they must follow local ordinances around consent. Lyft's website also directs drivers to review local laws on recording. But after backlash brewed against Mr Gargac over the weekend, both companies announced they had parted ways with the driver. The safety and comfort of the Lyft community is our top priority, and we have deactivated this driver, a Lyft spokesperson said in a statement to The Independent. An Uber spokesperson said Mr Gargacs behaviour was not in line with our user terms and Community Guidelines, which prohibit commenting on someones appearance or making otherwise disrespectful or sexual remarks. The company reviewed Mr Garcacs videos and comments and decided to rescind his access to the app, the spokesperson said. Shaquille O'Neal raps and sings with passengers as undercover Lyft driver In interview with the Post-Dispatch, Mr Gargac provided conflicting reasons for operating the video camera. In one instance, he said the cameras of which he installed approximately $3,000 worth in his vehicle were primarily for his safety. At other times, however, he reportedly said he had started driving with the intention of broadcasting his passengers. Mr Gargac, who unsuccessfully requested the newspaper not use his full name, also said he purposefully did not tell passengers he was livestreaming their rides. He used to alert them of the video cameras, he said, but didnt like the effect it had on the broadcast. I didnt like it. It was fake. It felt produced, he said. He added: I try to capture the natural interactions between myself and the passengers what a Lyft and Uber ride actually is." The White House has said it is considering revoking the security clearance of several former government officials, in particular former FBI Director James Comey, for making "political statements" about Donald Trump. Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said a host of former officials - including CIA director John Brennan, Mr Comey, deputy FBI director Andrew McCabe, director of the National Security Agency Michael Hayden, former National Security Adviser Susan Rice, and director of national intelligence James Clapper - all made "baseless accusations" about Mr Trump and alleged collusion with Russian officials. In an unsolicited tweet, lifelong Republican James Comey urged Democrats: "Please, please dont lose your minds and rush to the socialist left. This president and his Republican Party are counting on you to do exactly that. Americas great middle wants sensible, balanced, ethical leadership." Recommended Lifelong Republican James Comey tells everyone to vote Democrat Speaking on Monday, Ms Sanders told reporters the president was "looking into the mechanisms of removing their security clearances because they have politicised and in some cases monetised their public service". All of them had served under Barack Obama. "Being influenced by Russia against the president is extremely inappropriate" Ms Sanders claimed. She added: "The fact that people with security clearances are making these baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence." She alleged those individuals were making "baseless charges" about the president's alleged "improper contacts with a foreign government", referring to the ongoing FBI investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller into possible collusion between Mr Trump's 2016 US election campaign team and Russian officials. Ms Sanders echoed the president's oft-used phrase to describe the investigation - a "witch hunt". What may have angered the president was a series of tweets and media appearances by the individuals on the list, particularly in light of the deluge of criticism he faced from Democrats and Republicans alike after his performance with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the pair's summit in Helsinki, Finland. Mr Brennan and others accused the president of nearly committing treason for not standing up to Mr Putin regarding the charges that Russia interfered in the election. Ms Sanders repeated her statement about politicisation and monetisation three times and said: "When you hold the nation's deepest, most sacred secrets at your hands and you go out and make false accusations against the president of the United States...he thinks that is...something to be very concerned with." Mr Clapper, a former Republican appointee, speaking to CNN, said though the president has the authority to revoke his status, to do so based on his statements while no longer in office is "very petty". It is an "abuse of the system" to do so to political opponents, Mr Clapper said, adding: It's kind of a sad commentary where for political reasons this is kind of a petty way for retribution for speaking out against the president, which on the part of all of us are borne out of genuine concerns about President Trump." Mr Hayden tweeted perhaps a more realistic view of the president's possible action: I dont go back for classified briefings. Wont have any effect on what I say or write. The idea to revoke the clearances may have come from US Senator Rand Paul who had met with Mr Trump and tweeted: Public officials should not use their security clearances to leverage speaking fees or network talking head fees." Mr Paul and the White House were also discussing the administration's Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, with whom Mr Paul had expressed reservations. No timeline for the decision was given. American prosecutors are examining 12 audio recordings made by President Donald Trumps former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, they seized during an April raid of the attorneys home, office, and hotel room. A retired judge who is determining which portions of the seized materials can be reviewed by prosecutors, said that the parties do not object to the government listening to the contents of the 12 tapes. It is not made explicit who the judge is referring to in mentioning the parties, but it is thought to mean Mr Trump and Mr Cohen. The news of the 12 recordings comes after Mr Trumps personal lawyer, Rudolph Giuliani, confirmed Mr Cohen had taped conversations he had with Mr Trump where they discussed payments to a former Playboy model who has claimed she had an affair with Mr Trump. That disclosure, on Friday, spurred speculation that Mr Cohen may have taped other conversations he had with his then-client. The recordings were seized alongside other documents of Mr Cohens during a raid stemming from a federal investigation into the attorneys business dealings, and his role in paying hush money to women who have claimed they had affairs or relationships with Mr Trump. The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Show all 17 1 /17 The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Paul Manafort Mr Manafort is a Republican strategist and former Trump campaign manager. He resigned from that post over questions about his extensive lobbying overseas, including in Ukraine where he represented pro-Russian interests. Mr Manafort turned himself in at FBI headquarters to special counsel Robert Muellers team on Oct 30, 2017, after he was indicted under seal on charges that include conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading US Foreign Agents Registration Act statements, false statements, and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. Getty The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Rick Gates Mr Gates joined the Trump team in spring 2016, and served as a top aide until he left to work at the Republican National Committee after the departure of former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. Mr Gates' had previously worked on several presidential campaigns, on international political campaigns in Europe and Africa, and had 15 years of political or financial experience with multinational firms, according to his bio. Mr Gates was indicted alongside Mr Manafort by special counsel Robert Mueller's team on charges that include conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading US Foreign Agents Registration Act statements, false statements, and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. AP The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation George Papadopoulos George Papadopoulos was a former foreign policy adviser for the Trump campaign, having joined around March 2016. Mr Papadopoulos plead guilty to federal charges for lying to the FBI as a part of a cooperation agreement with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Mr Papadopoulos claimed in an interview with the FBI that he had made contacts with Russian sources before joining the Trump campaign, but he actually began working with them after joining the team. Mr Papadopoulos allegedly took a meeting with a professor in London who reportedly told him that Russians had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton. The professor also allegedly introduced Mr Papadopoulos to a Russian who was said to have close ties to officials at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr Papadopoulos also allegedly was in contact with a woman whom he incorrectly described in one email to others in the campaign as the "niece" to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Twitter The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Donald Trump Jr The President's eldest son met with a Russian lawyer - Natalia Veselnitskaya - on 9 June 2016 at Trump Tower in New York. He said in an initial statement that the meeting was about Russia halting adoptions of its children by US citizens. Then, he said it was regarding the Magnitsky Act, a US law blacklisting Russian human rights abusers. In a final statement, Mr Trump Jr released a chain of emails that revealed he took the meeting in hopes of getting information Ms Veselnitskaya had about Hillary Clinton's alleged financial ties to Russia. He and the President called it standard "opposition research" in the course of campaigning and that no information came from the meeting. The meeting was set up by an intermediary, Rob Goldstone. Jared Kushner and Paul Manafort were also at the same meeting. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jared Kushner Mr Kushner is President Donald Trump's son-in-law and a key adviser to the White House. He met with a Russian banker appointed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in December. Mr Kushner has said he did so in his role as an adviser to Mr Trump while the bank says he did so as a private developer. Mr Kushner has also volunteered to testify in the Senate about his role helping to arrange meetings between Trump advisers and Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Rob Goldstone Former tabloid journalist and now music publicist Rob Goldstone is a contact of the Trump family through the previously Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant, which took place in Moscow. In June 2016, he wrote to Donald Trump Jr offering a meeting with a Russian lawyer, Natalya Veselnitskaya, who had information about Hillary Clinton. Mr Goldstone was the intermediary for Russian pop star Emin Agalaraov and his father, real estate magnate Aras, who played a role in putting on the 2013 pageant. In an email chain released by Mr Trump Jr, Mr Goldstone seemed to indicate Russian government's support of Donald Trump's campaign. AP images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Aras and Emin Agalarov Aras Agalarov (R) is a wealthy Moscow-based real estate magnate and son Emin (L) is a pop star. Both played a role in putting on the previously Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant in Moscow. They allegedly had information about Hillary Clinton and offered that information to the Trump campaign through a lawyer with whom they had worked with, Natalia Veselnitskaya, and music publicist Rob Goldstone. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Natalia Veselnitskaya Natalia Veselnitskaya is a Russian lawyer with ties to the Kremlin. She has worked on real estate issues and reportedly counted the FSB as a client in the past. She has ties to a Trump family connection, real estate magnate Aras Agalarov, who had helped set up the Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant which took place in Moscow. Ms Veselnitskaya met with Donald Trump Jr, Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort in Trump Tower on 9 June 2016 but denies the allegation that she went there promising information on Hillary Clinton's alleged financial ties to Russia. She contends that the meeting was about the US adoptions of Russian children being stopped by Moscow as a reaction to the Magnitsky Act, a US law blacklisting Russian human rights abusers. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Mike Flynn Mr Flynn was named as Trump's national security adviser but was forced to resign from his post for inappropriate communication with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. He had misrepresented a conversation he had with Mr Kislyak to Vice President Mike Pence, telling him wrongly that he had not discussed sanctions with the Russian. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Sergey Kislyak Mr Kislyak, the former longtime Russian ambassador to the US, is at the centre of the web said to connect President Donald Trump's campaign with Russia. Reuters The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Roger Stone Mr Stone is a former Trump adviser who worked on the political campaigns of Richard Nixon, George HW Bush, and Ronald Reagan. Mr Stone claimed repeatedly in the final months of the campaign that he had backchannel communications with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and that he knew the group was going to dump damaging documents to the campaign of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton - which did happen. Mr Stone also had contacts with the hacker Guccier 2.0 on Twitter, who claimed to have hacked the DNC and is linked to Russian intelligence services. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jeff Sessions The US attorney general was forced to recuse himself from the Trump-Russia investigation after it was learned that he had lied about meeting with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Carter Page Mr Page is a former advisor to the Trump campaign and has a background working as an investment banker at Merrill Lynch. Mr Page met with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Mr Page had invested in oil companies connected to Russia and had admitted that US Russia sanctions had hurt his bottom line. Reuters The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jeffrey "JD" Gorden Mr Gordon met with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 Republian National Convention to discuss how the US and Russia could work together to combat Islamist extremism should then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump win the election. The meeting came days before a massive leak of DNC emails that has been connected to Russia. Creative Commons The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation James Comey Mr Comey was fired from his post as head of the FBI by President Donald Trump. The timing of Mr Comey's firing raised questions around whether or not the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign may have played a role in the decision. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Preet Bharara Mr Bahara refused, alongside 46 other US district attorney's across the country, to resign once President Donald Trump took office after previous assurances from Mr Trump that he would keep his job. Mr Bahara had been heading up several investigations including one into one of President Donald Trump's favorite cable television channels Fox News. Several investigations would lead back to that district, too, including those into Mr Trump's campaign ties to Russia, and Mr Trump's assertion that Trump Tower was wiretapped on orders from his predecessor. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Sally Yates Ms Yates, a former Deputy Attorney General, was running the Justice Department while President Donald Trump's pick for attorney general awaited confirmation. Ms Yates was later fired by Mr Trump from her temporary post over her refusal to implement Mr Trump's first travel ban. She had also warned the White House about potential ties former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to Russia after discovering those ties during the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign's connections to Russia. Getty Images In the recording revealed last week, Mr Trump and Mr Cohen can be heard discussing a plan to buy the rights to claims made by Karen McDougal, the former Playboy model, from American Media Inc, according to The Washington Post. That company its the parent company of the National Enquirer, a tabloid generally thought to be supportive of Mr Trump. American Media Inc had reportedly purchased the rights to the story from McDougal for $150,000. The judges court filing does not specify what is on the tapes provided to the US government, and it is not certain that Mr Trump is featured speaking in any of the other tapes provided to prosecutors. Michael Avenatti, who is representing adult film actress Stormy Daniels who has also alleged a relationship with Mr Trump previously told Bloomberg the judges order confirmed there are multiple recordings, which he first claimed in May. Activists have criticised the jailing of a 15-year-old Indonesian girl who had an abortion after being raped by her brother. A district court in the rural Jambi province sentenced the teenager to six months in prison. Her 18-year-old brother was sentenced to two years for sexual assault of a minor. Easmus Napitupulu, programme director of the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform, said the court did not take into account the reason for the abortion. "The court may decide that she is guilty of having an abortion, but if we see the background that encouraged her to do so, do we need to punish her?" he asked. "Yes, she violated the law, but she should not be held accountable." Maidina Rahmawati, head of research at the same organisation, told CNN: It is clear that the judge involved didn't really examine this caseThey don't look deeper into what things were really happening behind the case." Zubaidah, director of the Embun Pagi Women School in Jambi, on the island of Sumatra, said the girl's sentence was unfair and violated child protection law "It is an incest case that has to be seen more comprehensively than merely an abortion," said Zubaidah who uses one name. Abortion is illegal in Indonesia but is allowed in cases of rape. However, it must take place within one and a half months of conception and must be performed by professionals. The girl who was raped eight times by her brother between September and May had her abortion when she was six months pregnant. Listyo Arif Budiman, court spokesman, said: "The judge panel concluded that in spite of being under-age, the defendant should have protected the foetus, should have given the foetus the right to life." He added that, because of their ages, the panel ruled that both girl and brother must undergo rehabilitation at the country's Institute for Special Education of Children. Police arrested the siblings in June after a headless male foetus was discovered at a palm oil plantation near the provinces Pulau village. Both are understood to have accepted their sentence and will not be appealing. Their mother, who aided with the abortion, may now also face charges. A majority of Germans think Europe can defend itself without military support from the United States, a poll has shown. Only 37 per cent of respondents said they believed Europe depended on US military help, the Forsa poll showed. It came less than two weeks after Donald Trump said he could withdraw support for Nato if Europe did not share more of what he called an unfair burden on US taxpayers funding the alliance. The survey found no significant difference between eastern and western German regions, the latter of which have stronger ties to the United States. In the east, 60 per cent thought Europe did not need Washington, and in the west, 55 per cent. On 12 July, Mr Trump issued his ultimatum to European allies, urging the continent to spend more on defence if it wants to continue to receive American protection. Trump: US commitment to NATO 'remains very strong' In a rebuke to the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, the US president also called Germany a captive of Moscow because, he said, Berlin supported a Baltic Sea gas pipeline from Russia. About 84 per cent of respondents said Mr Trumps comments about Russia controlling Germany were completely absurd, according to the poll, which surveyed 1,004 Germans. Even more 92 per cent said they suspected Mr Trumps motive for making the comments was primarily to promote the sale of US liquefied gas in Europe and Germany. Two thirds said they supported the construction of the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline because it would help provide Germany with a more reliable supply of natural gas. Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures Show all 10 1 /10 Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures World leaders gather for Nato family photo Getty Images Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures British Prime Minister Theresa May arrives EPA Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures President Donald Trump talks to British Prime Minister Theresa May EPA Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures AP Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures US President Donald Trump and Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attend a bilateral breakfast ahead of the Nato Summit in Brussels Reuters Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures President Donald Trump, right, gestures as he speaks to the media prior to his bilateral breakfast with Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, left AP Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures President Donald Trump, US Secretary of Defence James Mattis and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the bilateral breakfast with Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg REUTERS Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures President Donald Trump and Mike Pompeo, left, are reflected in a mirror as they attend at a breakfast meeting AFP/Getty Images Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures President Donald Trump speaks during the bilateral breakfast EPA Nato leaders gather for summit: in pictures President Donald Trump gestures during the bilateral breakfast EPA A previous poll found Germans would welcome the withdrawal of 35,000 American troops stationed in their country. The YouGov poll for the dpa news agency found 42 per cent said they supported withdrawal, while 37 per cent wanted the soldiers to stay and 21 per cent were undecided. Relations between Washington and Tehran have soured even further after US president Donald Trump unleashed an overnight Twitter tirade intended for Iranian president Hassan Rouhani. NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE, the president tweeted on Sunday night. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Iranians take to streets of Tehran in biggest protests since 2012 Mr Trumps remarks came after a speech from his Iranian counterpart who warned that America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. The war of words is a marked escalation in hostile rhetoric between the two leaders at a time of increased tensions over the fate of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal as well as Tehrans role in the conflicts in Syria and Yemen. What did president Rouhani actually say? The Iranian leader used a speech on Sunday to refer to Mr Trumps aggressive anti-Iran stance, telling him not to play with the lions tail. Those remarks, in turn, came after US secretary of state Mike Pompeo earlier in the day likened Irans ruling elite to a mafia and pushed for US allies to join them in stopping the purchase of Iranian oil products by the end of the year. Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Show all 10 1 /10 Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian MPs burnt a US flag in parliament after Donald Trump announced America's withdrawal from the nuclear deal. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal US President Donald Trump displays a presidential memorandum after announcing his intent to withdraw from the JCPOA Iran nuclear agreement in the Diplomatic Room at the White House. Reuters Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Some Iranian MPs reacted after Trumps decision by shouting 'death to America'. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian lawmakers prepare to burn two pieces of papers representing the US flag and the nuclear deal. AP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran said it will hold talks with signatories to the nuclear deal after Trump's decision to withdraw from the accord, which it branded "psychological warfare". AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Several Iranian MPs stood chanting in the Tehran parliament. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian MPs burning a US flag AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal President Hassan Rouhani addressed the nation in a televised speech in Tehran. He said he'd send his foreign minister to negotiate with countries remaining in the nuclear deal after Trump's decision to pull America from the deal, warning he otherwise would restart enriching uranium "in the next weeks." Iranian Presidency Office via AP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran's press condemned Trump's withdrawal from a multi-party nuclear deal but was divided over whether Tehran should react with patience or withdraw itself. AFP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Trump announced the US withdrawal from what he called the "defective" multinational nuclear deal with Iran, and said Washington would reinstate sanctions against the Islamic republic. AFP/Getty In his address to Iranian diplomats, Mr Rouhani did suggest Tehran was open to restoring good relations with the US, as well as with regional rival Saudi Arabia. The possibility appeared to be shot down by Mr Trumps fiery response, however, as well as comments from Khalid bin Salman, Saudi Arabias ambassador to the US, who wrote on Monday that it is encouraging to hear US president Donald Trump make clear that we will not approach Iran with the sort of appeasement policies that failed so miserably to halt Nazi Germanys rise to power we all need to unite on a broader strategy to address the Iranian regimes destabilising behaviour. Could the rhetorical spat escalate into a real one? Neither side is actively seeking a military confrontation. On Monday, Iranian officials dismissed Mr Trumps threat as passive, but the head of Irans powerful Revolutionary Guards later accused Mr Trump of trying to wage "psychological warfare". Recommended Sri Lanka to pay Iran oil debt in tea as countries avoid US sanctions White House press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters the presidents tweet was not designed to escalate tensions between the two countries. If anybody's inciting anything, look no further than to Iran, she said, adding that Mr Trump has been very clear about what he's not going to allow to take place. I dont want to downplay the comments, as escalation is always possible and hostile rhetoric can have serious consequences, but these remarks come in the context of US domestic politics, Dr Sanam Vakil, an associate fellow at Chatham House in London, told The Independent. And on the Iranian side, the mindset from both more pragmatist and hardline politicians is that the Trump administration is so unpredictable it may be better to wait out his term and hope he doesnt get re-elected, rather than rise to any bait. The Iranian rial, however, plummeted when markets opened on Wednesday to 92,000 to 1. President Donald Trump states if Iran restarts their nuclear program there will be severe consequences While Mr Trumps remarks are markedly hostile, the comments have also drawn comparisons with the presidents infamous warning last year that threats to the US from North Korea would be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. Despite the tit-for-tat, Mr Trump and Kim Jong-un met face-to-face for a historic summit on peaceful relations and the de-nuclearisation of the Korean peninsula last month. What does Mr Trump want to achieve in this war of words? Eighteen months into his presidency, Mr Trump has followed through on campaign promises to be tough on Iran, pulling the US out of the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers that lifted crippling sanctions on Iran in exchange for curbs to the countrys nuclear programme. The White House has promised further economic pressure will follow. It is not clear, however, whether the USs broader policy is aimed at pushing Tehran into a new nuclear deal on Mr Trumps terms and dropping its support for militia groups in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen, or forcing regime change altogether. The goal of regime change is an unrealistic one, said Holly Dagres, a non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council. Iran's 'Trumpism' contest Show all 10 1 /10 Iran's 'Trumpism' contest Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images Iran's 'Trumpism' contest AFP/Getty Images [The US] hopes that strangling the Iranian economy will push people into the streets and bring unrest, eventually leading to the collapse of the Islamic Republic, she told The Independent. Trump's Iran policy is only rallying Iranians around the flag of their government, to the point that rivalling factions the hardliners and pragmatists like Rouhani are putting their differences aside to join forces to defend their country. It has also been suggested Mr Trumps attack on Mr Rouhani was designed to draw attention away from criticism of his performance at a bilateral summit with Russian president Vladimir Putin in Helsinki last week. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders has denied the allegation. The head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps powerful Basij militia has dismissed the latest threats against the Islamic Republic from Donald Trump as psychological warfare. America wants nothing less than to destroy Iran, Gholamhossein Gheybparvar told Iranian news agency Isna on Monday. Referring to this crazy president he said Mr Trump has another thing coming if he thinks he can act against Iran. He added: We will never abandon our revolutionary beliefs ... and both the people and armed forces will stand firm in the face of enemies. Iranians take to streets of Tehran in biggest protests since 2012 The comments come in the wake of a new war of words between the US leader and his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani. Mr Trump used upper case to tweet a warning: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. He added: WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!. Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Show all 10 1 /10 Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian MPs burnt a US flag in parliament after Donald Trump announced America's withdrawal from the nuclear deal. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal US President Donald Trump displays a presidential memorandum after announcing his intent to withdraw from the JCPOA Iran nuclear agreement in the Diplomatic Room at the White House. Reuters Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Some Iranian MPs reacted after Trumps decision by shouting 'death to America'. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian lawmakers prepare to burn two pieces of papers representing the US flag and the nuclear deal. AP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran said it will hold talks with signatories to the nuclear deal after Trump's decision to withdraw from the accord, which it branded "psychological warfare". AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Several Iranian MPs stood chanting in the Tehran parliament. AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iranian MPs burning a US flag AFP/Islamic Consultative Assembly News Agency Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal President Hassan Rouhani addressed the nation in a televised speech in Tehran. He said he'd send his foreign minister to negotiate with countries remaining in the nuclear deal after Trump's decision to pull America from the deal, warning he otherwise would restart enriching uranium "in the next weeks." Iranian Presidency Office via AP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Iran's press condemned Trump's withdrawal from a multi-party nuclear deal but was divided over whether Tehran should react with patience or withdraw itself. AFP Iran parliament reacts after Trump's withdrawal from nuclear deal Trump announced the US withdrawal from what he called the "defective" multinational nuclear deal with Iran, and said Washington would reinstate sanctions against the Islamic republic. AFP/Getty The unprecedented threat came after Mr Rouhani used a speech earlier in the day to refer to Mr Trumps aggressive anti-Iran policies, telling him not to play with the lions tail. Mr Rouhani also said any conflict with Iran could lead to the mother of all wars. Those remarks, in turn, came after US secretary of state Mike Pompeo told Iranian-Americans at an address in California that the US stood with Iranians currently protesting against their countrys ruling elite, which he called a mafia that was heartlessly repressing its own peoples human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms. Relations between Tehran and Washington DC have reached new lows since May, when Mr Trump fulfilled an election campaign promise to pull out of the 2016 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers. The White House has since announced it will increase sanctions designed to deter Iran from pursuing any nuclear weapon ambitions. Despite the escalating rhetoric, analysts believe military confrontation between the two countries is highly unlikely. US officials told Reuters the ongoing communications offensive from the Trump administration is designed, along with economic pressure, to force Iran into ending its nuclear programme altogether and dropping its support for militia groups in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. Bed bugs on board Air India planes have allegedly resulted in flights being temporarily grounded on the Mumbai-Newark (US) route. Business class passengers flying from Newark Liberty Airport to Mumbai last week reportedly complained about the biting critters. Kashmira Tonsekar made the grisly discovery after her younger daughter complained of a rash when travelling back to India after a family trip in the US. According to stuff, Tonsekar had seen a bed bug on her husbands seat before setting off, but dismissed it thinking it was simply a common insect. Tonsekar alerted cabin crew, who proceeded to spray the area with an insect repellent. After a short while, more bugs began to emerge from the seat in question and adjacent seats, claimed Tonsekar. Tonsekars husband, Pravin Tonsekar, tweeted Air India to express his grievance: All our seats infested with bed bugs. Sir, [I] have heard of bed bugs on trains but shocked to experience on our maharaja and that too business. Air India responded to Tonsekars tweet to apologise for the incident: Sharing the details with our maintenance team for corrective measures in this regard. Tonsekar was not satisfied with the response, tweeting: Too late!!! Such a thing should not have happened in the first place. My wife and daughters had to suffer half of the journey sitting in economy seats with broken tables and inoperative TV. Recommended Woman discovers cockroach in Air India lounge A second traveller also tweeted about a similar experience on 19 July: My wife and three kids flex business class AI 144 from Newark to Mumbai; now they have bed bug bites all over their body; is this what we paid $10,000 for??? Air India responded to the tweet, stating that the safety and pax comfort is paramount for #AirIndia. Inquiry was ordered on the same day and responsibility will be fixed. We feel your pain and empathise also. We assure you that we will allow no one to jeopardise safety and comfort of pax. The countrys national airline, Air India or Maharaja as it is known was put up for sale by the Indian government in March this year. Despite the deadline being extended, no prospective buyers have emerged. Interested parties would be required to take on 6bn in debt and keep all 27,000 staff employed on the same terms for a least one year, however, a factor which may deter potential purchasers. Passenger planes remain the prime target of terrorists intent on committing mass murder and gaining worldwide notoriety. Global rules took effect with the United Nations Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft in 1971. Since then, aviation security has become progressively more invasive, undignified, time-consuming and expensive; the Department for Transport insists security measures must be applied consistently and competently. Airport security is a pain point for passengers, who have to comply with a tricky range of rules on what they can bring on board an aircraft. But a trial of new scanners at Europes busiest airport, Heathrow, could herald the end of hand-luggage liquid restrictions in the UK and potential be extended worldwide. I formerly worked in airport security at Gatwick. Allow me to explain the issues. Q Why was the liquids ban introduced, and how long has it been in effect? Restrictions on liquids, aerosols and gels (LAGs) in passengers cabin baggage were imposed from dawn on 10 August 2006. In the early hours of that morning, the government announced it had uncovered a liquid bomb plot. It was described as the largest terror plot ever discovered in Britain. Terrorists planned to board transatlantic flights with the ingredients for improvised explosive devices, disguised in soft-drink bottles, in their hand luggage. They intended to assemble the bombs on board and detonate them in a bid to destroy the planes and kill everyone on board. In response a near-total ban on liquids was introduced at UK airports. Even pens were being banned from cabin baggage because of the ink they contained. The strict new rules immediately brought Heathrow and other airports almost to a standstill. In the following week, British Airways alone cancelled over 1,500 flights. Three months later, the near-total ban was eased in the UK, and common rules on LAGs were imposed worldwide. Q Just remind me of the rules? Anything which can be regarded as a liquid is not allowed to be taken through airport security in a container of more than 100ml. That includes obvious candidates - drinks, shampoo, sun lotion - but also toiletries such as aerosol deodorants, hairspray, hair gel, mascara and cosmetic creams. Food, too: jam, honey and (in many cases) cheese are also banned in containers over 100ml. Note that liquid/solid mixtures of food, such as solid food in a sauce, are also considered liquids, says the CAA. Bear in mind it is the volume of the container that is significant. Even if you have a 125ml tube of toothpaste that is very evidently almost finished, it will be confiscated. That might sound harsh, but the idea is that security staff do not have time to assess the amount of liquid in containers that are not full. Liquids in containers of 100ml or less must be placed in a resealable, transparent plastic bag measuring around 20cm by 20cm. Each passenger can carry only one. Exceptions are made for medicines in containers over 100ml, which require medical confirmation such as your name on a prescription label or a letter from your doctor. These conditions only apply to prescription medication, says the CAA. Over-the-counter medicines are subject to the same restrictions as toiletry/cosmetic liquids. When travelling with a baby, milk and baby food can be carried in containers larger than 100ml. Q Besides annoyed passengers, who is calling for change? The airlines, airports and European Commission are frustrated that restrictions imposed almost 12 years ago were only ever intended to be short-term measures. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) says of current aviation security practices: Todays model is not sustainable in the long term. Five years ago the European Commission pointed out: This ban was envisaged as a temporary restriction to be lifted when suitable technology to screen liquids for explosives became readily available. Q What is the new technology being deployed at Heathrow? Computed tomography (CT) scanners, which originally began as medical technology. By analysing a series of two-dimensional scans from different angles, they produce 360-degree images which allow staff to examine objects more closely, and can highlight potentially explosive materials from the way the X-rays interact with the molecular structure. During the trials at Heathrow, normal security checks will be carried out in parallel. But if these trials prove successful, the security search should be able to rely on CT to reveal any liquid in hand luggage that poses a threat. Were this to happen, the liquids ban could be revoked. Q So when will things go back to the way they were before 2006? Assuming the tests are successful, ideally the technology would be rolled out across the world. IATA says: CT screening equipment is becoming mature enough for large-scale implementation. But given constraints on how quickly scanners can be made, and the costs involved, I predict there is no prospect of CT being standard at major airports worldwide in less than a decade. It is likely that either the US or the European Union will be first to relax the liquids rule. Americas Transportation Security Administration (TSA) says it is keen to explore CT-based solutions for screening, not least to reduce costs. Q Any downside? Once airports in one region start easing cabin-baggage rules, it will trigger confusion and frustration for passengers starting or ending journeys elsewhere in the world. Liquids that are allowed in the cabin of flights departing from the EU may not be permitted on onward connections in Dubai, Istanbul or Toronto. Even Europes recent modest relaxation of the rules - to allow airport purchases of drinks to be taken through checkpoints in a sealed security tamper-evident bag (STEB) is causing confusion. Many passengers are still being caught out, and losing their expensive airport purchases, because they were bought at an airport outside the permitted zone. Q Could technology ever remove the need for physical checks at airports? Yes, that is the goal of the airlines and airports. They are well aware how much passengers dislike the queues for security, and how much the security operation costs. For years they have been working on the concept of Smart Security. IATA calls it: A continuous journey from curb to airside, where passengers proceed through security with minimal inconvenience. The aim of Smart Security is that, ultimately, the walk through metal detectors and security pat-down of many passengers should be eliminated. Technology will assess material threats more effectively than humans watching screens. The passenger should be able to walk unchallenged along a corridor flanked by detectors, barely aware that he or she is being checked. Checkpoints will still be staffed, but security personnel will be freed up to do what people do best: to study the behaviour of passengers and identify persons of interest for further investigation. But for years to come, it is safe, if disheartening, to assume that airport security rules will remain more or less as they are. Q Meanwhile, is there no prospect of relaxation? Some aviation security professionals say that injecting unpredictability into airport security, with many passenger experiencing lighter-touch checks, will result in better detection and lower costs. At Campbeltown in Scotland all security restrictions were lifted in January 2017. For the first time in nearly half a century, a scheduled flight took off from an airport on the British mainland without the usual security checks for passengers or their possessions. Readers, a small detective story. Note down this number: MFG BGM-71E-1B. And this number: STOCK NO 1410-01-300-0254. And this code: DAA A01 C-0292. I found all these numerals printed on the side of a spent missile casing lying in the basement of a bombed-out Islamist base in eastern Aleppo last year. At the top were the words Hughes Aircraft Co, founded in California back in the 1930s by the infamous Howard Hughes and sold in 1997 to Raytheon, the massive US defence contractor whose profits last year came to $23.35bn (18bn). Shareholders include the Bank of America and Deutsche Bank. Raytheons Middle East offices can be found in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Egypt, Turkey and Kuwait. There were dozens of other used-up identical missile casings in the same underground room in the ruins of eastern Aleppo, with sequential codings ; in other words, these anti-armour missiles known in the trade as Tows, Tube-launched, optically tracked and wire-guided missiles were not individual items smuggled into Syria through the old and much reported CIA smugglers trail from Libya. These were shipments, whole batches of weapons that left their point of origin on military aircraft pallets. Some time ago, in the United States, I met an old Hughes Aircraft executive who laughed when I told him my story of finding his missiles in eastern Aleppo. When the company was sold, Hughes had been split up into eight components, he said. But assuredly, this batch of rockets had left from a US government base. Amateur sleuths may have already tracked down the first set of numbers above. The 01 in the stock number is a Nato coding for the US, and the BGM-71E is a Raytheon Systems Company product. There are videos of Islamist fighters using the BGM-71E-1B variety in Idlib province two years before I found the casings of other anti-tank missiles in neighbouring Aleppo. As for the code: DAA A01 C-0292, I am still trying to trace this number. Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Show all 12 1 /12 Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man crosses a street in Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A vendor sits inside an antique shop in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, December 12, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A view shows part of Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors walk inside Aleppo's Umayyad mosque, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk inside the Khan al-Shounah market, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man walks past shops in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk along an alley in al-Jdeideh neighbourhood, in the Old City of Aleppo, Syria Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Visitors tour Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A general view shows the Old City of Aleppo as seen from Aleppo's historic citadel, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War People walk near Aleppo's Bab al-Faraj Clock Tower, Syria October 6, 2010 Reuters Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War Aleppo before the Syrian Civil War A man stands inside Aleppo's historic citadel, overlooking Aleppo city, Syria December 11, 2009 Reuters Even if I can find it, however, I can promise readers one certain conclusion. This missile will have been manufactured and sold by Hughes/Raytheon absolutely legally to a Nato, pro-Nato or friendly (i.e. pro-American) power (government, defence ministry, you name it), and there will exist for it an End User Certificate (EUC), a document of impeccable provenance which will be signed by the buyers in this case by the chaps who purchased the Tow missiles in very large numbers stating that they are the final recipients of the weapons. There is no guarantee this promise will be kept, but as the arms manufacturers Ive been talking to in the Balkans over the past weeks yet again confirm there is neither an obligation nor an investigative mechanism on the part of the arms manufacturers to ensure that their infinitely expensive products are not handed over by the buyers to Isis, al-Nusra/al-Qaeda which was clearly the case in Aleppo or some other anti-Assad Islamist group in Syria branded by the US State Department itself as a terrorist organisation. Of course, the weapons might have been sent (illegally under the terms of the unenforceable EUC) to a nice, cuddly, moderate militia like the now largely non-existent Free Syrian Army, many of whose weapons generously donated by the west have fallen into the hands of the Bad Guys; i.e. the folk who want to overthrow the Syrian regime (which would please the west) but who would like to set up an Islamist cult-dictatorship in its place (which would not please the west). Thus al-Nusra can be the recipients of missiles from our friends in the region here, please forget the EUCs or from those mythical moderates who in turn hand them over to Isis/al-Nusra, etc, for cash, favours, fear or fratricidal war and surrender. IDF turns away Syrian refugees at border It is a fact, Im sorry to recall, that of all the weapons I saw used in the 15-year Lebanese civil war (1975-1990), not one was in the hands of those to whom those same weapons were originally sold. Russian and Bulgarian Kalashnikovs sold to Syria were used by Palestinian guerrillas, old American tanks employed by the Lebanese Christian Phalange/Lebanese forces were gifts from the Israelis who received them from the US. These outrageous weapons shipments were constantly recorded at the time but in such a way that you might imagine that the transfers were enshrined in law (American-made, Israeli-supplied used to be the mantra). The Phalange, in fact, also collected bunches of British, Soviet, French and Yugoslav armour the Zastava arms factory in the Serbian city of Kragujevac, which I have just visited, featured among the latter for their battles. In eastern Aleppo, who knows what gifts to the citys surviving citizens in the last months of the war acquired a new purpose? Smashed Mitsubishi pick-up trucks, some in camouflage paint, others in neutral colours, were lying in the streets I walked through. Were they stolen by al-Nusra? Or simply used by NGOs? Did they arrive, innocently enough, in the lot whose documents, also found in Aleppo, registered Five Mitsubishi L200 Pick Up sent by Shipper: Conflict, Humanitarian and Security Department (Chase), Whitehall SW1A SEG London? Of course they did alongside the Glasgow ambulance I found next to a gas canister bomb dump on the Aleppo front line at Beni Zeid in 2016, whose computer codings I reported in The Independent at great length five codings in all and to which the Scottish Ambulance Authority responded by saying they could not trace the ambulance because they needed more details. But back to guns and artillery. Why dont Nato track all these weapons as they leave Europe and America? Why dont they expose the real end-users of these deadly shipments? The arms manufacturers I spoke to in the Balkans attested that Nato and the US are fully aware of the buyers of all their machine guns and mortars. Why cant the details of those glorious end user certificates be made public as open and free for us to view as are the frightful weapons which the manufacturers are happy to boast in their catalogues. It was instructive that when The Independent asked the Saudis last week to respond to Bosnian weapons shipment documents I found in eastern Aleppo last year (for 120mm mortars) which the factorys own weapons controller recalled were sent from Novi Travnik to Saudi Arabia they replied that they (the Saudis) did not provide support of any kind to any terrorist organisation, that al-Nusra and Isis were designated terrorist organisations by Saudi Royal Decree and that the allegations (sic) were vague and unfounded. But what did this mean? Government statements in response to detailed reports of arms shipments should not be the last word and there is an important question that remained unanswered in the Saudi statement. The Saudis themselves had asked for copies of the shipment documents yet they did not specifically say whether they did or did not receive this shipment of mortars, nor comment upon the actual papers which The Independent sent them. These papers were not vague nor was the memory of the Bosnian arms controller who said they went with the mortars to Saudi Arabia and whose shipment papers I found in Syria. Indeed, Ifet Krnjic, the man whose signature I found in eastern Aleppo, has as much right to have his word respected as that of the Saudi authorities. So what did Saudi Arabias military personnel who were surely shown the documents make of them? What does unfounded mean? Were the Saudis claiming by the use of this word that the documents were forgeries? These are questions, of course, which should be taken up by the international authorities in the Balkans. Natos and the EUs writ still runs in the wreckage of Bosnia and both have copies of the documents I found in Aleppo. Are they making enquiries about this shipment, which Krnjic said went to Saudi Arabia, and the shipping documents which clearly ended up in the hands of al-Nusra papers of which Nato and the EU had knowledge when the transfer was originally made? I bet theyre not. For I dont think either Nato or the EU has the slightest interest in chasing the provenance of weapons in the hands of Islamist fighters in Syria or anywhere else in the Middle East certainly not in the case of Damascus, where the west has just given up its attempt to unseat Assad. Indeed, in a political landscape where regime change has become a moral, ethical objective, there can be no moral, ethical investigation of just how the merchants of death (the makers) manage to supply the purveyors of death (the killers) with their guns and mortars and artillery. And if any end user says that allegations of third parties are vague and unfounded always supposing that the persons saying this are themselves end users this, I promise you, must be accepted as true and unanswerable and as solid as the steel of which mortars are made. IRISH Water is preparing for future water supply issues by tendering for firms to provide mobile tankers. The utility, which is currently transporting water to 90,000 people at risk of losing supply, has sought companies to provide water tankers to service communities with no supply as a result of drought, severe weather or mains bursts. Some 20 schemes across the country in Clare, Cork, Donegal, Galway, Galway City, Kerry, Kilkenny, Limerick and Offaly are currently having water tankered in to reservoirs or water sources to minimise restrictions. The tankers must be available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and be capable of being deployed as an "alternative water source" within four hours of an emergency arising, tender documents stated. They must be approved by Irish Water, cannot have been used for holding non-food grade liquids such as fuel and sewage, and must include a 'boil-before-use' sign. They must also have a minimum of five taps for the public to fill water carriers. Units are required in the east and midlands region, the southern region, and the north and north-west region. "In order to increase the capacity of Irish Water to respond to emergency situations, a decision was made by the company some time ago to go out to tender for drinking water tankers," the company said. The Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has formally written to the European Commission seeking support for the relaxing of a number of conditions, which could potentially make a significant amount of land available for the conservation of fodder. It comes after the Minister outlined the problems currently being faced by Irish farmers owing to the prolonged winter of and the continuing summer drought conditions at last weeks European Council of Ministers meeting. The Minister has previously requested that the Commission ensure the earliest approval of advance direct support payments this autumn in order to support farmers cope with this prolonged challenging period. Minister Creed is also scheduled to meet with the Pillar Banks this week to discuss the difficult situation. Farm organisations have over recent weeks called for a series of actions from the Minister. ICMSA President, Pat McCormack said the closing date for fertiliser spreading on 15 September should be extended and the decision should be taken now so that farmers can make fertiliser decisions based on the knowledge that the closing date has been extended. He also said that the GLAS rules need to be amended particularly in relation to species-rich grassland and traditional hay meadows to allow farmers spread additional fertiliser to grow grass. "Depending on weather conditions between now and the end of the year, farmers could be facing an unprecedented fodder crisis in winter 2018/19 and Department scheme must not hinder farmers from growing additional fodder at this time in the interest of farmer and animal welfare." IFA President Joe Healy said it is a complete farce that the agri-loan scheme announced in last Octobers Budget would not be available to farmers until the end of this year. Farmers were already frustrated that the Minister had indicated that it would be the second half of 2018 when money would be available to farmers. Now it looks like it will be a race against time to have the money available at any stage in 2018. It is a complete farce, he said. IFA Rural Development Chairman Joe Brady earlier criticised the refusal by the Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed to allow farmers who have the traditional hay meadow measure in GLAS to cut their meadows now rather than have to wait until July 1st. The IFA Rural Development Chairman said the inaction by the Minister mirrors the stance he adopted during the fodder crisis last winter and has left farmers very frustrated that he does not understand the practicalities of farming. He said the Minister must allow as much flexibility in GLAS as possible so that farmers are in a strong position with fodder for next winter. While deaths on Irish farms continue to grab the headlines a worrying trend of under-reporting on non-fatal accidents has been a concern for authorities. Denise Shirley, an Orthopaedic Hand Surgeon has highlighted that farm workers are at higher risk of severe hand injuries, which often result in the patient being out of work for a long time. Ms Shirley who works closely with the plastic surgeons in Ireland to manage farm injuries said they see a range of patients who have injured their hands on farms, where close work with machinery and equipment increases the risk of accidents. We often see injuries caused by farmers most regular tasks - things they have done multiple times before. The repetition might have led them to either become complacent or have a short lapse in concentration. Resulting injuries can range from minor cuts caused by barbed wire, to fractures from heavier animals that startle in confined spaces. We also often see ligament injuries - especially of the thumb - caused by restraining animals on reins or ropes. Denise, who is also a member of the British Society for Surgery of the Hand, also highlighted that there is often an increase in crush injuries during the summer months, as this is when farmers are fencing. They may leave a hand on top of the post as the post-driver descends, often because of distraction while talking to assistants, she said. Ms Shirley said whilst surgery has developed so that fractures can heal in optimum positions and we can even re-implant severed digits to hands, the hand function can be permanently impaired by these accidents, causing difficulties with daily living and return to farming. Where patients can return to work, their injuries can delay this for significant amounts of time as they require long recovery periods and careful coordination with hand therapists to rebuild the muscle needed for their jobs. The human hand is very complex and closely correlated with the brain, giving us both function and feeling, she highlighted. There are many preventative measures that those working in the industry can take to reduce their chances of getting hurt, according to Ms Shirley. Use your common sense and take a moment to consider the risks and the best approach to a task. Wear protective gloves, keep children away from machinery and follow safety precautions. General medical precautions like making sure your tetanus immunisation is up to date can make a big difference in preventing the spread of infection if an accident does happen (all farmyard wounds are more likely to be contaminated by the tetanus germ). One of the simplest actions that prevents injury is not to remove safety features from various tools, such as circular saws. Avoiding shortcuts when changing equipment on the tractor, especially parts which use the drive shaft, is incredibly important. This is still one of the most common farming-related cause of life-changing hand injuries, she highlighted. Farm Safety Week takes place nationwide this week aiming to reduce the number of accidents on farms and bring about a change in culture that makes unsafe practices socially unacceptable. The initiative is supported by a number of organisations, including the Irish Farmers Association, Health and Safety Authority (HSA) and members of the Farm Safety Partnership Advisory Committee. Farming continues to have one of the poorest safety records of any sector in Ireland, last year 24 people lost their lives in farm accidents, and 11 people have lost their lives so far in 2018. Fees of 1.9m have been paid so far to the liquidator of Custom House Capital, and the process to clean up the collapsed broker has another two years to run, according to an official Liquidators Account filed to the Companies Office. The total costs of managing the liquidation stood at 4.3m at April 20, according to the papers filed last week. Kieran Wallace, an accountant at KPMG, whose other high-profile insolvency work includes as joint special liquidator of the former Anglo Irish Bank, has been winding up Custom House Capital since 2011. The company was liquidated after a High Court-appointed investigation by two Central Bank inspectors found "systemic and deliberate misuse" of 66m of clients' money. Liquidator's fees of 1.9m are the biggest single cost of the liquidation, the new filing shows, followed by legal fees of 1.228m. VAT on costs - at slightly under 600,000 - is another significant cost. Costs to date have been covered from 5.57m of funds in the business, but the latest filing shows that the pot had dropped to 1.27m at April 20 last. The liquidation that began in 2011 is expected to run for two more years, taking it to mid-2020. That is longer than had previously been estimated and reflects the time needed to reconcile and transfer client assets, the filing states. Last December, the Central Bank confirmed that just 567 of the 2,000 investors who lost money had received compensation from the Investor Compensation Company (ICC), which was established to compensate eligible investors when an investment firm that is authorised here goes bust. The ICC said it was pressing the liquidator to speed up the certification of claims - which are estimated to total close to 20m for Custom House Capital (CHC) investors - but added that the process was slow. "The intricacies of the CHC case - which involved the deliberate and organised concealment of the large-scale embezzlement of investors' funds, coupled with the maintenance of false accounting records and the issuance to clients of incorrect portfolio statements - have undoubtedly contributed to the protracted timespan of the liquidation and the associated claims certification process, which is highly unsatisfactory for the many CHC clients affected," ICC said in its annual report. Last year, the High Court ruled that three former directors of Custom House Capital were jointly and severally liable to pay 214,457 to the liquidator to cover the cost of his investigation into the collapsed investment firm, the cost of collection of evidence and the legal fees involved. At the end of 2016, the High Court had imposed the longest-ever disqualification of a director to Custom House Capital's former chief executive Harry Cassidy, who was disqualified from acting as a company director for 14 years. Non-executive director John Mulholland was banned for 12 years and investment director John Whyte received a 10-year disqualification. Mr Justice David Keane ruled that the conduct of all three was "deeply dishonest, continued over a protracted period of time until, for a variety of reasons, it could no longer be concealed". In May, the 'Irish Times' reported that Kieran Wallace had selected Davy to manage the return of some client funds, including the assets of a German property fund. As many as 2,000 clients - mostly pension investors - were affected by the collapse of Custom House Capital. It had used clients' money to heavily invest in property, acquiring assets in countries including France, Germany and Switzerland. But as the financial crisis took hold, Custom House Capital began using client funds to make up shortfalls before the structure came crashing down. Share in Ryanair fell by almost 5pc in early trading this morning, after profits after tax at the airline fell by 20pc year-on-year to 319m in the three months to 30 June. Higher fuel and staff costs off-set the airlines increase in revenue, which grew 9pc to 2bn, Ryanair said in a trading update today. The earlier timing of Easter also led to a 4pc decline in average fares, the airline said. Ryanair experienced passenger growth of 7pc year-on-year during the period, with the group carrying 37.6 million passengers in the three months. "As previously guided, quarter one profits after tax fell by 20pc to 319m due to lower fares, the absence of half of Easter in the quarter, higher oil prices and pilot costs,W Michael OLeary, CEO of Ryanair, said. "Traffic grew 7pc to 37.6m, despite over 2,500 flight cancellations caused by air traffic control staff shortages and air traffic control strikes. Ryanairs lower fares delivered an industry leading 96pc load factor." During the period staff costs at the airline increased 34pc, which the airline said was primarily due to 20pc pay increases for pilots, 9pc more flight hours, and a 3pc general pay increase for the airlines non-flight staff. On the matter of Brexit, the airline said that it remains concerned by the danger of a hard Brexit, and believes the risk of a hard Brexit is "being underestimated". Ryanair said that it may be forced to restrict the voting rights of all non-European Union shareholders in the event of a hard Brexit, to ensure that it remains majority owned and controlled by EU shareholders. Looking forward, the airline said it continues to guide its financial year 2019 profits after tax in a range of 1.25bn to 1.35bn. Like other airlines, Ryanair is being hit by air traffic control strikes in Europe, with carriers forced to pay some care costs to customers affected by the disruption. Last year, Ryanair was also forced to cancel hundreds of flights due to what it said were problems with pilots' rotas. Unions claimed the real issue then was that disenchanted pilots were deserting the airline in droves, although Ryanair denied this, insisting the cancellations were the results of a "rostering failure". That issue finally came to a head in December when chief executive Michael O'Leary recognised unions for the first time. The airline has also been hit by pilot strikes in Ireland recently. Commenting on Ryanair's results, Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said Mr O'Leary may have to "dust off some of his wacky cost-saving ideas" if he hopes to deal with the latest raft of financial pressures. "In the past the airline has suggested having passengers load their own luggage and that some planes should remove one of the toilets to accommodate extra seats, among many other ideas to boost revenue and profit. "Ryanair has also previously talked about potentially offering event tickets, restaurant bookings and other travel-related services." Mr Mould said the airline had so far succeeded at "sweating its assets" and "making money from passengers beyond the price of an airline ticket". "Yet first-quarter results would suggest it needs to do more to cope with higher oil prices, higher pilot costs and yet another bout of strikes," he added. (Additional reporting from PA) Copies of the New York Daily News on a news stand (AP) The Daily News will cut half of its newsroom staff, saying it will focus more on digital news. The New York-based newspaper was sold to tronc last year for one dollar, with the owner of the Chicago Tribune assuming liabilities and debt. In an email sent to staff, tronc said staff at the Daily News will focus on breaking news involving crime, civil justice and public responsibility. Revenue and print circulation has been sliding at the newspaper for years, even as it provided critical coverage of health issues in public housing and stories about first responders after the September 11 attacks. The papers editor-in-chief Jim Rich was also laid off. The newspaper has been a key fixture in New York City for the last century. It won a Pulitzer Prize in 2017 for its work with ProPublica on the abuse of eviction rules in New York City. It also received a Pulitzer for raising awareness about health issues faced by emergency workers following the collapse of New York Citys twin towers following 9/11. If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you. Jim Rich (@therealjimrich) July 23, 2018 There had been reports that the cuts were coming, and an early-morning tweet from Mr Rich hinted at what was to come. If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you, he wrote. New York governor Andrew M Cuomo urged tronc to reconsider the lay-offs, saying they were made without notifying the state or asking for assistance. Mr Cuomo said: I urge tronc to reconsider this drastic move and stand ready to work with them to avert this disaster. I understand that large corporations often only see profit and dividends as a bottom line. But in New York, we also calculate loss of an important institution, loss of jobs, and the impact on the families affected. I hope tronc does the same and recalculates its decision. New York State stands ready to help. Revenue had slid by 22% between 2014 and 2016, and the paper had already been letting people go. Since the year began, weve worked hard to transform the New York Daily News into a truly digitally-focused enterprise one that creates meaningful journalism, delivers it more quickly and more frequently, and develops new approaches to engage our readers, tronc said in an email that was sent to the newsroom. Weve gained a deeper understanding of our readership. Weve redefined our structures. But we have not gone far enough. Managing editor Kristen Lee was also laid off. You may know us for our provocative front pages. But there's a reason the Daily News is known as "New York's Hometown Newspaper." Here are just a few examples why we believe local journalism is so important. #SupportLocalJournalism pic.twitter.com/PGKYemDDpu New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) July 22, 2018 Robert York, editor of tronc-owned The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania, will take over as editor of the Daily News. New York attorney general Barbara Underwood said: The reporters at the Daily News are some of the very best in the business. I am heartbroken for them today, and for New York. We need strong local newspapers to hold those in power to account. Tronc, based in Chicago, owns the Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, the Orlando Sentinel, and other media operations. Consumer rights are very strong across Europe when it comes to air travel disruption: Cancellation Confirmation If your flight is affected, you will be sent a confirmation text. The company has been careful to confine cancellations to high traffic routes, mainly the UK, where rerouting options are available, rather than European holiday destinations. Refund or reroute? You will be given two options by the airline: a refund of your ticket price or rerouting to another flight. If you take the former, your contract with Ryanair is finished. If you opt to reroute, the company will - in the first instance - book you, at no extra cost, onto the next available Ryanair flight to your destination. However, it's peak travel season, so this may not be possible. The second option is to put you on a 'partner' airline flight. These include Aer Lingus, CityJet, Norwegian, Eurowings and easyJet. The final option is to let you make your own arrangements - eg by train, bus or car hire - and they will reimburse you. If you choose this option, you must notify the airline in advance, and keep receipts. It may take some weeks to be repaid. Extra Compensation Under EU261/2004 the law provides that you may be entitled to additional compensation of 250-600; however, the circumstances under which it is payable are very specific. The cancellation notice must be less than 14 days (this is true of current cancellations), and the rerouted flight must land two or more hours later (for flights under 1,500km) or three hours later (flights of 1,500km to 3,500km) than the original arrival time. The compensation is halved where the rerouted flight lands within four hours of the original arrival time. The compensation is not paid if the cancellation is due to a third-party strike, for example air traffic control. Ryanair says it also does not pay due to "labour disputes", but the Aviation Regulator disagrees. See flightrights.ie for information. Vitally, do not be tempted by the many third-party claim agencies that operate for a fee; you can easily apply yourself. If you've spent the last 10 weeks drooling over the stunning Mallorcan villas inhabited by the Love Island contestants, the good news is that one of them is available to rent. The contestants are currently enjoying (or enduring, depending on their situation) their last week in the main villa, but the second villa, Casa Amor, is currently available to book - for a cool 4572 (5164) to 7417 (8378) per week. It's the villa where the lads were sent to mingle with the new arrivals, where Josh met Kaz who he brought back to the main villa, much to Georgia's dismay. It was also where Jack encountered his ex Ellie during his separation from Dani. You might remember the crystal clear pool with sunloungers alongside or the large outdoor terrace. Expand Close Adam and Darylle met at Casa Amor (ITV) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Adam and Darylle met at Casa Amor (ITV) The villa is located in a secluded spot just a few minutes' drive from the village of Sant Llorenc de Cardassar in Mallorca. Available via luxury villa company Villa Retreats, it's described as "a superb, ultra modern house with high standard furniture and fittings and stylish design". Expand Close Love Island's 'Casa Amor' villa. PIC: Villa Retreats / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Love Island's 'Casa Amor' villa. PIC: Villa Retreats It has a private driveway flanked by vines, a spacious reception area, and designer kitchen with Quooker hot water system and that all-important wine chiller. Although the Love Island contestants had to share a bedroom, the villa has, in fact, four separate bedrooms and sleeps eight people. The master bedroom suite on the first floor has twin balconies and en-suite. Expand Close Love Island's 'Casa Amor' villa. PIC: Villa Retreats / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Love Island's 'Casa Amor' villa. PIC: Villa Retreats You can also pay extra for a private chauffeur, speciality chef or nanny among other luxurious extras. You can find out more HERE Expand Close Love Island's 'Casa Amor' villa. PIC: Villa Retreats / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Love Island's 'Casa Amor' villa. PIC: Villa Retreats Aerial footage has emerged showing the extensive damage caused by a fire that broke out at Curracloe beach in Co. Wexford yesterday. The footage, sent to Independent.ie by Jack Meehan, shows large swathes of land around the beach burnt black by the fire. The alarm was raised about the blaze in the sand dunes shortly after 11.30am yesterday morning, and hundreds of holidaymakers were told to evacuate the popular beach. Traffic was diverted and people were urged to avoid the area while the emergency services tackled the blaze. Defence Minister Paul Kehoe visited the beach in the aftermath of the fire, and said that it may have been caused by a barbecue. I was at the scene between 5pm and 9pm this evening, Wexford fire crew had been called to the area initially and then they called for backup from other fire stations, gardai and the air corps were also there and they managed to get it under control. "I heard that it may have caused by a barbecue, if this is true I hope gardai do investigate as that is just completely irresponsible. "The sand dunes are popular with people who are camping and there is some suggestion that there may have been a party and someone was using a barbecue. "This is so dangerous and we have been warned so much over the past few weeks about the risk of fire - we haven't had any rain in the south-east in eight weeks so the land was dry as a bone and as we saw today the fire spread rapidly. He also said that the fire could have ended in a tragedy, and is relieved that there were no casualties. The cause of the fire is not yet known. Curracloe beach was a filming location for the award-winning movie Saving Private Ryan and it was remarked that the beach looked similar to its depiction in the movie after the blaze. "It looks like a scene from Saving Private Ryan, said Jack-Tim Murphy, owner of the Surf Shack in Curracloe. Speaking on Beat 102-103, he said, It looks like a scene from a war movie down here, its just smoke and you can't see 20 feet in front of you, it's just smoke covering the beach and all the buildings. Saving Private Ryan was filmed in June 1997. Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and a host of other actors and crew, arrived to film scenes for the Hollywood war epic. The filming lasted two months, with the Irish Defence Forces supplying 2,500 men to act as extras. Tina Lawrence pictured arriving at The Four Courts A WOMAN and her husband had a 60,000 compensation case thrown out after she was accused of lying consistently under oath while giving evidence of multiple claims she has taken. Brian and Tina Lawrence, from St Finian's Grove, Lucan, Dublin, took the case in relation to a 2016 car crash. Expand Close Brian Lawrence pictured arriving at The Four Courts / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Brian Lawrence pictured arriving at The Four Courts The serial litigants, both aged 25, saw Judge Patrick Quinn dismiss the case at Dublin Circuit Civil Court after Ms Lawrence couldn't remember the details of previous accidents she had been involved in. Defence counsel Shane English accused her of repeatedly lying on the stand. He put it to her that she lied about having X-rays when the medical report showed she did not get one. She also lied about not having lived in previous addresses when she had, according to Mr English. She claimed she suffered back, shoulder and arm pain after the taxi she was travelling in collided with another vehicle in Clontarf, Dublin. "I can't remember," she told the court when asked about how many previous accidents she had been involved in. She received 10,000 in 2016 for a 2013 crash, which she didn't remember. Ms Lawrence also couldn't remember another claim she made for a crash in 2013. She did not recall that her unemployed husband, who drives a 171-reg Mercedes, was in the vehicle during the crash and that in the other car was her friend Ann Mongan. "Haven't you lied through your teeth about how many accidents?" Mr English said. "A lot of bad things have come up, so my head is not in the right place," Ms Lawrence had told the court. At one point the case was adjourned so Ms Lawrence could get her memory back. She then ran to speak to her husband, despite being told not to discuss the case. "I've had enough," the judge said as he dismissed the case. A MODEL and ex-partner of Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch's nephew, Alan Hutch, has admitted pulling clumps out of a young mothers hair while the victim was on a Dublin bus with her baby. Emily Jane Stewart (22) left the woman bleeding from scratches to her face in a frightening, unprovoked attack. She went on to assault the womans mother on a bus on the same route two days later, diving on her, biting her finger and punching and scraping her face. Judge Martin Nolan suspended a six-month sentence after Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard the older victim was in a relationship with Stewarts father and this had led to tensions between the two families. Stewart was herself injured in a 2016 car crash caused by criminal Kieron The Wolf Ducie - she was a passenger in his jeep when it overturned, and he was jailed for five months for uninsured driving. Stewart pleaded guilty today to assaulting the two women in two separate incidents in 2017. Garda Daniel Eccles told the court the first victim, Shannon Ryan, told gardai she got on the 27 bus in north Dublin at 4.30pm on March 10 that year. She was going to the city centre with her three and a half month old baby and went into the push chair area. Stewart, from Belcamp Avenue, Coolock, got on at the next stop and went up the stairs while on her phone. Shannon Ryan rang her mother to say she had seen Stewart and the accused came back down the stairs and told her to get off the bus. Shannon Ryan said no, that she had her baby with her. The demand was repeated and Stewart told her to bring the baby with you. Stewart ran towards Ms Ryan who, knowing she was going to be hit, grabbed the accused. Stewart grabbed Ms Ryan by the hair, who grabbed back in self defence, the court heard. Stewart threw digs and kicks at the victim, who hit back in self defence. Someone stood in front of them and Stewart got off at Connolly Station. Ms Ryan got off the bus some time after. She suffered cuts to her neck from the accuseds nails, clumps of her hair were pulled out and her mouth and face were sore. Her mother Sabrina was on the 27 bus on March 12 at 5.30pm, going towards Clarehall with two bags of shopping. She was talking to someone when Stewart walked down the stairs and began shouting at her before diving on her, punching her and scraping her face. Somebody separated them and Stewart went at Sabrina Ryan again, hitting her and shouting at her. The victim hit back in self defence and went to the drivers area to try to get away from Stewart. There was a verbal altercation and the defendant grabbed her again. Ms Ryan put her hand out and Stewart bit her finger before they were separated a final time, the court heard. Sabrina Ryan suffered a black eye and a bleeding bite mark on her finger. Her head and neck were also sore. The court heard when interviewed, Stewart had a poor memory of what happened and said she had blacked out in the first incident. She told gardai there was a history between the parties but after watching CCTV of the second incident she was ashamed and embarrassed. Stewart had previous theft convictions. Sabrina Ryan was Stewarts fathers partner, defence barrister Emmet Nolan said. Since that relationship started, there had been some tension between the families and unpleasant insults had been traded between both families on social media, Mr Nolan said. The minute the CCTV was shown to her she identified herself and admitted she was the instigator. Stewart had done an apprenticeship as a hairdresser but was currently unemployed and on disability allowance, Mr Nolan said. Her father was in a relationship with Sabrina Ryan and had very little to do with the accused, which weighed very heavily on her. The court heard Stewart suffered from mental health issues including anger and borderline personality disorder. She also suffered post traumatic stress disorder following the 2016 accident, Mr Nolan said. There had been exchanges between the parties that didnt cover anyone in glory and on seeing the two injured parties she experienced a total loss of self control, Mr Nolan said. Stewart had been addicted to illicit substances at the time and was not taking her prescription medication. She had begun taking cannabis and tablets at a young age before progressing to crack cocaine and smoking heroin at 17. The attacks were unprovoked but not visited on strangers in total isolation. However, Stewart accepted responsibility and that there could be no excuse, Mr Nolan said. Stewart was now in therapy, free of illicit drugs, was on a methadone programme and was medication-compliant. A positive probation report was before the court and Stewart had co-operated fully, Mr Nolan said. She was apologetic and deeply remorseful for what happened. Judge Nolan said it seemed for the accuseds own reasons she attacked the two victims in what were unprovoked, nasty assaults that must have been frightening for them. Stewarts problems were not an excuse for her behaviour, he said. He noted that she was taking steps to deal with her underlying problems but added that some were self induced because she had been taking drugs. Suspending the sentence for six months, he ordered the accused to have no contact with either victim in that time and to pay 750 to each woman within a year. Thank you, your honour, Stewart said after acknowledging she understood the terms of the bond. A 25-year-old man has pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to the repeated rape of a teenage Spanish student in Dublin last summer. Eoin Berkley of Hampton Wood Way, Finglas, Dublin admitted three counts of raping the girl at the Irish Glass Bottle Company site, Pigeon House Road at a time unknown between July 15 and 16, 2017. The 18-year-old student had been staying with a host family in Dublin at the time. Mr Justice Michael White said the complainant should be advised of her right to make a Victim Impact Statement, and he adjourned sentencing to give her time to do so. Caroline Biggs SC, prosecuting, said arrangements would be made for the young woman to travel to Ireland if she decides to attend the sentence hearing. Mr Justice White remanded Berkley in continuing custody for sentencing on October 22. He agreed to finalise the matter within that week, as the complainant may need to spend several days in Ireland. Defence counsel, Michael Bowman SC, said he would be addressing the court at the sentence hearing in relation to psychiatric issues. A FATHER-of-one shoplifted shorts and a T-shirt during the summer heatwave because he only had jumpers and jeans to wear and he was "very, very hot", a court heard. Lee O'Donoghue (25) was homeless at the time he stole the clothing from a Dublin Marks and Spencer store. Judge Dermot Simms spared him jail, giving him a one-month suspended sentence after he admitted the theft. O'Donoghue, with an address at Fr Peter McVerry Trust, pleaded guilty to stealing clothing and food. Blanchardstown District Court heard the incident happened at Marks and Spencer, Liffey Valley Shopping Centre, on June 19. Gardai were called to the shop at 5.40pm. Security staff detained the accused after he picked up four separate items worth a total of 60 and tried to leave without paying. CONVICTIONS The property was recovered in a saleable condition. The court heard O'Donoghue had 50 previous convictions for theft and other offences. While he had a "pretty bad record", most of his prior offending happened six to seven years ago, his barrister Ciaran MacLoughlin said. The accused was single, unemployed and homeless. Mr MacLoughlin said the items stolen included a bottle of water, shorts and a T-shirt. The weather was "quite hot" at the time, the court heard. "He didn't have any shorts or T-shirt, he was going around in jeans and jumpers and he was very, very hot," Mr MacLoughlin said. The judge suspended the sentence on the accused entering a bond to keep the peace and be of good behaviour for a year. "Thanks judge," the accused said, after confirming that he understood the terms of the bond. THE PROSECUTION has closed its case in the trial of three people accused of the murder of Gareth Hutch. A nephew of Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch, the 36-year-old was fatally shot outside Avondale House on North Cumberland Street on May 24, 2016. Jonathan Keogh (32), his sister Regina Keogh (41) and friend Thomas Fox (31) have all pleaded not guilty before the Special Criminal Court to murdering Mr Hutch. Mr Fox, of Rutland Court, Dublin 1, has also denied the unlawful possession of a Markarov 9mm handgun on May 23, 2016 at the same place. Expand Close Jonathan Keogh (left) and Thomas Fox have both denied the murder of Gareth Hutch, who was shot dead in May 2016 / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Jonathan Keogh (left) and Thomas Fox have both denied the murder of Gareth Hutch, who was shot dead in May 2016 It is the State's case that Mr Keogh, of Gloucester Place, Dublin 1, threatened to kill Mr Hutch the evening before the shooting. It is also alleged that Mr Fox and Ms Keogh, of Avondale House, were instrumental in planning the murder, and Mr Keogh and another man, Mr AB, were the shooters. Mr AB is not currently before the court. This morning, the non-jury court ruled that mobile phone data was admissible as evidence in the trial. Previously, the court heard that detectives had analysed a number of mobile phone numbers allegedly associated with the accused, and the contact the numbers had with each other around the time of the killing. Last week, defence lawyers Sean Guerin SC and Seamus Clarke SC argued the retention of mobile phone data and the unrestricted access by gardai to it was in contravention of EU law, and breached their clients rights to privacy. However, prosecutor Paul Burns SC said a person's right to privacy was not absolute - and any privacy right could not be expected to frustrate a murder investigation. Mr Justice Tony Hunt said the court had found the mobile phone evidence was admissible. He said the court would give its written reasons for its ruling later in the week. Mr Burns then told the court that the prosecution had completed its evidence. Lawyers for the three accused said they had no applications to make to the court. During the eight week trial, the three-judge court heard evidence from protected witness, Mary McDonnell, who identified Mr Keogh from CCTV footage as one of the shooters of Gareth Hutch. She also identified Mr Keogh and Mr Fox as the men who came into her flat the night before with two guns. The court heard from Mr Keogh's ex-girlfriend Denise King, who gave evidence that Regina Keogh came to her home the afternoon after the shooting, and asked her to bring an envelope containing money to her brother in Belfast. Ms King said she later counted it and there was 2,000. She also told the court that she asked Mr Keogh if he had shot Mr Hutch and the accused swore on his baby daughter's life that he hadn't killed him. The trial resumes on Wednesday, when lawyers for the prosecution and defence are expected to make closing speeches. Two brothers who were badly beaten up by bouncers outside Krystle Nightclub have been awarded more than 50,000 damages for what a judge described Monday as a very disturbing incident. Barrister Esther Earley, counsel for the two men, told the Circuit Civil Court they had been queueing to get into the club in the Russell Court Hotel, Harcourt Street, Dublin in September 2015 when he and his brother were assaulted by bouncers. Ms Earley, who appeared with David Harrington of Robinson ONeill Solicitors, said liability had been conceded by Triglen Holdings Limited, owners of the club, and the court was being asked to assess damages for personal injury. Moira Flahive, counsel for Triglen Holdings, said judgment had already been granted to the two plaintiffs against Senture Security Limited, Castle Drive, Citywest Road, Dublin, and Triglen would be suing Senture to recover damages and costs. Expand Close Conor Butler pictured leaving the Four Courts after a Circuit Civil Court action.Pic: Collins Courts / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Conor Butler pictured leaving the Four Courts after a Circuit Civil Court action.Pic: Collins Courts James Butler (26) of Glendown Avenue, Templeogue, Dublin, said he had been assaulted in a sudden and unprovoked attack by one of the bouncers. He had been struck in the face, suffering what was thought to have been a broken nose and his lip had been split open. He told Ms Earley he had been knocked unconscious for a short time and had been taken to St Jamess Hospital for treatment. He had been medically advised that it was possible he may have suffered a concussion and for that reason had given up playing rugby regularly for his club Terenure. Judge Sarah Berkeley said she had found Mr Butler, a student at the time, to be a credible witness and found it very disturbing that such an incident could have occurred. She awarded him just under 21,000 jointly and severally against both defendants. James older brother Conor (29) who was said to have suffered a more significant attack had also sued both defendants and, following Judge Berkeleys decision in the first case, accepted a settlement offer of 31,000. Ms Earley sought and was awarded costs in both cases. Expand Close James Butler , 26yrs, of Glendown Avenue, Templogue, Dublin pictured leaving the Four Courts after a Circuit Civil Court action Pic: Collins Courts / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp James Butler , 26yrs, of Glendown Avenue, Templogue, Dublin pictured leaving the Four Courts after a Circuit Civil Court action Pic: Collins Courts Conor, a tyre fitter, had alleged in his claim against both defendants that he, too, had been punched in the face by one of the bouncers and knocked unconscious to the ground. He had then been set upon by four or five other bouncers, receiving numerous blows and kicks to his body and legs. He also had been treated at St Jamess Hospital and, following the attack, had suffered from blurred vision. After announcing a settlement of 31,000 in Conors case, Ms Flahive said Triglen Holdings Limited, which has a registered address at 21-23 Harcourt Street, Dublin, would be pursuing Senture Security for recovery of damages and costs. Conor was not asked to give evidence in his case. Prime Minister Theresa May gives a speech at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast (Charles McQuillan/PA) New face: Britains newly appointed chief Brexit negotiator Dominic Raab, left, and EUs chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier speak at the European Commission in Brussels last week. Photo: AP The EU must call time on UK Government stalling on Brexit, Sinn Feins leader said as she urged Brussels to convene a special summit on the Irish border impasse. Mary Lou McDonald urged Michel Barnier to push for the additional meeting of European leaders as she met the EUs chief Brexit negotiator in Brussels. After emerging from talks with Mr Barnier on Monday afternoon, party president Mrs McDonald said she had received assurances that the EU was standing firm on its insistence that a so-called Irish border backstop agreed between Brussels and London must form part of the final withdrawal treaty. EU should seek a special summit before October to resolve Irish issues @MaryLouMcDonald https://t.co/0wjS0akNw4 pic.twitter.com/xsMVj9nrM5 Sinn Fein (@sinnfeinireland) July 23, 2018 Last December the EU and UK agreed that Northern Ireland would continue to adhere to a number of European customs regulations if a wider Brexit trade deal failed to materialise. It was supposed to be a fallback position that would ensure a free-flowing border regardless of the terms of the UKs exit from the EU. However, the two sides are at loggerheads on how to translate that agreement into a legally binding commitment in a potential withdrawal treaty. Recent developments at Westminster have placed further question marks over the backstop, amid claims that Theresa Mays Chequers deal and subsequent Brexiteer-driven amendments to Government legislation are incompatible with the December agreement. Mrs McDonald, who was accompanied in Brussels by Sinn Fein vice president Michelle ONeill, said an extra EU meeting is required in September to try to forge a resolution ahead of Octobers crunch summit the effective deadline to secure a Brexit deal. The Sinn Fein leader also criticised Mrs Mays speech in Belfast last week, when the British Prime Minister made it clear that she would not sign up to any backstop that treated Northern Ireland differently to the rest of the UK. Last weeks visit by Theresa May to Belfast has raised very serious concerns over the British Governments approach to Brexit, Mrs McDonald said in Brussels. In December we were told that a backstop was a cast-iron guarantee, that the Good Friday Agreement would be protected in word and spirit, and that there would be no diminution of rights for Irish and EU citizens in the North. The British Government is seeking to row back on these commitments and to bin the December agreement. Theresa May is placing her personal self-interest to stay in Downing Street ahead of the needs of Ireland, North and South. The British Government is now engaged in a game of brinkmanship which puts our all-island economy and our agreements at risk. There is no certainty and no clarity on Irish interests. The EU has made clear that without the backstop there will be no withdrawal agreement and that the interests of Ireland must be dealt with in line with the December agreement. Michel Barnier assured us this remains the case and that Britain must agree workable solutions in line with the December agreement. We believe that this must be given affect and the EU should call time on British Government stalling. The EU should hold a special summit in advance of October to resolve Irish issues before closing on the withdrawal agreement. Anyone showing symptoms of measles is being warned to stay at home and phone their GP. It comes after an adult and child attended four hospitals in the capital while at their most contagious. (stock photo) Anyone showing symptoms of measles is being warned to stay at home and phone their GP. It comes after an adult and child attended four hospitals in the capital while at their most contagious. The two patients, believed to be foreign nationals living in Dublin, attended Tallaght Hospital on July 1, then again on July 5. They then presented at the Mater Hospital on July 7, Temple Street Children's Hospital on July 13 and again on July 15 and 16. Finally they visited Our Lady's Children's Hospital, Crumlin, on July 16. The HSE instructed that children aged from six months to 11 months, who are travelling abroad, including to regions where measles outbreaks are reported, should be administered the MMR vaccine. "A dose given before 12 months of age does not replace the dose that would normally be given at 12 months of age," a HSE spokeswoman said. Asked about the incident, sparking concern across four different hospitals, she said: "The HSE cannot comment on the management of any individual patient's care or treatment." Measles has led to 31 deaths across Europe this year. Most of the cases in the EU have been reported in Romania, France, Greece, and Italy. "It's important that the public are aware of the symptoms and risks relating to measles. "Measles can be a serious illness and is highly infectious," the HSE spokeswoman said. "The best protection is to be fully vaccinated with two doses of the MMR vaccine. "Currently the HSE is aware the two measles cases attended the healthcare settings while they were most infectious. "Please do not contact the hospitals if you think you may have come into contact with a case of measles. Seek advice from your GP if you become unwell." The HSE said most people who get measles on holiday don't realise they have been exposed until they develop the disease. Two measles cases were brought to Dublin after the adult and child had returned home from a trip to mainland Europe. People have been instructed not to attend work and not to send children to school or to creches if they are suffering symptoms, to tell a GP or nurse over the phone they may be suffering measles and to prevent visitors coming to their home. Pregnant women who fear they have been exposed to measles have been told to seek medical advice as soon as possible. Measles symptoms include a high fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes, and a red rash that starts on the head and spreads down the body - this normally starts a few days after onset of illness. The rash consists of flat red or brown blotches, which can flow into each other. It lasts about four to seven days. Vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach pain may also occur. Tributes have been pouring in for popular dad Andrew Clarke who was tragically killed in a crash on Sunday A father-of-one killed in a motorbike crash on Sunday has been described as "the most warm-hearted and generous person". Tributes have been paid to Andrew Clarke (37), who died when his motorbike collided with a 4x4 in Co Wicklow on Sunday. The crash happened on the R755 near Laragh at around 12.30pm. Mr Clark, who was from Ballinteer, Dublin, was pronounced dead at the scene. Craig Fetherston, a close friend and neighbour of Andrew, said he had "the biggest heart of any person I know". "Whether it was giving old ladies a lift home from the shops or going out of his way to help people in the community, this man had the biggest heart of any person I know. "I am truly devastated and I would like to thank all the paramedics and locals of Laragh who helped us so much today." The popular Dubliner was described by other friends as an "amazing dad" who had a "huge heart and looked after so many people in so many ways". "I have never met anybody like him, he really was one of a kind," another friend said. While friend and fellow biker Joseph Rafferty said he will be missed greatly by those who knew him. I would just like to say that he was well-known in the biker community and on track days in Mondello race track as a very good, advanced rider, he told Independent.ie. He was a gentle giant that would always go out of his way to help a biker or anyone. He was always smiling and in great form. He will be sadly missed by bikers everywhere. Its a very sad time for all us bikers we have lost a great friend." His funeral is due to take place on Friday morning at the Holy Cross Church in Dundrum village. Gardai have appealed for witnesses to contact Wicklow Garda Station on 0404 60140, the Garda Confidential Telephone Line on 1800 666 111 or any garda station. A motorcyclist has been killed in a two-vehicle collision on one of the busiest secondary roads in the country. A 30-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene after the motorcycle he was driving collided with a 4x4 vehicle on the R755, near Laragh, Co Wicklow, around 12.30pm yesterday. The man, whose identity has not been released, is understood to be from the Greater Dublin Area. His body was removed to St Columcille's Hospital, in Loughlinstown, for a post-mortem examination. The driver of the other vehicle was not injured. The stretch of road was closed for a time to facilitate an examination by forensic collision investigators. Local Wicklow County councillor Shay Cullen said that the R755 is an extremely busy road, especially on Sundays, as it is the main road leading to the popular beauty spot at Glendalough. "We're seeing a huge number of cyclists and motorcyclists on that road," he said. "My condolences to the person's family," he said. Meanwhile, police in Canada are continuing to investigate the death of a 21-year-old Irish woman who was killed in a single-vehicle accident while on a remote road in northern Saskatchewan, a province in central Canada. The woman, whose name has not been released, was killed around 10.30am last Wednesday when the car she was driving rolled over on Highway 21 near Maidstone, a small farming town located about 200km north west of the city of Saskatoon. There were unconfirmed reports yesterday that she was on placement as an agricultural science student at UCD and is from Malahide, north county Dublin. A spokesman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Saskatoon said the accident remains under investigation. "We have a collision reconstructionist working on it," she said. However, she was unable to say what may have caused the crash except to say that a collision with wildlife is not believed to be a factor. The Department of Foreign Affairs said it is liaising with the woman's family. MacGill Summer School director Joe Mulholland (centre) relaxes with French Ambassador Stephane Crouzat and former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern ahead of the opening of the festival in Glenties, Co Donegal. Photo: North West Newspix The Brexit fallout will leave a gaping hole in Northern Ireland's economy which must be addressed in ongoing negotiations, Bertie Ahern has warned. Mr Ahern, who was Taoiseach from 1997 until 2008 and played a key role in EU negotiations and the northern peace talks, gave a clear assessment of the ongoing problems facing the Brexit negotiations. He stressed that the EU could not undo its founding principles - especially the borderless single market rules - in order to forge a compromise with one country that wants to leave. Mr Ahern said the EU had backed the North's peace process since the first IRA ceasefire in 1994. Brussels provided 150m in special grants for the current funding period 2014-2020 and he hoped that this would continue, even after Brexit takes the North out of the EU from next March. "There is no reason why the European Union cannot continue to support the peace process in Ireland within the changing new political architecture of the European Union," Mr Ahern said, adding that support for that process also came from the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Expand Close Hero: John Hume. Photo: PA / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Hero: John Hume. Photo: PA Mr Ahern pointed out that within eight months the North would lose its three MEPs and their influence in the EU law-making process. This also reflected a huge loss of EU funds to the North. The North, said Mr Ahern, received huge sums from EU social and regional funds and the current 2014-2020 funding period will deliver a total of 2.6bn to its farmers. A total of 87pc of farm income in Northern Ireland came from Brussels farm payments. Mr Ahern said that other important issues - notably the need to avoid a hard Border - crowded out a debate on this loss of EU funds for the North. "How much money will the British government allocate post-2020 to substitute EU- financed programmes that operate in Northern Ireland at this time? This is a very serious issue indeed and all contracting parties need to sit down and assess it," he said. Mr Ahern said that the timeframe for an EU-UK Brexit deal was now very tight as agreement must be reached by October. He welcomed Britain's support for a "frictionless Border" in Ireland and saluted support from key EU figures for Ireland's cause. However, he also warned of difficulties. "The integrity of the internal market is not premised on countries seeking to participate in some elements of the internal market and not in others," Mr Ahern said. Delivering a lecture to honour John Hume at the MacGill summer school in Donegal, Mr Ahern hailed the SDLP founder as the key person who helped deliver peace in the North via the Good Friday Agreement. "John Hume, in my view, is the real hero of the peace process," he said. Fianna Fail is planning to organise in the North, contest elections, and may even stand candidates for local councils the following summer. But news of the development comes amid growing fury inside the party at efforts by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to get a guaranteed two-year extension to the arrangement which underpins the Fine Gael-led minority coalition. Expand Close Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien That would postpone a general election - seen as inevitable by next spring at latest - until summer 2020. Mr Varadkar made his demand to Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin during talks about the confidence and supply deal last Thursday, when he cited the need for political stability as Brexit talks enter a crucial phase. Many leading figures in Fianna Fail allege Fine Gael later leaked the demand as part of a stratagem to justify an early general election as it continues to lead in opinion polls and its rivals now appear ill-prepared. On developments in the North, Mr Martin has told the national executive that preparations are at an advanced stage and an announcement is expected in September. Talks on some kind of linkage with the SDLP are continuing and it is unclear whether this would involve a merger, partnership or arm's length cooperation. The party's youth wing, Ogra Fianna Fail, has been pushing on organising north of the Border and at a meeting of the national executive 12 days ago it sought a full report on the issue. Expand Close Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin. Photo: Mark Condren / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin. Photo: Mark Condren Mr Martin told the executive talks with the SDLP were continuing and progress was being made. "Mr Martin said he hoped an announcement on the issue can be made in September," one senior party source told the Irish Independent. There is widespread support in the FF parliamentary party for organising north of the Border. The SDLP has been eclipsed by Sinn Fein, is struggling to maintain direct links with voters in some parts of the North, and has had no seats in the Westminster parliament since the May 2017 election. "But, it has 12 MLAs in the Northern Assembly and a big number of councillors across the North. "For all the problems and disadvantages, the SDLP still has a residual organisation," the Fianna Fail source said. Three Fianna Fail TDs said they supported the idea and that there was widespread support among other TDs and senators. But there is fury and disarray about the Taoiseach's move, which was made public over the weekend. Several Fianna Fail TDs castigated Mr Varadkar for breaching the content of a private discussion with the leader of the Opposition. Transport spokesman Robert Troy said the Taoiseach could not be trusted and was more interested in furthering his party interests than building national stability around Brexit. Finance spokesman Michael McGrath insisted there would be no discussion on extending the deal until after the Budget in October. "More games from the Taoiseach. So much for a private discussion leader to leader. Can't help himself with the constant leaking and spinning," Mr McGrath said on Twitter. Another opinion poll showed Fianna Fail trailing Fine Gael by 13 points and in third place, fractionally behind Sinn Fein. The Behaviour & Attitudes poll for the 'The Sunday Times' put Fine Gael on 34pc to Fianna Fail's 21pc, with Sinn Fein on 22pc. Fine Gael's continued high poll ratings has increased an appetite for an early general election within the party. Fianna Fail has trailed its rivals for a year and wants to wait longer for an election - but is adamant Mr Varadkar should not get what is viewed as a two-year 'blank cheque' for Fine Gael in government. Former Government Minister Martin O'Donoghue has died, aged 85. He was appointed to the new post of Minister for Economic Planning and Development by Taoiseach Jack Lynch on his first day in the Dail in 1977. He was the chief author of the Fianna Fail election manifesto that year when the party achieved a 20-seat majority in the Dail. He was elected Fianna Fail TD for Dun Laoghaire. Born in Dublin, he was educated in Crumlin and worked as a waiter. He became a mature student at Trinity College, Dublin and was appointed Associate Professor of Economics at the college in 1970. He was economic adviser to Taoiseach Jack Lynch for three years until 1973. When Charles Haughey became Taoiseach in 1979, he abolished O'Donoghue's role. Mr O'Donoghue returned to the Cabinet in 1982 as Minister for Education. He resigned as Education Minister in October 1982 when he refused to support Mr Haughey in a leadership challenge. The following month, he lost his Dail seat in the general election. He was a Fianna Fail senator for five years until 1987 and later left the party to join the Progressive Democrats. He was a director of the Central Bank for a decade until 2008. He is survived by his wife Evelyn, children Audrey, Raphael and Tressan, and his brother Tom. Fianna Fail Leader Micheal Martin said he was "deeply saddened" by his death. "He was a true gentleman. He was a committed public representative who had a long and distinguished career in national politics," said Deputy Martin. His funeral Mass will be in the Church of Saint Paul of the Cross, Mount Argus, Harold's Cross, on Tuesday at 11.30am. Micheal Martin has claimed the Government's contingency planning on Brexit is "late in the day" and raised concern over relations between Dublin and London, which he said are "poor". The Fianna Fail leader also argued the relationship between Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and British prime minister Theresa May "doesn't seem strong". He said: "I think that's a worry because, at the end of the day, when Brexit happens, we cannot underestimate the importance of that relationship to our economy." Mr Martin's remarks come as concerns grow about the prospect of a hard Brexit. In a major speech in Belfast last Friday, Mrs May repeated her rejection of a so-called backstop that would effectively see a trade border along the Irish Sea if the UK crashes out of Europe without a deal. She reiterated her goal of avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland by reaching an overall Brexit deal with the EU. However, fears have increased that even if such a deal can be done, it will be rejected by MPs at Westminster. Mrs May's fragile hold on power was demonstrated by a series of narrow House of Commons votes on Brexit last week. Here, the Government announced details of its contingency planning. This includes the need for additional controls and checks at ports and airports and plans for around 1,000 new customs and veterinary inspectors by 2021. Mr Martin said: "It's late in the day to be making these announcements". He claimed there has been an "incoherence" in the Government's approach to Brexit. He noted that the backstop deal was described as "bulletproof" by the Taoiseach last December. Mr Martin said there had been an expectation that legal text for this would be agreed in March and again before a European Council meeting in June but "none of that happened". He said there has been "backsliding" by Britain since the December commitment. Mr Martin said key to minimising the damage of Brexit will be the trading relationship with Britain. He said east-west access is "critical to the Irish economy" particularly for agri-food and small and medium-sized companies. He remained hopeful that a deal on the Border can be reached as "all sides are committed to no border". A spokesperson for Mr Varadkar did not directly address Mr Martin's criticisms, instead pointing to remarks made by the Taoiseach last Friday after Mrs May's Belfast speech. Mr Varadkar said the Government "don't want any barriers to trade or a border north-south or east-west" and said the backstop put forward by the EU in March is "workable" and gives the guarantee to avoid a hard border. He also said: "If the UK has alternative proposals as to how we can achieve that, we are happy to consider them". Separately, gardai are conducting a major security review on the impact of a possible hard Brexit, particularly in Border counties. Sources said the review will highlight opportunities for crime in terms of smuggling, the impact on European policing and the additional resources required. John O'Keeffe of the Garda Representative Association said a hard border would necessitate full-time permanent checkpoints along the main Border crossing points. With resources at their current level, he said only a dozen of the around 208 crossings along the 308-mile Border are capable of being fully manned. "Even if Brexit were never to occur, there are still not enough resources in place to properly police this large rural Border hinterland," he said. The Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan, assured rank-and-file gardai at their annual conference in May that there will be no sealed border with Northern Ireland but a 'hard border' is possible. In Britain, hard-line Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg predicted that the UK is heading for a no-deal exit from the EU and, speaking on LBC radio, claimed this is "nothing to be frightened of". Meanwhile, Mrs May was digging in on her Brexit deal offer to Brussels after the EU publicly doubted that it is workable. UK government sources insisted she is "standing over" the Chequers cabinet compromise on withdrawal plans. That is despite a mauling of the initiative by EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier. Mr Barnier openly questioned the credibility of the UK's proposals in his first response to the government's White Paper on Brexit. And in comments that will likely alarm arch-Brexiteers in Tory ranks, Fine Gael MEP Mairead McGuinness, told the BBC that Mrs May would need to abandon some of her red lines to clinch a deal. She said: "It's a starting point, it's not an end deal." Minister Denis Naughten has revealed he is prepared to sign nomination papers to allow a candidate to get on the ballot paper to challenge President Michael D Higgins. The intervention by the senior independent minister will boost hopes among potential contenders in the race for the Park who hope to secure a nomination by winning 20 signatures from Oireachtas members. Mr Naughten told the Sunday Independent that he believes Mr Higgins has "done a really good job as President". He added that he had been reassured that Mr Higgins was in the role in the event that he had had to be called upon during the protracted negotiations to form a government in 2016. "However, having said that I do not wish to impede a candidacy for the presidential election. Therefore I would be prepared to provide my signature to a nomination paper where such a candidate has already secured 19 signatures from members of the Oireachtas," he said. Mr Naughten said he will make no further comment on any of the potential candidates, but that he is willing to talk to anyone who has secured 19 signatures. The number of possible candidates grew in recent days with former GAA president Liam O'Neill saying he is considering a run for Aras and Uachtarain. He joins others like Independent Senators Gerard Craughwell, Padraig O Ceidigh and Joan Freeman as well as artist Kevin Sharkey who have expressed an interest in entering the race. While Mr Higgins, as incumbent president, can nominate himself and has announced his intention to seek a second term, other candidates must either seek the backing of 20 Oireachtas members or four local authorities. The task of looking for Oireachtas signatures has been made all the more difficult by Fine Gael, Fianna Fail and Labour TDs and Senators throwing their support behind Mr Higgins and Sinn Fein's intention to run its own candidate. Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice has been coordinating efforts in Leinster House to garner enough signatures for at least one candidate. Its understood that the strategy is to see which candidate has the most support, with the others to bow out and potentially seek a nomination through the local authority route. He said during the week he has received confirmation from 19 Oireachtas members that they're open to backing a candidate to run. The Roscommon TD declined to say which candidate he'd be prepared to nominate saying he wants to see all the names in the field first. Last night Mr O'Neill, who was GAA president from 2012 to 2015, said he is still consulting with friends in politics, his family and others on whether or not he will seek a nomination. He expects to make a decision early this week. Asked why he is interested in running, Mr O'Neill replied: "I think every citizen who has been in a leadership position in any section of their life would love to lead their country." He said that while he has not been directly involved in politics he has been "huge enthusiast for the Irish language all my life" and added: "I love my country." The Co Laois man said: "When the suggestion is put to you, would you like to have a shot at leading your country, it's very hard to rule that out without giving it consideration." Mr O Ceidigh and Ms Freeman declined opportunities to comment on their potential bids. Ms Freeman, the founder of suicide prevention charity Pieta House, wrote to several local authorities last week seeking their support for a nomination. In her letter she indicated that her campaign would focus on well-being and promoting volunteerism. What do we want in a President? Pages 14 & 15 More than 170 politicians from across the spectrum, both here and in the UK, have called on the British Government to reform Northern Ireland's abortion laws. The group, including TDs and Senators, Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs and peers and Stormont Assembly members said it was a matter of protecting women's human rights and honouring the Good Friday Agreement. According to the group, nearly 1,000 women and girls had to travel to Britain for safe terminations in 2017, while others took illegal abortion drugs at home. Calls for the North's abortion laws to be reformed have intensified after the referendum here resoundingly backed liberalising legislation here. Downing Street has previously said this is a devolved issue. However, the absence of a power-sharing agreement at Stormont has placed pressure on Westminster to act. Prime Minister Theresa May's allies in the DUP, on whom she relies for her Commons majority, are staunchly opposed to relaxing the abortion laws. The group of legislators urged the UK Government to repeal sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, which make it a crime for a woman to cause her own abortion in Northern Ireland. They wrote: "This is the first and critical step to ending the treatment of British and Irish women living in Northern Ireland as second-class citizens, who do not enjoy the same access to healthcare as their counterparts do across these islands." Sinn Fein leaders Michelle O'Neil and Mary Lou McDonald signed the letter, along with Fine Gael Senator Catherine Noone, who chaired the Oireachtas committee which recommended changing the law in the Republic. Micheal Martin has hit out at the UK Government over its handling of the Brexit process and reiterated calls for Northern Ireland to become a special economic zone. The Fianna Fail leader made the comments at an annual political event in Co Donegal on Monday. During his speech, Mr Martin accused the Irish government of helping to dramatise the debate surrounding the backstop arrangement. Speaking at the MacGill Summer School where political discussions take place the TD said the Brexit process is at a moment of undeniable crisis. Todays Tory Party is beyond satire and has long ceased to be amusing, he said. It has put to rest any lingering sense of the seriousness of the self-regarding and childishly erudite class of public figure which emerges from many of their most prominent schools." He added that the moment of truth on Brexit and Northern Ireland has been reached. The choices facing us are starker than ever, the room for manoeuvre is becoming narrower by the day there is no more time for delay, Mr Martin said. He also addressed the issues around the Irish border and what he described as the irreconcilable demands of having no checks between the east and west. Clearly we have to look for an approach which overcomes the fears of a constitutional sleight-of-hand created by the ridiculous and almost messianic over-spinning of the backstop last December, he said. Mr Martin said the best opportunity for Northern Ireland was for it to become a special economic zone. He said that Northern Ireland would benefit from the best of both worlds, with access to both the UK and EU markets, and that special treatment would give it in certain circumstances a competitive advantage. Monday marked 560 days since the Northern Ireland Assembly collapsed due to a bitter fallout between Sinn Fein and the DUP. On Thursday, the meeting of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference will take place for the first time since 2007. Mr Martin said he hoped the meeting will mark some major initiative to restore Northern Irelands institutions. Until this happens, whatever is the Brexit outcome will lack essential democratic legitimacy, he added. I dont want to blame the violence of recent weeks on the Brexit debate, but there is no doubt that the political vacuum in Northern Ireland is creating a dangerous climate. He also hit out at former Tory leader David Cameron over his decision to hold the EU referendum, describing it as one of the most disastrous failures of leadership in a modern democracy. It is not just that the people were presented with a dishonest and incomplete question it showed a cavalier disregard for one of the greatest achievements of modern democracies, the peace and reconciliation agenda in Northern Ireland, he said. By now, most of us have become used to seeing the words '21-day aged' or 'aged for 28 days' on pre-packed beef in our supermarkets and butchers shops. What was once seen as a niche product only really required by restaurateurs has now gone mainstream. But how exactly is beef aged? Are some methods better than others, and is there a perfect age we should be seeking out in order to get the best flavour? The godfather of Irish aged beef is undoubtedly Peter Hannan. Based in Moira in Northern Ireland, the Kildare native's company, Hannan Meats, ages its beef in chambers lined with Himalayan pink salt. Its products are served in top restaurants in Ireland and Britain, and sold in shops like Fortnum & Mason in London. At this stage there isn't a significant award for beef production or flavour that Hannan hasn't won. But that's not to say that things took off quickly for him when it came to finding a market for his aged beef. "We've dry-aged beef for years, but it took us seven years of trial and error to arrive at the method we use now. We didn't build our first salt chamber until we were pretty sure that it would make a real impact, and what we learned along the way is that there is no blueprint or recipe to follow," he says. According to Hannan, no two ageing processes are the same for the simple reason that there are so many variables at work. "It depends on the beef you're starting out with, and whether you have light, salt, humidity - they all play a role. Thousands of people around the world age beef, but each of them produces a different product. It's like a fingerprint; each one is unique," he says. That said, there are some common parameters. All meat benefits from some ageing after an animal is killed and before it is sold and eaten. After an animal is slaughtered, enzymes go to work, breaking down the tissue and making the meat more tender and easier to digest. Chicken needs a few days, while pork and lamb generally take a little longer. However, beef is where the technique of ageing meat is most important, which explains why it's celebrated on the label when you see it in the shops. There are two predominant ways of ageing meat - wet and dry. Wet age\ing is the new kid on the block, a technique that appeared with the development of plastics and refrigeration. Using this method, the meat is portioned up, vacuum-packed straight away, and shipped to the supermarket. The ageing it goes through happens in transit, as it sits in fridges and lorries, and eventually in the supermarket's storage area. During this time, the meat sits in its own blood and can end up with a slightly liver-ish flavour that most people now consider normal. This is the cheaper way of getting meat to market, with the result that it's the method used for most meat that is purchased and consumed in Ireland. With dry ageing, after slaughter the meat is hung in a cold room and left for between 21 and 28 days before being portioned up and shipped out for sale. "The reason you see these specific numbers - 21 and 28 days - on labels is that this is about as far as you can take a piece of meat in a cold room without any other controls. There's no nice way of saying it: what happens after that 28 day period is that if the environment the meat is in isn't further controlled, it starts to rot," says Peter Hannan. "In the 28 day period, the enzymes in the meat have done their job and it has become about as tender as it's going to get." But 28 days isn't as far as meat can go. Hannan ages meat for far longer, and 30 days is the minimum age he provides. As to the upper limit, there basically isn't one. "The whole point of taking beef beyond a period of time is not about tenderness, it's about concentrating flavour. When meat is properly dry-aged in the right environment past this 21 to 28-day window, it loses moisture and starts to dehydrate, leaving a more concentrated beefy flavour behind," he says. To further control the process, Hannan uses light and humidity controls, and manages the air speed inside his ageing chamber. "Dry-aged meat is generally more expensive than wet-aged, but there's a good reason for this. The process of dry-ageing is about displacing moisture, so the meat loses weight. In addition, when it's finished it also needs to be trimmed to cut away waste," he says. "If you put a 20kg rib and loin together in a dry ageing room for a month, when it comes out it will weigh around 16kg - you basically lose 18 to 20pc of the weight." Hannan has around 5,500 beef loins and ribs in circulation on his site at any one time, and among them are a couple of ribs in the salt chamber that are 1,200 days old. "We use them to do tests and make sure that everything we're doing is safe," he says. And while the minimum amount of time Hannan Meats ages beef for is 30 days, restaurants and other customers often ask for ages far in excess of this. "The average age that meats come out is 35 to 38 days, and then we do some extra aged for the London chef Mark Hix, and for Fortnum & Mason. We've provided 75-day aged beef, and even gone to 100 days for some customers," he says. Hannan's own preferred age of beef is 45 days - after this point, he personally feels that things get a little funky. "We believe that 45 days gives you the perfect balance between tenderness, flavour and succulence - all the qualities that make a really fantastic piece of beef. Once you go beyond that, you're not changing the tenderness but what you get is more and more concentrated flavour and a certain nuttiness. Go too far and you end up with a slightly funky blue cheese flavour - which is lovely in cheese, but not for everyone in beef," he says. Reuven Diaz is half Japanese and half Filipino, and was raised in a variety of countries including South Africa, Thailand, Japan, the Philippines and the US, as his father worked with Unicef. Today, along with his partner Jeni Glasgow, he runs the Eastern Seaboard restaurant in Drogheda, Co Louth. He's a customer of Peter Hannan's, and offers a 65-day aged steak on his menu. "After 28 days you can have a perfectly fine piece of meat, but people are far more receptive now to what's out there and to pushing the boundaries. People absolutely love the aged steak we offer," Diaz says. "The easiest way to describe it is that it gives you a little more of an intense umami flavour that you just can't get with younger beef. Some people say it's nutty or earthy, and I guess that's true, but it's also just richer in flavour." When he first put it on the menu three or four years ago, Diaz had to tell customers what to expect when they ordered it. "We had to watch people send back steaks saying 'that's gone off'. It broke my heart, and the reality was that the people sending the steaks back just hadn't tasted anything like them before. We were spending a lot of money on very good beef and people didn't get it," he says. That's no longer an issue, and today the 65-day aged steak on the Eastern Seaboard menu is a popular item that people travel for. "You guys are so lucky here in Ireland that all your beef is grass-fed - that's basically a luxury in most countries. You pay extra for it in the US, for example, because most of the cattle there is grain-fed," he says. The difference, according to Diaz, is that grass-fed beef has actual flavour in its meat as well as in its fat, whereas grain-fed beef in the US tends not to have as much natural flavour. "Grain-fed beef is seductive because it's very fatty, but it doesn't satisfy in quite the same way. There are quite a few places offering properly dry-aged beef now, which is very encourageing," says Diaz. Jess Murphy runs Kai restaurant in Galway along with her partner David, and was recently named best chef in Ireland at the Restaurants Association of Ireland awards. A native of New Zealand, she is also a fan of Irish dry-aged beef. "For me it's important to know exactly where our beef comes from. We work with Brady's Family Butchers in Athenry because they have their own abattoir, which means I have complete oversight of the chain of production from cow to plate," she says. "I go out to them every six months and see the whole process from killing, to breaking down, to ageing, to us. We currently have a striploin on the menu, but we also have an ox-tongue terrine that's popular and that uses the whole head of the animal. In winter, we have an oxtail soup that is really fantastic," she says. Murphy says it's difficult to overstate just how good Irish beef is. "It's 100pc, hands down, the best in the world. I've been everywhere - I've eaten wagyu in Japan and so on - but I think Irish beef is out of this world," she says. She likes her beef aged to about 32 days for her restaurant; for her, that's the sweet spot. But when it comes to cooking methods, she's totally open to anything, from rare to 'cremated'. "I don't really care how people like to eat their beef - of course I'd rather they order their steak medium rare as I think that's how it tastes best, but I'm more interested in paying my 23 staff and keeping the doors open, so anyway the customer wants it is just fine with me." Anyone for jerky? Driven by health-conscious consumers looking for low-fat, high-protein snacks, the beef jerky industry is booming in Ireland. A number of companies here now offer these dried-beef products, and one of the most high profile is Rucksnacks, which was set up by a backpacker couple who saw how popular jerky was while they were travelling the world. "The one constant we found was dried beef snacks - we saw them in Canada, the US, South Africa and Asia, yet you didn't really see them in Ireland," says co-founder Colm Connolly (pictured right), a beef farmer from Monaghan. "We tend to associate beef with steaks and burgers, but we forget how good it is for us and how lean it is. That's where our company was born. We make our jerky in a fully-approved food grade environment, and carefully control all aspects of the process. The end product is the holy grail of snack foods: tasty, satisfying and healthy at the same time." Rucksnacks offers five flavours of jerky: original, honey roast, fiery chilli, spicy curry and sweet chilli. They're available from stockists nationwide or via the company's website rucksnacks.com, where a box of eight packets costs 20. "They're super high in protein - a pack typically comes in at about 16g per 30g pack, yet it's only 89 calories. We worked on it for over a year to get the product right," says Connolly. So how has this new, yet old, snack been received in Ireland? "We launched in 2016 and initially consumers were a bit wary, as they didn't really know what it was," Connolly says. "In the rest of the world it's entirely normal, but here it was a new thing. But Irish people in general are becoming much better travelled so they're seeing these kind of snacks abroad, and they're increasingly happy to see them here as a result." Who doesn't love to find a message in a bottle? That was the idea behind a Guinness publicity stunt of 1954. That summer, the company dropped 50,000 sealed bottles in different locations in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. Each bottle contained a message asking the finder to write to Guinness Exports Ltd (GEL), in Liverpool, and let the firm know where the bottle was found. The stunt was a resounding success. So much so, that Guinness did it again. In 1959, as part of the Guinness Bi-centenary celebrations, a further 150,000 bottles were dropped into the Atlantic Ocean from 38 different ships over a six-week period. Those bottles are still being washed ashore. A film crew found one in the Arctic in 2002 and, in 2017, one of them turned up on a beach in Nova Scotia. If you find one, don't open it. They're worth much more unopened (but can you imagine having the discipline not to open a message in a bottle from the 1950s?). The 1959 bottles were embossed with the outline of the North American continent, and sealed to protect the documents inside. The prettiest of the inclusions was a certificate from "the Office of King Neptune". Collectors love them and they tend to get snapped up quickly on eBay, but opened bottles don't make much money. Earlier this month a Texas vendor sold an opened bottle, without the inserts, for US $97.50 (around 84). The person behind the Guinness bottle drop was the inventive AW Fawcett, managing director of Guinness Exports Ltd (GEL), who was also responsible for decorating GEL's bright yellow delivery lorries with model leprechauns. There are two GEL leprechaun truck ornaments coming up for sale in Victor Mee's Auction of Irish pub memorabilia, which takes place on Tuesday. Both are around 18 inches tall, made of rubberoid, and designed to be mounted on the roof of sales vans and delivery lorries. "There were eight different types of leprechaun, designed for different international markets. We have an American and an English one," says Bryan Mee, auctioneer. Both leprechauns (est. 600 to 800 each) are carrying bottles of Guinness in one hand and harp in the other. The American leprechaun is a jolly-looking creature wearing a red and white spotted bow tie. The English one looks like he'd put a curse on you if you took his bottle of stout. What the auctioneers are hoping for, though, is competing collectors of Guinness memorabilia (of which there are many) with gaps in their leprechaun collection. It happens. On May 5 last, a figure of a leprechaun dressed in a red pointed hat, green coat and red trousers, holding a bottle of Guinness Foreign Extra Stout and a gilt harp, went under the hammer at Whyte's (est. 300 to 500). Like the pair at Victor Mee, the leprechaun was used by GEL to advertise stout to the overseas markets and came with a steel attachment to mount it on the roof of a vehicle. It surprised everyone by selling for 2,900 to a privately owned museum in Dublin. Victor Mee's pub memorabilia auction also includes more serious items, many of which came from the collection of John Sweeney, a third-generation publican from Ballyshannon, Co Donegal. The collection includes a Mitchell's 'Cruiskeen Lawn Old Irish Whisky' mirror, dating from the early 1900s (est. 4,000 to 6,000). "Mitchell's made whiskey in Belfast but they did very little advertising and they only ever made two types of mirror," Mee explains. "This one would have been given to John Sweeney's grandfather when it was new, shortly after he bought the Commercial Hotel in Ballyshannon." In the ownership of one careful family, the mirror (3 x 4 foot) is in very good nick. Sweeney's grandfather also hung onto to an early 20th-century bottle of Cruiskeen Lawn whiskey (est. 4,000 to 6,000), and had the sense to keep it in its protective paper sleeve. "There's very little fading on the label or evaporation of the whiskey," says Mee. "It's more of an investment piece than a drinker, only we did have a guy who came in to look at it yesterday and he says that he actually drinks the whiskies that he collects! I thought it was sacrilege, but each to his own." The sale also includes a bottle of Dunville's VR Old Irish Whiskey (est. 800 to 1,200), made in Belfast and winner of the Gold Medal for Irish whiskey at the Paris Exhibition of 1900. Time has taken its toll on the bottle which, although it has the original seal in place, has evaporated to the extent that it's only three-quarters full. Viewing continues at Victor Mee Auctions, Cloverhill, Belturbet, Co Cavan, today and over the weekend. There's an element of theatricality in the display. "Victor has a thing about setting something up so that people get an idea of what it has like at the time," Bryan Mee explains. "As you walk into the auction rooms there's a bar on your right and a shop on your left, just like it would have been in an Irish country pub." The mahogany bar, including the mirrored back and copper counter (est. 3,500 to 5,500), comes from a pub in Dublin. "There's a real move among publicans to install old bars and go back to the old way of running a pub with no TV or radio." See victormeeauctions.ie. In the Salerooms Fonsie Mealy Expand Close Mystery item: the sleeper / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mystery item: the sleeper A strange little object stole the show at Fonsie Mealy's Chatsworth Summer Fine Art Sale which took place on July 10 and 11. The sleeper: "a rare and unusual ethnographic (possibly Native American) item, modelled as a grotesque figure spread on torso, with hollowed and shape box on back, highlighted with painted faces". The object (est. 100 to 150, pictured) sold for 22,000. Leaving everyone scratching their heads and still none the wiser as to what it actually was. It looks like a wooden tortoise with a box instead of a shell on its back. There was another, milder, surprise when an unremarkable looking clock proved the top lot. The clock, catalogued as an "exceptionally fine and rare mid-19th century nickel-cased eight-day chronometer timepiece" was just 17cm high and had been in the ownership of a family in the West of Ireland for more than 80 years. It sold for 25,000. A small 18th-century Penal chalice, formerly belonging to the Mansfield Family of Morristown Lattin, Co Kildare (est. 700 to 1,000) sold for 4,000. See fonsiemealy.ie. Dolans There's everything from Hermes handbags to Edwardian rocking horses at Dolan's Connemara Auction, which takes place in Ballyconneely on the August Bank Holiday (Monday 6 and Tuesday 7), beginning at 12.30pm on each day. Paintings include the some of the big names of Irish art: a pastel and charcoal work by Sean Keating, Fear agus Bean on Oilean (est. 24,000 to 30,000); An Cheathru Rua by Charles Lamb (est. 10,000 to 12,000); and Fishermen In The West by John Behan (est. 4,000 to 6,000). The auction also includes work by Patrick Hennessy, Maurice MacGonigal, John Shinnors, and George Russell (AE). Additionally, this year's selection has handbags by Gucci, Louis Vuitton and a Hermes black & gilt-metal mounted bag (est. 2,800 to 3,500) plus an Edwardian rocking horse (est. 600 to 800). Viewing from July 29, see dolansart.com. Whyte's A small untitled piece of sculpture (est. 400 to 600) in bronze and coloured plastic by Edward Delaney sold for 3,200 at Whyte's Summer Art auction of July 9. The Samson Riddle, a series of six lithographic prints by Delaney, sold for 750. A small sculpture, Ceili Dancers by Oisin Kelly, sold for 640, while a ceramic bird of prey, made by Kelly at the Kilkenny Design Workshops, fetched 400. The sale included a number of interesting pieces by Harry Kernoff whose 1916-1966 Designs for Commemorating the Easter Rising Lily of the Valley and Celtic Warrior Head sold for 1,100. See whytes.ie. Pol O Conghaile takes in rapids and Venetian views on his latest adventure. The River Barrow Way Short sections of canal were stitched along the Barrow in the 18th century to make the river navigable, and today walkers can follow the surviving towpaths and roads along a 114km route that stretches all the way from Lowtown, Co Kildare, to the old monastic site of St Mullins, Co Carlow. I dip in and out of the Barrow Way -- first at Leighlinbridge, where a pair of swans flies past a stumpy old milestone beneath the stone bridge, and then at St Mullins, where a bright-green lump of a Norman motte offers a bird's-eye view over the gorge and gravestones below. The towpaths are amazingly peaceful, strewn with the husks of Ireland's industrial heritage -- derelict mills, warehouses, restored locks -- and spotted with riverside towns such as Rathangan and Graiguenamanagh, many of which originated with Norman fording points. In St Mullins, I stop into the heritage centre (087 997 7090; Monday to Wednesday), recently restored with the help of architecture students from UCD. "There were about three tractor-loads of crows nests taken out of that," says local community member Anne Doyle, pointing to the old bell tower. Details: See discoverireland.ie/ theriverbarrow. The marvellous Mr Kavanagh Borris House is the ancestral home of the MacMurrough Kavanaghs, and boasts a plum view over the Barrow Valley. Its best story has nothing to do with Leinster's High Kings, however. That belongs to Arthur Kavanagh. Born in 1831, Kavanagh was an MP who sailed down the Barrow to take his seat in Westminster. Not only that, he was a superb horseman, Lord Lieutenant of Carlow, a sailor whose adventures took him as far as the Persian Gulf, a bestselling author, a vigorous ladies' man, a dispatch rider for the East India Company, and the father of several children. All of which is remarkable enough -- until you learn that Arthur was born limbless. I take a tour of Borris House with a descendent, Morgan Kavanagh. The house is closed for visits in winter, but tours are running today and tomorrow at 3pm as part of a Christmas Craft Fair. If you take one, watch out for Arthur's bucket-style saddle on a rocking horse under the stairs. Details: 5pp. Tel: 059 977 1884; borrishouse.com. The pit-stop No matter what time of year you set foot inside the Step House Hotel, you'll find a fire lit in the lobby. Perhaps one reason for this is the fact that the 20-room hotel is an extension of James and Cait Coady's home, itself a former dower house of the old Borris estate. The couple transformed the place with a 10m refurb in 2007 -- not the most auspicious time to upgrade, but its classic styling, oak and burgundy leather-lined bar, and the reputation of head chef Alan Foley, have ensured that word travels. I stop by for dinner in Ruben's, set in the vaulted nooks of the old Coady kitchen. It's ambitious fare, the highlight of which is my starter -- a fillet of Kilmore cod topped with a crumbly crust of chorizo and baby watercress leaves (9). It's a beautifully worked combination of flavours -- one that has you reaching for the bread to mop up any remaining smears of sauce. After a main course of free-range saddleback pork (with sides included, 27) comes a creme brAlee (7) whose glaze is burnt in patches. A fleeting blip in an otherwise cosy, and cosmopolitan, interlude. Details: Borris, Co Carlow. Tel: 059 977 3209; stephousehotel.ie. By hook or by crook After its 120-mile journey from the Slieve Blooms, the Barrow finally flows into the sea, arm in arm with sister rivers the Nore and the Suir, along the Hook peninsula. Heritage runs deep here. In 1170, Strongbow vowed to take Waterford 'by Hook or by Crook'. Pirates reputedly stashed two tonnes of Spanish milled dollars at Dollar Bay in the 1700s, and the devil himself is said to have been unmasked during a card game at the forbidding Loftus Hall. Hook Head Safaris is a new company doing jeep expeditions (25/22) around this brilliantly blustery peninsula, but however you see it, don't miss Hook lighthouse. Perched like a policeman at Hook Head, the iconic, black-and-white-striped canister has been warning ships off the rocks here for some 800 years. Visitors can climb right up to the old keepers' quarters. Details: See hookheadsafaris.com; hookheritage.ie. The overnight suggestion Another chapter in the Barrow's history is bookmarked at New Ross, where the replica famine ship Dunbrody sits permanently on the city's quays. Thousands of emigrants boarded here for a gruelling transatlantic crossing, including Patrick Kennedy, JFK's great-grandfather. After passing the ship, I overnight at the Brandon House Hotel. A wedding is in full flight, but the staff still have time to be friendly; the GM tweets to ask whether dinner should be kept, I'm given a room far from the madding crowd, and a busy manager walks me through the Solas Croi Eco Spa -- a bizarre multi-storey sphere that looks (and lights up) like a planetarium. Brandon House originally dates from Victorian times, with various additions built on over the years, and I think it's best described as a four-star workhorse today. The spa, a decent pool and a comfy library bar are selling points, but my room feels tired, several corridors and stairwells throw up scuffs and garish lighting, and its art collection ranges from the brilliant to the bewildering. Details: B&B from approximately 79 per room. Tel: 051 421703; brandonhousehotel.ie. From small beginnings Finding the source of a river is a tricky business. When exactly does a puddle become a pool? When does a trickle become a torrent? Where does the Barrow emerge on Barna Mountain, before setting off on its 120-mile journey from Slieve Blooms to Hook Head? "The stream simply oozed from a thousand places in the spongy ground and trickled in hidden rills between thick clumps of rushes until finally it ran down a sloping yellow sandstone slab, tumbled into a deep pool and sang its first song," as TF O'Sullivan writes in 'Goodly Barrow'. According to legend, Ireland's second-longest river has its source in an enchanted spring, but the closest I get is the Glenbarrow Waterfall. An easy walking loop here follows the young river upstream, arriving at a tree-shaded breakout where the waterfall spills over several sandstone steps. I hop across the boulders, taking a picture in the crisp winter light. Details: Glenbarrow, Rosenallis, Co Laois. See slievebloom.ie. The canoe expedition "They're not as bad as they seem when you're looking down into their teeth," Charlie Horan says. He's edging our canoe out over the lip of a weir at Goresbridge. Coursing into the rapids, a foamy sheet of white water dumps itself on to my lap. If I wasn't awake, I am now. Charlie runs Go with the Flow, a company staging river expeditions down the Barrow. He used to own a pub in Roscrea, but traded a life behind the counter for the great outdoors. The trips use Canadian (open) canoes, and range from a couple of hours to several days in length. After shooting our first weir, we paddle south towards Borris, spying a stately heron, a zipping kingfisher and two leaping salmon en route. The river alternates between open fields and tight channels, where autumnal oaks lean over the water as if trying to touch us. We're never far from roads or stone-arched bridges, but still I feel like a frontiersman, coursing along on the swollen, coffee-coloured flow. Passing through the Borris House estate, we pull in under a little arch for a stroll through the woods, before carrying on to shoot our final weir, eight or nine miles downriver from the starting point -- a four-foot drop at Clashaganny. Details: 35pp for a half-day. Tel: 087 252 9700; gowiththeflow.ie. The Venetian view Most drivers bypass Monasterevin on the M7, but I'm still surprised to find the town isn't even listed in my 'Lonely Planet'. Its leafy streets and stony facades yield plenty of secrets. Did you know the famous tenor John Count McCormack lived at Moore Abbey? That Gerard Manley Hopkins declared Monasterevin "one of the props and struts of my existence"? That the town is lined with Georgian architecture, or that it hosts a Venice of Ireland festival every summer? Following several walkers over a drawbridge dating from 1826, I end up on a canal-bearing aqueduct over the Barrow. Nearby, commuter trains rattle along a viaduct, and an old stone bridge undulates in the distance. More should be made of this place. Details: facebook.com/ veniceofireland. Last week we heard about yet another Facebook fiasco. A Channel 4 undercover investigation revealed that Facebook moderators were instructed not to remove violent, abusive, racist, extremist or graphic content - even when it violated guidelines. This revelation may come as yet another shock, but those of us who work frontline in this area know exactly what sort of extreme content is readily available online, and this is precisely why Data Scientist Professor Barry O'Sullivan and I campaigned for almost two years to stop the Government lowering the Irish Digital Age of Consent to 13. Our campaign led to an extraordinary coalition of opposition parties and Independent TDs and culminated in a Dail vote which defeated the Government. I am proud to say that a mixture of expert opinion, parent power, common sense and good old-fashioned democracy prevailed. The Irish Digital Age of Consent is now 16, affording our children and young people greater protection from the online 'attention merchants' that want to profile, target and monetise them. We should never outsource child development and parenting to social technology companies. We should not allow these companies to dictate the moral and ethical compass of our society, and, more importantly, of our children. In 2013, following some online incidents, an independent and expert Internet Content Governance Advisory Group was established. I was a member of that group, and our report highlighted the apparent ease with which young people could access or stumble across disturbing or harmful content online. I also contributed to the 2016 Irish Law Reform Commission report which recommended that "the Office of the Digital Safety Commissioner of Ireland should be established to promote digital and online safety as well as overseeing and regulating an efficient and effective procedure for takedown of harmful digital communications". What is meant by harmful digital communications? Precisely the sort of content revealed in the Channel 4's Dispatches programme, everything from offensive racist memes to a video of a grown man punching and beating a toddler. The programme illustrated how thousands of reported posts, including potential posts concerning suicide threats and self-harm, stayed on Facebook's site unmoderated while Dispatches filmed undercover. Facebook's stated moderation aim is a 24-hour turnaround. Unfortunately, it's not just the users of these platforms who are being harmed by exposure to extreme content. Spare a thought for the content moderators of the internet - individuals who are hired to remove beheadings, tortures, rapes, and child abuse images from search and social media sites and who are increasingly reporting severe emotional fallout from what they've seen while doing their work. The ill-effects associated with this work - insomnia, anxiety, depression, recurrent nightmares - are very similar to those of people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Facebook outsources content for moderation to a Dublin company, CPL Resources. I believe it is unacceptable to use human filters to deal with the worst excesses of the net. These companies cannot analyse every single image and video the second it's uploaded, and that is why these social tech models are fundamentally flawed and unsustainable. So what are we doing about the companies that profit from extreme content and the dissemination of harmful digital communications? In February 2017, reports emerged that Ireland was about to get its first social media watchdog as Minister for Communications Denis Naughten was considering the establishment of a Digital Safety Commissioner who would have statutory powers to protect children online, and to force social technology companies, such as Twitter and Facebook, to take down offensive or abusive content. However, later that year, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar suddenly declared that "appointing a commissioner was not the right path forward". This was followed by fanfare again earlier this year when Naughten announced that he would appoint a Digital Safety Commissioner and that this child protection role would be informed by similar successful models in Australia and New Zealand. However, earlier this month when the Government launched its new 'Action Plan for Online Safety', they were unable or unwilling to commit to a timeline for the appointment. Naughten claimed there were "jurisdictional and other legal issues" that required further discussion. So here we are almost five years later with little or nothing being done to tackle harmful content online meaningfully. Babies are being born, kids are growing up, and lives are being changed. Society is being reshaped. We cannot wait for endlessly procrastinating politicians to do something; we have to demand action - now. The oversight and regulatory role of a Digital Safety Commissioner could apply to a wide range of digital or online service providers - yet under current leadership, there appears to be little political will or appetite to enforce governance in cyberspace. However, there is some hope on the horizon, Fianna Fail's communications spokesperson Timmy Dooley has said that he supports the role of an Irish Digital Safety Commissioner and that the office should have the power to sanction and fine Facebook or others if they fail to take down offensive material. Labour TD Sean Sherlock called on Mr Naughten to immediately appoint a safety commissioner and emphasised the need to regulate or Ireland could be internationally perceived as a safe space for 'that kind of content'. Penalties seem to be a way forward - the European Commission recently fined Google 4.34bn for illegal practices to maintain the dominance of their search engine, a breach of EU anti-trust rules. But Ireland appears to be pandering to technology companies. Mr Varadkar responded to the horrendous C4 undercover report as follows: "Facebook has community standards and we expect them to uphold their own standards. The evidence produced by Dispatches is that they haven't on all occasions. That would represent, in my view, a failure of self-regulation." It's all very well to lament a failure of corporate self-regulation, or in Facebook speak "community standards", but expecting social media companies to self-regulate is like expecting drink-drivers to self-regulate and award themselves penalty points. Self-regulation is entirely inappropriate in this instance, given the apparent conflict-of-interest regarding how social tech companies profit from ads linked to problematic content. This Government and its representatives like to present as being 'tech literate,' yet repeatedly show a complete lack of understanding of the impact of technology on our children and our society. Leadership is not defined by authoritarian self-aggrandisement, photo ops with billionaire tech entrepreneurs, or by spin on Twitter. Real political leadership is grounded in upholding our Constitution enhancing and protecting the fundamental rights of Irish citizens. Our youth have rights; they have the right to learn, engage with and experience technology, the right to online connectivity and to access opportunities and information, they have a right to healthy mental and physical development. They also have a right not to be bombarded with hardcore pornography, hate speech, extreme violence and self-harm content. When Irish children are exposed to extreme and age-inappropriate material online, it is a fundamental breach of their right to innocence and their right to a childhood. Those who facilitate this abuse must be held to account. Elected representatives from the President down to the local county councillor have a duty of care to the young people of Ireland, in the real-world and online - they must challenge and hold accountable those who are responsible for polluting cyberspace. Facebook is not alone in the extreme content space - YouTube has been accused of 'violence' against young children regarding pre-school content on its channels, video nasties such as 'dark Peppa Pig', and Twitter has been criticised for failing to prevent a torrent of propaganda and disinformation during the US presidential election. There is, however, some good news concerning corporate responsibility in the tech sector; Microsoft recently called for AI regulation of facial recognition technology, expressing concern regarding the protection of privacy as a human right. Social tech companies are now on the back foot - emails obtained under the Freedom of Information Act highlight that Facebook was so concerned about potential fall-out from the Cambridge Analytica debacle that they wrote to the Taoiseach's advisers asking if he had watched Zuckerberg's televised apology. Naughten racing to hold talks with Facebook in New York is intended to impress, but, given the pattern of behaviour, meetings are likely to be ineffective. Our Government should do its job and govern, first step would be to set up a Commission of Investigation into the C4 revelations. If Facebook doesn't co-operate or attempts to hide behind jurisdictional or other legal excuses, then the Government should consider asking it to leave Ireland. Facebook's activities on Irish soil don't just disgrace Facebook, they risk disgracing us, too. Tony McGregor, Taylor McGregor and Erin McGregor at the the inaugural Xpose Benefit Awards. Picture: Brian McEvoy Conor McGregors parents Tony and Margaret McGregor at the Las Vegas weigh-in. Photo: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile An Irish Rail spokesman said that Conor McGregor's father Tony should get a leap card to avoid excess change when paying for tickets. Wed recommend that Mr McGregor resolves the problem by purchasing a leap card," they told Independent.ie. If money is as tight as his trousers, hell save on his fare as well. You can save up to 31pc using a leap card." On Sunday, Mr McGregor hit out at the Dart ticket machine - insisting that all the coins received in change don't fit in his designer suits. Expand Close Tony McGregor, Taylor McGregor and Erin McGregor at the the inaugural Xpose Benefit Awards. Picture: Brian McEvoy / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Tony McGregor, Taylor McGregor and Erin McGregor at the the inaugural Xpose Benefit Awards. Picture: Brian McEvoy In a bizarre social media rant, Tony McGregor said he received 17.30 in coins from a 20 note for a dart ticket from Lansdowne Road. In his Instagram post - which has gone viral over the past 24 hours - Tony said there is no room in his Hugo Boss suit. "I tendered a brand new 20 note into the automatic machine, looking for a single ticket to Dun Laoghaire," he said. "They had the bloody cheek to give me back...and I'm gonna show you this coinage. "20 - 17.30 and a miserable little one-way ticket, they gave me all that coinage. "I have no room to put those coins anywhere. Expand Close Conor McGregors parents Tony and Margaret McGregor at the Las Vegas weigh-in. Photo: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Conor McGregors parents Tony and Margaret McGregor at the Las Vegas weigh-in. Photo: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile Video of the Day "I wear a slim-fit, hand-fitted, Hugo Boss suit," he added. Meghan Markle at the womens singles final at Wimbledon in London on Saturday. Photo: REUTERS/Toby Melville The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle visit to Aras an Uachtarain. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle arrive for their visit with President and Sabina Higgins. Picture: Gerry Mooney Meghan Markle, in sunshine yellow Brandon Maxwell, illustrates how wearing one colour head-to-toe can have a leg-lengthening effect. Photo: Reuters The Duchess of Sussex attends a Summer Party at the British Ambassador's residence at Glencairn House, during a visit to Dublin, Ireland Meghan Markle is reportedly "so upset" at her father Thomas for his continuous interviews lambasting the British royal family. Britain's Duchess of Sussex hasn't been in contact with her father since he pulled out walking her up the aisle on May 19 at Windsor Castle, citing health issues and in recent months, he has given a number of interviews claiming he no longer has a working phone number for her. Most recently, he said she looks "terrified" in pictures and that he will continue to speak out until the palace "unfreezes" him. And the former Suits star is reportedly finding it difficult not to be able to comment on her ongoing family drama and having to put on a brave face in public. Expand Close Meghan's father Thomas. Photo: REUTERS / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Meghan's father Thomas. Photo: REUTERS "Shes essentially not able to prevent these kind of stories. Now, everything has to go through official Palace," a source told Us Weekly. "She doesnt have her own publicist, she cant make any comments on Twitter and she cant reach out to him to tell him to stop speaking to the press. Her fathers comments have an effect on everything." She's also said to be concerned that if she does reach out, her father will repeat details of their private conversations - as he did with her husband Prince Harry - to the media. "Meghan is so upset over Thomas. She doesnt even know how to communicate with her dad without knowing he wont exploit her," the insider added. Expand Close Meghan Markle, in sunshine yellow Brandon Maxwell, illustrates how wearing one colour head-to-toe can have a leg-lengthening effect. Photo: Reuters / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Meghan Markle, in sunshine yellow Brandon Maxwell, illustrates how wearing one colour head-to-toe can have a leg-lengthening effect. Photo: Reuters Separately, it was reported that Meghan and Harry are "frustrated" with her father. "If I chose in a month, or couple of months, to go to England - I want to see my daughter. I'm thinking about it. I don't care whether she is p***** off at me or not. I'm not going to wave flags and make a fool of myself," he told The Sun earlier this month. Video of the Day "I'd find a hotel room and try to reach them." It was believed that the newlyweds were planning a private trip to visit him in Mexico, but that plan has now been put on ice. (L-R) Lisa Armstrong, presenter Anthony McPartlin, presenter Declan Donnelly and Ali Astall attend Royal Ascot 2015 at Ascot racecourse on June 16, 2015 in Ascot, England. (Photo by Kirstin Sinclair/Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse) Ant McPartlin and Lisa Armstrong at the Ant McPartlin and Lisa Armstrong Wedding at St. Nicholas Church Taplow in Taplow. (Photo by Chris Uncle/FilmMagic) Lisa Armstrong and Anthony McPartlin attend The Prince's Countryside Fund Raceday at Ascot Racecourse on March 29, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images) Ant McPartlin has reached out to estranged wife Lisa Armstrong to "beg" her to sign their divorce papers. The Saturday Night Takeaway host (42), who recently sought treatment for substance abuse issues and was convicted of drink driving, split with his wife of 12 years earlier this year. He is now dating their former personal assistant Anne Marie Corbett. Lisa, a makeup artist, is said be "biding her time" in moving to the next phase of their divorce as she is grieving the end of their marriage and their 24-year relationship. "Ant called her last week and they spoke for the first time since the news about his relationship with Anne Marie came out," a source told The Sun. Expand Close Lisa Armstrong and Anthony McPartlin attend The Prince's Countryside Fund Raceday at Ascot Racecourse on March 29, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Lisa Armstrong and Anthony McPartlin attend The Prince's Countryside Fund Raceday at Ascot Racecourse on March 29, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images) "He begged her to hurry up with the divorce because he just wants to move on with his life. He is happy to give her what she wants, including the house, and to be very generous with a settlement." It's believed he has offered them their 7.5m home in Chiswick, London, in a bid to get the proceedings in motion. Lisa learned of Ant's new romance while browsing the internet and expressed her upset by posting two broken hearts on her Twitter account. One tweeter said to Lisa: "If it's true I would have hoped out of respect to you that he didn't let you find out from the media...you deserve better than that! Let the tears flow, talk about how much it hurts & let your family & friends support you. It won't feel like it now but you will get through this x (sic)" And she replied: "Nope. Just how you guys did x [broken heart emoji] (sic)" "She feels like she has been betrayed not just by Ant but by Anne-Marie," an insider added. Expand Close Ant McPartlin and Lisa Armstrong at the Ant McPartlin and Lisa Armstrong Wedding at St. Nicholas Church Taplow in Taplow. (Photo by Chris Uncle/FilmMagic) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Ant McPartlin and Lisa Armstrong at the Ant McPartlin and Lisa Armstrong Wedding at St. Nicholas Church Taplow in Taplow. (Photo by Chris Uncle/FilmMagic) My boyfriend and I have been in a committed relationship for two years. We love each other very much and he is as ideal a man as I could ever wish for. The only thing that bothers me is the sexual fantasy that he recently disclosed to me. He said he likes me to be submissive while we are having sex. That was fine at first until while having sex with me he called out my sister's name and then looked at my sister's picture until he orgasmed. When I talked to him about this he said he has no interest in my sister in real life. The reason he did what he did was because he knows it was forbidden and me being submissive makes him feel powerful. It's fine for me if it was only one time to spice things up. But it has been happening more and more often recently. He reassures me it was just a fantasy and he has no intention to actualise the fantasy. He did apologise afterwards. If it's just in the mind that is fine. What really bothers me is that he has to look at my sister's picture. I try to be open-minded but I worry it might not be just fantasy. I feel so guilty and I really don't know what should I do. Should I end the relationship just because he has this weird fantasy? Mary replies: This is taking sisterly love to a whole new level and you have nothing to feel guilty about. You went along with this on the basis that it was just once and now it is becoming more frequent. I'm sure you got a shock when you realised what was going on, especially when he used your sister's photograph. That is bringing the realms of fantasy far too close to reality and I'm not surprised it is making you uneasy. How would your boyfriend feel if you looked at a photograph of your favourite actor/musician, or a particularly good looking friend of his, while he was making love to you? There is no need right now to end the relationship but nobody should have to partake in anything sexual if they are not 100pc committed. Video of the Day Explain to your boyfriend that this particular action is making you very unhappy and you cannot allow him to continue to do it. He will need to find something else to make himself feel powerful and it certainly should not be at your expense. This is the moment of pure joy as a hand-reared chimp who was rejected by his own mother is reunited with his human parents. Limbani is seen crying out in joy before leaping into the arms of carer Jorge Sanchez and then his wife Tania. The brilliant scene was captured by staff at the Zoological Wildlife Foundation Miami where Limbani lives. Tania and Jorge took on full around the clock car for Limbani, an inquisitive baby chimpanzee, in the first few months of his life. And its a video youll want to watch with the sound turned on. The couple, along with others at ZWF Miami, stepped in when Limbani was rejected by the mother after being born with pneumonia. The young chimp, 22 months old, is now doing well. Limbani getting a birds eye view of the park #zwfmiami pic.twitter.com/VlynB8w5c0 ZWF MIAMI (@ZWFMiami) July 12, 2018 Without human intervention and modern medicine he wouldnt been here today, said ZWF Miami. Tania and Jorge can go without seeing him for a couple months and his reaction is always the same. Limbani by far is the most loved of the entire ZWF family. Greeting Jorge, the little chimp can be seen climbing on to him and putting his arms around his neck and snuggling, before passing to Tania. Tania, reposted the video on Instagram, adding: Happy Chimp Day to the Chimp that loves us with all his heart and we love right back. We love you Limbani, your unconditional love is amongst the greatest things we have experienced. Handout CCTV photo by West Mercia Police of three men, who police are looking for in connection to a suspect acid attack to a three-year-old boy in Home Bargains on Shrub Hill Retail Park, Tallow Hill, Worcester Photo: West Mercia Police/PA Wire A three-year-old boy has been discharged from hospital after he suffered serious burns in a deliberate acid attack. The toddler was in a pushchair with his family in a shop in Worcester, in the UK, on Saturday afternoon when a corrosive substance was "thrown or sprayed" over him. He was treated in hospital for burns to his face and one arm. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said the boy is now recovering at home with his family. He told Sky News: "A young family were out shopping and a substance appears to either have been thrown or sprayed towards a three-year-old child who was in a pushchair." He added: "We are uncertain about the long-term implications of those burns, but we do hope that these won't be life-changing injuries." Chief Supt Travis renewed the appeal for information about three men seen in images released by police. He said the men were in the shop at the time and were "in very close proximity to the little boy". A 39-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm and remains in police custody. Handout CCTV photo by West Mercia Police of three men, who police are looking for in connection to a suspect acid attack to a three-year-old boy in Home Bargains on Shrub Hill Retail Park, Tallow Hill, Worcester Photo: West Mercia Police/PA Wire Three men have been arrested in London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm over a suspected acid attack on a three-year-old boy in Worcester on Saturday, West Mercia Police said. The boy has been discharged from hospital after he suffered serious burns in the attack that was described as absolutely pure evil. The toddler was in a pushchair with his family in a Worcester shop when a corrosive substance was "thrown or sprayed" over him, according to West Mercia Police. He was treated in hospital for burns to his face and one arm before being released on Sunday afternoon. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said the boy is recovering at home with his family, who are being supported by specialist officers. He told Sky News: "A young family were out shopping and a substance appears to either have been thrown or sprayed towards a three-year-old child who was in a pushchair." He added: "We are uncertain about the long-term implications of those burns, but we do hope that these won't be life-changing injuries." Ch Supt Travis renewed the appeal for information about three men seen in images released by police. "We are really, really keen that the images we have released will hopefully bring forward information about people who maybe able to help us, who were in the store at the time of the incident. "If those people can come forward or people could identify those people it will help us understand the motivation for this." He said the men were in the shop at the time of the attack and were "in very close proximity to the little boy". They left the store in the direction of the city centre and he urged anyone who has seen "anything discarded in the area" to come forward. A 39-year-old man from Wolverhampton has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm and remains in police custody. Worcester City Council leader Marc Bayliss described the attack as "absolutely pure evil". He added: "I have never heard of an acid attack in Worcester so this is absolutely not something we have any experience of." Worcester MP Robin Walker said the attack was "horrific", and added: "The shock will be universal, anyone conducting such an attack on a small child is just appalling." The incident occurred at around 2.15pm on Saturday in the Home Bargains store on the Shrub Hill Retail Park in Tallow Hill. West Midlands Ambulance Service said a crew arrived at the scene in eight minutes and "liaised with the trust's hazardous area response team for specialist advice". A local shop worker, who did not want to be named, said he saw a number of emergency services at the store on Saturday and two police officers were stationed outside on Sunday. The deputy leader of Worcester City Council, Adrian Gregson, said he was in the shop next door shortly after the attack. He told the Press Association: "I was in the shop next door when it was going on, it was around mid-afternoon. "There were a couple of fire engines and a fire incident vehicle and a police car." A Home Bargains spokeswoman said: "Our thoughts are with this young child and his family at this very difficult time." State auditors have told a French village near the Spanish border it is too rich to continue taxing residents and should cancel council and property taxes this year. Stock image State auditors have told a French village near the Spanish border it is "too rich" to continue taxing residents and should cancel council and property taxes this year. Le Perthus, a community of 586 people, takes more than 780,000 a year from parking fees alone. People from the surrounding region park in the village while they cross the border on foot to shop in Spain, where food, clothes and household goods are cheaper. Andre Pezziardi, head of the Occitanie Audit Office, said: "We concluded that local taxation should be reduced to zero for council and property taxes." Last year the council spent less than 5,600 of 269,000 earmarked for public facilities because the mayor and councillors could not agree how to spend it. Marie-Helene Ruart-Lucquin, the mayor, said councillors voted against a playground, a medical centre, a library and other projects. "For the past two years I've had opposition councillors who vote against projects and so we can't invest in the community," she said. "There's no need for us to keep paying," said Michel, a local businessman. "The council isn't doing anything with all that money. But I won't raise my glass until I see my tax form with zeroes." President Donald Trump's former chief strategist has announced he is launching a new foundation aimed at supporting right-wing populist causes in Europe. Entitled 'The Movement', the group led by Steve Bannon will aim to lead a revolt across the continent, starting with the European parliament elections next spring. Mr Bannon, the former editor of 'Breitbart' and a close ally of Nigel Farage, confirmed the news to 'The Daily Beast'. Since being forced out of the White House in August 2017, Mr Bannon has been travelling around Europe supporting right-wing political groups. "I'd rather reign in hell than serve in heaven," he said, paraphrasing John Milton's Satan in 'Paradise Lost'. He flew to Italy in March ahead of elections that saw populist parties claim about half the vote. He then spoke at a nationalist rally in Zurich, where he also reportedly met Alice Weidel, one of the leaders of Alternative for Germany, a far-right party, now the largest opposition faction in Germany's parliament. In France he attended the party congress of the National Front, where he threw his support behind Marine Le Pen. In May he spoke in Hungary after the re-election of Viktor Orban. Mr Bannon's non-profit organisation will be a central source of polling, advice on messaging, data targeting and think-tank research. He wants his organisation to rival George Soros's Open Society, which has given away $32bn (27bn) to largely liberal causes since 1984. Mr Bannon said he envisions a right-wing "supergroup" within the European Parliament that could attract as many as a third of the MPs after next May's elections. Meanwhile, Spain's conservatives have shifted to the right, electing a traditionalist as leader as they seek to re-establish a clear identity less than two months after being removed from government. Pablo Casado won a clear victory in the ballot of People's Party (PP) members, and launched his mandate with a call for party unity, a stronger Spain at the heart of Europe and tougher laws to stave off independence by its regions. Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021] Growing numbers of French people are embracing the liberte of nudism, not just on beaches but also for activities from yoga, singing and gym classes to bowling and trampolining. Stock image Growing numbers of French people are embracing the liberte of nudism, not just on beaches but also for activities from yoga, singing and gym classes to bowling and trampolining. Organisers of nudist events say they are massively oversubscribed. When the Palais de Tokyo museum in Paris held a nude session of an art exhibition in May, 30,000 people requested tickets, although only 161 were available. With young people taking part, other participants said it had helped to change nudism's somewhat dated image as a practice mainly favoured by middle-aged or older people in France. The number of French nudists has risen by more than half in the past four years. The country now has an estimated 2.7 million nudists - or naturists as many prefer to be known - according to the French Naturism Federation. Last year, the largest park in Paris, the Bois de Vincennes, inaugurated an area reserved for nudists. The city's first nudist restaurant, O'Naturel, has also opened. Craze French television has even got in on the nudism craze. A series called 'Nu' ('Naked') began last month, set in a future in which people are forbidden to wear clothes. Olivier Fox, the director, said being naked created a feeling of equality. "When people are naked, you can see their fragility and it creates a closeness, a sense of compassion," he said. Some explain the popularity of nudism in terms of an increasing desire to feel liberated from societal norms and the constraints of urban life. Sylvain Villaret, a historian, said: "The practice of naturism is linked with periods of great upheaval. "Nowadays, people are looking for meaning and many turn to causes like responsible consumption, environmental protection or social solidarity, especially the young. The values of militant naturism are in accord with these causes." 'Laissez-faire' Gallic attitudes may have helped France become the world's top destination for nudist tourism. About four million nudist holidaymakers visit the country each year. Nudity is permitted by law in about 500 locations around the country, including more than 150 campsites and 150 beaches. European Economy Commissioner Pierre Moscovici has said differences of position on trade tensions remained after talks among G20 finance ministers in Argentina, but the meeting was not tense. US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin sought to use the meeting to woo Europe and Japan with the offer of free-trade deals, in a bid to gain leverage with traditional allies in its dispute with China. However, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire rebuffed the overture, saying Washington must drop tariffs before talks could start. Austria's Hubert Fuchs, as European Council representative, was more conciliatory and welcomed the US approach. Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau said Mr Mnuchin expressed a goal for all G7 countries to "drop all tariffs, non-tariff barriers and subsidies". Finance ministers and central bankers from the world's largest economies meeting in Buenos Aires said heightened trade and geopolitical tensions risk derailing global growth and called for greater dialogue, according to a draft communique from the event. The weekend talks came amid an escalation in the trade conflict between the US and China. US President Donald Trump raised the stakes on Friday when he threatened tariffs on all Chinese exports to the United States unless Beijing agreed major structural changes to its technology transfer, industrial subsidy and joint venture policies. Mr Trump has angered European allies by imposing import tariffs on steel and aluminium, causing the European Union to retaliate with tariffs on Harley-Davidson motorcycles, Kentucky bourbon and other products. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani yesterday cautioned US President Donald Trump about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying "America should know... war with Iran is the mother of all wars," but he did not rule out peace between the two countries, either. Iran faces looming sanctions after Mr Trump's decision to withdraw the US from a 2015 international deal over Iran's nuclear programme. Addressing a gathering of Iranian diplomats, Mr Rouhani said: "Mr Trump, don't play with the lion's tail, this would only lead to regret," the state new agency 'IRNA' reported. "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Mr Rouhani said, leaving open the possibility of peace between the two countries which have been at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. "You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests," he added, in an apparent reference to reported efforts by Washington to destabilise Iran's Islamic government. Mr Rouhani scoffed at Mr Trump's threat to halt Iranian oil exports and said Iran has a dominant position in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping waterway. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a brief statement he had acted on the request of US President Donald Trump and other leaders. Photo: AP Hundreds of members of Syria's 'White Helmet' civil defence group and their families have fled advancing government forces and slipped over the border into Jordan overnight with the help of Israeli soldiers and Western powers. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a brief statement he had acted on the request of US President Donald Trump and other leaders. "A few days ago, President Trump spoke to me, as did Canadian Prime Minister [Justin] Trudeau and others, asking that we help to extract the White Helmets from Syria. "The lives of these people, who have saved lives, were now in danger. I therefore authorised their transfer via Israel to other countries as an important humanitarian gesture," Mr Netanyahu said. The Syrian Civil Defence group has been credited with saving thousands of lives by operating emergency rescue services in rebel-held areas during years of bombing attacks by Damascus and its allies. The group says it is politically neutral but Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his backers have said they see the White Helmets as Western-sponsored propaganda tools and proxies of Islamist-led insurgents. A Jordanian government source said 422 people were brought from Syria, over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights frontier and into Jordan. The evacuees will be kept in a "closed" location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months, the source added. The original plan had been to evacuate 800 people, but only 422 made it out as operations were hampered by government checkpoints and the expansion of Isil in the area, another source said. Donald Trump has warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that he will face dire consequences for threatening the United States. The US President tweeted early on Monday about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Mr Rouhani said on Sunday "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars". Mr Trump responded with a tweet that warned: "NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." The president earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. Mr Rouhani warned Mr Trump to stop "playing with the lion's tail" and threatening Iran, "or else you will regret it". The US leader had suggested Iranian leaders are "going to call me and say 'let's make a deal'" but Iran has rejected talks. Expand Close President Donald Trump has hit out at the action taken to put a former adviser under surveillance (Susan Walsh/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp President Donald Trump has hit out at the action taken to put a former adviser under surveillance (Susan Walsh/AP) Mr Rouhani previously lashed out against Mr Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the US embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the US from certain Muslim-majority countries. The president's tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing an all-capitalised message. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!," he wrote. Mr Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the US. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearisation talks. Fifty years ago this week, Pope Paul VI released Humanae Vitae , an encyclical on marital love, responsible parenthood, and artificial contraception. Because contraception profoundly influences so many areas of lifefrom the family to national policiesthis statement on human anthropology and sexuality has become a one of the most significant documents of Catholic social thought. In honor of the anniversary, here are 30 key quotes from the papal encyclical: The transmission of human life is a most serious role in which married people collaborate freely and responsibly with God the Creator. It has always been a source of great joy to them, even though it sometimes entails many difficulties and hardships. The fulfillment of this duty has always posed problems to the conscience of married people, but the recent course of human society and the concomitant changes have provoked new questions. The Church cannot ignore these questions, for they concern matters intimately connected with the life and happiness of human beings. Problem and Competency of the Magisterium The changes that have taken place are of considerable importance and varied in nature. In the first place there is the rapid increase in population which has made many fear that world population is going to grow faster than available resources, with the consequence that many families and developing countries would be faced with greater hardships. This can easily induce public authorities to be tempted to take even harsher measures to avert this danger. There is also the fact that not only working and housing conditions but the greater demands made both in the economic and educational field pose a living situation in which it is frequently difficult these days to provide properly for a large family. Doctrinal Principles The question of human procreation, like every other question which touches human life, involves more than the limited aspects specific to such disciplines as biology, psychology, demography or sociology. It is the whole man and the whole mission to which he is called that must be considered: both its natural, earthly aspects and its supernatural, eternal aspects. And since in the attempt to justify artificial methods of birth control many appeal to the demands of married love or of responsible parenthood, these two important realities of married life must be accurately defined and analyzed. Gods Loving Design Married love particularly reveals its true nature and nobility when we realize that it takes its origin from God, who is love, the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. Marriage, then, is far from being the effect of chance or the result of the blind evolution of natural forces. It is in reality the wise and provident institution of God the Creator, whose purpose was to effect in man His loving design. As a consequence, husband and wife, through that mutual gift of themselves, which is specific and exclusive to them alone, develop that union of two persons in which they perfect one another, cooperating with God in the generation and rearing of new lives. Married Love [T]his love is fecund. It is not confined wholly to the loving interchange of husband and wife; it also contrives to go beyond this to bring new life into being. Marriage and conjugal love are by their nature ordained toward the procreation and education of children. Children are really the supreme gift of marriage and contribute in the highest degree to their parents welfare. Responsible Parenthood With regard to the biological processes, responsible parenthood means an awareness of, and respect for, their proper functions. In the procreative faculty the human mind discerns biological laws that apply to the human person. With regard to mans innate drives and emotions, responsible parenthood means that mans reason and will must exert control over them. With regard to physical, economic, psychological and social conditions, responsible parenthood is exercised by those who prudently and generously decide to have more children, and by those who, for serious reasons and with due respect to moral precepts, decide not to have additional children for either a certain or an indefinite period of time. Responsible parenthood, as we use the term here, has one further essential aspect of paramount importance. It concerns the objective moral order which was established by God, and of which a right conscience is the true interpreter. In a word, the exercise of responsible parenthood requires that husband and wife, keeping a right order of priorities, recognize their own duties toward God, themselves, their families and human society. Observing the Natural Law The sexual activity, in which husband and wife are intimately and chastely united with one another, through which human life is transmitted, is, as the recent Council recalled, noble and worthy. It does not, moreover, cease to be legitimate even when, for reasons independent of their will, it is foreseen to be infertile. For its natural adaptation to the expression and strengthening of the union of husband and wife is not thereby suppressed. The Church, nevertheless, in urging men to the observance of the precepts of the natural law, which it interprets by its constant doctrine, teaches that each and every marital act must of necessity retain its intrinsic relationship to the procreation of human life. Union and Procreation [T]he fundamental nature of the marriage act, while uniting husband and wife in the closest intimacy, also renders them capable of generating new lifeand this as a result of laws written into the actual nature of man and of woman. And if each of these essential qualities, the unitive and the procreative, is preserved, the use of marriage fully retains its sense of true mutual love and its ordination to the supreme responsibility of parenthood to which man is called. Faithfulness to Gods Design Men rightly observe that a conjugal act imposed on ones partner without regard to his or her condition or personal and reasonable wishes in the matter, is no true act of love, and therefore offends the moral order in its particular application to the intimate relationship of husband and wife. Just as man does not have unlimited dominion over his body in general, so also, and with more particular reason, he has no such dominion over his specifically sexual faculties, for these are concerned by their very nature with the generation of life, of which God is the source. Unlawful Birth Control Methods Therefore We base Our words on the first principles of a human and Christian doctrine of marriage when We are obliged once more to declare that the direct interruption of the generative process already begun and, above all, all direct abortion, even for therapeutic reasons, are to be absolutely excluded as lawful means of regulating the number of children. Equally to be condemned, as the magisterium of the Church has affirmed on many occasions, is direct sterilization, whether of the man or of the woman, whether permanent or temporary. Similarly excluded is any action which either before, at the moment of, or after sexual intercourse, is specifically intended to prevent procreationwhether as an end or as a means. Recourse to Infertile Periods If therefore there are well-grounded reasons for spacing births, arising from the physical or psychological condition of husband or wife, or from external circumstances, the Church teaches that married people may then take advantage of the natural cycles immanent in the reproductive system and engage in marital intercourse only during those times that are infertile, thus controlling birth in a way which does not in the least offend the moral principles which We have just explained. Consequences of Artificial Methods Responsible men can become more deeply convinced of the truth of the doctrine laid down by the Church on this issue if they reflect on the consequences of methods and plans for artificial birth control. Let them first consider how easily this course of action could open wide the way for marital infidelity and a general lowering of moral standards. Not much experience is needed to be fully aware of human weakness and to understand that human beingsand especially the young, who are so exposed to temptationneed incentives to keep the moral law, and it is an evil thing to make it easy for them to break that law. Another effect that gives cause for alarm is that a man who grows accustomed to the use of contraceptive methods may forget the reverence due to a woman, and, disregarding her physical and emotional equilibrium, reduce her to being a mere instrument for the satisfaction of his own desires, no longer considering her as his partner whom he should surround with care and affection. Finally, careful consideration should be given to the danger of this power passing into the hands of those public authorities who care little for the precepts of the moral law. Who will blame a government which in its attempt to resolve the problems affecting an entire country resorts to the same measures as are regarded as lawful by married people in the solution of a particular family difficulty? Who will prevent public authorities from favoring those contraceptive methods which they consider more effective? Should they regard this as necessary, they may even impose their use on everyone. It could well happen, therefore, that when people, either individually or in family or social life, experience the inherent difficulties of the divine law and are determined to avoid them, they may give into the hands of public authorities the power to intervene in the most personal and intimate responsibility of husband and wife. Limits to Mans Power Consequently, unless we are willing that the responsibility of procreating life should be left to the arbitrary decision of men, we must accept that there are certain limits, beyond which it is wrong to go, to the power of man over his own body and its natural functionslimits, let it be said, which no one, whether as a private individual or as a public authority, can lawfully exceed. Concern of the Church It is to be anticipated that perhaps not everyone will easily accept this particular teaching. There is too much clamorous outcry against the voice of the Church, and this is intensified by modern means of communication. But it comes as no surprise to the Church that she, no less than her divine Founder, is destined to be a sign of contradiction. She does not, because of this, evade the duty imposed on her of proclaiming humbly but firmly the entire moral law, both natural and evangelical. Since the Church did not make either of these laws, she cannot be their arbiteronly their guardian and interpreter. It could never be right for her to declare lawful what is in fact unlawful, since that, by its very nature, is always opposed to the true good of man. In preserving intact the whole moral law of marriage, the Church is convinced that she is contributing to the creation of a truly human civilization. She urges man not to betray his personal responsibilities by putting all his faith in technical expedients. Value of Self-Discipline The right and lawful ordering of birth demands, first of all, that spouses fully recognize and value the true blessings of family life and that they acquire complete mastery over themselves and their emotions. For if with the aid of reason and of free will they are to control their natural drives, there can be no doubt at all of the need for self-denial. Only then will the expression of love, essential to married life, conform to right order. Promotion of Chastity We take this opportunity to address those who are engaged in education and all those whose right and duty it is to provide for the common good of human society. We would call their attention to the need to create an atmosphere favorable to the growth of chastity so that true liberty may prevail over license and the norms of the moral law may be fully safeguarded. Everything therefore in the modern means of social communication which arouses mens baser passions and encourages low moral standards, as well as every obscenity in the written word and every form of indecency on the stage and screen, should be condemned publicly and unanimously by all those who have at heart the advance of civilization and the safeguarding of the outstanding values of the human spirit. It is quite absurd to defend this kind of depravity in the name of art or culture or by pleading the liberty which may be allowed in this field by the public authorities. Appeal to Public Authorities And now We wish to speak to rulers of nations. To you most of all is committed the responsibility of safeguarding the common good. You can contribute so much to the preservation of morals. We beg of you, never allow the morals of your peoples to be undermined. The family is the primary unit in the state; do not tolerate any legislation which would introduce into the family those practices which are opposed to the natural law of God. For there are other ways by which a government can and should solve the population problemthat is to say by enacting laws which will assist families and by educating the people wisely so that the moral law and the freedom of the citizens are both safeguarded. Seeking True Solutions We are fully aware of the difficulties confronting the public authorities in this matter, especially in the developing countries. . . . No one can, without being grossly unfair, make divine Providence responsible for what clearly seems to be the result of misguided governmental policies, of an insufficient sense of social justice, of a selfish accumulation of material goods, and finally of a culpable failure to undertake those initiatives and responsibilities which would raise the standard of living of peoples and their children. If only all governments which were able would do what some are already doing so nobly, and bestir themselves to renew their efforts and their undertakings! There must be no relaxation in the programs of mutual aid between all the branches of the great human family. Here We believe an almost limitless field lies open for the activities of the great international institutions. To Christian Couples [L]et Christian husbands and wives be mindful of their vocation to the Christian life, a vocation which, deriving from their Baptism, has been confirmed anew and made more explicit by the Sacrament of Matrimony. For by this sacrament they are strengthened and, one might almost say, consecrated to the faithful fulfillment of their duties. Thus will they realize to the full their calling and bear witness as becomes them, to Christ before the world. For the Lord has entrusted to them the task of making visible to men and women the holiness and joy of the law which united inseparably their love for one another and the cooperation they give to Gods love, God who is the Author of human life. To Doctors and Nurses Likewise we hold in the highest esteem those doctors and members of the nursing profession who, in the exercise of their calling, endeavor to fulfill the demands of their Christian vocation before any merely human interest. Let them therefore continue constant in their resolution always to support those lines of action which accord with faith and with right reason. And let them strive to win agreement and support for these policies among their professional colleagues. A Great Work Venerable brothers, beloved sons, all men of good will, great indeed is the work of education, of progress and of charity to which We now summon all of you. And this We do relying on the unshakable teaching of the Church, which teaching Peters successor together with his brothers in the Catholic episcopate faithfully guards and interprets. And We are convinced that this truly great work will bring blessings both on the world and on the Church. For man cannot attain that true happiness for which he yearns with all the strength of his spirit, unless he keeps the laws which the Most High God has engraved in his very nature. These laws must be wisely and lovingly observed. On this great work, on all of you and especially on married couples, We implore from the God of all holiness and pity an abundance of heavenly grace as a pledge of which We gladly bestow Our apostolic blessing. Britain will refuse to pay its 39bn (43.6bn) divorce bill to Brussels if the European Union fails to agree a trade deal, the new Brexit minister pledged yesterday. In an interview, Dominic Raab said he would make the vast payment formally conditional on the EU "fulfilling its side of the bargain". The promise will be welcomed by leading Brexiteers after the UK government said in May there were no plans for a legally enforceable link between the bill and a future trading relationship. Amid a breakdown of trust with No 10, pro-Brexit MPs had threatened to force an amendment into the government's Implementation Bill in the autumn after Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond claimed "walking away from an obligation ... would not make us a credible partner in future international agreements". In a move likely to be welcomed by Leavers, Mr Raab signalled his agreement with their demand that the payment of Britain's agreed 39bn divorce bill be made conditional on the EU agreeing to a free trade deal. "You can't have one side fulfilling its side of the bargain and the other side not, or going slow, or failing to commit on its side," he said. "So I think we do need to make sure that there's some conditionality between the two. We need to make it clear that the two are linked." The intervention follows a tide of anger over Theresa May's Brexit White Paper, which led to the resignation of two of her most senior cabinet ministers and saw Conservative support fall away. Pro-leave MPs are considering an attempt to topple the prime minister in the autumn. Mr Raab, a prominent Leave campaigner, also: Admitted he was still attempting to secure the backing of some cabinet ministers for Mrs May's Brexit strategy; Defended the deal signed off by the cabinet at Chequers last month, saying that he had pushed for its "arbitration" model of resolving trade disputes; Insisted Mrs May was not bluffing when she said she would walk away rather than accept a bad deal; Claimed the Chequers deal could be agreed in 12 weeks if the EU matched the government's "pragmatism". Asked whether he was still working on convincing Cabinet colleagues, Mr Raab said: "I want to make sure we can persuade everyone - grassroots, voters, parliamentary party and ministers, including in the Cabinet - that we've got the best deal and the best plan to get the best deal." The MP, who was housing minister until July 9, defended the deal, insisting that the Government needed to be "pragmatic" in order to ensure it was "faithful to the key promises in the referendum" as well as "bring[ing] the 52pc and the 48pc of this country together" and secure a "win-win" agreement with the EU. Asked what he would say to EU officials who claimed Mrs May's threat to walk away was a bluff, Mr Raab said: "They're wrong. No bluffing." He added: "The ball is now in the EU's court, and don't get me wrong, there will be plenty more negotiations, I've made that clear. "But if they show us the same level of ambition, energy, pragmatism, this deal gets done in 12 weeks." Raab refuses to deny food stockpiling plan Britain's new Brexit Minister Dominic Raab has refused to deny reports the UK government is planning to stockpile food, or use a section of motorway in England as a lorry park to deal with increased border checks if Britain leaves the EU without a deal. Asked on the BBC's 'Andrew Marr Show' about a story in 'The Sun' newspaper that the government was planning to stockpile processed food, Raab initially replied "no" but then added: "That kind of selective snippet that makes it into the media, to the extent that the public pay attention to it, I think is unhelpful." How I miss Barack Obama. And I say that as someone who worked to defeat him: I was a foreign policy adviser to John McCain in 2008 and Mitt Romney in 2012. I criticised Obama's "lead from behind" foreign policy that resulted in a premature pull-out from Iraq and a failure to stop the slaughter in Syria. I thought he was too weak on Iran and too tough on Israel. I feared Obamacare would be too costly. I fumed he was too professorial and too indecisive. I was left cold by his arrogance and his cult of personality. Now I would take Obama back in a nanosecond. His presidency appears to be a lost golden age when reason and morality reigned. All of his faults, real as they were, fade into insignificance compared with the crippling defects of his successor. And his strengths - seriousness, dignity, intellect, probity, dedication to ideals larger than self - shine all the more clearly. Those thoughts are prompted by watching Obama's speech in South Africa on the 100th anniversary of Nelson Mandela's birth. I was moved nearly to tears by his eloquent defence of a liberal world order President Donald Trump appears bent on destroying. The first thing that struck me was what was missing: There was no self-praise and no name-calling. Obama has a far better claim than Trump to being a "very stable genius", but he didn't call himself one. The sentences were complete and sonorous - and probably written by the speaker himself. (Imagine Trump writing anything longer than a tweet - and even those are full of mistakes.) His tone was sober and high-minded, even if listeners could read between the lines a withering critique of Trump's policies. Obama denounced the "politics of fear and resentment", the spread of "hatred and paranoia and propaganda and conspiracy theories", and "immigration policies based on race, or ethnicity, or religion". Gee, wonder who he had in mind? He rightly noted "we now stand at a crossroads - a moment in time at which two very different visions of humanity's future compete for the hearts and minds of citizens around the world". He then rejected the dark vision propagated by Trump and the dictators he so admires. "I believe in Nelson Mandela's vision," Obama said. "I believe in a vision shared by Gandhi and King and Abraham Lincoln. I believe in a vision of equality and justice and freedom and multiracial democracy, built on the premise that all people are created equal, and they're endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. And I believe that a world governed by such principles is possible and that it can achieve more peace and more cooperation in pursuit of a common good." Even though I was thousands of miles away, I felt like cheering. No, I haven't forgotten the shortcomings of Obama's administration, but I've gained a new perspective on them. Can you believe an Obama-era scandal was that the president wore a tan suit or put his feet up on the desk? (Actual Washington Times headline from Sept. 4, 2013: 'Obama's foot on Oval Office desk sends shockwaves around the world'.) Oh, to have those days back - before we had a president who was involved in indecent relationships with a Russian despot and (allegedly) a porn star. What was supposedly the worst abuse of power committed by the Obama administration - the IRS investigations of conservative organisations - has been revealed as "fake news". It turns out the IRS was also investigating liberal organisations. By contrast, evidence continues to accumulate about Trump scandals, from alleged campaign collusion with Russia to violations of the emoluments clause. Obama told a few fibs, like any politician, but he was not a pathological liar. Conservatives accused Obama of hating America and going on an "apology tour". Obama never claimed, however, that poor relations with Russia were the fault of "US foolishness and stupidity" rather than Russian wrongdoing. Obama may have been naive in trying to "reset" relations with Moscow, but he did not say Russian President Vladimir Putin is a "fine" person - and he did not endorse the Russian's lies over the truths unearthed by the US intelligence community. The Iran nuclear deal was flawed, but it was infinitely stronger than the non-agreement Trump reached with North Korea. Obama even looks like a fiscal conservative compared with Trump, who is ushering in trillion-dollar deficits. It can be depressing to think about our current predicament under a president whose loyalty to America is suspect but whose racism and xenophobia are undoubted. However, Obama's speech gave me a glimmer of optimism - and not only because he cited Mandela's "example of persistence and of hope". He reminds me that just 18 months ago we had a president with whom I could disagree without ever doubting his fitness to lead. We can have one again. (Washington Post Syndication) A prominent liberal South Korean politician who was embroiled in a corruption scandal has been found dead near a Seoul apartment building. Police believe three-term MP Roh Hoe-chan, of the opposition Justice Party, leapt to his death from the building. Mr Roh had faced an investigation over an allegation that he received money from an associate of an influential blogger who was jailed in an online opinion-rigging scandal. Expand Close Mr Rohs offices in Changwon (AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mr Rohs offices in Changwon (AP) The allegation tarnished the clean-cut image of Mr Roh, a former labour activist who has long been a symbol for progress in South Korea. Mr Rohs death triggered an outpouring of sympathy from many South Koreans. President Moon Jae-in said his heart really aches over the sad news of Mr Rohs death. The independent counsel investigating the rigging scandal, Huh Ik-bum, told a televised briefing that he felt distressed by the tragic news of Mr Rohs death. Mr Huh said he respects Mr Roh and will pray for his soul. Online estate agency Purplebricks has confirmed it is eyeing German and European firms for acquisition as it continues to expand its overseas footprint. (Purplebricks/PA) Online estate agency Purplebricks has confirmed it is eyeing German and European firms for acquisition as it continues to expand its overseas footprint. Chief executive Michael Bruce, who founded the firm with his brother Kenny in 2012, told the Press Association the group is hoping to replicate the success of a recent deal in Canada, which has propelled it into that market. It has Germany and Europe in its sights following a 125 million investment boost from German publishing giant Axel Springer when it took an 11.5% stake in Purplebricks in March. Expand Close Michael Bruce founded Purplebricks with his brother Kenny in 2012 (Purplebricks/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Michael Bruce founded Purplebricks with his brother Kenny in 2012 (Purplebricks/PA) But Mr Bruce said the group is not planning to launch into a new market from scratch for the time being while it concentrates on bedding in existing operations across the UK, Australia and north America. It also wants to grow its market share in the UK to more than 10%, from what it estimates is around 6% or 7% now. Mr Bruce said: Wed be more interested at this stage in an acquisition than putting some troops on the ground. He said the group was taking its time and waiting for the right opportunity in Europe, rather than rushing into any deals. Were not directly touting, but its clear that people know us and the brand and what were trying to achieve, he said. We know whos doing OK in these markets and were observing them, he added. My vision has always been to have a long lifetime relationship with our customersMichael Bruce He said Axel owner of German tabloid Bild has already been highly supportive of Purplebricks and its strategy. Axels classified advertising chief Andreas Wiele has joined the Purplebricks board as a non-executive director and the group regularly meets with Mr Bruce and his team. They have a great culture and want us to be successful, said Mr Bruce. Purplebricks also secured something of a coup early on, with the backing of renowned fund manager Neil Woodford, who owns more than a quarter of shares in the group. Having floated in late 2015 just three years after being founded, the group is now worth more than 890 million after shares had a stellar run since listing. But the stock has had a more bumpy ride this year after a spat with Jefferies analysts in February and recent annual results showing hefty losses. Earlier this month, the group reported pre-tax losses widening to 26.1 million for the year to April 30, against losses of 6 million the previous year as its global expansion hit the firms bottom line. Revenues surged over the year though, up 101% to 93.6 million, with UK sales up 81%. The rift with Jefferies was clearly a headache when it blew up, with Purplebricks blaming a note from the group authored by Anthony Codling and Sam Cullen for causing its shares to tumble. Mr Bruce still refutes their report questioning Purplebricks data on how many houses it sells within 10 months, and claimed Jefferies was biased, given that it counts some estate agent rivals as its clients. They cant really go around saying were the most wonderful stock in the world, when were competing against their own clients, he said. The groups focus is firmly on the future, however, with plans to add to its 640-strong team of local agents, having already recruited up to 200 in the past year. Mr Bruce also plans to get his new UK venture off the ground Purplebricks Plus by next April. The service aims to be an online platform allowing sellers to see all their domestic suppliers on one dashboard. It will, hopes Mr Bruce, keep Purplebricks front-of-mind with customers, who generally only use estate agents when they sell houses every seven or eight years. My vision has always been to have a long lifetime relationship with our customers, he said. Pub firm Stonegate is acquiring bar brand Be At One alongside a set of 15 bars across London. Stonegate, which owns the Walkabout and Slug and Lettuce bar brands, said it will operate Be At One as a standalone business with all of the companys operational team and head office staff remaining in place. Be At Ones founding directors, Rhys Oldfield, Steve Lock and Leigh Miller, will step down from the business when the acquisition is complete. These are both excellent acquisitions for Stonegate which are right in our sweet spotSimon Longbottom, chief executive of Stonegate Stonegate, the fourth largest managed pub company in the UK by sites, is buying up the additional pubs and bars in Londons City and West End from Novus Leisure Limited for an undisclosed sum. After the acquisitions, Stonegate, which is owned by TDR Capital, will be operating from 739 sites. Simon Longbottom, chief executive of Stonegate, said: These are both excellent acquisitions for Stonegate which are right in our sweet spot. He said the Be At One brand will help Stonegate solidify its position at the premium end of the market, while the Novus sites comprised a set of high-quality assets in London. The new acquisitions come after Stonegate found itself in the middle of a bidding war for Revolution Bars last year. It made a move for Revolution Bars shortly after rival Deltic Group said it was interested in the firm. However, Stonegate ended up abandoning its takeover bid. A member of the White Helmets waving to Israeli soldiers as he and his family board a bus (Israeli Defence Forces/AP) The Syrian government has condemned a multilateral operation to evacuate hundreds of rescue workers from the war-torn country as a criminal process intended to destabilise Syria. Syrian authorities have long described the Civil Defence search-and-rescue group, which are popularly known as the White Helmets, as a terror organisation. The group rose to prominence as it filmed its operations to rescue civilians from Syrian government air strikes in the countrys brutal civil war. Several days ago @POTUS Trump contacted me, as did @CanadianPM Trudeau and others, and requested that we assist in evacuating hundreds of 'White Helmets' from Syria. These are people who have saved lives and whose lives were in danger. pic.twitter.com/mGzFCvPe1X Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) July 22, 2018 The government has said the group stages videos. Damascus ally Russia has accused the group of staging chemical weapons attacks on civilians and blaming them on the government, a charge that has never been proven. On Saturday, more than 400 rescuers and their family members were evacuated from Syrias Quneitra province through Israel to Jordan, after the rebels surrendered the last areas they held in the south-western province to the government. Syrias foreign ministry called it a smuggling operation that was evidence of a Western conspiracy to overthrow the government. The White Helmets have financial backing from the US, the UK, and other nations. The unprecedented operation was spearheaded by the US, Canada, and UK. The rescuers and their families are expected to be resettled in Europe and Canada. Fantastic news that we - UK and friends - have secured evacuation of White Helmets and their families - thank you Israel and Jordan for acting so quickly on our request. The WH are the bravest of the brave and in a desperate situation this is at least one ray of hope Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) July 22, 2018 Germanys interior minister confirmed the country would give asylum to eight rescuers and 39 family members. Horst Seehofer said on Sunday that giving the rescue workers shelter is a humanitarian obligation. More than 250 White Helmets have been killed in the war since 2013. Foreign minister Heiko Maas was quoted as saying that the efforts of the White Helmets deserve admiration and respect. Germany has provided the group with 12 million euro (10 million) in funding since 2016. Meanwhile, Israel said it fired a pair of missiles to intercept two missiles fired from Syria in Israels direction. It said the Syrian missiles landed inside Syrian territory just short of the Golan Heights, which have been occupied by Israel since 1967. Hundreds of refugees returned to Syria from Lebanon, also on Monday, Lebanons National News Agency reported. It is the latest in a string of returns this year. President Michel Aouns Free Patriotic Movement party has put refugee returns near the top of its political agenda. The National News Agency said 850 Syrians living around the border town of Arsal were repatriated on Monday. Close to one million Syrians are registered with the UNs refugee agency in Lebanon. The agency, the UNHCR, said it is not organising returns to Syria. It says refugees should not be coerced into returning. More than five million people have fled the country during its seven-year-long civil war, according to the UN. A small memorial for the victims of the duck boat accident overlooks Table Rock Lake (Charlie Riedel/AP) The 17 people killed when a tourist boat sank in a Missouri lake were remembered during a service attended by hundreds of people in the tourism community of Branson. A church bell at Williams Chapel at College of the Ozarks chimed 17 times for those who died last Thursday at Table Rock Lake. More than a dozen survivors of the tragedy, along with their family and friends, filled the front pews of the church to organ music. Although a police officer guarded their privacy, he allowed one person, Carmen Lawson, to deliver pink and red roses after the service to a family that lost nine loved ones. Expand Close Mourners attend a memorial service (J.B. Forbes/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mourners attend a memorial service (J.B. Forbes/AP) It was such a tragedy, said Ms Lawson, 61, of Branson, who delivered the flowers. I feel for the family. Branson mayor Karen Best recalled the desperate family members who turned to City Hall for information about their loved ones. We started putting faces with names. Those who were once strangers to us quickly became family, Ms Best said. They were a part of our community. And we did what families do. We held hands, we wept and we prayed together. Expand Close Branson Mayor Karen Best speaks at the memorial (Nathan Papes/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Branson Mayor Karen Best speaks at the memorial (Nathan Papes/AP) She praised the people who tried to save others from drowning, calling them heroes who did everything in their power to save lives. The service was held at the college near the site of the accident, which happened as winds approached hurricane strength. The city and college hosted the remembrance for the victims. Today we are all family, said College of the Ozarks President Jerry C. Davis. Expand Close A programme listing the names of the victims (John Sleezer/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A programme listing the names of the victims (John Sleezer/AP) We are here to comfort those who have been affected by this tragedy in so many, many ways. Online fundraisers had raised more than 400,000 US dollars for the Indiana familys funeral expenses by Sunday afternoon. Others killed were from Missouri, Arkansas and Illinois. During the closing benediction, Nixa Fire Chaplain Steve Martin said of the victims that while most of them are visitors they are not strangers to us. President Donald Trump is considering revoking the security clearances of several former Obama administration officials and critics of his presidency. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that the president is exploring the mechanisms to strip clearance from former CIA director John Brennan, along with former FBI director Jim Comey, former national intelligence director James Clapper and others. Just got out of WH meeting with @realDonaldTrump. I restated to him what I have said in public: John Brennan and others partisans should have their security clearances revoked. Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) July 23, 2018 Ms Sanders accused the officials of having politicised and in some cases monetised their public service and security clearances as well as making baseless accusations against the president. Republican Sen Rand Paul of Kentucky tweeted earlier that he was planning to raise the issue of revoking Mr Brennans clearance at a meeting with President Trump. Mr Brennan last week described President Trumps press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin as nothing short of treasonous. The White House has blamed Iranian president Hassan Rouhani for inciting a war of words with US leader Donald Trump, who warned that verbal threats could escalate into military conflict with America. Mr Trump, who campaigned on a promise to bring a more hawkish approach to Iran, sent an all-caps tweet late on Sunday warning of dire consequences for the longtime foe of the US. NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE, he wrote. The US leader was responding to Mr Rouhani, who had remarked earlier in the day that America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Within hours, Irans state-owned news agency IRNA dismissed Mr Trumps tweet, describing it as a passive reaction to Mr Rouhanis remarks. On Monday, the White House said the US presidents tweet shows he is not going to tolerate critical rhetoric from Iran and insisted Mr Trump is not escalating tensions between the two countries. If anybodys inciting anything, look no further than to Iran, press secretary Sarah Sanders said, adding that Mr Trump has been very clear about what hes not going to allow to take place. In Tehran, a headline on a local newspaper quoted Mr Rouhani as saying: Mr Trump, do not play with the lions tail. Prominent Iranian analyst Seed Leilaz downplayed the war of words, describing it as the storm before the calm. Mr Leilaz said he was not worried about the remarks and tweets, and that neither Iran, nor any other country is interested in escalating tensions in the region. Citing harsh words the United States and North Korea had exchanged before the high-profile summit between Mr Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Mr Leilaz said Mr Trump and Mr Kim got closer despite the warring words. The US presidents eruption on Twitter came after a week of heavy controversy about Russian meddling in the 2016 US election, following the Helsinki summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The tweet is reverberating across the Middle East. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the US presidents strong stance after years in which the Iranian regime was pampered by world powers. Mr Trump earlier this year pulled the US out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions, as well as threatening penalties for companies from other countries that continue to do business with Iran. Expand Close Iranians have largely shrugged off the possibility of military conflict following the war of words (AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Iranians have largely shrugged off the possibility of military conflict following the war of words (AP) With the economic pressure, Mr Trump said earlier this month that at a certain point theyre going to call me and say lets make a deal, and well make a deal. Iran has rejected talks with the US, and Mr Rouhani has accused the US of stoking an economic war. Mr Rouhani also suggested Iran could immediately ramp up its production of uranium in response to US. pressure. That could potentially escalate the very situation the nuclear deal sought to avoid an Iran with a stockpile of enriched uranium that could lead to making atomic bombs. Mr Trumps tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing in all capitals. He wrote: WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! A U.S. Congressional candidate who claims to be the chairman and the chief of police of the Louisiana Band of Choctaw Indians was arrested shorty after qualifying for the race , according to news reports. Billy Burkette , who is running as an Independent for Louisiana's 5th Congressional District, is accused of impersonating a law enforcement officer. He proclaimed his innocence as he was led out in handcuffs at the Secretary of State's office, The Monroe News Star reported. "They say I'm not chief of police of the Choctaw tribe," Burkette said as he was taken out of the building in Baton Rouge, the state capital, according to the paper. When asked if he was, he replied: "Yes, sir, I am." Billy Burkette is seen in a photo posted to his Congressional campaign's Facebook page in October 2016. The Louisiana Band of Choctaw Indians is apparently based in Prairieville, just outside of Baton Rouge. The tribe is recognized by the state, according to a document from the state's Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism There is otherwise little information about the group, which does not appear to have petitioned for federal recognition through the Bureau of Indian Affairs Louisiana is home to four federally recognized tribes, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures The 5th Congressional District is currently represented by Ralph Abraham , who is running for re-election . He defeated Burkette in the 2016 Republican primary with a whopping 82 percent of the vote. Read More on the Story: Congressional candidate arrested after qualifying (The Monroe News Star July 20, 2018) Election sign-up ends: Interim Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin to run; candidate arrested; more (The Baton Rouge Advocate July 20, 2018) Louisiana congressional candidate arrested, accused of falsely impersonating an officer (The Associated Press July 20, 2018) Join the Conversation AFP Over 600 Indian construction workers are stuck in Qatar after they lost their jobs, were denied salaries and their visas have expired, according to workers and official communication. According to a report by Hindustan Times, they have also been living in sub-standard conditions in labour camps. Read More. Here's more top news of the day: 1) After Alwar, Mentally Challenged Woman Lynched Over WhatsApp Rumour In Madhya Pradesh Mob lynching seems to have become a routine event now in India. Just after the brutal Alwar lynching where a man was beaten to death on suspicion of being a cow-smuggler, another woman has been lynched on suspicion of being a child lifter in Madhya Pradesh' Singrauli district. This time also, the rumour was spread through whatsApp. Read More. 2)PM Modi To Gift 200 Local Cows To A Village In Rwanda As Part Of Girinka Scheme reuters/representational image Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks on a five-day three-nation tour of the African continent on Monday, with his first stop being Rwanda, a first prime ministerial visit to a country with a population less than Delhi's. Read more. 3) Doctors Find 100 Tapeworm Eggs Inside 8-Year-Old Girl's Brain After She Complained Of Headaches Trushika (name changed to protect privacy), an eight-year-old started suffering epileptic seizures which refused to decline in severity or end anytime soon. Epilepsy is defined as a condition in which a person has recurrent seizures that disturb a persons motor, sensory or mental function. Read More. 4) NASA Is Daring To Launch A Car-Sized Spacecraft 4 Million Miles Inside The Sun's Atmosphere Photo Credits: Reuters/Light bar testing being performed on Parker Solar Probe The NASA is getting ready to launch mankinds first ever space probe to penetrate the sun's raging hot atmosphere, and go where no manmade instrument has gone before.The Parker Solar Probe, a robotic spacecraft the size of a small car, is slated to launch from Cape Canaveral in Florida, with August 06 targeted as the launch date for the planned seven-year mission. Read More. 5) Gang Duping Customers By Posing As Pickup Boys Busted In Delhi; Here's How They Operate BCCL Apparently, there is a gang of fraudsters operating in Delhi, impersonating as delivery boys of online shopping companies, and stealing goods from customers. They were arrested on the complaint filed by Ambika Saraf, an authorised representative of Amazon branch at Nehru Place, alleging that a fake delivery boy had collected delivered camera from their customer Gaganpreet Singh, who wished to return the article.Read More. Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks on a five-day three-nation tour of the African continent on Monday, with his first stop being Rwanda, a first prime ministerial visit to a country with a population less than Delhi's. Ahead of the visit, the external affairs ministry said "Africa has been a top priority of India's foreign policy." "The visit to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa will further strengthen our relations with the African continent," the ministry noted. afp/representational image Over the last few years, there has been significant engagement in various fields with African countries. There have been 23 outgoing visits to Africa by the President, Vice President and Prime Minister in the last four years. It is Modi's second visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. So what makes the landlocked Central African country of Rwanda, in particular, so special? Female Power: With nearly two-third of its parliamentarians women, it has the highest proportion of women in parliament in the world. India, on the other hand, has struggled to pass the 33% women reservation bill to have one-third of its Lok Sabha, state legislature and local bodies seats reserved for women. Holy Cow: Modi's visit is not without symbolism -- he's gifting 200 cows sourced locally to a village in the country's eastern province as part of the Girinka programme which mandates 1 cow for 1 poor family, with the first female calf that is born from that cow gifted to the family's neighbour, which enables the poorest in Rwanda to have a livelihood. reuters/representational image The national social protection scheme was personally initiated by the Rwandan president. Making Capital: Rwanda's capital, Kigali, could teach a thing or two to India's metros, particularly New Delhi, in terms of its cleanliness and punctuality of public transportand to think that its actual progress started only in 1994 after a bloody civil war and genocide. Gateway To Eastern Africa: India elevated its ties with Rwanda to that of a Strategic Partnership in January last year. India will open its first mission in Rwanda very soon. India's current high commissioner to Rwanda has residence in Kampala, Uganda. Rwanda is also a recipient of Indian lines of credit of nearly $400 million and of Indian training and scholarship programmes. bccl During Modi's visit, two more lines of credit are expected to be signed - one of $100 million for industrial parks and a similar amount for agriculture and irrigation. Agreements will be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture and culture. Chinese Checkers: Modi's visit coincides with the visit of the Chinese President Xi Jinping, who arrived on Sunday, a first-ever visit by a Chinese president as well. Rwanda's President Paul Kagame is the Chair of the African Union, and both the Asian powers are wooing African countries for their natural resources. China is Africa's largest trading partner, and it also seeks closer military ties. China opened its first military base on the continent last year in the Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti. While In Rwanda: The Prime Minister will be accorded a ceremonial reception. He then heads for a one-on-one meeting and delegation level talks with the Rwandan president. Later, there will be an exchange of agreements followed by dinner, hosted by the Rwandan president and reception, hosted by the High Commissioner for Indian Community. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on Girinka. His two-day State visit to Rwanda will be followed by visits to Uganda and South Africa for the BRICS Summit. It is increasingly becoming obvious that the lackluster attitude of the Rajasthan Police led to the death of Rakhbar Khan alias Akbar who was attacked by a mob in Ramgarh on Saturday accusing him of cattle smuggling. It has emerged that there was a three hour delay in shifting Khan from the spot where he was assaulted to a hospital which is around 6 km away. ANI Before shifting the injured man to hospital, the cops were busy relocating the two cows which Khan and his friend had bought. ASI Mohan Singh has since admitted that there was a delay of three hours in taking Khan to hospital. Singh said he had made a mistake but denied allegations that the victim was beaten to death in the police station. The admission comes on a day when the Rajasthan police set up a high-level committee to probe the allegations against the Alwar police. There are certain allegations that the local police had beaten up Khan and delayed taking him to the hospital which are being looked into, SP (Alwar) Rajendra Singh said. ANI Ramgarh MLA Gyandev Ahuja and a Gau Rakshak who alerted the police about the duo had initially claimed that Khan died in police custody. A man who claims to be an eyewitnesses told ANI that the police stopped outside his house and thrashed and abused the victim. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a petition seeking contempt action against Rajasthan government in connection with the Alwar lynching. The court will hear the petition filed by activist Tehseen Poonawalla on August 28. Earlier, the SC had urged the parliament to bring in a separate law against lynching. Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra termed the incidents of mob lynching as "horrendous acts of mobocracy" and said the incidence has to be curbed with iron hands. Poonawalla said that despite the top court directing states to protect citizens against lynching, it has again happened in Alwar. Switch the Market flag Open the menu and switch the Market flag for targeted data from your country of choice. for targeted data from your country of choice. Pointing to South and Central America, the Middle East and Africa as particularly high-risk regions, Lane says companies should consider specialist insurance before sending an employee into any of those areas unfortunately, many still overlook or underestimate the potential risk. It tends to be one of those it wont happen to me or that just happens in the movies kind of risk, she tells Insurance Business. It may not happen in Australia but once an employee leaves Australian shores the exposures are real. According to crime statistics and data firm Havocscope, around US$1.5 billion is paid out to kidnappers every year - $50 million of which is made in Mexico alone. Interestingly, research by anti-kidnapping advocacy Alto al Secuestro also suggests that high net worth executives are no longer the only individuals at risk. Now, middle-class workers and mid-level professionals are at an increased risk as perpetrators seek to expand the number of potential targets. Brokers, Lane claims, have a key role to play in educating clients who may not realise theyre at risk. Its like any type of risk brokers need to be better educated on the exposures and how to protect their clients, she says. Lanes comments come after Solution launched a new kidnap and ransom product which provides protection options across a wide range of risks from negotiator fees and travel costs to psychiatric care and plastic surgery. Related stories: US advisory calls World Cup "an attractive target" XL Catlin launches new crisis prevention and response offering According to the aggrieved consumer, Taylor initially told him that if he canceled the life insurance policy within two years of obtaining it, Farmers Insurance would refund the premium payment plus 10% interest. When the time came for the consumer to cancel the policy, he was informed that he would only get back his previous two premium payments, totaling $1,328. The consumer was expecting to get back nearly $5,700 in premium payments, on top of the 10% interest Taylor told him about. On Farmers Insurances website, Taylors profile said that his office is conveniently located down the street from Barnes & Noble in Vancouver. He offers auto, home, life, renters, business, motorcycle, recreational, and umbrella insurance. I help customers like you identify the insurance coverage that best fits your needs, Taylors profile on the website indicated. This process is straightforward and personalized to help make you smarter about insurance. Related stories: Broker pays in cash to help official avoid IRS - gets prison time Consumer finance regulator mulls record fine for Wells Fargo Ballard, 54, was in charge of administrating the Pennsylvania account of a large healthcare company. However, between 2005 and 2016, he allegedly issued matching deductible insurance renewal policies that his employer did not authorize, information filed in US District Court in Chicago stated. He submitted falsified estimates, invoices, binder letters and policies to the healthcare company that outlined the supposed terms of coverage, the charges allege. The premium payments Ballard received from the false policies were then allegedly diverted to a shell company that he controlled. According to the charges, Ballard pocketed more than $13.5 million through his scheme, which he used for personal expenses credit card bills, luxury dinners, travel costs, and even real estate for himself and his family. A release from the United States Department of Justice said that Ballard has been charged with one count of wire fraud, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. The arraignment in US District Court in Chicago has not yet been scheduled. Related stories: Two convicted of defrauding Texas Mutual Broker pays in cash to help official avoid IRS - gets prison time Alan Rubin a principal with Blank Rome Government Relations LLC, a government affairs firm affiliated with the national law firm Blank Rome LLP told Insurance Business he expects to see a stop gap measure that will extend the struggling program for at least 90 days, in order to take the program through the danger months of the Atlantic Hurricane Season and up to the midterm elections. Once a new Congress is elected, Rubin hopes a longer-term solution will be found. The problem with the drafted NFIP legislation, which has triggered much debate among policymakers, is that it tries to do too much all in one go, according to Rubin. The bill proposes five years of NFIP funding from 2017 to 2022 as well as action to mitigate and prevent recurring flooding issues. If the funding was the only thing on that bill, it would have passed by now, Rubin told Insurance Business. But the draft legislation contains very specific terms related to development in flood zones and the definition of flood plains. Each distinction carries certain rules and regulations pertaining to development in those areas and thats when disagreements start to crop up. Under the proposed legislation, property or land owners within a high-risk flood zone must disclose that information (in very specific terms) to any new or potential owners, potentially making it tricky for the development community to build in new areas. Developers have typically targeted cost efficiencies rather than sustainability, according to Rubin, and this enforced transparency could heavily impact the way they do business. Last year we had four storms worth $360 billion worth of damage, which begged the question: how hard have you got to be hit over the head with a club before you decide something needs to be done? And thats why theyve tried to make these reforms. In my opinion, I think FEMA deserves a tremendous amount of praise for what its trying to do, but I think they should have separated the processes of funding and reforms, Rubin commented. Its very hard to enact the kind of change thats needed. It has to be done incrementally and phased in over time. We need to start with reforms in areas that are particularly vulnerable to storm surge and then roll them out elsewhere. Its also important to work with developers and help them comply with any new regulations. Related stories: Private insurers and NFIP must work together to close gap Over $1 billion wasted in just one state as NFIP doesnt enforce insurance rules The firm added that it continues to target high-quality independent agencies for geographic expansion and continued growth throughout the country. SHP&C offers: Home and auto insurance Commercial insurance Private client insurance Payroll, group health and employer benefits With the acquisition of Transway Insurance Agency, we bring aboard decades of trucking sales and service experience, said Marshall Seeman, president of SHP&C. The team at Transway will be instrumental in helping us expand our national trucking insurance division, said Brett Williams, SHP&C executive vice president. Related stories: Seeman Holtz gains ground in the Midwest with new acquisition Seeman Holtz scoops up Louisiana agency's book of business A federal judge is blocking a third attempt in as many years by Governor Tom Wolf and state lawmakers to take at least $200 million in surplus cash from a state-chartered medical malpractice insurer of last resort. U.S. District Judge Christopher Conner last week sided again with the Pennsylvania Professional Liability Joint Underwriting Association and temporarily blocked enforcement of a law Wolf signed last month authorizing a state takeover in a bid to divert the associations surplus. The association says it violates various constitutional provisions. In May, Conner permanently blocked a previous attempt, saying the state was unconstitutionally trying to seize private property without fair compensation. The association says its reserves were generated from policyholder premiums and investment income and that taxpayer money never funded its operations. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Carriers Pennsylvania British businessman Arron Banks has denied an allegation made by a former business partner that he approached Russians about investing in his diamond mines, and that the money raised went instead to his campaign to leave the European Union. Banks, who ahead of the Brexit referendum financed Leave.EU, a campaign led by Nigel Farage, then the leader of the UK Independence Party, has faced questions in parliament about his Russia links but denied having business there. He said the source of the new allegation, made on Channel 4 TV on Friday, was a a bit of a fantasist who was attempting to distract attention from a lawsuit that Banks had brought against him. Channel 4 cited an affidavit to a South African court which said that Banks had traveled to Russia to discuss opportunities in mining. The court papers alleged that it had recently become apparent that the funds were in fact raised but were used by Arron Banks in other interests that he has including, but not limited to, his participation in the funding of Brexit. Banks said he had looked at issuing a bond for his diamond mines in South Africa but decided not to proceed with it. He said that as the events had occurred before the 2015 national election, they could not have been related to the Brexit referendum which had not yet been called. Unless Im a genius, real genius, how could it be to fund Brexit with Russian money, before I knew thered even be a referendum campaign? Banks told Reuters by phone. He also denied taking business trips to Russia, saying: I went to Russia in 2014 and 2015 twice, and both were family holidays. Banks has threatened to sue the European Parliaments chief Brexit coordinator Guy Verhofstadt for defamation after Verhofstadt said Banks had colluded with Russians over Brexit. Britain has said it has seen no evidence of Russian interference in the 2016 referendum vote to leave the European Union. But as part of a broader inquiry into so-called fake news, lawmakers on the media committee are investigating whether Moscow tried to influence public opinion before the referendum. Banks told the committee he had had two lunches with the Russian ambassador, but had no business interests and had done no deals in Russia. (Reporting by Alistair Smout; editing by Robin Pomeroy) Related: Topics Europe Uk Russia Tokyo prosecutors indicted Kobe Steel Ltd. over the faked data crisis that rocked Japans manufacturing industry last year. The company was indicted on suspicion of breaching Japans unfair competition law in connection with falsified inspection reports for the year through September 2017, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office said Thursday [July 19] in a statement. Kobe Steel admitted in October that employees misrepresented the strength and durability of parts shipped to hundreds of customers, including Toyota Motor Corp. and Boeing Co., sparking similar revelations from materials suppliers including Mitsubishi Materials Corp. and Toray Industries Inc. that have tarnished Japans manufacturing reputation. Kobe Steel acknowledged the indictment in a statement and said it is implementing measures to prevent a recurrence of the scandal. Prosecutors and police last month searched Kobe Steels headquarters in Kobe and Tokyo. The nations third-biggest steelmaker said in March that an external probe had found its misconduct around quality controls dates back to the 1970s, and that more than 40 people in managerial positions had been aware of the faked data. A firm found guilty faces a fine of up to 300 million yen ($2.7 million) under the unfair competition law. Local media reported this month that prosecutors are not planning on seeking criminal charges against individuals. The scandal also triggered a U.S. probe and three civil lawsuits, clouding the outlook for the 112-year-old firm even though no safety issues were reported by customers. President Mitsugu Yamaguchi told shareholders last month that talks with the U.S. Department of Justice were ongoing and that he didnt know how long the investigation would last. Kobe Steel closed 1.6 percent higher at 1,043 yen in Tokyo, leaving its shares 24 percent below the level seen before it revealed the scandal in October. Related: Copyright 2021 Bloomberg. Greenlight Capital Re, known informally as Greenlight Re, is losing its chief operating officer after he joined the company less than a year ago. The specialist property/casualty reinsurer disclosed that Michael Belfatti would be stepping down as of Sept. 1, 2018, due to personal reasons. No further explanation was given, though Greenlight Re, which is based in the Cayman Islands and Ireland, issued short statements from both CEO Simon Burton and Belfatti himself. Burton wished Belfatti all the best in his future endeavors and thanked him for his contributions. Belfatti, in turn, said this: I am proud of our accomplishments during my tenure with Greenlight Re. I wish the company and team much success. Belfatti, when he joined a year ago, was the first person hired for the newly-created chief operating officer role at the company. He was given a wide range of responsibilities, overseeing pricing, actuarial and risk management functions, and also spearheading data collection, analytics and technology efforts. Burton touted Belfattis 20-plus-years of reinsurance and insurance industry experience, including as an industry innovation consultant. Hes also a veteran executive who has held executive vice president/chief actuary positions at both Endurance Holdings Ltd. and Validus Holdings Ltd. Launched in 2004, Greenlight Re reported a $142.8 million loss in the 2018 first quarter, versus $8.4 million in net income during the same period a year ago, due in part to a $145.2 million net investment loss. During the quarter, Greenlight Re booked $175.1 million in gross written premiums, down from $197.2 million in the 2017 first quarter. Source: Greenlight Re This article first appeared in Insurance Journals sister publication, Carrier Management. Related: UK motor insurers have voted for the Motor Insurers Bureau (MIB) to handle and pay the claims from victims involved in a terrorist event where a vehicle is used to kill or injure. MIB is the UKs not-for-profit body which deals with the claims from victims involved in uninsured and hit-and-run accidents. The compensation for victims of vehicle-related terrorist events that take place on or after Jan. 1, 2019 will now also be handled directly by MIB. All motor insurers writing business in the UK are members of MIB, which is funded through a levy arrangement. More than 75 percent of motor insurers by voting rights agreed the change, following a 28-day ballot which closed on July 19. As a result, Article 75, the relevant element within MIBs Articles of Association, has changed to bring these within the scope of the claims paid by the bureau. This follows on from the consultation earlier this year where MIB was asked to determine the level of support across the market for a change to be made so that the liability of the Article 75 insurer moved to MIB. MIB may explore the possibility of reinsuring some of the liability. Those who are innocently caught up in events where terrorists drive vehicles into people to injure and kill, can rely on MIB to pay and handle their motor related claims for these terrible events, said Dominic Clayden, chief executive at MIB, in a statement. The British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) believes this vote by MIB members to mutualize motor terrorism risk is absolutely the right thing to do, said Graeme Trudgill, BIBA executive director. Gaps in terrorism cover were highlighted in our 2018 manifesto and we committed to helping the market find solutions, Trudgill added. The use of a vehicle as a weapon is not what motor insurance is designed for, and it would be wholly unfair, not to mention unsustainable, to hold a single motor insurer responsible for any subsequent compensation payments. I must say, well done to the MIB and its members for bringing about this change so quickly. Steve Maddock, chairman of MIB and chief operating officer at Direct Line Group, said: The motor insurance market has clearly signaled that it was right to consider if individual insurers or the market as a whole carry the risks associated with motor claims arising from terrorist attacks. The outcome of the vote indicates strong support to mutualize the risk and enable MIB to act in the event there are further terrorist activities. It is a good outcome for the industry and the public and one which is supported by the Department of Transport. Source: Motor Insurers Bureau/British Insurance Brokers Association Topics Carriers Catastrophe Natural Disasters Claims Thousands of people were without power Friday after a flurry of unexpected tornadoes swept through central Iowa, injuring at least 17 people and flattening buildings in three cities. The storms even surprised weather forecasters when they hit the region Thursday afternoon, causing extensive damage to a manufacturing plant and prompting the evacuation of a hospital. The National Weather Service said Friday that at least five tornadoes and likely more struck. Meteorologist Jeff Johnson said it will take days to determine their strength and total number. The most extensive damage was in Marshalltown, a city of 27,000 people where 10 people were injured, brick walls collapsed into the streets, roofs were blown off buildings and the cupola of the historic courthouse tumbled to the ground. Heavy equipment crews worked around the courthouse lawn Friday to remove entire trees blown over or shredded by the storm. The loud beep of backing trucks and grinding chain saws echoed several blocks away. Businesses and homes had gaping holes, some with roofs torn off or collapsed inward. Terri Shetler, owner of an embroidery shop, was digging out her 2017 Toyota Sienna. The vehicles windows were blown out and it was filled with mud, shingles and wood slivers. A front quarter panel was missing. Shed parked the car across the street from her shop, where she took shelter in the basement during the storm. Im pretty shaken. I came out and saw the courthouse and all this, she said. But it can be replaced. With tears running down her face, Crystal Jensen explained how the storm blew away photos and a bracelet from her father who died two months ago. She ran to the basement when she saw debris coming toward the house. The storm blew over in just three minutes, she said. I just lost my dad two months ago and this happened, she said through the tears. Im kind of at a loss. Alliant Energy spokesman Justin Foss said 500 utility poles needed to be replaced and 10 to 12 truckloads of poles were on their way. He said 200 crews have been called in to make repairs and restore power to 6,600 customers still without power. Natural gas service remains shut down in part of the city, he said. In Marshalltown, the main hospital was damaged and all 40 patients at UnityPoint Health were being transferred to several other hospitals. Some buildings at the Iowa Veterans Home sustained roof damage, but no residents or staffers were injured at the facility that houses nearly 500 people, home officials said. Such strong storms werent expected. Forecasting models produced Thursday morning showed only a slight chance of strong thunderstorms later in the day, said Alex Krull, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Des Moines, said It didnt look like tornadic supercells were possible, Krull said. If anything, we were expecting we could get some large hail, if strong storms developed. Elsewhere, seven people were hurt when a tornado hit the agricultural machinery maker Vermeer Manufacturing in Pella, scattering huge sheets of metal through a parking lot and leaving one building with a gaping hole. People were still working at the plant at the time. Seven people injured at the plant were taken to Pella Regional Health Center, hospital spokeswoman Billie Rhamy said. They all were released after being treated for their minor injuries, Rhamy said. A tornado also destroyed several homes in the Des Moines suburb of Bondurant. Associated Press writers Margery Beck and Nelson Lampe in Omaha, Nebraska, contributed to this report. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Windstorm Iowa In the staid and buttoned-up world of insurance underwriting, few want to talk about it. You wont find many ads promoting it or details on company websites offering it. But according to industry insiders, theres a hot new business that more and more firms are looking to get into: crypto insurance. Its understandable why big names like AIG, Chubb and XL Group havent provided too many specifics. On its face, providing coverage to crypto startups might seem borderline absurd. Its an industry with a well-deserved reputation for being like the Wild West an unregulated digital frontier where frauds and heists are rife (recall the hacks of Mt. Gox, and more recently, Bitfinex and Coincheck) and get-rich-quick schemes abound. The collapse in the price of Bitcoin this year hasnt helped matters either. But as cryptocurrencies, and their underlying blockchain technology, slowly gain broader acceptance, some insurers are betting they can avoid the pitfalls. The premiums from insuring such risk can be substantial. By some accounts, underwriters can charge a crypto-related company upwards of five times or more than your average business for coverage against loss or theft. Big Opportunity Insurance for cryptocurrency storage will be a big opportunity, said Christian Weishuber, a spokesman for Allianz, which began offering individual coverage for digital-coin theft in the past year and is one of the few insurers that agreed to talk about the issue. Digital assets are becoming more relevant, important and prevalent on the real economy and we are exploring product and coverage options in this area. While the cost is still beyond reach for many fledgling companies, Marsh & McLennan and Aon, the two leading insurance brokers that help companies shop for crypto policies, say business has been brisk this year. For the first time, Marsh formed a team of 10 dedicated to servicing blockchain startups. Aon, which claims to have over 50 percent of the market for crypto insurance, recently streamlined its standard policy form to speed up the underwriting process. It has also seen some insurers tweak general company policies to include crypto-specific protections. Marsh and Aon declined to identify their partners, but people familiar with the matter say over a dozen underwriters, including Chubb and XL, currently provide coverage to crypto-related businesses. American International Group, which has also been adding crypto coverage into standard policy forms, said its met with cryptocurrency custodians and trading platforms about coverage. The firm declined to say how much in crypto-related premiums its taken in. Few Details XL said it is being careful when looking at those risks and analyzing them on a case by case basis, without getting into specifics. Chubb said in a statement that it doesnt pursue the underwriting of insurance for cryptocurrency exchanges or wallets, but declined to provide details on whether it offers coverage for other types of crypto ventures. So far, Marsh and Aon say they arent aware of any insurer thats had to pay out crypto policy claims in spite of the spate of headlines about hacks and thefts in recent months. With 2018 on track to be the busiest year for hacks on record, the potential for a reputational black eye is perhaps one reason many insurers have declined to speak publicly about crypto. Lloyds of London, the worlds oldest insurance market, published a bulletin this month with guidance on crypto coverage and asked its agents to proceed with a level of caution that recognizes the risks. Big Shift Whats more, theres also the worry some startups will overstate the amount of crypto insurance they have. Quite honestly, its something insurers are aware of and cautious about too, said Jackie Quintal, Aons practice leader for financial institutions. They dont want an advertisement to say, We are insured with ABC insurance company and for it to be inaccurate or misleading. Its definitely a concern. Privately though, potential clients have noticed a shift. BitGo, a cryptocurrency services provider, met with roughly 75 insurers during a May trip that included stopovers in New York, London and Bermuda. Back in 2015, the company became one of the first to get crypto insurance, only to drop coverage a year later because of the expense, says Chief Executive Officer Mike Belshe. They arent just kicking the tires, he said. They are asking very specific questions so they can assess the risks. Inevitable Haircut A growing number of crypto startups see insurance as a must-have. Based on conversations with several brokers and industry experts, crypto companies typically seek out crime and cyber coverage, as well as policies known as directors-and-officers insurance, which covers losses the arise from legal actions against executives or board members. They can end up paying up premiums as high as 5 percent of their coverage limits each year. Those looking for larger amounts of coverage often need as many as a dozen underwriters, with each offering $5 million to $15 million of insurance, according to a person familiar with the matter. The practice ensures no single insurer is ever on the hook for too much when disaster strikes. To somebody that has just raised a meaningful amount for a project of their dreams, taking a haircut to avoid a disaster is only natural, said Lex Sokolin, global director of fintech strategy at Autonomous Research. Techno-Utopian Dreams Its no small irony that the crypto industry, which originally sprung out of a techno-utopian desire to liberate its users from the traditional financial system, is embracing insurance as a way to go mainstream. I see it is a required step, said Lucas Nuzzi, director of technology research at Digital Asset Research. Coverage can reduce investor concerns and make it easier to work with banks. It definitely helps legitimize the industry. For example, Trustology, a London-based startup focused on crypto custody services, is in talks to obtain coverage that would insure its customer accounts up to 85,000 pounds the same standard as a U.K. bank account to help attract more clients. Its also looking at self-insuring client funds. Still, nothing is perfect. Many young startups still cant afford the costly premiums. Policies can still take months to get approved. And exclusions can add up fast. For example, while losses from an interruption of service may be covered, the theft of cryptocurrency that caused it might not. Close to Useless The number of exclusions can make the whole policy close to useless, said Hillik Nissani, chief operating officer of Cryptalgo, a startup that helps institutional traders execute orders. Nissani said his company is currently looking to buy insurance or potentially self-insuring. Another sticking point is that coverage amounts often fall short of the sums that could potentially be lost. Coinbase, one of the most widely used crypto exchanges, buys insurance for a fraction of the digital coins it holds. Funds stored in so-called hot wallets, which may contain up to 2 percent of client assets and are used in active trading, are covered. Coinbases disclosures dont provide details on how much coverage is provided for its remaining coin deposits, which are stored offline as a security measure. And as the value of cryptocurrencies fluctuates wildly and trading becomes more widespread, insurance that once fully covered a companys assets can come up short as they balloon. Thats what happened to crypto-finance firm Circle Internet Financial, which holds billions of dollars of assets for its customers, according to CEO Jeremy Allaire. True Believer Marshs Greg Spore says the insurance industry is simply trying to be prudent when it comes to crypto. Its a new technology, its evolving quickly, said Spore, the U.S. financial products placement leader. There are security risks. Thats a big concern. But Spore himself, whos been with Marsh for two decades, is also a crypto believer, which doesnt hurt when youre in the crypto-insurance business. I am a huge blockchain technology enthusiast. Related: Copyright 2021 Bloomberg. Topics Carriers Cyber InsurTech Underwriting Aon London Startups A federal appeals court in San Francisco on Friday rejected the Trump administrations renewed bid to dismiss a lawsuit by young activists who say the U.S. government is ignoring the perils of climate change. By a 3-0 vote, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the government fell short of the high bar needed to dismiss the Oregon case, originally brought in 2015 against the administration of President Barack Obama. Twenty-one children and young adults, ages 11 to 22, accused federal officials and oil industry executives of violating their due process rights by knowing for decades that carbon pollution poisons the environment, but doing nothing about it. The government contended that letting the case proceed would be too burdensome, unconstitutionally pit the courts against the executive branch, and require improper agency decision-making by forcing officials to answer questions about climate change. But the appeals court said the issues raised are better addressed through the ordinary course of litigation. A trial is scheduled for Oct. 29 in the federal court in Eugene, Oregon. President Donald Trumps administration also has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to dismiss the lawsuit or put it on hold, and is awaiting a ruling. Its earlier bid to end the lawsuit failed in March. A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice declined to comment. The activists are seeking various environmental remedies. Julia Olson, one of their lawyers, said in a phone interview, The 9th Circuit sees that this case needs to go to trial with a full factual record on the young plaintiffs harms, their constitutional rights and climate science. The case is U.S. et al v U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, Eugene, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. No. 18-71928. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Will Dunham) Youths Climate Change Suit Has Potential Impact on a Historic Scale for Insurance https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2018/03/29/484908.htm Topics Lawsuits USA Climate Change Oregon The maker of a permanent contraceptive implant subject to thousands of injury reports and repeated safety restrictions by regulators said Friday that it will stop selling the device in the U.S., the only country where it remains available. Bayer said the safety of its Essure implant has not changed, but it will stop selling the device at the end of the year due to weak sales. The German company had billed the device as the only non-surgery sterilization method for women. As complaints mounted and demand slipped, it stopped Essure sales in Canada, Europe, South America, South Africa and the United Kingdom. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has placed multiple restrictions on the device following patient reports of pain, bleeding, allergic reactions and cases where the implant punctured the uterus or shifted out of place. In May, the FDA said doctors must show women a checklist of the devices risks before implanting it. More than 16,000 U.S. women are suing Bayer over Essure. One of them, Amanda Rusmisell, of Charlotte, North Carolina, said shes immensely thrilled by Bayers action. Rusmisell said she got the device in 2008 and developed severe pain and bleeding. She took part in patient-organized rallies accusing Bayer for not disclosing potential risks and said, choking back tears, Our very grassroots effort has worked. Bayer received FDA approval to sell Essure in 2002 and promoted it as a quick and easy permanent solution to unplanned pregnancies. Essure consists of two thin-as-spaghetti nickel-titanium coils inserted into the fallopian tubes, where they spur the growth of scar tissue that blocks sperm from fertilizing a womans eggs. Because of the reported complaints, the FDA added its most serious warning to the device in 2016 and ordered the company to conduct a 2,000-patient study. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said Friday the agency would work with Bayer to continue the study, but noted, Bayer will not be able to meet its expected enrollment numbers for new patients. The study was designed to follow patients for three years to better assess complications. More than 750,000 women worldwide have received Essure. Demand has declined in recent years and plunged 70 percent after the 2016 boxed warning, the FDA said. Gottlieb said the FDA will continue to monitor adverse events reported to its database after Essure is removed from the market. I also want to reassure women whove been using Essure successfully to prevent pregnancy that they can continue to do so, he said. Those who think its causing problems, such as persistent pain, should consult with their doctors, Gottlieb added. Essures original label warned that the devices nickel can result in allergic reactions. Its current labeling lists hives, rash, swelling and itching as possible reactions. But many women have attributed other problems to the implant, including mood disorders, weight gain, hair loss and headaches. Those problems are listed in the current FDA labeling for the device, with the qualifier: It is unknown if these symptoms are related to Essure or other causes. Informational material Bayer supplied to doctors and patients lists potential problems and says the devices are meant to be permanent. It also says removal may require complicated surgery, including a hysterectomy, that might not be covered by insurance. Gottlieb noted that device removal has its own risks. Diana Zuckerman, president of the nonprofit National Center for Health Research, said Essure is among medical devices approved without clear evidence of safety or effectiveness. As a result, when thousands of women reported serious complications from Essure, there was no unbiased long-term research to refute or confirm those reports, Zuckerman said. If patients had been listened to when the first clinical trials were conducted on Essure, better research would have been conducted to determine exactly how safe and effective Essure is. Dr. Kristyn Brandi, a Los Angeles family planning specialist, called Bayers move disappointing. She says most of her Essure patients have been satisfied. I would hope Bayer would use this opportunity to think about future research and product development, Brandi said. Being able to offer women contraception thats permanent without surgery is a really great option. Bayer spokeswoman Courtney Mallon said the company had no plans to re-design the device. Kate Nicholson, of Dallas, got an Essure implant last year after she and her husband decided not to have children. She said she sympathizes with women who have had problems but said ending Essure sales is the wrong move. Pulling it from the market is yet another way to limit our choices about our own bodies, Nicholson said. I personally always had horrible experiences with different versions of `the pill, but its still on the market and many women swear by it. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits USA Brokers who specialize in the construction industry love their clients and are very committed to keeping up with their needs. Ask them, So whats new? and the conversations inevitably veer off in various directions: risk management, pricing, hot areas, technology, coverage questions and more. Here are just a few of the directions that emerged from recent Insurance Journal talks with construction specialists who love their construction clients. Construction Continues to Grow It is a good time to be in the construction insurance business. U.S. construction spending grew by 7.6 percent from April 2017 to April 2018 with employment growth in the sector increasing in 256 out of 358 metro areas, according to the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). For the same timeframe, the AGC reported that private residential construction spending soared 9.5 percent, private nonresidential spending grew 5.3 percent, and public construction spending jumped 7.7 percent. While building hasnt hit the peaks of the housing boom prior to the Great Recession, construction overall is in good shape. Its a healthy construction market outlook, says Danette Beck, national construction practice leader at USI, an insurance brokerage and consulting firm. There arent any projections right now that there is going to be a slowdown. Beck still sees apartment and residential construction on the rise another positive sign for future growth in the broader construction market. I always look at that growth (in apartments and residential) as a positive if homebuilders are buying land and still building buildings, thats a positive. What follows is more building in other sectors for roads, schools, shopping centers other infrastructure projects that support communities. Construction specialist Marc Kaplan, an agent and broker for San Diego-based Michael Ehrenfeld Co., said his builder clients are still seeking out available land for new buildings. Thats a good sign for his book of business, which includes a mix of both builders and contractors. So as long as my builders are looking for land, thats going to mean that my trade contractors are going to continue to have work, Kaplan said. Theres just a lot of building going on right now in residential, although some of it is segmented, he said. Some price points are just flying out the door while others [higher-end homes] are sitting a little longer. Paul Hohlbein, president of Builders & Tradesmens Insurance Services Inc. (BTIS) based in Rocklin, Calif., said BTIS is seeing substantial growth in its large book of what Hohlbein calls the micro-contractor space. Theres a lot of growth because the economy is good and theres a lot of new start-up businesses, he said. Small contractors, or those with one, two or three employees, are busy building small projects in just about every area of the country, he said. BTIS writes micro-contractors in 45 states. Hohlbein says his firm, which writes more than $330 million in premium, has new business coming in from all over. We are seeing really nice growth in the New Jersey, Pennsylvania area, and in the Midwest states, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota. He said the Southeast is growing as well in the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Texas is always good to us just because of the sheer size of Texas. Meaningful Risk Management Another area that is evolving in todays growing construction market is risk management, the experts say. If they are to capitalize on new business opportunities, agents and brokers serving this market need to understand more than insurance; they also need to know how risk management needs in construction are changing. Contractors are taking on more risks today than they were yesterday, USIs Beck said. With so much construction work going on right now, its incumbent on contractors to be diligent about their risk management philosophy and plans and be careful to not take on more risk than they are prepared to handle, according to Beck. Professionals insuring contractors need to be thoughtful when managing risk. You have to sit down and understand what their goals are and consider that insurance is only one piece of risk management, said Beck. She sees risk allocation continuing to shift as contracting structures and projects become more complex. Owners are asking contractors to do more and more, she said. The risk allocation shift puts added pressure on contractors to manage risk effectively and efficiently. In addition, the industry is still experiencing heightened merger and acquisition (M&A) activity as contractors continue to find ways to grow and capture more market share. With M&A, additional risks such as geographic nuances or vertical integration present themselves, she says. You hear insurance and risk management and you think OK, were going to put together an insurance program that manages all the risks, and it doesnt. There are other things that contractors can do to manage risks, Beck said. She advises insurance professionals to be well-versed on meaningful risk management practices in construction. Its a much more thoughtful conversation about how you structure a meaningful risk management program, Beck said. You cant just walk into a construction clients office and expect that since you understand the concepts of insurance, that youre going to understand the risk issues. For example, sub-contractor pre-qualification is one area that general contractors and large trade contractors are always worried about due to sub-contractor defaults. Construction insurance professionals must help clients create a better risk profile for underwriters, she said. The better adept that you are at understanding who your partners are, the better you can manage their risk profile, Beck said. Technology Helps the Process As contractors are increasingly turning to technology and analytics to help them with risk management, construction brokers are also turning to technology. We utilize technology to really help them as they take on more risks, Beck said. When you look at insurance brokerage firms, you look at the platform and what they have from a value-add standpoint on what they give to their clients. USIs tech investment in construction was one reason Beck joined the brokerage earlier this month from Marsh. The investments that theyve made in technology to help clients make informed decisions are really powerful. It helps our teams to be better and be extensions of their clients, so they can help them make decisions to do what they do best, which is build buildings, or build infrastructure. And they can make decisions that can help them take on more risks while protecting their balance sheet. BTISs investment in technology is helping it reach its goal of being a $1 billion firm in less than 10 years, Hohlbein says. But its also helping its retail agents and the end customer the contractor with ease of doing business in todays fast-paced construction market. New technology is streamlining the insurance buying process for micro-contractors and agents that use BTIS, he says. Were trying to make it easy for them to purchase insurance product and give them options, so they choose and custom tailor what they need, he said. Hohlbeins goal is to give contractors a different way to buy coverage that helps his firm and his agency partners as well. BTIS has been busy building technology to put on agents websites, that will allow the contractor to get a price and actually submit and bind the piece of business online through the agent website. The API-based technology aims to cut quoting and binding times from five minutes to 60 seconds, the announcement said. Hohlbein said the firm is currently working with a group of beta agents to test the technology and it will soon be made available to all the retail agents that do business with BTIS. Coverage Trends The construction insurance market is no different than the overall property/casualty market, according to Kaplan. Everything is soft to stable, he said. There isnt really a hard market for any line of coverage except commercial auto, he said. Beck agrees commercial auto is a challenging market for construction but added that catastrophe exposed regions such as California might be experiencing some pain as well. With last years wildfire activity in California were seeing some carriers struggle with writing coverage for wildfire risk, especially with infrastructure-related construction. Thats just because California got hit really hard. One coverage area that is trending in importance during todays construction building uptick is delay in start-up coverage, according to Tim Kania, Aspen Insurance Global Head of Energy & Construction and U.S. Property. While delay in start-up coverage has been around for a long time, its still probably one of the most complicated and potentially misunderstood coverages in construction insurance, he says. There remains some uncertainty around what the coverage covers from multiple players in the construction transaction from lenders to brokers, and even insurers, according to Kania. If you have various people in a room, there might be a slight misconception as to how the cover responds and what should be reported as value. That obviously can lead to misalignment or misunderstanding whenever events happen, Kania said. With the uptick in construction activity, this coverage is becoming more prevalent and it is important that the entire industry from lenders to brokers to insureds understand the coverage, he said. Kania describes the coverage, simply, as time element coverage related to construction projects. Delay in start-up coverage is provided to insure against potential loss of earnings, debt service obligations, fixed costs and/or other soft costs following a delay beyond the anticipated date of a buildings completion resulting from a covered property damage loss under the property construction policy. Kania says the coverage can be purchased as an option by the principal/owner of the project. Coverage might also be mandated as a condition of applicable financial lending covenants. Its important for projects of all sizes. Delay in start-up coverage as well as the coverage components can be sought on a wide array of projects with varying project size and complexity and is not limited to mega projects or to a minimum sized project, he said. It has similarities to business interruption coverage but is unique for construction. It is triggered only after the project goes beyond an anticipated date of completion, Kania said. In other words, the project has to go beyond the original estimated date that the project would be completed. If coverage is triggered, claims are paid based on indemnities from losses that were covered under the property damage section of the policy, he said. Kania advises construction brokers to have a good understanding of the following: The principals in the scope of the coverage provided. That can be complicated because it can be tailored for a particular project and the needs of that project, and projects vary from project-to-project. Even though its two building projects, those building projects may vary in how they want to protect loss of earnings, he said. The insurance parameters need to be understood clearly. Thats who is insured, what is the sum thats insured, and how long is the period of indemnity, he said. Look at potential loss scenarios in the indemnification examples to make sure that you get the principals in scope of cover correct and the insurance parameters correct. Translate potential revenue loss into covered delay in start-up. So, its not a loss of revenue cover; its a loss of earnings cover. It really looks at net profit and fixed costs as the indemnification and doesnt look at lost revenue, he said. Kania says there can be some misconceptions regardless of size of project when it comes to delay in start-up coverage. But when its communicated clearly and concisely, and people understand what theyre trying to protect against, then its very good. For the Love of Construction Construction has been the perfect niche for Michael Ehrenfelds Kaplan. Theres a lot to know in this industry, but theres a lot to know with anything, he said. Kaplan says he has met some of the best people through specializing in construction. Contractors are sometimes stereotyped as flaky and I dont get that, he said. That stereotype is just wrong, he said. My clients are not flaky; theyre responsible. They want to do the right job. Its important that they have a good reputation, Kaplan said. USIs Danette Beck couldnt agree more. People ask me all the time, Why did you get into construction? And I say, I think its the best industry,' she said. By insuring the construction industry, Beck plays a small role in how she impacts the communities in which she lives. The skylines, the cities, the infrastructure that connects people. What other industry says they can do that? But it is an industry that requires a specialist to be thoughtful and knowledgeable when it comes to insuring risk, not unlike any other industry. Construction firms, like many U.S. business, are family-owned companies, second generation, third generation, or fourth generation companies and their personal brand, their thumbprint in the community is at stake, she said. When something goes wrong, its very personal, she said. This is a family name thats going on the face of this building, this road, this bridge, this wastewater treatment plant, this nuclear power plant, she said. I look at all my clients and prospective clients as family. Its really important that you not only protect their balance sheet, but also their reputation. Topics California Agencies Trends USA Profit Loss InsurTech Tech Property Market Construction Risk Management Contractors Brown & Riding Insurance Services Inc. has hired Ryan Pike as a property broker in its Dallas office. Pike specializes in placing difficult manufacturing as well as Property and Inland Marine risks in the oil and gas sector. He in an expert on heavy manufacturing risks that have challenges due to the complexity of their operations and the exposures (e.g.: fiberglass, fracking fluid, fertilizers, fumicides, plastics, hazardous chemicals, etc.). In the oil and gas vertical, Pike has expertise in fixed site property, contractors equipment, oil lease property, rig physical damage and salt water disposal wells. Brown & Riding is headquartered in Los Angeles. Topics Agencies Property A Mississippi insurance producer has surrendered his licensed after being served a cease and desist order by the Mississippi Insurance Department. According to a statement from MID, James Michael Brand surrendered his insurance producers license on June 22. The license of his agency, Brand Insurance services, LLC, d/b/a Gulf Coast Insurance, expired on May 31, 2018 and has not been renewed. Brand and his agency are the subject of a cease and desist order issued by MID on June 8, 2018 following the receipt of complaints and significant documented evidence from insureds and insurance companies that Brand failed to forward premiums received from insureds to the respective insurance companies in direct violation of Mississippi insurance law, MID said. As a result of the loss of their licenses, neither Brand nor Brand Insurance services, LLC, d/b/a Gulf Coast Insurance, are currently authorized to conduct the business of insurance in Mississippi, including the servicing of existing policies. MID said anyone doing business with James Michael Brand, Brand Insurance Services, LLC or Gulf Coast Insurance should immediately contact their insurance company or insurance broker directly to inquire whether their premiums have been received, the status of their policies and how to avoid a lapse in coverage. I have strongly encouraged insurance brokers to honor premium payments made to Brand upon proof of payment, and I am pleased thus far with how the brokers are stepping up to protect policyholders, Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney said. MID noted that anyone needing contact information for their insurance company or insurance broker can contact the Consumer Services Division at MID at 1-800-562-2957 for assistance. Source: Mississippi Insurance Department Topics Mississippi At least four people have been hurt after a fire started at an apartment complex in North Carolinas largest city. The Charlotte Fire Department said firefighters were called around 4:30 a.m. Friday and had to call more firefighters to help contain the blaze. The fire in a two-story building was under control by 5:30 a.m. Firefighters said four residents were treated at the scene and two who had jumped from a balcony to escape the flames were taken to a hospital. None of the injuries were serious. News outlets reported all 16 units in one building were affected by the blaze. The American Red Cross was talking with the families to see what they needed. The cause of the fire has not been determined. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics North Carolina A jury in Hawaii has sided with a Maui couple in a $1.9 million disability discrimination lawsuit against their condo association which fined them thousands of dollars for uncarpeted floors and attempted to sell their unit in foreclosure. Lawyer Eric Ferrer, who represented Greg and Michele White, said that the Villas at Kenolio Association of Apartment Owners fined the couple $200 a day for a period of two years for the floors. The condo board says the wooden floors in the couples unit violated the communitys rules. The couple says the floors help Greg White navigate through the home. He is blind in his left eye and visually impaired in his right eye. The couple explained that to the board, but the board denied their request for an exception. The board declined to comment. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits The city of Provo, Utah has reached a $750,000 settlement with five women who say it failed to take action to protect them from alleged sexual harassment and assault by a former police chief. Mayor Michelle Kaufusi said in a statement that the settlement would prevent the city from spending money to defend the case in court. Michael Young, who is an attorney for the women, said they were eager to put the lawsuit behind them. The women have said that the city and then-Mayor John Curtis failed to appropriately respond after receiving numerous complaints about former Chief John Kings behavior. King resigned in March 2017. Curtis is now a member of the U.S. Congress. He was not named as a defendant. The Associated Press does not generally name alleged victims of sexual harassment or assault. Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Google is well known for its popular search engine, email service, web browser, and various online tools we use daily at work, at home, and on the go. What many dont think about day-to-day, however, is that all of these services are free. So how does Google make its money? Parent company Alphabet (GOOGL) released Q4 2019 earnings with $46.075 billion in revenue, according to its website, which stated, "These numbers range from October to December, and includes the busy holiday shopping season for Made by Googles hardware efforts." Google Ads and Search Advertising The bulk of Google's 162 billion dollar revenue in 2019 came from its proprietary advertising service, Google Ads. When you use Google to search for anything from financial information to local weather, youre given a list of search results generated by Googles algorithm. The algorithm attempts to provide the most relevant results for your query, and, along with these results, you may find related suggested pages from a Google Ads advertiser. Key Takeaways Googles AdSense program allows websites not affiliated with Google to use Google display advertising on their sites. A large portion of Google's revenue comes from advertising. Google also makes money on its cloud-related businesses such as the Google Cloud Platform. To gain the top spot in Google advertisements, advertisers have to outbid each other. Higher bids move up the list while low bids may not even be displayed. Advertisers pay Google each time a visitor clicks on an advertisement. A click may be worth anywhere from a few cents to over $50 for highly competitive search terms, including insurance, loans, and other financial services. Google's ads advertisements integration touches almost all of Googles web properties. Any recommended websites you see when logged into Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps, and other Google sites are generated through the advertising platform. AdSense Network In addition to featuring search advertising on its sites, Googles AdSense program enables non-Google websites to incorporate Google display advertising on their pages. AdSense ads work similarly to Googles onsite advertising but are displayed on Google-approved sites anywhere on the Internet. When a visitor clicks on a display advertisement on a member website, a portion of the revenue is paid to the site owner while Google keeps part of the fee. Due to the breadth of companies advertising through the network, entire businesses depend on AdSense as their primary source of income. Other Revenue The rest of Googles 2019 revenue came from an assortment of non-advertising related projects. These initiatives include a diverse set of projects from both online and offline businesses. Included in the list of other revenues is income from related online, media, and cloud computing businesses such as the Play Store, Chromecast, Chromebooks, Android, Google Apps, and the Google Cloud Platform. Past offline projects include Googles famous self-driving cars, Google Glass, and an investment in a solar power plant in the Mojave Desert. Analysts have criticized Googles investment in these projects, as mounting expenses from non-core businesses cut into profit margins for the entire company. Major Misstep: Motorola Mobility Just because Googles advertising business is a revenue cash cow does not mean the company is without faults. Googles largest financial mistake in recent years was the $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility in 2011. By January 2011, Google had become the owner of the worlds leading smartphone platform thanks to the success of its Android operating system. Although Google already participated in the mobile market as a software vendor, the company made a $13 billion bet on Motorola Mobility. Google believed it could grow Motorolas handset business through a natural synergy with the Android software development team. This deal turned out to be the biggest flop in Google history. It led to a major $9.6 billion write-down when Lenovo bought Motorola Mobility from Google for $2.91 billion just two years after the acquisition, as reported in the media. For its efforts, Google retained ownership of a majority of the 17,000 patents gained through the acquisition. The Bottom Line In 2019 Google was up 18% year over year and up 20% on a constant currency basis, according to information released by Ruth Porat, the chief financial officer of Alphabet and Google. While other business segments contribute billions to Googles income each year, Google makes most of its money through online advertising. Despite the company's investments in other ventures, the tech giant's presence in the online advertising space does not appear to be changing anytime soon, nor does its strong revenue growth. What Is a Coiled Market? A coiled market, or coiled spring, is a market that has a lot of potential to make a strong move in one direction after being pushed in the opposite direction or held flat over some period of time. The idea is that if a market ought to be headed in one direction due to its fundamentals but has experienced pressure in the opposite direction, it will eventually make a strong corrective move in the direction of the core fundamentals. A coiled spring move will often be more substantial than what might have been otherwise if the market had continued incrementally in the fundamentals-driven direction without interference. Key Takeaways A coiled market is one where traders anticipate a strong reversal in the near future in order to align with fundamentals. Like a coiled spring waiting to pop, a market that has been trending away from core fundamentals due to various short-term pressures may also pop in the other direction. Coiled markets are most often observed in commodities and forex markets where hedgers or government policy may create temporary distortions in prices. Understanding Coiled Markets Coiled markets happen when the market has been held artificially held down. Commonly, a coiled market snap-back will occur in the commodities markets, such as gold and silver, but can befall any market. Technical analysts look to triangle patterns on charts to spot potential coils. In this chart pattern, as the upper and lower parts of the triangle move closer towards one another, more price pressure builds up. Like with tectonic plates in the earth, eventually the built-up pressure will look for a release. As pent-up energy increases, theoretically, the more massive the breakout will be. At some point, prices will move outside of the triangle's boundaries. The question is, whether they will move higher or lower. In the chart below, we see that the market has trended well below the lower bound of the triangle formation, indicating a potentially coiled market. Triangle Pattern. Example of a Coiled Market An excellent example of a coiled market is with a government that intervenes in its currency. Market observers often point to China when talking about the potential for a coiled yuan market. The Chinese government has a penchant for placing controls on the yuan, namely keeping it artificially low relative to its fair market value (FMV). If the government were to lift the controls suddenly, the currency would likely increase at a rapid rate. However, the rebound on a coiled market is not always higher. The market for the British pound sterling (GBP) became coiled in the other direction leading up to September 16, 1992, otherwise known as Black Wednesday. That day, a collapse in the pound sterling forced Britain to withdraw from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM). The ERM was introduced in the late 1970s to stabilize European currencies in preparation for the Economic and Monetary Union and the introduction of the euro. Countries seeking to replace their money with the euro were required to keep the value of their currency within a specific range for some years. Kari Daniels has been appointed chief executive of Tesco Ireland. Kari joined Tesco in 2002 and is one of Tescos most experienced commercial directors. Currently the Commercial Director for Packaged Foods in the UK, Kari has held a number of senior commercial and marketing roles in the UK and Europe including Director of Brand in Tesco UKs Customer team. As CEO of Tesco Ireland, Kari will report to Jason Tarry, Tesco UK & Ireland CEO. She will also join the UK Leadership Team. I am very excited to be joining Tesco Ireland as chief executive. Im looking forward to working with our team of over 13,000 people to give our customers the very best experience when they shop in Tesco. "Customers have responded positively to Tescos sustained investment in price, quality and service and I look forward to building on this momentum as we continue to focus on serving Irelands shoppers a little better every day, said Kari Daniels. Commenting on the appointment Jason Tarry said: Kari has shown outstanding leadership and delivered improved performance in the product categories under her remit and is the very best person to lead Tesco Ireland forward. I wish her the very best in her new role. Kari replaces Andrew Yaxley who has recently been appointed Tescos Group Chief Product Officer and joins Tescos Executive Leadership Team. Kari is married to Ian and has two sons, George and Tommy. Kari will take up her new role in September. - Digital Desk Gardai are urging people not to share fake kidnap warnings on social media or in WhatsApp groups. It comes after the photo of a foreign man, wrongly accused of being in a child abduction gang, was shared more than 2,000 times on Facebook. The Children's Minister is to visit Tuam later today. She is expected to hear the views of people on the future of the site of the Tuam Mother and Baby Home. Katherine Zappone says she is preparing to make a recommendation to Government on the future of children's remains and the site. She says the consultation by Galway County Council as well as legal and expert advice will help inform her decision. However, she firmly believes all voices must be given an opportunity to be heard. Digital Desk By Dan MacCarthy How misleading names can be. Where a pair of islands occur they are often named greater or little/ lesser: the Greater and Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean; Great Britain and Lesser Britain (Ireland) as described by the Greek cartographer Ptolemy in the second century. The latter term later fell into disuse. These are geographic terms relating to size not greatness. Otherwise there would be no end to self-congratulating countries: Wonderful Moldova, Fascinating Mongolia; Indescribable India? Picture captured by Twitter user John Finn. So it is with the Skelligs. Skellig Michael (Sceilig Mhichil and greater in size) is a magnificent towering near-pyramid of an island but its fellow Little Skellig or Sceilig Bheag is no less impressive. Together they are unique. Their strength lies in their partnership. It is Little Skellig that defines Skellig Michael and Skellig Michael that defines Little Skellig. The Atlantic Ocean without one or the other would be a poorer place without their jagged forms. No humans live, lived or ever could live in this truly wild place. In terms of inhospitableness its a toss up between Little Skellig and Rockall in the northwest Atlantic to see how long anyone could survive there. Gannet spotting on Little Skellig. pic.twitter.com/wc2Z6AgJvu VertebratePublishing (@VertebratePub) July 19, 2018 After several circumnavigations of this formidable fortress in a RIB skippered by the no-less formidable Willie Kennedy, it becomes clear that there are no obvious landing points. Not only are there no obvious landing points but there are none at all at high tide. At low tide, a rocky platform on which brown seals frolic permits entry to this sandstone and quartzite edifice. But then, no landing is permitted as the island is a protected bird colony. Little Skellig is about half the size of its big brother and at 134m high is about 90m lower. Again, appearances can be deceptive because on approaching the islands they look of similar height. However, seen through the vantage of the hermitage window on Skellig Michael, deliberately positioned to gain this aspect, the relative sizes become apparent. Little Skellig is the most important gannetry in Ireland with other significant colonies on the nearby Bull Rock on the Beara Peninsula, the Saltee Islands in Co Wexford and Lambay Island and Irelands Eye in Co Dublin. A view today of Little Skellig from Skellig Michael off the coast of County Kerry of Ireland. Skellig Michael, a monastery from the 7th Century, is a UNESCO World Heritage site. #ireland #irish #history #starwars @TourismIreland pic.twitter.com/F3REzbCZCD Barry Butler Photography (@barrybutler9) June 27, 2018 The best place to see gannets is at Little Skellig, where it is possible to see this impressive bird at very close range, as well as experiencing the comings and goings of the breeding colony. says Birdwatch Ireland which leases the island from the state. The site is a Special Protection Area under the EU Birds Directive. In addition to the black wing-tipped, yellow-headed gannets are fulmar, manx shearwater, storm petrel, kittiwake, razorbill, guillemot and puffin. Little Skellig is best known for its internationally important gannet colony, with around 30,000 pairs. It is one of the largest colonies in Europe. These remarkable birds can swim to 25m underwater and can hit the water at 100kph. To feel something of a gannet you can don an oxygen tank with skelligboats.com/ diving and plunge beneath the surface and get a gannets eye view, as it were. During the Famine, Blasket Islanders rowed to the Skelligs to harvest the gannets. Where Skellig Michael has several series of steps running down to the waters edge, Little Skellig only has gullies filled with excrement. In fact, the whole island looks like it has been whitewashed or greenwashed in birdshit. So much so that it resembles snow when seen from the shore. Robert Lloyd Praeger writes in The Way that I Went (1937), that gannets will use anything handy to build their nests strings of onions, blue castor-oil bottles and a childs tin clockwork steamer. Make no mistake about it, the gannets are the rulers of Little Skellig. Twas ever thus and ever thus will be. In his 1976 study of somnolence and madness, Heart of Glass, German film director Werner Herzog magnificently filmed both islands from a circling helicopter. Long before drones or spacecraft were ever heard of. How to get there: Tours with Willie Kennedy, Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry: 087 222 9787. Other: www.birdwatchireland.ie; skelligboats.com/diving The life and writings of Asenath Nicholson, a US woman who documented the Famine, has been dramatised for Rua Breathnachs latest play, Welcome to the Stranger, writes Ellie OByrne. She travelled to all but one county in Ireland at the height of the Famine and penned two exposes of the plight of the impoverished people she met, leaving behind her one of the most extensive primary source accounts of the Irish famine. But the name Asenath Nicholson means nothing to most Irish people and you wont find her mentioned on the school history syllabus. In Welcome to the Stranger, playwright Rua Breathnach has dramatised the story of Nicholson, a Vermont Puritan who travelled Ireland mostly on foot, sharing one meal of potatoes a day with her hosts. She wrote numerous favourable accounts of Irish peoples dignity and honesty in the face of hardship, leading to writer Frank OConnor dubbing her first book a Protestant love story to a Catholic people. Breathnach first stumbled upon Nicholsons story while researching a vague idea he had of writing a play on the Famine. I was immediately gripped by her story, he says. I almost looked over my shoulder to see if anyone else had noticed her, because I couldnt believe that nobody had really written any plays or fiction about her before. Here was this fascinating and unique character who had slipped under the radar in the history books. Nicholson set off for Ireland in 1844. At the time, the Irish were the destitute migrants of the US; her curiosity was piqued by the large numbers of impoverished Irish arriving in New York. She pledged to travel to Ireland to discover the social and political conditions that gave rise to their plight. Her first book, Irelands Welcome to the Stranger, describes the conditions of extreme deprivation and political unrest she encountered. She then spent a year in Scotland, returning to Ireland following the crop failure of 1846 for the three worst years of starvation. The resulting book, Annals of the Famine in Ireland in 1847, in 1848, and 1849, is a harrowing read. Nicholson observes the starving burying their dead with their bare hands, and worse. She learns the horrible meaning of a cabin with the door pulled shut: There would normally be an entire family dead inside, with the last to die pulling the door in for privacy. The cabin would then be pulled down on the corpses as an alternative to burying them. "Though every peasant in the Emerald Isle knows that he belongs to the 'lower order,' for his teachers and landlords are fond of telling him so, the Kilkenny rustic, by his self-possessed manner in the presence of his superior, says, 'I also am a man.'" Asenath Nicholson (1843) Marc Mulholland (@katheder) February 9, 2018 She wrote with immense compassion and, Breathnach says, with a modernity that makes her work universal and relevant. She was a brilliant writer and very modern in her approach, in that she was able to question her own observations, says Breathnach. She tried to distance herself as much as possible from any prejudices people might have about Irishness or poverty. She came to Ireland with a very open outlook. Welcome to the Stranger will premiere, fittingly, at Skibbereen Arts Festival: Skibbereen was hit notoriously hard by the Famine, with up to 10,000 bodies interred in mass burials in Abbeystrewry graveyard. This years arts festival has numerous Famine-themed events, in honour of the loan by Irelands Great Hunger Museum in Connecticut of an extensive collection of Famine-related artworks, currently exhibited as Coming Home: Art and the Great Hunger at Uilinn West Cork Arts Centre in the town. Breathnach and Belgian director Remi Beelprez worked with a cast of non-professional local actors for the production; 16 actors play 35 speaking parts, of characters Nicholson met along her journey, while Nicholson is played by Clare Lalor, an American yoga instructor and the wife of sculptor Brian Lalor. An interesting post from Roaringwater Journal on Asenath Nicholson who wrote a powerful eyewitness account of the Famine. The Famine art exhibition @ComingHome_IGHM will shortly open @westcorkartshttps://t.co/GIYgxxWCnA West Cork Hist Fest (@westcorkhisfest) July 11, 2018 Clare has very little acting experience, but she came to an early reading of the play and I knew she was perfect immediately, says Breathnach. Using a local cast and rehearsing in Abbeystrewry Church Hall brought an emotional resonance to the project: Theres an overwhelming emotional charge to this topic, in this area. The legacy of the Famine is right under the surface and I think it still affects attitudes, and peoples relation to land and to authority down here. Breathnach, originally from Dublin, moved to Union Hall two years ago, having lived in Brussels, where he co-founded Keepsaketheatre company with Beelprez. They have worked together on two plays penned by Breathnach, but familiarity aside, he says working with a Belgian director on Welcome to the Stranger provided necessary balance. He really has no history linked to Ireland and came with a very fresh perspective on this, a little like Nicholson herself, he says. Keepsaketheatres Welcome to the Stranger, premiering as part of Skibbereen Arts Festival, is on in Skibbereen Town Hall on August 1 and 2 at 8pm. Bookings, festival programme and more info: skibbereenartsfestival.com The admission comes amid renewed calls for a masterplan or blueprint to guide the future development of the Coal Quay or Cornmarket Street area the home of the citys street-market tradition. Officials told city councillors that they are working on some new initiatives in a bid to breathe new life into the area in the short term. It is understood that near-derelict and vacant sites are being considered for public use. The details are still being worked on and it could be several months before the initiatives are unveiled. However, officials accept that a longer-term strategy to reimagine the future of the historic former market area is now needed. The falling away of the traditional form of trading is a reality, but also represents an exciting opportunity, said the citys head of corporate affairs, Paul Moynihan. He made his comments after councillors debated the future of the area, prompted by a motion from Fianna Fail councillor Tim Brosnan. Mr Brosnan called on City Hall to engage with property owners on Cornmarket St with a view to exploring the reinstatement of the Irish market selling art, crafts, and souvenirs. He said it could operate seven days a week during peak tourist season and would provide an alternative trading location for the current fixed stalls, which, he said, are beginning to deteriorate. The proposal has merit and should be considered as part of a wider action plan to develop and enhance the type and nature of trading on Cornmarket St, said Mr Moynihan. During a debate on the proposal, Mr Moynihan said the council has been trying to several years to realise a vision for the area. The council ploughed some 4m into a complete overhaul of the street and its stalls in 2011 in a bid to create a thriving open-air market. However, Mr Moynihan said: Id be codding people if I said that vision has been realised fully. Most of the stalls in the area are idle, with one or two trading for a few hours on weekends only. Last year, publican Benny McCabe, who runs the Bodega and The Rising Sons bars on Cornmarket St, sparked a debate about the area after the Irish Examiner reported that he was considering legal action against the city because rarely used market stalls are blocking the listed building which houses the Bodega. Mr McCabe welcomed the news from City Hall. Every good city has its old town and, in Cork, its Cornmarket St and North Main St, he said. Ive seen areas like it in New Yorks East Side and in parts of Barcelona. It would take relatively little investment to push this in the right direction. Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy said: It is an historic area but we dont make enough of it. Fianna Fail councillor John Sheehan said investment in a craft market would fit in well with the citys historic spine, and his party colleague, Tony Fitzgerald suggested that elements of the Glow Christmas festival be extended to Cornmarket St this year. However, Mr Moynihan said any blueprint for the area would need consultation with existing traders and other stakeholders to ensure its deliverability and success, and would also need to be funded. If management roll back on this, Aer Lingus will be destroyed, he warned the rival airline of which Ryanair was a shareholder at the time. If they blink and go back into the useless machinery of the State, Impact will keep them there for months on end. As soon as Aer Lingus gets itself out the financial crisis, the unions start screwing around. It is a legacy of the Bertie Ahern era that needs to be dealt with, he said. It was the latest in a line of attacks from Mr OLeary on trade union involvement in his industry and others. How times have changed in the intervening seven years. Impact trade union has become Forsa but is still representing airline workers and is now a thorn in the side of Ryanair much more than Aer Lingus. Mr OLearys airlines decision to now recognise trade unions has, as a result, left it facing into three days of strikes in the next three days, the first of them tomorrow when its directly employed pilots here stage a third 24-hour stoppage. They are in dispute with the airline over pilot transfers and other associated issues. Then on Wednesday and Thursday cabin crew in key European tourism destinations will stage two days of stoppages. Cabin crews from across Europe have published a list of 34 demands, including a fair living wage, improved sick pay, and employment contracts in their own language, based on local rather than Irish laws. Whereas the impact of the pilots strike here has been cumulative, the cabin crew stoppages will be immediately very disruptive. The airline has managed each of the three pilots strikes by cancelling flights well in advance and confining the cancellations to UK-Ireland routes on which passengers can more easily be rebooked or refunded and ensuring family holiday plans arent as badly affected. Over the three stoppages, only 70 flights have had to be cancelled and many passengers will have been re-booked onto other flights. However, the two days of cabin crew stoppages will affect 100,000 people, many of them families going on their annual holidays to Belgium, Spain or Portugal. Certainly there will have been transfers onto alternatives to the 600 flights that have been cancelled. However, this is the summer schedule, the most important for airlines. The reputational, not to mention financial, damage is huge when that many people are impacted. There were always going to be teething problems when such a publicly anti-union organisation gave in and allowed its staff to be represented by the bodies so pilloried by Michael OLeary. However, now that it has it is going to have to work very hard to heal the existing rifts or these strikes, or at least the threat of them, are going to become a lot more common and a lot more damaging. Look at Aer Lingus. Its reputation suffered significantly from a decade of strike threats which left passengers wondering if it could be relied upon. Ironically, as Ryanair suffers, there appears to have now been quite a prolonged period of industrial peace in Aer Lingus. As Forsa communications director Bernard Harbor said at the end of last week over the transfer of pilots which is at the root of the action tomorrow: They [management] have been very reluctant to move off the system they already have. There is a bit of we have always done it this way coming across the table. There are going to have to be compromises from both sides, but the dialogue between them needs to move away from the megaphone diplomacy that we are witnessing currently. For example, in relation to the pilots strike here, Forsa has repeatedly sought the intervention of a third party. The question is will Michael OLeary be willing to let his team enter a process in the useless machinery of the State? Since January 1, the taxpayer has funded the printing for senators of more than 850,000 items including newsletters, sympathy cards, calendars, compliments slips, and other documents highlighting their work to the public. The total cost to the taxpayer for the service was 20,725. Despite not having constituencies, many senators operate local organisations in the area they seek to be elected to, and use the service offered by the Houses of the Oireachtas to spread their message. Figures released to the Irish Examiner under the Freedom of Information Act show that many senators have printed tens of thousands of leaflets and newsletters for distribution to the area where they have access. Of the top 10 largest jobs ordered by senators since the start of the year, only Sinn Feins Niall O Donnghaile is not seeking election to the Dail. He ordered 40,000 A4 colour newsletters to be printed at a cost of 1,029. A Sinn Fein spokesman said Mr O Donnghaile has done a lot of work around the campaign for the Hooded Men and used the newsletter to publicise that effort. The single largest job was ordered by Limerick-based Fine Gael senator Maria Byrne. She has been selected to take the place of retiring TD Michael Noonan, the former finance minister, at the next general election. According to the figures released, Ms Byrne ordered 44,000 A4 colour newsletters at a cost of 1,100. Speaking to the Irish Examiner to explain the high print run, she said: As a proactive public representative for the past 19 years, I strongly believe in keeping as wide a constituency as possible informed of my work be it through social media, print media, broadcast media, my own printed work, or at local events. It is a vital part of participative democracy. Her party colleague and Seanad leader Jerry Buttimer, who is a former TD for Cork South Central and who is selected to run alongside Tanaiste Simon Coveney at the next election, accounted for two of the top ten orders. On one occasion, he ordered 25,000 A4 colour newsletters at a cost of 655 and he also ordered 20,000 A4 colour newsletters costing 540, giving a total of 1,195. Like Ms Byrne, Mr Buttimer told the Irish Examiner that he availed of a facility which is open to elected members in order to communicate work he is doing. I take my role as a member of the Oireachtas seriously and inform members of the public on a variety of issues. We canvass, we do leaflets, we hold coffee mornings. I avail of the facility that is available to members in Leinster House. Asked to respond to the charge that senators do not have constituencies, he said: We are public representatives and it is my duty to inform people of different issues that pertain to them where ever they are from. I just happen to be from Cork South Central. Other big Fine Gael users of the service included Neale Richmond, who is seeking a seat in Dublin Rathdown. He ordered 30,000 A4 colour newsletters at a cost of 749. Clare-based senator Martin Conway, who sought selection to contest the general election, ordered 30,000 newsletters at a cost of 398, according to the figures. Fianna Fail senator Lorraine Clifford-Lee, who is seeking a seat in Dublin Fingal, ordered 25,300 newsletters. She echoed the comments of her colleagues, saying that keeping the public informed is an important job of any public representative. Speaking in Donegal, at the MacGill Summer School, Mr Ahern also suggested that Britain after Brexit would undermine its own market as a destination for Irish agri-food exports. His remarks come as negotiations between the EU and Britain resume this week on attempts to agree a withdrawal deal and therefor avoid a cliff-edge scenario for Brexit. Mr Ahern, delivering the 18th Annual John Hume lecture in Glenties, said: I would strongly urge the European Union to continue to support future peace programmes in Ireland, post the British departure from the European Union. Discussing Brexit, the former Fianna Fail leader said there was no reason why the European Union cannot continue to support the peace process in Ireland within the changing new political architecture of the European Union. EU funding has helped government agencies in the North as well as public bodies, private sectors companies and the farming community there. Under the Common Agricultural Policy 2014 2020, farmers in the North will receive in excess of 2.6bn in direct payments during this period. This accounts for 87% of total farm income in the North. However, billions of euro in funding will come to a head at the end of 2020, the audience was told. The agriculture and food sectors are vitally important components of the economy of Northern Ireland and these sectors will need to be heavily supported in financial terms post the British departure from the European Union, said Mr Ahern. Brexit had taken away the debate about the replacement of the future financing requirements of existing EU funded programmes, Mr Ahern stressed. He then added: In other words, how much money will the British government allocate post 2020 to substitute EU financed programmes that operate in Northern Ireland at this time? This is a very serious issue indeed and all contracting parties need to sit down and assess how to move these matters forward in a positive and constructive manner. Speaking to the media ahead of the lecture, Mr Ahern said we were only a matter of months away from where negotiations on the next round of funds for the North were to start. They [Britain] have said the will provide. There is a big difference between that [and reality]...It could be left where it is not paid. There were also warnings about the impact of Brexit on Irish food exports. Mr Ahern added in his lecture at the summer school: The shared land border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland has resulted in the development of a highly integrated agri-food sector, with large volumes of trade annually in live animals, finished products and products requiring further processing. For example, over 800m litres of milk is sourced from farms in Northern Ireland, but processed into dairy products and ingredients by co-operatives located south of the border. Britain, by conducting its own bilateral trade deals with third countries, will undermine the British market as a destination for Irish agri-food exports. Meanwhile, speaking at the opening of the 38th year of the summer school, French ambassador to Ireland Stephane Crouzat said the backstop, in the opinion of Paris, was the only viable solution for Ireland. This guarantees a frictionless border in the North if it stays in the customs union but it is considered a last resort option. France was preparing for all eventualities, including a no deal, added Mr Crouzat. Mr Ross said that the CIE companies Irish Rail, Bus Eireann, and Dublin Bus are unviable financially without the State subvention of 255m each year. It is understood that the proposal has angered Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe and his officials but Mr Ross is pushing ahead with it. Mr Ross, who has been a longstanding critic of CIE from his time as a journalist and as an Opposition TD, says that, by allowing staff to have some ownership of the company, they can share in any future success. However, he has said that, should the companies produce what he called a synthetic profit once the subvention is factored in, then staff should share in the rewards. Mr Ross has asked New Era (the Governments New Economy and Recovery Authority) to examine the feasibility of such a scheme, and that report is due to be discussed at Cabinet shortly. He said the move would help to greatly improve morale among workers in the three companies. I havent told anyone this, I believe in the idea of giving share options to the staff, said Mr Ross. I think there is potential in saying to them, those in all three companies: Look, you have the base subvention which will continue and increase, but if over and above that you have a synthetic profit, you start making money, there is no reason why you shouldnt share in that. Asked about his motivation for such a proposal, Mr Ross said it is to tackle low morale in the CIE companies. Because morale was very bad in the companies a year ago, during the strikes, said Mr Ross. We have got to increase it. Mr Ross has explicitly ruled out any suggestion that moving to an option scheme such as this would end up in privatisation. We will look to see how we can give these guys a stake in the companies without it being privatisation, which it wont be. We dont want that. No question about that, he said emphatically. They will identify with it and getting a few bob apart from pay increases which are not satisfying them, and it is a novel idea and it might work. It would be over and above targets which you would set, factoring in the subvention. As to the viability of the CIE group, as a long-time critic of how it was run, Mr Ross was clear about its chances to survive without annual taxpayer-funded support. CIE is not going to make a profit in the true sense of the word and it is going to continue to be subvented, said Mr Ross. It is certainly not viable in the sense it is not going to be commercial, make a profit. Responding to Mr Ross suggestion, Dermot OLeary, general secretary of the National Bus and Rail Union (NBRU), said the spirit behind the proposal is one to be worked on. He said that, on one level, it is bizarre that the minister, as shareholder, would not realise that these companies do not make a profit, but the notion behind aiding workers, particularly in Bus Eireann, in improving their pay is welcome. Mr Ross has also confirmed that despite requiring huge State subsidies, Irish Rail will not be closing down any of its current rail lines, even the much-maligned Limerick to Ballybrophy line. The line is costing 550 per passenger to operate, a 2016 report found. Ballybrophy is a very controversial area but there are no plans to close any lines, said Mr Ross. It is doing better and all three companies took on more passengers last year. But we have no plans to close rail lines or anything like that. Angry party members were responding to an opinion poll which shows the party is now on just 21% a full 13 percentage points behind Fine Gael. The Behaviour and Attitudes survey for The Sunday Times was the lowest rating for Fianna Fail for two years, having fallen three points since the previous poll. However, a number of party TDs gave voice to their anger on Saturday and accused Taoiseach Leo Varadkar of leaking details of his meeting with Mr Martin about extending the confidence and supply agreement. The two leaders met in Killarney on Thursday night and, as reported in the media, Mr Varadkar requested that Mr Martin accede to a two-year extension to the deal. More games from the Taoiseach. So much for a private discussion leader to leader. Cant help himself with the constant leaking & spinning. Agreement review will occur after the budget as set out, said the partys finance spokesman Michael McGrath on Twitter. This drew a sharp response from Kilkenny TD and chair of the Oireachtas Finance Committee, John McGuinness, who said: The Agreement review? 21%? Change direction or ask the people! Simple as! Robert Troy, the partys spokesman on transport, also criticised Mr Varadkar saying: Trust a man who leaks a private meeting to papers?? more interested in setting an agenda than constructively working to provide stability. However, this too drew a withering response from Mr McGuinness. Oh dear! How can Micheal ever trust him again, Robert? It must be so hard to support someone like Leo and his Gov that have an agenda and are planning ahead! Mr McGuinness said, alluding to a sense of chaos in his own party. Mr McGuinness is reflective of a growing unhappiness among party TDs over the ongoing deal, arguing the party is suffering as a result of it. He was unable to comment when contacted by the Irish Examiner yesterday. Responding last night, one senior party figure sought to dismiss Mr McGuinnesss comments, pointing to similar comments he made in 2014 just before the party became the largest party at local level and again ahead of the 2016 general election, where the party gained 23 seats. Meanwhile, at the MacGill Summer School yesterday, former taoiseach Bertie Ahern said the natural lifespan of the Government support pact between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael ends next Easter, at which point an election may be called. Members of Charleville/Fermoy municipal district council sought to widen legislation first used in the 1980s by the former Fermoy Town Council to ban gaming arcades in its jurisdiction. An application for a gambling arcade was made recently in Fermoy, but for the outskirts of the town where the prohibitive bylaw is not in place. It was widely objected to by locals and permission for it was refused by An Bord Pleanala. A number of other applications have been made for gambling arcades in other towns in recent weeks. The municipal district council wants to prevent these by widening the bylaws which are used in Fermoy to cover the whole of the county. Its members had asked senior county council officials to examine their proposal under Part 3 of the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1976 and they replied that they would have to seek legal advice. At a recent meeting of the Charleville/Fermoy municipal district council, Fine Gael councillor Noel McCarthy asked for an update on progress. We want to keep these gaming arcades out of Fermoy and other towns in the future. People dont want them, said Mr McCarthy. He was informed by a senior county council official that legal advice they have received has thrown up more questions than answers. They didnt expand any further on the questions. However, they said as a result of the advice, they are having to seek guidance from a number of government departments, understood to be Justice, Finance and Local Government. Mr McCarthy said he is disappointed with the reply. Waiting this long is totally unacceptable, he said. The Social Democrats June Murphy, who chairs the municipal district council, agreed, pointing out there has been a planning application for a gambling arcade in her hometown of Mitchelstown, which locals are vehemently opposed to. While were waiting on this these companies are putting further applications in, said Ms Murphy. Council officials reiterated that they need further information and have flagged some issues with the Government departments. They added that due diligence is needed and would hope to be in a position to report back to county councillors in September. Fine Gael councillor Kay Dawson said District Courts could refuse a gaming licence. Meanwhile, Fianna Fail councillor Frank OFlynn said that a stipulation might be included in town development plans to prohibit new gambling arcade setting up. The county council formulates plans every few years as blueprints for growth in towns and villages. Mr OFlynn said this is worth exploring: We dont want any of these gaming arcades in our towns. An Bord Pleanala decided to uphold the decision of Cork County Council to refuse permission for the gambling arcade at the junction of Cork Road/Duntahane Road in Fermoy. The area is outside the jurisdiction of the bylaw. The planning appeals board refused the application because the proposed business would have been located within a neighbourhood centre, close to an established residential area and in close proximity to a number of schools. It also said that on-road parking and traffic generated by the business would have been likely to endanger public safety. Pressed about whether he thought this would bring s tability amid the chaos of Brexit, Mr Coveney said it would be sensible if Fine Gael and Fianna Fail can agree a time for the election. The remarks come after a meeting last week between Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin at which the possibility of fixing a 2020 summer election date was discussed. Mr Coveney told reporters at the MacGill Summer School: Nobody wants an election right now. Certainly Fine Gael dont want it. I dont think Fianna Fail want one. The Irish people arent asking for an election. What they are asking for is for us to deal with the uncertainty of Brexit, to make progress on housing policy and health reform. The issues around the confidence and supply are really a matter for the Taoiseach and Micheal Martin to determine. This is something they have said they will meet on again in September. I agree with the Taoiseach that we need to provide as much certainty as we can. Certainly I think it would be sensible to agree a date for the next general election. And it makes sense to do that in June of 2020 but thats a matter for the leaders of the two largest political parties to discuss further in September and they will do that. Delivering a speech at the MacGill Summer School last night in Glenties, Donegal, Mr Coveney also said the Brexit backstop guaranteeing a frictionless border in the North must be agreed by the October summit of EU leaders. Mr Coveney said: So then, what is achievable between now and the European Council in October? Well, lets get a framework for the closest possible future relationship between the EU and UK, considering the ideas in the British cabinets white paper and guided by what will deliver most trade, most investment, most jobs, while preserving the integrity of the EUs single market and customs union. And as an absolute priority, the EU needs to see our backstop or insurance mechanism in the Ireland/Northern Ireland protocol nailed down to ensure that, no matter what, as prime minister May pledged again last Friday, there will be no going back to any physical infrastructure at the border. The Tanaiste told the audience it was important that the sweat and tears of a peace process more than 30 years in the making wont be sacrificed at the altar of the most extreme Brexiteer ambitions. Mr Coveney also said he wanted to put to bed the notion that there are any constitutional implications, or any constitutional agendas around the North and the need for a backstop. Disagreement over a backstop has arisen after Ms May suggested that it would not be acceptable under her new soft Brexit strategy. EU negotiators this week are meeting British counterparts and it is understood alternatives to the guarantee are being examined. Mr Coveney also told the school that the North could be treated differently in any deal or negotiations. Aside from the unique architecture for Northern Ireland in the Good Friday Agreement which is guaranteed by both governments Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland all have different rules and regulations from England, and from each other, as a result of devolution, he said. One is a sculpture dedicated to more than 100 girls who fled the Great Hunger to settle in Australia; the other an extensive collection of works featuring some of Irelands most famous artists. Coming Home: Art and the Great Hunger, the worlds largest collection of Famine-related art, has been launched at a reception at Uillinn, West Cork Arts Centre, Skibbereen. The exhibition is open to the public following a residency at Dublin Castle earlier this year and runs as part of a programme of cultural events until October 13. Sent by Irelands Great Hunger Museum at Quinnipiac University, its permanent home in Connecticut, the collection features selected artworks from 50 of Irelands most eminent artists, including Jack B Yeats, Alanna OKelly, Robert Ballagh, Dorothy Cross, and William Crozier. Launching the exhibition, RTE director general Dee Forbes said: Those that were lost, sacrificed, and abandoned are remembered and honoured among us in Coming Home. West Cork Arts Centre director Ann Davoren said the exhibition was an opportunity for the people of Cork and visitors to the region to experience the art collection in Skibbereen. Irelands Great Hunger Museum director Ryan Mahoney said they are honoured to bring the exhibition to Skibbereen. To include Skibbereen on the tour, an area that is synonymous with the Great Hunger, was important to all that are involved with this project, he said. The town is also the focus of a year-long project exploring the poignant story of 110 girls from Skibbereen who fled the Famine for Australia in 1848. A bronze sculpture dedicated to them by Toma McCullim has been unveiled at Skibbereen Hospital. Attending the unveiling were Judith Constable and her daughter Katriona, who are Australian descendants of Jane Leary, one of the girls sent to Australia through Earl Grays Famine Orphan Scheme. The Sparkasse (this is the German singular of the plural, Sparkassen) is owned publicly by a municipality or local authority. A special-purpose body is set up to oversee the bank which renders it an economically independent financial institution. There is a special relationship between the municipalities and Sparkassen that means the municipalities do not own the Sparkassen they are responsible for and also cannot sell them, according to the Local Public Banking In Ireland report. Sparkassen operate in geographically delimited areas and they are precluded from operating outside of those areas. There are 431 Sparkassen banks in 12 German regions. These include 7,000 branches which serve 50m customers. The banks account for 17% of the market. Irish Rural Link received advice and expertise from the foundation arm of Sparkassen to put together a proposal that would attempt to replicate the best elements of the German public banks. According to the submission: The proposal has an ethos of benefiting the local community with profits being used for the benefit of social projects in the community, and an aim of supporting local, regional and rural development, including the development of local, regionally located SMEs. The idea would be for eight to 10 regional banks throughout the State, managed independently but employing the same business model. Each bank would have its own network of branches and would operate solely in the area in which it is located. Ideally, a system of local deposits for local loans would be used. It is proposed that these local public banks would benefit from shared services through a centralised service provider that would provide functions such as risk-management, accounting, IT and HR, lowering the cost base of the local public banks. Each bank would make annual contributions to the central service provider. The proposed local public banks would be publicly owned and it would be intended that they could not be acquired by third parties. They would be stakeholder driven with a public mandate. The proposal was examined in detail by the authors of the Local Public Banking in Ireland report but rejected on the basis of the estimated start-up costs of 170m. However, one of the first constructions for the Island of Geese site in Tralee is likely to be a tall glass spire, according to plans unveiled. Apart from a tall red brick chimney stack smack in the centre, the 2.3-acre derelict former Denny Bacon factory site has been completely cleared. In Medieval times, it was a market and chancel place near the 1866-built Dominican Church. Rob Keane of Reddy Architecture +Urbanism said the history of the walled site pointed to it as being always associated with urban development: the remaining chimney had dated to 1900 and the Edwardian period when Tralee was a hive of bacon factories, mills and activity. The retention of the chimney is, therefore, an important aspect, he said. The tall brick chimney, it emerged, will be topped with a glass lit-up spire to tower over other buildings and become a focal point for the western side of Tralee. However, whether it will be as tall as church spires on the eastern side of Tralee has yet to be decided. Overall, 14,000sq metres of space, either commercial retail or residential, will be developed, the county councils town manager Michael Scannell. We want it to become part of Tralee, not a separate site, he said. It could open up new pathways between the Bons Secours Hospital and the town centre and bring the hospital into the town. However, the council had to be realistic Mr Scannell said, emphasising it was a long-term project, focusing on quality and there would have to be investment from the private sector. Mayor of Tralee Graham Spring said the plans unveiled were a first step and proposals will go on public display. About 800 people had previously made submissions. The people of Tralee have been highly involved to date. Id like them to stay involved, he said. Mr Scannell also said some submissions pointed to people wanting to move back into the town centre which was a shift from previous generations who had moved out. He pointed to Georgian and Victorian buildings of Denny Street being revamped for residential use, as part of the regeneration, and the focus in Tralee now was once more, making it a place to live. A reported 3m has been earmarked so far for the Island of Geese, including 1.5m from the European Regional Funding for a three-year programme of works. Kerry Co Council is committed to providing the remainder where 800,000 has already been spent. Meanwhile, in a separate project, the county town has become a centre of public services in Kerry and has been rebranded in an effort to attract businesses. Former Tanaiste Dick Spring has been appointed a business ambassador for his home towns new T brand. The flowing T in strong colours symbolises the Lee River on which the town, metres from the sea, is meant to reflect how the busy county town where most public services are located, from county council buildings to third-level college to courthouse, is surrounded by mountains river and sea. We are relieved at the sentence, but we are still left without a sister and a little boy is left without his mother. We hope we can get some closure and remember Amy the way we knew and very much loved her, said Jessie McCarthy, sister of the late Amy McCarthy. The family assembled yesterday afternoon back at the courthouse on Anglesea St where Adam OKeeffe was jailed for life on Friday for murdering Amy. The McCarthy family were supported by the Lord Mayor of Cork, Mick Finn, a long-time family friend. Jessie repeated their thanks to Ms Justice Eileen Creedon and the jury in the eight-day trial of OKeeffe. As well as thanking detectives Noel Maxwell, Shane Bergin, and Anne OSullivan, the family also thanked detectives Myles Moran, Marice OConnor, Aoife Hayes, and Stephen Fuller, as well as Detective Superintendent Sean Healy, and superintendents John Quilter and Declan OSullivan. The family concluded yesterdays brief statement with a request to the media for privacy at this time. OKeeffe had admitted the manslaughter of Amy, aged 22, on April 29 or 30, 2017, at 36 Sheares St, but denied murdering her. The jury returned a unanimous verdict of guilty to murder on Friday. OKeeffe was immediately sentenced to the mandatory term of life imprisonment. Amy was found dead on the floor of a squat. An autopsy showed signs of blunt-force trauma to the head and manual strangulation. Speaking directly afterwards in a victim statement, Jessie said: The one thought in our minds that will remain forever is of Amy lying on the floor with no one to pick her up and get her the help she needed. We have no doubt she was pining for us that night. The one person that misses her most is her son, Adam. What we would do to see them reunited and see the joy on their faces again but we know that is never going to happen. If only one of us could swap places with Amy it would be done in a heartbeat. The future holds a lot for Amys son, but we will face them day by day, step by step. There is one thing we would like to ask that Amys son would continue to be known as Adam McCarthy, not the boy whose father killed his mother. Happy days. Now its Robert Mueller, who would undoubtedly find misplaced cigars and throwing an intern under the worlds media bus a joyful respite from the Trumpian hellscape that he has been appointed to excavate; you know things are bad when you find yourself thinking almost fondly about George Dubya Bush. We misunderestimated just how bad things could get. The current occupant at the White Supremacist House makes Dubya seem like Obama, and Obama like Mandela. Dear God. I Preferred Obama, read one of the less sweary homemade placards at the recent anti-Trump protests in London, where a quarter of a million people and a large orange balloon expressed their displeasure in what was billed a carnival of resistance. Id call you a c*** but you lack the warmth and depth, read one. I dont normally do signs, but for f*** sake, read another. And classically, The Queen thinks youre a twat. Oh, and lots of Free Melania banners. There were Muslims against Trump, migrants against Trump, drag queens against Trump, vicars against Trump, there were vegans against Trump, babies against Trump. Everyone came. Aerial footage showed a vast river of humanity flowing through central London, filling the enormity of Trafalgar Square. You probably saw it on the news. Actors! Liars! Fake news! shouted Trump supporters. Several suggested that the hundreds of thousands of demonstrators in the streets all over Britian had come out to welcome the US President. Again, dear God. Only when Trump went to Helsinki and got his woulds and his wouldnts mixed up in the presence of his Russian boss did America react. I misspoke, responded the tangerine nightmare. Obama, in a speech in to mark the 100th anniversary of Mandelas birth, spoke of the utter loss of shame amongst political leaders, where theyre caught in a lie and just double down and lie some more. And we remain hypnotised, distracted, horrified, as the abnormal becomes normalised, and the unacceptable becomes accepted. When Dubyas dad George HW Bush moved out of the Oval Office in January 1993, he left a hand written note to welcome his successor, Bill Clinton. It ended with: I wish you well, I wish your family well. Your success is now our countrys success. I am rooting for you. Good luck. How other wordly such words seem now, how quaint, how last century in their sincerity and good manners. Bush Sr mongered wars like the rest of them, but at least he wrote a nice letter is this what Trump has reduced us to, a longing for the likes of Georges Sr and Jr? Is this what is has come to? Or, in terms of political evolution, is the Trump nightmare one step back after the two steps forward of Obama? Or is this the new normal? In Person New, Improved Deal on China-Backed Kyaukphyu SEZ Due Soon: Deputy Minister U Set Aung speaks to the media during a news conference at the Central Bank of Myanmar in Naypyitaw on Oct. 1, 2014, when he was the bank's deputy governor. / Reuters YANGON Since the 2015 elections that swept the National League for Democracy (NLD) to power, the government has been negotiating with the China International Trust and Investment Corporation (CITIC) to raise Myanmars stake in the Kyaukphyu SEZ in Rakhine State. The shareholders agreement CITIC struck with the previous government, under President Thein Sein, just before the election gives the Chinese developer an 85 percent stake in the project and Myanmar the rest. Critics of the project have raised concerns that the deal could land Myanmar in a debt trap with China. The new chairman of the SEZs management committee, Deputy Planning and Finance Minister U Set Aung, has gained relevant experience managing Myanmars first SEZ in Thilawa, in Yangon Region. He spoke with The Irrawaddys Nan Lwin about what the ongoing negotiations with CITIC have achieved so far and the governments ongoing efforts to grow and reform the economy overall. You have been managing the Thilawa SEZ as chairman. Now you are responsible for the Kyaukphyu SEZ as well. What would you like to say to people who are worried about a debt trap? I have experience drawing up special economic zone master plans in some ASEAN countries. I have done an SEZ demand survey in seven countries. Based on my experience, I have tried to make the Thilawa SEZ a success. I cant say its perfect; there is still more to be done. There are many reasons and difficulties on both sides that explain why negotiations on the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone have been slow. When I took responsibility for the Kyaukphyu SEZ, I decided to start at the beginning. Before we started the official discussion, we compromised based on five principles. First, renegotiation must be flexible and not put any burden on the Myanmar government. Second, the renegotiation process must be based on international standards. Third, if we need to alter the previous agreement, China must agree to the changes. Fourth, to follow the rules and regulations for tender requests for proposals. And fifth, to follow the laws in Myanmar. After I had agreement to follow all five principles, I started the negotiations with China. We have already agreed that the Myanmar government will not fall into a debt trap over the Kyaukphyu SEZ. We have agreed to start on a smaller scale and that expansion will be based entirely on demand. It was also agreed that it will be a demand-based rather than a supply-based project. Moreover, we agreed not to expand the project unless we have enough demand. Based on the final agreement, we dont need to worry about the debt trap that people are concerned about. The Kyaukphyu SEZ is a controversial project. Do you have any concerns since becoming chairman? Yes, I have concerns too. It is a big responsibility. However, I have been very cautious in the negotiation process, mindful of what happened in other countries and to follow international standards. So far in the negotiations we discussed that the project will absolutely not put a burden on the government. What have been the main topics and agreements during the discussions? We have discussed three key agreements. We agreed that the project will start out at the appropriate scale, so the project is no longer $9 billion or $10 billion as agreed by the previous government. The first phase of the project will start small or medium. Moreover, if we need to expand to a second phase or a third phase, we must be operating at full capacity in phase one and we must earn enough to cover all the operating costs of phase one. After we have achieved these two factors, we will allow expansion to a second phase or a third phase. Finally, we also agreed that the loans must be private loans, not government loans, and we wont take loans as a government and wont give any sovereign guarantees to China. Can you estimate when the final agreement will be officially announced? We have been negotiating the agreement at both formal and informal meetings. There is already what is called a framework agreement. We will sign that framework agreement officially. At that time, we will announce it to the public. We learned that the NLD government has been demanding that its share in the Kyaukphyu project be increased from 15 percent to 30 percent. Does China agree to that? When the [previous] government invited tenders, it announced that the winner would get 85 percent of the shares. So the rest, 15 percent, would be for the government. But now China has agreed to give Myanmar 30 percent of the shares. I also want to ask you a question in your role as deputy finance and planning minister. The business community says the economy is growing very slowly. Yet according to the World Bank and IMF, GDP and other economic indicators are improving. So why do businesses say the economy is struggling? Macroeconomic conditions may not be the same as the conditions for individual businesses. In the Burmese language, the meaning of economics looks similar to the meaning of business. Literally, there is a big difference between economic aspects and business aspects. For example, when businesses are doing well, the national economy develops rapidly. As a result, it causes economic overheating and leads to economic instability. In that situation, business is good but the macroeconomics will be unstable. In some situations, some facts [data] are right when we look at them from a business perspective but some facts are wrong when we look at them from an economic perspective. What reforms is the government pursuing to grow Myanmars economy? Business confidence is the most important factor for economic improvement. To improve business confidence, we need an explicit policy that shows investors a clear-cut vision. We need transparency about what the government will do and which way it is heading to grow the economy. Now we have drawn up a roughly 250-point action plan that includes a strategic plan to work with related departments in each sector. It has been named the Myanmar Sustainable Development Plan. We will announce the plan as soon as we can. We need transparency for all national projects, including national budget projects, international loan projects and government-private partnership projects. We have been planning a new system called a project bank or project information bank that will provide project information to the public. At the same time, we have been preparing a standard operating procedure to deal with complicated rules and regulations that businesses face. I think that as a government we need to focus more on long-term plans than on short-term problem solving to achieve economic development. Myanmar is strategically situated for Chinas Belt and Road Initiative. We have learned that the Myanmar-China Economic Corridor MoU will be signed this year. We are very small economically and financially compared with China. What sort of strategic plan should Myanmar prepare for Chinas Belt and Road Initiative, since we have an ongoing civil war and are not financially strong? If we take advantage of the Belt and Road Initiative carefully, we will profit with basic infrastructure for our country. But we need to examine the details of each project, whether it is necessary for our country. If we can develop infrastructure projects in cost-efficient ways, the two countries can have a win-win situation. On the other hand, we have been developing infrastructure projects with our allies such as the Asian Development Bank, World Bank, JICA and other agencies. Asia Cambodia Opposition Says it Has Been 'Cut Off' in Lead-Up to Election A supporter of the ruling CPP uses a mobile phone to photograph a portrait of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen during an election campaign in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on July 7. / Reuters PHNOM PENH In June last year, Khoeun Virath was elected as a commune councilor in the capital of Cambodia, but months later his political party was banned and most of its leadership fled into exile so now he works as a tuk-tuk driver to make ends meet. Viraths story is just one example of how a once-thriving opposition has been silenced and pushed underground by long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen and his allies ahead of a general election set for July 29. The government denies it has set out to sideline critics. We have never banned criticisms but we ban insults and incitements because in an election situation, people need security physically and mentally, government spokesman Phay Siphan said. Hun Sen, who has ruled this Southeast Asian nation for over 30 years, has had virtually no opposition since November, when the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) was dissolved by the Supreme Court at his governments request. The CNRP was narrowly defeated in a 2013 general election. Amid condemnation from the international community, CNRP leader Kem Sokha was jailed last year on treason charges and almost 5,000 local authority positions his party had won were handed to members of the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP). Inside the country, [CNRP members] are completely cut off from communicating with each other, 30-year-old Khoeun Virath told Reuters at a cafe in Phnom Penh in what was once his constituency. There is no leadership structure left. Many Cambodians are afraid to speak about the election, fearing their views could land them in trouble. Hun Sen has accused the United States of supporting the CNRP and plotting a color revolution to overthrow his government. People Are Afraid Hoping to expose the election as flawed, opponents of Hun Sen have launched a campaign urging Cambodians not to vote. People here are afraid, people dont want to speak out, said Khoeun Virath, who said he has been followed by plainclothes police many times. The government says calls for a poll boycott are illegal and has invited 50,000 observers, including some from China, Myanmar and Singapore, to monitor the election. Soeung Sen Karuna, 41, an investigator for rights group Adhoc, one of the oldest rights groups in Cambodia, said his organization had been accused of plotting a revolution and was finding it increasingly difficult to work. NGOs who work in other sectors are scared of cooperating with us, he told Reuters at Adhocs office in Phnom Penh. Five members of Adhoc were detained without trial for 14 months before being released on bail last year. They were charged with bribing a witness in a case against the now-jailed opposition leader, Kem Sokha. Supporters of Kem Sokha say the charges are politically motivated. Another person who knows the lengths to which authorities will go to silence critics is Ma Chetra, 28, who runs the Social Breaking News Facebook page. He said he has been targeted by the government over the page, which hosts news about land-rights protests, forced evictions and other issues the government considers sensitive. Ma Chetra said he has fled Cambodia several times since 2017 after police sent a photograph of him with a group of activists at Phnom Penhs international airport. The activists were heading to Indonesia for a workshop on democracy, he said, but police circulated the image with the caption: A group of youths who went to train to conduct a color revolution. The photograph, seen by Reuters, lists the names and some of the mobile phone numbers of those on the trip. Some of the group have since fled to the United States and France. Others are in Cambodia, but are keeping a low profile. With less than a week to go before the election, Phnom Penh is festooned with posters urging Cambodians to vote for Hun Sen. But there are none for the small opposition parties, and there are few signs of the excitement that usually precedes an election. Back at the cafe, Khoeun Virath said the best hope for opponents of Hun Sen is pressure from exiled leaders and the international community. With diplomatic pressure from abroad there can be a lot of momentum, he said. Asia Paradise Papers Tie Cambodian Army Chief's Wife to Tropical Tax Haven Pol Saroeun (left) and his wife, Noup Sidara, attend a ceremony in Preah Sihanouk Province on Jan. 7, 2017, to commemorate the fall of the Khmer Rouge in 1979. / Pol Saroeun / Facebook YANGON In April 2006, in a remote corner of Cambodias northern Uddor Meanchey Province, not far from Pol Pots dusty grave, a company run by the wife of the countrys powerful army chief landed a license to look for coal. The following year, half way around the world, another company, Uddor Meanchey Mining Holdings, was registered in the Cayman Islands, one of the most notorious tax havens on the planet. Its sole purpose was to own the coal mine and reap the returns. Among its shareholders was the Cambodian army chiefs wife Noup Sidara. Her own company, Ratanak Stone Cambodia Development, was by then already exploring for iron at another site that, according to a Global Witness investigation, her husband tended to personally and was believed to own in all but name. Sidaras Cayman Islands shares are detailed in the Paradise Papers, a trove of 13.4 million records leaked to German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung and shared with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Since hitting headlines around the globe late last year, the Papers have helped shine a light into some of the darker corners of offshore finance, much of it flowing in and out of the Cayman Islands. The secret sharer Jutting out of the Caribbean Sea just south of Cuba, the Cayman Islands are an autonomous overseas territory of the United Kingdom, ringed by picture postcard beaches and crystal blue waters. But the sandy, sun-kissed isles are best known for a thriving and highly secretive financial services sector that helps the worlds wealthy avoid and evade their taxes back home. Companies registered in the Cayman Islands pay no corporate or income tax on money earned offshore. The Tax Justice Network ranked the Caymans third in its financial secrecy index this year, behind only Switzerland and the United States. A 2016 Oxfam report on jurisdictions facilitating the most extreme forms of corporate tax avoidance placed the Caymans second to Bermuda. The Guardian newspaper has called the Caymans the most notorious tax haven of them all. The Cayman Islands has long been one of the most damaging secrecy jurisdictions globally, playing a disproportionately large role in the international trade in financial services, and offering a range of secretive channels including anonymous company ownership, Alex Cobham, chief executive of the UK-based Tax Justice Network, told The Irrawaddy. By allowing unscrupulous individuals and companies to hide their behavior from their regulators at home including but not limited to tax authorities secrecy jurisdictions support the evasion and avoidance of legal and social responsibilities including but not limited to paying taxes. Cobham said the corporate restructuring Sidara was involved in had the potential to hide ownership in such a way that could have been used to avoid tax and obscure conflicts of interest. Doing business offshore is not inherently illegal, and The Irrawaddy has seen no evidence that Sidara broke any laws. But Nienke Palstra, a campaigner for anti-graft group Global Witness, said tax havens attract money launderers and tax evaders because they dont require companies to disclose their real owners and dont routinely share information with tax authorities and law enforcement in other countries developing countries especially. Having an offshore holding company in the Cayman Islands own a Cambodian company, which is doing business in Cambodia, raises the question whether this setup has been created with the explicit purpose of obscuring the real owners of the Cambodian company, she said. Ties that bind The Cambodian Commerce Ministrys online business register names Sidara as the sole director of Ratanak Stone. But according to Global Witness, her husband General Pol Saroeun, commander-in-chief of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces has given the companys operations his personal attention and was widely believed to own at least one of its mines himself. When Global Witness investigators visited Ratanak Stones iron mine in Preah Vihear Province in 2005 and 2008, they found more than a dozen soldiers guarding the site. A worker told them that Saroeun himself visited in 2008 and that the soldiers stood to attention and saluted him, as they would on duty. In a 2009 report on Cambodias extractive industries, Global Witness said that on both its visits mine workers, local officials and military personnel guarding the site all said that the Ratanak Stone mine is owned by General Pol Saroeun. Cambodian law prohibits military personnel from managing private companies, serving as directors, using their positions to exploit any advantage, or spending working hours to conduct business for private interest. During his visit to the mine in 2008, the general was still a deputy commander of the armed forces. He took the top job the following year. In a report out last month, Human Rights Watch placed Saroeun at the top of Cambodias Dirty Dozen, the 12 military and police officials who have made up the backbone of an abusive and authoritarian political regime over which an increasingly dictatorial [Prime Minister] Hun Sen rules. Both before and since Saroeuns time at the top, the army has repeatedly shot protesters with impunity, violently driven families off land leased to well-connected companies and tapped into the countrys thriving illegal logging trade. Despite careers spent in modestly paid government jobs, Human Rights Watch added, Saroeun and the rest have amassed unexplained fortunes. Saroeun has since grown into a power player on the political scene as well. He heads a provincial working group for the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) and serves on its uber-exclusive standing committee, in the rarified company of Hun Sens very closes allies. He regularly showers the premier with praise, vilifies the opposition as a fifth column that would plunge the country back into the bloody days of the Khmer Rouge if given the chance, and urges soldiers to take to Facebook to push the story along. Under Saroeuns watch, Hun Sens eldest sons have also marched up the armys ranks in double time to senior posts. The army chief is now set to make his political career official. He is running for a National Assembly seat in general elections scheduled for July 29. And with the CPPs only viable rival, the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), dissolved by court order last year, his victory is all but assured. Cobham, with the Tax Justice Network, said the corporate restructuring involving his wife and the Cayman Islands raised two obvious risks for abuse due in part to Saroeuns political ties. First, he said, was the risk that the secrecy of Cayman companies could be exploited to allow the non-declaration of ownership for purposes of evading or avoiding income and/or capital gains tax, to the extent these existed in Cambodia in the period in question. Second, given the powerful political connections involved, there would have been a clear risk that the secrecy of Cayman companies could be exploited to allow the non-declaration of ownership for purposes of hiding conflicts of interest in respect of government decisions affecting the businesses in question. The restructuring itself is not proof that the couple used the setup to avoid tax or hide any conflicts of interest. But the intention to create a more opaque, more complex and presumably more expensive ownership structure, with no obvious benefits but clear risks of abuse, must raise questions of judgment, Cobham said. A tangled web The Paradise Papers reveal that Uddor Meanchey Mining was set up in the Cayman Islands to play a key role in what could have been a multimillion dollar project to turn Sidaras coal mine into the main supplier of a planned power plant that would sell electricity to Cambodia, Thailand and back to the mine to keep it running. The leaked records, reviewed by The Irrawaddy, include emails and documents ranging from share purchase and transfer agreements to certificates of incorporation, directors resolutions, legal opinions, checklists, client lists and invoices all prepared by or shared with the offshore law firm Appleby. According to the records, a joint development agreement setting the project in motion was struck in June 2007. The partners included two Cambodian companies, EuroAsia Power and Rexwell Engineering Cambodia; another Caymans firm, AEI Asia; and Rexwell Engineering Limited, registered in Guernsey, a British crown dependency in the English Channel with its own reputation as a tax haven. Appleby was AEIs legal counsel. The plans called for Sidara to transfer the license for her coal mine to EuroAsia Power, which she also held shares in, according to the Cambodian Commerce Ministrys business register. EuroAsia Power would then dig up and ship the coal to a 2,400-MW power plant to be built, owned and operated by Rexwell Engineering Cambodia near the mine. The two Cambodian companies would operate as subsidiaries of holding companies set up in the Cayman Islands. The plan was to have all shares in EuroAsia Power transferred to Uddor Meanchey Mining. All shares in Rexwell Engineering Cambodia would be transferred to another company also registered in the Caymans, Uddor Meanchey Power Holdings. Together, the two offshore companies would own the mine and plant. Among the directors both Uddor Meanchey holding companies appointed was the affiliate of another Guernsey firm, the Sarnia Management Corporation. On its website, Sarnia Management offers to help wealthy individuals and their families with flexible and bespoke approaches to protect and manage their assets with the aid of jurisdictions and relationships all around the world. The 2016 Panama Papers, an earlier leak of offshore financial records, named Sarnia Management as an intermediary for more than 200 offshore companies, many of them registered in Niue, a pebble of an island state in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with like the Caymans zero tax on offshore earnings. The records dont say how much the project partners expected the coal mine and power plant to cost, let alone earn. But they budgeted nearly $10 million for advisors on the power plant alone. It appears their grand plans soon fell apart, however. In June 2008, only a year after the joint development agreement was signed, AEI Asia told its partners it would be terminating the deal. But the two offshore holding companies lived on a while longer. Uddor Meanchey Mining, the one Sidara owned shares in, was dissolved only in 2012, five years after it was registered in the Caymans. Rexwell Engineering Limited was dissolved the same year in Guernsey, and AEI Asia appears to have been wound down as well. Rexwell Engineering Cambodia and EuroAsia Power no longer appear on the Cambodian Commerce Ministrys business register. Past is prologue Sidara declined to answer questions for this story over the phone. She said she would only speak in person but ignored offers to meet with a reporter in Phnom Penh. Requests for comment sent to the email accounts of four of her companies, including Ratanak Stone, went unanswered. Reached by phone, Saroeun said the coal and iron mines were both taken over by Chinese companies about 10 years ago and that he knew nothing more about Ratanak Stones business operations. When asked about his reported role in the iron mine, and his wifes shares in a Cayman Islands holding company, he hung up. Cambodias Ministry of Mines and Energy refused to answer any questions about Ratanak Stones operations, past or present. We think its not important for us to answer, a ministry spokesman said. Applebys Cayman Islands office and employees of the firm involved in setting up the two holding companies did not respond to requests for comment. In a public statement reacting to international coverage of the Paradise Papers in October, Appleby said it had investigated the allegations of bad behavior and found no evidence of wrongdoing either by itself or its clients. But Cambodia has been here before. The Paradise Papers are not the countrys first brush with leaked records tying its elite to offshore companies. The Panama Papers revealed that in 2007 Cambodias justice minister, Ang Vong Vathana, bought shares in RCD International Limited, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands earlier that year and dissolved in 2010. Responding to the revelation in a statement in 2016, the Justice Ministry denied that Vong Vathana had bought the shares and said the minister had never even heard of RCD. It called the information fake news and said the minister would take legal action. There was no investigation into the offshore investment and Vong Vathana a member of the CPPs central committee remains Cambodias justice minister, presiding over a court system widely seen to be in thrall to the ruling party. But the Panama Papers did spark investigations into thousands of individuals and companies for possible tax avoidance or evasion by other governments around the world, even pushing some leaders and top officials out of office. In Iceland, Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson resigned soon after the leaks revealed that he and his wife owned a company in the British Virgin Islands set up to hold their investments. In Pakistan, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif stepped down after the leaks linked his children to offshore companies used to buy up pricy property in London; the countrys anti-graft court recently handed him a 10-year prison sentence for corruption. The Paradise Papers have also made a mark. Since the new leaks started making international news in November, the European Parliament has established a special committee to investigate tax avoidance and evasion. In the UK, a parliamentary subcommittee has done the same. Indias top tax authority has asked investigators to review the tax returns of some 700 nationals named in the Papers, from movie stars to ministers. Palstra, with Global Witness, said Saroeun and Sidara should be due their own investigation, given the generals possible beneficial ownership of the iron mine, his senior position in the Cambodian regime, and his wifes business interests in a prominent tax haven. All of these factors present greater risk of potential wrongdoing and should be subject to greater scrutiny for that reason, she said. Theres clear ground for investigation, agreed former CNRP lawmaker Mu Sochua, all the more so now that Saroeun was set to take public office. But it has to be an independent investigation and with expertise. In 2010 the Cambodian government set up the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) to pursue wayward officials. It holds their sealed asset declarations and has discretion to open them when it suspects wrongdoing. But like most of Cambodias state institutions, it has gained a reputation for harassing the governments critics while giving its allies a pass. Sochua did not expect it to be much help. I wouldnt count on [the] ACU picking up this case as it would damage the name of the government, she said. Taxing times Cambodias prime minister and his top lieutenants, long accused of running one of the most corrupt regimes in the region, show no sign of going anywhere. Over more than 30 years in power, they have learned to wield the government like a weapon, adding, amending and applying laws as needed to cut the legs off their rivals. Its a battle they have mostly fought and won of late not with bullets so much as bureaucracy. And if anything, theyre digging in. During an unusually tough crackdown on Cambodias free press last year, the government accused several independent news outlets of, among other things, dodging their taxes. More than a dozen radio broadcasters were driven off the air. The Cambodia Daily, after 24 years of tough reporting on the government, published its last issue in September after balking at an unaudited bill for $6.3 million in back taxes it was told to pay in 30 days or have its assets seized (the author was a reporter for the paper at the time). Hun Sen personally labeled the Daily a thief. In May, Cambodias only other independent English-language daily, the Phnom Penh Post, was sold off to the Malaysian owner of a public relations firm that has done work on Hun Sens behalf. The Post reported that a $3.9 million tax bill it owed the government was settled as part of the sale. The news media purge started about a year out from this months general elections, and just as the government was hammering the final nails in the coffin of the ruling partys main opponent, the CNRP. Acting on a government complaint that the opposition party was plotting a color revolution with a helping hand from the United States, the Supreme Court dissolved the CNRP in November. The party and its supporters deny the claim and say the case was politically motivated. The partys then-president, Kem Sokha, was arrested in September for alleged treason and remains in jail awaiting trial. Many of the CNRPs other leaders have fled the country fearing their own arrests. In February, reacting to what it called the governments escalating anti-democratic behavior, the US announced plans to pull a number of aid programs in Cambodia. A National Security Council spokesperson told the Associated Press that the US was targeting agencies it held responsible for the crackdown, including the Tax Department for opening what it called politically motivated investigations into independent news outlets. Graft is endemic. A perennial laggard on Transparency Internationals corruption perceptions index, Cambodia currently ranks 161st out of 180 countries. In all of Asia, only Afghanistan and North Korea do worse. Inequality also remains stubbornly high. GDP growth is strong, tax revenues are up and poverty rates are down. But most of those who have climbed out of penury have escaped only just; economists warn that even a minor shock could wipe out years of progress. And in one of the poorest countries in the region, the number of Cambodians worth $30 million or more nearly tripled to 54 in the decade leading up to 2014 and was likely to climb to 84 in another 10 years, according to international property consultancy Knight Frank. It predicted that the number of Cambodians worth at least $100 million would also jump from 16 to 25. Trade winds of change Secretive tax havens like the Cayman Islands do more than help the rich squirrel away their wealth. They short-change countries of the tax dollars they use to build roads, schools and hospitals. Reacting to the Panama Papers, more than 300 economists signed an open letter telling world leaders that tax havens serve no useful economic purpose but widen wealth gaps and hurt poor countries the most. As the Panama Papers and other recent exposes have revealed, the secrecy provided by tax havens fuels corruption and undermines countries ability to collect their fair share of taxes, they said. While all countries are hit by tax dodging, poor countries are proportionately the biggest losers, missing out on at least $170 billion of taxes annually as a result. The Tax Justice Network believes it could be even more. Using a method pioneered by the International Monetary Fund, it estimates that tax havens likely contribute to some $200 billion in lost corporate tax revenues by low-income countries and $500 billion worldwide. Anthony Galliano, CEO of the Cambodian Investment Management Group and an expert on the countrys tax regime, said Cambodians were as likely to set up holding companies in offshore tax havens as anyone else and called them a pretty normal and sensible structure. He said Cambodian-registered companies have to pay tax on profits at Cambodias rates whether owned from offshore or not. The advantage of going offshore, he said, is that the holding company can sell the Cambodian business it owns to another offshore company without having to pay any capital gains tax. Galliano said Cambodia was also now enforcing transfer pricing a practice transnational businesses can exploit to avoid tax which should make it hard for local subsidiaries to shift profits offshore, at least in theory. But their critics want tax havens gone. At the very least, they want their business registers out in the open and to name each companys ultimate beneficial owners. Cobham said the UK has done just that with its register and that EU legislation demanding the same of its members was now coming into force. In May the UK Parliament also passed a law requiring its overseas territories including the Cayman Islands to establish public registers by 2020. The territories are considering a legal challenge, Cobham said. But the wider message is clear: This type of anonymous ownership, so often linked to tax abuse and corruption, is living on borrowed time. Burma Buddhist Nationalists Warn Latest Ban Could Cause Public Discontent Buddhist monks arrive for Ma Ba Tha meeting in Yangon in May 2017. / The Irrawaddy YANGONMyanmars biggest nationalist association warned the government and the countrys senior monks that their decision to outlaw the group may cause disunity among the Sangha and lead to a public outcry. The Buddha Dhamma Prahita Foundation, formerly known as Ma Ba Tha, declared over the weekend that if such instability were to happen, the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture and Ma Ha Na (the State Sangha Council that oversees Buddhist monks in the country) must take responsibility. The statement follows Ma Ha Nas five-point proclamation against the group on Friday that included a ban on the use of the associations name, an order to take down its signposts across the country within a 45-day period and a threat to take legal action against those who fail to abide by the decision. Fridays announcement was the third such crackdown on the nationalist group by the National League for Democracy administration in three years, as the government tightens its grip over the nationalist movement. In 2017, the government and the Buddhist clerical authority imposed restrictions on the groups predecessor, the Association for the Protection of Race and Religion, better known as Ma Ba Tha, banning it from operating under that name and ordering that Ma Ba Tha signboards be taken down across the country. Prior to that, the association was denounced both by the government and the Buddhist clerical authority in 2016 in a ruling that declared Ma Ba Tha was not a lawful monks association as it was not formed in accordance with the countrys monastic rules. Following last years curbs, the association changed its name to the current one, Buddha Dhamma Prahita Foundation, which the government has just banned again. Founded in 2014two years after Myanmar experienced religiously motivated riots largely targeting the Muslim minorityand now with sub-chapters across the country, Ma Ba Tha has become virtually synonymous with Buddhist-led nationalism. Some of its leading members, including U Wirathu, have preached anti-Muslim sermons, claiming that the countrys Buddhist foundations are under assault, that the Muslim population is outgrowing the Buddhist one, and that Myanmar needs to be vigilant against fundamentalist influences. The nationalist monk was banned from Facebook early this year due to his fiery posts against Muslims. Established under the previous U Thein Sein administration, Ma Ba Tha was barely touched by the government during that time despite its incitement based on Buddhist nationalism. The association approached the then president to approve the controversial four-part race and religion protection laws. When the laws, which impose restrictions on interfaith marriage, birth spacing, polygamy and conversion, were passed in 2015, Ma Ba Tha celebrated in a grand scale and praised U Thein Sein. But the association has faced restrictions on its activities since the NLD came to power in 2016. The new government declared Ma Ba Tha an unlawful monk association three months after it took the power. Despite the announcement attracting criticism from nationalists, the association and its laymen followers have since kept a low profile apart from some small sit-ins in Yangon and Mandalay. Their warnings about public upheaval never eventuated apart from some small sit-ins in Yangon and Mandalay that were largely denounced by the public. When the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) attacked security outposts in northern Rakhine State last year, the association organized pro-military rallies across the country, claiming that the army was the last institution that could save the country. In response to the clerical authoritys announcement on Friday, the Ma Ba Tha turned Buddha Dhamma Prahita Foundation said it is not a separate sangha association but an NGO made up of monks and laymen that sought to support the state, race and religion. We havent committed any offences as accused so we should not be asked to take down our signposts, and we dont want to as well, said the announcement. Currently, the foundation is sending forms to its sub-chapters across the country asking them if the association should continue with its campaign to protect the race and religion as well as to see if the members agree to follow the ban as the association was formed based on consensus rule. Burma FDA Bans Artificial Food Dye in Mandalays Zay Cho Market Mandalay's famed Zay Cho Market will become the first market in the country that prohibits artificial food dyes. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy MANDALAY The Ministry of Healths Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will prohibit all artificial food dye from being sold in Mandalays famed Zay Cho market. We will give FDA certificates to the shops that sell food on Wednesday, and will officially announce Zay Cho market as free from prohibited dye in food, said Dr. Kyaw Kyaw, deputy director of the FDAs Mandalay branch. According to the FDAs Mandalay branch, the administrations decision came after two years of educating the public about taking action to do so. Efforts to ban artificial food dye in the market began as a joint effort between the local FDA branch and Mandalays municipal department in March 2016. We first educated the vendors. Then we made surprise inspections of the food they were selling. If we found products with artificial dye, we first gave them a warning, and later seized the food. If the vendors ignore the regulation, we will take action under municipal law, said Dr. Kyaw Kyaw. In many shops in the market, foods like dried chili, bamboo shoots, pickled tea leaves, preserved fruits and fermented fish pastes were found to use chemical and synthetic dyes, which could affect consumer health. In early 2018, the local FDA gave certificates to 124 out of 386 shops selling food in Zay Cho market. Weve checked all of the shops and after we give the remaining certificates on Wednesday, we will be able to declare that the market is free of artificial food dye, said Dr. Kyaw Kyaw. The administration stated that it would continue to carry out surprise checks on the shops and punish any shop selling prohibited products with a fine of 50,000 kyats under the municipal law. If the shop continues selling these foods after a fine, we will revoke its certificate and close the shop for at least one month, Dr. Kyaw Kyaw added. The administration said the declaration of Zay Cho market as free of artificial food dye is a first in Myanmar, where consumers are pushing for safer and healthier food options. It added that it would work to do the same in other markets, as well as in other cities and towns. The ban was an effort to increase public awareness of the possible health effects of artificial food dye. By knowing these shops dont sell it, consumers will feel confident that they are buying safe and healthy food, Dr. Kyaw Kyaw said. Welcome Guest! You Are Here: Burma UN and Myanmar Govt Release Plan to Rehabilitate Rakhine Villages Ethnic Mro villagers in Khon Taing village, Maungdaw Township. / Min Aung Khaing / The Irrawaddy NAYPYITAW The Ministry of Labor, Immigration and Population has released a plan to rehabilitate about 30 villages in Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships in troubled Rakhine State. Weve formed a working group, which will conduct a pilot project to rehabilitate, restore racial harmony and bring about socio-economic development in some 30 villages, the minister for labor, immigration and population U Thein Swe told The Irrawaddy on Friday. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will assist the ministry in the project, said the minister. The project aims to spur equitable and harmonious development in Muslim, Hindu and ethnic villages. Repatriation will be successful only when there is increased trust between different communities, said the minister. Some 700,000 Rohingya fled Rakhine for Bangladesh after militant attacks on security outposts in the north of the state in late August triggered a massive military and police crackdown in the areas Muslim communities. In November, Myanmar and Bangladesh agreed to start repatriating the refugees on Jan. 22, but the process has been delayed. A Bangladeshi minister is set to visit Myanmar this week. He will also visit northern Rakhine State and discussions will be held to continue repatriation according to the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the two countries. We will design a detailed work plan and implement rehabilitation work according to it. We will designate model villages and start the project there in cooperation with the UNDP and the UNHCR, permanent secretary U Myint Thu of the Foreign Affairs Ministry told The Irrawaddy. The officials of the UNDP, UNHCR and Myanmar government visited northern Rakhine from Saturday until Monday in order to select villages for the pilot project. According to the MoU between the two UN agencies and the Myanmar government leaked to Reuters last month, the groups will implement three months and six months programs to facilitate repatriation. The parties agreed to keep it confidential. We have no comment regarding the leak. It was not leaked by us, said U Myint Thu. Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko. News Karenni State Govt Disbands Committee for Gen. Aung San Statue Karenni State Chief Minister L Phaung Sho speaks at a press conference at the state government office in Loikaw on Monday. / Karenni State Government Office / Facebook YANGON The Karenni State government has disbanded a committee tasked with commissioning a statue of General Aung San in the state capital Loikaw, following public objections to the plan. However, the plan to erect a statue of the national independence hero will proceed under the direction of non-state sector groups, the chief minister said. The abolition of the committee follows a series of unsuccessful meetings to resolve objections to the plan attended by state officials and groups opposing the project. Prior the meetings, officials began legal proceedings against youth activists involved in local protests against the plan. Chief Minister L Phaung Sho said at a press conference at the state government office on Monday that a new statue committee would be established by community-based organizations, with the state government playing an assistance role. His comments on Monday represented something of a climb-down from his position at a meeting with opponents of the statue plan on July 16. At that meeting, the chief minister warned that if unrest against the plan continued to grow, he would order the military to stabilize the situation. The comments were reported on social media and drew heavy criticism. It was agreed at the first meeting between the state government and opponents of the plan on July 7 that the timetable for erecting the statue of Gen. Aung San would be postponed to allow time to gauge public opinion. Yet, tension over the plan increased last week. At a meeting on July 20, youth groups opposed to the statue project walked out after announcing they had no more trust in the state government and would no longer work with it. The groups said that during the meetings, the state government only pushed to get support for the statue, rather than negotiating. They also cited its refusal to drop charges against the youth protesters. Chief Minister L Phaung Sho said on Monday that those community-based organizations that did not walk out of the July 20 meeting had indicated a desire to form their own committee on putting up a statue, and the state government had agreed. Asked by local media which organizations would be involved in the panel, the chief minister declined to answer and referred the question to the new committee. A total of 23 youth activists are being sued under articles 19 and 20 of the Peaceful Assembly Law for organizing the protest on July 3. They also face a case of incitement under Article 505 (b) and (c) of the Penal Code for distributing pamphlets opposing the statue ahead of the protest. Travel AirAsia Launches Low-Fare Route from Yangon to Chiang Mai AirAsia rolls out a new route, Yangon-Chiang Mai, on Monday, in Yangon. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy YANGON AirAsia has unveiled a new route from Yangon to Chiang Mai, with flights to the northern Thai destination due to start on Aug. 11. The airline will operate the flight three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Both Yangon and Chiang Mai are unique and culturally significant tourism destinations known the world over. The addition of low-fare air travel between these two cities will only increase convenience and value for travellers and is sure to boost both tourism and investment, Ms. Maneenuch Kongarchapatar, AirAsias head of commercial operations (Indochina), said in a statement on Monday. AirAsia said it was introducing the route with a promotional fare starting at only US$35 per trip and would welcome bookings through all ticketing channels. Bookings can be made starting on Monday through July 29 to travel from Aug. 11 to Oct. 31, 2018, AirAsia said. The budget airline currently operates three routes to and from Myanmar once a day from Yangon to Kuala Lumpur; three times a day from Yangon to Bangkok and once a day from Mandalay to Bangkok. All of the routes have been well received with load factor averages during the first six months of this year at 86 percent across the board, Ms. Maneenuch said. Currently Bangkok Air operates a daily return flight from Chiang Mai-Yangon, while Myanmar National Airlines flies three days a week to the same destination on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. COMMENT I'm using the excellent 1Blocker software on my 13-inch MacBook Retina 2013 model, and it ensures I can have my usual suite of too many tabs open without too slow performance. Ads, ad networks, tracking scripts, cryptocurrency miners and more never used to be so bad. Today, they're at epidemic levels, and it's slowing our browsers and computers down terribly. I use the 1Blocker app on my 2013 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro, and obviously, there are a range of sites that I whitelist, because I want to support them or because they bug me relentlessly if I don't, which basically means I want to support them. If I turn the blocking temporarily off, which I sometimes do instead of whitelisting, it's not long before Safari is warning me of various websites, including popular News sites in Australia, that various pages are "using a lot of energy". As soon as I turn the ad blocker back on, boom a much smoother experience, a much happier computer and a much happier user, being me. Thank goodness for my ad blocker, but the reason I need it is a terrible, horrible development in the world of browsing and computing! Sadly, running ads is a requirement for companies that aren't running paywalls, which includes sites like iTWire and most news sites on the Internet, but many of these tracking scripts and cryptocurrency miners are really getting out of hand. Obviously, if you are running a website, it would be better to have as few scripts as possible so you don't overburden readers' computers and browsers, but if these tracking scripts and ad networks are earning publishers money, it's all too easy for users to just say "block it". Who will pay for content if the ads don't, and the readers otherwise won't? I have a 2017 MacBook Pro 13-inch that I am testing, but must do much more intensive testing on to see if ever faster processors, memory and storage in a machine effectively half-a-decade newer is still overburdened by too many scripts and ads. But even if all of that extra grunt masks the performance problem, it's still a terrible waste of resources, the equivalent of handicapping your computer with weights the way horses are handicapped at the races. Of course, handicapping horses is a completely different thing, but again, it's a computation burden wasting gazillions of computing cycles, punishing those with older computers most especially. Maybe it's a plot to get people to keep buying new and better technology sooner, even if they don't really need it yet. Sadly, it's just a reality in an otherwise happily capitalist world, but it's a shame humanity, with all its brilliance, hasn't found better, more productive ways to make money. Until then, I'm very thankful for the 1Blocker software I use on my Mac, iPad and iPhone and at the moment, it is only available on those platforms. It makes a huge difference and I have the granularity required to whitelist sites or elements I'm happy to let in. Not everyone will know how to use these effectively, however, and not all ad blockers are the same. 1Blocker notes in its news section that the very popular Ghostery blocker has been purchased by a browser company, while other ad blockers are designed to let some ads in and not others, but at least these are also available for PCs as well as Macs. There's no perfect solution, unfortunately, but ad/script/miner/etc blockers exist, and they can make a massive difference in the performance of your computer, especially if it's older. Also, please whitelist the sites and discussion systems you like to read, and learn how to use your ad blocker properly. Get help from a knowledgeable friend or competent paid tech support service if you need it! Whatever you do, good luck, but if you've been suffering from poor performance when browsing and working online, even on an SSD-equipped computer, an ad blocker may well be the only current solution. Corporate accelerator company Slingshot has launched its Icon business bootcamp and accelerator program for regional small business owners and startups for the second year running. The program has been designed to support small business and entrepreneurs in the Hunter region and beyond and two programs are on offer this year. One program provides a free three-day business bootcamp for any business owner, founder or sole trader wanting to understand business models, growth, marketing, Intellectual Property, raising capital and pitching. And the second program is a 10-week accelerator where start-ups can apply and pitch their idea to secure a position in the program for investment, with this years successful applicants receiving an increase in seed investment of $25,000, tailored training and world class mentoring throughout the program. Slingshot co-founder Trent Bagnall said the Icon program would play an important role in driving innovation and commercial outcomes in the Hunter. Start-ups and small businesses are the lifeblood of regional Australia. Not only will Icon bring experts to the area, it will also facilitate greater collaboration with corporates and investors who can help grow these businesses. We have already supported many successful start-ups in the region through our accelerator programs like Deckee, Camplify, Liftango and Social Pinpoint who were recently acquired. Bagnall said that last year, several founders who went through the business bootcamp also applied for the accelerator program and secured a place which allowed them to further develop their ideas and tackle problems. Icon accelerator alumni Josh Leask, the founder of Finactly, says the company has achieved great momentum since the program, recently securing a contract and going live with a large Australian bank. When we started the Icon Accelerator last year we had just an idea. Just seven months later, were out there solving the problem of unexplained transactions. It has taken a lot of work by the team to get to this point and Im proud of what weve achieved. said Leask. University of Newcastle senior deputy vice-chancellor (Research and Innovation), Professor Kevin Hall, said the University of Newcastle was delighted to be working with Slingshot again through their Integrated Innovation Network. We are looking forward to hosting the business bootcamp and accelerator on campus to enable more opportunities for our talented staff and students to createnew enterprises. The University has a strong track record of success in innovation and translational research, so the Icon business bootcamp and accelerator program is a good fit for us, Professor Hall said. Last year, Slingshot and University of Newcastle were awarded funding under the Australian Governments $23 million Incubator Support initiative to establish the Integrated Innovation Network (I2N) Regional Accelerator of which Icon is a part. Slingshot says I2N is expected to create at least 45 jobs in the short term, with more to come as start-ups find success domestically and internationally and will also deliver around $2.0 million in investment back into the Hunter economy over two years. The Icon Accelerator will conclude on 19 December in Newcastle with a demo day showcasing the cohorts businesses. Enrolments for the business bootcamp are open until 19 August, and applications for the accelerator are open until 7 September. Helaine Leggat: "If too much information is made public, it does not help in an investigation." Australian authorities may have decided not to fully disclose details of the data breach at human resources outfit PageUp People as it is the first major breach to be revealed, and the processes followed could set a precedent for others that follow, an expert in cyber security and law says. Helaine Leggat, head of cyber law at Sladen Legal, told iTWire in response to queries that the Department of Home Affairs and other Australian authorities may have decided to practice "security through obscurity". Since 19 June, PageUp People has kept mum about the breach, having revealed very little about it prior to that as well, after first breaking the news of the breach on 6 June. The company has said it first noticed the intrusion on 23 May. Leggat pointed out that in the US, from as early as 2015 after the promulgation of the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA Legislation), "the authorities, including LEA (Law Enforcement) were saying that the victims of crime should not be punished. I have heard (Australian Cyber Security Centre chief Alastair) MacGibbon say the same thing here in 2018". MacGibbon has gonedescribing PageUp as being effectively "victimised" as a result of having to out itself to Australian customers before it even knew for certain there was a problem. Leggat said there could be many reasons why the authorities were keeping quiet and protecting PageUp People. "We are no doubt dealing with crime/criminal organisations wrt the breach," she said. "The UK authorities are also involved. Remember, there are Mutual Co-operation laws where countries like Australia and the UK agree to work together to assist one another. If too much information is made public, it does not help in an investigation." She pointed out that in the case of the Singapore Privacy Law, there was no obligation to report a breach. Asked whether there was a requirement for PageUp to provide full details of the breach to the public, Leggat said there were various provisions of the law that gave authorities an out. She said she suspected that "full disclosure in this case will not be helpful to Australian interests in the fight against crime". But Leggat said that "from a trust and company risk/reputation point of view, one would think that PageUp People would want to communicate more frequently. (I recommend Crisis Communications Policies, among other things). "It is complex and we do not have the answers. Bear in mind the broader aspects of privacy. While Australia does not have a Tort (private action) of privacy, it does recognise privacy as a human and civil right Refer to the Preamble of the Privacy Act 1988. "There are all sorts of legal causes of action that can arise in a case such as this, including, contractual actions (PageUp with its clients, service providers etc), Breach of Confidence, negligence, shareholder actions etc. The biggest mistake people are making is to look narrowly at the NDB Scheme." HSBC strives to adopt the highest standards possible. We operate in a number of markets in the Asia Pacific Region and the data privacy policies adopted are to a high standard. HSBC has appointed regional and in some countries data privacy officers as required. For instance, Hong Kong has a data privacy officer under HKMA. HSBC has adopted a data privacy policy that addresses a number of points already required under GDPR. The policy also includes requirements across vendor, privacy and legal requirements as well as data sharing. To address GDPR specifically HSBC created a global programme in the UK to understand requirements and develop a plan to address. Locally a working group was established across four disciplines compliance, legal, privacy and data, with the aim to understanding local requirements. To claim that the data governance framework is good enough, the data governance framework must be taken into consideration with other aspects of managing information and personal data across legal regulatory compliance and privacy. Also an organisation must be able to demonstrate the policy is followed and not just a document. How do you capture information on what your stakeholders are actually prioritising in terms of getting data remediated? We have a number of tools that we leverage. One is prioritising the data elements within critical processes we determine the process, the elements required to execute that process and determine those that have a material impact of the process. HSBC will then implement data measures at critical stages to track quality is within predefined thresholds. When quality falls short of these thresholds, HSBC has implemented a data quality defect system which is used to record, track and resolve issues. The data governance framework is obviously made up of policies, people, procedures and tools. First of all, you need to make people aware within the organisation of their roles and responsibilities. Policies and strategy must come from top down and be supported by training and robust processes. Leverage existing processes where possible by strengthening them or expanding to data. Your organisation will probably already have a number of forums that are responsible for governance, now were just making sure that data is on that agenda. Ensure you have the tools to support people in their roles. Within HSBCs policy, there a four broad areas; 1. Making sure governance is in place 2. Ensuring the data measurements are carried out 3. Following data issues management procedures 4. Understanding and documenting usage who is capturing it, and for what purposes? What are the key considerations around implementing policies, standards, and education to ensure that your data quality remains high and compliant? A key consideration is how does this fit in and help you achieve your business strategy. Start where there is the most benefit, whether this is for the business or customers. People will then understand why you are doing this and buy in more to the vision. As a result, this clarifies roles, drives priority processes and education rather than an add-on or must do. How do you keep data governance relevant and engaging for all so it remains high on the agenda? In Asia/Pacific, executive data governance committees have been established in each of the countries chaired by the country Chief Operating Officer. Lines of business head are also key members. The meetings are relevant as they focus on business priority and data quality required to achieve. It is not focused on data quality or governance as an end to itself. You keep it relevant and engaging by making it part of their BAU processes and you can demonstrate business benefits. How do you embed data quality throughout the whole organisation? The first step is to identify critical processes and by extension critical data elements. It is not possible to do establish data quality for every element throughout the whole organisation. Establish links to the business strategy, start education, ensure quality controls, whether they are business controls or technical controls, are part of the process. Establish data quality measurement, reconciliation, issue identification and remediation where controls cannot be established. Making sure youve got the tools, people and the governance in place to ensure that it works. How can you demonstrate the long-term implications of data quality to those at the business front line? You make business front line staff lives easier. Less errors, remove non value add tasks, improved end to end processes and happier customers. You will demonstrate this through either process or efficiency measures. Our more mature markets have gone from a pure measurement, for example do I have my address correct. To looking at how many address changes can I do first time, every time, or how many times do I need to go back to the source of the information to get it clear? About: Chris Butler, Chief Data Officer Asia Pacific International Markets, HSBC (Hong Kong) Join Chris at the upcoming CDAO Melbourne Conference as he makes his keynote presentation When Is Your Data Governance Framework Good Enough? Preparing for GDPR US digital agency Brand Value Accelerator (BVAccel) is to establish its Asia Pacific headquarters in Melbourne, creating 50 new jobs. The US ecommerce agency, which delivers e-commerce and digital marketing services to high-growth brands, including MVMT, Red Bull, Ivory Ella, Kopari Beauty and Cupshe, was one of the original six Shopify Plus agencies and is currently the largest Shopify Plus agency in the world. The Victorian Government says it has worked hard to secure the investment, with Minister for Trade and Investment Philip Dalidakis meeting the company in the US last year. Global e-commerce leaders are choosing Victoria and we welcome this investment by Brand Value Accelerator, a company that will help local companies tap into massive online markets, said Dalidakis. Were establishing Victoria as a regional leader in e-commerce and this is paying off with the creation of jobs for locals and incredible opportunities for Victorian companies. The government said the announcement by BVAccel adds to the list of major global e-commerce companies setting up in Melbourne, with Chinas top two players Alibaba and JD.com recently setting up regional headquarters here, while US giant Amazon has established its first Australian logistics centre in Dandenong. According to the government, Victorias rise as an e-commerce hub is not only delivering jobs for local tech workers, it is also creating opportunities for local businesses to take their world-class products to hundreds of millions of new online customers around the world. The Labor Government is helping local businesses make the most of this opportunity by partnering with global e-commerce leaders to deliver workshops on how to market products online, the government says. BVAccels vice-president of Business Expansion, Will Fisher, said the companys expansion into Australia is a strategic accomplishment for BVAccel, and were excited to launch our presence there with a goal of hitting the 50-employee mark. Its a significant step forward in establishing ourselves as one of the most capable commerce and digital marketing partners worldwide. Consumers expect the opportunity to engage with brands where, when, and how they want, and we believe we can help level the global playing field for all kinds of wonderful Australian and Kiwi brands. Two experienced commentators on Australia's national broadband network, the NBN, have drawn different conclusions from the broadband speed data by Ookla, the company that provides the online Speedtest application for testing download and upload speeds. According to the Ookla data, Australia, while doing well in mobile download speeds and ranking 8th globally with speeds of 50.53 Mbps, has fallen to 54th position in fixed broadband download speeds with an average of 30.82Mbps. Rod Tucker, Laureate Emeritus Professor at the University of Melbourne and a member of Labor's Expert Panel that advised on the NBN, compared the speeds of Australia, China, the US and Singapore, and pointed out that an important turning point was clearly visible in 2013 and 2014. "In 2013, the Coalition won the federal election in Australia, and wound back the rollout of fibre-to-the-premises. Around the same time, many other countries were experiencing an increase in FttP deployment," he told iTWire. "The result is that countries like the US, New Zealand, and China surged ahead of Australia, and Australia began to fall behind not only other advanced economies. "What is even more astounding is that Australia started to fall behind the average world average download speed in 2013, and the gap between Australia and the rest of the world is increasing." But Robin Eckermann, who led the creation of TransACT and served as its chief architect during the 2000-2003 network rollout, said one of the key reasons for fixed broadband speeds languishing was the pricing model adopted by the NBN Co, the company rolling out the NBN. "For affordability reasons, many Australians are choosing 12/1 or 25/5 Mbps plans even though their connections are often capable of vastly higher speed. These choices are dragging down Australia's average performance," he told iTWire. "It's a pity that NBN Co has replaced the old ADSL2+ model (where you get whatever speed your line is capable of) with a model where they charge more for a higher-speed connection. This really inhibits Australia's progress in the digital era." When construction of the NBN was begun, the Labor Party was in office and it envisaged fibre being rolled out to the premises for 93% of the populace, with the remaining 7% to be supplied with connectivity through either fixed wireless or satellite. The rollout became a political issue when the Coalition Government that took power in 2013 decided to change the technology of the network to what it called a multi-technology mix. The MTM includes fibre-to-the-node, HFC cable, satellite, and wireless, apart from fibre-to-the-premises which is being provided only to new dwellings. As the MTM plan and the connections provided have come under increasing criticism, fibre-to-the-distribution-point, which considerably reduces the copper lead-in to premises what the network builder NBN Co calls fibre-to-the-curb has been introduced as well. Eckermann said other speed bottlenecks could occur in CVC and backhaul capacity provisioning, especially for regional Australians. Bu, he pointed out, these also had nothing to do with technology, and (ultimately) all to do with pricing. "Of course, there are also those for whom cost isn't the limiting consideration, and who would welcome higher speeds than their current connection is able to deliver - for example, those in overloaded fixed wireless areas, those on satellite connections, and those a long distance from the node in FttN areas," he said. "They need to be a priority for network upgrades beyond the initial rollout." Tucker said the future for broadband in Australia was bleak. "NBN Co continues to roll out fibre-to-the-node, which is barely able to deliver 30 or 40 Mbps to many premises. The capital expenditure thrown at the FttN network is now sunk, and the prospects for upgrading to FTTP in the short to medium term are doubtful," he said. "In the meantime, FttP is surging ahead elsewhere in the world." NBN provider MyRepublic has "paid penalties totalling $25,200 following the ACCC issuing two infringement notices for alleged false or misleading representations about its NBN service performance". Between December 2017 and April 2018, the ACCC said, "MyRepublic marketed its NBN services using statements such as 'up to NBN 100 Speed Tier' and 'NBN 50 Speed Tier' on its website". "The MyRepublic website contained fine print disclaimers that the ACCC considered were ineffective as they were not prominent and did not provide clear information:. ACCC commissioner Sarah Court said: "We were concerned that MyRepublics use of the NBN speed tiers misled consumers to believe they would get broadband speeds of, or close to, 100Mbps and 50Mbps during all or almost all of the time, when that wasnt the case. NBN speed tiers indicate the maximum performance of a broadband service but a number of factors, including congestion during busy periods, affects the actual speeds consumers will experience. When choosing between broadband services, consumers need accurate information about the performance they should expect, particularly during busy periods. Weve been very clear with broadband providers about this and reference to the NBN speed tiers alone is not sufficient." A MyRepublic spokesperson sent iTWire a statement, which reads: "MyRepublic has always provided customers with the fastest broadband access speeds available. With multiple NBN access technologies that operate at varying speeds, we acknowledge that speeds may vary further during peak usage times. MyRepublic will continue to make improvements to how we communicate this to customers." So, what's the background behind this decision? The ACCC reminds us that it "can issue an infringement notice where it has reasonable grounds to believe a person has contravened certain consumer protection laws". "The payment of a penalty specified in an infringement notice is not an admission of a contravention of the Australian Consumer Law. "In August 2017, the ACCC issued its Broadband Speed Claims Industry Guidance which is a best practice guide intended to improve the information and support available to broadband consumers and to promote competition among broadband providers. "The ACCC also provides information for consumers on what to expect from broadband providers that comply with its guidance. "The ACCC is also promoting transparency of broadband performance through its Measuring Broadband Australia program which provides consumers with accurate, independent and comparable information about broadband speeds and performance." Sample of website banners displayed on MyRepublics website from at least 1 December 2017 to 17 April 2018: Singapore telco Singtel and telecommunications giant Ericsson are scheduled to go live with Singapores first 5G pilot network by the final quarter of this year. Under the plan, which is part of the 5G Centre of Excellence Programme partnership between the two companies, the 5G pilot network will be deployed at one-north in Buona Vista, Singapores science, business and IT hub. The companies say the move is a significant landmark towards making 5G a reality in Singapore which is renowned for its early embracing of new technology. Using Ericssons 3GPP standards-compliant 5G technology with the trial spectrum allocated by Singapores Info-Communications Media Development Authority, the pilot network will deliver 5G coverage with enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) speed and low latency communications. Industries such as transportation, healthcare and manufacturing can leverage 5G to accelerate digital transformation and deploy advanced automation technologies and enterprises can also work with Singtel and Ericsson at one-north to develop new 5G use cases and tap the business potential of 5G. Mark Chong, group chief technology officer, Singtel, says: 5G has the potential to accelerate the digital transformation of industries, as well as empower consumers with innovative applications. We are pleased to take another bold step in our journey to 5G with our 5G pilot network at one-north and invite enterprises to start shaping their digital future with us. Using the 5G pilot network, Singtel and Ericsson will conduct drone trials later this year at one-north. Aileen Chia, deputy chief executive and director-general (Telecoms & Post) at IMDA, says: This is an encouraging step towards commercialisation with live 5G trial networks made possible with the regulatory sandbox IMDA has in place. IMDA will continue to work closely with mobile service providers such as Singtel in their journey to build communication capabilities of the future and complement Singapores efforts towards a vibrant digital economy. The 5G pilot network was announced at Singtels and Ericssons Bringing 5G to Life event, held at Singtel Comcentre on Monday. At the same event, Singtel and Ericsson demonstrated innovative 5G use cases, including cutting-edge 3D augmented reality streaming over a 5G network operating in the 28GHz millimetre wave spectrum. In what the two companies described as the first-of-its-kind demonstration, enabled participants were able to view and interact with lifelike virtual objects such as a photorealistic human anatomy and a 360-degree image of the world. The immersive experience was then streamed in real-time to a remote audience via 5G. Performed in collaboration with immersive AR technology firm Meta, the demonstration illustrated the possibilities of using 3D AR technology for large-scale remote learning in various industries such as medical and education, enabled by an ultra-high-speed and low-latency 5G network. Martin Wiktorin, head of Ericsson Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines, says: 5G represents a key mobile technology evolution, opening up new possibilities and applications. We believe that 5G will play a key role in the digital transformation of the Singapore economy. Demonstrating the possibilities in this showcase event will be a catalyst for engagements with Singapore enterprises. Singtel and Ericssons 5G Centre of Excellence Programme was launched in October 2017 designed to facilitate the development and deployment of 5G across Singapore, and features four main pillars upgrading of employees skills, technology demonstrations, live field trials and collaborations with tertiary institutions. PASCAGOULA, Miss. -- Crowley Maritime Corporation announced on Friday its control of one of the world's first combination container/roll on-roll off (ConRo) ships powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), from Pascagoula shipbuilder, VT Halter Marine Inc. El Coqui is the first of two Commitment Class, LNG-powered ConRo ships being built for Crowley's shipping and logistics services between Jacksonville, Fla., and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Operated by Crowley's global ship management group, El Coqui will make its maiden voyage to San Juan later this month from Jacksonville, its dedicated U.S. mainland port. Construction of sister ship Taino is well underway at VT Halter and is scheduled to enter service later this year. The new Crowley ships, built specifically for the Puerto Rico trade, are 219.5 meters (720 feet), 26,500 deadweight tons (DWT), and will be able to transport up to 2,400 twenty-foot-equivalent container units (TEUs) at a cruising speed of 22 knots. A wide range of container sizes and types will be accommodated, including 53-foot by 102-inch-wide, high-capacity containers, up to 300 refrigerated containers, and a mix of about 400 cars and larger vehicles in the enclosed, ventilated and weather-tight Ro/Ro decks. "This delivery represents another milestone in our unwavering commitment to Puerto Rico and the Jones Act," said Tom Crowley, chairman and CEO. "We have dedicated significant time, effort and more than $550 million, which includes these new ships, to transform our Puerto Rico shipping and logistics services to world-class standards. We thank the men and women at Crowley, VT Halter Marine and other partners, who have dedicated themselves to bringing this magnificent new ship to life." "The talented workforce of VT Halter Marine is to be commended for its dedication to delivering El Coqui to Crowley," said Rob Mullins, CEO of VT Halter Marine. "We are proud to be a part of Crowley's long-standing legacy in transportation services and recognize the important role these vessels will play in enhancing supply chain services for Puerto Rico shippers." Construction of El Coqui, which is named for the popular indigenous frog on the island, has been managed in the shipyard by Crowley's solutions group, which includes naval architects and engineers from company subsidiary Jensen Maritime. "This is a thrilling time for the U.S. shipbuilding industry, as evolutions in LNG technology are providing a historic opportunity for American yards and the supporting industrial base to design, build and outfit some of the most technically-advanced and environmentally-friendly vessels that are the envy of the world," said Matthew Paxton, president, Shipbuilders Council of America. "American skill and ingenuity, as well as critical laws like the Jones Act, serve as the backbone of our industry and embolden innovation and investment in domestic shipbuilding. El Coqui is a shining example of the work being done each day in our industry, and we are proud to support her, her crew and those who built her, as El Coqui embarks on her first journey from Jacksonville to San Juan." The Jones Act is a federal law that regulates maritime commerce in the United States. The act requires goods shipped between U.S. ports to be transported on ships that are built, owned and operated by U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Also known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, the law is vitally important to maintaining a strong U.S. maritime capability. According to the Hindu Mythology, Lord Shiva (Pashupatinath) spent his most of his time on the top of the holy mount Kailas Mansharobar, practicing Yogic austere, joy and love with his divine consort Parbati (mother of mythology), The Lake Mansarowers and the holy mount Kailas are the soul of all 'OM' followers in the world. Hindus men and women are devoting 'Shrawan' Monday with praying in Pashupatinath and Shiva temples in all over the world especially Nepal and India. According to the Hindu Mythology, Lord Shiva spent his most of his time on the top of the holy mount Kailas Mansharobar, practicing Yogic austere, joy and love with his divine consort Parbati (mother of mythology), The Lake Mansarowers and the holy mount Kailas are the soul of all 'OM' followers in the world. The Lord Pashupathinath, Shoyambhunath, Lumbini, Barahachetra, Gosaikunda, Muktinath, Ridi, Janakidham, Devghat of Nepal, Kailash Mansharobar of Tibet (well accessed for Hindus and Buddhas), and Tirupati, Rameshroram, Jagannath, Badrinath, Amarnath, Kedarnath of India are the symbolic shrines of Hinduism & Buddhism. 'Doleswar Mahadev (lord Shiv) (Shipadol-Bhaktapur-Nepal) is the head portion of the Kedarnath (Lord Shiv). Shiv Puran also mentions It.'-(Shree 1008 Jagat Guru Bheemashankarling Shivacharya). Similarly, the Swayambhunath complex consists of a stupa, a variety of shrines and temples, some dating back to the Licchavi period. A Tibetan monastery, museum and library are more recent additions. The stupa has Buddha's eyes and eyebrows painted on. Between them, there is something painted which looks the nose - but is the Nepali symbol of 'unity'. Pashupathinath, Shoyambhunath both are Hindus and Buddhists shrine place. There are some very early Buddhist sculptures here. A lingam, now lost, was named Karunikeswar, another name of the Buddha. Nepal is known pious land in the world. Hindu philosophy and its culture and tradition are the founder of world civilization. Hindu shrine Shiva is the Lord of all Hindus. According to Hindu mythology, Shiva is worshipped as protector of all animals, including humans. The Nepalese and Indian Hindu men and women perform rituals for the Hindu god Lord Shiva- the god of destruction and creation. In Sivaratri, Axyatritiya, Janaipurnima, Tij and Shrawan. Mondays are most remarkable times in every year. The Sawan Mondays is considered as the holiest month of the year. In the time of Sawan the Hindu men and women wearing red attire as well as green and yellow bangles. They pray for their own country's peace and stability and the long and prosperous life for their husbands, sons-daughters and families. The young pray to achieve the good husband and wife. 'Shiva is every where, he has left work for you, you have to work without expectation. 'Shivaratri is celebrated with enthusiasm by the Hindus all over India. It is an important day for the followers of Lord Shiva. The celebrations are marked by fasting and the observance of a number of rituals. On the festival, as many as six types of Abhisheks (purifying) can be witnessed, each using milk, ghee, sugar, honey, water and sandalwood paste. In every Monday, prayers in all Shiva temples Bol Bom (Say Shiva) pilgrimage on the first Monday to last Monday of Sawanalmost July 15-17 according to Bikram Sambat. The faithful, chanting the name of Lord Shiva's temple, the devotees prays in their bare feet, seeking good health, wealth and happiness. We pray to the Lord Shiva, as - "OM! O Shiva! We worship and adore you, O three-eyed one, You are sweet gladness, the fragrance of life, who nourishes us, restores our health, and causes us to thrive. As, in due time, the stem of the cucumber weakens, and the gourd is freed from the vine, so free us from attachment and death, and do not withhold immortality." Gosaikunda is very pointed very pious land at Rasuwa mid-north side of Nepal where the Shiva had flew the water three fountains by His Trisul for water. And then, the Trisuli River started to flow. Then, Gosaikunda the lake became holy and sacred to all Nepalese, Hindus and Buddhists. The unifier great King Prithbinarayan Shah visited this holy lake after conquering Nuwakot in Bs 1801 to consolidate his victories. The great Amer Singh Thapa being frustrated after the Anglo-Nepal war of 1814-16, went to Gosaikunda to lead the life of a hermit. Gosaikunda is very popular among all the pilgrims especially Gosaikunda has been becoming renowned in Jani Purnima where thousands of pilgrimages visit. A scholar Mr. Upananda Brahmachari explains- Hindu Existence July 14, 2012 'As per Hindu realization (one may degenerate it by calling it Hindu mythology) with a subtle scientific approach, Lord Shiva (Nataraja) is described as Devadideva, the primordial god of all gods, the supreme creator and the Mahadeva, the greatest god, the supreme source of energy. Shiva is the cosmic dancer who performs his divine dance to destroy a weary universe and make preparations for god Brahma to start the process of creation afresh. This new creation is harmonized and preserved by god Vishnu, obviously by the force of trinity in the singularized and unique entity originated from that Devadideva or Mahadeva. Lord Shiva, the Grand Designer. Lord Mahakal. Shiva is dancing in an aureole of flames with a rhythm of time infinite so beautifully, lifting his left leg and balancing over a demon or dwarf (Apasmara) who symbolizes ignorance and evils. OM Namah Shiva! It means adorn all endeavors in the light of truth, prosperity and maturity'. Lord Shiva, the Destroyer, has been believed to have three forms, Natraj the god of artistic skill, an anthropomorphic form and the Lingam form, the latter being the most famous Lingam is situated in the north-west of Katmandu. In front of any Shiva temple, one usually sees a statue of Nandi, the divine bull that serves as Shiva's vehicle. In anthropomorphic form, Shiva is depicted with his consort Parbati and usually holds a trident and a small drum. Another popular form of Shiva is terrifying Bhairav, who himself has a number of different forms. Nepal is a land of devotees of different religious faith and traditions, cooperating and co-existing together towards attainment of humanity and protection of civilized society. 'Architectural heritage of Kathmandu city is integral to that of the Kathmandu valley since all monuments have evolved over centuries of craftsmanship influenced by Hindu and Buddhist religious practices. The architectural treasure of the Kathmandu valley has been categorized under the well known seven groups of heritage monuments and buildings. We request to all party leaders and every nationals not to minimize the reality of Hinduism and Buddhism, the basis of world civilization. India has witnessed the historical victory of nationalist patriotic power as a democratic practice of worlds largest democracy. We heartily congratulate Prime minister Sri Narendra Modi, a visionary leader. We believe Indo-Nepal relations will find new dimensions with new government of India. We are against any interference. But we always seek positive support and developmental cooperation. At this time, we are in crisis. All Nepali people want India be supportive in reinstating our lost pride-Hinduism and constitutional monarch. The Nepalese monarch always has goodwill with India. The fact is that the Nepalese monarchs held special right for carrying out ritualistic worship in many Hindu shrines and temples in India. Then, India's Hindutwa also can be dignified. I would like put forward some suggestions for the Indian Prime Minister-Narendra Modi in the issues of Nepal. The first thing is strengthening the cordial bilateral relation at peoples level. Secondly, in order to conserve Hinduism in Nepal and India and to maintain harmonious relation with Nepal, Bharatiya Janta Party should support to restore the only Hindu Kingdom in the world with constitutional monarchy. Thirdly, BJP Govt. must reconstruct the Hindu temples and Dhams and have to inform the world about the glory of Hindu religion. Fourth, Nepal and India should have to organize a High class Commission to solve the existing and rising problems of the temples, Dams and pilgrimages for the harmonious relation among the Nepalese and Indian visitors and pilgrimages. In conclusion, Nepal has cordially sustainable relationship with India. Being identity and survival essence, Nepal-the pious land of Pashupatinath, must reinstate Hinduism and constitutional monarch. India should positive and supportive role. We must all know that to bring secularism is to invite war. Regardless of who we are; Rai, Limbu, Magar, Gurung, Newar, Brahman, Chetri, Kami, Damai, Sarki, Maithali, Bhojpuri, Awadhi among others, we are all either Hindu or Buddhist. Some Sherpa, Tamang and Newars are affiliated to Buddhism. No matter who follows what Pashupatinath and Swayambunath lay in the same world? Hindu religion is highly liberal in nature. Whether one worships an idol or one is either vegetarian or non vegetarian we are all Hindus. Lord Shiva is our common God. WE Hindus and Buddhists are free to live as they see fit. This religion is regarded as highly democratic and liberal. However, there are conspiracies in Nepal against Hindu and Buddhist religion. So, this is the high time to be conscious & united on the part of Hindus, Buddhists in all over the world as well as all patriotic Nepalese. We are proud to be Nepali. We want to be free of foreign intervention pertaining to our national unity, our traditional culture, and we will be free. Since the ancient times democracy has been a system that has been exercised and recited in Himwatkhanda. We have been adopting as the chief policy of giving equal opportunity to all to exercise their freedom, and we have tried to provide food and shelter for all. Religious freedom is our belief. Everyone has the right to follow their own religion. However, by showing the attraction of money, Christians have been alluring people to convert their religion; they have become one of the destroyers the foundation of Hindu religion, which we regard as enemies. Against such people all Hindu world must unite. Let's pray to the Lord Shiva for our prosperity. Email: dirgharajprasai@gmail.com Reddit Email 550 Shares Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) We have been honored to have with us in Ann Arbor the past few days the celebrated Pakistani truck artist, Haider Ali of Karachi. As his art has become celebrated, he has become a little itinerant, going off around the world to fulfill commissions or grace gallery and museum exhibitions of his work. He said he has even been to India five times (India and Pakistan often have difficult relations). Art, he says, brings people together. He told me that he has come to the US every one to two years since 2002, when he did his first installation at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. at the instance of University of Wisconsin Pakistan expert Mark Kinoyer. Before his present tour here, he had been in Germany, Austria and Bulgaria. He says that hotels and restaurants in the West often want him to paint their vehicles and that friends also call him to decorate for them. Haider Alis own rendering of a painted Pakistani truck, via his Instagram, @truck_artist. He can also be found, and contacted, at his Facebook page. On this trip to the US, he says he was invited by the mayors office in Providence, Rhode Island, to the PVDFest Art Fair, where he painted vehicles as part of the festivities. Along with a colleague, he also decorated a trolley at the U-Mass campus in Amherst, Massachusetts. h/t Ambherst Bulletin. Haider Alis theory of truck art is that vivid colors and pleasant scenes brighten peoples mood and spread love and concord. I write, he said, poetry of love on his painted objects. He also presents this gift of love and peace from all of Pakistan, and uses all of its languages in his beautiful calligraphed inscriptions that accompany his art. Truck art is actually a misnomer, since all kinds of things can be so decorated, including boats and buildings and garage doors. Haider Ali warns fans, however, that he almost never paints canvasses, much preferring to decorate a vehicle. He joked with me that if Id pop for a cheap old used car, hed be happy to make it a masterpiece. My art has a message of mutual understanding, and aims at correcting the image of Pakistan, he said. He says he feels his talent is a gift from God and he has a responsibility to use it to make people happy and bring them together. I asked him whether, in this age of heightened border scrutiny, he faces any difficulty entering the US. He says that occasionally he has been interviewed, but he shows his art and everything is fine. Theyre doing their work, he smiled. And Im doing mine. Floral decorations are central to truck art, as they are to the more formal Islamic art from which it developed, but it seems to me that Haider Ali has a special love affair with nature in his paintings. I asked him how it developed, given that he is from Karachi, one of the densest urban settings in the world. He said that many of the trucks he decorated were owned by drivers from mountainous and desert regions, and they often requested natural vistas. A driver from Baluchistan, he said, wanted desert themes. Pukhtuns from mountainous regions might like peaks. Sometimes, too, he works in green natural environments. He remembers being invited to paint a truck at a park in Oregon, where there were signs to beware of owls. So, he said, he put an owl on the vehicle. . Ann Arbor may never be the same. Truck art in Pakistan, Afghanistan and India is a combination of international capitalism and local culture. When Britain ruled South Asia in the first half of the twentieth century, until 1947, Bedford trucks for hauling were imported. They had a wooden overhang above the cab that locals called a crown. Since the trucks were used for rural deliveries to villages with low literacy, it was desirable for companies to have ornate, recognizable logos, and so the crown became increasingly decorative. Although some argue that the truck-art tradition has roots in the decorative art on mystical Sufi shrines in rural Pakistan. Others say it grew out of Bollywood movie posters and billboard art. Haider Ali disagrees. He says it is contextual, that artists painted as the truckers asked them to. Capitalism also plays a role. Customers liked decorated vehicles, so if you were running a bus or truck company it was in your interest to up your game. If you were an independent hauler, Haider Ali told Ms. Stewart, Our clients want to make their trucks stand outWhen people look to hire a truck, they feel that if it looks fancy and newly painted, then its probably in better condition and they trust it more. He says he has been doing this for thirty years and finds that his art attracts a lot of social support. About Pakistan he doesnt feel different in America than in Pakistan-he feels there are a lot of commonalities. Language is an issue, but he finds that Americans can usually understand his English. As for Islamophobia or the wave of prejudice against the religion, he says that in his view, Islam has often not been properly presented. He says that above all, people need to hear the message of the Quran itself, not of later popular traditions and accretions (which sometimes contradict its spirit). Haider Ali is a sort of Muslim pacifist. He believes that the only struggle mandated by the Muslim scripture is the striving in the soul to be a better person and bring peace to the world. Featured Photo: Haider Alis rendition of peacocks against Pakistans Himalayas. Used by the authors permission. Reddit Email 27 Shares Tel Aviv (AFP) Israelis demonstrated and held a one-day strike on Sunday to protest a law denying surrogacy to gay couples, with thousands attending a rally in Tel Aviv. Police did not give an estimate of numbers at the citys central Rabin Square, but Haaretz newspaper put the attendance at 60,000. A police statement said that large numbers of officers were deployed to ensure the safety of participants and maintain public order. Earlier in the day demonstrators blocked a major Tel Aviv highway for about 20 minutes. Protesters also blocked traffic in central Jerusalem and two were arrested, police said. Israeli media showed dozens of protesters at each of a number of locations throughout the country, including those shouting shame and waving rainbow flags. AFP / JACK GUEZ. Participants attend a demonstration in Tel Aviv on July 22, 2018, to protest a new surrogacy law that does not include gay couples. At Rabin Square, a regular venue for protests or celebrations, demonstrators brandished rainbow flags and some held a banner reading We are family. The rally came after parliament on Wednesday approved surrogacy for single women or those unable to bear children without granting the same right to same-sex couples or single men. Previously, only heterosexual married couples were able to use a surrogate. Around 200 companies announced they would allow their employees to not work to protest, without it counting against their vacation days. Sunday is already a semi-official holiday in Israel as Jews mark Tisha Bav, which commemorates the destruction of the two biblical-era temples. It is a symbolic measure, but one that shows real support, Julien Bahloul, spokesman for the Association of Gay Fathers in Israel, told AFP. Some companies said they would contribute up to around $15,000 to help gay couples forced to seek surrogacy abroad. Bahloul said gay couples wanting to have children must find a surrogate mother abroad and the costs can rise to more than $100,000. Costs would be cut in half if it were allowed in Israel, he said. Demanding equality At Sundays Rabin Square rally one demonstrator said the protest was about not only the new law, but also the place of the gay community in Israeli society. We are demanding equality for the LGBT community, Chen Arieli told AFP. Its not about surrogacy, its about security in the streets, she said. A 16-year-old girl was stabbed to death on a 2015 pride march in Jerusalem by an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man who also stabbed five other people and is now serving a life sentence. Israel has been a trailblazer when it comes to gay rights, but same-sex relationships remain a taboo among religious conservatives who prop up Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus right-wing government. AFP / JACK GUEZ. Participants attend a demonstration in Tel Aviv on July 22, 2018, to protest a new surrogacy law that does not include gay couples. The premier relies on ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties Shas and United Torah Judaism, both of which oppose families with same-sex parents. Opposition MP Ofer Shelah, of the centrist Yesh Atid party, said he had gathered signatures from a sufficient number of lawmakers to force Netanyahu to answer questions on the issue in a parliamentary debate. We shall not let Netanyahu avoid giving an answer on the blatant discrimination against the LGBT community over the surrogacy law, he said in a statement. The debate is only the beginning of a process, he wrote, adding that the ultimate aim was changing the law and ending the discrimination. Israels Channel 11 public television said that the Israeli Supreme Court was to hear this week petitions against the law from two male couples. Featured Photo: AFP / JACK GUEZ. Participants attend a demonstration in Tel Aviv on July 22, 2018, to protest a new surrogacy law that does not include gay couples. Reddit Email 492 Shares Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) In remarks Saturday to the Iranian foreign policy establishment in Tehran, President Hassan Rouhani gave some warnings to Donald Trump. He said, Mr. Trump, do not play with the lions tail. The only result of such a course will be profound regret. With regard to Washingtons current attempts to sow the seeds of instability in Iran, he said, You are not in a position to move against the security and interests of this country, the nation of Iran. America, he said, must know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Critics of the president were astonished at this diction, which echoed Iraqi dictator Saddam Husseins description of the Gulf War of 1991 as the mother of all battles. (This is actually an Arabic idiom and mother could be translated as essence. No similar idiom exists in Persian, so Rouhani is speaking a translated Persian form of Dictator Arabic.) Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in September of 1980 and the two fought a major war until 1988. The Iraqi leader was the most hated man in Iran, and to have an Iranian president more or less quote him is shocking, to say the least. It should be said, however, that Rouhani was not talking about attacking the US. In fact, he began by saying that Iran was glad to offer Washington the mother of all peace. He went on to say that if Trump instead opted to attack Iran, then *that* would result in the mother of all Wars. The US press will likely try to turn Rouhani into the aggressor here, however, in a long tradition that goes back to William Randolph Hearst. Soviet Premier Nikita Krushchev once observed in Russian that Communism would outlast capitalism and that Soviets would still be around to bury capitalism, which would predecease it. The US press attributed to him the words, We will bury you! they made a statement of determination and steadfastness, not of aggression. But I grew up believing the falsehood. Iran signed a treaty with the US in 2015 and observed all its requirements. Trump has torn that treaty up and launched covert operations to destabilize the country. Trump is the aggressor here, and Rouhani was just saying that Iran would defend itself very effectively if attacked. This is true. Bushs invasion and occupation of Iraq was the biggest debacle in the history of American foreign policy. Iran is geographically and demographically 3 times larger than Iraq, so do the math. Still, Rouhanis words are most unwise and are, indeed, shocking and shameful. Speaking of shocking and shameful, Trump of course always has to be the biggest dog, so he shouted at Rouhani on Twitter in all caps: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Rouhani will note that Trump made similar threats to North Korea, and then turned around and staged a love fest. So, who knows, now that Trump has gotten this out of his system, maybe he can move to a rational policy. Also, note that Rouhani is at a distinct disadvantage here, since Persian has no capital letters. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a major policy speech on Iran at the Reagan Library on Sunday. He brought some expatriate Iranians along, who understandably hate the regime that chased their families out of the country. He accused Iran of being ruled by hypocritical clergymen. Since Pompeo is a right wing Christian who lauds Trump, the least Christian politician of our times, methinks mayhap Pompeo is a hypocritical religious leader in his own right. Hugely hypocritical. So this is the sad note we end on today, that Trump has succeeded in his goal of ratcheting up tensions with Iran and putting the two countries on a war footing. How much of this plot was the influence on him of Israeli Prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, and of Mohamed Bin Salman of Saudi Arabia and Mohamed bin Zayed of the United Arab Emirates will only be known years from now. But to have the US and Iran rattling sabers does not in the least benefit the American people. Reuters: Irans Rouhani warns Trump about mother of all wars July 23, 2018 / TheNewswire / Toronto, Canada - BACTECH ENVIRONMENTAL CORPORATION ("BacTech" or the "Company"), (CSE:BAC, OTC:BCCEF) is pleased to announce the results of the Annual General and Special Meeting held on July 18, 2018 have been posted on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) and the Company's website (www.bactechgreen.com). A total of 26,118,412 common shares were voted at the annual and special meeting of shareholders and the following individuals were elected to the board of directors of BacTech: John Gingerich M. Ross Orr W. Walter Cimowsky Jay L. Naster Donald A. Whalen Timothy Lewin James A. (Jay) Richardson M. Ross Orr commented: "We are very pleased with the re-election and composition of the board and are pleased to welcome the addition of Jay Richardson as a new director to the Company. The knowledge, experience and support our board brings to BacTech will only strengthen our project work in Bolivia and Ecuador and help us drive our business plan forward." In addition, UHY McGovern Hurley LLP was appointed as Auditors for the ensuing year. Project Overview The Telamayu project involves the environmental remediation of the "Antiguo" tailings and a Company option on the larger "Nuevo" tailings, both situated at the Telamayu mill site near the town of Atocha in the Department of Potosi in Bolivia. As part of the remediation process BacTech will recover silver, tin, and copper utilizing a conventional processing technology. The existing Telamayu mill concentrator has generated the Antiguo and Nuevo tailings by processing mineralized material from the surrounding mines for over 80 years. There is considerable infrastructure at the mill site including high voltage power, rail, mill housing, and a local workforce. The current infrastructure will contribute to a reduction in capital costs of the project. Currently metallurgical test work is underway to determine the percentage of metal to be recoverable. For further information contact: Ross Orr, President & CEO?BacTech Environmental Corporation/ 416-813-0303 ext. 222 Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Lalli Marrato, Investor Relations: 647-669-7646, Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Robin Cook, Investor Relations: 416-809-1738, Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Follow us on: Facebook http://www.facebook.com/BacTechGreen Twitter-http://twitter.com/BacTechGreen LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/company/1613873 Vimeo http://vimeo.com/bactechgreen YouTube http://www.youtube.com/user/bactechgreen Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains "forward-looking information", which may include, but is not limited to, statements with respect to future tailings sites, sampling or other investigations of tailing sites, the Company's ability to make use of infrastructure around tailings sites or operating performance of the Company and its projects. Often, but not always, forward- looking statements can be identified using words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made as of the date of this news release and the Company disclaims, other than as required by law, any obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether because of new information, results, future events, circumstances, or if management's estimates or opinions should change, or otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, the reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Shares outstanding 87,143,756 The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of the contents of this release. QUEBEC CITY, Quebec, July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nemaska Lithium Inc. (Nemaska Lithium or the Corporation) (TSX:NMX) (OTC:NMKEF) is very pleased to provide a project construction update and development timeline for its Whabouchi Mine and Electrochemical Plant in Shawinigan. Moving forward, Nemaska Lithium intends to issue progress reports in conjunction with its quarterly and annual financial reporting. Guy Bourassa, President and CEO of Nemaska Lithium, commented, With the project financing structure completed on May 30th, our project construction and planning are on schedule at both locations and construction activities are increasing week by week. I am pleased that we are progressing according to plan and that we are on track to start producing spodumene concentrate in the second half of 2019 with lithium salts production commencing in the last half of 2020. Our conversations with end users suggest the market for battery grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate remains very tight. Accordingly, we signed with LG Chem earlier this month our fourth supply agreement and we are currently negotiating the final terms of a fifth agreement with Northvolt and that puts us at more than 90% of our future lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate production already committed. Our offtake contracts are multi-year agreements with several lasting for a period of up to 5 years. We are also actively marketing the Company to new and existing institutional shareholders with recent meetings in Asia, United States, London, Europe and Canada from which we have had much positive feedback. Further to the recent completion of a CAD1.1B project financing package, the Corporation has resumed work at the Whabouchi mine, has initiated the purchases of long lead items for both sites and is preparing the Shawinigan site for civil engineering work this summer. To assist in project execution, Nemaska Lithium has already retained the services of several outside engineering and consulting groups: The Procurement and Construction Management (PCM) team of Nemaska Lithium is supported by Nardella Group who is responsible to maintain budget control and schedule; ABB is providing the electrical equipment and electrical engineering services for both sites; DRA Met-Chem is assisting with the mine and concentrator engineering design; SNC-Lavalin is retained for the design of the tailings and waste co-disposal site; and Hatch Engineering is providing engineering design assistance for the electrochemical plant. Whabouchi Mine Construction The mine construction has resumed and has a 12 to 15 months schedule, with concentrate production expected to commence in the second half of 2019. Prior to the most recent project financing, about CAD80M had already been invested in the Whabouchi site construction and preparation. Since the completion of the CAD1.1B project financing package, the following has been initiated, is partially complete or completed: Key positions including Mine Geologist, Maintenance Director, Human Resource Director, Metallurgist, Director of Operations for the Concentrator and Mining Engineer have been hired and are working on the readiness plan to ensure seamless hand off from the Construction Team to the Operations Team. Long lead items including ore sorting, floatation columns, ball mill and dry magnetic separator have been ordered. Engineering is also preparing requests for information for bids and completing technical bid evaluations on other equipment. Civil works have resumed at the mine site and on-site roads are being completed, administrative offices are installed and are fully operational with full-time staff working at the mine site location. Civil engineering work is underway for crushing and ore sorting buildings as well as the garage. In addition, civil works on the internal construction of the concentrator building including foundations and structural steel installation continues. The power line to the mine site from the Nemiscau sub-station has been installed. Installation of the transformer and electrical room is underway and hook up to the grid is pending Hydro-Quebec availability, which is currently scheduled for August 2018. Nemaska Lithium is working closely with the Cree School Board and Cree Human Resources Development Corporation and training for mining jobs is currently ongoing, ensuring a large portion of the mine employees can come from the nearby Cree Community of Nemaska, supporting local communities. Photo 1 Photo 2 Photo 3 Electrochemical Plant Construction The electrochemical plant has a 27 months construction schedule. Prior to the most recent project financing, close to CAD20M had already been invested for the Shawinigan site. To date, the following has been either initiated, partially completed or completed: Civil works have commenced following the final demolition, by the former owner, of the obsolete buildings that were on the Nemaska Lithium property. With the demolition completed, civil engineering has started to prepare the building and site to receive equipment. Detailed engineering is ongoing with several long lead items including the calciner, acid baking system, electrolyser, and crystallizer suppliers identified. Bids are expected to be awarded shortly for these priority items. Photo 4 About Nemaska Lithium Nemaska Lithium is a developing chemical company whose activities will be vertically integrated, from spodumene mining to the commercialization of high-purity lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate. These lithium salts are mainly destined for the fast-growing lithium-ion battery market, which is driven by the increasing demand for electric vehicles and energy storage worldwide. With its products and processes, Nemaska Lithium intends to facilitate access to green energy, for the benefit of humanity. The Corporation will be operating the Whabouchi mine in Quebec, Canada, one of the richest lithium spodumene deposits in the world, both in volume and grade. The spodumene concentrate produced at the Whabouchi mine will be processed at the Shawinigan plant using a unique membrane electrolysis process for which the Corporation holds several patents. Nemaska Lithium is a member of the S&P/TSX SmallCap Index, S&P/TSX Global Mining Index, S&P/TSX Global Base Metals Index, S&P/TSX Equal Weight Global Base Metals Index, and the MSCI Canada Small Cap Index. For more information, visit www.nemaskalithium.com or twitter.com/Nemaska Lithium. Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information All statements, other than statements of historical fact, contained in this press release including, but not limited to, those relating to the expected unfolding of activities at the Whabouchi mine and Shawinigan plant sites, constitute forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of certain securities laws and are based on expectations and projections as of the date of this press release. Certain important assumptions by the Corporation in making forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the fulfillment of all conditions precedent to effectively complete the remaining components of the project financing being the Streaming facility and the Bonds offering, such that all proceeds from the CAD1.1B financing package will be received the Corporation. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release include, without limitation, those related to (i) the 12 to 15 months mine construction schedule leading to the start of spodumene concentrate production in Q4 2019, (ii) the 27-month plant construction schedule leading to the start of lithium salts production in the last half of 2020, (iii) the market tightness for battery grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate, (iv) the finalization of supply agreement with Northvolt, (v) the seamless transition from construction to operations, (vi) the Corporations future production of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate, (vii) the Corporations activities progressing in accordance to plan, (viii) the employment of a large portion of mine workforce coming from the Cree community of Nemaska, (ix) the award of bids shortly for priority items, and (x) generally, the above About Nemaska Lithium paragraph which essentially describes the Corporations outlook. Forward-looking statements are based on expectations, estimates and projections as of the time of this press release. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Corporation as of the time of such statements, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. These estimates and assumptions may prove to be incorrect. Many of these uncertainties and contingencies can directly or indirectly affect, and could cause, actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that the Whabouchi mine will be brought to commercial production, as future events could differ materially what is currently anticipated by the Corporation. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that estimates, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved or that assumptions do not reflect future experience. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of providing information about management's endeavors to complete its project financing and, more generally, its expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements as a number of important risk factors and future events could cause the actual outcomes to differ materially from the beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations, anticipations, estimates, assumptions and intentions expressed in such forward-looking statements. All of the forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements and those made in our other filings with the securities regulators of Canada including, but not limited to, the cautionary statements made in the Risk Factors section of the Corporations Annual Information Form dated October 5, 2017 and the Risk Exposure and Management section of the Corporations quarterly Management Discussion & Analysis. The Corporation cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive, and new, unforeseeable risks may arise from time to time. The Corporation disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements or to explain any material difference between subsequent actual events and such forward-looking statements, except to the extent required by applicable law. Further information regarding Nemaska Lithium is available in the SEDAR database (www.sedar.com) and on the Corporation's website at: www.nemaskalithium.com. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Victor Cantore Wanda Cutler Investor Relations Investor Relations 514 831-3809 416 303-6460 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Fanny-Eve Tapp Media Relations B. 514 935 2777 # 204 C. 514 442 0445 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. www.nemaskalithium.com Guwahati, July 23 : An Assam Congress MLA, belonging to the tea tribe community is known in Assam as a news maker MLA by his uncommon activities. Sometimes, the Congress MLA seen as he engaged himself as a labourer, a farmer as ploughing at paddy field with cow. Rupjyoti Kurmi, a Congress MLA, son of former Assam cabinet minister Rupam Kurmi recently seen that, he went down on his knees before some patients of a government run hospital in his constituency Mariani in upper Assams Jorhat district. The video went viral in social media also, but the question raised that, why the Congress MLA went down on his knees before some people. The incident was happened at Mahatma Gandhi Model Hospital located at Nakachari area under Mariani assembly constituency along with Assam-Nagaland border. The fact that, the Congress MLA went down on his knees before some patients of the government run hospital and apologized for failure to provide sufficient health service to the patients from the hospital. Rupjyoti Kurmi is also the president of the hospital management committee and he realized that, the people of the remote bordering area have not received proper service from the government run hospital. The Congress MLA said that, the state government had appointed eight doctors in the model hospital, but none of them were present in the hospital while he visited. The patients have faced lots of problem since long period. Earlier, I had filed complaint before the health minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma regarding doctors absence matter and the minister informed me that, the department had decided to cut a day salary for absence on duty. But the situation hasnt changed, Rupjyoti Kurmi said. On the other hand, Assams opposition MLA of All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) Anwar Hussain Laskar, who representing Hailakandi assembly constituency alleged that, the present BJP-led Assam government has totally failed to provide health service to the people of rural areas in the state. No doctor in the hospital of rural areas in the state. Today Rupjyoti Kurmi apologized, tomorrow I will. We are being abused from the public, the AIUDF MLA said. The AIUDF MLA also said that, the both BJP-led centre and state government have cheated the public. Reacting over the Assam Congress MLAs act, ruling BJP MLA Kishor Nath, representing the Borkhala assembly constituency refuted all allegations made against the state government and said that, the Congress MLA doing the act for taking political mileage and the BJP MLA said that, this is only a drama. Previous Congress government had damaged the health sector in Assam and the present BJP-led government is now trying to restore it. There are lots of model hospitals in the state which were lying non-funtional during the previous government, but these hospitals began functional after our government came to power, the BJP MLA said. It is to be mentioned that, the Assam-Nagaland bordering areas are known as Japanese Encephalitis epidemic area and several people died in every year. A linguistics professors life sentence and conviction for direct involvement in Rwandas 1994 genocide has been overturned but his nine year sentence for downplaying the bloodshed upheld, his lawyer said Saturday. Former trade union official Leopold Munyakazi, 67, was cleared of direct involvement by the Rwandan High Courts Chamber of International Crimes on Friday. But his conviction for using his academic work to downplay the impact of the bloodshed was confirmed by appeal judges. The appeal court acquitted him of involvement in the genocide but upheld his conviction for downplaying the genocide, Munyakazis lawyer Desire Micombero told AFP. Munyakazi, from Gitarama in central Rwanda, has consistently denied participating in the genocide in which around 800,000 people, mostly Tutsis, were killed. He was initially convicted by a lower court of direct involvement and jailed for life in July 2017, a sentence he subsequently appealed. At Munyakazis request, the appeal court travelled to Gitarama where his crimes were allegedly committed to test the facts of his genocide conviction. The court heard evidence from local people, some of whom supported his version of events while others cast doubt on his actions during the 100-day-long orgy of violence. It was because of the discrepancies in the witnesses recall of events that led to Munyakazis acquittal on the more serious charges, his lawyer said. After spending time in Rwandan custody following the genocide, Munyakazi moved to the United States in 2004 and taught French in Maryland until his suspension in 2008. The academic was extradited from the US to Rwanda in 2016 to face justice after a lengthy legal battle over his failed asylum application and subsequent deportation order. Kigali had issued two arrest warrants against Munyakazi in 2006 and in 2008. He had argued that the genocide allegations were concocted and that he was really being prosecuted for opposing the regime of President Paul Kagame. Munyakazi is the most senior of four Rwandan genocide suspects so far extradited by the US. A dozen Rwandans accused of participating in the genocide have already been sent to Kigali for trial, mostly from the US, Canada, Uganda as well as the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), which closed its doors in late 2015. European countries have been reluctant to extradite accused Rwandans for fear they will not receive a fair trial. This week was marked by the celebration on July 17 of 20 years since the signing of the Rome treaty which founded the International Criminal Court (ICC). Despite its difficulties in arresting top suspects like Sudanese president Omar Al Bashir, despite the veto of big powers that stops it intervening in situations like Syria, and despite various attempts by governments to manipulate it, the ICC opened up the possibility of global justice, says Human Rights Watch director Kenneth Roth in an interview with JusticeInfo. Created as the worlds first permanent international criminal court, to consolidate the legacy of Nuremberg and the ad hoc tribunals for Rwanda and former Yugoslavia, the ICC signals theoretical commitment by the international community to attack the impunity that so often stood behind mass atrocities, according to Roth. On the occasion of this 20th anniversary, Dutch organization Impunity Watch, called in a report on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for support to local transitional justice initiatives in South Kivu province as an indispensable complement to the work of the Congolese courts and the ICC. Local initiatives are often implemented quickly and provide the support or answers that are needed at the right moment because they are physically and culturally closer to the communities where the violence was perpetrated, the reports author Gentil Kasongo told JusticeInfo. Meanwhile Tunisian university professor Larbi Chouikha examines the way in which his countrys mainstream media notably radio and television cover events linked to the transitional justice process after the Revolution of December 2010-January 2011. The way the mainstream media cover controversial subjects like transitional justice and also the debates on social media reflect the divisions in Tunisian society, writes Chouikha. This latent polarization gives rise to tensions reflecting the interests of the different people involved or affected by the transitional justice process: property owners, shareholders, journalists, etc. He regrets that these tensions tend to rise against each other and the main opponents of transitional justice are even trying to turn the opinion of the majority against the process. Finally to Rwanda, where an appeals court overturned the life sentence of academic Leopold Munyakazi for participation in the 1994 genocide. The judges retained only the lesser charge of minimizing genocide. Munyakazi, who was in 1994 secretary general of Rwandan trade union federation CESTRAR after being a linguistics professor at the University of Rwanda, had his sentence reduced to nine years. He was extradited from the United States in September 2016. Judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have ordered the opening of an outreach programme for victims of the situation in Palestine, marking a new twist in the handling of this case. On July 13, 2018, three judges ordered the ICC Registry to open a system of public information and outreach activities among the affected communities and particularly the victims of the situation in Palestine. In the judges view, the Registry should establish a continuous system of interaction between the Court and victims, residing within or outside of Palestine, for as long as the situation in Palestine is assigned to a Pre-Trial Chamber. The programme aims at this stage to inform the population about ICC procedures, but complaints can also be filed to the Prosecutors office. On May 22, the Palestinian Authority (PA) referred to the ICC all alleged Israeli crimes committed on Palestinian territory since the Gaza war of summer 2014, especially the settlements. Israel is maintaining, extending and protecting the settlements policy whilst committing war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes of apartheid, PA Foreign Minister Riyad Malki has said at a press conference in The Hague. Palestine became an ICC member in 2015, but only made a specific referral to the Court in May 2018. US threats The ICC Prosecutor, who opened a preliminary examination in January 2015, has still not indicated if she intends to open a full investigation, but said in her most recent report that the preliminary examination of the situation in Palestine raises specific challenges relating to both factual and legal determinations. Israel rejects the term occupation, but refers to contested territories. The Office of the Prosecutor also has a problem with whether or not the Gaza war in 2014 was an international conflict. Above all, Tel Aviv contests the very existence of a State of Palestine, which is starting to gain some acceptance in international bodies. For several years, Ramallah has been following a policy of joining international bodies, most recently the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Israel opposes this policy and is supported by the United States which since 2015 has made economic aid to Ramallah conditional on it not seeking recognition as a State through international bodies and not taking any action with respect to the ICC that subjects Israeli nationals to an investigation for alleged crimes against Palestinians. According to the Times of Israel, recent initiatives by the Palestinian Authority could lead to the closure of its representative bureau in Washington. The Israeli government has not commented on the ICC judges decision, although official sources have been quoted online as calling it unusual and strange. A former legal counsellor to the government speaks of a mad decision which is only in favour of Palestinian victims. Yet the ICC decision refers to victims in general of the situation in the Palestinian territories. Israel has never hidden its opposition to the Court, whose scope for action it is trying to limit. On July 16, the Knesset adopted a law sanctioning organizations and individuals promoting judicial procedures abroad against Israeli soldiers. Victims rights The referral to the Court in May this year meant the situation was automatically assigned to a pre-trial chamber. That chambers first act is this decision, in which it says that the right to an effective remedy and the right to have access to justice lie at the heart of victims rights. The judges have given the Registry specific orders and a calendar, including the launch of a dedicated page on the ICC website. They say the informative activities should provide victims, intermediaries, lawyers and NGOs with general information about the Court, its various organs and activities, clearly indicate the general parameters of the Courts jurisdiction in relation to the situation in Palestine and the statutory roles of victims at each stage of the procedures. The pre-trial chambers decision is a first, whereas the absence of outreach notably in Georgia and Afghanistan has been a source of criticism in the last two years. In Georgia, where the Prosecutor has been investigating since January 2016, the Registry waited three years before launching its outreach programme in January this year. With regard to Afghanistan, nothing had been done before Fatou Bensouda filed a request in November 2017 asking the judges for a green light to investigate. The judges have still not handed down their decision, but victims have been invited to communicate with the Court within the specified time limits. Taken aback, several NGOs accused the Court of not preparing the ground properly. Even though the Prosecutor opened a preliminary examination of crimes in Afghanistan in 2007, few people even within the government know much about how the ICC works. Opposition parties in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday called on President Joseph Kabila to step down ahead of elections in December but ruled out boycotting the poll. In an exceptional move, five parties signed a joint statement setting out demands ahead of the December 23 presidential vote, whose outcome is crucial for the sprawling, volatile DRC. We are not going to boycott the elections, because we have known from the very beginning that this is the ruling partys plan, to push the opposition into boycott the elections, said Delly Sesanga, a supporter of exiled opposition leader Moise Katumbi. The statement issued two days before the start of a two-week registration period for presidential candidates called for free, democratic and transparent elections. It said the elections had to take place without Kabila as a candidate and without the use of electronic voting machines, which the government controversially wants to deploy. It was signed by five parties, including the traditional mainstream opposition, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), as well as by parties led by Katumbi and Jean-Pierre Bemba, an ex-vice president and former warlord recently acquitted of war crimes by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Kabila has been at the helm of the largest country in sub-Saharan Africa since 2001, presiding over a mineral-rich country with a reputation for corruption, inequality and unrest. He was just 29 when he took over as president from his father, Laurent-Desire Kabila, who was assassinated by a bodyguard. Dozens of people have been killed in protests since late 2016, when Kabila was scheduled to stand down at the end of his second elected term, technically the last permitted under the constitution. Kabila has kept power thanks to a constitutional clause enabling him to stay in office until a successor is elected. On Thursday, Kabila delivered a state-of-the nation address that had caused wide speculation that he would announce whether he would run again, but no such big declaration was forthcoming. The DRC has never known a peaceful transition of power since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960. Some experts fear it could spiral into wide-ranging conflict once more if the present political crisis is not resolved. The UN Development Programme (UNDP) placed the DRC 176th out of 188 countries on its Human Development Index published in March 2017. The watchdog Transparency International ranked the country 156th out of 176 countries in its 2016 corruption index. It was ranked 154th out of 180 in the Reporters Without Borders 2017 Press Freedom Index. It has been more than a year since Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and its allies cut ties with Qatar, sparking the biggest diplomatic crisis to hit the Gulf in years. Here is a recap: Regional rupture Simmering regional tensions boil over on June 5, 2017, when Saudi Arabia and its allies Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announce almost simultaneously that they are severing diplomatic ties with Qatar. They accuse Doha of supporting terrorists and being too close to Saudi Arabias Shiite archrival Iran charges Qatar denies. Land and maritime borders with the Gulf peninsula are shut, air links suspended and Qatari citizens expelled. Riyadh says it acted to protect its national security from the dangers of terrorism and extremism. In a country dependent on food imports, there is alarm over whether the border closures will lead to food shortages in Qatar. Saudi Arabia also closes the Riyadh bureau of Qatari broadcaster Al-Jazeera. Demands, blacklist On June 22, the Saudi-led bloc sends Qatar a list of 13 demands, which include shutting down its Al-Jazeera media network, curbing relations with Iran and closing a Turkish military base it hosts. They give Qatar 10 days to comply. After a two-day extension, Qatar on July 4 rejects the list saying it is unrealistic and is not actionable. Saudi Arabia and its allies threaten new sanctions. On July 25, they unveil a terrorist blacklist of 18 groups and individuals suspected of links to Islamist extremists and to Qatar. The blacklist later grows to include almost 90 names. On September 9, Saudi Arabia, after an inital attempt by Qatar to hold talks with the Saudi crown prince, suspends any dialogue with Qatar. Breaking isolation Seeking support from outside the region and vowing to uphold its sovereignty, Qatar signs a series of defence deals with foreign powers. In June, Doha inks a $12-billion (10.4-billion euro) accord to buy US-made F-15 fighter jets. In December, it finalises contracts with France worth more than $13 billion and also concludes an $8-billion deal with Britain to buy Typhoon fighters. In January 2018, it approves legislation allowing 100-percent foreign ownership in most sectors of its economy. Previously reliant on its Gulf neighbours, it increasingly turns towards Iran and Turkey, particularly for food imports. Tensions in the sky In January, Qatar says fighter jets from the UAE, one of the boycotting countries, violated its airspace in December and January. The UAE later accuses Qatari fighter jets of intercepting two Emirati passenger planes en route to Bahrain, drawing a swift denial from Doha. Both sides complain to the UN. White House welcome In April, US President Donald Trump receives the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, calling him a friend of mine and a gentleman, softening his tone after having initially backed the Saudi-led bloc. Trump also praises Qatars purchases of military equipment from the US, which has about 10,000 troops at an airbase outside Doha its largest in the Middle East. International justice In June, Qatar files a case at the UNs top court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing the UAE of fostering an environment of hate against Qataris. A month later, Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE request that the ICJ resolve a dispute with Doha over sovereign airspace. On July 23, the ICJ orders the UAE to protect the rights of Qatari citizens by allowing families with Qatari members to be reunited and Qatari students to complete their studies in the Emirates. Guwahati, July 23 : A woman was allegedly raped by her father-in-law for several times in past couple of months. The incident was happened at Badala Tiyapara village near Tupamari area under Nagarbera police station in Assams Kamrup district. According to the reports, the accused person named Rabiul Hussain alias Rabi Shah had allegedly raped his daughter-in-law since past several months. The victim woman had lodged an FIR against her father-in-law on July 21. The victim woman said that, she was raped by her father-in-law for several times in absence of her husband. On Sunday night, locals gheraoed the Tupamari police outpost and demanded to arrest the accused person immediately. Meanwhile, Nagarbera police had registered a case (no 119/2018) in connection with the incident. The accused person is still absconding. My father-in-law has sexually assaulted me for several times in our home in absence of my husband. Finally I filed complaint against my father-in-law before police. I want justice, the victim said. On the other hand, Sushil Dey, Officer-in-Charge, Nagarbera police station said that, the incident was happened at Badala Tiyapara village, where a married woman was allegedly raped by her father-in-law. After receiving a complaint in this regard on July 21 we had registered a case (no 119/2018). The accused person is still absconding and police investigation is going on. Kathmandu, Nepal: The Nepali Congress (NC), the main opposition party in the parliament, has on Monday slammed the Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Chairperson Pushpa Kamal Dahal aka Prachanda for criticizing partys stance for ongoing hunger strike of senior orthopedic doctor Govinda KC. NCs spokesperson Bishwa Prakash Sharma has urged Dahal not to forget his political background before getting into mainstream politics of the country through his twitter account. Since the announcement on Friday in Brussels and Rabat that Morocco and the European Union have agreed on the content of the bilateral fisheries agreement including Western Sahara, the Polisario has been seething and for good reason. The text definitely does not recognize any representativeness to the Algeria-backed separatist movement. After four rounds of negotiations for the renewal of the fisheries agreement that expired on July 14, the announcement of a Morocco-EU agreement confirms Morocco as the only interlocutor entitled to negotiate international agreements including the Sahara. Suffice to say that the intense lobbying conducted by Algeria behind the scenes of the European institutions in favor of the Polisario front has failed miserably. The adaptation of the fisheries agreement to comply with the judgment of the EU Court of Justice will be in the form of an exchange of letters between the two parties. Thus, the negotiated text mentions explicitly that the tariff preferences recognized to Morocco also apply, under the same conditions, to fish products caught in the waters of the Moroccan Sahara. The announcement of the agreement came only days after the EU Foreign Ministers Council decided, on July 16, to adjust the Association Agreement and the Agricultural Agreement between Morocco and the EU to include explicitly the Sahara. The Councils decision has thus paved the way for the conclusion of the fisheries agreement, which constitutes an obviously scathing setback to the Polisario and its mentor, Algeria. Now, the fisheries agreement needs to be endorsed by the European and Moroccan parliaments so that the vessels from 11 European countries resume their activities in Moroccan waters. 51 Shares Share Todays news is full of commentary about work requirements for Medicaid. Is work a prerequisite for health care or is health a prerequisite for work? Not to complicate things, but can we even agree on what health care is? I dont think we can, and it largely falls back on what we want to share in paying for. A patient with an ugly skin lesion can have it removed if it might be cancer or if it bleeds or causes pain. If it is just ugly, its considered cosmetic, and insurance wont pay for it. A man wants a vasectomy, while another one regrets having one and wants it reversed. Is one procedure more medically necessary than the other and more deserving of societal cost sharing? Even the most esoteric medical procedures, like freezing embryos or cloning children, could be called health care, but may not have societys support when it comes to being necessary or desirable. And, even as we speak, what about abortions? Are they health care or not? In many ways, I think life was simpler practicing medicine in socialized Sweden. The government paid and the government made the rules. Here, the government makes some rules, the insurance industry makes others; the government pays for some peoples care, and the insurance industry pays for others. And the insurance companies all have different rules. Since health care costs twice as much in this country as anywhere else in the world, it seems painfully obvious that we need to talk about what the purpose of health care is and, from a moral perspective, what we have a right to expect our fellow countrymen/women (if not citizens) to pay for. It is remarkable that such an enormous slice of our budget and our life so much lacks definition and almost seems to be taboo to openly try to debate. If we look at other aspects of cost sharing in our society, can we draw any useful parallels? If a high school senior wants to repeat his senior year because he had so much fun, should he be able to do it for free? (Just a hypothetical example; I dont know if anyone would really want to.) If a child calls the fire department every time she smells smoke from the family barbecue, should the town charge the family or stop sending a fire truck? If an amateur sailor capsizes every weekend and always calls marine patrol, should they keep responding? In social policy terms, the word entitlement is used to define programs like Medicare and Medicaid. I think that is an unfortunate and very loaded word. Contrast that with another word that I personally keep coming back to: stewardship. It is time for a serious conversation about balancing stewardship and entitlement in health care. At least as long as it is not all self-pay: Taxes or insurance premiums both imply we want someone else to pay for some or much of what we think of as our personal health care. A Country Doctor is a family physician who blogs at A Country Doctor Writes:. Image credit: Shutterstock.com Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider subscribing to our ePaper and/or free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. Irish Rail has warned people travelling from Kilkenny for the upcoming Papal visit that there will be no access to trains without a ticket or reservation. Iarnrod Eireann has said that those attending World Meeting of Families events, including the Papal Mass in the Phoenix park on Sunday, August 26, at which up to 500,000 people are expected, should be be aware that advance booking of Intercity train travel is mandatory for this event. The rail company is stressing that Intercity train tickets will not be available for sale on the day and that there will be no access for anyone to Intercity trains who does not have a ticket or reservation. This applies to regular services, and extra trains which will operate from/to Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Rosslare and Waterford (Kilkenny). For existing ticket holders, including free travel pass holders and season ticket holders, a reservation is essential for travel on August 26. Reservations for this date are free of charge, and can be booked by phone (Iarnrod Eireann Call Centre (01) 836 6222 8.30am-6pm Monday to Friday excluding public holidays) or online at www.irishrail.ie The Irish Rail Journey Planner can help you with departure and return times. Seating will not be assigned on Intercity Services before and after the Pope's mass. An unallocated seating policy will be in operation. This means you will not be assigned a seat on your ticket. Customers are advised to make use of any available seats on the service Customers must travel on the service they have booked on to ensure travel. The ability to change trains, cancel or seek refund will not be permitted The Herald reports: A respected Maori leader will look into how a senior police officer was promoted without the Police Minister being told of controversial comments he made during a notorious investigation into police rape allegations. Dr Pauline Kingi was this afternoon announced as the chair of the government inquiry into the appointment of Wally Haumaha as the deputy commissioner of police in June. She has a Master of Laws degree from Harvard, is a past chancellor of AUT, a long track record in community and public service, and was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 1999. The inquiry will examine, identify and report on the adequacy of the process which led to Haumahas appointment, the Acting Prime Minister Winston Peters said at a press conference this afternoon. Dr Kingi is well respected. But she has a current role advising Police on recruitment, which makes her a less than ideal choice to head an inquiry into the recruitment of the Deputy Commissioner. Her biography states: She is a member of the Auckland District Advisory Taumata; her role is to assist the Auckland District Commander of Police on sensitive issues involving the Maori Community and Policing. She has assisted the Auckland District Police with the selection of the Superintendent Operations for Auckland. She is currently assisting with Intelligence Training for Policing Operation, and the selection of the new Area Commander for the Counties Manukau Region. So Kingi is actively involved in selection of senior police officers, and she is handpicked by NZ First Ministers to review the selection of a former NZ First candidate as Deputy Police Commissioner. This is not to suggest Kingi wont do a thorough job. But her role in already working for the Police on recruitment issues means she may not be seen as truly independent. We dont even know if she is paid by the Police for her work for them. Wouldnt it have been better for the Government to appoint an independent QC? Share this: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn More Reddit Pinterest Print Tumblr Colombian Ambassador to Korea Juan Pablo Rodriguez Barragan speaks with The Korea Times at the embassy in Seoul, July 19. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk Ambassador pledges to reaffirm friendship on anniversary of Independence Day By Yi Whan-woo Colombia has reaffirmed its unwavering friendship with Korea since the 1950-53 Korean War when it was the only South American country to send troops for U.N. collation forces. The countries formally established diplomatic relations in 1962, jointly issued postage stamps featuring the representative crops of the two countries Korea's ginseng and Colombia's coffee to mark the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic ties in 2012 and signed a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA)that took effect in July 2016. The two sides still have areas in which to build on this cooperation by increasing trade, luring Korean investors and tourists to Colombia and bolstering cultural and educational exchanges, according to Colombian Ambassador to Korea and retired army general Juan Pablo Rodriguez Barragan. He said he wants to speed up such cooperation on the occasion of the 208th anniversary of Colombia's Independence Day on July 20. The Colombian embassy will host a commiserative reception at the Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul, July 26. In collaboration with Incheon city government, the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, Republic of Korea Army's 17th Infantry Division and Asiana Airlines, the embassy will also open a park in Incheon, July 25, in remembrance of Colombian and Korean soldiers killed during the Korean War. "The relationship between Korea and Colombia is very special. It has been raised to the level of a strategic cooperation partnership and allows us to enhance and improve bilateral relations," he told The Korea Times at the embassy last week. "We're still working very hard in order to improve (bilateral relations) every day ... and the most important point will be how we can increase our commercial relationship." During interview, the ambassador was accompanied by Minister Plenipotentiary Edwin Ostos, Trade and Economic Relations Counselor Luis Felipe Quintero Suarez and First Secretary Andres Giraldo Pava, who handles cultural-, media- and sports-related affairs. Colombia's exports to Korea increased by 13.7 percent to $457 million from 2016 to 2017. The amount is likely to reach $570 million this year, with January-April exports increasing 87 percent from a year earlier to $190 million. The ambassador said he wanted to see an increase in exports through diversification, pointing out that exports has had mainly come from coal, coffee, pesticides and fungicides since the FTA came into force. "I am confident that during the coming years the FTA will help to boost Colombian exports in products such as flowers, shrimps, fresh and processed fruits, including pineapple, pitahaya and cacao preparations just to name a few," he said. "We have a wide range of agro industrial products that suit Korean consumers very well, but due to import duties their competitiveness was low and this is something that should change in the near future." IT service firm LG CNS is involved in three Colombian government projects, while Hyundai Engineering and Construction is building a water treatment plant on the Medellin River, according to the embassy. The ambassador said he expects more economic cooperation to come from small- and medium-sized enterprises in Korea. He noted that game developer Netmarble acquired Colombia-based mobile game company Brainz in March while bio-pharmaceutical firm Celltrion and medical laser manufacturer Wontech plans to open a branch office and a learning center, respectively, in Colombia. For potential investors, he recommended automobiles, chemicals, renewable energies, IT and agribusiness in addition to infrastructure projects involving airports, sea ports, railways and other metro systems. He especially stressed IT and renewable energies, claiming Colombia is a "hub for big data" for multinational companies such as Telefonica and IBM and that incentives, including a 40 percent tax rebate, is applicable for investments in solar, wind and bio fuel energies. He referred to his country as a "must" for any Korean traveler, pointing out that tourism is Colombia's second largest industry after oil and gas and that the country has the second-highest biodiversity after Brazil. The number of international visitors to the country soared by 150 percent in the past eight years, according to the embassy. Among tourist attractions are Cartagena or Santa Marta, both beach towns, and Cano Cristales, a river that various travel magazines have listed as one of nature's most breathtaking spectacles for its various colors caused by marine plants called macarenias. "Colombia must be on the short list of any Korean traveler to Latin America for two main reasons," the ambassador said. "First, you will be able to find all kinds of landscapes any time of the year. Second, you can discover unique places, which many people probably can only imagine." To bolster cultural exchanges, Colombia in collaboration with Chile, Mexico and Peru has been showcasing a photo exhibition of the Pacific Alliance, which is comprised of the four countries, held at the KF Gallery in Seoul. And an exhibition, "The spirits, gold and the Shaman," at the National Museum of Korea from Aug. 4 to Oct. 28 will feature more than 200 archaeological objects from different regions and periods in Colombia's pre-Hispanic metalworking societies. "We hope to continue with the organization of shows, workshops, dance events, exhibitions, films and academic activities that will show the cultural and artistic richness of Colombia in Korea, for which alliances with institutions, organizations, and individuals in the sectors will be developed," the ambassador said. In education, 103 university students from Colombia visited Korea under scholarships or other programs last year while 26 Korean university students have carried out study programs in Colombia this year. The ambassador took up his position in Korea in February. He commanded Colombia's Armed Forces, the Army, the Joint Special Operations Command and the Fifth Army Division during his 42-year military service. By Kim Jae-heun The government is investigating whether Chung-Ang University allegedly conducted an unfair transaction with the owner of its foundation, Doosan Group. According to the Ministry of Education, Monday, it dispatched three staffers early this month to investigate whether the university signed a private contract with an affiliate of the group for construction and renovation buildings on its campus. "Last year we received a report that the university made an unfair contract with Doosan Group," a ministry official said. "We requested the university submit related materials about the contract and then reviewed them. There were unclear parts and we sent our staffers to check them with university officials." The ministry said it would announce the result of the investigation after scrutinizing the information submitted by the university and secured by its inspectors. The professors' council at Chung-Ang University argued that the school paid nearly 250 billion won ($221.6 million) to Doosan Engineering & Construction to construct new buildings on the campus between 2008 and 2015. Doosan Group acquired the university in 2008. The incumbent chairman of the school board is Park Yong-hyun, a former chairman of Doosan Engineering & Construction. His son Park Tae-won is the vice chairman at the conglomerate's construction subsidiary. From 2008 to 2015, Park Yong-hyun's elder brother Park Yong-sung, who was the chairman of Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction, led the school foundation. Many believe the Park family exercised their power in making deals between the school and the construction unit. The council further claimed that while paying that much money to the company, the school paid off its debt it incurred building a hospital in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, with tuition fees that should have been used for improving student life. Chung-Ang University has been denying the allegations. It also maintains the school did not use tuition fees to repay debt. "The school account and the hospital account are separate. We cannot use school money for the hospital and we have not borrowed any money at the moment," a university official said. "The school does not interfere with hospital affairs." By Nam Hyun-woo The Moon Jae-in administration's plan to phase out nuclear power has come under question as electricity demand soars amid a scorching heat wave. To cope with the explosive power demand, the government has belatedly turned to nuclear power, announcing it will raise the number of operating nuclear plants from 14 to 19, but calls are growing for a fundamental change in the government's energy policy roadmap. According to the Korea Power Exchange Monday, the country's electricity load hid 88.91 million kilowatts as of 1:50 p.m. The reserves margin was nearing a single-digit number at 10.21 percent. A margin below 10 percent means the reserves are insufficient. The load was far higher than the government's anticipated 87.5 million kilowatts for this year in the Eighth Basic Plan for Long-Term Electricity Supply and Demand, released last December to suggest Korea's basic roadmap for its electricity supply up to 2031. The government raised its anticipated maximum demand to 88.3 million kilowatts in a July plan, but estimated such a load would come in the second week of next month, when the summer heat is expected to hit its stride. As the scorching heat baking the country is stronger and earlier than past years, the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Company (KHNP) said Sunday it will increase the number of operating nuclear power plants by five to supply an additional 5 million kilowatts during summer. Students in Connections Academys full-time online charter schools are highly mobile and often enroll after the school year starts. But nearly half reported choosing a cyber charter because they were looking for greater flexibility or were generally dissatisfied with their local schoolfar more than those who said they were trying to solve a specific problem such as academic struggles, physical or mental health issues, or bullying. Those are just some of the findings in a series of studies recently released by Pearson , the global publishing and education giant that serves as a parent company to Connections Academy. The research underscores the importance of mobility in understanding online school students and reveals insights about what drives student mobility, said Matthew Wicks, the vice president efficacy research and reporting for Pearson Online & Blended Learning, in an emailed response to questions. With this knowledge, we can further improve the Connections Academy online school program to best serve student needs, Wicks said. All told, Connections Academy schools served more than 70,000 students across 27 states during the past school year, making it the second-largest operator of full-time online schools in the country, behind K12 Inc. As part of its new research, Pearson also challenged a series of recent studies by third-party groups, which have consistently found that students in cyber charters tend to perform significantly worse academically than their counterparts in brick-and-mortar schools. Like other cyber operators, Connections maintains that such studies have not adequately accounted for what it says are high rates of student mobility in virtual schools. Using its own methodology, which sought to account for students who bounced from school to school before enrolling in a Connections Academy, Pearson found that Connections schools actually performed on par with comparable brick-and-mortar schools, and significantly better than other virtual schools in reading. Outside research experts questioned Pearsons approach, however, saying the companys inability to compare the performance of individual students undercut the strength of its argument that Connections Academy virtual schools perform better academically than they are given credit for. You cant make these claims of effectiveness with school-level data. Period, said Ruth Curran Neild, the previous director of the federal Institute of Education Sciences and current director of the Philadelphia Education Research Consortium. Still, the field would benefit from a more robust way of comparing students from different types of schools while better accounting for student mobility, Neild saidan agenda that the current school-choice-friendly U.S. Department of Education may want to consider. Who chooses Connections Academy cyber charters? Pearson officials said they undertook the studies as part of the companys larger and overarching commitment to efficacy research and reporting. The work was independently reviewed by the research group SRI International and audited by the consulting firm PwC. One part of the work sought to better understand the students who enroll at Connections Academy virtual schoolsa key question, given ongoing debates about whether full-time online schools serve a population that is similar enough to brick-and-mortar schools to allow for apples-to-apples comparisons of student performance. For the study, Pearson analyzed the achievement scores, attendance and enrollment patterns, demographic characteristics, and stated reasons for choosing to attend a Connections school for 77,541 students during the 2015-16 school year. Using a technique called a cluster analysis, the company created seven distinct profiles of Connections Academy students: Academically advanced students (8 percent of the overall Connections Academy population) Academically struggling students (11 percent) Students experiencing physical or mental health problems (11 percent) Newly enrolled students who had previously experienced bullying (13 percent) Students who had originally enrolled at Connections Academy with challenges such as those listed above, and were now returning to that online school after for a second (or more) year (11 percent) Returning students who didnt report experiencing such problems at traditional schools, but instead enrolled at Connections Academy because they were seeking more flexibility and choice (16 percent) New students who were just seeking more flexibility and choice (31 percent) The last two profiles accounted for 47 percent of Connections students, the study found. More research needs to be done to better understand the experiences and motivations of these groups, the researchers said. Also noteworthy were the high numbers of new students who enrolled at a Connections Academy after the school year started. More than half of new students who chose a Connections online school because of physical or mental health problems started late, and nearly two-thirds of new students who experienced bullying or academic struggles at their previous schools started late. By comparison, Pearson found that more than 90 percent of returning studentsincluding those who originally chose Connections Academy because of previous challengesstarted the school year on time. Connections officials said the information was helpful to both teachers and administrators, and would be used to improve the way Connections schools approach onboarding new students. Data analysis we have done previously shows that late-enrolling students tend to have lower academic performance than students enrolling on time, Wicks said. This can indicate other problems in the life of the student/family that could impact student learning. Disagreements about online student performance While the full-time online student profiles and data released by Pearson shine new light on populations that have often been hard to track, the companys findings regarding academic achievement are more contentious. A number of previous studies by independent researchers have slammed cyber charters in general for poor performance. Most notably, a 2015 report from the Center for Research on Education Outcomes at Stanford University found that cyber charters in general have an overwhelming negative impact on students academic growth. In that study, researchers matched individual students attending 158 cyber charter schools in 17 states and the District of Columbia with virtual twins, who were similar in terms of grade level, demographics, poverty, special-education status, and prior performance on state tests. The virtual twins attended the brick-and-mortar school where their peers most likely would have landed had they not chosen to attend a cyber charter. In its comparative analysis of that student-level data, CREDO found that in a given year, online charter students, on average, achieved the equivalent of 180 fewer days of learning in math and 72 fewer days of learning in reading than similar students in brick-and-mortar schools. More than two-thirds of cyber charters had weaker overall academic growth than similar brick-and-mortar schools, CREDO found. Cyber charter operators, including Connections and K-12 Inc., have consistently said CREDOs methodology was limited because it didnt adequately account for student mobility. The negative impact of student mobility on academic performance has been well documented, Wicks said. We believe taking mobility into account is required to make the most fair comparison. To that end, Pearson attempted to account for student mobility by using each states mobility metric, which vary considerably from one place to the next and are only available at the district level. The company then used those mobility rates as a primary indicator for how it matched Connections Academy schools with counterparts. Unlike CREDO, however, Pearson was unable to create matches at the student level. Instead, it matched Connections Academy schools with traditional brick-and-mortar schools in the same state by grade level (3-8) and subject area (math and reading.) In effect, that meant 4thgrade math students at a given Connections Academy schools were compared to the most similar class of 4thgrade math students that researchers could find within a brick-and-mortar school in the same state. The two most significant factors in making those matches were mobility rate and prior academic performance. Using this methodology, Pearson found that Connections Academy full-time online schools performed statistically the same in reading and math as brick-and-mortar schools. Connections schools also outperformed other virtual schools in reading. This study provides evidence that students from Connections Academy schools can perform at the same level as students from traditional schools that serve similar student populations, Wicks said. The results support a more complex conversation about mobility and virtual schooling. More work to be done Outside researchers had much more measured reactions, however. In an interview, Neild of the Philadelphia Education Research Consortium, emphasized that Pearsons inability to compare the performance of individual students is a major limitation of the study. We dont know if these are the same students from one year to another, Neild said. The fact is, [Pearson doesnt] have the evidence to parse out whether the differences theyre seeing are the result of an effective instructional program, or changes in the student population. In a statement provided to Education Week, director Macke Raymond said CREDO appreciates the effort [by Pearson] to delve deeper into school effects among cyber schools and noted that the new study opens a new frontier of investigation by including student-mobility measures. But those measures are far more exploratory than confirmatory, said Raymond, who also pointed out the superiority of CREDOs student-level analysis. We are confident that the prior CREDO study meets standards of rigor and accuracy, and stand by our results, she said. In its study, Pearson acknowledged that its study cannot support causal conclusions and that a more rigorous research design would have matched groups at the individual student level, rather than the school or district level. See also: for the latest news on ed-tech policies, practices, and trends. Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], July 22 (ANI): Inspector General (IG) of Jaipur, Hemant Priyadarshi on Sunday said that probe in the Alwar lynching incident is being carried out in transparent and unbiased manner. Priyadarshi informed that the Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Crime and Vigilance (Jaipur Range) will probe the case. "Additional SP Crime and Vigilance (Jaipur Range) will investigate Alwar lynching. FIR has been registered against unknown people and the probe is being done in a transparent and unbiased manner," Priyadarshi said. 28-year-old Akbar Khan along with his friend was taking some cows to his village through a forest near Lalawandi area in the Alwar district of Rajasthan when some locals allegedly thrashed him brutally on the intervening night of Friday-Saturday, suspecting him to be a cow smuggler. The police immediately rushed the victim to a nearby hospital, where he was declared brought dead. Police have, so far, arrested two suspects and launched a manhunt for other suspects. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Dharamshala (HP), Jul 22 (PTI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur today welcomed the GST Council's decision to cut tax rates on 88 items and exempt sanitary napkins from the levy, saying it would provide a much-needed relief to the middle class and benefit women's health and hygiene. The GST Council on Saturday cut tax rates on 88 items, including footwear, refrigerator, washing machine and small screen TV. Sanitary napkins, which attract 12 per cent tax, and fortified milk, which was taxed at 18 per cent, have been exempt from the new indirect tax. Thakur also said that the decision to allowed businesses with turn over of up to Rs 5 crore to file quarterly returns have relieved small businesses from the pressure of filing so many returns. The GST council also allowed businesses with turn over of up to Rs 5 crore to file quarterly returns -- a move which will benefit 93 per cent of the GST registered taxpayers. They will have to, however, pay taxes monthly. So far, businesses with turnover of up to Rs 1.5 crore were permitted to file returns quarterly. About 75 to 80 per cent businessmen in the state run small businesses and they would be immensely benefitted from this decision of the Centre, the chief minister was quoted as saying in a release. Thakur also said the decision to reduce GST rates on washing machines, refrigerators mixers, footwear and other items would also provide much-needed relief to the middle class and exempting sanitary napkins from the indirect tax would have a positive effect on the health and hygiene of women. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New York, Jul 23 (PTI) India's former Ambassador to the UN Asoke Mukerji has been awarded an honorary doctorate by one of the top universities in the UK in recognition of his decades-long contribution to diplomacy, becoming only the second Indian to be bestowed with this honour since 2012. The University of East Anglia honoured Mukerji with the award of a Doctorate in Civil Laws honoris causa during a formal ceremony last week at the institution. Describing Mukerji as one of India's greatest diplomats, the University in its oration said he is peace-maker and peace-keeper personified and lauded his imaginative commitment to global challenges, and an unfaltering sense of shared yet differentiated responsibilities. It said Mukerji has always aimed to create productive, sustainable and secure futures: not only for the citizens and Government of India that he has served, but also for all of us, as world citizens. In his acceptance speech, Mukerji said expressed gratitude for being conferred with the award in recognition of his work as a diplomat. He said the award recognizes the importance of international cooperation as the connective tissue for a sustainable world." Mukerji highlighted UEA's India-connection over the years. One of India's best known agricultural scientists, M S Swaminathan, often called the father of the Green Revolution in India, was conferred the honorary doctorate by the University in 2012. Addressing the student graduates in the audience, Mukerji said on the one hand, the emergence of innovative technologies and applications will enable you to use your knowledge to impact on the lives of many more people than ever before. On the other hand, you will confront an increasingly turbulent world, polarized between adhering to the principle of international cooperation and the counter arguments of assertive sovereignty of nation states. This turbulence has been faced by us before. It required great sacrifice from people from all parts of the globe, especially India and the United Kingdom, to overcome such challenges through the First and Second World Wars, he added. Mukerji had served as India's Permanent Representative to the UN between 2013 and 2015, during when he had spearheaded India's campaign for Security Council reform. The University said that Mukerji's most notable and far-reaching achievements at the United Nations related to the adoption, in 2015, of the Sustainable Development Goals. Here Asoke oversaw India's long-term commitment to the UN's universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which is a move that will create many positive ramifications for India and the rest of the world, given its emphasis on innovation, technology and inclusion, it said. PTI YAS (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Jul 22 (PTI) Delhi Police said today they have arrested a man involved in eight cases of robbery from Govindpuri area. A country-made pistol with one live cartridge, a stolen motorcycle and 21 mobile phones have been seized from Faizal Ali (19), police said. Deputy Commissioner of Police (south-east district) Chinmoy Biswal said Ali, a school-drop, was arrested on Tuesday. He used to escape on the motorcycle after committing crimes. Ali was previously arrested when he was a juvenile and was sent to an observation home. After his release from the home, he again started committing crimes, the DCP said. Ali used to target people in dark, secluded streets, he said. Police said Ali used to sell snatched mobile phones to a person he has identified as Sunny. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad, Jul 22 (PTI) Pakistan and Afghanistan today held their first Working Groups' meeting in Kabul under a comprehensive mechanism to sort out their differences and build stronger ties. Pakistan Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua led a 28-member delegation for inaugural meetings of the five Working Groups (WGs) under the Afghanistan and Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) in Kabul, said Foreign Office in a statement. The Afghan delegation was led by Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Karzai in the talks. The high-level Pakistan delegation included officials from foreign and interior ministries, commerce, railway, communications, among others. Personnel of intelligence agencies and Pakistan armed forces were also part of the delegation. The delegation comprised officials of five Working Groups on politico-diplomatic, military, intelligence, economic & trade and refugees issues. Afghan deputy foreign minister and foreign secretary of Pakistan led their respective sides in the politico-diplomatic WG meeting besides co-chairing the opening and closing sessions of the APAPPS. In the inaugural joint meeting of the WGs, the Afghan and Pakistani side assessed prospects for the APAPPS forum that covers all areas of mutual interest including counter terrorism and security, peace and reconciliation, bilateral trade and transit, connectivity, Afghan refugees' repatriation and promoting people to people contacts. Following the APAPPS inaugural session, five WGs held their respective group meetings at the level of relevant ministries and departments. The WGs, besides discussing important issues in each area, also deliberated on the TORs for future course of action and the agenda items for their next round of meetings to be held in Islamabad at mutually agreed dates. The concluding session noted the great importance of APAPPS to deliver on the commitments made under this forum within the mutually agreed time frame. The APAPPS framework instituted in February provides for a comprehensive and structured mechanism to enhance engagement between counterpart institutions of the two countries. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Jul 22 (PTI) Congress chief Rahul Gandhi today gave a clear warning to the leaders of the party, asking them not to make "loose remarks" and to toe the party line while making utterance on key issues in public. Addressing party leaders at the extended Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, he asked them to abstain from making "irrelevant" statements in public that could derail the political discourse and harm the party's prospects at the hustings. Sources said even UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi made a reference to such utterances during her brief address, giving a clear signal to the "loose cannons" in the party to fall in line. AICC general secretary in-charge of organisation Ashok Gehlot also emphasised that the leaders and workers of the party should maintain discipline and not speak out of turn. "Congress president Rahul Gandhi clearly pointed out and gave a friendly advice to the partymen that in view of the larger goal -- the 2019 (Lok Sabha) election -- they should maintain discipline in both their language and conduct," Congress's chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala told reporters here. "There is freedom of expression, but as far as toeing the party line is concerned, it is expected of the Congress workers and the entire leadership that they will maintain the balance of decorum and dignity of language," he added. Surjewala said the Congress chief pointed out that aspirations were being crushed in the country, voices subjugated, hopes were lying shattered and the discourse was being made poisonous by way of a concerted conspiracy by the ruling BJP. "In that context, he pointed out and told the Congress leaders to not lose sight of the goal and people's issues, their pains and sufferings. Let us not be guided by a failed prime minister and a failed (Narendra) Modi government, which has nothing to offer, except for the poisonous, venomous, divide and rule policy. "That is why he said gravitas of language and conduct is expected by the people of this country of Congress leaders and they should adhere to it," he added. Surjewala said Gehlot told the gathering that discipline started with the leader and percolated down to the workers and one could expect it from the workers only when the leaders showed the path. Certain comments of Congress leaders have embarrassed the party in the past and harmed its interests at the hustings. These include Mani Shankar Aiyar's "chai-walla" and "neech aadmi" barbs at Prime Minister Modi. The party had also distanced itself from Shashi Tharoor's recent "Hindu Pakistan" remark. Surjewala said the Congress was fighting the fascist forces of subjugation and suppression, who were denigrating democracy, adding that it was like a second freedom struggle to protect the foundational values of India. "Congress leaders, keeping in mind the larger goal of 2019, will maintain the dignity of their language and conduct," he quoted Rahul Gandhi as saying at the meet. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, July 23: Terrorist David Headley, who has been convicted for his role in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, is in a critical condition after being assaulted by two inmates in the jail in US where he is lodged since 2016. Headley was reportedly attacked by two inmates at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago on July 8. The attackers, whose identities are yet to be confirmed, are two brothers who are serving a prison term for attacking an on-duty police personnel nearly a decade-ago. Following the assault, Headley was rushed to the North Evanston hospital, where he was put under intensive care unit. Despite a fortnight's treatment, his condition has not improved. As per the latest reports emerging, Headley is still battling for life and is kept under 24/7 observation of the critical care unit. Headley's role in the 2008 Mumbai terror strikes, which claimed over 150 civilian lives and left nearly 350 injured, was established during the probe conducted by the Mumbai Anti-Terror Squad. In February 2016, he deposed via video conference before a Mumbai court explaining how he was used by the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba to plan the extremist attack in Mumbai. A US Court, taking cognizance of the evidence collected by the Indian agencies, had sentenced him to 35 years in prison. Headley, who was born as Daood Sayed Gilani in Washington, is a son of a Pakistani diplomat and news broadcaster. In 2006, he visited Pakistan and got in touch with LeT handlers. During this phase, he was radicalised and recruited as a handler for the Hafiz Saeed-led outfit. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 23, 2018 07:21 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). Prime Minister Narendra Modi has embarked on a three-nation tour to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa from July 23-27. He will also be making history, by becoming the first Prime Minister to visit Rwanda on Monday with a special gift- 200 cows. These cows are sourced locally, and this will be part of the Girinka, a pet project initiated by Rwandan President Paul Kagame to help low-income families. In this scheme, the government gifts the low-income families one cow, and the family, in turn, will gift the female calf born to the neighbour. Reportedly, Rwanda hopes to target 350,000 families with the Girinka project. The Rwandan President started the project because he realised that a cow would not only help in with their agricultural production but will also provide better nutrition to the malnourished children in the country. The project also aims to promote brotherhood and solidarity in the community. PM Modi will travel to Rweru specifically'' to make this donation. The cows, which will be gifted by India, will be sourced from Rwanda itself, said the secretary, economic relations, ministry of external affairs, T.S Tirumurti at a press briefing. An official quoted in the Indian Express report said, " The gifting of cows is not just an economic contribution, but also an expression of Indias gratitude to Rwanda for treating Indian community well." (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 23, 2018 02:54 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). Last week, a 10-year-old Somali girl died after undergoing female genital mutilation (FGM). The girl died of blood loss, two days after being taken to a traditional cicumcisor. But the girl's father, Dahir Nur, defends the practice despite her daughter's death. Mr Nur said people in Somalia were 'content' with the practice, which is widespread in the country. Doctors in the town of Dusamareb said the girl had been brought to hospital after undergoing the procedure in a village 25 miles away. Mr Nur told Voice of America, "Her mother consented to it. We have seen the effects but it's a culture in the country we live in." Dr Abdirahman Omar Hassan, director of Hanano hospital in the city of Dhusamareb told VoA he had never seen 'anyone who was mutilated like that in my life'. Dr Hassan, who was on the team who tried to save the girl, revealed she had caught tetanus, most likely from the understerilised equipment used during the original procedure. Mr Nur also said that he did not want to pursue charges and held no one to blame for his daughter's death. Hawa Aden Mohamed, director of women's rights group Galkayo Education Center for Peace and Development pointed out even if he did, it would be largely meaningless. She told Reuters, "The woman who performed the operation has not been arrested but even if she was, there is no law that would ensure she is punished for the act. This is just one among many cases happening on a daily basis across Somalia." Somalia's constitution prohibits FGM, but efforts to pass legislation to punish offenders have been stalled by parliamentarians afraid of losing powerful Muslim vote banks who support FGM and view it as a part of their tradition. According to the UN, 98% of women between 15 and 49 have been subjected to the ritual in Somalia. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 23, 2018 05:04 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). "Setting the Record Straight: The Pardon Power is Part of the Rule of Law" | Main | "Beyond Strict Scrutiny: Forbidden Purpose and the 'Civil Commitment' Power" July 22, 2018 More old-school, tough-on-crime talk and thinking from Attorney General Jeff Sessions Attorney General Jeff Sessions delivered these remarks today at the 2018 Summer Conference for the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia. Much of what he said will sound familiar to those who have followed his public speeches, but today I was really struck by a certain logical disconnect in some of his standard rhetoric. Here are excerpts, with bold added to highlight key passages for follow-up comments: From the early 1990s until 2014, the crime rate steadily came down across the country. But from 2014 to 2016, the trends reversed. The violent crime rate went up by nearly seven percent. Robberies went up. Assaults went up nearly 10 percent. Rape went up by nearly 11 percent. Murder shot up by more than 20 percent!... Weve got to get back on track. We must take these recent developments seriously and consider carefully what can be done about them. Yielding to these trends is not an option for America and certainly not to us in law enforcement. We have clear goals. From day one I plainly stated our goal at DOJ reduce crime, reduce homicides, reduce prescriptions, and reduce overdose deaths!... Weve got to be smart and fair about who we put behind bars and for how long. This is not mindless mass incarceration. But prison does play a role. Two months ago, the Department of Justices Bureau of Justice Statistics released a report on the recidivism rate of inmates released from state prisons in 30 states. This is the longest-term study that BJS has ever done on recidivism and perhaps the largest. It was designed and started by the previous administration. The results are clear and very important historic importance. The reality is confirms what experienced professionals like yourselves have seen. The study found that 83 percent of 60,000 state prisoners released in 2005 were arrested again within nine years. Thats five out of every six. The study shows that two-thirds of those a full 68 percent were arrested within the first three years. Almost half were arrested within a year one year of being released. The study estimates that the 400,000 state prisoners released in 2005 were arrested nearly 2 million times during the nine-year period an average of five arrests each. Virtually none of these released prisoners were arrested merely for probation or parole violations: 99 percent of those arrested during the 9-year follow-up period were arrested for something other than a probation or parole violation. In many cases, former inmates were arrested for an offense at least as serious if not more so as the crime that got them in jail in the first place. It will not surprise you that this is often true for drug offenders. Many have thought that most drug offenders are young experimenters or persons who just made a mistake. But the study shows a deeper concern. Seventy-seven percent of all released drug offenders were arrested for a non-drug crime within nine years. Presumably, many were arrested for drug crimes also. Importantly, nearly half of those arrests were for a violent crime. Sometimes arrests lead to treatment, drug courts often the problem is more serious. Recidivism is no little matter. It is a fact of life that must be understood. But overall, the good news is that the professionals in law enforcement know what works in crime. Weve been studying this and working on this for 40 years. As any prosecutor in this room can tell you, when a criminal knows with certainty that he is facing real time, he is a lot more willing to confess and cooperate with prosecutors. On the other hand, when the sentence is uncertain and up to the whims of the judge, criminals are a lot more willing to take a chance. Our goal as prosecutors is not to fill up the courts or fill up the prisons. Our goal is not to manage crime or merely to punish crime. Our goal is to reduce crime in America.... Law enforcement is crime prevention. When we enforce our laws, we prevent new crimes from happening. As prosecutors, we have a difficult job, but our efforts at the federal, state, and local levels have a real impact. With every conviction we secure, we make our communities safer. A blog post is an imperfect forum to work through all the particulars of AG Sessions' speech. But his extended discussion of the BJS recidivism data (which concerns only state prisoners) suggests that modern prisons at least in the late 1990s and early 2000s functionally operated to make a lot of criminals worse, which in turn suggests that sending more people to prison would be a recipe for making ever more aggravated criminals. Of course, this is what "professionals" generally know: time in prison tends to be criminogenic. As Professor Mark Kleiman puts it, brute force often fails and we ought to seek to (and likely can) achieve less crime with less punishment. Put another way, the BJS recidivism data suggest we were doing something quite wrong with our prison policies even as crime was dropping from the early 1990s until 2014. And yet the tenor of this speech, and what seems to be AG Sessions' general disaffinity for any federal criminal justice reforms, suggest AG Sessions is ever eager to embrace and champion all the policies and practices that contributed to modern mass incarceration despite evidence that those "old-school" policies and practices produce startling recidivism rates. The significant crime spike that preceded AG Sessions coming in to office will seemingly always serves as a foundation and justification for him to promote and justify ever more federal prosecutors bringing ever more federal prosecutions. But, as the title of this post hints, his old-school talk and thinking is tired and tiring, and likely disserves his presumably genuine commitment "to reduce crime in America." July 22, 2018 at 08:10 PM | Permalink Comments Sessions needs to begin punishing local governments. I do not mean withhold federal funding. I mean arrest mayors and chiefs of police for conspiracy. They refuse to arrest criminals. https://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2018/07/20/stockton-batman-fights-crime/ Posted by: David Behar | Jul 22, 2018 9:35:57 PM Welcome to the lawyer Twilight Zone world of Prof. Berman and of all pro-criminal lawyer, far left ideologues. End state mandatory sentencing guidelines. These were enacted because criminal coddling, pro-criminal lawyer judges caused a massive crime wave. Crime starts to decrease because of these mandatory guidelines, no matter what the far left academic lawyers say. Drop the length of sentencing, again by criminal coddling, pro-criminal lawyer judges. Release the prisoners. Crime goes up. The reason? Prison made them worse. So release more. Are you crazy, stupid, or evil? Posted by: David Behar | Jul 22, 2018 11:13:46 PM David Behar - free speech is all very well - but these idiotic rants devalue the worth of this blog big time. There is no point in a comment option, which is supposed to encourage intelligent debate, when the first things we invariably read are two posts such as you have just made. Posted by: peter | Jul 23, 2018 3:50:52 AM Jeff Sessions is the man. Posted by: federalist | Jul 23, 2018 7:32:14 AM "Put another way, the BJS recidivism data suggest we were doing something quite wrong with our prison policies even as crime was dropping from the early 1990s until 2014." So crime was falling yet "we" were doing something wrong? If you look at the international studies on recidivism, what they show is that a small percentage of the population is responsible for most of the crime. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3969807/ Posted by: justme123 | Jul 23, 2018 8:33:09 AM Peter. You are not a lawyer. You do not understand their rent seeking scam to increase lawyer employment. The 40% drop in crime from mandatory sentencing guidelines caused lawyer unemployment. Eventually, such unemployment would necessitate the closing of law schools. Berman knows exactly what he is doing by advocating the loosing of vicious super-predators on minority communities. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 23, 2018 9:25:36 AM Peter. The debate will be settled by the Chinese. The overwhelming majority of opioid overdose deaths are among addicts, using Chinse made carfentanyl. Each death will prevent their yearly 200 crimes, and lower their fecundity rate. Crime will soon come close to disappearing or reaching Swiss or Japanese levels. The lawyer profession is going to succeed to nearly eradicate crime, by emptying the prisons. One of the outcomes that these far left, pro-criminals are not addressing is the death rate outside of prison. This is unbelievable, but half are murdered. The other half will now pass away from overdoses. The lethal overdose of carfentanyl is 20 mcg. A microgram is a millionth of a gram. There are 30 grams in an ounce. A kilo of carfentanyl costs $3000 delivered by Federal express from China. Here is a fentanyl site with customer satisfaction ratings, like your local restaurant reviews. http://www.weiku.com/Chemicals/buy-fentanyl-powder.html You pro-criminal far left wackos are going to get all the criminals killed by your stupid advocacy of emptying the prisons. That is when lawyer employment will get really serious. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 23, 2018 9:45:47 AM The German maker of fentanyl is getting 4 stars from customers. The idiots running the states' death penalties should take note. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 23, 2018 9:52:02 AM David, do you have any support for this new claim that the "40% drop in crime from mandatory sentencing guidelines caused lawyer unemployment"? First, what mandatory sentencing guidelines are you discussing and where is evidence that that they cause a 40% drop in crime? Second, where is evidence that a crime drop caused lawyer unemployment? A relatively small percentage of all lawyers work in criminal justice, and many who do are not significantly impacted by variations in crime rates. justme123: if prisons are making offenders worse criminals by increasing their likelihood and severity of recidivism, I think "we" are doing something wrong (assuming we hope and expect that prisons will not make offenders worse). The data stressed by AG Sessions is suggestive of the notion that our prisons are making people worse. Perhaps you think that declining crime rates suggests prison still produces a net benefit, but even that view does not undermine the notion that we could and should be trying to make prison more rehabilitative and less criminogenic. Posted by: Doug B | Jul 23, 2018 1:02:22 PM There should be a provision added stating that "tough-on-crime" does not apply when oneself or partisan allies are the subject of a law enforcement investigation. In that case, law enforcement is biased and engaged in a witch hunt. But if the investigation involves someone not oneself or partisan allies, then roo-ha law enforcement and throw the book at them! This kind of gets absurd though as everyone who is "tough-on-crime" cries foul when they themselves are the subject of a criminal investigation. Posted by: anonuser879 | Jul 23, 2018 1:14:46 PM Prof. Berman. I agree a number like the crime rate has multiple factors. However, the coincidence between the passage of 5 years after mandatory guidelines were adopted at the federal and at the state levels, and the beginning of the drops in common law crimes is overwhelming. Then the 3% decarceration rate resulting in a huge wave of crime in our biggest cities, cannot be ignored. The basic logic that people in prison commit fewer crimes outside of prison also cannot be denied. I am also the one arguing that crime has not decreased, but it has modernized to the internet. Crazy and self defeating to rob a bank, when one can score far more from a single identity theft. As to lawyer jobs, this 2012 estimate was prior to the full effect of Booker, and prior to the Fergusoning of police departments. Close to half of law grads were not going to find jobs requiring a law degree. Now prospects have improved for lawyer employment. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lean-times-for-law-school-grads/ Posted by: David Behar | Jul 23, 2018 3:58:48 PM David, the link you cite rightly notes how "outsourcing and computer automation" has had an impact on the market for lawyers, and these forces were enhanced by a lean economy through the crash and slow recovery in 2008 to 2012. But as crime was dropping from 1991 through 2008, there is little evidence that it impacted lawyer populations: https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/market_research/Total_National_Lawyer_Population_1878-2018.authcheckdam.pdf More generally, what the heck is the "full effect of Booker" and how were we still awaiting it 7 years after Booker was decided? More to the key point, the federal system processes way less than 5% of all significant criminal cases (and less than 1% of what you call "common law crimes"), so it is especially hard to see how federal sentencing changes are alone likely to have a major impact on national crime rates, let alone on lawyer employment. This is why your rants are so tiresome --- they hit the same themes over and over again, without real facts or real thought, and they are often contradictory. E.g., if increased crime is good for lawyers, why aren't all the lawyers praising your efforts to argue crime is really increasing? And if crime is moving on-line, it is no longer "basic logic that people in prison commit fewer crimes outside of prison" if they can get on-line. And so on. No long ago, you seemed to want to try to provide a link/evidence to support a point you make. I hope you will try that again so as keep the ranting limited. Or better yet, go back to ranting on your own blog and then just provide a link here. Posted by: Doug B. | Jul 23, 2018 4:39:16 PM Prof. Berman. Spin and ad hominem insults. You are a denier. A denier does not argue in good faith. A denier has an agenda, and yours is lawyer rent seeking. States adopted mandatory guidelines for common law crimes. Cunningham struck these down in 2007. It takes 5 years for lawmaking by the Supreme Court to percolate to the street. After the worst of the economy was over, but 5 years after Cunningham, crime began to rise again. AI and artificial intelligence have greatly improved and spread. Yet, lawyer employment prospects have improved again. Why lawyers are not counting 30 million identity thefts and billions of federal violations in social media, is best explained by lawyer stupidity. Or, it may be because internet crime is not being prosecuted, and is not generating your stupid lawyer jobs. Have you heard anyone else, besides me, in any legal circle, point to the explosion of internet crime? No. It is nearly immune from prosecution, and of no interest to the rent seeking lawyer profession. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 23, 2018 5:11:03 PM David, crime hit record lows in 2014 (nationwide and in CA) seven years after Cunningham. And there still are mandatory sentencing laws in states, Apprendi and Blakely and Cunningham just require a particular proof process for their application. Your can have your own distorted opinions, but lets try to keep facts clear. And, as a matter of fact, lawyers talk all the time about cyber crimes and there are law school classes on the topic. And if you look at explosion of child porn prosecutions in last 20 years, it should be obvious all sorts of lawyers are aware of these crimes (and are employed prosecuting/defending those accused). But that is not why lawyer employment has improved - rather, an improved economy means more money for civil litigants to seek the luxury good of a lawyer. The legal market generally moves up and down with the economy (with a few years of lag), not with the crime rate. As usual, you anti-lawyer bias makes it hard for you to see what should be clear. I will not try to convince you to give up your bias against lawyers, but I will keep encouraging you to get your facts straight. Posted by: Doug B. | Jul 23, 2018 8:23:14 PM The rate of common law crime cannot be counted by arrest rates. Those reports are pure Democratic Party propaganda. The idea that NYC has low crime is ridiculous. You can walk around for half an hour and count multiple crimes. Then, the gold standard of crime measurement, the household survey of victimization had its methodology "upgraded" by Obama operatives to cover up the rate of black criminality, a Democratic Party constituency. So there was no real measurement of common law crimes. The murder rate is harder to hide than other crimes. That one began to rise with the smallest decarceration. Downloading child porn may not even be a real crime, but a First Amendment activity. In historic, natural experiments, on-off, on-off, it has also been associated with a drop in the sexual abuse of real children. That is the same effect was seen in the 1960's when adult porn was legalized. The number of rapes of real adult women also decreased. I am speaking of identity thefts. Those are in the millions, and nearly immune, thanks to the incompetence or collusion of the lawyer profession. The lawyer profession is doing nothing about it. Then there are billions of fraudulent appropriations of real people's profiles to bulk up the viewership of social media. These false followers result in higher advertiser fees. These should be measured, and social media should be refunding advertisers for fees based on their fraudulent, inflated viewerships. Is any law school course addressing this $trillion scam? I have argued for the civil forfeitures of all these social media companies, auctioning them like the Ferrari of a drug dealer. Arrest their owners, and throw away the keys. Crime is rampant, both common law and modern internet crime. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 23, 2018 9:09:29 PM The arrests in Baltimore used to be 100,000. After the Fergusoning of Baltimore by Rod Rosenstein, and the election of that Black female mayor, the arrests have dropped to 25,000. Has crime in Baltimore dropped by 75% since it was Fergusoned by Rod Rosenstein? You should stop saying crime is less frequent. At best, the crime rate is unknown. It is more likely being covered up by Democratic Party politicians. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 23, 2018 9:19:59 PM David, you started this messy discourse with your assertion that a "40% drop in crime from mandatory sentencing guidelines caused lawyer unemployment." I foolishly sought some sensible accounting of this suspect claim, and now you say I "should stop saying crime is less frequent." Your rants are annoying enough when not internally contradictory, but this thread highlights how eager to you are repeat silly tropes against lawyers and Dems without regard to any logic or sensibility. And this is why your rantings are so disconcerting to everyone here (and surely elsewhere): it is impossible and ultimately pointless to try to engage with you rationally. Rationality calls for ignoring you, and before long I am going to be inclined to conclude that rationality calls for deleting your comments. Posted by: Doug B | Jul 23, 2018 10:05:36 PM Professor, arguing with Mr. Behar is a waste of time. He is a "true believer" in whatever nonsense he spouts. Such folks (like Trumpers) are never persuaded by facts. They have "alternative facts." I remember well one apt statement Freud's writings: "Needless to say, no one who suffers from a delusion, recognizes it as such." Regretfully, this applies to Mr. Behar. Posted by: Dave from Texas | Jul 24, 2018 6:49:22 PM If someone is not capable of reform, attempts to reform them do no good. In an ironic way, Mr. Behar is actually proving this point quite well. Posted by: William Jockusch | Jul 24, 2018 8:08:54 PM Dave. Psychoanalysis is a form of quackery. I prefer to call Berman a denier. That is someone who argues in bad faith, in furtherance of an agenda. Holocausts deniers want the extermination of the Jews. Harvard Law radicalized deniers want to grow tyrannical far left government, and to have their alumni tell everyone else how to live, all the while, generating worthless government make work jobs. The agenda of the Harvard Law radicalized lawyer is rent seeking. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 26, 2018 1:45:40 PM Prof. Berman. You are not influenced by facts. People were angry about crime. In the greatest achievement of the lawyer profession, your mandatory guidelines dropped crime 40% within 5 years of adoption. That is the standard time to see a new law take effect. Your profession did very well. The drop in crime was a major factor in the explosion of economic success in the second half of the 1990's as resources were diverted to economic activity. You are in denial even about this tremendous achievement of the lawyer profession. Why? Your job, what you are paid to do is to get law students jobs. Drops in crime threaten your personal job. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 26, 2018 2:21:49 PM William. Why do you say that about me, and not about yourself or about Berman. You cannot see your own denial. Berman also knows this is advocacy. Yet, he persists in make ad hominem remarks. This is very common for the far left. Trump had the best first year of any President in history by objective standards. Yet, you people cannot stop attacking. You are in denial about your own economic success this year. That is denial. Berman needs to disclose his economic self interest in lawyer rent seeking, and job generation. Once disclosed, I would have nothing to say about him, since it is self evident everyone pursues their own self interest. Me, I have made a great living from lawyer shenanigans. I am arguing against my economic self interest. That makes me morally superior to everyone here. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 26, 2018 2:34:31 PM Post a comment Jul 23, 2018, 10:22am ET Report: Tesla pushes suppliers to return payments [Update] The company has allegedly asked for a portion of payments made since 2016 to be returned, in the spirit of achieving profitability. Tesla has reportedly asked suppliers to return some of the payments they have received for previous work, according to The Wall Street Journal. A memo sent to suppliers allegedly asked the third parties to send back a "meaningful" amount of cash for work dating back as early as 2016. The plea is said to have been framed as a way to help Tesla achieve profitability. "Only costs that actually apply to Q3 & beyond will be counted," Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Twitter in response to the report. "It would not be correct to apply historical cost savings to current quarter." The company recently reached its goal of producing 5,000 Model 3 units in a single work week. The Fremont factory must now prove that such a pace can be sustained and gradually increased to an even higher level. Cost-reduction negotiations with suppliers are not uncommon, including retroactive adjustments of payments. Former Nissan worker turned analyst Tatsuo Yoshida told Blomberg the practice has occurred at established Japanese automakers. Update: Tesla issued a statement to CNN explaining that "fewer than 10" suppliers had been contacted for money back on long-term projects that began in 2016 and may not have been completed. "Now that we're in a stronger position with Model 3 production ramping, it is a good time to improve our competitive advantage in this area," the spokesman added. "We're focused on reaching a more sustainable long term cost basis, not just finding one-time reductions for this quarter." After selling out the Sands Bethlehem Event Center two years ago, blink-182 is coming back to Bethlehem for more. The center announced two concerts on Monday: blink-182's concert on Sept. 22 and Mannheim Steamroller's Christmas concert coming to the Christmas City on Nov. 29. Blink-182's tickets are $59.50. Mannheim Steamroller's will be $55, $69.50 and $89.50. Tickets for the concerts will both go on sale 10 a.m. Friday, with presales held 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursday for Music Insiders Club members. Blink-182's hits include "All the Small Things," "What's My Age Again?," "Stay Together For the Kids," "Dammit" and "The Rock Show." The current tour will feature Matt Skiba, of Alkaline Trio, with Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker, and the trio is working on the band's seventh studio album. Mannheim Steamroller's concert will feature Christmas classics, along with a selection of compositions from Grammy Award winner Chip Davis's Fresh Aire series. Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Allentown is headed to the big screen. The new trailer for "Glass" was released Friday, offering an early glimpse of the new M. Night Shyamalan movie that was partially shot at Allentown State Hospital in fall 2017. Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, James McAvoy and Sarah Paulson, "Glass" is a joint follow-up to Shyamalan's earlier pictures "Unbreakable" and "Split." (Spoiler alert: At the end of 2016's "Split," it was revealed that the movie took place in the same universe as 2000's "Unbreakable.") The film is slated to be released Jan. 18, 2019. Filming took place at the out-of-use former psychiatric hospital last October and November, and the director and stars were spotted dining around Allentown. In the "Glass" trailer, you'll catch shots of Allentown State Hospital's recognizable exterior and campus. The first appearance comes about 20 seconds into the trailer. The movie seems to revive the former hospital's former use: The characters David Dunn (Willis), Elijah Price (Jackson) and Kevin Wendell Crumb (McAvoy) are speaking with psychiatrist Dr. Ellie Staple (Paulson), who specializes in treating people who believe they have super powers. Allentown State Hospital has been closed since 2010, and the state has since sought to sell the nearly 200-acre campus. "Glass" was also partly shot in Philadelphia. Shyamalan, the film's director, grew up outside of Philadelphia and often films his movies in the area. Shyamalan has kept fans up to date on the progress of "Glass" on Twitter, sharing his progress editing the film. The trailer was released after it debuted at a panel that Shyamalan took part in Friday at Comic-Con in San Diego. Andrew Doerfler may be reached at adoerfler@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @adoerfler or on Facebook. A shelter has been opened in Pine Grove in Schuylkill County, where Monday flooding has closed several roads and impacted homes in the area. The shelter is located at Pine Grove High School, 103 School St., Pine Grove, and is being assisted by the Red Cross of Eastern Pennsylvania. Residents currently sheltered at local fire stations will be moved the high school, which has been designated a regional shelter, according to PennLive.com. The shelter's opening comes after heavy rain across much of the state, with flooding reported Sunday night in Whitehall Township. The areas near Pine Grove High School most impacted by Monday morning's rain are Pine Grove and Tremont boroughs and Pine Grove, Tremont, Porter and Frailey townships. Local roads closed due to flooding include Route 125 in north Pine Grove, Route 443 in south Pine Grove and east Pine Grove Borough, Route 645, Route 501 in the area of Mexico Road and Molleystown Road, according to PennLive.com. There are numerous reports of flooded residential basements, but no current reports of power outages or impact to critical infrastructure, according to the report from PennLive.com. A forecast from the National Weather Service indicates that rain may not yet be over, with showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm Monday. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain, and new rainfall amounts between a quarter and half an inch are possible, according to the forecast. A flood warning was also issued in adjacent Lebanon County, at Swatara Creek at Harper Tavern, according to an 11:11 a.m. alert from the National Weather Service. The stage as of 11 a.m. was 13.1 feet, with the flood stage at 9 feet. Kids going out to play at a Northampton County elementary school found the burned and littered remains of a man's fireworks show that caused about $275 in damage, police said. Now Ian Chlebove, of the 200 block of East Main Street in Bath, is facing criminal charges, after police say school surveillance video caught the show the 42-year-old put on for his son and another boy, according to authorities. A new state law allows Pennsylvanians to purchase consumer-grade fireworks. The fireworks cannot be discharged within 150 feet of an occupied building. Police said surveillance cameras showed Chlebove setting off aerial and hand-thrown fireworks at about 1:30 a.m. June 9 at George Wolf Elementary School, 300 Allen Street in Bath. Chlebove was also allowing his 9-year-old son and the other boy to use the rocket-style fireworks, according to Northampton Area School District police. Chlebove lit some of the fireworks in a trash container at the school's playground, about 20-25 feet from the school building, police said. The rocket-style fireworks landed on the school's roof, police said. Chlebove then allegedly threw fireworks by the school gym doors. After Chlebove was seen on the video leaving the school property, the trash can "erupted in flames" and burned for two minutes, police said. Teachers discovered the burned trash can on June 11 when students were taken out to play, police said. Staff found fireworks remains at the playground and on the roof. Charges of risking a catastrophe and criminal mischief were filed July 9. Chlebove was arraigned Monday and free on $15,000 bail. Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. By Mike Cerra In the 1932 case New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis wrote that a "state may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country." Through the years, this principle has been applied with state and local governments serving as "laboratories of democracy." Local governments are now the ultimate laboratory of democracy, advancing innovative and timely policies, specifically tailored to local circumstances and in response to local taxpayers. Unfortunately, such innovation sometimes causes special interests to go to the state legislatures and push back against such efforts, what we call state preemption. For instance, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy recently received a bill from the Legislature that would impose a statewide 5-cent fee on single-use carryout bags provided to customers at retail checkout counters. The legislation (A-3267/S-2600) also supersedes and preempts local ordinances being readied for adoption, that are meant to address problems caused by non-reusable carriers. Essentially, if the governor signs this bill into law, existing local ordinances will be grandfathered, but, as of the date of enactment no further local regulations will be allowed. On face value, the bill seems to address an environmental concern. Most environmental groups, however, oppose the bill in its current format and would prefer it go further. Many retailers favor the bill, as they prefer a statewide policy instead of local officials and citizens implementing policies based on local circumstances and preferences. But it has caught people's attention, not because of preemption, but because it imposes a five-cent fee on plastic and paper bags at most supermarkets and stores in the state. We appreciate and understand objections to the implementation of a fee, even if it is for a laudable public policy objective. But the greater concern should be the preemption of local initiatives in favor of a statewide, one-size-fits-all approach. Local elected officials, who live in their own communities and are accountable to their voters, must be able to act in the community's best interest without preemption from the state. Already a number of towns have taken positive action to encourage retailers and shoppers to better protect the environment by using more durable carriers. Many of these communities have worked with their local retailers to phase-in implementation or take other steps to assist in compliance. These policies have been put in place in a thoughtful, reasonable manner. While these existing ordinances are grandfathered by the proposal, there are others in the process of doing the same whose efforts will be undermined if A-3267 is signed into law. There is no environmental benefit in preempting local government actions. For these reasons, the New Jersey League of Municipalities urges Murphy veto A-3267. Mike Cerra is the assistant executive director and director of government affairs for the New Jersey League of Municipalities. A Laois town is set to play host to the largest gathering of young people in Ireland at JamboRi. Some 4,000 young people are set to spend eight days camping in the outdoors, learning about science, technology, engineering and mathematics in from 25 July to 2 August at the Electric Picnic site at Stradbally Hall, Laois. Scouts from 11 different countries will join with scouts from every corner of Ireland at this summers JamobRi at the home of Electric Picnic. The 4,000 scouts and venture scouts aged between 11 and 18 will have 8 days of planned programme activities based on learning about the environment, science, as well as engineering and maths based projects. The Scouts will also be taught the importance of team work and of being self-sufficient. Each evening they will cook for themselves on site using campfires they have built. They will be responsible for looking after their own equipment and tents as well as ensuring food is safely stored. The event is the result of three years of planning, and is the latest event in a long history of Scout Jamborees across the island of Ireland. Kiernan Gildea is Camp Chief. JamboRi is about allowing our young people to have fun while becoming empowered with the skills to be leaders of the future. "Scouting is an educational model that is internationally recognised, and participants on the JamboRi will learn invaluable life skills such as team work and creativity which they will be able to carry through to their own lives. "By focusing on STEM subjects Scouting Ireland will be encouraging these young people to challenge their preconceptions and show how learning does not have to be confined to a classroom setting," he said. The JamboRi programme theme is 'stories begin here', with activities built inspired by famous Irish trailblazers - experts in their fields who will inspire a new generation of children to become innovators, scientists and engineers. People like John Tyndall, prominent Irish Physicist whose work identifying the critical role that Greenhouse gases have on earth temperature in the late 1800s; Dervla Murphy adventurer and touring cyclist who in the 1960s travelled across Europe and Asia by bike, writing about her experiences and Grace OMalley, the Irish pirate queen. The Scouts will engage in activities that will be based around these incredible peoples lives. JamboRi will also provide great experience for young people from around the country who will form the JamboRi Service Team (JST). These volunteers, aged over 18 years old, will perform a variety tasks in different areas and contribute to the smooth running of JamboRi. Athy residents living in the vicinty of the sewerage treatment plant at Fortbarrington Road have not been able to open their windows during the heat wave due to foul odours in the area. That is according to local Cllr Mark Wall who raised the issue at this months area meeting which was held earlier today, Monday, July 23. Cllr Wall asked if the council could confirm if they have had any contact with Irish Water in relation to the plant at Fortbarrington Road and has the council received many complaints regarding foul odours from the plant. READ ALSO: Athy bids farewell to town manager Joe Boland This is one of the most serious issues that I have ever dealt with, said Cllr Wall. All the windows and doors had to be kept closed in the warm weather due to the smells from outside, he said adding that in addition to this foul odours started to come up the drains so that residents were forced to open their windows to try and combat it from the inside. People are at the end of their tether and cant take it anymore. The meeting heard that Water Services have been dealing with Irish Water in relation to the odours at the Athy Waste Water Treatment Plant and are managing odour issues that have arisen due to the heat wave. Additional management practices, such as more frequent skip emptying, have been put in place at the plant and these should see a reduction in odours, members were informed. The meeting also heard that the plant is is very good condition and is in full compliance with its Waste Water Discharge Licence. Noting new challenges in securing death sentences now that juror unanimity is required in Florida | Main | More old-school, tough-on-crime talk and thinking from Attorney General Jeff Sessions The title of this post is the headline of this commentary at Just Security authored by Sam Morison, who worked for many years as a staff attorney in the Office of the Pardon Attorney. I recommend the piece in full, and here are excerpts: Writing from the perspective of a former federal prosecutor, Barbara McQuade decried President Donald Trumps most recent exercise of the pardon power, which supposedly poses a grave threat to anyone who is committed to our legal institutions, particularly federal law enforcement. The remedy for such alleged abuse of discretion, she suggests, is to rely on the good judgment of the Office of the Pardon Attorney (OPA), the agency within the Justice Department that for many years has supervised the provision of advice to the president in clemency matters. The default standard for making such decisions, she further suggests, is contained in the U.S. Attorneys Manual, according to which a petitioner should be genuinely desirous of forgiveness rather than vindication. This has now become a familiar refrain among the presidents critics. But while reasonable minds might differ about the substantive merits of the presidents clemency decisions to date, McQuades critique exhibits both a remarkably impoverished view of the pardon power and an exaggerated confidence in the legitimacy of the extant advisory process.... [T]he president has both a right and a duty to exercise the pardon power because of his own constitutional concerns about a law or because of policy objections to enforcement of the law in a particular context. This principle was established as early as 1804, when upon taking office President Thomas Jefferson pardoned those who had been convicted under the Alien and Sedition Acts, which he believed to be unconstitutional. Similarly, President Woodrow Wilson granted dozens of pardons to persons convicted of liquor-related offenses under the Volstead Act, because of his constitutional objections to the law. More recently, President Ronald Reagan granted pardon to former FBI agents Mark Felt and Edward Miller while their cases were still pending on appeal, on the grounds that they had not acted with criminal intent, but rather in a good-faith belief that their actions were necessary to preserve the security interests of our country. President George H.W. Bush pardoned the so-called Iran-Contra defendants, after indictment but prior to trial, based on his conclusion that the independent counsels prosecution had constituted the criminalization of policy differences. Prior to leaving office, President Clinton pardoned or commuted the sentences of numerous persons convicted in independent counsel investigations that had dogged his administration for basically the same reason. And President George W. Bush commuted the prison sentence of Lewis Libby, his vice presidents former chief of staff, after his conviction was affirmed but before he reported to prison. Bush reasoned that even if Libby had committed perjury in the context of a highly politicized grand jury investigation, a prison sentence would be excessively harsh punishment. Granted over a period of more than 200 years, the common thread that ties these disparate acts of executive clemency together is the intersection of law and politics. In each case, the president made the judgment that partisan considerations had improperly influenced either the legislative or the judicial process, thereby undermining the moral legitimacy of strictly enforcing the letter of the law. When the president exercises the pardon power for this reason, it is not an idiosyncratic exception to the normal operation of the federal criminal justice system. To the contrary, it is an integral part of the system of checks and balances embedded in the Constitution. As Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote for a unanimous Court, a pardon is not a private act of grace from an individual happening to possess power. It is a part of the Constitutional scheme. When granted it is the determination of the ultimate [executive] authority that the public welfare will be better served by inflicting less than what the judgment fixed. In this context, then, a pardon is a public act of grace, taken by the president in his official capacity as the chief executive, to preserve the integrity of the federal criminal justice system. The only remaining question is who should exercise effective control over this broad discretionary power, a democratically elected president or a small cadre of anonymous bureaucrats in the Office of the Pardon Attorney (OPA)? Having served as a staff attorney in OPA for more than a decade, I can say with some confidence that the office does not view its role as a neutral arbiter. Instead, OPAs institutional function is to protect the Justice Departments prosecutorial prerogatives by churning out a steady stream of almost uniformly negative advice, regardless of the merits of any particular case. This is problematic because in the normal course, the only information the president receives about a case is whatever the Justice Department chooses to tell him. And in my entire tenure at OPA, I am not aware of a single instance in which a federal prosecutor acknowledged that one of her cases might have been affected by undue harshness or evident mistake. There is no reason to believe that this situation has fundamentally changed, given the Justice Departments inherent conflict of interest in each of these cases. In effect, the Justice Departments advisory record amounts to the assertion that the federal criminal justice system is essentially perfect injustices never occur, sentences are never excessive, circumstances never change, and mercy is never appropriate. No disinterested person really believes this. Accordingly, if Trump insists in going it alone, as McQuade complains, the Justice Department has no one but itself to blame. Kildare GP's have been alerted to possible cases of measles during July and August, following the confirmation of two cases in the Dublin area. Thats according to Dr Brendan OShea of the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) who said that there have already been 31 confirmed deaths from measles throughout Europe in 2018, all of which would have been preventable through immunisation, he explained. Kildare GPs have been advised by the HSE to immunise all non-immune individuals up to 40 years of age. Speaking to the Leinster Leader, Dr OShea confirmed that a recent trend for people to avoid vaccinations was part of the problem. We respect all, and listen to everyones point of view, he said, but as clinicians the science is very black and white. The vaccine is overwhelmingly safe and the disease is not. He urged parents to watch out for children who are very irritable and miserable and who do not respond to paracetamol. The risk is quite small. Its not like swine flu, but its important to take precautions. The concern we have is children getting acutely ill, adding that there are several hundred GPs in Kildare who are willing to help. The case for Measles, Mumps and Rubella immunisation is strong and clear,' Dr O' Shea said. Parents who have not had their children immunised with MMR should really rethink their decision in the light of ongoing new cases. Should they decide to revise their decision, their GPs/Practices Nurses will be very glad to see them to discuss it, and immunise. Samantha Browns brand new PBS travel show Love of Travel is in Co. Donegal this week filming scenes for a Wild Atlantic Way episode which is set to air to an audience of up to 2 million viewers later this year. The visit, which will see Samantha Brown experience and film from Sligos Surf Coast and Donegals Northern Headlands, was organsied by Failte Ireland, in conjunction with Tourism Ireland. Samantha Browns Love of Travel show seeks out little known spots and haunts where innovators and disrupters are creating a brand new travel experience. From food and drink, art and design, culture or adventure each episode focuses on not just how to visit a destination but how to belong to it. During her visit to Sligo, Samantha and her filming crew will visit Broc House and Sligo town to get the full William Butler Yeats Experience from local Damian Brennian; forage for, and hopefully taste, local seaweed at Streedagh Beach with Dr. Prannie Rhatigan and herd sheep at Drumcorroy Farm House. Speaking about the importance of visits such as this, Ciara Sugrue, Head of International Publicity with Failte Ireland said Failte Ireland is delighted to have the opportunity to showcase the Wild Atlantic Way to such a large US Audience. The ethos of Love of Travel is to show visitors that the only way to experience a destination is to get out there, meet the people, hear the stories and feel their passion so Samantha Brownes interest in the Wild Atlantic Way is a testament to the experiences and businesses on the ground. As the North American market continues to grow, it is our hope that shows like this will encourage even more US travellers to choose Ireland as their next must-visit destination. A group of about 30 people from Sligo and Leitrim gathered outside a the Clayton Hotel in Sligo last Thursday evening, July 19 at the Fine Gael convention to show their anger at the Government party. According to a spokesperson who contacted the Leitrim Observer, "Of particular importance to the group is that party's absolute abandonment of its Christian Democratic roots by bringing abortion into Ireland, and the anti blasphemy and anti family referendum proposed for this Autumn. This latter manoeuvre will remove all recognition of the value of the work of the mother in the home. Therfore parents choosing to care for their children at home will have no recourse to the state to reimburse them financially for this Constitutionally recognised and valued work of parents." The organised group which included people from different sectors, gathered to show "We haven't gone away." The protesters said they intend to be active in the political arena "to persuade voters of the government's mis- handling of, and misinformation in the Abortion referendum, and in many other aspects of life e.g Brexit, the Cervical Smear Test Scandal, the HPV vaccine; the HSE's ongoing failures and particularly it's targeting of the weak and vulnerable by inadequate or denial of care especially in the local area; anti family policies, mass afforestation in the West, poor broadband services; impossible planning regulations for young couples building a new home, forcing them to travel into the towns and urban areas to live; poor water services throughout the country and all the other local, national and international issues." Also read: Leitrim's Gerry Reynolds selected to contest the next General Election for Fine Gael A MAN who was hunting rabbits with his dog in West Limerick has been fined by a court. Michael ODriscoll, of Woodview Drive, Mallow, was hunting last October 9, when he and a group entered a farmers lands in Cloncagh. The case was heard at Newcastle West court, where gardai withdrew a charge of entering land to hunt a wild animal. At approximately 3.40pm, gardai were alerted when four men trespassed on farmland with their dogs. Mr ODriscoll said that they had been hunting rabbit, a pastime they have been partaking in all our lives. Solicitor for the defendant Michael ODonnell said that they were hunting and went into this field. The farmer took issue and called the gardai. The man did not have a licence for his dog, a black lurcher, nor did he have him ID tagged. But he resolved these issues the following day. Mr ODonnell continued: They didnt catch any rabbit in fact, hes like the rabbit today! Mr ODriscoll was fined 100 for having no dog licence and 100 for hunting a wild animal. She took the tag offence into consideration. IRELAND South MEP Liadh Ni Riada has hit back at Minister of State Patrick ODonovan, after he criticised her for supporting a maritime cluster in Cork and neighbouring ports. Limerick TD ODonovan, Fine Gael, accused Ms Ni Riada of forgetting about Limerick, which is in her constituency, given that Foynes port is one of the deepest ports in Ireland. The Sinn Fein MEP said she was slightly bewildered by his comments. He seems to think that my support for a maritime cluster in Cork amounts to some sort of attack on Limerick. Of course, this is demonstrable nonsense, in fact in giving my support to the project I specified that such a development would not just be to the benefit of Cork but would draw in all the ports in the Ireland South region, added the MEP, who is herself from Cork. Practically every port in my constituency would benefit from such a development. I'm very proud to represent the people of Limerick in Europe and would stand over my record for both the city and the county. In fact in a recent document I produced on the effects of Brexit on Limerick I outlined the need for recognition of the ports of Limerick and Shannon Foynes as strategic transport nodes under the TEN-T programme as one of my priorities for the region, said Ms Ni Riada. She also highlighted her work in other areas in Limerick. Just a few weeks ago I brought a major international education conference to LIT and tomorrow I will be back in the city for a series of meetings on everything from pollution to housing. I have been a regular visitor to the county to meet with rural communities that have been denied vital funding due to the needless and deliberately confusing changes Fine Gael have made to the LEADER programme, she said. Frankly, I think the Minister's time would be better spent trying to address the myriad issues his government has allowed to fester in Limerick and across the country rather than trying to distract from his own failures by attempting to foment some sort of ridiculous Cork/Limerick rivalry, she continued. I have always done my best to represent all the people of Ireland South and will not be distracted from that by childish attempts at fabricating an inter-county dispute. The people of Limerick, Cork and Ireland deserve better. A MAN who is accused of multiple counts of shoplifting has been remanded in custody pending his trial before Limerick Circuit Court. Unusually, the Director of Public Prosecutions has directed that Adam Hayes, aged 31, of Lee Estate, Island Road be tried on indictment rather than before the district court. Hayes faces a total of nine theft charges relating to offences which are alleged to have happened a number of different stores in the city centre earlier this year. He is accused of stealing handbags, worth a total of 234.50, from Allens William Street on four separate occasions in January and February as well as cosmetics worth 330 from the Body Shop, OConnell Street on three separate dates. The other offences are alleged to have happened at Garveys Supervalu, Grove Island and at Charlotte Quay pharmacy. Opposing a bail application, Garda Enda Clifford said he had no doubt the defendant, who has a drug addiction, would continue to offend if released. He said it is the State case that Hayes was identified as the culprit on CCTV and that he was also identified by a number of independent witnesses. He told Judge Flann Brennan the defendant also made some admissions when arrested and questioned about the alleged shoplifting offences. Solicitor Darach McCarthy noted there were no concerns that his client would abscond or fail to appear in court. He added there was no suggestion his client had engaged in violence. Mr McCarthy said Hayes suffered a brain injury when he was assaulted ten years ago and that it has affected him mentally and physically. Refusing bail Judge Brennan said there was overwhelming evidence and a very strong likelihood Hayes would engage in criminality if released. After he delivered his decision, the defendant launched into a foul-mouthed tirade resulting in him having to be removed from the courtroom by gardai. LIMERICK Animal Welfare has been a haven for neglected, injured and abused animals for 35 years. From their Field of Dreams Sanctuary in Kilfinane they care for dogs, cats, horses, goats, pigs, ponies, rabbits, chickens and more. Staff and volunteers endeavour to rehome them with loving families. Geraldine Gunning, committee member and long-time volunteer at Limerick Animal Welfare, explains the scale of the shelters work. In 2017 alone, we rehomed 334 dogs, 279 cats, 15 horses and 64 greyhounds. However this all comes at cost. To run the shelter it costs 60,000 per month this includes bills, of which electricity and veterinary bills are the highest. We have three charity shops in Limerick city and receive some government funding, however without fundraising and donations we couldnt survive, said Geraldine. They even travel as far as Italy to give greyhounds and lurchers new lives as the demand for them is so low in Ireland. Limerick Animal Welfare has certainly put their Tesco Community Fund donation to good use. Local community groups and good causes gathered at Tesco stores across Limerick recently for a Communi-Tea day to celebrate donations from the Tesco Community Fund reaching 3 million to over 11,000 local causes. Over 480 local causes have benefited from the fund across the county reaching over 158,000 to date. Since 2014, Tesco customers in stores all around Ireland have been able to donate to their local charity of choice using their blue tokens. By allowing locals to nominate the special causes close to their heart in the community, the donations make a huge difference for those who really need it. Christine Heffernan, director of Corporate Affairs, Tesco Ireland said: Its wonderful to see the impact that the community fund can have in the locality. Geraldine and her team depend on donations to continue providing the wonderful service that they do. Irish people have a strong commitment to charitable and community causes, and we are proud to be able to support local good causes through our community fund. The lengths Limerick Animal Welfare go to to care for their animals was demonstrated by manager Marie Quirke during the heavy snow in March. She slept overnight in their sanctuary to ensure every animal was looked after and that she could get back in the following morning. Long onto www.limerickanimalwelfare.ie or their Facebook page to rehome a pet, volunteer or donate. They welcome visitors to walk their gravel paths and enjoy the beautiful scenery. To nominate a local cause to participate in the Tesco Community Fund, simply call in to your local store and complete a nomination form. A LIMERICK senator ordered the single largest job at the publicly funded Oireachtas printing facility, at a cost of more than 1,000, new figures have revealed. Fine Gael senator Maria Byrne is among ten senators who used the facility to print 858,005 items since January 2018, costing the taxpayer 20,725. According to figures released to the Irish Examiner under the Freedom of Information Act, Ms Byrne, who has been selected to run for Fine Gael in Limerick City in the next General Election, ordered 44,000 A4 colour newsletters from the facility at a cost of 1,100. As a proactive public representative for the past 19 years, I strongly believe in keeping as wide a constituency as possible informed of my work be it through social media, print media, broadcast media, my own printed work, or at local events, Ms Byrne told the Irish Examiner. It is a vital part of participative democracy. The figures released to the Irish Examiner show that nine out of the ten of the largest jobs ordered at the Oireachtas printing facility were placed by senators hoping to be elected to the Dail. Speaking to the Limerick Leader, Ms Byrne added: I have a big constituency and I keep in touch with the people in Limerick. I like to get any messages out there and certainly I do it through different means. It might be the print media, it might be social media, it could be a specific letter to a particular area but I like to keep in touch with people in Limerick City, Newport and Birdhill which are also in the area, Ms Byrne added. It's important to get the message out there and people expect you to tell them whats going on in the area as well. "Beyond Strict Scrutiny: Forbidden Purpose and the 'Civil Commitment' Power" | Main | "The Budgetary Effects of Ending Drug Prohibition" July 23, 2018 Spotlighting a remarkably thoughtful federal sentence in a remarkably challenging setting Over at his blog Simple Justice, Scott H. Greenfield has this terrific new post spotlighting a terrific new sentencing opinion by US District Judge John Kane in US v. Jumaev, No. 12-cr-00033-JLK (D. Col. July 18, 2018) (available here). Because Scott's posting provide effective context and commentary concerning the case and sentencing, I will here just quote the first two paragraphs of Judge Kane's 44-page sentencing decision to clarify the core concern of the opinion: After his co-defendant Jamshid Muhtorov informed him that the Islamic Jihad Union (IJU) was in need of financial support, Defendant Bakhtiyor Jumaev mailed Mr. Muhtorov $300. Mr. Jumaev wrote only a single check, and the funds never reached the IJU or any other foreign terrorist organization. Mr. Jumaev had no specific plot or plan and did not intend to further any via his contribution. The idea to aid the terrorist organization was proposed and facilitated entirely by Mr. Muhtorov. Indeed, Mr. Jumaev had no direct contact with the members of any terrorist organization. And, significantly, he never committed any act of violence, nor did he advocate for any particular violent act. Mr. Jumaev now comes before me for sentencing after having been found guilty by a jury of two counts in violation of 18 U.S.C. 2339B, namely (1) conspiring and (2) attempting to provide material support in the form of $300 to the IJU, a designated foreign terrorist organization. Although his actions certainly are sufficient for the jury to have found him guilty of these two very serious crimes, the above summary illustrates how his guilt rests on far less culpable conduct than that of all other defendants of which I have been made aware who have been convicted under the same statute. At the risk of turning this matter into a parlor game, I wonder if readers might be inclined to share, before clicking through to the opinion, their predictions as to (a) the defendant's calculated guideline range, (b) the sentence was urged by federal prosecutors, and/or (c) the sentence imposed by Judge Kane. Alternatively, I would also love to hear folks' opinions on just what kind of federal sentence someone should get for simply sending, upon request, a $300 check to support the Islamic Jihad Union. July 23, 2018 at 12:46 PM | Permalink Comments My initial thoughts - the sentencing memo is fantastic - it reads like a PSR - lots of great info re: 3553(a) factors. Let me address your questions - (a) - This case is about repayment of $300 to a person who didn't even know where to send the money - rightful conviction, but I agree with the Judge about the 3A1.4 enhancement and would not apply either. The 3A1.4 could and has applied to many of these similar cases and made for a very high guideline range - see https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2013/05/16/minn-woman-gets-20-years-for-aiding-al-shabab/ - 2 women in MN raised $8,600 for jihad. They are by far more culpable and their sentences indicate so. It's actually refreshing to see the Judge grant a downward departure in this case - clearly applicable as well. 63 to 78 months is an appropriate guideline range. What's odd is the court rejected the sentencing guideline range yet still sentenced him to 76 months - albeit time served, still technically a guideline sentence. (b) - The AUSA's request for 15 yrs is asinine! Look at the other cases - include the two women noted above - they are not on the same playing field. There is certainly a disparity or would be if the Judge imposed a 15 yr sentence. The fact the Judge took the time to compare other sentences speaks volumes. I wish more Judges did the same and not just in terrorism cases. (c) - The sentence is appropriate - 76 months and (not in the BOP but in pretrial detention where he does not get access to Unicor (work programs) or other BOP programs - that time is harder than BOP time because of the lack of access to program not available in the local jail or detention facility.) Plus there a chance he could be deported - that in of itself is a fairly harsh punishment to face too. Just my 2-cents. Posted by: atomicfrog | Jul 23, 2018 3:35:53 PM "Alternatively, I would also love to hear folks' opinions on just what kind of federal sentence someone should get for simply sending, upon request, a $300 check to support the Islamic Jihad Union." A letter of thanks? Or would that too be a violation of some federal law? Posted by: Daniel | Jul 23, 2018 8:07:58 PM First of all, the greatest amount of guilt here goes to the "Holy" Quran, whose Verse of the Sword contains a clear instruction to kill unbelievers. From a standpoint of Scriptural interpretation, this can be, and often is, argued either way by different Muslims as to whether or not it should be taken literally. But the problem is that it is there, and it is at least arguable that it literally means what it says. That obviously can't be changed. The question is what to do about it. Looking at the statute, an element of Jamaev's crime is that he was aware of what the IJU did. In other words, Jamaev was willing to send money to an organization, knowing that it was engaged in terrorism. Furthermore, it does not appear that after doing so, he decided to call the police or anything like that. He was apparently happy to help this "charity". (If there were credible evidence that he later tried to contact the authorities, I would be inclined to let him off completely.) Additionally, $300 to support terrorism is no small matter. Even inexpensive terrorist attacks can kill a lot of people; even 9/11 probably only cost a few hundred thousand dollars to pull off. In light of this, I would not be inclined to grant him any mercy whatsoever. I get it, he was significantly less culpable than Muhtorov, but he was still trying to "help" kill people, and to me, that's enough. It is absurd that the judge decided this was not a "felony that involved, or was intended to promote, a federal crime of terrorism" (3A1.4). Deterrence is vital. A message needs to be sent, loud and clear, that supporting terrorism is not OK in any way, shape, or form. I get it that the judge thought 78 months does that. I also disagree. I would have no problem giving him 20 years for this, and life to those who are more culpable than he is. As context to this comment, I find a lot of terrorism-related sentences to be too lenient. I would routinely give death for terrorism-related crimes that seem to get life, and life for crimes that seem to get 20 or 30 years. I think the judge was correct that this defendant is less culpable than the others. My scale of culpability for this class of crimes is simply different, because of the unbelievably severe consequences when the crimes "succeed". Posted by: William Jockusch | Jul 23, 2018 9:23:19 PM Post a comment LIMERICK GAA is to get a 150,000 refundable loan from the council to stage a major concert at the Gaelic Grounds. Limerick City and County Council agreed to the loan this Monday at a full meeting of the council for the National Geographic symphony orchestra show, taking place at the stadium on Saturday, September 29. The decision was welcomed as a coup for the city by the majority of councillors although a number of representatives warned it could set a precedent. But councillors were assured the money was a loan and payable by the end of the year. Mayor of Limerick, Cllr James Collins, welcomed the decision of the council to provide a 150,000 refundable loan to the Gaelic Grounds, on behalf of Limerick GAA, to facilitate the staging of the Symphony for our World concert. Mayor Collins said that the feedback received from the recent discussion about a lack of concerts for Limerick since Bruce Springsteen played Thomond Park in 2013 was this idea of a refundable contribution whereby the Council could give a sum of money to help a promoter secure a major act. The Council would share in any upside, through a small premium percentage, and also be protected in the event of the concert not being profitable, as the money is invested as a refundable loan, he said. The idea was the sum made available by the Council to the National Geographic Concert would be recycled into this fund to promote other major concerts and events for the city, he added. Estimates suggest the concert could be worth up to 6m for the city. Mayor Collins said approval for the loan would "give confidence to international promoters that Limerick is a city where you can do business and pleasure". A POPULAR mural near King Johns Castle in Limerick has been vandalised, in a move described as an absolutely worthless statement. Metropolitan district mayor Daniel Butler has called for the person who graffitied the mural of a man enjoying an ice cream near King Johns Castle to cover the full cost of its repair. Hes hoping closed circuit television can be used to capture the perpetrator, who wrote on the artwork This is ugly, no consultation. Its just come from a disgruntled idiot. But its hard to comprehend what kind of mindset would drive someone to totally compromise a piece of art which is liked and loved by a lot of people in what is an iconic location, he said. The mural was unveiled in 2013, and is popular with tourists. It was also used as a backdrop for the launch of the Going for Gold environmental initiative this year. They were commissioned by the former Limerick City Council for the Make a move Festival, and were painted by Glasgow-based artist Smug, who is regarded as one of the most accomplished street artists in the world. Cllr Butler said hed like to see the person prosecuted for vandalism. Thats what it is. Its a piece of art paid for through the urban graffiti festival. We had an artist come in and do this. The individual should at least be fined. If I had my way, Id make them cover the entire cost of the repair. Id just be hoping theres cameras up there, the metropolitan mayor added. When the mural was opened in 2013, it was reported to have sparked controversy in the area. It opened at the same time as the 6m redevelopment of the castle. A number of other public art murals followed on from this, including the Goddess of Siona. The giant mural spread across a gable on Bridge Street is part of an ongoing programme by Limerick City and County Council to enhance the aesthetics around disused city sites. Council is also seeking to do the same at other sites in the city which are no longer in public use. Gardai are set to investigate this vandalism, and can be contacted at 061-21400. IRISH Rail has announced a third special train on Sunday for Limerick hurling fans heading to Croke Park. The second additional service, which leaves Colbert Station at 9.40am, currently only has a few seats left. Jim Gallivan, business development manager, Limerick, expects those to be gone by this evening. The third special train will depart from Limerick Junction at 10.01am and returns from Heuston at 7.10pm. The Limerick junction special train is now available for online booking, said Mr Gallivan. There are a number of logistical issues that had to be put in place to provide additional capacity for the auxiliary services. We are able to provide the Limerick Junction special train by rerouting a train movement from Portlaoise maintenance depot to Heuston to operate via Limerick Junction with a similar rerouting in the evening. Again this is done with the co-operation of our train crews, said Mr Gallivan. It is expected that Iarnrod Eireann will carry up to 1,800 Limerick supporters to Heuston this Sunday morning for the All-Ireland semi-final against Munster champions Cork. To ensure a relaxing day for all supporters travelling by train alcohol will not be permitted on services to Heuston on Sunday morning or on services from Heuston from 6pm onwards on Sunday evening. As of now it looks like there will be no sale of train tickets to Dublin from any Cork or Limerick station on Sunday morning, said Mr Gallivan. Limerick County Board Secretary Mike ORiordan said this Monday afternoon that between 45,000 and 50,000 tickets have been now been sold for the clash on July 29. Tickets for online booking of the special train service are available on www.irishrail.ie Match tickets are on sale in Centra or SuperValu shops or online at gaa.tickets.ie Jul 23, 2018, 4 AM The black pictorial first-day cancel will be offered for most collector-prepared first-day covers, and for USPS covers as well. The first stamps of China, issued in 1876, each celebrated the imperial dragon in the central design. Many stamps worldwide show dragons. Four digital color first-day cancels have been prepared by the U.S. Postal Service, presumably for use on USPS-prepared first-day covers. Four dragons rendered in different colors and in different settings fill the designs of four United States forever stamps that will be issued Aug. 9. Each stamp includes a foil accent. Previous United States stamps depicting dragons include these two issued for the Year of the Dragon in the Lunar New Year cycle, from 2000 (left) and 2012 (right). The pane of 16 Dragons stamps (four each of four designs) features a decorative header across the top. By Michael Baadke A set of four United States stamps celebrating mythical dragons will be issued Aug. 9 in Columbus, Ohio. The first-day ceremony for the nondenominated (50) forever stamps will take place during the American Philatelic Societys annual summer stamp show and convention, APS Stampshow 2018. The show is co-hosted by the American Topical Association, which is holding its own annual convention, National Topical Stamp Show 2018, at the same location. The noon first-day ceremony will take place on the shows opening day, Thursday, in Exhibit Hall B of the Greater Columbus Convention Center, 400 N. High St. The stamp show will continue through Sunday, Aug. 12, and is free and open to the public. The U.S. Postal Service has a registration site for the free public ceremony at www.usps.com/dragons. The four-stamp set was designed by USPS art director Greg Breeding using illustrations and typography by graphic artist Don Clark. With his brother Ryan, Clark co-founded the design studio Invisible Creature 12 years ago in Maple Valley, Wash. The studio has completed diverse projects, such as CD and album covers (Foo Fighters, Kendrick Lamar), store gift cards (Target), posters (NASA), toys, childrens books and much more. The Postal Service provided a descriptive introduction to the world of dragons. Throughout history and across the globe from Europe to the Middle East to Asia to the Americas people have enjoyed tales of mythological creatures. Though these legendary animals vary in shape, size and color, theyre most often described as lizard-like with four legs, sharp claws, scales, wings and spiky tails. The four new Dragons stamps are offset-printed in panes of 16 with hot foil stamping. Four process colors are used to print the designs, and the foil element likely will accent the artwork. Postal Service spokesman Roy Betts told Linns Stamp News that the foil component is featured on each stamp and on the illustrated header across the top of the pane, which shows a fire-breathing dragon emerging from the letter O in DRAGONS. The four stamp designs each depict a single dragon in a dramatic setting. A green dragon breathing fire towers over a black medieval-inspired castle as bats fly across dark and ominous mountains. A purple dragon with bold orange wings encircles a white castle deep within a green forest. On the seas, a daunting black dragon with green and gold wings approaches a helpless sailing ship. And a massive coiling orange dragon is shown surrounding a multilevel pagoda. The wingless orange dragon weaving its way around a pagoda is inspired by creatures found in Asian art, architecture, folk religion and ancient lore, according to the Postal Service. The Chinese in particular have venerated the dragon for thousands of years. In fact, the first stamps of China, issued in 1876, celebrate the Imperial Dragon in the vignette, or central design (Scott 1-3), but even then the dragon was an ancient creature encountered in mythology from around the world. Evidence of dragons in artwork and stories dates back thousands of years. The ouroboros, a serpent that bites its own tail, encircles a portrait on the sarcophagus of the Egyptian king Tutankhamen from the 14th century B.C., and has evolved into a dragon in later depictions. In the epic Old English tale Beowulf written some 10 centuries ago, the heros final battle is against a fire-breathing dragon that he defeats at great cost. The legend of St. George slaying a dragon and rescuing a princess developed from an 11th-century interpretation of pre-Christian mythology. Sometimes beneficent but often hostile and deadly, dragons have persisted into modern culture. The dragon Smaug is a key antagonist in J.R.R. Tolkiens 1937 novel The Hobbit, and dragons are also an important element in A Song of Ice and Fire, the fantasy novel series by George R.R. Martin that has been adapted as the popular HBO series Game of Thrones. The recurring themes of dragons throughout history have ensured their appearances on postage stamps worldwide, from Chinas earliest issues to a 2018 Great Britain set commemorating Game of Thrones (Scott 3679-3695). Over the past 20 years, as more and more countries have issued stamps annually to celebrate the beginning of the lunar new year, dragons have been featured as one of the 12 symbols of what is known as the Chinese zodiac. In consecutive United States Lunar New Year series, stamps with dragon illustrations were issued in 2000, and again in 2012, to mark the coming year of the dragon. Connect with Linns Stamp News: Sign up for our newsletter Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter The 33 stamp from 2000 (Scott 3370) features a colorized version of Clarence Lees cut-paper dragon. Lees design was repeated on a 37 stamp from a 2005 set that features all 12 zodiac creatures (3895e), and on a 39 stamp from a similar set in 2006 (3997e). The 2012 nondenominated (45) forever stamp (Scott 4623) shows the large papier-mache head of a costume dragon one might see performing a dragon dance in a street parade. The illustration was painted by artist Kam Mak. The ATAs most recent checklist of dragon stamps gives details of 565 different stamps from around the world. The ATAs checklists are available to members of the association. Information about the availability and cost of ATA checklists is found at www.americantopicalassn.org/checklists.shtml. Although information about USPS press sheets and prepared first-day covers for the new Dragons stamps was not released in advance, the Postal Service did reveal four different digital color pictorial first-day cancels and one black pictorial first-day cancel. The lettering for the word DRAGONS is in a different color on each of the color cancels, matching the colors of the four dragons in the stamp set. BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) The world's top financial officials meeting in Argentina's capital on Sunday called for more dialogue on trade disputes that threaten global economic growth with one official warning that differences remain and tensions could escalate further. The two-day gathering of G-20 finance ministers and central bankers in Buenos Aires took place as the United States and China are engaged in a full-blown trade war with both nations imposing tariffs on billions of dollars of each other's goods. A final communique from the meeting said that although the global economy remains strong, growth is becoming "less synchronized" and risks over the short and medium terms have increased. "These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies," the communique said. "We ... recognize the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence." On Friday, President Donald Trump renewed his threat to ultimately slap tariffs on a total of $500 billion of imports from China roughly equal to all the goods Beijing ships annually to the U.S. The White House has also itemized $200 billion of additional Chinese imports that it said may be subject to tariffs. The U.S. has also imposed tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, including from Europe. China, the EU, Canada, Mexico and Turkey have counterpunched with taxes on U.S. exports. As the Group of 20 gathering wound up Sunday, European financial affairs commissioner Pierre Moscovici said that differences of position remained despite the talks. "These meetings have been taking place in an international context which is very challenging," Moscovici told reporters. "Trade tensions remain high and they threaten to escalate further." But Moscovici said the summit that began Saturday had not been "tense," and that countries must remain "cool-headed and maintain a proper sense of perspective." Representing the U.S. at the meetings is Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who on Saturday said the overall U.S. economy has not been harmed by the trade battles set off by Trump's get-tough policies. But he acknowledged that some individual sectors have been hurt and said U.S. officials are looking at ways to help them. International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde has warned that a wave of tariffs could significantly harm the global economy, lowering growth by about 0.5 percent "in the worst-case scenario." "Protectionism, I want to insist on that, is good for no one," Moscovici said. "Trade wars are not easy ... they create no winners, only casualties." But Moscovici said that the EU remains open to dialogue. "That's why EU President Jean-Claude Juncker and EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom will meet with Trump" in Washington D.C. next week, he said. "We hope this meeting will be productive and successful." So far, global markets have remained generally calm despite the U.S.-China trade war and the other conflicts ignited by Trump. But analysts say they expect Trump will impose more tariffs on China and potentially other key U.S. trading partners. With those nations almost certain to retaliate, the result could be higher prices for Americans, diminished export sales and a weaker U.S. economy by next year. The Group of 20 nations is composed of traditional economic powers such as the United States, Japan and Germany and emerging economic powers including China, Brazil, India and Argentina. Officials in Buenos Aires also discussed issues including the future of work and infrastructure for development, the international tax system and financial inclusion. It is the third of five meetings by finance ministers and central bankers scheduled in advance of a main G-20 meeting in Argentina that will be held Nov. 30-Dec 1. Men can be victims of domestic violence, too. A study revealed over half of men in same-sex relationships are victims of abuse. It surveyed 320 men in 160 couples and was recently published in the American Journal of Mens Health, according to HealthDay News. The results revealed that 46 percent of these men had experienced some form of abuse in the last year physical or sexual violence, emotional abuse and controlling behavior among the types. If you just looked at physical and sexual violence in male couples, its about 25 to 30 percent, roughly the same as women, said Director of University of Michigans Center for Sexuality and Health Disparities and study author Rob Stephenson. Were stuck in this mental representation of domestic violence as a female victim and a male perpetrator, and while that is very important, there are other forms of domestic violence in all types of relationships. The study found that although stress factors were shared between same-sex and opposite-sex couples, such as money, unemployment and drug abuse, there was a major correlation between abuse and internalized homophobia. According to the study, domestic abuse in same-sex male couples could increase risk of HIV infection due to lack of communication and lack of control over condom use or how the couple has sex. Stephenson suggested health care providers start asking male couples about domestic abuse. (WB) Over the past several decades, the intersex community has been working to pass legislation that would protect intersex infants from early surgical interventions, and right now, a step toward acknowledgement is on the horizon with Californias SCR-110. In February, interACT, Equality California and Sen. Scott Wiener introduced SCR-110 a resolution to acknowledge and celebrate intersex people. The term intersex identifies an individual who is born with any of several variations in sex characteristics (including chromosomes, gonads, sex hormones or genitals) that do not fit medically rigid definitions of male or female. Intersex variations are not uncommon and occur in about 1.7 percent of the population. One in 2000 children have visible differences at birth, putting them at risk for early cosmetic surgical intervention. Intersex children born with genitalia that a doctor considers outside of typical male/female appearance frequently receive medically unnecessary surgeries to normalize their genitals, such as surgeries that reduce an abnormally sized clitoris. The intersex community argues these surgeries violate a childs basic and inherent right to bodily autonomy, and activists advocate for the deferral of any such surgeries until a child can make a consenting decision on their own. Hans Lindahl is the communications director for interACT, a nonprofit advocating for the rights of children born with intersex traits. As the sole member of the organization based in California, shes been a key figure in the fight to pass SCR-110. This is something that the intersex community has been pushing for for probably 25 years, Lindahl said. This [SCR-110] is the furthest that legislation has ever come. Sen. Wiener represents District 11 in the California State Senate, which includes all of San Francisco and parts of San Mateo County. Elected in November 2016, the 48-year-old Democratic representative has made LGBT+ issues a cornerstone of his time in office, exemplified by resolution SCR-110. Sen. Wiener has been just incredible, Lindahl said. Hes really been a champion for our community. During the 2017 legislative cycle, Wiener worked alongside intersex advocacy groups to pass SB 179: Californias Gender Recognition Act. This process helped expose previously unaddressed challenges facing the intersex community and bring them to the forefront. In a statement, Wiener said SCR-110 further recognizes that intersex people are not an aberration to be corrected, but rather an important part of Californias diversity worthy of celebration. The resolution passed the full Senate in May and the Assembly health committee in June, meaning it has only two hurdles left before full passage one before the Assembly judiciary committee and one before the full Assembly. Both hearings are expected to take place in August. The opposition to SCR-110 has been spearheaded primarily by a small subset of urologists and medical groups that continue to promote such operations because they benefit both monetarily and from being the authority and maintaining the status quo, according to Lindahl. These urologists and medical professionals have maintained one issue in particular as the cornerstone of their opposition: congenital adrenal hypoplasia (CAH), an intersex variation that affects stress hormones and can trigger an adrenal crisis. Given this risk, it is one of the only intersex variations that necessitates any kind of medical intervention, usually in the form of steroids to replace low hormones. Intersex advocates have no issue with medically necessary intervention as it relates to managing imbalances of stress hormones caused by CAH. However, CAH can also affect sex hormones and testosterone levels in particular, which frequently results in larger than average clitorises and consequent surgeries. To ensure they can continue normalizing clitorises in infants with CAH, medical professionals are arguing that CAH is not in fact an intersex variation; therefore, it is not the subject of the resolution after all. Also, opposition claims that 90 percent of the subjects of such surgeries are patients with CAH, meaning they are trying to exempt 90 percent of all possible individuals at risk and null this almost completely. Laurence Baskin, Chief of Pediatric Urology at University of California San Francisco (UCSF), testified at the California State Assembly, saying: these [infants with CAH] are children who have congenital abnormalities like a cleft palatewere restoring normal anatomy. He further asserted about their gender identities: 90 percent of the time, its a girl. However, UCSFs own website lists CAH as an intersex variation, and activists and proponents of SCR-110 like Lindahl ask, but what about the other 10 percent? Even if 90 percent of the time, its a girl, that means 10 percent of the time, an infants genitals are permanently surgically altered to fit a gender identity other than their own. Furthermore, Lindahl said these operations also impact the 90 percent of individuals who do grow up to identify as girls. Doctors are telling children that their most sensitive parts need to be fixed, setting them up for feelings of shame and stigma, regardless of their gender identity, Lindahl said. Doctors are telling them their bodies are shameful and that they need to obey to feel normal. Beyond medical professionals, the CARES Foundation a nonprofit working to support families and individuals impacted by CAH has also been a vocal opponent of the resolution. We believe that limiting early surgical access has the potential to create negative outcomes for those in our community, so we are opposed to all legislation that broadly bans surgical options, as surgical decisions should be made between healthcare providers and families, not legislators, said Dina Matos, executive director of CARES. We believe that CAH is a unique, life-threatening, endocrine condition and should be looked at as such, not under an umbrella of other, unrelated conditions that result in genital atypia. Kimberly Zieselman, executive director of interACT, said SCR-110 is not a ban on surgeries like CARES is asserting. SCR-110 is not a ban and will not prevent surgery, Zieselman said. It is simply acknowledging the intersex community and our right to bodily autonomy and if passed will indicate strong support by the California Legislature for protecting intersex kids. Jonathan Leggette, an intersex activist based in Washington State, wrote a testimony for one of the hearings in the hopes of personifying the resolution and bringing it to reality and giving it an actual story. Part of his testimony reads: At 6, doctors operated on me without explaining anything to me, just leaving me to wake up, bandages around my genital areas and a pain I will never forget. I had never had the chance to be told the truth, to be given the chance to decide for myself how my body feels to me. My body was owned by the surgeons before I had a chance to lay claim to it. Learning that I could have lived a life that allows me to make decisions for MY self around MY health and wellbeing is something I wish every future intersex child may have. For Leggette, his voice and story are his contributions to this fight. I dont have the legal background, Im not a lawyer, Im not anything like that. Leggette said. But Im someone who has experienced this and has a story and has my voice. Leggette said he hopes both his testimony and the resolution will help bring awareness to these surgeries that are happening every single day all over the U.S. This isnt something thats happening to people you dont know. Its happening to people in your community, and youre not removed from it, Leggette said. Youre a part of it. (WB) A federal appeals court has reaffirmed its decision to keep in place an injunction barring the Trump administration from enforcing its transgender military ban, setting the stage for an initial review of the policy at the U.S. Supreme Court before U.S. Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy steps down. The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied on Wednesday the U.S. Justice Departments request to dissolve a preliminary injunction against the ban, which the administration made in the aftermath of Defense Secretary James Mattis report justifying President Trumps policy The Ninth Circuit had previously denied the Trump administrations request to dissolve the injunction instituted by U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman, but the Justice Department made another attempt after Mattis delivered his report to Trump in May. The administration has maintained Mattis recommendations justify the transgender military ban, although transgender advocates say the recommendation is filled with junk science. But in a two-page decision, a three-judge panel on the Ninth Circuit rebuffed the Trump administrations request to dissolve the stay, determining a reversal of the injunction would alter the status quo as litigation against the ban proceeds through the courts. The district courts December 11, 2017 preliminary injunction preserves the status quo, allowing transgender service members to serve in the military in their preferred gender and receive transition-related care, the decision says. Appellants ask this court to stay the preliminary injunction, pending the outcome of this appeal, in order to implement a new policy. Accordingly, a stay of the preliminary injunction would upend, rather than preserve, the status quo. LGBT rights groups that filed the lawsuit hailed the decision as an affirmation of transgender people serving in the military and as a blow to the Trump administration. The ruling marked the second time the Ninth Circuit rebuffed the administration on the transgender military service ban, leaving the tally of eight rulings from six courts in favor of halting the policy. The lawsuit, Karnoski v. Trump, was filed by Lambda Legal and OutServe-SLDN on behalf of nine transgender people six current service members and three wishing to serve as well as three organizational plaintiffs: the Human Rights Campaign, the Seattle-based Gender Justice League, and the American Military Partner Association. Sarah McBride, a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, said as a result of the decision another court has held off Donald Trump and Mike Pences desperate attempts to impose their extreme anti-LGBTQ agenda on the U.S. military. After a string of victories for transgender troops and enlistees at the district court level, this appeals court ruling reinforces that there is simply no need or legitimate reason to bar capable and willing transgender Americans from serving their country, McBride added. But the ruling from the Ninth Circuit presents the Trump administration with an opportunity yet again to take up the issue with the Supreme Court. The Justice Department could file a request to stay the injunction with Kennedy, whos responsible for issuing stays on decisions from the Ninth Circuit. Kennedy could decide the matter himself, but would likely refer the matter to the entire court for a determination. Although Kennedy has signaled hell retire from the court, his departure wont happen until the end of this month, which means hed have an opportunity to weigh in on the matter before stepping down. It will potentially be his last decision from the bench and his last LGBT case after writing the decisions in four milestone gay rights cases after 30 years on the court. Jon Davidson, chief counsel at Freedom for All Americans, said if the Justice Department were to file a stay request before the Supreme Court, the administration likely will file such a motion before the end of this week. I think that, assuming the Court considers any such stay request before July 31st, Justice Kennedy might well join Justices Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor and Kagan in denying the request (which would mean a stay request would be denied), based on his views about the harms of the government denying individuals equal dignity and because the Karnoski case is just one of four in which district courts have enjoined the transgender military ban, Davidson said. If the court does not consider a stay request until August, it may be hard for DOJ to get five votes in favor of a stay (which would require at least one of Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor or Kagan to vote in favor of a stay). If the Justice Department were to ask the Supreme Court for a stay, it would be a reversal of its earlier position on litigation against the transgender military ban. After the Ninth Circuits earlier rebuff last year of the administration on the policy, the Justice Department declared in December it wouldnt go to the Supreme Court right away, but wait for DODs study and will continue to defend the presidents and secretary of defenses lawful authority in district court in the meantime. Things have changed now because the Pentagon study the Justice Department expected has come out. Nonetheless, the Trump administration is staying mum on its plans. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment in response to the Washington Blades question on whether the administration would file a stay request before the Supreme Court. Peter Renn, senior attorney with the Western Regional Office at Lambda Legal, affirmed the Trump administration could seek a stay of the preliminary injunction with the Supreme Court, but said chances for a stay are low. If the government does seek a stay, and the request is referred to the full Supreme Court, it is unlikely that a majority of the Supreme Court would allow the government to immediately enforce its discriminatory plan, Renn said. If there is a vote on a stay by the end of this month, it is difficult to imagine that Justice Kennedy will want to cap off his tenure on the court by allowing the military to toss aside transgender people, and their sacrifices for our country, as if they were disposable. Following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear power plant accident, radioactive waste leaked into surrounding areas and contaminated waters and food. Seven years later, traces of the disaster were found half a world away in California's wine. A group of French nuclear physicists tested 18 bottles of California's rose and cabernet sauvignon produced in 2009 and onward and found that the wines produced after the disaster had increased levels of a man-made radioactive particle. Cabernet sauvignon, for example, had double the amount. [Tracking Japan's Tsunami Debris (Infographic)] They reported their findings in the pre-print online journal Arxiv. The researchers used two methods to look for traces of a radioactive isotope called cesium-137. The first method was developed about 20 years ago and could detect the particles through the wine bottle, without destroying or opening it. Since the presence of cesium-137 prior to 1952 is impossible (it's a man-made isotope first released into the surroundings by nuclear testing in the mid-20th century), it has proven quite effective for detecting fraud in old vintage wines, according to the study. For a more accurate detection, the researchers destroyed the wines through heating and reducing them "to ashes," they wrote. They tested for the cesium-137 in those ashes. Though they did find increased levels of the radioactive waste, experts say there is nothing to worry about, according to The New York Times. There are no "health and safety concerns to California residents," the California Department of Public Health told the Times. The levels of radioactive toxins found in food and drinks outside of Japan is too low to be dangerous, according the World Health Organization. Even in Japan at the core of the meltdown, though over 100,000 people were evacuated from their homes, there have been no deaths or radiation sickness reported so far, according to the World Nuclear Association. Further, most bottles of wine made after 1952 do contain at least a little bit of this nuclear twist. Originally published on Live Science. A statue of the Virgin Mary weeps a red liquid that Venezuelans said was blood on March 25, 2003 in Caracas, Venezuela. In a Catholic parish in Hobbs, New Mexico, a statue of the Virgin Mary has been "weeping." Onlookers have gathered out of curiosity, and also for prayer and healing. The liquid on the statue has been found to be olive oil and balsam the same mixture that is used for certain Catholic rituals after being blessed by a bishop. Claims about supernatural phenomena, including weeping statues, have historically been common in Catholicism. A well-known example is the Madonna of Syracuse, Sicily, a plaster statue that has shed tears since 1953. Last year, in fact, weeping statues were reported in Hungary, Argentina and Macedonia, just to name a few. To understand why a weeping statue would be religiously meaningful, it's first important to appreciate the connection between miracles and the Virgin Mary. Miracles and Mary Catholics believe Mary is the mother of Jesus Christ and, therefore, the mother of God. Throughout Catholic history, supernatural events have been attributed to Mary's power. When France's Chartres cathedral burned, only Mary's relic called "The Veil of the Virgin" survived after being safeguarded by three priests who were miraculously preserved from the heat and flames. Mary's intercession is also believed to have ensured victory at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571, when an Ottoman fleet was repulsed by the forces of Genoa, Venice and the papacy. Mary's tears have special significance for Catholics: She cries not only over the sins of the world, but also over the pain she endured in her earthly life, referred to as "the seven sorrows of Mary." These sorrows, which include the crucifixion and death of Jesus, are depicted by seven swords piercing Mary's flaming heart. Even the flowery scent of olive oil and balsam evokes Mary since she is called "the rose without thorns." It's not surprising for a weeping statue of Mary to become an object of prayer and devotion. And when this happens, the local bishop sometimes steps in to investigate. The possibility of trickery In examining claims of the supernatural, bishops are guided by standards set by the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which oversees Catholic doctrine. These standards primarily concern reports of "apparitions" of the Virgin Mary. But the framework also applies to other supernatural occurences, including weeping statues. Perhaps because they address controversial issues, the standards were only made public in 2012 nearly 35 years after they were first implemented. The bishop, or a committee appointed by him, evaluates the supernatural phenonmenon's impact on the community. Positive aspects can be healings and conversions, or even a more general deepening of faith among Catholics. Negative aspects would include sinful acts such as selling oil from a weeping statue or making claims contrary to Catholic doctrine. One of the primary questions is whether the event has been staged. For example, in two cases of statues that wept blood one in Canada in 1986 and another in Italy in 2006 the blood turned out be that of the statue's owner. Liquids can be injected into the porous material of statues and later seep out as "tears." Oil that is mixed with fat can be applied to a statue's eyes, which will "weep" when ambient temperatures rise in the chapel. In the case of the bronze statue of Mary in Hobbs, New Mexico, the investigation has uncovered no such trickery. But the fact that no cause has yet been found does not mean that a miracle has taken place. The Catholic Church rarely endorses weeping statues and similar phenomena. Usually, a bishop or the Vatican will only go as far as saying that faith and devotion are more important than tales of supernatural happenings. Searching for meaning While understanding the phenomenon, it's also important to appreciate the stories and individual motivations that people bring when they pray or worship in the presence of a statue that seems to weep. In my hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts, for example, statues and pictures have wept oil and blood at the home of the late Audrey Santo, who died in 2007 at the age of 23. As a child, "Little Audrey," as she is still called, was left mute and paralyzed after a swimming pool accident. In spite of her physical condition, she was believed to pray for those who made pilgrimages to see her. After her death, a foundation was established to promote her cause for sainthood. The statues and pictures weeping in her home were seen as signs that God had specially blessed Little Audrey's life of suffering. In my writings about the case of Audrey Santo, I was tempted to focus on the stories of supernatural wonders. And the claims surrounding Little Audrey are still hotly debated. In the end, I thought it would be more interesting to study how people find meaning in phenomena like weeping statues. At the Santo home, the people I talked to shared moving personal stories of pain and sadness, hope and healing. The sense of togetherness in and through suffering was far more important than talk of miracles. In Worcester as well as in Hobbs, New Mexico I expect what is going on is much more than superstition. Mathew Schmalz, Associate Professor of Religion, College of the Holy Cross This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates and become part of the discussion on Facebook, Twitter and Google +. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Live Science. Did life ever exist on the moon? Maybe! Have scientists found evidence of life on the moon? Definitely not. Why are we talking about this? A new paper was published online today (July 23) in the journal Astrobiology with a thrilling headline: "Was There An Early Habitability Window for Earth's Moon?" Its associated press release had an even more exciting title: "Researcher sees possibility of moon life." Wowza! This is genuinely cool stuff. But it's important to understand what it's really saying and what it's not. The paper, written by a pair of astrobiologists from Birkbeck College in London and the Technical University of Berlin, offers no evidence that life existed on the moon. In fact, it doesn't present new evidence of any kind. The paper doesn't represent the conclusions of any study at all. Instead, it's an argument, aimed primarily at other scientists, that, based on existing research, there may have been a period in the moon's history when living things on its surface wouldn't have immediately died. [Top 10 Amazing Moon Facts] Today, the authors wrote, the moon is totally inhospitable to life. It has, they wrote, "no significant atmosphere, no liquid water on its surface, no magnetosphere to protect its surface from solar wind and cosmic radiation, no polymeric chemistry [the building blocks of life], and it is subject to large ... temperature variations." In their paper, they pointed to recent research from a number of sources that suggests this might not always have been the case. Thanks to the moon's more volcanically active past, they pointed out, there may have been two periods (one 4 billion years ago, just after the moon formed, and the next 3.5 billion years ago) when the moon may have been a bit more habitable for periods of a few million years. Volcanic gases could have spewed water vapor onto the moon's surface, the authors wrote, especially given recent evidence that the moon has more water than scientists once thought. The same processes might have thickened the atmosphere. The moon might also have formed a magnetic field similar to Earth's that would have deflected the worst stellar radiation, they said. That solves three of the key problems with the moon's habitability. The researchers didn't directly address the moon's temperature swings again, but perhaps an atmosphere would have resolved that issue as well. Still, there's one piece missing: the building blocks of life. No expedition to the moon has ever found amino acids or other chemicals that might link up to form living things, even as similar chemicals have turned up as far away as Mars. Perhaps, the researchers wrote, those chemicals might have formed natively. Otherwise, they might have arrived via asteroid impact the same process some scientists think seeded Earth. This new paper is best understood as a call to look for those chemicals more closely on the moon, especially in volcanic deposits dating back to those periods. But for now, there's no reason to think that life actually existed there just that (maybe, perhaps) it could have. Originally published on Live Science. Steve Gonzales/Staff Halliburton Co. reported higher second quarter profits and revenues as rising crude oil prices continued to boost drilling activity in West Texas and elsewhere, driving demand for hydraulic fracturing equipment and other oil field technology. The Houston oil field service company on Monday reported net income at $511 million in the second quarter, up from $28 million in the same period last year. Revenue climbed from nearly $5 billion to $6.1 billion, an increase due in part to higher pressure pumping, drilling and artificial lift activity in the U.S. (WB) The news conference that followed President Trumps meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki led to jaw-dropping reactions across the globe, including from LGBT advocates and observers who say it had a negative impact on LGBT rights despite Trumps backpedaling days later. Trump on Monday appeared alongside Putin at a news conference and sided with the Russian leader over the assessment of U.S. intelligence agencies and the Senate Intelligence Committee that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. election, which led to U.S. Special Counsel Robert Muellers indictment of 12 Russians who implemented the plan. My people came to me Dan Coats came to me and some others they said they think its Russia, Trump said. I have President Putin; he just said its not Russia. I will say this: I dont see any reason why it would be. Trump also referenced conspiracy theories about servers for the Democratic National Committee and 33,000 emails Hillary Clinton refused to make public during the election. Additionally, Trump embraced a Russian proposal for an internal investigation of the 12 Russians as opposed to calling for their extradition to the United States. So I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today, Trump said. And what he did is an incredible offer; he offered to have the people working on the case come and work with their investigators with respect to the 12 people. I think thats an incredible offer. Trumps words gave credence to the notion Putin has compromising material on Trump thats keeping the U.S. president under Russias control. When asked about it during the news conference, Putin cast doubt over the idea, but didnt outright deny it. When President Trump was at Moscow back then, I didnt even know that he was in Moscow, Putin said. I treat President Trump with utmost respect. But back then, when he was a private individual, a businessman, nobody informed me that he was in Moscow. Putin added its difficult to imagine an utter nonsense of a bigger scale than this and please just disregard these issues and dont think about this anymore again. The comments during the news conference overshadowed the fact the meeting yielded nothing in terms of international policy, such as an agreement on nuclear arms reduction or Russian withdrawal from Crimea. The firestorm that erupted after the news conference wasnt confined to Democrats and Trumps opponents, but others who generally support him, including Fox News commentators and Newt Gingrich, who said Trump committed the most serious mistake of his presidency. LGBT advocates added to those concerns, saying the apparent deference to Putin undermined U.S. standing in advocating for LGBT human rights, especially in Russia which has a troubling record of anti-LGBT hostility. Recently, in the Russian semi-autonomous region of Chechnya, reports have emerged that local authorities have rounded up and even executed gay men in concentration camps. On the eve of the conference, the Human Rights Campaign arranged for a light projection on the presidential palace in Helsinki calling on Trump and Putin to stop the crimes against humanity in Chechnya. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley issued a statement last year calling the reports of Chechnya abuses troubling and the Treasury Department sanctioned Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov late last year under the Magnitsky Act after the abuses were made public. However, Trump himself has yet to comment on them unlike other world leaders like Theresa May, Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron. David Stacy, government affairs director for the Human Rights Campaign, said Trump added to the debacle at Helsinki by not addressing anti-gay abuses in Chechnya. Instead of standing up to Putin, Trump groveled before him in a shameful and unprecedented display of deference to a man who is intent on harming his own LGBTQ citizens and the United States, Stacy said. We will continue to work with Members of Congress, from both parties, to raise these concerns with the Russian government, in the media, and in multilateral forums. On Election Day, the American people must hold Donald Trump accountable and any elected official who continues to enable his destructive incompetence. Days after the news conference in Helsinki upon returning to the United States, Trump sang a different tune in a gaggle with reporters, walking back his comments and insisting he has full faith in our intelligence agencies. I accept our intelligence community conclusion that Russias meddling in the 2016 election took place, Trump said. Trump also said he misspoke when he said during the news conference he doesnt see any reason why Russia would be responsible for the interference. The sentence should have been: I dont see any reason why it wouldnt be Russia, Trump said. Sort of a double negative. But Trumps reversal wasnt enough for many observers who remain indignant over his performance in Helsinki. Michael Guest, whos gay and a former U.S. ambassador to Romania, said Congress should step up efforts in the aftermath of the Trump-Putin meeting. President Trumps public comments and actions give no reason to believe that he cares about human rights, or that he pressed Putin to bring justice to those responsible for the atrocities carried out against LGBT people in Chechnya, Guest said. This was possibly the most appalling international performance, ever, by a U.S. president. Its time for Congress to ratchet up its oversight of this bilateral relationship, Americas silence on human rights and the negative impact this president is having on our countrys standing in the world. Daniel Baer, whos gay and the former U.S. ambassador to the Organization for Security & Cooperation in Europe, said: Russias terrible record on hunan rights has long been on the agenda for meetings between leaders and senior officials. Many of us hoped against all odds that Trump might raise the ongoing violent attacks on LGBTQ people in Chechnya and the broader state-sponsored homophobia of the Putin regime, or the Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov who is on a hunger strike as a political prisoner in Russia. Instead, Trump sold out America, our allies and the cause of human rights. Chad Merrill, 25, was a brand new father of a 5-month-old baby when he was shot to death in the parking lot of his favorite bar in York County, Pennsylvania, early Saturday morning. It happened just moments after the alleged shooter, James Saylor, hurled racial slurs and the n-word at Merrill's friend inside the Red Rose Restaurant and Lounge, according to a probable cause affidavit. And now police say Merrill may have been trying to "right the wrong" when he confronted Saylor in the parking lot in defense of his African American friend, according to the York Daily Record. Merrill's brother, Richard Merrill, told The Washington Post that while his family was deeply torn by the news of his brother's death, they were not surprised to hear that Merrill died defending his friend. It was in his nature, Richard Merrill said. "He was always the peacemaker. He didn't want people hating each other," Merrill said, "or the world being segregated the way it is, with the racism you see all over the news. The world wants to keep everything segregated and he would rather have seen everybody get along." According to a probable cause affidavit, just before the shooting, 24-year-old Saylor entered the Red Rose Restaurant and Lounge and started yelling slurs at Merrill's friend, Jerrell Douglas. Richard Merrill said his brother was sitting next to Douglas when it happened. He said he learned from Douglas that Merrill patted him on the back, telling him not to worry and to try to tune it out. (Douglas could not be reached for comment.) Police said Douglas did exactly that and did not engage with Saylor, who was quickly thrown out of the bar for his behavior, according to the affidavit. But Merrill went outside, apparently looking for the man. Surveillance video captured Saylor in the parking lot trying to get inside a vehicle that didn't belong to him, Hellam Township Police Chief Doug Pollock told the Daily Record. He pulled a gun out of his waistband and haphazardly fired a shot toward the building, Pollock said. He then got inside his own truck, at which point Merrill emerged from the bar. Police say it is not clear what words, if any, they exchanged. Merrill started walking toward Saylor's truck. Then, when he was about two feet away, Saylor allegedly shot him in the chest through the window. Saylor then peeled out of the parking lot and, on his way out, hit an Uber vehicle that was pulling into the lot, police said. Police then tracked Saylor to his parents' house, where he lived in the basement, according to the Daily Record, and promptly arrested him. Saylor has been charged with criminal homicide and has been denied bail, court records show. He denied the assistance of a public defender, and no other attorney is yet listed for him. But Pollock told the Daily Record, "He never once acted like he knew what he did." The extent of Merrill's relationship to the alleged shooter, if any, is unknown, but the mother of Merrill's 5-month-old son told the Daily Record the two of them attended the same high school. Richard Merrill said his brother lit up the most around his new son. He worked as a mason in the area and was a regular at the bar where he died, where he liked shooting pool, Richard Merrill said. Red Rose Restaurant and Bar did not return messages seeking comment but shared the family's GoFundMe campaign for Merrill's funeral expenses in a post on Facebook, saying, "We would like to extend our most heartfelt condolences to the Merrill family. Please know that our sincere thoughts and prayers are with you." Others donating money hailed Merrill as a hero for his actions, with one saying, "Thank you for sticking up against racism." Europe is sending hundreds of firefighters to help Swedish emergency services contain multiple forest fires across the Nordic country. Amid soaring temperatures and a deep drought, France, Germany and Denmark have dispatched more than 100 people and Poland has sent 139 emergency personnel as well as a bevy of fire engines to help battle some of the worst forest fires the country has ever seen. Some 27 fires are currently blazing across Sweden, a country about the size of California that's two-thirds covered by forests. That's down from 49 the day before. Italy, France and Portugal have also sent water-bombing aircraft, while Norway, Germany and Lithuania have provided helicopters. Sweden's Civil Contingencies Agency warned on Monday that the situation remains very serious, with the risk for fire at extreme levels, especially in southern Sweden and around Stockholm, according to TT. Temperatures are expected to remain near 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) all week, but some rain is forecast for the weekend. The summer has so far been exceptionally hot, with temperatures in large swathes of the country hovering around 30 degrees. Precipitation has also been unusually low, with parts of southern Sweden experiencing their driest summer on record. The Kvikkjokk-Arrenjarka weather station in the far north, on the same latitude as southern Greenland and northern Alaska, broke its record with a reading of 32.5 degrees. While the fires have destroyed vast tracts of forest and forced forestry companies to halt logging for fear of sparking fires, the heatwave is also causing huge problems for the farming industry. Harvests have been hurt by the lack of rain, and many farmers are now running low on animal feed. Water levels in Sweden's hydro-power dams, which produce half the country's electricity, have also fallen drastically, pushing up energy prices. The fires have raised questions about the impact of climate change and whether the extreme heat is the new normal. That's raised concerns about Sweden's ability to tackle such crises. The fires, and the government's reliance on outside help, may even become a topic in the Sept. 9 general election. Politicians, including Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, have visited the hardest-hit areas. Forty-four fire engines from Poland were met with applause when they arrived, with Swedes waving Polish flags as the vehicles drove north before arriving in Sveg in Harjedalen county in central Sweden on Sunday evening, according to local media. "Dziekuje to all Polish firefighters" was the headline in the Expressen newspaper, thanking them in their own language. Sweden's Forest Agency estimates that some 600 million kronor ($68 million) worth of forest has burned or been damaged by the fires, as of July 19. To those waiting for Republicans to take any legislative step toward mitigating the effects of man-made climate change: There's good news and bad news. First, the good news: On Monday, a House Republican will finally put forward a piece of legislation designed to discourage the burning of fossil fuels. The measure from Rep. Carlos Curbelo of Florida does so by placing a price on emitting carbon dioxide, which is the sort of measure most economists see as the most cost-effective way of reducing the buildup of the key greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. "I understand that the onus is on Republicans to step up and show that we're willing to tackle this issue in a meaningful way," Curbelo said in an interview Thursday. And the bad news? On that same day, 222 of Curbelo's GOP colleagues voted in favor of a resolution by House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., declaring any such carbon tax would be "detrimental to the United States economy." The overwhelming success of the anti-carbon tax gesture shows the party led by President Donald Trump - who personally rejects climate science - is far from ready to enact any measure to stem the release of more of greenhouse gases. Representing a portion of South Florida already seeing frequent flooding, Curbelo has emerged as a lone voice with the GOP caucus trying to push his party toward embracing "market-based solutions" to a problem many Republicans refuse to even acknowledge. But Curbelo is trying to make things less lonely for himself. He, along with fellow Floridian Rep. Ted Deutch, D, founded the Climate Solutions Caucus two years ago to commit a bipartisan group of House members to addressing climate change. At least at the surface, the results are encouraging for environmental advocates. So far, 43 Republicans have joined the caucus. But environmentalists are less encouraged when they take a look at caucus members' voting records. On Thursday, only six GOP representatives broke with the party and voted against the resolution declaring carbon taxes detrimental. (One Republican Climate Solutions Caucus member voted present.) It is "astounding that House Republicans would pass an anti-climate resolution with outrageous and factually dubious claims that rejects outright one viable option for addressing climate change," Deutch said Thursday. "Every member of Congress, especially Climate Solutions Caucus members, should keep all options available." Still, some others saw progress. "The fact that six Republicans voted 'no' on an anti-carbon tax resolution is an indication that there are cracks in the wall separating Democrats and Republicans on climate change," said Mark Reynolds, executive director of the Citizens' Climate Lobby, a grass-roots environmental group that helped organize the caucus. "When a similar resolution came up in the previous Congress, every Republican voted for it." Among those Republicans who switched sides on the nonbinding resolution was Curbelo himself. "I understand for a lot of colleagues when you ask the question in a vacuum, as this resolution did, any tax hurts economic growth." Curbelo said walking from the floor Thursday after the vote. "But once you put it in a broader context, it can make sense." The Florida Republican said while he did not have "a formal whip operation" on the anti-carbon tax resolution, "we did engage members" of the caucus. He regarded the timing of the resolution from the actual House whip as "a defensive move." Scalise's office said the timing of his resolution was coincidental. Curbelo's bill would repeal the federal gasoline tax and replace it with a tax on carbon dioxide levied directly against energy companies and some manufacturers. In turn, the Environmental Protection Agency would be prohibited from regulating carbon dioxide emissions. Revenue from the carbon tax would go toward housing low-income people, mitigating coastal flooding, researching alternative energy and assisting displaced coal workers. But the bulk of it would go toward building new infrastructure. "This bill, in addition to being responsible policy, does attempt to capture the political energy of the moment," Curbelo said. "Perhaps the only one" of Trump's agenda items, Curbelo added, "that was popular across the American electorate was infrastructure investment." Curbelo's bill has earned the support of some environmental organizations such as the Nature Conservancy, whose senior policy adviser Jason Albritton called it "a pretty thoughtful approach to the issue." Conservative donors who twist the arms of Curbelo's fellow Republicans quickly dismissed his proposal. "The mere thought of a carbon tax is tantamount to throwing a wet blanket on an economy ignited by tax reform," said Brent Gardner of Americans for Prosperity, the main political organizing arm of billionaire oilman Charles Koch's donor network. At the beginning of Trump's presidency, a group of senior Republican statesmen, including former secretaries of state James A. Baker and George P. Shultz, pitched a similar "carbon fee and dividend" to the White House. Under that plan, the federal government would tax carbon but would redistribute the revenue directly to taxpayers. Gary Cohn, then head of Trump's National Economic Council, heard Baker and his team out. The White House ultimately did not embrace the plan. New York Three years ago, when New York City banned solitary confinement for inmates younger than 22 and curtailed it for others, Mayor Bill de Blasio held up the policy as a model for reform. But since the rules were approved, the city has stepped up a long-standing practice of transferring some inmates to correctional facilities elsewhere in the state where no such restrictions exist. Dozens of New York City inmates, including several teenagers, have ended up in solitary confinement. Transfers of inmates 21 and younger increased sharply starting in 2015, the year the city adopted the solitary ban, and except for a drop in 2017, the number of such transfers has remained well above the levels seen before the ban, according to Correction Department data. At least 10 young inmates have been transferred from New York City this year, including eight who are in solitary at one upstate jail, the Albany County Correctional Facility, according to their lawyers. New York City has long had the power to make such transfers if an inmate is especially vulnerable to attack or presents a high risk to other inmates or to guards. But the sharp overall increase in transfers since the solitary ban was put into place for city jails suggests that transfers to other jurisdictions have become an end-run around the city's own rules on solitary confinement. Defense lawyers say transferring inmates allows city officials to avoid responsibility for harsher conditions of confinement. A few of the lawyers are challenging the transfers in court on the grounds that they violate inmates' due process rights, as well as state law and city rules. Peter Thorne, the chief spokesman for the Correction Department, said transfers are based on "safety or security" and are not used as punishment. Isolation of inmates has been shown to heighten risks of suicide and depression, especially among young people, and the city has not only limited the use of solitary confinement, but has begun moving 16- and 17-year-olds off Rikers Island to comply with a new state law that raised the age at which a person could be charged as an adult to 18. But inmates said the transfers do not make them safer. All the inmates sent to Albany said through their attorneys or in interviews that they have been beaten by guards and put into solitary confinement for months. Steven Espinal, 19, who prosecutors say led an attack in February that left a Rikers guard's spine fractured, said guards stomped and kicked him so badly when he arrived that he lost hearing in his left ear and passed blood in his urine. He was hospitalized, then sentenced to 600 days in solitary confinement for violating jail rules, his lawyer said. While they beat him, Espinal said in an interview, the guards kept saying, "This ain't New York City. We do what we want." Jesse Hoberman-Kelly, a lawyer with four clients who have been in solitary confinement in Albany, said he learned of the transfers in February when he began representing one of Espinal's co-defendants, Samson Walston, 19. Both teenagers are awaiting trial on a charge of gang assault for the attack on the Rikers guard, Officer Jean Souffrant, which was captured on video. Sheriff Craig D. Apple Sr., who runs the Albany jail, dismissed the inmates' claims of abuse as "frivolous" and an attempt to force their return to the city. "My staff has not done anything to these people whatsoever," Apple said. In a quest to shrink national monuments last year, senior Interior Department officials dismissed evidence that these public lands boosted tourism and spurred archaeological discoveries, according to documents the department released this month and retracted a day later. The thousands of pages of email correspondence chart how Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and his aides instead tailored their survey of protected sites to emphasize the value of logging, ranching, and energy development that would be unlocked if they were not designated as national monuments. Comments that the department's Freedom of Information Act officers made in the documents show that they sought to keep some of the references out of public view because they were "revealing [the] strategy" behind the review. Presidents can establish national monuments in federal land or waters if they determine that cultural, historical or natural resources are imperiled. In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order instructing Zinke to review 27 national monuments established over a period of 21 years, arguing that his predecessors had overstepped their authority in placing these large sites off-limits to development. Trump has already massively reduced two of Utah's largest national monuments, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, and has not ruled out altering others. The new documents show that as Zinke conducted his four-month review, Interior officials rejected material that would justify keeping protections in place and sought out evidence that could buttress the case for unraveling them. On July 3, 2017, Bureau of Land Management official Nikki Moore wrote colleagues about five draft economic reports on sites under scrutiny, noting that there is a paragraph within each on "our ability to estimate the value of energy and/or minerals forgone as a result of the designations." That reference was redacted on the grounds it could "reveal strategy about the [national monument] review process." Officials also singled out BLM acting deputy director John Ruhs's July 28 response to questions from Katherine MacGregor, acting assistant secretary of lands and minerals management, as eligible to be redacted. MacGregor had asked about the logging potential of Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument if Trump reversed the expansion that Barack Obama carried out at the end of his second term. "Previous timber sale planning and development in the [expansion area] can be immediately resumed," Ruhs wrote. Zinke proposed removing some of the forested areas within Cascade-Siskiyou, where three mountain ranges and several distinct ecosystems intersect, to "allow sustained-yield timber production." Trump has yet to alter the site, which was established by Bill Clinton as a 65,000-acre monument and then enlarged by nearly 48,000 acres days before Obama left office. These redactions came to light because Interior's FOIA office sent out a batch of documents to journalists and advocacy groups on July 16 that they later removed online. "It appears that we inadvertently posted an incorrect version of the files for the most recent National Monuments production," officials wrote July 17. "We are requesting that if you downloaded the files already to please delete those versions." Aaron Weiss, a spokesperson for the advocacy group Center for Western Priorities, said in an email that the "botched document dump reveals what we've suspected all along: Secretary Zinke ignored clear warnings from his own staff that shrinking national monuments would put sacred archaeological and cultural sites at risk." "Trying to hide those warnings from the public months later is disgraceful and possibly illegal," Weiss added. Asked for comment, Interior Department officials said they were looking into the matter. The inadvertently released documents show that department officials dismissed some evidence that contradicted the administration's push to revise national monument designations, which are made under the 1906 American Antiquities Act. Estimates of increased tourism revenue, analyses that existing restrictions had not hurt fishing operators and agency reports that less vandalism occurred as a result of monument designations were all set aside. On Sept. 11, 2017, Randal Bowman, the lead staffer for the review, suggested deleting language that most fishing vessels near the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument "generated 5% or less of their annual landings from within the monument" because it "undercuts the case for the ban being harmful." Robert Vanasse, who represents groups that have lobbied to allow commercial fishing in national marine monuments in the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, said Trump administration officials have been more open to outside input than their predecessors. "They had a lot of meetings with our folks but didn't listen," he said of Obama officials, adding that even some Massachusetts Democratic lawmakers objected to the New England marine monument. Department officials also redacted the BLM's assessment that "it is unlikely" that the Obama administration's establishment of the 1.3 million-acre Bears Ears National Monument "has impacted timber production" because those activities were permitted to continue. In response to questions about Grand Staircase-Escalante, BLM wrote that "less inventory" of cultural sites would have occurred without the 1996 monument designation, noting that more than twice as many sites are now identified each year than before. "More vandalism would have occurred without Monument designation," it states, noting that four visitors centers were established to help protect the area. P. David Polly, the president of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology and a professor of sedimentary geology at Indiana University, said in an interview that "there's specific funding that comes" with a monument designation, which BLM itself identified in its submission as one of the reasons behind the "increase" in archaeological finds. Polly added that the funding also accounts for why the number of paleontological finds in Grand Staircase-Escalante has risen from a few hundred before 1996 to "several thousand." "This funding will disappear for the areas that are no longer in the monument," he said. Agencies typically incorporate material submitted through public comments into their regulatory proposals, but documents released under the FOIA earlier this year show that Bowman told colleagues in a May 2017 webcast that "barring a surprise, there is no new information that's going to be submitted" through the public comment process on the monuments review. Polly said the new documents show how Interior officials disregarded the material they gathered during the comment period. "They knew all of these things, and went ahead and cut them anyway," he said. Some supporters of the rollbacks said that while they appreciated having a chance to weigh in on the process, it does not appear to have made an impact. On May 11, 2017, for example, Oregon Farm Bureau officials wrote Zinke to thank him "for taking time out of your evening" to meet with their delegation at the Trump International Hotel and hear ranchers' objections to the Cascade-Siskiyou expansion. Sharon Waterman, the bureau's 1st vice president, said in an interview that while she was glad her group had "a chance encounter" with Zinke at the hotel, she was "very disappointed" that the monument's boundaries remain unchanged. "It doesn't seem like what we have done has made an impact, but I don't know why," she said. "It's really sad that they continue this expansion, because it's really important that [timberlands] stay in production." And while critics questioned why Interior officials intended to withhold so much material from public view, legal experts said they can probably justify it under the exemption covering internal executive branch communications. "It's almost constituently vague as to what is deliberative and exempted," said Columbia Law School professor David Pozen, referring to FOIA Exemption 5. "It was meant to ensure was open and frank deliberation before a decision is taken." But he added that if Interior officials were using the provision to withhold documentation on how it decided to weaken certain protections, that "would be substantially away from the heartland" of the exemption. "The deliberative privilege wasn't meant to relieve the executive branch of explaining and justifying its decisions," he said. Pozen and other experts said it was unlikely that the redacted portions of the documents could be used as ammunition for lawsuits now challenging Trump's move to shrink the two Utah monuments. John Leshy, who served as Interior solicitor during the Clinton administration, said that because the president initiated this review by issuing an executive order last year, administration officials could assert the redacted sections are privileged. "It's not at all clear a court would admit this material in evidence in litigation challenging Trump's actions," he said, "because the rules about reviewing presidential actions, in general, are fuzzy." Hurricanes, shootings, bus crashes, and other catastrophes forced many district leaders to navigate uncharted waters last school year. But how many district leaders know what to do to prepare for or lead through such crises? Because such disaster training and management are not generally included in educator preparation programs, the AASA, the School Superintendents Association, has launched a new, one-stop web portal to help district leaders before, during, and after a crisis. The online portalaasacentral.org/school-safety which went live this month, has resources to help district leaders through school shootings, hurricanes, tornadoes, student suicides and other tragedies. A key resource are the 21 education leaders whove had firsthand experience leading through crises in their schools and districts. These leaders are making themselves available to their peers to share their expertise and answer questions. The portal also provides a checklist on things district leaders should think about, ranging from building strong relationships with local public safety officials and ensuring that staff and school board members know and understand the districts school safety plan before a disaster strikes to handling communications and reunification during any unfortunate event. After the immediate crisis, district officials still have to plan for what could be years-long recovery and rebuilding, depending on what calamity they are dealing with. The tool kit pulls together resources on crisis management from other sources, including the National Association of School Psychologists, the National School Boards Association, the American School Counselors Association, and the National School Public Relations Association. The AASA has also set up a crisis hotline that administrators can call with questions and concerns about school safety. The 24-hour hotline is manned by Joseph Erardi, the former superintendent of the Newton district in Connecticut. Erardi started in Newtown two years after a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. He helped put together the tool kit. The list of mentors includes district leaders with experience dealing with floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and school shootings. Among the 20 experts available to help: Frank DeAngelis, the long-time principal of Columbine High School; Troy Albert, a principal in Salem, Ind., who has experience with tornadoes; Janet Dunlop, the superintendent of the Broken Arrow District in Oklahoma, who has experience in mental health after student suicide and deaths in the school community; James Robinson, who was a former assistant superintendent of East Rockaway in Long Island, N.Y., which sustained millions of dollars in damage from Superstorm Sandy; and Janet Robinson, who was the schools chief in the Newtown district at the time of the Sandy Hook massacre. The AASA says the tool kit is a work in progress, and administrators can also make suggestions. You can access the School Safety & Crisis Planning tool kit here. Related stories: Photo caption: Students evacuate Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., on Feb. 14. A former student shot and killed 17 people at the 3,000-student high school. Texas State archaeologists have found some of the oldest human artifacts in North America -- hidden underground in Central Texas. The artifacts, which are estimated to be 16,000 years old and include a variety of stone tools used by humans, were dug up between 2007 and 2013 about 50 miles north of Austin at an archaeological site known as the Gault Site. The new findings, published recently in the journal Science Advances, could forever change what is known about early humans in the Americas because the tools are 3,000 years older than the widely taught timeline for when humans first arrived in the Americas, said Thomas Williams, the assistant director of the Gault School of Archaeological Research at Texas State and lead author on the paper. Science Advances is a peer-reviewed, online-only journal from the publisher of Science, the nonprofit American Association for the Advancement of Science. Previously, it was believed that humans arrived in America after enough ice melted in North America to allow passage across the Bering Strait, which used to be a land bridge between modern-day Russia and Alaska but is now submerged, Williams said. RELATED: Remains of Black People Forced Into Labor After Slavery Are Discovered in Texas But this passage did not exist 16,000 years ago, Williams said. And the last glacial maximum, the time when glaciers covered North America as far south as Ohio, made passage into America via the Bering Strait impossible. The ice did not melt enough to allow travel until 13,000 years ago. "We're talking about glaciers that are about three miles high. There's no food. There's no water," Williams said. "That's a huge land mass that's completely inhospitable for anything to survive ... a mass that absolutely dwarfs every city skyline." This means humans must have found some other way to reach the Americas, possibly by traveling along the coastline by boat. "In doing this, you're talking about populations coming from the north down south, which means there has to be evidence older evidence out there for people to enter the New World and make it down to Central Texas," Williams said. "(This) is not going to be the final word because how did people get to Central Texas? How did they arrive here?" This is not the first discovery of artifacts more than 13,000 years old in the Americas. Other sites, including one in Chile that might be 31,000 years old, are competing for the title of oldest evidence of humans in the Americas. "There is still an ongoing debate scientifically about how valid some of those older claims are," Williams said. However, Williams said this latest discovery adds more evidence to the idea that humans were in the Americas long before the Bering Land Bridge opened up. A team of archaeologists, led by Texas State archaeology professor Michael Collins, used optically stimulated luminescence to deduce the age of the tools. The technique involves shining a light on grains of quartz and measuring radiation released to then see how old they are. RELATED: New Witte Museum play explores Juneteenth Even before the team figured out the precise age of the artifacts, they knew they had something special because one of them, a stemmed point, was unlike anything else in the region, Williams said. The most common prehistoric tools fall into the category of Clovis technology and were likely invented after humans crossed the Bering Land Bridge, Gault Project director Nancy Velchoff said. A Clovis point is shaped like a leaf and has come to be the stereotype for prehistoric blades. "What makes Clovis so special is that it covered the continent of North America," said Velchoff, who is a co-author of the paper regarding the pre-Clovis tools found at the Gault site. "No other technological stone tool culture has ever done that in the Americas." The other element that makes artifacts predating Clovis stand out is their uniqueness, Velchoff said. "These were very complex people, and they were very regionalized because most of our older-than-Clovis sites in and around North America, none of these tools look alike," Velchoff said. Velchoff and Williams said there are still a number of unanswered questions about these artifacts. It is still unknown how exactly the people who made them got to Central Texas as well as where they were before. "We don't know who these people are," Velchoff said. "We don't have organic materials to tell us what these people were doing besides making stone tools and using them for everyday tasks." Robert Hard, an anthropology professor at UTSA, said the next step will be to look for patterns in both nearby sites as well as those across the country that have objects of a similar age. "Right now, we have a lot of dots, but we don't have very good ways of connecting the dots," Hard said. Jennifer Mathews, an archaeologist at Trinity University, said in an email that the peopling of the Americas has been one of the biggest debates in archaeology. In the past, Mathews said the beliefs about Clovis technology being the first in the Americas were so strong that archaeologists would stop digging if they found them. Mathews said Texas State's find is especially significant because it comes from the Gault site, a 20-year venture that lends significant credibility to the discovery. However, she said she is still slightly skeptical because only one type of dating was used to determine the tool's age. Nevertheless, Matthews said she's intrigued. "While this certainly doesn't end the debate, it puts another very large nail in the coffin in my opinion," Mathews said. Despite how astonishing this discovery is, Velchoff said she is unsure when or how these findings will make their way into history books. "It is not up to cutting edge science or the scientists to change what is taught in the classroom," Velchoff said. "We can only disseminate the results that in one way or another changes history itself." Anthony Petrosino, an associate professor in the College of Education at UT-Austin, said breakthroughs like this easily find their way into college classrooms because they are the closest to where the research occurs. For K-12 education, however, change occurs much more slowly, especially because of the reliance on textbooks, Petrosino said. "That takes quite a while for it to be memorialized in K-12 curricula," said Petrosino, who works in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. "There are some websites now that try to stay more updated, but for the most part, it's still basically a textbook driven mechanism. It just takes more time." Petrosino said the "glacial pace" of textbook updates and the magnitude of Texas State's discovery puts potential adoption of it at the K-12 level years away at a minimum. "That notion of going over the land bridge up at the Bering Strait is very ingrained in our culture, so that takes a long time to modify and, in a sense, to dispel," Petrosino said. The other issue with the finding is it still leaves a lot of unanswered questions, which is something curricula writers tend to shy away from, Petrosino said. "There's still a lot of research that's left to be done," Petrosino said. "Until the field really knows the full mechanisms of it, I don't think it's going to be fully embraced in the K-12 curriculum." Regardless of when it becomes mainstream knowledge, Velchoff said this discovery, which is more than 10 years in the making, was especially exciting because of how close it is to home. "We have archaeology right here in Texas," Velchoff said. "You don't have to go to Egypt or Rome or Greece. It's right here in your backyard." Chase Karacostas is a staff writer for mySA.com. | Chase.Karacostas@express-news.net | Twitter: @ChaseKaracostas Local News, Business & Finance, Politics By Long Island News & PR Published: July 23 2018 Curran: "No worker should be concerned with their personal information being provided to anyone without their knowledge." Mineola, NY - July 23, 2018 - Nassau County Executive Laura Curran today joined with Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman, Legislator Arnold W. Drucker and union leaders as she signed an Executive Order that will prohibit the personal information of any public employee from being released. No worker should be concerned with their personal information being provided to anyone without their knowledge, said Curran. This Executive Order will prohibit any such action in Nassau County. The recent United States Supreme Court decision in Janus v. AFSCME held that workers who do not wish to join a union are not required to finance union activity by the deduction of fee payments from their paychecks, even when the union represents the bargaining units to which these workers belong. Currans Executive Orderthe fifth since she took office in January 2018protects an individuals union membership status and forbids distribution of personal information of a labor represented employee or employee engaging in union activities or looking to unionize. I commend County Executive Curran on taking strong action today to protect the personal information of county employees. The workforce is our partner in progress in Nassau County and deserve to work in an environment free of harassment from those who wish to destroy the labor movement, Schnirman said. Our team is meeting with our labor partners this afternoon so that we can identify any issues and continue working collaboratively on these challenges. Governor Andrew Cuomo and both Suffolk and Westchester Counties have also issued Executive Orders. Information covered under the Executive Order includes the home address, personal telephone number, personal cell phone number or personal e-mail address of a public employee. It does not cover information subject to New York Civil Service Law or information requested by lawful service of process, subpoena, court order, or as otherwise required by law or publicly available information. Nature & Weather, Local News, Crime, Community, Charity & Cause By Long Island News & PR Published: July 23 2018 Officers successfully entered the ocean and located the disabled craft, took the two men on board and the watercraft in tow. Moriches, NY - July 23, 2018 - Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau officers rescued two men stranded on a disabled Personal Watercraft in 8-10 foot seas and high winds a half mile south of Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau officers rescued two men stranded on a disabled Personal Watercraft in 8-10 foot seas and high winds a half mile south of Moriches Inlet on Sunday, July 22, 2018. Michael Stack, 37, and James Trowbridge, 54, both of Brookhaven , entered the ocean to surf the large storm-generated waves by towing a hydrofoil surfboard with Stacks 2014 Yamaha Waverunner. While surfing, their tow line became wrapped in the intake of their vessel, disabling it offshore at 6:30 p.m. Stack called TowBoatUS of Moriches for assistance. TowBoatUS assessed the inlet conditions and determined that they would be unable to respond due to the heavy seas and breaking waves. TowBoatUS immediately notified the United States Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound Command Center in New London, Connecticut. The Coast Guard notified the Suffolk Police Marine Bureau, who immediately dispatched Marine Mike, a 33 foot rescue boat assigned to the Moriches area. Marine Mike, piloted by Officer Kevin Comiskey and crewed by Officers Rob Daniels and Chris Maggio, proceeded to the inlet. After evaluating the conditions, based on their experience and the capabilities of their boat, the officers decided to attempt a transit of the inlet to assist the stranded men. The heavy winds, high seas, and ebb conditions were pushing wave heights to a steep 8-10 feet, right at the limits of Marine Mike boat. Marine Mike successfully entered the ocean and located the disabled craft, took the two men on board and the watercraft in tow, and made a second transit of the dangerous inlet to return to the relative safety of Moriches Bay. Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Health & Wellness, Politics By Long Island News & PR Published: July 23 2018 Program will provide more opportunities to safely dispose of unused medications by requiring all chain pharmacies to offer collection. East Meadow, NY - July 23, 2018 - New York State Senator Kemp Hannon (R-Nassau) joined today with elected officials and stakeholders to announce enactment of (S9100) the Drug Take Back Act into law. This new law creates a unified, statewide drug take back program that will provide significantly more opportunities to safely dispose of unused medications by requiring all chain pharmacies to offer collection, thus reducing medication misuse and preventing drugs from being improperly disposed of into the environment. The program holds pharmaceutical companies responsible for the cost of proper drug disposal, thereby saving government and taxpayers money. Senator Hannon, Chair of the Senates Health Committee, stated, I am proud that by enacting this law, New York will be a national leader in providing consumers with free and convenient drug take back options paid for by manufacturers. This initiative will improve both the environmental health and the physical health of all New York citizens. Assemblywoman Gunther stated, Studies show that between 60-70% of teenagers who abuse prescription drugs get them from their parents' medicine cabinets. The opioid crisis is crushing our communities and this is another tool in fighting this terrible epidemic. We've made tremendous strides in recent years to expand the options consumers have to take back their unused medications, but this is by far the biggest step. This bill gives customers a take-back option at every single chain pharmacy in the state, and it does so without any cost to the consumer. Excess medications sitting in cabinets are ripe for abuse, and one of the most common ways people become addicted and addicts feed their habits. Communities, law enforcement, elected officials and pharmacies holding special take back days is just not enough. Over the last 14 annual drug take back events, over 4,508 tons of unused prescription drugs have been collected. However, unused medications are still getting into the wrong hands and having a devastating effect. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports, every 16 minutes one U.S. citizen dies from a drug overdose. This program will increase the impact by ensuring drug take back is conveniently available every day. Although the pilot Pharmaceutical Take Back Program, which launched in December 2017, distributed 87 collection boxes to ensure easier disposal of unused medication, this new law will expand locations of disposal to over 2,000 locations. Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds, President and CEO of Family and Childrens Association, stated, Given that most people get their first taste of opioids from medications left in the family medicine cabinet, the proper removal and disposal of leftover medications is absolutely critical to our efforts to adequately address the opioid crisis. Long Island has been hit and we thank Senator Hannon for his multi-faceted and tireless efforts to address the epidemic in Nassau/Suffolk and statewide. Patrick J. Ryder, Nassau County Police Commissioner, stated, The passage of Senator Hannons legislation on the Drug Take Back Act is a common sense approach to protecting not only our residents, but children who may come in contact with these dangerous and lethal medications. Whether it be accidental or voluntary exposure, all of us have to work together to ensure that every last pill that is not being used is accounted for and not lying around in a medicine cabinet or inappropriately discarded with the possibility of inflicting harm to any one of us. We have seen all too often how these medications come into the wrong hands and leave us with devastating results. Ed Campbell, Region Director of CVS Health, stated, CVS Health is dedicated to helping the communities we serve address and prevent opioid abuse, which is why weve expanded access to safe medication disposal to 50 CVS Pharmacy locations across New York State and 750 locations across the U.S. We deeply appreciate Senator Hannons leadership in recognizing the importance of increasing access to sites where people can safely dispose of unwanted medication and look forward to working with him as this law is implemented. Proper disposal of drugs will also protect the states water supplies. Improper disposal by means of flushing not only results in contamination of water bodies but also negatively impacts aquatic life. A U.S. Geological Survey conducted in 1999 and 2000 found 80 percent of rivers and streams tested to have traces of antibiotics, hormones and steroids in them. Last year, the Senate led the way by securing a historic investment of $2.5 billion to improve and protect our water resources. Keeping drugs out of our water supplies is another important and necessary step. Paul Stauder, President of Covanta Environmental Solutions, stated, We are proud to provide the safe and environmentally sound disposal of unwanted medications at our Energy-from-Waste facilities. Preventing the potential abuse of these drugs is of utmost importance, but also making sure our environment and water isnt negatively impacted from improper disposal is essential as well. We commend New York State and Senator Hannon for making this important issue a priority. Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, stated, The Drug Take Back Act is a game changer for New York residents. In numerous homes throughout New York, there lurks unwanted prescription drugs that pose a danger to our children and our environment. Safe and convenient access to safe disposal options has become a necessity in todays society. The King Kullen pharmacy program has collected 9,800 pounds of unwanted drugs in the last 3 years, and this law will make similar take-back options available to all New Yorkers. We are extremely grateful for Senator Kemp Hannons leadership and determination to address this issue. This law establishes one of the strongest safe disposal programs in the nation. Samsungs Galaxy Note 9 is due to land in a few weeks, and for the most part, it wont make much noise among iPhone fans. Pegged to have a very similar design, screen, and camera as last years model, the battle between the Note 9 and the new iPhones will likely be even more one-sided than usual, as Apple is primed to release three new models with iPhone X-style designs, including one with a bigger screen than the Note, a first for an iPhone. But while Samsungs phablet might not matter to iPhone users, the accessories probably will. For one, the Note will reportedly have a new S Pen stylus, which could raise some Pencil envy. And Samsung will also be selling a brand new charger, the Wireless Charger Duo. Tipped by German site LetsGoDigital, the accessory is basically an extended version of Samsungs existing wireless charger, with a stand on one end and a mat for the Galaxy Watch on the other. There are quite a few third-party iPhone-and-Apple Watch chargersRemove non-product link that do this wit varying results, but nothing from Apple. The Wireless Charger Duo should be a me-too device, and an inferior one at that. At its iPhone event last September, Apple announced its first-ever wireless charger to usher in its first Qi-enabled iPhones, and it looked to be a one-of-a-kind accessory. It would let you charge three devices at once without needing any extra cables or special positioning. According to the one-sentence description on its website (which still promises a 2018 ship date), you can Just set your iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods anywhere on the mat to charge them wirelessly. AirPower has at least one neat trick up its sleeve. Itll be able to communicate with your phone to show the current charge level of all the devices on the charging pad, so you can easily tell when your AirPods (with new wireless charging casethats also MIA) or Apple Watch is charged up enough to grab them and head to the gym. But for the most part, its a wireless charger that offers a level of convenience most other pads dont. And now, it looks like Samsung will beat Apple to the punch. While there are differencesAirPower charges three devices while the Wireless Charger Duo obviously only charges twoit raises the questions: Is AirPower Apples greatest vaporware product? Is it possible that Apple could release an update to AirPower even before the original one ships? And will anyone even care when it releases? AirPower outage Last month, Mark German at Bloomberg News wrote a story about the delays, implying that engineering difficulties were to blame for the nearly year-long delay: The AirPower charger is also more advanced than the current competition because it includes a custom Apple chip running a stripped down version of the iOS mobile operating system to conduct on-device power management and pairing with devices. Apple engineers have also been working to squash bugs related to the on-board firmware. LetsGoDigital Samsungs Wireless Charger Duo will let you charge two devices at once. Thats a lot of tech for a charger, so its somewhat understandable that its taking so long. Aside than Gurmans report, Apple hasnt offered up any details about its AirPower charging mat since it was unveiled last September, so it could be that Apples new mat will deliver a revolution in charging. But on the surface, its not all that special. Seemingly, youll need an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods with a wireless charging case to take full advantage of it, and itll likely have a sky-high price tag. Technology moves fast, so if Apple ships the same product that was supposed to launch months ago and gives it a $129 or $149 price tag, its going to feel outdated and overpriced, especially if it cant charge two phones at once (Samsungs new charger reportedly will). For the past 10 months, iPhone users have relied on third-party chargers for their wireless needs. Among them, Samsungs wireless charger is one of the best, with a nice design that lets you see and charge your phone at the same time, and a good price, generally around $50 with discounts off its $70 MSRPRemove non-product link. Its new dual charger will likely cost around the same, with a rumored price tag of $75. We dont know when it will ship, but presumably around the time the Note 9 hits shelves in late August. AirPower was supposed to usher in a wireless revolution of convenience and simplicity. When it finally releases later this year, it might be just another overpriced product that took too long to arrive. The upcoming James Bond film is searching for a Maori actor to play the villain's henchman. A fan site has uncovered a casting notice that calls for a Russian male villain, a Russian woman and a Maori henchman to play opposite Daniel Craig. The role asks for an authoritative, cunning, ruthless, and loyal character between the ages of 35 and 55. The actor must also have advanced physical, fighting, and stage combat skills. In 2002, Lawrence Makoare played Maori henchman Mr Kil opposite Pierce Brosnan in Lee Tamahori's Die Another Day. The production on the 25th Bond instalment is set to begin shooting in December, with the film due to be released in October next year. It is written and will be directed by Danny Boyle, who made Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire, and 127 Hours. Newshub. CUMMINGTON- Thousands were taken back to medieval times this weekend as the 2018 Massachusetts Renaissance Faire kicked off in Cummington. Previously called the "Market of the Moons," in 2017, the fair re-branded and moved to the Cummington Fairgrounds. Guests were treated to a weekend of Renaissance-era - and Shakespearian - music, food, comedy and other activities. Unlike last year's fair, this year's event spans two weekends- with locals having another chance to enjoy on this coming Saturday and Sunday. Check out photos from opening weekend in the gallery above, and for more information, visit the official website here. SPRINGFIELD - Curious to learn more about emergency medicine, view a surgical lab or better understand anesthesia - without become a patient, that is? These are some of the topics to be featured during the fall semester of Baystate Medical Center's Mini-Medical School. The eight-week, Thursday night program designed for adults with a general interest in today's medical field begins Sept. 27, and early registration is recommended as slots are limited. Classes are held in the Chestnut Conference Center on the Baystate campus which is also home to the only regional campus of the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester. They begin at 6 p.m. and run until 8 or 9 p.m., depending on the night's topic. Each student must attend a minimum of six classes in order to receive a certificate of completion during the graduation ceremony that is part of the final class on Nov. 15. A teaching hospital, the classes are taught by Baystate faculty. No basic science knowledge is needed to participate. Tuition is $95 per person, $80 for Senior Class and Baystate Health Every Women members. Enrollment can be done online or call (413) 794-7630. A new mode of transportation has made its way to the Boston area, but some city officials aren't too pleased. The California-based electric scooter sharing company Bird landed in Cambridge and Somerville, where it rolled out its dockless scooters without notifying city officials. Now, Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh is warning companies that any electric scooters left on the city's streets will be brought straight to the tow lot. "They can't just show up here, there has to be some regulation and some notification of what's going to happen," Walsh told the Boston Herald. "If they drop them off here, we're going to pick them up off the street and they can come pick them up at the tow yard." To rent a scooter, users must download the Bird app on their smartphone and scan their driver's license. Scooters are located using a GPS map and users have to be at least 18 years old. Each ride costs $1, plus 15 cents per minute. At night, a team of "Bird hunters" collects and charges the scooters, which hit the streets by 7 a.m. the next morning. In Somerville and Cambridge, city officials told The Boston Globe that they did not have any contract or agreement with Bird and were not aware of the rollout of the program. The Santa Monica-based company has also caused controversy in a number of other cities. The Hollywood Reporter recently wrote that more and more of the scooters are turning up in West Hollywood, the Miracle Mile and downtown Los Angeles. The lack of docking stations has annoyed some residents, as the scooters frequently clutter sidewalks and block driveways. In February, Bird agreed to pay more than $300,000 in fines to the Santa Monica city attorney's office after it allegedly began operating without city approval, according to the Hollywood Reporter. During a recent Santa Monica City Council meeting, local officials heard reports of elderly pedestrians hit by Bird riders and of "people Birding while intoxicated," the news outlet reported. The scooters have also caused tensions to flare in multiple cities across the country, including Denver, Indianapolis, Louisville and Nashville. A pop-up village opened Sunday in Boston's Seaport District, and its first installment is the "She-Village" -- a block of nine pop-up shops from female-founded brands. The pop-up village, officially named The Current, will operate on a rotational basis, with new stores connected by a common theme coming in every six months. Its permanent location is 85 Northern Ave., next to District Hall and Seaport Common. Sunday is the village's soft opening, with a grand opening celebration planned for Aug. 2 at 6 p.m. The village will be open seven days a week through January 4, 2019. The brands featured in the She-Village are Bras, Bref, Booty by Brabants, Cynthia Rowley, The Giving Keys, Havenly, Margaux, Monica + Andy, and Orly Khon. They're selling a wide range of products and services, ranging from children's clothes to leggings and floral arrangements to interior design consultations. Lee Mayer, CEO and co-founder of Denver-based Havenly, is bringing her interior decorating and e-commerce startup offline for the first time with her "Hideaway" pop-up. "I love that we're part of a community supporting women in business," she said in an interview. "That's always been core to our mission as a company. More than 90 percent of our designers are women, and we're proud to provide them flexible and creative work. We also are a majority female team, serving a customer base that is majority female, so this fits really naturally into our brand." The Current is the latest Seaport project from Chestnut Hill-based WS Development, which is in the process of transforming 23 acres of waterfront land in the neighborhood into a mixed-use development. Yanni Tsipis, senior vice president of Seaport development at WS Development, said that the goal of the She-Village is to inspire other retail entrepreneurs and small businesses to pursue their ideas and tell their own stories. "Boston is generally underserved in emerging retail concepts, fashion and what's new," Tsipis told the Business Journal. "This project gives mission-driven small businesses a platform to grow in Boston's newest neighborhood." SPRINGFIELD -- John W. Hamblin was sentenced to eight years in state prison Monday after pleading guilty to child rape and other charges. According to Assistant District Attorney Amy D. Wilson, the victim was between two and four years old at the time. Hamblin, who lived in Holland when the crimes were committed, admitted he made the victim watch child pornography -- and then forced the victim to perform some of the acts depicted. Hampden Superior Court Judge John S. Ferrara adopted the eight year sentence recommended by Wilson and defense lawyer Joe A. Smith III. The assaults ended in 2015, Wilson said, and the prosecution had a strong case against Hamblin, 35. Wilson said there was always the hope the case could be resolved without the child having to testify. Smith, who said Hamblin now lives in Worcester County, said he believed there would have been difficulty in having the victim found competent to testify because of the child's age and other factors. Hamblin pleaded guilty to rape of a child, two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child and one count of dissemination of obscene matter to a minor. In a separate indictment he pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. The eight year sentence will be followed by 10 years of probation, with a dozen conditions that Hamblin must follow during that time. He must register as a sex offender and have GPS monitoring. Wilson said Hamblin was first charged with possession of child pornography in 2015 as the result of a multi-state investigation. Further investigation yielded the evidence leading to the sexual assault charges, Wilson said. The producers of Fox & Friends First thought they had an interview with an Arizona Democrat willing to speak out in favor of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Instead, they got Massachusetts State Sen. and Congressional Candidate Barbara L'Italien. "I'm actually here to speak directly to Donald Trump. I feel that what's happening at the border is wrong. I'm a mother of four and I believe that separating kids from the parents is illegal and inhumane," L'Italien said Monday, to the apparent bemusement of hosts Rob Schmitt and Jillian Mele. "I'm actually Barbara L'Italien, I'm a state senator from a large immigrant community." The interview came about due to an error by Fox News, L'Italien's campaign said in a statement. That error was compounded by deliberate subterfuge from L'Italien's team, a Fox & Friends First executive producer said in a statement. And it gave the Andover Democrat a national platform to criticize ICE, which has come under withering scrutiny following the implementation of detention policies that led to thousands of children being separated from their parents. "I keep thinking about what we're putting parents through., imagining how terrifying it must be for those families," she said. "We have to stop abducting children and ripping them from their parents' arms, stop putting kids in cages and stop making 3-year-olds defend themselves in court." L'Italien's interview was cut off after about a minute. "Who is this?" Schmitt said. "That didn't go as planned." The mixup appears to stem from an outdated press contact listing, according to a statement from Fox & Friends First producer Desiree Dunne. Joe Katz, who previously worked for Arizona Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick, was on file as her press contact, Dunne said -- but had since moved to L'Italien's Congressional campaign. Once mistakenly contacted by Fox, Katz kept the charade going, according to Dunne. "Katz followed with an email confirming the segment, which also included background information and a campaign logo for Ann Kirkpatrick. During the actual segment, Barbar L'Italien, appeared on camera instead of Kirkpatrick," Dunne said. "Despite speaking to producers prior to the interview, L'Italien did not identify herself as anything other than Kirkpatrick until she was live on air, at which point we ended the interview." Schmitt was less diplomatic, calling L'Italien's actions a "publicity stunt" on Twitter. Barbaras team contacted us, pretending to be another democrat - and lied to pull of this publicity stunt. Our legal team is on it Rob Schmitt (@SchmittNYC) July 23, 2018 In an interview, L'Italien said her team decided to use the misdirected invitation as an opportunity to share an alternative viewpoint with Fox News viewers. Her team knew it would be a short-lived window, she said. "I think there was some frantic calling of someone in my comms office for sure. We knew we wouldn't be able to get through my entire statement. I think we got through the first of three pages," L'Italien said. "I was grateful to have the opportunity and we took advantage of it." L'Italien is one of a growing number of officials calling for the abolishment of ICE, the immigration enforcement agency created following the passage of the Homeland Security Act in 2002. It is a position that has moved from the Democratic Party's left fringe to its mainstream as images and audio of children detained at the border became a rallying cry for immigration advocates. "I think they have completely lost the trust of the US people with the way they have been conducting wholesale roundups of families, many of whom are seeking asylum," L'Italien said. "I think we can certainly change that but I think it is symbolic of a policy that has used ICE as an instrument of fear, on the border but also in my district." L'Italien said she supports deportation for people charged with violent crimes, but is opposed to detaining and removing unauthorized immigrants who are peaceful members of their communities. L'Italien is one of 11 candidates vying to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Niki Tsongas in the 3rd Congressional District. SPRINGFIELD -- A Hampden Superior Court judge has rejected murder defendant Sherad Therrien's claim that police influenced witness identifications in their investigation. Judge David Ricciardone on July 17 ruled the prosecution can use the identifications by two women when Therrien goes to trial, scheduled for Nov. 13. Defense lawyer Joan M. Williams argued in a motion and hearing on the motion that the process of showing photo arrays to the witnesses was unnecessarily suggestive and not fair and unbiased. Assistant District Attorney Karen Bell argued police procedure used in interviewing witnesses was proper. Therrien, 27, of Springfield, was indicted in September 2016 in connection with the Sept. 28, 2013, shooting death of John Alexander. Alexander, 22, was shot in the head as he sat in his car in front of 28 Westminster St. around 3 a.m. Therrien is serving a six-year federal prison sentence following an April 2015 conviction on drug and gun charges. Prosecutors said that on four occasions between September 2013 and March 2014, Therrien sold a loaded gun, powder cocaine and crack cocaine to an FBI informant. Therrien was serving his federal sentence in Schuylkill, Pennsylvania. He is now in the Hampshire County Correctional Center awaiting trial in the murder case. One woman testified at the hearing she was outside when the shooting began and saw the man in his car before he got out and started shooting. Ricciardone said he credited that woman's testimony at the hearing that she was 100 percent sure the person she picked out of a photo array (Therrien) was the shooter. He said he did not believe the fact she viewed the photo array two years after the shooting was enough to bar her identification. She said at the point she viewed the photo array she purposely said she was only 60 percent sure the photo was of the shooter because she was afraid of retaliation if she were called to testify. The other witness whom Williams sought to keep from identifying Therrien was watching from a window above the shooting. Ricciardone said he did not find the identification process used by police to be overly suggestive. He wrote that the "equivocal and uncertain nature" of her identification of Therrien can be explored during cross-examination. That woman chose a photo of Therrien from an array but said she was 30 percent certain he was the shooter. What should Massachusetts lawmakers do in response to the deaths of Weymouth Police Sgt. Michael Chesna and Vera Adams? That's a question likely to surface during the Monday afternoon meeting between Gov. Charlie Baker and legislative leaders. The meeting, a regular sit-down between the governor and top lawmakers, comes days after thousands mourned the loss of Chesna, a U.S. Army veteran and father of two children, at a funeral service in Hanover. Sgt. Chesna and Adams, 77, were allegedly killed by Emanuel Lopes, a 20-year-old Weymouth man with a history of run-ins with police. Lopes has pleaded not guilty to murder charges. Time is also running out for the state Legislature: Formal sessions are due to end July 31 and after that, controversial pieces of legislation can be stopped with a single lawmaker's objection. Lawmakers already have a full plate with bills dealing with the opioid epidemic, economic development, short-term rentals like Airbnb, civics education and clean energy, among others. Appearing on WAAF last week, Baker said he is looking at pursuing reforms around an accused criminal's "dangerousness" and the issue of bail. Baker told the radio station that a "framework" around dangerousness is needed, providing prosecutors the ability to make the case that somebody should not be roaming the streets while they're on probation or awaiting trial. "I know how frustrated and pissed off everybody is about this, and I am too, ok?" Baker told WAAF's Greg Hill, host of the Hill-Man Morning Show. Baker continued: "But the thing people need to remember here is that - people say what are you going to do about it? Well, the thing we ought to do about it is take this notion of dangerousness and incorporate it into the process so the DAs have the ability to make the case that somebody ought not to be out." Judge Jeanmarie Carroll set Lopes' bail at $500 in November on a drug charge, according to court records in Quincy District Court. Baker called the judge's move a "horrible mistake." Court officials are making decisions on bail every day, and in the absence of a framework around dangerousness, "I worry about others ending up on the street," Baker said. Massachusetts prosecutors are "fishing" in a request for documents and the identities of witnesses in the case of former Senate President Stan Rosenberg's husband, an attorney for the state Senate says in a court filing. State prosecutors in Attorney General Maura Healey's office are seeking documents gathered during the Senate's internal investigation of former Senate President Rosenberg and his husband Bryon Hefner. State prosecutors allege that Hefner sexually assaulted four men over several years. He pleaded not guilty to the charges after he was indicted by a grand jury earlier this year. But in a filing, Jennifer Grace Miller, the attorney for the state Senate, said the Senate has already provided a "significant amount of data" in response to a grand jury subpoena. The documents sought by state prosecutors are held by the law firm Hogan Lovells, the law firm tapped by the Senate to investigate Rosenberg and Hefner. The Hogan Lovells team interviewed 45 witnesses. In its May 2 report, Hogan Lovells concluded that Rosenberg, D-Amherst, failed to protect the Senate from Hefner. Rosenberg stepped down as senator days later. One witness, a former state employee, told the Senate's investigators that Hefner sent a photograph of his penis. Another witness told the Senate's investigators that Hefner grabbed the witness's "genitals for an extended period of time." The documents, which are Senate property, and identities of witnesses are confidential and protected by Senate rule and an order, Miller argued in a July 23 court filing. "The rule, order and motion were all specifically adopted to provide assurance to potential witnesses that - among other things - they would not be subject to political retribution as a result of a [Senate Ethics Committee] investigation," Miller wrote. Senate President Harriette Chandler, D-Worcester, told reporters that the state Senate gave witnesses "our word" that they would have confidentiality if they came forward to Hogan Lovells investigators. "To deny that now would be to turn our backs on a promise that was made," Chandler said. Anthony Fuller, a partner at Hogan Lovells who led the team of investigators, noted in an affidavit attached to Miller's filing that during their investigation they became aware of investigations launched by Healey's office and federal prosecutors. The grand jury subpoena from Healey's office came on Jan. 30, 2018, and the one from the U.S. Attorney's Office (USAO) came on Feb. 8. "The Hogan Lovells attorneys did not share any substantive information regarding the investigation with the AG or the USA, nor was any information provided to us from those offices," Fuller wrote. "Nor did the Hogan Lovells attorneys ask any witnesses if they had spoken to or planned on speaking to any state or federal investigators," he added. "Consequently, we do not know if any of the witnesses with whom we spoke are witnesses in the Commonwealth's case." Prosecutors in Healey's office filed a motion seeking the records in June. "The above-listed records are evidentiary and relevant to the instant prosecution, the records are not otherwise reasonable procurable in advance of trial, the request for production of the records is made in good faith and is not intended to be a 'general fishing expedition,' and the records are not privileged," Jennifer Snook, assistant attorney general with Healey's office, wrote in the motion. NORTH ADAMS - A 49-year-old North Adams man died Friday after he was critically injuried in a collision between his motorcycle and a car, according to reports. The Berkshire Eagle, cites North Adams police sources, identified the deceased as Steven Fortier. He was injured at around 10 p.m. Friday in a collision with a car on Church Street. Fortier was taken to the North Adams campus of Berkshire Medical Center where he later died of injuries suffered in the crash. Police told the Eagle that Fortier was heading southbound when he collided with a vehicle that was heading northbound. The accident remains under investigation by the North Adams police and the Massachusetts State Police. Investigators are in the process of reconstructing the accident. The driver of the car, Joseph C. Thompson, 59, of Adams, has not been cited. He and his passenger were not injured. SPRINGFIELD -- Mayor Domenic J. Sarno has vetoed an ordinance recently passed by the City Council to add new requirements for businesses that apply for and receive property tax incentives. Sarno said that after conferring with his top legal and economic development advisers, he believes the amended ordinance could expose city to undue risk of liability and damages and could hinder the city's economic development efforts. The council could seek to override the mayor's veto at a future meeting, needing at least nine votes -- a two-thirds majority of the 13-member council -- to succeed. The ordinance passed on July 16 by an 8-0 vote, with five councilors absent from the meeting. The lead sponsor, Council President Orlando Ramos, said he will schedule a veto override vote as soon as possible. "I'm struggling to find any reason why any reasonable person would find to oppose this piece of legislation," Ramos said. "It's pretty straightforward. All this does is ensure that any company and/or developer receiving a TIF is following existing federal, state and local legislation." Councilors have said that any businesses benefiting from tax incentives at a cost to taxpayers should be held to fair wage and employment laws as a condition of that funding. The changes approved by the council included that any contractor or subcontractor involved in the business construction project must: not have been debarred or suspended from performing construction work by any federal, state or local government entity in the past five years; and must not have been found in violation of any law in the past five years related to employer payroll taxes, employee income tax withholding, wage and hour laws, prompt payment laws, prevailing wage laws, or compensation insurance coverage. The contractor must properly classify employees as employees rather than independent contractors using applicable federal and state law. Those employees must be treated as employees for the purposes of minimum wages and overtime, workers' compensation insurance coverage, unemployment taxes and state and federal income tax withholding. The ordinance states that the city should pursue revocation of the tax incentive in cases of non-compliance with the new requirements. Sarno said he conferred with City Solicitor Edward Pikula, who advised him that the enactment of the ordinance exposes the city to undue liability and damages. Pikula said the ordinance is "not in proper form," as it requires private projects subject to a TIF agreement to comply with certain prevailing wage provisions. Ramos said the ordinance makes no mention of prevailing wage. In addition, he said there were several committee meetings on the ordinance, with the mayor and his administration invited Ramos said he did not hear any concerns from the mayor during the process. Enforcement could be a violation of constitutional or statutory provisions that could expose the city to liability, Pikula said in part. Sarno said he also conferred with the city's chief development officer, Kevin Kennedy, and with the Board of Assessors under Chairman Richard Allen, and is concerned that the ordinance "could slow and hinder our continued economic development progress." Sarno said he is open to considering any proposed amendments that could mitigate his concerns. Representatives of various labor unions, union employees and city councilors had praised the new requirements, saying that contractors gaining taxpayer dollars should be held accountable for fair labor laws. Councilor Melvin Edwards, one of the supporters, said he wants additional details on the reasons for the veto, but said the changes were supported by councilors as "the right thing to do" in support of fair labor laws. The TIF agreements involve taxpayer dollars and the council looked at the "public good" in adding requirements, he said. SPRINGFIELD - Michael Baer's every-day vehicle was built in 1926, handles well and sounds a bit like a sewing machine. "Most people are startled I'm driving around on something that should be in a museum," Baer said. Sunday, Baer's 1926 two-seater Indian Motocycle was in fact at a museum, but just for the day. He was there with dozens of other enthusiasts to celebrate the 2018 Indian Motocycle Day at the Springfield Museums. The museum held the ninth event this year to celebrate the vehicle manufactured in Springfield from 1901 to 1953 by founders C. Oscar Hedstrom and George Hendee. This year's event paid tribute to Charles Manthos, who opened the Indian Motocycle Museum in 1974 and created an Indian prototype. After Manthos died, the museum closed and his wife Esta Manthos donated the collection, including a number of different Indian Motocycles, and other memorabilia to the Springfield Museums in 2007, said Karen Fisk, director of public relations and marketing for the museums. Polaris Industries Inc. revived the brand about five years ago and now makes Indian Motorcycles. The original brand did not have an R, in the name but Polaris decided to add it to avoid confusion. Anyone with an Indian Motocycle was invited to park it on the museum lawn and a variety of awards were handed out including the best Chief model, the best Scout model and best in show, she said. Most people who parked their Indians had restored them, some exact and some "souped them up" a little. Baer, of Easthampton, said he made some modifications to the engine so it can now go faster than the 50 mph it was designed to do to make it safer for highway travel. The Indian Motocycles are also unique because they have a hand shift and a foot clutch. Many of the bikes, including Baer's also had the throttle on the left, in theory, designed for a police officer who could pull his weapon with his right hand. But it could be dangerous and Baer said he switched the throttle to the right side. "They still are believed to be one of the best handling motorcycles," he said. Donald Skarp, of Palmer, who helped organize the event with Baer, brought his two motorcycles which date to 1930 and 1941. His 1941 was once used by the Chicago Police department. Baer said he later found a twin of his, which had the next serial number in succession, while at a gathering of four-cylinder Indian Motocycle owners. "They were considered one of the best motorcycles in the world and one of the first," Skarp said. "I ride these and when people see them they aren't sure what it is." The Indian brand is so historic, in part, because Hedstrom's design of the concentric carburetor. "Before that motorcycles would run for five to 10 minutes and then die," Skarp said. One of the rare motocycles at the show was Scott Hasting's 1946 Chief which he rebuilt. When he got the bike from a friend it had already been modified with high handle bars and no front fender and he didn't make any changes when he restored it. "It is very unusual. Most don't customize Indians," he said. Bob Eckardt, who runs Motorcycle Memorabilia out of New York, put on display a "barn find" Indian Motocycle he found a half-dozen years ago in Saratoga. He owns multiple vintage bikes of different types, including Indians and Harley Davidson's, so he decided to try and sell it to someone who may want to restore it. "I like all vintage bikes. The Indians look good, they run good and they are old," he said. Other awards given out Sunday are: AGAWAM - Walnut Street will be closed to traffic for most of the day on Tuesday and there will be periodic closures on the Morgan-Sullivan Bridge this week. The city's Department of Public Works will be making improvements to Walnut Street and the road will be closed between 8:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. between Springfield and Maple streets. A detour will be in place, but motorists should expect some delays. People will still be able to access businesses on Walnut Street by Springfield Street, officials said. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is also warning motorists that there will be lane closures on the Morgan-Sullivan Bridge, which connects West Springfield's Memorial Avenue to Agawam. The closures are needed so officials can conduct an annual inspection of the bridge. They will happen between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday and July 31. The work is weather dependent and the schedule can change without notice. GILL -- A West Virginia bicyclist who was critically injured when hit by a car on Saturday has died of injuries, the office of Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan announced Monday. Michael Stennes, 57, of Elkins, West Virginia, died Sunday morning at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, said Sullivan spokeswoman Mary Carey. He was visiting the area. The collision remains under investigation by Gill police, Massachusetts State Police assigned to Sullivan's office and the state police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section. Stennes was riding his bicycle on Main Road in Gill near the intersection of Route 2 at around 4 p.m. when he was struck by a car. He was rushed by ambulance to Baystate. The driver of the car that struck Stennes has been cited for negligent operation, failure to yield and unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. According to officials, Stennes was struck by a car that was making a left turn to go west on Route 2. The driver of the car was described as a 23-year-old man from Montague. Sullivan's office has not disclosed his name to the media. Worcester's dockless yellow bikes will soon be no more. The Chinese bikesharing company ofo announced it will pull all 400 of its bikes from Worcester amid a nationwide downsizing. The company is also ending its service in Revere, Quincy and Lynn. When ofo came to Worcester last September with it's $1 an hour rentals, it was the second U.S. market the company launched in after Seattle. "As we continue to bring bikeshare to communities across the globe, ofo has begun to prioritize operations in a number of successful markets, allowing us to continue to serve our customers at the high level of quality they have come to expect," ofo's head of North America, Andrew Daley, said in a statement. The company, through a spokesman, confirmed Monday that it is pulling out of Massachusetts entirely. Ofo came to Worcester last year as the city and the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce were actively searching for a bike share program to complement the city's ongoing renaissance, providing alternative modes of transportation as the city works to install bicycle lanes and get people moving both within and outside of downtown and the neighborhoods. Ofo fit the bill. The company distributed bikes in targeted locations and riders used a smartphone application to locate and unlock the bikes. When they were done, they could leave them in any public place for someone else to find. A MassLive public records request to the city of Worcester revealed that ofo told city officials it had 27,471 bike rides in Worcester in the three months the bikes were out last year. The company averaged 352 rides per day in the city. Weekends proved the most popular in terms of average daily users as well as trips taken, according to the data. The Wall Street Journal previously reported that ofo is cutting the vast majority of its workforce in the U.S. and retreating to a handful of larger cities. It has more than 40,000 bicycles in more than 30 U.S. markets. Gov. Charlie Baker sent a letter to federal officials Monday opposing President Donald J. Trump's attempts to change how family planning money can be spent. "We basically express concerns that some of the proposals that are being made by the administration would limit or significantly hinder or in some cases deny women access to Title X family planning services, prenatal services and the like," Baker told reporters at the Statehouse. The Trump administration in May proposed new rules regulating Title X family planning grants. Currently, federal money cannot be spent on abortion. The new regulations would tighten these restrictions. The White House says the rules "would ensure that taxpayers do not indirectly fund abortions." Family planning clinics that get Title X money provide a range of women's health services, including contraception, screenings for sexually transmitted disease and check-ups. Today, a family planning clinic that gets federal money is required to counsel a woman with an unintended pregnancy on all of her options, including abortion. The clinic must provide referrals to a place that performs abortions, if the woman wants one. Under Trump's proposal, the clinic would no longer be required to mention abortion as an option. The clinic would be banned from providing referrals to an abortion clinic. If a woman says she already decided to get an abortion, the clinic would be instructed to provide a list of health care providers, including some that perform abortion and others that do not. Additionally, the rule would require a physical separation, in addition to a financial separation, between a clinic that gets federal funding and one that performs abortion. Today, many Planned Parenthood clinics offer abortions and other health services in one location. Baker, a Republican who supports abortion rights, wrote to federal officials that he believes the proposed rule should be entirely rescinded. Baker said Title X clinics in Massachusetts provide a range of health services to low-income women. The proposed rules, he wrote, "would enact unnecessary barriers to a woman's right to choose, to be offered a comprehensive set of family health planning options, and to be provided with the information necessary to make an informed and non-coerced decision that best meets the needs of her individual or family circumstance." Baker wrote that requiring physical separation of abortion services would disqualify many existing health care providers in Massachusetts from getting federal money. Other provisions would potentially violate the privacy rights of minors, by requiring parental involvement in family planning decisions except in cases of abuse. The rule would make counseling on abortion "virtually impossible," even for women who want that, and refer all women to prenatal care, regardless of their wishes. Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel wrote in detailed comments to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that if implemented, "the proposed rule will significantly disrupt the delivery of family planning health care services and will force health care clinics to close, leaving many patients without a source of reproductive health care and resulting in an increase in unintended pregnancies and abortions." Baker, a frequent critic of the Trump administration, is up for re-election this year. Dr. Jennifer Childs-Roshak, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, said in a statement, "This gag rule politicizes patients' reproductive health care and violates basic medical ethics by forcing providers to withhold health care information from patients." Childs-Roshak applauded Baker for writing the letter. "By making clear this gag rule proposal is unethical and unworkable, the Baker administration has put patients' health and wellbeing ahead of politics, setting an example for the rest of the country," she said. This story was updated with a comment from Childs-Roshak. BOSTON -- Gov. Charlie Baker will sign a bill raising fees on car rentals in order to pay for municipal police training. Baker said on the campaign trail when he was running for governor that he would not raise fees. But Baker also supports law enforcement. Baker told reporters Monday that he made his own proposal to raise $8 million for the Municipal Police Training Committee through the general fund, without raising fees or creating a new revenue source. But the Legislature rejected that and instead proposed the new $2 fee on car rentals. Baker said coming on the heels of recent police killings - Weymouth Officer Michael Chesna and Yarmouth Officer Sean Gannon were both killed in the line of duty this year - law enforcement officials said getting more money for police training was "a very high priority for them." "Within the context of a political process where we have a real urgency amongst our folks in law enforcement about this, I think our view is we should go ahead and accept the Legislature's version as they submitted it, even though I'd prefer not to raise fees," Baker said. The bill passed by the Legislature would let the Municipal Police Training Committee collect up to $10 million a year from the new car rental fee. Any money raised above that would go into the state's general fund. The Municipal Police Training Committee could also collect money from marijuana revenues, private sources and other legislative appropriations. The committee is responsible for training and setting training standards for local police, University of Massachusetts police and state environmental police. The bill passed the House by a vote of 149-4 and the Senate, 36-0. GREAT BARRINGTON -- One person was arrested Sunday after engaging with independent U.S. Senate candidate Shiva Ayyadurai outside Elizabeth Warren's town hall at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center. Ayyadurai, who was campaigning outside the incumbent Democrat's Great Barrington event, claimed in a video posted on Twitter that a "racist guy committed a hate crime" by hitting him in the face with his own megaphone. "Fortunately the police were here and they took him away," he said. "It really says a lot about what's going on in this country because you can't have a civil discourse." A video of the scuffle posted on YouTube shows Ayyadurai using his megaphone to question why town hall attendees won't engage in "discourse on racism" when a man begins to yell back. "That's right, you're the racist," Ayyadurai tells the man before chanting "racist" as he approaches the candidate with his umbrella. Ayyadurai then asks for a police officer to come over to address the man who's "waving his umbrella." The independent U.S. Senate candidate continued chanting "racist" at the man, when the man appeared to hit away the end of the megaphone. The video then shows a man in a cowboy hat run at the man who hit the megaphone, holding him down on the street until police arrive. As police arrest the man who hit the megaphone, Ayyadurai stated: "that's racism right there," according to the video. Ayyadurai later chants "take him in" and "lock him up." Great Barrington Police confirmed that the man was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and assault and battery for hitting Ayyadurai's megaphone. He was released on personal recognizance and appeared in Southern Berkshire District Court on Monday. Police said it was the only arrest made in relation to the town hall event. Ayyadurai, an entrepreneur who is looking to unseat Warren this fall, had initially filed as a Republican, but broke ties with the GOP in November to run as an independent candidate. He was not the only 2018 U.S. Senate candidate campaigning outside Warren's town hall event. State Rep. Geoff Diehl, the Massachusetts Republican Party's endorsed candidate, also took to the streets of Great Barrington Sunday. This is a breaking news story and will be updated when more information becomes available. A second victim of a shooting in Toronto has died. A man fired a handgun into restaurants and cafes along a city street Sunday around 10 p.m., shooting 14 people. A young woman was pronounced dead shortly after the attack. The second victim was confirmed dead Monday morning. The suspect fled the scene after the shooting and was located by police nearby by police, dying after an exchange of gunfire. Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders said terrorism had not been ruled out. DETROIT -- Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers leads the majors with 20 errors. Of the 20, nine are throwing errors. He made a throwing error in his return from the 10-day disabled list Saturday. He then made two erratic throws Sunday that didn't result in errors thanks to first baseman Steve Pearce. The Red Sox won 9-1 over the Tigers here at Comerica Park on Sunday. Devers bounced a throw that Pearce scooped. He also almost pulled Pearce off the first base bag with another throw. "I don't think it's a problem," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said following Sunday's game. "He bounced one today. He's fine. If he uses his legs, he'll be fine." The Red Sox are 70-31. It's difficult to be overly critical when they boast the major's best record and are on a historical pace. Devers also still is only 21 years old. But he needs to work on his throwing. The Red Sox can't afford these types of errors come tight postseason games. (AP) Thousands of Israeli LGBT advocates and their supporters went on strike across the country Sunday, protesting the exclusion of gay men from a recently passed surrogacy law. Protesters marched in Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities on Sunday, waving rainbow flags and briefly blocking a major highway. The community is outraged that after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to pass legislation supporting surrogacy for gay fathers, he then voted against it, apparently under pressure from his ultra-Orthodox Jewish coalition partners. Hundreds protested near Netanyahus residence in Jerusalem. Eyal Lurie Pardes, a protester draped in a rainbow flag, chanted: We will not remain silent! Look me in the eyes and tell me I dont deserve to be a father! he said. Footage aired on Israeli TV later showed police pushing him into a police car. Israeli police said two people were detained and then released. The protest has grown into a general call for equality, following other recent controversial legislation that appeared to target Israeli liberalism. The protest has generated widespread support and hundreds of employers said they would allow employees to observe the strike without penalty. A major rally in Tel Avivs central Rabin Square is scheduled later in the day. Israel has emerged as one of the worlds most gay-friendly travel destinations in recent years, in sharp contrast to the rest of the Middle East where gays are persecuted and even killed. In Israel, homosexuals serve openly in Israels military and parliament, and many popular artists and entertainers are homosexual. However, leaders of the gay community say Israel still has far to go in promoting equality. The Red Sox were among the clubs scouting Blue Jays lefty J.A. Happ's start Sunday afternoon, according to Bob Elliott of CBC Sports. The Dodgers and Yankees were on hand as well. Toronto was taking on the Orioles over the weekend, so Boston's scouting presence could have largely focused on left-hander Zach Britton or other Orioles veterans that could be on the move in the next week. Both Toronto and Baltimore, who have each already made moves as sellers, have multiple pieces they're looking to trade before next Tuesday. Boston is known to have at least some interest in adding a starting pitcher, though Happ (one of the top options available on a weak market) might be a little too rich for the club's blood and is considered a more realistic option for the Yankees. The Sox' presence at Happ's start could just be a coincidence considering their well-known interest in Britton and the sheer volume of trade chips on the rosters of the Jays and O's. by Fern Siegel , July 23, 2018 Facebook is taking political punches from both sides. First, conservative sites claimed that Facebook's algorithm changes hit them hard. Fox host Tucker Carlson even claimed the social network has "a political agenda." Now, publishing executives have accused Facebook of being too accommodating to conservative sites. The charge came just days before company executives met with the House Judiciary in Washington, D.C. last week. The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news, noted that Facebook has been slammed for how it determines political posts. WSJ reported that Ben Smith, EIC of BuzzFeed, attended a meeting with Facebook officials. He said the social giant did not understand how the news industry operated -- based on the number of conservative outlets present -- advertisement advertisement Smith was concerned that Facebook, prompted by conservative complaints, had deemed The New York Times liberal, which demanded counterbalance by right-wing opinion outlets. In particular, he objected to The Daily Callers inclusion, since he questioned its journalistic integrity. Conversely, he said that another conservative site, The Weekly Standard, adhered to higher standards, the WSJ noted. Facebook has also been criticized for allowing Infowars, a right-wing site that deems Sandy Hook a hoax, to publish, despite its discredited conspiracy theories. John Hegeman, Facebooks chief of News Feed, said at a meeting July 11 that the company does not "take down false news." At best, it may downrank content, BuzzFeed reported. However, as part of a broader effort to stop fake news and the spread of violence, Facebook is limiting the ability of WhatsApp users to forward messages to other users. The social network is already under fire for its Cambridge Analytica data scandal. by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, July 23, 2018 The Federal Communications Commission is now accepting comments from the public about T-Mobile's proposed $26 billion acquisition of Sprint. The companies said in April that they had agreed to merge, leaving the country with only three major wireless carriers. T-Mobile and Sprint combined have around 100 million wireless customers, while Verizon has roughly 116 million and AT&T has around 93 million. T-Mobile and Sprint previously tried to join forces in 2014, when Sprint agreed to acquire T-Mobile for around $32 billion. The companies canceled their plans after federal regulators expressed antitrust concerns. The wireless companies said in a recent regulatory filing that they plan to invest nearly $40 billion to roll out a nationwide 5G network, if the merger goes through. "By 2024, the New T-Mobile network will have approximately double the total capacity and triple the total 5G capacity of T-Mobile and Sprint combined, with 5G speeds four to six times what they could achieve on their own," the carriers told the FCC. "In the face of this challenge, Verizon and AT&T will need to respond with improved and accelerated 5G network investment and deployment to the betterment of all consumers and the country." advertisement advertisement But some observers, including Senators Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) have expressed concerns that increased consolidation will lead to higher prices for consumers. The FCC's deadline for initial comments is August 27, and the agency will accept reply comments through October 9. by Larissa Faw , July 23, 2018 R/GA's Chief Creative Officer Taras Wayner is jumping to the same position at Saatchi & Saatchi New York, effective September 1. He will oversee all creative communications across the agencys client roster, which includes Walmart, Procter & Gamble, USAA and NDSS, and will play a key role in further developing the agencys creative talent. Wayner will also join Saatchi NYs leadership team, which is comprised of CEO Andrea Diquez, Chief Experience Officer Preeya Vyas, Chief Strategy Officer Wanda Pogue, chief talent officer Natalia Schultz, CMO Christine Prins and director of operations Elaine Barker. Wayner has served as R/GA's U.S. CCO since May 2017, after being promoted from executive creative director. Prior to R/GA, he created work for brands including Fox, Coca Cola, Samsung and the NFL. Wayner replaces Javier Campopiano who departed in May to rejoin the FCB network as partner, CCO for FCB Mexico. A recent genetic study finds that a type of yeast commonly used in the food industry is genetically identical to one that causes severe drug-resistant fungal infections. Scientists call for changes to be made. Share on Pinterest Candida albicans (depicted here) may be the most well-known species of pathogenic yeast. In the same way that bacteria are now starting to become resistant to antibiotics, many fungi are becoming unresponsive to antifungals. This antifungal resistance is particularly serious for people with a reduced immune system. Currently, drug-resistant yeast infections are likeliest to be caused by fungi of the genus Candida. There are five pathogenic species of Candida. The least understood, as far as genetics are concerned, is Candida krusei. By comparison, the fungus Pichia kudriavzevii is considered to be a good guy; it has been used for centuries in the manufacture of foods and as part of the fermentation process of products such as cassava, maize beverages, and fermented milk. It is generally recognized as safe by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In fact, usage of P. kudriavzevii has steadily increased over recent years thanks to its role in the production of bioethanol and other useful chemicals. Despite the importance and prevalence of both fungi mentioned above, little is known about their genetic makeup. So, a team of researchers from University College Dublin in Ireland decided to inspect their DNA in detail. What they found came as a surprise to both medical scientists and biotechnology experts. They published their findings in the journal PLOS Pathogens. Researchers in Germany have found further evidence to support the idea that Parkinsons could be an autoimmune disease. Share on Pinterest Immune cells act differently depending on whether or not a person has Parkinsons. Using a stem cell model, they showed how immune cells attacked dopamine-producing cells derived from people with Parkinsons disease but not from people without it. Dopamine is a chemical messenger that supports many important brain functions. These include functions that deal with reward, emotions, pleasure, and movement control. In Parkinsons disease, the midbrain neurons, or brain cells, that make dopamine die off. But it is not clear what causes their death. As more and more dopamine cells die, levels of the chemical messenger drop, giving rise to symptoms such as tremor, slowness, rigidity, and problems with balance. Problems with speech and swallowing also develop, as do several nonmovement symptoms. Estimates suggest that around half a million people in the United States have Parkinsons disease. Autoimmunity and Parkinsons Autoimmune diseases arise because the immune system attacks healthy organs, tissues, and cells instead of protecting them. There are at least 80 different known types of autoimmune disease, including rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, lupus, and type 1 diabetes. Although the idea that Parkinsons could be an autoimmune disease is not new, the biological evidence to back it up is only just emerging. In 2017, for instance, a study from the U.S. revealed how pieces of a protein that builds up in the dopamine cells of people with Parkinsons can trigger a deadly immune attack against the cells. More recently, scientists have linked the use of drugs that subdue the immune system to a lower risk of developing Parkinsons disease. In the new study, researchers from Friedrich-Alexander-Universitat (FAU) in Erlangen-Nurnberg, Germany, have shown that T helper 17 (Th17) cells a type of immune T cell attack dopamine cells derived from people with Parkinsons disease but not those derived from people without it. They report their findings in the journal Cell Stem Cell. Thanks to our investigations, says senior study author Beate Winner, a professor in the Department of Stem Cell Biology at FAU, we were able to clearly prove not only that [T cells] are involved in causing Parkinsons disease, but also what role they actually play. A lipoma is a lump under the skin that occurs due to an overgrowth of fat cells. Doctors consider lipomas to be benign tumors, which means that they are non-cancerous growths. However, people may wish to remove a lipoma that causes pain, complications, or other symptoms. Some people also have concerns about the cosmetic appearance of lipomas. Lipomas can occur anywhere on the body where fat cells are present, but they tend to appear on the shoulders, chest, trunk, neck, thighs, and armpits. In less common cases, they may also form in internal organs, bones, or muscles. Lipomas feel soft and may move slightly under the skin when people press down on them. They usually grow slowly over a period of months or years and typically reach a size of around 23 centimeters (cm) . Occasionally, people have giant lipomas , which can grow to more than 10 cm. In this article, we look at the causes, symptoms, and health implications of a lipoma. We also cover risk factors, diagnosis, and removal. Causes Share on Pinterest Lipomas often do not cause other symptoms. Image credit: Jmarchn, 2016 Doctors do not fully understand what causes a lipoma. Some people inherit a faulty gene from their parents that can cause one or more lipomas. This is rare and is known as familial multiple lipomatosis. Lipomas can occur more frequently in people with specific medical conditions, such as: Gardners syndrome Cowden syndrome Madelungs disease adiposis dolorosa Researchers have also suggested that some lipomas may result from an injury that involves a substantial impact on the area. Symptoms A person with a lipoma will typically feel a soft, oval-shaped lump just beneath the skin. Lipomas are usually painless unless they affect joints, organs, nerves, or blood vessels. In most cases, they do not cause other symptoms. A person with a lipoma that occurs deeper under the skin may not be able to see or feel it. However, a deep lipoma may place pressure on internal organs or nerves and cause associated symptoms. For example, a person with a lipoma on or near the bowels may experience nausea, vomiting, and constipation. Health implications Lipomas are benign masses of fat cells. However, experts disagree about whether or not lipomas have the potential to become cancerous. A cancerous mass of fat cells is known as a liposarcoma. Based on research , many experts have concluded that liposarcomas do not develop from lipomas but are, in fact, a different type of tumor. They believe that doctors sometimes mistake liposarcomas for lipomas. Conversely, other experts think that lipomas may contain both cancerous and pre-cancerous cells, but that it is extremely rare for a lipoma to become cancerous. Risk factors Share on Pinterest High cholesterol and obesity are risk factors for developing a lipoma. It is fairly common for a person to develop a lipoma. Experts estimate that around 1 percent of people have a lipoma. People who have a family relative with one or more lipomas have a higher risk of developing this condition. Lipomas are also more likely to occur in people aged between 40 and 60 years old . Other risk factors for developing a lipoma may include: obesity high cholesterol diabetes liver disease glucose intolerance When to see a doctor People should always tell their doctor if they notice changes in a lipoma or if more lumps appear. These changes might involve the lipoma: increasing in size or suddenly growing very quickly being painful becoming red or hot turning into a hard or immovable lump causing visible changes in the overlying skin Diagnosis Share on Pinterest A CT scan can help a doctor to diagnose a lipoma. Doctors can usually diagnose a lipoma with a simple physical examination. They may start by inspecting and feeling the lump. If the lipoma is large or painful, the doctor may order tests to check if it is cancerous. They may use the following tests: biopsy, where the doctor will remove a small sample of cells from the lump and examine the tissue under a microscope to look for signs of cancer ultrasound scan MRI scan CT scan When is removal necessary? Lipomas are usually harmless, so most people do not need to have surgery to remove them. People may want to remove a lipoma that: is cancerous is large or growing quickly causes bothersome symptoms, such as pain and discomfort interferes with normal body functions causes distress for cosmetic reasons the doctor is unable to confirm is a lipoma rather than another type of tumor Removal procedure A doctor can often remove a lipoma surgically. One method is to make a small cut in the skin and then squeeze out the lipoma. The person is usually under local anesthesia during the procedure and should be able to return home on the same day. A doctor may need to make a more significant incision to remove larger lipomas entirely. It is also possible to remove some lipomas using liposuction. To do this, the doctor will need to cut into the lump and insert a thin, hollow tube through the incision. They will then use the tube to suck the mass of fat cells out of the body. After surgery, the doctor will usually send the lipoma material to a laboratory for analysis. These types of operations will often only leave a small scar once the wound has healed. (WB) Members of Colectivo Unidad Color Rosa, an LGBTI advocacy group in the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula, on July 11 were sewing a transgender Pride flag for an upcoming march. On the wall behind them were the pictures of 19 local activists and community members who have been killed over the last decade. You can be killed at any moment in this extremely violent country, a lesbian activist told the Washington Blade during an interview with three others affiliated with Colectivo Unidad Color Rosa who identify themselves as transsexual women. Honduras has one of the worlds highest per capita murder rates because of violence that is frequently associated with gangs and drug traffickers. Violence and discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation remains commonplace in the Central American country that borders Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. One of the activists with whom the Blade spoke at Colectivo Unidad Color Rosa has previously received death threats. She and her three colleagues asked the Blade not to publish their names or take their pictures because of concerns over their personal safety. One of activists a trans woman said nothing has changed in San Pedro Sula since the Blade last reported from the city in February 2017. What has increased and has changed is migration, she said. There are more trans girls migrating from the country. Trans women always have poverty, insecurity The activists spoke with the Blade against lingering outrage over President Trumps zero tolerance immigration policy, which included the separation of migrant children from their parents once they entered the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen last week met with the foreign ministers of Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico in Guatemala City. She announced the creation of an office within her agency that will advise their governments about the reunification of migrant children who have been separated from their parents. The activists with whom the Blade spoke said violence and a lack of economic opportunities are the primary reasons that prompt lesbian, gay, bisexual, intersex and especially trans Hondurans to leave the country. Statistics from Cattrachas, a lesbian feminist network that is based in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, indicate 15 people have been reported killed in the country so far this year because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. A gay Honduran man seeking asylum in Mexico told the Blade on Tuesday during an interview outside a refugee center in Mexico City that he fled San Pedro Sula earlier this year after gang members attacked him. The man said the gang members also raped his friend before they killed her in front of him. The situation therefore never changes for the community, said the trans activist in San Pedro Sula who has previously received death threats. We always have poverty, insecurity for trans girls. This is the main reason for migrating. Trans woman who died in ICE custody represented a struggle The death of Roxana Hernandez a trans Honduran woman with HIV who died at a New Mexico hospital on May 25 while in ICE custody sparked outrage among advocates in Honduras and in the U.S. Hernandez, who was from the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, was in San Pedro Sula before she joined a 300-person caravan that traveled to the U.S. border. U.S. Customs and Border Protection took her into custody on May 9 when she asked for asylum at the San Ysidro Port of Entry near San Diego. Hernandezs picture is among the 19 that are on the wall at Colectivo Unidad Color Rosas offices. The four activists with whom the Blade spoke were quick to point out other trans Hondurans have also been killed after leaving the country. Roxanas case is being politicized at the moment, said the lesbian activist. It is being politicized in the sense that she represented a struggle when we were looking for martyred colleagues. Roxana became a colleague as a result, she added. There are many other colleagues as well. Activist: Honduras government has no socio-economic plan Honduran first lady Ana Garcia earlier this month visited a detention center in McAllen, Texas, after Trump issued an executive order that ended the separation of migrant children from their parents. CNN reported Garcia urged Hondurans to remain in the country and lets look for solutions to support you. Garcia on June 19 made a similar plea on her Twitter page. Dont migrate, dont risk the lives of your children on that route, she said. Avoid traumas because with the U.S. zero tolerance policy, you will be separated from your little ones when you arrive illegally. More than 30 peopled died in violent protests that took place across the country after President Juan Orlando Hernandezs disputed re-election last November. The activists in San Pedro Sula with whom the Blade spoke said it is possible the Honduran government has not explicitly criticized Trumps immigration policy because it does not want to lose U.S. aid. The U.S. Agency for International Development reports Honduras received $127,506,634 in U.S. foreign aid in fiscal year 2016. Full figures from fiscal years 2017 and 2018 are not yet available. The lesbian activist with whom the Blade spoke said the Honduran government has not implemented a socio-economic plan to benefit the population. She said the government has increased funding of the countrys Military and National Police, which have been accused of human rights violations. The lesbian activist also told the Blade a lack of legal protections for trans Hondurans and their inability to legally change the name and gender on their ID cards has also made them increasingly vulnerable to discrimination and violence. One of the trans activists noted the Honduran government does not have a plan to help LGBTI migrants. U.S. Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) last month told the Blade after he and other members of Congress traveled to South Texas there are no policies in place that specifically address the needs of LGBTI migrant children who the Trump administration separated from their parents. All four of the activists with whom the Blade spoke said they have no plans to leave Honduras in spite of the rampant violence and discrimination that exists in their country. One of the trans activists told the Blade she traveled to Mexico City three years ago to undergo cosmetic surgery. She said she returned to Honduras because her experience in the Mexican capital was very ugly. The lesbian activist said she will stay in Honduras because she has stability. I would think about leaving, about migrating, if I didnt have the stability that I have, she added. 'Christian Bale has done it again!' a line I read and write every few months. Yep, another Christian Bale transformation is upon us since he's wrapped up his latest movie and is probably planning his next movie, oh wait, actually the next shape he needs to transform into. The most extra method actor in history had packed on the pounds to play the role of Dick Cheney in the upcoming biopic 'Backseat'. He looked so unrecognizable after going from 'Batman' to 'Fatman', he even inspired a bunch of hilarious memes and further cemented my personal conspiracy theory, that he's not human but a very talented shapeshifter. Here's the happiest Christian Bale has ever looked, even though he looks like an egg. christian bale looks like a chef in a food magazine talking abt how his love of cooking helped him kick his drug addiction pic.twitter.com/mkJwwRCfJO KT NELSON (@KrangTNelson) November 15, 2017 One more meme to see the full extent of his method acting. Christian Bale is that bloke in the pub that clears the empty glasses even tho he doesn't work there. pic.twitter.com/JzQf7hhgMV Paddy (@padleyr80) November 15, 2017 But, nothing lasts forever. Christian is not Batman anymore and he's not even Fatman now. He's lost all the weight he put on and people are saying he looks like his normal self again, but I don't think this guy even has a normal self anymore. He's not average, he'll never be an average weight or build, and he fully embraces it. After all, he's the only non-human superstar in Hollywood. Backgrid Mega His ('American) Hustle' to be the best in any movie he signs and get into the skin of his character is commendable and I'm also a little conflicted. We all want him to deliver many more incredible movies, but his ever-fluctuating weight is so stressful, as he never wants to play average sized humans. Google analytics is a tricky thing and group of Redditors took it upon themselves to associate the word idiot with Donald Trump when searched. As soon as you type the word idiot, you will be greeted with numerous pictures of Donald Trump. MensXP This was possible thanks to an online campaign where many activists were unhappy with Trump's policies. The campaign manipulated Google's search algorithms and associated the word with the President of the United States. It was first sparked when a Reddit user posted Trump's image with the caption idiot. It was first reported by The Guardian and has now been trending for the past few days. What followed was an onslaught by a series of upvotes and similar posts that eventually led to being noticed by the media. The way Google image search works, it prioritises and helps compile images according to what appears in a generic Google search. India saw a similar campaign when a Google search for the name Pappu led to results depicting Rahul Gandhi's pictures. Google's each engine algorithm has come under fire in the past when a picture of a black developer and his friend was labelled as gorillas. Google fixed the issue immediately and apologised for the grave mistake. Reuters Google said in 2009 "Search engines are a reflection of the content and information that is available on the Internet. A site's ranking in Google's search results relies heavily on computer algorithms using thousands of factors to calculate a page's relevance to a given query. Activists have been trying to prolong manipulating Google's search results so that photos of Trump keep appearing when the word is searched. We can only say that it is working as we googled the word today and it still shows Donald Trump's pictures. There are many tactics involved to keep this trend going. One of the tactics used is to keep using the word idiot in the headline while using Trump's image. The more hits these articles get, the more prevalent these images will be on Google search. Just like this article you're reading right now. This method is also referred as Google Bombing and is a common practice used by online activists to get a message across. We suggest you give this a try and post your search results in the comment section below. The ministries, involved public agencies and representatives of the private sector need to coordinate their actions in order to promote the internationalization of the Greek economy, Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Giorgos Katrougalos stressed at the 3rd meeting of the Synergy Committee for Economic Diplomacy, which took place today at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with the participation of representatives of the public and private sectors. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Katrougalos added, is already working with the Ministry of Economy and Development and the Ministry of Rural Development to coordinate with private-sector organizations on a full and comprehensive presence of Greek products on the international market. Internationalization supported the Greek economy during the years of the crisis, but we need a new productive model aimed at bolstering exports and the presence of Greek enterprises in new markets, Mr. Katrougalos highlighted. The Secretary General for International Economic Relations, Ioannis Brachos, announced that, in September, a comprehensive proposal will be made to the interministerial committee on the internationalization of the Greek economy, and that this proposal will take into account the recommendations of the private-sector organizations. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Rural Development, Enterprise Greece, the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (SEV), the Greek International Business Association (SEVE), the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), the Panhellenic Exporters Association (PEA), the Federation of Hellenic Food Industries (SEVT), the Hellenic Confederation of Professionals, Craftsmen & Merchants (GSEVEE), the Greek Livestock Association (SEK), the Hellenic Association of Ship Suppliers (PSEPE), the Central Union of Chambers, and officials from the competent directorates of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Le Collectif Cheikh Yassine a organise un certain nombre dactivites et de festivites pour les enfants de Gaza sous le theme La joie des enfants de Gaza pour lAid . Ces activites ont commence le premier jour de lAid et continue jusquau 4eme jour de lAid dans la bande de Gaza. Plusieurs activites, ont ete organisees parmi lesquelles : des competitions recompensees par des prix, des jeux, des animations et des chants presentes par un groupe ainsi que des distributions de cadeaux et daides financieres. Center for Strategic & International Studies This page only broadcast when there is a live event from Center for Strategic & International Studies. Next live event: TBA Last event: July 23, 2018 - 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm ET. About: Celebrating NASA's 60th Anniversary with Administrator Jim Bridenstine - Please join the CSIS Aerospace Security Project on Monday, July 23, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of NASA's founding with Administrator Jim Bridenstine. Hear the Administrator's vision for the agency's future while honoring its decades-long history. The Administrator's address will be followed by a panel discussion featuring two of his predecessors: Sean O'Keefe and Charlie Bolden. REPLAY The National Caretaker Appreciation Day (NCAD) events held across the country from July 20 to 22 were well received and deemed very successful by organizers, industry participants, tracks, associations, and, most importantly, the caretakers. Twelve racetracks across Canada hosted events this past weekend for NCAD, a new project co-ordinated by Standardbred Canada, and announced in May of this year. Two tracks, Clinton and Dresden Raceways in Ontario, have rescheduled their events to next Sunday, July 29 as racing was cancelled due to inclement weather. Several tracks that do not operate in the summer are already in the planning stages for fall events. Given the amazing responses and positive feedback weve received, we are hoping this will be an annual event, said Kathy Wade Vlaar, Manager of Industry Marketing. How great was it to hear the names of the people who spend the most time with the horses announced in post parades and winners circle celebrations? A huge thanks to everyone who helped to make this event the success it was! Sarah Lauren Scott, who worked with SC to get the initiative off of the ground, was the primary organizer of the Woodbine Mohawk Park event. I am so honoured to be a part of this special achievement, said Scott. Having been a caretaker for many years, I felt passionate about assisting any way I could. I am my toughest critic, and then I read a comment on social media that read, the feeling in the paddock was electric, and I felt completely satisfied. Congratulations to all caretakers and this years award recipients. I also have to thank all of the race sponsors, gift donors and volunteers we had to make the evening run smoothly; we couldnt have done it without you! Marissa Klein at Century Downs (Photo courtesy Century Downs / Facebook) Caretakers, the foundation of our industry, were recognized and rewarded in many different ways at the racetracks, and many put their own unique touches on their events but most featured: Recognition of all caretakers racing horses on the days card announcement of names during post parades and or winners circle; group photos of caretakers Awards or prizes for caretakers of winning horses Refreshments and a gift for all caretakers racing on the days card Recognition certificates, draw prizes and more In the paddock at Red Shores Racetrack & Casino at Charlottetown Driving Park (Photo courtesy Frankie L) Participating tracks this past weekend included Century Downs Racetrack & Casino, Grand River Raceway, Hanover Raceway, Hiawatha Horse Park, Hippodrome 3R, Kawartha Downs, Northside Downs, Red Shores Charlottetown Driving Park and Summerside locations, Rideau Carleton Raceway, Truro Raceway and Woodbine Mohawk Park. Heres what some of the caretakers had to say about the events that took place: Why do we do it? Its because as caretakers, we deeply care about the racehorse itself and obviously we love what we do. Without our caretakers, our industry wouldnt exist. It was great to have the support of local business and horsemen to put the event forth. A special thanks to Chantel and Arleen Gillis for their volunteer efforts in making sure our caretakers were looked after on National Caretaker Appreciation Day. Tammy MacKay (Facebook) I was lucky enough to be in the Woodbine Mohawk Park paddock during National Caretaker Appreciation Day. It wasnt like all the other Saturday nights I have been there, there was a buzz in the air, it was special. That little bit of recognition each caretaker received for all their hours of hard work was extraordinary. Sarah Scott deserves a huge shout out for all the work she put into making the evening extra special for all of us. It will only get bigger and better in the coming years. Thank you! Ben Hollingsworth Behind the scenes is hard work. All caretakers sure are the unsung heroes. Until you are one, you have no idea how much they do. Nicole D. (Twitter) We all are lucky to work with these amazing animals. Lynn Cameron (Facebook) Today the owner of the farm where I work gave me a bonus, with a card saying, Happy National Caretaker Appreciation Day! I appreciate everything you do! And I really appreciated that! Heather H. "Caretaker Day at Century Downs went very well and the gift bags that were handed out to the grooms whose horses won was such a good touch." Ashley Hudon An awesome job tonight making sure everyone that is involved day in and day out got appreciated for what they do!!! Dawn Ellis Truro (Facebook) Grand River Raceway held a Caretaker Bouncy Pony Race, which appears below. New Image Media has posted photos from the event on its Facebook page. Click here to view. Standardbred Canada would like to extend its thanks and appreciation to all of the racetracks, associations, sponsors and supporters that participated in the initiative. The sudden death of horseman Mario Lachance, 57, has left friends, family and the Quebec racing community reeling. Lachance had competed as recently as Thursday night (July 19) at Rideau Carleton Raceway, where he won with Orlys Dream, a five-year-old trotter that he also trained. He told people after the race he wasnt feeling right, that he had pain in the abdomen, brother-in-law Daniel Surprenant said. Lachance returned home to Mirabel and shortly after went to the hospital in nearby St. Eustache, where he was released after an initial examination. He returned a few hours later, in greater pain, and underwent an emergency operation, then was transferred to the Montreal Heart Institute, where he passed away on the operating table. Were floored... devastated, said Surprenant. Son of hall-of-fame horseman Gilles Lachance, Mario never sought the spotlight, but enjoyed a long and productive career at Hippodrome de Montreal, training and driving horses like Reddy Almahurst, Natchez Hanover, Dandy Loup, Schnockered and Beagle Bay. He was the regular driver in Quebec of sires-stakes star Val Taurus, whose two-year unbeaten streak in the province included the $100,000 Coupe de LAvenir for trotters in 2006 and $200,000 Coupe des Eleveurs in 2007. Mario was a trotting guy. He knew how to adjust them, Surprenant said. Lachance and his wife of more than 30 years, Lynda Fortin, also were distinguished breeders. Their blueblood was mare ML Majo, whose offspring collected more than $1.2 million. In one remarkable stretch, from 2001 to 2003, three of their ML Majo mares (from three different sires) won Quebecs biggest race for older Quebec-bred pacing mares, the Prix du Quebec. Majo Maly (by Flight of Fire) did it in 2001, Majo Full Hot (by Lantern Light) in 2002, and Majo Nad (by Shipps Purser) in 2003. Another ML Majo filly, Majo Elika (by Yankee Cam), won the $100,000 Coupe des Eleveurs final for them in 2003, the year they were honoured by the provincial horsemens association as Quebecs outstanding breeders. Majo Nad earned $346,053 in her career, Majo Full Hot $343,150, Majo Maly $310,987 and Majo Elika $247,042. The collapse of the Quebec racing industry 10 years ago ended the prosperous years in the sport for Lachance, and he drove a truck for a while to make ends meet while continuing to train horses on the side. He returned to training full-time this past winter, as he oversaw a stable of 10 horses, most of which are owned by Surprenant. Sons Jonathan and Matthieu helped out at the barn, and father Gilles was a regular visitor. He died doing what he loved, Surprenant said. Funeral details have been released and can be accessed by clicking here. Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Mario Lachance. (A Trot Insider Exclusive by Paul Delean) (In an effort to consolidate comments on topics, if you would like to offer condolences, please do so by clicking here) BAD AXE You wont want to miss the longest continually running fair in Michigan, July 29 through Aug. 4. Its the Huron Community Fairs sesquicentennial. We, of course, are all about ag and kids and family fun, said Fair Board President Clark Brock. And were just so proud that its been going on 150 years. To our knowledge, its the oldest continually running fair in the state, he added. Tuesday night, fireworks will be among events celebrating the sesquicentennial. Other new things this year at the fair include a chain saw carver Monday through Thursday. The Merchants Building will showcase memorabilia from fairs past. Were still looking for fair memorabilia, historical artifacts or pictures that we would like to display, Brock said. A mime will return this year, and fair-goers can also expect a visit from Sparty, the Michigan State University mascot. Although the fair has been conducted in Huron County since 1868, Brock said it hasnt always been at its current location at 155 Fair St. in Bad Axe. He has no records from the first fair, but fair old timers have informed Brock that various locations throughout the county, including Verona, have hosted the fair over the years. The fair kicks off Sunday with the Indian Trail Rodeo at the Grandstand, the 4-H horse show, opening ceremony and Livestock Judging Contest. Monday through Saturday, check out the Miracle of Life tent and the Elkton Lions bingo tent. Monday will feature the rabbit show, horse show, sheep show, dog and cat show and 4-H ambassador inductions. Tuesday is kids day, and the midway opens. Other action includes the swine show, horse show, dairy show, family fun night, and Huco Talent Extravaganza, featuring The Flashbacks and Team Tug of War. Tuesday through Friday, you can participate in Wow Balls on Water, Safari Animal Show and Public Participation Backhoe Rodeo. On Wednesday, dont miss the prospect feeder show, horse show, poultry show, Senior Health Expo, Combine Demolition Derby and Spring Street Boys. Thursdays action includes the market beef show, special needs kids event, goat show, entertainer DeWayne Spaw and Super Kicker Rodeo and Barrel Racing. Fridays events include the Junior Livestock Association sale, Draft Horse Clinic, Small Livestock Sweepstakes Contest, Redneck Truck Races and Racing Backhoes. Saturday will wind up the weeks action with the Small Livestock Association Sale, Antique Tractor Show, Junior Livestock Association Sweepstakes Contest, draft horse show, tractor pull and kids drawing. For a full schedule of events, visit huroncommunityfair.com. Admission at the gate is $5, and children ages 10 and under get in for free. Ride bracelets are $18, and the grandstand has separate fees. Parking is free. Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh, President Donald Trumps nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, has a sparse track record on affirmative action and racial preferences. But the few clues that exist are not likely to give much comfort to those who believe that pursuing racial diversity in education is a compelling governmental interest. The stakes are high. The Trump administration this month rescinded Obama-era guidance that emphasized permissible ways for schools and colleges to take race into account to promote student diversity, prompting renewed debate on the issue. A major lawsuit against Harvard University on behalf of Asian-American applicants challenging admissions preferences for other minority group members is moving toward a trial, with the case expected to eventually reach the Supreme Court. Progressive groups such as the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and the Alliance for Justice have all suggested in their rhetoric that Kavanaugh has shown a hostility to civil rights, including on affirmative action, but they havent yet addressed the topic in detail. David Cole, the legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union, which doesnt take positions on Supreme Court nominees, wrote in The New York Review of Books this month that one key question for Kavanaugh is whether he believes that public colleges and universities have a compelling interest in ensuring that they have diverse student bodies. If Kavanaugh is unwilling to recognize the long-established principle that diversity is a compelling interest, he may provide the fifth vote to end affirmative action, wrote Cole, who noted that retiring Justice Anthony M. Kennedy was the fifth vote to uphold such a program. Kennedy, whom Kavanaugh would succeed if he is confirmed by the U.S. Senate, was deeply skeptical of government racial preferences during his time on the bench, but his views were nuanced. Kennedy joined a 2007 decision striking down voluntary race-conscious school district plans for the assignment of students. But he wrote a concurrence that said districts could still take limited steps to achieve a racially diverse student population. And while Kennedy typically called for racial preferences in higher education to undergo the most exacting judicial scrutiny, he was the key vote in 2016 to uphold a race-conscious college admissions program. Kavanaugh hasnt ruled on such policies during his 12 years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. But there are a handful of clues that legal observers are pointing to that offer some insights into Kavanaughs views on racial preferences. Last year, in a speech at Notre Dame law school , Kavanaugh briefly addressed the 14th Amendment and affirmative action. The Supreme Court has recognized a basic equal protection right not to be treated differ-ently by the government on account of your race, he said. But there is a long-standing exception for affirmative action, at least in the realm of higher education. Kavanaugh then described how the high court has battled in cases about racial preferences in admission over the level of scrutiny to apply and whether such preferences constitute a compelling governmental interest. He said that in its higher education admissions cases in 1978s Regents of the University of California v. Bakke and since then, the court found that ensuring diversity is a compelling interest but remedying the effects of past societal racial discrimination is not a compelling interest. In those cases, the court also battles over whether the affirmative action program is narrowly tailored to promote the states interest in ensuring diversity, Kavanaugh continued. On what basis is the court making those decisions? Is there something in the text of the Constitution that tells us one is good enough and the other is not good enough? Not really. Kavanaughs remarks werent a harsh slam against race-conscious programs, but his language is not likely to give much comfort to proponents of affirmative action, either. A Case on Hawaiian Ancestry Legal observers are also looking back nearly two decades ago, to a brief Kavanaugh co-wrote in a case about a racial classification in voting. In 1999, Kavanaugh, then a lawyer in private practice, helped write a friend-of-the-court brief in a Supreme Court case about a classification based on ancestry adopted by the state of Hawaii for who could vote for the trustees of a state agency called the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. The case of Rice v. Cayetano involved a constitutional challenge to a provision of the Hawaii Constitution that permitted only those citizens descended from people who inhabited the Hawaiian Islands in 1778 to vote for the trustees of the agency that administered benefits for that group (which included a subset viewed by the state as native Hawaiians). This courts cases establish that the equal protection clause prohibits racial classification except when such classifications are necessary and narrowly tailored to serve a compelling government interest, said the brief filed by Kavanaugh in 1999 on behalf of the Center for Equal Opportunity and three other parties opposed to racial preferences. Outside of an immediate threat to life or limb, as in a prison race riot, a compelling government interest exists only when the government has imposed the racial classification as a remedy for past, identified discrimination in that jurisdiction and field (such as discrimination in the schools in a particular jurisdiction), the brief said. Kavanaugh, then a lawyer with the firm Kirkland & Ellis, was the counsel of record for the brief. But he had some distinguished help. Robert H. Bork, whose Supreme Court nomination under President Ronald Reagan went down to defeat in 1987, was one co-author. Another was Theodore W. Ullyot, then a young law firm associate of Kavanaughs who later went on to serve as general counsel of Facebook. And the fourth author was Roger Clegg of the Center for Equal Opportunity, a Washington policy organization that frequently expresses views against affirmative action. As for how much of this brief was Bretts work and how much was that of the other three authors, I do not recall, Clegg said in an interview. I can say that this is a case where the Center for Equal Opportunity would have had substantial input. Were opposed to racial preferences in all areas. The challengers in the Rice case were represented by Theodore B. Olson, a future U.S. solicitor general, while John G. Roberts Jr., the future U.S. chief justice, argued for the state in defense of its voting classification. Another amicus brief came from the Kamehameha Schools, the prestigious private school established to serve children of Hawaiian descent, which feared the implications a ruling against the restrictive voting policy might have for its own admissions policy. (The schools policy was challenged on equal-protection grounds a few years later, but upheld by a federal appeals court.) Citations in Later School Cases In its 2000 decision in Rice , the high court held 7-2 that the state was using Hawaiian ancestry as a proxy for race, and that allowing only the states defined group of Hawaiians to vote in the trustee elections was an unconstitutional racial classification. Kennedy wrote the opinion for five members of the majority. Language from Kennedys majority opinion in Rice would find its way into some of the courts later decisions on race preferences in K-12 and higher education. In 2007, in Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District , the court invalidated two school districts voluntary race-conscious student assignment plans. Roberts wrote a plurality opinion that said there were undeniable costs to racial classifications. He quoted from decision in the Hawaiian voting case he had lost as an advocate. As the court explained in Rice ... , one of the principal reasons race is treated as a forbidden classification is that it demeans the dignity and worth of a person to be judged by ancestry instead of by his or her own merit and essential qualities, Roberts wrote, quoting Kennedys opinion in the Hawaii case. In 2016, in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin (Fisher II) , in which the court upheld (in an opinion by Kennedy) the universitys race-conscious admissions plan, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote a vigorous dissent that quoted a passage from Kennedys opinion in Rice: Given our constitutional commitment to the doctrine of equality, distinctions between citizens solely because of their ancestry are by their very nature odious to a free people. The internal quotations in that passage are, as Kennedy acknowledged in his Rice opinion, from Hirabayashi v. United States , a 1943 decision which despite that lofty language upheld a curfew for people of Japanese ancestry living near designated military areas based on the wartime need to protect against espionage and sabotage. (The better-known decision in Korematsu v. United States, in 1944, upheld the internment of people of Japanese ancestry.) Kennedy, when writing the opinion in Rice, probably did not need to rely on the briefs to find the odious to a free people passage from Hirabayashi. But both Olson, in the challengers brief, and Kavanaugh and his co-authors, in the CEO brief, made sure to point it out to the court. Clegg, who supports Kavanaughs nomination, says the fact that Kavanaugh was willing to write a brief with these arguments is a mark in his favor, but I dont know how much can be concluded about his own views on racial preferences. Its possible that more clues about Kavanaughs views on affirmative action will emerge. In 2003, the Supreme Court considered race-conscious admissions plans at the University of Michigan, striking down a system awarding extra points for undergraduate applicants from underrepresented racial groups (in Gratz v. Bollinger ) but upholding the law schools consideration of race as part of an individualized review of each applicant (in Grutter v. Bollinger ). Kavanaugh was serving in the White House counsels office under President George W. Bush at a time when the Bush administration filed a brief that opposed both of the universitys admissions programs at issue. Its possible Kavanaugh may have chimed in with views and advice in those cases, in which Bush took a special interest. Senate Republicans and Democrats are still fighting over the scope of documents from Kavanaughs White House service that will be released as part of his confirmation process. A few weeks ago, I noticed the heavy traffic on Interstate 95 north, especially on Friday afternoons. My assumption is that many are headed to The Cape. Now that summer has arrived, generations of families who have vacationed at the seashore towns that comprise Cape Cod are making their way back. It is known for its hundreds of miles of beaches, lighthouses, scenic views of the Atlantic Ocean, spectacular sunsets, waterfowl and seabirds, and rustic architecture. When it comes to food, it is there too; from the freshest seafood to fine dining with an ocean view, to clam shacks serving up some of the best fried clams. How about a tour of a cranberry bog, visiting a winery, sampling locally grown foods at a farmers market, or a tour of the Cape Cod Potato Chip factory? You are bound to find culinary experiences to savor at the Cape. The food scene reflects the spirit of the people who live there, and their many cultures and cuisines. Culinary traditions exist, however, from what I read in Great Food Finds: Cape Cod by John F. Carafoli (2018, Globe Pequot, $24.95) there is a dynamic food and dining evolution taking place; from the finest white tablecloth restaurants to homey mom and pop cafes, and chic new eateries. This is the book to bring with you to guide you to new places to eat and bring back home so you can recreate the recipes from the regions most celebrated eateries. You will find not only recipes, but stories about the restaurants, information about local food entrepreneurs, kitchen and gourmet food stores, clambakes, fishermen, and farms. Check out these recipes from a couple of the restaurants in the book. For the recipes for The Glass Onions (37 North Main St., Falmouth, Mass., 508-540-3730 www.theglassoniondining.com ) Lobster Strudel and Hangar B Eaterys (240 George Ryder Road at the Chatham airport, Chatham, Mass., 508-593-3655 www.hangarbcapecod.com ) Lemon Ricotta Pancakes, please visit https://bit.ly/2lCLiQS Lobster Trap Crab Cake The headnote says, The Lobster Trap (290 Shore Road, Bourne, Mass., 508-759-7600 www.lobstertrap.net) was founded in 1969 as a fish market in Bourne. Dave Delaney started working as a chef in 1998 for the previous owners when the owner decided to expand and open a restaurant. Dave bought the establishment in 2003, enlarged the restaurant, started a catering business, and formed a distribution company that serves restaurants and markets worldwide. We are committed to providing guests with the best possible products we can source, prepared with care and served with pride. After all, this isnt just a job for us, its a way of life, he said. The Lobster Shack is a true Cape Cod experience. One can take the view of Buzzards Bay, the Back River, and surrounding saltwater marshes, while having a cold brew or margarita at the bar or lunch or dinner in the large dining room. 1 pound jumbo lump crab meat red pepper, diced small green pepper, diced small red onion, diced small 5 ounces crushed Ritz crackers 3 ounces panko bread crumbs bunch cilantro, chopped fine bunch scallions, chopped fine 2 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard cup mayonnaise Salt and pepper to taste Fold all ingredients together and make cakes. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 350F oven for 10 minutes. Serves 4 Place each crab cake on a plate, drizzle with avocado cream, and top with the mango salsa. For Avocado Cream: 2 ripe avocados, peeled and pitted 14 cup sour cream Juice of 1 lime Salt and pepper to taste Place ingredients into food processor or blender and blend until smooth. For Mango Salsa: 12 ripe mango, skin removed, diced small 12 red pepper, diced small 12 green pepper, diced small 14 red onion, diced small 12 bunch cilantro 12 bunch scallions Mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl. Chatham Littleneck Clams in Portuguese Kale Stew The headnote says, Sue Connors and Ann Feeley have created a charming restaurant (Pisces, 2653 Main St., Route 28, 508-432-4600, www.piscesofchatham.com ) with a cozy five-seat bar Ihe seaside town of Chatham. Wainscoting on the wall is topped with original artworks by local artists. With dishes like pan-roasted Chatham littleneck clams and lobster ravioli, its clear that they have taken the restaurants motto, All good things come to the coast, to heart. 2 tablespoons canola or olive oil 1/3 cup diced onions 1 teaspoon chopped garlic Pinch crushed red pepper flakes 1 bay leaf 34 cup sliced Portuguese chorizo 34 cup peeled, diced carrots 34 cup diced red potatoes, skin on 1 (24-ounce) bottle clam juice or lobster stock 1 bunch kale, washed, dried, stemmed, and leaves coarsely chopped 12 cup canned cannellini beans, rinsed and drained 13 cup diced fresh tomatoes 32 littleneck clams, shells scrubbed in cold water to remove sand Focaccia or other rustic Italian bread, sliced thick Softened Garlic Butter or olive oil Heat the oil in an 8-quart, straight-sided saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, just until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, and bay leaf; cook 1 minute more. Add the chorizo and cook until it begins to release some of its oil, then add the carrots and potatoes and continue cooking until vegetables begin to soften. Add the clam juice or lobster stock, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Stir in the kale, beans, and tomatoes and when mixture returns to a boil, lower the heat so the stew simmers until the kale turns dark green and is very tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Arrange the clams in a single layer over the stew and cover tightly with a lid or foil. Let the clams steam until they open, 5 to 10 minutes. (Discard any clams that do not open.) Taste the broth and adjust seasoning, adding a little more water if its too salty. To assemble the dish: Use tongs to divide the clams among warm shallow pasta bowls and ladle the stew over them. Serve with bread for dipping, brushed with garlic butter or oil and toasted or grilled if desired. Serves 4 as an appetizer or 2 as a main course. DESPERATELY SEEKING Alice Lei of New Haven wrote, I regularly read your column in the New Haven Register. Would you kindly answer the following questions? How does one soften white granulated sugar that has hardened like a rock? Church members, years ago had a recipe for cranberry sauce that includes walnuts and maybe orange zest. It was delicious. Chilis in East Haven has a very good salad dressing. Is it possible for you to get the recipe? Alice, thanks for your requests. Lets see if any readers can help out. Perhaps they have a hint to for you sugar question and a recipe for the cranberry sauce. I will try to track down the salad dressing recipe; perhaps someone out there has this recipe. What chef would you like me to interview? Which restaurant recipes or other recipes would you like to have? Which food products are you having difficulty finding? Do you have cooking questions? Send them to me: Stephen Fries, professor and coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College, at gw-stephen.fries@gwcc.commnet.edu or Dept. FC, Gateway Community College, 20 Church St., New Haven, 06510. Include your full name, address and phone number. (Due to volume, I might not be able to publish every request. For more, go to stephenfries.com.) CULINARY CALENDAR Summer BBQ with views of the Middletown fireworks. July 7 (rain date July 8), reservations begin at 5:30 pm; fireworks at 9pm. $65 per person. Mattabesett Canoe Club, 80 Harbor Drive, Middletown. Seafood appetizer station, carving station, barbecue pork ribs, chicken and all the fixings, build your own strawberry shortcake. More info and reservations 860-347-9999 www.canoeclubmiddletown.com Kids Cooking Camp-Ciao Italia: July 9 through 13, 10 a.m. to noon, Chefs Emporium, 449 Boston Post Road, Orange, $200. Reservations 203-799-2665. During this 5-day camp experience, your young chef (ages 5-11) will participate in hands-on classes under guidance of expert chef instructors. Campers will be creating and eating recipes each day that focus on Italian foods. Same class is offered for teens from 1 to 3 p.m. For menu and other kids cooking camps visit https://bit.ly/2kwz1hm. Food Networks Chopped, features Consiglios Chef Danny Brelsford. Tune in and watch Danny compete on Food Network on July 17 at 9p.m. On July 18, at 6:30 p.m., at Consiglios, 165 Wooster St., New Haven, a special demonstration cooking class and 4-course dinner will be held, using some of the secret ingredients Chef Danny was presented on the show. $75 (beverages, tax and gratuity not included) Flights of Fancy, July 19, 4:30to 8 p.m. $20, includes commemorative wine glass. An evening of shopping, wine and food tastings, in-store discounts, free parking York Street Garage, exciting raffle prizes, and special gifts for attendees. A welcome party at The Study Hotel, 1157 Chapel St., New Haven. Tickets and more details at https://bit.ly/2JwaFSF Worth Tasting Culinary Walking Tour: 10:45 a.m. July 21, four-hour culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven. 8-9 stops at some of New Havens favorites. You wont be hungry after this tour. Reservations required, tickets at https://bit.ly/2FjiwMP 203-415-3519, 203-777-8550, $64. Consiglios Cooking Demonstration and Dinner: July 26, 6:30 p.m., Consiglios Restaurant, 165 Wooster St., New Haven, 203-865-4489 (reservations required), $75 (beverages, tax and gratuity not included). Learn how to make tuna and white bean bruschetta, tomato, watermelon, creamy burrata salad, boneless beef short ribs, balsamic barbecue, profiteroles. The fair and carnival season is in full swing. Summer is a time for ice cream, trips to the beach, amusement parks, fairs and carnivals. As I drive along the highways in the evening, I cant help but see all of the lights from roller coasters, Ferris wheels, carousels, and thrill rides that temporary amusement parks set up, usually in large parking lots alongside highways. State, county and country fairs are plentiful too. As I pass these venues, I think about the scent of the various foods that permeate the surroundings, especially fried and grilled foods. The food selection is more diverse than ever before, ranging from timeless classics such as apple pie, usually served a la mode, kettle corn and corn dogs you know those corn-battered hot dogs fried and served on a stick and of course, fried dough and funnel cakes with berries and whipped cream, to new inventions like spicy peanut butter and jelly cheeseburgers (no, I havent tried one yet) and fried Coca Cola; the latter was created in 2006 for the Texas State Fair and now sold at many state fairs throughout the country. Thanks to George Geary, author of Fair Foods: The Most Popular and Offbeat Recipes from Americas State & County Fairs (2017, Santa Monica Press, $24.95) you wont have to wait until fair season to enjoy your favorites. A former pastry chef for the Walt Disney Co., it is he who created a corn dog recipe for the company when Disneyland hosted a country fair-themed week. He is perhaps best known for creating all of the cheesecakes for The Golden Girls and other top-rated television programs. Geary said, for 28 seasons, I was involved in the largest county fair in the country: the Los Angeles County Fair. During that time, I watched as the focus of the fair moved from blue ribbons and homemade pie bake-offs to the rows and rows of vendors that now hawk crazy food combinations. Around 1980, classic fair food began to evolve from cotton candy and snow cones to bacon-wrapped doughnuts fried in pork belly fat. Not all the food sold at the fair is fried, but the motto of todays country fair might as well be, just fry it! I found Gearys description of how county fairs have evolved quite interesting. He writes, county fairs were originally designed for farmers to show off their crops and livestock while their wives competed for the title of best pie maker in the county. Todayespecially in big cities, the livestock shows have moved out of the spotlight, and food competitions are becoming scarce, too. I have observed this trend over the years; those visiting the livestock barns and viewing the largest pumpkin and best crops are diminishing, instead they are waiting on endless lines to eat fair food and experience thrill rides. If you have a craving for fair food, here are a couple of recipes from the book. For the recipe for deep- fried strawberries, please visit https://bit.ly/2ujkBoR. Check out dates for some of Connecticuts fairs and festivals here: https://bit.ly/2mbn7cm. Triple Cheeseburger Doughnuts This was first served at the Iowa State Fair. 1 pounds ground grass-fed chuck (80% lean) Garlic salt Sea salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoons canola oil 6 slices American cheese 2 large glazed doughnuts, split in half Divide the ground meat into 6 equal portions. Form each portion loosely into a inch-thick burger and make a deep depression in the center of the patties with your thumb. Season both sides of each burger with garlic salt, sea salt, and pepper. In a grill pan on high heat, bring oil to almost shimmering. Cook the burgers until golden brown on the first side, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook for 3 additional minutes for medium rare. Dont press meat down while cooking. Top with cheese. Toast doughnut halves by placing them on a hot grill pan or grill, cut side down. Add any desired condiments to the doughnuts. Sandwich burger patties between doughnut halves and serve. Makes 2 triple cheeseburgers. Deep-Fried Twinkies The headnote says, The Texas State Fair was the first to offer this sinful treat. 6 Twinkies 3 cups all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons granulated sugar 3 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda teaspoon sea salt 1 cup buttermilk cup whole milk 3 large eggs 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Canola oil Confectioners sugar Skewer each Twinkie and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze for 2 hours. Meanwhile, prepare the batter: in a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, whole milk, eggs, and melted butter. Pour into flour mixture and blend just until smooth. In a Dutch oven, heat two inches of canola oil over medium heat to 375 degrees. Working with two at a time, dip the Twinkies into the batter until fully coated. Place in hot oil, turning after a few seconds until all sides have reached a light brown color, about 4-6 minutes. Drain on paper towels, then dust with confectioners sugar. What chef would you like me to interview? Which restaurant recipes or other recipes would you like to have? Which food products are you having difficulty finding? Do you have cooking questions? Send them to me: Stephen Fries, professor and coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College, at gw-stephen.fries@gwcc.commnet.edu or Dept. FC, Gateway Community College, 20 Church St., New Haven, 06510. Include your full name, address and phone number. (Due to volume, I might not be able to publish every request. For more, go to stephenfries.com.) Contributed photo / OLD SAYBROOK The Old Saybrook Chamber of Commerce will host the 55th Annual Old Saybrook Arts & Crafts Festival, SAturday and Sunday. The festival is held annually on the Old Saybrook Town Green, 302 Main St. Known as one of the longest-running art shows in New England, the juried show features outstanding art and crafts from nearly 150 exhibitors, representing 15 categories: fine art, acrylics, ceramics/pottery, graphics, fiber, mixed media, glass, oils, jewelry, pastels, leather, photography, metal, sculpture and wood. The festival is sponsored by Liberty Bank. Middletown police report the following arrests: THREATENING: Jordan J. Dacosta, 25, of Traverse Square was charged with interfering with an officer, disorderly conduct, second-degree threatening and possession of less than half an ounce of marijuana July 14 following a domestic incident. During the investigation, police said Dacosta fled on foot twice, and, when found, was carrying 3.7 grams of marijuana in his pocket. Earlier that night, Dacosta had a dispute with a victim after the victim unknowingly ran over his phone with a car, according to the report. Dacosta was released on a $5,000 bond and issued a July 23 court date. DISORDERLY CONDUCT: Emily A. Duda, 30, of Atkins Street was charged with disorderly conduct July 15 following a domestic incident. Police said Duda was arguing with a victim over everything money, work and chores and the dispute escalated into Duda knocking over household items then stepping on broken glass and injuring her foot. Both were drinking alcohol, officials said. She was released on a promise to appear in court Aug. 17. VIOLATION RESTRAINING ORDER: Aaron S. Lehet, 28, of Erin Street was charged with felony violation of a restraining order July 15 after repeatedly texting a protected individual, according to a report. He was released on a $5,000 bond and expected back in court Sept. 10. FUGITIVE: Raphael Mark, 62, of Rose Hill Road, Portland, was arrested on a felony warrant from Rhode Island police for obtaining money under false pretense July 13 after a motor vehicle stop on Grand Street. Mark is being held without bond for a July 30 court date. VIOLATION PROBATION: David E. Scranton, 52, of Washington Street was charged with failure to submit to fingerprinting and violation of probation July 13 after police picked him up on a warrant. Scranton allegedly refused to be fingerprinted or photographed during the booking process. He has another case pending in court for the charges of sixth-degree larceny, second-degree threatening and failure to comply with fingerprinting. Scranton was released on a promise to appear in court Aug. 23. ASSAULT: Benjamin Alvarado, 28, of Pond Meadow Road, Deep River, was charged with breach of peace, third-degree assault and first-degree unlawful restraint July 14 after allegedly accosting a person on Main Street. Alvarado is accused of grabbed a person waiting for the crosswalk, pinned the victims arms and accused the victim of stealing his watch. During the assault, Alvarado reportedly dragged the victim as she struggled to get free. Bystanders helped her escape, officials said. Police apprehended him shortly afterward, and, during the booking process, Alvarado allegedly said, he was playing rugby with her and the encounter was consensual. He was released on a promise to appear in court Aug. 7. INTERFERING: Nicholas M. Fairchild, 23, of Durham Road, Madison, was charged with interfering with an officer and failure to allow fingerprinting July 14 following a fight on Meadowood Drive. Police said witnesses told them a one-legged man and woman had instigated the argument and a car fled the scene, hitting a parked car. Neighbors allegedly told officers he and the woman, Sierra Wilson-Gowac, 22, of North Woods, Moodus, had run into the woods. The car the two were in was registered to Fairchild, who had a prosthetic leg, the report said. Authorities found them hiding in the bushes and they refused to come out, according to the report. Fairchild was confrontational and seemed to be spitting toward police, authorities said. They were both arrested. Wilson-Gowac, who is accused of punching a homeowner in the face during the dispute, was charged with interfering with an officer, second-degree breach of peace and third-degree assault. She was released on a $10,000 bond for a July 27 return date. Fairchild was released on a $5,000 bond for a July 26 court date. DISORDERLY CONDUCT: Tysnick D. Hoggard, 26, of Glover Place was charged with second-degree criminal mischief and disorderly conduct July 15 following a fight between a man and woman near Taco Bell on Washington Street. The womans $1,000 cellphone was broken in the argument, the report said. Hoggard has several other cases pending in court for violations, including possession with intent to sell, interfering with an officer and larceny. He was released on a $5,000 bond for an Aug. 2 return date. LARCENY: Matthew W. Phillips, 30, of Longate Road, Clinton, was charged with sixth-degree larceny July 10 after allegedly stealing three packs of cigarettes worth $15 from an individuals bag at Gilead Community Services on Silver Street. Phillips was released on a promise to appear in court July 24. MERIDEN Mary Daugherty Abrams, endorsed Democratic candidate for state Senate, has earned the support of all Democratic Town Committee in the 13th Senate District. The seat is now held by Sen. Len Suzio, R-Meriden, who is running for re-election. I could no longer stand by while our most vulnerable populations continue to be at increased risk, said Abrams. We need a state senator who will fight for womens rights, access to health care, and work to end inhumane immigration policies, she said in a press release. In May, Abrams received the endorsement of the delegation for the 13th District, and, in June, all four Democratic town committees: Middletown, Meriden, Cheshire and Middlefield, according to the release. Abrams will face Meriden Democrat Alex Tiktinsky in the Aug. 14 Democratic primary election. The 13th District deserves a senator that accurately represents the views of its residents on issues such as health care, workers rights and the environment, Millie Torres-Ferguson, chairwoman of the Meriden Democratic Town Committee, said in the statement. There is no more pivotal and critical state senate seat that we change this year than the 13th Senate District, Middletown Democratic Town Committee Chairman, Robert Blanchard said in the release. As we have learned over the last several weeks, elections have consequences. Mary Abrams will be a strong, vocal advocate for all residents of the 13th senate district, Blanchard said. Abrams has also received the endorsements of the Working Families Party, Connecticut ALF-CIO, CSEA SEIU, and the political action organization Politica, according to the statement. She is an educator, wife, mother and grandmother who has lived in the 13th District for most of her life. Abrams is a graduate of Maloney High School and Southern Connecticut State University. MIDDLETOWN Visitors to Vets Pool and Crystal Lake may notice something new this season upon entering the venues. Each location has a digital display board which provides information about dangerous UV (ultraviolet) levels in real time. The display, manufactured by SOLaware Technologies, is a modular sun safety education system that is designed to educate about the danger of unprotected sun exposure, the appropriate use of sun screen and other preventative steps to lower the risk of skin cancer. The displays are jointly sponsored by the Middletown Health Department and Middlesex Hospital Cancer Center. Louis Carta, Community Health Educator, Middletown Health Department said that skin cancer prevention is a primary public health initiative. With the incidence of skin cancer on the rise, our goal is to encourage the use of sunscreen and other protective measures, especially during the summer months. Having these displays at the point of exposure will help remind everyone about the importance of using sunscreen and applying it as needed, said Carta in a written statement. The Middlesex Hospital Cancer Center always encourages sun safety. Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States and is caused by too much exposure to UV rays. The good news is that you can do a lot to protect yourself and your family from UV rays, says Justin Drew, director of the Middlesex Hospital Cancer Center. The SOLaware Tech system will help provide real-time feedback to families about current sun exposure risks, which increases awareness and prompts action to reduce that risk. Middletown joins Darien, North Haven, Wallingford and other communities utilizing the SOLaware displays this summer. SOLaware Technologies mission is to raise awareness about sun exposure via digital technologies. For more information about sun safety and skin cancer, contact Middlesex Hospital Cancer Center at 860-358-2000. Girls in Science camp has openings MIDDLETOWN A few openings remain for the Girls in Science" camp program on Aug. 6-10, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. This year the camp is a partnership between Wesleyan University and Middletown Public Schools, and is accepting girls entering grades 4-6 from Middletown. The camp will be held at both Macdonough School and on Wesleyan's campus. The cost is $375 and full and partial scholarships are available upon request. To register or for more information, call Program Director Damian Reardon at 860-347-8553 or reardond@mpsct.org, or email Erika Taylor at eataylor@wesleyan.edu. Walk includes tour of Bevin Bells factory EAST HAMPTON The Chatham Historical Society is organizing a walking tour of the Bevin Bells factory in East Hampton on Sunday, Aug. 5 at 1 p.m. Walkers will learn the history of the company tour the factory, and learn how the bells are made. They will also visit the original factory site that was destroyed by fire in 2012. The walk is sponsored East Hampton Parks and Recreation Dept. During the early 1800s, Abner and William Bevin became indentured servants to William Barton, the first bell maker in what became the modern town of East Hampton. After finishing out their obligations to Barton, the two brothers set up small foundries in their backyards and began casting bells. They decided to go into business together in 1832. With the addition of brothers Chauncey and Philo, the Bevin Brothers Manufacturing Company truly became a family business. The company thrived well into the 1900s by producing a wide variety of bells for shipment all over the world. Bevin Brothers made tea bells, ice cream bells, door bells, naval bells, and even replicas of the Liberty Bell. On May 27, 2012, a lightning strike sparked a fire destroyed the Bevin Brothers historic bell factory. Moving a quarter-mile away and rehiring a substantial portion of the companys employees, the family-run concern resumed bell production in less than 6 months. Today, the company continues its operations in East Hampton, shipping out cow bells, bells for nursing homes, and thousands of bells to the Salvation Army. It is the only bell factory in the U. S. Catherine Cap Egan, manager of Bevin Bells Co., will give the tour of the factory. This monthly series of hikes is designed to introduce people to the history of East Hampton. The hikes also foster friendships, promote a healthy lifestyle, and help develop an appreciation of the history of East Hampton. The walk will begin at the Chatham Historical Society Museum Complex at 6 Bevin Blvd. in downtown East Hampton. The walk will be approx. 1 mile and is recommended for children 6 years to adults. It will take approx. 1 and a half hours. No dogs please. Heavy rain will cancel the hike. Parking is available by the museum or behind the Center School. For further information about upcoming walks or the Chatham Historical Society, visit their web site at https:www.chathamhistoricalct.org/ or contact Marty Podskoch, coordinator of the Explore East Hampton walks at 860-267-2442, podskoch@comcast.net, Also visit http://www.easthamptonrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=27025 DRS to hold Family Fun Day PORTLAND Disaster Restoration Services (DRS), a member company of DKI, North America's largest disaster restoration contracting organization, is hosting a Family Fun Day at Portland Riverfront Park on Sept. 15, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. The event will include carnival games, a cornhole and jousting tournament, a bounce house, live music, crafts and food. The National Women in Roofing (NWiR) will also be hosting a Stuff-A-Truck to provide supplies for the Arthur C. Luf Childrens Burn Camp. Tickets are available in advance for $10 per adult, or $5 per child, or you may purchase at the door for $5 more per person. All proceeds from the event will be given to the Connecticut Burns Care Foundation to provide lodging, meals and activities for the Arthur C. Luf Childrens Burn Camp. The Arthur C. Luf Childrens Burn Camp is a safe, natural outdoor environment for children 8 to 18 who have survived life-altering burn injuries. To learn more about the camp, visit www.ctburnsfoundation.org. DRS will be collecting donations for Stuff-A-Truck as well as for their tea cup raffle. Sponsorships are also available. If you are interested, contact DRS Vice President Tammy Strong at 860-788-6822 or tammy@drscleanup.com. By Olivia Rose FORMER labour commissioner Michelle Fulford-Gardiner was on Wednesday morning (July 18) arrested for questioning on suspicion of corruption at her place of work. As news of the seven year commissioners arrest spread across the territory, many were in a state of disbelief. Reliable sources informed the Weekly News that Fulford-Gardiner was apprehended at the Ministry of Tourism in Providenciales where she now serves as the deputy permanent secretary. Fulford-Gardiners home and office were allegedly searched and some undisclosed documents were seized during the joint operation involving the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police and the Integrity Commission. The Integrity Commission, in a brief statement issued on Wednesday evening, said the commission is currently undertaking several investigations and subjects may be interviewed, and/or arrested for questioning, and/or charged. It is anticipated that the former commissioner will be bailed pending further investigations by the Integrity Commission. Given the nature of the investigation the commission declined to comment further on the probe. Back in 2016 Fulford-Gardiner was placed on the commissions Failure to Declare list for neglecting to submit her declarations as stipulated by the Persons in Public Life TCI Ordinance. The watchdog institution in December 2016 published an extensive list of people in public life who could be prosecuted for failing to file declarations with the commission. Under section 51 of the Integrity Commission Ordinance, failure, without reasonable cause, to file declaration as required under the ordinance is a criminal offence punishable with a fine of $15,000 or one year imprisonment or both. Fulford-Gardiner is a long serving civil servant with over 20 years in the public sector. HARTFORD A federal jury in Hartford has found a 56-year-old Clinton man guilty of murder for hire, according to a release from the U.S. Attorneys office. The trial before U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant against James Erik Godiksen began on July 10, and the jury returned its verdict Friday, according to the release. According to the evidence at trial, in 2016, while he was incarcerated at New Haven Correctional Center, Godiksen reached out to other inmates seeking a person who would be willing to kill his former wife. Between Sept. 10 and Sept.14, 2016, Godiksen and an ATF special agent acting in an undercover capacity spoke multiple times by phone. During these conversations, Godiksen offered to pay the undercover agent $5,000 to murder his ex-wife, and provided the agent with a physical description of his former wife, her phone number, her home address, her place of work and the route she typically drove to work, according to the release. Godiksen also told the undercover agent how he would like his former wife to be murdered, officials said in the release. He offered the undercover agent additional money if he encountered his former wifes current boyfriend and killed him, too, the release said. Godiksen was arrested on Sept. 14, 2016, after he met with the undercover agent and provided him with a down payment of $80, some of which was to be used to purchase a knife. He has been detained since his arrest. He faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Clinton Police Department and Connecticut Department of Correction. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale and Dave Vatti. By Delana Isles HON. Sean Astwood, Minister of Border Control and Labour, has outlined several initiatives that the Government has planned to boost the territorys immigration facilities. During a presentation on the ministrys plans in the House of Assembly last week, Astwood outlined several strategic goals to bring about promised changes in this very important area of governance. These strategic goals are as follows: -To introduce service level agreements (SLAs) to be established and published for all products. -Improved client services, including shorter waiting times, eradicate backlogged applications and streamline all processes. -Identify, address and mitigate national security and fraud risks to the system. -Enhance border protection by the implementation of APIS and the use of biometrics - fingerprinting apparatus. -Train and educate the workforce and finally to implement technology in order to increase security, efficiency and customer experience. The minister stated that the Governments pursuit of some of these technologies is already well advanced, such as online labour clearance and work permit application, APIS, biometrics, the use of drones as well as the digitisation of registration and citizenship documents. He noted that while the Government continues to commit itself to the modernisation and improvements of key law enforcement agencies - in light of the burgeoning migrant (legal and illegal) labour force - he believes that it needs to go a step further and include enhancements to its search and rescue capabilities, among other activities. "It is the intention of this Government to begin discussions to introduce a full-service coast guard. "Our neighbouring country, the Cayman Islands, is well advanced in their change to a full coast guard service and I have already held a preliminary discussion with them on their transitioning process, the minister said. In the area of intelligence, Astwood said that the Government will continue to expand its network of intelligence and law enforcement capabilities with partners locally, regionally and internationally, to exchange information and intelligence, build capacity and increase worldwide security and compliance standards. "We anticipate the introduction of innovative approaches to intelligence, investigation and targeting to also counter related criminal activities such as drug smuggling and money laundering. In addition, the Immigration Department will continue to assist the ministry in providing leadership in promoting regional and international partnership, Astwood said. He added that intelligence alliances will enable authorities to better vet applications for products offered by the Ministry of Border Control and Employment, inclusive of visa and work permits for the long term. He stated that still on books is the introduction of the advance passenger information system (APIS). Legislation has already been enacted to enable the system to be put in place, but Astwood said that the system will be introduced when the new border control management system is implemented. This management system, he said, will enhance border security by enabling advance intelligence gathering of passengers at airports and seaports, which would improve efficiencies for added tourism experience, as well as improve the safety of citizens and visitors. These are some of what he calls the significant steps that the Government is currently taking to "harden the territorys borders, he explained. A second officer who served aboard a Navy destroyer during a fatal 2017 accident that left seven sailors dead is headed to a general court-martial. Lt. Natalie Combs, the guided-missile destroyer Fitzgerald's former tactical action officer, has been charged with dereliction of duty through neglect resulting in death and improper hazarding of a vessel. "She did not enter a plea during her arraignment Monday at Washington Navy Yard, but may opt to do so at a later time," said Patty Babb, a spokeswoman for the Office of the Judge Advocate General of the Navy. Combs had a duty to communicate safe speed and maneuvering recommendations and enforce efficient watchstanding principles on the night of June 17, 2017, according to her charge sheet. The lieutenant "negligently failed to comply" with her commanding officer's orders and regulation manuals, the charges allege. That dereliction of duty resulted in the deaths of seven sailors when the destroyer collided with a container ship off the coast of Japan, the charge sheet states. Her court-martial is set for Feb. 25. "Charges against the accused are only allegations; the accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty," Lt. Christina Sears, a Navy spokeswoman at the Pentagon, said in a statement. Combs is the second Fitz officer to be formally charged this month following the fatal collision. Cmdr. Bryce Benson, the ship's former commanding officer, has also been referred to a general court-martial after he was charged with violating the same two articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice as Combs: 92 and 110. Benson pleaded not guilty to the charges during his July 10 arraignment. Navy officials were previously pursuing negligent homicide charges against Combs, Benson and another officer. Adm. James Caldwell, appointed by the Navy to oversee any disciplinary actions for the collision, decided not to pursue those charges. The Fitzgerald was off the coast of Japan when it collided with the other ship last year. The destroyer was ripped open below the waterline, and seven sailors were killed when their quarters were flooded: Gunner's Mate Seaman Dakota Kyle Rigsby, Yeoman 3rd Class Shingo Alexander Douglass, Sonar Technician 3rd Class Ngoc T. Truong Huynh, Gunner's Mate 1st Class Noe Hernandez, Fire Controlman 1st Class Carlos Victor Ganzon Sibayan, Personnel Specialist 1st Class Xavier Alec Martin and Chief Petty Officer Fire Controlman Gary Leo Rehm Jr. The accident marked the first of two fatal Navy accidents in the region last summer. Ten more sailors were killed two months later when the destroyer John S. McCain collided with a merchant ship off the coast of Singapore. Cmdr. Alfredo Sanchez, the McCain's former CO, was sent to court-martial in May following that collision. He pleaded guilty to dereliction of duty. -- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ginaaharkins. An active-duty Army family says a series of Tricare billing errors has left them saddled with medical debt, even as they try to take care of their chronically ill daughter. The errors, Chelle McIntyre-Brewer said, are caused by Tricare East contractor Humana and a series of problems in its system, combined with denials of coverage for what McIntyre-Brewer says are medically necessary, lifesaving procedures for their daughter Lorelei, 13. 'I can't even get over the apathy that Humana has," she said. "You take a look at it and say, 'You're not doing your job,' and they just don't understand that." Lorelei was born in 2005 with a host of health problems, the most serious of which is hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), a birth defect that causes half of her heart to not work correctly. She has had multiple open and closed heart surgeries, said McIntyre-Brewer. In 2016, Lorelei was named Army Child of the Year by Operation Homefront for her work on Heart Hugs, a charity she helped found. The family lives apart so Lorelei can receive care through Tricare Select at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and use the state's Medicaid program. Although most other insurance coverage pays before Tricare, Medicaid by law is paired as secondary coverage and can provide Lorelei with additional medical services. Army Maj. Steven Brewer is stationed in Maryland. The problems with coverage started when Humana took over the contract in what had previously been Tricare's North region, McIntyre-Brewer said. First, Lorelei had a medical emergency after a separate emergency surgery to put a pacemaker in her heart. Her doctors wanted to give her a series of echocardiograms. When Humana denied authorization, saying the tests weren't necessary, McIntyre-Brewer decided to fight. At about the same time, Humana began denying the family's claims. Lorelei, it said, showed in the system as having health insurance other than Tricare, which should be paying first, according to documents provided to Military.com by McIntyre-Brewer. She was told by representatives that the system showed the coverage started in 1988, more than 17 years before Lorelei was born. Now, the family is sitting on a $65,000 medical loan, with several other medical bills already sent to collections. A Facebook post McIntyre-Brewer wrote about the battle has been shared almost 3,000 times. McIntyre-Brewer asked Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey's constituent services office for help. Humana sent officials in that office a list of claims it said had been resolved, even while sending McIntyre-Brewer letters listing the same claims as outstanding. "The Brewers will be pleased to note, Lorelei's record has been updated and the claim is being reprocessed," said one such letter, sent May 21. A letter sent to the McIntyre-Brewers on July 12 lists those same claims and others as under investigation. Officials with Humana told Military.com on July 23 that they're working to fix the problem quickly by working with the family and the provider and adding new steps to its claims processing. "We are working with the providers caring for our beneficiary and our claims-processing partner to resolve this issue as quickly as possible," Robert Bertrand, a Humana spokesman, said in a statement. "We are also in communication with the beneficiary now and will keep them informed of our work to correct this issue." McIntyre-Brewer said her husband received an email from Neil Mullaney, who heads Humana's government section, which includes Tricare, about 90 minutes after the statement was sent to Military.com. Military leadership as a whole and her husband's command have been nothing but supportive, McIntyre-Brewer said. Now she just wants Humana to process the claims. As a professional medical advocate who works with international organizations and wounded warriors, she's used to walking through complicated cases. But this one, she said, should be cut and dry. "Our family has been stretched to the max," McIntyre-Brewer said. "The least Humana can do is take care of my daughter." -- Amy Bushatz can be reached at amy.bushatz@military.com. U.S. Army Reserve soldiers recently participated in a short-notice training exercise as part of its role as a Ready Force X unit. "Our mission is to support fuel operations for about 10,000 soldiers," 1st Lt. Maria Olmos-Abraca, executive officer of the 900th Quartermaster Company, headquartered in El Paso, said in a July 23 Army press release. "It's a lot on my soldiers, but I know they can do it because I've seen them do it before." Soldiers from the 900th deployed to Fort Hunter Liggett, California, to take part in the combat support training exercise. It's been nearly two years since the Army Reserve chief, Lt. Gen. Charles Luckey, announced his plan to create Ready Force X, a special group of Reserve component units tasked with being ready to deploy on shorter notice than traditional Reserve units. Now, more than 600 units have been designated as part of the effort to ensure that active and National Guard units are supported on short-notice contingency operations with field hospitals, refueling services and other sustainment resources provided by the Reserve. Of those 600 units, 181 have been designated to provide support in the first 30 days of a conflict. "We are going to generate for the American people what they expect us to generate," Luckey said in a statement posted on Army Reserve Command's Ready Force X website. "If you think you've got months or years to get ready in a very time-tested lethal environment, you're in the wrong ball club," he said. Olmos-Abraca is honored that her unit has been designated for RFX, she said. "What it means to me is that the Army believes we are ready to get deployed, to do our mission, to support all the other units that are on that deployment," she said in the release. "These soldiers are trained to do their mission." This level of readiness goes beyond the training soldiers receive in their job specialties and speaks to being ready for anything, Sgt. Scott Partridge, the 900th Quartermaster Company's forward stationary supply point non-commissioned officer in charge, said in the release. "Combat readiness means you have trained, you are prepared," he said, adding that "inside yourself you are ready to put your knuckles down and do what it takes to get the mission done." As part of RFX, Luckey is pushing the Reserves take training to the next level. "One example is a new training operation we initiated last spring called Cold Steel. It was essentially a crew-served weapons gunnery exercise at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, that began in early March and extended for a little over two months," he said in a May 2 press release from Army Reserve Command. "It was the largest crew-served weapons gunnery exercise in the history of the Army Reserve," he added. Ready Force X units are also training more with active and National Guard units. "Whether it is at the National Training Center, Joint Readiness Training Center, or other places, we are making more of the enabling formations integral parts of that training experience," Luckey said in the release. -- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com. Still undetermined is whether the impact caused the October leak, or if the line was hit by something else at a later date. Two things happened Friday that will greatly affect hiring, firing and the monitoring of union activities at the Department of Veterans Affairs. President Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Tamara Bonzanto of New Jersey, a Navy veteran and registered nurse, to head the VA's Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection. The VA also announced it is putting into effect Trump's executive order aimed at cracking down on union activities while on the clock in the federal workforce. The nomination of Bonzanto, now a health care investigator for the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight, came more than a year after Trump signed the Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act on June 23, 2017, which he said would weed out poor performers at the VA. Congress wrote into the bill that the head of the accountability office must be nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. But the office has been run by interim managers in the ongoing shuffle of VA leadership, raising bipartisan concerns in the House and Senate. The White House announcement of Trump's intent to nominate Bonzanto said she served in the Navy from 2001 to 2006 as a hospital corpsman. She earned bachelor's and master's degrees in nursing from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and then served as a nurse case manager for the Army Reserves from 2012 to 2015, the White House said. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Georgia, chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, said Bonzanto's nomination should bring needed improvements to the accountability office. In a statement, he said Bonzanto's experience in the House and as a "health care coordinator between the U.S. armed forces and the VA give her the unique experience to navigate the challenging role of ensuring our veterans are best served by the VA and its employees." "Our committee is working to ensure the new Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection meets its responsibility to manage senior executive discipline and protect the rights of whistleblowers," Isakson said. Current VA Acting Secretary Peter O'Rourke, an Air Force and Navy veteran and former Trump campaign worker, was the first executive director of the accountability office. He later became chief of staff in February when Vivieca Wright Simpson retired from that post amid the scandal over the travel expenses of then-VA Secretary Dr. David Shulkin, who was ousted by Trump in March. The current executive director is Kirk Nicholas, a retired Marine colonel who previously worked in the Army's Office of Business Transformation. Nicholas and O'Rourke testified last week before the House Veterans Affairs Committee on the implementation of the accountability act more than a year after Trump signed it into law. At the signing ceremony, Trump said, "Outdated laws kept the government from holding those who failed our veterans accountable. Today, we are finally changing those laws -- wasn't easy, but we did have some fantastic help -- to make sure that the scandal of what we suffered so recently never, ever happens again, and that our veterans can get the care they so richly deserve." He referred to the 2014 wait-times scandal at the Phoenix VA, in which managers were accused of keeping secret lists to hide poor performance. At the hearing, Rep. Mark Takano, D-California, cited VA accountability office data in charging that in the first five months of 2018 only 15 managers were among the 1,506 VA employees removed. The VA's data also showed a marked increase in firings since Trump took office. The VA said that a total of 2,537 people from a workforce of more than 360,000 were fired in 2017, including 1,443 removals and another 1,094 probationary removals during training periods. That was an increase of 536 firings over the previous year. In 2016, the VA fired 2,001 people, including 983 removals and 1,018 probationary removals, according to VA data. The House hearing included several testy exchanges between Republicans on the committee and J. David Cox, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the civil service union representing about 240,000 workers at the VA. Reps. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, and Neal Dunn, R-Florida, renewed charges that veterans were badly served by union members at the VA spending 100 percent of their time on union activities. Cox charged that the accountability act is creating a "climate of fear" at the VA that minor transgressions or disagreements with management could lead to firing. "The accountability act has proven to be one of the most misguided and counterproductive VA laws ever enacted," Cox said. Following O'Rourke's testimony, Isakson called on Senate leadership to move immediately on a full Senate vote to confirm Robert Wilkie, the former undersecretary for personnel and readiness at the Defense Department, as the next VA secretary. In a statement, Isakson made no reference to O'Rourke but said, "It is of utmost importance that any policy changes that impact the future of the department be made by a confirmed VA secretary who can be held accountable by Congress and the American people." On Friday, the VA announced that it had begun implementing Executive Order 13837, "Ensuring Transparency, Accountability, And Efficiency in Taxpayer Funded Union Time Use." The order, signed by Trump on May 25 and now the target of lawsuits by civil service unions, is aimed at ensuring that "taxpayer-funded union time is used efficiently and authorized in amounts that are reasonable, necessary, and in the public interest," the VA said. The executive order would limit union activities by VA workers to 25 percent of their official time. In a statement, O'Rourke said, "This executive order ensures the proper stewardship of taxpayer dollars. The order offers reasonable standards for union representatives and makes clear that they should spend the majority of their duty hours on federal government work." The VA said the executive order would "affect about 1,700 VA employees using taxpayer-funded union time." -- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com. A Marine corporal credited with single-handedly destroying an enemy bunker in Vietnam was posthumously awarded his service's second-highest valor award five decades after he died on the battlefield. The family of Cpl. Stephen Austin, a squad leader with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 27th Marines, was presented with the Navy Cross during a ceremony in Alexandria, Virginia, on Saturday. The award was presented by Commandant Gen. Robert Neller, the Marine Corps' top officer. "[Austin] demonstrated 'Semper Fidelis' through the very end," Neller tweeted following the event. "Proud to wear the same cloth as American heroes like Cpl Austin." Austin's comrades spent years collecting testimonies so they could see the squad leader recognized for his heroism. The Marines were on patrol on June 8, 1968, when they began taking heavy enemy fire from a nearby bunker, according to Austin's Navy Cross citation. "Austin convinced his platoon leader not to pull their unit back in order to call in an airstrike," the citation states. "He then brilliantly maneuvered his squad to an area from which they could provide effective covering fire." Determined to end the threat -- and with complete disregard for his own safety -- Austin "single-handedly assaulted the bunker and destroyed it with a grenade," the citation states. He was mortally wounded in the attack, but his actions are credited with turning the tide of the engagement, which allowed the Marines to eliminate the enemy in the village. It's a story his fellow Marines spent years collecting, the Fresno Bee reported. Some died before seeing their friend honored. Others were able to attend their unit's 50th reunion banquet this weekend, where Neller present the valor award to Neily Esposito, the daughter Austin didn't know he had, according to the Bee. "All of us have survivor's guilt," Grady Birdsong, one of the Marines who collected testimonies, told the paper. "I got to live, and I got to come home. It was my duty to tell their story. That was the least I was able to do for these men, especially the ones we lost like Stephen." A similar effort was made by Marines who served under retired Marine Sgt. Maj. John Canley, who was a company gunnery sergeant during the 1968 battle to retake Hue City. The Marines' 15-year effort paid off. Canley received a call from President Donald Trump this month informing him he'd be presented with the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest award for heroism. -- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ginaaharkins. Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Tom Rodgers, father of an Army combat veteran of our current wars, served 20 years as a fighter pilot, including combat in Vietnam. Ari Harrison, a senior IT project manager in the higher education industry in Erie, Colorado, is the only son of Capt. Ellis David Greene, a U.S. Military Academy Class of 1967 graduate who served as a helicopter pilot with the 227th Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Cavalry. Michelle Githens-Baugh, of Caseyville, Illinois, and only daughter of Specialist 4th Class Richard Earl Githens, who served with 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry, is a senior in the BSW program at Southern Illinois University. Karen Spears Zacharias, daughter of Staff Sgt. David Spears 2/9th Artillery, 25th Infantry Division, is author of "After the Flag Has Been Folded" and likes to eavesdrop at the Sisters Coffee House in Sisters, Oregon, where she is at work on her ninth book. We are not politicians. We don't have Super PACs supporting us. Yes, it is true that on occasion we have been hosted at the White House and the Senate Hart building and recognized in ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery, the Vietnam Memorial Wall, and in many a District of Columbia banquet hall. Some of us have even been on the national stage, speaking before large swaths of people from all walks of life, and all manner of political and personal faith traditions. We are members of a not-so-secret society -- Gold Star families and the veterans who served with our loved ones. A diverse group, in no way wholly representative of all Gold Star families or all veterans, but united in a profound sense of loss and hurt. We are hurting because of what we witnessed at the Helsinki summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin: Our very own president defending Russia's attacks upon our nation's elections. On the world stage, Trump declared that he was taking Vladimir Putin's word over that of America's own intelligence community. Related: Op-Ed: Making Sense of the Trump-Putin Helsinki Summit Facts have never mattered to Trump. He said he had no reason to believe Russia interfered in the 2016 election. And his attempt to walk back his remarks as nothing more than a "grammatical error" are regarded far and wide as one more of his pathetic and daily lies. Sen. John McCain, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and long regarded as a national hero for his sacrificial service during the Vietnam War, was every bit as troubled by Trump's defense of Russia's attacks, as were millions of outraged American voters. "No prior president has abased himself more abjectly before a tyrant," McCain stated. He referred to Trump's behavior as "disgraceful." Disgraced sums up how many of us in the Gold Star family feel about Trump's defense of Russia's attacks. "Trump just spit on the hundreds of thousands of men and women who gave their lives to fight against dictatorships, and for democratic principles, values and freedoms," said Ari David Greene Harrison, son of Capt. Ellis David Greene, U.S. Academy Class of 1967. The assault helicopter pilot was killed in action on May 23, 1970. Ari is Captain Greene's only child. Many veterans also share the sense of disgrace McCain referenced. They, too, believe that Trump abased himself on the world stage at Helsinki. Reached at his home in Texas, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Tom Rodgers, a highly decorated fighter pilot during the Vietnam War, said he was experiencing a wide range of emotions in response to Trump's defense of Russia. "I'm having a bunch of feelings. First of all, I'm appalled. Secondly, his actions makes me feel like everything I've done has been a waste. That my buddies who died in Vietnam did die in vain," he said. Trump's defense of the Russians attacking our elections is nothing short of treason, Rodgers added. "I'll tell you what is really bothering me is we have our intelligence services out there right now most likely dying because of information Trump has given away. We don't know what he said in private to Putin. For all we know, he could have handed Putin a thumb drive with all sorts of government intel on it. We have no idea what happened in private." But it is his own words that make Trump guilty of treason, Rodgers noted. "He said the United States government had acted foolishly. He said he believed Putin's lies over our own country's intelligence. Plain and simple, that's treason. The question remains, what is Congress going to do about it?" That's the question Michelle Githens-Baugh wants answered. Baugh's father, Spc. Richard Githens, was killed in action in Vietnam when he was only 19 years old, when Michelle was three months old. The Illinois native has spent a lifetime grieving the father who gave his life in true service to this county. "Once again, Trump has proven that those who make the ultimate sacrifice, their families, and the ideals they sacrifice for, mean nothing to him," Baugh said. Karen Spears Zacharias, daughter of Staff Sgt. David P. Spears, who was killed in action July 24, 1966, in Vietnam's Ia Drang Valley, considers herself one of the lucky ones. She was nine years old when her father died. Old enough to remember his laughter, his teasing, his hugs, the way he smelled of mechanical grease and Old Spice. And the way his stubble was sandpaper rough on her face when he snuck into her room for that one last goodbye kiss. The men who were there the day her father was struck down by one of their own mortars told her of how he begged the young field doctor to keep him alive. Her father -- like Ari's dad, like Michelle's father, like Tom's friends -- wanted to come back to the country he loved so well, to the family he loved so dearly. Trump, who avoided the draft five times, knows nothing of such sacrifices. He does not respect nor honor the sacrifices made for the sake of freedom because he has never made any such sacrifices. He does not respect freedom or the democratic foundations that ensure it. We believe Trump longs to be an oligarch. He acquiesces to Putin because he is envious of him, just as he is envious of Kim Jong Un. Trump could care less if people live in a free society. The more control he has over voters, the better for him. In his world order, elections rigged in his favor are to be desired, not condemned. Congress, Trump has placed a mortar round in your hands. We want to know: Will you use it to attack those who have attacked us? Or will democracy die due to an attack from within your own camp? -- The opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Military.com. If you would like to submit your own commentary, please send your article to opinions@military.com for consideration. About a half-dozen teams have some interest in Mets right-hander Zack Wheeler, FanCred Sports Jon Heyman tweets. Wheelers name has been mentioned in trade rumors for a few weeks now, with such teams as the Reds, Yankees, and Diamondbacks all reportedly linked to the 28-year-old. With the Mets firmly in sell mode as the deadline approaches, Wheeler certainly still appears to be the likeliest of New Yorks starting pitchers to be moved in the coming days. In other tweets,, Heyman notes that though the Mets are doing their due diligence on current offers for Jacob deGrom or Noah Syndergaard, its more probably the team would wait until the offseason to deal either ace. Waiting until the winter opens up a wider array of potential suitors for trades, and thus would increase the Mets chances of landing their desired return of MLB-ready talent. Of course, the chances of Syndergaard being now seem infinitesimal since the righty is now on the 10-day DL after contracting hand, foot, and mouth disease. Heres some more transactions buzz from Heymans Twitter account SUTTONS BAY, MI -- It seems like yesterday we were on the wine trail, awarding Black Star Farms the title of Michigan's Best Winery. That was way back in 2015. We loved the sprawling farm, estate grapes, world class winemaker Lee Lutes, the 10-room Inn, and the food! It's one of the few places in Michigan you're going to get a Napa-like experience right in your backyard. Want to experience it for yourself? This week Black Star Farms celebrates its 20th anniversary with a series of events, including exclusive tours, vertical tastings, hikes to learn more about the 160-acre farm, a big BBQ party and more. "We want to include everybody, including families," said Sherri Campbell Fenton in a video I shot earlier this month. Black Star Farms had its first crush the fall of 1998, and the now 10-room luxury Inn opened that same year. A European style distillation program began in 1999, followed by a second winery and tasting room on Old Mission Peninsula, and tasting room in Ann Arbor's Historic Kerrytown District in 2014. Today, Black Star Farms has grown to produce 35,000 cases of wine annually. Black Star Farms winery in Suttons Bay is having a week-long celebration July 23-28, 2018 to celebrate its 20th anniversary. It also has a tasting room on the Old Mission Peninsula. It was the vision of Kerm and Sallie Campbell, who took the then 120-acre farm, complete with plantation style home, Centennial barn and indoor and outdoor equestrian facility to what it is today. "Everything has just exploded since then!" Campbell Fenton said. Check out the full video above for more information. The week includes: Daily events (some ticketed) to learn about the farm and the industry, tours to explore the history of the International award-winning winery, as well as how grapes grow from vine to glass. Also, you can sign up for guided nature hikes and wine tasting through the trail systems. Some events are free. Others are ticketed events. The week will culminate with dining events, including Seafood Paella on Friday and a family style BBQ in the Centennial Barn on Saturday night. A detailed schedule and ticketing information is available at www.blackstarfarms.com. A sampling of events include: ANN ARBOR, MI - Ron Ginyard acknowledges he hasn't voted in an election since moving to Ann Arbor four years ago and struggled with paying his taxes for many years while living in California. Records show at least 14 state and federal liens were placed on his property between 1988 and 2013 for failure to pay taxes. And while working at investment firm Morgan Stanley, he faced accusations from clients that he made unsuitable investment recommendations, with one complaint resulting in a $110,000 settlement payout. Ginyard maintains those matters are fully resolved and behind him as he seeks election to the Ann Arbor City Council. His opponent, Jeff Hayner, faces criticism for being a lifetime National Rifle Association member and sending tweets on topics such as gun control and abortion -- as well as one making reference to penis size -- that have left some offended and questioning his politics. Hayner argues some of his tweets are being taken out of context and mischaracterized, though he acknowledges the penis joke he made in reference to a city ordinance was in poor taste. Ginyard, a 61-year-old retired wealth advisor, and Hayner, a 53-year-old skilled tradesman and small business owner, are facing off in the Aug. 7 Democratic primary. They're seeking the 1st Ward seat being vacated by Sumi Kailasapathy, who is backing Hayner. The winner faces Ryan Hughes, a 37-year-old computer programmer and democratic socialist, in the November election. As the primary approaches, Ginyard and Hayner are both facing heavy criticism from each other and others in the community over matters ranging from Ginyard's voting record to Hayner's tweets. Both candidates say they've tried to run clean campaigns, but the race has turned somewhat ugly as supporters of each side have tried to dig up dirt on the other and have made various accusations. Both candidates say they find the information emerging about their opponent concerning. Both also say they feel they're being unfairly attacked and painted in a false light. Missing elections Ginyard grew up in Ann Arbor and moved away in the 1970s, living in California for decades before moving back in 2014. He acknowledges he hasn't voted in an election since returning to Ann Arbor, skipping opportunities to vote on City Council races and other local races, various tax proposals, city charter amendments and election reforms, the 2014 statewide election and gubernatorial race, and the 2016 presidential election. Some of the tax proposals he skipped voting on include a regional transit tax in 2016, a countywide tax for mental health and public safety in 2017, and schools tax proposals this year and last year. Ginyard said there's no good excuse for sitting out those elections and he apologizes to voters. Hayner calls it hypocritical and outrageous that Ginyard is asking 1st Ward residents to vote for him now. "I've never missed an election in my life," said Hayner, who has been closely involved in city matters for years, attending and speaking out at city meetings, and running for local office multiple times. Hayner, who recently graduated from Ann Arbor's new citizens academy, said Ginyard still seems like "a bit of an enigma" and someone who's unengaged in the community. Ginyard, who spoke out on a development issue at a recent council meeting, argues he's engaged in the community, though he hasn't had too much direct involvement in city government. Records show Ginyard registered to vote in Ann Arbor on Oct. 4, 2016, but he did not vote in the next month's election when Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton to become president. Ginyard said he was traveling and didn't make arrangements to vote absentee, and he's now kicking himself. "I blame myself for a guy like Trump being in there," he said of Trump winning the presidency. As for missing other elections, Ginyard said he wasn't involved in local politics the first two years when he came back to Ann Arbor, but he started getting more interested in 2016. He said he feels more informed now and plans to vote in future elections. Tweets questioned Hayner, a Saginaw native, moved to Ann Arbor in 1983 and graduated from the University of Michigan in 1987. He made his first run for City Council in 2013, running against Democrat Sabra Briere as an independent and accusing Briere of pursuing a partisan political agenda. Hayner has been an outspoken critic of the city's current leadership and isn't known to mince words. Now facing scrutiny for his past tweets, he argues he's being misportrayed. He said he considers himself a "pretty liberal guy" and he's both pro-choice and in favor of gun control reforms, but that's not the impression some have gotten from some of his tweets. Ginyard argues Hayner's tweets are not reflective of the community's values or Democratic ideals. In a March 2 tweet, Hayner wrote: "We demand the right to abortions! Also, ban guns before any more of our precious children are killed! See how stupid that sounds? 'Leftists', go right ahead & have all the abortions you want, you're doing the world a favor. #Overpopulation #WaterPlanet" In an interview, Hayner explained that tweet by saying he was just "trolling" some "fake leftists" and he knew some people would take it out of context and think it's outrageous. On March 24, Hayner, who acknowledges he's an NRA member, tweeted about a USA Today column in which Mayor Christopher Taylor joined other mayors across the nation in calling for gun control reforms and allowing cities to adopt local firearm restrictions to reduce the threat of gun violence while respecting constitutional rights. "We can do what needs to be done on guns, if our state legislatures get out of the way," the column from the mayors stated. Hayner tweeted: "Mayor Taylor looking to ban guns in #AnnArbor." Rather than "restricting constitutional rights" with "legal chicanery," Hayner argued, efforts would be better spent supporting national standards for concealed pistol licenses, fixing the national instant criminal background check system and closing private gun sales loopholes. Hayner recently made his Twitter account private, though various community members have grabbed screenshots of his tweets and are circulating them via social media, email and other channels. They also were a topic of discussion at a recent community forum. Ginyard said he hasn't personally looked at Hayner's Twitter page, but the tweets some have shared raise concerns. Ginyard said he's against guns in schools and he has a problem with Hayner being a member of the NRA, which supports guns in schools. Ginyard said that's not in line with Ann Arbor's conscience. Hayner, who acknowledges writing the tweets in question, said he agrees guns have no place in schools. He said he's only an NRA member because he started shooting guns for sport as a teenager, continuing competitively into adulthood, and he had to be an NRA member to participate. He said his dad paid a small amount to make him a lifetime NRA member many years ago and he hasn't given any money to the organization since then. "I loathe their politics," Hayner said, arguing there should be more restrictions on access to firearms and he supports reasonable limitations that still respect constitutional rights. Some have criticized Hayner for other tweets, including one in June 2015 when he tweeted: "Why are some women bad at estimating heights? Their whole life men have told them this is 12" #a2council." The tweet included a photo of a hand with the index finger and thumb spaced about an inch or two apart. Hayner said it's fine if people don't get the joke and he acknowledges the tweet was in poor taste. For context, he said, he was mocking an ordinance before council that night regarding the allowable height of vegetation in certain situations. In another tweet from 2015 that's been circulated, Hayner wrote: "Halfway to Halloween @necto Costume contest at midnight - I'm going as a douchebag yuppie that's ruining A2. #a2council." Asked about the yuppie remark, Hayner said, "We certainly have our fair share. I mean, who pays seven bucks for a cup of coffee?" Hayner said he thinks it's "kind of pathetic" that some people are digging through his old tweets. He said when he's on Twitter, he's just a regular guy talking to friends, and that's not the type of discourse constituents should expect of him if he's on council. "If somebody's going back and digging up what might be considered crass humor or whatever ... what do I have to say about that except excuse me for being human?" he said. Money problems The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's "BrokerCheck" website indicates clients of Ginyard's at Morgan Stanley in 2003 alleged he made unsuitable investment recommendations. The clients sought $525,000 in damages, and the case was settled for $110,000, according to the FINRA website. A similar complaint from 1998 seeking $70,000 in damages was withdrawn, according to the FINRA website. Someone recently anonymously created a website that's dedicated to criticizing Ginyard over that and more. Ginyard says he's being "slandered and slaughtered" and his critics are only "looking at a snapshot and not the whole film." He said he was never disciplined by his company or any regulatory authority. As for the $110,000 settlement, he said, that was a resolution to what his company considered a nuisance complaint, and Morgan Stanley assumed all responsibility. Ginyard said the clients had about $600,000 invested over a three- or four-year period and that grew to about $1 million before dropping back down when the market fell. He said the clients were still up close to $100,000, but they wanted the "high water mark," and so they brought a complaint seeking damages. Hayner said he doesn't know all the details but what he's seen on the website is concerning to him. "That's not especially great when you're talking about somebody who's going to be dealing with budgets and other people's money," he said. Other publicly available records show there were at least 14 tax liens filed against Ginyard in Los Angeles County, California, from 1988 to 2013, with Ginyard listed as the debtor and either the state of California or the IRS listed as the creditor, depending on the lien. The liens represented government claims on Ginyard's property due to his failure to pay taxes, starting with a $10,851 state tax lien in 1988 that was eventually released in 1993, several others ranging between $4,336 and $65,275, and eventually a $263,547 federal tax lien in 2006. Ginyard maintains the $263,547 amount was "all a mistake" and he only had to pay about $50,000. Records show Ginyard was able to get the earliest liens released by 1993, and he resolved several others in 2007. He said he left Morgan Stanley in 2007 and raided his 401(k) to pay off money owed. He then went to work for UBS Financial Services Inc., but he continued to have some financial challenges. Another state tax lien in the amount of $7,522 was filed against Ginyard in 2011 and released in 2013, records show. Ginyard said the reason he got into financial trouble many years ago was because he had two daughters with two different women and he was responsible for more than $1,600 per month in child support payments, counting health care costs, which he said he happily paid. He said his financial troubles are behind him now and there are no more tax liens. City records show Ginyard now lives in a house that's in his mother's name and is current on its taxes. Hayner said he sympathizes with Ginyard and doesn't criticize him for his past financial troubles. "It's terrible to be crushed by debt," Hayner said. "I feel bad for anybody who's struggled with debt. I have." Stakes high Ginyard said he got into this race with intentions of doing some good and the attacks he's faced have made him weary, but he thinks the stakes in this election are too high not to press on and win. Hayner is running with the support of Kailasapathy, a member of the minority faction on council often at odds with the mayor and his allies when it comes to issues such as new development and spending priorities. They're hoping to shift the power balance on council and take control away from Mayor Christopher Taylor and his allies. Ginyard said he's more in line with the mayor and his allies, but he wants to be able to work with everyone on council. MLive has partnered with the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Michigan to provide information to voters. Check out the league's election guide at Vote411.org to find out more about candidates and proposals on the ballot. Additional election information from the nonpartisan CivCity Initiative in Ann Arbor can be found at AnnArborVotes.org. HAMPTON TWP., MI -- Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1,000 as a reward for information that leads to an arrest for a series of vehicle arsons across Bay County. There have been 10 vehicle fires reported since April 7 -- four have taken place in Hampton Township and six were in Portsmouth Township, according to a statement from Bay County Crime Stoppers. Each arson involved a vehicle that was set ablaze while parked near a residence, the statement said. Anyone with information is asked to call 1-800-422-5245 or can submit a tip online at p3tips.com. The most recent arson was a white 2004 Pontiac Bonneville parked in the driveway of a house at 970 N. Finn Road in Hampton Township that was reported at 2:11 a.m. on Wednesday, July 18, by neighbors. The fire started near the sedan's gas tank and spread across its trunk. Hampton Township firefighters quelled the blaze before it spread to the nearby house. "It seems to match all of the others," Bay County Sheriff Fire Investigator Jeff Wolpert told MLive.com last week. The ninth fire occurred in the early hours of July 4 at 2443 W. German Road in Portsmouth Township. A minivan parked in the two-story home's driveway was set on fire, with the blaze spreading to an attached garage. By the time firefighters arrived, the garage was engulfed, windows had blown out of the house and shooting flames were visible, MLive previously reported. A deputy kicked open the house's front door and rescued a 76-year-old woman, who had been sleeping and had no idea her house was on fire. The woman was uninjured in the blaze. While the first few fires were limited to some minor damage near the vehicles' fuel tank area, investigators say the fires have progressively gotten more severe. FENTON, MI - When Addisyn Goss was 8 years old, she began creating survival kits for the homeless with her family. The family worked out of their basement and would stuff all of the supplies in a corner when company came to visit. Now, Snuggle Sacks has an office, a professional website and nonprofit status -- thanks to help from community members who support their cause. Sometimes it's hard for Addisyn, now 11; her sister, Sheridan, 16; their brother, Jackson, 13; and their mom, Stacy Daul; to believe how far they've come, and how many people support them. "We'll be at the grocery store, and people will say, 'We've heard of you,' and we want to help. It'mind-blowingng," Daul said. At first, the sacks were solely supported by close friends and family after Daul encouraged Addisyn's desire to help the homeless, which was ignited after she learned that her grandfather Mike Hurd had been homeless. "I met my grandpa when I was 8 years old and I learned he was homeless for six of the 10 years he was gone and away from us. I learned the story, and I'd always wanted to help the homeless in some way. So I thought of a way, and it's just bloomed out into a big thing," Addisyn said. Snuggle Sacks was born, and bags were filled with a variety of necessary toiletries -- as well as words of hope. "Friends and family started donating their toiletries. We made about 25 and we took them to the North End Soup Kitchen, and we'd get home from work the next week, and there was maybe enough stuff to do 10 or 20. We'd buy a few things to supplement, and it kept growing and growing and growing," Daul said. The first delivery really hit home for the family, bringing them to tears. "We gave a man the sack and automatically he saw the socks and he put them right on and gave us a hug," Addisyn said. "We got in the car and they're like, 'Mom he was crying because of socks.' Just a pair of socks. It's mind-blowing what it means," Daul said. Winter came, and the family was even busier, donating sacks around the Flint area, as well as in Detroit and Lansing. "In the winter we would drive around, and if I saw a homeless person, I would run out and talk to them no matter how cold it was. It was good hearing their story and how they got there and how we could help them. It just filled your heart, and it made you a little sad because you don't want anyone to go through that," Addisyn said. Then, Addisyn was featured by The USA Today Network's 'I Am An American series,' which highlights extraordinary Americans. From there, Snuggle Sacks exploded. Individuals from across the country are signed up to donate to the cause monthly, and Addisyn and her family now pack between 400 and 500 sacks per month. The outpouring of support is part of the reason why Snuggle Sacks had to relocate from the family basement after people of all kinds --church groups, scouts, businesses -- drop in to deliver items or help pack the sacks. Though Addisyn is wholly supported by her family and her community, she has experienced less than genuine friends who became interested after she received media attention. Some doubted the amount of work put in by Sheridan and Addisyn -- which they estimate at about 20 hours a week. "People don't know how much work actually goes into this. We're here like all the time, even after school we'll come here for three or four hours every night," Sheridan said. Addisyn was forced to skip some softball practices and is taking next season off to focus on the growth of Snuggle Sacks. Now, Addisyn and Sheridan's friends are supportive and just as surprised as they are that the operation has gotten so big. "They thought it was just a little operation out of our house, and I get told on the daily 'it's crazy how it's gotten that big,'" Sheridan said. Often, Addisyn's locker becomes a temporary office for Snuggle Sacks. "My friends always come up to me and they're like, 'My mom's going to donate something.' One time my locker got so messy I had to take a garbage bag to school," Addisyn said. Addisyn is looking forward to devoting more time to Snuggle Sacks. As Sheridan looks toward college, she also plans to stay involved. This week, Addisyn will travel to New York where she will serve on the Board of Directors for KIDBOX, a kid's fashion brand that focuses on "social good." All of the other selected youth are also working toward creating initiatives in their own communities. Over Snuggle Sack's lifetime, the family has learned much about financing and running a company. But some of the most valuable lessons they've learned have been ones that can't be learned from books. They've learned that oftentimes, the homeless just want a hug. "It's like crazy cool. As their parents, we literally stand there crying every single time we do this and they're like, 'We do this every weekend.' But it doesn't get old," Daul said. To support Snuggle Sacks, donate or drop off items at the Flint-Genesee Chamber of Commerce or the Fenton Regional Chamber of Commerce, among other locations. Dominique Singleton FLINT, MI -- A man convicted of the 2016 murder at a Flint car wash will spend more than 60 years in prison on Monday. Dominique Singleton, 24, was sentenced to serve from 61 years and eight months to 93 years and six months in the Michigan Department of Corrections on July 23 by Genesee Circuit Judge Celeste Bell. Singleton was convicted by a jury on June 19 of second-degree murder, two counts of felony firearm second offense and being a felon in possession of a firearm for his role in the killing of Ajayi McGuire. Officers were called just before noon on May 21, 2016, to the 1600 block of North Saginaw Street for a shooting and discovered McGuire had been shot. McGuire was working at Fly City Carwash at the time of the shooting. He later died at the hospital. A co-defendant in the case, James Holcolm, Jr., 47, pleaded guilty in October 2017 of being an accessory after the fact to a felony and felony firearm-second offense. He was sentenced to five years in prison. "This is a significant sentence and a victory for justice," Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said in a statement. "Dominique Singleton will be in his 80s when he is first eligible for parole." Singleton's attorney, Jessica Mainprize-Hajek, could not be immediately reached for comment on the case. PORT SHELDON TOWNSHIP, MI -- Two Illinois teens on vacation survived a water emergency in Lake Michigan Sunday. The two kayakers were rescued by Ottawa County Sheriff's deputies. Dispatchers were called around 5:20 p.m. on Sunday, July 22 after people heard cries for help coming from two teenagers near the Port Sheldon Pier within Pigeon Lake, which connects to Lake Michigan. An 18-year-old male and a 17-year-old female, siblings from Illinois, had taken kayaks from shore. Upon trying to turn back, the kayaks started taking on water. The kayaks sank, leaving the two teenagers to swim in the waters. They were not wearing their life jackets and the life jackets went down with the kayaks, deputies said. When marine deputies from the sheriff's department arrived, both subjects were struggling in the water, the male attempting to keep the female afloat, according to the sheriff's department. The deputies deployed a lifeline and flotation devices and the two were pulled to the patrol boat. At this time, both subjects are recovering at home. Ottawa County Sheriff's officials said it reminds everyone to practice water safety and use personal flotation devices when around lakes and other bodies of water. It's an easy way to save lives and prevent tragedies, deputies said. By Delana Isles IT HAS been brought to light that members of the House of Assembly engage each other in a "game of chicken as it relates to who will speak when. But on the evening of Thursday, July 12, Speaker of the House of Assembly, Dwayne Taylor, had just about enough of the shenanigans, putting his foot firmly down and causing the members of the opposition to walk out of the assembly and subsequently make claims of bias. It is customary that during debate sessions in the House each member is given a chance to speak, and during the budget debate each member, especially elected members, take this opportunity to speak to their constituents on the plans they have or what they would like to see done for their individual constituencies within each fiscal year. However, during this years budget debate two members, Porscha Stubbs-Smith of the Bight constituency and Doug Parnell of the Cheshire Hall and Richmond Hill constituency, were not afforded that opportunity. As Leader of the Opposition Washington Misick told it later, it was about 8pm on Thursday when he said he heard Speaker Taylor make three calls for members to make their contributions. Misick, who was speaking during a press conference on Friday at the time, said that when he decided to look up after the third call, he saw two microphone lights on (this is used to indicate a members need to speak) - that of Stubbs-Smiths and the premiers. The opposition leader said that in seeming disregard to other light that was on, the speaker called on the premier to wrap up the budget debate. "Now there is a tradition in the House where both partiestry to play what I call chicken to see who is going to speak first so that they can rebut, but the arrangement on our side was that Porscha would speak after the Hon. Ralph Higgs. "So when Ralph rounded up his presentation, Porscha was expected to speak and I just took it for granted, so when it appeared to me that the speaker had called the premier, I turned to my left and I saw Porschas light on as well as well as the premiers. "The premier then... called for an adjournment of the House and say she will do her wrap up today [Friday], the opposition leader explained. He continued that the environment in the House, particularly during budget debates, is one of flexibility, as it is a time when everyone wants to speak. He said that because of this, traditionally speakers and premiers or chief ministers have been very accommodating to members. "When we came back this morning [Friday]I indicated to the speaker that based on the events of the previous evening, based on the traditions in the House and based on the laxity on which the standing orders were being applied, I said to him as far as I saw, Hon. Porschas light was on, but it was his decision. Misick said he appealed to Taylor that due to the special nature of the sitting and because of the precedent already set that he should allow the two members to make their contributions. He explained that Parnell was in an office printing his speech at the time the call was made for more contributions, and as such was also denied the chance to make his contributions to the debate. "The appeal was just not made for my side, it was made for everyone, but I believe what happened overnight is that he [Parnell] was prepared to sacrifice his speech just to make sure that no one on my side spoke. "That is not the kind of spirit one would expect from a government who all through the whole session, particularly the premier was speaking about cooperation The PNP leader stated that even though Stubbs-Smith may have been "tardy in responding to the speakers calls, he believes that the intransigence on the part of the speaker and the lack of grace on the part of the premier to extend that courtesy to members of the legislature who have constituencies to speak to, is a slap in the face to TCIs democracy. He said that because of this attitude his party was not going to sit through the "rhetoric that was the premiers wrap up budget address. "And so we walked out at that moment. Reputational damage The opposition leader said that he believes that the reputation of the House is being damaged by the way the assembly is being operated. "I can say that the PNP have absolutely no confidence in the speaker, he is consistently biased towards the Government. "I think it is no secret that he actually campaigned with them. Misick said that it is expected of the speaker of the assembly to show impartiality, but that this is not happening. "I believe the people of these Islands need to know that the whole way the Government operates is one of a deficit in democracy. "The public servants are scared, decisions are made arbitrarily, contracts are willy nilly, frustrated and in some cases have been rescinded. He added that the whole approach of the current Government is very partisan, personal and "one that smacks of settling scores. "We are here to represent the people and we will do that, Misick stated The speaker of the House is an elected member by the House, but such is the case that because one side wins, that side will automatically have the deciding vote, he explained. He added that when that person is elected he or she is expected to exercise their power in a non-biased manner. "This speakers biasedness is blatant, it was clear from day one, thats the reason why we have no confidence in him. HOLLAND, MI -- Authorities believe a pair of early morning gas station robberies in Ottawa and Allegan counties might have been committed by the same man. The suspect had not been arrested as of 9 a.m. Monday, July 23. Police were first dispatched shortly after 6:30 a.m. to a robbery report at the Mobil gas station, 1122 Lincoln Ave. in Holland. The clerk told officers that a man entered the store, displayed a handgun and demanded cash. After collecting an undetermined amount of cash, the man ran out of the store, got into a vehicle and was last seen southbound on Lincoln Avenue. Around 6:45 a.m., a second armed robbery was reported at the Mobile Mart, 3604 M-40, in Hamilton. Police said a weapon was used in the incident. Police said the man fled in a 4-door silver car with a maroon hood and traveled north from Hamilton. The Holland Police Department and Allegan County Sheriff's Office are working together to investigate the incidents, which police believe were committed by the same man. Police ask anyone with information about either incident to contact the Holland Department of Public Safety at 616-355-1150, or the Allegan County Sheriff's Office at 269-673-0500, extension 4452. GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- A local coalition is strongly urging city officials to delay their vote and to reconsider approving a proposed ordinance that would allow medical marijuana facilities in Grand Rapids. Specifically, the Kent County Prevention Coalition (KCPC) wants the city commission to press pause on the conversation until officials can ensure that the ordinance has enough regulations and restrictions to protect the community's youth. "We want to create a firewall around the ordinance as it stands right now," said Denise Herbert, Network 180 prevention services program director and coalition spokesperson. "As it's written, it focuses on the economics for the Grand Rapids area ... Let's regulate the marijuana in our community like we regulate alcohol and tobacco. Let's focus on the health and wellness of our community, especially our youth under the age of 21." Kent County's anti-drug coalition announced its request to the city commission to delay the vote in a press release sent out Monday, July 23. Commissioners will discuss the topic at their morning meeting Tuesday, July 24, before they are planned to vote on the ordinance at their evening meeting at City Hall. As it stands, the proposed ordinance would allow medical marijuana facilities with limits based on separation distances from schools, child care centers, parks, places of worship, residential zone districts and other medical marijuana facilities. The ordinance would allow 41 medical marijuana facilities in the city, based on separation distance requirements. Those facilities include grows, processors, transports and safety compliance locations with proper state licensing and special land use permits. The separation distances as proposed include: 1,000-foot buffer from schools, child care centers, parks, churches/places of worship and rehabilitation centers 600-foot buffer from another marijuana facility 250-foot buffer from residential zone district Herbert said the coalition is not pushing the city for a "no" vote. Instead, she said the group wants more time to educate the commission and to ensure that there is a minimum age of 21 years old for the sale of marijuana, and that the consequences for selling to minors are clearly laid out. "Both alcohol and tobacco (stores) have signs inside saying you have to be 21 and 18 to purchase," she said. "There's language around what a violation entails. We want that in the ordinance." Citing data from seventh-, ninth- and 11th-grade students who took an optional Michigan Profile for Healthy Youth survey in 2016, Herbert said one in 10 Kent County youth admitted to using marijuana within 30 days of being surveyed, and one in four admitted to using marijuana before the age of 14. Herbert said data shows that as laws regarding marijuana loosen, there's a decline in perception by youth that the drug can be harmful. "We're saying there's still harm there," she said. "The brain isn't fully developed until 25." Members of the public had an opportunity to weigh in on the proposed ordinance at the July 10 city commission evening meeting. Every person who spoke during the public hearing was in favor of the city allowing medical marijuana facilities in some capacity. Much of the discussion was on whether the city should adopt the current version of the ordinance, or the less restrictive version proposed by the city's planning commission in May. Additionally, all 12 individuals who spoke at the planning commission's May 24 public hearing were in favor of the city allowing medical marijuana facilities. Most asked for less restrictive language in the ordinance. Herbert said the coalition had a representative at the July 10 meeting. The group plans to bring a last-minute "army of voices" to Tuesday's evening session in an attempt to convince the commission to delay its vote. The organizer said she planned to call each commissioner Monday, and to rally some of the 1,500 members on its email list serve to attend the evening meeting. "Join us at the commission meeting," she said. "An army of voices are stronger than one." In November, Michigan residents will vote on the legalization of recreational marijuana use statewide. The proposal on the ballot would limit sales to individuals 21 years or older, and would include a 10 percent tax on the sale price. GRAND RAPIDS, MI - Grand Valley State and Michigan State university officials signed an agreement Monday, July 23, granting GVSU pre-medical students early assurance of admission into MSU's osteopathic medical school. The partnership is expected to help solve a physician shortage and fill gaps in the talent pipeline. Maria Cimitile, provost and executive vice president for Academic and Student Affairs for Grand Valley, said more than a third of the university's 25,000 students are being educated in health care fields. "We are very happy to offer this opportunity to gain early entry into MSU's College of Osteopathic Medicine to our students, but equally happy to help provide our communities with the health care expertise that our two great institutions offer," she said. Jean Nagelkerk, vice provost for health for Grand Valley, said the program targets students interested in practicing in Michigan, those planning to pursue a specialty in a physician shortage area, first-generation college students, rural and urban high school graduates, and those eligible for a federal Pell grant. "This is important because it gives the students an opportunity in their freshman year to start getting those experiences that they need to start preparing for an application (medical school),'' she said. "The pre-medical students will get additional mentoring, advising, opportunities to do research, and opportunities to engage in clinical experiences.'' June Youatt, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs for Michigan State University, said she is pleased that MSU and Grand Valley could work collaboratively on the physician shortage that appears to be "pretty significant,'' especially in and aging Michigan. Qualified students can apply to the MSU's College of Medicine program in early February for admission in 2020, GVSU officials say. The College of Osteopathic Medicine works to prepare students to pursue careers in numerous medical specialties. Andrea Amalfitano, D.O., an interim dean of of MSU's College Osteopathic Medicine, said this year Grand Valley was the fourth highest feeder university for their college. He said they welcomed 16 students into their Class of 2022. "This is a testament to the strength of their education,'' he said, noting they had 5,800 applicants for the college's slots this year. "They are not only book smart, they are people smart and that's what we look for. "We don't just treat symptoms, we treat people, and we want to prevent disease, not just treat disease.'' Nagelkerk said the agreement serves as one example of how public higher education institutions collaborate to meet the health care talent needs of residents in the state, so that Michigan has the best possible quality of health care for its citizens and communities. "It also assists in addressing the expected shortage of positions that seems to be looming by filling a critical need in the health care talent pipeline,'' she said. The agreement reserves up to five positions for GVSU students per year., according to GVSU. Under the agreement, MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine agreed to waive supplemental application fees for GVSU students who qualify and provide them with opportunities to network with medical students, faculty and staff members. The signing was held at GVSU's new $37.5 million Raleigh J. Finkelstein Hall, located at 500 Lafayette Ave., which opened in May. The university is expanding its health campus to accommodate student demand. Finklestein is a five-story, 84,000-square-foot building that includes classroom, laboratory and office space to support the College of Health Professions and Kirkhof College of Nursing. ALLENDALE, MI - Grand Valley State University is recruiting West Michigan businesses to help grow a free program to assist veterans in developing academic skills for acceptance and success in a degree or certificate program. Last fall, GVSU received a $1.3 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education to provide West Michigan veterans academic support services to help them complete a postsecondary program. The Veterans Upward Bound Program targets veterans in Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, and Allegan counties. GVSU is recruiting large and small businesses with veterans to allow instructors to come on site to a teach class once a week during the work day. The Veterans Upward Bound Program started this year and there are 67 veterans currently enrolled, primarily from Kent County. GVSU stepped up its outreach efforts with this new business initiative to help reach or exceed a goal of 125 veterans, according to Jesse Bernal, vice president for Inclusion and Equity at Grand Valley. "Getting business owners and managers to encourage and empower employees to pursue this opportunity will help enrollment,'' said Bernal, who said they are working on agreements with three companies but looking to recruit more. The program provides assessment and enhancement of basic skills through counseling, mentoring, tutoring and academic instruction in the core subject areas. Bernal said the university is only requesting employers allow the instructor on campus at least one hour a week to provide veterans academic support. He said there is flexibility, depending on the company and their schedule. "We want to remove barriers,'' said Bernal, about holding classes at the workplace during the day to avoid conflicts such as with transportation or family or job issues with class schedule. "We want more veterans participating in the program, so we are looking at new avenues to engage them in the process. We need to go out to spaces where they are already and enter their environment.'' Bernal said none of the other federally funded programs are engaging businesses in this way and GVSU could be a model. While the program is open to any veteran who has not yet received a college degree or certificate, Bernal said it specifically supports low-income veterans and those who would be the first in their family to graduate from college. There are more than 65,000 veterans in the four-county region targeted, according to GVSU. Last fall, officials reports 8 percent of that population was unemployed, 2,000 homeless, and 77 percent didn't have a bachelor's degree. "The primary goal of the program is to increase the rate at which participants enroll in and complete post-secondary education programs,'' according to the U.S. Department of Education. In addition to academic support, the program also provides assistance completing college entrance exams and financial aid forms, as well other services. According to GVSU, this is an open enrollment and open departure program. Participation is voluntary with no financial commitments or charges. Individualized preparation materials and supplies are included. For more information, visit the website or contact the program office at 616-331-8387. The anti-recreational marijuana campaign in Michigan has added former Michigan Senate Majority leader Randy Richardville, R-Monroe, as one of its spokesmen. "This is the worst idea we've had for Michigan in a long time," Richardville said to MLive of the marijuana ballot question, explaining he plans to be "actively and passionately" engaged in campaigning against it. In November voters will decide the fate of a ballot proposal that seeks to legalize recreational marijuana in Michigan. The opposition to the measure is organizing through a group called Healthy and Productive Michigan, which has received most of its funding from a national organization -- SAM Action (Smart Approaches to Marijuana). SAM was founded in 2013 by former Congressman Patrick Kennedy, D-Rhode Island; Canadian-American journalist David Frum and drug policy expert Kevin Sabet. SAM Action claims it promotes healthy marijuana policies that don't legalize drugs. Healthy and Productive Michigan has been organized by Scott Greenlee, a Grand Rapids consultant who was a former vice chairman of the Michigan Republican Party. Matthew Yascolt is the campaign's grassroots coordinator. In addition to beefing up its team this summer, Healthy and Productive Michigan has been hosting what it bills as informational events in the Detroit area with a SAM Action speaker to push its anti-legalization message. Richardville said he now receives "a small stipend" from Healthy and Productive Michigan for his advocacy. He said he joined the campaign after speaking with Greenlee and reading the ballot language. "I don't necessarily disagree with recreational marijuana," Richardville said. "I think people that put this ballot proposal together in such a shoddy way that does nothing but invite young people and others that aren't prepared to deal with recreational marijuana responsibly." Richardville appeared in a marijuana debate hosted by WWJ Newsradio 950 that aired July 16. In addition to Richardville, Healthy and Productive Michigan announced this week that Bishop Ira Combs Jr. of Greater Bible Way Temple in Jackson had endorsed their opposition campaign. Combs has a history of opposition to gay marriage and LGBT equality measures. As of April, Healthy and Productive Michigan had $215,286 in the bank for its opposition campaign, according to state records. Its biggest contributor: SAM Action, which donated for $150,000 in December 2017 and $125,000 in April to the campaign, according to state records. The group behind the ballot question -- Coalition to Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol -- had $17,826 in the bank as of April, state records show. The group has raised $920,422 so far this election cycle, but has spent most of it. One of its biggest donors is the Washington D.C.-based Marijuana Policy Project, which has contributed $429,205 so far this election cycle, according to state records. As the summer progresses, Healthy and Productive Michigan is starting to push its opposition message to the ballot proposal to groups around Detroit. Will Jones, a communications and outreach associate for SAM Action, has appeared at multiple events in the Detroit area in the past week involving Healthy and Productive Michigan and the Detroit Wayne Mental Health Authority. At least one of the events targeted black residents, claiming legalized recreational marijuana would hurt the black community in the way that liquor stores have proliferated in neighborhoods. The marijuana legalization ballot proposal will be before Michigan voters at the polls Nov. 6. If approved, people over the age of 21 would be able to possess, consume and use recreational marijuana. The issue will be decided by voters after the Michigan legislature failed to approve its own ballot language on the issue. The Aug. 7 primary isn't just about picking candidates for the November ballot: Many voters also will be deciding on school and other local tax issues. As you consider property tax requests, you may wonder how your tax rate compares to others in your county or around the state. In May, we posted an online database that allows you to compare the current millage rates in any Michigan county. Here's that database: Millage rate by city, township or school district However, this database provides the total tax rate without a sense of the underlying numbers. With that in mind, below is a series of databases that allow you to compare specific tax rates levied by school districts, cities, townships, counties, intermediate school districts and community colleges. All the numbers come from the Michigan Department of Treasury. We'll begin with two databases that cover millages levied by counties, cities, townships and villages as well as tax authorities such as library districts, downtown development authorities and multi-community agreements for public safety or parks. The two databases include everything except educational institutions, including K-12 school districts, intermediate school districts and community colleges. The first database lets you look up the overall tax levied by any of those governmental unit. You can search by county or type in the name of your city, township or village. Total millage rate levied by local units except for schools Remember, this isn't your total tax bill -- it's just what that governmental unit levies. Incidentally, this database allows you to filter by type of government unit to compare, say, just city or county tax rates around the state. Just click on the governmental type and you'll get a list of the all tax rates around the state in that category ranked from highest to lowest. For those who really want to get into the weeds, the next database shows the breakdown of taxes within each governmental unit. For instance, you'll be able to see how much a city or township levies for general operations and if they add on other millages for, say, police or roads. Look up by county or type in the name of your city, township or village to see the details. Note: Taxes marked by an asterisk are levied as special assessments. Specific taxes levied by local governments Next is a database on taxes levied by local school districts. Loca schools levy four types of property taxes: A nonhomestead tax paid on commercial property and second homes. Owner-occupied homes are exempt. The nonhomestead tax is capped at 18 mills. Debt millage to repay bonds for building projects and repairs and other capital expenses. Sinking funds, which are provide pay-as-you-go revenues for building projects and repairs. It's an alternative to bonding. The hold-homeless tax paid by a handful of districts who had per-pupil funding above $6,500 in 1994 when Michigan overhauled its school funding. The hold-harmless tax allowed those districts to avoid a potential drop in funding under the revamped formula. The database display page shows the millage rate for nonhomestead properties and for homesteads -- i.e., owner-occupied homes. Click "details" to see the breakdown among the four categories. You can search by county or type in the name of a school district. (The database will show all the districts serving each county, regardless of intermediate school district.) Millage rates levied by Michigan school districts The next database involves the taxes levied by intermediate school districts, which provide regional services for local school districts. They often operate vocational educational programs and programs for severely disabled children, among other programs. In regards to taxes, ISDs also can levy an enhancement tax, which is a voter-approved millage whose revenues are distributed among the local districts to boost operational funding. You can look up an ISD to see its millage levy, or you can click on "all ISDs" to see a top-to-bottom ranking of ISDS by their total millage rate. Incidentally, while ISDs are typically named for counties, they follow the boundaries of their member districts vs. county lines. Click here for a map of Michigan's ISDs. Millage rates levied by intermediate school districts The final database shows taxes levied by Michigan community colleges. Not all communities are part of a community college district, which subsidizes tuition for in-district residents. Community colleges can levy millage to help pay for operations, as well as to pay off bonds for building projects. Millage rates levied by community colleges LAKE MICHIGAN - A crew member lost overboard in stormy weather on Lake Michigan during this weekend's Chicago to Mackinac Island race was a triathlete who embraced life and had found his passion aboard sailboats. The U.S. Coast Guard late Saturday suspended its search for Jon Santarelli, 53, from Chicago's Lincoln Park. He was part of the crew on board the Imedi, which was racing in the Turbo group, one of about 300 boats taking part in the annual Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac. Santarelli fell overboard about 2:45 p.m Saturday when a large wave hit the Imedi and his personal flotation device apparently malfunctioned, race officials said. As of late Sunday, he had not been recovered. Chicago Yacht Club Rear Commodore Nick Berberian today gave a short press conference to share details of what they know about the incident. He said Santarelli was leaning toward the back of the boat to make a routine sail adjustment when the boat was struck by a large wave, throwing him overboard. Of the 13 other crew on board, many saw what happened. They said Santarelli's flotation device - which is supposed to inflate automatically upon contact with water - did not inflate. They saw him sink under the waves, Berberian said. They did not see him resurface. "This is an enormous tragedy for the entire sailing community," Berberian said. "It's extremely heartbreaking." While he did not want to speculate on the flotation device's malfunction, he did say he expects the device will be analyzed when it's recovered. Typically, these devices are designed to inflate quickly when they come in contact with water, sparked by a CO2 cartridge. Additionally, they are designed with a manual backup tube that a person can blow into in order to inflate the life preserver. As soon as Santarelli went into the water, other crew members kept an eye on the spot and threw flotation devices in "very close proximity" to him, Berberian said. The Imedi was maneuvered back around to the spot where he fell, and a search was established, just as the sailors are trained to do, he said. The boat crew requested help and alerted authorities to the man overboard situation. Other boats competing in the vicinity - the boats have staggered start times so not all racers were nearby - came in to help the Imedi search for Santarelli. The seven-hour search that involved the U.S. Coast Guard, 20 boats and three helicopters, covered about 47 square miles. The weather was rough at the time, Berberian said. A strong north wind was pushing down Lake Michigan's 300-mile corridor, whipping up big waves and sending up spray. One nearby boat crew described the conditions as "spitting rain." Berberian said sailors have a healthy respect for the enormous power of Lake Michigan. He described Santarelli, a longtime sailor in the Chicago community, as someone who embraced life. "This was his passion." Chicago marine authorities continue to be in contact with the Coast Guard about search efforts, he said. The lead boats are beginning to finish the 333-mile route, reaching Mackinac Island by tonight. They are still battling a stiff north wind. To track the boats, check here. Santarelli is expected to be remembered at Tuesday's award ceremony on the island. HOLLAND, MI - Hudsonville Ice Cream has unveiled the first Michigan Artisan Collection flavor. The family-owned, Holland-based creamery introduced Bowerman's Blueberry Donut on Monday, July 23. The small batch flavor pairs Hudsonville Ice Cream's traditional vanilla ice cream with a Michigan blueberry swirl and chunks of blueberry donut straight from Bowerman Blueberries in Holland. The flavor fits with the series' goal of creating ice cream representative of the best parts of Michigan, with ingredients sourced from local artisans. Michigan is one of the nation's leading blueberry producers, with 100 million pounds of blueberries grown each year. "Bowerman's Blueberry Donut was an immediate favorite in our testing process," said Morgan Craig, flavor development scientist with Hudsonville Ice Cream. "Not only did the blueberry donut pieces pop when mixed with our ice cream, but we're tapping into a flavor strongly associated with Michigan. Bowerman Blueberries has been an amazing partner through this creation process, and we can't wait for our fans to taste this genuinely good flavor for themselves." The Bowerman's Blueberry Donut flavor will be available on Tuesday, July 24, when Hudsonville Ice Cream hosts a birthday celebration for the City of Detroit. The event will run from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Cadillac Square. Additionally, the Bowerman's Blueberry Donut flavor will be available in limited quantities at select scoop shops across the state, beginning the week of July 30. Bowerman's Blueberry Donut by Hudsonville Ice Cream is expected to sell out quickly. A complete listing of shops is below. The Michigan Artisan Collection will feature three flavors, with the other two flavors set to be announced this year. "Our family has been growing blueberries in West Michigan since 1954, so we have a long history of delivering local flavors to residents and visitors to the Holland area," said Kassie Grasmanis of Bowerman Blueberries and granddaughter of the founders. "We were thrilled when Hudsonville Ice Cream reached out to us for a potential partnership and we are so pleased to see this flavor come to life for people across the state to enjoy." Hudsonville has made a habit of creating Michigan themed flavors. All-season favorites include Mackinac Island Fudge and Traverse City Cherry Fudge, as well as a Vernors-infused Detroit-flavor called Comeback Cooler. Where to find Bowerman's Blueberry Donut: A Grosse Pointe man died Friday when the vintage plane he was flying crashed shortly after taking off from a Wisconsin airport. It crashed into a barn at a nearby farm, injuring two farm workers and killing or injuring up to 50 cows and calves. The pilot was identified as Martin J. Tibbitts. He was 50, according to the Associated Press. The crash occurred near Sheboygan Falls. Tibbitts had just taken off from the Sheboygan County Memorial Airport. The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating. Tibbitts died on impact, and the plane burst into flames, authorities said, according to WDJT in Milwaukee. The flames spread to other buildings on the farm, and the smoke could be seen from a mile away. Of the two farm workers injured, one had a severe leg injury and had to be airlifted to a hospital, the station reported. A veterinarian was called to the scene to put down some of the badly injured animals. Tibbitts was flying a de Havilland DH 112 Venom. It was registered to the World Heritage Air Museum of Harper Woods, Mich., the AP said. Tibbitts has been identified as a co-founder of that air museum. It restores classic "jet warbirds" from the 1950s to the 1970s so they can return to flight, according to its website. He planned to leave the Sheboygan airport and fly in formation with a few other military planes on Friday, a friend of Tibbitts told the Detroit Free Press. On Monday, he had planned to be at the Experimental Aircraft Association's AirVenture event in Oshkosh. LANSING, MI -- The Michigan Court of Appeals has agreed to hear a zoning dispute between a mid-Michigan township and Nestle Waters North America. On July 18, the state's highest appellate court agreed to hear Osceola Township's appeal of a circuit court judge's ruling last winter, which overturned a local zoning denial that's blocking Nestle from expanding its water bottling system near Evart. Nestle wants to build a booster station for a pipeline that moves water from a well to a loading dock in Evart, where it's trucked to the Ice Mountain bottling plant in Stanwood. Osceola Township denied zoning approval twice last year. Nestle sued, arguing its application met zoning standards. In December, 51st Circuit Court Judge Susan Sniegowski sided with Nestle, ordering the township to issue a special land use permit. The township is covering its legal costs through crowdfunding. The case is separate but related to the state's decision to permit increased groundwater extraction from the White Pine Springs wellhead; a decision Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder recently defended as being based on "sound science." That decision is being challenged in state administrative court. Nestle needs the local booster station to move additional water. Township attorney William Fahey said an oral argument hearing date won't be set until case briefs are filed, which could take months. Either side could appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court. A NEW 911 system, breathalysers and gun crime were all topics of discussion at the latest meeting of the TCI National Security Council (NSC). Governor John Freeman and Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson co-chaired the meeting on Monday (July 16) at the Hilly Ewing Building in Providenciales. In attendance as members were Deputy Governor Anya Williams and the Commissioner of Police James Smith, a statement from the Governors Office on July 19 said. Hon. Delroy Williams, Minister of Home Affairs, Transportation and Communication, attended the meeting to cover matters concerning his ministry. The new Superintendent of HM Prison also attended the meeting to brief the NSC on his first impressions of HM Prison since taking up his appointment in May. Attorney General Rhondalee Brathwaite Knowles joined the meeting by teleconference. At this meeting the NSC received up-dates from the commissioner of police on: -The latest crime statistics for the period April to June 2018 which showed that overall crime figures for the first quarter of the year were at broadly the same levels as the same period in 2017. -Major projects coming on stream including a new 911 system which will be operated from a new 911 Centre as well as the digitisation of police radios in Providenciales to provide better communication coverage. -The Royal TCI Police Force plan to roll out digitisation more widely to improve communication across the other islands. -New equipment being deployed by RTCIPF officers and the armed response and tactical teams. -The introduction of breathalyser testing in TCI from July 1 including initial findings and results. -A new child safeguarding facility which will be shared with the Departments for Social Development and Education to improve cross-government efforts to protect children. -The commissioner also reported on the work that the RTCIPF had done on child safeguarding with the National Crime Agency from the UK and on a bid for additional funding from the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF). -Cooperation between the RTCIPF and the Miami Beach Police including on training, equipment supplies and DNA profiling. -Plans to address a recent spike in the number of reported gun crimes including improved investigative techniques by the RTCIPF and working with Crime Stoppers and the public to report information on illegal weapons. -The premier called for a new approach to working with youth to get guns off the streets. The NSC also received a report from the superintendent of HM Prison on his initial impressions of conditions at the prison since taking up his appointment in May. The superintendent outlined the myriad challenges facing the prison. The minister for home affairs reported that he had recently visited the prison and that his ministry will be addressing the problems including working with the private sector to introduce measures to support the work of the prison staff and improve security. The governor expressed his thanks to all those working at the prison in difficult circumstances. The premier reported that the TCI Government will commence talks soon with the government of the Bahamas on possible cooperation to tackle the problem of illegal sloops from Haiti. She also reported that she had received the report of the UK Border Force delegation which had been in TCI recently to carry out an assessment of territorys needs to combat illegal migration. The recommendations in the report were under consideration but are broadly in line with Governments existing thinking and several are already being implemented. The NSC received an update from the premier on the political situation and unrest in Haiti which the deputy premier is monitoring and assessing the possible implications for the TCI. Members were informed by the deputy governor of reports of illegal poaching in Bahamian waters and of the implications of similar activity occurring in the TCI, as well as the need for a cross-government response to deal with illegal poaching. Trident Labs mostly ran drug tests at its West Michigan facility, screening urine for opioids. A drinking water crisis north of Grand Rapids changed that several months ago. The lab is one of several Michigan businesses tapping into the new market of testing for unregulated and toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Hundreds of Michigan residents are questioning whether the water that flows out of their kitchen faucet is safe to drink as a state investigation into PFAS continues to expand. Affected communities span both peninsulas: from Oscoda where PFAS-laden foam is washing up on public beaches to Rockford where PFAS has been found in the drinking water from homes near where Wolverine World Wide dumped PFAS-riddled tannery waste. Not only is there no consensus on what level of the contaminate is considered "safe," PFAS is not regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and neither are the labs that test for it. As the PFAS crisis grows in Michigan, private companies are ahead of the state in launching labs to process the data. From drugs to PFAS So how did a drug testing lab in Holland Township jump in to the middle of the biggest groundwater contamination investigation in the state? Trident Labs supervisor Lyle Rawlings lives near East Rockford Middle School northeast of Grand Rapids, where students had to drink bottled water in October 2017 as the state tested their drinking fountains to see if PFAS from a nearby Wolverine World Wide dump site had seeped in. Ultimately, the water was ruled safe to drink. The lab decided to add PFAS testing and conducted its first run of tests in March using liquid chromatography equipment the lab already had. Trident claims it can produce results for $250 in five days -- almost unheard of in the world of environmental testing, where bills can easily reach into the thousands. Medical labs like Trident are used to quickly turning lab results around, Rawlings said. Rawlings said the lab has run tests for homeowners near Rockford and near the Gerald R. Ford International Airport, as well as across the state. Plenty of residents outside of the PFAS "hot zones" are also having their water tested as well, Rawlings said. Businesses seize opportunity It's just one example of a business responding to the PFAS crisis. Gordon Water Systems primarily supplies water filters and water cooler services -- but as the PFAS issue became a growing concern north of Grand Rapids, the business added a PFAS sampling service. For $300, the company will sample a home's tap water and send it away for testing at the EPA-approved Pace Analytical lab in Florida -- and then hopes homeowners will consider buying Gordon's whole-house water filter systems. In East Lansing, Merit Laboratories started offering a PFAS test this March. Technical director Maya Murshak said Merit is the first environmental lab in the state offering wastewater, groundwater, drinking water and foam testing for PFAS. The lab has been running samples of groundwater and soil for the past 30 years looking for other chemicals. No consensus on self-sampling Part of the way Trident can keep its lab costs down is by sending out kits to homeowners to sample their own water. The kits include nitrile gloves, a field blank and instructions. Rawlings said the collection process is simple enough for residents to draw the water from the tap themselves -- and claims fears of cross-contamination from other possible sources of PFAS like wrappers, makeup or sunscreen is a "misconception." "The possibility of this contamination is very low," Rawlings said, explaining his lab has not encountered contamination issues. State officials would beg to differ with that statement. "These compounds are so ubiquitous in the environment," said Michigan Department of Environmental Quality spokesman Scott Dean said, listing off a variety of materials samplers should be sure to avoid, including waterproof clothing, certain moisturizers, some sunscreens and fast food wrappers. The chance for variation in test results when dealing in increments of parts per trillion is too high to leave up to chance, Dean said. That's why the state is hiring AECOM to test every public water system in the state for PFAS. "It's critically important to have the same staff, doing the same testing, over and over and over again," Dean said. Michigan officials released a lengthy advisory document, warning of numerous materials that could skew results. Murshak said using the nitrile gloves are the best way to protect the integrity of the sample. "If you put those gloves on before you do those collections, that's going to put the best thing you can do," Maya Murshak said. Homeowners should avoid using products in aerosol containers like deodorant, bug spray or perfume before testing for PFAS, Maya Murshak said. However, she noted the DEQ's long list of products that could cross-contaminate a drinking water sample for PFAS from a home was a bit long. "The DEQ was trying to put you in a bubble," Maya Murshak said. "They came up with every possible scenario." No EPA approval for labs Up until recently, labs conducting PFAS tests were all out-of-state: 18 labs across the country are EPA-approved to test for PFAS using EPA method 537. "Until the state said it was going to test all schools and public water plants, there wasn't much of a market for drinking water testing (for PFAS)," said Isaak Murshak, business director of Merit Laboratories. Private labs like Trident and Merit are now offering an in-state alternative, following EPA methods. However, neither are on not on a list of EPA-approved labs, and never could be: the EPA is no longer vetting labs to see if they are following correct PFAS testing methods, according to the EPA. "They said the program has been discontinued," Rawlings said, recalling his conversation with the EPA when he attempted to gain their approval. From 2013 to 2015 the EPA did give its approval to a list of labs that demonstrated they were proficient in using Standard Method 537 to test for PFAS. The approval was a part of the third cycle of Unregulated Monitoring Contaminant Rule testing, screening public water systems for a whole slew of emerging contaminants -- including PFAS. "This effort is part of a larger regulatory process under the Safe Drinking Water Act which allows EPA to gather occurrence data on chemicals being considered for regulation," according to the EPA. The U.S. Department of Defense does offer certifications for PFAS testing, mostly due to the department's investigations into contamination near its military bases. However, a DOD certification is costly enough that Trident Labs may not obtain one, Rawlings said. Dean said the state would like to work with labs that are DOD-certified. Merit Labs is International Organization for Standardization accredited for both drinking water and wastewater. State lab needs technician The state of Michigan is embarking on comprehensive testing of the water in every city system and in every public school but does not yet have its own lab set up to handle the flood of samples. There is $1.48 million set aside by the state to start its own groundwater testing lab. But it won't be operational until at least the end of the year, Dean said. Funding for the PFAS lab was announced in December as a part of a $23.2 million appropriation the legislature made to put towards PFAS response in the state. The money was needed to buy liquid chromatography equipment for the DEQ's lab complex in Lansing, and to hire a technician to run it. As of June, the equipment had been purchased and installed -- but finding the right technician is holding up the project, Dean said. "It is one of the more of the complex tests," Maya Murshak said of the PFAS test, explaining it requires staff with heavy experience and knowledge. The state projects its turnaround time for test results will be about a week when the lab is operational. However, the Department of Health and Human Services has installed new equipment and is running PFAS tests for the DEQ, Dean said. The DHHS runs tests on drinking water and animals, while the DEQ tests groundwater. LANSING, MI - Former Wayne County Executive Bob Ficano on Monday asked Ingham County Circuit Court Chief Judge Richard Garcia to convene a one-person grand jury to investigate possible law violations by Attorney General and Republican governor candidate Bill Schuette. "The basic premise is nobody is above the law," Ficano said. The complaint, sent to Garcia, cites Schuette's use of state employees to complete real estate transactions selling off land he'd inherited in the Virgin Islands as well as stacking his state office with "political loyalists and cronies." There is probable cause to believe Schuette has violated the law, Ficano's complaint claims. This is the second request for a grand jury on Schuette. East Lansing attorney Mike Nichols initiated the first, which Ingham County Prosecutor Carol Siemon referred to the FBI. But the FBI is not tasked with investigating state law violations, Ficano pointed out in his complaint. Where similar situations in state departments might be investigated by the Attorney General, there is no such oversight for the Attorney General himself, Ficano said. He urged the court to designate a judge to serve as a grand jury to investigate the matter. Ficano, a Democrat, said he made the request because he's still involved in political circles and there is an "unsettling buzz" with questions about Even if the FBI does investigate, Ficano said, they're not likely to come up with a timely answer. In a one-person grand jury a judge calls in witnesses and sifts through information, expediting the process. He's hopeful that, if empaneled, a one-person grand jury would get voters answered before the November election. "I think the voters have a right to know," Ficano said. Schuette spokesperson Andrea Bitely in a statement hit back against Ficano's request. "He's the last guy to be judging others -- This is more politics and this time coming from a Democrat who was run out of office by ethical problems and then soundly rejected by Wayne County voters at the ballot box. It's sad, but we expect these political games to continue," Bitely said. Ficano lost a bid for re-election as Wayne County Executive and then a bid for a judicial position after coming under fire for a $200,000 severence payout to Turkia Mullin when she left her position as Wayne County economic development director. The county under his watch was also the subject of a federal corruption probe. He was not charged in it and is currently an attorney in Southeast Michigan. Schuette is competing in the Aug. 7 primary with Lt. Gov. Brian Calley, Sen. Patrick Colbeck and Dr. Jim Hines. The winner will appear on the Nov. 6 general election ballot. Garcia said he received the letter and is putting in motion a process outlined in local court rules. The seven Circuit Court judges will vote on whether to convene a one-person grand jury. If a majority of them -- at least four -- vote to do so, a blind draw selects the judge who will serve as the one-person grand jury. The local rule does not lay out a timeline for this decision to be made, Garcia said. DETROIT, MI -- Gov. Rick Snyder defended the state's unpopular decision to give Nestle a green light to increase its groundwater withdrawal in Michigan, saying the permit issued to the Swiss food and beverage giant was based on "sound science." "It's not about business versus being anti-business," Snyder said. "It was sound science to say those withdrawals won't have adverse impacts, and there's follow-up testing that has to take place to make sure they stay in compliance. If they don't, things would change." Snyder's remarks were made last week in response to questions posed by a WDIV Local 4 Detroit reporter during a groundbreaking ceremony for the Gordie Howe International Bridge. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality approval for Nestle to boost capacity on a well near Evart has stirred significant anger statewide, but particularly in Flint and Detroit, where drinking water quality and affordability have become serious issues. Nestle pays $200 per facility each year to withdrawal millions of gallons from Michigan, a tiny fee imposed on company wells in Osceola and Mecosta counties. Asked about the meager fee, Snyder said Nestle "followed the rules as they exist" and that Michigan's water withdrawal fee structure is an "issue for the legislature to decide." The Michigan legislature has acted on groundwater withdrawals recently, but not in a way that addresses industrial extraction fees. A bill introduced nine months ago by a Republican legislator from suburban Detroit to impose a per-gallon tax on bottled water production in Michigan has not moved from committee since October. Meanwhile, Snyder signed legislation in June that relaxes DEQ review of large quantity groundwater withdrawals. Snyder's comments about Nestle drew criticism from a group that previously sued Nestle over its groundwater withdrawals. The Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation (MCWC) and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians are challenging the DEQ's permit in state administrative court. The MCWC disputed Snyder's characterization of the permit approval in a statement this weekend, arguing that "the real science required by the Safe Drinking Water Act in fact was not done by Nestle and it took the DEQ almost two years to figure out how to twist the computer data around to claim Nestle deserved the permit." "The governor has spent the last four years or more making sure that business came out ahead of people and the environment," said group president Peggy Case. "He, through his emergency managers has made the Flint Water Crisis into a very profitable operation for Nestle and the banks holding the bonds for the privatized KWA pipeline. This has been all about business and the profits of Nestle have been huge." JACKSON, MI - Tracy Lawrence, accused of second-degree murder in the death of two teens, is to take the stand Monday in his own defense. MLive/The Jackson Citizen Patriot is covering the trial live from Circuit Judge John McBain's courtroom. Follow along in the comments section. Refresh the story or click on "newest" comments to keep up with the conversation. Lawrence, 55, shot and killed Hunter Lentz and Matthew McMillen, both 18, on June 8, 2016 while they were on his Springport Township property. His trial began July 16. The prosecution rested its case Thursday and the defense presented its first witness Friday. Testimony and closing arguments are expected to conclude Monday. At issue is whether Lawrence's actions were justified. His attorneys George Lyons and Jared Hopkins argue he was acting in self-defense or lawfully preventing the escape of fleeing felons. McMillen and Lentz were wearing heavy clothing in June. They parked a truck out of sight from Lawrence's house at 13111 Town Road. Michigan State Police found what have been called burglar tools at the scene, and a mobile home and a camper showed signs of forced entry, according to testimony. Lawrence told a Michigan State Police detective he spotted the men in his yard. He hollered at them and they ran at him. "It scared the hell out of me," he told the Detective Sgt. David Stamler in a recorded interview. Lentz was hit in the side of the head and McMillen had a bullet wound in his lower back, a medical examiner said. Both died at the scene. For a listing of stories on this case, click here. JACKSON, MI - One man was shot in the foot early Sunday behind Kingston's Lounge and The Avenues Gentlemen's Club on E. Michigan Avenue in Jackson. The man went by private vehicle to Henry Ford Allegiance Health, where he was treated for what was not considered a life-threatening injury, Jackson Police Lt. Adam Williams said. Jackson police had been sent about 12:47 a.m. July 22 to a fight involving about 20 people and responding officers heard gunshots at the back of the gentleman's club, 621 E. Michigan Ave., and neighboring Kingston's Lounge, 629 E. Michigan Ave. What looks to surveillance footage of the incident is being circulated on Facebook. A person is seen firing several times into a crowd after a fight broke out in the parking lot. This sends people running. One person is hit in the head with what looks to be a liquor bottle, Williams said. Police do not believe anyone else required medical treatment. It was not the police department that released the video, the lieutenant clarified. There have not been any arrests. Detectives are following up on the case, Williams said. It appears, from the video, that the shooter ran from the area. The victim was not cooperative with police, Williams said. BATTLE CREEK, MI -- About 80 people are without a home after an apartment complex caught fire overnight in Battle Creek. The Battle Creek Fire Department was called to Village Inn Apartments, 80 Riverside Drive, about 10:30 p.m. Sunday, July 22, according to a press release from the BCFD. An emergency shelter, which housed 12 people Sunday night, is set up through the American Red Cross of Southwest Michigan at Covenant Hope Church, 1021 Wagner Drive, according to a press release from the Red Cross. The shelter will remain open for as long as needed. People affected by the fire should call the Red Cross at 269-330-8802. Seven residents were treated for smoke inhalation, Battalion Chief Martin Erskine said. The cause of the fire has not been determined and the investigation continued into Monday, but all residents are accounted for, the release said. The department expects the investigation to last a few days, Erskine said. Two firefighters injured during the blaze have received treatment. One member of the crew suffered from exhaustion while another received a minor forearm injury, the release said. Rescued pets can be retrieved from the Calhoun County Animal Center, 165 S. Union St., the release said. The shelter took in three cats and one dog, Cindy Buford, CEO of the shelter, said. The animal shelter can be reached at 269-963-6582. KALAMAZOO, MI -- Signage from a former Portage store will be part of the collection at the American Sign Museum. The Tot to Teen Village, which closed last year, was a full-range children's clothing store that also sold toys and furniture. Its unique sign made of colorful square letters will join the collection at the American Sign Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio, the museum announced July 16 on their Facebook page. "Even though this local shop is closing down we'll be preserving their signage and sharing its story for years to come," the Facebook post read. The store was founded in 1937 and over the years changed hands through the Penning family before ending its time in Kalamazoo with David Penning. "It's time to retire," Penning said to MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette in June 2017. "I've been at this for 45-plus years, and it's just simply time to pack it in and to start doing something different." KALAMAZOO, MI -- Voters will decide in August if Kalamazoo County should levy a new tax to alleviate a waiting list for senior services provided through the local agency on aging. A six-year, 0.35-mill property tax for senior services is up for consideration on the Aug. 7 ballot. The tax would be $35 a year for the owner of property with a taxable value of $100,000, and would raise $2.82 million in its first year. The Kalamazoo County Area Agency on Aging had a $2.6 million budget in 2017. A total of $1.6 million came from state and federal sources, with $617,674 from the county and additional funds from grants. According to a resolution authorizing the millage request, funds will be used to create a fund to "provide education, safety, dignity, independence, home services and healthy living programs" for people over the age of 60. The tax would kick in with the Dec. 1 levy and be disbursed by the Kalamazoo County Health Department to the Area Agency on Aging. An annual $300,000 allocation to the Agency on Aging, disbursed since 2015 to alleviate a growing wait list, would be returned to the county's general fund if the millage passes. Proponents say the money is needed to address the wait list for in-home services, which allow seniors to live longer in their own homes and support families taking care of their elderly parents. Critics of the tax say it will stretch the budgets of those on fixed incomes and could force some seniors out of their homes. Lucinda Stinson and Dale Hein are co-chairpersons of "Say YES to Seniors," a campaign committee created in March to support the millage proposal. They said the tax will cover in-home meals, cleaning and hygiene services, healthy living programs, elder abuse prevention, improvements to make homes more accessible and other programs. "Taxes are the way our community collectively solves problems," Hein said. "It's not this automatic evil, it's a mechanism that we do as a society. It's not always the most fun thing to write a check but you gotta be comfortable in what you get for your money." Both are optimistic about the millage's chance of passing. There are no other countywide ballot questions and Democrats will likely come out to vote in a four-way primary race for the 6th Congressional District. Kalamazoo is one of only 10 Michigan counties that doesn't collect taxes for senior services; most collect between 0.4 and 0.5 mills. Enhancing Area Agency on Aging services was a 2018 budget priority for the county's health department. A recommendation to provide in-home services through a millage dates back to a 2011 report. County Health Director James Rutherford said the county is faced with a demographic issue. People are living longer, and aging baby boomers will cause a greater need for senior services. Anyone over the age of 60 is eligible for services provided by the Area Agency on Aging. There are 49,908 seniors in Kalamazoo County, according to 2016 U.S. Census Bureau estimates; 19.3 percent of the population. Four thousand of them are living in poverty. While 17.5 percent of the county is estimated to be below the federal poverty level, 15.8 percent of the county's senior population is living in poverty. Under a third of non-institutionalized seniors have a disability. Forty-three percent of seniors who own homes live alone. Around 72.5 percent of people over the age of 60 are not in the labor force, according to the U.S. Census. The median home value for someone over 60 is $142,100. Median gross rent is $660. Like most tax issues, support and opposition for the proposal falls largely along party lines. Six Democrats on the county Board of Commissioners used their majority to place the proposal on the ballot and Republicans have since urged residents to vote "no." The Kalamazoo County Republican Party formally declared the millage "an unnecessary request" during its July meeting. The party, chaired by Commissioner Scott McGraw, is giving out yard signs and recruiting citizens to volunteer on a phone bank. Tom Graham, an Oshtemo Township computer programmer who recently became more active in local politics, is on the party's "Vote No" committee. Graham recently posted a 5-minute video about the proposal on his public affairs YouTube channel "Return2 Integrity." Graham said the funds will only go to a small group of seniors: those who are in poverty and unable to care for themselves. The self-described "classical liberal" said the responsibility of caring for the elderly should rest with families, churches and charitable organizations. The government should be a last resort, Graham said. Funds flow through the Area Agency on Aging and allocated to community organizations through requests for proposals, which are approved by the county. Stinson quit her job to take care of her mother while she was dying of cancer. She was fortunate to afford to stop working, but she still relied on resources in the community. The millage will help those who can't afford to stop working to care for their family, she said. Stinson said it would also reduce some of the burden on nursing homes. "We're taking care of the seniors of our community to make sure they can age safely, with respect in their own homes," she said. Graham is also critical of the proposal because around 18 percent of the Area Agency on Aging's budget goes toward salaries and administrative costs. The Kalamazoo County Democratic Party supports the millage. Vice Chair Meredith Place, who is running as a Democrat against McGraw in November, said vulnerable seniors are being overlooked. State Rep. Jon Hoadley, D-Kalamazoo, supports the millage and collaborated with Say YES to Seniors. Hoadley was featured in a July 20 video posted to the campaign's Facebook page. He is seeking re-election in Michigan's 60th District, which covers the city of Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo Township and Parchment. State Rep. Brandt Iden, R-Oshtemo Township, could not be reached for comment Monday. Iden represents Michigan's 61st District, covering the city of Portage and the townships of Oshtemo, Texas, Prairie Ronde and Schoolcraft. State Sen. Margaret O'Brien, R-Portage, has not taken a position on the millage. Though O'Brien could not be reached Monday, a spokesperson said it's something she is still considering. O'Brien is seeking re-election in Michigan's 20th District, which includes all of Kalamazoo County, but she will not face a primary challenger. Sean McCann, the Democrat challenging O'Brien in November, said it is long past time for Kalamazoo County to pass a senior millage. The non-partisan Kalamazoo City Commission voted unanimously July 16 to pass a resolution in support of the millage. That resolution notes about 300 seniors in Kalamazoo County are on a waiting list to receive services. In 2017, a county report found independence programs delivered nearly 4,500 meals to seniors. Republican Commissioner Roger Tuinier said constituents in Comstock Township do not support the millage. Residents already pay 1 mill for similar services, levied by the Comstock Community Center to support its operations. "A lot of people are not seeing a whole lot of benefit from (the county senior millage)," Tuinier said. "In Comstock, people are going to be double-taxed. I think people feel like their taxes are high enough." However, the Comstock Community Center does not solely provide senior services. The organization also operates youth programs and developing strategies to eliminate and reduce the effects of structural racism. The Comstock tax, which expires in 2021, is expected to raise $521,013 in 2018. It covers 40 percent of the community center's $1.2 million budget, supplemented by program fees, contract services and grants. Last year, $377,484 went toward program service fees, facilities and operations, while $827,590 went to salaries and fringe benefits. Executive Director Mary Gustas said the community center's board of directors decided not to take a stance on the ballot proposal. She said the local millage has been in place for 32 years. Stinson said the community center could access county-wide tax revenue through a request for proposals. Rutherford said the Comstock Community Center does not provide the same kinds of services that would be funded by the millage. Comstock residents are on a waiting list for services, he said. Republican Commissioner John Gisler said the county should focus on prioritizing its budget instead of collecting new taxes. This story has been updated with new candidate information. FRUITPORT TOWNSHIP, MI - Two candidates are vying for one seat on the Fruitport Township Board of Trustees. Incumbent Todd Dunham and challenger Terry Knoll will appear on the Aug. 7 Democratic primary election ballot. No Republicans have filed to run for the two-year position. This year, MLive Media Group partnered with the League of Women Voters of Michigan to provide candidate information and other voting resources to our readers. Each candidate was asked to answer a series of questions about their policy stances. Information on all state and federal races and many of Michigan's county and local races will be available at Vote411.org -- the election information website run by the League of Women Voters. Knoll is a manufacturing engineer who spent 10 years as a the financial secretary for the UAW Local 113 chapter. He is also a student at Muskegon Community College. Dunham, a current township board member and the former head of the Muskegon County Sheriff's Office Marine Division. He also serves on the executive board and budget committee for Special Olympics Michigan. What are your top three priorities for your municipality and how would you address them? TODD DUNHAM Keeping the residents informed. Asking for their input. Through website surveys, and the posting of email addresses to contact us. Let them know that we represent them, and their opinions and concerns are valued. Maintaining Fruitport's unique quality of life. I want business growth to stay in the areas zoned for it, and single family housing, or condo development encouraged. Continued cooperation and work on the development of the old race track, by assisting in every way possible, with the proper governmental authorities, encouraging the building of the new casino. TERRY KNOLL Continue to pursue bringing a casino to the former Great Lakes Downs property. Upgrade our police and fire department equipment by seeking grants at the state and federal levels. Aggressively pursue bringing more manufacturing jobs to the township. What policies do you support to increase jobs and help your residents improve their economic positions? TODD DUNHAM Encourage a diverse business growth of industries. Assisting with government regulation and tax rates to assist in their development. New business growth translates to a creation of jobs keeping our children home and employed. An expanding tax base, will help maintain current cost of services and prevent a raising of taxes, keeping money in the residents' pockets. New homes being built, increase property values, but can be controlled through a lowering of a mileage rate allowing tax money to increase due to increased homes being taxed, while single family home values rise, but their taxes do not. Controlled growth without creating a bigger government. TERRY KNOLL Award tax breaks to manufacturing companies that want to open in the township. What actions or policies do you support to protect your municipality's water, air and land for current and future generations while meeting community energy needs? TODD DUNHAM Maintaining our current practice of evaluating all businesses as they locate in the township and assessing their impact. Continue to work closely with the County and the drain commission to inspect impact on all building and run offs. Maintain our relationship with state and federal officials in their study and enforcement of regulations relating to business impact on the environment. Properly decide the best addition to the business and home growth in accordance to their impact on the specific area they are requesting building. TERRY KNOLL Conservation and protection of our environment should be central to all decisions made in the township. What initiatives or policies do you support to help increase tourism and recreational activities in your municipality for residents and visitors? TODD DUNHAM The number one issue facing the township is the proposed casino and its side effects of creating additional business to support it. When built, it will expand the Sternberg Road corridor, creating the need for auxiliary businesses. Partnering with Norton Shores can only benefit both communities. Continue to maintain and beautify our township parks, playgrounds, and recreational facilities for our residents. Ask for their input on improvements or additions they would like to see, and make sure that increased tax revenue is appropriately spent keeping these spaces beautiful and functional. TERRY KNOLL We should develop a slogan for the township and use it to promote community functions regionally. MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, MI - A memorial service is planned for activist and museum owner Dr. James Jackson, who died in June at age 86. Dr. James Jackson poses next to a painting of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in this file photo from 2006. The service is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 8, at the James Jackson Museum of African American History, 7 E. Center St., in Muskegon Heights. The day will also mark the anniversary of Jackson's birth. Jackson, a physician and ardent civil rights activist, spent much of his life championing equality for all people. He also was the owner and co-founder of the museum that bears his name. With his passing, friends and family say Jackson leaves behind a legacy of self-determination and community stewardship focused on making life better for the disenfranchised. Jackson attended Wayne State University in Detroit and the Des Moines University medical school in Iowa. He worked as an osteopathic physician. Jackson moved his family to the Muskegon area in 1960. Shortly thereafter, Jackson saw rampant segregation and economic disparity, and attempted to "level the playing field" with his activism, said William Muhammad, a member of the James Jackson Museum board. The doctor even made a bid for lieutenant governor in 1964, running under the all-black Freedom Now Party along with two other members. In place of flowers, Jackson's estate is asking for donations or contributions to the museum. Those items can be sent to P.O. Box 4582, Muskegon Heights, 49444. By Olivia Rose AS DEADLY civil unrest engulfed Haiti last week, TCI law enforcement agencies were put on alert for a potential increase in illegal migration. Double-digit fuel prices set by the Haitian government sparked violent riots that led to an estimated seven deaths, looting and the destruction of businesses in the capital Port-au-Prince, according to Reuters. The week long unrest started on Friday, July 6, when the Haitian government announced its plan to raise prices on gasoline, diesel and kerosene after they struck an economic reform deal with the International Monetary Fund. Under that deal, gasoline prices would have risen by 38 percent, diesel by 47 percent and kerosene by 51 percent. The price hike would have also generated $300 million for the government since fuel has long been subsidised in the country. The subsidy helps many residents in the impoverished nation afford the cost of living. Ten days after the riots and unrest, Haitis prime minister Jack Guy Lafontant announced his resignation. The departure came before parliament was set to issue a no-confidence vote that could have ousted him from his position. Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson, who co-chaired a meeting of the TCI National Security Council (NSC) on Monday (July 16), updated the council on the political situation. She said that Minister of Border Control Hon. Sean Astwood is monitoring and assessing the possible implications for the TCI. The premier also reported that the TCI Government will soon commence talks with the Government of the Bahamas on possible co-operation to tackle the problem of illegal sloops from Haiti. She further noted that she had received the report of the UK Border Force delegation who had been in TCI recently to carry out an assessment of TCIs needs to combat illegal migration. On Sunday, July 8, Caicos Express Airways and InterCaribbean Airlines temporarily suspended all flights into both Port Au Prince and Cap Haitien, citing safety concerns for passengers and crew. SAGINAW TWP, MI -- A guinea pig and a dog were rescued when firefighters were dispatched to a Saginaw Township house fire Sunday. Shortly before 11 p.m. on Sunday, July 22, firefighters from Saginaw Township Fire Department were dispatched to the 1300 block of Passolt. According to firefighters, a dog and a guinea pig were rescued from the house. Nobody was home at the time, they said. The home suffered heavy fire damage, according to firefighters, and the blaze remains under investigation. No one was injured during the incident, investigators said. Saudi Arabia, the second largest producer of crude oil to world, faced an attack on its oil infrastructure facilities on September 14, which caused a sharp increase in fuel prices. Do you know where petrol prices were the highest? Here's a list of the countries where petrol is the cheapest and most expensive. (Note: All price comparisons are on rupee terms only. Global rates as of September, 16 2019 - Image: Reuters) Amid changing global market dynamics, crude oil prices have been on a trampoline lately. The price corrected almost 10 percent in the last 7 days touching $72 per barrel from the highs of $80 per barrel a few days back. Thereafter, there was some uptick in prices. The volatility shows how quickly sentiments change in the market with changing geopolitical dynamics. We take a closer look at various factors that are contributing to the volatility. Softening of the US' stand on Iranian sanction The last few months saw the US President Donald Trump's mood swings dictate the global geopolitical scenario bringing in immense volatility. While he repeatedly criticised the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) for supercilious oil prices, the US' stance on Iranian sanctions also partly led to the oil price surge. This was followed by what seemed to be softening of the stance with opening up of the possibility of negotiations on a case-by-case basis. The expectation of probable softening of stance and lower-than-expected cut in Iranian barrels from the market cooled off the boiling crude. US oil inventories and production A surprise uptick in the US oil inventories last week coupled with the gradual increase in the US oil production in the last few months was another reason for the softening crude prices. Production from seven major US shale oil formations is expected to rise by 143,000 barrels per day (bpd) to a record 7.47 million bpd in August. This could ease some portion of the supply side pressure. Indication on the US tapping the strategic petroleum reserves The US is considering teaming up with other Western countries to simultaneously release emergency oil stock. They are reviewing options ranging from a 5 to 30 million barrels release from its strategic oil reserve to cool pump prices. This is ahead of the congressional elections in November, which coincides with the timeline when sanctions on Iran are due to snap back. Although this move is not imminent, it is seen as a tactic to increase pressure on OPEC to pump more oil. Production woes reemerge in Venezuela Amidst tight political and economic environment, two of Venezuelas four crude upgraders go under maintenance in the upcoming weeks, triggering further disruptions in supply from the country. These units have the ability to process a combined 700,000 barrels per day and are used to prepare extra-heavy oil for export. Military clashes in Libya Libya saw military clashes in June and early July, which impacted its production in these months. The output from the countries Sharara field fell by 125,000 bpd following the attacks. While the situation was coming under control, last week saw disruptions on crude oil loading at Zawiya port. With the continued stressed environment, it is difficult to predict future supplies from here. Russia and Saudi Arabia's assurance of uptick in supply faces hurdles With continued production disruption and constraints in partner OPEC countries, Saudi Arabia and Russia that initially assured the markets of higher supply in coming months hit limitations. While Russia managed to increase the production, Saudi production is expected to stay flat in August. Moreover, there have been news about attacks on Saudi Aramco refineries by Yemens Houthi groups, disrupting production. Indias stance on crude In a rare move, India last week took a stance of warning the OPEC nations of the continuous increase in the prices and indicated exploring alternate sources of oil. While it is difficult to quantify the impact, but continued criticism by countries builds pressure on OPEC to increase production. Outlook The softening prices came as a relief for Indian oil refiners, with the expectation of some cushion on the margins. Indian oil refiners have been witnessing growing pressure and public criticism over margins and surging prices of motor fuels in the retail markets. A sustained softening of the crude prices could mean improvement of the GRMs of refining segment. However, the volatility in the crude prices has been immense and is expected to continue. Though we believe that very high levels of crude are not sustainable as more and more producers get on board the supply ship, the upcoming irregularities due to the hurricane season in the US, and an uptick in demand due in winters are something that would dictate the contours of prices in future. Follow @Ruchiagrawal Finance Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday said that sanitary napkins will be fully exempted from Goods and Services Tax (GST), as compared with the existing 12 percent tax, a decision that is expected to make the product cheaper and affordable for women. It may be good news for consumer activists and everyone who vehemently protested against the governments decision to impose a high GST rate of 12 percent on the menstrual hygiene product. Manufacturers, however, may have a different story to tell. While the new rate will be effective from July 27, it may be too early to say if manufacturers will be in a position to pass on the benefit of lower tax to the consumers as they are busy doing the math to derive the revised price of the product. Suhani Jalota, Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MynaMahila Foundation, an entity which produces menstrual hygiene products, said that the government has responded in the right way by reducing GST on sanitary napkin but fully exempting it from tax is a surprising move. Manufacturers would have benefited if the Council had lowered GST to 5 percent instead of zero as most of the raw materials required to produce a sanitary napkin attracts 12 percent tax. Now, we will not be able to claim input tax credit (ITC), Jalota said. A manufacturer generally has to pay tax at every stage of production, as well on the final product. The biggest benefit of GST is that now the government refunds the entire tax it had collected on inputs or raw materials, provided the producer has paid tax on the final product. As a result, no GST on the final product would mean that manufacturer of the sanitary napkin will not be able to claim tax credit. Manufacturers fear that this may make the final product, sanitary napkin, in this case, more expensive. Another executive at a sanitary napkin producing company said that zero percent tax on the product will make domestically manufactured sanitary napkins at a huge disadvantage as compared with imports, which will be zero rated. The decision will impact small manufacturers as they may not be able to compete with Chinese napkins as they can now be imported at a relatively cheaper cost, the executive said, requesting anonymity. Tax experts believe that the Councils decision to exempt the menstrual hygiene product from GST will definitely make it cheaper. In fact, manufacturers should be wary as not passing on the benefit of reduced tax can attract anti-profiteering actions from the government. "Manufacturers of sanitary pads would need to compare the impact of the reduction in the output tax from 12% to zero with the likely reductions in the input tax credits and pass on the benefits to consumers so as to comply with the anti-profiteering provisions," MS Mani, Partner, Deloitte India, said. Ironically, ten days after the implementation of GST on July 1 last year, the Finance Ministry had issued a statement explaining that tax incidence on sanitary napkins before and after GST is the same or less. In pre-GST, days, they attracted concessional excise duty of 6 percent and 5 percent VAT and, the pre-GST estimated total tax incidence on sanitary napkins was 13.68 percent. Therefore, a 12 percent GST rate had been provided for sanitary napkin, the statement said. Major raw materials for manufacturing sanitary napkins attract 12 percent and 8 percent tax. If the GST rate on sanitary napkins were to be reduced from 12 percent to 5 percent, it will further accentuate the tax inversion and result in even higher accumulated ITC, with correspondingly higher financial costs on account of fund blockage and associated administrative cost of refunds, putting domestic manufacturers at even greater dis-advantage vis-a-vis imports, the ministry had said. Representative image Bajaj Allianz General Insurance has launched an innovative group personal accident cover for schoolchildren which covers students during travel hours in a pre-registered school bus. The insurance provides cover against accidental OPD and accidental hospitalisation of the child. School authorities opting for the cover will have to issue IoT-based GPS-enabled ID cards to students which will enable the insurer to track the schoolbus and children real-time. Cost of premium will depend on the coverage opted by the school. Currently, Indian schools do not offer any insurance product for accidental death of students during school hours or for the commute through registered transport systems. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance through a technology service provider will be offering insurance solutions to schools and coordinate with them for the policy issuance and claims. The insurance will act as an add-on if parents already have a personal accident policy. Tapan Singhel, MD & CEO, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance said that the product helps parents and school authorities monitor their children the moment they step into a schoolbus. Fortis Healthcare | In the September quarter, Rakesh Junjhunwala held a 2.65 percent holding in the stock, and FIIs have increased its stake to 41.04 percent from 40.98 percent in the June quarter. In FY21 so far the stock price has risen 0 percent to Rs 125.70 as on October 26. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More An independent non-executive director of IHH Healthcare's board had voiced dissent over the groups planned acquisition of Fortis Healthcare, pointing out that the deal could be "risky". Rossana Annizah binti Ahmad Rashid, who is the chairman of the audit and risk management committee, voted against the proposal in the meeting that approved the deal, Economic Times reported, citing an exchange filing by IHH in Malaysia. According to the filing, released on July 13, Rashid, "...was not comfortable with the structure of the proposals after taking into consideration the risk factors related to the proposals and the qualified opinion issued by Fortis external auditors, Deloitte Haskins and Sells LLP, in the audited financial statements of Fortis for the year ended March 31." IHH, backed by Malaysias sovereign fund Khazanah, outbid a consortium of Manipal Hospitals and US private equity firm TPG by offering to invest Rs 4,000 crore by way of preferential allotment at valuation of Rs 170 per share. Asked about Rashid's stand, an IHH spokesperson told the publication, "One director concluded with a differing viewpoint." However, following the regulation, a final decision was made based on majority, said the spokesperson, adding, As we understand, there is no connection between the view taken by an individual director of IHH and the forthcoming EGM (extraordinary general meeting) of Fortis as referred to by you. The shareholders of Fortis are scheduled to vote on the acquisition on August 13. The fruits of the research we fund are a public good not a threat to America Eric Xu Jul 19, 2018 Recently my company Huawei was strongly criticised by several members of the US Congress. They asked the US secretary of education to investigate whether our co-operation with US universities on basic scientific research might threaten US national security. I believe this criticism displays an ignorance of how contemporary science and innovation work and I recently described it as ill-informed in a media interview. I did not mean this as a personal attack. Rather I was seeking to highlight the importance of academic freedom as an essential feature of modern universities, one that underpins all technological development and helps cultivate the next generation of scientific talent. Academic freedom is the cornerstone of higher learning. This freedom from political and other interference allows the US consistently to attract the worlds brightest minds to study and conduct research within its borders. It also supports the USs continued status as a global technology leader. I hold a doctorate in engineering and have experience in basic research, which the National Science Foundation defines as study directed toward greater knowledge or understanding . . . without specific applications toward processes or products. While corporate research and development tends to focus on commercial outcomes, universities devote time to mathematics, algorithms, material science and other applications that might never make money. Even if the research pays off eventually, closing the gap between a theory and a commercial product can take decades. Collaboration between universities and businesses can accelerate this process. The exchange of knowledge and resources among the private sector, academia, and research institutes, known as knowledge transfer, has become a vital driver of scientific and technological progress. But US federal funding for higher education research has fallen steadily over the past decade. Today it represents less than 50 per cent of total American university research funding. Corporate sponsorship from companies such as Huawei provides much of the rest. The amount of money we allocate for research at US universities is relatively modest approximately $10m last year. But it provides needed support in the form of funding, facilities, and laboratory equipment. Our collaboration with universities gives college and postgraduate students the chance to receive training and hands-on experience. We provide this support with no expectation of direct commercial return. Contrary to what our critics allege, the fruits of this research constitute a public good rather than a threat to America. The findings made possible through our university partnerships are published and disseminated worldwide through dissertations and papers by professors, PhDs, and postgraduate students. Like other corporate supporters of university research including US businesses that support Chinese universities Huawei does not gain exclusive ownership of, or access to, the findings of the research we support and we do not dictate what is published. Science is borderless, and we hope that the results of our partnerships will reach as many people as possible. Like any technology company, Huawei benefits from the general advancement of science and technology worldwide. Ultimately, however, our ability to provide competitive products is a result of our own long-term investment in R&D. Last year, Huawei invested $13.8 billion in research and development globally, bringing our total investment over the past decade to more than $60 billion. Huawei has been granted nearly 80,000 patents worldwide, including 10,000 patents in the US. Many of these are essential patents vital to the telecommunications industry. As such, they represent our modest contribution to the development of the digital economy. Before any basic research can deliver tangible benefits to society, universities and businesses must set off together on a long and sometimes arduous journey. This requires unstinting work by countless scientists and engineers. Such people deserve respect, not groundless accusations from sceptical politicians, for their efforts. Open-minded political leaders should work to ensure that US universities continue to enjoy the academic freedom that drives American progress in science and technology. Ideally, they will bring to that task the same depth of understanding, curiosity, and spirit of fact-finding inquiry displayed by the worlds leading scientists. The writer currently holds the rotating chairmanship of Huawei. Representative Image Realty major Lodha Developers has reported a 32 percent rise in its consolidated net profit at Rs 790 crore during the last fiscal on account of higher sales, especially in the affordable housing segment. Its net profit stood at Rs 599 crore in the 2016-17 financial year. Total income of the company, which plans to launch its maiden public issue soon, rose by 22 percent to Rs 9,700 crore in the 2017-18 fiscal from Rs 7,957 crore in the previous year, sources said. Lodha Developers' total income was higher than that of DLF, which posted Rs 7,664 crore income during the previous fiscal. Despite slowdown in the housing segment, Lodha Developers' net profit and revenue during the last fiscal went up on the back of 16 percent increase in sales bookings from India business at Rs 8,100 crore. The company, which has presence in Mumbai, Pune and London property markets, had achieved sales bookings of Rs 6,950 crore during 2016-17. "Our sales bookings stood at Rs 8,100 crore during last fiscal, of which Rs 3,500 crore were from affordable housing projects like Pallava City," Lodha Developers' MD and CEO Abhishek Lodha had said last week The company delivered 11,000 units in the last fiscal and spent Rs 4,250 crore on construction during 2017-18. Reviving its plan to launch the initial public offer (IPO) after eight years, Lodha Developers filed the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) in April and got market regulator Sebi's go-ahead earlier this month. The company plans to hit the capital market with the IPO this month or early August to raise about Rs 5,500 crore. The total debt of its India business is around Rs 18,000 crore, which will reduce by about Rs 4,500 crore from the proceeds of the public issue. Lodha's IPO, if successful, would be the second biggest IPO in the real estate sector, after DLF that raised close to Rs 9,200 crore in 2007. This would be the second attempt by Lodha Developers to launch a public issue and list its shares on the stock exchanges. The company had filed its DRHP in September 2009 to raise about Rs 2,800 crore. It had received Sebi's nod in January 2010, but later shelved the plan due to unfavourable market conditions post the global financial crisis. According to the latest DRHP filed by Lodha, the company will issue fresh shares worth up to Rs 3,750 crore. The promoters will sell up to 1.8 crore shares through the offer for sale (OFS) route. The company is also considering a pre-IPO placement of up to 95 lakh equity shares for cash consideration aggregating up to Rs 750 crore, the document said. The global coordinators of the IPO are Kotak Mahindra Capital, CLSA India, JM Financial and Morgan Stanley India. The privately-held Lodha Group, which was founded in 1995 by Mangal Prabhat Lodha, had completed projects with developable area of 50.49 million sq ft till December last year. The company has 37 ongoing projects, of which 35 are in Mumbai region and Pune in India and two in London. These projects account for a developable area of 33.80 million sq ft, bulk of it in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). The group had forayed into the London realty market in 2013 and acquired two prime sites in central London for an investment of about 400 million pounds. Lodha UK is eyeing a sales revenue of 1.5 billion pounds (over Rs 12,000 crore) from two ongoing housing projects in central London. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Shares of South Indian Bank plunged 18 percent on Monday morning as investors turned wary of a fall in its net profit. The stock touched an intraday high of Rs 20.60 and an intraday low of Rs 18.45. The Kerala-based South Indian Bank declared a net profit of Rs 23.04 crores for the first quarter of the financial year 2018-19 as against Rs 101.47 crore during the corresponding period last year. In a press release here, the bank said the reason for the decline in profit was the reduction in the Treasury trading profit by Rs 73 crores and incremental MTM (mark to market) provision in the Treasury Book by Rs 41 crore owing to adverse market conditions, besides incremental one-time employee cost of Rs 33 crore because of increase in gratuity ceiling and wage revision. "But for these, the net profit would have been Rs 119 crore for the first quarter," the release said. Low-cost deposit grew by 4 per cent, it said. The non-resident CASA (the ratio of deposits in current and saving accounts to total deposits) saw a growth of 5 percent on a quarter-to-quarter basis, it said. At 10:08 hrs South Indian Bank was quoting at Rs 18.85, down Rs 3.60, or 16.04 percent, on the BSE. It touched a 52-week low of Rs 18.45. Agriculture live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Shares of agrochemicals company UPL rallied nearly 15 percent intraday on Monday after it announced acquisition of Arysta LifeScience Inc and its subsidiaries in a $4.2 billion all-cash deal. UPL Corporation, the wholly-owned subsidiary of UPL in Mauritius has signed a definitive pact with Platform Specialty Products Corporation to acquire Arysta LifeScience. Arysta is a global provider of innovative crop protection solutions, including biosolutions and seed treatment. Following the acquisition, UPL will enhance its position as a global leader in agriculture solutions with $5 billion in combined sales, $1 billion in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) and 20 percent + EBITDA margin pre-synergies. The said the deal is expected to be earnings per share (EPS) accretive by Rs 10 to 12 in FY20 and drive annual synergies of over $200 million. The company expects leverage to increase to 3-3.5x after the deal. Incremental interest cost will be $120 million. Based on acquired EBITDA of $424 million for the twelve months ended March 2018, the enterprise value or EV to EBITDA purchase multiple is 9.9x (ex-synergies). UPL Corp intends to fund the deal through a combination of newly issued equity and debt. The transaction is backed by a $1.2 billion equity investment in UPL Corp from long-term investors including a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and TPG, a leading global alternative asset firm. ADIA and TPG will each invest $600 million for a combined stake of 22 percent in UPL Corp. UPL Corp has received debt financing commitments of $3 billion for the balance of the consideration, with bullet maturity of 5 years, from MUFG Bank, Ltd. and Co-operative Rabobank U.A. (Hong Kong Branch). Global rating agency S&P has revised outlook to Stable from Positive on proposed Arysta acquisition but affirmed its BBB- rating for the company. Brokerage houses remained positive on the stock post this acquisition, but few brokerages slashed their target prices due to limited synergy benefits. CLSA: Buy | Target: Rs 940 | Return: 71% Arysta acquisition is EPS accretive and we believe the acquisition will remain EPS accretive despite no synergy benefits in FY20. Investec: Buy | Target: Rs 785 | Return: 43% Arysta deal is likely to be value accretive. Risks associated with the Arysta deal are largely priced in and synergy realisation can result in significant upsides. Valuations implied negative value for profitable India operations. Kotak Institutional Equities: Add | Target: Rs 640 | Return: 16% The acquisition of Arysta will cement UPL's position in top-5 global agrochemical players. Kotak has retained its Add rating on the stock given reasonable valuation post recent correction, but reduced target to Rs 640 from Rs 850. "Limited clarity on synergies & negligible earnings accretion keep us cautious." Emkay: Buy | Target: Rs 773 | Return: 40% Emkay also has maintained Buy rating on the stock with reduced target price at Rs 773 from Rs 923. The research house expects Arysta deal to be EPS accretive from FY20 and raised FY20 EPS estimate by 8 percent to Rs 55.30. High leverage is a concern. Credit Suisse: Buy | Target: Rs 850 | Return: 54% Arysta deal can create significant value over the next few years but the execution is however critical, given the deal size & high debt burden. We factored in execution risk by adding a high risk rating. Motilal Oswal: Buy | Target: Rs 664 | Return: 21% While the acquisition of Arysta would drive significant synergistic benefits (product portfolio expansion, strengthened presence in Europe and cost synergies on backward integration and efficiencies), it would also result in a highly leveraged balance sheet for UPL. We note that UPPL trades at 8.9x FY18E EV/EBITDA, and the acquisition has taken place at 9.9x FY18 EV/EBITDA of Arysta (at an 11 percent premium to UPLLs current valuation). However, UPL acquired Arysta at CY17 EV/sales of 2.2x, which is at a 5 percent discount to valuation at which Platform Chemical acquired Arysta ($3.5 billion in October 2014 at EV/sales of 2.33x CY13). Post-acquisition, not only FY20 EPS would shrink by around 8 percent (versus previous estimates), but also FY20 RoE would come down from 23.1 percent to 21.2 percent. Further, FY20 net D/E would jump from 0.1 to 1.5 and FY20 net debt to EBITDA would rise from 0.4 to 2.6. While we revise up FY20 revenue and EBITDA estimate by 62 percent and 59 percent (building in financials of Arysta), respectively, we cut FY20 PAT estimate by 8 percent (due to higher interest cost on increased debt). We, thus, cut valuation multiple from 17x to 13x FY20E EPS and arrive at a target price of Rs 664. At 12:10 hours IST, the stock price was quoting at Rs 626.55, up Rs 76.30, or 13.87 percent on the BSE. The above report is compiled from inputs available on public domain. The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on Moneycontrol are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Banks and financial institutions in India Monday entered into an inter-creditor agreement to speed up the resolution of stressed assets of Rs 50 crore and above that are under consortium lending. The agreement was signed by 22 public sector banks including State Bank of India (SBI), Punjab National Bank (PNB), and India Posts Payments Bank, 19 private sectors banks, and many foreign banks. The signatories also included 12 major financial institutions such as Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), HUDCO, PFC, and REC, among others. The agreement gives a bigger say to the lead lender in a consortium and allows a resolution plan to be approved if 66 percent of the banks in the group agree to it. Dissenting lenders have the option to sell their stressed loans to a company at a discount or buy out loans to that entity from all other lenders at a premium. "The objective is to use this inter-creditor agreement for faster facilitation of stressed assets resolution," said Sunil Mehta, the Non-Executive Chairman of second-biggest state-run lender Punjab National Bank, who also headed the panel. "This is a protection for everybody. While we were reviewing why there was a delay in resolution of the assets, the biggest problem was there was no real consensus for all the lenders to decide on the resolution plan," Mehta said. The agreement will get operational by the end of July. According to Mehta, "One of the major issues that we identified was a consensus among the lending banks on what should have been a common resolution plan which would have benefited the banks, and the borrower so that there is a resolution in getting the asset back into the resuscitation mode rather than allowing it to impair over a period of time." The ICA is primarily focussing on the Rs 50-500 crore category and the Rs 500-2,000 crore. Mehta said any specific assets of more than Rs 2,000 crore will be dealt with separately. Mehta said for foreign leaders, it may be a tedious task to get their respective board approvals to meet the domestic regulations, as mandated in the agreement. The Chief Executive Officer of the India Banks' Association (IBA), VG Kannan, said, "The decision making shall be by way of approval of majority lenders (i.e. the lenders with 66 percent share in the aggregate exposure). Once a resolution plan is approved by the majority lenders, it shall be binding on all the lenders that are a party to the ICA..." Reports suggest a few more banks are expected to sign the ICA on July 24. Boards of some other banks are scheduled to meet this week to discuss on signing the agreement. Each resolution plan that is formulated in terms of the ICA shall be in compliance with the RBI circular dated February 12 and all other applicable laws and guidelines. A government-appointed panel this month proposed the inter-creditor agreement among other measures after criticism that at times smaller lenders in a lending consortium were creating roadblocks for a speedier resolution. State Bank of India Chairman Rajnish Kumar though told CNBC-TV18 he does not think the ICA gives the lead banker any monopoly in the resolution process and that its use with respect to the NPA resolution process will be minimal. There will be no change with respect to the cases pending with the National Companies Law Tribunal (NCLT), he noted. India's banks had 12.5 percent of their total loans categorised as non-performing or restructured assets at the end of March, according to central bank data. The central bank in February this year withdrew half a dozen loan restructuring schemes and tightened rules to steer more companies to bankruptcy courts. (With inputs from PTI and Reuters) Shehbaz Sharif, PML(N) leader, Pakistan Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Shehbaz Sharif said that if his party comes to power, it would create an environment for Kashmir to join Pakistan on the pattern of the reunification of East and West Germany. Shehbaz, the PML-N prime ministerial candidate and the brother of jailed former premier Nawaz Sharif, said this in an interview to Geo TV when asked what would be his policy on Kashmir if his party is voted to power after the July 25 general elections. He attacked India for "inhumane treatment" of Kashmiris and said "Kashmir would become part of Pakistan through peace and development." "I believe that it will be like the Berlin Wall being pulled down. It was the prosperity in West Germany that united the two parts, he said. The Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) West and East Germany respectively united on October 3 in 1990. Yesterday, while addressing a rally in Sargodha district in Punjab province, he said that people can change his name if he does not take Pakistan ahead of India after coming into power. "They (Indians) will come to Wahga Border and call Pakistanis their master," 65-year-old Shehbaz said. The former Punjab chief minister said that he would bring Pakistan at par with Malaysia and Turkey. He added that he would meet Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan "to learn from them and make Pakistan a great nation again". He said that Pakistan cannot become a great nation by voting leaders like Imran Khan who have made false promises to "our nation". "The U-turn signs should be removed from roads and should be replaced by the picture of Imran Khan," he said, adding that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief's politics is based on baseless allegations and false promises. "Khan alleged corruption against the Punjab government but not a single penny has been proved against me," the PML-N president said. He was the chief minister of Punjab province from June 2013 to June 2018. He was elected as PML-N president in March after his elder brother Nawaz Sharif was disqualified as the party president following a Supreme Court verdict in the Elections Act 2017 case. The PML-N chief said Nawaz Sharif came back to Pakistan leaving his ailing wife in London but he and his daughter Maryam Nawaz were arrested at the airport. "Nawaz Sharif was not even allowed to meet his mother," he added. Both Sharif and Maryam have been sentenced by a court to 10 and seven years in prison, respectively, for corruption charges. Maryam's husband Muhammad Safdar was jailed for one year. Piramal Capital & Housing Finance Limited (PCHFL), the wholly owned subsidiary of Piramal Enterprises, has announced an investment of Rs 650 crore in the Gurgaon-based SAMHI Group. SAMHI Group owns around 29 hotels and has marquee investors. This structured debt investment will allow the Group to support their growth plans and refinance existing lenders across three assets The Courtyard and Fairfield by Marriott in Bengaluru, the Sheraton in Hyderabad and the Hyatt Regency in Pune. This is the third significant investment made by PCHFL in the hospitality sector over last 6 months. Prior to this, PCHFL had invested around Rs 600 crore with the Gurgaon based Vatika Group (against the Westin Gurgaon and the Westin Sohna) and around Rs 600 crore with Advantage Raheja Group (against the JW Marriott, Bangalore and the Crowne Plaza, Pune). All loans are against operational assets, a company release said. PCHFL has also concluded 5 other transactions, totalling Rs 450 crore against 5 hotel assets, (three operational and two in final stages of construction and fit out) operated by top-tier brands like Taj, Hyatt, Radisson, etc. across regions like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Shimla, and Goa. Of this, Rs 100 crore will be extended as last mile funding towards the completion of the first Taj Luxury Resort in Himachal Pradesh coming up in Theog, near Shimla. The Taj Theog is a 99 key full-service five-star luxury property built over a hilltop of around 5 acres with a 360-degree view of the Himalayan range and is expected to be operational within the next six to nine months. We believe that this is an opportune time to target the hospitality sector with intelligent capital. As the traditional lenders are unable to provide holistic solutions, the expertise of our Group and our presence across the capital stack enables us to cater to this industry with unique customized solutions and innovative structures. Our ability to act as a catalyst between owners and operators alike further adds to our distinct competitive advantage over others. Over a span of 6 months, we have deployed Rs 2,000 crore towards the hospitality sector as we scale our offerings within this vertical to reach a target book size of Rs 10,000cr in the next three years. The industry is firmly on a path of growth, ably supported both domestic and foreign tourism, has higher disposable income and is witnessing a general change in spending habits of target customers, says Khushru Jijina, Managing Director, Piramal Capital & Housing Finance Ltd. We continue to see accretive acquisition opportunities in the hotel sector and we are perhaps best positioned to take advantage of these. We have found, in Piramal, a partner of choice given their unique understanding of the sector coupled with their ability to provide flexible and targeted funding that allows us to pursue growth while maintaining the right capital structure, says Ashish Jakhanwala, Founder, and CEO of SAMHI GROUP. (Image: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs) Delhi Metro has launched the upgraded version of its mobile application to help passengers get details of the shortest route, report a problem and get feedback from other passengers. The app has been revamped with an array of new features to help travellers with crucial information like finding the nearest Metro station, finding the shortest route to reach a destination among others. With new lines expanding the Delhi Metro network, users will get options of taking multiple routes to a particular place. The "shorter routes feature" will enable commuters to find the best available course for their journey, which will help reduce travel time and cost of travel. The upgraded version of the mobile app was launched by Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Durga Shankar Mishra, and DMRC Chairman Mangu Singh on July 23. The app is available for downloaded from Apple Store and Google Play Store. It can be directly downloaded from DMRCs website www.delhimetrorail.com, a ministry release said. The Delhi Metro is continuously trying to incorporate technology into its functioning so that the services can become more convenient and accessible to passengers. Through this app, we have tried to reach out directly to our commuters through their smart phones, said DMRC Chairman Mangu Singh. The apps feedback feature has been enhanced and will allow users to attach images and relevant information for better understanding and redressal of various issues. The app also provides information about tourist spots near Metro stations, address and contact numbers of the lost and found cell, details of feeder bus services available at Metro stations along with their routes, details about Metro Museum and other helpline numbers. Moneycontrol News The service that is to be launched by the end of 2018, will make use of artificial intelligence. The announcement is likely to be made in a few days. Paytm employees in Tokyo are said to be working on making the service operational, the report added. Moneycontrol could not independently verify the news. SoftBank Corp will soon announce a mobile digital payments service in Japan in collaboration with mobile wallet company Paytm, according to a Bloomberg report Regulatory changes in Japan expected to be implemented over the next two years could accelerate the shift to digital payments and has drawn interest from scores of players including banks. Japans biggest instant-messaging service, Line Corp.and Mercari Inc., a flea-market app have been making headway into digital payments but a global leader is yet to emerge internationally. Some players such as Paypal Holdings Inc., Ant Financial, Tencent Holdings., and Paytm have managed to expand their footprint, albeit in certain geographies. Others such as Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. also have been unable to gain much market share. SoftBank is one of Paytm's major investors. One 97 Communications, which owns Paytm, last year received $1.4 billion funding from SoftBank in turn for a 20 percent stake in the company. The Japanese conglomerate could provide financial services such as lending and insurance to the payments system, the report said. The company is also planning to take the service global. Paytm is primarily backed by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. Japanese billionaire Masayoshi Son, SoftBank's CEO, invested about $100 billion in several deals. Son is the largest investors in ride-hailing globally, with stakes in Ola, Singapore's Grab, and Chinas Didi Chuxing. Cotton Angel Commodities' report on Cotton MCX Jul Cotton closed lower last week tracking weak trend in International prices. However, reports of good exports and slow sowing progress in the Country are keeping prices higher compared to last year prices. As per Commerce ministry data, cotton exports in May surged by 27.6% to 5.7 lakh bales as compared to last year. Cotton acreage till last week was down by 11 % on year to 92.7 lakh hac compared to 104.8 lakh last year, according to the farm ministry data. Cotton futures are expected to trade sideways to positive on improved demand and increase in MSP by government. However, weak international prices and expectation of higher acreage of cotton due to good prices may keep prices sideways. For all commodities report, click here Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. Read More By Deepak Shenoy The government finally made 0 percent duty for sanitary pads. This is after much demand, back and forth, of this particular tax cut. But the road to hell is paved by GST, apparently. There seems to be some confusion about sanitary pads going exempt but lack of input tax credit will make them raise prices. That seems incorrect according to me. Ill try to explain. (Based on my tweetstorm) Assume I sell sanitary pads at Rs 112. This is Rs. 100 + Rs 12 GST. I have input costs of Rs. 70+12 percent GST = 70+8.4 = 79 (say). I earn a gross profit = 11279=33. I pay a net GST to govt of Rs 3 (I collected Rs 12, but Ive already paid Rs 9 on inputs) My profit is Rs. 30. The government decides to say my product is GST exempt. Now what? GST Free: But No Input Tax Offset If you think Ill price my output at Rs 100 you would have to be crazy. Because I have input costs of Rs 79 (remember?). That's Rs 70 cost plus Rs. 9 GST on it. I dont get to write off the Rs. 9 because I dont collect GST. If I sell at Rs 100, I will make Rs 21 profit. Earlier my profit was Rs 30 why would I make a lesser profit? So, the new logic, assuming I still want to make Rs 30 profit: I will sell at cost (Rs 70+9 GST) plus profit (Rs 30) = 79+30=Rs. 109. Prices Fell! But Not So Much My selling price, earlier, was Rs 112. Now, it is Rs. 109. So theres a Rs 3 fall. This is not much. Its like saying what was Rs 112 when we had 12 percent GST is now Rs. 109 at 0 percent GST, and the costs, profit margins etc. are exactly the same. This is not the same as saying Oh, my product is GST exempt now, and it was Rs 100+12 GST, so I should cut it down to Rs. 100 only The Caveat: Inverted Duty What if I pay 18 percent on my inputs, but had to charge 12 percent on my output? This is an inverted duty structure. Before going GST free: I charge Rs 100 + 12 GST = Rs. 112My cost = Rs. 70+18 percent SST = Rs 70+12.6 = Rs. 82.6I get Rs. 12 GST, but Ive paid Rs. 12.6 on inputs, so I dont pay the government anything. And dont get a refund eitherMy profit = 11282.6 = Rs. 29.4 If the product becomes GST Free: My input price = 82.6The profit I want (I used to make this) = 29.4So my selling price = 82.6+29.4 = 112The selling price doesnt change at all. Youll notice that the selling price change depends on the profit I make and my input GST. But it is also true that its almost never likely to be that I have to raise prices very much to keep the same profit. What Happens to Pads? Sanitary pads wont go down 12%. Because thats not how GST is structured. The inputs have GST. From a government release, it appears that there are inputs at 18 percent (absorbent polymer, glue) and some at 12 percent (pulp, release paper). These might not add up to a substantial part of the cost: there will be packaging costs, transportation, electricity, machinery and so on. These have GST on them which has to be included in the costing of the product. However, theres one area which helps. If they sell their products to wholesalers, who then sell onward to retailers, who then sell it to you. At each of these stages, theres a GST that would have had to be paid, at 12%. Now, none of that needs to be paid on the transfer because the product being transferred has no GST. Regardless, the math shows you one thing: The prices of sanitary pads may not go up. But they wont fall much either. But Hey: It Becomes Cheaper To Import Lets say I make sanitary pads in Sri Lanka. And export to India. The Sri Lankan (or most others) government typically refunds the input taxes of an exporter. So it costs me Rs. 70 to manufacture a sanitary pad. No more. I can export to India and sell at Rs. 100. India has the concept that if somethings charged GST in India, the imported item will be charged the same duty, just to keep things sane. Earlier I would have to pay 12% GST, and sell my product at Rs. 112. Now, I pay 0% GST (since the item is zero-rated) and I can sell at 100. The Madness: Importing From Yourself is Actually More Efficient Think of it: the foreign government refunds input duties so I can still make the same margin here and sell at 9% lower (Indian manufacturers price was Rs. 109, remember). Its so complex that even India is supposed to refund the GST of an exporter. Technically, it would be most efficient to put a ship outside Mumbai, send sanitary pads to that ship (as an export) and immediately reimport it back paying no duty. This is one way you can sell at Rs. 100 and maintain your margins. And the price also falls, so everyones happy. So Whats Going To Happen? Well, well just get cheaper imports. And if youre considering setting up a factory to make Sanitary pads for India, consider Sri Lanka. If we banned imports altogether, then youll see a minor drop in the price, not much more. Infor has announced the appointment of Jonathan Wood as General Manager, India, Middle East, and Africa (IMEA). Wood has led Infors Consulting Services team for Europe since joining in 2016. Reporting to Cormac Watters, Executive Vice President and General Manager EMEA, Wood will lead the IMEA business unit from Infors office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With plans to double the regions business in two years, Wood will be responsible for reinvigorating the channel, expanding direct customer relationships and forming new strategic alliances. Infor has demonstrated an ability to deliver mission critical cloud in every industry represented across the IMEA region. Demand for our solutions is growing exponentially as businesses recognise the value of deep industry-specific functionality, out-of-the-box. Infor is collapsing traditional implementation times from months or years to a matter of weeks allowing our customers to remain focused on their core activities, said Jonathan Wood. Wood will lead Infors customer-centric strategy which will leverage a new Digital Transformation hub within Infors Dubai office, where customers and partners will collaborate to imagine and realise their Digital potential. Furthermore, he will oversee the continued expansion of the Infor footprint outside of Cloud ERP with leading solutions including Enterprise Asset Management (EAM), Infor Coleman (AI), Human Capital Management (HCM), Infor CloudSuite Financials, and Birst analytics. Infors Channel Partner Program remains a key pillar of growth and Wood will play an instrumental role in investing in the channel, ensuring an expansion in channel territories and opportunities, as well supporting the training, enablement and specialisation needs of the Channel Partners. @Technuter.com News Service In April 2018, after the Bombay High Court banned the sale of thermocol decorations during Ganeshostav festival, the future of the 25-year-old well-established Makhar industry is in tatters. The demand for Makhars in Mumbai alone is around 2 lakh with over Rs. 20 cror being spent annually. The major manufacturers located in the outskirts of Mumbai were obviously prepared for their once-in-a-year chance to make a profit. However, the ban has left them high and dry. Many of the makhar-workers and factories have invested large sums of money in the process and the materials. A longer notice period would have been appreciated, as per a report in The Times of India. Although the makhar manufacturers understand the environmental harm caused by plastic, thermocol and the colours used by them and that even though people reuse them for other festivals, they are not able to navigate the huge loss. It is the worker or craftsmen who are reeling under the effect of the ban, as the huge sums of money are in the bargain. Some bigger establishments and factories are experimenting with other materials like paper pulp, corrugated paper and digital printing. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has revised the maximum weight of the two-wheeler helmets, reducing it by 300 grams. Currently, the maximum allowed weight is 1.5 kg, which is now being changed to 1.2 kg. This new arrangement has to be followed by every helmet manufacturer. According to a report in The Times of India, the road transport ministry will also mandate BIS certification for all the biker helmet manufacturers. We will complete this process soon. This will end the menace of low-quality helmets being sold in the market. The new helmets will also specify that these are meant for two-wheeler riders, a transport ministry official said in the report. These new standards for helmets will also mandate holes for ventilation in the headgear. As per the report, in 2017 more than 15,000 bikers died due to road accidents. Road service experts suggested that 70 percent of the vehicles are bikes and at least one-third of people killed are two-wheeler riders. BIS officials suggested that the new standard for helmets will protect the riders skull and head. All manufacturers shall be given have six months to comply with the new norm. That is the reason why we have not assigned any standard for a cap like helmets as done by Vietnam and Thailand, said an official. Member of the government panel Rajiv Kapoor, who is also an expert of Helmet Industry, said that the new norm will take care of the required strength of the helmet where the impact is more in case of an accident. West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee addresses during Youth Trinamool Congress rally at Damurjala Stadium in Howrah district of West Bengal on Friday. PTI TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will visit Delhi for three days next week to personally invite opposition leaders to the "federal front" rally she plans to hold in January in Kolkata, party sources said today. Banerjee is scheduled to arrive in Delhi on July 31. During her previous visits to Delhi, she met the leaders of regional and opposition parties as part of her efforts to cobble up support for the "federal front" she has proposed to take on the ruling BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha election. The sources - who are close to Banerjee - said she has been invited to Delhi by St. Stephen's College to deliver a lecture on August 1, but she is likely to invite opposition leaders personally for the rally to be held on January 19 next year. On July 31, the day she arrives in Delhi, Banerjee would speak on "the atmosphere of fear and intolerance against minorities prevailing in the country" at a gathering organised by Christian organisations, the sources said. The meet would be attended by archbishops of Delhi. "Everybody knows that it is she who is fighting against the BJP and communal forces. She is likely to visit Parliament and meet leaders of other political parties to extend her invitation for her January rally," a TMC leader said. She would try to put forward the "real picture" of what is happening in West Bengal to stop the BJP's "negative" against her government, according to the Trinamool Congress leader. Banerjee has been trying to stitch together a federal front of regional parties to take on the ruling BJP in the next general election. But many in the opposition have remained sceptical about her efforts. "She is free to do anything. Earlier too she and TRS chief had a talk on federal front. But the TRS helped the NDA in the no-trust motion. I have always stated that this whole federal front script is forwarded to them by Nagpur," CPI(M) leader Mohammad Salim said. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi had abstained during the no-trust vote, bringing down the Opposition numbers. TRS chief K Chandrashekhar Rao had previously met Banerjee in Kolkata and discussed the formation of a federal front to take on BJP and the Congress in the 2019 general election. It was not yet confirmed whether Banerjee would invite the Congress leadership for the January rally. At TMC's "Martyrs Day" rally in Kolkata on Saturday, she had said that all leaders of the potential federal front will come to Kolkata on January 19. July 23, 2018 / 05:02 PM IST Close to 20 banks have signed ICA, more to follow, says PNB Chairman The Chairman of Punjab Nationa Bank Sunil Mehta stated that close to 20 banks have signed the Inter-creditor agreement (ICA) as of now. Accoridng to a CNBC TV 18 report, the ICA is an agreement between banks that allows the lead bank to take a final decision over the resolution of stressed assets. Mehta expects close to 25 banks to sign the ICA by the end of the day. Congress President Rahul Gandhi today congratulated Asharam Choudhary, the son of a ragpicker in Madhya Pradesh who cracked the AIIMS MBBS entrance test in his first attempt, and hoped that he would contribute to nation-building and inspire many in the future the same way he was motivated by his village doctor. In a letter to the teenager from Dewas in Madhya Pradesh, Gandhi said the fact that despite challenges Choudhary was able to secure good rank is a testament to the dedication of his parents and the hard work put in by him. Choudhary (18), whose house does not have electricity or a toilet, secured the 141st rank in the OBC category and 707 rank overall in the All India Institute of Medical Sciences entrance test held on May 27. He also cleared the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), conducted on May 6, bagging the 803rd rank in the OBC category and 2,763 overall. Choudhary left for Jodhpur today to pursue MBBS at the AIIMS there. "I congratulate you on clearing the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) entrance test in your first attempt and getting selected at Jodhpur AIIMS to pursue Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS)... I extend my best wishes to you and hope you will contribute to nation-building," Gandhi said in the letter. "I am aware that despite all challenges you were able to secure good rank. It is a testament to their dedication and your hard work that you have performed so well," he said, adding it gave him immense pleasure to note how Asharam's village doctor and parents inspired him in his journey and Dakshana Foundation supported him financially. Choudhary's story of travails and triumphs has a hero - Durga Shanker Kumawat, a doctor in his village, who inspired him to dream big. In his letter, the Congress president said, "I hope one day, you will also be in a position to inspire other children to take up medical profession and serve the people of India. You remind me of Mahatma Gandhi who used to say: 'Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from the indomitable will'." Choudhary said he wanted to do Masters in Surgery (MS) in Neurology and would not go abroad. The BJP today took a dig at the Congress, saying the CWC meet presided by Rahul Gandhi was rather a "Congress non-working committee" meeting headed by the party's "non-performing" chief. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said that the CWC meeting was more of a "Congress darbari meeting" and it was aimed at promoting the interests of a single family. "Yesterday, the CWC, rather Congress non-working committee, met under non-performing president Rahul Gandhi. After losing the no-confidence motion badly on the floor of Parliament, this was a meeting chaired by Rahul Gandhi, which was previously being chaired by Sonia Gandhi for 20 long years," he said. Referring to Sonia Gandhi's statement that reverse countdown of the Narendra Modi government has begun, Patra said those who had driven this country in reverse gear for 10 years, should not make such a comment. "The reverse countdown of dynastic politics, appeasement politics and caste politics has begun," he said, adding that one decision taken at the CWC meeting was that "we do not want to win and our sole aim is to defeat Modi". Terming it as an "negative sentiment", he said, "This country is an intelligent country which only gives way to positive politics and not negative politics.". He also attacked Sonia Gandhi for accusing the prime minister of indulging in rhetoric and said the country has witnessed the politics of "hug and wink" and the rhetoric on the floor of Parliament. Patra also took on former prime minister Manmohan Singh over his remarks on "self praise and jumlas", saying those who had reduced the post of the prime minister to a "jumla", should not talk about it. India is marching ahead and the country has emerged as the sixth largest economy in the world and GST rates have also been reduced further, he said. He said that senior Congress leader P Chidambaram played an important role in the meeting of the CWC which was more of a "out on bail committee". "Many of those occupying high positions were either out on bail or almost on installments of protection from court," he said. He said Chidambaram, who has been chargesheeted, stated during the CWC meeting that at best the Congress could contest 150 seats. If a party is looking at contesting only 150 seats, how can it dream of getting the prime minister's post? Patra asked. He said in this "namdhari committee meeting", the sole point of the Congress was that the party was ready to play second, third or even the fourth fiddle. The Congress has "almost accepted that they have become a new regional party and have lost their national character", the BJP spokesperson said. He claimed that the Congress has made a self-declaration that it was no more a national party. Attacking Rahul Gandhi and the Congress for raising doubts over electronic voting machines (EVMs), Patra said they also did not have faith in the Indian Army and had questioned the surgical strike. They also do not have faith in the Supreme Court as they had moved an impeachment motion against the chief justice of India, besides in the Reserve Bank of India and the World Economic Forum, he said. "Actually, the country does not have faith on Rahul Gandhi's leadership," he said. He also hit out at Rahul Gandhi for not taking any action against Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for his "Hindu Pakistan" remark. Tharoor had recently kicked up a row with his remarks that if voted to power again, the BJP will rewrite the Constitution and pave the way for creation of a "Hindu Pakistan". Rahul Gandhi addressed the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting for the first time as president of the party on Sunday. The meeting was attended by 239 leaders, who brainstormed on the partys strategy for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Here are the key takeaways from the CWC: 1. Speculation that former party president Sonia Gandhi will lead alliance talks was alleviated and it was affirmed that the role will be performed by Rahul Gandhi 2. Congress veteran P Chidambaram pointed out that the party was facing a serious challenge in the 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh, 42 seats of West Bengal, 40 seats of Bihar, 39 seats of Tamil Nadu, which itself adds up to 200 seats. He asserted that there is a need to stitch alliances with regional parties in the states where the Congress is weak 3. Expansion of the partys voter base was identified as the biggest task for Mission 2019. 4. In case the Congress wins 200 seats, it will lead and whosoever wants to join, can 5. Rahul Gandhi will be the face of the United Opposition and the Lok Sabha elections will be fought under his stewardship 6. While regional parties are important, Congress is the thread which will hold them together in order to defeat the BJP at the Centre 7. Congress alliance with AAP in Punjab was not ruled out 8. Rahul hit out at the BJP, saying the latter is attacking institutions, individuals and communities. He said the rights of minorities Dalits, tribals, and women are being trampled upon 9. Former president of the party, Sonia Gandhi, in her address at the CWC meeting, said the reverse countdown of the Modi government has begun and the increasing rhetoric of the PM only highlights his desperation 10. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who was also present at the meeting, said, I reject the culture of constant self-praise and jumlas as against solid policy framework to address the issues facing the country and propel and drive the engine of growth as far as Indias economy and peoples well-being is considered. It was also decided that nationwide mass movements will be launched to highlight major issues faced by the country during the four-year BJP rule, including atrocities against Dalits and tribals, womens safety, lynchings and farmer distress. Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, whose party abstained from the no-trust vote moved against the NDA government, said BJPs idea of Hindutva is different from theirs. The Sena chief also found fault with the way the BJP was protecting cows, and giving short shrift to women safety. I don't accept the Hindutva that is being adhered to in the country, for the last three-four years. That is the not our idea of Hindutva. Our women are unsafe today, and you are protecting the cows. You can't target people for their eating preferences, said Uddhav Thackeray in an interview to Sena mouthpiece Saamana. The comment comes a day after BJP president Amit Shah told party workers in Maharashtra that there would be no alliance with the Shiv Sena for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav Senior RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav today said his party would launch a three-day "cycle march" from Gaya to Patna on July 28 to expose the Nitish Kumar government's alleged failures. "We will be undertaking a three-day cycle march from Gaya to Patna on July 28 to expose Nitish government's failure on various issues especially on deteriorating law and order situation," Tejashwi told reporters on the assembly premises here. It has become quite difficult for girls to move out even with their parents as the state government has no control on law and order in Bihar, the leader of opposition in the state assembly claimed. "During our cycle march, we will raise various issues before the people - the issues of farmers, labourers, youths, education, law and order and the repeated rape incidents in Gaya, Muzaffarpur and other places including at government funded shelter homes," he said. Claiming that developmental work has come to a standstill in Bihar, he said the state has been ranked at the bottom as per the Public Affairs Index 2018, whereas Kerala has ranked number one as the best governed state. "Bihar has been ranked at bottom as per Public Affairs Index 2018. We will tell the people that Nitish Kumar has destroyed Bihar completely," Tejashwi said. The Public Affairs Index 2018 has been released by Bengaluru-based think tank Public Affairs Centre. It examines governance in states through a data-based framework, ranking them on social and economic development. US President Donald Trump tweeted Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday, warning him of retaliation if he threatened the US again. The tweet was written in all caps. He accused Rouhani of using words filled with violence and death in his speech and warned that he would retaliate in a historical fashion if the Iranian President made any future threats. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Trump ended the tweet with a warning to be cautious, further driving home his point. The tweet comes after a speech Rouhani gave in Tehran, in which he warned Trump to not threaten Irans global oil exports. He said a war with Iran would be the mother of all wars and further added that if Trump continued to play with the lions tail', he would eternally regret it. Although Rouhani was adamant in his wording, he did not dismiss the prospect of a peace agreement, also saying peace with Iran would be the mother of all peace. Rouhani had previously criticised the US government in June for the US withdrawal from a major deal with Irans nuclear programme. He termed Trumps handling of the deal as appalling and illegal and said the Iranians would defend their independence and Islamic values by not giving in to US pressure. Earlier this month, Trump had demanded that all countries importing oil from Iran cease trade operations from November this year. His administrations aim with this move was to increase pressure on the Islamic Republic. Tata Technologies Ltd. signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Vidarbha Defence Industries Association (VDIA) at the Made in Vidarbha Aerospace and Defence Summit held last week in Nagpur. This partnership will lead to the setting up of a new state-of-the-art aerospace & defence Centre in Nagpur. The MoU was signed in the presence of the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Devendra Fadnavis. In alignment with the Make in India initiative, this centre will help establish Maharashtra as the preferred investment destination for aerospace & defence manufacturing, promote indigenous and modernized technological capabilities and develop skilled resources to support Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to be globally competitive in the aerospace & defence sector. This will be done by setting up NIRMAN, a not-for-profit Common Facilitation Centre for aerospace & defence and UDAN, an initiative to create high-end skilling centres and provide competency-based education for engineering institutes & universities. The partnership between Tata Technologies Ltd. & VDIA supported by the Government of Maharashtra, will promote the state as an aerospace & defence manufacturing and export hub. Talking on this association, Anand Bhade, President Asia-Pacific, Tata Technologies said, Made in Vidarbha Aerospace and Defence is a great initiative and we are proud to be associated with it. Tata Technologies unique offerings for aerospace and defence are perfectly aligned to VDIAs vision of creating a first-of-its-kind ecosystem to facilitate defence-integrated development by supporting the Indian Aerospace and Defence industry to be globally competitive. Speaking on the occasion, Lt Gen (Retired) Mr. Ravindra Thodge, the chairman of VDIA said, Our objective is to create an aerospace & defence manufacturing hub in the Nagpur and Vidarbha region. Tata Technologies is well positioned to provide the right impetus to this initiative by leveraging their domain expertise. @Technuter.com News Service live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest car manufacturer has announced the production of its 20 millionth car. It took the company 34 years to get to this milestone. Only five million were produced in the first 21 years. But with time, production got faster and the last five million cars were the fastest to be produced, at 18 months. The first Maruti Suzuki car was produced way back in December 1983 and the owner, Harpal Singh was selected via a lucky draw. India's then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, herself handed over the car keys to Singh. At present, Maruti has two production facilities and makes about 16 models for the Indian market. These cars are also exported to over 100 countries in Europe, Asia, Japan, Africa and Latin America. Speaking about the achievement, MD & CEO of Maruti Suzuki India, Kenichi Ayukawa said, We would like to thank all our valued customers, business partners, Government, investors and all stakeholders. The 20 million production milestone is a testimony of trust in brand Maruti Suzuki. For over three decades, Maruti Suzuki has worked to listen and meet the evolving customer aspirations with contemporary products of global quality. We are committed to serve customers with products and services, which are best in quality, safety and ahead in technology. Maruti Suzuki has now planned an aggressive roadmap involving electric cars. Its first fully electric car is set to launch in 2020 and will be a WagonR electric. They also plan to launch electric options with some of their other cars like the Baleno, DZire, Swift, and Alto. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today told a Delhi court that it has enough evidence to prosecute former AgustaWestland and Finmeccanica directors Giuseppe Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, and others for alleged money laundering in the VVIP chopper deal. Special Judge Arvind Kumar, who reserved for tomorrow the order on whether to take cognisance on the charge sheet and summon Orsi, Spagnolini and others as accused in the case, was told by the agency that the investigation was still going on and various sensitive documents were to be received from the multiple countries, including the UAE. Agency's special public prosecutors D P Singh and N K Matta told the court that kickbacks were paid by AgustaWestland through two different channels. "One channel was handled by middleman Christian Michel James and his associates while the second was handled by Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke. "Lawyer Gautam Khaitan, who is also named as an accused in the charge sheet, was the mastermind behind laundering of the proceeds of crime in the second channel," the ED said. The lawyers said the agency had recorded unimpeachable evidence supporting the allegations against all the accused persons. The probe agency had on July 18 filed a supplementary charge sheet, accusing Orsi, Spagnolini and ex-IAF chief S P Tyagi, besides others, of money laundering in the case. It accused 34 Indian and foreign individuals and companies, including Tyagi, Italian middlemen Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke, lawyer Gautam Khaitan and Finmeccanica, the parent company of AgustaWestland, of laundering money to the tune of around 28 million Euro. The probe report also claimed that the kickbacks were paid by AgustaWestland through two different channels. The ED, in its charge sheet, has alleged that money was laundered through multiple foreign companies, which were used as fronts to park the alleged kickbacks. The agency said it may file more supplementary charge sheets in the matter. On January 1, 2014, India scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of kickbacks of Rs 423 crore paid by it to secure the deal. The accused named in the charge sheet include Guido Haschke, Carlo Gerosa, S P Tyagi, his cousins Rajiv Tyagi and Sanjeev Tyagi, advocate Gautam Khaitan and his wife Ritu Khaitan, Shivani Saxena and her husband Rajeev Saxena, both directors of two Dubai-based firms, Besides, the final report also named various Indian and foreign firms, including Finmeccanica SPA, AgustaWestland, Aeromatrix Info Solution Ltd, Windsor Group Holdings, Ismax International Ltd, Cricklewood Ltd, Long Lasting Ltd, Matrix Holding Pvt Ltd, UHY Saxena, Dubai Interstellar Technologies Ltd, O P Khaitan and Co, International Mediterranean Consulting, Tunisia, Infotech Design Systems Gordian Services. "Khaitan, the mastermind behind laundering the proceeds of crime in the present case, was known to the accused persons Gerosa, Haschke and the Tyagi brothers. He prepared a corporate structure of companies and got incorporated several legal entities across the globe. "Thereafter, the proceeds of crime were laundered through various companies in Tunisia, Mauritius, India, BVI, Singapore, Switzerland, Dubai etc.," according to the charge sheet. It further claimed that Khaitan also received proceeds of crime in personal bank accounts opened in his name and the accounts of his companies in India and abroad, M/s Windsor Holding Group Ltd, M/s Ismax International Ltd and M/s O P Khaitan & Co. The ED had earlier attached properties worth Rs 10 crore and freezed shares worth more than Rs 150 crore belonging to the Tyagi brothers, Gautam Khaitan, Gerosa, Haschke, Christian Michel James and Rajiv Saxena. Rumour mills were in overdrive suggesting that Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) chief Upendra Kushwaha was set to part ways from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). However, general secretary and spokesperson of the party Madhav Anand has put all speculation to rest. "The NDA alliance is intact, and Upendra Kushwaha is not planning to leave it," Anand told Moneycontrol. He added that the party was waiting for a meeting with NDA leaders in Bihar to discuss the seat-sharing arrangement for next year's Lok Sabha polls. "During his visit to Bihar, Amit Shah assured that a formula for seat-sharing in Bihar will be released in three to four weeks," Anand said. He mentioned the RLSP does not have any differences with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and pointed out that his party has been with the NDA since 2014, while Kumar's Janata Dal (United) joined it in 2017. "We contested on three seats in 2014 and won all of them for NDA. We have hundred percent performance," Anand revealed. The one-year old RLSP had won from Jahanabad, Karakat and Sitamarhi constituencies in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The party went on to win two seats in the Bihar Assembly elections the following year. "...Nitishji (Nitish Kumar) contested alone in 2014 and managed to secure only two seats," he said. "The seat-sharing equation should not change due to Nitish Kumar's arrival. Seat-sharing should be decided by taking into consideration the 2014 Lok Sabha performance," he lamented and claimed that the party hopes to have greater representation during the discussion on seat-sharing arrangement in future. "We want to remain within the NDA, but the BJP needs to think about giving us greater representation," Anand said. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the US has given its approval for the first pill, in almost 60 years, that claims to treat malaria. According to a report by BBC, the new drug is tafenoquine and it is being manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) under the commercial name - Krintafel. It specifically targets a form of recurring malaria caused by the parasite plasmodium vivax - which makes at least 8.5 million people ill annually across South America and southeast Asia. The FDA confirmed that the drug is effective but could come with significant side effects; people with a particular enzyme deficiency (G6PD) can land up with severe anaemia if they take the drug. The regulator also advises people with psychiatric illnesses to not take high doses of the drug as it could adversely impact their health. Plasmodium vivax is particularly difficult to eradicate because it can lie dormant in the liver for years before reawakening. Professor Ric Price from Oxford university said that tafenoquine is a 'phenomenal achievement' as it can get rid of the parasite in the liver with a single dose. Meanwhile, president of research and development at GSK Dr Hal Barron echoed professor Price's sentiments and confirmed that this was the first new treatment for plasmodium vivax in more than 60 years. However, early testing indicates it's not very effective and prevention, at present, focuses on using insecticides and bed nets. At present, the four major drug classes used to treat malaria include quinoline-related compounds, antifolates, artemisinin derivatives, and antimicrobials. The best form of treatment currently is to use a combination of these drug classes. The UK government, for the next three years, has said it will infuse GBP 500 million per year to help fight malaria. Additionally, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will extend its investments in curing malaria by an additional USD 1 billion (GBP 700 million) through to 2023. According to the World Malaria Report 2017 , there were an estimated 216 million cases of malaria worldwide at the end 2016 while deaths reached 445 000. Russian oligarch Farkhad Akhmedov's yacht Luna (Source: Wikimedia Commons) A USD 500 million yacht named Luna is in the middle of what is described as Britains most expensive divorce, between Russian oligarch Farkhad Akhmedov and his ex-wife Tatiana Akhmedova. According to a report by CNBC, Luna features two helipads, a spa, a swimming pool, has nine decks and takes care of around 50 crew members. Akhmedov was ordered to hand over his yacht to his ex-wife earlier in this year, but he refused to follow it. On behalf of the UK High Court, the yacht was impounded in Dubai when it showed up for maintenance work. The couple married in 1993 and moved to London where Akhmedov would visit in order to collect vintage cars, helicopters, houses and fine art. The exact time of their divorce is unclear as of now. In 2016, a UK High Court judge ordered Akhmedov to pay his ex-wife USD 646 million, which he refused claiming that they had already divorced in Russia a decade ago. However, the judge claimed that the divorce paperwork had been forged and accused Akhmedov of hiding his assets in a web of offshore companies." Akhmedova on her side has hired Burford Capital, a litigation finance firm to help finance her side of the legal fight. Burford backs expensive lawsuits with the expectation of getting some amount of the settlement. It has also given Akhmedova a lump sum that helps in covering her living expenses. Following a recent move from the Dubai International Financial Centre, the case will now be handed to the Dubai local courts. China growth: Slowdown concerns in US and China, due to the trade war between the two countries, have caused global investors to worry. (Image: Getty Images) China will adopt a more vigorous fiscal policy to help tackle external uncertainties without resorting to strong policy stimulus, state radio said on Monday, citing the cabinet. Slowing economic growth has sparked a heated debate among government researchers on whether fiscal policy should play a bigger role in softening the impact of a trade war with the United States. "The proactive fiscal policy will become more active," state radio cited a statement issued after a cabinet meeting, chaired by Premier Li Keqiang, as saying. The fiscal policy will focus on cutting taxes for companies while the pace of local governments' special bond issuance will be quickened, it quoted the cabinet as saying. The government will deliver a tax cut of 65 billion yuan ($9.6 billion) by expanding a preferential policy for small tech firms to all firms, on top of an initial goal of cutting taxes and fees by 1.1 trillion yuan this year, the cabinet said. China will keep liquidity ample and maintain appropriate total social financing under its prudent monetary policy, which will be neither too tight nor too loose, it added. Economic growth slowed slightly to 6.7 percent in the second quarter as Beijing's efforts to contain debt hurt activity, while June factory output growth weakened to a two-year low, in a worrying sign for investment and exporters as a trade war with the United States intensified. China's regulatory tightening has driven up corporate borrowing costs, prompting the central bank to cut banks' reserve requirements three times this year, with further cuts widely expected. In March, Premier Li Keqiang announced a cut in the annual budget deficit target from 3 percent of gross domestic product in 2017, the first since 2012, but the finance ministry said fiscal policy remained supportive for growth, given a jump in planned special bond issuance this year. It is good that the United States and Europe are maintaining dialogue despite their differences, a German government spokeswoman said on Monday ahead of a meeting of US President Donald Trump with the president of the European Commission. Citing national security grounds, Washington imposed tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from the EU, Canada and Mexico on June 1, and Trump is threatening to extend them to EU cars and car parts. A spokeswoman for the German Economy Ministry said: "We want to avoid a spiral of tariffs." European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker will discuss trade with Trump at a meeting on Wednesday. Farmers | The government also announced Rashtriya Kamdhenu Aayog, a scheme to enhance the productivity of cows. On his first-ever visit to the country of Rwanda, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will present President Paul Kagame with the most unusual and interesting gift 200 cows, all sourced locally from the African country. According to a report by The Indian Express, the cows are being sourced locally as they would better adapt to the region. External affairs secretary for economic relations T S Tirumurti planned the visit and said that the gift is an important element of the PM's programme; India hopes to have better leather industry and defence ties with Rwanda. The visit to the model village Rweru, in the eastern province of Rwanda, and the gift marks PM Modi's contribution to the Girinka programme. Girinka which means have a cow was launched in 2006 by the Rwandan government that aimed at one cow for one poor family. The word Girinka finds its roots in an age-old cultural practice of Rwanda whereby a cow was gifted by someone as a sign of respect or as dowry. President Kagame has personally overseen this social protection scheme. In an attempt to improve a sense of community living and brotherhood, the poorest family receiving the cow from the government must gift the first female calf born to their neighbour. Approximately 3.5 lakh Rwandan families have been supported following the Girinka programme by the government. On his visit, PM Modi will also pay homage at the Kigali Genocide Memorial that honours those who fell during the 1994 genocide. PM Modi will also visit Uganda, as part of his effort to improve relations with Africa. Hundreds of Syrian "White Helmet" rescue workers and their families fled advancing government forces and slipped over the border into Jordan overnight with the help of Israeli soldiers and Western powers, officials said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a brief video statement on Sunday he had helped the evacuation at the request of US President Donald Trump and other leaders - and there had been fears that the workers' lives were at risk. The group, known officially as Syria Civil Defence, has been widely hailed in the West and credited with saving thousands of people in rebel-held areas during years of bombing attacks by Damascus and its allies. Its members, known for their white helmets, say they are neutral. But Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his backers, including Russia, have dismissed them as Western-sponsored propaganda tools and proxies of Islamist-led insurgents. There was no immediate response from Damascus on Sunday. A Jordanian government source said 422 people were brought from Syria, over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights frontier and into Jordan, down from a figure of 800 announced earlier by the foreign ministry in Amman. The evacuees will be kept in a "closed" location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months, the source added. A second non-Jordanian source familiar with the agreement said the original plan had been to evacuate 800 people, but only 422 made it out as operations were hampered by government checkpoints and the expansion of Islamic State in the area. Syria and its Russian allies have launched an offensive on rebels in the sensitive southwestern border zone. [nL5N1UI07O] "FANTASTIC NEWS" Netanyahu said Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and others had spoken to him recently asking for help in extracting the White Helmets. "The lives of these people, who have saved lives, were now in danger. I therefore authorised their transfer via Israel to other countries as an important humanitarian gesture," Netanyahu said. Trump did not mention the operation during a series of tweets on Sunday. Britain hailed the evacuation, saying it and other allies had requested it. "Fantastic news that we - UK and friends - have secured evacuation of White Helmets and their families - thank you Israel and Jordan for acting so quickly on our request," tweeted British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt. German weekly magazine Bild, which broke news of the evacuation and published footage of buses used to transport the Syrians across Golan, said 50 of them would be granted asylum by Berlin. "Humanity dictates that many of these brave first-aiders should now find protection and refuge, some of them in Germany, it quoted German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas as saying. A spokeswoman for the German interior ministry said Berlin would take in eight White Helmets plus their families. It was not immediately clear whether that amounted to the same 50 people. A Canadian Foreign Ministry statement on Saturday said the White Helmets "have witnessed vicious atrocities committed by the Assad regime and its backers". It added: "We feel a deep moral responsibility to these brave and selfless people." Russia's embassy in the Netherlands welcomed the White Helmets' departure. "Definitely there will be less chances of new so-called #CW (chemical weapon) attacks in Syria after forced evacuation by the collective West of the notorious #WhiteHelmets," it tweeted. Damascus and its allies have accused rebels and their supporters of staging chemical attacks in an attempt to frame the government. Western powers have accused Syria of attacking rebel-held areas with illegal chemical weapons. Members of the media, wearing protective suits and masks, walk after they receive briefing from Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) employees (in blue) in front of storage tanks for radioactive water at TEPCO's tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma town, Fukushima prefecture, Japan February 10, 2016. REUTERS/Toru Hanai - D1BESMFAYHAA People consuming California-made wines might be consuming radioactive particles from Japans 2011 Fukushima disaster, according to a new study. In 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan was subjected to a major meltdown, that led to a release of nuclear radiation into the surrounding areas and also the ocean. The disaster happened seven years back, almost half the world away from the US, but the effects of the meltdown managed to reach the shores of California. The study claims that radioactive particles from the Fukushima disaster were found in wines from California. Researchers tested various wines from Napa Valley bottled between 2009 and 2012, and they discovered that after 2011, the wines showed almost double the level of radioactive particles as compared to past years. However, there is no need to worry as the radiation levels in the wines are still far below the danger threshold. As per this MIT report, radiation and wines are not too far from each other almost every bottle of wine that was made after 1952 contains some radioactive particles. Ever since the first thermonuclear weapons test took place in 1952, a lot more tests and even more radiation has been released into the atmosphere and some of that is still around. The extent of radiation in the air reduced after testing nuclear or thermonuclear weapons was effectively stopped in the 60s. But some of that atmospheric radiation still ends up making its way into wine bottles, and it can be easily measured with a common gamma detector. For example, after the Chernobyl meltdown, the wines in France showed an increase in the level of radiation, and now a similar experience is getting replicated in California. A lower court ruling in New Mexico that deemed the states school finance system unconstitutional has pitted the many candidates running for state office against each other over how to provide more money to its schools. New Mexico is one of many states where school funding has emerged as one of the most divisive issues in this years midterm elections. A state district court judge ruled late last week that the state pays its teachers too little, provides its schools out-of-date textbooks and technology and, through its unique teacher evaluation system, removes incentives for its best-performing teachers to work at its worst-performing schools. That amounts to a system in which the states public schools dont do enough to provide its students a constitutionally adequate education, the court ruled. The state has until April of next year to either appeal the ruling or comply with the courts orders to overhaul its school funding model. Candidates for the states heavily contested governors seat which is being vacated by outgoing Republican Gov. Susana Martinez, quickly pounced on the ruling. At issue is whether lawmakers should wait for revenue to come in from increased oil prices, pull more money from the states savings account, tax its citizens, or fight the ruling to keep school funding as is. Republican gubernatorial nominee Steve Pearce didnt say whether he would appeal the ruling. We can and must get more resources to our teachers and classrooms so teachers can teach, Pearce told the Santa Fe New Mexican . We must fundamentally reform the bureacucracy so that it helps the very people in need, as the judge says. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Michelle Lujan Grisham used the ruling as an opportunity to attack the Republicans school funding and accountability strategies. There is not enough funding in the classrooms, she told the New Mexican. The better thing to do is get everyone to the table and make proposals to the court that work for the children. A school finance supreme court ruling in Kansas has split that states GOP party between candidates who want to bend to the courts demands that the state pay its schools $300 million and candidates who want to outright reject its many rulings. Dont miss another State EdWatch post. Sign up here to get news alerts in your email inbox. And make sure to follow @StateEdWatch on Twitter for the latest news from state K-12 policy and politics. Due to the lack of bridges, Cha Huilan, a 40-year old Lisu woman, and her daughter leave Lazimi village with a zipline across the Nu River in Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan province. Nu in Chinese means angry, befitting for the river which flows rapidly below, most of the times in a year. (Reuters) A family is ready to zip their way back to Lazimi village after shopping at the Saturday market. People estimate about 20 to 30 hamlets in the region still rely on the ziplines as their primary means across the river. (Reuters) Villagers are seen crossing the river with a zipline in Lazimi village. The villagers have applied their own ingenuity in building the ziplines, inclined downhill and relying mostly on gravity, to cross the Nu. (Reuters) A villager carries an electric fan while zipping across the Nu River. The river snakes from Tibet along Chinas border with Myanmar through the southwestern province of Yunnan. (Reuters) A view of Lazimi village seen from across the river. The nearest bridge over the river is 20 km (12 miles) away from the mountainside village. (Reuters) An ethnic Lisu woman from Lazimi village carries a basket in her hands as she zips across the Nu River. Using a boat is out of the question for the villagers of Lazimi, which lacks proper roads and bridges because of the rocks and foaming waters of the river Nu. (Reuters) Villagers are seen crossing the river with a zipline in Lazimi village. The lines are not always reliable, since they become slippery when it rains and too dangerous to use. (Reuters) Angel Oak Companies set a record for non-QM mortgage lending in the second quarter, with its affiliated lenders Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions, Angel Oak Home Loans and Angel Oak Prime Bridge posted a combined $512 million in non-QM originations. The figure represents a 52% spike in volume from Q1, the previous record for originations in a single quarter, and a 90% increase over the second quarter of 2017, Angel Oak reported. When broken down by company, each affiliate lender posted its own record origination numbers for the quarter. The company also grew its staff by 25%, opened new offices and completed a major acquisition. Our growth over the past few quarters has been incredible, but Q2 stands out as a true milestone for our company and the industry, said Mike Fierman, co-CEO of Angel Oak Companies. Its not just industry insiders who recognize the growth of non-QM anymore. Loan officers, borrowers and realtors across the country are seeking out Angel Oak because they know we offer the best non-QM products and service in the industry. Democrats on the committee countered that Kraninger has no experience with financial industry regulations. They also said shed been involved in some of the Trump administrations biggest scandals, including the botched response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and the administrations zero-tolerance immigration policy, which resulted in the separation of thousands of children from their parents at the border. These are innocent children who may be scarred forever by this policy, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told Kraninger during the hearing. It is fundamentally immoral, and you you were part of it, Ms. Kraninger. It is a moral stain that will follow you for the rest of your life. And if the Senate votes to give a big promotion to you after this, it is a stain on the senators who do so. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) said that he had obtained emails indicating that Kraninger helped design the administrations response to hurricane damage in Puerto Rico, NPR reported. Three and a half million American citizens who just happen to call Puerto Rico their home but they are American citizens just like you and I are faced their darkest hour, and instead of turning to help them, you pinched pennies, Menendez said. And worst of all, I think you treated them as second-class citizens. That does not give me the faith that when you have to stand up for seniors, service members, students, homeowners against some of the biggest financial institutions in this country, that youll do that. If you couldnt do it for the people of Puerto Rico, I dont know how youre going to do it for anybody else. Kraninger responded that she didnt think it was appropriate for her to get into the details of her role in the hurricane response or the administrations immigration policy an answer that Warren characterized as dodging. Kraninger also said that she considered it a slippery slope to answer such questions, NPR reported. Author and founder of The Ask, Laura Fredricks, knows the appropriate ways to request philanthropic dollars. Her books and motivational series teaches how to ask for charitable donations with confidence. Shell share her knowledge next week when she speaks at the Association of Fundraising Professionals-Permian Basin Chapters Lunch and Learn event. From her time in the courtroom as an attorney to joining AFP and leading a nonprofit -- the Philadelphia Bar Foundation, shes honed her technique on asking the right questions to get what she needs. In advance of her appearance, Fredricks talked from her base in New York about how nonprofits can approach donors and some common mistakes that are made along the way. MRT: Perhaps this is an obvious question but what is The Ask? Fredricks: My expertise is in training how to ask to raise money for nonprofits. Whether its asking first-time potential supporters or raising for capital campaigns, I developed this five-step process that increases chances tremendously in getting what you want. MRT: Is there a difference today in asking for money this way compared to asking for anything else? Fredricks: The ask we do for our jobs is the same for our children to do more, for our relationships, for our self-empowerment. IF YOU GO: Summer Membership Mixer with Laura Fredricks. 6-8 p.m. Monday at Arts Council of Midland, 1506 W. Illinois Ave. Lunch and Learn: The Art of the Ask. 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Fischer Community Room in ATMOS Energy, 2304 Loop 40. Members $15, non-members, $25. AFPpermianbasin.org. See More Collapse Today, we must be quicker and succinct. Theres Twitter, theres texting, and gone are the days (when) people have the time. Its not about being rude or abrupt, but people now want to know what you want or need them to do. MRT: Is the language different? Fredricks: Not that its so much different but everything has to be a lot shorter. There are 175 ways to ask in just two sentences. I just say that everything should have a call to action. Were in a very graphic world with YouTube and Instragram that people dont read the long asks. Whether its direct mail or an online campaign, everything should be short and with a picture these days. MRT: What was that a-ha moment that told you This is something I know? Fredricks: I was practicing law for the attorney general in Philadelphia and I learned that I was winning on the cross-exam. At that moment, I learned that asking was a very powerful tool. I then transitioned into philanthropy in the early90s. MRT: Do you talk about rejection? Fredricks: Oh, yes. Weve all heard No since we could speak. That is not the reason that prevents people from asking. No isnt new, nor is it the end of the world. Its the fear of the response. People want to be prepared. MRT: So, if a development director receives a no, try, try again? Fredricks: I call those asking u-turns. You find out the reason they rejected it and work with or around it. Then you find the reason to ask again. MRT: Midlands economy is dependent so much on the oil industry, which itself can go up and down. Is the ask different in a downturn economy? Fredricks: The Ask proper isnt different but it can be tailored. First, an agency may have been receiving generous gifts from the oil companies and they should never take that for granted. So, its about asking them if you are or are not doing anything that instills confidence for them. Its also being proactive and having conversations and learning about the people themselves that youre asking. MRT: It almost sounds like dating. Fredricks: Exactly. Its very personal. You establish a rapport, find out what their interests are and navigate to where this is something that interests them -- and you. There are lots of pre-ask asks but there are tons of things you can find out when you do. MRT: Going back to a different language, is there a specific approach that works for younger donors or social media campaigns? Fredricks: People like to put young people in a box, but every person is different. You cant assume that just because someone is in his or her 20s that you can only text them. Its learning how that person wants to be communicated with. And if its text, then text them, but dont figure everyone is the same. MRT: How did you get into nonprofits? Fredricks: The bar had a foundation that raised and distributed money to women and seniors and children. I was asked to be the executive director. MRT: How has being an AFP member helped? Fredricks: Oh, my gosh, its the best. It brings you together with like-minded people and Ive made some of my best friends through there. You learn in a nonprofit space and Im a constant proponent for philanthropy. MRT: What immediate advice do you give to people new to asking? Fredricks: Dont do this alone. Read as much as you can, join AFP, get a mentor. This job requires them to do a great deal, and its hard to juggle it all. Plus, its easy to get isolated within an organization because they are doing it alone. Be an interested person because it makes you more attractive. MRT: Is there a common mistake youve seen across nonprofits in asking? Fredricks: When they start making assumptions and start filling them in. That sabotages a lot of groups. Its a constant clean slate and in many ways, its no different than sales. Believe in what youre selling and its going to happen. 3 1 of 3 Odessa Police Department Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Odessa Police Department Show More Show Less 3 of 3 Two men have been charged in connection with a triple shooting that occurred on Saturday in Odessa, according to a press release from the Odessa Police Department. Antonio Herrera, 27, and Pedro Antonio Gomez, 26, have each been charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony. Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti will make a stop in Jacksonville today. She will be meeting with supporters from 11 a.m. to noon at Rudis Grill, 913 W. Morton Ave., according to Morgan County Republican Party Chairman Steve Hardin. Authorities are using drones and canines to assist in the search for a missing Murrayville man. Ryan Rahn, 33, is considered medically endangered. Morgan County Sheriffs Department Chief Deputy Mike Carmody said the search began Sunday after the man left on foot from his residence on Leetham Road about 9:20 a.m. The search continued Monday, with Illinois Search and Rescue assisting. The man stands 6-foot-5 and weighs 250 pounds. He has short brown hair and a full beard, and was last seen wearing a gray T-shirt and black shorts. The Jacksonville-Morgan County Office of Emergency Management asked people to check outbuildings and other structures on their property if they live in the area. Anyone with information is being asked to contact the Morgan County Sheriffs Department. President Trump spoke at the Pledge To Americas Workers event and was Mondays KVML Newsmaker of the Day. Here are his words: Hello everyone. Im thrilled and honored to be here today to launch the National Council for the American Worker. Joining us for the announcement is Secretary Wilbur Ross Secretary good; Secretary Alex Acosta; Betsy DeVos everybody knows, education; Acting Secretary Peter ORourke Peter, great job youre doing; Director Mulvaney, who has worked so hard those budgets, but theyre coming along, right? Right, Mick? Linda McMahon Administrator, Small Business. Thank you Linda. Jared fantastic job. Chris incredible. What a group; this group. Nobody knows Kellyanne nobody knows. (Laughter.) All stand up. Fantastic job, Andrew. Thank you. Please stand up. (Applause.) Really great. Thank you. I want to thank you, also we have some very special people here. House Education and Workforce Chairwoman see, now we say chairwoman, right? We like it better. Virginia Foxx. Virginia. (Applause.) And we have thanks, Virginia, great job Representatives Rick Allen, Jaime Herrera Beutler. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you. Sean Duffy. Sean? Sean? My friend. (Applause.) Jim Renacci and Claudia Tenney. (Applause.) We have some very special other folks here, in a very high administrative capacity. We have a favorite of mine: Governor Scott Walker. What a job hes done. (Applause.) Thank you, Scott. And Montana State Auditor Matt Rosendale. Matt, great. I hear youre doing good, Matt. (Applause.) I hear big things from Matt. Were really especially grateful to be joined today by the top CEOs, union leaders, trade associations, and educators from all around the country. These are the biggest. These are the best. These are the most talented. Among those and Im going to be introducing them and going around the table with them as they sign their pledge but we have a friend of mine for a long time the, really, founder and creator and I heard he did a report at his school, and he got low marks because they said it couldnt work, and he ended up getting very high marks because its a company called FedEx. Is that a correct story? Pretty correct, right? That professor didnt know what happened. Fred Smith. Thank you, Fred. (Applause.) I think well have to give that professor low marks, Fred, because it worked out. Huh? SMITH: (Inaudible.) THE PRESIDENT: Yeah. (Laughs.) It worked out well for you. Home Depot CEO doing a fantastic job Craig Menear. Craig? (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you, Craig. Lockheed Martin CEO Marillyn Hewson. And hows the F-35 doing? Right on time? Right? (Applause.) Good job. Raytheon CEO Tom Kennedy. Tom. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Tom. (Applause.) Northrop Grumman President Kathy Warden. (Applause.) And were going to introduce everybody in a little while. I also want to recognize Dan England, chairman of the American Trucking Association, along with Johnny Taylor, president of the Society for Human Resource Management. Theyve been fantastic, and really worked hard with us. Everyone here today is united by the same goal: to train, recruit, hire American workers. Thanks to our tremendous economic successes and weve had a lot of them. And weve never had and I have to tell you, as a country, we have never been more successful than we are, exactly, right now, today. The numbers coming out are beyond what anyone ever thought possible. (Applause.) And so theres never been a better time to hire and grow in America. Weve created 3.7 million jobs since the election. In the month of June alone, we grew the workforce by more than 600,000 workers. I say that if I ever mention this (applause) if I ever mentioned this during the campaign, they would have said theres no way. Theres no way no way that could happen. Well, its happened, and far more than we ever thought. Were in the longest positive job growth streak in American history. African American unemployment has reached its lowest level in American history. Hispanic unemployment is at its lowest level in American history. Asian unemployment has reached its lowest level in American history. Womens unemployment oh, this is too bad, Marillyn this is very sad has reached its lowest level in only 65 years. But within about two weeks, I think well be able to say in American history. Because its moving quickly. Okay? Sixty-five years, not so bad. Right? (Applause.) Consumer and business confidence has reached its all-time highs the highest ever recorded. And 95 percent of manufacturers are optimistic about the future. Thats the highest number ever recorded. So a lot of good things are happening out there. Every day, we are lifting our forgotten Americans off the sidelines, out of the margins, and back into the workforce. We are giving a second chance at life to the 620,000 former inmates who reenter society each year. Theres nothing like a great, great jobs market to take care of that situation. Its incredible whats happened with people that were in prison that, previous to this, could not get themselves a job. And now theyre being hired, and people are loving them. Its been really incredible to see. (Applause.) But to keep this momentum going, to continue this economic miracle and thats what it is, its a miracle whats happened in the last years and a half we must invest in job training and vocational education. I mean, the fact is that companies are pouring back into our country companies that, frankly, left 10 and 20 years ago, and theyre coming back. And we need people to work for those companies. We need talented people. We need people with training. Thats why, in a few moments, I will be signing an executive order to establish the National Council for the American Worker. Thats a first. This Council will be made up of top officials across the government. Were also establishing an outside advisory board of industry leaders and experts, which we will announce in the coming weeks. Very shortly. A lot of people want to be on that board very badly; I have some great people going on that board. Together, their task will be to develop a national workforce and strategy to equip Americans of all ages and at all stages of their career with the skills they need to thrive in the modern economy. Whether its a high school student looking to land their first job first job ever. Theyve got a lot of enthusiasm, and they lose that enthusiasm when they dont land that job, but now theyre all landing jobs. Or a late-career worker who wants to learn a new trade, we want every American to have the chance to earn a great living doing a great job that they love, where they wake up in the morning and they cant get to work fast enough. A lot of these people know that feeling. Thats why theyre in the position theyre in. In that spirit, Im proud to announce an exciting new challenge and the beginning of a new national movement. Were asking businesses and organizations across the country to sign our new pledge to Americas workers. Today, 23 companies and associations are pledging to expand apprenticeships. Thats an interesting word for me to be saying. Right? The Apprentice. (Laughter.) I never actually put that together until just now. That was a good experience, I will tell you that. (Laughter.) Isnt that strange? Ivanka, I never associated but here we are. Cant get away from that word. Thats a great word. For on the job training and vocational education. They will sign the Pledge, committing to train and re-train more than 3.8 million American students and workers for new jobs and rewarding careers. (Applause.) This is only day one, and we far exceeded our initial goal of 500,000 students and workers. We thought it was going to be 500,000, and its close to 4 million. And by the time the day ends, it will probably be well over 4 million. In the days and months ahead, we hope that hundreds of companies and organizations will join us in this effort. I want to thank all of the wonderful companies and associations who are about to sign the Pledge, and were about to introduce. I applaud your civic leadership. Its incredible. I know so many of you. I know how committed you are. Youre great people. And your commitment to training and recruiting American workers. Also here with us today are American workers who know firsthand how job training transforms their lives. Id like to invite a couple of them to speak. Brian Brianna where is Brianna? Brianna, come on over here. Brianna DeAngelo, from Greenwood, Indiana is an apprentice for Gaylor Electric. Good company? Better say yes. DEANGELO: Oh, of course. (Laughter.) Of course. THE PRESIDENT: Please, say a few words, Brianna. Thanks. DEANGELO: Thank you. Hi, everyone. So I was a former college student turned mother turned electrician. I was given a great lifelong opportunity from Gaylor Electric and their partnership with the associated builders and contractors. Im standing here today for my daughter three year-old. Shes got a long ways to go, but Im standing here for her and women that they can see that they dont have to conform to what society says they have to. You can do anything. Im going to be an electrician in two years. (Applause.) Thank you. THE PRESIDENT: Very nice. Also here today is Johnita McNair from Orlando, Florida, who is completing the American Hotel and Lodging Associations Apprenticeship for managers. And theyre really lot of talented people coming out of that program. Please, Johnita. (Applause.) MCNAIR: Thank you. So first Id like to say thank you for having me. I think I fall under the column where the older workers. Im a late bloomer, but thats okay. Im here. And 31 years in the hospitality industry has been good to me. So my motivation is to be good to my generation thats following me. My grandson came to me after his father was murdered, and he said, Im not going to have a role model. Yes, you will. I cant teach you how to be a man but I can lead you in the right direction. (Applause.) So for thank you for creating this bill and signing it so a lot of more people can have this opportunity. Thank you. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Great job. Thats great. Id also like to ask Carl Greene to come up. He is a truck driver and a military veteran. And hes doing really well. Carl? (Applause.) Hey, Carl. GREEN: This is my fourth career. I started off as an Army helicopter pilot in Vietnam. (Applause.) I went to the defense industries, and then to banking and investments, and then retired. I was bored. (Laughter.) Bored. I found C.R. England thank you, sir and found my last and greatest career. I enjoy driving my big rig across this great, beautiful country delivering food to hungry people. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Carl. And thank you to everybody. Youve really been very special. We know every one of you and the great job youve done. Thank you all very much. Fantastic. (Applause.) Fantastic. Great careers. America is blessed with the greatest workers anywhere in the world. And today we are taking historic steps to ensure that every American has the chance to realize their full-time potential. By signing the Pledge to Americas Workers, these great companies and they are great; these are the greatest in the world are affirming their commitment to train American workers for American jobs, because Americas strength, Americas heart, and Americas soul is found in our people. More than anything else, its in our people. It is their love, their pride, and their patriotism that makes this magnificent land our beloved home. And together, with the help of everyone in this room, we will truly make America greater than ever before. Its whats happening. Greater than ever before. And I think its happening faster than anyone ever thought. Its moving rapidly. We have numbers coming out and past and present, and hopefully future that are far beyond anybodys wildest expectations. And I think, frankly, you havent seen anything yet. So I will now sign the executive order. And then Im going to go around and say hello to these incredible people. And theyre going to be giving the name of their company, and many of you know them already, and theyre going to be signing taking on almost 4 million people. Thats very exciting. So thank you all very much. Im going to sign the executive order. (Applause.) (The executive order is signed.) (Applause.) Lets go over here. Go ahead, Bob. DURBIN: Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, its my distinct honor on behalf of the aerospace and defense industry, the voice of the worlds greatest aerospace and defense. The Aerospace Industry Association is committed to creating new opportunities to the tune of 48,000 for our students and workers over the next five years. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, Bob. Thank you. LUGAR: Mr. President, Katherine Lugar THE PRESIDENT: Sign that, Bob. Sign it. LUGAR: All right, lets sign it. (Laughter.) Lets see how this goes down. THE PRESIDENT: I dont want anyone sneaking out. LUGAR: There we have it. THE PRESIDENT: Go ahead. LUGAR: All right. On behalf of the American Hotel and Lodging Association and our 26,000 members, and in addition to our management track apprenticeship program, we are announcing 130,000 new opportunities with scholarships, certifications, at a cost-free college program for the great women and men of hospitality. THE PRESIDENT: That is a big number. Thank you, Katherine. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you, Katherine. Thank you very much. ENGLAND: My name is Dan England, CEO of England Trucking. THE PRESIDENT: Thats right. ENGLAND: Im representing the American Trucking Associations. And were committing to 50,000 new opportunities over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: Wow. Thats big stuff. Thank you, Dan. Thank you. (Applause.) Thats fantastic. Thank you, Dan. SIZEMORE: Mr. President, on behalf of Associated Builders and Contractors and our 21,000 members, we pledge to educate and reeducate 500,000 craft workers. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: That is fantastic. And youll do it. Youll do it. I know you will, Greg. Thank you. Thank you. TURMAIL: Mr. President, on behalf of the Associated General Contractors of America, we pledge to train or to upskill over 172,500 construction craft workers and professionals over the next five years. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thats great. Thank you, Brian. Thank you. Thats beautiful. Hello, Fred. SMITH: Hello, Mr. President. How you doing? THE PRESIDENT: This is some man right here, Ill tell you. SMITH: Fed-Ex will train or reskill 512,000 people over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: Thats great. Thank you, Fred. Thank you. (Applause.) GOVERNOR WALKER: Mr. President, sir, good to see you again. THE PRESIDENT: Scott Walker. You know who this is, right? Hes building the most incredible place youve ever seen in Wisconsin. Right, Scott? I just left. Thats got to be tell us about that for a second. Go ahead. GOVERNOR WALKER: Yes, sir. Were building bringing an industry back to America that hasnt been here in probably over at least 30 years, which is advanced electronics manufacturing. And were going to bring that into southeast Wisconsin. As part of that, Id like to pledge today to provide enhanced career opportunities for 13,000 Americans in Wisconsin. THE PRESIDENT: Thats great. Fantastic. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you very much. TURTON: Mr. President, General Motors is proud to offer 10,975 workforce training opportunities over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. (Applause.) Thank you. MENEAR: Mr. President, The Home Depot is pleased to provide enhanced training and opportunities for 50,000 associates at The Home Depot for the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: Fantastic. (Applause.) MENEAR: Thank you. THE PRESIDENT: Well, give my regards. You know that. Say hello. CROZIER: Mr. President, Jen Crozier. And on behalf of IBM, we are proud of programs like P-TECH, apprenticeships, and reskilling, and committed to preparing 100,000 students and workers. THE PRESIDENT: Wow, thats fantastic. (Applause.) And I heard your company is doing great. Youre doing great. Thank you. BECKERMEN: Mr. President, Michael Beckerman, representing the Internet industry. Today were announcing over 30,000 opportunities and this is just the tip of the iceberg from the Internet industry, to ensure the American workers have the digital skills they need to compete in the economy of today and tomorrow. So, thank you. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Thank you, Michael. HEWSON: Mr. President, on behalf of Lockheed Martin, Im proud to say that today we pledge to provide career opportunities new career opportunities for more than 8,000 employees over the next five years. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Marillyn. And youve done a fantastic job. Thank you, Marillyn. Hey, Fred, she makes a plane you cant see; its stealth. (Laughter.) F-35. I hope you cant see it, at least. Right? Great job. Thank you very much. CORTEZ: Mr. President, on behalf of Microsoft 10,000 opportunities Im really proud to be their representative. And I served 33 years in the Marines THE PRESIDENT: Whoa, thats fantastic. CORTEZ: with John Kelly and Jim Mattis. And you got two one good ones. THE PRESIDENT: Very good. Youre right. Theyre great. Theyre great. Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause.) NOEL: Mr. President, my name is Randy Noel, representing the National Association of Home Builders. THE PRESIDENT: Right. Good. NOEL: And through our Home Builders Institute, our educational arm, we pledge to prepare 50,000 new workers to work at building the American Dream. THE PRESIDENT: Thats fantastic. Thank you very much. (Applause.) GIFFORD: Mr. President, my name is Rob Gifford. And on behalf of the National Restaurant Association, we pledge to train 370,000 people over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: That is great. Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.) SHAY: Mr. President, Matt Shay. On behalf of the National Retail Federation, were pleased to be here to thank you for your leadership. We are committing to train, certify, and upskill 250,000 workers, at least, over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: I know you. Its going to be even more. SHAY: Thank you. (Applause.) MCGARVEY: Mr. President, Sean McGarvey, North Americas Building Trades Unions. And on behalf of our unions and our contractor partners, we commit to invest $6 billion, and train and recruit and register 250,000 apprentices over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) WARDEN: Mr. President, Im Kathy Warden. On behalf of Northrup Grumman, we commit to 7,500 new apprenticeships over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause.) KENNEDY: Mr. President, Tom Kennedy from Raytheon. And we pledge 39,000 enhanced career opportunities over the next five years. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. (Applause.) CLERKIN: Mr. President, Im Tom Clerkin with Signatory Wall and Ceiling Alliance. We pledge, through the carpenters union and joint with trusted funds, 50,000 upgraded training opportunities. THE PRESIDENT: Great. I know the union well. (Applause.) TAYLOR: Mr. President, Johnny Taylor. Good to see you. THE PRESIDENT: Friend. Hes my friend. TAYLOR: Thats right. On behalf of the Society for Human Resource Management, we have 300,000 members. And more importantly, we touch the lives of 100 million workers every day. Were dedicated and committed to creating 127,000 new opportunities over the next five years for America. Thank you. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.) PRICE: Mr. President, my name is Scott Price. Im pleased to represent UPS, where we are committing to 51,750 new roles through higher education and apprenticeships. THE PRESIDENT: Fantastic. Thank you very much. (Applause.) MURPHY: Mr. President, Im Julie Murphy from Walmart. THE PRESIDENT: Walmart. Wait until you hear this number, folks. MURPHY: And we commit to train and develop over 1 million associates in the next five years. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. That is fantastic. Thank you, Tom. So thats a big beginning. Thats a much bigger beginning, Ivanka, than anyone thought possible. Were very proud of everybody in this room. You folks for so many years, Ive known so many of you. But that is really a great commitment. So we appreciate it. Were just getting started. We need people to be trained. We need people that are going to go out and really love their job, and thats what youre going to do. And those are great jobs. Marillyn, those are great jobs. Thank you all. Fred. Thank you, everybody. This is a big, big day for our country. Theres never been anything done like this before. And you see the numbers, so were going to need all of these people. And most importantly in the room, good luck to you. Good luck. Thank you. Good luck. (Applause.) A thirst for knowledge has propelled Robin Stanfield into her newest medical adventure, as the former emergency room nurse is now the newest Family Nurse Practitioner at Covenant Health Care Center Plainview. I feel like I have been led here and Im so thankful for that, said Stanfield, who will officially start at the Plainview clinic Aug. 6. Since 2011, Stanfield has worked as a Registered Nurse inside the Emergency Department at Covenant Health Plainview. Stanfield moved to the community after marrying Plainview native, Jonathan Stanfield. Prior to that, Stanfield spent more than a decade working on computers across the country while also taking a few college courses here and there. I was born in McAllen, but in my early 20s I traveled around a lot, explained Stanfield. Stanfield said her brothers taught her a lot about computers so she eventually earned jobs as a software tester for a number of companies in Austin, Chicago and Orlando. From Orlando, I went to Houston and became a software tester at a small oil and gas testing company, said Stanfield. But Stanfield said the years being in front of a computer monitor was starting to bore her, as she wanted something a little more fulfilling when it came to a career. It was there that I realized I was done being stuck at a desk. Wanting to find something new, Stanfield moved to Amarillo where here parents had relocated. There I enrolled in Amarillo College, said Stanfield. However, Stanfield admitted she really didnt have a career in mind, but she wanted to go back to school. By chance, Stanfield said she enrolled in an anatomy and physiology course. I just randomly took the class and I loved it, said Stanfi e l d . After the semester, Stanfield continued to enroll in science classes. I just like how the whole body works so well together. The contents of life is pretty cool. I think its really underappreciated. Stanfield said most of the classes she was taken were standard curriculum for nursing majors. Many who many she had already befriended in class. I had a lot of friends that were nursing majors and they were so excited about it. Also, they wanted to help people, and thats something I wanted to do. I wanted to help people. I needed that human interaction. Its so different than sitting at a desk and working on computers. Stanfield graduated from Amarillo College with an Associates Degree in Health Science and immediately enrolled in the Bachelors of Nursing Program at West Texas A& M in Canyon. It was there that Stanfield really fell in love with nursing as she said she enjoyed the connection a nurse has with their patients. I knew I was where I was supposed to be, said Stanfield. Stanfield graduated in 2011 and wanted to move to Plainview to be with her soon-to-be husband Jonathan, who is a mechanic for the medical helicopter company, Aerocare. I saw a position online for Covenant Health Plainviews emergency department and I applied for it. Though ER care is very different then nursing in other departments, Stanfield said she fell in love with the rush of the emergency room. I enjoyed the adrenaline, said Stanfield. I love the culture of the job and having to think quickly to resolve a problem. I also loved all the people I worked with. Stanfield worked in the emergency department up until mid-July. But Stanfield loves education and three years ago, the nurse said she decided to take the next step in her career and enrolled back into school to become a family nurse practitioner. I love going to school, said Stanfield with a laugh. I love learning and seeing things in a new perspective. But returning back to school wasnt going to be easy, as Stanfi eld said her first class was just 10 days after the birth of her son Rigby. The Stanfields also have two daughters, Eleanore, 15, and Katherine 5. It was hard on the family. My life consisted of school, the baby and work. Jonathan cooked, took care of our older kids and did most of the housework, explained Stanfield. Though it was tough, Stanfi eld earned her FNP degree in May 2018 after graduating from the University of Texas Arlington. From there, Stanfield was hired at the Covenant clinic. Im so happy to be here, said Stanfield. Theres a strong need in the community for primary care and I feel like this is where I belong. Stanfield can be reached at Covenant Health Care Center Plainview at 2222 West 24th Street or at 806-291-5100. The San Marcos apartment complex where a massive fire killed at least five people Friday was not equipped with a sprinkler system, officials said during a press conference on Monday. A fifth body was recovered Monday afternoon in the gutted structure's remains, authorities announced. A fourth body was recovered late Sunday, officials said. San Marcos Fire Marshal Kelly Kistner said the Iconic Village apartment complex was built in the 1970s and authorities do not know when it was last inspected. Les Stevens, the San Marcos Fire Chief, said the building met the required safety standards of the time it was built, but local officials can't require property managers to "retrofit" their buildings. The fire ripped through the Iconic Village Apartments around 4:30 a.m. Friday, later spreading to two buildings at the Vintage Pad Apartments. More than 200 residents, many of whom were students, were displaced by the blaze. RELATED: Three bodies recovered from San Marcos fire, two still unaccounted for Hours after the fire, officials announced five people were unaccounted for: Haley Frizzell, James Miranda, Belinda Moats, David Ortiz and Dru Estes. Officials announced Sunday they had found three people dead, all of whom were taken to the Travis County medical examiner's office for autopsies and identification. The fourth discovery was made Sunday night, Kistner said. Investigators said they will continue the search until they're certain there are no additional victims. "All search and recovery efforts will continue until we know all potential victims are covered," said Kistner. "We're not leaving until we know all the work on the ground is done." None of the dead were identified and it's not clear whether those found dead were among those initially declared unaccounted for, or whether those unaccounted for were killed or just have not checked in with family. Six people were injured in the blaze, including Zachary Sutterfield, who was taken to Brooke Army Medical Center in critical condition. Investigators still don't know where in the complex the fire started, and thus have no information as to how the it started either, Kistner said. The investigation into the origin of the blaze could continue for weeks or months. San Marcos city officials on Monday expressed their condolences to the victims' family, offering their thoughts, prayers and resources to all affected. "As a community, our hearts are broken," said San Marcos Mayor John Thomaides. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' National Response Team is leading the investigation, with assistance from the state fire marshal's office and the San Marcos fire marshal. RELATED: Man accused of setting Victoria mosque fire found guilty Texas State University, in conjunction with the city, has announced several programs and funds available to students affected by the fire. Information on those programs is posted online at safety.txstate.edu/emergency-communications.html. City officials said donations may be made to the Blanco River Regional Recovery Team at br3t.org. Click "donate" and then enter the word "Iconic" in the comments. The city will host a resource center for Iconic Village and Vintage Pads residents Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the San Marcos Activity Center at 501 East Hopkins Street. Organizations will be on site to provide information on assistance programs available for residents. Text "NEWS" to 77453 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com Caleb Downs is a crime reporter for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here.| cdowns@mysa.com | Twitter: @calebjdowns Firefighters battled a wind-whipped fire in dry grass in the hills east of Milpitas on Sunday, officials said. The Country Fire was burning near Country Club Road and North Park Victoria Road. After sparking shortly after 1 p.m., the fire grew to more than 300 acres, said Capt. Amy Head of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, but fire crews were beginning to make progress. After the blaze initially spread quickly thanks to stiff winds and dry conditions, firefighters from Cal Fire and the Milpitas and Fremont fire departments reported 40 percent containment shortly after 6 p.m. The city of Milpitas official Facebook page also credited the Spring Valley and San Jose fire departments for helping to fight the blaze. It was a wind-driven fire, moving very fast in dry grass, Head said. Theyre making progress, but were not completely out of the woods yet. Cal Fire was working with local law enforcement officials to evacuate residents along Weller Road, where homes could be threatened, Head said. On Sunday evening, fewer than 10 structures were threatened by the blaze, according to Cal Fire. Four air tankers and two helicopters dropping fire retardant and water came to the aid of around 250 firefighters on the ground, according to Cal Fire Capt. Bill Murphy. Crews also utilized fire engines and bulldozers. Falling evening temperatures and rising humidity levels would aid in the firefighters efforts to fight back the flames overnight, Murphy said. Apart from the homes on Weller Road, a radio repeater tower on Mount Allison also was a cause for concern, Murphy said. Were making progress, but we actually have to get in there to get the (fire line) built before we can say its out of danger, he said. The cause of the fire remained unclear. Michael Cabanatuan and Dominic Fracassa are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com, dfracassa@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan @dominicfracassa A raging wildfire just outside of Yosemite National Park is evading the efforts of thousands of firefighters as it burns through dry brush and rugged terrain, growing daily and heading toward populated areas. The Ferguson Fire has been burning and growing in and around the Merced River Canyon since July 13. The fire grew to 32,484 acres by Sunday evening and moved within about 2 miles of the northwestern portion of the national park, fire officials said. Containment continued to be listed at 6 percent. The fire has closed Highway 140, one of three main routes into the park, and forced the evacuation of several rural towns, including the Mariposa County communities of El Portal and Yosemite West, home to many park employees and visitors. It has also jumped Highway 140 into the Stanislaus National Forest and is burning north, where rough terrain and heavy brush could make it more difficult to fight. Theres been no history of fires there in the last 100 years, said Jim Mackensen, a fire spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service. If we cant catch it, it could work its way toward the Highway 120 corridor. Its threatening a lot more turf. Firefighters expected to focus Sunday on halting the spread of the fire north of Highway 140, protecting El Portal, Yosemite West and Foresta, the closest communities to the park on the west, as well as Wawona, which the fire is approaching near the parks southern entrance. The Ferguson Fire has killed one firefighter and injured six. It hasnt destroyed any structures, fire officials said, but 216 are threatened. According to fire officials, 2,903 firefighters were battling the blaze Sunday with 204 engines, 38 water trucks, 17 helicopters and 42 bulldozers. On Sunday, they were expected to be joined by up to a dozen planes dropping fire retardant and water. Weather conditions that reduced visibility limited aircraft operations the past couple of days, said Rich Eagan, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Firefighters are also benefiting from the use of drones piloted by military experts. The devices, which are able to fly in low-visibility conditions when planes cannot, have been helpful in plotting the spread of the fire and getting a look at remote areas. On fires like this with rough terrain, they are very useful, Eagan said. Firefighters wont get any help from the weather this week. Forecasts call for conditions to get hotter and drier, with temperatures passing 100 degrees by midweek. While the fire remains outside Yosemite, its sending clouds of smoke that block the valleys famous views and make breathing difficult for people with respiratory problems. The air quality index gives Yosemite a very unhealthy rating, with people sensitive to polluted air advised to avoid outdoor activities. Despite the smoke, which comes and goes, Scott Gediman, a park spokesman, said the valley is only slightly less crowded than usual now, at its busiest time of year. People are frustrated, of course, but they understand they get it, he said. These are natural areas, and fire is part of the ecosystem. Theres been an impact, but people are still coming to the park. The campgrounds are busy. The hotels are busy. There are people in the meadow looking at falls. The Bill Miller Bar-B-Q empire may soon spread far beyond San Antonio. In a recent interview with the San Antonio Express-News, Bill Miller CEO Jim Guy Egbert said a Cedar Park location will open in the next two months, and construction on locations in San Marcos and Boerne will start by the end of the year. In the meantime, the former real estate agent is eyeing the rest of the state for sites to add to the chain's list of 78 stores. RELATED: Bill Miller Bar-B-Q custom breakfast taco orders you'll probably want to try "I want to see this company successfully migrate to major markets like Houston or College Station or Waco and up the 35 corridor, even to Dallas," Egbert told the Express-News. The company also plans to construct a new Laguna Madre seafood restaurant in San Antonio next year, Egbert said, bringing the total number of locations to six. During his conversation with the Express-News, Egbert also commented on the chicken shortage that marred the company's 65th anniversary promotion. Read more about what the company learned from that mishap on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. rilyn.eischens@express-news.net | @rilyneischens22 WASHINGTON Three officials who played vital roles in combating the 2008 financial crisis say they worry that the painful lessons from the banking systems near-collapse a decade ago may be forgotten. It is important that people focus on the lessons, said former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. We are not sure people remember everything they need to remember. Paulson, who was at the Treasurys helm when the crisis erupted in the fall of 2008, and Timothy Geithner, who succeeded him in 2009, joined Ben Bernanke, the former Federal Reserve chairman, at a round-table discussion last week in advance of the 10th anniversary of the crisis. The turbulent period, in which key financial institutions, including Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and American International Group either failed or nearly did, marked Americas worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. On Sept. 11, former officials from the Fed, the Treasury and other agencies will meet at the Brookings Institution in Washington to discuss what worked and what didnt and what should be done to prepare for the next crisis. We hope to provide some useful guidance perhaps more than the three of us had, Bernanke said. Since President Donald Trump took office, momentum has grown within the administration and among Congress Republican leaders to reverse parts of the Dodd-Frank financial overhaul law, which Congress passed in 2010 to tighten regulatory loopholes revealed by the crisis. Legislation enacted this year makes modest changes to Dodd-Frank, mainly in exempting smaller banks from the stricter requirements. Bernanke, Geithner and Paulson said that so far, the easing of parts of Dodd-Frank represented sensible changes. But they cautioned that deregulatory zeal could go too far and again leave the financial system vulnerable to excessive risk-taking. We let the financial system outgrow the protections we put in place in the Great Depressions and ... made the system very fragile and vulnerable to panic, Geithner said. One of the most powerful lessons from this crisis should be that you want to work very hard to make sure that your defenses are robust. The 2008 crisis deepened a recession that had begun in late 2007 and turned it into the worst downturn since the 1930s, with 8.7 million people thrown out of work. Though the economy has created 19 million jobs since the depths of the downturn and the economy has expanded since 2009, the recovery has been the slowest in the post-World War II period and wage growth has languished. The resulting economic discontent, fed by widening financial inequality, contributed to Trumps presidential victory. Similarly weak recoveries fueled populist backlashes in other nations, too. Financial crises, particularly big ones, do tend to get followed by a population reaction; that was certainly the case in the 1930s, Bernanke said, alluding to the rise of Hitler in Germany and other fascist movements. But Bernanke suggested that some disturbing trends from worsening income inequality to a lack of upward mobility to the opioid epidemic go back much further than 2008. The changes brought about by technology and globalization displaced many people in many communities, and there was not an adequate effort to deal with these displacements, he said. The three agreed that one of their mistakes during the crisis was failing to adequately explain publicly why billions in bailout dollars were being provided to the big banks, whose executives were able to keep their huge bonuses even though they ran the institutions that caused the crisis. The three asserted that they had no choice but to use taxpayer money to stabilize the financial institutions money that was eventually repaid because the only alternative would have been to allow the entire banking system to collapse, with far graver consequences for the country. The public was angry; they wanted to see us, if not punish the banks, (then) put limits on bonuses, Paulson said. I was totally ineffective at having the American people understand that what we were doing was for them and not for Wall Street. Paulson and the others expressed concerns about the huge budget deficits now being projected over the next decade as well as about restrictions imposed on the Fed, the Treasury and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in managing any future crises. The Dodd-Frank law restricted the ability of the Fed, the Treasury and other federal agencies to make the types of emergency loans to troubled banks that they did in 2008. But they also noted that government officials confronted tough obstacles in 2008: They had to address the crisis with outdated laws ill-suited to managing the giant banks that needed bailouts. Government officials also faced a lame-duck President George W. Bush and a politically polarized Congress. At the same time, Geithner said, We had the benefit of two presidents of two different parties at a very dangerous moment working together and a set of institutions willing to work very cooperatively, Geithner said. Such collaboration, he said, is necessary to manage any significant economic threats. We need to find a way politically to bring the same level of overwhelming force and creativity to the range of other daunting challenges facing the American economy, Geithner said. About 270 USAA employees will begin working at its One Riverwalk Center building in downtown San Antonio today. The USAA employees, who work in technology-related areas, will join 200 company employees already working in the 18-story building at 700 N. St. Marys St. The workers are relocating from USAAs University Park campus. Meanwhile, USAA said it has started renovations of four floors at the nearby 300 Convent building, which has been known as the Bank of America Plaza. RELATED: City considers waiving $1.2 million fee for USAA parking lot Some 380 USAA employees will relocate to the 28-story 300 Convent building from the University Park campus by the end of the year when the renovations are completed. The San Antonio-based insurance and financial services company said it will have 850 employees working in downtown by year-end. USAA has said it intends to bring a total of 2,000 jobs to downtown under a $6 million incentive deal reached with the city in December. USAA is one of San Antonio's largest employers with about 19,000 of its total workforce of 32,000 based here. RELATED: 13-story luxury apartment tower downtown gets go-ahead from city committee USAA said it recently received city approval to expand the parking garage attached to One Riverwalk. The garage will have more than 500 spaces when completed by the middle of next year. The extra parking will USAA accommodate the jobs its bringing to downtown. The garage will be available to the public after business hours on weekdays and all day on weekends and holidays, USAA said. Patrick Danner is a staff writer in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | pdanner@express-news.net | Twitter: @AlamoPD Sandwiches dont have to be stacked architectural deli marvels to do their work. Sometimes all it takes is pimento cheese on white bread. This months collection of five great San Antonio sandwiches keeps things simple, celebrating the joys of pimento cheese, grilled cheese, chicken salad, a Reuben and a poboy, each with a style to suit the neighborhoods where we found them. Hi, Carolyn: Our son committed a felony two and a half years ago. It was a horrific shock and he has been receiving the best possible treatment. It was not a crime against people. Since that time, our other children (with one exception) will not allow us to have their children at our home unless they are personally present, though we baby-sat frequently before this. One of our children will not allow us to be alone with our grandchildren at all. We raised these adult children too, and they know we would never hurt our grandchildren. Neither of us had any criminal history. Our grandchildren love us and do want to be with us. We would never leave our son (their brother) alone with them, and he has always been kind and loving to the grandchildren. Our children know this. Our counselor told us our children are "overreacting," we are clearly no danger to our grandchildren, and time would help. It's been two and a half years and there is no change. Once-close relationships are now distant. We recently discovered one child lied to us about the whereabouts of our grandson, when he was cared for at the home of a couple (not related) after we had offered to watch him. We are heartbroken. What can we do? -- Rejected Grandparents Not much, except to be patient and steadfast and worthy of your children's trust. You have been all along, you say? Good then. Waiting is agony, yes. But not having to change course will help. If you haven't, though -- if there was a part of this you could have fixed before but didn't, taken responsibility for but haven't, told your counselor and included in your letter but chose not to, and/or could remedy now with your other kids if you only summoned the courage to -- then that's exactly what needs your attention. And acting as if there is no such error to atone for will only worsen the estrangement. I am not saying you've made this mistake. It's just possible. It's also possible you didn't and these children are indeed overreacting, at a great cost to you and their kids. I know which version you think is true. Access to your grandkids, though, lies in the version your kids think is true. So if there's a difference in perception, then you must address that. Can you say which version your kids believe? One more thing. Your counselor gave you the same baseline advice to give it time. But the other part you cite, that "our children are 'overreacting' [and] we are clearly no danger," sounds awfully definitive for a therapist -- or anyone who hasn't lived in your home -- to say. Is it possible you're hearing only the absolution you want to hear? Columnist Carolyn Hax dishes out advice daily. Email Carolyn at Read the Email Carolyn at tellme@washpost.com , follow her on Facebook or chat with her online at noon Eastern time each Friday at www.washingtonpost.com Read the daily Carolyn Hax columns at https://www.seattlepi.com/lifestyle/advice/ And looking for me to second it? Again -- I can't say you're doing this. Just that it's both possible and would help explain why your kids remain distant. If instead you're just caught in the undertow of your son's mistake, then that is indeed heartrending, and unfair. And all you can do is wait. Hi, Carolyn: My brother lives on the edge of financial calamity. He's 50 and makes an hourly wage of $16, on which he tries to support his disabled wife (who does not receive benefits yet) and this-close-to-dropping-out 17-year-old freshman daughter. In the last five years he's lost their home and vehicle, and now lives in a truly sad apartment. He borrows small money from me all the time, but last week asked for $800 to cover rent. I flipped. He takes no advice from me -- I teach financial literacy -- to prepare a budget, have his daughter work, or get a second job (he has an exhausting manual-labor job and takes care of household chores). He seems paralyzed into inaction. But I'm not a bank. We're trying to live and save for retirement on a teacher's salary and a retail job. I struggle with not feeling greedy, though -- we have the money, but not a lot, and I don't see an endgame here. Are there some rules you could suggest that will help me deal with this? -- Am I My Brother's Keeper? Rules, no. But there are limits -- to how much money you can responsibly share, of course. And to how much you can help anyone unwilling or unable to help himself. And to how little involvement your conscience can bear. And to how much involvement your partner will tolerate. And to the small emergencies you can resolve before becoming too broke for a big one. All terrible calculations I can't make for you. You do have your expertise, though, to offer in lieu of cash. Help him this one time, or don't, and then: "I can't afford to keep helping you and keep my family afloat. But I can ... " work with him to create a budget for him, and maintain it? Help them apply for disability? Mentor your niece? Tap the resources you can renew. The state Board of Examiners for Nursing has suspended the licenses of two nurses and revoked the licenses of two others including one who worked in Stratford. It also dropped charges against an Ansonia nurse who voluntarily surrendered her license. Meeting July 18 in Hartford, board dropped the charges against Linda S. Greenhill, a registered nurse from Ansonia, because she has voluntarily surrendered her license. Last month, the board suspended her license, saying her practice posed a danger to the public because she had been accused of abusing morphine, Demerol and Dilaudid to excess from April 2017 to March 2018 while working at Griffin Hospital in Derby, records show. She had also been accused of stealing drugs from the hospital, records show. Brexit is back before the U.K.'s top judges. When U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May unveiled her key piece of Brexit legislation, Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon called it a "naked power grab." She said hard-fought local powers would be transferred straight back to London when the U.K. left the European Union. The standoff now moves to the Supreme Court -- located opposite the Palace of Westminster -- where seven judges will on July 24-25 consider whether First Minister Sturgeon's rival attempt to control the withdrawal process is constitutional. A ruling against a Scottish bill, which seeks to preserve devolved powers when EU law is converted into British law, would allow May to impose British sovereignty over the will of the Scottish Parliament. Scotland voted to remain in the EU in the referendum. Overruling Holyrood, as the Edinburgh-based assembly is known, would be politically sensitive -- particularly over such a historic move as Brexit -- and would set a precedent in a constitutional setup that's only 20 years old. It also risks playing into the hands of the nationalists who are trying to build a case for another independence referendum. The hearing comes 18 months after the Supreme Court took center stage in an earlier Brexit battle where judges ruled May's government must give lawmakers a vote before formally triggering the U.K.'s departure. The ruling, broadcast live across the country, was played out amid a media frenzy. It came after lower court judges were labeled in one newspaper as "Enemies of the People" for backing a lawsuit giving Parliament more of a say over the Brexit process. This time around the coverage is likely to be less heated. May's government is challenging "a preemptive move by the Scottish Parliament to control the process and set the framework by which EU retained law gets adopted into British law," said Akash Paun, senior fellow at the Institute for Government in London. The U.K. needs to resolve the uncertainty with the Scottish bill "otherwise it might introduce delays into the Brexit process." U.K. ministers who refused to engage with the Scottish Parliament must be at fault for "any uncertainty, confusion or ambiguity" stemming from two potentially conflicting bills, James Wolffe, the legal adviser to the Scottish government said, according to court documents. The legislation "gives the Scottish ministers the powers needed to ensure that devolved law that is saved or incorporated into domestic law continues to operate effectively after the U.K. has left the EU," Wolffe said. The Scottish government said it wouldn't comment further. Unlike the other devolved regions, the U.K. government hasn't yet published its arguments on the bill. The referral to the Supreme Court is "to seek legal certainty as to its competence," the government said in a statement. Scotland is responsible for its own education, health and transport policies as well as the judicial system and some financial affairs. The U.K. ceded more autonomy as part of promises made during 2014's independence referendum campaign. Current and former policymakers admit it: The U.S. government needs do a better job sharing cyberthreat information with the private sector if it's going to defeat increasingly complex cyberattacks from nation states. The exchange of cyberthreat information between the government and companies was the cornerstone of a 2015 bill hailed as landmark legislation to protect against digital attacks. But more than two years later, these comments at a live event hosted Friday by The Washington Post reveal the U.S. government has an incredibly long road ahead to effectively implement the legislation. Officials are finally acknowledging they have been too focused on trying to get companies to share information with them -- and less on sharing with private companies who want threat intelligence the government detects. "No company out there, no state out there is going to overcome this challenge by themselves. We have to work together," said Christopher Krebs, undersecretary for the Department of Homeland Security's main cyber unit, the National Protection and Programs Directorate. "We have to be thinking more broadly," added Tonya Ugoretz, director of the Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center, which tracks cyberthreats from within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. "The U.S. government does not have the monopoly on intelligence when it comes to cybersecurity." Ugoretz said the government could create a more "holistic picture" of the threats it sees by forging new relationships with the private sector's cybersecurity industry. "The more that we can create a dialogue and mechanisms for sharing information between government and private sector back in the other direction," she told my colleague Ellen Nakashima at the event, "that will help all of us be better able to play defense against some of these efforts." The Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act created incentives for private companies to share their threat intelligence with the federal government. By giving them legal immunity and setting up a more formal repository for that information through DHS, the hope was that the exchange of information would better prepare the country to defend collectively against attacks. But few companies are participating. As the website NextGov reported recently, just six nonfederal entities have signed up to share their data. Lawmakers who supported the legislation had expected the number to rank in the thousands, according to NextGov. Still, the fact that they're not sharing doesn't mean there's nothing to share. All industry sectors are facing widespread threats - and it's going to take a "whole-of-government" response to help them, panelists said. "If you talk to [chief information security officers] who are in financial institutions, they shake a lot and they sweat and they don't sleep much, because they are overwhelmed at the sheer level," Mike Rogers, the former Republican chair of the House Intelligence Committee, told my colleague Carol Leonnig. "You used to have criminals only trying to get in - now you have nation-states trying to get in, which makes their job incredibly difficult." "And we're all going to pay a price for that," Rogers said. "Without a concerted effort this is only going to get worse." There have been hopeful developments of collaboration, panelists said. One major success story, Ugoretz said, was the government's work with private cybersecurity researchers to investigate and attribute the devastating WannaCry ransomware attack to North Korea. In that instance, she said, private-sector researchers had detailed data on the cyberattack that they shared with DHS and the intelligence community. "We relooked at that data that came from the private sector and I think realized what we had," Ugoretz said. "The importance was having the relationships and the trust to be able to go to different partners and say, 'This part of the community needs this piece of information that another part has. And also, to be that kind of nudge to the community.'" Krebs also noted, for instance, that DHS and the FBI are working with Microsoft to investigate unsuccessful hacks on three congressional candidates that the company revealed last week. But the panelists agreed a broader partnership is necessary. "It's not just about government working together - it's about industry and government working together," Krebs said. "We have to have integrated, cross-sector, government-industry collaboration in the cybersecurity space, in the critical-infrastructure protection space. And that's where we're going." A group of Jacksonville residents gathered in the midday sun to watch an egg fry. It was late July 1934 and the heat was causing some unusual things to happen. The egg watchers saw the sun thoroughly cook the egg white in 35 minutes, while the mercury in a nearby thermometer jumped to the top of the tube, going up as far as possible, to the 124-degree mark, wrote a Jacksonville Daily Journal reporter. The oppressive heat waves in the late 1920s and mid-1930s were seared into the memories of many Jacksonville residents, including Esther Dumas Meyer. Summertime was really hot in Jacksonville in 1928, Meyer said in 2006. There werent many ways to cool off and not much for a 14-year-old to do. The Nichols Park Pool was a good way to cool down, but it was often difficult to get a ride to the pool, recalled Meyer. Few families had two cars, and many mothers did not drive, she said. However, public transportation was available. Streetcars were running, so a friend and I decided to try the idea of using them, Meyer recalled. We walked to West State and waited for the next car, which took us to the square. There we transferred to the South Main car for a long, slow ride to Nichols Park. The south streetcar line ended at the railroad on East Vandalia Road, near the entrance to Nichols Park and a short walk to the pool. The swim was refreshing and lots of fun, Meyer said. The pool had two slide boards a high one and a low one. The west end of the pool was shallow, and was where the children played. The pool cost 15 or 20 cents, as did the streetcar fare for the round-trip. Streetcars ran on Jacksonville streets from 1870 to 1930, first being powered by horses and then electricity. During cold weather, the street railway company used enclosed cars, while during the summer, passengers rode in open ones. The summer streetcars were open on the sides and had straw matting for seat covers, Meyer said. There were people, particularly children, who objected to the straw scratching them. People didnt wear shorts in 1928, except some boys wore shorts, which werent very short. In fact, they were called short pants. In the days before air conditioning, Meyer said the heat made it difficult to sleep. Consequently, people often slept outside in the summer, especially during the intense heat waves of 1934 and 1936, when the temperature frequently hit the 100-degree mark. People slept on porches or in the yard, Meyer said. The lucky ones had sleeping porches. Most sleeping porches were wide rooms with screens on three sides. My mother had a pergola at our home at 845 N. Church St. The pergola was a small arbor with a bench on each side. I curled up on one of the narrow benches, and if mosquitoes got too friendly, you used a newspaper to cover yourself. Cloth sheets were too hot. The Jacksonville heat records for 1934 show that from May 31 through Aug. 9, the temperature topped 100 degrees 27 times. And during July and August 1936, the citys official thermometer at the Norbury Sanatorium registered more than 100 degrees on at least 33 days. This Way We Were story was first published July 31, 2006. Only a handful of weeks remain until thousands of students in Harris County are back in school, attending one of the area's dozens of school districts. Although these public school districts follow the same educational standards set in place by the state, the performance of each vary. A man who shot and killed another man in Florida this week during an argument over a parking space will not be arrested or charged by the sheriffs office because of the states Stand Your Ground law, authorities said. Britany Jacobs, 25, was sitting in a car parked in a handicapped space outside a convenience store in Clearwater, Florida, on Thursday afternoon when a man, Michael Drejka, approached her vehicle and started looking for a handicap permit, Sheriff Bob Gualtieri of Pinellas County said at a news conference Friday. Jacobs boyfriend, Markeis McGlockton, and their 5-year-old son were in the store when Jacobs and Drejka began to yell at each other about whether she was permitted to be in that space, Gualtieri said. In a video recorded on a surveillance camera, McGlockton, 28, exits the Circle A Food Store, approaches Drejka and shoves him to the ground. After McGlockton takes a few steps back, Drejka, 47, pulls out a gun and shoots him once in the chest. RELATED: Open Carry Texas rallies in Olmos Park calling for the dismissal of city's police chief McGlockton then retreats back into the store, clutching his chest. He was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead, Gualtieri said. Gualtieri said his office did not arrest or charge Drejka, who had a concealed carry permit, because of Floridas Stand Your Ground law, which removes the obligation to retreat if a person feels threatened and frees the person to use deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm. The law was a national flash point after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the 2012 fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teenager. The case reignited a debate about racial profiling and just treatment under the law. In the recent Florida case, McGlockton, who was black, backed away from Drejka, who is white, after pushing him to the ground. Gualtieri said this brief retreat gave him pause, but Drejka told authorities that he was in fear that he was going to be struck again. Gualtieri described the contact as a violent push. This wasnt a shove, this wasnt just a tap, he said at the news conference. He slammed him to the ground. Drejka had previously complained about people parking illegally in handicapped spots, he said. The sheriffs office will refer the case to the state attorneys office to determine whether Drejka should be charged. Gualtieri added that by instituting this law, the Florida Legislature had created a subjective standard for determining whether the person who used force was in fear of bodily harm, but suggested that his hands were tied because his department could be sued if it failed to follow the laws requirements. I dont make the law we enforce the law, he said. And Im going to enforce it the way its written, the way the Legislatures intended for it to be applied. And others can have the debate about whether they like it or not. RELATED: Gunman in Trader Joe's standoff was feuding with grandmother Jacobs declined an interview Saturday after she was reached by phone. Drejka did not respond to a request for comment. Floridas law, which was adopted in 2005, received support from the National Rifle Association but was vigorously opposed by law enforcement officers. Last year, the state Legislature made it easier to use the law as a defense by shifting the burden during immunity hearings from the defense to the prosecution to show that such laws should not apply. The state attorney for Pinellas County, Bernie McCabe, will have to present clear and convincing evidence that Drejka was not entitled to use the Stand Your Ground law, Gualtieri said. McCabe could not be reached Saturday. More than most other states, Florida has made it particularly difficult to prosecute when a defendant has a reasonable claim to self-defense, said Caroline Light, a Harvard professor and the author of a book on the history of Stand Your Ground-type self-defense laws. Light said that, in the video, McGlockton appeared to be defending his family through nonlethal means. He shoves him, seemingly in an effort to get him away from his girlfriend, and then walks away, she said. The video would suggest its actually not reasonable for him to fear for his life. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. A man who police said assaulted a woman with a sword before choking her at a West Side residence was arrested Monday afternoon. Juan Carlos Moreno Menchaca, 24, faces a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, according to the San Antonio Police Department. Jennifer Rodriguez, an SAPD spokeswoman, said that the woman, 25, was found at about 8 a.m. Monday in the 600 block of South San Marcos. The woman told police that Menchaca saw something on her phone, became upset and began assaulting her with a sword, strangling her, and threatening to kill her, Rodriguez said. RELATED: 4th body found after massive fire at San Marcos apartments During the incident she was able to break free, run from the home and flag down someone nearby who called for help, Rodriguez said. Investigators said the woman had minor cuts and lacerations throughout her body from the sword. Undercover officers found Menchaca on Monday afternoon on the Southwest Side, Rodriguez said. Police arrested him without incident. We arent aware of any history that the two have together, Rodriguez said, but referred to them as a couple. We do want to commend the victim in this case who was able to break free. RELATED: Inmate escapes Bexar County jail She said that victims of abuse are often not able to break free. Rodriguez recommends that victims of such abuse immediately call authorities. There are ... detectives in all six of our substations who are trained in domestic violence, she said. They can help you out if you do find yourself in a situation such as this. jbeltran@express-news.net | Twitter: @JBfromSA The stabbing Sunday night on a BART train in Oakland, Calif., that killed an 18-year-old woman and injured her older sister was the third possible homicide on the transit system in five days, but agency officials did not immediately alert the public about the prior two cases. The previous incidents, which occurred Wednesday and Saturday and left two men dead, were disclosed Monday after The Chronicle began asking questions about them. The agency has in the past been criticized for withholding information about crimes on trains and in stations. BART did not immediately respond to requests for comment on why they had not made the other cases public. RELATED: SAPD: Teen shot in South Side home The Chronicle learned of the prior incidents after Sundays slaying of teenager Nia Wilson at MacArthur Station. According to BART, 27-year-old John Lee Cowell attacked her and her sister, 26-year-old Lahtifa Wilson, at 9:36 p.m. in a random attack as they stepped off a train. Cowell and the women had boarded the train in Concord. Wilson was pronounced dead at the scene, while her sister was rushed to a hospital. Police said they took Cowell into custody at Pleasant Hill BART Station Monday after receiving a tip from a passenger. He was arrested on an Antioch-bound train. BART said the stabbing had no connection to an incident that occurred just after 1 a.m. Saturday, when a man riding BART at Bay Fair Station in San Leandro was punched by an assailant, causing him to fall and fatally strike his head on the cement ground outside the train car. The victim, identified by BART as 47-year-old Don Stevens, a transient, was later pronounced dead at a hospital. The agency on Monday released surveillance images of the suspect, who is wanted for murder. RELATED: SAPD: Gunman at large after killing man who intervened in argument Earlier Monday, the Alameda County coroners office declined to provide Stevens name, saying BART had asked that the information be withheld from the public. In the potential third homicide on BART, a man who was involved in an altercation Wednesday afternoon at a station in Pleasant Hill was found dead Friday night in his bed at his Pittsburg home, authorities said. The victim was 51-year-old Gerald Bisbee, according to the Contra Costa County coroners office. BART said Bisbee was attacked by a 20-year-old man named Abdul Bey, who was arrested and jailed in Martinez. Bisbee, who suffered a bloody lip and small cut to the back of his knee, did not initially seek medical treatment, officials said. He felt bad the next day, though, and visited a hospital, which treated and released him, BART said. On Friday, Bisbees loved ones grew concerned that they hadnt heard from him and asked police to check on his welfare. Thats when he was found dead. Bisbee died from an infection from the cut on his leg, BART said. Michael Cabanatuan and Demian Bulwa are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com, dbulwa@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan @demianbulwa A 35-year-old man briefly escaped deputies at the Bexar County Adult Detention Center Monday afternoon, but he was apprehended four minutes later, according to the Bexar County Sheriff's Office. Edward Andre Perret was arrested in open court Monday for a motion to revoke his probation, the sheriff's office said. San Antonio has broken heat records for July 23, according to the National Weather Service. By 5 p.m., temperatures taken at two local measurement sites, the San Antonio International Airport and Stinson Municipal Airport, had hit 104 degrees and 109 degrees, respectively. The prior records were 103 degrees, set in 1898 and matched in 1994, and 104 degrees, set in 2017. An excessive heat warning is in effect until 7 p.m. Monday. These warnings are issued when ambient air temperature is likely to reach at least 105 degrees or if the heat index reaches 113, NWS meteorologist Ethan Williams said. "We're basically expecting record warmth all across Bexar County," said National Weather Service meteorologist Aaron Treadway. RELATED: As temperatures rise, dangers heat up The NWS recommends reducing time spent outdoors as much as possible and keeping an eye on the signs of a heat-related illness while the warning is in effect. So far this month, the San Antonio Fire Department has received 87 heat-related 911 calls, officials said. Of those, 45 were between July 15 and 21, and six calls happened Sunday. The city saw 106 heat-related calls in 2016 and 87 in 2017 for July 1 through July 22. SAFD public information officer Woody Woodward said the overall number of calls for is fairly normal despite the increase this last week. Sunday afternoon, San Antonio broke its previous heat record for that day by one degree, Williams said. The high was 103, and the record was set in 2009 at 102. Williams said the heat index is not much of a concern because the humidity was only at 50 percent Monday morning and will drop to 20 percent in the evening. "Whenever it's 90 percent humidity, it can really jack up the feel-like temperatures, but we've been relatively dry," Williams said. However, there is a slight chance of storms starting early Tuesday and into Wednesday. The rest of the week will continue to see triple digit temperatures every day except Wednesday, when the high is 99, Williams said. "The extended forecast doesn't look like this pattern is going to be breaking anytime soon," Williams said. "(Next) Monday, the high is going to be 97. If you want to call that some heat relief, I guess we can call it heat relief, but 97 anywhere else in the country is pretty dang hot." Chase Karacostas is a staff writer for mySA.com. | Chase.Karacostas@express-news.net | Twitter: @ChaseKaracostas President Donald Trumps news conference in Helsinki with Russian President Vladimir Putin opened a new constitutional crisis. Trumps statements jeopardize the territorial security of the United States and civilian control over American military and law enforcement agencies. Trumps partial reversal the next day (followed by a defense of his original statements the day after that) does not alleviate the damage because the president continues to pit the White House against the rest of our government. The U.S. Constitution is clear about the importance of protecting the common defense and ensuring elected officials decide on uses of government force. Every American security and law enforcement agency disagrees strongly with Trumps assertion that Russia can be a trusted partner. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, a former Republican senator from Indiana who was appointed by Trump, explained: The warning lights are blinking red. The digital infrastructure that serves this country is literally under attack. Coats singled out Russia as the most aggressive foreign actor, no question. Trump has not refuted any of this evidence or offered alternative evidence other than his statement that Putin gave him an extremely strong and powerful denial. At Helsinki, the American president was taking the word of Putin above everyone else in his own government and his allies governments. This presents a constitutional crisis because the U.S. agencies that keep us safe are charged to follow the presidents lead. He is, after all, commander in chief. At the same time, they are obligated to defend the country, and they are expected to act upon verified information. An order, even from the president, is illegal if it violates the values at the core of the Constitution. Trump created a terrible choice for security and law enforcement agencies after Mondays statements: Should they listen to him and curtail their work to combat rising Russian aggression, diverting their resources to other White House priorities? Or should they ignore the president and continue their efforts to keep our citizens safe? So far, nearly every responsible government official has chosen safety over the presidents preferences. Even as Trump recently mused about withdrawing from NATO, Secretary of Defense James Mattis assured allies of continued American support, and the U.S. military has maintained its close assistance to countries on Russias western border. The officials who are keeping our country safe are not directly violating presidential orders, but they are knowingly doing things the president would prefer them not to do. Our country is fortunate to have so many security professionals who clearly place the national defense above their popularity with the president. This pattern of insubordinate behavior will continue as officials must contradict the presidents stated wish to appease Russia. Our democracy is built upon a foundational commitment to make military and law enforcement agencies answer to elected officials. That is why the Constitution designates the president as commander in chief and gives Congress control over the governments finances. Yet our safety now depends on officials acting largely on their own. Trumps words, ironically, encourage the attributes of an independent deep state that he abhors. There will surely be more Russian meddling, and it will be difficult to restore the authority of elected officials over security agencies. The threat is not just an authoritarian executive; Trump is provoking disdain for democracy among those who keep us safe. Congress must step up and restore civilian authority. Our elected representatives should not micromanage law enforcement, but they must pass strong legislation guiding action against Russia. The Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the right to declare war. That also means it has the power to stop a presidents efforts to surrender. Congress must offer our security agencies the leadership that our democracy requires. Jeremi Suri holds the Mack Brown Distinguished Chair of Leadership in Global Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of The Impossible Presidency: The Rise and Fall of Americas Highest Office. This week we are hearing from REL Northwest (@relnw ), which is located at Education Northwest (@educationnw ). This post is by Trevor Soponis, Senior Advisor at Education Northwest. Todays post is written from the researcher perspective. Stay tuned: Thursday we will share the practitioners perspective on this research. Research shows that all students can benefit from bilingual and dual-language education: For instance, bilingual and dual-language education has been shown to have a positive impact on the achievement of both English learner and non-English learner students. However, there is a national shortage of bilingual teacherswhich is creating a demographic mismatch between educators and the rapidly growing population of English learner students. When Oregons largest school districtPortland Public Schools (PPS)found itself facing this problem at the beginning of the 2015-16 school year, the district decided to partner with Portland State University (PSU) to recruit, develop, and retain bilingual teachers, with an emphasis on biliterate and bicultural teachers, thus establishing a fully articulated system for the recruitment, training, retention, and continued support of bilingual teacher candidates. Known as the Oregon Bilingual Teacher Pipeline Collaborative , this partnership is working with REL Northwest to begin a data-collection process that focuses on the experience of new teachers in the pipeline. REL Northwest is also supporting the collaboratives efforts to optimize the Portland Dual Language Teacher Fellows Program , the alternative licensure program the district and university offer. What The Collaborative Examines Specifically, with REL Northwests facilitation, the collaborative is working to: Build school and district capacity to use data and evidence to better understand their staffing needs and current recruitment, development, and retention practices Collect and analyze data on teacher perceptions of the effectiveness of the bilingual pathway program Use formative data to plan and support the professional learning of bilingual teachers Review and summarize evidence-based practices for recruiting and retaining bilingual teachers of color Ultimately, the goal is to design the alignment of supports for program participants at the school, district, and university level by using data to determine the best ways to scaffold their learning. And because dual-language educators teach in a variety of settings with a variety of responsibilities, it is critical to research what supports are best for them and set them up for successespecially in terms of retention and classroom effectiveness. Key Takeaways and Implications for Practice Through our work with the collaborative, we have found that it is critical to clearly identify roles and responsibilities for all stakeholders. For instance, if a new teacher is struggling, who is their primary support? Who is responsible for collecting program data, and when and how do they share those data? Answering these questions is critical for both immediate and long-term program improvement. Doing so is crucial to building the capacity of individuals and organizations to share data and collectively engage in the process of continuous improvement. This research-practice partnership has also underscored the key role district-university partnerships play in the onboarding and retention efforts for new dual-language teachers. The support new teachers perceive from both their school and university impacts their decisions about their teaching career. In addition, a major lesson learned is that its essential for teacher candidates to have a consistent vision of instruction and assessment from both their district and college or university. In this case, new teachers were reporting that they were receiving different feedback from their principal, mentor, university supervisor, and professors, and as a result, werent always clear on how to improve their teaching practice. Aligning feedback helps new teachers know what they need to do to improve their instruction in their very next class. This helps put new teachers on a path to successand ultimately helps them serve the diverse needs of all students. Previous blog posts by Education Northwest: Curious about other research topics partnerships have written about for this blog? See this Guide to the NNERPP EdWeek Blog for all previous blog posts organized by research topic area to easily find other posts of particular interest to you! There is much wrong with this picture: noncitizen members of the U.S. military serve honorably but risk being booted out with a discharge that neither lets them move on to citizenship nor guarantees they wont be deported. They are people who enlisted through a program called Military Accessions Vital to National Interest. MAVNI was designed to enlist foreign-born residents with useful language and culture skills. Among them was Army Pfc. Alina Kaliuzhna, who gave up her Ukranian citizenship to take the oath of service. Express-News Staff Writer Sig Christenson recently told the story of the soldier, who took her medic training at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston. Three years into her enlistment, she has been told she will be discharged, though her service appears exemplary. The reason: ongoing security screening, though MAVNI participants had to secure top security clearance to get in. Kaliuzhna has been told there have been discrepancies in her counterintelligence screening interviews. But this has all the appearance of really being about her family (living in Crimea, which used to be part of Ukraine) sending her money to support her education at Quincy College in Massachusetts. Hundreds of other active-duty soldiers and Army Reserve recruits have already been discharged or face similar predicaments these latter, perhaps not because they couldnt pass their reviews but because the Defense Department hasnt reviewed them in time. MAVNI was started in the Obama administration. It was found to have some flaws that might allow terrorist or foreign government infiltration. It was suspended, the Trump administration ending it last year. And now, MAVNI participants are in limbo and in Kaliuzhnas case facing return to a country shes not sure will welcome her. Congress needs to step in to at least correct any wrongs inflicted on MAVNI participants. One problem-free year out of three is not good when it comes a vendors success rate in administering state mandated standardized tests to public school students. New Jersey-based Education Testing Services rolled out a problem-riddled testing system in 2016, its inaugural year as the states standardized testing educational testing programs vendor. It did much better last year but things did not go so well this school year. Problems with the online version of the test were reported across the state. The company, which has a $327 million contract with the state, paid $5.7 million in damages after the 2016 fiasco and was ordered to make $15 million in improvements. The company also is facing $100,000 in fines from the state for the most recent testing woes. Reports from school districts across the state and in our own community indicate many students taking the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness test in April and May had difficulty signing in to begin their tests and some were logged out of the the test midway through the exam. A monetary fine is hardly adequate compensation for the problems that affected some 100,000 schoolchildren across the state, including several thousands in San Antonio this spring. Many of the students who take the online version of the test are students who require extra assistance with the exams. Texas Commissioner of Education Mike Morath said he has taken action to ensure that most of the students and school districts affected by the computer glitches are not penalized by the states accountability system. But fines and promises that the process will improve are insufficient to compensate for the headaches. When it comes to high stakes testing, all test day problems are worrisome, not just for the individual student affected by the computer glitches, but also for the proctors and the other students in the room. ETS has one more year left on its contract with the state and TEA is getting ready to rebid the contract. This time around the state education agency needs to spend more time drafting its specifications for the contract, vetting the capabilities of the bidders and establishing better safeguards to prevent more messes. TEA itself has earned less than a passing score with the current contract. President Trump openly, publicly and officially accepted the unsupported word of Vladimir Putin that Russia had nothing to do with meddling in our 2016 election (reversing himself the day after, saying he believes his intelligence agencies). This Helsinki statement was in direct opposition to the independent and unanimous finding of Mr. Trumps own investigation departments and intelligence agencies, having hard, documented evidence of Russias guilt, and just days after a slew of indictments against Russian agents. Mr. Trump then went on to praise Mr. Putin for offering the assistance of his own former KGB spooks to assist our U.S. intelligence agencies in determining the truth. Comrade Trump has now gone beyond high crimes and misdemeanors and into high treason. I call for the House of Representatives to suspend other work and immediately begin drafting articles of impeachment. At this point, I believe nothing has greater urgency or importance. Wayne Haymes, Leon Valley Shouldve flinched Re: FBI agent doesnt flinch at GOP grilling, Page One, July 13: The subhead was Defends actions in Russia probe. Exactly right. Agent Peter Strzok never dropped his mask of smugness and arrogance during his lengthy testimony before Congress. Well, maybe a couple of times, which I will describe shortly. He did truly provide an aggressive defense of his actions during the investigation of Secretary Clintons emails. But everything he said in his defense is contradicted by the 500-plus page report by the Department of Justice inspector general. The report detailed Strzoks extreme bias against President Trump and his voters/supporters, who Strzok called ignorant hillbillies. The report also gave example after example of Strzok and other FBI investigators failing to follow proscribed FBI procedures and protocols. If his actions were correct and honest, why was the senior counterintelligence investigator sent to human relations at the FBI after he was kicked off the Mueller special counsel team? Last month Strzok was escorted out of the FBI building. He did demonstrate some contriteness when he made ridiculous, third-grade excuses for his anti-Trump text messages. Also when he said he couldnt remember changing the exoneration letter from gross negligence to extreme carelessness concerning Secretary Clintons use of an unsecure server. He admitted it was done on his computer and no one else had access to his computer. And finally, his memory failed again when Strzok was asked about a meeting with Frank Rucker from the inspector generals office, during which Rucker told Strzok that a foreign government was able to access 30,000 of Secretary Clintons emails, several of them highly classified. Strzok remembered the meeting but not the contents of it. Very convenient. Ed Pickrel, Universal City Whens it end? Our president, Donald Trump, went to Europe this past week and met with our NATO allies where he made a fool of himself. Then, he went to a meeting with the president of Russia where he made a fool of himself. But much worse than that, he made a fool of America. And, like it or not, he made fools of everyone in 2016 who cast their votes to elect him. When will this nightmare end? David J. Smith, Bulverde Why, oh why? In Helsinki, Donald Trump made a speech defending himself from a charge of collusion that the Mueller investigation has not made. Why? Any other president would strongly defend America and demand that Putin stop the cyberattacks immediately. Instead, Trump sided with Putin against our own country, our Justice Department and his own Republican appointees who are simply doing their duty to protect America. Trump serves Putins interests, whether wittingly or unwittingly. If deliberately, he has committed a high crime; if foolishly, he is unfit for office. Either way, there are grounds to impeach him and congressional Republicans need to step up and do their duty now before this runaway choo-choo that they elected creates a more disastrous train wreck than the ones hes already caused. Theresa S. Doyle Right reasons Many will say they are not against immigration to the U.S. However, people should come for the right reason to assimilate into our culture by learning the language, becoming a citizen, paying taxes, etc. They shouldnt just come here to get free things, live in their own enclaves and get welfare. We are tired of paying for it all. Diane Hogan No enabling There is something all of us must see at some level about President Trump, no matter what political affiliation or background. Never mind his vacillating political views, his open admiration of dictators and their tactics, never mind his unempathetic statements and cruel mocking. His inability to see reality is too obvious and most threatening. He has repeatedly shown inability to know how he looks to the world. There are many examples, but a couple are very evident. Insisting that the pictures of his inauguration crowds are not smaller than Barack Obamas, when all can see the opposite. And now, in Helsinki, in front of the whole world, he refused to believe his countrys overwhelming evidence of Russian intrusion (recanting the day after). The problem is not whether he believed the assessment or not. The real problem is that he was not able to see what this looks like what this is openly assisting the cover-up of crimes against our country that he has sworn to protect. I feel I am an enabler and participator if I do not clearly state the above. I cannot have that on my conscience. Helen G. Albanese Throwing down some hard-earned cash on blackjack or craps at the local casino is enough to make some folks break out into a cold sweat. But when it comes time to buy a home, the ante gets raised to truly nerve-racking levels: They're making the biggest wager of their lives on what'll likely be their largest investment. Ever. Owning a home has long been considered the fastest and most predictable way to build wealth in the United States. And while home sale prices are at an all-time record (at a median of $262,000 as of June) not everyone is walking away with double-digit annual returns. Picking a place where home prices will continue to surge in the long term is one part science, one part dogged research, and one part blind, dumb luck. Nothing is guaranteed. But if past is prologue, we're here to help increase your odds of picking a winner: The realtor.com data team found the markets where home sellers are walking away with the biggest returns. We're not talking about short-term flipping here. We're focusing on those in it for the long haul. Our analysis finds that the median annual return for home sales was 8% nationally over the last 12 months. Not too shabby, homeowners! But digging into the numbers reveals a disparity. Of the 100 largest metros, the annual return was high as 14%and as low as 2%. That's the difference between living retirement on the beach and not retiring at all. Owning can be a great way to build up overall net worth, says Danielle Hale, chief economist for realtor.com. If youre looking to transition in a local market [to a bigger home], you have the home equity. If youre looking to retire and move somewhere else, you have the money to do that. Many of the places with the highest returns are the nation's fastest-growing cities, where highly paid techies are spurring bidding wars. But that isn't always the case. A few of the places where home sellers walked away with the fattest profits are those that hit rock-bottom in the Great Recession. Savvy buyers who got in on the ground floor have seen their home appreciation soar. "They walked into the room when everyone was running out," Jonathan Miller, a national real estate appraiser at Miller Samuel in New York, says of these buyers. "They are now being compensated for their risk." To find the country's most profitable housing markets, we looked at homes that sold over the past 12 months in the 100 largest metropolitan areas. (Metros include the main city and the suburbs surrounding it.) Then we compared the most recent sale prices to their previous ones, going back as far as 2008. The profit was defined as the difference between the two sales. Finally, we used those figures to create an average annualized return for each market, and limited our ranking to one metro per state. Let's roll the dice! Most profitable markets Tony Frenzel Average annualized return: 14% Median home list price: $789,100 Bridgeport, CT realtor.com Fairfield County has spent decades esconced as the crown jewel of New York City's suburbs, a hot spot for wealthy home buyers looking to snag a mansion in luxe, high-status communities like Greenwich, CT, where median home prices are $1.9 million. But this county is more than just leafy, picture-perfect commuter towns; it also stretches into the perennially downtrodden city of Bridgeport. And ever since the financial recovery, properties at both ends of the economic spectrum have been doing very well. First, the high end: Unlike in nearby Westchester County, NY, home buyers in Fairfield County don't have to pay a mansion tax. And ever since last year's tax law changes, which made deductions less generous, the county has been attracting even more interest among big-ticket purchasers. That increased demand has more and more homeowners cashing in, to get their hands on those profits. It's common for sellers here to use that windfall to upgrade to an even nicer home, says Leslie McElwreath, a real estate agent at Sothebys International Realtys office in Greenwich. But it isn't just mansions driving the price increases. Even higher price appreciation can be found in way less affluent Bridgeport proper, says Miller, the real estate appraiser. The median price there is just $199,000. That's lured in buyers, and that is now driving prices up. If you look at the high end of the county, housing prices havent risen as much since the financial crisis," Miller says. "But areas hit hard by foreclosures in the region are now seeing large gains in property values." Average annualized return: 12% Median home list price: $260,000 Detroit skyline Cameron Davidson/Getty Images The Great Recession dealt Detroit a near-knockout punch. The Motor City had struggled for decades with the loss of blue-collar, manufacturing jobs. Then the auto industry went into a tailspin, leading to widespread unemployment and a rash of foreclosures. Locally based General Motors and Ford received a federal bailout to stay afloat. But in 2013, the city still filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy. With so many folks looking to leave, the median home values in Detroit fell from $137,200 in March 2008 to $108,800 by March 2012, leaving many owners underwater on their mortgages. But in recent years, the city has been on the upswing, as more folks move into its revitalized downtown. Younger buyers are finally flocking into the area to purchase condos in converted industrial buildings, like this one-bedroom condo/loft for $299,900. Homeowners who rode out the bad times are starting to see the rewards. That's especially true for those who bought at the bottom of the market. Detroit fell harder than most markets, real estate appraiser Miller says. "[But its] rebound has been encouraging." Average annualized return: 12% Median home list price: $582,400 Seattle Sujata Jana / EyeEm via Getty Images Why did so many cities go nuts submitting bids for Amazons second global headquarters? Maybe it has something to do with the remarkable transformation the company has wrought in its home city of Seattle. All those lucrative tech jobs have attracted home buyers of means, who've sent real estate prices soaring. It's turning average Joe and Jane homeowners into millionaires. Competition is fierce. In the last year alone, nearly two-thirds of homes sold in Seattle have received multiple offers, according to a realtor.com analysis. Thats the highest incidence of bidding wars outside California. Buyers are snapping up condos in downtown Seattle with good views of the skyline or Elliott Bay. But demand is equally as strong for family-friendly, single-family homes in suburbs like Bellevue, WA. More than 75% of my buyers are from Microsoft or Amazon, says Jim Price, an adviser at Engel & Volkers in Seattle. Lots of millennials here are making six figures and are ready to be first-time home buyers. Average annualized return: 12% Median home list price: $1,240,300 San Jose realtor.com The number of deep-pocketed techies and venture capitalists in the heart of Silicon Valley seems to be limitless. Combine that with the meager supply of available homes, and even wee vacant lots can go for over $1 million. Silicon Valley home buyers from companies like Apple, which is likely to become the world's first company worth more than $1 trillion, are turning former middle-class neighborhoods into mansion-lined boulevards. Buyers are consistently tearing down the more reasonably sized homes on their lots to put up larger ones. This happened in Los Altos, CA, where the median home price is now above $6 million.The most expensive home for sale in Los Altos is a 21,000-square-foot mansion priced at $55 million. Those who don't have quite so much spare cash can consider this two-bedroom 1,500 square-foot condo, currently the cheapest abode on the market, at $1.6 million. And home sellers looking to unload their property in a hurry don't have to worry. Not only do 80% of home sales in San Jose result in a bidding war, many of these buyers are willing to pay in all cash. Average annualized return: 12% Median home list price: $270,000 Palm Bay, FL realtor.com In the 2015 film "The Big Short," two characters flew to Florida before the housing bubble burst to figure out why so many homeowners weren't making their mortgage payments. They discovered that folks were purchasing properties they couldn't afford. True enough, when the housing market collapsed, the state was among the hardest hit. Florida was just devastated by the foreclosure crisis, and had to reinvent itself," real estate appraiser Miller says. It has been a long recovery period, but people that went against the grain [buying at the markets bottom] in recent years have done well. Like much of costal Florida, Palm Bay has a big demand from baby boomer retirees who are looking to buy homes in the area. Around a 45-minute drive to Orlando, where the median-priced home is $318,500, Palm Bay attracts home buyers looking for a lower price tag. Even a beachfront condo can be found at around $300,000. Just look at this three-bedroom condo in a gated community with a pool and pier, priced at $319,900. Average annualized return: 11% Median home list price: $467,600 Denver Gary Conner/Getty Images Colorado has been on a steady growth track for years, helped along by its snazzy craft beer scene and unbeatable scenery. When the state legalized marijuana in 2012, it was just the pungent icing on the cake. "After that, theres been just a huge influx of people and money into Denver, says Ryan Penn, an associate broker at 360dwellings Real Estate in the city. Many of his clients come from the more expensive coastal cities. Im representing a couple of buyers who are relocating from Los Angeles, and theyre in contract to sign for a $1.3 million home. In California, they would pay three times more for something the same size. Young professionals are enticed by the condos and single-family homes priced between $300,000 to $500,000. But they should expect to write 20 to 25 offers before they win a bidding war, Penn says. Bad news for themand great news for sellers. Even if you bought a home two years ago, you can be sitting on $100,000 of equity, Penn says. The biggest demand in homes is for those priced around $500,000. Average annualized return: 11% Median home list price: $350,000 Providence, RI DenisTangneyJr/iStock The biggest selling point for the capital of Rhode Island is its reasonably priced homes and its proximity to Boston. The bigger city is just an hour away, but its median home price is 51% higher, at $529,100. We have a lot of buyers from Boston and elsewhere looking for more affordable housing, says Robert Rutley, a local real estate agent at Taylor & Associates. "A lot of them are transplants moving in from around the country for the universities." Providence is home to Brown University, Johnson & Wales University, and the Rhode Island School of Design, among others. Just this month, Rutley sold a three-family home in Providence that closed with 17 offers and sold for $30,000 more than the asking price. The hot market is spurred by a growing downtown, which has new hotels and apartment complexes going up. This is great news for home sellers, many of whom found themselves underwater on their mortgages after the housing crash. During the first quarter of 2018, 6.8% of homes in Rhode Island were under water, compared to more than 10% just two years earlier, according to CoreLogic, a real estate data firm. Over the last year alone, the average Rhode Island homeowner added $18,600 in home equity. Average annualized return: 10% Median home list price: $529,100 Boston FilippoBacci/iStock Boston has several historic districts where the stately brownstones are star attractions. But because the city limits construction there and doesn't allow high-rises to go up in many parts of town, there is a limited supply of homes for sale. And that's pushing home prices up, up, and away. The people buying [in these areas] want the historic Boston experience, says Collin Bray, a real estate agent at Century 21 Cityside in Boston. "They pay big money for high ceilings and deep fireplaces. A rebounding financial sector, which employs many residents, has pushed wages higher. But money isn't always enough to snag the most desirable homes for sale in this skintight market. Ive heard of buyers showing up at sellers' doorsteps, ringing the doorbell, and introducing themselves, so hopefully the seller will remember them, Bray says. Average annualized return: 10% Median home list price: $368,000 Nashville, TN FangXiaNuo/iStock Folks are used to paying sky-high home prices in places like New York and San Francisco. But it's new territory for for native Nashvillians, where prices have steadily been climbing for the last few years. A surplus of good jobs has brought home buyers here. And the coolness factor of living in Music City has made it catnip for younger buyers. Older homeowners who purchased their homes for around $30,000 decades ago are now selling their abodes for a mint and then moving into multifamily homes with their children or into retirement communities, says local real estate agent Brian Copeland of Doorbell Real Estate. They cant pass up on how much profit they'd make if they sold, Copeland says. Average annualized return: 10% Median home list price: $477,500 Portland, OR 4nadia/iStock Portland has been sizzling for some time nowand it's more than just the parody-worthy hipster scene that's responsible. As it turns out, the housing market here is uniquely well situated; many new residents are refugees fleeing expensive West Coast markets like Seattle and San Francisco. Its really the last affordable major city on the West Coast, says local real estate broker Darcie Alexander of PDX Green Team. We have the great coffee, a variety of restaurants, and tons of art and music, but at a fraction of the price. Between 2010 to 2017, the population of the metro area grew 11%, to about 647,805 in the city. That increase, and the climb out of the recession, have led to a jump of 56% in home prices during the same time period. That's been a boon for sellers, who haven't had a hard time unloading their homes. (Single-family houses like this three-bedroom, two-bath ranch priced at $334,900 are particularly popular.) So what are sellers doing with those big profits? [They're] wanting to buy something bigger in a higher price range, but theyre staying in Portland, Alexander says. Most people are either reinvesting it into the real estate market or theyre paying off debt. Sources: realtor.com and CoreLogic Allison Underhill contributed to this report. The post Cash in! Here Are America's Most Profitable Housing Markets appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com. Eight people were allegedly killed at a mosque in northeast Nigeria on Monday, July 23, when a suicide bomber reportedly detonated his explosives, a civilian militia member and a local resident said. According to The Punch, Ibrahim Liman from the civilian militia force assisting the military in the fight against Boko Haram said that the blast happened in the Mainari area of Konduga, in Borno state. The male bomber walked into the mosque at about 5.15 am (0415 GMT) while prayers were on and exploded, killing eight worshippers and injuring five others, he said. Seven of the victims died in the mosque while another died on the way to (the Borno state capital) Maiduguri. READ ALSO: Saraki speaks on alleged juicy offer from Buhari, APC ahead of 2019 Suicide bombings against soft civilian targets such as mosques, markets and bus stations are the hallmark of the Boko Haram faction led by Abubakar Shekau. Many of the bombers used are reportedly young women and girls. Liman said the latest attack appeared to be carried out by a man in his early 20s. Another witness, Umar Goni, who lives in Konduga, said he was on his way to the mosque when the blast occurred and he helped to rescue victims with members of the civilian volunteer force. We pulled out seven dead bodies and six injured worshippers. One of the six injured died on the way to hospital, he added. Goni said the bomber was disguised as a worshipper, adding: There was no way anybody could have known his mission. PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigerias #1 news app Legit.ng previously reported that the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Rogers Nicholas said that some Boko Haram members are regrouping around Bama local government area of Borno state. Nicholas told journalists in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital on Monday, July 16, that some of the terrorists attacked the nations military troops in Bama village on Saturday, July 14. The troops were attacked while conducting clearance operations in the area. Nigerian Air Force Operations Against Boko Haram | - on Legit.ng TV Source: Legit - The Ondo state chairman of the Mega Party of Nigeria says the Rotimi Akeredolu-led administration has not made any significant impact since assuming office - Biyi Poroye said Akeredolu has done virtually nothing to the mandate he got from the people of Ondo state, so far - The governors aide however countered the statement; insisting that the Akeredolu administration had touched all spheres The Rotimi Akeredolu-led administration in Ondo state has been accused by the state chapter of the Mega Party of Nigeria (MPN), of not making any significant impact since assuming office 16 months ago. The accusation was leveled by the state chairman of the party, Biyi Poroye, during the first stakeholders meeting of the party on Friday, July 20 in Akure, Punch reports. Legit.ng gathers that Poroye insisted that the Akeredolu government has not recorded any achievement since its inception. READ ALSO: Killings: Nigerians have lost faith in Buhari - Ex lawmaker claims He said: We are not happy with the performance of the Ondo state governor. It is ridiculous that close to two years in office, Mr Governor has done virtually nothing to the mandate he got from the people of Ondo state. Regrettably, the Ondo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission has suddenly been abandoned to the extent that it presently serves as a dysfunctional agency. Reacting to Poroyes statement however, Akeredolus chief press secretary, Segun Ajiboye, stated that the allegations were ill-conceived and malicious; and that the MPN chairman was oblivious of happenings in the state. He said the Akeredolu administration had touched all spheres especially in the area of road construction; and advised Poroye to to move round the state to see what the administration had done so far before criticising the governor. Ajiboye said: We have performed creditably well in all the sectors of the states economy since the inception of this administration; and the good work will continue, as we have touched virtually all sectors - education, agriculture, health and roads. PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigerias #1 news app Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that youths under the aegis of Future Leaders for Change in Ondo state, expressed their displeasure over Governor Rotimi Akeredolu's alleged wasteful extravagance of tax payers money and lack of sympathy for the suffering people of the state. The group called on President Muhammadu Buhari to call the governor to order. Why governors steal: Governor Okorocha of Imo state - on Legit.ng TV: Source: Legit Ill have more to say about some of the other meetups just completed (Chicago, Green Bay, San Francisco, and Seattle), since I learned a lot at each of them. However, quite a lot happened at the Portland one, plus reader Andrew Watts showed up my tardiness by providing his own write up of the event. The short version is my hotel reservation had been cancelled when there were literally no other rooms in Portland to be had, which led me to arrive late and considerably frazzled to the event. My fallback would have been to leave the meetup early and go to Seattle, where the hotel where I was booked for the next night had space. But readers volunteered to put me up, and my host, reader Thomas, gave me a tour of Occupy ICE. The other important development was that Charlotte, whose husband and daughter were also there, volunteered to hold a meetup in Salem in their very large and attractive yard, in the hope of perhaps attracting readers from Eugene. Enough people in attendance said they were interested for Charlotte and her family to go ahead, probably in the early fall. So stay tuned! Hotel Mishap Id thought my afternoon was going well. Plane landed on schedule. I arrived at my hotel, the Mark Spencer, with what Id thought was enough time to check in and be able to get to the meetup without any rush or drama. Oops. It was not a good sign when I was dropped off and discovered that there was not porter and guests were expected to haul their bags up a flight of stairs on their own to get to the lobby. I have a bad ankle sprain and a hip injury, so this was a non-starter. I managed to get someone to help me but was already in an upset. The receptionist told me I had no reservation and the hotel was fully booked. I had originally booked for two nights, the night before and the night of the meetup, but had decided to stay an extra day in San Francisco and only one night in Portland. The Mark Spencer site did not allow for nights to be removed from an existing reservation. I thought I had called to cancel out the first night, but they obviously didnt think so.1 So now I am really stuck. To his credit, the receptionist refunded my no-show charge (a full nights room charge) and spent, no joke, 35 minutes trying to find me a room. The only thing he could find that he deemed to be OK after a lot of web searching was the Holiday Inn at the airport. But he couldnt book for same day online, he had to call a call center. He got someone not very good because it took her forever to take the information. Then she put him on hold for five minutes while the system rebooted. She came back on the line to tell him the room was gone. The receptionist got the number for the hotel itself and called them directly. They confirmed they had no rooms. He said my next option was a Motel Six, which he clearly regarded as skanky. I was at that point already ten minutes after the meetup start time. I schlepped my bags (this time down an elevator to a back entrance) where it took nearly ten minutes to get a taxi. I first called Kells to tell them I was the host of a group and to announce I was late due to a mess at a hotel and was en route (that apparently did not happen). I then my hotel in Seattle and Delta re going to Seattle that evening. That would work but Id have to leave the meetup before 7:00 PM to make the flight. The Meetup I got to Kells after 5:30 PM (peak time traffic in Portland is slow!) and there were 35+ people there having a fine time. I dumped my bags, announced my lack of a room problem and asked if anyone had any pull with hotels. Several people offered to put me up. The most sensible option seemed to be Tom, a trim fellow in his 30s who was relatively nearby and said he and his wife had a spare bedroom. I asked if it was OK with her. He said she was an ER nurse, she was used to rolling with the unexpected. I sat at a long table (where Charlotte from Salem was sitting and offered to host a meetup) and someone pointed out that Oregoncharles was sitting at a different table and some people wanted to know where he was. Since I knew Gaius was there too and other readers might want to track him down, I spoke up again and had everyone introduce themselves (this is not normal meetup protocol), including their handle if they commented. Not surprisingly, we had a fair representation of computer industry professionals (including two Cobol programmers), as well as people in landscaping (it seemed like architects as well as workers), professors, a lawyer, a food industry worker, teachers, an economist, and retirees (forgive me if I missed your profession). Additions from Andrew Watts recap: After that we began introductions and it was during this time I realized how many lurkers there are in the comments section. During my introduction I got some laughs when I ended it with and if Ive ever offended you by one of my comments I just wanted to say Im sorry NOW!. The funniest and crowd-pleasing introduction was by somebody who claimed they became aware of Naked Capitalism thanks to ProporNot. The crowd skewed older and professional but there were a few other working class stiffs and there were even a few other millennials there. One of the poignant points that Yves made to everyone before people began circulating was how things have changed. Everybodys tempers are now on a shorter fuse. Undoubtedly this is due to recent events and the increasingly stressful environment we are living in. I was surprised to find out that Yves had spent some time growing up in an area of rural Oregon close to where I had lived and still have connections. Another instance where I discovered previously unknown connections occurred when one of the people who came to talk to me mentioned that his company was financing my employers expansion. I was momentarily taken aback by this knowledge as I wasnt aware that the board had any financing. It started to get late and I said goodbye to Yves at 8:30 PM who was still tirelessly holding court. I asked her what she thought the next crisis was going to look like while mentioning parallels to the previous financial crisis involving the yen and dollar carry trade and she said shed probably write a post about what she thought. The short version is she doesnt think there will necessarily be a financial crisis and an economic one instead. Kells has a fairly diverse clientele for a downtown bar with everything ranging from hipsters and Timbers fans to older regulars. The restaurant area was louder then the bar which amusingly caused quite a few bar patrons to see what the commotion was about. Overall it was a lot of fun and Im not the kind of person that enjoys these kind of gatherings. It was great meeting fellow commenters and lurkers alike. If you have an opportunity to attend one of these meet-ups I encourage fellow introverts to attend. I will confirm that Kells was a very good venue. The room did get noisy but that was by virtue of it being reflective and our group being large and talkative. We had ample space and the staff was reasonably prompt with taking and delivering orders given the size of the crowd. Tom, Helen, and the Field Trip to Occupy ICE Tom had been in the National Guard when he was in college and then served for five years in Afghanistan. He was involved in intelligence (not Snowden-type but target identification). I dont think he harbors any illusions about the US military. Toms wife Helen went to Africa to treat Ebola. I wish I had been alert enough to figure out how to ask her about it, but the things youd really want to know are ugly: How many of your colleagues died? How did you handle it? Werent you afraid every time you treated someone who you though was infected? How did you deal with patients who were dying? Tom had wanted to join MSF so he and Helen could work together, but MSF (unlike the US military) wont make postings that keep married couples together. Tom took me to Occupy ICE on the way to his home. His wife Helen had volunteered to help in the medics tent and Tom knew some of the regulars.2 The encampment is at the site of the Southwest Portland U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement holding facility. One bone of contention is that ICE leases the facility from the City of Portland, and protestors have called for the city to revoke the lease. The mayors office has said it cant do anything even though the protestors claim that ICE is violating the terms of the lease by holding some immigrants overnight. My visit was in the late evening, so few people were out. However, there is a police car stationed at the intersection in front of the ICE operation, blocking an access road to a main street. The policeman on duty seemed awfully aggressive. As Tom and I walked back to his parked car, the cop yelled at an approaching car which didnt seem about to do anything untoward, If you turn that way [onto the access road his car was partly blocking], Ill shoot you in the head. Occupy ICE took up residence about a month ago. It sought to keep lawyers and employees prosecuting deportations from getting into the building and apparently did succeed in preventing ICE workers from going home (see this Guardian story for more detail). Tom said they seemed unable to recognize the irony of their complaints that they were being kept from their families. Im not sure I have the exact chronology, but I believe this led to the breaking up of the occupation on June 28, which included eight arrests. After that, the two sides settled into an unfriendly co-habitation. ICE put some men toting guns on its roof to try to intimidate the protestors. I now forget the gun names, but apparently the ICE employees were displaying weapons suitable only for mass shootings, not for sniping, when ICE doing an imitation of the Vegas shooting would not be a PR winner. Occupy ICE sent drones to spy on the gunmen, and determined the weapons were not fit for the only justifiable purpose and leaning against walls. After the drone visits, ICE took its men off the roof. There were plastic pup tents lined up near the walls of the ICE building, with more rows closer to the entrance. There were four Porta-Potties, one of which was paid for by a sympathetic group, the rest by Occupy ICE. There are 50-60 people there at night, most of them homeless. The encampment was tidy. The medics tent had three people staffing it, and it looked well supplied. There is also a library with about 50 books. I noticed that the tents had extremely bright lights turned on them. Tom said that was recent and agreed with my take, that they were intended to harass the protestors. Since my short visit, Occupy ICE attracted a counter-protest which appears to have been uneventful. Im dubious of both the strategy and the aims. Arab Spring revolts succeeded in the narrow sense by occupying central squares and being able to bring a great deal of official and commercial activity to a standstill. Occupy Wall Street, even though it did not have enough participants to immobilize lower Manhattan, drove the officialdom nuts by having the good fortune to have settled upon a space where the citys rights to oust the squatters was vastly weaker than if theyd tried staying overnight in a city park. The Occupy Wall Street encampment also fronted two major traffic arteries and was hard by major subway stops. In other words, a high percentage of Wall Street workers would encounter the protests on their rounds. By contrast, the Portland ICE occupation, and I assume most if not all of its brethren in other cities are not in central locations, and hence dont do much in the way of reminding locals of the questionable methods of the department. And the occupation would not be difficult to clear out. As for the objectives, here are the demands of Occupy ICE PDX: That the ICE facility and Ice operations be removed from the city of Portland That children separated from their families be returned and receive adequate healthcare That the US cease incarcerating asylum seekers That ICE be totally abolished The last one, of abolishing ICE, is unsound. Like Brexit, it means different things to different people. Some abolish ICE proponents want open borders, while others want more local control over deportations and more immigrant-frienldy policies. The people who want to get rid of ICE need to say what they want in its stead. Otherwise, the Trump Administration is entirely capable of replacing it with an even more immigrant-hostile agency. * * * Tom and Helen went to more trouble than they needed to for me and I am very grateful for their generosity. Helen ran out and got coffee and yogurt; Tom drove me to the airport. Tom is thinking about career options. He could get a law degree but wants to advance social justice and is interested in other options. I wish I could give him guidance. _____ 1 On the one hand, I could be hallucinating, particularly since I didnt have a cancellation number and I usually make a point of getting them. On the other, while I was with the receptionist, another person seated behind the reception desk at a computer asked the receptionist for help with canceling out a day of an existing reservation, meaning it was clear the system made that hard to do. 2 I will probably leave readers of all sorts unhappy by saying I dont have a clear point of view on immigration, since I dont regard merely pointing out problems with the current system as an adequate position. You need to have remedies too, otherwise you merely create opportunities for at best cosmetic changes being touted as reforms, or worse reforms that make things worse for lots of people and/or create more opportunities for private sector grifting. And theres been a death of policy proposals, let alone sound-sounding ones. Having said that, Im not a fan of open borders. Among other things, it would increase the opportunities to abuse non-citizen migrants; by contrast, the old bracero program imposed labor standards on employers of migrant farm workers). At the same time, the handling of immigrants has become to a significant degree a profit opportunity for the prison industrial complex, which had led to unduly rough treatment of immigrants, including prolonged detentions on a questionable basis. That cans and should be made to stop. Lambert here: Close to 40% of multinational profits were artificially shifted to tax havens in 2015. Holy moly! By Thomas Trslv, PhD student, University of Copenhagen and Ministry of Taxation, Denmark, Ludvig Wier, PhD candidate, University of Copenhagen, and Gabriel Zucman, Gabriel Zucman. Originally published at VoxEU Between 1985 and 2018, the global average statutory corporate tax rate fell by more than half. This column uses new macroeconomic data to argue that profit shifting is a key driver of this decline. Close to 40% of multinational profits were artificially shifted to tax havens in 2015, and this massive tax avoidance and the failure to curb it are in effect leading more and more countries to give up on taxing multinational companies. Perhaps the most striking development in tax policy throughout the world over the last few decades has been the decline in corporate income tax rates. Between 1985 and 2018, the global average statutory corporate tax rate fell by more than half, from 49% to 24%. Why are corporate tax rates falling? The standard explanation is that globalisation makes countries compete harder for productive capital. By cutting their rates, countries can attract more machines, plants, and equipment, which makes workers more productive and boosts their wage. This theory is particularly popular among policymakers. It permeates much of the discussion about tax policy, for instance the decision by the US to cut its corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% in 2018 (e.g. Council of Economic Advisors 2017). But is it well founded empirically? Todays largest multinational companies dont seem to move much tangible capital to low-tax places they dont even have much tangible capital to start with. Instead, they avoid taxes by shifting accounting profits. In 2016 for instance, Google Alphabet made $19.2 billion in revenue in Bermuda, a small island in the Atlantic where it barely employs any worker nor owns any tangible assets, and where the corporate tax rate is zero percent. Mapping Where Profits Are Booked Globally In a recent paper (Trslv et al. 2018) we argue that this profit shifting is a key driver of the decline in corporate income tax rates. By our estimates, close to 40% of multinational profits were artificially shifted to tax havens in 2015. This massive tax avoidance and the failure to curb it are in effect leading more and more countries to give up on taxing multinational companies. The decline in corporate tax rate is the result of faulty policies in high-tax countries, not a necessary by-product of globalisation. Our estimate that 40% of multinational profits are shifted to tax havens is based on new macroeconomic data known as foreign affiliates statistics.These statistics record the amount of wages paid by affiliates of foreign multinational companies and the profits these affiliates make. In other words, they allow to decompose national accounts aggregates (wages paid by corporations, operating surplus of corporations, etc.) into local firms and foreign firms. We draw on these statistics to create a new global database recording the profits reported in each country by local versus foreign corporations. This enables us to have the first comprehensive map of where profits are booked globally. Using this database, we construct and analyse a simple macro statistic: the ratio of pre-tax corporate profits to wages. Thanks to the new data exploited in our paper, we can compute this ratio for foreign versus local firms separately in each country. Our investigation reveals spectacular findings. In non-haven countries, foreign firms are systematically less profitable than local firms. In tax havens, by contrast, they are systematically more profitable and hugely so (Figure 1). Figure 1 Pre-tax corporate profits (% of compensation of employees) While for local firms the ratio of taxable profits to wages is typically around 30%-40%, for foreign firms in tax havens the ratio is an order of magnitude higher as much as 800% in Ireland. This corresponds to a capital share of corporate value-added of 80%-90% (compared with around 25% in local firms). To understand these high profits, we provide decompositions into real effects (more productive capital used by foreign firms in tax havens) and shifting effects (above-normal returns to capital and receipts of interest). The results show that the high profits-to-wage ratios of tax havens are essentially explained by shifting effects. Overall, we find that close to 40% of multinational profits defined as profits made by multinational companies outside of the country where their parent is located are shifted to tax havens in 2015. Our work provides transparent, easy-to-compute metrics for policymakers to track how much profits tax havens attract, how much they gain in tax revenue, and how much other countries lose. These statistics, which we will update regularly online, could be used to monitor the impact of the policies implemented to reduce tax avoidance. We then trace the profits booked in tax havens to the countries where they have been made in the first place and would have been taxed in a world without profit shifting. This allows us to provide the first comprehensive view of the cost of profit shifting for governments worldwide. We find that governments of the EU and developing countries are the prime losers of this shifting. Tax avoidance by multinationals reduces EU corporate tax revenue by around 20%. When we look at where the firms that shift profits are headquartered, we find that US multinationals shift comparatively more profits than multinationals from other countries. This can be explained by the specific incentives contained in the US tax code before 2018 and by US Treasury policies implemented in the 1990s that facilitated this shifting (Wright and Zucman 2018). Non-Haven Countries Steal Revenue From Each Other While Letting Tax Havens Flourish Why, despite the sizable revenue costs involved, have high-tax countries in Europe, developing countries, and the rest of the world been unable to protect their tax base? We show theoretically that the fiscal authorities of high-tax countries do not have incentives to combat shifting to tax havens, but instead have incentives to focus their enforcement effort on relocating profits booked by multinationals in other high-tax countries. Chasing the profits booked in other high-tax places is feasible (the information exists), cheap (there is little push-back from multinationals, since it does not affect much their global tax bill), and fast (a framework exists to settle disputes between high-tax countries quickly). This type of enforcement crowds out enforcement on tax havens, which is hard (little data exist), costly (as multinationals spend large resources to defend their shifting to low-tax locales), and lengthy (due to a lack of cooperation by tax havens). Consistent with this theory, our analysis of data on tax disputes between tax authorities shows that the vast majority of high-tax countries enforcement efforts are directed at other high-tax countries. In effect, non-haven countries steal revenue from each other while letting tax havens flourish. This policy failure is reinforced by the incentives of tax havens. By lightly taxing the large amount of profits they attract, tax havens have been able to generate more tax revenue, as a fraction of their national income, than the US and non-haven European countries that have much higher rates. The low revenue-maximising rate of tax havens can explain the rise of the supply of tax avoidance schemes documented in the literature such as favourable tax rulings granted to specific multinationals and in turn the rise of profit shifting since the 1980s. Our findings have implications for economic statistics. They show that headline economic indicators including GDP, corporate profits, trade balances, and corporate labour and capital shares are significantly distorted. The flip side of the high profits recorded in tax havens is that output, net exports, and profits recorded in non-haven countries are too low. We provide a new database of corrected macro statistics for all OECD countries and the largest emerging economies. Adding back the profits shifted out of high-tax countries increases the corporate capital share significantly. By our estimates, the rise in the European corporate capital share since the early 1990s is twice as large as recorded in official national account data.This finding has important implications for current debates about the changing nature of technology and inequality (e.g. Piketty and Zucman 2014, Karabarbounis and Neiman 2014). Our work provides concrete proposals to improve economic statistics and the monitoring of global economic activity. References available at the original. (Natural News) Indoor air pollution continues to be a threat to the health of children around the world. A new study warned that the air in some U.K. schools is more toxic than outdoor air, an article in British Telecommunications stated. Researchers from the University of Cambridge (Cambridge) and the University College London (UCL) conducted the study on indoor air pollution. They were commissioned by the Mayor of London, who has recently launched a campaign to protect the citys children from toxic air. The study covered five primary schools and a nursery in London. It analyzed the PM2.5 and PM10 scale particulate matter inside the schools. It showed that the particulate matter (PM) in the classrooms exceed the limits set by the World Health Organization (WHO). In particular, the indoor PM10 pollution levels were higher than the outdoor levels whenever the classrooms were occupied. During both heated and unheated seasons, the average PM10 level in the classrooms exceeded 20 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3). Meanwhile, the mean PM2.5 level was more than 10 mg/m3. Based on these findings, the study said that the children in these classrooms are exposed to concentrations of particular matter that exceed the 2010 guidelines established by the WHO. Indeed, the PM levels in most of the rooms are higher than what is considered to be safe on a daily basis of exposure. (Related: Could air pollution increase your risk of developing diabetes?) Children exposed to air pollution are more likely to suffer asthma Children have narrower airways than adults. They also take in more air per pound of body weight than older people. These make children more vulnerable to air pollution like particulate matter. The Cambridge-UCL research team added that the U.K. has more cases of childhood asthma than any other European country. They drew attention to the results of earlier studies, where children from homes and/or schools near congested roads often suffered childhood asthma and wheezing. In their report, they showed that the characteristics, design, and upkeep of the buildings are just some of the factors in indoor air pollution in classrooms. A good proportion of the air pollutants comes from outdoor sources. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is one of those air pollutants. It is closely linked to asthma and asthmatic symptoms. The study said 84 percent of NO2 in the classroom comes from outdoor sources like road traffic. Mayor of London urges U.K. national government to improve air quality nationwide In a related development, the Mayor of London also ordered an audit of the air quality in 50 schools across London. He also called for recommendations to improve the air pollution. Funds have been released to improve the air in the schools with the most pollution. Audits and indoor air filters will also be given to 20 nurseries. Air pollution is a national health crisis that is putting the health of children at risk, announced the Mayor. As mayor, Ive moved fast in London to implement the most ambitious plans to tackle air pollution of any major city in the world. Some of the measures are eliminating the emissions from the bus and taxi fleets, introducing the first ultra-low emission zone in the word, and implementing the toxicity charge for the oldest polluting vehicles in the central London area. The Mayor urged the national government to assist local efforts at improving the polluted air in London in the long term. His request was echoed by representatives from U.K. environmental groups. Oliver Hayes, who represented Friend of the Earth, expressed concern about the report that toxic fumes emitted by diesel engines were making their way into classrooms. He said this undermines the duty of schools to protect children from harm. Keep track of air pollution at Pollution.news. Sources include: Home.BT.com London.gov.uk (Natural News) A Japanese study combined two different techniques in order to keep track of live changes inside the brain. This new real-time observation method enables a brand new field of research dubbed real-time metabolomics, an article in Alpha Galileo states. Disease research places great importance on staying atop of the latest growth, development, and changes of metabolic products found inside an organism. But real-time monitoring techniques suffer from problems involving insufficient sensitivity, poor resolution, and invasiveness that disrupt the very functions that they are trying to study. Researchers have been working on better tools that can perform real-time monitoring of substances in order to identify and measure their chemical components. A team from Nagoya University have recently reported the results of their new approach for keeping an electronic eye on metabolites in a living organism. Their method combined probe electrospray ionization (PESI) and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). The former technique sprayed ions from a sharp, solid needle while the latter provided very detailed images of the internal structure and properties of tiny substances such as the metabolites produced by a living organism. (Related: Take fish oil OR blueberry powder for better brain health.) New technique offers finer details of metabolites with minimal invasiveness Yumi Hayashi, a Nagoya University researcher and co-first author of the study, explained that PESI uses a thin probe needle that can take direct samples from the organ while minimizing its invasiveness to the sub-cellular level. The technique was previously used along single mass spectrometry (MS) to analyze a substance. However, PESI is unable to perform chromatographic separation, the ability to physically separate components of a substance into stationary and mobile phases. It therefore cannot choose what it gets to analyze, which hampers it from studying active metabolites. This is where MS/MS came in. Tandem mass spectrometry is a much more specific detection method compared to its single mass equivalent. The PESI/MS/MS combination can identify metabolites of interest with greater reliability. The Nagoya University research team combined a probe electrospray ionization unit with a tandem mass spectrometer instrument. The tip of the PESI units solid needle has a very thin diameter of 700 nanometers. It can draw samples and ionize targets with the least amount of disruption of sensitive processes in the brain. PESI/MS/MS analyzer can identify and observe active metabolites in the brain An anesthetized mouse served as the initial test subject of the new PESI/MS/MS analyzer. The researchers reported identifying eight brain metabolites associated with central energy metabolism. The in vivo real-time monitoring process took all of 20 seconds. Three hours later, the researchers examined the surface of the brain of the mouse for any side effects of their probing. They found no signs of edema or traumatic injury that could be linked to their earlier probing. Next, the researchers tested the analyzers ability to monitor the cannabinoid type-1 receptor agonist (CB1R-agonist) in the brain of mice. The substance is able to decrease appetite and control the amount of body weight gained from eating. Again they reported that the PESI/MS/MS analyzer succeeded in monitoring the CB1R-agonist and its effects on energy metabolism, confirming what is already known. Hayashis corresponding author and colleague Kei Zatsu said the new system could be used to keep track of brain diseases and disorders. Use of the PESI/MS/MS analyzer was also not restricted to the brain; it could potentially be applied to tissues of the liver, kidney, and other organs. Using this system, we believe a new research field called real-time metabolomics can be explored and expanded, said Zatsu. If you want more articles about the newest breakthroughs in research techniques, visit Research.news. Sources include: AlphaGalileo.org Pubs.ACS.org (Natural News) European researchers have designed autonomous robots that will be accepted by real animals. According to a Your Is article, these robot bees and fish can investigate, understand, and even influence the animals. The robot bees will expand current understanding of pollinators, which occupy immensely important roles in the ecosystem. Bees and other pollinators support biodiversity by promoting the reproduction of various plants that serve as nourishment for the rest of the food pyramid. The United Nations paid tribute to their importance by designating May 20, 2018, as World Bee Day. Researchers have also studied bees to get a better handle on environmental pollution. The insects are sensitive to changes in their surroundings, making them very vulnerable to the direct and indirect effects of herbicides and pesticides. (Related: Walmart just filed six patents for robot bees and it sounds like an episode straight out of Black Mirror.) Austrian researchers create robot bees that are accepted by real bees In order to gain a better understanding of bee behavior, a research team from the University of Graz have created autonomous robot bees. The new robots are capable of operating on their own and are deployed as mini-swarms of their own. They are also able to interact with real bees. Their appearance and behavior are so realistic that real bees will not drive them away. Instead, they are accepted into the hive as members of the colony. Sensors aboard the robots will be able to provide a bees eye view of the interior of the hive. They will be able to observe the insects normal behaviors and interactions. The robots can also be used to influence the behavior of the hive. For example, they could communicate the location of a more reliable food supply say, one that has been set up by humans to the real bees. The data gleaned from the robot bees will be used to devise new methods of protecting bees from harm. In turn, preserving local populations of these productive and invaluable insects will help protect the environment. The Austrian study is part of the Animal and Robot Societies Self Organize and Integrate by Social Interaction (ASSISIbf) project. It is funded by the European Commission through the latters Future and Emerging Technologies research program. Protecting important species is one of the goals of ASSISIbf. The findings from its many studies are also employed in agriculture, biomedicine, and the management of domestic animal stocks. Swiss counterparts develop robotic zebrafish ASSISIbf is working on robots that can seamlessly integrate into the communities of social animals. In addition to the robot bees in Austria, the project is also sponsoring a second robot program in Switzerland. In the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), a robotics research team has created a robotic zebrafish. Like its bee equivalent, the robot fish is indistinguishable from living fish and is happily welcomed by actual zebrafish into their ranks. Also called danios, zebrafish are small, colorful, and very popular aquarium fish. They like to form shoals a group formed for social reasons and schools a group that swims in the same direction in a coordinated manner. The robot zebrafish is not only capable of influencing the behavior of its living shoal-mates and schoolmates. It can also study how its companions communicate and move as one. Over time, it adapts its movements to match those of the real fish, making it indistinguishable from living zebrafish. ASSISSIbf hopes its robot bees and zebrafish will provide new, deeper ways of interaction between humans and animals. You can read more about the ways animals and their robotic doppelgangers interact at Ecology.news. Sources include: YourIs.com WForum.org (Natural News) Scientists believe that stem cells will be able to cure diseases like diabetes in the future, but have warned against using the cells for beauty therapies. Stem cells can be harmful when injected into the skin for mere cosmetic reasons because they can convert themselves into rogue or even cancerous cells. Scientists who work in accredited U.K. medical research institutions follow guidelines implemented by the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) to guarantee that their experiments are approved as safe and ethical, and that their progress and results are tracked. However, investigations have revealed that various private clinics in London inject human stem cells as beauty treatments that are scientifically unproven and could possibly cause severe side effects. (Related: Cosmetic stem-cell treatment causes woman to grow bone fragments in her eyes.) For example, the London FAMI Clinic in Chelsea offers a new two-hour wonder treatment that uses stem cells. The procedure, described as a nonsurgical eyelid lift, harvests the patients stem cells from fat tissue in their thighs or abdomen, which are then injected into the muscle around their eyes. One plastic surgeon uses stem cells for a painless facelift, while yet another facial cosmetic surgeon uses stem cells from fat around patients navels in order to attain healthy revitalised and rejuvenated tissues. Stem cells were first discovered 30 years ago, and were believed to have huge potential in healthcare. However, the potential dangers these cells had came out quickly as well. One research suggests that stem cells may cause more harm than good. Jonathan Leor, a professor at Tel Aviv University, warned in the journal Circulation that stem cells used to treat heart failure are ineffective, can inflame other cells, and worsen damage to the already diseased heart muscle. Natural anti-aging treatments Instead of risking your life by undergoing stem cell therapies, try these five natural anti-aging techniques from different parts of the world. Tea A lot of teas are rich in anti-aging antioxidants. White and green tea, for example, are packed with an antioxidant called EGCG, which helps prevent wrinkles and helps increase cell turnover. A lot of teas are rich in anti-aging antioxidants. White and green tea, for example, are packed with an antioxidant called EGCG, which helps prevent wrinkles and helps increase cell turnover. Ginger Women in India mix shredded ginger and honey in hot water. This tea is packed with anti-aging benefits. Honey contains natural anti-bacterial properties and helps lessen inflammation, while ginger is packed with an antioxidant called gingerol, which helps prevent collagen breakdown. Women in India mix shredded ginger and honey in hot water. This tea is packed with anti-aging benefits. Honey contains natural anti-bacterial properties and helps lessen inflammation, while ginger is packed with an antioxidant called gingerol, which helps prevent collagen breakdown. Sugar and lemon Mexicans combine sugar and lemon juice together to make a scrub for the hands. The sugar crystals serve as an exfoliant to help remove dead skin, while lemon juice has alpha-hydroxy acid, which helps remove layers of dead skin cells. Mexicans combine sugar and lemon juice together to make a scrub for the hands. The sugar crystals serve as an exfoliant to help remove dead skin, while lemon juice has alpha-hydroxy acid, which helps remove layers of dead skin cells. Noni fruit The juice of the noni fruit moisturizes the skin and provides anti-aging benefits. Studies suggest that it softens the appearance of crows feet, fine lines, and wrinkles. The juice of the noni fruit moisturizes the skin and provides anti-aging benefits. Studies suggest that it softens the appearance of crows feet, fine lines, and wrinkles. Grape seed extract In France, people use grape seed extract supplements to enhance the levels of antioxidants in the blood, and protect the collagen and elastin in the skin, which gives the skin elasticity and firmness. If youd like to read more news stories and studies on cosmetics, go to Cosmetics.news. Sources include: DailyMail.co.uk HuffingtonPost.com (Natural News) By now, everyone has heard plenty about the side effects from prescription medications advertised on television, but what about the side effects from combining processed, chemical-laden foods and neurotoxic vaccines with those medications? The science of allopathic medicine will never be settled because its a farce to begin with this requires careful consideration. The term FDA approved means the manufacturers of the chemical concoctions paid millions of dollars for an FDA stamp of approval after testing their own products and claiming theyre safe and effective. Are they really? Couldnt drug dealers simply say the same thing? The truth is most medical treatments in America make you sicker than you were before you took them, especially because theyre mixing with an array of chemicals youre already consuming daily. What medical doctor has ever asked their patient at consultation whether theyre consuming genetically modified organisms (GMOs)? Why not? That refers to produce that contains chemical insecticides and chemical herbicides that can interact dangerously with chemical medications. What medical doctor analyzes the adverse affects of mixing mercury and formaldehyde with blood thinners or anxiety medications? Why not? Flu shots are often loaded with those toxic ingredients, and heavy metal toxins can certainly interfere with neurons in the brain and the central nervous system. Even the toxins in tap water can affect the central nervous system, so what happens when you wash down those anxiety medications with tap water, consume an artificial sweetener like aspartame, eat some food containing MSG, and then get a flu shot? We already know the MMR vaccine causes horrific adverse events for boys under age three, as admitted by the lead CDC scientist, after the biggest medical fraud scandal and cover up of the century took place at the Center for Disease Control. We already know certain blood thinners can cause fatal internal bleeding, like Pradaxa, the drug that caused 260 people to fatally bleed out from an irreversible side effect for which there is no reversal agent available. People assume scientific integrity is assured, with safeguards in place, but they have no idea about all the fraudulent research taking place in America Scientific misconduct is the norm in this country. The opioid epidemic is pushed and spread by an elite crime network of highly paid white collar drug manufacturers and drug dealers. Its a widespread problem, and its not just the scientists that are participating, but the CDC, the FDA, oncologists and medical doctors too. Its time to wake up to the fraud all around us. Science-based medicine means chemicals are mixed up in a laboratory and dished out to naive patients who consume many other dangerous chemicals that interact with those untested, experimental drugs. Science-based medicine is just an expression that has zero substance now. There are too many conflicts of interest in the research and testing fields. Questionable science is leading to the deaths of millions of patients around the globe. Beta-blockers are drugs used to treat high blood pressure, but they block neurotransmitters and dilate blood vessels. The side effects include hundreds of thousands of deaths. Since when is death a side effect of medicine? Thats an end result and that medicine should be recalled immediately. Did your medical doctor inform you about all the injuries patients are incurring from your medication? Whos really reading about retracted papers in medical journals besides the crooked doctors who keep on pushing beta-blocker pills for lucrative bonuses and kickbacks? Pharmaceutical companies dont pull medicines from the shelf just because people are dying from them, they wait until the lawsuit payouts outweigh the profits. For example, the entire vaccine industry is equipped with their own secretive court and hush money that comes from a multi-billion-dollar slush fund. That slush fund is just a tiny fraction of the profits made from marketing bunk vaccines, like flu shots. There are no more checks and balances in the medical industry. Its as corrupt and chemical-laden as the cosmetics and pet food industries. Now, more people are dying from chemotherapy than from cancer itself. How is that medicine allowed to be legal? Check the Pharma Death Clock. Over 18,000,000 terminated since the year 2000. And you thought chemotherapy was science-based medicine? Certain flu shots contain over 25,000 times more mercury than is allowed in drinking water, and its being injected directly into pregnant mothers and 6-month-young babies. Talk about getting sicker from medicine. The flu shot is the most dangerous vaccine of them all, but the media keeps completely silent about the science all while propagating hysteria. Why else is the flu shot the only free medicine around? Just check your local pharmacy, elementary schools, and most work places. Then there are antibiotics that kill all the bacteria in your gut, including the good kind. That basically destroys your immunity. If what you have is really a viral infection, then youre in for a rude awakening. Did you know that antihistamines shrink your mucus membranes, preventing your body from pushing out the very toxins that cause infection in the first place. Ever wonder why you get a sinus or bronchial infection about a week after you start taking antihistamines? Fact: 80 percent of people who commit suicide are reported to be on psychiatric drugs (SSRIs) at the time. So is that a side effect or end effect? Take heed of the top 10 medical treatments that make you SICKER than before you took them #1. Flu shot #2. Chemotherapy #3. Blood Thinners #4. Antibiotics #5. Antihistamines #6. Steroids and Cortisone Shots #7. Beta-Blockers (High Blood Pressure Medications) #8. High Cholesterol Medications #9. Anti-Anxiety Medications #10. Anti-Depression Medications Learn how to detoxify your body from medications and vaccinations while undoing the harm theyve done to you. Watch world renowned Dr. Joel Bergman and get ready to have your mind blown about the truth of the dangers of chemical medicine. Sources for this article include: TruthWiki.org NaturalNews.com PharmaDeathClock.com TopClassActions.com TruthWiki.org NaturalNews.com CDC.news Health.Harvard.Edu NaturalNews.com FluorideAlert.org (Natural News) If youve ever had the feeling that your doctor isnt really listening to you, it could be because the conversation between patients and doctors tends to be one-way and not in the patients favor. A team of researchers from the University of Florida, Gainesville, recently carried out a study that investigated the clinical encounters between physicians and patients. They assessed consultations between 112 patients and their doctors at appointments that took place between 2008 and 2015. The visits were videotaped in different clinics throughout the country. The researchers were looking out for whether doctors gave patients a chance to set the agenda for the visit for example, by asking questions like, What can I do for you? or Tell me what brings you in today. They also noted that when patients were interrupted while speaking. Doctors let just a little over a third (36 percent) of patients set the agenda. Unfortunately, two thirds of these patients were interrupted pretty quickly just 11 seconds after they started speaking, on average. Those who werent interrupted, however, finished speaking after around six seconds, so its reasonable to expect that they may have been interrupted as well had they continued speaking for much longer. This lack of patience on the part of doctors is generally unwelcome by patients, who often wait upwards of an hour for face time with their physician, and it is just one of many reasons the people are growing increasingly fed up with health care in this country. Whatever happened to patient-centered care? Study co-author Naykky Sigh Ospina said that these results show just how far we are from attaining patient-centered care. She said that while respectful interruptions can help doctors gain clarity on a persons problems and therefore help patients, interrupting people at such an early stage in the appointment does not seem likely to be beneficial. The researchers noted that past studies have shown that when patients are allowed to describe their concerns fully, they need a mean of 92 seconds. This is significantly greater than the amount of time most physicians are willing to let their patients speak, but is it really so long that patients deserve to be cut off? As if that werent bad enough, specialists tend to allow even less time for patients to describe the reason for their visit. Just 20 percent of specialists give patients a chance to describe their problem at the beginning of their consultation. Although specialists are often informed in advance of a persons reason for visiting through their referral or questions from a nurse ahead of the consultation, the researchers stress that it remains important for physicians to let people discuss their concerns right away. Many doctors try to work their way through their patient list as quickly as possible The researchers believe that many doctors are simply overworked and burned out working as many as 120 hours per week and some are dealing with time constraints. Theres also the fact many doctors simply dont receive enough training on properly communicating with their patients. This ties into a 2013 New York Times report that internists spend just eight minutes with each patient on average. Moreover, they were found to be relying on electronic information more than ever to minimize patient interaction. Doctors are using a host of strategies to get through their list of patients more quickly, including skipping introductions, avoiding sitting down as it can encourage longer conversations, and avoiding touching the patient because it can be too time-consuming. Is it any surprise that more people are trying to educate themselves on health matters and take responsibility for their own well-being? Sources for this article include: StudyFinds.org Link.Springer.com NaturalNews.com What to Know In the episode, Spencer exposes his bottom after being told it helps scare away Muslim terrorists Spencer apologized for the "ridiculously ugly episode" The Islamic Council on American-Islamic Relations called for Spencer's resignation A Georgia lawmaker is the latest public figure caught with his pants down on provocateur Sacha Baron Cohen's new cable TV series, this time literally, as the state legislator exposes his bottom, speaks with a mock Asian accent and yells a racial slur all in the name of fighting terrorism. In Sunday night's broadcast of Cohen's Showtime series "Who Is America?" Cohen poses as an Israeli military expert who persuades Republican Rep. Jason Spencer to take part in several outlandish exercises. The lawmaker is told they're making a counterterrorism video. Spencer repeatedly shouts the N-word after Cohen tells him the tactic is useful for drawing bystanders' attention to an unfolding attack. He also drops his pants, then his underwear, before backing his exposed rear end toward Cohen while shouting "USA!" and "America!" Cohen told Spencer the move would incite fear in homophobic jihadists. The segment also shows Spencer speaking with a mock Asian accent while pretending to use a selfie-stick to surreptitiously insert a camera phone under a Muslim woman's burqa. Spencer's on-camera conduct horrified fellow Republicans in Georgia. State House Speaker David Ralston said Spencer "disgraced himself and should resign immediately," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. GOP Gov. Nathan Deal said in a tweet: "There is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever, and I am saddened and disgusted by it." Regardless, there won't be any reckoning for Spencer at the ballot box this year. A Republican challenger already defeated the lawmaker in Georgia's May 22 primary. The Georgia legislator has been accused in the past of making offensive statements and proposals. In 2016, Spencer sought to update a 1951 state law that outlawed Ku Klux Klan members from wearing hoods at public rallies. Civil rights and Muslim advocacy groups called Spencer's bill a veiled attempt to ban Muslim women from wearing religious headgear that covers their faces in public. He quickly dropped the proposal. Spencer isn't the first public figure to be fooled by Cohen in his Showtime series. Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin , Democratic Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Arizona sheriff and U.S. Senate candidate Joe Arpaio have also been duped. In a statement Monday, Spencer apologized for the "ridiculously ugly episode," but he refused to step down from office. He also said he has received death threats in the past and thought the techniques in the Showtime segment would prevent "what I believed was an inevitable attack." The Atlanta newspaper reported Spencer had earlier threatened legal action to prevent the network from airing footage of him. The Islamic Council on American-Islamic Relations also called for Spencer's resignation. "The ignorance and malice behind Islamophobia has led Mr. Spencer to not only pursue bad policy, but engage in humiliating and hateful behavior unbecoming of anyone especially a state legislator," said Edward Ahmed Mitchell, director of the group's Georgia chapter. Spencer faced calls for his resignation last year after he warned a black former state legislator that she won't be "met with torches but something a lot more definitive" if she continued to call for the removal of Confederate statues in southern Georgia. United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense James Mattis will take to the Stanford University campus early this week to meet with their Australian counterparts. A number of people are expected to protest the visit by the Trump administration officials, including members of Indivisible South Bay, a progressive grassroots citizens group. Protesters want Pompeo and Mattis to use their authority to influence President Donald Trump in a positive way, especially after the demonstrators say Trump embarrassed the United States in Finland last week when he suggested that Russia did not meddle in the 2016 U.S. election in spite of U.S. intelligence reports to the contrary. Trump later attempted to walk back his comments, saying he agreed with the U.S. intelligence assessment that Russia did try to interfere in the elections. "Our message is that the Trump administration is taking a sledgehammer to our democracy," Lisa Ferino with Indivisible South Bay said. "We have to do something about it. As citizens, we have to speak out." Stanford University has set up barricades around the Lou Henry Hoover Building where the meetings will take place. A Florida sheriff says that he will not arrest a man who fatally shot another man during an argument over a parking space in Clearwater. WLFA reports Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri made the announcement Friday about 47-year-old Michael Drejka. Drejka shot and killed 28-year-old Markeis McGlockton a day earlier in a convenience store parking lot. Authorities say that Drejka confronted McGlockton's girlfriend about parking in a handicapped space without a permit. Gualtieri said that McGlockton slammed Drejka to the ground, who then pulled out his gun and shot McGlockton in the chest. Gualtieri said the incident falls under the state's "stand your ground" law. He said his office will forward the case to prosecutors for a final decision. Florida's "stand your ground" law gained national prominence in 2012 after neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman fatally shot black teenager Trayvon Martin. The law says people have no obligation to retreat if threatened and can use deadly force if they believe it necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm. However, it does not allow an altercation's instigator to use deadly force. Authorities say one person is dead and another injured following a shooting at a Mormon church on Sunday in Nevada. Fallon Police Chief Kevin Gehman says 48-year-old John Kelley O'Connor walked into the church, opened fire then walked home. TV station KOLO reports that O'Connor surrendered after authorities called his home and asked. Gehman said O'Connor appears to have targeted one person and not the church, which had as many as 50 people at the time. No motive was immediately known. Authorities did not disclose the victims' names pending next-of-kin notification. Fallon is about 60 miles (96 kilometers) east of Reno. What to Know Massachusetts State Sen. Barbara L'Italien slammed President Trump during an appearance on Fox News on Monday Fox & Friends First thought they had booked an Arizona Democrat who has voiced support for ICE The co-hosts of the show criticized L'Italien afterward, calling it a "weak move" and a "publicity stunt" An apparent mix-up on Fox News gave a Democratic congressional candidate from Massachusetts a forum to criticize President Donald Trump's immigration policies while the show's confused hosts looked on. The network planned to speak live Monday morning with Ann Kirkpatrick, an Arizona Democrat who has voiced support for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency. Instead, Massachusetts State Sen. Barbara L'Italien appeared on the screen. "Good morning, Im actually here to speak directly to Donald Trump," L'Italien said. "I feel that whats happening at the border is wrong. I'm a mother of four, and I believe that separating kids from their parents is illegal and inhumane." She then identified herself as state lawmaker who represents "a large immigrant community." "We have to stop abducting children and ripping them from their parents' arms, stop putting kids in cages, and stop making 3-year-olds defend themselves in court," L'Italien said. The hosts of "Fox and Friends First," still confused about who they were speaking to, inturrupt L'Italien. "Kids have been reunited with their families," co-host Jillian Mele falsely claimed. More than 2,000 children separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border have yet to be reunited with their families, administration officials disclosed in court Thursday. L'Italien identified herself again, at which point the feed was cut off once the hosts realized she wasn't the guest they expected. "That didn't go as planned," "Fox and Friends" co-host Rob Schmitt said afterward. "That's what happens sometimes. Time for a break?" Mele added. L'Italien, who is running for Congress in Massachusetts' 3rd District, took to Twitter after her appearance on the show to explain herself. She also posted a video of the full statement she said she would have made if she hadn't been silenced. Just did an appearance on @FoxNews to talk to Donald Trump about his vile, racist policies at the border. They didn't let me finish - I have a lot more to say. Stay tuned. #ma3 #mapoli Barbara L'Italien (@teambarbara) July 23, 2018 Schmitt also took to Twitter to accuse L'Italien of hijacking the show for a "publicity stunt." Mele tweeted as well, calling it "kind of a weak move to do this on live TV." https://twitter.com/SchmittNYC/status/1021336292532146176 Desiree Dunne, executive producer of Fox & Friends First, said the show reached out to Kirkpatrick through Joe Katz, a press contact they had on file. Katz once served as a spokesman for Kirkpatrick when she was in Congress. "Katz followed with an email confirming the segment, which also included background information and a campaign logo for Ann Kirkpatrick," said Dunne. "Despite speaking to producers prior to the interview, L'Italien did not identify herself as anything other than Kirkpatrick until she was live on air, at which point we ended the interview," she added. Katz responded that it was the network that should be blamed for the error. "Fox News reached out to our staff believing they were reaching the Kirkpatrick office due to their own failure of due diligence," he said. "Over the process of getting the interview scheduled, they repeatedly showed very little grasp on the facts, down to whether or not Ann Kirkpatrick was still in Congress." Katz added that L'Italien felt obligated to take advantage of the opportunity provided because, "Fox News is where you go when you want to talk to Donald Trump." L'Italien is among nearly a dozen Democrats running for their party's nomination in the Sept. 4 primary in the 3rd Congressional District. Incumbent Democrat Niki Tsongas is retiring. Kirkpatrick served four terms in the U.S. before unsuccessfully challenging Republican U.S. Sen. John McCain in 2016. She is among Democrats vying for the seat being vacated by Republican Rep. Martha McSally. On Twitter Monday, Kirkpatrick accused Fox of misrepresenting her position on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency during the introduction to the segment on which she was supposed to appear. "I am disgusted by the Trump policies aimed at immigrant families," she tweeted. A 2-alarm fire at an oil company in Rockland, Massachusetts, early Monday morning that injured a firefighter is being blamed on an electrical issue. The blaze was reported at approximately 3 a.m. at the Kelliher Brothers Oil Co. and quickly reached 2-alarms because the flames were so close to the site's tanks. "We've been working with this company over the last year about getting the tanks removed and they haven't been in use for quite some time," Rockland Fire Department Chief Schott Duffey said. "Theres very little product in them if any at all." Damage to the building was estimated at $100,000. State Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey later said in a statement that an overloaded power strip was the cause of the fire. "It's important not to overload extension cords and power strips. Use only small appliances that don't draw a lot of current. Extension cords and power strips are designed for temporary use only and should not replace regular outlets. If you are using them permanently, it is time to call an electrician," Ostroskey said. No one was inside the building at the time but one firefighter was taken to an area hospital for a minor injury and later released. "He's doing good at this time. We can say he has non-life threatening injuries," said Duffey. The trial of a Maine high school teacher who is accused of having a sexual relationship with a student started Monday after she was indicted on more than a dozen sex-related counts. Opening arguments began Monday in York County Superior Court in the trial of Jill Lamontagne, a former teacher at Kennebunk High School. The 30-year-old, who surrendered to police in October 2017, pleaded not guilty after being indicted by a grand jury on six counts of gross sexual assault, two counts of unlawful sexual contact and six counts of sexual abuse of a minor. Accusations came to light after a student attempted suicide and told a hospital nurse about the alleged relationship. A judge ordered the teacher to not have contact with the student. The student told adults about the alleged affair after he attempted suicide in June 2017. Prosecutors plan to present text messages to support the student's account of the alleged affair. In opening statements Monday, prosecutor Justina McGettigan told jurors the alleged victim was in danger of not graduating. She said Lamontagne took him under her wing to help him improve his academics. "She requested his SnapChat," said McGettigan. "They are communicating in person, on the phone, texting, on SnapChat. The talk started to turn sexual. And eventually, the defendant performed oral sex on [him]." Scott Gardner, defense attorney for Lamontagne, said the accusations do not pass the straight-face test. "The state's theory of the case... is that this woman would risk the destruction of her career and the humiliation of her and her family because she had an uncontrollable desire to give a 17-year-old [oral sex] in her classroom at 7:30in the morning?" he said in his opening statement Monday. A number of Lamontagne's former coworkers, along with her sister, staged a demonstration outside of the courthouse Monday morning. Several held signs with messages of support on them. "This KHS Teacher Stands with Jill" read one sign. Another said, "Jill is the victim." "She's falsely accused," said KHS teacher Melissa Luetje. "We saw this all happen from the beginning. It started with a rumor, and ended with these charges." Luetje said the allegations have rocked the small school district. "We've all had to re-evaluate how we do our jobs," she said. "Teaching is about relationships with students...and now we see these relationships make us vulnerable." "If you ever got to spend more than second of your time with [Lamontagne], there's no doubt in your mind that this cannot be true," said Lamontagne's sister, Jessica Mitchell. The trial is expected to last three days. The alleged victim plans to testify. Gardner said the student has "lawyered up" so he can sue Lamontagne and the school district for damages. Doctors say a New Hampshire teenager is lucky to be alive after having a seizure while swimming over the weekend. Ethan Gerry and Matthew Brooks were on Little Island Pond in Pelham enjoying their 8th-grade graduation party on Saturday afternoon when things took a terrifying turn for Brooks. "His eyes went to the top of his head and I noticed that he was shaking rapidly," recalled Gerry. In a moment when most people might panic, the 14-year-old Timberlane student stayed calm. Gerry screamed to the adults on shore and then jumped into the water after his friend who had fallen off their float. "I was just trying to hold on, I was just thinking, 'Ive got to help Matt,'" Gerry recalled. Matt Brooks said he doesn't remember anything. "Basically nothing," he said. That's because he was unconscious. "He wasn't moving, his eyes were closed and his lips were purple," Gerry said. He added that Brooks was dead weight as he pulled him from the bottom of the pond up to the surface. "It was tough," Gerry said. "I'll admit I was low on air, I was coughing up water." At that point, the adults had called 911 and jumped in to help. By the time paramedics arrived, Matt was coming to. "It was a big relief," Gerry said. Brook's mom, Tiffany Paolino, cant believe Ethan's composure and especially his courage when his friend needed him most. "He put his friend first above his own life, took that risk to make sure his friend was going to be ok," said Paolino. "Ethan definitely is our hero." After several tests in the hospital, doctors say Matt's seizure was likely a freak accident. "Very thankful, just glad he was there," Brooks said. It was a moment that bonded two boys as best friends for life. "I thanked him, I thanked him a lot throughout the last couple days," Brooks said. Gerry's mom spoke with NBC10 Boston over the phone. She said she couldn't be more proud of her son. The two teenagers are eager to start high school together in the fall. What to Know A gunman shot 15 people in the Greektown neighborhood of Toronto Sunday night. The gunman and two victims are dead. "I'm looking at absolutely every possible motive for this," said Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders A man whose family said he suffered from psychosis and depression fired a handgun into restaurants and cafes in a lively Toronto neighborhood, killing a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman and wounding 13 others in an attack that has shaken the confidence of many in the normally safe city. Authorities on Monday evening identified the suspect as Faisal Hussain, 29, of Toronto, who died in an exchange of gunfire with police. It was not immediately clear whether he killed himself or was killed by police. The mass shooting in Toronto's Greektown district Sunday night came just three months after a van struck and killed 10 people in an apparent attack directed at women. A statement from the family of Hussain said their son had severe mental health challenges that the struggled with psychosis and depression. They said medications did not help him and the interventions of professionals were unsuccessful. "While we did our best to seek help for him throughout his life of struggle and pain, we could never imagine that this would be his devastating and destructive end," the Hussain family said. "Our hearts are in pieces for the victims and for our city as we all come to grips with this terrible tragedy. We will mourn those who were lost for the rest of our lives." Police Chief Mark Saunders earlier said he would not speculate on a motive but did not rule out terrorism. "It's almost inconceivable that these things can happen," said Mayor John Tory. "We were so used to living in a city where these things didn't happen and as we saw them going on in the world around us (we) thought they couldn't happen here." "This is an attack against innocent families and our entire city." Toronto police identified the 10-year-old girl killed in Sunday's mass shooting as Julianna Kozis. They say she is from Markham, Ontario, and her family is requesting privacy during their time of grief. The slain 18-year-old was identified as Reese Fallon, a recent high school graduate who volunteered for Canada's Liberal party and was due to attend McMaster University in the fall. Her family said in a statement they were devastated. "She was ... smart, passionate and full of energy. It is a huge loss," said Canadian Member of Parliament Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, who knew Fallon. Flags at Toronto City Hall as well as at Fallon's former high school, Malvern CI, were lowered to half-staff. "An engaging student, Reese Fallon graduated from Malvern CI just last month and was highly regarded by staff and loved by her friends," the school board said in a statement, adding that support was being offered to students. The 13 wounded ranged in age from 10 to 59, and suffered injuries ranging from serious to minor, Saunders said. He did not name the victims, who included eight women and girls, and seven men. Dr. Najma Ahmed of St. Michael's Hospital said five patients had been admitted in serious or critical condition and that three of the five underwent immediate lifesaving operations. A video taken by a witness showed a man dressed all in black walking quickly down a sidewalk and firing three shots into at least one shop or restaurant in Toronto's Greektown, a residential area crowded with Greek restaurants and cafes. Witnesses heard many shots and described the suspect walking past restaurants and cafes and patios on both sides of the street and firing into them. At the corner of Danforth and Logan, where some of the shots were fired, about 50 people milled about on a small square Monday evening, talking in several languages. They expressed shock at a shooting in such a neighborhood, which is graced with parks, pretty two-story brick homes and street cafes. Some hugged, others wept. Others were somber, wondering both why someone would want to hurt people in their neighborhood and how he obtained a gun in a country with far stricter gun laws than in the neighboring U.S. Bouquets of flowers lay near a plaque commemorating the city, while a few steps away people signed a makeshift memorial made of plywood. "we are Danforth strong," it says, referring to the neighborhood's main street, The Danforth. "I'm out of my mind just thinking about it," said 66-year-old Augustino Speciale, who paused to smell a bouquet of white lilies attached to a lamppost. "It's Toronto." Ontario's police watchdog said there was an exchange of gunfire between the assailant and two officers on a side street before the gunman was found dead near Danforth Avenue where the shootings occurred. Tanya Wilson was closing her tattoo shop on the street when she heard gunshots and a mother and her son ran into her store with gunshot wounds to their legs "They said they were walking and a man told them to get the hell out his way and he just shot them," Wilson said. Wilson said she tied and elevated their wounds and tried to keep them calm while they waited for paramedics. She locked the door and shut off the lights, not knowing what was happening outside. Jody Steinhauer was celebrating her birthday with family at Christina's restaurant on Danforth Avenue when they heard 10 to 15 shots. They ran to the back to the restaurant and hid under a table. "We heard a woman yell, 'Help!' My partner went outside the restaurant and the woman was right there. She had been shot," she said. Her boyfriend and a doctor who was in the restaurant attended to the woman who was shot in the thigh. "She was screaming and yelling and in shock. Nobody was with her. That was the scary part," Steinhauer said. Though mass shootings are rare in Canada's largest city, Toronto police had deployed dozens of additional officers over the weekend to deal with a recent rise in gun violence in the city, which has seen 23 gun homicides so far this year, compared to 16 fatal shootings in the first half of 2017. Toronto Councilor Paula Fletcher said the attack was "not gang related" and that the gunman shot "indiscriminately" into restaurants and into a park. "I know we always say, 'That can't happen here,' when we see those gunmen in the States doing the same thing and it has happened here now," Fletcher said. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said the confidence that Toronto is a safe city had been shaken. Toronto has long prided itself as being one of the safest big cities in the world. In April, the driver of a van plowed into pedestrians on a Toronto sidewalk, killing 10 people and injuring 14. Authorities have not disclosed a motive but said the arrested driver, Alek Minassian, posted a message on social media referencing a misogynistic online community before the attack. Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed to this report. President Donald Trump will be visiting an Illinois steel mill that is boosting production as he faces opposition to his imposition of tariffs in international trade disputes. The White House says Trump will talk about trade during an event Thursday afternoon at the U.S. Steel Corp. plant in Granite City, Illinois, near St. Louis for his first trip to Illinois since becoming president. The company started in March restarting two blast furnaces at the Granite City Works that were shut down in 2015, costing 2,000 jobs. U.S. Steel has announced the recalls about 800 workers. The U.S. has imposed tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, including from Europe. China, the European Union, Canada and Mexico have responded with taxes on some U.S. goods. A suicide bomber carried out an attack near the Kabul airport Sunday, killing 14 people and narrowly missing Afghanistan's vice president, who was returning home after living in Turkey for over a year, security officials said. The blast occurred near Kabul International Airport shortly after the convoy of the controversial vice president had just left the airport, Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, a former Uzbek warlord, and his entourage were unharmed, said Danish. Danish said that 14 people, including both civilians and military forces, were killed in the attack and 50 others wounded. The Islamic States group's local affiliate claimed responsibility for the attack on its Amaaq News Agency website, claiming it had killed and wounded over 115 people. In a statement from the presidential palace, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the attack. Dostum had been undergoing medical treatment in Turkey and is now well and ready to resume work, said presidential spokesman Haroon Chakhansuri. Dostum left Afghanistan in 2017 after the attorney general's office launched an investigation into allegations that his followers had tortured and sexually abused a former ally turned political rival. He has since reportedly been barred by the government from returning to Afghanistan. It was not immediately clear whether Dostum will now face any charges. "The judiciary in Afghanistan is an independent body and will carry out its duties and responsibilities as it deems appropriate," said an official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the issue. Dostum, accused of war crimes committed after the fall of the Taliban government in 2001, has also been criticized by the United States for human rights abuses. What to Know The FBI seized millions of files found on numerous computer storage devices and cellular phones from Trump's ex-lawyer in April. Thousands of those files are still under review, with Cohen and Trump lawyers claiming attorney-client privilege. A dozen audio recordings seized by the FBI from President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, were forwarded to federal prosecutors after lawyers dropped challenges on attorney-client privilege grounds, a former judge revealed Monday. The recordings were among millions of files taken from Cohen in April as part of a criminal probe of his business practices. Barbara Jones, a court-appointed lawyer and former Manhattan federal judge helping to decide which of the seized files are protected by privilege, said in a court filing that prosecutors received the recordings on Friday after attorneys for Trump, Cohen and the Trump Organization dropped privilege claims. The same day, Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani said Cohen had recorded a conversation in which the president had discussed a potential payment to squash the story of a former Playboy model who said she had an affair with Trump. Giuliani said the brief recording shows Trump did nothing wrong. "The transaction that Michael is talking about on the tape never took place, but what's important is: If it did take place, the president said it has to be done correctly and it has to be done by check" to keep a proper record of it, Giuliani said. In a weekend tweet, Trump called Cohen's practice of recording conversations "totally unheard of & perhaps illegal." Attorney Lanny Davis, speaking on Cohen's behalf, has said what is on the tape will not harm Cohen. Jones has been providing periodic updates on the privilege review of over four million items, mostly electronic, that were found on numerous computer storage devices and cellular phones seized from Cohen. Late Thursday, Jones notified U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood, who appointed her, that Cohen, Trump or the Trump Organization had designated 4,085 items seized from Cohen as privileged among the most recent items she reviewed. She wrote that she agreed that 2,633 were privileged, in full or part, but that 1,452 items were not. She said lawyers for Cohen still disagreed about 22 of those items but said they would not pursue their objections. With that, Jones released them all to prosecutors. Jones wrote in Monday's filing that the parties withdrew their designations of privilege as to a dozen audio recordings that were being reviewed by Jones. She said she then released them to prosecutors. Jones said she was continuing to review other items. Cohen has not been charged with a crime. When a devastating tornado rolled through Hamden in May, Kimberly Repollet expected the worst. But it wasnt mother nature that did the damage to Repollets home. Repollet gave NBC Connecticut Responds cell phone video her husband shot moments before a huge tree came crashing down on the familys property. Repollet said the video shows a man in an excavator trying to remove a tree from her neighbors backyard. According to Repollet, the man identified himself as David Massey, owner of Massey Brothers Excavating in Branford. In the video, after the tree toppled on to Repollets fence, you can hear Massey say Thats what insurance is for. We thought in our heads how can this possibly not fall on our property? Repollet told NBC Connecticut. And then as it was happening, we were just shocked. Repollet told us her husband confronted Massey afterwards. He seemed to want to fix the situation. He said he would pay us cash for the damages, said Repollet. She believed the cost to repair the damage to her privacy and pool fences, pool reel, and concrete would cost thousands. Repollet said Massey assured her hed send someone out the next day to assess the damage. He never had anybody come and look at the fences, said Repollet. Repollet said she and Massey went back and forth through multiple phone calls and emails. Massey did send an employee over to drop off a pool reel. He still said he was going to come and give us the money for it and then he just stopped returning phone calls, stopped returning text messages, said Repollet. Repollet said she and her husband got their own estimate that totaled nearly $7,000 in damages. She contacted NBC Connecticut Responds in hopes that no one else would go through her experience. NBC Connecticut Responds spoke with Massey by phone. He admitted he is the person in the video and told us he had been on vacation, and insisted he would repair the damage when he returned. Repollet said he never did. We went to a Branford home listed as Masseys business address, but no one answered the door. Were not looking to make any money. We just want the damages repaired that was caused by him and his company, said Repollet. If ever someone says I want to deal in cash and then walks away from you, its definitely not a good deal, said Lora Rae Anderson with the Department of Consumer Protection. Anderson said in situations like this you should always file a claim with the contractors insurance company and put any agreement in writing. So, you know what youre paying and you know whats going to happen when someone comes to fix your home, said Anderson. Anderson said make sure you use a licensed contractor and get more than one reference before they do the job. Massey Brothers LLC is registered with the State of Connecticut. The Repollets said they have filed a claim with their insurance company and an agent informed the family, they will get a check for $4,400, not including their $1,000 deductible. According to Connecticuts Department of Insurance, there is a provision in homeowner policies that gives insurance companies the right to recover what they pay out. Homeowners should check with their agent or insurer for details on their policy. A Bridgeport man who is on the sex offender registry is accused of spying on a little boy in a restroom at Connecticut Post Mall in Milford and has been arrested. Police said they responded to the mall at 5:20 p.m. Sunday and arrested 27-year-old Michael Drzal, of Bridgeport, who is accused of using a mirror to look over the bathroom stall divider at the boy who was using the bathroom at the time. "He was in there for well over two hours, I guess laying in wait you could sayuntil he saw the people using the restroom next to his," said Officer Michael DeVito of the Milford Police Department. DeVito said the victim came out of the bathroom and told his guardian. "He came out. He was very startled, very shaken, as you can imagine and he told his guardian he thought the party in the stall next to him had a mirror," DeVito explained. The guardian asked for help from people passing by the check out the suspect in the bathroom. When the suspect came out, store security kept him until police arrived. Drzal was charged with voyeurism, risk of injury and breach of peace in the second degree. Bond was set at $5,000. A Michael Drzal is listed on the Connecticut sex offender registry at the same address. The sex offender registry said he was convicted of receipt and distribution of material involving the sexual exploitation of children. Plainfield police have arrested two men who are accused of stealing a dog that was quarantined at the Animal Control Office in Moosup for biting two children. The dog, a German Shepard named Vada, was reported stolen from the Town of Plainfield Animal Control Office at 5 Unity St. in Moosup around 5 p.m. on April 8. Vasa was being quarantined for four dog bites, including an incident on Jan. 20 in which two juveniles were injured, according to police. The dog was found in Roxboro, North Carolina with his owner, 31-year-old Sean Simmons, formerly of Wauregan, and transported back to Connecticut, police said. Investigators determined that Simmons had plans to move to North Carolina and paid 34-year-old Benjamin Audet, of Plainfield, to break into the animal control office and steal the dog, but Audet was afraid of being bitten. Simmons ultimately had to help him retrieve the dog and was bitten himself, according to police. Audet was arrested on June 9 and charged with third-degree burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary in the third degree and larceny in the sixth degree. He was released on a court-set $5,000 surety bond. Simmons was arrested Monday morning and charged with burglary in the third degree, conspiracy to commit burglary in the third degree, larceny in the sixth degree, failure to comply with animal quarantine, failure to comply with animal quarantine regarding attack dog and possession of a nuisance dog. He was held on a court-set $15,000 bond and is due in court. A 22-year-old New York woman is accused of having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old boy in Plainfield and Norwich and has been arrested in Plainfield. Plainfield police said detectives from the special investigations unit arrested 22-year-old Victoria M. Ales, of Howard Beach, New York, Monday and she has been charged with sexual assault in the second degree and risk of injury to a minor. Police said they were made aware on May 14 of a possible sexual relationship between Ales and a 14-year-old boy and determined the sexual relationship went on for several months. Ales turned herself in at the Plainfield Police Department and was held on a court-set $150,000 bond. It's not clear if she has an attorney. Ales is scheduled to appear in Danielson Superior Court today. Norwich police are also investigating, according to Plainfield police. Police said they have found the two men they were searching for in connection with a shooting incident in Manchester on Saturday and arrested them. They have also arrested a woman who is accused of hindering prosecution. Police were looking for 25-year-old Anthony Gunn, of Manchester, and 27-year-old Kevin McCray, of New Britain, in connection with the investigation into a shooting on July 21 and found them hiding inside 15 Wadsworth St, police said. No one was injured during the shooting. During the incident, police officers evacuated nearby homes as a precaution. Police believe the victim was targeted so they say there is no direct threat to the general public. Minor property damage was reported on a nearby home. According to court documents, the victim told police Gunn and McCray were targeting him due to his involvement in a fatal car accident in May 2017. Gunn was charged with criminal attempt to commit assault in the first degree, conspiracy to commit assault in the first degree, conspiracy to commit reckless endangerment in the first degree, unlawful discharge of a firearm, criminal possession of a firearm and weapon in a motor vehicle. Bond was set at $500,000 Police said there was an existing arrest warrant for Gunn, charging him with 13 counts of larceny in the sixth degree, 13 counts of illegal use of payment card and 13 counts of receiving goods or services obtained by illegal use of payment card. The bond for these charges is $500 cash or surety McCray was charged with conspiracy to commit assault in the first degree, conspiracy to commit reckless endangerment in the first degree and weapon in a motor vehicle. He was held on a $500,000 court-set bond. Lashay Belton, 35, of Manchester, was arrested as part of the investigation and charged with two counts of hindering prosecution and interfering with an officer, She was held on a $25,000 bond. What to Know Trump earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon The move, and new U.S. sanctions on Iran, ratcheted up tensions between the two countries Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of other nations President Donald Trump's explosive Twitter threat to Iran's leader comes as his administration is ratcheting up a pressure campaign on the Islamic republic that many suspect is aimed at regime change. No one is predicting imminent war. But Trump's bellicose, all-caps challenge addressed to President Hassan Rouhani followed a speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in which he accused Iran's leadership of massive corruption and widespread rights abuses and urged Iranians to rise up in protest. Both the tweet and the speech landed less than two weeks before the administration will begin re-imposing sanctions on Iran that had been lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal. In the meantime, the U.S. is stepping up Farsi-language outreach that is intended to support Iranians demonstrating against the policies of their government. Trump's tweet doesn't appear to have been prompted by any notable shift in rhetoric from Iran. It could have been an impulsive reaction to reports from Tehran quoting Rouhani as giving the U.S. an oft-repeated reminder that conflict with Iran would be "the mother of all wars." Yet animosity directed at the Iranian leadership is an established part of the administration's broader foreign policy. Iran publicly shrugged off Trump's late Sunday message "NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Tweeted Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday: COLOR US UNIMPRESSED: The world heard even harsher bluster a few months ago. And Iranians have heard them albeit more civilized ones_for 40 yrs. We've been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, incl our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries. BE CAUTIOUS!" Asked at the White House if he had concerns about provoking Iran, Trump said simply, "None at all." Tehran is already aware of what is coming from the administration as consequences of Trump's May withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear accord take shape. As Pompeo noted in his speech to Iranian-Americans and others in California on Sunday, the centerpiece will be the re-imposition of U.S. economic sanctions; the first batch will go back into force on Aug. 4 targeting the Iranian automotive sector and trade in gold and other metals. A more significant set of sanctions that will hit Iran's oil industry and central bank by punishing countries and companies that do business with them will resume on Nov. 4. "Right now, the United States is undertaking a diplomatic and financial pressure campaign to cut off the funds that the regime uses to enrich itself and support death and destruction," Pompeo said in his speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley. Pompeo also slammed Iran's political, judicial and military officials, accusing several by name of participating in rampant corruption, and called its religious leaders "hypocritical holy men" who amassed wealth while allowing their people to suffer. He said the government has "heartlessly repressed its own people's human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms," and he hailed the "proud Iranian people (for) not staying silent about their government's many abuses." "The United States under President Trump will not stay silent either," he said. He was right. True to form, Trump did not stay silent. But the White House blamed Rouhani for inciting the war of words with his comment that "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!," Trump wrote. Reaction from Congress, particularly Democrats, was swift and critical. Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, acknowledged that Iran's terrorist activities in the Middle East pose a threat but suggested it wouldn't be solved through a tweet from Trump. "Sadly, after pulling us out of the nuclear deal with Europe and Iran, there doesn't seem to be strategy for how to move forward to fight Iran's activities," she said. And Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, the former Democratic vice presidential candidate, called the Twitter blast from the White House "another warning sign that Trump is blundering toward war with Iran." Trump's National Security Council pushed back: "Our differences are with the Iranian regime's actions and, in particular, with the actions of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, not the Iranian people. The Trump administration's Iran policy seeks to address the totality of these threats and malign activities and to bring about a change in the Iranian regime's behavior." "If anybody's inciting anything, look no further than to Iran," said White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said. She added that Trump has been "very clear about what he's not going to allow to take place." Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the U.S. In the case of North Korea, the verbal war cooled quickly and gradually led to the high-profile summit and denuclearization talks. Still there has been little tangible progress in a global push to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons program since the historic Trump-Kim Jong Un summit on June 12. What to Know Adrian Breedlove is charged with intoxication manslaughter and unlawful carrying of a weapon He is charged in connection to the crash that killed Dallas Police Senior Corporal Earl 'Jamie' Givens Breedlove was booked into jail around midday Saturday and bonded out at 2 a.m. Sunday The man arrested for intoxication manslaughter in connection with the death of a Dallas police motorcycle officer has bonded out of jail. Officials with the Dallas County Sheriff's Office confirm Adrian Breedlove, 25, bonded out of the jail at about 2 a.m. Sunday. Breedlove was charged with intoxication manslaughter causing the death of a peace officer, police say. Investigators allege Breedlove was speeding and intoxicated when he crashed into Senior Corporal Earl 'Jamie' Givens. Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall said Givens was blocking an entrance ramp of Interstate 20 at Bonnie View Road as a part of an escort of the body of a former Dallas police officer who died after battling cancer. Police said Givens had his emergency lights on when Breedlove's SUV hit him. Givens was pronounced dead at Baylor Medical Center. Givens' death is the sixth in the line of duty for the Dallas Police Department in two years. Four Dallas officers were killed in the downtown ambush in 2016. A fifth killed the same night worked for the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Police Department. Three months ago, Officer Rogelio Santander was killed while attempting to arrest a suspect at a Northeast Dallas Home Depot. "Each time I think it kind of removes that scab and brings those emotions back fresh to us again," said Courtney Helms with the Dallas Police Association Spouses organization. "Each time we hope OK, can we please have some time here without having to go through this again?" Helms is married to a Dallas officer, assigned to the central patrol division with Givens. "These are people with their own stories, with their own families," Helms said. "Every single one of these officers means a tremendous amount to so many people. It's very frustrating that someone like that can go and kill and officer and then be back on the streets." "There is no need this day and age to be behind the wheel if you've had anything to drink," she said. In addition to the intoxication manslaughter charge, Breedlove was charged with unlawful carrying of a weapon. Bond for both charges was set at a total of $76,000. DPA President Mike Mata issued a statement Monday morning questioning what he called an "extremely low bail." It is reprehensible that Adrian Breedlove, the man arrested and charged with the intoxication manslaughter of a Dallas police officer, was given a $76,000 bail allowing him to spend less than one day in jail. This was a violent death caused by a man whose blood alcohol content was more than twice the legal limit at 6AM. The officer he is charged with killing was a 55-year old father of two who was only months away from retirement." "We demand to know if District Attorney Faith Johnson asked a district court judge to require a more substantial bond for such a heinous crime. If she made no such effort then perhaps its time to find a District Attorney who takes more seriously the killing of police officers. Pete Schulte, an officer and lawyer, told NBC 5 Breedlove's bond amount is not unusual, adding that Breedlove faced a tougher penalty if convicted. An intoxication manslaughter charge involving the death of an officer or first responder in the line of duty carries the possibility of up to 99 years or life in prison. "It's going to be pretty tough for this defendant if he's convicted to not go to prison for a long time because we want to protect our police officers. That's why the law was changed 10 years ago to make sure it was a stiffer penalty," Schulte explained. No one answered the door at Breedlove's home on Sunday afternoon and it's not clear if Breedlove has an attorney yet. A vigil for Givens is planned for Monday evening at the central patrol division at 334 South Hall Street. The vigil begins at 7:30 p.m. What to Know One cousin said Gene Atkins' life was in shambles after he lost his job and two cars He was withdrawn and quiet, preferring to stay inside the house and watch TV and had been in and out of mental health facilities Atkins is accused of shooting his grandmother, leading police on a chase and holding hostages for hours in a Trader Joe's where a woman died The suspect in the deadly L.A. Trader Joe's standoff on Saturday had been fighting with his grandmother, whom he lived with, family told NBC Gene Atkins, 28, is accused of shooting his grandmother and girlfriend, leading police on a car chase, then crashing into the busy Silver Lake supermarket where he held dozens of people hostage in an hourslong standoff with the police. One woman, Trader Joe's manager Melyda "Mely" Maricela Corado, was killed in a shootout between police and the suspect at the conclusion of the police pursuit. Atkins remains hospitalized. Charleo Egland, first cousin of the suspect, lives right next door to the house where Atkins allegedly shot his 78-year-old grandmother, Mary Madison, on Saturday. Atkins was living with his grandmother at the time of the attack, Egland said. Egland said Atkins' life was in shambles, as he had lost his job and two cars recently. "The last thing he told me was, 'The next thing I do, I'm going to die doing it or I'm going to jail,'" Egland said. The argument between Atkins and his grandmother started over his girlfriend being in the house along with problems over the TV, the cousins said. "Not in my wildest dreams did I ever think this would happen," said Linda Brown, another cousin of Atkins. Both Brown and Egland said Atkins was withdrawn and quiet, preferring to stay inside the house and watch TV. Atkins had been in and out of mental facilities since childhood, according to Egland. "I believe he is suffering from a mental illness," said Egland. "He's not the same from when we were growing up. He changed. I don't know if it has something to do with his mom passing away because she died four years ago." Atkins had lived with his grandmother since he was around 9, according to family members. However, Saturday was not the first instance of violence by Atkins against his grandmother. Egland said Atkins had smashed the windows in his grandmother's house and slashed her tires. Mary Madison is said to be recovering after her surgery at USC Hosptial. Atkin's girlfriend was grazed by a bullet and is expected to be OK. The Florida Panthers have teamed up with Broward County Libraries and the Broward Public Library Foundation to launch their first-annual summer reading tour. Local residents are encouraged to visit local libraries to enjoy a variety of books read by Panthers guests, alumni and personalities. Their schedule can be found by clicking here. A Florida police officer is in critical but stable condition after getting shot. The News-Press of Fort Myers reports that the officer was seriously wounded Saturday night near a gas station. The police officer was taken to the hospital by a fellow officer. Authorities identified the officer as 29-year-old Adam Jobbers-Miller. He has been with the force since September 2015. Fort Myers Police Chief Derrick Diggs told local reporters that a suspect in the shooting had been taken into custody. But officials still have not given out many details about the incident. Gov. Rick Scott spoke to the police chief and the local sheriff about the shooting shortly after it happened. Fort Myers is located in southwest Florida. What to Know Miami-Dade Police officers responded to the home near SW 79th Terrace east of 97th Avenue shortly before 1:30 a.m. The family recently installed a surveillance system at the home, which officers say captured a person seen setting the cars on fire. Police are searching for those involved with two cars being set on fire outside a Kendall home with the whole incident being caught on camera. Miami-Dade Police officers responded to the home near SW 79th Terrace east of 97th Avenue shortly before 1:30 a.m., where a pickup truck and Ford Mustang were set on fire. The family recently installed a surveillance system at the home, which officers say captured a person seen setting the cars on fire before fleeing the scene. MDPD officials did not say if this was a random arson attack or if the family was targeted. The victim told NBC 6 he saw two people drive off in a red Kia though officers have not confirmed that and his offering his own reward for information leading to an arrest. Anyone with information is asked to call Miami-Dade CrimeStoppers. What to Know New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has pardoned seven people who had faced deportation because of crimes committed years ago The Democrat says the state must protect its residents as the federal government wages what he calls an un-American assault on immigrants The governor's office says the seven people pardoned all turned their lives around following minor criminal convictions years ago New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has pardoned seven people who had faced deportation because of crimes committed years ago. The Democrat announced the pardons on Monday, saying the state must protect its residents as the federal government wages what he calls an un-American assault on immigrants. The pardons are intended to prevent deportation or at least make it harder for federal immigration officials to proceed with the process. The governor's office says the seven people pardoned all turned their lives around following minor criminal convictions years ago. "At a time when President Trump and the Federal government are waging a war on our immigrant communities, New York stands firm in our belief that our diversity is our greatest strength," Cuomo said in a statment, adding that the pardon was given to each recipient "in recognition of their rehabilitative efforts and to remove the barriers that their criminal records present to their immigration status." Those pardoned includes a 57-year-old grandfather who was convicted of drug possession and intoxicated driving nearly 20 years ago and a 53-year-old man battling cancer who now faces deportation because of a 7-year-old conviction for attempted drug sales. A single mother who went to a funeral in Jamaica and was allegedly detained upon her return for convictions of low-level assault and petit larceny 17 years ago was also pardoned. A 41-year-old man from the Dominican Republic who was detained by ICE after allegedly being told he was ineligible for citizenship due to a 2009 petit larceny conviction as he was about to go to his swearing-in ceremony in September of 2017 was also pardoned. Three other menwho were convicted of drug possession, but have since been crime-free and employed and in one case is the sole caretaker of his special needs daughter and in another spearheads humanitarian efforts were also pardoned. At the ultra-Orthodox Jewish schools Pesach Eisen attended in Brooklyn, most of the day was spent studying religious texts with classes taught in Yiddish. One class at the end of the day was spent on secular subjects including English and math, enough to be "able to go to the food stamps office and apply." "Everything was super basic. ... Nobody took it seriously, so even if you were a studious person you had no chance," said the now-32-year-old Eisen, who had to take remedial classes and study intensively on his own before he succeeded in graduating from college in 2016. Complaints that schools like Eisen's run by New York's strictly observant Hasidic Jews barely teach English, math, science or social studies have fueled a movement to demand stricter oversight by state and local educational authorities. Critics plan to file a lawsuit on Monday in federal court, seeking to stop the state from enforcing legislation that was intended to shield the schools, called yeshivas, from some government oversight. "When we grew up there was no such thing as big aspirations 'I want to be a doctor, I want to be a lawyer, I want to be a businessman,'" said Eisen, who no longer practices the ultra-Orthodox faith. "It's, 'I want to be a rabbi. That's the only thing.'" Defenders of the yeshivas say parents have the right to send their children to schools that provide a Jewish education consistent with their beliefs and traditions. "We specifically for generations have chosen this kind of education for our children," says Ari Goldberg, who has seven children attending Hasidic yeshivas in Brooklyn. "This is what we want. Why should it be taken away?" The yeshiva backers also say critics err by just counting the minutes of a school day spent on secular studies. "The problem solving, the literacy, the critical thinking, all that is in Judaica studies as well," said Yitzchok Kaufman, a Brooklyn yeshiva alumnus and parent. The planned lawsuit by Young Advocates for Fair Education, or YAFFED, which is pushing for improved secular education in the ultra-Orthodox schools, names Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state Department of Education's top two officials as defendants. Department of Education spokeswoman Emily DeSantis said the department is working on updating its guidance on equivalency of instruction at the yeshivas. There are about 275 Orthodox Jewish yeshivas in New York state, but many are modern Orthodox schools that provide a full secular curriculum along with religious studies. YAFFED founder Naftuli Moster said the Hasidic yeshivas where secular education is generally given short shrift number 83 in New York City and 38 in other parts of the state. An estimated 115,000 children attend the schools. For boys in the Hasidic yeshiva system, the emphasis is on studying religious texts. Classes are taught in Yiddish, the language spoken in most Hasidic homes. Secular subjects are relegated to the end of the long school day, when the boys are restless and inattentive, critics say. Once the boys reach high school, they don't study secular subjects, devoting their entire day to the Torah, Talmud and other Jewish texts. Hasidic girls can't study Talmud and therefore learn more English, math and social studies than the boys do, though taboo subjects such as evolution and sex education are typically omitted. "They erased anything about dinosaurs," said Shavy Rosenberg, who attended Hasidic schools for girls. "Anything more than 5,000 years old was erased." Although the schools are private, they are not entirely free of government oversight because of a state law requiring that instruction in non-public schools be substantially equivalent to the instruction given at the local public school. YAFFED was founded in 2012 with the aim of pressuring New York City and New York state to enforce the substantial equivalence standard at yeshivas. But that effort was dealt a blow last spring when a state senator who represents a heavily Orthodox Brooklyn district threatened to hold up the state's $168 billion budget unless the state agreed not to enforce the substantial equivalence rule in the same way at ultra-Orthodox yeshivas as it's enforced at other schools. The legislation pushed by Sen. Simcha Felder, a Democrat who caucuses with the Republicans in the state Senate, singled out schools with long days, bilingual programs and nonprofit status in effect, yeshivas and put the state Department of Education, not local school districts, in charge of determining what curriculum rules those schools must follow. President Donald Trump's approval rating ticked up to 45 percent among registered voters, but majorities of them disapprove of his handling of Russia and immigration at the border, according to the new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll. The president's approval rating remains stable it was at 44 percent in June something that stands out given the controversies since then, said Republican pollster Bill McInturff, who conducted the survey with two Democratic pollsters. "The Republican numbers don't budge," McInturff said. Among Republicans, Trump's approval rating is at 88 percent, the highest of his presidency. The Half of the poll was conducted before and the day of Trump's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The world's top financial officials called Sunday for more dialogue on trade disputes that threaten global economic growth, with one warning that differences remain and tensions could escalate further. The two-day meeting of finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 nations came as the United States clashes with China and other nations over trade, with the nations imposing tariffs on billions of dollars of the other's goods. A final communique said that although the global economy remains strong, growth is becoming "less synchronized" and risks over the short and medium terms have increased. "These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies," the communique said. "We ... recognize the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence." On Friday, President Donald Trump renewed his threat to ultimately slap tariffs on a total of $500 billion of imports from China roughly equal to all the goods Beijing ships annually to the U.S. The White House has also itemized $200 billion of additional Chinese imports that it said may be subject to tariffs. The U.S. has also imposed tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, including from Europe. China, the European Union, Canada, Mexico and Turkey have counterpunched with taxes on U.S. goods. EU tariffs on American products include Harley-Davidson motorcycles, cranberries, peanut butter, playing cards and whiskey. EU financial affairs commissioner Pierre Moscovici warned that such disputes are a threat. "Protectionism, I want to insist on that, is good for no one," Moscovici told reporters. "Trade wars are not easy ... they create no winners, only casualties." U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin disputed that protectionism is the issue. "People are trying to make this about the United States and protectionism. That's not the case at all," he said at a news conference. "This is about the United States wanting fair and free trade. ... We very much support the idea that trade is important for the global economy, but it's got to be on fair and reciprocal terms." Mnuchin said there had been no "substantive discussions" with China about trade during the meeting. Asked what it would take to re-start talks with the Asian giant, he said, "Anytime that they want to sit down and negotiate meaningful changes, I and our team are available." As the gathering wound up, Moscovici said differences of position remain despite talks. "These meetings have been taking place in an international context which is very challenging. ... Trade tensions remain high and they threaten to escalate further," he said. Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, has warned that a wave of tariffs could significantly harm the global economy, lowering growth by about 0.5 percent "in the worst-case scenario." Mnuchin disagreed Sunday, saying that overall, the U.S. economy has not been harmed by the trade battles set off by Trump's get-tough policies. He acknowledged, however, that some individual sectors have been hurt and said U.S. officials are looking at ways to help them. "We see some micro impacts where people, our counterparts, are targeting very, very specific items, in very specific communities," he said. "But from a macro standpoint, we do not yet see any significant impact on the economy." So far, global markets have remained generally calm despite the U.S.-China trade war and the other trade conflicts. But analysts say they expect Trump will impose more tariffs on China and potentially other key U.S. trading partners. With those nations almost certain to retaliate, the result could be higher prices for Americans, diminished export sales and a weaker U.S. economy by next year, they say. Moscovici said the G-20 meeting had not been tense. He said that countries must remain "cool-headed and maintain a proper sense of perspective" and that the EU remains open to dialogue. "That's why EU President Jean-Claude Juncker and EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom will meet with Trump" in Washington next week, he said. "We hope this meeting will be productive and successful." Mnuchin said that the U.S. looks forward to those discussions. The Group of 20 nations is composed of traditional economic powers such as the United States, Japan and Germany and emerging nations such as China, Brazil, India and Argentina. Officials in Buenos Aires also discussed issues including the future of work and infrastructure for development, the international tax system and financial inclusion. It is the third of five meetings by finance ministers and central bankers scheduled in advance of a meeting of G-20 national leaders in Argentina to be held Nov. 30-Dec 1. Mnuchin said Trump plans to attend. Associated Press writer Patricia Luna and AP video journalist Paul Byrne contributed to this report. What to Know Groups of women dressed as characters from 'The Handmaid's Tale,' greeted Vice President Mike Pence Monday during his visit to Philadelphia. They protested Trump's zero tolerance immigration policy and its perceived anti-choice U.S. Supreme Court nomination, Brett Kavanaugh. They shut down streets near city hall and snarled the evening commute. Groups of women dressed as characters from "The Handmaid's Tale" greeted Vice President Mike Pence Monday during his visit to Philadelphia. Protesters wearing red dresses and white caps carried signs reading "Free press, fake president" and "Freedom of religion is freedom from religion." No, this was not a dystopian nightmare in which fertile women are enslaved by a military dictatorship. Rather, drawing on inspiration from the hit Hulu show, which is based on a Margaret Atwood novel of the same name, protesters marched against President Donald Trump's zero tolerance immigration policy and its perceived anti-choice U.S. Supreme Court nomination, Brett Kavanaugh. The protests mirrored recent demonstrations throughout the country that use themes from "The Handmaid's Tale" aimed at "[waking] people up to the real life dangers of the Trump/Pence regime," organizers said in a statement. "Nothing short of removing this whole illegitimate regime from power will stop this nightmare," organizer Samantha Goldman of Refuse Fascism Philly said. "If we allow this regime to get away with caging and torturing children, they know there is nothing they can't get away with." Pence is in Philadelphia to tout Trump tax cuts and campaign for Pennsylvania senate candidate U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, a staunch conservative and supporter of Trump. Barletta is running against Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Casey in this year's Pennsylvania midterms. The event, hosted by America First Policies, a non-profit started by a group of former Trump advisers, took place at the Sheraton Philadelphia in Center City. After the event, Pence attended a fundraiser hosted by Barletta at the Union League. Great to be in Pennsylvania today supporting my friend @LouForSenate. Lou Barletta will put the interests of the hardworking men & women of PA first and will be an advocate for @RealDonaldTrump's pro-growth economic agenda! pic.twitter.com/dOXEDiVLjS Mike Pence (@mike_pence) July 23, 2018 CORRECTION: This story has been updated to accurately reflect that "The Handmaid's Tale" is on Hulu. What to Know A woman died and her daughters were rescued from the rubble of a collapsed home along South Broad Street in Hamilton Township, Mercer County No word yet on what caused the three-story house to collapse. One daughter heard a cracking noise moments beforehand Tika Justice was found dead on top of her 16-year-old daughter, who was alive Shielded by her mother's body, a teenage girl survived a devastating home collapse in central New Jersey on Monday morning. Her sister also made it out alive by crawling through a mess of splintered wood and other debris. Neighbor James Feig said he arrived around 7 a.m., just minutes after the collapse, to find a woman chest deep in bricks and debris where a three-story home once stood along South Broad Street near Joseph Street in Hamilton Township, Mercer County. That 20-year-old woman was on her cellphone with dispatchers moments after the collapse, Feig said. He comforted her until crews were able to free her from the rubble. NBC10 EXCLUSIVE -> A look at the woman who was rescued after her S Broad St home in Hamilton NJ collapsed. I spoke to the man who says he stayed with her to comfort her until firefighters arrived. She also tells him 3 more people are trapped, rescues underway @NBCPhiladelphia pic.twitter.com/fZHsO6bu93 Pamela Osborne (@PamelaOsborne) July 23, 2018 "I could see that she was physically OK, but she was very much upset," Feig said. The woman, who had suffered scrapes and bruises, said her family members were trapped in the rubble, Hamilton police said. Firefighters, rescue teams and search dogs found 38-year-old Tika Justice dead on top of her 16-year-old daughter, who survived, on the second floor, Hamilton Police Chief James Stevens said. Both the daughters were listed in serious, but stable condition at the hospital. The 20-year-old said she heard a cracking noise and was running out of the home when it collapsed, police said. State police, local police, firefighters and utilities responded to the scene. PSE&G turned off gas to the area as part of standard routine after a collapse. So far the incident doesnt appear gas-related, officials said. Rescue teams scour the debris left by a house collapse in Hamilton Township, Mercer County, Monday morning. Neighbors in the area told NBC10's Pamela Osborne that they didn't feel or hear an explosion. Broad Street was closed between Lily Street and New Cedar Lane as crews responded to the scene. Justice likely died while saving her daughter's life by shielding her from the debris, according to investigators. "She's that type of person," Justice's brother Brushaun Davis said. "She'll save her kid before she saves herself." Family members say Justice's daughters also lost their father years ago. "They don't have nobody but us," Davis said. "But of course we're going to do what we've got to do." The 16-year-old girl suffered the worst injuries. Her sister plans to remain by her bedside in the hospital until she's okay to come home. Officials continue to investigate the cause of the collapse. What to Know Only a week after it was announced it would move, Mayor Kenney and Roc Nation agreed to keep Made in America on the Parkway. The reverse decision came after a productive meeting between the Mayor and Roc Nation. Mayor Kenney said the festival will remain on the Parkway for "years to come." Made in America is here to stay. Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney met with Roc Nation chief operating officer Desiree Perez during a "productive meeting" Monday to hash out the details of keeping Jay-Z's music festival on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. The meeting came less than one week after Roc Nation, a music and promotion company founded by Jay-Z, learned through a Billy Penn story that Made in America would not return to the Parkway after 2018's event. Jay-Z lashed out at Kenney when he heard the news. In a scathing editorial, published in The Philadelphia Inquirer last week, the rapper-turned-entrepreneur called the ordeal a "failure on the mayor's part" and touted the millions of dollars of revenue generated by his festival. He wrote: "Is this an accurate representation of how he and his administration treat partners that economically benefit his city? Do they regularly reject minority-owned businesses that want to continue to thrive and grow alongside his citys people? Kenney jumped on the defensive, telling reporters that he "loves Jay-Z." "We love the concert and we want to keep it," he said, adding that his administration was committed to finding alternative location. In the end, no alternative was necessary. "The Made in America festival belongs in Philadelphia the birthplace of our country and Im optimistic that we can turn an unfortunate misunderstanding into a positive outcome and even stronger event," Kenney said in an emailed statement. "I look forward to working with Roc Nation and Live Nation, and maintaining this Philadelphia tradition for years to come." Vice President Mike Pence will be in Philadelphia Monday to promote the Trump administration's tax-cutting law and campaign for a Pennsylvania senate candidate. The "Tax Cuts to Put America First" event hosted by America First Policies, a non-profit started by a group of former Trump advisers that promotes the president's agenda, will take place at the downtown Sheraton Philadelphia at 1:45 p.m. Speakers at the event will discuss how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump, will impact Philadelphia residents as well as the state of Pennsylvania and the U.S. After the event, Pence will attend a fundraiser for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Lou Barletta of Pennsylvania at the Union League. Barletta, who is trying to unseat two-term Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, has trailed in campaign cash. Demonstrators dressed as characters from the novel-turned-TV series "The Handmaid's Tale" are planning to descend on downtown Philadelphia Monday evening to protest Pence's visit. "The Handmaid's Tale" imagines a future in which women's rights are strictly limited. According to an event page for the protest, organizers say they're opposed to the administration policies on abortion rights, LGBT rights and separating families caught entering the country illegally. What to Know Health officials are investigating a sudden spike in non-fatal drug overdoses in the Philadelphia area over the weekend Officials say more than 100 people were hospitalized between Friday and Saturday. A typical weekend has up to 25 people hospitalized Officials say the drug causing the hospitalizations may be a batch of heroin called Santa Muerte or The Holy Death" Health officials are investigating a sudden spike in non-fatal drug overdoses in the Philadelphia area over the weekend. Officials say more than 100 people were hospitalized between Friday and Saturday. Philadelphia Health Commissioner Tom Farley said the cluster was the largest he has seen in two years as head of the city's health department. Over a weekend we might expect 20 to 25 people to come in, Dr. Farley said. So to have 100 come in is a lot larger than normal. Farley says it's unclear whether the substance responsible was heroin, fentanyl or something else. Health officials are still waiting for results of tests of bags found in the hands of arriving patients. Montgomery County officials say the drug may be Santa Muerte," meaning The Holy Death, a batch of heroin adulterated with an anticholinergic agent. Sold on the street with the name Perfect 10, symptoms of the batch include agitation, combativeness, delirium, dilated pupils, seizures and hot, flushed and red skin. Officials warned first responders that patients overdosed on Santa Muerte are typically extremely combative and agitated when being treated with the anti-opiate drug Narcan. At least two female Philadelphia EMS workers who responded to reported overdoses Friday were hurt after being attacked by patients, according to officials. This is an important lesson for everyone on how dangerous it is to buy drugs on the street and use them, Dr. Farley said. Despite the rise in overdoses, officials say the batch didn't cause a spike in drug-related deaths over the weekend. Farely said seven people died of apparent overdoses between Friday night and Sunday morning, which is about the typical overdose death rate. Police and the health department are currently warning people about the issue as they continue to work to confirm what the drug actually is. They expect to complete their testing this week. What to Know Pentagon official Robert Wilkie is expected to become secretary of Veterans Affairs when the Senate votes Monday to confirm him. Wilkie is the president's third pick for the job in 18 months. He served as acting VA secretary after David Shulkin's firing in March. The Senate on Monday confirmed Pentagon official Robert Wilkie to be secretary of Veterans Affairs, charged with delivering on President Donald Trump's campaign promises to fire bad VA employees and steer more patients to the private sector. Wilkie won approval on a bipartisan vote of 86-9, securing the backing of many Democrats after insisting at his confirmation hearing that he will not privatize the government's second-largest department. It was a moment of respite from the sharp political divisions engulfing Trump's other nominees in the final months before congressional midterm elections. Wilkie is Trump's third pick for the job in 18 months. The longtime public official says he will "shake up complacency" at VA, which has struggled with long waits in providing medical treatment to millions of veterans. In a statement released by the White House, Trump applauded the confirmation vote and said he looked forward to Wilkie's leadership. "I have no doubt that the Department of Veterans Affairs will continue to make strides in honoring and protecting the heroic men and women who have served our nation with distinction," he said. Trump selected Wilkie for the post in May after firing his first VA secretary, David Shulkin, amid ethics charges and internal rebellion at the department over the role of private care for veterans. Trump's initial replacement choice, White House doctor Ronny Jackson, withdrew after allegations of workplace misconduct surfaced. Wilkie, a former assistant secretary of defense under President George W. Bush, has received mostly positive reviews from veterans' groups for his management experience, but the extent of his willingness to expand private care as an alternative to government-run VA care remains largely unknown. Trump last year pledged he would triple the number of veterans "seeing the doctor of their choice." Currently more than 30 percent of VA appointments are made in the private sector. Under repeated questioning at his hearing, the Air Force and Navy veteran said he opposed privatizing the agency of 360,000 employees and would make sure VA health care is "fully funded." When pressed by Sen. Jon Tester, the top Democrat on the panel, if he would be willing to disagree with Trump, Wilkie responded "yes." "I have been privileged to work for some of the most high-powered people in this town," said Wilkie, currently a Pentagon undersecretary for Defense Secretary Jim Mattis. "They pay me for their opinions, and I give those to them." Wilkie's main task in the coming months will be carrying out a newly signed law to ease access to private health providers. That law gives the VA secretary wide authority to decide when veterans can bypass the VA, based on whether they receive "quality" care, but the program could face escalating costs. Some Democrats have warned the VA won't be able to handle a growing price tag, putting it at risk of budget shortfalls next year. Major veterans' groups want full funding for core VA medical centers, which they see as best-suited to veterans' specialized needs such as treatment for post-traumatic stress. As VA secretary, Wilkie also will have more power under a new accountability law to fire VA employees. Lawmakers from both parties have recently raised questions about the law's implementation, including how whistleblower complaints are handled and whether the law is being disproportionately used against rank-and-file employees rather than senior managers who set policy. "The tone has been set by President Trump on the direction of VA reforms," said Dan Caldwell, executive director of the conservative Concerned Veterans for America. "There have been a tremendous number of bills passed in the last year and half, and all will require a lot of work to make sure they are properly implemented." Republican Sen. Johnny Isakson of Georgia, chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, praised Wilkie as "eminently qualified," saying he will "bring stability and leadership" to VA. Wilkie served as acting VA secretary after Shulkin's firing in March, before returning to his role as Pentagon undersecretary. He will replace current acting VA secretary Peter O'Rourke, who clashed with the VA inspector general after refusing to release documents relating to VA whistleblower complaints and casting the independent watchdog as an underling who must "act accordingly." Under pressure from Congress, the VA agreed last week to provide documents to the IG. A California man suspected in multiple bank robberies throughout the state killed himself just hours after holding up one last bank, authorities said Saturday. A male suspect flashed a gun and presented a note demanding cash from a teller at a bank in Goleta on Friday, according to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office. After getting away with an undisclosed amount of money, the suspect drove to a nearby nail salon and locked himself inside a bathroom, officials said. Police evacuated about 15 people and surrounded the small business. They later entered the building with a dog team and found Keith David Goodwin, 41, dead in the bathroom from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, a sheriff's statement said. Goodwin, of Fresno, was suspected of robbing at least nine banks over the past two months, the statement said. He was identified via a license plate-reading surveillance camera after allegedly robbing a bank in Danville on July 12 and taking off in a red Nissan Altima, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Danville police detectives secured a warrant for Goodwin's arrest two days later and worked closely with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to find him, the newspaper said. Investigators said the suspect in the Goleta robbery drove away from the bank in a red Nissan Altima. A Flex Alert has been issued by the California Independent System Operator Corporation (ISO) for Tuesday and Wednesday due to high temperatures across the region. The alert calls for California residents and most of the western U.S to conserve electricity from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. during these days. Flex Alerts are issued when the electricity grid is overtaxed due to high temperatures, the ISO said. To help conserve electricity over the next few days, the ISO asks customers to set thermostats to 78 degrees or higher and to use fans to cool homes. They also advise homeowners use major appliances in the morning or late evening and turn off lights and appliances that arent necessary. A heat wave moving into the southern California region is sending temperatures soaring. Temperatures on Tuesday and Wednesday could break records for this time of year, according to forecasters. In San Diego County, inland areas from Escondido to Alpine are expected to see high temperatures in the mid-100s on Tuesday and even coastal cities like Oceanside and San Diego are expected to see highs in the upper-80s. Much of southern California was under an Extreme Heat Warning and even coastal areas and mountains were under a NWS heat advisory. Other factors such as limited natural gas supplies, high wildfire risks and fewer electricity imports also contribute to a Flex Alert. More information about Flex Alerts can be found on the California ISOs website. Take what you need, bring what you can. Above all, be blessed! Thats the motto for a Girl Scout troops project that fights food insecurity in Hyattsville, Maryland. Girl Scout Troop 6899 opened a little free pantry, dubbed a "blessing box," near St. Jerome Catholic Church and Hyattsville Elementary School on Sunday. Inspired by small free libraries in the community, they wanted to create a project that would have a lasting impact on kids who don't have enough to eat at home, troop leader Adina McGee said. As soon as someone mentions children without food, it moved to the top of the list, she said. Creating the little pantry was an eye-opening experience for McGee's daughter, Liliana McGee, who is a Girl Scout troop president. With many members of the troop having to deal with food insecurity, this seemed like a good way to give back, she said. "I didn't realize food access was really a problem in our community. It opened my eyes to a lot of the struggles I don't face day-to-day but other people struggle with," Liliana McGee said. The troop came up with the idea around Christmastime last year when members gave donated boxes of Girl Scout cookies to a food pantry. With food pantries having limited hours, creating a blessing box democratizes the process, Adina McGee said. She added that the box is anonymous and takes away the stigma that comes with visiting regular food pantries. The troop received a grant of $250 worth of materials from Community Forklift, a nonprofit that provides secondhand building supplies. The girls found a used cabinet and put their woodworking badges to work, revamping it with help from their supervisors. In April, the scouts partnered with Chipotle and raised more than $400 in a fundraiser that covered the costs for cement and goods to keep the pantry stocked for the first few months. People are encouraged to contribute at their discretion. Members and leaders plan to monitor the blessing box regularly in case it needs to be restocked or cleaned. Don't expect to find Girl Scout cookies though; putting them in the blessing box could cause them to melt, Adina McGee said. Instead, the pantry accepts other non-perishable items like canned vegetables, beans, pasta and more, as well as personal care items and paper goods. "It's fitting that this Girl Scout troop that's known for their cookies gave back to the community in this way," Liliana McGee said. "This was definitely a more meaningful way to give back." By the end of August, the troop also hopes to fill the pantry with school supplies. A driver for the ride-hailing company Lyft has been charged in the rape of a passenger. A 33-year-old woman contacted Lyft after midnight Wednesday to request a ride home, and Amir Sami Handouk, a 33-year-old resident of Virginia, picked up the woman up, Prince William County police said. Handouk assaulted the passenger near her home in Gainsville, police say. After the alleged assault, the woman went home and contacted police later that day. Handouk, of White Post, Virginia, was arrested Friday and charged with rape and object sexual penetration. He is being held without bond. A spokesperson for Lyft said Handouk has been permanently deactivated as a driver. "These allegations are extremely upsetting, and we were horrified to learn about this incident. The safety of the Lyft community is our number one priority, and we have absolutely no tolerance for this behavior," said the spokesperson. The company says representatives reached out to the passenger and law enforcement. It was not immediately clear whether Handouk has an attorney. A court date is pending. Heavy and slow-moving rain turned some D.C. roads into rivers, sent water crashing through the ceiling of a Virginia restaurant and flooded multiple levels of a mall parking garage Wednesday evening. Flood warnings are in effect for D.C. and its suburbs. About 1 to 3 inches fell down in most areas Wednesday night, Storm Team4 said. The rain tapered off about 10:30 p.m., but the National Weather Service said flooding issues would continue through the night. Numerous roads are closed Wednesday night and it's not known at this time which of those roadways will be open for the morning commute. Storm Team4 Chief Meteorologist Doug Kammerer is tracking more storms and rain hitting our region. The National Weather Service said Sligo Creek in Silver Spring, Maryland, and Cranberry Branch near Westminster rose 4 to 7 feet in the span of just an hour. Flooding on Sligo Creek has been deadly in previous years, the NWS warned on Twitter. Rock Creek also surpassed its flood stage about 8:30 p.m. Earlier in the evening, the NWS urged people in Georgetown, areas near the National Zoo, Rock Creek National Park, Connecticut Avenue and American University in Northwest D.C. should seek higher ground immediately. Creeks and streams in that area were rising rapidly as 1.5 to 2 inches fell in one hour, NWS said. With heavy rain battering the D.C. area, the phrase "Turn around, don't drown" bears repeating. But what if you find yourself in an area where you can't turn back. Here are some tips for driving safely in flood conditions. Flood warnings for the area have been extended to last until various times Thursday morning. In Stafford and Spotsylvania counties and Fredericksburg, a flood warning expires at 1:45 a.m. A flash flood watch for D.C. and surrounding areas has been extended to last until 2 a.m. Thursday. See a full list of alerts here. Heavy rain has soaked the region for days. In some parts of the D.C. area, 10-12 inches of rain have fallen over the past seven days. Thursday is expected to be mostly dry, but there is a threat of heavy storms from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday. [[489176131, C]] Downpours soaked the region Tuesday morning, and a short-lived tornado damaged property at a high school in Fairfax County just ahead of the morning rush. Rising waters have elevated driving risks, with some roads shutting down. A small tornado also caused damage outside of the newly renovated Thomas Jefferson High School in Alexandria, Virginia. News4's David Culver has the story. Multiple roads were closed Tuesday in Fairfax County, Virginia, due to flooded streets and downed trees. Police were maintaining a list of closed roads online here. Monday night, a woman was killed after a tree fell onto her home, possibly due to soaked ground, authorities said. Basements and ballparks are flooded in Frederick, where the Monocacy River crested above the flood stage Wednesday. Chris Gordon reports. In Frederick, Maryland, the Monocacy River crested above the flood stage at 20 feet Wednesday. Grassy areas of Baker Park were soaked. Crews began work there Monday to battle the threat of flooding. Several cars got stuck on flooded roads in a short period of time Tuesday morning, said Fairfax County Fire & Rescue. Three calls came in within a 30-minute period for cars stuck in the Reston, Annandale and Springfield areas. Not long after, another water rescue was reported at Arlington Boulevard at Prosperity Avenue in Fairfax. Prince George's County's automated pumping stations were working to clear water before more storms rolled over the county. Automated pumping stations monitor flood-threatening areas in Prince George's County as the area braces for more rain. News4's Tracee Wilkins has the story. The tree that fell onto a Burke, Virginia, home, killing a woman Monday night, was likely toppled due to the soaked ground, Fairfax County Battalion Chief Willie Bailey said. "Obviously with all the rain in the past couple of days, the roots of these trees have really loosened up," Bailey said. The tree fell through the roof and onto the second floor, killing the woman. Her husband was nearby but survived. A tree crashed into a home in Burke, Virginia, killing a woman inside. Fairfax County Fire and Rescue are working to stabilize the home before they can remove the tree and the woman's body. News4's Shomari Stone reports. Impact Lingers From Saturday's Heavy Rain In Baker Park in Frederick, Maryland, preparations began Monday to stymie the impact of floods. Rivers and streams were still swollen from Saturday's heavy rain, which broke rainfall records at the area's airports. Storm Team4's Somara Theodore said parts of southern Maryland got an additional four inches on Sunday. D.C. wasn't hit quite as hard, with an additional 1.35 inches. Crews in Montgomery County worked through Monday to repair a sinkhole that opened after heavy rains over the weekend. Heavy rain in Montgomery County, Maryland has caused sinkholes and road closures in the Germantown and Gaithersburg area. News4's Aimee Cho reports on the damage. Heavy rain caused a sanitary sewer overflow at Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission's Broad Creek Wastewater Pumping Station in Fort Washington, Maryland. WSSC says its water and wastewater systems are separate and that the overflow did not affect drinking water. A huge sinkhole has shut down part of Father Hurley Boulevard in Germantown, Maryland. News4's Darcy Spencer reports the road could be closed for two weeks. On Saturday, firefighters rescued two people who were trapped in a vehicle on Bradley Boulevard in Montgomery County, Maryland. Fire and rescue spokesman Pete Piringer said numerous roads were closed in the county because of flooding, and many residents' basements were flooded. In Great Falls, Virginia, rescue workers saved three people who were stuck in a vehicle on a bridge. Record-Setting Rainfall Soaks Region Tuesday's rain was record-setting at Baltimore International Airport. The 4.07 inches that fell there was a record for that date and brought the monthly total there to more than 15 inches. The weekend's storms shattered rainfall records at all three major airports. Dulles International Airport's 1973 rainfall record of 1.15 inches of rain was far short of the whopping 5.02 inches that fell on Saturday. With more than 4 inches of rainfall, Reagan National and BWI broke records from 1911 and 1887, respectively. A New Hampshire man charged for sexually assaulting a minor will be arraigned Monday, according to the Nashua Police Department. Robert Pratt, 58, of Pembroke was arrested Friday evening and charged with two counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault involving a minor. Nashua police first received a report of a sexual assault on June 26. As their investigation developed, police obtained an arrest warrant for Pratt and arrested him on July 20. Investigators said Pratt knew his juvenile female victim, but did not elaborate on their connection. He was held on $20,000 cash bail. Pratt is scheduled to face his arraignment at the Ninth Circuit Nashua District Division Court. It is unclear if the suspect has an attorney. Police in Hanover, New Hampshire, are now wearing body cameras. Starting Monday, they are recording audio and visual interactions between police and people. The technology will supplement existing cruiser cameras. Uniformed Hanover police officers will be wearing the camera near or at their chest on the outermost layer of clothing. The camera is black and is about 3 inches long and 2 inches wide. Belton church focuses on mental health for Norfolk Day Belton church focuses on mental health for Norfolk Day 2018: All Saints Church in Belton is hosting an event on Norfolk Day that celebrates local community spirit and focuses on understanding mental health with a range of discussions led by experts. All Saints Church in Belton, East Norfolk is encouraging the local community to come together to hear from eight renown experts in the field of mental health, learning disabilities and dementia. The church has teamed up with the local monthly magazine, The Village Voice, to host a free event on Norfolk Day, Friday, July 27, that will celebrate community and increase understanding of mental health. With eight experts coming along to talk about topics such as bereavement, dementia, autism and substance abuse, it will be a chance to ask questions and find out more about topics that involve any community. Anyone is welcome to come along for a session that interests them or stay for the whole programme. The event is split into two halves with Rev Rosie Bunn, Rector of All Saints Belton hosting the afternoon session from 2pm-5.30pm aimed at younger people and Dr Regi Alexander, Editor of The Village Voice hosting the evening focusing on issues relevant to the older generation. Dr Regi Alexander said: To have such a distinguished array of people come to our village and talk, discuss and be questioned about topics that affects us all in one way or another, we are very privileged. The programme includes sessions on: Bereavement by Dr Kallur Suresh at 3.30pm Autism by Professor Peter Langdon at 4pm Pychological Therapies by Professor Shirley Reynolds at 4.30pm Care Quality Commission by Dr John Devapriam at 5pm Dementia by Professor Wendy Burn at 6.35pm Learning Disability by Dr Jean OHara at 7.05pm Mental Illness by Dr Allen Kharbteng at 7.35pm Substance Misuse by Dr Ben Walden at 8.05pm The demand is there. The hype is there. But is the world really ready for 5G? In one sense, the answer is, absolutely. The fifth-generation of wireless broadband technology will bring an exponential increase in data speeds that will change how people interact with the internet. For example, download time for an HD movie could go from an hour to a few seconds. 5G can also power up remote surgery. And some say truly autonomous vehicles arent possible without it. 5G will connect a higher density of devices, people and things in smaller areas faster and with lower latency than ever. It promises to inspire an astounding array of innovations and new services. Who wouldnt want that? However, many of these applications depend on ultra-low latency and a level of throughput that todays networks arent built to consistently deliver. To best prepare for 5G, companies need to move IT to the edge of the network, close to the users who are actually consuming these services. Thats going to require a shift in mindset that puts the edge, and interconnection, at the center of network design. 5G is a revolution The move to 4G was a big leap itself, as it enabled the richer mobile video content we currently enjoy, as well as the proliferation of anytime, anywhere, any device connectivity. But 5G will take it to another level: 10x over 4G is a common estimate, with variables such as whether a carrier prioritizes range over speed affecting just how much quicker 5G will be. 5G latency can dip to 1 millisecond, when the end user and target platform are pretty close within 4 to 6 miles of each other. 4G latency is variable, but the best of 5G is 60 to 120 times better than average 4G latencies. 5G standards allow for exponentially wider bands than 4G and major increases in bandwidth. McKinsey focuses on several use cases 5G will enable provided theyre preceded by serious network upgrades. The use cases include the enhanced mobile broadband that has people downloading huge video files in seconds and which supports significant advances in virtual reality. 5G networks will also be able to better keep pace with the explosive growth of the Internet of Things and all its current and yet-to-be discovered applications, as 5G enables up to one million connections per kilometer at very low power. And 5G makes mission-critical control possible with 1 millisecond latency, opening the door for new applications that demand absolute reliability, such as in healthcare, utilities or autonomous driving. McKinsey says all these use cases will require network performance to increase tenfold over current levels across all network parameters, including latency, throughput, reliability and scale. That means heavy investment is ahead in all network domains. McKinsey estimates infrastructure spending will continue to increase at the high end at its historic range of 20 to 50 percent annually, while Moor Insights & Strategy predicts 5G will drive IT hardware spending to $326 billion by 2025. And much of this spending will be aimed at moving IT services to the edge. High-density deployments at the edge In a 5G world, a traditional centralized network architecture that backhauls traffic from users to a distant corporate data center isnt just prohibitively costly, its a non-starter. Theres too much data, and latency tolerance for many 5G apps is too low. Take the example of remote surgery, during which a surgeon using virtual reality goggles and haptic gloves (which let users feel and touch in virtual reality), can operate on a patient half a world away via a robot. This cant happen over a 4G network. Latency isnt the primary issue, though the high variability of latency on a 4G network ultimately would make it too risky if there werent bigger problems. The real reason is that remote surgery requires a level of throughput 4G cant handle. Of course, latency isnt just a problem in serious situations such as surgery. It can cause the lag that ruins a 5G-fueled multi-player VR video game, as well. Reducing distance between these types of applications and users is the only way to ensure low latency. For 5G applications to work as they should, network operators will need to massively deploy small cell technology in extremely high densities at the edge, where their users are consuming services. In a typical city neighborhood, for instance, dozens of shoebox-sized small cells might be mounted on public infrastructure, like telephone poles and street lights. In less populated areas, operators will need to significantly increase the density of existing networks by building macro cell sites along the way. This need for high-density IT deployments isnt just about a data influx or the need for proximity. Many 5G network operators say they plan to maximize data speed by using millimeter wave extremely high frequency spectrums. But millimeter wave also has limited range and can be disrupted by conditions as common as humidity and rain. Heavy concentrations of small-cell technologies are needed to offset that. Establishing these high-density deployments at the edge can be easier on an interconnection platform that spans the top global markets everywhere. Interconnection the private data exchange between businesses is the fastest, most secure, lowest-latency connectivity there is, and it will be a critical part of the 5G revolution. Companies need the flexibility to expand as the edge evolves. They also need access to their clouds, networks, data and partners, so they can directly connect to whatever they need, wherever they need it. A global interconnection platform thats always growing and always welcoming new industry ecosystems and ecosystem partners can be a place that helps companies handle whatever 5G has coming. Not everyone is ready for 5G yet because not everyone is committed to networks designed around the edge. But a global interconnection platform that gets companies to edge with speed, safety and cost-efficiency can get a lot of people a lot closer to 5G than theyve ever been. 'Independents Day' marked in the town NEWBURY celebrated its very own independents day on July 4. The Newbury Business Improvement District (BID) team set out to highlight the range of local independent businesses in town. As well as handing out goodies to the public and spreading the word about the more than 140 independents, the team ran a competition to find Newburys favourite independents searching for the best in retail, food and drink and services. The winner of the retail category was B The Lifestyle Shop in Wharf Street, while the food and drink category went to artisan specialist Lusso known for its Italian gelato and pizzas. Salon 46 won the services award for its first-class hair service. Voters were entered into a draw to win a hamper filled with goodies donated from independent businesses, including a Morgan Taylor nail polish set and a voucher for shellac nails from Secrets Nails and Beauty, EcoBamboo Coffee Cup and 20 voucher from Natures Corner, 25 gift voucher from Willow and Blooms, vouchers for free coffee and a bag of the finest Colombian coffee beans from Harrisons Coffee, tote bag with 20 voucher to spend in-store from B The Lifestyle Shop, a paint-it-yourself ceramic duck and paint set with a 20 gift voucher from The Ugly Duckling and a two-hour Decopatch workshop including mache and an object of choice to decorate from Rainbows of Newbury. The lucky winner was Mia Suggit. Newbury BID events manager Laura Adamson said: Being able to celebrate the vast range of independent businesses is crucial for Newbury. We were overwhelmed by the response of those voting for their favourite independent. Thank you to everyone who voted, nominated and, of course, congratulations to the winners. For more information about the events and Newbury BID, visit the website www.visitnewbury.org.uk The Kent Historical Society has been awarded a $4,999 grant to put the organizations existing emergency and disaster plan on a sounder footing. The grant was presented by the Connecticut Humanities. We had a good start on emergency and disaster planning, said Curator Marge Smith. Several years ago, we took part in a three-part disaster planning and response workshop presented by the Connecticut State Library and Conservation ConneCTion. During the exercise on emergency response and collection triage a mock-flood event was staged, she said. As part of this workshop we received training and assistance in using dPlan Lite from the Northeast Document Conservation Center. We made excellent progress toward completing this plan, but found it difficult to update as often as is needed, she said. With the grant funding, the society hired professional risk assessment consultant, Kathy Craughwell-Varda, to lead the board and staff in a simplified multi-step process to assess the societys holdings and create an emergency response plan. Craughwell-Varda submitted a detailed report of the findings, which she then reviewed with the board and staff. A paper Pocket Response Plan was created for the societys first responders to carry with them at all times in case of a disaster such as tornado, fire or flood. The report also detailed other such risks as staff time, collections storage space and smaller issues such as insufficient fire extinguishers and smoke alarms. Completion of all the recommended steps and changes will take time, but the society is well on its way. We are, as always, grateful to Connecticut Humanities for their awareness of the needs of small heritage nonprofits, and their willingness to fund activities that meet those needs, said Smith. They have been active partners in our forward progress since 2005 when they funded our first strategic plan, she noted. Connecticut Humanities, a nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, supports cultural and historic organizations that tell the states stories, build community and enrich lives. For more information about the exhibit, call 860-927-4587. Australian led global guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of the primary cause of infertility in women will be published simultaneously in three international journals, supported by a suite of health professional and patient resources to improve health outcomes for women with PCOS. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) affects up to 13% of women of reproductive age in non-Indigenous and one in three Indigenous women, and is a complex condition with challenges in making an accurate diagnosis. Monash University's Professor Helena Teede led international engagement of more than 3500 consumers and health professional from 71 countries that identified major gaps for those with this condition including delays of up to two years in diagnosis and a lack of adequate information for women with PCOS, underpinned by a paucity of evidence-based diagnosis and treatment guidelines. According to Professor Teede, PCOS is a multi-faceted condition, "with reproductive, metabolic and psychological features which often means diagnosis is delayed, treatment is often not holistic and opportunities for prevention, treatment and improved health outcomes including in infertility and pregnancy health are missed," she said. Monash University's Professor Teede heads the national NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence in PCOS has led the International Evidence-Based Guideline on Assessment and Management of PCOS across 37 societies and consumer groups from 71 countries. Seventy experts, health professional and women with PCOS met 20 times over a 15 month period to develop the guidelines, with expertise from Monash's evidence and guideline expert Dr Marie Misso. The guideline will be published today in three international journals: Clinical Endocrinology; Human Reproduction and Fertility and Sterility and is an unprecedented example of international collaboration to improve health outcomes, Prof Teede said. "It is now vital to get the key guideline messages out to as broad a range of health professionals and women with PCOS as possible to translate this work into improved health outcomes for affected women," said Monash University's Assoc Prof Jacqueline Boyle and Dr Rhonda Garad who lead international translation of the guidelines. Polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS, is an endocrine or hormonal disorder involving excess levels of the hormones insulin and androgen, causing the common clinical features of the condition: Excess facial and body hair, acne or scalp hair loss Impaired ovulation or egg development in the ovaries leading to irregular cycles, reduced fertility and pregnancy complications Increased risk of weight gain, diabetes and other metabolic features Increased anxiety, depression and reduced quality of life A key message from the guidelines is to reassure women that these features can be prevented and or treated, including infertility, once identified. Initial research found that the assessment and management of PCOS is inconsistent, with women generally dissatisfied with care. The guidelines and translation program aim to address this through the refinement and increased accuracy of diagnostic criteria; encouraging simpler, more appropriate testing; an increased focus on education of both patient and health care professional; lifestyle modification, (for instance obesity increases the risk and severity of PCOS); improving emotional wellbeing and quality of life, and increasing the use of evidenced based medical therapy and cheaper and safer fertility treatment. To increase the health literacy of women affected by PCOS, Monash University has created a PCOS app which provides information in English, and is being translated into Mandarin, Hindi, Vietnamese and Spanish. A GP Toolkit and care plan has been developed to assist in the rapid and accurate diagnosis and treatment of the disease. This and a suite of other consumer and health professional resources are designed to get the evidence based messages out there to improve diagnosis, care and health outcomes. Source: https://www.monash.edu/ Many technology companies are working on artificial intelligence systems that can analyze medical data to help diagnose or treat health problems. Such systems raise the question of whether this kind of technology can perform as well as a human doctor. A new study from MIT computer scientists suggests that human doctors provide a dimension that, as yet, artificial intelligence does not. By analyzing doctors' written notes on intensive-care-unit patients, the researchers found that the doctors' "gut feelings" about a particular patient's condition played a significant role in determining how many tests they ordered for the patient. "There's something about a doctor's experience, and their years of training and practice, that allows them to know in a more comprehensive sense, beyond just the list of symptoms, whether you're doing well or you're not," says Mohammad Ghassemi, a research affiliate at MIT's Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES). "They're tapping into something that the machine may not be seeing." This intuition plays an even stronger role during the first day or two of a patient's hospital stay, when the amount of data doctors have on patients is less than on subsequent days. Ghassemi and computer science graduate student Tuka Alhanai are the lead authors of the paper, which will be presented at the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society conference on July 20. Other MIT authors of the paper are Jesse Raffa, an IMES research scientist, and Roger Mark, a professor of health sciences and technology and of electrical engineering and computer science. Shamim Nemati and Falgun Chokshi of Emory University are also authors of the study. How to measure feelings Doctors consider a huge number of factors -- including symptoms, severity of illness, family history, and lifestyle habits -- when deciding what kinds of exams to order for their patients. In addition to those factors, Ghassemi, Alhanai, and their colleagues wondered whether a doctor's "gut feelings" about a patient also plays a role in their decision-making. "That gut feeling is probably informed by a history of experience that doctors have," Ghassemi says. "It's sort of like how when I was a kid, my mom could just look at me and tell that I had done something wrong. That's not because of something mystical, but because she had so much experience dealing with me when I had done something wrong that a simple glance had some data in it." To try to reveal whether this kind of intuition plays a role in doctors' decisions, the researchers performed sentiment analysis of doctors' written notes. Sentiment analysis, which is often used for gauging consumer attitudes, is based on computer algorithms that examine written language and tally positive or negative sentiments associated with words used in the text. The researchers performed their analysis on the MIMIC database, a collection of medical records from 60,000 ICU patients admitted to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston over a 10-year period. This database includes doctors' notes on the patients as well as severity of illness, diagnostic imaging exams, and several other factors. The researchers wanted to determine what, if anything, the doctors' notes added on top of the information available in the medical records. They computed sentiment scores from the notes to see if there was any correlation with how many diagnostic imaging tests the doctors ordered for patients. If medical data alone was driving doctors' decisions, then sentiment would not have any correlation with the number of tests ordered. However, the researchers found that when they accounted for all other factors, the doctors' sentiments did indeed help predict how many tests they would order. This effect was strongest at the beginning of a patient's hospital stay, when doctors had less medical information to go on, and then declined as time went by. They also found that when doctors felt more pessimistic about a patient's condition, they ordered more testing, but only up to a certain point. If they felt very negatively about the patient's condition, they ordered fewer tests. "Clearly the physicians are using something that is not in the data to drive part of their decision making," Alhanai says. "What's important is that some of those unseen effects are reflected by their sentiment." Sentimental machines Next, the researchers hope to learn more about just what factors contribute to doctors' gut feelings. That could potentially lead to the development of artificial intelligence systems that could learn to incorporate the same information that doctors are using to evaluate patients. "The question is, can you get the machine to do something like that? It would be very interesting to teach the machine to approximate what the doctor encodes in their sentiment by using data not currently captured by electronic health systems, such as their speech," Alhanai says. Long-term use of either cannabis or cannabis-based drugs impairs memory say researchers. The study has implications for both recreational users and people who use the drug to combat epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and chronic pain. They found that mice exposed to the drug long-term had "significant memory impairments" and could not even discriminate between a familiar and novel object. There is little understanding of the potential negative side effects of long-term cannabinoid exposure, though it is already known that heavy, regular cannabis use increases the risk of developing mental health problems including psychosis and schizophrenia. More and more people are using the drug long-term due to its legalisation in several countries, while more potent varieties are available for recreational users. Researchers from Lancaster and Lisbon Universities studied the effects of the cannabinoid drug WIN 55,212-2 in mice and found that: Long-term exposure impairs learning and memory in the animals Brain imaging studies showed that the drug impairs function in key brain regions involved in learning and memory Long-term exposure to the drug impairs the ability of brain regions involved in learning and memory to communicate with each other, suggesting that this underlies the negative effects of the drug on memory Dr Neil Dawson, the lead researcher from Lancaster University said "This work offers valuable new insight into the way in which long-term cannabinoid exposure negatively impacts on the brain. Understanding these mechanisms is central to understanding how long-term cannabinoid exposure increases the risk of developing mental health issues and memory problems." He also highlighted the relevance of the work to those using cannabinoid-based therapies to treat medical conditions. "Cannabis-based therapies can be very effective at treating the symptoms of chronic diseases such as epilepsy and multiple sclerosis, and dramatically increase the quality of life for people living with these conditions. We need to understand the side effects that these people may experience so that we can develop new interventions to minimise these side effects". Professor Ana Sebastiao, lead researcher at the University of Lisbon, said: "Importantly, our work clearly shows that prolonged cannabinoid intake, when not used for medical reasons, does have a negative impact in brain function and memory. It is important to understand that the same medicine may re-establish an equilibrium under certain diseased conditions, such as in epilepsy or MS, but could cause marked imbalances in healthy individuals. "As for all medicines, cannabinoid based therapies have not only beneficial disease-related actions, but also negative side effects. It is for the medical doctor to weight the advantages of the therapy, taking into consideration quality of life and diseases progression, against the potential side effects." The research was published in the Journal of Neurochemistry and was conducted as part of the European Commission Horizon 2020 funded SynaNET (http://www.synanet2020.com) project. Despite more than two decades of advances in diagnostic criteria and technology, symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) too often go unrecognized or are misattributed, causing delays in appropriate diagnoses and care that are both harmful and costly. Contributing to the variability and inefficiency is the lack of multidisciplinary ADRD evaluation guidelines to inform U.S clinicians in primary and specialty care settings. Responding to the urgent need for more timely and accurate Alzheimer's disease diagnosis and improvement in patient care, a workgroup convened by the Alzheimer's Association has developed 20 recommendations for physicians and nurse practitioners. There currently are no U.S. national consensus best clinical practice guidelines that provide integrated multispecialty recommendations for the clinical evaluation of cognitive impairment suspected to be due to ADRD for use by primary and specialty care medical and nursing practitioners. The recommendations range from enhancing efforts to recognize and more effectively evaluate symptoms to compassionately communicating with and supporting affected individuals and their caregivers. The recommendations were reported at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference (AAIC) 2018 by Alireza Atri, MD, PhD, Co-chair of the AADx-CPG workgroup, and Director of the Banner Sun Health Research Institute, Sun City, AZ, and Lecturer in Neurology at the Center for Brain/Mind Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston. Details of the AADx-CPG workgroup document are being honed with input from leaders in the field, with the goal of publication in late 2018. At their core, the recommendations include guidance that: All middle-aged or older individuals who self-report or whose care partner or clinician report cognitive, behavioral or functional changes should undergo a timely evaluation. Concerns should not be dismissed as "normal aging" without a proper assessment. Evaluation should involve not only the patient and clinician but, almost always, also involve a care partner (e.g., family member or confidant). "Too often cognitive and behavioral symptoms due to Alzheimer's disease and other dementias are unrecognized, or they are attributed to something else," said James Hendrix, PhD, Alzheimer's Association Director of Global Science Initiatives and staff representative to the workgroup. "This causes harmful and costly delays in getting the correct diagnosis and providing appropriate care for persons with the disease. These new guidelines will provide an important new tool for medical professionals to more accurately diagnose Alzheimer's and other dementias. As a result, people will get the right care and appropriate treatments; families will get the right support and be able to plan for the future." In 2017, the Alzheimer's Association convened a Diagnostic Evaluation Clinical Practice Guideline workgroup (AADx-CPG workgroup) of experts from multiple disciplines in dementia care and research, representing medical, neuropsychology, and nursing specialties. The AADx-CPG workgroup used a rigorous process for evidence-based consensus guideline development. "Our goal is to provide evidence-based and practical recommendations for the clinical evaluation process of cognitive behavioral syndromes, Alzheimer's disease and related dementias that are relevant to a broad spectrum of U.S. health care providers," Atri said. "Until now, we have not had highly specific and multispecialty U.S. national guidelines that can inform the diagnostic process across all care settings, and that provide standards meant to improve patient autonomy, care, and outcomes." "Whether in primary or specialty care, the recommendations guide best practices for partnering with the patient and their loved ones to set goals, and to appropriately educate and evaluate memory, thinking and personality changes," Atri added. The Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) recognize the broader category of "Cognitive Behavioral Syndromes" -- indicating that neurodegenerative conditions such as ADRD lead to both behavioral and cognitive symptoms of dementia. As a result, these conditions can produce changes in mood, anxiety, sleep, and personality -- plus interpersonal, work and social relationships -- that are often noticeable before more familiar memory and thinking symptoms of ADRD appear. "In all cases, there is something we can do to help and support those who entrust us with the privilege of advising and caring for them," said Atri. "The guidelines can empower patients, families, and clinicians to expect that symptoms will be evaluated in a patient-centered, structured, and collaborative manner. In addition, they help to ensure that, regardless of the specific diagnosis, the results are communicated in a timely and compassionate way to help patients and families live the best lives possible." The 20 consensus recommendations describe a multi-tiered approach to the selection of assessments and tests that are tailored to the individual patient. The recommendations emphasize obtaining a history from not only the patient but also from someone who knows the patient well to: First, establish the presence and characteristics of any substantial changes, to categorize the cognitive behavioral syndrome. Second, investigate possible causes and contributing factors to arrive at a diagnosis/diagnoses. Third, appropriately educate, communicate findings and diagnosis, and ensure ongoing management, care and support. "Evaluation of cognitive or behavioral decline is often especially challenging in primary care settings," said Bradford Dickerson, MD, MMSc, Co-chair of the workgroup, and Director of the Frontotemporal Disorders Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Associate Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, Boston. "Also, with recent advances in available diagnostic technology, there is a need for guidance on use of such tests in specialty and subspecialty care settings." According to the workgroup, a timely and accurate diagnosis of ADRD increases patient autonomy at earlier stages when they are most able to participate in treatment, life and care decisions; allows for early intervention to maximize care and support opportunities, and available treatment outcomes; and may also reduce health care costs. The Alzheimer's Association encourages early diagnosis to provide the opportunity for people with Alzheimer's to participate in decisions about their care, current and future treatment plans, legal and financial planning, and may also increase their chances of participating in Alzheimer's research studies. "Next steps include reaching out to physician groups and medical societies to encourage primary care doctors, dementia experts, and nurse practitioners to adopt these new best clinical practice guidelines," Hendrix said. Our genome is made up of 20,000 genes, all of which may cause disease. At present, 4,141 genes have been identified as being responsible for genetic abnormalities, leaving around 16,000 genes with unknown implication in disease. Researchers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland, - working in collaboration with scientists from Pakistan and the USA - have investigated a recessive genetic disorder that destroys the eyes from developing and results in childhood blindness. After analysing the genomes of each member of a consanguineous family with affected children, the geneticists pinpointed pathogenic mutations in a new gene, MARK3, as being the cause. They subsequently confirmed their findings - published in the journal Human Molecular Genetics - by modifying the homologous gene in drosophila flies, which resulted in abnormal eye development and blindness. The identification of the MARK3 related disease will help to understand the mechanism of the disease, provide diagnostic services, and initiate efforts for a personalized treatment. Monogenic genetic disorders fall into two main categories: the first - so-called dominant disorders -only need one copy of the gene to be mutated to cause the disorder, such as Huntington's disease. The second - recessive disorders - are triggered by a mutation on both copies of the gene, as is the case with cystic fibrosis. "In our attempts to uncover new recessive genetic disorders, we looked at families where there was consanguineous marriage and where both parents carried one copy the mutant gene and passed it on to the child," explains Stylianos Antonarakis, a professor Emeritus in UNIGE's Faculty of Medicine. Supported by the the ProVisu Foundation of Geneva, the Geneva-based geneticists then joined forces with Liaquat University in Pakistan, a country where over 50% of marriages take place between close relatives (usually first cousins). An unknown disorder that destroys eyesight The geneticists directed their interest at an unknown illness that prevents the eyes from developing properly and gradually destroys them. "We found that the disorder was present in children from consanguineous parents. As a result, we hypothesised that it was a recessive genetic disorder," continues professor Antonarakis. For a disorder to fall into this category, it must affect at least two children from the same family (regardless of their sex) and the parents must be in good health. Two hundred Pakistani families that fulfilled these criteria were selected for the research programme. "We started by sequencing the genomes of every member of a family that had three children with the genetic abnormality and two healthy children. The aim was to see which gene had mutations on two copies in the affected children, on one copy in the parents, and one or zero copies in the normal siblings," says Muhammad Ansar, a researcher in the Department of Genetic Medicine and Development at UNIGE. After carrying out a bio-informatic analysis and genetic segregation to look for the mutations of each gene in the healthy and affected children and their parents, the scientists have succeeded to isolate the MARK3 gene as being responsible for the recessive disorder. Confirming the result with drosophilae "To confirm whether MARK3 really was the gene responsible for the blindness, we checked to see if a similar mutation in drosophilae led to the same eye abnormalities," says Ansar. The UNIGE researchers have collaborated with experts at Houston's Baylor College of Medicine, to genetically modify drosophilae by introducing the mutation of two copies in the MARK3 gene of the flies. The result was that the flies had undeveloped eyes, and they were blind very similar to the affected children in the Pakistani family. These results provided a validation of the the research findings in human patients. The search for the genes responsible for recessive disorders is only just the beginning This discovery means that a new recessive disorder can be accurately diagnosed. "We can now concentrate on studying the mechanisms behind the disorder with the aim of finding a treatment," enthuses Antonarakis. It is also possible to perform a quick and inexpensive test on people in the same extended family to determine whether or not they will pass on the mutant gene for this eye disorder to their children and, in some cases, so they can avoid marriage among carriers of the pathogenic gene mutation. "Our collaboration with Pakistan helped us identify about additional 30 genes that are potentially responsible for recessive genetic disorders. We are currently refining the analyses so that, little by little, we can reduce the total number of 16,000 genes whose mutations and disorders are yet to be discovered," conclude the Geneva researchers. The first dementia prevalence data from a large population of lesbian, gay and bisexual older adults was reported today at the 2018 Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Chicago. Researchers from University of California, San Francisco and Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, Oakland, CA, examined the prevalence of dementia among 3,718 sexual minority adults age 60+ who participated in the Kaiser Permanente Research Program on Genes, Environment, and Health (RPGEH). Dementia diagnoses were collected from medical records. Over 9 years of follow-up, the overall crude prevalence of dementia was 7.4 percent for sexual minority older adults in this study population. For comparison, Alzheimer's Association 2018 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures reports U.S. prevalence of Alzheimer's disease dementia and other dementias for age 65+ at approximately 10 percent. According to the researchers, significant rates of depression, hypertension, stroke and cardiovascular disease in the study population may be contributing factors to the level of dementia. "Current estimates suggest that more than 200,000 sexual minorities in the U.S. are living with dementia, but -- before our study -- almost nothing was known about the prevalence of dementia among people in this group who do not have HIV/AIDS-related dementia," said Jason Flatt, PhD, MPH, Assistant Professor at the Institute for Health & Aging, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco. "Though our new findings provide important initial insights, future studies aimed at better understanding risk and risk factors for Alzheimer's and other dementias in older sexual minorities are greatly needed." "With the growing prevalence of Alzheimer's disease dementia and the swelling population of LGBT older adults, we place a high priority on examining the intersections of Alzheimer's disease, sexual orientation, and gender identity and expression," said Sam Fazio, PhD, Alzheimer's Association Director of Quality Care and Psychosocial Research. "A more thorough and thoughtful understanding of this intersection will enable us to better meet the needs of LGBT elders living with dementia and their caregivers." "Encouraging people to access healthcare services and make healthy lifestyle changes can have a positive impact on both LGBT and non-LGBT communities. Effective outreach to LGBT communities that is sensitive to racial, ethnic, and cultural differences could result in earlier diagnosis, which has been linked to better outcomes," Fazio added. "Our findings highlight the need for culturally competent healthcare and practice for older sexual minorities at risk for, or currently living with, Alzheimer's disease or another dementia. There are also important implications for meeting the long-term care services and caregiving needs of this community. Given the concerns of social isolation and limited access to friend and family caregivers, there is a strong need to create a supportive healthcare environment and caregiving resources for sexual minority adults living with dementia," Flatt said. The LGBT Community and Dementia According to "Issue Brief: LGBT and Dementia," a co-publication of the Alzheimer's Association and SAGE (Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders), there are 2.7 million LGBT people over age 50, and that number will likely double over the next 15 years. While the LGBT community faces similar health concerns as the general public, the LGBT population who receive a dementia diagnosis face uniquely challenging circumstances. Even with recent advances in LGBT rights, LGBT older adults are often marginalized and face discrimination. They are twice as likely to age without a spouse or partner, twice as likely to live alone and three to four times less likely to have children - greatly limiting their opportunities for support. There's also a lack of transparency as forty percent of LGBT older people in their 60s and 70s say their healthcare providers don't know their sexual orientation (Out and Visible). The Institute of Medicine identified the following pressing health issues for LGBT people: lower rates of accessing care (up to 30%); increased rates of depression; higher rates of obesity in the lesbian population; higher rates of alcohol and tobacco use; higher risk factors of cardiovascular disease for lesbians; and higher incidents of HIV/AIDS for gay and bisexual men (Brennan-Ing, Seidel, Larson, and Karpiak, 2014). Risk factors for heart disease -- including diabetes, tobacco use, high blood pressure and high cholesterol -- are also risk factors for Alzheimer's and stroke-related dementia. Due to the healthcare-related challenges they and others have faced, an LGBT person may not reach out for services and support because they fear poor treatment due to their LGBT identity, because they fear the stigma of being diagnosed with dementia, or both. Several studies document that LGBT elders access essential services, including visiting nurses, food stamps, senior centers, and meal plans, much less frequently than the general aging population. Among the 16 recommendations for organizations and service providers in their Issue Brief, the Alzheimer's Association and SAGE suggest: Expand your definition of family. Educate yourself and your staff on LGBT cultural competency. Find or create support groups specifically for LGBT people. Partner with local LGBT community groups and political organizations. Help LGBT people and their families with legal and financial planning. Dementia Survival Time is Short, Regardless of Age at Onset Previous studies of survival times in persons with dementia have varied considerably, reporting between three and 12 years in elderly populations with either general dementia or Alzheimer's disease dementia. To better understand survival time in individuals of a relatively young age and with different types of dementia, Hanneke Rhodius-Meester, MD, PhD, of VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, and colleagues investigated survival time of 4,495 early-onset dementia patients in a memory clinic (aged 66 10 years; 45 percent female) enrolled in the Amsterdam Dementia Cohort between 2000-2014, with any type of dementia (n=2,625), mild cognitive impairment (n=739) or subjective cognitive decline (n=1,131). The study found that the median survival time across all groups was six years and varied based on dementia type: 6.4 years in frontotemporal lobe degeneration; 6.2 years in Alzheimer's disease; 5.7 years in vascular dementia; 5.1 years in dementia with Lewy bodies; and 3.6 years for rarer causes of dementia. Survival time hardly differed when comparing younger patients (age 65 or younger) to those older than 65. However, over time and compared to the general Dutch population, survival time in older patients showed a marginal increase, while survival time in younger patients remained unchanged. "These findings suggest that, despite all efforts, and despite being younger and perhaps physically healthier' than older people, survival time in people with young-onset dementia has not improved since 2000," said Rhodius-Meester. "While these results still need to be replicated and confirmed, they do highlight the urgency of the need for better treatments and effective prevention strategies." Prevalence of Dementia Increases with Age, Even in "Oldest Old" Evaluating data from 17 centenarian studies conducted across 11 countries through the International Centenarian Consortium for Dementia (ICC-Dementia), Yvonne Leung, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow from the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA), University of New South Wales in Sydney, and colleagues examined dementia prevalence, risk factors and cognitive and functional impairment in 4,121 centenarians and near-centenarians (aged 95-110). When statistical predictive models were applied to examine impairment as a function of age, sex and education, researchers found that: Prevalence increased with age (from 95-99 to ? 105 years) in all societies for dementia (from 35.75 to 75.61 percent), cognitive impairment (from 45.24 to 78.72 percent) and functional impairment (from 67.46 to 91.55 percent). The risk of dementia, cognitive and functional impairment varied significantly between countries, suggesting cultural and lifestyle factors play a role in remaining physically and cognitively healthy as we age. Participants with higher levels of education expressed lower prevalence of dementia and cognitive impairment than those with fewer years of education. Women in this age group had a higher risk of dementia and cognitive impairment compared to men. "This is the first study to define the global prevalence of dementia in this advanced age group using a set of common diagnostic criteria," said Dr. Leung. "These data, and this type of research, may help identify protective factors to reduce the risk of dementia, and provide insights into longevity and brain health." Source: https://www.alz.org/aaic/releases_2018/AAIC18-Sun-briefing-prevalence-lgbt.asp After moving a no-confidence motion against the NDA government, the TDP on Monday said it will continue its protest both inside and outside the parliament for special category status and implementation of AP Reorganisation Act. TDP parliamentary party leader YS Chowdary has moved a notice in Rajya Sbaha under Rule 267 to discuss the Act. The TDP MPs will stage dharna near Mahatma Gandhi statue in the Parliament premises. The BJP-led government survived the no-confidence motion with government securing 325 votes in its favour and 126 votes against it. Opposition also plans to take up Alwar lynching horror to corner the government. Rakbar Khan, 28, was beaten to death in Rajasthan's Alwar on Saturday on suspicion of being a cattle smuggler. Stay tuned for LIVE updates: Jul 23, 2018 12:53 (IST) The statements of Anand Sharma led to protests from treasury benches with Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel stating that Sharma was trying to demoralise investigating agencies. Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said that legal avenues were available and why was Sharma demoralising agencies. Further, Sharma said if parallel FIRs for the same alleged offence was an oversight, then why was the government silent. Jul 23, 2018 12:44 (IST) Anand Sharma claimed that the government owes an explanation to the Parliament. "PM Narendra Modi was fully aware of the understanding between India and France for 126 aircraft. Our PM arbitrarily, without any sanction from the Cabinet Committee of Security, changed the Rafale Deal, where the price was much higher per unite of aircraft. The PM must confirm or deny in the Parliament that after returning from France the Deal was changed without informing the Cabinet Committee of Security," he added. Jul 23, 2018 12:23 (IST) Vijila Sathyananth said that the hike in the MSP comes to 13 percent and not the promised 50 percent over the cost of production. The increase was also short of the M S Swaminathan committee recommendation of an MSP of Rs 2,340 per quintal, she said. She also demanded that the government procure 100 percent of paddy produced as against about 25 percent procurement currently. Jul 23, 2018 12:21 (IST) AIADMK leader Vijila Sathyananth today during the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament assailed the government's decision on the minimum support price for summer season crops, saying it falls short of the promise to give 50 percent profit on the cost of production. Raising the issue through a zero hour mention, she said the MSP for common variety paddy has been increased by Rs 200 per quintal to Rs 1,750 per quintal for the Kharif season 2018-19. Jul 23, 2018 12:17 (IST) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA T Raja Singh stood by his statement. He said, "I do not say anything wrong in the video. The Parliament should pass a bill for the protection of cows and cow should also be declared as 'Gau Raj Mata', then only such incidents will stop." Jul 23, 2018 11:51 (IST) All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi said the report questioning the role of the Rajasthan Police in the Alwar lynching case didnt come as a shock to him. The same thing happened in Pehlu Khan case. The government, the police and these gaurakshaks are working together. Jul 23, 2018 11:45 (IST) TDP MP Jayadev Galla: We had been moving the no-confidence motion for entire second half of budget session, finally the discussion took place but PM Narendra Modi didn't bother to answer any of our questions, we heard the same statements, so nothing has changed for us, no option rather than to protest. Jul 23, 2018 11:41 (IST) Meanwhile, Congress MPs from Punjab protested over unemployment outside Parliament Jul 23, 2018 11:35 (IST) Anand Sharma: The central investigation agencies have a role to perform under the constitution. They are not instruments to be used by the govt of the day for political vendetta or for persecuting senior government officials. There cannot be any discrimination. Jul 23, 2018 11:31 (IST) Rajya Sabha has been adjourned till 12 noon after a ruckus ensued. Jul 23, 2018 11:27 (IST) BJP MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe gives notice for suspension of business in Rajya Sabha today to take up the issue of flood and other natural calamities due to heavy rain in several parts of country. pic.twitter.com/Y7qfWPHzQx ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 Jul 23, 2018 11:26 (IST) Ahead of the monsoon session of Parliament today, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe gave a notice for suspension of business in Rajya Sabha to take up the issue of flood and other natural calamities due to heavy rain in several parts of the country. Jul 23, 2018 11:18 (IST) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Leader Ananth Kumar targeted the opposition and said that "disunity among opposition parties is clear now, their strategy of moving no-confidence motion has already fallen flat and that was the first earthquake." He further asserted that since Rahul Gandhi has now been affirmed as the leader, there will be the second earthquake and everything will get finished hence. Jul 23, 2018 11:10 (IST) Mallikarjun Kharge, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, trained his guns on the government over the Alwar lynching. The gaurakshaks are creating a mess, and another person has been killed in MP on suspicion of child lifting. The government is supporting such people, the BJP and the RSS are backing it, the democracy is in danger. Maybe the BJP and RSS are not listening to the Prime Minister or maybe they are working on his instructions, he said. Jul 23, 2018 11:00 (IST) ANI tweeted an image from the site of protest today ahead of today's monsoon session of Parliament: #Delhi: TDP MPs protest in front of Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament over special category status to Andhra Pradesh and implementation of AP re-organizing Act #MonsoonSession pic.twitter.com/5fxr8r0Ul9 ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 Jul 23, 2018 10:59 (IST) Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MPs have staged a dharna near Mahatma Gandhi statue in the parliament premises since 10.30 am today over special category status to Andhra Pradesh and implementation of AP re-organizing Act. Jul 23, 2018 10:55 (IST) Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Parliamentary Party leader Shri Y.S.Chowdary has given a notice in Rajya Sabha under Rule 267 ahead of today's monsoon session. Jul 23, 2018 10:53 (IST) Telugu Desam Party (TDP) to continue its protests both inside and outside the parliament in today's monsoon session for Special Category Status and implementation of Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act. Jul 23, 2018 10:48 (IST) CPI leader D Raja has given suspension of business notice in Rajya Sabha over Alwar lynching incident Jul 23, 2018 10:41 (IST) Human-trafficking is the worst violation of human rights and the third largest organised crime after drugs and the arms trade across the globe. Men and women, including children, continue to be vulnerable to human trafficking for domestic work, forced labour, forced marriage and sexual slavery. The problem of trafficking is particularly prevalent in India since it is a source, destination and transit country for victims of trafficking. Jul 23, 2018 10:40 (IST) Parliament is scheduled to discuss the Anti-Trafficking Bill today in its ongoing monsoon session. The Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill was introduced in the monsoon session of the Lok Sabha on July 18, 2018 by Maneka Gandhi, the Minister for Women and Child Development. Shimla : Himachal Pradesh will manage and improve its forest ecosystems under a Rs 800-crore project funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), official sources said on Sunday. JICA-India official Katsuo Matsumoto will visit the state capital on Monday for the launch workshop of the project, where Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur will also be present. The 10-year project on 'Improvement of Himachal Pradesh Forest Ecosystems Management and Livelihoods', which began this fiscal, will be implemented in 61 ranges in seven forest circles in Kinnaur, Shimla, Bilaspur, Mandi, Kullu and Lahaul-Spiti districts, an official spokesperson told IANS. He said a loan agreement for the project was signed in Tokyo, Japan, on March 29 in the presence of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. The project provides for 80 per cent loan and the remaining amount will be state equity. Of the loan component, 90 per cent will be a grant from the Centre. The project aims at sustainable management of forest ecosystems, biodiversity conservation, livelihood improvement support and strengthening institutional capacity. The JICA is already providing a Rs 321 crore assistance to the state under a crop diversification project since 2011 for bettering the socioeconomic condition of farmers in Mandi, Kangra, Hamirpur, Bilaspur and Una districts. New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for Rwanda on the first leg of his five-day, three-nation tour of Africa that will also take him to Uganda and South Africa. "Embarking on a momentous journey to strengthen our historical bond with Africa," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweetetd. This will be the first ever prime ministerial visit from India to Rwanda. From Rwanda, Modi will reach Uganda on July 24 in what will be the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in 21 years. From Uganda, the Prime Minister will reach South Africa on July 25 where he will attend this year's Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) Summit. "India shares close, warm and friendly relations with Africa which are cemented by robust development partnership and a large presence of the Indian diaspora," the Prime Minister's Office said in a pre-departure statement. "A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the visit," it stated. This is Modi's second official visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi's five-day, three-nation tour of Africa starting on Monday will see India reaching out first bilaterally and then multilaterally under the BRICS umbrella to the continent. "The visit to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa will further strengthen our relations with the African continent," the External Affairs Ministry said. Over the last few years, there has been significant engagement in various fields with African countries. There have been 23 outgoing visits to Africa by the President, Vice President and Prime Minister in the last four years. "Africa has been the top priority of India's foreign policy," the statement said. Cooperation in defence and agriculture will be Modi's priorities during his bilateral visits to Rwanda and Uganda before he goes to South Africa for the annual Brazil, Russia, India China, South Africa (BRICS) Summit. This will be Modi's second visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. Modi will reach Rwanda on July 23 in what will be the first ever Prime Ministerial visit from India to the East African nation. India elevated its ties with Rwanda, seen as an important gateway to eastern Africa, to that of a Strategic Partnership in January last year. Briefing the media, T.S. Tirumurti, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the External Affairs Ministry, said India will open its first mission in Rwanda very soon. India's current High Commissioner to Rwanda has residence in Kampala, Uganda. Rwanda is also a recipient of Indian lines of credit of nearly $400 million and of Indian training and scholarship programmes. During Modi's visit, two more lines of credit are expected to be signed - one of $100 million for industrial parks and a similar amount for agriculture and irrigation. "We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture and culture," Tirumurti said. In Rwanda, Modi will visit Rweru model village to gift 200 cows as part of a programme overseen by President Kagame wherein the poorest families get dairy cows from the government and the first female calf born of the cow is gifted to a neighbour to promote brotherhood. From Rwanda, Modi will reach Uganda on July 24 in what will the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister in 21 years. Tirumurti said training and capacity building had been the focus of defence cooperation between India and Uganda. India has an Indian military training team stationed in Jinja since 2010. Apart from calling on Ugandan President Yowei Museveni and holding delegation-level talks, Modi will take part in an India-Uganda joint business event and address the Ugandan parliament, the first ever by an Indian Prime Minister. He will also address members of the Indian community in Uganda. "We expect to extend two lines of credit for the first time to Uganda of $141 million regarding electricity lines and sub-stations and $64 million for agriculture and dairy production," Tirumurti said. From Uganda, Modi will reach South Africa on July 25 on the third and last leg of his visit. Besides the BRICS Summit, Modi will also hold a bilateral meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa, who assumed office in February. South Africa is organising the 10th BRICS leaders' Summit under the theme "BRICS in Africa: Collaboration with Developing Countries for Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity in the Fourth Industrial Revolution". Modi, along with other BRICS leaders, will participate in the restricted session, plenary session, leaders' retreat, outreach with leaders from Africa and outreach with leaders from the global South. In the BRICS-Africa outreach, those invited include Rwanda, Uganda, Togo, Zambia, Namibia, Senegal, Gabon, Ethiopia, Angola and the African Union Chair. In the BRICS-plus outreach, the invited countries of the global South include Argentina, Turkey, Indonesia, Jamaica and Egypt. On the sidelines of the BRICS Summit, Modi will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping. This will be the third meeting between the two leaders this year. Islamabad : Pakistan on Monday strongly condemned the terrorist attack outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in the Afghan capital that claimed 14 lives and injured over 60 people. The suicide blast rocked the airport shortly after Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum returned to the country after more than a year in exile. Militant group Islamic State claimed the attack. The Pakistan Foreign Ministry expressed the "deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives". "We express our support and solidarity with the people and government of Afghanistan in this hour of grief," the ministry's spokesman said in a statement. He said Pakistan reiterates its condemnation of terrorism in all forms and manifestations and the resolve to eliminate this menace. Johannesburg : South African police said on Sunday that they are investigating a deadly shooting at a taxi which led to 11 deaths. South Africa Police Service said that on Saturday night, a taxi from Gauteng province transporting people who attended a funeral came under fire between Colenso and Weenen. Unknown suspects jumped into the road from the bushes and opened fire, it said. Xinhua news agency quoted a police spokesperson as confirming that there had been 11 fatalities while four people were seriously injured. The victims were allegedly from a taxi association in Gauteng. South Africa taxi operators often clash with each other for ranking facilities and routes. Sorry! This content is not available in your region A few suggestions for print storage boxes: My personal favorites are Century Archival boxes. These are simple, sturdy, plain boxes but much more elegant than single-wall board boxes such as metal-edge boxes. "Slimline" (shallow depth) Century Archival box I prefer the ones that aren't too deep because once they're full of prints you can store them vertically on bookshelves. Of course that works better for the smaller print sizes. I particularly like the elegant 11x14x1 size, which fit on the same bookshelves I keep my photo books on. 8x10-inch Century Archival box 11x14-inch Century Archival box (1 inch deep, B&H; 2 inches deep, B&H; 1 inch deep, Amazon; 2 inches deep, Amazon.) 14x18-inch Century Archival box (B&H Photo, Amazon) 13x19-inch Century Archival box (1.5 inches deep, B&H Photo, Amazon) 16x20-inch Century Archival box (For larger sizes, museum cases are sturdier. Read on.) Solander cases If you have the luxury of storing boxes flat, you're in luck these days. When fine, thick-walled archival Solander cases were made by American and British bookbinders, they cost so much that the market for them gradually withered away. I have an old Spink and Gabor (formerly "Gaborc") Solander case with a leather handle that is gorgeous. But now, China to the rescue! Actually I don't know where these are made. China's just a guess. Museum cases The classic drop-back design was invented by the Swedish botanist Daniel Solander (1733-1782) while working for the British Museum Anyway, offshore (shall we say) fabrication has made Solander cases accessible again. Here are two brands that are beautiful but aren't too expensive: Archival Methods 14x18x2.5" Solander Museum Case (see the dropdown menu at the web page for other sizes) Print File 14x18 Solander case (search the website for other sizes) Note that the Print File cases are special-order products and can take a while to arrive. For plain out-of-sight storage, search the term "metal edge box" at B&H Photo, Amazon, or other sources. Plain ol' utilitarian metal edge boxes are acid-free and will not rot your photographs If you need a full-line archival museum supplies company, try Conservation Resources International in Oxford, UK, and Virginia, USA. Be aware that such businesses in general sometimes have a wait time before shipping product. CRI is better than some others. Mike Original contents copyright 2018 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. B&H Photo Amazon US Amazon UK Amazon Germany Amazon Canada Adorama (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.) Featured Comments from: Kenneth Tanaka: "I second Mikes endorsement of the Century brand clamshell print storage boxes. They are rather pricey but they are quite robust. One key distinction they have over less expensive boxes is that the ends are robust enough to remain at 90 degrees rather than beginning to poke-out over time. I would also caution people to strongly consider whether or not they really need museum cases. Having spent much time in museum vaults handling museum cases my warning is that they are heavy. Darn heavy!. Their frames are made of wood and the panels must be made of lead (at least they feel that way by the end of a day schlepping them). If you go with simple archival metal-edged boxes (which are also just fine) be sure to get ones that feature drop-front bottoms. It makes removal of prints so much easier than simple closed-in edges." Peter Komar (partial comment): "Wow, I actually own all three types of these cases, they all work quite nicely. My favorite is the hinged type with the carry handle but I only have one of that style. The others work just fine and I consider the last one for work-in-progress prints that have not yet been matted for presentation." Rodger P. Kingston: "My biggest problem with portfolio boxes is that so few of them are available in digital print sizes: 8.5x11, 13x19, and 17x22 for example. If all us digital photographers can get used to these new sizes, you'd think that the box manufacturers could adapt as well. I'm forced to use the rather flimsy boxes and envelopes that printing papers come in (they don't look too impressive when you're showing work to a curator or gallery director). Does anybody out there know if any of these boxes mentioned above also come in the digital sizes? Or know of any other brands that do?" Mike replies: Mark Hobson, who visited here a few days ago, told a funny story about using paper boxes for prints. He had a presentation to make at Kodak some years ago. He was careful to print the pictures for the proposal on Kodak paperanything else was considered a major faux pasbut when he was in the elevator heading to the meeting at Kodak headquarters, he suddenly realized he'd had a major brain fart and was carrying the prints in an Agfa box! With no way to change at that point, he just soldiered through the presentation. He was luckyit didn't turn out to be his last job for Kodak. It's really strange that after a great many years with standardized photo paper sizes, we somehow decided to switch to completely different sizes for digital inkjet paper. It makes no sense, and furthermore I don't know by what odd mechanism the new consensus was reached. It seems to have to come about by some type of black magic or mass delusion. However it happened, it's pointless, needless, and confusing. JOHN GILLOOLY: "I've been following these posts with particular interest. My personal experience is that when I use boxes, I seem to never actually open them! The prints seem to go in and never surface again. I have settled on a hybrid of your suggestions. I have settled upon 8.5x11-inch stock and I print various image sizes on that canvas. But I have decided to use the Itoya Art Profolio products. Most of my printing consist of 6x9 on 8.5x11 stock. Usually Epson Premium Luster or Portfolio Rag. Most of these prints are of family and I have been making a concerted effort to write the appropriate info on the back of each print. For these family images, I have been using the thicker volume book which has 90 pages for a 180 print book. For "art" prints, I do have some in the archival boxes but also mostly use these same Itoya products for that as well. I often pick through those books and send prints to a client for some occasion. But I love the idea that was mentioned of the 'wine party.'" AN: "Regarding the change in standard photo paper sizes, I imagine it's due to copier/printer manufacturers (and copier/printer paper manufacturers) sticking with the ANSI standards they were already using before they all got into the photo printing market. Epsons and HPs and Canons and Ricohs were all primarily printing text documents before dabbling in graphics...and then better graphics...and then 'photo quality' graphics...and before you know it, there's a photo printer designed for standard document-size paper, and a bunch of paper options that have crept along the same development path in parallel. The fact that ANSI sizes are all a bit bigger than the closest classic photo print sizes (and therefore can be cut down, if desired) would just ease any friction in the transition." The sextoy market is growing quite rapidly in India right now. Although it is not a big trend, it is a hot topic on the internet as it is secretly expanding its market. In this article, we will focus on sextoy and introduce recommended sextoy for Indian beginners of sextoy by gender. India, the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, is very strict about sex. Also, premarital sex is basically not allowed. Therefore, there are many people who are sexually restricted. But what happens when you continue to be sexually restricted? Frustration may build up and you may end up taking your sexual stress out on your partner. If you are able to adopt sextoy in a timely manner, you can get rid of those problems. I want to have more exciting sex than Im having now. I want more variation in masturbation I want to get even stronger pleasure than I do on my own. If you have any of these problems, please stay with me until the end. What is sex toys for Indian? Sextoy, as the name implies, is a toy used during sex and masturbation. It is a generic term for vibrators, Egg-vibrators, Electric massagers, dildo, handcuffs and condoms. They are used to make regular sex more exciting or to make masturbation more pleasurable. Because sextoy is very stimulating, it can help you to get rid of the problems and frustrations of being in a rut of sex with your partner for a long time, or if you are unhappy with the lack of pleasure in sex with your partner. The ability to satisfy your desires with movement, texture, and size, which cannot be done by a normal human being, can help you to be satisfied with sex and, as a result, improve your relationship with your partner. It is also said to help improve sexual dysfunction (inability to get an erection or ejaculate) and difficulty in feeling during sex (insensitivity), which is attracting more attention than in the past. In recent years, the demand for sextoy has increased due to the spread of smartphones and the Internet and the increasing number of people using online shopping. Even those who are concerned about the appearance of sextoy (and find it difficult to purchase) can now easily obtain it by using mail order. In the case of online shopping, most of the stores have taken steps to ensure that the contents of the products delivered to you are not revealed, so you can purchase them without your family members knowing. Until a while ago, you had to go to the store where the adult goods were sold to buy them, so it was quite a hurdle to overcome. Also, many people may have an image that sextoy is somehow embarrassing to own. But nowadays, some of them are so stylish and cute that you cant believe they are sextoy at a glance. More and more people are using them for travel and outdoor use because they are not too bulky and are suitable for carrying around. Sextoy situation in India Before introducing the recommended sextoy for Indians, lets talk about one of the sextoy situations in India in recent years. In India, due to the high concentration of population, the following six cities have particularly high sales of sextoy in India. Mumbai Kolkata Bangalore Delhi Chennai Hyderabad These cities account for roughly 70 percent of sextoy sales in India. In the future, the percentage of sextoy use will gradually increase in other cities in India as well. If you never talk about sextoy publicly, that girl in your neighborhood might be a sextoy user too. If you are interested in sextoy, you dont have to suppress your desire for it. What are Sextoys for beginner? Among all sextoys, sextoy for beginners are vibrators, dildo, masturbators, Sex Lubricants, and condoms. Sex Lubricants and condoms, which are familiar to people who have had sex, are also a great beginners sextoy. I will explain the details of each toy later, but there are many sextoy products that are painful to use and can only be used after some anal expansion. I assume that the Indian readers of this article are people who have not had much experience with sextoy. If such people use professional sextoy suddenly, they are at risk of injury or trauma. Therefore, to introduce sextoy, you need to start with a beginners version and gradually become familiar with it. Advantages of using sextoy for Indians There are three advantages of using sextoy for Indians You can masturbate in a wide variety of ways. Can have stimulating sex Can develop new sexual zones If you try to masturbate with your own fingers or hands, it tends to be a pattern. However, with sextoy, you can easily masturbate in a variety of ways. You will definitely be fascinated by the attraction of new stimulation. Also, your daily sex life will be more exciting than ever. There are many things in sextoy that are visually stimulating and give you a strong and intense feeling of pleasure. This allows you to see your partners promiscuity in a way that you wouldnt normally see it. When you are in a relationship, sex with your partner may become a pattern, but it can also eliminate these problems. It can also lead to the development of new sexual zones (which is the training of sexual stimulation to allow you to feel orgasms). For more information on the development of new sexual zones, see the following articles [Women's Erogenous Zone]How to find and develop, 7 hidden sexual zones !![In India] In this issue, we will dissect the female erogenous zone! ..." Many of you may be like that. Men, in particular, shou... Thus, the use of sextoy can only be a good thing for the men and women of India. Sextoy for beginner men in India So, lets continue with the recommended goods for Indian sextoy beginners. For ease of understanding, we will introduce them by gender. Lets start with the men! The following five goods are recommended for novice Indian sextoy men Masturbator Cock rings Love Doll Sex Lubricants Toys for the prostate Lets check each one in detail. Masturbator The masturbator is a sextoy for men that elaborately reproduces a womans vagina, mouth, and anus, and is one of the most popular sextoy products. It is used by men to masturbate, and it is popular because it provides stronger stimulation and pleasure more easily than using hands. Most are made of good quality silicone, and their softness is something that cannot be achieved with ones own hands. They can provide stronger pleasure than a real womans vagina, so be careful not to overuse them. (You wont be able to have an orgasm in a womans vagina anymore.) Again Male masturbators are a wonderful toy. I do not need any favourite timing, bothersome bargaining. You do not have to worry too much. Revolutionize your masturbation time! ! ! Made in Japan is a wonderful kinky toy.#sextoysindia #SexToyIndia #Japanhttps://t.co/4k70QGzoTP pic.twitter.com/tRVdxTKPpa SEXToys India PR (@SextoysIndia) November 12, 2018 Some of them are disposable, while others can be washed and used over and over again, so its fun to buy a few to use depending on your mood. If you want to know more about masturbator, please click here Really pleasant male masturbation and how to do it Are you in a rut with your daily masturbation routine? I'm going to show you five ways men masturbate that you might ... [For Beginners] How to choose and use a male masturbator without fail Gentlemen.Have you ever used a masturbator? The person who sees this article is probably the one who has not experien... Cock Ring A cock ring is literally a ring-shaped sextoy that is worn on a mans penis. It maintains an erection by binding the penis with a ring of rubber and blocking blood flow. It is sometimes used as an accessory to be worn on the penis, and may be made of metal or plastic as well as rubber. In some cases, cock rings have parts or vibrators attached to them that stimulate the vagina, so they kill two birds with one stone, giving a woman pleasure while maintaining an erection. Cock rings are also sometimes used to treat erectile dysfunction. It can help with erectile dysfunction, where the penis doesnt get hard when you get an erection or doesnt last long when you try to insert it. Men who are prone to breakage or who are unsure of the hardness and size of their erections can use a cock ring to increase the size of their penis and maintain an erection for a longer period of time. Cock rings vary in price from around RS700 to over RS2000 with a vibrator function. Some of them do not fit your penis, so you should check the size of the cock ring before you buy. You should know the size of your partners or your own penis when it is erect. [Penis enlargement] What is a cock ring? Types and usage Cock rings can make your penis bigger and harder. It also makes sex with women more fulfilling and increases your sat... Love Doll Love dolls, also known as Dutchwives, are dolls with the appearance of a woman who can experience simulated sex. There are dolls that look like a woman, but they have no face and only have their breasts and lower torso cut off, and some dolls are so realistic that they can actually be mistaken for real women. Some expensive dolls can cost more than 1 million yen, and the quality of the doll is easily influenced by the price. The higher the price, the higher the quality of the doll will be, the closer it will be to the real woman, and the cheaper the doll will be, the less elaborate it will be, making it look like a real doll! Something is wrong! That is also true. You cant go wrong if you choose a balance between price and taste. There are stores that allow you to make custom-made love dolls, so you can create a girl of your choice. You can make a girl of your choice. You can start with inexpensive love dolls at first, and once you get used to it, you can try custom-made love dolls. If you want to know more about Love doll, please click here Thorough explanation of the charm of sex dolls! Have you ever heard of sex dolls that are used primarily for pseudo-sex purposes? It is a doll that is quite close to... Sex lubricants Sex lubricants are used as a substitute for lubricating fluid during sex or as a lubricant for men to use masturbator rules. It is not uncommon for women to have difficulty getting wet, depending on their physical condition, or to have difficulty getting wet due to their constitution. Forcing the penis into the vagina at such times can cause painful intercourse. There are various types of Sex Lubricants, some with a warming effect, some with a cooling effect, and some with a scent. Changing the Sex Lubricant used during play is recommended as a good sex accent. If you want to learn more about Sex Lubricants, click here. What is sex lubricant?Explain the difference and usage of each ingredient The word "sex toy" may seem like a hurdle to overcome, but lotion is actually one of the most familiar sex toys. Many... Toys for the Prostate Another sextoy for men is prostate toys. The most famous prostate toys include Enemagra, which was originally a prostate massager developed by an American urologist to treat an enlarged prostate line. Modern prostate toys are imitations of Enemagra that have spread as sextoy for men. Many people think of prostate toys as being used by gay men, but in fact they are often used by straight men. What is the prostate? The prostate is an organ found only in men. It is a walnut-sized organ located deep in the pelvis, just below the bladder, and its primary role is to protect and nourish sperm. You cannot touch the prostate gland from outside the body, but you can touch it by inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus. By inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus and touching the prostate and developing it, you can feel intense orgasms. Orgasms felt in the prostate are mainly dry orgasms, which are orgasms that do not involve ejaculation. (You can also feel orgasms with ejaculation through prostate stimulation.) The prostate is called the male G-spot, and dry orgasms can be much more intense than ejaculation. Therefore, men who are able to develop a prostate can become addicted to the pleasure. sextoy for beinner women in India The following are the recommended goods for Indian women who are new to sextoy. The following three are recommended for use by women who are new to sextoy. Vibrator. Dildo Electric Masserger Lets check out what each one is in detail. If you want to check out womens toys, click here. [BEST25]Sex Toys for Women in IndiaThat Can Help You Have an Orgasm There are many women who pretend to feel orgasm during sex. But don't worry, you don't have to pretend to feel orgasm... Vibrators A vibrator is a sextoy that vibrates with an Egg-Vibrator to provide stimulation and is often referred to simply as a vibrator. Some vibrate as well as rotate, and there are many variations of sextoy. It is quite a popular sextoy, and is well recognized by people who do not know much about sextoy. Its usage is similar to that of a massager, but it is more compact and easier to carry than a massager, and many of them look as cute as a lipstick or a macaroon, so they are popular among women. For a while, a famous influencer on twitter said, This is good! You may have heard of the topic of this article by introducing the recommended vibrators. Vibrators are great for women to use on their own, but they are also recommended for men who have difficulty satisfying women with sex. Since it is powered by electricity, it is far less tiring than moving your hands by yourself. This makes it easier to satisfy a woman with sex because you can caress her for longer than usual. Vibrators are mainly used on the female side, but they can also be used on men. When used on men, they are used to attack the nipples and glans, and in both cases it is recommended to wear a condom for hygiene reasons. Introducing how to use the vibrator, its purpose, and how to choose it! Vibrator uses the vibrations caused by the rotation of the motor to provide stimulation. It is one or two of the most... Dildo A dildo is a model sextoy made to mimic a male penis. It can be made of silicone, elastomer (think of it as a material similar to PVC), metal or glass. A dildo can be used by a man for his female partner during sex, or by a woman for masturbation to get pleasure from it. They are mainly inserted into women, but some can be used in the male anus as well. It is sometimes used synonymously with vibrators, but the vibrator is not the same thing as a vibrating device. A model of a penis that does not vibrate is a dildo. Some of them have suction cups that can be attached to the floor or wall so that you can enjoy realistic masturbation without using your hands. For fun, there is a dildo made in the shape of your partners penis. This one is also popular as a gift, and if youve been together for a long time and are having trouble finding a gift for your partner, you might want to pick one. To learn more about dildo, please click here. What is Dildo: Orgasms with Dildos for Men and Women A dildo is a model of a male organ that is used by women for masturbation and by men to stimulate the prostate gland. Th... Electric Masserger A Electric Masserger is a hand-held electric massager, also known as a handheld massager, and can usually be purchased at electronics stores. It was originally designed to relieve stiff shoulders and back pain, so the hurdle of buying one in a physical store is quite low. Many people may have seen or used it in some form or another, as it is often installed in leisure hotels. Such a massager is highly recommended for beginners because it is easy for women to get pleasure from it when they use it during masturbation. It is larger than Egg-Vibrator and vibrations are stronger than those of Egg-Vibrators and vibrators, so even just hitting the clitoris can give you a great deal of pleasure. For those women who have never had an orgasm during sex with their man, the massager may be a good way to get a feel for what it feels like to have an orgasm. It looks and feels like an electric massager, so you wont have to feel awkward if your roommate finds out. If you are in a rut of having sex with your partner, if you want to feel an orgasm through masturbation, or if you are thinking of using a sextoy, why dont you try it from a simple massager? To learn more about Electric Masserger, click here. What is a massager? Introducing types, selection methods, and usage Originally, the Magic-wand vibrator and the massage machine were sold as a home massage machine used for the back and th... How to choose a sextoy for Indian Now that weve covered the different types of sextoy, heres how to choose one. Especially if you are trying sextoy for the first time, pay attention to the following three points: Does the size fit you (the partner)? Does the size fit you (your partner)? Is the environment able to produce sound without problems? Price range First of all, the choice of size is quite important. Most sextoy are used against or inserted into the genitals, but the genitals are very delicate organs for both men and women. For this reason, using an inappropriate size may cause damage. Secondly, the environment should be able to produce sound without problems. Some sextoys not only wear, but also rotate and vibrate. Its easier to get pleasure from something that moves than something that doesnt, but the fact that it moves means that the internal rotors make some noise. If you live in a house with thin walls or if you have roommates, you may not be able to concentrate because of the noise, so it is best to choose one that is silent or has a low noise level. Especially in India, where many people live with their families, it is very important that you dont have to worry about sound when you use it. Finally, there is the price range. The price range of sextoy ranges widely, from around RS500 at the cheapest to RS10,000 or more at the highest. Its good to consider how much money you can afford and how much you want to buy. Do you want your family to not find out about sextoy? I live with my family and want to use sextoy without them finding out! If you are a man, you should buy a camouflage sextoy that does not look like a sextoy at first glance. For men, there are many masturbators that do not look like a sextoy, and for women, there are vibrators that only look like cosmetics. If you choose such a type, youll be safe in case your family members find out. How to buy sextoys in India The best way to purchase sextoy is through online shopping. For more information on how to purchase sextoy, please see the article below. Sextoy is one of them. Therefore, you can easily get sextoy in India by using online shopping. SexToysINDIA is a long established and stable sextoy store and you can have sextoy delivered to any place in India. They also offer cash on delivery, so those who are worried about shopping with a credit card do not have to worry. Of course, the latest security is in place, so your information will not be taken out when you use your credit card. To begin with, many people may be concerned about whether they are legally allowed to purchase sextoy. ikmAs it turns out, its not illegal. Right now, it is not open to the public because the Indian adult market is still in the development stage, but it will gradually spread from now on. Take advantage of sextoy and open the door to new pleasures and culture. Cautions for Indians using sextoy When using sextoy, keep the following three things in mind Keep sex toys clean Watch out for electrical leakage Beware of the heat generated by the body while using a sex toy As I mentioned earlier, many sextoy products are used for the delicate zone. Therefore, it is most important to keep the sextoy itself clean. It is very important to keep the sextoy itself clean, because if a slight scratch is created by friction, bacteria can enter and breed there. It is safe to wear a condom when using the masturbator, just in case. In addition, many sextoy devices are powered by a power source, so if they are not waterproof, there is a possibility of electric shock or malfunction due to wetness. Some may even develop heat during continuous use. If the fever becomes too much, you may get burned, so be careful. If you get a fever during use, stop driving the sextoy immediately and refrain from using it. You will enjoy sex more if you keep it safe and use it correctly. Summary What did you think? In this article, we have introduced the recommended sextoy for the beginners of sextoy in India. The sextoy market is growing rapidly in India and it will continue to grow steadily in the future. As India is a rather closed-minded country, it can be difficult to be open about ones sexual habits and values. However, being faithful to ones desires by properly dissolving ones sexual desire is very effective for ones physical and mental health. If this is your first time to learn about sextoy, or if you are interested in using sextoy, why not give it a try? Indian Sextoys for ur best! will introduce you to sextoy and other trivia about sextoy, sexuality, and sexuality for men and women. I want to read more! If you think its a great idea, please bookmark it. Facebook sponsoring a conference featuring a radical left-wing speaker who wants to overthrow America, open all borders and end free market capitalism A representative for Facebook, along with reps from the other social media giants Alphabet/Google/YouTube and Twitter appeared before the House Judiciary Committee last week to defend their platforms against allegations by conservatives that they are censoring or shadow-banning right-leaning, pro-Trump content. Naturally, all three companies denied that was occurring, and Democrats on the panel worked hard to give the social media behemoths all the political cover in the world, casting aspersions at those who claim the censorship is real as though its some kind of deep, dark conspiracy. The censorship and shadow banning are real alright, and if Left-wing pro-establishment news sites were somehow being targeted instead, of course, Democrats would be climbing the walls with anger and rage, screaming First Amendment! and proclaiming the death of the Constitution. But to prove that Silicon Valley-based social media is indeed in the tank for the emerging Marxist Party, Facebook has agreed to co-sponsor a Left-wing extremist conference featuring socialist darling Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the 28-year-old political novice who would govern to the Left of the Castros in Cuba if given the chance. As reported by The Daily Caller: Topics at the 2018 Netroots Nation conference include menstrual equity, harnessing the political power of black immigrants and youth-led campaigns to promote social justice. The Aug. 2-4 conference, touted as the nations largest annual gathering of progressives, will also include several panels aimed at boosting the Democratic Party and bashing President Donald Trump. Now, to be fair, Facebook has also co-sponsored conservative events in the past such as the Conservative Political Action Conference, but thats likely because even Left-wing Silicon Valley must expend a little effort to placate the Right-leaning side of Congress, especially while Republicans are in charge of both chambers. But clearly, given Facebooks crushing censorship of conservatives, its very clear which side of the aisle the platforms hierarchy falls. (Related: Calling for all videos that have been banned by YouTube you now have a platform for true expression.) As for Ocasio-Cortez, sponsorship of an event where she is scheduled to appear is akin to sponsoring an event for a foreign power that seeks to overthrow the American system of government. Thats not hyperbole; thats a bold statement of fact. Ocasio-Cortez is literally for nothing that has anything to do with our nations founding: Free market capitalism, law and order, border control, freedom of assembly and speech, opportunity, upholding all of the Constitution (especially the Second Amendment) and small government. Anti-American system To her, the ideal system is, well, socialism. After all, shes a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. She hates capitalism and, like other brainwashed Marxists, believes that nations and peoples can sustain themselves simply by imposing social justice measures. She hates profits and would redistribute any and all corporate and business profits to the people that is until she runs out of their money (which would happen eventually because businesses not permitted to make a profit shut down and take their jobs somewhere else). Borders? Forget it. Anyone and everyone who wanted to flood our cities and towns with incompatible social and cultural mores not to mention a language barrier would be allowed to emigrate to the newly-open United States, thereby ensuring chaos and unrest. All border enforcement agencies would be disbanded, and in fact, those who currently worked for ICE and the Border Patrol would likely be criminally prosecuted. This is the kind of nation Ocasio-Cortez envisions. This is the kind of governing system she wants. This is the economic model she would impose. None of it would work because pure socialism has never worked. Our country would cease to exist as founded, lapse into chaos, and the rest of the world we largely protect would blow up. So when Facebook co-sponsors events featuring political figures who would destroy our country, what does that really say about the company? Read more about socialism-induced collapse at Collapse.news. J.D. Heyes is also editor-in-chief of The National Sentinel. Sources include: DailyCaller.com WesternJournal.com TheNationalSentinel.com Startups have never had it easy. Big businesses hate disruption, and when a new company starts doing things differently, established players do everything they can to steal the ideas and squash the competition. PepsiCo, for example, has mechanized the process. Through its partnership with Black Swan Data, PepsiCo hopes to identify trends before they become, well, trendy and beat would-be disruptors to the punch in an effort to compete with its smaller competitors. This is because, as PepsiCo leaders suggest, smaller businesses are better able to keep up with trends. Fortunately, startups dont have to let big players such as PepsiCo steal their advantages without a fight. The biggest companies have the deepest pockets and the most service lines, so small companies must focus on niches, becoming industry specialists and offering nimble customer service. Old-fashioned relationship building is the key. Most big players rely on dial-up customer service, but they dont make in-person visits to facilities and events. Startups excel in the trenches where big companies dont bother to go. Through superior customer service and personal relationships, startups can provide something that no big company can match. The trick for small companies is to act like a small business while demonstrating the power of a larger one. By using the right combination of tactics, startups can not only survive in this cutthroat environment, but also thrive. Related: 5 Ways Startups Can Help Time-Tested, Traditional Industries Evolve 1. Always respond to prospects quickly and personally. Smaller companies differentiate themselves from big ones through faster, more in-depth human communication. One company recently sent me a form email about buying a list from a database. I sent back my interest, but only received a second form email in response -- one that didnt even answer my questions. If a real person had emailed me back with answers to my specific questions, that company likely would have earned my business. Whether in person or on the phone, respond quickly and personally to maximize the small business charm. Companies of all sizes have adopted automated software for marketing, but relying on automation loses the personal touch that differentiates small businesses from corporations. If a consumer demonstrates interest in an automated channel -- such as an email or ad -- the worst way for a small company to respond is with an automated reaction. When we notice a prospect engages with one of our digital platforms, we have a person reach out to acknowledge the engagement and request a call. 2. Dont solve unique problems with standard solutions. Big companies fit clients into preset boxes. Smaller companies can be nimble in their ability to customize offerings to match specific needs. Thats why PepsiCo wants to stay on trend: to compete with smaller, more agile brands. Startups should take advantage of this by providing more specific service to customers who would fall through the cracks at larger entities. One of our clients, Toyota Forklifts, chose our small company over plenty of bigger options for this reason. Toyota needed specific help that no one offered. Rather than go with good enough from a big provider, Toyota asked us how much it would cost to hire the people we would need to power the new program. Thats an uncommon level of customization, but our small size allowed us to rework our internal structure to meet a need no one else could. Related: Do Your Clients Trust Your Team? 3 Ways to Ensure They Do 3. Keep the face of the company familiar. Big companies have big sales teams and lots of people who interact with clients. Small companies have only a few, but this can be a strength. McKinsey found that maximizing customer satisfaction through a consistent customer journey can potentially increase customer satisfaction by 20 percent and boost revenue by 15 percent. Keep the point of human contact as consistent as possible so prospects feel that theyre dealing with a person -- not a brand. While startups use personal service to get in front of clients, big companies invest in technology so they dont have to. Keep personnel the same through the inquiry, proposal, launch and implementation phases. Customers will feel more valued if they are not being shuffled from one department to the next. Salesforce is a successful, giant company, but there are no personalized terms for clients. The company has standard contracts, standard pricing, and a 1-800 number for prospects to call. In other words, the customers never talk to the same rep twice. When I spoke to the owner of a boat company who was considering Salesforce, he asked why, instead, he should consider us -- especially when the largest customer relationship management company in the world wanted his business. I asked him, Is the person you talked to at Salesforce today going to be the same person who will work with you after the sale? Those are the questions small companies must ask to compete with big businesses. Related: 4 CRM Hacks Every Entrepreneur Should Be Using No matter how much ground big companies cover, they cant be everything for every customer, and that leaves an opening for startups to survive and thrive. Small companies can leverage their agility, flexibility and creativity to go above and beyond for customers where the big businesses would otherwise get stuck in the mud. Small companies that focus on building active, solution-forward relationships with customers will find its easier to win out against the sluggish big businesses in todays fast-moving market. Related: 3 Tips for Thriving Among Industry Giants When Larger Rivals Come for Your Business, Use These 6 Tactics to Stay Ahead Don't Study the Competition. Study Winners in Other Industries. Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved SALISBURY An 18-year-old Sharon man is facing speeding and drunken driving charges in connection with a fatal accident on Housatonic River Road on Friday evening, police said. The accident killed 18-year-old Lukas Kosko, of North Canaan, police said. Christopher Hoyt, of West Cornwall Road, was arrested at the scene Friday after he allegedly failed field sobriety tests, state police said in a release. He was processed at Troop B in North Canaan and release after posting a $2,500 bail. Police responded to Housatonic River Road around 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Hoyt was driving a 1993 Jeep Wrangler and lost control of it coming around a corner, according to the accident report. The Jeep rode up an embankment, on the right shoulder of the road, and then overturned, coming to a final rest in the roadway, police said in the accident report. Kosko, who was a passenger in the car, was taken to Sharon Hospital and then via Life Star helicopter to Hartford Hospital for treatment of serious injuries, police said. He later died at the hospital. Hoyt declined medical attention at the scene, police said. Hoyt was wearing a seat belt but his passenger was not at the time of the crash, according to the accident report. The accident remains under investigation, police said. Hoyt is due in Superior Court in Torrington court on Aug. 3. Reaction to migration in the United States is deeply rooted in white-race anxiety over being out-numbered, a fear that also propels support for President Donald Trump, through the lens of racism. In the longer run, however, its not just white people who may need to worry about going extinct. Theres the matter of a sustainable future for every animate creature on this Earth that ought to be bothering all of us. Unfortunately, many people are too deeply obsessed with racial, religious, and nationalistic biases to even imagine what nature has in store for all of us. If we dont pay more attention to what we share than what divides us, well all eventually go extinct. A Majority Minority Society White people have been the majority of United States citizens since this country was founded, but in 2017, for the first time since the Census Bureau has released annual statistics in these categories, the countrys white non-Hispanic population declined. The Census added that, for the first time, more children are now being born in the United States who are minorities than who are white, at every age from zero to 9. Another report, authored by the University of Wisconsins Applied Population Lab, added at about the same time that during 2016, more European-Americans died than were born in 26 of the 50 states, more than at any previous period in U.S. history. At the same time, white-race extinction anxiety is the animating force behind nationalist movements in much of Europe, including Brexit in Great Britain, neo-fascism in Italy, neo-Nazism in Germany, a right-wing surge in Poland, and similar movements that now play an important role in Hungary and Austria. Race, Religion, and Nationalism In a century, perhaps, historians may ask why obsessions regarding race, religion, and nationalism played such an important role in our thinking (and conflict) today. All are preventing us from forging real solutions to the existential threat to everyones survival: preservation of a sustainable habitat. Perhaps future historians may muse that some of us experienced fear of the wrong people for the wrong reasons, along lines of conflict that endure from a time when human beings were not the overwhelming influence on the planets destiny that we are today that is before fossil fuels provided unprecedented power, prosperity, and peril. Some of us still do not realize that we all share the same atmosphere, the same problems, and the same destiny even those who deny that a problem exists. A gated community will not keep it out. No wall will screen it out. More people are sharing less arable land that is more often being devastated by nature brutalized by rising levels of greenhouse gases. At the same time, inequity of wealth is accelerating, creating more political, economic, and climate refugees. More than 65 million people are now ranging the world homeless, whether escaping gangs in Central America, or the destruction of farmland in Syria. Climate change is often a trigger mechanism that makes everything else worse, as migration increases, in a vicious cycle. Common Destiny or Common Demise For example, drought and rising temperatures in Guatemala are making it more difficult for people to survive, most notably as coffee rust, (la roya) becomes more widespread. El Salvador, one of the worlds most murderous countries, has been experiencing drought that has devastated its agricultural infrastructure, even as an expanding Sahel in Africa prompts thousands of people to seek new homes in Europe. Yemen, Syria and other countries also are suffering drought, with similar effects on out-migration. About 22 million people, a third of the worlds 65 million refugees (a record high) have been forced from their homes because of environmental degradation or climate change, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. This includes tragedies like the widespread famine in Darfur, monsoons and flooding in Bangladesh and catastrophic hurricanes such as Maria in Puerto Rico. President Trump, as usual, is fighting the wrong enemies. The world-wide surge of immigration will cease only when conditions at home improve, and that requires addressing social and political conditions at their roots. It also requires world-wide work on climate change at a time when Trump and former EPA head Scott Pruitt deny that a problem even exists. While denying climate change, Trump and company are actually aggravating illegal immigration. Carbon dioxide has no politics. It merely holds heat. We will realize and deal with our common problems, or meet a common demise. Bruce E. Johansen is the Frederick W. Kayser University Research Professor in the School of Communication at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Email him at bjohansen@unomaha.edu. VANCOUVER, July 23, 2018 /CNW/ - Namaste Technologies Inc. ("Namaste" or the "Company") (CSE: N), (FRANKFURT: M5BQ), (OTCMKTS: NXTTF) is pleased to announce the filing of its unaudited quarterly financial statements, management's discussion and analysis and certification of the quarterly filings for the third quarter of fiscal 2018. The statements for the period can be accessed on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. The Company's net revenues for the three months ended May 31, 2018 were $4.1 million (2017 $3.1 million), which is an increase of $1.0 million or 32% as compared to the three months ended May 31, 2017. The increase in net revenues during the third quarter of 2018 was primarily due to organic growth in the Company. The Company's net revenues for the nine months ended May 31, 2018 were $14.6 million (2017 $7.1 million), which is an increase of $7.5 million or 106% as compared to the nine months ended May 31, 2017 despite having divested the Company's U.S. business in December 2017. The increase in net revenues during the nine months ended May 31, 2018 was primarily due to revenue growth from EDIT domains and Australian Vaporizers. EDIT domains were acquired in October 2016 and Australian Vaporizers was acquired in March 2017. Revenues by country For three months ended For nine months ended Country May 31, 2018 May 31, 2017- Restated May 31, 2018 May 31, 2017- Restated United Kingdom 1,168,003 809,957 3,748,179 2,095,184 Australia 1,291,727 1,047,628 3,941,927 1,217,883 United States of America 5,075 445,834 1,822,844 1,883,363 Brazil 384,467 166,409 1,119,790 368,923 Canada 566,781 117,763 1,601,228 276,986 Germany 204,250 84,189 754,738 140,286 New Zealand 85,919 79,467 262,117 288,784 Ireland 88,133 55,998 244,113 143,262 Israel 16,704 56,037 116,450 104,640 Other 251,162 227,923 1,015,775 566,188 Total 4,062,221 3,091,205 14,627,161 7,085,499 The majority of revenues were generated by several key markets. For the three and nine months ended May 31, 2018, the top five revenue earning countries generated 90% and 84% of revenues, respectively. For the three and nine months ended May 31, 2017, the top five revenue earning countries generated 87% and 87% of revenues, respectively. The Company's cost of sales for the three months ended May 31, 2018 were $3.2 million (2017 $2.4 million), which resulted in a gross profit of $0.9 million (2017 $0.7 million). The gross profit increased by $0.2 million or 31% primarily due to the growth in revenue. The gross profit margin of 21% was comparable to the gross margin of 22% in the same period last year. Management is focused on the expansion of its globally diversified platform of e-commerce websites to reinforce its position as "Your Everything Cannabis Store" by selling all cannabis-related products ranging from vaporizers and smoking accessories to CBD products, as well as personal growing and extraction equipment. The Company is actively engaged with Health Canada in relation to Namaste's wholly owned subsidiary and Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations ("ACMPR") Licensed Producer, Cannmart, which awaits its medical cannabis "sales-only" license. Namaste acquired Findify AB ("Findify" or "Findify.io") during its third quarter. Findify is a leading artificial intelligence ("AI") software company, which uses machine learning algorithms to track users' behavior online in real-time, and provide a more personalized buying experience. Findify's technology works to provide better recommendations to consumers and to optimize search results that are customized to the user's choice patterns. The Company is working with Findify's management team to develop a marketing and roll-out strategy that will introduce the technology across Namaste's e-commerce platform and offer it to other companies in the industry. Management Commentary Kenneth Ngo, CFO of Namaste comments: "We are pleased to see a 32% increase in quarterly revenue compared to the same period last year, due to organic growth in the Company's vaporizer business. The Q3 results are very encouraging especially considering that Namaste divested its U.S assets and revenue which accounted for 14.4% of the total revenue during Q3 of 2017. The acquisition of Findify AB in the quarter was the largest acquisition to date in the history of Namaste. This acquisition will bring significant value to Namaste and its shareholders by accelerating the Company's growth in revenue." Sean Dollinger, President and CEO of Namaste comments: "Our Q3 financial results show continuous growth year-on-year, and this quarter also represented major milestones for the Company including the acquisition of Findify, which we believe will drive significant revenue going forward by increasing customer conversion and retention. We are working on several integrations of Findify's technology in real-world applications of AI within the cannabis industry that will be impactful in understanding patients' needs and in personalizing their online experience. Namaste will continue to focus and developing innovative technology which drives revenue and brings long term value to the company. Our quarterly results are very encouraging and have not factored in any cannabis sales or the sale of CBD products in international markets, which we are highly focused on presently. We're looking forward to seeing impactful results in these new sales channels in the near future." About Namaste Technologies Inc. Namaste Technologies is Your Everything Cannabis Store. Namaste operates the largest global cannabis e-commerce platform with over 30 websites in 20+ countries under various brands. Namaste's product offering through its subsidiaries includes vaporizers, glassware, accessories, CBD products, and the company will soon be selling medical cannabis in the Canadian market, subject to approval by Health Canada. Namaste has developed and acquired innovative technology platforms including NamasteMD.com, Canada's first Health Canada compliant telemedicine application, and in May 2018 the Company acquired a leading e-commerce AI and Machine Learning Company, Findify AB. Findify uses artificial intelligence algorithms to optimize and personalize a consumer's on-site buying experience. Namaste is focused on leveraging its cutting-edge technology to enhance the user experience throughout its platforms. Namaste will continue to develop and acquire innovative technologies which will provide value to the Company and to its shareholders as well as to the broader cannabis market. On behalf of the Board of Directors "Sean Dollinger" Chief Executive Officer Further information on the Company and its products can be accessed through the links below: NamasteTechnologies.com NamasteMD.com NamasteVapes.ca Everyonedoesit.ca Forward Looking Information This press release contains forward-looking information based on current expectations. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those implied by such statements. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions. The Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect new events or circumstances unless required by law. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this press release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Company's disclosure documents which can be found under the Company's profile on www.sedar.com. This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The CSE has neither reviewed nor approved the contents of this press release. SOURCE Namaste Technologies Inc. For further information: Sean Dollinger, Chief Executive Officer, Direct: +1 (786) 389 9771, Email: [email protected] New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Forest Rangers recently responded to a variety of search and rescue incidents statewide involving hurt, lost of sick hikers and campers - in addition to helping out some canoeists who were stranded due to high winds on an Adirondack lake. The following incidents occurred between July 17-22. All specifics below were supplied by the DEC. ESSEX COUNTY Town of North Elba Wilderness Rescue: "On July 17 at 7:22 a.m., DEC's Ray Brook Dispatch received a request to assist a 60-year-old Binghamton woman in medical distress at a camping area one mile above Marcy Dam. When the Marcy Dam Caretaker arrived at the subject's location, the woman was alert but unresponsive to questions. At 8:35 a.m., Ranger Kevin Burns and a backcountry medic were inserted at Marcy Dam by New York State Police helicopter and reached the woman within 15 minutes. Additional Rangers were inserted to safely carry the woman to Marcy Dam for extraction by helicopter. By 10:30 a.m., the subject was in the helicopter and transported to Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake for treatment." Town of Elizabethtown Wildland Search: "At 9:30 p.m. on July 20, a 31-year-old Elizabethtown woman reported to 911 that she and her three children, ages 13, 9, and 5, were lost on Blueberry Mountain. A Forest Ranger responded to her cell phone coordinate location and found the group by 10:20 p.m. Within 20 minutes, the Ranger had the family out of the woods with no need for medical care." CLINTON COUNTY Town of Black Brook Wildland Search: "At 7:02 p.m. on July 18, Ray Brook Dispatch received a call reporting two overdue hikers separated from their group of five while hiking the Loop Trail around Taylor Pond. A 30-year-old man and 9-year-old girl from South Carolina fell behind while hiking. As the day got late, the caller felt concerned about the well-being of the inexperienced hikers once they lost radio contact at the far end of the lake. Forest Rangers David Russell and Peter Evans were dispatched to the scene with a motorboat and an ATV. By 9 p.m., the two hikers were out of the woods and in good condition at their camp at the Taylor Pond Campground." GREENE COUNTY Town of Hunter Wilderness Rescue: " On July 19, a 28-year-old Holbrook woman fell on the Kaaterskill Falls Trail and was unable to walk back to her car. Three Forest Rangers assisted the Haines Falls Fire Department, Tannersville Rescue, Catskill Ambulance, and Greene County Paramedics treat and carry the woman to an ambulance. The injury required hospital treatment." Town of Windham Wilderness Rescue: "On July 21, Greene County 911 was notified that a 32-year-old Earlton woman hit her head on the beam inside the Elm Ridge Lean-to and was semi-conscious. Local first responders and three Forest Rangers responded to the lean-to and conducted a rescue carry to a Med-Flight helicopter that then transported her to an Albany hospital." WARREN COUNTY Town of Lake George Wildland Search: "At 6 p.m. on July 19, a 42-year-old Hicksville man and 43-year-old Massapequa woman reported to 911 they were disoriented while hiking in the Shelving Rock Area along the eastern shore of Lake George. One Forest Ranger teamed up with a Lake George Park Commission Patrol Boat and located the pair along the shoreline. With a few simple directions, the two were able to walk back to their vehicle. Once at their car at 8:45 p.m., the pair called the Ranger to confirm they were safe and on their way home." ULSTER COUNTY Town of Woodstock Ranger Outreach: "On Saturday July 21, Forest Rangers Kevin Slade and Russell Martin visited first-time campers at the Kenneth L. Wilson Campground. The Rangers patrolled the campground loops to recruit campers to attend their "Meet A Ranger" program. The young campers received hands-on experience with Ranger tools used when responding to woodland search and rescues and other missions. Campers treated a simulated ankle injury and packaged the patient for a short carry in a stokes basket. Campers then raised Ranger Slade using a mechanical advantage system using rope equipment. Young campers also enjoyed using a portable pump to extinguish a make-believe fire." FRANKLIN COUNTY Town of Harrietstown Water Rescue: "At 11:40 a.m. on July 22, As Forest Ranger Peter Evans and Scott Sabo searched for the couple by motorboat, a second pair of canoers from Philadelphia called 911 reporting that they, too, were stranded in the vicinity. The Rangers found both couples and transported all safely to South Inlet and then retrieved their gear and boats. By 4 p.m., the canoers were safely at their vehicles with their boats and equipment." Be sure to properly prepare and plan before entering the backcountry. Visit DEC's and webpages for more information. China now has more than 4,000 companies with blockchain in their name. (Qixin search) Blockchain is the technology behind cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum. Qukualian, the Chinese translation of blockchain, was used in the registered names of 3,078 companies so far in 2018. 555 companies applied to use names with the chinese word for blockchain in 2017. A total of 16,600 chinese companies were established within the past 12 months with blockchain listed as part of their described lines of business. Over 3,800 of them had registered capital of over 10 million yuan (US$1.5 million). About 41% of start-ups that received funding in China in the first quarter of last year were blockchain-related enterprises, according to the China Internet Report. 817 companies in the US and 335 in the UK have registered company names with blockchain according to a search on OpenCorporates.com. SOURCES SCMP.com Written by Nextbigfuture.com China plans to increase the size of its marine corps from about 20,000 to 100,000 personnel to protect the nations maritime lifelines and its growing interests overseas. China is shifting brigades from the army to the Marines and Navy to shift from a land war focus to securing Belt and Road ports and other South China Sea islands and trade routes. China is reducing the size of the Peoples Liberation Army by 300,000, with nearly all of the cuts coming from the land forces. Some of Chinas Marines would be stationed at ports China operates in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa and Gwadar in southwest Pakistan. China has already shifted two brigades of special combat soldiers from the army to the marines. China will increase to six marine brigades with a total of 100,000. China will also boost the Navy by 15% from 235,000 to about 270,000. Chinas new marine corp will match the combined total of the next 4 Asia countries In 2017, the US Marines Corp had around 186,000 active duty members and 38,500 reserve Marines. The US marines including reserves has nearly equaled the combined marines corps of the rest of the worlds militaries combined. China will now increase to nearly half of the US total. Chinas new total will match the combined total of the next 4 marines corps in Asia (Vietnam, South Korea, Indonesia and Thailand.) There are 29000 in South Koreas marine corp. There are 12000 in Russias Naval Infantry. There are 7760 is the UK Royal Marines. The Chinese PLA Marine Corps (PLAMC), part of the Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), appears to have a new lightweight battle tank called the ZTQ-15. Each PLAMC brigade is divided up into one armored regiment and two marine battalions. China already had a 43 ton the ZTZ-96A tank. The ZTQ reportedly will weigh about 25 to 35 tons. China will procure 300 ZTQ tanks. China will have 89 amphibious landing ships by the end of 2019, including five Type 071 Yuzhao-class amphibious warfare ships and up to two bigger Type 081 Xisha-class landing helicopter docks (LHD), large multipurpose amphibious assault ships. In June, NASAs Curiosity rover found new evidence preserved in rocks on Mars that suggests the planet could have supported ancient life, as well as new evidence in the Martian atmosphere that relates to the search for current life on the Red Planet. While not necessarily evidence of life itself, these findings are a good sign for future missions exploring the planets surface and subsurface. There was also a research paper which indicates that the Viking Lander likely found organic material as well but then destroyed it by heating it for further analysis. Researchers reexamined the original, microfilm preserved, Viking gas chromatographmass spectrometer data sets. They found evidence for the presence of chlorobenzene in Viking Lander 2 (VL2) data at levels corresponding to 0.081.0 ppb (relative to sample mass), in runs when the sample was heated to 350C and 500C. Additionally, we found a correlation between the temperature dependence of the chlorobenzene signal and the dichloromethane signal originally identified by the Viking gas chromatographmass spectrometer team. They considered possible sources of carbon that may have produced the chlorobenzene signal, by reaction with perchlorate during pyrolysis, including organic carbon indigenous to the martian parent sample and instrument contamination. They conclude that the chlorobenzene signal measured by VL2 originated from martian chlorine sources. They show how the carbon source could originate from the martian parent sample, though a carbon source contributed from instrument background cannot yet be ruled out. Complex Organics Bubble up from Ocean-world Enceladus Data from NASAs Cassini spacecraft reveal complex organic molecules originating from Saturns icy moon Enceladus, strengthening the idea that this ocean world hosts conditions suitable for life. Research results show much larger, heavier molecules than ever before. Powerful hydrothermal vents mix up material from the moons water-filled, porous core with water from the moons massive subsurface ocean and it is released into space, in the form of water vapor and ice grains. A team led by Frank Postberg and Nozair Khawaja of the University of Heidelberg, Germany, continues to examine the makeup of the ejected ice and has recently identified fragments of large, complex organic molecules. Previously, Cassini had detected small, relatively common organic molecules at Enceladus that were much smaller. Complex molecules comprising hundreds of atoms are rare beyond Earth. The presence of the large complex molecules, along with liquid water and hydrothermal activity, bolsters the hypothesis that the ocean of Enceladus may be a habitable environment for life. Titan Titan has lakes of hydrocarbons on its surface. Titan is the only known moon with a significant atmosphere, and its atmosphere is the only nitrogen-rich dense atmosphere in the Solar System aside from Earths. Ganymede and Callisto A lawsuit challenging the authority of Connecticut government officials to raid energy efficiency and clean power programs is making its way through U.S. District Court in New Haven. Attorneys for both sides filed legal briefs in the case Friday. There are a total of 12 plaintiffs in the case, including Connecticut Fund for the Environment, New Haven-based Fight The Hike and Connecticut Citizen Action Group; they are suing Gov. Dannel Malloy, state Treasurer Denise Nappier and state Comptroller Kevin Lembo. The federal lawsuit was filed May 15 The case is being heard by U.S. District Judge Janet Hall and will not necessitate a jury because lawyers for both sides have signed a 26-page document agreeing to the facts in the case, according to Stephen Humes, an attorney in the case. Humes is with Holland & Knight in New York City, one of two law firms representing the plaintiffs in the case. Most cases have some sort of facts in dispute and that necessitates a legal trial, Humes said Monday. In this case, there are no facts in dispute, just the legal theories of both sides. That results in a speedier decision. A ruling in the case isnt expected until late September at the earliest, he said. Attorneys for state officials claim that because the energy efficiency funds which come from utility ratepayers monthly payments have been been tapped into by the legislature twice before in the last 15 years, they have the right to do it again. The legislature used $30 million in energy efficiency funds to balance the state budget in 2003 and another $12 million in 2005. The severity of the fund raid this time is much greater this time and it has resulted in thousands of people (in the states energy efficiency industry) being laid off, Humes said. The purpose of this lawsuit is to have the judge tell the legislature to stop treating these (energy efficiency) funds as their piggy bank. The legislature directed Malloy, Nappier and Lembo late last year to divert $175 million in energy efficiency funding to the states general fund over a two-year period to fund a budget shortfall. Lawmakers voted in May to restore $10 million of that amount. Humes said using the ratepayer money for anything other than its intended purpose violates the Contracts Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The first transfer of $87.5 million into the states general fund took place on June 25. An additional transfer of $77.5 million is scheduled to be made in June 2019. Roger Reynolds, chief legal director at Connecticut Fund for the Environment, said the plaintiffs appreciate that Judge Hall put the lawsuit on a remarkably expedited schedule. Time is of the essence if we are to prevent severe damage, Reynolds said in a statement. In their filing with the court, the plaintiffs argue the raided funds have created more than 34,000 local energy efficiency jobs and added millions of dollars to the green energy economy. Mike Trahan, executive director of renewable energy trade group Solar Connecticut said the states legislative leaders have said people who pay Eversource or UI electric bills should get used to paying .. .a new electric bill tax. Senate Republican President Pro Tempore Len Fasano of North Haven has disputed the claim that the money paid by customers of The United Illuminating Co. and Eversource Energy can really be considered ratepayer money. Fasano challenged the use of the terminology in a March 16 letter to Bryan Garcia, president and chief executive officer of the Connecticut Green Bank. The payment you receive from ratepayers, like a tax, is compulsory, Fasano wrote in his letter. I would argue those funds are taxpayer dollars. Fasano was not immediately available for comment on Monday regarding the current status of the court case. luther.turmelle@hearstmediact.com STAMFORD According to her schedule, Dr. Tulin Koparans works 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. In reality, Koparan is at the office until 8 oclock most nights, doing paperwork, reviewing medical exams and calling patients with results. The Stamford doctor describes herself as a pediatrician for adults. As a primary care doctor, she conducts physical exams and attends to the health of adult patients, some of whom shes seen since she started practicing in 1991. The long hours she puts in to give personalized care is one reason that many medical students are avoiding the generalist physicians career path. Its a lot of early mornings and late nights trying to see everybody and give them the amount of time they need, Koparan said. It gets frustrating...paperwork is the worst part of it. If it was just patients, itd be the most delightful job on the planet. Due to the hectic schedule and other strenuous factors, more medical students are choosing specialty fields such as cardiology or obstetrics. As a result, the nation is facing a shortage of primary-care doctors. One study from the Robert Graham Center: Policy Studies in Family Medicine and Primary Care shows Connecticut needs 404 additional primary-care physicians by 2030 to avoid a shortage. The Graham Center study shows Connecticut had 2,580 practicing primary-care physicians in 2010, which amounts to 1,385 residents per doctor. That ratio is already lower than the national average. To maintain it, Connecticut needs to boost the number of practicing physicians by 15 percent to keep up with a growing, and aging, population. This isnt the only state to feel a shortage. Earlier this year, the Association of American Medical Colleges released a report stating the primary care physician shortfall nationwide could be anywhere from 14,800 to 49,300 by 2030. The rise in demand is primarily attributable to population growth and aging. Between 2016 and 2030, the total U.S. population is expected to grow by almost 11 percent, and the population age 65 and older is projected to grow by 50 percent. Primary care is very demanding, said Dr. Sharon Kiely, senior vice president for medical affairs and CMO at Stamford Hospital. Reimbursement has not kept up with the demands of primary care practice. The government requirements [and] insurance company requirements are very burdensome on doctors who are taking care of very complex patients some of whom have very few resources. Taking care of a person who has diabetes who cant afford air conditioning, who cant afford the finest medication and foods and other support, is a very difficult field. In November 2017, Stamford Hospital began the Physicians Alliance of Stamford, a management services organization intended to help community physicians strive by allowing them to be part of national buying groups that get discounts on equipment, helping ease the financial burden on a small medical practice. The Yale New Haven Health System is also feeling the paucity of primary doctors, said Dr. Michael Ivy, deputy chief medical officer with the health system and chief medical officer for Bridgeport Hospital. Bridgeport Hospital is part of the Yale New Haven Health System, along with Yale New Haven Hospital and Greenwich Hospital. We and every other health system in the state are trying to recruit primary care doctors, Ivy said. He said the medical schools in the state, particularly those at the University of Connecticut and Quinnipiac University, were largely created to help train primary care doctors who would then stay and work in the state. The problem is that, when they go through training, they end up wanting to be a specialist, and not a primary care doctor, Ivy said. Ivy said the intensity of primary care medicine, which often involves a constant stream of patients, is a factor. It can also be very isolating, he said. You can be in a small office, or by yourself and there isnt a lot of (interaction with other doctors). Also, the more intellectually challenging cases tend to be in the specialties. Dr. Howard Selinger, chairman of family medicine at the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University, said there are three main disciplines at medical school associated with primary care internal medicine, pediatrics and family medicine. Yet focusing in one of those areas doesnt necessarily mean one will go into primary care. Selinger said about 90 percent of those who study internal medicine and about half of those who focus in pediatrics dont end up pursuing primary care. Family medicine, he said, is the only discipline where the majority of graduates get into the primary care field. Since opening its doors to students in 2013, Quinnipiacs medical school has graduated two classes. Of the first class of roughly 65 students, Selinger said, seven went into family medicine and, of the second class - which consisted of about 80 students 11 went into family medicine. Those numbers are encouraging. Well see if they continue, he said. To help combat the shortage, some training hospitals are trying to recruit by training students in primary care. According to Stamford Hospitals Kiely, who also serves as the associate dean for the hospitals Columbia Medical School students, the facility has residencies affiliated with medical schools across the country. Three of Stamford Hospitals residency programs internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology and family medicine fall under the umbrella of primary care. The program also provides role models in primary care for medical students, Kiely said, which makes a difference. Josh Taliaferro, a third year medical student at Columbia, is on his second rotation at Stamford Hospital, where hes spending time in OB/GYN. Though his exposure has been limited so far, the rotation has sparked an interest in potentially pursuing primary care. Many of his classmates wanting to pursue a career allowing long-term relationships with patients have a similar interest in primary care. This is evident in the large number of medical students at Columbia who participate in student-run clinics, which serve people in New York City. However, the pay of primary care physicians weighed with the cost of medial school is a factor some students consider when picking a field. As a result, Columbia has begun offering more grant-based financial aid to ease the burden on students and allow them to more freely pursue an area that better aligns with their interests. The Holy Grail of the medical field is if you can prevent people from developing a lot of these preventable illnesses, Taliaferro said. There are risk factors you can modify. Primary care can do a lot of that. erin.kayata@stamfordadvocate.com; (203) 964-2265; @erin_kayata By Trend The finance ministers for Mexico and Canada on Sunday said they were optimistic about NAFTA talks with the United States, even as trade tensions spurred by US tariffs dominated the G20 meeting of world economic leaders in Argentina, Reuters reported. Mexico Finance Minister Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya said there were still several chapters of NAFTA that had not yet been closed, but that the renegotiation could be completed before incoming President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador takes office on Dec. 1 after his landslide victory in this months election. There exists a possibility that we can arrive at some type of arrangement, Gonzalez Anaya told Reuters in an interview, adding that he discussed the talks to modernize the 24-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement during a bilateral meeting with his Canadian counterpart, Finance Minister Bill Morneau. It has always existed, and we hope that it stays on track. The long-running renegotiation, launched by US President Donald Trump last year, has taken on a renewed sense of urgency since Lopez Obradors victory. The leftist former mayor of Mexico City has said he plans to maintain NAFTA, and his allies have said the transition team will take part in talks. Trumps tariffs on steel and aluminum imports were still casting a shadow on NAFTA talks, Morneau said. Ire over the measures from the European Union, Japan and others have isolated US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin at the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors. Morneau said that he sensed optimism from Mnuchin about moving forward on NAFTA, and that Mnuchin had assured him that the administration was committed to a trilateral deal despite Trumps suggestion that the United States could move forward with separate bilateral deals. That change in Mexico presents us with the opportunity to restart those discussions. Were going to do that in earnest, Morneau told reporters. Were going to work towards trying to get to an agreement in the time frame that weve got in the next few months. Morneau said he plans to travel to Mexico next week to meet with the incoming administration. Gonzalez Anaya added that he had a very good chat during an informal meeting last week with Carlos Urzua, who Lopez Obrador has tapped for the finance ministers role. I have a very good impression of him, Gonzalez Anaya said. NEW HAVEN Henry Green, a young actor and mentor whose own story included a role as Tybalt in Elm Shakespeares production of Romeo and Juliet the same year he was shot in the abdomen and nearly killed in the city, has died of complications from his second intestine transplant, according to social media posts and the man who made a film about Green. Filmmaker and University of Connecticut professor Stephen Dest said Green died over the weekend in Washington, D.C., where he was being treated since complications from a second intestinal transplant 13 months ago. His body had rejected the intestinal transplant that saved his life after the shooting. Everyone involved with the film ... were all pretty devastated by it, said Dest. As much as we were aware of the complications that he was having ... we were very optimistic. You know, Henry survived so much at a young age, already, I guess we all deep down thought that this would be another miracle another thing that only Henry Green seems to be able to fight through. A 2009 graduate of Cooperative Arts & Humanities High School, Green also was known for his musical and rapping talents. But Green had told the Register that as a teen he was no angel, and that his association with gang members is probably what got him shot. Green eventually became the subject of the Dest film called I Am Shakespeare (The Henry Green Story) shown during the 2017 NH Docs Film Festival and elsewhere. Green suffered frequent health challenges from the bullets damages to his stomach and intestines, including multiple surgeries at Yale New Haven Hospital, a month in a coma, rehab to learn to walk and talk again, scores of blood transfusions, a femoral artery bypass and the small intestine transplants. Filmmaker and teacher Dest told the Register in 2015, I know him as a truly gifted actor who I worked with when he was way younger and in high school. I supported his shows and his budding acting career. But there are two sides to Henry Green, said Dest. Its a struggle for him. Theres sort of a dark side for him of survival. His escape was theater, to be around these other gifted, supportive people. On Monday, Elm Shakespeare tweeted, We are very saddened to learn of the passing of Henry Green, the remarkable young man who served as inspiration for the Stephen Dest documentary, I am Shakespeare. Dest, in a phone chat Monday, said when Green was healthy in the years after the shooting, he was working, he was mentoring, he was doing exactly what he set out to do, which was to work with young people to give them hope, to give them optimism and to help them avoid the same traps he fell into. He was a beacon of hope and positivity, said Dest. Green and others created an organization called Worldwide, said Dest, which was a mentorship program to keep at-risk kids off the street and support their interests, whether it be writing, art or cooking. The film has won awards and been shown at festivals, Black Lives Matter Clubs and schools, said Dest. The most difficult thing has been not having Henry be a part of the success of the film ... because of his illness, he said. But the film itself is really strong; its got a 25-page educational facilitators guide now. Its going to go to schools all around the world. So the film is definitely now Henrys voice. WEST HAVEN The city, trying to cut costs as part of its effort to cope with a fiscal crisis, has suspended bulk trash pickups scheduled for Aug. 6-10, officials said. Mayor Nancy Rossi said the move will save about $50,000, plus dumping fees. The citys final bulk pickup of 2018 will take place as scheduled Oct. 8-12, Rossi and acting Public Works Commissioner Louis Esposito Jr. said in a news release. The August pickup was suspended because the weight of trash collected in the March and June bulk pickups exceeded the maximum weight of trash accepted by the citys rubbish contractor, said Esposito, who is Rossi's executive assistant. That has made bulk pickups increasingly cost prohibitive, Esposito said in the release. Residents are reminded for bulk pickups to separate metals and recyclables from regular trash and to put out trash no more than 24 hours before pickup. Bulk items include couches, chairs, mattresses, tables, carpeting, padding, fencing and small amounts of bundled lumber, which may not exceed 6 feet in length. No building materials are accepted, the release said. The amount of bulk trash per collection is limited to 6 cubic yards, which is equal to a pile of trash about 6 feet long, 6 feet wide and 4.5 feet high, the release said. Homeowners are required to rent a dumpster at their expense if trash exceeds 6 cubic yards. Esposito said the city will enforce the bulk pickup limit of 6 cubic yards. Violations carry a $100 fine per daily offense. To prevent a potential fine, property owners should familiarize themselves with the citys trash guidelines, which are posted on the Department of Public Works page at www.cityofwesthaven.com. Bulk items must be separated and orderly. Do not place them next to a mailbox or utility pole or close to a fence, Esposito said in the release. Bulk trash must be generated by the customer at the residential unit where it is collected. Trash will not be collected if it is generated by anyone other than the resident of the home. Also, do not place bulk items in front of a vacant lot or home they will not be collected, Esposito said. For electronic items, including TVs, the next e-waste drop-off day is Aug. 11. Residents also can drop off electronic recyclables typically anything that contains a circuit board or needs a battery from 8 a.m. to noon at the highway maintenance garage, 1 Collis St. Anything that has refrigerant, including air conditioners and dehumidifiers, is not accepted. Those items are considered white goods, and residents are asked to put them out for pickup on their weekly curbside collection days. The e-waste collection is free for residents who have such items as TVs, hand-held video games, computers, monitors, copiers, scanners, microwaves, toaster ovens and other small appliances. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated he will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chief of the General Staff Army General Valery Gerasimov in order to discuss issues concerning the Syrian conflict, TASSreports. "Today, I will meet with a Russian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and General Staff Chief Valery Gerasimov in accordance with an agreement reached with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with whom I held a telephone conversation a few days ago," Netanyahu said at a weekly cabinet meeting. He added that the parties would discuss regional issues, first and foremost, the situation in Syria. According to Netanyahu, Israel insists that the 1974 Agreement on Disengagement with Syria be respected the way it was before the civil war in Syria broke out. Israel will continue to act against any attempts by Iran and its satellites aimed at establishing military presence in Syria, Netanyahu stressed. The Russian president and the Israeli prime minister held a meeting in Moscow on July 11, which the Israeli prime minister described as "very important." Netanyahu told Putin that Israel strongly opposed Irans presence in Syria. At the same time, he said that Israeli-Russian talks provided an opportunity to enhance security and the level of trust in the Middle East. On July 17, US President Donald Trump said at a meeting with lawmakers that the US, Russia and Israel had launched trilateral talks regarding the Syria issue and Israels security. When a N.J. elementary school teacher offered David Killen a chance to buy 200 paintings she had in storage, the Manhattan art dealer thought they'd make great filler items at his next auction. "I thought it was a bunch of junk," Killen said Monday. "I saw good, bad and ugly. Overall, I thought it was garbage, but I'm always looking for filler." He offered $75 a painting - a total of $15,000. When he loaded the boxes of artwork onto his truck, he began to realize he'd stumbled onto an unbelievable find that could fetch millions. "The more I looked at them, the more I realized - these are real de Koonigs," he said. Willem de Kooning was a Dutch abstract expressionist artist who died in 1997. His paintings have sold worldwide for tens of millions. Two experts say the paintings Killen has are authentic. Originally, the 200 pieces of art were gathered in New York City, in a world-famous art restoration studio run by conservator Orrin Riley. When Riley died in 1986, his girlfriend Susanne Schnitzer took possession of the paintings and held onto them for years, according to Killen. In 2009, Schnitzer was hit by a car and died. Her trusted friends - a group from New Jersey serving as executors that included the teacher - took the paintings, along with many other of Schnitzer's possessions and stored them in Ho-Ho-Kus. "They tried to do the right thing and return everything to its original owner," Killen said. But there were a bunch of paintings whose owners they could not track down. Killen surmises the pieces were given up by their owners, who collected insurance money on them based on claims of damages. "If you look at them closely, you can see there are slight tears and holes here and there," he said. "I believe they were given to Orrin to be restored after the owners collected insurance." After several years, the group from New Jersey contacted the New York State Attorney General's Office asking what they should do with the paintings, Killen said. The AG's office told them they were now considered abandoned property and they could do whatever they wanted - including sell them. That's where Killen came in. "I didn't hear back for a year, then they called and said, 'Do you still want it?'" Killen said. "I said, 'Sure.'" Killen declined to name the teacher or her friends, saying he did not have permission to identify them. He says he plans to place the paintings up for auction in the fall and will advertise the sales on his website. "I've been in this business for many years," he said. "I sell buy and sell paintings all the time. Never in a million years would I dream of finding original works like this." Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook. The former pastor who pleaded guilty earlier this year to assaulting multiple children wants to withdraw his guilty, his lawyer said in court. Harry Thomas, 75, of Medford, was facing a 20-year prison term without parole for the sexual assault of four minors, as well as inappropriate interactions with a fifth child, under a plea agreement with Burlington County prosecutors made in February. Thomas' attorney, Robin Lord, said the guilty plea was a "death sentence," according to The Courier Post. Harry L. Thomas, a former pastor at Come Alive Church in Medford Lord did not immediately respond to a request for further comment about the plea change. He was scheduled to be sentenced this past Friday, but following his decision to withdraw the plea, Thomas is now scheduled to appear in court this coming Friday, the paper reported. Superior Court Judge Jeanne Covert apologized to the victims and their families, some of whom were present that day, prepared to read victims impact statements. Thomas formerly served as pastor of Come Alive Church in Medford and founded the Creation Festival, billed as the nation's largest Christian music festival. He was suspended from both of his positions after being charged. Thomas was first charged in December 2017 for aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child. The assaults took place in Medford over a period of 16 years, between 1995 and 2015, the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office said. He is being held in the Burlington County jail. Gianluca D'Elia may be reached at gdelia@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @gianluca_delia. Find NJ.com on Facebook. In an increasingly high-tech world, the Washington Township Police Department continues to embrace the role technology can play in crime prevention. Now it hopes the community will do so as well. The department earlier this week announced a new, voluntary registration program for surveillance cameras. It is asking residents and businesses with security systems in place to complete a short registration form online, so when a crime occurs in a certain area police will be able to access a database and determine where evidence might be available. "It's something we've been working on for about six months," said Police Chief Patrick Gurcsik. "It's going to take some time to establish this database of cameras, but it should help our detectives with footwork. Rather than knocking on everyone's door and asking if they have a surveillance camera, they'll be able to look at this. But the system is only going to be as good as the data that is put into it." Gurcsik stressed that registration is encouraged but not mandatory. Even those who do register are not obligated to share access to their security systems or any images or videos. "It's totally voluntary -- we don't want to violate anyone's rights," he said. "It's just a registration program. Obviously, we still have to knock on your door first and ask permission to see the video." The Mantua Township Police Department established a similar program late last year. Video surveillance is clearly a useful tool in solving crimes, and Gurcsik pointed to two examples. "Recently there were two high-profile incidents that we used people's surveillance cameras on," he said. "One was a fatal motor vehicle accident on the Black Horse Pike in front of the Golden Luck Motel, and we were able to track a vehicle that left the scene by using businesses' surveillance cameras. "Another one was a recent purse snatching on the Black Horse Pike. An 87-year-old female was flagged down and when she pulled over and lowered her window, the subject reached in and grabbed her purse and fled. On our Facebook page we were able to post a picture of his car that we took from the surveillance camera of an area business." Residents or business owners can register online at twp.washington.nj.us/325/Police-Department. The form requires such information as the owner's name and address, how many cameras are in use and what areas of the property are covered. Those who participate will receive a Washington Township Police Safe Cam decal to display on their home or business. "It's pretty much the best evidence a police detective can utilize," Gurcsik said. "It's cheaper than ever -- people are able to afford it -- and the technology is second to none. It definitely comes in handy. "It's just another tool for detectives to make their job easier. We have one of the highest crime clearance rates in the county and hopefully we can improve on that and become No. 1." Saudi Arabia and New Zealand have discussed means of cooperation in the field of construction, real estate development, and finding low-cost and sustainable solutions to achieve the objectives of the kingdom's Vision 2030. The discussions took place during a meeting between the general supervisor of Real Estate Development Fund Khalid bin Mohammed AlAmoudi and the ambassador of New Zealand to Saudi Arabia James Munro in Riyadh, said a Saudi Press Agency report. Saudi Arabia has unveiled a SR120 billion ($32 billion) housing programme to boost Saudi ownership of homes from 47 per cent to 70 per cent by 2030. JERSEY CITY A committee hoping to overturn the City Council's decision to move the Katyn monument to York Street failed to submit the required number of valid signatures, City Clerk Robert Byrne said Monday. Petitioners, who need signatures from 6,714 valid Jersey City voters, submitted 3,833 valid signatures out of the 9,471 total they delivered on July 3, according to Byrne. The group leading the charge to keep the controversial statue at Exchange Place has 10 days to amend the petition with valid signatures. About 60 percent of the people whose signatures were submitted to the clerk were either not found in the state's voter database or are not registered to vote in Jersey City, according to a July 23 letter Byrne sent to the petitioners. One of the petitions purports to have the signatures of Bill Clinton and Dennis Rodman. A group of petitioners leaving Byrne's office on Monday afternoon said they are not giving up. Their deadline is Thursday, Aug. 2 to collect signatures from 2,881 Jersey City voters, or they can register some of the invalid signers to vote. "We're confident that we will get the number needed," said Kristen Zadroga-Hart, one of the five people leading the petition drive. The group is utilizing a state law that allows voters to overturn ordinances approved by municipal councils. The monument, which has stood for three decades at Exchange Place, commemorates the 1940 massacre of over 20,000 Polish people by the Soviet Union. It depicts a bound-and-gagged soldier stabbed in the back by a bayoneted rifle. The statue was commemorated in 1991, when Jersey City had a much larger Polish population than it does today. The flap started in April when Mayor Steve Fulop revealed the city plans to move the monument to make way for a new park at Exchange Place. The news sparked international outrage from the Polish community, who accused Fulop of erasing a pivotal moment in Poland's history. Some of the anger was directed at Mike DeMarco, who runs real-estate firm Mack-Cali and is president of the business group that is footing the bill for the park. DeMarco said he considers the statue "gruesome," and his involvement had critics accusing the city of moving the statue to satisfy a real-estate developer. Fulop initially sparred with top Polish officials about the statue's planned relocation, but the country's consul general in New York then decided to support a city plan to create a second park at the foot of York Street, one block south of where the statue is now, and make the monument that park's centerpiece. The council approved the plan at its June 13 meeting, which attracted hundreds of Polish people from across the region. The petition drive to overturn the decision began that week. If an amended petition is delivered on Aug. 2, Byrne would have five days to certify it. If there are enough signatures, the petition would then move to the council. The nine-member body would have two options: vote on an ordinance to overturn the June 13 measure moving the Katyn statue to York Street, or ignore the petition. If the council takes no action, the question would be posed to voters. Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook. Service has resumed on the Northeast Corridor on Monday morning after a fire on a New Jersey Transit train forced the line to be briefly shut down between Trenton and Metropark. The fire broke out in the engine car of a train traveling near Princeton Junction around 10:20 a.m, according to a New Jersey Transit spokeswoman. While the blaze produced heavy smoke, it didn't spread to any other part of the train. None of the 300 passengers and crew aboard were injured as all left the train safely, NJ Transit said. Service has resumed with 30 minute delays and eastbound trains are skipping both the Hamilton and Princeton Junction stations. Train 3834 left Trenton at 9:52 a.m and was scheduled to arrive at New York Penn Station at 11:16 a.m before it caught fire. The cause of the fire is under investigation, the spokeswoman said. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook. No one was hurt and no arrests were made after police spent hours outside a home in Manasquan on Sunday, authorities said. Police received a call about an "armed suspect in crisis," who was possibly armed and barricaded inside his First Avenue home by himself, Chief Michael Bauer said Monday. There was no standoff, however, the chief said as the man was not home during the approximately four-hour period when 50 to 60 officers from multiple agencies converged on the area. When the man was found, he was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Bauer said. Bauer said he didn't know the man's whereabouts during that time. "The issue was resolved but there was not standoff," Bauer said. "He was in crisis." Police closed First Avenue between Main Street and Riddle Way and told people to avoid the area in a note posted on Twitter at 7:33 p.m. At 9:57 p.m., borough officials said police activity had been cleared and all areas were re-opened. Video and photos posted on social media show a large police presence, including a SWAT team. A drone with green and red lights was seen flying over a home, according to APP.com. One video shows authorities leaving the scene at around 10 p.m. while another shows an ambulance driving away from the area. Potential hostage situation in Manasquan nj. pic.twitter.com/yVaVdjewca Jack D'Agostaro (@jackdagostaro) July 23, 2018 Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook. By Jiles Ship Two recently introduced bills in the Legislature would pave the way for many more people to be employable and successful after leaving prison. Earlier this summer, the state Senate approved legislation (S-2055) introduced by Sens. Teresa Ruiz, D-Essex, and Sandra B. Cunningham, D-Hudson, that would eliminate a provision prohibiting certain people in prison from receiving vital tuition assistance from the state. A companion bill (A-3722) was also introduced by Assemblywomen Shavonda Sumter, D-Passaic, and Mila Jasey, D-Essex, which has yet to come up for a vote. As a New Jersey police training commissioner and former Plainfield director of public safety, I know that educating prisoners is a matter of public safety. A RAND Corporation Study found that people who participate in education programs in prison are 43 percent less likely to reoffend, meaning safer streets for all of us. A bill that promotes prison education would also help create safer prisons for my colleagues working in correctional facilities. Prison education courses provide students with leadership skills, and research shows this has a calming effect on other inmates and guards alike, which reduces tension and violent encounters. Simply by educating inmates, prisons can become a safer place for everyone. The return on investment continues beyond officer and public safety. More than 90 percent of people in prison are eventually released. Yet only 22 percent of people in state prison have any postsecondary education, which is required by a majority of jobs in today's economy. Formerly incarcerated people aren't able to find decent job options, increasing the likelihood they will return to crime. These obstacles set them up to fail, which has consequences for all of us. In recent years, New Jersey has reduced recidivism in part by embracing quality programming for prisoners. The New Jersey Consortium for Scholarship for Transformative Education in Prisons (better known as NJ-STEP), for example, is one of the leading prison education programs in America. Housed at Rutgers University, NJ-STEP enrolled more than 1,100 students and awarded close to 24,000 college credits in just four years. And if past is precedent, many of these students will go on to continue their education. Despite the success of NJ-STEP, the vast majority of people in New Jersey's prisons don't have access to education programs, which helps to explain why in 2016 more than half of people released from prison were re-arrested and a third were back behind bars within five years of release. When people return to prison over and over, it carries a tremendous price tag. Each year, New Jersey spends nearly $1.5 billion on the prison system, or more than $60,000 per inmate. Private colleges cost less. The RAND study also found that every dollar invested in prison education saves more than $4 by reducing recidivism. In 1994, the federal government passed legislation prohibiting people in prison from receiving Pell Grants. In 2016, the U.S. Department of Education temporarily lifted this ban, allowing 70 schools in 28 states -- including two in New Jersey -- to teach students in prison who paid for courses using Pell grants for the first time in over 20 years. This pilot program extends fair access to education to citizens behind bars, but the program is temporary, and its future is uncertain. It's time that we New Jerseyans work to dismantle the state policies that stand in the way of incarcerated people receiving an education. New Jersey must continue to lead by example by equipping people in prison with the educational tools needed to reenter our neighborhoods smoothly. We can all get behind a common-sense solution that cuts costs, creates safer communities, and provides people in prison with a second chance at success. Jiles Ship is a member of the New Jersey Police Training Commission, a former director of public safety for the city of Plainfield, and the 34th president of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE). Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. By Jennifer Rubin The Washington Post reported: " , longtime Donald Trump attorney Michael Cohen secretly taped a conversation with the then-GOP presidential nominee about whether to purchase the rights to Playboy centerfold Karen McDougal's account of her alleged extramarital affair with Trump, according to three people familiar with the conversation. "The recording, which Cohen made surreptitiously in Trump Tower in early September 2016, was seized by federal agents who are investigating Cohen for potential bank and election-law crimes, according to multiple people familiar with the probe. "Trump and Cohen's discussion came a month after AMI, the parent company of the National Enquirer, bought the rights to McDougal's story for $150,000, then shelved it." There is much we do not know about this incident: Did AMI eventually make a payment at Trump's behest? Did Trump reimburse AMI? Did anyone associated with AMI disclose the donation as a campaign-related expense? While less politically compelling than the president's actions as an overt, pro-Russian turncoat, the revelation has grave legal implications for the president. "Since the federal search warrants were first served on Michael Cohen, it has been likely that he and his most famous client, the president, were in trouble," says former White House ethics counsel Norman Eisen. "The passage of time has only made that clearer, with these tapes the latest evidence." He adds, "Despite current presidential fixer Rudy Giuliani, Cohen's latest successor, saying that the tapes are good for the president, it is hard to see an upside to secretly taped recordings about payments to a former mistress during the heat of a presidential campaign, and other sources are already contradicting Giuliani's spin." Eisen explains, "Among other things, this news raises the question whether the president was involved in facilitating what may have been an illegal campaign contribution. Another even more troubling question is raised as well: What other tapes or additional evidence from Cohen's files of possible Trump wrongdoing is now in prosecutors' hands? A presidency may hang in the balance of the answer to that query." Put differently, as Common Cause's Paul S. Ryan told me via email, "If the earlier reporting that AMI consulted with Cohen (an 'agent' of candidate Trump) before making the payment to McDougal is correct, then AMI's payment to McDougal was a political expenditure 'coordinated' with Trump." He continued, "Coordinated expenditures are treated as in-kind contributions under campaign finance law and corporations are prohibited from contributing to federal candidates, so AMI's payment to McDougal [would be] an illegal corporate contribution to Trump." Indeed, this was the basis for complaints that Common Cause filed earlier this year with the Justice Department and the Federal Election Commission. An experienced prosecutor notes how peculiar was Giuliani's reaction to the tapes. The Post reported: "'Nothing in that conversation suggests that he had any knowledge of (the AMI payment) in advance,' Giuliani said. 'In the big scheme of things, it's powerful exculpatory evidence.' "However, the recording shows that Trump - whose spokeswoman denied he had any knowledge of the AMI deal with McDougal when it became public days before the election - in fact knew of her claims and efforts to keep her quiet at least two months earlier." Former federal prosecutor Joyce White Vance tells me, "The only people who really need exculpatory evidence are defendants in criminal cases. It's remarkable that that is where Giuliani's thoughts turn first when he's discussing a taped phone call involving his client." For Trump's apologists, the revelation creates a new wave of angst. (The Los Angeles Times reported, "'We all knew there were going to be a lot of women cropping up with allegations and that it was Michael's job to take care of it,' said an associate of Cohen's, speaking on condition of anonymity.") If there are a flock of women - those whose names have already surfaced in association with Trump or others we have yet to hear about - who received similar payments, it will be hard to avoid the conclusion that there was a conspiracy to avoid reporting embarrassing and possibly illegal campaign donations. While Trump's evangelical lackeys gave him a "mulligan" on his payoff to Stormy Daniels, it's not clear a wider audience will countenance a president who got through a campaign by secretly paying off gobs of women, especially if any of those women claimed to have been the victims of non-consensual sexual conduct. There are many reasons (e.g., knowledge of Trump's finances, awareness of Trump's Russia connections) Trump has been freaked out by the search of Cohen's office, hotel and home. Cohen is no John Dean, but in the end he may prove more problematic for Trump than Dean was to Jennifer Rubin writes the Right Turn blog for The Washington Post, offering reported opinion from a center-right perspective. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. Chief Justice Stuart Rabner is on a roll in his campaign to stomp out state policies that punish the poor. First, the head of New Jersey's highest court helped make us a national leader on bail reform, detaining the dangerous and releasing those stuck in jail simply because they can't pay their way out. Now he's pushing to overhaul our municipal court system, which is fleecing us with fees to raise revenue, and jailing those who can't afford them. How NJ courts are used as $$$ ATMs by local municipalities. Report says it must stop This is how officials fund local services, ostensibly without raising taxes: They pass strict ordinances against petty crimes, and pile on cash penalties. Studies show enforcement disproportionately targets people of color. In an ideal world, everyone would always drive at the speed limit, never have a busted headlight, or pay the fine promptly. But that is not where we live. And it doesn't help to tack on late fee after late fee, court costs and hefty surcharges, for a defendant who couldn't even afford to pay the initial ticket. For the poor, this isn't just a nuisance; it can be disastrous. If you can't pay a ticket or late fine, your license could get suspended. More than 40 percent of those with license suspensions ended up losing their jobs as a result, one study found. How does that help them pay the fines? A new report from the state judiciary, ordered by Rabner, is thick with examples of such overkill. Because a 20-year-old college kid in Burlington Township couldn't pay the $239 ticket for flicking a cigarette out his car window, he was jailed on the spot. N.J.'s top court wants to throw out your old parking tickets A $95 ticket for driving 10 miles per hour too fast suddenly turns into $389, after you plead guilty to unsafe driving to avoid points that increase your insurance rate, and pay a $250 surcharge, among other fees. A $100 fine for having a small amount of marijuana ends up costing more than $1,000, thanks to a pile of added-on fees, like $50 for a fund to help crime victims. A good cause, to be sure. But who is the victim in this crime? You didn't get your car inspected, so you have to cough up a few dollars for all kinds of feel-good Legislative causes: the body armor fund, the spinal cord fund, the autism fund, the brain injury fund. We're punishing people solely to generate revenue, with fees that aren't remotely relevant to the offense. Is it fair that we hit up those who can least afford it, even for a worthy purpose? One of the largest fees is for not showing up in court to address a ticket - a fine that gets jacked up by certain judges, and goes straight into a town's coffers. One Monmouth county judge pleaded guilty this year to illegally converting fines to "contempt of court," in order to raise money for the towns that employed him. Now the state Supreme Court is ordering this fine never be more than $100, and putting limits on other fees. It's seeking to dismiss old complaints for minor offenses, so we're not locking people up because they didn't realize they had a parking ticket from 1985. And before judges jail someone for failing to pay a fine, it's recommending that we require a hearing to determine that person's ability to pay. An alternative is community service. Lawmakers like Republican Senator Declan O'Scanlon have other promising ideas, such as collecting all the revenue from fees into a county pot that gets evenly distributed among towns, to reduce the direct incentive for officials to hike their own fines. We should set up a committee that includes lawmakers and judges to consider this and other ways to address the conflict of interest for municipal justices, appointed by mayors and pressured to raise money for their budgets. The judiciary report recommends setting up local oversight boards to vet municipal judge nominations. As O'Scanlon argues, cops and judges should welcome these reforms. How can they be trusted agents of justice, when we force them to become defacto tax collectors? Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. By Shereef Elnahal During my medical training in Baltimore, I met a 55-year-old florist whom I will always remember. We were treating her for a recurrence of throat cancer. The first time around, her treatment was so painful that she was placed on two types of opioids at the same time: a fentanyl patch and oxycodone pills. Her pain became intolerable, and she had to be hospitalized five times. Each time, she received another type of intravenous opioid therapy. By the time she completed her first round of chemotherapy and radiation, she was on the verge of addiction, soliciting pills from various doctors or buying and exchanging with friends. She did not know where else to turn. After her cancer returned, a friend gave her a sample of marijuana. It was only after she tried it that her doctors were finally able to wean her off opioids. Unfortunately, she had to buy the marijuana on the black market to get a pain treatment that worked. Maryland did not have a medical marijuana program at the time. We are doing things differently in New Jersey. We are expanding access to medical marijuana so those with legitimate medical needs are served with compassion. More than 11,600 new patients have registered since the beginning of the Murphy administration, putting us on track to double the number of patients since last year. The state Health Department is also revamping its regulations to make the program more accessible and responsive to patients' needs. These changes include reducing the registration fee by half for most individuals and by 90 percent for veterans and seniors, adding key conditions such as chronic pain and removing bureaucratic impediments to physicians' ability to recommend medicinal marijuana. But while the Murphy administration has made strides in expanding access, we are only just beginning to meet the needs of thousands of potential patients. We must take additional steps, and I am asking for help from my fellow physicians, dispensaries and our colleagues in the Legislature. I am asking my fellow physicians to enroll in the program and consider medical marijuana as another effective, therapeutic tool for many of their patients. In lectures that I have delivered to medical schools and teaching hospitals across the state, I have reviewed the evidence behind the therapy. Research has demonstrated the efficacy of marijuana in treating chronic pain, epilepsy, Crohn's disease and more. Better research is needed, and the administration is advocating for descheduling the drug at the federal level to obtain necessary funding. But considering that medical marijuana's side effects are minimal compared with other prescription drugs, the benefit of recommending it often outweighs the risk. To date, no one has died from marijuana overdose or withdrawal. The same cannot be said of opioids. As they would with any other therapy, physicians should assess the risk/benefit for appropriate patients and avoid billing patients separately for "medical marijuana visits." I am asking more dispensaries to enter into the market. Last week, we announced the first requests for applications for up to six alternative treatment centers -- two each in the north, central and southern regions of the state -- that combine cultivation, manufacturing and dispensing in one business. We must immediately start the process to open new alternative treatment centers to meet growing demand. Later this year, we anticipate other rounds of applications for businesses specializing in cultivation, manufacturing or dispensing distinctly. Finally, I am asking the Legislature to pass a bill that allows edible forms of medical marijuana to be accessible for all patients; lifts the limit of 2 ounces per month; reduces doctor's visits for patients; removes the limit for patients receiving end-of-life care; and provides workplace protections. Current proposals have many of these elements, which is very encouraging. For Jake Honig, a 7-year-old Howell resident who died after battling a rare form of cancer, medical marijuana proved to be the only therapy that worked during his final days. His other half-dozen medications -- to address nausea, vomiting, pain, agitation and insomnia -- caused serious side effects. In short, it was medical marijuana that allowed Jake to enjoy his last moments with his family. For patients like Jake and tens of thousands of others in our state who would benefit, we need to work together to cross the finish line. Shereef Elnahal, M.D., is New Jersey's state health commissioner. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. It was kind of a tough call. Reading or listening to arguments from either side, anyone would agree both made sense. But the Supreme Court had to choose and they came down on the side of the plaintiff, ruling against the unions. They ruled 5-4 that public sector unions could no longer demand "fair share" fees from employees who didn't want to join their ranks although they benefitted from negotiations. Since 1977 unions collected such fees to cover costs of collective bargaining with some restrictions on how that money could be spent. No one knows what effect the new ruling will have on union membership in the long run. Cody D. Miller, a guest columnist writing in The Star Ledger and The Jersey Journal, was delighted. He is opposed to paying any money to a union and having even one cent used as political contributions to candidates he doesn't like or to advocate for policies he doesn't support. That's pretty much the same argument Mark Janus of Illinois made to the Supreme Court, claiming his first amendment rights were violated by mandatory payments to AFSCME, the union in his workplace. Unions, not surprisingly, howled about how unfair the ruling was, claiming workers who don't contribute but still benefit from union activities are trying to get something for nothing at the expense of their co-workers. Like patrons in a diner paying their tabs across from others getting the same meal for free. Some estimates say as many as 30 percent of union members will stop paying dues and fees. Union membership has been declining across all sectors throughout the country. But despite shrinking membership, few unions have lost political clout so far. Their ability to influence members and the vast sums they can spend to support or oppose candidates and public questions can't be ignored by politicians. However, the New Jersey Education Association took a hit last year when they went all-out to defeat Senate President Steve Sweeney and he won by a considerable margin. Although NJEA leadership was determined to knock out the Senate president, many members saw the effort as a Kamikaze mission and a total waste of money. They knew it would intensify the already hostile relationship between Sweeney and the NJEA, hurting all one way or another. Governor Phil Murphy called the court ruling "A dark day for New Jersey," adding it will be "an impediment to organizing in a state built on the back of union labor." New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal had filed an amicus brief on behalf of AFSCME, and Labor Commissioner Rob Asaro-Angelo vowed to use all his powers to protect workers' rights, including the right to organize and participate in collective bargaining. New Jersey officials admitted, however, they weren't surprised by the decision. They saw it coming from a court that seems always to favor businesses over individuals. So the Legislature approved and Murphy signed the "Workplace Democracy Enhancement Act" which gives public employee unions greater access to members and penalizes employers who encourage people to leave their bargaining units. It assures union leaders can meet with workers on the premises during a workday to discuss grievances and workplace issues and can talk with them during breaks or before and after the start of a workday to discuss negotiations and other issues. They can also have 30 minutes of a new employee's on-the-clock time to promote union membership, have greater access to employee information, and can use email to contact employees. Union leaders said they'll have to redouble their efforts to connect with the rank and file and promote the benefits of paid union membership. A former Assemblywoman from Jersey City, Joan Quigley is the president and CEO of North Hudson Community Action Corp. Submit letters to the editor and guest columns at jjletters@jjournal.com A U.S. District Court judge in New Jersey has ordered Lifetime Brands, the company behind such names as KitchenAid and Mikasa, to reinstate two employees it is alleged to have fired for attempting to unionize. Judge Brian Martinotti on Tuesday ordered a temporary injunction against Lifetime Brands, Inc., saying he found reasonable cause to believe the company committed unfair labor practices at its Robbinsville warehouse when it terminated employees engaged in this protected union activity. As part of the temporary order, Lifetime Brands was ordered to stop discharging or discriminating against employees who support unionization, to stop interrogating employees over their union support, to refrain from offering employees promotions to "induce" employees to withdraw their support for unionization, and to no longer threaten to close the warehouse or fire employees if they choose representation. The case is scheduled before a NLRB administrative law judge July 31. In the petition for the temporary injunction, the regional director for the National Labor Relations Board in Newark said the company's actions had a "chilling effect" on unionizing at the facility. Lifetime Brands' "retaliatory disciplines caused employees to avoid union representatives by refusing to return their telephone calls and some of the most active union supporters indicated to union organizers that they no longer wished to take active roles in the organizing campaign," the petition said. An attorney representing Lifetime Brands, Michael Taylor, declined to comment. But in response to the petition, the company denied violating the National Labor Relations Act. Lifetime Brands also was given five days to offer two employees, Rafael Ordonez and Anaudy Sanchez, their jobs back. The company had already rehired three employees and two others had chosen to retire, said Jose Vega, an organizer with United Service Workers Union Local 947 who was collaborating with the warehouse employees. Ordonez was a 25-year employee at the Robbinsville facility warehouse when he was fired in July 2017, according to the request for the injunction. "The union's campaign momentum led (Lifetime Brands) to target Rafael Ordonez, the leading internal union organizer, and another union adherent by pouncing on minor safety violations and abruptly terminating them," the petition said. Ordonez was first offered a promotion, which he declined, and was then fired after his employer concocted a safety violation, the petition said. The company argued they were fired "for serious safety related conduct." Vega said Ordonez's firing "shook" employees. "People are very afraid that what happened to Mr. Ordonez is going to happen to them," he said. Then last September, the petitions said, other employees were "coerced" into resigning, the petition, said, after a supervisor who drove them to the facility for work announced that he was resigning, and they no longer had transportation to Robbinsville from New York. He was rehired once they had resigned. "The evidence demonstrates that (the supervisor's) abrupt decision to resign, without giving employees a chance to obtain alternate transportation, was a subterfuge created ... to force the employees' departure," the petition said. Despite the decision in their favor, Vega said employees "won't believe anything until they see him back." Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @samanthamarcus. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. President Donald Trump's interaction with Russian President Vladimir Putin was a "disaster," "detrimental to the country" and the strongest evidence yet that "the president (should) step down." Those are the words of former New Jersey Gov. Christie Whitman, a Republican, who penned a blistering op-ed in the Los Angeles Times this weekend calling on fellow GOPers to put country over party and dump Trump. "In this election year, opposing Trump is risky for GOP candidates," Whitman wrote. "Invoking the need to choose country over party is an overused trope. But it is essential now." The piece was a reaction to Trump's refusal last week to publicly rebuke Putin for meddling in the 2016 presidential during a summit between the two. Trump and Putin "spent a great deal of time" discussing allegations of Russian election meddling as they met for several hours on July 16, the U.S. president said at a joint press conference in Finland that day. But Trump did not strongly condemn the interference efforts, which U.S. intelligence agencies insist did occur, including the hacking of Democratic emails, the subject of the recent indictments of 12 Russians. Trump said, as he had countless times, that there was "no collusion" between his campaign and the Russians. Putin, as always, denied all. The two leaders spoke at a joint news conference. Whitman, a consistent Trump critic, said enough is enough. She called on Trump to resign in a tweet shortly after the summit. Mr #President, you should be ashamed. To deny your own country and government in favor of a foriegn leader whose country has, for decades, tried to undermine the #UnitedStates is irrational and dangerous. Please step down, you are not fit to lead this great #nation. #TrumpPutin Gov Christie Whitman (@GovCTW) July 16, 2018 But she wasn't done. In the op-ed, Whitman said her fellow Republicans "have to end their willful ignorance of the damage Trump is doing both domestically and internationally. We must put aside the GOP label, as hard as that may be, and demonstrate the leadership our country needs by calling on the president to step down." She called on the Republicans who control Congress to step up and enforce sanctions against the Russian president and to protect special counsel Robert Mueller, who's leading an investigation into links between Russian meddling in the 2016 election with members of Trump's then campaign. "The Republican majority in Congress can fully implement promised sanctions against Russia to show its opposition to Russia's meddling in our election," Whitman wrote. "Putin needs economic growth in Russia because it benefits the oligarchy," she said. "Tougher, tangible sanctions would weaken him and hurt those who benefit from his power." Finally, she called Trump's overall interaction with Putin "deeply disturbing" and questioned whether the American people Trump has sworn to defend can trust their president. Whitman wrote: "Trumps' repeated public dismissals of the intelligence coming from his own deputies is deeply disturbing. Along with his walk back of statements last week, and then walking back the walk backs, it's impossible to keep up, and his behavior warrants a fresh evaluation of whether the president can be trusted with the future of the United States. His apologists will argue that the current outcry is just another attempt by moderates and "establishment" Republicans to discredit the president. But what does this man have to say or do for his supporters to finally see that his actions are detrimental to the country?" Whitman was a two-term GOP governor in the Garden State from 1994 to 2001, when she stepped down to serve as the head of the EPA under former President George W. Bush. Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or Facebook. Saudi Aramco and the Saudi Basic Industries Corp (Sabic), which are partnering in a crude oil to chemicals (COTC) project, have awarded a contract to US-based KBR, a global leader construction, to develop a part of the COTC complex. KBR will provide the front-end engineering and design for the downstream petrochemicals and chemicals component within the COTC master complex. The scope includes engineering studies, infrastructure planning and development for both of the polymer and glycol units, along with the aromatics complex, the COTC master plot plan, and offsite utilities. The KBR project management contract is the second that Saudi Aramco and Sabic have awarded for the COTC project. Wood, also a leading project management and engineering firm, was granted the first contract to provide engineering and design for the refining components, mixed feed steam cracker, on-site utilities, interface and site integration, and selection of technology providers. We are counting on the long-standing relationship between Saudi Aramco and Sabic on one side, and KBR on the other, to develop this preliminary engineering package for the world-class complex, said Fahad E Al Helal, vice president of Project Management. A recently-held kickoff meeting included a ceremonial signing of a safety pledge by senior leadership and project team members from all three companies. Al Helal joined KBRs president and CEO Stuart Bradie and Anas Kentab, the executive vice president for COTC project at Sabic, at the signing. Dubbed Zero Harm, the KBR safety programme engages project sponsors and team members at all levels to commit to a 24/7 safety mindset one that never waivers and can never be compromised. The KBR leadership members expressed their appreciation to Saudi Aramco and Sabic for the partnership, and further acknowledged the pivotal role KBR will have in the COTC project. Bradie said: We are excited about the opportunity to continue our proud legacy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, delivering giga-projects such as COTC." KBR was also a major partner in development of the Sadara Chemical Project. Jay Ibrahim, KBR president of engineering and construction, Mena, noted: Through this contract, we will continue our commitment to meeting the objectives of both the in-Kingdom local content and Vision 2030 programmes. Saudi Aramco's US affiliate company Aramco Services Company (ASC) is managing the KBR contract on behalf of Saudi Aramco. Basil A Abul-Hamayel, ASC president and CEO, said: We are excited about the COTC project, and its enormous potential to make such a positive impact. The ASC team will continue to give its full support to the project management team to help ensure success." With start-up in 2025, the fully integrated COTC complex is on track to become the largest of its kind in the world. It will become a major contributor to Saudi Vision 2030, enabling a new era of industrial diversification, job creation, and technology development in the Kingdom. The complex is expected to process 400,000 barrels per day of Arabian Light crude oil, which will produce approximately nine million tonnes of chemicals and nine million tonnes of fuels per year. Also notable, it is projected to achieve a direct conversion rate from crude oil to chemicals of up to 50 per cent, which is unprecedented globally. TradeArabia News Service Senate President Stephen Sweeney's effort to strip Gov. Phil Murphy of his sole constitutional authority to certify revenues into the state treasury will begin in earnest on Monday. A public hearing Monday will extend the budget battle between Murphy and lawmakers that came close to shutting the state down earlier this month. The hearing is first step in the process to amend the state constitution to turn over that power to a three-person panel to include the state treasurer, the finance officer in the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services, and a third agreed-upon member. Sweeney, D-Gloucester, will need three-fifths support from the Legislature's two chambers to place the question (SCR132) on the ballot for voter approval. Under the constitution, the governor has final say projecting in how much money the state will collect in any given fiscal year, and in turn, estimating how much money it has to spend. That led to a fight between Murphy and Democratic legislative leaders this year who disagreed how much new revenue proposed tax increases might generate. Legislative leaders accused Murphy of low-balling to justify his call for higher taxes. The practice of certifying state revenues has become politicized and manipulated by governors of both parties to serve their interests, Sweeney has said, adding that a constitutional amendment will "stop the gaming." Former Gov. Chris Christie's bullish revenue forecasts would force him by year's end to slash pension payments, refinance tobacco bonds and take other measures to plug the gaps they created. Good government groups and rating agencies, too, have bemoaned the system of dueling estimates as ripe for political infighting, while noting that consensus estimates have better accuracy. Sweeney says the current arrangement harkens to a time when lawmakers had no staff to provide analysis, whereas these days, the Legislature has its own budget experts with a respected track record for forecasting tax collection gains and losses. A spokesman for Murphy, Dan Bryan, said previously that the change "would have been more appropriate for the Senate president to support the idea of a revenue certification constitutional amendment when he was dealing with Governor Christie's budgetary gimmicks and games." Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @samanthamarcus. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. A Natchitoches woman was booked with first-degree murder in the death of a six-month-old boy who died after being found by police suffering from burns. Felicia Marie Nicole Smith, 25, was booked into the Natchitoches Parish Detention Center Saturday in connection with the death of Levi Cole Ellerbe, the Louisiana Fire Marshal's Office reported Monday (July 23). Police began an investigation into the case on July 17, after a woman reported that the boy had been kidnapped from a residence in a trailer park. Investigators interviewed a woman they said was the child's mother, who told them two unknown people had come to her door, sprayed her face with mace and ran off with the boy, the Natchitoches Police Department reported. She told investigators she ran from the residence to get away from the attackers and upon circling back discovered the baby missing, police said after the incident. A short time later, Natchitoches police received a report of a fire and upon arrival found the baby suffering from burns. The baby was transported to the Natchitoches Regional Medical Center and was later airlifted to University Medical Center where he succumbed to his injuries, police said. Police at the time identified the child as the woman's son. However, the fire marshal's office on Monday said Smith was not the child's mother, but could not say at this time how they were related. The investigation is ongoing and no further information is being released at the time, according to the news release. About five years after the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office entered into a federal consent decree to improve jail conditions deemed unconstitutional by the U.S. Department of Justice, leaders of the jail will update the public on operations there. Interim Compliance Director Darnley Hodge, as well as Sheriff Marlin Gusman are expected to answer questions from the community about jail operations and the agency's compliance with the consent decree Tuesday (July 24). The quarterly public meeting, which is required by the consent decree, is planned for 6-7:30 p.m. at Dillard University, 2601 Gentilly Blvd., in the professional schools and sciences building. Hodge is the second compliance director to run jail operations after his predecessor, Gary Maynard, resigned in January when the federal judge who oversees compliance with the consent decree expressed dissatisfaction with the jail's progress. U.S. District Judge Lance Africk had approved the appointments of Maynard and then Hodge as independent compliance directors after the sheriff's office reached a deal in June 2016 with the Justice Department and other plaintiffs to create the position, avoiding the potential complete takeover of the jail by the feds. Six people housed in the jail died in 2017, all while Maynard oversaw operations. A 36-year-old mother of five, Kentrell Hurst, was the first person to die in the custody of the sheriff's office in 2018, on Hodge's watch. Hurst was detoxing from heroin and alcohol when she died in her jail cell, OPSO said. Emily Washington, an attorney from the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center representing current and former inmates who sued the jail over the conditions there, said last month that failures in "medical care, security staffing and supervision, accountability, and oversight" that factored into Hurst's death were "systematic." 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 The sheriff's office typically provides updates at its quarterly public meetings about the number of assaults at the jail on staff and inmates, as well as uses of force by staff on inmates. A staffing update is also expected. The OPSO, which has struggled to hire and retain enough deputies to adequately supervise all the inmates in its care, hired a new human resources director, Trina Bowie, this spring. Earlier this month, 11 deputy recruits and three corrections monitoring technicians completed their training and began working at the Orleans Justice Center jail. At a June 13 status hearing in federal court updating Africk on OPSO's progress with the consent decree, the lead monitor said the staff was starting to "gain control" of the facility. Lead monitor Margo Frasier, a former sheriff in Austin, Texas, noted, though, that "ongoing violence, the uses of force, the contraband," continue to be, "real sources of harm to the people housed at the jail." A news release about Tuesday's meeting states jail leaders will discuss jail operations, consent decree compliance, recruitment "and future plans." OPSO plans to build a new medical wing with 89 beds intended to house those with medical and mental health needs. The jail expansion has received approval from Africk and the City of New Orleans but has been opposed by a grassroots group of community members that comprise the Orleans Parish Prison Reformation Coalition. Kerry Dean, an attorney representing the U.S. Department of Justice, said at last month's federal hearing she was "cautiously optimistic" about the jail's progress with the consent decree. Dean added that recent problems with detox protocol and potentially unsafe food temperatures, for example, are the kind of problems the Justice Department typically encounters in other jails in early stages of their investigation -- not nearly five years into a consent decree. Companies interested in being exempt from having to pay local property taxes in New Orleans must now abide by a new set of rules approved by the Orleans Parish School Board July 19. Louisiana's Industrial Ad Valorem Tax Exemption Program gives the governor and the State Board of Commerce and Industry the authority to grant tax breaks to industrial businesses such as manufacturers as an incentive to bring jobs to the state. An executive order signed by Gov. John Bel Edwards in 2016 gave local taxing agencies, such as school boards, the authority to reject property tax exemptions requested by industries. Prior to Edwards' order, the state commerce board made the decision and the agency usually granted most requests without input from local agencies. The OPSB's new policies state businesses will receive a tax break if they meet the following criteria: The business is located in an area containing residents who make less than the state's average household income, or the business is located in an impoverished area where tax breaks can encourage business investments to provide residents jobs. Resolution sponsor Ben Kleban said the resolution will provide a higher level of accountability for businesses applying for tax breaks. He encouraged the OPSB to pass the resolution because it will establish "a high level of return on the public investment" by creating more jobs in the city. Kleban and four other locally-elected officials from the seven-member school board voted in support of the policy. District 6 member Woody Koppel was absent from the meeting and district 3 member Sarah Usdin recused herself from the vote. The policy's passage comes after the Louisiana Budget Project told the New Orleans City Council's Economic Development Committee in December that Orleans Parish gives up about $10.6 million in potential tax revenue, including $3 million that would fund schools. Kleban initially proposed a three-year ban on tax breaks until the district could evaluate the money saved during the moratorium, but the district postponed a vote on that policy in May. 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 Kleban's initial resolution stated companies with tax exemptions in Orleans Parish had promised to create over 4,500 jobs since 2000, but there was actually "a net decline of 76 jobs." Kleban said last Thursday that he collaborated with Mayor Latoya Cantrell's office and the advocacy group Together Louisiana and its affiliate Together New Orleans to revise his resolution. The new resolution also defers to any future citywide processes created by the mayor's office. At least 50 members of Together New Orleans attended last week's meeting. Hollygrove resident Barrington Gidney, a pastor of Level Ground Community Church and a member of Together New Orleans, said the resolution shows the community is willing to put a "hedge of protection around the financial investment of our children's educational futures." Companies that fail to maintain any of the criteria in the district's resolution will be notified in writing to correct those failures within 60 days, OPSB's resolution stated. Failure to correct those deficiencies within 60 days will result in "immediate termination" of the tax break approved by the school board. . . . . . . . Wilborn P. Nobles III is an education reporter based in New Orleans. He can be reached at wnobles@nola.com or on Twitter at @WilNobles. Of the myriad ways climate change is causing harm to humans - increased storm severity, disease transmission, and food costs, to name a few - the most menacing may be a new connection to rising rates of self-harm. In a study published today in the journal Nature Climate Change, researchers found that the death toll from suicide in the United States and Mexico has risen between 0.7 and 2.1 percent with each degree (Celsius) of increased monthly average temperature. The scientists, led by Marshall Burke, a professor in the Center on Food Security and the Environment at Stanford University, compiled records on the dates and locations of deaths from suicide in the United States and Mexico - some of the only countries with publicly-available data on the subject - to evaluate increased suicides over the past few decades in light of locally-rising temperatures. Their results account for other factors thought to contribute to suicide, including income, population, depressive language, gun ownership and gender. In so doing, Burke and colleagues were able to single out environmental temperature as a contributing cause by comparing, for example, New Orleans only to itself and looking at suicides during a normal July compared to a hotter-than-average July. After combining all these local analyses, the researchers estimated that hotter temperatures from climate change will account for between 9,000 and 40,000 otherwise preventable suicides by 2050. Suicide rates climb in Louisiana The current rate of suicide in Louisiana is 14.2 deaths per 100,000 people, slightly higher than the national average of 13.5, according to 2016 data from the CDC. In 2016, Louisiana lost 677 people to suicide. This represents a 29 percent increase in suicides since 1999 in Louisiana, compared to a 25 percent increase across the United States over the same time period. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, suicides in New Orleans jumped from 9 to 26 deaths per 100,000. Typically, suicides are higher in rural areas, Burke said. "The public health burden for poor mental health and suicide is growing over time," Burke said. "It's one of two leading causes of death in the U.S. that has not declined over time." Even though we tend to think of sunny, warm places as cheerful and cold, dark winters as depressing, Burke said that the idea of warmer temperatures being a factor pushing people towards suicide has been around for about a hundred years. Several previous studies have evaluated the relationship over smaller scales - in just five counties and one decade, for example, or just in California in the 1970s - and not found any trend. But Burke's study harnesses the largest extent of data over time and geographical space so far. Rajeev Ramchand, senior behavioral scientist with the Rand Corp. in Virginia, was impressed by the scientific rigor of Burke's study, and with the number of additional, urgent questions it raised. "It makes me want to know what else is happening with these communities," Ramchand said. "How does one degree increase in temperature change how people feel about their lives and cause them more distress?" Ramchand worked with New Orleans coroner Dr. Jeffrey Rouse in 2016 to interview local families of people who committed suicide to look for warning signs. His past research has focused on higher rates of suicide in the military community. He is currently studying links between suicide and access to guns, which is hindered by poor data on gun ownership. New Orleans suicides skyrocketed after Katrina Environmental news in your inbox Stay up-to-date on the latest on Louisiana's coast and the environment. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up New Orleans is a hub for a lot of issues southern states are facing, Ramchand said, including poverty, veterans' issues, climate change, access to mental healthcare, and the connection between violence exposure, gun ownership and suicide. In particular, Ramchand worried about how increased suicides due to rising temperatures may impact the fishing community in New Orleans. "I've seen how higher temperatures impact fishers' mental health, but these wouldn't necessarily show up in unemployment rates [and be counted in analyses]," Ramchand said. "So, when we think about how climate change can impact the economy, we think about how climate change can affect how much fish they catch." Myo Myint, a Tulane University professor of psychiatry & pediatrics, was also impressed by Burke's study. He expressed concern about how the new findings may affect New Orleans residents, particularly the LGBTQ community, who are at higher risk of suicide than the general population, and the homeless, who are without reprieve from the heat. "In Louisiana one person dies by suicide every 13 hours," Myint said. "A message I want to make sure everyone knows, given this article, is that suicide is preventable. It is treatable. There are resources." Myint pointed to one of Burke's analyses that found that two measures have been effective at reducing the suicide rate: National Suicide Prevention Centers and gun restriction laws, which can make suicide attempts less successful. On a personal level, he recommended asking family or friends who appear to be struggling how they are doing, reducing access to different lethal means, and staying connected with them. "If someone is suffering, go to the ER, then get help at one of the suicide prevention centers," Myint said. Details on these resources are listed below. For Ramchard and other mental health researchers, Burke's findings may inspire more urgency in their work. For the rest of us, Ramchand said, it should inspire renewed efforts to counteract climate change. "Now that we know there's this relationship between temperature and suicide that means rates might be increasing, we really need to get on it and figure out better ways to prevent suicide," Ramchand said. Resources: President Donald Trump warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday night (July 22) -- in all caps on Twitter -- "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before.'' Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned Trump earlier on Sunday not to escalate tensions with his country, saying a confrontation with the Islamic republic would be the "mother of all wars,'' Time reported. Rouhani warned Trump not to threaten the Persian Gulf nation's oil exports. Trump is reimposing sanctions on Iran, which ships most of its oil through the Strait of Hormuz, in an effort to squelch the country's oil sales. Apparently in response to Rouhani's speech in Tehran on Sunday, Trump tweeted the following: St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's deputies are now trained and equipped to administer the life-saving opioid antidote Narcan. The Sheriff's Office has obtained 200 doses of Narcan nasal spray from the Florida Parishes Human Services Authority at no cost to the law enforcement agency. Dr. Charles Preston, St. Tammany Parish's coroner, trained deputies on the proper use of the spray, the Sheriff's Office said Monday (July 23). The narcotic effects of an opioid overdose can slow or stop a person's breathing. Naloxone, known under the brand name Narcan, is used in the emergency treatment of opioid overdoses to reverse the effects, authorities said. Opioid abuse and drug overdoses have increased substantially on the North Shore as well as the rest of the country. Allowing police to carry Narcan is viewed as a way to decrease the number of fatalities resulting from overdoses. "There are often times when our deputies arrive on a scene, prior to EMS (emergency medical services)," St. Tammany Sheriff Randy Smith said. "When someone is overdosing and time is of the essence, this tool gives our deputies the ability to immediately render aid and potentially save lives." A Louisiana law approved in 2014 gave paramedics, firefighters and police officers authority to carry and administer the drug to people suffering from overdoses. Naloxone has minimal side effects and it is not dangerous if administered to a person who is not experiencing an opioid overdose, officials have said. In 2016, Covington officers became the first law enforcers in St. Tammany Parish to carry nasal naloxone. Smith said Narcan will not prevent a person from using drugs in the future, but "it gives them a fighting chance to have a future where they can make better decisions and ultimately get the help they need to fight their addiction." In a column I wrote Sunday (July 22) about Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry's enthusiasm for resuming and speeding death row executions, some readers thought I had either betrayed my conservative values or exposed my secret bleeding liberal heart. "When will the TP and Nola.com enlist the services of a conservative oped writer?" commenter Bayou Dog asked. "Jarvis [DeBerry] and Tim are tilting the scales to the heavily to the left. There should be balance in journalism." Commenter 3146tal quickly responded that, "Tim was misrepresented to us." Another reader in the comment stream, K.Kerner, questioned -- as I do -- whether "every topic under the sun" can be rigidly categorized "as left and right; liberal and conservative." This is not the first, and certainly not the last, time I have disappointed readers who believe I have failed to articulate the proper conservative position on certain policies. Some think being a conservative means an unyielding fealty to a party or person while others are of the mind that it is simply finding the polar opposite of some liberal position and standing there. A smaller group asserts that they are conservative and, ipso facto, any disagreement with them is a disloyalty to the cause. For those who allege journalistic fraud, I would point out that the announcement of my new position in January 2017 called me "a self-described 'independent thinker with a Christian worldview and a journalist's sense of skepticism.'" Editor Mark Lorando said my "more conservative voice" was intended to "reflect the ideological diversity" of our readership area and "enliven the ongoing dialogue on our editorial pages about issues critical to our city, our state and our world." The part I have taken most seriously in all that is the "enliven the ongoing dialogue" part, which means I try to write my viewpoints in a way that avoids name-calling and strawman stereotypes so that the discussion can continue. You consider my ideas and I consider yours, and we both walk away with something to think about even if we aren't persuaded to change our minds. I knew that my opposition to the death penalty and especially the attorney general's unbridled enthusiasm -- "I support the death penalty -- by lethal injection, gas, hanging, and firing squad." -- for it, would once again raise questions about my conservative credentials. But, I believe that while capital punishment can be morally justified -- the state has the right to exact the ultimate punishment in certain cases -- our government has proven to be so inept, biased and corrupt in carrying out that responsibility that too many innocent people are being sentenced to death. That 82 percent of Louisiana death row cases from 1976 through 2015 ended with a reversal is more than enough proof that the system is not working. Conservative columnist George Will laid out the conservative case against capital punishment in a 2015 column for the Washington Post on three points: First, the power to inflict death cloaks government with a majesty and pretense of infallibility discordant with conservatism. Longtime conservative thinker and activist Richard Viguerie expressed similar concerns. "Conservatives have every reason to believe the death penalty system is no different from any politicized, costly, inefficient, bureaucratic, government-run operation, which we conservatives know are rife with injustice," Viguerie said. "But here the end result is the end of someone's life. In other words, it's a government system that kills people." As I said in Sunday's column, the death penalty is arbitrary, racially discriminatory, and doesn't deter crime. I don't see anything conservative about supporting an inept, biased, corrupt system. But, as always, I remain open to discussion. Tim Morris is an opinions columnist at NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. He can be reached at tmorris@nola.com. Follow him on Twitter @tmorris504. The rat capital of the U.S.? Why, that's Chicago, a Windy City television station reports. CBS Chicago reported on a study by "Rent Hop,'' an apartment search service, that showed Chicago received 50,963 rat complaints last year. New York, Washington D.C. and Boston followed in the study's rankings, the story said. The story said the study shows Chicago had 1,876 rat complaints per 100,000 residents. A story in the Chicago Tribune noted the impossibility of an accurate rat census and added that the number of rat complaints does not necessarily mean there are more actual rats in an area. See the complete CBS Chicago story here. Dubai Civil Defence authorities have started work on a permanent civil defence centre at the Expo 2020 premises which is likely to be completed by mid-2019. Meanwhile, a temporary unit is being set up at the venue, to be ready for operations in September this year, reported state news agency Wam, citing a senior official. "The first temporary fire point at Expo 2020 Dubai will be ready for operation by September 30," said Brigadier Rashid Khalifa AlBuflasa, the assistant director-general for Fire and Rescue, at the Dubai Civil Defence. He was speaking to the media after a visit to the Expo 2020 Dubai Office for follow-up on the progress in the implementation of the joint civil defence action plan. The Dubai Civil Defence, he stated, had set up an emergency fire-fighting point since more than a year at the expo projects site and the force, equipment and other resources will be shifted to the temporary point at the time of delivery. ''The construction of the expos permanent civil defence centre will be completed by June 30, 2019,'' he added. A rhinoceros briefly escaped her enclosure at the Kansas City Zoo on Monday (July 23), prompting the zoo to issue a warning for guests to take shelter, The Kansas City Star reports. No one was injured. The Star reports the rhino was located shortly after she got loose in a behind-the-scenes zookeeper area and quickly escorted back into her enclosure around 10:30 a.m. Still, officials said procedure requires a shelter warning when a large animal isn't where it is supposed to be, the report says. The incident comes a little over two weeks after a jaguar escaped from its enclosure at Audubon Zoo in New Orleans. The jaguar, which escaped July 14 through a hole it bit in the stainless steel cable at the top of its enclosure, killed nine animals. Local zoo officials still do not know how long the jaguar was out of his enclosure, though an investigation is ongoing. Kansas City Zoo spokesman Josh Hollingsworth told The Star the rhino, named Imara, "never left the building" where she was being housed. The exercise is as old as the Republic, but the first thing you need to understand about redistricting is that hot-water cornbread is as ubiquitous in north Louisiana as etouffee is in the south, says Rick Gallot, the Ruston Democratic representat Five residents of a New Orleans East apartment complex were displaced after the building caught fire Sunday evening (July 22), according to the New Orleans Fire Department. A two-story storage unit connected to the complex caught fire shortly after 5:30 p.m., according to NOFD. The blaze spread up to the attic, where it connected with the four-unit building. Only one unit was occupied at the time of the fire, NOFD said, and the residents were evacuated unharmed. An iguana was also rescued from the building. Two alarms were called for the fire, according to NOFD, and 40 firefighters worked to get the flames under control by 6:11 p.m. The American Red Cross assisted the displaced residents with housing arrangements. No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is still under investigation, according to NOFD. A Los Angeles-based private investigator is facing criminal charges for alleged attempts to spy on reclusive fitness guru Richard Simmons, according to The Hollywood Reporter. On Thursday (July 19), the Los Angeles city attorney's office filed a criminal complaint against Scott Brian Mathews, alleging Mathews placed a tracking device on the car of Simmons' longtime caretaker, Teresa Reveles. In June, Simmons filed a lawsuit claiming that Mathews -- who Simmons claims had been hired by the tabloid In Touch and has been pursuing him for a year -- placed the tracker on Reveles' car in an effort to determine whether Simmons was visiting hospitals in connection with a rumored gender transition. Simmons has previously denied he is transitioning. The charge against Mathews is a misdemeanor under California criminal code, although it could reportedly cost him his private investigator license if he is found guilty. "We deny all allegations and at the advice of my attorney, we have no further comment," Mathews told Variety. The case against Mathews is only the latest twist in Simmons' prolonged fight for privacy, which started when the 70-year-old New Orleans native -- once a fixture on national talk shows -- uncharacteristically withdrew from the public eye in 2014. That prompted persistent rumors about his physical and mental well-being, although he has maintained that his health is fine and that, after decades in the public eye, he is simply enjoying a well-earned retirement. That hasn't stopped a flood of speculation about Simmons, who hasn't made public appearances since his seclusion. In addition to the briefly popular but short-lived podcast "Missing Richard Simmons" -- in which former "Daily Show" producer Dan Taberski set out to "unlock the mystery surrounding" Simmons' withdrawal -- the National Enquirer and Radar Online have published stories alleging Simmons is transitioning from a man to a woman. Simmons responded by suing both publications for defamation. A Los Angeles judge threw that case out, ruling that being misidentified as transgender doesn't inherently harm one's reputation. With Thursday's filing of criminal charges against Mathews, however, the Simmons camp is claiming a victory of sorts. In a statement to People magazine, Simmons manager Michael Catalano said: "Richard and Teresa are very thankful to the Los Angeles City Attorney's office for its cooperation in this matter. Everyone is entitled to the same basic principles to privacy and security. No one has the right to infringe on that. "We are appreciative to the LAPD and other divisions for agreeing that the prolonged pursuit of Richard Simmons against his wishes is not only immoral, but illegal. I look forward to all parties involved having to explain their deceitful actions." Arkad, a leading Saudi engineering and construction company, has signed a facility agreement worth up to SR202.65 million ($54 million) with Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp), the multilateral development bank. The facility, which will mature in the first half of 2019, is intended to support Arkads construction of the Master Gas System (Package 2), a project in Saudi Arabia. The MGS project is intended to support the development of Saudi Arabias non-associated gas, unconventional gas and related condensate reserves. Once completed, the project will raise the systems capacity to 12.5 billion cu ft of gas per day (CFD) from 8.4 billion CFD currently. It will help deliver gas to the western region, including the King Abdullah Economic City, Rabigh Refining & Petrochemical Company (PetroRabigh) and certain other power plants. Package 2 for the Central Region entails the installation of 226 km of 46-inch (1,168-mm) pipeline on the East-West Qassim Gas pipeline 1 with total value of SR826.45 million. The contract is expected to be complete by December 2018. Hani Abdulhadi, board member of Arkad, said: Today we are delighted to announce that we have entered in to this partnership with Apicorp. The contract signed today is unique as it is the first Apicorp loan provided directly to finance a contract, which is a positive sign for Arkad but also the wider industry. Arkad has had an excellent year, winning new contracts and continuing to expand internationally through our acquisition of the EPC business of ABB. This loan agreement is another positive step for the business, and allows us to compete on the very best projects throughout Saudi Arabia. Dr Ahmed Ali Attiga, chief executive of Apicorp, said: The loan facility agreement signed with Arkad affirms Apicorps confidence in Arkad. Supporting investment such as this in the development of Saudi Arabias energy infrastructure is exactly in line with Apicorps mandate: not only does it support the kingdoms long-term objectives with regard to a more diversified energy mix, it also contributes to job creation and better living standards for the Saudi population. - TradeArabia News Service Thank you for reading The Cascadia Advocate, the Northwest Progressive Institutes journal of world, national, and local politics. Founded in March of 2004, The Cascadia Advocate has been helping people throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond make sense of current events with rigorous analysis and thought-provoking commentary for more than fifteen years. The Cascadia Advocate is funded by readers like you and trusted sponsors. We dont run ads or publish content in exchange for money. Help us keep The Cascadia Advocate editorially independent and freely available to all by becoming a member of the Northwest Progressive Institute today. Or make a donation to sustain our essential research and advocacy journalism. Your contribution will allow us to continue bringing you features like Last Week In Congress, live coverage of events like Netroots Nation or the Democratic National Convention, and reviews of books and documentary films. Become an NPI member Make a one-time donation Jason Spencer, a Republican state representative in Georgia, found himself on the wrong end of a Sacha Baron Cohen prank that aired Sunday night on Showtime. It was the second episode of Who Is America? Mr. Cohens latest foray into duping unsuspecting participants into saying embarrassing things. But Mr. Spencers segment was one of the most humiliating yet to air on the show. Mr. Cohen was playing a character named Erran Morad, an Israeli antiterrorism expert who, in the first episode, fooled several current and former lawmakers and gun-rights advocates into expressing support for arming young children. In Sunday nights episode, the Morad character persuaded Mr. Spencer to take part in what he believed was antiterrorism training. [Sacha Baron Cohen is duping Republicans. Is he the James OKeefe of the left?] For Mr. Spencer, it went downhill from there. In a series of wince-inducing scenes, Mr. Cohen got him to yell a racial epithet and drop his pants on camera by telling him that those tactics would scare terrorists away. At the end of the episode, Mr. Spencer used another slur in referring to people from the Middle East. By Monday morning, he came under intense criticism from leading Republicans in Georgia. He issued an apology but rejected calls for his resignation. Times Insider delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how news, features and opinion come together at The New York Times. The call from Honduras came on a Saturday as I was about to go for a run. One of my contacts was in a village with the family of a 10-year-old girl who has been stranded in a Texas shelter for four months. The girls mother was despondent. Her uncle, who had taken the child across the southwest border, had already been deported. Days had turned to months, and there was no knowing when the girl would be returned to her family. Miriam, do you have any ideas? asked my contact, who is connected to the large Honduran community in New Orleans. She had been reading my articles about family separations and reunions. I had reached out to her on many occasions in recent years seeking immigrants to interview and feedback on how policies were playing out on the ground. Now she was asking me, the impartial reporter, to get involved. To help. She had been by my side as I interviewed several families who had fled gang violence and extortion and ended up in New Orleans, and was aware that I know immigration attorneys and government officials. I am on the front lines of President Trumps crackdown on undocumented immigration, a campaign promise that he is steadfastly fulfilling. His administrations decision to separate children from parents at the border has become the story for immigration and border reporters at The Times, as well as for our editor, Kim Murphy. It has captivated, and infuriated, many of our readers. Following an international outcry, the president on June 20 signed an executive order officially ending the practice, arguably the most punitive border-enforcement measure implemented by the United States in modern times. More than a month later, because of a federal court order, the government has been gradually putting children and parents back together. The separations have generated confusion and anguish for immigrants and their advocates, as well as border officials tasked with implementing the policy. Yet while it is difficult not to feel the pain of the migrant families swept up in the drama, I can still be objective without having to suppress my humanity. Its not something journalists often talk about: We have to be careful, of course, not to cast ourselves as advocates or problem-solvers to the people we interview and the readers we serve, but we should not forgo compassion. I have offered words of comfort to a suffering mother. How can one not? It does not mean I condone her decisions or actions. In fact, I might put myself in her shoes and question them. But I am not there to judge or to take sides. So after the call from Honduras, I decided to look into the case. I contacted a woman who seems to spend every waking hour deploying volunteers to provide transportation, accommodation and legal assistance for separated, and now reunified, families. Within two days, the woman had found a lawyer to help secure the girls release. The girl will almost certainly be in Honduras by the time this piece publishes. I have aimed to show readers the real-life impact of the so-called zero tolerance policy through dispassionate portraits. Five-year-old Jose was separated from his dad and placed in foster care in Michigan. He never let the stick-figure drawing of his family and a sketch of his father out of his sight. Elsa was deported back to Guatemala without her 8-year-old son, Anthony, who remains parked in a shelter. Long after the stories were published, readers still remember them and write asking about the outcome for the subjects. Sometimes I have answers. I move on to the next story and then the next one. When I am in the thick of it, like interviewing moms just reunited with their children at a Greyhound bus station in Phoenix, I am singularly focused on obtaining revealing material in time for deadline. Your kids did not recognize you? Tell me more. I race to tap out a few paragraphs to dispatch to my editor among crying babies, disheveled beggars and announcements blaring over the loud speaker. The intensity of what I am witnessing sometimes only hits when I am in a hotel room alone in the quiet of the night. The reporting pace is often frenetic. But recently I spent many hours with a 5-year-old Brazilian boy who was separated from, and then reunited with, his mother. For a while, after going into temporary foster care, he was barely eating. When I met him, his trauma was manifested in ways that I will describe in an upcoming article. For now, I will say he did not welcome me or Todd Heisler, a Times photographer I worked with. As the day passed, the boy felt more comfortable in our company and behaved more and more like any kid his age, a fearless one at that: He dangled upside down from a jungle gym and swung from a rope at a playground. He cackled with glee as he sped his bike down a path in the park out of our sight. On the edge of that park was a pool, which he had been pining for. We stopped to inquire about hours, and I did the asking, because his mother speaks little English. I also learned there were free swimming lessons and two slots left. I helped his mother sign up the boy and his 8-year-old relative. They start on Monday. NEW ORLEANS A few years ago, the students at G.W. Carver High School held a protest in front of the school to object to its disciplinary policies. We thought some of the rules were extreme, Dominique Newton, then a sophomore, recalled. Jerel Bryant, Carvers principal, told me, In the moment, I did not look upon it fondly. But the students were right. The rules were extreme. Students walking between classes had to stay on the right side of the hallway, for example. Most alarmingly, during the year of the protest, more than 60 percent of Carvers students were suspended for at least one day. Getting suspended was normal. Carver is a charter school a public school run not by a centralized board but by an independent operator. After Hurricane Katrina, virtually every public school in New Orleans became a charter, in an attempt to fix one of the nations worst districts. And the academic results have been impressive, as I described last week. Students are faring much better in reading, math, science and social studies, and more are graduating from high school and college. In todays column, though, Im going to talk a bit about the shortcomings in New Orleans. Along the way, I want to make a plea for thinking about the debate over education reform in a more nuanced, less absolutist way than often happens. There are two high-profile camps on education reform. Staunch defenders who tend to be conservative support not only charter schools but virtually all school choice, including vouchers for private schools. They see market competition as a cure-all. On the other side, the harshest critics of reform who are largely progressive oppose nearly any alternative to traditional schools. They view charters as a nefarious project of billionaires, and they think the academic progress is statistical hooey. BUENOS AIRES Negotiations to ease an escalating trade war between the United States and the rest of the world sputtered to a close with no breakthroughs on Sunday at a summit meeting of finance ministers, who warned that the predicament over President Trumps tariffs was casting a pall over the global economy. Two days of fitful talks at the Group of 20 gathering in the Argentine capital appeared only to raise the odds that the friction will intensify as Mr. Trump threatens more tariffs and other countries vow to retaliate. In their closing statement, or communique, officials at the G-20 on Sunday pointed to trade tensions as a new risk factor that could depress global growth. Growth has been less synchronized recently and downside risks over the short- and medium-term have increased, the communique said. These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies. The International Monetary Fund projected last week that the currently announced tariffs would reduce global economic output by $430 billion, or half a percent, in 2020, if they remained in place and shook investor confidence. It argued that the United States was particularly vulnerable to a slowdown because it would bear the brunt of tariff retaliation from other countries. The Republican memo issued in February said the F.B.I. had failed to disclose or reference the role of the D.N.C., Clinton campaign or any party/campaign in funding Steeles efforts, even though the political origins of the Steele dossier were then known to senior D.O.J. and F.B.I. officials. But Democrats at the time contended that the court had been told that the research had politically motivated origins. The application contains a page-length explanation that does alert the court that the person who commissioned Mr. Steeles research was likely looking for information to discredit Mr. Trumps campaign. It goes on to explain why, notwithstanding Mr. Steeles reason for conducting the research, the F.B.I. believed it was credible. Republicans had also faulted the application for not explicitly identifying Mrs. Clintons campaign and the Democratic National Committee by name. But that criticism ignored the fact that law enforcement officials were following a general policy not to name Americans, even referring to Mr. Trump only as Candidate #1 in renewal applications despite noting that he was now the president-elect and then the president. David Kris, an expert on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act who served in the George W. Bush and Obama administrations, dismissed the notion that the intelligence court judges had been misled. Now we can see that the footnote disclosing Steeles possible bias takes up more than a full page in the applications, so there is literally no way the FISA Court could have missed it, he wrote on the blog Lawfare. The F.B.I. gave the court enough information to evaluate Steeles credibility. Another issue in dispute was Republicans suggestion that a September 2016 Yahoo News article about Mr. Pages ties to Russia was cited in the application as corroboration for Mr. Steeles information even though it later emerged that he had been a source for that article. Democrats at the time said that was misleading because the purpose of including the article was instead to tell the court that Mr. Page had denied the allegations about his meetings in the July 2016 trip to Moscow. WASHINGTON Five months ago, Jared Kushner, President Trumps son-in-law and senior adviser, began quietly shifting his focus from brokering a peace accord between Israel and the Palestinians to tackling the dire humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza. Now, with Israel and the Hamas militants who control Gaza in a fresh cycle of violence that analysts fear could escalate into a full-blown war, Mr. Kushner and his partner in Middle East peacemaking, Jason D. Greenblatt, are threatening to pull the plug on Plan B. Declaring that no foreign investors are willing to pour money into Gaza during what they label a Hamas-driven conflict, Mr. Kushner and Mr. Greenblatt, the presidents special representative for international negotiations, are rethinking their efforts to rebuild Gazas economy as a way of opening the door to a broader peace accord. Hamas has driven Gaza to a state of desperation, Mr. Kushner said on Sunday. "Provocations will not be rewarded with aid. MEXICO CITY Cuban lawmakers on Sunday approved a draft of a new Constitution that would seek to modernize the nation by recognizing the right to own private property and opening the door to the possible legalization of same-sex marriage, among other economic, political and social changes. The document would also encourage foreign investment and strengthen the judicial system, including recognizing the presumption of innocence. The draft Constitution would significantly reorganize the government. It calls for creating the position of a prime minister, who would share power with the president, and governorships for the nations provinces. Before it can become official, the document, which would replace the current 1976 Soviet-era Constitution, will be put before the public in a series of meetings around the country and then be voted on in a national referendum, a process expected to take months. IRNA, the state-controlled news agency, dismissed Mr. Trumps message Monday as bullying words and the rhetoric he uses especially in his early-morning tweets. Mr. Trumps emphatic tweet about Iran, with its reminders of the enormous military power the United States projects in the Persian Gulf, had echoes of his treatment of North Korea last summer. He would often denounce the regime as corrupt. In the presidents mind, these threats destabilized the North and forced it into negotiations over its nuclear weapons and missile programs. Iran is both an easier case and a harder one than North Korea. There are no signs that it possesses nuclear weapons now or could in the near future. It has not made any move to pull out of the 2015 deal, even after the United States did. Its leaders appear convinced that Mr. Trump is trying to goad them into making a mistake. Mr. Trumps warning to Iran came hours after a speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that was harshly critical of Irans leadership. Mr. Pompeo accused Irans leadership of widespread corruption at the expense of its citizens welfare. Governments around the world worry that confronting the Islamic Republic harms the cause of moderates, but these so-called moderates within the regime are still violent Islamic revolutionaries with an anti-America, anti-West agenda, Mr. Pompeo said in the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif. You only have to take their own words for it. Mr. Pompeo also sought to reach out to the people of Iran in his speech and messages posted online. The United States hears you. The United States supports you. The United States is with you, he tweeted Sunday in Persian and English. Fidu Properties, a leading Chinese real estate brokerage company in the UAE, has announced three new luxurious Rolls Royce cars in its luxury fleet, designed specially to welcome its international visitors and real estate investors from around the globe. The enhanced fleet, which is part of the companys expansion plans, now comprises 10 luxury vehicles of different world-class brands, said a statement from the Chinese group. Fidu Properties is witnessing strong appetite for real estate investments in Dubai - particularly from investors based in China and Hong Kong. In line with this, the company opened its regional office in Dubai in April this year.-TradeArabia News Service [ Read The Times review of Sabrina ] Image Graphic novels have previously been nominated for and won the National Book Award, the American equivalent of the Booker. But they have never been nominated for the main fiction category in either the United States or in Britain, despite many achieving critical and commercial success. If Mr. Drnaso wins, it would be the biggest moment for the graphic format since Art Spiegelmans Maus won a special Pulitzer Prize in 1992. Explore the New York Times Book Review Want to keep up with the latest and greatest in books? This is a good place to start. Learn what you should be reading this fall: Our collection of reviews on books coming out this season includes biographies, novels, memoirs and more. See whats new in October: Among this months new titles are novels by Jonathan Franzen, a history of Black cinema and a biography by Katie Couric. Nominate a book: The New York Times Book Review has just turned 125. That got us wondering: What is the best book that was published during that time? Listen to our podcast: Featuring conversations with leading figures in the literary world, from Colson Whitehead to Leila Slimani, the Book Review Podcast helps you delve deeper into your favorite books. Sabrina is the story of a murder in Colorado, but focuses on the internet rumors and conspiracy theories that emerge around it and the impact on those left behind. Its an unnerving mystery told by a rigorous moralist, a profoundly American nightmare set squarely in the first year of the Trump presidency, wrote Ed Park in The New York Times Book Review. Its a shattering work of art. The Guardian said that reading the novel is an experience akin to watching a movie. Its as if the lights have gone down: absorbed and gripped, the skin prickles. Image Of course it was in our minds that this is the first, said Kwame Anthony Appiah, the chairman of the judges, in a telephone interview. But when the right novel comes along and its in your 13 favorites, you put it in the list. Within the last two weeks, the investigation of Russias interference in the 2016 presidential election has escalated. Maria Butina, a Russian woman who tried to broker a back-channel meeting between Donald J. Trump and Russian president Vladimir V. Putin during the 2016 election, was charged with conspiring to influence a United States election, and 12 Russian officials were indicted. During a news conference in Helsinki, Finland, after a private meeting with Mr. Putin, President Trump said he believed Mr. Putins denial of meddling, raising concerns that Mr. Trump was siding with a foreign power over his own intelligence agencies. He backtracked several days later. Here are three books that provide insight into Mr. Putins rise to power, Russias involvement in the election and the state of our intelligence community. Image THE NEW TSAR The Rise and Reign of Vladimir Putin By Steven Lee Myers 572 pp. Alfred A. Knopf. (2015) For a portrait of the man himself, turn to Myers biography, which traces Putins childhood and rise to power, as well as his motivations. According to our reviewer, Myers offers the portrait of a man swinging from crisis to crisis with one goal: projecting strength For Putin, thats meant keeping a tight hold on the country: His closest friends run most of the countrys major industries, and Putin controls the news media. He developed a system called managed democracy, squashing opposition parties and taking away the peoples right to vote for local or regional governments. Putin once told a group of foreign journalists that Russians are backward and need time to adapt to democracy. Myers is a reporter for The Times, and our reviewer wrote that this is a journalists book, which harvests old notebooks and clips. Image RUSSIAN ROULETTE The Inside Story of Putins War on America and the Election of Donald Trump By Michael Isikoff and David Corn 338 pp. Twelve. (2018) An all-caps warning. President Trump raised fears of a military confrontation with another foe, warning the president of Iran, Hassan Rouhani, that he faced CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED if he continued to threaten the U.S. The warning issued after Mr. Trump returned, above, from his weekend away from Washington came in response to Mr. Rouhanis comment that any conflict with Iran would be the mother of all wars. He also threatened to disrupt oil shipments if U.S. sanctions blocked Irans exports. Oil prices briefly surged on the exchange, but then calmed. Separately, the White House said that Mr. Trump is considering stripping security clearances from former national security and law enforcement officials who served in the Obama administration and have criticized him. (Want to get this briefing by email? Heres the sign-up.) Good morning. Heres what you need to know: Iran gets an all-caps warning President Trump threatened President Hassan Rouhani on Twitter late Sunday with CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED, after the Iranian leader said any conflict with his country would be the mother of all wars. Mr. Rouhani had earlier threatened to disrupt regional oil shipments if U.S. sanctions blocked Irans exports, a position the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said he supported. Mr. Trumps warning came hours after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a speech accusing Irans leadership of widespread corruption. Good Monday. Want this in your inbox every morning? Sign up here. Europe seeks to defuse the trade war The Group of 20 meeting in Buenos Aires this weekend gave finance ministers a chance to compromise over trade. They didnt. Steven Mnuchin, the U.S. treasury secretary, dismissed concerns from the International Monetary Fund that tariff wars might hurt America through a global slowdown. Friction, Alan Rappeport of the NYT writes, is now likely to intensify. Not helping: President Trump accused Europe, and China, of manipulating currency rates. (He attacked the Fed, too.) The E.U. is sending Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission, to Washington for discussions with Mr. Trump on Wednesday. Anonymous E.U. officials tell the FT that the aim is de-escalating. Some anonymous White House officials tell Politico that the talks might avert tariffs on foreign cars. But European officials tell Axios that theyre developing retaliatory measures on the assumption of tariffs before November. Mr. Juncker has said that the bloc will continue to react tit-for-tat to the provocations that might be thrown at us. Mr. Sayre concurred with one caveat. I never cared much for the way Trump does it, but hes doing O.K. as far as Im concerned, he said. What exactly doesnt he like? The way he bullies everybody and bends the truth, Mr. Sayre said. Back on the factory floor, Mr. Jackson said he was comfortable with the presidents game plan. Its aggressive, its tough, and he wont back down, Mr. Jackson said. Using trade as a bargaining chip will help someone else put food on the table. James Ford, another hourly employee, who is a production supervisor, jumped into the conversation. I like that Trump doesnt sugarcoat anything, he said. People get offended very easily by somebody being direct. Other workers, like Todd Grizzle, a 25-year-old maintenance technician, said he could see both sides of the tariff debate. But his memories of the closing of Columbus Casting on the citys South Side are still fresh. Once the nations largest foundry, the century-old complex employed 800 people when it filed for bankruptcy in 2016. There was a flood of people looking for work, Mr. Grizzle said. The red-brick factory, which looked like something out of Dickens and covers 90 acres, is being demolished. The lesson that Mr. Grizzle said he had learned was that American jobs needed to be protected. I like the idea of the U.S. having allies, he said. But if this can bring more jobs back to America, thats a good thing. With stiff sentences for 21 conspirators last week in the United States and a round of indictments in India, the Justice Department says it has broken up what appeared to be the nations first large-scale, multinational telephone fraud operation. Over four years, more than 15,000 victims in the United States lost hundreds of millions of dollars to the sophisticated scam, and more than 50,000 individuals had their personal information misused, the department said Friday. The money was routed through call centers in India back to the ringleaders in eight states. The fraudulent calls came suddenly and frequently while the scam was active from 2012 to 2016, according to court documents. A person posing as an Internal Revenue Service or immigration official was on the phone, threatening arrest, deportation or other penalties if the victims did not immediately pay their debts with prepaid cards or wire transfers. The calls targeted the most vulnerable Americans, including immigrants and older people. [Worried about getting scammed? Heres how to protect yourself.] Days after the snack food company Mondelez International recalled some of its Ritz cracker products after a whey powder supplier identified a potential salmonella risk, the company announced that two people had fallen ill after eating the crackers in question. Kimberly Fontes, a Mondelez spokeswoman, said on Tuesday that the company was in contact with both of the people, who reported their illnesses after the recall was announced on Saturday. Mondelez was one of several food companies to issue recalls based on potential contamination from whey powder provided by Associated Milk Producers Inc., a dairy company based in New Ulm, Minn. On Monday, Flowers Foods recalled some of its swiss rolls and bread products, and on Tuesday, Pepperidge Farm announced a recall of several of its Goldfish cracker varieties in the United States. The companies were not aware of any related illnesses as of Tuesday, according to the United States Food and Drug Administration. Tesla has said it needs to be able to assemble at least 5,000 Model 3 sedans a week to become profitable, and this month it said it reached that level in the last seven days of June. The company declined Monday to say if it had been able to sustain that rate since then. It plans to provide an update on Model 3 production next week, a spokesman said. Teslas appeal to suppliers emerged after a series of incidents involving Mr. Musk that have raised concerns among at least some Tesla shareholders. In a March earnings call, he clashed with analysts who asked what appeared to be routine financial questions. In the last several weeks, with Model 3 production hanging in the balance, he became involved in a bid to develop a mini-submarine to help save children trapped in a cave in Thailand, and lashed out at a rescuer who criticized the effort as a publicity stunt. On Twitter, Mr. Musk called the man a pedo short for pedophile although he later deleted the tweet and apologized. The billionaire entrepreneur also offered, through Twitter, to help solve the water crisis in Flint, Mich., and sparred repeatedly with short sellers investors who are betting against Tesla. Gene Munster, managing partner at the venture-capital firm Loup Ventures, warned Mr. Musk in an open letter to him that his actions were shaking investor confidence in Tesla. Your behavior is fueling an unhelpful perception of your leadership thin-skinned and short-tempered, Mr. Munster wrote. Twitter might keep Tesla in the news, but it wont help continued improvements in production and product. Right now, Tesla has no more important product than the Model 3. The car, which is so far available only in versions selling for $49,000 or more, is supposed to provide revenue as the company spends heavily to develop future models. Tesla has not made a profit since it was founded in 2003, and in the first quarter it recorded a loss of $785 million. It also used up $745 million in cash. In 1986, Rabbi Harold Schulweis recruited Malka Drucker, a childrens book author, and Gay Block, a fine art portrait photographer, to embark on a project documenting Rescuers, non-Jewish Europeans who risked torture and death to save Jews during the Holocaust. There were ceremonies for these brave souls at Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, where they were honored and trees were planted. But their accomplishments were little known. I met Malka in 1985, Ms. Block said in a recent interview, and in 1986 she said to me: My rabbi, Harold Schulweis, from Encino, is a great, great man. He has been wanting someone to write a book about the rescuers for 25 years. Nobody had wanted to pay attention to their stories because Holocaust survivors said that it whitewashed the Holocaust, and he had never gotten anyone to do it. The writer and photographer began interviewing some of the rescuers who had relocated to Southern California, but they eventually traveled to Canada and Europe for 100 interviews. They worked on the project from 1986 to 1988, and in 1992 Ms. Block had a solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. A separate traveling show was produced by Curatorial Assistance, and traveled to 50 venues over 11 years. Ms. Drucker wrote the original text, Ms. Block made the portraits and edited the interviews, and Cynthia Ozick contributed an introduction to the resulting book, Rescuers: Portraits of Moral Courage in the Holocaust. The finalists of the 2018 Gulf Capital SME Awards reported a two-year compounded annual growth rate of 100 per cent, underscoring the resilience of small businesses in the UAE amidst challenging economic times. A total of 97 finalists have been shortlisted this year, with 11 per cent increase in entries compared to 2017, highlighting another banner edition of MEEDs awards programme that recognises success, innovation and growth in the SME sector in the Emirates, said a statement. John Emmerson, director, SME Awards, MEED, a leading business intelligence provider in the Middle East, said: Every year we are astounded at the quality of the entries we receive, which makes it more difficult to shortlist and then pick winners - this is a testament to the vibrancy of the SME sector in the UAE and that it continues to be a core driver for growth in this country. Equally impressive, the finalists reported a combined turnover of Dh1.3 billion ($353.91 million) last year which shows small businesses continue to be a key pillar of the UAEs development, it said. Dr Karim El Solh, co-founder and CEO of Gulf Capital, one of the largest alternative asset management firms in the Middle East and the headline sponsor of the awards, said: These numbers without a doubt prove that the UAE has put in place very strong fundamentals to support the growth of the SME sector in the Emirates. More and more small businesses are reporting remarkable growth, and this awards programme which we have been supporting for the last six years have put the spotlight on entrepreneurs and business leaders who are making a difference by innovating and pursuing new avenues of growth that contribute to the dynamism of the economy, he added. The finalists are competing in 16 award categories, including B2B Small Business of the Year (above Dh15 million ($4.08 million), B2B Small Business of the Year (below Dh15 million), B2C Small Business of the Year, Business Innovation of the Year, Customer Focus of the Year, Digital Business of the Year, Disruption of the Year, Micro Business of the Year, People and Culture of the Year, Start-up Business of the Year and Sustainable Business of the Year, said a statement. Supporting the UAE governments entrepreneurial drive, the awards programme also honours outstanding business by its citizens with the Emirati Business of the Year awards. Three individual trophies will be given to the Entrepreneur of the Year, Business Leader of the Year and the New Entrepreneur of the Year. The highly sought-after Gulf Capital Business of the Year award is being contested by Bin Touq Transport, Bizx Trading, Emitech Technical Services, FLC Marketing, Himatrix Middle East, Lunatus, Phanes Group, Spatial Composite Solutions, Tablix Technology, Time Hotel, Tour Dubai 1 Floating Restaurant and yallacompare. MEEDs SME awards programme is supported by endorsing partners Dubai SME and the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development; as well as Gulf Capital and Virtuzone as sponsors. The full list of finalists is available online at www.meedsmeawards.com. The shortlisted SMEs will go through another round of evaluation by the judging panel after which the final set of winners will be announced on September 26, at Ritz Carlton DIFC, in Dubai, UAE, it stated. TradeArabia News Service A Brooklyn man who was recorded on video carrying a gun shortly after an aide to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo was fatally shot at a Caribbean festival in 2015 was acquitted of murder and weapons charges on Monday. After the verdict was read aloud in State Supreme Court in Brooklyn, the man, Keith Luncheon, 26, seemed relieved and smiled as his lawyer shook his hand. The jury said it was hopelessly deadlocked on charges against two of his co-defendants, Micah Alleyne, 26, and Stanley Elianor, 27. Justice Vincent del Giudice ordered them to continue deliberating. Mr. Luncheon was charged with second-degree murder, second-degree manslaughter, reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a weapon. He identified as a violent gang member on social media and confessed to being present when the shooting started in a videotaped statement, but his lawyer, Jay Cohen, maintained at trial that his admission had been coerced. And he said a co-defendant who testified against his client was a liar. A lawsuit filed Monday argues that New York is illegally looking the other way when it comes to ultra-Orthodox Jewish schools, loosening restrictions that will ultimately leave students without a basic knowledge of English, math and science. The lawsuit, filed slightly more than a month before the first day of school, is the latest action in a yearslong debate over how to regulate yeshivas, the private religious schools that focus primarily on studying Jewish texts. Under state law, nonpublic schools have to provide an education that is substantially equivalent to that of public schools, including instruction in English, math, United States history and science. But in April, Simcha Felder, a state senator whose Brooklyn district is heavily Orthodox, held up a state budget deal until the Legislature agreed to an exemption for yeshivas, freeing them from some of the states stricter regulations. The law is unconstitutional because its tailor-made for Orthodox yeshivas, so for a religious group, said Naftuli Moster, a yeshiva graduate who founded Young Advocates for Fair Education, the group that filed the lawsuit. Thats a violation of the First Amendment of the Constitution. The new quark became known as charm. The J/psi consists of two quarks: a charm quark paired with a charm antiquark, each circling the other like twirling square dancers. Burton Richter was born on March 22, 1931, in Brooklyn, the oldest child of Abraham Richter, a textile worker, and Fanny (Pollack) Richter. After graduating from Far Rockaway High School in Queens, he enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at 17. He obtained his undergraduate degree in physics there in 1952, and a doctorate four years later. Dr. Richter then joined Stanfords High-Energy Physics Lab as a research associate and became an assistant professor of physics in 1960. In 1963 he also took a position at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, one of the leading particle physics laboratories in the world. (The name was changed to SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in 2008.) As laboratory director from 1984 to 1999, Dr. Richter oversaw the construction of the Stanford Linear Collider, a new type of machine that, instead of guiding positrons and electrons along a circular ring, fired them at each other along straight paths. Construction ran into many difficulties and delays, but ultimately the machine lived up to its promise. Dr. Richter later realized that the next generation of accelerators would not be built at SLAC and so began shifting its focus to high-energy X-ray lasers and astrophysics endeavors that would not require large swaths of pricey California real estate. I really think Burt was a visionary leader at SLAC, said Persis Drell, the Stanford provost who served as SLAC director from 2007 to 2012. Dr. Drell said Dr. Richter had been careful not to tell her what he would have done if he were still director, but he was also blunt when asked for advice. It was kind of refreshing, actually, Dr. Drell said. With Burt, it wasnt subtle. Dr. Richter turned to energy issues in the latter part of his career, asserting his views with similar bluntness as he did when he worked on a Department of Energy advisory committee on nuclear energy. ATHENS For centuries, even when Athens was a bastion of the West during the Cold War, Greece and Russia have seen themselves as natural allies. Both are Christian Orthodox nations on Islams western frontiers; even as a NATO member, Greece tried to maintain channels of communication with the Soviet Union. Yet a sudden dispute over alleged Russian meddling in Greek affairs has escalated rapidly. This could have long-term consequences for Greek-Russian ties and for the Western Balkans. This month, Athens informed Moscow that it was expelling two Russian diplomats and refusing entry to two others. Among the accusations: the four were trying to stoke opposition to a recent agreement signed by Greece and a northern neighbor, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, ending a 27-year dispute over the latters name. Ratification by both countries would open the way for a renamed the Republic of North Macedonia to join NATO and the European Union. Greek opponents of the deal object to their neighbors use of Macedonia in any form, saying this implies claims on the Greek province of the same name; Macedonian nationalists object to adding a qualifier to their countrys name. It is easy to see how Russia, which is opposed to Macedonia joining NATO, could be tempted to exploit this volatile mix to encourage hard-liners on both sides. Macedonias prime minister, Zoran Zaev, claimed in an interview with BuzzFeed News that Greek businessmen sympathetic to the Russian cause paid large sums of money to foes of the deal in his country to commit acts of violence before a referendum on the agreement is held. In the coming days Senate Republicans will decide if they support reviewing Judge Kavanaughs entire record. Some are already hedging. And Senator Mitch McConnell is warning that Democrats will pay a political cost if they insist on obtaining Judge Kavanaughs full record, which may delay a vote on his confirmation. My response: Democrats should not worry. And Senator McConnells complaints about possible delays for a Supreme Court nomination ring hollow after he stonewalled Merrick Garlands nomination to the court in 2016. The methodical review of a federal court nominees record is not optional. It is the most fundamental part of the Senates constitutional obligation to provide advice and consent. Just last week, such vetting led to the withdrawal of a circuit court nominee with a record of offensive college writings. This process must be even more exhaustive for nominees to our nations highest court. And not long ago it was treated that way on both sides of the aisle. Republicans need only look back to Justice Elena Kagan who, like Judge Kavanaugh, had served in the White House. As chairman of the Judiciary Committee at the time, I worked with Senator Jeff Sessions, then the committees ranking Republican, to request the full universe of her documents from the Clinton Presidential Library. Crucially, President Barack Obama made no claims of executive privilege. Less than 1 percent of the documents were withheld on personal privacy grounds. And to this day her emails are posted online for the world to see. I also supported Senator Sessionss request for documents related to military recruitment at Harvard while Justice Kagan was dean of the law school. It was beyond the scope of our committees usual practice. But I agreed with Senator Sessions that the records would be of public interest and therefore ought to be subject to public scrutiny. To the Editor: Michiko Kakutanis insightful opinion piece When History Repeats (Sunday Review, July 15) echoed what I increasingly realize are my well-grounded fears that our nation is on the path to repeating shameful mistakes of the past, of which the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II is the most recent example. Ms. Kakutani likens what happened to her own ethnic minority to todays Muslim ban rulings and the shocking actions of our government toward immigrants seeking asylum (especially its heartless separation of families). We can no longer say with confidence that it cant happen in America it being the transformation of a seemingly stable democracy into a fascist state, led by an autocrat who gains power through lies and propaganda. Hopefully the majority of our compatriots, those not in the thrall of our president, will now wake up and choose to exercise their power to counter the malevolent forces at work. We still have the rights of free speech and the vote; we must use those tools posthaste. To the Editor: What It Takes to Get an Abortion in the Most Restrictive State in the U.S. (news graphic, July 23) poignantly demonstrates just how hard it is to get an abortion in Mississippi. But its not just Mississippi (or Texas or Arkansas): Six states are down to only one abortion clinic, under constant threat of closing by ideologically motivated politicians. Today, a woman who lives in any of the 29 states considered hostile or extremely hostile to abortion rights or in one of 27 abortion deserts must travel long distances, be forced to delay care or listen to state-mandated misinformation. And things are getting worse: In the first quarter of 2018, 308 new abortion restrictions were introduced in 37 states. If a Supreme Court nominee hostile to abortion rights is confirmed and the court fails to stand against the rising tide of restrictions and bans, abortion could be pushed entirely out of reach for women across the country, even without explicitly overturning Roe v. Wade. The stakes could not be higher. Jennifer Dalven New York The writer is director of the American Civil Liberties Unions Reproductive Freedom Project. Nor is this is just the oddball notion of some eccentric former staff member. As far back as August 2015, Mr. Trump himself has trotted out similar ideas, telling CNN, the 14th Amendment is very questionable as to whether or not somebody can come over and immediately that baby is a citizen. He also suggested that you can do something fast to end birthright citizenship. It may be time to revisit Arendts proposal. For Arendt, the prospect of mass statelessness was particularly alarming. Since states are the only institutions able to guarantee rights, she wrote, A stateless person is not just expelled from one country, native or adopted, but from all countries none being obliged to receive and naturalize him which means he is actually expelled from humanity. Deprivation of citizenship consequently could be counted among the crimes against humanity, and some of the worst recognized crimes in this category have in fact, and not incidentally, been preceded by mass expatriations. Arendt, a refugee from Nazi Germany who had been for a time stateless herself, had observed how, during the Holocaust, Jews had first been rendered stateless and how this had prevented their escape and facilitated their mass killing.This may seem like a remote possibility today, but its important to remember the stakes and meaning of statelessness. It should be noted that its currently extremely difficult to denaturalize an American citizen, and it almost never happens. Even during McCarthyism, when there was the political will and legal machinery to expatriate people, the process was slowed down considerably by procedure and the courts. And in 1958, the Supreme Court ruled in Trop v. Dulles that denaturalization as a penalty for crimes was a violation of the Eighth Amendments prohibition of cruel and unusual punishments, with Earl Warren sharing some of Arendts sentiments about its horrors: It is a form of punishment more primitive than torture, for it destroys for the individual the political existence that was centuries in development. What inspired the creature who was shortish and oldish and brownish and mossy? The one who spoke in a voice that was sharpish and bossy? He spoke for the trees, yet he called them his own. All that he left in this mess was a small pile of rocks, with the one word UNLESS. In 1970, millions of people observed Earth Day for the first time, and the Environmental Protection Agency was born. Joni Mitchells Big Yellow Taxi topped the charts. And in La Jolla, Calif., Theodor Geisel, also known as Dr. Seuss, was fighting to keep a suburban development project from clearing the Eucalyptus trees around his home. But when he tried to write a book about conservation for children that wasnt preachy or boring, he got writers block. At his wifes suggestion to clear his mind, they traveled to the Mount Kenya Safari Club, an exclusive resort where guests watched animals along Kenyas Laikipia plateau. The color black has been a source of fascination for countless fashion designers (Coco Chanel and Rei Kawakubo among them), but few have plumbed its inky depths as completely as Kei Ninomiya. The 34-year-old Japanese designer and former Comme des Garcons pattern cutter has created tutus from shadowy pleated tulle, jackets out of tiny charcoal pillow pieces and dresses from studded jet black faux leather. He even named his brand, Noir Kei Ninomiya, after the darkest of shades. First of all, its beautiful, its my favorite color, Ninomiya, who wears his hair in a tall mohawk, explains over Skype from his Tokyo studio. He says that restricting his color palette primarily to black enables him to focus on the development of his punk yet purist take on clothing. One of the key concepts of my label is to bring about something new. In order to emphasize that newness, I thought it was important to have constraints. His designs are known for extraordinary silhouettes that push the boundaries of form, proportion and production; theyre all intricately engineered with little to no sewing at all. I thought we needed to explore new ways and techniques of production, he says of his quietly revolutionary no sewing approach, which relies on clever techniques such as the use of small studs or metal rings to attach fabrics. Ninomiya grew up on Kyushu, the southernmost of Japans main islands, and later studied fashion at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium. But he left the school to join Kawakubos brand Comme des Garcons in 2008. I always thought Rei was the best, so I told myself, If I start working, it should be for her, he explains. Working under Kawakubo, he developed an appreciation for her uncompromising and groundbreaking approach. The philosophy of Rei is always to introduce something new that we havent seen before, says Ninomiya, recalling his mentors striking fall 2012 collection, which reinvented traditional couture silhouettes as flat, two-dimensional pieces that resembled paper doll dresses. After four years of working together, Kawakubo encouraged Ninomiya to go it alone. He started showing his seasonal collections in her Paris headquarters under the umbrella of the Comme des Garcons brand but with his own label. During fall 2018 fashion week in March, he presented his first runway show, at the Faculte de Pharmacie de Paris, where his all-black creations diamond-stitched, cropped-leather biker jackets and voluminous hooped knitted dresses were paired with outlandishly beautiful floral masks by the flower artist Makoto Azuma. Italy-based Prysmian Group, a global leader in energy and telecom cable systems sector, has announced the rollout of two enhancements to its line of FlexRibbon products. This new line of products, which feature MassLink with FlexRibbon Technology, will support large-scale data centres operated by major companies worldwide, said a statement from the company. Philippe Vanhille, senior vice president telecom business of Prysmian Group, said: We are pleased to rollout these new enhancements to our FlexRibbon line in anticipation of Prysmian expanding into new markets. As the demand for more powerful, higher-density cables continues to increase, this latest offering will be a key asset for large companies to navigate underground duct networks, he added. Designed to maximise fibre density and duct space utilisation, Prysmians MassLink with FlexRibbon Technology products compact the maximum fibre count into the smallest cable possible by using extremely flexible fibre ribbons that can be rolled up for high packing densities or laid flat for ribbon splicing, it said. The new 1728 and 3456 fibre count FlexRibbon products feature an ultra-compact outside plant cable design that contains bend insensitive fibres, small enough to fit into a 31.75mm and 38.1mm duct, respectively, it added. Toni Bosch, vice president of telecom solutions for Prysmian Group, said: We began development of our FlexRibbon Technology product line to meet the needs of our main customers in North America requiring high fibre counts and fibre density, where ultra-compact design and efficient installation are necessities. We have continued to heavily invest in the R&D of FlexRibbon technology, employing the most advanced equipment, which has led to the development of these new FlexRibbon product offerings to be now offered to our customers worldwide, he added. The significantly smaller diameter and lighter weight cables have superior kink resistance and increased flexibility, which allows for easier installation and the use of smaller ducts. In the case of the 1728 fibre design, there is a 21 per cent smaller diameter (38 per cent volume reduction) over traditional flat ribbon designs. And while the new FlexRibbon products provide high packing density, they also feature 200 and 250-micron fibre ribbons that still provide the advantages of mass fusion splicing. Prysmian Group confirms therefore its commitment to constantly investing in its optical fibre and cable capacities to respond to the needs of the market, to support its customers in developing new reliable and efficient broadband networks, it stated. TradeArabia News Service Cookbook writers had enticed me to explore cuisines in my own kitchen Paula Wolfert on Moroccan food, Diana Kennedy on Mexican, Julia Child on French. But Mr. Gold was the first food critic to open up a city to me, to push me, along with thousands of others, to go outside our usual understanding of a place and take some chances. Mr. Gold, who would take a top spot in any ranking of food critics, was also wildly prolific. There are more than 200 entries in Counter Intelligence a fraction of the reviews he would eventually generate, but enough to dizzy the mind. On that first post-Counter Intelligence trip to Los Angeles, I had a few meals at restaurants he recommended: Korean hot pots in Koreatown, Persian sandwiches on Westwood, Oaxacan mole in Mid-City. Exploring the food meant exploring the city, going to neighborhoods that, frankly, I had never even heard of. One Gold-imprinted place I remember well: the Apple Pan in Rancho Park. It wasnt a Spam burger at Mago's, or a Bombay-style frankie at All India Cafe, but the burger at Apple Pan was an L.A. classic one that, to my shame, I didnt know. It wasnt just the food that Mr. Gold made so appealing, it was the experience. No matter how many waiting people may be crowded in behind you, no matter how hungrily they stare at your pie, he wrote about the Apple Pan, the countermen will always draw you another cup of coffee from the gasfired urn and furnish you another dram of fresh, heavy cream. Good morning. (Want to get California Today by email? Heres the sign-up.) The police briefing on a hostage-taking at a Trader Joe's in Silver Lake that gripped Los Angeles on Saturday afternoon had just ended. But as Mayor Eric M. Garcetti started walking away, reporters stopped him for one more question. What did Mr. Garcetti have to say about the death of Jonathan Gold? Mr. Gold, 57, was the restaurant critic for The Los Angeles Times. For anyone outside of Los Angeles, it is difficult to appreciate what kind of an outsized figure Mr. Gold was in the fabric of the city he called home: much more than just another restaurant reviewer or hometown institution. It was not at all surprising that Mr. Golds death merited a question to the mayor, followed by an official tribute from City Hall. Or that it inspired a day of tributes from shocked admirers. (He had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in early July.) We are all so heartbroken, Roy Choi, the chef behind Kogi, a Korean taco food truck, said on Instagram. For many people, the joy of Saturday mornings was turning even before coffee to Mr. Golds latest inside the Saturday section. The more devout of his fans plucked the reviews off the internet the night before. This month, police officers in Norfolk, Va., released a video of themselves shimmying down a corridor and pumping their fists in the air, lip-syncing to Mark Ronson and Bruno Marss Uptown Funk. The video was a viral hit, viewed more than 70 million times on Facebook. It is one of the most popular entries in a lip-sync challenge initiated by police departments nationwide. The videos have come as police departments increasingly use social media to step up their public relations efforts and try to repair their image after years of anger and protests over police brutality and fatal shootings of black people by officers. It is allowing the country to see us in another way, said Corporal William Pickering, a public information officer with the Norfolk Police Department, which created the Uptown Funk video. We arent all robots. The family of an unarmed woman who was fatally shot by a Minneapolis police officer last summer filed a federal lawsuit on Monday against the officer, his partner, top police officials and the city itself. The suit on behalf of the family of the woman, Justine Maia Ruszczyk, seeks $50 million in damages. In the minutes before she was shot, Ms. Ruszczyk, a dual citizen of Australia and the United States who was living in Minneapolis, called 911 twice to report sounds that she believed were of a woman being attacked somewhere in her affluent neighborhood. She saw something, she said something and she got killed for it, Robert Bennett, a lawyer for her family, said in an interview on Monday. The lawsuit also accuses Mohamed Noor, the police officer who shot Ms. Ruszczyk, and his partner, Matthew Harrity, of failing to turn on the body cameras they were wearing when they should have in effect, conspiring to prevent the public from ever seeing what happened, the suit said. We want the Minneapolis police culture to be reformed in such a way and to the extent necessary to stop such senseless acts from happening again and again, John Ruszczyk, the womans father, who is a plaintiff in the suit, said in a written statement. As the complaint shows, the police departments problems are systemic. Judge Kavanaugh hopes to replace Justice Kennedy, for whom he once served as a law clerk. There is no particular reason to think he would replicate his old bosss idiosyncratic jurisprudence, which included a mix of commitments. But there is every reason to think a Justice Kavanaugh would continue to press one of his old bosss signature projects: dismantling campaign finance laws that restrict the ability of people and groups to spend money to influence elections. Judge Kavanaughs most interesting campaign finance decision, Bluman v. Federal Election Commission, in 2011, appears to cut in the opposite direction, at least at first blush. Writing for a three-judge panel of the Federal District Court in Washington, he said two foreign citizens living in the United States on temporary work visas could not spend money to call for the election of American politicians. Two things are notable about the decision, Richard L. Hasen, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine, has written. The first is that it is difficult to reconcile with Citizens United. The second is that it was quite limited, leaving plenty of opportunities for foreign influence on American elections. Harmonizing Judge Kavanaughs decision with Citizens United is hard because Justice Kennedys majority opinion said that the First Amendment generally prohibits the suppression of political speech based on the speakers identity. President Barack Obama certainly read Citizens United to allow spending by foreigners. I dont think American elections should be bankrolled by Americas most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities, he said in his 2010 State of the Union address. Judge Kavanaugh ruled against the two foreigners, saying their speech could be limited because they were not members of the American political community. (American corporations, he wrote, were part of that community.) He sees more and more every single day that this is proving further and further to be a total witch hunt, particularly because it was based on a false and unverified and discredited dossier. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, in a news conference on Monday False. Mr. Trump and Ms. Sanders repeated a false claim the president made in May, when he said the F.B.I. began investigating possible links between his presidential campaign and Russian election interference based on a dossier compiled by Christopher Steele, a former British spy. The New York Times has reported and Republicans who hold the majority vote on the House Intelligence Committee have concluded that the investigation began in July 2016 and was prompted by the actions of George Papadopoulos, a foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign. Mr. Papadopoulos told an Australian diplomat in May 2016 that Russia had political dirt on Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate. Australian officials then alerted their American counterparts of the conversation with Mr. Papadopoulos. The information provided by Mr. Steele did not reach F.B.I. officials who were investigating Mr. Trumps campaign until mid-September of 2016, The Times reported in May. PETERSBURG, N.D. Before Senator Heidi Heitkamp spoke to constituents in this tiny rural town, population 175, Mary Ann Dunbar confessed that she had reservations about Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh, President Trumps nominee to the Supreme Court. But Ms. Dunbar, a 67-year-old social worker, was not about to press her Democratic senator to take a stand against the judge, as she fretted that a vote against a Trump nominee could jeopardize Ms. Heitkamps already difficult bid for a second Senate term in a state where the president is popular. It wouldnt be worth it. I think you have to be realistic, she said. Hes probably going to win anyway, and if it makes the people of North Dakota happy, then Id rather have her there. As Senate Democrats try to hold their ground in midterm elections in which they are defending a daunting list of seats, Ms. Heitkamp is a prime example of why the partys fight against Judge Kavanaugh faces almost impossible odds. BEIJING Chinese parents were in an uproar on Monday after reports that hundreds of thousands of children might have been injected with faulty vaccines, the latest scandal to hit the nations troubled drug industry. The outcry came after a government investigation and news reports showed that a major drug producer in northeast China, Changchun Changsheng, had violated standards in making at least 250,000 doses of vaccine for diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough. While there have been no reports of deaths or illnesses related to the substandard vaccines, the news has rattled public confidence in the government and rekindled fears that corruption and abuse in the nations vast pharmaceutical industry are placing people at risk. It has also undermined President Xi Jinpings efforts to restore faith in medicine produced in China at a time when the country is striving to become a leading producer of pharmaceuticals. After a series of scandals involving tainted food and drugs in China, many parents said they were fed up and called on the government to take more severe action. TORONTO Two people were killed and 13 others were injured after a man with a handgun opened fire on a bustling avenue in Toronto on Sunday night, the police said. The suspect was later found dead. Officers confronted the suspect, who was identified only as a 29-year-old man from the Toronto area, on a nearby street and exchanged gunfire with him, the authorities said. The suspect ran from the police and was found dead with a gunshot wound on a street. John Tory, the mayor of Toronto, said at a City Council meeting on Monday that the shooting, part of a recent surge in gun violence in the city, was a cowardly act and an attack on our city itself. Ive said for some time that the city has a gun problem, he said. Guns are far too readily available to far too many people. Bears, sheep and humans are a volatile mix in these mountains. The combination has set up a classic French clash between the know-it-all state in Paris, guided by the stiff hand of the European Union, and one of Frances myriad microcultures. The conflict is elemental: The French government is trying to restore the centuries-old brown bear population, which dwindled nearly to extinction by the 1990s, the victim of encroaching humanity and hunting. The shepherds are not interested in the bear as an element of the natural heritage in the Pyrenees, as a government brochure puts it. They see their sheep being eaten, in sizable numbers. If the bears are a hidden part of the landscape, their sheep prey are the opposite. Every June, shepherds spend two days parading their flocks through area villages. In St.-Girons, citizens came to their windows, smiling, to watch 800 sheep stream through this gray provincial town. The main street became a sea of woolly white sheep, baahing and nuzzling their handlers to the delight of children watching open-mouthed from the sidewalk. APM Terminals Bahrain, the operator of Khalifa Bin Salman Port (KBSP), has appointed Farooq Zuberi as its new chief financial officer (CFO). An accomplished finance professional, Zuberi in his new role will be part of the companys strategic leadership team, said a statement from the company. He will play a pivotal role in aligning the business and financial strategy to ensure value creation for all stakeholders of KBSP. Zuberi will be responsible for APMTs accounting and finance, investor relations, legal affairs, procurement, and treasury function, it said. He will also play a key role in the Public listing of APM Terminals Bahrain in Bahrain Bourse later this year, it added. Prior to joining APM Terminals Bahrain, Zuberi has worked in senior leadership roles with Global Fortune 500 companies across several industries. He has worked with PwC, Unilever, GSK and Emirates Group in roles covering finance business partnering, project delivery and strategic initiatives. He is a Chartered Accountant from ICAP as well as Chartered Certified Accountant from ACCA UK. Mark Hardiman, chief executive officer and managing director of APM Terminals Bahrain, said: Were really pleased to have Zuberi on board, who joins our team at this exciting time of transition as we prepare for our IPO this year. With his exemplary track record and expertise in Finance Business partnering, we look forward to his value-added contribution to our strong, established team and achieving our business goals of expanding the logistics solutions we offer to our clients. We wish him immense success in his new role, he added. Zuberi said: I am delighted to take on the new role at APM Terminals Bahrain, a world-class organisation which has contributed significantly towards Bahrains economic development through its effective operations of KBSP. As we move forward towards achieving further growth and taking the company public, our focus will be to maximise value creation for our customers, shareholders and other stakeholders, he added. TradeArabia News Service The only plot to speak of on Pose is the one where the show buries boredom. Its set in and around the New York City ball scene of the 1980s, and soaks you in a hydrant-spray of color, feeling and gesture, of people gay black men, Puerto Rican trans women, white real-estate bros, their desperate housewives, everybodys moods, attitudes, health, dreams, sexualities, crises and clothes. The soundtrack is generously deployed and generously flavored. Swing Out Sister, over here. Eric B. and Rakim over there. But of all the songs on this show, only one has been declared our song. It happened in the first episode. And its both out of left field and sent from heaven. A little thing. And, yet, if youre the sort of person whod sell your car to see Kate Bush do anything, hearing Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) three times is a lottery win. See, a mediocre show would have gone with a more obvious obvious song, something disco, something camp. But they went with this one. They went with melodramatic understatement. But wait, wait, WAIT: Whos the us in our song? Its Angel (Indya Moore). And Stan (Evan Peters). She walks the streets and in the balls. Hes just gotten an executive job working for Donald J. Trump. They meet at a drive-through pickup sex spot. He takes her to a hotel. They size each other up. They lie beside each other, and in a way that reframes the idea of a good lay, they talk. As they do, Im Not in Love by 10cc wafts in the background like smoke. Obviously, something more is going on between them than the standard hooker-john transaction. Theres also something more going with this show when it comes to point-of-view and chronology. Stan asks Angel what she wants for herself. No ones ever asked me that before, she replies. Her dreamy answer a home of my own, a family plays over his return to his family. Her dream is his reality. Time, in this sequence, moves in a kind of compressed parallel that puts Stan in two presents at once. Home and with Angel. Soon we see them back on the bed. 10cc fades out. Up come the rumbling tom-toms and crying synths of Kate Bushs Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God), from 1985. The song continues to play as Stan drives her home. Like I said, the show is generous with its music. But with this song, its more than that. He pulls over, and once shes done marveling, off screen, about the fact that he works for Donald Trump (I heard even his toilet is gold.), they sit together in silence. Whatever emotion fails to pass between them, Ms. Bush is happy to express. If I only could, Id make a deal with God, she sings. And Id get Him to swap our places. He takes out his wallet and hands her some twenties. They sit some more, stuck in the occasional awkwardness of paying somebody for companionship. But Angel takes the money. And he musters the courage to ask for a kiss, and the kiss they have is impressively long, deep and real. And the bridge of Ms. Bushs song which even uses Angels name unites them. Come on, baby / Come on, darling / Let me steal this moment from you now / Come on, angel / Come on, come on, darling / Lets exchange the experience / Ohhhhhh-ooooooooo They stop. And thats when the really special thing happens. This song, Angel says, is gonna be our song from now on. You can see the back of his head as he nods in eager affirmation. Then, in a flurry of frantic jump cuts, hes back home, scrubbing the kiss out of his mouth. Later in the episode, he takes his wife out for a fancy anniversary dinner. As theyre dancing, the room goes from champagne yellow to lovesick blue. Stan turns and sees a vision of Angel across the room. And as he does, the saxophone of Bernard Herrmanns I Cant Sleep from the Taxi Driver soundtrack (theres a choice!) is replaced by the sound of the tom-tom heartbeat of our song. This song? The one about a woman and man trying to see things the same but failing to, about the struggle not for equality, but for sheer empathy? I dont know that whoever chose this song for this moment meant for it to stand for more than a trans woman longing for what she cant quite have. And yet whoever chose this song chose for the love theme between a trans Latina and a straight white married man in the late 1980s also knew exactly what they were doing. Kate Bush is everything the Brontes and the old movies told you love was. The makers of this show know what she knew: that love might be Cupids thing but relationships belong to Sisyphus. But in the last scene of the episode, with Kate Bush having made her third appearance, Stan finds Angel in the spot where they met. But the angles are reversed, and youre tricked into a moment of optimism. Maybe theyll find a way to run up that hill together. US-based Emerson, a global technology company, has completed the purchase of Aventics, a global leader in smart pneumatics technologies that power machine and factory automation applications. The acquisition will significantly expand the companys reach in the growing $13 billion fluid automation market and solidify Emersons automation technology presence in Europe, said a statement from the company. Aventics is a strong complement to Emersons capabilities and solutions in key discrete and hybrid automation markets, it said. The acquisition creates one of the broadest portfolios of fluid control and pneumatic devices that incorporate sensing and monitoring capabilities to improve system uptime and performance, enhance safety and optimize energy usage, it added. With central offices in Laatzen, Germany, Aventics has approximately 2,100 employees globally with five manufacturing locations. Emerson plans to address the financial impact of this acquisition within its third quarter earnings release and conference call scheduled for August 7, it stated. TradeArabia News Service Government will only provide heightened security in form of armoured cars, army sharpshooters to members of parliament who request for it. The minister of State of Internal Affairs, Mario Obiga Kania said whether in the opposition or ruling party, enhanced security will be provided to the MPs who need it and not to all the 452 legislators as earlier directed by President Yoweri Museveni. Museveni, in a recent directive to Ministry of Finance, ordered government with immediate effect, to procure bullet-proof escort vehicles for MPs as well as acquire army snipers after the legislators expressed concerns over their security. "It is not only for MPs, Uganda is currently secure and there is no need for alarm, but whoever feels that he or she is threatened, it is their right to get security," Obiga Kania said on phone. MPs asked for heightened security Following the murder of former Arua municipality MP Ibrahim Abiriga and his bodyguard Saidi Buga Kongo earlier in June this year, the MPs especially from the ruling party, expressed concern over their security and requested President Museveni for extra protection. However, a section of MPs especially from the opposition have instead called for a comprehensive security measure that would secure all Ugandans. Kapelebyong County MP Julius Ochen also said that the additional security is not called for; and instead asked the government to consider a comprehensive strategy, providing enough security for all Ugandans as opposed to securing only the MPs. Gulu Municipality MP Leandro Komakech said that categorizing some Ugandans as very important is discriminative, adding that MPs cannot be heavily militarized at the expense of voters. In the aftermath of Abiriga's murder, Museveni announced a 10-point security plan to curb all forms of criminality in the country. The new strategies included, among others, equipping motor vehicles and motorcycles with tracker electronic number plates, provision of new helmets with illuminated numbers and installing street cameras. Bahrains Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) recently inaugurated a new Telecom Mast Permitting Office, which will be responsible for regulating and rectifying telecom towers. The office will be responsible for coordinating with the relevant government bodies, including the Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning, the Supreme Council for Environment and the Civil Aviation Affairs to obtain required permits and No-Objection Certificates from these bodies prior to granting the final permit by TRA for deploying telecom towers. This will ensure the optimal implementation of the provisions of the Prime Ministerial Decision No. 45 of 2015 (Decision 45) that promulgates the Regulation concerning Public Radio-communications Stations. Based on Decision 45, TRA appointed a consulting firm to develop a framework and regulations for the deployment of telecom towers and the establishment of a specialized office to ensure the implementation of these regulations. TRA has recently completed the development of engineering conditions and standards related to the technical and aesthetic aspects, in coordination with the relevant government bodies, to deploy telecom towers according to both the provisions of Decision 45and the best international engineering practices. A specialized technical team will carry out the approval processes and ensure that operators comply with all new engineering conditions and standards prior to granting final permits. The specialized team will conduct site visits to ensure that telecom towers comply with the general safety requirements and engineering specifications and to audit technical information and sites of existing and planned telecom towers. The team will also coordinate with operators to implement the plan to rectify unpermitted telecom towers to ensure that all telecom towers comply with the new engineering conditions, standards and specifications. TRA has recently used an electronic system to manage the telecom towers permit process and to process applications for tower sharing between operators. TRAs technical & operations director Mohammed Alnoaimi stated: One of TRAs strategic objectives is to develop regulations aiming at ensuring a secure and advanced telecommunications infrastructure. In view of the importance of telecom towers as an important component of the telecommunications infrastructure and the TRA's insistence on deploying towers according to the best international engineering standards and practices in this field, TRA has contracted with a specialized consulting firm to provide consultancy, technical and operational support to the new Telecom Mast Permitting Office. This will enable the office to carry out the approval processes and monitor the implementation of the telecom towers rectification plan to ensure that all towers comply with applicable regulations and requirements. Since August 2016, TRA has issued 50 permits for the deployment of new telecom towers that comply with all the conditions of the concerned bodies. TRA exerts significant efforts to ensure that small towers with integrated architectural forms which are consistent with the surrounding environment and landscape are deployed instead of the current traditional tower. In collaboration with all concerned government bodies, TRA aims to have a radical change over the next few years in the forms, types and sizes of telecom towers without impacting rapid technological development and progress, Alnoaimi added. The consulting firm implements a comprehensive training program for Bahraini engineers in TRA, ensuring that these engineers have the knowledge and expertise necessary to continue to deploy telecom towers according to the best engineering standards and practices in the future." TradeArabia News Service For the first time, staff of Tullamore Credit Union Ltd will be in attendance at the Tullamore Show. The staff will answer questions and queries about products and services currently available to members of the credit union from the farming community. The Tullamore Show & FBD National Livestock Show takes place on the second Sunday in August, August 12, 2018. Tullamore Show & FBD National Livestock Show is Ireland's premier agricultural event. Every year it attracts the best cattle, sheep, and equine breeders from all over the country, alongside entrants for its other 1,000 plus competitions with a total prize-fund of 175,000. It is Ireland's largest one-day show, averaging 60,000 visitors in recent years, with 700 Trade Stands, one of which will be home to Tullamore Credit Union for the day. Tullamore Credit Union Ltd will has also sais it will be announcing details of further collaboration with several other Midlands based credit unions, saying that, "Cultivate is coming!" In the meantime, if you have questions, queries or applications relating to Tullamore Credit Union's current farm loan products simply drop into the office, use their NEW Express Loan Form, call on freephone loan line 1 800 56 55 55, email loans@tullamorecu.ie or apply online through the credit union website www.tullamorecu.ie. You can also follow the Credit Union on facebook and apply direct through the social media platform. In an attempt to make Hyderabad beggar-free city, 300 vagrants given education, employment Feature oi-Oneindia Staff By Oneindia Staff Hyderabad, July 23: If all goes well, Hyderabad is likely to become a beggar-free city soon. It is a huge task nonetheless the authorities are going in the right direction to make the city free from beggars. Begging is a reality in India as many poor, disabled, elderly, women and children are forced into seeking alms. Begging is a crime in various parts of the country and if officials catch someone begging he/she is arrested. "In India, there is no central law which penalises begging. Although, 22 states (including few Union Territories) have their anti-begging laws. The Act which functions as the derivative figure for all the state anti-begging law is Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959. States which have their own anti-begging laws are attached in Annex 1," stated an article by iPleaders. As laws are grey and poverty is pushing thousands into begging, thus the whole process of rehabilitating the beggars has never been implemented properly. Nonetheless, Hyderabad seems to have achieved some amount of success in this direction. The city started its beggar-free drive in October 2017 and till now at least 9,000 beggars have been picked up by the state prisons department, stated a report by ANI. Out of the 9,000, 300 beggars have been sent to rehabilitation centres where they are given education and provided employment opportunities, added the report. 'Beggar-free' city drive continues in Hyderabad.Till now,9000 beggars have been picked up by prison dept,300 beggars sent to rehabilitation centres where they're given education&provided employment. IG Telangana Prisons Dept says,"Want to implement the drive in the entire state." pic.twitter.com/qgIyoW6y0h ANI (@ANI) July 22, 2018 IG Telangana Prisons Department A Narsimah told ANI, "We want to implement the drive in the entire state." "We are organising different programmes for the beggars including education programme. We are also providing employment to the beggars who are able or are physically fit. It's not a prison but is more like a rehabilitation centre. After picking up beggars, if they want to go back to their homes, we call their relatives and then counsel them and we release them. The drive will continue in the city," he added. The senior official informed that as a part of the beggar-free city drive, the authorities have arranged two rehabilitation centres for the vagrants. "One is at Chanchal Prison for male beggars and another is at Charlapalli Prison for female beggars," he added. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 6:58 [IST] 7th Pay Commission: Why the TA for CG employees will not increase despite rise in DA 7th Pay Commission: Variable DA for CG employees hiked, all you should know 7th Pay Commission: Here is why basic monthly pay of CG employees will not increase 7th Pay Commission: Latest news, big bonanza and hike for these employees India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, July 23: There is some good news on the 7th Pay Commission. While 50 lakh Central Government employees desperately await a pay hike, here is one state which has decided to give its employees a bonanza. The state of Maharashtra has decided to give a pay hike beyond what the 7th Pay Commission had recommended. The pay hike is set to come into effect from Diwali onwards. According to finance minister, Sudhir Mungantiwar, the state would implement the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission from Diwali onwards. This means the pay hike would come into effect from November 2018 onwards. He also said that the 7th Pay Commission would be a Diwali gift for its employees. This decision would benefit 19 lakh people. The decision will put a financial burden of Rs 21,530 crore on the state exchequer, Mungantiwar said. "The finance department made provisions of Rs 10,000 crore in its annual budget presented in March this year," he said. The remaining provisions will be made through supplementary demands or in the next year's budget, he said. The government is also considering the demand for granting child care leave (CCL) for two years (730 days) to women government employees and 15 days paternal leave for male staffers, Mungantiwar said. The state government is also studying a proposal to start a five-day week working system for its employees, he said. "The proposal for increasing the working hours of government employees by 15 minutes against a weekly off on every Saturday is being studied," he added. In this backdrop, CG employees continue to wait for a hike and increase in fitment factor. There is absolutely no confirmation on the pay hike, but reports suggest that an announcement relating to the 7th Pay Commission would be made on August 17. Big B turns 79: Superstar Amitabh Bachchan thanks fans, says 'I walk with pride of your love' Ad starting Amitabh Bachchan with daughter withdrawn following attack from bank union India oi-Oneindia Staff By Oneindia Staff Kochi, July 23: Kochi: A leading jewellery chain on Sunday withdrew a one-and-a-half minute long advertisement featuring Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan and his daughter after it came under attack from a bank union which said it was aimed at creating 'distrust' in the banking system. "We sincerely regret the inadvertent hurt caused and withdraw the advertisement from all media with immediate effect," Executive Director of Kalyan Jewellers, Ramesh Kalyanaraman said in a statement here. He said, "We understand that the advertisement has hurt sentiments of some people including members of our esteemed banking community. Any such hurtful interpretation being drawn is unintended." T 2870 - Emotional moment for me .. tears welling up every time I see it .. daughters are the BEST !! pic.twitter.com/7Jes2GDPBo Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) July 17, 2018 "We state that the creative advertisement was a work of fiction and not a reflection of banking employees at large. Along with crores of Indians, we acknowledge the valuable contribution of the banking community to our country," the statement said. All India Bank Officers' Confederation, an organization claiming to have membership of around 3,20,000 officers, last week threatened to sue Kalyan Jewellers accusing it of "casting aspersion and hurting the sentiments of millions of personnel" through the advertisement. AIBOC general secretary Soumya Datta had alleged that the theme, tone and tenor of the advertisement were "disgusting, derogatory, to say the least and is aimed to create distrust in the banking system, for pure commercial gain." However, Kalyan Jewellers had rejected the allegation, saying it was "pure fiction". The advertisement features Bachchan as an old man and Shweta Bachchan Nanda as his daughter. In the ad, Bachchan, depicted as a person with integrity and honesty, is seen visiting a bank branch along with his daughter to return the extra money credited in his pension account and his bitter encounter with bank employees in the process. "The advertisement portrays banks in bad light, casting aspersion, hurting the sentiment of millions of personnel, stakeholders and is a direct attempt to ruin the trust and confidence of billions of citizenries in banks," Datta had said. Bachchan had tweeted the video of the ad, saying "Emotional moment for me.. tears welling up every time I see it.. daughters are the best !!" Popular Malayalam actress Manju Warrier acted as his daughter in the advertisement's Malayalam version. AIBOC had said in the ad, Bachchan tried to exhibit his honesty by drumming around that "Honesty doesn't mean when everyone is watching, rather it is about being honest when nobody is looking at you. But, Mr Bachchan perhaps was unaware that in the process of doing so on screen, he has made a mockery of the entire bankers' community in the ad which is deplorable and culpable." Datta had said "we express our strong resentment against the management of Kalyan Jewellers and Mr Bachchan who have manifested a negative and false image of the Banks in the ad for their personal aggrandizement." "We deem it as a case of defamation to all the banks as a whole," it had said. Demanding an unconditional apology from the jewellery group, the AIBOC had said if the advertisement was not withdrawn, suitable "organisational action, including dharnas and litigation" would be initiated. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 9:46 [IST] AIIMS asked to formulate action plan on drug menace India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: The Supreme Court has asked the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to formulate a national action plan to curb the growing menace of drug abuse in the society, including by school-going children. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra also made it clear to Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh, representing the Centre, that no extension of time would be granted to the government and AIIMS in formulating the policy on drug menace as the issue was of "national importance". "Having heard Maninder Singh, Additional Solicitor General for Union of India, we direct the authorities of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to finalise the report of the High Powered Committee on or before September 7. "It is hereby made clear that no further extension shall be granted. The competent authorities of AIIMS shall bear in mind that framing of this policy is of national importance and it cannot brook any delay," the bench, also comprising justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, said. The order came when lawyer Sravan Kumar, appearing for Ketireddy Jagadishwar Reddy, alleged that the 2016 verdict of the apex court on the plea of NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) was not being complied with. While deciding the PIL of BBA of Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi, the apex court, in December 2016, had issued a slew of guidelines and had asked the Centre to formulate within six months the national action plan to curb rising substance abuse cases among school children and had also ordered a national survey to gauge the extent of the menace. The bench took note of the submission of the lawyer and made it clear that its directions have to be complied with without any further delay. "A copy of the order be handed over to Balasubramanian assisting Maninder Singh (ASG) so that he can communicate it to the Director, AIIMS," the bench said. The AIIMS has to formulate the national policy to curb the rising drugs menace in society, besides formulating the measures to educate people about the ill effects of substance abuse. Earlier also, the bench had taken a similar view on the plea filed by the NGO seeking enforcement of the apex court verdict delivered on its PIL in 2016. Senior advocate H S Phoolka, appearing for the NGO, had said that the Centre has failed to comply with the judgement. Besides directing formulation of the action plan, the bench had asked the government to undertake a nationwide survey to identify the prevalence of drug abuse across the country. While asking the governments -- both at the Centre and in the states -- to create awareness about the serious consequences of drug abuse, the court had directed the Centre to include in the school curriculum the subject on harmful effects of using drugs. The national capital alone has approximately one lakh street children and substance abuse is reported as a major health problem in this segment of the population, the PIL had said. A study by the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights on substance abuse by kids showed last year that 100 per cent of the children in conflict with the law were drug abusers, 95.5 per cent of them staying in childcare institutions were on drugs and 93 per cent of street children consumed narcotics. The study also said 88 per cent of the children consumed drugs due to "peer pressure", the NGO had said. The NGO in its PIL, filed in 2014, had sought a direction to formulate a national action plan for children on drugs and substance abuse including all issues of identification, investigation, recovery, counselling and rehabilitation. It had also sought creation of model syllabus on ill-effects of drugs and substance abuse. Alliance shopping: Congress proposes to add sulking NDA allies to cart India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, July 23: The Congress has authorised Rahul Gandhi to take a call on the alliances ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The first meeting of the newly revamped Congress Working Committee was held on Sunday and it was decided that the party would take on the BJP in 2019 with like-minded parties. The Congress with a national presence fights the most number of Lok Sabha seats. The key for the party would however be its alliance partners. However with several other parties being part of a united opposition, it would be interesting to see if the Congress would get to be the lead partner in a possible alliance ahead of the next Lok Sabha polls. The Congress is keeping a close eye on the Shiv Sena, BJD and TDP. The Shiv Sena has been sulking, while the TDP walked out of the NDA. In the recently held no-confidence motion moved by the TDP, the Shiv Sena and BJD did not vote. Moreover Amit Shah told party workers in Maharashtra that the BJP would fight the 2019 poll without the Shiv Sena. The Congress will now constitute a committee to shortlist potential partners. Sources say that it is keeping a close eye on all those parties which have fallen out with the BJP. It would also look to target some leaders within the BJP who have been sulking off late. The bigger hurdle for the Congress would be to overcome the likes of Mamata Banerjee, Mayawati and Akhikesh Yadav. The BSP has already made it clear that it would be projecting Mayawati as the first Dalit PM in the country. The alliance in UP between the BSP and SP would be crucial. If the two parties come together in 2019, it could be a headache for the BJP. Moreover if the two parties get a lions share of the votes, the Congress may find it hard to push for Rahul as the PM candidate. The other problem for the Congress is Mamata Banerjee. She could project herself as a PM candidate too. The other problem is that will Mamata's TMC be part of an alliance if the CPI(M) is also in it. The committee to be formed by the Congress would have to take stock of the situation before it finalises its allies. Political observers say that the recent voting pattern during the no-confidence motion is something that the opposition would not be happy about. 126 voted for the motion as opposed to the mammoth 325 who sided with the BJP and voted against it. While the Congress may look to stitch up alliances, there is a distant possibility that there could be any finality before the elections, analysts also add. The fence sitters would rather wait and watch for the final outcome of the Lok Sabha poll before taking any call on the matter. In case the BJP were to fall short, then there is a better chance of the alliance taking shape then, analysts also add. How Lok Sabha voted: The final count- Ayes-126 and Noes-325. The NDA's number which ought to have been at 312 came down to 294 with the Shiv Sena not voting. The BJP's sulking partner, Shiv Sena has 18 MPs in the Lok Sabha. While the NDA's number stood at 294 with the Shiv Sena staying away, it still managed to get a shot in the arm with the AIADMK backing it. With 37 MPs of the AIADMK, the final tally should have been at 331, but the board in the Lok Sabha showed the final count at 325. This is because, four AIADMK MPs and 2 from the BJP did not vote. Kirti Azad of the BJP was not present as he was away from the country due to personal reasons. Vitthal Radadiya could not make it to the Lok Sabha on Friday owing to health reasons. For the NDA, the final tally would have been at 323, but two MPs were brought to the Lok Sabha on stretchers to vote. The opposition should have 144 voting in favour of the motion. The tally however stood at 126. The TRS walked out before the vote, while the BJD abstained. Kamal Nath and Nonong Ering of the Congress were not present in the House and had sought prior permission for the same. Among those who did not vote were, Shiv Sena (18), BJD (19), TRS (11), AIADMK (4), BJP (2) and Congress (2). For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 15:46 [IST] Alwar lynching: BJP MLA Raja Singh says 'such killing will take place until cow slaughter stops' India oi-Madhuri New Delhi, July 23: A day after a villager, Rakbar Khan was lynched by a mob in Alwar in Rajasthan, BJP MLA Raja Singh has stirred a fresh controversy by saying that such lynchings will not stop till cow slaughtering ends and called for a law against it. Speaking to ANI, Singh said,''Recently, a cow smuggler got killed, but why this killing happened does anyone know? That guy Rakbar Khan was already booked under criminal charges of cow smuggling I came to know through media (sic).'' Clarifying on the statement, Singh said,''I didn't say anything wrong in my video, these lynching cases won't stop until cow slaughtering stops. there should be a law against it. According to media, the person who died was a cow trafficker.'' His remarks comes on the backdrop of comments by another BJP lawmaker Arjun Ram Meghwal, who linked lynching to the 'rising popularity' of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rakbar Khan was lynched by a mob of cow protectors who accused him of smuggling cows on Saturday in Rajasthan's Alwar. Several eyewitnesses have alleged inaction on part of the police as the reason behind Khan's death. Meanwhile, authorities are investigating whether there was negligence and manhandling of Khan that eventually led to his death. According to various reports, Rakbar was allegedly beaten up by the cops before taking to the hospital. Some reports also claim that the police took three hours to take the victim to the hospital. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 13:32 [IST] Certain industries allowed to use oxygen on temporary basis by MHA Complacency, laxity has crept in: Stern warning by MHA to states on COVID-19 appropriate behaviour Alwar Lynching case: MHA seeks report from Rajasthan govt India oi-Madhuri Alwar, July 23: Ministry Of Home Affairs (MHA) on Monday sought a report from Rajasthan Government over Alwar lynching case. Some villagers in Ramgarh area of the Alwar district in Rajasthan had allegedly attacked 28-year-old Rakbar Khan, alias Akbar, and another man on Friday night when they were transporting cattle to Haryana. Khan's companion escaped, while he died allegedly on the way to the hospital. The villagers had accused them of smuggling cows. It has also been reportedly said that the police delayed in taking the victim to the hospital. According to a report in NDTV, the victim was in police custody for three hours 45 minutes before he was taken to a hospital early on Saturday. Three men were arrested on suspicions of being linked to the case. The police said the men will be charged with murder. Condemning the rising incidents of lynching in India, the Supreme Court had on Tuesday asked the government to enact a law to deal such cases. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra had termed the incidents of lynching "horrendous acts of mobocracy". The incident comes a little more than a year after Pehlu Khan, a dairy farmer from Haryana's Mewat, was lynched by cow vigilantes in Alwar. He was attacked when he was transporting cattle to his village in Haryana as the mob suspected him of smuggling cows. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 17:18 [IST] Know more about Vikram Maan, a young PR and Social Media conglomerate from Rajasthan Why is Congress high command silent over killing of Dalit man in Rajasthan, asks Mayawati Alwar lynching case: Rajasthan cop admits delay in taking victim to hospital, suspended India oi-Deepika By Deepika Alwar, July 23: The Rajasthan Police on Monday admitted "error of judgement" in handling the case of alleged lynching of 28-year-old Rakbar in Alwar, as it suspended one and transferred three policemen, even as it refuted allegations of "custodial death". The action was taken after a video purportedly showing assistant sub inspector Mohan Singh, who was posted at the Ramgarh police station, admitting to his 'mistake', went viral. The video surfaced hours after allegations that the Alwar police took nearly three hours to take Khan to the Ramgarh community healthcare centre. "Mere se galti hogai...kaise bhi maan lo..saja de do ya chhodh do...seedhi si baat hai (I made a mistake...punish me or pardon me...it is simple and straight)," the ASI can be heard purportedly saying in the video. The admission comes hours after reports claimed that police had stopped to have tea, and got the victim's clothes changed at the police station before taking him to the Ramgarh Community Health Centre. It is alleged that when the incident happened in Alwar's Lalawandi village, it took over two-and-a-half hours for the police to take the victim to the Ramgarh Community Healthcare Centre, which is nearly 4km away. Khan and his friend Aslam were taking cows to their villages in Haryana through a forest in Alwar's Ramgarh area when they were accosted by a mob and allegedly attacked. While Aslam managed to flee, Khan was allegedly lynched. As per the FIR lodged with Ramgarh police station on Saturday, Naval Kishore Sharma, the chief of VHP's 'Gau Raksha' cell in Ramgarh, had informed the police about the incident at 12.41am on Saturday. Police reached the spot at around 1.15am and recorded Khan's statement before taking him to the police station. As per the CHC entry register, the body of a 28-year-old male was brought in at 4.00am. Questioning the role of the police, local Ramgarh MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja demanded a judicial enquiry to find out if Khan was lynched by a mob or beaten to death by the cops. The probe was handed over to additional SP (crime and vigilance), Jaipur Range, on Sunday. "The investigation will be carried out in a fair and transparent manner," IG Hemant Priyadarshi had said. Rahul Gandhi meets party leaders from Gujarat, asks them to be prepared for assembly polls Alwar lynching: 'This is PMs 'New India' where hatred replaces humanity', says Rahul Gandhi India oi-Madhuri New Delhi, July 23: Hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over a lynching case in Rajasthan's Alwar district, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said that this is Modi's brutal "New India" where hatred replaces humanity. Taking to micro-blogging platform, Twitter, Gandhi said,''Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modi's brutal "New India" where hatred replaces humanity and people are crushed and left to die.'' Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. https://t.co/sNdzX6eVSU Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 23, 2018 Rakbar Khan (28) was on Friday night beaten to death by suspected cow vigilantes in Alwar. His associate Aslam who was transporting cows on foot along with him managed to escape. Three people have been arrested in the case. All three accused were produced before the Ramgarh Judicial Magistrate, who remanded them in police custody for five days. While Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje condemned the violence, Union Minister of State of Finance, and Bikaner MP, Arjun Ram Meghwal called it part of a "conspiracy", the result of "rising popularity of PM Modi" and "a reaction to the impact of his schemes". This isn't the first time, in 2017, Pehlu Khan, a dairy farmer, was accused of smuggling cattle and was lynched by a mob on the national highway in Rajasthan's Alwar district. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 13:52 [IST] The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) and the Dubai Police General HQ said that the trial run of the Traffic Incidents Management Scheme would be applied to a 70-km sector of the Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road for one year starting from September 16. The step aims to ensure rapid deployment for clearance of vehicles involved in traffic accidents and vehicles breaking down on roads. The ultimate objective is to streamline the traffic flow at the sites of accidents, cut short the time taken to remove crashed vehicles and fend off secondary accidents triggered by sudden snarls. A coordinative meeting was held between Mattar Al Tayer, director-general and chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA, and Major-General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, in the process of Major-General Al Sallal Saeed Bin Huwaidi Al Falasi, director of Administrative Affairs. The meeting discussed means of boosting bilateral cooperation, expanding the Intelligent Traffic Systems, and collecting fines applicable to vehicles whose registration had expired. The step will improve the standard of services offered, and utilise most resources and technologies to upgrade the infrastructure and maintain Dubais global profile. The two parties agreed to implement the trial operation of the Traffic Incidents Management Scheme, which will commence on the Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road as of September 16 this year. The service will be provided as per international best practices. The two parties have agreed to deploy a team at the Command and Control Room of the Dubai Police. A process will be charted out for communication between the Operations Room, Traffic Control Center and dedicated patrol vehicles on the E311 Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road. According to studies commissioned by RTA, the scheme will help to reduce congestions along with associated costs by as much as 25 per cent, and save extra expenses incurred by Dubai Police as well. It will step up Police traffic enforcement measures, cut the time needed to remove damaged vehicles off the road, detect the occurrence of accidents and incidents, and ensure rapid deployment before building up the snarls or the incidence of secondary accidents. It will enable the delivery of roadside assistance to faulty vehicles to clear them off the road, and coordinate with motorists to remove their vehicles instantly. Through this Scheme, RTA is seeking to provide assistance for the management traffic accidents by traffic diversion to alternative routes and making local traffic diversions among other measures. The meeting discussed the expansion of RTAs Intelligent Traffic Systems, which envisages the designing and building of an integrated infrastructure of Intelligent Traffic Systems and the building of a new Traffic Management Control centre at Al Barsha. It entails broadening the coverage of the Intelligent Traffic Systems from 11 per cent to 60 per cent of roads network in Dubai and speeding up the detection as well as response to accidents and snarls on Dubai roads. It seeks to provide real-time traffic information to the public about the conditions of roads network through new Virtual Messaging Signs & smart apps and enhance the efficiency of traffic management at mega event sites, such as Expo 2020. The two sides also discussed the collection of fines on vehicles with expired registration, the number of which is estimated at 269,000 vehicles. It has been agreed to intensify enforcement of measures along with the issuance of offences online, carry out more awareness campaigns to highlight the serious outcomes of failing to renew vehicles registration and continue driving them. Discussions also covered accidents of bikes and efforts of Dubai Police to enforce the rules against offenders including the impounding of bikes in breach of the Use of Bikes in Dubai Law. It was reported that about 1,700 bikes had been seized in Dubai in 2017. The meeting also discussed the Dubai Traffic Safety Strategy and the importance of raising the traffic awareness of road users. Al Tayer hailed the strategic relationships between RTA and Dubai Police and their cooperation in managing traffic movement and enforcement. He also praised the coordinative meetings between the two parties as they offer a direct communication channel for discussing new business that serves the interest of citizens and residents of the Emirate. Major General Al Marri said: The coordinative meetings of Dubai Police General HQ and RTA are of immense benefit for the Emirate as well as the joint business. They contribute to the achieving objectives relating to enhanced security, tranquillity and happiness amongst citizens and residents of this land. TradeArabia News Service Assam NRC: All Indians will get chance to prove citizenship says Rajnath Singh India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said that there was no need to panic and all bonafide Indians will be given adequate opportunities to prove their citizenship. The statement assumes significance with just a week to go for the publication of the draft National Citizens Register in Assam. Rajnath said the NRC is being updated in accordance with the 'Assam Accord' signed on August 15, 1985, and is being carried out as per the directions of the Supreme Court, which is monitoring the process. "There is no reason for panic or fear. No person will be allowed to be harassed. We will ensure that every individual gets justice and is treated in a humane manner," he said. He assured that the exercise is being carried out in an impartial, transparent and meticulous manner and will continue to be so. "All individuals will have sufficient opportunity for all remedies available under the law. At every stage of the process, adequate opportunity is given to all persons to be heard," he said. Rajnath said the Centre wants to make it clear that the NRC, to be published on July 30, is only a draft, and after publication of the draft, adequate opportunity for claims and objections will be available. "All claims and objections will be duly examined. Adequate opportunity of being heard will be given before disposal of claims and objections. Only thereafter, final NRC will be published," he said. He said the Citizenship Rules provide the opportunity to any person who is not satisfied with the outcome of claims and objections to appeal to the Foreigners Tribunal. Therefore, there is no question of anyone being put in a detention centre after the publication of NRC, he said. Rajnath said the Assam government has been told to ensure that law and order is maintained. "The central government will provide all necessary help to the state government of Assam in this regard," he said. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 7:05 [IST] You have right to protest not right to block roads: SC to farmers Centre backs live-streaming of court proceedings, let it start in CJIs court says AG India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, July 23: The Centre has said that it supported live-streaming of court proceedings in the Supreme Court. It should start with the court of the Chief Justice, Attorney General, K K Venugopal said. He further said that the government is in favour of the idea and that modalities could be devised to suit the needs. It can be done on a pilot basis and should begin in the CJI's court, he also added. He further said that live streaming should first be confined only to matters heard by the Constitution Bench. These matters are of great interest to lawyers, law interns and others. There could be screens installed in the court premises as well to enable lawyers and law interns to watch. The petitioner in the case, Indira Jaisingh said that certain safeguards need to be in place so that the clips are not commercially exploited or misused. The Supreme Court has sought the assistance of the Attorney General of India on a petition that seeks live streaming of proceedings of the Constitution Bench in cases having national importance. Last week, a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India, Dipak Misra sought the assistance of the AG, K K Venugopal on a petition filed by senior advocate, Indira Jaisingh. In her petition, Jaisingh said that the norm world over was to allow proceedings to be recorded. She further added that some judges on the Constitution Benches were reluctant about this as it would capture every sentence in the banter between judges and advocates which were merely a way to elicit responses and not a sign of how the judge would finally decide the case. She however added that there were different methods to resolve such reluctance and also listed the methods that courts globally had adopted. Some courts allow publication after a gap of 30 minutes, some ban recording of proceedings only in trial courts as that would compromise witnesses, some give edited versions of the proceedings, some record the proceedings but do not air it in public, some give out transcripts of proceedings, she also said in her petition. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 12:12 [IST] Centre buys 5,000 rape probe kits for speedy investigation India oi-PTI New Delhi, July 23: The Home Ministry has purchased 5,000 rape investigation kits which would be given to police stations across the country for the speedy probe in sexual harassment cases, according to a senior Women and Child Development official. The official said that for now, five kits each would be provided to randomly-selected police stations and states have also been asked to chip in with their contribution. The kits are designed to carry out immediate medical investigation and aid the evidence-gathering exercise in sexual assault and rape cases. "The Home Ministry has procured 5,000 rape investigation kits that would be distributed to randomly selected police stations across the country for speedy probes in sexual harassment cases," he said. Each kit comes with a set of test tubes and bottles and costs Rs. 200 to Rs. 300, the official said. Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi last week urged states to buy such kits and arm their police station with them. The official said the states have responded positively and the Haryana government has even approved their procurement. "It is often seen that compromised evidence reach forensic laboratories in such cases. So in a bid to overcome that, rape investigation kits would be distributed to all police stations," the official said. Explaining the functioning of these kits, he said it would be used to collect various samples, such as blood, semen and sweat, of rape survivors which will be locked and sent to the forensic laboratory. It will carry the time of sealing of the samples and also the names of the police officer and the doctor involved. Ms Gandhi had said there was no forensic analysis in 13,000 rape cases every year as the country's laboratories lacked the capacity. She had also said her ministry has been looking to plug loopholes in the system to ensure rape cases are investigated expeditiously. "The first ones we found were in the forensic department. We just have the forensic ability for 1,500 people. We used the Nirbhaya fund and with the help of the Ministry of Home Affairs, we are building five new forensic laboratories that will increase the capacity from 1,500 to 20,000," she said. "At times the forensic laboratories receive compromised evidence, that is why there is a need to distribute the rape investigation kits in every police station," she had said. As many as 1,10,333 cases of rape were registered in the country between 2014-16, according to government figures. The figures say that 38,947 cases of rape were registered in 2016, 34,651 in 2015 and 36,735 in 2014. Altogether 3,38,954 cases of crime against women were registered in 2016, while 3,29,243 such cases were registered in 2015 and 3,39,457 in 2014, according to the government figures. Rape accounts for about 12 per cent of all crimes against women, according to the figures. PTI For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 15:14 [IST] Certainly a scam, Rahul Gandhi reiterates on Rafale deal India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: Congress president Rahul Gandhi alleged there was certainly a "scam" in the controversial Rafale jet deal with France and accused Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of doing a "flip-flop" on the secrecy clause. Gandhi also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issue, alleging he "squirms" when asked about the prices of the fighter aircraft. "Our Defence Minister said she would, but now she won't. She flip flops between it's-not-a-secret & it's-a-BIG-secret . The PM squirms when asked about the price of RAFALE and refuses to look me in the eye. Sure smells like a scam. #RAFALEscam (sic)," he tweeted. Gandhi's fresh attack on the government over the deal comes two days after he told Parliament during the debate on no-confidence motion that French president had conveyed to him that there was no problem in sharing details relating to the Rafale, contrary to what the government has been saying. "The Defence Minister has clearly spoken an untruth," he had said. Referring to Prime Minister Modi, he had said, "I can see him smiling. There is a touch of nervousness. He is looking away, not looking into my eyes." The truth is that Modi is not a "chowkidar" (guard) but a "bhagidaar" (collaborator) in the wrong-doings, the Congress chief had said. "I personally met the French president and asked him if there is such a pact between the French and Indian governments. The French president told me that there is no such pact between the French and Indian governments," Gandhi had said. "This is the truth, and he told me that I have no objection to it (details of Rafale deal) being made public, you can tell it to entire India." Prime Minister Modi had called these charges as "distortion of truth". After Gandhi's claims, the French government had issued a statement, saying a security agreement it concluded with India in 2008 legally binds the two countries to protect the classified information relating to operational capabilities of defence equipment. However, it did not clarify whether the provisions of the pact restrict the Indian government to disclose price details of the Rafale deal. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 5:55 [IST] Congress trying to copy us: TMC on decision to field 40 per cent women candidates for UP polls Have never seen such chaos, anarchy as what is playing out in Punjab Cong: Manish Tewari Congress to move privilege motion against PM, Sitharaman over Rafale deal India oi-Chennabasaveshwar By Chennabasaveshwar New Delhi, July 23: The Congress has decided to move a privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Lok Sabha on Rafale fighter jet deal issue. The party decided to move the privilege motion in a special Congress Party briefing by former Defence Minister Shri A.K. Anthony and former union minister Anand Sharma. Anand Sharma said, "PM and Defence Minister have misled the Parliament. The statement sent by French Govt talks of classified information on security, defence and operational capability; nowhere it refers to price. The price is not covered under the confidential agreement." On the day of no-confidence motion, Congress President Rahul Gandhi accused Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of "lying" to the nation over the Rafale deal's 'secrecy'. He said that French President Emmanuel Macron told him that there was no binding secrecy clause in the Rafale deal. However, Sitharaman, hit back at the Congress chief and termed as "absolutely wrong" Rahul's claim and said the initial agreement was signed when the UPA was in power in 2008. France too issued a statement saying that a security agreement it concluded with India in 2008 legally binds the two countries to protect the classified information relating to operational capabilities of defence equipment, although pricing was not explicitly mentioned. The BJP later moved a privilege motion against Rahul for levelling "baseless allegations" against the government over the Rafale deal. Accusing Rahul Gandhi of "concocting" a conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron over the Rafale deal, Union Minister Arun Jaitley said the Congress President has seriously hurt the image of an Indian politician before the world at large. New Motor Vehicle Rules 2019: What is the new fine for juvenile drivers? Juvenile convicts cannot be handed death penalty for every rape, murder case says Justice Lokur India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: Justice Madan B Lokur, the chairman of the Supreme Court Juvenile Justice Committee, has said that juvenile convicts cannot be handed down capital punishment in every case pertaining to heinous crimes such as rape and murder. He said judgement in such cases had to be delivered on the basis of evidence. "It is not that for every murder, for every rape, the only penalty is death penalty. I mean, we are not savages in this country," the SC judge said. "Just because the person happens to be 17 years old or close to 18 years old, commits a heinous crime - therefore he must get the death penalty, it cannot be like that. You have to still work on the basis of evidence and come to some conclusion," Justice Lokur said. He was speaking yesterday at the Fourth Western Regional Consultation on Effective Implementation of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 held here. On Protection of Children from Sexual Offences courts, Justice Lokur said studies reveal that "perhaps" these courts were "not functioning as well as they should". "Are the POCSO courts functioning well ? Are they not functioning well? You know, studies have been done (which) indicate that perhaps the POCSO courts are not functioning as well as they should. What are the reasons? What are the challenges?" he asked. He stressed the importance of sensitisation of special courts hearing cases related to children and juveniles. Justice Lokur said that the Child Rights Protection Commission, states and the Centre should work together to tackle the huge number of cases of missing children as well as those related to child labour and child trafficking. Among those present at the function were Supreme Court Judge Dipak Gupta, MP High Court Chief Justice Hemant Gupta and other legal luminaries. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 5:50 [IST] Touching cheeks of child without sexual intent not offence: Bombay HC while granting bail to 46-year-old man Param Bir Singh plea against Maha govt inquiries can be adjudicated by CAT says HC Astrological incompatibility can't be an excuse to go back on marriage promise: Bombay HC Lesbian partner gets protection from arrest by Bombay HC India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer Mumbai, July 23: The Bombay High Court has granted protection from arrest to a city-based woman, accused by her lesbian partner of committing a criminal breach of trust and another offence under the SC/ST Act. Justice A M Badar, in a judgement delivered last week, granted anticipatory bail to the woman, who had filed an appeal against an order passed by the trial court last year rejecting her request for protection from arrest. He said the complainant, who belongs to a Scheduled Caste, failed to establish that the petitioner had committed any offence under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. As for the allegation of breach of trust, the complainant had alleged that despite being in a relationship with her, the petitioner had continued to maintain "sexual relations with her husband and with other men". Justice Badar, however, noted that the allegation of breach of trust was questionable since the legality of their relationship could not be considered by the high court in an application of pre-arrest bail. As per the petitioner's plea, she and the complainant woman had been friends since 1997. "The acquaintance developed into an intimacy and subsequently into a homosexual relationship" between them, the plea reads. But after an argument in December 2016, the complainant registered a police complaint against the petitioner on charges of outraging her modesty, criminal intimidation, and criminal breach of trust. She alleged in the FIR that the petitioner cheated her since she had gone back on her promise to divorce her husband. In February 2017, the complainant lodged another FIR against the petitioner, this time alleging that she had called her names and thrown casteist slurs at her that would constitute an offence under the SC/ST Act. The complainant told the police that she had gone to the petitioner's house soon after the first FIR, asking her to return gold jewellery and six dresses. At that time, the petitioner's husband had screamed at her and thrown her out of the house, she alleged. Justice Badar, however, noted that shouting at her and throwing her out of the house did not make for an offence under the SC/ST Act. He observed that the second FIR seemed to have been lodged by the complainant as an afterthought to restrict the petitioner's chance of securing anticipatory bail. He also noted that both the women had lodged multiple complaints against each other with the police. "This chequered history of lodging of complaints and cross-complaints shows that while both women were earlier in a lesbian relationship, the relationship has now turned sour, and developed into extreme enmity," Justice Badar said. The first FIR lodged by the complainant deals principally with the fact that the petitioner committed a breach of trust by indulging in sexual relationships with her husband and other men despite being in a relationship with her, he noted. "How such a relationship is legal is a question that need not be considered in this application. However, it suffices to say that the first version of the complainant's FIR has no averments to any offence under the SC/ST Act," Justice Badar said. It seems that the FIR (by the complainant) came to be lodged only because the petitioner lost interest in the relationship, he observed. The FIR also seems to be motivated and averments regarding an offence under the SC/ST Act came to be made belatedly and with no explanation for such delay, he said. "Viewed from this angle, such motivated allegations cannot come in the way of enjoyment of personal liberty by the petitioner," Justice Badar said. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 7:34 [IST] Let states decide the issue of minorities; Centre brushes aside the matter India oi-Vinod By Vinod New Delhi, July 23: The Central government has brushed aside the matter of giving Hindus a minority status in eight out of 29 states where their number is fewer than the dominant community of that particular state. Strangely, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in alliance in five out of eight states. The move comes after the matter was forwarded to the Central government by the Supreme Court. Union minority works minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that the ministry received some requests from different organizations and institutions of declaring Hindus the status of minority. He said that the Centre declares any community minority at the national level not at the states level. He said that declaring any community a minority comes under the purview of the state government. Sources said that giving Hindus minority status in states will open up Pandora's Box and the demand of minority status will mushroom. Actually the matter was started when Delhi BJP spokesperson and lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay filed a petition demanding minority status to Hindus in eight states. The SC suggested him to go to Minority Commission with this matter. As per the order passed by the SC, Upadhyay gave presentation to the minority commission. Minority Commission chairman Gairul Hasan Rizvi said that after the presentation made by Upadhyay, a three-member sub-committee was set up by the commission. The committee is headed by George Kurian and its other members included Sulekha Kumbare and Manjit Sing Rai. Though the committee has prepared its report but it has not officially submitted it. Rizvi said that the commission was working on the report and by the end of this year it would submit the report to the government. Rizvi has termed decision of the Centre as absolutely appropriate by saying that unless the state governments send their proposals to the Centre, it cannot give minority status to any community. The government is also concerned about the Lok Sabha elections so it is treading very cautiously. He said that the Karnataka government had sent a proposal to declare Lingayats a minority. Now, it is up to the Centre to give them status of minority or not. But the lawyer and petitioner in this matter Ashwini Upadhyay said that 11-member bench of the SC in 2002 while hearing the case of minority in Punjab in TMA Pai case questioned minority status by saying that states were divided on the basis of language not on the basis of religion. The Supreme Court ruled in its decision instead of giving minority at the national level it should be done at the states level. He said that minority commission must seek opinion of Attorney general on this issue. Upadhyay in his petition said that population of Hindus in states like Jammu and Kashmir with 28.44 per cent, Punjab with 38 per cent, Mizoram with 2.75 per cent, Nagaland with 8.75 per cent, Meghalaya with 11.53 per cent, Arunachal Pradesh with 29.04 per cent, Manipur with 41.39 and Union Territory Lakshyadweep with 2.77 per cent are much less than ever half way. At the level of Centre, there are six notified minorities that included Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jains and Zoroastrians. Maharastra wants Zews to be declared minorities and it has declared them as minority in Maharashtra and similarly Karnataka wants Centre to declare Lingayats as minorities. So it does not start the fire, added sources. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 23:41 [IST] Allow second COVISHIELD dose after 4 weeks from first for those who want it early: Kerala HC to Centre Love is blind, an innate humane instinct says Kerala HC India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer Kochi, July 23: "Love is blind and an innate humane instinct. It is all about individuals and their freedom," the Kerala High Court has said, quashing a Kochi college order expelling a woman and her senior for being struck by Cupid and eloping. In a recent judgment, Justice A Muhamed Mustaque observed that the love affair and eloping termed as immoral amounting to a breach of discipline by the college was based on moral values of the persons in the management. "It is a sin for some and not a sin for others. In law, it is the choice of freedom which is the essence of liberty," the judge said. The authorities of the college in Kollam district failed to understand that intimate personal relationship was the matter of privacy of individuals upon which they had no authority to interfere, Justice Mustaque said. "Love is blind and an innate humane instinct. It is all about individuals and their freedom. Is love a freedom or fetter is the question that is raised in this writ petition in the context of imposition of academic discipline," he said. The judge allowed petitions by the 21-year-old man and the 20-year-old woman, both BBA students, and directed the college to allow her to continue the course and return the academic records of the other petitioner as sought by him. The woman, who had joined the course for 2016-17 academic year, fell in love with her senior. The college authorities and their parents had objected to their love, following which they had eloped. However, the parents of the woman later retracted their opposition and stood by her to court a marriage. The judge said the role of the court was not to endorse moral choices of college authorities or students, but to recognise the freedom to have a choice. "What concerns the court is whether the action has any nexus with the object for which such power is conferred. The right to privacy is an element of human dignity which includes the right to make an essential choice which would affect their course of life as declared by Supreme Court in K S Puttaswamy Vs Union of India (case)," Justice Mustaque said. Except "bald allegations" that the petitioners were found engrossed in an intimate relationship in the campus, there were absolutely no materials or evidence relied on to arrive at such a finding, he said. In the absence of evidence, that it had affected the classes conducted by the college or the congenial environment for learning, no action can be taken on the ground of indiscipline, he said. Noting that whether to have an affair or not to have an affair with another was a personal choice, the judge said such choice was fundamental to the liberty guaranteed under the Constitution. "Choosing a life partner or choosing a way of life is the discretion based on individual autonomy. Except with legislative essentials (legal paternalism), no regulation can be made to regulate the behaviour of men on moral values, the court said. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 5:44 [IST] Rain fury sweeps through India: 27 dead in Kerala, 5 in Uttarakhand; several other states affected Heavy downpour in Kerala for next 2 days; rainfall activity likely to reduce in Uttarakhand Malayalam actress assault case: Kerala govt says Dileep trying to delay trial India oi-Madhuri Thiruvananthapuram, July 23: The Kerala government on Monday informed the high court that Dileep is deliberately trying to delay the trial in the infamous Malayalam actress assault case. The affidavit filed by the state government says that a special court may be set up to conduct the trial. The state government also backed the victim's demand for a woman judge and a speedy trial in the case. On the other hand, actor Dileep has moved a petition in the Kerala High Court demanding a CBI probe in the case. The case dates back to February 18, 2017, when a South Indian actress was kidnapped and raped in a moving car. The incident kicked off a huge political controversy in Kerala with many people raising doubts about Dileep's involvement in the case. On July 10 last year, Dileep was arrested by the special investigation team probing the case, on charges of planning the attack and giving quotation to the first and second accused. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 15:39 [IST] W Hotels Worldwide, part of Marriott International, has announced the appointment of Christian Metzner as general manager of the soon-to-open W Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. Metzner recently joined W Kuala Lumpur from The Andaman, a Luxury Collection Resort, Langkawi, where he has been the general manager since 2014, and brings with him a wealth of experience having been part of Marriott International for the past 15 years. German-born Metzners career with Marriott International began in 1996 at the Arabella Sheraton Complex South Germany in Munich, and he has since held numerous positions within the company across two continents, including leadership roles in Beijing, Tianjin, Langkawi and now in Kuala Lumpur. Opening hotels are not new to Metzner; prior to his move to Malaysia, he was part of the pre-opening team at The Westin Beijing Financial Street and The Westin Tianjin. I am delighted and honoured to lead the opening crew for W Kuala Lumpur. We are going to inject so much energy into this city with our new hotel" said Metzner, general manager, W Kuala Lumpur. We are bringing guests closer to the music, design, fashion and fuel (the brands take on fitness and healthy lifestyle) scene in Kuala Lumpur while providing insider access to whats new/next, and our signature Whatever/Whenever service, delivering whatever guests want, whenever they want it, in this incredible city, he added. - TradeArabia News Service Gujarat gets 95% of long average rainfall of 30 years; Sept wetter than last 3 months combined Rahul Gandhi meets party leaders from Gujarat, asks them to be prepared for assembly polls Mens best friend: Dog risks his life to save his master after he was attacked by lions in Gujarat India oi-Oneindia Staff By Oneindia Staff Gandhinagar, July 23: Everyone needs a dog like the one owned by a Gujarat shepherd. Recently, Bhavesh Hamir Bharwad (25), a shepherd in Gujarat's Ambardi village, was attacked by a group of lions while he was grazing his sheep. The incident took place on July 21, reported ANI. The man was saved, thanks to his dog, who alerted the villagers by barking incessantly to chase away the lions. "Gujarat: A shepherd from Amreli's Ambardi village who was grazing his sheep was saved by his dog after he was attacked by three lions on July 21," tweeted ANI. Gujarat: A shepherd from Amreli's Ambardi village who was grazing his sheep was saved by his dog after he was attacked by three lions on July 21. pic.twitter.com/wskdicko6c ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 Narrating the horrible incident, Bharwad said that the lions attacked him when he was trying to save his sheep from being killed by the animals. As the whole incident unfolded, the shepherd's dog started barking and hearing the commotion other men from the village gathered at the spot. Seeing the men, the lions left the place. During the attack, Bharwad sustained minor injuries and was treated at a hospital. Thankfully, the dog remained unhurt. "Guj:The shepherd was trying to save his sheep from being attacked by lions when lions attacked him.On seeing the man being attacked,the dog began to bark attracting attention of people nearby who rushed to the spot,on seeing large no.of ppl the lions fled.The dog remained unhurt," tweeted ANI. Guj:The shepherd was trying to save his sheep from being attacked by lions when lions attacked him.On seeing the man being attacked,the dog began to bark attracting attention of people nearby who rushed to the spot,on seeing large no.of ppl the lions fled.The dog remained unhurt. ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2018 If you are a dog lover and yet to have a pet, this story will definitely inspire you to adopt one immediately. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 9:09 [IST] PM says notion that Army, police meant for men no longer exists, lauds rise in number of women cops PM Modi launches Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission: What we know about the scheme, so far? Modi to embark on three-nation Africa tour from today India oi-Madhuri New Delhi, July 23: Prime Minister Narendra Modi to embark on a 5-day visit to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa. In the first leg of his visit, Modi will reach Rwanda on the 23rd for a two day visit. India will extend two lines of credit to that country during the visit of USD 100ml each for agricultural sector and industrial sector. Modi will then have an interaction with Indian community. He will meet the leadership of Rwanda and will be accorded ceremonial reception. India will also give 200 cows to Rwanda during the visit as part of an initiative to foster brotherhood and prosperity. Prime Minister will be accompanied by high level business delegation during his visit. Secretary also said that India is contemplating to further enhance its strategic partnership with Rwanda. The Prime Minister will depart from Rwanda to Uganda on the 24th where he will call on the President. Mr Modi will have delegation level talks and will address Indian community. PM Modi will also address the parliament of Uganda. Two lines of credit worth USD 164ml will be extended to Uganda during the visit. In the last leg of his visit, Prime Minister Modi will reach South Africa on the 25th to attend the 10th BRICS summit at Johannesburg. He will meet South African President. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 8:12 [IST] Despite highest disruptions since 2014, here's the list of bills passed in Parliament New parliament building will be a monumental work of skill, speed, scale: Govt official Monsoon Session ends, most productive for Lok Sabha since 2000 India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, Aug 10: The Monsoon session of Parliament, which ended, was the "most productive" for Lok Sabha since 2000, a think tank has said. According to the data compiled by PRS Legislative Research, 20 bills were introduced during the session and 12 were passed. The Lok Sabha, it said, worked for 110 per cent of the scheduled hours and the Rajya Sabha for 66 per cent. The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha spent 50 per cent and 48 per cent of their time on legislative business respectively, the data said. This, the PRS Legislative Research data said, is the highest by both Houses in the 16th Lok Sabha and second highest since 2004. Fewer bills (26 per cent) were referred to parliamentary committees, as compared to the 15th Lok Sabha (71 per cent) and the 14th Lok Sabha (60 per cent). This Monsoon session also had one of the most productive Question Hours of the 16th Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha functioned for 84 per cent and 68 per cent of their scheduled Question Hour time respectively, the data said. The highest number of 999 Private Member Bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha since 2000, the think tank said. In the 16th Lok Sabha, the highest number of government Bills were introduced by the Ministry of Law and Justice and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. In the 15th Lok Sabha, the highest number of Bills were introduced by the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Law and Justice. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said the session has been the "more productive and safisfactory" compared to the previous Budget Session and last year's monsoon session. The session, which began on July 18, also witnessed a discussion on a no confidence motion against the Government brought by Opposition. The motion was defeated later. The House also greeted the people in advance on the occasion of the Independence Day. Here are the Highlights from the Monsoon Session: Newest First Oldest First Monsoon Session of the Lok Sabha adjourned Sine Die. "Triple Talaq Bill will not be taken up today because no consensus could be built around it," says Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu. Some reports say that the Triple Talaq Bill could be tabled in the Winter Session. The government and opposition failed to reached a consensus on the issue of triple talaq. Senior ministers in the government including Union law minister and senior Congress leaders are discussing the matter to reach a meeting point. However consensus seems unlikely. Congress demands JPC into Rafale issue. After ruckus over the matter, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned. Uproar by Opposition in Rajya Sabha over Rafale Deal issue. Congress raises Rafale deal issue in Rajya Sabha. Sonia Gandhi takes part in the protest by Opposition in Parliament premises over Rafale Deal issue. "Our party's position is absolutely clear on this, I will not say anything on this further," former Congress president Sonia Gandhi tells media when asked about Triple Talaq Bill. Congress, CPI, RJD and AAP hold protest outside Parliament over Rafale deal issue, reports ANI. The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved amendments in the Triple Talaq Bill. Under the amendments cleared, a magistrate will have powers to grant bail. The woman can approach the magistrate to seek subsistence allowance for herself and her minor children, and can also seek custody of her minor children from the magistrate who will take a final call on the matter. Union Cabinet yesterday also approved inclusion of provisions that the complaint in such a case can only be filed by the victim (wife) or blood relations With the Union Goverment set to table the Triple Talaq Bill in the Rajya Sabha today, a BJP strategy meeting is curently underway in the Parliament. BJP President Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh , Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and other senior leaders are present at the meeting, reported ANI. Triple Talaq Bill to be tabled in Rajya Sabha today Lok Sabha adjourned till 11am tomorrow. Triple Talaq Bill to be tabled in Rajya Sabha tomorrow TDP MP demands Centre intervention in view of several kidney ailment cases in Uddanam Zero Hour begins Lok Sabha has passed the Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill. Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) will rally across the country & expose Congress who ruled for 55 years but did nothing. It's a slap in the face of those who call NDA & Modi govt as anti-dalit, says Ram Vilas Paswan, Union Minister, on passage of SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Amendment Bill New talent would do better in upcoming games&championships. Manipur is known as sports powerhouse.I want to make it super sports powerhouse. Whatever Govt needs to do in this, I would be very happy to help:Mary Kom,Rajya Sabha MP,on passage of National Sports University Bill 2018 Lok Sabha extends functioning till 7 pm LS debates the Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill, 2017. The Bill seeks to amend the Representation of People Act, 1950 and the Representation of People Act, 1951 to allow for proxy voting for NRI voters and to make certain provisions of the Acts gender-neutral. Lok Sabha has passed The Integrated Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2018, The Union Territory Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2018, The Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Amendment Bill, 2018 and The Central Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2018. National Commission for Backward Classes (Repeal) Bill, 2017 has been passed by Lok Sabha. Meanwhile, The DNA Technology (Use And Application) Regulation Bill, 2018 has been introduced in the Lok Sabha. Rajya Sabha has been adjourned till 11.00 am tomorrow. Parliament has passed the National Sports University Bill 2018 as the Rajya Sabha has given its approval. The Rajya Sabha is currently discussing The Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill, 2018. The Lok Sabha is discussing The Central Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2018. "We've proposed 3 changes. If any husband gives triple talaq instantaneously & breaks marriage then FIR shall only become cognizable when it is filed by victim or blood relation or relation by marriage," he said. Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu's Telugu Desam Party, or TDP, has given notice for a no trust motion against the NDA government in the Lok Sabha. The no-trust motion does not endanger the BJP-led government which has 273 members in the Lok Sabha, much more than the half-way mark. Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav said at the all-party meeting: We will not allow the House to function till an assurance is given by the government on the floor of the House on reservations to SCs and STs in higher education. With the Supreme Court coming down heavily on inaction by states in cases of cow vigilantism, a debate on an anti-lynching law is likely to take place. With parliament session starting from today, several key bills are likely to be passed, tabled or debated. Before the bills are tabled and discussed, the opposition is likely to rake up issues that might delay the session. Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu has urged both ruling and opposition parties to stop blame game over house disruptions. Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday sought cooperation of all political parties and asked them to ensure that it turns out to be a productive session. While the BJP has accused the Congress of Muslim appeasement and practising divisive politics, the Congress on its part has accused Modi of pursuing divisive agenda to win elections after his governance "failure". In Rajya Sabha, members will pay their Obituary References to the passing away of- Vishwasrao Ramrao Patil, Mohammed Amin, Ashok Mitra, Balkavi Bairagi, Kameshwar Paswan, Shantaram Naik, Surinder Kumar Singla and M.M. Jacob Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday hit out at the government through a pop quiz. In a veiled attack at the BJP-led central government, Gandhi said, "Pop Quiz I bow to the most powerful in the line. A person's strength & power are all that are important to me. I use hatred & fear to maintain the hierarchy of power. I seek out the weakest & crush them. I rank all living beings based on their usefulness to me. Who am I? (sic)." Over eight opposition leaders have sent an unusual rejoinder to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan's request to cooperation during parliament's monsoon session with a letter of their own. The opposition leaders wonder whether she had written to the government too, pointing that it was the ruling BJP-led coalition which disrupted parliament for 13 days during the budget session. The Shiv Sena was undecided on supporting the no-confidence motion that the TDP sought to move in Parliament against the BJP-led NDA government. Trinamool Congress gives Zero hour notice in Rajya Sabha over Mob Lynching issue. List of Issues Opposition Will Raise During Monsoon Session Leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said opposition parties will demand grant of special status to Andhra Pradesh, apart from raising issues such as lynchings, atrocities against women and Dalits and dilution of a law meant for SCs. He said that attempts to abolish reservation policy and the falling value of the Rupee will be also be raised in the monsoon session. After TMC in Rajya Sabha, now RJD MP JP Yadav has also given an adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha over cases of mob lynching. CPI MP D Raja has given adjournment motion notice in Rajya Sabha over cases of mob lynching and attack on Swami Agnivesh. With opposition all geared up to corner the Centre over host of issues including contentious mob lynching incident, what the Members of the Parliament should remember is that a total of 68 pending bills need to to be taken up the next 18 sessions. The Budget Session of Parliement was a toatl chaos during which the Lok Sabha worked for only 21 per cent of its scheduled time while the Rajya Sabha worked just 27 per cent. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor took to Twitter to express hope for a peaceful Monsoon Session, while taking a dig at the BJP and its allies. "It would be a disgrace if we saw a repeat of proxy disruption so the government can push its bills through in the din," he said in the tweet. Looking forward to a productive #MonsoonSession2018 with support from all political parties. #Parliament pic.twitter.com/fqu5AecGyD Ananthkumar (@AnanthKumar_BJP) July 18, 2018 Ananth Kumar hopes for a productive session. TDP MP Kesineni Srinivas has already wrote to Lok Sabha Secretary-General to include a no-confidence motion in the list of business for the first day of the monsoon session of Parliament, which begins today. The government is unlikely to go for election to the post of Rajya Sabha's deputy chairman in Parliament's Monsoon Session beginning tomorrow and will push for a consensus candidate. The post has been lying vacant since June after the retirement of PJ Kurien, who was elected to the Upper House of Parliament on the Congress ticket from Kerala, and later became its deputy chairman in the UPA government. Meeting of Telugu Desam Party(TDP) MPs underway at YS Choudhary's residence in Delhi. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Home Minister Rajnath Singh arrive in Parliament. YSR Congress MPs protest at Gandhi statue in Parliament, demanding special status for Andhra Pradesh. Special category status for Andhra has been a long pending demand. It over this issues that the TDP severed ties with the BJP and walked out of the NDA. "We hope that MonsoonSession of Parliament functions smoothly, whatever issues any party has, it can raise on the floor of the house. Government is ready for discussion on all issues," says PM Modi before entering Parliament. PM Modi seeks cooperation of all political parties and asked them to ensure that the Monsoon Session turns out to be productive. The Budget Session of Parliament was a total chaos during which the Lok Sabha worked for only 21 per cent of its scheduled time while the Rajya Sabha worked just 27 per cent. "May the productivity of the forthcoming session and the rich levels of debate also become a source of inspiration for the various state assemblies," the PM says. Important bills and ordinances listed for the Monsoon Session: 123rd Constitutional Amendment bill Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Amendment) Bill Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill or the triple talaq bill Rights of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Second Amendment) Bill, 2017 Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill National Medical Commission Bill, 2017. Code of Wages Bill, the Factories (Amendment) Bill Contract Labour Amendment Bill Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill Ordinances that would be replaced: Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of HCs (Amendment) Ordinance Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Ordinance National Sports University Ordinance Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Ordinance No blanket ban on protests at Jantar Mantar, Boat Club says SC India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: The Supreme Court on Monday lifted a ban by the National Green Tribunal on protests at Jantar Mantar and Boat Club in New Delhi. The Bench also directed the Centre to lay down guidelines for the grant of necessary permission. The court said that there cannot be a blanket ban on holding protests at Jantar Mantar and Boat Club near the India Gate. The Green Tribunal had banned all protests around the historic Jantar Mantar area in October last year. It had pointed out that such activities violate environmental laws. Further it had also said that it was the duty of the state to protect people from noise pollution. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 11:49 [IST] Amit Shah spends night at CRPF camp in Pulwama; says will see a peaceful J&K 'in our lifetime' Operation Jubaida: How Indias biggest arms licence scam involving IAS officers was busted India oi-Vicky Nanjappa Jaipur, July 23: It was called 'Operation Jubaida' and was busted by the Rajasthan Anti Terrorist Squad. The modus operandi involved a huge gun licensing racket. It was found that gun licences were being taken in the name of Army personnel in Jammu and Kashmir. The probe has now revealed the role of several officials from Jammu and Kashmir, especially IAS officers. With the role of officials coming up, the ATS feels that the Central Bureau of Investigation would be the competent body to probe the case. O P Galhotrs, the Director General of the Rajasthan Police has now written to the state's home secretary suggesting that the probe be handed over to the CBI. In view of the magnitude of the scam, involvement of officials and implication on national security, the case be transferred to the CBI for comprehensive investigation, he also wrote. The probe so far has indicated the involvement of some IAS officers from Jammu and Kashmir. They have been accused of issuing arms licences on forged documents. At least 4.29 lakh gun licences have been issued in the past 10 years from various districts of Jammu and Kashmir, the probe also learnt. With this case coming to light, the J&K Government had last year asked all divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners to submit a detailed report on the arms licences that have been issued. The government also barred them from issuing any further licences until further orders. Operation 'Jubaida': How 3,367 gun licences were procured in the name of Indian Army personnel The racket: The probe found that 1,32,321 of the 1,43,013 licences in Jammu's Doda, Ramban and Udhampur districts were issued to those from outside the state. In the entire state, 4,29,301 licences were issued of which only 10 percent were given to residents of the state. ATS officials tell Oneindia that this racket has been on since the past 10 years. During the probe the ATS arrested the brother of an IAS officer from Kashmir. It was found that he had been paid Rs 40 lakh by the arms lobby. He was based in Gurugram, the ATS said. The probe also found that of these licences that were issued, 3,000 of them were issued in the name of Army personnel serving in Jammu and Kashmir. The Army was asked to verify the names. The ATS suspects that it is the gun lobby which is at work here. The case dates back to November last year when the Rajasthan police's ATS carried out an operation, codenamed "Jubaida", and arrested 52 people for their alleged involvement in getting gun licenses issued from various districts of Jammu and Kashmir under suspicious circumstances. The licenses included 3,367 in the name of purported army personnel, the officials said. Letters were written in this connection to the Army, Indian Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard, seven para-military forces including the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), National Cadet Corps (NCC), Railway Protection Force (RPF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). While most of them have replied, a comprehensive response from the army was still awaited, notwithstanding the reminders, the officials said. As far as other organisations are concerned, the Navy informed the police that out of the list of 26 personnel submitted, only 14 cases were genuine, the officials said, adding this will help to find out how the remaining 12 people allegedly posing themselves as Navy personnel got the gun license from J and K. The IAF was provided with a list of 39 people by the ATS out of which the credentials of only 17 were found to be correct. Similarly, of the 548 BSF personnel, records for 471 were received out of which cases of only 336 personnel were found correct, the officials said. The CRPF list stood at 424 out of which 237 were found correct, the officials said, adding, among other forces, only 154 out of 387 were found correct for the Central Industrial Security Force(CISF), Seema Sashtra Bal(SSB), Indo-Tibetan Border Police(ITBP), National Security Guards(NSG), Coast Guard, Railway Protection Force(RPF), National Cadet Corps(NCC) and the NDRF. Rahul Gandhi meets party leaders from Gujarat, asks them to be prepared for assembly polls Rahul, a non-performing Congress president, BJP takes a dig India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: The BJP took a dig at the Congress, saying the CWC meet presided by Rahul Gandhi was rather a "Congress non-working committee" meeting headed by the party's "non-performing" chief. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said that the CWC meeting was more of a "Congress darbari meeting" and it was aimed at promoting the interests of a single family. "Today, the CWC, rather Congress non-working committee, met under non-performing president Rahul Gandhi. After losing the no-confidence motion badly on the floor of Parliament, this was a meeting chaired by Rahul Gandhi, which was previously being chaired by Sonia Gandhi for 20 long years," he said. Referring to Sonia Gandhi's statement that reverse countdown of the Narendra Modi government has begun, Patra said those who had driven this country in reverse gear for 10 years, should not make such a comment. "The reverse countdown of dynastic politics, appeasement politics and caste politics has begun," he said, adding that one decision taken at the CWC meeting was that "we do not want to win and our sole aim is to defeat Modi". Terming it as an "negative sentiment", he said, "This country is an intelligent country which only gives way to positive politics and not negative politics.". He also attacked Sonia Gandhi for accusing the prime minister of indulging in rhetoric and said the country has witnessed the politics of "hug and wink" and the rhetoric on the floor of Parliament. Patra also took on former prime minister Manmohan Singh over his remarks on "self praise and jumlas", saying those who had reduced the post of the prime minister to a "jumla", should not talk about it. India is marching ahead and the country has emerged as the sixth largest economy in the world and GST rates have also been reduced further, he said. He said that senior Congress leader P Chidambaram played an important role in the meeting of the CWC which was more of a "out on bail committee". "Many of those occupying high positions were either out on bail or almost on installments of protection from court," he said. He said Chidambaram, who has been chargesheeted, stated during the CWC meeting that at best the Congress could contest 150 seats. If a party is looking at contesting only 150 seats, how can it dream of getting the prime minister's post? Patra asked. He said in this "namdhari committee meeting", the sole point of the Congress was that the party was ready to play second, third or even the fourth fiddle. The Congress has "almost accepted that they have become a new regional party and have lost their national character", the BJP spokesperson said. He claimed that the Congress has made a self-declaration that it was no more a national party. Attacking Rahul Gandhi and the Congress for raising doubts over electronic voting machines (EVMs), Patra said they also did not have faith in the Indian Army and had questioned the surgical strike. They also do not have faith in the Supreme Court as they had moved an impeachment motion against the chief justice of India, besides in the Reserve Bank of India and the World Economic Forum, he said. "Actually, the country does not have faith on Rahul Gandhi's leadership," he said. He also hit out at Rahul Gandhi for not taking any action against Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for his "Hindu Pakistan" remark. Tharoor had recently kicked up a row with his remarks that if voted to power again, the BJP will rewrite the Constitution and pave the way for creation of a "Hindu Pakistan". For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 5:39 [IST] RSS to provide a road map for Fifth Dham in Cambodia; report to be given to senior leadership Pakistan can get split into 5-6 parts, will not be on world map again: RSS leader Indresh Kumar RSS leader Indresh Kumar and 75 others to participate in Haifa centenary celebrations in Israel India oi-Vinod New Delhi, July 23: Organisations associated with executive member of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Indresh Kumar like Indo-Israel Friendship Forum (IIFF) and Forum for Awareness of National Security (FANS) will send 70-75 its members to Israel to participate in a programme to commemorate 100 years of freedom of Haifa from Turkish Control. A formal invitation has also been sent to Union minister of state for external affairs Gen V K Singh to participate in this programme. This is to recall that Teen Murti Square which was symbolically representing capturing of Haifa by the Indians cavalrymen under the British control on September 23, 1918. One of the coordinator of the Programme and vice president of FANS R N Singh told OneIndia, "We are visiting the third largest city of Israel to participate in the centenary celebration of its merger with Israel. Indresh Kumar ji will be participating in it but we have also invited Gen V K Singh to be party of the celebration. His consent is awaited." Mayor of the Haifa city will facilitate visitors during the celebration besides organising other programme in the city to mark the day. Singh said that Haifa Victory Day was celebrated for getting the city free from the Turkish control by the allied forces. Actually 900 cavalrymen with swords and spears belonging to Jodhpur, Mysore and Hyderabad got it free from the shackles of Turkish control. The hero of the victory was Major Dalpat Singh. Organisations led by Indresh Kumar has been organising it at Teen Murti from very long time but for the centenary celebration, they will be visititing Haifa. Singh said that preparations for this programme have already started but it will also be celebrated here as well. People unable to make it to Israel will join the celebration here only. During the last visit of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to India, the name of Teen Murti Square changed to Haifa Square and road was named as Haifa Road. Actually Teen Murti symbolised cavalry of Jodhpur, Mysore and Hyderabad. The Indian troop will go to Haifa on September 19, 2018 for the five-day celebration. Haifa city is the third largest city of Israel and the business hub which is around 90 kilometer from Tel Aviv with major businesses being run from there. Know more about Vikram Maan, a young PR and Social Media conglomerate from Rajasthan Why is Congress high command silent over killing of Dalit man in Rajasthan, asks Mayawati Safer to be 'a cow than a Muslim': Tharoor India oi-Chennabasaveshwar By Chennabasaveshwar New Delhi, July 23: In the wake of lynching in Rajasthan's Alwar, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said it was safer "to be a cow than a Muslim" at many places in India. Tharoor's comments come close on the heels of his "Hindu Pakistan" statement that invited criticism from his political opponents. "Why BJP Ministers' claims about reduction in communal violence don't stand up to the facts: It seems safer in many places to be a cow than a Muslim," Tharoor wrote on Twitter. He also posted the link of his article published on a news portal, which had the "cow-Muslim" remark. Why BJP Ministers' claims about reduction in communal violence don't stand up to the facts: It seems safer in many places to be a cow than a Muslim. https://t.co/ZACOJ005rs Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) July 22, 2018 "Why BJP Ministers' claims about reduction in communal violence don't stand up to the facts: It seems safer in many places to be a cow than a Muslim," Tharoor wrote on Twitter. His comments on fasety of Mulsims came after Akbar Khan (28) was allegedly lynched by a group of people who accused him of smuggling cows in Alwar. Khan and his friend Aslam were aking two cows to their village in Haryana through a forested area near Lalawandi in Alwar district on Friday night when five men attacked them. Three people have been arrested in the case. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 12:30 [IST] SC allows Karti Chidambaram to travel abroad India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: The Supreme Court today allowed Karti Chidambaram, son of senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, to visit the United Kingdom, France and the United States of America from July 23 to 31, making it clear that he has to abide by the conditions imposed by it in an earlier similar order. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra considered the submissions of senior advocate A M Singhvi, representing Karti, that he was planning to visit offshore destinations for personal reasons, and granted him the liberty with certain conditions. The bench, also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, said Karti, who is facing proceedings in cases like Aircel-Maxis, INX media and money laundering matters, will have to surrender his passport with the Enforcement Directorate when he returns from his visit. Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the conditions imposed by the court in its earlier orders should be allowed to remain in force. The plea was allowed by the court. Earlier, the court had allowed Karti to travel abroad with certain conditions, including that he would not open or close any bank account abroad. Karti, being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI in several cases, including the one relating to FIPB clearance to INX Media for receiving foreign funds to the tune of Rs 305 crore when his father was the finance minister, was earlier, too, allowed to go abroad. The bench had asked Karti to file an undertaking about his flight schedule and return date to India. It had also directed Karti to return his passport to the probe agency when he returned. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 14:23 [IST] SSC GD Constable application process: Important update on new dates India oi-Deepika By Deepika New Delhi, July 23: There is an important update for the SSC GD Constable application process. New dates have been announced for the General Duty constable examination 2018, the SSC has informed. The submission of online applications has been rescheduled, and would now be made available on the website of the Commission by July 24, 2018. Accordingly, the last date for submission of the applications of SSC GD Constable recruitment has also been extended till August 24, 2018 (5 PM). SSC has announced a massive recruitment drive to fill 54,953 GD constable vacancies in various forces including BSF, CISF and CRPF among many others. SSC said in a statement regarding SSC GD Constable recruitment that the registration process could not be done due to a major technical problem and experts are working overtime to address the said problem and it is proposed to provide the requisite facility at the earliest. "Candidates of Constable (GD) in CAPFs, NIA, SSF and Rifleman (GD) in Assam Rifles Examination, 2018 may please note that the facility for submission of online applications for the said examination, which was scheduled to be made available to the candidates, on the new website of the Commission from 21-07-2018, could not be done, due to a major technical problem. Experts are working overtime to address the said problem and it is proposed to provide the requisite facility at the earliest," the statement said. "Due to above circumstances, the facility for submission of online applications for the said examination has been rescheduled, and would now be made available on the website of the Commission by 24-07-2018. Accordingly, the last date for submission of the applications has been extended till 24-08-2018 (5 PM)," the statement added. It also said the payment through Challan of SBI can be made at the designated branches of SBI within the Banking hours up to August 28, 2018, provided the challan has been generated before the closing date and time for receipt of applications i.e. August 24, 2018 (5 PM). However, the statement said other terms and conditions of SSC GD Constable recruitment will remain the same. The SSC GD Constable notification covers vacancies from Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Secretariat Security Force (SSF) and Rifleman (General Duty) in Assam Rifles. In the mean time, according to SSC, the instructions for "One-Time Registration" and Online submission of applications for the SSC GD Constable examination are being uploaded on the website of the Commission. "Candidates may keep the requisite information and documents ready which are to be uploaded during OneTime Registration. The inconvenience caused to candidates is regretted," said the SSC statement on SSC GD Constable recruitment. More details are available on ssc.nic.in. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 8:10 [IST] Priority Pass, the worlds original and best-known airport experiences programme, has announced that members can now access more than 1,200 lounges, dining and spa experiences globally. The expansion of its offering follows another strong year of growth which has led to Priority Pass now being welcomed at locations in over 500 cities and 143 countries. Priority Pass has added 141 new lounges from June 2017 to June 2018, to cater to increased demand from travellers for a premium experience at airports. Alongside the additions to the traditional lounge portfolio, Priority Pass has introduced 34 new dining, spa and relaxation experiences that can be accessed in the same way as lounges, broadening the choice for Members while at the airport. Priyanka Lakhani, commercial director, Middle East, Africa and India at Collinson, the operator of Priority Pass, said: In the last year weve added some exciting choices to the Priority Pass portfolio, increasing the global footprint of the programme to more than 1,200 experiences around the world. New and exclusive partnerships with lounge, dining and spa providers demonstrate our commitment to providing our members with more options that cater to their individual needs at airports while also broadening our airport coverage. As the needs of travellers continue to evolve, were constantly striving to further improve and develop the Priority Pass offering, providing our members with access to the very best possible experiences each time they travel. Priority Pass has seen significant growth around the world with 48 new lounges added across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Highlights across the Middle East include access to the prestigious Prime class Lounge in the new Muscat International Airport in Oman as well as the naSmiles Lounge at Dammam King Fahd International in Saudi Arabia. Further afield, it has seen a number of new openings in Russia, including the addition of the Kandinsky Lounge at Moscow Sheremetyevo, Moscows largest and busiest airport. In Asia Pacific, 64 lounges have been added to the network in the region, with noteworthy expansion in Australia. Members can now benefit from the comfort of lounges in Adelaide and Melbourne airports for the first time, and also enjoy access to an additional lounge in Sydneys Terminal 2. In North America, 27 new lounges have joined, including the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse in Los Angeles LAX International Terminal 2, the first Virgin Clubhouse lounge in the Priority Pass program. Additionally, following an exclusive partnership at Miami International with Air Margaritaville, Members can enjoy island-inspired cuisine and drinks in a laid-back dining atmosphere. In Latin America, there have been more additions to the program, offering more experiences than ever before. New deals with bars and restaurants including Bleriot Bar& Lounge and La Bonbonniere in Brazil and Peru provide Members with more choice at the airport when flying. For more details on the new additions to the program, visit the Priority Pass website. - TradeArabia News Service To complain about jumbo menace, Kerala nun blocks ministers car India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer Thiruvananthapuram, July 23: A Catholic nun has blocked the car of Kerala Forest Minister K Raju to complain about elephant menace suffered by her convent in forest-fringe Sholayar in northern Palakkad district of Kerala. A video of sister Rincy blocking the Minister's car passing through the water-logged road in front of the convent recently has gone viral on the social media on Sunday. She waited till the minister's car arrived and moved forward, blocking the vehicle. The sister told the minister, who was on his way to attend a programme nearby, that she had a grievance. The nun also requested the minister to get down there and see the destruction caused by the wild jumbos which intruded into the convent campus. "Sir, we are finding it very difficult to live here due to frequent wild elephant menace. You should find us some solution," she said. Though the minister did not get out of the car, he said he would look into her complaint. The organisers of the function, which the minister was scheduled to attend, also rushed to the spot and assured the nun that her grievances would be addressed. Under BJP cows getting more protection than women says Shiv Sena India oi-Oneindia Staff By Oneindia Staff Mumbai, July 23: The Shiv Sena has once again hit out at its ally, the BJP and said that cows were getting more protection in the country than women. Shiv Sena chief, Udhav Thackeray in an interview to Saamna, the mouthpiece of the party said he did not accept the BJP's version of Hindutva. I don't accept the Hindutva that is being adhered to in the country for the past three to four years. That is not our idea of Hindutva. Our women are unsafe today and you are protecting cows. You cannot target people for eating preferences, he also said. The comments come a day after BJP president, Amit Shah told party workers that there would be no alliance with the Shiv Sena in 2019. Thackeray went on to add that his party had supported the BJP openly in the past. Now we will oppose them openly as well he added. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 9:39 [IST] UP horror: 6-year-old raped while she went for bath at well, victim undergoing treatment India oi-Oneindia Staff By Oneindia Staff Lucknow, July 23: As rapes of minors continue unabated, the latest case of sexual assault has been reported from Uttar Pradesh. According to a report by ANI, a 6-year-old girl from Uttar Pradesh's Amroha was raped while she left home to take bath at a well. The victim was later found in a state of unconsciousness by her family. The father of the victim has demanded that the culprit should be given death penalty. The accused is yet to be nabbed by the police. Meanwhile, the victim who sustained injuries during the horrific incident is undergoing treatment at a hospital. The police are probing the matter. "Amroha: Man says,"My 6-year-old daughter was raped when she had gone to take a bath at the well. I later found her in unconscious condition. I demand the culprit should be hanged till death." Police says,"Girl is undergoing medical treatment, further probe underway."(22 July)," tweeted ANI. Amroha: Man says,"My 6-year-old daughter was raped when she had gone to take a bath at the well. I later found her in unconscious condition. I demand the culprit should be hanged till death." Police says,"Girl is undergoing medical treatment, further probe underway."(22 July) pic.twitter.com/oeY8HYgj6J ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) July 23, 2018 In the last few months, the nation has witnessed alarming rise in the number of cases of rapes, especially of minor girls. Angry citizens of the country protested on roads in various parts of the country over the horrific rape cases reported from Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua and Uttar Pradesh's Unnao in April. Both the cases caught the attention of the nation because of its barbarity and open support for the accused from a section of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). After its "studied silence" over crimes against women, especially minor girls, the Narendra Modi government approved the ordinance to allow courts to award death penalty to those convicted of raping girls under 12 in April. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 10:02 [IST] What is the Rafale deal? An explainer and the controversy around it India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, July 23: The Rafale deal is all over the news once again. Congress president, Rahul Gandhi raked it up in the Parliament, which prompted even the French government to issue a clarification regarding the secrecy deal. The issue has been a debating point between the Congress and BJP ever since the deal was signed between India and France in 2016. Since then there have been umpteen twists and turns on the issue. Let us take a look and understand what the Rafale deal is all about. September 23 2016: India and France signed an inter-governmental agreement for the supply of 36 Rafale aircrafts, initial consignments of weapons, long term maintenance support, simulators with annual maintenance and associated equipment. India had agreed to pay around Rs 58,000 crore or 7.8 billion euros for the jets and the delivery was scheduled to begin from September 2019. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande had agreed to scale back an original plan to buy 126 Rafale jets to just 36 in fly-away condition. This was done to meet the urgent need of the Indian Air Force. February 5 2017: The Indian Air Force in an RTI reply said that the details regarding the supply of 36 Rafale jets could not be disclosed as it is confidential in nature. November 14, 2017 The Congress accuses the government of compromising national security and alleged a huge scam. The Congress said that the government signed the deal on September 3 2016 for purchase of 36 Rafale jets from Dassault for approximately Rs 58,000 crore and on October 3, Reliance Defence Limited owned by Anil Ambani tied with the French company for a joint venture for defence production in India. The Congress also cited a Reliance document to point out that off-sets in the deal, which are half the cost of the 36 aircrafts, work out to the tune of Rs 30,000 crore. Further the Congress said that this would mean that the deal is worth Rs 60,000 crore. Non transparency in the deal also denied the transfer of technology to HAL, the party also alleged. November 15, 2017 France reiterates that the deal is in the best interest of India. French sources also said that the jet was selected for its outstanding performance and competitive price. November 16, 2017 Rahul Gandhi tweeted, "Self "Reliance" is obviously a critical aspect of "Make in India. Can you explain "Reliance" on someone with nil experience in aerospace for Rafale deal?" IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa said that there was no overpricing in the purchase and the government had negotiated a good deal. November 17, 2017 Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that allegations relating to the procurement deal for 36 Rafale fighter jet were "shameful" and that such bickering was a "disservice" to the armed forces. November 18, 2017 Rahul Gandhi hits back at Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman over the Rafale deal, claiming it was "shameful" that her boss was "silencing" her. "Dear RM, what's shameful is your boss silencing you. Please tell us: 1. Final price of each Rafale jet? 2. Did PM take CCS permission before announcing purchase in Paris? 3. Why PM bypassed experienced HAL and gave the deal to AA rated businessman with no defence experience?" Rahul tweeted. Reacting to him, Sitharaman slammed the previous UPA government for not taking a decision on the Rafale fighter jet deal for about 10 years and said she could not spell out in detail what happened due to the delay as it involved the nation's security. The minister said that the procurement order was placed "properly" and "by not slipping away" from any procedures. She further said that the Cabinet Committee on Security approved the deal and all formalities were complied with. November 25, 2017 The issue was raked up once again with Rahul Gandhi saying, " I would like to Modiji three questions. First is there is a difference in the cost of the planes in the first and second contract. Did India more or less money as per the second contract. Has the industrialist , who was given the contract, ever manufactured planes?" Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari asked the government to make public the details of the re-negotiated deal for the public to draw a comparison on whether the deal negotiated now is better that the one done during the UPA rule. Tewari alleged that a shortlisted company along with Rafale had also written to the government offering the price of its aircraft at Rs 444 crore less than the purported rate at which the renegotiated Rafale deal was struck. December 18, 2017 Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that there cannot be any comparison between the cost of the 36 Rafale fighter jets it inked with France and the price negotiated by the previous UPA regime for the original 126-fighter aircraft deal as the deliverables were different. The Reliance Group firm has maintained that the joint venture between Reliance Aerostructure Ltd and Dassault Aviation was a bilateral agreement between two private companies and had nothing to do with the government. December 20, 2017 Nirmala Sitharaman said all the provisions of Defence Procurement Procedure have been followed and the inter-governmental agreement on the Rafale deal was signed only after the approval of the Cabinet Committee on Security. February 10, 2018 At a Karnataka election rally, Rahul Gandhi however, intensifying his attack on the Centre over the Rafale fighter jet deal, alleged it was the biggest issue of corruption in the country and asked the prime minister to reply why he took the contract from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and gave it to a "friend". The Congress accused Modi of compromising national security by purchasing 36 aircraft at three times the price agreed upon during the previous UPA government. Citing the 2016 annual report of French manufacturer Dassault Aviation, the Congress said that while the price of 48 aircraft (24 each to Egypt and Qatar) was shown as Euro 7.9 billion, the cost of 36 aircraft sold to India was mentioned as Euro 7.5 billion. French President Emmanuel Macron, who was on a visit to India, said the Rafale deal with India was a win-win approach and its details could not be revealed for commercial reasons. March 12, 2018 Congress President Rahul Gandhi met French President Emmanuel Macron. However, he did not raise the Rafale fighter jet deal issue, said party sources.On the same day, details provided by the government in Parliament revealed that the Cabinet Committee on Security had cleared the Rs 58,000 crore Rafale deal in August, 2016, nearly 16 months after the announcement of its procurement was made by Prime Minister Modi during his visit to France in April 2015. March 14, 2018 The Union government ruled out any plan to issue a White Paper on the Rafale fighter jet deal with France. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 16:01 [IST] Delhi HC asks Centre to respond to pleas by FB, WhatsApp challenging IT Rules NCB 'misinterpreting' WhatsApp chats to implicate me in drugs case: Aryan Khan to Bombay HC Centre in HC defends IT rule requiring WhatsApp to trace originator of message Whatsapp admins are liable for offensive posts circulated India oi-PTI New Delhi, July 23: Think twice before becoming administrator of a group on WhatsApp or Facebook as one is liable for prosecution if any rumour or fake news is circulated on it. Social media platforms allow a person to create a group on which members can share views, photographs or videos. Concerns have been raised about social media misuse as fake news, morphed photographs and disturbing videos with fabricated local narratives can easily be circulated that can trigger tension and even communal rift in an area. In a joint order issued by District Magistrate Yogeshwar Ram Mishra and Senior Superintendent of Police Nitin Tiwari, it has been made clear that any factually incorrect, rumour or misleading information on a social media group could result in an FIR against the group administrator. "There are several groups on social media which are named on news groups and also groups with other names which are propagating news and information which is not authentic. These are being forwarded without cross checking," it said. Considering this issue, directives are being issued to social media groups, WhatsApp and Facebook group administrators and members, the order said. There are over 200 million WhatsApp users in India. It directed that social media group administrators should be ready to bear the responsibility and ownership of the groups. The administrator must include only those members who are personally known to him or her. If any statement is made by a group member which is fake, can cause religious disharmony, or rumour, the group admin must deny it on the group and remove the member from the group, the order said. "In the event of inaction from the group admin, he or she will be considered guilty and action will be taken against the group admin," it said. Such a post must also be reported to the nearest police station so that action can be taken against the member under the law, it said. The order, issued yesterday, says while freedom of expression on social media is important, it also comes with a responsibility. Varanasi is the Lok Sabha constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The administration has directed that no statement or post which can hurt religious sentiments should be forwarded to any other group or person else legal action will be taken. It also directs that case under cyber crime law, Information Technology Act and IPC will be filed in case of violation of these guidelines. The order also makes it clear that orders of the Supreme Court and various high courts will be considered while initiating action. It needs to be seen how Varanasi police which is facing severe staff crunch implements such an order as WhatsApp and social media are not limited to the boundaries of the district. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 16:19 [IST] Whatever happened is wrong, Law will take its course: Rakesh Tikait on Singhu lynching When will Modi govt stop blaming everyone else and target real culprits to address mob lynching? India oi-Oneindia Staff By Oneindia Staff New Delhi, July 23: How many more dead bodies the Narendra Modi government wants to see before waking up from its slumber to stop mob lynching? Mob lynching is spreading like a wildfire across the nation and the government at the Centre is either quiet, blaming everyone else or garlanding the accused of heinous crimes. What does it all mean? Is the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre holds no responsibility as spate of mob lynching cases is leaving bloodstains across the country? It is convenient for Union home minister Rajnath Singh to pass the buck to the states when questioned about mob lynching. Probably, when Singh makes such careless statements he is unaware that 20 states in the country are under the rule of his party. Moreover, most of the lynching cases were reported from the BJP-ruled states. Isn't there a larger onus on the BJP to act upon such heinous crimes against innocents? Clearly, the states have failed to act and that is why 68 people (as per a report by The Quint) have died in mob violence incidents across the country since 2015. After running away from his responsibilities to tackle mob violence, the Union home minister during the debate on no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha on Friday stated that the 1984 anti-Sikh riots after former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's assassination is the country's "single biggest incident of mob lynching". His statement was targeted to silence Congress president Rahul Gandhi who questioned the Modi government on mob lynching during his speech on no-confidence motion against the ruling regime. The PM, on his part, during the no-confidence motion address just termed mob lynching as acts of violence against humanity and urged states to take strict action. It is unfortunate that PM Modi took such a casual approach on such a serious matter, when he devoted his entire 90-minute speech on attacking and mocking Rahul and the Congress. PM Modi has hardly spoken against mob lynching. His silence is understandable as in most cases the perpetrators of the crimes were gau rakshaks or cow vigilantes who get patronage from right-wing groups. It is the right-wing groups who are the backbone of the BJP and the PM is trying his best to keep the party loyalists happy by not taking strict action against them. Even when he spoke against mob lynching in the past, his statements of condemnation were always very feeble and of course, looking at the rise in mob lynching episodes it is clear nobody is listening to him. After Singh accused the former Congress government of administrating the country's "biggest mob lynching incident in 1984", his colleague Union minister AR Meghwal when questioned by reporters regarding the latest case of lynching in Alwar, Rajasthan parroted the home minister's words. "We condemn mob lynching but this isn't a single incident. You have to trace this back in history. Why does this happen? Who should stop this? What happened with Sikhs in 1984 was the biggest mob lynching of this nation's history," said Meghwal. Meghwal also indirectly blamed the opposition parties for rise in lynching as popularity of "PM Modi is soaring". "The more popular Modi ji becomes, the more such incidents will happen. During Bihar election, it was 'Award Wapsi', during Uttar Pradesh election, it was mob lynching. In the 2019 elections, it'll be something else. The incident is a reaction to Modi's schemes," ANI quoted him as saying. Recently, the Supreme Court has strongly condemned mob lynching and termed such incidents as "horrendous acts of mobocracy". The top court has directed Parliament to draft a new legislation to effectively deal with incidents of mob lynching. Is a new law necessary to act upon such crimes, when we have enough rules to stop mob from killing anyone, even if the person is a dreaded terrorist? Experts urge that more than a new law, which will give the ruling government more time to wash its hands of the crime, what is needed is the implementation of existing rules, better policing and unbiased investigations. Don't we have Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code to punish people for murder? We also have Section 153 A to deal with hate and communal crimes? The victims of mob lynching were mostly Muslims who were targeted by Hindu men in the name of cow protection. In the recent times, many were lynched over rumours of child-lifting. The mob lynching episodes are the results of fake news on social media, especially on WhatsAPP. According to an investigation by The Indian Express, a total of 27 people were killed in nine states in 12 months on suspicion of being child-lifters. The mob in all these violent episodes came together as they got fake news on their WhatsApp accounts. While the government has asked Facebook-owned WhatsApp to come up with effective solutions to curb fake news, observers opine that it is not social media but the lynch mob that is the real problem. The current social and political atmosphere in the country is also responsible for hate crimes as many in the government itself have given tactical support to the blood-thirsty mob that is ready to kill in the name of cow. The garlanding of eight convicts of a lynching episode in Jharkhand recently by Union minister Jayant Sinha is another example of the BJP's "soft-corner" for lynchers. Despite the minister and the BJP facing flak from various corners over the garlanding event, neither the BJP nor the minister is sensitive enough to ask for an apology. The deaths of Akbar Khan in Alwar, Rajasthan on July 20 after he and his friends were attacked by a mob on suspicion of being cow smugglers and an unidentified woman in Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh who was again killed by a mob on suspicion of being a child-lifter on July 21 are the two latest incidents of lynching. How many gory episodes of lynching would be played out on television before we become too numb to react? All that the Modi government is doing in this regard is engaging itself in blaming "others"--sometimes it blames the Opposition, sometimes social media and sometimes liberals. In all these years, since Mohammad Akhlaq of Dadri, Uttar Pradesh was killed by a Hindu mob for allegedly storing meat in his refrigerator in 2015, episodes of lynching continue to repeat with an alarming rate across the country and each time the details of the case is scarier and gorier than the previous ones. If the spate of mob violence continues, a day is not far behind when we will be too scared to step out of our homes. Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has been criticised for his observation in his latest column for The Print, but he sounds so true when he stated that "it seems safer in many places to be a cow than a Muslim." Or when Shiv Sena's boss Uddhav Thackeray hit out at the BJP and said that "women are not safe and you (the BJP) are protecting cows", his comments resonated with the people, especially women and girls. The BJP and its supporters may not like senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai for his critical views on the government but this tweet by him lays bare what needs to be done to tackle mob lynching. "Help me understand this: man is lynched to death, liberals are blamed, Bollywood is blamed, not in my name protestors are blamed. How about now targeting the real culprits: the lynch mobs, the cops, the hate mongers, and all those responsible for law and order! Then, let's talk!," wrote Sardesai on Twitter. Help me understand this: man is lynched to death, liberals are blamed, Bollywood is blamed, not in my name protestors are blamed. How about now targeting the real culprits: the lynch mobs, the cops, the hate mongers, and all those responsible for law and order! Then, lets talk! Rajdeep Sardesai (@sardesairajdeep) July 22, 2018 If the government still refuses to act then once again after a mob will assault one more Akbar Khan (the latest victim from Alwar, Rajasthan), the police instead of immediately taking the victim to a hospital will do everything else--like enjoying tea, giving shelter to cows and even beating the injured man-- to ensure that the victim dies before he gets treatment. Or we will get to see more viral images like that of a severely injured Qasim (another victim of mob lynching from Uttar Pradesh's Hapur) who was dragged by a group of people in presence of policemen. Who is Rohit Prasad? the man behind Amazon's Alexa India oi-Madhuri New Delhi, July 23: Amazon's Alexa has become quite popular among the household for making everyone's life easier. Alexa was launched in 2014 alongside the smart speaker, Amazon Echo, which promised to be a dutiful virtual assistant. But who breathed life into Alexa? Here it is: Rohit Prasad, the man from Jharkhand's Ranchi is the brain behind Amazon's Alexa. He currently works as as Vice President and is the head Scientist of Alexa Artificial Intelligence at Amazon. India-born Prasad, together with his colleague Toni Reid who focuses on the consumer experience side, was No. 15 on Recode's list of 100 people in tech, business and media who mattered in 2017. Jeff Bezos, Susan Fowler, Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, Elon Musk and Satya Nadella were among the 14 people ahead of him. Prasad has completed his schooling from DAV Public School in Ranchi. He then studied engineering from Birla Institute of Technology (BIT) Mesra, a village near the Jharkhand capital. He acquired his MS in Electrical Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology. According to Prasad's LinkedIn profile, he joined Raytheon BBN Technologies in July 1999 as a staff scientist. In the same company, he went on to rise to the position of Deputy Manager and Senior Director of Speech, Language and Multimedia Business Unit. Prasad joined Amazon in 2013. He worked with the e-commerce giant for three years as the Director of Machine Learning, Alexa, and was elevated in 2016 as the Vice President and Head Scientist of Alexa Artificial Intelligence. Prasad was ranked at Number 9 in Fast Company's 100 Most Creative People in Business in 2017. Not only that, Rohit, along with his colleague, Ried made, it to the Recode List of 100 People in Technology, Business, and Media who mattered in 2017. Earlier this year, Amazon has launched Alexa for Hospitality, developed specifically to act as a virtual hotel concierge. With Amazon Echo, guests can ask Alexa for information like hotel pool hours or the location of the fitness center and request room service or housekeeping. The device can also be used to control room lights, temperature, the blinds and the TV. Aside from the hotel experience, guests can call on Alexa for Hospitality to check airport wait times, play games, or play white noise to help them fall asleep. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 12:39 [IST] BJP will win absolute majority in Goa Assembly polls and form govt again, says Amit Shah You can hug PM, but people wont hug you in 2019, BJP tells Rahul Gandhi India oi-Staff By Oneindia Staff Writer New Delhi, July 23: The BJP on Sunday took a dig at Rahul Gandhi, saying the Congress president might forcibly hug Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but the people of the country would not embrace him in next year's Lok Sabha election. Attacking the Gandhi scion over his speech at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting today, BJP's national media in charge Anil Baluni said the people will reject him in the next general election. In a series of tweets, he also claimed that the Congress had decided to contest only 150 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, while Gandhi was dreaming to become the prime minister. "Heard that desperate and disappointed Congress at its meeting today has set a target of contesting 150 Lok Sabha seats, while its president Rahul Gandhi is dreaming to become prime minister," Baluni tweeted in Hindi. Referring to the Congress chief's hug to Modi during the debate on the no-confidence motion against the government in the Lok Sabha on Friday, the BJP leader said it was done forcibly. "Rahulji, you forcibly hugged Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament but people will not hug you in the 2019 general election. You should prepare yourself for bringing a no-confidence motion in 2024," he tweeted. Reacting to former prime minister Manmohan Singh's attack on Modi at the CWC meet, Baluni said while the aim of the government led by the former was to increase corruption, the current NDA dispensation was aiming to double the farmers' income. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 6:02 [IST] Canada: 2 killed including gunman, 13 injured in Toronto shooting International oi-Madhuri Toronto, July 23: Two people including the gunman are dead and 13 wounded in Toronto after a shooting in the busy Greektown neighbourhood, adding to concern about gun violence in Canada's largest city on Monday. Toronto police said that they are investigating reports of a shooting in the area of Danforth and Logan avenues. One of the gunman's victims is believed to have been killed in the shooting. Toronto paramedics said eight people have been taken to hospital. Paramedics have confirmed to local media that the crime scene encompasses a large area and a number of the 10 victims so far retrieved from the scene have suffered 'significant injuries'. Councillor Mary Fragedakis also said she heard the gunman was disturbed. Toronto Councillor Paula Fletcher said for this to happen in an area where families gather for dinner is a tragedy. This past weekend Toronto police deployed dozens of additional officers to deal with a recent spike in gun violence in the city. Should India opt out of India-Pakistan T20 World Cup? Who said what CPEC projects hit wall as Pak highway body faces financial crisis International oi-Shubham By Shubham Islamabad, July 23: The much-talked about China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) worth $52 billion faced threat as many of its road projects hit a wall, thanks to financial crisis in Pakistan's National Highway Authority (NHA), the country's major daily Dawn reported. Citing sources, the daily said the contractors ceased work on many CPEC projects after their cheques worth over Pakistani Rupees 5 billion couldn't be encashed because of funds shortage. The report also said that it is not the first time that projects of the CPEC, an integral part of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) which is seen as a game-changer in world economy, have hit financial hurdles. The sources also added that seven packages of the Hakla-Dera Islmail Khan motorway measuring 400 kilometres of roads connecting North and South Pakistan besides all projects of Karachi-Lahore Motorway have been affected because of the crisis, the Dawn report said. Besides the CPEC projects, the crisis has also hit the local construction industries besides the workforce including engineers and labourers. NHA authorities said they issued cheques worth Pakistani Rupees 5 billion on June 29 to the firms against the government sanctions and while those amounting Rs 1.5 billion were cleared on the same day, the rest could not be, the Dawn report added. The NHA said the matter had been taken up with the government and that it would not affect the CPEC projects' progress, the Dawn said, also citing other sources to say that the projects of the highly publicised initiative will be delayed further if the financial crisis is not sorted out soon. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 8:55 [IST] InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a management agreement with Pearl Grand Tower Hotel (Private) Limited to bring back the InterContinental brand to the Sri Lankan capital. Due to open in 2019, InterContinental Colombo will feature 307 rooms including 47 suites. This iconic development will be spread across 480,000-sq-ft and the luxury hotel is expected to be the tallest hotel tower comprising 42 floors, in Colombo 3, an important and established commercial area of the city. InterContinental Colombo will be located centrally along Galle Road, one of the arterial roads of Colombo, making it easily accessible for guests. Situated in close proximity to international and domestic Airports and 3 km from the city centre, the hotel will cater to the growing demand for business and leisure accommodation in the city. The upcoming InterContinental Colombo will house impressive meeting and banqueting facilities spread over 12,000-sq-ft with the largest room having a capacity to accommodate 400 guests and a modern business centre to cater to the growing number of business travellers visiting the city. Additionally, the hotel will feature a gymnasium, an outdoor pool, and a spa for guests to relax and rejuvenate. All rooms and suites will be equipped with top-class modern amenities to ensure guests comfort, and most rooms will have uninterrupted, magnificent views of the Indian Ocean. Furthermore, guests will be spoilt for choice with six dining options including an all-day dining restaurant and three speciality restaurants offering unique culinary experiences to the visitors. On the occasion, Sudeep Jain, vice president, Development, South West Asia, IHG, commented: We are excited to introduce our global luxury brand InterContinental Hotels and Resorts to the beautiful island country, Sri Lanka, in partnership with the esteemed Pearl Grand Tower Hotel (Private) Limited. This move is in line with our strategy to grow IHGs footprint across South West Asia, and expand the presence of the InterContinental brand in key cities and resort destinations in the region. With a great location coupled with best in class amenities and highest level of service that the brand is associated with, we are confident of offering the finest luxury experiences to our guests, when we open our doors in 2019. A.L.M. Faris, chairman, Pearl Grand Tower Hotel, said: We are delighted to be partnering with a leading global hospitality company such as IHG for our upcoming project. The InterContinental brand is known worldwide for offering bespoke and unique luxury experiences to the guests, and we are thrilled to be bringing the brand to the country, to cater to the discerning local, domestic, and international travellers visiting Colombo, for leisure or for business. Colombo is a key gateway city in Sri Lanka and is well connected with other parts of the country via air, road, and rail. Majority of Sri Lankan corporations and other MNCs have their head offices in Colombo, positioning it as the economic and financial hub of the country. With its rich colonial heritage and various cultural landmarks, the city is also a popular tourist destination. - TradeArabia News Service Modi in Africa: PM gifts 200 cows to villagers in Rwanda under 'Girinka' scheme China may lead in hard diplomacy but India wins Rwandan hearts with its food India will grow and we'll take others along: Modi in Rwanda PM Modi in Uganda after Rwanda: His Africa tours are well-planned India- Rwanda relations have stood the test of time, says PM Modi International oi-Deepika By Deepika Kigali, July 23: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said relations between India and Rwanda have "stood the test of time." India extended USD 200 million lines of credit to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to boost the bilateral strategic ties by strengthening cooperation in trade and agriculture sectors. After the one-on-one talks with president Kagame, Modi, the first Indian prime minister to visit the East African country, announced that India will soon open its mission in Rwanda. "We are going to open a High Commission in Rwanda. This will not only establish communication between our respective governments but also enable facilities for consular, passport, visa," Modi said at a joint press statement. He noted that India and Rwanda relationships have stood the test of time. "It is a matter of honour for us that India has stood with Rwanda in their economic development journey," Modi said, adding that India will be continue to back Rwanda's development. The two countries signed agreements on leather and allied areas and agricultural research. India also extended two lines of credit -- one of USD 100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ) in Rwanda and another one for USD 100 million for agriculture. Besides one-to-one meeting, the two leaders also participated in delegation level talks to strengthen partnership in trade and investment, capacity building, development partnership and people to people ties. President Kagame in his remarks said that Prime Minister Modi's visit represents a milestone between the long standing friendship and cooperation between Rwanda and India. Earlier, PM Modi arrived in Rwanda on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. He was accorded a red carpet welcome at the airport. "A historic visit starts with a special gesture. President @PaulKagame personally welcomed PM @narendramodi to Rwanda," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. His two-day state visit to Rwanda, one of Africa's fastest growing economies assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. After Rwanda, PM Modi will leave for Uganda on a two day visit on July 24 and 25. This will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over 20 years. The Prime Minister will then head to South Africa, the last leg of his visit, to attend the BRICS summit. Iran President Rouhani issues strong warning against US; asks it not to play with lions tail International oi-Shubham By Shubham Tehran, July 23: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani likened his country with a "lion" on Sunday, July 22, as he warned the US against entering into a conflict with the West Asian country, its Press TV reported. "Mr. Trump!... Don't play with the lion's tail! It will be something (for you) to regret," Rouhani said addressing US President Donald Trump over his anti-Iran measures. Speaking at a meeting with Iranian diplomatic missions in foreign countries in Tehran, Rouhani said that the Americans needed to learn that a peace with Iran is the "mother of all peace" and a war with it is the "mother of all wars". Relations between Iran and the US - two old foes - nosedived after a brief normalcy as President Trump pulled his country out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and pledged to reimpose sanctions that were lifted under the Barack Obama-era deal. Washington has also put pressure on other countries that have trade dealings with Iran to curb relations with it. Iran hit back hard at the US after the latter said that it would bring Iran's oil sales to "zero", saying it was no less than an economic war, the report added. Rouhani said such threats will only unite Iran more and bring it bigger benefits at some costs. He also warned that if Iran was not allowed to sell oil, it would also make life difficult for other countries in the region to sell their oil. He slammed the US saying anybody having a minimum understanding of politics would never seek to block Iran's oil sales. He also said that by unilaterally pulling out of the 2015 deal (formally known as Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), the US only became more isolated. Meanwhile, on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sought practical measures from the European nations that are member of the 2015 deal to save it, Iranian media reports said. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Monday, July 23, 2018, 9:58 [IST] Collapse of Kabul will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history: Donald Trump Trump hits back at Iran after Rouhani's warnings, says 'Never Ever Threaten the US' International oi-Shubham By Shubham Washington, July 23: US President Donald Trump on Sunday, July 22, lashed out at his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani over his strong warnings against the US, asking him not to threaten the US or they "will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before". Trump resembled his aggressive self which was visible during his intense verbal duel against North Korean leader Kim Jong-un till a year ago over the East Asian country's reckless nuclear programme. In his tweet which he entirely wrote in capital letters to show how much angry he is with the Iranian regime, Trump said: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Trump's anger came in the wake of Rouhani's strong warning to the US, asking it not to "play with the lion's tail" and that a war with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". Rouhani said this during a meeting with diplomats in Tehran. Trump also tweeted: "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" Just when Trump engaged with Kim over the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, he also took the extreme step of pulling the US out of the nuclear deal that the previous Barack Obama administration and other world powers had signed with Tehran in 2015 to tame its nuclear ambitions. The US also vowed to impose sanctions on the West Asian nation and asked other countries that have oil trade relationship with Iran, including India, to curb them so that Iran's oil sales is reduced to "zero". To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Kejriwal welcomes SC order on protests at Jantar Mantar New Delhi pti-PTI New Delhi, Jul 23: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today welcomed the Supreme Court's order that said there cannot be a "complete ban" on holding protests and sit-ins at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club. The chief minister said attempts to convert Delhi into a police state was "dangerous" for democracy. "I welcome the Hon'ble Supreme Court verdict upholding peaceful right to protest in central Delhi. "Attempts to convert Delhi into a police state is dangerous for democracy and rightly struck down by (the) Hon'ble Supreme Court," Kejriwal tweeted. Earlier in the day, a bench comprising justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said there was a need to strike a balance between conflicting rights such as the right to protest and the right of citizens to live peacefully. "There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate)," the bench said, while directing the Centre to frame guidelines on the matter. PTI Bihar Assembly to pass New Liquor Bill Patna oi-Chennabasaveshwar By Chennabasaveshwar Patna, July 23: The Bihar Assembly has passed new liquor bill in the monsoon session of the state assembly. The government had gathered feedback before deciding to amend the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said, "Liquor ban was introduced for the poor people. they were wasting a major part of their income on buying alcohol. Domestic violence was high. I did this for the betterment of poor." On new liquor bill, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said, "Such an amendment in the liquor law is a discount for the rich. Instead of a fine of Rs.50,000, the affluent class will give just Rs. 5000 and get alcohol." The liquor ban was enforced in Bihar in April 2016. Earlier, both the owner and occupant of a property or vehicle, from which liquor was seized, were liable to be punished. The amendments proposed shifting the onus primarily on the occupant. Bihar had enforced a ban on sale, possession, consumption and transportation of liquor in the state on April 2016, drawing flak from certain parties. For More Patna News, Click Here By Siddhant Mohan, TwoCircles.net Yet another case of an exodus of Muslim families has emerged from UP, this time from Kaushambi district. About a dozen Muslim families have fled the village in the first week of July due to fear of Police atrocities. As per the allegations, the police actions are the result of the pressure from the BJP MLA. The case pertains to Surseni village of Sarai Akil area of Kaushambi district. The mass exodus followed the incident on June 29 when two groups landed into the clash with each other over a truck loaded with sand. According to a local source, Dr. Nisar Ahmad, a resident of the same village, had called a sand truck for some of his work, but the truck was allegedly overloaded. Support TwoCircles Manoj Dwivedi, the former village head, and his brother Rajendra Dwivedi immediately started filming the sand trucks entering into the village with their cellphones. This matter led to a clash between Dr Nisar and Dwivedis, who have been alleging Nisar as a member of the Sand Mafia. The sources further informed that people from both the sides gathered at the site of the clash, and soon it turned into a violent episode. Followed by this, a case was registered at Sarai Akil police station against 11 named individual including Dr Nisar and about 60 unnamed people. Charges put are sections 307, 147, 148, 323 and 504 of Indian Penal Code. Soon after the FIR was filed, the local police started raiding the Muslim colonies and houses in Surseni village, making police action look biased against one community. The locals have alleged that the Police have been acting only against Muslims after receiving such order from Sanjay Gupta, a BJP MLA from Chail constituency of Kaushambi. The locals, as well as the sources, have alleged that while Police successfully arrested seven people named in the FIR, it continued the search for the remaining four people. During their raid, Police allegedly barged into the houses of Muslims and mistreated women and children for several days. As per the locals, the police action has been religiously as well as politically motivated. Aggravated by the police actions, Muslims of the village started abandoning the village by locking their houses and taking their belongings with them. Soon, the issue caught the attention of Reena Shukla, the current village head, who rushed to the Muslim neighbourhood and promised an end to atrocities. While few families stopped, but many decided not to stay. The practices to call them back to the village have already started, and reportedly, few families have returned back on the assurance of justice. However, police deny that any such exodus has ever happened in the village. Hemant Mishra, the Station House Officer at Sarai Akil, said, The accused Nisar is part of the sand mafia, and we were there on the spot on June 29 to catch him red-handed. But when the sand trucks came in, we immediately got stuck in violence with Nisar and his companions. Muslims of the village joined them in attacking us, followed by which we filed FIR. But the allegation of police atrocity is completely false. We did out pressure to arrest the rest, but we did not raid houses and mistreated locals to arrest the rest accused, added Mishra accepting the fact that several families have fled the village to escape arrest. Rajendra Dwivedi, one of the brothers who locals have accused, talked to TwoCircles.net after saying that I am a Hindu, so I have a Hindu ideology. Dwivedi said, They are complete frauds, no such exodus has happened in that village. My brother has been the head for 15 years and I know their reality. When asked how he got involved in the issue, Dwivedi said, Lets say that I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. The police stopped a sand truck but Nisar and his friends attacked them, and even me and my brother Manoj, adding that the whole exodus fiasco has happened after few Samajwadi Party-backed Muslim journalists asked locals to do so just for pictures. Dwivedi denied any direct association with BJP leader Sanjay Gupta saying that he only voted for him in the elections. Sanjay Gupta too said that no exodus has ever happened in the village. He said, Palayan nahin, nataunki kar rahe hain. Aur ye sab kuch patrkar logon ka karnaama hai. (This is not an exodus, but just a drama which is scripted by few journalists). Gupta said that he has been taking inputs from the police and sure that police did not raid houses, and it did not threaten or mistreat Muslim families on his orders or request. Police were just trying to arrest one guy who was doing illegal work, but this all drama is of opposition in Kaushambi whom I have defeated in elections, said Gupta. This is just an episode of politics of blame for which I am being victimized. This is not the first episode of Muslim exodus in UP because of police torture. Last year, Muslims fled Paida village of Bijnor in western Uttar Pradesh after police allegedly killed three Muslims in order to raid for arresting accused. (All Photos provided by sources.) The UnifiEd APEX organization is working to remove Commissioner Joe Graham and has their poster candidate running in opposition to Michael Henry for School Board. Please get the facts before you vote in the District 6 county races and reject the UnifiEd APEX candidates. Hamilton County Commissioner Joe Graham and Michael Henry, School Board candidate District 6, have been targeted by the radical meddlers from UnifiEd. Both Commissioner Joe Graham and Michael Henry are independent thinkers and are not good elected puppet material for UnifiEd. Commissioner Joe Graham is my kind of leader, and there are few elected leaders I truly believe in. Well, honestly it is a short list. I also support the accomplished Michael Henry for School Board in District 6. Who wouldnt? I loved his quote in the Times Free Press regarding UnifiEd. Mr. Henry believes that the School Board can lead without third party organizations. What a novel concept. Imagine that, get elected to the School Board and lead, not follow these third party organizations that no one has elected. UnifiEd and Chattanooga 2.0 appointed themselves, no one elected them to lead our schools. Lets try it, elected leaders. We have a few elected folks that lead and told UnifiEd they are the elected leaders, only to be called racist, hateful and dangerous. Dont you just love UnifiEd, so professional and kind? The opposition candidates to both Commissioner Joe Graham and Michael Henry for School Board are poster candidates for UnifiEd. That is right, poster candidates on the radical wall of UnifiEd HQ with Jonas Barriere, formerly of the Obama for America PAC, handing out marching orders and payments to UnifiEd candidates. I reviewed the campaign financial disclosures of all the candidates in District 6 Hamilton County races. The financial disclosures speak volumes to me. There is no question that opposition candidates to Commissioner Joe Graham and Michael Henry are supported financially by the UnifiEd organization or, collectively, as private donations from UnifiEd board members and their funding organizations. The campaign financial disclosures are available online from the Hamilton County Election Commission. UnifiEd has worked hard to build a political fire wall for their poster candidates. I also conducted a review of public statements by the candidates in District 6 published on Chattanoogan and other media outlets. UnifiEds failure to endorse in the School Board race is no problem at all, the financial disclosures and public statements speak volumes. No organization leaves a political financial footprint larger than UnifiEds political circus. In the case of UnifiEds opposition candidate to Commission Joe Graham, UnifiEd has spared no expense and gave directly in large amounts. In fact, this District 6 UnifiEd candidate would not have a campaign without the large contributions from UnifiEd. UnifiEds agenda is power and control of our elected Hamilton County Commission and School Board by voting blocs. I have seen no indications that Hamilton County residents want UnifiEds radical APEX agenda. It appears that the APEX agenda will be forced on us by UnifiEd gaining control of the Hamilton County Commission and School Board. Based upon review of 1) financial disclosures of each candidate, 2) research of all published statements by these candidates since announcing, District 6 please consider what you are voting for carefully, details contained in APEX Project report, and ask yourself if the UnifiEd APEX is what you want for Hamilton County children. The devil is always in the details, read the APEX carefully. Please keep Commissioner Joe Graham and vote for Michael Henry for School Board in District 6 . April Eidson By IANS: New Delhi, July 23:The Congress on Monday raised in the Lok Sabha the issue of lynching of a Muslim man in Rajasthans Alwar, triggering protests from the ruling BJP and others. Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Congress MP from Alwar Karan Singh Yadav said that it was the fourth such incident in the state. Support TwoCircles He alleged that self-proclaimed cow protectors were behind the Saturdays attack, and also attacked the Rajasthan Police for not taking the victim to hospital in time. Rakbar Khan alias Akbar, 28, was on Saturday thrashed by a mob on suspicion of being a cow smuggler. The Rajasthan Police has since formed a high-level team to probe the reasons for the delay in taking Rakbar to hospital. Earlier in the day, members of the two parties clashed in the Lok Sabha when Congress MP Jyotiraditya Scindia raised the issue of rising rape cases. The cases of rape against women are increasing in the country. When the Kathua rape case was highlighted the BJP MLAs who were then ministers came out in support of the rape accused, he said. Even in the Unnao rape case, the rapist was none other than a BJP MLA, he said. Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar has been named as an accused in the Unnao rape case. He was arrested by the CBI on April 13. When Scindia raised the rape of a minor girl in Madhya Pradeshs Mandsaur, he was interrupted by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan. Dont do politics over everything. I am also a woman, Mahajan said. Scindia then said that according to National Crime Record Bureau, at least 40,000 rape cases are registered every year in the country. Of these, 19,000 cases pertain to rape of minors, he said. Currently: Long Looking to: Sell @ $39.50 As of 3/19/21 close: $34.25 LAST WEEK: We suggested buying near $31.48 with stops on a daily close below that level and with an upside target of $39.50. UPDATE: The iShares Brazil ETF (EWZ) has started to rally as we expected. It should continue higher especially if crude oils decline stops soon. Get long near $33.00 with stops on a daily close below $32.70 and with an upside target of $39.50. Currently: Cash Looking to: Buy @ 108.337 As of 3/21/21 @ 9:21pm EST: 108.857 LAST WEEK: We suggested buying dips in USDJPY to 108.337 and holding for a run up to 111. We suggested honoring stops on longs on a close below 107.75. UPDATE: The USDJPY is up early on Monday after trading sluggishly all last week. We still feel the cross will trade down to 108.337 (or lower). No changes to last weeks trade recommendations. 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. "America happens to be my client. Americans are who I care about. I have no fondness for the enemy, and I don't feel like I need to take care of their mental health needs." -- Bryce Lefever, former U.S. Navy clinical and SERE psychologist, member of the APA's 2005 Presidential Task Force on Psychological Ethics and National Security The President is a big fan of waterboarding, and worse. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called torturers "patriots." New CIA Director Gina Haspel oversaw torture at the agency's infamous black sites. Chief of Staff John Kelly subjected Guantanamo detainees to brutal treatment. National Security Adviser John Bolton is notorious for dismissing international law. The list is incomplete, but it's sufficient to make one thing clear: for the Trump White House, inhumanity awaits as soon as the right opportunity arises. (Image by Roy Eidelson) Details DMCA This then is the political climate in which leaders of the American Psychological Association (APA) will meet next month in San Francisco at the annual convention. There they will hold two critical votes, both with important ramifications for whether the APA will again lose its way and stumble badly when next confronted with the stark choice between do-no-harm ethics on the one hand and expediency and careerism on the other. The first resolution (known as "35B") aims to allow military psychologists to return to clinical roles with prisoners at sites that operate in violation of international law, such as Guantanamo. To be clear, according to current APA policy approved with overwhelming support, it's already permissible for independent psychologists (e.g., employed by the International Committee of the Red Cross) to provide mental health care to detainees, and for military psychologists (e.g., employed by the Department of Defense) to provide treatment to military personnel. In light of Guantanamo's ugly history of abuse and torture in which military psychologists played key roles, it's hard to fathom why any prisoner there would choose to confide in a psychologist whose primary duty is to the U.S. government. Rather, there's good reason to think that the proposed return to these positions is less about the detainees' welfare than about the Pentagon's image and interests, while also serving to cover over a sordid legacy. At the same time, if approved, this resolution would eliminate any chance that the Defense Department might turn to independent trauma- and torture-informed experts to support the detainees who remain. The second resolution (known as "13D") seeks to remove the 2015 Hoffman Report from the APA website. This independent 500-page report presents a detailed, evidence-based account of APA's missteps and ethical failures over several years -- years during which association leaders secretly coordinated with government officials to support psychologists' involvement in the Bush Administration's often-ruthless detention and interrogation operations. However, these troubling findings have led some of the military psychologists named in the report -- along with their proponents -- to respond with defamation lawsuits in three jurisdictions, a formal ethics complaint and more threats of the same, and now a call for public suppression of the report itself. Ironically, the resolution's sponsors argue that removal of the Hoffman Report is necessary to defend the profession's "do no harm" principles. But that claim is seriously off-target. Psychology's fundamental ethical commitments are much more effectively fortified in a very different way: through transparency so that current and future psychologists can better learn the painful lessons of this tragic period in U.S. psychology. Driven largely by a faction of military psychologists, both of these resolutions are seemingly audacious attempts to take us back in time, to erase from record and memory the reality that psychologists were essential cogs in the Bush Administration's shameful and misguided war-on-terror torture machine. Approval of these proposals could also open the door wide to the prospect of renewed participation in "dark side" operations, this time on behalf of a president who's already demonstrated his fondness for no-holds-barred brutality. At their upcoming meeting, one therefore hopes that APA's Council of Representatives -- including those members who are more recent additions to the leadership and perhaps less familiar with the relevant history -- will see through the various self-serving and deceptive arguments behind "35B" and "13D." For each resolution, a "No" vote is a vote for continued progress toward redeeming the profession. 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. Angry Yes, but Never Emulate NRA, Putin or Trump Violence (Image by Akemi Ohira) Details DMCA Resist being duped by the dancing red laser beam programmed by talking and Koch heads, and start asking, the five W's and Howour news media is failing to see current Trump administration events through the lens of First Amendment and Deep Throat, lessons. Before Trump/Pence, we could occasionally rely on newspapers and radio, if not always TV media, to give us, Jack Webb's, just the facts, ma'am, regarding how the How and five W'scorroborate the truth -- albeit reminiscent of the forgotten Fourth Estate standards, honored by Edward R. Marrow, Chet Huntley, David Brinkley, and the man who, like Rachel Maddow wept for our nation on national television, Walter Cronkite. You want answers? Sadly, Colonel Nathan R. Jessup was correct, we can't handle the truth, if we're in lockstep with herd mentality, allowing marketing ads to successfully brand us madmen fighting among ourselves -- relentlessly ignoring, a House Divided cannot Stand, instead of following Putin's Russian Rubles. Admit the damage that our repetitive voting pendulum's pinball machine approach to elections, both reflects and incites radical Newton's Third Law mood swings -- from keeping our Democratic Republic, to rippling democratic calls for an Arab Spring -- to backlash swinging toward the comfort zone of what's forever, Gone with the Wind. Centuries after Sodom and Gamora and Amnon raping his half-sister Tamar, we've almost learned from #MeToo and #TimesUp how to indict the aggressive harassing predator of sexual assault, rather than re-persecuting those assaulted -- regardless of gender. Before Bush/Cheney's endless oil wars, we protested LBJ's & Nixon's Vietnam geographical, death, maimed and brain damaged War escalations -- ultimately confusing Americans in uniform whose lives were put in Harm's Way, with the lies of the presidents who sent them. Following precedent set by Mark Foley's assault on Congressional Pages and Larry Craig's wide stance, pickup line, we've endured Republican hypocrisy: publicly bashing LGBTQ Rights, while men like, Ed Schrock and RNC Chair Ken Mehlman, secretly experimented with their sexuality -- possibly even ignoring the pleas for help from sexually abused Ohio State students. Too soon after the gun violence of Columbine & Sandy Hook flung open America's identity extremes: accepting Blue on Black shootings and Pulse, Las Vegas and Parkland mass murders -- the NRA partnered with Russian spies to raise Putin's puppet above our Old Glory. Before Little Miss Maria Butina offered entry to her curds and whey, for access to an alleged sex offender accused of raping a thirteen-year-old girl, President Warren G. Harding invited little Miss Britton over to the White House for more than a lap dance. Before AMI, Manhattan Madam and Roger Stone reveal, we were mute when our freedom to, take a knee, to honor lives cut short by racism, bigotry, hate, and vehicular murder -- was maligned by a fake patriot. Before 45 chose a poisonous murderer over America's Intelligence Agencies, voting Democrats, by 65,845,063 to 62,980,160 valiantly attempted to defend the Land of the Free, from a Russian takeover of our electoral process -- to implant a Groper-in-Chief and his selectively Christian Vice backup, our FBI & CIA led by example: brining to justice American KGB moles, CIA's Aldrich Hazen Ames and FBI's Robert Philip Hanssen. Since 1776, reasonable Americans have borne the weight of those clinging to past comfort zones, and now we must resist becoming, some of the people all of the time who believed claims of baby trafficking in a pizza shop basement were true. Before SCOTUS legalized same-sex marriage, a rainbow of Americans defeated AXIS powers -- and our votes, alerting Putin and his USA allies, will defeat the trumped GOP with, This far but no further. In 2018, it is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- electing to embody an American Dream, for all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, by supporting Americans who are the answer to our call for reinvigorated thinking, and Justice for All, like Abigail Spanberger, Leslie Cockburn, Danica Roem, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Kamala Harris. After 6/16/15, my friends, dogs and cats inspired my hope to -- Make America Kind Again. 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 WSWS Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders appeared on the CBS Sunday interview program "Face the Nation" Sunday, and fully embraced the anti-Russia campaign of the US military-intelligence apparatus, backed by the Democratic Party and much of the media. In response to a question from CBS host Margaret Brennan, Sanders unleashed a torrent of denunciations of Trump's meeting and press conference in Helsinki with Russian President Vladimir Putin. A preliminary transcript reads: SANDERS: "I will tell you that I was absolutely outraged by his behavior in Helsinki, where he really sold the American people out. And it makes me think that either Trump doesn't understand what Russia has done, not only to our elections, but through cyber attacks against all parts of our infrastructure, either he doesn't understand it, or perhaps he is being blackmailed by Russia, because they may have compromising information about him. "Or perhaps also you have a president who really does have strong authoritarian tendencies. And maybe he admires the kind of government that Putin is running in Russia. And I think all of that is a disgrace and a disservice to the American people. And we have got to make sure that Russia does not interfere, not only in our elections, but in other aspects of our lives." These comments, which echo remarks he gave at a rally in Kansas late last week, signal Sanders' full embrace of the right-wing campaign launched by the Democrats and backed by dominant sections of the military-intelligence apparatus. Their opposition to Trump is centered on issues of foreign policy, based on the concern that Trump, due to his own "America First" brand of imperialist strategy, has run afoul of geostrategic imperatives that are considered inviolable -- in particular, the conflict with Russia. Sanders did not use his time on a national television program to condemn Trump's persecution of immigrants and the separation of children from their parents, or to denounce his naming of ultra-right jurist Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, or to attack the White House declaration last week that the "war on poverty" had ended victoriously -- in order to justify the destruction of social programs for impoverished working people. Nor did he seek to advance his supposedly left-wing program on domestic issues like health care, jobs and education. Sanders' embrace of the anti-Russia campaign is not surprising, but it is instructive. This is, after all, an individual who presented himself as "left-wing," even a "socialist." During the 2016 election campaign, he won the support of millions of people attracted to his call for a "political revolution" against the "billionaire class." For Sanders, who has a long history of opportunist and pro-imperialist politics in the orbit of the Democratic Party, the aim of the campaign was always to direct social discontent into establishment channels, culminating in his endorsement of the campaign of Hillary Clinton. In the aftermath of his election campaign, Sanders was elevated into a top-level position in the Democratic Party caucus in the US Senate. His first response to the inauguration of Trump was to declare his willingness to "work with" the president, closely tracking remarks of Obama that the election of Trump was part of an "intramural scrimmage" in which all sides were on the same team. As the campaign of the military-intelligence agencies intensifies, however, Sanders is toeing the line. The experience is instructive not only in relation to Sanders, but to an entire social milieu and the political perspective with which it is associated. This is what it means to work within the Democratic Party. The Sanders campaign did not push the Democrats to the left, but rather the state apparatus of the ruling class brought Sanders in to give a "left" veneer to a thoroughly right-wing party. New political figures, many associated with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are being brought in for the same purpose. As Sanders gave his anti-Russia rant, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez sat next to him nodding her agreement. The 28-year-old member of the DSA last month won the Democratic nomination in New York's 14th Congressional District, unseating the Democratic incumbent, Joseph Crowley, the fourth-ranking member of the Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives. Since then, Ocasio-Cortez has been given massive and largely uncritical publicity by the corporate media, summed up in an editorial puff piece by the New York Times that described her as "a bright light in the Democratic Party who has brought desperately needed energy back to New York politics..." Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders were jointly interviewed from Kansas, where the two appeared Friday at a campaign rally for James Thompson, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the US House of Representatives from the Fourth Congressional District, based in Wichita, in an August 7 primary election. Thompson might appear to be an unusual ally for the "socialist" Sanders and the DSA member Ocasio-Cortez. His campaign celebrates his role as an Army veteran, and his website opens under the slogan "Join the Thompson Army," followed by pledges that the candidate will "Fight for America." In an interview with the Associated Press, Thompson indicated that despite his support for Sanders' call for "Medicare for all," and his own endorsement by the DSA, he was wary of any association with socialism. "I don't like the term socialist, because people do associate that with bad things in history," he said. Such anticommunism fits right in with the anti-Russian campaign, which is the principal theme of the Democratic Party in the 2018 elections. As the World Socialist Web Site has pointed out for many months, the real thrust of the Democratic Party campaign is demonstrated by its recruitment as congressional candidates of dozens of former CIA and military intelligence agents, combat commanders from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and war planners from the Pentagon, State Department and White House. There is no contradiction between the influx of military-intelligence candidates into the Democratic Party and the Democrats' making use of the services of Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez to give the party a "left" cover. Both the CIA Democrats and their pseudo-left "comrades" agree on the most important questions: the defense of the global interests of American imperialism and a more aggressive intervention in the Syrian civil war and other areas where Washington and Moscow are in conflict. 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. Cover art of 25th anniversary edition of 'The Wheels on the Bus'; headshot from Paul's website (Image by courtesy of Paul O. Zelinsky) Details DMCA My guest today is Caldecott winner and renowned children's author and illustrator, Paul O. Zelinsky. Joan Brunwasser: Welcome to OpEdNews, Paul. You've had a long and illustrious career. In fact, one of your most beloved books, The Wheels on the Bus, celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2015 and is still going strong, with more than 3.5 million copies in print. Before we talk about that one, tell us where your interest in art and storytelling came from, please. Paul Zelinsky: I could describe myself as a kid who at some point got interested in art and storytelling. But it feels more the case that an interest in art and storytelling decided to come into the world, and it needed a person to hang onto, so it created me. I was born in Evanston, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, and started drawing at an early age. When I was two, my family (my parents and older sister) moved to Japan for a year, where I was exposed to a deeply different culture, one with stronger aesthetic values than anything you'd see in the US. That influence remained after we returned to Illinois (after a year in Princeton, New Jersey, where a younger brother entered the picture). Our new home in Wilmette housed the Japanese furniture shipped back with us; my mother kept a lot of Japanese recipes in her cooking repertoire, and Japanese friends would stop in and visit as long as my parents lived. This is not to say that my art is very Japanese, but maybe it is! And storytelling? The art I was interested in was always telling stories. It's still the case. There is no getting around it, really; everything you can hold in your mind has a story somewhere inside. JB: You say that "art and storytelling needed a person to hang onto, so it created me." I'm intrigued by that statement. Can you flesh that out for us? When and how did you start to feel as if you were the medium for art and storytelling rather than the other way around? Or is it the same thing, in the end? PZ: For the most part, I'm extremely literal-minded and don't go in for mystical or even metaphorical ideas, but I made a little exception here. I really meant that I was compulsive about making pictures that told stories from a very early age-- longer ago than I can remember (I wrote stories, too), and I have no sense of this tendency as having come from anywhere. I don't descend from a family of storytellers, though I had relatives who were good at it; but I can say for sure that I either inherited or picked up a lot of drawing facility from my mother, who trained as a medical illustrator and had a better eye for likenesses than I ever will. She was also very good at writing doggerel, and could rhyme better than 99.9% of people. My father was a mathematics professor (the year in Kyoto was for his Fulbright fellowship.) He used to say that math, as practiced by research mathematicians, is fundamentally an esthetic venture; that it is about shapes of abstract things fitting together, forming patterns that are real, and waiting to be discovered. So much for my interests and abilities not coming from anywhere.... JB: Where did your desire to tell stories, or illustrate them, for kids come from? PZ: I guess it's a combination of an inborn desire to make things, and a conviction that illustrated books are an irrefutably desirable thing in the world. At the time I conceived this conviction I think it was even more, let's say, apart from mainstream thinking than it has since become (in the 1960s celebrities were about as interested in writing children's books as they would have been in coming out of the closet [or some other comparison I can't think of]), although I believe that most adults today still don't hold the field of children's books in particularly high regard. And I think those adults (at least the imaginary ones I'm postulating) are nuts. I did not grow up with the intention of becoming a children's book maker. I loved books, and pictures, and pictures in books, which basically means children's books, but I didn't quite understand that books were made by living people, and that becoming one of those people was a possible thing. So I thought I'd be an artist, or an architect, or something, but I also liked to please and amuse myself and my friends by making books with stories in them. It was just something I did. JB: You imply that children's book authors get less respect than authors of other books. How sad! I say this because I have a young granddaughter and one of my biggest pleasures is sharing new books with her as well as the ones that I read to her mom and her siblings. The old ones left such a vivid impression and are tied to so many happy family memories; they are truly unforgettable. And how many books for adults can you say that about? Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 (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 The Nation Thousands cheer a bold challenge to the billionaire class. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and New York Democratic congressional nominee Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez came to Kansas to prove a point. But it wasn't the point that political and media elites imagined. When Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez stumped for congressional candidates James Thompson, a civil-rights lawyer from Wichita, and Brent Welder, a labor lawyer from Bonner Springs, they were not talking about outflanking ideological rivals or moving pieces on a political chessboard. They were talking about issues that matter to working Americans. What sort of issues? The sort that Thompson and Welder have made central to their campaigns: support for Medicare for All health-care reform, for an expansive commitment to civil rights, for women's rights, for humane immigration policies, and for an economic-justice vision that is rooted in a commitment to worker-class empowerment. Standing up for unions and their members in Kansas -- a so-called "right-to-work" state where Republican governors have shredded workplace protections and embraced the anti-labor program of the Wichita-based Koch family -- may seem like risky politics to some Democrats. But that's simply not the case. This is smart politics at a time when Kansans, like working people nationwide, are justifiably enraged by the scorching inequality that the favored politicians of billionaire conservatives Charles and David Koch have fostered in states across this country. "I don't think the people of Kansas or the people of Vermont or the people anywhere in this country think that it is appropriate that a handful of billionaires like the Koch brothers can spend some $400 million in this 2018 election cycle to elect candidates to represent the wealthy and the powerful," Sanders said as he discussed Thompson's bid, "so I think a defeat of the Koch brothers, if you like, would be a very symbolic victory." As thousands cheered in Wichita, Sanders shouted: "I believe that every state in this country where people are struggling for a decent life is a state that will fight for justice." Click Here to Read Whole Article 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 Truthdig Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh has broken some of the biggest stories of the past 50 years. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the 1968 My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War. His book "Reporter: A Memoir" delves into his reporting on My Lai, as well as on the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and the killing of Osama bin Laden. In a wide-ranging discussion, Hersh and Truthdig Editor in Chief Robert Scheer ponder why other journalists were hesitant to report on the notorious My Lai case. Hersh tells how he was sensitized to incidents of "tyranny" he witnessed as a young police reporter in Chicago, adding that self-censorship is something he has fought against much of his career. His reporting on My Lai stunned readers. The U.S. soldiers of Company C "didn't just kill babies," Hersh notes. "They were throwing infants up and catching them on their bayonets." But Hersh and Scheer dismiss the idea that the killers were a uniquely twisted band of monsters who just happened to coalesce at a certain point in time. In fact, Scheer notes the journalist's sympathy for the perpetrators of the massacre. "They had been radicalized by the fact that they were in a foreign country and didn't understand anything," Hersh explains. "In a way, they were victims, too." Before covering the war, he says, he made a point of reading about the history of the conflict and quickly learned that "the war was a bloodbath." As he reported the incident, which the military quickly attempted to cover up, Hersh recalls visiting Paul Meadlo, one of the soldiers involved. When he arrived for the interview, he spoke to Meadlo's mother, who said, "I gave them a good boy, and they sent me back a murderer." "God knows what made them do what they did," Hersh says. But then he answers his own question. "They were trained to do that. In the Army, the first thing they did was take all social values away." Click Here to Read Whole Article 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 Paul Craig Roberts Website The Guardian Newspaper, which once was an honest newspaper that spoke for the British working class has now been suborned, in my opinion, by the CIA and British Intelligence (sic). Perhaps you remember a few years ago that The Guardian complied with illegal orders from the corrupt UK government to destroy the Wikileaks files that revealed US felonies and deceptions of so-called "allies," who are nothing but Washington's vassals. What disturbs me about The Guardian is that it no longer guards truth and the working class. Instead The Guardian guards the extraordinary lies that serve the agenda of the US hegemonic state. I cannot understand why any of The Guardian's original subscribers read apologies for Washington's crimes and misdeeds or why The Guardian prefers conflict instead of peace with Russia. Why does The Guardian work to increase hostility between nuclear powers that can easily result in the termination of life on earth? Are The Guardian's editors paid by the CIA and UK "intelligence," as the German newspaper editor Udo Ulfkotte said in his book, Bought Journalism, or are The Guardian's editors threatened with arrest and prison unless they serve the interests of the UK's overlord in Washington? Whatever The Guardian is, just like The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, MSNBC, NPR, and the rest of the Western presstitutes, journalism is not present on its pages. What the West has is a Ministry of Propaganda. The public is lied to and brainwashed, not informed. We can see the total failure of The Guardian, and all the rest as well, in the reporting on the arrest of the alleged Russian spy, Maria Butina by the utterly corrupt US Department of Justice (sic). The principal evidence against Maria is that she met with a former Russian ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak. According to the utterly corrupt US Department of Justice (sic), an assistant US attorney, Erik Kenerson, "cited Butina's encounter with Kislyak as proof that she was in touch with diplomatic or consular officials and must be detained while awaiting trial." So, in America if you get your photo taken with a former Russian ambassador to the US, it is evidence that you are a spy. I have read the indictment of Maria Butina. She is not accused of any crime recognizable by Anglo-American law. She is indicted under Jeremy Bentham's 18th century totalitarian argument that she is guilty of the "crime" of possibly intending to commit one in the future. (See The Tyranny of Good intentions by PCR and Lawrence Stratton.) Maria, who has long red hair but otherwise is unremarkable, especially in contrast to the women that the interest groups, such as the military/security complex, Wall Street, and the Israel lobby are believed to provide to the executive and legislative branches of the US government, is certainly not the seductive Russian spy that Americans know from James Bond films. The woman has not done a thing. She is indicted for a non-crime. She is indicted because she is Russian and living, according to the presstitute media, with a congressional staffer. Maria has no way whatsoever to spy on the US through the low level congressional staffer with whom she was allegedly living. Her arrest is just another hoax perpetrated on the American people in order to fan the distrust and hatred of Russia, distrust that protects the totally unnecessary $1,000 billion annual budget of the US military/security complex. Many uninformed people think that President Trump is in charge of the US government. He is not. And he would be assassinated if he were. As President Dwight Eisenhower warned us to no avail in 1961, the military/security complex is a threat to democracy and accountable government. The military/security complex is most definitely not going to permit any diminution in its income and power by permitting normalization of relations with Russia. Having ignored President Eisenhower's warning, the warning from a two-term US president and a five-star general who commanded US, British, and French forces against Hitler in World War 2, the insouciant Americans have lost their democracy to the Deep State. Consequently, the passive and insouciant Americans are now getting nearer to losing their lives, along with the lives of many other peoples, to the greed of the American military/security complex. 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 To The Point Analyses Part I -- Boycotts Are Historically Common If you search the topic boycotts on Google you immediately realize how historically common they are. There are a lot to choose from, and one of the first listed is the 1769 boycott instituted by the First Continental Congress against Great Britain over the issue of "taxation without representation." That makes a boycott against a perceived oppressive power an integral part of American heritage. As you move into the modern era, a reaction against racism also becomes a noticeable motivating factor for many boycotts. The Chinese instituted a boycott against the United States over the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1892 and 1904. Then, in 1933, the American Jewish Congress declared a boycott of Nazi Germany in protest to its racially motivated oppression of the German Jewish community. In the 1940s, Ghandi would encourage Indians to boycott imperial Britain. In the 1950s and 1960s, African Americans would boycott segregated institutions in the U.S. South. In the 1960s through the 1990s, much of the world would boycott South Africa over issue of apartheid. And this is but a short list. In 2005, 170 Palestinian civil society organizations, including unions, refugee networks, women's organizations, and political parties, put out a call for a boycott of Israel. This was to be a non-violent effort to pressure the Zionist state to conform to international law and cease its oppression of the Palestinians. The call was also for divestment from Israel and all entities that assisted and profited from its behavior, as well as for eventual sanctions. This is known as the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign, or BDS for short. Part II -- Redefining Anti-Semitism Even though Jews had suffered from Nazi persecution and ethnic cleansing during World War II and had used boycott as a weapon against their oppressors, the Israelis and their Zionist supporters have taken great umbrage at the call for boycott by the Palestinians. They see it as "anti-Semitic." For instance, in the U.S. the Zionist Anti-Defamation League has t his to say about the BDS campaign on its website: "Many of the founding goals of the BDS movement, including denying the Jewish people the universal right of self-determination ... are anti-Semitic. Many individuals involved in BDS campaigns are driven by opposition to Israel's very existence as a Jewish state. ... And, all too often, BDS advocates employ anti-Semitic rhetoric and narratives to isolate and demonize Israel." This statement expresses the "official" Israeli/Zionist position, and at its core is a purposeful conflation of the Jewish people and the Israeli state. By insisting on this identification of Israel and all Jews, the Zionists are able to redefine anti-Semitism. Indeed, they take a very old and well-understood phenomenon and give it a radically new, and quite suspect, definition. The traditional definition of anti-Semitism is a dislike of or bias against Jews by virtue of their imagined inherent "Jewishness." Note that this is very different from objecting to, say, the criminal behavior of someone or some group that just happens to be Jewish. In the first case, it is "Jewishness" that you object to. That is anti-Semitism. In the second case, it is criminal behavior that you object to, regardless of whether the criminal is Jewish. That is not anti-Semitism However, by arbitrarily conflating all Jews with the Israeli state, the Zionists tell us that criticism or opposition to Israeli state behavior -- even if that behavior is criminal -- is anti-Semitic. This is because Israel stands in for all Jews. Thus, they redefine anti-Semitism in a way that allows Israel to sidestep all moral responsibility by turning the argument around and pointing fingers at their critics. For instance, do you object to Israel's ethnic cleansing of Palestinians? Well, for the Zionists the issue is no longer the criminal nature of ethnic cleansing, but the alleged anti-Semitism of those criticizing that behavior. Part III -- Background Information Let's consider this Zionist maneuver against the following background. Consider the following: -- In June, 2018, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA), representing 1.5 million Americans, "voted unanimously" to support the BDS campaign. -- In July, 2018, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church USA voted to support BDS by screening suspect companies that might be aiding Israel in the violation of Palestinian human rights and divest from them if this proves to be the case. The Episcopal Church USA represents 3 million Americans. 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 Gush Shalom ONE CAN look at events in Gaza through the left or through the right eye. One can condemn them as inhuman, cruel and mistaken, or justify them as necessary and unavoidable. But there is one adjective that is beyond question: They are stupid. If the late Barbara Tuchman were still alive, she might be tempted to add another chapter to her groundbreaking opus "The March of Folly" -- a chapter titled "Eyeless in Gaza." THE LATEST episode in this epic started a few months ago, when independent activists in the Gaza Strip called for a march to the Israeli border, which Hamas supported. It was called "The Great March of Return," a symbolic gesture for the more than a million Arab residents who fled or were evicted from their homes in the land that became the State of Israel. The Israeli authorities pretended to take this seriously. A frightening picture was painted for the Israeli public: 1.8 million Arabs, men, women and children, would throw themselves on the border fence, break through in many places, and storm Israel's cities and villages. Terrifying. Israeli sharpshooters were posted along the border and ordered to shoot anyone who looked like a "ringleader." On several succeeding Fridays (the weekly Muslim holy day) more than 150 unarmed protesters, including many children, were shot dead, and many hundreds more severely wounded by gunfire, apart from those hurt by tear gas. The Israeli argument was that the victims were shot while trying to "storm the fences..." Actually, not a single such attempt was photographed, though hundreds of photographers were posted on both sides of the fence. Facing a world-wide protest, the army changed its orders and now only rarely kills unarmed protesters. The Palestinians also changed their tactics: the main effort now is to fly children's kites with burning tails and set Israeli fields near the Strip on fire. Since the wind almost always blows from the West to the East, that is an easy way to hurt Israel. Children can do it, and do. Now the Minister of Education demands that the air force bomb the children. The Chief of Staff refuses, arguing that this is "against the values of the Israeli army." At present, half of our newspapers and TV newscasts are concerned with Gaza. Everybody seems to agree that sooner or later a full-fledged war will break out there. THE MAIN feature of this exercise is its utter stupidity. Every military action must have a political aim. As the German military thinker, Carl von Clausewitz, famously said: "War is but a continuation of politics by other means." The Strip is 41 km long and 6 to 12 km wide. It is one of the most overcrowded places on earth. Nominally it belongs to the largely theoretical State of Palestine, like the West Bank, which is Israeli occupied. The Strip is in fact governed by the radical Muslim Hamas party. 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 Informed Comment In remarks Saturday to the Iranian foreign policy establishment in Tehran, President Hassan Rouhani gave some warnings to Donald Trump. He said, "Mr. Trump, do not play with the lion's tail. The only result of such a course will be profound regret." With regard to Washington's current attempts to sow the seeds of instability in Iran, he said, "You are not in a position to move against the security and interests of this country, the nation of Iran." "America," he said, "must know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." Critics of the president were astonished at this diction, which echoed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's description of the Gulf War of 1991 as "the mother of all battles." (This is actually an Arabic idiom and "mother" could be translated as "essence." No similar idiom exists in Persian, so Rouhani is speaking a translated Persian form of Dictator Arabic.) Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in September of 1980 and the two fought a major war until 1988. The Iraqi leader was the most hated man in Iran, and to have an Iranian president more or less quote him is shocking, to say the least. It should be said, however, that Rouhani was not talking about attacking the US. In fact, he began by saying that Iran was glad to offer Washington the "mother of all peace." He went on to say that if Trump instead opted to attack Iran, then *that* would result in the mother of all Wars. The US press will likely try to turn Rouhani into the aggressor here, however, in a long tradition that goes back to William Randolph Hearst. Soviet Premier Nikita Krushchev once observed in Russian that Communism would outlast capitalism and that Soviets would still be around to bury capitalism, which would predecease it. The US press attributed to him the words, "We will bury you!" -- they made a statement of determination and steadfastness, not of aggression. But I grew up believing the falsehood. Iran signed a treaty with the US in 2015 and observed all its requirements. Trump has torn that treaty up and launched covert operations to destabilize the country. Trump is the aggressor here, and Rouhani was just saying that Iran would defend itself very effectively if attacked. This is true. Bush's invasion and occupation of Iraq was the biggest debacle in the history of American foreign policy. Iran is geographically and demographically three times larger than Iraq, so do the math. Still, Rouhani's words are most unwise and are, indeed, shocking and shameful. Speaking of shocking and shameful, Trump of course always has to be the biggest dog, so he shouted at Rouhani on Twitter in all caps: 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. (This is a reprint from NewsBred). Modi on Andhra Pradesh (Image by pixabay.com) Details DMCA The morning after the No-Trust motion in Parliament on Saturday, one was amazed how the coverage in newspapers, TV networks and websites made it appear like blow-for-blow exchanges between the opposition and the NDA government. It was more like a spanking a mother delivers on the exposed bottom of her kid placed on her knees. The welts are obviously being treated for 20 hours now as there is complete silence in the camp of the dishonest. Those who even passingly looked at proceedings in the Lok Sabha would remember the takeaways: (a) Rahul Gandhi's 'prank' being called out even by the speaker; (b) his "Rafale" lies being nailed then and there by the French government; (c) Why Modi, Congress has no-trust even in Chief Justice, Election Commission, EVMs, Armed forces; (d) The TDP cacophony on "special status" to Andhra Pradesh being swatted out of park by PM Modi. And what did you find in the newspapers this morning? (a) Out of 5 front-page stories on the proceedings in Indian Express, 3 were around Rahul Gandhi, none negative; (b) no headline that French government has called out Rahul's lie; (c) little mention of those involved in "1984 lynchings" advicing others; (d) and a complete black out of what Modi said on "AP and its special status." This completely took the winds out of my sail. I mean The Hindu, being a newspaper from the South, ought to have taken note of Modi's clarification on "AP's special status". But it didn't. Since the entire drama of "no-trust motion" was initiated by Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the allies who walked out of NDA recently, I for one waited well past 10 in the night to see if Modi takes care to present the side of his government. Modi did wade into the "AP special status" issue and how. For those who can't find it anywhere in their newspapers, a typical ploy by Lutyens Media to hide inconvenient facts, here is the video of Modi's speech on Andhra Pradesh in Lok Sabha on Friday night. Modi began by acknowledging that Andhra Pradesh people have been at the receiving end. He put it down to machinations of the UPA government, which for votes created a "new state" in Telengana (which was given Hyderabad, the heart of Andhra Pradesh --more of it later). Modi highlighted that as per 14th Finance Commission, the difference between Special Status and general category stands abolished; that keeping in mind Andhra Pradesh's genuine demands, the Centre was committed to give it as much assistance as would've come their way in Special Status. The decision on Special Package was taken on September 8, 2016. On November 4, 2016, AP chief minister himself accepted this package and thanked the finance minister! (did you know that!). Modi himself called Chandrababu Naidu (AP Chief Minister) and told him he was falling into a trap (in raising the bogey of Special Status). Modi then assured AP people that they would get their due. "TDP in order to hide its' failures is raising the Special Status bogey," Modi concluded, "jhagda wahan ka hai; aur istamal sadan ka kiya ja raha hai (the fight is in AP but the Parliament is being used for it)." Once the state of Telengana was created in 2014, the capital Hyderabad (which generates 90 percent of jobs and most of Andhra's GDP) came their way: with the proviso that it would remain a shared capital city between them and Andhra Pradesh. In essence, Andhra Pradesh got nothing out of it in terms of revenue: all it got was rented spaces for its governmental offices in Hyderabad which it paid for! It also got a short-shrift on matter of sharing water. As of now, 11 states in India have the Special Category Status (SCS): Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalya, Tripura, Uttarakhand and Mizoram. Under SCS, 90 per cent of funds is allocated as grants which need not be paid back. Such states also enjoy concessions in excise and custom duties, income-tax rates and corporate tax rates. The truth though is after Planning Commission was taken over by NITI Aayog, the SCS is no longer attractive. There is a drastic cut in its allocation. Now, there is not much difference between SCS and general states. So for Naidu to harp on Special Status is nothing but to prod the "Telugu pride" of his people in a bid to reap political benefits. Progressive Content Not Found Sometimes, authors delete their progressive content after publishing. To see if the progressive content 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. Living In The Interesting Times Of The Russiagate Myth A year ago, July 24, 2017 to be exact, Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS ) sent a memorandum to President Trump signed by 16 members representing a variety of intelligence organizations including military, NSA and CIA. The Memorandum begins with "Forensic studies of 'Russian hacking' into Democratic National Committee computers last year reveal that on July 5, 2016, data was leaked (not hacked) by a person with physical access to DNC computer. After examining metadata from the 'Guccifer 2.0' July 5, 2016 intrusion into the DNC server, independent cyber investigators have concluded that an insider copied DNC data onto an external storage device". If the President missed it the first time, VIPS members Ray McGovern and William Binney resent it with some additional comments on Sunday, July 15 of this year, one day before Monday's Trump-Putin Summit in Helsinki. Just two days prior to that, July 13, the Special Counsel investigating Russian "meddling" in the 2016 election had issued indictments for 12 Russian intelligence officers, a timing obviously damaging to the Summit. McGovern and Binney alluded to, among other things, the "scarcely imaginable" digital tools of the CIA's new Digital Directorate, specifically the cyber-tool "Marble Framework", used to "obfuscate" and capable of planting fake evidence of Russian hacking. This information was given to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo directly by Binney in October of 2017. It has also been sent to Special Counsel Robert Mueller and to the Attorney General Jeff Sessions. The credentials of McGovern and Binney are sterling. McGovern, a 27-year CIA analyst, was Chief of the Soviet Foreign Policy Branch and chaired intelligence estimates for the President's Daily Briefing. Binney, 30+ years with NSA, was a cryptanalyst directing military and geopolitical analysis who developed the information processing system known as "ThinThread". The authors report that independent expert analysis indicates the so-called "hack" could not possibly have come from Russia, because the speed of DNC data being copied exceeded Internet capability for a hack from such a distance. Rather, it had to have come from the eastern U.S. They explain why very clearly in the Memorandum. The story that Russians helped Trump win the 2016 election by hacking (through a character known as Guccifer 2.0) information on Hillary Clinton from the DNC's computers, and then making it available to Julian Assange of Wikileaks, is false. It is a fabrication. The phenomenon of "Russiagate", repeated over and over, 24/7, for months leading into years by every media outlet imaginable until one feels dizzy, is false. VIPS independent analyses indicate that Assange got the data from someone who downloaded directly from DNC computers. An insider who "leaked". The January 6, 2016 "Intelligence Assessment" blaming Putin for hacking is depicted by media as representing the opinion of the entire "Intelligence Community", which consists of 16 branches, 17 by some counts. It was actually written by a small number of handpicked individuals from only three: CIA, NSA and FBI. Moreover, the Assessment states only a "high confidence" of Russian involvement. No proof was offered, and none has been given since. And as McGovern and Binney write, "Handpicked analysts, of course, say what they are handpicked to say". Regarding intelligence personnel overall, Glenn Greenwald has discussed the history of U.S. intelligence error (e.g., Gulf of Tonkin, Iraq WMDs), its expertise at disinformation, the tendency to groupthink within its ranks, and the potential for threat to dissenters. The word "treason" is thrown around a lot now as media and political figures strain to describe Trump as "Putin's puppet", "Putin's b*tch" and the like. But consider the fact that John Brennan, Director of the CIA in 2015 when the Digital Directorate was created, tweeted this on the day of the Summit: "Donald Trump's press conference performance in Helsinki rises to & exceeds the threshold of 'high crimes & misdemeanors.' Not only were Trump's comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Republican Patriots: Where are you???." Think of it: He is asking Republican Patriots " what? Isn't that a call for overthrow in a time known for violence? Here we see a recent CIA head making such a call on a sitting President working on a foreign policy. And that's not treasonous? It is now widely understood that the American Empire needs Russia-as-enemy to justify cramming the nation's treasure into its war machine, hence Russiagate. If ever there were a textbook example of repetition used as a means of creating a myth for the public mind, Russiagate would take the prize. It has been absolutely relentless. And the competing reality represented by Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity is prevented a glimmer of exposure in mainstream news. Even entertainers are part of Russiagate messaging. On Friday, July 20, four days after the Summit, comedian Stephen Colbert, stated flatly "By now it is an established fact that Russian military officers hacked DNC servers to help get Donald Trump elected." Colbert's introductory monologues over the last year have consisted essentially of nothing but Trump bashing, often without any apparent attempt to present it as comedy. McGovern and Binney added a "disclaimer" in the recent resend of their Memorandum: "We have no political agenda; our sole purpose is to spread truth around and, when necessary, hold to account our former intelligence colleagues. We speak and write without fear or favor. Consequently, any resemblance between what we say and what presidents, politicians and pundits say is purely coincidental. The fact that we find it is necessary to include that reminder speaks volumes about these highly politicized times." 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. This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here. September 11, 2001, was the day that "changed everything." And indeed, in New York City and elsewhere, it was hard not to feel just that. Unfortunately, the top officials of the Bush administration took advantage of that deep sense of shock (and awe) to advance a global shock-and-awe program all their own, including the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq that launched 17 years of non-stop war, refugee crises, and so much else. And the world did change. Sadly, it changed in ways that Osama bin Laden, despite his hijacked air force and the damage it inflicted on iconic American buildings (and the thousands of people in them), would have been utterly incapable of accomplishing himself. You might say that from September 12th on -- from the moment the air strikes of a small group of fanatics were greeted as if they had been carried out by a major power, as if it was truly "the Pearl Harbor of the twenty-first century" -- we were in trouble. War was almost instantly declared from the White House (initially on next to no one) and a Global War on Terror launched. In the process, this country was itself hijacked and, in the years to come, dispatched on what might be thought of as a strange American version of a suicide mission that ended up, more than a decade and a half later, with Donald Trump in the White House. Today, TomDispatchregular John Feffer, the invaluable weekly columnist for Foreign Policy in Focus, suggests that Trump's presidential "doctrine" is, in turn, a kind of suicide mission from hell and who knows, when the plane goes down, just what it will smash into. Think of this as the dystopian vision of twenty-first-century American life from an author who has already produced a riveting novel, Splinterlands, about the potentially grim fate of this planet. Coming in the fall from Dispatch Books is Frostlands, book two in Feffer's series about how we are, in fact, changing everything. Unfortunately, today's essay is not fiction. So buckle your seat belt, it's going to be an unforgettable ride. Tom The Flight 93 Doctrine Donald Trump's Kamikaze Attack on Globalism By John Feffer As presidencies approach their midpoints, pundits begin the inevitable search for that elusive creature: the doctrine. It's often a quixotic quest, since presidents rarely boil down their foreign-policy visions -- if they even have them -- to some pithy essence. Then there's Donald Trump. Conjuring up the current president's foreign-policy doctrine is like arguing that the Teletubbies have a theology. After all, this president approaches global affairs the way a teenager with attention-deficit disorder might tackle War and Peace. To call Trump scattershot in his approach would be generous. He doesn't even have sufficient command of the relevant vocabulary to formulate a doctrine. His linguistic universe, with its "covfefe," big-league malapropisms, and contradictory pronouncements, often seems to come straight out of Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem "Jabberwocky." Yet punditry abhors a vacuum, so the search for some sort of policy coherence never ends. Many observers have suggested that the Trump doctrine, stripped to its musculature, is simply a reassertion of American power in the crudest form. In The Atlantic, for instance, Jeffrey Goldberg canvassed Trump administration officials for their take on the president's doctrine and concluded that the most succinct formulation for it was: "We're America, b*tch." Another possibility: forget the doctrine; Trump is merely asserting his own authority in an increasingly empowered executive branch to do whatever comes into his head. In other words, we're not talking unilateralism but unileaderism. A third possibility: that Trump is defining himself and his policies entirely in opposition to his predecessor. The Obama Doctrine, according to administration insiders, boiled down to don't do stupid shit. In his eagerness to reverse everything his predecessor ever did, Trump seems to have turned his doctrine inside out as well. His recent trip to Europe, with its falsehoods and gratuitous insults, not to speak of the near sundering of transatlantic relations, suggests that the administration continues to come up with new and creative ways of doing stupid sh*t on a daily basis. There's truth in all of this, but something's still missing. Although Trump's approach to global affairs seems to have no particular rhyme or reason, it does have a certain rhythm. It has an insistent, urgent beat, something like the notorious two-note theme of the movie Jaws. The president not only wants you to believe that the world is a dangerous place, but that those dangers are approaching at a terrifying pace. Only Trump, he would have you believe, can save you from those sharp teeth inches from your throat. Let's call this approach Trump's Flight 93 doctrine, after an infamous article, "The Flight 93 Election," published in September 2016 in the far-right Claremont Review. According to its pseudonymous author, later revealed to be former George W. Bush administration staffer Michael Anton, liberals like Hillary Clinton were piloting America into catastrophe, aided, electorally, by "the ceaseless importation of Third World foreigners with no tradition of, taste for, or experience in liberty." Only Donald Trump and his conservative backers -- like the heroes who charged the cockpit of hijacked United Flight 93 on September 11, 2001 -- could avert such a tragedy. "A Hillary Clinton presidency is Russian roulette with a semi-auto," Anton wrote. "With Trump, at least you can spin the cylinder and take your chances." The analogy is, unfortunately, all too apt. Flight 93 crashed into a field in Pennsylvania, killing all aboard. It was heroism, yes, but at a very steep price. And playing Russian roulette with any kind of weapon rarely ends well. No surprise, then, that, as the president spins the cylinder of the gun pressed to all our heads, the Trump Doctrine of non-stop risk-taking has turned out to be the most self-defeating approach ever adopted by a modern American president. In fact, it may turn out to be the last doctrine that the White House ever has the luxury to formulate. The Uses of Doctrine Doctrines are inherently conservative. Among the many ways the U.S. could deploy its forces and resources overseas, they spell out the one that is best believed to preserve the status quo of American power and at the same time advance a select number of national interests. 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. Donald Trump tweets warning for Iran's leader The US president, Donald Trump, has tweeted an angry warning to his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani. In his tweet, Trump told Rouhani to 'never, ever' ... (Image by YouTube, Channel: Guardian News) Details DMCA US President Trump juxtaposed with Iranian President Rouhani The war of words has just been escalated a notch between Trump and Iran with the "Donald" tweeting in all caps to Iranian President Rouhani, "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE AND DEATH BE CAUTIOUS." This after Rouhani had said, "Do not play with the lion's tail or else you will regret it. Peace with Iran would be the mother of all peace and war with Iran would be the mother of all wars". Earlier in July Rouhani had said, "If Iran cannot export oil through the Persian Gulf no-one will do this. Either everyone will export, or no one" intimating Iran could block the Strait of Hormuz preventing all oil from Saudi Arabia and gas shipments from Qatar. Trump has threatened countries would be hit with sanctions if they purchased Iranian oil after November 4, the date when new US sanctions are imposed on Iran. All this rhetoric has escalated since Trump pulled the US from the Iran nuclear deal in May. All the other countries who signed the deal including Britain, France and Germany as well as Russia and China wanted it left intact and vowed they would adhere to it and continue trade with Iran. All European businesses want trade with Iran to continue unimpeded. So beyond the war of words between Trump and Rouhani it is Europe that holds the key as Russia and China will continue their usual trade with Iran and deflect any US sanctions against them. If Europe were to defy the US, actually stand up to Trump, continue to adhere to the multinational Iranian nuclear deal, reasserting sovereignty to benefit their interests by continuing to trade and buy Iranian oil the US would be the outlier, the main threat to economic stability in the world. Will Europe stand up to Trump? Sorry to say that's doubtful. Trump threw scorn at the Europeans at NATO conference in Brussels less than two weeks ago saying they don't pay their fair share in their own defense. He particularly singled out German Chancellor Angela Merkel as "a captive to Russia" for her country's agreement to build the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea from Russia into Germany. Merkel responded she grew up in East Germany under the domination of the Soviet Union that "I am very happy that today we are united in freedom, the Federal Republic of Germany. Because of that we can say we can make our independent policies and make independent decisions." Merkel's response to Trump sounds good. But that gas pipeline deal with Germany and Russia has nothing to do with the Iran nuclear deal. The Europeans continuing to adhere to the nuclear deal with Iran defying Trump's sanctions against them is where the rubber meets the road. It's up to Europe. If they capitulate to US threats fearing sanctions against them there may be dire consequences ahead with a looming confrontation between the US and Iran all the more likely. Xook Launches $1 per Month Home Security Monitoring Xook offers contract-free security monitoring for $1 per month. www.xook.io http://www.xook.io/ Tech startup changing the face of home security with $1 a month automated monitoringNew Startup Xook LLC announced today that it plans to launch a crowdfunding campaign to build a home security monitoring service that costs $1 a month. The new service will use voice-over-IP (VOIP), voice recognition and cloud services to eliminate overhead expenses that drive up costs for traditional home security companies. The company plans to offer the new service as a reward to early backers through a Kickstarter fundraising campaign starting in January 2019. To attract support prior to the start of the Kickstarter campaign, Xook is offering lifetime monitoring for $75 to a limited number of pre-launch backers who register on the companys website ().Almost 40% of the homes that have alarm systems installed do not have monitoring, primarily because of the costs. A lower cost solution would provide improved security options for more than 7 million homes that already have a security system. The problem is that current regulations protect the traditional security companies who still control more than 90% of the market. The National Fire Alarm Code Section 72 stipulates that central monitoring stations must be certified by authorized third-party approvals agencies, such as Factory Mutual to provide fire alarm monitoring. Additionally, central monitoring stations that monitor merchants and banks who have vaults must be certified to meet UL 872 standards. To comply with these regulations and standards, alarm monitoring companies must have at least two buildings with full time employees on staff at all times. To cover these costs, companies like ADT charge between $25 and $30 a month.Many homeowners desire the protection of alarm notifications but are unwilling to pay the current monthly fees, which they perceive as being too high. It really bothered me knowing I was paying for people and office buildings that I would rarely, if ever, use. Basically, I was just paying for insurance. I felt like this was a perfect application for automation, says Xook CTO Tim Archer. The new tech savvy generation seems to agree. According to a 2015 report by Citi, do-it-yourself (DIY) systems that are self-monitored are becoming the new norm for home security. Innovative new technologies from Silicon Valley backed tech companies are expected to capture 40% of the market over the next five years.Google, Amazon and Apple see home security as a natural entry point into the home automation market. DIY systems like Blink, Ring and Nest provide options that eliminate monthly monitoring fees by sending the notifications directly to the homeowner on a smartphone app. However, the products require the homeowner to purchase new equipment that can be expensive. The basic Ring DIY home security kit starts at $299 but homeowners will incur several hundred dollars more in expenses for additional sensors and options such as the Ring doorbell. If my home already has a security system that monitors all the doors and windows, then it is difficult to justify the costs of a new DIY wireless system, says Xook CEO Jon Ussery. What I really want is to connect my existing system to a lower cost monitoring service, but nothing like that exists on the market. With a service like Xook, I could have alarm monitoring for 25 years for the same price as a basic Ring system.Xooks approach is different than other new self-monitored systems. Homeowners that already have a home security system can reconfigure it to send the calls to Xooks cloud service, which in return sends instant notifications via voice, text and email. Like other DIY solutions, Xook is not required to comply with the UL 872 requirements for central monitoring stations because it is only used by homeowners. The service is not approved for merchants and banks. Xook is also limited to burglar alarm notifications because fire alarm monitoring requires NFPA 72 certification. We recognize Xook has limitations, but we are targeting the homeowner who is not willing to pay thousands of dollars for monitoring services, says Ussery.Xook will only develop the new service if it can reach its crowdfunding goal. Going through Kickstarter is our way of verifying the market. If we can find enough backers through Kickstarter, then we are confident we can make this a successful business, said Ussery. If the Kickstarter campaign is successful, Xook plans to start offering the service to the general market within 10 months.For more information, visitAbout Xook LLCXooks mission is to provide affordable home security solutions by helping homeowners connect their existing systems to the cloud to receive burglar alarm notifications for $1 a month or less.Contact: Jon Usseryjon@xook.ioXook is a technology startup that seeks to automate and streamline services and solutions to maximize value for the end user.Xook LLC2162 Saffron CtAtlanta, GA 30338 Global Blood Testing Market by Opportunity, Demand, Management and Forecast 2018-2022 http://qyreports.com/request-sample?report-id=35144 http://qyreports.com/ask-for-discount?report-id=35144 http://qyreports.com/enquiry-before-buying?report-id=35144 www.qyreports.com A blood test is a laboratory analysis performed on a blood sample that is usually extracted from a vein in the arm using a hypodermic needle, or via finger prick. Multiple tests for specific blood components. Blood tests are also used in drug tests to detect drug abuse. In some of the United States, a blood test is required before marriage.By region, the Global Blood Testing Market is divided into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and Latin America. Key companies are focusing on spreading their products and services across various regions. Additionally, procurements and mergers from some of the leading organizations are on the cards in the near future. The efforts which are being taken by most of the companies to improve their research and development activities to introduce innovations are precisely mentioned in this report.Get Sample Copy of this Report @Top Key Vendors in Market:Boston Scientific, Karl Storz, Cook Medical, PENTAX (HOYA), Argon Medical, ConMed, Fujifilm, Cordis?J&J?, Micro Tech, Wilson, Alton, Tiansong, Jiuhong, Jingrui, Stryker, Richard Wolf, Rudolf, Aesculap, SMEW, Xinhua, TongluWith the development of technologies and the introduction of new advanced tools, organizations are able to create growth opportunities in the market. Factor such as risks and technological progress are also highlighted in the report. Importance is given to changing consumer needs and customer preferences. The analysts also focus on changing trends in a political and economic environment that might affect this global market.As per the findings of the report, the changing rules and regulations of governments of many nations are predicted to hamper the growth of the global market is clearly pictured in the study for the readers to understand in a detailed manner. However, changing strategies and new product developments are predicted to contribute towards the growth of the market is profiled in this report.Ask for discount@Table of Content:Global Blood Testing Market Research Report 2018-2025Chapter 1: Global Blood Testing Market OverviewChapter 2: Blood Testing Market by Manufacturers, Type and ApplicationChapter 3: Manufacturing Plants Analysis of Global Blood Testing MarketChapter 4: Blood Testing Market Consumption (K Units) by RegionsChapter 5: Global Blood Testing Market Production, Price Trend by TypesChapter 6: Blood Testing Market Analysis by ApplicationsChapter 7: India Global Blood Testing Market (Volume, Value and Sales Price)Chapter 8: Southeast Asia Aviation Bullet Resistant Glass (Volume, Value and Sales Price)Chapter 9: Global Blood Testing Market Manufacturers AnalysisChapter 10: Aviation Bullet Resistant Glass Manufacturing Cost AnalysisChapter 11: Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream BuyersChapter 12: Global Blood Testing Market Analysis, Distributors/TradersFor more Information:About QYReports:We at, QYReports, a leading market research report published accommodate more than 4,000 celebrated clients worldwide putting them at advantage in todays competitive world with our understanding of research. Our list of customers includes prestigious Chinese companies, multinational companies, SMEs and private equity firms whom we have helped grow and sustain with our fact-based research. Our business study covers a market size of over 30 industries offering unfailing insights into the analysis to reimagine your business. We specialize in forecasts needed for investing in a new project, to revolutionize your business, to become more customer centric and improve the quality of output.Contact:QYReportsJones John(Sales Manager)+91-9764607607sales@qyreports.com Frac Sand 2018 Global Industry Key Players - U.S Silica , Fairmount santrol , Badger Mining Corporation , Unimin Corporation Market Analysis And Forecast To 2023 https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/3283303-world-frac-sand-market-research-report-2023-covering https://www.wiseguyreports.com/reports/3283303-world-frac-sand-market-research-report-2023-covering World Frac Sand MarketExecutive SummaryFrac Sand market research report provides the newest industry data and industry future trends, allowing you to identify the products and end users driving Revenue growth and profitability.The industry report lists the leading competitors and provides the insights strategic industry Analysis of the key factors influencing the market.The report includes the forecasts, Analysis and discussion of important industry trends, market size, market share estimates and profiles of the leading industry Players.Request a Sample Report @The Players mentioned in our reportU.S SilicaFairmount santrolBadger Mining CorporationUnimin CorporationChieftain SandEmerge Energy Services LPCarbo CeramicsHi-Crush Partners LPNorthern Frac ProppantsPreferred SandsSaint GobainFORESCurimbabaChongqing ChangjiangJinGangGlobal Frac Sand Market: Application Segment Analysisnatural gasnatural gas liquidsoil from shalesother tight rocksGlobal Frac Sand Market: Regional Segment AnalysisUSAEuropeJapanChinaIndiaSouth East AsiaTable of Content-Key Points CoveredChapter 1 About the Frac Sand Industry1.1 Industry Definition and Types1.2 Main Market Activities1.3 Similar Industries1.4 Industry at a GlanceChapter 2 World Market Competition Landscape2.1 Frac Sand Markets by Regions2.1.1 USAMarket Revenue (M USD) and Growth Rate 2013-2023Sales and Growth Rate 2013-2023Major Players Revenue (M USD) in 20172.1.2 EuropeMarket Revenue (M USD) and Growth Rate 2013-2023Sales and Growth Rate 2013-2023Major Players Revenue (M USD) in 20172.1.3 ChinaMarket Revenue (M USD) and Growth Rate 2013-2023Sales and Growth Rate 2013-2023Major Players Revenue (M USD) in 20172.1.4 IndiaMarket Revenue (M USD) and Growth Rate 2013-2023Sales and Growth Rate 2013-2023Major Players Revenue (M USD) in 20172.1.5 JapanMarket Revenue (M USD) and Growth Rate 2013-2023Sales and Growth Rate 2013-2023Major Players Revenue (M USD) in 20172.1.6 South East AsiaMarket Revenue (M USD) and Growth Rate 2013-2023Sales and Growth Rate 2013-2023Major Players Revenue (M USD) in 20172.2 World Frac Sand Market by Types2.3 World Frac Sand Market by Applicationsnatural gasnatural gas liquidsoil from shalesother tight rocks2.4 World Frac Sand Market Analysis2.4.1 World Frac Sand Market Revenue and Growth Rate 2013-20172.4.2 World Frac Sand Market Consumption and Growth rate 2013-20172.4.3 World Frac Sand Market Price Analysis 2013-2017Chapter 3 World Frac Sand Market share3.1 Major Production Market share by Players3.2 Major Revenue (M USD) Market share by Players3.3 Major Production Market share by Regions in 2017, Through 20233.4 Major Revenue (M USD) Market share By Regions in 2017, Through 2023Chapter 4 Supply Chain Analysis4.1 Industry Supply chain Analysis4.2 Raw material Market Analysis4.2.1 Raw material Prices Analysis 2013-20174.2.2 Raw material Supply Market Analysis4.2 Manufacturing Equipment Suppliers Analysis4.3 Production Process Analysis4.4 Production Cost Structure Benchmarks4.5 End users Market AnalysisContinued.Complete Report Details @Wise Guy Reports Is Part Of The Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And Offers Premium Progressive Statistical Surveying, Market Research Reports, Analysis & Forecast Data For Industries And Governments Around The Globe. Wise Guy Reports Features An Exhaustive List Of Market Research Reports From Hundreds Of Publishers Worldwide. We Boast A Database Spanning Virtually Every Market Category And An Even More Comprehensive Collection Of Market Research Reports Under These Categories And Sub-Categories.Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt LtdOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, HadapsarPune - 411028Maharashtra, India Cybersecurity in Tourism Market 2018 Focusing on Top Vendors like CyberArk Software, F-Secure, NetScout Systems, Palo Alto Networks, SecureWorks, Symantec, Aker Security Solutions, etc Orbis Research http://orbisresearch.com/contacts/request-sample/2221523 http://orbisresearch.com/contacts/discount/2221523 http://orbisresearch.com/contacts/enquiry-before-buying/2221523 New Report on Cybersecurity in Tourism Market added to Orbisresearch.com database. The report provides an extensive research and detailed analysis of the present market along with future outlook. The report also provide detail analysis of the market structure along with forecast, market size & share, various segments and growing trends of the cybersecurity in tourism.The global tourism industry is preparing to ride the digital wave - contextualizing and implementing new technologies such as cloud, mobility, big data, and analytics, and the Internet of Things (IoT) - to best align with future business objectives. Technology, however, is a double-edged sword: the more they go digital, the more they expose themselves to emerging cyber risks. As travel and tourism providers progress towards predictive and prescriptive models to support real-time decision-making, their rich data becomes a strategic asset. They need to plan now how to mitigate their vulnerabilities and enhance their security against cyber risks. There is a significant market opportunity, and vendors can in turn leverage their ecosystems to offer end-to-end security solutions, exploiting state-of-the-art technology such as AI and forensics.Get sample copy of this report@Scope:- The report focuses on the significance of cybersecurity for the tourism industry.- It highlights the importance of protecting the large and valuable quantities of customer data from breach and cyber-attacks.- The report identifies the winners in high-growth cyber technology cycles, including network security appliances, cloud security, and artificial intelligence (AI) over the next two years.Reasons to buy:- The report classifies the cybersecurity market into 14 critical technologies: unified threat management, AI, network security, security information and event management (SIEM), endpoint security, identity management, data security, application security, mobile security, email security, surveillance and behavioral analytics, cloud security, managed security services and post-breach consultancy services.- It discusses the big players in the cybersecurity industry and where do they sit in the value chain.- It highlights the main trends in the cybersecurity industry over the next 12 to 24 months.- The report provides an industry analysis and also discusses the impact of cybersecurity on tourism.- The report offers an analysis of the value chain and the technologies that will drive growth in the cybersecurity industry over the next two years.- The report gives a technology briefing to understand the cybersecurity technologies that help deliver the best practice solutions.Ask for a Flat 20% Discount offer till 3rd August 2018 @Key Players:AhnlabAirbusAkamaiBAE SystemsBarracuda NetworksCheck Point Software TechnologiesCheetah MobileCiscoCyberArk SoftwareF5 NetworksFireEyeFortinetF-SecureGemaltoGigamonIBMImpervaIntelJuniper NetworksKEYWLifeLockMicro FocusMicrosoftMobileIronNetScout SystemsPalo Alto NetworksProofPointQualysRapid7RaytheonSecureWorksSophosSplunkSymantecTrend MicroVerint SystemsAker Security SolutionsAlienVaultAviraBayshore NetworksCarbon BlackCloudFlareDarktraceDellDemonsawE8 SecurityHackerOneHerjavec GroupHillstone NetworksHuaweiIllusive NetworksKaspersky LabPalantirQihoo 360TaniumUntangleVeracodeWatchGuardWhiteHat SecurityZeroFOXMake an Inquiry before buying@About Us:Orbis Research (orbisresearch.com) is a single point aid for all your market research requirements. We have vast database of reports from the leading publishers and authors across the globe. We specialize in delivering customized reports as per the requirements of our clients. We have complete information about our publishers and hence are sure about the accuracy of the industries and verticals of their specialization. This helps our clients to map their needs and we produce the perfect required market research study for our clients.Contact Info:Hector CostelloSenior Manager Client Engagements4144N Central Expressway,Suite 600, Dallas,Texas - 75204, U.S.A.Phone No.: +1 (214) 884-6817; +912064101019Email id: sales@orbisresearch.com Logistics Market 2018 To Grow at 7% CAGR With Global Leading Players - C.H. Robinson, Ceva, FedEx, XPO, Expeditors, DHL, DSV, DTDC and Others Logistics https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample_request/5076 https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/logistics-market-5076 https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/enquiry/5076 Logistics Market Information Report: By Transportation Type (Airways, Waterways, Railways, Roadways), Logistic Type (First Party, Second Party, Third Party) End User (Industrial and Manufacturing, Retail, Healthcare, Oil & Gas) - Forecast 2023Global Logistics Market OverviewThe effective transportation and storage of goods have gained a great deal of emphasis in recent years contributing to the markets expansion. Focused market reports associated with the healthcare industry among others lately have been made available by Market Research Future which issues reports on this industry. The market is foreseen to expand at a CAGR of 7.2 percent approximately in the forecast period.Get Sample Report with Detailed TOC @As customer requirements have increased rapidly due to rising demand for local as well as international goods, the market is also undergoing rapid expansion. The economic growth rates globally and the rise in the global trade has increased the market size considerably. Government trade policies are also contributing to the growth of the market substantially. Development in the port-services, shipping, transportation, warehousing areas of the logistic chain are also important motivators for the development of the market.Industry Updates:June 2018 Siam Cement Group which is a well-known Thai industrial conglomerate has formed a joint venture with Hon Hai Precision Industry which is a Taiwanese electronics manufacturer and Apple supplier to jointly set up an integrated supply and logistics chain in south China. The venture is expected to tap into rising e-commerce in the region by positioning Siam Cement's expertise in the area of logistics and engaging the vast business network of Hon Hai, more commonly known as Foxconn Technology Group. Siam Cement has stated that the JV is valued at approximately 333 million baht ($10 million), of which the company will own 49 percent. It will emphasize on trade between southern China and nations in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations particularly in the areas of premium foods, high-tech electronics, and e-commerce.Global Competitive AnalysisThe important trends and players have established a positive tone for development. The inducement for the markets growth has improved the competitive backdrop of the market. By ensuring supply and demand are in balance, the competitors can capture new opportunities for growth. The noticeable trends and players have led to a positive tone for development. The forecast for growth and innovation has improved at a prompt pace changing the market. The ideal opportunities are being engaged and converted to modifying the growth pace of the market substantially. The contenders in the market have been stimulated to ideate strategic road-maps that exploit on the constructive market cues.The important competitors in the logistics market globally comprise of Ceva Holdings LLC (U.K.), C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (U.S.), XPO Logistics Inc. (U.S.), FedEx Corp. (U.S.), DSV Global Transports and Logistics (Denmark), Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. (U.S.), DHL International GmbH (Germany), A.P. Moller Maersk (Denmark), Schenker AG (Germany), DTDC Express Limited (India), GEODIS (France), and other.Industry SegmentsThe logistics market has been segmented on the basis of transportation end-user industry, type, and logistic type. The transportation type segment of the market consists of waterways, airways, railways, and roadways. The logistic type based segmentation of the market comprises of third party, the second party, and first party. The second-party logistics segment is responsible for the major market share. By end user, the market has been segmented into retail, healthcare, industrial and manufacturing, oil & gas, and others.Detailed Regional AnalysisThe regional analysis of the logistics market includes regions such as North America, Asia Pacific, Europe, and Rest of the World. The Asia Pacific region was responsible for the largest share of the global market in 2016, followed by the North American and European region. The Asia Pacific region is projected to develop at a gradually increasing CAGR during the forecast period. Amplified adoption rates of outsourced logistics services in the region is motivating the development of the market. Growing exports and imports along with an enormous demand for logistics services owing to the economic development and urbanization that is motivating the manufacturers to trade across the globe. Japan, China, Australia, India, and Indonesia are the chief markets in the Asia Pacific region. China is the principal logistics market in the region owing to a huge population base in the country and the prevalence of a big manufacturing hub.The North American region is the second major region in the market. Growing trade activities amid the Americas and European region are motivating the development of the market in this region. Rising demand for foreign goods in Thailand, Indonesia, and India have reinforced the trade relations with the U.S. The European region is another chief region in the market. The U.K., Germany, and France are the key logistics markets.Browse Complete Report@Table Of Contents1 Executive Summary2 Scope Of The Report2.1 Market Definition2.2 Scope Of The Study2.2.1 Definition2.2.2 Research Objective2.2.3 Assumptions2.2.4 Limitations2.3 Research Process2.3.1 Primary Research2.3.2 Secondary Research2.4 Market Size Estimation2.5 Forecast Model3 Market Landscape3.1 Porters Five Forces Analysis3.1.1 Threat Of New Entrants3.1.2 Bargaining Power Of Buyers3.1.3 Bargaining Power Of Suppliers3.1.4 Threat Of Substitutes3.1.5 Segment Rivalry3.2 Value Chain/Supply Chain AnalysisContinues...Ask for your specific company profile and country level customization on reports.Send an Enquiry For More Information @About Market Research Future:At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.MRFR team have supreme objective to provide the optimum quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by products, services, technologies, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help to answer all their most important questions.Market Research FutureMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com The Global Potash Market Was Valued At $23.5 Billion In 2017 According To TBRCs Latest Report https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/report/potash-global-market-report-2018 https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/sample.aspx?id=305&type=smp Potash mining includes mining of potash through conventional and solution mining methods. Potash is any of various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form. The name derives from pot ash, which refers to plant ashes soaked in water in a pot, the primary means of manufacturing the product before the industrial era.Order the report atThe market was valued at $23.5 billion in 2017, and is expected to be driven by increase in need of higher production capacity. Asia Pacific was the largest geographic region in the market, accounting for about two-fifth of the global market share. This is a result of huge growth in the consumption of fertilizers by agricultural producers as they were made aware of the benefits of using these fertilizers.The potash market in the report is spilt into two segments: agriculture, industrial.Download a sample of the report atThe USA was the largest country in the market, accounting for almost one-fifth of the global potash market.The top five competitors in the market are The Mosaic Company, Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, K+S AG, Israel Chemicals, and Uralkali. The Mosaic Company is the largest player in the market. The Mosaic Company is the world's leading producer of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients as well as a single source global supplier for phosphates, potash, nitrogen fertilizers and feed ingredients for the agriculture industry.About The Business Research Company.The Business Research Company is a Business Intelligence Company which excels in company, market and consumer research. It has offices in the UK, the US and India and a network of trained researchers in 15 countries globally.Contact Information.Europe: +44 207 1930 708Asia: +91 8897263534Americas: +1 315 623 0293Email: info@tbrc.info47 Anchorage Point,42 Cuba Street, Canary Wharf,London, England,E14 8NE. Agrochemicals Market is Segmented Based on Product Type, Technology, Crop Type, Formulation, Application, Region and Competitor Analysis 2013 to 2017 and Forecast 2018 to 2024 https://www.qurateresearch.com/report/sample/FnB/QBI-PBI-FnB-3215 https://www.qurateresearch.com/report/enquiry/FnB/QBI-PBI-FnB-3215/ https://www.qurateresearch.com/report/customize/FnB/QBI-PBI-FnB-3215 https://www.qurateresearch.com/ Global Agrochemicals Market: By Product Type (Fertilizers, Pesticides, Others), By Technology (Synthetic, Biological), By Crop Type (Cereals and Grains, Oilseeds and Pulses, Fruits and Vegetables, Forage Crops and Pastures, Others), By Formulation (Powder, Granular, Liquid), By Application (Seed Treatment, Soil Treatment, Post-Harvest, Foliar Spray), and Geography Agrochemicals Market Estimation, Dynamics, Regional Share, Trends, Competitor Analysis 2013-2017 and Forecast 2018-2024Get Free Sample Report@Market Dynamics: Agrochemicals MarketAgrochemicals enhances the crop productivity and protect the crops from insects, pests, fungi, weeds, and others. Agrochemicals can be prepared by either chemical or biological methods. Increase in the demand for food production due to rise in population, rise in prevalence of various crop diseases, growing R&D for the innovation of newer agrochemicals, and government initiations to enhance the crop yield are expected to fuel the agrochemicals market over the forecast period. Moreover, technological advancements in the synthesis of agrochemicals, change in farming practices, and rise in R&D investments are also anticipated to drive the agrochemicals market. However, stringent regulatory guidelines for product approval, adverse effects associated with agrochemicals, and high cost of products may restrain the growth of agrochemicals marketMarket Scope: Agrochemicals MarketAgrochemicals market is segmented based on product type, technology, crop type, formulation, application, and regionBased on the product type, the market is segmented into the following:FertilizersPesticidesHerbicidesInsecticidesFungicidesOthersBased on technology, the market is segmented into the following:SyntheticBiologicalBased on the crop type, the market is segmented into the following:Cereals and GrainsOilseeds and PulsesFruits and VegetablesForage Crops and PasturesOthersBased on the formulation, the market is segmented into the following:PowderGranularLiquidBased on the application, the market is segmented into the following:Seed TreatmentSoil TreatmentPost-HarvestFoliar SprayBased on the region, the market is segmented into the following:North AmericaEuropeAsia PacificLatin AmericaMiddle East and AfricaEnquiry about Report@Regional Analysis: Agrochemicals MarketGeographically, global agrochemicals market segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East and Africa regions. North America agrochemicals market driven by rise in R&D for the innovation of newer products, acquisitions and collaborations among the companies, and high awareness about agrochemicals in the region. Europe agrochemicals market is exhibiting significant growth, which is attributed to shifit in focus on production of quality food products, adoption of modern agrochemicals, and presence of huge number of companies for agrochemicals manufacturing in the region. Asia Pacific agrochemicals market has a lucrative share owing to increase in the demand for agriculture production and decrease in arable land, rise in trading of agriculture products from China, and increase in prevalence of crop diseases due to environmental fluctuations are boost the market in the region. Latin America agrochemicals market is poised at significant rate due to increase in the agriculture farming in Brazil and Mexico, entry of companies into Latin America region, and rise in awareness about agrochemicals among farmers are propel the market. Middle East and Africa agrochemicals market growth is driven by adoption of newer products and economic growth.Competition Assessment: Agrochemicals MarketKey players profiles in this market include:Monsanto Company (U.S.)BASF SE (Germany)The Dow Chemical Company (U.S.)Bayer CropScience AG (Germany)E.I. DuPont De Nemours & Company (U.S.)Syngenta AG (Switzerland)Koppert B.V. (Netherlands)Marrone Bio Innovations Inc. (U.S.)Sumitomo Corporation (Japan)Nufarm Ltd. (Australia)Notable Market Developments: Agrochemicals MarketIn June 2018, Dow AgroSciences launched Inatreq, a fungicide used in cereals for long-term control of key diseasesKey Features of the Report:The report provides granular level information about the market size, regional market share, historic market (2013-2017) and forecast (2018-2024)The report covers in-detail insights about the competitors overview, company share analysis, key market developments, and their key strategiesThe report outlines drivers, restraints, unmet needs, and trends that are currently affecting the marketThe report tracks recent innovations, key developments and startups details that are actively working in the marketThe report provides plethora of information about market entry strategies, regulatory framework and reimbursement scenarioThe report analyses the impact of socio-political environment through PESTLE Analysis and competition through Porters Five Force Analysis in addition to recent technology advancements and innovations in the marketEnquiry for Customization@Qurate Business Intelligence delivers unique market research solutions to its customers and helps them to get equipped with refined information and market insights derived from reports. We are committed to providing the best business services and easy processes to get the same. Qurate Business Intelligence considers themselves as strategic partners of their customers and always shows the keen level of interest to deliver quality.Nehal ChinoyRunwal Platinum,Ramnagar Colony, Bavdhan,Pune, Maharashtra, India-411021IN +919881074592info@qurateresearch.com Mosquito Repellent and Mosquito Killer Lamp Market Analysis and Growth Forecast to 2025 https://www.qyresearch.com/sample-form/form/168754/global-mosquito-repellent-mosquito-killer-lamp-market http://www.qyresearch.com In this report, the global Mosquito Repellent & Mosquito Killer Lamp market is valued at USD XX million in 2017 and is expected to reach USD XX million by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of XX% between 2017 and 2025.Geographically, this report is segmented into several key Regions, with production, consumption, revenue (million USD), market share and growth rate of Mosquito Repellent & Mosquito Killer Lamp in these regions, from 2013 to 2025 (forecast), coveringNorth AmericaEuropeChinaJapanSoutheast AsiaIndiaRequest Sample Copy of Report @Global Mosquito Repellent & Mosquito Killer Lamp market competition by top manufacturers, with production, price, revenue (value) and market share for each manufacturer; the top players includingSC JohnsonSpectrum BrandsReckitt Benckiser3MZhongshan LANJUGodrej HouseholdAvonTender CorporationDainihon JochugikuNice Group Co., Ltd.On the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoCoilsVaporizerMatsAerosolsCreamsMosquito Killer LampOn the basis of the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate for each application, includingSpecial PopulationGeneral PopulationIf you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.About Us:QYResearch always pursuits high product quality with the belief that quality is the soul of business. Through years of effort and supports from huge number of customer supports, QYResearch consulting group has accumulated creative design methods on many high-quality markets investigation and research team with rich experience. Today, QYResearch has become the brand of quality assurance in consulting industry.Contact US:QY Research, INC.17890 Castleton,Suite 218,City of industry, CA 91748USA: +1 626 295 2442Email: enquiry@qyrsearch.comWeb: Global Autopsy Equipment Market Top Players: Autopsy Equipment, Kugel, Mopec, Mortech, Thermo Fisher Scientific, LEEC, AFOS, Angelantoni Life Science, Barber, Ferno-Washington, CEABIS, Fiocchetti, Flexmort, Funeralia, Hygeco https://www.factmr.com/connectus/sample?flag=T&rep_id=1108 https://www.factmr.com/report/1108/autopsy-equipment-market An autopsy is also referred to as post-mortem, obduction or necroscopy. An autopsy is the type of procedure involved in the examination of dead bodies performed by medical doctors called pathologists, who have special training in examining tissues and body fluids. An autopsy is performed mainly to determine the cause of death, to characterize the extent of disease, for legal issues, for criminal investigation, to check the effectiveness of the treatment and for teaching and research purposes. Forensic autopsies are performed to determine if the death occurred was a suicide, accident, homicide or a natural event.Clinical autopsies are performed by the doctors to check the effectiveness of the given drug and to study its side effects. To perform a post-mortem procedure, different autopsy equipment are required, such as trolleys, autopsy platforms, dissection tables and other different accessories, such as knives, scalpel, etc. Nowadays, with advancements in technology, different automated autopsy equipment are used which decrease procedural timings as well as increase the efficiency of the process by dissecting tissues accurately.Request ToC of Report @Autopsy equipment Market: Drivers & RestraintsOne of the drivers for this market is the rise in the academic and clinical research on cadavers. Forensic labs and academic institutions are using different autopsy equipment, which is increasing the overall market growth. Growing demand for automation in autopsy procedures is the leading factor expected to drive the autopsy equipment market. Different types of automated autopsy equipment, such as autopsy platforms, dissection tables, trolleys and accessories have eased autopsy procedures. Increasing efficiency of advanced equipment has significantly reduced the timeline required for autopsy procedures. This has resulted in significant growth in terms of adoption from the end user. Another recent significant development in the autopsy equipment market is the preservation of the donated body by medical institutions for research. In the past few years, there has been a rise in the number of body donors, which is expected to increase the demand for autopsy equipment and accessories during the forecast period. In addition, autopsies are expensive and require consent and other ethical concerns are also involved, which might also limit the overall growth of the autopsy equipment market.Autopsy equipment Market: SegmentationThe global market of autopsy equipment is segmented on the basis of product type, application type, end user and geography.Based on product type, autopsy equipment market is segmented into: Dissection Tables Rectangular autopsy tables L-shaped autopsy tables Trolleys Autopsy ToolkitBased on application type, autopsy equipment market is segmented into: Manual AutomatedBased on end user, autopsy equipment market is segmented into: Hospitals/Medical Institutes Private Morgues Forensic labsAutopsy equipment Market: Regional outlookThe global autopsy equipment market is segmented into seven regions: North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ), Japan and Middle East & Africa (MEA). North America is the dominant market for autopsy equipment due to technological advancements and better healthcare facilities in hospitals and forensic labs. North America is followed by Europe due to growth in academic and forensic research in the region. On the other hand, Asia Pacific and Japan are expected to grow in the autopsy equipment market during the forecast period. The significant increase in healthcare facilities, donation of the whole body for research and transplantation and increase in the number of medical institutions and private morgues are the factors which will help in the growth of autopsy equipment market in the region.Autopsy equipment Market: OverviewThe academic and clinical research on cadavers has increased in recent years, which in turn, has led to the growth of the autopsy equipment market. Technological innovations will have a significant effect on market growth. The demand for automated autopsy equipment, such as autopsy platforms and dissection tables, is one of the leading factors responsible for the growth of this market. Replacement of the traditional equipment with these automated equipment for better healthcare facilities will also increase the overall growth of this market.To Know More About Report Click @Autopsy equipment Market: Key playersSome of the key companies operating in the autopsy equipment market are Kugel Medical, Mopec, Mortech Manufacturing, Thermo Fisher Scientific, LEEC, AFOS, Angelantoni Life Science, Barber Medical, Ferno-Washington, EIHF ISOFROID, CEABIS, Fiocchetti, Flexmort, Funeralia, and Hygeco.The report covers exhaustive analysis on: Market Segments Market Dynamics Market Size Analysis Current Trends/Issues/Challenges Competition & Companies involved Value Chain AnalysisThe regional analysis includes: North America (U.S., Canada) Latin America (Mexico. Brazil) Western Europe (Germany, Italy, France, U.K, Spain, Nordic countries, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg) Eastern Europe (Poland, Russia) Asia-Pacific Excluding China and Japan (India, ASEAN, Australia & New Zealand) China Japan The Middle East and Africa (GCC, S. Africa, N. Africa)The report is a compilation of first-hand information, qualitative and quantitative assessment by industry analysts, inputs from industry experts and industry participants across the value chain. The report provides in-depth analysis of parent market trends, macroeconomic indicators and governing factors along with market attractiveness as per segments. The report also maps the qualitative impact of various market factors on market segments and geographies.Report Highlights: Detailed overview of parent market Changing market dynamics in the industry In-depth market segmentation Historical, current and projected market size in terms of volume and value Recent industry trends and developments Competitive landscape Strategies of key players and products offered Potential and niche segments, geographical regions exhibiting promising growth A neutral perspective on market performanceAbout Fact.MRFact.MR is a fast-growing market research firm that offers the most comprehensive suite of syndicated and customized Healthcare Market Research Reports. We believe transformative intelligence can educate and inspire businesses to make smarter decisions. We know the limitations of the one-size-fits-all approach; that's why we publish multi-industry global, regional, and country-specific research reports.Contact UsFact.MR11140 Rockville PikeSuite 400Rockville, MD 20852United StatesEmail: sales@factmr.com Haptics Technology: Market 2018 Segmented by Manufacturers (AAC Technologies, ALPS ELECTRIC, Atmel, Immersion, Analog Devices, Cypress Semiconductor, Daesung, Dongwoon Anatech) and Forecasts to 2025 Qy Research Groups https://www.qyresearchgroups.com/request-sample/1000188 https://www.qyresearchgroups.com/send-an-enquiry/1000188 https://www.qyresearchgroups.com/check-discount/1000188 Worldwide Haptics Technology Market Analysis to 2025 is a specialized and in-depth study of the Haptics Technology industry with a focus on the global market trend. The report aims to provide an overview of global Haptics Technology market with detailed market segmentation by product/application and geography. The global Haptics Technology market is expected to witness high growth during the forecast period. The report provides key statistics on the market status of the Haptics Technology players and offers key trends and opportunities in the market.Haptics Technology Market Players: AAC Technologies ALPS ELECTRIC Atmel Immersion Analog Devices Cypress Semiconductor Daesung Dongwoon Anatech Fairchild IMAGIS Microchip Technology Methode Electronics SMK Texas InstrumentsGet Sample Copy of This Report Now @Market segment by Type, the product can be split into Touch Screen Wearable OtherMarket segment by Application, split into Home Appliance Car Medical OtherMajor regions are as follows: United States Europe China Japan Southeast Asia IndiaThe report provides a detailed overview of the industry including both qualitative and quantitative information. It provides overview and forecast of the global Haptics Technology market based on product and application. It also provides market size and forecast till 2025 for overall Haptics Technology market with respect to five major regions, namely; North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA) and South America (SAM), which is later sub-segmented by respective countries and segments. The report evaluates market dynamics effecting the market during the forecast period i.e., drivers, restraints, opportunities, and future trend and provides exhaustive PEST analysis for all five regions.Inquire before Buying @Also, key Haptics Technology market players influencing the market are profiled in the study along with their SWOT analysis and market strategies. The report also focuses on leading industry players with information such as company profiles, products and services offered, financial information of last 3 years, key development in past five years.Reason to Buy- Highlights key business priorities in order to assist companies to realign their business strategies.- The key findings and recommendations highlight crucial progressive industry trends in the Haptics Technology market, thereby allowing players to develop effective long term strategies.- Develop/modify business expansion plans by using substantial growth offering developed and emerging markets.- Scrutinize in-depth global market trends and outlook coupled with the factors driving the market, as well as those hindering it.- Enhance the decision-making process by understanding the strategies that underpin commercial interest with respect to products, segmentation and industry verticals.Inquire for Discount @Contact Us:Call: +1-888-236-2744Email: sales@qyresearchgroups.comAbout Us:QY Research Groups is a company that simplifies how analysts and decision makers get industry data for their business. Our unique colossal technology has been developed to offer refined search capabilities designed to exploit the long tail of free market research whilst eliminating irrelevant results. QY Research Groups is the collection of market intelligence products and services on the Web. We offer reports and update our collection daily to provide you with instant online access to the world's most complete and current database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, and trends.Room B1510, Shiji Kemao Building,No.66 Zhongguancun East Road,Haidian District, Beijing,100190, China. DDoS Protection and Mitigation: Market 2018 Global Analysis By Key Players Imperva, F5 Networks, Arbor, Nexusguard, Verisign, Neustar, Nsfocus, Akamai, DOSarrest Qy Research Groups https://www.qyresearchgroups.com/request-sample/1000189 https://www.qyresearchgroups.com/send-an-enquiry/1000189 https://www.qyresearchgroups.com/check-discount/1000189 Worldwide DDoS Protection and Mitigation Market Analysis to 2025 is a specialized and in-depth study of the DDoS Protection and Mitigation industry with a focus on the global market trend. The report aims to provide an overview of global DDoS Protection and Mitigation market with detailed market segmentation by product/application and geography. The global DDoS Protection and Mitigation market is expected to witness high growth during the forecast period. The report provides key statistics on the market status of the DDoS Protection and Mitigation players and offers key trends and opportunities in the market.DDoS Protection and Mitigation Market Players: Imperva F5 Networks Arbor Nexusguard Verisign Neustar Nsfocus Akamai DOSarrest Radware CloudFlare Corero Network SecurityGet Sample Copy of This Report Now @Market segment by Type, the product can be split into ICMP Floods SYN FloodMarket segment by Application, split into Mobile Date Center Government and Carrier TransportMajor regions are as follows: United States Europe China Japan Southeast Asia IndiaThe report provides a detailed overview of the industry including both qualitative and quantitative information. It provides overview and forecast of the global DDoS Protection and Mitigation market based on product and application. It also provides market size and forecast till 2025 for overall DDoS Protection and Mitigation market with respect to five major regions, namely; North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA) and South America (SAM), which is later sub-segmented by respective countries and segments. The report evaluates market dynamics effecting the market during the forecast period i.e., drivers, restraints, opportunities, and future trend and provides exhaustive PEST analysis for all five regions.Inquire before Buying @Also, key DDoS Protection and Mitigation market players influencing the market are profiled in the study along with their SWOT analysis and market strategies. The report also focuses on leading industry players with information such as company profiles, products and services offered, financial information of last 3 years, key development in past five years.Reason to Buy- Highlights key business priorities in order to assist companies to realign their business strategies.- The key findings and recommendations highlight crucial progressive industry trends in the DDoS Protection and Mitigation market, thereby allowing players to develop effective long term strategies.- Develop/modify business expansion plans by using substantial growth offering developed and emerging markets.- Scrutinize in-depth global market trends and outlook coupled with the factors driving the market, as well as those hindering it.- Enhance the decision-making process by understanding the strategies that underpin commercial interest with respect to products, segmentation and industry verticals.Inquire for Discount @Contact Us:Call: +1-888-236-2744Email: sales@qyresearchgroups.comAbout Us:QY Research Groups is a company that simplifies how analysts and decision makers get industry data for their business. Our unique colossal technology has been developed to offer refined search capabilities designed to exploit the long tail of free market research whilst eliminating irrelevant results. QY Research Groups is the collection of market intelligence products and services on the Web. We offer reports and update our collection daily to provide you with instant online access to the world's most complete and current database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, and trends.Room B1510, Shiji Kemao Building,No.66 Zhongguancun East Road,Haidian District, Beijing,100190, China. Baking Ingredients Market Analysis by Key Growth Factors and Opportunities Forecasts to 2022 https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/18271 https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/methodology/18271 http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com A new report by Persistence Market Research (PMR) has anticipated the global market for baking ingredients to exhibit a steady 5.5% CAGR over the forecast period 2017 to 2022. Revenues from the global baking ingredients market are expected to surpass US$ 16,000 Mn by 2022-end.Vendors Focusing on Product Differentiation and Service Offering to Increase their Presence in the MarketOne of the popular trends being observed in the market is the hike in demand for organic baking ingredients, which include natural flavors, oils, and sweeteners. This is mainly because of growing health-conscious population, and rise in awareness about benefits regarding organic baking ingredients. The global baking ingredients market is highly fragmented in nature, with a large number of large and small vendors operating across the globe.In a bid to save time of end-users in production, vendors have developed freshly finished products, bake-off products, pre-packed long-life products, and pre-packed ready-to-use part-baked bakery items such as tortillas and donuts. These vendors compete on factors including quality, innovation, service, price, reputation, and distribution of products, while focusing on product differentiation and service offerings, in order to increase their presence in the market.Global leaders in baking ingredients are making huge investments in various projects through research & development activities, with an aim of developing new innovative products, and increase their customer base.Request Sample Copy for More Insightful Information @Preference of Consumers toward Baked Food Products over Time-consuming Food to Propel Market GrowthSurging need for leisure, time constraints, and hectic lifestyles of people have led them towards adoption of packaged and convenience food. Improvement in economic conditions, and lifestyles of population across developed as well as developing regions have further augmented demand for convenience and packaged food products. This in turn has driven demand for baked products such as bread, pizza, cake, and pastries, consequently fuelling demand for baking ingredients. Increased spending on away-from-home food has led toward a rise in number of artisan bakeries, in-store bakeries, coffee shops, convenience stores, and retail outlets, which are providing various innovative baked food items. Consumers around the world, particularly in North America and Europe, are preferring wraps, pocket sandwiches, and rolls over time-consuming food, on the back of their fast-paced lifestyle. The aforementioned factors are expected to propel the market growth in the upcoming years.Key Takeaways from PMRs Report on Global Baking Ingredients MarketAccounting for the largest revenue share of the market, North America is expected to remain the most attractive region in the global baking ingredients market. Sales of baking ingredients in North America will register an impressive expansion through 2022. Europe will remain the second largest market for baking ingredients over the forecast period.Colors & flavors, and baking powder & mixes are expected to emerge as the fastest growing products in the market, followed by oils & fats. In addition, sales of baking powder & mixes, and colors & flavors are expected to exhibit similar CAGRs through 2022.Balking ingredients will continue to experience the largest application in bread, with sales poised to surpass US$ 5,000 Mn in revenues by 2022-end. Sales of baking ingredients for application in bread will account for nearly one-third revenue share of the market over the forecast period.Key players operating in the global baking ingredients market include Lallemand Inc., Chr. Hansen Holding A/S, Lonza Group AG, Ingredion Incorporated, Dohler GmbH, AngelYeast Co., Ltd., Dawn Food Products, Bakels, Ajinomoto Corporation Inc., Kerry Group Plc., BASF SE, E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., Cargill Inc., Associated British Foods Plc., and Archer Daniels Midland Company.Request Report for Table of Contents @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: Fungicides Market: Global Industry Analysis and Forecast 2016 - 2022 https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/3387 https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/3387 Fungicides is a type of pesticide used to kill the fungi or fungi spores. Fungicides finds major use in the agricultural sector for crop protection. It is used to prevent the damage to crops caused by the attack of fungicides. It gives higher yield with better quality of the crops. It is also used to kill the fungal infections in animals. The use of fungicides differ according to the type of crop. Different types of fungicides available are translaminar, systemic and contact fungicides. The active ingredients include chlorothalonil, mancozeb, prochloraz, propicanazole, prochloraz, propicanazole and many more. One of the most common active ingredient in the fungicides is sulfur. Some fungicides are dangerous to human health and so the major laws governing the use of fungicides in different countries is expected to hamper the growth of global fungicides market in the near future. However, the global fungicides market is expected to witness a moderate single digit growth in the forecast period.The most significant demand driver for the global fungicides market is the increasing demand for fungicides in the crop protection sector for ensuring higher crop yields. The growing population is also expected to be the major driving factor for the global fungicides market. The increasing concerns pertaining to the disease control is anticipated to drive the global fungicides market. The shrinking arable land and the growing demand for food is projected to increase the demand for fungicides, thereby driving the global fungicides market.The growing technological advancements in the seeds is expected to restrain the global fungicides market in the upcoming years. The use of genetically modified crops is projected to restrain the growth of global fungicides market in the near future.The development of new organic fungicides is expected to create new opportunities in terms of revenue for the major players in the global fungicides market.Request Sample Report @The global fungicides market can be segmented on the basis of product type and crop typeOn the basis of type, the global fungicides market is segmented as:BenzimidazolesTriazolesDithiocarbamatesChloronitrilesPhenylamidesStrobilurinsOthersOn the basis of crop types, the global fungicides market is segmented as:FruitsVegetablesCereals and grainsOilseedsOthersThe global fungicides market is segmented into five key regions on the basis of geography as North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Middle East & Africa. Asia pacific holds the largest market share in the global fungicides market, owing to the large agricultural business in this region. India and China is expected to be the maximum market share holding countries in the global fungicides market. Use of fungicides in the European countries is also expected to increase in the near future due to the stringent regulatory authorities in this region. The consumption of fungicides is also anticipated to escalate in the European countries in the upcoming years. The consumption of fungicides in Middle East and Africa is projected to demonstrate a stagnant growth in the forecast period.Some of the key players identified in the global fungicides market are, BASF SE, Bayer AG, Syngenta AG, The Dow Chemical Company, E.I. Dupont De Nemours & Company, Cheminova A/S, Nufarm Ltd, Chemtura CorporationRequest to View TOC @Persistence 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.Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: himanshu.t@persistencemarketresearch.com Vision-Box Expands Automated Immigration Control Platform at Lima Airport in Peru Platform now includes more Automated Border Control eGates for travelers and Advance Passenger Information SystemLisbon, 23rd July, 2018 Perus Minister of Interior, Mauro Medina, and the National Superintendent of Migrations, Eduardo Sevilla Echevarria, were on hand at Limas Jorge Chavez International Airport (LIM) last week for a ceremony to officially announce the expansion of the Vision-Box Automated Immigration Control Platform for arriving and departing passengers. Also present for the ceremony were Juan Jose Salmon, La Paz Airport CEO, and IATA representative Ramon Jimenez, both of whom closely collaborated with the project.Superintendencia Nacional de Migraciones (Migration Authority) of Peru, Lima Airport and Vision-Box have closely cooperated in redesigning the airports border management and passenger clearance model for the past few years. The first stage of the new border control solution was completed in 2016 with the deployment of an integrated monitoring and control platform. It included opening six innovative Automated Border Control eGates offering robust self-service biometric and ePassport checks.Since then, passengers have benefited from an enhanced experience, clearing the border in just a few seconds. Proving its performance in increasing passenger processing capacity, the solution has now expanded to accommodate the pronounced growth of passenger numbers.Since last week, passengers have an additional twelve eGates to self-process through the border. Peruvian authorities, in turn, have now achieved an even greater capacity to process passengers with an extended agile, efficient, and secure immigration infrastructure, in line with modern international biometric identification standards and passenger experience trends.Peruvian officials stated at the opening ceremony that this important milestone in border digital transformation will assist airport authorities to meet the needs of the 30 million annual passengers projected to pass through LIM by 2021, and with the expected influx of thousands of daily travelers for the 2019 Pan-American Games.Interior Minister Medina touted the systems effective security measures:This modern platform, with its active connection to national police, Interpol, and judiciary databases, forms a powerful information network free from manipulation risks.In fact, the system currently includes the Advance Passenger Information System (APIS), with Passenger Name Record (PNR) information to be added soon. This combination will form a potent security suite that puts LIM on the forefront of the worlds most advanced airports.This project is a significant achievement for Vision-Box and its commitment to build better seamless travel and identification frameworks serving governments, citizens and communities in Latin America that now includes Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Colombia, and Peru, among others.Vision-Box is dedicated to improving the quality, convenience, efficiency and security in travel and border control, by offering user-centric digital identity management solutions built upon trusted biometric tokens. Vision-Box is partner of the most prestigious Airports, Airlines and Governments, enhancing passenger flow, establishing identity ground-truth through high performance enrollment, identification and authentication, while enabling large data transactions and actionable business intelligence. Vision-Box develops state-of-the-art user-centric touchpoints, custom front-end applications and collaborative orchestration software, towards a premium passenger experience. Vision-Box operates over 2500 passenger experience solutions in over 80 international airports, facilitating the lives of more than 500 million of travelers every year.Rua Casal do Canas 22790-204 CarnaxidePortugal Chemicals Industry Analysis of Biochemical Reagents Market 2017 - 2022 Biochemical Reagents https://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=S&repid=1345464 https://www.researchmoz.us/biochemical-reagents-market-global-industry-analysis-size-share-growth-trends-and-forecast-2017-2022-report.html/toc Press Release - 23 July 2018Research and Development News --. .Latest Update "Biochemical Reagents Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2017 - 2022" with Industries Survey | Global Current Growth and Future.' '- Global Biochemical Reagents Market: OverviewThe global biochemical reagents market is expected to attract focus due its participation in the development of the future of laboratory medicine alongside other markets in the same category. Biochemical reagents could refer to organic compounds or biological materials related to medical research, clinical diagnostics, and life science research reagents. The basic components of organisms chemically synthesized or extracted from the organism could be engaged for biological products manufacturing and biological component identification. Biological reagents could develop into a sizable class of chemical reagents with the development of life sciences. As a result, there could be thousands of types of commodities available.. . Get Sample Report_' 'With a complete analysis of the global biochemical reagents market, readers could be confident of making a strong progress in their individual businesses. The authors of the report explain some of the most crucial factors deemed significant and that could impact the growth of the market.- Global Biochemical Reagents Market: DynamicsThe world biochemical reagents market is prophesied to be motivated for an enduring growth due to a wide range of products finding application in the differentiation between bacteria and identification of specific metabolisms. Classical biochemical tests could be often employed for the identification of microorganisms. Most of the time, detection could be based on how an enzyme reacts with a particular substrate. Besides this, there could be complex building techniques or methods put to practice for detecting specific metabolites through chemical reaction. The result could help to achieve a better cognition of the unidentified organism.- Global Biochemical Reagents Market: SegmentationThe international biochemical reagents market is envisaged to be classified according to product and end user. As per product segmentation, the market could be divided into five segments, viz. polymerase chain reaction (PCR) reagent kits, cell and tissue culture reagents, electrophoresis reagents, chromatography reagents, and others. Out of these segments, chromatography reagents are projected to hold a larger share in the market by the end of 2022. In 2017, this market was valued at a US$6.3 bn.. . More Clear Details get Full Table of Contents_' '- Global Biochemical Reagents Market: CompetitionThe analysts profile some of the chief players of the worldwide biochemical reagents market, viz. Beckton, Dickinson & Company, Merck & Co., Inc., Abbott Laboratories, Agilent Technologies, Inc., Waters Corporation, Siemens Healthineers, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., Bio-Rad Laboratories, Roche Holding AG, and Johnson & Johnson.Continue.....ResearchMoz is the worlds fastest growing collection of market research reports worldwide. Our database is composed of current market studies from over 100 featured publishers worldwide. Our market research databases integrate statistics with analysis from global, regional, country and company perspectives. ResearchMozs service portfolio also includes value-added services such as market research customization, competitive landscaping, and in-depth surveys, delivered by a team of experienced Research Coordinators.Researchmoz Global Pvt. Ltd.90 State Street,Albany, NY 12207,United States,Tel: 866-997-4948 (Us-Canada Toll Free),Tel: +1-518-621-2074 New Market Research Report of Global Solar Thermal Power System Market Professional Survey Report 2018 : Applications Analysis and Key Players- Abengoa Solar, SolarReserve, NextEra Energy, Flagsol(TSK) https://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=S&repid=1824686 https://www.researchmoz.us/global-solar-thermal-power-system-market-professional-survey-report-2018-report.html/toc https://www.researchmoz.us/global-solar-thermal-power-system-market-professional-survey-report-2018-report.html http://bit.ly/1TBmnVG https://marketreserch1.blogspot.com Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Global Solar Thermal Power System Market Professional Survey Report 2018" to its huge collection of research reports.This report studies the global Solar Thermal Power System market status and forecast, categorizes the global Solar Thermal Power System market size (value & volume) by manufacturers, type, application, and region. This report focuses on the top manufacturers in North America, Europe, Japan, China, India, Southeast Asia and other regions (Central & South America, and Middle East & Africa).The global Solar Thermal Power System market is valued at xx million US$ in 2017 and is expected to reach xx million US$ by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of xx.x % between 2018 and 2025.The major manufacturers covered in this reportAbengoa SolarSenerAccionaBrightSourceIberdrolaSamcaSolarReserveESOLARNextEra EnergyAlcoaFlagsol(TSK)SCHOTTRayspowerROYAL TECH CSPTo Get Sample Copy of Report visit @Geographically, this report studies the top producers and consumers, focuses on product capacity, production, value, consumption, market share and growth opportunity in these key regions, coveringNorth AmericaEuropeChinaJapanIndiaSoutheast AsiaOther regions (Central & South America, Middle East & Africa)The regional scope of the study is as follows:North AmericaUnited StatesCanadaMexicoAsia-PacificChinaIndiaJapanSouth KoreaAustraliaIndonesiaSingaporeRest of Asia-PacificEuropeGermanyFranceUKItalySpainRussiaRest of EuropeCentral & South AmericaBrazilArgentinaRest of South AmericaMiddle East & AfricaSaudi ArabiaTurkeyRest of Middle East & AfricaOn the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoParabolic Trough TypePower Tower TypeDish TypeFresnel TypeBy Application, the market can be split intoIndustrial UseCommercial UseView Complete TOC with tables & Figures @The study objectives of this report are:To analyze and study the global Solar Thermal Power System capacity, production, value, consumption, status (2013-2017) and forecast (2018-2025);Focuses on the key Solar Thermal Power System manufacturers, to study the capacity, production, value, market share and development plans in future.Focuses on the global key manufacturers, to define, describe and analyze the market competition landscape, SWOT analysis.To define, describe and forecast the market by type, application and region.To analyze the global and key regions market potential and advantage, opportunity and challenge, restraints and risks.To identify significant trends and factors driving or inhibiting the market growth.To analyze the opportunities in the market for stakeholders by identifying the high growth segments.To strategically analyze each submarket with respect to individual growth trend and their contribution to the market.To analyze competitive developments such as expansions, agreements, new product launches, and acquisitions in the market.To strategically profile the key players and comprehensively analyze their growth strategies.In this study, the years considered to estimate the market size of Solar Thermal Power System are as follows:History Year: 2013-2017Base Year: 2017Estimated Year: 2018Forecast Year 2018 to 2025Browse Report @For the data information by region, company, type and application, 2017 is considered as the base year. Whenever data information was unavailable for the base year, the prior year has been considered.Key StakeholdersSolar Thermal Power System ManufacturersSolar Thermal Power System Distributors/Traders/WholesalersSolar Thermal Power System Subcomponent ManufacturersIndustry AssociationDownstream VendorsAvailable CustomizationsWith the given market data, QYResearch offers customizations according to the company's specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report:Regional and country-level analysis of the Solar Thermal Power System market, by end-use.Detailed analysis and profiles of additional market players.Table of ContentsGlobal Solar Thermal Power System Market Professional Survey Report 20181 Industry Overview of Solar Thermal Power System1.1 Definition and Specifications of Solar Thermal Power System1.1.1 Definition of Solar Thermal Power System1.1.2 Specifications of Solar Thermal Power System1.2 Classification of Solar Thermal Power System1.2.1 Parabolic Trough Type1.2.2 Power Tower Type1.2.3 Dish Type1.2.4 Fresnel Type1.3 Applications of Solar Thermal Power System1.3.1 Industrial Use2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Solar Thermal Power System2.1 Raw Material and Suppliers2.2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Solar Thermal Power System2.3 Manufacturing Process Analysis of Solar Thermal Power System2.4 Industry Chain Structure of Solar Thermal Power System3 Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis of Solar Thermal Power System3.1 Capacity and Commercial Production Date of Global Solar Thermal Power System Major Manufacturers in 20173.2 Manufacturing Plants Distribution of Global Solar Thermal Power System Major Manufacturers in 20173.3 R&D Status and Technology Source of Global Solar Thermal Power System Major Manufacturers in 20173.4 Raw Materials Sources Analysis of Global Solar Thermal Power System Major Manufacturers in 20174 Global Solar Thermal Power System Overall Market Overview4.1 2013-2018E Overall Market Analysis4.2 Capacity Analysis4.2.1 2013-2018E Global Solar Thermal Power System Capacity and Growth Rate Analysis4.2.2 2017 Solar Thermal Power System Capacity Analysis (Company Segment)4.3 Sales Analysis4.3.1 2013-2018E Global Solar Thermal Power System Sales and Growth Rate Analysis4.3.2 2017 Solar Thermal Power System Sales Analysis (Company Segment)About ResearchMozResearchMoz is the one stop online destination to find and buy market research reports & Industry Analysis. We fulfill all your research needs spanning across industry verticals with our huge collection of market research reports. We provide our services to all sizes of organizations and across all industry verticals and markets. Our Research Coordinators have in-depth knowledge of reports as well as publishers and will assist you in making an informed decision by giving you unbiased and deep insights on which reports will satisfy your needs at the best price.For More Information Kindly Contact:ResearchMozMr. Nachiket Ghumare,Tel: +1-518-621-2074USA-Canada Toll Free: 866-997-4948Email: sales@researchmoz.usFollow us on LinkedIn @Follow me on Blogger at: Cryptocurrency Market Status And Development Trend By Types And Applications https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/request-pdf/927 https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/market-insight/cryptocurrency-market-927 https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/request-discount/927 Cryptocurrency are digital medium of exchange, alternative to conventional currencies such as US$ or Euros. These utilize digital information exchange based on the principles of cryptography, to provide secure means of transactions and in many cases provides anonymity. In 2009, Bitcoin became the first decentralized digital currency, which leads to the introduction of over thousand other digital currencies in the market.Download PDF To explore detail study @Growing demand in conjunction with the decreasing supply of digital currency is among the prominent factor influencing the growth of the pricing of the cryptocurrency marketDigital currencies are classified as an asset or currencies depending from country to country. For instance, Bitcoin has 21 million units, given that the global population is around 7 billion, and even if around 50 million of the population adopt Bitcoin, this would require a premium price tag to suffice the users. Moreover, the creation of these currencies is constant and unchangeable, generating limited supply and higher costs. In 2016, Bitcoin witnessed an increase in the costs, mainly due to the imminent decrease in the supply of new coins.Energy required to secure the blockchain, mining difficulty, and their utility fuels the growth of cryptocurrency marketEnergy is utilized intensively in securing the blockchains. Most popular form, proof of work (POW) block chain requires significant amount of energy. According to a press release by bitconnect.co, the Bitcoin (BTC) blockchain requires energy equal to a small country for securing payment. Moreover, increase in blockchain security leads to increase in the mining difficulty. Many other factors fueling the market growth include the growing inclination of the population towards digital assets, increasing media reporting, number of investors, and security of the payments among others. From March 2017 to September 2017, the cryptocurrency market witnessed an exponential increase of capital to around 599.8%. Moreover, growing awareness and adoption of digital exchange, is expected to drive the industry growth over the forecast period.Browse More About the Market Study @Substantially large untapped potential base in the payment industry is expected to present strong growth prospects over the forecast periodIncrease of the digital currency value in the past was partially influenced by the growing transaction volumes, specifically for the BTC. BTC generated revenue of around US$ 130 billion in 2016, however transaction volumes are expected to witness considerable surge in the near future. However, Paypal witnessed volumes of over US$ 735 billion, whereas, Western Union volumes were recorded approximately 461% higher than BTC, pegged at over US$ 730 billion. Thus, it can be concluded that the overall utilization of the digital assets as a form of payment is still at its nascent stage, and expected to hold significant growth in the near future.Drawbacks in the scalability and its legalization hindering the market growthAs of September 2017, the industry is estimated to be valued at around US$ 166 billion (according to CoinMarketCap), is still too far from actual user penetration. Number of users participating in the ecosystem is expected to witness considerable surge, led to the increase in the scalability issues. However, regulations and legalization are expected to be the prominent factors that will hinder the cryptocurrency market growth. For instance, in 2017, regulations in China banned the initial coin offerings (ICO) and halted the trading of virtual currencies, mainly due to the lack of centralized control. However, many other developed and emerging countries are planning initiatives to legalize these currencies. U.S., Singapore, Russia, and Switzerland are among the prominent countries that are expected to witness considerable penetration over the forecast period.Some of the most valued currencies in the cryptocurrency market include Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Ripple, Peercoin, Dogecoin, Dash, NEM, and Namecoin. Top ten cryptocurrency industries acquire shares of over 85% of the global capital. Some of the major players operating in the global cryptocurrency market include Bitfinex, BitFury Group Limited, Bitstamp Ltd., Coinbase, Coinsecure, Litecoin, OKEX Fintech Company Limited, Poloniex Inc., Ripple, Unocoin Technologies Private Limited, and ZEB IT Service Pvt. Ltd.Ask for Discount before Buying @:About Coherent Market Insights:Coherent Market Insights is a prominent market research and consulting firm offering action-ready syndicated research reports, custom market analysis, consulting services, and competitive analysis through various recommendations related to emerging market trends, technologies, and potential absolute dollar opportunity.Contact Us:Mr. ShahCoherent Market Insights1001 4th Ave,#3200Seattle, WA 98154Tel: +1-206-701-6702Email: sales@coherentmarketinsights.com New Report Focusing on Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market with Trends, Analysis By Regions, Type, Market Drivers, and Top Growing Companies New Report Focusing on Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market https://www.upmarketresearch.com/home/requested_sample/1872 https://www.upmarketresearch.com/home/enquiry_before_buying/1872 https://www.upmarketresearch.com/reports/Global-Fibrin-Sealant-Human-Industry-Market-Analysis-Forecast-2018-2023 https://www.upmarketresearch.com UpMarketResearch offers a latest published report on Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Analysis and Forecast 2018-2023 delivering key insights and providing a competitive advantage to clients through a detailed report. The report contains studies which highly exhibits on current market analysis scenario, upcoming as well as future opportunities, revenue growth, pricing and profitability.Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market research report delivers a close watch on leading competitors with strategic analysis, micro and macro market trend and scenarios, pricing analysis and a holistic overview of the market situations in the forecast period. It is a professional and a detailed report focusing on primary and secondary drivers, market share, leading segments and geographical analysis. Further, key players, major collaborations, merger & acquisitions along with trending innovation and business policies are reviewed in the report. The report contains basic, secondary and advanced information pertaining to the Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market status and trend, market size, share, growth, trends analysis, segment and forecasts from 2018 - 2023.The scope of the report extends from market scenarios to comparative pricing between major players, cost and profit of the specified market regions. The numerical data is backed up by statistical tools such as SWOT analysis, BCG matrix, SCOT analysis, PESTLE analysis and so on. The statistics are represented in graphical format for a clear understanding on facts and figures.The generated report is firmly based on primary research, interviews with top executives, news sources and information insiders. Secondary research techniques are implemented for better understanding and clarity for data analysis.Get FREE Exclusive PDF Sample Copy of This Report @The report for Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market industry analysis & forecast 2018-2023 is segmented into Product Segment, Application Segment & Major players.Region-wise Analysis Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market covers: North America Europe China Japan Rest APAC Latin AmericaHave a Query? For Enquiry, Click @The Report covers in-depth analysis as follows: Chapter 1 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Overview Chapter 2 Economic Impact on Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Industry Chapter 3 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Competition By Manufacturers Chapter 4 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Production, Revenue (Value)By Region (2013-2018) Chapter 5 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import By Regions (2013-2018) Chapter 6 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend By Type Chapter 7 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Analysis By Application Chapter 8 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Manufacturers Analysis Chapter 9 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Manufacturing Cost Analysis Chapter 10 Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream Buyers Chapter 11 Marketing Strategy Analysis, Distributors/Traders Chapter 12 Market Effect Factors Analysis Chapter 13 Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Forecast (2018-2023)Gain Full Access of Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market industry analysis & forecast 2018-2023 along with complete TOC @Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Analysis and Forecast 2018-2023 report helps the clients to take Business decisions and to understand strategies of major players in the industry. The report also calls for market driven results deriving feasibility studies for client needs. UpMarketResearch ensures qualified and verifiable aspects of market data operating in the real time scenario. The analytical studies are conducted ensuring client needs with a thorough understanding of market capacities in the real time scenario.Key Reasons to Purchase: To gain insightful analyses of the market and have a comprehensive understanding of the Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market Industry Analysis and Forecast 2018-2023 and its commercial landscape Learn about the market strategies that are Being adopted By your competitors and leading organizations To understand the future outlook and prospects for Fibrin Sealant (Human) Market industry analysis and forecast 2018-2023.Customization of the Report:UpMarketResearch provides free customization of reports as per your need. This report can be personalized to meet your requirements. Get in touch with our sales team, who will guarantee you to get a report that suits your necessities.About UpMarketResearch:UpMarketResearch () is a leading distributor of market research report with more than 800+ clients. As a market research company, we take pride in equipping our clients with insights and data that holds the power to truly make a difference to their business. Our mission is singular and well-defined we want to help our clients envisage their business environment so that they are able to make informed, strategic and therefore successful decisions for themselves.Contact Info:Name: Alex MathewsEmail: Alex@upmarketresearch.comOrganization: UpMarketResearchAddress: 500 East E Street, Ontario, CA 91764, United States Active Implantable Medical Devices Market: Industry Analysis and Detailed Profiles of top Industry Players-Abbott,3M, Cardinal Health, CONMED Corporation, Globus Medical, Smith & Nephew, Johnson & Johnson,. Active Implantable Medical Devices Market https://databridgemarketresearch.com/request-a-sample/?dbmr=global-active-implantable-medical-devices-market https://databridgemarketresearch.com/inquire-before-buying/?dbmr=global-active-implantable-medical-devices-market https://databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-active-implantable-medical-devices-market/ Active Implantable Medical Devices Market Report Provides Future Development Possibilities By Key Players , Key Drivers, Competitive Analysis, Scope, Key Challenges Analysis. The Reports Conjointly Elaborate The Expansion Rate Of The Industry Supported The Highest CAGR And Global Analysis. This Report Providing An In Depth And Top To Bottom Analysis By Market Size, Growth Forecast By Applications, Sales, Size, Types And Competitors For The Creating Segment And The Developing Section Among The Active Implantable Medical Devices Market. Market Expansion Worldwide With Top Players Future Business Scope And Investment Analysis ReportActive Implantable Medical Devices Market accounted to USD 18.9 billion in 2016 growing at a CAGR of 8.3% during the forecast period of 2017 to 2024. The upcoming market report contains data for historic years 2015, the base year of calculation is 2016 and the forecast period is 2017 to 2024.Get Free Sample Report@The global active implantable medical devices market is highly fragmented and is based on new product launches and clinical results of products. Hence the major players have used various strategies such as new product launches, clinical trials, market initiatives, high expense on research and development, agreements, joint ventures, partnerships, acquisitions, and others to increase their footprints in this market. The report includes market shares of active implantable medical devices market for global, Europe, North America, Asia Pacific and South America.Some of the major players operating in global active implantable medical devices market are: Boston Scientific Corporation, Cochlear Ltd., Zimmer Biomet, Smith & Nephew, Johnson & Johnson Services Inc., BIOTRONIK SE & Co. KG, LivaNova PLC, Abbott, Straumann AG, Medtronic, Integra Lifesciences Holdings Corporation, Stryker, William Demant Holding A/S, Nurotron Biotechnology Co. Ltd., Sonova Holding AG, C.R. Bard Inc., 3M, Dentsply Sirona, Allergan Inc., NuVasive, Inc., Cardinal Health, Inc., Microport Scientific Corporation, CONMED Corporation, Globus Medical, Inc., MED-EL.Inquiry Before Buying@Major market drivers and restraints: Growing Problems of Cardiovascular Diseases Prolonged Applications of Neurostimulators Regulatory Hurdles in U.S. Rising of Other Emerging Market Shortage of Skilled ProfessionalsActive Implantable Medical Devices Market Segmentation:By technology the global active implantable medical devices market is segmented in to: implantable cardioverter defibrillators, ventricular assist devices, implantable cardiac pacemakers, dental implants, implantable hearing devices, ventricular assist devices, neurostimulators.Implantable cardioverter defibrillators is further sub-segmented into: transvenous, subcutaneous.Transvenous defibrillators are again sub-segmented in to: biventricular implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs)/cardiacresynchronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-Ds), single-chamber implantable cardioverter defibrillators, dual-chamber implantable cardioverter defibrillators.Implantable hearing devices are further sub-segmented in to: active hearing implants, passive hearing implantsNeurostimulators are again sub-segmented in to: deep brain stimulators, spinal cord stimulators, sacral nerve stimulators, vagus nerve stimulators, gastric electrical stimulators.On the basis of end-users the global active implantable medical devices market is segmented in to: hospitals, ambulatory centers, cardiac centers, dental clinics, others.On the basis of geography, global active implantable medical devices market report covers data points for 28 countries across multiple geographies such as : North America & South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East & Africa.Some of the major countries covered in this report are U.S., Canada, Germany, France, U.K., Netherlands, Switzerland, Turkey, Russia, China, India, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and Brazil among others. In 2017, North America is expected to dominate the market.Access Full Report@Note: If you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.About Data Bridge Market Research:Data Bridge Market Research set forth itself as an unconventional and neoteric Market research and consulting firm with unparalleled level of resilience and integrated approaches. We are determined to unearth the best market opportunities and foster efficient information for your business to thrive in the market. Data Bridge endeavors to provide appropriate solutions to the complex business challenges and initiates an effortless decision-making process.Contact:Data Bridge Market ResearchTel: +1-888-387-281Email: sopan.gedam@databridgemarketresearch.com Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market 2018 Key Players: Colgate-Palmolive, The Procter & Gamble, GlaxoSmithKline, Unilever, Koninklijke Philips, Johnson & Johnson. Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/3298860-global-oral-care-oral-hygiene-market-research-report-2018 https://www.wiseguyreports.com/reports/3298860-global-oral-care-oral-hygiene-market-research-report-2018 Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market:WiseGuyReports.com adds Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market 2018 Global Analysis, Growth, Trends and Opportunities Research Report Forecasting to 2025 reports to its database.Executive SummaryThis report studies the global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene market status and forecast, categorizes the global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene market size (value & volume) by key players, type, application, and region. This report focuses on the top players in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, and Middle East & Africa.Oral hygiene is the practice of keeping one's mouth clean and free of disease and other problems by regular brushing and cleaning between the teeth. It is important that oral hygiene be carried out on a regular basis to enable prevention of dental disease.The global oral hygiene market is growing owing to the increasing awareness about the advantages of using oral hygiene products, such as mouthwash, dental floss, and mouth freshener, regularly. These products help to maintain the oral health as these reduce the chances of infections. Currently, the usage of dental care products is limited in developing and under-developed nations due to the lack of awareness. However, the positive indicator for the market participants is increasing education level among the individuals that has driven the awareness about oral hygiene products.The global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene market is valued at xx million US$ in 2017 and will reach xx million US$ by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of xx% during 2018-2025.The major manufacturers covered in this reportColgate-PalmoliveThe Procter & GambleGlaxoSmithKlineUnileverKoninklijke PhilipsJohnson & JohnsonGC CorporationFresh3MLion CorporationChurch & DwightSunstar SuisseGeographically, this report studies the key regions, focuses on product sales, value, market share and growth opportunity in these regions, coveringNorth AmericaEuropeChinaJapanSoutheast AsiaIndiaOn the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoby ProductToothpastesToothbrushes And AccessoriesMouthwashes/RinsesDental Accessories/AncillariesDenture ProductsDental Prosthesis Cleaning Solutionsby Distribution ChannelConsumer StoresRetail PharmaciesOnline DistributionDental DispensariesOn the basis of the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate for each application, includingConsumer useClinicHospitalRequest Sample Report @The study objectives of this report are:To analyze and study the global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene sales, value, status (2013-2017) and forecast (2018-2025).Focuses on the key Oral Care/Oral Hygiene manufacturers, to study the sales, value, market share and development plans in future.Focuses on the global key manufacturers, to define, describe and analyze the market competition landscape, SWOT analysis.To define, describe and forecast the market by type, application and region.To analyze the global and key regions market potential and advantage, opportunity and challenge, restraints and risks.To identify significant trends and factors driving or inhibiting the market growth.To analyze the opportunities in the market for stakeholders by identifying the high growth segments.To strategically analyze each submarket with respect to individual growth trend and their contribution to the marketTo analyze competitive developments such as expansions, agreements, new product launches, and acquisitions in the marketTo strategically profile the key players and comprehensively analyze their growth strategies.In this study, the years considered to estimate the market size of Oral Care/Oral Hygiene are as follows:History Year: 2013-2017Base Year: 2017Estimated Year: 2018Forecast Year 2018 to 2025For the data information by region, company, type and application, 2017 is considered as the base year. Whenever data information was unavailable for the base year, the prior year has been considered.Key StakeholdersOral Care/Oral Hygiene ManufacturersOral Care/Oral Hygiene Distributors/Traders/WholesalersOral Care/Oral Hygiene Subcomponent ManufacturersIndustry AssociationDownstream VendorsAvailable CustomizationsWith the given market data, We offers customizations according to the company's specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report:Regional and country-level analysis of the Oral Care/Oral Hygiene market, by end-use.Detailed analysis and profiles of additional market players.Table of ContentsGlobal Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market Research Report 20181 Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market Overview2 Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market Competition by Manufacturers3 Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Capacity, Production, Revenue (Value) by Region (2013-2018)4 Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import by Region (2013-2018)5 Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by Type6 Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market Analysis by Application7 Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis8 Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Manufacturing Cost Analysis9 Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream Buyers10 Marketing Strategy Analysis, Distributors/Traders11 Market Effect Factors Analysis12 Global Oral Care/Oral Hygiene Market Forecast (2018-2025)13 Research Findings and Conclusion14 AppendixContinuousFor further information on this report, visit Contact Us:Norah Trentsales@wiseguyreports.comPh: +1-646-845-9349 (US); +44 208 133 9349 (UK)About Us:Wise Guy Reports Is Part Of The Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And Offers Premium Progressive Statistical Surveying, Market Research Reports, Analysis & Forecast Data For Industries And Governments Around The Globe. Wise Guy Reports Features An Exhaustive List Of Market Research Reports From Hundreds Of Publishers Worldwide. We Boast A Database Spanning Virtually Every Market Category And An Even More Comprehensive Collection Of Market Research Reports Under These Categories And Sub-Categories.Addres:WISEGUY RESEARCH CONSULTANTS PVT LTDOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersPune - 411028Maharashtra, IndiaPhone :+91 841 198 5042 Optimising Threat Detection through Signature Management and enhanced Stealth to be discussed at Future Armoured Vehicles Survivability conference www.favsurvivability.com/openpr www.favsurvivability.com/openpr http://www.smi-online.co.uk SMi reports: Optimising threat detection through signature management and enhanced sensor capabilities to be discussed at this years Future Armoured Vehicles Survivability conferenceAvoiding detection with increased stealth and enhanced signature management is imperative on the battlefield. Reducing the signature of armour is of increasing importance, particularly when the technology of adversaries is becoming more advanced. With this in mind, the 4th annual Future Armoured Vehicles Survivability, taking place this year on 13 15 November in London, will host presentations from senior experts from the Netherlands and Sweden on this very topic.Featured presentations and their respective expert speakers:Captain Mark Hoving, Staff Officer, Royal Netherlands Army will present: "Optimising Threat Detection and Stealth with the Fennek Light Armoured Reconnaissance Vehicle" Supporting land operations with the through enhanced reconnaissance capabilities The reconnaissance role of Fennek within mechanised force structure Ensuring survivability with optronics: NBC protection, night vision, thermal, CCD day camera and laser rangefinder How recent upgrades of the Fennek and retrofitting to the latest JFST 1A3+ version will enhance reconnaissance capabilities, ultimately improving survivability in deploymentsDr. Hans Kariis, Senior Researcher, Department of Antennas and Signatures, Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI) will present: "How Signature Management and Enhanced Sensor Capabilities Support Crew and Vehicle Survivability" Optimising optronic sensor performance for threat detection purposes Functioning and delivering results in an environment of interference How radars and optics with advanced image and signal processing support timely threat detection and neutralisation Feedback and lessons from recent signature management technologies testing at the FOIThis years two-day conference will also include an exclusive Active Protection Systems focus day taking place on the 13th November with over 12 expert military & industry sessions and 3+ hours of networking.Exclusive event content such as the past attendees list, previous year presentations and the latest event brochure are available to download free on the event website. Register your place atby the 28th September and receive a 100 discount on your booking.Gold Sponsor: LeonardoSponsored by: Frazer Nash Consultancy, Lockheed Martin, Rheinmetall Active Protection GMBH, Soucy Defence and UTC Aerospace SystemsPast sponsors of the event include: Advance Blast and Ballistic System, Alcoa Defense, AmSafe Bridport, Arconic, Artec, BMT Cadence, CeramTec, FNSS, Horstman Defence Systems, Intermat, Isoclima, Leonardo, Metravib-Acoem, Microflown AVISA, Morgan Advanced Materials, Nexter Systems, Photonis, Pleora Technologies, Proengin, RADA, Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, Raytheon, Revision Military, Rheinmetall, Rheinmetall Waffe Munition, Saab, Skydex Technologies, Soucy Group, UTC Aerospace Systems and more.To join the sponsor line-up and have the chance to exhibit, please contact Sadia Malick at smalick@smi-online.co.ukFuture Armoured Vehicles SurvivabilityAPS Focus Day: 13th November 2018Conference: 14th 15th November 2018London, UK---ENDS---For delegate queries please contact James Hitchen at jhitchen@smi-online.co.ukFor media queries please contact Natasha Boumediene at nboumediene@smi-online.co.uk.About SMi Group:Established since 1993, the SMi Group is a global event-production company that specializes in Business-to-Business Conferences, Workshops, Masterclasses and online Communities. We create and deliver events in the Defence, Security, Energy, Utilities, Finance and Pharmaceutical industries. We pride ourselves on having access to the worlds most forward thinking opinion leaders and visionaries, allowing us to bring our communities together to Learn, Engage, Share and Network. More information can be found atGround & First Floor , 1 Westminster Bridge Road Global Yeast Market 2018 Top Vendors are Chr. Hansen Holding A/S, AngelYeast Co., Ltd, Kerry Group, Alltech, SUBONEYO Chemicals Pharmaceuticals P Limited, Biorigin Art in Natural Ingredients, Pakmaya, AB Mauri Global Yeast Market Industry Trends and Forecast to 2025 http://databridgemarketresearch.com/request-a-sample/?dbmr=global-yeast-market https://databridgemarketresearch.com/inquire-before-buying/?dbmr=global-yeast-market Global Yeast Market with figures as recent as 2018 and forecasts up to 2025 provides an overview of the industry including its definition, size, share, growth, applications and manufacturing technology. Report also explores the major industry players in detail as well as company profile, product specifications, capacity and production value. Pipeline leak detection is used to determine if and in some cases where a leak has occurred in systems which contain liquids and gases. Methods of detection include hydrostatic testing, infrared, and laser technology after pipeline erection and leak detection during service.Global Yeast Market is expected to register a healthy CAGR in the forecast period 2018 to 2025. The new market report contains data for historic years 2016, the base year of calculation is 2017 and the forecast period is 2018 to 2025.Request for a sample copy of this research report@Global Yeast Market By Product Type (Bakers Yeast, Brewers Yeast, Wine Yeast, Feed Yeast, Bioethanol Yeast, Others), By Application (Food, Feed, Others), By Form (Dry Yeast, Instant Yeast, Fresh Yeast, Others), By Type (Yeast Extracts, Yeast Autolysates, r Yeast Derivatives, Others), By Geography (North America, South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East And Africa) Industry Trends and Forecast to 2025Segmentation:Global Yeast Market, By Type (Bakers Yeast, Brewers Yeast, Wine Yeast, Bioethanol Yeast, Feed Yeast, Others), Form (Fresh Yeast, Active Dry Yeast, Instant Yeast), Strains (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Saccharomyces carlsbergiensis, Kluyveromyces lactis, Kluyveromyces fragilis, Cyberlindnera jadinii, Saccharomyces ludwigii, Torulaspora delbrueckii, Others), By Derivatives (Cell Walls/MOS, High Purified Betaglucanes, Yeast Culture, DDGS, Yeast Autolysates, Yeast Bound To Carriers, Yeast Hydrolysates, Others), Application (Food, Beverages, Bioethanol, Pharmaceuticals, Feed), Geography (Europe, North America, Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East & Africa) Industry Trends and Forecast to 2025Drivers:Prominent factors driving the growth of this market consist of growth in demand of bakery products and convenience foods, increasing alcoholic consumption, enrichment of animal feed products and rising demand for bioethanol as fuel.Growth in demand of bakery products and convenience foods:Bread and pastry shop items standout amongst the most mainstream food. With the increasing worldwide population and the gradual rise in income, demand for bakery products is rising gradually. With increasing awareness towards health low-sugar, gluten-free bread and bakery products are highly preferred. The companies involved in the bakery and convenience foods manufacture fresh and frozen bread as well as cakes, pies, and doughnuts. Most commonly used yeast in baking bread is Bakers yeast. It is used as a leaving agent, which converts the fermentable sugars present in the dough into ethanol. As the consumption and demand of bakery products are increasing, the market for yeast is simultaneously growing.Increasing health awareness among population and U.K. government sensitization towards the yeast containing food products has increased the demand of bakery products.To Avail 10% Discount On This Report Mail Us on :-sopan.gedam@databridgemarketresearch.comIncreasing alcoholic consumption:Alcoholic beverages include wines, beers, and spirits. In developed countries, the consumption of alcohol is high, because of high economies and increased modernization. As reported in an article published by National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in U.S., around 86.4% of people, aged 18 consumed alcohol at some point in their lifetime, 70.1% reported drank in the 2014 while 56.0% reported drinking in the last month in 2015.According to an article published by National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSUDH), approximately 1.3 million people (about 3.3%) aged between 1220 (3.6% of males and 3.0% of females) drink heavy alcohol.As per news published in the telegraph, the most beer drinkers in the Europe regions are in Czech Republic, Seychelles, Austria, Germany, Namibia, Poland, Ireland and Lithuania. While wine drinkers are in Andorra, Vatican City, Croatia, Portugal, France, Slovenia, Macedonia, Falkland Islands, Switzerland, and Italy.Enrichment of animal feed products:Yeast is single celled fungus, which is used in various applications such as alcoholic beverages, including beer and spirits, baking process. Yeasts strains are also used as feed additive for the benefit of animal health. It helps in production of vitamins which stimulate ruminal micro-organisms. Additive feed consists of yeast for various applications like stabilizes pH, improve fibre digestion, lowers the lactacte concentrations, lower the methane emission, increasing the cellulolytic bacteria, decreased ammonia concentrations.The stable pH helps in maintaining micro-flora in the rumen of the livestocks. Some of the yeast strains used in animal feed stocks is Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Kluyveromyces marxianus, Candida utilis and Torulopsis. The feed produced from yeast reduces the risk of rumen acidosis and improve animal performance.By maintaining the gut microbiota the health of livestocks is maintained. It reduces the dependence on traditional therapies without affecting the production efficiency. Due to high nutritional value and healthy benefits of yeast animal feed, the demand of yeast animal feed is increasing.Major Players:Some of the prominent participants operating in this market areChr. Hansen Holding A/S,AngelYeast Co., Ltd,Kerry Group,Alltech,SUBONEYO Chemicals Pharmaceuticals P Limited,Biorigin Art in Natural Ingredients,Pakmaya,AB Mauri,Minn-Dak Yeast Company,Synergy Flavors,AB Vista,LALLEMAND Inc., ICC,Biospringer,Lesaffre,DSM N.V.,Leiber GmbH,Pacific Ethanol, Inc.among others.Market Drivers:Growth of the bakery industryIncrease in demand for convenience food productsPositive growth trend in alcoholic beverages consumptionGrowth in demand for bioethanol as a fuelRising demand for specialty yeast products rising demand for environment-friendly productsGrowing innovation in the Yeast industryStringent food safety regulationsInquire Regarding This Report @About Data Bridge Market Research:Data Bridge Market Research set forth itself as an unconventional and neoteric Market research and consulting firm with unparalleled level of resilience and integrated approaches. We are determined to unearth the best market opportunities and foster efficient information for your business to thrive in the market. Data Bridge endeavors to provide appropriate solutions to the complex business challenges and initiates an effortless decision-making process.Contact:Data Bridge Market ResearchTel: +1-888-387-2818Email: sopan.gedam@databridgemarketresearch.com Non-Alcoholic Beer Market Key Company Analysis - Heineken, Suntory, Bernard Brewery, Big Drop Brewing, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA, Krombacher Brauerei. Erdinger Weibbrau, Moscow Brewing company Non-alcoholic Beer Market https://www.fractovia.org/request-sample/872 https://www.fractovia.org/news/industry-research-report/non-alcoholic-beer-market https://www.gminsights.com http://algosonline.com/news Owing to a worldwide escalation in the preference for low liquor content beverages, the non-alcoholic beer market size has proliferated at an outstanding pace over the past decade. This has been complemented with the fact that the disposable incomes among the global middle-class population have shot up which has further provided a commendable boost to the overall non-alcoholic beer industry. The rising consolidation and maturation of this business space can be deciphered from the fact that the global non-alcoholic beer industry garnered revenue in excess of USD 13 billion in the year 2016, according to a study undertaken by Global Market Insights, IncGet Sample Copy of This Report @Elaborating further, one of the pivotal factors to have encouraged leading non-alcoholic beer industry participants to unveil refined products is that the overall alcohol consumption world over has witnessed a drastic reduction in the recent years. Citing an instance to affirm this, the Dublin headquartered Guinness Brewery has recently launched a full-flavored non-alcoholic lager, Open Gate Pure Brew. Reportedly, the latest launch goes on to demonstrate the firms renewed interest in zero-alcohol and low ABV beverages which have been the most lucrative products for the overall non-alcoholic beer market players in the recent times.Over the past few years, the eminent non-alcoholic beer industry players have focused on launching new alcohol-free drinks, given that the number of health-conscious costumers is on the rise. Enumerated below are a few instances of product revelations that have are being termed as rather pathbreaking by the market analysts:With the major objective of offering right taste of alcohol-free beer to its European consumers, the principal non-alcoholic beer industry stakeholder Heineken has apparently unveiled an upgraded edition of its flagship drink, Heineken 0.0. Apparently, the firms Master Brewers produced the new zero-alcohol beer using only natural ingredients and a unique recipe for a distinct balanced taste. Reportedly, the latest beer, which has only 69 calories per 33cl bottle, has proved to be quite popular across Netherlands, Spain, Austria, and Poland.Brewed in a similar way as a normal beer, the Without range of England based St Peters is the third range of zero-alcohol drinks launched by the upcoming non-alcoholic beer market player. Predominantly targeted toward lager and ale drinkers, the company now aims to serve organic and vegan beers to its health-conscious consumers. Following the success of its first two zero-alcohol drinks, the latest offering intends to offer rich alternatives over the alcoholic beers.Coupled with the aforementioned instances, it is quite imperative to state that the consumer appetite for quality and more choices in the alcohol-free category of drinks would certainly propel the non-alcoholic beer market share expansion in the immediate future.Meanwhile, it has to be noted that among the chief obstacles to have mired the product penetration is the uneasiness among consumers regarding the taste of non-alcoholic beers. Apparently, scientists around the globe, of late, have been researching persistently to develop novel brewing procedures in order to improve the taste of alcohol-free beer. Researchers at the Valladolid University in Spain have reportedly devised a unique method to enhance the conventional taste of non-alcoholic beer.Browse Full Report Details @Apparently, the new technique deploys a semipermeable membrane which separates the liquid and gaseous phases of alcohol from the alcoholic beer. With this process the aromatic compounds can be recovered and the gaseous phase can then be extracted and added to zero-alcohol beer. This new method would invariably aid the leading non-alcoholic beer market players to manufacture more palatable alcohol-free varieties of beer in the forthcoming years, cite industry analysts.Along with the rapidly changing consumption patterns and an exponential rise in health awareness, the global non-alcoholic beer industry is bound to witness a commendable progression over the forecast time frame. According to reliable estimates, the overall non-alcoholic beer market share is anticipated to exceed USD 25 billion by 2024.About Global Market Insights:Global Market Insights, Inc., headquartered in Delaware, U.S., is a global market research and consulting service provider; offering syndicated and custom research reports along with growth consulting services. Our business intelligence and industry research reports offer clients with penetrative insights and actionable market data specially designed and presented to aid strategic decision making. These exhaustive reports are designed via a proprietary research methodology and are available for key industries such as chemicals, advanced materials, technology, renewable energy and biotechnology.Contact Us:Arun HegdeCorporate Sales, USAGlobal Market Insights, Inc.Phone: 1-302-846-7766Toll Free: 1-888-689-0688Email: sales@gminsights.comWeb:Explore Our Blog @Connect with us: Facebook | Google+ | LinkedIn | Twitter Gamma Knife Market by Application, Product Type, End-Use, Opportunities and Forecast to 2023 https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/gamma-knife-market https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/gamma-knife-market/report-sample https://www.psmarketresearch.com/send-enquiry?enquiry-url=gamma-knife-market https://www.psmarketresearch.com The increasing prevalence of neurological disorders and growing aging population around the world are the predominant growth drivers for the global gamma knife market. In addition, the technological advancement in radiosurgery systems including gamma knife, and initiatives taken by various government associations to raise awareness about therapeutic applications of radiation therapy systems in the treatment of brain tumors are also driving the growth of the global gamma knife market. In terms of therapeutic applications, brain metastases hold the largest share in the global gamma knife market. On the basis of anatomy, head is the largest and fastest growing segment in the global gamma knife market.Access Detailed Report Summary:Gamma Knife uses tiny beams of radiation for the treatment of tumor and carcinogenic regions of the body. It is most often used in the treatment of neurological conditions, such as brain metastases, acoustic neuroma, and trigeminal neuralgia.Request to Get the Sample Pages at:The Asia-Pacific gamma knife market is growing with a significant rate, owing to improving healthcare infrastructure and increasing prevalence of neurological disorders in the region. In addition, the increasing awareness about therapeutic applications of Gamma Knife, growing aging population, and initiatives taken by various government applications to raise awareness about cancer and neurological disorders, and their treatment procedures are also supporting the growth of the Asia- Pacific gamma knife market. The countries, such as India, Japan, and China are the major markets for gamma knife in the region.Make Enquiry Before Buying the Report:Apart from these regions, Latin America is other important market for gamma knife. This is due to increasing R&D investments in the manufacturing of radiosurgery equipment within the low manufacturing cost regions, including Latin America. Brazil holds the largest share in the Latin American gamma knife market, due to the increasing prevalence of cancer and improving healthcare infrastructure in the country.Some of the major players operating in the global gamma knife market include American Shared Hospital Services, ET Medical Group, Nordion Inc., Masep Infini Global Inc., Cyber Medical Corporation Limited, Huiheng Medical Inc., Elekta AB, Varian Medical Systems Inc, and Hokai.About P&S IntelligenceP&S Intelligence, a brand of P&S Market Research, is a provider of market research and consulting services catering to the market information needs of burgeoning industries across the world. Providing the plinth of market intelligence, P&S as an enterprising research and consulting company, believes in providing thorough landscape analyses on the ever-changing market scenario, to empower companies to make informed decisions and base their business strategies with astuteness.Contact:P&S Intelligence347, 5th Ave. #1402New York City, NY - 10016Toll-free: +1-888-778-7886 (USA/Canada)Email: enquiry@psmarketresearch.comWeb: Hamilton County Election Commission Chairman Mike Walden said Monday that "frivolous lawsuits by Nashville lawyers" are costing local taxpayers money, and he said he "can't imagine" that a judge would invalidate the commission's action in allowing Robin Smith on the ballot. He said, "This cake is baked. 2,760 people have already voted in House District 26 in early voting. We have got to stop these people from Nashville from filing these ridiculous lawsuits. It's much ado about nothing." The commission voted to hire Chattanooga attorney Stephen Duggins to represent the commission in a case filed by the Tennessee Democratic Party in Hamilton County Chancery Court. The rate will be $290 per hour. The commission is awaiting a bill from a Nashville law firm for defending the suit that was initially filed in Nashville, then was dismissed on jurisdictional grounds. "Somebody is going to have to pay for all this," Chairman Walden said. Ms. Smith, former state Republican Party chairman, was the only GOP candidate to come forward when Rep. Gerald McCormick decided to withdraw very late in the process. The state Democrats are contending there was no legal basis for the withdrawal and the Republicans should not be able to put forth a candidate. David Jones is running as a Democrat. The primary voting is Aug. 2 and the general election is Nov. 4. Chancellor Pam Fleenor has set an Aug. 6 hearing on the case. She did not recuse herself, though Ms. Smith was a paid campaign consultant for her and wrote a letter in her behalf in her 2014 judicial election. During the Election Commission session, attorneys and fellow commission members Jerry Summers and Chris Clem sparred over whether a meeting at which Ms. Smith was approved should have been delayed. Attorney Summers said he called election administrator Kerry Steelman the day before and got an agreement that the meeting would start at 8:45 instead of 8 because he had a doctor's appointment. Mr. Steelman said that was not agreed. Attorney Summers said he got to the meeting at 8:25 and the other commissioners were gone. Lawyers for the state Democrats arrived at about the same time. Mr. Walden was not able to go to that meeting. Attorney Clem said attorney Summers had never said specifically why the meeting should be delayed and only given vague information. He said state Democrats already had a lengthy lawsuit prepared by that morning, but had not raised any objection to the election office about Ms. Smith being on the ballot. He said they never called saying they were coming to the meeting. Global Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins Market Will Reflect Significant Growth Prospects by 2023 https://www.researchnreports.com/request_sample.php?id=86088 https://www.researchnreports.com/ask_for_discount.php?id=86088 www.researchnreports.com Research N Reports declares the expansion of another new report by virtue of the worldwide market for Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins. The report traces the detectable players in the worldwide market with an exact true objective to give a rational angle of the unassuming powers of the market, while the commonplace and item areas of the worldwide market are moreover anticipated in detail, remembering the ultimate objective to give a granular illustration of the market's fall. The report is titled 'Worldwide Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins Statistical surveying Report 2018.'Get sample copy of this report at:Real Key Players in this report are: AngioDynamics, Lumenis, Syneron, Biolitec, Dornier MedTech, Energist Group, EUFOTON S.R.L, Vascular Solutions, Quanta System S.p.A., WON TECH Co., Ltd., INTERmedic, LSO, ALNA, GIGAA LASER, Lingyun Photoelectronic SystemThe expanding number of innovative progressions in the car business is one of the key variables anticipated to energize the development of the Worldwide Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins Market in the coming years. The developing prevalence of light-weight vehicles and the utilization of fasteners, bolts, screws, and other conventional securing methods and gadgets are being substituted by more grounded glue tapes. This is anticipated to accelerate the development of the general market in the following couple of years. What's more, the rising interest for the apparatuses for electronic gadget downsizing is presumably going to fuel the market's improvement in the coming years.On the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split into0.1-15W of Output Power15-30W of Output Power>30W of Output PowerOn the basis on the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate of Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins for each application, includingHospitalsClinicsOtherOn the opposite side, strict rules and bearings concerning the utilization and emanations of various synthetic substances are anticipated to hamper the advancement of the Worldwide Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins Market in the estimated time period. Regardless, the progression of the bundling business is relied upon to make promising open doors for rising players working in the Worldwide Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins showcase in the accompanying couple of years. In addition, the rising number of applications is relied upon to contribute towards the advancement of the market over the globe.Get discount at:The Asia Pacific market for Laser Treatment Devices of Varicose Veins is anticipated to witness a promising development all through the gauge time frame. The strong development of this locale can be attributed to the creating producing foundation, simple accessibility of crude materials, and mechanical improvements. What's more, a significant commitment from India and China is anticipated to empower the development of the general market in the following couple of years. 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Today being a consumer driven market, companies require information to deal with the complex and dynamic world of choices. Where relying on a sound board firm for your decisions becomes crucial. Research N Reports specializes in industry analysis, market forecasts and as a result getting quality reports covering all verticals, whether be it gaining perspective on current market conditions or being ahead in the cut throat Global competition. Since we excel at business research to help businesses grow, we also offer consulting as an extended arm to our services which only helps us gain more insight into current trends and problems. Consequently, we keep evolving as an all-rounder provider of viable information under one roof.Sunny Denis(Sales Manager),(Research N Reports)10916, Gold Point Dr,Houston, TX, Pin 77064,+1-8886316977,sales@researchnreports.com, New Report On Saw Wire Market Analysis Report, Regional Outlook, Application Development Potential, Price Trends https://www.researchnreports.com/request_sample.php?id=42892 https://www.researchnreports.com/ask_for_discount.php?id=42892 https://www.researchnreports.com/enquiry_before_buying.php?id=42892 The market research report helps to analyze the market Saw Wire on a global basis and also provides forecasts and statistics in terms of revenues for the 2018-2025 forecast period. This research study provides a detailed overview of the market dynamics that should affect the global industry over the next few years. In addition, the study explains the impact of key factors on the development and growth of the global market Saw Wire during the forecast period. 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Corp, Meyer Burger Technology, Sino-Crystal Diamond, YiCheng New Energy, DIAT, ILJIN Diamond, READ, Nakamura Choukou, MDWEC, Noritake, Nanjing SanchaoThe report also implements primary and secondary research techniques to gather the most critical business information, and applies a number of industry-leading data techniques to project the future state of the global Saw Wire market. Based on the current market development, the report includes an analysis of how activities such as mergers and shaping the future of the market.Get Discount on this Premium Report:The Saw Wire global market is also presented to readers as a holistic snapshot of the competitive landscape during the given forecast period. 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Research N Reports helps clients decode the future to be more successful and innovative.Contact us:Sunny DenisU.S. Address10916, Gold Point, Dr,Houston, TX - 77064E-mail:sales@researchnreports.comPhone:+1 888-631-6977 Mark Katches, The Oregonian/OregonLive's editor and vice president of content, is stepping down next month to take a new job as executive editor of the Tampa Bay Times. Katches, 55, oversaw the Portland-based newsroom during the most explosive digital growth phase in its history. The newsroom has expanded its online audience more than 70 percent during the four years he has served as editor. The staff also has garnered numerous regional and national awards for investigative and narrative journalism. "Mark is passionate about making a difference through quality, in-depth reporting," said John F. Maher, president of the Oregonian Media Group. "His contributions to our company and to our community will have a lasting effect. We wish him the very best." Despite challenges facing most every newsroom in America, The Oregonian/OregonLive remains the state's biggest news organization. Its digital footprint is the largest in the Pacific Northwest. The newsroom has distinguished itself with more watchdog journalism, a video unit that earned six regional Emmy nominations this year, and a team of reporters that provides readers a constant feed of breaking news. Katches came to Portland from the California-based nonprofit Center for Investigative Reporting in 2014 and encouraged deep dive journalism across the newsroom. That manifested itself in stories about dangerous levels of lead dust in the nation's national guard armories, an ongoing series of stories about troubles in Oregon's senior care facilities, and coverage that exposed how Portland Public Schools mishandled the case of an instructor who for decades had preyed upon teenage girls. He also championed narrative writing like the acclaimed "The Loneliest Polar Bear" about a hand-raised captive born bear. "Serving as editor of this talented newsroom has been an incredible privilege," Katches said. "It's been so much fun watching these devoted journalists tell stories that have captured the heart of a community and have had resounding impact. I know the newsroom will be in excellent hands." Maher has named Therese Bottomly, a 35-year veteran of the newsroom, as interim editor. Bottomly has been serving as senior director of news. "Therese is a capable leader and respected journalist who is intimately familiar with our ongoing operations as well as our long-term investigative work," Maher said. "I'm confident our reporting team will excel under her direction." Katches' last day as editor in Portland will be Aug. 3. CORVALLIS A city councilman was arrested after threatening his brother-in-law with a loaded handgun, according to police and court documents. Mark Page, 47, was booked into jail on charges of menacing, harassment, disorderly conduct, unlawful use of a weapon and recklessly endangering another person, according to court documents filed Monday. Page remained in jail pending his arraignment. Court records do not list an attorney to speak on his behalf. Officers responding to a domestic dispute Saturday night determined that Page started an altercation with the brother-in-law, a police report obtained by the Corvallis Gazette-Times says. After the men separated, Page retrieved a handgun and pointed it at the man. He then chased him around a car in the driveway, yelling: "I'm gonna put two in you tonight," the reports states. Page's two children and the victim's seven children were among those witnessed the incident, according to the report. Page was elected to the City Council in November 2016. He ran for a seat on the Benton County Board of Commissioners this spring. He finished last in a six-person race for the Democratic nomination. The poor showing came on the heels of a Gazette-Times story that delved into his past. The newspaper reported that Page owed $140,000 in back child-support payments; that the Department of Veterans Affairs disputes his claim to have been officially designated unemployable; that he has a domestic violence incident on his record; and that Kansas State University has no record of a bachelor's degree he says he earned. Page said he is making payments on his child support debt based on his income; that he is appealing the "unemployable" designation; that the domestic violence conviction was dismissed after he completed anger management classes; and that he received a certificate of completion for his Kansas State coursework, but it was stolen. -- The Associated Press Hillsboro Airport and four others in Oregon will receive federal grants for facility improvements and training, U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley announced Monday. Hillsboro Airport will get $12 million, while airports in Albany, Klamath Falls, Bend and Grants Pass will receive grants less than $1 million. "These transportation resources will help to provide much-needed safety and dependability improvements for airports serving Oregonians," Wyden said in a news release. Merkley said the grants "will help support crucial air service in communities throughout our state." -- Gordon R. Friedman 503-221-8209 KLAMATH FALLS "Are you putting those up or taking them down?" asked a woman as she drove down Ninth street. "Putting up!" Stewart Decker shouted back as the car continued down the road. The interaction was spurred by the fact that Decker and a number of other cyclists who are decidedly in support of the new protected bike lane spent their Thursday evening attaching flags to the protected lane bolsters and picking up trash along the route. Throughout the night they were met with thumbs up and shouts of support for the act. This demonstration was part of a movement among Klamath Falls cyclists who had been dubbed the "Spandex Mafia" in a Herald and News Letter to the Editor drafted by Klamath Falls City Councilman Bill Adams earlier in the month, where he wrote, "Can you believe it happened, right here in Klamath Falls? That's right the 'Spandex Mafia' has gained a foothold here." Adams borrowed the term from Portland talk show radio host, Lars Larson of the Lars Larson show. "I just figured it was more of a shock factor, and a lot of the conservatives around here would recognize the terminology and understand what was going on," said Adams. Flags and gifts Decker, who uses the protected lane weekly, had only recently become familiar with the term. "Spandex Mafia is originally used as kind of negative or derogatory," he said. "I think as with many historical derogatory terms were gonna just try and turn it on its head and say you know what, we do wear spandex from time to time, and if you want, call us a mafia but this mafia is gonna go around and put American flags and give people gift cards to things." The protected bike lane, which opened in June on Oregon Avenue and along Ninth street to downtown Klamath Falls, has been the subject of both praise and scrutiny from members of the community, but the term "Spandex Mafia" resulted in more than an inside joke or hurt feelings it began a movement. David Scott, owner of Rodeo's Pizza and Saladeria in downtown Klamath Falls, has since made bumper stickers that read "Spandex Mafia" and "Make America Bike Again Klamath Falls." He explained that these stickers probably will not change minds, but might at least "disarm the silly label. "We're just having fun," he said. Bike-lash Scott also set up a "Spandex Mafia" GoFundMe page to generate goodwill between pro-bike lane citizens and residents along Oregon Avenue. The fund raised $1,462 in 11 days and was used to purchase gift certificates from local businesses for residents living within walking and biking distance of the bike lane. Now, any additional money donated will go toward bicycle equipment and services. "It's just a show of solidarity that, 'hey were willing to scramble a little extra to show that we care,'" said Scott. Some certificates were for C&D Burger on Oregon Avenue. Sean Tucker St. Clair, a recent graduate of Klamath Union High School, has been working there for over a year. "I don't think it's affected people coming in here or anything like that," he said. "Originally I thought it would but I don't think it does." He has had people come up to him at work and mention their dislike of the lane, but hasn't noticed any difference in the day-to-day customers. "The only thing it would effect is me as, like, a citizen driving or something like that. Even then I don't think it's that big of a deal," he said. "I think it's really cool seeing a bike lane like this. It encourages more people to do that kind of a thing." Seeking change These gift certificates were distributed by Katherine Pope, program director of Sky Lakes Wellness Center. She went door-to-door on Ninth street between Main and Lincoln streets reaching about 10 to 15 households. She hopes to get through the entire route in the coming weeks. Pope was instrumental in making the bike lane a reality. "It was citizens working together to make positive change and that doesn't happen very often," she said. "I am not a cyclist that wears spandex, but if I'm a part of a community group that likes healthy living, and riding bikes and wants to make riding bikes easier for people to do, then yeah I can be part of the spandex mafia." During her walk, she asked people their opinion on the street's recent addition. Pope explained that many told her they were happy with the route or at least adjusting. Whether or not the residents were supportive, though, they were offered a gift certificate. "I think it's an attempt to buy them off or pay them for their inconvenience," said Bill Adams upon hearing about the plan. "I don't know that it'll be effective. I think if people don't like to drive in that or having to deal with it, they're still not gonna like having to deal with it. "I think raising awareness of it has gotta be good for everyone involved, I'd still like the thing taken out," said Adams. Will the Lane Stay? Adams, among others, has called for the reversal of the bike lane. The owner of One Stop Auto Wreckers, Adams believes the bike lane is dangerous for the trucks and larger vehicles his industry runs. His son, Greg Adams agreed. "I think people running big equipment are gonna have the most problems," he said. "There's a couple spots that are really tight." Bill Adams said, "I don't have a problem with people using bicycles, and I don't mind watching out for them. I just don't think they deserve to get the whole street ... What I have a problem with is taking away road space that was paid for by gas taxes and license fees on automobiles and trucks and turning it into a bike lane." Pope hopes that, with time, the community will adjust to and appreciate the change. "I don't want to take away cars in Klamath but I want our town to be accessible for everyone. I want everyone to be able to share this community and get where they need to go," she said. "It would be a shame to remove something that one group doesn't want that so many people have worked for." With a background in forestry disturbance interactions and geography, Scott believes that from a geographical perspective, having multi-use infrastructure in a town even one of this size makes sense. "I will say I'm pretty scared that we will lose the bike lane if we don't show enough support for it," said Scott. "Getting rid of the bike lane would be a toxic move and bad for this town. "The bike lane doesn't take away anything from anybody, it really doesn't." --Caroline Cabral/Herald & News A 58-year-old homeless man was arraigned Monday on a charge of killing a 29-year-old woman in his parked van in North Portland. Terry Hickman confided in a friend last week that he choked a woman until she stopped breathing, according to a probable cause affidavit. Police say officers were flagged down on North Lombard Street near Portsmouth Avenue by Hickman's friends, who said Hickman confessed to killing the woman and was at their apartment. Police then interviewed Hickman, who told them where his van was parked, the affidavit says. Police discovered the van had been towed July 17, so they went to the tow lot where the van was being stored. Police could see the body of Dallas Boyd inside and smell human decay, the affidavit states. Charging papers filed by the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office allege that Boyd died between July 13 and July 19. The medical examiner's office determined Boyd's cause of death to be "manual strangulation," according to the affidavit. Hickman was booked into the Multnomah County jail system at 4:44 a.m. on Saturday. He was listed as a transient with no address. He appeared in Multnomah County Circuit Court to be arraigned on one count of murder. His next court date is July 31. Hickman's criminal history stretches back to 1994, when he was convicted of first-degree robbery. Other convictions include third-degree assault, drug possession and driving while under the influence of intoxicants. Court documents indicate that Boyd also was homeless, as recently as April. Her Facebook page lists her name as Dallas Boyd-Riggins and says she was engaged. Police are asking members of the public with information about the case to email Detective Scott Broughton at Scott.Broughton@portlandoregon.gov or to call him at 503-823-3774. -- Aimee Green The city of Portland is seeking a reporter's declaration under oath for its defense in a civil rights lawsuit, a move generally viewed by the press as a strongarm tactic given laws that protect journalists from testifying about their work. If freelance reporter Mike Bivins refuses to sign the declaration, he may face a subpoena to testify in court, he said in an interview Monday. Bivins said he was told of a possible subpoena during a phone call with the lead city attorney in the case, Naomi Sheffield. "She said, 'I don't want this to come off as threatening but we might seek a subpoena if you don't want to sign the declaration,'" Bivins said. The city is interested in five tweets Bivins posted during a June 4, 2017 protest in downtown Portland. The tweets include Bivins' account of what may be illegal or rowdy activity by protesters. Bivins published articles for Willamette Week and Al Jazeera about the protest, during which police allegedly corralled hundreds of protesters and demanded their IDs. The tactic, called "kettling," led the American Civil Liberities Union to file a class action suit in federal court against Mayor Ted Wheeler and more than 50 police officers. Bivins provided The Oregonian/OregonLive messages from Sheffield seeking his under-oath statement. "I have reviewed your Twitter feed, including the photographs, comments, and video that you have posted relating to that event," Sheffield wrote on July 20. "We would appreciate it if you would be willing to sign a declaration stating under oath, that certain video, photographs and comments are an accurate depiction or description of the events as you perceived them on June 4, 2017." Duane Bosworth, a Portland attorney who has defended journalists against government subpoena requests, said in his view Oregon's media "shield law" would likely protect Bivins from being forced to testify. Shield laws protect reporters' privilege to not testify about information they gather or their sources. The Oregon shield law is perhaps the strongest in the nation, said Bosworth, who occasionally represents The Oregonian/OregonLive. Bivins said he does not intend to sign a declaration in order to "not appear like I'm on one side or another." He said the ACLU approached him about joining their lawsuit against the city, but he declined. If a judge were to issue a subpoena, Bivins said he would consult with an attorney before deciding whether to testify or not. People under subpoena who refuse to testify can be jailed for contempt of court. "That'd be crazy if they did" issue a subpoena, Bivins said. Bosworth said governments can chill reporters' ability to gather news and make sources by issuing subpoena threats. "If a person is speaking to a reporter and knows that information could be provided to the cops that would dry up those conversations," Bosworth said. He said what "no reporter wants" is to appear to take sides, or worse, be compelled to do so by the government. -- Gordon R. Friedman 503-221-8209 Ascension Michigan welcomes Stephanie Duggan, MD, back to her home state of Michigan to serve as regional president of St. Mary's of Michigan in Saginaw and Standish, and St. Joseph Health System in Tawas. Duggan began her medical career as a physician at St. Mary's of Michigan in Saginaw in 1998. She will start in her new role on August 6. Duggan has been serving as chief clinical officer at St. Vincent's Health System in Birmingham, Alabama, for the past two years. In 2017, she was listed as one of the Top Women in Medicine by B-Metro Magazine, a Birmingham-based business publication. Previously, she served for five years at Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola as chief medical officer, as well as an emergency physician. Both St. Vincent's Health System and Sacred Heart Hospital are a part of Ascension. Before construction began on the M-20/Karl B. Robertson bridge, the Michigan Department of Transportation gave a completion date of Nov. 14 for the westbound lanes. Now that the contractor, Milbocker and Sons, is halfway through construction that completion date has not changed. The anticipated open to traffic date is November 14, 2018, for the westbound bridge, MDOT project engineer Jason Garza said in an email. As always, MDOT appreciates the continued patience and understanding of the community as we undergo this large bridge replacement project. There is still a lot of work that remains to be done in the next four months. Right now, they are wrapping up the western abutment return walls and will start backfilling that area. Pier 1 (westernmost pier) cap was poured yesterday, Garza said last week. Once all of that concrete is cured, the forms will be removed and the contractor can continue placing steel beams across the whole structure, he said. Two of those huge steel beams arrived last week by truck and will be used for the two spans on the eastern side of the river. The steel beams are 100 percent American made as mandated on all federal aid projects, Garza said. The curved steel plated girders are 70 inches tall and have been fabricated in Wisconsin. They are shipped by truck one beam at a time, Garza said. To build the entire bridge, 4.1 million pounds of steel (both structural and reinforcement steel) will be needed. Later this month, those using the bridge will begin to see preparation for construction of the roadway west of the bridge. After the beams are set, the following steps need to happen before completion of the westbound lanes: Concrete deck poured Railings poured The electrical supply fed to the bridge for the streetlights The streetlights erected and wired, The roadway section west and east of the bridge removed and replaced Signal upgrades completed at the Main Street/M-20 intersection Install all associated permanent signs and pavement markings. Even unusually high temperatures have not forced a delay in construction. Typically high temperatures can have an adverse effect on concrete being placed, Garza said. Extreme temperatures can cause the concrete to hydrate too quickly and begin to harden earlier than desired. It can also delay the rolling operation for asphalt paving due to the high temperatures. But with this project we havent had any issues with that. Georgia Rep. Jason Spencer yelled racial slurs and pulled his pants down during an appearance on an episode of Sacha Baron Cohens Showtime series Who Is America that aired late Sunday. Georgias Speaker of the House David Ralston is calling for Spencers resignation. Spencer represents Georgias 180th district, which includes Camden, Charlton and Ware counties. In the episode, Cohen plays an Israeli military expert who convinces Spencer to participate in a counterterrorism video. Spencer closed the episode with an equally offensive and hate-filled message to supposed terrorists. Heres the video GOP Rep. Jason Spencer threatened to sue Showtime over if they aired it on #WhoIsAmerica. Its not good. pic.twitter.com/gIIJfnxEZG Philip Lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) July 23, 2018 The cherry on top of this disgusting footage is Spencer's reminder that he is a state representative and the Georgia logo. Following Spencer's televised actions, multiple Republican leaders released statements condemning Spencer and demanding his resignation. Ralston released a statement that reads, The actions and language used on this video are reprehensible. Representative Spencer has disgraced himself and should resign immediately. Georgia is better than this. Secretary of State Gubernatorial candidate Brian Kemp removed Spencer from his list of endorsements before the GOP runoff for governor on Tuesday. Kemp said, Rep. Spencer's words and behavior are hurtful, insensitive, and completely unacceptable. At the very least, he should issue a public apology for this shameful incident. Governor Nathan Deal tweeted: The actions and language used by Jason Spencer are appalling and offensive. There is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever, and I am saddened and disgusted by it. Governor Nathan Deal (@GovernorDeal) July 23, 2018 The director for the Georgia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations Edward Ahmed Mitchell said, The ignorance and malice behind Islamophobia has led Mr. Spencer to not only pursue bad policy but engage in humiliating and hateful behavior unbecoming of anyoneespecially a state legislator. Last week Spencer said the shows producers took advantage of my fears that I would be attacked by someone. He went on to say They exploited my state of mind for profit and notoriety. This media companys deceptive and fraudulent behavior is exactly why President Donald Trump was elected. On Monday, Spencer apologized for the ridiculously ugly episode but refused to resign. However, the public voted him out of office before the episode even aired. After four terms in office, Spencer was defeated by the Republican challenger Steven Sainz during the May primary. This isnt Spencers first hate-filled act as an elected official. Following Trumps election in 2016, Spencer submitted a bill that would have banned Muslims from wearing veils in public. The bill was withdrawn after it faced immediate backlash. A year later, Spencer threatened a former Georgia lawmaker, African American attorney LaDawn Jones, who supported the removal of Confederate statues in Georgia. In a Facebook post that was later deleted Spencer said, Looks like you are afflicted with the same poison you claim to fight against. I can guarantee you wont be met with torches but something a lot more definitive. People in South Georgia are people of action, not drama. He went on to say that anyone who wanted the statues removed would go missing in the Georgia Okefenokee swamp. Spencer also faced calls for resignation following this incident but refused. Due to Spencers refusal to resign, Georgias 180th district will continue to be represented by Spencer until the November election. Update, 7/24: The powers-that-be at Forbes were apparently sufficiently embarrassed by the essay in question, and have removed it from their website. On Saturday, Forbes ran a piece by someone named Panos Mourdoukoutas making a very interesting (read: stupid and harmful) argument. Before we get to that argument, though, I want to note again that it ran on a Saturday. This is not an irrelevant factas an editor, I can tell you that Saturday is when you run the pieces that dont really fill you with pride. Usually, youve made an obligation to the writer, and its easier to run it than not, but you really dont want lots of people seeing it. I have no idea if thats what happened at Forbes. Im not a frequent reader of that particular publication, but Ive never thought of them as a clickbait hot take factory. My educated guess is that they had to run it, for whatever reason, and were trying to sneak it under the radar. It didnt work. You cant hide a title like this: Amazon Should Replace Local Libraries to Save Taxpayers Money Folks, we have achieved it. We have achieved peak capitalism, as defined by a slavish devotion to the free market and large corporations, and disdain for the welfare (intellectual or otherwise) of real people. If Citizens United was the judicial apex of heartless capitalism, this is the philosophical version. The essay is shortjust 589 wordsand even those are basically redundant. Everything you need to know is in the title: Replace libraries with Amazon stores. And it can be refuted with two simple points: 1. Books (and etc.) at Amazon cost money. 2. Books (and etc.) at a library are a public service, and are free at point of use. They cost the average American taxpayer over 18 years old about $4.50 per month. That doesnt tell the whole story of what libraries offer, of course. Beyond books and movies and music and Internet access, it is a community space that includes programs for children, seniors, and veterans, career help, and research databases. Even that just barely scratches the surfacelibraries are a public good in the truest sense, and one of the last redeeming things about this country. For a great and thorough thread about all the wonderful services public libraries provide, read here. So its no surprise that the capitalists want to come for them next. Lets take a deeper look at Mourdoukoutas argument, paragraph by paragraph. Amazon should open their own bookstores in all local communities. They can replace local libraries and save taxpayers lots of money, while enhancing the value of their stock. First off, if Amazon decided to open their own bookstores in local communities, it would kill local bookstores, not libraries. Which is exactly what Amazon is doing now. Since libraries are funded by taxes, there would have to some kind of government reform that killed libraries separately from whatever action Amazon took. Thats what the author is actually asking forkill public libraries, and justify it with some bullshit about Amazon. Also, you have to love people who are super concerned with Amazons stock value. Doesnt Jeff Bezos have enough lackeys? There was a time local libraries offered the local community lots of services in exchange for their tax money. They would bring books, magazines, and journals to the masses through a borrowing system. Residents could borrow any book they wanted, read it, and return it for someone else to read. Yes, and that is what still happens. That mystical time you speak of is now. But thanks for the definition of library, I guess? They also provided residents with a comfortable place they could enjoy their books. They provided people with a place they could do their research in peace with the help of friendly librarians. Libraries served as a place where residents could hold their community events, but this was a function they shared with school auditoriums. Theres no shortage of places to hold community events. Oh boy, it continues. He only used 589 words, but hes going to spend two paragraphs defining libraries. Also, I love that his first real attempt to undermine the concept of a library is basically, eh, its just a glorified school auditorium. Libraries slowly began to service the local community more. Libraries introduced video rentals and free internet access. The modern local library still provides these services, but they arent for free. Homeowners have to be financed by taxpayers in form of a library tax. It is usually added to school taxes, which in some communities are already high. FOLKS, WERE AT PARAGRAPH THREE. Thats three paragraphs of defining a library. Also, I like how his big dramatic shift is but they arent for free. As if the system of using tax dollars to fund libraries is brand new. Where does he think library funding used to come from? Free public libraries supported by taxation is a concept that dates back to 1833. If Mourdoukoutas wrote his piece in 1834, maybe his THEY TAKE YOUR PRECIOUS TAX DOLLARS! scaremongering might make sense. But 184 years later? Feels a little stale, amigo. Meanwhile, they dont have the same value they used to. The reasons why are obvious. Just kill me now. Dont make me read the rest. The only real way to ruin the public library for me at this point is to tell me this essay is available there. One such reason is the rise of third places such as Starbucks. They provide residents with a comfortable place to read, surf the web, meet their friends and associates, and enjoy a great drink. This is why some people have started using their loyalty card at Starbucks more than they use their library card. Ah yes, the famous third places, which is totally the term he wants here, and not one that actually means a social surrounding that is not work or home, and which encompassesyup, public libraries. Also, whats the argument here? That Starbucks makes libraries redundant? Can you get books for free from Starbucks? Do they provide learning programs for kids? Or is just another private business that this guy thinks can combine to replace libraries? For those keeping track at home, heres a running list of things that are not at all like libraries, but which Panos Mourdoukoutas is pretty sure are the exact same things: 1. An Amazon store 2. School auditoriums 3. Starbucks On top of this, streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime have replaced video rentals. They provide TV and movie content to the masses at an affordable rate. Actual video rental services like Blockbuster have gone completely out of business. This is sneakily the best part about the whole article, because the truth is that Netflix and Amazon Prime cost more per month than the average tax dollars that go to fund a library. And they dont offer nearly as much! But he just called them affordable, so clearly a library must be downright cheap, right? Right Panos? Then theres the rise of digital technology. Technology has turned physical books into collectors items, effectively eliminating the need for library borrowing services. A. It has not remotely turned physical books into collectors items, idiot. B. Even if it had, it would not eliminate the need for borrowing books in their new digital formats, because those books STILL COST MONEY. And by the way, know where you can borrow e-books? Public libraries! C. This guy is an actual economics professor. Why does he both write and form arguments like he has never even visited a public libroh. Right. Of course, theres Amazon Books to consider. Amazon have created their own online library that has made it easy for the masses to access both physical and digital copies of books. Is it free? No? They dont give books away for free? Then its not the same as a library. Amazon Books is a chain of bookstores that does what Amazon originally intended to do; replace the local bookstore. It improves on the bookstore model by adding online searches and coffee shops. Yup, it kills local business alright! Amazon Go basically combines a library with a Starbucks. Nope, it combines Starbucks with a bookstore. Which is what Barnes & Noble and Borders also does. But since its not free at point of use, it has nothing to do with libraries. And expanding into the local library space will be an opportunity for the technology giant. Who cares, you massive lickspittle? At the core, Amazon has provided something better than a local library without the tax fees. This is why Amazon should replace local libraries. The move would save taxpayers money and enhance the stockholder value of Amazon all in one fell swoop. First off, it would only save me money until I wanted literally one book in a month. But lets forget that, because its missing the main point: If youre not willing to sacrifice a few tax dollars for public libraries, you are fundamentally a bad person. Its pretty much that simplefor a bit of money that he wont even miss, Panos wants to deprive his entire community, and communities across America. Why? Because, like most extremist capitalists, any sense of empathy or public welfare has been wiped from his brain. He does not care about anyone but himself, and this is capitalism at its most essential. To be fair, library surveys do not seem to confirm the idea that public libraries dont have the value they used to. On other hand, let me present two paragraphs of evidence that an editor probably forced me to add, and which proves that my entire argument is bogus. Apparently, more data are needed to confirm a trend. But the opportunity for Amazon to enhance shareholder value remains. What a stirring conclusion! It may be ruinous to close public libraries, he confirms, and the arguments underlying my entire essay may be absolutely bogus, but at least my king Jeff Bezos will make a few more dollars that he will absolutely not pass on to the workers who currently have to skip bathroom breaks to serve their master. As I noted earlier, Mourdoukoutas is a professor at Long Island University. He also co-wrote some leadership book nobody read, so Im not sure what his intent is here, or what vested interest he has in Amazon as a company. Whatever the case, his argument was immediately panned across the Internet, and at this point Im mostly just piling on. Im okay with that, though, for a reason described perfectly by Amanda Mull: I know there are Problems with the twitter mob but people like Mr. Let Amazon Be The Local Library rarely ever get told theyre evil stupid sacks of shit in real life and it has happened thousands of times on here today and I think thats beautiful Amanda Mull (@amandamull) July 22, 2018 A few other worthy thoughts: what if instead of closing libraries Amazon paid taxes. how many books would that buy? nora @ yr local library (@tinygorgon) July 22, 2018 Stunningly Ill-informed article in Forbes. It somehow misses the facts that libraries are free, not everyone can afford a cappuccino and that Amazon is basically a tax-avoiding ultra capitalist anti-library. https://t.co/BXwVfkUIGU Ian Anstice (@publiclibnews) July 22, 2018 Local Libraries Should Replace Amazon To Save Workers' Lives Lyta Gold (@fluttersnipe) July 22, 2018 In the end, this is a story about a privileged man (a man like me!) who wants to end a public service that overwhelmingly helps poor people. He would throw them all under the bus if it meant a few dollars off his tax bill, and more profit to almighty Amazon. Its sick, its heinous, and its philosophically so ugly. It is also a perfect embodiment of unchecked capitalism taken to its logical endthe free market in its vicious essence. Beer with your doughnuts? Dunkin' Donuts is testing coffee-flavored beers. The coffee chain will partner with another Boston-based company, Harpoon Brewery, to brew Dunkin' Coffee Porter, a dark classic porter brewed with Dunkin' Donuts coffee. Tenemu reported Dunkin' Donuts filed labels with the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. The 6 percent ABV porter will be packaged in 12-ounce cans and 12-ounce bottles. Harpoon spokesman Chris Bonacci told Boston.com the beer will likely be released in late October or early November. It is anticipated the beer will be distributed regionally, and if it does well, could be released nationally. Last year Dunkin Donuts teamed up with Wormtown Brewery in Massachusetts to brew the DDark Roasted Brew, sold only at the brewery's taproom. WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump has warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that he will face dire consequences for threatening the United States. Trump tweeted late Sunday about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats after Rouhani said Sunday "American must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." Trump responded with a tweet that warned: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Trump earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. Rouhani had warned Trump Sunday to stop "playing with the lion's tail" and threatening Iran, "or else you will regret it." Trump has suggested Iranian leaders are "going to call me and say 'let's make a deal'" but Iran has rejected talks. Rouhani has previously lashed out against Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the U.S. from certain Muslim-majority countries. Trump's tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing an all-capitalized tweet. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!," he wrote. Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the U.S. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearization talks. On Sunday in California, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran. He called the religious leaders of Iran "hypocritical holy men" who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer, part of a highly critical broadside issued as the republic approached the 40th anniversary of its Islamic revolution and the U.S. prepared to reimpose the economic sanctions. Pompeo talked about increasing the media outreach to the Iranian people. He said the U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors is taking new steps to help Iranians get around internet censorship and is launching a new 24/7 Farsi-language channel across television, radio, digital, and social media formats, "so that ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe can know America stands with them." In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, Pompeo castigated Iran's political, judicial and military leaders, too, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government has "heartlessly repressed its own people's human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms." He said despite poor treatment by their leaders, "the proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their government's many abuses," Pompeo said. "And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent either. In light of these protests and 40 years of regime tyranny, I have a message for the people of Iran: The United States hears you," he said. "The United States supports you. The United States is with you." During World War II the number of women in the workforce increased by 10 percent and by the end of the war, according to history.com, one of every four married women worked outside the home. Women took on what were traditionally male jobs as men were fighting in the war. Women also, however, joined military service. From history.com, "In May 1942, Congress instituted the Women's Auxiliary Army Corps, later upgraded to the Women's Army Corps, which had full military status. Its members, known as WACs, worked in more than 200 non-combatant jobs stateside and in every theater of the war. By 1945, there were more than 100,000 WACs and 6,000 female officers. In the Navy, members of Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES) held the same status as naval reservists and provided support stateside. The Coast Guard and Marine Corps soon followed suit, though in smaller numbers. While women worked in a variety of positions previously closed to them, the aviation industry saw the greatest increase in female workers. More than 310,000 women worked in the U.S. aircraft industry in 1943, representing 65 percent of the industry's total workforce (compared to just 1 percent in the pre-war years). The munitions industry also heavily recruited women workers, as represented by the U.S. government's 'Rosie the Riveter' propaganda campaign. Based in small part on a real-life munitions worker, but primarily a fictitious character, the strong, bandanna-clad Rosie became one of the most successful recruitment tools in American history, and the most iconic image of working women during World War II. In movies, newspapers, posters, photographs, articles and even a Norman Rockwell-painted Saturday Evening Post cover, the Rosie the Riveter campaign stressed the patriotic need for women to enter the work force--and they did, in huge numbers. Though women were crucial to the war effort, their pay continued to lag far behind their male counterparts: Female workers rarely earned more than 50 percent of male wages." A man suspected of attempted homicide and other crimes after a shooting in downtown Chambersburg was reported dead at the Franklin County Jail. Pennsylvania State Police announced Kevensly Cherilus, 20, suffered a medical emergency and was transported to Chambersburg Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. State Police were notified of the death at 1:30 p.m. Sunday. Police did not specify what the medical emergency was. Cherilus was being held at Franklin County Jail without bail since July 12, accused in a targeted drive-by shooting and other related charges. Chambersburg Police also reported last week that they filed a charge of criminal mischief against Cherilus, believing he smashed windows out of two vehicles parked at a home in the 300 block of Grandview Avenue on June 10. State Police said Cherilus' death is being investigated by state police and the Franklin County Coroner's office. Thirty years ago, 17-year-old Bernard Williams was sentenced to life in prison without parole for a crime that is often cited as one of the most notorious that occurred in the capital city. He was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1988 death of former state Rep. William Telek of Cambria County, and that is believed to the first murder of a state legislator. But because of U.S. Supreme Court rulings that found life sentences without parole for juvenile offenders was cruel and unusual punishment, it gave them a chance to have a new sentencing hearing. On Tuesday, Williams, now 47, will get his chance. He will participate in a videoconferenced hearing at the courthouse in Harrisburg before Dauphin County Judge Jeannine Turgeon. The county's District Attorney Fran Chardo said he will be asking the judge to re-impose a life sentence for Williams, who is housed at the State Correctional Institution at Albion in Erie County. Bernard Williams' life sentence without parole for the murder of former state Rep. William Telek in 1988 will be re-examined by Dauphin County Court on Tuesday. Williams was 17 when he arrested and later convicted of first-degree murder in the 1988 death of former Republican state Rep. William Telek of Cambria County. But because of a U.S. Supreme Court rulings that found that life sentences without parole for juveniles were cruel and unusual punishment and ordered those offenders' cases to be re-examined. Telek, who was last seen alive in the early morning hours of May 17 in the state Capitol's underground parking garage, was brutally beaten about the head with a ball-peen hammer. The 64-year-old father of seven children also was robbed of about $100 and his state car was stolen. His body was found facedown in the 100 block of Bergner Street in Susquehanna Township. Williams was arrested later that same day following a high-speed car chase that started when he was observed driving Telek's Chrysler Fifth Avenue. A hammer with traces of human blood on it was found in the headboard of the bed in William's room at his aunt's house that same day. A forensic pathologist testified the wounds on Telek's head and face matched the shape and size of the hammer's head. Williams was found guilty after six hours of jury deliberations. Along with murder, he was charged with robbery, reckless endangerment and possession of marijuana. Theft charges were later vacated by the state Superior Court. Prosecutors sought the death penalty for the murder but when the jury couldn't reach a unanimous agreement on whether to sentence him to death or give him a life sentence, the judge was bound to impose a life term. According to the state Department of Corrections, 291 of Pennsylvania's 518 juvenile lifers still alive have been resentenced as of June and 129 of them have been released. As Catholic officials and the faithful across Pennsylvania await the release of a comprehensive statewide investigation report into clergy sex abuse, arguably the state's most outspoken Catholic bishop reiterated a warning as to the severity of those findings. "It certainly is going to be sobering," said Bishop Lawrence Persico, the head of the Erie Diocese. "The report is rather graphic, and it will be very detailed on what has occurred." During a phone interview with PennLive this weekend from his diocese, Persico broached broad and specific issues regarding the 18-month-long investigation by the state Office of Attorney General. The grand jury report remains under a court seal amid challenges filed by at least two dozen priests and other individuals named in the report but not charged. "I think in looking historically at it you may see bishops named who probably in view of the way we do things now as compared to 20 or 30 years ago, it would not be considered acceptable that type of action," he said. Norman A. Krumenacker III, the Cambria County judge who supervised the grand jury investigation, last week issued an opinion asserting that the report did not violate the rights of those named and that it was now up to the Supreme Court to lift the stay order so that Shapiro can publicly release the report. Persico, who like the other five bishops whose dioceses were investigated in the probe has read the full report, has consistently provided the most access to the media during the grand jury investigation process. The findings, which exceed 800 pages, are widely expected to expose decades-old abuse of children at the hands of priests in the dioceses of Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Scranton, Erie and Greensburg. The nearly two-year long report was wrapped up earlier this year and Attorney General Josh Shapiro had planned on releasing the findings in late June. Amid petitions from individuals named in the report that the report, as written, violates their constitutional rights, the high court issued a stay order, halting its release. The stay remains in place. In the recent court petitions all names of petitioners have been redacted. In some cases, initials are noted. The court last week received the latest response to challenges from Shapiro, but as of Monday afternoon had not released the attorney general's response to the court. Persico on Saturday said he did not know the individuals who have petitioned the high court seeking to be allowed to revise the report and hold additional hearings in their defense. "I know I did not," Persico said. "I've been calling from the very beginning that the grand jury report be released so it can be a voice for the victims. I'm not sure who all is behind this." Persico has distinguished himself among the five other bishops whose dioceses were investigated in releasing to the public not only the names of priests but lay people who have been credibly accused of child sex crimes or failing to stop those crimes. Persico is widely considered the first bishop in the United States to do that. Persico last week amended a list of credibly accused predators in the Erie Diocese, adding five names to its public list and placing a priest on administrative leave. Persico earlier this year ordered the resignation of David Poulson, a priest at St. Anthony of Padua Church in Cambridge Springs. Poulson was identified by investigators as an alleged predator. Shapiro's office arrested Poulson in May; he was charged with multiple child sex crimes. David Poulson, an Erie Diocese priest, was arrested in May and charged with multiple child sex crimes as a result of a grand jury investigation. Last week, Persico placed the Rev. William A. Rice, a retired priest living in Fryburg, on administrative leave over allegations of sexual harassment involving children and adults. Persico, whose public list of credibly accused predators stands at 62, turned the matter on Rice over to law enforcement. He said he has never transferred a priest whom he knew was an abuser. Persico widely touted the programs and services in place across his diocese to work with victims of clergy sex abuse. He said he has received expressions of gratitude from victims for having made public the names of accused priests and lay people. "No longer do they feel a darkness," the bishop said. "It's an opportunity for them to feel validated. To tell you the truth ever since we started publishing names I'm really surprised at how that has been helpful to victims. I'm a firm believer in that because of what I experience in just speaking to victims." Erie's public list of credibly accused individuals includes current and former priests, priests who have died and 18 laypeople. Any area that's not a big city tends to be short on brain surgeons. It's not a joke or a putdown, but a fact. Brain surgeons -- neurosurgeons as they're officially known -- tend to like the cultural offerings of big cities. Perhaps most significantly, less populated area often lack the case volumes to keep them sufficiently busy. On Monday, UPMC Pinnacle said it bolstered the Harrisburg region supply with the addition of three neurosurgeons who will staff the newly-opened UPMC Pinnacle Neurosurgery practice. The practice is part of PinnacleHealth Neurosurgery and Neurosciences Institute, and is also located at Harrisburg Hospital on Front Street in Harrisburg. However, the surgeons also will meet with patients at UPMC Pinnacle's Community General Osteopathic Hospital in Lower Paxton Township in Dauphin County, and West Shore Hospital in Hampden Township in Cumberland County. Neurosurgeons specialize in operations involving the brain, spine and nervous system. The three new surgeons will also deal with cancers involving those areas, using tools and techniques such as CyberKnife and radiosurgery, UPMC Pinnacle said in a news release. The neurosurgeons are Dr. Chikezie Eseonu, Dr. Eva Pamias-Portalatin and Dr. Robert Schlegel. Eseonu trained at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore and was chief resident, according to UPMC Pinnacle. Pamias-Portalatin is fluent in English and Spanish and Schlegel has 30 years of surgery experience. "We are excited to have such an esteemed group of neurosurgeons joining our team to bring leading-edge experience and expertise as well as compassionate care to our community," Philip Guarneschelli, the president and CEO of UPMC Pinnacle said in the news release. For appointments or more information about the new services, readers can call UPMC Pinnacle Neurosurgery at 717-988-9370. LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) -- The Pennsylvania man charged with the 1992 sexual assault and strangulation of an elementary school teacher has waived his right to a preliminary hearing. Raymond Rowe was scheduled to have a preliminary hearing in Lancaster County Court Thursday, and his attorney did not immediately return a request for comment. LNP newspaper reports the 49-year-old man faces charges of criminal homicide, four counts of rape, two counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and burglary in the death of 25-year-old Christy Mirack. Prosecutors say a formal arraignment where Rowe will enter a plea will take place on Aug. 24 and he remains held without bail. Police were unable to identify Rowe as a suspect until they uncovered genealogical data leading them to the professional DJ. A flash flood warning is in effect until 7:30 a.m. for parts of Dauphin, Lebanon and Schuylkill counties. Flash Flood Warning including Lebanon PA, Hershey PA, Middletown PA until 7:30 AM EDT pic.twitter.com/0YGsdyi1qB NWS State College (@NWSStateCollege) July 23, 2018 The warning was issued at 4:32 a.m. for southeastern Dauphin County, Lebanon County and south-central Schuylkill County by the National Weather Service at State College. Heavy rain from thunderstorms training through this area have resulted in up to another two inches of rain in this region. Some flash flooding is occurring, NWS said. Rain is expected to taper off this morning, and additional rain through 7 a.m. should be an inch or less. Flood warning for Swatara Creek at Harper Tavern. Minor flooding is forecast with crest projected around 10ft early this morning. #PAwx pic.twitter.com/NOXxhUF5FK NWS State College (@NWSStateCollege) July 23, 2018 Watch for ponding water on roads and flooding on small streams and in low-lying areas. For the latest forecasts, visit PennLive's weather page. You can see live weather updates via the National Weather Service and other Twitter sources below. Tweet us at @pennlive with photos of inclement weather at your place, incidents you see on your commute or send a submission to submissions@pennlive.com. UPDATE: The woman is in stable condition Just days after a beach umbrella impaled a tourist at the New Jersey shore, a second beachgoer was injured by an umbrella when one pierced her chest. 47 abc news out of Maryland reports that a 46-year-old Pennsylvania woman was pierced in the chest Sunday in Ocean City, Md., by an unattended rental umbrella. Officials were able to cut off most of the umbrella's pole before taking the woman to the hospital to remove the rest. Her injuries are not considered life threatening. This comes days after an English tourist visiting Seaside Heights, N.J., was impaled in the right ankle by a beach umbrella. Officials used bolt cutters to free the woman from the umbrella before taking her to the hospital. UPDATE: I-81 is now open. A section of I-81 is closed in Lebanon County due to flooding, PennDOT reports. The closure occurred on I-81 south at Exit 90-Route 72 Lebanon around 5:30 a.m. PennDOT said a tow truck was sent to remove a truck disabled in water, and the closure isn't expected to last much longer. Flooding is also reported on Route 22 west at Route 72. A ramp is closed. For more traffic information, follow live traffic updates, accident reports and road closures below from PennDOT, Total Traffic Network and other Twitter sources. Get a look at conditions on local roads -- via PennDOT traffic cameras -- anytime here on PennLive. For Pennsylvania Turnpike updates and possible travel delays visit the Turnpike website here. Tweet us at @pennlive with any incidents you see on your commute or send a submission to submissions@pennlive.com. Many Pennsylvanians are waiting anxiously to see what's in the 40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury's report on the Roman Catholic church's handling of past abuse allegations against its priests. Prosecutors hinted at a release in late June. And then, court battles intervened. But if you think this latest delay is a precursor to killing the report, however, think again. Lawyers on all sides privately seem to expect the document will come out. Church officials have been openly preparing their latter-day congregants for it. The fight now is down to the intersection of a pretty limited battle from a handful of people trying to protect their reputations from what they claim are investigative errors, and an abiding interest by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in the state's sometimes-controversial grand jury process. The question is whether subjects facing criticisms in the report by name - but not criminally charged - should have a chance to make a de facto defense case before said report goes public. That, in itself, would flip the script in a process break where prosecutors have traditionally held all the cards: From deciding, with court approval, what cases to investigate, what witnesses to call and what evidence to present, and then leading those witnesses through testimony with no opportunity for defense cross-examination. Defense attorneys and prosecutors generally agree that's one thing in a criminal investigation. Because there, if a grand jury's presentment leads to charges, any defendant has well-defined and constitutionally protected right to confront their accusers at a trial. The situation, some believe, is far murkier with grand jury reports. There, people who will never be charged for reasons ranging from statute of limitations rules to the death of witnesses can be tagged with allegations or harsh criticism with little formal chance to rebut them. It's especially critical in a case like this where the allegations pertain to child sexual abuse, the petitioners have argued. That's why lawyers in the present case are pressing for a chance for their clients to be permitted to disprove allegations against them before the report is publicly released. Without it, the petitioners' attorneys argued in their briefs, the state will be permitted to conduct "what amounts to a drive-by shooting of those without blame or guilt." It's not an entirely new issue. Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, R-Montgomery County and chair of the state Senate's Judiciary Committee, proposed a bill this session that would bar grand jury reports from making "allegations or assessments" of people who aren't indicted. Action was deferred, a Greenleaf staffer said this spring, because prosecutors thought it was too one-sided. They asked Greenleaf to let a Supreme Court task force on grand jury issues finish its work first. The Supreme Court could beat both lawmakers and its task force to the punch in the present case. The possibility of major change to the grand jury report tool has some prosecutors and victims' advocates worried. State Rep. Mark Rozzi, a Berks County Democrat who has said he himself was raped by a priest as a 13-year-old, expressed outrage Friday at what he considers the hypocrisy in the continuing court battle. "If they want due process, that's fine: give the victims their day in court and the predators and those who are in charge of them can go to town protecting their reputations," Rozzi said in a statment released by his office. "There are really only two ways that victims' voices can be heard and get to the truth: through the court room or grand jury investigations. "For decades, the bishops have fought statutes of limitation reform against the former and are now battling the disclosure of this grand jury investigation... it must stop." But attorneys for the petitioners argue that Pennsylvania is an outlier in what it permits in non-indicting reports. Some states, like New York, guarantee anyone named in a grand jury investigative report the chance to personally appear before the same grand jury, to provide their own side of the story. And reports that simply result in recommendations of policy or legislative changes are not supposed to be critical of any identifiable person. What a Pennsylvania grand jury judge can permit now, in his or her discretion, is the chance for a report's subjects to file a written response that is released concurrently with the grand jury's findings. We know the supervising judge in this case, Norman Krumenacker III of Cambria County, has granted numerous individuals that right in this case. But attorneys for the petitioners, who to date are still unnamed, argue even that written response is not a sufficient to protect the specific reputational rights granted to individuals by the Pennsylvania Constitution. Attorneys for Attorney General Josh Shapiro have filed a response brief with the state court, but it remained under seal late Friday afternoon. Advocates for prosecutors note they aren't operating without any guideposts here. Greg Rowe, director of legislation and policy for the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association, noted prosecutors can face professional sanctions if they sign off on assertions that aren't grounded in fact. Rowe said whatever emerges out of the either the pending Supreme Court review or the separate grand jury task force, prosecutors are hopeful the report function is preserved. It's too important a function in bringing to light problems with state policy or institutional behavior. And, he added, hearing individuals' stories as part of the process can be an important part of both bringer greater understanding to why certain issues play out as they do, and effectuating positive change. Kristen Houser of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, agreed. She and others hope this particular report will push lawmakers to broaden Pennsylvania's current deadlines for bringing criminal and civil actions in sexual abuse cases. Houser noted that, assuming prosecutors have done their due diligence, the people who have been identified in this report have for years avoided any public accountability for their actions, and escaped the ignominy of having criminal records. "While you may have a right to protect your reputation, it seems that the first line of defense should be your own actions," Houser said. "This is a crime for which very few people take responsibility. The most common response is, 'I didn't do these things' whether they've been convicted or not. "But there are real people who are responsible for sexually abusing one in four girls and one in six boys before they turn 18." Parts of Dauphin, Lebanon and Schuylkill counties are among the areas hardest hit currently by flooding caused by the storms streaming through central Pennsylvania. One of the spots hardest hit so far appears to be the Pine Grove area of Schuylkill County, where a shelter has opened at Pine Grove Area High School. The highest threat for flash flooding is in south-central Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency says. The threat also includes north-central and eastern parts of the state, with at least another 1-2 inches forecast. With more rain expected this week, much of central Pennsylvania is under a flash flood watch until Wednesday, the National Weather Service said. Flooding has closed Hersheypark, ZooAmerica and Knoebel's. There could also be damaging wind gusts in storms today in south-central Pa. 24-72 HR Hazard Overview: Significant #flashflood threat ongoing through late Wed o Highest threat in SCPA o Threat includes NCPA & EasternPA Isolated damaging wind gusts possible in storms today SCPA Mild to warm and muggy air continues all week pic.twitter.com/PPY5Cj9Mub Ready PA (@ReadyPA) July 23, 2018 A flood warning is in effect through 7:45 p.m. Monday for eastern Dauphin County, Lebanon County, central York County, northwestern Lancaster County and western Schuylkill County. The Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center says that after 2 to 7 inches of rain over the weekend, another 3 to 5 inches could fall over the next three days, which could cause "potentially dangerous, even life-threatening" flooding. Looks like a difficult couple of days on the Swatara Creek in Pennsylvania: Posted by US National Weather Service Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center on Monday, July 23, 2018 There are numerous road closures in low-lying areas, and a water main broke and a sinkhole opened Monday on Market Street in Upper Allen Township. PennDOT anticipates the number of road closures and possible damage to increase over the next two days with the weather forecast, said spokeswoman Fritzi Schreffler. "Across the county there are numerous roads closed - the comment was that anything that crosses the Swatara Creek is flooded," she said. Spokesman Greg Penny said later Monday that no problems currently exist on any of the region's interstates or major highways. "We have some of our low volume roads closed throughout our eight county district, but they are situations in which the streams rise and overflow the road and then subside," Penny said. "Our biggest concern is in Lebanon County with roads that cross over the Swatara Creek. As the Swatara Creek continues to rise and swell, bridges will be closed over the creek, and we may sustain road and bridge damage. We're monitoring now and through the night." Some central Pennsylvania creeks are expected to crest above or approach flood stages later this week, the National Weather Service says. Is your local stream at flood level? The Dauphin County Commissioners warned residents living in flood-prone areas to monitor weather conditions and prepare for more flooding over the next three days. County Commissioner Mike Pries urged residents along the Swatara Creek in particular to be ready for flash flooding in the coming days. A flood warning has been issued so far for the Swatara Creek at Harpers Tavern in Lebanon County, and in Dauphin County at Hershey and Middletown. The stream is above flood stage at Hershey and Harpers. A flash-flood watch is in effect throughout central Pennsylvania until Wednesday night, the National Weather Service says. The flash flood watch covers Cumberland, Dauphin, Lebanon, Perry, York and Adams counties in the Harrisburg area. The watch also includes Columbia, Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon, Juniata, Mifflin, Montour, Northumberland, Snyder, Centre, Clinton, Lycoming and Union counties. The heavy rains over the past two days have produced the flooding in central Pennsylvania today. "You've had two days in a row of some very heavy rainfall," said Dave Samuhel, a meteorologist with AccuWeather. "It's led to a lot of problems." It's not just the volume of rain, Samuhel said. The rain fell very rapidly across central Pennsylvania over the past two days. "We're quickly piling up two or three inches of rain in places," Samuhel said. "The ground is saturated. There's nowhere for it to go. And that's what's really led to some of the major problems we've seen." The Pa. Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) said it's working with its county partners to monitor conditions in areas that are seeing or might see flooding. Ruth Miller, director of communications, said two state Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Teams are being placed on Ready status. "They will be stationed in Johnstown and Ft. Indiantown Gap. So far, local-level water rescue teams have been able to handle water rescues but because flash flooding happens so quickly, we are better positioned to assist if we have personnel ready to go when the request comes in," she said. In addition, she said that four high clearance vehicles from the Pennsylvania National Guard are working in Schuylkill County to help evacuate residents to shelters as needed. In Northumberland County, about two dozen basements pumpings and a street lifting up from flooding has resulted in the Mount Carmel mayor declaring a state of emergency, said Steve Jeffery, Northumberland County EMA director. Basements, which were flooded several inches to several feet, were pumped out and the situation was under control by about 12:30 p.m., he said, with people able to stay in their homes. The water came from stormwater backing up through storm drains in basements. In the Philadelphia area, a flood warning is in effect for the Brandywine Creek at Chaddsford, affecting Chester and Delaware counties. It is at 9.5 feet, exceeding flood stage at 9 feet. A flash-flood watch is in effect through late tonight for Berks, Delaware, eastern Chester, eastern Montgomery, Lehigh, Lower Bucks, Philadelphia, Upper Bucks, western Chester, and western Montgomery counties. The National Weather Service is also evaluating whether a tornado touched down overnight Sunday in Heidelberg Township, Lehigh County. A flood advisory is also in effect for Bradford County. Power outages have been reduced from earlier today, when more than 8,000 were without electricity. First Energy reports 2,409 customers are still without power in Pennsylvania. The most are in Centre County, where 661 are without power; Monroe County, 490; Berks County, 285; and York, 274. PPL has 1,349 people without power, including 363 in Monroe County, 271 in Juniata County, 260 in Columbia County, 59 in Cumberland County and 56 in Dauphin County. Russian strongman Vladimir Putin doesn't deserve to be rewarded with a return trip to the White House and instead should be required to extradite to the United States the 12 intelligence officers accused of tampering in the 2016 presidential election, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said Monday. "I don't know why [President Donald Trump] would invite him," to Washington, Casey, of Scranton, said. Putin is a "brutal dictator" and shouldn't get a "do-over" after last week's widely criticized summit in Helsinki in which Trump appeared to side with Putin on election meddling over the U.S. intelligence community, "For him to get a forum when he's aiding and abetting the Assad regime [in Syria] when he directed operations against our election and undermined democracy all around the world," Casey said. "Why would he get another forum." Reminded that the United States does not have an extradition treaty with Russia, making it entirely likely that the intelligence agents indicted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller will never stand trial in the United States, Casey nonetheless advocated for some alternative mechanism to bring them to justice. Casey's remarks on Putin during an interview after a wide-ranging speech the two-term senator delivered to the monthly Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon at the Harrisburg Hilton. In a speech, and a question-and-answer session stretching nearly an hour, Casey, who's running for re-election for a third term against Republican Lou Barletta this fall, aggressively avoided making headlines or courting controversy. But that doesn't meant that he didn't come to the table with some strongly held views. Casey said he had "no idea" why Trump was so deferential to Putin and it was "an outrage that he [Trump] threw our intelligence agencies under the bus." "I don't know why he [Trump] couldn't say to him [Putin] very plainly, 'I know you did this and we don't even have to debate it. And if you do it again, there will be consequences." That hardline stance didn't preclude engagement on other issues, such as Syria, Casey said, "but ... the idea you can pretend [election meddling] didn't happen and not confront it? The failure to do that is bad enough." Casey's comments Monday put him on the same page as his Republican colleague from Pennsylvania, U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, who has similarly defended the U.S. intelligence community in the wake of the Helsinki summit. On Monday, Trump, who has continued to defend his performance in Helsinki, again took to Twitter to trash his critics. "When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING," Trump wrote. "We merely talked about future benefits for both countries. Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media." When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries. Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Through a campaign spokesman, Barletta said it's "shortsighted policy to ignore our adversaries rather than engage with them. Barletta "believes we should continue to hold Russia accountable and work toward diplomatic solutions when we can," the spokesman, David Jackson, said. Casey stood by his decision to oppose the nomination of federal Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court, insisting that it was still the product of a "corrupt bargain" between the White House and such hard right interests as The Heritage Foundation and The Federalist Society. Kavanaugh's name was included on a list, formulated by those groups, of high nominees that candidate Trump, and later President Trump, said he'd exclusively rely on to fill vacancies on the high court. "The Heritage Foundation and Federalist Society are celebrating," Casey said, adding, " ... I cannot support someone on that list. Barletta's campaign blasted back, saying "no one is fooled by Casey's blind partisan obstruction. The people of Pennsylvania elected Bob Casey to do his job, not ignore his responsibilities to satisfy his radical base." Casey has said he'll meet with Kavanaugh if asked, but remains a "no" vote for confirmation. Casey never once mentioned Barletta, R-11th District, by name, or alluded to him. But he was sharply critical of the White House's tough immigration policies, which Barletta, an early Trump backer, supports. Casey told the crowd at the Hilton that he does not support calls from some quarters on the left to abolish Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, the sub-section of the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security that was charged with carrying out the administration's polarizing family-separation policy. "ICE abolished? No, for sure," he said, adding that "doesn't mean like that, for any public agency, they shouldn't be subject to reviews in the appropriations process. I hope we have ICE focused on bad guys instead of current policy where they are dealing with families and kids at the border. I don't agree with the call to eliminate it." Asked for his solution to the nation's seemingly unsolvable immigration reform issue, Casey called for an approach similar to a 2013 bill that passed with a bipartisan majority in the Senate before disappearing in the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives. Asked directly if he'd be a "yes" vote for any potential impeachment proceeding brought to the Senate, Casey said such talk was premature. "We're still waiting on the report from [Special Counsel] Robert Mueller," Casey said "We'll just have to wait and see what's in that report." Kathleen Lord, the mother of conservative commentator Jeffrey Lord, of Camp Hill, has died after a long illness. She was 99. Lord, a former Reagan White House aide who found fame defending then-candidate Donald Trump on CNN in 2016, made the news public on his Twitter account on Sunday. His work has occasionally appeared on PennLive's Opinion page. My Mom, Kathleen Lord, passed away this afternoon. She was 99 and at peace at home. God bless you Mom. I love you. And thank you. Jeff Lord (@realJeffreyLord) July 21, 2018 CNN contributor Jeffrey Lord and his 97 year old mother Kathleen https://t.co/JeqrlsI1K7 via @YouTube -Thank you Mom. You are missed. But we soldier on! Jeff Lord (@realJeffreyLord) July 22, 2018 In a statement released to PennLive, Lord said: "She was an absolutely wonderful mother. She always emphasized two things to me. 'Anticipate' was the first-think ahead. Second, 'I don't care what the Joneses think. I care what you think. Always think for yourself.'" "She was a real role-model, always active in her community," Lord continued. "She made our house the place to go to for my friends when I was growing up. I loved her very much and I was so glad I was here to take care of her when she finally needed help in her old age. I will treasure her always not to mention our time together in her last years." Mrs. Lord, known as "Kit," was the subject of a September 2016 PennLive profile: Kathleen "Kit" Lord's failing eyesight makes it hard to see him, even when her 65-year-old son's face fills up a TV screen. But she always recognizes the voice. "He talks all the time," Kit says, sharing her irritation with the constantly ringing phone and his numerous commutes to be on air in New York. Jeffrey Lord is scheduled to be on CNN every weeknight now through Election Day, trying to find balance between political analysis and caring for his elderly mother. He's attracting attention and scrutiny as one of the first people who said Donald Trump should run for president. In public, local supporters cheer when his name is mentioned during Trump rallies and ask for selfies when they see him in the supermarket. At home, he's caring for a mother who often doesn't know who he is. "It's wistful," Lord says. "It's emotional when your mother disappears like this, but I know she'll come back." By Diana Polson Attacks on the poor seem to be coming from all directions these days, from Trump's 2017 tax bill shifting incredible amounts of money upwards to attacks on popular and important programs like SNAP and Medicaid. Most recently, the Trump administration declared that poverty no longer exists in the United States. The White House Council of Economic Advisors said in a report: "Based on historical standards of material wellbeing and the terms of engagement, our War on Poverty is largely over and a success." A success! Who knew? Anyone who doesn't reside in an ivory tower knows this couldn't be further from the truth. A recent United Nations report found that poverty in the U.S. is alive and well: "About 40 million [Americans] live in poverty, 18.5 million in extreme poverty and 5.3 million live in Third World conditions of absolute poverty." Considering this context, it makes the recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision that, in effect, reinstates Pennsylvania's General Assistance (GA) program a decision worth celebrating. GA was a program that provided a small amount of money--$205 per month--to the most vulnerable individuals in Pennsylvania who were not eligible for any other programs. This included disabled or sick adults without children, domestic violence survivors, adults caring for someone who is sick or disabled, adults participating in alcohol and other drug treatment programs, and children living with an unrelated adult. Let me give you the background: In 2012, the Pennsylvania General Assembly and former Gov. Tom Corbett enacted Act 80 which, among other things, eliminated the General Assistance (GA) program. Community Legal Services challenged the constitutionality of Act 80 and, last Wednesday, in a 7-0 decision, the state Supreme Court agreed that in rushing to pass the law the General Assembly violated the procedural requirements of the state Constitution. The state will have to restore the General Assistance program though we do not yet know how long this reimplementation will take. General Assistance should never have been eliminated. Ending the program caused widespread anguish and increased homelessness as 68,000 Pennsylvanians immediately lost benefits and others no longer had a chance to receive them. While $200 a month may not seem like much, it made a huge difference to many people in crisis throughout the state. It made it possible for some people to have a roof over their heads instead of living in the streets. General Assistance provided temporary support for those who were in a drug treatment program or those going through the lengthy process of applying for Social Security disability benefits. It also provided some support for individuals fleeing domestic violence, making it more possible for survivors to live on their own without feeling like their only option was to go back to their abusers for financial support. Eliminating General Assistance didn't even save the state that much money. Many people on General Assistance were waiting for their application for Social Security Disability to be approved and when it was, the state was reimbursed for some of the cost of their benefits. Savings from cutting General Assistance were reduced by the increased costs to state and local governments in incarceration and services for the homeless. And no one abused the program: for those who qualified for a reason other than disability, benefits were limited to nine months in a life time. This is a time for cautious celebration. We hope the General Assistance program is now secure, but we do so with our eyes open. Given the worsening climate of blaming the poor or denying their existence, we would not be surprised if some legislators will move in September to repeal it again. Let's make sure our legislators know that we support the re-establishment of General Assistance and basic support of the most vulnerable amongst us. Diana Polson is a policy analyst at the Pennsylvania Budget & Policy Center, a progressive think-tank in Harrisburg. (Editor's Note: The following editorial first appeared in The Washington Post) In February 2016, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, R, testified before the House Oversight Committee and acknowledged what the residents of Flint, Michigan, well knew: The city's water crisis was caused by "a failure of government at all levels. Local, state and federal officials . . . all failed the families of Flint." On Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency's inspector general released a sharply critical report that arrives at the same conclusion. As was widely reported at the time, much of the responsibility for the crisis rests with the city and state governments, particularly the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. After the city switched its water source from Detroit to the polluted Flint River, officials failed to implement two federal regulations: They did not maintain corrosion control treatment or keep an inventory of lead service lines to identify critical sampling sites. This allowed corrosive river water to react with the pipes and release lead into the city's drinking supply - and may have left officials without a clear sense of the problem until it was far too late. But the inspector general's newly released audit describes how the EPA - and specifically its Region 5 office, which oversaw Michigan - also failed to respond effectively and efficiently. According to the report, the agency "did not establish clear roles and responsibilities, risk assessment procedures, effective communication and proactive oversight tools." Though concerns were brought to EPA staff on numerous occasions, they repeatedly underestimated the urgency and scope of the crisis. Between May 2014 and January 2016, regional EPA staff received no fewer than 87 citizen complaints about drinking water. In a particularly damning episode, an EPA scientist in Michigan drafted a memo describing the potential of serious health risks. Despite this mounting evidence, the agency took months to intervene. In response to these failures, the inspector general's office has issued nine recommendations for the EPA. It calls on the agency to create a risk identification system for state drinking-water programs, track citizen complaints and provide training on the oversight tools available to drinking-water staff. It also advises the EPA to release a clear escalation policy that outlines when it should intervene in states. These are common-sense suggestions that would help close the oversight and communication gaps highlighted by the report. But perhaps the report's most important recommendation is for the EPA to update the Lead and Copper Rule, which dictates how communities control lead in drinking water. The rule is almost universally disliked, earning criticism from environmental groups, local governments and the water industry for being complex, outdated and insufficient. Yet the Trump administration has delayed revising it three times. It is long past time to improve monitoring, clarify standards and strengthen protections for vulnerable communities. If the EPA is serious about averting another Flint, it should take these steps soon. Read 'TAPPED OUT' and share your comments on Facebook. By Marc A. Thiessen If President Donald Trump wants to shut down the critics of his performance this week in Helsinki and strengthen U.S. national security, he can do so with one bold move: Announce he is moving out most U.S. forces currently stationed in Germany and sending them to Poland. Marc Thiessen (Washington Post photo) The Polish government recently presented Trump with a formal proposal to move U.S. troops from Stuttgart, Germany, to a new permanent U.S. military base in Poland. Trump should take up Warsaw on this offer. Moving U.S. troops to Poland would be a bold, historic decision on par with Trump's decision to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem. Not only would it better position American forces, it also would completely flummox Trump's critics in the U.S. foreign policy establishment. After spending the past week accusing him of being Putin's puppet, they would look foolish if they turned around and criticized him for antagonizing Russia. And after attacking him for undermining NATO, they could hardly complain that he is taking unprecedented action to shore up the alliance's Eastern flank. The Polish government recently presented Trump with a formal proposal to move U.S. troops from Stuttgart, Germany, to a new permanent U.S. military base in Poland. Trump should take up Warsaw on this offer. Such a move would reinforce the tough line the president took on defense spending at last week's NATO summit, by punishing a deadbeat ally that does not meet its NATO commitments and rewarding a steadfast ally that does. Why should Germany -- a country that spends just 1.24 percent of its gross domestic product on defense -- continue to be rewarded with the economic benefit of U.S. bases? Better to station U.S. forces in a country such as Poland that is providing what Trump has called a "truly magnificent" example as "one of the NATO countries that has actually achieved the benchmark for investment in our common defense." Trump can further argue that Germany's actions beyond its inadequate defense spending have necessitated this move. At NATO, Trump blasted the Germany-to-Russia Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, declaring "it's a very bad thing for NATO." He's right. The pipeline not only makes Germany more dependent on Moscow for energy, it also risks the security of Poland and other Eastern European allies. Right now, all Russian gas exports to Western Europe go through pipelines that cross Poland and Slovakia -- which means Russia cannot cut off gas to NATO allies in the East without also cutting off its lucrative exports to the West. But once the new pipeline is built, sending gas directly to Germany under the Baltic Sea, Russia will be able to shut off energy supplies to Eastern Europe far more easily. Trump can correctly say that he needs to shore up the security of NATO's East European allies because of the German government's sign-off on the pipeline. The move would also address a major U.S. strategic concern about its ability to deter Russia. The Post recently reported that U.S. military commanders are worried that if they had to quickly move U.S. troops east to head off a military conflict with Moscow, "the most powerful military in the world could get stuck in a traffic jam" as "Humvees . . . snarl behind plodding semis on narrow roads" and "U.S. tanks . . . crush rusting bridges too weak to hold their weight." Stationing American forces in Poland would alleviate that problem. As the Polish government points out in its proposal, "a U.S. permanent presence in Poland [offers] a more forward operating location than Stuttgart provides, would greatly alleviate well founded fears that fellow Eastern European and Baltic governments have that Moscow would be able to overtake defending forces prior to the support of U.S. and NATO forces in Stuttgart could provide." The move would also benefit U.S. taxpayers. The Polish government has offered up to $2 billion to cover most of the costs of building such a base and supporting U.S. troops in Poland, declaring it is committed "to share the burden of defense spending [and] make the decision more cost-effective for the U.S. government." This should be attractive to Trump, who has criticized other alliesfor not paying enough for the cost of stationing U.S. forces on their territory. And there is one last good reason to do it: Poland loves Trump. When Trump spoke in Warsaw last year, his speech was repeatedly interrupted by chants of "Donald Trump! Donald Trump!" Such a response would be unimaginable in Berlin. The U.S. military presence in Germany is a legacy of the Cold War, when we positioned our forces to deter a Soviet invasion from East Germany. Today the need for deterrence is undiminished, but the potential line of contact has moved east. So should the U.S. military. A former George W. Bush administration aide, Marc A. Thiessen is a columnist for The Washington Post, where this piece first appears. His work appears frequently on PennLive Opinion. From tours to premieres to full-length classics, this is an exciting week in ballet. Weve rounded up programs by Tulsa Ballet, BalletNext, National Ballet of Canada, Pennsylvania Ballet, Charlotte Ballet and the Joffrey Ballet, as well as an evening of dance and music curated by Damian Woetzel and featuring some of ballets biggest stars, to give you a sense of whats happening on ballet stages this week. Tulsa Ballet This Oklahoma-based company is heading east for a five-day run at The Joyce Theater in New York City, opening March 6. Their first time at the Joyce in 9 years, the company is bringing a world premiere by resident choreographer Ma Cong as well as works by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and Helen Pickett. Check out a preview below. BalletNext Former American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Michele Wiless company BalletNext returns to New York Live Arts on March 6 after a year-long hiatus as Wiles welcomed the birth of her first child. The program features four new works choreographed by Wiles (one co-choreographed by and performed with deaf dancer Bailey Anne Vincent). The company has been posting lots of behind-the-scenes rehearsal footage on Instagram, as well as glamorous shots by dance photographer Nisian Hughes. DEMO by Damian Woetzel: Now On March 7 Damian Woetzel presents an evening of recent dance commissions at The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Ballet stars Sara Mearns and Patricia Delgado will perform alongside a number of modern dance artists; Mearns will dance Alexei Ratmanskys solo Fandago and Delgado will perform in two works by postmodern choreographer Pam Tanowitz. Catch a glimpse of Mearns fiery solo in the video below (skip to 2:27). National Ballet of Canada From March 8-18, National Ballet of Canada presents the classic Sleeping Beauty. Their version was choreographed by Rudolf Nureyev in 1966 and was first performed by NBoC in 1972. Need a quick refresher on the story? The company put together this fun animated synopsis. Pennsylvania Ballet Pennsylvania Ballet is following the story ballet trend this week with the company premiere of Marius Petipas Swan Lake, running from March 8-18 at the Academy of Music. While the company has performed shortened or re-imagined versions in the past, this is their first time presenting the full-length original, re-staged by artistic director Angel Corella. Check out those turns! Charlotte Ballet On March 9 Charlotte Ballet is presenting the American premiere of The Most Incredible Thing, the fairytale pop ballet choreographed by Javier de Frutos to music by the Pet Shop Boys. Running through March 18 in Charlottes Knight Theater, this retelling of the Hans Christian Andersen fable is sure to thrill audiences. Check out the compilation of rehearsal footage below, or this full length video of the production performed in London in 2011. The Joffrey Ballet This is certainly the season for Romeo and Juliet, and The Joffrey Ballet is no exception. On March 9 the Chicago-based company is bringing their production, choreographed by Krzysztof Pastor, to The Music Centers Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. The following day theyll also open their production of Orpheus and Eurydice, directed and choreographed by John Neumeier, in collaboration with the L.A. Opera. Theyll be in L.A. through March 25. By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON (Reuters) Accused Russian agent Maria Butina had wider high-level contacts in Washington than previously known, taking part in 2015 meetings between a visiting Russian official and two senior officials at the U.S. Federal Reserve and Treasury Department. The meetings, revealed by several people familiar with the sessions and a report from a Washington think tank that arranged them, involved Stanley Fischer, Fed vice chairman at the time, and Nathan Sheets, then Treasury undersecretary for international affairs. Butina traveled to the United States in April 2015 with Alexander Torshin, then the Russian Central Bank deputy governor, and they took part in separate meetings with Fischer and Sheets to discuss U.S.-Russian economic relations during Democratic former President Barack Obamas administration. The two meetings, which have not been previously reported, reveal a wider circle of high-powered connections that Butina sought to cultivate with American political leaders and special interest groups. Butinas lawyer, Robert Driscoll, did not have any details about her participation in meetings with Treasury and Federal Reserve officials when asked about them on Friday. The meetings with Fischer and Sheets were arranged by the Center for the National Interest, a Washington foreign policy think tank that often advocates pro-Russia views. The meetings were documented in a Center for the National Interest report seen by Reuters that outlined its Russia-related activities from 2013 to 2015. The report described the meetings as helping bring together leading figures from the financial institutions of the United States and Russia. A judge on Wednesday ordered Butina, 29, jailed until her trial after U.S. prosecutors argued she has ties to Russian intelligence and could flee the United States. Butina has pleaded not guilty to charges she acted as a foreign agent for Russia. She is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday for a status conference in her case. Butina worked for Torshin, who has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and served as his interpreter at various Washington events. Fischer, an in email to Reuters, confirmed he met with Torshin and his interpreter. While he could not recall details, Fischer said the conversation involved the state of the Russian economy and Torshins new role as deputy central bank governor. Another person familiar with the meeting, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it occurred on April 7, 2015, and confirmed Butina attended. Federal prosecutors have accused Butina of conspiring with two American citizens and a top Russian official to influence U.S. policy toward Russia and infiltrate a gun rights group believed to be the National Rifle Association. The NRA is an influential pro-gun lobby with close ties to Republican politicians including President Donald Trump. Questions relating to Russia have cast a cloud over Trumps presidency. ADVANCE THE INTERESTS The description of the top Russian official mentioned in the indictment matches Torshin. The indictment said that beginning in about 2015 Butina and the official conspired to advance the interests of the Russian Federation. I recall Mr. Torshin mentioning, as an aside, that he planned to attend a meeting of the National Rifle Association, a fact that I considered irrelevant to our conversation, Fischer wrote to Reuters. Sheets declined to comment through Ted Smith, a spokesman for asset management firm PGIM, where Sheets currently works. Fischer and Sheets met with many international banking officials as part of their official duties. The Treasury Department in April imposed sanctions on Torshin and a number of other Russian businessmen and government officials in Putins inner circle. The think tank hosted Trump at an event at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington in April 2016 also attended by Sergei Kislyak, Russias ambassador to Washington at the time. The April 2015 visit by Butina and Torshin came about a year after Obamas administration imposed sanctions on Russia for its annexation of Ukraines Crimea region. Two months earlier, in February 2015, the groups Russian-born CEO, Dimitri Simes, traveled to Moscow, where he met with Putin and other Russian officials, the organizations records showed. During the same April 2015 trip, Torshin and Butina also participated in a private off the record discussion at the center about the Russian financial situation and its impact on Russian politics, according to people familiar with the meeting and the think tanks report. That event was moderated by the groups chairman emeritus, former AIG CEO Maurice Hank Greenberg, the report showed. Greenberg did not return calls for comment. Among the think tanks board members is David Keene, a former NRA president and former chairman of the American Conservative Union. Keene has previously been photographed alongside Butina at events. Paul Saunders, the think tanks executive director, said Torshin spoke at an April 2015 event about the Russian banking system and Butina attended. Saunders said people at the organization cannot recall details of Torshins presentation. We were unaware of any charges or suspicions of illegal or inappropriate conduct or of any connections to Russian intelligence services, Saunders said in an email. Prosecutors said the think tanks magazine published an article by Butina in June 2015 in which she said certain U.S. politicians and Russians share many common interests. Randy Weber, a Republican U.S. congressman from Texas, also met with Torshin during the April trip, according to the think tanks documents. A spokeswoman for Weber did not respond to multiple calls or emails seeking comment. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Damon Darlin and Will Dunham, Grant McCool) 162 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard DUBAI (Reuters) Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday cautioned U.S. President Donald Trump about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying war with Iran is the mother of all wars, but did not rule out peace between the two countries. Iran faces increased U.S. pressure and looming sanctions after Trumps decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Irans nuclear program. Addressing a gathering of Iranian diplomats, Rouhani said: Mr Trump, dont play with the lions tail, this would only lead to regret, the state new agency IRNA reported. America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars, Rouhani said, leaving open the possibility of peace between the two countries, at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Irans security and interests, Rouhani said, in an apparent reference to reported efforts by Washington to destabilize Irans Islamic government. In Washington, U.S. officials familiar with the matter told Reuters that the Trump administration had launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear program and its support of militant groups. Current and former U.S. officials said the campaign painted Iranian leaders in a harsh light, at times using information that is exaggerated or contradicts other official pronouncements, including comments by previous administrations. Rouhani scoffed at Trumps threat to halt Iranian oil exports and said Iran has a dominant position in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping waterway. Anyone who understands the rudiments of politics doesnt say we will stop Irans oil exportswe have been the guarantor of the regional waterways security throughout history, Rouhani said, cited by the semi-official ISNA news agency. Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday backed Rouhanis suggestion that Iran may block Gulf oil exports if its own exports are halted. Rouhanis apparent threat earlier this month to disrupt oil shipments from neighboring countries came in reaction to efforts by Washington to force all countries to stop buying Iranian oil. Iranian officials have in the past threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for any hostile U.S. action. On Sunday, Irans ground forces commander became the latest military figure to back Rouhanis apparent threat, the semi-official news agency Tasnim reported. The Strait of Hormuz region must either be safe for all or be insecure for everyone, said General Kioumars Heydari, quoted by Tasnim. Separately, a top Iranian military commander warned that the Trump government might be preparing to invade Iran. The enemys behavior is unpredictable, Tasnim quoted military chief of staff General Mohammad Baqeri as saying. Although the current American government does not seem to speak of a military threat, according to precise information it has been trying to persuade the U.S. military to launch a military invasion (of Iran), Baqeri said. Irans oil exports could fall by as much as two-thirds by the end of the year because of new U.S. sanctions, putting oil markets under huge strain amid supply outages elsewhere. Washington initially planned to shut Iran out of global oil markets completely after Trump abandoned the deal that limited Irans nuclear ambitions, demanding all other countries stop buying Iranian crude by November. But the United States has somewhat eased its stance, saying it may grant sanction waivers to some allies that are particularly reliant on Iranian supplies. (Reporting by Dubai newsroom; editing by Jason Neely and Dale Hudson) 992 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Former FBI Director, and Republican, James Comey issued a plea to Democrats to avoid rushing to the far left because the middle wants sensible and balanced leadership. Comey tweeted: Democrats, please, please dont lose your minds and rush to the socialist left. This president and his Republican Party are counting on you to do exactly that. Americas great middle wants sensible, balanced, ethical leadership. James Comey (@Comey) July 22, 2018 Former FBI Director Comey is right about one big point. Trump and the Republicans would love nothing more than to see Democrats move to the very far left. Trump and the GOP would love to run against Bernie Sanders. It has long been reported that the Republican Partys opposition file on Sanders is two feet thick. The Democratic Party is a big tent party. There is room for the far left. The fiscally conservative left, the socially conservative left, and the liberals, the progressives, and the moderates. Democrats are what the Republican Party used to be roughly 10-15 years ago when it actually possessed different types of Republicans. The Democratic Party is inclusive. One of the most common statements that I hear from former Republicans who switch to the Democratic Party is how welcomed and included they feel. Democrats are diverse and tolerant. The political center has been abandoned by Trump and the Republicans. The political middle of the country is there for the taking for Democrats. It is worth noting that the primary fight between Clinton and Sanders in 2016 wasnt about policy differences, but how to arrive at the desired policy outcomes. For example, Democrats agree that people should be able to see a doctor when they get sick, and that tax cuts should go to the middle and lower classes, not the rich. As Trump has taken the GOP to the far right, if Democrats stick to the center, they will be poised to win big in November. For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group. 2.5k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Democrats are turning up the pressure as Americans across the country are demanding to see Trumps tax returns after his summit fiasco with Putin. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on the Senate floor,We need to see the Presidents tax returns, the common practice of all presidents in recent memory, but needed far more, now because one of the most logical explanations of the presidents obsequious and almost inexplicable actions towards President Putin is that Putin has something over on him. Maybe it would be revealed in the tax returns, and if nothing is there the president should have no problem releasing them. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) said during a Senate Finance Committee meeting, The presidents refusal to adhere to a 40-year plus, bipartisan, pro-transparency tradition of releasing tax returns, after what happened this Monday, can go on no longer. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) said during a House Ways and Means Committee meeting, This committee could act right now to hold this president to account, he said. We must know if Mr. Putin has compromised our commander in chief. However, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) admitted that House Republicans have zero interest in looking into Trumps tax returns. The dividing line is clear. Democrats and the majority of Americans want to see Trumps tax returns. A 2017 ABC News/Washington Post poll found that 74% of Americans want Trumps tax returns released. These numbers have remained steady since Trump first refused to release them as a candidate, but Trumps subservience to Putin during their summit has added new urgency to the calls. Special Counsel Robert Mueller likely already has Trumps tax returns. He probably already knows where the bodies are buried as he is putting the pieces of his investigation together, but for a nation looking for answers for why the president looks owned by Putin, the tax returns might be the key that unlocks Trumps darkest secrets. For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group. 563 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard After Trumps Twitter meltdown aimed at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, two respected conservative columnists advised that the world ignore Trumps attempt to distract from his Russia debacle. Trump is trying to change the subject to Iran. Lets not let him, Max Boot wrote in the Washington Post. Referring to Trumps desperate attempt to look strong, Boot pointed out that Trump is wagging the dog and doing what he falsely- accused Obama of doing. In order to get elected, @BarackObama will start a war with Iran. That was Donald Trump tweeting in 2011. As usual, Trump is doing exactly what he accuses his opponents of doing, in this case wagging the dog, Boot wrote. Boot says Trumps performance in Helsinki, when he sided with Putin against his own country, shows that Hillary Clinton was right, This is part of a pattern. During a presidential debate, when Hillary Clinton accused Trump presciently of being a Russian puppet, he shot back: No, youre the puppet. The humiliation in Helsinki confirmed Clintons warning and explains Trumps rhetorical escalation against Iran. Think of Trump on Iran like the blustering, self-described BMOC who just got handed his walking papers in public by the hottest girl in school. Thats Trump trying to regroup his Strongman persona by trying to bully Iran on Twitter like the Junior High School Student he is at his core. Conservative Jennifer Rubin also in The Post wrote, Ignore Trumps clueless bluster on Iran. Rubin pointed out that we should be more concerned that we have no policy on Iran and are in fact encouraging their aggression by our passivity and indulgence of Russia, Commentators might become alarmed that Trumps rhetoric will set off a rhetorical escalation that leads to increasing conflict on the ground in the Middle East tinderbox. Instead, we should be more concerned that we have no Iran policy to speak of and, in fact, are encouraging Iranian aggression by our passivity in Iran and indulgence of its ally Russia. Aaron David Miller, a veteran of Middle East negotiations, tells me: One of my former bosses, George Shultz, used to say that when you dont have a policy, the temptation grows to give a speech, or in Trumps case to tweet. We have no coherent Iran policy.' Rouhani warned Trump earlier not to play with Iran or he would regret it. Iran faces increased U.S. pressure and looming sanctions after Trumps decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Irans nuclear program. Addressing a gathering of Iranian diplomats, Rouhani said: Mr Trump, dont play with the lions tail, this would only lead to regret, the state new agency IRNA reported. Donald Trump cant actually lead this country not only because he is inept, but also because his interests do not correspond with those of the country. That is why his tax cuts have actually corresponded with a DROP in wages, rather than the touted rise in wages. Trumps interests are with the top 1%, the mutually corrupt, and the dictators of the world who are deft at taking public resources and enriching themselves and their cronies with them. Trump cant stand up to Putin for some reason, and since he refuses to explain why, he is trying to wag the dog on Iran. I am quoting two conservative thinkers for two reasons one, because when it comes from Trumps side the criticism has more of a sting due to the sharp divide in our country right now (thanks, Russia!) and therefore cant be dismissed as just proof of the partisan divide, and two, because its hard to find intelligent debate these days and both of these columnists are true to their values and are not hypocrites. Tough to find these days on the Right. I might not agree on the hawkish tone with Iran, but I celebrate the debate of ideas over teams. Its time for Republicans to get on Team USA if they must be on a team, because right now theyre choosing Trumps Team Russia. This all comes back to Russia. Trumps weakness on Russia is why he is also being weak with Iran in action, and thats why hes blustering like a fool on Twitter. Trump never could have gotten Osama bin Laden like Obama did, because he would have been on Twitter bragging, WE KNOW WHERE YOU ARE DONT MESS WITH US WE ARE GOING TO GET YOU AT 8 PM ON SATURDAY EVENING! YOU WILL BE SORRY! TAKE THAT! With Trump, it is not clear that he is on our side. Not now, and not ever- which is why he made such a big deal out of his MAGA theme. It is, of course, the very opposite of what he stands for. Do not get distracted by Trumps wagging the dog on Iran. Russia, Russia, Russia. Russia explains all. 4k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Republican former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman is continuing her campaign to persuade her fellow party members to stand up to President Donald Trump and get him to resign from office. In an opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times, Whitman said that the president isnt fit to remain in office, writing: Trumps turn toward Russia is indefensible. I am a lifelong Republican. I have campaigned and won as a member of the party, and I have served more than one Republican president. My Republican colleagues once rightfully critical of President Obamas engagement strategy with Russian leader Vladimir Putin have to end their willful ignorance of the damage Trump is doing both domestically and internationally. We must put aside the GOP label, as hard as that may be, and demonstrate the leadership our country needs by calling on the president to step down. Whitman, who also served as former President George W. Bushs EPA administrator, has been highly critical of Trumps actions as president, and at his performance during Mondays press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki. Earlier in the week she was on CNN saying the president should resign. When youre the President of the United States what you say matters, says former NJ Governor Christine Todd Whitman, who called on Trump to resign after the press conference in Helsinki "When you're the President of the United States what you say matters," says former NJ Governor Christine Todd Whitman, who called on Trump to resign after the press conference in Helsinki https://t.co/4PFdhfZo4R pic.twitter.com/PiXfOsstpL CNN Newsroom (@CNNnewsroom) July 18, 2018 In her piece for the Times, Whitman called Trumps behavior indefensible and said that he should rename his America First platform Russia First. During the Helsinki press conference Trump did not confront Putin over Russian interference in the 2016 election, but rather cast doubt on the conclusions of U.S. intelligence agencies. Whitman said Trumps comments were deeply disturbing. Trump later claimed he misspoke when he said that he did not see any reason why it would be Russia who interfered. Whitman said that was no excuse: If the president did genuinely misspeak on Monday, it demonstrates his inability to articulate accurately U.S. foreign policy at the highest level, for the highest stakes. As the leader of the free world as ridiculous as that title sounds when applied to Trump his words matter. If he cannot take his place at a podium next to an adversarial foreign leader and stand up for Americas interests and principles, he should not be president. Whitman prevailed upon her fellow Republicans to take action, and offered several suggestions for what they could do. They include implementing tougher sanctions against Russia and ensuring the protection of special counsel Robert Muellers investigation. Those members of the party in Congress who have stood up to the president should be commended, Whitman wrote. More must follow, with more than private talk and tepid tweets. Invoking the need to choose country over party is an overused trope. But it is essential now, she added. Whitman also said that Trump supporters must put their country ahead of their loyalty to the president. She said that shes grateful for the Republicans who have been brave enough to speak out but asked that more demand action from their leaders. Only bold leadership can put the United States back on a path that values freedom and democracy, and truly puts America first, she wrote in conclusion to her shocking editorial. Christie Todd Whitman is a highly respected Republican leader, as a former governor and former Bush administration official. There is no guarantee that Republicans will listen to her message, but there is a chance that she will influence some within her party to be more bold in confronting Donald Trump. She recognizes that it is time for American patriots to step up to protect the country from the very serious threat of the Trump presidency. She recognizes that it is time for Donald Trump to resign, and hopefully many other Republicans do too. 599 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard An increasingly desperate and deranged Donald Trump was on Twitter in the middle of the night again, posting an all-caps threat to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. Earlier on Sunday Rouhani warned Trump not to get in a conflict with his country, saying a confrontation with the Islamic republic would be the mother of all wars. Do not play with the lions tail or else you will regret it, Rouhani said on Sunday, reiterating that the US cannot prevent it from exporting its crude oil to the international market. Peace with Iran would be the mother of all peace and war with Iran would be the mother of all wars, he said in a televised speech in Irans capital, Tehran. Rouhani last week said that Iran may block regional oil exports if its own sales are halted following the US withdrawal from a 2015 nuclear deal signed with world powers. Shortly before midnight last night Trump tweeted this: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Although Trump may just be trying to distract attention from his legal and political problems at home, this tweet appears to be evidence of a real mental breakdown. On Sunday evening Trump falsely attacked President Obama and Hillary Clinton tweeting this: So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!! So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 Trump has now admitted that the Russian government really did interfere in the 2016 election, and Putin really did help make him president. By blaming it on Obama hes trying to distract attention away from the documented fact that he and his campaign were part of the illegal conspiracy. Whenever Trump blames Obama and Clinton for his problems it is evidence that he is growing increasingly desperate and deranged. Not only that, but after his historically bad press conference performance with Putin last Monday many Republicans now dont trust him and have stopped believing his lies. Donald Trump truly seems to be losing his grip on reality, and we can only hope that there are mentally stable grown-ups surrounding him in the White House and in the U.S. military to prevent him from plunging the world into a nuclear war. 584 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt resigned after his actions led to 18 different federal investigations, and Ryan Zinke, Secretary of the Interior, is close behind with a dozen investigations of his own. Scandals Pile Up For Interior Chief Ryan Zinke https://t.co/VzhqT3lK4Q Scandals Pile Up For Interior Chief Ryan Zinke [CLICK=HERE] pic.twitter.com/k1hkDRwbBw newslink7.com (@newslink7com) July 23, 2018 As long as Pruitt was around attracting the attention of environmental groups, government watchdogs, and Democrats, Zinke could fly under the radar and not receive much attention for his ethical lapses. But now that Pruitt is gone Zinke has stepped up as the most scandal-plagued member of Trumps cabinet, and its unclear how long he can survive in the current atmosphere in Washington. The Huffington Post has reported: Since being sworn in in March 2017, the former Montana congressman and Navy SEAL has proven himself a loyal soldier of Trumps deregulatory agenda, working to scrap environmental safeguards and boost mining and fossil fuel production. But much like Pruitt, Zinke has been unable to steer clear of negative headlines. He has faced at least 11 formal investigations many of them ongoing and calls for several others. Thats more than the last four interior secretaries combined, according to an analysis by Colorado-based conservation group Center for Western Priorities. A spokesman for the Center for Western Priorities (CWP) had this to say about Zinke: Scott Pruitt was the best thing Ryan Zinke had going for him. Between his shady business deals and clear abuse of office, Secretary Zinke could soon find himself spending more time responding to investigators than doing his job. Lest we forget, here is a reminder of some of the ethical problems that Zinke has brought upon himself: The U.S. Interior Departments watchdog said in a letter to lawmakers on Wednesday that it was investigating a Montana real estate deal involving a foundation set up by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and a development group backed by the chairman of oil service company Halliburton. This is just a partial list of Zinkes ethical problems and the investigations he is facing. If we learned anything from the Scott Pruitt debacle, it is that Trump administration officials are not only unethical, but they dont even try to hide it, and dont seem to care about criticisms from the media or Democrats. If Ryan Zinke follows in the footsteps of Pruitt, then there are sure to be many more ethical violations in his future. 1.2k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Former American ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul knows Vladimir Putin as well as anyone in the United States, and he knows how the Russian president operates and what makes him tick. In a speech in his hometown of Bozeman, Montana on Sunday McFaul said that Putin always made audio and video recordings of everything he and other Americans in Moscow did. He said said that when President Barack Obama visited Moscow they had to build a sound-proof room inside the hotel to assure they were speaking privately and no recordings were being made. People all but hanging from the rafters here in Bozeman to support hometown hero and patriot, my friend and former colleague Ambassador Mike @McFaul pic.twitter.com/EZ6BLI145s Alec Ross (@AlecJRoss) July 22, 2018 He also discussed Trumps trip to Moscow in 2013 for the Miss Universe Pageant when he stayed at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. McFaul said that everything you do in your hotel in Moscow is recorded. Now, I dont know what happened there, but whatever happened there, they have a record of it, the former ambassador said. McFaul also pointed out the second part of Putins modus operandi: creating leverage to influence subjects of his surveillance. In other words, once he has audio and video recordings of compromising behavior in a hotel room, he will use it to blackmail people. Heres what McFaul said about how Putin creates leverage, which he clearly could have done to compromise Donald Trump: Heres what I do know. I know that Putin, with people in his country and in Europe, uses money all the time to create leverage. Thats a standard operating procedure for Vladimir Putin. And hell do things like Ill give you an example. When was I an ambassador, he decreed while I was there, that if you are a Russian government official, youre no longer allowed to have assets abroad. You have to sell your assets in London and the French Riviera and New York. He made that decree. But then in individual conversations Putin would make a special deal and give allowances to some people to keep assets abroad. Well, what did he just do there? He created leverage. And youre dependent and beholden to Vladimir Putin. He does that all the time. I dont know if that happened with the Trump Organization and the family, but thats a tactic that Ive seen time and time again. McFaul also commented on Putins request last week that Trump send Americans to him for interrogation. Putin suggested during the summit that he would allow special counsel Robert Mueller to interview the 12 indicted Russian hackers if Trump would turn McFaul and financier Bill Browder over to Russia for questioning, which was a totally outrageous suggestion. Just think about how absurd that is, McFaul said during his speech. We are U.S. government officials, that Putin is talking about. And President Trump went out to the press conference and said, I think this is a great idea. That is not a Democrat or Republican thing, Im sorry, that is not an American thing to say. To throw us under the bus. It was the most cynical, crass, ridiculous thing and our president needs to understand that, McFaul added. He also commented on the fact that Trump seemed to agree with Putins ideas about the U.S. not protecting its NATO allies, another indication that perhaps Putin has leverage over Trump and is influencing his policies. Concerning reports that Trump and Putin had a private discussion about holding a referendum in Ukraine, McFaul asked the logical question: By the way, who hired Trump or Putin to speak on behalf of Ukrainians? 451 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Trump thinks that Amazon and The Washington Post are the same company, and they are out to get him. Trump tweeted: The Amazon Washington Post has gone crazy against me ever since they lost the Internet Tax Case in the U.S. Supreme Court two months ago. Next up is the U.S. Post Office which they use, at a fraction of real cost, as their delivery boy for a BIG percentage of their packages. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 .In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon. Is it used as protection against antitrust claims which many feel should be brought? Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Trump thinks Amazon is out to get him because it is owned by Jeff Bezos Trumps motivations are easy to understand. He cant grasp that Amazon and The Washington Post are separate companies. He thinks that by harming Amazon, he can change the coverage that he gets in The Post. Trump is trying to destroy a pillar of the free press by attacking Amazon. It is that simple. Of course, Amazon and The Post arent the same company, and Bezos was recently named the richest person in the world, so this strategy is going to fall flat on its face. If Obama had tweeted daily about how Netflix was out to get him, people would universally be calling for him to step down because it would be clear that he had lost his mind, so we should not view Trumps tweets any differently because he unleashes these barrages so often. Trump is paranoid, and he has zero understanding of or respect for the free press. What the President Of The United States tweeted was crazy, and it needs to be called out, not accepted as the new normal of American politics. For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group. 291 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard By Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) The White House on Monday threatened to strip six former U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials, including Obama-era CIA director John Brennan, of their security clearances as President Donald Trump considers striking back at critics of his summit meeting last week with Russian President Vladimir Putin. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said Trumps administration is also considering taking away the security clearances of former FBI Director James Comey, a vocal critic fired by Trump last year. Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former National Security Agency Director Michael Hayden, former President Barack Obamas national security adviser Susan Rice and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe could also lose their clearances, Sanders said. After Trump gave credence following his summit in Helsinki to Putins denials about Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election despite findings by the American intelligence community, Brennan called Trumps remarks nothing short of treasonous. In his July 16 Twitter post, Brennan added, Not only were Trumps comments imbecilic, he is wholly in the pocket of Putin. Accusing the president of the United States of treasonous activity when you have the highest level of security clearance, when youre the person that holds the nations deepest, most sacred secrets at your hands and you go out and you make false accusations against the president of the United States, he (the president) thinks that is something to be very concerned with. And were exploring what those options are and what that looks like, Sanders said. Asked if Trump was punishing the former officials because of their criticism, Sanders said, No, I think you are creating your own story there. Clapper called the possibility of stripping the security clearances just a very, very petty thing to do. There is a formal process for doing this, but you know I guess legally the president has that prerogative, Clapper said on CNN. He can suspend or revoke clearances as he sees fit, and if he chooses to do it for political reasons, well I think thats a terrible precedent. And its a very sad commentary. And its an abuse of the system. Many former U.S. officials retain their security clearances after they leave government service because they continue to advise their former agencies or because it is a condition of employment as government contractors or consultants. The CIA did not immediately comment on the White House threat. Sanders said Trump is exploring the mechanisms to remove the security clearances because she said those officials have politicized and in some cases monetized their public service and security clearances, making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia or being influenced by Russia. (Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu, Eric Beech, Jonathan Landay and Warren Strobel; Writing by Lisa Lambert and Mary Milliken; Editing by Will Dunham) Russian Ambassador to the U.S. Anatoly Antonov said the Russian-Americans are affected by an unprecedented campaign in the media aimed at discrediting our country, its role and place in the world. Speaking on July 8 at the Annual Forum of Russian Compatriots at the Russian Cultural Center in Washington, DC, a gathering of representatives of ethnic Russians from various U.S. states, Antonov said he was addressing a multimillion Russian diaspora living in the United States who are all part of the Russian civilization. We know about the emerging problems from our communications with you. Our common goal is to combat the spread of Russophobia, Antonov said. He used the word that has become a key to the Kremlin's anti-American propaganda narrative in recent years. The Russian governments TASS news agency, which routinely translates Antonovs statements for its English edition, published only a brief report in Russian about the event, headlined Ambassador to the U.S.: Anti-Russian Campaign in the Information Space Reflects on Immigrants from Russia. The Russian Embassy in Washington, DC did not publish any information about the event on its website. However, a transcript of Ambassador Antonovs address in Russian, along with the pictures from the event, were published on the official Facebook page of the Russian Embassy in Washington, DC. We repeatedly contacted the Russian Embassy seeking details and documents confirming Ambassador Antonovs claim. Calls to the general phone number listed on the embassys website were answered only one time, and the person who answered the call directed us to the embassys press secretary, Nikolay Lakhonin. However, we were unable to reach him despite repeated attempts. The Diaspora Other Russian groups and organizations we contacted expressed surprise and strongly denied that their members have been targeted in the United States because of their Russian origin. Victor Potapov, the Rector of the Russian Orthodox Church in Washington, DC, told Polygraph.info in a telephone interview that he has never encountered any cases of discrimination against Russian-Americans. The church serves the greater Washington area, including the states of Maryland and Virginia.According to Potapov, the actual number of parishioners is higher than the officially listed congregation of 500 families. I absolutely do not know of any such cases, he said. I grew up in the Cold War era in the United States, and now live in the time of the second Cold War, but I never encountered any such discrimination, absolutely not. And nobody [among the parishioners] has ever complained to me. Natasha Soolkin, Executive Director at the New American Association of Massachusetts, an organization that helps immigrants from Russia to resettle in the United States, told Polygraph.info that during her 28 years in the United States she has not experienced any problems because of her national origin, or heard of other ethnic Russians facing such problems. Due to my profession, all these years I was tied with the Russian immigrants of all ages, and the ultimate goal of my work was to help them on their path to integration, she said. I can say with absolute certainty I have never encountered or experienced discrimination towards my compatriots on a state or on a society level. Soolkin said some Russians note that Boston International Airport has Welcome signs in dozens of languages, but not in Russian, and ask, jokingly: Does that mean we are not welcome here? Of course, there are some people who simply hate everybody, and I met some who are against the Russians, the Spanish, the Blacks, the Jews, but every country has [such people], she added. Ambassador Antonov, in his speech, praised the involvement of Russian-Americans in Russian politics. Antonov (like Putin) is convinced that a large majority of the Russians in these communities (upward of 70 percent according to scattered surveys) supported the annexation of Crimea and that a majority of Russians who went to overseas polling centers in North America and Western Europe voted for Putin in March 2018. This gives the Putinites confidence that these communities could be of help in influencing key figures in Congress and NGOs. Mark Kramer Special thanks to those who helped us in the elections for the president of the Russian Federation, he said. It is noteworthy that the vast majority of compatriots in the United States voted for Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, who earned 63% of the vote. He also urged Russian-Americans to become more politically engaged in American politics in order to lobby for Russias interests. We need your help, Antonov said. We are interested in the Russian community in America using its unique position taking into account your embeddedness in American life to work with the leaders of public opinion in the interests of restoring an atmosphere of trust and mutual understanding between Russia and the United States. Antonov specifically urged attendees to actively engage young people, since they will have to take up the baton in the noble cause of consolidation of the Russian world. Here he used the term Russkaya, which refers exclusively to ethnic Russians, as opposed the word Rossiyskaya, which applies to all Russian citizens regardless of ethnicity. An Expert Speaks Mark Kramer, Director of the Cold War Studies Program at the Davis Center for Russian and Ukrainian Studies at Harvard University, told Polygraph.info: Antonov's comments are in line with Putin's emphasis on Russkii mir (The Russian World) and the need to seek support for Putin's policies from Russian diaspora communities around the world, particularly in the United States and Western Europe. Antonov (like Putin) is convinced that a large majority of the Russians in these communities (upward of 70 percent according to scattered surveys) supported the annexation of Crimea and that a majority of Russians who went to overseas polling centers in North America and Western Europe voted for Putin in March 2018. This gives the Putinites confidence that these communities could be of help in influencing key figures in Congress and NGOs. Kramer added: The Russians whose support they are seeking include not only those who are Russian expatriates, but also those who are now dual citizens (or just U.S. citizens). Groups like the U.S.-Russia Forum, which are clearly sympathetic to Russia's interests, are clearly seen as prime recruits for this propaganda campaign. Even though these groups are not front organizations of the Russian government, they are reliably supportive of an accommodating stance toward Russia. In Putin's Russia, such groups might be branded a fifth column, but fortunately in the United States there is a long tradition of tolerating such organizations (e.g., the Sons of Italy, the Polish American Council, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the Baltic American Council, and countless others). Antonov is doing what quite a few other governments also do in reaching out to supportive ethnic organizations in the United States, but the difference is that Antonov's motivations are a lot more unsavory and sinister. He concluded: It's part of a wave of efforts by Russian government officials to enlist the support of Russian expatriates. This has been under way since 2012, in the wake of the mass protests in Russia in late 2011 and early 2012, but it has accelerated over the past four years. Posten Norge, Norways national postal operator, has begun working with autonomous technology startup Buddy Mobility to develop a new ground-based delivery robot capable of delivering mail and parcel items to 100 customers each day. The robot then returns to the distribution hub where it is charged and restocked overnight. ') } // --> ') } else { console.log ('nompuad'); document.write('') } // --> The mail and parcel robot will be equipped with advanced control and sensor technology, said Tone Wille, CEO of Posten Norge. It will drive at only 6km/h (3.7mph), which means it poses little risk to its surroundings. It also increases the likelihood of commissioning the robot sooner. ') } else { console.log ('nompuad'); document.write(' ') } // --> ') } else if (width >= 425) { console.log ('largescreen'); document.write('') } else { console.log ('nompuad'); document.write('') } // --> We have great faith in a self-driving future and in the profitable applications in the short and long term for a logistics company like ours. To some extent we are dependent on technology development by the major vehicle manufacturers. At the same time, we also want to stimulate the market to develop more niche-driven solutions, and our innovation agreement with Buddy Mobility is an example of this. Posten Norge will attend Arendalsuka in August the forum for Norwegian politicians and business representatives and will promote the use of autonomous solutions in the logistics sector. The post plans to demonstrate a prototype of the mail and parcel robot at the event. It also plans to test the robot in a residential area in Kongsberg, Norway, toward the end of the year. Per Ivar Selvaag, head of development for Buddy Mobility, said, We believe there is significant potential in autonomous technology and find it exciting that a major actor like Posten Norge is leading the way and contributing to the development and application of solutions like these. This may pave the way for an international initiative, because mail and parcel delivery is very similar around the world. UAE-based logistics and transportation firm Aramex has partnered with IMG Solar FZE, a subsidiary of Jordanian-based Izzat Marji Group, to implement a 3.2MW solar photovoltaic plant for its new logistics facility in Dubai. ') } // --> ') } else { console.log ('nompuad'); document.write('') } // --> The installation is the largest single-rooftop solar photovoltaic plant project in the MENA region and one of the largest solar photovoltaic plants connected to Dubai Electricity and Water Authoritys (DEWA) grid under its Shams Dubai solar energy initiative. ') } else { console.log ('nompuad'); document.write(' ') } // --> ') } else if (width >= 425) { console.log ('largescreen'); document.write('') } else { console.log ('nompuad'); document.write('') } // --> The solar plant uses state-of-the-art components from manufacturers including JA Solar, SMA Solar Technology, S:Flex and Meteo Control. It contains 9,000 solar panels, covering a total roof area of 38,000m (409,000ft). The energy yield for the system is around 5GWh per year, saving more than 3,000 tons of CO emissions each year. Raji Hattar, chief sustainability officer at Aramex, said, We pride ourselves on being a leader in sustainability across the region, and are pleased with our partnership with IMG Solar FZE for the second time. This solar photovoltaic plant will provide 60% of the power needed to run our logistics facility in Dubai Logistics City for a year. We continuously look for new ways to ensure that we operate as efficiently and cleanly as possible to safeguard our environment for future generations. We have a commitment to reducing our expenditure on power, and increasing electricity consumption from renewable sources for our operations. We are currently planning phase two of this project, aimed at increasing the capacity to 7MW upon completion. Fadi Marji, general manager of IMG Solar FZE, said, Our company has executed more than 250 Solar Photovoltaic Plant projects in the UAE, Jordan and Kuwait totaling more than 30MW. We are very proud of our strategic partnership with Aramex. In 2017, Aramex partnered with Izzat Marji Group and successfully inaugurated its single-rooftop solar photovoltaic plant in Amman, Jordan. The plant generates 1.2MW of power, providing sufficient renewable electricity to power the companys operations in Amman. Aramex also announced the addition of electric vehicles to its fleet in Jordan. We remain committed to reducing CO emissions from our operations by an additional 20% by 2020, over the initial target of 20% of CO reduction we achieved in 2016, concluded Hattar. Therefore, where regulations and infrastructure allow, we will be looking to introduce similar projects to all of the 73 markets in which we operate. In the mid-1970s, the average American child under the age of 5 had a blood lead level of 14 micrograms per deciliter. The good news is that by 2014 it had fallen dramatically, to 0.84 micrograms per deciliter, largely because of the banning of lead in paint and the phaseout of lead in gasoline, among other measures. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now considers a blood lead level in children of 5 micrograms per deciliter and higher to be a reference level. This measure is intended to identify children at higher risk and set off communitywide prevention activities. It does not suggest that a child needs medical treatment. In fact, the C.D.C. recommends medical treatment only for blood lead levels at or above 45 micrograms per deciliter. Not a single child in Flint tested this high. This was a surprise for several visiting celebrities, who requested a visit to the lead ward of Hurley Childrens Hospital. Nonetheless, the reference level has been misinterpreted by laypeople and even public health officials as a poisoning threshold. After Flints water was switched from Detroits municipal system to the Flint River, the annual percentage of Flint children whose blood lead levels surpassed the reference level did increase but only from 2.2 percent to 3.7 percent. . . Moving from evaluating percentages to examining actual blood lead levels in children, we found that levels did increase after the water switched over in 2014, but only by a modest 0.11 micrograms per deciliter. A similar increase of 0.12 micrograms per deciliter occurred randomly in 2010-11. It is not possible, statistically speaking, to distinguish the increase that occurred at the height of the contamination crisis from other random variations over the previous decade. For comparison, consider the fact that just 20 years ago, nearly 45 percent of young children in Michigan had blood lead levels above the current reference level. If we are to be consistent in the labeling of Flint children as poisoned, what are we to make of the average American who was a child in the 1970s or earlier? Answer: He has been poisoned and is brain-damaged. And poisoned with lead levels far above, and for a greater period, than those observed in Flint. . . A comprehensive analysis of blood lead levels across the United States reveals at least eight states with blood lead levels higher than Flints were during the water switch. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivered remarks last night in a speech titled Supporting Iranian Voices at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California. I have posted the video below (about 25 minutes). The State Department has posted the text of the speech along with its own video of Pompeos remarks here. The Los Angeles Times covered the speech here. The place suggests the weight placed on the speech. President Reagans words and deeds in office hastened the fall of the Soviet Union. I think the Trump administration has something similar in mind for the powers that be in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Indeed, in the conclusion of his speech, Pompeo invokes and quotes Reagans 1982 Westminster Address. President Reagan told the truth about Soviet Union. This was one pillar of his opposition to it. By contrast, the Obama administration subjected us to a Soviet style disinformation campaign directed against us to prettify the Iranian regime. In this speech Pompeo tells the truth about the mullahs, Reagan style. Pompeo opened his remarks with an astounding summary of the regimes corruption. It is worth the price of admission all by itself, but corruption isnt among the evils of the regime most of concern to us. Pompeo gets to those in due course as well. At about 10:30 into the video, someone in the audience makes the obligatory protest against Trump administration border enforcement policy. If there were only so much freedom of expression in Iran, Pompeo comments. Addressing the Obama administrations adoption of Iranian lies as American foreign policy, Pompeo explains: You know, despite the regimes clear record of aggression, America and other countries have spent years straining to identify a political moderate. Its like an Iranian unicorn. (Laughter.) The regimes revolutionary goals and willingness to commit violent acts havent produced anyone to lead Iran that can be remotely called a moderate or a statesman. Some believe that President Rouhani and Foreign Minister Zarif fit that bill. The truth is they are merely polished front men for the ayatollahs international con artistry. Their nuclear deal didnt make them moderates; it made them wolves in sheeps clothing. Governments around the world worry that confronting the Islamic Republic harms the cause of moderates, but these so-called moderates within the regime are still violent Islamic revolutionaries with an anti-America, anti-West agenda. You only have to take their own words for it. All of this is worth taking in and it is accompanied by administration policy intended to squeeze the regime as well. We have no gap between words and deeds. Pompeo discusses the relevant policies adopted to squeeze the regime. We have no gap here between words and deeds. For those of us who suffered through the Obama administrations misadventures with the mullahs, this speech is nothing short of an inspiration. I doubt that any sensible, objective observer expected North Korea to denuclearize in response to President Trumps meeting with Kim Jong Un. However, there was some reason to hope for a modicum of cooperation between the U.S. and North Korea on other issues, though such cooperation was hardly assured. As things stand now, there seems to be precious little cooperation and, of course, no movement towards denuclearization. The Washington Post reports: When he emerged from his summit with Kim Jong Un last month, President Trump triumphantly declared that North Korea no longer posed a nuclear threat and that one of the worlds most intractable geopolitical crises had been largely solved. But in the days and weeks since then, U.S. negotiators have faced stiff resistance from a North Korean team practiced in the art of delay and obfuscation. Diplomats say the North Koreans have canceled follow-up meetings, demanded more money and failed to maintain basic communications, even as the once-isolated regimes engagements with China and South Korea flourish. Thats not all: [A] missile-engine testing facility that Trump said would be destroyed remains intact, and U.S. intelligence officials say Pyongyang is working to conceal key aspects of its nuclear program. Nonetheless, President Trump is still telling reporters that discussions [with North Korea] are ongoing and theyre going very well. At the same time, though, he is fuming in private at his aides over lack of progress, at least according to the Post. Duyeon Kim, a Korea expert at the Center for a New American Security told the Post, Trump has been hit with a strong dose of reality of North Koreas negotiating style, which is always hard for Americans to understand. Im not sure whats so hard to understand about North Koreas negotiating style. Certainly, the negotiating tactics of this evil regime rudeness, delay, and dishonesty should not be beyond the grasp of Donald Trump. The problem, I suspect, is Trumps wishful thinking rooted in egomania. Im not saying Trumps North Korea policy has been a failure. At least Kims nuclear program appears no longer to be expanding. We have received some concessions, including the release of prisoners, and there may be further progress down the road on the return of remains of American soldiers killed in the Korean war. Most importantly, we now are on speaking terms with a nation that may have the capacity to launch a successful attack on portions of the U.S. Thats all I expected out of this. My fear is that Trumps frustration at not getting more may undermine the position of Mike Pompeo, our outstanding Secretary of State. Trump isnt going to admit that his expectations were unrealistic that, in effect, he was foolish to believe his own bullshit. Rather, he will blame others. Since Pompeo is tasked with the fools errand of persuading Kim to denuclearize, he might become the fall guy. The Associated Press carries on a daily vendetta against the Trump administration, systematically misleading the American people in articles that appear in hundreds or thousands of newspapers. Thus, it is no surprise that the APs story on DOJs FISA application dump is nothing but Democratic Party spin. The APs headline: Without evidence, Trump claims documents confirm misconduct. President Donald Trump asserted without evidence Sunday that newly released documents relating to the wiretapping of his onetime campaign adviser Carter Page confirm with little doubt that intelligence agencies misled the court that approved the warrant. But lawmakers from both political parties said that the documents dont show wrongdoing and that they even appear to undermine some previous claims by top Republicans on the basis for obtaining a warrant against Page. Actually, the president had a lot more to say about the FISA application than the AP acknowledges. These tweets all were issued this morning: Congratulations to @JudicialWatch and @TomFitton on being successful in getting the Carter Page FISA documents. As usual they are ridiculously heavily redacted but confirm with little doubt that the Department of Justice and FBI misled the courts. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC. Ask her how that worked out she did better with Crazy Bernie. Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 Andrew McCarthy I said this could never happen. This is so bad that they should be looking at the judges who signed off on this stuff, not just the people who gave it. It is so bad it screams out at you. On the whole FISA scam which led to the rigged Mueller Witch Hunt! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 .@PeteHegseth on @FoxNews Source #1 was the (Fake) Dossier. Yes, the Dirty Dossier, paid for by Democrats as a hit piece against Trump, and looking for information that could discredit Candidate #1 Trump. Carter Page was just the foot to surveil the Trump campaign ILLEGAL! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 In fact, President Trumps assessment that the FISA documents confirm with little doubt that the Department of Justice and FBI misled the courts was exactly correct, as I showed here. Permit me the liberty of quoting myself: The DOJs statement that the FBI speculates that the identified U.S person [Simpson] was likely looking for information that could be used to discredit Candidate #1s [Trumps] campaign could only have been an intentional effort to deceive the FISA judge. The FBI was perfectly well aware that the Hillary Clinton campaign and the DNC hired Simpson through their lawyers, and the purpose of doing so was to attack candidate Donald Trump. References to speculation about likely motives are entirely dishonest. In a moment of epic dishonesty, the AP neglects to tell its readers about this blatantly misleading feature of the FISA application. As Trump said, DOJ and the FBI misled the courts. Further, if the AP reporters actually read the presidents tweets, as presumably they did, they must have seen that Trump referred to Andrew McCarthys analysis of why the FISA application was scandalously inept and misleading. Yet the AP also fails to acknowledge, let alone try to rebut, Andrews observations. Instead of addressing the many cogent criticisms of the FISA application, the AP adopts an ipse dixit approach: Visible portions of the heavily redacted documents, released Saturday under the Freedom of Information Act, show the FBI telling the court that Page has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government. The agency also told the court that the FBI believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government. Well, all right then! With the AP, it is often hard to tell whether we are dealing with malice or ignorance. Thus, we have these three paragraphs, which follow one another with no articulated logical connection: On Sunday, Page said on CNNs State of the Union: Ive never been the agent of a foreign power. In a 2013 letter, Page had described himself as an informal adviser to the Kremlin but now said its really spin to call him an adviser. Page has not been charged with a crime, but he has been interviewed by the FBI and congressional investigators about his ties to Russia. The AP cobbles these disparate statements together in an effort to create a negative impression of Page. But the AP obscures the relevant facts. The AP seems to suggest that there is some inconsistency between Pages denial of being an agent of a foreign power and his claim, back in 2013, to be an informal adviser to certain Russians. Any such suggestion is entirely false. The phrase agent of a foreign power has a specific meaning. It is defined at 50 U.S.C. 1801(b)(2)(E). An agent of a foreign power is one who knowingly aids or abets any person, or knowingly conspires with any person, to [engage] in clandestine intelligence gathering activities for or on behalf of a foreign power, or pursuant to the direction of an intelligence service or network of a foreign power, knowingly [engage] in any other clandestine intelligence activities for or on behalf of such foreign power, which activities involve or are about to involve a violation of the criminal statutes of the United States, or knowingly [engage] in sabotage or international terrorism, or activities that are in preparation therefor, for or on behalf of a foreign power. Obviously, these are serious charges. In its FISA application, the FBI expressed confidence that Carter Page was an agent of a foreign power. But he wasnt. We know that for certain, because if there were even even the faintest hint of evidence after months of Democratic Party surveillance, Bob Mueller would have charged him. Carter Page is innocent, and the FBIs assurances to the FISA court were false. You would never learn this from the APs biased account, however. In this context, the APs statement that Page has never been charged with a crime, but has been interviewed by the FBI, is willfully misleading. It implies that being interviewed is evidence of guilt, whereas, in the present context, the fact that the FBI and Bob Mueller could come up with nothing against Page means that he is entirely innocent. I could go on, but you get the drift. The FBI misled the FISA court to get a warrant to spy on Carter Page and, thereby, the Trump presidential campaign. The AP has picked up the baton and is now misleading the American people in order to give cover to James Comey, Sally Yates, Loretta Lynch, Peter Strzok and the rest of the Obama DOJ/FBI rogues gallery. Most every university today prides itself on teaching critical thinking skills, but from the evidence, it appears that many universities are failing at both ends of this termgraduates come out with little capacity for thinking at all, let alone thinking critically. (Yes, so-called critical theory is a special case of this degradation, but deserves separate treatment.) Case in point is the lefts new It Girl, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who embarrassed herself last week with her extraordinarily ill-informed comments on unemployment (unemployment is low because most people are working two jobs!) and Israels conflict with the Palestinians (Im not really an expert on geopolitics, Occasional-Cortex explained). Now it is one thing to hear this from a hopped-up left-leaning activist, who exist in great numbers. But as our gimlet-eyed friend who runs Neo-neocon notes, Ocasio-Cortez boasts of graduating fourth in her class from Boston Universitys College of Arts and Sciences with a dual degree in . . . economics and international relations. Let that sink in. Fourth in her class, and shes a blithering idiot on both economics and international relations. If shes the fourth-ranked graduate from BUs College of Arts and Sciences, Id hate to see who came out on the bottom. If BU has any self-awareness at all, they ought to be asking themselves What went wrong? What can explain this? It is not as though Boston University is Evergreen State Collegedeliberately dedicated to tendentious ideological instruction. BU is the place that, more than 30 years ago now, was run by John Silber, one of the few sensible college presidents of recent decades. The great Angelo Codevilla only retired from teaching in the international relations department there just a few years ago. Glenn Loury is on the faculty at BU, though I have a hunch Ocasio-Cortez never took either person for a course. A perusal of the BU website can turn up a number of plainly leftist faculty in the economics and international relations departments, and that is one obvious explanation. I have a hunch two other factors are at work. First, economics, even on the undergraduate level, has been slowly becoming more mathematically intense in recent years, at the expense of any consideration of economic history or old-fashioned political economy. You will learn good skills from todays math-heavy economics instruction, but at the loss of direct connection to actual economic issues in the real world. You learn how to make a lot of sophisticated regression models, and how to tease out data sets, but you dont learn much on how an economy actually works, especially how markets work. The partial exception to this will be the leftist faculty concerned with inequality, labor, and the environment. Hence students will only hear of economic perspectives on current issues from one direction. Similarly, international relations today often emphasizes theory over historical knowledge and focuses on the hot-button issues of the moment (the BU department website lists several dozen IR courses about the environment and sustainability), which would be one reason why Ocasio-Cortez might say she doesnt have much expertise in the Middle East. UPDATE: Occasional-Cortex is the gift that keeps on giving. The Daily Caller reports her latest deep thoughts: Socialist congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez seemed to compare Democrats winning elections to the abolition of slavery during a Kansas campaign speech Friday. I learned that Kansas was founded over the struggle of the conscience of this nation, Ocasio-Cortez told the Wichita crowd of over 4,000 people, as reported by Breitbart. It was when we were deciding who we wanted to be as a country. It was when we were deciding who we wanted to be with the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The people who were leading this nation said, You decide to the people. Are we going to be a slave state or are we going to be a free state? And it was in 1861 that the people of Kansas decided that we were going to be a free nation, she continued. Back then, the people of Kansas were the tipping point for the future of this nation. Today, they are again. Where to begin. First, at least she is consistent with the Democratic Party position (at least Stephen Douglass position) that the question of slavery should be decided by the people of the Kansas territory alone (popular sovereignty he called it), which meant that the national government lacked the constitutional power to prevent the spread of slavery to the territory, even though the constitution gives Congress the power to make regulations for U.S. territories. And the big push among Democrats in the 1850s was to have people move to Kansas to tip the vote in favor of slavery (and by extension the Democratic Party), just as Democrats today want people to move to the United States to tip the vote in favor of Democrats. So, to the point: If the people to Kansas decide to vote for Republicans this year, will that settle for Occasional-Cortex who we are? I guess we should give Occasional-Cortex points for keeping full faith in Democratic Party history. PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 10:22:24 Press Information Persistence Market Research (PMR) Persistence Market Research 305 Broadway 7th Floor, New York City, NY 10007, United States, USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353 Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Web: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com Abhishek Budholiya Manager 8009610353 email https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com # 583 Words Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.comManager8009610353 c-Met is a proto-oncogene responsible for encoding the high-affinity receptor for hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). Hepatocyte growth factor is also known as scatter factor which participates in HGF/c-MET signaling pathway. This pathway plays vital role in mitogenesis and morphogenesis during embryonic development and wound healing. The controlled natural activity of c-Met and HGF is important in mammalian development, tissue maintenance, and repair. Binding of HGF to c-MET receptor induces several biological responses collectively known as invasive growth program. These responses are elicited due to activation of several pathways such as RAS pathway, PI3K pathway, STAT pathway, beta-catenin pathway and Notch pathway. However, dysregulation of the HGF/c-MET signaling pathway has been associated with the progression of cancers through activation of oncogenic pathways, angiogenesis and metastasis.c-Met kinase represents a novel target for cancer therapy and several research institutes and pharmaceuticals companies are engaged in developing new oncology drugs based on this inhibition of HGF or c-Met-dependent signaling pathway. Number of approaches being attempted to target c-Met include: c-Met biologic inhibitors, small molecule c-Met inhibitors, HGF antagonist antibodies, c-Met antagonist antibodies (MetMAb) and HGF kringle variant antagonists. A study undertaken by University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany demonstrated therapeutic potential of cabozantinib (Exelixis, Inc., Phase III) for against pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) and this molecule induced low-level of resistance compared to gemcitabine.A sample of this report is available upon request@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/21535 The major cancers such as breast, colon and non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) are being examined for efficacy with c-MET / HGF inhibitors. Several small molecule c-Met kinase inhibitors have demonstrated clinical efficacy in cancer treatment and many clinical trials are underway. However, as the small molecule inhibitors lack specificity or selectivity they can cause toxicity. Therefore, researchers are increasing focus to develop antibody therapeutics against c-Met or HGF. Several drugs are in developmental stage and underway clinical trials in various phases of clinical trials. Some of the prominent molecules include ARQ 197 (Arcule, Inc., Phase II), AV-299 (AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Phase II), cabozantinib (Exelixis, Inc., Phase III), JNJ-38877605 (Johnson & Johnson), PF04217903 (Pfizer, Inc., Phase I), PF02341066 (Pfizer, Inc., Phase II), GSK1363089 (GlaxoSmithKline plc), MK-2461 (Merck & Co., Phase II), MP470 (SuperGen, Inc., Phase I), and MGCD265 (Methylgene, Inc., Phase I), AMG102 (Amgen, Inc., Phase II), HuL2G7 (Galaxy Biotech, LLC) and MetMAb (Genentech, Inc., Phase I).The global c-MET / HGF inhibitors market is yet to establish and hence every company is trying to expedite the research and development activity along with clinical trials. The larger multinationals are collaborating with companies having intellectual property rights but suffer from an insufficient capacity to commercialize the molecules. For instance, AstraZeneca signed a licensing deal with Hutchison MediPharma Ltd., to develop volitinib (HMPL-504/AZD6094) in non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). Another recent development in the market was AVEO Oncology entering into a worldwide agreement with Biodexis in which latter companys companion diagnostic test will be commercialized with AVEOs ficlatuzumab (HGF inhibitory antibody).Request report Toc@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/21535 Some of the companies having presence in the global c-MET / HGF inhibitors market are Abxign, Inc., Abbott Laboratories, Amgen, Inc., ArQule, Inc., Astex Therapeutics Ltd., AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) Co., Chroma Therapeutics Ltd., Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd., Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, LLC, Eisai Co., Ltd., Eli Lilly and Co., Exelixis, Inc., Genmab A/S, Galaxy Biotech, LLC, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) plc, Hutchison MediPharma Ltd., Johnson & Johnson, Kringle Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck & Co., Methylgene, Inc., Novartis AG, Pfizer, Inc., ProMetic BioTherapeutics, Inc., and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 10:27:55 Press Information Persistence Market Research (PMR) Persistence Market Research 305 Broadway 7th Floor, New York City, NY 10007, United States, USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353 Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Web: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com Abhishek Budholiya Manager 8009610353 email https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com # 457 Words Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.comManager8009610353 Community Care Facilities or Residential Care Facilities are services provided to geriatrics to assist their day-to-day routine of care, supervision and assistance with activities such as bathing and grooming and providing medicine as per regimen. In many cases high level of care and supervision is required when people are unable to ambulate by themselves but who do not need 24 hour nursing care. They are considered non-medical facilities and are not required to have nurses, certified nursing assistants or doctors on staff. These services are provided either home to home or at a private facility away from the patients home. Community care facilities are strictly regulated for quality of environment and expertise of the staff.The demand for community care has increased exponentially over the years particularly due to decreased focus and attention meted out to geriatrics by family. This is further fueled with low awareness and training in handling of serious medical situation for old people such as Alzheimers Parkinsons, heart attack, post-surgical care and palliative care. In many situations, end-of-life care is required to be provided which cannot be given in hospitals due to over occupation of hospital premises. Other services may include adult day health care, companionship, delivery of consumables and medical supplies, counseling, emergency alert response, home repair, home-delivered meals, home nursing, legal assistance, material aid, medical therapeutic services, personal care, transportation, and other community-based services.A sample of this report is available upon request@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/21538 The largest market for elderly community care services is estimated to be in North America which accounts for approximately 37% of the global market followed by Europe. China and Japan, are the worlds largest geriatric population regions where the market is expected to rise significantly in coming years. Cultural differentiation has affected the decision of hiring community care facility as aged people tend to misconstrue the move as abandonment by families which can strain health further. This is expected to remain a constant challenge in developing regions. Rapid urbanization and changing mindset may lead to better acceptance of these facilities in future. Home Community Care will be accepted much faster than care provided at a different facility such as an old age home.Request report Toc@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/21538 Since the facilities are strictly regulated, many of the facilities are government based facilities. Private companies such as Visiting Angels, Care Pathways, Home Instead, Senior Homes and Maxim Home Care are just a few examples in a market teeming with hundreds of players. Unique aspect of this industry is the fact that local players can have a market space of their own regardless of global leaders. Thus the market is expected to remain highly fragmented in coming years as well. PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 10:28:37 Press Information Persistence Market Research (PMR) Persistence Market Research 305 Broadway 7th Floor, New York City, NY 10007, United States, USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353 Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Web: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com Abhishek Budholiya Manager 8009610353 email https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com # 603 Words Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.comManager8009610353 The cryogenic biobanking service industries operate cryogenic storage facilities. These facilities are used to store biological samples such as human blood, organs, tissues and cells that are used in pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, research laboratories and universities. Cryogenic biobanks preserve biological samples such as tissues, cells, saliva, urine, nucleic acid and organs in order to gain long term benefits of these samples. The duration for preservation of biological samples is either short-term or long-term. The main objective behind cryogenic biobanking is to maintain the functionality and stability of biological samples throughout their preservation period. In addition, advanced equipment like liquid nitrogen tanks, freezers, refrigerators, cryogenic vials, cryogenic boxes are commonly used in order to maintain sample stability during storage period.The market of cryogenic biobanking services market can be segmented as follows:By ProductsIce MachinesFreezersAlarms and Monitoring SystemRefrigeratorsCryogenic Storage SystemsAccessoriesBy ApplicationBiobakingRegenerative medicineDrug discoveryA sample of this report is available upon request@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/21544 The market of cryogenic biobanking services is expected to increase owing to rising demand of industry products globally. In addition, increasing number of scientific research will ultimately demand cryogenic biobanking services and hence drives the market growth. Moreover, increasing investment by pharmaceutical and biotechnologies companies in cell based therapy researches coupled with increasing adoption of cord blood banking further stimulates the growth of cryogenic biobanking services market. Additionally, various other factors like introduction of new cryogenic biopreservation facilities and increasing adoption of in house sample storage system by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies will further drive the market growth. However, biobanking services require long term capital investments that will restrain the growth of cryogenic biobanking services market. For example, cryogenic biobanking services demand temperature and humidity control rooms and laboratory equipment and automated equipment for flow analysis and cell counting. This requirement ultimately increases the overall initial investment of companies thus high investment will hamper the growth of this market. Furthermore, high regulatory requirements and tough economic climate for scientific research will further restrain the market growth of cryogenic biobanking services.Geographically, North America is considered to be the largest market of cryogenic biobanking services due to increasing research and development activities in pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. In addition, rising investment by the U.S. government and non-government organizations in biobanking services will further drive the market growth. Furthermore, increasing number of cancer patients which demands use of biospecimen materials for the treatment of cancer. Cryogenic biobanking is considered as most useful technique for the storage of these biospecimen materials which would ultimately drive the market growth. Furthermore, presence of various nationalized biobanks such as the UK biobanks and Cancer Human Biobank (caHUB) will augment the growth of cryogenic biobanking services market. Europe is considered as the second largest market of cryogenic biobanking services. The market of cryogenic biobanking services witnessing positive growth in Europe due to advancement in cryogenic biopreservation applications coupled with increasing adoption of these services. Furthermore, rising demand of biospecimens in research and development for different disease conditions such as diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular and others are rapidly increasing in Europe. This factor would ultimately increase the demand of cryogenic biobanking services and hence drive the market growth. In addition, Asia-Pacific region is the emerging market for cryogenic biobanking services market because of rising awareness about cryogenic biopreservation services among Asia-Pacific population.Request report Toc@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/21544 Various key players contributing to the global cryogenic biobanking services market comprises Coriell Institute for Medical Research, BioServe Biotechnologies Ltd, Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, Preservation Solution, Inc., Thermogenesis Corporation, Custom Biogenic Systems, Inc., Stemgent, Inc. and others. PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 02:01:02 The new Security in our Connected World event will focus on the implementation and value of GlobalPlatform technology in real world use cases GlobalPlatform Expands Annual Seminar in China iseepr Rob Peryer rob@iseepr.co.uk or Erin Lovett erin@iseepr.co.uk +44(0)1133501922 Following the success of its 2017 event, GlobalPlatform, the standard for secure digital services and devices, will return to China for a second year with an expanded scope. On 19 September 2018, the Security in our Connected World seminar will focus on Secure Element (SE) and Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) technologies and the Device Trust Architecture (DTA) framework, and in particular their real-world IoT technical and business use cases. The agenda will bring together the foremost SE and TEE subject matter experts from organizations such as Alibaba, Baidu, Gemalto, Huawei, Infineon, and Tencent. These industry leaders will showcase state-of-the-art device and cloud security and solutions that address todays threat landscape across the following key use cases and more: - IoT (consumer, industrial and enterprise) - Premium content protection & digital rights management (DRM) - Blockchain and fiat currency - Convergence of SIM and eSIM - Certification - Lessons learned from live projects The event will also feature real world best practice and methodologies in line with regional requirements including IFAA, ICA and ICFNR, and explore Chinas significant role in driving the adoption of GlobalPlatforms core specifications. Security, privacy and trust need to be approached holistically, and from the start of projects, comments Kevin Gillick, GlobalPlatform Executive Director. To do this effectively, device manufacturers, service providers and cloud platform providers need to be able to choose the proper level of security to fit their use cases. As GlobalPlatform secure components can be used separately or combined to address these different requirements, we needed to expand the scope of our annual event. Last years event was bigger and better than ever before, with more than 200 delegates from 85 companies and 13 different countries. Our expansive and growing member base in China and the Asian region is committed to building an ecosystem where digital services and devices can be trusted and managed securely, so we are hugely excited to see the innovations that will be brought forward under this expanded scope. GlobalPlatform and its 100+ members develop standards that support security, privacy and trust for connected devices and services. The event will bring together service providers (including financial institutions, remote content distributors and companies working to develop enterprise solutions), platform providers, software vendors, device manufacturers and mobile network operators from across the globe. GlobalPlatform would like to thank its sponsors, Gemalto, Huawei, Infineon and Trustkernel. See the full agenda online: https://globalplatform.org/seminar/annual-seminar/. -ENDS- Keep up to date with the latest news from GlobalPlatform: Follow us on Twitter Join us on LinkedIn Subscribe to GlobalPlatformTV Follow on WeChat Notes to editors: About GlobalPlatform GlobalPlatform is a non-profit industry association driven by over 100 member companies. Members share a common goal to develop GlobalPlatforms specifications, which are today highly regarded as the international standard for enabling digital services and devices to be trusted and securely managed throughout their lifecycle. GlobalPlatform protects digital services by standardizing and certifying a security hardware/firmware combination, known as a secure component, which acts as an on-device trust anchor. This facilitates collaboration between service providers and device manufacturers, empowering them to ensure adequate security within all devices to protect against threats. GlobalPlatform specifications also standardize the secure management of digital services and devices once deployed in the field. Altogether, GlobalPlatform enables convenient and secure digital service delivery to end users, while supporting privacy, regardless of market sector or device type. Devices secured by GlobalPlatform include smartphones, tablets, set top boxes, wearables, connected cars, other Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices and smart cards. The technologys widespread global adoption delivers cost and time-to-market efficiencies to all. GlobalPlatforms legacy of successful technical specification development is thanks to two decades of energetic and effective industry collaboration. Members influence the organizations output through participation in technical committees, working groups and strategic task forces. GlobalPlatform technology is developed in collaboration with numerous standards bodies and regional organizations across the world, to ensure continual relevance and timeliness. For more information visit www.globalplatform.org View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180722005 GlobalPlatform to host Security in our Connected World Seminar in Beijing on 19 September, focusing on the implementation and value of @GlobalPlatform_ technology in real world use cases. PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-24 00:02:01 Australias highest rated courier to power Pitney Bowes SendPro Pitney Bowes Partners with Sendle to Reinvent Office Shipping and Mailing with SendPro Pitney Bowes Shefali Jhaveri, +61 437 477 576 Communications Manager, ANZ Shefali.jhaveri@pb.com Pitney Bowes (NYSE:PBI), a global technology company that provides commerce solutions in the areas of ecommerce, shipping, mailing, and data, and Sendle, the parcel delivery service for the digital economy, today announced a strategic partnership that improves customer experience, drives revenue growth and delivers cost savings by optimizing parcel delivery service for small businesses. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005 Stephen Darracott, Country Manager, Pitney Bowes and James Chin Moody, CEO and Co-founder, Sendle (Photo: Business Wire) Today, in Australia, Pitney Bowes has introduced SendPro, a shipping platform powered by Sendle that revolutionizes how businesses conduct commerce by removing the complexities of shipping for small businesses. This launch is part of a longer term vision to offer a comprehensive range of shipping solutions designed to meet the needs of small businesses across Australia. According to the Pitney Bowes Shipping Index, overall parcel volume in Australia grew by 13 percent reaching 794 million parcels shipped in 2016. SendPro greatly reduces shipping costs for both retailers and office shippers, and speeds accurate delivery to Australian shoppers. The SendPro shipping platform provides simple pricing with a national flat rate, including pickup and delivery guarantees from Australias highest rated courier Sendle. SendPro Premium has no monthly subscription and no minimum order volume. SendPro Premium shippers benefit from an introductory offer of a flat shipping rate of AUD$6 for each satchel shipped anywhere within the country. Even for high volume shippers with over 200 parcels per month, SendPro Professional has no monthly subscription and offers competitive shipping rates for both National and Metro across all weight categories. All SendPro clients will have access to a wide range of Pitney Bowes solutions and services designed to support small businesses. For example, clients may order shipping supplies such as packaging and labels through the Pitney Bowes online supplies store. For nearly 100 years, Pitney Bowes has worked to take the complexity out of mailing for our clients, and now we are working to do the same in shipping, said Stephen Darracott Pitney Bowes Country Manager Australia/New Zealand. Our strategic partnership with Sendle is a milestone for us as part of our strategy to deliver a comprehensive range of shipping solutions. For small businesses, our solutions help drive revenue growth and deliver cost savings in shipping an area that is vital today for conducting commerce. Sendle has always had a clear mission: level the playing field for Australian small businesses by giving them access to big business delivery infrastructure, said James Chin Moody, CEO and Co-founder of Sendle. This alliance is a step forward in making shipping affordable, simple and reliable for smaller businesses that previously did not have access to the improved customer experience and cost savings of a shipping platform like SendPro. We are proud to power this technology that positively impacts small business outcomes. About Pitney Bowes Pitney Bowes (NYSE:PBI) is a global technology company providing commerce solutions that power billions of transactions. Clients around the world, including 90 percent of the Fortune 500, rely on the accuracy and precision delivered by Pitney Bowes solutions, analytics, and APIs in the areas of ecommerce fulfillment, shipping and returns; cross-border ecommerce; presort services; office mailing and shipping; location data; and software. For nearly 100 years, Pitney Bowes has been innovating and delivering technologies that remove the complexity of getting commerce transactions precisely right. For additional information, visit Pitney Bowes, the Craftsmen of Commerce, at https://www.pitneybowes.com/us. About Sendle Sendle is a parcel delivery service for the digital economy and has been recognised by the AFR as one of Australias Top 10 Most Innovative Companies for the past two years. With easy ordering and tracking, Sendle saves time, money and is Australias highest rated courier service. Its national service provides door-to-door pickup and delivery across Australia for low flat-rates, up to 70% cheaper than standard parcel post rates, guaranteed. Sendles international service covers 220 countries and territories worldwide with simple, reliable and affordable delivery for small business. Sendle is also Australias first 100% carbon neutral delivery service and a certified B Corporation. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005 PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-24 01:02:02 - In the wake of the death of newsfeeds, Amsterdam start-up launches a new way of storytelling for brands on Messenger - POP Solves the Lack of Visibility on Social Media and Helps Brands Stand out from the Crowd POP For media queries, interviews or high res images, please contact: Holly Forrest / Richa Kundnani at Cherish PR iampop@cherishpr.com +44 (0)203 626 0282 Newsfeeds were once the hero for brands looking to engage with followers. However, according to Social@Ogilvy organic newsfeed only reaches 2% of brand audiences, with read-rate of 10%. Now POP, the new one-to-one chat editor, has just launched and is on a mission to help brands revive low social engagement. Now brands have the power to talk directly to their fanbase with creative, storytelling content, with a guarantee of better exposure than on newsfeeds. POP's "write-first" platform is a personalised and innovative way to communicate, notify and engage with audiences on a one-on-one basis. The POP editor is a simple way to write engaging stories through customisable templates and text editor functionality, which is as straightforward as writing an email or composing a tweet. Newsfeeds are over-populated with content. Social media algorithms are required to prioritise friends and family over businesses, but businesses still remain focused on newsfeeds as being the core method to engage with social media followers. In comparison, Messenger has considerably higher open rates, plus provides new forms of storytelling, opening up possibilities for brands such as using voice to communicate with their fans. Benefits of POP: Brands can now talk directly to their fans, without having to compete against the noise of populated newsfeeds One-to-one personalised approach to communicating with fans Stories-first approach to content to provide the content fans really want to see Takes content to the next lifecycle stage, giving brands more creative freedom Tim Heineke, the Founder of POP, comments: It was basic math for us when creating POP. The death of newsfeeds plus saturation of content for consumers equates to a difficult landscape for brands looking to conduct meaningful narrative storytelling. Understanding consumer behaviour and matching it with simple, effective design was important to us when building POP. Messaging is an interactive one-on-one method and weve seen ninety four percent open rates for messages with our clients, so it just works for brands. For the last two years we have been powering the world's leading artists & record labels with incredible success, often becoming their number one driver of traffic to content, Heineke concludes. Tailored interactive stories can be created by composing a flow. With flow-templates available for plug-and-play options - enabling users to get up-and-running in real-time. Flows can be used to automate answers to inbound questions and proactive outbound messaging campaigns. POP also provides versatility for users, as narratives can be developed for sharing news, inform about products and services, or have direct contact with consumers. POP Key Features: Set up in just a few seconds - Connect a Facebook page to Messenger and its good to go. Message fans directly - Skip feeds and algorithms by personally messaging brand followers. Automatic responses - Set auto responses to brand follower messages or define a set of replies using quick reply buttons. Persistent menu - Display all functions in a menu format like on a website or an app. Provide on- demand information for brand followers. Manage & assign user roles - POP is designed to manage brand followers. Set up multiple options and define user roles all through one simple dashboard. POP is available on a monthly or annual subscription basis, starting at $29 per month, and for one user to enterprise sizing. More pricing/subscription, dialogue flow and information available here. Ends For more information please visit our blog. Notes to Editors About I AM POP POP is a new way of storytelling in chat. A direct and powerful messaging channel to personally notify your audience one-on-one. POPs chat editor makes it super simple to write engaging stories. To make it even easier you can browse and use our customizable templates. I AM POP was started by Tim Heineke in 2016 with the mission to explore the music artist to fan relationship and how to bring the two closer together. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005 . @iampopin #tech #startup launches in #UK and #europe to improve #storytelling for #brands through #creative #social engagement Rakhibazaar.com PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 15:09:54 Press Information Rakhibazaar.com Pandav Nagar Mayur Vihar Phase 1 Deelip Kumar Manager 8510934032 email https://www.rakhibazaar.com/ # 496 Words Pandav NagarMayur Vihar Phase 1Manager8510934032 New Delhi, India, July 2018Honoring the divinity and tradition of Raksha Bandhan, popularly known as Rakhi in India, Rakhibazaar.com brings to you the latest Rakhi 2018 ( https://www.rakhibazaar.com/when-is-rakhi.aspx) catalog. You can now find a selected range of single Rakhi, Rakhi sets, Designer Rakhi, Mauli Rakhi, Lumba Rakhi, Kids Rakhi, Bhaiya Bhabhi Rakhi, Kundan Rakhi, Rudraksha Rakhi, Silver Rakhi, Pearl Rakhi, Fancy Rakhi, and many more varieties. In addition, the leading online gift portal also presents a new collection of Rakhi gifts to cater to the needs of modern-day brothers and sisters located in different parts of the country as well as out of India. Rakhibazaar.com is a popular online gift portal. On Raksha Bandhan, like every year, the company has launched its fresh catalog comprising of Rakhi, gifts, sweets, cakes, chocolates, dry fruits, and plenty of personalized gifting options. Raksha Bandhan is an auspicious celebration in India that symbolizes the love and affection of sisters for their brothers.Regardless of how the bond is, sometimes sweet and sometimes sour, siblinghood is largely celebrated by everyone on this special day. It is a customary ritual to tie the divine Rakhi thread on the wrist of the brother. However, as distance has become a barrier in most cases, the best way is to choose and send Rakhi online to any city in India or abroad. With Rakhibazaar.com , you can now send Rakhi to Pune ( https://www.rakhibazaar.com/rakhi-to-Pune-30.html) , to your brother, and give him a pleasant surprise.Unexpected wishes and gifts bring joy to everyones life. Our aim is to bring happiness to the lives of many brothers and sisters who live apart. On this Rakhi 2018, we are offering free shipping to most Indian cities as well as Express Delivery. Using this service, sisters can send Rakhi to Pune on the same day with chosen gifts. The Express Delivery facility is especially helpful for sisters who wish to send Rakhi with cake, flowers, or sweets, to their brothers and families, said the spokesperson.Rakhi is the day to shower your sibling with love and affection. On this auspicious even of Rakhi tying ceremony, the traditional highlight is to send Rakhi to Pune with a Puja Thali that comes with Roli Chawal. Despite the geographical barrier, no brother or sister would miss celebrating Rakhi using Rakhibazaar.com online Rakhi delivery service. Send Rakhi to Pune and make sure you pack all the choicest gifts from the latest Rakhi 2018 catalog.We are eager to help sisters to send Rakhi to Pune for their brothers and their families. We have an elaborate catalog for different cities, personalized to perfection. Our gifting experts designed each and every page to make sure it meets the contemporary needs and demands of city dwellers, said the spokesperson.Celebrate Rakhi 2018 by showering your brother with gifts and sweets from the Rakhibazaar.com . Select Express Delivery for quick service and let your brother know how much you care. PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 19:05:21 Press Information The Santilli Foundation 35246 US Hwy 19 N, Suite 215 Richard Anderson Manager 7272666622 email http://www.santilli-foundation.org Published by Ruggero Santilli 7272666622 e-mail http://santilli-foundation.org # 339 Words 35246 US Hwy 19 N, Suite 215Manager7272666622Ruggero Santilli7272666622 An in-depth word-by-word analysis of the Article in Wikipedia on the U. S. senior scientist Sir Prof. Ruggero Maria Santilli ( http://www.i-b-r.org/Dr-R-M-Santilli-Bio-1-10-18.pdf) has been presented in Post 78 of the website http://www.galileoprincipia.org/Lawsuit-against-Frank-Israel-and-Pepijin-van-Erp.php on the Lawsuit in U. S. Federal Court filed by Ruggero and Carla Santilli against Frank Israel and Pepijin van Erp or in the mirror http://www.i-b-r.org/The-Wikipedia-Google-threat.htm . The post identifies a series of alleged misconducts by Wikipedia Editors Arthur Rubin, David Epstein, and Mark Bernstein perpetrated with the apparent technical assistance by Google, thus deserving the reading by all Americans who really care about the freedom of information under the First Amendment of our Constitution, as well as the survival of democracy in the U.S.A.Scope of The Santilli Foundation:The R. M. Santilli Foundation (the "Santilli Foundation" hereon) is patterned along the life of the Italian-American scientist Ruggero Maria Santilli that has been dedicated to the pursuit of fundamental scientific advances, and the support of scientific ethics as a necessary condition for true basic advances.Board of The Santilli FoundationThe Santilli Foundation is governed by its Board of Directors comprising five distinguished scientists, administrators and philanthropists. The Board routinely seeks advice from outside scientists on specific issues. The responsibility of all actions by the Santilli Foundations rests with its Board.Members of The Santilli FoundationInterested individuals from all walks of life, including scientists, educators, administrators, politicians and attorneys, are welcome to be members of the Santilli Foundation by contacting the Membership List Membership in the Santilli Foundations carries no responsibility, duty or cost of any type. Members of the Santilli Foundations are free, without obligation, to disclose their membership in their papers or other activities, but the Santilli Foundations assumes the obligation of not disclosing their membership unless authorized in writing. In particular, all electronic communications will be sent on with individual addresses without releasing email lists.The R.M. Santilli Foundation PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 15:04:01 TORONTO, July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vision Capital Corporation ("Vision") is pleased to announce that June 30, 2018 marked the 10-year anniversary since the inception of the Vision Opportunity Funds (the "Vision Funds"). Over the past decade the unique combination and expertise of its three portfolio managers, whose collective experience in property markets and real estate securities spans nearly 100 years, has been focused on investing in the real estate sector through investments in publicly-traded equity and debt securities. Vision's strategy of targeting the purchase of real estate cheaper in the stock market than the property market, and shorting overvalued real estate securities, has resulted in the Vision Funds delivering superior risk-adjusted total returns for its clients. Vision is pleased to report that over this 10-year period the Vision Opportunity Fund LP (A) returned 274%1 net of all fees and expenses. This represents a compounded annual growth rate of approximately 14.1%1. A chart accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/bcf3f035-3dc7-44c2-a4b6-361edbd654f6 Of equal importance to Vision is the protection of its clients' capital and the particular focus on achieving compelling risk-adjusted total returns. Vision's achievement of this goal is further reflected by: The Vision Funds, over the 10-year period, delivering total positive returns for all full calendar years and rolling 12-month periods while, in the same period, there have been one or more full calendar years during which the S&P/TSX Capped REIT, the S&P/TSX Composite and the MSCI U.S. REIT Indices have each delivered negative total returns. The Vision Funds achieving a negative down-market capture ratio over the 10-year period, which indicates that over the past 10 years during months when the broad stock market index 2 returns were negative , on average, the Vision Funds delivered positive total returns. which indicates that over the past 10 years during months when the broad stock market index returns were , on average, the Vision Funds delivered Strong total returns were achieved with low correlation to both the broad stock market index2 and the REIT indices3, and a negative correlation to the bond index4. A table accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7a51f0e7-857f-4430-bb02-48bb7c664d8e The superior performance of the Vision Funds has been recognized by S&P Capital IQ, Scotiabank, Morningstar and the Canadian Hedge Fund Awards with twelve industry awards and honours over the past decade. Vision thanks all of its clients, business partners and dedicated employees for their incredible support over the past 10 years and looks forward to providing its clients with superior risk-adjusted total returns for many years to come. Please click here for a "Snapshot" profile of the Vision Opportunity Funds. For information on the Vision Opportunity Funds, please contact Darren Kosack, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at kosack@visioncap.ca, or directly at 416.569.8498, and Gary Hagen at hagen@visioncap.ca, or directly at 416.369.9307. For more information on Vision, please visit www.visioncap.ca. Notes: (1) Past performance is not indicative of future performance (2) The S&P/TSX Composite Total Return Index. (3) Refers to the MSCI U.S. REIT Total Return Index and the S&P/TSX Capped REIT Total Return Index (4) The iShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETF seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the intermediate-term sector of the U.S. Treasury market as defined by the Barclays Capital 7-10 Year Treasury Index. (5) All performance and risk metric references to the "Vision Opportunity Fund LP" (or "Vision LP") herein refer to Series 1 of the Class A Units of the Vision Opportunity Fund LP. The inception of the Vision Opportunity Fund Limited Partnership was July 1, 2008. (6) The Sharpe ratio measures the return in excess of the risk-free rate relative to the volatility of the return. The higher the Sharpe ratio, the better returns the fund has yielded in relation to its risk. (7) The Sortino ratio is a variation of the Sharpe ratio which differentiates harmful volatility from volatility in general by replacing standard deviation with downside deviation in the denominator. A higher Sortino ratio indicates a lower risk of large losses occurring. (8) Up-Market and Down-Market Capture Ratios are statistical measures of an investment manager's overall performance in up and down markets, respectively. The ratios are used to evaluate how well an investment manager performed relative to an index during periods when that index has risen or fallen. A negative Down-Market Capture Ratio indicates that the fund increased on average during the months when the index decreased. (9) The correlation figures presented are the correlation coefficient of monthly total net returns comparing the Vision Opportunity Fund LP A vs. the stated index over the last 5 years. This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Vision Capital Corporation via Globenewswire PR-Inside.com: 2018-07-23 10:26:38 Press Information Persistence Market Research (PMR) Persistence Market Research 305 Broadway 7th Floor, New York City, NY 10007, United States, USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353 Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com Web: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com Abhishek Budholiya Manager 8009610353 email https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com # 820 Words Persistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb: https://www.persistencemarketresearch.comManager8009610353 Wearable injectors are smart drug delivery devices that can be worn on the body which can be programmed to deliver large amounts of viscous and sensitive drug products over a period of time. It is different from the insulin pumps as it can b. After the use of the device the patient peels of the device and throws it away. Patients do not require to undergo the training about the use of wearable injectors as it preset by the medical devices companies to deliver particular amount of drug. Biologics are difficult to administer via traditional subcutaneous injections as they are very viscous in nature. The wearable injector device can generally deliver 2-10mL of the drug solution. Wearable injectors are painless in nature and can deliver very high amount of drug up to 50mL. The wearable injector contains the osmotic actuator, a reservoir which contains the therapeutic agent and trigger button to start injection.There has been substantial increase in the number of approvals of the biologics over the last few years. Each year new biologics and biosimilars hit the market. The injectable market is also growing significantly and anticipated to be a major driving factor for the wearable injectors market.A sample of this report is available upon request@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/21463 The wearable injectors provide additional benefits to the patients which includes comfort, confidence, self-administration and also painless and precise drug delivery.Wearable injector Market: Drivers and RestrainsThe global wearable injector market is anticipated to register a significant growth over the forecast period. The maximum injectable dose for the auto injectors is about 1-2ml because the drug administered above 2ml may revert back and cause pain. The wearable injector is an alternative to conventional injections and auto injectors and anticipated to boost the demand for wearable injector and drive the growth of the global market over the long run.There has been a considerable increase in the number of biologics approval in the past few years as the chemical synthesis pipeline is getting diminished which also propel the adoption of wearable injectors to deliver the biologics by the subcutaneous route and expected to drive the global wearable injector market. The technological innovation and advancements in the wearable injectors such as customization as per the end user need and self-administration, is also anticipated to drive the growth of the global wearable injectors market.However, the stringent rules and regulations by the regulatory authority such as U.S. FDA and European commission may restrain the growth for the wearable injectors market over forecast period.Wearable Injectors Market: SegmentationThe global artificial implant market has been classified on the basis of modality, application, usability and end user.Based on modality of the wearable injectors market segment into following:Hand heldOn bodyOff bodyBased on application the wearable injectors market segmented into following:DiabetesOncologyBiologicsAuto Immune diseases and disorderOthersBased on usability, the wearable injectors market is segmented into following:DisposableReusableBased on end user, the wearable injectors market segmented into following:HospitalsClinicsIndividualOthersWearable Injectors Market: OverviewThe wearable injectors market is segmented based on the modality, therapeutic are application, usability and end user. Based on type, the wearable injectors market is segmented into hand held, on body (patches) and off body. The rising approvals for the biologics in the past few years is anticipated to be the main area of focus for therapeutics as a biologics. Thus the use of wearable injector is expected to boom in the coming years.Wearable Injectors Market: Regional OverviewRegion wise, the global wearable injectors market is classified into regions such as North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific including Japan (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA). North America is estimated to account for leading share to the global wearable injectors market due to the increasing adoption of wearable injectors over traditional injectors. The Europe is also contribute the significant shares to the global wearable injectors market followed by North America. The APEJ has become a lucrative market for wearable injectors as the due to the cost benefit of the wearable injectors as an economical alternative to the pre-existing treatments. The MEA is at nascent stage to the global wearable injectors market and projected to grow at a moderate rate over forecast period.Wearable Injectors Market: Key PlayersRequest report Toc@ https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/21463 Some of the key players in global wearable injectors market are Amdex Corporation, Unilife Corporation, Enable injections, BD pharmaceutical systems, ypsomed, West Pharmaceutical Services Inc., Cane s.p.a, and others.The research report presents a comprehensive assessment of the market and contains thoughtful insights, facts, historical data, and statistically supported and industry-validated market data. It also contains projections using a suitable set of assumptions and methodologies. The research report provides analysis and information according to categories such as market segments, geographies, type of product and applications. The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), says it realised $45 million (about N16.2 billion) revenue between January and April this year under the Nigerian Content Intervention Fund (NCIF). Obinna Ofili, the General Manager, NCIF Board, Stated this at a capacity building workshop for Energy and Finance correspondents in Lagos on Monday. According to Mr Ofili, NCIF is being funded from one per cent deductions from contracts awarded by operating International Oil Companies (IoCs) in the country. He said the board would also be saving about N5 million for the federal government annually, beginning from 2018 after exiting appropriation from the national budget. Mr Ofili said that about 157 operators were presently contributing to the fund, adding that more than $72 million came into the fund in 2017. According to him, the board is presently operating on self-sustenance as it no longer receives subvention from government. He said by so doing, the board was saving N5 million for the government every year which represents its operating costs from the national budget. Mr Ofili also said the board had been able to retain $5 billion annually in-country from yearly $20 billion spent on the oil industry. The board targets to achieve about 70 per cent which translates to $14 billion retention in the next ten years, he explained. Mr Ofili said besides the 45 million dollars realised by NCDMB, it had $200 million, adding that the fund would help increase indigenous participation in the oil and gas industry. According to him, it will also promote growth and development of the Nigerian Content activities connected with sectors of the industry. The fund will also deepen the creation of linkages to other sectors of the national economy and boost industry contributions to growth of National Gross Domestic Product (GDP), among others. The NCIF is a pool of funds made available by NCDMB, and managed by the Bank of Industry (BoI). The aim of the fund is to tackle funding needs of indigenous manufacturers, service providers and other key players in the oil and gas industry. (NAN) An American Airlines plane with International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director, Christine Lagarde on board, made an emergency landing in the Argentine airport on Sunday due to malfunction, local media reported. According to the Clarin newspaper, the plane took off for the U. S. at 8.55 p.m. local time (23.55 GMT) from Buenos Aires Ezeiza airport. According to the newspapers source, the aircraft experienced pressurization system malfunction, yet later it became known that it was fuel leak that forced the plane to return to the Argentine airport for an emergency landing. Christine Lagarde was in Argentina over the weekend for the G20 meeting of finance ministers. (Sputnik/NAN) Britains new Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, on Monday warned during a visit to Germany, of the threat posed to the European Union by London leaving the bloc. There is now a very real threat of a Brexit no-deal by accident. This is because many people in the EU are thinking that they just have to wait long enough and Britain will blink, Mr Hunt said after a meeting with German Foreign Minister, Heiko Maas. In his comments, Mr Hunt called on EU negotiators to take a more constructive role in Brexit negotiations with Britain, which is scheduled to leave the 28-member bloc on March 29, 2019. Without a real change in approach from the EU negotiators, we now face a real risk of a no-deal by accident, and that would be incredibly challenging economically, Mr Hunt said. He added that it could further cloud relations between Britain and Europe. My real fear is that it would change the British public attitude towards Europe for a generation, Mr Hunt, who campaigned for Britain to remain a part of the EU in the 2016 referendum when Britons voted to end their nations EU membership, said. He said Brexit would lead to a rift in the relationship that would greatly damage the partnership that London has been cultivating for many years. (dpa/NAN) Jayne Augoye is an assistant editor and covers the entertainment and lifestyle beat for PREMIUM TIMES. She has a master's degree in Media and Communication from the Pan Atlantic University. Twitter : @jaynejones I Agree Our website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy The Muhammadu Buhari administration has, compared to its predecessor, allocated less sums to the auditor-generals office, which audits and reviews public accounts, an official document shows. The poor funding since Mr Buhari assumed office in 2015 is now hindering the auditor-general from performing his crucial role necessary for transparency and accountability in government offices. Although Nigerias budget increased in Mr Buharis first two full years in office, the money his government allocated to the audit office reduced, thus limiting the capability of the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation (OAuGF) to function appropriately. The reduced funding came amidst increase in the national budget, the mandate of the OAuGF and public expectations of transparency and accountability in government activities, said Anthony Ayine, Nigerias Auditor-General of the Federation. Mr Ayines remarks are captured in the 2016 audit report by his office, obtained by PREMIUM TIMES. The report is the latest by the auditor-generals office and was released last month. Mr Ayine, who lamented the poor funding, noted that severe funding constraints continue to be a major impediment to achieving the statutory and constitutional mandates of his office. The National Budget, the mandate of the Office and public expectations have been increasing over the past years, just as the annual audit budget has been on a steady decline, he lamented. Mr Ayine was appointed by Mr Buhari after after emerging tops at rigorous mandatory written and oral interviews. He assumed office in January 2017 after he was cleared by the Senate. THE REDUCTIONS A PREMIUM TIMES analysis of the appropriation for audit showed that since Mr Buhari took over government in 2015, there has been a sharp decline in the amount appropriated for the auditor-generals office. A breakdown of the figures shows that in the three-year period preceding Mr Buharis reign, more allocations were appropriated for audit of government accounts. In 2012 for instance, N3.1 billion was allocated for audit while the national appropriation stood at N4.8 trillion. In 2013, N3.6 billion was budgeted while the total national appropriation stood at N4.9 trillion. The sum of N5.1 billion was budgeted for audit in 2014 while the total national appropriation stood at N4.6 trillion. In 2015, however, the figures began to record a decline as N3.2 billion was appropriated for audit while the total national budget stood at N4.4 trillion. Although Mr Buhari assumed office on May 29, 2015, the 2015 budget was prepared and signed by his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan. Since Mr Buharis government started preparing its own budget, however, budgetary allocations to the auditor general have gotten worse amidst total increase in budget figures. In 2016, the appropriation to the OAuGF stood at N2.79 billion while the national appropriation stood at N6 trillion. In 2017, the audit figure reduced slightly to N2.78 while the total national appropriation shot up to N7.2 trillion. The appropriation for audit across these years, the auditor-general report said, included personnel cost of the OAuGF. Audit appropriation figures 2012 to 2017 A PREMIUM TIMES review of the 2018 budget, however, shows an increase in budgetary allocation to the office. The total allocation to the auditors office increased to N5.1 billion, although about 94 per cent of that sum (N4.8 billion) is meant for recurrent expenditure. In his 2016 report prepared before the 2018 budget was concluded, Mr Ayine lamented that the appropriated sums were not only reduced but the actual funding has been repeatedly cut over the year. This makes it difficult for his office to deliver on its mandate of ensuring that accounts of MDAs are checked thoroughly to ensure transparency and accountability in government and prevent graft and other fraudulent transactions. Funding for audit has been cut repeatedly over the years, and actual releases for Overheads in 2016 was less than half of the already inadequate budget, Mr Ayine noted in the executive summary of the report. The present funding levels make it very difficult to fulfil my constitutional mandate and cover the full range of governance issues to the satisfaction of all key stakeholders. PREMIUM TIMES had earlier reported how the 2016 audit report showed that more ministries, departments and agencies have refused to submit their accounts for audit since Mr Buhari took over power. The report showed that poor compliance of MDAs to Nigerian laws on audit and submission of accounts is worse in each of Mr Buharis first two years in office than any previous year since Nigeria returned to democracy in 1999. Commenting on the failure of the MDAs to comply with audit laws, Mr Ayine said the development was of great concern and suggested that stringent sanctions, including withholding financial releases and sanction of heads of defaulting agencies, should be put in place by the Nigerian government. NO EXPLANATION The underlying cause of the governments poor funding of audit is not immediately clear. Femi Adesina, Mr Buharis spokesperson, did not reply to PREMIUM TIMES request for an explanation. He did not return calls nor reply text messages sent to him either. The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udoma, also absolved himself of any responsibility in the poor funding for the audit agency. Buhari and ministers Former Minister of Budget and National Planning Senator Udoma Udo Udoma [Photo Credit: Channels TV] Mr Udomas spokesperson, Akpandem James, told PREMIUM TIMES that the ministry and the minister had nothing to do with the reduction in funding. We dont prepare budget for ministries and departments and agencies, they bring their own budgets. They prepare their budget; we only collate the budget and look at them and ensure that they are in line with the policy direction of government, he explained. Once it is in line with the policy direction of government and it is within the limit allocated to those ministries, thats not the business of the minister. We collate them and send them to the president and then the minister defends them at the federal executive council; when they are okay, they send them to the national assembly. You should also find out how much did they put, who cut it and at what point was it reduced. He, thereafter, suggested that the details would be with the Budget Office. But when PREMIUM TIMES reached out to Afolabi Olajuwon, Information Officer in the Budget Office, on Thursday, he said he would not be able to attend to our reporters request on phone. Even if a letter was written, it would take some time to get any response, he said. I dont think its possible until next week. If you want to get any fact on that, send a request in writing and channel to the director general budget office, he will channel it to the appropriate quarters. A BAD SIGN ACTIVISTS The development, analysts say, is in sharp contrast to the current administrations stance that it is focusing on transparency, accountability and has zero tolerance for corruption. An economist, Paul Aladje, said the implication of such development is bad because it may give civil servants the free hands to steal. Youd be surprised most of the ministries are giving the same contractors their jobs; and most of the times, even these people are not Nigerians. The economic implications are job losses, capital flight, etc. I am of the opinion that we need to create a system that makes it difficult to steal, he said. Why is it that a very vital parastatal of government that has tendency to help in the promotion of anti-corruption is deliberately underfunded? said Jide Ojo, a public affairs analyst. It shows that the government is not serious. They dont have good office, they dont have required personnel, they are expected to offer professional advice and even many of the string operations and annual audit reports that have indicted many of the MDAs, they just end up gathering dust; the government never acted on them, deliberately so, because everything is done under political considerations, he said. Mr Ojo said the OAuGF, like anti-graft agencies, EFCC and ICPC, should be well funded You need to even be able to hire consultants when you have shortfall in your personnel. You know the office of the auditor-general has been shouting on mountain top about how it is underfunded, how even with the whistle it has blown, nothing is happening. What do you expect, the man would just keep quiet. Maybe one day a new administration would come and deem it fit to do something, he said. He added that although funding for the OAuGF has been bad before the advent of this administration; but if it says it wants to change and the president is enjoying global acclaim on the strength of his anti-corruption crusade, why should it allow this to go on. The activist suggests a way forward for the auditor-general. I think maybe the auditor-general can do a direct memo to the president or seek audience with the president and thats if the cabal will even allow him, he said. Mr Ojo also suggested that the OAuGF could solicit international donations and support to augment whatever comes from the national appropriation. Maybe what he could do, if it is not a breach of public service rule, is to reach out to development partners, he explained. If he could reach out to development partners like EFCC did. If he could reach out to donor partners, at least in terms of capacity building or even raising issues with the president. Some of these partners have access to the president. U.S. President, Donald Trump, has again blamed former President, Barack Obama, for not doing something about alleged Russias meddling in the 2016 presidential election, while he was still president. Mr Trump, in a tweet, also described the alleged election meddling as a hoax, saying it was the reason Obama did not act. He said Mr Obama thought the Democratic presidential candidate and arch-rival, Hillary Clinton, was going to win. Mr Trump tweeted: So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election. Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!! The president took a swipe at the whole Foreign Intelligence Surveillance (FISA) warrant application, released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) against Carter Page, a Trump campaign foreign policy adviser. Mr Trump described Pages FISA documents as a scam, which led to the rigged Mueller Witch Hunt!. Alleged Russias interference in the 2016 presidential election, in which mr Trump won by electoral college but lost to Mrs Clinton by almost two million popular votes, led to the set-up of the special panel headed by Robert Mueller. The FBI on Saturday released a redacted version of the warrant application on Page, marking the first public disclosure of a highly sensitive FISA request. Mr Trump said that the FISA documents confirm with little doubt that the Justice Department and the FBI misled the courts. Mr Trump went on to allege that his campaign was potentially being illegally surveyed for `the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC (Democratic National Congress). Looking more and more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC. Ask her how that worked out she did better with Crazy Bernie. Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam! Trump tweeted. The U.S. leader bragged about having a great meeting with Russian President, Vladimir Putin, but blamed the media, which he described as fake news for trying to disparage the meeting. I had a great meeting with Putin and the fake news used every bit of their energy to try and disparage it. So bad for our country! Trump tweeted. (NAN) The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expelled an Ogun State senator, Buruji Kashamu, from the party. Three other members of the PDP in Ogun State were also expelled on Monday. The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, announced the expulsion at the end of an emergency National Executive Committee meeting of the party in Abuja. Mr. Kashamu, a supporter of erstwhile national chairman of the PDP, Ali Sheriff, was expelled alongside Bayo Dayo, Segun Sarki and Sanimu Sodipo; all from Ogun State. Mr Dayo was a factional chairman of the PDP in Ogun. He headed the faction of the party loyal to Mr Kashamu. Mr Kashamu is wanted in the U.S. for drug-related offences. He has repeatedly claimed he is innocent and has resisted moves to extradite him. In May, the appeal court ruled against Mr Kashamu, signifying a possibility he could be arrested, before extradition commences. Speaking on the expulsion, Mr Ologbondiyan said, We also took some disciplinary action against some of our members who have been hobnobbing with the ruling government and whose actions have become unacceptable to the PDP. We need to know that our party has been rebranded and repositioned and in the light and in the spirit of the way the PDP is presently reconstituted. The following members of our party have been expelled. These are Senator Buruji Kashamu, Semiu Sodipo, Bayo Adedayo and Segun Seriki, all members of the Ogun State chapter of the party. Mr. Ologbondiyan told journalists while reading the resolutions of the party. The Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, has summoned Senate President Bukola Saraki over the killing of 31 persons following an armed robbery attack in his home state of Kwara. The police said 31 persons were killed in the April 5 attack which shocked the nation. Police said the suspects arrested in the attack confessed to being sponsored by Mr Saraki, describing it as the most deadly armed robbery in the countrys history. Mr Saraki was previously summoned by the police in June, but the invitation was abruptly withdrawn and the top lawmaker was required to submit his response to the allegations in writing. Mr Saraki complied with the demand, and no updates had been released from the police about the matter ever since. In a statement Monday night, the Force Headquarters circulated a June 23, 2018 letter which Mr Idris wrote to Mr Saraki, asking him to turn himself in to clarify grey areas in his statement. The police said Mr Saraki had said in his statement that he would not comment on the purported confession of the suspects since he was not privy to the specifics of their statements. The police said Mr Saraki would now have the chance to read the statements of his accusers when he turned himself in at the Intelligence Response Team in Guzape neighbourhood, Abuja. He was asked to come by 8:00 a.m. on July 24. A spokesperson for Mr Saraki was not immediately available for comments, but it was expected that the Senate President would honour the invitation. He expressed his readiness to honour the previous one issued to him until the police withdrew it by themselves. Mr Saraki also strongly maintained his innocence, saying the police allegations were watery and politically-motivated. Read the letter from the police to Mr Saraki below: CR:3000/IGP.SEC/ABJ/VOL.131/707 23rdJuly, 2018 Senator Bukola Saraki, The President of the Senate, Federal Republic of Nigeria, National Assembly Complex, Three Arms Zone, Abuja. LETTER OF INVITATION CASE OF OFFA BANK ROBBERY AND GRUESOME MURDER OF MORE THAN 31 PERSONS AND SNATCHING OF 21 AK47 RIFLES ON THE 5THOF APRIL, 2018. I refer to this office letter CR:3000/IGP.SEC/ABJ/VOL./130/571 dated 4th June 2018 and your letter of response NASS/8th/S/SP/IGP/15/6/18 dated 7th June 2018 on the above subject matter (copies attached) and to further restate as follows; 2. Recall that the Police Intelligence Response Team(IRT)is investigating a case of Armed Robbery which occurred on the 5th of April, 2018 during which a gang of dare devil Armed Robbers, stormed Offa, Kwara State and attacked a Police Station, robbed six Banks namely First Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, ECO Bank, Zenith Bank, Union Bank and Ibolo Micro Finance Bank, killed over thirty one(31) Persons including nine Police officers and pregnant women and snatched twenty(21)AK47 rifles. 3. During the investigation of the Armed Robbery by the Intelligence Response Team, a CCTVfootage of the Armed Robbery in one of the banks, captured the image of two persons. The CCTV footage was circulated on the social media and this led to their identification as Kunle Ogunleye and Micheal Adikwu. The two persons were tracked and arrested by the Police and they made very useful statements and named the five gang leaders who organized the Armed Robbery. 4. Some of the five gang leaders made confessional statements admitting their participation in this worst Armed Robbery in the history of Nigeria and that they are political thugs under the name, Youth Liberation Movement aka Good boys allegedly sponsored by you and that you have given them firearms, money and vehicles. It was equally discovered that one of the vehicles, a Lexus Jeep, used by the gang leader (Ayoade Akinnibosun) has a sticker plate number SARAKI Kwara State of Harmony. 5. The Lexus Jeep was parked in the Government House after the arrest of Ayoade Akinnibosun and in order to conceal evidence, the Chief of Staff to the Executive Governor of Kwara State, arranged for the removal of the sticker plate number SARAKI Kwara State of Harmony from the Lexus jeep and quickly registered it in the name of the suspect, six days after the suspecthas been arrested by the Police. 6. Specifically Mr Ayoade Akinnibosun m 27 Years in his Confessional Statement stated that members of his group are Political Thugs working for Senator Bukola Saraki and Governor of Kwara State. That he is the head of the Political Thugs named Youths Liberation Movement coveringabout seven (7) Local Governments Areas of Kwara South. That he gets vehicle and monetary gifts etc from Senator Bukola Saraki through the Chief of Staff to the Governor of Kwara State; that the last money he got directly from Senator Bukola Saraki was Five Hundred Thousand (N500,000) Naira. He made mention of some other thugs in Kwara Central with guns which Senator Bukola Saraki is sponsoring as Alhaji Alawo, Alhaji Dona, Alhaji Jawando among others, that Senator Bukola Saraki supplies the arms and vehicles to the thugs; that everyone in Kwara Central fear them because of their guns and ability to kill anybody without hesitation. Furthermore the suspect Ayoade Akinnibosun stated that the date you Senator Saraki visited Offa in sympathy with the victims to the Palace of the Oba, that he and two other gang members were with you in the convoy. 7. In your response to the above allegations, you stated by virtue of my participation in politics, I have a large followership which makes it impossible for me to know all of them. I can say categorically that I am in no way associated with the vehicle mentioned in your letter nor have I given any arms to any thug or other persons in kwara State or anywhere else. For the records, your letter under reference did not include the full text of the statements made by the accused persons 8. After a careful perusal of your letter to the Police, it was discovered that the statement requires further clarification and coupled with the fact that you stated that the full text of the statements of the suspects were not shown to you, it is imperative you report to the Police to make further statements after giving you the full text of the statements of the suspects. 9. It is in line with the above that you are requested to report to the head of the Investigation Team at the Intelligence Response Team at Guzape Junction, Asokoro Extension, Abuja on 24th of July, 2018 at 8am for further investigation on the matter. 10. Please as always, accept my warm regards and high esteem. IGP IBRAHIM K. IDRIS, npm, mni INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF POLICE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA FHQ ABUJA. A 57-year-old woman admitted in a German court on Monday, to having killed her partner with boiling water so as to teach him a lesson because of an alleged affair. The woman, who has not been identified under Germanys strict privacy laws, acted out of jealousy when she doused her partner with boiling water one night in a bedroom, prosecutors told the court in the southern German city of Ingolstadt. The 47-year-old man died a few days later as a result of the burns he suffered in the incident, which affected about 70 per cent of his body. In a statement read out in court by the defendants lawyer, she admitted to carrying out the attack, however she did not think he could die from her action. The judge said the court should examine whether the defendant required psychiatric care. The verdict is expected to be announced on July 31. (dpa/NAN) The Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, on Monday spoke on the challenges of research studies and called for proper funding of research. Mr. Dambazau, who spoke at Ife Summer Institute 2018, a programme organised by Ife Institute of Advanced Studies, Obafemi Awolowo University, Osun State, on Monday said research has not been properly funded over the years which makes the challenges more pronounced in Africa, particularly in Nigeria. The challenges of research is more pronounced in Nigeria because we focus more on modern tradition which has caused more harm,, he said. Our history has been distorted by the colonial master and most of us do not take research serious. Funding is also poor. If research is properly funded, it will make research more meaningful, we should focus on issues that impact us. He also called for proper research on democracy with facts and evidences and how to eradicate poverty in the face of population growth and ethnicity. Corroborating the minister, the traditional ruler of Oke Ila in Osun State, Adedokun Abolarin, said he is an ambassador of the residents of rural areas and the poor. The untapped resources of the rural areas are big challenges and elites are not making adequate effort to solve these problems. If research is properly funded, It is the duty of scholars to do the needful. I will admonish us to use our knowledge to improve our society, he said. The Keynote Speaker, Wale Adebanwi, a professor at Oxford University, spoke on: The Social Life of a Scholarly Publication: From Conception to Execution. He said despite evil perpetrated by writers who are agents of illumination, there is need for people to keep making research to correct the wrong. It is important to note that scholars dont just enlighten others, it means enlightening themselves. The limitation of Nigeria social contest are plenty. There is need to train new generation of scholars. How do we produce good education in Nigeria? he asked. The greatest challenges is time, it is important to protect ones time from the rest of the world. We need academic devotees and multi intensive readers to developing relationships and build network across the country. He, encouraged students to find a regular space for learning in silence for the development of the country. This is when original thinking happens. Speaking after the programme, a student of the Department of Philosophy, Kunle Oyatomi, charged the minister to work towards proper funding of research he clamoured for here today. The police in Lagos State have arrested a 19-year-old woman, Dorcas Adilewa, who reportedly planned her kidnap to defraud her father. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the suspect hatched the plan in connivance with one Ifeoluwa Ogunbanjo, her friend, who provided location and a phone to contact her parents. The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, said that the suspects were arrested on July 13 following a report by the suspects father at Ketu Police Station. On July 7 at about 5 p.m., Adilewa Taiwo of No. 3, Kosumi Lane, Bello-Ketu, Lagos, reported at Ketu Police Station that he received a call from phone number 09057432362. He was told that his daughter, Dorcas Adilewa, was being held hostage and that if he does not want her killed, he should pay a ransom of N600,000 to secure her release. Investigation into the case was immediately commenced and the above phone number that was used by the suspects was geo-located to Ijebu-Igbo area of Ogun State. The O/C Anti-Kidnapping led his operatives to Ijebu-Igbo on July 12 and combed the area in search of the supposed victim till the following morning. The commissioner said that while the search was ongoing at Ijebu-Igbo, the location of the supposed kidnappers changed to Ikotun in Lagos and the search party had to move from Ijebu-Igbo to IKotun in Lagos to rescue the victim. When the fake kidnappers realised that the Police were closing in on them, the supposed victim decided to call the complainant to inform him that she has been released, after he had deposited the sum of N8,000 in her UBA account number: 2087804991. Mr Imohimi said that when Ms Adilewa was being debriefed upon her release, she confessed that she actually planned the fake kidnap with her friend, one Ogunbanjo. She provided her with accommodation at No. 174, Adeboye road, Okesopin, Ijebu Igbo in Ogun State to hide and the phone that they used in demanding for the ransom. Investigation is in progress and on completion, the suspects will be charged to court accordingly, the commissioner said. Meanwhile, the police in Lagos have arrested Jacob Dare for alleged attempted kidnapping. Mr Imohimi said that case was reported at Ayobo Division, Lagos, on July 17 by Ebhoboghe Rufus. He said that the suspect had attempted to kidnap the complainants daughter at the Christ Anointed Church, Ayobo, Lagos. The commissioner said the suspect, who was not a member of the church, attempted to kidnap the complainants daughter by luring her to follow him with a gift of N50 note. He said that the suspect attempted to escape from the scene of the incident before he was arrested by members of the church. Mr Imohimi said that the suspect, who was pretending to be insane, later abandoned his art of trickery and admitted that he was of sound mind and he only went to the Church to worship. He then cunningly defended his act of luring the little girl with a N50 note by claiming that he was only asking for direction from the little girl and her mother, he said. A mobile application to allow citizen engagement with lawmakers on constituency projects has been launched. The application was launched by OrderPaper, a news media with focus on reporting on the lawmakers and their activities. The ConsTrack app empowers citizens to track the implementation of constituency projects and it comes loaded with verified and validated information on the location of the projects, amount appropriated, level of funding provided the implementing ministry, department or agency, status of implementation and the profiles of the legislators concerned, the organisation said in a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES. Read the full statement below. OrderPaper Nigeria has announced the release of the ConsTrack mobile application, a user friendly and innovative tool for citizens to engage elected representatives on constituency projects across the country. The app is available for download on both Google Play Store and Apple Store respectively. Every year, the federal government appropriates at least N100 billion for constituency projects of members of the National Assembly. State Governments also allocate billions annually for these projects under the aegies of members of the state assemblies. However, the constituency projects scheme has been entangled in reports of corruption, opacity and non-inclusion in terms of implementation. The ConsTrack app empowers citizens to track the implementation of constituency projects and it comes loaded with verified and validated information on the location of the projects, amount appropriated, level of funding provided the implementing ministry, department or agency, status of implementation and the profiles of the legislators concerned. With the knowledge and understanding provided by the app and the ensuing engagements, citizens are able to ask the right questions and #Demand2Know how our commonwealth is being expended by government in the name of constituency projects. A defining feature of the app is that it allows citizens to track and directly report their findings on the projects either by text, audio or videos with their mobile devices in the comfort of their neighborhoods, communities and constituencies. These independent citizens reports invariably ignite a chain of updates, reactions and counter reactions from various stakeholders in a continuous stream of engagement. The ConsTrack app is importantly also a veritable platform for legislators to tell their success on constituency projects in order to provide a balanced narrative and healthy interface between citizens and their elected representatives in parliament. In summary, the ConsTrack app is a tool that cuts through the controversy on constituency projects by disrupting corruption and opacity associated with the scheme in a manner that engenders policy reforms along the lines of transparency, accountability and inclusiveness. The release of the ConsTrack app is a culmination of various levels of multi-stakeholder consultations and validation exercises that have spanned over a year. Actors and stakeholders that have been involved in the consultations include legislators in the National and State Assemblies, Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of Government, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Community Based Organizations (CBOs), the Media, Software and IT experts, and Development Practitioners, among others. The ConsTrack project is designed and implemented by OrderPaper Nigeria, the countrys authentic citizens-parliament multi-platform interface, and with support from USAID under the Strengthening Advocacy and Civic Engagement (SACE) project. The Reformed-All Progressives Congress (rAPC) has said it is too late for President Muhammadu Buhari and the party to start making peace and reconciliation moves to stop their defection from the ruling APC. The rAPC, made this known in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kassim Afegbua, on Sunday. Just to make the point that it is too late in the day; the train has left the station. Leopards cannot change their spots no matter how much one tries to tame them. They are now pleading; ready to submit to all demands. Who does not know that wont work because examples have shown that political agreements are often observed in the breach. Some aggrieved members of the APC led by Buba Galadima had after the national convention of the party formed a faction they called rAPC on the claims of marginalisation and injustice by the APC against them. Reacting to the formation of the faction some weeks ago, the party chairman Adams Oshiomhole said there was no faction in the APC and those who had left the party were inconsequential as the party and the president can win the 2019 election without them. In the previous week, the party and the president has made several efforts at reconciliation from the meeting with the senate president, Bukola Saraki, to the rumoured meeting between the party and leaders of the rAPC, including Buba Galadima, on Sunday. The party, which did not deny this rumour, confirmed it in its statement on Sunday while reacting to PDPs statement that said the party and the president were jittery over the recent defection and coalition. The party, explaining itself, however said what the president and the national chairman of the party were doing, was to persuade every aggrieved member not to leave the party, which is what responsible and sensible party leaders would do. The rAPC said the Buhari government was not good at fufiling promises as it is yet to fulfill its promise to Nigerians in 2015. This government is never a promise keeper and some of the promises contained in the manifestos of the APC have been jettisoned. The President, who has held himself in the inner sanctuary of the Presidential Villa is all of a sudden, opening his doors to one meeting or the other all in the name of re-election, the faction said. The APC faction, in its statement, said despite the initial arrogance of party leaders, it is surprised the president and the party are now pleading with its leaders not to defect. We, members of the R-APC, find it very amusing that those who boasted that they wont lose sleep over our altruistic action, have been hopping from door to door pleading with our members not to leave by dangling juicy carrots and promising them heaven and earth. Such level of double standard is the reason why the R-APC was birthed in the first place because the leadership is not one that keeps promises and its the reason why no one should take the APC seriously. The faction said the government tried all tricks, mounted all manner of pressures, raised all dubious allegations, just to nail the senate president. The group, in its allegation, believes the Code of Conduct tribunal displayed magisterial arrogance in prosecuting the senate president, but the supreme court, in a landmark judgment gave Saraki a clean bill of health. The R-APC however urged its members to remain steadfast and resolute in defending their rights and taking the appropriate action in defence of democracy as it was still maintaining its stand against the APC. This democracy must survive on ethical grounds and not on lawlessness and exclusion. It must provide a level playing field for all participants. Those who prevented some persons from visiting their states in the name of politics have suddenly realised that they need the services and support of those persons. According to him, no amount of intimidation and harassment can dissuade the group in its shared commitment to rescue this democracy. The senate president, Bukola Saraki, has debunked speculations about juicy offers being made to him and his associates as part of the on-going discussions with the presidency and leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC). He stated that he saw some reports talking about promise of money or oil block and nomination tickets, and that those viewing the ongoing development in that context are simply reducing a major national issue involving many key actors to that of personal benefits and preferences. Since the breakaway from APC, Mr Saraki has not publicly announced whether he is part of the disgruntled R-APC or not. Many expectt him to change party soon, especially as he has been seen holding meetings with PDP leaders and as some of his supporters have left APC. Mr Sarakis travails in the APC is connected to his long-standing cold war with the presidency which started right from his inauguration as senate president. After his swearing-in, Mr Saraki was slammed with forgery, false assets declaration and sundry charges by the federal government. Though acquitted, many of Mr Sarakis supporters believe he is being harasssed for standing his ground against the presidency. However, in a statement by his special adviser on media and publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, Mr Saraki said what is at stake is the future of the country and its democracy and that it will be myopic for anybody to be talking about whether certain offers have been made to an individual or if such offers would be accepted or not. He said it is important for Nigerians to know that the discussions he and many others of like minds are having with the presidency and that the leadership APC is not about him. It involves the future of our country and her democracy. It is about making things better for our people. Though there are many speculations being peddled in the media, let it be known these discussions are not about me. Whatever has happened to me in the past has passed. Now that God in his infinite mercy has vindicated me, I have moved on, believing that we have all learnt our lessons, he said. The lawmaker stresses that he cannot hold any grudge against any individual and has forgiven all those who played any role in his persecution and likewise. Our focus should now be about Nigeria. The major issue on the table for discussion is how to strengthen our democracy, rebuild our economy, stop the spate of insecurity, improve the conditions of living of our people and generally chart a course for the development of this great country. We will be insulting Nigerians if, as the 2019 elections draw nearer, our deliberations is about personal benefits or how to pay compensation for wrongs done to an individual, he added. Regarding his political future, Mr Saraki said he will continue to engage with others, listen to advice and exchange ideas because the decision is not his alone. It is for all our supporters and associates to deliberate upon and take a decision based on the overall interest of our people. It is my prayers that Almighty God will guide us right in all our decisions and make a positive turn-around in our country, he stated. Also speaking at the 4th convocation of Adeleke University, Ede, Osun State, Mr Saraki said he will soon make his position known to Nigerians on which political party he would join. He also congratulated senator Ademola Adeleke for emerging the PDP candidate in Osun State. Senator Ademola Adeleke,[Photo: Pulse.ng] Apart from being a member of PDP, he is a colleague of mine in the senate. I could see he is popular and well accepted. So, I wish him all the best in the election ahead, he said. A Nigerian writer, Anietie Isong, has been named winner of the 2018 McKItterick Prize for his debut novel, Radio Sunrise. Anietie, the first Nigerian to win the prize since it was established in 1990, joins an illustrious line of previous award winners including Helen Dunmore, Petina Gappah and Mark Haddon. The McKitterick Prize, administered by the Society of Authors, honours the first novel by a writer aged over 40. Anietie received the prize from broadcaster and actor, Stephen Fry at the Authors Awards ceremony in London, on July 19. Eight awards were presented to 31 writers. Among the winners were host of debut names along with recognised writers of fiction, non-fiction and poetry to share a prize fund of 98,000. The ceremony, which took place at the Royal Institute of British Architects, saw over 400 guests from across the publishing industry come together, as the winners of other prizes administered by Society of Authors were revealed. Prize judge Aamer Hussein, short story writer and Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature said: Its a particular pleasure to discover the original, intriguing voice of Anietie Isong. In his brief, deftly told Radio Sunrise, the author depicts his often-hapless protagonists sexual mishaps and political travails on a journey to his hometown with a unique blend of humour and poignance. An intriguing and accomplished new novelist. The author, who is the brother of popular Nollywood filmmaker, Emem Isong, says he is excited to be named winner of the prize. In an email interview with PREMIUM TIMES, he said he wrote Radio Sunrise to help draw attention to a myriad of issues in Nigeria. I am thrilled that my debut novel resonated with the judges. Radio Sunrise paints a satirical portrait of (post) post-colonial Nigeria that builds on the legacy of the great African satirist tradition of Ngugi Wa Thiongo and Ayi Kwei Armah. Its just a story about Ifiok, a young journalist working for the government radio station in Lagos, aspires to always do the right thing but the odds seem to be stacked against him. Government pressures cause the funding to his radio drama to get cut off, his girlfriend leaves him when she discovers he is having an affair with an intern, and kidnappings and militancy are on the rise in the country. When Ifiok travels to his hometown to do a documentary on some ex-militants apparent redemption, a tragi-comic series of events will make him realise he is unable to swim against the tide. Radio Sunrise book cover (Photo Credit: Goodreads) Aside from receiving the 4000 prize money, he revealed that he has been invited to speak at the Marlborough Literature Festival in the UK, in September. Anietie has worked as a journalist, speechwriter and public relations manager in the UK and in Nigeria. His writing has also received some awards, including a Commonwealth Short Story Award and the Remember Oluwale Writing Prize. He recently completed a PhD in New Media and Writing at De Montfort University, Leicester. Acting minority leader of the House of Representatives, Chukwudi Onyema, has declared that he will become the House leader in a few days. Mr Onyema, popularly known as Chuchu, said this at the ongoing emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the party secretariat in Abuja. He said the PDP caucus in the House, whom he said had remained steadfast, will no longer be referred to as the minority. The All Progressive Congress currently has the majority in terms of numerical strength. Hopefully by our next meeting, well have a change of nomenclature, he said. The PDP is expecting some members of the splinter group of the APC, known as the R-APC. The group, which is comprised of aggrieved members of the ruling party have formed a coalition with the PDP and 38 other political parties to defeat the ruling APC. The NEC meeting is ongoing. A senator, Rafiu Ibrahim, has accused two senators, Abdullahi Adamu (APC, Nasarawa) and Ovie Omo-Agege (APC, Delta Central) of attacking Senate President Bukola Saraki because they believe this will allow them escape justice from alleged crimes. He stated that every opportunity that the duo have to speak with the press, Mr Saraki became their subject of attack while they ingratiate themselves to their handlers in the Presidency. The cold war between the duo and the Senate President has lingered for a while now since Mr Omo-Agege accused his colleagues of working against Mr Buhari by adopting the amendment to section 25 of electoral act outlining a change in the sequence of elections. The plan, which has since been shelved, is the subject of a legal battle between the executive and legislature. For issuing the statement, Mr Omo-Agege was suspended for 90 days following recommendations by a Senate committee. The suspension was later nullified by the court; but the senator soon entered into another controversy when he was fingered in the invasion of the Senate which led to the theft of the mace. To ascertain his role in the incident, a joint committee of the Senate and House of Representatives was drafted. Betty Apiafi (Rivers-PDP), chairperson of the committee, laid the report two weeks ago, at plenary session, prescribing a suspension of 180 days for Mr Agege. The legislators also called for the immediate prosecution of Mr Omo-Agege and six others on charges of treasonable felony and assault occasioning harm, conspiracy to steal, and actual theft of the mace. Mr Omo-Agege has dismissed the resolution. He also attacked Mr Saraki, for his alleged role in the illegal suspension. He also went short of calling Mr Saraki a tyrant over how he ran the chamber. In a statement made available to PREMIUM TIMES, Mr Ibrahim said Mr Adamu hurriedly formed the group he now calls Parliamentary Support Group (PSG) when his pending case of corruption while he was governor of Nasarawa State being handled by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was about to be taken to court. He said this was done while everyone knew that the same commission was about to file charges against his son in a different case. Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, Delta-APC. [Photo credit: THISDAYLIVE] Maybe, the former governor now has a trophy to hold up for his ignoble efforts as the administration, in its usual way, has decided to keep away the file on Adamu. I am sure the case against his son is also not getting anywhere again, he said. He also said Mr Omo-Agege knows that in a sane clime, he will not be walking as a free man after the stolen mace incident. The Senator, who came into the Senate through a court judgement is generally known not to have conducted himself well at all. Today, he is apologising for some loose talk and tomorrow, he is heading to the court to challenge the decision taken on the issue for which he admitted being wrong and day after, he is in the middle of another mace theft crisis. Omo-Agege believes by abusing the leadership of the Senate, he will be guaranteed the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) by his handlers in the Presidency. The same way he abuses people in Abuja, he does same thing in his home state and that is why he is the one dividing the party in Delta State. He is definitely a divisive character, he said. The lawmaker said the two senators are behaving as if they have a monopoly of using harsh words against others. While I can understand the exuberance of an Omo-Agege, I am most disappointed in Senator Adamu. We earlier saw him as an elder, one of the people who should be uniting the Senate and trouble-shooting by reconciling and rallying the younger lawmakers behind positive issues. Today, Senator Adamu is the one seeking to destabilise the Senate just to please some people in the executive. Senator Abdullahi Adamu The earlier these two and their ilk retrace their steps and concentrate on their duties as lawmakers instead of calling people names and whining like small children, the better. We have ignored them enough. This is a signal that we will tackle them on all points now, he said. He urged the Senate President and the leadership of the National Assembly to concentrate on the various ground-breaking laws, innovative interventions, revealing oversights and the progressive advocacy efforts that it has been embarking on and not be distracted by the antics of divisive elements and other members who operate under external influence. When contacted, an aide to Mr Omo-Agege, Efe Duku, promised that the lawmaker will respond to the allegations. He is yet to do this after several hours. Efforts to get Mr Adamus reaction were also unsuccessful as he did not respond to calls and text message sent to him. The police in Lagos have arrested a suspected vandal, Monday Ogbonna, for allegedly stealing inverter batteries used by telecom giant, MTN, at its mast in Badagry. Edgal Imohimi, the Lagos State police commissioner, at a press conference Monday said Mr Ogbonna was arrested alongside four others. The police received a credible information from a credible source on July 17 that MTN installation at Mowo, Badagry had been vandalised by four men suspected to be robbers, Mr Imohimi said. The men were said to be adept at stealing communication equipment. As a reaction to the information received, the Command dispatched a decoy team to monitor the facility. Upon proper monitoring, the police intercepted a white Mazda Bus with five occupants in front of Arena Shopping Complex, Oshodi, Lagos, the vehicle was searched and 16 pieces of inverter batteries were recovered from it. Mr Ogbonna, the suspect, told journalists how he was able to steal the inverter batteries under the watch of security officers. Usually, there are not always security men at the mast and this made it easy to remove the inverter batteries, he said, adding that he had been in the business since 2016. The suspect said they usually sell the inverter batteries to retailers at a giveaway price of N20,000. A police officer at the command said Mr Ogbonna had just been released from custody in Ibadan and he moved to Lagos to continue his activities. Mr Ogbonna admitted he had been arrested in Ibadan alongside some men on June 1 and was released on July 6 after a friend secured his bail. Mr Imohimi said the suspects would be charged to court after investigations. The UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) says humanitarian organisations have provided agricultural and livelihood support to more than 2.8 million displaced persons in North-East in the past six months. It said in its Humanitarian Situation Report for June that the beneficiaries that were drawn from Adamawa, Borno and Yobe were provided with food items, seeds, fertilisers and other farm inputs, to enable the people to resume their normal lives. The report showed that about two million displaced persons were supported with food intervention in the period under the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP). Over 2.8 million people have been supported with food security interventions as part of the 2018 HRP, two third of whom were supported with food and the remainder with agricultural and livelihood assistance since January. The government also continued to provide assistance in the form of cereal and condiments in selected locations, the UN agency said. It said humanitarian actors had started distributing double ration food to displaced persons at Rann in Kala-Balge Local Government Area of Borno as the office anticipated that the area might not be accessible due to incessant flooding. It added that about 300 fuel-efficient stoves were distributed to vulnerable households at Bakasi Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs) camp in Maiduguri, noting that the stoves were produced in collaboration with the Borno State Ministry of Environment. Due to recent food security-related protection risks in Dikwa, partners are scaling up the distribution of fuel-efficient stoves as well as advocacy with the military to increase the frequency of military escort and expand the security perimeter for firewood collection. As the lean season begins in July, it is anticipated that most households will resort to purchasing their food in the markets, increasing to high demand and hike in prices, thereby, reducing households purchasing power, it noted. The UN agency warned that food prices would remain high until farmers started harvesting their crops in October, due to low supply from the farm and increase in the demand of foodstuff from Cameroun, Chad and Niger republics. On agriculture support services, the agency said it had evolved effective modalities to avoid duplication and ensure coordination for the forthcoming inputs distributions activities. It said re-targeting for food assistance had begun in Dikwa, Gwoza, Pulka, Kukawa, Nguru, Bade, Damaturu and Yusufari, while a training on livestock emergency guidelines and standard would be rolled out in August, to build the capacity of workers on livestock and livelihood in emergencies. The UN agency disclosed that a mine-risk education activity was also conducted for humanitarian workers in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, to ensure safe and successful implementation of farming and livestock activities. As part of the Farmer Field School (FFS) programme, 25 agricultural extension officers drawn from state organisations and NGOs were trained to strengthen the resilience of farming and pastoralist households in the North-East, each of the trainees would also establish two FFS in their respective locations. Looking ahead and bridging the gaps; given the recent challenges in livelihoods outreach for distribution of fertilisers in some areas of Borno, the sector will continue its efforts to engage the government and facilitate security clearance processes for the delivery of fertilisers on time for the rainy season, it said. Accordingly; sequel to a seed fair conducted at Nangere, Yobe, some 630 households would be given fertilisers and vouchers, to enable them to purchase their preferred seeds under a seed multiplication programme launched in 2017. The UN agency disclosed that the result of the fifth-round of Nutrition and Food Security Surveillance quarterly survey in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States was expected to be issued soon. It explained that the exercise was jointly conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Federal Ministry of Health and humanitarian partners, adding that the survey was designed to provide a better understanding of the relationship between nutrition and food security at household level in the region. In addition, the Joint Approach for Nutrition and Food Security Assessment (JANFSA) will start in September and result expected by November. To monitor food security trends in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, an eighth-round mobile Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping (VAM) would be carried out with some 1,200 families, it is a 30-day programme billed to commence in July. Statistics by the agency indicated that more than 7.7 million people need critical live saving assistance occasioned by the Boko Haram insurgency in the region. (NAN) The Adamawa House of Assembly on Monday said it has no information on the alleged defection of some lawmakers from the All Progressives Congress (APC), to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The Chairman of the House Standing Committee on Information, Abubakar Isa (APC-Sheleng), made this known while speaking with journalists in Yola. He was reacting to Saturdays claimed by the state chapter of the PDP that three serving lawmakers and eight commissioners had joined the party. The National Chairman of the PDP, Uche Secondus, made the claim in Yola, the state capital, at the grand rally for one of the partys presidential aspirants, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. Mr Isa said so far only member representing Lamurde Constituency under the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Justina Nkom had informed the house of her defection to the PDP. At the plenary today, it was only the SDP lawmaker representing Lamurde that stood up to inform the house of her defection to the PDP. As far as we are concerned, she is the only lawmaker that defected, Isa said. Also speaking in a separate interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on the issue, the state commissioner for information and strategy, Ahmad Sajoh, said he was only aware of resignation of the Commissioner of Commerce Umar Daware from the state executive council. The state government only received the resignation letter of the commissioner of commerce, Mr Sajoh said. (NAN) Thirteen governorship aspirants for Benue State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the coming 2019 elections on Monday kicked against the possible return of Governor Samuel Ortom to the party. The governor, a former member of the PDP, hinted last week he may be leaving the ruling APC. He said the party had issued him a red card. The governor later told journalists at the All Progressives Congress (APC) secretariat after meeting with the party chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, that he was still in the party. The aspirants, while addressing a press conference in Abuja, noted they were not against the return of defectors but against the return of people with negative values. The aspirants under the umbrella of the Forum of Governorship Aspirants, vowed to resist any attempt to disrupt the internal democratic process in the state chapter. The group said efforts must be intensified to nip in the bud what they called the plot to shortchange the partys executive in the state. The chairman of the forum, David Ker, said the PDP had promised free and fair primaries, adding that anything short of that would spell doom for it. We reiterate that a level playing field for a free, fair and transparent primary election which has been promised us by the Benue State leadership of the PDP remains the only option by which the party could credibly and successfully nominate a governorship candidate in the 2019 governorship election if indeed the party is serious at recapturing power from the present APC-controlled government in the state, he said. While we may not oppose any group or individuals from joining and participating in the affairs of the party in the state, we are strongly opposed to a purported unilateral decision to dissolve the executives of the party at all levels in the state to accommodate or give undue advantage to any group or person angling to join the party. One of the aspirants, John Tondu, said the governor, has no electoral value to make the PDP the party to beat. The governor of Benue State today is a liability, not an asset. He is not welcome. Because of the love we have for the people of Benue State, anything that will cripple our plan to take over the state should not be tolerated, he said. Also, Terhemen Tarzoor, the state PDP governorship candidate in the 2015 governorship election said Governor Ortoms credibility has reached an all-time low, having been shown the red card by the APC. We are sensitive to the value and character of the people joining the PDP. We wont sit down and watch people of negative value join the party; someone who has not paid salaries for one year and four months. When a person is chased out of a party, it speaks much about that person and what he represents. Other governorship aspirants at the briefing were: Paul Orhii, Gabriel Nyitse, Felix Atume, David Iorhemba, Stephen Hwande, Eugene Aliegba, Tor Iorapuu, Richard Gbawuan, Kenneth Iyo and Simon Anchaver. The governor of Edo state, Godwin Obaseki, has announced a 40 per cent reduction on the monthly levy paid by traders in select markets in the state. The traders would now pay N3, 000, instead of the usual N5, 000 levy. The traders who would benefit from the cut are those whose businesses are not viable in Agbado, Oliha, Ogiso and Uwa markets in Benin City, the state capital, Mr Obaseki said. The slash is to help them boost their profit margin, he said. Mr Obaseki announced this while receiving members of the Market Women Association who paid him a courtesy visit on Monday, according to a statement from the governors media aide, Crusoe Osagie. The market women were led on the visit by their leader, Blackie Ogiamien. The governor, who said he was giving priority to job-creation, told the women that his administration has been able to stop double ticketing and touting in the state. He assured them that he would soon look into the issue of power supply, water, and sanitation in all the markets within Benin City. The women thanked the governor for tackling double ticketing and touting in the markets. Also, the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) has expressed solidarity with Governor Obaseki. The state chairman of NURTW, Odio Olaye, who led the members of the union on a solidarity walk to the Edo Government House, on Monday, told Mr Obaseki that the union was in support of his policies and programmes. It is only those who are blind that will not see the good work you are doing. You are building roads, we are seeing the projects and our members are happy with you, Mr Olaye told the governor. He added, We appreciate the good work you are doing with the Edo State Traffic Management Agency (EDSTMA), the vigilante group and the Public Works Volunteers (PUWOV) programme. The governor thanked the union members for their support and assured them that his administration was determined to make life more meaningful for the Edo people. The Secretary to the Osun State Government, Moshood Adeoti, has resigned from the All Progressives Congress (APC). Mr Adeoti on Friday withdrew from the APC governorship primary in the state. He alleged that it was rigged in favour of eventual winner, Gboyega Oyetola. Mr Adeoti announced his resignation in a July 21 letter seen by PREMIUM TIMES. I hereby wish to notify you of my decision to resign my membership of the the All Progressives Congress. the letter read. I wish to reiterate my commitment to the progress of the state in whatsoever capacity I find myself in the future. Mr Adeoti said in the letter to the APC chairman in his Ward 12 of Iwo local government. Contacted, Mr. Adeoti confirmed he wrote the letter but declined further comment. I tendered the resignation letter, he told PREMIUM TIMES via telephone. Letter that shows that Moshood Adeoti has decamped from the ruling party, APC. The politician had on July 20 accused his party of manipulating its primary to elect a candidate for the September governorship election in the state. He thereafter withdrew from the primary. Mr. Adeoti described the exercise as a mere endorsement of Mr. Oyetola. The primaries was arranged, skewed and designed to favour Alhaji Isiaka Gboyega Otedola, the cousin of the National Leader of our party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Mr Adeotis campaign organisation had said in a statement. Mr. Adeoti said there was no credible register of members with which a free, fair and transparent direct primaries could have beeen conducted. Aspirants criticised the party after its chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, announced the use of direct primaries system. The direct primary means all card-carrying members of the APC are eligible to vote. But twelve of the 17 governorship aspirants criticised the move. They said there was no comprehensive register of APC members across Osun State. Mr Oyetola was later elected candidate of the party despite their protests. He will represent the APC in the September 22 governorship election in the state. The newly elected governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, has expressed appreciation for the support received during the governorship primaries of the party. Mr Adeleke scored 1,569 votes in the PDP primary on Saturday to defeat his closest rival, Akin Ogunbiyi, by only seven votes. Mr Ogunbiyi polled 1,562 votes; Fatai Akinbade, 52 votes; and Nathaniel Oke, three votes. A total of 56 votes were voided. In a message he personally signed, Mr Adeleke thanked his fellow aspirants against whom he contested. Mr Adeleke, who represents Osun West in the Senate, said his emergence as the governorship candidate of our great party marks the beginning of divine liberation of our dear people from repression and oppression. Read his statement which he signed below. I send very big congratulations to everyone in the Osun PDP family. We have once again blazed the trail by demonstrating to all undemocratic forces how powerful the will of the PEOPLE can be. We have proved that PDP is a party of true democrats determined to take Osun people from poverty to prosperity. I must specially acknowledge the support and contributions of Hon. Albert Adeogun, Akogun Lere Oyewunmi, Professor Aworemi and Mr Olawale Rasheed; aspirants who energized our campaign with their endorsements and active support. I congratulate Alh Fatai Akinbade, Rt. Hon. Bello Adejare, Mr Nathaniel Oke (SAN), Mr Kayode Oduoye, Prof. Durotoye and Mr Ayombo Adewopo for their energetic campaign and mobilisation of our teeming party members. I congratulate Dr Akin Ogunbiyi and his hard fighting team for running a good and impressive campaign. It was a brotherly contest in our collective strive to redeem our state, It is therefore no gainsaying that we are all winners. My emergence as the governorship candidate of our great party marks the beginning of divine liberation of our dear people from repression and oppression. Today is a great Day! I thank TEAM IMOLE and our committed delegates for their steadfastness and undying passion. The end of phase 1 has come and the start of the great battle to fully liberate our people through the forthcoming general elections must commence. I commend and thank our Elders, Leaders and Party Executives from ward to the State level, especially our Chairman; Hon Soji Adagunodo for the robust management of this complex primaries election. It is now time for unity and I extend my hand of fellowship to ALL stakeholders. Please let us all work together in the best interest of our party and the good people of Osun who keenly and earnestly look up to us for their liberation and empowerment. Once again, congratulations to the PDP Family and the good people of Osun state. The family of the wife of former member of the House of Representatives, Sikiru Busari, have petitioned the police to investigate the cause of the sudden death of his wife. The former lawmaker has repeatedly claimed that his late wife, Oluwakemi Busari, 48, died in her sleep on June 30. Until her death, the duo lived at their residence in Aerodrome, Samonda, Ibadan. Mr Busari, while in the lower chamber of the National Assembly represented the Egbada/Ona-Ara Constituency between 2011 and 2015 under the Accord Party. The family of the deceased in a petition written to the office of Oyo State Commissioner of Police through their lawyer, Martin Okuade, want the police to unravel the mystery behind the death. The family said the bruises and stains of blood on the body of the deceased made it difficult for them to trust the statement that late Mrs Busari died from her sleep. According to the petition, a copy obtained by PREMIUM TIMES, the family said the ex-Rep member failed to take the deceased to hospital immediately and did not contact any of the family members. The former legislator was also said to have procured a death certificate indicating his spouse died of cardiac arrest. The family claimed their daughters body was covered in blanket in the bed until another ambulance took her to Molly Specialist Hospital Morgue in Ibadan, where the mortuary attendants saw the bruises and fresh cuts in many parts of the body with blood dripping. The petition reads in part, We were informed by the deceased family that as at Friday 29th June, 2018 there was nothing wrong with their sister (Mrs Oluwakemi Busari), she was in good condition, she was even found in her husbands office healthy. On the 30th June, 2018 which was a Saturday, she was reported dead. Before her sudden death, she was living with her husband at Aerodrum, Samonda Area. Ibadan. Immediately after her death, her husband Mr Busari Sikiru Olayemi did not contact her relatives and explain to them. But one of her extended family heard about the incident and quickly went to the husbands house. On getting there, he discovered that their sister was already lying dead and covered with a cloth. When the husband was asked what was responsible for his wifes death, he told them that; his wife died a natural death, she just slept and didnt wake up. He was then further asked, was there any kind of attack by unknown persons in your house yesterday night? He responded emphatically again with a capital No!. Surprisingly, when sympathisers and one of the extended family of the deceased uncovered the cloth used in wrapping her dead body, they discovered that there were bruises on some part of her body including her head, with fresh blood on so many parts of her body, which suggests that her death was not natural as the husband claims? Photograph of the deceased was immediately taken as evidence that there was more to her death than a mere natural death. The families of the deceased are calling for a thorough investigation by the Police and an autopsy to be carried out on their sisters body to establish the real cause of her death and the perpetrators be brought to book. At the time of this petition, Mr Busari Sikiru Olayemi has not notified the deceased immediate family of her death, as her corpse has been deposited at the mortuary. When contacted, the family lawyer, Mr Okuade told PREMIUM TIMES in a telephone interview that after the discovery of the stains of blood and bruises, the body was transferred to the Pathology Department of the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan for autopsy under the supervision of Abu Okolo, a doctor. PREMIUM TIMES also obtained the pictures of the corpse. PREMIUM TIMES contacted Mr Busari on Monday, July 9, to make enquiries about the bruises on the body of his late wife. However, he told our correspondent that he was in a family meeting. Send me text message, I am in a family meeting now, he replied. Mr. Busari, who refused to reply a subsequent text message on the matter, has also refused to answer several calls put through him by our correspondent. The Oyo State Police spokesperson, Adekunle Ajisebutu, told PREMIUM TIMES that although, he is not aware of the incident, the matter would be handled by the investigative unit of the force. He also requested that the details of the matter be forwarded to him, which was done. Mr Ajisebutu declined to give further details of the incident in subsequent calls. For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME. Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire. Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever. Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation. View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union. Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history. Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words. HOUSTON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Johnson Space Center Small Business Council will host their annual Small Business Event. The event will be this Aug. 21, 2018 at the NASA Gilruth Center. No badge is required. This wonderful networking event will benefit our business community by providing a networking opportunity to attendees with important information on business-related initiatives. Attend and hear guest speakers from Government and Industry. See you there! Agenda 08:00 - 09:00 Registration 09:00 - 10:00 Opening Remarks from Senior Leadership (TBD) Debra L. Johnson Director, Office of Procurement. Welcome JSC SBC Chairman 10:00 11:00 Doing Business with Large Primes at JSC (panel) 11:00 - 12:00 Doing Business at JSC as a Small Business 12:00 1:00 Lunch Presentations (NCMA, NMA, BAHEP) 1:00 - 2:00 Networking 2:00 - 3:00 Upcoming Procurements 3:00 - 4:00 Reception Networking Please click here to register for this event: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/johnson-space-center-small-business-council-annual-event-tickets-48215237072 Media Contact: Fernando De La Pena Llaca Chairman of the JSC SBC, and CEO of AEXA Aerospace, LLC Phone: 713.260.9624 Email: [email protected] Related Files 2018 JSC Small Business Alliance event.pdf Related Links Johnson Space Center Small Business Council Event Registartion SOURCE Johnson Space Center Small Business Council Based in Chicago, Ms. Cinefro will be responsible for all aspects of Ankura's human resources organization, including its organizational design and effectiveness, recruitment and retention strategies, workforce planning, and talent management. Ms. Cinefro joins Ankura from Clarity Insights, the largest consulting firm in the US focused exclusively on data strategy, engineering, science, and visualization, where she was Chief Operating Officer and former Chief People Officer. "Ankura has undergone a period of significant growth these past two years, and as we look to further enhance our presence and capabilities, our talent will be the foundation that assures we are able to continue to deliver the high-quality services and expertise our clients have come to expect from Ankura," said Philip Daddona, Co-President at Ankura. "Angela brings decades of experience in combining business and strategy with employee development and advocacy to enable culture and client success. I am confident that in her new role, Angela will be a change leader within our organization while also ensuring that Ankura's culture and vision for how we work together remains intact." Angela has more than 20 years of experience in a broad range of industries at both private equity-backed and Fortune 500 companies, where she developed expertise in business strategy, scaling businesses, and driving performance through people excellence. Prior to joining Clarity Insights, Angela held the positions of Chief Human Resources Officer at MedExpress and Operations Vice President of Business Solutions at Hewlett-Packard. Additionally, she served as the Chief People Officer for Knightsbridge Solutions, and held several leadership roles at IBM and PricewaterhouseCoopers. "I am excited to join Ankura at a time of growth and to help build and maintain a strong, productive team and culture as we continue to enhance our expertise across issues, industries, and disciplines," said Angela Cinefro. "Ankura's robust and collaborative culture is the framework that supports the firm's vision to build a unique business advisory firm known for how it solves challenges. I am looking forward to working with the leadership team to develop and retain a talented and diverse workforce to ensure we continue to deliver on our priority to provide the highest quality of services to our clients." About Ankura Ankura is a business advisory and expert services firm defined by HOW we solve challenges. Whether a client is facing an immediate business challenge, trying to increase the value of their company or protect against future risks, Ankura designs, develops, and executes tailored solutions by assembling the right combination of expertise. We build on this experience with every case, client, and situation, collaborating to create innovative, customized solutions, and strategies designed for today's ever-changing business environment. This gives our clients unparalleled insight and experience across a wide range of economic, governance, and regulatory challenges. At Ankura, we know that collaboration drives results. For more information, please visit: www.ankura.com. SOURCE Ankura Related Links https://ankura.com HAMBURG, Germany, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Bauer Media Sweden, broadcaster of leading brand Mix Megapol, strengthens its position as leading commercial radio provider in Sweden by investing in Mad Men Media (MMM), a Malmo based regional radio provider which is expanding into Gothenburg and Stockholm. Bauer Media will also represent the company in national advertising sales. Through the partnership, Bauer Media will expand the distribution of Rockklassiker, one of the most renowned radio channels in Sweden, to Gothenburg and Malmo. Rockklassiker will now be heard by 55 percent of Sweden's population and broadcast over Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmo, Ostergotland, Varmland, Kungsbacka, Gavle, Kalmar, Gotland and Ornskoldsvik. Only recently Bauer Media won one out of three national licences for commercial radio and eight local licenses. The broadcaster is looking forward to the operation on its new licences on August 1st to extending Sweden's leading commercial brand Mix Megapol to 95 percent of the population. Alongside the MMM partnership, Bauer Media represents NRJ on the national advertising market and will continue to innovate in digital media, podcasting and targeted advertising solutions to make itself Sweden's most effective marketing partner. "This investment further strengthens our position on the Swedish radio market. By getting the strongest national network for Mix Megapol and expanding distribution for Rockklassiker, we ensure our role as one of Sweden's most effective marketing platforms", says Paul Keenan, Head of the radio business of Bauer Media Group. With more than 100 radio stations, Bauer Media Group is the leading commercial radio provider in Europe. Bauer Media Group is one of the world's most successful media corporations. Over 700 magazines, more than 400 digital products and over 100 radio and TV stations are enjoyed by millions of people across the globe. The corporate portfolio also includes print shops, postal, sales and marketing services. Bauer Media Group's global positioning underscores its passion for people and brands. We see ourselves as the home of popular media, as illustrated by our strapline "We think popular." - a claim which inspires and motivates our global workforce of some 11,500 employees in 17 countries. Press contact: Bauer Media Group Julian Woerner Group Communications T: +49-40-30-19-10-99 [email protected] http://www.bauermedia.com http://twitter.com/bauermediagroup SOURCE Bauer Media Group The Tahari SS19 Swimwear Collection defines modern sophistication with understated grace and elegance. It features clean finish lines, comfortable novelty fabrics, and is FIT focused to ensure the perfect Missy fit. The silhouettes are modern yet wearable with beautiful florals, ruffles, lace appliques, stripes and ombre patterns. The core solid fabrication has a beautiful subtle shimmer inspired by evening trends and a variety of styles include a hidden underwire for support. The line offers regular and plus sizes, and retails between $118-$148 for a one piece, $68-$98 for tops and bottoms related separates, and cover ups between $78-$128, and are available worldwide at department stores and better specialty stores. "Swimwear is rounding out our overall strategy completing a full Tahari wardrobe and we believe the new designs will appeal to the Tahari consumer who have admired the brand for many years," stated Joey Gabbay, CEO of Bluestar Alliance. "The Levy Group's experience in designing incorporates the core DNA of the brand. Our strategic partnership to launch the swimwear collection is well aligned with the Tahari marketing position." About Tahari Founded in 1973 by Israeli-born designer Elie Tahari, his eponymous international accessible luxury fashion house designs, manufactures, distributes, and retails ready-to-wear, activewear, footwear, accessories, eyewear, home decor, among others. Headquartered in New York City, Tahari is a dynamic lifestyle brand with a growing global presence offering luxurious collections that effortlessly pair innovative sophistication with timeless elegance. It is our mission to design beautiful clothing and accessories that appeal to today's passionate and confident customer with distinctive craftsmanship, unique detailing, meticulous tailoring and enduring style. About Bluestar Alliance, LLC Founded by Joseph Gabbay and Ralph Gindi in 2006. Bluestar Alliance owns, manages, and markets a portfolio of consumer brands that span across many tiers of distribution from luxury to mass market with a heavy emphasis on department store retail brands including Tahari, Bebe, Kensie, Catherine Malandrino, Nanette Lepore, Joan Vass, Michael Bastian, English Laundry and Limited Too. We specialize in licensing, branding and marketing consumer brand companies through extensive relationships with leading retailers, brand licensing manufacturers and strategic partners. Bluestar Alliance's current network of international and domestic partners offers the opportunity to take a niche brand to a visible worldwide lifestyle brand. Since its inception, Bluestar Alliance has acquired select brands with retail sales exceeding $2.5 billion. The current portfolio of brands manages over 225 licensees and access to over 100 stores worldwide who distribute product throughout North America, Europe, Australia, South America, Asia, Middle East and India. About The Levy Group Inc. The Levy Group is a leading designer, manufacturer and holder of a diverse portfolio of both proprietary and designer brands. With over 75 years of industry expertise and relationships, The Levy Group is an understated brand powerhouse. Historically specializing in outerwear, The Levy Group's recent expansion in various categories has opened the door for innovative contributions. SOURCE Bluestar Alliance, LLC PETALUMA, Calif., July 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- When conceiving of your business, it may be wise to ask "Am I bringing something new into the world, imitating the works of others to make something greater or am I just taking advantage of someone else's profits?" These three mentalities are common enough that Warren Buffett and Mark Cuban from "Shark Tank" have mentioned this consistent spiral of progress as a product is introduced: entrepreneurs are innovators, imitators or idiots. Brandon Frere, successful entrepreneur and CEO of Frere Enterprises, believes that entrepreneurs should find out which of these mentalities they are following when they start planning their business. "What's important is figuring out the mindset you are using when thinking of your company's purpose," said Brandon Frere. "I consider myself an imitator and make my company plans around refining what is already there to the best of my ability." The innovator's world relies on a strong knowledge of various industries to find a product, and a moment, where they can make a splash. Often, these innovators make niche products that have a core use to them but are not made into larger products until they are adapted for the public in some way. The innovator relies on their timing and uniqueness of their product in order to get it across. Since innovators are trying out new territory, it can be difficult to find precedent or data to support their product's worth. Innovators need to find the right measurements to support their new innovation in order to make the innovation work. While an innovator relies on creating a new market, an imitator instead relies on studying the new market and delivering a product with more polish. By studying the market data, an imitator can see what aspects of the product are most desirable and refine those to make them work more effectively. A lot of the best products can come from imitators who see a good way to combine multiple innovations together. It is possible to be safer and more successful than an innovator by being an imitator. The idiot, so to speak, notices the success of the innovator and the imitator and tries to create the same product with the least effort, and with as little innovation as possible. Very little market research is often done by such an entrepreneur and the product is made in a cheap and derivative way. This is a good example of someone working towards their bottom line without doing their due diligence. "I don't like making a product without doing some market research first and understanding how I can combine ideas together to make the product greater than what came before," said Frere. "Understanding what sort of mentality you bring to your work can let you develop a better plan and focus on the important tasks at hand." About Frere Enterprises Brandon Frere is an entrepreneur and businessman who lives in Sonoma County, California. He has designed and created multiple companies to meet the ever-demanding needs of businesses and consumers alike. His company website, www.FrereEnterprises.com, is used as a means to communicate many of the lessons, fundamentals and information he has learned throughout his extensive business and personal endeavors, most recently in advocating on behalf of student loan borrowers nationwide. As experienced during his own student loan repayment, Mr. Frere found out how difficult it can be to work with federally contracted student loan servicers and the repayment programs designed to help borrowers. Through those efforts, he gained an insider's look into the repayment process and the motivations behind the inflating student loan debt bubble. His knowledge of the confusing landscape of student loan repayment became a vital theme in his future endeavors, and he now uses those experiences to help guide others through the daunting process of applying for available federal repayment and loan forgiveness programs. FrereEnterprises.com Related Images presentation.jpg Presentation kasto/Bigstock.com image2.png Related Links Frere Enterprises SOURCE Frere Enterprises Related Links http://www.FrereEnterprises.com He was Father Willie Doyle, and he was an Irish Catholic Jesuit, who enlisted as a Chaplain in the British Army in 1915 because he wanted to be on the battlefield with soldiers when they most needed a priest. Learn all about his amazing life, including his "Bravery Under Fire," when EWTN's newest docudrama premieres at 10 p.m. ET, Sunday, Aug. 12. (Encores air at 3:30 p.m. ET, Thursday, Aug. 16; 9 a.m. ET, Saturday, Aug. 18; and 1:30 p.m. ET, Sunday, Aug. 19.) While Father Willie's early life sets the stage, his story really comes to life after the outbreak of the First World War when the 42-year-old priest joined the British Army, 16th Irish Division, as a Catholic Chaplain. "All denominations loved him," said Director/Producer Campbell Miller. "They knew no matter what happened, even if they were out in no man's land and left for dead, Father Willie would come for them. He didn't just come once. He came multiple times a day. He would drag that soldier back if injured or, if they weren't going to make it, he would lie down beside them and give them the last rites." Miller said all the soldiers wanted to be in Father Willie's dugout because it appeared to them that no one who fought near him was killed. However, that changed in August 1917. Father Willie went out on the battlefield to rescue two men, and was caught in a mortar attack. Says Miller, "Father Willie wanted to give the men that passed away a dignified Christian burial. It feels very odd that this could not be awarded to him because they never actually found his body. He was blown to bits." This might seem like a sad ending, but Miller says no one who looks at Father Willie's life ultimately comes away sad. "I would have wanted to hang out with Father Willie," he said. "Here was a man who gave up his life for his friends. You see that there was no fear. You see, in his limited time on earth, the respect people had for him and the impact he had on so many people while he was alive -- and even afterward from the pamphlets he wrote. "Shall I Become a Priest?", one of his pamphlets, brought many to the priesthood. When you see what he accomplished, you can't help but get inspired." Father Willie's cause for canonization, which was put forward in 1943, has languished. Miller says, "My hope for this film is that it will cause people to again look at his cause for canonization." EWTN Global Catholic Network, in its 37th year, is the largest religious media network in the world. EWTN's 11 TV channels are broadcast in multiple languages 24 hours a day, seven days a week to over 275 million television households in more than 145 countries and territories. EWTN platforms also include radio services transmitted through SIRIUS/XM, iHeart Radio, and over 500 domestic and international AM & FM radio affiliates; a worldwide shortwave radio service; the largest Catholic website in the U.S.; electronic and print news services, including Catholic News Agency, "The National Catholic Register" newspaper, and several global news wire services; as well as EWTN Publishing, its book publishing division. SOURCE EWTN Global Catholic Network CAMBRIDGE, England, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Cambridge Quantum Computing (CQC) and Google are pleased to announce collaboration in quantum computing. As part of the collaboration, CQC will utilize the open source CIRQ framework developed by Google and the state-of-the-art 72-qubit "Bristlecone" quantum processor to develop software designed specifically for quantum computers. The potential of such technology is difficult to overstate, promising to revolutionize fields ranging from chemistry to finance, from encryption to AI. The first stage of the collaboration will focus upon CQC's proprietary quantum compiler, "t|ket>", providing efficient optimizing and scheduling for instructions sets that are delivered to the quantum hardware. Just as for conventional "classical" computers, compilers convert programming instructions into operations for the processor. Although Google is developing their own compiler, overriding this with procedures from t|ket> will allow both groups to benchmark and test the system under a variety of conditions, likely providing clues on how to enhance performance in both hardware and software. CQC CEO Ilyas Khan stated, "We are thrilled that Cambridge Quantum Computing is working with Google and look forward to building on this partnership." In parallel with the implementation of t|ket>, CQC is working with Google on a collaboration to help develop tools for quantum chemistry, one of the primary applications of quantum computing. While the chemical properties of a large molecule are very difficult for a classical computer to determine, quantum computers are ideally suited for such calculations. With the help of Google, CQC will continue its development and expertise in this area. Eventually such chemical analysis may produce personalized medicine, in which a drug could be designed for an individual based on their genetic profile, maximizing effectiveness while minimizing side effects. About Cambridge Quantum Computing Established in 2014, Cambridge Quantum Computing (CQC) is a world leading independent quantum computing company combining expertise in Quantum Information Processing, Quantum Technologies, Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Chemistry, Optimisation and Pattern Recognition. CQC designs solutions that will benefit from quantum computing even in its earliest forms. CQC is headquartered in Cambridge, England but maintains an international presence in the United States, and Hong Kong. Contact: Zayn Hussain, +44(0)203-301-9333, [email protected] SOURCE Cambridge Quantum Computing Limited ST. LOUIS, July 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Health Net Federal Services, LLC (HNFS), was awarded the next generation Military & Family Life Counseling (MFLC) Program contract through its MHN Government Services (MHNGS) company. The MFLC Program is highly visible within the Department of Defense (DoD) community and vital to the behavioral and psychological health of our military service members and their families. Under this contract, MHNGS will deploy highly skilled and licensed behavioral health counselors on assignments throughout the United States, U.S. territories and countries where US military is deployed. The awarded contract is ten years, including a Base Period of one year and nine, one-year option periods. "We are honored to continue to support our troops and their families under the next generation MFLC contract and to support the DoD in its mission of readiness and reintegration of all active duty troops. Our team is passionate about having the opportunity to provide this flexible and valuable service to spouses and children who support those that are deployed," said Kathleen Redd, President and CEO of Health Net Federal Services. Since the program's inception, MHNGS has enjoyed a rich 14-year history partnering with the DoD to provide confidential, non-medical counseling services to our nation's heroes and their families through the MFLC program. When the pilot program began in 2004, the DoD was seeking support services for soldiers and their families who were struggling with extended and repeated deployments due to the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. The MFLC program has continued to grow, expanding upon services and outreach capabilities with each successful contract iteration. At any given time, approximately 800 MFLC counselors have been embedded in military installations, schools and child development centers throughout the United States and around the world. About Centene Corporation Centene Corporation, a Fortune 100 company, is a diversified, multi-national healthcare enterprise that provides a portfolio of services to government sponsored and commercial healthcare programs, focusing on under-insured and uninsured individuals. Many receive benefits provided under Medicaid, including the State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), as well as Aged, Blind or Disabled (ABD), Foster Care and Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS), in addition to other state-sponsored programs, Medicare (including the Medicare prescription drug benefit commonly known as "Part D"), dual eligible programs and programs with the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Centene also provides healthcare services to groups and individuals delivered through commercial health plans. Centene operates local health plans and offers a range of health insurance solutions. It also contracts with other healthcare and commercial organizations to provide specialty services including behavioral health management, care management software, correctional healthcare services, dental benefits management, commercial programs, home-based primary care services, life and health management, vision benefits management, pharmacy benefits management, specialty pharmacy and telehealth services. Centene uses its investor relations website to publish important information about the Company, including information that may be deemed material to investors. Financial and other information about Centene is routinely posted and is accessible on Centene's investor relations website, http://www.centene.com/investors. About Health Net Federal Services Health Net Federal Services has a long history of providing cost-effective, quality managed healthcare programs for government agencies, including the U.S. Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. For 30 years, HNFS has partnered with the Department of Defense to provide healthcare services to the men and women who serve, and their family members. Through the TRICARE program, HNFS currently assists approximately 2.9 million beneficiaries in the TRICARE West Region, including active duty, retired, National Guard and Reserve, and family members. Health Net Federal Services was one of the first companies in the U.S. to develop comprehensive managed care programs for military families. In addition, HNFS provides quality behavioral health services for active duty service members, veterans and their families. Visit www.hnfs.com for more information. Forward-Looking Statements The company and its representatives may from time to time make written and oral forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act ("PSLRA") of 1995, including statements in this and other press releases, in presentations, filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), reports to stockholders and in meetings with investors and analysts. In particular, the information provided in this press release may contain certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business of Centene and certain plans and objectives of Centene with respect thereto, including but not limited to the expected benefits of the acquisition ("Health Net Acquisition") of Health Net, Inc. ("Health Net") and the acquisition of New York State Catholic Health Plan, Inc., d/b/a Fidelis Care New York ("Fidelis Care") ("Fidelis Acquisition" or "Fidelis Care Transaction"). These forward-looking statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate only to historical or current facts. Without limiting the foregoing, forward-looking statements often use words such as "anticipate", "seek", "target", "expect", "estimate", "intend", "plan", "goal", "believe", "hope", "aim", "continue", "will", "may", "can", "would", "could" or "should" or other words of similar meaning or the negative thereof. We intend such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe-harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in PSLRA. A number of factors, variables or events could cause actual plans and results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to, Centene's ability to accurately predict and effectively manage health benefits and other operating expenses and reserves; competition; membership and revenue declines or unexpected trends; changes in healthcare practices, new technologies and advances in medicine; increased healthcare costs; changes in economic, political or market conditions; changes in federal or state laws or regulations, including changes with respect to income tax reform or government healthcare programs as well as changes with respect to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act and any regulations enacted thereunder that may result from changing political conditions; rate cuts or other payment reductions or delays by governmental payors and other risks and uncertainties affecting Centene's government businesses; Centene's ability to adequately price products on federally facilitated and state based Health Insurance Marketplaces; tax matters; disasters or major epidemics; the outcome of legal and regulatory proceedings; changes in expected contract start dates; provider, state, federal and other contract changes and timing of regulatory approval of contracts; the expiration, suspension or termination of Centene or Fidelis Care's contracts with federal or state governments (including but not limited to Medicaid, Medicare, TRICARE or other customers); the difficulty of predicting the timing or outcome of pending or future litigation or government investigations; challenges to Centene or Fidelis Care's contract awards; cyber-attacks or other privacy or data security incidents; the possibility that the expected synergies and value creation from acquired businesses, including, without limitation, the Health Net Acquisition and the Fidelis Acquisition, will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period, including, but not limited to, as a result of any failure to obtain any regulatory, governmental or third party consents or approvals in connection with the Fidelis Acquisition or any conditions, terms, obligations or restrictions imposed in connection with the receipt of such consents or approvals; the exertion of management's time and Centene's resources, and other expenses incurred and business changes required in connection with complying with the undertakings in connection with any regulatory, governmental or third party consents or approvals for the Health Net Acquisition or the Fidelis Acquisition; disruption caused by significant completed and pending acquisitions, including the Health Net Acquisition and the Fidelis Acquisition, making it more difficult to maintain business and operational relationships; the risk that unexpected costs will be incurred in connection with the completion and/or integration of acquisition transactions, including among others, the Health Net Acquisition and the Fidelis Acquisition; changes in expected closing dates, estimated purchase price and accretion for acquisitions; the risk that acquired businesses and pending acquisitions, including Health Net and Fidelis Care, will not be integrated successfully; the risk that the conditions to the completion of the Fidelis Acquisition may not be satisfied or completed on a timely basis, or at all; failure to obtain or receive any required regulatory approvals, consents or clearances for the Fidelis Acquisition, and the risk that, even if so obtained or received, regulatory authorities impose conditions on the completion of the transaction that could require the exertion of management's time and Centene's resources, or otherwise have an adverse effect on Centene or the completion of the Fidelis Acquisition; business uncertainties and contractual restrictions while the Fidelis Acquisition is pending, which could adversely affect Centene's business and operations; change of control provisions or other provisions in certain agreements to which Fidelis Care is a party, which may be triggered by the completion of the Fidelis Acquisition; loss of management personnel and other key employees due to uncertainties associated with the Fidelis Acquisition; the risk that, following completion of the Fidelis Acquisition, the combined company may not be able to effectively manage its expanded operations; restrictions and limitations that may stem from the financing arrangements that the combined company will enter into in connection with the Fidelis Acquisition; Centene's ability to achieve improvement in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ("CMS") Star ratings and maintain or achieve improvement in other quality scores in each case that can impact revenue and future growth; availability of debt and equity financing, on terms that are favorable to Centene; inflation; foreign currency fluctuations; and risks and uncertainties discussed in the reports that Centene has filed with the SEC. These forward-looking statements reflect Centene's current views with respect to future events and are based on numerous assumptions and assessments made by Centene in light of its experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions, business strategies, operating environments, future developments and other factors it believes appropriate. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are subject to change because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. The factors described in the context of such forward-looking statements in this press release could cause Centene's plans with respect to the Health Net Acquisition, actual results, performance or achievements, industry results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although it is currently believed that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct and persons reading this press release are therefore cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements which speak only as of the date of this press release. Centene does not assume any obligation to update the information contained in this press release (whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise), except as required by applicable law. This list of important factors is not intended to be exhaustive. We discuss certain of these matters more fully, as well as certain other risk factors that may affect Centene's business operations, financial condition and results of operations, in Centene's filings with the SEC, including the annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. SOURCE Centene Corporation Related Links http://www.centene.com Officials with the Cumberland Trail State Scenic Trail announced the North Chickamauga Creek State Natural Area will re-open on Wednesday. The trail has been closed since May due to construction and in regards to public safety. SAN FRANCISCO, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Copper, a Google-recommended CRM formerly known as ProsperWorks, today announced a native integration with Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Data Studio. Data Studio is a free tool that makes vital data accessible and useful, allowing customers to create charts and reports with easy drag-and-drop features for quick visualization of business information. Copper is moving to GCP and this new feature within Copper CRM enables customers to apply Data Studios' powerful analytics software to their relationship data at the press of a button. "Copper is focused on removing the complex, expensive and difficult-to-manage aspects of CRM," said Jon Aniano, chief product officer of Copper. "We know Google has the best-in-class business intelligence capabilities as part of GCP and we can leverage it to help our customers get better visibility into their businesses." Copper customers, including Lumapps, are leveraging GCP and the Data Studio and Copper integration to quickly visualize critical business data including sales summaries, lead conversion rates, win rates, average sale prices and more. By eliminating the manual data entry that has plagued legacy CRM offerings of the past, Copper's native integration in G Suite allows users to automate workflows and complete business tasks without interruption. Copper launched its Google Chrome extension in 2014. Since then, Copper's integration within Google has expanded, enabling users to also access critical CRM data within Gmail, Sheets, Slides, Hangouts Chat, Data Studio and more. With this partnership, Google will provide joint go-to-market support via a SaaS sales alignment program. "Embedded analytics are becoming critical for CRM vendors, as they drive greater productivity and visibility for end users and managers," said Rebecca Watterman at Nucleus Research. "Copper's new integration with Google's Data Studio brings the mission of Google organizing the world's information and making it useful to empower Copper users with more intelligent customer interactions." While most business intelligence tools are complex and expensive, Copper and Data Studio provide reports that are fully customizable and easy to read and share. In addition, teams and businesses can easily utilize Data Studio's features to better understand every relationship they manage from leads, accounts, partners, vendors, and creative resources. Key features of Copper's integration with Data Studio include: Relationship statistics: Copper's Data Studio dashboards help relationship makers tell great data stories and make better business decisions. Engaging visual analytics: Copper and Data Studio give teams and businesses the ability to create meaningful, shareable charts and graphs that bring data to life. With easy-to-use data visualization, customers can split trends across different categories or run an in-depth cohort analysis. Seamless business analysis: Customers can leverage Copper CRM metadata to view sales indicators, identify trends, and gain insights. They can also export critical relationship data to run trend analyses. To learn more about Data Studio, please visit https://www.blog.google/products/marketingplatform/analytics/making-google-data-studio-free-for and https://cloud.google.com/data-studio. About Copper Copper is the CRM that works for you. Recommended by Google, it's a leading CRM for G Suite. Copper CRM puts the productivity of its users first by providing a seamless integration with G Suite, a beautiful user experience, and by helping teams and businesses build long-lasting relationships. Copper services more than 12,000 paid businesses in more than 100 countries. Headquartered in San Francisco with over 200 employees, the company has raised $87M in venture capital financing from leading investors like GV, NextWorld Capital, Norwest Ventures and True Ventures. For more information or to sign up for a free trial, visit www.copper.com. Stay in touch on Twitter: @CopperInc Media Contact [email protected] SOURCE Copper Related Links http://www.copper.com NEW YORK, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Credit Suisse AG ("Credit Suisse") announced today that it will accelerate at its option all of its VelocityShares Daily 2x VIX Medium Term ETNs ("TVIZ"), VelocityShares VIX Medium Term ETNs (VIIZ"), Credit Suisse X-Links WTI Crude Oil Index ETNs ("OIIL"), AxelaTrader 3x Long Brent Crude Oil ETNs ("UBRT") and AxelaTrader 3x Inverse Brent Crude Oil ETNs ("DBRT"). *The table above provides a hyperlink to the relevant pricing supplement, as applicable, for each of the ETNs. TVIZ and VIIZ investors will receive on the acceleration date set forth above a cash payment per ETN in an amount equal to the closing indicative value of the respective ETNs on the accelerated valuation date of August 10, 2018. OIIL investors will receive on the acceleration date set forth above a cash payment per ETN in an amount equal to the arithmetic average of the closing indicative values of such ETNs during the accelerated valuation period. The accelerated valuation period for OIIL will be a period of five consecutive trading days, beginning on August 6, 2018 and ending on August 10, 2018. UBRT and DBRT investors will receive on the acceleration date set forth above a cash payment per ETN in an amount equal to the closing indicative value of the respective ETNs on the acceleration valuation date of August 10, 2018. The acceleration valuation date for UBRT and DBRT is the final calculation date of the acceleration valuation period, which will be a period of five consecutive calculation dates, beginning on August 6, 2018 and ending on August 10, 2018. As of the date hereof, Credit Suisse will no longer issue new TVIZ, VIIZ, OIIL, UBRT or DBRT ETNs. Please see the relevant pricing supplement for detailed information relating to the calculation of the accelerated redemption amount or acceleration redemption amount, as applicable, for each such ETN and relating to the acceleration of such ETNs generally. Credit Suisse expects that the relevant exchanges will allow such ETNs to continue to trade until August 14, 2018. Investors who buy such ETNs at any time for an amount that is greater than the amount they receive upon acceleration (including paying any premium to the accelerated redemption amount or acceleration redemption amount, as applicable, once these amounts have been determined) will suffer a loss on their investment. Furthermore, investors who sell such ETNs at any time for an amount that is less than the amount they would have received upon acceleration (including selling at any discount to the accelerated redemption amount or acceleration redemption amount, as applicable, once these amounts have been determined) will also suffer a loss. In either case, such losses could be significant. Investors will not receive any other compensation or amount for the loss of the investment opportunity of holding such ETNs and investors may be unable to invest in other securities with a similar level of risk and/or that provide a similar investment opportunity as such ETNs. None of the other ETNs offered by Credit Suisse are affected by this announcement. All dates referenced above are subject to change, including postponement due to certain events. Press Contacts Azar Boehm, Credit Suisse AG, telephone +1 212 538 3953, [email protected] Credit Suisse ETNs Telephone +1 800 320 1225, [email protected] Credit Suisse AG Credit Suisse AG is one of the world's leading financial services providers and is part of the Credit Suisse group of companies (referred to here as 'Credit Suisse'). Our strategy builds on Credit Suisse's core strengths: its position as a leading wealth manager, its specialist investment banking capabilities and its strong presence in our home market of Switzerland. We seek to follow a balanced approach to wealth management, aiming to capitalize on both the large pool of wealth within mature markets as well as the significant growth in wealth in Asia Pacific and other emerging markets, while also serving key developed markets with an emphasis on Switzerland. Credit Suisse employs approximately 46,370 people. The registered shares (CSGN) of Credit Suisse AG's parent company, Credit Suisse Group AG, are listed in Switzerland and, in the form of American Depositary Shares (CS), in New York. Further information about Credit Suisse can be found at www.credit-suisse.com. SOURCE Credit Suisse AG Related Links http://www.credit-suisse.com CAMPBELL, Calif., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Dicom Systems (dcmsys.com) today announced that it has received the 2017 Google Cloud Partner Award for Innovative Solution in Health Care. This year's award was presented at the Google Cloud Next Partner Summit, an event that showcases Google Cloud partners spanning G Suite, GCP, Maps, Devices, and Education in San Francisco. Dicom Systems was recognized for this year's award due to the company's contribution to Google Cloud solutions through their expertise in Health Care and dedication to delivering cutting-edge products for customers. Dicom Systems (dcmsys.com) today announced that it has received the 2017 Google Cloud Partner Award for Innovative Solution in Health Care. "Dicom Systems is proud to be recognized by Google Cloud for providing next-gen Enterprise Imaging technology," said Dmitriy Tochilnik, President and CTO of Dicom Systems. "Our Unifier platform was designed with efficiency, security and patient privacy in mind. With Google Cloud's rigorous HIPAA compliance standards combined with their powerful infrastructure, we felt confident in taking our hospital customers to the cloud." "Collaborating with Google Cloud has helped us rapidly deploy teleradiology and imaging technology solutions that are more scalable and resilient. We are proud that Unifier will be the focal point of an onslaught of new clinical workflows, placing the cloud at the forefront of everyday healthcare," said Florent Saint-Clair, Executive Vice President of Dicom Systems. "Our partners are fundamental to providing a great product to customers, particularly as demand for Google Cloud innovations grows," said Nan Boden, Head of Global Technology Partners at Google Cloud. "We are proud to provide this recognition to Dicom Systems, whose solutions in Health Care help to meet customer demands and empower them to succeed in the era of the cloud. We're delighted to continue building together with Dicom Systems on behalf of customers." Unifier is Dicom Systems' highly interoperable Enterprise Imaging platform offering seamless integration with any PACS, RIS, and EMR. Take Unifier on a test drive with Google Launcher now available with thin proxy for fast connection to the cloud. About Dicom Systems Dicom Systems provides Enterprise Imaging and teleradiology workflow solutions that simplify IT. The features-rich Unifier platform delivers intelligent routing, SSL-based DICOM and HL7 integration tools, DICOM Modality Worklist, and cloud archiving through on-premise, private cloud and leading cloud providers like Google Cloud. Proven at worldwide deployments, Dicom Systems is recognized by top healthcare enterprises, government agencies and partners for next-generation Enterprise Imaging. To learn more, visit: www.dcmsys.com. For more information contact Taylur Ngo, Marketing Manager, 415-684-8790, [email protected] SOURCE Dicom Systems Related Links https://www.dcmsys.com FLINT, Mich., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Diplomat Pharmacy, Inc. (NYSE: DPLO), will release its second-quarter 2018 operating results after market close Monday, Aug. 6, with a conference call to follow at 5 p.m. ET. Shareholders and interested participants can listen to a live broadcast by calling 833.286.5805 (647.689.4450 for international callers) and entering the participation code 1842529, starting about 15 minutes before the call. A live webcast of the conference call will be available on the investor relations section of Diplomat's website at ir.diplomat.is. The site will host an audio recording and supplemental investor information for 90 days. About Diplomat Diplomat (NYSE: DPLO) is the nation's largest independent provider of specialty pharmacy serviceshelping people with complex health conditions in all 50 states. Rooted in this patient care expertise, Diplomat also provides industry-focused specialty solutions through two brands: CastiaRx, which serves payers as the leading specialty benefit manager, and EnvoyHealth, which offers tailored solutions for healthcare innovators. Diplomat opened its doors in 1975 as a neighborhood pharmacy with one essential tenet: "Take good care of patients and the rest falls into place." Today, that tradition continuesalways focused on improving patient care. For more information, visit diplomat.is. INVESTOR CONTACT: Terri Anne Powers, Vice President, Investor Relations 312.889.5244 | [email protected] MEDIA CONTACT: Jenny Cretu, Senior Vice President, Pharma Services and Marketing 810.768.9370 | [email protected] SOURCE Diplomat Pharmacy, Inc. Related Links http://www.diplomat.is NEW YORK, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Steven Victor and ReGen Medical with Emirates Hospital Jumeirah, an Emirates Healthcare Company, announced they have partnered with ReGen Medical PC to officially launch "ReGen At Emirates Hospital," a new stem cell and regenerative medicine center on (June 25, 2018). Emirates Hospital Jumeirah is the first to receive approval from the Dubai Health Authority and will be the first, through its partnership with ReGen Medical PC, to offer a range of specialty regenerative services in the UAE region. ReGen in Dubai Stromal vascular fraction cellular (SVFC) therapy, better known as stem cell therapy, is a rapidly expanding set of innovative medical technologies that restore cellular function by enabling the body to repair, replace and regenerate damaged, aging or diseased cells, tissues and organs. The minimally invasive, proprietary procedure, which has been proven to be 100% safe, utilizes a patient's own stromal vascular fraction cells (stem cells) from the blood vessels in adipose or fat tissue to significantly boost success rates for patient outcomes in a wide variety of conditions. In addition, there is a vast population interested in stem cell cosmetic procedures, as well as generalized anti-aging rejuvenation. ReGen at Emirates Hospital is certified for the medical tourism market and will operate under US Federal Drug Administration (FDA) standards. ReGen will boast an international staff of physicians who are board-certified or board-eligible and experienced in administering the leading cellular therapies available to treat a variety of conditions. The staff will be led by board-certified physicians and ReGen Medical PC, Founder Dr. Steven Victor who has treated numerous patients for rejuvenation, anti-aging, and diseases with unmet clinical needs. Steven Victor MD, Regen Medical PC said, "We are proud to partner with Emirates Hospital Jumeirah and the DHA and with them to offer the only dedicated stem cell and regenerative medicine center in the UAE, all while incorporating the latest advancements in cellular therapies to patients worldwide. Further, our launch will affirm Emirates Hospital's leadership role in these fields and help to attract additional talent to our already exceptionally talented and dedicated team." Dr. Yehia El Gabbani, Director of Emirates Hospital, said, "In addition to stem cell therapy, the demand for the Cosmetic Indications and Rejuvenation Therapy is enormous and is expected to generate great interest. We look forward to collaborating with the physicians on Dr. Victor's team, as we continue to deepen our expertise in this groundbreaking, regenerative therapy. We believe ReGen at Emirates Hospital will attract patients from all over the world and further increase medical tourism in the UAE region." The launch of ReGen at Emirates Hospital is one amongst the various initiatives being taken by Emirates Healthcare Company in its efforts to contribute to healthcare advancements in the UAE. Media Contact Anna Rhodes Phone: 212-249-3050 Email: [email protected] Related Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9gAaWYABEA SOURCE Regen Medical Management "Adding Michael as part our executive leadership team deeply aligns with where we're taking the organization and our strategy," said Lisa Picard, President and CEO of EQ Office. "Michael has great rigor and financial acumen, intellectual curiosity and brings broad experience having worked with nearly every asset type. He's had a front row seat in watching our industry change for nearly 20 years and will collaborate with EQ leadership in furthering our strategies for driving value throughout our current portfolio and future investments." As CFO, Knott will deepen the EQ mindset around financial discipline, as well as drive insights from the portfolio and the changing business environment. As EQ introduces new products, including those through new partnerships and relationships, Knott will bring creativity to understanding new value in the office market. He will also further the company's technology initiatives around predictive analytics. "I'm truly excited to be joining EQ at such a pivotal time for the company and the industry," Knott said. "EQ is pushing the boundaries of the traditional commercial real estate industry to shape how offices can accommodate customer workspace preferences, and I look forward to helping manage the portfolio to increase value long-term." Knott spent the last 16 years at Green Street Advisors, a leading commercial real estate and REIT research firm, and most recently served as Managing Director. Throughout his career, Knott has gained deep knowledge of many real estate segments, markets and investor types, highlighted by his significant experience analyzing the office industry. He held various leadership positions during his Green Street tenure, including co-leading the firm's overall REIT research team. About EQ We are EQ Office. While other real estate owners talk about square footage and floor plans, we focus on the experience; how space feels, activates and performs. At EQ, we partner with business leaders to find, design and manage balanced workspaces with the intention of helping to inspire talent. We're proud to work hand-in-hand with customers of all sizes from Fortune 100 companies to emerging startups to bring humanity back to the workplace. Our diverse team of over 200 professionals is responsible for creating inspired office environments in cities across the country including Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Boston. What began as Equity Office Properties 42 years ago, now reflects a new intelligence needed to address shifting workplace needs, as EQ Office. As a U.S. office portfolio company wholly owned by Blackstone's real estate funds, we have the resources to lead the changes happening in work space. Explore your space for greatness at www.eqoffice.com. About Blackstone Blackstone is one of the world's leading investment firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies in which we invest, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our asset management businesses, with $440 billion in assets under management, include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow Blackstone on twitter @Blackstone. SOURCE EQ Office Related Links http://www.eqoffice.com VANCOUVER , British Columbia, July 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Future Farm Technologies Inc. (the "Company") (CSE: FFT) (OTCQX: FFRMF) announces that its 2018 annual audited financial statements (the "Annual FS"), related management's discussion and analysis (the "Annual MD&A"), and CEO and CFO certifications (collectively, the "Annual Required Filings") were filed on Wednesday, July 18, 2018. The Company had an active year of mergers and acquisitions, which successfully expanded and diversified its portfolio of assets. This level of activity caused delays in the audit process and the completion of the Annual Required Filings, which ultimately resulted in a cease trade order (CTO) being issued by the British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) on July 6, 2018. The BCSC confirms that all materials have been received and that revocation of the CTO is being processed. "We are pleased to have completed the Annual Required Filings and thank our shareholders for their patience during the CTO. We are eager to fully return our focus to building Future Farm and value for our investors," states Mr. William Gildea, Future Farm's Chairman and CEO. On behalf of the Board, Future Farm Technologies Inc. William Gildea, CEO & Chairman About Future Farm Future Farm Technologies Inc. is a Canadian company with projects throughout North America including California, Florida and Maryland. The Company's business model includes developing and acquiring technologies that will position it as a leader in the evolution of Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) for the global production of various types of plants, with a focus on cannabis. Future Farm provides scalable, indoor CEA systems that utilize minimal land, water and energy regardless of climate, location or time of year and are customized to grow an abundance of crops close to consumers, therefore minimizing food miles and its impact to the environment. The Company holds an exclusive, worldwide license to use a patented vertical farming technology that, when compared to traditional plant production methods, generates yields up to 10 times greater per square foot of land. The contained system provides many other benefits including 90% less water, fertilizer and land used, less travel costs, seed to sale security, scalability, consistency due to year-round production, cost control, product safety and purity by eliminating environmental variability. The Company also utilizes a leading cannabis oil extraction technology, which enables the Company to process 20lbs/hour of cannabis plant to yield approximately 908 grams/hour of oil. The Company is also in the business of designing and distributing LED lighting solutions utilizing the COB and MCOB technology. The Company is focused on delivering cost efficient lighting to North America via advanced e-commerce sites the Company owns and operates. LEDCanada.com, which caters to B2B customers, is a supplier of the newest and highest demand LED solutions. The Company also owns and operates COBGrowlights.com, which caters to both large and small agriculture green houses and controlled cultivation centers. The Company recently acquired the exclusive right to use a patented, augmented reality (AR) technology in the cannabis industry. As described in more detail above, the Company has decided to spin this asset off to its shareholders. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may include forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward looking. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under the applicable laws. For further information, contact: William Gildea, Director, +1-617-834-9467 SOURCE Future Farm Technologies Inc. ALBANY, New York, July 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new market report published by Transparency Market Research, the global accounting software market was valued at US$ 5,715.9 Mn in 2017 and is expected to reach US$ 11,771.6 Mn by 2026, expanding at a CAGR of 8.6% from 2018 to 2026. According to the report, North America was a prominent contributor in terms of revenue to the global accounting software market in 2017. This is primarily due to the integration of accounting software with smartphones, tablets, and computers across the region. (Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/664869/Transparency_Market_Research_Logo.jpg ) Demand for compelling user-interfaces is driving the global accounting software market Most accounting software/systems currently in use are becoming obsolete as they lack technological competitiveness, as compared to the new comprehensive models that possess the ability to take care of various operations simultaneously. This creates a favorable environment for the overall expansion of the accounting software market, in terms of an upgrade. Request a Brochure for Research Insights at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=47097 Accounting software tops at analyzing business practices, and it helps rapidly identify cash flows in an operation. It is a software that manages all financial transactions and has extensive data at its disposal in order to generate various reports. The reporting options are virtually unlimited, depending on the type of software that is used. Additionally, using accounting software also helps save money and time and offers valuable insights into the business. Furthermore, a significant expectation from accounting software presently is that the user-interface needs to be more engaging and is expected to provide a near consumer-like experience. This is a key factor that is anticipated to boost the accounting software market. Get a PDF Sample at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=47097 Accounting Software Market: Scope of the Report The global market for accounting software can be segmented based on deployment, software type, application, enterprise size, industry, and geographic regions. In terms of deployment, the market can be classified into Software as a Service (SaaS), on-premise, and hybrid. The Software as a Service (SaaS) segment is anticipated to hold a prominent share of the accounting software market, in terms of revenue, by the end of 2018. Based on software type, the market can be divided into commercial off-the-shelf, enterprise accounting software, custom accounting software, reconciliation, and tax management. The enterprise accounting software segment is projected to hold a notable share of the market by the end of 2018. However, the tax management segment is estimated to expand at a significant pace during the forecast period. Furthermore, based on application, the global accounting software market can be categorized into payroll management systems, billing & invoice system, enterprise resource planning systems, time & expense management systems, and others. The time & expense management systems segment is expected to expand at a significant growth rate in the near future. In terms of enterprise size, the market can be classified into small and medium, and large enterprise. Download Report TOC at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/report-toc/47097 The large enterprise segment is likely to account for a major share of the market during the forecast period due to the fact that large enterprises prefer accounting software as compared to the traditional accounting methods, as it saves time and accounting can be performed easily with less manpower. Based on industry, the accounting software market can be split into banking, financial services, and insurance; telecom and information & technology (IT); manufacturing, construction, wholesale distribution, non-profit organizations, chemicals, food and beverage, and others. The banking, financial services, and insurance segment is expected to hold a considerable share of the market during the forecast period. Request for Customization Report at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=CR&rep_id=47097 In terms of geography, the global accounting software market can be segmented into North America, Asia Pacific, Europe, South America, and Middle East & Africa. Among the regions, North America is expected to dominate the global accounting software market during the forecast period. However, Asia Pacific and Europe are also expected to account for significant market share during the forecast period. Browse Press Release at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/pressrelease/accounting-software-market.htm Global Accounting Software Market: Competitive Dynamics Players in the accounting software market are partnering with other technology companies in order to expand their market presence. The global accounting software market includes different players such as Oracle (NetSuite), Sage Group Plc., Workday, Inc., Zeta Software LLC, Infor, Inc., Microsoft Corporation, SAP SE, Intuit Inc., Epicor Software Corporation, Xero Ltd., Red Wing Software Inc., Zoho Corporation, MRI Software, AccountMate Software Corporation, and Acumatica Inc. The accounting software market has been segmented as below: Market Segmentation: Global Accounting Software Market By Deployment Software as a Service (SaaS) On-Premise Hybrid By Software Type Commercial off-the-shelf Enterprise Accounting Software Custom Accounting Software Reconciliation Tax Management By Application Payroll Management Systems Billing & Invoice System Enterprise Resource Planning Systems Time & Expense Management Systems Others By Enterprise Size Large Enterprise Small and Medium By Industry Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance Telecom and Information & Technology(IT) Manufacturing Construction Wholesale Distribution Non-Profit Organizations Chemicals Food and Beverage Others Popular Reports by TMR: Talent Management Software Market: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/talent-management-software-market.html Building Information Modeling (BIM) Extraction Software Market: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/building-information-modeling-extraction-software-market.html About Us Transparency Market Research is a next-generation market intelligence provider, offering fact-based solutions to business leaders, consultants, and strategy professionals. Our reports are single-point solutions for businesses to grow, evolve, and mature. Our real-time data collection methods along with ability to track more than one million high growth niche products are aligned with your aims. The detailed and proprietary statistical models used by our analysts offer insights for making right decision in the shortest span of time. For organizations that require specific but comprehensive information we offer customized solutions through adhoc reports. These requests are delivered with the perfect combination of right sense of fact-oriented problem solving methodologies and leveraging existing data repositories. TMR believes that unison of solutions for clients-specific problems with right methodology of research is the key to help enterprises reach right decision. Contact Transparency Market Research State Tower, 90 State Street, Suite 700, Albany NY - 12207 United States USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453 Email: [email protected] Website: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com Research Blog: http://www.techyounme.com/ SOURCE Transparency Market Research VANCOUVER, British Columbia, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- GoverMedia Plus Canada Corp. (CSE: MPLS) (FWB: 48G) (WKN: A2JF6W) ("GoverMedia" or the "Company"), is pleased to announce it has signed a software development agreement with a Swiss private bank based in Geneva. The bank has a long history in asset and wealth management. The agreement is for the development and sale of a proprietary white labeled messaging platform for the bank's internal communication. The messaging solution is fully customized, with the servers and the encryption keys at the bank level and can be replicated to other banking institutions. (Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/648491/GoverMedia_Plus_Logo.jpg ) The technology will be built based on GoverMedia's state-of-the-art, proprietary messaging software: MFLY+. The Company's team has already begun the software development activities for the bank's internal messaging platform and is expecting to deliver the final software solution during Q3 2018. The commercial agreement stipulates a software development fee and additional maintenance and technical support fees. These fees represent direct significant revenues to GoverMedia. Leonid Afanasyev, GoverMedia's Founder and Director, commented "After months of restless work, we are pleased to announce this partnership in the financial heart of Switzerland. Based on years of professional relationship with the bank, we managed to develop a tailor-made solution for the financial institution's needs. The solution the Company has developed is fully adapted to the banking technology infrastructure in Switzerland and can be easily implemented to other banks in our network. We are confident this agreement will provide the basis for many other commercial contracts to come." To read the full press release please click here. Contact: Roland J. Bopp President and CEO +1-888-672-4415 SOURCE GoverMedia Plus Canada Corp. LONDON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Grow Biotech PLC ("Grow Biotech", the "Company"), the UK-based medical cannabis biotechnology and intellectual property company, today announces several key corporate updates. - Seed and series A funding for 1 million (combined) has been over subscribed by 100% - Applications for these rounds of funding will not be accepted after 6th August 2018 - The Company has had strong interest from VCT's and funds. - Given this interest, and the imminent progression of the Company's R&D projects into laboratories in the UK and Canada, the Company has decided to target a Q4 2019 IPO. Ben Langley, CEO of Grow Biotech plc, commented: "We are thrilled that our private placement has been so well received by investors in the UK. The proceeds raised will be used to accelerate our recent progress, particularly in our two core research and development projects in the UK and Canada. It really is an exciting time for Grow Biotech and for the global medical cannabis market." Background to and reasons for the Private Placement The Company has spent significant time and resources analysing the market and developing research projects to the point that there are now two projects that are ready for full scientific Research & Development ("R&D") in laboratories in the UK and Canada. These projects have been pre-researched scientifically and commercially and, in both cases, the directors have deemed that they present attractive potential returns on investment. Consequently, the directors made the decision to raise funds from investors to allow these projects to accelerate towards their goal of producing valuable medical cannabis intellectual property. The Private Placement The private placement was offered to select UK based high net worth and sophisticated investors. The A shares that were offered to investors are being issued under the Company's existing authorities. Grow Biotech PLC Grow Biotech is a UK-based medical cannabis biotechnology and intellectual property company. The Company currently has operations in the UK and in Canada where it aims to develop one of the world's most valuable portfolios of medical cannabis intellectual property through scientific and technological innovations. The Company's two live R&D projects focus on increasing the sophistication of medical cannabis a) techniques and b) tools with a view to bridging the gap between current medical cannabis tools, processes and practices and those that are generally deemed acceptable by the established pharmaceutical community. Enquiries should be directed to: [email protected], +44(0)207-409-5011 The directors of the Company accept responsibility for the contents of this announcement. SOURCE Grow Biotech PLC NEW HAVEN, Conn., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyundai Hope On Wheels 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization celebrates its 20th year in the fight funding pediatric cancer research and will present Dr. Shilpa Hattangadi of Yale Cancer Center at Smilow Cancer Hospital with a $100,000 Hyundai Impact Award. This institution is one of 21 recipients of this year's award, which is given to pediatric oncology departments at select children's hospitals nationwide. The $100,000 Hyundai Impact Award will be officially presented to Dr. Hattangadi and Yale Cancer Center at Smilow Cancer Hospital on Wednesday, July 25th at 10:00 a.m. In 2018, Hope On Wheels will award over $15 million toward pediatric cancer research and programs. This brings the organization's donation total to $145 million since Hyundai joined the fight against pediatric cancer 20 years ago in 1998. With this latest grant, Yale School of Medicine has received more than $1,000,000 from Hope On Wheels. "Throughout the country, talented doctors are working tirelessly to help kids fight cancer by conducting research or providing bedside care," said Scott Fink, chairman, Hyundai Hope On Wheels Board of Directors. "Our goal at Hope On Wheels is to provide these doctors with the grant funds they need to perform their lifesaving work." During the event, children being treated at Yale Cancer Center's who are battling cancer will participate in the program's signature Handprint Ceremony, in which they'll dip their hands in paint and place their handprints on a white canvas. Their colorful handprints on the canvas will represent their individual and collective journeys, hopes and dreams. For more information about Hyundai Hope On Wheels and to view a complete list of this year's grant winners, please visit HyundaiHopeOnWheels.org/research. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram at facebook.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels, twitter.com/HopeOnWheels or instagram.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels. HYUNDAI HOPE ON WHEELS Hyundai Hope On Wheels is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is committed to finding a cure for childhood cancer. Launched in 1998, Hyundai Hope On Wheels provides grants to eligible institutions nationwide that are pursuing life-saving research and innovative treatments for the disease. HHOW is one of the largest non-profit funders of pediatric cancer research in the country, and primary funding for Hyundai Hope On Wheels comes from Hyundai Motor America and its more than 835 U.S. dealers. Since its inception, Hyundai Hope On Wheels has awarded more than $145 million towards childhood cancer research in pursuit of a cure. HYUNDAI MOTOR AMERICA Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through 835 dealerships nationwide. All new Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are covered by the Hyundai Assurance program, which includes a 5-year/60,000-mile fully-transferable new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty and five years of complimentary Roadside Assistance. For more details on Hyundai Assurance, please visit www.HyundaiAssurance.com Please visit our media website at www.hyundainews.com Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook SOURCE Hyundai Hope On Wheels Related Links http://www.HyundaiHopeOnWheels.org AMSTERDAM, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Recognizes 'care, dedication and commitment' of ordinary people A 28-year-old African community youth worker Evah Namakula, has won the first CARES HIV/AIDS award, recognizing ordinary people who show 'care, dedication and commitment' in their communities in the fight against the disease. Ms Namakula is part of the 2018 global award launch at the International Aids Society meeting, Amsterdam (23-27 July), booth #407. CARES Media Information The first award focused on the dedication of ordinary people in Africa, an area most affected by HIV/AIDS. It has two categories - Ms Namakula (individual) and an organization, Hillcrest AIDS Centre Trust (HACT), a South African charity caring for disadvantaged people. The organization receives a grant of $5500 USD from Beckman Coulter Life Sciences through the Beckman Coulter Foundation. This is made in the name of the individual winner, but their work cannot be linked. An independent judging panel described as 'remarkable' Ms Namakula's achievements in her local Ugandan community to dispel the stigma of HIV/AIDs. She is also global youth ambassador for Reach Out Integrity (ROI) Africa, promoting health and sexual responsibility to young people - and has founded her own charity, IGNITE . Evah is part of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) set up by President Barack Obama to empower leadership skills in African youth. As a YALI volunteer, she has been a leadership mentor in local communities and schools, developing public speaking skills. Inspired by the determination of her mother and siblings, Evah said: "l was already a campaigner but it was while working in my local hospital laboratory that I realised how I could use my medical knowledge to help reduce the myth young people in my community had about HIV/AIDS." "Evah is an inspirational young woman and will be a hard act to follow," said Samuel Boova, Beckman Coulter's Director Alliance Development, High Burden HIV Markets. "She is exactly the kind of youth leader that President Obama wanted to encourage to develop the Africa of the future. We are honored not only to have her as our first winner, but to have her support in launching the global initiative. "The award gives a platform to the work of unsung heroes, people who have shown individual dedication, commitment and courage or who have made a difference in the battle against HIV/AIDS." SOURCE Beckman Coulter Life Sciences VIENNA, Austria, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- For the first-time, researchers at IMBA - Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences - develop organoids, that mimic the onset of brain cancer. This method not only sheds light on the complex biology of human brain tumors but could also pave the way for new medical applications. Brain tumors are among the most aggressive and deadly cancers and a leading cause of cancer-related death in children and young adults. Glioblastoma is a particularly aggressive form of brain tumor that is characterized by a very rapid tumor growth of glia cells - the most abundant cell types in the central nervous system, that surround and support neurons. The tumor is notoriously difficult to treat as it forms tentacle-like structures, that makes it difficult to remove the tumors surgically. Also, glioblastoma tend to liaise with blood vessels, helping cancerous cells to grow and spread very quickly. With each cell division, they accumulate mutations that can render them resistant to drugs. Because of the molecular characteristics of the human brain, it has been very difficult for scientist to find a suitable model organism to study brain cancers. Organoid technology could now lead to a paradigm shift in studying glioblastoma and other forms of brain cancers. In recent years, researchers have managed to develop more and more lab grown organ like structures, or organoids. Already in 2013 Jurgen Knoblich and his team at IMBA were the first ones to use brain- organoids from iPS cells for studying molecular and developmental characteristics as well as neurological diseases of the human brain. Now, they have succeeded to grow one of the deadliest cancers, brain cancer, in a dish. The novelty: this method allows the researchers to replicate the process of brain carcinogenesis in a dish, where they can observe brain cancer onset already at its early stages and watch the brain-organoid growing a tumor in a dish. In a publication in the current edition of the journal Nature Methods the group reports on the new neoplastic cerebral organoids they have developed to study brain tumors. These organoids faithfully reproduce unique aspects of the human brain, such as its diverse cell types and the stages by which it develops, allowing scientists to get a handle on the ways tumors arise, and also provide a system to try out new cancer therapies. "For the first time, we established a human model for brain cancer to rapidly test or screen for the tumorigenic potential of gene mutations found from cancer genome sequencing projects. Using genome-editing techniques, we introduced clinically-relevant mutations into the cerebral organoids. With this method, we are trying to mimic the brain tumor onset in vivo by only mutating a very small population of cells," explains Shan Bian, postdoc at IMBA and first author of the study. Over the past few years, huge cancer genome sequencing projects have catalogued thousands of mutations found in patient tumors. Such genetic defects arise through natural mistakes in the copying of DNA, through the consumption of carcinogens or other causes. They trigger fundamental changes in healthy cells that cause them to spin out of control, reproducing at an astounding pace. Each time such a cell divides it may generate new mutations, leaving scientists with a huge puzzle to assemble. The novel brain-cancer or neoplastic organoids now offer a means to investigate, how some of these mutations are driving forces in tumors, crucial in triggering the onset of cancer, and necessary to address through treatments, while others are simply side effects. From bench to bedside The scientists carried out studies of these miniature tumors to identify additional changes they had undergone, identifying new markers that may help in diagnosing the disease and classifying the tumor a patient has. Once a tumor has developed, the scientists can target a specific mutation to determine whether the defect is also essential for the long-term survival of the tumor. Any change that causes it to shrink or disappear makes a good candidate for future therapies. The scientists tested this principle by applying a drug called Afatinib, which is currently being used in clinical trials as a treatment for glioblastoma. They found that after 40 days, administration of the drug significantly reduced the number of tumor cells in two combinations of mutations, but not in the third or in cells with too much MYC. Afatinib inhibits a molecule called EGFR - which is specifically overexpressed in those two types of tumors. When testing four additional EGFR inhibitors used in therapies, a drug called Erlotinib significantly reduced the number of tumor cells as well, while the effects of others were minimal. "These results show that brain organoids also have significant impact for cancer research and public health. We can now develop organoids from brain tumor patients allowing us to test the efficacy of different combinations of therapies," says stem cell pioneer Knoblich, who is interim director of IMBA. "As a next step it will be important to foster clinical partnerships, so we can work towards translating our findings from the bench to the bedside." Publication: Bian et al., 2018, 'Genetically engineered cerebral organoids model brain tumor formation', Nature Methods; doi: 10.1038/s41592-018-0070-7 Press Photos: https://www.imba.oeaw.ac.at/about-imba/information-material-download/ About IMBA IMBA - Institute of Molecular Biotechnology is one of the leading biomedical research institutes in Europe focusing on cutting-edge functional genomics and stem cell technologies. IMBA is located at the Vienna Biocenter, the vibrant cluster of universities, research institutes and biotech companies in Austria. IMBA is a subsidiary of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the leading national sponsor of non-university academic research. http://www.imba.oeaw.ac.at IMBA - Institut fur Molekulare Biotechnologie GmbH Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Wien Tel: +43-1-790-44-3626 [email protected] [email protected] Website: http://www.imba.oeaw.ac.at SOURCE IMBA Institute of Molecular Biotechnology FLORHAM PARK, N.J., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Northern New Jersey residents seeking Interventional Radiology (IR) services for both cancer-related and non-cancer cases can now go to the state-of-the-art, newly constructed Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center located at 150 Park Avenue in Florham Park. With the opening of the Interventional Radiology (IR) and Imaging Department at its freestanding cancer center, Summit Medical Group is offering advanced IR procedures, including Ultrasound-Guided biopsy and CT-Guided biopsy procedures that are typically exclusive to a hospital setting in an outpatient, coordinated-care environment. The newly minted Imaging Department features two highly advanced outpatient IR suites. A team of board-certified interventional radiologists, led by Dr. Waseem Bhatti, Medical Director of Imaging at Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center, is skilled in a wide range of procedures, including: Image-Guided Biopsies Ultrasound-Guided Paracentesis, Thoracentesis Chemo Port Placements Tumor Embolization and Ablation Consults and Treatments Feeding Tube Placements Vertebroplasty/Kyphoplasty Palliative Drains and Central Line Access Placements Uterine Fibroid Embolization CT and MRI Angiography "The opening of the Interventional Radiology department at Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center further strengthens our ability to provide patients in northern New Jersey access to the most advanced treatments and to the finest level of coordinated care that they've come to expect from Summit Medical Group," said Dr. Jeffrey Le Benger, Summit Medical Group Chairman of the Board and CEO. "By using a combination of clinical decision tools, hardware and software technology innovations along with purposeful scanning, we can optimize medical imaging for patients and offer patients increased confidence in the treatment of cancer and other diseases," said Dr. Bhatti. Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center offers state-of-the-art, comprehensive diagnostic radiological imaging services that include interventional radiology, general x-ray, multislice computed tomography (CT), high-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), digital diagnostic and screening mammography, ultrasound, positron emission computed tomography (PET-CT) and general nuclear medicine. The advanced technology offerings include: Siemens Biograph mCT-20 with FlowMotion Technology PET-CT delivers a highly sophisticated imaging technique that provides detailed information to physicians about the presence or spread of disease and accurately identifies its precise location so radiation treatment planning is better targeted. PET/CT is commonly used to diagnose, stage, and/or restage a variety of types of cancer including breast, colorectal, esophageal, melanoma, lymphoma, lung, colorectal, head and neck, and cervical cancers. It can be used to monitor tumor response to treatment during the planned course of therapy, or in non-invasive cardiac diagnosis and stroke assessment. Siemens Symbia Evo Nuclear Medicine Camera System delivers high-quality SPECT images to facilitate physician decision making in general purpose, cardiology, neurology and oncology studies. Canon Aquilion Prime SP CT produces optimal images with the lowest dose possible for every patient from pediatric to bariatric, up to 660-pounds. The scanner adapts to patients' heart rate automatically, even overcoming unexpected arrhythmia. Siemens Artis Q Angiography System allows clear visualization of the smallest vessels and devices static or in motion even in challenging situations such as with obese patients and steep angulations. The system's 3D imaging provides visualization of small bleedings in the head and millimetric HCC (Hepatocellular carcinoma) lesions in the liver. Siemens Artis Zee Multi-Purpose System for fluoroscopy and angiography provides optimal support for a broad spectrum of diagnostic and interventional procedures by combining 2k imaging with highly practical and user-friendly handling features. imaging with highly practical and user-friendly handling features. GE Senographe Pristina Mammography System is the first mammography system that brings 3D technology to our patients. This technology, also known as digital breast Tomosynthesis, delivers superior diagnostic accuracy at the same low dose as a 2D mammography exam, the lowest patient dose of all FDA-approved 3D mammography systems. GE Optima MRI 450w 1.5T with GEM Suite coil technology is designed to help maximize comfort for patients undergoing MRI exams. The American College of Radiology accredits Summit Medical Group Imaging in breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), ultrasound, mammography, and nuclear medicine. For more information on Interventional Radiology and Imaging services available at Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center at 150 Park Avenue in Florham Park, please call 973-437-2600 or visit Summit Medical Group's website for further details and a full list of other Imaging locations. About Summit Medical Group Recognized as New Jersey's premier multispecialty medical group, Summit Medical Group has more than 80 locations in seven northern New Jersey counties. Summit Medical Group's 800+ practitioners cover more than 80 medical specialties and services , with a focus on delivering patient-centered and coordinated care. Summit Medical Group's unique care model recently expanded nationally with the founding of Summit Medical Group Oregon BMC Total Care and Summit Medical Group Arizona. Additionally, Summit Medical Group is the only healthcare provider in northern New Jersey to offer patients access to the world-renowned MD Anderson Cancer Network through Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center. For more information, visit www.summitmedicalgroup.com . About Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center Summit Medical Group is the first independent multispecialty physician group in the country and the only healthcare provider in northern New Jersey to offer patients access to the world-renowned MD Anderson Cancer Network. The partnership, an extension of MD Anderson's relationship with South Jersey's Cooper University Health Care, guarantees Summit Medical Group patients access to advanced treatment options and emerging treatment alternatives. Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center, a new state-of-the-art, 130,000 square foot outpatient facility in Florham Park is implementing an integrated, multidisciplinary approach to cancer care, ensuring a high-quality patient experience, close to home. SOURCE Summit Medical Group MD Anderson Cancer Center PALO ALTO, Calif., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- AutonomIQ, a cloud platform that uses AI and machine learning for autonomous testing is partnering with leading systems integrators Infosys and Marlabs to bring autonomous testing solutions to market for large public and private clients. Partnering with leading SI's pairs AutonomIQ's Autonomous Testing Platform with world class delivery expertise, global enterprises will be able to realize value from their digital initiatives much faster, with much higher quality. "Infosys has a strategic focus on extreme automation and AI in development, testing, business process and infrastructure and cloud and security space," says Ramanath Suryaprakash, AVP of Corporate Alliances at Infosys. "Robotic test Automation with AutonomIQ plays right into our sweet spot to provide our customers faster time to market solutions and services." "Our customers live in a software test universe comprising of large volumes of legacy manual test cases and heterogenous automation solutions, yet not being able to address key open challenges with software testing life cycle," said Mahesh Eswar, SVP & Chief Revenue Officer of Marlabs. "With AutonomIQ, we can enable end to end test automation for huge inventory of existing test cases with ease and at a fraction of cost." Today, enterprises must spend hours writing and maintaining test scripts, keeping them from realizing the true value of continuous testing. Using AI and machine learning to create and maintain testing assets, allows enterprises to realize the full benefit of autonomous testing at scale. "Global enterprise rely on systems integrators as their trusted partner to deliver innovative solutions that solve business problems," says Ram Shanmugam, Co-Founder and CEO of AutonomIQ. "By adding Autonomous Testing to their tool belt, our partners will be able to deliver solutions much faster, with much higher quality, all while About AutonomIQ AutonomIQ is a cloud platform that enables product and IT teams to autonomously test, release and deploy software, thereby increasing velocity of software releases without compromising quality. With pre-built integrations to common web applications and SaaS providers, customers can instantly create test cases, generate test scripts and test data, and execute tests. Using deep-learning and AI algorithms, AutonomIQ detects changes, enables self-healing for test assets and provides advanced diagnostics. In real world situations, AutonomIQ has been shown to provide over ~50% improvement in speed and quality compared to existing tools and techniques. About Infosys Infosys is a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting. We enable clients in 45 countries to navigate their digital transformation. With over three decades of experience in managing the systems and workings of global enterprises, we expertly steer our clients through their digital journey. We do it by enabling the enterprise with an AI-powered core that helps prioritize the execution of change. We also empower the business with agile digital at scale to deliver unprecedented levels of performance and customer delight. Our always-on learning agenda drives their continuous improvement through building and transferring digital skills, expertise, and ideas from our innovation ecosystem. Visit www.infosys.com to see how Infosys (NYSE: INFY) can help your enterprise navigate your next. About Marlabs Marlabs helps companies adopt digital transformation using Digital360 - a comprehensive digital framework comprising of Digital Product Engineering, DevSecOps, Quality Engineering, Enterprise Analytics, Cloud, Digital Security and User Experience; delivering a next-generation Digital Customer Experience. Marlabs' digital life-cycle model delivers rapid innovation using prototyping, co-creation, concept-to-completion and rapid deployment. Marlabs' innovation labs, "marlabs.next" incubates cutting-edge technologies like Intent-Intelligence, AI, IoT, IoP, Blockchain and Hyper-Personalization. Visit us at www.marlabs.com to see how we help clients drive digital transformation. SOURCE AutonomIQ Related Links http://autonomiq.io LEXINGTON, Ky., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Lexmark, a global imaging solutions leader, recently announced the availability of a new generation of A4 color and large workgroup monochrome printers and multi-function products (MFPs) that bring an unparalleled combination of reliability, productivity and security to business users. "Lexmark is pleased to introduce this extensive line-up of new devices which feature improved performance and consumable yields, resulting in more up time, fewer interventions and improvements in total cost of ownership," said Allen Waugerman, Lexmark senior vice president and chief technology officer. "These new devices are designed to be reliable, productive and more secure additions to business IT assets," said Allen Waugerman, Lexmark senior vice president and chief technology officer. "IT will appreciate the longevity, durability and serviceability of these devices, while users will appreciate the high-quality color or monochrome output, state of the art power and performance, and easy to use features." These new A4 color (CS421dn, CS521dn, CS622de, CX421adn, CX522ade, CX620 Series and CX625 Series) and large workgroup mono (MS725 Series, MS820 Series, MX720 Series and MX820 Series) devices are equipped with major feature enhancements that drive down total cost of ownership: RELIABILITY: These new devices are built to last, with durable steel frames, long life components and other design features that ensure device longevity and stability for years of reliable performance in even the harshest environments. PERFORMANCE: Powerful multicore processors and increased memory levels deliver brainpower that "future proofs" these devices by accommodating firmware upgrades over time. It also ensures these new devices effortlessly render even the most complex print jobs and enables complex multi-tasking, such as sending a fax while printing with optical character recognition (OCR) rendering in the background. EASE OF USE: e-Task, Lexmark's modern, tablet-like user interface, allows for unparalleled simplicity and ease of use across the entire portfolio, with displays up to 10 inches on the large workgroup monochrome devices. QUALITY OUTPUT: Lexmark Color Replacement is featured on the color products, so customers can accurately print corporate logos or any specific colors needed in their most sensitive documentsall with improved consumable yields. FLEXIBILITY: A full range of color and monochrome devices have been launched in 2018, to meet user needs throughout the enterprise. From entry color devices starting at 25 pages per minute with 250 pages of input, to solutions-enabled devices with up to 7-inch class e-Task interface, built-in hard disks, duplexing automatic document feeder (DADF) scanners, and pre-installed optical character recognition (OCR), as well as a full suite of new monochrome devices built for small, mid and large workgroups within the enterprise. SECURITY: Lexmark's award-winning full spectrum security features help protect documents, devices and networks from unauthorized access and are fully integrated into every product in the series. Consistent, upgradable protections across the product portfolio help you control access, secure hard disk data, protect operating systems and prevent network hacks. MOBILITY: These new devices offer a variety of mobile print options, enabling workers to complete tasks via approved mobile devices with the free Lexmark Mobile Print app. Output is also available via AirPrint, Google Cloud Print, Mopria or Windows Mobile. ANALYTICS: For Managed Print Services customers, these new devices can be equipped with sensors that capture highly detailed vital system information such as engine voltage, fan speeds and fuser temperature ramps. When any of these metrics fall out of spec it could mean an upcoming failure that needs intervention OR it could simply mean that a setting is wrong. Advance notice helps minimize interventions and keep staff productive. SUSTAINABILITY: As expected from Lexmark, these devices meet the most stringent global environmental requirements. "With this extensive launch, Lexmark has refreshed much of our product offering in 2018, ensuring our customers are prepared to leverage the latest imaging technology to move their businesses forward," Waugerman added. Supporting Resources Learn more about Lexmark's new large workgroup monochrome devices and A4 color devices for the enterprise. Download device images and brochures. Watch a video about the new monochrome laser offerings. Watch a video about the new color laser offerings. Subscribe to the Lexmark News Blog. Follow Lexmark on LinkedIn and Twitter. About Lexmark Lexmark creates innovative imaging solutions and technologies that help customers worldwide print, secure and manage information with ease, efficiency and unmatched value. Lexmark and the Lexmark logo are trademarks of Lexmark International, Inc., registered in the U.S. and/or other countries. AirPrint and the AirPrint Logo are trademarks of Apple, Inc. Google Cloud Print is a trademark of Google, Inc. MOPRIA, the Mopria Logo and the Mopria Alliance logos are trademarks, service marks, and certification marks of Mopria Alliance, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. SOURCE Lexmark International, Inc. Related Links http://www.lexmark.com FORT WORTH, Texas, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) announced today that it has hired more than 1,800 new employees in support of the F-35 program, meeting a commitment made in January 2017 by Chairman, President and CEO Marillyn Hewson. The company also announced that it plans to create an additional 400 jobs at its Fort Worth, Texas, facility to support increased production on the program. The announcement was made in conjunction with the Trump Administration's second Made in America day, which showcased a full-scale F-35 model on the South Lawn of the White House. "The F-35 is an iconic product that represents the best of U.S. innovation, technology leadership, and advanced manufacturing," said Marillyn Hewson. "The program supports 194,000 direct and indirect jobs nationwide, and as we ramp up production we are creating even more opportunities for American workers. The men and women who participate in the F-35 program take pride in delivering unmatched, fifth-generation capabilities to the U.S. military and our allies around the world." With stealth technology, supersonic speed, advanced sensors, enhanced weapons capacity and superior range, the F-35 is the most advanced fighter aircraft ever built, enabling men and women in uniform to execute their mission and return home safe. More than a fighter jet, the F-35's ability to collect, analyze and share data is a powerful force multiplier that enhances all airborne, surface and ground-based assets in the battlespace. Lockheed Martin will host its hiring event in Fort Worth, Texas on July 30, with a goal of recruiting 400 new employees with expertise in the following areas: avionics technicians, milling machinist, low observable coaters, structural assemblers, aircraft mechanics, field and service mechanics, and electrical assemblers. Additional details on the event can be found, here. Increasing Production, Reducing Costs About 310 F-35s have been delivered to date, and the current program of record calls for more than 3,000 aircraft. The F-35 enterprise has significantly increased production volume year-over-year to meet demand. Lockheed Martin met its 2017 delivery target of 66 aircraft, representing more than a 40 percent increase from 2016. In 2018, the company is on track to deliver 91 aircraft and is preparing to increase production volume year-over-year to hit a rate of approximately 160 aircraft per year in 2023. As production volume increases and Lockheed Martin implements cost savings initiatives, the company has significantly reduced costs. In fact, F-35 unit costs have declined by more than 60 percent since the first production lot. The enterprise is on track to reduce the cost of an F-35A to $80 million by 2020, which is equal to or less than legacy fourth generation aircraft, while providing a transformational leap in capability. The F-35 is built by thousands of men and women in America and around the world. With more than 1,500 suppliers in 46 states and Puerto Rico, the F-35 program supports more than 194,000 direct and indirect jobs in the U.S. alone. About Lockheed Martin Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 100,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. This year the company received three Edison Awards for ground-breaking innovations in autonomy, satellite technology and directed energy. SOURCE Lockheed Martin Related Links http://www.lockheedmartin.com NEW YORK, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A large and growing number of MBA graduates - 46% - are fielding employment offers with starting salaries of at least $125,000 per year, according to the 10th annual Training The Street (TTS) MBA Employment Survey. At the same time, the number of graduates who received three or more job offers surged to 28% from 22% a year ago. A total of 54% of those surveyed reported being "very satisfied" with their job offers, up from 48% a year ago. Amid the optimism, there are also hints of unease. There was a big drop off in the number of MBAs saying they were satisfied with their job offer(s) - 32% versus 45% last year - and a doubling (14% against 7%) in the number of MBAs who said they were "dissatisfied" with their job offer(s). The number of graduates who did not receive any employment offers remained about the same as last year, at 17%. "The war for talent is as strong as ever, and top candidates are in high demand, leading to higher starting salaries and multiple job offers," noted Scott Rostan, founder and CEO of Training The Street. "Demand for MBAs remains strong, but firms are being more discerning in an effort to recruit those who can step in and contribute right away." Overall, optimism about employment prospects after school remained steady (55% this year said they are "very optimistic" compared with 54% last year). But a lower number of respondents (32%) consider themselves "somewhat" optimistic versus 39% last year. A total of 12% described themselves as "neutral" or "somewhat pessimistic" versus 8% that used the same terms last year. Continuing a trend seen in last year's survey, a much larger percentage of MBA graduates expressed a preference for working in consulting as compared to a traditional large Wall Street firm. Almost one in three grads (31%) said working in consulting was their number one choice. That compares with 20% a year earlier. The same number of those surveyed last year - 19% - said they hoped to work for a bulge bracket firm. The surge in MBAs hoping to work in consulting may reflect greater marketing efforts by consulting firms. More than half of respondents - 51% - said consulting firms actively recruited them, up from 43% last year. Those who said they were recruited by bulge bracket firms slipped to 38% from 43% a year earlier. "We've seen a concerted effort on behalf of the big consulting firms to attract the strongest, young talent coming out of the nation's business schools," said Mr. Rostan. "The results indicate that their efforts have paid off, as more MBAs see consulting firms as their top choice." On-campus interviews continue to be the way most MBAs find employment, as 64% said they found their job that way, up 10 percent from last year (54%). Just 15% of graduates this year said they found a job through independent search, a marked decrease from 25% last year. Geographically, a growing number of MBAs expressed an interest in working in New York (44%), up from 39% last year. Chicago was the second most popular choice, jumping up to 18% from just 11% a year ago. Coming in third place was San Francisco, which was the favorite choice of just 9%, a significant decrease from 21% last year. About Training The Street Training The Street (TTS) is the world's leading provider of instructor-led courses in accounting, asset management, capital markets, financial modeling and corporate valuation training to Wall Street investment banks, federal government agencies, law firms, business schools, and top colleges. With offices in the financial hubs across the U.S., as well as an office in London and India, TTS boasts a deep field of expert instructors and extensive practical experience. Currently, TTS is offering live training programs to interns, analysts and associates at nearly 200 banks and corporate businesses, including Wall Street's 10 largest banks, as well as the 20 highest ranked MBA programs in the nation. For more information, please visit www.trainingthestreet.com. SOURCE Training The Street Related Links http://www.trainingthestreet.com TORONTO, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Minden Gross LLP is bringing together its innovative thought leaders who advise financial institutions to create its new Financial Services Group. Legal professionals from the Commercial Real Estate, Bankruptcy and Insolvency, Business Law, and Litigation Groups will now fall under the banner of the Financial Services Group to better serve financial institutions, financial service providers, and their clients in this highly-competitive and fast-paced environment. The Financial Services Group is dedicated to providing legal counsel that is reliable, practical, and business-focused to assist clients in navigating an increasingly sophisticated and complex legal landscape. Recognizing that superior service is only part of the overall client experience, the Financial Services Group embraces a consultative approach with clients and industry partners to power an ever-evolving, future-forward client experience that has its foundation in a deep understanding of our clients and their business needs. Headed by Timothy R. Dunn, the Minden Gross LLP Financial Services Group comprises a multidisciplinary team of highly-experienced business lawyers who are recognized for their depth of expertise and responsiveness as part of the competitive regional, national, and international financial services sector. About Minden Gross LLP Minden Gross LLP is a full-service business law firm providing representation and assistance in the broad areas of financial services, real estate, corporate and commercial transactions, litigation, securities and capital markets, and employment and labour law. We also counsel and assist clients in personal matters related to their tax and estate planning. Our services are scalable and tailored to meet the specific needs of our clients, from large international and national organizations to small business enterprises and individuals. We seek solutions that are practical, effective, and timely for our clients. Media Contact: Timothy R. Dunn Partner, Financial Services Group Minden Gross LLP [email protected] Related Images timothy-r-dunn-chair-financial.jpg minden-gross-llp-lobby-with-logo.jpg Related Links Minden Gross LLP - Financial Services Group Minden Gross LLP - home page SOURCE Minden Gross LLP NEW YORK, July 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM), operator of financial markets for 10,000 U.S. and global securities, today announced Maple Leaf Green World, Inc. (Aequitas Neo Exchange: MGW;OTCQX: MGWFF), a public Canadian company that focuses on the cannabis industry in North America, has qualified to trade on the OTCQX Best Market. Maple Leaf Green World upgraded to OTCQX from the OTCQB Venture Market. Maple Leaf Green World begins trading today on OTCQX under the symbol "MGWFF." U.S. investors can find current financial disclosure and Real-Time Level 2 quotes for the company on www.otcmarkets.com. "As the 35th Canadian company this year, and first from the NEO Exchange, to begin trading on OTCQX, Maple Leaf Green World joins an impressive roster of companies providing a transparent market for their U.S. investors," said Jason Paltrowitz, Executive Vice President of Corporate Services at OTC Markets Group. "We look forward to supporting Maple Leaf Green World as the company builds visibility and long-term shareholder value." "We are pleased to upgrade from OTCQB to the OTCQX Best Market as it will provide better access and convenience to our U.S. and international investors," said Raymond Lai, CEO of Maple Leaf Green World. "We have made this move to ensure better exposure as well as better communication with shareholders and market participants. We will integrate the corporate services provided by trading on the OTCQX Best Market within our investor relations program." Maple Leaf Green World was sponsored for OTCQX by J.P. Galda & Co., a qualified third-party firm responsible for providing guidance on OTCQX requirements and recommending membership. About Maple Leaf Green World, Inc. Maple Leaf is a public Canadian company that focuses on the cannabis industry in North America. The Company currently operates cannabis projects in British Columbia and Nevada. With over ten years of extensive greenhouse management experience, the Company applies its eco-agriculture knowledge and cultivation technology to produce contaminant-free organic cannabis products. Maple Leaf's long-term objective is to produce cannabis oil and to export its products to approved countries. The Company's common shares are listed for trading on the Aequitas NEO Exchange Inc. under the symbol "MGW" and on the OTCQX market under the symbol "MGWFF". About OTC Markets Group Inc. OTC Markets Group Inc. (OTCQX: OTCM) operates the OTCQX Best Market, the OTCQB Venture Market and the Pink Open Market for 10,000 U.S. and global securities. Through OTC Link ATS and OTC Link ECN, we connect a diverse network of broker-dealers that provide liquidity and execution services. We enable investors to easily trade through the broker of their choice and empower companies to improve the quality of information available for investors. To learn more about how we create better informed and more efficient markets, visit www.otcmarkets.com. OTC Link ATS and OTC Link ECN are operated by OTC Link LLC, member FINRA/SIPC and SEC regulated ATS. Subscribe to the OTC Markets RSS Feed Media Contact: OTC Markets Group Inc., +1 (212) 896-4428, [email protected] SOURCE OTC Markets Group Inc. Related Links http://www.otcmarkets.com KANSAS CITY, Mo., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Eight hundred Kansas City families in need will receive enough food to supplement meals for a week plus daily essentials, thanks to a partnership between PepsiCo and Feed the Children. The event kicks off at 11 a.m. CT at Manual Career & Technical Center, 1215 E. Truman Rd., Kansas City, Mo. This is the second year PepsiCo and Feed the Children have partnered to help feed families in Kansas City, where more than 22 percent of the population lives below the poverty line1. This event is part of a larger initiative between the two organizations to help feed communities in cities throughout the United States. The receiving families have been identified and preselected by Operation Breakthrough, a Kansas City-based not-for-profit corporation working to provide a nurturing and safe environment for children in poverty. "We're excited to partner with Feed the Children and Operation Breakthrough helping our friends and neighbors in the Kansas City community," said David Hartwell, sales zone director, Midwest region, PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division. "Frito-Lay and PepsiCo are committed to giving back to our communities where we live and work, and providing enough food to supplement meals for a week is a small way we can help make a difference." "We recognize hunger can't be fought alone, but by working together, we can provide food and essentials to millions of children and families who live in poverty," said Travis Arnold, president and CEO of Feed the Children. "The work Feed the Children does would be impossible without the support of our corporate partners." Each qualifying recipient at today's event will be given: One 25-pound box of nonperishable food items One 15-pound box of personal-care items One box of AVON products One 20-count bag of Frito-Lay Better-For-You Variety Pack PepsiCo beverages Life Original Cereal Quaker Standard Oats Chewy Granola Bars Volunteers from PepsiCo, Feed the Children and Operation Breakthrough will be onsite serving families and assisting with distribution during today's event. About PepsiCo PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $63 billion in net revenue in 2017, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales. At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose our fundamental belief that the success of our company is inextricably linked to the sustainability of the world around us. We believe that continuously improving the products we sell, operating responsibly to protect our planet and empowering people around the world is what enables PepsiCo to run a successful global company that creates long-term value for society and our shareholders. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com. About Feed the Children Established in 1979, Feed the Children exists to defeat hunger. It is one of the largest U.S.-based charities and serves those in need in the U.S. and in 10 countries around the world. It provides food, education, essentials and disaster response. Domestically, it operates 5 distribution centers (located in Oklahoma, Indiana, California, Tennessee and Pennsylvania). In fiscal year 2017, through its domestic and international programs, Feed the Children distributed 91.7 million pounds of food and essentials worldwide with a total value of $373 million, working with partner agencies to benefit 6.4 million children and families globally. It is accredited by GuideStar Exchange and the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. Visit www.feedthechildren.org for more information. __________________________________ 1 http://www.city-data.com/poverty/poverty-Kansas-City-Missouri.html SOURCE PepsiCo Related Links http://www.pepsico.com ROCKVILLE, Maryland, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Quality-constructed to impart economical yet strong packaging, laminated polypropylene woven bags and sacks continue to dwarf their non-laminated counterparts. 60% of polypropylene woven bags and sacks sales converted worldwide are laminated, according to a recent Fact.MR study. The study foresees the polypropylene woven bags and sacks market to record a moderate 4.0% volume CAGR through the period of forecast, 2018 to 2028. (Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/713666/FactMR_Logo.jpg ) Palpability of polythene's environmental hazards has emphasized the use of sustainable alternatives in the packaging sector, thereby entailing adoption of polypropylene woven bags and sacks. Rapid inroad paved by the retail industry in FMCG sector, which has resulted in proliferation of retail outlets, will continue to bode well for growth of the polypropylene woven bags and sacks market. Request For Sample Report - https://www.factmr.com/connectus/sample?flag=S&rep_id=1203 Countries worldwide are passing prohibitions and taxes on plastic bags to offset environment impacts resulting from their production and disposal. Single-use plastic bags that have a thickness of less than 35 microns or 50 microns fall under the prohibition, and the thickness varies from country to country; primary agenda behind this being their zero reusable value and exhausting landfill sites. "Following ban on plastic bags, polypropylene non-woven bags are in rigorous demand, albeit their composition of plastic as a part with cloth was frowned upon in their infancy. Despite materials used in polypropylene woven bags and sacks are not completely biodegradable, they can be reused & recycled, thereby illustrating a greener alternative. In fact, polypropylene woven bags and sacks manufacturing is emerging as a lucrative small-business idea, in light of their steadily surging demand," says a lead analyst at Fact.MR. Sensing evolving requirements of consumers and end-use industries alike, manufacturers of polypropylene woven bags and sacks have introduced a wide range of products. Open mouth bags and valve bags continue to subjugate the polypropylene woven bags and sacks market, collectively accounting for over 50% market share, in terms of both value and volume. This will be complemented by steady demand from block bottom bags and gusseted bags. Preeminence of Asia-Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) in the polypropylene woven bags and sacks market will persist, led by fast growing FMCG sector in the region that coattails the surging middle-class demographic. Most of the APEJ's polypropylene woven bags and sacks market will remain concentrated in China and India, following plastic ban initiatives that have gained widespread acceptance across these countries. To know the Latest Trends in Polypropylene Woven Bags and Sacks Market, Visit - https://www.factmr.com/report/1203/polypropylene-woven-bags-and-sacks-market "With rising demand for packaging products, key players have shifted their focus toward production of polypropylene woven bags and sacks, to become most reliable manufacturers of custom-driven woven fabric. Some companies based in emerging nations such as China and India, being export-oriented unit (EOU), have over half of their output exported to nations including the U.S., Canada, UAE, Australia, Germany, and Britain. These players are fast foraying East European nations and South Africa," according to the analyst. Leading players in the polypropylene woven bags and sacks market are custom designing and developing solutions that are client requirement-specific, meanwhile conforming to international quality & safety guidelines. These players are also taking strategic steps forward for expanding their market reach and gaining a competitive edge in the polypropylene woven bags and sacks market. According to the study, end-use of polypropylene woven bags and sacks continues to remain robust in the food and building & construction industries. However, sales rate of polypropylene woven bags and sacks in agriculture & allied Industries is foreseen to overshadow sales in food and building & construction industries during the period of forecast. Revenues from polypropylene woven bags and sacks sales in retail & shopping sector will continue to observe a sluggish rise through 2028. To Buy Polypropylene Woven Bags and Sacks Market Report, Check the link- https://www.factmr.com/checkout/1203/S About Fact.MR Fact.MR is a fast-growing market research firm that offers the most comprehensive suite of syndicated and customized market research reports. We believe transformative intelligence can educate and inspire businesses to make smarter decisions. We know the limitations of the one-size-fits-all approach; that's why we publish multi-industry global, regional, and country-specific research reports. Contact Us Rohit Bhisey Fact.MR 11140 Rockville Pike Suite 400 Rockville, MD 20852 United States Email: [email protected] Web: https://www.factmr.com/ SOURCE Fact.MR HOUSTON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Quanta Services, Inc. (NYSE: PWR) announced today that it will release second quarter 2018 financial results on Thursday, August 2, 2018, before the market opens. In conjunction with the press release, Quanta has scheduled a conference call for 9:00 a.m. Eastern time on Thursday, August 2, 2018, which also will be broadcast live over the Internet. What: Quanta Services Second Quarter 2018 Earnings Conference Call When: Thursday, August 2, 2018 9:00 a.m. Eastern time How: Live via phone By dialing (201) 689-8345 or (877) 407-8291 and asking for the Quanta Services Second Quarter 2018 Earnings Conference Call at least 10 minutes prior to the start time. Live over the Internet by logging on to the website at the following address: http://investors.quantaservices.com For those who cannot participate live, an archive of the webcast will be available shortly after the call on the company's website at http://investors.quantaservices.com and dial-in information for a replay of the call will be available in the upcoming earnings release. For more information, please contact Kip Rupp at Quanta Services at (713) 341-7260. About Quanta Services Quanta Services is a leading specialized contracting services company, delivering infrastructure solutions for the electric power, oil and gas and communications industries. Quanta's comprehensive services include designing, installing, repairing and maintaining energy and communications infrastructure. With operations throughout the United States, Canada, Latin America, Australia and select other international markets, Quanta has the manpower, resources and expertise to safely complete projects that are local, regional, national or international in scope. For more information, visit www.quantaservices.com. Contact: Kip Rupp, CFA Quanta Services, Inc. (713) 341-7260 SOURCE Quanta Services, Inc. Related Links http://www.quantaservices.com Partner Solution Powered by First-Party Data Enhances Measurement of Brand Lift Ad Effectiveness on YouTube DALLAS, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Research Now SSI, the global leader in digital market research data and data services, has been named one of the inaugural partners in Google's new Measurement Partner Program. The program gives advertisers a range of high quality choices for reliable third-party data and measurement solutions for transparent tracking of ad performance in an increasingly complex marketing environment. The partners were selected based on their ability to meet Google's rigorous standards for quality and accuracy, as well as for compliance with data privacy standards. The new program aims to deliver a choice of trustworthy measurement options across seven specializations: viewability, reach, brand safety, brand lift, sales lift, app attribution and marketing mix modeling. Research Now SSI's ADimension solution is approved specifically for measuring digital brand lift ad effectiveness on Google's YouTube marketing platform. Powered by Research Now SSI's extensive global data asset, ADimension will help YouTube advertisers better understand the performance of their digital ads and audiences, for better return on their investments and stronger brand relationships. One of the world's largest first-party data assets, Research Now SSI's permissioned, opted-in research data, enriched by integration with other data sets, represents the authentic voice of the consumer. Outside of YouTube, ADimension measures cross-media ad effectiveness, both online and offline. "We are gratified and delighted to be recognized by Google as part of this innovative step forward in bringing high-quality, transparent measurement to advertisers," said Gary S. Laben, CEO of Research Now SSI. "The time has come to propel data-driven marketing toward fulfilling its promise for better accuracy, performance and customer relationships. We look forward to continued close collaboration with Google as we work to expand our initial step with them to channels beyond digital." About Research Now SSI Research Now SSI is the world's leading global provider of first-party consumer and professional data based on extensive, proprietary market research panels. Around this core asset of opted-in, managed data, the company has built innovative data services and solutions that bring the voice of the individual to the entire marketing spectrum, from research to marketing to advertising. Research Now SSI serves more than 4,000 market research agencies, media and advertising agencies, consulting and investment firms, and healthcare and corporate customers in the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. For more information about our range of data-driven offerings, go to www.researchnow.com and www.surveysampling.com. Press Contact: Kate Brunkhorst [email protected] (203) 567-7196 For Media Contact, Only Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/621661/RN_SSI_Dual_Logo.jpg Related Links https://www.researchnow.com SOURCE Research Now SSI PETALUMA, Calif., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Leonardo da Vinci was one of the greatest innovative minds the world has ever known. While he is best known for his paintings, he was also a brilliant sculptor, scientist, engineer, architect, philosopher and inventor. Amazing as it may seem, he was almost entirely self-educated, driven by his quest for knowledge and his drive to excel in whatever he did. Brandon Frere, CEO of Frere Enterprises and successful entrepreneur, believes there are some key lessons that innovators and entrepreneurs can learn from da Vinci's example. Remembered as a legendary genius, da Vinci's beginnings were humble and showed little promise of his potential. Born in 1452 out of wedlock, he was unable to pursue formal education; at 15, he became an apprentice to the artist Andrea del Verrocchio and was quick to surpass his master's painting skills. In 1482, he entered into the service of the Duke of Milan, where he started designing weapons, buildings and machinery. During this time he also produced many studies in the subjects of nature, geometry, engineering and mechanics. After the Duke of Milan fell from power in 1499, da Vinci worked for many other patrons who supported his studies, earning a prestigious position in the court of King Francis I of France, where he stayed until his death in 1519. "An important lesson entrepreneurs and innovators can learn from da Vinci is to avoid limiting ourselves with what we believe are our strengths," muses Brandon Frere. "da Vinci was an extraordinary painter and he could have made painting the focus of his life. Instead, he chose not to let his strength in painting limit him. He grew exponentially as a person by learning about other fields that interested him and was able to combine his passions to create new and exciting ideas that continue to inspire us today." In one of his notebooks, da Vinci wrote "Principles for the Development of a Complete Mind: study the science of art; study the art of science. Develop your senses especially learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else." One could argue that part of what set da Vinci apart from many great thinkers was his constant diversifying of knowledge, never appearing to have limited his interests. He embraced "whole brain thinking," a term used to describe the ability to think in a balanced way that combines science, art, logic and imagination. Steve Jobs, the great modern-day innovator who founded Apple, also embraced da Vinci's principle of whole brain thinking and attributed it to Apple's success. "It's in Apple's DNA that technology alone is not enough," he said. "It's technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields the results that make our hearts sing." "Part of da Vinci's genius, and Jobs', too, was that they were able to recognize the connection between many subjects and rethink the way they interplay with each other," says Frere. "Innovation often stems from combining unlikely things together. If your view on a subject is too rigid, you risk losing out on new ideas." Walter Isaacson, president and CEO of the Aspen Institute, has written in-depth biographies on famous innovators da Vinci, Jobs, Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein. In a fascinating interview with psychologist Adam Grant, Isaacson discussed how these four innovators shared diverse interests, continued curiosity and imagination. Asked how he thought da Vinci's famed procrastination was relevant to us today, Isaacson said, "He always allows his imagination to blur into a challenge in reality So sometimes, let your imagination push you a little bit. Don't be afraid of daydreaming, and then trying the impossible." In the modern world, daydreaming isn't seen as a productive pastime, however using da Vinci as an example, perhaps it should be. "Being an innovator is about trying things that haven't been done before," says Frere. "That requires imagination and taking risks, going out on a limb. Never be afraid to stretch your imagination. History remembers those who dare to dream." About Frere Enterprises Brandon Frere is an entrepreneur and businessman who lives in Sonoma County, California. He has designed and created multiple companies to meet the ever-demanding needs of businesses and consumers alike. His company website, www.FrereEnterprises.com, is used as a means to communicate many of the lessons, fundamentals and information he has learned throughout his extensive business and personal endeavors, most recently in advocating on behalf of student loan borrowers nationwide. As experienced during his own student loan repayment, Mr. Frere found out how difficult it can be to work with federally contracted student loan servicers and the repayment programs designed to help borrowers. Through those efforts, he gained an insider's look into the repayment process and the motivations behind the inflating student loan debt bubble. His knowledge of the confusing landscape of student loan repayment became a vital theme in his future endeavors, and he now uses those experiences to help guide others through the daunting process of applying for available federal repayment and loan forgiveness programs. FrereEnterprises.com Related Images da-vinci.jpg da Vinci Credit: zummolo/Bigstock image2.png Related Links Frere Enterprises home page SOURCE Frere Enterprises BATTLE GROUND, Wash., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Treasure Investments Corporation (TIC) set up a spectacular display at the 147th National Rifle Association Annual Meeting (NRAAM) in Dallas, Texas. TIC displayed in a 10' X 20' booth space located in one of the main conference halls. Snapshot of Treasure Investments Corporation's Booth space at the 2018 NRAAM "Our booth space was in a good location. We also placed three separate art displays at all registration locations and that was magic, as we knew it would be hard for nearly 100,000 people attending to see all the booths considering the massive size of the conference halls," said Mark Russo, CEO, Treasure Investments Corp. "The three strategically placed art displays drove clients right to our booth and produced great results as we sold large collections, mainly of our eagles and patriotic themes," says Russo. TIC donated one of its eagle sculptures to the NRA main auction event which raised $20,000 at the live dinner gala during the conference. This was TIC's first appearance at the NRA Annual Meeting and the results were so good, the company will be attending next year's event in Indianapolis. "We are very excited about attending next year's event. Our booth will be even bigger and will include a larger collection of art," says Russo. To learn more about the company and its work with nonprofits, visit Fineart1.com. About Treasure Investments Corp TIC has a diverse business platform, creating and providing fine art in original sculptures from small desktop images and collectibles to larger-than-life heroic monuments. The company's master mold collection contains hundreds of original molds from world-famous artists in the United States and Europe. For more information, visit Fineart1.com. Media Contact: Mark Russo Phone: 360.954.5453 Email: [email protected] Related Images image1.jpg image2.jpg SOURCE Treasure Investments Corporation Related Links http://treasureinvestmentscorp.com VANCOUVER, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - Alio Gold Inc (TSX, NYSE AMERICAN: ALO) ("Alio Gold" or the "Company"), today announced that it will release its second quarter 2018 results on Friday, August 10, 2018, before the market opens, followed by a conference at 11:00am EDT. Second Quarter 2018 Results Conference Call and Webcast Details: Toll Free (US and Canada): (855) 427-9509 Toll Free (Outside North America): (210) 229-8822 Conference ID: 7099318 Webcast: https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/p84uiih9 Replay: To be available at http://www.aliogold.com About Alio Gold Alio Gold is a growth oriented gold mining company, focused on exploration, development and production in Mexico and the USA. Its principal assets include its 100%-owned and operating San Francisco Mine in Sonora, Mexico, its 100%-owned and operating Florida Canyon Mine in Nevada, USA and its 100%-owned development stage Ana Paula Project in Guerrero, Mexico. The Company also has a portfolio of other exploration properties located in Mexico and the USA. Neither the TSX nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX) nor the New York Stock Exchange MKT accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. SOURCE Alio Gold CLEVELAND, Tenn., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hardwick Clothes, on the eve of celebrating their 138th anniversary, calls for tariffs, especially on clothing imported from Mexico and Canada. Allan Jones, Chairman of Jones Capitalcorp, LLC, rescued Hardwick from bankruptcy in 2014, pumping millions of his own money into the venture in an attempt to salvage the company, maintain employment for the company's 300-plus employees, and keep America's oldest tailor-made clothing manufacturer in business. "When the Tariff of 1824 was instituted, the goal was admirable: protect woolen mills in America," Jones said. He explained that a century later in 1930, Hardwick Woolen Mills in Cleveland, Tennessee, was the largest clothing manufacturer and mill in the world. When the company leadership saw the decline of mills, Hardwick sold the milling business to Burlington Fabrics to concentrate on their tailored clothing. Unfortunately, Jones said, "While fine woolen fabric mills in America have since ceased to exist, the tariffs have not. Today, manufacturers based on both of America's bordersCanada and Mexicopay no tariffs on imported fabrics (which come primarily from Europe), whereas American manufacturers pay a twenty-five percent tariff on the same goods, only to see Canadian and Mexican manufacturers ship their tailored clothing tariff-free to America." Though there is a rebate program through the Farm Bill, the construction of the rebate is based on historical purchasesnot actual purchasesand goes disproportionately to two manufacturers that receive much more rebate than they have paid in tariffs. "This isn't a rebate," Jones insisted. "It's a subsidy that places other American clothing manufacturers at a distinct disadvantage." One of these disadvantaged is Hardwick, America's oldest tailor-made clothing company that was founded on July 28, 1880. Jones explained, "The company has survived a mountain of obstacles during its 138-year history, including two major fires, two World Wars, the Great Depression, and even leisure suits! Today, the company is penalized by tariffs on raw materials necessary to manufacture clothing and an unfair, disproportionate rebate subsidizing the company's competitors." In an effort to level the playing field for all, Jones is requesting that during NAFTA negotiations, a tariff of twenty-five percent be placed on all imported tailored clothingmenswear in particularespecially clothing that is imported from Canada and Mexico, and any rebate be based on actual, not historical, purchases. This will allow Hardwick to pay higher wages and allow the company to grow its market. "After NAFTA, there was a giant sucking sound, with tailored clothing manufacturing moving to Canada and Mexico," Jones said, "while Hardwick remained an American company. Now, we're seeking a level playing field. The future of the tailored clothing industry in America depends on it." "Trump needs a substantial negotiating tool," Jones concluded, "and we need to get out of the way and let Trump be Trump. He'll manhandle these tariffs and bring about a level playing field for all American manufacturers." Toby Pendergrass Chief of Staff Jones Management Services (423) 473-4227 [email protected] Related Images image-1-cleveland-daily-banner.jpg tariff-map-graphic.jpg allan-jones-headshot.jpg SOURCE Hardwick Clothes ERIE, Pa., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A local engineering company with a manufacturing legacy of more than 100 years is making history again. CMI Energy, a company that designs, engineers, procures and provides aftermarket support for Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSGs) worldwide, is bringing an 86,890- square foot and 13,452,000-pound shipment into the Port of Erie. The shipload weighs more than the total weight of all freight received in the Port over the last eight years, according to Brenda Sandberg, Executive Director at Erie-Western PA Port Authority. Experienced teams, extensive industry knowledge, and more than 700 units in operation worldwide make CMI Energy a preferred global supplier of complete HRSG solutions. This is the first time since the 1990s a large-scale project designed and engineered by CMI Energy will be coming into the Port of Erie. CMI Energy specifically chose the Port of Erie over several others ports in the area. There were several reasons for their decision which included support of the local economy and the Erie Port Authority's willingness to accommodate the large shipment. CMI is partnering with two other Erie businesses, Don Jon Shipping and Barnhart Transportation for logistics. "The two assembled HRSGs will take up around one acre. The units generally stand over 150 feet with the stacks," said Larry Garcia, CMI CEO. The components for a Heat Recovery Steam Generator which arrived at the Port of Erie on Sunday will begin unloading today, a process that will take several weeks. Once unloaded, the components will be transported to New Castle, Pa., where they will be assembled. The finished Heat Recovery Steam Generator will convert natural gas to electric and provide power to Pennsylvania. The power will be produced from two gas turbines feeding two HRSGs which in turn feed a single steam turbine. The HRSGs convert waste heat produced by the gas turbines into steam which is then utilized by a steam turbine for additional power generation. The steam turbine is supplied with high pressure, superheated and reheated steam from the two CMI HRSGs. Each HRSG recovers heat from an individual gas turbine with added supplementary duct firing capacity so that each HRSG's duty will be as high as 250 MW, rated at over 1 million lbs/hr. of high pressure, superheated and reheated steam. "There are more than 700 CMI Energy Heat Recovery Steam Generators around the globe, but this is the first time that many CMI employees will be able to see firsthand what they have been designing," said Garcia. CMI Energy has been a part of the Erie community since 1840. Today, the company is an innovative, high-tech design engineering firm serving the power generation industry. The company employs about 100 people at their Knowledge Park facility in Erie. It was formerly Presque Isle Foundry, Erie City Iron Works, and Zurn Energy Division. ABOUT CMI Energy As a global player in steam generation for 200 years, CMI Energy is a world leader in the design and supply of heat recovery steam generators (HRSG), thermal solar receivers, boilers for FLNG (floating liquefied natural gas), and industrial boilers. The CMI Energy offering includes industrial boilers for sectors such as chemicals, petrochemicals, and biomass. CMI Energy provides expertise and technical assistance, retrofitting and upgrading services for all types of boilers. To learn more go to cmigroupe.com. Related Files CMI Brochure for USB and Email.pdf Related Images cmi-energy-hrsg.jpg CMI Energy HRSG Experienced teams, extensive industry knowledge, and more than 700 units in operation worldwide make CMI Energy a preferred global supplier of complete HRSG solutions. there-are-more-than-700-cmi-energy.jpg There are more than 700 CMI Energy Heat Recovery Steam Generators around the globe. CMI Energy designs, engineers, procures and provides aftermarket support for Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSGs) worldwide. Related Links CMI Energy Related Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XafI-2XToM SOURCE CMI Energy, LLC CHARLOTTE, N.C., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- DecisionPoint, a leader in M&A advisory services for middle-market technology companies, advised Donnelley Financial Solutions (NYSE: DFIN) on the sale of its Language Solutions business to SDL (LSE: SDL.L), a language services and technology provider, for $77.5 million in cash. Donnelley Language Solutions employs approximately 400 people and has offices in over 15 countries, providing SDL with new locations in the financial hubs of London, New York and Hong Kong, as well as a 100-person office in Madrid. Christophe Djaouani and Nicolas Bosovsky, who have led Donnelley Language Solutions for over a decade, are expected to join SDL as Senior Vice President and VP of Operations respectively. DecisionPoint was engaged by Donnelley Financial Solutions to explore a sale of its Language Solutions business. "DecisionPoint played an integral role in the success of this transaction for Donnelley Financial Solutions," said Brandon Benkendorf, vice president of Corporate Development at Donnelley Financial Solutions. "The firm quickly forged strong relationships across a broad group of stakeholders and maintained a thorough, detailed approach throughout the process, which was paramount given the complexity." "As the buyer, we appreciated the professionalism of the end to end process run by DecisionPoint," said Alexandra Jarvis, vice president of Corporate Development at SDL plc. "As a carve-out transaction, both sides had to work together closely with a real focus on detail and getting things done. We are grateful for the responsiveness, pragmatism and momentum that DecisionPoint provided throughout." About DecisionPoint DecisionPoint is a unique leader in M&A advisory services for middle-market technology companies and their venture capital investors in the software, services, cleantech, biotech, healthcare IT and communication sectors. For additional information on DecisionPoint, visit www.DecisionPointINT.com For further information, contact: Andy Agrawal, Managing Partner; [email protected]. SOURCE DecisionPoint Related Links http://www.decisionpointint.com Global Footprint Network calculates Earth Overshoot Day every year using Ecological Footprint accounting, which adds up all of people's competing demands on productive land for food, timber, and fibers; absorption of carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels; and built infrastructure. August 1 is the earliest date since the world went into ecological overshoot in the 1970s. The costs of this overspending include deforestation; collapsing fisheries; fresh-water scarcity; soil erosion; biodiversity loss; and the buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, leading to climate change and more severe droughts, wildfires, and hurricanes. These threats can produce desperation and force people to migrate to cities or other countries. "As we mark Earth Overshoot Day, today may seem no different from yesterdayyou still have the same food in your refrigerator," said Global Footprint Network CEO Mathis Wackernagel. "But fires are raging in the Western United States and in Cape Town, South Africa, residents have had to slash water consumption in half since 2015. These are consequences of busting the ecological budget of our one and only planet. "Our economies are running a Ponzi scheme with our planet. We are using the Earth's future resources to operate in the present and digging ourselves deeper into ecological debt," Wackernagel continued. "It's time to leverage our creativity and ingenuity to create a prosperous future free of fossil fuels and planetary destruction." Events Global Footprint Network and its partners will mark Earth Overshoot Day 2018 with several events, including: July 20 - August 3 : In New York, a short video features stunning nature footage by award-winning cinematographer Louie Schwartzberg in Times Square twice an hour. : In New York, a short video features stunning nature footage by in twice an hour. July 24 , 8 a.m. PDT / 11 a.m. EST : Global Footprint Network and Schneider Electric will host a webinar titled "Living on a Finite Planet: Strategies for Sustainable Resource Utilization." Register at http://bit.ly/2KQrY1B. , / : Global Footprint Network and Schneider Electric will host a webinar titled "Living on a Finite Planet: Strategies for Sustainable Resource Utilization." Register at http://bit.ly/2KQrY1B. August 1 st, 2 a.m. EST + 12 p.m. EST : The #MoveTheDate Live Stream on Facebook (www.facebook.com/GlobalFootprintNetwork) and YouTube will feature world-class guests, including Christiana Figueres , former climate chief of the UN; Erik Solheim , executive director of the UN Environment Programme; David Levine , CEO, American Sustainable Business Council; Carter Roberts , CEO, World Wildlife Fund US; Kathleen Rogers , President, Earth Day Network; Terry A'Hearn, CEO, Scottish Environment Protection Agency; Nicolas Hulot , French minister of ecological transition. Data for Sustainability Cities, energy, food and population are four solution areas which Global Footprint Network has identified with the most potential to address ecological overshoot. Individuals are invited to mark Earth Overshoot Day by calculating their Personal Overshoot Day and Ecological Footprint at www.footprintcalculator.org and taking a "Step to #MoveTheDate" at www.overshootday.org/steps-to-movethedate/. Although 86% of the world's population lives in a country with an ecological deficit, the latest national Ecological Footprint data reveals some encouraging signs: The Ecological Footprint per person for high-income countries has declined 12.9% since 2000, including Singapore (-32.1%), the United States (-18.4%), and France (-15.5%). (-32.1%), (-18.4%), and (-15.5%). The Ecological Footprint of China , the country with the largest total Ecological Footprint, decreased 0.3% from 2013 to 2014 after a steady climb since 2000, when it was half as large as it is today. The decline stems in part from a decrease in China's total carbon Footprint by 0.7% and its per-person carbon Footprint by 1.2% from 2013 to 2014. More info in the full press release: www.overshootday.org/newsroom/press-release-july-2018-english/ Resources Media Backgrounder: www.overshootday.org/newsroom/media-backgrounder/ Country Footprints: http://data.footprintnetwork.org Social media: #MoveTheDate Overshoot Day Videos: www.overshootday.org Global Footprint Network is changing how the world manages its natural resources and responds to climate change, through METRICS that are simple, meaningful, and scalable; ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS about natural resource consumption and capacity; and TOOLS and analysis to guide informed decisions. www.footprintnetwork.org Media Contacts SOURCE Global Footprint Network Related Links http://www.footprintnetwork.org IBM Cloud solution to modernize IT infrastructure and deliver new customer experiences TORONTO, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced that Economical Insurance, one of Canada's leading property and casualty insurance companies, has adopted IBM Cloud to assist in streamlining its business processes, creating new efficiencies and accelerating the delivery of new digital experiences for brokers and customers. Economical Insurance is leveraging IBM Cloud and working with IBM Services for aspects of VyneTM, its newly launched broker offering, and its digital direct business Sonnet. Economical Insurance is building a hybrid cloud environment that will accelerate speed to market and allow the business to scale quickly in order to meet rapidly changing customer preferences. Vyne taps into IBM Cloud to help offer an unparalleled experience for brokers that includes updated products, streamlined workflow, and a sophisticated data-driven pricing model. "We have an ambitious strategy to put the customer first while driving profitable growth and delivering innovation for Economical and our broker partners," said Kelley Irwin, SVP and Chief Information Officer, Economical Insurance. "We are also focused on ensuring we have a scalable, secure platform. A hybrid cloud environment is the best way to support our business with the speed and flexibility needed for our future success. The IBM Cloud helps us reduce development time, increase agility, and maintain security." Economical Insurance selected IBM because it offers choice and flexibility to help the company securely bridge their data to the cloud. IBM is working with Economical to continue the transition to a hybrid cloud model combining public, private and on-premises environments. Adopting a hybrid cloud strategy will allow the company to maintain its existing IT infrastructure while moving aspects of its policy administration systems on to the IBM Cloud securely. The new cloud environment will provide them with the opportunity to develop innovative insurance offerings through a secure, scalable platform that has the potential to connect to higher value services like AI, blockchain, IoT and more. "Economical Insurance is a great example of how cloud is creating new efficiencies in business, transforming operational models in the insurance industry and, ultimately, helping enterprises create an elevated customer experience," said Frank Attaie, vice president, Cloud, IBM Canada. "IBM is combining next generation cloud technology with deep industry expertise to meet the hybrid cloud strategy of our clients." With $18.5B in annual cloud revenue, IBM is the global leader in enterprise cloud with a platform designed to meet the evolving needs of business and society. Moving past productivity and cost improvements, the IBM Cloud is tuned for the AI and data demands that are driving true differentiation in today's enterprise. IBM's private, public and hybrid offerings provide the global scale businesses need to support innovation across industries. With nearly 60 cloud data centers in 19 countries worldwide, IBM is helping companies manage and gain insight from their data when and where they need. For more information about IBM Cloud, please visit https://www.ibm.com/cloud-computing/. About Economical Insurance: Founded in 1871, Economical is one of Canada's leading property and casualty insurers, with more than $2.2 billion in annualized premium volume and over $5.4 billion in assets as at March 31, 2018. Headquartered in Waterloo, ON, this Canadian-owned and operated company services the insurance needs of more than one million customers across the country. Economical conducts business under the following brands: Economical Insurance, Economical, Sonnet, Petsecure, Economical Financial, and Family Insurance Solutions. Visit: https://www.economical.com/en/home Media contact Meg Nair IBM External Relations [email protected] Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/95470/ibm_logo.jpg Related Links http://www.ibm.com SOURCE IBM MUMBAI, India, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Itiviti, the leading global provider of multi-asset trading technology and financial infrastructure, today announced that Edelweiss Securities Limited (ESL), India's leading brokerage firm has successfully deployed Itiviti's client connectivity and high touch trading solution to support its algorithmic trading business. ESL made the decision to replace their existing system with Itiviti's best in class modular solution to better capitalize on trading opportunities in India's dynamic, fast-growing markets. By leveraging the Itiviti OMS and connectivity solutions, ESL's trading desk can efficiently execute trades and manage order flows on all Indian exchanges. Itiviti's technology, seamlessly integrated with ESL's existing applications and infrastructure, provides a highly scalable trading platform with multi-asset, multi-protocol and multi-market capabilities; the solution enables the firm to expand its reach to additional exchanges and support future growth. "Itiviti's technology provides the reach, performance and scalability we looked for," commented Gautam Shroff, Senior Vice President & Head - Sales Trading, Edelweiss Securities Limited. "The solution enhances our overall order management and onboarding capabilities via FIX or non-FIX protocols. The Itiviti system also enables our traders to efficiently execute trades manually, through DMA or algorithmic models as needed. It is important for Edelweiss Securities to work with leading technology vendors like Itiviti and leverage their robust technology to gain an edge in the market, and to offer the best services for our clients." "Itiviti has a strong commitment to the Asia Pacific region; from Japan in the north to China and India we see an increasing demand for our leading trading and financial infrastructure solutions," said Ofir Gefen, President APAC, Itiviti. "We are proud to be the solution of choice for Edelweiss Securities. India is a key market for Itiviti in Asia and Edelweiss is an important player in that market. Edelweiss choice is a strong testament to the quality of our brand and our innovative solutions." About Edelweiss Financial Services The Edelweiss Group is one of India's leading diversified financial services company providing a broad range of financial products and services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, institutions and individuals. Edelweiss's products and services span multiple asset classes and consumer segments across domestic and global geographies. Its businesses are broadly divided into Credit Business (Wholesale & Retail Mortgages, SME and Business Loans, Agri and Rural Finance, Structured Collateralised Credit and Distressed Credit), Franchise & Advisory Business (Wealth Management, Asset Management and Capital Markets) and Insurance (life and general insurance). Edelweiss has an asset base of ~INR 55,100 crores with revenue of INR 8,623 crores and PAT of INR 890 crores for FY18. Its consistent performance is evidenced by a consolidated PAT CAGR of 38% over last 28 quarters. The group's research driven approach and proven history of innovation has enabled it to foster strong relationships across all client segments. The group has sizeable presence in large retail segment through its businesses such as Life Insurance, Housing Finance, Mutual Fund and Retail Financial Markets. It serves around 12 lac strong client base through 10,052 employees based out of 448 offices. Together with strong network of Sub-Brokers and Authorized Persons, Edelweiss group has presence across all major cities in India About Edelweiss Securities Edelweiss Securities is a market leader in the Institutional Broking space with a ~5% market share in Equity Broking and a ~7.5% market share in stock futures broking. Its client base includes large pension funds, long only funds, ETFs and hedge funds. Over the years it has attained a market leadership in the derivatives segment and has one of the largest IPO distribution capabilities in the industry. It is a pioneer and leader in alternative/quantitative research and has strong block deal execution capabilities, with a ~30% YoY increase in block market share. With 650+ domestic and global funds services, it has unmatched coverage across client segments serviced through a technology led platform, largely developed in-house. Edelweiss has the deepest and most differentiated fundamental research coverage with ~250 stocks covered across sectors, spanning over 80% of the Indian market cap and extensive corporate access through roadshows in Mumbai, Hong Kong, Singapore, London and New York. It ranked number 1 in "Roadshows" category, Asia money Polls 2015 and was named Best Broker by Finance Asia in 2016, 2017 and 2018. It has strong risk management practices with an experienced in-house dedicated team to monitor trading limits and other risks. Edelweiss is one of the non-bank brokers to have a Prime Broking platform - a one stop shop for FPIs, AIFs, PMS funds and the only broker to have an FX arm with advisory and broking, with more than 300 client relationships. About Itiviti Itiviti is a market-leading global provider of multi-asset trading technology and financial infrastructure solutions for buy-side and sell-side market participants, including NYFIX, one of the industry's largest FIX-based trading communities. Serving around 2000 clients worldwide, we provide consistent, reliable access to the most up-to-date and innovative order routing, connectivity and trading solutions available. Top-tier trading firms, banks, brokers, exchanges and institutional investors rely on our technology, solutions and expertise to streamline their daily operations, connect to their desired markets, and trade when and where they want. All while being able to comply with global regulation. With global offices in 18 locations covering all major financial centers the merger of Itiviti and ULLINK in March 2018 created a full-service technology and infrastructure provider, covering all asset classes, geographies and regulatory landscapes. For more information, please visit www.itiviti.com or www.ullink.com. Itiviti is owned by Nordic Capital Fund VII. For further information, please contact: Ofir Gefen, President APAC, Itiviti, Tel: +852 2167 1950, Email: [email protected] Agnes Wong, Marketing Director APAC, Itiviti, Tel: + 852 2167 1986, Email: [email protected] Revathi Pandit, VP, Marketing and Communication, Edelweiss Group, Tel: +91 (22) 4063 5433, Email: [email protected] Mahak Choudhary, Sr Manager, Marketing and Communications, Edelweiss Group, Tel: +91 (22) 4088 5803, Email: [email protected] This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com http://news.cision.com/itiviti-group-ab/r/edelweiss-securities-selects-itiviti-for-new-oms-and-connectivity-solution,c2578885 The following files are available for download: http://mb.cision.com/Main/13830/2578885/881207.pdf Press release in PDF format SOURCE Itiviti Group AB WASHINGTON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Fannie Mae (OTC Bulletin Board: FNMA) today announced the appointment of David Benson as President. In this role, Benson will report to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and manage the day-to-day business and operations of the company, including the ongoing execution of the company's strategy. In addition, the company announced that Celeste Brown has been promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Both appointments are effective August 6. The company also announced today that Timothy J. Mayopoulos has decided to step down as CEO by the end of the year. Mayopoulos will remain CEO until his departure, and he will work closely with the Board of Directors to ensure a smooth transition and succession. As CEO, he will continue to set the overall enterprise vision and strategic direction of the company and serve on Fannie Mae's Board of Directors. The Board of Directors announced that it will conduct a search for a successor to Mayopoulos. "Today's announcement reflects the Board's interest in ensuring continuity and in continuing to pursue Fannie Mae's ongoing transformation," said Egbert L.J. Perry, Chairman of Fannie Mae's Board of Directors. "I am grateful that we have an incredibly talented and experienced leadership team that is laying the foundation for a better, more innovative, safer, and more sustainable housing system for future generations." "Tim has been an innovative and truly transformational leader, and I want to thank him for his continued service. During Tim's tenure as CEO, Fannie Mae has been profitable on an annual basis, paid the Treasury approximately $167 billion in dividends, and reduced risk to taxpayers," Perry said. "I am proud of what Fannie Mae has accomplished, and I have tremendous confidence in Tim, Dave, and the management team's ability to continue to move the company and the housing system forward." "Dave is a natural choice for the President position," said Perry. "He is an excellent leader who has held a variety of senior positions in his 16 years at Fannie Mae. He has deep expertise in the company's business, the mortgage market, and operations." "I am pleased with the depth of our bench as demonstrated by Celeste Brown's promotion," Perry added. "Celeste has made great contributions to our finance team since she joined Fannie Mae, and I am confident she will continue to move the company forward as the new CFO." Benson has been Fannie Mae's Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for the past five years. He was previously head of capital markets, securitization, and corporate strategy after having been the corporate treasurer. Prior to joining Fannie Mae in 2002, Benson was a managing director in the fixed-income division of Merrill Lynch & Co. During his 14-year tenure at Merrill Lynch, he held leadership positions in risk management, fixed-income and currency trading, debt syndication, and e-commerce. Celeste Brown joined Fannie Mae one year ago as Senior Vice President and Deputy Chief Financial Officer. She is a seasoned finance and business executive who joined Fannie Mae following an 18-year career at Morgan Stanley. After 11 years as an equity research analyst, including coverage of financial institutions, Brown moved into enterprise level management positions of increasing responsibility at Morgan Stanley, including head of investor relations, before being named global treasurer. Fannie Mae helps make the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and affordable rental housing possible for millions of Americans. We partner with lenders to create housing opportunities for families across the country. We are driving positive changes in housing finance to make the home buying process easier, while reducing costs and risk. To learn more, visit fanniemae.com and follow us on twitter.com/fanniemae. SOURCE Fannie Mae Related Links http://www.fanniemae.com LOS ANGELES, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Founded in 2004, Flip Flop Shops continues to be a leading retailer of flip flops and casual footwear operating globally through its franchise platform. Flip Flop Shops has been awarded the ICSC's prestigious Hot Retailer Award, and has ranked multiple times on the Inc. 500|5000 list of America's fastest growing franchises. In 2018, under exciting new ownership of BEARPAW, they are poised to be a major global lifestyle brand during every seasonand here's a chance to get the inside scoop! Flip Flop Shops: Innovative Retail Concept for Flip Flops, Casual Footwear, and Accessories. August through September, Flip Flop Shops is hosting 3 special Shop Days for prospective owners. In order to meet demand, they have selected Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Orlando as host cities. This is a casual informational event to be held at a Flip Flop Shops location and will be attended by a small, hand-picked group of potential franchisees from around the world. The Shop Day is not a high-pressure sales pitch. It is simply a laid-back opportunity for interested parties to visit a shop, hang out in the space and talk with owners and company founders. Soak up the flip-flop vibe, take in the coconut suntan oil scent and get a feel for what it's like to be part of the Flip Flop Shops family while carving a path in the business world. Get ready to Free Your Toes, and maybe even "Free Your Life"! The 2018 dates are: Aug. 17- Universal City Walk - Los Angeles, CA Aug. 24- Mandalay Bay - Las Vegas, NV Sept. 7- Icon Orlando 360 - Orlando, FL (Coinciding with Surf Expo, attendees can gain access to meet our footwear brands first hand) Space is at a premium and limited to 10 groups per location. The deadline to register is August 10. This is a great chance to slide into some flip flops, ask questions and hopefully get stoked on becoming part of what Flip Flop Shops is building! To begin the process visit: https://flipflopshops.com/franchise-application www.flipflopshops.com ABOUT BEARPAW HOLDINGS, LLC: Parent company to Flip Flop Shops LLC, BEARPAW manufactures and sells footwear for men, women, and children. The company offers a range of fur boots and slippers. It serves customers through retailers in the United States, internationally, and online. The company was founded in 1986 by Tom Romeo and is based in Citrus Heights, California. SOURCE Flip Flop Shops Related Links https://flipflopshops.com SINGAPORE, July 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- GGRocket, an international venture-funded big data analytics and in-game trading company, is launching a high-tech AI solution on the blockchain for the gaming economy via an Initial Token Sale on 01 September 2018. GGRocket is supported by a development grant from Microsoft as well as several Venture Capitalists, having undergone the prestigious IIDF - Europe's Biggest Accelerator and VC. The company has a development and business team of more than 30 active personnel. At the heart of GGRocket lie the principles of a decentralised network of clients and pro-gamers that can securely and trustlessly exchange in-game goods and services for real world assets. The entire virtual ecosystem will be built on top of the proprietary GG Chain, which in turn connects participants to smart contracts and decentralised applications. GGRocket Tokens (GGR) will be used as utility and fuel for the ecosystem, allowing buyers, sellers and participants to interact in a trustless environment. GGRocket already services a sizeable customer base by partnering with LegionFarm.com, a multi-million dollar marketplace for in-game goods and services. The partnership has actively proven the concept in GGRocket's solutions to more than hundred thousand buyers and sellers. "With GGRocket, the virtual gaming economy is about to be positively disrupted with AI, eradicating in-game fraud and boosting revenues of businesses," says Alexey Belyankin, CEO of GGRocket and LegionFarm.com. "Our blockchain technology will amplify the impact of the solution, allowing anyone, be it a business or a customer to be a participant in an active ecosystem." About GGRocket GGRocket is a blockchain-powered trustless virtual economy and AI driven big data analytics for the gaming industry. GGRocket provides for an escrow service for in-game trading and an analytical tool for platforms to increase their revenue using big data harvested from the ecosystem activity. GGRocket application functionality is based on 2 main instruments: GG Guard a video recognition escrow system that decides if the deal has been fulfilled in game. GG Robot - a mechanism that utilises big data and machine learning technology in order to create specified and personalised offers for each customer based on their preferences. More information on the Initial Token Sale can be found at https://ggrocket.io/ Contact Details Contact Person: Victoria Lipatova Email: [email protected] Telegram EN: https://t.me/GGRocket Medium: https://medium.com/@GGRocket Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ggrocket Twitter: https://twitter.com/ggrocket_io LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ggrocket/ Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/ggrocket/ Bitcointalk ANN thread: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=3118363.0 GitHub: https://github.com/GGRocket Product demo: https://ggrocket.ai/en SOURCE GGRocket Related Links https://ggrocket.io/ "We are definitely excited about the launch of our new website," explained Romeu Sciotta, Executive Vice President of Sigga Workforce Technologies. "We want our audiences to truly get to know who we are and what we can bring to the table. At the same time, being such big advocates for constant learning and innovation, our goal is to have our website be a two-way street for engagement where great minds converge. We want to utilize it to share insights that are of value and learn from interacting with our followers all over the globe," Romeu continued. Among a number of updates, the website is GDPR-compliant, and features a new resource center, real-time chat, a careers page, as well as improved product descriptions. Over the next couple of weeks, the company is set to launch additional pages including a blog and a press room. Along with its digital initiatives, the company has been making waves in the industry for its remarkable fast-paced global expansion this year. Apart from its dual headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas and Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Sigga Workforce Technologies has recently established a satellite office in China to support organizations in the Asia Pacific region and is set to open an office in Europe within the year (2018). ABOUT SIGGA WORKFORCE TECHNOLOGIES Sigga Workforce Technologies is a leading innovator of SAP-centric enterprise workforce applications and technologies based in Sugar Land, TX. Operating globally and deeply-rooted in asset and materials management, Sigga's products and solutions enable multi-industry organizations utilizing SAP to get more out of the platform and get a better return on their investment by streamlining operational processes, simplifying field activities, and gaining insightful and timely information to increase productivity and reduce costs. Sigga's robust end-to-end suite of solutions include: Planning and Scheduling, Mobile EAM, Mobile Warehouse and Inventory, and EAM Analytics. Visit www.sigga.com for more information. MEDIA CONTACT: Eunice David, Head of Marketing | USA [email protected] 1.855.744.4287 x 715 SOURCE Sigga Workforce Technologies Related Links http://www.sigga.com HONOLULU, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (HEI) (NYSE: HE) will announce its second quarter 2018 financial results on Friday, August 3, 2018. In addition, American Savings Bank, F.S.B. (American), a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of HEI, will announce its second quarter 2018 financial results on Monday, July 30, 2018. In addition, HEI will conduct a webcast and teleconference call to discuss second quarter 2018 consolidated earnings, 2018 earnings per share (EPS) guidance, and regulatory and other matters on Friday, August 3, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. Hawaii time (4:00 p.m. Eastern time). Parties within the United States may listen to the conference by calling (844) 834-0652. International parties may listen to the conference by calling (412) 317-5198. Parties may also listen to the conference by accessing the webcast on HEI's website at www.hei.com under the "Investor Relations" section, sub-heading "News and Events." HEI and Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. (Hawaiian Electric) intend to continue to use HEI's website, www.hei.com, as a means of disclosing additional information. Such disclosures will be included on HEI's website in the Investor Relations section. Accordingly, investors should routinely monitor such portions of HEI's website, in addition to following HEI's, Hawaiian Electric's and American's press releases, HEI's and Hawaiian Electric's SEC filings and HEI's public conference calls and webcasts. Also, at the Investor Relations section of HEI's website, investors may sign up to receive e-mail alerts (based on each investor's selected preferences). The information on HEI's website is not incorporated by reference into this document or into HEI's and Hawaiian Electric's SEC filings unless, and except to the extent, specifically incorporated by reference. Investors may also wish to refer to the Public Utilities Commission of the State of Hawaii (PUC) website at dms.puc.hawaii.gov/dms in order to review documents filed with, and issued by, the PUC. No information on the PUC website is incorporated by reference into this document or into HEI's and Hawaiian Electric's SEC filings. An on-line replay of the August 3, 2018 webcast will be available on HEI's website beginning about two hours after the event. Audio replays of the teleconference will also be available approximately two hours after the event through August 17, 2018, by dialing (877) 344-7529 or (412) 317-0088 and entering passcode: 10121450. HEI supplies power to approximately 95% of Hawaii's population through its electric utilities, Hawaiian Electric, Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc. and Maui Electric Company, Limited; provides a wide array of banking and other financial services to consumers and businesses through American, one of Hawaii's largest financial institutions; and helps advance Hawaii's clean energy and sustainability goals through investments by its non-regulated subsidiary, Pacific Current, LLC. Contact: Julie R. Smolinski Telephone: (808) 543-7300 Manager, Investor Relations E-mail: [email protected] SOURCE Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. Related Links http://www.hei.com BATESVILLE, Ind., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hillenbrand, Inc. (NYSE: HI) will hold a conference call and simultaneous webcast Thursday, August 2, 2018, at 8:00 a.m. ET. They will discuss the results for the third quarter of fiscal year 2018, which ended June 30, 2018. The live webcast, including a slide presentation, will be available at http://ir.hillenbrand.com under the "Events & Presentations" tab and will be archived on the company's investor relations website through Friday, August 31, 2018. To access the conference call, listeners in the United States and Canada may dial +1 (833) 241-7251, and international callers may dial +1 (647) 689-4215. Please use conference call ID number 3388795. A replay of the call will be available until midnight ET, Thursday, August 16, 2018, by dialing +1 (800) 585-8367 toll free in the United States and Canada or +1 (416) 621-4642 internationally and using the conference ID number 3388795. Hillenbrand will issue a press release reporting its results after the market closes on Wednesday, August 1, 2018. The full text of the release and financials will be available at http://ir.hillenbrand.com. About Hillenbrand Hillenbrand (www.hillenbrand.com) is a global diversified industrial company with multiple market-leading brands that serve a wide variety of industries across the globe. We pursue profitable growth and robust cash generation to drive increased value for our shareholders. Hillenbrand's portfolio is composed of two business segments: the Process Equipment Group and Batesville. The Process Equipment Group businesses design, develop, manufacture and service highly engineered industrial equipment around the world. Batesville is a recognized leader in the North American death care industry. Hillenbrand is publicly traded on the NYSE under "HI". SOURCE Hillenbrand, Inc. Related Links http://www.hillenbrand.com Schools often have hundreds of advertisements on their campuses, but what do they get out of it? By allowing this, schools are providing free advertising to brands that have multimillion-dollar advertising budgets, receiving nothing in return. SkoolLive is advocating for schools across the country by confronting these brands and demanding schools be compensated. SkoolLive provides schools with free digital interactive kiosks. Along with the kiosks, schools receive dedicated advocates who work closely with schools and brands. One of their main objectives is to ensure fair compensation which maximizes fundraising efforts. SkoolLive wants to educate schools on their worth and provide them with the additional revenue needed to improve campus life and save student programs. Here is what SkoolLive can do for you: Increase school fundraising efforts by connecting campuses to SkoolLive's network of National Brand Partnerships Give schools a platform to sell Sponsorship Banners to local and national businesses, also furthering fundraising efforts Improve school-to-student communication by digitalizing and streamlining announcements School budget cuts are all too common and teachers often spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars of their own money purchasing necessary classroom supplies, while brands are turning their heads. It's time for these brands to start paying schools what they deserve in return for access to their campus. Is it free to display a commercial during the Super Bowl or to post a billboard along the highway? Of course not, so why should schools be treated any differently? Every campus has worth. Each one is incredibly valuable, in more ways than one. Do not let brands take advantage of schools along with their staff and students any longer. Let SkoolLive fight for your school. For more information, visit www.skoollive.com. SOURCE SkoolLive Related Links http://www.skoollive.com PITTSBURGH, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE: KOP) intends to release its second quarter 2018 financial results before the opening of the markets on Thursday, August 9, 2018, and discuss its results on a conference call later that day at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Presentation materials will be available at least 15 minutes before the call on www.koppers.com in the Investor Relations section of the company's website. Interested parties may access the live audio broadcast by dialing 877-317-6789 in the United States/Canada, or 412-317-6789 for international, Conference ID number 10122691. Participants are requested to access the call at least five minutes before the scheduled start time in order to complete a brief registration. The conference call will be broadcast live online at: https://services.choruscall.com/links/koppers180809.html. (Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste this hyperlink into your internet browser's URL address field.) An audio replay will be available approximately two hours after the completion of the call at 877-344-7529 for U.S. toll free, 855-669-9658 for Canada toll free, or 412-317-0088 for international, Conference ID number 10122691. The recording will be available for replay through September 10, 2018. About Koppers Koppers, with corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is an integrated global provider of treated wood products, wood treatment chemicals and carbon compounds. Our products and services are used in a variety of niche applications in a diverse range of end-markets, including the railroad, specialty chemical, utility, residential lumber, agriculture, aluminum, steel, rubber, and construction industries. Including our joint ventures, we serve our customers through a comprehensive global manufacturing and distribution network, with facilities located in North America, South America, Australasia, China and Europe. The stock of Koppers Holdings Inc. is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "KOP." For more information, visit: www.koppers.com. Questions concerning investor relations should be directed to Mr. Michael Zugay at 412-227-2231 or Ms. Quynh McGuire at 412-227-2049. For Information: Michael J. Zugay, Chief Financial Officer 412 227 2231 [email protected] SOURCE Koppers Holdings Inc. Related Links http://www.koppers.com ENGLEWOOD, Colo., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Mantix4, a cyber threat hunting platform provider, announced today that CRN , a brand of The Channel Company, has named Mantix4 to its 2018 Emerging Vendors List in the Security category. This list recognizes recently founded, up-and-coming technology suppliers who are shaping the future of the IT channel through unique technological innovations. In addition to celebrating these notable companies, the Emerging Vendors list serves as a valuable resource for solution providers looking to expand their portfolios with cutting-edge technology. Due to the shortage of IT and cybersecurity personnel, it is more important than ever to be proactive in hunting down threats before they can wreak havoc on a company's network. Mantix4's cyber intelligence platform was designed to cut through noise and clutter by spotting abnormal patterns and behavior on the network, the platform is then able to prioritize advanced and persistent threats. The technology allows enterprises to predictively, proactively and forensically identify and remediate dangerous cyber threats before reputations are tarnished and money is lost. "The technology suppliers on CRN's 2018 Emerging Vendors list are creating a bright future for the IT channel, aggressively developing products to meet complex IT market demands, while positively impacting the bottom line of solution providers," said Bob Skelley, CEO, The Channel Company. "The array of leading-edge products delivered by these organizations will have a lasting impact on the channel for years to come." The complete 2018 Emerging Vendors list is featured online at www.crn.com/emergingvendors. About Mantix4 Mantix4's M4 Cyber Threat Hunting Platform was originally developed in 2011 by a team of defense intelligence, cyber security, and military experts. Mantix4 leverages advanced threat intelligence, big data analytics, and behavior anomalies, to give users context-based threat intelligence through a highly-visual platform. The system can even detect and neutralize sophisticated breaches, including advanced viruses that can 'play dead,' and lie dormant in a company's systems for months. The solution is delivered over the cloud in a Tier III Gold Certified Data Center, and also through MSP/MSSPs with security operations centers throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. Within 24 hours, the platform is proactively collecting and displaying actionable information about inbound, outbound and lateral traffic. For more information, visit www.mantix4.com. About The Channel Company The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequaled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelco.com Press Contact: Brandy Whalen Keeton PR 303-886-8874 [email protected] SOURCE Mantix4 Related Links http://www.mantix4.com ROHNERT PARK, Calif., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Due to pressures resulting from higher tuition costs and larger student debt, institutions of higher learning are implementing measures to make going to college more efficient and affordable. The California State University (CSU) system is expanding and more energetically promoting a program that allows students to take one free online course each semester. This program is most useful when required traditional courses are closed or when available courses don't line up with students' busy academic schedules. With nearly 500,000 students currently enrolled at CSUs, this could significantly impact cost and graduation efficiency for students, lowering levels of student loan debt for thousands of students. For the millions of current borrowers with overwhelming levels of student loan debt, Ameritech Financial, a document preparation company, aligns student loan borrowers with federal programs that could potentially lower their monthly payments. Credit: Digital Genetics/Bigstock "It is encouraging that colleges are beginning to respond to the student loan crisis with many initiatives, including lowering costs and strengthening student graduation rates," noted Tom Knickerbocker, executive vice president of Ameritech Financial. "This is good news for those still in college. But for those who are already struggling to back pay their student loans, many don't know about income-driven repayment plans (IDRs), or how a document preparation company like ours could help them." Part of a larger initiative to decrease the amount of time that students spend in pursuit of a degree and increase graduation rates, students will be allowed to take one free online course per semester. A similar program has been in place since 2013, but now full-time, in-state students with at least a 2.0 GPA will be able to choose from more than 3,000 online courses offered throughout the CSU system. Students opting for free online courses can take a self-test to see if online education fits their learning style. The program will be promoted on social media and all CSU academic advisors are being trained so they can fully explain the program to students. This expansion is part of a national trend. Texas, Hawaii, Illinois, Nebraska and New York offer similar course-share programs. And, despite tradition, all institutions of higher learning are under pressure to expand and promote online offerings to increase student graduation rates and efficiency and decrease student cost, ultimately decreasing the burden of student loan debt. Until debt levels can be decreased, possibly lowering monthly payments with IDRs remains an option for borrowers. "New technology and trends are slowly addressing the student loan crisis," Knickerbocker reflected. "It will be interesting to see if these attempts can help students graduate with significantly less debt. Until then, we can help borrowers apply for and maintain enrollment in IDRs that can possibly provide some financial breathing room." About Ameritech Financial Ameritech Financial is a private company located in Rohnert Park, California. Ameritech Financial has already helped thousands of consumers with financial analysis and student loan document preparation to apply for federal student loan repayment programs offered through the Department of Education. Each Ameritech Financial telephone representative has received the Certified Student Loan Professional certification through the International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators (IAPDA). Ameritech Financial prides itself on its exceptional customer service. Ameritech Financial Newsroom Contact To learn more about Ameritech Financial, please contact: Ameritech Financial 5789 State Farm Drive #265 Rohnert Park, CA 94928 1-800-792-8621 [email protected] Related Images students-on-laptops.jpg Students on Laptops Credit: Digital Genetics/Bigstock image2.png Related Links Ameritech Financial home page Related Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRza8MbLvuM SOURCE Ameritech Financial DENVER, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) released its first-ever State of Sustainability in the Outdoor Industry report surveying 120 individual small, midsize and large companies in the outdoor industry to quantify the outdoor industry's long-time collaborative efforts to reduce the impacts of its products and processes. The report establishes a baseline to measure the industry's sustainability performance and provides guidance to prioritize future initiatives, while highlighting some of the best examples of proactive approaches to sustainability that companies are taking to improve their businesses and positively impact their bottom lines. "The outdoor industry has done a fantastic job flexing the muscles of the $887 billion outdoor recreation economy to protect our public lands; now it's time to showcase how we have led on another core effort that directly connects to environmental conservation: product and supply chain responsibility. This first-ever comprehensive industry report begins to do just that, and our goal is to use this and future reports to measure progress, identify areas for improvement and illustrate the importance of sustainable practices as a business imperative," said Beth Jensen, senior director of sustainable business innovation at OIA. For over ten years, the members of OIA's Sustainability Working Group (SWG) have been collectively tackling supply chain issues important to the industry, including chemicals management, animal welfare, social responsibility and fair labor practices in factories, microfiber shedding in oceans and waterways and carbon reduction strategies. The key takeaways from the report underscore that sustainability is a core value to the outdoor industry regardless of company size, product type or location: The Greater Good Is a Priority 75% of participating companies have at least one employee who is responsible for sustainability efforts in their organization; 75% of participating companies have at least one employee who is responsible for sustainability efforts in their organization; Higg Index Provides Helpful Tools to Compare and Improve 87% used the Higg Index to guide internal sustainability conversations or benchmarking efforts; 87% used the Higg Index to guide internal sustainability conversations or benchmarking efforts; A Sustainable Materials and Product Design Program Is Key Products and materials emerged as a priority for all sizes of companies, with 69% of respondents prioritizing their efforts accordingly; and, Products and materials emerged as a priority for all sizes of companies, with 69% of respondents prioritizing their efforts accordingly; and, Companies Are Investing in Efforts to Cut Carbon Emissions 63% of the companies surveyed invest in renewable energy. The report indicates that companies of all sizes prioritize materials and design as well as product use and end-of-life strategies. Depending on the size of the company, other priorities shift. For small companies, packaging was prioritized, likely because this is a highly visible area in which relatively quick wins and cost savings can be seen. Midsize companies identified manufacturing as a key priority, which indicates that they are recognizing the increased impacts of their manufacturing practices. And for large companies, chemicals management a more complex, advanced area often managed by dedicated staff members was highly ranked. Other notable findings by size include the following: Small companies are leading in their use of third-party certifications to amplify their efforts and supplement their existing resource base; Midsize companies are being pulled in many directions, facing the same expectations of larger companies but with fewer resources; and, Large companies indicate that having a proactive sustainability strategy is critical for business success. Overall, the report found that outdoor companies, regardless of size, are primarily motivated to implement sustainability practices because they believe the outdoor industry has a role to play in environmental and community stewardship. The report also supports the continued applicability of the OIA Sustainability Working Group collaborative model: to support small and midsize companies' needs, as well as to provide a platform for larger companies to address their shared challenges, such as chemicals management. "This report provides a wonderful opportunity to recognize the outdoor industry's progress toward a standard practice of responsible, sustainable business," said Danielle Cresswell, senior sustainability manager for Klean Kanteen. "That said, it is imperative that we continue building on the 10-plus years of advances led by the Sustainability Working Group to broaden our industry's participation and deepen our innovation for lasting solutions." "REI was founded upon a love of the outdoors and the pursuit of a better way of doing business," said Matt Thurston, director of sustainability, brand stewardship, and impact for REI. Today, we continue that model by working with our brand partners to advance more sustainable business practices. The OIA State of Sustainability in the Outdoor Industry report will help us gauge progress across the industry and engage partners around the most relevant advances in sustainability practices." The State of Sustainability in the Outdoor Industry report will be shared with the industry and others at upcoming meetings and conferences and will be updated every two years. Subsequent reports will provide the ability to identify areas of improvement, as well as gaps, using this initial study as the benchmark. About Outdoor Industry Association Based in Boulder, Colo., with offices in Washington, D.C., Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) is the leading trade association for the outdoor industry and the title sponsor of Outdoor Retailer. OIA unites and serves 1300 manufacturer, supplier, sales representative and retailer members through its focus on trade and recreation policy, sustainable business innovation and outdoor participation. For more information, visit outdoorindustry.org. SOURCE Outdoor Industry Association Related Links http://www.outdoorindustry.org WASHINGTON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A close race on Saturday night came down to a second vote to break a deadlock, as Sahil Inaganti of Allentown, Pa., was elected president pro tempore by the Boys Nation Senate. Inaganti, 17, a senior at Parkland High School, edged Andrew Furman of Wilmington, Del., by one vote after the two each received 49 votes on the ninth ballot. Inaganti emerged victorious from a field of 14 candidates for the office. Inaganti previously served as president pro tempore at Keystone Boys State and said he was eager to assume a leadership role at Boys Nation. "At Keystone Boys State, I was elected president pro tem, and I enjoyed that quite a bit, because I was able to interact with people more than if I had been elected governor or if I had been elected to the judiciary, so being able to interact with a larger portion of the people present, that was one of the most important things coming into this," Inaganti said. As president pro tempore, Inaganti's responsibilities include presiding as head of the Boys Nation Senate in the absence of the vice president, appointing a chief clerk of the senate, senate parliamentarian, senate chaplain and a sergeant-at-arms of the senate. He should also be thoroughly familiar with the Standing Rules for Conducting Business in the Senate of Boys Nation. Each American Legion Boys Nation delegate represents his home state as a "senator". The "senators" caucus at the beginning of the session, organize into committees and conduct hearings on bills, allowing delegates to learn the proper legislative procedures according to the U.S. Senate. American Legion Boys Nation provides aspiring young men with the opportunity to learn about the federal government while participating in a hands-on experience with the electoral process. The American Legion Auxiliary operates ALA Girls State and Nation. Media: William Proffett, [email protected], (812) 350-9526. SOURCE The American Legion LONDON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Piper, the UK's leading specialist investor in consumer brands, has sold its stake in Be At One, the nationwide cocktail bar chain to Stonegate Pub Company Ltd. The terms of the transaction were undisclosed. Since its 8m investment in 2011, Piper has supported Be At One in expanding the business beyond its original London base, taking the chain from 11 to 33 bars, of which 17 are outside London, with a number of new sites in the pipeline. Over the lifetime of the investment, sales increased 5x to 40m. Be At One was founded by Steve Locke, Rhys Oldfield and Leigh Miller in 1988. Having worked together as bartenders at TGI Fridays, they recognised that there was an opportunity to develop a uniquely differentiated cocktail bar proposition. As part of the transaction, the three founders, along with chairman Mark Derry, will exit the company. The business will continue to be led by Andrew Stones, managing director, and Toby Rolph as chief financial officer. Piper, which last year closed its sixth fund at 125m, has a long and established track record of backing and growing businesses in the hospitality industry. It has invested in eight brands, including Las Iguanas, Loungers, Hickory's Smokehouse and Flat Iron. Be At One is its fifth realisation in the sector. Peter Kemp-Welch, a partner at Piper, said: "We are very proud of all that we and the team at Be At One have achieved since our investment. In a highly competitive market, we have developed a market leading brand and delivered excellent growth in both sales and profits at a time when many are struggling in the hospitality market, creating a unique asset that has resulted in this successful sale to Stonegate." Mark Derry, Be At One chairman, said: "Steve, Rhys and Leigh have, over the past 20 years, created a unique business and a very special legacy in Be At One, which remains in incredibly good hands through Stonegate and the Be At One senior team led by Andrew Stones. This deal paves the way for an exciting new chapter and I am looking forward to watching the business continue to flourish and develop, and the prospect of many more guests across the UK having the opportunity to enjoy the exceptional Be At One experience." "I'd like to take this opportunity to thank our private equity partner Piper for their invaluable support and wise counsel over the past six years - they are exceptional investors and supporters of businesses like Be At One, and our industry, and we wish them very well." About Piper Piper is a leading UK private equity firm specialising in consumer brands with strong growth potential. Established by entrepreneurs in 1985, Piper were pioneers in the hospitality sector creating and developing the Pitcher & Piano bar chain. It has an enviable record of investing in hospitality businesses having made 8 investments in the sector, with 5 successful exits achieving in excess of a 4x money multiple. Focusing on MBO, MBI or growth capital investments in the retail, leisure, consumer products and services sectors, Piper targets businesses with a 5m-50m turnover. For more information, please go to piper.co.uk SOURCE Piper ANCHORAGE, Alaska, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Dave Pflieger, President & CEO of Ravn Air Group ("Ravn"), Alaska's largest regional airline, today announced that Deke Abbott, an airline operations, safety, and regulatory expert, will be joining Ravn Air Group's new world-class leadership team. This final addition will complete the Ravn executive team reorganization that began under Mr. Pflieger's direction last September. "We are thrilled to have Deke join our airline," said President & CEO, Dave Pflieger. "Operating with a 'one Ravn' mindset, Deke will be responsible for Flight Operations across both Ravn Alaska and Ravn Connect. Under his leadership, we will continue to drive a strong safety and compliance culture, and take our company to even greater heights." An experienced airline pilot, flight instructor and regulator, Abbott joins Ravn from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), where over nearly the past decade, he was responsible for the operational oversight of FAR part 135 airlines as well as setting operating policy for the FAR part 121 carriers. Prior to joining Ravn, Deke was the acting FAA Deputy Regional Administrator for Alaska, based in Anchorage. Prior to that role, Abbott was the FAA's Manager of the Polaris Certificate Management Office (CMO), which is responsible for the direct oversight of all operational and maintenance aspects of seven different FAR Part 135 commercial carriers in the state of Alaska. Before his time in Alaska, Abbott also served as Branch Manager, AFS-220 in Washington D.C., responsible for setting operating policy for all FAR Part 121 airlines in the U.S. "Under Dave's leadership, I've been extremely impressed with Ravn's new "safety-first" focus and commitment to full compliance, transparency, and cooperation with the U.S. Department of Transportation, FAA, and the NTSB, and the company's desire to far exceed all regulatory requirements," said Abbott. "I very much look forward to joining the company and continuing the great work being done to make Ravn the industry-leading airline serving our great state." "With Deke's experience at the FAA, and intimate knowledge of flying in this state, it's an enormous compliment and vote of confidence that he has chosen to join our company," Pflieger said. "His expertise and experience will further accelerate our safety and regulatory efforts, and our goal to be the safety leader in Alaska commercial aviation." About Deke Abbott A highly experienced airline Captain/Chief Pilot, flight instructor, and government manager, Deke joins Ravn from the FAA, where over nearly the last decade, he was responsible for operational oversight of Part 135 carriers and setting operating policies for U.S. Part 121 airlines. While at the FAA, Deke was the acting Deputy Regional Administrator for Alaska. Prior to that, among other assignments, Deke was the FAA's Manager of the Polaris Certificate Management Office (CMO), which is responsible for the direct oversight of seven different FAR Part 135 commercial carriers, including the largest FAR Part 135 commercial carrier in the state of Alaska. Additionally, while at the FAA, he also held positions as acting Flight Standards Deputy Division Manager for Alaska; Branch Manager, AFS-220, responsible for setting operating policy for U.S. FAR Part 121 airlines; and Aviation Safety Inspector, AFS-220. Abbott is an FAA licensed multi-engine airline transport pilot, commercial pilot and certified flight instructor. Prior to his tenure at the FAA, he was a Captain and Chief Pilot for Comair, Inc., a FAR Part 121 air carrier. A decorated United States Marine, Deke was a member of 2nd ANGLICO (Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company) and served as a Firepower Control Team Chief. He is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and a Member of the Royal Air Force Club in London, England. Deke holds a BA from Brown University and an MBA from the University of New Hampshire. About Ravn Air Group Ravn Air Group is proud to be Alaska's largest regional airline. Headquartered in Anchorage and supported by over 1,000 employees, Ravn operates a highly reliable fleet of almost 70 aircraft on more than 400 flights per day (almost 3,000 flights a week) from hubs in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Bethel, Aniak, St. Mary's, Nome, Kotzebue, Unalakleet, Barrow, and Galena. Recently, Ravn also announced service to Dillingham and King Salmon. The airline provides passenger, mail, freight, and charter customers with air transportation and logistics services to more than 115 destinations throughout Alaska. Ravn also has interline airline agreements with Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines to carry their passengers across the state. Passengers may participate in Ravn Alaska's FlyAway Rewards program for all Ravn Alaska or Ravn Connect flights or accrue Alaska Airlines miles on select Ravn flights. For more information on how to buy tickets or reserve charter flights visit flyravn.com, flyravn.com/charter-a-flight, or call 800-866-8394. SOURCE Ravn Air Group Related Links https://www.flyravn.com BELOIT, Wis., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Mark J. Gliebe, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Regal Beloit Corporation (NYSE: RBC), announced that the Board of Directors, at its regular quarterly meeting held July 23, 2018, declared a dividend of $0.28 per share. The dividend is payable on October 12, 2018, to shareholders of record at the close of business on September 28, 2018. The company has paid a dividend every quarter since January 1961. Regal Beloit Corporation (NYSE: RBC) is a leading manufacturer of electric motors, electrical motion controls, power generation and power transmission products serving markets throughout the world. The company is comprised of three business segments: Commercial and Industrial Systems, Climate Solutions and Power Transmission Solutions. Regal is headquartered in Beloit, Wisconsin, and has manufacturing, sales and service facilities throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit RegalBeloit.com. SOURCE Regal Beloit Corporation Related Links http://www.regal-beloit.com NEW YORK, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP ("Scott+Scott"), a national shareholder and consumer rights litigation firm, is investigating whether certain directors and officers of FleetCor Technologies, Inc. ("FleetCor" or the "Company") (NYSE: FLT) breached their fiduciary duties to the Company and its shareholders. If you are a FleetCor shareholder, you are encouraged to contact Scott+Scott for additional information. The investigation concerns whether the FleetCor board of directors has breached its fiduciary duties to shareholders, grossly mismanaged the Company, and/or committed abuses of control. In December 2016, FleetCor's largest U.S. customer, Chevron, terminated its 10-year relationship with the Company. Following this announcement, news and analyst reports made allegations that FleetCor had engaged in a pattern of misconduct involving fraudulent billing, misleading marketing and predatory sales tactics. In May 2017, Chevron filed a breach of contract lawsuit against the FleetCor alleging that the Company had mistreated customers. What You Can Do If you are a FleetCor shareholder, you may have legal claims against the Company's directors and officers. If you wish to discuss this investigation, or have questions about this notice or your legal rights, please contact attorney Joe Pettigrew at (844) 818-6982, or at [email protected], or see the Firm's webpage: https://scott-scott.com/investigation/fleetcor-technologies-inc/. About Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP Scott+Scott has significant experience in prosecuting major securities, antitrust, and employee retirement plan actions throughout the United States. The firm represents pension funds, foundations, individuals, and other entities worldwide with offices in New York, London, Connecticut, California, and Ohio. Attorney Advertising CONTACT: Joe Pettigrew Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP 230 Park Ave, 17th Fl, NY, NY 10169 (844) 818-6982 [email protected] SOURCE Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP Related Links http://scott-scott.com OREM, Utah, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Lack of compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) leaves IATA agents open to data theft, cyber hacking, and fraud. Compliance with the PCI DSS in the form of a completed Attestation of Compliance brings greater security, protection, and peace of mind for agents. This is why leading travel commerce platform, Travelport, has partnered with SecurityMetrics, a global leader in data security and PCI compliance, to help agents achieve proof of PCI DSS compliance at preferential rates. The online wizard tool for PCI compliance from the SecurityMetrics PCI Customer Portal is a quick and easy option for Travelport-connected agents to get started and complete a Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) on their payment processing environment. Merchants and agents can then show proof of compliance through the completion of an Attestation of Compliance. Alexandra Fitzpatrick, VP Travelport Global Payment Solutions, commented: "The ability to demonstrate proof of PCI DSS compliance is key for agencies to be seen as trusted partners to their customers. The PCI DSS certification program in partnership with SecurityMetrics is a simple way for our customers' businesses to operate within a compliant environment and adhere to regulations." "We are honored to help protect agents and customers and streamline their PCI compliance process. We believe our security tools, cloud-based PCI compliance module, and award-winning 24/7 support, combine to make the best PCI solution in the world," said John Bartholomew, SecurityMetrics VP of Technology. For press inquiries, please call 801-995-6516 or email [email protected]. About SecurityMetrics (www.securitymetrics.com) SecurityMetrics helps customers avoid data breaches. As an Approved Scanning Vendor and Qualified Security Assessor, and Certified Forensic Investigator, SecurityMetrics guides organizations through compliance mandates (PCI, HIPAA, GDPR) and has tested over 1 million systems for vulnerabilities. The privately held company is headquartered in Orem, Utah. About Travelport (www.travelport.com) Travelport is the technology company which makes the experience of buying and managing travel continually better. It operates a travel commerce platform providing distribution, technology, payment and other solutions for the global travel and tourism industry. The company facilitates travel commerce by connecting the world's leading travel providers with online and offline travel buyers in a proprietary business-to-business (B2B) travel marketplace. Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/55890/securitymetrics_logo.jpg Related Links http://www.securitymetrics.com SOURCE SecurityMetrics Job Title Never Heard of It Very Familiar Penetration tester 52% 10% "White hat" ethical hacker 51% 9% Computer security incident responder 46% 8% Security architect 44% 8% Security auditor 39% 12% Security engineer 32% 8% Chief information security officer 29% 12% Computer forensics expert 26% 11% Security consultant 23% 11% Security analyst 20% 9% Security software developer 19% 13% As part of the University-developed Enterprise Security Competency model, cybersecurity is defined as the practice of protecting physical and electronic information from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction. This Enterprise Security Model was adopted by the U.S. Department of Labor and has become the standard by which the security profession measures education and career development.1 University graduates who earn undergraduate and graduate degrees with certificates in cybersecurity are prepared to help protect computer systems and online data from infiltration.2 These professionals are vital to organizational operations as cyber-attacks reached record highs last year, with a reported 5,207 total breaches and 7.89 billion information records compromised, according to Risk Based Security's Data Breach QuickView Report for yearend 2017.3 However, only 20 percent of respondents said that they had considered a career in cybersecurity. When asked why they had never considered a career in cybersecurity, nearly a quarter of respondents (24 percent) said that they do not have the proper skills to become a cybersecurity professional. Important information to have in their decision-making process when considering a career in the field included: the education needed for a career in cybersecurity (50 percent), how to get started (43 percent) and what a cybersecurity professional does (41 percent). "U.S. adults who are interested in a cybersecurity career could tap into some of the skills they already possess. More than a quarter of survey respondents said that they, in fact, possess some of the IT skills taught in the University's cybersecurity-focused programs, such as programming (33 percent), data analytics (26 percent) and coding and web development (both 31 percent)," said Dennis Bonilla, executive dean for the College of Information Systems and Technology, School of Business and College of Criminal Justice at University of Phoenix. "University of Phoenix provides the educational foundation to obtain or sharpen skills and gain an understanding of roles and responsibilities related to cybersecurity." University of Phoenix offers a Bachelor's of Information Technology with an Advanced Cyber Security Certificate and a Master's of Information Systems with a Graduate Cyber Security Certificate. These programs help people gain the knowledge and skills, both technical and soft skills, to arm them with the necessary education. For more information on University of Phoenix cybersecurity offerings, visit phoenix.edu/cybersecurity. Additional findings from the survey include: Women continue to be underrepresented in the cybersecurity industry More than four in 10 women (44 percent) have experienced a personal security breach in the past three years, yet females continue to be underrepresented in the U.S. cybersecurity workforce. Women comprise just 14 percent of the industry 4 and 89 percent said that they have never considered a career in cybersecurity, emphasizing the need for gender balance to improve national security.5 Most would require improved understanding of the necessary education (54 percent) and job requirements (46 percent) to consider a career. Only a third (37 percent) of respondents believe that their company is very prepared for a cyber-attack According to the survey, two in five employed adults said that their company has one specific cybersecurity policy and 63 percent said that they always follow the policies. However, only a third are confident that their company is prepared to combat hackers. Of the respondents who do not believe their company is prepared for a cyber-attack, a quarter (26 percent) said that it is because they do not have an expert on staff. To access the full survey, visit https://www.phoenix.edu/about_us/media-center/news/uopx-survey-perceptions-cybersecurity.html. Survey Methodology This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of University of Phoenix between April 26 and May 10, 2018, among 2,000 US adults aged 18 and older, who work full-time, part-time, are self-employed, are unemployed looking for work, students, or homemakers, of which 859 have been hacked in the past three years. Figures for number of employees were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Cooper Nelson at [email protected] About University of Phoenix University of Phoenix is innovating to help working adults move efficiently from education to careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant and engaging courses, and interactive learning can help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. University of Phoenix serves a diverse student population, offering associate, bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs from campuses and learning centers across the U.S. as well as online throughout the world. For more information, visit phoenix.edu. 1 https://www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel/blockModel.aspx?tier_id=4&block_id=1233&es=Y 2 https://www.phoenix.edu/colleges/college-of-information-systems-technology/cybersecurity-security-operations.html 3 https://www.rpsins.com/media/2884/mc_0000634a-yearendreport.pdf 4 https://iamcybersafe.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/WomensReport.pdf 5 https://www.pwc.com/us/en/services/consulting/cybersecurity/women-in-cybersecurity.html SOURCE University of Phoenix Related Links https://www.phoenix.edu Srinagar, July 22 : A civilian was injured on Sunday in an accidental firing during the funeral of a slain militant in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, informed sources said. Eyewitnesses said civilian Fayaz Ahmad was injured in the foot in Katrasoo village when the rifle of a militant went off accidentally during the funeral of Mudaser Bhat, who along with two others were killed in Khudwani area of the district in a gunfight with security forces earlier. The injured was shifted to a Srinagar hospital. New Delhi, July 22 : Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram on Sunday told the Congress Working Committee that the party can win at least 150 seats on its own in 12 states where it is strong and it should forge alliances in other states in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls to boost its numbers. Sources said Chidambaram, a former Finance Minister, told the CWC, the party's highest decision making body, that Congress should try for alliance with as many parties as possible, while strengthening the party in the 12 states to maximise gains. The party has 48 members in the Lok Sabha at present. Chidambaram's views were echoed by several other senior leaders and with some of them emphasising that Congress should be the pivot of alliances and Rahul Gandhi should be the face of the coalition. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh also pitched for a wider alliance with regional parties as well at the national level. He said people were now showing confidence in Congress. The CWC meeting was attended by all members, special invitees, former and present Chief Ministers and party secretaries. Sources said party leaders Digvijay Singh and Janardan Dwivedi were also invited but they did not come. Tehran, July 23 : Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Sunday called for practical measures by the European parties toward the 2015 nuclear deal to save the accord, the media reported. Zarif pointed to recent talks between Iran and the European parties to the deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and said that "alongside the statements and pledges they give, the Europeans must act to save this agreement", Tasnim news agency reported. "We have not seen sufficient practical measures by the Western powers and the remaining parties" to the JCPOA following the US pullout on May 8, he was quoted as saying, Xinhua reported. Iran will continue talks with the Europeans, but will not wait too long for them, Zarif said, referring to Europe's resolve to propose a package of economic measures to offset US withdrawal from the JCPOA. On Friday, a ministerial meeting on the Iran nuclear deal was held in Vienna. The meeting, chaired by Federica Mogherini, EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, was attended at ministerial level by China, France, Germany, Russia, Britain and Iran. The JCPOA, sealed in July 2015, restricts Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for the easing of the sanctions on the Islamic republic. US President Donald Trump has urged the International Atomic Energy Agency to widen its inspections on Iran's military sites after his decision to quit the deal. The demands have been rejected by Iran. New Delhi, July 23 : Congress President Rahul Gandhi congratulated Asharam Choudhary, the son of a ragpicker in Madhya Pradesh, who cracked the AIIMS MBBS entrance test in his first attempt and hoped that he would contribute to nation-building and inspire many in future. "I congratulate you on clearing the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) entrance test in your first attempt and getting selected at Jodhpur AIIMS to pursue Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS)... I extend my best wishes to you and hope you will contribute to nation-building," Gandhi said in the letter. "I am aware that despite all challenges you were able to secure good rank. It is a testament to their dedication and your hard work that you have performed so well," he said, adding it gave him immense pleasure to note how Asharam's village doctor and parents inspired him in his journey and Dakshana Foundation supported him financially. Choudhary also cleared the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), conducted on May 6, bagging the 803rd rank in the OBC category and 2,763 overall. In his letter, the Congress President said, "I hope one day, you will also be in a position to inspire other children to take up medical profession and serve the people of India. You remind me of Mahatma Gandhi who used to say: 'Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from the indomitable will'." In another letter to Chief Election Commissioner O. P. Rawat, Gandhi said:"I write this letter to commend you on the excellent initiative of the Election Commission in Karnataka. The issuance of the Braille EPIC cards to the visually impaired voters is a step in the right direction, which will make elections and voting accessible to all voters." Los Angeles, July 23 : "EastEnders" actress Rita Simons says she suffers from "really bad insomnia" that leaves her feeling like she has not slept for days. "I suffer with a million 'isms', including Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). I also have really bad insomnia. The worst is when I can't sleep at all and I'm up all night," Simon told dailystar.co.uk. The actress, who has 12-year-old children Jaimee and Maiya with husband Theo Silveston, says some nights she is awake just staring at the wall. "I don't even watch TV or listen to music. It is awful. It is like torture. Sometimes it feels like I don't sleep for days. It's horrible. Meditating really helps me but I have not been doing it as much lately and the insomnia has returned," she added. The 41-year-old actress thinks Maiya, who is partially deaf, has inherited a number of her conditions so is keen to push the youngster's interest in drama because she thinks it's a beneficial outlet. She said: "Maiya has a bit of OCD and I would not be surprised if she had some ADHD as well. She shows a lot of signs of being like me, which is one of the reasons why I have let her follow the drama route.I went to a normal school but was in trouble all the time as a kid and should have been in drama school. "I was just in constant, constant trouble. I was mouthy, the class clown, I would not shut up and could not concentrate because of mild ADHD. Maiya is quite similar and since she has done performing arts she has settled down and has an outlet. She is thriving and I didn't get that opportunity until much later." Washington, July 23 : The US Department of State has said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov to discuss Helsinki meeting fruits and issues over bilateral and regional concerns. According to a statement issued by State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert on Sunday, the phone conversation took place on Saturday when the two foreign ministers discussed a broad range of issues, "some of which were following up from the meeting between President Trump and President Putin" in Finland on July 16, Xinhua reported. Among the topics discussed was the situation in Syria. The two also discussed how to implement ideas on counterterrorism process coordination and the mutual goal of establishing business-to-business dialogue between private, non-governmentally controlled entities in the two countries, another deliverable of the Trump-Putin meeting. Pompeo and Lavrov also discussed "the need for Russia to provide equal diplomatic access to the US, at a level that is fair and reciprocal". US White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said Thursday that Putin will be invited to Washington in the autumn, and "those discussions are already underway". Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said on Friday in response that that his country is open to a new meeting between the two presidents. Trump has been widely attacked after his meeting with Putin on July 16, due to his reconciliatory remarks that many saw as a sign to side with Moscow against US intelligence community's conclusion that Russia meddled in the 2016 US elections. Los Angeles, July 23 : Talk show host-producer-philanthropist Oprah Winfrey believes the secret to her happiness is that she is not envious of anyone. "I don't know anyone happier. I don't know anyone who has a better life, or had a better life. I look at other people and I think, they look happy. But not as happy as me," Winfrey told Vogue magazine. When she gets down time, Winfrey loves nothing more than simply doing "nothing" on her California estate, reports femalefirst.co.uk. She said: "I can go weeks and never turn on a television. I've gone a summer not having it on. No, my guilty pleasure is, I do nothing. "I live in a very beautiful space that I created, and every time I leave home and I'm driving out the back with the pond and the ducks, and I'm looking at the grass and I see the house on the hill, I have this moment where I think about when Dorothy says in 'The Wizard of Oz', 'I learnt I didn't have to look further than my own back yard.' Every time I think of that. "Most people don't even know what makes them happy. But I can just sit on my porch and I'll start reading a book and then realise, Okay, I'm not reading any more. I can just take it all in. I can just be." Buenos Aires, July 23 : The last session of the G20's Third Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors has taken place here, with delegates acknowledging the rise in trade tensions while calling for greater dialogue. "We... recognize the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence," the G20 said in a final communique on Sunday, adding that the member states were "working to strengthen the contribution of trade to our economies". The finance ministers of the G20 also acknowledged that short-and medium-term economic risks had increased due to "rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies." With the rise in protectionist trade policies as the underlying topic of the summit, the finance ministers and central bank governors reiterated the agreements reached during the 2017 G20 summit in Hamburg regarding the commitment to free trade and the need "to strengthen the contribution of trade to our economies." On the issue of exchange rates, another topic that has created major tensions, the G20 nations expressed their intention of clearly communicating their structural and macroeconomic policies. The G20 leaders said that monetary policies should continue to ensure stability, which was one of the commitments reached during the last meeting of finance ministers. Regarding emerging economies, the ministers stated that these countries were now "better prepared to adjust to external shocks," yet they still faced challenges from "market volatility and reversals of capital flows". The G20 leaders noted the importance of infrastructure as one of the pillars of growth and development, and as a crucial element to attract investments. The finance ministers also spoke of the need to ensure that the benefits of technology are widely shared, adding that they would respond to the challenges created by technology affecting individuals, businesses and governments. Islamabad, July 23 : Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) candidate Sardar Ikramullah Gandapur has been killed after a suicide bomber targetted his vehicle in DI Khan's Kulachi Tehsil, officials said. Gandapur was said to be leaving his home for an election meeting on Sunday when his jeep was targetted, Geo News reported. The PTI candidate was among four injured in the attack and succumbed to his wounds at the hospital. He was first taken to District Headquarters Hospital but was then shifted to the Combined Military Hospital's (CMH) operation theatre owing to his injuries. "Two police guards and Gandapur's driver were injured in the attack," the deputy commissioner told Geo News, adding that their condition is critical. Investigations are under way, the police said, adding that severed limbs of the suicide bomber have also been recovered from the blast site. The former agriculture minister in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was contesting the July 25 polls from PK-99 (DI Khan-V). Gandapur's brother, Israrullah, was killed on October 16, 2013 in a suicide bombing while greeting visitors on Eid-ul-Azha in his hometown of Kulachi. He was a serving minister in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government at the time of his death and elected from the then-PK-67 constituency. Gandapur was elected on his brother's seat after a by-election following his death. Their third brother, Inamullah Khan Gandapur, is a senior bureaucrat who has served in the Federal Investigation Agency and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. Their father, Sardar Inayaltullah Khan Gandapur, served as the chief minister and finance minister of then-NWFP government in the 1970s. Kabul, July 23 : Fourteen people have been killed in a blast which rocked Kabul airport shortly after Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum returned from self-imposed exile, according to police. Dostum was unhurt in the attack on Sunday on a square he had just passed through, BBC reported. He left for Turkey more than a year ago, after he was accused of ordering his men to kidnap and rape a political rival -- accusations he denies. Militant group Islamic State has said it carried out the attack. Hashmat Estankzai, of Kabul police, said nine security forces members and traffic officers were among the 14 who had died, while another 60 people had been injured. Estankzai earlier told the BBC a suicide attacker on foot had set off his explosives outside the gate of the airport. Some reports said Gen Dostum's convoy was departing as the blast was heard. He was in an armoured vehicle. The ethnic Uzbek and former warlord had been cheered by supporters on arrival. Television footage showed Dostum greeting supporters at his office not long after the explosion. Dostum's reappearance was preceded by unrest in his powerbase in northern Afghanistan, as supporters demanded his return and the release of a militia leader. Tel Aviv, July 23 : Tens of thousands of Israeli protesters have rallied here against a law denying surrogacy to gay couples and single fathers. Demonstrators held their gathering in the central Rabin Square, and at one point briefly blocked a major motorway. At least one person was arrested, BBC reported on Sunday. Israel's parliament on Wednesday allowed surrogacy for single women and women unable to bear children. Previously, only heterosexual married couples were granted the same rights. The legislation also envisaged state funding for surrogacy. "We came here today (Sunday) to say to the government 'No more'," demonstrator Oz Dani in Rabin Square said. "We want equality and we want equal rights for everyone." Similar rallies were also held in several other cities, including Jerusalem. Many protesters said gay couples wanting to have children were being forced to seek surrogate mothers abroad and pay large sums of money. A number of Israeli companies said they were ready to make financial contributions to help such couples. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had previously supported the extension of surrogacy rights to gay couples and single men. But later, he voted against this, saying that otherwise the entire bill would have been blocked in parliament. Washington, July 23 : One of US President Donald Trump's former foreign policy aides has said allegations that he worked with the Russian government during the 2016 US election are "misleading". The FBI believed Carter Page was "collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government" at that time, BBC reported on Sunday. His alleged relationships with Russian intelligence officials are highlighted in court applications which led to him being put under surveillance. Trump said it appeared that his campaign was illegally spied on. But he provided no evidence to support the claim. The newly released surveillance applications were granted and renewed by several different judges sitting in a court authorised by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa). The court, which has the power to authorise wiretaps and surveillance of suspected foreign spies, has one of the most secretive institutions in the US. The FBI released the previously secret document cache on Saturday night following Freedom of Information requests by several US organisations. It contains 412 pages of heavily redacted material which includes the surveillance applications, their later renewals, and warrants surrounding the investigation into Mr Page. "The FBI believes that Page has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government," the October 2016 application to the court states. According to the documents, "the FBI believes that the Russian government's efforts are being co-ordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals associated with" Mr Trump's presidential campaign. It also said Page "has established relationships with Russian government officials, including Russian intelligence officers". Page is an energy industry consultant with longstanding ties to Russia. He first contacted the Trump campaign in 2015 before meeting Trump's campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, in January 2016. By March 2016, Trump had identified Page as one of a handful of campaign foreign policy advisers. Paris, July 23 : French President Emmanuel Macron has ordered a staff shake-up after a video emerged showing his now sacked aide beating up a protester, officials said. Under growing pressure, Macron gathered several ministers together on Sunday to discuss the row, BBC reported. Alexandre Benalla, who was Macron's top bodyguard, is seen dragging away a woman and then beating a man during May Day protests in Paris. He has been charged with group violence and illegally wearing a police badge. Benalla was fired on Friday. An official said Macron had described the incident "unacceptable" and promised there would be "no impunity". Senior presidential official Alexis Kohler is to look into reorganising Mr Macron's private office so as to prevent a repeat of the incident, unnamed officials said. The French presidency has been accused of being aware of the incident for some time, trying to cover it up, and failing to act swiftly against Benalla. Three policemen have also been charged in connection with the incident. They were questioned on Saturday for allegedly leaking security footage to try and prove Mr Benalla's innocence. Vincent Crase, an employee of Macron's La RApublique en Marche (Republic on the Move) party, is also being investigated after he appeared in the video. Public outrage has been stoked by additional footage that appears to show several police officers watching the incident without intervening. Interior Minister GArard Collomb is expected to be questioned on the issue in parliament on Monday. The video was posted on social media in May, but the case became a political scandal after Le Monde newspaper revealed that the attacker was Benalla, aged 26. A former bodyguard of Macron, he was hired as an aide to the president's chief of staff after last year's election. He was then given an apartment in an upmarket Paris district and a chauffeur-driven car, French media say. He also had the highest security clearance to parliament. Panaji, July 23 : Goa's Mangueshi temple priest who was booked for molesting two women, has claimed that one of them fabricated the charges against him after he refused to allow the unmarried woman into the sanctum sanctorum. The court has granted him interim bail until the next hearing on Wednesday. The accused, Dhanajay Bhave, told the Ponda additional district and sessions court on Saturday, that he "tried to explain to the complainant that as per the norms and the rules of the devasthan, unmarried daughters/unmarried girls cannot enter the gabhara (sanctum sanctorum) of the temple". Bhave, who has worked at the temple as a priest for 28 years, even told her to sit outside till her parents returned. However, the complainant picked up a quarrel with Bhave and insisted on entering the gabhara, as according to her there is no basis for refusal, he told the court in his petition. Bhave has been booked under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 354 for outraging the modesty of a woman. The iconic Mangueshi temple priest is alleged to have molested the student of medicine enrolled in a US college, who has accused him of hugging and kissing her inside the temple premise in June. The First Information Report (FIR) was filed by the student last week, after the Shree Maguesh Devasthan Committee informed her in writing that there was no "dependable evidence" against Bhave, and asked her to approach "appropriate authority". The temple committee also received one more molestation complaint from another victim, also in June, but that victim is yet to file a police complaint. Bhave claims that he only followed rules set by the temple committee which disallows entry of unmarried women into the sanctum sanctorum. He submitted before the court that he was "only performing religious duties clubbed with traditional and cultural norms followed in the Hindu tradition", the petition stated. Bhave also said that his arrest "would bring in bad publicity for the devasthan". The Mangueshi temple -- home to Lord Manguesh -- who is considered to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva, is one of the most visited temples in the state. Several influential Gaud Saraswat Brahmin clans are followers of the deity. Islamabad, July 23 : Jailed Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who has fallen ill and was suffering from heart and kidney ailments, has been asked to be shifted to a hospital by a medical team, a jail official said. The medical team, led by retired General Azhar Kiani, visited Adiala jail in Rawalpindi on Sunday after Sharif complained, the jail administration official told Dawn newspaper on Monday. Following his medical check-up, the medical team said that Sharif "needed to be hospitalised for immediate treatment", he added. The heartbeat of the former Prime Minister was irregular due to dehydration and the presence of urea in blood might affect his kidneys, the medical team has said. The medical team's recommendation had been sent to the Punjab health secretary and the caretaker government, Dawn reported. "The government will take a decision on it," he said, adding that the team had been called after the former prime minister complained that he was not feeling well. The official said that a separate medical team from the district headquarters hospital conducted a medical check-up of Sharif's jailed son-in-law, retired Captain Muhammad Safdar, as he was suffering from ear and throat infections. Kiani, the chief executive officer of Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology and former commandant of the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology, was physician of former President-retired General Pervez Musharraf. He was not available for comments. New Delhi : Only a diehard optimist would expect that Indias elected representatives would find the time to reflect on national security. But, with Parliament in session, should the improbable come to pass, here are some suggestions. Each threat and challenge to India's national security in the past 70 years has arisen not just due to the continued indifference of its political leadership but also its inability to learn from past mistakes. While the downward spiral of the defence budget (in real terms) and galloping asymmetry vis-A -vis China are causes for alarm, far more worrisome is the absence of a vision that could trigger remedial processes. Slogans are great for national morale, but someone must convert them into actionable strategies; so patently lacking in context of India's military-industrial complex, defence modernisation or national security reform. A possible reason for this "holiday" from long-term planning or strategising by ministers seems to be a shift of the onus of politics from party apparatchiks to their shoulders. The demands of Parliament, constituency, party politics and election campaigning leave very little time for their portfolios. In case of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), since the military has been deliberately excluded, crucial defence matters are, by default, left to personnel of the administrative, accounts and other civilian cadres who run the show. This uniquely Indian concatenation is definitely not the best way of managing national defence. Material and organisational shortcomings in our national security, periodically highlighted by the CAG or Parliamentary Committees, attract fleeting public and media attention, which dissipates after rhetorical government responses. However, an area with grave but hidden implications for national security is: Civil-military relations (CMR) whose crucial significance seems to have eluded India's post-independence rulers. A key feature of current CMR in India is the huge perceptional gap that exists between the two sides. While the political and bureaucratic establishments see nothing amiss and have remained staunch upholders of the "status quo"; the military and veterans seethe with dissatisfaction at an increasingly asymmetric and deliberately contrived civil-military equation. The most worrisome impact of this dissonance is the MoD's functioning. By stubbornly resisting integration of Army, Navy and Air HQs with MoD, the bureaucracy has denied itself readily-available professional advice and the ministry, some badly-needed decision-making ability. Proof of the system's ineptitude is to be found in the languid manner it discharges its primary function of equipping the forces. Procurement of simple but urgently needed items, like rifles, helmets and bullet-proof jackets for soldiers takes 8 to 10 years; while major weapon-systems can take anything from 15 to 30 years. Hardware acquisition programmes from abroad, as well as indigenous projects like the Tejas fighter, Arjun tank and Kaveri turbo-jet have remained in limbo for decades, for want of decision-making. The government may downplay this dysfunctionality, but voids in our military capability are obvious and have visibly eroded our credibility as a significant power. While some aspects of CMR impinge directly on India's national security, there are many consequences of this discord that have implications elsewhere. Among these are the military's push-back after every Pay Commission award and the acrimonious negotiations that follow; the protracted veterans' public agitation for "one-rank-one-pension" and frequent tussles about rank-equations with civilian cadres. Controversies related to opening of cantonments to the public and politicisation of "surgical strikes" have further muddied the waters. In the furore surrounding these debates, few have reflected on the roots of the persistent malady that afflicts CMR. The division of the armed forces, in 1947, was accompanied by a hurried reorganisation of the imperial defence structure to suit the new republic's needs. During this turmoil, the military leadership remained ignorant of a significant development that originated from the civil side. The armed forces HQs, instead of being merged with the MoD, or being designated "department(s)" of MoD, were reduced to "attached offices" and made subaltern to the Department of Defence (DoD). This automatically placed a layer of bureaucracy between the military and the politician and replaced "civilian (political) control" by de facto "bureaucratic control". This "act of commission", a fatal flaw in our national security matrix, was followed by an equally damaging "act of omission" -- the failure of the new Indian State to accord recognition to the functions and status of its armed forces. The IAS and IPS (to be joined, later, by the Indian Forest Service) were created as All India Services by Article 312 of the new Constitution. Another category known as the Central Civil Services, consisting of 89 Groups A and B services, that provide the huge government bureaucracy, was inherited from the Empire. However, the functions, responsibilities and status of the armed forces, their chiefs and senior functionaries, found no mention in the Constitution, any Act of Parliament or even the Government of India (GoI) Rules of Business, created in 1961. This absence of recognition and lack of defined status has worked to the detriment of India's military. Successive Pay Commissions, using whimsical equivalences, have depressed the armed forces, in terms of emoluments (and consequently status), relative to the All India Services as well as the Central Civil Services. Since eight of the latter were created to render support to the military, this has led to severe hierarchal problems. The chiefs receive perfunctory attention from politicians and bureaucrats because they have no locus standi in the edifice of the GoI. It is the Secretary DoD who, by Rules of Business, represents the three Services. This iniquity has stimulated a steady deterioration in CMR over the past decades. It is incongruous that the standing of the armed forces of the Union should remain indeterminate and open to repeated misinterpretation, vis-a-vis civilian and police organisations. It is, similarly, inappropriate that the Service Chiefs, responsible for safeguarding national sovereignty on land, at sea and in the air, should be denied recognition by the State, and remain "invisible" in the MoD. A part of the remedy for this acute anomaly lies in amending the Rules of Business. But the real answer lies in legislation that clearly defines the status of the armed forces, as well as role and functions of the military hierarchy. Since this issue impinges not only on our military's morale, but also on CMR and, ultimately, on India's national security, it should merit discussion in the ongoing session of Parliament - other pressing business notwithstanding. (The author is a former Indian Navy Chief and Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee. The views expressed are personal. The article is in special arrangement with South Asia Monitor) Tehran, July 23 : An earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale shook Iran's Sirch in Kerman province early on Monday, country's Seismological Centre reported. The epicentre is determined at a depth of 10 km, 30.365 degrees north latitude and 57.499 degrees east longitude, Xinhua news agency reported. No casualties or property loss have been reported so far. People rushed to the streets in panic as emergency teams were sent to the affected region, media reported. On Sunday, two moderate quakes of 5.7-magnitude and 5.9-magnitude rattled southern Hormozghan and western Kermanshah provinces successively. The quake in Kermanshah province injured 26 people. Srinagar, July 23 : An armed militant was arrested by the security forces on Monday in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district during a cordon and search operation. Police identified the militant as Waqar Malik, who was carrying an AK-47 rifle and ammunition. The joint search operation was launched by the Rashtriya Rifles, Central Reserve Police Force and state police personnel in Humpora village. New Delhi, July 23 : Robotic process automation company Automation Anywhere on Monday partnered EdCast for "futureskills," a Nasscom skilling initiative, to train Indian students in robotics. Automation Anywhere will provide upskilling programmes in the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) domain under the initiative, the company said in a statement. RPA is among the 8 technologies identified by IT industry's apex body which are poised to grow tremendously, both nationally and globally. "We are proud to be a part of this prestigious initiative and mission-critical national agenda," said Ankur Kothari, Chief Revenue Officer and Co-Founder of Automation Anywhere. "As RPA continues its rapid adoption at the enterprise level, we see India driving this trend worldwide. It is not only opening multi-billion opportunities for Indian enterprises and creating lakhs of job opportunities which did not exist until recently, but also leading a big push for the country's rich engineering talent pool," Kothari explained. As part of the agreement, subscribers on "futureskills" portal will have exclusive access to Automation Anywhere University (AAU) training programmes that encompass RPA technology overviews, theoretical concepts, typical business cases, and hands-on practice exercises. The programme will empower the students with globally-recognised Automation Anywhere certifications. Through the programme, Automation Anywhere is aiming to train over one lakh students and professionals in 2018. "We have the processes, expertise and technology platform to lead the world in process automation. We predict RPA, as a category, can create new job opportunities in the range of 2,90,000-3,20,000 lakh over the next three years," said Amit Aggarwal, CEO, IT/ITES Sector Skill Council of Nasscom. New Delhi, July 23 : Calling it a victory of people's rights, Delhi's ruling AAP on Monday welcomed the Supreme Court's decision which lifted a "blanket ban" on holding protests at Boat Club and Jantar Mantar in the heart of the capital. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted: "I welcome the Supreme Court verdict upholding peaceful right to protest in central Delhi. Attempts to convert Delhi into a police state is dangerous for democracy and rightly struck down by Supreme Court." The Supreme Court on Monday said there cannot be any "blanket ban" on holding protests near Jantar Mantar, located on Parliament Street, and the Boat Club on Rajpath. Emphasising on the need to balance between the right to protest and security considerations, Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Ashok Bhushan said Delhi Police will have to frame guidelines to regulate protests at both spots. Aam Aadmi Party spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj called the decision a "victory of people's rights" and democracy. "Central government was misusing Delhi Police by permanently imposing Section 144 in these areas. This was hurting the fundamental principles of living in an independent country," he said. The court ruling came while deciding on a challenge to the green tribunal's order prohibiting protests at Jantar Mantar and a plea by NGO Majdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and the Indian Ex-Servicemen's Movement and others challenging the perennial imposition of prohibitory orders (Section 144) in central Delhi. Lucknow, July 23 : The Uttar Pradesh government will be presenting a 'vision document' on the Taj Mahal in Agra before the Supreme Court on Thursday, an official said on Monday. This document, prepared by the Delhi School of Planning and Architecture, was put together after the apex court came down heavily on the government while hearing a petition filed by environmentalist M.C. Mehta. Ten days back, the top court made sharp observations on the central and the state governments for not being able to protect the iconic structure. It asked the Yogi Adityanath government on why industrial activities have picked up pace in the 10,400 sq km Taj Trapezium Zone (TEZ) area comprising Mathura, Agra, Hathras, Etah and Firozabad, created for protection and conservation of the Mughal structure. The bench also reprimanded the governments saying that the issue called for long-term solutions, not short term and knee-jerk methods. The state government, through the vision document to be submitted on July 26, plans to apprise the apex court of the efforts being made by it to protect the 17th century monument, which also draws the largest footfall of foreign tourists in the state. These efforts include making of a rubber check dam to be built at a cost of Rs 300 crore on Yamuna river, the foundation stone of which was laid down by Adityanath in October 2017. Other than restoration works around Taj Mahal, an orientation centre at the eastern gate and beautification of the Mehtab Bagh are also underway. Lahore, July 23 : A petition seeking to declare the residences of deposed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Captain (retd) Safdar Awan as sub-jails was filed in the Supreme Court on Monday, the media reported. The petition by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's (PML-N) Barrister Zafarullah Khan pleaded that as the corruption trial against Sharif was still pending, his residence can be declared a sub-jail, the Express Tribune reported. The move came as a five-member medical team from the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) visited the three-time Premier, who is suffering from heart and kidney ailments, in Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail for a check-up and recommended that he be shifted to a hospital. While the government reportedly plans to move Sharif to PIMS, he has requested to be shifted to Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology. He is currently serving a 10-year imprisonment in a corruption case. Sharif has a long history of heart problems and had already twice undergone procedures, including a bypass surgery. He also suffered from hypertension, associated sub-normal kidney function and other complications, Geo News reported citing a source. Following his medical check-up, the medical team said that Sharif "needed to be hospitalised for immediate treatment", a jail official said. According to the medical team, the heartbeat of the former Prime Minister was irregular due to dehydration and the presence of urea in blood might affect his kidneys. The medical team's recommendation was sent to the Punjab health secretary and the caretaker government, Dawn reported. The jail official said that a separate medical team conducted a medical check-up of Sharif's son-in-law as he was suffering from ear and throat infections. Islamabad, July 23 : A number of road projects related to the $52 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) are said to be in the doldrums as Pakistan's National Highway Authority (NHA) faces a financial crisis, the media reported on Monday. Dawn online cited sources as saying that contractors stopped work on several CPEC projects after their cheques worth over Rs 5 billion bounced a couple of days ago. The affected projects include Hakla-Dera Ismail Khan, Western Route of CPEC and all sections of the Karachi-Lahore Motorway. According to the report, not only the CPEC projects but local industries related to construction and a large workforce of engineers and labourers were also hit by the situation. When contacted, NHA spokesman Kashif Zaman said the authority issued cheques of Rs 5 billion on June 29 to the firms against the sanction by the government. He said cheques worth Rs 1.5 billion were cleared on the same day and "the remaining cheques that were deposited the next day could not be cleared". Zaman said the matter had been taken up with the government and would be resolved soon. Asked about suspension of work by the contractors, he said that the progress on the projects "had not been affected" and most of the projects in question would be completed by December. The CPEC will connect China's Xinjiang region with Pakistan's Gwadar port giving it access to the Arabian Sea. While India opposes CPEC's route as it cuts through the disputed part of Kashmir held by Islamabad, experts feel Pakistan is already facing a massive debt burden because of the project. Islamabad, July 23 : Pakistan on Monday strongly condemned the terrorist attack outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in the Afghan capital that claimed 14 lives and injured over 60 people. The suicide blast rocked the airport shortly after Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum returned to the country after more than a year in exile. Militant group Islamic State claimed the attack. The Pakistan Foreign Ministry expressed the "deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives". "We express our support and solidarity with the people and government of Afghanistan in this hour of grief," the ministry's spokesman said in a statement. He said Pakistan reiterates its condemnation of terrorism in all forms and manifestations and the resolve to eliminate this menace. Hanoi, July 23 : Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday called on the Vietnamese authorities to release political prisoners and fulfil the commitments the country made to the UN to ensure that civil rights are respected. In a letter to the UN Human Rights Council, HRW said that Hanoi accepted 182 of the 227 recommendations made during the last UN Universal Periodic Review in 2014, but has "done little to honour its commitment" since, Efe news reported. "Vietnamese authorities frequently use loosely interpreted provisions in its penal code and other laws to imprison peaceful political and religious activists," HRW said. This year alone, the government convicted and imprisoned at least 27 rights bloggers and activists, according to HRW. The non-profit said a legal reform was passed by the country's National Assembly in 2017, which imposed more restrictions on rights bloggers and activists and those who assist them. HRW also criticized the approval of a cyber security law in June that "severely restricted freedom of expression on the Internet" and said freedom of expression and association were under attack in the country. "Vietnam seems to be contending for the title of one of Asia's most repressive governments," said HRW's deputy Asia Director Phil Robertson. "The Communist Party-controlled government systematically crushes any challenges to its actions and punishes any person or group it deems a threat to its absolute monopoly on power," he added. The letter to the UN Council proposed a series of recommendations before Vietnam submits its next universal periodic review in January 2019. Seoul, July 23 : A prominent South Korean lawmaker committed suicide on Monday amid a probe into allegations that he received an illegal political fund. According to Yonhap news agency, Representative Roh Hoe-chan, a leader of the left-leaning Justice Party, was found dead near the entrance of an apartment building in central Seoul early morning. The three-term lawmaker jumped to his death, the agency reported. Roh was under investigation over allegations he received over $44,000 from a blogger at the centre of an online opinion-rigging scandal. Yonhap said Roh, 61, left a suicide note in his apartment admitting to accepting money, but denying any wrongdoing. He also apologized to his family in the note. South Korea has one of the world's highest suicide rates. Victims include disgraced politicians and business executives. One of the most prominent figures in recent years to commit suicide was former President Roh Moo-hyun, who jumped to his death in 2009 over a corruption scandal. Kollam, July 23 : As part of getting a larger share in the spoils of power, the Kerala Congress (Skariah Thomas) and Kerala Congress (B) have decided to merge. The official announcement will be made in the state capital on Tuesday. While Skariah Thomas is a full-fledged ally of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) led by the CPI-M , the KC (B) led by veteran R. Balakrishna Pillai is only an ally of the Left ever since it broke away from the then ruling Congress-led UDF in 2015. Thomas and Pillai on Monday met Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan here and the green signal for their decision was given. "The Chief Minister is our leader and it's quite natural we discuss all things with him," Thomas told the media. While Thomas' party has no legislator, Pillai's party has one, which is his son K.B. Ganesh Kumar. Presently, the LDF has six constituents and all of them have been given cabinet berths. The seven friendly allies include the National Secular Conference, Kerala Congress-B, Communist Marxist Party-A and Revolutionary Socialist Party-Leninist (all have a legislator each) while the Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithi-Gowri, Indian National League and Kerala Congress-Democratic are currently unrepresented in the Assembly. New Delhi, July 23 : A bill that provides for stringent punishment, including death penalty for those convicted of raping girls below 12 years, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2018 was introduced by Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju. It seeks to replace an ordinance brought by the government in April. The bill provides that the minimum punishment for rape of woman under 16 years will be rigorous imprisonment for at least 20 years which can extend to life. The punishment for gang-rape of a girl below 16 years will be imprisonment for the rest of life of the convict. The punishment for rape of a woman aged under 12 years will be rigorous imprisonment of at least 20 years but may extend to imprisonment for life or death. Gang-rape of a girl under 12 years of age will lead to punishment of jail term for the rest of life or death. The minimum punishment in case of rape of woman has been increased from seven years to 10 years, extendable to imprisonment for life. Under the new law, there will a two-month time limit for completion of investigation of rape cases. The Bill says that inquiry or trial shall be completed in two months and appeals in rape cases should be disposed of in six months. There is no provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of rape or gang-rape of a girl under 16 years of age. Chandigarh, July 23 : The Haryana Police is planning to strengthen the Special Task Force (STF) by inducting 100 highly-qualified cyber experts to crackdown on high-profile active criminals on social media platforms, Director General of Police (DGP) B.S. Sandhu said on Monday. He said that in view of its performance and the need to tackle cyber crime, the STF would be strengthened. "The STF of Haryana Police formed in January this year with 40 men to deal with organized crimes has performed exceedingly well by arresting 13 most-wanted criminals and in seizing huge quantity of illicit arms as well as narcotics so far. Going a step further, Haryana Police is planning to strengthen STF by inducting 100 highly-qualified cyber experts to tackle cyber crime," Sandhu said. He said that the arrests by STF were made in crime related to narcotics, extortion, gang wars and of notorious criminals. "The Haryana Police is serious in providing safety and security to its people at all places and introduced STF to deal with the menace of organized crime especially in the NCR (national capital region) areas in the state," he added. Additional Director General of Police,Crime P.K. Agarwal said that STF had so far recovered 50 home-made pistols, a revolver, a rifle, four pistols and 76 rounds. "Apart from this, it had also seized 57 kg, 600 gm poppy straw, 22 kg, 900 gm cannabis, 1 kg, 402 gm opium, 4.138 kg Brown Sugar and 53.50 gram heroin," he said. Agarwal said that STF had identified 20 most wanted criminals who were spreading their criminal activities in Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, western UP, Chandigarh and Punjab. "Due to continuous fear and pressure of STF, most of these criminals are staying out of Haryana," he claimed. He said that STF had killed dreaded gangster Balraj Bhatti in a gunfight in Noida. "He was a member of Sunder Bhatti gang and carried a bounty of Rs 2.5 lakh on his head. In addition, STF had recently arrested most wanted criminal Sampat Nehra, a member of Lawrence Bishnoi gang, from Hyderabad. He was wanted by Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Chandigarh Police. "Police had fixed a bounty of Rs 2 lakh on his head. The STF had also apprehended 11 other most wanted criminals who carry a reward ranging between Rs 5000 and Rs 2 lakh," he pointed out. New Delhi, July 23 : The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment) Bill could not be taken up for discussion in the Rajya Sabha on Monday as the opposition members protested and demanded it to be sent to a select committee. Soon after the Bill was introduced by Minister of State for Culture Mahesh Sharma, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad suggested that it should be referred to a select committee. "Since this Bill has not gone to the standing committee for scrutiny, it should be referred to a select committee. It is an important Bill because it has cultural, historical, educational and economic ramifications for the present and future generations," he said. The demand was supported by Samajwadi Party (SP), the Left parties, the DMK, the RJD and others. "There has been a convention to refer the bills to the standing committees but it is not being followed. The Congress' demand is valid and it should be sent to a select committee," SP member Ram Gopal Yadav said. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel urged the agitating members to allow the discussion for the passage of the Bill but he was not heard by the opposition. Citing urgent reasons for the passage of the Bill, Sharma also urged the members to pass it at the earliest but the opposition members did not relent and favoured the Bill to be referred to a select committee. The Chairman also took sense of the House and asked the Parliamentary Affairs Minister to discuss the issue with all the political parties and come back to the House. The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment) Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 18, 2017 by Mahesh Sharma and was passed by the Lower House in January. Since then it is pending in the Rajya Sabha. The Bill amends the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. The Act defines a 'prohibited area' as an area of 100 meters around a protected monument or area. The Central government can extend the prohibited area beyond 100 meters. The Act does not permit construction in such prohibited areas, except under certain conditions. It also does not allow construction in 'prohibited areas' even if it is for public purposes. The Bill amends this provision to permit construction of public works in 'prohibited areas' for public purposes. Patna, July 23 : The Bihar Assembly on Monday passed amendments to the prohibition law to curb its misuse, amid a walkout by the opposition. Speaking on the need for the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2018, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said: "The main objective is to save innocent people from punishment." According to the bill, the amendments would "...stop misuse of provisions of the law against the innocent and bring the punishment in proportion to the crime". The Bill contains 16 amendments that offer relief to people found violating the various draconian provisions of the law. Last week, the state cabinet, chaired by Nitish Kumar, approved the amendments, with special focus on removal of stringent provisions like sending the entire family to jail if liquor is found in their house. Nitish Kumar had earlier said that a bill to amend the prohibition law would be brought during the assembly's monsoon session in July, but asserted that prohibition would continue. After being repeatedly attacked by the opposition over prohibition-related issues, he had admitted that some provisions were being misused and announced that the law would be amended. Opposition leaders have alleged that the Dalits and OBCs were being harassed by the police in the name of prohibition. More than 1.5 lakh persons have been arrested to date for violating prohibition in Bihar since it was imposed on April 5, 2016. Islamabad, July 23 : Even as political parties in Pakistan busied themselves with the last day of campaigning on Monday, minority groups are all set to boycott the elections alleging non-inclusion in the electoral process, and religious hardliners dominating the election agenda. The much-persecuted Ahmadis, a Muslim sect founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in the 19th century, and the Christians earlier announced they would be boycotting the July 25 elections alleging that extremist groups have been fomenting hatred against them in Pakistan, Efe news reported. In Pakistan, minority religions make up just four per cent of the 205 million population. The Ahmadis have been protesting against being placed on a separate list of non-Muslim voters by the Election Commission, as per an amendment to the Constitution in 1974. To register as a voter, they are also required to sign a declaration saying the sect's founder, Ahmad, was not a Muslim seer but an imposter. "In every democratic, civilised country, the right to vote is based on citizenship, not religion," Salim Ud Din, spokesperson of the around 500,000 strong Ahmadi community told Efe. According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, the Ahmadi community is the most discriminated against in the country, with various restrictions on their freedom. They are forbidden to call their temples mosques, distribute religious literature or use traditional Muslim greetings. The Ahmadis consider themselves Muslims but their recognition of Ahmad as a religious guide clashes with the firmly-held belief in the Islamic country that Prophet Muhammad was the last messenger of God. There are less than four million Christians in Pakistan and they are not much better placed than the Ahmadis. The community's representatives announced the boycott of the elections alleging that Pakistan's electoral process, that restricts minorities and women to a small number of reserved seats, was discriminatory. The Christian Democratic Party (CDP) demanded to be able to vote directly in their own electorate of 37 seats in order to secure better representation in Parliament. Currently, 10 of the 342 seats in Parliament are reserved for religious minorities, which are distributed proportionally, depending on the votes secured by different parties after the counting of votes. "We want to vote in a different electorate for non-Muslims so we have a role in the legislation," CDP president Ben Hur Gill said. London, July 23 : The UK police have arrested three men in connection with a suspected acid attack on a three-year-old boy in the city of Worcester. The suspects, aged 22, 25 and 26, were detained on Sunday in Walthamstow, east London, on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm, West Mercia Police said. The boy was in a pushchair when he was "deliberately attacked" at Home Bargains in Tallow Hill on Saturday, the Guardian reported on Monday. He suffered serious burns to his face and arm. The motive behind the attack was unclear, authorities said. Doctors discharged the boy from hospital on Sunday. A 39-year-old man from Wolverhampton had been arrested earlier on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm and remained in police custody over the incident. The leader of Worcester city council, Marc Bayliss, described the attack as "absolutely pure evil". The MP for Worcester, Robin Walker, called it "horrific", and that the "shock will be universal". Police appealed for more information over the incident. Nainital (Uttarakhand), July 23 : The Uttarakhand High Court on Monday asked the Union government whether the Badrinath shrine can be declared a national heritage site. Hearing a petition filed by law student Chetna Bhargava, the Court directed the counsel of the Jai Nigam to inspect the region and present a report at the next hearing. The bench of Justice V.K. Bisht and Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari also asked the central government to file an affidavit by August 27 -- the next date of hearing. It said the Advocate General should discuss with the Secretary (Urban Development) the possibility of the region being developed specially. In the public interest litigation (PIL), the petitioner has alleged that the sewage treatment plant (STP) at Badrinath has been constructed at the mouth of Alaknanda and Rishi Ganga, causing dirty sewage water to flow into the rivers. The petitioner has also demanded that the STP be shifted elsewhere as the river water is used by the temples. Mumbai, July 23 : Makers of the upcoming Marathi language children's film "Pipsi" have come up with a new initiative Filmshala, which will help the movie reach out to maximum students. The film's production banner Landmarc Films is planning to come up with one children's film every year. Vidhi Kasliwal of the banner said in a statement: "During the screenings at the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI) film festival screenings and the trailer launch event, we realised how kids from varied backgrounds were connecting with the film and picking up on its varied layers. "So we thought why not introduce them to such cinema on a regular basis and to cultivate and enrich their film-viewing habits. After all, these kids are the future of our country and surely many of them would want to make careers in films later." Through Filmshala, the film will be screened for students across Maharashtra in theatres close to their schools. The students will also have access to a resource base created by the makers of the film on how to review a film. The competition will be judged by actors Sachin Pilgaonkar and Divya Dutta and former Childrens Film Society of India (CFSI) committee member and writer Kamlakar Nadkarni. "Pipsi" has travelled to various international film festivals and received a positive response from the global audience. Produced by Vidhi Kasliwal, written by Saurabh Bhave and directed by Rohan Deshpande, the film is slated to release on Friday. New Delhi, July 23 : The Centre has set up a high-level committee headed by Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba to formulate steps to check mob lynchings and directed it to submit the recommendations within four weeks. The Secretaries of the Departments of Justice, Legal Affairs, Legislative and Social Justice and Empowerment are members of the committee. "In order to formulate appropriate steps to address the (mob lynching) situation, the government has set up a high-level committee to deliberate and make recommendations within four weeks," a Home Ministry statement said. The government also decided to constitute a Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to consider the committee's recommendations. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad and Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Thaawar Chand Gehlot are members of the GoM. The GoM will submit their recommendations to the Prime Minister. The Home Ministry had issued an advisory on July 4, urging the states and union territories to take steps to prevent mob violence and lynchings as well as take stringent action as per the law against the culprits. The states have been advised to implement the Supreme Court directions issued on July 17, said the statement. An advisory was issued on August 9, 2016 on the disturbances created by miscreants in the name of cow protection, the Home Ministry added. New Delhi, July 23 : As Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that the latest lynching incident in Rajasthan's Alwar represents Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "brutal New India", Union Minister Piyush Goyal hit him back, terming him a "merchant of hate". "Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict and prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a merchant of hate," he said in a tweet. Goyal's remarks came soon after Gandhi shared a news report claiming that the policemen, before taking the lynch victim to the hospital, stopped to take some refreshment. Attacking the government, Gandhi said: "Policemen in Alwar took three hours to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just six km away. Why? They took a tea-break en route. This is Modi's brutal 'New India'. The 'New India,' the Congress chief alleged, is where "humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die." Rakbar Khan alias Akbar, 28, was on Saturday thrashed by a mob on suspicion of being a cow smuggler. The Rajasthan Police has since formed a high-level team to probe the reasons for the delay in taking him to hospital. Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani also attacked the COngress leader saying that his family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, after the killing of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. New Delhi, July 23 : With an aim to generate more than 2,000 MW of solar energy in the national capital by 2025, the Delhi government is laying out a comprehensive roadmap to encourage adoption of rooftop solar projects by the residential sector. In order to achieve this goal and understand the opportunities and challenges in aggregating the consumer demand, the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Management Centre (EE&REM), Delhi's Department of Power, on Monday organised a consultation workshop 'Rooftop Solar Demand Aggregation Program for Domestic Consumers'. The workshop, supported by the SUPRABHA (Sustainable Partnerships for Rooftop Solar Acceleration in Bharat), a World Bank-SBI Rooftop SolarTechnical Assistance (TA) Programme discussed the opportunities and challenges faced by Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) developers in setting up solar rooftop projects in the cityA In his address, Power Minister Satyendar Jain said: "It is the endeavour of the Delhi Government to promote the use of renewable energy by all sectors. "The residential sector is a key component in an urban setup like Delhi and we are exploring ways and means to make it easy for this sector to adopt rooftop solar. The RESCO model enables this by minimising capital expenditure for homeowners and RWAs. The Delhi Government's aim is to generate 1000 MW by 2020 and 2000 MW by 2025 through Rooftop Solar Installations." New Delhi, July 23 : The NITI Aayog on Monday signed an agreement with the Lupin Foundation to collaborate in the government's ambitious aspirational districts programme which aims to quickly and effectively transform some of the most underdeveloped districts of the country. As per the statement of intent, the NITI Aayog and Lupin Foundation will work in three states - Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan - to facilitate the creation of an ideal template to develop economic strength, technological viability and moral leadership across three districts in the first phase of the cooperation. They will collaborate to improve indicators in education, health and nutrition, financial inclusion and skill development, agriculture and water resources, and basic infrastructure in the backward disticts, which the government has dubbed as aspirational districts. The three districts include Dholpur in Rajasthan, Nandurbar in Maharashtra and Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh. Kabul, July 23 : The death toll in a suicide attack near Kabul airport, that took place shortly after a plane carrying Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum had landed, climbed to 23 on Monday while the number of wounded rose to 107. Dostum, who had gone into self-exile to Turkey last year amid an investigation that his bodyguards allegedly tortured a political rival, was received on Sunday by dozens of supporters and local authorities at the international airport just minutes before the attack. He escaped unscathed. "The death toll rose to 23 killed and 107 injured, including security forces and civilians," an official from the press office of the Ministry of Public Health told Efe on condition of anonymity. He added that the ministry was still working out the details of the casualties to identify how many of them were civilians and how many were police officers. Terror group Islamic State had claimed the attack and said it was targeted at the Vice-President and his supporters. Dostum is one of the most powerful Afghan warlords with a reputation for being bloodthirsty and a record of constantly switching his loyalties during the wars in Afghanistan since the Soviet invasion (1979-89) to the fall of the Taliban regime following the invasion of the country by the US in 2001. New Delhi, July 23 : With Congress leader Rahul Gandhi hugging Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the trust vote debate in Parliament on Friday, Twitterati created history with over 1.1 million related tweets over the weekend. The social media giant revealed that amid all the speeches, the conversations on Twitter peaked on the platform between 10.30 a.m. - 11.30 p.m. IST on July 20. Key hashtags that emerged on Twitter around the subject included #MonsoonSession, #NoConfidenceVote, #NoConfidenceMotion, #BhookampAaneWalaHai, #KyaHuaTeraVaada, #NoConfidencePolitics, #hugplomacy and #IndiaTrustsModi. "Twitter is the best place to know what is happening in your community, city or country. The ongoing #MonsoonSession of Parliament has again demonstrated that Twitter is the go-place for citizens to participate in real-time on the issues as they develop," Mahima Kaul, Head-Public, Policy and Government, Twitter India, said in a statement on Monday. "The conversation around #NoConfidenceMotion also surfaced tweets from around the country, and in multiple languages," she added. The Prime Minister tweeted: "Congress leaders feel I cant see them in the eye. They are correct. I am too small compared to them. How did one family treat Netaji Bose, Sardar Patel, Loknayak JP, Morarjibhai Desai, Charan Singh Ji, Chandra Shekhar Ji, Pranab Da, Deve Gowda Ji and Sharad Pawar Ji? Everyone knows." However, Rahul Gandhi said: "PM uses Hate, Fear and Anger in the hearts of some of our people to build his narrative. We are going to prove that Love and Compassion in the hearts of all Indians, is the only way to build a nation." Chandigarh, July 23 : A young man was killed and his pillion rider injured in an accident during a police chase, following which his family, neighbours and friends on Monday protested outside a police station in the city. Ashok was killed on the spot late Sunday night of head injuries after his motorcycle hit a Chandigarh Police Control Room (PCR) vehicle chasing him for jumping a red traffic light. His friend was seriously injured and admitted to a hospital. Ashok is survived by his wife and two children aged four years and three months respectively. He was the sole breadwinner of the family. Police has not yet initiated action against the policemen. His family and neighbours from the locality they live in protested outside the Sector 31 police station and demanded action against the erring policemen and compensation to the family. Jerusalem, July 23 : A 15-year-old Palestinian boy was shot dead by the Israeli Army on Monday during clashes in the Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Arkan Thaer Mizher was shot through the chest and heart during the clashes, which followed a dawn raid by Israeli soldiers to make arrests in the camp, while two other youths received leg wounds, Efe news reported citing the Ministry. In a statement, the Israeli Army confirmed it had carried out an arrest operation in Dheisheh camp and claimed its soldiers fired live ammunition in response to residents of the camp throwing stones as well as "firebombs and grenades". According to Palestinian security sources, the Israeli raid targeted two young people from the camp who were arrested from their homes, as cited in the official Palestinian news agency WAFA. Beijing, July 23 : British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt will pay an official visit to China on July 30 at the invitation of Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, it was announced here on Monday. During the visit, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee Yang Jiechi will meet Hunt, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang. Wang and Hunt will co-host the 9th China-UK Strategic Dialogue and exchange views on bilateral relations and international and regional hotspot issues, Xinhua news agency reported. "The China-UK relationship enjoys a sound momentum for development at this point," Geng said. Earlier this year, British Prime Minister Theresa May visited China, marking another round of the annual meeting with the Chinese Premier. Leaders of both countries reached important consensus on pushing forward the "Golden Era" for China-UK relations, Geng said. New Delhi, July 23 : Delhi Social Welfare Minister Rajendra Pal Gautam on Monday inspected the leprosy complex here after receiving complaints of its degrading condition asked officials to ensure that problems of sewage, water, sanitation and toilets are "solved at the earliest" During his visit, he asked the residents of the Tahirpur complex, one of the largest in Asia for the leprosy-affected, about their day to day issues. Accompanied by officials from the the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), the Public Works Department (PWD), and the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC), Gautam "minutely assessed" and inspected the complex and its prevailing conditions, said a release from his office. "The entire complex has water logging issues, sewage issues, drinking water and sanitation issues. The toilet blocks inside the complex are in pathetic condition and need to be renovated," it said. Inside the complex, there was a skill development centre which hasn't been functional for the last 10 years. "The Minister inspected it and asked the officials to submit a report of the centre and directed its restart so that skill learning recommences," the statement said. Gautam also asked the Social Welfare Secretary to open a bank branch there since only one bank is located in the vicinity. Abuja, July 23 : Seven people were killed and seven others injured following a suicide attack in a mosque in Nigeria's Borno state on Monday, officials said. The injured have been evacuated to a hospital in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno, Xinhua quoted Bello Dambatta, head of rescue operations at the State Emergency Management Agency, as saying. The remains of the male suicide attacker, who caused the havoc, were among those evacuated from the scene. The attacker entered the mosque during the morning prayer, pretending to be a worshipper, before detonating the improvised explosive device strapped to his back, said Dambatta. "It is not clear how the suicide bomber infiltrated the town and attacked the mosque," said Ali Kolo, head of a local vigilante group in Konduga. He said the building collapsed during the explosion and the victims were evacuated from the rubble. Yunusa Bello, a resident who witnessed the blast, said all the victims were worshippers at the mosque. Bello said he saw bodies of seven of the victims who died inside the mosque while two bodies were found at the entrance of the building. "One died on the way to the hospital and one other died at the hospital," he said after assisting victims to the hospital in his van. No group has claimed responsibility for the blast but locals suspect the Nigeria-based armed group Boko Haram was to blame. Despite the efforts by the government and the armed forces to destabilize the group, Boko Haram has been attacking soft targets recently, mostly in the northeast region of the country. Srinagar, July 23 : An organisation of service providers for the Amarnath Yatra pilgrims on Monday suggested to the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB) to limit the annual Yatra to 30 days. The Shri Amarnathji Barfani Langer Organisation (SABLO) made the suggestion to limit the Yatra to 30 days to the SASB, headed by state Governor N.N. Vohra who manages the affairs of the Amarnath Yatra. SABLO provides free food, night shelter and blankets to the pilgrims. The service providers' organisation argued that 90 per cent of the pilgrims perform the Yatra during the first 30 days. The organisation made a presentation during the SASB meeting that was chaired by Vohra to prove that the data during the last five years indicated that more than 90 per cent of pilgrims performed the Yatra during the first 30 days. The SASB said the suggestion merits consideration, but added that the issue needed to be placed in the public domain. New Delhi, July 23 : Many opposition parties on Monday opposed the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill dubbing it as dilution of the state's powers and aimed at helping corporates. The Bill, which was passed by the Lok Sabha on April 10, 2017, was on Monday re-introduced in Rajya Sabha by Minister of State for Transport Mansukhlal Mandaviya for debate and passing in the ongoing Monsoon Session. Taking part in the debate, Congress's B.K. Hari Prasad said that there was no dispute behind the idea of the Bill but unfortunately there was no mention of the road safety it. "There are lacunae in the Bill. They have hardly taken any recommendations in the Bill as suggested by the Standing Committee. I still feel that the minister should make amendments which makes the road safety priority and not the corporate sector," he said, adding that the power of registration has been given to private dealers and the registration charges to be paid to the dealers would be higher than the RTO charges. "The bill does not create a sense of road safety. Some clauses have been amended to help the corporates and dilute the powers of state government," he said. Besides Congress the Trinamool Congress, DMK, the Left parties and the Aam Aadmi Party opposed the Bill saying the sole aim to bring the Bill was to dilute powers of the states. Trinamool's Manish Gupta said that the Bill subverts the principle of federalism as it gives the control of the transport sector to the central government, and appealed all the states to oppose the Bill. "Those, who believe in federalism should oppose this bill," he said. Biju Janata Dal's Pratap Keshari Deb said his party would support the bill if the government makes changes on various issues pointed out by them. CPI-M member T.K. Rangarajan also opposed the Bill and urged all the political parties to protest against it. "The powers of the state government will be reduced. It will be like the power enjoyed by a gram panchayat. This government is creating new destitutes making state governments panchayats," he said. Strongly opposing the Bill, DMK member T. K. S. Elangovan said: "Power is taken away from states and is given to private authorities. This is the biggest accident that has happened in the House and the states are still limping." He said the only agenda of the BJP government is to take away the powers of the state government one by one. Aam Aadmi Party's Sanjay Singh dubbed the proposed Bill as against the basic idea of Constitution. He said if the government did not change the provisions of learners licence, people will make licences in names of their dogs and cats. "We oppose this Bill as there is no provision to stop accidents," he said. BJP's Vinay Saharabuddhe and Janata Dal-United's Harivansh supported the bill. The debate will resme on Tuesday. The bill amends the Motor Vehicles Act to impose stiffer penalties for traffic rules violations, to protect the good Samaritans from legal harassment, a three-year jail term for parents of minors caught driving and causing fatal accidents, and a ten-fold increase in compensation for the families of accident victims, among other things. The bill also provides for facilitating delivery of services to the citizens and transporters, and proposes Aadhaar-based verification for grant of online services, including learner's licence. Please vote for Chip Baker for Hamilton County commissioner in District 2. I know he will be a dedicated servant to our community. I have worked closely with Chip since he arrived in Chattanooga to become the administrator of Childrens Hospital. When reading Chips credentials, my fellow Foundation Board members and I were impressed by the fact of his being the youngest hospital CEO in America at the age of 27. While at Childrens he was responsible for more than a thousand employees and volunteers and a budget of over $66 million in annual revenue. Chip is fiscally conservative and dedicates himself to not only staying committed to his budgets but always is searching for ways to make wise decisions on how to cut expenses while increasing productivity as was the case at Childrens Hospital where he was able to cut the budget by 20 percent and increased productivity. While there he also established a school health program that served over 45,000 local students. Also while at Childrens, under Chips tenure the Pediatric Oncology Department moved from its drab one room area without windows to its now large one floor space with many windows, art on the wall and a space where the some of the sickest of the sick now understand they are loved and that they matter. Another project that Chip spearheaded while he was the head of Childrens was the Emergency Room. He lead the Capital Campaign - working with many of the community leaders to raise the monies to build a much needed new emergency room. After Chip became the director of Friends of the Festival (Riverbend) I also had the opportunity to work closely with him as a member of the Board of Directors and as a member of the Executive Committee. Chip came to Riverbend when the festival was in the red and there was a real threat that it would not be able to survive another couple of years unless big changes took place. In one year, Chip was able to put the festival back into the black. Chip and his staff have grown our festival into one of the most respected festivals in the United States. Chip is the type of person that if he sees a problem he becomes a part of the solution to the problem rather than a person who simply wants to talk about the problem. Ive seen this characteristic of his personality in every aspect of every task that he has ever been involved. One example of this is the reason that he ran for and was elected to the Hamilton County School Board. During his three terms on the school board which included him being the chairman for three years, he worked with the residents on Signal Mountain and Walden to build the Signal Mountain Middle/High School and Normal Park Upper School School and was also able to help develop plans for the new Red Bank Middle School. He has served as a student mentor in the statewide Tennessee Achieves program. I have had the unique experience of having a front row seat working with Chip since he came to Chattanooga. I have experienced how he seeks out private business leaders, elected community leaders, and interested individuals when needing to solve challenges that arise. Ive witnessed his level headed approach to solve many difficult tasks. He has developed many relationships in our community that have given him great insights and perspectives in a multitude of the important matters of Hamilton County. I appreciate Chips analytical mind - by breaking problems into working pieces - he is able to find solutions that work for the greater good. A vote for him would be a wise vote for each individual because in all of the years that I have know him I have always known of him treating everyone he meets fairly and with respect. It doesnt matter to him about height - weight - the street you live on - political party - gender - race. Chip cares. Chip will bring his unique ability to represent the majority while never forgetting the rights of the individual. I also know Chip as a philanthropist. When I first met Chip he was proud to tell me about his mother, Mary Lou, who was given the volunteer of the year award in their hometown. This made Chip very proud and we have had many discussions about our roles in the community about volunteerism. Part of his value system includes giving back to your community and it was taught to him by example rather than lecturing. Chip has been a source of information and support for every event and cause that I have supported, however, he has also been active as a Board member for the Ronald McDonald, Make A Wish and the Childrens Advocacy Center. He is currently on the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce and the Chattanooga Convention and Visitor Bureau as well as a member of the Chattanooga Rotary Club. I was recently asked why at your age are you still volunteering for Riverbend? My answer was easy - two reasons, 1.) Chip and Karlette Baker. 2.) I love the idea that Riverbend provides almost a $30 million economic impact to the Hamilton County economy." I strongly believe that families should be off limits in political discussions of any type, however, this one time I must go against my own beliefs. Why? Not only have I worked and volunteered with Chip but I love his family as my own. Karlette and Chip are the friends that became family. They are the three oclock in the morning friends who will take you to the hospital friends or in other words- friends who would do anything in the world for you. Its not that I am special, it is because they are special in how they care for others which can be contributed to their over abundance of grace and kindness in their hearts. Their children are a source of pride. Each of them is different in his/her own way, Shea is living in the heart of New York wildly successful, Skyler living in Knoxville living his dream as an engineer and Sullivan and Sophie are still at the University of Tennessee. I always say the Bakers get their orange blood from me since I was there when each of them were born. These young people are just like Karlette and Chip. There isnt a doubt in my mind that they are the three oclock in the morning friends too. They learned that by example and not by lecture. Just as Chip did. Please vote for my friend Chip Baker. He has the experience - he has the ability to work with people from all walks of life - but most of all - he will represent you as a friend and treat you as he would want to be treated. Judy Bellenfant Taipei, July 23 : Former US Secretary of Defence Ash Carter arrived in Taiwan on Monday to address a security forum, the island's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Ash Carter, who served as Defence secretary under Barack Obama from 2015-2017, is due to deliver a speech to the Asia-Pacific Security Dialogue on Tuesday, Efe quoted a MOFA statement as saying. Carter's visit coincides with increasing cross-strait tensions over the disputed Diaoyu islands to which both Beijing and Taipei (as well as Japan) stake a sovereignty claim. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs praised Carter's visit, saying it showed the US's strong support for the island nation. During Carter's tenure in the Pentagon, the US announced an arms deal with Taiwan worth $1.83 billion, which included the sale of two frigates, anti-tank missiles, amphibious assault vehicles and other military equipment. New Delhi, July 23 : The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, 2017, which provides for allowing a court trying an offence related to cheque bouncing to direct the drawer to pay interim compensation to the complainant. Replying to a debate on the bill, Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla said: "There are 16 lakh cases of cheque bouncing still lying in subordinate courts and 35,000 cases are in higher courts." "The interim compensation may be paid under certain circumstances, including where the drawer pleads not guilty of the accusation. The compensation will not exceed 20 per cent of the cheque amount and will have to be paid by the drawer within 60 days of the trial court's order to pay such a compensation," he added. Speaking during the debate on the bill, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said: "The government while writing this bill doesn't appear to have taken into account the best practices in other countries. "In France, for example, a person who defaults on his cheque payments is added to a central register known as the FCC and he is banned from issuing any cheque for a period of five years. We could have put that to the law. This has proven to be an effective deterrent in France," said Tharoor. "Similarly, in some states in the US increased penalties were imposed if there is a second instance of a bounced cheque after the first conviction. We don't have any such provision. It is a good bill up to a point but not sufficient. Much more should be added," he said. Kalyan Baneerjee of the Trinamool Congress said: "It is undoubtedly a good endeavour, but the question is when a complaint is lodged whether a trial would take place. "As far as the parent act is concerned, sufferers would mostly be middle and lower-middle classes. Moreover, there is no time stipulated as regards in how many days the trial would be completed. He also said: "Instead of lodging a complaint, make a provision to lodge a complaint with concerned police station. When a notice would be served, immediate steps would be taken, and they (police) are appropriate persons to catch the accused." Bengaluru, July 23 : Karnataka will bring back a 40-year-old Mysuru woman under treatment at a rehab hospital in Shimla, an official statement said on Monday. "Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on being alerted about the stranded woman directed Mysuru Deputy Commissioner Abhiram G. Shankar to make necessary arrangements to bring her back to the state," a statement from the Chief Minister's Office said. As reported by the local media, 40-year-old Saraswathi from Makanahalli village in Mysuru district, went missing about two years ago when she came to Bengaluru to work in a garment factory. She had reportedly reached Himachal Pradesh's Kangra and was later admitted to the Himachal Hospital of Mental Health and Rehabilitation in Shimla for treatment in June 2016. "She could not contact her family facing language issues in Himachal and was unable to recall how she reached there," the statement added. The Chief Minister has directed the Mysuru Deputy Commissioner to provide necessary treatment and shelter on her return to the state. Srinagar, July 23 : All office-bearers of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday submitted their resignations to party President Mehbooba Mufti, a party spokesman said. The development followed the resignation of Mehbooba Mufti's maternal uncle, Sartaj Madni as PDP's Vice President. Party's spokesman Rafi Mir said all office-bearers of the party including the Vice President, General Secretaries and Treasurers have submitted their resignations to Mehbooba Mufti, adding it was "aimed at revamping the party". The PDP has been facing an internal crisis after many MLAs came out in open rebellion against Mehbooba Mufti accusing her of playing to the dictation of the coterie of relatives around her. New Delhi, July 23 : In yet another manifestation of India's growing engagements with Africa, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that India will soon open a High Commission in the East African nation of Rwanda. Stating that India and Rwanda were looking forward to further elevate their ties, Modi, while addressing the media in Rwandan capital Kigali following delegation-level talks with Rwandan President Paul Kagame, said: "We will soon open a High Commission in Rwanda." India's current High Commissioner to Rwanda has residence in Uganda. New Delhi elevated its ties with Rwanda to that of a Strategic Partnership as it sees that country as an important gateway to eastern Africa. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted that following a one-on-one meeting, Modi and Kagame held delegation level-talks "to strengthen partnership in trade and investment, capacity building, development partnership and people-to-people ties". Modi reached Kigali on Monday evening in the first leg of his three-nation our of Africa that will also take him to Uganda and South Africa. This is the first ever Prime Ministerial visit from India to Rwanda. In his address, Modi appreciated the steps for peace that have been adopted in Rwanada following the mass genocide in that country in 1994. Around 500,000 to one million people were killed in the mass genocide against the Tutsi people by the majority Hutu government of tha time. "For us, it is a matter pride that India is a trusted development partner of Rwanda," Modi said. "We have been helping Rwanda in capacity building, infrastructure development and ICT," he said. Following the bilateral talks, the two sides several agreements, including in the areas of defence, agriculture and dairy production. On his part, Kagame, in his address to the media, said that both sides discussed a range of bilateral, regional and global issues. He also thanked India for its development aid cooperation with Rwanda. Trieste (Italy), July 24 : Fincantieri will build two new cruise ships for Carnival Corporation - the biggest ever to be constructed in Italy and which will be primarily fuelled by Liquified Natural Gas, the world's cleanest fossil fuel, the company said on Monday. Fincantieri's chief executive Giuseppe Bono said the industry was entering a new era "increasingly aimed at reducing the environmental impact". "We proudly do this with an all-time record project, both in terms of size and technological level," said Bono. Fincantieri's Molfalcone yard is scheduled to deliver the 175,000 gross tonne vessels in late 2023 and in the spring of 2025 under the agreement signed between the Italian shipbuilder and Princess Cruises, brand of Carnival Corporation, Fincantieri stated. "This revolutionary platform for next-generation, LNG-powered cruise ships will introduce innovative design and leisure experiences driven by the future vacation and lifestyle trends of our guests," said Princess Cruises president Jan Swartz. Sixty-five of the 85 cruise ships Fincantieri has built since 1990 have been for different brands of the US-based Carnival Group, which Bono said is the biggest foreign investor in Italy. The two new cruise liners will each accommodate approximately 4,300 guests and will be first Princess Cruises' ships to be dual-fuel powered primarily by LNG, significantly reducing air emissions and marine gasoil, said Fincantieri Fincantieri decribes itself as the leading Western shipbuilder and one of the world's largest shipbuilding groups. It excels in cruise ship design and construction and all high-tech shipbuilding industry sectors, including high-complexity special vessels and ferries to mega-yachts, ship repairs and conversions, systems and components production and after-sales services. Headquartered in the northeast city of Trieste, Fincantieri employs over 19,500 people, of whom more than 8,300 in Italy, and has 20 shipyards in four continents. Besides major cruise operators, its clients include the Italian and the US Navy and some of the main European defence companies. It has built more than 7,000 vessels. New Delhi, July 24 : India has extended lines of credit (LoCs) worth $200 million to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the first Indian diplomatic mission will be opened in the East African nation. India and Rwanda signed an agreement of $100 million for development of industrial parks and expansion of Special Economic Zones, and a similar amount for an agriculture irrigation scheme in that African nation, following delegation-level talks between Modi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Monday in Kigali. Stating that India and Rwanda were looking forward to further elevate their ties, Modi, while addressing the media with Kagame, said: "Today, we signed agreements for $200 million for lines of credit and in the area of training." Modi reached Kigali on Monday evening in the first leg of his three-nation tour of Africa that will also take him to Uganda and South Africa. This is the first ever Prime Ministerial visit from India to Rwanda. Modi also announced that India will open a new High Commission in Rwanda in what can be seen as yet another manifestation of India's increasing engagements with Africa. "This will not only facilitate close communication among our governments, it will also help in consular, passport, visa and other facilities," he said. India's current High Commissioner to Rwanda has residence in Uganda. In his address, Modi appreciated the steps for peace that have been adopted in Rwanda following the mass genocide in that country in 1994. Around 500,000 to one million people were killed in the mass genocide against the Tutsi people by the majority Hutu government of that time. "For us, it is a matter pride that India is a trusted development partner of Rwanda," Modi said. "We have been helping Rwanda in capacity building, infrastructure development and ICT," he said. Following Monday's bilateral talks, the two sides signed eight agreements, including in the areas of defence, agriculture and dairy production, trade and leather and allied sectors. On his part, Kagame, in his address to the media, said that both sides discussed a range of bilateral, regional and global issues. He also thanked India for its development aid cooperation with Rwanda. This is Modi's second visit to mainland Africa after he visited Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya in 2016. Over the last few years, there has been significant engagement in various fields with African countries. There have been 23 outgoing visits to Africa by the President, Vice President and Prime Minister in the last four years. Washington, July 24 : The White House has said National Security Advisor John Bolton will meet his Russian counterpart in August to follow up the earlier meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a press briefing on Monday, White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said that "Bolton plans to have a meeting -- a follow-up with his counterpart from Russia next month, in addition to meetings with other European allies to further those discussions", Xinhua reported. When asked to name the deliverables of Trump's meeting with Putin on July 16 in Finland, Sanders said "the only specific agreement that was made was that the two national security teams from both the United States and Russia would continue at a working level, these discussions." She refused to give further details on the agenda, aim and other participants of Bolton's upcoming meeting. Sanders said last week that Trump has asked Bolton, who had visited Russia prior to his meeting with Putin, to invite the Russian president to Washington in autumn, and the relative discussions "are already underway." Earlier on Monday, Trump bombarded the negative media coverage of his meeting with Putin, tweeting he had given up "NOTHING." "All that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING," he said. "We merely talked about future benefits for both countries. Also, we got along very well." Trump has been widely attacked after his meeting with Putin, due to his reconciliatory remarks that many saw as a sign to side with Moscow against US intelligence community's conclusion that Russia meddled in the 2016 US elections. EXPERT OBSERVER New housing supply is simply not expanding affordable housing opportunities for the poor in a way that reduces the homelessness count. We argue that this is due to certain barriers that prevent new supply from filtering down to low-income groups. Politicians and economists often claim a housing supply crisis is to blame for the lack of affordable housing in Australia. They say increases in housing stock are failing to keep pace with population growth. In a 2017 address to the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, Treasurer Scott Morrison said: " for certain Australian households, housing affordability is an issue regardless of where they live due to economic reasons However, in Sydney and Melbourne where supply has failed to keep pace with rising demand, the problem is far more acute The principal cause of declining housing affordability is the failure of housing supply to adjust to increased demand" Yet housing approval data from the Australian Bureau of Statics show the growth in housing stock has actually outpaced rates of population increase in all Australian capital cities. Between 2005-06 and 2014-15, housing stock has expanded by over 22% while population growth has lagged behind at 19%. Despite this, median residential property prices nearly doubled in the same period. How it should work in theory Increasing housing stock only works to make housing more affordable if certain filtering processes occur. This is how it looks if the number of new homes increases while the number of households stays fixed or increases at a slower pace. Those in higher-income households may wish to upgrade to a newer, more expensive house. The established home they vacate would be more appealing to other households if it falls in price. This would then make it affordable to a middle-income household. And the home this middle-income household will vacate would then also fall in value and become affordable for a lower-income household. Eventually, affordable housing opportunities would trickle down to the homeless, and the homelessness count would decline. But, in Australia, homelessness is on the rise. Back in 2006, fewer than 90,000 people were homeless. Within a decade, that number has climbed by nearly one-third, to more than 116,000 people a 10% increase. The number of homeless people in NSW has increased more than any other state. New South Wales has fared the worst. The number of homeless people in NSW has soared by 70% between 2006 and 2016. With the exception of the Northern Territory, all other states and territories witnessed an increase in homelessness in this period. So, despite the rise in housing stock, most states and territories have failed to contain, never mind reverse, the rise in homelessness over the last decade. Why are the filtering processes not working? Barriers to affordability Deregulation of Australian financial markets and tax concessions have combined to make residential property an attractive investment, especially for higher-income households. So a higher-income earner would gain an additional property rather than swapping one for the other and leaving the vacated one affordable for the next in line. And if a substantial share of new housing is being purchased as holiday homes or investments, this can stifle the trickle down of affordable housing opportunities. The recent growth in net overseas migration is a likely barrier as well. Between 2004 and 2015, net overseas migration climbed by 30%, from 138,800 to 181,050. This has outstripped the 22% housing stock growth rate over roughly the same period. While migration is included in overall population numbers, in this case, the houses migrants are vacating to move to Australia remain in their home country. So this doesnt contribute to the filtering process. Transaction costs (mainly high stamp duties) can deter people from trading up, or downsizing. Transaction costs are a drag on resident movements and suppress housing stock turnover. Finally, land and building regulations can play a role. Elderly people who may wish to downsize from a family home to an apartment usually want to live in the same neighbourhood. Yet planning interventions may prevent the construction of units in the suburbs downsizers would prefer. Until these barriers are lowered, simply increasing new housing supply cannot be the silver bullet that fixes homelessness and the housing affordability concerns of the Australian population. Rachel Ong, Professor of Economics, School of Economics and Finance, Curtin University Gavin Wood, Emeritus Professor of Housing and Housing Studies, RMIT University This article was originally published on The Conversation. The Manly NRL star Daly Cherry-Evans is selling his Mermaid Beach investment property. It wasn't planned to be an investment for the Manly-based Sea Eagles skipper, who bought it in May 2015 when he had signed a four year deal with the Gold Coast Titans. A few days after he exchanged on the property he backflipped and instead signed an eight year extension with the Sea Eagles, keeping him at Brookie. The Gold Coast home quickly became a $1,300 a week rental. The 1970s beach house had cost Cherry-Evans $1.45 million. Set 250 metres from Nobby Beach, it has four bedrooms and three bathrooms. There's a parents retreat with its own balcony, ensuite and walk in wardrobe. The living and dining areas open to the outdoor entertaining spaces overlooking a swimming pool (pictured above) on its 405 sqm Petrel Avenue parcel. LJ Hooker Broadbeach agent Matt Conduit is marketing the home with $1.75 million price guidance. The listing comes soon after DCE made a match-winning contribution to Queensland's game III win after years of State of Origin exile. He has been at Manly since 2011, where the 29 year old is now approaching 200 games for the northern beaches club. He's based nearby with his long-time partner Vessa Rockliff in a $1,355,000 Curl Curl home. The Sea Eagles are set to miss out on finals footy for the third time in four seasons. This article was first published in The Saturday Telegraph GUEST OBSERVATION Australias population is set to reach 25 million in the coming weeks. This is much earlier than expected. Eighteen years ago, projections estimated Australias population wouldnt get to 25 million until 2041. Western Australian Liberal Senator Dean Smith last week proposed a moratorium on immigration to give Australia some time to breathe and take stock. Claiming concerns over planning and infrastructure failing to meet population needs, Smith signalled Australia was unprepared, having relied on inaccurate population projections. Immigration is often targeted when population levels seem out of control. But will a moratorium give Australia the supposed breathing space it needs? Migration impacts Concerns about immigration and a perceived population crisis have crossed over the spectrum of Australian politics. One Nations Pauline Hanson has called for a plebiscite on immigration, while Labor leader Bill Shorten has raised concerns about the number of temporary migrants in Australia. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has said a cut to immigration numbers would have economic benefits, contradicting Treasurer Scott Morrison. And Smiths idea to halt immigration to allow the nations infrastructure time to catch up with population demand is shared by prominent public figures, including Bob Carr and Dick Smith. Australias population is ageing, which has potential adverse consequences for the future as proportionally more people exit the workforce, increasing reliance on a shrinking income taxpayer base. Immigration has the potential to offset these consequences of population ageing by contributing to the workforce and to government funds for essential services. Migrants also contribute to Australias future population by having children. The latest available research suggests immigration levels at about 160,000 and 210,000 seem to have the best impact by 2050 on ageing of the population and the rate of growth of GDP per capita. Current ABS projections provide an opportunity to examine what Australias demographic composition could look like if net overseas migration was zero, 200,000 (low), 240,000 (middle) or 280,000 (high) per year. Based on 2011 census data, and medium-range assumptions for fertility and life expectancy, the 2013 (medium range) projections are tracking well with current estimates. These projections provide an indication of the impact of migration, measured as net overseas migration. Net overseas migration reflects the balance of incoming and outgoing movements and includes both permanent and temporary migration. The four ABS scenarios show varying population numbers over the medium to long term. The higher the net overseas migration level, the bigger the population over the projected years. Interestingly, though, while zero net overseas migration would result in a reduction in population by the year 2070, the population would still continue to grow in the medium term due to natural increase (births minus deaths). Population composition is an important indicator to consider, rather than size alone. Age distribution is essential to understanding the fiscal opportunities and challenges a population faces. Comparing the four net overseas migration scenarios illustrates the important contribution migration makes to Australia. The so-called dependency burden the ratio of the number of children (0-14 years old) and older people (65 years or over) to the working-age population (15-64 years old) is higher for zero and low net migration levels. The current rate of net migration provides the middle ground in balancing population age structure and growth. Population projections Planners need to know expected population size and growth to ensure adequate services and provisions. The ABS has produced projections for national and sub-national populations since 1950. Population inquiries throughout Australias history have consistently called on such statistics to enable the countrys responsiveness and preparedness to accommodate numbers. Australia hasnt set any population targets, mainly to avoid coercive population measures (such as mandating birth rates) and to allow flexibility in government policy, particularly around immigration intake. Estimating population size and growth into the future is about what might be (projection) and not what will be (forecast). So population projections are not predictions; theyre calculations of potential future populations based on assumptions about possible births, deaths and migration. The best-before-date for population projections is considered to be around 5-10 years from the initial base year of calculation. This is why projections should be regularly updated based on best available population data (the census and vital statistics) to ensure assumptions reflect births, deaths and migration trends. Australia is one part of the global community. Cutting immigration to Australia will impact the demographic composition of the country, with consequences for the working-age population and income tax base. Any changes to the migration program should be considered alongside evidence. Available evidence shows Australias current migration program intake (190,000) is about right for Australia. Australia doesnt need a moratorium. What we need is a respectful, open and evidence-based population discussion. Liz Allen, Demographer, ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods, Australian National University This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Christine Farina, an educator for over twenty-five years whose visit to Cambodia on a teachers program inspired her, has completed her new book Journey to Angkor: a moving story of Little Cambodia and refugees struggling between their past, their present, and their future. Author Farina writes about the dying wish that sets Chandara on his course: Setting the photo down next to the Buddha, he ran his hands over the urn which held the ashes of his grandmother, the only family he had ever known. He thought about the selflessness of her life, all that she had sacrificed to give him the life he had today, and he knew what he had to do. Her journey was not over, not yet. Her last words returned again to haunt him. Chandara, you must promise to take me home. I must rest with my ancestors if I am to find my final peace. Our familys legacy, the stone, must return to Angkor. And you, my dear child, you must return to your past in order to know your true path in life. Promise me, Chandara, you must promise me that you will take our familys heritage, and me, home to Angkor. It is your destiny. The Khmer will return to Angkor when you have fulfilled this destiny. Published by New York City-based Page Publishing, Christine Farinas new book is an exploration of the inner lives of refugees, specifically those escaping Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge holocaust. Ultimately, Farina is writing about hope and identity. Readers who wish to experience this riveting work can purchase Journey to Angkor at bookstores everywhere, or online at the Apple iTunes store, Amazon, Google Play, or Barnes and Noble. Ms. Farina will be having a book signing October 19 from 6:00-8:00 pm at the TalkStory Bookstore in Hanapepe, Kauai-the westernmost bookstore in the United States! For additional information or media inquiries, contact Page Publishing at 866-315-2708. About Page Publishing: Page Publishing is a traditional New York based full-service publishing house that handles all of the intricacies involved in publishing its authors books, including distribution in the worlds largest retail outlets and royalty generation. Page Publishing knows that authors need to be free to create - not bogged down with complicated business issues like eBook conversion, establishing wholesale accounts, insurance, shipping, taxes and the like. Its roster of authors can leave behind these tedious, complex and time-consuming issues, and focus on their passion: writing and creating. Learn more at http://www.pagepublishing.com. Thaddeus Wong, co-founder, @properties Mike and I have made innovation part of the DNA of @properties, and we have continuously worked to improve the products and services that allow our agents to run their businesses more productively and efficiently. Thaddeus Wong, co-founder of Chicagos No. 1 real estate brokerage firm, @properties, was honored with the Innovator of the Year award at the 2018 Inman Connect conference, held the week of July 16 in San Francisco. Inman, a real estate information and media company, based in Emeryville, Calif., produces the Inman Innovator awards program to recognize and celebrate the most innovative companies, organizations and individuals in the real estate industry. Wong and co-founder Mike Golden started @properties in 2000 and built it into the largest residential brokerage firm in the Chicago area and the 11th largest brokerage firm in the nation in less than two decades. The duo also developed one of the industrys first proprietary end-to-end technology platforms for agents, with digital tools and resources for customer relationship management, transaction management, comparative market analysis and marketing. Wong and Golden are also active investors in real estate technology, having made early-round investments in more than a half-dozen startups including: Konverse, an internal communications app; TurboAppeal, a property tax appeal platform; First.io, which uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to help agents connect with potential home sellers; and PointDrive, a presentation application that was acquired by LinkedIn. It is a huge honor to be recognized as the Inman Innovator of the Year, especially among the group of trailblazing organizations and individuals at this conference, said Wong. Mike and I have made innovation part of the DNA of @properties, and we have continuously worked to improve the products and services that allow our agents to run their businesses more productively and efficiently. Wong said the focus on technology has fueled the growth trajectory of @properties, which had over $9 billion in sales in 2017, and has achieved 20 percent market share in the city of Chicago and Chicagos North Shore market. About @properties Established in 2000, @properties is the No. 1 residential brokerage firm in Illinois and one of the top 11 residential brokers in the U.S. @properties has more than 2,450 licensed brokers in 26 offices throughout downtown Chicago, surrounding suburbs, southwest Michigan and Lake Geneva, Wisc. For more information, visit http://www.atproperties.com. Surrounded by poverty and struggling against violent extremism, Ms. Alis adopted schools provide students with a respite from the pain of daily life: she feeds and clothes hungry children and then provides an educational environment that cultivates a lifelong love of learning. California Southern University proudly marks its 40th Anniversary with the introduction of the Dr. Donald Hecht Philanthropy and Service Award. This award recognizes an individual who shares Dr. Donald Hechts life commitment to promoting human potential, international peace, enterprise, and initiative in the areas of humanitarianism, arts and culture, equity, and education. The university has named Anila Ali as the first recipient of the Dr. Donald Hecht Philanthropy and Service Award. Presented annually to a CalSouthern student, alumnus, or community member who has made a difference in his or her community through distinguished work, scholarship, innovation or service. Mrs. Ali will be presented with the award at the universitys 2018 commencement ceremony, held at the Irvine Barclay Theatre on August 4th. Born and raised in Pakistan, the daughter of Pakistans first ambassador to Great Britain, and a U.S. public school teacher for over twenty-five years, Mrs. Ali understands the vital and intimate connection between quality education and world peace. As the founder and CEO of CAL-PAK Educational Services, a U.S. nonprofit, she is committed to human potential, peace, philanthropy, and service. Mrs. Ali is dedicated to bringing accessible and affordable education to all in Pakistan who seek better lives for themselves and their families; to this end, Cal-Pak focuses on advancing partnerships between California and Pakistan universities. She is committed to bringing accredited American education to Pakistans teachers in order to increase competency by training them in the latest methodologies and philosophies. Through CAL-PAKs professional development program and public-private partnerships, they are increasing the math and reading competencies of students throughout Pakistan. Surrounded by poverty and struggling against violent extremism, Ms. Alis adopted schools provide students with a respite from the pain of daily life: she feeds and clothes hungry children and then provides an educational environment that cultivates a lifelong love of learning through rigorous academic instruction, the arts, music, drama, and sports. Her students receive an all-around education that helps them to become productive citizens of Pakistan and the world. And, all this, she does on a teachers salary. Ms. Ali is an outstanding example of a person who is committed to human potential, peace, philanthropy, and service, and is a most worthy recipient of the Dr. Donald Hecht Philanthropy and Service Award. About CalSouthern: California Southern University is a regionally accredited university, offering undergraduate and graduate online degree programs in law, business, criminal justice and law enforcement, psychology, education, and nursing to a nationwide and international student body. CalSouthern is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), 985 Atlantic Avenue, #100, Alameda, CA 94501, (510) 748-9001. To learn more about online education at CalSouthern, please visit https://www.calsouthern.edu/. Creative students who can channel their love for decorating into a home staging business have real opportunities here. Our course is designed to help them quickly build their skills in design and business so they can get started. Dr. Christine Jax, Chief Academic Officer Enrollment opened today for the Home Staging Career Diploma at Ashworth College. The course is the newest addition to the school's range of online programs in creative services. A student aspiring to become a home stager needs a foundation in the basics of design and business. The Home Staging Career Diploma course covers both areas with lessons on design topics like architectural and furniture styles, color theory, lighting, storage systems, and arranging, plus business concepts like building client relationships, developing portfolios, marketing, business management, and more. The course is certified by Designer Society of America (DSA). At the point of enrollment, Home Staging Career Diploma students will be given the option to purchase the DSA Certified Home Staging Professional (CHSP) Certification Exam at a valuable discount. Earning the CHSP designation after completing the career diploma can give graduates a professional edge by qualifying their skills according to the DSA standard. Also, upon certification, graduates earn a one-year membership with DSA at no additional cost. Real estate is booming again and everyone knows beautiful homes command higher dollars, said Ashworth College Chief Academic Officer Christine Jax. Realtors are competing for big sales and great home staging helps them do that. Creative students who can channel their love for decorating into a home staging business have real opportunities here. Our course is designed to help them quickly build their skills in design and business so they can get started. Career Diploma programs at Ashworth College are designed to give graduates the knowledge required to start small businesses or find entry-level employment. There are no pre-requisites for enrollment though a high school diploma or the equivalent is recommended. Students can complete a Career Diploma program in as few as four months. For more information about the Home Staging Career Diploma online course at Ashworth College, visit http://www.ashworthcollege.edu/career-diplomas/home-staging. About Ashworth College Ashworth College is a nationally-accredited online institution that provides flexible and affordable education to students located around the world. Areas of study include more than 125 career-focused programs in the high-demand fields of healthcare, technology, business, creative services, education, legal studies and trades. Since its founding 30 years ago, more than 300,000 students have graduated from Ashworth College with diplomas, professional certificates, associate, bachelors and masters degrees. In a 2016 survey by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission, 95 percent of graduates said they were satisfied with their studies and would recommend Ashworth College to a friend. For more information, visit http://www.ashworthcollege.edu. Ashworth College is accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC). The Distance Education Accrediting Commission is listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a recognized accrediting agency. The Distance Education Accrediting Commission is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Bill Stankiewicz, GMA Coastal Director I support Georgia manufacturing Jobs and will continue to address workforce development needs for manufacturers and supply chain centers," said Bill Stankiewicz, GMA Coastal Director. The Georgia Manufacturing Alliance (GMA) is pleased to announce the addition of Bill Stankiewicz as the Coastal Chapter Director for GMA. Mr. Stankiewicz is a Supply Chain Consultant in the Savannah area and has over 20 years experience in Industrial Facility Operations, Business Development, and Food Grade Distribution. "It is an honor to be working as the Georgia Manufacturing Alliance Coastal Director, said Bill Stankiewicz, GMA Coastal Chapter Director. I support Georgia manufacturing Jobs and will continue to address workforce development needs for manufacturers and supply chain centers. Our region is looking forward to hosting plant tours and educational events and supporting GMA with joint activities aligning with APICS, TAG, Savannah Traffic Club, Propeller Club, and Pooler Chamber of Commerce. The Georgia Manufacturing Alliance has 4 tours set up in the Savannah region on July 26 and 27th as part of their Buy From Georgia plant tour series. These tours include: Savannah Bee Plant Tour July 26 Savannah Featured as a Small Business Success Story on CNN, the Savannah Bee offers some of the worlds finest honey and beeswax body care products available. EmployAbility Tour July 26 Savannah EmployAbility provides people with disabilities vocational skills through custom screen printing, specialized assembly training, full-service catering services, and packaging assembly. Ghost Coast Distillery Tour July 26 Savannah See over 900 barrels of Vodka and Whiskey and their 17,000 sq. ft. distillery with a 500 gallon, American made, Vendome copper pot still where they produce a wide array of super-premium spirits. Daniel Defense Plant Tour July 27 Ellabell (Savannah Area) Daniel Defense is one of the largest competitors in the AR-15 firearms market, producing over 50,000 rifles per year at their 300,000 sq. ft. facility for consumers and the US Special Operations Command. Manufacturing is the largest part of Savannahs economy, with 251 manufacturing facilities in Chatham County registered in 2002 with annual payrolls exceeding $713 million. The largest plant and employer in the region is Gulfstream Aerospace which is an executive jet aircraft manufacturer. Mark Burns, CEO of Gulfstream, will be the Keynote speaker of this years Georgia Manufacturing Summit which will be held October 10th at the Cobb Galleria in Atlanta, GA. The Summit is produced by the Georgia Manufacturing Alliance and will attract over 800 industry professionals from across the state. This years theme focuses on the Aviation Industry and the broad impact it has on the manufacturing community. Eric Rojeck, VP of Sales & Marketing with Thrush Aviation, will also be a Keynote Speaker at the Summit. Over 30 industry experts will address issues important to the manufacturing community including Workforce Development, Disruptive Technologies, International Manufacturing and Supply Chain & Logistics. Bill is known as the 'supply chain guy' in the Savannah area, and we are excited to have such a well-known community leader join the Georgia Manufacturing Alliance as our Coastal Chapter Director, said Jason Moss, CEO of the Georgia Manufacturing Alliance. Bill is also on the Logistics Technology Corridor Task Force & Coastal WorkSource Board of Directors, and he is well versed in issues that affect the manufacturers in our state. About the Georgia Manufacturing Alliance: The Georgia Manufacturing Alliance (GMA) is a membership-based industry organization founded in 2008 to support Georgias manufacturing community. GMA provides monthly plant tours, educational sessions, tradeshows, and unique networking opportunities designed to help make profitable business connections for its members. The Georgia Manufacturing Directory, Georgia Manufacturing Summit, Georgia Manufacturing Calendar, and Buy From GA website are additional resources produced by GMA. To learn more about the organization, membership, and upcoming events, please call 770-338-0051 or visit their website http://www.GeorgiaManufacturingAlliance.com. SwipeSimple Basic - CardFlight's mobile point of sale solution The partnership between Boomtown and CardFlight is natural, because Boomtown is the leader in providing remarkable support to SMBs, while CardFlights payment acceptance technology was made with the needs of SMBs in mind. Boomtown, a San Francisco based provider of software and services for more efficient technology support, and CardFlight, the leading mobile POS and SaaS payment technology company, announced today that they partnered. Through this partnership, Boomtown will enable merchant acquirers and independent sales organizations (ISOs) around the United States to provide CardFlights best in class payment acceptance technology, SwipeSimple, to their merchants. The SwipeSimple product suite provides the right tools for small merchant payment acceptance needs, including: Bluetooth Low Energy card readers that support EMV Quick Chip and NFC contactless payments and are compatible with virtually any mobile device Audio jack card readers that support EMV Quick Chip payments Bring your own device mobile app and web dashboard for merchants to accept payments in-store or on the go Hardware setup for countertop merchants providing the functionality of a cash register and payment terminal combination Merchant portal for business management, reporting, business optimization, and more Virtual Terminal for merchants who want to take card not present transactions using any device Were happy to partner with CardFlight and enable acquirers, ISOs, and agents to offer SwipeSimple to their merchants along with superior support, said Alfred Chip Kahn IV, Boomtowns CEO. Our customers rely on us to provide exceptional support for their payment technology as merchant expectations continue to rise in this competitive market. CardFlight is a great partner to have because their technology exceeds expectations by combining advanced features, reliability, and simplicity. Derek Webster, CardFlights CEO and Founder, added, The partnership between Boomtown and CardFlight is natural, because Boomtown is the leader in providing remarkable support to SMBs, while CardFlights payment acceptance technology was made with the needs of SMBs in mind. Were thrilled to see the value that this collaboration will bring to merchant acquirers who rely on Boomtowns exceptional service and need to remain competitive in offering their merchants the best tools to accept payments and manage their businesses. About Boomtown: Boomtowns mission is to enable a better support experience for businesses through intelligent software and services. Through our Relay platform, teams can communicate with their customers in engaging ways, use automation to drive efficiency, and collaborate across organizations to answer questions and resolve issues fast. Boomtown also has an expert network where you can seamlessly access remote and field services to augment your existing operations. Learn more about Boomtown at http://www.goboomtown.com. About CardFlight: CardFlight is the leader in payment technology and mobile point-of-sale solutions for merchant service providers, banks, and independent sales organizations. CardFlights customers include 10 of the top 30 merchant acquirers in the US. CardFlights SwipeSimple product suite provides easy-to-use SaaS solutions for tens of thousands of merchants across all 50 states. CardFlight takes pride in building and maintaining solutions that are a step ahead of the curve in technology, reliability, and user experience. As the US leader in EMV Quick Chip enablement, CardFlight makes it easy, accessible, and secure for partners and merchants to accept payments. Learn more at https://cardflight.com/ We're fortunate to have the opportunity to establish ourselves as a presence in the Melbourne community, and we're excited to help these great local brands and entrepreneurs bring more revenue back to Australia. BVAccel, one of the original six pioneer Shopify Plus agencies and currently the largest Shopify Plus agency in the world, announced today that it has opened an office in Melbourne, Australia. Through this expansion, BVAccel will continue to focus on driving meaningful results for digital brands and will strive to partner with local Australian eCommerce merchants seeking global growth. Our expansion into Australia is a strategic accomplishment for BVAccel, and we are excited to launch our presence there with a goal of hitting the 50-employee mark within five years," said Will Fisher, Vice President of Business Expansion at BVAccel. "It's a significant step forward in establishing ourselves as one of the most capable commerce and digital marketing partners for brands worldwide. Consumers expect the opportunity to engage with brands where, when, and how they want, and we believe we can help level the global playing field for all kinds of wonderful Australian and Kiwi brands. We're fortunate to have the opportunity to establish ourselves as a presence in the Melbourne community, and we're excited to help these great local brands and entrepreneurs bring more revenue back to Australia. With a long history of working with high-growth, high-volume brands, including MVMT, RedBull, Ivory Ella, Kopari Beauty, and Cupshe, BVAccel is thrilled to have already welcomed two Australian brands to its client base, Bhumi Organic Cotton and Somerfield Beauty, and looks forward to investing locally with many more. BVAccel has worked closely with the Victorian Government to establish their APAC headquarters, with Minister for Trade and Investment, Philip Dalidakis, welcoming the fast growing eCommerce agency to Melbournes tech ecosystem. Were excited to have BVAccel joining our booming eCommerce community which includes some of the worlds largest platforms, Mr Dalidakis said. The companys strong international eCommerce and marketing services provide another opportunity for Victorian businesses to tap into vast global markets and reach their full potential through eCommerce. BVAccel is excited to make the move to Australia alongside three of their key partners, Shopify Plus, Dynamic Yield, and dotmailer. All four companies will be attending and sponsoring Online Retailer, Australias largest eCommerce event, on July 25 and July 26 in Sydney. Sign up now for a free consultation with the BVAccel team during the conference and learn how to take your eCommerce business global, or RSVP for their exclusive event, Commerce, Cocktails, and Canapes, on July 25, 2018 at Cohibar at Watershed Hotel in Sydney. About BVAccel Brand Value Accelerator (BVAccel) was one of the six pioneer Shopify Plus Partners and is currently the largest Shopify Plus agency worldwide. We work in the relentless pursuit of profit for our clients, and are an innovative, data-driven expert in the eCommerce sector that maintains impactful partnerships with Shopify Plus, Dynamic Yield, and Google. With a best-in-class technology stack, we create valuable shopping experiences that serve as the foundation of revenue acceleration, and have a full digital marketing team that specializes in Amazon services. BVAccel is headquartered in San Diego, California with offices in Columbus, OH, Los Angeles, CA, New York, NY, Tijuana, Mexico, and Melbourne, Australia. For more information visit, https://www.bvaccel.com. The Civitas-designed 100-acre Belmar Town Center in Lakewood, Colo., which includes the central piazza shown above, won an Honor Award for Excellence from International Making Cities Livable. A significant aspect of Belmars success is the quality of the public realm designed by Civitas, wrote the IMCL awards jury. Denver urban design and landscape architecture firm Civitas has won an Honor Award for Excellence for its Belmar Town Center design in Lakewood, Colorado, from the recent 55th International Making Cities Livable (IMCL) Conference in Ottawa. The award acknowledges Civitas role in transforming the derelict Villa Italia suburban mall into the lively Belmar as a preeminent example of creating a Healthy 10-minute Neighborhood the spring IMCL conference theme that refers to a neighborhood in which everyday trips such as to school, shops, services, work, recreation and public transit can be made by foot or bike within 10 minutes. A significant aspect of Belmars success is the quality of the public realm designed by Civitas, wrote the IMCL awards jury in its statement about the project. The attractiveness and walkability of the street grid combined with a park and eco-friendly street designs encourage active mobility. The lively, beautiful, and completely traffic-free plaza at the heart of the new center gives Belmar a gathering place and locus for growth of a new place-based community. Civitas principal Scott Jordan gave International Making Cities Livable event attendees deeper insight into the firms Belmar design as well as two more of the firms Denver projects the Central Platte Valley and Stapleton. In his conference session titled Reclaiming Community the River, the Shopping Mall and the Airport, Jordan shared the design process and resulting outcomes for the metamorphosis of the three neglected sites into thriving 10-minute communities. In each example, the Civitas design addresses Denvers ever-expanding population base while providing high quality of life in increasingly dense neighborhoods with a focus around transit, enhanced pedestrian experiences and a robust parks system. For the River discussion, Jordan shared Civitas strategies around revitalizing the blighted Central Platte Valley in Denver into an engaged extension of the downtown core by linking recreational amenities directly to the city. For the Airport topic, he highlighted the firms role in reimagining the 4,200-acre site of the former Stapleton International Airport to create the now beloved Denver community of Stapleton that, with its interconnected park systems and mixed-use town centers, has gained recognition worldwide for regeneration of urban brownfields. Jordan also shared Civitas collaborative role with Elkus Manfredi Architects and Denver-based developer Continuum Partners in the transformation of a dying midcentury shopping mall into the Belmar Town Center in Lakewood for which they received the IMCL conference honor award. Organized around a large public piazza that celebrates civic and social activities essential to urban life and surrounded by a mix of uses, Belmar has become its communitys cultural heart. The 100-acre site now boasts a vibrant grid of 22 new city blocks designed to encourage pedestrian traffic, promote community building and emphasize the importance of public spaces. The redevelopment provided an urban downtown for the Denver suburb of Lakewood, which previously had none. The community now has a true center that continues to grow organically as a city should, based upon the framework that we put in place, explains Civitas principal Craig Vickers, the firm's lead designer for Belmar Town Center. Of the recent award, Vickers says, Its an honor and truly satisfying to be acknowledged along with our design and development partners for the achievement of creating a place where everything is within a 10-minute walk and where people can put down roots and be proud of where they live. A national model for sustainable, smart growth projects, the Belmar Town Center has been receiving accolades since its inception, including recognition in the 2009 Publishers Award-winning book Retrofitting Suburbia. Civitas work in Stapleton, begun decades ago, also continues with the construction of the North Stapleton Open Space Plan, which won an ASLA Colorado Merit Award. When completed, the 470-acre plan, encompassing connecting parks, greenways and open space north of I-70, will introduce the most expansive native prairie grass landscape system within the Denver Parks network. And Civitas has a new Healthy 10-minute Neighborhood in the works with recently announced plans to create a lakefront town center for the Denver suburb of Broomfield. Founded in 1984 with the core purpose of creating healthier cities, Denver-based Civitas, Inc., is an idea-based practice of urban designers, architects and landscape architects engaged in strategic planning for urban change and project design for built works. Recent honors received include both the 2017 International Architecture Award and 2018 American Architecture Award from the Chicago Athenaeum/European Centre; the Canadian Institute of Planners Great Public Space; a 2017 IMCL Merit Award; and an Excellence on the Waterfront Award from the nonprofit Waterfront Center. A consultancy and a design studio, Civitas advises on a wide range of strategies for re-imagining urban life and places, working in U.S. cities coast to coast and around the world. For additional information visit civitasinc.com. Media contacts: Anne McGregor Parsons, Word PR + Marketing, anne(at)wordprmarketing(dot)com, 307.734.5335 Creativity for Kids Create with Clay Dinosaurs This craft activity kit helps children develop fine motor skills by manipulating and covering dinosaurs with clay, while at the same time fostering creativity and imagination through educational play. It is a fun activity for any age. Creativity for Kids Create with Clay Dinosaurs, manufactured by Faber-Castell USA has been honored with a 2018 Best Toys for Kids award by the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA), Faber-Castell announced today. The Best Toys for Kids Award list features toys that stretch a child's imagination, toys that invite discovery and exploration, toys that get little ones moving, toys that help kids build creativity, toys that fascinate and delight babies, and even toys that will help preteens unplug from electronic games and rediscover the joy of play. "ASTRA's top picks are fundamentally different from other industry awards. Instead of being financed by toy companies, ASTRA's list is chosen by a community of neighborhood toy store owners around the country who care deeply about quality toys," said Kimberly Mosley, President of ASTRA. "These unsung heroes of play observe kids as they interact in their stores and talk with parents about which toys sustain their child's attention and become beloved additions to their toy box." "Create with Clay Dinosaurs, along with the other winners on the 2018 Best Toys for Kids Award list, go way beyond the pre-programmed, ho-hum play of so many heavily advertised toys and give kids play that truly challenges their imagination, creativity, and other skills," continued Mosley. Creativity for Kids Create with Clay Dinosaurs kit combines art, adventure, science and FUN into one creative STEAM experience. "This craft activity kit helps children develop fine motor skills by manipulating and covering dinosaurs with clay, while at the same time fostering creativity and imagination through educational play. It is a fun activity for any age," notes Jamie Gallagher, President and CEO of Faber-Castell USA. The Best Toys for Kids Finalists will be announced tonight at the Atlanta Gift Mart at AmericasMart Atlanta on July 13. Winners will be posted at besttoys.astratoy.org. About Faber-Castell USA Faber-Castell USA is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio and is part of the global network of Faber-Castell companies in countries such as Australia, Brazil and Malaysia. Faber-Castell was founded more than 255 years ago, as a pencil manufacturer and today is known for its high-quality, professional art supplies and fine writing instruments and accessories. Faber-Castell is the leading provider of best quality creative experiences for a lifetime. Faber-Castell Children's brands include Creativity for Kids (CreativityforKids.com) and Faber-Castell Premium Children's Art Products (GreatArtStartsHere.com). For more information about Faber-Castell USA, visit FaberCastell.com. About the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) Founded in 1992, the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) is an international not-for-profit trade organization that serves more than 1,800 independent retailers, manufacturers and sales representatives in the specialty toy industry. ASTRA is a community of dedicated professionals committed to providing children with healthy, quality play materials that have high play value and are designed with a focus on what the child can do, rather than what the toy can do. ASTRA members are leaders who, through their businesses, make a positive impact on the economy and culture of the communities they serve. For more information, visit http://www.astratoy.org. Each year, a primary objective for the iaedp team is to make the Symposium as accessible as possible. Early registration is one important way we accomplish this, said Bonnie Harken, Managing Director at the iaedp Foundation. The International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals (iaedp) Foundation, which establishes the certification processes to promote standards of excellence for the field of eating disorders, announces the opening of early registration on August 1, 2018 for the 2019 iaedp Symposium. The annual iaedp Symposium, slated for February 7-10, 2019 in Palm Desert, California at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort, offers four days of training sessions and instructive presentations featuring the latest research in the field of eating disorders from U.S. and international experts. Early registration is open through December 2018 and offers discounted rates for registration and hotel rooms for a limited time on a first-come basis. The registration discounts include: for iaedp certified members, $625; for members, $675; for non-iaedp members, $750; for full-time students, $375; for retired registrants, $375; and for international registrants, $375. Discount rates for groups and one-day registrations also are available. All costs increase by $50 once early registration ends. For additional registration details, go to iaedp.com. Discounted hotel rates for the iaedp Symposium traditionally book-up quickly. Once hotels rooms are filled, discounts are not available. Each year, a primary objective for the iaedp team is to make the Symposium as accessible as possible. Early registration is one important way we accomplish this, said Bonnie Harken, Managing Director at the iaedp Foundation. About the iaedp Foundation: Since 1985, the International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals has provided education and training standards to an international and multidisciplinary group of various healthcare treatment providers and helping professions. MemberSHARE.iaedp.com is an iaedp business journal and online member resource to learn about noteworthy member achievements, continuing education webinars and U.S. and international chapter activity and events; for more information, visit MemberSHARE. The iaedp Foundations Presidents Council, which provides organization support, includes: Center for Change; Center for Hope of the Sierras; Eating Recovery Center; Laureate Eating Disorders Program; McCallum Place Eating Disorder Centers; The Meadows Ranch; Rogers Behavioral Health; Rosewood Centers for Eating Disorders; Selah House; The Renfrew Center; Timberline Knolls; and Veritas Collaborative. More information about all aspects iaedp and its 2019 Symposium can be found at iaedp.com. Eskaton, a nonprofit organization serving seniors for 50 years, focuses on innovative solutions to workforce development challenges. One area of focus is the lack of qualified caregivers to provide in-home services to the aging population and people with disabilities. It is a challenge to find enough caregivers to meet the demands of the market, said Tom Bollum, Executive Director at Live Well at Home by Eskaton. Of the 10,000 Baby Boomers who turn 65 every day, more than half will eventually need some form of long-term care. According to the Chicago Tribune, the shortage of caregivers has reached a crisis level. Providers across the country are routinely reporting they cant find and retain enough direct care workers. The Caregiver Academy is designed to attract and train those with a heart for caring, said Bollum. Attendees must first be accepted into the program. Then they will learn crucial caregiver skills, personal care, activities of daily living (ADLs), nutrition, food safety and dementia care. To pre-qualify for this free training, each applicant must first complete a California Home Care Aide registration and Live Scan. Graduates of the Live Well at Home Caregiver Academy will qualify to be hired as a caregiver though they will not be required to work for Live Well at Home, and there is no guarantee of being offered a job. However, more than 90 percent of the academys graduates choose to work with Live Well at Home following the training. We are seeing some great caregivers come out of the class, concluded Bollum. Many of the attendees are thrilled that we are willing to make an investment in them. Most agencies are only hiring experienced caregivers, and if you havent worked as a caregiver, how do you get that experience? The California Employment Development Department projects 200,000 new homecare workers will be needed by 2024. In California, the number of people over 65 is expected to grow from 5.2 million (2015) to 9 million (2030). If the home care industry expanded to cover all those who have a need for care, as many as 3.2 million additional workers will be needed by 2030. The next week-long academy starts July 23, 2018, and two more are scheduled for August. For more information about the Eskaton Caregiver Academy and to register, please visit http://livewellathome.com/home-accessibility/caregiver-academy or call (916) 878-4730. About Eskaton The Sacramento region is home to Eskaton, a nonprofit senior care provider offering innovative housing, healthcare and social services. Every day thousands of older adults enjoy retirement at our independent senior living communities and receive the care they need through assisted living, skilled nursing, memory care, rehabilitation and in-home care programs. With five decades of experience and a national reputation for innovation, Eskaton is Transforming the Aging Experience. For more information, please call 1-866-ESKATON, or visit http://www.eskaton.org/. About the NALA The NALA offers small and medium-sized businesses effective ways to reach customers through new media. As a single-agency source, the NALA helps businesses flourish in their local community. The NALAs mission is to promote a business relevant and newsworthy events and achievements, both online and through traditional media. The information and content in this article are not in conjunction with the views of the NALA. For media inquiries, please call 805.650.6121, ext. 361. The 12th-annual Global Wellness Summit will be held at Technogym Village, Cesena, Italy from October 6-8, 2018. I believe we need to come together to transform healthcare as we know it, recreating a system that can sustain many generations. I look forward to exploring what this collaboration will look like and how the medical and wellness industries can come together to better serve the world. The Global Wellness Summit (GWS), the foremost gathering of international leaders in the $3.7 trillion global wellness economy, today announced this years conference will prominently feature discussion and debate about the state of healthcare around the globe and how wellness and prevention could contribute most successfully. Delegates will gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and obstacles in changing and reforming struggling healthcare systems. Dr. Mark Britnell, Global Healthcare Practice Chairman and a Senior Partner at KPMG International, will present a keynote entitled In Search of the Perfect Health Care System, which will lead to further discussions during the conference in Cesena, Italy (October 6-8, 2018). As one of the foremost global experts, Britnell has unparalleled credentials and experience when it comes to understanding what is workingand what isnt in our fast-changing and challenging world. Marks insight into the healthcare landscape is unequaledhe has spent considerable time working within the healthcare industries of 75 different countries, gaining first-hand experience that shapes his unique perspective, said Susie Ellis, GWS chairman and CEO. Though Mark readily admits that there is no perfect system, he intimately understands the challenges that face every clinician, executive and patient. His vision of better public health services closely aligns with the fundamental principles of wellnessand its keen focus on prevention. Britnells book, In Search of the Perfect Health Care System, looks at 25 healthcare systems around the globeincluding the political, social and economic context of each country, as well as its healthcare policies and practices. His book, which has sold in over 30 countries, was recognized as the best health book by the Chinese Medical Doctors Association in 2017 and received a similar honor from the British Medical Association in 2016. Prevention is one of the greatest healthcare challenges we faceand is an area where the marriage between healthcare and wellness really shines, said Britnell. I believe we need to come together to transform healthcare as we know it, recreating a system that can sustain many generations. I look forward to exploring what this collaboration will look like and how the medical and wellness industries can come together to better serve the world. At last years Summit, the Global Wellness Institute (GWI), the non-profit research and educational resource, announced its Wellness Moonshot: A World Free of Preventable Diseasea call-to-action to unite health and wellness industries in a common commitment to this pressing issue. Britnells participation in the Summit comes at the behest of the GWI and Dr. Richard Carmona, 17th Surgeon General of the United States and current Chief of Health Innovation for Canyon Ranch, who has taken a leadership role in bringing stakeholders from both the private and public sectors to coordinate, collaborate and commit to the Wellness Moonshot. According to the World Health Organization preventable non-communicable diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, diabetes and mental health disorders, are responsible for 36 million deaths each year and are the biggest cause of death worldwide. And the global cost of largely preventable chronic disease could reach $47 trillion by 2030, according to the World Economic Forum. Britnell has dedicated his entire professional life to healthcare, having spent 20 years working within the UKs National Health System (NHS); he was on the NHS Management Board before moving to KPMG. He is also a member of the Global Agenda Council on the Future of the Health Sector for the World Economic Forum. Britnell also has unique experience as a patient himself, having survived prostate cancer at the age of 42 and all royalties from the sale of his book are donated to Prostate Cancer UK, where he also serves as a board member. The Global Wellness Summit is the worlds leading conference on the business of wellness and always a sold-out event. To apply to attend, click here. About the Global Wellness Summit: The Global Wellness Summit is an invitation-only international gathering that brings together leaders and visionaries to positively shape the future of the $3.7 trillion global wellness economy. Held in a different location each year, Summits have taken place in the U.S., Switzerland, Turkey, Bali, India, Morocco, Mexico and Austria. The 12th-annual Summit will be held at Technogym Village, Cesena, Italy from October 6-8, 2018. This June, First Alert held its 60 Years of Thank Yous sweepstakes to mark the 60th anniversary of the companys founding. First Alert is helping fire departments nationwide make their communities safer from the dangers of both fire and carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning by donating thousands of alarms. First Alert, the most trusted brand in home safety*, is helping fire departments nationwide make their communities safer from the dangers of both fire and carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning by donating thousands of alarms. This June, First Alert held its 60 Years of Thank Yous sweepstakes to mark the 60th anniversary of the companys founding. 60 fire departments were randomly selected from hundreds of entrants to win 60 smoke or CO alarms to help with community risk reduction initiatives. The winning fire departments represent a wide array of entries from both municipal and volunteer fire departments coast to coast: Arkansas Bussey-Sharman Volunteer Fire Department Diaz Fire Department Higginson Volunteer Fire Department Colorado Denver Fire Department Connecticut Sherman Volunteer Fire Department Georgia DeKalb County Fire Rescue McRae-Helena Fire Department Illinois Astoria Fire Department City of East Moline Fire Department Elgin Fire Department Gilman Fire Department Glendale Fire Protection District Lena Fire Protection District Little Wabash Fire Protection District Marengo Fire Protection District Normal Fire Department Oregon Fire Protection District Otto Township Fire Protection District South Beloit Fire Department Spring Valley Fire Department Western Springs Department of Fire and EMS Wheeling Fire Department Winfield Fire Protection District Indiana Chesterton Fire Department Iowa Holland Fire Department Ladora Volunteer Fire Department Morning Sun Fire Department Tipton Fire and Rescue, Inc. Kentucky Danville Fire Department Haynes Knob Fire Department Versailles Fire & Rescue Watts-Caney Volunteer Fire Department Wolfcoal Volunteer Fire Department Louisiana Lafourche Fire District #1 Volunteers Ville Platte Fire Department Maine Veazie Fire Department Mississippi Philipp Volunteer Fire Department Nebraska Morse Bluff Volunteer Fire Department Schuyler Fire and Rescue New Jersey Washington Township Fire Department New York Chautauqua Fire Department City of Plattsburgh Fire Department Downsville Fire Department La Fargeville Volunteer Fire Department Schoharie Fire Department West Brighton Fire Protection District North Carolina Northwest Harnett Volunteer Fire Department Rutherfordton Fire & Rescue North Dakota Spirit Lake Fire Department Ohio Felicity-Franklin Fire and EMS Munson Fire Department Somerset-Reading Township Volunteer Fire Department Pennsylvania Jenkins Township Fire Department Lehighton Fire Department Pleasant Valley Volunteer Fire Company Sharpsburg Volunteer Fire Department Texas Burkburnett Volunteer Fire Department Cy-Fair Volunteer Fire Department Washington Spokane Valley Fire Department Wisconsin Crivitz Fire Department Throughout our history, we have been fortunate to work with local fire departments and safety officials across the country to help spread awareness of the dangers of smoke and carbon monoxide, said Tarsila Wey, director of marketing at First Alert. To celebrate our 60th anniversary, we wished to thank these invaluable partners by equipping them with alarms to help them continue the great work they do in their community. Why It Matters According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), three out of every five home fire deaths result from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.** The NFPA recommends installing smoke and CO alarms on each level of the home and in or near every sleeping area. Once alarms are installed, they must be properly maintained by regular testing and cleaning. Homeowners should replace smoke alarms every 10 years and carbon monoxide alarms every five to 10 years depending on the model. Another critical component of home safety is having and frequently practicing an escape plan. As part of this plan, it is important to identify two ways out, have a designated meeting area and ensure everyone knows how to call 911. For more tips on fire and carbon monoxide safety, visit the First Alert website at http://www.firstalert.com. ### *First Alert Brand Trust Survey, February 2018 Results are based on the responses of 1,000 adults, ages 25 and older, living in the United States who completed an online survey, February 15-19, 2018. Results are statistically significant at a 95 percent confidence level and can be generalized to the entire adult population in the United States within those statistical parameters. For more information or a copy of the complete survey results, contact Tim Young at LCWA: 312/565-4628 or tyoung@lcwa.com. **National Fire Protection Association Smoke Alarms in U.S. Home Fires Report, September 2015 About BRK Brands, Inc. BRK Brands, Inc. (Aurora, IL), is a fully owned subsidiary of Newell Brands. For 60 years, BRK Brands, Inc. has been the manufacturer of First Alert-branded home-safety products, the most trusted and recognized safety brand in America. BRK Brands designs and develops innovative safety solutions including Tundra Fire Extinguishing Spray, Onelink by First Alert smart home products, a comprehensive line of smoke alarms, carbon monoxide alarms, fire extinguishers and escape ladders to protect what matters most. Such products are also marketed under the BRK Electronics brand, The Professional Standard for the builder and contractor audiences. BRK Brands, Inc. products are found in more than 30 countries worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.firstalert.com, http://www.brkelectronics.com or http://www.newellbrands.com. About Newell Brands Newell Brands (NYSE: NWL) is a leading global consumer goods company with a strong portfolio of well-known brands, including Paper Mate, Sharpie, Dymo, EXPO, Parker, Elmers, Coleman, Jostens, Marmot, Rawlings, Oster, Sunbeam, FoodSaver, Mr. Coffee, Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Graco, Baby Jogger, NUK, Calphalon, Rubbermaid, Contigo, First Alert, Waddington and Yankee Candle. For hundreds of millions of consumers, Newell Brands makes life better every day, where they live, learn, work and play. This press release and additional information about Newell Brands are available on the companys website, http://www.newellbrands.com. 2018 BRK Brands, Inc., Aurora, IL 60504. All rights reserved. BRK Electronics is a registered trademark of BRK Brands, Inc., Aurora, IL 60504. NYSE is a registered service mark of NYSE Group, Inc. Flordia International University Selects Portfolium Badging and Pathways "As an active current user of Portfoliums ePortfolios, we foresee the expansion as an answer to bridging the gap between Academic Affairs and Career Services and centralizing the education-to-workforce student pathway, says Bridgette Cram, Director of Academic Programs and Partnerships at FIU. Florida International University (FIU) has selected Portfoliums Student Success platform and BadgeLink technology to provide 56,000+ students with the ability to earn digital badges for competencies gained in the classroom and learning pathways then display those credentials in a lifelong ePortfolio searchable by employers. FIU plans to utilize Portfoliums BadgeLink to provide students with the ability to display their validated skills and achievements in a portable and accessible ePortfolio by using digital badges. These badges will be issued with fully-transparent metadata and tied to curricular and co-curricular assessment. Through fully customizable pathways, students and educators will be able to track learning progress in personalized journeys that can directly guide a student from the classroom into a career. As an active current user of Portfoliums ePortfolios, we foresee the expansion as an answer to bridging the gap between Academic Affairs and Career Services and centralizing the education-to-workforce student pathway, says Bridgette Cram, Director of Academic Programs and Partnerships at FIU. BadgeLink will give our students a leg up on the competition when they enter the workforce, prepared to talk about and display their competencies confidently. As the earliest adopter of Portfoliums Student Success platform in Florida, and one of the ten largest institutions in the country, FIU plans to set an example in higher education as a leader of student-centered technology innovation. Along with a campus-wide rollout, FIU looks forward to providing digital badging and concurrent learning pathways as a First Year Experience (FYE) initiative to transition students into their first year at FIU, through their academic lifecycle and beyond as alumni. Students arent the only to benefit from the Student Success platform, as FIU faculty will find seamless integration with their current learning management system (LMS), Canvas by Instructure, which will connect data typically inaccessible in the LMS to a students public and lifelong ePortfolio. Using that data, FIU will be able to perform course, program, and institution wide learning outcomes assessment. Our priority at Portfolium is to create the connection between learning and opportunity for students, while simultaneously allowing for student-centered assessment practices for faculty, said Troy Markowitz, VP of Academic Partnerships at Portfolium, Over time this has proven to be the most efficient framework for Student Success and we are proud to provide that to FIU. ABOUT PORTFOLIUM: Portfolium is the worlds fastest growing Student Success Network. 3,600+ colleges, universities and high schools use Portfolium to manage and align competency assessment, student success, and career readiness programs. Portfoliums academic solutions plug students into an open ecosystem of employers, mentors, educators, and peers around the world. Our 4M+ users are linked to internships, jobs, and lifelong learning opportunities via ePortfolios that showcase their proven competencies. To learn more about Portfolium's network for learners and solutions for educators, visit: https://portfolium.com ABOUT FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY: Florida International University is classified by Carnegie as a R1: Doctoral Universities - Highest Research Activity and recognized as a Carnegie Community Engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offer bachelors, masters and doctoral programs in fields such as business, engineering, computer science, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Floridas anchor institutions, FIU contributes almost $9 billion each year to the local economy. The university received honors in all categories of The Chronicle of Higher Educations 2017 Great Colleges to work for. FIU graduates are consistently among the highest paid college graduates in Florida and are among the leaders of public and private organizations throughout South Florida. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission with multiple state-of-the-art research facilities including the Wall of Wind Research and Testing Facility, FIUs Medina Aquarius Program and the Advanced Materials Engineering Research Institute. FIU has awarded more than 220,000 degrees and enrolls more than 56,000 students in two campuses and centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, the Miami Beach Urban Studios, and Tianjin, China. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and more than 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/ Dr. Tom Biernacki Foot Doctor Tom Biernacki was recently brought on staff to assist as an attending physician and podiatrist at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. Dr. Tom Biernacki is on staff at St. Joseph Mercy Brighton Mi, St. Joseph Howell Mi and St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor Mi. Foot doctor Tom Biernacki was recently brought on staff to assist as an attending physician and podiatrist at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. Dr. Tom Biernacki is on staff at St. Joseph Mercy Brighton Mi, St. Joseph Howell Mi and St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor Mi. Dr. Tomasz Biernacki states: " I am extremely pleased to be training the next wave of podiatric physicians and surgeons in our area. I definitely learn just as much from them as they can learn from me. Most people don't realize but being part of a residency teaching program forces you to always prepare and read current techniques and studies. These are amazing and well trained residents definitely always keep you on your toes." Foot doctors and the foot doctor residency training program has become an integral component of the community. Foot doctors are no longer simply providing basic foot care, but preventing the loss of limbs and chronic pain. Dr. Biernacki states " The majority of residents now take the MCAT, they complete 4 years of medical school, 4 years of college, 3 or more years of a surgical residency and sometimes fellowship. These students have amazing grades and are A+ students coming out of college. I am proud to say that the residents we have here at St. Joseph Ann Arbor are some of the best students in the country coming to work with us." A question commonly arises asking the difference between podiatrists and orthopedic surgeons. The difference is podiatrists specifically focus on the foot and ankle. Podiatrists do not spend specific time practicing surgery for the back, arms, neck, hips or knees. The vast majority of the training peiod is focused only on the foot and the ankle. This allows podiatrists to focus on one specific area in an ever more specialized world. Podiatrists are still required to take the MCAT, to complete a full 4 year medical degree, a full 4 year college degree and at minimum a 3 year surgical residency. Most podiatrists now pursue post residency training and also are board certified and qualified in surgery. This means that after residency podiatrists are trained and questioned by a specialized panel that routinely grades their surgical results. The residency at St. Joseph Ann Arbor is considered a top residency in Michigan and in the country. The St. Joseph Ann Arbor and St. Mary Mercy Residency program accepts 3 qualified residents per year. The criteria include excellent people skills and excellent overall grades and medical school performance. Dr. Tomasz Biernacki himself trained at St. Marcy Mercy Hospital and St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. Dr. Biernacki has completed specialized fellowships in foot, diabetic and ankle surgery to improve patient outcomes in Brighton Michigan, Howell Michigan and Dexter Michigan. Dr. Biernacki is a practicing podiatrist that can be reached through our website at Advanced Foot and Ankle Specialists of Michigan. Morrison & Foerster, a leading global law firm, is pleased to announce that John E. Smith has joined the firm in Washington, D.C., as a co-head of its National Security Practice, and a partner in its Global Risk + Crisis Management Group and Investigations + White Collar Group. Mr. Smith will also spend substantial time in the firms European and Tokyo offices. After serving 11 years as a top official in the U.S. Treasury Departments Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), including the past three years as OFAC Director, Mr. Smith brings to Morrison & Foerster unmatched experience in economic sanctions, enforcement, and national security. Over the last decade, Mr. Smith was centrally involved in all aspects of developing, implementing, and enforcing U.S. government sanctions laws. As OFAC Director, he oversaw every OFAC enforcement case against global financial institutions and corporations. Mr. Smith played a pivotal role as OFAC moved to the center of the U.S. response to the worlds most complex and challenging national security and foreign policy crises, working closely with other governments and multilateral agencies, as well as the private sector. John will be an invaluable resource to senior leaders of our clients in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Latin America on the complexities and escalating risk of U.S. and multilateral economic sanctions. They will benefit from his unique perspective on how to navigate significant civil and criminal enforcement actions by U.S. and other government prosecutors and regulators, said Larren Nashelsky, chair of Morrison & Foerster. Johns joining us also further expands our elite group of litigators in Washington, D.C. and around the firm to meet the increasingly complex and expanding investigation, defense, and regulatory needs of our clients, including the new frontiers of sanctions enforcement in the digital economy. Among other things during his time at OFAC, Mr. Smith: Supervised the investigation, preparation, strategy, and settlement of dozens of major enforcement cases for hundreds of millions of dollars involving apparent sanctions and export control violations by global financial institutions and corporations; Led the development and imposition of some of the most significant sanctions ever involving Iran, Russia, North Korea, Syria, supporters of terrorism, weapons of mass destruction proliferators, malicious cyber actors, transnational criminal organizations, and narcotics traffickers; and Acted for a period as the Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI), overseeing economic sanctions, illicit finance, and anti-money laundering (AML) efforts by OFAC and other TFI components, including the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). John has leading expertise on U.S. sanctions, AML, and export controls cases and policies. We are delighted that John has come to MoFo and that our clients will gain from his insights with respect to sanctions advice and counseling, compliance, and investigations and enforcement, in the United States and globally, said Nick Spiliotes, co-chair of the firms National Security Practice. While at OFAC, Mr. Smith and his team worked closely with Morrison & Foerster partner John Carlin, former Assistant Attorney General for the U.S. Department of Justices (DOJ) National Security Division, to prosecute major sanctions and export controls matters, including significant civil and criminal penalties against major global actors and noteworthy cases against malicious cyber actors. With Mr. Smith and Mr. Carlin, the firm has the two most experienced enforcement officials covering both the civil and criminal sides of the U.S. governments sanctions and export controls investigations and enforcement actions. The U.S. governments new sanctions enforcement, with its intensified focus on Russia, Iran, China and North Korea, is having an unprecedented impact on U.S. and global financial institutions and operating companies, said Mr. Carlin, co-chair of the firms National Security Practice. I know from my experience working with John in government that there is no one who is better positioned to help companies navigate the new sanctions environment. Mr. Smith added: MoFo is renowned as a great place to work and has an impressive platform that includes a rapidly growing national security practice, industry-leading enforcement and white collar capabilities, and a roster of major financial institution and global operating company clients. I look forward to working with my talented new colleagues, including other lawyers who have joined MoFo from the U.S. government in recent years and the firms deep bench of white collar litigators, to advise and assist clients on complex sanctions, AML, and export controls matters. Prior to his 11-year tenure at OFAC, Mr. Smith served for five years at the DOJ. He becomes the latest member of a highly experienced and effective team of former senior federal and state prosecutors and regulators at Morrison & Foerster. Earlier this month, the firm announced that Lisa Phelan, former Chief of the National Criminal Enforcement and Washington Criminal I Sections of the Antitrust Division at the DOJ, had become a partner in its Global Antitrust Law Practice and Investigations + White Collar Group. Other senior U.S. government officials who have come to Morrison & Foerster in Washington D.C. in recent years to further build regulatory, compliance, and investigations practices include John Carlin,Bob Litt and David Newman to grow the firms Global Risk & Crisis Management Group and National Security Practice, and Chuck Duross and James Koukios to expand the firms FCPA and Anti-Corruption Practice. ABOUT MOFO We are Morrison & Foerster a global firm of exceptional credentials. Our clients include some of the largest financial institutions, investment banks, Fortune 100, and technology and life sciences companies. The Financial Times has named the firm to its lists of most innovative law firms in Northern America and Asia every year that it has published its Innovative Lawyers Reports in those regions. In the past few years, Chambers USA has honored MoFos Privacy and Data Security, Bankruptcy, and IP teams with Firm of the Year awards, the Corporate/M&A team with a client service award, and the firm as a whole as Global USA Firm of the Year. Our lawyers are committed to achieving innovative and business-minded results for our clients, while preserving the differences that make us stronger. The firm also has a long history of commitment to the community through providing pro bono legal services, including litigating for civil rights and civil liberties, improving public education for poor children, advocating for veterans, promoting international human rights, winning asylum for the persecuted, and safeguarding the environment. A laugh out loud collection of short stories from hollywood heavyweights Azzara of Broadway, TV and film fame celebrates her landmark 40th Anniversary in Hollywood with her starring roles in the hit comedy films: HOUSE CALLS with Walter Matthau and Art Carney, EASY MONEY with Rodney Dangerfield and Joe Pesci, and FATSO with Dom DeLuise and Anne Bancroft. Azzara has also starred in the CBS sit-com Caluccis Department with James Coco and had memorable recurring roles in the hit Network sit-coms Whos the Boss? Soap, Rhoda and Caroline in the City. I learned to have more patience writing God, Please Give Me Patienceand Hurry! than it took to play Rodney Dangerfields wife, Lea Thompsons nosy next-door neighbor or preparing pasta primavera for forty people, smiles the Brooklyn born Sicilian-American actress. She also starred in Lovers and Other Strangers on Broadway. Conley is a veteran of variety/comedy sketch writing and a tribute award show writer who cut his teeth at the tender age of 22 (in 1982) when he began his writing career with sketch comedy for TV legend Bob Hope. He is born and raised in LA, Jesuit educated, and a veteran Hollywood publicist who also served as Vatican Press Advance for Pope John Paul II and His Papal Mass at the LA Coliseum. Azzara and Conley joined their talents to give you a quirky comedy look behind the scenes of working in Hollywood. They have written a comedic collection of short stories that will literally make you laugh-out-loud, explains Gvili. Boulevard Books is an educational publishing company for the 21st century. Founded by educator and author Avi Gvili in 2010, it aims to bring to the public the voices of the new century. In partnership with the Washington Nationals, local Harris Teeter stores are hosting a food drive from July 23 to Aug. 5 in support of its local Feeding America food bank partners, Capital Area Food Bank and Loudoun Hunger Relief. In May, Harris Teeter donated over $250,000 to its various food bank partners and is hosting this food drive to continue its efforts to raise awareness to the problems of hunger and food insecurity. Food donations will be accepted in the collection bins at participating Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C. stores. In addition to donating food at local Harris Teeter stores, Nationals fans may bring non-perishable food items to Nationals Park on Saturday, Aug. 4 and Sunday, Aug. 5 when the Nationals face the Cincinnati Reds. Volunteers will collect donations outside the Center Field Gate from the time gates open through the second inning. Donations made at Nationals Park will benefit Capital Area Food Bank. Fans who donate four or more non-perishable food items at the ballpark will receive two tickets to a future game, while supplies last. Additionally, on Sunday, Aug. 5, the first 500 fans who bring four or more Harris Teeter brand canned goods will receive $5 Nats Bucks. Please join Harris Teeter and the Nationals in the fight against hunger in your community. About Capital Area Food Bank The Capital Area Food Bank is the largest organization in the Washington metro area working to solve hunger and its companion problems: chronic undernutrition, heart disease and obesity. By partnering with nearly 450 community organizations in DC, Maryland and Virginia, as well as delivering food directly into hard to reach areas, the CAFB is helping 540,000 people each year get access to good, healthy food. Thats 12 percent of our regions mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, and grandparents. To learn more, visit: capitalareafoodbank.org, or find the Capital Area Food Bank on Facebook at facebook.com/CapitalAreaFoodBank, and Twitter at @foodbankmetrodc. About Loudoun Hunger Relief Loudoun Hunger Relief (formerly Loudoun Interfaith Relief) is the largest food pantry in Loudoun County. Last year LHR provided 1.5 million pounds of food to more than 10,000 individuals. 40% of those served are children. LHR distributes food to families six days a week, year round and shares with more than 20 other organizations that serve low income individuals. Loudoun Hunger Relief was just named One of the Best Nonprofits by the Catalogue of Philanthropy and rated Four Stars by Charity Navigator. They were also voted Loudoun Chamber of Commerce 2014 Nonprofit of The Year, the Loudoun Times Mirror 2015 and 2017 Nonprofit of the Year, Loudoun Now 2016 Favorite Non-Profit. For more information on LHR, please visit http://www.loudounhunger.org. http://www.harristeeter.com Harris Teeter, with headquarters in Matthews, N.C., is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR). The regional grocery chain employs approximately 28,000 associates and operates stores in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Maryland, Delaware, Florida and the District of Columbia. Karla Jo Helms, CEO for JoTo PR, discusses the impact of RTLS systems in locating missing hospital equipment. MGM Solutions RTLS systems solve lengthening problems in the healthcare industry, decreasing the miniscule margin of error hospitals staffs already endure, Karla Jo Helms, CEO for JoTo PR said. A recent Zebra Technologies study noted that countless hours are wasted daily in hospitals nationwide to finding equipment, patients and staff.1 JoTo PR client, MGM Solutions, a reliable leader in RTLS technology, institutes their disruptive usage of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). RFID monitors patient and staff workflow and space utilization from the moment they check into an emergency facility, outpatient or inpatient facility. MGM Solutions RTLS systems solve lengthening problems in the healthcare industry, decreasing the minuscule margin of error hospitals staffs already endure, Karla Jo Helms, CEO for JoTo PR said. MGM Solutions was incorporated in April 1987 with a vision to create a Real Time Locating System (RTLS) that can accurately track and protect patients, hospital assets and medical staff. Over the years they have developed a patented triangulation that integrates a blend of radio frequency, diffused infrared, and low frequency radio frequency (RF) to accurately track patients in danger of wandering, medical staff and equipment in real-time within medical facilities and across large hospital campuses. MGMs RTLS systems ability to detect missing equipment automatically alleviates financial pressures for the healthcare industry as they wont be inclined to purchase new medical supplies, added Helms. JoTo PR has an abundant background of practical PR services that showcase reliability in disseminating services to national and international organizations. The firm is burgeoning in the PR industry, blending traditional PR expertise with disruptive digital media to expose the advantages of todays media landscape. JoTo PR specializes in the healthcare, finance and technology sectors, but has worked for numerous industries and non-profits, using a proprietary process to consistently determine, measure and spread current news to the press thats most valuable to its readers, viewers and listenership. About JoTo PR: After doing marketing research on a cross-section majority of 5,000 CEOs of fast-growth trajectory companies and finding out exactly how they used PR, how they measure it and how they wanted the PR industry to be different, PR veteran and innovator Karla Jo Helms created JoTo PR and established its entire business model on those research findings. Astute in recognizing industry changes since its launch in 2009, JoTo PRs team utilizes newly established patterns to create timely PR campaigns comprising both traditional and the latest proven media methods. This unique skill enables JoTo PR to continue to increase the market share and improve return on investment (ROI) for its clients, year after yearbeating usual industry standards. Based in Tampa Bay, Florida, JoTo PR is an established international public relations agency. Today, all of JoTo PRs processes are streamlined PR services that have become the hallmark of the JoTo PR name. For more information, visit JoTo PR online at http://www.jotopr.com. About Karla Jo Helms: Karla Jo Helms is the Chief Evangelist and Anti-PR Strategist for JoTo PR. Karla Jo learned firsthand how unforgiving business can be when millions of dollars are on the lineand how the control of public opinion often determines whether one company is happily chosen or another is brutally rejected. Being an alumna of crisis management, Karla Jo has worked with litigation attorneys, private investigators and the media to help restore companies of goodwill back into the good graces of public opinionKarla Jo operates on the ethic of getting it right the first time, not relying on second chances, and doing what it takes to excel. Karla Jo has patterned her agency on the perfect balance of crisis management, entrepreneurial insight and proven public relations experience. Helms speaks globally on public relations, how the PR industry itself has lost its way and how, in the right hands, corporations can harness the power of PR to drive markets and impact market perception. 1. Zebra Technologies. The Future of Healthcare: 2022 Hospital Vision Study. White Paper. Zebra.com/Healthcare. zebra.com/content/dam/zebra_new_ia/en-us/solutions-verticals/vertical-solutions/healthcare/white-paper/2022-hospital-vision-study-en-global.pdf. Kestgo Group LLC It's rewarding to help large healthcare organizations make a measurable impact on key performance metrics like profitability and reputation scores. Today, Kestgo, a highly-specialized, boutique consulting firm that focuses on healthcare support services, announces its official company launch. The Kestgo team understands the immense complexities healthcare administrators face on a daily basis and that support services have a surprisingly high bearing on an organizations reputation and profitability. It takes a great deal of time and effort to get all of the people and entities responsible for healthcare support services to become fully engaged and to realize their potential. Thats where Kestgo comes in. Collectively, the Kestgo team has spent over 75 years helping deliver measurable and meaningful results to the bottom line for healthcare systems, hospitals, higher education, corporate dining organizations, and other large institutions. Kestgos consulting practice focuses primarily on three very important areas: Support Service Operations, Performance Solutions and Supply Chain Management, says Paula Keller, one of three founding principals at Kestgo. While Support Services is where our strengths and passions lie, creating financial solvency and success is a part of our DNA. Its rewarding to help large healthcare organizations make a measurable impact on key performance metrics like profitability and reputation scores, says Gary Goettl, a Kestgo Principal. One of the main reasons weve been able to make such a positive impact on our clients is our people-first approach to healthcare support services. Our end goal is profitability, driven by leading practices and an engaged workforce. In an industry relentlessly focused on financial outcomes, Kestgo proves its the people not just numbers and bottom lines that make organizations remarkable. When the right employees are supporting the operations of your hospital in the right way, patients are more satisfied, more loyal, and are more likely to return to and advocate for your organization. Kestgo believes forward-thinking healthcare organizations will embrace their people-oriented approach, that results will speak for themselves, and that the healthcare support services industry will be better for it. Our people-first approach not only guides how we help our clients to select and manage vendors and employees, it also informs how we interact with our clients. We believe people matter, says Don Stookey, principal. About Kestgo Kestgo is a highly-specialized, boutique consulting firm that focuses on healthcare support services. Its founders, Paula Keller, Don Stookey, and Gary Goettl have over 75 years of combined experience transforming organizations and improving both patient health and financial outcomes. Kestgo has deep expertise in three areas of healthcare support services: Support Services, Performance Solutions, and Supply Chain Management. Unlike other support services consulting firms, Kestgo is driven by a simple, core belief: people matter. Kestgos unique insight and perspective is that its people not just numbers and bottom lines that make healthcare organizations succeed. KG Hawes, a technology company specializing in customized software and support services for call centers and financial services, including the VoizTrail Communication and Compliance Suite, and TCN Inc., a leading provider of cloud-based call center technology for enterprises, contact centers, BPOs and collection agencies worldwide, today announced the formation of their strategic partnership to provide a streamlined, one-step communication solution. New technology, focused on improving the customer experience, is being widely adopted among contact centers worldwide. With a myriad of software and services available, clients are looking for the most advanced technology packaged inside a user-friendly all-inclusive solution. Through their partnership, TCN and KG Hawes combine a cloud-based multi-channel communication platform with cutting edge speech technology, enabling companies to improve operations, enhance customer service, automate outreach and increase overall revenue streams. We are proud to partner with a world-class software development and solutions company to offer a robust, scalable technology for contact centers around the globe, said Jesse Bird, chief technology officer and co-founder of TCN. Integrating TCNs Platform 3.0 technology with KG Hawes VoizTrail Suite will allow customers to better connect, scale and adjust their businesses to evolving industry needs. Equipped with TCNs advanced Omni-channel contact center technologies, the VoizTrail Communication and Compliance Suite provides contact centers with an easy-to-use platform, fast implementation and seamless integration. The strategic partnership allows contact centers to diversify their offering and operate at maximum efficiency for the best return on investment with a flexible solution that can grow and evolve for businesses of all sizes. The future of call center operations is about using technology to provide a choice of modalities for consumer engagement and a robust means of evaluating that engagement, says Joe Hawes, President and CEO of KG Hawes. This is only the beginning. Both TCN and KG Hawes will be presenting the unique features of their complementary offerings to attendees at the ACA International Annual Convention and Expo being held July 23 25, 2018, in Nashville, Tennessee. About KG Hawes: KG Hawes is a joint venture established in 2014 between KG Information Systems Pvt. Ltd. (KGISL) and Hawes Group and its portfolio of consumer financial engagement companies. KGISL is a leading solution provider in banking and financial technology, having built trading and accounting platforms for some of the worlds largest banks. KG Hawes offers VoizTrail, a call recording, auditing, redaction and speech analytics solution suite, ARTrail, a comprehensive accounts receivable management solution, RoboDX , an ETL tool for B2B data exchange, and Docutrail, a NoSQL, secure document management system. Additionally, KG Hawes provides a variety of support services, including cyber & network security audits, infrastructure support and database management. To learn more about KG Hawes, visit our website at: http://www.kghawes.com. You can also find them on social media: LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. About TCN: TCN is a leading provider of cloud-based call center technology for enterprises, contact centers, BPOs, and collection agencies worldwide. Founded in 1999, TCN combines a deep understanding of the needs of call-center users with a highly affordable delivery model, ensuring immediate access to robust call-center technology, such as predictive dialer, IVR, call recording, and business analytics required to optimize operations and adhere to TCPA regulations. Its always-on cloud-based delivery model provides customers with immediate access to the latest version of the TCN solution, as well as the ability to quickly and easily scale and adjust to evolving business needs. TCN serves various Fortune 500 companies and enterprises in multiple industries including newspaper, collection, education, healthcare, automotive, political, customer service, and marketing. For more information, visit http://www.tcnp3.com or follow them on Twitter @tcn. Media contacts: KG Hawes Gerald Paulraj, VP Sales and Marketing (541) 335-2283 gerald.paulraj(at)kghawes.com TCN Michiko Morales, Gabriel Marketing Group (571) 455-9996 michim(at)gabrielmarketing.com My goal is to get as many kids reading and loving books as possible. If they can learn more, they can have new opportunities to grow and develop their potential. Every child deserves that. Kids in the Garfield Ridge neighborhood on Chicagos Southwest Side will have a lot more opportunities to continue learning over the summer, thanks to local entrepreneur and philanthropist Vivian Valtas. Since launching her inaugural Summer Learning Program June 28, Valtas has collected over 1,500 books that will be available to neighborhood children, and continues to seek contributions to grow the supply. Kids can join the program and select books at Vivian Valtas State Farm office, 6108 S. Archer Ave. Vivian Valtas designed her program to tackle what is often referred to as the "summer learning loss." Theres a need for programs to help bridge the gap between school years, she says, especially with so much activity competing for free time attention, including the lure of electronic devices. Literacy is essential to learning and problem-solving, Valtas said. Students dont always study enough reading during the school year, and research has shown that students who add even 15 minutes a day of independent, out-of-school reading, can be exposed to more than a million words of text in a year. Im passionate about anything that supports expanding a childs exposure to, and love for, books and reading. Heres how the Summer Reading Program works: Children can stop by her office (http://www.vivianvaltas.com) to pick up a reading tracker and select their first two books. As they read, log and return the books, they can select two other books to read. After reading 10 books, children receive coupons for free milkshakes. After reading11-20 books, the children receive the milkshake coupon and a small prize, and, if they read 21-30 books, they are rewarded with a milkshake, a small prize and $5. As the daughter of Greek immigrants who emphasized work ethic and life learning more than school-based curriculums, Valtas (http://www.vivianvaltas.com) knows what a difference education and learning can make to a person raised where money and resources are scarce. According to the Handbook of Early Literacy Research, in middle-income neighborhoods the ratio of books per child is 13 to 1, in low-income neighborhoods, the ratio is one age-appropriate book for every 300 children. Other research suggests that even a single, brief exposure to good reading material can result in a clear increase in enthusiasm for reading. "My goal is to get as many kids reading and loving books as possible. If they can learn more, they can have new opportunities to grow and develop their potential. Every child deserves that," she said. Im grateful to community members who have graciously donated, or wish to donate, books to support this program. For those interested in the Summer Reading Programs, Valtas' State Farm Agency office at 6108 South Archer Ave., is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information, call 773-582-3322 and/or visit http://www.vivianvaltas.com. About Vivian Valtas Vivian Valtas is an entrepreneur, philanthropist and author (https://amzn.to/2mlGYpy) who has a deep passion for her family and helping others. She has successfully applied her leadership and management experience to train, motivate and mentor other professionals. Vivian Valtas is on the Board of Directors for the Valentine Boys and Girls of Chicago. She also started the Old Bikeman Award which gifts new bicycles to children in need each year. After graduating from Youngstown State University with a degree in Mathematics Education, Vivian Valtas earned her MBA from the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University. She holds a teaching certificate, is a Certified Peer Mediator and holds the CLF (Chartered Leadership Fellowship) designation from The American College. My goal has always been to fight for the rights of individuals in the workplace and I believe that this award is a sign that Im on the right track. Steven Rubin, the founding employment attorney at Rubin Law Corporation, was recently awarded Top Verdict for his work on Mecredy v. Sonic Industries Inc. This accolade recognizes lawyers and law firms that have obtained high jury verdicts in each state, practice area, and year. Attorney Steven Rubin was able to win $474,004.00 in compensation for his clients defamation and interference with employment case. According to court documents, the plaintiff James Mecredy was employed for 27 years at Sargent Aerospace LLC, Sonic Division. Mecredy was laid off in December 2014, paid a severance, and subsequently hired by another company. This new company was a supplier to Sargent Aerospace. Upon learning of the plaintiffs new position, Sargent representatives paid a visit to his new employer. Mecredy was dismissed shortly thereafter. The second employer later confirmed the plaintiffs termination through a voicemail to the Sargent representatives. In James Hawryla Mecredy v. Sonic Industries Inc et al, Case No. BC593961 in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, Mecredy claimed that Sargent Aerospace LLC, Sonic Division had slandered his reputation and interfered with his employment at a new company. The plaintiff alleged that Sargent employees pressured his new employer into terminating him in an attempt to avoid competition. The actions of the Sargent employees consequently led to lost income, emotional distress, and a damaged reputation. Sonic Division offered a settlement in the amount of $75,000.00. The jury, however, compensated Mecredy in the amount of $474,004.00. I feel extremely humbled to receive this recognition, said Steven Rubin. My goal has always been to fight for the rights of individuals in the workplace and I believe that this award is a sign that Im on the right track. At Rubin Law Corporation, our employment law attorneys are dedicated to defending employee rights. Our results-oriented approach and vigilant representation help clients receive the compensation they deserve. Attorney Steven Rubin has over 20 years of experience practicing labor and employment law. He has seen great success in litigating cases into substantial awards and settlements for his clients. If you feel your rights as an employee have been violated, Steven Rubin is the attorney to call. The team at Rubin Law Corporation is committed to resolving any dispute, discrimination, or harassment that youre facing at work. Our attorneys understand that these conflicts can harm other aspects of your life and prevent you from achieving success. We offer aggressive legal counsel in negotiation and litigation in order to recover compensation. Located in Century City in Los Angeles we represent individuals throughout the entire Southern California area and we are ready to fight for you. "Minerva Labs built a comprehensive platform that improves security without overlapping with other tools, while overcoming operational challenges common to most enterprise endpoint security products. said Eddy Bobritsky, CEO at Minerva Labs. Minerva Labs, a leading provider of anti-evasion technology for enterprise endpoints, announced today that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has named Minerva Labs to its 2018 Emerging Vendors List in the Security category. This list recognizes recently founded, up-and-coming technology suppliers who are shaping the future of the IT channel through unique technological innovations. The list is divided into seven categories: Cloud, Data Center, Security, Big Data, Unified Communications, Internet of Things (IoT) and Storage. In addition to celebrating these notable companies, the Emerging Vendors list serves as a valuable resource for solution providers looking to expand their portfolios with cutting-edge technology. Minervas Anti-Evasion Platform fills a unique gap on the endpoint, that of malware designed to evade antivirus, sandboxes and anti-malware tools. Minerva is the first vendor to address evasive threats in a way different from every other endpoint vendor. Instead of attempting to detect malware, Minerva approaches the problem by deceiving malicious software regarding its environment, causing it to self-convict by terminating or crashing. Minerva bolsters the protection that baseline anti-malware tools offer to create effective and evasion-proof endpoint prevention. The technology suppliers on CRNs 2018 Emerging Vendors list are creating a bright future for the IT channel, aggressively developing products to meet complex IT market demands, while positively impacting the bottom line of solution providers, said Bob Skelley, CEO, The Channel Company. The array of leading-edge products delivered by these organizations will have a lasting impact on the channel for years to come. "Minerva Labs built a comprehensive platform that improves security without overlapping with other tools, while overcoming operational challenges common to most enterprise endpoint security products. said Eddy Bobritsky, CEO at Minerva Labs. "We're honored that CRN recognizes the value that Minerva brings to enterprises and confirms this critical layer that is needed to fight todays stealthiest attacks." The complete Emerging Vendors list will be featured online at http://www.crn.com/emergingvendors. Follow The Channel Company: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook About Minerva Labs Minerva is an innovative endpoint security solution provider that protects enterprises from todays stealthiest attacks without the need to detect threats first, all before any damage has been done. Minervas Anti-Evasion Platform blocks unknown threats that evade defenses by deceiving the malware and controlling how it perceives its environment. Without relying on signatures, models or behavioral patterns, Minervas solution causes malware to disarm itself, thwarting it before the need to engage costly security resources. Headquartered in Petach Tikva, Israel, and with offices in New York and Atlanta, Minerva boosts customers existing defenses without the need to embark upon a costly and risky overhaul of their entire endpoint security architecture. To learn more about Minerva, visit http://www.minerva-labs.com. About The Channel Company The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequaled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. http://www.thechannelco.com Kim Sparks The Channel Company (508) 416-1193 ksparks@thechannelco.com Consumers expect quality WiFi in all corners of the home, and they want their devices to simply and securely work. I am looking forward to discussing how operators can turn this support headache into a massive revenue opportunity and customer satisfaction breakthrough. Minim, a cloud platform that enables Internet Service Providers (ISPs) of all sizes to deliver premium WiFi and network security to the home, today announced that they will join the National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC) and American Cable Association (ACA) community for The Independent Show, held this year July 29 - Aug 1 at the Disneyland Hotel and Conference Center in Anaheim, CA. The company will demonstrate its CPE-agnostic Software as a Service in Booth 463 to operators in pursuit of increased revenues and decreased operating expenses through a premium WiFi product. In addition, Minim CEO Jeremy Hitchcock will speak on the panel (details below): Breakout Session: A Reimagined Customer Experience Date / Time: Tuesday, July 31, 1:50 - 2:40 pm Pacific Location: Magic Kingdom 3 This panel will explore how to stay competitive by meeting the modern customers expectations automation, self-service, effortless interaction, and more. Hitchcock will be joined by moderator Matt Krueger, Director of Marketing at Shentel, and panelist JC Ramey, CEO of Device Bits. While the smart home market is exploding with connected appliances and streaming devices, subscribers network frustrations are mounting, said Hitchcock. Consumers expect quality WiFi in all corners of the home, and they want their devices to simply and securely work. I am looking forward to discussing how operators can turn this support headache into a massive revenue opportunity and customer satisfaction breakthrough. The Independent Show is an annual convergence of nearly 1,200 industry professionals in cable, telco, and broadband. The agenda features a wide range of speakers to explore industry trends. In addition, the Solutions Showcase will feature over 140 leading programmers and suppliers delivering the latest content and solutions. At the show, Minim will demonstrate its solution, which requires no additional equipment or CapEx. The companys offerings include: a mobile app, CSR portal, parental controls, cloud security, connected device insights, and more. Minim is also working on integrations with network equipment manufacturers and introducing new channel partner programs (announcements to come). For more information about Minim, stop by Booth 463 at The Independent Show or follow the conversation on Twitter #TIS18. About Minim Minim is a cloud platform that enables and secures a better connected home. In a world where connected devices have outnumbered people, Minims self-learning platform employs Quantum Fingerprinting and behavioral models to detect threats before they become problems. Founded in 2017, Minim offers apps with usable security for consumers and their care providers to protect connected devices and optimize WiFi performance, leading to higher customer satisfaction. The company is now partnering with ISPs, care providers, router manufacturers, software developers, and IoT device manufacturers who want to help make home connectivity as safe as drinking water. To learn more, visit http://www.minim.co. We are thrilled that elementary world language is a priority here, Evan Erdberg, CEO of PLI said. When students start learning a world language at a young age it helps them not only learn it faster but helps increase there analytical capabilities as well. Mercer County, NJ: Proximity Learning Inc. (PLI) and Hamilton Township school district proudly announce a partnership to implement a virtual k-12 American Sign Language (ASL) program in Hamilton Townships classrooms. Like PLI, Hamilton Township is committed to a vision to see students become caring, productive citizens of the world community. PLIs progressive online instruction is able to meet the needs of all students by streaming certified teachers directly into classrooms across the country when a district cant find and hire a teacher locally. PLI is recognized for improving individual student outcomes and success, boasting a 93% course pass rate. Hamilton Township wanted ASL to be offered in all fourth and fifth grade classes, but realized they were not able to find and hire all the teachers required in every elementary school. Faced with teacher shortages and difficulty locating qualified educators, Hamilton Township explored non-traditional education avenues. The district heard about PLIs virtual live instruction teachers by word of mouth. Initially they thought PLI was a good fit, but were hesitant given their unique request. They sought teacher instruction in ASL for over 90 classrooms and were pleased to learn about PLIs ability to customize their program to the schools schedule. PLI had the ability to fit into each of Hamilton Townships elementary schools daily bell schedule and by streaming a teacher live into the class to lead instruction. Hamilton Township is now offering ASL in all fourth and fifth grade classes in 17 elementary schools. PLI offers over 38 nationally accredited instructional options, ranging from S.T.E.M computer programming to world languages. During Hamilton Townships first year working with PLI, the district had only their fourth and fifth grade students meeting with virtual teachers. By the second year, Hamilton Township increased the program to include third grade students. The district has also worked with PLI to offer a structured ASL curriculum for grades k-5 in the hopes of using ASL curriculum to aid students in their academic progress outside of live sessions. We are thrilled that elementary world language is a priority here, Evan Erdberg, CEO of PLI said. When students start learning a world language at a young age it helps them not only learn it faster but helps increase there analytical capabilities as well. Hamilton Township feels PLI is able to connect with students and help them engage in positive participation and performance. The district has also worked with PLI to be able to provide language material for all grades in order for students to become proficient in a new language from an early age. OPNRs mission is two-fold. The first is to assist independent musicians actively searching and interested in booking more local performances and the second is to connect concert organizers looking for local musicians for a concert theyre producing, said OPNR President Waref Hawasli. OPNR, a new website and app built and engineered to support the independent music community intends to alter and simplify the booking process for concert opening acts. Its purpose is to make the connection for musicians to opening set opportunities, while providing a concert organizer with the right data needed to make a decision on a local musician and the technology to create and manage a performance opportunity. The newly launched platform was created by metro Detroit native Waref Hawasli, co-founder and president OPNR, who has been closely tied to the music industry for many years and saw the need for a more cohesive way to bridge the gap between independent musicians and opening act prospects. OPNRs mission is two-fold. The first is to assist independent musicians actively searching and interested in booking more local performances and the second is to connect concert organizers looking for local musicians for a concert theyre producing, said Hawasli. Ultimately our objective is to support the independent music community by providing a viable solution to an existing industry problem. Prior to founding OPNR, Hawasli served as CEO and publisher of Rolling Stone Middle East. In 2010, he spearheaded the acquisition of the Rolling Stone Magazine license for the Middle East region and developed and led the publications brand strategy and editorial team. After eight years in Dubai overseeing the magazine, he decided to return to metro Detroit to pursue business consulting and real estate development. OPNR is a by-product of Fanic Music, a web-based platform Hawasli created in 2017 to connect musicians with fans first and foremost and additionally to assist in the booking process and promotions. A few months after the launch, Hawasli saw a shift in sites usage towards finding local openers for events with confirmed headliners. We made the decision to pivot and focus primarily on what the industry was lacking, a system built to connect local musicians with local concert organizers looking for local support for their local events, said Hawasli. For musicians and band managers, OPNR offers an Electronic Press Kit generator allowing musicians to present themselves professionally when submitting for an opportunity. A Search and Submit function navigates musicians to current opening set opportunities based on location and genre. On the concert organizer side, OPNR streamlines the search process by allowing them to create an opportunity within the platform and then filter their search based on specific criteria such as genre or location. OPNR will notify only the musicians that fit the criteria and provide a submission deadline. Once the deadline is reached, the concert organizer can review and choose the right local musician for their event. When a musician is selected, the system will connect both parties to discuss the opportunity in more detail. Music discovery is a critical part of our business. Were always looking for new acts. OPNR offers us an efficient new tool for finding great talent, were excited to integrate it into our booking process, says Dan McGowan, managing partner of Pontiac, Mich.-based Crofoot Presents. OPNR will offer two membership plans. Freemium which is available now and completely free to use. A Premium version with enhanced features and benefits will be launched in the future. For more information, visit opnrmusic.com. # # # About OPNR Launched in 2018, OPNR was developed and engineered to support the independent music community by connecting musicians with local booking opportunities offered by local concert organizers. By utilizing technology, users are able to match local musicians with local concert organizers in a professional, simple, efficient and affordable way. Visit http://www.opnrmusic.com. The Commerce team couldnt be happier to join the NFP family, said Fitzsimmons. NFP, a leading insurance broker and consultant that provides employee benefits, property & casualty (P&C), retirement and individual private client solutions, today announced that it has acquired Commerce Insurance Group, LLC. The transaction closed effective June 1, 2018. Located in the Evansville area of Indiana, Commerce Insurance Group is an insurance broker that offers P&C capabilities to both commercial and personal clients in the Midwest. Their expertise in the senior living industry, including nursing homes and assisted living facilities, will expand NFPs P&C resources and offerings in the Central region, specifically in southern Indiana. Principal of the firm, Bob Fitzsimmons, will become a vice president in NFPs P&C division, reporting to John Dillion, managing director in NFPs P&C division. Were thrilled to have the Commerce Insurance Group join our NFP family, said Dillion. This deal adds significant depth to our current P&C offerings in the senior living industry and fulfills a growing marketplace need in the insurance space. Our entire network of customers and prospects will benefit from these expanded service offerings. The Commerce team couldnt be happier to join the NFP family, said Fitzsimmons. We look forward to giving our clients and prospects added resources around their P&C and senior living risk needs, while providing employees with the continued support and expanded opportunities to thrive in their careers. About NFP At NFP Corp., our solutions and expertise are matched only by our personal commitment to each client's goals. Were a leading insurance broker and consultant that provides employee benefits, property & casualty, retirement and individual private client solutions through our licensed subsidiaries and affiliates. NFP has more than 4,300 employees and global capabilities. Our expansive reach gives us access to highly rated insurers, vendors and financial institutions in the industry, while our locally based employees tailor each solution to meet our clients' needs. Weve become one of the largest insurance brokerage, consulting and wealth management firms by building enduring relationships with our clients and helping them realize their goals. Recently NFP was ranked the 4th largest U.S.-based privately owned broker, the 5th largest benefits broker by global revenue and the 5th best place to work in insurance by Business Insurance, the 9th largest property & casualty agency by total 2016 P&C revenue and the 9th largest commercial lines agency by total 2016 P&C and commercial lines revenue by Insurance Journal, the 10th largest employee benefits broker by Employee Benefit Adviser, the 11th largest global insurance broker by Bests Review and the 12th largest broker of U.S. business by Business Insurance. For more information, visit NFP.com. CONTACT Peppercomm for NFP nfp@peppercomm.com 212-931-6171 The construction of this new complex features the most modern fish breeding and farming processes in use today. That made the choice of Penetron crystalline materials, which are environmentally safe, the logical choice. The July 2018 inauguration of a new fish hatchery in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia, will provide the regions rivers, lakes and fish farms with a local supply of fish. PENETRON and PENECRETE MORTAR crystalline materials were used to safely waterproof the fish tanks. Located in the Laishevsky district of western Tatarstan, the fish hatchery will have an annual production capacity of 5 million trout fry, 1 million sterlet fry (a small sturgeon prized for its caviar) and 50 tons of sturgeon. The hatchery will breed and grow sterlet fry to stock the lakes and reservoirs of the Volga-Vyatka River basin and trout fry to supply the regions fish farms. In addition, sturgeon are grown at the hatchery for sale directly to consumers throughout Russia. The new fish hatchery is only the latest in many successful projects that weve completed in Tatarstan, explains Igor Chernogolov, President of Penetron Russia. These include the Marriott Hotel and TRC Mega Mall in Kazan, the Church of Constantine and Elena in Sviyazhsk, the Orimex Suvar shopping complex in Almetyevsk, and many other projects. A Completely Non-Toxic Solution The large concrete pools dedicated to growing trout and sturgeon were waterproofed with topical applications of PENETRON slurry and PENECRETE MORTAR to seal any cracks in the concrete. All Penetron products are NSF 61-certified and safe for use in potable water tanks and sensitive applications like a fish hatchery. Absolutely non-toxic with no VOCs, PENETRON is the ideal waterproofing solution for the sensitive conditions found in a hatchery, where young fish fry can react adversely to any type of toxicity or pollution in the water. The construction of this new complex features the most modern fish breeding and farming processes in use today, adds Igor Chernogolov. That made the choice of Penetron crystalline materials, which are environmentally safe, the logical choice. Markedly Improving Concrete Durability Each of the four concrete tanks hold between 200-300 m3 (ca. 53,000-80,000 gallons) of water. Initially, all cracks in the concrete are cleaned out and filled in with PENECRETE MORTAR, which permanently seals the crack against any further water penetration. Finally, PENETRON is applied to the whole surface area with a brush or spray. The active ingredients in PENETRON immediately begin to penetrate into the cracks, micro-cracks and capillary tracts of the concrete, reacting with concrete minerals to form a network of insoluble crystals. This crystalline growth takes place inside the concrete structure, even far from the point of application. Once the crystalline network becomes an integral part of the concrete matrix, the waterproofing effect markedly improves concrete durability and reduces permeability, notes Igor Chernogolov. This makes any further treatment or maintenance of the concrete unnecessary a permanent solution! The Penetron Group is a leading manufacturer of specialty construction products for concrete waterproofing, concrete repairs and floor preparation systems. The Group operates through a global network, offering support to the design and construction community through its regional offices, representatives and distribution channels. For more information on PENETRON waterproofing solutions, please visit penetron(dot)com or Facebook(dot)com/ThePenetronGroup, email CRDept(at)penetron(dot)com, or contact the Corporate Relations Department at 631-941-9700. Estimates of the legal national market size [of marijuana] growing to over $11 billion dollars this year In the past five years, eight states and the District of Columbia have voted to legalize use and possession of recreational marijuana with new ones coming soon. There are many estimates of the legal national market size growing to over $11 billion dollars this year, if you include illicit use the figure jumps to over $50 billion. With the increased growth of legalization comes a huge decrease in prices. In the Lightning session The Economics of Marijuana, three presentations will discuss the consumption and production of marijuana in California, and the status of marijuana in the state of Washington. The organizer of the session, Michael McCullough from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, says Earlier states have legalized recreational use with a lot of guess work in the cost of production and consumers willingness to pay. The research presented in this session should help clarify the current state of the industry and its trajectory. Over 1,600 participants are expected to attend the 2018 AAEA Annual Meeting, which will take place on August 5- August 7 at the Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, D.C. This session will begin at 10:00 am on Monday, August 6. If you are interested in attending the 2018 AAEA Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., please contact Allison Scheetz in the AAEA Business Office. You can also learn more on our Annual Meeting Media Kit page. ABOUT AAEA: Established in 1910, the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) is the leading professional association for agricultural and applied economists, with 2,500 members in more than 60 countries. Members of the AAEA work in academic or government institutions as well as in industry and not-for-profit organizations, and engage in a variety of research, teaching, and outreach activities in the areas of agriculture, the environment, food, health, and international development. The AAEA publishes two journals, the American Journal of Agricultural Economics and Applied Economic Perspectives & Policy, as well as the online magazine Choices. To learn more, visit http://www.aaea.org. OnlineWhitepapers.com new submission plans help businesses market whitepapers to millions of readers. Companies rely on us to reach decision makers as part of their content marketing strategies. Our upgraded publishing options will now expand their impact and influence even farther. OnlineWhitepapers.com (OWP), a vast library of whitepapers written by major companies and influencers, announced it has redesigned the site for smoother navigation and added new submission plans to help businesses market papers to millions of readers and customers. Powered by Bython Media, OWP offers a wide range of technology and other in-depth research topics in written, video, and interactive formats. It currently focuses on four major verticals (Information Technology, Marketing, Finance, and Human Resources), but will soon branch into other categories, as well. OnlineWhitepapers.com has always been a major source for key decision makers seeking solutions and ideas, said Danni White, Sr. Editor and Content Director for OWP and Bython Media. Thats why so many companies rely on us to reach those decision makers as part of their content marketing strategies. Our upgraded publishing options will now expand their impact and influence even farther. Plus, OWP is a GDPR-compliant source of potential leads for companies marketing to the European Union. There are three flexible submission plans available to suit every budget. They include a free Basic option, the popular Standard offering, and an Enterprise package ideal for larger corporations with multiple users looking to post several whitepapers a month. Plans include monthly hosting and a dashboard with real-time analytics to help gauge whitepaper performance. The Standard and Enterprise levels also feature a 250-word topic description, SEO integration to draw people to the papers web page, a highlighted feature in OWP newsletters sent to millions of contacts around the world, and much more. The upper-level plans also have the option of producing an animated whitepaper video. Videos are quickly becoming the preferred format for whitepapers and OWP is at the forefront of that initiative. According to the company, the videos engage and inform visitors, and increase chances of downloading papers dramatically. To learn more, go to OnlineWhitepapers.com and visit the Submit Whitepapers section today. To keep up with the latest whitepaper additions, subscribe to the OWP newsletter and follow OWP on social media. ABOUT ONLINEWHITEPAPERS.COM OnlineWhitepapers.com is part of a larger network powered by Bython Media. OWP and its partner site, TechFunnel.com, provide content that helps businesses grow, adapt, and succeed in the constantly changing realm of technology and related topics. ABOUT BYTHON MEDIA Based in Frisco, Texas, Bython Media is a global digital publishing and marketing company. Its online properties deliver first-class content focusing on technology and research. The Bython marketing arm specializes in data-driven solutions that connect clients with customers on a deeper level and amass high-quality leads through its network of almost 30 million contacts. Visit bython.com. Prevent Blindness Adds Dr. Linda M. Chous of UnitedHealthcare and Jeffrey L. McClellan of Anthologie to Board of Directors At Prevent Blindness, we are very fortunate to have a diverse group of leaders from many industries on our national Board of Directors, said Jeff Todd, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness. Prevent Blindness, the nations oldest volunteer eye health and safety organization, announced that Linda M. Chous, O.D., Chief Eye Care Officer of UnitedHealthcare, and Jeffrey L. McClellan, President/Owner of Anthologie, Inc., have been elected to the Prevent Blindness Board of Directors. The vote was held July 17 at the 2018 Prevent Blindness Summer Board Meeting in Washington, D.C. Dr. Chous serves as the senior eye health professional at UnitedHealthcare, where she oversees vision plan quality, clinical initiatives and wellness programs for more than 19 million plan participants. She uses her clinical expertise to improve the eye health of people nationwide, developing new solutions and services for employers, employees and individuals. In addition to owning The Glasses Menagerie, a pediatric optometric practice in Minneapolis, she is a past president of the Minnesota Optometric Association and has served on the American Optometric Association (AOA) Clinical Practice Guideline Evidenced Based Optometry and Health Promotions Committees. She is a published author and recently received the Women in Optometry Theia Award for Innovation and the AOA Presidents Award, among other recognitions. Dr. Chous is a graduate of the Southern California College of Optometry. At Anthologie, Inc., Jeffrey McClellan manages his creative communications firm and is in charge of new business. Anthologie works with clients in the vision industry, including Satisloh and A&R Optical. He is also an Adjunct Professor in Strategic Communications at Marquette University. For more than 17 years, he has volunteered at Prevent Blindness Wisconsin, serving as a Board Member and Chair of the Marketing Committee. Over the years, his firm has donated a variety of graphic design and marketing services. In addition to his volunteer work at Prevent Blindness Wisconsin, he serves as a leader on numerous service trips sponsored by the United Methodist Volunteers in Mission to Honduras. McClellan earned a B.A. of English from Bowling Green State University, and a M.A. of English/Communications from University of North Carolina at Greensboro. At Prevent Blindness, we are very fortunate to have a diverse group of leaders from many industries on our national Board of Directors, said Jeff Todd, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness. By bringing together experts from across the country in a variety of fields, we gain their high levels of expertise to continue our mission of saving sight. For more information about Prevent Blindness or general eye health, please call (800) 331-2020 or visit preventblindness.org. For a listing of all of the Prevent Blindness Board of Directors members, please visit https://www.preventblindness.org/prevent-blindness-board-directors. About Prevent Blindness Founded in 1908, Prevent Blindness is the nation's leading volunteer eye health and safety organization dedicated to fighting blindness and saving sight. Focused on promoting a continuum of vision care, Prevent Blindness touches the lives of millions of people each year through public and professional education, advocacy, certified vision screening and training, community and patient service programs and research. These services are made possible through the generous support of the American public. Together with a network of affiliates, Prevent Blindness is committed to eliminating preventable blindness in America. For more information, or to make a contribution to the sight-saving fund, call (800) 331-2020. Or, visit us on the Web at preventblindness.org or facebook.com/preventblindness. ### Our customers are at the heart of everything we do, and we are excited for the opportunity to solve problems for more dealers and build a strong presence in Canada. PureCars, the automotive technology company with award-winning digital solutions, announced today that it is expanding its offerings into Canada. Since it was founded in 2007, PureCars has provided dealers with the tools and resources needed to thrive in a digital-first world. PureCars constantly evolves to solve for the evolving car buying journey and the demands it places on auto dealers. To do so, the company offers a unique combination of innovative technology and talented performance managers that work together to help dealers master every stage of the customer journey. Now, PureCars has expanded its offering beyond the U.S. and has already started new relationships with dealer groups in Canada. We are eager to help Canadian dealers thrive by evolving with their customers needs, just like we have here in the U.S., said Sam Mylrea, CEO of PureCars. Our customers are at the heart of everything we do, and we are excited for the opportunity to solve problems for more dealers and build a strong presence in Canada. PureCars brings over a decade of experience to their Canadian customers, and knows that its suite of data-driven solutions will significantly improve dealers digital results. One solution that PureCars is especially excited to provide dealers with is SmartAdvertising. This marketing automation solution manages search, social, display and video campaigns for customers. Campaigns are monitored and optimized by a dedicated performance team based on inventory feed data, real-time bidding and market insights. By gathering insights from inventory, merchandising, advertising and market data, SmartAdvertising delivers relevant and compelling ad experiences to car buyers, said Mylrea. Thanks to our internal database, PureCars already knows a lot about the customer journey and market conditions. Now, weve been focusing on tailoring those insights to the specific behaviors of Canadian car buyers, and we will continue to expand our knowledge in those markets moving forward. To learn more about PureCars, please visit http://www.purecars.com. About PureCars PureCars realizes the power that comes from combining the best proprietary technology with incredible people. Established in 2007, PureCars offers dealerships and automotive marketers a comprehensive suite of marketing automation and business intelligence solutions. Our data-driven technology helps optimize digital campaigns for auto sales and service growth. Softtek, a leading global IT services provider dedicated to creating value through technology, today announced it has been recognized by Microsoft as 2018 Partner of the Year for its work in Argentina. The company was highlighted among Microsofts main partners, globally, for demonstrating excellence in innovation and in the implementation of client solutions based in Microsoft technology. Five years ago we decided to focus on developing capabilities associated with Microsoft products and services, said Mauro Mattioda, CEO of Softtek Hispanic South America. During this time, the company started to transform its offering with the firm conviction of becoming leader in cloud and digital evolution services. Motivated by that experience, we created a space for implementation and solution development, which is how we were able to become pioneers in SAP implementations on Azure. We see the fruits of this labor in the form of success cases that provide a lot of value for our clients, who look to us to as accelerators in their own digital transformation. This award speaks to our close relationship with Microsoft and our aligned work strategy, so that together we can develop platforms and tangible solutions, concluded Mattioda. The annual awards include several categories. The winners are chosen from more than 2,600 participants from 115 countries around the world. Softtek is recognized for providing outstanding solutions and services, as well as for achieving excellent results for its Argentine subsidiary. The award recognizes a business partner at a country level that has demonstrated excellence in its commitment to provide technology solutions to multiple clients over the last 12 months. Softtek is recognized for its performance in innovation, positive impact on the business, customer satisfaction and new project generation. We want to congratulate Softtek for having been recognized as one of the partners of the year in Argentina. The award is for steadily and consistently promoting digital transformation in customers of different sizes, leveraging the capabilities of the cloud. Partners, which play a fundamental role for us; they are in charge of adapting the technology to solutions that solve the specific needs of each client. At Microsoft we have an ecosystem that consists of more than 300,000 partners in the world, which includes 5,000 in Argentina. We work on developing the tools that help them to increase their capabilities and for our customers to leverage the potential that the technology offers, added Marina Hasson, Partner Director for Corporate Customers and SMEs for Microsoft Argentina. About Softtek Founded in 1982, Softtek is a global company helping organizations bridge the digital gap. With presence in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia, Softtek provides Global 2000 organizations with technology solutions that create value through technology. Visit http://www.softtek.com, follow @Softtek, connect with Softtek on LinkedIn and read Softteks blog. Dr. Offer Zeira Researchers have developed what appears to be a simple, minimally invasive, effective way to treat osteoarthritis (OA) in dogs that may prove to be of considerable importance in treating humans, too. The study detailing this new approach appears in the latest issue of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine (SCTM). OA is the most common form of arthritis in humans and in dogs. It affects millions of people worldwide and almost a quarter of the dog population. OA occurs when the protective cartilage on the ends of bones wears down over time, leading to pain, discomfort and limited mobility in both species. A variety of treatments for the management of OA in dogs have been proposed from alternative therapies and drugs to physical therapy, surgery, weight control and more with variable success, but none can be considered the gold standard treatment. Recently, new approaches such as the use of cellular therapies, including mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), have shown some promise. Adipose (fat) tissue is a very useful source of these naturally occurring regenerative cells due to its abundance and easy access. The study reported on in SCTM evaluated the safety, feasibility and clinical efficacy of autologous micro-fragmented adipose tissue (MFAT). We chose MFAT due to its capability to induce vascular stabilization and to modulate inflammation and pain, said lead investigator Offer Zeira, DVM, Ph.D., from San Michele Veterinary Hospital, Tavazzano con Villavesco, Italy. One hundred and thirty client-owned dogs with spontaneous OA were treated with autologous MFAT injections from 2014 to 2017 in seven private veterinary hospitals in Italy, Sweden, Israel and the United Kingdom. The cells were harvested from each patient and then injected into a Lipogems device, which is a disposable product that progressively reduces the size of the adipose tissue clusters while eliminating oily substances and blood residues with pro-inflammatory properties. The cells were then injected back into the dog at the site of the affected joint. To guarantee standard operating procedures, all dogs were operated on by the same surgeon. The entire process for each animal was carried out in one surgical step and the patient was able to go home the same day. Clinical outcomes were determined using orthopedic examination and owners scores for up to six months. In 78 percent of the dogs, improvement in the orthopedic score was registered one month after treatment and continued gradually up to six months when 88 percent of the dogs improved. There was no change seen in 11 percent of the animals and 1 percent worsened. The owners scores at six months had 92 percent of the dogs significantly improving, 6 percent improving only slightly and 2 percent worsening. No major adverse effects were recorded. Collectively, these results demonstrated that MFAT injection in dogs with OA is safe, feasible and beneficial, the researchers concluded. The procedure is a simple, time sparing, cost-effective, minimally invasive, one-step procedure and eliminates the need for complex and time-intensive cell culture processing, Dr. Zeira said. For at least six months, the results are very satisfactory and promising. The lack of any complications in the dog should be taken into account when considering this treatment in other species, including man. The study of spontaneous, naturally occurring OA in dogs is a model that provides a valuable role in developing successful, innovative treatment regimens for translational medicine facilitating the transfer of knowledge from the bench to the bedside, he added. These results are certainly promising because the therapy appears to be safe, feasible and minimally invasive, said Anthony Atala, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine and Director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine. This study underscores the need to now transition this technology to human clinical trials. The full article, Intra-articular administration of autologous micro-fragmented adipose tissue in dogs with spontaneous osteoarthritis: safety, feasibility and clinical outcomes, can be accessed at https://stemcellsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/21576580/0/0. About STEM CELLS Translational Medicine: STEM CELLS Translational Medicine (SCTM), published by AlphaMed Press, is a monthly peer-reviewed publication dedicated to significantly advancing the clinical utilization of stem cell molecular and cellular biology. By bridging stem cell research and clinical trials, SCTM will help move applications of these critical investigations closer to accepted best practices. SCTM is the official journal partner of Regenerative Medicine Foundation. About AlphaMed Press: Established in 1983, AlphaMed Press with offices in Durham, NC, San Francisco, CA, and Belfast, Northern Ireland, publishes two other internationally renowned peer-reviewed journals: STEM CELLS (http://www.StemCells.com), celebrating its 36th year, is the world's first journal devoted to this fast paced field of research. The Oncologist (http://www.TheOncologist.com), also a monthly peer-reviewed publication, entering its 23rd year, is devoted to community and hospital-based oncologists and physicians entrusted with cancer patient care. All three journals are premier periodicals with globally recognized editorial boards dedicated to advancing knowledge and education in their focused disciplines. About Wiley: Wiley, a global company, helps people and organizations develop the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. Our online scientific, technical, medical and scholarly journals, combined with our digital learning, assessment and certification solutions, help universities, learned societies, businesses, governments and individuals increase the academic and professional impact of their work. For more than 200 years, we have delivered consistent performance to our stakeholders. The company's website can be accessed at http://www.wiley.com. About Regenerative Medicine Foundation (RMF): The non-profit Regenerative Medicine Foundation fosters strategic collaborations to accelerate the development of regenerative medicine to improve health and deliver cures. RMF pursues its mission by producing its flagship World Stem Cell Summit, honouring leaders through the Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Action Awards, and promoting educational initiatives. Given the incredible natural properties of cork, it makes sense that the majority of the best wines from around the world are sealed with cork, says Carlos de Jesus, Operational Director of the InterCork program of APCOR. According to a recent survey conducted on behalf of APCOR The Portuguese Cork Association, 88 percent of the worlds top wines as selected by Wine Spectator in 2015, 2016 and 2017 are sealed with cork closures. The survey also revealed that 92 percent of red wines and 74 percent of white wines selected in the last three years were sealed with cork closures. Given the incredible natural properties of cork, it makes sense that the majority of the best wines from around the world are sealed with cork, says Carlos de Jesus, Operational Director of the InterCork program of APCOR. Its lightness, elasticity, carbon sequestration, and ability to provide consistent oxygen transfer to help with the aging process, are just a few of corks characteristics. Cork closures are 100 percent recyclable and sustainable. They are sourced from the bark of the cork oak tree, which regenerates after being harvested by hand every nine years. Cork oak is a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) priority species because it is one of the most ecologically, economically, and culturally important species on the planet. Cork oak forests provide habitats for endangered species and are a dependable income for the Western Mediterranean communities that maintain and harvest them. Since 1988, Wine Spectator has released its annual Top 100 list, selecting the best wines from the thousands reviewed during the year. According to the magazine, the criteria used to create this highly-regarded, annual list focus on quality, value, availability, and excitement. The information collected in this survey was conducted through individual phone calls and emails to the wineries, importers, and distributors listed in Wine Spectators Top 100 List of 2015, 2016 and 2017. For more information about APCOR, visit http://www.apcor.pt/en/ and http://www.100percentcork.org. You can follow APCOR on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. For questions about APCOR, please contact Krisna Bharvani of Colangelo & Partners. About APCOR: The Portuguese Cork Association (http://www.apcor.pt/en/) exists to promote natural cork and its products. APCOR is the employers association of the cork sector that represents, promotes and carries out research in the Portuguese cork industry. It was created in 1956 and is based in Santa Maria de Lamas, in the council of Santa Maria da Feira, at the heart of the cork industry around 30 kilometers from Porto, Portugals second largest city. Membership of the association is open to all companies operating in the fields of production, marketing or export of cork products. The organization advocates on behalf of the Portuguese cork industry worldwide and is the driving force of an industry based on tradition, innovation and sustainability. About Colangelo & Partners: Colangelo & Partners (http://www.colangelopr.com) specializes in premium food, wine and spirits brands, and has long established relationships with the key press that drive these business categories and help determine the industry leaders. Agency principals have years of experience in retail and distribution as well as communications, a rare combination that gives Colangelo & Partners invaluable insights into consumer purchasing behavior. The agency focuses on 'closing the loop' between creative communications programs, distribution, promotion, publicity and the consumer in order to maximize the efficiency of its communications programs and deliver measurable results. Founded in 2006, Colangelo & Partners was honored as one of the years top integrated communications firms at the 2013 Agency Elite Awards and for one of the best digital marketing campaigns at the 2014 Digital PR Awards. U.S.Senator Maria Cantwell and SHAG employee As one of the largest affordable housing developments for seniors in Washington state, the Tukwila Village project is yet another success story of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit," said U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell. [Sustainable Housing for the Ageless Generation (SHAG) and the City of Tukwila recently held the Tukwila Village Community Celebration to commemorate the culmination of a 20-year vision by the City of Tukwila to transform a formerly challenged stretch of Tukwila International Boulevard into a vibrant community. This festive and inclusive gathering marked the opening of Tukwila Village Phase 1, which brings two new state-of-the-art buildings encompassing 193 income qualified senior apartment homes to the region, a new library by the King County Library System, a community plaza and cafe. At the event, dignitaries speaking included long-time affordable housing advocate U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell, Tukwila Mayor Allan Ekberg, Lisa Rosenblum, executive director of King County Library System, and Bryan Park, CEO of Pacific Northern Construction Company, project developer. The official program was held at the Tukwila Village Plaza, and was bracketed by musical performances, cuisine from many cultures, tours of the new senior apartments, and tabling by local community-based organizations offering fun family activities. Phase 1s launch represents the culmination of a 20-year vision by the City of Tukwila to transform a formerly challenged stretch of Tukwila International Boulevard. When Tukwila asked SHAG to become its development and revitalization partner in 2011, a long-awaited effort to improve the quality of life for Tukwila residents began its path to fruition. The Washington State Housing Finance Commission (WSHFC), the statewide agency overseeing the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, played a critical role in this undertaking. It is because of this federal program that SHAG can build affordable housing for older adults with low-to-moderate income levels. As rents throughout the region continue to sky-rocket, the vital necessity of the LIHTC program grows increasingly evident. As one of the largest affordable housing developments for seniors in Washington state, the Tukwila Village project is yet another success story of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit. By combining for the first time affordable senior housing, health care, a library, community plaza and cafe, Tukwila Village will help bring economic revitalization to this neighborhood, Senator Cantwell said. LIHTC has built 90 percent of affordable housing in our country, and the expansion I passed this spring will enable our state to build 20 percent more affordable housing developments, like Tukwila Village, in 2018 alone. While senior housing stands as the cornerstone of Tukwila Village, its spacious, six-acre campus features wide-ranging resources to enhance the lives of residents and neighbors, while striving to foster authentic community. These amenities include the Sullivan Community Center, that will offer intergenerational programs, job trainings, multicultural arts experiences, and many other needed programs and services. Kona Kai Coffee Company, a non-profit organization, under the same roof as the Sullivan Center teaches underserved youth and adults food service skills, while offering customers specialty beverages and light meals. An art-filled plaza, reminiscent of an Italian palazzo, surrounds this central building, and a new KCLS library branch is just steps away. SHAGs 30-year commitment to providing quality accessible homes, and to fostering dynamic, vibrant communities that support older adults and people with disabilities to successfully age in place, remains our foremost priority, said SHAG Executive Director and CEO, Jay Woolford. And we are deeply proud of having joined forces with the City of Tukwila to engage in the critically important neighborhood revitalization work which the construction of Tukwila Village advances. Were excited to celebrate this achievement with Tukwilas extraordinarily diverse community. The first senior apartment building of Phase 1 opened in May 2018. The second building of Phase 1 will open in August, and is already 40% pre-leased. Phase 2 of Tukwila Village Construction will begin in fall 2018, offering a third and fourth SHAG senior residential buildings. Scheduled for completion in 2020, Phase 2 buildings will offer market-rate and affordable apartments. Upon its completion, Tukwila Village will also include an innovative mini-food hall and small business incubator, managed by the non-profit Food Innovation Network; small retail businesses; and a total of 398 apartments (primarily for seniors). As a transit-oriented community, Tukwila Village is located within 10 minutes of downtown Seattle and 5 minutes to SeaTac Airport. It is served by two active bus routes, and walkable to the Tukwila light-rail station. The neighborhood around Tukwila Village boasts parks, a public swimming pool, a performing arts center at Foster High School, a grocery and pharmacies. Tukwila Village Senior Living is intended to serve older adults of varying income levels. Each member of the residents household must be at least 55 years old, and at least one member of the household must be at least 62 years old or disabled. To learn more about the Tukwila Village Community Celebration visit http://www.Facebook.com/TukwilaVillage. For information on the SHAG Tukwila Village Senior Living community, visit http://www.housing4seniors.com. ******* About SHAG Sustainable Housing for Ageless Generations (SHAG) is a private Washington State non-profit corporation dedicated to providing quality, affordable independent living opportunities for older adults. It operates nearly 30 tax-credit communities licensed by the State of Washington to provide affordable senior housing. In addition to promoting sustainable apartment lifestyles for older adults and people with disabilities, SHAGs mission is to enhance and enrich residents lives and support their ability to live and remain independent as they age. Formed in 1988, SHAG has become the largest operator of affordable senior living communities in the State of Washington, and one of the nations largest providers of affordable senior living communities. SHAG serves nearly 6,000 residents throughout the Puget Sound region. For more information visit https://housing4seniors.com #ThisIsFortDodge The entire community branding campaign is based on the use of the hashtag #ThisIsFortDodge to expand the reach through our digital world, states Cheryl OHern, Marketing Coordinator with Spin Markket. Thanks for sharing with hashtag #ThisIsFortDodge is a familiar comment that can be found at this community branding campaign providing a fresh and exciting look to the world while demonstrating what Fort Dodge, Iowa has to offer. It entertains and provides information for those looking for new career opportunities, entrepreneurs seeking a growing community to open their business or expand a current one and artists seeking a welcoming community to create and dream. A series of four stories in 2018 will be added to the previous stories that kicked off in 2016 with a simple concept. Tell a story about the Fort Dodge, Iowa community, and region by showing all that is offered through the use of digital marketing and a strategically designed marketing campaign. The story themes include the first earlier this year on Housing, Construction and Career Opportunities in the community. Entitled #ThisisFortDodge: A Great City with Great Opportunities contains videos and information on five businesses located in the area. Nestle Purina, CEC Electric, Eastwood Realty LLC, Manpower and Shimkat Motor Company. Each share stories on the growth of their individual businesses and that of the region. A second story is just wrapping up and will focus on the quality of life of the community. Here readers will see videos and interviews from Soldier Creek Winery, Woodruff Construction, Main Street Fort Dodge, Community Health Center of Fort Dodge and Clay & Associates DDS, PLC. When released it will be online and promoted through a diverse marketing base of various digital mediums. Strategically targeting families and businesses looking for communities that encourage a quality of life they are actively seeking to emulate. Releasing of the third story is scheduled for the latter part of August or the first part of September. Education, Healthcare, and Community will be the thematic focus of this story with videos and information on area schools such as Fort Dodge Community School, St. Edmond Catholic School, and Iowa Central Community College. The fourth story of the year will be released just in time for the holiday shopping season. It will feature videos and interviews on #ShopSmall, #ShopLocal with various retail and businesses discussing shopping opportunities in the region. With the stories, you can also follow daily events on the ThisIsFortDodge website, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The entire community is encouraged to add the hashtag #ThisIsFortDodge to their social media posts to carry the campaign even further in the social world that we live in today. TV commercials and streaming of the commercials adds another level of marketing with the same branding theme carried throughout. The entire community branding campaign is based on the use of the hashtag #ThisIsFortDodge to expand the reach through our digital world, states Cheryl OHern, Marketing Coordinator with Spin Markket. We center on a variety of businesses throughout the community that really shows what Fort Dodge has to offer and how far we have grown over the last ten years or so. It is truly a community branding campaign that everyone can, and is encouraged to use, to promote their business and organization. Everything is specifically designed to easily be linked to their various digital marketing mediums along with linking back to the six online stories and #ThisIsFortDodge. It just continues to flow as we add more stories, posts, and information. That is why it has been so successful. Additional information on #ThisIsFortDodge is available at http://www.thisisfortdodge.com or calling 515-302-8026. The community branding campaign is a sponsored program by area businesses and individuals with Spin Markket acting as the central coordinator of the project. Follow online posts and videos on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Trideum Corporation Trideum will provide training and training assistance support for the Army, Joint, and Security Cooperation exercises, Training Operations and more. Trideum Corporation Awarded Prime Contract to Provide Global Training Support to U.S. Army Huntsville, Alabama and Orlando, Florida. Trideum Corporation, headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama, has been awarded the Enterprise Training Services Contract (ETSC), multiple-award indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (IDIQ) prime contract by the U.S. Army Contracting Command (ACC) - Orlando. Trideums ETSC multiple award IDIQ contract has a ceiling of $2.4 billion with a five-year period of performance. ETSC is a new contract vehicle through ACC-Orlando in support of the U.S. Army and the U.S. Armys Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI). Through the ETSC contract, Trideum will provide the Department of Defense with training and training assistance support services across military and civilian related subjects. Trideum will provide planning and support for Army, Joint, and Security Cooperation exercises; training operations; and maintenance and sustainment functions for training aids, devices, simulations, simulators, and ranges in support of worldwide contingency operations. Trideum will manage the work from Orlando, Florida, located near the U.S. Armys PEO STRI headquarters, and work will be performed at various secure facilities and government sites worldwide. About Trideum Founded in 2005, Trideum is headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama, and specializes in test and evaluation, modeling and simulation, training, education, systems engineering and analysis, and information technology solutions. Media Contact: Contact: Dolly Rairigh Glass (407) 797-7851 cell, Dolly(at)mycapitalcommunications.com US Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke Meets with Spreck Rosekrans Executive Director of Restore Hetch Hetchy in Yosemite National Park We had a very productive meeting with the Secretary and thank him for taking the time to hear our concerns, to visit Hetch Hetchy, and to consider returning the valley to Yosemite National Park and the American people. Restore Hetch Hetchy met with US Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke this weekend in Yosemite National Park to discuss restoration of Yosemite Valleys twin, the Hetch Hetchy Valley, which is buried under 300 feet of water. Restore Hetch Hetchy is requesting that the Department of the Interior initiate a department level study of the opportunity for restoration of the iconic valley to its natural splendor - and to the American people. Yosemites Hetch Hetchy Valley was clear cut, dammed and flooded over 100 years ago, making it inaccessible to the American people. The destruction of the valley, which John Muir called one of natures rarest and most precious mountain temples, drew opposition from more than 200 newspapers across the United States and helped spur the modern environmental movement. We had a very productive meeting with the Secretary and thank him for taking the time to hear our concerns, to visit Hetch Hetchy, and to consider returning the valley to Yosemite National Park and the American people, said Restore Hetch Hetchy Executive Director Spreck Rosekrans who, along with Restore Hetch Hetchy board members, accompanied the Secretary on a tour of the flooded valley. We firmly believe restoration is doable and that its benefits are enormous: restoration would provide greater access to nature to the parks visitors, reinforce the egalitarian idea of National Parks and set an important precedent for how to manage natural resources all while continuing to meet the water and power needs of all communities that depend on the Tuolumne River, continued Rosekrans. We appreciate the Secretarys consideration of a study that will provide clarity to all stakeholders on the possibilities for, and merits of, restoration. Among the issues Restore Hetch Hetchy is asking the study to consider are the best way for San Francisco to meet its water storage needs without using Yosemites Hetch Hetchy Valley as a storage tank and the value to the American people of restoring Hetch Hetchy valley as enjoyable national park land. After the meeting, Secretary Zinke posted on Twitter: Good meeting with Restore Hetch Hetchy. Taking a fresh look at different opportunities and options to restore public access and recreation to the valley. We believe returning Hetch Hetchy to Yosemite National Park and the American people is simply the right thing to do, continued Rosekrans. We are eager to work cooperatively with the Department of the Interior on this historic opportunity. The organization is currently pursuing restoration through the California courts, while also broadening awareness of the possibilities and benefits of restoration, including the recent launch of its Walk the Valley campaign which asks nature lovers, Yosemite lovers, National Parks lovers, and adventurers from all walks of life to take a pledge to walk in a restored Hetch Hetchy Valley . Citizens who are interested in joining campaign to restore Yosemites Hetch Hetchy Valley can find out more at http://www.hetchhetchy.org. To join the Pledge to Walk the Valley campaign and to ask others to take the pledge, go here. To view the Walk the Valley video, click here. To view the Hooray for Hetch Hetchy video, click here. To access a Walk the Valley facebook frame, click here. Restore Hetch Hetchys mission is to return the Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite National Park to its natural splendor while continuing to meet the water and power needs of all communities that depend on the Tuolumne River. Media Relations Melanie Webber, mWEBB Communications, (949) 307-1723, melanie(At)mwebbcom.com I want all young people to know that they matter. No matter how poorly they may have been treated, the author said, they can overcome all of the odds set against them. Senior Year follows a 17-year old girl who has her entire life ahead of her. A senior in high school, she is on the honor roll and looking ahead to a bright future until she finds herself involved with the wrong crowd. Drinking and partying soon takeover, pushing her to make life-altering decisions that ultimately lead her into a deep depression. Based on true events, author Lily Caverton wrote this novel to shine a light on the mental health struggles millions of teens and adolescents face, and show how overcoming obstacles is possible. I want all young people to know that they matter. No matter how poorly they may have been treated, the author said, they can overcome all of the odds set against them. Teens and young adults will resonate with the feelings of not fitting in, feeling alone, and not knowing who to turn to portrayed in Senior Year. A story of survival as much as it is a story of struggle, readers will find comfort in the resilient nature of the main characters journey. Senior Year By Lily Caverton ISBN: 9781524588526 (softcover); 9781524588533 (hardcover); 9781524588519 (electronic) Available at the Xlibris Online Bookstore, Amazon and Barnes & Noble About the author Lily Caverton has been writing since she was four years old, when she used to hole-punch her books and tie ribbon to keep the pages together. She has always had a love for writing and is passionate about literature. Lily graduated with a bachelors degree in Psychology and is now pursuing her Masters in Clinical Mental Health counseling. Among writing, she loves spending time with close friends, traveling, and meeting new people. She works as a Residential Counselor, hoping to use her personal as well as clinical experiences to help better the lives of individuals with disabilities and mental illness. ### Review Copies & Interview Requests: LAVIDGE Phoenix Kiersten Woglom 480-998-2600 x 586 kwoglom(at)lavidge(dot)com If you are new to iQ you can schedule a demo and learn more about this opportunity. PSFK iQ - Where Innovators Turn for Research. Our professional-grade research platform is designed specifically for Retail and CX leaders who want to know whats next. Whether youre staying current on trends or need a real-time research partner to help you get ahead, count on PSFK iQ to deliver the info you need to make your next move. Order of birth Children are sometimes named after the the order in which they are born. In many tribes around the continent, families give birth to a large number of children. In a West African country like Ghana, names like Duku and Adunu meaning eleventh and twelfth born. In Ghana, twins are called Panyin and Kakra meaning older and younger in Akan language. In Uganda, Wasswa and Kato mean elder twin and younger twin. In Nigeria, the Yorubas name their first twin child Taiwo and Kehinde, meaning taste the world and come after. Weekday names In Ghana, when a child is born on a particular day there is a name given them aside the name that will be given to them. Below are the names: Day -- Male name, female name Sunday Kwesi, Akosua Monday Kojo, Adowa Tuesday Kwabena, Abena Wednesday - Kwaku, Ekua Thursday Yaw, Yaa Friday Kofi, Efua Saturday Kwame, Ama These names vary from other ethnic groups in Ghana. Season or time of day In Kenya, children named according to the time of the day are called Kibet and Kiplagat meaning day and night. Names like Omondi, Okinyi, Onyango meaning dawn, morning and mid-morning. Ochieng, Otieno and Odour meaning midday, night and midnight are given to male children. These female names are similar to the males but starts with A rather than O. Naming after a prominent personality or family member A child named after a prominent personality or family member is known in some parts of Africa. Mothers in Kenya have names their sons after the former president of the US, Barack Obama. A male child named Junior; in other tribes is inheritance of their father and grandfathers name. For others, there is the belief that the child is reincarnated. In Ghana, these children are described as Ababio; meaning returnee and in Southern Africa, Oupa or Ouma meaning grandfather and grandmother. Naming based on religious faith Across Africa, childrens names express belief. In Ghana, the Ewes name their child Mawulolo meaning God is big and Makafui; meaning I will praise God. In Nigeria, Chi or Chukwu or Oluwa has some reference to God. Oluwatoyin means Glory be to God and Hailemariam, a name from Ethiopia, means the power of God. Nicknames A spokesman for Springfield, which had a contract to buy oil from Glencore, said: We strongly believe this is a matter of Ghana law and consequently a matter for Ghanas courts. Deputy High Court judge Nicholas Vinehall QC ruled in Glencores favour over a contract dispute between the two parties. According to him, Springfield broke a prior agreement when it failed to pay Glencore $1.2m (915,000) plus interest for breaching a contract to take oil from the FTSE 100 company. Having paid almost half of an agreed settlement of $2.2 million, Springfield halted payments on the basis that Glencore had allegedly broken Ghanaian law, it no longer had to pay. The judge found no illegality of the sort belatedly alleged by Springfield and said he preferred the testimony of Glencores expert. He criticised written evidence presented by Springfield as difficult to follow and superficial. Around 5 billion was wiped off Glencores market value at the start of July when it was served a subpoena under US laws relating to corruption and money laundering. The US wants to see documents relating to Glencores dealings in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Venezuela dating back to 2007. Business Insider Sub Saharan Africa reached Glencore's Charles Watenphul and he refuted all allegations. Kenya spent millions of shillings purchasing bullet-proof vests that cannot protect wearers from bullets leave alone even protect one against a knife stab. According to Auditor-General Edward Ouko, millions of taxpayers money went down the drain after the Kenya Prisons department spent Sh43 million to procure default bullet-proof jackets for it wardens. Mr Ouko pointed out in his audit report that the 600 body armour jackets were delivered without the ballistic plates that offer protection against bullets, rendering them useless and worthless. An audit inspection later revealed that the body armour does not have ballistic panels and cannot be used to protect staff against rifle fire, ammunition, knife stab and sharp or pointed instrument, Mr Ouko says in a qualified audit opinion on the financial statements of the Prisons Department for the year to June 2017. Records at the prison department showed that 300 bullet-proof jackets were procured at a cost of Sh22,275,000 and another 300 at a price of Sh20,998,000. The goods were delivered and received by the stores and later distributed to various prisons stations without being inspected for strength. Apart from the worthless bullet-proof vests the department could also not account for Sh8.6 million it paid a contractor to supply and install 190 closed circuit television cameras (CCTVs) at Naivasha maximum security prison. Jamax Logistics Enterprises who were awarded the Sh43,184,480 on January 10, 2017, to supply, delivery, installation, testing and commissioning of IP-based CCTV Surveillance System at Naivasha Prison only supplied 158 cameras, resulting in a loss of 32-five Megapixel Cameras worth Sh1,728,000. The audit further established that 52 cameras costing Sh4,576,000 installed at the reception and hospital block is defective, and therefore, not functioning... Further, the audit revealed that the contractor supplied eight Power Distribution Boards instead of 30, resulting in a loss of 22 contracted units costing Sh550,000, the audit says. Apart from the contractor not offering the required training to the prison staff on the use of CCTV services, the audit also found out that the CCTV cameras delivered had low storage space resulting in fluctuations in the required CCTV services. The contractor was required to supply and install 64 Channel 400 Mbps Network Video Recorder (NVR) with minimum 48TB 12 hot-swap HDDs Internal Video Storage (RAID 6). In an interview with Pulse.com.gh, Mr Asiedu who goes by the popular brand name AkiOla disclosed that his former partner, Professor Samuel Kwame Amponsah is the man who passed away. I am still alive. I have been receiving calls since morning but I would like to state that by the grace of God, I am alive, Peter Asiedu told Pulse Ghana. My brother and former partner, Professor Samuel Kwame Amponsah is the one who has sadly passed away. My condolence to the family. Peter Asiedu started the AkiOla project with Professor Samuel Kwame Amponsah with the deceased leaving the team two years later. When the news of Professor Amponsahs demise broke, Ghanaians took to their social media to say goodbye to Peter Asiedu instead. He has lectured a lot of students who are shocked by the news. The Headmaster of the School, Alhaji Harrison is said to have been infuriated by the poor performance of the students and sanctioned the burning of the mobile phones seized from the students to instill discipline in the students. Headmaster Several attempts by Graphic Onlines Reporter, Mohammed Fugu to speak to the headmaster on the incident proved futile as he (the headmaster) hanged up his telephone call. A staff of the school who pleaded anonymity said authorities at the emergency meeting blamed the poor performance of the student in the WASSCE results on the growing indiscipline and rampant use of mobile phones among the students in the school. The source said efforts by the school authorities to prevent the students from using mobile phones on campus have not yielded any result, which it said necessitated the decision. GES Meanwhile, the Northern Regional Director of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Alhaji Mohammed Haroon Cambodia has hailed the school authorities for embarking on such exercise, saying yes, the students are aware that they are not supposed to use mobile phones in the school and if any student is found culpable, he or she is supposed to be punished. The growing indiscipline in the schools is too much; some of the students especially the girls go to the extent of cutting their sanitary pads and hiding the phones in them, he said, adding others also hide their phones in the Bible and Quran, the students can protest, they know very well that it is not acceptable. Mr. Haroon Cambodia said the action was to deter other students from using mobile phones in the school to help curb the growing indiscipline among the students, describing the action by the school as a good decision. According to him, the students spend much of their time on their mobile phones, engaging in immoral activities rather than spending time on their books. Students Some of the students whose mobile phones were seized and burnt have condemned the action by the school authorities, describing it as harsh and wicked. How do we contact our parents any time we are in need, they bemoaned the decision by the schools authorities. It has become a highly imperative part of our everyday lives and is used by tons of people on devices ranging from personal computers to smartphones. Origin of the Internet in Ghana Ghana became one of the few countries in sub-Saharan Africa with full Internet connectivity in August 1995. Organizations including British Telecom, Network Computer Systems (NCS), Pipex International, the Ministry of Transport, and the Ministry of Communication, and Ghana Telecom were the organizations that made this possible. Internet Cafes were famous then as they were mostly the surest way to connect to the Internet for a lot of indigenes. However, after the advent of the in Ghana in 1995, there has been a wide expansion of the national telephone network by Ghana Telecom. Current state With the emergence of many Internet providers in Ghana, the Internet is more accessible than before; from the largest Internet providers in Ghana, NCS (Network Computer Systems), to the telecommunication network providers. Well over half of Ghanas population is now online, with the latest data showing that over 10 million Ghanaians use the Internet according to an annual report released by global digital agencies. How the is generally Internet being used Social media today has become synonymous with the Internet in Ghana even though there are many uses for it. It has become the thought that pops up anytime the internet is mentioned. The Ghanaian averagely spent three hours, forty-six minutes using the Internet via any device and two hours, 56 minutes using social media via any device all in the survey released by researchers into Internet usage in Ghana. READ ALSO:We need to purchase Ghanaian music to stop sabotaging our musicians How can we optimize the Internet for our good? Between Instagram selfie posts and hilarious videos we watch online, there is a lot of wonderful and great life hack tool on the Internet. The internet has made the world a global village today. It allows us to communicate with anyone, anywhere in the world, in seconds. As compared to what existed before its invention, it has made the world simpler and effective in terms of communication and correspondence. Online learning is already in vogue in developed countries and still growing in developing countries. Various websites provide a platform for online courses. Some offer participants certificate upon successful completion of the course. The Internet is really huge and has unlimited resources to gain knowledge. So, it mostly depends on what you want to learn. We can also get informed of current world events, news, politics, and government. Conclusion READ ALSO: Counsellor Lutterodt defends police officer for assaulting nursing woman Lance Corporal Frederick Amanor aka Skalla has come under intense criticism after he brutally assaulted a woman at the Shiashie branch of Midlands Savings and Loans. He has since been remanded, with the Police Administration confirming that investigations have already commenced into the matter. However, hours after the video of the womans assault went viral, a photo Dumelo snapped with Lance Corporal Frederick Amanor also began circulating. This got certain quarters wondering if the actor had any relationship with the disgraced Policeman. But responding to a Twitter follower, Dumelo denied any ties with the said officer, explaining that the photo may have been taken a long time ago. READ ALSO: He further condemned the actions of the officer, describing him as a coward. Bro, this picture must have been taken ages ago. But the policeman is a coward for doing what he did. Under no circumstance should he have physically abused that woman, his tweet replied. Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! Speaking on Daybreak Hitz on Hitz FM, the suggested that it would have been more appropriate to adopt an indigenous name for the industry. He further stated that the name Gollywood does not identify with Ghanaians, adding that its a sign that not much thinking went into making that decision. As a creative industry, we need to be more indigenous with a name that will reveal our identity rather than be towing the same line with the western culture," he said. "Its something I cant understand...a bunch of creative people meet and the only name they could come up with is Gollywood; just because there is a wood in it? Its a sign that not much thinking went into making that decision. KSM, who is the host of Thank God its Friday on Metro TV, believes GH Cinema suits the industry better, as well as sells the brand as a whole. During this set, he took time to properly introduce himself to the masses who (perhaps) were watching him for the first time; he gave props to his country Ghana, Africa and all necessary affiliates before wheedling the crowd into his next song BawaSaaba, another growing monster song off his Epistles Of Mama album. The cracker moment of his performance was when he used Bob Marley for a dope freestyle. He introduced KConeil on stage for a duet they performed Balance a new single on which KConeil featured Stonebwoy, produced by Monie Beatz, Ghanaian Producer. Stonebwoy came back o his own catalogue and performed Mightylele and then ended it with his award winning monster song Go Higher. Stonebwoys performance lasted for 15 minutes, even more than some Jamaican artistes who graced the same stage. Before he came on, Dmajor, Harry Toddler and some others performed. Right after Stonebwoy came on stage Agent Sasco (Assassin), whom Stonebwoy featured on Hakuna Matata, another single off the Epistles Of Mama album released on December 12, 2017. Other well known and highly respected international brands Stonebwoy performed with were Sizzla Kalonji, Aidonia, Popcaan, Alkaline, I-Octane, Spice, Ding Dong, Masicka, Dexta Daps, just to mention a few. Zip FM Jamaica, one of the huge Caribbean radio stations on their official Instagram page wrote....Stonebwoy did his FIRST performance in Jamaica and he proved himself as a competent performer as he was able to captivate the patrons! Stonebwoy who is currently on his Europe Tour had a spectacular performance earlier this month in Germany where he played at Summerjam main stage in Fuhlinger See in Cologne. He played other concerts in Switzerland and Netherlands respectively, as part of his tour line up. He has played 8 concerts so far on his Epistles Of Mama World Tour. Seven more shows are in the line up to be played. Stonebwoy returns to Europe this week; he plays in Italy on July 28th at Reset Club in Modena. Despite numerous interventions over the last two decades, the situation seems to rather be worsening. So what is the problem? Or, better still, what are the solutions? President Akufo-Addo has sought to push the Ghana Beyond Aid mantra, which is geared towards getting to a level where the country does not need to borrow to survive. But how about a Ghana Beyond Filth campaign too? Earlier this year, Street Hygiene Ambassador (SHA), Evangelist Bright Adoboe, observed that a whopping 86% of Ghanas environment is filled with filth. As worrying as the situation is, there seems to be no mapped out plan from either government or citizens to help mitigate the menace. The situation is much more damning when you consider the fact that the structures to lead the reforms are either not functioning properly or totally non-existent. Statistics from UNCEF indicate that less than 15% of Ghanaian households have handwashing facilities. The findings also indicate that only 15% of Ghanaians have access to improved sanitation, well short of the 2015 goal of 54%. Also, currently, one out of every five Ghanaians has no access to a toilet and defecate in the open. The Northern parts of the country, in particular, have an open defecation rate of over 70%, whiles the coastal areas in the southern and western parts of the country are no different. Consequences of a filthy Ghana A nation that is filled with filth is bound to suffer the consequences. Unfortunately, Ghana is a country that has woefully failed to arrest its issues of sanitation and, as a result, the consequences have been brutal. Figures from UNICEF indicate that about 4,000 Ghanaian children die each year from diarrhea, with an even larger number dying from pneumonia. These are preventable diseases, yet we stand and watch our children, brothers, sisters, friends and other acquaintances die. For how long will we let our sloppy and careless actions take away precious lives? It is estimated that Ghana loses close to 290 million dollars due to poor sanitation and bad hygiene practices. Part of this money goes into initiating policies to solve the sanitation issues, whiles the other part is used to import drugs and to treat those who have suffered hygiene-related sicknesses. We might not care today, but gradually we will all feel the effects. These huge sums could have been used for building more schools, constructing more roads or even financing other community projects. However, it has been channeled into waste management, into filth produced and scattered around the country by our own selves. How disheartening! Everybody must take blame There is a popular saying in the Ga language that goes like: To find a solution to something, one must first admit that there is a problem somewhere. The biggest low among many Ghanaians is the penchant to apportion blame to one another whenever a problem arises. However, to tackle the sanitation problem that has blighted the nation since Dr. Kwame Nkrumah announced our independence, there is the need for everyone to take blame. It is very easy to find certain classes of people exempting themselves from blame but, in truth, every Ghanaian has contributed one way or the other to the rubbish and choked gutters we find all around the cities. Although much of the blame may go to the market woman, the pure water seller and the food vendor, the office-based banker and the medical doctor can also not be exempted from blame. When you sit in your car and throw that rubber through the windows, you are guilty; when you walk on the street and spit around, you are guilty; and when you drop that sachet water in a nearby gutter, you are equally guilty. But until we all begin to take blame and be responsible for our actions, there is no way we can find solutions to our sanitation issues. We must shoulder the blame, then we can react to counter the menace. What we must do In the last decade, there have been various policies designed to make sure that Ghana moves from a nation filled with filth to one that glows like a paradise. Quite recently, in 2017, just three months after Akufo-Addo had become president, he pledged that his government will make Accra the cleanest city in Africa. The commitment we are making and which I want you all to make with me is that by the time we end our four-year term, Accra is going to be the cleanest city in Africa, he said. But realising the magnitude of the pledge he had made, President Akufo-Addo called on the general public to support and cooperate to make it a reality. Tackling the filth that has taken over the country is not an easy task it is no longer a peripheral issue, but one of national concern. Therefore, there is the need for a collaborative effort from both bourgeois and proletariats if we are to make a headway in the fight. Everyone must get involved politicians and commoners, office workers and traders, parents and children, teachers and students. Accra can truly become the neatest city in Africa, but it will not become so because the President said it. Action must be taken to back up the talk. For so many years, all we have done is to talk, talk and talk with little action being taken. That must change. And the time is now. In recent times the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and other metropolitan and municipal assemblies have taken steps to make sure the littering of the various cities is brought to a halt. Fines have often been issued to defaulters, however, it has proven not to be enough to serve as deterrent to others. And that is because these fines are too paltry to serve as deterrent to anyone, really. We are often vibrant in enforcing laws when there is an outbreak of a disease or a disaster occurs, yet after a month or two, that sort of vibrant urge to tackle the menace quenches. Perhaps its now time for some consistency, time to sustain our efforts. No more should we say oh this place is now better than before so lets relax the seriousness with which we take our sanitation. That way, we would gradually and surely turn our cities into the paradise that we dream of. Time to do your part clean, clean and clean Who said Accra cannot become the cleanest city in Africa? With effort, commitment and determination, the capital could be truly transformed, sans filth and littering. We do not have to look very far to see that it is possible. Right across in Uganda, Paul Kagame is leading this sort of transformation and the results are there for all to see. So why not pick up that broom or that mob or that shovel or that rake and start something. Lets help to clean our homes and contribute to the cleaning of our cities in every little way we can. We are crying for a Ghana beyond aid; but how about a Ghana beyond filth too? We can make it happen. The story of the poor woman has been circulating online after a Ghanaian journalist identified as Ibrahim Oppong Kwarteng who also apparently works with human rights advocacy organisation, Crime Check Foundation (CCF) posted it Facebook. According to Ibrahim Oppong Kwarteng, the woman revealed to him during his interactions with her that, her husband had brought the said side chick home and annoyingly gave her the wifes cloth to wear. Expectedly, when the convict saw another woman in her cloth, she became incensed and confronted her, leading to a fight between the two. It was during the fight that the pregnant woman reportedly used a sandal to hit her imminent rival. Apparently, the matter was reported to the police and she was arrested for prosecution, leading to her eventual conviction. It is unclear which court convicted the woman and whether it gave any consideration to her state before sentencing her. Ibrahim Oppong Kwarteng subsequently posted his experience with the pregnant convict on Facebook, saying: I encountered this beautiful young lady at the Nsawam FemalePrison last week. She has been convicted for 2 years with a 5 months old pregnancy, and came into the prison with her one and a half year old son. Her offence? She tells me her husband brought in his girlfriend into the house and gave the lady her dress to wear. She couldnt believe what was unfolding in her eyes and could not contain the humiliation. She confronted the lady and a fight ensued. In the course of the struggle, she hit the lady with a sandals she laid hands on and was jailed for assault. Since coming to prison, this so-called husband has never visited her. My appeal is for some of our judges to fully consider the overall context of events before handing down sentences. I have a feeling they are sometimes misled by the police? For how long will the Alternative Sentencing Bill which could possibly prescribe community sentences in such cases, continue to gather dust in Parliament? Shouldnt pregnant women be given suspended sentences instead? I simply dont understand why the Criminal Offences Act 1960 which obviously needs a review after so many years of usage continue to dictate the pace. We are all not safe! She has a fine of 1400 Ghs to pay and another 2000 for the injuries caused to her attacker, making it 3400 Ghs in all to secure her release. The couple, who have a lovely two-year-old daughter, Adalyn Owusu Addo together had a traditional marriage before the white wedding at the Labadi Beach hotel. Tracy Ama popularly called Tracy Sarkcess left nothing to imagination when it comes to the apparels for her big day. Like every celebrity bride, the gorgeous woman wore a series of elegant dresses as family, friends and invited guests gathered under one roof to witness their holy matrimony. Now Tracy Owusu Addo, the Queen of the Sarknation walked down the aisle in a white lace gown and white veil holding her bouquet. The floor-length gown also featured a long sleeve and it was absolutely perfect for the occasion. The stunning bride gave us major hairstyle goals and makeup looks that complimented her looks. She kept it simple with accessories, a drop earring, and a bracelet. Present at the event were Peter Okoye of P-Square fame, Mr. Kofi Amoabeng, the former CEO of UB, C.E.O of Eurostar Limousine, C.E.O of Zylofon Media and Menzgold Nana Appiah Mensah, K.O.D, Joselyn Dumas and many more. According to some customers, they receive less than 10 percent of the amounts they go to withdraw at the various branches of the bank. This has left the customers stranded as they are unable to get their money for their needed activities. READ ALSO: Shiashie branch of Midland Savings and Loans closed temporarily In an interview with Accra-based Citi FM, a customer said managers offered to give her GHC 50 from the GHC10, 000 she wanted to withdraw. My supplier in Western Region who has an account with the bank asked me to deposit GHC10, 000 into his account so that he can use it to buy my produce and send to me for shipment. So I did that two weeks ago hoping he could withdraw the money the same day, but for two weeks now we have been chasing this money, now they want to give me GHC100 from the 10,000. Another customer also said that he was offered GHS50 today after several visits to the bank to withdraw GHS10, 500. I have been here more than five times since last week, for my money. Because I know they wouldnt give the amount I want, I asked them to give me GHS1, 000. But they said they will not get the GHS1, 000 unless GHS50. But I wont accept that, today if they dont give me the GHS1000, I will not go. READ ALSO: Panic withdrawals hit Midland Savings and Loans The officials of the Adabraka branch did not speak on the record. They, however, explained that they are unable to pay customers due to limited funds caused by a panic withdrawal that has hit the company since last month. Job sites in Ghana you can follow for real jobs REVIEW TYPE Online recruitment service/online job sites REVIEW The internet is choked with countless Gone are the days when you would walk in the hot sun, moving from one office to another, being talked down on by rude receptionist and eventually have your CV used to wrap roasted plantain. All this stress, just to get a job interview not even the job itself. Online job websites is here to save us all. Though it might seem like a new experience, online recruitment sites or jobs have been around since 1994. NetStart Inc. software was first developed algorithm to help companies put up their job openings and also manage the responses (emails) too. In 1998, it transformed into a website with its own address and began to operate under the name CareerBuilder. It is just fair to say that among virtues of the internet, online job sites are definitely one. Since we spend a greater part of our day online, its only fitting that we can gain something out of all that time and resources we put into it. Online job sites are simply a blessing to the unemployed coalition. Unlike the newspaper ad section, you have access to thousands of job listings of various diverse work fields. And since its cheaper (some actually go for free), companies dont hesitate to post any job openings that comes up. Also in the absence of financial-space restriction, they are able to provide more detail about the vacant position. Some companies even go a step further to review a candidates qualification through a series of aptitude test. And for the job applicant, so many wonderful opportunities to explore! Upload your CV and have prospective employers review your qualities without any disappoints if you are turned down. It doesnt break your spirit when u dont have your hopes up (unlike being turned down at the door). It is both efficient and ineffective in job searches. Accessible 24/7 anywhere any day. Let me introduce to you, job sites /online recruitment agencies in Ghana that are worth their salt. List of job sites in Ghana you can follow for real jobs: Jobberman.com.gh JobwebGhana.com Ghanajob.com JobsInGhana.com JobHouseGhana BusinessGhana.com GhanaCurrentJobs.com Ghanaweb.com Jobs Portal JoblistGhana.com It is patronized by employers Ghana Locum Agency Tonaton.com RATING Apart from the likelihood of being scammed, a highly competitive platform and unwanted applications, job websites are very a godsend. I would recommend all job applicants and unemployed persons to try this amazing system of job opportunities. CREATED BY Sources suggest that many customers used their mobile money to withdraw some or all of their money. Others promised to go to the bank on Monday so they can withdraw their savings. READ ALSO: Shiashie branch of Midland Savings and Loans closed temporarily A video went viral on social media showing a policeman assigned to the Savings and Loans physically abusing a woman who was carrying a baby at the headquarters of Midland Savings and Loans at Shiashe in Accra. Patience Osafo had refused to leave the banking hall after the company failed to allow her to withdraw GHC270 from her savings account. The staff asked the AK-47-wielding policeman to get her out and in the process, assaulted her. The policeman, at the centre of the incident, Frederick Amanor Skalla, has since been arrested by the Police on the orders of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), David Asante-Apeatu, for investigations and prosecution. She comes into the job with a high clout due to her organisation's inclusion in governance issues and organising Presidential debates during electioneering years. We, therefore, took a look at five (5) things that made her stood out for this important job. 1. She is a lawyer by profession and a leader of thought in Ghana on governance and democratic issues. Mrs. Mensa has carved a niche for herself in the field of policy research and advocacy as well as in the development of policy alternatives including the Presidential Transition Act of 2012. 2. Mrs. Mensa was a tireless advocate for the review of Ghanas 1992 Constitution and served as a Commissioner of the Government-established Constitution Review Commission. She is currently a member of the Government Committee tasked with preparing the Affirmative Action Bill. 3. Mrs. Jean Mensa is the Executive Director of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), Ghanas premier public policy institute and Coordinator of the Ghana Political Parties Programme. 4. She was part of the Committee that revised 1992 Constitution of Ghana (draft); the Political Parties Funding Bill and the Revised Political Parties Bill. She was also presented with a plague for her Global Excellence in Leadership, Humanitarian and Philanthropic activities in Africa. Samira, who is the wife of Ghanas Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, took to social media to announce her latest achievement. In an Instagram post, the Second Lady said she is grateful to such an honour, whiles explaining what her new ambassadorial role entails. I am honoured to be named the World Habitat Humanitarian Ambassador and to be awarded for Global Excellence in Leadership, Humanitarian and Philanthropic activities in Africa and Investiture by World Habitat Ambassadors Foundation (WHAF), she wrote. The World Habitat Ambassadors Foundation (WHAF) is an NGO committed to working towards sustainable development goals and core values in dedication to achieving urban development. Thank you to the WHAF for the award and the Ghana High Commission in Abuja for hosting the presentation of the award. Regional authorities said 455 people were cleared in the operation, ordered over the "worrying" sanitary situation at the encampment, where rats had been spotted and where some migrants had caught scabies. Nantes, a riverside city in Brittany home to 300,000 people, has seen asylum applications jump 28 percent in a year, bucking a trend among most other big French regional cities. The migrants evicted from the city-centre camp were sent to a public hall where officials were examining their cases. Regional authorities said they would shelter "the most vulnerable people" and asylum seekers "as much as possible", but warned that their facilities were "saturated". Officials had said last week that they had found only 100 spaces in emergency shelters throughout the region. "It means at least 300 people are going to sleep in the street tonight, without tents," said Francois Prochasson, a member of a local group which helps migrants. "They're just going to go somewhere else, to another park, and nothing will have been fixed," he said. Regional authorities said migrants who "cannot claim asylum or legal residency, or who have claimed asylum in another European Union member state, will be asked to leave the country". President Emmanuel Macron's government is pushing through parliament a tough new immigration law which would speed up the asylum process and accelerate deportations. The petition launched by Ali Abdi under UK-based change.org has 1,985 signatures so far against a target of 2,500. Abdi, in his petition, said Kenya transformed from dictatorship to a multi-party democracy because of Mr Odinga's efforts. "Kenyans could have been in the dark without his sacrifices. Raila has also brokered peace initiatives not only in Kenya but the African continent as a whole." Abdi also cited the recent hand shake with President Kenyatta adding that the Orange Democratic Leader "saved Kenya from turning into a bloody civil war." Wangari Maathai The petition has gained traction since its launch a few days ago with several users sharing the link across the globe to nominate the Opposition leader. In 2004, the late Wangari Maathai, a Kenyan environmentalist, became the first African woman to receive the award for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace. A nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize may be submitted by any person who meets the nomination criteria. Bloomberg News reports that the oil mining licenses 11 and 17 of the oil giant might be sold for $2 billion. According to the report,included in the sale are infrastructure assets such as a natural gas-fired power plant that would be managed by Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc, another company owned by Tony Elumelu. Shell's oil assets Shell is planning to sell off its Niger Delta assets as conflict, militant attacks and accusation over environmental pollution fuel major concern for Anglo-Dutch firm in the region. The company has sold billions of dollars of Niger Delta assets in the past decade and the latest sale would leave Shell to focus on its deepwater operations where the risks of attacks on infrastructure and theft are relatively low. Heir Holdings limited and Shell, however, declined to comment on the planned sale. The twelve chosen were Nigerian startups VoguePay, CredPal, Loystar and Growsel as well as Kenyan startups M-Changa, Mookh, WayaWaya and LipaPlus. Howler and FinChatBot were shortlisted from South Africa whereas Uganda and Zambia will be represented by Swipe2Pay and Brig Africa respectively. The initiativetasks start-ups to solve commerce challenges of tomorrow, further enhance their own product propositions and provide visionary solutions for Visas vast network of partners. We are delighted with the response to our Visas Everywhere Initiative and the quality of submissions we received is an indication of the regions rich talent pool and innovative spirit," said Geraldine Mitchley, senior Visa director for Digital Solutions for Sub-Sahara Africa in a statement. Strides The finalists were selected from 238 entries from the dynamic Sub-Saharan African (SSA) technology startup community. One winner per challenge will be selected, with each receiving Sh2.5 million ($25,000). The overall winner will receive an additional Sh2.5 million. Fintechs in Africa are making huge strides with the aim being expanding the ways in which people transact beyond traditional banking. Over 4,766 people and counting have already signed the first petition to stop her from going to the United Kingdom. This petition was started by Mayowa Olaiya on change.org in order to stop her from "coming to the UK to defraud the people and the country." In Mayowa's words: "Funke Felix Adejumo is one of a group of Nigerian religious Charlatans who regularly visit the UK to defraud the people and the country. They ask people to sow seeds for miracles and breakthrough and flee from the country with the funds without paying tax. They go from Churches to churches; this is a religious cabal network." The U.S petition was started by Daniel Audu who wrote: "We are determined to stop the extortion and money laundering going on in the united states by fraudulent Nigerian pastor rev Funke Felix Adejumo. "She hides under the pretense of being a woman of God and extort money from gullible unsuspecting members in different Nigerian churches across the United States. We have reason to believe this woman is laundering money from the united states through the pretense of a church. This is an illegal money laundry channel and we need to regulate or stop this extortion." So far, over 745 people have signed the petition which is seeking 1000 signatures. ALSO READ: All you need to know about Rev Funke Adejumo The third petition is by Simon Peter who is trying to stop her from "entering the EU to defraud people and the country." 144 out of the required 200 people have already signed. Love for Rev Adejumo While some people are trying to stop the preacher, a hashtag, #IStandWithFunkeAdejumo, has been launched on Instagram in support of the severely criticised cleric. Notable figures like Tara Durotoye, founder, and CEO of Africa's Leading Makeup Company, House of Tara are some of the people who are showing love for Rev Adejumo by sharing her impact on their lives. The comedian took to his Instagram page to share a picture of himself and his guest, who looked happy visiting the Okpochas. "Boss!!!! @femiotedola thank you so much for coming through sir, na man you be. #Ote$$$$$," Basketmouth wrote as caption for the picture of himself and Otedola on Instagram. Reciprocating, Otedola posted the same picture and captioned it "Catching a laugh with @Basketmouth at his home." In 2017, Baskemouth won a recognition in the Pan-African Comic Award category at the Savannah Comic Choice Awards held at the Lyric Theatre in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Saturday, September 9, 2017. Basketmouth to run as first multi-state Governor Thanks to the reduction of age limit for political offices, a few celebrities have indicated their interest in dabbling into politics. Basketmouth has joined the fun, indicating his interest in running for Governor. Only that he will be running as the first multi-state governor. His campaign poster shows that he intends to be voted as the Governor of Imo, Abia, Rivers, Cross Rivers, Awka Ibom and Lagos states. David Babafemi Mauton Osunkoya popularly known as Femi Branch was born on May 14, 1970, in Sagamu, Ogun state. He grew up in a modest home where his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Osunkoya were both teachers. Originally from Odosenbora town in Ijebu North East, a local government area of Ogun State, Femi attended Satellite Town Primary School at Amuwo Odofin, a local government area in the Ojo Division of Lagos State before he attended the Airforce Secondary School at Ikeja, Lagos State. Femi Branch gained admission to Obafemi Awolowo University to study Religious Studies but graduated with a degree in Dramatic Arts. He actually began his acting career while in the university where he featured in a Yoruba stage play titled Eniyan. He later featured in a movie titled Orisun produced by members of staff of Obafemi Awolowo University. Femi Branch' road to success in Nollywood began when he starred in the popular tv series, Dominos. He played the role of 'Oscar' in the series which didn't only bring him to limelight but also saw the birth of a new movie star. Since then Femi Branch has starred in over a hundred movies both in Nollywood and Yoruba Nollywood, making him one of the most multi-talented actors in the industry. Femi Branch has a very unique way of interpreting his roles in movies which might give you the impression that he is actually a fierce guy! Even though he is one of those celebrities who have been able to stay away from controversies, Femi Branch is loved by many. The actor is married to Ibitola Branch and they are blessed with two beautiful children. Just in case you are not aware, Femi Branch holds a chieftaincy title from Ede, JAGUN ASA OF EDELAND. The former reality tv star revealed this via his Instagram page on Saturday, July 21, 2018. According to him, he was excited to be honoured by his own people as he poured accolades on his hometown. "Today, I am humbled to be celebrated at home. I am Nigerian first before I am of any region. However, Ago Iwoye, Ogun State is where my roots lay. My branches I hope will spread wide, and my leaves provide shade for many, but I must first assure my roots are strong and the soil in which it lays, our wonderful state Ogun, is well nurtured," he wrote. He went to share his desire to be able to impact on his community and how he looks forward to being part of that change we all seek. "I will be spending more time understanding how I can contribute immense value using my media persona to gather my colleagues to invest their time and effort into building the human capital that is our youth. I look forward to being a part of the change that we want to see," he concluded. Tobi Bakre has joined the list of celebrities who have had receptions held in their honour in their hometown. A few months ago, another former reality tv star, Teddy A got a chieftaincy title in his hometown. ALSO READ:Davido goes flat on the floor as he greets Ooni of Ife Teddy A is now a chief in Iyere Owo Earlier in June, former BBNaija season 3 reality star, Teddy A, was conferred with a chieftaincy title in Ondo state. According to Teddy A, he was conferred with the chieftaincy title of Asojuomo of Iyere Owo by the Kabiyesi Oliyere of Iyere Owo. He revealed this when he posted a video of the event on his Instagram page on Saturday, June 9, 2018, which took place at the palace in Iyere Owo. He went on to caption the photo with a quote ''Kabiyesi Oliyere of Iyere Owo and Chief Tope Adenibuyan Asojuomo of Iyere Owo." Popular for "The House of Nwapa," "The Abyssinian Boy," and "Hip-Hop is Only for Children," the research fellow at Center for International Studies at Ohio University writes about Afolayan's influence in his career. Read Nwelue's letter to Afolayan below: As the Africa Film Trinidad & Tobago opens tomorrow, my first fictional Igbo Language feature film, "Agwaetiti Obiuto," will screen on the 24in Port of Spain. I was there last year as well where my documentary film, "The House of Nwapa," which was nominated in the Best Documentary Category of the 2017 Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) was screened, and during the Q&A, I promised them I would return to the island with a new film. That is what I am doing now. A promise kept. But, there is one person who remains my biggest inspiration in filmmaking, even as this new film has been compared to the works of Spike Lee (Toyin Akinosho), Luc Godard (Chigozie Obioma) and Ousmane Sembene (Sikhumbuzo Mngadi). I am humbled by these comparisons, but the Nigerian film director, Kunle Afolayan, remains my greatest inspiration when it comes to filmmaking. And I will tell you why. As a young man struggling with the dream of telling stories, I saw "Irapada," but the film that stole my heart was "The Figurine." I became slightly obsessed with Kunle Afolayan. If he knew how obsessed I was with him and his work, he didnt show it. He was very accommodating and charismatic with me because I began to find excuses to be around him. I reached out to him and he was what I thought he was: a great guy. I attended the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) in Yenagoa where "The Figurine" won largely and the intensity of the obsession, admiration and respect grew. I began to see myself as Kunle Afolayan. This made me stay on the set of "Phone Swap" for hours after being diagnosed of Ectopic Kidney with swollen face and swollen legs, coupled with all the weaknesses, I kept following Kunle and his success. I wanted to be successful. When Kunles success became infectious, I wanted to achieve a dream: make a film. I had the script for 'The Distant Light.' I was able to convince a benefactor who bought flight tickets for a film crew from The Netherlands who came to Nigeria to film with me. I took them to pay a visit to Mr. Afolayan. He encouraged me and told me that nothing was impossible, but he was also realistic that there were better cinematographers in Nigeria I could have contracted. That money used in flying them could have been used to get things going, he said. I was young, it didnt make sense to me. I thought the more White or more European, the better. I was a fool. I took my crew from Lagos to Oguta and the project failed. It didnt happen. The folks went back to Europe and we severed our relationship. They needed to do storyboards and they drank a lot of beer and one of them ate kola nuts, and ended up in the hospital. We spent two weeks doing nothing. Money burnt and a dream waned. I slumped into depression for months. That year, I was persistent enough and I got admission to study Film Directing at Prague Film School in Czech Republic. Someone was behind it. I travelled to Prague. I made my first short film, "The Beginning of Everything Colourful." It was shot in Paris and stared British actor and model, Dudley OShaughnessy, who is famous for appearing in Rihannas We Found Love video. I was later to invite him to Nigeria. I began to think of myself as a filmmaker. Kunle Afolayans energy is infectious. For many people, he is not easy to love. I understand why. We are easily threatened by people with lots of guts and people who do things differently. Personally, there is nothing I want from Mr. Afolayan with this article. I would have written this to praise Tunde Kelani, the man I consider the Father of Modern Nigerian Cinema, but there are qualities that Mr. Afolayan possesses that no filmmaker in Nigeria does. Mr. Afolayan is creative and then, he is also business-savvy. He understands the aesthetics of filmmaking and in a country like Nigeria where creativity does not bring in money, he has been able to build a legion of business networks, making filmmaking look glamorous and alluring. Strangely, when I didnt win at the AMAAs and I had rushed to greet him, he said something: Make a better film. Last time I saw Mr. Afolayan, was in Paris, while I was on transit to Boston. I was confined in a wheelchair at the airport and he was flying to Los Angeles with other Nollywood greats like Dakore Akande, and he came over to me, tapped me on the head and said: Youre always sick. And we laughed. If Afolayan understands that my admiration for him stems from the fact that he is hardworking, he must know that he has inspired generations. People have complained about the quality of storytelling in his recent films, but has he promoted them well? Yes. Did we watch them? Yes. So, he has achieved two things: (1) Got us to watch the films and (2) Discuss them. Lets even talk about "October 1," which he had humbly asked me to read the screenplay before it was shot and when the film was made, I reviewed it after seeing it, and people had said how I was ass-kissing. You dont kiss the ass of Kunle Afolayan. It does not pay. He does not pander to peoples sensibility. I wouldnt want to talk about the effect the marketing of his film, "The CEO," had on me. Let me skip it. I havent dedicated my film, "Agwaetiti Obiuto" to Kunle Afolayan, but I am writing this to say how much he has inspired me. I am also happy to mention how Ishaya Bako has been a back bone and a huge inspiration to my budding career as a filmmaker. Ishaya saw an Igbo film without subtitles! Who takes such pain? And made delicate notes that shaped my narrative. The film I see now, gladdens my heart. It can never be perfect, but what I went out to achieve, was achieved. At the end, I will continue to admire and respect Kunle Afolayan for being a huge inspiration to me. I am unable to write this when he dies because I may not be alive. So here is my tribute to him, to read when he is still alive, to know how much I love and respect him. Abiola said this while being paraded by the police in Lagos state on Monday, July 23, 2018. According to The Guardian, the Lagos police boss, Imohimi Edgal during a news briefing also paraded other suspects, who he described as he gang and members of the Eiye confraternity. The girl, who spoke in Yoruba most of the time, said I ran away from my house in Lafenwa Abeokuta to Lagos, to look for work. I met one Mr. Sodiq when I got to Lagos. Mr. Sodiq took me to his house at Ilasamaja area of Lagos. He was the one that introduced me to the Eiye cult. He took me to a herbalist, who gave me a black substance to eat. He told me that their work was about killing people. He gave me a gun and taught me how to shot. I learnt how to shoot by shooting on the wall. I shot on the wall three times before I learnt how to shoot. Brother Sodiq gave three of us guns and pictures of persons to kill. He trained three of us. Two boys and myself. I have killed 4 people Abiola also told newsmen that she has killed four people. The suspected cultist also said that she does not feel bad after each operation because she sees it as a job. I have killed four persons. Each time I want to go for the killing, I usually wear a white gown and a white veil (Hijab). Brother Sodiq usually showed us the targets house. We go to the house at night. The two boys will scale the fence and open the gate for me. ALSO READ:Cultists kill 11 to celebrate anniversary in Ogun We go straight to the apartment and shoot at the target at close range. None of our targets survived. I killed one guy at Fadeyi area of Lagos. Another one at Hassan area, one at Ajeh area. Each time we killed someone, brother Sodiq would pay me 10,000 but he would pay the others 20,000 each. I dont feel bad after killing anyone because I see it as a job I am being paid for. The Lagos police commissioner, Edgal also said that the girl keeps weapons for the gang. 137 cultists arrested On Monday, July 9, 2018, the Lagos State Police Command paraded 137 suspected cultists. We take you on a brief walk into the lives of the 5 richest kings in Africa, according to Many of the leaders in Africa control large fortunes within their communities and without. In addition to their wealth is influence which results in some of them getting invited to join boards of large corporations. For instance, the Obi (King) of Onitsha in South-Eastern Nigeria, Obi Nnaemeka Achebe, serves as the Non-Executive Chairman of Unilever Nigeria, a large publicly-listed manufacturer of consumer goods, and he previously served as Chairman of Diamond Bank, a leading Nigerian commercial bank. Same goes for the Alake (King) of Egbaland in South-Western Nigeria, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, who is the Chairman of Oando, a large Nigerian energy company. Some of these monarchs have built their fortunes from scratch by starting successful enterprises and shrewdly reinvesting their profits into a diverse range of business concerns. Others have simply had wealth transferred to them by their forefathers. Pulse Nigeria 1. King Mohammed VI, Morocco Estimated net worth: $2 billion Source: Investments The wealthiest monarch in Africa is His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco. King Mohammed VI, the 27 king of the Alaouite dynasty, ascended the throne in July 1999 and immediately set out to initiate a series of socio-political and economic reforms that have made the Kingdom freer and more prosperous than during the reign of his father, King Hassan II. He derives his fortune from his control of Societe Nationale d'Investissement (SNI), a large Moroccan investment holding company with assets valued at more than $10 billion. The King also owns a substantial chunk of the worlds phosphate reserves. Pulse Nigeria 2. Oba Obateru Akinrutan, Ugbo Land, Nigeria Estimated net worth: $300 million Source: Oil Oba Obateru Akinrutan is the Olugbo (traditional King) of Ugbo land, a small oil-rich community in Ondo state, in Nigerias southwestern region. Oba Akinrutan ascended the throne in 2009 and founded Obat Oil in 1981 with a single gas station to meet the needs of his family and neighbouring community. Now, Obat Oil is one of Nigerias largest privately-held oil trading companies and owns more than 50 gas stations across Nigeria as well as one of the largest tank farms in Africa. He also owns an extensive portfolio of prime commercial and residential real estate in London and Nigeria, including the landmark Febson Hotels and Mall in the Central Business District of Abuja. Pulse Nigeria 3. King Mswati III, Swaziland Estimated net worth: At least $50 million Source: Investments King Mswati, 46, is Africas last absolute monarch. His personal net worth is at least $50 million, based on the annual $50 million salary that he is paid out of government coffers. He also controls Tibiyo TakaNgwane, an investment holding company that has assets worth over $140 million, but he holds it in trust for the people of Swaziland. Mswati renamed Swaziland to the Kingdom of eSwatini. He is more well known for his relationships with women (he had at least 15 wives at the last count), and for his flamboyant parties. His last birthday coincided with the Christian Easter holidays but he wasn't willing to share the spotlight with Jesus. He postponed his birthday celebrations for five days so that a proper national holiday could be held in his honor. Famous american R&B artist Erykah Badu performed for the King during the expensive celebrations, even though the poverty rate in Swaziland is escalating. More than 65% of the Swazilands population gets by on less than $1.25 a day, while unemployment rates are as high as 40% but the King remains unaffected. Pulse Nigeria 4. King Goodwill Zwelithini Kabhekuzulu, South Africa Estimated Net Worth: $19 Million Source: Unknown King Goodwill Kabhekuzulu is the monarch of the Zulu group which is the biggest ethnic group in South Africa. He receives a yearly allowance of $6 million to fend for his royal household. Besides the yearly returns, King Kabhekuzulu also receives lots of grants as well as luxuries including private flight travels which he enjoys on a regular basis. Quite interestingly, the king is able to enjoy these luxuries because the charges are usually deducted from the revenues generated from tax collection in South Africa. With his massive net worth valued at $19 million, King Goodwill Kabhekuzulu splashes around wealth with a beautiful garage of expensive cars. ALSO READ: Get to know the top delicacies of these 5 Nigerian towns Pulse Nigeria 5. Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Ashanti, Ghana Estimated net worth: $14 million Source: Mining Equipment, Property, Jewelry According to a report by AFP, a security source and a local resident confirmed that a male suicide bomber detonated his explosives at about 5:15am, leaving five people injured. According to both accounts, seven of the victims died in the mosque while another died on the way to Maiduguri, the state capital. The security source said, "The male bomber walked into the mosque at about 5:15 am (0415 GMT) while prayers were on and exploded, killing eight worshippers and injuring five others." Konduga resident, Umar Goni, said he helped in the rescue of victims after witnessing the blast on his way to the mosque. "We pulled out seven dead bodies and six injured worshippers. One of the six injured died on the way to hospital," he said. At least 50 people were reportedly killed in the bomb blast that happened while Buhari was travelling through the Kawo area of Kaduna State. He was on his way to his native Daura in Katsina State when the incident happened. The bomb attack happened just two hours and two kilometers away from where an Islamic cleric, Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi, was also reportedly targeted in a bomb attack that led to the death of many people. Three aides and security men attached to Buhari during the blast were some of the several people that were injured. An eye witness told Vanguard that a man in a Sienna car had trailed Buhari's convoy and came very close to Buhari's bulletproof vehicle before the bomb exploded. Buhari claims attack was an assassination attempt In a statement that Buhari himself signed in the aftermath of the attack, he alleged that it was an assassination attempt. He said, "I was personally involved in a clearly targeted bomb attack along Ali Akilu Road, Kawo-Kaduna at about 2:30pm on my way to Daura. "The unfortunate event, clearly an assassination attempt, came from a fast-moving vehicle that made many attempts to overtake my security car but was blocked by my escort vehicle. "We reached the market area of Kawo where he attempted to take advantage of our slowing down and attempted to ram my car and instantly detonated the bomb, which destroyed all the three vehicles in our convoy. "Unfortunately, when I came out of my vehicle, I saw many dead bodies littered around. They were innocent people going about their daily businesses who became victims of mass murder. "Thank God for His mercy, I came out unhurt but with three of my security staff sustaining minor injuries - they have since been treated in the hospital and discharged." The attack was widely believed to have been carried out by Boko Haram, the terrorist group Buhari vowed to defeat if he was elected president. Then-president, Goodluck Jonathan, condemned the attack which he said was committed by "terrorists and enemies of the nation in an odious attempt to inflame passions and exacerbate disquiet, fear, insecurity and sectional divisions in the country." Sharibu, one of the Dapchi school-girls kidnapped by Boko Haram, was held back by the terrorists because she refused to convert to Islam. Over 100 schoolgirls were kidnapped by Boko Haram from Government Girls Science and Technical Secondary School on February 19, 2018. Sharibus school mates were however released by the terrorists on Wednesday, March 21, 2018. Sharibu turns 15 in Boko Haram captivity On Monday, May 14, 2018, Leah Sharibu, who is still in Boko Harams den, turned 15 years. Despite calls for the teenagers release, the Federal Government has revealed that negotiations with terrorist group, Boko Haram, is hard and complicated. Securing Sharibus release According to Daily Post, Mama Boko Haram said that she is working with International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) to rescue Sharibu. She said I am really worried about Leah and her freedom from Boko Haram is very important to me. Leah did not renounce her religion, that I can assure you and we shall do everything with both the government and the international organisation to ensure she regains her freedom just like her colleagues that were reunited with her families. When Boko Haram terrorists raided Government Girls Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe, on February 19, 2018, Leah was abducted alongside 112 other hostages. After weeks of negotiations with the government, the terrorists released 107 of the 113 originally abducted on March 21. While it was reported by some of the released hostages that five of them that were taken had died of heart attack and stress and buried in the bush, Leah Sharibu was reportedly kept in captivity by the terrorists because she refused to renounce her Christian faith. According to a report by Vanguard, Mama Boko Haram, who has been deeply involved with negotiating with the terrorist group, disclosed that her anti-human trafficking non-governmental organisation, Complete Care and Aid Foundation, is working with ICRC to ensure Leah returns to her family after months in captivity. She said, "I am really worried about Leah and her freedom from Boko Haram is very important to me. Leah did not renounce her religion, that I can assure you and we shall do everything with both the government and the international organisation to ensure she regain her freedom just like her colleagues that were reunited with her families." When 107 Dapchi hostages were released in March, Wakil said that it took a lot of pressure and persuation on her part to secure their freedom. Leah's family continue in distress Leah Sharibu's continued stay in Boko Haram captivity has put her family under a lot of distress, as they have complained that the government has not been reaching out to them on her status. When she turned 15 in May, her father, Nathan Sharibu, lamented about how the family has been in a confused state since the abduction with no word from the government. "We are just sad. We are even confused in the family right now. I have not heard anything from the government concerning my daughter. I'm pleading with the government to do their duty," he said. Days later, her mother, Rebecca, vowed that, when she's released, Leah will not return to the school where she was abducted. The lawmaker had taken to his Twitter account on Thursday, July 19, 2018, to raise an alarm over an assassination attempt on his life which he alleged was carried out by the police and military. The Kogi State Police Command fired back later on Thursday to allege that the senator deliberately twisted the facts of the matter as it was his security aides who shot and injured a police sergeant first. After issuing a statement to insist that his security aides never fired at the police, the senator took to his Instagram account on Saturday, July 21, to display the vehicle which he claimed was shot at by the police. In a short video, quite a few bullet holes can be seen in the vehicle which was alleged to have been involved in the assassination attempt. The senator captioned the post, "God I thank you. I will continue to trust only You my God and my refuge." In the account of events as stated by the police, Melaye's convoy had been flagged down by officers of the Anti-Robbery/Kidnapping Patrol Team on a stop-and-search operation when they were fired upon after some of the vehicles in the convoy refused to stop. The command's spokesperson, DSP William Aya, said officers only fired back in self-defence at the vehicles, which escaped from the scene, before they found out that it was the lawmaker's convoy. However, according to Melaye, the police stopped the vehicle of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) leading his convoy, arrested the officers in the vehicle and suddenly opened fire on his own vehicle without provocation. He has revealed that he'll honour the invitation of the police as DSP Aya has directed him to report with the people in his convoy to the State Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department, Lokoja, to assist in the investigation of the incident. Melaye was on his planned 4-day 'Thank You' tour of Kogi West senatorial district when the incident happened. He was touring the district to inaugurate some of the 143 projects he had executed in the past three years. On Wednesday, July 18, suspected political thugs destroyed two of the lawmaker's constituency projects in Lokoja metropolis only a few hours to their inauguration. One of the projects was a block of four furnished classrooms at Government Girls Secondary School, Sarkin-Noma, which was torched in the early hours of Wednesday. The other project was UBE Junior Secondary School, Lokongoma, where iron windows, ceilings, white boards and electrical fittings, including ceiling fans in the block of four classrooms, were destroyed. Later on Thursday, Melaye took to his Instagram account to post pictures of the letters he had written to security agencies to ask for protection for the tour. In the letter he wrote to the DSS, his lawyer, Ricky Tarfa (SAN), noted that there was a threat to his life and the ceremony itself. According to Melaye, both the Police, who acknowledged one of his letters, and the Department of State Services (DSS) failed to provide any cover for his tour. This is not the first time the Senator is getting in trouble with the police over an alleged assassination attempt on his life. Earlier this year, the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation filed a lawsuit against him for allegedly providing false information to the police about an assassination attempt on his life. In the suit (CR/106/18) filed before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Maitama on January 31, 2018, Melaye is accused of falsely incriminating Kogi's Governor Yahaya Bello's Chief of Staff, Edward Onoja David, as well as making false statement in regards to the attempted assassination. In the first count, he is accused of falsely incriminating Edward David in his assassination attempt claim. Melaye is accused of deliberately giving false information to the police to frame David as the mastermind of the assassination attempt on his life at his hometown in Ayetoro-Gbede in Kogi state on April 17, 2017. According to the charge, the police discovered the alleged falsehood in Melaye's claim while investigating his allegation. In the second count, Melaye is accused of making with Mohammed Abubakar, son of the late ex-governor of Kogi state, Abubakar Audu, with the intention of harming the reputation of David. ALSO READ: Senator Melaye now has 3 criminal cases in 3 courts Dr Muhammad Abdulkadir, Head of the Medical Team, National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the most important health advice to pilgrims now is to maintain personal hygiene and observe environmental sanitation. They must eat well and avoid junk food from vendors that are not certified and they must take adequate water as they move around. The weather in Madinah is very harsh and the temperatures are high, so pilgrims are at the risk of getting dehydrated. Therefore, they need plenty of water frequently. He said the team had taken adequate measures to attend to medical needs of pilgrims in the Holy land, adding that eight members, including nurses and five doctors, were already on ground ahead of arrival of pilgrims in Madinah. Abdulkadir said the team had mobilised its drugs and equipment from Jeddah and finally established its main clinic in Madinah at NAHCON office. We have established two outreach centres near our pilgrims to provide immediate first aid treatment services and those who need other management will be transported in our ambulances to the main clinic. There is arrangement where severe cases that need admission will be referred to Saudi medical and reference centres. We are fully ready to take off our operations because our drugs and equipment are intact. Abdulkadir added that drug and equipment supply to the team would not be done at once, it is done according to needs and what we have now is adequate to start our operations. The medical doctor explained that there was a standard Procurement Committee responsible for procurement and supply of medical equipment, adding that another set of pharmacists was expected soon to join the operation. Asked if the team had attended to patients after the arrival of the first batch of pilgrims from Kogi, he said one of them had a minor medical issue on arrival and had been treated. A NAN correspondent who visited the facilities in Madinah, reported that a team of doctors, pharmacists and nurses was seen sorting out drugs while others were found in both male and female wards. The facilities have provisions for consultation, treatment of patients, administrative matters and other minor health related issues. The police on Monday, July 23, 2018, for the second time, at the Intelligence Response Team, Guzape Ajuba at 8am on Tuesday, July 24, 2018. According to Saraki, his invitation over the Offa robbery investigation is a mere afterthought which is designed to achieve political purpose. Police wants to score cheap points The Senate President in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, stated that he has it on good authority that the Police had already decided on the suspects to arraign in court in Ilorin, Kwara State on Wednesday based on the advice of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Mohammed U.E. and that the turn around to invite him was a ploy aimed at scoring cheap political points. Saraki said " I have been reliably informed that the police invitation was planned by IG as a ploy to stop an alleged plan by some Senators and House of Representatives members from defecting from the All Progressives Congress (APC). It was also said that if I was detained between Tuesday and Wednesday, that will abort the so-called defection plan. "While I continue to maintain that the issue of my position on the 2019 elections is not a personal decision for me alone to make, it should be noted that all these concoctions and evil plot cannot deter me. Those behind this fresh assault will fail as I have nothing to do with the robbery incident or any criminal matter for that matter. "I am aware that following a request made by the Police on June 13, 2018 to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) of the Federation had written a legal advice dated June 22, 2018, in which he stated on page 5, paragraph (f) that For the Senate President and the Kwara State Governor, this office is unable to establish from the evidence in the interim report a nexus between the alleged office and the suspects Police now APC instrument Saraki also accused the Nigerian Police Force of bias, saying that they it has allowed itself to be used by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to suppress opponents. "The Police have obviously corrupted and politicized their investigations into the Offa robbery incident. They have turned it into an instrument for the party in power to suppress perceived opponents, witch-hunt issue for blackmailing people from freely choosing which platform on which they want to pursue their ambition and a matter for harassing the people whose exit from APC would harm the chances of the party in the forthcoming elections. " I want to make it apparent that I have no hand in either the robbery incident or any criminal acitivity. The Police in their haste to embarrass me sent the invitation to me at 8pm and requested that I report to the station by 8am tomorrow morning. This obviously demonstrated their desperation as I do not see why they are now in a hurry. "They also stated in today's letter that because in my response of June 7, 2018 to their own letter written on June 4, 2018, I stated that I was responding simply to the contents of the letter and that the full text of the statement made by the arrested suspects which they claimed indicted me was not made available to me, they were now including the suspects statements in the current letter. Yet, instead of including the suspects' statements, they only attached two copies of my own letter to the invitation. No suspects statement was made available, he added. APC wants to force me The Senate President also described the police invitation as APCs way forcing him to stay in the party. He said "This plot aimed at compelling me and my associates to stay in a party where members are criminalised without just cause, where injustice is perpetrated at the highest level and where there is no respect for constitutionalism is an exercise in futility and it will fail. "Once again, my confidence in God and our judicial system remains intact and unshaken. The truth shall also prevail in this case. Saraki 2019 Meanwhile, there are indications that the Senate President, Bukola Saraki is planning to announce his intention to run for President in 2019 soon. According to a statement personally signed by the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, and made available to Pulse, Saraki is expected to report at the Intelligence Response Team, Guzape Ajuba at 8am on Tuesday, July 24, 2018. The IGP noted that Sarakis invitation was based on a confessional statement by the suspected leader of the group, Ayodele Akinnibosun, who claimed that he and other members of the robbery gang worked as political thugs for the Senate President and Kwara state governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed. Both Saraki and Ahmed have since denied connections with Akinnibosun and other members of the robbery gang. But, the IGP maintained that Saraki would report at the Unit to enable further investigation on the matter. The Police had invited Saraki to appear before its intelligence unit days after gunmen attacked financial institutions in Offa, Kwara state killing 33 people on Thursday, April 5, 2018. Saraki accepted the invitation but the Police reversed itself and asked the Senate President to respond to the allegation in writing within 48-hours. Sarakis invitation by the Police is coming after days of series of meetings with the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) amidst the Senate President's planned defection from the ruling party. President Muhammadu Buhari has indicated interest in disbursing the funds through his administrations Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme to poor households. Ibrahim gave the advice while speaking with newsmen in Abuja on Sunday. He said that the process of reaching out to poor Nigerians should be reasonably controlled to ensure that there were no loopholes that would encourage pilfering. There should be a monitoring structure to check attempts to loot the money, he said. On the seeming sour relationship between the Legislature and the Executive, Ibrahim said that the Presidential system of government was not designed for both arms to agree on every issue. According to him, there will always be areas where both arms will disagree. He, however, said that the system had provided for mechanism where both arms could also reach compromise, adding that the political players were yet to exploit lobbying which was also a democratic tenet. I have been in the National Assembly for upward of 15 years. This issue of disagreement between the Executive and Legislature has always been there. The national assembly is not supposed to be in the pocket of the president; there are checks and balances. Take it or live it, Aisha is his wife and as a northerner, Aishas primary duty is her husband and her home, a colleague who craved anonymity said in President Buharis defence. With barely seven months to the 2019 general elections, some Nigerian women have declared their intention to unseat President Buhari -- a clear indication that not all women belong only to kitchen, living room and the other room. Five women have joined the male dominated race for the position of Nigerias President come 2019. These women have sighted unemployment, reduction in the standard of living of Nigerians, insecurity as part of the reasons for their action. takes a look at the women who are hoping to sack President Buhari from the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in 2019. 1.Funmilayo Adesanya-Davis Olufumilayo Adesanya-Davis, is a Professor of Language and Communication Arts at the Rivers State University of Education. The 55-yeasr old who hails from Kwara Stateholds a Doctor of Divinity (D.D) degree and Professor of Divinity (Honoris Causa) award of Northwestern Christian University, Florida, United States of America. Professor Adesanya-Davis is also a cleric and founder of the Agape Bible Church. I am aspiring to be the next president of Nigeria. I am out to put laughter of joy on the mouth of all, she said. Adesanya-Davis said she wanted to be former president Goodluck Jonathans running mate in 2015 adding that Patience Jonathan has endorsed her presidential ambition. 2015 was when I first thought about being a presidential aspirant. This is for the main reason that I was born October 15th and I got married at October 15th. That time I said with President Goodluck Jonathan in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), I was going to be his running mate. I was sending text messages to him. I told him to let Vice President Namadi Sambo step down for him to be successful but he did not listen to me. But delay is not denial. That is why I am staging a come-back. I have done some consultations. The first person to put a call through was Patience Jonathan. I told her that I am picking the presidential form this time around and she endorsed my decision, she announced. The cleric soon came for President Buhari. I will advise Nigerians to calm down for President Muhammadu Buhari. Also the man too is not sleeping. He is not resting. Age too is not on his side. We did all the mathematics and we saw it and opted for it. So that he had to travel for 100 days to take care of his health is not his fault. It is age and we said we believe in him. Buharis governance had to take positive reminiscences to Goodluck Jonathan. An old man cannot combine minister for petroleum ministry with the presidency and it will work. We need them to work hard and get the technocrats to do their jobs again, she declared. Adesanya-Davis is yet to pitch her tent with a political party. 2. Oluremi Comfort Sonaiya After a somewhat unsuccessful aim at the 2015 presidency in 2015, Remi Sonaiya is making a second attempt at Nigerias top job that of the President. Sonaiya, 63, is an educationalist, writer and founder of the KOWA Party. She holds a PhD in Linguistics from Cornell University in America. Sonaiya believes leadership is Nigerias biggest problem, a quality she promises to provide if she becomes President in 2019. 3. Elishama Rosemary Ideh Elishama Rosemary Ideh is running for the position of Nigerias president on the platform of the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN). In fact, Ideh said she will defeat President Buhari and all other presidential aspirant in 2019. You heard that right. Ideh says she would provide articulated workable solutions to address the myriad of problems confronting Nigeria. We will confront the monster of corruption with utmost vigour, but with a different mindset from past and current efforts. We will fight corruption in all its tangible and intangible manifestations. We will strive to enhance the Independence and autonomy of the EFCC in terms of its funding, privileges, powers and even the composition of its leadership, she said. Unlike our opposition, who seek to use the EFCC as an attack dog to fight their opposition while shielding their friends from the consequences of corruption and other misdemeanors, we are confident in giving the EFCC the latitude it needs to carry out its statutory mandate and to prosecute cases without bias or prejudice, simply because we have nothing to hide. Nigeria needs a leader who combines integrity with intelligence and a deep and vast understanding of the implications of the 21st global economy and Nigerias place in it, she added. 4. Adeline Iwuagwu-Emihe Adeline Iwuagwu-Emihe, an American-trained political administrator is also eyeing President Buhars job come 2019. She is running on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) alongside Atiku Abubakar and others. Iwuagwu-Emihe, recently released a ten-point transformational and developmental agenda she hopes to vigorously pursue if given the presidential mandate. I believe that with the right leadership, equitable distribution and management of the nations given natural and human resources, it is possible to adequately provide for all citizens both big and small. Although the nations constitution is limited in its pagination, it is huge in its provision for equity and justice for all the people. We must use it as the common ground to love and care for one another, she added. She expressed her desire and unquantifiable zeal to innovate the country in alignment with the modern socio-political, agro-economics, educational, infrastructural, industrial, judicial, security, technological and quasi-evolutionary process if offered the opportunity by 2019. 5. Eunice Atuejide Eunice Atuejide, 39, is the founder of the National Interest Party (NIP). Atuejide is the presidential flagbearer of the NIP. A legal practitioner, Atuejide has also traveled to at least seventy-six countries and a hundred and thirty cities across the globe. She speaks Igbo, Yoruba, German, English and French fluently. Wo-wide (in Charles Okochas voice). Atuejide owns EB Consults Limited a consultancy company in Nigeria and the United Kingdom. Female Nigerian President? Some Nigerians who spoke to says the country is not ready for a female president. Not yet. Nigeria is not Liberia,Kehinde Adebiyi, a techie said. See, a woman cant handle the problems confronting this country. See herdsmen killings, unemployment, corruption, and so on. Nigeria is too complex for a woman to handle. She will breakdown! President Buhari won election and he cant do most of the things he promised Nigerians. You think become president is make up? They should first look at governorship or even Vice President, Adebiyi advised. North wont vote a female president Usman Bala Abubakar, a civil servant believes the northern region of the country would resist any plan to make a woman president. Female president? No, no, no. It cant work Abubakar declared. How can a woman be our President? What happened to all the men in Nigeria? he asked. Even if other part of Nigeria votes for a woman president, the north will not. We will resist it. Haba, it is not right, he announced. Why, this reporter asked. It is not good. A woman cannot be above a man. So, what will happen to the husband of such a woman. Haba! It cannot happen. Those women should look for other things to do, he advised. As the 2019 elections draw closer, most Nigerians have expressed their disappointment in the Buhari administration. Would you rather vote for a female presidential candidate in 2019? Adeoti was an aspirant for the APC's primary ticket for the September 22 gubernatorial election but withdrew from the primary election, conducted on Saturday, July 21, 2018, alleging that the party was manipulating the process in favour of the governor's Chief of Staff, Gboyega Oyetola, who eventually won the election. He gad alleged, "The primaries was arranged, skewed and designed to favour Alhaji Isiaka Gboyega Otedola, the cousin of the National Leader of our party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu." According to a report by The Punch, Adeoti was present at the ADP secretariat with hundreds of his supporters on Monday, July 23. He is expected to seek the party's ticket to contest in the election as Aregbesola's second term as governor comes to an end. The Sixth Annual Arts Meow, benefiting the Alice Fund, opens Friday, Aug. 3, in the Exum Gallery, St. Pauls Episcopal Church, 305 W. Seventh St. The opening night show with reception will be from 5-8 p.m. The show and sale will run through Sunday, Sept. 2, at the Exum Gallery, MondayThursday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Featured local artists for this years show include Sandra Babb, Miki Boni, Hollie Berry, Steve Davis, Lisa Denney, Melissa Gates, Robin Howe, Marty Littauer, Susan Parks, Eva Sabados, Charlene Simmons, Billy Weeks and more. The show and sale is an eclectic mixture of works and mediums, ranging from charred wood and colored pencil renditions to photography, scarves and tote bags. A portion of each work is donated by the artist to The Alice Fund in support of its mission. Requests to The Alice Fund trickle in almost daily, submitted online from The Alice Fund website, from residents of Chattanooga, Flintstone, Rossville, Ringgold, Cleveland and beyond. And the need continues to grow - from a total of 104 last year to 92 already received as of mid-July this year. Needs vary. Sometimes its spay and neuter help. Often it is more complicated. Patients are typically seen first at the Cat Clinic by veterinarian and Alice Fund Founding Advisor Dr. Marcia Toumayan. Several additional area veterinarians have partnered with Dr. Toumayan and the Cat Clinic to provide reduced-cost care, with The Alice Fund and owners paying the balance. By accepting donations from generous cat lovers, The Alice Fund gives contributors a way to extend their love for cats to those in need, said Dr. Toumayan. The Alice Fund was started in 2008 and named in honor of a feral cat named Alice. For additional information on The Alice Fund and Arts Meow, visit The Alice Fund.org. Contact Kathy Allison, Alice Fund Board President, kathy@thealicefund.org or Mary Lockhart, Alice Fund Marketing, mary@thealicefund.org The aspirants, under the aegis of Forum of PDP Governorship Aspirants in Benue, stated this at news conference on Monday in Abuja. Leader of the group, Dr Terhemen Tarzoor, said that the aspirants are not opposed to anybody coming into PDP but are mindful of such persons character and values. He said that while the aspirants wanted PDP to reclaim victory in Benue, they could not afford to accept someone of negative value coming to rob them of the chances of the partys victory in 2019. We are people who believe that there should be value addition. This is someone who has not paid salaries for over one year and Benue people are not happy. The national secretariat of the party in its decision-making position, if they go with the philosophy of not recognising that all politics is local, then I can tell you we can lose. We are ready to accommodate everybody but let us not accommodate people who are of negative values that will rob on the partys chances in the state. Tarzoor, who was PDPs governorship candidate 2015 election in the state, said that if the person returning had negative value, the party should not go on believing that someone was coming in with states funds. We should look at the value of the person coming in because live is about credit and debit. He will come with the credit side which is money, but the debit side, we will lose election, Tarzoor said. ALSO READ: Award for the most confused politician goes to Gov Ortom In his remarks, Chairman of the forum, Prof. David Ker, said that while effort was ongoing by national leadership of the party to expand and boost PDPs strength towards 2019, they should be mindful of the reality in Benue. Ker said that they were mindful that it was in the interest of the party to welcome new members, but that it would be of more interest to ensure internal democracy and not allow imposition. Juncker, a grizzled veteran of EU politics, follows a long list of European leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who have tried to lure Trump him away from a protectionist onslaught that has spooked financial markets and the world. The former Luxembourg prime minister is going to Washington without a negotiating mandate, but with the intention of thinking "outside the box" to "find a solution" with Trump, said EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, who will join Juncker on the trip. At stake is a White House threat to slap a daunting wave of tariffs on European auto exports to the US, an action that the Europeans say would trigger a global economic earthquake and earn a withering riposte from Brussels. If confirmed, Trump's auto tariffs would add to the steel and aluminium tariffs imposed in June that seriously damaged transatlantic relations already frayed by Trump's pullout of the Paris Climate accord and the Iran nuclear deal. In response, the European Union on June 22 imposed a raft of retaliatory tariffs that targeted the most emblematic of American exports, from blue jeans to Harley Davidson motorbikes and whiskey. Fearing car tariffs, Brussels is already drawing up a list of more US products that could be hit with retaliatory duties if Juncker's trip fails. "We will continue to respond toe-to-toe to provocations," Juncker warned in a speech on Wednesday. "All efforts to divide Europeans are in vain," he added. 'Gun to the head' Juncker's commission handles trade matters for the EU 28 and he goes to the White House with the firm backing of Merkel, the leader of export powerhouse Germany, a country that Trump has angrily singled out for punishing the US on trade. Merkel expressed hope on Friday that Juncker could negotiate a solution with Trump and stop the trade war. Tit-for-tat feuding between the allies would be "by far the worst-possible solution", Merkel warned, describing the current trade tensions as "very serious". The potential car tariffs would not just violate the rules of the World Trade Organization, she added, but could also "endanger the prosperity of many people around the world". But the prospects for trade peace seemed slim at G20 talks on Saturday after US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, a close Trump ally, said Washington would demand a wide-ranging trade deal with Europe in order to stand back on its tariff threat. "If Europe believes in free trade, we're ready to sign a free trade agreement with no tariffs, no non-tariff barriers and no subsidies. It has to be all three," said Mnuchin at the talks in Argentina. But French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire shot back firmly: "We refuse to negotiate with a gun to the head", insisting that Trump must first withdraw the steel and aluminium tariffs and stand down on his car tariff threat. 'Not for long!' Not to be daunted by Trump's protectionism, Juncker last week toured Asia, signing the EU's biggest ever trade deal with Japan while also backing multilateralism alongside the Chinese government during a stop in Beijing. The EU -- the world's biggest single market with 28 countries and 500 million people -- has also secured similar trade deals with US neighbours Canada and Mexico. Also looming over the Juncker visit is last week's decision by the commission to slap US tech giant Google with a record fine over its Android mobile phone operating system. THE BRISCOES, MATT TAVEN AND CHRISTOPHER DANIELS ARE HEADED TO MEXICO Ring of Honor announced the following: ROH World Tag Team Champions Jay and Mark Briscoe, Matt Taven and Christopher Daniels will travel to Mexico next month to compete on CMLL events, CMLL announced today on its CMLL Informa program. The Briscoes will appear on the Aug. 3 show at Arena Mexico, and Daniels will be on the Aug. 5 show at the same venue. Taven, CMLLs NWA World Historic Welterweight Champion, will compete in CMLL starting with the Aug. 3 event. Taven, who also is one-third of the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions with fellow Kingdom members TK ORyan and Vinny Marseglia, has established himself as a top star in CMLL. He won the NWA World Historic Welterweight Title from Volador Jr. at Arena Mexico on March 30.Taven also has had an ongoing rivalry with Ultimo Guerrero, the latest chapter of which saw Taven defeat the CMLL legend in a thrilling match at New York Citys Hammerstein Ballroom on a recent episode of Ring of Honor Wrestling. Talent exchanges such as this one are made possible by ROHs partnerships with promotions around the world. In addition to CMLL, ROH enjoys working relationships with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Revolution Pro Wrestling in the U.K. and Japanese womens wrestling promotion Stardom. The company also announced that former Mae Young Classic competitor and one third of the STARDOM "Artist of Stardom" Trios Champion Ayesha Raymond will be making her Women of Honor debut in London on the "Honor Re-United" tour in August. If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here! Struggling Kiwis are using their ovens to heat their homes instead of cooking meals, according to a new survey. One in 10 open the door and crank up the heat because they have no other way to heat their homes, and nearly half don't even bother to try. It's a downward spiral but many have little choice, Salvation Army national practice manager Jono Bell told Newshub. "People are going without warmth, which leads them to health issues and then they can't afford to go to the doctor." The Salvation Army launches its Winter Appeal today, saying this year it appears families that don't normally require outside support to get by will be looking for help. "We are seeing our most vulnerable people struggle this winter, and these new statistics show that the problem is even wider than what we see through our work. It is very alarming," says Mr Bell. The survey, completed by Kiwi members of website Pureprofile, found in the last year: 45 percent skip heating due to cost 16 percent missed a rent or mortgage payment 39 percent bought food on a day-by-day basis when money is tight 44 percent skipped a doctor visit because they couldn't afford it 37 percent skipped a meal in the last year because they didn't have enough money 10 percent used the oven or stove to heat the home. Almost a quarter are scared their EFTPOS card will be declined while shopping for groceries, and nearly a third forgo veges and fruit when funds are low. Mr Bell says it's not just renters who are suffering. "Heating costs pay a big part, but also the cost of housing is significant - it's just not keeping up with the income that people have. Whether people are renting or own their own home, they just cannot keep up with those payments." He says recent changes by the Government - such as boosting Working For Families payments and benefits, and easing up on benefit sanctions - have helped, but it's still not enough. The Government's winter energy payment for low-income earners and superannuitants kicked in on July 1. "The largest proportion of people we're seeing this winter are seeking food relief," says Mr Bell. "No one should have to choose between warmth, food or shelter, but this is becoming more of a reality for a wider spread of New Zealanders." Anyone who wishes to donate can do so on the Salvation Army website. Listen to the full interview with Jono Bell above. First@Five with James Coleman, 5am - 6am, on RadioLIVE and streaming live to the rova app on Android and iPhone. RadioLIVE. The Bowls Wellington chairman Mark O'Connor on the apparently sudden battle bowls clubs across the region find themselves in with police over the renewal of their liquor licenses, despite decades without any liquor-related incidents. The Long Lunch with Wendyl Nissen, 12pm - 3pm on RadioLIVE and streaming live to the rova app on Android and iPhone. RadioLIVE. Night Talk - Mitch Harris opening comments, Monday 23rd July 2018. Tonight: should Kiwi's be free to walk across land bought by American celebrity Matt Lauer? A stoush is currently going on between the New Zealand Government and American television personality Matt Lauer regarding the purchased lease to Hunter Valley Station on the shores of Lake Hawea for $13 million last year. Now, access to the Hawea Conservation Park could be completely cut off to others if Lauer gets his way regarding the land. Should New Zealanders and tourists be allowed to cross the land that Mr Lauer has bought? Should the NZ Government have to pay Lauer compensation to get access for people to walk across this land? Night Talk with Mitch Harris, 8pm - 12am Monday-Thursday nights on RadioLIVE and streaming live to the rova app on Android and iPhone. RadioLIVE. Stirlitz Media's Stirlitz Media Logger (SML) after-broadcast/compliance logging software has been installed by BBC Scotland across its three HD channels. For a broadcaster such as BBC Scotland, a robust logging system is essential for the purposes of reporting any error or near-misses, assessing technical outages, reviewing audience feedback and validating reports related to programme timings, such as those that might be encountered with network opt-in/outs.Aiming to satisfy all of the broadcaster's stated requirements, the Stirlitz Media Logger will be deployed by BBC One Scotland, BBC Two Scotland and Gaelic-language service BBC ALBA.The solution runs on a standard Windows server, either local or in the cloud, capturing single or multiple channels via MPEG Transport Stream (MPEG-TS) over IP. SML evaluates recent broadcasts/programmes and detects and reports errors or near-misses that may have to be reviewed after transmission. It can also be employed to check outages and validate reports.In this instance, the software captures all three television channels via MPEG-TS over UDP/multicast, and stores each channel in its original quality, including the embedded metadata, as TS together with external metadata such as automation software as-run logs.The flexibility and scalability of Stirlitz Media Logger is ideal for BBC Scotland's television services, providing accurate and detailed programme logs, said Cesco Gool, director international sales, Stirlitz Media . It is easy to install and the simplicity of the intuitive player with unique timeline ensures it is user friendly for engineers and non-tech operators alike. Australian comedian Tim Minchin is to write and star in a new TV drama called Upright, following a production deal with Foxtel, Sky UK, Screen Australia and Lingo Pictures. Lingo Pictures Chris Taylor has created the eight-part series, and is co-writing it with Minchin, Kate Mulvany (Fighting Season, Jasper Jones stage play) and Leon Ford (Offspring, No Activity). Matthew Saville (Please Like Me) will direct, and Minchin will also write the music.Described as a sharp-tongued and touching drama, Upright is the story of two misfits (played by Minchin and Milly Alcock), thrown together by chance in the middle of the Australian desert, who forge the unlikeliest of bonds in their quest to get a precious piano from one side of the country to the other.Production will begin in South Australia and Western Australia in October, following significant investment by Foxtel and Screen Australia , in association with the South Australian Film Corporation.Tim Minchin said: From the moment I heard about the idea for Upright, I knew it was the show Id been waiting to make. I like stories that make me laugh and think and cry, I adore the landscapes of outback Australia, and I love music, and homecomings, and characters full of flaws. Its awesome to be writing with this extraordinary team, and Im looking forward to acting alongside Milly Alcock, who I think is a really special talent, said Time Minchin.Screen Australias head of production Sally Caplan said: Foxtel have proven their commitment to the production of premium Australian drama with Wentworth, The Kettering Incident and most recently the iconic Picnic at Hanging Rock which has had fantastic success locally and with international sales.Upright is a project that will also appeal in Australia and to the international market, with the hugely talented Tim Minchin on board to produce and star in the series. What attracted us to this series was the well-crafted young female protagonist, and work of the strong writing team including accomplished writer Kate Mulvany, and comedic writers Leon Ford and Chris Taylor. I have no doubt this moving and quirky comedy will resonate with audiences.The Lingo Pictures production for Foxtel and Sky UK is being represented internationally by eOne. High-level representatives from Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation and Turkmenistan signed the Environment Impact Assessment Protocol under the Tehran Convention during an extraordinary Conference of the Parties on Friday in Moscow, Russia. As Financial Tribune writes in the article Caspian littoral states sign environment protocol, the protocol will enter into force three months after being ratified by the signatory countries' parliaments, UN Environment's website reported. Under the protocol, countries must follow a set of harmonized practical procedures for assessing the impact that a project will have on the environment in another state. Impacts on human health, fauna, water and soil are among factors to be accounted for when installing oil refineries, building major power plants or undertaking major deforestation, for example. Countries that stand to be affected by a project will have the opportunity to comment on plans underway. They will then be entitled to receive an explanation as to how these comments were taken into account if the development goes ahead. "It's fantastic to see the Caspian Sea's littoral states come together and commit to the future well-being of this jewel of the region and unique ecosystem. I'm convinced this will be a big win for the region's environment, economy and long-term security," said UN Environment Head Erik Solheim. "It also sends a strong message around the world that sustainable development is one issue that we can all get behind together." The Caspian Sea's varied levels of salinity between north and south means it hosts a unique ecosystem. Yet this is also highly threatened, with oil and gas production being one of the main factors taking a heavy toll on the environment. The sea's fossil fuel reserves are estimated to be one of the planet's largestunderlining the importance of the Environment Impact Assessment Protocol. The sea is still the source of the majority of the world's caviar, but its sturgeon population has steadily declined, while the Caspian seal is listed as endangered. The Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea, also known as the Tehran Convention, was signed in 2003. The treaty requires the five littoral countries to prevent and cut pollution, restore the environment, use resources sustainably and cooperate more to protect the environment. The U.S. placed a trade embargo on Germany during World War I. Not long after, exports from U.S. producers to Scandinavian countries surged. All of the above is just a reminder that embargos are toothless. They dont restrain trade between producers as much as they alter how the exchanges are completed. Germans and Americans didnt stop trading with one another as much as they continued to exchange via middlemen in Scandinavia. Reducing it all to the absurd, the United States could be 100% bereft of oil (as Germany nearly is today), at war with and embargoed by every oil-producing nation on earth, but Americans would still consume more of the worlds oil than anyone else. They would do so as though the oil had been extracted right in the Permian Basin. They would because theres no accounting for the final destination of any good. Americans would buy oil and its byproducts from those the warring and embargoing countries were selling to. It cant be stressed enough that the only barrier to imports is a lack of production. Which brings us to the latest freakout inside the pundit class about Russia. Its about natural gas. The Russian people and the incompetents inside the Kremlin have to be flattered and thrilled at the same time that so many book smart Americans are so obsessed with them. Its a reminder that degrees and uppermost credentials dont always correlate with common sense. For background, President Trump pointed to an in-production pipeline meant to bring Russian-sourced natural gas to Germany as evidence of the latters kept status vis-a-vis Russia. Pundits on the left and right strangely agree with Trump on this one. These smart people dont understand basic economics. If they did, they would dismiss whats irrelevant. The latest pundits to wring their hands over nothing are David Rivkin and Miomir Zuzal. The D.C. attorney and former Croatian foreign minister argued in yesterdays Wall Street Journal that growing energy ties between Russia and Germany will make Germany the continents major gas-distribution hub all the while enhancing Russias blackmail capability by enabling Moscow to cut off gas supplies to Eastern Europe without subjecting Western Europe to the same treatment. Funny here is that the alarmism of Rivkin and Zuzal loudly explains why theres nothing to worry about. Indeed, assuming Moscow were to cut off gas supplies to Eastern Europe, the solution would be blindingly simple. Eastern European countries could purchase natural gas supplies from those the Russians arent cutting off. Pundits prone to emotion would be wise to put posters all around their offices that state in bold that Theres no accounting for the final destination of any good!" This would be particularly wise for a right wing thats at least rhetorically free market, but that reverts to mysticism any time energy enters the conversation. Once it does, the right goes mercantilist faster than it takes one to read this sentence. Back to reality, energy is no different than any other market good. So long as people are producing, energy will be available to them at the market price. Rivkin and Zuzal might argue that Russia-based Gazprom charges double the U.S. domestic price, but if so, the latter speaks to a market opportunity that neednt involve government. Assuming Rivkin and Zuzal are correct about Gazprom fleecing their European customers, thats merely a chance for other producers to enter the mix in order to undercut Gazproms alleged attempts to overcharge European buyers. And as Rivkin and Zuzal acknowledge, thats precisely whats happening. They note that [E]astern European states have taken the lead in trying to develop alternatives when it comes to natural gas access, and those include U.S. producers. Well, of course. High prices of anything are a useful signal to producers of where delivery of supply will be most rewarded. Assuming Europe finds itself hostage to a single supplier of the Russian variety, the act of gouging the European people will eventually soften Russias natural-gas dominance for it inviting in new competition, fuel alternatives, or both. Thats why readers should dismiss Rivkin and Zuzals economically false suggestion that Moscow could cut off gas supplies to Eastern Europe. Except that it couldnt. If we ignore that outside suppliers would gladly capture the market share blithely handed them by Moscow, the simple truth is that short of hoarding its natural gas supplies, Russia could never cut off any part of Europe despite the expressed alarmism of Rivkin and Zuzal. Simply stated, whats sold will eventually make its way to where its needed. As for hoarding the gas, lets be serious. Nothing could be more self-defeating than Moscow forcing its natural gas producers to give up one of the worlds biggest markets for nothing. And so it wont. Instead, Russian producers like Gazprom will continue to aggressively sell natural gas in Europe in order to maintain what Rivkin and Zuzal claim is 80% of Gazproms exports. That they will wont imperil Europe as much as it will logically make Europe safer. It will because the more that producers and consumers are reliant on one another, the less likely war is. It becomes too expensive. Assuming Russia is the military threat that so many think it to be, the best solution to what is arguably oversold is feverish trade with Russian producers. Killing ones best customers is a fools errand. Sadly Rivkin and Zuzal dont see it this way. Rather than recognizing Gazprom natural gas dominance as a peaceful sign of market needs being ably met, they ascribe Germanys desire to enhance Russia-Europe trade through Nord Stream 2 (the pipeline) as a threat. Typical of pundits, they see government as the answer to the alleged Russian threat with mercantilist ([M]ore Americans would have jobs, trans-Atlantic ties would be stronger) calls for noted energy theorist Donald Trump to ramp up his administrations energy strategy through sanctions on Russian energy in concert with more U.S. investment in non-Russia alternatives. Oh dear. Mercantilism combined with industrial policy. How about markets instead? Europes people need energy. Russian producers have it. If they fail at providing it, or choose to hoard it per the alarmism of the pundit class, theyll just hand over a huge market to others. This isnt hard. Sometimes we just need to exercise common sense while leaving out the insult-to-common-sense that is government. Wisconsin Used to Be Progressive. What Happened? The author of The Fall of Wisconsin on how the state went from celebrating unions to vilifying public servants. The Art of the Deal in Helsinki--the Next Chapter More than 11% of internally displaced people have returned to areas retaken by Syrian government forces this year. Donald Trump betrayed the U.S. in Helsinki, but his party and fans don't care. What's so studly about standing up to friends and buttering up bullies? "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors." Under the Constitution, these are the offenses for which presidents can be impeached. And to hear our elites, Donald Trump is guilty of them all. Trump's refusal to challenge Vladimir Putin's claim at Helsinki -- that his GRU boys did not hack Hillary Clinton's campaign -- has been called treason, a refusal to do his sworn duty to protect and defend the United States, by a former director of the CIA. Famed journalists and former high officials of the U.S. government have called Russia's hacking of the DNC "an act of war" comparable to Pearl Harbor. The New York Times ran a story on how many are now charging Trump with treason. Others suggest Putin is blackmailing Trump, or has him on his payroll, or compromised Trump a long time ago. Wailed Congressman Steve Cohen: "Where is our military folks? The Commander in Chief is in the hands of our enemy!" Apparently, some on the left believe we need a military coup to save our democracy. Not since Robert Welch of the John Birch Society called Dwight Eisenhower a "conscious agent of the Communist conspiracy," have such charges been hurled at a president. But while the Birchers were a bit outside the mainstream, today it is the establishment itself bawling "Treason!" What explains the hysteria? The worst-case scenario would be that the establishment actually believes the nonsense it is spouting. But that is hard to credit. Like the boy who cried "Wolf!" the establishment has cried "Fascist!" too many times to be taken seriously. A month ago, the never-Trumpers were comparing the separation of immigrant kids from detained adults, who brought them to the U.S. illegally, to FDR's concentration camps for Japanese-Americans. Some commentators equated the separations to what the Nazis did at Auschwitz. If the establishment truly believed this nonsense, it would be an unacceptable security risk to let them near the levers of power ever again. Using Occam's razor, the real explanation for this behavior is the simplest one: America's elites have been driven over the edge by Trump's successes and their failure to block him. Trump is deregulating the economy, cutting taxes, appointing record numbers of federal judges, reshaping the Supreme Court, and using tariffs to cut trade deficits and the bully pulpit to castigate freeloading allies. Worst of all, Trump clearly intends to carry out his campaign pledge to improve relations with Russia and get along with Vladimir Putin. "Over our dead bodies!" the Beltway elite seems to be shouting. Hence the rhetorical WMDs hurled at Trump: Liar, dictator, authoritarian, Putin's poodle, fascist, demagogue, traitor, Nazi. Such language approaches incitement to violence. One wonders if the haters are considering the impact of the words they are so casually using. Some of us yet recall how Dallas was charged with complicity in the death of JFK for slurs far less toxic than this. The post-Helsinki hysteria reveals not merely the mindset of the president's enemies, but the depth of their determination to destroy him. They intend to break Trump and bring him down, to see him impeached, removed, indicted and prosecuted, and the agenda on which he ran and was nominated and elected dumped onto the ash heap of history. Thursday, Trump indicated that he knows exactly what is afoot, and threw down the gauntlet of defiance: "The Fake News Media wants so badly to see a major confrontation with Russia, even a confrontation that could lead to war. They are pushing so recklessly hard and hate the fact that I'll probably have a good relationship with Putin." Spot on. Trump is saying: I am going to call off this Cold War II before it breaks out into the hot war that nine U.S. presidents avoided, despite Soviet provocations far graver than Putin's pilfering of DNC emails showing how Debbie Wasserman Schultz stuck it to Bernie Sanders. Then the White House suggested Vlad may be coming to dinner this fall. Trump is edging toward the defining battle of his presidency: a reshaping of U.S. foreign policy to avoid clashes and conflicts with Russia, and the shedding of Cold War commitments no longer rooted in the national interests of this country. Yet, should he attempt to carry out his agenda -- to get out of Syria, pull troops out of Germany, take a second look at NATO's Article 5 commitment to go to war for 29 nations, some of which, like Montenegro, most Americans have never heard of -- he is headed for the most brutal battle of his presidency. This Helsinki hysteria is but a taste. By cheering Brexit, dissing the EU, suggesting NATO is obsolete, departing Syria, trying to get on with Putin, Trump is threatening the entire U.S. foreign policy establishment with what it fears most -- irrelevance. For if there is no war on, no war imminent, and no war wanted, what does a War Party do? COPYRIGHT 2018 CREATORS.COM White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters Monday that President Trump is considering revoking the security clearance of several former U.S. intelligence officials, including onetime CIA Director John Brennan and ex-FBI Director James Comey. She said these officials have made baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia and that their clearance offers inappropriate legitimacy. The president is exploring the mechanisms to remove security clearance because theyve politicized, and in some cases monetized, their public service and security clearances, Sanders added. Sanders also named former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and former National Security Agency Director Michael Hayden, as well as Obama administration National Security Adviser Susan Rice and fired FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. The issue arose after Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., tweeted earlier on Monday suggesting that Brennans security clearance should be taken away and suggested that he was making money by divulging secrets. Paul reiterated his critique in another tweet after Sanders' White House briefing, saying he had just discussed this topic with the president. Just got out of WH meeting with @realDonaldTrump. I restated to him what I have said in public: John Brennan and others partisans should have their security clearances revoked, Paul tweeted. He added that such clearance should not be used to leverage speaking fees or network talking head fees. Brennan has been highly critical of Trump, and characterized the presidents joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week as nothing short of treasonous. Brennan and other former intelligence chiefs pushed back after Sanders briefing, with Brennan terming the administrations actions an abuse of the system. They also disputed the assertion that they still have access to classified information. This is kind of a petty way of retribution for speaking out, I guess, against the president, Clapper said on CNN. He added that the continuing clearance is a courtesy. Hayden concurred, adding that this wont change what he says about Trump. I dont go back for classified briefings. Wont have any effect on what I say or write, tweeted Hayden. McCabes spokeswoman said that his clearance was deactivated after he was fired last year, which she said was standard protocol for the FBI. Andrew McCabe's security clearance was deactivated when he was terminated, according to what we were told was FBI policy. You would think the White House would check with the FBI before trying to throw shiny objects to the press corps, tweeted Melissa Schwartz, McCabes spokeswoman. White House reporters asked Sanders whether former President Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden were on the list of those whos clearance was being reconsidered. She said they were not at this time. Sanders did not offer a timeline of when these clearances might be revoked. Trump Warns Iran's Rouhani to 'Never, Ever Threaten' U.S. TEHRAN, Iran (AP) Iranians on Monday shrugged off the possibility that a bellicose exchange of words between President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart could escalate into military conflict, but expressed growing concern Americas stepped-up sanctions could damage their fragile economy. In his latest salvo, Trump tweeted late on Sunday that hostile threats from Iran could bring dire consequences. This was after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani remarked earlier in the day that America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Trump tweeted: NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. Within hours, Irans state-owned news agency IRNA dismissed the tweet, describing it as a passive reaction to Rouhanis remarks. On Tehran streets, residents took the exchange in stride. Both America and Iran have threatened one another in different ways for several years, shrugged Mohsen Taheri, a 58-year-old publisher. A headline on a local newspaper quoted Rouhani as saying: Mr. Trump, do not play with the lions tail. On Monday, the White House said Trumps tweet shows he is not going to tolerate critical rhetoric from Iran and insisted the U.S. leader isnt escalating tensions between the two countries. If anybodys inciting anything, look no further than to Iran, press secretary Sarah Sanders said and added that Trump has been very clear about what hes not going to allow to take place. Prominent Iranian analyst Seed Leilaz downplayed the war of words, saying he thinks it was the storm before the calm. Leilaz told The Associated Press he was not worried about the remarks and tweets, and that neither Iran, nor any other country is interested in escalating tensions in the region. Citing harsh words the United States and North Korea had exchanged before the high-profile summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Leilaz said Trump and Kim got closer despite the warring words. Trumps eruption on Twitter came after a week of heavy controversy about Russian meddling in the U.S. 2016 election, following the Helsinki summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The tweet was reverberating across the Mideast. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the U.S. presidents strong stance after years in which the Iranian regime was pampered by world powers. Trump earlier this year pulled the U.S. out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions, as well as threatening penalties for companies from other countries that continue to do business with Iran. With the economic pressure, Trump said earlier this month that at a certain point theyre going to call me and say lets make a deal, and well make a deal. Iran has rejected talks with the U.S., and Rouhani has accused the U.S. of stoking an economic war. Rouhani also suggested Iran could immediately ramp up its production of uranium in response to U.S. pressure. Potentially that would escalate the very situation the nuclear deal sought to avoid an Iran with a stockpile of enriched uranium that could lead to making atomic bombs. Trumps tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing the all-capitalized tweet. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!, he wrote. Another Tehran resident, Mehdi Naderi, fretted that the U.S. measures and his own governments policies are damaging the lives of the average Iranian. America is threatening the Iranian people with its sanctions and our government is doing the same with its incompetence and mismanagement, said the self-employed 35-year-old. Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the U.S. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearization talks. There has been little tangible progress in a global push to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons program since the historic Trump-Kim summit on June 12. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew to Pyongyang for follow-up talks earlier this month, but the two sides showed conflicting accounts of the talks. Norths Foreign Ministry accused the United States of making gangster-like demands for its unilateral disarmament. Some experts say Kim is using diplomacy as a way to win outside concessions and weaken U.S.-led international sanctions. Many in Iran have expressed frustration that Trump has seemed willing to engage with North Korea, which has openly boasted of producing nuclear weapons, but not Iran, which signed the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Since Trump pulled out of the deal, other nations involved Germany, Britain, France, Russia and China as well as the European Union have reaffirmed their support for the deal and have been working to try and keep Iran on board. Iran is angry since Trump responded to Tehrans engagement diplomacy by pulling the U.S. out of the nuclear deal, Iranian lawmaker Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh told the AP. He added, however, the war of words between the two presidents was to be expected, since official diplomatic relations between the two countries have been frozen for decades. They express themselves through speeches since diplomatic channels are closed, said Falahatpisheh who heads the influential parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy. On Sunday in California, Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran, calling its religious leaders hypocritical holy men who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer. In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, Pompeo castigated Irans political, judicial and military leaders, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government has heartlessly repressed its own peoples human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms. He said despite poor treatment by their leaders, the proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their governments many abuses, Pompeo said. And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent either. ___ Lester reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Zeke Miller at the White House, David Rising in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, Aron Heller in Jerusalem and Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report. Rep. Trey Gowdy told FNC's Bret Baier on FOX News Sunday that while there are documents he has not seen, he knows that if there were any evidence that President Trump committed any crime with regard to Russia "Adam Schiff would have leaked it." Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said this week that President Trump is compromised by the Russians, offering possible recordings of his meeting with Putin as evidence. Later on Sunday morning, Schiff suggested Trump's businesses were Russian money laundering operations. "I have not seen one scintilla of evidence that this president colluded, conspired, collaborated, with Russia. And neither has anyone else, or you can rest assured, Adam Schiff would have leaked it," Gowdy said. "That is why they have moved on from collusion on to obstruction of justice, which is now their current preoccupation." Full interview: Transcript: BAIER HOST: And hello again from FOX News in Washington. The tension following President Trumps meeting with Vladimir Putin continues to rise this weekend as the president faces widespread criticism over his handling of Russia after he seemed to side with Putin's denials of election interference, at least at first. Joining me now from South Carolina, Congressman Trey Gowdy, chairman of the House Oversight Committee. Mr. Chairman, thanks for being here. REP. TREY GOWDY (R-SC), CHAIRMAN, HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE: Yes, sir. Thank you. BAIER: You know, after the president's meeting with Vladimir Putin and that much analyzed press conference in Helsinki, your colleague, Republican colleague from Texas, Congressman Will Hurd, a former CIA officer wrote an op-ed for "The New York Times" and it was entitled, "Trump is Being Manipulated by Putin. What should we do?" And in it, the Texas Republican writes, quote: Over the course of my career as an undercover officer in the CIA, I saw Russian intelligence manipulate many people. I never thought I would see the day when an American president would be one of them. So, do you agree with Congressman Hurd? Is the president being manipulated by Vladimir Putin? GOWDY: Well, Will has a background as a CIA officer. I defer to him on manipulation. I can tell you this, Bret, the president has access to every bit of evidence, even more than those of us on House intel. And Will and I serve on intel. He has access to Pompeo and Chris Wray and Dan Coats and Nikki Haley. The evidence is overwhelming. It can be proven beyond any evidentiary burden that Russia is not our friend and they tried to attack us in 2016. So, the president either needs to rely on the people that he has chosen to advise him, or those advisors need to reevaluate whether or not they can serve in this administration. But the disconnect cannot continue. The evidence is overwhelming and the president needs to say that and act like it. BAIER: So, he eventually set it through the week, Congressman, but what do you think was the evolution there? Why the hesitation? GOWDY: I don't know. I watched the press conference. It wasn't just that line. It was -- the president missed, I think, a really good opportunity to distinguish the United States from any other country, but especially from Russia, and I don't know what was said in a private conversation. But I do know this -- we got a classified briefing this week, Bret. There is no way you can listen to the evidence and not conclude, not that the Democrats were the victims, but the United States of America were the victims. We were the victims of what Russia did in 2016, and it ought to be a source of unity and rallying around the fact that we are never going to allow this to happen again and were going to punish those who try to do it. And there was this equivocation during the press conference that Im glad he corrected it, but when youre the leader of the free world, every syllable matters and you really shouldn't be having to correct it when youre the leader of the free world. BAIER: As you mentioned, after several days of kind of dealing with the rhetorical walk-back, the White House announced on Twitter that the senior task had been tasked to set up a second summit, Vladimir Putin coming to Washington this fall. And that obviously caught many here in Washington by surprise. It also caught the presidents director of national intelligence by surprise, who is doing an interview in Aspen at the time. Take a listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ANDREA MITCHELL, NBC NEWS: The White House has announced on Twitter that Vladimir Putin is coming to the White House in the fall. DAN COATS, DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: Say that again? (LAUGHTER) COATS: OK. MITCHELL: Yes. (LAUGHTER) COATS: That's going to be special. (END VIDEO CLIP) BAIER: Now, the DNI released a statement last night apologizing, saying he didn't mean to be critical or disrespectful in his reaction and response. But do you think its strange that the director of national intelligence didn't know about the invite before it went out? GOWDY: I do think its strange. I also think this, Bret, I think that the United States of America sometimes has to meet with people that we don't have anything in common with. I think our president has to meet with the leader of North Korea. We have to lead -- meet with the leader from Iran. But it's very different to issue an invitation. This country is different. We do things differently. We set the moral standard for the rest of the world. The fact that we have to talk to you about Syria or other matters is very different from issuing an invitation. Those should be reserved for, I think, our allies like Great Britain and Canada and Australia and those who are with us day in and day out. They should -- I think we should be very judicious in who we invite and place that in perimeter (ph) of acceptance on. So, I would hope the president would keep that in mind if we are issuing invitations to foreign leaders. BAIER: I want to return to the investigation. Overnight, responding to Freedom of Information requests, the Department of Justice released a heavily redacted FISA court request by the FBI, asking for permission to surveil or listen into Carter Page. A fairly low-level figure in the Trump campaign or orbit but one the FBI suspected, according to these documents, of colluding with Russian agents and may be being one. I know you read this months ago, but it's the first time one of these kind of documents is out in the public domain, even heavily redacted. What is your take on this? GOWDY: My take is that Carter Page is more like Inspector Gadget then he is Jason Bourne or James Bond. Trump never met him. Trump never had a conversation with him. Im sure he's been on the FBI's radar for a long time, well before 2016. Here's what well never know, Bret -- well never know whether or not the FBI had enough without the dossier, the unvetted DNC-funded dossier because they included it and everyone who reads this FISA application sees the amount of reliance they placed on this product funded by Hillary Clinton's campaign and the DNC. So, that's point number one, is the dossier and its use. The other thing I hope my fellow citizens will take note of is the FBI missed a really good opportunity to tell the judge exactly who paid for that. If you look at the footnote, it takes a lot more effort to define it the way they did, where you have no idea who funded it, then just to come right out and say the DNC hired Perkins Coie who hired Fusion GPS who hired Christopher Steele. There, done. That's an easy footnote, everybody can follow it. But for whatever reason, the FBI decided not to represent that to a court. BAIER: So, Carter Page is never indicted. He hasn't been brought in. GOWDY: Not yet. BAIER: He is still walking around. GOWDY: Yes, and that -- I mean, look, this is an investigation. All investigations don't lead to indictments. There have been two dozen indictments in this case but Carter Page is not one of them. I have a different standard between investigating something and someone. And keep in mind, and counterintelligence investigations are never designed to become public. So, you and I were not supposed to be having a conversation about Carter Page on national television. This case is different. He has not been indicted. He is presumed innocent. Hell be presumed innocent even if he is indicted. I don't have an issue with looking into people that have cozy relationships with Russia. That's fine. Thats what law enforcement supposed to do. I do have an issue when you rely on political opposition research that is unvetted and you represent that to a court and use it to spy on an American. BAIER: You have seen this document long ago, but are there documents that you know exist that you have yet to see? GOWDY: Some. The McCabe memos, which came up during the Lisa Page interview. (CROSSTALK) BAIER: Andrew McCabe, number two at the FBI who became acting director after Comey leaves. GOWDY: Right. As soon as you become acting director, apparently, you make a decision to memorialize all of your conversations with the president, even while you are applying for the job I hasten to add. But I have not seen the McCabe memos. There were other references that Lisa Page made the documents and files that I think Congress is entitled to see. Ive seen as much if not more than any other member of Congress, which is why I am so adamant that Russia is not our friend and they tried to attack us. BAIER: Are you equally adamant that the president is not -- has not colluded with Russia? GOWDY: I have not seen one scintilla of evidence that this president colluded, conspired, confederated with Russia. And neither has anyone else, or you may rest assured Adam Schiff would have leaked it. So, that's why they've moved off of collusion onto obstruction of justice, which is now their current preoccupation. BAIER: You mentioned Lisa Page. She and Peter Strzok, these two figures, FBI agent and FBI attorney, who had been texting back and forth. They were lovers, had some very heated, aggressive anti-Trump texts. One that said we can't take a risk, it's an insurance policy. Another that said an investigation leading to impeachment, you and I both know the odds are nothing. I thought -- If I thought it was likely there would be no question I would go over to Bob Mueller, that's what he's talking about. I hesitate in part because my gut sense and concern is there's no big there there. Lisa Page was up on Capitol Hill. Did she say they were talking about theres no there there in the Russia case? (CROSSTALK) GOWDY: -- it can be. She was a much better witness than Peter Strzok. Look, she hates Republicans, including the one you are talking to, but she had a credibility about herself and how she answered our questions that Peter Strzok never bothered to have. Take a look at that text. That's from Peter Strzok and he's concerned that there is no big there there. He's not optimistic that there is not, he's not hopeful there's not. This is a career counterintelligence agent who is concerned that this investigation will not lead to impeachment. So, it's already led to indictments. It's already led to our understanding that Russia is not our friend. You have a wonderful opportunity to safeguard our 2018 elections. None of that was enough for him, Bret. It had to be impeachment, and that was his concern is that there was no big there there. And thats why he was not sure he wanted to participate in this investigation. That is sad. It is pathetic that a career FBI agent would only be interested in impeachment, which is why he has no credibility and she actually does have some. BAIER: So, Trump supporters look at that, former CIA Director John Brennan, former FBI Director James Comey, what he said, what theyve said. And they say they understand why the president feels a little inquisitive about where things are going. GOWDY: Yes, Bret, you don't even have to be a Trump supporter to be mindful of the fact that John Brennan thinks he's guilty of a crime for which he can be hanged, that John Brennan thinks he should be in the dustbin of history, that Jim Comey thinks impeachment is too good of a remedy and Jim Comey now thinks that everyone should vote Democrat so Bernie Sanders will be the head of the budget committee and Dianne Feinstein will be the head of intel. I mean, these are the people that were supposed to be dispassionately, objectively investigating a fact pattern and they have much animus against Donald Trump as anything I have seen in my eight years in politics. Add into that, Peter Strzok, Lisa Page and the other unidentified FBI agents who also wanted him to resign or be impeached or thought he was destabilizing. So if you are Donald Trump and you see all of these people in positions of responsibility that think you ought to be -- that youre guilty of treason, a crime for which you can be put to death, by the way. That's what John Brennan said. So, what I would encourage the president, those are all people from yesterday. You have your own people in place now and it is possible to conclude that Russia interfered with us and it still does not delegitimize your presidency. That's where I would encourage the president to go. Russia is not our friend. We need to be very careful dealing with them but that does not take away from the fact that he won the 2016 election, much to the chagrin of Brennan, Comey and all the rest. The old cliche about turning around a battleship is true. It doesn't happen quickly. But something is happening at the United Nations that proves that changing course is possible, and it holds important lessons for how the world considers issues in the Middle East. For decades, the United Nations has been a metaphorical battleship, and its direction has been relentlessly and blindly anti-Israel. But something remarkable happened on June 13, and if our international partners continue the trend, we have cause to be more hopeful for a peaceful future for Israel and the Palestinians. On the surface, everything about the General Assembly session on June 13 appeared to be business as usual. Algeria offered a grossly one-sided resolution blaming Israel -- and Israel alone -- for the recent violence in Gaza. The resolution blatantly ignored the facts. Hamas, the terrorist group that controls Gaza, has been inciting the violence at the Israeli boundary fence for months, using Palestinian civilians as human shields. And Hamas and other terror groups have fired more than 100 rockets and sent untold numbers of flaming kites, some displaying swastikas, into Israel in the past month, hoping to kill as many Israeli civilians and destroy as much property as possible. And yet the Algerian resolution not only failed to hold Hamas terrorists accountable for their role in the violence, it failed to mention Hamas at all. In response, the United States proposed a simple amendment to the resolution that called out Hamas for its role in the skirmishes. A minimum fealty to the truth demanded that the United Nations condemn Hamas by name for firing rockets into Israel and for allowing other terror groups to do the same. Basic decency demanded that the United Nations express concern about the damage Hamas purposely does to the border crossings that deliver desperately needed food and fuel to the people of Gaza. We offered our amendment to give countries the opportunity to put the truth above politics by holding Hamas to account. A European Union monitoring mission was in Cambodia this week to assess the country's compliance with the human rights obligations that lie at the core of the EU-Cambodia preferential trade deal. The timing could not be more appropriate. With national elections approaching on July 29, Cambodia is hurtling towards a one-party state under prime minister Hun Sen and the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP). Over the past year, government-controlled courts have dissolved the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP). The party's leader, Kem Sokha, is in prison on spurious treason charges. His predecessor, longtime opposition leader Sam Rainsy, has been in exile since 2015 after being convicted on trumped-up charges. The government has effectively taken over the media, bankrupted or silenced independent newspapers, and ordered radio stations to stop broadcasting independent newscasts. Journalists have even been jailed for espionage for providing information to a foreign news organisation. Those who stand up for victims are met with vitriol. Last month Human Rights Watch published a 200-page report documenting serious abuses by a dozen senior Cambodian generals. Hun Sen's response? He angrily said he would not investigate our allegations, would also not allow NGOs or the UN to investigate his generals, and that the country's 160,000 soldiers and police would oppose any such effort. He denounced me personally and announced that I was banned from the country. Cambodians who make similar allegations face much worse: July 10 is the second anniversary of the assassination of Kem Ley, a wildly popular political commentator and Hun Sen critic. Tbilisi press wasn't surprised by the first international visit of the new prime minister of Georgia, Mamuka Bakhtadze. As expected, at the invitation of NATO and the EU, he headed to Brussels. That's how Bakhtadze, whom opposition accuses of being "pro-Russian" (arguing that 36-year-old prime minister was at one time studying at the Moscow State University), wanted to demonstrate his loyalty to the long-term course, chosen by Georgian elites and dedicated to joining NATO and the EU. During joint press conference with head of Georgian government, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said expected things about the fact that Caucasian country "will join NATO sooner or later", thanked Georgian leadership for "great contribution" to peacekeeping operations, including in Afghanistan, and praised professionalism of Georgian soldiers and officers in the combat zones. He announced new large-scale exercises that will be held Georgia on August 1 with participation of the NATO member states. In addition to NATO countries, Azerbaijan and Armenia will also participate in these drills. At least this information was published on the Georgian Defense Ministry's website. No one can tell if it's real for sure: last year, participation of the Armenian Armed Forces was also announced, but Armenian side refused to participate at the last moment. The next few days will show what will happen. During meetings at the NATO headquarters, prime minister tried to somehow clarify famous statement of previous US president Barack Obama that "Georgia is not on the path leading to NATO." In recent years Georgian leaders have demonstrated that they have already paved this "path" to Brussels, and that it leads not only to the military-political bloc, but also to the European Union. Bakhtadze also held meeting with head of the European Council Donald Tusk. According to Tusk, Georgia can peacefully resolve conflicts with Abkhazia and South Ossetia with the help of peacekeeping programs, developed jointly with the EU. The fair and carnival season is in full swing. Summer is a time for ice cream, trips to the beach, amusement parks, fairs and carnivals. As I drive along the highways in the evening, I cant help but see all of the lights from roller coasters, Ferris wheels, carousels, and thrill rides that temporary amusement parks set up, usually in large parking lots alongside highways. State, county and country fairs are plentiful too. As I pass these venues, I think about the scent of the various foods that permeate the surroundings, especially fried and grilled foods. The food selection is more diverse than ever before, ranging from timeless classics such as apple pie, usually served a la mode, kettle corn and corn dogs you know those corn-battered hot dogs fried and served on a stick and of course, fried dough and funnel cakes with berries and whipped cream, to new inventions like spicy peanut butter and jelly cheeseburgers (no, I havent tried one yet) and fried Coca Cola; the latter was created in 2006 for the Texas State Fair and now sold at many state fairs throughout the country. Thanks to George Geary, author of Fair Foods: The Most Popular and Offbeat Recipes from Americas State & County Fairs (2017, Santa Monica Press, $24.95) you wont have to wait until fair season to enjoy your favorites. A former pastry chef for the Walt Disney Co., it is he who created a corn dog recipe for the company when Disneyland hosted a country fair-themed week. He is perhaps best known for creating all of the cheesecakes for The Golden Girls and other top-rated television programs. Geary said, for 28 seasons, I was involved in the largest county fair in the country: the Los Angeles County Fair. During that time, I watched as the focus of the fair moved from blue ribbons and homemade pie bake-offs to the rows and rows of vendors that now hawk crazy food combinations. Around 1980, classic fair food began to evolve from cotton candy and snow cones to bacon-wrapped doughnuts fried in pork belly fat. Not all the food sold at the fair is fried, but the motto of todays country fair might as well be, just fry it! I found Gearys description of how county fairs have evolved quite interesting. He writes, county fairs were originally designed for farmers to show off their crops and livestock while their wives competed for the title of best pie maker in the county. Todayespecially in big cities, the livestock shows have moved out of the spotlight, and food competitions are becoming scarce, too. I have observed this trend over the years; those visiting the livestock barns and viewing the largest pumpkin and best crops are diminishing, instead they are waiting on endless lines to eat fair food and experience thrill rides. If you have a craving for fair food, here are a couple of recipes from the book. For the recipe for deep- fried strawberries, please visit https://bit.ly/2ujkBoR. Check out dates for some of Connecticuts fairs and festivals here: https://bit.ly/2mbn7cm. Triple Cheeseburger Doughnuts This was first served at the Iowa State Fair. 1 pounds ground grass-fed chuck (80% lean) Garlic salt Sea salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoons canola oil 6 slices American cheese 2 large glazed doughnuts, split in half Divide the ground meat into 6 equal portions. Form each portion loosely into a inch-thick burger and make a deep depression in the center of the patties with your thumb. Season both sides of each burger with garlic salt, sea salt, and pepper. In a grill pan on high heat, bring oil to almost shimmering. Cook the burgers until golden brown on the first side, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook for 3 additional minutes for medium rare. Dont press meat down while cooking. Top with cheese. Toast doughnut halves by placing them on a hot grill pan or grill, cut side down. Add any desired condiments to the doughnuts. Sandwich burger patties between doughnut halves and serve. Makes 2 triple cheeseburgers. Deep-Fried Twinkies The headnote says, The Texas State Fair was the first to offer this sinful treat. 6 Twinkies 3 cups all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons granulated sugar 3 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda teaspoon sea salt 1 cup buttermilk cup whole milk 3 large eggs 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Canola oil Confectioners sugar Skewer each Twinkie and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze for 2 hours. Meanwhile, prepare the batter: in a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, whole milk, eggs, and melted butter. Pour into flour mixture and blend just until smooth. In a Dutch oven, heat two inches of canola oil over medium heat to 375 degrees. Working with two at a time, dip the Twinkies into the batter until fully coated. Place in hot oil, turning after a few seconds until all sides have reached a light brown color, about 4-6 minutes. Drain on paper towels, then dust with confectioners sugar. What chef would you like me to interview? Which restaurant recipes or other recipes would you like to have? Which food products are you having difficulty finding? Do you have cooking questions? Send them to me: Stephen Fries, professor and coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College, at gw-stephen.fries@gwcc.commnet.edu or Dept. FC, Gateway Community College, 20 Church St., New Haven, 06510. Include your full name, address and phone number. (Due to volume, I might not be able to publish every request. For more, go to stephenfries.com.) CULINARY CALENDAR Kids Cooking Camp-Baking Wars: July 23-27, 10 a.m. to noon, Chefs Emporium, 449 Boston Post Road, Orange, $200. Reservations 203-799-2665. If your child (ages 5-11) loves baking competitions on the Food Network, then this camp is for them. Stir-up, bake-up and decorate cupcakes, cookies and mini cakes of all sorts using pastry chef techniques, piping bags and fondant. The chef might throw in a twist or two, such as ingredients that must be incorporated or only being able to decorate with your left hand. This class will let each childs creativity run wild. Every student is a winner. Same class is offered for teens (12 years +) from 1 to 3 p.m. For menu and other kids cooking camps visit https://bit.ly/2kwz1hm. Food Networks Chopped, features Consiglios Chef Danny Brelsford. Tune in and watch Chef Danny compete on Food Network on July 17 at 9 p.m. On July 18, at 6:30 p.m., at Consiglios, 165 Wooster St., New Haven, a special demonstration cooking class and 4-course dinner will be held, using some of the secret ingredients Chef Danny was presented on the show. $75 (beverages, tax and gratuity not included) Flights of Fancy, July 19, 4:30 to 8 p.m. $20, includes commemorative wine glass. An evening of shopping, wine and food tastings, in-store discounts, free parking York Street Garage, exciting raffle prizes, and special gifts for attendees. A welcome party at The Study Hotel, 1157 Chapel St., New Haven. Tickets and more details at https://bit.ly/2JwaFSF. Worth Tasting Culinary Walking Tour: 10:45 a.m. July 21, four-hour culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven. 8-9 stops at some of New Havens favorites. You wont be hungry after this tour. Reservations required, tickets at https://bit.ly/2FjiwMP, 203-415-3519, 203-777-8550, $64. Consiglios Cooking Demonstration and Dinner: July 26, 6:30 p.m., Consiglios Restaurant, 165 Wooster St., New Haven, 203-865-4489 (reservations required), $75 (beverages, tax and gratuity not included). Learn how to make tuna and white bean bruschetta, tomato, watermelon, creamy burrata salad, boneless beef short ribs, balsamic barbecue, profiteroles. Consiglios Murder Mystery Dinner The 13th of Friday-Summer Edition July 27, doors at 6 p.m., dinner and show at 7, Consiglios Restaurant, 165 Wooster St., New Haven, reservations at 203-865-4489, http://bit.ly/2cyB02Y. $65 includes dinner and show (beverages, tax and gratuity not included). An interactive comedy show that goes on throughout the evening as you enjoy a 3-course meal. The cast mingles from table to table, dropping clues for a mystery that only you can solve! It's mass hysteria as the summer patio fun turns deadlier than usual. MIDDLETOWN Officials are seeking help from local engineers, and state and federal authorities to help fix the rapidly growing and massive section of the retaining wall that is tumbling into the Connecticut River at Harbor Park. The estimated 40-foot section of brownstone bulkhead that is falling, which perhaps dates back as far as the Civil War era, has grown significantly in the past 24 hours, city leaders said Monday afternoon as the river swelled to high tide. Another portion is leaning into the river at the northern area of the park known as Lions Landing. A police officer on routine patrol at the park discovered the seawall had slid into the water last week and alerted city leaders, who met to discuss the worsening issue. They are operating on the assumption the big rainstorm July 17 exacerbated the problem. The damage is about 75 feet from where Route 9 passes along the river. Erosion isnt expected to creep toward the highway at this point, officials said. Theres a lot of history down there. We dont want to lose that, Middletown Fire and Emergency Management Chief Robert Kronenberger said of the massive blocks of varying sizes that comprise the 10-foot-deep retaining wall. The brownstone blocks, which most likely came from the Portland quarries, arent jutting out of the river because the water near the coastline there is deep about 20 feet. The good thing is, we know where the brownstone is on the bottom of the river. After hundreds of years of erosion, it finally gave way, Kronenberger added. The city has alerted the Army Corps of Engineers, state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Coast Guard and state Department of Transportation, and is taking estimates from several engineering firms to determine repair costs. The Army Corps has jurisdictional responsibility over every navigable waterway in Connecticut, Deputy Director of Public Works Chris Holden said. Presently, the damage is contained to Lions Landing, located north of the pedestrian tunnel. But the situation is in constant flux. A cause has not been determined, Kronenberger said. In the meantime, metal fencing is in place, with orange webbing marking off the specific coastline affected. Already, public works crews have had to move back the safety barrier to prevent the curious from walking along that portion of the river. We dont really know, but its probably something thats been brewing much longer than [the additional rain that fell over the weekend into Monday]. The walls been there [for hundreds of] years. Weve seen plenty of rainstorms. Something else is going on, Kronenberger said. With the rain that we got, I was crossing my fingers that there was no more undermining of the river, the chief said. Much of Connecticut is forecast to see significant precipitation through Thursday. Its not going to be cheap, Director of Public Works William Russo said of the repairs. We dont know if it happened because of the log jam over the winter if that started the process, he added. The January ice jam, which stretched from Middletown to East Haddam, caused erosion of the river and ice pileups, forcing massive chunks to plane onto one another. Once a cost is determined, Russo said the city will be contacting FEMA and other agencies for grants. Well be applying for everything, he said. The rest of the seawall, from Columbus Park to the gazebo just south of the tunnel, is reinforced by steel bulkheads, Holden said. Officials arent certain if the original brownstone is also underneath that area. Back when Middletown was a thriving seaport centered around the West Indies trade, around the time of the American Revolution, more than a dozen wooden wharfs jutted out into the river from the North End area all along the riverfront, Middlesex County Historical Society Executive Director Deborah Shapiro said. Green, Washington and College streets, as well as other roadways, reached all the way to the water, she said, looking at an 1825 map of the port. Rapallo Avenue wasnt there at the time. That land was owned by Philip Mortimer, a wealthy rope maker whose mansion overlooked the river. At the time, boats came in and either on loaded or off loaded from boxcars that were on tracks right next to the river, said the citys retired development director Bill Kuehn. There were steamers up and down the river connecting Hartford with New York. It was a stopping-off place for shipping, he added. Years ago, Kuehn recalled hearing from an old timer about his childhood experiences growing up in the North End. When he was a kid, if several boxcars were lined up side by side, and open against the river, they would leap from one boxcar to the other, and then dive into the river to swim, Kuehn said. Because Middletown is situated on the bend of the river, the coastline is under constant pressure from the current, which contributes to erosion, Holden said. Engineers will be surveying the damage and recommending temporary and permanent fixes, he added. Work in the coming weeks is expected to involve an investigation into what caused the failure and soil borings at least 30 to 40 feet down. It could involve divers going down and inspecting along the bottom of the wall, Holden said. The water really has a place to go now that its open, he said, adding that the exposed area is more likely to erode now the wall is compromised. Managing Editor Cassandra Day can be reached at cassandra.day@hearstmediact.com or Twitter @cassandrasdis. Would you move to a new city or town if it was willing to hand you $10,000 just for showing up? According to a new report on Livability, such incentives are surprisingly common across the United States. Um, what's the catch? The only catch, if you could call it that, is that these areas are typically plagued with a dwindling or aging population. As Livability explains, "As baby boomers leave the workforce and the demand for skilled workers rises, some cities and states are facing an unexpected situation: They need more residents, and fast." RIGHT AT HOME: Where to live in Houston for the coolest views of the city To reel in these newcomers, officials have gotten pretty creativeoffering up help with down payments on homes, college tuition, even free plots of land. So if you're up for moving where you'll be showered with gratitude in some form or another, check out these seven options below, plus a glimpse of some of the real estate in these areas. New Haven, Conn. Yale University may be New Haven's claim to fame, but it's also developed a bad rep as being unaffordable to non-Ivy-league folks. That's why in 2014, the city implemented RE: New Haven, a program that promises new residents a $10,000 loan for a down payment on a house. As if that weren't nice enough, it's also offering an additional $30,000 for energy-saving upgrades, and will even slap on up to $40,000 in scholarships to any in-state college for students who graduate from New Haven public schools. According to realtor.com/local, the median price of a home in New Haven is $223,000and there are plenty of pretty homes on the market to pick from, including this Cape Cod ranch below. Price: $194,900 To see more: View all New Haven real estate listings Burlington, Vt. Eager to rejuvenate its aging work force, Vermont is looking to attract more full-time residentsparticularly young tech workers, who can work remotely. The bait? These new residents will receive $10,000 over two years, which will help cover moving costs, computer software, internet access, and membership of co-working spaces. The only catch here is that enrollment is limited in this new program, which will launch in January 2019: Only 100 lucky workers will be relocated in the first year, and 20 workers each year after that. The statewide program is not limited to just Burlington, but since the city is Vermont's largest, it's being marketed to reel in newcomers. The median home price in Burlington is $330,000, and incoming residents can find a variety of properties big and small, like the Cape-style home featured below. Price: $668,000 To see more: View all Burlington real estate listings Baltimore, Md. Like other Rust Belt cities, Baltimore has seen its population steadily decline over the past few decades. Yet while many have left, their gorgeous houses remain. A median-priced home in Baltimore is $210,000, much less than what youd see in Washington, DC; Boston; or New York City. As a further incentive to real estate bargain hunters, the city launched its Buying Into Baltimore program, which offers $5,000 to first-time buyers looking to purchase anywhere in the city. Added bonus: If you work for the city, it will fork over another $5,000 for your first home. And if youre looking to channel your inner Chip and Joanna Gaines and find a fixer-upper, Baltimores Vacant to Value Booster program will give you $10,000 to purchase that home and renovate it. Take a peek at this spacious brick colonial townhome for sale in Baltimore below. Price: $254,500 To see more: View all Baltimore real estate listings Hamilton, Ohio After experiencing a major shortage of skilled laborers, this Ohio city drew up a plan to attract young college graduates. As of now, only 15% of Hamilton residents hold a college degree, and the city hopes that its Talent Attraction Program Scholarship will boost its number of college-educated residents. Hamilton is offering up to $5,000 to new residents to help pay off student loans. To receive the cash, which is paid in installments of $200 for up to 25 months, applicants must live in designated areas in Hamilton and show proof of employment in the city. If the cash weren't incentive enough, the housing market in Hamilton is relatively cheap. The median house price is $160,000, and recent grads can snag a sweet deal, such as this move-in ready traditional home below. Price: $94,900 To see more: View all Hamilton real estate listings Harmony, Minn. In spite of harsh winters, this small Minnesota town has found a way to get visitors to stay: Newcomers to Harmony can receive up to $12,000 if they decide to build a house. Interested builders can fill out the one-page application, and the city will hand over the cash as soon as the exterior of the house is built. For those not interested in starting from scratch, Harmony has a few homes on the market, including this remodeled five-bedroom house (below). According to realtor.com/local, the median price of a home in Harmony is $137,000. Price: $164,900 To see more: View all Hamilton real estate listings Ludington, Mich. Have a killer startup idea but can't find the cash you need to make it happen? Moving to this Midwestern city may be the best decision for your business. Not only is Ludington located right on beautiful Lake Michigan, but the breezy town of 8,500 is also looking to becoming a hub for small businesses and startups through its yearly Momentum Business Plan Competition, which awards one lucky winner a grand prize of $50,000. The only stipulation is that the winner must relocate his or her business to Ludington, but considering that a median-priced home runs for $192,000, it's not a bad trade-off. Maybe next year's winner will move into the lakeside lot featured below. Price: $495,000 To see more: View all Ludington real estate listings Marne, Iowa Only 120 residents live in this tiny town, located about an hour outside of Des Moines, so a decade ago, town officials created a program to attract people to the struggling workforce. Sadly, there are no homes for sale in Marne, so new residents receive an unusual gift: free land! Marne is providing a free plot of land to new residents who want to build a house. The lots average about 9,600 square feetnot bad, considering other plots in the area have been valued for over $180,000. That's quite a perkso if a truly small-town vibe is your thing, give it some serious thought. The post 7 Places Where You'd Actually Get Paid to Live (and Love It, Too) appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com. LAKEVILLE More than a dozen young musicians who are enrolled in a Hotchkiss School summer program will make their debut at Carnegie Hall on Tuesday night. The Carnegie-bound students are enrolled in the schools Summer Piano Portals program. It accepts highly gifted students who audition for a place in the two-week long seminar. From of field of 200 applicants, 32 students were accepted. Of those, 17 students were chosen to perform in the recital at the legendary arts venue. Nathalie Lelogeais on New York City is one of the students who will perform on Tuesday. She will play Ondine by Debussy. I really like the performance-based program, she said. We have lessons and practice time, and its different from playing for friends. Lelogeais said she also enjoys the international component of the program. There are students from Spain, Vietnam and China, she said. People are very, very talented. Some have a miraculous ear for music. Related video: Parkland Student Band Performs at Carnegie Hall The piano program, which is in its sixth year, has an overarching theme of classical music, said Fabio Witkowski, the Piano Program Director and Head of the Visual and Performing Arts Department. His wife, Gisele Nacif Witkowski, is a resident piano faculty member and teaches at the summer program as well. One component of the program is a master class, which offers both a performance and a learning aspect. It gets the students a little more ready, and gives them a great level of confidence, Witkowski said. The young musicians hear each other play and they develop listening skills and learning. The concepts coincide, Witkowski noted. The better we play, the better we are all. We celebrate each other. At Mondays masterclass, Nacif Witkowski asked a student to play a measure of music more forcibly. It enhances the harmony of the piece, she explained. Go for the energy first. As a second student played a Chopin prelude, Nacif Witkowski stopped him to ask what emotionthe music evoked. He said, Water. It may be as fluid as water, but whats the emotion? Nacif Witkowski asked again. She turned to the other students to see what they thought. They called out from their seats that the emotion was either mad, frustrated, angry or agitated. Figure out what the composer thought, Nacif Witkowski suggested. We are all learning together here. The summer piano program is supported by Fredrick Frank, a Hotchkiss alumnus, and his wife Mary Tanner Frank. The Franks value the opportunity to help young musicians experience conservatory-level training, according to a statement from the school. Other faculty members who teach at the summer program are John Perry from Rutgers University; Mina Perry from John Perry Academy; Oxana Yablonskaya of Tel Aviv University; Leonel Morales-Herrero from Universidad Alfonso X in Spain; Yari Bogdanov from Gnessin Academy in Russia; Lan Chen of Shenzhen Arts School in China and Leonel Morales of Conservatorio Superior de Castellon in Spain. The Hotchkiss School Summer Concert Series, which is free to the public, continues at 8 p.m. on Thursday with a performance by John and Mina Perry. A grand finale concert will be held at 7 p.m. on Saturday. The school is located at 11 Interlaken Road, Lakeville. For more information, call: 860-435-2591. Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will pay an official visit to Azerbaijan on July 24, Turkey's Foreign Ministry said. "Cavusoglu's visit to Baku will last one day," the ministry noted. Within the framework of the visit, Cavusoglu will hold a meeting with the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, as well as other officials. "It is expected that Cavusoglu will also hold a meeting with the Azerbaijani Prime Minister Novruz Mammadov," Trend cited the ministry as saying. During the visit the strengthening of relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan, as well as other regional issues will be discussed. The Interior Department, our former employer, is on the hunt - camouflaged in the guise of "conservation." Its target? Regulations that prohibit hunters from using cruel, unscientific and unethical methods to hunt Alaska's bears and wolves. A taste of what the agency wants to allow under the Trump administration: shooting mother bears hibernating with cubs, luring bears with bait and killing wolves rearing young in their dens. And it wants to give the green light for such activities at National Park Service areas such as Denali and Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. We are deeply disappointed in our former employer but realize that this does not reflect the judgment of career scientists or land and wildlife managers. This is politics, pure and simple - placing the bull's eye on animals when they are most vulnerable. To our friends and colleagues in the "sportsmen" community, we ask: Is this really sportsmanship? Are we not better than this? Is this really what we want the more than 95 percent of Americans who don't hunt to see and think about hunters? We each put in place regulations prohibiting these practices while serving as directors of the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, after spending years trying to convince the state of Alaska that its rules were unsportsmanlike. From 2005 to 2015, the federal government made more than 50 requests to the Alaska Board of Game, which regulates sport hunting in the state, to limit predator sport hunting on national preserves and national wildlife refuges. The state ignored those requests, forcing us to step in to protect bears and wolves. Congress rolled back the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regulations covering 77 million acres, and now the Trump administration wants to extend that to 20 million acres of national preserves, essentially requiring National Park Service managers to violate their stewardship responsibilities. These proposals are not conservation. They are a throwback to 19th-century predator persecution, which is explicitly prohibited on our national park and wildlife refuges. These lands were not protected to become glorified game farms for unethical shooting expeditions; they were protected to provide havens for our nation's wildlife, including brown bears, caribou, wolf and moose. Extreme methods disguised as hunting are not conservation and are not in line with America's long tradition of ethical, fair-chase hunting. Yet, that is exactly the snake oil that Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is attempting to sell. He's a politician, so perhaps this is to be expected from him. But where is the outrage from sportsmen and sportswomen? For goodness' sake, we know better. We know that preserving biodiversity is key to healthier lands, water and wildlife. Thriving bear and wolf populations benefit their natural ecosystems. Only science-based management can ensure that our hunting traditions are sustained by wildlife habitat and populations. That's why our federal lands are such a rich bounty for hunters and anglers. For more than a decade, the Alaska Board of Game has escalated its efforts to reduce bear and wolf populations across much of the state, supposedly to increase moose and caribou populations. This has been scientifically disproved, time and again. We know how the story ends when we let so-called hunters take out their frustrations on bears and wolves in the name of "protecting" game populations. It doesn't end well. Especially for us hunters. We lose habitat, access and public support. As lifelong anglers and hunters, we are immensely proud of the unselfish role hunters and anglers have played in protecting and sustaining our nation's natural heritage and in supporting ethical practices that preserve and honor nature in all its diversity. Sportsmen and sportswomen have hunted and fished across the American landscape for far longer than our national parks and revered public lands have been protected. This has been a bipartisan relationship, honored and supported by Republican and Democratic presidents throughout the decades, beginning with our iconic public-lands champion, Theodore Roosevelt. The legacy of the ethical hunter is on the line. A nation of mostly non-hunters is watching. Will they see our community stand proudly and loudly for humane, scientific and ethical policy? Or will they see the opposite? Hunters should stand with the non-hunting community and demand that this policy be withdrawn. --- Ashe served as director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from 2011 to 2017. Jarvis served as director of the National Park Service from 2009 to 2017. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with Russias foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and Russia's armed forces chief, General Valery Gerasimov in Jerusalem today. "Today, I will meet with a Russian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and General Staff Chief Valery Gerasimov in accordance with an agreement reached with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with whom I held a telephone conversation a few days ago," Netanyahu said at a weekly cabinet meeting. The PM added that the parties would discuss regional issues, first and foremost, the situation in Syria, Trend reported. According to Netanyahu, Israel will continue to act against any attempts by Iran and its satellites aimed at establishing military presence in Syria. Authorities in Cambodia are investigating members of the countrys now-dissolved opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), media reports said Monday, for organizing a boycott of this weekends election, which has been widely derided as unfree and unfair amid an ongoing political crackdown. Cambodias Supreme Court dissolved the CNRP in November over allegations it was involved in a plot to topple the government, stripping the partys officials of their posts and banning many lawmakers from politics for five years. The dissolution of the CNRP and the arrest of its president, Kem Sokha, as well as a months-long crackdown on NGOs and the independent media, are measures widely seen as part of a bid by Prime Minister Hun Sen to ensure that his ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) stays in power in Cambodia following the July 29 general election. The CNRP has called on Cambodians to boycott the ballot in protest over its dissolution, but the government has responded with the unsupported claim that doing so is in direct violation of the countrys electoral laws and will be dealt with in court. On Monday, Ven Porn, the head of the election committee in Battambang province, told Reuters news agency that a CPP official had lodged a complaint against some 30 CNRP members. We will investigate, he said. Chea Chiv, the former head of the CNRP in Battambang province, who was named in the complaint, told the media on Monday that boycotting the vote is not illegal, and that he would not cast a ballot for a party he does not like. Hang Puthea, the spokesman for Cambodias National Election Committee (NEC)the countrys top electoral bodytold Agence France-Presse that local election officials in Battambang had received five complaints over the boycott campaign, and confirmed that the accused could face up to U.S. $5,000 in fines if found guilty following an investigation. A day earlier, Minister of the Interior Sar Kheng said during a campaign event in Battambang that the authorities would fine anyone who posts a picture of themselves online supporting a boycott with a clean fingerreferencing the India ink voters dip their index finger into to show they have cast their ballotbetween U.S. $1,250 and $5,000. The more they do it, the more we will fine them, he said, although he acknowledged that the law does not allow for their arrest. Vague terms Observers said Monday that the government sought to take advantage of vague terms in the electoral law to punish those who abstain from voting on Sunday. To vote, as stated in the constitution is a right, not an obligationtherefore it is not illegal if a Cambodian does not cast his or her vote, or tells others not to vote, lawyer Choung Choungy told RFAs Khmer Service. Based on the principle of nullum crimen sine lege (no crime without law), there is no such crime as preventing people from exercising their right to vote simply by calling on others not to vote. On the other hand, he said, it is illegal to threaten people with legal consequences if they refuse to vote. Lawyer Pheng Heng told RFA that merely appealing to others not to vote is not equivalent to preventing them from casting their ballot. It is their right to say so, because they are not [physically] preventing people from going to vote, he said. It is simply an expression of opinion, as long as they dont hold people back from walking to the voting booth. Political analyst Lao Mong Hay told RFA that statements such as the one made by Sar Kheng over the weekend constitute an abuse of power. A threat of fine or punishment, when there is no law to justify it, is an abuse of power when committed by a civil servant, he said. To stop such acts, the people should exercise their rights and challenge the authorities. Social media users also took umbrage at official threats over the clean finger campaign. Touch Samnang, a Facebook user in Stung Treng province who has posted clean finger photos online, questioned why the ruling party was acting paranoid about the campaign. Why are they so afraid of a finger? he asked. They have dissolved our party, so we have nothing left but our right to an opinion. We are not happy about the election and we want to show that we do not support it without the opposition We are not preventing others from voting and we are not inciting anyone. Kong Raiya, a student activist who served 18 months in prison for incitement after he called on Cambodians to mount a color revolution in a social media post, and who has also posted photos of himself displaying a clean finger, also dismissed Sar Khengs warning. The authorities are abusing the lawits too extreme to fine people for just posting a picture showing their index finger as a way to express their rights and opinions, he said. Concerns rejected Reports of the investigation into the boycott complaints came as Cambodias Ministry of Foreign Affairs lashed out at the United Nations Special Rapporteur to Cambodia Rhona Smith after she expressed concerns over reports of voter intimidation in the lead up to the election. In a statement posted to the Facebook page of the U.Ns Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Cambodia last week, Smith had highlighted reports of government representatives stating that abstaining from voting was illegal and that fines would be imposed on people messaging about a boycott of the vote. She also pointed to reports that local authorities have threatened to withhold public services from those who do not vote for the ruling party. On Monday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs slammed Smiths remarks, saying in a statement that they merit several questions due to their substantive bias and prejudice in the context of electoral sensitivity, and suggesting she is supportive of the CNRPs efforts to sabotage a democratic contest by encouraging a boycott. The ministry suggested that Smith had lost sight of the dangerous populism of the CNRP, which it said had called for military rebellion against the government, instigated anti-China sentiment, incited racial hatred and xenophobia, and provoked ultra-nationalism jeopardizing peaceful relations with Cambodias neighbors. It lamented that the Special Rapporteur had never publicly denounced the CNRP for its undemocratic conducts, adding that fair and objective observation of the electoral process should underline the nature of an unhealthy opposition which aims to disrupt the hard-earned peace, political stability and development in Cambodia. The ministry ended its statement by saying that Cambodias citizens are guaranteed the right to all public services under the countrys constitution, regardless of political affiliation and social status. Even with a ban in place against the CNRP, the CPP has aggressively courted votesincluding outside of the official campaign periodand deployed senior members of the security forces to publicly endorse Hun Sen, New York-based Human Rights Watch said recently, in what is seen as an intimidation tactic and a violation of Cambodias electoral laws. The U.S. and European Union have already withdrawn donor support for Cambodias elections, citing government actions seen as limiting democracy in the country. Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sok Ry Sum and Nareth Muong. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Chinese authorities in the northern region of Inner Mongolia are holding a prominent ethnic Mongolian historian who gathered testimony of a historical genocide campaign by the ruling Chinese Communist Party under house arrest pending his prosecution on charges of separatism. Historian and author Lhamjab A. Borjigin, 74, was initially detained on under residential surveillance by police in Shiliinhot city, the regional capital of Shiliingol League in the region's northwest, a U.S.-based rights group reported. Lhamjab, the author of a book on China's Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), was informed on that the state is preparing to prosecute him for "separatism" and "sabotaging national unity," the New York-based Southern Mongolia Human Rights & Information Center (SMHRIC) said in a statement on its website. A native of Heshigten Banner, a county-like division in Inner Mongolia, and a member of the state-backed Shiliingol League Literary Association, Lhamjab has been a prominent voice in ethnic Mongolian culture in China, as well as documenting the region's oral history. He specializes in survivor testimonies of the political violence and social chaos of the Cultural Revolution, publishing his book China's Cultural Revolution in 2006. "The police told me that the charges were ethnic separatist activities," Lhamjab told RFA on . "They said it was to do with my book about the Cultural Revolution." Lhamjab said his book had done nothing but reflect the reality for ethnic Mongolians during the Cultural Revolution. "I told them that this was the truth about the Cultural Revolution, and he told me that we're not allowed to talk about it," he said. "I told him I was seeking truth from facts, and where was the crime in that?" "What is there to plead guilty to?" he said. Genocide campaign alleged The book documents a "state-sponsored ... genocide campaign" waged by the Chinese Communist Party in the region during the period, according to SMHRIC. "In the book, Lhamjab documents detailed accounts of torture techniques and the gruesome nature of this genocide campaign that ... claimed the lives of at least 27,900 and imprisoned and tortured 346,000," it said. Lhamjab's book was rejected by major state-run Chinese publishing houses, and was eventually published by an underground press at Lhamjab's own expense. It has been widely read among ethnic Mongolians in China, and also in the neighboring independent state of Mongolia. An abridged audio version of the book began to be widely circulated via the social media platform WeChat last year, SMHRIC said. In an earlier statement to SMHRIC, Lhamjab said he had refused to speak Chinese with the police officers who paid him a visit. "I refused to speak in Chinese and demanded they speak in Mongolian, as it was my home and Mongolian is an official language of the [Inner Mongolia] Autonomous Region. One of them started speaking in Mongolian, Lhamjab said. When the police took out a document purportedly signed by the Communist Party chief of the Inner Mongolia region, Lhamjab threw it on the floor. 'Sabotaging national unity' "I told them, 'You Chinese killed us Mongolians by tens of thousands and have no remorse, but are now accusing me of sabotaging national unity for what I have said about what you have done,'" he said. "If anyone sabotaged national unity, then it's you Chinese who have done so by carrying out massacres and silencing us," he said. "I refused to sign the paper and told them that I was ready to die in their prison. You dont need any excuse to kill me as you didnt need any when killing tens of thousands of us in the past," he said. However, he called for help finding a lawyer who might be willing to defend him. "We Mongolians do not have any basic human rights or fundamental freedoms, let alone political autonomy," he said. Ethnic Mongolians, who make up almost 20 percent of Inner Mongolia's population of 23 million, increasingly complain of widespread environmental destruction and unfair development policies in the region. Clashes between Chinese state-backed mining or forestry companies and herding communities are common in the region, which borders the independent country of Mongolia. But those who complain about the loss of their grazing lands are frequently targeted for harassment, beatings, and detention by the authorities. Reported by Lau Siu-fung for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. Vandals attacked a statue of Burmese independence hero General Aung San late Sunday night in Kachin states capital Myitkyina, covering its face with green paint in a display of opposition to the honoring in ethnic minority areas of the man who freed Myanmar from British colonial rule 70 years ago. Plans to erect statues of the general, father of state counselor and de facto national leader Aung San Suu Kyi, have sparked opposition by local activists who revere their own war heroes and see the moves as a bid by the current civilian government to "Burmanize or assimilate them. Speaking on Monday to RFAs Burmese Service, Kachin state police chief Col. Myo Thura Naung said the vandalism was discovered Monday morning. We got to know about it only this morning, the police colonel said. We went there and saw that the side of the statue facing its protective fence had been vandalized with green paint, he said. It seems that they had to break the fence to get close to it. No one has been arrested yet for the crime, he said, adding, We are conducting an investigation. Meanwhile, plans to build a 15-foot-tall equestrian statue of Aung San in Myanmars Kayah state will continue despite protests earlier this month by local groups opposed to the project, Kayah state chief minister Paung Sho told reporters in a press conference Monday morning. Construction of the statue, expected to cost about 80 million kyats (U.S. $55,288), will be funded by individual contributions and by surplus from the state budget, he said, adding that a committee overseeing the project has been disbanded and a new committee formed by local residents and civil society organizations will now supervise the work. National League for Democracy (NLD) party chief and state counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, Aung Sans daughter, has revived in a 21st Century Panglong Conference negotiations with Myanmars ethnic groups begun by her father before his assassination on July 19, 1947. Myanmar, a former British colony long known as Burma, has 135 officially recognized ethnic groups. Some ethnic armed groups have been waging war for decades with Myanmar forces in their quest for a democratic federal union in the country with a constitutional guarantee for a certain degree of autonomy for ethnic minorities. Reported by Thiri Min Zin and Kyaw Myo Min for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Richard Finney. The United Nations Human Rights Council should press Vietnam to release all political prisoners and ensure the basic civil and political liberties of its citizens based on a pledge it made at the world bodys last review of its rights record, New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Monday. Vietnam has done little to honor its pledge in accepting 182 out of 227 recommendations from U.N. member states during its 2014 Universal Periodic Review (UPR), and in some cases has made the situation worse, HRW said in a submission to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) ahead of the countrys upcoming review, scheduled for January next year. Vietnam seems to be contending for the title of one of Asias most repressive governments, Phil Robertson, HRWs deputy Asia director, said in a statement accompanying the submission. The Communist Party-controlled government systematically crushes any challenges to its actions and punishes any person or group it deems a threat to its absolute monopoly on power. HRW said that authorities in Vietnam regularly use loosely interpreted provisions of the countrys penal code and other laws to jail political and religious activists, noting that in the first seven months of 2018, the government convicted and imprisoned at least 27 rights campaigners. Among the most high-profile cases of activists jailed in recent years is that of prominent blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, also known as Mother Mushroom, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison in June 2017 on charges of spreading propaganda against the state under Article 88 of the penal code, after she had blogged about human rights abuses and official corruption for more than a decade. HRW, which has joined several rights groups in calling for Quynhs release, noted in its statement that the blogger is currently carrying out a hunger strike in protest of abuses by prison staff against her. In particular, the rights group highlighted Vietnams acceptance of recommendations to amend provisions related to national security in its penal code to comply with international law, but noted that its legislature instead passed a revised penal code in June last year that extends even wider liability to rights bloggers and activists and those who assist them. Instead of repealing or reforming its many abusive laws in line with U.N. recommendations, Vietnam did the opposite by revising them to apply more broadly, Robertson said. Hanois leaders are snubbing the U.N. review process, and its time member countries took them task for it. HRW also noted that Vietnam passed an overly broad and vague cyber security law last month that severely restricts freedom of expression online, and that the rights to freedom of assembly and association have also been under attack in the country, despite having agreed to recommendations on how to ensure those liberties at the 2014 UPR. In its submission to the UPR, HRW provided several recommendations for Vietnam to improve its rights record, including that authorities immediately release all political prisoners, remove restrictions on internet usage, revise last months law on cyber security to bring it into compliance with international rights standards, and end the harassment of followers of disfavored religions. The group also called for the establishment of an independent police complaints commission to investigate public grievances and provide oversight over the internal affairs of the authorities. Vietnam has a long history of trampling on rights while making weak excuses that it is upholding the rule of law, Robertson said. Countries at the U.N. Human Rights Council have the evidence before them and should press Vietnam to end its systemic rights abuses. Protesters jailed HRWs submission came as a court in Vietnam jailed 10 people for between two to three-and-a-half years for their part in rare, large-scale protests over government plans to grant long-term leases to foreign companies operating in special economic zones (SEZs), according to state media reports. The 10 were detained along with other protesters on June 10 in Ho Chi Minh City after attending what began the day before as a peaceful demonstration over the concession proposal, which had stirred public fears that the leases would go to Chinese-owned firms. The official Voice of Vietnam Radio cited an indictment from the Binh Thuan provincial Peoples Court, saying it had convicted the 10 on charges of disturbing public order after they were seen throwing bricks and rocks at security officers, damaging state vehicles, and causing traffic jams during the protest. Last week, a court in Vietnam ordered the deportation of 32-year-old U.S. national William Nguyen after finding him guilty of the same charges for his part in the protest. In tweets posted from the rallies, Nguyen had described clashes between citizens and the police, but state media said the American graduate student had also urged protesters to overrun police barricades as they marched toward the city center. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had traveled to Vietnam earlier this month and urged government officials to find a quick resolution to Nguyens case. After demonstrations against the land concession proposal spread to several cities throughout Vietnam in June, authorities arrested dozens of protesters and have since sentenced six people to up to two-and-a-half years in prison. The government eventually tabled the proposal, pending further research. Rights group Amnesty International estimates that at least 97 prisoners of conscience are currently held in Vietnams prisons, where many are subjected to torture or other ill-treatment. Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. The British government will not block the potential use of the death penalty in the case of two captured fighters of the extremist group Islamic State (IS) who could face trial in the United States, news reports say. Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh are suspected of being the final two members of a IS foursome labelled "The Beatles" due to their British accents. The two men, who were captured by Syrian Kurdish fighters in January, were reportedly wanted for allegedly imprisoning, torturing and killing hostages. They were captured by Syrian Kurdish fighters in January. Britain, which opposes the death penalty, has been in discussions with the United States about how and where the pair should face justice. In a letter to the U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions that was seen by the Daily Telegraph, British Home Secretary Sajid Javid said London will not seek "assurances" that the pair will not be executed. "I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought," Javid wrote last month, according to a transcript of the letter published by the newspaper on July 23. Amnesty International said the case "seriously jeopardizes the UK's position as a strong advocate for the abolition of the death penalty." "At a time when the rest of the world is moving increasingly to abolition, this reported letter...marks a huge backward step," Amnesty International UKs head of advocacy Allan Hogarth said. A Home Office spokesman said the government would not comment on leaked documents. Mohammed Emwazi, known as "Jihadi John" became the most notorious of the four after appearing in videos showing the murder of Western and Japanese journalists and aid workers. He is believed to have been killed in a U.S.-British missile strike in 2015. Based on reporting by the Daily Telegraph, dpa, Reuters and AP U.S.-born British investor and rights activist William Browder has said that he fears being extradited to Russia and killed in prison at the orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Browder spoke via Skype with Current Time TV's Anastasia Gorelova a week after he said Putin was seeking access to him in exchange for giving U.S. prosecutors the chance to question 12 Russian intelligence agents. Browder has advocated laws that authorize sanctions against human rights abusers in Russia, and was convicted in absentia in Russia on financial charges that he says are politically motivated. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the religious leaders of Iran "hypocritical holy men" who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer. In a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California on July 22, Pompeo criticized Iran's political, judicial and military leaders, accusing several of widespread corruption. Residents of Iran's capital, Tehran, had mix reactions on July 23 to an exchange of threats from Iranian President Hassan Rohani and U.S. President Donald Trump. Rohani was quoted by Iranian government news agency IRNA as telling a meeting of diplomats: "America should know peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Later, Trump tweeted: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! KYIV -- Elated Ukrainians greeted boxer Oleksandr Usyk at the airport in Kyiv as he returned home after defeating Russias Murat Gassiev in Moscow to unify the cruiserweight divisions four titles. A choir sang a Ukrainian folk song and the crowd chanted, "Glory to Ukraine!" when Usyk appeared in the arrivals section of Boryspil airport. Usyk expressed his gratitude to all who came to greet him and said he had devoted his victory "to our Fathers." Asked about his future plans, Usyk said that he hopes to rest for a while. "I haven't seen my children for a month and a half. I'm dreaming about taking a shower and just...having a rest," Usyk said. Despite facing an away crowd in Moscow amid political tension on July 21, Usyk controlled the fight with his jab to add Gassiev's WBA and IBF titles to his own WBC and WBO belts. Usyk, a former Olympic gold medalist, holds all four major titles after just 15 professional fights, all of which he won. Usyk was born in Crimea. He has said he was forced to leave the peninsula after Russia seized it from Ukraine in 2014. Russia has also aided separatists in eastern Ukraine in a war that has killed more than 10,300 people since 2014. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Iran's leaders resemble "the mafia more than a government." "The level of corruption and wealth among regime leaders shows that Iran is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government, Pompeo said during a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum. Pompeo lambasted the Iranian regime and emphasized U.S. support for Iranian citizens, particularly those opposed to the government. "The specific grievances differ. But all those voicing dissatisfaction share one thing: they have been ill-treated by a Revolutionary regime. Iranians want to be governed with dignity, accountability and consent," the Hill cited the secretary of state as saying. He described the U.S.'s current strategy toward Iran a "pressure campaign" to get the Iranian government to pull back from aggressive behavior. "We are asking all nations who are sick and tired of the Islamic Republics destructive behavior to join our pressure campaign," Pompeo said. Pompeo further lambasted Iranian religious leaders as "hypocritical holy men" who amass wealth through corruption and exploitation of Iran's people. "Iran's leaders have enriched themselves from corruption," US secretary of state stressed. BISHKEK -- Kyrgyzstan's interior minister has taken over from local officials an investigation into the apparent drowning of an award-winning investigative journalist from RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service who died on July 22 on holiday with his family at Lake Issyk-Kul. The regional Internal Affairs Department had ruled out foul play during the initial phase of its investigation and said Ulanbek Egizbaev's death at the Akun resort beach near the town of Cholpon Ata was "accidental." According to RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service, Egizbaev had recently received threats via telephone and mail in connection with his reports about corruption. That prompted speculation on social media that the 28-year-old reporter may have been targeted by an attack. Issyk-Kul's regional Internal Affairs Department quickly rejected "murder" claims by "individuals on social media" as "false information." Interior Minister Kashkar Junushaliev has since taken control of the investigation. Initial results of an autopsy carried out on July 23 at the request of Egizbaev's family by the Bishkek Forensic Medical Examination Center listed the cause of his death as "drowning." But final autopsy results, including a toxicology report, are expected to take about a month. Presidential Condolences Expressing condolences to Egizbaev's relatives and his colleagues at RFE/RL, President Sooronbai Jeenbekov on July 23 praised Egizbaev's investigative reports on corrupt government officials -- saying Kyrgyzstan "has lost a talented journalist who selflessly fought against the ills of our society." "The name of Ulanbek Egizbaev will live on in the history of Kyrgyz journalism, and his active civic position and high professionalism will serve as an example for the younger generations," Jeenbekov said. Jeenbekov said Egizbaev's work "raised acute issues within our society" and "contributed to our fight against corruption." If Egizbaev had not died, the Kyrgyz president said, "his characteristic ability would have exposed many more corrupt officials and their dubious deeds." Interior Minister Junushaliev has formed an investigative commission comprising criminologists, medical experts, a representative of RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service, and one of Egizbaev's relatives. Prime Minister Mukhammedkalyi Abylgaziev told his cabinet during a July 23 meeting that clear and transparent results from the investigation must be presented to Kyrgyzstan's public to prevent further speculation about his death. Witnesses say two children who were selling snacks to vacationers on the north shore of Lake Issyk-Kul first noticed Egizbaev struggling to swim near a dock. However, they said, there was no lifeguard on duty at the beach at the time. "Two people who were on holiday rushed into the water to rescue him and pulled him from the water unconscious," witness and Kyrgyz National Television journalist Adilet Chubakov told RFE/RL. "They tried to resuscitate him, but they couldn't revive him." Chubakov, who posted a video of the scene to his Facebook page, said it took a lifeguard and nurse employed by the Akun resort about 15 minutes to arrive after Egizbaev had been pulled from the water. According to Chubakov, the nurse said Egizbaev showed signs of breathing when she arrived. But the nurse and lifeguard also were unable to resuscitate him. Chubakov said it took emergency medical workers from a nearby hospital another quarter of an hour to arrive in an ambulance. Egizbaev was pronounced dead on arrival at the regional hospital in Cholpon Ata. Exposing Corruption Egizbaev's investigative reporting exposed illegal land sales involving public officials within exclusive neighbors of Kyrgyzstan's capital. He also exposed the illegal sale of burial plots at Bishkek's cemeteries, where graves are supposed to be free. Those reports included allegations that cemetery plots were being sold for the equivalent of hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars -- depending on whether the buyer was a Muslim, a Christian, a foreigner, or a member of the minority Romany community. In February, an RFE/RL report by Egizbaev documented a $100 million corruption scandal that caused a newly modernized thermal power plant in Bishkek to break down during the coldest spell of the winter -- leaving many residents of the capital without heat or electricity for three days. That article has fed criticism of the previous administration and allies of ex-President Almazbek Atambaev. In 2016, a feature video produced by Egizbaev won the prestigious Webby People's Voice Award given out by the New York-based International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS). The video told the story of a disabled teenager's daily trip to school in a wheelchair along a rugged path and his elation when a local NGO gave him a four-wheel all-terrain vehicle that he could operate himself to make the journey. Presented in Russian, English, and Kyrgyz, that video has been viewed more than 1 million times around the world. The Webby Awards have been described by The New York Times as "the Internet's highest honor." In June, Egizbaev received the Golden Pen award from Kyrgyzstan's Independent Union of Journalists. Written by Ron Synovitz in Prague with reporting by RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service in Bishkek Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on July 23 to discuss the Iranian presence in Syria. Netanyahu announced earlier that Russian President Vladimir Putin had requested the meeting. The Russian delegation included the chief of the military's General Staff, General Valery Gerasimov. Netanyahu said ahead of the meeting that they would discuss regional developments with "the situation in Syria being first and foremost." During the meeting with Lavrov, Netanyahu turned down a Russian offer to keep Iranian forces 100 kilometers from the border, an Israeli official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. The official said that Netanyahu told Lavrov, "We will not allow the Iranians to establish themselves even 100 kilometrs from the border." The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued after the meeting, that during the talks "the parties tackled various aspects of the Middle Eastern agenda, attaching primary significance to the situation in Syria and its vicinity." Israel wants to keep Iran, which is fighting alongside Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's troops, as far away from its border as possible. Russia, a key Assad ally, has warned that it would be unrealistic to expect Iran to fully withdraw from the country. Netanyahu and Putin discussed Syria and Iran in Moscow two weeks ago. Hours before Netanyahu's meeting with Lavrov, Israel activated a missile-defense system, which it could use against rockets from the fighting in Syria Based on reporting on Reuters, AP, and Interfax With the 50th anniversary of the Warsaw Pact invasion to rein in then-Czechoslovakia quickly approaching, one of the Kremlin's boldest advocacy groups has set up a military-style "camp" outside the capital of NATO member Slovakia. The Night Wolves motorcycle club, whose members were at the vanguard of Russia's occupation of Crimea and nicknamed "Putin's Angels" by the media, has taken residence at a former military base in Dolna Krupa, about 60 kilometers northeast of Bratislava. The move by the club, known for promoting Russian nationalism, hatred of gays and feminists, and allegiance to the Kremlin, appears aimed at revealing a dark, anti-Western side of the European Union member, which has sizable far-right and Russophile elements. The group, which has been hit with sanctions from the West over its support for pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine, was established in Slovakia last month. "They've come to irritate democrats and recruit people who are capable of shooting at Ukraine," Slovak oppositionist and communist-era Charter 77 signatory Jan Budaj told journalists. "They're bringing a message aimed at disrupting the EU and dissolving NATO." With an imposing 2-meter-high black wall topped with barbed wire surrounding the facility, few know what goes on inside. But what is known via drone photos is that it houses tanks, armored vehicles, and police equipment. According to the newspaper Hospodarske Noviny, the local branch of the Night Wolves is headed by Jozef Hambalek, who the newspaper says owns the property and is close to former Interior Minister Robert Kalinak. Neither has commented publicly on the base. Hambalek is said to want to open a military museum in the complex. But the military equipment is said to be owned by the Defense Ministry, which has suspended Miloslav Capalovic, the head of the Military History Institute, for allowing equipment to be rented by Hambalek. "It is obvious that the head of the Military History Institute, Miloslav Caplovic, failed to thoroughly check on the background of this civic association, and thus, he exceeded his competences," according to Defense Ministry spokeswoman Danka Capakova. 'Beyond The Limits' Police say they have been monitoring the group's activities but that so far they've seen nothing illegal. The Foreign Ministry has expressed concern, saying "the activities of group members need to be carefully monitored and evaluated." But Jaroslav Nagy, director of the Slovak Institute for Security Policy, warned against an overly lax approach to the matter. "This is beyond the limits of the permissible.... Their actions are always seen as unequivocal propaganda actions," he said in an interview with RFE/RL's Russian Service. The Night Wolves' leader, Aleksandr Zaldostanov, has frequently appeared in public with Putin, and is known for his fiercely nationalistic statements. He has led the group on a series of provocative rides before -- including a Victory Day trip to Berlin and a candlelighting at Katyn, where Josef Stalin is said to have ordered the execution of tens of thousands of Polish officers during World War II. More recently, though without Zaldostanov, nearly two dozen Night Wolves took part in what they called a "Russian Balkans" tour in March. Earlier that month, Bosnia-Herzegovina's authorities had banned Zaldostanov, who calls himself "The Surgeon," from entering the country as he was deemed a potential threat to Bosnia's national security. Bosnia officials alleged the tour was aimed at intimidating non-Serbs in the divided country, where a 1992-95 ethnic war killed more than 100,000 people. The tour also coincided with what Western intelligence officials say has been an increase in efforts by Moscow to expand its influence in the Balkans. 'Paramilitary Bomber Unit' In Slovakia, the Student Initiative group said it was so concerned over the situation that it has called a protest for July 27. "We urge all citizens to come along with us to express our disapproval of having such an object on our territory, and to show together that the security of our country is not stolen," said Timothy Lauko of the initiative, which uses the hashtag #niejenamtojedno -- roughly meaning "it matters to us" in Slovak. "The Night Wolves are known to be a paramilitary bomber unit directly supported by the Russian Kremlin. This motorcycle gang also echoes members who, along with the Prussian separatists, fight with our eastern neighbors in Ukraine," he added. Night Wolves members were among the spearheads of Russia's covert invasion and occupation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in 2014, according to officials in Kyiv. If many outsiders are worried about the current situation in Slovakia, it might be hard to say the same of nearby residents. "They recently celebrated something [and] they behaved decently," the Internet information website Topky.sk quoted one Slovak villager as saying. "Russian bikers also go here; there are no problems with them." A 74-year-old researcher at a Russian rocket and spacecraft design facility has reportedly been charged with treason for allegedly giving classified information to a NATO country. The Russian newspaper Kommersant reported on July 23 that Viktor Kudryavtsev of the Central Research Institute for Machine Building is accused of passing classified data on hypersonic technology to a representative of an unspecified alliance member. Citing unnamed sources, Kommersant reported that Kudryavtsev is being held at the Lefortovo jail in Moscow and has pleaded not guilty. A spokesman for Russian space agency Roskosmos, Vladimir Ustimenko, said on July 22 that Kudryavtsev had been arrested but did not give any details. A member of the Public Monitoring Commission NGO, Yevgeny Yenikeyev, said on July 22 that Kudryavtsev was placed in pretrial detention on high treason charge. The case is one of several in recent years in which Russian citizens have been accused of treason or disseminating classified or sensitive information. Based on reporting by Interfax, TASS, and Kommersant A lawyer who gave a Russian newspaper a video showing the brutal beating of a prison inmate has fled the country while seeking protection from state law enforcement authorities. The Public Verdict Foundation said on July 23 that Irina Biryukova, who is a lawyer with the NGO, left the country the day the video was published by the independent Novaya Gazeta last week. Biryukova has sent a letter to the head of the federal Investigative Committee, Aleksandr Bastrykin, urging the Russian authorities to provide security to provide for her safety and that of her family, Public Verdict said on Facebook. Amnesty International has also urged Russian authorities to "immediately protect" Biryukova. The 10-minute video, posted online by Novaya Gazeta on July 20, has shocked viewers inside and outside Russia and deepened concerns about allegations of torture in the country's jails, prisons, and police precincts. The video, which Public Verdict said was shot at Corrective Colony No. 1 in the Yaroslavl region, northeast of Moscow, shows a prisoner identified as Yevgeny Makarov lying on a desk without pants while two people in uniform forcibly hold his hands up behind his back. At least 10 other uniformed men methodically hit the man's legs and heels with rubber truncheons and fists, while he cries and begs them to stop beating him. "Irina Biryukova's brave decision to expose the appalling abuse within IK-1 penal colony is the latest example of her dedication to protecting others from torture and other ill-treatment. It is alarming that her act of courage has forced her to flee the country in fear," Marie Struthers, Amnesty Internationals Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, said in a July 23 statement. The Investigative Committee said on July 23 that all the officers who took part in the beating have been identified and six of them have been detained. Yaroslavl regional ombudsman Sergei Baburkin said on July 22 that 17 FSIN officers had been suspended over the video. Amnesty said in its statement that Biryukova and Makarov's protection "must be a priority for the Russian authorities" and called for "an independent and impartial" investigation into the threats against the lawyer and the allegations of torture against Makarov. Novaya Gazeta said that the video was shot in June 2017. Reports of systemic torture in the Yaroslavl facility, and in Russian prisons generally, have circulated for some time. In April 2017, Public Verdict said that Makarov and two other inmates at the Yaroslavl prison -- Ruslan Vakhapov, and Ivan Nepomnyashchikh -- had been tortured by guards there. Nepomnyashchikh, who was imprisoned following clashes at a protest on the eve of President Vladimir Putin's inauguration in 2012, served his 30-month term at the Yaroslavl prison. The European Court of Human Rights ordered Russia to thoroughly investigate the allegations, but a court in Yaroslavl ruled that investigations were not necessary, citing a purported lack of evidence. "We remain extremely concerned for the safety of Yevgeny Makarov and the thousands of others detained in Russian pre-trial detention centres, penal colonies and police stations where allegations of torture and other ill-treatment are rife and investigations are rare," Amnesty said in its July 23 statement. With reporting by Novaya Gazeta, TASS, and Interfax U.S. President Donald Trump says he "gave up nothing" at a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, suggesting he made no concessions or agreements that might be detrimental to U.S. interests. In a tweet on July 23, Trump also said he and Putin "got along very well, which is a good thing," and accused what he called the "Corrupt Media" of putting a negative spin on the summit. Putin and other Russian officials have said that Trump and Putin reached several agreements at the July 16 summit in Helsinki, their first full-fledged meeting since Trump took office on January 2017. U.S. officials have not described any substantial agreements and have given few details about talks at the summit, which included a one-on-one meeting with only interpreters present, leaving critics of Trump concerned that he may have made unwise deals. "When you hear the Fake News talking negatively about my meeting with President Putin, and all that I gave up, remember, I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries," Trump tweeted. Earlier on July 23, Trump posted a tweet that seemed to contradict a recent statement in which he said he accepted the intelligence community's conclusion that Russia interfered in the election he won. Trump wrote that his predecessor, Barack Obama, knew about allegations of Russian meddling before the November 2016 vote. "Why didn't he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, that's why," Trump wrote. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders later said that Trump was referring to the issue of whether his campaign colluded with Russia, not to the alleged Russian meddling itself. "Obviously the president is talking about the collusion with his campaign," Sanders said. "He's been very clear that there wasn't any. I think he's said it about 1,000 times." In December 2016, between Trump's election and his inauguration, Obama said that he had told Putin in September 2016 "cut it out" in a reference to cyberattacks targeting the U.S. electoral process. Obama said his administration sought to avoid politicizing the issue of Russian hacking from the White House due to concerns that such actions might be seen as a partisan attack. Trump has repeatedly cast doubt on the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies that released a report in January 2017 saying they concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered a hacking-and-propaganda campaign targeting the election. After he drew strong criticism from U.S. lawmakers and others after appearing to side with Putin on the issue at their summit on July 16, Trump said he accepts that the "intelligence community's conclusion that Russia's meddling in the 2016 election took place," However, he added: "It could be other people also. A lot of people out there," and Democrats in Congress dismissed the statement acknowledging Russia interfered in the election as political damage control. U.S. Justice Department Special Counsel Robert Mueller is investigating the alleged Russian meddling as well as any possible collusion by Trump's campaign. Trump denies there was any collusion and has described Mueller's probe as a "witch hunt" intended to detract from his election victory. Russia claims it did not interfere in the election. Three days before the Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki, U.S. authorities charged 12 Russian military intelligence officers whom they accuse of direct involvement in the election-meddling efforts. With reporting by AP and Politico U.S. President Donald Trump has warned Iranian President Hassan Rohani on Twitter to "never, ever" threaten the United States or he would face consequences few throughout history have ever suffered before. Trumps tweet late on July 22, mainly in capital letters, followed a speech in which Secretary of State Mike Pompeo excoriated Iran's leadership, and came hours after Rohani warned Trump against pursuing hostile policies against Tehran. "America should know peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars, the official Iranian government news agency IRNA quoted Rohani as saying at a July 22 gathering of Iranian diplomats. Trumps tweet said: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Mimicking Trump's tweet, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif replied, "UNIMPRESSED ... We've been around for millennia & seen fall of empires, incl our own, which lasted more than the life of some countries. BE CAUTIOUS! Iran's official government news agency IRNA said Trump was only "copying" Zarif, who had reportedly warned Western countries during the 2015 nuclear negotiations to "never threaten an Iranian." The commander of Irans Basij force, Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, dismissed Trumps tweet as psychological warfare." WATCH: Iranians Shake Off Trump Threat, Focus On Their Leaders He wouldnt dare take any action against Iran, Gheibparvar was quoted as saying by the semiofficial ISNA news agency. We will never give up our revolutionary principles and beliefs," he said, adding that the Iranian people and armed forces will stand up to enemies and will not yield. Iran's official government news agency IRNA said Trump was only "copying" Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who had reportedly warned Western countries during the 2015 nuclear negotiations to "never threaten an Iranian." The tweet came about two hours after after Pompeo blasted Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other Islamic religious leaders in the theocratic government as "hypocritical holy men." WATCH: Iranian President Warns Trump Not To 'Play With The Lions Tail' In a speech in California, Pompeo also assailed Rohani and Zarif, considered by many to be moderates in comparison with Khamenei and others in the ruling establishment. The truth is theyre merely polished front men for the ayatollahs international con artistry. Their nuclear deal didnt make them moderates. It made them wolves in sheeps clothing," he said. Pompeo also vowed that the United States would maintain and increase diplomatic, military, and financial pressure against what he labeled the "mafia" government of Iran. A correspondent with RFE/RL's Radio Farda who covered Pompeos speech said Iranian-Americans he interviewed warmly welcomed the remarks by the top U.S. diplomat and the focus on Irans human rights abuses. Pompeos speech at one point was interrupted by a woman screaming and shouting: President Trump imprisons children. The Trump-Pence regime is kidnapping children. The audience booed the woman, and the crowd began chanting, USA. USA. Pompeo reacted by saying: if there were only so much freedom of expression in Iran. Irans Foreign ministry criticized the speech as interference in its affairs. "Pompeo's speech was a clear interference in Iran's state matters...Such policies will unite Iranians who will overcome plots against their country," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said on July 23. Germany called for restraint in reaction to the warnings exchanged between Rohani and Trump. Foreign Ministry Christofer Burger told reporters in Berlin on July 23: "We support dialogue and talks, and we call on all sides to exercise restraint and rhetorical disarmament." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly called for a harder international stance on Iran, praised Trumps warning to Tehran. "I would like to praise the tough stand expressed yesterday by President Trump and Secretary of State Pompeo against the aggression of the Iranian regime," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting. "Over the years, this regime has been spoiled by the major powers and it is good to see that the U.S. is changing this unacceptable equation, he added. The U.S. administration is ratcheting up pressure on Tehran since Trump in May pulled the United States out of the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions against Iran. The deal with six world powers provided Iran with some relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear program. The others who signed the pact Britain, France, Germany, Russia, and China have vowed to remain in the deal. With reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Farda and Reuters U.S. officials traveled to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan from July 20 to July 23 to discuss economic and security cooperation with representatives from the five Central Asian republics. The U.S. State Department said in a July 23 statement that the meetings took place under the so-called C5+1 format which besides the United States groups Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The C5+1 is the primary regional diplomatic platform through which the United States and the five Central Asian countries cooperate in economic integration, environmental protection, and security. Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs Manisha Singh led the U.S. delegation to the Economic Connectivity Working Group on July 20, in the Kazakh city of Almaty, the statement said. Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Central Asia Henry Ensher led the U.S. delegation to the Environment Working Group, held also in Almaty, which presented the Central Asian Regional Electricity Market (CAREM) project to the C5+1. Ensher also led the U.S. delegation to the Security Working Group on July 23, in the Uzbek capital, Tashkent, during which participants discussed counterterrorism measures and border security cooperation in the region, as well as efforts to counter violent extremism. A court in Russia halted the trial of a 20-year-old Ukrainian man charged with abetting terrorism shortly after it got under way, sending the case back for additional investigation. Pavlo Hryb, who denies the charge and whose family contends he was set up by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), went on trial at the North Caucasus Regional Military Court in Rostov-on-Don on July 23. But the court said it found that the formal charge against Hryb was based on a clause of the Criminal Code that had not been in place at the time of the alleged crime. There was no indication that Hryb would be released from custody. Hryb pleaded not guilty after he hearing began, saying that "critical mistakes have been made during the investigation." Hryb went missing in August 2017 after he traveled to Belarus to meet a woman he met online. Relatives believe he walked into a trap set by the FSB, which later told Ukraine that Hryb was being held in a detention center in Russia on suspicion of abetting terrorism. Russian investigators accuse Hryb of using the Internet to instruct a teenage girl in Russia's southern city of Sochi to carry out a terrorist act using an explosive device. Hryb's father, Ihor Hryb, has argued that the case against his son was Russian retaliation for Internet posts that were openly critical of Russia's interference in Ukraine. Russia seized control of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in March 2014, after sending in troops and staging a referendum dismissed as illegal by at least 100 countries. Moscow backs separatists in a war against government forces that has killed more than 10,300 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has condemned what it called Russia's "persecution of Ukrainian citizens in Russia and elsewhere, groundless detentions of Ukrainians, violation of their rights to have fair trials, and their convictions on fabricated and politically motivated charges." With reporting by TASS, Rapsinews, and RIA Novosti The UN Security Council has unanimously condemned the use of violence by the Taliban and the Islamic State (IS) group to disrupt Afghanistan's elections. The Council, in a statement issued a day after 23 people were killed in a suicide bombing in Kabul on July 22, said it "condemns in the strongest terms those who resort to violence to obstruct the electoral process, including the Taliban and ISlL (Da'esh) affiliates," it said, referring to IS by its alternate and Arabic acronyms. It hailed the "exceptional courage displayed by the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces in their leading role in securing their country." The July 22 bombing near the Kabul International Airport was claimed by the IS group. It followed the return from exile of Afghan Vice President Abdul The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan says the first half of 2018 was the deadliest yet with 1,700 civilians killed. More than half of those victims were killed in attacks attributed to the IS. Some 8.9 million Afghans, including more than three million women, are registered to vote in parliamentary and local elections on October 20 and presidential elections in 2019. The Council statement highlighted "the importance of developing sustainable democratic institutions in Afghanistan based on inclusive, transparent and credible elections." It also noted "the need to promote the full and safe participation of women as well as members of minority groups, including ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, both as voters and candidates." Dostum, a powerful former warlord turned politician, narrowly escaped the attack as he returned home from Turkey. Officials said he had left the airport in a motorcade only minutes before the blast struck at the entrance of the airport, where hundreds of his supporters had gathered to welcome him. Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said the explosion was "caused by a suicide attacker on foot." Dostum returned to Kabul after more than a year in self-imposed exile in Turkey amid claims that he had ordered his men to abduct, beat, and rape a political rival last year. Dostum is a controversial figure who has been accused of serious human rights violations, including the deaths of hundreds of Taliban prisoners in 2001 in the custody of his militia forces. With reporting by RFE/RL's Afghan Service, AP, and AFP Shares of Russias aluminum producer Rusal on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange grew 14.3% as of 04:30 Moscow time today amid reports of negotiations between the company and the US authorities on the possible removal of sanctions, according to trading data. The maximum price was 2.43 Hong Kong dollars ($0.31) per share. As of 05:12 Moscow time the price fell to 2.30 Hong Kong dollars ($0.29), TASS reported. At the same time, the price grew 17.2% on the Moscow Stock Exchange (28 rubles per share). On April 6, the US authorities announced sanctions against a number of Russian officials, businesspeople and companies. Among them were Oleg Deripaska and associated companies Rusal, Basic Element holdings, En+ and Russian Machines, Eurosibenergo, GAZ Group, B-Finance investment company and the Kuban agricultural holding. Being added to the sanctions list means frozen assets in the US and ban on American citizens preventing them from doing any business with these companies. Initially, the US Department of Treasury gave the deadline of May 7 for American investors to get rid of shares and debt instruments of all sanctioned companies, and June 5 - for severing contracts with them. Later on, US investors were allowed to conduct transactions with Rusal until October 23, 2018. Taxi driver shot sitting in car in Cancun Hotel Zone Cancun, Q.R. A Cancun taxi driver was shot during the early morning hours of Sunday as he sat in his unit at a hotel parking lot. A taxi driver from the Andres Quintana Roo union was shot in the parking lot of the Iberostar Hotel located at Kilometer 17 of Boulevard Kukulkan in the Cancun Hotel Zone. According to the State Attorney Generals Office, the attack was recorded just before 1:00 a.m. when the taxi driver was inside his car. They say several shots were fired, hitting the 28-year-old driver. He was taken to the General Hospital in Cancun. His condition remains unknown. Police say they lifted three 9-millimeter casings from near the vehicle. The victim has been identified as 28-year-old J.J.G.A. Third director alleged responsible for school collapse that killed 26, arrested Mexico City, Mexico The man allegedly responsible for approving the illegal construction of an apartment complex above a school has been arrested after nearly a year on the run. State officials in Mexico City say that Juan Mario Velarde Gamez, the director responsible for the work of the Rebsamen School, was arrested by police in the state of Queretaro. The attorney generals office confirmed that Velarde Gamez was arrested after 19 children and seven adults were killed in a building collapse during the September 2017 earthquakes in Mexico City. The collapse occurred at the Enrique Rebsamen School in Tlalpan. They say that Velarde Gamez was arrested after a warrant was issued last year. He has been apprehended and sent to the South Male Preventative Prison, where he will remain until his trial. In November 2017, Judge Joel Garduno Venegas had two other directors arrested and imprisoned for similar charges. Juan Apolinar Torales and Juan Mario Velarde Gamez, who are accused of helping the owner Monica Garcia Villegas, are accused of illegally building an apartment on the top of the school. As a result of the illegal building, 19 students, 13 of whom were minors, and seven adults died after the apartment caused the school to collapse. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak held a meeting with Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh in Moscow today and discussed energy cooperation between the two countries and through OPEC, Russia's Energy Ministry said in a statement. The two ministers also discussed the possibility of Russian oil companies taking part in projects in Iran, Reuters reported, citing the ministry as saying. Irene Hartley (centre) retiring as chair of governors at Wath Comprehensive School THE end of term is also the end of 32 years as the chair of governors at a school for Irene Hartley. The 76-year-old is stepping down from the role at Wath Comprehensive School and was given a special presentation to mark her work. Irene, of Golden Smithies Lane in Wath, has been a governor at the school for 35 years working with five different head teachers. She said she was proud of what had been achieved over the years, including the development of a new school building. Irene, who was awarded the MBE in the Queens 2010 Birthday Honours for services to the community of South Yorkshire, said: I have been proud and privileged to have led Wath Comprehensive as their chair of governors over such a long period. The students are an asset to the school, as are all those employed there. I have been involved in five headship appointments over the years. The late John Brothwell was headteacher when I was first appointed. I have also been involved in many of the senior leadership appointments and staff appointments over the years. I have worked with many governor colleagues over the years and I cannot speak too highly of the governors that are and have been involved with the school. They are second to none and always have the welfare of the school and its students at heart, as I have always done. You cant say when you have been involved in a thriving school over so many years, that you are not going to miss it. I will miss it, but I will always feel a part of it and continue my support. The governors presented Irene with two John Rudkin watercolours at their summer meeting one of Wentworth Woodhouse and one of The Round House, Wentworth. There was a school staff and governor presentation where Irene was presented with two engraved champagne crystal and diamante flutes and a crystal and diamante vase. Irene has actually been a local authority school governor for four decades as she served at Wath Park Road Infant School and Wath Victoria Junior and Infants School. As chair of governors, she saw the building of the new Wath Comprehensive which opened in 2005, something she called a great achievement. She added: Yes, we were sad to see the old building go but, when students were being taught in outdated mobile classrooms with leaking roofs, the welfare of those students came first and we wanted to allow them access to the facilities a new-build could offer. Within the framework of the Qatar-Russia 2018 Year of Culture, the World Diamond Museum hosts an exhibition of the Qatar Museums at the State Historical Museum in Moscow "Pearls: Treasures of the Seas and the Rivers," that opened on 11 July 2018. Alex Popov is a founder and the Chairman of the World Diamond Museum. He spoke to Rough & Polished about this event. With the advent of cultured pearls at the start of last century, natural pearls were virtually edged out from the market. Cultured pearls are divided into two main categories the sea and the river pearls. What is the difference between natural, cultured sea and cultured river pearls, including prices? The picture is not as simple as it may seem. These days, natural pearls are a rarity in the market. This is first of all due to overfishing. As a result, in the areas where natural pearls were harvested for centuries, there has been a sharp drop in stocks that the sea would provide. This is most often the result of the reckless exploitation of the seas and of the ensuing, sharp drop in the population of shellfish that produce those natural pearls. Rarity always drives up the prices but even the mollusks that still produce natural pearls do not produce the quality of earlier days. On the other hand, one should realize that, even while the global production of cultured pearls has been impressive, the cost of the higher qualities is quite high. For example, if you want to buy a high quality string of good-sized cultured pearls, its price may come up to six figures. On the other end of the scale, small, low-quality Chinese sweet water baroque pearls will sell for a few dollars a string as they are produced by the tons. The first technological breakthrough in the production of cultured pearls was made in Japan by the entrepreneur Kokichi Mikimoto, who established the first cultured pearl farms in the coastal waters of Japan. The second technological breakthrough came a few decades ago, with the advent of sweat-water pearls, which are much easier to grow and therefore significantly cheaper than their sea counter parts and as said earlier, are produced by the tons. At the same time, natural or wild pearls, in terms of price are now almost invariably auction items. Asking about their price is like asking what the current price for paintings by Rembrandt is this price can only be determined at auction. Tiara of Archduchess Marie Valerie. Made with large pearls from the Pacific Oceans pearl oysters for Archduchess Marie Valerie (1868 -1924), the daughter of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, known as Sissi, spouse of Franz Joseph I of Austria. Vienna, Austria, 1913, Gold, silver, diamonds and pearls. Image credit: Qatar Museums. Why not then revive the fishing for natural wild pearls given such high prices? It could be a good business, couldnt it? I have not heard of attempts to revive such pearl fishing, but I've heard of attempts to start cultivating pearls in the Persian Gulf using the Japanese technology. Although, it seems to me that there are people who think about it, in particular in Qatar. Lets move over to diamonds. Lab-grown diamonds are gaining a competitive edge on diamonds and demanding a growing market share. What are the latest developments and how will they influence the diamond industry and trade overall? When De Beers rolled out its Lightbox initiative, I saw two things. First, that de Beers is forward thinking, as they seek to preserve their companys interests for the next decades. Secondly, that with their five-year plan, they seek to consolidate their assets to maintain their global dominance in the diamond market. Let me embroider upon this further. It's no secret that 60 percent of ALROSA's products are the so-called "Indian goods." These are small stones that until the middle of the past century were not even seen fit for the gem diamond manufacturing business and were relegated to the industrial diamond category. But with the rise of India' diamond manufacturing industry, the Indians started to cut and polish these rough diamonds and earned good money with them. However, the polished diamonds produced from these rough stones mostly were and still are stones of an undefined and low colors, containing various inclusions and trading at about $100 a carat in the market. The American market, the most important market for the diamond industry, is currently going through transformation. And these small natural stones of low colors and with inclusions are being replaced by lab-grown diamonds of good quality, also trading around $100 a carat. So why buy nondescript natural stones in such a price category, when you can buy lab-grown stones with much better characteristics? Put yourself in the shoes of a modestly living woman who wants to buy a ring, and she does not have much money, she has only a thousand dollars. If lab-grown diamonds will replace natural diamonds in this category in the market, the development of many diamond deposits which basically produce such goods will become loss-making. And for the Indians it will be all same what to manufacture they will switch to cutting and polishing synthetics. A seven strings Gulf pearl necklace made in Qatar by the leader of pearls of the country: Husain ALFARDAN. The necklace is made with perfectly matching pearls. It takes years and thousands of pearls to succeed into such a creation. Private collection. Image credit: Qatar Museums. Add to that that the cost of growing a half-carat diamond in the lab is today about one hundred dollars. That is, selling it for five hundred, you will get a very high profit. It is a very good, a wonderful business model! People dream of such a model. And even if the profit falls by 50 percent, it is still a good profit, because production costs are covered by sales within a year and a half or two, given the right quantities of goods produced. Therefore, when De Beers invests $90 million in a factory in Oregon, it will work very well for them. They know that they will get free machinery within two, maximum three years, fully returning the investment. Once again, they have become monopolists, because almost no one has the money to invest in so many machines. In other words, the other, smaller, existing and competing players in this market niche, those that have from two to ten machines, are virtually doomed. They will never be able to compete in terms of price. De Beers simply came and removed everyone from the market. After the announcement of Lightbox at the JCK show in Las Vegas in past June, prices for lab-grown diamonds dropped some 20 percent- for small stones. Reportedly, prices for larger stones are not yet affected. Well, let's say that De Beers will be able to divide the diamond market into synthetic and natural markets. But if there will be no new large diamond fields discovered, what will happen in 50 years? Then the owners of large natural diamonds will be living in a paradise as their stones will rise in price perhaps three times. By taking this step, De Beers kills three birds with one stone. First, the company earns enormous money for its shareholders. Secondly, it eliminates all the competition in the synthetic diamond market, becoming a monopolist in this field. And, thirdly, it puts in disadvantage all those who mine small diamonds, including ALROSA. It should be noted that the output of large stones without inclusions in Namibia, Botswana and Angola is higher, so the first victim in this situation will be ALROSA. And what if, as a result of all these transformations in the market, ALROSA's clients will refuse to buy small stones and start buying only stones weighing half a carat or more? The company will then raise prices. And De Beers will immediately follow the suit. Old pearl fishing boats are floating around the spectacular Museum of Islamic Art in Doha. The boat where used to dive for pearls, and the last dive was in the years 1970s. Image credit: Qatar Museums. Let us now turn back to this remarkable exhibition of pearls organized by the World Diamond Museum. In your opinion, which of the exhibits deserve special attention of its visitors? First of all, I would like the visitors of this exhibition to understand the most important thing that natural pearls are about. Those are beautiful and most famous pieces, including a necklace from the private collection of Hussain Alfardan, the most prominent pearl trader of Qatar; jewelry pieces made by Cartier; Elizabeth Taylors pearl earrings from Bulgari; a brooch designed by Salvador Dali; and old jewels of the royal houses of Europe, including the magnificent tiara of Archduchess Marie Valerie of Austria and others. And this most important thing is labor intensiveness of their harvesting. The rarity and exclusivity of these pearls is unmatched. Think of the labor that was required. Try to imagine how many divers have gone into the depths, how many times they had to dive into the waters and how many mollusks they needed to bring to the surface and open them to make it possible to put together the seven-string pearl necklace from the collection of Hussein Alfardan. This takes years and the work of hundreds of divers who risked their lives. This is incredible work. I know people who, having inherited pearl jewelry, put it up for auction and suddenly got a lot of money, which certainly was a pleasant surprise for them. This is the nature of the natural pearl market. In another fifty years, well have a different scale of valuation, and all those items of natural origin including diamonds will sharply increase in price. The same thing happens with paintings, which have also appreciated to a great extent. Nobody expected that paintings would set annual price records at auctions. Pearls from a mussel fished in the Mississippi river in north America. Qatar Museum collections. Image credit: Qatar Museums. Could you briefly describe the role of the World Diamond Museum in organizing this exhibition? Is it a step towards implementing your announced program of exhibitions to be run in various countries? Back in 2017, the World Diamond Museum agreed that it would bring a jewelry and diamond exhibition to the State Historical Museum in Moscow. With the announcement of the Qatar-Russia 2018 Year of Culture, we saw the opportunity to show the magnificent collection of the Qatar Museums to the Russian audience. This exhibition is the first significant project of the World Diamond Museum. At the same time, we are working on an Internet and multimedia project, which will be launched and will begin to travel around the world in the second half of 2019. Our photographers, designers and editors are working on the colorful album of Diamonds Facets of Mankind, in which the connection between humanity and diamonds will be told and shown in a completely new light. The book is to be published in early 2019. The editor of this prestigious publication is Dr. Usha Balakrishnan, who leads the team of authors and researchers from various countries. Vladimir Malakhov, Rough&Polished The capital mining operations on the new diamond deposit Zarya of PJSC ALROSA in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), which began in June 2016, are entering the final stage. For two years, 10 million cubic meters of overburden were removed from the open pit mine, and its depth reached 100 meters. Diamond mining, as planned, will begin next year.The mining operations on Zarya deposit are carried out by Aikhal Mining and Processing Division. Total diamond resources of the deposit are estimated to contain 3.5 million carats of diamonds worth more than USD 1 billion. Its development will allow replacing the falling-out reserves of Komsomolskaya pipe, mining operations on which are nearing completion.The overburden removed from Zarya now amounted to 10 million cubic meters, and the open pit mine reached the depth of 100 meters. The kimberlite ore lies beneath 20 meters of overburden. The field infrastructure is developed at the same time. This year, drainage ditch construction, installation and adjustment of the pumping unit will be completed. The open pit mine construction is planned to be completed in 2019. The open pit mine is expected to reach its design capacity of 1,250 million tons of ore annually in 2021, said Timofey Baishev, Deputy Head of production of Komsomolsky open pit mine.The development of the field is planned to a depth of 300 meters with the extraction of 12 million tons of ore. The open pit mining of reserves is planned in 2030 to be finished. The average diamond content is estimated at 0.28 carats per ton of ore. The total investment will be about RUB 12 billion. About 130 people are involved in the open pit mine operations. Mountain Province boosts Q2 output to 1.9 mln cts 23 july 2018 News Canadas Mountain Province Diamonds second quarter output jumped 20 percent to 1.9 million carats compared with 1.6 million carats, a year earlier. The diamonds were recovered at an average grade of about 2.15 carats per tonne, which was 2 percent higher than 2.10cpt recorded during the same quarter last year. It said its year to date output was 3.6 million. "The second quarter performance continues to follow the trend of ongoing excellent performance set by the GK Mine team, in a safe and sustainable manner, said company chief executive Stuart Brown. We expect this trend to continue as we enter the second half of the year. The continued good performance is pleasing as the mine matures into its steady state production methodology of continuous improvement." Mountain Province said it remained well positioned to achieve the upper end of its full year 2018 production guidance of 6.3 6.6 million carats. Mathew Nyaungwa, Rough&Polished De Beers to acquire Peregrine Diamonds for $81 mln 23 july 2018 News De Beers is set to acquire 100 per cent of the outstanding securities of Peregrine Diamonds, which owns the Chidliak diamond resource in Canadas Nunavut Territory, for C$107 million ($81 million). The transaction would be executed via a plan of arrangement, which was set for September. De Beers said the transaction had been unanimously recommended by Peregrines board of directors to security holders. The Chidliak resource holds significant development potential and will be an exciting addition to our portfolio, said group chief executive Bruce Cleaver. With a strong outlook for consumer demand, we are seeking new opportunities to invest in our future supply potential and look forward to growing our portfolio in Canada and working with community partners in the Nunavut Territory as we further develop the project. The Chidliak resource was discovered in 2008 and 74 kimberlite pipes had been identified at the project, including the CH-6 and CH-7 pipes, which are the current focus of the mines first phase diamond development programme. The diamond development programme had a total inferred mineral resource in excess of 22 million carats. Mathew Nyaungwa, Rough&Polished Image credit: Sarine Sarine Technologies Ltd held a celebratory event to mark the official opening of the Sarine Technology Lab in Mumbai. The event took place on July 10th at the Sofitel Mumbai BKC, it included a presentation about the Sarine Lab and the changes it brings to the industry by Sarine Group CEO, David Block. Industry leaders were receptive to the change the lab will bring through its AI technology based approach, and voiced their enthusiasm for the wave of transformation that is sweeping the industry.David Block noted, Objective grading reports play a significant role in our industry, enabling efficient trade and empowering consumers to purchase with confidence. We are proud to lead the technological evolution in this area that will significantly improve accuracy and repeatability. The India lab opening is an important and exciting milestone for Sarine that has been continuously supporting the Indian leadership in diamond manufacturing and trading for the last three decades." Ecuador was under pressure from the United States and the United Kingdom and may be ready to withdraw its asylum protection for Assange. Ecuadors President Lenin Moreno who was elected president in May, has made it quite clear he isnt too fond of his countrys role in protecting Assange, who he has descried as a hacker, a stone in the shoe for his administration, and an inherited problem. Lenin Moreno met with British officials in London Friday to finalize the agreement. Assange has been inside Ecuadors embassy since he fled Sweden after accusations of sexual assault and rape. Prosecutors in Sweden have since dropped the charges the possibility is that the United States would call on U.K. authorities to arrest and extradite him over the leaking of classified documents that were leaked by Chelsea Manning. Kenneth Roth, the executive director of Human Rights Watch, wrote on Twitter that if Ecuador does evict Assange from the embassy its essential the UK not become party to any US effort to prosecute him. During the last three months, Assange has been blocked from accessing the Internet, with officials saying that he violated an agreement not to intervene in state affairs. A research fellow of the Central Research Institute for Machine-building, or TSNIIMASH, a head institution of Russias state space corporation Roscosmos, has been detained on high treason charges, Yevregy Yenikeyev of the Public Monitoring Commission said. "TSNIIMASH employee Viktor Kurdryavtsev was arrested, indeed," Roscosmos spokesman Vladimir Ustimenko confirmed, providing no further details. TSNIIMASH was unavailable for comment. Moscow Lefortovo district court, which considers high treason cases, neither confirmed nor refuted this information saying it is a classified case, TASS reported. The Kommersant daily reported earlier that a team of investigators from the Federal Security Service (FSB) had conducted searches at TSNIIMASH employees offices and the office of Dmitry Paison, director of Roscosmos research and analysis center as part of investigation of a criminal high treason case. About ten space sector specialists are suspected of working for Western intelligence services. According to FSB, Western intelligence services gained access to Russian classified hypersonic projects, the newspaper said. Roscosmos press service said the corporations CEO, Dmitry Rogozin, was informed about this case and ordered to offer all possible assistance to the investigators. Fourteen people were killed and 60 injured in a suicide bomb attack yesterday near Hamid Karzai International Airport in Afghanistan's capital of Kabul, a spokesman for Kabul's police chief Hashmat Stanikzai said. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, the exiled Afghan vice president, was the target of the attack, CNN reported. Dostum fled to Turkey last year amid accusations of torture and abuse of political rival Ahmad Eshchi, but he returned to Afghanistan on Sunday, the police chief said. An attacker detonated a bomb after being identified by police near the airport, according to Stanikzai. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, according to SITE intelligence group. The violence comes a week after the release of a UN report stating the number of Afghan civilians killed in the first six months of 2018 has reached a record high. Almost 1,700 civilians were killed from January 1 to June 30, a total higher than at any comparable time in the last 10 years, according to the United Nations. Dostum, an Uzbek strongman and warlord in the early part of the Afghanistan War, fought against the Taliban on horseback alongside a 12-man team of Green Berets from the US Special Forces in 2001. When carbon dioxide is absorbed by seawater carbonic acid is formed, making the water more acidic. Since the Industrial Revolution, oceanic CO 2 has risen by 43% and is predicted to be two and a half times current levels by the end of this century. Fish use their sense of smell (olfaction) to find food, safe habitats, avoid predators, recognize each other and find suitable spawning grounds. A reduction in their ability to smell therefore can compromise these essential functions for their survival. The new study provides evidence that economically important species will be affected by elevated CO 2 , leaving fish vulnerable because it affects their ability to detect odours. University of Exeter researcher Dr Cosima Porteus, who led the study, said: "Our study is the first to examine the impact of rising carbon dioxide in the ocean on the olfactory system of fish. First we compared the behaviour of juvenile sea bass at CO 2 levels typical of today's ocean conditions, and those predicted for the end of the century. Sea bass in acidic waters swam less and were less likely to respond when they encountered the smell of a predator. These fish were also more likely to "freeze" indicating anxiety." Experts at the University of Exeter, in collaboration with scientists from the Centre of Marine Sciences (CCMar, Faro, Portugal) and the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas), also tested the ability of the sea bass' nose to detect different smells. They did this by recording the activity in the nervous system while their nose was exposed to water with different levels of CO 2 and acidity. Dr Porteus added: "The sense of smell of sea bass was reduced by up to half in sea water that was acidified with a level of CO 2 predicted for the end of the century. Their ability to detect and respond to some odours associated with food and threatening situations was more strongly affected than for other odours. We think this is explained by acidified water affecting how odorant molecules bind to olfactory receptors in the fish's nose, reducing how well they can distinguish these important stimuli. Scientists also studied how the elevated CO 2 and acidity in the water affected the genes being expressed in the nose and brain of sea bass and found evidence for altered expression of many of those involved in sensing smells and processing of this information. Although only sea bass were used in the study, the processes involved in the sense of smell are common to many aquatic species and therefore the findings should apply very broadly. Dr Porteus said: "I wanted to examine if fish had any ability to compensate for this reduced sense of smell, but found that instead of increasing the expression of genes for smell receptors in their nose they did the opposite, exacerbating the problem." Prof Rod Wilson from the University of Exeter also commented on the plight for fish in a higher CO 2 future world: "Our intriguing results show that CO 2 impacts the nose of the fish directly. This will be in addition to the impact of CO 2 on their central nervous system function suggested by others previously, which proposed an impaired processing of information in the brain itself. It is not yet known how rapidly fish will be able to overcome these problems as CO 2 rises in the future. However, having to cope with two different problems caused by CO 2 , rather than just one, may reduce their ability to adapt or how long this will take." Near-future carbon dioxide levels impair the olfactory system of a marine fish is published in the journal Nature Climate Change. Here is the Fort Oglethorpe arrest report for July 13-19: 07-13-2018 Patrick Lewis Withrow, 35, of 5873 Lake Resort Terrace, Chattanooga, arrested on charges of driving while unlicensed and window tint. 07-14-2018 Stanley Scott Keeton, 36, of 202 Harker Road, Fort Oglethorpe on a parole violation-burglary. Joshua Daniel Mabry, 39, of 1516 Spring Vale Road, East Ridge arrested on charges of affixing a tag with intent to conceal, driving while license suspended and operation of unregistered vehicle. Crystal Donna Lee Gosselin, 37, of 392 Crest Drive, Ringgold arrested on charges of driving under the influence and failure to maintain lane. David Eugene Vaughn, 59, of 4105 15th Avenue, Chattanooga arrested on charges of driving under the influence of drugs and too fast for conditions. George Edward McCallie, 56, of 31 East Larry Circle, Ringgold arrested on charges of driving under the influence of multiple substances, affixing a tag with intent to conceal, driving while license suspended, theft by receiving stolen property and theft by shoplifting. 07-15-18 Thomas Aubrey Sayers, 49, of 11 M.E. Arnold Circle, Ringgold arrested on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol, license address change, failure to maintain lane and open container. 07-18-18 Eric Todd Miell, 25, of 803 Forrest Road, Fort Olgethorpe arrested on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol, following too closely and reckless driving. John Edward Kelley, 38, of 305 Jackson Street, Lafayette arrested on a charge of drinking and disorderly. 07-19-18 Jordan Alexander Pickett, 21, of 107 Shelby Street, Fort Oglethorpe arrested on an outstanding warrant. Eric Christopher Vaughn, 46, of 282 Maple Way, Ringgold arrested on charges of driving while license suspended, no proof of insurance and operating an unregistered vehicle. Citation Statistics: Speeding15 Entering or crossing roadway.1 Failure to change name and/or address..1 License required..1 Driving while license suspended or revoked2 Window tint violations.1 Following too closely3 Proof of insurance required..1 Failure to exercise due care1 Brake lights and turn signals required.1 Seat belt violations8 Driving on roadways laned for traffic.3 Suspended registration.1 Public drunkenness1 Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs5 Removing or affixing license plate with intent to conceal2 Operation of vehicle without current plate3 Failure to obey traffic control devices.3 Possession of open container of alcoholic bev. while operating vehicle.1 License to be carried & exhibited on demand.1 Failure to signal turn or lane change1 Registration and license requirements.1 Reckless driving.1 Nearshore trench works for the Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline project started on July 22 near the Turkish town of Kiyikoy, the South Stream Transport B.V Company that is conducting the offshore pipeline said. According to the official announcement, Turkey's nearshore component involves constructing seabed trenches of around 2.4 kilometers in length from the shoreline to the sea in order to embed the pipes as a protection against sea waves and to avoid interference with fishing in the area. The offshore trenching process is expected to last 4-8 weeks. The company noted that independent third party experts prepared an environmental impact assessment (EIA) to determine the best route for the pipeline, taking into account potential environmental impacts and other risks. "These studies demonstrate that the nearshore work will have small, temporary and localized effects for the local fishing industry. After a thorough consultation process with various Turkish stakeholders, including local community representatives and fishing groups, the Turkish Ministry of Environment and Urbanization approved the EIA in September 2017," the company said. "We are pleased to be in line with our construction schedule to ensure that gas deliveries start by the end of 2019. We will try and make sure to minimize and mitigate the disturbance to the local residents during the nearshore works," Sander van Rootselaar, the Turkish Stream spokesperson added in a written statement. According to the announcement, the Turkish Stream project company is engaging with local fishermen over a voluntary compensation scheme for potential loss of income during the period of nearshore works within the framework of its commitment to remedy any local impacts, Anadolu agency reported. "The compensation scheme is part of Turkish Streams corporate responsibility and good neighborhood policy, in combination with a series of other measures intended to support the wellbeing of the local economy and people of Kiyikoy," the company explained. For decades, researchers believed the Western Hemisphere was settled by humans roughly 13,500 years ago, a theory based largely upon the widespread distribution of Clovis artifacts dated to that time. Clovis artifacts are distinctive prehistoric stone tools so named because they were initially found near Clovis, New Mexico, in the 1920s but have since been identified throughout North and South America. In recent years, though, archaeological evidence has increasingly called into question the idea of "Clovis First." Now, a study published by a team including DRI's Kathleen Rodrigues, Ph.D. student, and Amanda Keen-Zebert, Ph.D., associate research professor, has dated a significant assemblage of stone artifacts to 16-20,000 years of age, pushing back the timeline of the first human inhabitants of North America before Clovis by at least 2,500 years. Significantly, this research identifies a previously unknown, early projectile point technology unrelated to Clovis, which suggests that Clovis technology spread across an already well-established, indigenous population. "These projectile points are unique. We haven't found anything else like them," said Tom Williams, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Department of Anthropology at Texas State University and lead author of the study. "Combine that with the ages and the fact that it underlies a Clovis component, and the Gault site provides a fantastic opportunity to study the earliest human occupants in the Americas." The research team identified the artifacts at the Gault Site in Central Texas, an extensive archaeological site with evidence of continuous human occupation. The presence of Clovis technology at the site is well-documented, but excavations below the deposits containing Clovis artifacts revealed well-stratified sediments containing artifacts distinctly different from Clovis. To determine the ages of these artifacts, Rodrigues, Keen-Zebert, and colleagues used a process called optically simulated luminescence (OSL) dating to the ages of the surrounding sedimentary material. In OSL, researchers expose minerals that have long been buried under sediment layers to light or heat, which causes the minerals to release trapped potassium, uranium, and thorium electrons that have accumulated over time due to ambient, naturally occurring radiation. When the trapped electrons are released, they emit light which can be measured to determine the amount of time that has elapsed since the materials were last exposed to heat or sunlight. "The fluvial nature of the sediments deposited at the Gault Site have created a poor environment for preservation of organic materials, so radiocarbon dating has not been a useful technique to apply in this region," said Kathleen Rodrigues, graduate research assistant in DRI's Division of Earth and Ecosystem Sciences. "This made luminescence dating a natural choice for dating the archaeological materials here. We are really pleased with the quality of the results that we have achieved." US president Donald Trump, responding Tehran's threats to block the Strait of Hormuz, has warned Iran to never threaten the US again. "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death," Trump tweeted, referring to Iran's president Hassan Rouhani. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in turn, said Iran's leaders resemble "the mafia more than a government." He lambasted Iranian religious leaders as "hypocritical holy men" who amass wealth through corruption and exploitation of Iran's people. "And not many people know this, but the Ayatollah Khamenei has his own personal, off-the-books hedge fund called the Setad, worth $95 billion. That wealth is untaxed, it is ill-gotten, and it is used as a slush fund for the IRGC," the secretary of state said. He also said that the US not afraid to sanction top-ranking leaders of the Iranian regime and put maximum pressure on them. In addition, Pompeo asked all nations to join their pressure campaign. Pompeo added that the President said that he is prepared to do that with the leadership in Iran, but not until such time as there are demonstrable, tangible, irreversible changes in the Iranian regime that they dont see happening today. Senior research fellow of the Institute for Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladimir Sazhin, speaking to Vestnik Kavkaza, said that the current aggravation of US-Iran relations is a consequence of the collapse of the nuclear deal. "Iran is trying to oppose something to the new financial and economic sanctions of the US. Therefore, of course, the tension is increasing," the expert said. In his opinion, Iran's sharp response has also been due to the fact that after the US withdrawal from the JCPOA, the countries remaining in the deal, including Russia and China, can do nothing to ensure the life of the JCPOA. "Iran understands it perfectly, and this is its ideological reaction," the senior research fellow of the Institute for Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences explained. Speaking about the Iranian authorities' threat to block the Strait of Hormuz, the expert recalled that in 2011 Iran had already said about it. "According to different data, about 40% of oil transported by tankers passes through the Strait of Hormuz. So, of course, this is a very important route. In principle, it is not technically difficult to block it, but it will lead to catastrophic consequences, primarily for Iran. Because all countries that either supply or receive these 40% of oil will call Iran their main enemy and the cause of all disasters. In addition, it can provoke very serious hostilities, because the US fleet is concentrated in the Persian Gulf," the expert said. In addition, Sazhin said that Iran's rhetoric is aimed primarily at the internal audience. The director of the Roosevelt Fund of Study of the US at Moscow State University, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Yuri Rogulev, in turn, focused on the fact that the Iranian authorities' statements were a response to the threats of the US to ban the purchase of Iranian oil. "As for military threats, the US, of course, will not undertake any military operations in Iran now, because in addition to Afghanistan and Iraq, they are already involved in Syria," the expert explained. In addition, he shared his opinion on whether these statements by the US and Iran could lead to serious consequences. "We know that multilateral negotiations are under way both on Iran's nuclear deal and US sanctions, so we cannot say that they will lead to nothing. It appears as an element of such pressure, and accordingly, Iran must respond to it," the director of the Roosevelt Fund of Study of the US at Moscow State University, Doctor of Historical Sciences said. Talking about how important the support or refusal of European countries could be in the current situation, he stressed that officials are in favor of keeping the deal and against sanctions. "But the United States is imposing its sanctions, which can affect European companies. So private business may abandon some programs, because European business has much more significant commercial interests in the US market," Yury Rogulev concluded. A visit to Fort Winfield Scott in the Presidio shows how far this unique national park has come in the past 20 years. It also shows how uncertain the final portion of the journey will be. Theres a ghostly aura not found elsewhere in the Presidio, where more than 300 historic buildings have been restored since the Army transferred the 1,491-acre site to the National Park Service in 1994. A horseshoe of stocky Mission Revival barracks fronts a bedraggled but beguiling parade ground. A stockade sits vacant. A small officers club from 1921 is all but engulfed in vegetation. All that could change now, as Fort Scott is the focus of a development competition that seeks a large and sophisticated mission-driven organization to restore the 30-acre landscape and its 22 historic structures. In September, the Presidio Trusts board of directors is expected to select finalists who will then craft full proposals to create a place for change in the world, to quote the competition guidelines. The three leading contenders, as judged by Presidio staff, all are strong. The board can enlarge the list by including one of the six teams that competed but fell short. But none of the competitors is as compelling as the setting, at least not yet a reflection of how difficult it is to live up to expectations set far in the past. The three finalists show the range of ambitions for the old fort, which was completed in 1912 and was a command post independent from the Presidio until after World War II. The mission of one proposal is contained in its name: the Epicenter for Climate Solutions, or EPIC. It would be led by Tom Dinwoodie, the former head of SunPower Corp. and now active with the Rocky Mountain Institute, a nonprofit devoted to the pursuit of what its website calls a clean, prosperous and secure low-carbon future. It took me about a nanosecond to see that this would be an ideal campus for nations of the world to address climate solutions, said Dinwoodie, who is part of a team that includes Orton Development and the private California Clean Energy Fund. There are virtual platforms right now, but no physical center for convening. OpenAI, another finalist, would tackle a much different issue the perils and potentials of artificial intelligence. The nonprofits sponsors include such Silicon Valley heavyweights as Tesla founder Elon Musk, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel. Its mission is to ensure that artificial intelligence, described in its proposal as highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work is pursued in a way that benefits all of humanity. The proposal, made with Kilroy Realty Corp., would restore several barracks to house staff and researchers, while others might be used for robotics research or academic conferences. More Information Fort Scott project For more information on Fort Scott: www.presidio.gov/fort-winfield-scott The third finalist is the World Economic Forum, which hosts the annual Davos leadership conference and teamed with Equity Community Builders to propose The Campus for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Its a concept that tries to put the breakneck pace of urban innovations good and bad into a larger cultural context. If the term is unfamiliar, then you werent present when Salesforce founder and Davos regular Marc Benioff emphasized it at last Novembers Dreamforce conference. There were other intriguing proposals, such as one from an East Coast team that would have focused on training veterans to work in the construction trades. But the three finalists are the ones that, according to Presidio Trust staff, merge grand visions with financial depth. The estimated cost of redeveloping the site is at least $200 million. One of the challenges is that Fort Scott is a massive preservation project, the landscape as well as the buildings, said Jean Fraser, the trusts chief executive officer. We want the very best thinking for this remarkable space. The Epicenter has echoes of the vision contained in the Presidios 1994 master plan a document with a starry-eyed tone that shows how much our world has changed: Long the guardian of the Golden Gate, the Presidio now stands ready to house a network of national and international organizations devoted to improving human and natural environments and addressing our common future, declared the plan released by the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, of which the Presidio is a part. Then, terms like climate change and greenhouse gases were still novel. The USSR had dissolved in 1991, and pragmatic liberalism seemed on the rise. Donald Trump had recently sold his yacht to save one of his bankrupt Atlantic City casinos. Now Trump is president. He scoffs at elites and embraces the slogan America First, last used by isolationists before Pearl Harbor. He also has declared his intention to pull the U.S. out of the international Paris Climate Agreement. In other words, the times are more fractious than when boosters conceived of the Presidio as a new and permanent installation serving a peaceful world. The creators of this years proposals exude a confidence that they can nudge communities and continents toward a safer and sane world oblivious to the fact that plenty of people now view tech titans or proponents of global cooperation with distrust. This isnt to denigrate the teams, all of which are solid and know the local terrain. The World Economic Forum already leases space in one of Fort Scotts restored buildings, while Equity Community Builders and design firm Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects have worked in the Presidio since the parks early days. Orton Development and Marcy Wong Donn Logan Architects on the Epicenter team are restoring buildings at Pier 70 in San Francisco. Kilroy, the developer for OpenAI, has selected a preservation architect thats an old hand in the park, Page & Turnbull. Any of these teams, at least on paper, has the resources to take on a makeover that meets the meticulous standards of a National Historic Landmark District. All three include a new transit center and public trail extensions as part of the deal. At the same time, the Presidio Trust doesnt need to rush to make a decision. The trust reached financial self-sufficiency in 2013, a timeline imposed by Congress, and since then has flourished. Look no further than the Main Post: the Officers Club was restored with a spacious museum in 2014, and a one-time guardhouse now holds a visitor center. Last month, a boutique hotel with nightly rates that start at $275 opened in a statuesque former barracks. Ultimately, the trusts board has the option to decide that not one proposal measures up to Fort Scotts potential. That would be similar to what happened in 2014, when a prior board turned down George Lucas in his bid for a museum facing Crissy Field. Another option is to combine elements of various proposals. The trust hinted at this in last weeks staff report on the competition suggesting that Fort Scott is a large property that can accommodate multiple uses. Fort Scott indeed is large. And its like no place else in the Bay Area. It would be wonderful to see life return to the quiet terrain. But whatever happens needs to be done right. John King is The San Francisco Chronicles urban design critic. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron When Facebook moves into its new offices in Mountain View this fall, a signature Silicon Valley perk will be missing there wont be a corporate cafeteria with free food for about 2,000 employees. In an unusual move, the city barred companies from fully subsidizing meals inside the offices, which are part of the Village at San Antonio Center project, in an effort to promote nearby retailers. The project-specific requirement passed in 2014, attracting little notice because the offices were years away from opening. It came in response to local restaurants that said Google, the citys biggest employer, was hurting their businesses by providing free meals, according to John McAlister, a Mountain View councilman. We wanted to make sure businesses that were there were successful, McAlister said. The daily banquets at big tech companies fresh-made omelets for breakfast, hand-rolled sushi for lunch, braised chicken and kale for dinner have become legendary. Google hired its first chef about 20 years ago, when the company had just 50 employees. Reviews of its corporate cuisine popped up on Bon Appetit, Serious Eats and Yelp. New companies such as Facebook and LinkedIn matched the perk as they tried to lure employees away. Staffing the cafeterias became a booming business for the formerly sleepy field of corporate catering. But the in-house eating places have drawn customers and potential employees away from neighboring businesses, and city officials are concerned that local restaurants struggle and potentially bustling streets are empty as a result. Under Mountain Views rules for the Village complex, meals within the offices cant be subsidized by more than 50 percent on a regular basis. Facebook can fully subsidize employees if they go to restaurants that are open to the public. It really was geared more around trying to make sure we didnt have 400,000 square feet of office space with people that never left the building, said Michael Kasperzak, a former Mountain View mayor who worked on the legislation. If we have all these restaurants, we want this to be a successful development. If employers pay for it, thats fine. After leaving office, Kasperzak went on to work as a consultant for WeWork, the large New York operator of co-working spaces. Though Facebook is the sole tenant for now, WeWork is managing Facebooks facility and is considering a public food hall in the ground floor, according to city officials. WeWork and Facebook declined to comment on the requirement. We found the location attractive because of its proximity to public transportation, housing and public-serving amenities like shops and restaurants, said Facebook spokesman Jamil Walker. Unlike many tech campuses, the Village project is adjacent to a Caltrain station and includes housing. The absence of an in-house cafeteria will help boost local retailers, said Steve Rasmussen, owner of the Milk Pail Market, a 44-year-old open-air produce market blocks from Facebooks future office. A lot of small, independent restaurants had been impacted when some of these companies went in-house with their food offerings, Rasmussen said. I think collaboration is vital, and it makes total sense. Rasmussen is in talks with local restaurants to stock ready-to-eat meals at Milk Pail Market, which currently lacks such fare. Theyre very excited about what can we do to collaborate with the young folks who will come in with Facebook, he said. Mountain View has been seeking other concessions from tech giants. A November ballot measure proposes a per-employee tax that would hit Google the hardest. Last year, a new Google campus called Charleston East will be partially open to the public, including restaurants that anyone can dine in. While the cafeteria provision only applies to the Facebook site, its possible Mountain View could seek to impose similar conditions on Googles next major expansion in the North Bayshore area, where it has its headquarters campus. Mountain View Councilwoman Margaret Abe-Koga said its possible Google could help subsidize the rent for small businesses on its property or have agreements with retailers to patronize their businesses. Google didnt respond to a request for comment on its North Bayshore plans regarding small businesses. Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes Abe-Koga said the concept of tech companies offering free food was uncommon 20 years ago, and cities were in favor of companies in business parks having their own cafeterias because it reduced traffic. With projects like Village at San Antonio now featuring a mix of housing, office and retail, getting people outside their offices to frequent nearby businesses is key, she said. Mountain Views neighbors dont have plans to impose similar requirements on employee cafeterias. Cupertino Vice Mayor Rod Sinks said its already common to see Apple employees dine at local restaurants; the company charges employees for meals, making outside offerings relatively more attractive. Apple is more concerned with secrecy: It built a glassy restaurant that resembles one of its gadget stores on Alves Drive in Cupertino. A stand-alone building, its in walking distance of some Apple offices. Though the building is on a commercial street, the public cant enter unless theyre the guest of an employee. In San Jose, there are no prohibitions on businesses offering free food, with the exception of its City Hall. When it was designed more than a decade ago, there were concerns that a cafeteria there would compete with local food businesses, so the city didnt build one. Adobes downtown headquarters has partially subsidized cafeterias. Near San Joses Diridon Station, Google is planning another huge development. There has been no talk of restricting subsidized meals there, said Nanci Klein, San Joses assistant director of economic development. Chris Foley, co-owner of the Market, a food hall underneath Twitters headquarters in San Francisco, hopes that one day the city will follow Mountain Views lead. Restaurants have opened in the Mid-Market neighborhood in hopes of gaining customers from the tech companies there, but a number have shuttered and struggled. If there were no meals served inside those offices, that would greatly benefit restaurants and food vendors like those in the Market, he said. Having (tech workers) in their offices and not engaging with the community isnt really good for the community or these small businesses, Foley said. Zendesk, a customer-support software business located a couple of blocks down Market, doesnt offer free lunch. Instead, CEO Mikkel Svane has recommended employees go to nearby restaurants such as Tu Lan and Farmerbrown. Once a month, the company pays for a group of employees to try a new restaurant, said spokeswoman Courtney Mundell. Wendy Lee and Roland Li are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: wlee@sfchronicle.com, roland.li@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thewendylee, @rolandlisf A BART passenger fatally stabbed an 18-year-old woman in the neck and wounded her older sister as they rode a train in Oakland late Sunday in what officials said appeared to be a random attack by a stranger. The double stabbing happened about 9:45 p.m. at MacArthur Station, which was quickly shut down for the night. The station reopened Monday morning. Agency spokesman Jim Allison said the second victim was taken to a hospital for treatment, while the suspect described by witnesses as a heavyset white man in his 20s or 30s with short hair fled and remained at large Monday. A motive in the violence was unknown. Now Playing: Reaction to fatal stabbing of Nia Wilson, 18, on BART platform Video: San Francisco Chronicle Relatives of the victims gathered at the station late Sunday night, hugging and crying after talking to police. Malika Harris identified the woman who died as her sister, 18-year-old Nia Wilson, who had attended Oakland High. A man who said he witnessed a portion of the train attack said he had his back to the victims when he heard a commotion. He said he saw one of the victims bleeding from her neck and the suspect poking the other woman. He said BART police arrived and began performing CPR on one of the victims. The man said he didnt hear any yelling or arguing before the attack. Ebony Monroe, a cousin of the victims, described Wilson as a beautiful, sweet person who loved her cousins, fashion and doing makeup. Monroe said Wilson had a boyfriend who drowned in a lake two years ago, and that she was celebrating his birthday on Sunday. She needs her justice she was just an innocent kid, and she didnt deserve this. Monroe said. And he did this for no reason. 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. Monroe said a witness described the suspect as coming out of nowhere. After the stabbing, AC Transit assisted BART in getting riders to their destinations. Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy By West Kentucky Star Staff Jul. 21, 2018 | 11:40 PM | PADUCAH Director Martha Bell commented Friday on the Greg Dunker Show that many of the mission's long time cash donors have passed away. As a result, she is now having to use her own savings and sell stocks in order to keep the mission operating. Bell pointed out that they would deliver 103 meals on Friday, and these are to people who have, in the past, been Paducah's workers, and are now in need of help. She explained that they do get adequate donations of food, but it is the cash donations that are lacking at this time. She said that this can be done by either going to the local utility companies and paying on their accounts, or by sending them a check. Checks can be mailed to: Martha's Vineyard Martha's Vineyard 1100 North 12th Street or P.O. Box 8307 Paducah, KY 42001 Paducah, KY 42002 Bell stressed that this is a serious shortage and they are not sure what the next move will be if the funding does not come in. The Martha's Vineyard Mission can be contacted at (270)-575-0021. Martha's Vineyard, a Paducah charity that has provided meals for those in need for the past 28 years, is in need of funds. On the Net: Back in the 1980s, a deadly new virus exploded in San Francisco. The response to the HIV epidemic from all fronts in San Francisco has become legendary, and a model for the world. Innovative efforts proved essential, even if at the time they might have seemed outrageous or even illegal. Now we face another epidemic, that of opioid drug abuse. This problem has long been with us, but it has now exploded around the nation. There are more American deaths from overdoses in just one year than in the entire Vietnam War. At the San Francisco Addiction Summit last month at UCSF, speakers from the East Coast warned that this epidemic is a hurricane heading our way. Its truly an emergency on many levels public health, humane treatment, economic and more. San Franciscans and visitors to our city already see the fallout on our streets human bodies, alive or barely, syringes and needles strewn about, feces and urine. Tourists, businesses and residents complain in various ways. As with the homelessness problem with which the drug problem overlaps solutions appear elusive. One proposal is for safe injection sites facilities where drug users can go to inject without fear of arrest, violence, robbery or other problems of living on the street. Sites where used needles are disposed of properly rather than discarded publicly, thereby also keeping the streets cleaner. Drug users can assess medical care and treatment more easily as well. Mayor London Breed was to unveil a demonstration of such a site in the Tenderloin on Sunday. Similar facilities are already open elsewhere in the world, such as Canada and Europe, but San Francisco would be the first American city to do so. The obstacles are legion, but the two most prominent are very reminiscent of the debate over needle exchange three decades ago. As soon as it became clear that HIV was being transmitted via shared needles, activists looked to other nations where exchange programs were already in place. They decided to begin operations here illegally, as it was against the law to hand out injection equipment. Some were outraged that this was being done, but experience and research soon began to show that: 1) Needle exchange programs worked to interrupt disease transmission, as intended, and 2) Such programs garnered contact and trust among addicts, many of whom finally decided to seek drug treatment. This latter point helped to convince addiction experts, who were initially opposed to needle exchange programs as enabling drug use, to support the programs. Local public health officials declared an emergency to allow operation without prosecution. Eventually the San Francisco Medical Society, California Medical Association and the American Medical Association all supported these programs, as did the National Academy of Sciences. It is now long established that they work, legal or not, even though some politicians and citizens have never quite come to support them. Reducing addiction, crime, taxpayer costs and public nuisance are positive goals. Locating the sites within existing clinics strongly reduces NIMBY concerns as well. Now, again, we face an emergency that warrants an emergency response. Having evaluated the evidence and the need, the board of directors of the San Francisco Marin Medical Society voted unanimously in 2017 to support piloting safe injections sites here, and were soon joined by the AMA. San Francisco has long taken many innovative approaches to health issues, and it is time to do so once again. We commend Mayor Breed and our public health leaders for seeking to implement this important effort. John Maa is a surgeon and president of the San Francisco Marin Medical Society. Steve Heilig, a member of the society staff, co-chaired the San Francisco Addiction Summit and was an early needle exchange volunteer. For Beach Blanket Babylon performer Tammy Nelson, who marked her 25th anniversary this month with the musical revue, being in the show is like when you drive stick shift. Once you learn, you do it automatically, Nelson says. Now, tell me how you do it. Break it down for me. And you go, I I you put the key in the car... I mean, its so hard! Playing a slew of roles in the turbo-charged show, from Adele to Paula Deen, from Jewish Mother to Queen Elizabeth II not to mention wearing the famous San Francisco skyline hat at the shows finale Nelson says it can be harder to unlearn an old routine than it is to learn a new one. Theres been a little tweaking recently, she says, one of which was a key change for me to make it easier on her voice, which performs seven shows a week. It worked well, but after she took some time off and came back, my head is still in the default, and so I come out with my very first note. Here she demonstrates, sliding up, down and all around to find her pitch as Miss Italy, her first character. Not the best way that you want to start your show on. I swear to God, it took me probably until the French section she also plays a French streetwalker, among a parade of stock characters before I won (the audience) back. Nelson, who was raised in San Jose, had been performing in melodramas and musicals at Campbells Gaslighter Theater, San Joses Big Lils Cabaret and Los Gatos West Valley Light Opera when her sister encouraged her to audition for Beach Blanket Babylon, partly because of Nelsons comfort with an audience, partly because of her big voice. (Her regular, unamplified speaking voice booms to the far reaches of Club Fugazi, the shows longtime North Beach venue.) She missed her first two chances to audition, but the third time around, when she was in the musical Nunsense, the shows stage manager came up to me with (The Chronicles) pink section. It said Beach Blanket Babylon is holding auditions, and I damn near ripped it out of her hands. The audition itself, in 1993, was the most challenging and yet different from any audition Id done, Nelson says. Creator Steve Silver, who died in 1995, had a reputation of allowing people to do their thing for their auditions. It wasnt just ballad, uptempo, can you dance. ... He offered the opportunity for people to really entertain him: Show me what you got! And if its good enough, and youre good enough and you get hired, it might go into the show! For her first 16 years with the company, Nelson understudied for Val Diamond, assuming the lead when Diamond abruptly left the company in 2009. It was mixed feelings, says Nelson. Not taking anything away from (Diamond), but it was something Id always dreamt of doing: being in a fabulous show, in a fabulous city, in a featured track. It was a big deal, says producer Jo Schuman Silver. I was scared. I didnt know how the audience was going to react to (Nelson). But she won them over. ... We were very lucky. It was so smooth. ... She didnt skip a beat. Now Playing: In July 2018, the performer celebrated 25 years with the long-running musical revue. Video: SFChronicle Schuman Silver attributes that to Nelsons inherent likability, comic presence and willingness to experiment, which means the role has expanded under Nelson to include additional characters. Shell try anything, Schuman Silver says. A more recent addition is Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a role Nelson describes as the hardest one for me to do because theres no expression, and Im just all about goofy faces. Her constant Sanders note from director Kenny Mazlow is less face. Mean-spiritedness has no place in Beach Blanket Babylon. If the Beach Blanket audience laps up Nelsons caricatures, cast and crew insist that the success derives in large part from a long-standing Steve Silver directive: We have fun with; we dont make fun of. An early lesson Nelson had to learn, in her role as the French streetwalker, was to be nicer to Snow (White), whose convoluted search for a Prince Charming drives the shows thin plot. One of Nelsons most difficult performances was her first after 9/11. She felt strange about going onstage, until she decided, Its necessary for everybody to just forget something, if only for the length of a show. Im not a brain surgeon, she says. Shes not going to solve world hunger or cure cystic fibrosis, which two of her family members have. But by performing, I give those people who might be doing that a little bit of a break. Lily Janiak is The San Francisco Chronicles theater critic. Email: ljaniak@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LilyJaniak Chinatown, one of San Franciscos densest and most colorful neighborhoods, is home to everything from vast banquet halls to tiny dim sum parlors, a fortune cookie factory to traditional medicine shops. One thing it doesnt have? A cannabis dispensary. And it could stay that way if the Board of Supervisors passes an ordinance Tuesday that would ban marijuana retailers from Chinatown. Our zoning laws have always respected the desires of local neighbors ... and this is no different, said Supervisor Aaron Peskin, the sponsor of this ordinance whose district includes Chinatown. There has been a decades-long movement to keep Chinatown Chinatown. Since California legalized recreational cannabis last year, San Francisco Chinatown residents have overwhelmingly opposed a dispensary opening up on their turf. Last year during a hearing about opening a dispensary in the Sunset, dozens of Chinese American residents spoke against its opening, comparing marijuana use to the opioid epidemic. But those against the ban worry about the precedent it could set for other neighborhoods, as well as the message it will send an industry already struggling for normalization in the city. Wing Hoo Leung, president of the Community Tenants Association, said a unique set of factors in Chinatown makes a ban necessary in the neighborhood: Extremely dense housing, intense fears of gentrification and a cultural aversion to cannabis. Secondhand smoke continues to be a problem for many of our tenants, he said in an April letter to the Board of Supervisors. In lower-income communities, we live on top of each other, and every decision impacts a neighbor. Despite the community opposition, the San Francisco Planning Commission voted 5-2 against the Chinatown ban in June. Those opposed to the ordinance said they couldnt support a piecemeal approach to regulating the industry in the city. I think some communities have more political power than others, and Im worried about what were creating, Planning Commissioner Myrna Melgar said at the hearing. There are no pending applications for dispensaries in Chinatown. Peskin noted that there are a number of dispensaries within walking distance of Chinatown, and several pending applications for others in nearby neighborhoods in his district. But Johnny Delaplane of the San Francisco Cannabis Retailers Alliance said a ban from one neighborhood could harm the cannabis industry, which is struggling to integrate into the city, as well as with a cumbersome permitting process, steep state taxes and a possible gross receipts tax at the local level. The most important thing that we can do with cannabis in the Chinese community is provide education ... they see it as a dangerous drug, he said. Precedent is certainly a concern. Peskins legislation has four co-sponsors: Jane Kim, Katy Tang, Sandra Lee Fewer and Ahsha Safai. Supervisor Rafael Mandelman one of the newest supervisors on the board said Monday he had yet to make up his mind about how he will vote at Tuesdays meeting. Mandelman said the fear of cannabis is irrational, counterproductive and cannot be the basis for making policy in this city. But, he added, he is also sympathetic to the intensity of opposition from the Chinese community. If there is any chance in which I would vote for a cannabis restriction, it would be this, out of respect for that community, he said. But Im struggling with it. I certainly dont want to participate in what could very easily be a slippery slope. Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadani As the San Francisco Board of Supervisors prepares to vote on an ordinance banning plastic straws, hundreds of small-business owners could be impacted by one problem: bubble tea. You can drink a cocktail without a straw. You can drink a 32-ounce cola without a straw. But ferrying huge tapioca pearls from the bottom of an icy cup of tea to your mouth? Not going to happen with a spoon. As Andrew Chau, co-owner of the San Francisco-based chain Boba Guys, said, We literally cant have an operation without straws. If the ordinance passes as drafted on July 31, set to take effect in July 2019, local businesses that sell takeaway cups and lids made out of compostable plastic cant use straws made from the same material. For the hundreds of independent businesses that sell bubble tea, many of them immigrant-owned, finding a supply of the compostable bubble tea straws may be almost impossible. On May 15, Supervisor Katy Tang, speaking at a press conference at Boba Guys on Fillmore Street, introduced the Plastic and Litter Reduction Ordinance. The ordinance bans plastic straws, stir sticks, toothpicks and those nameless things cafes stick into your coffee cup lid to prevent your latte from splashing onto your shirt collar. San Francisco is far from the only city to propose a straw ban. Seattles took effect on July 1. Alameda, Oakland, Santa Cruz, Davis, Berkeley and San Luis Obispo are all considering or have proposed similar bans. So have the United Kingdom and Taiwan. Large corporations such as Alaska Airlines and Starbucks have already pledged to ban straws. In San Francisco, city supervisors have found support from the San Francisco Department of the Environment, which oversees the citys Zero Waste policy. By weight, plastic straws and stirrers may represent a tiny percentage of all the plastic trash going into landfills, said department director Debbie Raphael, but straws are easily picked up by the wind or the water flowing through storm drains. Their very small nature makes them so detrimental to the environment and so difficult to deal with, she said. Boba, or bubble tea a Taiwanese invention that first appeared in the Bay Area in the mid-1990s is ubiquitous in San Francisco. According to Yelp, 86 San Francisco businesses in its listings are specifically labeled as dedicated bubble tea shops. Many more places include bubble tea drinks on their menus: The phrase bubble tea is mentioned in the reviews for more than 250 local businesses in total. Andrew Chau and co-founder Bin Chen, who run five Boba Guys shops in San Francisco and another five elsewhere in California and on the East Coast, decided a few months ago to back the San Francisco ordinance, which they say dovetails with their companys commitment to sustainability. Since then, the challenges the ordinance will pose for the bubble tea industry have become more apparent. Its not just that straws are essential for sucking the large tapioca pearls out of bubble tea, its that the tools in question are specialty straws 11 millimeters in diameter, compared with 5 millimeters for normal straws. Tang, who said she brings a metal straw with her when she goes to bubble tea shops, adds that most of the plastic boba straws are wrapped in even more plastic. Last fall, Boba Guys director of operations Kris Gilmour brought in samples of compostable straws to test, ranging from thick paper straws to hollowed bamboo tubes to metal straws. All represented a big increase in expenses, especially considering that the San Francisco stores give out 2 million straws a year: Whereas plastic straws cost 1 to 3 cents apiece, paper costs 7 to 19 and compostable plastic 7 to 20. Boba Guys soon found a supplier to make what the company said are the first bubble tea straws made of polylactic acid, or PLA, in the United States. PLA, generally made from corn starch, is the same degradable plastic used in the compostable cups and lids that San Franciscos composting program accepts. Chau said that, last month, he called Tangs office to tell her aide that he found the perfect replacement. His moment of triumph was short-lived, however. I hate to break it to you, Chau said the aide replied, but PLA is out of the ordinance. Supervisor Tang confirms that PLA straws will also be banned. (For the record, Seattles ordinance allows them.) PLA is designed to break down in high-heat settings, which is not the oceans, Department of the Environment director Raphael said. That straw or lid, if it ends up in the ocean, its not breaking down. Problem No. 2: San Franciscos composting facility provides an environment that does degrade PLA, but straws are too small and light for the mechanized sorter to capture them. Because PLA straws look too much like conventional plastic ones, human eyes cant catch them, either. Boba Guys staff said they know of three other straw possibilities: jumbo paper straws from Indianas Aardvark, which are thick enough to stay intact for a good 30 minutes of sipping; paper straws from Petalumas World Centric; and food-grade, seaweed-based plastic from a new company called Loliware, which Tang confirms would be allowed under the new ordinance. Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more. The rub: None of them is currently available. Given the consumption rates of Boba Guys five locations, supplying San Franciscos dedicated bubble tea shops may require straws on the magnitude of 30 million to 35 million and thats not including all the other cafes that serve iced tea with tapioca pearls. Because of the rush to order paper straws, Aardvark already has a long backlog. Jumbo straws from neither of the other two companies are on the market yet. Loliware CEO Chelsea Briganti said that by the end of 2019, her company will be able to produce straws by the hundreds of millions, some of which will include bubble tea straws. San Francisco may be offering businesses a years grace period, but it may not be enough. Given the national even global interest in switching to compostable straws, the bans are likely to outpace supply, at least for the first few years. The Department of the Environment insists that even after July 1, 2019, its committed to working with businesses to secure alternatives rather than issuing fines. If there is a moment when this goes into effect when youre unable to source the straws you need, Raphael said, lets talk about it and see what we can do to help. Jonathan Kauffman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jkauffman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jonkauffman Put the new guy right to work, that was the As plan Sunday at the Coliseum. Jeurys Familia acquired from the Mets for Triple-A reliever Bobby Wahl, Class A third baseman William Toffey and $1 million in international slot money arrived about 90 minutes before Oaklands game against the Giants and entered in the ninth, worked two innings and got the win. You can see the energy and the excitement in the team, and that made me feel really comfortable to be here, Familia said. Typically, those type of guys are used to coming into games with the lead, manager Bob Melvin said. To come into a tie game, you have to be perfect and to do it two innings in a row, first time in front of the fan base, in front of your new team there are probably some nerves involved. It didnt show. Familia said it was difficult to leave the Mets, his organization for the past 11 years, but his agent had told him he was going to get traded, so he was prepared. An All-Star in 2016 when he saved 51 games, Familia now will share set-up duties with rookie Lou Trivino, which will be a new role for Familia, but on occasion, like Sunday, hell fill in for closer Blake Treinen. Im not really concerned with it, Familia said of changing his role. Its something that comes along with it. Whether I pitch the seventh or the eighth or the ninth inning, I just want to help the team win. In 2017, Familia was suspended for 15 games for an Oct. 31, 2016, incident at his home in which his wife, Bianca Rivas, wound up with a scratch on her chest and a bruised cheek. Prosecutors declined to press charges, and Commissioner Ron Manfred said the evidence reviewed by his office does not support a determination that Mr. Familia physically assaulted his wife or threatened her or others with physical force or harm. Nevertheless, I have concluded that Mr. Familias overall conduct that night was inappropriate, violated (the domestic violence) policy and warrants discipline. The As were aware of Familias suspension and did their due diligence before the deal, general manager David Forst said. During the course of our trade discussions, we spoke with a number of people with the Mets and at MLB regarding Jeurys suspension last season, Forst said. Based on those conversations, the details provided to us, and the extensive counseling Jeurys participated in as part of his suspension, we were comfortable going through with the trade. To make room for Familia, the As optioned left-hander Jeremy Bleich back to Triple-A Nashville. Design work: Manager Bob Melvin said the As might take a look at expanding the bullpen area that is considered dead ground for foul balls, perhaps enclosing the section that includes chairs and equipment, to avoid issues with inadvertent interference. As right fielder Stephen Piscotty collided with a chair held by Giants reliever Mark Melancon when chasing a ball in foul territory on Saturday night. Susan Slusser is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Firefighters finally made progress battling the Ferguson Fire roughly 10 days after it erupted near Yosemite National Park, though officials acknowledged the blaze has spread closer to the park. While the fire grew by nearly 3,000 acres since Sunday up to 36,102 acres total crews using aircraft, bulldozers and hand tools managed to establish more lines around the conflagration, raising containment to 16 percent, the highest its been since the fire sparked to life on the night of July 13. But the inferno grew rapidly over the weekend and is now within 2 miles of the park, said Rich Eagan, a Ferguson Fire spokesman. Mandatory evacuations have been ordered in El Portal and Yosemite West, communities housing park employees and visitors. Fire officials report that one structure may have been burned the first consumed by the blaze but that has not been confirmed. The number of structures threatened jumped from a couple hundred on Sunday to 3,494, because skies cleared enough to get more accurate aerial surveys, Eagan said. Weather conditions could hamper firefighters this week, with temperatures in the area expected to rise to 105 degrees by Wednesday, This thing, unfortunately, is going to take us a while to control. Its a beast,Eagan said. We could be here for a while. More than 3,300 firefighters from across the country are fighting the fire with 194 engines, 45 water tenders, 16 helicopters, 52 bulldozers and 16 hand crews. A pair of DC-10 tanker planes also have been key to helping contain the fire, Eagan said. The planes dump fire retardant ahead of the flames, trying to make sure they dont jump the line. The fire continues to move northeast in the Stanislaus National Forest, north of Highway 140, which hasnt burned in more than 100 years. Our concern is that the terrain is so rough, it is going to be hard to contain, Eagan said. The good news is that not many people, if any, live in that area, but there is a lot of thick, dry brush and heavy timber. Four firefighters have been injured combatting the blaze, and heavy equipment operator Braden Varney was killed after the bulldozer he was operating rolled down a ravine. Yosemite remains open, but Highway 140 one of the three main routes into the park continues to be closed. Smoke from the fire has poured into Yosemite Valley at times, obscuring the famous views but diminishing the crowds only slightly, according to Scott Gediman, park spokesman. Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan A large mountain lion was seen Sunday morning in Foothill Regional Park in Windsor, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office. The mountain lion was seen along the western edge of the park, behind some residential homes on Davida Court at about 11:30 a.m., the sheriff's office said in a press release. Google is still raking in marketing dollars from advertisers, propelling the online search giant to another strong quarter in the face of costly regulatory trouble in Europe. The shares jumped as much as 6.1 percent, putting them on course for a record. Parent company Alphabet Inc. reported second-quarter sales, minus partner payouts, of $26.24 billion. Analysts were expecting revenue of $25.55 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Googles advertising business grew 24 percent. Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat said most of that came from mobile and automated ads. Google has continued to give search ads more prominent space on mobile phones, helping to fuel the brisk sales growth. Spending on Google Shopping search ads, which let marketers promote consumer products, increased 31 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, according to data from digital marketing firm Merkle. Those gains came even as Amazon.com Inc. revs up its own ads business. Alphabet reported two different profit figures to account for a $5 billion fine the European Union imposed last week for violating competition law with Googles Android mobile software. Excluding that, Alphabet said profit was $11.75 a share. Google plans to contest the ruling. Even including the record fine, the company generated $3.2 billion in net income during the second quarter. Google also shrugged off the General Data Protection Regulation, a European privacy law that started in May and limits targeted advertising. Similarly, analysts dont expect EU antitrust probes to force changes that significantly dent Google earnings. The Android fine may suggest that peak regulatory risk is now in the rear view mirror, Mark Mahaney of RBC Capital Markets wrote in a note before Mondays results. A larger share of Googles ad dollars went to its own digital properties, including the search engine and video service YouTube, rather than outside websites that run its ads. Google properties revenue jumped 26 percent to $23.3 billion. That leap reflects a recent push by Google to get marketers buying across more of its advertising channels. Theyre using the packaged deal, with all their properties, with a much stronger sell, said Marco Rimini, chief development officer at WPP Plcs Mindshare media agency. Some in the industry also cite the protection regulation, which convinced more advertisers to funnel ad spending to Google and its main rival Facebook Inc. One of the unintentional consequences of GDPR is the strengthening of the duopoly, said Gil Elbaz, a former Google executive who now runs the marketing firm Factual. If Google continues to go unchecked, their dominance will be extreme. While second-quarter sales jumped, so did costs for the technology giant. Googles capital spending climbed to $5.3 billion, up 87 percent from the same period in 2017. On a call with analysts, CFO Porat highlighted spending on sales and marketing for Googles cloud division, which is hosting its marquee conference later this week. The sums Google pays out to websites and mobile partners to distribute its search engine and ads called Traffic Acquisition Costs also rose to $6.4 billion for the quarter. Still, that was 23 percent of ad revenue, down from 24 percent in the first quarter of 2018. TAC came in lower than expectations which is a clear positive takeaway from the quarter, Dan Ives, head of technology research at GBH Insights, wrote in a note to investors. Investors are also looking for signs of growth beyond advertising, such as Googles cloud-computing business. The companys other revenue bucket, which includes cloud, hardware and app sales, grew 37 percent to $4.4 billion in the second quarter. Other Bets, the home of Googles riskier, experimental businesses, lost $732 million in the quarter, versus a loss of $633 million in the same period a year earlier. Mark Bergen is a Bloomberg writer. 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14 Jun (13) 31 May - 7 Jun (13) 24 May - 31 May (13) 17 May - 24 May (15) 10 May - 17 May (16) 3 May - 10 May (11) 26 Apr - 3 May (21) 19 Apr - 26 Apr (17) 12 Apr - 19 Apr (20) 5 Apr - 12 Apr (16) 29 Mar - 5 Apr (19) 22 Mar - 29 Mar (17) 15 Mar - 22 Mar (23) 8 Mar - 15 Mar (22) 1 Mar - 8 Mar (21) 22 Feb - 1 Mar (22) 15 Feb - 22 Feb (25) 8 Feb - 15 Feb (25) 1 Feb - 8 Feb (21) 25 Jan - 1 Feb (23) 18 Jan - 25 Jan (19) 11 Jan - 18 Jan (35) 4 Jan - 11 Jan (23) 28 Dec - 4 Jan (27) 21 Dec - 28 Dec (28) 14 Dec - 21 Dec (23) 7 Dec - 14 Dec (22) 30 Nov - 7 Dec (19) 23 Nov - 30 Nov (22) 16 Nov - 23 Nov (19) 9 Nov - 16 Nov (15) 2 Nov - 9 Nov (17) 26 Oct - 2 Nov (10) 19 Oct - 26 Oct (12) 12 Oct - 19 Oct (13) 5 Oct - 12 Oct (19) 28 Sep - 5 Oct (14) 21 Sep - 28 Sep (17) 14 Sep - 21 Sep (19) 7 Sep - 14 Sep (22) 31 Aug - 7 Sep (15) 24 Aug - 31 Aug (14) 17 Aug - 24 Aug (9) 10 Aug - 17 Aug (5) When a company asks suppliers to retroactively give money back, its a sign that something has gone wrong. Thats what analysts worry about with Tesla Inc., which has asked suppliers to return a portion of payments for parts theyve delivered going back to 2016. In the memo to suppliers last week, Tesla asked for a meaningful amount of money to help it become profitable. Thats worrisome because Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has said that the success of the new Model 3 sedan should pull the perennial money-loser into the black in this years second half and show positive cash flow. What may be happening is that Tesla spent so much money racing to get its factory producing 5,000 Model 3s in a week while not delivering all of them to buyers yet that second-quarter numbers are going to look rough and Musk needs a hand from suppliers to shore up the balance sheet until later in the year. Its troubling, David Whiston, an analyst with Morningstar Inc. in Chicago, said in an interview on Monday as Teslas stocks and bonds declined. Usually, carmakers play hardball with suppliers going forward not backward. The second quarter could look ugly because they spent a ton of money ramping up to hit production targets. Tesla has been a prodigious cash burner, torching $8 billion in the past four years. In the first quarter, as the company was pushing to get the Model 3 production line going, it went through more than $1 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. As pressure mounted to ramp up Model 3 production, Musk set up a tent outside Teslas plant in Fremont. The company had trouble with its heavily automated assembly line indoors and needed to set up the outside line to boost production. The race to get the Model 3 going may have added unexpected costs in the second quarter. Even though Tesla is making more of the sedans, the company wont complete delivery and collect revenue for many of them until the third quarter, Whiston said. So even though Tesla may be able to show its investors a pleasant surprise in the second half, Musk may want suppliers to help him shore up cash flow and profits now. In the memo, which was obtained by the Wall Street Journal, Tesla called the move a routine practice of working with suppliers. While its true that carmakers will ask for lower prices in future model years as both sides wring cost out of manufacturing, asking for money from parts made two years ago is highly unusual, said Ron Harbour, a senior partner at Oliver Wyman in Detroit. I have never heard of that, Harbour said. Suppliers have been asked for reductions, but going back for them in arrears reeks of desperation. Not everyone agrees. Ben Kallo, a Robert W. Baird & Co. analyst with the equivalent of a buy rating on Tesla shares, said he thinks the supplier renegotiation is about boosting profits rather than a necessity for the balance sheet. He said it could be an indication production is ramping. A Tesla spokesman didnt return emails seeking comment. Musk has said he wont need to raise cash this year, but some analysts have doubts. This could be a sign that Musk has to change his mind, Whiston said. In addition to boosting Model 3 production, Tesla in short order plans to build new factories in China and Europe and bring the Model Y sport utility vehicle, a semitruck, pickup and roadster to market. All of that has to happen while Tesla carries $10.5 billion in debt. Of those obligations, more than $1.7 billion is due in the next 16 months. Tesla has $230 million due in November, $920 million due in March of next year and $566 million due next November. Even if Teslas operations are cash flow neutral this year and next, just paying off that debt would leave Tesla with only $900 million in cash on the balance sheet, said Joel Levington, a debt analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence. Tesla stock fell 3.3 percent to close at $303.20 Monday afternoon. Its down from a peak of $385 in September, with many investors growing concerned about Teslas spending and its ability to meet its production goals. While it may be a bad sign, going after suppliers is just the latest thing Tesla is doing to get cash and get the Model 3 to Teslas eager buyers. The company also has taken $1,000 deposits for Model 3 orders to help fund development and manufacturing, which established carmakers dont have to do. Im not sure its any worse than getting upfront money from your customers, said Levington. The Associated Press contributed to this report. David Welch is a Bloomberg writer. Email: dwelch12@bloomberg.net 24 1 of 24 Buy this photo Two people hold a wanted poster for John Lee Cowell during a prayer circle at a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Friends of Nia Wilson mourn during a vigil in memory of the 18-year-old stabbing victim at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Nia Wilson, 18, of Oakland, was identified by family members as the victim of a fatal stabbing at BART's MacArthur Station on Sunday, July 22, 2018. Courtesy Family Of Nia Wilson BART officials on Monday arrested the suspect, 27-year-old John Cowell. Handout BART officials on Monday arrested the suspect, 27-year-old John Cowell. He is seen here in a body-worn camera video from an earlier encounter with police. BART BART officials on Monday arrested the suspect, 27-year-old John Cowell. SF BART Buy this photo After the arrest of suspect John Lee Cowell in the stabbing death of Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station, BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas makes a statement during a press conference at Rockridge BART Station in After the arrest of suspect John Lee Cowell in the stabbing death of Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station, BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas makes a statement during a press conference at Rockridge BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle Buy this photo After the arrest of suspect John Lee Cowell in the stabbing death of Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station, BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas answers a question during a press conference at Rockridge BART Station in After the arrest of suspect John Lee Cowell in the stabbing death of Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station, BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas answers a question during a press conference at Rockridge BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle Buy this photo Nia Wilson's mother, Alicia Grayson, is supported by relatives as she talks to the media before a vigil in memory of her daughter at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo People begin a march to downtown Oakland after a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Flowers and candles were left at MacArthur station Monday for Nia Wilson, 18, who was stabbed and killed Sunday while riding BART. Police announced an arrest in the case Monday night. Greg Keraghosian / SFGATE Buy this photo People begin a march to downtown Oakland after a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle Buy this photo Vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Keri Bawcom puts up a wanted poster for John Lee Cowell before a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Two people hold a wanted poster for John Lee Cowell during a prayer circle at a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. BART has come Two people hold a wanted poster for John Lee Cowell during a prayer circle at a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. BART has come under fire for its response to three deaths linked to the system over just five days. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Nia Wilson's mother, Alicia Grayson, gets emotional while talking to the media before a vigil in memory of her daughter at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Keri Bawcom puts up a wanted poster for John Lee Cowell before a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Travon and Lauren Williams embrace during vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Nia Wilson's friend, Deja Bellamy, places a candle during vigil in memory of the stabbing victim at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Photos By Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Miesha Singleton passes out wanted posters for John Lee Cowell before a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Flowers are seen hours after a fatal stabbing at the MacArthur BART Station in Oakland, California, on Monday, July 23, 2018. Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle A police officer stands outside the closed MacArthur BART Station in Oakland after a homicide on Sunday, July 22, 2018. Megan Cassidy Buy this photo A young woman, who didn't want to be identified, cuts a wanted poster of John Lee Cowell during a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, A young woman, who didn't want to be identified, cuts a wanted poster of John Lee Cowell during a vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle Buy this photo Vigil in memory of stabbing victim Nia Wilson at McArthur BART Station in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, July 23, 2018. Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle A BART passengers tip ended a daylong police manhunt for the violent felon suspected of fatally stabbing a BART passenger and injuring her sister in a sudden, unprovoked attack on the MacArthur Station platform in Oakland. Nia Wilson, 18, died on the platform Sunday night after a man identified as 27-year-old transient John Lee Cowell approached and quickly stabbed her and Lahtifa Wilson, 26, both in the neck, police said. The older sister was hospitalized overnight. In my close to 30 years of police experience, it was probably one of the most vicious attacks that Ive seen, BART Police Chief Carlos Rojas said at a news conference Monday. For Cowell, 21 hours on the lam ended almost exactly where they began: He was located on another BART train about 6:30 p.m. Monday, after at least two passengers tipped off police that they had spotted the suspected killer. Rojas told reporters that about 5:45 p.m., officers received a phone call from a rider who believed the suspect was on a Richmond-bound train, traveling from Coliseum Station. Officers fanned out across the area Monday evening about 10 minutes after the initial phone call, but initially werent able to locate the suspect, Rojas said. About that time, another rider told police that the suspect might have jumped onto an Antioch-bound train. Police intercepted that train at Pleasant Hill, and two BART officers located Cowell after searching the train. Rojas said investigators will interview Cowell soon, but to date still have no details on a potential motive for the crime. At an earlier press conference, Rojas said there was no evidence to support suggestions that the crime was race-related, but police havent taken the possibility off the table. Cowell is white and the Wilsons are African American. When asked how Cowell was able to slip away from police Sunday evening, Rojas described a prison-type attack, where Cowell surprised his victims from behind in rapid succession and fled. It basically happened at the snap of the fingers, at the drop of the pin that quick, he said. The officers were at the station, and as soon as they were notified, they reacted. Rojas said Cowell wasnt armed when police approached him, and that Cowell was truthful when officers asked for his name and provided them with a California identification card. It was a very uneventful type of contact, Rojas said Monday evening. Rojas said BART video cameras captured images of the stabbing at around 9:45 p.m. Sunday and the assailant as he fled the platform and entered a BART parking lot, where he changed his clothes. He said police later recovered the knife in a construction lot. Lahtifa Wilson described the night in an interview with ABC-7 News. She and two sisters were on their way home from a family function, listening to music on a train and keeping to themselves. They stepped off their train at MacArthur and were just about to transfer to another train. One sister got on board and the other two waited as a woman with a child in a stroller exited the train. Thats when they were blindsided by a maniac. For what? I dont know why, she said, standing with a bandage on the right side of her neck. And I looked back, and he was wiping off his knife and stood at the stairs and just looked and from there on, I was just caring for my sister. I was in shock. ... I didnt know I was cut because I was paying more attention to my sister. But he just stood there, like it was nothing. She said her sister called out for her: She just yelled my name Tifa, Tifa, Tifa and I said, I got you, baby, I got you. He didnt know us; we didnt know him, Wilson said. Hundreds of people gathered for a vigil Monday evening at MacArthur BART Station, bringing flowers, candles and incense. Some held signs demanding justice for the two sisters. Solena Sampson squeezed her 16-year-old daughter as she paid her respects. Sampson said she didnt know Wilson or her family, but as a mother knew the fear of having a child who didnt come home. It could have been anybodys daughter, she said. By early evening, the event evolved into a protest of sorts, with attendees decrying the violence against the Wilson sisters and other youth in Oakland. Daryle Allums, Nia Wilsons godfather and leader of Oaklands Stop Killing Our Kids group, said Wilsons death had shaken up the whole town. He addressed concerns that the attack might be racially motivated. He urged the African American community to stand down right now and avoid jumping to conclusions. We dont know if this was racist, Allums said. Lets get this information to find out what really happened. Lets find out the right facts to then be able to deal with this situation. In May 2016, Cowell was convicted of felony second-degree robbery, according to court records. That year, a Kaiser hospital in Richmond obtained a restraining order against him after he allegedly repeatedly harassed and threatened staff members with physical harm. Cowell was homeless and would often show up in the emergency department and make rather specific threats, said Jason Curliano, an attorney who represents the hospital. A separate restraining order was filed against Cowell in 2015, but the circumstances were not immediately available. Cowell was previously convicted of battery in June 2013, and of being under the influence of a controlled substance in March 2016. Both those incidents happened in Walnut Creek. He also had several misdemeanor infractions of vandalism, petty theft and possession of a controlled substance on his record, according to Alameda County court records. The slaying of Nia Wilson was the third possible homicide connected to BART in just five days. A witness to the aftermath of Wilsons stabbing, Nicole Mikels, said she was on the train at MacArthur Station that the sisters had just exited and heard horrifying screams. The sounds came from the direction of two young women Mikels had noticed when she boarded the train a few minutes earlier at Rockridge Station. One sister was screaming for help, Mikels said. Her sister was bleeding profusely by the neck her entire torso was covered in blood. Two BART police officers were at the station when the attack happened and performed CPR on the younger sister, Mikels said. She said she and other passengers tried to to calm the older sister by massaging her legs and giving her water. She said everything happened so fast, Mikels said. That it was a white male that had slit her sisters throat. In a statement, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said there was no known motive for the crime. The senseless and violent stabbing of two young women on a BART train platform last night has shaken our community, she said. Schaaf said BART was the lead agency conducting the investigation, and that the Oakland Police Department has been in constant contact and providing support. We all mourn in this moment and we will all work together to bring justice for Nia, her sister and their family, Schaaf said. Ebony Monroe, a cousin of the victims, called Nia Wilson a beautiful, sweet person who loved her cousins, fashion and doing makeup. Monroe said the 18-year-old had a boyfriend who drowned in a lake two years ago, and that she was celebrating his birthday on Sunday. She needs her justice. ... She was just an innocent kid, and she didnt deserve this. Monroe said. And he did this for no reason. Wilsons family set up a GoFundMe page with a goal of raising $9,000. As of print deadline Monday, more than $17,000 had been raised. Megan Cassidy, Michael Cabanatuan and Sarah Ravani are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com, mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com, sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy @ctuan @SarRavani Authorities on Monday identified the two occupants of a vehicle that fled from Orinda police this past weekend before a deadly single-car crash shut down Highway 24 for hours. Lawrence Martin, 20, of Oakland was killed Saturday and Danny Lockett, 20, of San Francisco was arrested and booked at the Martinez Detention Facility after both men fled during a traffic stop in Orinda, officials said. Oakland's like having a "really hot sibling," says longtime resident Mike Woolson. "Your sibling gets all the attention and more dates and everything seems to come easy. Whereas you have to work harder to make yourself interesting," he said. Yet, "in the long run, you'll probably end up getting to do more interesting things with more interesting people." Woolson, 56, moved to Oakland from San Francisco 10 years ago. He wanted to be closer to the Burning Man community (it looked different then, he says), the all-night-into-day warehouse parties and the "real people." "San Francisco is like living in Disney World," said Woolson, a writer and designer. "There's no place like it, and if it were affordable, I'm sure I'd move back." "But there's tradeoffs," he continued. "Everyone knows about the city already, they're so high on themselves." The Town, on the other hand, is less "showboat-y," he said. "Oakland is not out to impress anybody." A short BART ride separates San Francisco from Oakland, but for many on both sides of the bay, the quick trip feels like a voyage into a different universe. Oakland has long been thought of as the hipper, grittier sibling of San Francisco. It's where the artists live, the Burners party, the people not in tech cluster. Whether such characterizations are true or not is up for debate, but that perception accounts for what some consider a gaping distance between the cities. Indeed, there are glaring differences between the two. Oakland housing is more affordable (just barely), and spacious backyards are more commonplace. There's greater racial diversity in Oakland compared to San Francisco (though Oakland is experiencing rampant gentrification and the white-washing that comes with it). And there's the weather; without the obstruction of San Francisco's mythic fog, sunshine reigns. What's it actually like making the jump across the Bay, from Oakland to San Francisco? And how can one manage the move thoughtfully? We spoke to San Francisco expats to find out. *** When interviewing people for this story, one of the most common complaints was transit. "I miss public transportation," said Sierra Camille, 31, an office manager. "I don't miss the boring white people." San Francisco is an undeniably walkable city; Oakland generally requires a car or bicycle. Many said they must commute to San Francisco, where jobs are clustered, for work. Such is the case for George Ferris. The 61-year-old hotel suite coordinator spent more than three decades in San Francisco. He left in 2012 after purchasing a condo in Oakland. What once was a walk to work now requires a 20-minute-or-so BART ride. But the tradeoffs for a packed morning BART car are justified, he said. "I could have probably afforded to buy a condo in San Francisco," he said, though likely in one of the western neighborhoods, like the Outer Sunset. "I knew I'd rather BART than take Muni," he said, citing the local transit system's reputation for tardiness. Though he can no longer walk to work, Ferris says he makes up for the lost mileage with strolls around the neighborhood. "It's less dense, more forested," he said. "It's got somewhat of a small-town feel." After having kids, it was that down-to-earth neighborhood vibe that compelled Deepak Gupta, 35, to move to Oakland. "Having grown up the East Coast, I had a big backyard and space to play. I knew my kids weren't going to get that on this side of the tunnel," he said. Raising kids in a Hayes Valley condo left him and his wife "ripping at the seams." So they looked east, where they found the same exact things they loved about San Francisco, though in admittedly smaller concentrations. "I realized I didn't need hundreds of different restaurants, bars, coffee shops," he said. "I just needed five." Gupta and his wife, who work in business operations and education, purchased a home in the Grand Lake neighborhood. A smaller conglomerate of city amenities meant a larger living space and a homier neighborhood for the kids, where they can ride their bikes, tumble about the yard, spread out. "It's hard to find things I don't like about it," he said. Woolson, who's spent a decade in the city, could name a few frustrations. Namely, what he calls a sometimes "corrupt and incompetent local government." He recalled an incident in front of his West Oakland home in which his neighbor, a mother, was shot and killed. "I called Oakland police twice before the shooting, just 15 minutes before, when I saw a fight breaking out," he said. "They never sent anyone." More violent crimes take place in Oakland, on a per capita basis, than San Francisco. About 5,600 violent crimes occurred in Oakland (pop. 425,195), compared to San Francisco's 6,334 (pop. 884,363), according to crime statistics published by local police departments. Oakland saw 77 homicides last year; San Francisco tallied 56. Clusterings of crime vary by neighborhood, as does affordability, amenities and access to transit. For proximity to bars and nightlife, live downtown. For access to excellent restaurants within walking distance, there's Temescal. And for those inclined to the warehouse lifestyle, it's West or East Oakland. Making the move to Oakland comes with a moral quandary for many, however, who see themselves speeding up gentrification in a city that has already changed immensely over the last decade. San Francisco has already changed, they say, meaning moving in feels less treacherous. Oakland, though, is in the midst of transformation. Between 2000 and 2010, the city's population of black people dropped by a staggering 25 percent. This is the city where the Black Panther Party was founded, where congresswoman Barbara Lee got her start, where pivotal moments in hip-hop history were born. Today, the population of black people is about 25 percent (San Francisco's is 5.4 percent). A city that was 47 percent black in the 1980s is now 38 percent white. (To read more about what Oakland gentrification looks like when it's knocking on your door, read The Chronicle's East Bay columnist Otis Taylor here.) "There are many different worlds here, but communities aren't overlapping, integrating as much as I wish they were," Woolson, the West Oakland resident, lamented. He acknowledged it's "an interesting time" for the city, when new residents must be conscientious of those who have been there longterm, and the history they carry with them. "Keep your mind open, and don't expect things to happen on your terms," he said. Instead, "check out the terms they're already happening on, and embrace them." By doing so, Woolson said Oakland opens itself up in unexpected ways. "I met more neighbors on my block in West Oakland in six months than the 10 years I lived in my old San Francisco neighborhood," he said. "This is a very real, very warm, very welcoming community." Michelle Robertson is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her at mrobertson@sfchronicle.com or find her on Twitter at @mrobertsonsf. The day is coming, or so I hope, when the chamber music of Anton Arensky takes its proper place in our concert life. This is music that almost never gets performed, and yet every time a piece of Arenskys surfaces it turns out to be a small masterpiece of inventiveness, expressivity and grace. It happened again on Saturday, July 21, during a concert at the Music@Menlo Chamber Festival devoted to music from the Russian urban hub of St. Petersburg (or, for a relevant interlude, Leningrad). In a vivacious rendition at the Center for the Performing Arts at Menlo-Atherton, Arenskys String Quartet No. 2 from 1894 revealed itself as a work that should be in regular rotation. Even to call it simply a string quartet is to conceal some of the pieces startling ingenuity. Yes, its for four stringed instruments but in place of the usual lineup (two violins, viola, cello) Arensky calls for two cellos and a lone violin. Its not an instrumental configuration Ive ever encountered before, although music history mavens are encouraged to weigh in with other examples if there are any. And although the change in instrumentation might not seem all that consequential, it actually has a big effect throughout. The difference is a matter of both textural weight the ensemble produces a wonderfully bottom-heavy, pear-shaped sound and also of musical rhetoric. It means that the violin is out there all alone in the lead role, declaiming its melodies with no one else to trade ideas with; the result smacks faintly of concerto writing. Arensky, with quiet brilliance, exploits all these new possibilities in music that is otherwise not noticeably revolutionary. The opening movement has a somber, dark-hued undercurrent, and a tendency to address the harmonic implications of the material rather than its melodic shapes, and even the central movement a set of variations on a theme of Tchaikovsky sits very low in the saddle. Only in the brisk finale does the composer let things spring out into a brighter dimension. Of course, this is a harder piece to program than a conventional string quartet, if only because you cant entrust it to a standard ensemble. But like so much of Arenskys music, it deserves to be championed, and Saturdays ensemble violinist Arnaud Sussmann, violist Paul Neubauer and cellists David Requiro and David Finckel gave it a warm and eloquent rendition. The rest of the program, most of which sounded more ingratiating and lightweight by comparison, served as a reminder of how much of Russian music history involved a negotiation with the dominant European traditions of Vienna and Paris. Glinkas marvelous Trio pathetique from 1832 in a vivacious performance by clarinetist Jose Franch-Ballester, bassoon Peter Kolkay and pianist Michael Brown sounded like a winsome gloss on Schubert or late Beethoven, created with a terse directness that sounded distinctive. Balakirevs Octet for Winds, Strings and Piano, Op. 3, conjured up plenty of ruckus without much substance, and the remainder of the evening was devoted to music of Shostakovich. First came a recently rediscovered Impromptu for Viola and Piano 90 seconds worth of melody that was over as soon as it began and then a robust, emotionally detailed account of excerpts from the song cycle From Jewish Folk Poetry, done with probing intensity by soprano Lyubov Petrova, contralto Sara Couden and tenor Kang Wang. More Information Music@Menlo: Through Saturday, Aug. 4. $62-$72. Center for the Performing Arts, 555 Middlefield Road, Atherton. 650-330-2030. www.musicatmenlo.org See More Collapse Joshua Kosman is The San Francisco Chronicles music critic. Email: jkosman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JoshuaKosman WASHINGTON With his well-coiffed hair, tailored suits and keen ability to charm the powerful, Paul Manafort spent decades wheeling and dealing with U.S. politicians and foreign despots before he became Donald Trumps campaign chairman in 2016 and ran the Republican National Convention. As a Republican political strategist, he had helped run successful campaigns for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. As a lobbyist and consultant, he had pocketed tens of millions of dollars working for autocratic leaders, warlords and kleptocrats in such far-flung locales as Angola, Zaire, the Philippines and Ukraine. Manafort, 69, is about to face his toughest challenge yet: winning over a federal judge and jury in Alexandria, Va. Hes scheduled to go on trial Tuesday on allegations of bank fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy in the first courtroom showdown over charges brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. Although Manafort was ensnared by the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, he wasnt accused of election-related crimes. But prosecutors say his scheme extended through his time working for Trump and according to a motion filed on July 6, the campaign is relevant and inextricably intertwined with one of the charges against Manafort. Prosecutors say Manafort fraudulently obtained $16 million in two loans from a financial institution at which an executive sought a role in the Trump campaign and, if he won, the administration. The executive, who was not named in the court filing, served as a campaign adviser but did not end up working in government. The bank was not named. Those hoping the case will finally reveal or permanently dispel a broader and more insidious conspiracy are likely to be disappointed. In the same court filing, prosecutors said, The government does not intend to present at trial evidence or argument concerning collusion with the Russian government. Manafort has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has fought every step of the way. Even if hes acquitted, however, he faces a second trial in September on related charges, including failing to register as a lobbyist for a foreign government. Manafort joined the Trump campaign in March 2016, a crucial juncture in the race. That May, he was named campaign chairman and chief strategist. Chris Megerian is a Los Angeles Times writer. ATLANTA A Georgia lawmaker is seen using racial slurs and dropping his pants in an episode of Sacha Baron Cohens Showtime series Who Is America? In Sunday nights program, Republican Rep. Jason Spencer of Woodbine repeatedly uses a racial slur for African Americans and later exposes his bottom after being told it helps scare away Muslim terrorists. Spencer lost in the May primary but his term doesnt end until his replacement takes over after the November election. But the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Georgia House Speaker David Ralston has called for Spencer to resign. Representative Spencer has disgraced himself and should resign immediately, Ralson said. Georgia is better than this. The newspaper reported Spencer had earlier threatened legal action to prevent the network from airing footage of him. In a statement Monday, Spencer apologized for the ridiculously ugly episode but he refused to step down from office. In the episode, Cohen played an Israeli military expert and told Spencer to take part in what he was told was a counterterrorism video. Spencer is told to yell racial epithets and shimmy his exposed rear end toward purported Muslim attackers screaming USA and America. Cohen told Spencer the performance would ward off terrorists. Spencer said he thought the techniques would prevent what I believed was an inevitable attack. Other Georgia leaders also criticized Spencer. There is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever, Gov. Nathan Deal said in a tweet. I am saddened and disgusted by it. The Islamic Council on American-Islamic Relations also called for Spencers resignation. SALT LAKE CITY A Utah woman wont be charged with reckless endangerment after leaving a loaded gun on a baby changing table in a suburban Salt Lake City aquarium bathroom, authorities said Monday. The misdemeanor charge punishable by up to a year in jail doesnt apply because the woman didnt consciously intend to put people in danger by leaving the weapon behind, said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. She told police she put the .380-caliber pistol on the folded-up changing table to use the bathroom at the Living Planet Aquarium July 10, but forgot it while chasing after her children after they crawled under the stall door. Another mother found the weapon when she went to change her newborn baby, and patrons were frustrated when police originally said they didnt plan to press charges. It was a very close call, but at the end of the day its not about what we feel emotionally, its about what the law requires us to prove, Gill said. The weapon had a round in the chamber and the safety off. The case exposes a shortfall in state law, Gill said. He said theres no charge they can prosecute if a weapon is accidentally left where it could hurt someone. I think this demonstrates there is a gap, and I think everybody would recognize that even being negligent with a weapon whose sole purpose is very inherently dangerous, we ought to be concerned about that, Gill said. City prosecutors could still file a lesser charge, like a citation for trespassing by bringing a weapon to the aquarium despite a posted gun ban. Lindsay Whitehurst is an Associated Press writer. WASHINGTON President Trump threatened Monday to strip the security clearances of top former officials who criticized his refusal to confront Russia over its election interference, signaling a willingness to use the powers of the presidency to retaliate against some of his most outspoken detractors. Among those who could lose access are John Brennan, the former CIA director; James Comey, fired by Trump as FBI director last year; and James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence, said Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary. The president is exploring the mechanisms to remove security clearances because they politicized, and in some cases monetized, their public service and security clearances, Sanders said. The suggestion marked an unusual politicization of the security clearance process by a president who has routinely questioned the loyalties of national security and law enforcement officials and dismissed some of their findings particularly the conclusion that Moscow intervened in the 2016 election as attacks against him. Trumps plan to review their clearances appeared to be an off-the-cuff idea announced just after Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., suggested it to him rather than a carefully considered proposal. Two of the targets Sanders cited, Comey and Andrew McCabe, who was fired in March as deputy director of the FBI, no longer have security clearances. Former high-ranking officials in defense, intelligence, diplomacy and law enforcement usually maintain their clearances to advise those still in government, former officials said. A clearance also serves a more personally profitable function: helping departing officials get jobs at security contractors or similar firms. Trumps threat appeared designed to rebuke high-profile critics whose titles, experience and access to the nations most sensitive secrets lend weight to their arguments. It is intended to punish and intimidate his critics and is shameful, said Jeffrey Smith, a former general counsel for the CIA. Clapper declined to discuss the threat in detail but repeated comments he first made in an interview on CNN: This is just a very, very petty thing to do. And thats about all Ill say about it. Trump has routinely attacked intelligence agencies, portraying them as part of a so-called deep state, an unelected cabal seeking to steer U.S. policy and undercut him. Last year after a meeting with Putin, Trump called Brennan, Clapper and Comey political hacks as he cast doubt on Russias interference. Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Julian E. Barnes are New York Times writers. The Academic Affairs Division at Chattanooga State Community College has announced the following faculty promotions and tenure recognition approved by the Tennessee Board of Regents: Business: Instructor Clomeisha Tumlin; Tenure Philip Fortin. Engineering & Information Technologies: Associate Professor Lisa Miller. Humanities & Fine Arts: Associate Professor Wesley Jarrett and Sarah Page; Assistant Professor Randal Fosse, Mindy Griffin, Nicholas Hartline, Kristen Hutton, Joshua Johnson and Natalie Pitts; Tenure Keri Lamb, Ann Nicodemi, Stanley Weiss and Jennifer Wilson. Mathematics & Sciences: Professor Michael Pugh and Jianfeng Zhang; Assistant Professor Ian Beck, Terri Breetzke and Jason Holcomb. Nursing & Allied Health: Associate Professor Jeff Roberts, Caroline Rogers and Dawn Steele; Assistant Professor Jonathan Brigner, Stacey Carter, Yonna Jones and Michele McCarthy; Tenure Mark Matney. Social & Behavioral Sciences: Associate Professor Nancy Schurr; Tenure Michael McCamish. Faculty promotions approved by the Tennessee Board of Regents in the Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) include: Master Instructor II: Jill Wentworth, Computer Support Technology. Senior Instructor: Nancy Draper, Medical Assisting. Instructor: Diane Jackson, Administrative Office Professional; Cynthia Rutledge, Medical Assisting; Rebecca Stewart, Cosmetology. Tenure: Ed Grun, Motorcycle and Marine Services Technology; Michael Harris, Diesel Equipment Technology. Jul 23, 2018 | By Thomas Michelin wants to put wood in your tires, and the company believes wooden tires will be a reality in less than two years. Michelin announced its 2048 ambitions in May, which includes a plan to manufacture 100 percent recyclable tires by the year 2048, while using 80 percent sustainable materials. Now, that plan has received additional clarification, as the French tire maker told Motoring in an interview that Michelin is investigating the use of wood in its tires. Cyrille Roget, Michelin's worldwide director of scientific and innovation communication, said that company is looking to replace key oil ingredients with wood-based ones, and hope to show the first tire made of wood sometime in 2020. The route to this ambitious sustainable material target will be achieved by research programs into bio-sourced materials like Biobutterfly. The Biobutterfly program was launched in 2012 with Axens and IFP Energies Nouvelles to create synthetic elastomers from biomass such as wood, straw or beet. Michelin is developing innovative solutions today in order to integrate more and more recycled and renewable materials in its tires. The move to wood ingredients brings a lot of benefits. "Trees grow everywhere. So you re-distribute the opportunity for everyone to have local sourcing. And they are renewable," said Roget. The wooden tyres will still have most of the components used today, but the elastomers from wood chips will replace the oil content in tyres. We have a project working with wood chips. We will use the waste from the wood industry to create elastomers that come into tires, Roget added. We believe it is a good solution for the future. Right now, the company is researching on wood in Brazil and setting up a plantation model that allows for the growing of bananas and cocoa alongside rubber. The company believes one day that 3D printing will revolutionize the tire process. Advanced materials and 3D printing technologies will be used to manufacture and renew the tread of this mobility solution and will mean that it is 100 percent recyclable. The company has established a joint venture called AddUp with Fives Group S.A. to develop a line of metal 3D printers, and they will use 3D printed molds to improve Michelin tire performance. Roget admits the realistic timeframe for 3D printing of tyres is 10-15 years, but hopes new technologies could change that. We are working with it to develop rubber printing, or polymer printing. We are more in the early stages of this technology. But it needs to be industrialised and ready for the future. 3D printed tire made of recycled materials can be recycled at the end of its life. It even has a re-printable tread, so the bulk of the tire never needs to be changed. We can print the tread, but it needs to be industrialised. We are making some very fast advances," Roget explained. "It could be that eventually the re-charge station for your electric car is also the recharge station for the tyres." Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: 2robotguy wrote at 7/23/2018 10:39:34 PM:Fantastic idea Michelin, Now our tires can really dry rot :-) EL CERRITO (BCN) A 5-year-old girl who El Cerrito police asked for help in finding after she went missing with her father has been returned safely. A family member drove Royale Gant back to El Cerrito from Southern California late Saturday night and she was reunited with her mother at the Police Department, according to police. Royale was with her father, Dupree Grant, who allegedly violated a court-ordered custody agreement by not returning her to her mother at an agreed-upon time, police said. Although the girl was returned, Dupree Grant remains at large and still has a warrant for his arrest for deprivation of parental rights, police said. Anyone with information about Gant's whereabouts is asked to contact Detective Ware at (510) 215-4420 or sware@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us. 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. ANTIOCH (BCN) A man was injured in a shooting in Antioch early this morning and the alleged shooter was detained at the scene, police said. Officers responded at 12:46 a.m. to a home in the 5100 block of Homestead Way on a report of a shooting and arrived to find a 34-year-old man with a gunshot wound to his lower body, according to police. The victim was taken to a hospital to be treated for his injuries, which are not considered life-threatening. The suspect remained at the scene and was detained without incident, and the firearm allegedly used in the shooting was also recovered nearby, police said. Police did not immediately release the name of the suspect or what led to the shooting. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Antioch police at (925) 778-2441. 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. An 18-year-old woman who was fatally stabbed at the MacArthur BART station on Sunday night was identified by Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf today as Nia Wilson. BART spokesman Jim Allison said a suspect described as a white man in his 20s or 30s with short hair and a heavy build allegedly attacked Wilson and another young woman at random as they departed a Warm Springs-bound train at the MacArthur station at about 9:45 p.m. Sunday. The second woman was taken to a hospital to be treated for her injuries, according to Allison. The mayor said in a statement, "The senseless and violent stabbing of two young women on a BART train platform last night has shaken our community. Every parent who saw the father of Nia Wilson grieve for his daughter is heartbroken by this horrific act." Schaaf said BART is the lead agency investigating the stabbing but Oakland police "have been in constant contact with BART police, are already providing support on this investigation and have considerable resources available to further assist in identifying and apprehending the person or people responsible for this attack." The mayor said at this time authorities don't know of a motive for the crime. "We all mourn in this moment and we will all work together to bring justice for Nia," Schaaf said. Four people were displaced following a two-alarm fire inside a garage at a home in Fairfield early this morning. According to Battalion Chief Andy Cranston, the blaze was reported at a 3,500-square-foot, two-story home in the 2300 block of Fairview Place at 12:52 a.m. Fire crews were able to contain the fire to the garage, but Cranston said there was some smoke damage inside the home. The fire was contained at 1:15 a.m. The four people and a dog will stay with family, Cranston said. Damage to the home is estimated at $100,000. The Country Fire at Ed R. Levin County Park in the hills east of Milpitas has burned 320 acres and is 80 percent contained as of this morning after it started burning Sunday afternoon, Cal Fire officials said. About 200 firefighters are working to battle the vegetation fire using 15 engines, according to Cal Fire officials, who do not know when the fire will be fully contained. One structure has been destroyed, and about 10 more are threatened, according to Cal Fire. The fire is currently burning toward Weller Road in the southeast and is threatening a communication base at Mount Allison. Two ranches off Weller Road east of Ed R. Levin County Park have been evacuated, while Weller Road north of Calaveras Road and Downing Road north of Old Calaveras Road remain closed. The fire was reported at 1:05 p.m. Sunday, and its cause has not been determined as of this morning. No injuries have been reported. A skateboarder suffered life-threatening injuries in a collision with a vehicle in San Francisco's Mission Dolores neighborhood on Sunday evening, according to police. The collision was reported around 6:50 p.m. in the area of 20th and Guerrero streets. Police did not release any other information about the collision except that the skateboarder had life-threatening head injuries. A 5-year-old girl who El Cerrito police asked for help in finding after she went missing with her father has been returned safely. A family member drove Royale Gant back to El Cerrito from Southern California late Saturday night and she was reunited with her mother at the Police Department, according to police. Royale was with her father, Dupree Grant, who allegedly violated a court-ordered custody agreement by not returning her to her mother at an agreed-upon time, police said. Although the girl was returned, Dupree Grant remains at large and still has a warrant for his arrest for deprivation of parental rights, police said. Livermore police are asking for the public's help in finding a man who was last seen Sunday evening as he left for a trip to Discovery Bay. Robert Solorio left around 5 p.m. in a silver Lexus with license plate No. DP733CV, according to police. Solorio is about 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighs about 225 pounds, has black hair and brown eyes, and was wearing a white shirt, brown slacks and walks with a cane, police said. A photo has been released of Solorio and anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call Livermore police at (925) 371-4987. A homeless man pleaded not guilty this morning to felony arson along a Sonoma County trail in June. Domingo Bautista-Bautista, 51, also pleaded not guilty in Sonoma County Superior Court to a misdemeanor charge of possession of an opium pipe. There were four suspicious fires along the West County Trail and bike path near Occidental Road in Graton on June 14, and 13 small fires along the Santa Rosa Creek Trail near Dutton Avenue in Santa Rosa on June 16, according to Santa Rosa police and the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office. A witness identified Bautista in a photo lineup as the suspect, sheriff's officials said. Bautista is being held under $20,000 bail in Sonoma County Jail, and the number of fires he allegedly set will be determined during a preliminary hearing on Sept. 4, Deputy District Attorney Leslie Butori said. The National Weather Service is warning Bay Area residents and visitors of an increased risk of rip currents and sneaker waves at beaches in the region because of a southerly swell hitting the coast between today and Wednesday. Weather service officials said there is moderate confidence in the surf forecast that will primarily affect south-facing shorelines, with smaller impacts at southwest and west-facing beaches. The increased swell is expected to dissipate late Wednesday morning and will continue to decrease later in the week, according to the weather service. 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) A skateboarder suffered life-threatening injuries in a collision with a vehicle in San Francisco's Mission Dolores neighborhood on Sunday evening, according to police. The collision was reported around 6:50 p.m. in the area of 20th and Guerrero streets. Police did not release any other information about the collision except that the skateboarder had life-threatening head injuries. 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. MILPITAS (BCN) A vegetation fire near Ed R. Levin County Park in the hills east of Milpitas has burned 322 acres as of tonight, but firefighters say it is now 40 percent contained. It is unknown when full containment for grass and brush fire may be achieved, according to Cal Fire and Milpitas Police Department officials. Two hundred and fifty firefighters were working to battle the fire tonight, using 25 engines, four air tankers and other resources, Cal Fire spokesman Jonathan Cox said in a statement. One structure has been destroyed, and about 10 more are threatened, Cox said. Two ranches off Weller Road east of Ed R. Levin park, have been evacuated; Weller Road north of Calaveras Road and Downing Road north of Old Calaveras Road remained closed Sunday night. The fire was reported at 1:05 p.m. today, and its cause has not been determined tonight. Ed R. Levin County Park is located in the chaparral foothills of the Diablo Range east of the Santa Clara Valley. It is the largest park in Milpitas and a popular location for hang gliding. Crews from the Milpitas, Spring Valley Volunteer, San Jose and Fremont fire departments are also helping fight the fire, and several law enforcement agencies are helping manage the various fire scenes. 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. CHICO, Calif. - Chico City Council candidate Scott Huber is traveling to Boulder, Colorado to discuss the effects of cannabis legalization in the community. Huber will be in Colorado for three days. On the first day, he plans to meet with the city manager's office, the police department and a cannabis enforcement officer. On the second day, Huber will speak with the Boulder Chamber of Commerce. On the last day, he will explore some dispensaries and cultivating facilities. Action News Now asked Huber what he hopes to take away from this experience. I have witnessed myself, seniors, that I know well that have benefited medically as well as pain from use of medical cannabis. I think there's a good argument to be made from a number of fronts for why it should be legalized commercially on a legal basis throughout the area, Huber said. Huber said he chose to travel to this city because Boulder is a university town with a slightly larger population than Chico of approximately 108,000 people. Monica Tigleanu joins JLT as a Partner from Beazley and prior to this she was a Senior Underwriter in Cyber Risk at AIG. As a certified Information Privacy Professional, she has a wealth of experience of handling issues around information security and privacy. Claire Davey joins as a Partner from Marsh, where she was Assistant Vice President in Technology E&O and Cyber Liability, and prior to this a broker at Aon where she was primarily responsible for Professional Indemnity insurance. Claire will focus on growing JLTs European retail presence. Anthony Herring joins as a broker in the European Cyber Team and will be based in Stockholm. Anthony was previously a Cyber Practice Leader in Sweden for Aon, and has extensive experience in property insurance bringing a new perspective to business interruption to JLTs cyber team clients. Jack Elliott-Frey joins from Aon Risk Solutions, where he was a Cyber Broker. Prior to this he worked for cyber insurance broker Safeonline. These new appointments follow the appointment of Sjaak Schouteren as a Partner based in Rotterdam, leading client education and business expansion across Europe earlier this year. JLTs Cyber practice collaborates with clients in a range of industries to identify key cyber risks and create innovative insurance solutions to address them. Sarah Stephens, Partner and Head of Cyber at JLT Specialty, said: Modern and constantly evolving online risks require true multi-disciplinary thinking to address effectively and strategically. These welcome additions to our team are the latest demonstration of our commitment to bringing on board highly skilled individuals from diverse backgrounds such as insurance, business intelligence and IT. Our footprint continues to grow significantly across Europe, where there is clearly heightened awareness of cyber risks due to rising numbers of incidents as well as European cyber and data-related regulatory changes. This latest expansion will help us continue to define innovative solutions for companies in the UK, across Europe and around the globe. John Lloyd Young was 45 minutes into his Saturday, July 21, set at Feinsteins at the Nikko before he lofted his first attention-getting high note. It came in Unchained Melody, which he recorded on My Turn, a 2012 album of 1960s love songs. A sold-out room would have to wait a little longer for the high notes that made Young famous, in the falsetto-voiced, Tony Award-winning Frankie Valli role in Jersey Boys he created on Broadway. Young went on to score a Grammy Award for the cast album and star in that shows film adaptation directed by Clint Eastwood. Sure enough, with a Jersey Boys trifecta of My Eyes Adored You, Cant Take My Eyes Off You and Sherry, Young delivered the brand-name goods albeit with some distancing winks at the material. (He brought a 7-year-old boy onstage for a sing-along, dance-along Sherry.) But as both his voice and patter affirmed, Young, who turned 43 on July 4, has moved on. In an 85-minute evening of Broadway music that ranged from a feverishly guttural take on So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard (The Wiz) to a stark Never Will I Marry (Frank Loessers obscure Greenwillow) to a gorgeously shaped Dreamgirls vow I Am Changing, Young made the case that digging into this kind of music is more challenging than aping Valli. Falsetto is lighter and easier on the voice, he said. Broadway shows are not for wimps. As if to certify his tough-guy credentials, Young sauntered onstage through the house in a bomber-style jacket and shades to power his way from The Wiz selection to an intense Heaven on Their Minds, from Jesus Christ Superstar. His voice had a rough burr to it and sounded stretched at times. He didnt always land his intervals cleanly. The effort, by intention or not, showed in his singing. Young programmed in a mid-set break, taking a seat while pianist Tommy Faragher barreled through a number from The Whos Tommy. A while later, a hip-swiveling Young was back out in the house to steal One Last Kiss from several women. The show, which Young and Faragher performed three times over the weekend, was somewhat erratic. The chatter about his childhood showbiz dreams could be pruned. Youngs best use of language came in his attentive and often affecting renderings of lyrics. After ditching the sunglasses and changing into a smart dinner jacket, he purred out a lovely I Have Dreamed, from The King and I, followed by a patient, absorbing Where Do I Go, the Act One closer in Hair. Even an overworked chestnut like The Impossible Dream from Man of La Mancha came off freshly here, with Young adding a slight bluesy tint here and there as he mused on the lines rather than declaring them. Tempos ran slow but not sluggish. Young felt out the content of every lyric, the inflection of every word. He may not have the coziest or most supple voice, yet he consistently brought the listener inside the songs. Never mind the rouser from Grease that closed the show. I Am Changing, which preceded it, was the real takeaway. The Jersey Boys crooner has entered a new season in his career. Steven Winn is The Chronicles former arts and culture critic. National Weather Service An energetic southerly swell reached Northern California Monday, leading the National Weather Service to issue a beach hazard statement with the warning: "Never turn your back to the ocean." The agency forecasts dangerous riptides, longshore currents and sneaker waves for Bay Area beaches, especially those facing to the south, such as Stinson and Santa Cruz, through Wednesday morning. Moisture from the south is bringing summer hail, thunderstorms, sudden temperature drops and the threat of flash flooding to the Sierra. The National Weather office in Reno warned Monday, "Storms may develop quickly and seem like they come out of nowhere." Lightning is in the forecast throughout the northern Sierra Monday and NWS meteorologist Cassie Lehay warns people hiking, biking and enjoying the great outdoors in the northern Sierra, including the Tahoe basin, should keep an eye on the sky. "If you hear thunder, you're close enough to be struck by lightning," Lehay says. "You should seek shelter." The state of California saw 1,610 lightning strikes on Sunday and most hit the Eastern Sierra. The isolated storm cells are localized and also delivering small hail and heavy rain. The Reno/Tahoe International Airport broke a rainfall record on Saturday with 1.29 inches falling on Saturday, the single wettest day on record in June, July and August since records started in 1937. Most of the rainfall occurred in only one hour. ALSO, Huge fire creeps closer to Yosemite despite containment progress A thunderstorm also pelted Emerald Bay near South Lake Tahoe with quarter-size hail and whipped up the lake with 60 mph winds. Sparks, Nev., saw flash flooding over the weekend and a flood watch remains in effect through Monday evening. Landslides are also a concern, especially in wildfire burn scars. More thunderstorms are in the forecast for the Tahoe basin on Tuesday; the storm system will move east Wednesday. The storm activity is forecast to be north of the Yosemite area where the Ferguson Fire has burned more than 33,000 acres and is 13 percent contained. NEW DELHI A woman was killed in central India on rumors that she was part of a gang that kidnapped children, police said Monday, days after the nations highest court called for immediate steps to control deadly mob violence across the country. The Indian government announced Monday that it is setting up two committees to propose laws to deal with the growing mob violence. At least 14 people were arrested in Madhya Pradesh states Singrauli district following the killing of the woman, senior police officer Riyaz Iqbal said. Iqbal said residents informed police on Saturday that a womans body was in a forested area. An initial investigation showed she had been taken Friday night by a mob that dragged her to a village community center while punching and kicking her and hitting her with sticks. Iqbal said the woman was seen roaming around neighboring villages a few days earlier amid rumors that members of child kidnapping gangs were active in the area. She has not yet been identified. India has a long history of mob violence, but in recent years, the internet and smartphones have aided the circulation of deadly rumors even to remote places. At least 25 people have been killed and dozens wounded in mob attacks in the last three months over rumors they were part of child kidnapping gangs. The victims were outsiders, mostly targeted because they looked different or didnt speak the local language. Although Indian authorities have stated that there is no truth to the child-lifting rumors and the victims were innocent, the brutal attacks, often captured on cell phones and shared on social media, have spread across the country. In addition, at least 20 people have been killed and dozens wounded by Hindu extremists who call themselves cow protectors and are linked to Prime Minister Narendra Modis Bhartiya Janta Party. Most of the attacks have targeted Muslims. Aijaz Hussain is an Associated Press writer. LONDON A furor has erupted over leaked documents showing that British officials are not requiring their U.S. counterparts to provide assurances that two alleged British jihadists loyal to the Islamic State group will not be executed if they are eventually put on trial in the United States. The Daily Telegraph reported Monday it had seen a letter from Home Secretary Sajid Javid to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions concerning two individuals who have been in custody since their capture in eastern Syria in January. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Burglars stole about $53,000 in items from six businesses on Forest Avenue in West Brighton, according to police. Watches and other items were taken on April 27 between 2:30 and 4:30 a.m. from the stores on the 500 block of Forest Avenue in West Brighton, according to a post on the 120th Precinct Twitter feed and a spokesman for the NYPD's Deputy Commissioner of Public information. The burglars damaged and entered through rear doors to take electronics, cash, watches, bracelets and other jewelry from the Juice Bar, the Resource Room, Victory Martial Arts, Three Guys Sushi, My Yesterdays boutique and the Christopher Michael Salon, the police spokesman said. Police believe that more than one person was involved in the heists, but descriptions for the suspects are not immediately available, the spokesman said. Photos of stolen items were posted on the 120th Precinct Twitter feed along with a request for tips. People with information are asked to contact Patrol Borough Staten Island at 718-876-8196 or NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-8477 (TIPS) or for Spanish, 1-888-577-4782 (PISTA). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Right before Mayor Bill de Blasio set up shop on Staten Island for the week, congressional candidate and fellow Democrat Max Rose slammed him for not taking action on several local issues. In a letter penned with Island community activists, Rose urged de Blasio to address several issues under the city's jurisdiction. "Staten Island is tired of being the city's forgotten borough," Rose, a St. George resident who recently worked as chief of staff at a nonprofit healthcare clinic, wrote in the letter. "At this moment Cromwell Center remains just a dream, special needs students have no school, our traffic problems remain unresolved, and there are kids waitlisted to get help for their drug addiction. All of these are issues the Mayor can take action on - and it's what he should spend his time solving." The letter pointed out that de Blasio has yet to support building a new Cromwell Center on the North Shore after the recreation center collapsed eight years ago. "Staten Islanders are still waiting for the construction of a new Cromwell Center. The development of this public facility, which served 1,000 people daily, is long overdue," said Kelly Villar, president of Cromwell Center. "While the city stalls, our opioid, health, juvenile delinquency and gang problems worsen. Today I ask Mayor de Blasio, what are you waiting for?" Rose, a decorated Army combat veteran, also told de Blasio that the city has failed to reduce congestion on the Staten Island Expressway after promising to implement measures to do so during his last weeklong visit to Staten Island. The letter also urged de Blasio to keep Gingerbread Learning Center -- a special needs preschool that is set to close after its contract ended -- open. The letter also pushed the mayor to take action on property taxes, lead paint testing, funds to fight the opioid crisis, and a fast ferry plan for the South Shore. De Blasio and his administration are working out of Staten Island Borough Hall and another St. George municipal building as part of the "City Hall in Your Borough" initiative. Rose is running against Rep. Dan Donovan (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) in this year's general election. A spokesperson for the Mayor declined to comment on the letter and told the Advance that he hasn't seen it. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Health care, gun control and the availability of jobs were key topics discussed during a question and answer session hosted by U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York) on Sunday at the College of Staten Island's (CSI)Willowbrook campus. "One of the best jobs I have as senator is to travel around our state to talk to my constituents, to listen to you, to hear what's on your mind, and I love having town halls," Gillibrand said. "It's a chance where I can really hear directly from you and what's on your mind." During the hour-long town hall, Gillibrand took questions via lottery from an audience of about 200 people. Originally planned to be held in an auditorium in the Center for the Arts building, Gillibrand supporters and Democratic candidates funneled into the building's lobby for the standing room only event without air conditioning. CSI President William J. Fritz apologized for the power outage, and said the campus was running on emergency power. VARIETY OF TOPICS Before taking questions, Gillibrand opened the town hall addressing a variety of topics, including the cost of health care. "We should really be fighting for a Medicare for all system," she said. "The reason why I believe that is because you have to take the for-profit insurers out of the mix to get to affordable coverage that's universal. She continued: "I really believe that if you let anyone buy into Medicare a price they could afford, it would create competition. It would be a low-cost provider, and you could get universal coverage that's affordable." Gillibrand also said if she could do one thing, it would be to "get money out of politics." "I would like to get money out of politics as a way to make sure that the wealthiest, most powerful in this country don't have an out-sized influence on our democracy," she said. JOBS After an attendee said she was laid off from her job, Gillibrand said it's become common for high-skilled workers in their 40s and 50s to lose their jobs because they are considered high cost employees. She said companies are instead hiring young people at a lower salary. A CSI Macauley Honors student also expressed concerns that he won't find a job in his field after graduation. "I want to have a much bigger conversation about how we reward work in this country," she said. "How can we make sure someone can work their way up, earn their way to the middle class, provide for their family and not be set aside as soon as they become too high cost?" She said she would focus on re-training people to get higher paying jobs, and pairing local jobs with trainers. HEALTH CARE One woman asked what steps Gillibrand is taking to pass a "Medicare for all" system. The senator responded that the upcoming election is the best opportunity to vote for representatives that share the same values that "health care is a right, not a privilege." "I've brought a couple of different bills to get us to 'Medicare for all,'" she said. "One is a straight up "Medicare for all" bill, which builds the program and creates the four-year transition where people can buy in. They can have access to shift the system away from this for-profit insurance model to a not-for-profit healthcare model." She said a real problem is drug companies that take advantage of people by raising prices, engaging in price gouging and manipulating the system. GUN CONTROL One woman who works for March for Our Lives New York asked Gillibrand what her thoughts are about the Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPO) bill that would allow judges to take firearms away from people who could potentially harm themselves or others. "We have a huge problem with people who shouldn't have weapons, [and] have access to weapons. ...People who are gravely mentally ill, people who are on a terrorism watch list, people with violent criminal records -- they should not have access to guns," said Gillibrand. The senator said there is a need for better background check systems that work nationwide, and that New York needs to pass an anti-trafficking gun law to ensure weapons purchased from other states aren't sold illegally. Gillibrand was later asked if she received any campaign money from the NRA. When she said she wasn't sure, but would return any money received, the crowd erupted in applause. Staten Island is Gillibrand's second stop after Rochester as part of her summer and fall town hall series. FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. STATEN ISLAND -- Mayor Bill de Blasio braved the heavy rain and wind on the Staten Island Ferry to kick off "City Hall in Your Borough," Monday morning, heading to his weeklong stay on the Island. The mayor greeted ferry riders, read the Advance's Monday Page 1 story about the growing number of ticks and Lyme disease cases on the Island, and did a quick walk through around the ferry before sitting down and staying in the same spot for the entire ride. He also did not take any questions from the Advance on his way to the borough. As he walked through the ferry one rider asked: "Who is he?" Another, Jessica Fortino, with the city's Building Industry Association, walked up the mayor and asked him to help her organization with moving along the building process in the borough more smoothly. Mayoral spokesman Eric Phillips told the Advance Hizzoner skipped his daily morning gym routine to get on the 9:30 a.m. ferry. After he got off the ferry, Hizzoner posed for selfies with several people in the St. George Ferry Terminal. He also walked right past a homeless man on his way to Borough Hall without stopping. @NYCMayor walks past homeless man at St. George ferry terminal without stoping pic.twitter.com/mZ5BM5m74T Sydney Kashiwagi (@SydneyKashiwagi) July 23, 2018 MAYOR TO MAKE LYME DISEASE ANNOUNCEMENT, WILL STOP BY ANNADALE TERRACE DINER He shook hands with Borough President James Oddo at around 10 a.m. and they quickly headed into their offices to get to work. At 2 p.m. the mayor will hold a press conference at Blue Heron Park and Nature Center to make an announcement with Oddo about Lyme disease prevention. At around 3 p.m. Phillips confirmed that Hizzoner will head to Annadale Terrace Diner with Councilman Joe Borelli (R-South Shore) to talk to constituents and eat with them. Looks like @NYCMayor is reading my story pic.twitter.com/OIQ5ZOC3EM Sydney Kashiwagi (@SydneyKashiwagi) July 23, 2018 THE REST OF THE ADMINISTRATION TO MEET MONDAY Also on Monday, several top officials from various city agencies will hold meetings around Staten Island. Starting at 10:30 a.m. the Department of Small Business Services will deliver certifications and other small business services on-site in front of Borough Hall. At noon, the Department of Finance and State Sen. Diane Savino (Staten Island) will hold a Homeowners and Tenants Enrollment event at the Reformed Church of Staten Island. And at 1 p.m. Deputy Mayor Glen will head to the Staten Island Museum at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center Campus to promote She Built NYC. FOLLOW SYDNEY KASHIWAGI ON TWITTER STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A salmonella outbreak linked to raw turkey has affected 90 people in 26 states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC and public health and regulatory officials are investigating the multi-state outbreak of Salmonella Reading infections linked to raw turkey products. Eight people from New York reported illness associated with this outbreak. There have been 40 hospitalizations, and no deaths have been reported. Illnesses began from Nov. 20, 2017, to June 29, 2018, ranging in age from less than a year old to 91 years old -- with a median age of 41. The CDC has not yet identified a single, common supplier of raw turkey products or live turkeys. Of 61 people interviewed, 37 reported preparing or eating turkey products purchased raw, including ground turkey, turkey pieces or whole turkey. They reported buying many different brands of raw turkey products from multiple stores. Two of the 61 ill people interviewed became sick after pets in their home ate raw ground turkey pet food, while three people worked in a facility that raises or processes turkeys, or lived with someone who did. Those infected with salmonella develop diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps 12 to 72 hours after being exposed to the bacteria. The illness usually lasts four to seven days, and most people recover without treatment. In some cases, the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized. Salmonella infection can spread from the intestines to the bloodstream, and other places in the body. In rare cases, infection can cause death unless the person is treated promptly with antibiotics. Children younger than 5 years of age, adults older than 65 years of age, and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to have severe illness. CDC is not advising consumers to avoid eating properly cooked turkey products, or for retailers to stop selling raw turkey products. The agency recommends consumers to always handle raw turkey carefully and cook it thoroughly to prevent food poisoning. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) is monitoring the outbreak. FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A prominent Staten Island physician tried to take liberties with her, groping and kissing her in the office lunchroom last year, a former employee alleges in a lawsuit. Danielle Bonamo has sued Dr. Joseph Motta, alleging the urologist "reeked of alcohol" when he "forcefully hug(ged) and kiss(ed) her" on Feb. 27, 2017, in his Bloomfield office on South Avenue. Bonamo's civil complaint alleges Motta, a past president of the Richmond County Medical Society, subjected her to "unwanted sexual advances," frequently commented about her looks and inappropriately touched her when she worked for him. The doctor's "discriminatory and harassing conduct" created an "abusive, threatening and hostile" work environment, the complaint contends. Bonamo alleges gender discrimination in the suit, recently filed in state Supreme Court, St. George. She seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. Bonamo's age and home community aren't listed in court papers. Anthony G. Mango, Motta's lawyer, said the doctor "categorically denies" the allegations, calling them "completely false and without any basis in reality." "We feel it is important to note that Ms. Bonamo left her job at Dr. Motta's practice over 18 months ago, without saying a thing to anyone about these allegations," said Mango. "She never complained about anything that she is now alleging in this court complaint, so it's very curious that she waited 18 months to say a thing." "In any event, these allegations are false, and not credible, and we look forward to defending this matter in court," the attorney said. Bonamo's lawyer did not return a phone call seeking comment. According to the complaint, Bonamo began working in Motta's office in June 2014 as an unpaid extern and medical assistant. After her externship ended, she was hired as a paid hourly employee. On the afternoon of Feb. 27 of last year, Motta called her into the lunchroom, the complaint alleges. There, he "forcefully" grabbed her, hugged her, and stuck his tongue in her mouth, alleges the complaint. Bonamo resisted Motta, who smelled of booze and continued to hug and kiss her, said the complaint. She eventually pushed away her employer, who stands six feet five inches tall, and immediately left the office, feeling "unsafe" there, the complaint said. Bonamo never went back, because the environment had become "toxic and intimidating," the complaint alleges. The experiences have "significantly damaged" Bonamo's quality of life and "irreversibly harmed" her self-esteem and well-being, maintains the complaint. Motta is well-known in medical circles. He is the division chief of Urology, Lithotripsy & Urology Oncology at Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton. He has also written on medical matters for the Advance. None of the alleged actions are claimed to have occurred at the hospital, and Richmond University is not named in the suit. Motta has no disciplinary history, according to the state Health Department's Office of Professional Medical Conduct. The corporate regulator has accused former Wallabies great Simon Poidevin, the managing director of Sydney-based stockbroking giant Bell Potter, of urging a colleague to lie for him to get him "off the hook" in a market manipulation case. Mr Poidevin, 59, is fighting a decision by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to ban him from providing financial services for five years for allegedly manipulating the price of DirectMoney, a struggling fintech company the broking house helped float in July 2015. Former Wallabies captain turned Bell Potter managing director Simon Poidevin. Credit:James Brickwood ASIC found last year that Mr Poidevin "instructed" or "positively encouraged" Bell Potter trader Damian Rodr to buy shares in DirectMoney, which "had the effect of creating and maintaining an artificial price" for the company. Mr Poidevin is challenging the ban, which has yet to take effect, in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in Sydney. Mr Rodr is also challenging his four-year ban. AustralianSuper will join a host of industry super funds giving evidence at the royal commission, while retail fund behemoths AMP and IOOF will also face a grilling. The royal commission will examine the governance and selling practices of seven industry super funds including Catholic Super, Host-Plus, Sunsuper, CBUSs United Super, QSuper and Energy Super at the fifth round of hearings in Melbourne next month. AustralianSuper chief executive Ian Silk has been a staunch defender of industry super's practices. Credit:Arsineh Houspian Along with AMP and IOOF, five other retail, for-profit funds will also be called to give evidence including AMP, IOOF, Mercer, CBAs Colonial First State, NAB/MLCs Nulis, Suncorp and ANZs Onepath and Oasis. The royal commission will use case studies relating to all of the funds though the details on each of the case studies are yet to be made publicly available. ASX-listed cash box, Molopo Energy, had blown most of its cash by the time investors purged the board in May and installed former Woolies boss Roger Corbett as its latest chairman. Roger Corbett. Credit:Louie Douvis His board includes the likes of former corporate cop, Tony Hartnell. Just the sort of person you need when tracking through the oil fields of Texas to find where the money went. The oil explorers have now pitched up at a Texas courtroom to claw back some of the cash splashed around so eagerly by the previous board - including companys managing director, Baljit Johal, whose tenure lasted just seven months. According to the court documents put before CBD, Molopo is seeking a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction in the District Court of Harris Country, Texas. Australia's largest toll company, Transurban, has spared the Berejiklian government from the embarrassment of conducting a multi-billion-dollar sale of WestConnex with just one bidder. Transurban's decision to make a conditional offer to buy a majority stake in the 33-kilometre Sydney toll road keeps competitive tension in Australia's largest infrastructure deal this year. It means a Transurban-led consortium will be vying with IFM Investors and its partners for a 51 per cent stake in WestConnex, raising the prospect of the government achieving a higher sale price than if only one party remained in the race. Transurban told investors on Monday, shortly before the deadline for final bids closed, that its offer was conditional on approvals from the competition regulator and the Foreign Investment Review Board, something the company said it remained confident of obtaining. The company behind a group-discount outfit part owned by News Ltd and run by Kevin Rudds former press secretary Lachlan Harris, One Big Switch, has been fined by the consumer watchdog for an allegedly misleading ad campaign. Kevin Rudd's one-time press secretary Lachlan Harris founded One Big Switch. Credit:Andrew Taylor Revtech Media was fined $25,200 after receiving two infringement notices from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission for allegedly overstating discounts consumers could receive if they switched energy retailers. The fine is the second regulatory run-in for Revtech, which changed its name from One Big Switch in December, for misleading statements. In 2015, the group ran afoul of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission for running an insurance campaign without a financial services licence. If your job is making you feel stressed, it might help to get a global perspective. Workers in most other countries feel even more anxious. New research shows Australians are the second least stressed workers behind those working in the Netherlands. The survey of more than 23,000 office workers by global recruiting company Robert Half shows the Dutch are the least stressed while workers in Germany are the most stressed. The second least stressed are Australians, followed by the British (3rd), Americans (4th), Belgians (5th), Canadians (6th), French (7th) and Germans in 8th place. Investors could take stronger action to force listed companies to address the gender pay gap including protest votes against re-election of board members and executive remuneration according to the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR) which found that more than one quarter of ASX100 companies did not have a remuneration policy that explicitly covered gender pay equity. The report, Gender pay equity and Australian listed companies, ranks ASX 100 companies that are required by law to make disclosures to the federal government's Workplace Gender Equality Agency on how they are addressing gender-based pay discrimination. Men hold the overwhelming majority of positions of power throughout the economy. Credit:AP The report, conducted by ACCR and CAER and supported by Future Super, says of the 91 ASX listed companies with WGEA reports, 24 companies confirmed that for the 2017 reporting year (ending May 31, 2017) they did not have a formal remuneration policy that covers gender pay equity. But companies may have taken more recent action to address the gender pay gap, and this is not captured in the 2017 public reports that ACCR relies on. Sydney residents are concerned for the safety of their pets after a fox "the size of a labrador" was spotted crossing Victoria Road outside the Holy Cross College in Ryde. Tilly Simpson, 25, was driving through the area at about 10.15pm on Saturday when she noticed the animal, which had a chicken in its mouth. The fox, spotted crossing Victoria Road in Ryde, on Saturday night. Credit:Tilly Simpson "I called my boyfriend's mum [who lives nearby] and I said: 'Put your chickens away because there's a fox across the road with a chicken in its mouth and it's heading in your direction,'" she said. "It was just so bizarre. I haven't seen them so close to the road or in the city suburbs before." It would be wrong to say Jimmy Watson's was Melbourne's first wine bar. There were plenty of places where a man could get sozzled before 1935; Watson had even worked in a few of them. But back then, men stuck to beer, and women (those daring enough to drink in public, anyway) enjoyed a tipple of sweet sherry. An archive photo of Jimmy Watson's, Lygon Street, Carlton. Credit:Marina Oliphant Although he continued to serve and even blend his own fortified wine, Watson's objective once he'd opened the doors of J.C. Watson Wine Merchants was to introduce Melbourne and eventually Australia to unfortified table wine. His father was a Scotsman, but his mother was Italian and had emigrated with her sisters from Pisa in the 1870s. It was from her that he'd inherited both the custom and joy of drinking table wine with a meal. About five years in, Watson began visiting Victorian wineries and buying 300-litre barrels of dry whites and young reds to bottle and sell at his wine bar. It was this championing of Australian table wine that cemented Watson's pioneer status in the wine world. Stronger Than Fiction Documentary Film Festival 2018. Palace Electric. August 2 to 5, 2018. strongerdocs.com Speak Up opens Stronger Than Fiction 2018. Asked what was different about the fifth Stranger Than Fiction Documentary Film Festival, director and co-curator Deborah Kingsland says, "This year's festival is really unusual in that we did not receive funding from the ACT government for the first time." But, she says, the festival has "risen from the ashes" and found sponsorship from Canberra businesses including in particular Ainslie IGA as well as the Canadian High Commission and the Australian National University, which has come on board as the festival's education partner. In collaboration with ANU, the festival is running the ANU Pitch Slam, a pitching competition where filmmakers have just 60 seconds to talk about a film idea, before getting feedback from a panel of film producers and working with professional filmmakers to develop their ideas. The Pitch Slam has run at Stronger than Fiction for four years and has been popular with younger audiences, with school students regularly winning awards. The ANU Pitch Slam is available year-round to schools. Details on the website: strongerdocs.com. Celebrate National Creme Brulee Day on July 29 with this mandarin version. Credit:Natalie Boog There was some synchronicity to the day when at lunch I sampled the divine Vanilla and passionfruit creme brulee at Muse Canberra and then later on was informed that July 27 is actually National Creme Brulee Day. The team from Get Crackin Creme Brulee Craig Ebeling and Ashleigh Gleeson, who kicked off the pop-up business in October 2017, are going to be working out of the takeaway window at Rye Cafe in Braddon. Indulge in a crackin creme brulee with a fresh vanilla bean custard which melts in your mouth and a caramel toffee top, but you will want to be quick. There will be limited numbers available so they will sell out. Between noon and 3pm if they last that long. Doris Arndt with one of her polar bears. Credit:Internet Doris Arndt, who has died aged 88, was a petrol station attendants daughter who joined the German Circus Barclay and made her professional debut in the 1947-48 winter season billed as Lola, the youngest tigers bride in the world today. Later billed, variously, as Dorita, the tigers bride and simply as Bianca, she appeared with several circuses and also worked with lions and a variety of bears, including a troupe of 12 polar bears. In the 1957 summer season she took the bears to Britain, billed as the worlds most fearless lady trainer with her beautiful snow white Arctic monsters. Dressed in Nordic folk costumes, she and her then husband Alfons Arndt took the animals through a variety of tricks drinking from bottles; sitting in rocking chairs; leaping from pedestal to pedestal, balancing on rolling globes, waltzing and launching themselves down a huge slide. That winter, they took the bears to Tom Arnolds Mammoth Circus at Harringay Arena, their Twelve sparkling pearls of the Arctic thrilling audiences with a Beauty and the Beast spectacle. A My Health record advertisement. Credit:Fairfax For more than a decade, successive governments have worked to make an electronic health record a reality. The AMA and the medical profession have been strong supporters of such a record. It promises greater efficiencies in recording, storing and sharing vital health information. But it must be the right record one that combines a safe, single record of a patients health information with the necessary privacy and security systems in place. There is a lot of misinformation around and people are concerned over fears of hacking and third-party access to files but we continue to be assured that the current My Health Record model offers all the relevant protection. The finite benefits far outweigh the possible concerns. It is a great asset for the health system. As for paying up to $750 to see Ms Southern, close-up, and speak? Please. Save your money, my friends. Turn on Sky News After Dark any day of the week. You can watch hours of that kind of stuff, from the comfort of your own home. You can call Bronwyn Bishop Butter, cos shes always on a roll, on those very subjects. And dont forget Ross Cameron. And that other fellow, someone-or-other Hargraves. On Sunday night, and I am not making this up, they even provided a platform for Blair Cottrell previously notable for his criminality, and for advocating that every Australian classroom should have a portrait of Hitler on the walls to give his views on immigration. I am not making that up, I said! And tell us, Blair, given your boast about using violence and terror, to get what you want from women, your views on feminism? Yes, Sky News costs a bit, but if you divide the cost of subscribing by the number of cans of Pissed-Off they serve up, it is, seriously, as cheap as chips. The Brit, Nigel Farage, will also be here shortly, I gather. He, youll recall, rose to fame by running the campaign which saw Britain commit to the economic suicide of Brexit and then turned his back on the whole mess, waltzing away on something of a world speaking tour. What, pray tell, can he see, that our own nutters havent spotted? In the first place, we dont have a Brexit situation and in the second place, hes never lived here, never shared our experience, never had much to do with us at all. So what would he know that, say, Alan Jones doesnt? Alans great on that kind of thing generally. When he speaks on the radio, there is never a pause, never a nuance to be examined, never a grey area which he is not sure about he delivers outraged certainty, for a good 15 hours a week. Everything is either right or wrong, it is mostly wrong, and he is the only man who can right the wrongs. All your prejudices will be fed, all the bleak angels in your nature can gorge themselves and you can hit the day roundly pissed off at about 15 things at once. Yes, Alan is, as Paul Keating once described him, a middle-of-the-road fascist but hes our middle-of-the-road fascist and that has to count for something, dammit. Mormon missionary Gavin Paul Zimmerman was excited to go whale watching in Sydney on the weekend and share pictures of his excursion with friends back home in the US. The 19-year-old emailed his friend, Gio Grillo, on Sunday to say he was going to take plenty of photographs of the whales to show her. Gavin Paul Zimmerman was reportedly taking selfies on a cliff edge when he fell to his death. Credit:Facebook He sent me pictures of him on pdays [preparation days], going to cool hikes and showing me the beautiful views of Australia, she said. He emailed me ... telling me they were going to the cliffs and he was going to take lots of pictures to show me. High steaks The Government may prosecute some metropolitan butchers next week for offences against the Home Deliveries Act. The butchers would be charged with having failed to exhibit the Governments notice directing them to make home deliveries when ordered to do so. Action against those who failed to exhibit the notice would be the first step in the policing of the home delivery laws. The Department of Labour and Industry was now awaiting legal advice. Horror camp Horror camp conditions were found by Tasmanian police when they visited a Kettering property yesterday. In Police Court today, orchardist Alan Christopher Mihans was charged with failing to provide the necessaries of life for his four children and a 16-year-old member of the household. All members of the household are in Royal Hobart Hospital suffering from malnutrition and skin disease. Mihans was found to not be in any financial need. TV years away A guest at the exclusive Sydney dinner party of Chinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a model he invited to the gathering. A NSW District Court jury on Monday found that Longwei Xu, who also goes by the first name Tommy, pinned the young woman down and repeatedly tried to have sex with her during an hour-long ordeal in his hotel room late on December 26, 2015. Longwei Xu has been found guilty. Credit:Christopher Pearce The jury found Xu, a Chinese national who works in property development, guilty of seven offences, including indecent assault, assault and having sex with the woman without her consent, knowing that she wasnt consenting. It comes after the Court of Criminal Appeal refused a bid by Liu, who is the founder of online marketplace JD.com, to keep his identity suppressed in court proceedings. Residents on Sydneys lower north shore are concerned that the construction of infrastructure to support the B-Line bus route has imperilled pedestrians and will cause losses for local businesses. The scene along Military Road. Credit:Janie Barrett Frustrated with disturbances caused by the construction, which also include traffic concerns and parking restrictions, Cremorne residents are blaming a lack of planning. Marshall Phillips, a community activist from Cremorne, said pedestrians were at the greatest risk. The removal of the safety fence in the middle of the road is a risk as people could run across the road or be running across to catch the bus," he said. "Somebody could get killed. A man accused of murdering his wife by smothering her with a pillow in 2016 was motivated by anger and jealousy because she became involved with another man, a court has heard. Warren Francis Rogers had been married to Anne Rogers, 61, for more than 40 years when the pair began fighting at their Milperra home on the evening of September 12, 2016. Anne Rogers was allegedly murdered by her husband in their Milperra house. Credit:Facebook He was allegedly angry she was speaking to an old high school friend she had reconnected with on Facebook and the pair argued, which escalated to a physical fight in their bedroom. On Monday, a Supreme Court murder trial heard Mr Rogers pushed his wife onto the bed and there was a struggle, during which she asked to leave to go to her father's house. For tenants with deep pockets it seems the eastern suburbs are Sydney's place to be. Bellevue Hill had the city's highest median rent price for houses over the June quarter, at $2048 per week. It is the priciest locale in the entire country, according to Domain Group's latest rental report. It also scored strong rental income growth, up 17.8 per cent year on year, and 2.8 per cent over the quarter. This four-bedroom house at 39 Benelong Crescent, Bellevue Hill was advertised to rent for $4500 per week. Bellevue Hill was followed in the report by nearby Vaucluse, with a weekly asking price of $1835, then Dover Heights at $1725. Of the top 10 suburbs with the highest rental costs for houses, most are found in Sydney's east. The exceptions are Mosman, with a weekly rent of$1600, and Manly at $1395. Northbridge comes in equal tenth with a median asking rent of $1300 for a house. The chair of the Turnbull governments expert health panel on toxic firefighting chemicals has told residents he was dragged into doing the job and someone better qualified should have steered its investigation. The revelations come as a public hearing is held in Williamtown on Tuesday one of the countrys worst polluted areas as part of a senate inquiry into the federal governments handling of the per- and poly-fluoroalkyl [PFAS] contamination. Professor Nicholas Buckley speaking at the meeting in Katherine. Credit:The Katherine Times In its submission to the inquiry, the Coalition against PFAS accused Professor Nick Buckley, from the University of Sydney, of making the remarks when he was flown to the Northern Territory to speak at a public meeting in June. When approached by the Herald last week and asked whether he had made the comments, Professor Buckley evaded the question. The Queensland government wants answers after Air China decided to suspend its direct flights from Beijing to Brisbane. The government worked hard to secure the route, and touted it as a big win for Queensland's tourism industry when it was announced last year. An Air China passenger plane lands while two other Air China planes wait to take off at Beijing International Airport. Credit:AP But it is now asking questions about Air China's decision to divert flights out of Beijing to other Australian cities from September to January. Brisbane Airport Corporation said the decision was out of its hands. A 27-year-old Arundel man has been charged by Queensland Police over the alleged shooting of a man who was found lying on Helensvale Road last week. The 42-year-old man was found on the street around 2.30pm with a gunshot wound to his lower right leg. The man was taken to the Gold Coast University Hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Emergency services swarm the area in Helensvale after the shooting. Credit:Nine News Gold Coast - Twitter Police said three men aged in their late 20s and early 30s were allegedly seen with the man shortly before the incident in a silver or gold-coloured hatch. The men were also seen acting suspiciously near a shopping centre in Runaway Bay. A 29-year-old Bethania woman has been rushed to hospital after being hit by a car while crossing Albert Street in the Logan suburb of Waterford West. A Queensland Police spokeswoman said the woman was seriously injured at the incident between Logan River Bridge and Nerang Street early on Tuesday morning. The driver of the car was not injured. The crash occurred about 3.50am with police closing the road as investigators worked. Illustration: Dionne Credit:Fairfax With Julie Bishop and Marise Payne sitting down for two days of talks with their US counterparts, you can be certain that they're spending much of the time discussing a big, shared problem. Yes, they've already announced that they'll be conferring on the hardy perennials North Korea, terrorism and the Middle East in their talks on Tuesday and Wednesday. But the big, shared problem that is not actually named in the official announcement of the annual AUSMIN talks is China. The fact that Bishop and Payne couldn't bring themselves to name it is an indicator of just how sensitive it is for Australia. Their press release promised to work with the Americans to "reinforce our shared commitment to supporting an Indo-Pacific that is peaceful, open, prosperous and adheres to the international rules-based order", which is another way of saying "How the hell do we stop China's encroachments?" Proud African-Australian woman Angeth Malual never contemplated that death and destruction would follow her community to the land of the young and free. The 19-year-old moved with her family from South Sudan to Melbournes south-east aged six and says she soon learnt the pain and hatred of racism that's followed her into her adult years. She says her white friends dont understand it, neither do her elders, but her generation have spent their lives looking different but only ever knowing the Australian way of life. Angeth Malual Credit:Bryce Eishold, Latrobe Valley Express This articulate young woman, who grew up in Dandenong and Noble Park, doesnt shy away from the problems being caused by those who share her heritage. A former Puffing Billy volunteer who is facing charges of historical sex offences committed against children under the age of 16 is too ill to face court, his lawyer says. Kevin Findlay, who was recently named in a scathing Ombudsman's report into the Puffing Billy sex abuse scandal, did not appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday because, his lawyer said, he was in a nursing home receiving 24-hour care. Puffing Billy, 1975 Credit:Fairfax Photographic Mr Findlay, 87, is alleged to have indecently assaulted a boy under the age of 16 four times between September 1971 and 1972. Two further assaults on another child allegedly took place between February 1982 and 1983. It is understood the charges against the Lang Lang man do not relate to acts committed at Puffing Billy. Our inspectors and engineers have been on site, working with the crane company closely. Once theyve developed a plan and it meets all the safety requirements, then it can proceed, Mr Coffey told reporters at the scene. But he declined to comment on the reasons behind why the crane was left in such a dangerous position during the wild weather overnight, adding it was part of the investigation into the incident. "This is a matter subject to our ongoing inquires and I can't comment on it further," he said. Gusts of over 100km/h were recorded in Melbourne on Monday evening, and a severe weather warning for damaging winds remains in place with more dangerous conditions expected on Tuesday afternoon. The SES received 586 calls for assistance in the 24 hours to midday on Tuesday, including 393 trees down and 180 counts of building damage. The crane, which is 30-40m tall, had blown backwards and was badly bent. The construction site is near the intersection of Bridge Road and Lennox Street. An evacuation centre was established at Richmond Town Hall, where about 12 people slept overnight as others spent the night in hotels or stayed with friends and family. Tram routes 48 and 75 have being diverted due to road closures, with replacement buses brought in to try to minimise disruption. Richmond resident Ian Dalton was asleep with his wife on Monday night when they heard loud knocking about 1.30am. They got up to find three or four police officers evacuating everyone from the street. "We asked what was going on, and they said you are going to have to leave, we are evacuating Mulberry and Union streets because the crane is in a precarious position and it may fall over," he said. "We had no choice whether to stay or not, we have to leave. We own two houses, the other is an Airbnb and we had some guests from Israel there so we had to wake them up and try to explain to them what was happening." The couple headed to the evacuation centre with their border collie, Wally, while also assisting several elderly neighbours. But Mr Dalton did not end up staying at the centre, he spent the night in hospital instead, due to some concerns about pre-existing heart issues. "I had a quadruple bypass 18 months ago and I'm pretty fit and healthy but I just had this slightly pounding heart for 24 hours before it happened. I suppose because I was a bit tired and with the anxiety I was concerned about it so I spoke to the ambulance people there and they took it pretty seriously and took me to Epworth [Hospital] so I got a good bed. "My wife got a rubber mat and slept on the floor in the council so I might be in the bad books today," he said with a laugh. Wild winds overnight affected the structural integrity of a construction crane, forcing residents to evacuate and authorities to close Bridge Road. Credit:AAP Some residents have been told it could be at least 24 hours and possibly 48 hours until they are allowed back to their properties, however the Daltons hoped they may be able to get back into Mulberry Street on Tuesday. "If the crane falls it will be pretty dramatic. It's very heavy and it could cause huge destruction and it would be very, very expensive. This is prime property in Melbourne and you flatten a few houses there, you are talking about tens of millions of dollars," he said. Part of Richmond's Bridge Road has been closed. Credit:James Ross/AAP The manager of the CFMEU's occupational health and safety unit Gerry Ayers said he had been on site on Tuesday morning as emergency services, the engineers, crane company and building company worked on a plan to dismantle the crane. "The sticking point is the huge gusts of wind. We can't send someone up in a man box attached to a crane, which is what we need to do, it's far too dangerous for them," he said. "But the engineer is confident the crane is OK as it is, it's stable, and the weather prediction is that winds will die down at 4pm this afternoon." He said they planned to set up two mobile cranes in Lennox Street to assist in the retrieval of the dangerous crane. Setting up the two additional cranes could take five or six hours. "The retrieval process will commence tomorrow. Tomorrow afternoon they should be able to come back in and relocate their homes unless something goes terribly wrong, obviously we are planning for that not to occur," said Mr Ayers. A spokeswoman for Yarra City Council said that as well as the 12 people in the Town Hall, the council had provided alternative accommodation for about 30 others. The owner of the company that provides the crane, Michael Clark from Clark Cranes, told radio station 3AW it seemed the jib of the crane - the boom or arm of the crane - had not been left in the correct upright position. "It needs to be left down at a certain radius ... so the wind can grab it and move the crane around of a night-time," he said. "But if left up too high, the wind will grab the boom and push it backwards," he said. A fly-in fly-out worker at a Western Australian gold and copper mine has been attacked by three dingoes, leaving her with deep wounds to her legs, arms and body that will need plastic surgery. The woman, a security worker, was eating lunch at a designated safe eating area at the East Pilbara Telfer Mine on Wednesday when she was approached by a young dingo, her family told The West Australian. The woman has had two operations after she was attacked by three dingoes. (This dingo was not involved in the attack) The 54-year-old thought the animal was attracted to her food so she put her lunch in the rubbish bin. Her family said that, as she was doing that, the dingo took off with her mobile phone. The woman followed the dingo and, when she tried to retrieve her phone from a nearby bush, she saw two other dingoes nearby. Police are investigating after a stolen car was used in a ram raid at a shopping centre south of Perth in the early hours of Sunday morning. The incident happened just after 1.40am, when a Holden Colorado was used to ram through the roller shutters of the Leeming Forum. Leeming Forum. Credit:Victor Yong Its understood the car was stolen from an Armadale home on Friday. After the raid, it was left at the shopping centre and the offender fled the scene on foot. Education Department director general Sharyn O'Neill will leave her role after nearly 12 years at the helm to take on the role of Public Sector Commissioner. Sharyn O'Neill will become the new Public Sector Commissioner at the end of the month. Credit:Sharyn O'Neill will become the new Public Sector Commissioner at the end of the month. She replaces former commissioner Mal Wauchope, who retired this month after being in the role since it was created by former premier Colin Barnett in 2008. Ms O'Neill is the longest-serving head of an education governemnt agency and has implemented sweeping reforms in her tenure such as raising the school leaving age, moving year 7 to secondary, making pre-primary the first year of compulsory schooling, increasing school-level decision-making and revising the model for public school funding. She also oversaw one of the biggest growth in public school students numbers in WA's history. Allan Dumbletons doctor was surprised to see him walking into his office. In his hands were the sales executives test results, and they revealed that Mr Dumbleton's liver was in trouble. An established hepatitis C infection and a week of partying with clients during the Melbourne Cup carnival had pushed his ALT levels, a measure of liver damage, to about 40 times higher than normal. Left untreated, hepatitis C does kill. Despite recent and rapid advances in effective cures, it is estimated about 170,000 Australians still have hepatitis C, and are living at risk of its potentially deadly complications. Mr Dumbleton's doctor told him that if his ALT levels were to increase much more, youre dead, man. The ACT's Council of Social Service is at a loss as to why the territory government seemingly put a deal to build townhouses to sell to Defence Housing Australia ahead of addressing affordable housing in the private rental market. The Canberra Times on Monday reported the deal with DHA would see the government's public housing taskforce build 33 townhouses in Taylor and Gungahlin, to sell to the Commonwealth entity at an undisclosed sum. ACT Council of Social Service director Susan Helyar, does not understand why the DHA sale was given priority over more affordable rentals. Credit:Jay Cronan But ACTCOSS executive director Susan Helyar said the community sector did not understand why the government seemed to have put the deal ahead of providing more affordable rental properties for low income Canberrans and growing public housing dwelling numbers. Housing Minister Yvette Berry has said the deal would help to provide a better social mix of residents on the four blocks in the two suburbs, a proposal the council supports, but has not yet explained how much revenue the government will secure, nor what it would fund. Canberra's private colleges are facing an uncertain future after the ACT government closed applications for a territory-sponsored visa last month with no warning. In the 12 months after the eligibility criteria was relaxed, colleges reported an explosion in enrolments, most being recent graduates of masters and bachelors degrees at universities around the country. Now those same colleges are reporting hundreds of drop-outs as students give up on waiting to live in Canberra. Chandan Paul, left, of Bangladesh and Yatin Malik of India, who are among hundreds, if not thousands, of students who moved to the ACT in hopes of qualifying for permanent residency. Credit:Karleen Minney In July last year the ACT government widened the criteria for those seeking to be nominated by the territory government for permanent residency. If a potential migrant's occupation was not on the list of in-demand jobs, they could apply by proving a close connection to Canberra. This included living in the ACT for at least 12 months and studying a Certificate III or higher qualification at a local institution. On June 29, the ACT government quietly announced it would no longer accept applications from anyone whose job wasn't on the list of occupations needed in the territory. A government spokeswoman said the change wasn't permanent, but there's no indication of when other potential migrants living in Canberra could apply again. Pauline Hanson campaigning in the Queensland seat of Longman. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has gone on holiday in Scotland and Ireland ahead of the crucial federal byelections this weekend, fuelling doubts over her partys ability to galvanise voters in the key Queensland seat of Longman. Senator Hanson has been on a cruise off the coast near Belfast as colleagues describe her as exhausted after months of intense work in parliament. Senator Hanson's chief of staff, James Ashby, defended his boss against criticism over her absence from the campaigning, saying the woman is a machine and had worked hard in Longman all campaign. Sky News commentator and Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt told his viewers on Monday night that he had spoken to Senator Hanson and she was near Belfast. Treasurer Scott Morrison has backed a fall in Australias permanent migration intake as proof the policy is working as it should despite growing business concerns about skilled migrants being turned away. Mr Morrison said the fall to 162,000 permanent arrivals over the past year showed there was not enough demand from suitable applicants to justify getting closer to the annual cap of 190,000 places. In an interview with Fairfax Media, he also rejected claims of a split between Treasury officials seeking a bigger intake and a push for tighter rules being applied by migration officials reporting to Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton. Treasurer Scott Morrison Credit:Bloomberg The remarks are another sign of the governments willingness to keep the intake down as it assures voters it has population growth under control, while Labor also signals plans to take a tougher line on some of the migrant intake. In a clear indication that the NSW Nationals have not given up on contesting Wagga Wagga, the party conducted polling in the seat on Monday night to gauge voting intentions. Despite Premier Gladys Berejiklian maintaining on Monday that the Liberals would be the only Coalition party to run in Wagga Wagga, it is understood the Nationals have not ruled it out. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announces on Saturday that Daryl Maguire will quit. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer A byelection is expected to be called once disgraced MP Daryl Maguire formally writes to the Speaker of NSW Parliament and tenders his resignation from the seat. That is expected this week. The Herald understands the firm Telereach, traditionally used by the National Party, conducted the polling to look at voting intentions and "party favourability". Labor promised at the 2014 election to protect owners from "unruly short stay parties". In 2016 then-consumer affairs minister Jane Garrett promised to stamp out bad behaviour and "reduce disruption caused by some rogue short-stay visitors". Loading Under the proposed changes, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal could have awarded compensation of up to $2000 to neighbours affected by parties. But the Short-Stay Accommodation Bill was not passed. Ms Kairouz said the government had "tougher laws ready to go" but the Coalition had blocked them. The Opposition's consumer affairs spokeswoman Heidi Victoria said owners and renters "subjected to regular wild parties" needed tougher laws than Labor had drafted. Airbnb wants Labor's proposed laws brought in, with its head of public policy Brent Thomas saying they would "would target those who repeatedly do the wrong thing". But Docklands resident Marshall Delves said Airbnb had been very pleased with Labor's laws, which he said would have made "zero difference". Marshall Delves lives in Docklands, and says Labor's proposed short-stay laws would have made zero difference if passed. Credit:Luis Ascui "It was a Mickey Mouse bill put up in order to say they had kept their [election] promise," said Mr Delves, director of apartment resident lobby group We Live Here, and also the building manager at the Watergate apartments. He said Airbnb and other short-stay website lettings were a terrible issue. "We've had people check in just so they can go through the mailboxes and leave. We've had the police through that many times I can't tell you." St Kilda resident Fiona Healy has also been badly affected by short-stay rentals. A two-bedroom apartment in her Robe Street block is let online by its owner with each bedroom rented separately (via Facebook group Fairy Floss Real Estate rather than Airbnb). With the lounge converted to a bedroom as well, the apartment brings its owner close to $1000 a week, she said. Ms Healy moved into her property last year but said the problem apartment in the block of 12 had been leased to backpackers who regularly partied there. Her body corporate was powerless to prevent short-term rentals, she said. "We can't dictate to the owner the conditions she leases it out under." Airbnb has faced a tough year as more international cities crack down on unregulated short-stays. In Sydney, owners can't let short-term apartments for more than 180 nights a year. And a vote of more than 75 per cent of owners in a block can now ban short-term lettings outright. Japan is also preparing to enforce tougher laws on apartment sharing, and protest movements in cities such as Venice, Berlin and San Francisco have seen residents publicise the negative effect of short-term lets forcing out long-term locals. Krystyna Kynst. Credit:Eddie Jim Krystyna Kynst is another St Kilda resident with less extreme problems in her seven-unit apartment block. "Three are on Airbnb permanently," she said. While the guests who used the apartments in her block were "usually quite nice it's not a wreck-the-place issue", the constant coming and going of tourists had undermined the residential community she once had. "We're losing that sense of knowing your neighbours, who might water the plants, feed the pets, the proverbial cup of sugar it's more insidious than the party house problem." Greens MP for Melbourne, Ellen Sandell, has lobbied the state government for four years to act on problems with short-stay lettings. Former emergency services minister Jane Garrett will continue her political career in Victorias upper house after a deal was done by Labors factions on Monday to carve up a number of federal and state seats. Ms Garrett will take the seat held by Daniel Mulino, with the Eastern Victorian MP going to federal parliament in the newly created seat of Fraser in Melbournes north-west. Jane Garrett looks to have been handed a political lifeline. Credit:Jason South It is understood the deal, brokered by Ms Garretts factional ally Adem Somyurek, comes with the understanding that Mr Mulinos union, the SDA, will be found another seat in State Parliament in return for its support. Ms Garrett, who announced in September that she would not contest her seat of Brunswick in November's state election, will now take the number 1 spot on Labor's ticket in Eastern Victoria with Harriet Shing at number 2. Yoshe Ann Taylor has not spoken to her children - Kahlyla, left, and Archer, right - since 2014. Credit:Facebook An Australian woman serving a 23-year prison sentence in Cambodia has achieved a stunning legal victory after her 2014 drug smuggling conviction was quashed by Cambodias Supreme Court. The woman, 46-year-old Yoshe Ann Taylor, a kindergarten teacher and mother of two from Queensland, fell victim to an internet scam, revealed by Fairfax Media in 2016 to have been run by an international drug smuggling syndicate.Ms Taylor, who was lured to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on the promise of starting a business in the arts and crafts, was arrested at the airport in September 2013 after being caught trying to leave the Cambodia with two kilograms of heroin concealed in her luggage. Loading The Cambodia Supreme Courts decision means that her case will now be remitted to the Cambodian Court of Appeal to be redetermined. Beijing: Four executives at a Chinese vaccine company have been taken in by police for questioning as Chinese President Xi Jinping labelled the companys violations appalling. Xi ordered a full investigation as outrage swelled among Chinese parents that hundreds of thousands of children had been given faulty vaccines. Changchun Changsheng Biotechnology's illegal production of vaccines is vile in nature and shocking," Xi said. Inspectors will be sent into all Chinese vaccine companies as the scandal over faked records for a rabies vaccine prompted Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to declare a moral boundary had been crossed. Mati: At least 20 people died and more than 100 were injured on Monday as a wildfire swept through a small resort town in eastern Greece with many victims trapped by flames as they fled. The fire in Mati village, some 29 km east of Athens, was by far the country's worst since blazes devastated the southern Peloponnese peninsula in August 2007, killing dozens. Monday's fire was one of several that broke out in the country amid a sweltering heat wave. "Mati doesn't even exist as a settlement anymore," one woman told Greece's Skai TV. "I saw corpses, burned-out cars. I feel lucky to be alive." Mati is in the Rafina region which is popular with local tourists, particularly pensioners and children at holiday camps. Pompeo stopped short of calling for regime change, but he announced stepped-up US government broadcasting in Farsi that is likely to foment further unrest against the government. He said the US Broadcasting Board of Governors is taking steps to circumvent Internet censorship in Iran, and creating a round-the-clock Farsi channel across television, radio, digital and social media formats, "so that ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe will know that America stands with them". Pompeo said the Trump administration would be willing to hold talks with the Iranian government if it stops repressing dissidents and religious minorities and stops supporting militant groups in conflicts elsewhere in the region. But the one-sentence offer in a long speech suggests that Pompeo deems any behavior change by Iran unlikely. However, a high-ranking Iranian officer says President Donald Trump's warning of unprecedented "consequences" for Iran, should it threaten the United States, is nothing but "psychological warfare." General Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, the chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard's volunteer Basij force, also said Trump "won't dare" take any military action against Iran". Iranian lawmaker Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh told The Associated Press that he doubted it would come to a military confrontation between Iran and the United States, despite the escalating rhetoric. Falahatpisheh says that Trump and his Rouhani both "express themselves through speeches since diplomatic channels are closed" as the two countries have had no diplomatic relations since 1979. Many of the Iranian Americans in the audience for Pompeo's speech either fled or are descendants of those who fled the country after the Islamic Revolution toppled the shah in 1979. Southern California is home to about 250,000 Iranian Americans. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Credit:AP "To our Iranian American and Iranian friends," Pompeo said, "tonight I tell you that the Trump administration dreams the same dreams for the people of Iran as you do, and through our labors and God's providence, that day will come true." Several members of the Trump administration and Trump's circle have been outspoken hawks on Iran. Before joining the White House, national security adviser John Bolton called for the overthrow of the Iranian government. Rudolph Giuliani, Trump's personal attorney, has given paid speeches to the Mujahideen-e Khalq (MEK), a controversial dissident group that the State Department listed as a terrorist group until 2012. On Sunday, Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations, retweeted a three-day-old posting from the official account of the MEK. Pompeo's remarks on Sunday reprised his criticism of the Iranian government, but on a deeply personal level that is likely to be repeated in the US government broadcasts into Iran. He lit into what he called Iran's "hypocritical holy men", saying the ruling elites have enriched themselves through corruption, and called out officials by name who he said had plundered government coffers through embezzlement or by winning lucrative contracts. He singled out "the billionaire general", Interior Minister Sadegh Mahsouli; Grand Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi, the "Sultan of Sugar"; and Sadeq Ardeshir Larijani, the head of Iran's judiciary, whom he said had embezzled $US300 million ($400 million) in public money. "Call me crazy," Pompeo said, "but I'm a little sceptical that a thieving thug under international sanctions is the right man to be Iran's highest-ranking judicial official." He also attacked Ayatollah Ali for presiding over a $US95 billion "sludge fund" for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Loading Pompeo also blamed the government for Iran's economic woes, which have led to anti-government protests nationwide. "The bitter irony of the economic situation in Iran is that the regime uses its time to line its own pockets while its people cry out for jobs, reform and opportunity," Pompeo said. "The Iranian economy is going great - but only if you're a politically connected member of the elite." Pompeo dismissed a basic premise of the Obama administration when it negotiated the Iran deal. Officials were hopeful that by suspending some sanctions in exchange for curbs on Iran's nuclear program, an improving economy would bolster the ranks of relative moderates in the government. Pompeo said Tehran has no moderates or statesmen. "Some believe that President [Hassan] Rouhani and Foreign Minister [Mohammad Javad] Zarif fit the bill," he said. "The truth is they are merely polished front men for the Ayatollah's international con artistry. Their nuclear deal didn't make them moderates, it made them wolves in sheep's clothing." Halfway through Pompeo's remarks, a heckler interrupted him, only to be drowned out by boos and chants of "U.S.A." Pompeo called it an example of freedom of dissent denied to most Iranians. Protesters against the Iranian regime stand outside the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum where US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was speaking on Sunday. Credit:AP When a member of the audience asked him whether the Iranian people might gain control of their country in the foreseeable future, Pompeo replied swiftly, "Of course." "We don't know the right moment," he said. "We don't know the day that the behaviour of the regime will change. But we do know the things that the world is obligated to do so that when the right time comes, when the right moment comes, that opportunity is even more likely to find its fulfillment." Mark Dubowitz, head of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a leading critic of Iran and the 2015 nuclear deal, called Pompeo's remarks a "powerful indictment of a corrupt and repressive regime," and suggested that U.S. support will help lead to the demise of the theocratic government. "It framed the secretary's Reaganesque approach to confronting the Islamic Republic of Iran and his conviction that, with US support, the demand of Iranians for freedom and democracy will leave the Islamic Republic on the ash heap of history as it left the Soviet Union," he said. Trita Parsi, head of the National Iranian American Council, said in a statement that Pompeo's remarks presaged a looming US-Iran confrontation. "Mike Pompeo removed all doubt today that the aim of the Trump administration is confrontation with Iran - not a better nuclear deal or new negotiations," he said. "The Trump administration's actions and words are simply not compatible with any policy other than fomenting unrest in and destabilising Iran." Washington: Accused Russian agent Maria Butina had wider high-level contacts in Washington than previously known, taking part in 2015 meetings between a visiting Russian official and two senior officials at the US Federal Reserve and Treasury Department. The meetings, disclosed in a report prepared by a Washington think tank which arranged them, involved Stanley Fischer, the Fed vice chairman at the time, and Nathan Sheets, then Treasury undersecretary for international affairs. Maria Butina, leader of a pro-gun organisation in Russia, speaks to a crowd during a rally in support of legalising the possession of handguns in Moscow, Russia. Credit:AP Butina travelled to the United States in April 2015 with Alexander Torshin, then the Russian Central Bank deputy governor, and they took part in separate meetings with Fischer and Sheets to discuss US-Russian economic relations during the administration of former President Barack Obama. The two meetings, which have not been previously reported, reveal that Butina sought a wider circle of high-powered connections with American political leaders and special interest groups. ECS Group has acquired BCS Air, the Brazil-based general sales and services agent (GSSA), a partnership that will provide airlines in Latin America and the US with the full range of cargo outsourcing solutions. BCS Air is an established GSSA with more than 20 years of experience in the air cargo industry. In June of this year, ECS was acquired by investment firm Naxicap Partners to help continue the GSSAs acquisition strategy. We are very glad to have become part of ECS Groups global network, said Joao Luiz Ferreira, chief operating officer at the Sao Paulo-headquartered BCS Air, adding: The cooperation surely will create highly dynamic synergies between our enterprises and further strengthen our position in the Brazilian and American markets. Bertrand Schmoll, chairman of ECS Group, said: BCS Air has always been one of the most professional and successful providers of cargo outsourcing solutions in Brazil. Therefore, the acquisition is perfectly in line with our policy to support the worlds most proficient GSSAs with our powerful global infrastructure. With strong connections to the local airfreight community, BCS Air offers a portfolio of GSSA services at Brazilian airports for international airlines such as Aeromexico, Cargolux, IAG Cargo, Japan Airlines, TAAG, Turkish Airlines and Delta from sales and marketing support to ground handling and charter services. An ESC Group statement said that BCS Air customers benefit from the Brazilian companys "outstanding expertise in the handling of perishables, automotive components, and CAO services". The ECS Group and BCS Air have been closely cooperating for five years already, said Schmoll, adding: Following in the footsteps of AVS GSA and Exp-Air Cargo, BCS Air has now chosen to join ECS Group. "The integration of BCS into our network has been a logical step for our companies. We both share a future-oriented culture of innovation, and the expertise and best practices of BCS Air will be profitable for all partners within the Group. ECS Group has already been working the markets in Mexico, Ecuador, Peru, Columbia, and Argentina. Read more cargo GSA and GSSA news Sign up to receive Air Cargo News direct to your inbox for free Share this story Los Angeles: Two flight attendants for a Chinese airline were fined and ordered to leave the United States within 72 hours on Monday for attempting to smuggle dozens of spotted and box turtles in carry-on bags from Los Angeles to China. US District Judge James Otero ordered Chinese nationals Huaqian Qu, 41, and Renfeng Gao, 31, to pay $US5500 ($7457) each to the US Fish and Wildlife Service before returning to China within three days. A box turtle. Credit:AP They were also sentenced to three years of probation. The two China Eastern Airlines attendants pleaded guilty last month to a federal conspiracy charge, which carries a possible penalty of up to five years behind bars, said the US Attorney's Office. A statement from the family of Hussain said their son had severe mental health challenges and that he struggled with psychosis and depression. They said medications did not help him and the interventions of professionals were unsuccessful. "While we did our best to seek help for him throughout his life of struggle and pain, we could never imagine that this would be his devastating and destructive end," the Hussain family said. "Our hearts are in pieces for the victims and for our city as we all come to grips with this terrible tragedy. We will mourn those who were lost for the rest of our lives." Police investigate a car with a bullet hole within the scene of the shooting. Credit:AP Police Chief Mark Saunders earlier said he would not speculate on a motive but did not rule out terrorism. "It's almost inconceivable that these things can happen," said Mayor John Tory. "We were so used to living in a city where these things didn't happen and as we saw them going on in the world around us (we) thought they couldn't happen here." "This is an attack against innocent families and our entire city." Police escort civilians away from the scene of a shooting. Credit:The Canadian Press The 13 wounded ranged in age from 10 to 59, and suffered injuries ranging from serious to minor, Saunders said. He did not name the victims, who included eight women and girls, and seven men. Dr Najma Ahmed of St Michael's Hospital said five patients had been admitted in serious or critical condition and that three of the five underwent immediate lifesaving operations. A video taken by a witness showed a man dressed all in black walking quickly down a sidewalk and firing three shots into at least one shop or restaurant in Toronto's Greektown, a residential area crowded with Greek restaurants and cafes. Witnesses heard many shots and described the suspect walking past restaurants and cafes and patios on both sides of the street and firing into them. Ontario's police watchdog said there was an exchange of gunfire between the assailant and two officers on a side street before the gunman was found dead near Danforth Avenue where the shootings occurred. A spokeswoman for the Special Investigations Unit, Monica Hudon, said an autopsy would be performed Tuesday on the suspect. Detective Sergeant Terry Browne said police had sought a search warrant for an address related to the suspect but didn't say where. Tanya Wilson was closing her tattoo shop on the street when she heard gunshots and a mother and her son ran into her store with gunshot wounds to their legs "They said they were walking and a man told them to get the hell out his way and he just shot them," Wilson said. Wilson said she tied and elevated their wounds and tried to keep them calm while they waited for paramedics. She locked the door and shut off the lights, not knowing what was happening outside. Jody Steinhauer was celebrating her birthday with family at Christina's restaurant on Danforth Avenue when they heard 10 to 15 shots. They ran to the back to the restaurant and hid under a table. "We heard a woman yell, 'Help!' My partner went outside the restaurant and the woman was right there. She had been shot," she said. Police work the scene of a shooting in Toronto. Credit:AP Her boyfriend and a doctor who was in the restaurant attended to the woman who was shot in the thigh. "She was screaming and yelling and in shock. Nobody was with her. That was the scary part," Steinhauer said. Police, paramedics and other first responders descended on the scene, while people, some in their pajamas, emerged from their homes to see what was happening. Though mass shootings are rare in Canada's largest city, Toronto police had deployed dozens of additional officers over the weekend to deal with a recent rise in gun violence in the city, which has seen 23 gun homicides so far this year, compared to 16 fatal shootings in the first half of 2017. Toronto Councilor Paula Fletcher said the attack was "not gang related" and that the gunman shot "indiscriminately" into restaurants and into a park. "I know we always say, 'That can't happen here,' when we see those gunmen in the States doing the same thing and it has happened here now," Fletcher said. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said the confidence that Toronto is a safe city had been shaken. Toronto has long prided itself as being one of the safest big cities in the world. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted: "The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave - and we'll be there to support you through this difficult time." In April, the driver of a van plowed into pedestrians on a Toronto sidewalk, killing 10 people and injuring 14. Authorities have not disclosed a motive, but said the arrested driver, Alek Minassian, posted a message on social media referencing a misogynistic online community before the attack. Witnesses then heard many shots and described the suspect walking past restaurants and cafes and patios on both sides of the street and firing into them. Toronto's Greektown is a lively residential area with crowded Greek restaurants and cafes. Police Chief Mark Saunders said the shooting on Sunday night in the city's bustling Greektown neighbourhood was not random and he did not rule out terrorism as a motive. "Other than the shooter we have a young lady that is deceased," he told reporters. The shooter, died from an apparent gunshot wound, but it's not clear if it was self-inflicted or as a result of exchanging gunfire with police, he told reporters. Witness Jody Steinhauer has told CBC she was at a restaurant on Danforth Avenue with her family when she heard what sounded like 10 to 15 firecracker blasts. She said she was told to run to the back of the restaurant. "We started to hear people scream out front," Steinhauer said, adding that she had been told four to six people had been shot. John Tulloch said he and his brother had just left their car when he heard about 20 to 30 gunshots. "We just ran. We saw people starting to run so we just ran," he said. An army of police, paramedics and other first responders soon descended on the scene, while residents, some in their pyjamas, emerged from their homes to see what was happening. A woman who gave her name only as Mary told the Toronto Star she was in the Pantheon restaurant on Danforth Avenue when she saw a young girl being placed on a stretcher and taken into an ambulance. Another witness who was standing near the scene told CTV that he heard about 20 shots and the sound of the weapon being reloaded repeatedly. "And then, I saw the carnage as I ran down the street here to kind of follow the gunfire," the man told the station, who described the scene as "pretty crazy". Toronto police sergeant Glenn Russell told CNN witnesses were being taken by buses to multiple offices to speak with investigators. Toronto mayor John Tory told CBC he believed the shooting was evidence of a wider gun problem in Toronto, adding the incident unfolded in a peaceful part of the city and that the community was in shock. "It's almost inconceivable that these things can happen," Mr Tory said. "Guns are too readily available to too many people." Mass shootings are rare in Canada's largest city. But this past week, Toronto police deployed dozens of additional officers to deal with a recent spike in gun violence in the city. Mr Tory called the shooting an unspeakable incident, and reiterated a police plea for any members of the public who were in the area to come forward with information. He said there were many people in the area, which is home to several restaurants and bars, at the time of the shooting. He urged anyone with mobile phone video or eyewitness information to reach out to police. Toronto councillor Paula Fletcher told CP24 she heard that the gunman was "emotionally disturbed". "It's not gang related. It looks like someone who is very disturbed," Fletcher said. Reuters, AP More to come PHILIPSBURG:---Former Member of Parliament George Pantophlet is asking if there is money in the St. Maarten Economy. The answer to this question is yes there is. But everyone has to contribute. One might ask where is the money going to be coming from. Simple answer; Its in all sectors of the economy but mostly in the private sector. Let me digress to some 10 years or so ago. There was a report called the WDC report. And in that document a statement was made by the researchers who asked the question; How come all this money is circulating in St. Maarten but not reflected in governments coffers? It is a stark reminder of the non-compliance of some individuals and businesses where it pertains to paying their taxes. And unfortunately the ones that scream the loudest as to what government should or should not do with these funds are the ones who are not complying with their civic responsibilities. Many studies have proven that tax compliance has always been a torn in the financial flesh of this island. Fast forward to today, the answer to my question is and I repeat, yes there is money in the St. Maarten Economy might be looked at in a negative sense seeing the passing of hurricane Irma last year which dealt a devastating blow to the people and economy of St. Maarten. And this cannot be overlooked. Granted that many businesses have been affected which has led to mass unemployment especially in the tourism and related sectors, however some of the businesses that have benefitted tremendously and are still doing so today are supermarkets, hardware stores and construction companies just to name a few. We know for a fact that government gains its revenues from taxes; income tax, profit tax, turnover tax, road tax, transfer tax and so on. The challenge is how to execute proper control to ensure that the individuals and businesses are paying their fair share? It would be interesting to compare the turnover tax paid today by the businesses I mentioned earlier in comparison to what they paid in turnover tax prior to the passing of hurricane Irma. Taking into account that their sales have skyrocketed. What must not be overlooked either is the price gouging (some might say payback for the looting) that is taking place. Now back to my question is there money in the St. Maarten Economy. I think now is the time to look at the taxes on alcohol and tobacco, now is the time to work on the dividend legislation, now is the time to look at the casino fees, now is the time to really issue fines to persons who throw all kinds of objects from their vehicles or wherever they are on the street, now is the time to look at making us contribute to the garbage collection. And let me insert here on the matter of the garbage collection. I visited the Netherlands for the first time some 18 years ago and I found out that there are scheduled days to put your garbage outside for pickup. I travelled to the US and in Brooklyn idem ditto, there are scheduled times, worse yet if your neighbor puts his or her garbage out on your side of the street, they the garbage or city inspectors are not asking who it belongs to, but the person in front of whose home it is found will be fined. Is there money in the St. Maarten Economy? Yes, if some businesses stop using credit card machines where the funds generated on St. Maarten go directly into their overseas account. With the constant improvement of technology, I hope that a way will soon be discovered to prevent this fraud. It is tax evasion and for me synonymous to money laundering. Complying by paying our taxes, will mean not having to be begging the Dutch government for funds to deal with our budgetary shortfalls. Its in our hands. My question again, is there money in the St. Maarten Economy? Yes, there is. PHILIPSBURG:---In an investigation which is being conducted by the Detective Department, a vehicle has been confiscated which was involved in a shooting incident. This incident took place in the Fort Willem area on Saturday evening July 17th 2018. Anyone having information in regard to this incident should immediately get in contact with the Police department by calling 54-22222 ext 215/ 216 or call the anonymous tip line # 9300. KPSM Press Release PHILIPSBURG:--- The investigating-team of the Jump Up casino armed robbery which took place on June 6th 2018 at approximately 12.10 a.m. has confirmed that the male victim of this robbery identified with the initials Y.B. has died of the gunshot wounds he sustained during this robbery. The investigating team is also confirming that the investigation shows that the two casino workers were both shot by one of the robbers before the exchange of gunfire between an off-duty police officer and the robber in question. During the exchange of gunfire the same robber was shot by the police-officer and subsequently died of the wounds he sustained. The management of the Jump-Up Casino seeing the seriousness of the crime and the importance to have the other culprits of this robbery arrested and convicted, have found it fit to come to the aid of the police department to increase the reward of U.S. $ 2000, -- dollars to U.S. $ 10.000 available to anyone who can provide reliable information that can lead the to arrest and conviction of the other culprits of this robbery. Persons with information can call the number +1721-5567498. The officer taking the calls on this telephone will guide the caller through a process that has to be followed in order for him or her to give their information anonymously. The management of the Jump-Up Casino is appealing to anyone in the general public with information to please come forward. KPSM Press Release PHILIPSBURG:---Enhancing the experience for arriving and departing travellers and bringing the Terminal Building back online post-haste, was the message given to airport management by Tourism Minister Stuart Johnson when he toured the Princess Juliana International Airport PJIA in his capacity as shareholder representative on Wednesday. According to a press release issued Sunday, Minister Johnson also reemphasized the importance of the PJIA to the islands overall economic revitalization. He said the Airports reconstruction, including the provisions to build the US Preclearance facility, is part of the governing program 2018 -2022 and represents a vital feature of the governments plans for redevelopment and creating a sustainable St. Maarten. One of the main reasons for Johnsons visit was to get a realistic impression of the potential for reopening the terminal building for the start of the new tourism season in November this year. To date, several media articles have highlighted the cry from the local population and business community about the alarmingly long time it has taken to see real signs of reconstruction at SXM. There is also international pressure from tourism partners to get the airport back on track urgently. Besides, local hoteliers who are investing millions of dollars in the reconstruction of their properties, have also expressed their concerns over the delay in rebuilding the airport, and have asked for solutions to the immediate financial issues facing the Princess Juliana International Airport NV. According to the release, these matters have the ministers immediate attention. Johnson is also calling for more effort in the interim to improve the experience for visitors and residents at SXM.. Johnson met recently with Dutch Representative in St. Maarten Chris Johnson and Hans Leijtens and discussed amongst others, the securing of funding for the airport reconstruction. As a result, the Dutch Government has agreed to issue a statement of commitment, which is forthcoming, to assist the PJIAE in securing the necessary funding for its reconstruction. Meanwhile, Minister Johnson expressed grave concern about humidity inside the tents presently being used as temporary Arrival and Departure halls. He said notwithstanding the devastation to the airport caused by hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, the comfort level of passengers and SXM staff and others working in the arrival and departure halls must remain a high priority. Management at PJIA has assured Minister Johnson that they would give urgent attention to improving the ventilation at the Arrival and Departure hall. The PJIA was asked to urgently address the comfort level of visitors and workers and encouraged them to find practical ways to help circulate the cold air coming from the portable Air-Condition units . Johnson told PJIAE s Management Board that he is eagerly awaiting the recobstruction of f the Terminal building . He made mention of the recent media publications which showed passengers standing outside the departure hall in long lines and said the speed of work to repair the terminal building and replace the check-in kiosks must be increased to improve the ease and comfort of travel. The Minister and his delegation were accompanied by the airports Chief Operation Officer Michel Hyman, Project Manager for the airport reconstruction Rob Noorman, Chief Financial Officer and Acting Chief Executive Officer Ravi Daryanani and Corporate Communications Officer Audrey St. Luce-Jack. CASTRIES, St. Lucia, July 21st, 2018:---The Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation (CARILEC) in partnership with the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC), The Power Generation Company of Trinidad and Tobago (PowerGen) and Trinity Power will co-host the Secretariats annual Engineering Conference and Exhibition at the Hyatt Regency Hotel from the 22nd to 25th July, 2018 in Trinidad. The conference is being sponsored by Wartsila, Aggreko, Sol Petroleum, BWSC, ABB, Saft America, Mitsubishi Electric and Prysmian Group. CARILEC is also scheduled to host a Post-Conference Training entitled Battery Storage for Peak Demand (Part I) and Battery Storage for Frequency Regulation (Part II) from 26th to 27th July. The training will be facilitated by Michael Vance, a Project Management Professional (PMP), NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professional and PV Technical Sales, and Master Electrician (RME) with 30 years of experience in the US, Canada, Caribbean and Africa. He has a proven track record of leadership, successfully bringing over 80MW of rooftop and ground mount solar PV projects to commercial operation, this workshop is sponsored by the CARILEC Renewable Energy Community (CAREC). The Engineering Conference and Exhibition will feature Professor Chandrabhan Sharma of the University of the West Indies (UWI) as the keynote speaker at the opening ceremony on July 22. Sharma, who holds a BSc and PhD in Electrical Engineering and MSc in Powersystems, has authored over one hundred (100) technical papers and reports and is the Leader of the Energy Systems programme at UWIs Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He has served as a Director in several private and public sector engineering organisations, including T&TEC, PowerGen and the Iron and Steel Company of Trinidad and Tobago (ISCOTT) and is the Chairman of the Academic and Technical Services Staff Committee, as well as a Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Engineering. Sharma and other regionally recognized speakers and panelists will address this years Conference theme Creating a NextGen Utility: Power Infrastructure in the Spotlight. They will share their experience and expertise on a range of topics which include but not limited to: Power Infrastructure: Investing in the Future; A Strategic Approach to Disaster Response and Recovery; Improving Structural Resiliency: Methods to Measure, Maintain and Improve In-Service Wood Pole Performance in Extreme Weather Events; and Modernizing GIS Bay Controllers and Transmission Relaying. The Conference will emphasize leading innovation, creativity and best practice and will provide an opportunity for professionals working in the energy and electricity sector to share insights and network with the leading minds in these fields. To register or learn more about the CARILEC 2018 Engineering Conference and Exhibition explore our website www.carilec.org, follow us on twitter https://twitter.com/carilecpower or like our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/carilecpower. Digital Experience 120 mobile network operators from 60 countries meet in Nuremberg For more than 10 years, SIGOS has been inviting mobile network operators from all over the world to the annual telecommunications conference. After venues such as Dusseldorf, Berlin, Munich, Beijing, Kuala Lumpur, etc., this year\-\-s multi-day conference took place at the Nuremberg trade fair. Dr. Ulrich Maly, Lord Mayor of the City of Nuremberg, welcomed the international audience in his opening speech and explained: \when we talk about mobile communication, then we talk about people and their needs that are and should be the focus of attention\. Over 120 network operators and telecommunications companies from over 60 countries worldwide came together to talk about the latest innovations in areas such as network quality, performance, 5G, IoT, roaming, and telecommunications fraud detection solutions. Adrian Scrase, CTO of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute, underlined the importance of international cooperation between industry and governments to achieve ambitious goals such as 5G, the smart city ? not only safely but also successfully. In numerous presentations, panel discussions and workshops, representatives of leading network operators and global enterprises discussed how they use SIGOS solutions in the existing 3G, 4G network technologies and how they will use them in the future in 5G networks. An important core element here is the strategy discussion on new successful business models and innovative areas of use. Adil Kaya, CEO of SIGOS GmbH, stated that: \Mobile radio has become an integral part of our lives. More and more people worldwide are using network services. The way in which they are used is subject to constant change and great innovative power. SIGOS is the world market leader for active test solutions and enables network operators worldwide to ensure best quality mobile communication\. With over 400 guests, the conference is the largest telecommunications conference in this field worldwide. With its headquarters in Nuremberg, Germany, SIGOS has been offering its customers active test solutions for securing network quality and services via mobile networks (apps) since 1989. In addition to end-to-end test solutions, the portfolio includes the largest roaming test system with a test infrastructure in almost every country in the world, as well as solutions for detecting network fraud. SIGOS is the leading provider worldwide, with over 450 network operators in 156 countries, including the top 100 mobile networks, as well as over 600 enterprise customers. Founded in 1989, SIGOS is the worldwide leader in automated end-to-end active testing, app experience testing and fraud detection of telecommunication networks, services and applications. Our entirely customizable solutions enable network operators, content providers, carriers, and regulators as well as over 670 enterprise customers to fully understand service quality and service experience from an end-user perspective. In the telecommunications industry, over 470 customers, including most of the top 100 operators, which benefit from our comprehensive range of active testing, tracing and reporting solutions across all technologies (2G, 3G and LTE). With acquisitions, such as Meucci Solutions and Keynote Mobile Testing, SIGOS added additional market leading solutions to its portfolio. SIGOS is headquartered in Nuremberg, Germany, with a worldwide network of authorized partner companies and representatives in over 60 locations across the globe. Our international expert staff of more than 350 employees speak over 38 languages and are passionate about communications. Manage Your Site With Easy One-Time Payments Using Lifetime.Hosting From Richard Madison Richard Madison has announced the launch of Lifetime.Hosting, a pay-once web hosting platform for businesses wanting to build the best web presence for their company. The platform is ideal for small businesses, entrepreneurs, and professionals looking for the best web host for their site. More information can be found at: http://letsgolook.at/Lifetime.Hosting2018 Its important for any business to find the right web hosting service provider to suit their needs. With the bulk of all transactions shifting online in recent years, having a web presence is crucial. 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With Lifetime.Hosting, every plan utilizes the cPanel control panel, giving site owners access to the tools they need to control their pages. It is a full featured, powerful platform for managing email, domains, databases and more. In addition to this, customers get enterprise RAID storage, free website builders, a range of excellent applications and tools, and 24/7 support for any issues they encounter. Full details of the service and its benefits can be found on the URL above. Additional details are provided at: https://muncheye.com/richard-madison-lifetime-hosting-2018 https://www.aish.com/jw/me/The-If-Only-Israel-Syndrome.html The misguided notion that if only Israel did this or that, peace would be at hand. IOI (If Only Israel) is the misguided notion, peddled in the name of Israel's best interests by some in the diplomatic, academic, and media worlds, that if only Israel did this or that, peace with the Palestinians would be at hand. But since it doesn't, then Israel constitutes the principal, perhaps the only, real obstacle to a new day in Israeli-Palestinian relations. Striking, isn't it? Poor Israel. If only it had the visual acuity of these "enlightened" souls, including, most recently, a slim majority of Irish senators, then all would be hunky-dory. After all, according to them, Israel holds all the cards, yet refuses to play them. The thinking goes: Why can't those shortsighted Israelis figure out what needs to be done it's so obvious to us, isn't it? so the conflict can be brought to a screeching halt? Thus, if only Israel reversed its settlements policy. If only Israel understood that Gazas tunnel-diggers and kite-flyers are just exercising their right of peaceful protest. If only the IDF restrained itself. If only Israel stopped assuming the worst about Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas. If only Israel went the extra mile with President Mahmoud Abbas. If only Israel got beyond its Holocaust trauma. If only Israel ______ well, go ahead and fill in the blank. The point is that for the IOI crowd, it essentially all comes down to Israel. And the IOI syndrome has only been strengthened by its adherents assessment of the current Israeli government, of course. After all, many media outlets, from the Associated Press to CBS News to Der Spiegel, branded Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as "hardline" from the get-go. Their word choice simply reinforces the notion that the conflict is all about alleged Israeli intransigence, while generally avoiding any descriptive judgment of Abbas and his entourage. At moments like this, it's important to underscore a few basic points too often lost in the din. First, the Netanyahu government follows on the heels of three successive Israeli governments that sought to achieve peace based on a two-state settlement with the Palestinians and failed. Each of those governments went far in attempting to strike a deal, but, ultimately, to no avail. Prime Minister Ehud Barak, joined by President Bill Clinton, tried mightily to reach an agreement with PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat. As confirmed by Clinton himself, the answer was a thunderous rejection, accompanied by the launching of a deadly wave of terror attacks on Israel. And, not to be forgotten, a unilateral Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon also took place during the Barak era. It was met by the entrenchment of Hezbollah, committed to Israel's destruction, in the vacated space. Then, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon defied his own Likud Party indeed, he left it to create a new political bloc and faced down thousands of settlers and their supporters to leave Gaza entirely. It was the first chance ever for Gaza's Arab residents to govern themselves. Had Gazans seized the opportunity in a responsible manner, they could have created unstoppable momentum for a second phase of significant withdrawal from the West Bank. Instead, Gaza quickly turned itself into a terrorist redoubt, realizing Israelis' worst fears. Finally, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, joined by Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and urged on by Washington, pressed hard for a deal with the Palestinians on the West Bank. According to Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, the Israeli offer "talked about Jerusalem and almost 100 percent of the West Bank." Not only was the far-reaching offer not accepted, but there wasnt even a counter-proposal from the Palestinian side. Prime Minister Netanyahu inherited a situation in which: (a) Hamas holds the reins of power in Gaza, spends precious funds on digging tunnels to attack Israel, flies kites to set extensive fires in Israel, and teaches kids to aspire to martyrdom; (b) Hezbollah is continuing to gain strength in Lebanon, thanks to Iranian largesse, and has tens of thousands of missiles and rockets in its arsenal; (c) the Palestinian Authority has been AWOL from the negotiating table; and (d) Iran continues to call for Israels destruction, while enhancing its military capability, entrenching itself in Syria, and funding Hamas. So before Israel gets any further lectures on what needs to be done, perhaps we should take stock of whats transpired and why. There have been at least three bold Israeli efforts since 2000 to create a breakthrough and three successive failures. And thats not to mention Netanyahus ten-month settlement freeze and the Palestinian Authoritys refusal to seize this opportunity to break the stalemate. The vast majority of Israelis yearn for peace and understand the considerable price the country will have to pay in territory and displaced population. Poll after poll proves their readiness, but only if they are assured that lasting peace, not new phases in the conflict, will be the outcome. Tellingly, few see that possibility on the horizon anytime soon. Israelis don't have to be pushed, prodded, nudged, cajoled, or pressured to seek a comprehensive peace beyond the current treaties with Egypt and Jordan. More than any other nation on the planet, they have lived with the absence of peace for 70 years, and know full well the physical and psychological toll it has inflicted on the country. Israel needs genuine partners, not sanctimonious lectures. Rather, they must be convinced that the tangible rewards justify the immense risks for a small state in a tough area. Those rewards begin with its neighbors' acceptance of Israel's rightful place in the region as a Jewish and democratic state with secure and recognized borders. And that, far more than settlements, checkpoints, or any of the other items on the IOI bill of particulars, gets to the essence of the conflict. The Gaza disengagement in 2005 demonstrated that settlements and checkpoints can be removed when the time comes. But unless and until the Palestinian side recognizes Israels legitimacy, and stops viewing the Jewish state as an interloper that can be defeated militarily or swamped by "refugees" who are in most cases third- and fourth-generation descendants of the original refugees from a war started in 1948 by the Arab world then whatever the IOI folks call for will inevitably be a secondary issue in the real world. Only when this recognition is reflected in Palestinian textbooks, where children have been taught for generations that Israelis are modern-day Crusaders to be driven out, can there be hope for a brighter future. Unless and until the Palestinian Authority succeeds in building a serious and accountable governing structure, including an enhanced capacity and will to combat extremism and incitement, then Israel will have no choice but to operate in the West Bank to prevent attacks against its civilian population. And unless and until the forces seeking Israels annihilation from Iran's current regime to Hamas to Hezbollah are contained, then there will always be a long shadow cast over the road to peace. Some would argue that this view gives the spoilers too much power over the process. Rather, it simply acknowledges the inescapable and ominous realities faced by Israel, a country the size of New Jersey and one percent the size of Saudi Arabia. Israel doesn't need sanctimonious lectures, however well-intentioned some might be, on the path to peace. Rather, it needs genuine partners. Without them, peace remains elusive. With them, it becomes inevitable. There are plenty of phenomena that light up the night and it turns out that the same type of detector fortuitously catches two very different types of celestial fireworks. One of those phenomena is lightning: Because bolts can spark wildfires, scientists and engineers at NASA designed a satellite-mounted monitor that maps lightning strikes from space. But scientists who track how Earth's atmosphere destroys meteoroids have confirmed in new research that they can piggyback on those detectors. Peter Jenniskens, an astronomer at NASA and the SETI Institute and lead author of a new paper describing the research, studies these dramatic explosions. "If you've ever seen one of these events, they are spectacular," he told Space.com. But he isn't just enjoying the light show; he's worried about planetary protection. That means he wants to know as much as possible about which asteroid characteristics trigger which impact characteristics. [Pieces of 'Fireball' Meteor Found in Botswana] That requires studying as many impacts and their remains as possible, hence the appeal of a space-bound detector that could send scientists alerts about incoming asteroids. Such an alert system would improve the chances that researchers could gather impact debris for analysis, Jenniskens said. That's still far in the future, but the new research suggests scientists have come a step closer, thanks to an instrument called the Global Lightning Mapper. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's GOES-16 and GOES-17 (formerly called GOES-R and GOES-S) weather-monitoring satellites each carry a GLM, and the technology is due to fly on the next two satellites in the series which will eventually be called GOES-18 and GOES-19 and are scheduled to launch in the early 2020s, as well. But the GLM is tailored to lightning strikes, measuring only a single wavelength of light that's produced by oxygen atoms during a strike, Jenniskens said. That means it can see lightning even during daylight, but at the cost of ignoring a ton of other data. So while scientists had hoped that the GLM would pick up meteoroid explosions, they couldn't be sure until they had some data to check. That became possible early this year, after GOES-16 had been watching the sky for almost a year and its observations could be compared with reports of incoming meteoroids from a network of Department of Defense satellites. Jenniskens and his colleagues could identify the spectacular ends of 10 meteors in the GLM data. The system turns out to register impacts brighter than the full moon, which correlates to small asteroids between about 4 and 40 inches (10 centimeters to 1 meter) across. Those impacts are more dramatic than a meteor shower but much too small to cause significant damage. Matching up those incidents proves that if scientists can make the most of the GLM data, they should eventually be able to identify otherwise-overlooked impacts in the lightning detector's observations, Jenniskens said. "It will take a while to really dig in and try to see if we can actually identify the bolide [meteor] signatures from the lighting," he said. Incorporating other observations, like whether there are clouds in the region, may be key to making the system more powerful, he added. And while they aren't new events, the GLM observations still offer scientists new information in the form of light curves for each impact, which trace how much light was produced over time. Jenniskens said he was particularly surprised that different impacts created different light shows some with dramatic flaring and dimming, and others with much steadier burns. That's probably related to an asteroid's composition and structure, which would affect how it falls through the atmosphere, he said. Those are difficult properties to measure in space, but tracking individual asteroids and their re-entry displays could help scientists begin to connect those dots. "Maybe we'll learn in time to predict how a particular asteroid would break apart in the atmosphere," Jenniskens said. The results of the initial project are described in a paper published July 16 in the journal Meteoritics & Planetary Science. Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her @meghanbartels. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. NASA is preparing to launch a historic probe to "touch the sun" which scientists hope will crack decades-long mysteries about our star in early August. The mission, called the Parker Solar Probe, will loop around the sun 24 times, flying within the star's million-degree atmosphere, called the corona. The spacecraft's daunting flight plan isn't just a daring lark; it's a necessity to answer questions about the sun that have stumped scientists for decades. In some cases, their answers will affect our lives on Earth. But scientists are also taking advantage of convenient access to the sun to understand all stars by proxy. "We need to go to the corona because we have done so much science by looking at the star," project scientist Nicola Fox, a solar scientist at Johns Hopkins University, said on July 20 during a NASA news conference about the upcoming mission. "We've looked at it in every single different way you can imagine, every wavelength; we've traveled beyond the orbit of Mercury even. But we need to get into this action region and into the region where all of these mysteries are really occurring." [New Look Inside Sun's Atmosphere Yields Clues About Mysterious Solar Wind] Solving three mysteries First, the mission will help scientists understand the corona itself in particular, how heat moves through the sun's atmosphere. Right now, that heat flow seems counterintuitive: The corona can reach temperatures about 300 times hotter than the surface of the sun, despite being farther away from the reactions powering the star. "It's a very strange, unfamiliar environment for us," Alex Young, a solar scientist at NASA, said during the news conference. "We're used to the idea that if I'm standing next to a campfire and I walk away from it, it gets cooler but this is not what happens on the sun." The probe's second task is to study what scientists call the solar wind a flood of highly charged particles that streams out of the sun and crosses the entire solar system, forming the bubble that marks our neighborhood of space. But scientists are still working to try to understand exactly how it works, and again, there's something very weird happening the solar wind somehow speeds up to supersonic. "The solar wind goes from sort of a steady breeze to an actual supersonic flow from the corona going to millions of miles an hour," Young said. Scientists hope that the probe's measurements as it flies both straight into the solar wind and along its current will help them solve that mystery. Finally, the probe will investigate an even more dramatic consequence of living near our star, which occasionally burps out knots of plasma into space. "The sun can blast out these huge blobs of material billions of tons of solar atmosphere threaded with solar magnetic field traveling away from the sun at millions of miles an hour," Young said. These tantrums cause a collection of phenomena scientists call space weather, and if they're dramatic enough, the outbursts can be dangerous to astronauts and satellites in their path and particularly strong ones could knock out power grids here on Earth. Scientists have some techniques for predicting the space-weather equivalent of tornadoes and hurricanes, but they hope the mission will make those predictions more accurate. And if you're just here for the pretty pictures, don't worry; NASA has arranged for some of those as well. The probe contains a camera that will show project scientists the spacecraft's view flying through the corona. That will mean pictures not of the sun's surface but of the corona itself, with images more closely resembling those produced on Earth during a total solar eclipse. [Watch the Sun's Elusive Corona Appear in Time-Lapse Solar Eclipse Video] An artist's depiction of the Parker Solar Probe, scheduled to launch in early August, approaching the sun. (Image credit: Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben/NASA) Delayed for technology Scientists have been grappling with these questions for decades, but without the resources to actually reach for the stars. For that, they needed to wait for technology to turn the Parker Solar Probe into a reality. The most important part of that technology is the heat shield, which most of the spacecraft's instruments rely on as protection from the staggering heat of the sun. It's an oddly shaped, unassuming-looking slab of carefully engineered carbon materials, but it does its job: When temperatures on the front of the shield hit 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit (1,370 degrees Celsius), its back is just 600 degrees F (315 degrees C) and the instruments themselves stay at a balmy 85 degrees F (30 C). The spacecraft's instruments will be powered by solar panels, but those panels had to be adapted to manage the overpowering input available so close to the sun. "Solar cells need to stay cool; they don't like to overheat, and if they do, they don't work," Fox said. That meant designing self-cooling panels that the spacecraft can adjust on its own, tucking most of the panels behind the heat shield when needed. A third important advance was making sure the probe could take care of itself without much human input. The probe will be on the far side of the sun during its closest approaches, with no way of calling home if something goes wrong and even when it can get a signal out, it will face a 16-minute round-trip communication lag. "I like to think of her [Parker] as an independent spacecraft," Fox said. "She is highly, highly autonomous. She has to look after herself when she is in this coronal region; there is no person in the loop." That means the spacecraft can automatically determine when it needs to shift its position in space because of how much sun individual parts of the spacecraft are receiving. [Touching the Sun: NASA Mission Renamed 'Parker Solar Probe'] Looking ahead The Parker Solar Probe is at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, packed and ready for launch, despite small issues delaying the launch by a week, including the addition of a second, backup set of temperature sensors after concerns the original set would malfunction. Now, the spacecraft is ready to go. "We have done all the work, all the checks; she finally looks exactly like I expected her to look from all those PowerPoint presentations I saw 10 years ago," Fox said. "She is buttoned up, looking beautiful and totally ready to take her flight." The spacecraft is now scheduled for a launch window that opens on Aug. 6 at 4:08 a.m. EDT (0808 GMT) and closes on Aug. 19. It will leave Earth aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket with two stages, and a third stage of acceleration will be triggered in space. All that power is necessary to set the spacecraft's path toward the sun. "We need to go so fast because we have to lose the influence of the Earth," Fox said. "We do not want to travel around with the Earth; we want to be able to go in towards the sun." Once the spacecraft has escaped Earth's pull, it will fly toward Venus, looping the planet about six weeks after launch in order to slow down and home in on the sun. Then, it's on to the sun. The probe will make 24 orbits around the sun, interspersed with six more adjustments that use Venus' influence to inch the probe closer to the star. The orbits are shaped like flower petals, with the probe gathering most of its data in 11-day spurts while it is within a quarter of the distance to Earth, then sending that information home during the distant part of its loop. During its closest approach, the probe will fly just 3.83 million miles (6 million kilometers) above the sun's surface at a speed of 430,000 mph (700,000 km/h), which will make it the fastest human-made object. Finally, about seven years after launch, the spacecraft will run out of the fuel it uses to adjust its body and keep sensitive instruments out of the brunt of the sun's heat. And that will be the beginning of the end for the Parker Solar Probe. "At that point, parts of the body that are not designed to see the full solar environment will then see it, the spacecraft will start to break apart into large pieces, and then it will get gradually and gradually smaller," Fox said. "I romantically like to think that she will become part of the corona and orbit the sun forever." Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her @meghanbartels. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. An artist's rendition of subatomic particle movement. Neutrino physicists examined neutrinos detected by the IceCube Observatory, and found that they adhere to Albert Einstein's theory of relativity. Once again, scientists have shown that Albert Einstein's theory of special relativity is right this time, thanks to a particle detector buried deep beneath Antarctica. Scientists from the 1-gigaton IceCube Neutrino Observatory examined subatomic particles called neutrinos: elusive, chargeless subatomic particles that are as small as electrons. The researchers wondered if these tiny, high-energy particles would deviate from the behavior predicted by the theory of special relativity. Specifically, they were testing Lorentz symmetry the principle that the laws of physics are the same, whether you're an astronaut zooming through space at a million miles an hour or a snail inching along on Earth at a tiny fraction of that speed. [8 Ways You Can See Einstein's Theory of Relativity in Real Life] Neutrinos are everywhere, but travel solo throughout the universe, rarely interacting with other matter. As neutrinos fly through space, they oscillate between the three different states, which physicists call flavors: electron, muon and tau. When neutrinos interact with the ice beneath the observatory they morph into muons, which are charged and can then be identified by the detector. If the principle of Lorentz symmetry holds, a neutrino of a given mass should oscillate at a predictable rate meaning a neutrino should travel a certain distance before transforming into a muon. Any deviation in that rate could be a sign that our universe doesn't work the way Einstein predicted. This means neutrinos are "sensitive probes for looking at space-time effects," such as Lorentz violation, said lead author Carlos Arguelles, a particle physicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). "Theories can break down, or they can have new effects when you're looking in new territories," Arguelles told Live Science. Scientists have searched for evidence of Lorentz violation in numerous instances, from photons to gravity, but have always come up empty-handed. But with neutrinos, Arguelles said, scientists can "explore this new high-energy regime that was previously unexplored." Arguelles and his colleagues reviewed two years' worth of neutrino data collected by the IceCube Observatory. Their search yielded no evidence of Lorentz violation in the realm of high-energy neutrinos. "This closes the book on the possibility of Lorentz violation for a range of high-energy neutrinos, for a very long time," study co-author Janet Conrad, a physicist at MIT, said in a statement. [Einstein Quiz: Test Your Knowledge on the Physics Genius] This outcome allowed the researchers to calculate that anything that interreacts with neutrinos at an energy level greater than 10 raised to the minus 36 gigaelectron volts (GeV) squared, seems to obey the normal rules for neutrino oscillations meaning that Lorentz symmetry still works as expected. To put that in perspective, infinitesimally small neutrinos interact with matter at an energy level of about 10 raised to the minus 5 GeV squared, which is still incredibly weak but is 10 nonillion times bigger than this new limit. "We were able to set the most stringent limit yet on how strongly neutrinos may be affected by a Lorentz-violating field," said Conrad. Neutrinos had not yet been discovered when Einstein died, but his theory still predicts their behavior, "which is amazing," said Arguelles. "So far, we have found no evidence that there is a problem with Einstein's theory of space-time relativity," he said. Nonetheless, Arguelles and his colleagues plan to continue exploring higher-energy phenomena for instances of Lorentz violation. "As you explore new conditions, you may find things that were not important are now important," he said. The team published their results today (July 16) in the journal Nature Physics. Original article on Live Science. Testing the Russian humanoid rescue robot Fyodor created by the Russian Foundation for Advanced Research Projects by order of the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry, at the Android Technics Scientific Production Association. The robot can be remotely controlled by a person in a special suit or work autonomously performing voice commands. Will these sharpshooting, weight-lifting Russian androids fly to space next year? An unnamed "source in the rocket and space industry" has told Russia's international news agency, RIA Novosti, that two androids, as part of Russia's robot platform FEDOR (Final Experimental Demonstration Object Research), will fly a crewless Soyuz spacecraft to the International Space Station in 2019. These robots previously made headlines when it was announced that they are trained to shoot guns with both of their "hands." And, while few details about the bots and their mission have been revealed, their gun-wielding abilities forced Dmitry Rogozin, a former Russian deputy prime minister, to deny that the country was "creating a terminator," according to a report from The Independent. [Meet Robonaut 2, NASA's Space Droid (Infographic)] See more The FEDOR program was created in 2014 with the goal of producing a robot that could replace humans in high-risk tasks and missions in space. Aside from shooting, these two androids are capable of driving, doing push-ups and lifting weights. It's unclear how these skills might assist them in space or what their specific mission might be. Rogozin has only stated that the robots would have "great practical significance in various fields," according to The Independent. Sending robots to do jobs too dangerous for humans is not a new concept. NASA hopes that the agencys robotic astronaut Robonaut 2, which is being repaired after its stint on the International Space Station, will work side by side with human crewmembers in space and complete tasks that are too high risk for humans. Another space robot, CIMON the first artificially intelligent assistance system designed for astronauts is advancing robotic capabilities in space. CIMON, also known as a "flying brain," is not designed to navigate situations that might be dangerous for astronauts, but it is definitely pushing forward the performance of robots on the space station with human-like compatibility. NASA's Robonaut program and Roscosmos' FEDOR program seem to share the goal of creating robots that make it safer for humans to accomplish things in space that otherwise would be too dangerous for humans to attempt. Still, the FEDOR androids' gun-wielding design might raise a few eyebrows. Email Chelsea Gohd at cgohd@space.com or follow her @chelsea_gohd. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. Brussels (Belgium), July 22, 2018 (SPS) - Sahrawi delegate minister for Europe, Mohamed Sidati, said Sunday that the European Commission which agreed with Morocco about a text on the Fisheries Agreement including Western Sahara waters "only encourages the Moroccan occupation of the Sahrawi territories." Such attitude puts the European Union credibility in doubt. "Morocco steals the resources of Western Sahara people, who largely live in exile and in poverty, deprived of their land and sea. And the European Commission is accomplice to this robbery," Sidati told APS, after the European Commission and Morocco agreed on 20 July on a fisheries agreement text that includes Western Sahara waters, thus violating the decision of the EU Court of Justice of 18 February 2018. The Sahrawi official and member of the Polisario Fronts national secretariat added by "negotiating with Morocco on Western Sahara-related matters, the EU Commission, which affirms respecting the UN-led peace process and not willing to influence it, merely encourages the Moroccan occupation of the territory : it actually hampers the process led by UN envoy Horst Kohler from succeeding." "It is the credibility of the EU which is at stake here," said Sidati, saying in this regard that "the Unions Member States and the Members of its Parliament must know it. Not only they must not ratify this shameful draft agreement, they must call on the Union to discuss the resources-related matters with the only legitimate representative of the Sahrawi people, namely the Polisario Front." "When we know that the catches of European boats in the Sahrawi waters, in recent years, account for more than 91% of the total European catches negotiated with Morocco - less than 9% of them being made in the Moroccan waters - we cannot but be indignant to hear the Spanish Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries hope that Spanish boats will soon be able to fish again in Moroccan waters!," the Sahrawi Minister added. Henceforth, insisted Sidati," when the EU Commission celebrates the improvements introduced to the fisheries agreement text in order to maximize the benefits for the populations living in the concerned areas, complying with the principles of the sustainable and fair management of the fishing resources, we only see lie and hypocrisy." He insisted that "neither Western Sahara nor the waters adjacent to it are part of Morocco or its exclusive economic zone". (SPS) 062/SPS/APS A Chinese restaurant is set to open later this summer in the restaurant row at the Stamford Town Center mall. Peter Chang restaurant will be the latest addition to the dining lineup at 230 Tresser Blvd., the malls management has announced. Owned by an award-winning chef and restaurateur of the same name, the approximately 6,000-square-foot establishment will succeed California Pizza Kitchen, which closed last January. It is an honor that Peter Chang selected Stamford Town Center as the destination for his first restaurant in Connecticut, said Stamford Town Center General Manager Dan Stolzenbach said in a statement. Peter has a tremendous following, and we are extremely pleased to add his unique culinary talents to our lineup. A native of Hubei Province in central China, Chang is a two-time James Beard Award finalist and owns about a dozen restaurants in Maryland and Virginia. Chang specializes in dishes from Szechuan (Sichuan) Province in south-central China that include duck in a stone pot, chicken with onion, and chili and dry-fried eggplant. The restaurants arrival, which will seat about 120, will fill the restaurant rows sole vacancy. California Pizza Kitchen had operated for about a decade at 230 Tresser Blvd. CPK officials said they closed their eatery at the mall because they were not renewing its lease. The malls cluster of restaurants on Tresser Boulevard has seen a number of changes in the past couple of years. Next door to Peter Chang the pizza chain Pieology opened an eatery last November. In August 2017, a Rascal Flatts restaurant debuted in the restaurant row, in the same space as a Mitchells Fish Market that had closed in 2014. In October 2016, The Cheesecake Factory opened at the mall. It replaced a P.F. Changs restaurant, which had closed about six months earlier. Around the time of Cheesecakes opening, fast-casual chain Cosi closed its restaurant in the spot now occupied by Pieology. The Capital Grille, Kona Grill and Plan B Burger Bar comprise the other tenants in the dining hub. pschott@scni.com; 203-964-2236; Twitter: @paulschott President Donald Trump resumed his public campaign against the Washington Post on Monday, calling the newspaper an "expensive lobbyist" for Amazon.com, whose CEO, billionaire Jeff Bezos, owns the newspaper. Trump has previously argued that the online retailer has a "huge antitrust" problem. His administration could theoretically act against Amazon through antitrust, USPS, consumer protection probes or even a push against their government contract business. Amazon fell as much as 2.4 percent after Trump's tweet, before recovering some of that loss. The shares were down 0.7 percent to $1,800.25 at 10:26 a.m. in New York. Trump's broadside against the Washington Post follows a report in the newspaper Sunday that he was venting behind the scenes over a lack of progress in negotiations with North Korea on eliminating its nuclear program. Shortly before criticizing the Post, the president tweeted that "all of Asia is happy" with the progress and noted that North Korea hadn't conducted a ballistic missile or nuclear test in months. "But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough," Trump said. "Wrong, very happy!" Fifteen minutes later he began tweeting about Amazon. "The Amazon Washington Post has gone crazy against me ever since they lost the Internet Tax Case in the U.S. Supreme Court two months ago. Next up is the U.S. Post Office which they use, at a fraction of real cost, as their 'delivery boy' for a BIG percentage of their packages," Trump said in a Twitter posting. Amazon wasn't involved in the Supreme Court case, which pitted South Dakota against three smaller online retailers. The court voted 5-4 to let state and local governments require that online retailers collect sales taxes from customers, even if the merchant doesn't have a store or warehouse in the state. Even before the ruling, Amazon charged consumers in states with a sales tax, though only when selling products from its own inventory. About half its sales involve goods owned by millions of third-party merchants, many of which don't collect taxes. Trump followed up the tweet minutes later: "In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon. Is it used as protection against antitrust claims which many feel should be brought?" Brad Parscale, the manager for Trump's 2020 reelection campaign, is also said to have complained about the company to Trump. The traditional independence and slow pace of investigations of the Justice Department or Federal Trade Commission could limit Trump's ability to direct antitrust sanctions against the company. Amazon spent $3.47 million on lobbying in the second quarter of 2018, a company quarterly record, according to Friday filings with the government. Trump has repeatedly attacked Amazon, the Post and Bezos. In April, after several attacks on the online retail giant, Trump created a task force to review the business practices of the Postal Service. Amazon regularly uses the Postal Service to complete what's called the "last mile" of delivery. Trump has often said the postal service loses money because of Amazon. The service, legally prohibited from charging shippers less than its delivery costs, disputes the claim. Amazon has been the subject of intense scrutiny among a young generation of antitrust activists, who argue that the current antitrust enforcement framework is ill-equipped to tackle Amazon's dominance and the potential harm it poses to competition. One of the architects of the argument, Lina Khan of the Open Markets Institute think tank, will be joining Federal Trade Commissioner Rohit Chopra's office. If the administration opens an antitrust inquiry, enforcers would have to show the company has a monopoly in a market and that it abused its dominant position. But enforcers are intently focused on harm to consumers, and Amazon's retailing platform is beloved by its customers for its breadth and convenience. An Amazon company spokeswoman, Jodi Seth, declined to comment on the tweets Monday. - - - Bloomberg's Greg Stohr contributed. After more than six weeks waiting, Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Obsitnik was finally approved Wednesday for a $1.35 million campaign grant from the state. While we wish the process was faster, we are pleased with the outcome, said Dan Debicella, Obsitniks campaign manager, in a statement. Our campaign can now fully focus on informing voters on Steves background as a veteran, high tech job creator, and outsider and his plan to create 300,000 jobs in the next eight years. The delayed funding meant Obsitnik, a Westport tech entrepreneur had to dip into his own pockets to keep his campaign afloat or be handicapped against his four primary opponents. Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, the party-endorsed candidate, and Tim Herbst, of Trumbull both received their public financing grants in June. David Stemerman of Greenwich and Bob Stefanowki of Madison are pouring their personal wealth into their campaigns. State law does not allow candidates participating in the Citizens Elections Program to lend money to their own campaigns, but they can spend money directly and seek reimbursement later. Obsitnik raised over $250,000 in increments under $100 to qualify for his grant. Part of the hold up on Obsitniks grant was a State Elections Enforcement Commission investigation into his fundraising and his campaign's relationship with an independent group set up to support his candidacy. The SEEC, which has issued an investigative subpoena, will look deeper into Obsitnik's connection with FixCT Inc., an independent group that has raised $137,000 to support him. The full investigation could take months. The state law barring coordination between independent groups and campaigns prohibits the sharing of vendors. Records on file with the SEEC indicate that Obsitnik and FixCT had at least one consultant in common, Connect Strategy Communications of Dallas. Obsitniks campaign has said Connect Strategy was not employed by FixCT and Obsitnik at the same time. emunson@hearstmediact.com; Twitter: @emiliemunson C uriouser and curiouser. First, the name of Baroness Shriti Vadera crops up among the gossips at the Treasurys annual summer drinks party as a serious contender for the job of Bank of England Governor. Then Shriti the Shriek emerges herself in a rare interview, talking about diversity and producing the politicians classic non-denial denial when asked about the looming vacancy in Threadneedle Street. Its almost enough to make you suspect theres a campaign under way. The bookies favourite for the job remains the Financial Conduct Authoritys chief executive Andrew Bailey. But Vaderas apparent traction in Treasury circles only goes to underline the old adage that favourites dont always win. Paul Tucker was heir apparent when Mark Carney got the job five years ago but soon vanished into academia after missing out to the Canadian. Vadera who earned her shouty nickname among civil servants when serving as a minister under Gordon Brown is the first woman chairman of a UK bank and can call on an impressive City career as well as her political experience. Despite her previous affiliation, that private sector nous might appeal to a Conservative adminstration againt the merits of an (albeit vastly experienced) rival candidate with three decades at the Bank. Dont underestimate the diversity factor either. As an Asian woman she is the perfect riposte to recent complaints from Treasury Select Committee chairman Nicky Morgan over the Banks lack of women at senior levels. And lets be frank whatever the merits of Jonathan Haskel as the latest member of the monetary policy committee, the Treasury blundered (from a PR perspective, at least), by picking the only man on a shortlist of women for the job. Only this morning, the Bank of Englands chief economist Andy Haldane is in the Financial Times writing about diversity and calling for a radical redesign of recruitment processes. The issue is very live. The life peer might not be the easiest person to work for, if former Chancellor Alistair Darlings memoirs are any guide. She appears to believe that unless there is blood on the carpet, preferably that of her own colleagues, then she has not done her job, he recalled. That alone might be enough to have the staff in the Governors parlours quaking. But shes certainly qualified, despite her demurring that I would like the best person for the job and I can think of many better people than me. When Carney was playing footsie with the Treasury during the summer of 2012, he was much stronger in his disavowal of interest (answering both to the question is that a no or a never?), so I dont see anything in Vaderas comments that rule her out of the running. R yanair boss Michael OLeary on Monday claimed the risk of the UK flying into a hard Brexit is being underestimated, adding to a list of woes for the budget airline. His comments about Britain crashing out of the bloc with no deal, came with a warning of potential job losses as the airline grapples with strikes and higher oil costs. Outspoken chief executive OLeary said: We remain concerned by the danger of a hard (no-deal) Brexit in March 2019. He added: Though there is a view that a 21-month transition agreement from March next year will be implemented, we believe that the risk of a hard Brexit is being underestimated. In the event of no-deal, Ryanair may be forced to restrict the voting rights of all non-EU shareholders. Unlike other industries, aviation has no World Trade Organisation rules to fall back on if the UK and EU fail to reach a deal. OLeary has warned that some flights could stop for a period from next April if a new Open Skies agreement is not made a priority in Brexit negotiations. The airline boss joins other business leaders in voicing concerns. It emerged today that Amazons UK head Doug Gurr said in a meeting with new Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab that a no-deal could lead to civil unrest. Theresa Mays latest financial services plan has come under fire from Brussels. The uncertainty marks the latest headache for Ryanair. The no-frills carrier said profits fell 20% to 397 million (354 million) in the first-quarter, hurt by higher fuel costs. It is trying to bounce back from a rota fiasco last September that led to pilot shortages and some 20,000 flights being cancelled. That resulted in Ryanair finally recognising some trade unions. In the first-quarter, 2500 flights were cancelled, largely because of strike action on the Continent. The firm said there could be job losses if unnecessary strikes continue to damage consumer confidence. Neil Wilson, chief analyst at Markets.com, called the three months to June brutal for the airline. Ryanair said average fares will be lower than expected during the summer owing to high competition, a heatwave in northern Europe and uncertainty about pilot strikes. Heavy spending has plagued Petra Diamonds and while the miner has taken measures to cut its debt pile, still investors remain unconvinced. The firm has been putting out fires all year since it announced a profit warning in January, followed by a deeply discounted $170 million rights issue to cut its debt in May. Today the firm announced that its debt had been reduced from $514 million to $436 million during the financial year, but it wasnt enough to win over the City. While as a consequence of reducing debt the firms production figures have been dented as it looks to scale back its expenditure. To add to its woes Petra said there was no update regarding its confiscated diamond parcel in Tanzania. I ts right that as Londons newspaper and website that we report the wave of shootings and stabbings that are wrecking parts of our city. And its right, too, that we hold those in power to account for not bringing things under control. But with this comes something else that matters as well a role for the Evening Standard and its readers in tackling the problem. After all, it isnt just up to the police, who have opened more than 80 murder investigations this year alone, to stop the killings. Nor is it all down to the Mayor. Each of us in London can play a part. Thats why, today, were proud to announce a new 400,000 Save London Lives Fund, backed by the Evening Standard. The money will come from the Dispossessed Fund, built up from millions donated by our generous readers since it was launched in 2010. How will the new money make a difference? We believe its vital that help is given to charities working in communities to tackle youth violence in new ways. Over the past few days our special investigation has been reporting on the culture of violence in some of the capitals communities. Overcoming this isnt just about tough laws and good policing though they matter. Its about new approaches such as the violence-reduction approach that transformed crime levels in Glasgow, and would in our city as well if given a chance. So were inviting grassroots charities from across the capital to apply for grants of up to 20,000 This will bring trauma support for young people, more help in schools and aid families in stopping the killings before they start. Together we can make London a safer place. No to the death penalty In 1965 this country abolished the death penalty, for the right reasons. It didnt bring about justice and it reduced the state to the level of the murderer. But what happens when British citizens carry out acts of barbaric violence abroad and face justice in democratic countries that still use capital punishment? Should Britain co-operate or risk holding back evidence that could convict killers? Thats the dilemma facing the new Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, over Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, two British citizens who are believed to have been involved in the murder of aid workers and journalists while fighting for IS. The US wants to try them in a US court where they might face the death penalty. Britain has traditionally sought assurances in such cases that it would not be applied, before helping bring justice. Now it emerges that Mr Javid has written to the US Attorney General saying he will not make this a requirement in this case. The Home Secretary is right to want these alleged murderers held to account for the appalling crimes they are said to have committed who wouldnt agree with that? But does that really require Britain to abandon its principles on the death penalty? Why cant we intercede, as we have in the past, to demand life sentences instead? We suspect Parliament will want to debate this executive act and make its voice heard. Facebook likes London This investment by the internet giant is very welcome. It builds on the UKs success over recent years in setting out to woo the global tech sector and its proof, too, of the success of well-planned public-private redevelopments that places such as Kings Cross can create. However, tech companies are not built out of bricks and mortar but people. If the Facebooks of this world are going to go on investing in our capital, we need to make sure they continue to have access to all the talent of Europe, who have been able to come here, unimpeded, to contribute to our society and economy. D uring my career in Whitehall I had to tell ministers some truths they did not always want to hear but had to be informed about. So what are my successors likely to be saying this summer as the Brexit crisis drags on? There are three hard facts that ministers and MPs need to take with them on holiday. First, the Brexit clock is ticking fast. In 249 days Britain will lose access to the single market and to the EUs preferential trade deals with countries from Japan to Canada. That is now the default position. It should worry our elected representatives just as much as it worries businesses large and small across the country. Second, the Government now has no credible Brexit strategy. The White Paper was at best a political signal that the UK was ready to move towards shared rules on customs and single market regulation. When Theresa May accepted the wrecking amendments of the pro-Brexit European Reform Group MPs without a vote, she signalled that she either would not or could not turn her proposal into anything with a real chance of agreement in Brussels. It is now dead in the water. Third, Britain needs time to come up with a credible position that can stop the leakage of jobs and investment out of this country turning into a torrent, and head off the risk of a sterling crisis in the autumn. The draft Withdrawal Agreement guarantees business full EU market access until the end of 2020 not long enough to negotiate a detailed, permanent trade deal, though a lot better than nothing. But the EU has been clear. That agreement only happens if the UK makes good on its repeated commitment to avoid new border controls in Ireland , whatever may happen in the wider talks. The amendments voted by Parliament have made that harder, by opposing customs controls in the Irish Sea. So our MPs have a real choice to make between the sandcastles and the swimming pools. Are they prepared to tell the Government that if Brexit is going ahead there must be rapid agreement on the transition deal to 2020, including acceptance that there can be no new barriers on the Irish border? That course means Westminster signing up to Northern Ireland staying within the full customs union and internal market rules, to keep the same market access to Ireland and the rest of the EU as now. If the rest of the UK chooses to be less open to Europe then there will have to be more controls on goods crossing the Irish Sea. Northern Ireland voted to remain in the European Union. Businesses on both sides of the Irish border are increasingly integrated. So is healthcare, transport and even education in border areas. Parliament should give the Northern Irish themselves the final decision on whether the fallback option that preserves this openness now and in the future is acceptable. "A referendum in Northern Ireland may be needed to give its citizens a decision on their economic future" If the Assembly remains suspended then a Northern Ireland referendum may be needed to give its citizens a direct decision on their economic future. My belief is that they would choose to keep the Irish border open in all circumstances. They certainly deserve the right to decide that issue themselves. Without some new thinking to resolve the Irish border issue, MPs risk no deal on the withdrawal, no transition and a chaotic EU departure on starting on the morning of March 30 next year. That hard Brexit means a sudden end to the level playing field for British goods and services across Europe, and no access to the EUs third-country agreements. In total around three-fifths of UK trade would be either disadvantaged or, in parts of the service sector, stop completely. The prospect of motorway queues as the four million cross-Channel goods vehicles a year get clogged up in new border bureaucracy, 20 billion of extra overheads on businesses, reducing competitiveness and raising prices, and an end to supply chains is all too real. Meanwhile, better global trade access for solo Britain has been exposed as the fantasy it always was. There are no exciting new markets waiting for buccaneering Britain. Even the EUs existing trade deals will not be rolled over on the same terms to the UK alone, because our economy is only a fifth as big and so we have less to offer in return. In the real world the United States is pursuing an America First policy, weakening global trade rules and undermining the World Trade Organisation. US protectionism has started a global trade war with China and Europe, which is set to get rapidly worse. There is no chance of more open markets in America for British firms. UK growth and productivity are already weak. Firms are reducing their investment here and increasing it abroad. Job losses will inevitably follow. Without some certainty that the UKs frictionless trade with Europe in goods and services will continue we may find ourselves in a self-inflicted recession by 2019 as business confidence in a managed Brexit collapses. Time is short. When schools and Parliament restart in September, MPs should take detailed control of the Brexit process. They have to decide how to limit the damage it has already caused, reassure business and set the Government a realistic negotiating goal of a shared customs union and frictionless single market access. To gain the time needed to achieve that needs a clear parliamentary commitment that the Irish border will stay open in all circumstances. Because if not, we will be facing a hard winter of deadlocked negotiations, a looming economic crisis and no way back from a chaotic Brexit in the spring. D avid Hockney has painted many a famous face over the years and now hes captured one as we've never seen him before. Tom Daley, current 10m platform diving world champion, revealed on his Instagram and YouTube pages that the legendary British artist had created a portrait of him, which showed the athlete completely naked. In the portrait, which is now on show at the Los Angeles Museum of Art as part of Hockneys 82 Portraits and 1 Still-Life exhibition, Daley is shown sitting nude on a brown chair, his modesty saved only by a strategically placed hand. In a video on his YouTube account, Daley documents taking his mother and husband, Oscar-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, to LACMA to see the portrait for the first time, and explains how he sat for Hockney last year. On showing the pair the portrait, Daley remarked that it was weird for his mum to see him naked, and Black joked, This is a warning shot to you David Hockney, you back off my man! L ondons unsung cultural heroes will be honoured at a major arts festival launching this week. More than 50 galleries, studios and venues will offer talks, tours and pop-up exhibitions for the Kensington & Chelsea Art Weekend. The event, which begins on Friday, will feature the work and life stories of local influencers alongside those of artists and celebrities. A double-decker bus will drop visitors at 16 locations for free while broadcasting Portobello Radio interviews with heroes selected by residents. Among them is Sonny Blacks, a musician from Trinidad who has helped organise the Notting Hill carnival since it began in 1966. He was nominated because he represents unity in the borough and has tirelessly devoted his time to promoting culture in the area. He said: I feel very honoured. I came to England as a young man in a steel band and settled in the Notting Hill area. It is good to know my connection with the area, which was once known as a ghetto of London with difficult conditions, is seen as a positive thing. A new committee has been put in place for this years carnival, hopefully more transparent and vibrant that makes changes good for the community such as taking the Sunday to feature the children of Notting Hill and a childrens carnival, as it was in the early days. We want to bring the children back. 5 exhibitions you need to see this July - In pictures 1 /5 5 exhibitions you need to see this July - In pictures Banksy, Greatest Hits: 2002-2008 July 12 - August 25, Lazinc Gallery; lazinc.com Courtesy of Lazinc Magic Realism: Art in Weimar Germany 1919-33 July 13 2018 - July 14 2019, Tate Modern; tate.org.uk Courtesy Tate/DACS, 2018 Frieze Sculpture July 4 - October 7, Regent's Park; frieze.com Courtesy: Alan Cristea Gallery Christopher Le Brun: New Painting July 4 - August 18, Lisson Gallery; lissongallery.com Courtesy Lisson Gallery/Christopher Le Brun/Photographer: George Darell Life in the Dark July 13 2018 - January 6 2019, Natural History Museum; nhm.ac.uk Trustees of the Natural History Museum, 2018 Visitors will also be able to watch Mangrove, one of the carnivals masquerade and steelbands, rehearsing at The Tabernacle. Other attractions will include a public art installation featuring historic images from the area and tours of the Royal Albert Hall and the Design Museum. Children will be offered an afternoon of stories and food at Leighton House Museum. 5 1st State festival returns for its fourth edition in two weekends' time, bringing a who's-who of dance music legends to north London for a one-day party. If you're heading down or are still in the market for a ticket, we've rounded up everything you need to know. When and where is it? The festival will take place within Trent Country Park in Cockfosters, north London, on Saturday August 4. Line-up The festival promises to celebrate the roots of house music, pulling together the threads of this hugely influential sound, exploring classic and tech house, garage, disco, soul, dub, dancehall and more. There are a fair few dance music titans spread across the festivals six stages. On the Groove Odyssey stage, the hugely influential DJ Carl Cox headlines with a classic house set, backed up by Louie Vega, Danny Krivit and Dimitri from Paris. Techno pioneer Derrick May and Chicago house icon Derrick Carter lead the way on the Found stage, joined by Lee Foss and Todd Terry. UK dance heroes Trevor Nelson and Norman Jay are the biggest attractions on the We Love Soul stage, whole Mr Vegas performs a live headline set on the Hot Wuk stage. The Studio 51 stage is headed up by John Morales and Late Nite Tuff Guy while India and Todd Edwards top the bill on the Backto95 stage. The full line-up can be found here. The most influential DJs of all time 1 /12 The most influential DJs of all time 12. Norman Jay A soundsystem master renowned for his astute, never-not-groovy selections. Getty Images 11. Annie Mac A household name, a powerhouse of Radio 1's dance music output and genuine tastemaker. Getty Images for Advertising Week 10. Logan Sama In terms of bringing grime to the masses, Logan Sama is a standout. Getty Images for Red Bull 9. Skream A progenitor of the dubstep movement that sprung from south London. PA Archive/PA Images 8. Andy C A drum 'n' bass pioneer who is now a stadium-filling superstar. 7. David Rodigan Few DJs can claim to have done as much for spreading the good word of reggae than David Rodigan. Getty Images 6. Derrick May One of the Belleville Three, the famed trio of producers and DJs who forged the world-famous Detroit techno sound. 5. David Guetta The superstar DJ is a common concept now, but no-one has show how to dominate the world with EDM like Guetta has. Getty Images 4. Grandmaster Flash Grandmaster Flash didnt start hip hop but he made it his own and, in turn, inspired countless other DJs after him. Getty Images 3. Frankie Knuckles House music starts with Frankie Knuckles, a true innovator. Getty Images 2. Carl Cox Endlessly versatile and influential, Carl Cox is an unresting champion of underground sounds. Getty Images 1. Paul Oakenfold With an astonishingly wide-reaching influence, Oakenfold is quite simple a titan of dance music. After party The 51st State afterparty will be hosted by Ministry of Sound in Elephant and Castle. Todd Terry, Terry Hunter and Late Nite Tuff Guy are among the acts to keep the party going into early hours. Tickets can be bought here. Tickets Standard tickets are still available for the festival, currently priced at 60.50 including booking fee, while VIP tickets start at 82.50. They are available to buy here. Travel Tube: Cockfosters (Piccadilly) I ts so hot that even if the ink on your newsprint is running, you most certainly are not. Your trainers have retired somewhere warm the back of your cupboard. Look, were really not complaining but how can anyone consider exercise when theyre already sweltering? Even the thought is exhausting. While the mercury rises, youve melted into a Tube seat, wondering if youll survive the journey, let alone 30 minutes in the gym. This is no longer a wave, its a full- blown heat invasion. Adapt. Instead of pounding away on a treadmill inside, relish the parks , rivers and rooftops where lesser spotted gym fanatics migrate in the summer. Just make sure you take a water bottle. The rooftop is your first port of call, where the air is thinner and the temperature cooler. This summer, the John Lewis roof in Oxford Street is populated by the lithe and Lycra-clad on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays thanks to a pop-up by athleisure brand Pepper & Mayne (johnlewis.com). It hosts early morning Pilates, yoga and BodyBarre classes from 7.30am (10am on Saturday). Float on: a group of yogis flex out on a water stage (ES Local Feed ) / ES Local Feed Across the city, yoga teacher Sophie Dear will be hosting a weekly hour-long Vinyasa flow class on the Madison restaurant bars rooftop, with breathtaking then exhaling views of St Pauls Cathedral. The Bussey Buildings rooftop hosts drop-in yoga sessions six storeys up. For something more down to earth, Train Dirty Londons bootcamps go into overdrive in the summer. These ferocious outdoor classes are set up in open spots across most of London, from Finsbury Park to Clapham Common (traindirtylondon.com). Combining high-intensity interval training (HIIT) with heavier weights, youll need all the fresh air you can get. If your idea of a summer workout is less work, more play, try Frames low-impact Breakfast Barre class on the banks of the Regents Canal in Kings Cross. Its a great way to start the day barefoot and sunkissed, set to Beyonce and Britney Spears. Meanwhile, zorbing the act of wilfully placing yourself within a plastic sphere and moving it around like a hamster wheel has taken off. "Bootcamps go into overdrive in the summer. Ferocious outdoor classes are set up in spots across the capital, from Finsbury Park to Clapham" You can walk, run or stumble on water at Merchant Square in Paddington Basin on August 10, taking your zorb out onto Regents Canal. It takes balls. Vikings assemble: racers compete in a Dragon Boat (ES Local Feed ) / ES Local Feed Therell also be stand-up paddleboarding and one-off floating fitness sessions more yoga, on a water stage to improve balance with personal trainers (floated in specially). Further down the canal, at St Marys Bridge on Thursday, the annual Dragon Boat race invites you to embrace your inner Viking and row hard for 100m. Its also raising money for Children of St Marys Intensive Care, a local charity. Rabble classes, in Finsbury Park and Clapham Common, disguise interval training as fun and games, instilling a workout without noticing approach. Dodgeball and British Bulldog games, train endurance, speed, agility and co-ordination. You can run up to 10K in a single class, so its not childs play (joinrabble.com). Tail-wagging? In Battersea Park, Barking Fits outdoor HIIT classes on Tuesdays are canine-friendly, building isometric exercises into your dog walk. Book through Move GB (movegb.com). M ore for those who like adventure than glamping, 1000 Nights is one of the most well-known yet remote desert camps in Oman. Famed for its traditional tents and spindly-legged camels, who weave around the property, it's an experience not to be missed while exploring the desert. Where is it? Located in the interior of Wahabi Sands, 1000 Nights is surrounded by ripples of golden sands and vast dunes. Around four hours' drive from Muscat, the last section of the journey is through the desert, so a four-wheel drive is imperative. Style Based on a Bedouin camp, tents are scattered around the property. Decorative and colourful, the traditional tents are made from sheep and goats wool and vary in patterns. In recent years the camp has expanded to cater for those looking for an added layer of comfort and now has the addition of smarter half-house-half-tents and full-sand houses, but they dont spoil the authentic feel. The main building is where the restaurant and lounge area are based, on a small Omani fort. Occasionally camels will walk by providing the perfect photo opportunity. Perhaps most spectacular at night, walkways are lit by candlelight and the sky is filled by a blanket of stars. As one of the remotest camps in the Omani desert, youll hear nothing but glorious silence after sunset. Facilities Currently the only desert camp in the Oman that has a swimming pool, this small oasis really does give 1000 Nights an edge. Excellent for keeping children entertained or simply lounging by, its a welcome addition, especially during the hottest hours of the day. Typically people will go out with their guides for day trips but the camp also offers a wealth of activities from dune bashing to trekking in the desert and camel rides, should you not want to venture too far. Food and drink The food at 1000 Nights is buffet-style and impressive. Served in one restaurant, its a decorative space with huge glassless Arabic-style windows. The floors are covered in Persian carpets, tables are low and youll dine propped up by colourful cushions. An impressively large spread for both breakfast and dinner, in the mornings youll enjoy continental platters, Omani specialities and made-to-order omelettes and crepes. At dinner, choose from dishes around the world: incredible Moroccan salads to Indian curries, Italian pastas, traditional Arabic dishes and Omani-style barbeque. Which room? There are several tiers of accommodation at 1000 Nights but bear in mind that the property is 3* and caters for those looking for basic and comfortable accommodation, not 'luxury'. If you want the higher end of whats on offer, the Ameer tent is a great option. Fixed, but with tented walls and ceilings, its got a separate bathroom and private porch. Its also ideal if you have a family as it can fit two extra beds. If you want a more authentic Bedouin experience though, the Sheikh tents are the ones made from the traditional wool. They have electricity, small private decking and open-air showers. Extra curricular If youre staying more than a fleeting night, I would definitely recommend hiring a guide so you can explore the surrounding areas. The desert is magical but it is (obviously) very hot during daylight hours and can feel monotonous if you dont break up the day. Old Muscat Tourism is the leading tour operator in Oman and offers truly fantastic guided experiences. Started by Khalid Al Rawahi, who previously worked alongside the Sultan, his historical and local knowledge is impressive to say the least. From 1000 Nights, a guide can take you to explore the surrounding areas, which includes the incredible natural cave pools of Wadi Bani Khalid, where youll swim in neon aqua waters. You can visit both the ladies' market in Ibra and, if you time your trip for a Friday, can witness the traditional morning cattle market at the famous Nizwa Souq. There are also numerous incredible Omani forts to explore not too far from the desert. Guides can arrange transfers to and from 1000 Nights if you dont want to rent your own vehicle. And they can organise all tickets for your chosen excursions too. Best for Those looking for a proper Omani desert experience. This is less flashy than the luxury rival, Desert Night Camps, but with a more remote location and traditional accommodation options, its more authentic. How to get there 1000 Nights is located around four hours drive from Muscat. BA flies from London Heathrow to Muscat (flight time is 7 hours and 15 minutes). Prices start from 322. Find out more at ba.com. Details A rmed police have descended on a hotel in Manchester city centre after a woman suffered neck injuries during an attack. Four men and two women have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder following the incident at the Hilton Hotel on Deansgate. Officers rushed to the hotel around 11.10am on Monday. The woman was attacked inside the hotel and managed to flag down officers outside. The incident took place on Monday morning / PA Crime scenes are now in place in one of the hotel rooms and outside the hotel itself. The victim is being treated for serious lacerations to her neck, according to reports. A witness told the Manchester Evening News: "We saw a police van turn up in the car park. One of my colleagues was walking back. He saw a woman on the floor with a large slash across the throat. Police were with her at that point, more and more police turned up. They were running in and out of the Hilton Hotel." In a statement, Greater Manchester Police said: "Four men, aged 20,24,26 and 26, a 20-year-old woman and a 17-year-old girl have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder." A man is fighting for life after being stabbed in broad daylight in south-east London. Police and paramedics from London Ambulance Service rushed to Eltham, in Greenwich, around 5pm on Monday. Londons Air Ambulance was also called to the scene. A 34-year-old man was found suffering stab wounds in Middle Park Avenue. He was taken to hospital in a critical condition. A Met Police spokesman said: Detectives from Greenwich are investigating. A crime scene is in place. There has been no arrest at this early stage. T hese are the faces of nine people wanted in connection with violence at a protest in central London calling for the release of far right activist Tommy Robinson. Scotland Yard today released the images of eight men and one woman after clashes in Whitehall in which 21 police officers were injured in June. There were protests in several British cities calling for Robinson to be freed. The activist was jailed for 13 months in May after pleading guilty to contempt of court after live streaming details of a trial that was subject to reporting restrictions. Nine people were arrested during the disorder on June 9. One man was filmed repeatedly performing a Nazi salute while holding a banner reading fxxk Islam while another tried to scale the gates of Downing Street. Detective Constable Jonny Wise, from the Mets Public Order Investigations team, said: During this demonstration violent disorder broke out on the streets of central London. Scaffolding, glass bottles and items of street furniture were thrown at police officers and 21 officers sustained injuries. Serious disruption was caused to members of the public, local businesses and the local communities. Vehicles and buildings were damaged and those responsible need to be held accountable for their actions. I am appealing to members of the public to help police identify the individuals in these images. A pervert known as the Rush Hour Prowler who attacked young girls on their way to and from school has been jailed for six years. Kevin Bond, a former nightclub owner and operations manager at South Bank University, targeted victims across south-east London. He grabbed schoolgirls as young as eight before fleeing on foot in what the judge described as a "shocking, violating, frightening, distressing" campaign of attacks. Bond, 52, of Chislehurst, Bromley, usually targeted lone women or young girls in pairs, once following an 11-year-old girl into a lift to attack her. The married father of two's offending was so prolific that police conducted a campaign across the boroughs of Southwark, Bexley, Lewisham and Bromley with schools and parents to make sure young girls travelled in groups and, where possible, were accompanied by an adult. Sex assault: Bond captured on CCTV in Brockley / PA Bond first struck on October 6 2016 and was not tracked down until November last year following a release of CCTV images in a public appeal for information. He admitted 11 counts of sexual assault and three counts of sexual assault of a child under 13 after his DNA was found on the crotch of a victim's jeans and when multiple other victims picked him out of identity parades. At a sentencing hearing at Woolwich Crown Court on Monday, prosecutor Ben Lloyd said: "The defendant's typical offending involved following unsuspecting women and girls in public places, often on their way to and from work during typical commuting hours. Teenage girl suffered three horrific sex attacks within one hour while she walked home from a night out in east London "Having followed them along the street or into buildings, he would surprise them, grab them on their private parts and then run off. "Needless to say the victims were left shocked and extremely upset by what had happened - one of the victims was just eight years old." In personal statements, several of Bond's victims said they were now afraid to venture out alone and were very nervous of lone men, with one girl saying she now actively avoids town centres because she is too anxious. John Blanford, for Bond, said his client's life had started to fall apart following the suicide of his mother in 2016 and after he bought a nightclub which led him to the brink of bankruptcy. The court heard that his marriage broke down and he started abusing cocaine and ecstasy and watching pornography before he began his campaign of assaults. Jailing him for six years, Judge Nicholas Heathcote Williams QC said: "What you did was deeply shocking, violating, frightening, distressing and disturbing for your victims. "These offences involved a significant degree of planning - choosing likely areas, identifying victims and waiting for your opportunity to strike." A campaign has been launched to save an east London dog creche after council bosses ordered it to move. Hundreds of people have signed a petition to keep Shoreditch Dog House following the demand by Tower Hamlets that it leave a piece of land next to Spitalfields Farm. The dog day care owners say they have transformed the derelict Tarmac area, which was previously a hangout for drug users, cleaning up the rubbish and needles to turn it into a family-friendly space. But the council has insisted the company move because it wants to turn the land, between a school and a playgroup, into a car park. Caroline Hand, 35, and her staff set up Shoreditch Dog House in a vegan cafe last year and have been training 10 to 15 dogs a day in the space in Buxton Road since April. Collette McLaughlin and Caroline Hand are angry because the council want to turn their space into a car park / Anne-Marie Sanderson They thought they could operate there in a similar way to dog-walking firms in parks as it is described in council documents as public land. We started in the Canvas cafe last September but quickly outgrew that space, she said. No one was using this piece of land so we set up there. The first thing we did when we got here was clear out a huge pile of rubbish. Every day we clean up the space. It used to be used for drug use and things like that but its not as prevalent now. There are two primary schools next door and a playgroup and they love seeing the dogs. We have had so many comments from the community about how great it is. We employ local people and are a community-focused business. The creche, which charges 32 for a full day of animal care, donates to Ricky Gervais -backed charity All Dogs Matter and buys food for local homeless people. Some 400 people have already signed a petition to keep it where it is and this was handed to the council last week. Amina Ali, Tower Hamlets cabinet member for culture and arts, said: The council was not made aware that this land was being used for doggy day care therefore it is an unauthorised use of council land. We cannot support organisations that take over public spaces without permission. They should stop using this land immediately. But Ms Hand said that when she first set up she was visited by a health and safety officer who told her she did not need a licence to look after dogs. She added that she got insurance for the business and has not built anything on the land. We do want an official licence, she said. But we werent sure we needed one before we actually opened. We got insurance and the dogs are walked in Victoria Park. Nothing has been built on the land by us. If its thundering or raining really hard then we go to my home. We have applied for an official licence. Brad Murphy, 40, who brings his dog Maggie to the creche several times a week, said: It would be devastating if it was closed. Its become an important part of the local area. Maggie is not just looked after there, she is trained and gets to socialise with other dogs. A spokesman for Tower Hamlets Council said: The land where the private dog care business has been operating is council owned and allocated as public open space. The council also confirmed to the petitioner earlier this year that permission for use of the land was not granted for their business operation. The petition to the council mentioned that the land was being turned into a car park. There is a proposal to create extra parking in the area for filming, which has not been agreed. Should this go ahead, it would only be temporary parking and not a permanent car park. T he Evening Standard today launches the 400,000 Save London Lives Fund to try to help tackle the scourge of stabbings and shootings in the capital with a ground-breaking approach. This newspapers special investigation has told how many experts now believe that the public health model used to dramatically reduce violent crime in Glasgow is the way to turn the tide. We agree that a new way forward is needed in the face of a crime wave that has led to more than 80 murder investigations in the capital so far this year and is ruining the lives of Londoners living in crime hotspots. So today, as politicians continue to dither and Londoners cry out for leadership, the Evening Standard announces the major new fund to back the public health approach and help put it into practice. Our special investigation launched last week highlighted that all too often todays perpetrators of violence are yesterdays victims and highlighted calls for a trauma-informed public health approach that we believe is likely to be more effective than the current enforcement-led approach. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has praised the public health model and acknowledged that this problem cannot be solved by policing alone, but his strategy, published in June last year, still has Mopac (the mayors office for policing and crime) at the fore with Londons 32 boroughs operating largely in silos. The 400,000 raised to date mostly comprises income from the Evening Standard Dispossessed Fund endowment in the form of interest on the millions of pounds of reader donations received since the fund was launched in 2010. It also includes generous donations from other supporters, including the Mohn Westlake Foundation. We believe it is time for a new vision and that three actions are needed: To set up a centralised Violence Reduction Unit that is London-wide, reports to the Mayor, sits outside of the police and Mopac, will work across government departments and provide the public health methodology and focal point for all London boroughs. To appoint a dynamic individual to lead the VRU, just like they did with Karyn McCluskey in Glasgow, and to provide this leader with firm backing from City Hall, the police and Mopac. To harness the support of hyper-local groups to empower frontline youth workers to contain, divert and rehabilitate the most high-risk youths, as well as to support early-years prevention and educational programmes. The first two pillars of change are in the gift of the mayor and we call on him to act decisively. To get the ball rolling on the third element, we are putting our money where our mouth is and setting up the Save London Lives Fund. Grassroots charities are invited to apply for grants of up to 20,000 over two years. The groups will be engaged in tackling serious youth violence and will be operating in one of three areas: trauma support for young people; in-school support; early intervention or crisis point support for families. One aim of the fund is to encourage sharing best practice among groups to feed into a pan-London response. Kate Markey, chief executive of London Community Foundation which manages the Dispossessed Fund, said: Grassroots organisations have a vital role to play in the response to tackling youth violence, but they need more funding and the opportunity to network and collaborate with other agencies to be part of a pan-London co-ordinated response. So many of us who live and work in London want to help stem the tide of youth violence. The new fund launched today by the Dispossessed Fund with the London Community Foundation will get more resources to the frontline. Barnardos chief executive Javed Khan, said: Youth violence must be tackled as a public health issue. Anything less simply wont work. Who can apply? Charities in London (with an annual income under 500,000) that work to reduce youth violence under at least one of the following three themes trauma, school or family support may apply for grants of up to 20,000 over two years. Successful applicants will also receive free networking and training events. What is the deadline? Applications to be received by the London Community Foundation by September 10. The commitments based on the pillars of reporting, responding, taking responsibility and redesigning public spaces are: Nominate a champion in your organisation who actively promotes womens night safety Demonstrate to staff and customers that your organisation takes womens safety at night seriously, for example through a communications campaign Tell staff what to do if they experience harassment when working, going out or travelling Encourage reporting by victims and bystanders as part of your communications campaign Train staff to ensure that all women who report are believed Train staff to ensure that all reports are recorded and responded to Design your public spaces and work places to make them safer for women at night E lle Macpherson might not be able to bring her new partner Andrew Wakefield home to meet her parents because of Australias strict laws on anti-vaccination campaigners. British-born Wakefield is a disgraced former doctor whose discredited research helped found the global anti-vaccination movement. Model Macpherson and Wakefield (right) were pictured kissing in a farmers market in Miami last week, although her representatives only acknowledged and did not confirm reports of a relationship. But Australia often denies visas to so-called anti-vaxxers such as American Kent Heckenlively, who was refused entry because of his dangerous views. Brits dont escape the Aussie wrath either: Polly Tommey, a British campaigner, was given a three-year ban in 2017 after promoting Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe, a film she produced and Wakefield directed. He often appeared during Tommeys film tour via Skype, for Q&As. Though Australian officials were cagey on a possible ban for Wakefield, the country is very strict on who it lets in. All visa applications are examined on case-by-case grounds and assessed on their merits, an immigration spokesman says. But under the powers of Australias Immigration Act, minister Peter Dutton could cancel a visa if he considers an individual a risk to the health or safety of the Australian community. Could the pair instead settle in London, Macphersons old stomping ground? She moved to Miami for ex husband Jeffrey Soffer, but that marriage broke down last year. Wakefield co-authored a medical paper in 1998 that apparently identified a link between autism and the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine. But 12 years later he was struck off the medical register for bringing the medical profession into disrepute. We contacted the Australian High Commission in London for comment this morning, but are yet to hear back. Deflated Eds final credibility blowout Ed Miliband, former leader of the Labour Party, admits hes useless because he failed to change a tyre after driving over something in the road. The Doncaster North MP was recently forced to record his podcast, Reasons to be Cheerful, in the street after getting a flat. Were waiting for the RAC outside a nice ladys house, he despaired. I think its a general test if you are hopeless or not is whether you can change a tyre. If I cant handle a bacon sandwich then I dont think I can handle a flat tyre. --- Who is the highly regarded London lawyer looking to employ a qualified hopeful as a dog walker? An ad posted for a barristers assistant, and noticed by Legal Cheek, stipulates that the successful candidate will have recently completed their BPTC exams, and adds there will be other non-legal PA duties such as dog-walking and shopping. Talk about a crap offer. --- AN octopus in Fowey, Cornwall who is predicting the next Tory leader by embracing a choice from a set of photos of contenders is plumping for former Environment Minister Owen Paterson. Yesterday, Paterson dismissed talks of rival leadership bids as complete nonsense. Murky waters? Helen returns to the scene of the royal rebellion Toga party: Dame Helen Mirren and Richard McCabe (Photo Dave Benett/Getty Images) / Dave Benett/Getty Images Dame Helen Mirren was at the Gielgud Theatre over the weekend to see Imperium, the two-part Roman epic from Robert Harris. After the show, the Oscar-winning actress headed backstage to congratulate cast member Richard McCabe. Mirren has a history of her own with the theatre. In 2013, she accosted a group of drummers parading outside who interrupted her award-winning turn in The Audience. Mirren, who was playing The Queen, flung open the stage door after the incessant percussion became too much to bear. Youre f***ing up our performance, she said, while dressed in full costume. Im afraid there were a few thespian words used, she later said. They got a very stern royal ticking off. Not much shocks you on the gay scene, said a stunned drummer, but seeing Helen Mirren dressed as the Queen cussing and swearing and making you stop your parade thats a new one. After Mirren discovered that the drummers were promoting LGBT festival As One In The Park, she later attended to show her support. SW1A Who knew Ken Clarke (below) had such an eye for lingerie? The Father of the House and Rushcliffe MP was once drafted in to judge a local Young Conservative Beauty Contest: I think most people would think its utterly bizarre, he tells The Hearing legal podcast. He also recalls swapping tips with leading judges about how best to don the Lord Chancellors tights: What you need is a womans girdle to hold the stockings up. I always thought when you watched the judges solemnly processing theyre all wearing these things to hold them up. --- Emily Benn, Tony Benns granddaughter, got stuck into internal Labour Party battles this weekend. A Corbynite claimed that her grandfather would be turning in his grave at her stance on the partys anti-Semitism row. Benn coolly replied: I hate to break it to you, but you do realise he was cremated? Quote of the day "Seriously, this guy needs to be impeached before his late-night, adolescent tantrums kill us all." MP David Lammy hits out at Donald Trump after his tirade against Iranian President Rouhani We're lost in music Arlene Phillips, the former Strictly Come Dancing judge, is struggling with an older generation of dancers. Phillips, who has choreographed stage productions of Grease and Saturday Night Fever, is currently working with an ensemble of septuagenarians in Alan Bennetts new play Allelujah! Im used to those young fillies, those dancers coming out ready for anything you can give them, she tells us. And here, people are like: Which way am I going, when I go to the right? --- A 13-year-old boy was charged with assault for using a straw to fire a chip at a woman in a branch of McDonalds. The boy was prosecuted after the chip hit the woman in the face. The incident, which occurred during a bust-up outside the McDonalds restaurant at the Broadway shopping centre in Hammersmith, west London, sparked a bust-up between the boy's friends and a group of young women, according to reports. The teenager was arrested and later charged with assaulting a woman "by using a straw to fire a chip, hitting her in the face." The boy's three friends, who are all aged 13, were also charged. One pleaded guilty, one was handed a caution and another is awaiting a trial. Speaking to The Sun, the boys mother dismissed the arrest and subsequent charge was ridiculous, claiming that her son was aiming at a friend. She said: It's ridiculous. I tried to put a chip in a McDonald's straw. It doesn't fit. T wo suspected members of the so-called ISIS Beatles terror gang should not be turned into martyrs by being given the death penalty, one of the victims mother said today. Diane Foley, whose photographer son James, 40, was the first western hostage to be featured in an Islamic State beheading video in 2014, wants Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh to be tried in an open and transparent way. She believes executing them would be a much easier way out for them and would prefer them to be locked up until they die. Mrs Foley spoke out after it emerged that Home Secretary Sajid Javid had told Washington that Britain would not demand an assurance that the two men would not be given the death penalty if they are sent to face trial in the US. Hostage: US journalist James Foley was killed in an IS video in 2014 The Cabinet minister wrote to the US Attorney General Jeff Sessions in June as Britain sought to persuade America to try Kotey and Elsheikh there as it is believed the chances of a successful prosecution are higher under its legal system. However, Mr Javids stance sparked accusations that he was seeking to amend Britains long-standing policy of only being willing to pass on intelligence for prosecutions abroad provided there is no death penalty. However, the two men are understood to no longer be British citizens and are not being extradited from the UK as they are currently believed to be in jail in a Kurdish-held area of northern Syria. In his letter, Mr Javid wrote: All assistance and material will be provided on the condition that it may only be used for the purpose sought in that request, namely a federal criminal investigation or prosecution. Furthermore, I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought. But he added: As you are aware, it is the long-held position of the UK to seek death penalty assurances, and our decision in this case does not reflect a change in our policy on assistance in US death penalty cases generally, nor the UK Governments stance on the global abolition of the death penalty. However, Mrs Foley said she was opposed to the death penalty. That would just make them martyrs in their twisted ideology, she told BBC radio. I would like them held accountable by being sent to prison for the rest of their lives. Thats easy for them in a way that allows them to take a much easier way out. Former reviewer of terrorism legislation Lord Carlile said Mr Javids letter was extraordinary. It is a dramatic change of policy by a minister, secretly, without any discussion in Parliament, he said. Britain has always said that it will pass information and intelligence, in appropriate cases, provided there is no death penalty. That is a decades-old policy and it is not for the Home Secretary to change that policy. The UK was also reported to be ready not to raise objections to the two men, who were captured in January, being held at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. Along with Mohammed Emwazi, the killer nicknamed Jihadi John, and Aine Davis, they are thought to have been part of an IS group named after the Beatles because of their English accents. Emwazi, who was killed in a US air strike in 2015, appeared in a number of videos in which captives, including British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning and US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, were killed. A Home Office spokesman said: We continue to engage with the US Government on this issue, as we do on a range of national security issues and in the context of our joint determination to tackle international terrorism and combat violent extremism. The UK Governments position on Guantanamo Bay is that the detention facility should close. Mr Javid said Scotland Yards counter-terrorism command had been engaged extensively on the case with the FBI, with the investigation running for more than four years during which time they have engaged with 14 other countries and compiled over 600 witness statements. F acebook is to open a huge new office in London in a major vote of confidence in the capital from one of Silicon Valleys biggest hitters. It has leased 600,000 sq ft at three buildings in Kings Cross, where workers will enjoy free food, a theatre and a rooftop park. The London team will use artificial intelligence software to help decide what constitutes hate speech, and make decisions over what content is harmful and should be blocked. Engineers will also focus on integrating the Oculus Go virtual reality mobile headset into the platform. The new offices will have up to 6,000 work stations, and neighbours will include YouTube and Google, making the area one of the capitals leading silicon clusters. The announcement comes seven months after Facebook opened a 247,000 sq ft site in Rathbone Place in Fitzrovia. The latest expansion will see 15 per cent of commercial space in redeveloped Kings Cross signed over to Facebook in one deal. A CGI image of what Facebook's King's Cross offices could look like There will be two blocks of up to 12 storeys, and another with a wrap-around terrace on the fifth floor and shops on the ground floor. Steve Hatch, Facebooks managing director for Northern Europe, said: The UK is one of the best places in the world to be a technology company and were investing here for the long term. Many of Facebooks most significant global products, from Workplace to social VR applications for Oculus, were developed right here in London, now our biggest engineering base outside the US. By the end of the year well employ more than 2,300 people in the UK and everyday were helping over four million UK businesses to grow. Todays news reflects our commitment to the UK. Mayor Sadiq Khan said: This investment is great news. We welcome Facebooks long-term commitment, which is further evidence that London is open for business and a world-leading destination for major tech companies. London is home to the engineering team responsible for the safety and security of Facebook users, called Protect & Care. It includes analysis of violent, sexually explicit and malicious content. Suspect content will be flagged up by the AI, then assessed by human reviewers. It comes amid criticism that the social media network was still failing to get to grips with fake news, propaganda, hate speech, and other harmful postings. Engineers will also work on the Rooms app, a social hangout in cyberspace. Facebooks first office in the capital opened in Soho in 2007 with five staff. The two new 12-storey blocks have been designed by architects Bennetts Associates, while plans for the third with the wraparound terrace were drawn up by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris. T here is never an ideal time to have a baby, according to Eileen Burbidge, a tech entrepreneur and Treasury adviser. Burbidge, aged 47, is a mother of five and revealed this weekend that she is trying to have more children by IVF. She tells other women they shouldnt wait for the perfect time: I do not think there is any time that seems like a good time really...For career women, I dont think there is ever an ideal time to take nine months out while your body changes. The motherhood gap is pervasive. It means 45 per cent of women MPs do not have children compared with only 28 per cent of male parliamentarians. It extends across corporate Britain, where 77 per cent of working mums face negative or discriminatory treatment in the workplace, according to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC). CEOs may bellow that the sexism battle is over. They wave around perfectly worded diversity policies, womens leadership programmes, unconscious bias training, and returnships schemes, aimed at bringing once-senior women who have taken time out to raise children back into employment. But the number of women in the top jobs in the boardrooms of Britains biggest companies has fallen this year. Just 30 women are in full-time executive roles at FTSE 250 firms, down from 38 last year women now make up just 6.4 per cent of the total, according to Cranfield University, which condemned boardrooms woeful lack of progress. A handful of companies scream about their returnships bringing high-flying parents back into the fold and the Chancellor handed out 5 million in last years Budget to promote returnships in the public and private sector. But career site Totaljobs found only five per cent of UK employers actually offer the schemes, and just 15 per cent of firms have even heard of returnships. Returnship schemes Returnship schemes such as those offered by RBS, Man Group and UBS are paid schemes for those whove had a career break, usually including training and networking opportunities. Many are listed at women returners.com. Retraining schemes targeting mothers include Google Campus, for mothers where children under 18 months can go along for the training too. Consultancy firms are big on productivity rather than office presence and they are pushing hard to reach career-breakers. Deloitte, for example, runs a part-time, 25 week-long scheme that includes technical skills training, coaching and project work to lure back returners. Look into members of the EHRCs Working Forwards pledge, who all promise to make experiences better for pregnant women and new parents. Signed-up firms include John Lewis, BT and Transport for London. Vodafone says its ReConnect programme is the worlds largest effort to recruit women who have taken a career break its hiring 1,000 people who have taken a year or more out, to management and other roles in its worldwide offices. Almost three in every five professional women in the UK returning to the workforce after having children or a career break move into lower-skilled and lower-paid jobs, according to PWC. It is the P word not pay but pregnancy that sees gender discrimination bite. In the UK, 54,000 women lose their jobs each year because of pregnancy or maternity, according to the EHRC. And for those in work, the Government reports that one in 10 mothers flexible working requests are still refused. By the time a womans first child is 12 her hourly rate of pay will be 33 per cent behind a mans, the Institute for Fiscal Studies found. Sarah, one of the mothers at the soft-play centre, was pushed out of her banking job of 12 years just after having her first child. It wasnt as explicit as youre fired. Or as lucrative as youre being made redundant. After five months maternity leave, about to return to her sector analyst role, Sarah had asked to go back four days a week; Fridays off to see her baby, and make her west London nursery bill hefty even for a banker a little more palatable. But a cursory email rejected her part-time working plea. And her alternative request for flexible working, with one day at home, was rejected too. When she returned to the office anyway (because, well, mortgage), Sarah had to report in to her maternity leave replacement, who had five years less experience and face snipy comments when I left early just before six once a week. Then, having missed a round of appraisal season during maternity leave, I discovered from colleagues that my pay had slipped well behind but I was told not to complain because Id just had months off. After a year, she quit. Maternity discrimination is almost always insidious, according to a Canary Wharf banking HR who tells me mothers are frequently demoted just not formally, by title, so its harder for legals to kick off. Those who leave the office more promptly or ask for more flexibility are, she adds, still usually first in line when redundancy rounds start. Vivian, 34, was a high-flier at a City stockbroker when she found out she was pregnant with twins. I told my line manager pretty early on, she explains. He was C-suite [the highest-level of corporate management, usually chief executive, finance director or operations director] and on the board. He was immediately huffy about hospital appointments, making me feel bad for going to scans. Eileen Burbidge / Alex Lentati Then I lost one twin. I told my manager in a meeting to discuss a project when I explained my short, half-day absence. He clearly wasnt listening, as he brought it up in meetings with other people, laughing I swear you told me you were pregnant with twins. On my return, I agreed flexible working with the CEO, who was lovely and understanding. But my line manager constantly used phrases such as seeing as youre only working three-fifths of what you should be doing. He refused to let me start projects, eventually telling my team that every request for new work had to go through him. Then the understanding CEO retired and I was made redundant the next week. Vivian, who has since moved to another firm, adds: It seems more common in the financial sector, where HR are puppets of the board rather than actually working for the staff. Joeli Brearley founded Pregnant Then Screwed to raise awareness of maternal discrimination after being sacked from her job at a charity when she was four months pregnant. Most people believe we are steadily making great progress when it comes to gender equality in the workplace, she says. But victims are silenced, just like sexual harassment cases, forced to sign non-disclosure agreements and paid off or too scared to speak out for fear of being branded a troublemaker; is it worth speaking out, when you would be jeopardising your chance of finding a new job? Rosalind Bragg, director of campaign group Maternity Action, says the charitys advice line regularly hears from women working in the City who have lost their jobs as a result of unfair and unlawful maternity discrimination. Many, she says, are offered a payout [but] there are long-term impacts on their confidence at work and on their career progression. Unlike gender pay discrepancies, parenting discrimination doesnt seem to be lessening over time. Fund manager Katy has a career horror story for each of her three children, who have 12 years between them. With her first, she was working at one of the big-name investment houses in the City. After six months maternity leave, I requested to come back four days a week, with some work from home. It was declined. I fought it my ex-husband was a lawyer and after two months of fighting they agreed but put me on probation. I later discovered they had already employed someone else and had to tell him that he couldnt take up his position because theyd been forced to allow me back. After my second child, I came back from maternity leave to find that someone who I had employed had taken my role and I now reported to him. A few years later Katy was interviewing at one of the largest wealth managers. They said they were going to offer me the role, and called me in to talk over details. When I said I was 12 weeks pregnant and wanted to work a four-day week, the offer never came.. In high-paid City roles, employers know how to play the legal system, Brearley adds, so they discriminate covertly, perhaps making it impossible for you to return, or making the work environment so deeply uncomfortable you want to leave. A maternity leave returner to one of Canary Wharfs tallest towers tells of just being downgraded in her appraisal with the resultant hit to her annual bonus after being back at her desk for one year. When I questioned it, the feedback was that I was less confident since becoming a mother. She went to HR but was told to back off and did so, fearing shed be pushed out otherwise. Its not just mothers affected by discrimination. If a father dares to ask for flexible working they are twice as likely as mothers to have their request refused, Brierley adds, referring to the Governments own statistics. New fathers are tending to stay in the office: only one per cent of all parents eligible to take shared parental leave opted to do so last year.If they want to take extended paternity leave, they are judged as less committed than mothers. We will never address the gender pay gap unless this attitude changes. When women take time off to look after children it is seen as normal. When men do it, their motives are questioned. S amantha Markle has pleaded with the Duchess of Sussex to visit their father and hinted at an upcoming appearance on Celebrity Big Brother saying "money makes the world go round." Meghan Markle's half-sister told host told Good Morning Britain host Kate Garraway that her father Thomas just wants to embrace Meghan and let her know he loves her after the 74-year-old claimed he was being "frozen out" by the Royal family. Garraway then grilled the 54-year-old over rumours that she would enter the CBB house amid claims she was cashing in on her estranged half-sisters marriage to Prince Harry. Despite remaining tight-lipped on the topic Ms Markle hinted at an appearance during the interview on Monday's show saying "money makes the world go round". Samantha Markle on "cashing in" Money makes the world go around so if you want to call that cashing in, thats fine but I think no one in the media would refuse a paycheck for talking about the royals and as a family, were not subject to royal protocol, she said. Urging her half-sibling to make amends with her father amid rumours the pair have not spoken for two months, she said: He is 74 years old and we all know that life is short, and so given the circumstances over the last several months since the wedding, I think he really just wants to embrace her and have some closure on the distance and misperception and let her know he loves her and I feel he deserves that in return. Mr Markle has had a strained relationship with his daughter since it was announced she would be marrying Prince Harry. He was unable to attend her wedding in May due to heart problems after it was revealed he had arranged set-up paparazzi shots of himself. In interviews with both Good Morning Britain and celebrity news site TMZ, he discussed the Duke of Sussexs opinions on Brexit and spoke of his relationship with his daughter. He said he is willing to make amends with his daughter and fly to the UK to meet with her. Meghan Markle chats animatedly to Prince Harry as they arrive at Marlborough House / PA Ms Markle said: Meghan can perhaps believe rumours and stories that shes heard and my father I think has also. I believe its created a rift that is unnecessary and I hope that they can come to terms on their own and shell be able to reach out to him. It only seems the right thing to do. I think a lot of the public are concerned. They say why are you utilising public channels, because private channels have been exhausted and to no avail and so when that happens, what can one do except reach out publicly. Samantha Markle pleads for Meghan to reach out to their father She also hit back at claims she was cashing in on her half-sister. People dont know about me. Ive worked in media most of my life and in broadcasting so because my sister is suddenly royal, isnt grounds for me to suddenly stop doing that and when I made the comment about cashing in, lets face it we all have to survive, she said. I think no one in media would refuse a paycheck for talking about the royals and as a family, were not subject to royal protocol. If you want to call that cashing in, I think its a little bit ridiculous. Why would I stop living because we have a family issue going on. Just last week, Samantha Markle branded the royal family an "embarrassment" for "ignoring" her father and claims she will hold the Duchess of Sussex responsible if he dies. A British teenager has fallen to his death from a popular whale-watching clifftop in Australia after apparently taking a selfie. The 18-year-old tourist was standing with friends on rocks at Cape Solander, near Sydney, when he lost his balance and plunged 30ft into the sea below. His shocked friends were reportedly unable to reach him and made desperate phone calls to police. A police boat pulled the unconscious teenager from the water but paramedics could not revive him. Emergency services at the scene of incident in Cape Solander The incident took place in Kurnell at around 3.30pm local time today. Chief Inspector Chris Hill, of New South Wales police, said the victim was while whale-watching with a group of friends when they made their way down to the rocks, and they were not treating the his death as suspicious. He said: At this stage it would appear as though it was a misadventure, he has slipped, and fallen over the edge and unfortunately died. A spokesman for Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter said he was found around an hour and a half later face down and unconscious in the water, directly below the whale watching platform. The ledge where the man is believed to have fallen is right near a whale watching platform and is a popular spot for tourists to see humpback whales during their yearly migration. T wo people have been killed and 12 injured in a mass shooting in the Canadian city of Toronto. The gunman, aged 29, opened fire on crowded restaurants on Sunday evening before he was found dead in an alleyway following a shootout with police officers. A woman was confirmed to have been killed earlier. The age and gender of the second victim have not yet been released by police. A young girl, aged eight or nine, was in a critical condition in hospital following the shooting at about 10pm local time on Sunday (3am Monday UK time) in the downtown area of Greektown. Witnesses said they saw a man dressed in black firing between 15 and 20 shots in the Danforth Avenue area. One video taken from a nearby window appeared to show a man walking along the pavement with a gun before firing three shots into at least one shop or restaurant. John Tulloch said he and his brother had just gotten out of their car when he heard about 20 to 30 gunshots. "We just ran. We saw people starting to run so we just ran," he said. An army of police, paramedics and other first responders soon descended on the scene, while residents, some in their pajamas, emerged from their homes to see what was happening. Police Chief Mark Saunders said the shooting was not random and terrorism had not been ruled out. Witness describes scene of Toronto shooting Toronto Mayor John Tory told reporters: "Its almost inconceivable that these things can happen... its a tragedy no matter which way you look at it. He said the attack was "evidence of a gun problem" in the city. "We were so used to living in a city where these things didn't happen," Mr Tory said. "But there are things that happen nowadays and they are just unspeakable." Police officers on the scene in Toronto / AP Ontario Premier Doug Ford tweeted: "My heart goes out to the victims and loved ones of the horrific act of gun violence in Toronto. "Thank you to all the first responders for acting quickly to help everyone affected." Toronto's Greektown is a lively residential area with crowded Greek restaurants and cafes. P resident Donald Trump has threatened to revoke the security clearance of CIA Director John Brennan, former FBI Director Jim Comey and other Obama-era officials who have criticised his administration. Mr Trump is considering the highly controversial move which has been slammed by critics accusing the president of politicising the clearance process. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that the president is "exploring the mechanisms" to strip clearance from former top national security officials. As well as Brennan and Comey, the list of those at risk include James Clapper, Michael Hayden, Susan Rice and Andrew McCabe. Sarah Sanders: The spokeswoman said the President is 'exploring' the possibility of revoking clearance / REUTERS Ms Sanders accused the officials of having "politicised and in some cases monetized their public service and security clearances" by "making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia or being influenced by Russia." "The fact that people with security clearances are making these baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence," she said. Official: Former CIA Director John Brennan is on the list of those who are being considered by the President / REUTERS But it has been pointed out that at least two of them no longer have security clearance anyway. Mr Comey, who was fired from his post at the FBI, no longer has clearance and Mr McCabes clearance was also deactivated. Melissa Schwartz, a spokeswoman for McCabe, tweeted that his security clearance was deactivated when he was terminated in March 2018, "according to what we were told was FBI policy." "You would think the White House would check with the FBI before trying to throw shiny objects to the press corps...," she wrote. Ms Sanderss comments came hours after Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky tweeted that he was planning to raise the issue of revoking Brennan's clearance at a meeting with Trump. Trump on Russia: How the president reversed his position in two days Mr Brennan had offered scathing criticism of Mr Trump's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last Monday, calling their press conference "nothing short of treasonous." Members of Congress pushed back at the idea. The top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Eliot Engel of New York, says revoking the clearances would be "ironic" considering the questions raised about granting them to Trump's family. H uge forest fires raging across Greece have killed at least 60 people and injured more than 100. A state of emergency was declared in areas near Athens as coast guard boats attempted to rescue dozens of people trapped on beaches by fire. The official death toll rose from 24 to at least 60 on Tuesday, with Greek authorities expecting that figure to rise as they sought international assistance. A Red Cross official revealed that 26 bodies were found huddled together in the yard of a villa in the seaside village of Mati, while many other casualties were found in their homes or cars. Greece fires leave at least 60 dead People have been told to leave their homes across the region as firefighters desperately tackle the deadliest blazes seen in the country for over a decade. Of at least 104 people injured by the blazes, 69 needed hospital treatment and 11 were in a serious condition, officials said. Loading.... Mati doesn't even exist as a settlement anymore, one woman told Greece's Skai TV. I saw corpses, burned-out cars. I feel lucky to be alive. "Everything happened in seconds," added Andreaas Passios. "I grabbed a beach towel. It saved my life. I soaked it, grabbed my wife and we ran to the sea." Mr Passios said he and his wife stayed by the sea for two hours. He said: "It was unbelievable. Gas canisters were exploding, burning pine cones were flying everywhere." A line of burned cars in Mati, east of Athens, near to where 26 bodies were found / AP Kostas Laganos, who lives in Mati, told Sky News: "Thankfully the sea was there and we went into the sea because the flames were chasing us all the way to the water. "It burned our backs so we dove into the water. "It reminded me of the eruption at Pompeii - exactly that - and I said 'my God, we must run to save ourselves and nothing else'. It was terrible." People take refuge from fires along the beach in Argyris Akti, Nea Makri, Greece Fire Service spokeswoman Stavroula Malliri said Greece had called on the European Union for assistance with aerial and ground support in helping battle the flames. "We are doing everything humanly possible to tray and tackle these fires," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in Bosnia as he cut short a visit there and returned to Athens. "What concerns us is that there are fires occurring simultaneously." Dozens dead in Greece wildfires The first major fire broke out in a pine forest near the seaside settlement of Kineta 30 miles west of Athens between the capital and Corinth. At least 220 firefighters were on the scene while five water-dropping planes and seven helicopters helped to fight the blaze from the air. Reinforcements were being sent in from across Greece. A house burns during a wildfire in Kineta / AFP/Getty Images The second broke out yesterday afternoon in the Penteli and Rafina areas northeast of Athens, before spreading to the seaside resort of Mati. Local authorities said children's summer camps and a seaside resort for military officers were evacuated, while dozens of homes and cars were reportedly destroyed. A firefighter tries to extinguish hotspots during a wildfire in Kineta, near Athens / AFP/Getty Images "We were unlucky. The wind changed and it came at us with such force that it razed the coastal area in minutes," said Evangelos Bournous, mayor of the port town of Rafina, a sleepy mainland port that serves Greek holiday islands. The dock area became a makeshift hospital as paramedics checked survivors when they came off coast guard vessels and private boats. Cars are blocked at the closed National Road during a forest fire in Greece / AFP/Getty Images Mr Bournous said he believed about 100 houses in that area had burned. The fire service was not able to confirm the figure. Showers that passed over the Greek capital Monday missed the two big fires - one at Rafina, 18 miles to the east, and the other at Kineta, 35 miles to the west. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras cut a trip to Bosnia short to return EPA) / EPA Heavy rain is forecast across southern Greece on Wednesday. D onald Trump has issued a warning to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to "never, ever" threaten the US otherwise there will be "consequences." The message was posted in all caps on Mr Trumps Twitter page in which he wrote: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS. His tweet came after President Rouhani said on Sunday: American must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. Nuclear deal: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has issued a warning to Donald Trump / REUTERS He also warned Mr Trump to stop playing with the lions tail and threatening Iran, or else you will regret it. Earlier this year Mr Trump pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. He suggested that Iranian leaders are going to call me and say lets make a deal however Iran has rejected talks. It isnt the first time that Mr Rouhani has lashed out at Mr Trump. He previously hit back at the leader after moving the US embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the US from certain Muslim majority countries. On Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also lashed out at Iran. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also lashed out at Iran / EPA He called the religious leaders of Iran hypocritical holy men who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer. Mr Pompeo also talked about increasing media outreach to the Iranian people. He said the US Broadcasting Board of Governors is taking new steps to help Iranians get around internet censorship and is launching a new 24/7 Farsi-language channel across television, radio, digital and social media formats so that ordinary Iranians inside Iran and around the globe can know America stands with them. During the speech at the Ronald Regan Presidential Library and Museum, Mr Pompeo said the government has heartlessly repressed its own peoples human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms. U nited Airlines has apologised after a woman claimed a man masturbated while sitting beside her on a flight from Heathrow to Chicago. The airline described the man's actions as "inappropriate and offensive" and said the incident was "exceedingly rare." Photographer Genevieve Pascolla alerted staff to the issue during the flight last month. I woke up and saw him touching himself under a blanket, she wrote in an Instagram post. Ms Pascolla then reported the man to a flight attendant who moved her and another passenger to new seats. But she added that flight attendants began to joke about the situation once both women had been moved. They then started making jokes about the situation asking what perfume are you wearing and excusing him saying hes had a bit of wine no one stopped him, she said. She claims that she wrote to United to complain but did not receive a response until six weeks later. Ms Pascolla shared their response online. It read: Unfortunately we are unable to honour your request for a refund from London to Chicago or offer goodwill compensation. Ms Pascolla said: I am appalled at the lack of action taken in this situation in which as a woman, I was terrified. This man is clearly capable of much more, "Your (United Airlines) lack of action is disgusting." However, she later admitted that the airline gave her a voucher for half the price of her ticket. A spokeswoman for United Airlines said that the incident was 'inappropriate and offensive' and claimed that cases like the one described were exceedingly rare. She said police spoke to the man when the plane landed in Chicago. "Inappropriate and offensive conduct like this on our aircraft is exceedingly rare, but we have a protocol to ensure our customers safety because it is our top priority. Thats why, in this case, our customers were promptly moved to different seats in a different section of the plane and law enforcement officials were summoned in advance to meet the perpetrator when the plane pulled into the gate," the spokeswoman said. Ms Pascolla also said that after the plane landed staff asked her if she wanted an apology from the man. A woman has been injured after a loose beach umbrella impaled her in the chest, the second such accident in the space of a week on the United States east coast. The victim, aged 46, was sitting in a chair on a beach in Maryland when the umbrella was caught in a gust of wind and struck her on the upper part of the chest. The wooden pole of the umbrella had to be cut in half by fire crews so it could be removed, according to local media. The incident happened in the resort town of Ocean City at about 3pm local time on Sunday afternoon. An Ocean City spokeswoman, Jessica Waters, said the woman, from Pennsylvania, was flown to nearby hospital. She is expected to make a full recovery. Last week a British woman was injured when a parasol pierced her leg on a beach in New Jersey. Margaret Reynolds, 67, was at Seaside Heights when part of the umbrella pierced her right ankle and was driven completely through due to the force of the wind, the Asbury Park Press reported. T he John Lewis & Partners clearance gives us the perfect opportunity to invest in some new lighting and furniture to spruce up our homes without breaking the bank. The retailer are offering up to 50% off on a range of products from sofas, to ceiling lights in a range of aesthetics to suit any interior design style. See our favourites. Click here for John Lewis discount codes John Lewis & Partners Alba TV Stand In a traditional and homely style, this TV stand will make an attractive addition to your interior aesthetic. The stand is composed of a sturdy oak to support your television with wide shelving for the entire entertainment system. 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C heryl has admitted that the public statement she released following her split from Liam Payne was cringeworthy, after she was mocked by Piers Morgan. The former Girls Aloud star told the Good Morning Britain host that the joint statement the pair put out last month was embarrassing, but insisted she doesnt hate the father of her son Bear. In his Daily Mail column, Morgan revealed that the pop star had texted him after he slammed their split announcement live on air, during which he questioned why celebrities always say they still love each other despite breaking up. Its always weird when celebrity couples split up saying they have so much love for each other, he said. If they love each other that much, why are they splitting up? They should be more honest and just say, We hate each other. All over: Cheryl and Liam don't 'hate' each other / WeirPhotos / Splash News Cheryl reportedly messaged him moments later to say: Im so sorry you didnt like my statement, Piers perhaps I should have texted you the intimate details in chronological order as it unfolded. After apologising when he felt a rare pang of guilt, Cheryl informed Morgan that she was just messing. Kimberley Walsh says Cheryl is doing well after split from Liam Payne She added: Im just messing. I hate those kinds of statements too, so cringeworthy. But we dont hate each other. It just didnt work out. After being plagued with split rumours at the beginning of the year, the couple finally announced their break up at the beginning of July. Cheryl and Liam Payne - In pictures 1 /20 Cheryl and Liam Payne - In pictures Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Brit Awards at the O2 Arena, London PA Haim photobombs an on-air interview between Jack Whitehall . Liam Payne and Cheryl at the the Brit Awards ITV Cheryl and liam Payne share a picture on Instagram Instagram/ Cheryl Cheryl nd Liam Payne seen stepping out in London to switch on the Christmas lights at St James Church Splash News Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Brit Awards at the O2 Arena, London REUTERS Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Universal Brit Awards After-Party Dave Benett Cheryl and liam Payne share a picture of their baby boy on Instagram Cheryl/Instagram Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Brit Awards at the O2 Arena, London AP Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Brit Awards at the O2 Arena, London Dave Benett Cheryl and Liam Payne and put on the spot in an on-air impromptu interview with host Jack Whitehall at the Brit Awards ITV Cheryl and Liam Payne and Cheryl are seen together at the X Factor Final in 2015 Syco/Thames /Corbis/Dymond Cheryl and Liam Payne's Red Carpet debut at the Global Gift Gala in Paris Splash News Cheryl and Liam Payne's Red Carpet debut at the Global Gift Gala in Paris Cheryl and Liam Payne are seen arriving at Charles de Gaule airport in Paris Splash News Cheryl and Liam Payne arrive's at Sexy Fish restaurant in Mayfair WeirPhotos / Splash News Cheryl and Liam Payne are seen here leaving Salmontini le Resto restaurant in Knightsbridge WeirPhotos / Splash News Cheryl and Liam Payne at the Chopard Trophee presentation during 69th Cannes Film Festival Michael Buckner/Variety/Rex Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Universal Brit Awards After-Party Dave Benett Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Universal Brit Awards After-Party with Niall Horan Dave Benett Cheryl and Liam Payne attending the Universal Brit Awards After-Party with Sam Smith and Jessie Ware Dave Benett Their joint statement read: We are sad to announce that we are going our separate ways. It's been a tough decision for us to make. We still have so much love for each other as a family." Cheryl asked for fans to respect the privacy of their one-year-old son Bear who they welcomed last March. A host of A-list actors have spoken out over Disneys sacking of director James Gunn from Guardians of the Galaxy 3, with 150,000 signing a petition to get him reinstated. Stars of the successful film franchise including Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana have now voiced their opinions on social media after a series of offensive tweets posted by Gunn between 2008-2012 lead to his dismissal. Saldana, who plays Gamora in the films, appeared to lend her support to Gunn by saying that she loved all the members of my GOTG family. She wrote on Twitter: Its been a challenging weekend Im not gonna lie. Im pausing myself to take everything in before I speak out of term. I just want everyone to know I love ALL members of my GOTG family. Always will. In a slightly more cryptic post, Pratt quoted a bible verse, which read: Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters. Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger. JAMES 1:19. Selma Blair was a bit more obvious in her support of the director, dubbing him one of the good guys. Marvel: RE-HIRE JAMES GUNN - Sign the Petition! Because if people are punished despite changing, then what does that teach people about owning mistakes and evolving? This man is one of the good ones, she wrote. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, in pictures 1 /7 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, in pictures Guardians star Dave Bautista also spoke out in support of Gunn, calling on Hollywood to unite against Disneys decision. He wrote: What happened here is so much bigger then G3, @JamesGunn ,myself,@Disney etc. This was a #cybernazi attack that succeeded. Unless we start to unite together against this crap, whether people are offended are not! ...its going to get much worse. And it can happen to anyone. Gunn was fired on Friday after right-wing news outlet The Daily Caller unearthed his tweets, in which he joked about rape, paedophilia and terror attacks. A newly-unearthed image appears to prove that Love Islands latest lovebirds Jack and Laura already knew each other before entering the villa. Fans of the ITV2 reality show have discovered an old snap which appears to show the couple working out side by side. The photo is reportedly taken from a gym advert, according to Twitter users, and proves that the pair didn't meet for the first time when Laura entered the villa last week. Jack can be seen squatting in the advert for gym chain David Lloyd with a blonde woman who bares resemblance to Laura on the other side of him. Commenting on the image circulating Twitter, one user wrote: So jack fowler already knew laura crane before love island and it just so happens he gets with her-no way not having it. He even acts like he doesnt even know her hes definitely playing a game and so is she there both playing a game. [sic] Another posted: Ok wait, what? Laura and Jack already new each other? #LoveIsland #LoveIslandAftersun. A third said: Theyre taking us for Ian beales you know. Im sick of it. Other users raged over how the whole season has been a fix following an image of Megan and Alexandra which emerged just days after newbie Alexandras entry. New Lauras arrival saw Jack break things off with Scottish Laura almost immediately when she landed in the villa a week ago. The news comes after the show face criticism over being staged after Georgia revealed that her kiss with Jack was filmed twice. R ichard Bacon has revealed he flew into a violent rage forcing doctors to sedate him after they attempted to wake him up from a medically induced coma. Bacon, 42, spent nearly two weeks in intensive care after being struck down by a mystery lung infection on a flight to the UK from Los Angeles earlier this month. The TV star described the ordeal as the most shocking moment of his life and said he called family and friends to say his goodbyes after doctors told him he could die. But waking up from seven days of sedation was the worst day of [his] life as he was left frightened and confused. Life threatening: Richard Bacon was critically ill in hospital / Richard Bacon/Twitter I remember going under, he told Radio 5 Live in an interview from his mother-in-laws home in Blackheath. The coming round is the strangest period of my life because its so long. They brought me out after seven days and I had the worst day of my life. Its hours and hours later before you rejoin the world. I was frightened and I was really kicking off to the point they had to restrain me. In the end they put me back under and brought me out slower after two days. Richard Bacon leaves Lewisham Hospital - In pictures 1 /9 Richard Bacon leaves Lewisham Hospital - In pictures Former BBC TV Blue Peter presenter Richard Bacon leaves Lewisham Hospital in south east London with his wife Rebecca PA PA SplashNews.com SplashNews.com SplashNews.com SplashNews.com SplashNews.com SplashNews.com SplashNews.com Bacon said he struggled to piece together fact from fiction as his brain was stitching together real life and hallucinations during his time sedated. You start to piece together a fiction and there were things I thought 100 per cent are true, he said. There were things I could remember that were accurate and things that were nonsense. Ive had to unpick truth from fiction. Reunited: Richard Bacon with his children on his final day in hospital (Richard Bacon Instagram ) / Richard Bacon Instagram Bacon and his wife Rebecca are now undergoing therapy as there is still a lot to deal with and process. The former Blue Peter presenter said he cannot eat or sleep properly and said he is struggling to accept his new figure. The physical change is the hardest thing, he said. To look at myself in the mirror now Im incredibly gaunt and thin. Bacon said his biggest mistake was not heading to A&E as soon as he landed in the UK. He said: I nearly died the first two nights. My blood oxygen levels got to 70 per cent and if you go below 70 you can get brain damage or die. A ctress Roxanne Pallett opened up about her horror crash during an interview with Good Morning Britain, hitting back at cruel trolls who contacted her following the accident. Speaking on Monday, Pallett explained that she and her co-host had been visiting the racetrack last Wednesday as part of their show, which sees them get out and about in the local community in North Yorkshire. But the promo soon turned to horror as she lost control of the car high-speed car and blacked out, unable to brake. Star: Roxanne Pallett played Jo Sugden in ITV soap Emmerdale / Andrew Matthews/PA Wire The 36-year-old said: I just remember being excited, and it was new, and then realising very fast that the car was more powerful than me and when I was revving to drive, I didnt expect it to be so quick. I just lost control. I couldnt brake and I couldnt turn it round the corner. I could just see that I was about to hit and then that was when I lost I just blacked out. It was like time stood still. I remember waking up and just hearing my own breath. I was so out of breath. I could feel my heart racing, I could hear voices. I must have had my eyes closed, they said Id lost consciousness for about 30 seconds. Pictured: The scene of the crash / @sierra18NY/Twitter I had this numbed, blocked up feeling in my head, like there was water in my head, like my brain had rattled. I couldnt really hear much, I couldnt feel much either. Ben Fry my colleague was relaying messages from Lee [her boyfriend] to try and keep me awake. The minute I woke up I knew it wasnt good. I think thats why they airlifted me because I couldnt feel my legs and my neck and my head. Ive never felt pain like it. Im so lucky. Pallett then addressed cruel taunts she has received online in the wake of her accident that have lacked compassion and left her really upset. The actress told the show: I have to say this because Ive had some really negative comments on social media thats been really upsetting from the stock car racing community almost lacking compassion. They were almost disappointed that Id been airlifted and only come out of it with some internal bruising and sprained wrist. Ive got to also point out that sometimes injuries can be invisible. Theres people every day walking around with injuries and disabilities that are invisible to the eye and people need to remember that. The star also thanked the emergency services at the end of the emotional interview, in which she also revealed she had been back behind the wheel since. T The bad news is that summer is officially coming to an end. The good news is that we'll soon have X-Factor to fill our empty autumn nights. Simon Cowell will be bringing his once-cult singing show back for a 15th season early next month. Despite the show suffering something of a rating plunge over the last few years, this season promises a fresh-faced set of judges and new talent. So, when does X-Factor return to our screens and who will be sitting in those judges' chairs? Here's everything you need to know: When does X Factor series 15 start? The official start date for X Factor has been confirmed as Saturday 1st September - yay! He's back: Dermot O'Leary will return to host the series / PA Who are the judges? It wouldn't be X Factor if the judges weren't chopped and changed about half a million times, would it? X Factor veteran Louis Walsh quit the show after 13 years of enduring a love-hate relationship with Cowell. Former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger also confirmed she would not be returning to the show. X Factor 2018 Launch - In pictures 1 /12 X Factor 2018 Launch - In pictures Robbie Williams, Ayda Field, Louis Tomlinson and Simon Cowell PA Sinitta dressed as Simon Cowell PA Louis Tomlinson PA Robbie Williams and wife Ayda Field PA Robbie Williams and wife Ayda Field PA Simon Cowell Getty Images Dermot O'Leary PA Sinitta dressed as Simon Cowell Ian West/PA Wire Robbie Williams Getty Images Ayda Field PA Louis Tomlinson PA Robbie Williams and wife Ayda Field Getty Images Sharon Osbourne will only be returning as a judge for the live shows. Meanwhile, Dermot O'Leary is returning as host. Hinting at his new job, Tomlinson shared a throwback snap of him auditioning for the X Factor eight years ago on his Instagram. What else is new this year? If the host of fresh-faced judges weren't enough, Cowell is also taking the X Factor on tour to Benidorm and Tenerife. In true lads' holiday spirit, best grab yourself a fishbowl of cheap vodka whilst you're watching these episodes. Can I still audition? Yes - you've got until the July 27 to show off your singing skills and prove you've got what it takes. You can apply via the official website, uploading a video or applying via Whatsapp. When are the auditions? Open auditions have already taken place across the country, in locations including London, Birmingham, Hull, Sheffield, Nottingham, Belfast, Manchester, Bristol and Dublin. Judges' auditions kicked on July 18 at London's Wembley Arena. Who won last year? Fun-loving RnB group Rak-Su took the X Factor crown last year and was a firm favourite amongst former X Factor judge Cheryl, who tweeted: "just saw last nights Xf !! Rak-suuuuuuuuuuu come thru boys! Yessss! Obsessed." The foursome have since made hit record Dimelo and are supporting Little Mix on their Summer Hits tour. Louis Tomlinson responds to claims being an X-Factor judge will slow down his album release Is this year's X Factor worth watching? Let's put it this way, it probably won't attract the same amount of hype as Love Island - unless Simon Cowell decides to start coupling up contestants, that is. Whilst some argue that the show has run its course, it's still a household favourite and if nothing else will give you something to put on in the background whilst you're doing the ironing. Countries & Areas Search for country or area A Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan B Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burma Burundi C Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Costa Rica Cote dIvoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czechia D Democratic Republic of the Congo Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic E Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia F Fiji Finland France G Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Grenada Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana H Haiti Holy See Honduras Hungary I Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy J Jamaica Japan Jordan K Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan L Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg M Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique N Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea North Macedonia Norway O Oman P Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territories Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Q Qatar R Republic of the Congo Romania Russia Rwanda S Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Korea South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Sweden Switzerland Syria T Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Tuvalu U Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom Uruguay Uzbekistan V Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Y Yemen Z Zambia Zimbabwe Prime Minister Viorica Dancila said on Monday that during the six months in power, the Executive has taken a series of measures to stimulate the national economy, one of them being the reduction in excise duties for diesel fuel for hauliers by 10pct, "which is an important support for trade, but also for the transport of raw materials needed in the production activity," Dancila said at Victoria Palace. She added that another measure is the 'Invest In You' program, which provides support especially to young people, having as a prerequisite for the beneficiary to be enrolled in a study or training program. The prime minister also talked about the Start-up Nation Program, implemented by the Government to stimulate and develop new businesses, but also as an alternative for young people to stay in the country to start their own business."Beyond the economic benefits, I would like to highlight the positive social impact: these firms add an additional 21,000 new jobs to the economy," she said.The ministry also referred to the program under which state aid is granted for film productions made in Romania, as follows: the Government will cover 35pct of the production costs if the production is made in Romania, plus 10pct if it promotes Romania in the film, with the total amount of the aid reaching 10 million euro for a film, but at least 20pct of the production should be made in Romania, plus the mention that the film was made with the support of the Romanian Government, said the head of the Government.The prime minister also pointed out that another measure of stimulating the economy is the state aid for investments higher than 3 million euro, namely "a state aid amounting to 25 to 50pct of the value of the investment, depending on the county in which the investment is made "(...) to reduce the economic gaps and the balanced use of the labour force. Justice Minister Tudorel Toader said Monday that Attorney General Augustin Lazar consulted him before appointing Anca Jurma as acting chief prosecutor of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA), according to agerpres. Journalists asked Toader on Monday as he was entering the headquarters of the Justice Ministry for a take on Jurma's recent meeting with US ambassador in Bucharest Hans Klemm. "I think you should ask hierarchically. To tell you the truth, in a discussion with the attorney general before recommending Mrs Anca Jurma, whom I know, for the acting position he first consulted with me, and I said half-jokingly: 'You should know I was on the doctoral board of Anca Jurma, too.' My opinion - you should ask in hierarchical order. She's got a chief, an attorney general, who can answer you this question," Toader said.Asked if Jurma would be a good candidate for DNA chief prosecutor, Toader said: "Any prosecutor who fulfills the legal requirements, any prosecutor who wishes to take up this huge responsibility in a decent way can apply for it. First, let's see if she enters the completion and secondly I cannot say anything before it happens." The Ministry of Agriculture is considering the acquisition of some squadrons of aircraft equipped with anti-hail systems, Minister Petre Daea announced on Monday in Botosani. "We have in the investment program the procurement of some squadrons of airplanes, so that we have greater freedom of action and we cover, in the offing, the entire agricultural surface," Daea said, specifying that the Ministry is considering the acquisition of two squadrons, with three aircraft each. He said that the airplanes will function in parallel with the anti-hail rocket missiles systems."It is a program that we have promoted and are extending it. In 2004, there were 17 launch points in Romania. Since 2004 until 2017, for 13 years, unfortunately, only 13 have been built. We, through the governing program, have set out as an objective for this area, in order to prevent hail-fall, to establish a number of 60 launch points. In a little over an year we established 40 [launch points,e.n.]," the Minister of Agriculture said.Petre Daea took part in the entry into service of the Stanca (Stefanesti) pumping station in Botosani county, but also the refilling of Stefanesti-Ripiceni irrigation lines, which were rehabilitated with government funds. President Klaus Iohannis will welcome on Tuesday at the Cotroceni Palace Ireland's Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar, who is on an official visit to Romania. Talks are expected to tackle bilateral relations and aspects related to the major subjects on the European agenda, like the future of the European Union, the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the future budget of the EU and the management of migration, the Presidential Administration informs. The two officials will also look at the upcoming Brexit - a subject of top interest for both sides, the release says, stating that President Iohannis will present Romania's vision of the future of the EU, emphasizing the idea of deeper integration and maintaining the unity of EU member states, advocating strengthened bilateral relations with a view to expanding and diversifying cooperation between the two states. Prime Minister Viorica Dancila will welcome on Tuesday, at the Victoria Palace, Ireland's Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, on an official visit to our country. According to the schedule announced by the Gov't, on Tuesday, after the official welcome of the Irish guest, a working lunch offered by premier Viorica Dancila will take place. Subsequently, at 16:10 hrs, the two premiers will hold joint press statements. The aggregated level of the net assets of the five Financial Investment Companies (SIF) reached 5 billion at the end of June this year, up 7.8 percent as compared to the May level, whereas the net assets went up 4.6 percent, to 8.46 billion lei, the Association of Fund Managers in Romania (AAF) informs. The level of net assets in euro at the end of June stood at 1.1 billion, by 7.5 percent higher than the previous month level. All five SIFs had an upward trend, as follows: 9.4 percent for SIF Muntenia, 4 percent for SIF Banat-Crisana, 3.7 percent for SIF Transylvania and 1.8 for SIF Oltenia.Short-term financial investments increased 2.6 percent as compared to May, to 6.23 billion lei, and the share of the short-term investments of the total assets dropped to 69.6 percent in June from 70.5 percent in May.The SIF overall non-listed shares amounting to approximately 1.23 billion lei at the end of May, rose to 1.24 billion lei, having a share of 13.8 percent - downwards from 14.3 percent (at the end of the previous month). SIF Oltenia held the highest amount of such stock, worth 642 million lei, whereas SIF Transylvania held the lowest, of 75 million lei."The evolution of closing prices, as compared to those of the previous month, was exclusively positive, with rises recorded as follows: 15 percent for SIF Moldova, 7.2 percent for SIF Banat-Crisana, 6.1 percent for SIF Oltenia, 2.9 percent for SIF Transylvania and 1.6 percent for SIF Muntenia. The discount for the market trading of the five SIFs range between 25 percent for SIF Moldova and 56.7 percent for SIF Muntenia, the quoted source specifies. M.K. BHADRAKUMAR A new strategic fault line appeared in the Afghan conflict last week when Islamabad hosted an unusual meeting of the heads of the intelligence agencies of Russia, China and Iran on July 11. Moscow thoughtfully publicized the event both for its optics as well as to pre-empt misperceptions that some sort of zero-sum game might be afoot. The focus was on joint measures to stop the terrorist group Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-K) from threatening the territorial boundaries of the four regional states. In the Russian estimation, there could be up to 10,000 fighters in IS-Ks ranks already and the group is already active in nine of the 34 provinces in Afghanistan. The four participating countries reached understanding of the importance of coordinated steps to prevent the trickling of IS terrorists from Syria and Iraq to Afghanistan, where from they would pose risks for neighboring countries. But they also stressed the need for a more active inclusion of regional powers in the efforts to end the war in Afghanistan. Clearly, the leitmotif is in the latter claim by the regional states seeking a greater say in Afghan peace-making. Three related developments over the weekend also signal the new churning. One, the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, General Mohammad Baqeri, started a three-day visit to Islamabad on July 15 at the invitation of Pakistani army chief General Qamar Bajwa. This is the first time since the Islamic Revolution of 1979 that a chief of staff of Irans armed forces visited Pakistan. No doubt, the visit signals Tehrans appreciation that Pakistan is no longer in the US orbit. General Bajwa visited Tehran in November. According to the Pakistani readout, General Bajwa noted that Pakistans military cooperation with Iran would have a positive impact on peace and security in the region. Later, General Baqeri told the Iranian media that the US and its allies seek to weaken security in the region and Iran and Pakistan are duty-bound to take actions to safeguard regional peace and security. There is a history of cross-border terrorism from across the porous Pakistani border in which Tehran suspected the hidden hand of hostile powers. Therefore, today, the Iranian calculus prioritizes the return of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to the Afghan chessboard recently, after a prolonged absence, given the geopolitical rivalries playing out in a diverse theatre across the Greater Middle East. Curiously, although the newfound Saudi-Emirati pro-activism in Afghanistan is coinciding with the steady expansion of IS-K, the two Gulf states today are preoccupied with weakening the Taliban, whom they had mentored in an earlier era in the 1990s. The Kabul government approved on June 6 the deployment of UAE Special Forces to Afghanistan. On July 11-12, Saudi Arabia hosted an Ulema conference in Jeddah and Mecca, which issued a fatwa against the jihad waged by the Afghan Taliban. Washington encouraged these parallel Saudi-Emirati moves, which implies a concerted attempt to weaken the Taliban whom the US military failed to defeat, with a view to force it to compromise. However, on the contrary, a paradigm shift is under way in the regional perceptions regarding the Taliban. The special envoy of the Russian president on Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, disclosed on the weekend that Moscow proposes to invite the Taliban to the second round of the Russian regional initiative on Afghanistan, which is expected to be held sometime late in the summer. Kabulov characterized the Taliban as a force that has integrated with the Afghan nation, and therefore, having a legitimacy, which in some respects even exceeds the Kabul governments, and controlling more than half the territory of Afghanistan. Kabulov implicitly doubted the representative character of the present Afghan government. Suffice to say that the Russian policy is incrementally redefining the battle lines in Afghanistan from Taliban versus the Rest to Afghanistan versus the IS-K. Conceivably, Iran, China and Pakistan are in harmony with the Russian thinking. The heart of the matter is that while these regional states regard the Taliban as an Afghan movement indigenously rooted in traditional Islam and with a political agenda confined to their homeland, they abhor the IS-K as a brutal terrorist group weaned on Salafi-Wahhabist teaching which casts a seductive appeal to misguided Muslim youth worldwide. However, in the final analysis, the above interplay needs to be juxtaposed with recent reports that President Trump may order a policy review of his one-year old Afghan strategy. In fact, the sudden visit of the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Kabul on July 9 only reinforced that impression in the region. Unsurprisingly, Pompeo maintained while in Kabul that the Trump administrations strategy is working. But then, instead of heaping praise on the US military, he instead stressed the urgency of a peace process with the Taliban. Pompeo offered that the US will support, facilitate and participate in these peace discussions. He then added meaningfully: We expect that these peace talks will include a discussion of the role of international actors and forces. atimes.com Those of us who regard NATO as one of the primary sources of international instability thanks to its wars of destruction in the MENA and provocation of Russia were looking forward with delighted anticipation to Trump's appearance at the NATO summit. We were not disappointed. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when Trump came late to the meeting where Ukraine and Georgia were banging on about the Russian threat, started ranting about spending and blew up the decorous charade. Ukraine and Georgia were then dismissed and a special meeting was convened. (A side effect of his "creative destruction" was that the Ukrainian President delivered his speech to a practically empty room). He started his assault before the meeting, opening Twitter fire on Germany, returning to the attack in his breakfast meeting with NATO's GenSek: Germany is totally controlled by Russia because they will be getting from 60% to 70% of their energy from Russia, and a new pipeline, and you tell me if that's appropriate because I think it's not and I think it's a very bad thing for Nato. Good fun for some of us but a stunner to the Panjandrumocracy: "meltdown", "tantrum", "latest diplomatic blowup", "making bullying great again" and so on. As ever, Trump's statements were extreme and his numbers might not stand up to examination but most commenters (typically) left out the context. Which was a piece by German Chancellor Merkel herself in which she called for NATO to focus on the threats from Russia: "the alliance has to show determination to protect us. This gave Trump the opening to pose these questions (posed in his own way, of course, in a strategy that most people despite the example of North Korea have still not grasped). 1. You tell us that NATO ought to concentrate on the Russian threat. If Russia is a threat, why are you buying gas from it? 2. You tell us that Russia is a reliable energy supplier. If Russia is a reliable supplier, why are you telling us it's a threat? 3. I hope you're not saying Russia is a threat and its gas is cheap but the USA will save you. Good questions to be sure; questions that crystallise the contradiction of NATO. If Russia is such a big military threat to them as NATO communiques incessantly say it is then why aren't the Europeans, presumably first on Moscow's cross hairs, doing more to meet that threat? And, if, as their doing so little about their defence suggests, they don't fear Russia, then why do they say that they do? From the latest NATO communique: meeting Russias aggressive actions, including the threat and use of force to attain political goals, challenge the Alliance and are undermining Euro-Atlantic security and the rules-based international order. I always like to count words in these cliche-ridden screeds: it gives a metric of importance and saves force-marching my eyeballs through 12,000 words of self-satisfied pap. In the countries where NATO forces are actually deployed, the communique mentions Afghanistan twice, Kosovo six times and Iraq 14 times. NATO destroyed Libya but it only gets six references; it's doing its best to repeat the performance in Syria (nine). But Russia leads with 54 mentions, none of them complimentary. Why even NATO's favourite mush words, "values" (16) and "stability" (26), appear fewer times. Ukraine, on the other hand, has 25 appearances, all in what could be called the phantasmagorical verbal mood: "We welcome significant reform progress". So, in NATOland, Russia's back. By contrast, the Riga Summit communique in 2006 mentioned Afghanistan 17 times, Iraq eight times and Russia ten times ("values" and "stability" scored 15 each). But NATO was still looking for a purpose then: It recognizes that for the foreseeable future, the principal threats to the Alliance are terrorism and proliferation, as well as failing states, regional crises, misuse of new technologies and disruption of the flow of vital resources. The logic of NATO's very existence creates the contradiction. NATO, having lost its raison d'etre when the Warsaw Pact and the USSR disappeared, having floundered around in out-of-area operations and the "War on Terror", has returned to "the Russian threat". (But in a bureaucracy nothing ever actually stops: this week's meeting approved a NATO training (!) mission in Iraq Year 15 and more British troops in Kabul Year 16.) Without the "Russian Threat" there would be no reason for NATO to exist, and certainly no big arms contracts, and all the warm butterscotch sauce of "common values" or "projecting stability" could not keep it together. Because, the brutal truth is that military alliances are kept together, not by common values, but by common enemies. But, no question about it, it's Washington that bears the major responsibility: Washington pushes NATO expansion, adding monomaniacal anti-Russian members; Washington foments colour revolutions; Washington blew up Ukraine and tried to snatch the Sevastopol naval base; Washington "twists arms"; Washington demands European sanctions and Magnitskiy Acts; Washington's failed wars in the MENA suck in NATO members; Washington dropped the ABM Treaty inspiring Russia to create its super weapons. The truth is that, whatever might have happened otherwise, Washington drove NATO in the anti-Russia direction. But Donald Trump is not that Washington: he is the anti-Washington. He tosses bombs into gatherings of complacent apparatchiks: if you believe what you're saying, act on it; if you don't act on it, stop saying it. Then he threw the spending bomb. For years there has been a vague commitment that NATO members should spend 2% of their GDP on defence; the commitment appears to have been formalised in 2014. (14) But the members aren't paying much attention. Few have achieved it and the downward trend, begun at the end of the Cold War, has continued. Regardless of whether "2%" makes any sense or how it is calculated, Trump was right to remind NATO members that they themselves agreed to it. Again Trump raises the pointed question: why don't you act as if you believe what you're saying? Indicators of European NATO members' actual readiness and combat capability are stunning; the latest being "Only 4 of Germany's 128 Eurofighter jets combat ready report"; "Ground force: Half of France's military planes 'unfit to fly'". "Britains withered forces not fit to repel all-out attack". "Europe's Readiness Problem". Obviously they're not expecting a Russian attack any time soon. NATO is, as I have argued here, a paper tiger. It is questionable whether NATO members can conduct any operation without the USA providing satellite navigation and observation, air defence suppression, airborne command and control, inflight tankers, heavy lift and ammunition resupply to name a few deficiencies. So, either the Europeans are not worried; or, as Trump likes to say, they are free riders. Six months ago I suggested that Trump may be trying to get out of what I called the "Gordian knot of entanglements". President Trump can avoid new entanglements but he has inherited so many and they are, all of them, growing denser and thicker by the minute. Consider the famous story of the Gordian Knot: rather than trying to untie the fabulously complicated knot, Alexander drew his sword and cut it. How can Trump cut The Gordian Knot of American imperial entanglements? By getting others to untie it. He stamps out of NATO leaving them quaking: if you say Russia is the enemy, why do you act as if it isn't; and if you act as if it isn't, why do you say it is? And firing, over his shoulder, the threat: 2% by next January. I believe it is a threat and a very neat one too: If you don't get up to 2% (or is it 4%?) and quickly too; I warned you. Goodbye. If you do get your spending up, then you don't need us. Goodbye. Another strand of the knot gone. Photo: Evan Vucci / AP On July 20, the US Defense Department announced in a statement that it will provide $200 million to Ukraine in security-cooperation funds earmarked for additional training, equipment, and advisory efforts to build the defensive capacity of its armed forces. The funds are intended to enhance Ukraine's command-and-control and situational-awareness systems, secure communications, military mobility, night-vision capabilities, and military medical treatment. "This reaffirms the long-standing defense relationship between the United States and Ukraine," the statement noted. The package includes equipment to support ongoing training programs and operational needs, including counter-artillery and counter-mortar radars, high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles, night-vision devices, electronic warfare detection, secure communications, and medical equipment. The total of US security-sector assistance to Ukraine since 2014 will now top $1 billion in aid. Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the founder the Senate Ukraine Caucus, hailed the announcement, which he called "a clear message that America stands with the Ukrainian people in their struggle against Russian aggression," as he put it. In March, the State Department cleared a $47-million sale of FGM-148 Javelin portable anti-tank missiles to Ukraine. The package specified 210 missiles and 37 launchers. Ukrainian personnel have been training with the new weapons since May. Sending US military on an advice and training mission is tantamount to indirect involvement in Ukraines internal conflict. Hundreds of US and Canadian military instructors have been training Ukrainian personnel at the Yavorov firing range since 2015. The US Navy operates a facility in Ochakov. In June, Ukraines parliament approved the law On Amending Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine (on the Direction of Ukraines Foreign Policy), which set NATO membership as Ukraines foreign-policy goal, replacing the countrys non-aligned status. With the economy in pitiful shape, Ukraines defense expenditures already greatly exceed 2% of its GDP. Very few NATO members spend such a share of their GDP on military needs, despite the pledges they have made at summits. Ukraines government says its military will meet NATO standards by or during the year 2020. But allocating a large percentage of GDP to military needs and getting bang for ones buck are two different things. Natan Chazin, a former advisor to the chief of the general staff of Ukraine's armed forces, believes the military reforms have gone nowhere. According to a sensational story in the New York Times, corruption is widespread in the ranks of Ukraines military. If so, who can guarantee that the US-supplied weapons would not fall into the wrong hands and be used against the US military somewhere outside of Europe? The US 2018 fiscal year (FY) defense budget allocates $350 million for security assistance to Kiev. In the draft budget for FY 2019, Ukraine is included in the list of countries to be granted security assistance under the State Departments Foreign Military Financing program. The sum of $200 million was allocated months ago as part of the defense budget, but was kept on hold pending a series of defense reforms Washington was demanding from Kiev. The passage of Ukraine's new national security law, signed by the Ukrainian president on July 5, met the requirements enshrined in the US legislation, thereby allowing the Pentagon to release the funds. The Law on National Security provides a legislative framework for aligning Ukraines national security architecture with Euro-Atlantic principles. It is perceived as a major step toward achieving NATO interoperability. The timing has a symbolic impact. US President Donald Trump has come under harsh criticism for the remarks he made during a joint press conference after the summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin in Helsinki on July 16. The announcement on military aid to Ukraine came on the same day the White House rejected a proposal from Russia to hold a referendum in eastern Ukraine on the fate of the region. The possibility was raised by Vladimir Putin during the talks. Addressing Russian diplomats on July 19, President Putin said that any country pushing Ukraine or Georgia into the NATO fold should think of the possible consequences of this irresponsible policy because Russia would respond in kind to any aggressive steps that directly threaten Russia. Indeed, why should the US provide lethal weapons and training to a neighbor of Russia, not to mention its military presence in Ochakov? Russia has not sent weapons to any neighbors of the US, nor does it have a military presence near Americas borders. Military cooperation between the US and Ukraine is a multilateral process that is moving forward. A US-Ukraine cyber-security bill has passed in the House. So, cooperation in various areas is thriving, despite human-rights violations in Ukraine. This fact has been confirmed by a report from the State Department. The corruption in Ukraine is an internationally acknowledged problem. Popular protests are commonplace, despite the fact that the conflict in the Donbass is being used to distract the public from their domestic woes. Many in the West are frustrated with the way Kiev is implementing reforms and with the political influence of the oligarchs. A study by the prestigious Brookings Institute has confirmed the fact that the reforms in Ukraine have foundered. The countrys politicians are embracing extremist rhetoric. But a blind eye is being turned to all of this, as Kiev grows obsequious and ready to comply with instructions from Washington. In late June, the Ukrainian government made a decision to buy American coal from Pennsylvania, which is said to be almost twice as expensive as what is locally sourced in the Donbass. It has also decided to rely on cooperation with Westinghouse, in an attempt to maintain its nuclear energy capacity. The deal assumes that the spent fuel will be stored near the surface, turning the country into a nuclear dump. Kiev has recently been rewarded with an official status in NATO. The 2018 NATO summit confirmed its support for Ukraines membership. To display its diligence Kiev has recently joined a new three-nation anti-Moscow alliance. With the US-Russia two-way dialog on Ukraine stalled, Washington is no longer viewed as a mediator, but rather an accomplice who is fueling the conflict. Americas vigorous political support and security assistance is enticing Kiev into seeking a military solution to the crisis in the Donbass. Where could that lead? Russia can supply the self-proclaimed republics in eastern Ukraine with weapons systems, including the Kornet anti-tank system, which has better specs than the US Javelin. Moscow could recognize the republics as independent states, once the Minsk II accords wash out. If Russian forces are invited in by the governments of those new republics, Moscow may agree to those requests, which would be an action strictly in compliance with international law. This is the scenario the US and Ukraine may provoke. They will have no one to blame but themselves. Bay of Plenty Ever thought of joining the civil construction industry? if so then this is your chance to get a foot in the door. We are... View or Apply on GoodWork.co.nz Two thirds of New Zealand voters support changing the country's cannabis law, with outright legalisation being the most the popular option. According to a survey conducted by the NZ Drug Foundation, two thirds of those answering the telephone survey want cannabis to be either legalised (35 per cent) or decriminalised (32 per cent). Only a third want to keep the status quo. Support for legalisation has grown seven per cent since the same question was asked in July 2017. People were strongly in favour of medicinal cannabis being readily available for both pain management and terminal illnesses. Only 10 per cent want this to stay illegal. For the first time people were asked how they would vote in the planned referendum on legalising cannabis. These results show that New Zealanders are ready for a future under which cannabis is regulated. People realise that the way were currently dealing with cannabis isnt working, says executive directror Ross Bell. Support for both legalisation and decriminalisation has continued to grow. This is good news for those that support treating drug use as a health issue, not a criminal one. This is a sign that people are ready to vote for change in the cannabis referendum due to happen on or before the 2020 election. The percentage of people that support legal or decriminalised access to medicinal cannabis has gone by 10 per cent compared with last year: 89 per cent say this should be legal or decriminalised for those with a terminal illness, and 87 per cent said it should be available for pain relief. In 2017 these figures were 81 per cent and 78 per cent respectively. This sends a strong message to MPs considering the governments medical cannabis bill which currently does not go far enough to improve access for a large group of patients. The strong and growing support for access to medicinal cannabis is a signal to MPs that people expect change. There will be widespread dissapointment if Parliament fails to listen. On adult recreational use, there is support by a majority of voters from across the political spectrum to shift away from the punitive criminal model. Over the last two years, support for personal possession to be decriminalised or legalised has increased irrespective of which party respondents vote for: support by National Party voters is up 11 per cent, by Labour voters is up six per cent, by NZ First voters is up seven per cent and by Greens voters is up 14 per cent. For the first time, the survey asked how people would vote in a referendum to legalise the sale of cannabis. The results were split evenly, with 48 per cent in favour of legalisation, and 48 per cent against. With the referendum question and date yet to be set, weve got time for people to look at different options from overseas, and learn what model would work best for New Zealand. As the debate progresses, we can expect more facts on the table, and for people to become well-informed. Were looking forward to this important discussion. From our perspective, a tightly regulated cannabis model would work best to protect young people, undermine the criminal black market, and remove the burden of criminalisaton. This brings with it social justice, public health and commuity safety benefits. SYRACUSE, NY - More than a year after Byrne Dairy officials declared dead a proposal to tear down a former Denny's restaurant in Syracuse to build a new store the Byrne Dairy's plans are back on the table. Byrne Dairy is again proposing to demolish the restaurant and replace it with a convenience store and gas pumps, company officials said. The site is at the corner of West Fayette Street, West Genesee Street and Erie Boulevard West, at the gateway to Syracuse's Tipperary Hill neighborhood. The proposal calls for a 4,232-square-foot Byrne Dairy convenience store, along with eight gas pumps with a total of 16 filling stations. The store also would serve food. In April 2017, Byrne officials decided not to move ahead with the project, mainly because the city of Syracuse wouldn't approve an access driveway off West Genesee Street. Christian Brunelle, senior executive vice president of Sonbyrne Sales Inc., said Byrne has been working with the new city administration for some time on the plan, and decided to resubmit the proposal. "We feel much more confident that it will get approved this time,'' Brunelle said. The plan still calls for a right-in only driveway to the store from West Genesee Street - which was the contentious proposal before. Brunelle said it's been reconfigured somewhat, but remains in the proposal. There also are access driveways off West Fayette and off West Genesee streets. The Tipperary Hill Neighborhood Association, which first suggested Byrne Dairy build a store on the site, has continued to express its desire for a store there, Brunelle said. The new store will have some brick in its facade to help it match with the existing Brooklyn Pickle at 1600 W. Genesee St., Brunelle said. If the plan is approved, construction would likely start in the fall, Brunelle said. Byrne Dairy now has 60 locations across the region. Its newest Byrne Dairy opened recently in Geddes on the southeast corner of Bridge Street and State Fair Boulevard. Syracuse, N.Y. -- Syracuse Marriott Downtown is in the running for the title of "Best Historic Hotel" on USA Today's 10Best travel website. The hotel, formerly named Hotel Syracuse, is among 20 classic hotels around the country that were nominated for the award by a panel of hotel experts. It's currently ranked third in online voting by visitors to the 10Best website. The Hotel Syracuse opened in 1924 at the southwest corner of South Warren and East Onondaga streets in downtown Syracuse. For decades, it was the grand lady of Central New York hotels. It closed in 2004 and sat vacant for 10 years, falling into disrepair. Developer Ed Riley acquired it in 2014 and reopened it as a full-service Marriott two years later after conducting an $82 million renovation that restored its majestic lobby and ballrooms and fully modernized its 261 rooms. The 10Best website notes that during nearly a century of welcoming guests, famous visitors to the hotel have included Charles Lindbergh, Elvis Presley, John Lennon and three U.S. presidents. "Guests will note that while there are 261 rooms in the hotel, there are 600 guest room doors; these were left to keep the historic integrity of the property when it was restored in 2014," the website added. The website said each of the 20 nominated hotels "has witnessed a great deal of history, and each has held true to its historic roots and unique sense of place." The only other New York hotel nominated for the award is The Plaza Hotel in New York City. Readers can vote once per day until the voting ends at noon Aug. 6. Contact Rick Moriarty anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148 Jason Rezaian is a writer for Global Opinions. He served as The Post's correspondent in Tehran from 2012 to 2016. He spent 544 days unjustly imprisoned by Iranian authorities until his release in January 2016. By Jason Rezaian | The Washington Post SIMI VALLEY, Calif. -- July 22 is one of those dates on the calendar that stands out. That was the day in 2014 that agents of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) raided my wife's and my home in Tehran and hauled us off to Evin prison to an uncertain fate. I was confined there for a year and a half before I was finally released. Now, July 22 will also go down as an important date for the Iranian American community as a whole. As President Donald Trump tweeted one of his most threatening messages yet at the president of Iran on Sunday night, his secretary of state addressed members of the Iranian American community in Southern California. At the event, called "Supporting Iranian Voices," Mike Pompeo signaled a U.S. commitment to support efforts to undermine Iran's clerical regime. I went as a witness. This was my third July 22 as a free man, and I chose to spend it at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library where Pompeo made his case against the Islamic republic. I wanted to know who would be there. Exactly which Iranian voices would Pompeo be supporting? To my surprise, there were a range of attendees representing the different ethnic, religious and political views that make up the community of Iranians in the United States. Among the several hundred Iranian Americans in attendance were professionals, politicians, educators, entertainers and entrepreneurs. That's a good thing. Organizers of the event at the State Department told me that the guests were individually selected to demonstrate the diversity within the community, but that many of those who were invited declined and others didn't even bother to respond to the invitation. Still others openly boycotted the event. They wanted to be as far as possible from what they saw as the opening arguments in this administration's case for regime change. That may ultimately prove to be what this event was about, but it also provided a rare opportunity for Iranian Americans to engage directly with an administration as it begins to formulate its plans for their ancestral homeland. For anyone to whom Iran is important, now isn't the moment to sit on the sidelines. The Iranian voices I'm hearing -- people I'm in touch with inside Iran and others in the diaspora -- have long felt trapped in the middle of a decades-old struggle between a state that doesn't represent their interests and a foreign power that says it does but has shown little regard for assisting them in meaningful ways, and in fact has consistently taken action that hurts average Iranians. Pompeo, for his part, highlighted a long list of problems -- including naming corrupt officials and describing human rights violations -- but offered few ways by which the current U.S. leadership plans to help alleviate what it calls Iranian suffering. Most of what Pompeo said about the depravity of Iran's rulers was true, but when coupled with U.S. moves that directly hurt Iranians -- specifically, stiff economic sanctions and the recently upheld travel ban -- it is difficult for the administration to support its own claims that the well-being and prosperity of Iranians matter. I would love nothing more to be proved wrong about this. I suppose I was there to find out, and engaging with the nation's top diplomat provided some fresh insight. I spoke to Pompeo after the speech and asked him what is being done for Americans still imprisoned in Iran. I also brought up the concerns most Iranians have about the travel ban. That portion of the evening was off the record, but on those two issues, at least, I walked away with more hope than when I arrived. I asked members of his staff about ways to support Iranian voices inside Iran, which could undermine the current regime's power. That could mean bolstering the strength of civil society through programs that give Iranian private citizens access to educational tools, an unblocked Internet, and the opportunity to engage directly with the rest of the world through commerce and legal forms of temporary immigration. None of those seem to be priorities in the current administration strategy for weakening the regime. Still, I had the opportunity to raise issues and so did others, who talked about the need to support Iranian women, religious minorities and the importance of adjusting the travel ban, to name a few. Such venues to address U.S. leaders directly don't come around often, and it's for that reason I think Iranian Americans must stay engaged while the possibility to do so remains open. Those opposed to the administration's Iran agenda should know, though, that if they don't begin to make their voices heard, and quickly, the narrative that's being formulated -- the one that says the Iranian American community is on board with the U.S. government's unstated efforts to destabilize and remove the current regime whatever the cost -- will be attributed to the entire community, and all will have to live with that. WASHINGTON -- Matt Roberts stood in a corner of the State Dining Room at the White House on Monday, showing samples of his company's Liberty Tabletop stainless steel silverware, when Rep. Claudia Tenney rushed over with a spoon in her hand. Roberts, president of Sherrill Manufacturing, the Upstate New York firm that's America's last flatware maker, looked closely at the spoon with the eye of an experienced craftsman. Tenney, R-New Hartford, asked if he could make out the brand and where it was made. "It says Oneida Ltd.," Roberts said, shaking his head in disappointment. "It's made in China." Tenney had just taken the spoon off a table where the White House served refreshments at its annual "Made in America Product Showcase." President Donald Trump established the annual event to show off American-made products. Tenney and dozens of members of Congress, titans of American industry and members of Trump's cabinet used the foreign-made silverware at Monday's event. Oneida Ltd., once based in Central New York, now sells products made overseas. Tenney and Sherrill Manufacturing have tried for months to convince the Trump White House to buy the American-made silverware. There's even bipartisan support. U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., asked Trump when he took office to buy the Liberty Tabletop utensils for state dinners. In November, Tenney cornered Trump at the Capitol after he lobbied Republican members of Congress to vote for a bill overhauling the U.S. tax code. "I'll buy it, I'll buy it," Trump promised Tenney in an exchange recorded on video on her cell phone. "Done!" Greg Owens, co-founder and CEO of Sherrill Manufacturing, said a member of the White House hospitality staff approached him and Roberts at Monday's event and expressed interest in their product, including their patriotic Betsy Ross line of silverware. But he has been through this before. A White House official called Owens after Trump's November promise, but Owens said he never heard back from the administration. Roberts said he understood why the company might not be a priority. "With all of the things going on in the world, forks and spoons in your kitchen are not exactly the top priority at the White House," Roberts said. Owens said he was told by a White House aide later Monday that Trump had seen the Liberty Tabletop flatware during a private tour of the State Dining Room after it had been cleared of guests. "Apparently he pointed it out and said, 'I want this stuff in the White House.' So I'm expecting a phone call or email in the next couple of days," Owens said. Roberts and Owens are former Oneida Ltd. executives who bought the company's plant in the Oneida County city of Sherrill for $1 million on March 22, 2005 and reopened it the next day as Sherrill Manufacturing. Oneida Ltd., which once employed 2,500 people producing 3.5 million forks, knives and spoons a week, no longer manufactures in the United States. But Sherrill Manufacturing has managed to find a niche, selling its Liberty Tabletop brand directly to consumers through its website. Owens said Monday that the company has continued to grow since Trump invited Sherrill Manufacturing to the White House in July 2017. Production has increased 33 percent, employment has grown from 42 to 54, and net income is expected to eclipse $5 million this year. The company has increased its sales to the federal government this year, with big orders from the Navy and State Department for its embassies, Owens said. Among those to stop by the Liberty Tabletop display at the White House on Monday were two of Trump's most influential economic advisers -- Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Peter Navarro, the president's top trade adviser. Neither one was familiar with the brand. U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross holds an American-made spoon from Sherrill Manufacturing in Oneida County, New York, on Tuesday, July 23, 2018 at the White House. Rep. Claudia Tenney, explained to Ross that the White House uses Chinese-made spoons from Oneida Ltd. But a White House military aide stopped by and told Roberts the flatware looked familiar. The woman had served on the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. "Well, you've probably used our flatware," Roberts said. "We supplied the ship." Contact Mark Weiner: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751 Buffalo, N.Y. -- A substitute teacher in Buffalo was arrested and fired after allegedly attacking a student last week. The incident occurred on Thursday, according to WIVB in Buffalo. The teacher allegedly punched and choked an eighth-grade boy during a summer program at Buffalo's Southside Elementary School. Mark Magavern, 31 of Buffalo, was charged with endangering the welfare of a child, criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation, assault and harassment, WIVB said. He was also fired. The student and teacher got into a physical altercation in front of other students, according to WKBW in Buffalo. At some point, someone called 911, police responded and arrested Magavern. The student was back at school on Friday, WKBW said. The victim in the case, whose name has not been released, allegedly threw a chair at Magavern, thinking the teacher was "going to attack him," a police report said, according to The Buffalo News. Magavern then allegedly picked up a table and threw it at the student. The table just missed the boy's head, police said, according to the News. The teacher then grabbed the boy, slammed him onto a desk, began choking him and repeatedly punched him in the face, the police report said, according to the News. Nearly 20 students under age 16 and two school employees witnessed the assault, the News said. The student had finger marks on his neck and was also punched in the ribs, which caused bruising and swelling, police said, according to the News. Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Google + | 315-454-2112 Mark David Chapman is scheduled to appear before a parole panel the week of Aug. 20. For Chapman, it will be the 10th time he's been eligible for parole. The previous nine he's been rejected. But this year, the Parole Board has been more willing to place heavier emphasis on an inmate's behavior behind bars than simply focus on the severity of the crime. Several cop killers and other notorious murderers who had been long denied parole were set free in recent months. In the past, the Parole Board -- even while citing Chapman's clean prison record since 1994 -- has cited "the premeditated and celebrity seeking nature of the crime" and routinely said that releasing him would "undermine respect for the law." Chapman, 63, shot Lennon on Dec. 8, 1980, as the famed ex-Beatle and wife Yoko Ono returned to their Dakota building home across from Central Park after a late night recording session. Sentenced to 20 years to life in prison, Chapman is currently incarcerated at Wende Correctional Facility in the Western New York town of Alden, located near Buffalo in Erie County. In past parole hearings, Chapman has claimed to have found Jesus while behind bars. Even while denying him his release in 2016, the last time he came up for parole, the panel members commended Chapman for "your acceptance of responsibility and vivid characterization of your crime as premeditated, selfish and evil." The board also said it considered his "network of support and release plan" and his record and behavior behind bars, but ultimately kept him locked up. Chapman has said he targeted Lennon because of his fame and a twisted belief that the rocker was a phony for living an elite lifestyle. He is kept in protective custody against his will and works as an administrative clerk. He's allowed out of his cell a minimum of three hours a day. Chapman also is registered in the prison system's "family reunion" program, which allows him conjugal visits with his wife, Gloria Hiroko Chapman, who married him 18 months before the murder, and visits with his stepfather. His wife could not be reached for comment. Chapman in previous parole hearings said he's willing to pay for his crime in prison "however long it takes, forever." A lawyer for Ono did not return requests for comment about Chapman's latest parole hearing. Ono has sent a letter every time Chapman has gone before the board asking that he be kept locked up not only for the safety of her and the slain Beatle's two sons, but also for Chapman's, who she said could be at risk of harm from still-angry Lennon fans. ALBANY -- New York taxpayers will have to serve up $325,000 to cover the legal bills of a controversially named food truck that prevailed in a federal lawsuit prompted by a state agency's decision to ban it from selling its wares on the Empire State Plaza. The Wandering Dago won its case in January at the end of a years-long legal battle with top officials at the state Office of General Services, which in 2013 rejected the truck's application to take part in the plaza's summer lunch program. The stipulation covering legal fees and costs was signed July 6 by the truck's attorney, George Carpinello of Boies Schiller Flexner, and lawyers from Attorney General Barbara Underwood's office, which represented the Cuomo administration in the suit. U.S. District Judge Mae D'Agostino approved it on July 10. The state has four months to pay up. "We are pleased to conclude this action, but wish we did not have to bring a lawsuit to begin with. It has cost everyone, including the taxpayers, a lot of time, money and aggravation," Carpinello said in an email. The Wandering Dago, owned by Andrea Loguidice, filed suit in August 2013 against several OGS officials, including Commissioner RoAnn Destito and Executive Deputy Commissioner Joe Rabito, as well as the New York Racing Association, which ejected the truck from the Saratoga Race Course in July of that year. NYRA, which at the time of the Wandering Dago's ouster was under state control, quietly reached a $68,500 settlement with the truck's owners in 2015. While "dago" is an anti-Italian slur, Loguidice has said she chose the truck's name as a tribute to her ancestors, laborers who were paid "as the day goes." After the suit was filed, Gov. Andrew Cuomo called the truck's moniker "obviously offensive" and praised the decision to ban it from the plaza. The January decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit concluded that D'Agostino's initial decision had erred in granting summary judgment to the OGS defendants. Instead, the three-judge panel said summary judgment should have gone to the Wandering Dago. "It is undisputed that defendants denied WD's applications solely because of its ethnic slur branding," the court said in a 32-page decision that called the state's action unconstitutional "viewpoint discrimination." The Second Circuit's action was based in large part on the U.S. Supreme Court's June 2017 decision in Matal v. Tam, in which the leader of an Asian-American rock group called The Slants was denied the chance to register the band's name with the U.S. Trademark Office due to its ironic use of a similarly offensive epithet. The top court concluded that the federal office's decision amounted to unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination. The Wandering Dago dropped its claim seeking damages from the state, but still demanded payment of its legal bills. An OGS spokeswoman did not respond Sunday to a request for comment. Loguidice, who now operates the truck as part of her Rogue Hospitality catering business, filed a separate lawsuit in late 2014, claiming that she was fired from her job as an attorney for the state Department of Environmental Conservation due to her connection to the truck. DEC officials terminated her after it came to light that the truck had been hired by a General Electric contractor to cater an event on GE's Niskayuna campus; agency officials said DEC's work on GE's PCB dredging project on the Hudson should have raised a red flag for Loguidice. The DEC-Loguidice suit is currently bogged down in legal wrangling about the scope of the questions state attorneys are obligated to answer in depositions. Carpinello said the state's actions against the truck were "continuing because Andrea is still fighting for her job after being fired from DEC for all of this." After her legal victory in the case against the OGS defendants, Loguidice applied to take part in this year's summer lunch program. Five years after its rejection, the Wandering Dago began doing business on the Empire State Plaza last month. -- Casey Seiler, Times Union, Albany, N.Y. Spain's PM Proposes Minimum Corporate Tax Burden by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels 23 July 2018 Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has pledged to reform Spain's corporate tax rules so that companies pay an effective rate no lower than 15 percent. Laying out the new Socialist Government's two-year economic plan before parliament on July 17, Sanchez proposed that, by restricting the use of deductions, he would attempt to ensure that companies pay effective corporate tax rates closer to the headline rate of 25 percent. Sanchez also said that the Government intends to crack down on tax avoidance and evasion by legislating to prevent the further use of tax amnesties and by drawing up a new list of jurisdictions considered by the Government to be "tax havens." Sanchez became Prime Minister on June 2 following a vote of no-confidence in his predecessor Mariano Rajoy, although the Socialist Party holds just 84 seats in Spain's 350-seat assembly. Sanchez has promised to dissolve parliament and call fresh elections. UK Must Leave EU VAT Area, UK's Lower House Votes by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels 23 July 2018 Upon leaving the European Union, the UK should not be included in the EU VAT area and adopt its own specific VAT regime, UK lawmakers agreed on July 16, 2018, in a move that may derail the Government's efforts to agree a Brexit transition period to cushion the impact of Brexit on firms. After having secured as little as a three-vote majority in the House of Commons on July 16, 2018, Euroskeptic UK lawmakers won enough support for four amendments to be made to the Taxation (Cross-Border Trade) Bill. These included a proposal to drop a provision that the UK may include in ongoing negotiations continued participation in the EU VAT area. Instead, one of the four amendments blocks UK participation in the EU VAT area. It had been suggested by the EU that at least Northern Ireland could continue to be included within the EU VAT area, to prevent a hard border emerging between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Failure to agree a solution to the border issue on the island of Ireland would be a deal-breaker for the EU, which has warned otherwise of a potential no-deal divorce between the UK and the EU. The amendment, passed with 303 votes for and 300 votes against, is expected to significantly handicap the Government in talks with the EU on a deal that would avoid this hard border, potentially leading to the most severe of "hard Brexit" options a no deal with complete separation. Reportedly, in approving the four amendments, the Government is now committed to seeking a VAT system separate from the EU's after Brexit (under ERG Amendment 73). In leaving the EU VAT area, among other things, the UK may not be compelled to align its law with EU VAT law, it may not be bound by the European Court of Justice's rulings on value-added tax matters, and it may not be compelled to collect VAT on behalf of EU member states. It would also result in an increase to VAT compliance burdens for UK firms transacting with EU businesses. As well as passing the four amendments, a new Clause 37 was added to the UK's Brexit plans that contradicts the EU's plans for a so-called "Irish backstop," which would include Northern Ireland in the EU Customs Union. Taken together, the changes could mean that talks on a Brexit deal could dissolve without a deal being agreed on a Brexit transition period, meaning the UK could abruptly leave the EU without a transition period on March 29, 2019. With the aforementioned amendments, the House of Commons passed the Taxation (Cross-Border Trade) Bill on July 16, 2018. It will now be tabled before the House of Lords. Samsung has been known to have the occasional strange product idea. Indeed, in the realm of televisions alone, the tech giant has already launched the "Frame" TV. The minimalist device aims to simulate an actual picture frame, even possessing the ability to appear translucent by copying the texture of the wall behind it. However, this emphasis on style has resulted in prohibitively high costs for the average customer - the 65-inch version of the Frame TV will run you about $2,799. With this in mind, some consumers undoubtedly feared for their wallets when Samsung unveiled "The Wall" at CES 2018. The aptly-named TV was a 146-inch, 80mm thick behemoth with a 4K display. Given those specs, it wouldn't be unreasonable for Samsung to attach a significantly higher price tag to such a device. However, The Wall may end up being more budget-friendly than we initially believed. The president of Samsung's visual display branch, Han Jong-hee, announced during a press briefing on Sunday that a thinner, consumer-oriented version of The Wall will arrive sometime during 2019. Jong-hee added that the price of the device would "not be as high" as many think, but he didn't go into specifics. The 80mm version of The Wall, on the other hand, is set to launch this September, but specific pricing or pre-order information is not available at this time. With that said, we do know more about the device's target audience. According to the Korea Herald, the thicker Wall display is aimed at "hotels, shops, stadiums [and] luxury mansions," meaning the price will probably be well above $10,000. Android is currently the world's most popular mobile operating system, with Apple trailing close behind in second place. Lots have changed since the first iPhone was released, and while history has been very kind to both platforms, who knew Android would be this massive? A lot of factors contributed to Android's success, the most significant of which being the fact that it is very adaptable and can run on phones of any category. This is why Android is the dominating OS in developing countries places where iPhones are out of reach for most people. Despite its steel grip in the smartphone market, Google knows it's due for a follow-up. Something will eventually replace and innovate Android entirely, and that could be Fuchsia OS, a project that's been shrouded in mystery for the past few years, discovered only when the company began posting code to its GitHub repository under the table. There's been little to no report about this project's development. Until now, that is. Fuchsia Set To Replace Android And Chrome OS? According to a report by Bloomberg, Google hopes to make Fuchsia a single, unified operating system that can run on any hardware or on any Google hardware at least. If true, that sounds like Fuchsia will replace Android and Chrome OS altogether. It's ambitious enough as it is, but even more so considering that Google apparently wants to achieve this in just three years from now. In 2021, it'll allegedly release a Fuchsia-powered connected device before moving on to more mainstream hardware like smartphones and laptops. The idea of a unified OS gives Google a chance to solve one of the biggest problems associated with Android: fragmentation, a phenomenon that occurs when there's too huge a divide between users who have varying versions of the same software. Security is also said to be one of the core priorities of Fuchsia, which could help Google better compete with Apple's more tightly locked down iOS, as The Verge notes. Will It Really, Though? Will Fuchsia really replace Android? The notion seems highly ludicrous, especially since Android seems to be getting better, more secure, and generally more adaptable when it comes to running on all kinds of hardware. Heck, Google has just started integrating Android apps into Chrome OS and users are supposed to believe that in three years, all of that will be gone? The most important thing to remember here is that neither CEO Sundar Pichai nor Android and Chrome boss Hiroshi Lockheimer have signed off on the ambitious Fuchsia plan. In a statement to The Verge, a spokesperson confirmed that Fuchsia remains "one of many experimental open source projects at Google." Long story short, Fuchsia has a long way to go before it can eventually replace both Android and Chrome OS but the fact that Google engineers are carving a path toward such a scenario is promising at the very least. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An upgraded version of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket has taken off from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Sunday morning. The rocket was carrying the Telstar 19 Vantage communications satellite into space for Canadian satellite communications company Telesat. Successful Launch Of Two-Stage Falcon 9 Block 5 Rocket The American aerospace company successfully launched the new Falcon 9 rocket, called "Block 5," at 10:50 p.m. Pacific Time or 1:50 a.m. Eastern Time from the Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The rocket managed to send the Telesat's Telstar 19 Vantage or 19V telecommunications satellite into Geostationary Transfer Orbit or GTO, which is around 22,250 miles above the Earth. Around 32 minutes after liftoff, the satellite was deployed, and the rocket's first stage returned to Earth and landed on SpaceX's autonomous spaceport drone ship called "Of Course I Still Love You," which was located hundreds of miles away from Florida in the Atlantic Ocean. The Block 5 is considered to be the company's most powerful, most reliable, most reusable, and final version of the Flacon 9 rocket. It was designed to increase the speed of production and efficiency of reusability. It is also expected to be used by NASA to send astronauts into the International Space Station for the first time in 2019. Purpose Of Telstar 19 Vantage Satellite The Telstar 19 Vantage is a communications satellite in the Telstar series of Telesat. It is the first of two satellites built by California-based company SSL. Back in November 2015, the Canadian communications satellite company signed a contract with SSL for the construction of the satellite, which is based on the SSL-1300 bus. The satellite is expected to be used by Hughes Network Systems LLC to expand broadband connectivity for customers across the Americas, including Brazil, the Andean region, and the North Atlantic Ocean. The satellite weighs about 15,600 pounds or 7,076 kilograms and is now considered to be the heaviest commercial communications satellite ever launched to date. It is equipped with two high throughput payloads, one in Ku-band and the other in Ka-band. SpaceX's Next Missions SpaceX is expecting to launch another Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on July 25. The rocket will send 10 communications satellites into orbit for Iridium Communications Inc. Later this year, the aerospace company also plans to launch two communications satellites for Telkom Indonesia and Telesat. It will launch the Merah Putih and the Telstar 18 Vantage or 18V communications satellites in August. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The European Space Agency has released a spectacular new image of a dust storm swirling over the northern polar region of Mars. The image was taken by ESA's Mars Express orbiter using data created by the spacecraft's High Resolution Stereo Camera. Astronomers at the German Aerospace Center, which manages the HRSC, manages the camera system, which took the image on April 3. Martian Dust Storm Over The North Pole Mars Express managed to capture the image of a dust storm whirling above the Utopia Planitia, a region located close to the Red Planet's polar ice cap in the northern polar region. The dust storm is one of many small-scale events that took place on Mars over the last several months. It also proved to the portent of the massive dust storm that currently envelopes the entire planet in dust and darkness. Dust storms on Mars are not uncommon. However, Martian winds do not travel as fast as those on Earth. The low atmospheric pressure also helps lessen the impact that strong winds can make on the surface of the planet. Even then, Martian dust storms can grow so large that they can cover the entire planet. Following the north pole's dust storm in April, a larger storm began brewing in the Arabia Terra region in the southwest in May. The dust storm has gone on to become a global phenomenon that has gotten NASA's Opportunity rover hunkering down to hibernate as the strong winds of dust pummel through the entire planet. How Do Dust Storms Occur On Mars? Dust storms occur on Mars in the summer of the southern hemisphere. This is when the Red Planet moves closer to the sun on its elliptical orbit. The higher temperatures stirs up more dust particles and takes them into the atmosphere. This creates more wind, which then picks up even more dust particles in a puzzling cycle that Earth's scientists have yet to explain. To exacerbate matters, the melting ice caps in the southern pole release an abundance of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This further increases atmospheric pressure that strengthens the storm to lift up even more dust into the air. Giant Dust Storm Happening Now Although most Martian dust storms can happen suddenly, they are often confined to a local area. Giant dust storms such as the one happening right now are far rarer, happening only every three to four Martian years, which is the equivalent of six to eight Earth years. In 2007, an enormous dust storm blanketed Mars in complete darkness, cutting off most communications with Opportunity. The current dust storm is less powerful but still strong enough to stall Opportunity's operations. At the moment, five of NASA and ESA's spacecraft continue to take observations of the Red Planet shrouded in storm, while NASA's Curiosity rover continues to explore the Martian surface because it does not need solar energy. Experts expect the dust storm to die down by autumn, at which point Opportunity should be able to come back to life and continue its explorations. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Brazilian authorities have released remarkably clear footage of the last surviving indigenous member of an uncontacted tribe in the Brazilian Amazon. The video, which was taken at a distance by workers at the Brazilian indigenous agency FUNAI, shows the man, estimated to be in his 50s, in good health as he swings an ax at a tree. Nicknamed the "man of the hole," the man is believed to be the lone survivor of his tribe after land-grabbing cattle ranchers murdered everyone else in 1995. The Man Of The Hole Altair Algayer, the regional coordinator for FUNAI in the Amazonian state of Rondonia, says the man is "very well." He uses a bow and arrow to hunt wild pigs, monkeys, and birds and keeps a plantation of papaya and corn. The man of the hole got his moniker for digging huge holes, where he plants wooden staves to trap prey. His abandoned house is built of straw and thatch and also has a hole 6 feet deep under his hammock. FUNAI workers also found carved arrowheads, calabashes, dried nuts, and a torch made from resin inside the house. The man is believed to have survived an attack by farmers in a group of six in 1995. FUNAI tried to contact the man to no avail. He even shot an arrow as a warning at one FUNAI worker. "I understand his decision," Algayer says. "It is his sign of resistance, and a little repudiation, hate, knowing the story he went through." No-Contact Policy FUNAI has a policy of avoiding contact with isolated tribes. In 2005, the agency decided to stop attempting to contact the man but increased the size of his territory by 3,000 hectares. FUNAI also leaves axes, machetes, and seeds planted by indigenous tribes in places where the man can find them. The Brazilian government created the indigenous reserve of Tanaru in 2015 specifically to protect uncontacted tribes in the area. The reserve consists of 8,070 hectares of protected rainforest surrounded by farms and ranches. "FUNAI has a duty to show that he is well and alive," says Fiona Watson, research and advocacy director at Survival International, a non-profit group that aims to protect isolated tribes. "The crucial thing is FUNAI has managed to keep his territory. " Isolated Tribes In The Amazon Authorities believe there are as many as 113 uncontacted tribes in the Brazilian portion of the Amazon, 27 of which have already been confirmed. There are also 15 tribes said to exist in Peru and others in Bolivia, Colombia, and Ecuador. Some of these are hunter-gatherer tribes, such as the Awa people in the eastern side of the Amazon. Like the man of the hole, they live in rainforest oases surrounded by farmlands. Others, such as those in the western borders, plant corn, potatoes, and other crops. In the 1970s to the 1980s, indigenous tribes in the Amazon suffered from a murderous encroachment of farmers, loggers, and land-grabbers. Watson has spoken with some of the survivors, who said farmers shot at them as they fled their villages during the raids. Some tribes, such as those near the Peru border, deserted their homes after rubber barons enslaved some of their members a century ago. They have avoided contact with mainstream society since then. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The government of India may ban iPhones in the country after six months, if Apple decides not to give in to demands involving an anti-spam app. Apple has recently been reported to be struggling in India in terms of iPhone sales, with less than a million units sold in the first half. The issue with the Indian government, however, is another, and more serious, matter altogether. Apple Vs India Government Apple is currently facing the possibility of getting iPhones banned in India, due to an order by the country's telecommunications regulator. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, in a bid to protect consumers from spam calls and texts, developed and released a Do Not Disturb app. It allows users to report spam to the authorities and is currently available on the Google Play Store. Apple, however, has so far refused to approve the Do Not Disturb app, ironically due to privacy concerns. The app accesses the call and message logs of users to be able to report spam calls and texts to TRAI. In new regulations rolled out by TRAI, the agency is now requiring all carriers in India to make the Do Not Disturb app available to all users in the country. The carriers have been given a deadline of six months, after which smartphones that do not have the app installed will be cut off from the networks. It was previously reported that Apple will work with TRAI to develop a version of the anti-spam app that will conform to the App Store rules while providing the same intended function. There has been no update on that project since then, so Apple with have to pick it up and work on that app or see iPhone sales in India further dwindle due to being banned from connecting to carriers in the country. Apple Keeps The iPhone Locked Down Apple has famously been stubborn in keeping the iPhone locked down, even against government orders. Perhaps the most high-profile case over the issue is the iPhone SE used by the San Bernardino shooters in December 2015. Apple pushed back against the demands of the FBI to create a tool to break iPhone encryption, stating that it will be a violation of the constitution and will set a dangerous precedent that will place all other iPhones at risk. Apple never relented, until the FBI eventually developed a hacking tool to crack the iPhone. Giving up user privacy in the name of protecting against spam is much different from doing so to acquire information about terrorists. However, both are based on Apple's strong stance on user privacy. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Nintendo, in a move that escalates its fight against piracy, has filed a lawsuit against LoveROMs and LoveRETRO, two of the more popular websites for hosting ROMs of old Nintendo console games. Nintendo appears to have a renewed focus on protecting its intellectual property, after reports claimed that hackers have broken into the Nintendo Switch. The company's latest legal action, however, concerns classic Nintendo games and the consoles where they were released. Nintendo Piracy Lawsuit Filed Against LoveROMs, LoveRETRO Nintendo has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against the alleged operator of LoveROMs and LoveRETRO, which are among the most notorious websites for pirated games. The lawsuit also includes the usage of other trademarked property on the websites, such as Nintendo's logos. The websites are major online sources for ROMs, which are read-only memory files that serve as copies of games from cartridges and CDs. They are used with an emulator and allow people to play games without owning them. Video game companies do not profit from these pirated games, and Nintendo has apparently had enough with LoveROMs and LoveRETRO. The two websites host ROMs of games for classic Nintendo consoles such as the NES and SNES, both of which are back in the market in the form of the NES Classic Edition and the SNES Classic Edition. Nintendo's lawsuit claims that LoveROMs and LoveRETRO are owned by the same person, Jacob Mathias, and his Arizona-based company, Mathias Designs LLC. Nintendo is seeking $150,000 per game and up to $2 million for every instance of trademark infringement. In total, Nintendo may be awarded damages up to $100 million. LoveRETRO has been shut down, with no news on whether it will return. LoveROMs, meanwhile, is still up and running, but there are no more Nintendo games on the website. Nintendo Switch Piracy The Nintendo ROM lawsuit follows Nintendo's actions against Nintendo Switch piracy. Hackers have recently been able to run Nintendo 64, Nintendo GameCube, and Game Boy Advance emulators on the Nintendo Switch. The rise of the hybrid console's homebrew community, however, comes with the risk that the way to play Nintendo Switch pirated games will soon be cracked. Nintendo has released new Nintendo Switch units that come with hardware patches to better protect them against hackers, who are exploring the hybrid console's Nvidia Tegra X1 chips. The new batch of Nintendo Switch consoles reportedly have upgraded security codes, though it remains to be seen whether that will curb the Nintendo Switch hacking scene. 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The caravan denounced that immigration agents destroyed the judicial injunctions that allow them free passage and took many to jail in Tapachula. | Read More A teenage boy has been flown to hospital in a critical condition after he was hit by a truck in Melbourne's west. Paramedics were called to the scene after reports of a collision between a truck and a pedestrian on Brooklyn Road in Melton South just after 11am. The boy was flown by air ambulance helicopter to the Royal Children's Hospital in a critical condition with suspected head injuries, according to an Ambulance Victoria spokeswoman. "Police are currently on Brooklyn Road in Melton South after a teenage boy was struck by a truck just after 11am," a police spokeswoman said. Canberra lawyer Craig Edwards had luck on his side when he first began collecting indigenous art. It was while visiting his parents in Broken Hill that he fell in love with the desert landscape and then, by extension, with the work of aboriginal artists who were capturing the landscapes in their artworks. Canberra lawyer Craig Edwards with ANU vice-chancellor Brian Schmidt in front of one of the works Mr Edwards has just donated to the university. Credit:Karleen Minney More than 30 years down the track, his personal collection had become so vast and unmanageable that he decided it was time to donate it to the Australian National University, his alma mater. A small selection of the 124 works he has donated was hanging on display on Monday at the ANUs Drill Hall Gallery, which will hold a major exhibition of the works in October. No one was injured when a car caught fire in peak-hour traffic in Canberra on Monday evening. Emergency services were called to Belconnen Way about 5.40pm after the Toyota started burning. An Emergency Services Agency spokeswoman said the fire had been referred to ACT Policing for investigation. Traffic was delayed in the area for some time as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze. A famous Chinese billionaire who became entangled in a rape trial after a guest to his Sydney penthouse dinner party was accused of sexually assaulting a model can now be named as online shopping mogul Liu Qiangdong. Nicknamed the "Jeff Bezos of China", Liu is the founder of internet marketplace JD.com and, according to Forbes, his net worth is almost $US10 billion. Richard Liu. Credit:Darrian Traynor The Herald is able to reveal the identity of Liu, who uses the first name Richard in western countries, after jointly fighting two court bids to keep his name suppressed. He is married to one of Chinas youngest female billionaires Zhang Zetian, 24, nicknamed Sister Milk Tea. The partner of George Nassiff, who was shot dead at his front door in south-western Sydney on Sunday night, believes she knows who killed him. Just after 5pm on Sunday, police attended an apartment block on the corner of George and Lachlan streets in Warwick Farm. George Nassiff, who was fatally shot at a Warwick Farm apartment on Sunday night Credit:Facebook Police say two unknown men knocked on the door while one was armed with a weapon, entered the unit and shot Mr Nassiff. He was taken by ambulance to Liverpool Hospital with a police escort, where he later died. Local Government Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said in Ipswich on Tuesday that council-owned bodies set up by Ipswich City Council were set up to avoid the scrutiny of the Local Government Act. The night before Mr Hinchliffe tabled three reports in Queensland Parliament by consultants McGrath-Nicholls into a number of Ipswich City Council-owned companies. Local Government Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said the three reports showed residents had been ripped off by the council. Credit:AAP/Glenn Hunt Until recently, councillors and council staff ran the organisations and there was no independent or industry representation on the committees. The report showed five entities owned and run by the council, including Ipswich City Properties, failed to prove value for money or did not comply with regulation. Stonemasons who have been diagnosed with a life-threatening lung disease are coming forward to call for regulation around dangerous workplace practices. At least six tradies who have worked on dry-cutting artificial stone benchtops have been diagnosed with silicosis, an irreversible condition created by breathing in tiny particles of silica dust. Anthony White, a 36-year-old Gold Coast stonemason, thought he had pneumonia, which turned out to be silicosis. Credit:Shine Lawyers/Supplied Gold Coast stonemason Anthony White is just 36 years old but looks far older. In November 2017, Mr White was diagnosed with silicosis after 10 years of working as a stonemason, dry-cutting the artificial stone. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare's February 2018 study into family and domestic violence in Australia reports one in six women experienced, since the age of 15, physical and/or sexual violence by a current or previous co-habiting partner. Ms Lynch said anti-domestic violence groups were now impressing on women to change their MyGov log-in details as soon as they left an abusive relationship. But of course a lot of women are not aware of that, she said. If this service is all linked together, his ability to access a range of personal information is much greater. A My Health Record media spokesman said an individual can only access another persons My Health Record if they are appointed by the individual as a "nominated representative", where they can view the information, or an "authorised representative" where they can control the information. "The person in control of a record - the individual or an 'authorised representative' - can add or remove 'nominated representatives' at any time, the spokesman said. However, women's agencies say this situation does not consider the real extent of controlling behaviour by some men in domestic violence situations. Ms Lynch said the situation put great pressure on local doctors and called for policymakers to consult immediately with domestic violence groups. We know that some of the greatest disclosures around domestic violence are actually made to GPs. Women trust their GPs to disclose this information, she said. Ms Lynch said speaking as a lawyer, it was useful for legal action if there were records of domestic violence made to GPs. But the woman, even though she has disclosed it to her GP, may not want it disclosed wider than that to other health professionals. Griffith University domestic violence experts Professor Paul Mazerolle (far left) and Shaan Ross-Smith (middle left) with advocate Darren Lockyer (middle right) and Minister Di Farmer (far right). Credit:Toby Crockford - Fairfax Media The My Health Record spokesman said a woman could place a "record access" code and a "limited document access code" on specific documents and ask their GP not to upload documents. Belinda Cox, the community and partnerships program manager with the Brisbane Domestic Violence Service, said their organisation saw both benefits and problems with the new online medical records service. We dont necessarily think its a terrible thing, Ms Cox said. We actually see it as having some benefits for some women suffering domestic violence, particularly those going from place to place, or who have been uprooted particularly with their children, she said. However, Ms Cox said perpetrators and their friends and relatives had many ways to get access to womens medical records. And those records can be used against them in family court hearings, she said. Ms Cox said some men frequently coerced women into not taking contraception. If a woman is experiencing reproductive control or coercion it might impact on her ability to confidentially access contraception or terminations, she said. Ms Cox said the federal government briefed Queensland community health organisations in May about the new My Health Record site. She said protective codes for health information placed by the individuals can be relatively easily sidestepped. Look, if someone is under relatively high levels of control, they dont have controlled access to their own Facebook or email. They dont have bank accounts. And we also know there are ways and means for perpetrators to get access to peoples records," she said. They have friends in other areas who have freedoms to look things up, she said. And they are very cunning and will go to great lengths to get that information. Liberal upper house MP Simon Ramsay has been put under pressure to resign from state politics by Opposition Leader Matthew Guy after being caught driving almost four times over the legal alcohol limit. The Western Victoria MP has already been preselected for another four-year term in State Parliament but Mr Guy wants him to consider resigning following the state election after having been caught drink-driving at the weekend. Liberal MP for Western Victoria Simon Ramsay was pulled over by police with a blood-alcohol reading of 0.19 per cent. Credit:Rob Gunstone Mr Ramsay faces serious drink-driving penalties. He blew a reading of .19 per cent shortly after being intercepted by police in Barwon Heads late on Saturday night. Victoria Police has confirmed it is investigating claims the assault of South Sudanese community leader Ring Mayar was a politically motivated attack. The Age revealed that Mr Mayar was hit with a pole on June 18 and suffered a broken collarbone and dislocated shoulder that required surgery. South Sudanese community leader Ring Mayar. But members of Victoria's deeply divided South Sudanese community have accused Mr Mayar of capitalising on the attack for political gain. Many took to social media over the weekend to criticise Mr Mayar, who was recently appointed chairman of the South Sudanese Community Association of Victoria. Concerns over Mr Mayar's leadership of the organisation prompted the Victorian Multicultural Commission to freeze government grants at a meeting two weeks ago. "It needs to be activated, it needs much more than it currently has; $470 million of taxpayers' money and it still needs to be activated so we would be open to looking at things such as this [cable car] proposal," he said. "You have got to ask yourself why the government hasn't released the feasibility study; they have been sitting on it for a year or more now. We are desperately in need of more jobs and businesses in Western Australia. The tourism sector is one of the few sectors that can, in the near term, generate business opportunities and jobs in a hurry." Tourism Council chief executive Evan Hall was unsurprised at the support for the cable car the WAtoday survey showed. He said all the Councils polling, research and social media monitoring showed strong support for the cable car across age groups and genders. It would be a must-do experience for people visiting and every grandparent would take their grandchild, he said. People want new experiences in their city. There could be nothing more Perth than catching a cable car ... a gentle ride giving views of the river and to Fremantle, and on the other side the city skyline. Seeing the city, nature and the river while hearing the history of Kings Park, the Aboriginal history of the area, how the city has transformed. Not to mention the possibility of a three-course meal in the cable car at night. He said he was aware of one international, one interstate and two West Australian companies with access to the necessary funds and experience, which had indicated they would be interested, and that the government was also aware of. Loading But there were eight different agencies and jurisdictions involved, including Main Roads, the City of Perth and Kings Park, and investors didnt know where to go with a proposal. He said most government agencies had indicated general support, and approval was implicit for an Elizabeth Quay landing point as per the original master plan, but a proponent would need to know who was in charge, who would decide and preferably design parameters. The best way forward was to make the WA government as a whole the responsible agency, and for the government to make it clear a proponent was welcome. They could then take an unsolicited bid. Even better, because of the complexity of the project, and the need to avoid sensitive locations within Kings Park, it would be better for a cross-agency committee to set design parameters. To set appropriate specifications, addressing logistical and environmental concerns, to create design requirements including a start and end point. The government could then invite proposals to meet those in a formal expressions of interest process. He said it wasnt just the people of Perth who wanted another experience but tourists too. Unlike the rest of Australia, which was booming, WAs visitor spend was declining. The state needed them to stay longer, do more and spend more with attractive destinations. The Tasmanian government didnt have to pay for the Museum of Old and New Art, but just had to approve it, and that has turned around Hobart as a destination, he said. The Quay! It's beautiful although it's still early days and it has a long way to go to be a weekly or even a monthly attraction for most. Survey respondent People from across the world are flooding to Tasmania to experience MONA and now the Tasmanian government is investing $87 million in creating a cable car in Cradle Mountain National Park to create the ultimate nature-based tourism experience in Australia. Brisbane is developing one at Mount Coot-tha. There is the bridge climb in Sydney. Youre not just looking at something, youre moving across it and that makes it an active experience. Then it becomes famous, a signature. That is what we are looking for in Perth. An immediate feel of our city and its nature. When WAtoday survey respondents wrote down their favourite city space, Kings Park was a clear winner with about 220 mentions. Elizabeth Quay was close behind with about 180, but many qualified this vote with comments such as when finished or saying it needed something else. About 116 nominated the Swan River foreshore. When I joined the Australian Labor Party in 2004, I was quickly labelled as a "stack" by people within the ALP because of my Chinese ethnicity. Fast-forward to 2018: I am disappointed to see nothing has changed. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews at the ALP state conference. Credit:Paul Jeffers While branch stacking remains a major problem, it is concerning when some in the party persist in assuming that members from ethnic and culturally diverse backgrounds are nothing but stacks. This is not to say that exploitation of ethnic voting blocs by cynical politicians (often not even from that community) doesn't still occur. My concern is that suspicion is cast on anyone with a non-European name seeking to join the ALP as a result. Recent media reports implying all African-Australians involved in Victorian ALP are stacks is very concerning for three reasons. One, the abuse of ethnic communities' lack of knowledge of Australian politics by some political powerbrokers for their own self-interest feeds into growing disenchantment and mistrust Australian voters have in government. Facebook has suspended a data analysis company whose contracts with the US government may have violated its polices about how publicly available data about users can be collected and shared. Boston-based Crimson Hexagon had contracts with multiple US government agencies as well as a Russian non-profit called the Civil Society Development Foundation, which has ties to the Russian government. Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has pledged to clean the social network up. Credit:AP The news was first reported on Friday by the Wall Street Journal, which said Crimson Hexagon has at least 22 separate contracts with US government agencies that total more than $US800,000 ($1.1 million). In a statement, Facebook said it takes the allegations seriously and has suspended the Crimson Hexagon apps while it investigates. Donald Trump has again undermined US intelligence agencies over Russia's interference in the 2016 election. Credit:AP Washington: Capping a week of drama, backtracking, a double negative and blistering statements from allies about his attitude towards Russian election interference, Donald Trump was back to referring to "a big hoax". He also tweeted on Monday that he "gave up nothing" at last week's private meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but remained elusive about their conversation as fellow Republicans and other critics questioned any potential deals. Following the two leaders' summit in Helsinki, Mr Trump previously said they discussed a range of issues, including efforts to denuclearise North Korea, the Middle East peace efforts and cyber attacks, but has not given any details. "I gave up NOTHING, we merely talked about future benefits for both countries," Mr Trump wrote on Twitter. Ottawa: A man armed with a knife has been arrested after an incident during a military ceremony on Parliament Hill in the Canadian capital Ottawa, the defence ministry says, adding that no one had been injured. Hours earlier, a gunman shot dead two people in Toronto, Canada's largest city. A helicopter flys past a Canadian flag in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. Credit:Bloomberg The ministry statement said an incident "involving a man with a knife" took place during the Changing of the Guard ceremony, which features red-suited soldiers in black hats and is popular with tourists. "The potential threat was identified and neutralised. No one was injured during this incident," the statement said. It gave no further details. Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size A distinctive Toyota Troop Carrier that police have been told may be connected to the 1994 disappearance of Julie Buck and Richard Milgin belonged to the present chairman of the Kimberley Land Council. Episode four of The Ages investigative podcast seriesWrong Skin reveals that West Australian Cold Case Homicide Squad detectives recently showed photographs of the Toyota to people in the Looma community and nearby areas as part of their investigation into Julies 1994 death and Richards disappearance. The Toyota was registered to KLC chairman Anthony Watson at the time the couple disappeared. He is the son of land council founder and former chairman, senior traditional owner John Watson. Julie was the promised wife of elderly renowned Looma artist Jimmy Nerrimah when she was found dead at the age of 23 in December 1994. She continued seeing 24-year-old Richard Milgin in defiance of tribal rules which deemed the couple to be "wrong skin". No cause of death has been established for Julie, and Richard remains a missing person. He is also presumed dead. Detectives recently handed a detailed investigation report on both cases to the WA Coroner. Advertisement Wrong Skin, which is the Kimberly phrase used to describe a relationship forbidden under tribal laws, examines the possibility that traditional punishment may have been a factor in Julies death and Richards disappearance. Several people recall seeing or hearing about the Troop Carrier and a smaller car being packed with senior tribal men from Looma and nearby communities around the time Julie and Richard were last seen alive. A Troop Carrier is a long wheelbase LandCruiser that can seat 11 people. They are prized possessions in the Kimberley. Some of the senior tribal men reportedly seen in the Troop Carrier had allegedly previously threatened Richard with harm if he did not end his relationship with Julie. Witnesses also recall the Troop Carrier being spray-painted a different colour shortly after the couple went missing. As land council chairman, Anthony Watson, 47, is the most powerful man in the Kimberley. The KLC is the representative body for all Kimberley people, and receives about $20 million in federal funding a year to help get native title recognition for traditional owners. Advertisement Anthony Watson was around the same age as Julie and Richard when they disappeared and he knew both of them. The Age is not suggesting Anthony Watson was involved in the death of Julie or the disappearance of Richard. He declined to answer questions. Loading But the recollection by several people in and around Looma in 1994 of his Troop Carrier being seen full of senior tribal men around the time the couple disappeared has made the vehicle, and who had access to it back then, of interest to police. John Watson, Anthony's father, has been nominated by several Looma people as potentially being able to help solve the mystery of what happened to the young couple. This is because of his status as a senior traditional law man and his association with many of the male elders alleged to have been troubled by Richard and Julies relationship. Most of these senior men have since passed away. John Watson and his son Anthony Watson. Credit:Kate Geraghty John Watson was a founder of the 40-year-old KLC and has twice been its chairman. He has been a leading figure in the Aboriginal land rights movement and remains a strong advocate for traditional culture. Advertisement The Age is not suggesting John Watson, who leads the Jarlmadangah community about 30 kilometres from Looma, was involved in Julies death or Richards disappearance. The KLC, one of Australias most famous land councils, named its $15-million Broome headquarters after John Watson and another respected leader, Frank Sebastian. The land council has managed to secure native title across the vast majority of the Kimberley, an achievement which has the potential to deliver benefits to many Aboriginal communities. But this process has also led to the KLC being offside with some people in the community, who accuse it of favouring certain groups over others and withholding anthropological information supplied by families. The Age sought to contact John Watson through the KLC but the land council said it could not assist because he was no longer a director. It also tried to make contact through his son, Anthony Watson. Court documents obtained by The Age reveal a long history of friction between the strongly traditional Jarlmadangah community and the majority-Christian Looma, despite strong family links between both places. In 2005, Anthony Watson was convicted of an assault that inflicted grievous bodily harm after he broke into a Derby home and violently assaulted Darren Skinner. The two men had been having a personal dispute. Advertisement Mr Skinner was nearly blinded in the attack in which he was hit with an iron star picket. Anthony Watsons sister and John Watson were also charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm in relation to this incident. But John Watsons charges were discontinued shortly before the matter was heard in the Derby District Court. Anthony Watsons sister was convicted. Anthony Watson and his sister were told by District Court judge Paul Healy that they had given Mr Skinner a fair old thrashing and their actions could attract a jail sentence of more than 10 years. However, both Anthony Watson and his sister received positive references from leading figures at the KLC and had clean records. Judge Healy sentenced both to 18 months in prison wholly suspended. Of the conflict with Looma families, Judge Healy said: Unless you sort it out this generation, its going to keep on going otherwise its going to flow and continue disrupting the two communities, Looma and your community, for a long period of time and probably the wider community as well. The Age can also reveal John Watson was charged by police in 1999 after he shattered the leg of a Looma woman with a club during a game of cards. He admitted causing the damage to the woman, who required extensive surgery and has never walked the same since. Advertisement Letter To Employees From John Elkann About Sergio Marchionne Translated From Original Story in La Republica By Google Translate Here is the text of the letter that John Elkann wrote to employees of FCA after the appointment of Mike Manley as new ceo of the company. Ladies and gentlemen, This is undoubtedly the most difficult letter I've ever written. It is with deep sadness that I must tell you that the conditions of our ceo, Sergio Marchionne, who recently underwent surgery, are unfortunately worsened in the last few hours and not allow him to return to the FCA. Over the past 14 years, first at Fiat, then by Chrysler and finally in FCA, Sergio was the best ceo that you could possibly want and, for me, a real mentor, a colleague and a dear friend. We met at one of the darkest moments in the history of Fiat and it was thanks to his intellect, his perseverance and his leadership if we were able to save the company. Sergio has also created an incredible turnaround at Chrysler and, thanks to his courage in working on cultural integration between the two companies, has laid the groundwork for a better and safer future for us all. We will be eternally grateful to Sergio for results that failed to reach and for making possible what seemed impossible. But as he himself has said many times: "the true value of a leader is not measured by what he got during his career but from what gave. Not measured by results that reaches, but from what is able to leave after themselves ". Marchionne before the operation, said: "I'll be out shortly", then hopes were blown away from our correspondent MAURIZIO CROSETTI Since our first meeting, when we spoke of the possibility to take the reins of Fiat, what really struck me about him, beyond the managerial skills and an uncommon intelligence, were his human qualities. Qualities that I saw in his eyes, in the way we do, in the ability to understand people. He taught us to have courage, to challenge the status quo, to break the mold and go beyond what we already know. Always driven to learn, to grow and to aim high often going beyond our own limitations and has always been the first to get involved. The legacy he leaves us talks about what was really important to him: the pursuit of excellence, the idea that there is always room for improvement. His teachings, the exhortation to never accept anything passively, not to be satisfied with mere passing grade are now an integral part of our culture in FCA: a culture that encourages us to always raise the bar and against downgrading ever of mediocrity. The definition that Sergio gave of the word leader is valid today than ever before. What really matters is the type of culture that a leader leave to those who come after him. The best way to judge is through what the organization does after him. This is just one of many examples of what Sergio was a true leader and very rare. Many years ago, we started working on a succession plan that would guarantee continuity and preserved the unique culture that lives in FCA. Relying on a plan already defined, we are now anticipating the process and today the Board of Directors has appointed Mike Manley new Managing Director of FCA. Mike was one of the principal architects of the success of FCA and already has to his credit a long list of accomplishments and achievements. Under his leadership, the Jeep brand has experienced a period of deep transformation that has led to unprecedented growth, from a few hundred thousand units a year to several years of record sales, the last four of them surpassing the million vehicles sold. Jeep has thus become not only one of the brands with the highest growth rate in the world but also the most profitable of the group. Over the years, Mike has held positions of increasing responsibility and has extensive management experience in all our regions, achieving important results in each of the positions filled and always showing great determination in achievement of its objectives. I am sure that you all provide maximum support to Mike, working with him and with the leadership team to achieve the goals of the business plan 2018-2022 with the same commitment and the same integrity that guided us so far. Photo-Illustration: James Gallagher New Yorks Sex Diaries series asks anonymous city dwellers to record a week in their sex lives with comic, tragic, often sexy, and always revealing results. This week, a type-A lawyer cautiously optimistic about the man shes going to see in London: 35, single, straight, Washington, D.C. DAY ONE 7 a.m. Wake up to an alert from Wells Fargo. Joy, Ive overdrawn. Looks like Im cash poor for the next 48 hours until payday. I hesitate to say broke because I do have a healthy 401(k), IRA, and other investments, but cash seems to elude me. Those four-digit monthly student-loan payments certainly dont help. Thank God for American Express. 8 a.m. I head out and walk to work. Its usually a struggle to make it to my office by 8:30, but I have a little pep in my step since Im leaving tomorrow for a little European vacation. Im a lawyer so I dont have hours exactly; all that matters is I get my work done. Which I always do because the type-A personality goes along with being a lawyer. 11 a.m. Tons of work to do, which makes me super anxious because I literally havent packed yet. The #MeToo movement has put a decent amount of work on my plate dont get me wrong, its meaningful work, and Im ALL about the culture shift at workplaces that needs to take place, but time is just not on my side right now. 1 p.m. I text S 24 Hours + Winky Face. S is the person Im going to be visiting in Europe. I met him via Tinder a few months ago while he was in town from the U.K. for a wedding and we had a ton of fun and amazing sex, so why not just fly around the world to hang out again? Weve communicated pretty much every day since we met and I just I dont know, maybe I like him? 7 p.m. Leaving work. Need to pack! What kind of lingerie should I bring 1 a.m. Still packing. I dont sleep well my mind is racing about everything that could go wrong when I get to London. DAY TWO 6 a.m. Awake and shit, Im cramping. Period is coming even though I thought I had a handle on my birth control where I could skip this month. I hope homeboy doesnt mind period sex. M definitely didnt have a problem with it. M was my nearly yearlong friend who was 100 percent wrong for me, but one of the purest souls and freest spirits Ive ever met. I never considered him to be my person, but he definitely made me feel incredible. After I met S, I hung out with M the next week and it didnt feel the same. He felt it too and ended things; it was a weird, bittersweet feeling. 12 p.m. Race from the office to the airport. Being type A, I had to create contingency plans during my two-week absence for everyone who works for me. I spent four hours making sure everything was CRYSTAL clear. 7 p.m. On my connecting flight to the U.K. and all I can think about is, what if S doesnt show up at the airport? My love life has had little success, which at 30 has turned me into a real cynic. My last boyfriend cheated on me (on my birthday!) and ended up marrying the girl. I dont blame her (assuming she had no idea), but damn, that fucked me up. Ive had semi-relationships since, but Ive been extremely guarded. Its just easier for me to casually date and party with fuckboys than commit to someone who might hurt me. Im smart, cute, fun, and charming so finding not-committed men really isnt an issue. The few Ive tried to take it to the next level with have come up with the same lame excuses: Im not ready, Youre too good for me, and Lets be friends are all the most common. DAY THREE 7 a.m. LANDING. OMG. First stop: Bathroom. Well, actually customs, but that took like five minutes. I run to the bathroom to brush my teeth, change my underwear, and put on fresh makeup. If all goes according to plan, S and I will bang immediately. 8 a.m. Yay, S is here! Im super happy and excited, but I have to play it cool. Some of my friends say that I wear ALL my emotions on my sleeve, so Ive been working on it. 9 a.m. Back at the hotel. Hes super hung-over, but whatever. Still manages to perform and as I prayed sex was amazing. Immediately went down on me, ripped my clothes off and fucked me in like three positions before coming. 11 a.m. I left my cell phone at the airport. Luckily, S is nice and drives me half an hour to get it. An American guy would have probably recommended I get an Uber. I truly think British men are chivalrous. 7 p.m. After a LONG day of walking and sightseeing, we pull in for dinner. One of Ss friends joins. Im a little nervous about meeting friends, but Im charming, so it should be fine. 11 p.m. Dinner went really well! No idea if the friend knew the circumstances S and I met in, but he was chill. We get back to the hotel and sleep. DAY FOUR 8 a.m. Yay, morning sex! My favorite! 5 p.m. We do a day of touristy things took some cute pictures at a castle, and a ton of walking. S made a weird reference to a tour guide about me, insinuating I was his girlfriend, which caught me by surprise. 7 p.m. We arrive in the next city and get drinks/dinner. Im a little nervous because were near where S grew up. I dont want to run into any family or people he knows. Hes not worried about it, but I am. Not totally sure why. 10 p.m. Two bottles of rose later and shocker, we run into some guy who recognizes S and stops to chat. This random dude is hammered and I have to awkwardly stand there for a longer time than I would have liked. 12 a.m. Back to the hotel room. S and I make out a little and just hang. Things are going great until I notice a familiar name on his Snapchat A few months ago, I noticed on my Facebook newsfeed another American girl had tagged S in a post about a visit. I got really upset, but didnt say anything mainly because I didnt feel like I had any right. I mean, hes not my boyfriend I cant control who S hangs out with, so I made a decision to let it go. Nearly canceled the trip, but I had a friend talk me off the edge. Truth be told, it was something that really bothered me. Like, is this just a regular thing for him? I want to be a special flower, damnit. Seeing that Snap triggered me and I just decide to go to sleep rather abruptly. S is super confused, but Im drunk and dont want to say anything I regret. DAY FIVE 8 a.m. Another early wake-up. No morning sex and my period has arrived. Its super light so Im thinking we can still get it in, but I may have fucked up the mood a little. 10 a.m. We did some more sightseeing and checked out monuments. Its an absolutely beautiful day, and S is trying, but Im a bit tired. I blame my period for my mood shift the night before. I just dont have the courage to tell him the real deal. 8 p.m. We arrive in London and go to dinner with a friend from law school and her fiance shes British and her fiance is American, but has been in London for a decade. Dinner is actually really good and fun! S voted for Brexit so I was praying that didnt come up in conversation. Hes not a racist or nationalist or anti-immigrant at all, but my friends are very liberal and may have been aggressive about it. Feeling very relieved. 10 p.m. Bottle No. 3 of rose. Oh boy. 11:30 p.m. We part ways. S has to work the next day so we go back to his flat. We go to bed pretty quickly and theres no sexy time, unfortunately. I meant to give him a blow job, but I fell asleep instead. DAY SIX 8 a.m. S looks super sexy in his professional outfit. When he leaves for work, I stay in bed, clearly in some kind of daze this is not me-like behavior. 10 a.m. I finally drag my ass out of bed and go explore. Having time apart after the last few days is probably good, though there were a couple neighborhoods I would have wanted S to explore with me. 3 p.m. S checks on me throughout the afternoon, which is actually super sweet. 5:30 p.m. Hes working a little late, which is fine. I meet up with childhood friends for drinks/appetizers. This guy has lived in the U.K. since graduating from college and has nothing but great things to say. Granted hes a successful private-equity manager but still, it got me thinking I could totally do the whole expat thing. Im pretty confident I could get a job, buuuttt lets not get ahead of ourselves here. I do want a husband and kids its so easy for me to get sidetracked into a fantasy when things are going somewhat well. 8 p.m. I end up meeting S at a bar with his boss and a couple co-workers. We are drinking Champagne by the bottle and I get super hungry. Me and hunger do not mix well. I tell S Im sticking around, but not happy about it. He gets it and we all shuffle to another place to get food. Ss boss is wasted, but really likes me for some reason so were ripping shots like its fucking 2006. Dear God, this night isnt going to end well. 1 a.m. Still out. Ss boss followed me to the bathroom and handed me some party favors. Yes, this 45-year-old VP. What is going on?! 1:30 a.m. Uh oh. Emotions I go outside because Im feeling emotional. I dont have a real excuse to go outside because I dont smoke, so I just get up from the table. I try to call my GBFF to calm me (he knows the deal). No answer. Fuck. 1:45 a.m. S comes outside looking for me Im just standing there like a weirdo around all the smokers. He knows something is up and is trying to get it out of me. The substances dont help and finally I end up breaking down about that other girl who I think visited him. Did I mention Im really good at self-sabotage? Im convinced thats it and Ive already started texting my childhood friend to stay with him and his gf for the rest of my time in town. 2:30 a.m. Okay, we talked it out. Im back to my senses(ish). I told S I never brought up the other girl because I didnt want to seem like a crazy person. He insisted it was just a visit, he didnt plan anything, she came on her own, did her own thing, yada yada. Truth be told, none of that matters. I just felt disrespected and generally sad even though I do think hes being sincere. 3 a.m. We head back home. Im kind of in and out of it on the ride back, feeling emotional again. 4 a.m. Well, whatever happened a few hours ago doesnt seem to matter anymore. Were making out furiously and then next thing you know, Im riding him and getting super close to orgasm. Alls wells that ends well, right?! DAY SEVEN 9 a.m. We wake up; S is late for work and I have an afternoon flight. No good-bye sex, but we hug and I literally dont want to let him go. I have a euphoric feeling that I hadnt experienced in a long time. Or maybe Im just coming down from the coke. 1 p.m. In the security line at the airport. I cant stop sobbing. The German businessmen behind me are probably making fun of me and Ive had a couple random people ask me what is wrong. Truth be told, Im not feeling any specific sadness. Im really happy this whole experience happened, but the what comes next part is what is killing me. I have a newly renewed sense of relationship confidence. I like S, but I also know I cant make someone fall in love with me or be ready for a meaningful relationship. I know theres a high probability this whole situation was in haste. 9:30 p.m. I land in the States. Thirteen hours of flying later and its still the same day. So happy to be in the promised land, a.k.a., California with my mom and family. I love my family so much and I know it will be uplifting to be surrounded by them, especially since Im feeling so confused and emotionally raw. Still, Im a little hopeful about what might happen next with S. You never know Want to submit a sex diary? Email sexdiaries@nymag.com and tell us a little about yourself. (ANSA) - Rome, July 23 - Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said Monday that 1,200 migrants had landed in Italy from Turkey since the start of the year despite an EU deal with the country. "Since the start of the year 1,200 immigrants have arrived by sea from Turkey," said the leader of the anti-migrant Euroskeptic League (L) party. "To control immigration the EU is giving six billion euros to Turkey," he said. "Something's not right, is someone not doing what they should be doing?". A call center in India in a file photo. (Photo by Brent Stirton/Getty Images for the GBC) 24 Sentenced in International Call Center Scheme That Bilked Millions From US Victims U.S. authorities have sentenced 24 defendants in an India-based call center scheme aimed at scamming victims in America. Twenty-one members of the fraud and money laundering conspiracy were sentenced to up to 20 years in prison on July 20. Officials said Miteshkumar Patel, 42, of Illinois, was sentenced to serve 240 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Patels guilty plea indicated that he served as the manager of a Chicago-based crew that laundered the fraud proceeds generated by call centers in India. The callers used information obtained from data brokers and other sources to target American victims, impersonating U.S. government employees from the IRS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The callers made the victims believe they owed money to the government and, if they didnt pay, they would be arrested or deported. Victims were directed to pay in different ways, including purchasing stored value cards or wiring money. Once the victim paid, a group of runners in the United States would liquidate and launder the funds as quickly as possible. Hardik Patel, 31, also of Illinois, was sentenced to 188 months in prison and will be deported to India after the serving his sentence. His guilty plea stated that he was co-owner and manager of one of the India-based call centers involved in the conspiracy. Nineteen other people, all based in the United States, were sentenced to prison terms. The judge in the case either recommended or ordered deportation to India for some of the criminals in the case. The stiff sentences imposed this week represent the culmination of the first-ever large-scale, multi-jurisdiction prosecution targeting the India call center scam industry, said Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a statement. This case represents one of the most significant victories to date in our continuing efforts to combat elder fraud and the victimization of the most vulnerable members of the U.S. public. Three people were sentenced earlier this year as part of the conspiracy, which took place between 2012 and 2016, and the defendants were jointly held liable for restitution of $8.9 million to the identified victims of the crimes. The court seized assets and money from the conspirators totaling $72.9 million. From NTD.tv 4 Men Arrested in the UK in Connection with Suspected Acid Attack on 3-Year-Old Boy LONDONFour men have been arrested after a 3-year-old boy was attacked with a corrosive substance in the UK. The boy was attacked while sitting in his stroller in a Home Bargains store in Worcester, West Midlands, on Saturday, July 21. He was left with serious burns on his face and arm although he has now been released from hospital. The long-term implications of his injuries are unknown, West Mercia Police said. Three men were arrested in London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm and are aged 22, 25, and 26, police said. A 39-year-old man from Wolverhampton in the West Midlands was arrested on Sunday, July 22 on the same charges and is in police custody. Police said the motive for the attack was unclear but they were treating it as a deliberate act towards the child. Chief Superintendent Mark Travis from West Mercia Police said in a statement, This has been a shocking incident which we know has caused a great deal of concern in our community. I can reassure people that Worcester remains a safe place to live and work and that such crimes remain thankfully extremely rare in our area. Our thoughts are with the little boy and his family at this time and we are absolutely committed to getting to the bottom of this incident. Speaking at police headquarters in Worcester on July 23, Travis hinted the attacks motive may have because of a dispute in communities, reported The Sun newspaper. He added, The family are coming to terms with something that is quite shocking. Its a difficult time for them and we need to make sure that while we work through the investigation they are safe and secure and are allowed to deal with the issues that they face. My baby, my baby, what have they done to my baby? One witness told the UKs Mirror newspaper, There was a bit of shouting and screaming in the store but then it all went quiet. Then this woman ran outside and started screaming that her baby had been hurt and needed help. The mother was sitting outside the shop, screaming, My baby, my baby, what have they done to my baby? The boy was treated in the store by West Midlands Ambulance Service before he was transferred to hospital. John Campion, West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner, said the incident was upsetting for people in the local area, This sort of crime is exceptionally rare in West Mercia, but such an attack has no place in any community whatsoever, particularly when a young child has been hurt. Worcester City Council leader Marc Bayliss described the attack as absolutely pure evil, adding, Worcester is not that sort of place. We are a quintessential small English city. I have never heard of an acid attack in Worcester so this is absolutely not something we have any experience of. Attacks with corrosive substances like acid have been on the rise in the UK for the last few years, although they are mainly associated with gang violence. The acid causes skin to melt, leaving victims with disfigurement, medical issues, and psychological trauma. Apple, iPhone, and iPad are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. The scarring at both a physical and a psychological level can be permanent. Blindness is a common consequence, said Jaf Shah, executive director of London-based Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI), in a previous interview with The Epoch Times. The UK has one of the highest recorded rates of acid attacks in the world, with a total of 949 acid attacks reported to police forces in 2017, according to ASTI. The figure has trebled since 2014 they say, costing the country 60 million pounds ($80 million) a year. Gama Droiville, a victim of gun violence who got shot in the eye, was released from the Kings County Hospital Center in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York April 22, 2014. (Samira Bouaou/Epoch Times) A Hospitals Human Touch: Why Taking Care In Discharging A Patient Matters Patients and their caregivers need better guidance as they transition from hospital to home The kidney doctor sat next to Judy Garretts father, looking into his face, her hand on his arm. There are things I can do for you, she told the 87-year-old man, but if I do them Im not sure you will like me very much. The word death wasnt mentioned, but the doctors meaning was clear: There was no hope of recovery from kidney failure. Garretts father listened quietly. I want to go home, he said. It was a turning point for the man and his family. This doctor showed us the reality of my fathers condition, Garrett said, gratefully recalling the physicians compassion. A month later, her father passed away peacefully at home. This kind of caring is what older adults want when they become seriously ill and must move back and forth between the hospital and other settings, according to the largest study ever of patients and caregivers experiences with care transitions. Two other priorities are also crucially important, according to recently published research: Patients and caregivers want to feel prepared to look after themselves or loved ones when they leave the hospital, and they want to know that their needs will be attended to until they stabilize or recover, however long that takes. Whats striking is how often hospitals fail to fulfill these expectations, even though its been known for decades that care transitions are problematic and strategies to reduce preventable hospital readmissions have been widely adopted. Despite millions of dollars of investment and thousands of hours of effort, the health care system still feels very hazardous, unsafe and stressful from the perspective of patients and caregivers, said Dr. Suzanne Mitchell, assistant professor of family medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and lead author of the new report. Shes part of a team of experts spearheading Project ACHIEVE, a five-year, $15 million study investigating the effectiveness of interventions designed to improve care transitions. The focus is on what Medicare patients and caregivers need and want when a hospital stay ends and they return home. One part of the project involves asking people who undergo these transitionsmostly older adultsabout their experiences: what went well, what didnt. In addition to the new report, a survey of more than 9,000 patients and 3,000 caregivers is close to completion. Results will be published this fall. Another part involves looking at what hospitals are doing to try to improve transitions, such as teaching patients and caregivers how to care for wounds or arranging follow-up phone calls with a nurse, among other strategies. A preliminary research report published last year found common problems with transition programs, including haphazard, uncoordinated approaches and a lack of teamwork and leadership. Several areas deserve special attention, according to people who participated in focus groups and in-depth interviews for Project ACHIEVE: Getting Actionable Information Too often, doctors speak to patients and caregivers in medicalese and fail to address what patients really want to knowsuch as What do I need to do to feel better?said Dr. Mark Williams, Project ACHIEVEs principal investigator and chief transformation and learning officer at the University of Kentucky HealthCare system. You really need someone to walk you through what youre going to need, step by step, Williams said. Nothing of the sort occurred when Anita Brazills parents, ages 86 and 87, were hospitalized seven times in Scranton, Pa., between Dec. 25, 2016, and Feb. 13, 2017. First, her mother needed emergency gastrointestinal surgery, then her father became ill with pneumonia. Both went to an understaffed rehabilitation facility after leaving the hospital, and both bounced right back to the hospitalfive times altogetherbecause of complications. Each time her parents left the hospital, Brazill felt unprepared. Youre out on the concrete of the discharge pavilion and they send you off by ambulance or car without a guidebook, without any sense of what to expect or who to call, she said. Planning Collaboratively Ideally, when preparing to release a patient, hospital staff should inquire about older patients living circumstances, social support and the help they think theyll need, and discharge plans should be crafted collaboratively with caregivers. In practice, this doesnt happen very often. In May, Art Greenfield, 81, was admitted at 3 a.m. to a hospital near his home in Santa Clarita, Calif., with severe food poisoning and dehydration. Less than six hours later, after a sleepless night, a hospitalist he had never met walked into his room and told him she was sending him home because his situation had stabilized. (Hospitalists are physicians who specialize in caring for people in the hospital.) She had no idea if he could pee without the catheter theyd put in or get out of bed on his own, said Hedy Greenfield, 76, his wife. I wasnt there, and no one asked him if there was somebody who could take care of him at home when he got there. Fortunately, he had the presence of mind to say Im not ready, I need to stay another day. Expressing Caring Over and over again, patients and caregivers told Project ACHIEVE researchers how important it was to feel that health professionals care about their well-being. Simple gestures can make a difference. Its looking at you, rather than the computer, said Carol Levine, director of the families and health care project at United Hospital Fund in New York. Its knowing your name and giving you a sense of Im here for you and on your side. Without this sense of caring, patients and caregivers often feel abandoned and lose trust in health care professionals. With it, they feel better able to handle concerns and act on their doctors recommendations. Kathy Rust of Glendale, Calif., remembers walking into a room at an outpatient clinic and seeing a doctor stroking her mothers hair and calming her before reinserting a feeding tube that the 93-year-old woman had pulled out. He was making sure she was comfortable, Rust said, recalling how moved she was by this doctors sensitivity. Anticipating Needs Few people know what theyll need in the aftermath of a medical crisis: They want doctors, nurses, pharmacists, social workers or care managers to help them figure that out and devise a practical plan. Under the CARE Actnow enacted in 36 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Ricohospital staff are required to ask patients if they want to identify a caregiver (some choose not to do so) and to educate that caregiver about medical responsibilities theyll face at home. But implementation has been inconsistent, Levine and other experts said. Rust panicked the first time her mothers feeding tube came out, by accident. I called the transition service at my hospitals outpatient clinic, and they sent someone over in 30 minutes, she said. They were very reassuring that I had done the right thing in calling them, very calming. It was such a positive experience that I wasnt afraid to contact them with all kinds of questions that came up. Too often, however, discharges are hurried and caregivers unaware of what theyll face at home. Levine tells of an older woman who was handed a pile of paperwork when her husband was being released from the hospital. She couldnt read it because she had macular degeneration and no one had thought to ask Do you understand this and do you have any questions? Ensuring Continuity Of Care Patients and families tell us that once they leave the hospital, they dont know whos responsible for their care, said Karen Hirschman, an associate professor and NewCourtland Chair in Health Transitions Research at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. The name of a person to call with questions would be helpful as would round-the-clock access to emergency assistancefor months if needed. Its not just Now youre home and we called you a few times to follow up, Hirschman said. It can take much longer for some patients to recover, and they want to know that someone is accountable for their well-being all the way through. Judy Garrett found that having cellphone numbers for a home health care nurse and a doctor who made house calls was essential until hospice took over shortly before her fathers death. My advice to families is to be physically present as much as possible, although I know thats not always easy, she said. Appoint one person in the family to be the point person for medical professionals to reach out to. Request cellphone numbers, but use them only when you have to. And if you dont understand what professionals are telling you, ask until you do. Were eager to hear from readers about questions youd like answered, problems youve been having with your care and advice you need in dealing with the health care system. Visit khn.org/columnists to submit your requests or tips. Judith Graham is a staff journalist for Kaiser Health News, which originally published this article. KHNs coverage of these topics is supported by John A. Hartford Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and The SCAN Foundation. Former FBI Director Robert Mueller, special counsel on the Russian investigation, leaves following a meeting with members of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the Capitol in Washington on June 21, 2017. (SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images) After FISA Spying Revelation, Trump Calls for End of Mueller Probe President Donald Trump is calling for an end to the investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller after it was revealed that the FBI knowingly used unverified information and misled the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to obtain a warrant to spy on the Trump campaign. They should drop the discredited Mueller Witch Hunt now! Trump wrote on Twitter on July 23. Mueller, formerly director of the FBI, was appointed special counsel in May 2017 to continue the FBIs investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 elections, after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey. Declassified surveillance records, however, show that the FBIs investigation was tainted with political bias. The documents reveal that the FBI, in its application for a FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) warrant on Trump campaign volunteer Carter Page, knowingly relied on information that was paid for and ordered by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC). The FBI left the court in the dark about the origins of the information, failing to mention that it came from a political opponent. The information used by the FBI as the core of its FISA application came from former British spy Christopher Steele, who had been hired by Fusion GPS, a firm hired by the Clinton campaign and the DNC through the law firm Perkins Coie. The Steele dossier is a series of memos produced by Steele that relies almost exclusively on Kremlin-linked sources. The claims contained in the dossier have not been corroborated. Despite admitting under oath that the FBIs assessment of the dossier was that it was salacious and unverified, Comey himself signed off on the FISA warrant. FISA warrants allow for highly intrusive spying, including on all digital communications, such as emails and telephone conversations, as well as access to bank records and other personal information. They also allow for the use of wiretaps and other recording devices. The warrants can also be used for retroactive surveillance, meaning that communications captured by the National Security Agency under Section 702, which includes nearly all digital communications, can be accessed. While the FISA warrant was obtained on Page, it is highly likely the FBI used the warrant to spy on other members of the Trump campaign, including Trump and his family members. Under the so-called two-hop rule, FISA warrants allow for spying on individuals within two degrees of separation from the original target. This means that anyone in contact with Page, and anyone in contact with them, could have been surveilled. It is unclear how the FBI used the information it obtained by spying on the Trump campaign and whether the information was distributed improperly. The FBI, however, has had problems with its handling of Americans communications obtained under the FISA. A declassified top-secret report by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, released in April 2017, revealed systematic abuse by the FBI in handling sensitive data. According to the report, the FBI had provided access to raw 702 data obtained under the FISA to private contractors in violation of procedures intended to safeguard the data. In some cases, the contractors maintained access to the 702 data even after their work for the FBI concluded. Bias of Investigators The Department of Justice inspector general (IG) found a strong anti-Trump bias among some of the key people involved in the FBIs investigation, and later the Mueller investigation. Text messages obtained by the IG showed that FBI agent Peter Strzok, the lead agent on the counterintelligence investigation into alleged Russian interference, told high-ranking FBI lawyer Lisa Page that they would stop Trump from becoming president. [Trumps] not ever going to become president, right? Right?! Page texted Strzok in August 2016. No. No he wont. Well stop it, Strzok responded. Both Page and Strzok went on to become part of Muellers investigation. Strzok was fired by Muellers team after the IG discovered more than 10,000 text messages sent between Strzok and Page showing a bias in favor of Clinton and against Trump. Two weeks before Strzoks firing, Page left Muellers team. No Evidence of Collusion To date, no evidence to support the claim that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia during the 2016 presidential elections has surfaced. An investigation by the House intelligence committee concluded in April this year that there was no evidence to support the claims of collusion. Indictments issued by Mueller so far have either been for crimes unrelated to the election campaign, as in the case of former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, who was charged for money laundering that predated the Trump campaign, or related to Russian nationals who allegedly used social media or hacking to interfere with the elections. Deputy Attorney Rod Rosenstein said that no Americans were knowingly communicating with the Russian nationals. Muellers team reportedly informed Trumps lawyers in March that the president is not a criminal target in the Russia investigation. People surf the internet at a cyber cafe in Chongqing City in southwestern China on January 24, 2007. (China Photos/Getty Images) China Fighting Real War to Steal US Innovation Openness facilitates cheating as China seeks to dominate world economy WASHINGTONChina exploits the openness of the U.S. innovation network, from Silicon Valley to the nations universities, yet the United States may still be underestimating the scale of the Chinese threat, warn experts. Theres a real war going on, James Phillips, chairman and CEO of NanoMech, Inc., said at a congressional hearing titled Chinas Threat to American Government and Private Sector Research and Innovation Leadership. Its a cyber warlike never beforewhere theyre invading the United States every day, trying to take over the United States in terms of all our science technology. NanoMech, a leading nanomanufacturing firm based in Arkansas, was a frequent target of cyber attacks. Recently, the FBI warned the company that it was the second most-hit firewall by the Chinese cyber-militia in the southern United States. While I suppose we could take this as a compliment to our superior science and technology, we moved fast to squash this attempt before it had a chance to succeed, Phillips said. The company had to incur a significant cost to boost its network security and firewalls. Everybody looks at military, everybody looks at Russia, Phillips said, referring to media reports on the recent TrumpPutin summit in Helsinki. He says Americas reign as an economic leader of the world will be over if it does not pay attention to China. When its GDP surpasses Americas, China will dominate the world economically by a margin far more than the United States has and at that point, China will be in total control, he said. The Chinese regime unveiled its 2025 blueprint three years ago, announcing the goal of achieving dominance by 2025 in 10 high-tech industries, including advanced information technology, robotics and automated machine tools, and aircraft. To realize its economic ambitions, the regime has been resorting to various tactics including industrial espionage, cyber theft, forced joint ventures in exchange for market access, and acquisition of foreign companies to attain sensitive technologies. Massive Capital Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) control strategic sectors like defense, energy, telecommunications, and aviation. The regime spends hundreds of billions of dollars to support its monopolies. Their access to cheap capital and underpriced inputs is notoriously unavailable to their international rivals, Michael Pillsbury, director of the Center on Chinese Strategy at Hudson Institute, said in his testimony. To acquire foreign companies, Chinas leaders can fund the SOEs through massive foreign exchange reserves. From 1985 to 2005, China spent $300 billion to support the largest publicly owned companies, according to Pillsbury. According to a recent report by the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, China continues to protect its industries by excessive domestic subsidies, stockpiling of commodities, and discriminatory taxes. All these measures violate the World Trade Organization rules. Not playing by the rules pays off, said Pillsbury. China expanded its market share in the last decade and overtook its rivals in key industries like steel, auto parts, glassmaking, and paper production. China shifted from a net importer of steel in 2000 to the worlds largest producer and exporter, with 40 percent of the global market, he said. The scale of Chinese investment in U.S. early-stage technology companies is also concerning. Chinas participation in venture deal financing was at a record level of 16 percent of all venture deals financed in 2015 and remained at 10 percent in 2016 and 11 percent in the first ten months of 2017. This is concerning, Michael Brown, former CEO of Symantec Corporation said in his testimony. Brown conducted a research on how China is transferring technology through investments in early-stage firms for the Defense Department and found that more than 500 Chinese-based or affiliated entities invested in U.S. early-stage companies last year. Foreign companies operating in China are also frequent targets of industrial espionage. American Superconductor, a U.S. energy technology company, is a recent victim. The company partnered with a local firm, Sinovel, to access the Chinese wind turbines market. Sinovel used one of the American Superconductor employees as an insider spy and stole its control software code. As a result, the U.S. company lost more than $350 million in revenues and $1 billion in equities. It also had to lay off hundreds of employees. Targeting Universities Leading American universities and labs have been targets of Chinese espionage and cyber attacks, according to experts. In the past few years, there have been a number of intrusions targeting universities that engage in sensitive or military research, including Penn State and the University of Virginia, Elsa Kania, an adjunct fellow at the Center for a New American Security, said during the hearing. She claims universities are easy targets as they pay little attention to cybersecurity. The Chinese regime is also targeting talent and using Chinese students by placing them in sensitive areas of U.S. research, said Brown. According to Brown, one-third of all foreign students in the United States are Chinese foreign nationals. The academic environment in the United States is very open and hence some of these students have access to sensitive research funded by the U.S. military, he said. To address threats posed by Chinese investment in the United States, lawmakers recently passed a bipartisan bill to reform the oversight and authority of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), the interagency committee responsible for assessing threats to national security posed by certain types of foreign investments. The new bill is an important step, according to experts, as it will allow the U.S. government to scrutinize a greater range of transactions. President Donald Trump urged Congress to enact the bill quickly. Pillsbury said, This is clearly a bipartisan national security matter. We have made a good start toward a new strategy toward China, but we may still be underestimating the problem and Chinas resistance to change. (ANSA) - Rome, July 23 - Fincantieri on Monday signed a memorandum of agreement to make two next-generation cruise ships for Princess Cruises, the biggest ships yet built in Italy. Princess Cruises is a brand of Carnival Corporation & PLC, the world's largest cruise company. The ships will have a gross tonnage of 175,000 tonnes. photo: Fincantieri President Corrado Antonini Chinese citizens wait to submit their visa applications at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on May 2, 2012. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images) Chinese Scholars Denied Visas as US Administration Seeks to Curb Tech Transfer Since President Donald Trump began his campaign to tackle intellectual property theft by Beijing, the U.S. State Department has issued restrictions on granting visas to Chinese graduate students in certain high-tech fields. Scholars studying robotics, aviation, and high-tech manufacturingfields identified as national priorities by the Made in China 2025 economic blueprintwould be limited to one-year visas. Such limitations went into effect on June 11, according to The Associated Press. Amid this backdrop, the first public case has emerged of a top Chinese neuroscientist being denied a visa to the United States to attend a workshop organized by the U.S. National Science Foundation, to be held on July 23 and 24. Rao Yi is a neuroscientist and dean of the Peking University School of Life Sciences who studied and worked in the United States for over two decades, before returning to China in 2007 to take up his current post. He later surrendered his U.S. citizenship. Rao forwarded an email to a number journalists in which he appealed to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing to allow him to visit the United States, according to a July 18 report in Science magazine. He told Science magazine that he was regularly traveling to the United States until 2016, when he was first denied a visa to travel to San Francisco for a reunion at his alma mater, University of CaliforniaSan Francisco. On July 16, Rao had an interview at the U.S. Embassy, where he was asked to provide an updated CV and his travel schedule. But his visa request was not granted. It is unclear whether Rao was denied in connection with the recent State Department visa restrictions, though the new policy reported widely in May did not include the field of neuroscience, nor senior scientists. The U.S. Embassy in Beijing said it would not comment on individual visa cases. Space Conference Meanwhile, Chinese netizens noticed that at a major week-long space research conference held in Pasadena, California, starting from July 14, a group of Chinese experts were noticeably absent from a panel. CSES (China Seismo-Electromagnetic Satellite) is a ChineseItalian joint space mission to launch a satellite that can monitor electromagnetic fields and waves. The satellite was launched in February 2018 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Inner Mongolia. On July 15 and 16, the COSPAR (Committee on Space Research) conference had scheduled several panels that would present findings from the space mission. However, some Weibo users first reported that the panel organizer said the Chinese panelists were unable to receive visas to attend the conference, according to Chinese media Guancha. Weibo is a social media platform similar to Twitter. The chief Chinese scientist of the CSES project, who was scheduled to appear at COSPAR, later confirmed the news to Guancha, saying that it is unclear why they were unable to receive visas. COSPAR told Guancha that it could not confirm the reason why invited participants were unable to attend. Aggressive Recruitment The United States recent visa restrictions reflect concerns about a real trend: Chinese nationals who excel in important fields after studying or working in the United States, only to later be recruited back to China. The Chinese regime has established several recruitment programs meant to attract overseas Chinese in the science and tech fields to work in China. Such programs are a key part of Chinas strategy to catch up with and eventually supplant global tech industries. Tong Guanshan, for example, worked for IBM for more than a decade, serving at the global headquarters in multiple positions. In 2016, Tong became the senior VP and chief technology officer of BOE, a manufacturer currently in tight competition with South Korean firms in the cutting-edge field of OLED (organic light-emitting diode), a new technology for making brighter, more color-intense screens on electronic devices. Robin Li, the founder of Chinas Baidu search engine, was himself recruited after working in the United States. After creating the company he also recruited Xu Wei, a former senior scientist at Facebook, to join Baidus artificial intelligence research lab, as well Wu Ren, who left his job at top American chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices to become a Baidu chief software architect. The Chinese regime has used this tactic since the early days of its communist history. Qian Xuesen, a rocket scientist, studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Caltech, later becoming involved with the Manhattan Project to develop nuclear weapons, according to an article in The New Yorker magazine. In 1949, as the Communist Party rose to power in China, Qian was preparing to return to his homelandonly to be stopped by U.S. authorities on suspicions that he was a Communist Party member. He was eventually released in 1955. Soon after arriving in China, he became the director of a program to develop ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons and was integral to the development of Chinas first atomic bomb. Carter Page arrives at the courthouse at the United States District Court Southern District of New York, April 16, 2018 in New York City. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) FISA Spying Records Prove Use of Clinton-Funded Dossier Newly declassified documents released on July 21 substantiate long-held suspicions that a group of top Obama administration officials used an unverified opposition research dossier, funded by Hillary Clintons presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC), to obtain a warrant to spy on former Trump campaign volunteer Carter Page, yet failed to inform the court about who funded the dossier. Then-FBI Director James Comey and then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates signed off on the initial warrant application to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), according to the trove of documents released by the Justice Department. Despite telling the Senate intelligence committee that he knew in January last year that the dossier was salacious and unverified, Comey signed off on two renewal warrant applications. The 400 pages of the secret court documents span the initial warrant application and three renewals, none of which disclose to the judge that the evidence presented was paid for by the Clinton campaign and the DNC. The FBI renewed the initial warrant to surveil Page three times, with Comey and Yates signing the initial renewals, followed by approvals by then-Acting Attorney General Dana Boente, then-FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Despite a year of surveillance, no charges were ever brought against Page. The release of the documents also suggests that Page is unlikely to be the subject of any investigation. In the nearly 40-year history of the FISC prior to July 21, the Justice Department never released warrant applications to the public. The raw-document revelation is the first major piece of evidence backing claims that the Trump campaign was subjected to politicized surveillance. The FISC documents are notably thin on evidence, with claims from the Clinton-funded dossier making up the core of the claims against Page. Christopher Steele, a former British spy, used second-hand sources to compile the dossier, the documents show. Steele was hired by Fusion GPS at the behest of Perkins Coie, a law firm working for Clinton and the DNC. The Obama officials topped off the claims from Steeles dossier with nearly eight pages of claims gathered from media articles. Each of the media reports used a negative angle on the Trump campaign. In one instance, the FBI officials cite speculation in U.S. media as proof that the Russian government is behind the hack of the DNCs servers. In another instance, the warrant describes an article which speculates that Trump would not give weapons to Ukraine if he were elected president. Last year, Trump approved the sale of Javelin tank-busting missiles to Ukraine. In a third instance, the officials cite an article reporting that Page is under investigation. The officials name a Western intelligence source as one of the sources in the article, but, knowingly or not, fail to disclose that the source for the article was Steele. In intelligence circles, using such evidence is called circular reporting: an act of citing the same evidence through multiple sources to create an appearance of corroboration. In another instance of this tactic, the warrant application cites a letter from Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nevada) to then-FBI Director James Comey. Reid obtained the allegations in the letter from then-CIA Director John Brennan, who in turn learned of the claims from the Clinton-funded dossier. The FISA documents also reveal, for the first time, that the FBI paid Steele for his services. It was known that the bureau planned to pay Steele $50,000, but cut ties with him because Steele started speaking to the media in violation of the FBIs source policies. The new documents confirm that Steele received the money despite breaking the rules. Steele hired sub-sources to conduct the research for his dossier, the documents show. But instead of verifying the credibility of those sources, the FBI officials used the claims in the dossier based on the assessment that Steele was a reliable source. The assistant director of counterintelligence division at the FBI, Bill Priestap, admitted under oath in Congress that verification of the Clinton-funded dossier was in its infancy during the first FISA application, according to a memo (pdf) by the House intelligence committee. Political Spying President Donald Trump suggested on July 22 that the FISA documents substantiate allegations that the Trump campaign was the target of politicized spying to benefit his opponent in the 2016 election. Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC, Trump wrote on Twitter on July 22. Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam! Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC. Ask her how that worked out she did better with Crazy Bernie. Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2018 The FISA documents show how spying on Page could open the door to spying on the entire Trump campaign. In the initial application, the FBI officials state that these same authorities may also incidentally require other foreign intelligence information, as defined by the Act. The admission suggests that the FBI team received approval to collect surveillance on individuals connected to Page. For example, if the FBI surveilled Page electronically, which is almost certain given a nearly five-page, fully redacted list of specific authorities requested, the agents could pull from the National Security Agencys communications database using the two-hop rule. Under the rule, a surveillance warrant extends to the communications of all people who contact the target, in this case, Page. Furthermore, via the second hop, the communications of everyone who contacted the people who contacted Page could also be obtained by the FBI, a web that could easily spread to the entire Trump campaign. Trump indicated he is aware of the possibility as part of another Twitter message on July 22 quoting Fox News anchor Pete Hegseth. Carter Page was just the foot to surveil the Trump campaign, Trump wrote. Page vehemently denied the allegations in the documents during an appearance on CNN on July 22. This is so ridiculous, its just beyond words, Page told State of the Union. Ive never been an agent of a foreign power by any stretch of the imagination. Its really spin. Eleven congressmen accused Comey, McCabe, Yates, and Boente of depriving Page of his rights and of investigative misconduct in a criminal referral sent on April 18 to Attorney General Jeff Sessions and FBI Director Christopher Wray. Trump fired Yates for insubordination last January and removed Comey last May for usurping the attorney general, among other missteps. Sessions fired McCabe for authorizing a self-serving leak to the media and lying about it to investigators. Boente is now the FBIs general counsel. Watch Next: Comedian Gives Rundown of Events That Led Up to Release of FISA Abuse Memo Chris Chappell gained a huge YouTube following with a channel dedicated to exposing the truth about China. His foray into American politics is already proving to be a success. His channel, America Uncovered, can be found here. International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde sits alongside Jerome Powell, Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, and Japan's Minister of Finance Taro Aso as they pose for the official photo at the G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers in Buenos Aires, Argentina on July 21, 2018. (REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci) G20 Calls for Greater Dialogue on Trade Tensions BUENOS AIRES Finance ministers and central bankers from the worlds largest economies said on Sunday that heightened trade and geopolitical tensions risk derailing global growth, and called for greater dialogue, according to the final communique of a G20 meeting. The weekend, talks in Buenos Aires come at a time of escalating rhetoric in the trade conflict between the United States and China, the worlds largest economies, which have so far slapped tariffs on $34 billion worth of each others goods. U.S. President Donald Trump raised the stakes on Friday with a threat to impose tariffs on all $500 billion of Chinese exports to the United States unless Beijing agrees to major structural changes to its technology transfer, industrial subsidy and joint venture policies. The communique noted that global economic growth was robust and unemployment was at a decade low. However, it warned that growth was becoming less synchronized among major economies and downside risks over the short and medium-term had increased. These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies, said the communique. The ministers reaffirmed the conclusions from G20 leaders at their most recent summit in Hamburg last July, when they emphasized that trade was an engine of global growth and that multilateral trade agreements were important. We recognize the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence, the communique said. The language marked an incremental toughening from the communique issued at the previous ministerial meeting in March, which had only noted that the leaders recognize the need for further dialogue. The latest language suggests a great deal of urgency about resolving these issues, Australia Treasurer Scott Morrison said in an interview, adding that the ministers had made it clear in the discussion that they were concerned about tit-for-tat measures and that open trade was the goal. We were in mutual listening mode and I hope that this is the beginning of something, European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici told reporters on Sunday, referring to the G20 negotiations. But still the positions are not similar. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has sought to use the meeting to woo Europe and Japan with the offer of free-trade deals, as Washington tries to gain leverage with allies in its dispute with China. European Council representative to the G20 Hubert Fuchs said the United States removal of tariffs was not a necessary precondition for trade talks to begin and he welcomed the candid approach adopted by Mnuchin at the meeting. Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau said Mnuchin had over the weekend expressed a goal for all G7 countries to drop all tariffs, non-tariff barriers and subsidies, which Morneau characterized as a great idea and an aspirational target but difficult to execute. The communique emphasized that structural reforms were needed to enhance growth, and reaffirmed commitments from Marchs ministerial meeting to refrain from competitive devaluations that could have adverse effects on global financial stability. By Daniel Flynn and Luc Cohen Falun Gong practitioners at a march in Hong Kong to protest Beijings persecution of adherents in mainland China, on July 22, 2018. (Song Bilong/The Epoch Times) Hong Kong Community Joins Falun Gong Practitioners in Annual Protest of Beijings Persecution Falun Gong practitioners from Hong Kong and other areas of Asia held a rally and march in Hong Kong on July 22, calling attention to 19 years of ongoing persecution of the spiritual discipline Falun Gong by the Chinese communist regime. On July 20, 1999, the Chinese Communist Party launched an unprecedented persecution against Falun Gong, a traditional Chinese practice with moral teachings based the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. Since then, hundreds of thousands have been arrested and detained in forced labor camps and prisons, where they are often tortured if they refuse to renounce their beliefs. At least 4,000 practitioners are confirmed to have died while in police custody, according to data collected by Minghui.org, a U.S.-based website that tracks the persecution of Falun Gong in Chinathough the true number is likely to be much higher. At the rally on July 22, politicians and activists from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other countries gave speeches voicing their support of Falun Gongs 19-year-long peaceful protest, while condemning the Chinese regimes persecution of innocent citizens. Hong Kong is run by a separate government than mainland Chinas, and thus Falun Gong adherents are free to practice their faith. Hong Kong Falun Dafa Association spokesman Kan Hung-Cheung spoke about the rising civic movement in China to withdraw from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)with more than 310 million Chinese already having declared their withdrawalin addition to growing numbers of Chinese citizens calling for former Party leader Jiang Zemin to be brought to justice for his initiation of the persecution. [We should] abandon and eliminate the evil with people around the world who choose kindness, and create a peaceful, flourishing world for the entire humankind, Kan said. Several local politicians also voiced strong opposition to the Chinese regimes state-sanctioned organ transplant industry, which, according to investigators, relies on forcibly removing organs from Falun Gong practitioners and other prisoners of conscience in order to perform for-profit transplant surgeries. Wu Chi-wai, chairman of the Democratic Party in Hong Kong, called on the international community to investigate Chinas organ harvesting crimes and stop the human rights atrocity. I hope the CCPs culprits who are responsible for forced organ harvesting will one day be punished by lawto give justice to all the victims, he said. Teresa Chu, a human rights lawyer and spokeswoman for the Falun Gong Human Rights Lawyer Group in Taiwan, who spoke via a submitted audio recording, discussed the worrying trend of Beijing exporting its persecution overseasand to Hong Kong in particular. In an annual report on religious freedom around the world, released by the U.S. State Department this May, Falun Gong is the most elaborated topic in the section about Hong Kong. [The report mentions] certain groups that are organized by the CCP behind the scenes, including the Hong Kong Youth Care Association, who specifically target and intimidate Falun Gong practitioners in public, Chu said. She noted that the report also cites an Epoch Times article about an incident in July 2017 when the Hong Kong government denied entry to 43 Falun Gong practitioners from Taiwan who planned to visit the city for the annual July 20 protests. The government gave no official explanation for their decision. After the rally, a march attended by more than 1,000 participants traveled from Kings Road Playground to the Liaison Office, the representative office for the Beijing regime in Hong Kong. Mr. Huang, a tourist from Shenzhen, the mainland Chinese city that borders Hong Kong, was surprised to see Falun Gong practitioners openly protesting the Chinese regimes persecution. This is my first time ever seeing [a Falun Gong parade]. I was so surprised to see the banner that said Bring Jiang Zemin to justice, he said. It would be impossible to see anything like this in the mainland! The LinkedIn headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. in this file photo. LinkedIn and other software has helped employees to emancipate themselves from any single employer. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) How Technology Bolsters Your Right to Work, Choose, and Earn Software, not ideology or politics, is the friend of the worker Its hard to remember how hard it was to look for workor leave your current jobbefore technology changed everything. Consider what LinkedIn does for you. It allows you to have your own identity apart from your current employer, as if you own your labor. You gather your own network and keep it as you move from job to job. You can job hunt without seeming to betray your boss. You can be available for job offers, too, even if you dont think of yourself as being on the market. When you change jobs, you can add that to your profile with a few clicks and have that change announced to your network. Otherwise, everything is the same. You are faced with a daily variety of choice among employers competing to hire you for your skills. Or you can very easily go solo, choosing to gig and contract as your own personal business. This is emancipation. This gives you freedom of choice. Maybe that doesnt impress you too much. We take it all for granted. But actually social media platforms have changed everything about the right to work. Before the internet, you did not have the ability to make a public profile page that people could follow, and moving jobs was fraught with risk. You had to send in your resume, but you could not use your current employer as a reference or let your coworkers know you were in the market. You were stuck looking through help-wanted ads or getting news of open offers from a word-of-mouth network. It was hard to make or take calls about possible new positions from the office because you didnt have a cell phone. You had to scramble on nights and weekends. You dressed for a job intervieweverything depended on the interview because there was no way for people to post testimonials about youand everyone at the office would get suspicious. When you left your job, or got fired, much of the intangible knowledge and network capital you developed in your last job you had to forgo. You had to start over entirely. The prospect alone was enough to discourage you from even looking for a new position. Technological limitations and government interventions hobbled labor market adjustments. It could not clear as a market should. Then Came the Internet When we think of internet commerce, we think of eBay or Amazon, or perhaps Craigslist, but it is the job marketplace that has made the massive difference in our lives. Anyone can recommend you for a position by sharing a link to your professional profile. You can stay on the market at all times, posting on your profile without raising suspicions or being seen as a betrayer. Your resume is before the world at all times. If disaster should strike after a fallout with the boss, you have a network to tap instantly to provide a bridge to the future. And its not just you. Every participant in the global market can upload a work history and resume, catalog skills, gather endorsements, post personal testimonies, and so on. What it means is truly striking. LinkedIn, then, takes that crucial step toward a real market for labor by setting information free. Then add to that the remarkable power of ride sharing, task rabbiting, remote working, digital nomadism, and gigging in general. The information economy has liberated those who do the work from servile dependency on any single capital-controlling employer. We didnt need Karl Marx to invent a new political order to do that; we just needed a better software infrastructure. As Ive pointed out, one of the terrible consequences of government intervention in the workplace is how it has chained workers to their jobs. The American corporate structure after World War II was modeled on the European welfare state except with the benefits provided privately through the companies with government subsidies. The results have been terrible for the American worker. Health care benefits, complicated tax accounting, and all sorts of mandates have caused the labor market to be far less fluid than it was a century ago. Now, thanks to digital entrepreneurship, we are starting to see what competition for labor looks like. You can go to a site like Indeed.com and see postings for your skills right in your town or anywhere you want to move. Or you can post a job availability. Every industry has a micro version of the same. You can advertise too. The contribution this makes toward better placement is incalculable. It might be one of the factors driving the low unemployment numbers, though Ive never seen anyone give software the credit. What Determines Wages It should be obvious that market competition is good for workers because it clarifies their value to employers and enables them to charge the right price for their work. In economic theory, over the long term, in a free market, workers earn what they contribute to the profitability of the firm (a theory that comes from Knut Wicksell). In real market conditions, however, what determines the wage is more immediately influenced by the workers next-best wage option in the market. You are paid enough to keep you there because the pay is better than you can get elsewhere. But that supposes you are always on the market as a worker. The more you know about your market worth, the better off you are. I wrote economist Alexander Tabarrok about this aspect of wage determination. My question: In economic theory, wages equal marginal product, but in practice, it seems like the wage is determined more by the opportunity cost of the current job. His answer is brilliant: I dont think your thinking is wrong, its more like this is the process by which the economic theory turns out to be approximately true. Consider the following. In economics we teach that profits tend toward zero (normal). If you talk to a business person, however, they will say, What are you talking about? What I am always thinking about is maximizing my profits, getting them bigger, thats what a successful business person does! Quite so, but the net result of everyone trying to increase profits is that profits are driven down! In the case of wages, I agree that the simple model that we teach doesnt really fit the facts that well. In the simple model, its often identical workers producing identical products and there is one wage given by the market for all the workers and the manager hires until the point where wages equal the marginal product. In the more common situation, the workers are all different, the employer isnt hiring more than one for the same position and the wage is negotiated not given. Still, each employer has to evaluate the worker and the job and each employer has to say do I want the worker or not and over time workers with wages greater than marginal product get let go and everyone wants to hire when wages are smaller than the marginal product so wages get pushed up. But its a messy process. Not as clean as in the model. And also the perspective of the employer is not the perspective of the economist. We might say wages equal the marginal product is more a product of human action than human design! FYI, note that this also means there is more room for discrimination, for example, than in the simple model. What this messy process means in practice is that you have to differentiate yourself, offering labor as a unique individual rather than as part of a labor pool. To do that, in a world in which millions are competing for your job, you need a tool. The digital world has provided us with just that. It is wonderful and brilliant, and ever more valuable in a tight labor market such as we have now. All of which is to say, if you have not beefed up your online profile as a worker, or consider leaving the grind of a corporate job for a market-based gig, today might be the time to get to work on it. The market is doing everything possible to enhance your dignity as a worker and make it possible for you to earn your economic worth. Here again, software (not ideology, not politics) has proven to be the friend of the worker, making dreams come true that would not have been possible in ages past. Jeffrey Tucker is editorial director for the American Institute for Economic Research. He is the author of five books, including Right-Wing Collectivism: The Other Threat to Liberty. This article was first published on AIER.org Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. A polling booth in New Hampshire. The state of Kentucky has been told to clean up its voter registration rolls. (Win McNamee/Getty Images) Kentucky Forced to Clean Up Voter Rolls WASHINGTONIn a small step toward increased voter integrity, Kentucky has been forced to clean up its voter rolls after being sued by Judicial Watch. Kentucky signed a consent decree with Judicial Watch and the Justice Department on July 16 to say it will make a reasonable effort to remove registrants from its rolls who have become ineligible due to a change in residence. Judicial Watch found that 48 counties in Kentucky had more registered voters on its rolls than citizens over the age of 18. Its a pretty good indication that theyre not keeping their election rolls clean, said Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch. He said Kentucky is the worst state in the country in this regard, but Judicial Watch has also sued Maryland, Ohio, Indiana, and California over dirty voter rolls. California statewide is a mess, Fitton said. Generally speaking, California doesnt remove you from their voter rolls, despite you never voting, despite you dyingit looks likethey just dont do it. What a recipe for fraud. The case against California is ongoing, as is one against Los Angeles County, but Fitton is hoping for a favorable outcome in both, especially since the Justice Department stepped in to support the lawsuit against Kentucky. In Los Angeles County, there are 144 registered voters for every 100 citizens of voting age, according to a Judicial Watch report from 2017. States are mandated to maintain accurate voter rolls by the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and the Help America Vote Act. The NVRA requires states to remove names of voters who are not eligible to vote from voter rolls for a number of reasons, including when the registrant dies or moves out of state. The states are also required to make sure that non-citizens cannot register to vote. Fitton said by his calculation, around 1.1 million non-citizens voted illegally in the 2016 presidential election. And of course every one of those illegal votes is a stolen vote of an honest American, he said. They vote in substantially large numbers, and anyone that tells you otherwise is blowing smoke in your ear. So thats a significant crisis and thats why we need, in my view, citizenship verification in order to register to vote, or to vote, he said. Pipes are loaded for stacking at the Nord Stream 2 facility at Mukran on Ruegen Islandon in Sassnitz, Germany, on Oct. 19, 2017. (Carsten Koall/Getty Images) Republican Senators Back Up Trump on Russia Pipeline Three Republican senatorsJohn Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), and Steve Daines (R-Mont.)have put forward legislation that would back up President Donald Trumps opposition to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline with sanctions. Trump made headlines at the NATO summit in Brussels by criticizing the pipelinewhich runs from Russia near St. Petersburg, under the Baltic Sea to Germanyas a threat to Germanys and Europes energy independence and security, and as undercutting Western sanctions of Russia. The Energy Security Cooperation with Allied Partners in Europe Act, or the ESCAPE Act, authorizes mandatory sanctions on the development of Russian energy pipeline projects, such as Nord Stream 2. The bill also encourages NATO members to work together for energy security; calls for a transatlantic U.S. government energy strategy; and requires the secretary of the Energy Department to expedite approval of natural gas exports to NATO members and any other country where exports would promote the security of the United States. The energy we produce is a direct relation to our national security, said Daines in a statement on his website. We must not only be energy independent but we must be energy dominant around the globe. The ESCAPE Act will take natural gas off the table for the Russians to use as a weapon to our allies. The United States is in a position to use American energy to our allies and we should do so. While Trump has gotten the lions share of the publicityand criticism in American mediafor his opposition to the pipeline, he is not alone. The Ukrainians oppose it because it will deprive them of billions in revenue while making them less secure; the European Commission objects because the pipeline disrupts its plans for an energy union; and Denmark, Finland, and Sweden are concerned about the ecological implications of a natural gas pipeline at the bottom of the Baltic. Twelve states across the Baltic and the Balkans formed the Three Seas Initiative, working to find an alternative to Nord Stream. Part of that alternative will be buying American liquid natural gas, another reason Trump opposes Nord Stream. Sanctuary States Say Justice Department Is Blackmailing Them WASHINGTONSix so-called sanctuary states filed a joint lawsuit against the Justice Department on July 18, saying they are being coerced into compliance with immigration laws. At issue are the federal funds awarded through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program, which the Justice Department oversees. The Justice Department sent a letter to all recipients of the funds in July 2017, saying they could be cut off if they do not comply with federal law, allow federal immigration access to detention facilities, and notify federal immigration authorities before releasing an illegal alien. The states are New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Washington, Virginia, and Massachusetts. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) speaks during a press conference regarding the executive order President Donald Trump signed earlier on Thursday, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on Oct. 12, 2017. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) White House Looking at Removing Security Clearances From Brennan, Former Officials President Donald Trump is exploring ways to remove the security clearances of six former top government officials, according to White House press secretary Sarah Sanders. The White House is looking to bar security clearances for five top Obama administration officials: former FBI Director James Comey, former CIA Director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former national security adviser Susan Rice, and former deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe. The sixth official, former CIA Director Michael Hayden, was appointed by President George W. Bush. The president is exploring the mechanisms to remove security clearance because theyve politicized and, in some cases, monetized their public service and security clearances. Making baseless accusations of improper contact with Russia or being influenced by Russia against the president is extremely inappropriate, Sanders said on July 23. And the fact that people with security clearances are making these baseless charges provides inappropriate legitimacy to accusations with zero evidence. Sanders made the comments in response to a question about Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.)s plan to ask President Donald Trump to revoke the security clearance of former CIA chief John Brennan. Is John Brennan monetizing his security clearance? Is John Brennan making millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks on [Trump]? Paul wrote on Twitter. Is John Brennan monetizing his security clearance? Is John Brennan making millions of dollars divulging secrets to the mainstream media with his attacks on @realDonaldTrump ? Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) July 23, 2018 After finishing his tenure as CIA director, Brennan became a senior national security and intelligence analyst for NBC News and MSNBC. Clapper and Hayden took on analyst positions with CNN in a similar fashion. The trio regularly uses airtime to criticize the president. Comey and Rice also regularly attack Trump. Trump pointed out that Brennan and Clapper both went on to work for media and are probably getting paid a lot of money by television networks. Pauls disclosure of his plan to ask about removing Brennans security clearance came just days after he blasted the former CIA chief for attacking Trump over the Helsinki summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Brennan had called Trumps performance nothing short of treasonous. In an appearance on Fox News Americas Newsroom, Paul described Brennan as the most biased, bigoted, over-the-top, hyperbolic, sort of unhinged director of the CIA we have ever had. Paul found that it really is an insult to everything about our government to call the president treasonous because [Brennan] doesnt like him. In a July 16 interview with Fox News on the heels of the summit with Putin, Trump described Brennan as a very bad person. I think Brennan is a very bad guy, and if you look at it, a lot of things happened under his watch, Trump told Tucker Carlson. I think hes a very bad person. Brennan played a key role in creating the narrative that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia. In testimony before the House intelligence committee last year, Brennan insisted that a Clinton-funded opposition research dossier was not used to form the Intelligence Community assessment (ICA) on Russian interference. The ICA was released two weeks before Trumps inauguration in January 2017 and forms the core of the allegations that Russia interfered in the presidential election to help Trump win. But two key intelligence executives who signed off on the dossier now challenge Brennans account. In a March 2018 letter to House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, Adm. Mike Rogers, the director of the NSA at the time when the ICA was drafted, wrote that the Clinton-funded dossier was used to inform the assessment, according to Real Clear Investigations. Rogers told Congress last year that he disagreed with the assessment that the Russians interfered to help Trump. In October 2017, James Clapper, the director of national intelligence who led the creation of the ICA, admitted to CNN that some of the substantive content of the dossier was included in the assessment. The dossier was funded by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee indirectly through a law firm. Former British spy Christopher Steele compiled the document using second-hand sources with ties to the Kremlin. Officials at the FBI used the dossier to obtain a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant to surveil former Trump campaign volunteer Carter Page. The Justice Department declassified the FISA warrant applications on July 21. The documents showed that FBI officials failed to disclose to the secret court that the dossier was funded by the Clinton campaign. In discussing the FISA document revelations, Sen. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) said on July 22 that the Senate judiciary committee intends to call on Brennan to testify. This is an extremely disturbing thing to see both he and [former FBI Director] James Comey, supposedly impartial government officials, carrying out their jobs in very important areas in intelligence-gathering and law enforcement, expressing the kind of extreme bias that they have shown now, which I think reflects quite accurately on what they were doing back in 2016, Goodlatte told Fox News. Employees work on socks that will be exported at a factory in Huaibei, Anhui province on June 22 (-/AFP/Getty Images) Supply Chain, Interrupted A protracted USChina tariff battle could alter the global trade landscape News Analysis The trade conflict between China and the United States, should it drag on, could permanently alter the landscape of the global supply chain. The Chinese manufacturing sector could suffer, as goods exported from China to the United States could easily be manufactured in other lowand sometimes even lowercost nations. Industries with complex supply chains would also rethink their global business models, potentially increasing costs and production redundancies. Examining the product mix of bilateral trade between China and the United States over the last decade, Chinese exports to the United States have slowly climbed up the value chain, with computers and electronic components as the biggest import, followed by electrical equipment and appliances, according to a July 19 report from the U.S.China Economic and Security Review Commission. Apparel and accessories, which was the No. 2 import a decade ago, has declined to fourth place in 2017, according to the report. On the other side of the ledger, the types of U.S. exports to China have largely remained consistent. Transportation equipment exports have soared mainly due to Chinas recent construction and building boom, but other categories remain consistent proportionallysuch as agricultural products, chemicals, and semiconductorswhile overall volume has climbed. In the short-to-medium term, China will have difficulty replacing its U.S.-driven imports. The Chinese communist regime has ongoing plans to invest in its own high-technology sectors (as per Made in China 2025, among other programs), and it expects to gradually replace such imports with domestically produced technologies. Nonmanufactured goods, such as commodities and agricultural products, should continue to prosper due to Chinas growing middle class and continued economic expansion. Global Supply Chain Shifts On a micro level, the ongoing tit-for-tat tariff escalation has introduced new difficulties for companies operating on a global scale. As firms begin planning for 2019, they must carefully consider a combination of making structural changes to their global supply chain to avoid tariffs, shouldering a portion of the higher costs on behalf of their customers, and assessing the longevity of the ongoing trade dispute. Factor in the nontrivial possibility of an economic recession over the next 12 to 18 months and corporate strategists are in an unenviable position heading into next year. Some Chinese manufacturers are considering moving production to South Asia to avoid tariffs from the United States. Certain aspects of this had already been planned, but the trade conflict has accelerated their timeline for this shift. We have to analyze which Asian countries are good for our customers to offset the China risk, Joe Chau, who manages a baby garment factory in the southern province of Guangdong, told the Financial Times. Chiu Chi-hong, another Guangdong businessman who owns a toy factory, told the FT that he plans to travel to Burma (also known as Myanmar) with 30 other Chinese manufacturers to assess the possibility of moving production to the South Asian country. Companies are actively seeking alternatives to Made in China, according to a July investigative study by University of Delaware professor Sheng Lu for the U.S. Fashion Industry Association. This does not seem to be due to concerns about cost, but rather the worries about the escalating U.S.China trade tensions, Lu noted. The annual study polled 28 executives of large, predominantly U.S.-based fashion retailers and wholesalers. While clothing and most other consumer goods are not yet part of U.S. tariffs imposed on Chinese imports, companies are proactively making contingency plans or accelerating previous plans to make the shift. As of now, electronics and apparel are two categories with the biggest potential for a production move. Vietnam is a big beneficiary of the recent manufacturing shift away from China. The Nikkei Vietnam Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index reading for June saw one of the biggest jumps since the survey began in 2011, with the index rising to 55.7 in June from 53.9 in May, with any reading above 50 signaling economic expansion. Vietnamese factories were taking on extra staff at a record pace during June, according to Andrew Harker, associate director at IHS Markit, which compiles the survey. Impact on Revenues and Profits Todays complex global supply chains were built over decades of increasing global trade with minimal tariffs. A company may source a variety of components from several countries, with final production occurring in China or the United States, for example. In such a model, knock-on effects from tariffs could add significantly to the cost of production, and harm revenues and profitability. Companies do have some options. If strategists believe the trade war will be short-lived, companies can choose to absorb higher costs instead of passing them on to customers. If the trade war is more protracted, companies need to weigh longer-term strategies, such as establishing individual production in local markets, shifting production to non-tariff countries, or enacting gradual price increases or other cost-cutting measures to minimize the impact on market share and the bottom line. Todays complex global supply chains were built over decades of increasing global trade with minimal tariffs. For example, Swedish-based and Chinese-owned automaker Volvo Cars AB recently committed to opening an auto manufacturing plant in South Carolina to build cars for the U.S. and China markets. But due to tariffs, Volvo has hinted that it may no longer need as many workers as the 4,000 it committed to hiring by 2021. If you have trade barriers and restrictions, we cannot create as many jobs as we are planning to, Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson told Reuters in June. Harley-Davidson Inc., the Milwaukee-based motorcycle manufacturer, indicated it would move some production to Europe to avoid recently announced tariffs from the European Union. But such seismic production shifts are expensive and difficult to execute. Companies with complex global supply chains, such as those in the automotive and value-added industrial sectors, are expected to suffer the most from a prolonged trade conflict. Companies in sectors removed from tariffs, such as health care, communications, and technology, should be insulated. All three industries, according to their respective S&P sector indices, have outperformed the broader S&P 500 Index year-to-date. Cinema: Immigration and integration at Giffoni film fest Jury from around the world at film event (ANSAmed) - NAPLES, JULY 23 - The 48th edition of the Giffoni Film Festival in Giffoni Valle Piana near Salerno will feature 100 movies running for an award that focus on the conflict between generations, diversity, bullying, migration, sentiments, doubts, adolescence and personal growth. This year's edition will also open a window on movies from around the world to 5,601 very young jurors from 52 countries. Migrant trafficking is at the center of "More" by Turkish director Onur Saylak, which focuses on the story of Gaza, a 14-year-old living on the Aegean coast of Turkey. The teen helps the father, an authoritarian and violent man, to manage the illegal smuggling of refugees to Europe, providing housing and some food until they will attempt the crossing. "The Pigeon" by Banu Sivaci also comes from Turkey. It talks about a story of emancipation, starting with the teenage years of Yusuf, a boy who lives with his sister and brother on the outskirts of Adana wand tries to find peace by taking care of the pigeons he has inherited from his father. A group of adolescents is at the center of "Sherazade", by French filmmaker Jean-Bernard Marlin, in which Zachary, 17, is rejected by his mother after being released from a juvenile prison. The boy spends his days going around the suburbs of Marseille, looking to earn easy money, when he meets a prostitute called Sherazade, who will raise his curiosity. Caterina De Mata's short film "Buonanotte" is a cartoon on the cohabitation of different ethnic groups. Other short films include "Bismilla" by Alessandro Grande on the difficulties faced by illegal immigrants, "Some might say" on the relationship between women and the veil in multicultural Barcelona, and "Nightshade" on migrant trafficking. (ANSAmed). People walk past Israeli soldiers as they board a bus during the Syria Civil Defence, also known as the White Helmets, extraction from the Golan Heights, Israel in this still image taken from video, provided by the Israeli Army on July 22, 2018. (Israeli Army Handout via REUTERS) Syrian White Helmets Flee to Jordan With Israeli, Western Help JERUSALEM/AMMANHundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers and their families fled advancing government forces and slipped over the border into Jordan overnight with the help of Israeli soldiers and Western powers, officials said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a brief video statement on Sunday he had helped the evacuation at the request of U.S. President Donald Trump and other leadersand there had been fears that the workers lives were at risk. The group, known officially as Syria Civil Defence, has been widely hailed in the West and credited with saving thousands of people in rebel-held areas during years of bombing attacks by Damascus and its allies. A Jordanian government source said 422 people were brought from Syria, over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights frontier and into Jordan, down from a figure of 800 announced earlier by the foreign ministry in Amman. The evacuees will be kept in a closed location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months, the source said. A second non-Jordanian source familiar with the agreement said the original plan had been to evacuate 800 people, but only 422 made it out as operations were hampered by government checkpoints and the expansion of the ISIS terrorist group in the area. Jordans Foreign Minister Ayman al Safadi was quoted in a foreign ministry statement as saying he had discussed in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov the details of the mission to bring the rescue workers to Jordan. Syria and its Russian allies have launched an offensive on rebels in the sensitive southwestern border zone. Fantastic News Netanyahu said Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and others had spoken to him recently asking for help in extracting the White Helmets. The lives of these people, who have saved lives, were now in danger. I therefore authorized their transfer via Israel to other countries as an important humanitarian gesture, Netanyahu said. Trump did not mention the operation during a series of tweets on Sunday. The U.S. State Department said in a statement that it welcomed the operation and renewed its call on the Assad regime and Russia to abide by their commitments, end the violence, and protect all Syrian civilians. In the first public statement by the United Nations, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) acknowledged it had received 422 Syrians who were seeking asylum in Canada, Germany and Britain at the request of these countries. The U.N. refugee body praised Jordans move to give them temporary sanctuary. While in Jordan, UNHCR in close collaboration with the involved governments, is supporting their temporary stay in anticipation of their onward relocation to third countries, the statement said. Britain hailed the evacuation, saying that Britain itself and other allies had requested it. Fantastic news that weUK and friendshave secured evacuation of White Helmets and their familiesthank you Israel and Jordan for acting so quickly on our request, tweeted British Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt. German weekly magazine Bild, which broke news of the evacuation and published footage of buses used to transport the Syrians across Golan, said that 50 of them would be granted asylum by Berlin. Humanity dictates that many of these brave first-aiders should now find protection and refuge, some of them in Germany, it quoted German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas as saying. A spokeswoman for the German interior ministry said Berlin would take in eight White Helmets plus their families. It was not immediately clear whether that amounted to the same 50 people. A Canadian Foreign Ministry statement on Saturday said the White Helmets have witnessed vicious atrocities committed by the Assad regime and its backers. We feel a deep moral responsibility to these brave and selfless people, it added. Damascus and its allies have accused rebels and their supporters of staging chemical attacks in an attempt to frame the government. Western powers have accused Syria of attacking rebel-held areas with illegal chemical weapons. By Dan Williams and Suleiman Al-Khalidi Iraqi Christians light candles inside a shrine on the grounds of Mazar Mar Eillia (Mar Elia) Catholic Church, that has now become home to hundreds of them, forced to flee their homes due to the Islamic State advances, in Erbil, Iraq, on Dec. 12, 2014. (Matt Cardy/Getty Images) The Persecution of Christians in Africa and the Middle East Jesus warned his disciples: They will hand you over to persecution, and they will kill you. You will be hated by all nations because of my name (Matthew 24:9). Such treatment was a reality for the early followers of Christ, and it continues today, especially in Africa and the Middle East. Among the better-known recent atrocities are the beheading of 21 Coptic Christians on a beach in Libya; the killing of an elderly French priest at morning Mass by ISIS terrorists in Normandy; and the kidnapping and sexual enslavement of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls by Boko Haram. The details of these events are horrific, but so are lesser-known stories like those of the Iraqi Christian woman who watched jihadists nail her husband to the front door of their home, or the Christian mother who escaped ISIS enslavement after she had been brutally tortured and taken to a sex slave detention center. An ISIS sheikh who ran the center performed marriages between captive girls and women and ISIS fighters. The escaped Christian mother explained: That night, I was married to eight different men and divorced eight times. Each man raped me three or four times. When all this was over, we were taken back to the room where all the girls were being held. They made us walk naked through the big room where all the men were sitting. We were barely able to walk. This scenario was repeated every weekit was like a nightmare. Rather than denying and denouncing these actions, ISIS leaders claimed responsibility for these crimes, precisely because the victims were Christian. Christians who fled ISIS-controlled areas faced additional risks. With their money and property having been confiscated, they often had to walk through miles of desert-like terrain in temperatures over 100 degrees. They carried small children and pushed the elderly in wheelchairs. Those who made it to refugee camps risked a whole new round of persecution. Many faced violence and mistreatment at the hands of Muslim migrants in the camps. Many Christians thus opted to stay away from the camps, but that made survival even more difficult. With ISIS now in retreat and reportedly on the edge of collapse, the assumption seems to be that the persecution of Christians is coming to an end, and the remaining violence is a matter of regional clashes. In truth, only the location of some of the worst persecution has changed. The genocide continues. During the first six months of 2018, about 6,000 Christiansmostly children, women, and the elderlywere killed in Nigeria alone. The details of these murders, though seldom reported, were often grisly. Many victims were hacked to death or beheaded with machetes; others were burned alive (sometimes inside locked churches or homes); and women were frequently sexually assaulted or raped before being slaughtered. Both the Nigerian government and the U.S. government have tried to minimize news of this genocide. Reports often refer to clashes between farmers and herdsmen. The headlines mask the reality of the regular attacks by Fulani (Muslim) herdsmen on Christian farmers. The herdsmen, carrying AK-47s, almost always initiate the clashes. They often end them by raping women, butchering innocents, and burning down churches and villages. The National Christian Elders Forum, a wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria, issued a statement saying: Jihad has been launched in Nigeria by the Islamists of northern Nigeria led by the Fulani ethnic group. This jihad is based on the Doctrine of Hate taught in Mosques and Islamic Madrasas in northern Nigeria as well as the supremacist ideology of the Fulani. The forum also pointed out the objective of the terrorists: The Islamists of northern Nigeria seem determined to turn Nigeria into an Islamic Sultanate and replace Liberal Democracy with Sharia as the National Ideology. The object, of course, is to supplant the Constitution with Sharia as the source of legislation. In addition to calling out the Fulani terrorists, Christian leaders are putting blame on the Nigerian government. Prior to his election, President Muhammadu Buhari presented himself as a moderate who would convince other Muslims to lay down their arms. However, his government now stands accused not only of failing to protect Christians but of possibly supplying weapons to the jihadists. In a statement issued in July, after the massacre of more than 200 Christian farmers by Fulani Muslim pastors (as they are called), the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria demanded that Buhari resign if he is unable to ensure the safety of all. It can no longer be regarded as a mere coincidence that the suspected perpetrators of these heinous crimes are of the same religion as all those who control the security apparatus of our country, including the President himself, the statement read. Two months earlier, the conference had published a harsh statement asking Buhari to resign after a massacre in the village of Mbalom in which two priests were killed, along with several parishioners. With these outspoken Christian leaders, segments of the press are beginning to pay some attention to the situation in Nigeria. Hopefully, that will translate into life-saving action, but recent history indicates that when persecution is suppressed in one region, it rears its head in another. In Egypt, where Coptic Christians account for about 10 percent of the population, assaults have increased since the military ouster of President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013. Several Copts were killed immediately following the ouster, and more than 60 churches were looted, vandalized, or completely destroyed. In Syria, where Christians also account for roughly 10 percent of the population, the bloody civil war pitting the regime of Bashar al-Assad against various rebel groups has left the Christian community in a horrible situation. In Homs, Latakia, and other areas, both rebel and government forces have killed Christians, burned churches, and destroyed antiquities. General concern over fighting and violence tends to obscure very real special concerns of Christians in the war zone. Too often, they are overlooked. In Saudi Arabia, Christians are barred from becoming citizens, and it is illegal to import, print, or own Christian materials. In Lebanon, where Christians once formed a majority of the population, the steady radicalization of the government and the growth of Iranian-sponsored Hezbollah terror have led to a large-scale exodus of Christians. Christians have also been the target of Islamists in Gaza since Hamas came to power in 2007. The small remnant of Christians in Gaza has tried to flee, but many were unable to leave and now suffer regular persecution. In Iraq and in Israels West Bank, Arab Christians have been the target of discrimination and violence, prompting many to leave. Cities with rich Christian history, such as Bethlehem, are now under the control of a Muslim majority and almost completely devoid of Christians. In fact, Christians in the Palestinian territories have dropped from 15 percent of the population in 1950 to less than 2 percent today. The only place in the Middle East where Christians face no restrictions on the practice of their faith is Israel. Christians comprise a little more than 2 percent of Israels population, but the country provides them freedom of worship, grants them unfettered access to holy sites, and allows the Christian community to legislate their own religious affairs. Islam once militarily threatened Europe. Today, a new breed of Islamic extremists seeks to exterminate Christianity. It would be wonderful if one could point to an easy solution, but none are obvious. There is a role for diplomats (including Muslims) in trying to sway the extremists, a role for the scholars to study and develop alternatives, and a role for the military to act when necessary. Christians can take part in the diplomacy, study, and other preparations, but they also need to remember what Jesus said. They will be persecuted, and they have to pray even for their enemies. Ronald J. Rychlak is the Jamie L. Whitten chair in law and government at The University of Mississippi. He is the author of several books, including Hitler, the War, and the Pope, Disinformation (co-authored with Ion Mihai Pacepa), and The Persecution and Genocide of Christians in the Middle East (co-edited with Jane Adolphe). Police at the scene of a mass shooting in Toronto on July 22, 2018. (The Canadian Press/Frank Gunn) Toronto Mayor Says City in Shock After Mass Shooting Update: Toronto Police have confirmed a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old female are deceased as a result of the shooting, and 13 victims are injured and sent to the hospital. The gunman is dead. TORONTOToronto Mayor John Tory says the city is in shock after a gunman opened fire on a street late on Sunday, shooting multiple people and killing two. I am of course angry, as we all are, that someone would carry out such an attack, which really amounts to an attack on our city itself, Tory said at a city council meeting on Monday morning. The shooting happened on Danforth Avenue in the citys Greektown neighbourhood, an area filled with restaurants. The gunman shot 15 people, leaving two dead and the rest injured. The deceased include a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old female. Police are not releasing the names of the victims at this time. Police later exchanged fire with the 29-year-old gunman, who was later found dead, according to Ontarios Special Investigations Unit. Police are now asking witnesses to come forth with any information they may have on the shooting. We are looking at all possible motives and not closing any doors, Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders told reporters at the site of the shooting. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed his sympathy for the victims, and hoped for a full recovery of those who were injured. The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave and well be there to support you through this difficult time, Trudeau said on Twitter. My thoughts are with everyone affected by the terrible tragedy on the Danforth last night in Toronto, and may the injured make a full recovery. The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave and well be there to support you through this difficult time. Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) July 23, 2018 Ontario Premier Doug Ford also tweeted about the shooting, saying, My heart goes out to the victims and loved ones of the horrific act of gun violence in Toronto. My heart goes out to the victims and loved ones of the horrific act of gun violence in Toronto. Thank you to all the first responders for acting quickly to help everyone affected. Doug Ford (@fordnation) July 23, 2018 Toronto has experienced a rise in gun violence in 2018, with 26 shooting deaths so far this year, an increase of 53 percent compared to the same period last year. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their loved ones and everyone affected by yesterdays tragic incident. Thank you to our citys first responders. #TorontoStrong pic.twitter.com/IhFLAOWPAa Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) July 23, 2018 Toronto is still reeling from another tragedy earlier this year, when a van drove through a crowd at a busy intersection, killing 10 people and leaving 16 injured. With reporting by Becky Zhou, May Ning, and Emily Chian. With files from Reuters. A combination picture shows Alexanda Kotey (L) and Shafee Elsheikh, in these undated handout pictures in Amouda, Syria, released by Syrian Democratic Forces on Feb. 9, 2018. (Syrian Democratic Forces/Handout via Reuters) Minister Clears Way for British Beatles Jihadis to Face Trial in the US LONDONThe UK government has cleared the way for two members of the British Beatles ISIS terror cell to face trial in the United States for their roles in kidnapping, terrorism, and murder in Syria. In a leaked letter, the UK interior minister appeared to blur the governments official opposition to the death penalty, agreeing to pass on evidence from UK counterterrorism investigations. The notorious ISIS Beatles cell in Syria acquired its nickname because it was composed of four British members, after videos emerged in 2014 in which their distinctive accents could be heard. The cell, whose most prominent member, Jihadi John was killed in an airstrike in 2015, was behind the beheadings of U.S. journalists, British aid workers, and a U.S. humanitarian worker. In a leaked letter obtained by the Daily Telegraph, British Interior Minister Sajid Javid told the U.S. attorney general that it would share intelligence on the Beatles cell members Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh to enable prosecution in the United States. Javids communication appears to put aside the UKs previous official stance on the death penalty, saying that the UK sought no assurances that the pair would not face execution in the United States. In the letter of July 22, Javid agreed to pass on information to the United States obtained over a four-year investigation by British counterterrorism forces, covering 14 countries and 600 witness statements. In 2014 and 2015, the Beatles cell held over 20 Western hostages in Syria, appearing in various online propaganda and execution videos. The cell was behind the beheadings of U.S. journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning, and U.S. humanitarian worker Peter Kassig. Kotey and El-Sheikh were caught in February 2018 by Syrian Kurdish fighters. The UK government is thought to have secretly revoked their citizenship and U.S. and UK authorities have been discussing how to handle prosecutions. Javid wrote that UK counterterrorism officers had weighed up the two routes of prosecution under UK and U.S. law, working alongside the FBI. In this instance we believe that a successful federal prosecution in the U.S. is more likely to be possible because of differences in your statute book and the restrictions on challenges to the route by which defendants appear in U.S. courts, he said. Javid also noted the United States has additional terrorism offences with long sentences. The letter states, In light of this, the UK does not currently intend to request, nor actively encourage, the transfer of Kotey and El-Sheikh to the UK to support a future UK based prosecution. Javid appeared to overturn the current policy that states that assistance should not be given to overseas prosecutions without written assurances that those found guilty would not face the death penalty. Javid wrote, I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought. As you are aware, it is the long-held position of the UK to seek death penalty assurances, and our decision in this case does not reflect a change in our policy on assistance in U.S. death penalty cases generally, nor the UK Governments stance on the global abolition of the death penalty, he wrote. According to the Counter Extremism Project Kotey is the London-born son of a Ghanaian father and Greek-Cypriot mother, who was radicalised in the early 2000s, becoming involved with a radical network linked to the 7/7 bombings in 2008. Shafee El-Sheikh grew up in London after has parents escaped Sudans civil war in 1993. He was radicalised rapidly in 2011 after befriending an Eritrean man whose father promoted Islamist propaganda, leaving for Syria in 2012 to join an al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria and later ISIS. Watch Next: Why did the US Leave the UN Human Rights Council We are withdrawing from the UN Human Rights Council, an organization that is not worthy of its name. A Falun Gong practitioner sits in London's Trafalgar Square on July 21. The spiritual practice has been persecuted in China since July 20 1999. (Max Lin/Epoch Times) Virtually Ignored: 19 Years of Persecution in China LONDONPractitioners of the ancient spiritual practice Falun Gong marched through the streets of London on July 21 to call for an end to 19 years of persecution by the Chinese communist regime. The march began with a rally opposite the Chinese Embassy in central London. Speaking at the rally was Minghui Yu, whose father was sentenced in 2001 to 15 years in Mudanjiang Prison because of his faith. [They] used electrical batons to beat him, they used a heavy thing to hit the back of his head, also that caused one of his legs to break, and he got some problems with his breast bone as well, she said. The practice teaches truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, but was banned in China in 1999 by then-leader of the Chinese Communist Party, Jiang Zemin. In addition to her father, Yus mother, aunts, and cousin have been arrested and have suffered severe torture in China. According to the Falun Dafa Information Center, there have been 4,225 recorded murders of Falun Gong practitioners, with many deaths resulting from physical torture. Ignored A report, Cold Genocide: Falun Gong in China, authored by Maria Cheung, professor at the university of Manitoba and other experts, says the genocide of Falun Gong stands out as anomalous because it is virtually ignored. The authors add that it is rare for a genocide to last over 10 years. The genocide against the Falun Gong, on account of its scale, cruelty, and sophistication, is a preeminent human rights disaster of the 21st century, the report reads. It also highlights disturbing evidence from a 2016 update to an investigation that found that organs are being forcibly removed from prisoners of conscience for profit, mainly illegally detained Falun Gong practitioners, on an industrial scale. Investigators have noticed a correlation between the persecution of Falun Gong and the rapid upward trend in organ transplants in China since 2000. We are just one of thousands of tragedies From the perspective of international law there is no question that the persecution of Falun Gong is illegal, said Dr. David Kirkham, academic director of Brigham Young University. He spoke alongside other experts at a seminar in the British Parliament on July 17 about the persecution of Falun Gong in China, which was sponsored by Jim Shannon MP. Experts speaking at the event included Dr. Huige Li, board member of China Organ Harvest Research Centre, Dr. Niall McCrae, senior lecturer at Kings College London, and Benedict Rogers, deputy chairman of the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission. Im here today in solidarity with Falun Gong practitioners to speak out against the persecution of Falun Gong, and to speak up for freedom of religion for all people in China, said Rogers. Minghui Yu also spoke about the persecution of her family members, and hoped that the persecution could end soon. The pain my families and I went though is hardly possible to describe fully in words. But we are just one of thousands of tragedies, she said. I sincerely hope that people living in this democratic country who hear about this brutal inhuman persecution of Falun Gong could help to expose it and stop it. Betsy Paynter has acute knowledge of both economic development and Danbury, which will serve her well in her new role of executive director of CityCenter Danbury. Danbury has been very successful in the state, she said, referring to the city leading Connecticut in many economic measures. Downtown Danbury is the heart of that and my role will be to support the business owners in the district. There is a lot happening in Danbury. Payner graduated from Danbury High School and attended Western Connecticut State College before transferring. She currently lives in Newtown. She previously served as economic development coordinator for Newtown and most recently as economic and community development manager in Brookfield. She will start her new role in Danbury on Aug. 1. Im a big cheerleader for our region, she said. The position has been vacant since P.J. Prunty left to become executive director of the Greater Danbury Chamber of Commerce in February. In March, the CityCenter board of directors elected Alicia Ghio as its chairwoman. Ghio and her husband Renato Ghio own RmediA, a video production company on Main Street. Alicia Ghio said Paynter puts CityCenter on the path to continued success. We are all looking forward to continuing the improvements and growth in CityCenter and make it more attractive for visitors and increase value for our businesses and taxpayers, she said. Ghio said Paynter brings experience in relationship building, event planning, grant writing, small-business development, creative management and marketing outreach. CityCenter Danbury, which has 190 property owners as members, is a public entity dedicated to the revitalization of the citys downtown area. It sponsors events such as concerts and movies on the green, farmers markets, and Downtown Chowdown, a block party with food trucks that takes place every Thursday afternoon in the summer. CityCenters goals include attracting new business to the downtown district, supporting infrastructure improvements near Main Street, and encouraging growth and investment in the district. In recent years, downtown Danbury has begun a transformation with the luxury apartment complex One Kennedy Place, the expansion of Naugatuck Valley Community Colleges branch campus, several coffee shops and the opening of the Greater Danbury Community Health Center, which employs about 60 health professionals. Paynter said she wants to continue the beautification efforts that have started in downtown with murals and sculptures. She also wants to create more networking opportunities for the small business owners in the district. She said her biggest strengths are marketing and business development. Im ready to put those skills to work, she said. The district is downtown, but what happens here touches all of Danbury. Prunty has met with Paynter and stands behind the vision she has for downtown. She has a good perspective on the vision she has for downtown, Prunty said. Shes local and she knows the lay of the land. She very community-oriented and thats important for that role. Prunty said CityCenter Danbury and the Chamber of Commerce share similar goals for the city and its businesses. There is the opportunity to work collaboratively in many facets, he said. The writer may be reached at cbosak@hearstmediact.com; 203-731-3338 FAIRFIELD Three juveniles were arrested after reportedly leading police on chase through town and into Bridgeport early Sunday morning. According to Fairfield police, around 3:30 a.m. Sunday, a caller reported four black males going through vehicles, then fleeing in a sport utility vehicle. A Fairfield officer arrived on scene and police said that a Honda, occupied by four people, attempted to ram his vehicle, striking it but causing little to no damage, then fled south on Grasmere Avenue. A second Fairfield officer reportedly spotted the Honda on the Post Road heading into Bridgeport, where a pursuit began. At Fairfield Avenue and Interstate 95, the vehicle skidded out and all occupants ran. Police said a female who had exited the passenger side of the vehicle, unknown as to front or rear, was arrested. A firearm was located on the ground just outside the front passenger door. A Fairfield officer allegedly chased a male from the vehicle and captured him a short distance away. According to a release from the police, a perimeter was immediately set up with the assistance of Bridgeport police and the Connecticut State Police, covering I-95 and the ramp. Police said a Fairfield officer with a canine began searching the area, and the dog alerted the officer to the exact position where one male suspect was hiding in deep brush along side of I-95. He instantly surrendered, police said. The fourth suspect, a black male wearing a red sweatshirt, was not located. The suspects are from the New Haven area, familiar to this department for similar activities. At least two of the three in custody have outstanding warrants. The Honda had been stolen from West Haven Saturday with the keys in it. No additional firearms have been located as of this time. Its unclear whether the suspects took anything from the cars they were seen rummaging through. TEL AVIV - A 15-year-old Palestinian, Taher Mezher, was killed last night by Israeli army fire during violence reported at the refugee camp of Deheishe near Bethlehem, West Bank, Palestinian news agency Maan reports. The news agency said that dozens of residents were wounded or intoxicated by tear gas. Israeli military radio added that the violence started when residents tried to prevent soldiers from arresting two suspects at the camp. An investigation has been opened into the teen's death, the radio said. NORWALK There were gasps and shouts of protests on Monday afternoon outside West Rocks Middle School as gathered parents and students learned that Vice Principal Joseph Devellis would be reassigned to Roton Middle School. Its a personal vendetta, Devellis told the group after exiting a 2:30 p.m. meeting with Chief of School Operations Frank Costanzo and Director of Labor Relations Anthony Shannon. Devellis hugged members of the group and consoled some of the more distraught demonstrators. They asked me what I thought, Devellis said of the meeting. I dont want to go. Its crazy. Through Norwalk Association of School Administrators Vice President Tony Ditrio, who was also present at the meeting, Devellis declined to speak further on the proceedings. According to Ditrio, for the next school year, Devellis will be on special assignment at Roton Middle School overseeing the guidance department. It is not clear as of what date Devellis new position will be effective, or for how long he will be on special assignment at the Highland Avenue school. Ditrio and Devellis asked in the meeting whether hed be placed back at West Rocks after the 2018-2019 school year, but received no guarantee, they said. His pay will not be affected, and technically it is not a demotion. Were going to fight it, but we dont have a lot, Ditrio said. The meeting between school system representatives and Devellis was called last week and was originally meant to take place at City Hall. A little more than an hour before the meeting was supposed to begin, Ditrio said he was notified that Costanzo and Shannon would, in fact, be traveling to West Rocks for the meeting. We know why. Theyre hoping to avoid everybody, said Ditrio, indicating that NPS administrators had gotten word that protestors planned to gather during the meeting. Costanzo arrived at West Rocks just after 2:30 p.m. and skirted the group of protestors gathered by the front entrance by entering a side door. He waved toward the group as on woman yelled You want to avoid the crowd! After the meeting, Costanzo and Shannon left together, amid shouts of Youre not welcome here and shame. Costanzo declined to comment on the meeting and the change of venue. For many of the roughly 30 parents and students gathered outside, as well as Ditrio, Devellis reassignment could not be viewed independently from the efforts to fire West Rocks Principal Lynne Moore that are ongoing. I feel that its a witch hunt and I feel that there is a goal to get Dr. Moore removed, said Elisabeth Beausoleil, who has one daughter who recently graduated from West Rocks and another that is going into sixth grade. Moore is in the middle of pre-termination proceedings, for charges that neither NASA nor school representatives have disclosed. On July 16, she met with Costanzo at City Hall for a Loudermill hearing a due process right to public employees before removal in which they are given a chance to respond to allegations. The hearing was continued to 10 a.m. Aug. 3 at City Hall. At 2 p.m. Monday, members of West Rocks School Governance Council and parent representatives met with Mayor Harry Rilling to advocate for the West Rocks administrators. He felt very receptive. He doesnt have any control or say in the issue, but he understands that the parents should be heard. Its a big issue, said Blaire Kagan Anderson, president of the West Rocks PTO, who arrived, along with other parents who attended the meeting with the mayor, around the time Devellis emerged from the school. The mayor recommended that the parents continue to pursue a conversation with Superintendent of Schools Steven Adamowski, though Anderson said two requests to meet with the schools top official had been denied. Everything since the end of the school year has been nefarious, said West Rocks School Governance Council member David Young. Including the change of location today. justin.papp@scni.com; @justinjpapp1; 203-842-2586 Migrants:nearly 7,000 apprehended at Turkey border in 7 days Ankara, '740 intercepted at dea, 105 traffickers detained' (ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, JULY 23 - Turkish authorities have apprehended 6,801 migrants and refugees over the past week as they were trying to cross the border with the European Union or to enter the country without regular documents. They included 740 who were intercepted at sea, the Turkish interior ministry said. The ministry added that over the same period a reported 105 alleged human traffickers were arrested by authorities. Ever since a controversial agreement signed on March 2016 with Brussels, the number of migrants and refugees who have reached every day the EU, especially Greece, from Turkey, has decreased in a considerable way. (ANSAmed) EDWARDSVILLE With the resignation of Southern Illinois University system President Randy Dunn, retired SIU School of Medicine Dean Kevin Dorsey was named as the interim president. At a recent meeting of the SIU Board, trustees approved a severance agreement equaling $250,000 for six-months and Dunn will be assigned as a visiting professor at the Edwardsville campus starting in the spring of 2019 with a base salary of $100,000 a year. Doresy will receive a base salary of $430,000 for a one-year term while the board begins a search for a new president. In a statement issued by Dunn, he said the separation provides a fair way for all parties to resolve some of the tension throughout the SIU system. "In my role I had become a polarizing figure, so my retirement, along with the new leadership of an outstanding interim president, can allow healing to begin across all parts of the organization and advance important decisions that will need to be made for the future," his statement said. The SIUE Faculty Senate issued a statement thanking Dunn for his service as the SIU president and calling for the interim board president to lead the board of trustees toward fairness and equity. "The SIUE FSEC (Faculty Senate Executive Committee) calls upon the SIU Board of Trustees to acknowledge publicly that the present and future roles of the universities in the SIU system must evolve and are not forever defined, bound and limited by previous circumstances, outdated decisions and obsolete mission statements," the statement said. "The SIUE FSEC further calls upon the members of the Illinois General Assembly to observe the establishment of a forward looking healthy, and sustainable partnership among equal universities in the SIU system." In addition, the SIUE Faculty Senate Executive Committee is challenging to the SIU Board of Trustees to move forward with the commitment to hire, within six months, an impartial expert consultant "charged to devise a dynamic, data-driven budget allocation formula for the system and to accept an implement the consultant's recommendations without delay." Dunn's retirement was the result of strife between the Carbondale and Edwardsville campuses over equitable funding allocations. Earlier in the year, Dunn had supported a controversial proposal that would have allocated an additional $5 million in funds to the Edwardsville campus. During the same time, a group of Metro East lawmakers introduced bills seeking to break up the SIU system, change the makeup of the board and revise the amount of state funding, giving the Edwardsville campus a larger share. The move angered Carbondale faculty and staff who charged that Dunn was biased towards the SIUE campus and was working behind the scenes to undermine the Carbondale campus regarding funding allocation. Dorsey earned his bachelor's degree at Fairfield University in Connecticut in 1964 and his doctoral degree at the University of Wisconsin in 1968. He earned his medical degree at SIU in 1978. After completing his internal medicine residency and a two-year fellowship at the University of Iowa, Dorsey returned to the SIU School of Medicine in 1982 as an instructor. He was appointed dean and provost of the school of medicine in 2001 and retired from the position in 2015. 10 hours ago Supply Issues Give Lennox Investors A Chill Demand For Lennox Offset By Supply Chain Issues Lennox International (NYSE: LII) is evidence the systemic issues plaguing the market are not something to be ignored. While the average S&P 500 company is still beating the consensus figures that is not true across the market. Read Article EU can invest up to 50 bn in Africa, Tajani 'Closing ports useless, Salvini should revise Visegrad alliance' (ANSAmed) - BRUSSELS, JULY 23 - European Parliament president Antonio Tajani has spoken again about a "Marshall Plan for Africa" through investing in the economy of the continent and fighting against a migrant exodus in an interview with the French daily Le Figaro. "We need a global strategy" for Africa, he said. "Europe has the means to help" and should invest "40 billion euros in the 2021-2027 budget", though this number could potentially rise to "50 billion euros". "It is illusory to believe that we can slow the movement of the population by blocking some ports," Tajani stressed, reiterating that there is the need for "true team work involving all European countries" to help Africa. Alone, aid from individual nations cannot "solve the problem", he said. Tajani added that deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini "must change his alliance" on the issue of migrants, since "the countries of the Visegrad Pact refuse any type of European solidarity". He stressed that the direction to take was what had been used in Niger, where the EU invested "a billion euros between 2014 and 2020, and in collaboration with the UN" and "reduced the number of transits from 300,000 in 2016 to less than 10,000". (ANSAmed). Italian ports 'open to Sophia mission until change' FM meets with German counterpart, 'operation to continue' (ANSA) - ROME, JULY 23 - Italian ports will remain open to the EU's Sophia migrant search-and-rescue mission until its operational rules are changed in a few weeks time and Italy will no longer be the only landing point, Foreign Minister Enzo Moavero Milanesi said Monday. Speaking after meeting German counterpart Heiko Maas in Berlin, Moavero said that in the meantime, "Italy will guarantee docking in its ports of all the persons saved" by the Sophia mission ships. "Within the space of a few weeks we will arrive at the modification of the operational rules of the European navy operation Sophia, which should put an end to landing rescued people in a single country," he said. "It is not a matter of a new Operation Sophia," Moavero said. "It is a matter of new rules under which Operation Sophia must continue." "Our talk was extremely important," Maas said. "It is very important that Operation Sophia goes forward and it is important to understand in the coming weeks how the people can be relocated." "It emerged in the European Council that shared responsibility is needed from the time the people are rescued, beyond who has the right to asylum or not," Moavero said. "We have to deal with a complicated issue that requires shifting the attention from the time of arrival to the time of departure from places of origin: to the source of the river and not only the mouth of. We must intervene in the countries they leave from, take action on the routes of these tragic movements against human traffickers" as well as continue rescue operations at sea. (ANSAmed). Crocodile hunt moves to Tri Trang, south end of Patong Bay PHUKET: The hunt for the elusive crocodile along Phukets southwest coast moved further north today to Tri Trang Beach at the southern end of Patong Bay. tourismmarineanimalsSafetypatong By Eakkapop Thongtub Monday 23 July 2018, 04:32PM The crocodile search today focussed on Tri Trang Beach, with officials now expecting the croc to head further north to Paradise Beach or even to Patong Beach, where tourists have been warned. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Members of the expert Kraithong Lumnamtapi team from the Department of Fisheries in Surat Thani named after the legendary crocodile hunter in Thai folklore launched a search at Tri Trang after the crocodile was spotted in the area this morning (July 23). The crocodile was last seen surfacing about 500 metres offshore from Tri Trang Beach, reported members of the team, with officers from Patong Municipality joining the search. Three jet-skis were launched to scour the waters for the reptile, including to see if the croc was taking refuge among the rocks along the shoreline. During the patrol, members of the search saw the crocodile floating on the surface. The team stopped at a distance to observe the crocodile and trying to guide it towards the shore, but it quickly submerged after seeing the search team approach. After waiting for almost two hours, the search team saw no sign of the croc. Team members explained that the crocodile has been observed to normally surface to breathe every 15 to 30 minutes, and that they believed the crocodile might attempt to escape to nearby Paradise Beach or even further north to Patong Beach. The team then moved to Paradise Beach and warned tourists not to play in the water, or by the waters edge. Kathu District Chief Somprach Prabsongkram said that he has stationed staff to warn tourists at Patong Beach. If anyone sees the crocodile they can immediately inform the nearest officer, he said. Dont get too close because it might scare the crocodile away, he added, noting that the current efforts were aimed at catching the croc. Mr Somprach added that he believed the efforts to catch the crocodile would be successful soon. The wind and the waves are easing, which will make it easier for us, he said. Millions of baby crabs released into Phuket mangroves PHUKET: In a bid to help the local ecosystems replenish to health levels, Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong on Friday (July 20) led an event in Mai Kho to release millions of baby crabs into the mangroves. Environment By The Phuket News Monday 23 July 2018, 12:52PM An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept An estimated 6.4 million baby crabs were released during the event on Friday (July 20). Photo: PR Dept The event, held amid the mangrove forest near the Phuket Sirinath Marine National Park Operations Centre 2 in Mai Khao, got underway at 11am. At the event, Governor Norrapat was joined by the heads of local government agencies as well as fisheries officials and youngsters, altogether totalling more than 100 people. The release of sea animals was organised by the Phuket Fishery Office and members of a local fishery network to restore the richness of nature, increase the number of sea animals in the area, improve the quality of life of local residents, support the community to join resource administration and promote ecotourism, said a release by the Phuket office of the Public Relations Department. In in total, the event saw the release of 20,000 sea bass fingerlings, 250 horse crabs, 300 sea crabs and a claimed 6.4 million baby horse crabs. Raise the Phoenix efforts still going ahead, assures Phuket Tourist Police chief PHUKET: The chief of the Phuket Tourist Police today confirmed that efforts to raise the Phoenix tour boat are still continuing, despite lengthy delays in organising the equipment needed to float the large tour boat from its resting place 1.5 nautical miles off Koh Hei (Coral Island), south of Phuket. tourismmarinedeathdisasters By Sirapisit Bunchoocheep Monday 23 July 2018, 05:29PM Thai Navy divers prepare to submerge in the effort to recover the last body from under the Phoenix last week. Since the last body was recovered, no news has been forthcoming about promised efforts to raise the tour boat for investigation. Photo: PR Dept / file The Phoenix sank in a strong storm squall late in the afternoon of July 5. Of the 89 tourists on board, 47 died in the disaster. All those killed and injured in the calamity were tourists from China. The boat now rests at a depth of about 45 metres. At this time, I cannot say when the actual recovery will begin or end as a lot is still being organised. It is taking time, Maj Eakkachai Siri of the Phuket Tourist Police told The Phuket News today (July 23). But we have our plan to recover the Phoenix, I can guarantee you that 100%, he added. The confirmation by Maj Eakkachai today comes after a shroud of silence had fallen on the operation to raise the Phoenix since the flurry of daily reports on the efforts to recover the last body trapped on the seabed under the boat. Once the last body was recovered, no news about raising the Phoenix or the ensuing investigation have been forthcoming despite the Phoenix standing as the worst single-vessel maritime disaster in Thailands modern history. Former Phuket Marine Chief Phuripat Teerakulpisut on July 11 explained how the Marine Department was working on a plan to raise the Phoenix. Although now Director of Marine Office 3, Mr Phuripat has previously served as Phuket Marine Chief for more than 10 years, though under two periods. He left the island only in 2016. (See story here.) This operation needs care as not to damage the boat. It needs skilled people who are good at recovering boats, because the boat is lying at a depth of 45 metres, the recovering boat needs to use a 400-ton crane to lift the Phoenix straight and pump water out, he said. This operation does not allow for anyone except officials and skilled staff. The equipment needed to recover the boat has not yet arrived. It might take 10 to 15 days to recover the boat, depending on the weather, he added. (See story here.) Meanwhile, Maj Eakkachai also confirmed to The Phuket News today that the registered owner of the Phoenix, Woralak Rerkchaikarn, 26, registered as living on Wichit Songkram Rd in Phuket Town, and the captain of the Phoenix, Somjing Boontham 50, registered as living in Moo 1, Rassada, have been transferred to Phuket Provincial Prison while being held on remand. The Phuket Provincial Court had denied bail to Woralak and Somjing as both face charges of negligence causing death and serious injury, and causing danger to the body or mind, Maj Eakkachai said. The court had initially held the two on remand at the detention cells at the court building. However, construction engineer for the Phoenix, Onchan Kanhayote, 56, of Phetchabun Province, has been released on bail, he said. Regarding the sinking of the Serenata tour boat, which sank off Koh Mai Thon in the same storm on July 5 but with all 41 people on board rescued, Maj Eakkachai today also confirmed that the captain, Metha Limsakul, 58, had also been released on bail. Chinese national 26-year-old Pang Daxian, however, has not been so fortunate. Pang, arrested just days after the incident for allegedly working as the manager of Lazy Cat Travel, which operated tours on the Serenata, remains incarcerated in the detention cells at Phuket Immigration. Pang and Metha both face charges of negligence causing physical and mental harm to others. The Serenata has been recovered and is now being held at Phuket Boat Lagoon pending further investigation, Maj Eakkachai confirmed. Open Arms files complaint against Libyan Coast Guard For manslaughter, Tripoli calls for neutral inquiry (ANSAmed) - ROME, JULY 23 - Open Arms, the migrant rescue ship of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, weighed anchor from the Mallorca port and on Sunday left towards the search and rescue area off Libya on its 48th mission. Nearby two corpses and a woman struggling to remain afloat had been found on July 17 (http://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/10695/libyan-coast-guard-ab andoned-migrants-to-die-in-mediterranean-says-rescue-charity). The incident has become associated with the face of Josefa, a woman rescued after 48 hours at sea, and her wide-open frightened eyes. On the incident, head of mission Roberto Gatti said that the NGO had filed a complaint against the captain of the Libyan cargo ship Triades for failing to help and manslaughter, as well as against the captain of the Libyan Coast Guard motorboat and any other ships involved. Open Arms has not, however, filed a complaint against the Italian government, which media reports had initially said it had. The Libyan naval chief of staff has rejected all accusations and called for a "neutral commission of inquiry". "I hope that the Spanish prosecutor's office investigates the Libyan and Italian Coast Guard," Open Arms founder Oscar Camps said in a press conference after in the incident, in which one of the two women and a child allegedly abandoned at sea drowned, while the other woman was found alive and taken aboard the Open Arms vessel. The Libyan governments has claimed that the complaint is "part of a systematic campaign led by NGOs". Pope Francis meanwhile expressed pain over the recent drowning of migrants in the Mediterranean in his Angelus. (ANSAmed). Vehicle thieves get creative BANGKOK: The latest police crackdown on vehicle theft by the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) has revealed that a large number of vehicles are being stolen by means other than being broken into. crimepoliceMyanmartransport By Bangkok Post Monday 23 July 2018, 08:47AM A black Audi coupe is confiscated from a gang which allegedly forged its vehicle registration details. The gang is also suspected of involvement in car theft. Photo: Wassayos Ngamkham Sakkarin Yingchatchawanchai, 28, fled before his houses were raided by CSD police last Tuesday (July 17). The suspect had faked his identity to avoid arrest for allegedly running a gang that stole vehicles and exported them. Police seized 16 cars suspected to have been stolen, Pol Col Bunlue Phadungthin, chief of CSDs subdivision 3, said. Sakkarin had changed his name from Wirawat Sipodok, registered as a resident of Nonthaburis Bang Yai district. He previously ran an auto repair shop on Phibun Songkhram Rd in Nonthaburi. The owner of a car rental business, who declined to be named, told the CSD that he agreed to lease a vehicle to Sakkarin, who appeared well-dressed and respectable. The suspect called the business on March 1 to rent a car for a month. Sakkarin claimed his own car was being repaired and showed the car rental owner a repair document. He also gave copy of his identity card, the victim said. After he took the rental car out, Sakkarin paid a daily rent of B600 for 10 days before telling the car rental business owner that he was having an issue with his finances. After that, he was never heard from again, according to the owner. The CDS said Sakkarin also allegedly had other tricks up his sleeve to steal cars. He encouraged people with financial problems to pawn their vehicles with him, but then went on to sell them on the black market, Col Bunlue said. CSD investigators found pawn and loan documents in Sakkarins houses during last Tuesdays raid. They also confiscated six motorcycles and four guns and ammunition for inspection. Also last week, CSD raids caught a gang believed to have connections with a car theft network. The gang sold used luxury cars illegally to unsuspecting customers, Col Bunlue said. Police are looking into information which might link the gang to any car theft ring, and have confiscated fake vehicle registration plates from the used car business, said the CSD subdivision chief. Police managed to track down one of the vehicles, a black Audi coupe, which the gang had sold to a customer for B12 million at a petrol station on Pradit Manutham Rd in Bangkok. According to investigators, checks found the Audi coupe was registered with the Department of Land Transport as a white vehicle with another registration number. The registration record shows the car belonged to Phongphan Kasemsawat who died in a car crash eight years ago. Mr Phongphan, 39, together with his wife, Benchamat Masing, was driving the car when the accident occurred on a road between Kanchanaburis Phanom district and Nakhon Pathoms Kamphaeng Saen district. The man was killed on the spot while his wife was severely injured. The damaged Audi car was later repaired and sold to the gang which forged the vehicle registration number. Certain state officials must have been involved [in the number plate forgery], Col Bunlue said, adding that someone had almost certainly helped the gang bypass the strict regulations of the registration process. In a third raid last week, the CSD arrested a member of a gang which allegedly stole motorcycles to sell in Myanmar. The crackdown was headed by Pol Col Maen Menyaem, chief of CSDs subdivision 4. His team nabbed a man identified as Athippati Tulathong. He allegedly colluded with a Myanmar accomplice called Hatsan who bought the stolen motorcycles from Athippati. Athippati, who is wanted on multiple arrest warrants, was nabbed in a housing estate in Ratchaburis Ban Pong district. His arrest followed a raid on a gang of five earlier this year after police found they dismantled stolen motorcycles and sent them across the border as spare parts. According to Col Maen, Athippati did not use a sophisticated method, he just stole motorcycles parked in security blind spots at night. Col Maen said Athippati has a knack for avoiding arrest and had been committing the crime in Bangkok and neighbouring provinces for more than 10 years. The 29-year-old suspect has not renewed his identity card since the age of 15 which has made it hard for police to pin him down despite there being four arrest warrants for charges including motorcycle theft and depriving a minor from parental care in his name, added Col Maen. Read original story here. CALGARYOne of Colorados largest recreational pot companies is planning to bring Willie Nelsons marijuana brand to Canada and go public in Toronto, according to people familiar with the matter. LivWell Enlightened Health LLC is planning a series of deals that include taking over management of a Calgary-based cannabis firm and a reverse takeover of investment company Target Capital Inc., said the people, who asked to not be identified because the matter isnt public. It is also changing its name to LivWell International and striking a side deal that will give it perpetual distribution rights in Canada to Willies Reserve, the U.S. country singers namesake marijuana brand, they said. Read more: Celebrity branding, from Willie Nelson to Cheech & Chong, could give pot industry a boost Willie Nelson wants Loretta Lynn to give pot a second chance Bad trip from smoking pot? It could be a sign of mental illness LivWell is expected to have an enterprise value of about $300 million after going public, they said. The Denver-based company has about 500 employees and generates about $80 million (U.S.) in annual sales from marijuana growing, processing and retailing, according to its website. The deals will bring one of the best-known American marijuana brands to Canada, while continuing a trend of U.S. pot companies heading to Toronto to tap investor demand for weed stocks. With U.S. law curbing its ability to expand globally, listing in Canada will give LivWell access to international markets. The company already had a toehold in Canada through a stake in Calgary-based 51st Parallel. LivWell is taking over management of 51st, which is raising $50 million (Canadian), completing the takeover of Target Capital, and buying a $20-million stake in GCH Inc., the owner of Nelsons weed brands, the people said. The GCH deal will give LivWell 12 per cent of that company and a seat on its board, along with a first crack at Canadian rights to other brands GCH develops, the people said. Cannex Capital Holdings Inc., owner of the largest marijuana company in the U.S., listed its shares in Toronto in March. Chief operating officer Leo Gontmakher said at the time that its virtually impossible to raise money in the U.S., where cannabis remains illegal at the federal level. Other publicly traded Canadian firms with U.S. operations include Ottawa-based CannaRoyalty Corp. and Liberty Health Sciences Inc. of Toronto. Recreational marijuana is set to become legal in Canada on Oct. 17, opening a market that Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Kenneth Shea has estimated may exceed $5 billion in 2020. Pot in edibles and beverages and for vaping will still be outlawed for up to a year after legalization as the government takes more time to address the risks of those products. Nelsons pot empire includes the Willies Reserve and Willies Remedy brands, which market flower, vape pens and edible marijuana products. I bought enough of it, so I feel like I should be able to sell some back, the 85-year-old singer said in a promotional video posted online. EDMONTONAn Edmonton judge has struck down an application by the Legal Aid Society of Alberta to join an appeal that challenges the way juries are selected in Alberta. In his decision, Justice Frans Slatter said there was no argument to be made by the society that couldnt be made by Jeremy Newborns lawyers. Newborn admitted violently beating John Hollar, 29, unconscious while riding the LRT on Dec. 28, 2012. Hollar died of his injuries two days later. Newborns second-degree murder trial was supposed to start in October 2014, but when his mother canvassed the room where 178 potential jurors had gathered for selection, she didnt find a single Indigenous person. Defence lawyer Simon Renouf filed a declaration claiming rules in the way jurors are selected violated Newborns rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, specifically his right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law in a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal. Read more: Lack of Indigenous jurors indicative of a systemic problem, experts say Legal Aid wants to help challenge Alberta jury selection rules that exclude Indigenous people Opinion | Shree Paradkar: Our reaction to injustice for Colten Boushie is a reflection of our soul as individuals and Canadians The charter challenge was heard in December 2015, and centred on a section of the Jury Act that bans anyone who has been convicted of a crime or who is currently charged with a criminal offence from serving on a jury in Alberta. Jacqueline Quinless, a sociology and statistics expert called as a witness, calculated that in a pool of 178 people pulled for jury selection, given the population of Indigenous people in and around Edmonton, she would expect about 10 to be Indigenous. The fact that there were zero, Quinless suggested, was a result of systematic barriers that prevent Indigenous people from serving on juries. One of those barriers is the fact that Indigenous people continue to be overrepresented in the criminal justice system. While there is no data directly tracking the conviction rate of Indigenous people compared to the rest of the population, the rate of incarceration of Indigenous people in Canada continues to outpace their representation in the overall population. Quinless said it could be inferred that Indigenous people are overrepresented in those convicted of crimes, meaning a rule that bans people with criminal convictions from serving on a jury disproportionately affects Indigenous people. While the judge did not dispute Quinlesss testimony, that charter challenge was defeated. In appealing Newborns conviction he was sentenced to life in prison without being eligible for parole for 15 years once his trial resumed after the charter challenge was struck down Renouf argued the judge erred in dismissing the charter challenge. The Legal Aid Society of Alberta wanted intervenor status so it could make the point that the Jury Act discriminates against marginalized people which it, by nature, represents. This is an important question that is going to impact every jury trial in Alberta, said Legal Aid lawyer Dane Bullerwell, presenting his argument to Slatter in Edmonton court on July 18. However, in his decision delivered on Friday, the societys application for intervenor status was dismissed. Read more about: LOS ANGELESSitting in a Four Seasons suite on a recent morning, Denzel Washington and Ashton Sanders are giving off a distinct father-son vibe. Washington, a veteran actor 40 years Sanders senior, is holding the Moonlight star accountable for his goals like only a parental figure and mentor can. You just said, I want to be just like you, right? Washington said. Yes, said Sanders, his face dropping like a toddler in timeout. And then you said, I will Sanders frustratedly interrupted him: Ive (already) started doing it. Damn. Washington burst into laughter. What, you mean you made $10 million? Why didnt you make 20? he joked. The two stars of The Equalizer 2 look at each other. Washingtons eyes are filled with pride and glee, Sanders with aplomb and gratitude. Its like looking in a mirror, at what once was and what can be. Equalizer 2 picks up where 2014s original which was loosely based on the 1980s procedural TV series starring Edward Woodward left off. Washingtons Robert McCall, an ex-government operative turned avenging angel, is still doling out justice for the exploited and oppressed. Though Antoine Fuquas action-crime thriller very much earns its R rating for violence, theres an unexpectedly emotional through line this time thanks to a relationship McCall builds with a teenage neighbour (Sanders) about to make poor life decisions. When a group of men looking to kill McCall takes the young man hostage, McCall is faced with some tough choices. The film also marks the first time Washington has made a sequel in his 40-year career. I dont know about the word sequel. That doesnt mean anything to me. Thats a business term, he said. This was just a story and a character that I was still interested in. The exploration of a surrogate father-son relationship in the script by Richard Wenk (who also wrote the first film) helped. The bones were there, and though I hadnt met Ashton yet, the idea was good, he said. He noted that their mentor-mentee relationship only grew as we got to know each other and (the film) became an extension of our conversations between takes. It was natural for me because I have two sons, and he was like my third son, Washington continued. He asked questions and Id answer, or try to, about things he wanted to know about the business. For Sanders, who turned 20 while Moonlight was in production and is now 22, working with Washington and Fuqua was a life goal and influenced his decision to seek the role. They are masters at their craft, and Ive been looking up to Denzel for a minute, he said. I just wanted to be in scene with him and work with and learn from him. He called the relationship between his character, Miles, and Washingtons McCall important. Miles represents a lot of Black boys living in similar situations trying to figure themselves out, not really having anybody or a father figure to be there to point you in the right direction, he said. Miles isnt the worst kid, but hes engaging in stuff he shouldnt be, so its a story of hope in the hood. In the film, Washingtons character continues his ongoing task of reading the 100 books everyone should read before they die, a promise he made to himself after the death of his wife, who had almost completed the list. The 98th book on the list is Ta-Nehisi Coates Between the World and Me, the authors 2015 work written as a letter to his son about being Black in America. It was the perfect book to use in the movie, Washington said, and its a detail he made happen after meeting Coates while having dinner with Black Panther director Ryan Coogler. Ryan said, I want you to meet this young writer, Ta-Nehisi, Washington recalled. Hes there at the dinner. We start talking. Hes telling me all about his book and life and how he grew up. So I asked him if I could put it in the movie. Sanders was familiar with the book, though he hadnt read it. I started reading it in between takes, when we would have like 30 minutes of downtime, he said. It was very appropriate to the relationship in the film. Other books highlighted include Marcel Prousts In Search of Lost Time, Hermann Hesses Siddhartha and Richard Wrights Native Son the last of which was recently adapted into a film by the artist Rashid Johnson and is due for release next year from Moonlight distributor A24 with Sanders in a starring role. When asked what message moviegoers should take from Equalizer 2, Washington said, I dont like to preach. People ask me that question and I always say it depends on what they bring to it, he said. Sanders agreed, noting that his approach to his career involves taking on projects that continue to tell authentic stories that people can relate to. I never want to do anything thats not teaching somebody something, he said. I think its our jobs as artists to use our craft to teach. But something he has learned from this film, in working with Washington up close, is more than anything, to trust my artistic spirit, to trust myself. And to keep it simple, he added, as Washington nodded in agreement. I tend to overthink things. I have this perfectionist mentality, and he caught me in that on set. He was, like, Yo, chill. Its not that deep. The mistakes are the best part. You are here to do what youve been hired to do. Washington interrupted, smiling: Youve got the job already. Were getting ready to wrap in three days and youre still auditioning. The veteran of stage and screen who has won two Oscars and a Tony over the years credited his mother for teaching him to keep it simple. Though he said he had to learn the lesson the hard way. But Im at a place now where I want to share what I know, Washington said. I want to pass it on and see others do well. We should all reach back, and not just when you get to my age. We all have a responsibility. HALIFAXWith humidex values reaching 36 C or higher on Monday and expected to continue for the next two days, heat warnings have been issued for the entire province of Nova Scotia. Environment Canada issued a weather alert Monday morning advising that a very warm and humid airmass has settled over the province and will likely persist at least through Wednesday. The weather agency noted skies cleared slightly quicker over parts of Nova Scotia on Monday. This will allow humidex values to climb to 36 C or higher, especially over inland areas. As of 2 p.m. Monday the humidex had already bypassed 36 C in Truro, where it was 37 C. It was 34 C in Halifax, 35 in Yarmouth and stood at 36 in Kentville. Humidex is whats triggering the heat warning at the moment. Over the next couple of days were going to stay in this kind of airmass, explained Environment Canada meteorologist Ian Hubbard. Read more: Halifax in for a humid summer with potential for tropical downpours Haligonians providing relief for the homeless as scorching weather continues Summer fun in Halifax with no shortage of big festivals on tap Conditions are expected to remain favourable on Tuesday and Wednesday for high temperatures in the 27 to 30 C range, giving humidex values near 36 C or higher both days. Although showers are expected for Thursday, Hubbard said that will do very little to help with the humidity. Sometimes when you get these cold fronts come through they really clear things out, theyre bringing in a lot of dry cold air, he said. That doesnt seem to be the case with this band of showers coming on Thursday. The heat warnings probably wont stay in effect all week, but the humidity certainly looks like it might stick around even if temperatures are a bit cooler. New criteria used to determine when to issue heat warnings in Nova Scotia came into effect this past May. Health Canada worked with Environment Canada to determine the new criteria. The improvements to the new heat warning service are based on a combination of the latest in health science and detailed analysis of weather patterns, Hubbard said. The previous criteria meant heat warnings would be issued in the province if the humidex hit 40 C. Under the new criteria, warnings are issued if the humidex is expected to reach 36 C for two consecutive days. The temperature must now also be 29 C or warmer for two consecutive days with overnight lows 16 C or above. The main reason for the two-day thing is because you can have one hot day but maybe beforehand it might cool off or you might have a cool night and it doesnt have the same effect as where youre getting two or sometime three or four days in a row where you know theres just no relief, Hubbard said. Theres no dry or cool are coming in so thats kind of the underlying principal as to why criteria was changed for the temperature or the humidex. Those at greater risk for heat-related illnesses like heat stroke or heat exhaustion include young children, older adults, people with chronic illnesses, pregnant women and those who work or exercise outdoors. People are encouraged to check in on older family members, friends and neighbours to make sure they are cool and drinking water. The weather alert also reminds residents to never leave people or pets inside parked vehicles. Yvette d'Entremont is a Halifax-based reporter covering health, environment and education. Follow her on Twitter: @ydentremont Read more about: CANIM LAKE, BRITISH COLUMBIAA group of four First Nations in British Columbias Cariboo region have signed an agreement-in-principle with the provincial and federal governments, moving a step closer to establishing a formal treaty. The agreement-in-principle outlines the elements of a treaty for the four communities, including land and resource ownership, harvesting rights, social services, and processes for transition from the Indian Act to self-governance. Chief Ann Louie of the Texelc First Nation of Williams Lake said in a statement that Sundays signing was a great day, representing the culmination of 25 years of discussions to end the control of the Indian Act on her band. We have heard from others who have achieved Final Agreement of the joy of being free of the Indian Act and making their own decisions for themselves, and the benefits they have been able to achieve for their communities and members, Louie said. The agreement signed Sunday in the Tsqescen community of Canim Lake begins the final stage of treaty negotiations with the communities that make up the Northern Secwepemc te Qelmucw. The BC Treaty Commission released a statement several hours later on Sunday, congratulating the parties on the agreement-in-principle and heralding it as a sign of progress for the Cariboo region. There are complex reconciliation issues in the area, and todays signing . . . signals a commitment to a new relationship for the whole region, said Chief Commissioner Celeste Haldane in the release. A joint statement released by the bands, the Government of Canada and the Government of British Columbia said the treaty informed by the agreement would be guided by the governments new commitments to reconciliation. The Northern Secwepemc te Qelmucw is made up of the Stswecemc-Xgattem, the Texelc, the Tsqescen, and the Xatsull First Nations. The group represents more than 2,600 people and has been negotiating with the British Columbian and Canadian governments since 1996. Read more about: OTTAWAStatistics Canada says some 3,900 sexual assaults reported to police in 2017 were deemed to be unfounded. In all, 14 per cent of sexual assaults reported to police were given the unfounded classification, down from 19 per cent in 2016. The figure is double the 7 per cent of unfounded cases identified among all criminal incidents in Canada last year, Statistics Canada reports this morning in the first reporting of unfounded cases since the agency resumed collecting the data. Police give a case the label unfounded when officers determine through investigation that the offence did not occur. Sexual assaults are among the least likely crimes to be reported to police, but the last year 28,551 incidents were reported, with the biggest monthly bump seen in October, coinciding with the #MeToo movement. Statistics Canada says more severe and violent sexual assaults were less likely to be deemed unfounded than incidents such as unwanted touching or other non-consensual sexual contact. The rate of founded sexual assaults increased by 13 per cent between 2016 and 2017. Read more: Government inaction on Greyhound route cancellations will endanger women fleeing abuse, advocate says OTTAWAA 24-year old Ottawa man has been charged after an incident on Parliament Hill Monday morning. Ottawa police said Monday evening that Jesse Mooney has been charged with assault and breach of probation after an altercation on Parliament Hill during the Changing of the Guard parade Monday morning. Earlier, government officials had said a man was arrested while carrying a knife. But the Parliamentary Protective Service clarified Monday evening that a small pocket knife had been found near the person who was arrested. Due to the quick reaction of our soldiers, RCMP and Parliamentary Protective Services, the potential threat was identified and neutralized, the Department of National Defence wrote in a statement. No one was injured during this incident. The department refused any further comment on the incident, as did the RCMPs national division, deferring to Ottawas municipal police who are leading the investigation. The Parliamentary Precinct, and Parliament Hill, has had an increased police presence in recent years after a gunman shot Cpl. Nathan Cirillo at the National War Memorial before being gunned down in Centre Block in October 2014. It did not appear that normal security measures had been stepped up after Mondays arrest, however. One Parliamentary Protective Service member said hed heard there was an arrest. A RCMP officer shrugged and said he knew nothing about the incident. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan wrote on Twitter he had been briefed on the incident, but provided no further details. Relieved that no one was injured, Sajjan wrote. Thank you to all Canadian Armed Forces, RCMP and Parliamentary Protective Services members for your prompt response. Mooney is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday. Read more about: Some of Ontarios $1.9 billion in spending on mental health and addiction supports will be going to the police, Premier Doug Ford said after an impromptu city hall summit on fighting gun violence. Ford did not elaborate during an interview with CTV News Toronto on how much money will flow to police, what it will be spent on or how that could help prevent tragedies such as Sundays Danforth mass shooting in which a gunman killed a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman, and injured 13 others. The family of 29-year-old Faisal Hussain, who died after his rampage, said in a statement Monday he struggled with psychosis and severe mental health challenges his entire life. Ford who met with Mayor John Tory, Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders and Bill Blair, federal minister of border security and organized crime reduction noted that Ottawa has also previously pledged to spend $1.9 billion on mental health. Read more: Suspected Danforth shooters family cites psychosis, severe mental health challenges, after SIU identifies him as Faisal Hussain, 29, of Toronto From Alexander the Great Parkette to a shootout on Bowden St., how a gunmans walk hit at the heart of the Danforth What drove Toronto shooting suspect to unleash violence on the Danforth? Experts say only a very small percentage of people who experience mental health issues act out violently, and the chance of being killed by a mentally ill stranger is exceedingly rare. When asked how he views the court system and gun crime, Ford said hes pretty biased when it comes to this. Our sentences arent tough enough for people with guns that commit violent gun acts, Ford, who refused to speak to waiting reporters when he left the city hall meeting, later told CTV. I think we have to toughen up the sentences and we cant let these people out in a few years on parole and let it happen again. Or somebody gets arrested on a Friday night and they get bail and are back out on Wednesday for retribution. Thats absolutely unacceptable and I think there was a consensus in the (meeting) room on that and I think the laws have to be changed. Tory spokesperson Don Peat said the mayor is on record talking about the need for tougher gun laws and parole laws. At the start of Mondays city council meeting, the mayor said, I promise all the people of Toronto, but most importantly those directly affected by this tragedy, that we will all be relentless in getting answers about why this senseless attack happened. There are far too many people carrying around guns in our city and our region who should not have them. As photographers snapped photos before the city hall meeting, Blair said, We stand united all three levels of government stand united behind our first responders and the city of Toronto ... to bring all the support and resource that is required to keep Toronto a great safe and livable city. As he left Torys office, Blair called the meeting excellent. His communications aide did not respond to a request for the ministers reaction to Fords comments. Mondays council meeting was to start with debate over a recently proposed plan to curb gun violence after a spate of Toronto shootings. Instead, that debate was postponed until Tuesday as Tory and councillors for the east-end neighbourhood expressed their grief and sorrow. Tory acknowledged his lobbying of senior governments to take steps to stem the flow of guns to Toronto criminals wont completely eliminate such shootings, but he vowed to keep up the pressure. Much of the city staff-proposed $44-million, five-year gun violence reduction plan, which proposes $30.3 million in spending on at-risk youth in priority neighbourhoods, is targeted at gang-related shootings and those involving young people. The plan wont address the most pressing issues, such as mental health, that are said to be at play in this most recent violence, local councillors said Monday. Last night when we got to the scene, we were told it was not gang-related violence but this lone-gunman violence, which is new and unique in this way to the city of Toronto and very troubling, very disturbing, said Danforth-area Councillor Paula Fletcher. I do think talking about guns is important. She and Councillor Mary Fragedakis, who lives on and represents the stretch of the Danforth where the shooting took place, said more needs to be done to help people with emotional issues. Were failing as a society, Fragedakis said. People need help. Theyre not getting the help that they need and theyre lashing out in a number of ways and this is one of them. And this has a lot of consequences, obviously, for other people who are collateral damage. Approving the plan is up to council. David Rider is the Stars City Hall bureau chief and a reporter covering Toronto politics. Follow him on Twitter: @dmrider Read more about: Eight GTA residents have been charged with importing fentanyl and other illegal drugs from Canada into Bermuda. The arrests announced on Monday cap an 18-month investigation by the RCMP, Durham Regional Police and Canada Border Services Agency into a ring believed to be importing fentanyl from Canada into Bermuda. Police announced they seized fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana, counterfeit U.S. currency, 12 hand guns and ammunition and a hand grenade, as well as $29,000 in Canadian currency. Robert Collins, 37, of Bowmanville, Ont., is charged with multiple charges for fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana trafficking and possession of proceeds of crime, uttering counterfeit U.S. currency and criminal negligence causing bodily harm. Stephanie Legge, 31, and Jean Simmons, 43, both of Mississauga are charged with fentanyl trafficking and criminal negligence causing bodily harm. Faruk Sebastian Portobanco, 39, of Toronto is charged with fentanyl and cocaine trafficking, possession of proceeds of crime and multiple gun offences. Lemar Patrick Burke, 26, of Pickering is charged with methamphetamine and cocaine trafficking and possession of proceeds of crime. Brian Luckman, 49, of Brampton is charged with methamphetamine trafficking and possession of proceeds of crime. Craig Lawrence, 37, of Markham is charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm. The increase in frequency from five to seven between Lyon and Dubai will see the route become a daily service, while the extra flight to Paris brings to 21 the number of flights per week to the French capital, offering travellers three flights per day. The Lyon flights will start on 2 August 2018, and will operate on a Tuesday and Thursday at the same time as the current flights, which depart Dubai as EK081 at 1435hrs and arrive in Lyon at 1930hrs. The return flight, EK082, leaves Lyon at 2155hrs and arrives in Dubai at 0615hrs the next day. Both flights will be operated by an Emirates Boeing 777-300ER in a three class cabin configuration, with eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie-flat seats in Business Class and 304 spacious seats in Economy Class. The additional Paris flight will start on 7 August 2018, and will operate as the third daily every Tuesday morning. Flight EK071 will depart Dubai at 0405hrs and arrive in Paris at 0925hrs, while the return flight leaves Paris at 1125hrs and arrives back in Dubai at 2000hrs. Calling the technology a fundamental shift to state surveillance, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association is urging city hall to delay the purchase of equipment that detects gunshot locations through a network of publicly placed microphones. In a letter sent to Mayor John Tory over the weekend, the civil rights organization criticized the Toronto police boards last-minute decision Thursday to approve privacy invasive technologies the ShotSpotter microphone system, as well as the purchase of 40 new surveillance cameras to be placed across the city. ShotSpotter is American proprietary technology that feeds police real-time information about the location of gunfire by installing a series of gunshot-detecting sensors in public places. According to a list of municipal clients on ShotSpotters website, the technology has never been used in Canada. Michael Bryant, executive director of the CCLA, said his organization is waving a big red flag about the technologys potential to violate constitutional privacy rights, which would in turn waste policing and equipment costs and risk the admissibility of any evidence obtained. Worse, if placed in poor or diverse neighbourhoods, the new technology may be an unconstitutional sucker punch to racialized communities of Toronto, reads the letter, signed by Bryant and Brenda McPhail, director of the CCLAs privacy, technology and surveillance project. Read more: Toronto police want to use ShotSpotter technology to pinpoint the location of shootings. Does it work? Toronto police board approves gunshot-listening technology City council asked to approve $44-million plan to reduce gun violence The move comes as city council is set to vote on whether to approve the approximately $4-million cost, spread over two years, for the cameras and the ShotSpotter system. The Toronto police board unanimously approved the investment contingent on funding following the surprise motion brought forward by Tory, a board member, in the name of decreasing gun violence. Tory said he hoped the expenditure would be eventually covered by the provincial and federal governments, but he stressed there was an urgency to move ahead because council meets for the final time this week before December, due to the municipal election. The police board agreed there was a need for quick action due to the council schedule, and unanimously passed Torys motion with the added requirement that police chief Mark Saunders report to the board in September about the technologies and what oversight is in place. At the moment we need, right now, to get on with this, Toronto police board chair Andy Pringle said during Thursdays meeting. No information was provided at the meeting about the possible locations for either kind of technology. The ShotSpotter CEO told the Star last week the devices are usually placed in high-crime areas. The CCLA is asking for a 10-day delay to prepare a legal risk analysis which would mean the measure could not be approved during the current council session, effectively postponing it until after the fall election. Holding off on the vote would also permit community feedback, and allow you to share the (Toronto police) case for this purchase, before the money is spent, the letter states. Now is the opportunity for the city to decide what kind of city we want to be, said Bryant in an interview Sunday, saying citizens and politicians must consider if they want the ubiquitous surveillance thats in, for example, London, England, where you cannot be alone in public due to cameras. This is not a decision that ought to be made in haste. Period. Tory said police leaders recently requested the new technology at a meeting held to discuss ways to reduce gun violence, amidst a spate of shootings this summer. So far this year, 27 people have been fatally shot, up from 17 this time last year, though comparable to 25 fatal shootings in mid-July 2016. Don Peat, a spokesperson for Tory, said as the citys plan to address gun violence has been developed, Saunders made it clear there are investments that could be made in technology that will help police keep Toronto safe. Mayor Tory supports the chief and our frontline police officers and wants to make sure they have the tools they need to help them do their job, Peat said in an email Sunday. He added that when Saunders delivers the report in September, members of the public, including the CCLA, will have the chance to deliver their input to the board about this technology at that time. Peat also noted that almost 40 CCTV cameras are already up in Toronto. Acting police board chair Jim Hart said on Sunday the September meeting will be an opportunity to consider what additional steps board members may wish to take. As with any matter, the Board has the ability to exercise its governance and oversight role to determine whether appropriate policies and safeguards are in place, including for technology used by the Toronto Police Service, Hart said in a statement. Members of the public attending last weeks meeting made last-minute deputations decrying the lack of public consultation on the purchase of both the ShotSpotter technology and the new surveillance cameras. If their purchase is approved, the number of Toronto police-owned CCTV cameras would more than double from 34 to 74 devices. The CCLA says privacy best practice guidelines from both federal and provincial watchdogs say public consultation should come before any decision regarding video surveillance. Regarding SpotShotter, the organization says it is entirely untested regarding any privacy impacts, how it might be used in court, and its constitutionality in general. There is also a profoundly practical question yet to be answered: What is its purpose, exactly, and will that purpose be met? Does the City have reliable evidence that ShotSpotter technology is effective at reducing gun violence? reads the letter. The technology, used in approximately 90 cities in the United States, works by placing acoustic sensors on buildings and lampposts to detect and time-stamp gunshots. The data is then used to triangulate where the shot was fired, precise information thats then shared almost simultaneously with police services within 30 to 45 seconds of a trigger being pulled. In New York City, where the technology was adopted in 2015, the ShotSpotter has proven to be a highly effective crime-fighting tool, a spokesperson told the Star last week, helping officers respond to shootings quicker and investigate them more precisely than ever before. Other cities have raised concerns about false alarms. A 2016 report by Forbes found that between 30 to 70 per cent of ShotSpotter alerts resulted in police being unable to find evidence of shootings. Speaking to the Star, the companys CEO, Ralph Clark, said at least three sensors have to detect a pop or a bang before an incident report created and police are informed. He said misclassification is negligible. Clark called his companys technology a very narrow type of surveillance. City council is expected to vote on the funding Monday. With files from Julien Gignac Wendy Gillis is a Toronto-based reporter covering crime and policing. Reach her by email at wgillis@thestar.ca or follow her on Twitter: @wendygillis Read more about: Former premier Kathleen Wynne has returned to the legislature for the first time since her Liberals lost the June 7 election to Premier Doug Fords Progressive Conservatives. With the Danforth shooting looming over Mondays proceedings, it was a sombre day for Wynne to come back to Queens Park. I was very sad to have to talk about what happened on the Danforth, but its really important that we sort out ... what is going on and why this is happening, the Don Valley West MPP said after giving a statement on Sundays tragedy. Wynne, premier for more than five years before stepping down as Liberal leader on election night, conceded it was difficult to be sitting on the opposition side of the legislature. Read more: Star Editorial | Kathleen Wynne doesnt deserve the disdain of voters Doug Ford fires privatization czar, chief investment officer and chief scientist Dont be surprised if Gordon Campbells inquiry aligns with PC ideology, says his former chief of staff Sure, its hard Im not going to pretend its not. But it is good to be back with my colleagues. The work that gets done here is so important and affects so many peoples lives, she told the Star. Somebody said this to me, but its what I really believe: theres no bad seat in that House. There are only 124 of us. It is a huge honour. While Wynne queried Ford about NAFTA talks during the morning question period, her successor bounced it to Economic Development and Trade Minister Jim Wilson. Minutes earlier, the two along with NDP Leader Andrea Horwath, interim Liberal Leader John Fraser, and Green Leader Mike Schreiner made statements to the House on the shooting. It was the first time that two premiers had spoken in the legislature on the same day since 2004 when then Liberal premier Dalton McGuinty and his Tory predecessor Ernie Eves were both MPPs. Robert Benzie is the Star's Queen's Park bureau chief and a reporter covering Ontario politics. Follow him on Twitter: @robertbenzie Read more about: It was about 11 p.m., an hour before the end of Emelia Holdens serving shift late last month, when she felt the hand grab her backside. Holden, 21, had just finished taking a customers order and placing a stack of menus on an unoccupied table in the small restaurant, Vinnie Van Go-Gos pizzeria in Savannah, Ga. Suddenly, she felt someone grope her from behind. At first she thought it might have been her female co-worker, she recalled to local CBS affiliate WTOC. But as she turned around, she saw that it was a customer walking past her, a 31-year-old man police later identified as Ryan Cherwinski, of Palm Bay, Fla. I was like nope, thats not going to happen, Holden told WTOC. It was an experience common to far too many women in the service industry. But Holden wasnt having it. Read more: Opinion | Harassment and violence should never be part of the job New Ontario law targets sexual violence, harassment in workplaces, schools Former WestJet flight attendant draws attention to sexual harassment in airline industry What happened next was captured by the restaurants surveillance footage and circulated widely online over the past weekend: The man takes no more than three steps past Holden before the petite waitress is seen grabbing him by the shirt collar, yanking him backward and hurling him against the wall. As he falls to the ground, Holden is seen pointing a finger at him. The entire time, the video shows, Holden never lets go of the notepad in her left hand. It felt a lot longer than it was, but then watching it I realized how quickly I reacted to it, Holden said. Im 115 pounds . . . I didnt know I couldnt do that. Cherwinski weighs 175 pounds, WTOC reported, citing a police report. Holden asked a co-worker to call the police. After speaking to Holden and watching the surveillance footage, the Savannah Police Department arrested Cherwinski, took him into custody and charged him with sexual battery, a police spokesperson told the Savannah Morning News. I was really satisfied when he was arrested, Holden said. It not only felt like justice for me but justice for the other women who have had that happen. According to the Associated Press, Cherwinski told police he touched her by accident. His attorney, Tina Marie Hesse, declined to comment when reached by the AP. Cherwinski tried to tell Holden that he was simply trying to move her out of the way as he walked past her, she recalled to WTOC. No, we know what you were doing, Holden said. The incident happened on June 30. But after one of Holdens relatives posted the surveillance footage on Reddit last week, it spread rapidly across the internet. A video of the incident on YouTube has been watched more than 4.6 million times. Viewers praised Holden for her response. An editorial cartoon in the Savannah Morning News titled You Go-Go, Girl! depicted Holden pointing at the offender as he lies on the ground. Wait staff arent on the menu! Holden is portrayed as saying. Creep! A customer touches the buttocks of a waitress, passing behind her on the terrace of Vinnie Van Go-Go's restaurant in Savannah, Georgia. Bad idea ! The woman catches him by the neck and the plate on a chair, under the eyes of the other customers quietly seated. A reaction that should serve as a lesson. Women began flooding Holden with messages saying they found the video empowering and inspiring, she told WTOC. Many wrote about their own experiences with sexual harassment and assault while working in the restaurant industry. I work there, it was just another Saturday night, one commentator wrote on the Reddit post of the video. This literally happens ALL the time. We just put the cameras up so this was the first guy weve been able to prosecute. Freelance journalist Alice Driver wrote an opinion article on CNN about her years working as a waitress during college in Kentucky. Had I possessed her confidence at that age, I too would have body-slammed a customer who groped me, Driver wrote. Although I liked the social nature of my work and eating free desserts on my break, I was acutely aware of how the money I earned was tied to my ability to ignore or laugh at daily sexual harassment, like a man pinching my butt, as the customer did in the viral video of Holden. Recent studies have shown that women who work in low-wage restaurant jobs are particularly vulnerable to sexual harassment. Jocelyn Frye, who researches womens economic security at the Center for American Progress, a think tank in Washington, found this year that workers in food services and retail filed more than three times as many claims as employees in higher-paying fields of finance and insurance. Frye also found that nearly three-quarters of those filing sexual harassment complaints also reported retaliation. A 2014 report from the Restaurant Opportunities centre also found that two-thirds of female restaurant workers were sexually harassed by restaurant management, 80 per cent by their co-workers and 78 per cent by customers. A third of women reported that unwanted touching was routine. While the responses to Holdens actions have been overwhelmingly positive, she has also received significant criticism for the nature of her clothing, a crop top and short shorts, she told WTOC. Its upsetting to see people that have that train of thought, Holden said. Its hot out. I can wear whatever I want. Dont touch me, how about that? Driver wrote that Holden represents the power of the #MeToo era, one in which a woman who is sexually harassed knows instinctively and instantaneously that action whether it be confronting the groper, reporting him to a boss or trying out a body slam a la Holden is her right, because her body is not up for grabs anymore. Holden echoed that sentiment to WTOC. You have every right to stand up for yourself, she said, no matter who it is. No one has the right to put their hands on you. Asked if she has a message for the man who groped her, Holden paused for a moment. I got what I wanted when they put him in handcuffs, she said. Best wishes to your daughters. WASHINGTONPresident Donald Trumps explosive twitter threat to Irans leader comes as his administration is ratcheting up a pressure campaign on the Islamic republic that many suspect is aimed at regime change. No one is predicting imminent war. But Trumps bellicose, all-caps challenge addressed to President Hassan Rouhani followed a speech by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in which he accused Irans leadership of massive corruption and widespread rights abuses and urged Iranians to rise up in protest. Both the tweet and the speech landed less than two weeks before the administration will begin reimposing sanctions on Iran that had been lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal. In the meantime, the U.S. is stepping up Farsi-language outreach that is intended to support Iranians demonstrating against the policies of their government. Trumps tweet doesnt appear to have been prompted by any notable shift in rhetoric from Iran. It could have been an impulsive reaction to re`ports from Tehran quoting Rouhani as giving the U.S. an oft-repeated reminder that conflict with Iran would be the mother of all wars. Yet animosity directed at the Iranian leadership is an established part of the administrations broader foreign policy. Iran has dismissed Trumps late Sunday message NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. as a passive reaction to Rouhani. But, Tehran was already aware of what was coming from the administration as consequences of Trumps May withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear accord take shape. Read more: Trumps top adviser is stunned by Putin invitation, says Thats going to be special Cohen secretly taped Trump discussing payment to former Playboy model Trump calls Obama a total patsy for Russia as he touts his efforts to build a relationship with Putin As Pompeo noted in his speech to Iranian-Americans and others in California late Sunday, the centrepiece of those consequences will be the reimposition of U.S. economic sanctions; the first batch will go back into force on Aug. 4 targeting the Iranian automotive sector and trade in gold and other metals. A more significant set of sanctions that will hit Irans oil industry and central bank by punishing countries and companies that do business with them will resume on Nov. 4. Right now, the United States is undertaking a diplomatic and financial pressure campaign to cut off the funds that the regime uses to enrich itself and support death and destruction, Pompeo said in his speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley. We have an obligation to put maximum pressure on the regimes ability to generate and move money, and we will do so. Pompeo also slammed Irans political, judicial and military officials, accusing several by name of participating in rampant corruption, and called its religious leaders hypocritical holy men who amassed wealth while allowing their people to suffer. He said the government has heartlessly repressed its own peoples human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms, and he hailed the proud Iranian people (for) not staying silent about their governments many abuses. The United States under President Trump will not stay silent either, he said. He was right. True to form, Trump did not stay silent. But the White House blamed Rouhani for inciting the war of words with his comment that America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!, Trump wrote. Reaction from Congress, particularly Democrats, was swift and critical. Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, acknowledged that Irans terrorist activities in the Middle East pose a threat but suggested it wouldnt be solved through a tweet from Trump. Sadly, after pulling us out of the nuclear deal with Europe and Iran, there doesnt seem to be strategy for how to move forward to fight Irans activities, she said. And Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, the former Democratic vice-presidential candidate, called the Twitter blast from the White House another warning sign that Trump is blundering toward war with Iran. Trumps National Security Council pushed back: Our differences are with the Iranian regimes actions and, in particular, with the actions of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, not the Iranian people. The Trump administrations Iran policy seeks to address the totality of these threats and malign activities and to bring about a change in the Iranian regimes behaviour. If anybodys inciting anything, look no further than to Iran, said White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said. She added that Trump has been very clear about what hes not going to allow to take place. Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the U.S. In the case of North Korea, the verbal war cooled quickly and gradually led to the high-profile summit and denuclearization talks. Still there has been little tangible progress in a global push to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons program since the historic Trump-Kim Jong Un summit on June 12. Read more about: LONDONA furor has erupted over leaked documents showing that British officials are not requiring their U.S. counterparts to provide assurances that two alleged British jihadis loyal to Daesh (also known as ISIS or ISIL) will not be executed if they are eventually put on trial in the United States. The Daily Telegraph said Monday it had seen a letter from U.K. Home Secretary Sajid Javid to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions concerning two individuals who have been in custody since their capture in eastern Syria in January. The two men, Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, were allegedly part of a notorious cell of British jihadis known for their barbaric treatment of hostages. They got the nickname the Beatles because of their British accents. The most prominent member of the group, known as Jihadi John, was killed in a 2015 drone strike. In 2014 and 2015, the group held more than 20 Western hostages in Syria and tortured many of them. It beheaded seven American, British and Japanese journalists and aid workers and a group of Syrian soldiers, boasting of the butchery in grisly videos. The newspaper says Javid told Sessions that Britain would not seek assurances that the two would not be executed, which has caused controversy because Britain is a long-standing opponent of the death penalty. Britain typically does not send prisoners to other countries if they face possible execution. Amnesty International UK spokesperson Allan Hogarth said Britain should not abandon its opposition to the death penalty despite the appalling crimes that Kotey and Elsheikh are accused of. Read more: 2 suspected Daesh militants from U.K. held in Syria, U.S. officials say Opinion | Rosie DiManno: Jihadi Johns chilling path traced in new book Daesh member who took part in beheadings identified, reports say This is a deeply worrying development, he said. The Home Secretary must unequivocally insist that Britains long-standing position on the death penalty has not changed and seek cast iron assurances from the U.S. that it will not be used. The discussion between the two countries involves Britain providing information that might be used against the two in a future prosecution in the United States. A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Theresa May said she is aware of the letter. The spokesperson says Britain remains opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances but views it as a priority to make sure these two men face criminal prosecution. The two suspects were interviewed by The Associated Press in Kobani, Syria, in March and said they could not get a fair trial. They were captured by the Kurdish-led, U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces amid the collapse of Daesh. Read more about: Note: The video embedded below contains profanity. Viewer discretion is advised. ATLANTAA Georgia lawmaker is seen using racial slurs and dropping his pants in an episode of Sacha Baron Cohens Showtime series Who Is America?. In Sunday nights broadcast, Republican Rep. Jason Spencer of Woodbine repeatedly uses a racial slur for African Americans and later exposes his bottom after being told it helps scare away Muslim terrorists. Spencer lost in the May primary but his term doesnt end until his replacement takes over after the November election. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Georgia House Speaker David Ralston has called for Spencer to resign. Representative Spencer has disgraced himself and should resign immediately, Ralson said. Georgia is better than this. The newspaper reports Spencer had earlier threatened legal action to prevent the network from airing footage of him. In a statement Monday, Spencer apologized for the ridiculously ugly episode but he refused to step down from office. Read more: Stars dazzled as political figures earn scorn thanks to Sacha Baron Cohens Who is America? Sarah Palin says she was duped into doing interview on Sacha Baron Cohens new show Showtime says Sacha Baron Cohen didnt present himself as a disabled veteran on Who Is America? In the episode, Cohen played an Israeli military expert and told Spencer to take part in what he was told was a counterterrorism video. Spencer is told to yell racial epithets and shimmy his exposed rear-end toward purported Muslim attackers screaming USA and America. Cohen told Spencer the performance would ward off terrorists. Anti-terrorism expert Colonel Erran Morad teaches Georgia State Representative Jason Spencer how to defend himself against acts of terror. Spencer said he thought the techniques would prevent what I believed was an inevitable attack. Other Georgia leaders also criticized Spencer. There is no excuse for this type of behaviour, ever, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said in a tweet, and I am saddened and disgusted by it. The Islamic Council on American-Islamic Relations also called for Spencers resignation. The ignorance and malice behind Islamophobia has led Mr. Spencer to not only pursue bad policy, but engage in humiliating and hateful behaviour unbecoming of anyone especially a state legislator, said Edward Ahmed Mitchell, director of the groups Georgia chapter. Spencer faced calls for his resignation last year after he warned a black former state legislator that she wont be met with torches but something a lot more definitive if she continued to call for the removal of Confederate statues in southern Georgia, the newspaper reported. It happened. As of today, there are 200 additional police officers patrolling the streets between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m. until the end of the summer. The initiative is part of a $15 million gun violence reduction plan implemented by Mayor John Tory. It is yet another tough on crime response, an effort to crack down on perpetrators of gun violence or, as Tory called them, anti-social sewer rats. While Tory advocates for police expansion, Stacey King, the Toronto mother whose daughters were shot while in a playground, says the city needs to address the root causes of gun violence. One of these positions is consistent with recommendations by researchers on youth violence, the other is not. The 2008 McMurtry-Curling Roots of Youth Violence report highlighted nine issues critical to addressing youth violence: poverty, racism, community design, issues in the education system, family issues, health issues, lack of a youth voice, barriers to economic opportunities, and issues in the justice system. Ten years after the publication of this report, few steps have been taken to redress these problems. It is also worth noting that the 2008 report was part of a lineage of reports, commissions, and task forces dating back to the 1970s that have arrived at similar conclusions. TOP STORIES. IN YOUR INBOX: For the days top news from the Stars award-winning journalists, sign up for our daily headlines newsletter. Despite the evidence that policing is not the answer, Tory and Premier Doug Ford have championed police expansion. Last month, Ford tweeted Toronto is home to the greatest police officers. We need to make sure they have the resources to round up these criminals, build relationships in communities, and prevent these shootings. Last week, newly appointed Community Safety and Correctional Services Minister Michael Tibollo appeared in Torontos Jane-Finch community wearing a bulletproof vest. He later commented, I went out to Jane and Finch, put on a bulletproof vest and spent 7 oclock to 1 oclock in the morning visiting sites that had previously had bullet-ridden people killed in the middle of the night. The optics of this debate are clear: while some people and places deserve compassion and humanity, Black people and Black communities are not among them. Instead, we are cast as dangerous, kept at arms length, and used to justify increased policing. The media has propagated this narrative, rehashing the well-worn summer of the gun trope and accompanying mug shots for over a decade. T.O. Feared Heading For New Summer of The Gun exclaimed a CityNews headline from 2008; Bracing for summer of the Gun 2, the Ottawa Sun warned in 2012. A 2016 CP24 article affirmed Too soon to tell if this year will repeat 2005 Summer of the Gun while, two weeks ago, The Stars Rosie DiManno cautioned Its the Year of the Gun redux. Police expansion (see TAVIS, see school resource officers) is routinely deployed without community consultation or consideration of its disproportionate negative impacts on marginalized communities. McMurtry and Curling affirm the impact that police can have on youth, writing when youth are singled out for attention because of their race and treated with a lack of civility, they can become alienated, lose self-esteem and feel that they have less hope or opportunity in this society. Read more: Opinion | Vicky Mochama: Torontos vulnerable communities need better services, not more police Opinion | Shree Paradkar: The next time theres a police killing of an unarmed Black person, remember this study Mother of girl shot in playground recalls her asking, Mommy, am I going to die? Yet, too often, conversations about public safety ignore the safety of Black and brown people, a safety imperiled by police expansion and ineffective police oversight. Recently, Tory announced funds for social programs and it appears he may finally be listening to Black communities. While this is a step in the right direction, the funding for these programs is much less than the funds allotted for police expansion-priorities. Additionally, despite intense criticism, Tory refuses to recant his sewer rat comment. Similarly, Tibollo, has doubled down on his most recent remarks. Toronto loves to lay claim to Blackness through music, food, and festivals (Drake, DeMar, Caribana, roti, etc.) but does not actually love Black people. The framing of gun violence as public safety issue but not policing as such, speaks to this. If we are, in fact, in midst of the Year of the Gun redux, it is less a reflection of violent crime than our unwillingness to address anti-Black racism. Black people: The 6ix is not your friend. Phillip Dwight Morgan is a Toronto-based freelance journalist and poet. He writes about media representation, race, and politics with a special interest in policing and anti-Black racism. Read more about: After watching the start of a rare summer session of parliamentary debate at Queens Park, it doesnt seem impertinent to ask: just how hot were those microphones? Blusteringly hot, it seems. Which begs the question, is Premier Doug Ford locked in a cognitive loop called campaign mode? Fords performance in the house has so far exposed his predilection for the harsh response, when a simple answer would do. Its not just the premier. Tory cabinet ministers are fist-pumping each other after answering basic questions and worse, after each response, give each other a standing ovation. Thats up to 20 ovations for each question period a waste of time and money, all paid for by the public. So much for taxpayer respect. As one political observer said, They look like lottery winners. We can only hope Ford chilled among Canadian leaders, bonding in the ocean breeze off Passamaquoddy Bay, at his first premiers meeting in New Brunswick last week. When Ford returns to legislature Monday, the premier should take his chair with a mind to govern, not talk trash. Ford clearly relishes his role in the house and stands with confidence, to answer low-hanging questions. Complex queries are generally shuffled off to cabinet ministers. Fair enough. The problem is that until Ford switches into governing mode, hes lowering the bar for everyone by reacting to opposition efforts to trigger his worst impulses. Last week, when NDP leader Andrea Horwath questioned Fords decision to stall impending police oversight legislation, the new premier fell back on the talking points from his spring campaign. We support our police, he thundered, unlike the leader of the opposition and unlike their party that are police-haters, military-haters, veteran-haters, poppy-haters and ... Mercifully, he was cut off by Speaker Ted Arnott. We may never know which allegedly-hated-group-in-a-uniform came next. Parking Enforcement officers? Brownies? The shouting continued, this time from the opposition side of the floor when NDP MPP Gilles Bisson yelled out, I served. Just so you know. Bisson was a pilot and flight sergeant with the Royal Canadian Air Cadets. The Speaker, Arnott, is new to the job. He tried to stop the quarrelling, with limited success. It cant be easy to corral Fords energy, so with curbed sympathy (Arnott knew what hed face) we recommend the Speaker act immediately to instill respect for the parliamentary tradition of asking questions. Its not the warm-up to a cage fight. Here is how it works. There is a time set aside in the legislature for questions. As the leader of the opposition, Horwath has the right to make those queries, and if she chooses, to ask them of the premier. Ford is expected to respond and while he may, as have others before him, not say anything of value, a premier in control doesnt get led so far off course. Last week, Horwath controlled the narrative so easily by poking the bear. At one point, during a grilling on the Tories controversial return to the 1998 sex education curriculum, Horwath asked the premier why he listened to radical extremists instead of his own cabinet, accusing him of putting the safety of our young people at risk. And again, Ford took the bait. ... I find it pretty rich that the Leader of the Opposition would call us radical...(interrupted by shouting from MPPs) ... You want to talk extremist; you want to talk radical (more shouting from MPPs) ... worked so good in the campaign and the Leader of the Opposition had to steal a couple of our lines. Lets get this straight: The premier is using parliamentary time to accuse Horwath of stealing his election slogans? Ford must be very proud of his campaign indeed. He might try remembering that the election is over. He won. That means its time to stop campaigning and start governing. Read more about: Affordable housing should be a municipal election issue, July 20 Mike MacDonalds column on housing will hopefully not fall on deaf ears as seems to have happened in past elections. Clearly the affordable housing issue has gotten worse, not better. MacDonald says there are more than 3,500 social housing units sitting derelict while the senior population continues to grow. People in the system, whether in Toronto Community Housing or outside, will tell you of unused units just sitting there and wonder why they are not rented or repaired. I hear that in some places Toronto Community Housing is making moves to only recruit tenants under 60 years of age in areas where seniors are now living and trying to stay. Perhaps its time to hive off all aspects of seniors issues into a federal and provincial government program where funds may flow more freely to Toronto and other cities in a regulated fashion for high-priority cases. Toronto cannot meet this head-on without help. When it comes to housing, transportation and health care, all of us will benefit if we raise the benchmark for taking care of our own. If things do not happen soon, millennials will bear the brunt of this in years to come with increasingly limited lifestyle choices. Tanya Wilson was locking up her tattoo shop on the Danforth, heading out for dinner with a friend. It was just before 10 p.m. She heard shots. I thought it was firecrackers. She pauses. No, thats not true. I thought it was shots. Because we think that way now in Toronto, at the sound of sharp cracks. Not firecrackers, not a car backfiring. Bullets. Wilson glimpsed a white man with longish hair, the shooter, and hastily pulled back inside. Honestly, it was all happening so fast, I didnt know what to do. Suddenly, two people outside were banging on the front door, pleading to be let in. In her panic, Wilson at first feared these individuals might have been allied with the gunman in some way, trying to force themselves into her business, Skin Deep. Then she saw the blood. Both the older woman and a younger man had been struck. They were freaking out, crying, Theres a man with a gun! Wilson hustled them indoors. Put each in one of her tattoo chairs and set about applying first aid, first fashioning a tourniquet above the bullet holes. Both a mother and her adult son, shed learn had been hit in the leg, below the knee. I know how to handle blood, Wilson told the Star. I put on my medical gloves. Mostly its just using common sense. She turned off the lights, hoping the shooter would believe the premises were vacant and ushered the victims into the basement. Then all of them huddled for the half-hour until Wilson was able to flag an officer and paramedics were summoned. Fourteen victims in Toronto Greektown shooting: Police Four hours later, with the victims removed by ambulance, Wilson and her friend were still being held in place, waiting to be interviewed by police. A block away, her tattoo teacher, Trevor Boucher had pulled up in vehicle, trying to talk his way past a police cordon on Logan. But only cops and first responders were being allowed through. Even those who live on the Danforth, trying to make their way home on a Sunday night, were turned away, advised to find somewhere else to sleep on this maddened night. Boucher worked the phones in three-way conversations, attempting to calm Wilson. Im covered in blood! Let me get my girl, Boucher implored officers, to no avail. Or let her come to me. Shes terrified. To the Star, he said: Shes a hero. She saved people tonight. Its just so weird, said Wilson, when the Star reached her. I mean, were all aware of the shootings that have been happening around the city. But this is the Danforth, you know? Its a beautiful neighbourhood with always lots of people on the street, walking around, going to restaurants, sitting on patios. How did it get so crazy? Wilsons thoughts were with the little girl rushed to emergency in critical condition. That 10-year-old child, as police Chief Mark Saunders disclosed at a Monday morning press conference, did not survive. Just a little girl, said Wilson sadly. Thats where my head is right now. Also killed was an 18-year-old female, identified as Reese Fallon, who hailed from the Beaches area. And the shooter. Police sources told the Star that 29-year-old Faisal Hussain died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, although the Special Investigations Unit would not confirm that detail. After an exchange of gunfire with officers, he fled and his body was discovered on Danforth, the SIU reported. An autopsy was to be conducted Tuesday morning and ballistics conducted on the bullet. How he died is a critical part of the investigation undertaken by the SIU, which is called in whenever a civilian is killed or seriously injured in an incident involving police. But the larger investigation, involving a crime scene that extends for several blocks, is the responsibility of Toronto police, led by veteran homicide Det. Sgt. Terry Browne. At Second Cup, on the corner of Danforth and Hampton Aves., the owner pointed out three bullet holes that had punctured the front window. The small sidewalk patio had been full of patrons, enjoying the mild evening. I was in the back so I didnt see what happened, said one employee. But suddenly all these people were running through here. Directly in front of the Second Cup, police had placed upturned coffee cups, marking the spots where shell casings had been found a dozen of them in that chunk of sidewalk alone. Nobody inside had been injured. Jessica Young, an employee, told the Stars Wendy Gillis that shed seen the shooter. He was probably no taller than me, wearing a black baseball cap, dark clothes ... Thats all I could make out, Young said, adding that the man appeared to have a pistol or handgun. I was shaken, terrified. Its not every day you almost get shot. Another man: I heard at least 20 shots, in intervals. Reloading, clipping spent, reloading, clipping spent. Other witnesses said the man had his shirt sleeves rolled up, had walked back and forth across Danforth, shooting indiscriminately, assuming a shooters stance, as if he knew how to handle a firearm. It appears to have been a semi-automatic, with a magazine, given the volley of shots multiple bang-bang-bang with pauses in between. He was skinny but he had this horrible look on his face, another witness told reporters, like he was under the influence or something. The shooter was only some 10 feet away. I fell down. He ran across, kept shooting and ran down the street. Thirteen victims wounded, some with life-changing injuries, said Browne. Men, women and children running, ducking, taking cover behind a fountain before bystanders and employees of local business ventured out with towels and rags to staunch bleeding. On a night of unimaginable horror, there were heroes too. Share your thoughts In the small hours of Monday morning and into the day, video captured on cellphones began surfacing on social media. The shooter is seen firing into storefronts and cafes, walking purposefully westward through Greektown. A man on a mission, it appears. Police said warrants had been sought to search the shooters home. If investigators retrieve computer files, those and any social media footprint will be invaluable in uncovering a motive. Why did he concentrate his fire on some establishments while bypassing others? Why did he tell one man, Im not going to shoot you and stride on by? I cant speak to what was on this individuals mind, said Browne. Well certainly dissect everything. Were going into the background of this individual. Before the sun rose on an eerily depopulated Danforth, usually so vibrant a neighbourhood, dozens of officers and crime scene reconstruction experts worked the area, filming and measuring. The bomb squad also conducted a controlled detonation of a package, which may have been the bag the shooter was carrying, slung over a shoulder. Were going to blow up a package now, an officer warned onlookers milling around the Danforth-Broadview intersection. The thump of that detonation could be heard for blocks around 1 a.m. Saunders and Mayor John Tory tried to reassure the public. Theyve done a lot of that over recent weeks and months as blood has been spilled on the streets, in a playground, on the Entertainment District sidewalk, in Yorkville, in Kensington market, at a church fair. But this mass shooting has more a feel of random terror and malice, bringing to mind the van attack along Yonge St. in North York in April 10 dead, 16 with non-fatal injuries, some of them grievous. What in Gods name is happening? Murders, van attack, a lone gunman rampage, in a city that has always boasted of its safeness. Rightly or wrongly, it feels profoundly less safe now, the violence as brazen and senseless one-on-one as one-on-dozens. Madness descending. With files from Wendy Gillis Both the G500 and G600 are on course for type certification with the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) this year. The G500 is imminent, while the slightly bigger G600 is due later in the year. Every area of the G500/600 is new and state-of-the-art. These jets are the pinnacle of current passenger jet design and technology from the avionics-packed nosecone to the fly-by-wire operated rudder. Nothing has been left to chance by Gulfstream to make them the best performing private jets, for passenger experience, for pilots flying them, and for the operators. When a slight delay in the type certification process occurred last year a supplier got a little behind with the paperwork for EASA (now sorted out) Gulfstream took the opportunity to add a little more performance, announced at last years NBAA show. The G500 gains an extra 200nm range at its long-range cruise speed of Mach 0.85, now offering operators a maximum range of 5,200nm. The G600 gains 300nm and can now fly a maximum of 6,500nm at Mach 0.85. As we methodically moved through our concurrent flight-test programmes, which are going exceptionally well, we recognised we had both the time and ability to enhance G500 and G600 performance and give our customers a business-jet family thats better than the one we had promised them, said Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream. Extracting more capabilities from our aircraft has become a Gulfstream hallmark, the result of creating and maintaining a culture committed to continuous improvement, listening to our customers and exceeding our promises. A more recent update confirmed the aircraft were on track. By Februarys Singapore Air Show, the five G500 test aircraft had accumulated more than 4,250 flight hours over more than 1,175 flights. The G600 had amassed more than 1,395 flight hours during more than 360 flights. Welcome though the extra range is, what passengers will appreciate most is the incredible cabin Gulfstream has created. Simply put, its the quietest in the industry so quiet, apparently, that you cant hear the engines at all in the cruise. Its also the brightest, with the same large oval windows used in the range-topping G650ER, and a cabin altitude of 4,850 feet at its maximum operating altitude of FL 510. There are five basic designs that buyers of the $44.65 million G500 can choose from and Gulfstream provides an iPad app that allows people to play around with all of the options, adding, removing, varying, to their hearts content. Divans, hidden TVs, options such as floor finishes (including stone if you want), and even a shower, are all possible. Locate the galley fore or aft, add connectivity and entertainment options its all possible. Iridium and Inmarsat satellite communication systems are standard, and various broadband options will be offered. The five basic designs reflect a wide range of tastes, although the two designers, Tray Crow and Vicky Amores, leading the team behind the G500/600 cabin, say theyve employed a less is more rationale. The five designs are classic, layered, sport, minimalist and next gen. Classic is a traditional look and will probably find favour with US corporations. Layered is a step sideways from classic to make the cabin more like a home than an office. Sport is a bit more in your face with high contrast finishes, including carbon fibre, just like the latest yachts and high-end cars. Minimalist is probably more European or even Asian, with a focus on tones and textures to emphasise an architectural look. Next gen is more colourful and playful, shaking off usual design concepts. It sounds like it could be almost anything. Gulfstream is picking up on a distinct trend among current large jet buyers that its really all about the cabin. And so, it has dedicated one of its five G500 test aircraft simply to getting the cabin right, testing all the finishes and technology in flying conditions. Nothing is being left to chance. Of course, that goes for the rest of the aircraft too. The G500 and G600 are very similar, though the G600 has a slightly bigger wing and longer fuselage. Pilots will only need one type rating to fly both aircraft. The type rating is taken at FlightSafetys centre at Savannah International Airport also home to Gulfstream. Pilots will love the G500/600 cockpit. Just looking at the demo aircraft gives any pilot, jet-rated or not, a thrill with its high-tech array of four screens and touch-controls, and clean, uncluttered environment. The design philosophy here starts with the side-sticks, which are works of art in themselves. Side-sticks are universally loved by pilots after a few minutes to get used to them. They free up space in front of both pilots. They fall naturally to hand and its easy to apply the relevant force and direction. Gulfstream is not the first to employ side-sticks. Airbus uses them, as does Cirrus, Dassault and Embraer. But Gulfstream is the first to have what it calls active control, giving feedback through the side-stick. That means flying the G500 will feel like flying a normal aircraft with direct controls, making it far more intuitive. Thats a big-plus for fly-by-wire controls, which can feel a bit lifeless. Through operating the side-stick, the pilot is telling the computer where he wants to go, then the computer calculates the best way of achieving just that while staying within safe flying parameters. Its almost foolproof, and even if the captain (left seat) and co-pilot (right seat) put in opposing inputs, the system will default to the captains choice, just as it should be. Gulfstream has also built in what it calls intelligence-by-wire, which links the active-control sidesticks and touchscreen avionics with the autopilot, auto-throttles, autobrakes and automatic emergency descent, to protect against lost cabin pressurisation. It is continuously making tiny corrections to keep the aircraft optimised, which gives a smoother flight and better passenger experience. Its also next to impossible to stall the aircraft, automatically staying within limits. Gulfstream calls the G500/600 cockpit Symmetry. It is based on the Honeywell Primus Epic suite, which also forms the basis of Dassaults EASy III cockpit and integrates a third-generation enhanced vision system (EVS). A vastly improved camera on the nose of the aircraft has 400% better resolution and a wider field of view. It is linked to the head-up display to allow pilots to see through low and obscured visibility conditions, and ultimately for lower minimum decision heights during an instrument approach. The four displays are not touch-screen but the 10 other displays are. Because of the constant interaction with pilots fingers, touch-screen can occasionally fail but Gulfstream has made them easily swapped by the pilots themselves. Theres no need to involve an engineer or have an aircraft stuck on the ground. No doubt some pilots will hang on to their precious sheep-skin seat covers, but many will revel in their immaculate, perforated leather standard seats. This cockpit is more like a top-of-the-range British or Italian supercar than the crammed, uncomfortable ergonomic nightmares of old. So, what else is new? The power units, obviously. Gulfstream has departed from its usual engine supplier, Rolls-Royce, with the G500/600 and chosen Pratt & Whitneys PW800 turbofans. Gulfstream says the aircraft will have the best fuel efficiency in the class, the lowest noise footprint, and, important for operators and for costs, a 10,000-hour time before overhaul (TBO) interval with no mid-life inspection. The PW800s are based on airline engine technology, where dispatch reliability and low operating costs are absolutely key. So, despite the business jet market still not having recovered to the heady levels of 2008 although its improving rapidly now manufacturers like Gulfstream continue to invest and innovate and create simply wonderful aircraft. What if U.S. President Trump were to place tariffs on the entire $505 billion in goods that the U.S. imports from China? At the moment, he has done so on $34 billion worth. China has forcefully retaliated, as has Canada, to Trumps ill-targeted tariffs, which are destroying the farms and factory jobs of many Americans who voted for him. But what if Trump made it worse? He would be interfering with the very thing that has kept Americans politically quiescent for generations: cheap stuff. Trump doesnt understand this. He doesnt even understand the concept of trade. He thinks tariffs are a schoolyard fight in which someone ends up on the ground and someone struts away in triumph. But its more like a fight where both kids end up face down while blood sprays over every bystander. All are sent home, all are suspended. Again, Ive been led into using a childish metaphor. But thats Trumpworld for you. Read more: From Corn Laws to Trump tirades: A brief history of Canada-U.S. trade wars Everything you wanted to know about the Canada-U.S. trade war but were afraid to ask Star Editorial | Donald Trumps trade war is undermining U.S. credibility Many things would happen if Trump mass-tariffed trade with China. Just for starters, China, which has $1.2 trillion in Treasuries (debt securities issued by the U.S. Treasury to finance spending) could slow down on buying them, which would hike interest rates and squeeze U.S. spending on everything from the military to that new Space Force. Even Republican Senator Orrin Hatch opposes Trumps tariffs on China and allies like Canada and Mexico, so much so that he backs legislation to curb Trumps trade authority. That is ... unusual. Lets look at the human angle of trade, a tale that involves Canadians almost as much as Americans. We worship the god of cheap. What products does the average American buy? Everything, almost all made in China. Why? Theyre cheap. Why so? Made of cheap materials, theyre built and assembled by people paid next to nothing by American standards. They are transported across oceans and skies without thought to the damaging effect on a warming planet. That will cost. With the assistance of an excellent Washington Post graphic, I can explain the crisis by imagining Niagara Falls. Instead of water, envision Chinese goods. We see a thundering flow of adult clothing, athletic shoes and socks, cellphones, microwaves, greeting cards, fireworks, Christmas lights, leather handbags, furniture, lamps, strollers, swing sets, toys, video games, sporting goods, pretty much everything made of plastic, vehicles and vehicle parts, childrens clothing, underwear, air conditioners and so on. I have not mentioned heavy industry and its materials. Getting stuff cheap performs several functions in the West. It keeps people other than the rich and extreme rich happy. It distracts them from the fact that their wages are stagnant and the goods are shoddy. It enables shopping as a drug and a means of satiation. It also performs a social function, enabling working-class, middle-class or precariously employed people to look prosperous. If millennials (young and old) who cant afford to buy houses manage to look as though they can, it is less socially painful. It takes the edge off their justified anger. I have never figured out if this is a kindness or a con. If everyone dressed to match their shrinking pay in threadbare hand-me-downs or clothing sewn at home they would look less plausible in the human marketplace. Life would be tougher. Before globalization, peoples clothing signalled their economic station. Now, economic suffering is disguised. Americans are able to shop cheaply at Walmart (clogged with Chinese goods) and in bulk at Costco. They buy huge houses and fill them with junk furniture. Flood and fire caused by climate change dont hurt as much because cheap stuff can be easily replaced. Again, this soothes. If tariffs damaged this system, Americans would march on Washington, D.C. with hammers. No, those come from China. Make that assault rifles. Always follow the money. Always study the pattern of its flow, its destination and who it benefits. Are you better off than you were 10 years ago? If not, where did you spend what little money you had? It may seem a small domestic question but in fact, it explains how trade matters have worked to the disadvantage of many people who thought they were in a genuine waterfall of wealth. Read more about: VANCOUVERA Vancouver womens shelter is calling on the provincial government to take immediate action to replace Greyhound routes in B.C. that are slated for elimination this fall in a bid to shore up the companys declining profits. Tannis Larsen, a spokesperson for Vancouver Rape Relief and Womens Shelter, said Greyhounds announcement represents a tremendous blow to the work her organization does to assist women fleeing violence. The service is often the only transportation for the women. Its an essential service, she said of the Greyhound routes that have served B.C.s northern and interior communities for years. When I heard about (the routes being cancelled) my heart sank, and everyone in our group said, What are we going to do? Read more: For rural and northern B.C., no bus means no options Despite new northern bus service, inmates travelling the Highway of Tears will still be worse off: advocates What its like to ride the Greyhound for 27 hours, through three provinces and 55 stops Vancouver Rape Relief often arranges transportation for women leaving abusive situations, said Larsen. And Greyhound has long provided a key link between local services such as taxis and a safer destination, far away from a womans abuser. Greyhound has likewise served the transportation needs of a number of smaller, more isolated communities and urban hubs throughout Western Canada, and the cancellation of those routes effective Oct. 31 has raised grave concerns within many of those communities. The company blames its cancellation of routes in B.C. and the Prairies, as well as northern Ontario, on a 41 per cent decline in ridership since 2010. It blames increased competition from travel options such as carpooling and low-cost airlines. Without a bus service to provide transportation away from abusive situations, Larsen said women fleeing violence will be forced to make an impossible decision either stay where their safety is actively endangered, or put themselves in harms way by hitchhiking or using an online resource to catch a ride with a stranger. And for Larsen, this situation is unacceptable. The world needs to be safer for women, she said. Their safety from violence needs to be ensured. There are more than 60,000 sexual or physical assaults against women in B.C. every year more than 1,000 per week according to statistics from the Ending Violence Association of B.C. The association says only 12 per cent of sexual assaults against women are reported to police. And Larsen said for many women, putting distance between themselves and their abuser is a critical step to establishing safety in the immediate period after leaving an abusive relationship. She also pointed to Greyhounds long-time role in transporting people from remote communities to larger townships to access treatment for drug or alcohol addiction. Addiction, said Larsen, is another factor that can keep women in abusive situations. On July 9, B.C. Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Claire Trevena released a statement expressing dismay over Greyhounds announcement, calling its decision hugely problematic for B.C.s interior and northern communities, and noting it will likely impact the most vulnerable. Trevena said she will be sitting down with other transportation providers to discuss options, but in the meantime hopes the private sector will fill in the gaps in the provinces transportation needs. And while Larsen said the government seems to be responsive to the concerns of vulnerable communities, any loss of service will put womens lives directly at risk. What we really want is for the government to take responsibility, not wait, she said. Theres not enough time to wait. Read more about: Al Darmaki, an Omani national, has a strong track record of proven success in leading teams across many effective platforms in previous IT roles. His new position will focus on ensuring the correct use of information technology across Oman Air, and developing the IT strategy in alignment with airlines overall business strategy. Al Darmaki said: I am delighted to be joining Oman Air at such an exciting time. So much has already been achieved in 2018 alone, with the opening of the new airport terminal in Muscat and the ambitious fleet expansion. I am proud to accept the position of Senior Vice President of the IT department and I am confident I have the right industry experience to deliver success. I look forward to working with the Oman Air team and contributing towards the dynamic development of the airline. Shinobu Hashimoto, a screenwriter whose creative partnership with director Akira Kurosawa helped launch Japanese cinema to international prominence in the 1950s, died July 19 at his home in Tokyo. He was 100. The cause was pneumonia, according to Japanese news media reports. Working into his 90s, when a stroke effectively ended his career, Hashimoto wrote more than 70 screenplays for acclaimed directors including Tadashi Imai, Masaki Kobayashi and Mikio Naruse. But he was best known for his work with Kurosawa, in widely imitated films that ranged from the sword-fighting period piece "Seven Samurai" (1954) to lyrical explorations of justice and mortality in "Rashomon" (1950) and "Ikiru" (1952). In a process of creation-by-committee, Kurosawa worked with a stable of writers that included Eijiro Hisaita, Ryuzo Kikushima and Hideo Oguni, who batted ideas around the table at the director's home in Komae. Yet few writers worked as closely with Kurosawa as Hashimoto, a onetime railroad employee who turned to writing on a lark, amid a four-year battle with tuberculosis. The illness, diagnosed soon after he enlisted in the army in 1938, ended his military career and landed him in a veterans hospital next to a reader of Japanese film magazines. When Hashimoto took a look at one of the magazines, he found that it contained a sample screenplay - and decided he could write something far better. "No, no, they're not that easy to write," he recalled his neighbor telling him. "No, compared to this, even I could do better. Who's the greatest Japanese writer of these?" It was, he learned, a man named Mansaku Itami. Hashimoto announced that he would quickly dash off a script and mail it to the writer. It took him more than three years. But the result, inspired by Hashimoto's experiences at the veterans hospital, so impressed Itami that he became a mentor for the young man, offering line-by-line feedback and suggesting he adapt an existing story for the screen. Hashimoto chose "In a Grove," a 1922 short story by Ryunosuke Akutagawa. His treatment, originally long enough for just 40 minutes of screen time, formed the core of "Rashomon," a tale of rape and murder told from four different perspectives. Flashbacks recount the film's central act of violence from the point of view of a bandit, a woodcutter, the dead samurai and his wife; the truth, however, is never fully revealed. While it opened to mixed reviews in Japan, "Rashomon" won the Golden Lion at the 1951 Venice Film Festival and received an honorary Academy Award for best foreign film. Its release marked a pivotal movement in film history: Kurosawa was catapulted to cinema stardom, and his Japanese forerunners, most notably directors Yasujiro Ozu and Kenji Mizoguchi, were given wide attention for the first time. Movie critic Pauline Kael later hailed "Rashomon" as "the classic film statement of the relativism, the unknowability of truth," and the movie went on to lend its name to "the Rashomon effect," a term used to refer to incidents in which individuals recall events in different, even contradictory ways. Hashimoto next worked with Kurosawa on "Seven Samurai," a 3 1/2-hour epic about a group of unemployed samurai who are recruited to defend a village from bandits. The film is widely credited as the first movie in which, as movie critic Roger Ebert once noted, "a team is assembled to carry out a mission - an idea which gave birth to its direct Hollywood remake 'The Magnificent Seven,' as well as 'The Guns of Navarone,' 'The Dirty Dozen' and countless later war, heist and caper movies." Hashimoto's subsequent scripts for Kurosawa included "Throne of Blood" (1957), which adapted Shakespeare's "Macbeth," and "The Hidden Fortress" (1958), which featured a pair of bumbling peasants that director George Lucas credited as the model for his "Star Wars" characters C-3PO and R2-D2. Perhaps his finest work was "Ikiru," or "To Live." A loose adaptation of Tolstoy's "The Death of Ivan Ilyich," the film began with only a vague suggestion from Kurosawa, who wrote on a sheet of paper: "A man with only seventy-five days left to live." In the hands of Hashimoto, the nameless, jobless protagonist became Kanji Watanabe (Takashi Shimura), a civil servant who learns he is terminally ill. "I just can't die," he tells a stranger at a bar. "I don't know what I've been living for all these years." In search of existential meaning, he helps a group of women replace a neighborhood cesspool with a playground. In a documentary on the film, Hashimoto recalled that his original script was trashed and reworked at the suggestion of his colleague Oguni, who urged him to place the protagonist's death at the center of the film rather than at the end. (As in "Rashomon," the movie utilized flashbacks to advance the story.) Such changes, he once told director Yoji Yamada, were always part of the process of making a movie, though the transition from screenplay to celluloid was sometimes fraught. "It is like being a farmer who plants seeds and constantly cares about the weather and water or worries if there are insects," he said. "It is work that requires persistent patience." Hashimoto was born in Hyogo Prefecture, on the main Japanese island of Honshu, on April 18, 1918. He worked for a munitions firm before quitting to become a screenwriter. His other film credits included scripts for Imai's "Darkness at Noon" (1956), about police torture; and the popular Kobayashi samurai film "Harakiri" (1962), which Hashimoto said he wrote in 11 days. He also started a production company, Hashimoto Pro, and directed three movies. His first, "I Want to Be a Shellfish" (1959), based on a novel about a Japanese soldier wrongly accused of war crimes, was remade in 2008 and marked Hashimoto's final film script. A complete list of survivors was not immediately available. Hashimoto was awarded the Jean Renoir Award for lifetime achievement, given to a foreign screenwriter by the Writers Guild of America, in 2013. He shared the prize with his late collaborators Oguni, Kikushima and Kurosawa, and outlined much of their working process in a memoir, "Compound Cinematics," published in 2006. In his own memoir, Kurosawa recalled facing some resistance to the "Rashomon" script he wrote with Hashimoto. Three of his assistant directors told him they couldn't understand the story. He tried, then, to explain his and Hashimoto's ambitions, absent the visual poetry of the film: "Human beings are unable to be honest with themselves about themselves. They cannot talk about themselves without embellishing. This script portrays such human beings - the kind who cannot survive without lies to make them feel they are better people than they really are . . . You say that you can't understand this script at all, but that is because the human heart itself is impossible to understand. If you focus on the impossibility of truly understanding human psychology and read the script one more time, I think you will grasp the point of it." ALTON There were plenty of beauties to catch ones eye on Saturday in Alton, but Dan OLearys gaze didnt stray far from his 1968 Shelby GT 350 Convertible Mustang. Its my favorite. I like to drive my car at sunset and watch the sun go down over the hood, said OLeary, a resident of St. Charles, Missouri. That may sound corny and weird, but I love the car. OLearys car was among more than 160 Ford Mustangs from across the Midwest that took part in the Southern Illinois Mustang Associations 41st Annual Mustang Round-up and All Ford Car Show at Roberts Ford on Alby Street. I searched the country for about a year before I found this car, and my wife and I enjoy working on it quite a bit, OLeary said. Its the body, the shape, everything about it, they are a beautiful car. Robbie Walker of Greenville, who brought his 523-horsepower, 1970 Mach 1 Fastback to the show, said the Mustangs appeal is no secret. Oh, these things are hot! walker said. Just to look at an older-style Mustang, it just makes you want one. Ive owned my car for 38 years and stored it for a while, and as money came along I started restoring it step-by-step. It takes time and money and a lot of dedication, Walker said. I liked this car when I found it and only paid $2,300 for it in 1980, so it was well worth the investment. Mike Crouch, of Collinsville, has put more than $8,000 worth of parts into his 2007 Roush Performance Stage 3 Mustang to keep it pristine and running the way it was intended. It kind of squats down to the road. Roush adds new suspension and beefs the car up, Crouch said. Ive had it up to 150 miles per hour, all legal of course, I was on an emergency run. Its a rush in my Roush. I like this one because it reminds me of 1960s Mustangs, Crouch said. Ive cleaned up the engine and buffed everything underneath. Newcastle, Indiana resident Gene Thompson knows his 1969 Boss 302 Mustang is fast, but hes not going to discover how fast. I kind of baby it, so I dont drive it very fast. But it will run, Im sure of it, Thompson said. Ive had the car around ten years and have redone pretty much everything on it. The interior is original and its a 39,000-original-mile car. I was born right about the time the Mustang came out and the way they were designed back then, they just looked really good and fast just sitting there, Thompson said. The body, the lines, its just a classic style. And, would he let a Telegraph reporter take it for a spin in the interest of experiential journalism? Probably not, Thompson said. Larry Roseberry is the show committee chairman for the Southern Illinois Mustang Association, and he said Saturdays show was one of the best in the Midwest. Its also the longest ongoing show in the nation. Our club is 41 years old and this is our 41st car show. From what I understand we are the oldest Mustang club in the United States still having a car show annually at the same location, Roseberry said. Roberts has always been gracious enough to loan us their facilities. The other club is in California and theyve had three different locations in their 41 years of existence. Roseberry said the Southern Illinois Mustang Association was the eighteenth club to join as a charter member with the Mustang Club of America, when that organization was founded in 1977. To his eye there is nothing finer than a classic Mustang. Its the sex appeal, they are a nice car and they draw women, Roseberry said. Ive still got the car that I had before I married my wife, a 1965 Fastback, but she always liked to drive it to work because it was the only car shes been able to peel rubber with. Proceeds from Saturdays 41st Annual Mustang Round-up and All Ford Car Show benefited the Legendary Mustang Sanctuary and Hope Center Food Pantry. David Blanchette is freelance photographer and reporter for the Telegraph. EDWARDSVILLE The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Police Department continues to be a strong, involved supporter of the Team Illinois Youth Police Camp. Coordinated by Illinois State Police (ISP) and hosted in partnership with SIUE Police and other Metro East agencies, the 14th annual residency program was held from Sunday, July 15-Saturday, July 21. Nearly 60 cadets from across the region participated. According to the ISP, Team Illinois Youth Police Camp is a highly structured weeklong residency program, which addresses todays teenagers who are under many societal pressures. The camp is based upon a military model of discipline and includes para-military drills, physical fitness exercises and classroom instruction on drug abuse resistance, team building principles and other life-enhancing skills. Four SIUE Police female officers volunteered as leaders and mentors for the entirety of camp. On Friday, July 20, the cadets visited SIUEs campus for an interactive day that included bowling at Cougar Lanes and a BBQ prepared and served by SIUE Police. This is an incredibly active camp, explained SIUEs Lt. Lisa Johnson. Usually, by the end of the week many of the teens say theyre interested in a police career. They dont always come in feeling that way. These kids have different backgrounds and not all of their interactions with police have been positive. We are here to show them the other side of what we do, and educate them on the positive impact they can have in life. ISP Trooper Calvin Dye Jr. and Sgt. Joey Watson emphasized how SIUEs support and honorable minority hiring practices have boosted the camps growth and success. This camp couldnt function without the great participation and support we receive from SIUE Police, Dye said. Chief Schmoll never lets us down. He sees the value of this wonderful camp and the impact these experiences have on our youth. The SIUE Police Department is progressive in its hiring processes, and our camp and cadets have reaped the benefits of the foundation the department has set, added Watson. We also have other amazing community volunteers who want to be a part of something worthwhile, like this camp. Team Illinois Youth Police Camp teaches a set of life skills that will help kids grow and develop as emerging leaders. Watson says those skills begin with courteous and respectful behavior. Cadet Valerie Huston, of Mount Vernon, says she has benefited from those lessons. Its a good opportunity to be here, the 16-year-old said. Most kids dont get this chance. I dont regret coming, because its a fun place to be. When were here, were all family, Hutson continued. Family works together. You have to push your way through challenges and cheer each other on. At camp, if you do what youre told to do, you will have the fun that you want to have. Darrell Perryman, a 14-year-old cadet from Swansea, agrees it takes personal effort and teamwork to succeed. I want to join the military someday, so I thought Id try this camp, Perryman said. Weve gone fishing and done physical training drills and teambuilding activities. You have to strive for and achieve things that youve never done before. Its been fun to work together. SIUE senior Cynthia Holten, of Shiloh, is slated to graduate with a bachelors in criminal justice studies in December 2018. The camp mentor says her passion for being a positive influencer in law enforcement was ignited when she attended Team Illinois Youth Police Camp at the age of 15. This camp made a huge influence on my life, Holten said. She has completed an internship with ISP and aspires to become a state trooper. My mentors had a big impact on me and changed my perspective on a lot of things, she added. I want to serve and protect and help those that need a little more guidance in life. I would like to make a difference in my community and across the state. The weeklong camp concluded Saturday, July 21 with a graduation ceremony at Calvary Baptist Church in Alton. The ceremonys guest speaker was Olympic legend and gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee. Jubilee LifeInsurance Company of Uganda Limited is a duty licensed company offering Lifeinsurance services and is regulated by the Insurance Regulatory Authority ofUganda. Being part of the Jubilee Group of Companies, Jubilee is big Insurancebrand in East Africa with presence in; Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi andMauritius. Jubilee Life Insurance Company of Uganda Limited is also affiliatedto the Aga Khan Development Network. Your application will be reviewed if you have fulfilled all the requirements including submission of standard file types such as Microsoft Word (.doc) and Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) in a single attachment (No Zipped files, Links or Multiple Attachments) and should not exceed 10MB. Please clearly indicate the position number and title you are applying for on the DS-174 form. The adage that failures can teach many lessons seems quite... Silent movies in the early 20th century were hardly silent. Most movie theaters had musicians playing along with the moving image on screen. Even the meanest fleapit in the sticks had a piano player, writes Scott Eyman in The Speed of Sound: Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution, 19261930. More than 100 years ago, cinema studies staple Birth of a Nation by D.W. Griffith had premiered with an orchestra, cue sheet, conductor and the works. In fact, Griffith is supposed to have fought with his conductor over the notes of a Wagner piece which accompanied a scene featuring the Ku Klux Klan. The American director had said, " If I ever kill anyone, it wont be an actor but a musician. While we haven't grown up watching silent films set to classical music, some cultural entrepreneurs are reviving this art-form in new-fangled ways. There is a Harry Potter film concert series with a full symphony orchestra across the Atlantic. Closer home, there is Showhouse Events based in Mumbai. And they are bringing the concept of 'Cinema in Concert' to India. They want to set iconic films to music by leading orchestras in the world. Audiences in four cities will see popular animation shorts reach a different dimension when synced with live music. This time it is the Oscar-nominated Magic Piano (2011), where a young girl discovers a piano which magically transforms into a flying machine. Omer Haider, managing director of Showhouse, talks about the Delhi tour of Cinema in Concert series on July 28, why he chose internationally renowned pianist Dinara Klinton for their first India outing, and his future plans with the format. How did you discover Cinema in Concert series and how popular is it in the West? Omer Haider It all started when I watched the Oscar winning film Peter & The Wolf in West End, London. Mesmerised by the uniqueness of the show, I immediately got in touch with makers of the film. I collaborated with them to bring to India for the first time, this beautiful concept of Cinema in Concert with Magic Piano & The Chopin Shorts. We have been planning this for long and it has taken two years to finally bring this concept to India. This concept is a rage worldwide, especially in the West. In order to cater to the growing popularity of Cinema in Concert, producers from all over the world are turning some of the Hollywood's iconic films like Titanic, Godfather and James Bond - Skyfall into silent formats so that each scene of the films can be synced to live score performed by the biggest orchestras of the world, thereby giving audiences a fresh new perspective to cinematic experience. What do you like most about the Cinema in Concert concept and how do you plan to tweak it around for Indian audiences? The uniqueness of 'Cinema In Concert' is that people can sit back and enjoy a full symphony orchestra performing unforgettable live score to iconic films. The thrill of watching cinema while listening to live music on stage is what sets this format apart form others. My numerous trips to West End and Broadway, the hub of world's best theatres, gave me lot of insights as to what will work in India in terms of cinematic experience. Though this concept is fairly new, I do have the conviction that it will work wonders with the Indian audiences given that we are tweaking it according to the different target audiences and their tastes. This is a unique art form that will both entertain and educate our audience. The show format is interesting and very urban. We believe this concept will bring a breath of fresh air to Indian cinematic and musical experiences. How often will Showhouse Events showcase this format in India and what kind of movies are you planning to set to music? Will you also rope in Indian classical musicians? Similar to our commitment to theatre shows which Showhouse has been producing under our intellectual property "India's largest theatre tour" since last few years, our dedication to Cinema in Concert has been planned on similar lines. We plan on presenting bi-annual Cinema in Concert shows to Indian audience with iconic films being set to live music by some of the leading orchestras of the world. We are already securing film licences of some of the other kids centric and Oscar winning films like Peter and the Wolf and Jurassic Park. In future I would love to adapt this incredibly successful format to other legendary films like Godfather, Titanic etc. for wider and all inclusive audience. Indian classical music is very close to my heart and I would definitely like to rope in Indian classical musicians in future. For the Delhi leg of the Cinema in Concert series, what can the audience look forward to? How did you come to choose Dinara Klinton for the first India outing of Cinema in Concert series? The audience can look forward to scintillating performance by Dinara Klinton. She is such a great pianist; it is an absolute delight to watch her perform on stage. The audience should look forward to never-seen- before screening of award winning animation film Magic Piano and other short films from the 'kids popular collection' which has very emotional storylines and remarkable visuals. We were delighted by the fantastic virtuosity, energy and power Dinara displayed during her performances. She is a legendary pianist and has performed in some of the world's biggest concert halls like Royal Albert Hall, Konzerthaus Berlin and Louvre (Paris). Once we watched her videos, we were certain she would be our solo pianist for Magic Piano concert in India. Who are some of the other Western classical musicians you have tied up with for the coming months? Will we see orchestras come down for music accompaniment of Indian movies? It is too early to comment on that but we definitely have big plans. Also, we like to surprise our audience, so wait for it! The cities include: Aix en Provence TGV, Angers St Laud, Avignon TGV, Bordeaux St Jean, Champagne TGV, Le Mans, Lille, Lorraine TGV, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Nimes, Poitiers, Rennes, St Pierre Des Corps, Strasbourg, Toulon, Valence TGV as well as Brussels (in Belgium). The code share agreement, which will come into effect on September 3, 2018, was signed on behalf of Royal Jordanian President/CEO Stefan Pichler by RJs France Area Manager Maher Alnaimat and for North TGV Axis by Director Tanguy Cotte-Martinon. This TGV AIR railway service offers air passengers the opportunity to travel to TGV destinations based on a single, combined, TGV and RJ ticket, with a single fare and a single reservation at an attractive price. RJ CEO Stefan Pichler said: "Our desire is to serve and expand our network and provide our customers with various services beyond air transport. We believe that the partnership with SNCF will enable our customers to reach several new destinations in France. This partnership demonstrates RJ's commitment to adopting the services TGV AIR offer as a major tool in its overall strategy, which aims to provide more travel options to its passengers." Commercial Director of the North TGV Axis Remi Habfast said: "This new TGV AIR partnership with Royal Jordanian will offer high-speed train service from Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (Terminal 2D) to even more international passengers. SNCF is recognised worldwide for its high-speed trains, its reliability and quality of service. We are pleased, through this partnership, to give access to Royal Jordanian passengers." The Kerala government on Monday requested the high court to constitute a special court headed by a woman judge to conduct the trial in February 2017 actress attack case, in which actor Dileep is an accused. The state government also informed the court that Dileep was trying to sabotage the trial. The government made its stand clear while the court was considering the actress' plea on the issue. Earlier, the actress' plea to constitute a special court headed by a woman judge was dismissed by Ernakulam Principal Districts and Sessions Court on the ground that no woman judges were available in the district. Meanwhile, the District Principal Sessions Court postponed the trial in actress attack case to August 1 after the defence counsel sought more documents related to the case. The court asked the defence counsel to make special requests for the documents required instead of complaining the counsel had not been given all documents. The prosecution challenged the claim saying that most of the documents sought have been provided. The actress was abducted and sexually assaulted in a moving car on the night of February 17. Popular actor Dileep is accused of plotting the crime. Recently, the move to revoke the expulsion of Dileep from the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) had created a controversy with protests erupting from several corners. Dileep was ousted from the association after he was arrested in last July. He is out on bail. After receiving complaints that comedian Kunal Kamra's jokes are anti-national, Vadodara's MS University has a cancelled a show scheduled for August 11, The Indian Express reported. The publication quoted Rakesh Modi, Coordinator of the CC Mehta Auditorium, We informed Kamra verbally on Saturday night about the cancellation of his show. We were informed about his content being anti-national and controversial, so we went ahead with this decision. Since it is Sunday, we will make an official announcement tomorrow. A group of 11 alumni had written a letter to the university against Kamra. The letter, as accessed by The Indian Express, goes, "What message do we want to convey by organising such antinational flagbearer youth comedians comedy show in Gujarats most prestigious university campus? I am not writing the name of the comedian as he doesnt even deserve the popularity by our mention in this mail. He has mimicked on National Anthem, he has openly supported Tukde-Tukde Gang." The Alwar lynching case took a new turn on Sunday, as eyewitnesses alleged foul play by the police. One of the eyewitnesses told ANI that the police stopped outside his house and thrashed and abused the victim. It has also been alleged that the police delayed in taking the victim to the hospital. However, Alwar Superintendent of Police Rajendra Singh said nothing can be ascertained before the investigation is completed. "All those guilty will be brought to justice. The police is thoroughly investigating the case," he said. 28-year-old Akbar Khan, along with his friend, was taking some cows to his village through a forest near Lalawandi area in Alwar district, when local residents allegedly thrashed him, suspecting him to be a cow smuggler. Despite being rushed to the hospital, doctors there declared Khan dead on arrival. Meanwhile, a third suspect in the lynching case was arrested on Sunday. Two others were arrested on Saturday, while police are on the lookout for the fourth suspect. Police said Naresh Singh, a resident of Lalawandi village, was arrested on Sunday. Two others, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh Sardar, were produced in court and remanded to five days in police custody. In a related development, the investigation into the case was handed to an officer of the rank of SP by the IG of Jaipur Range, Hemant Priyadarshy. Priyadarshy assured an impartial investigation would be carried out and no culprit would be spared or an innocent person framed. The Narendra Modi government on Monday asserted that the proposed Higher Education Commission would be an "independent" body and that rights of states would not be impugned, amid concerns expressed by members over replacing the University Grants Commission (UGC). The Higher Education Commission of India Bill, 2018 seeks to repeal the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act, 1956 and establish the Higher Education Commission to effectively attain standards and enhance the quality of higher education. Human Resources Development Minister Prakash Javadekar told the Lok Sabha that the new body would not be a government ministry but an independent body. "We are not converting it into a bureaucratic organisation... it will remain independent," Javadekar said, adding the context has changed now. When the UGC was set up in 1956, there were 20 universities, 500 colleges and around 2 lakh students. Now, there are over 900 universities, 40,000 colleges and more than 3.5 crore students, Javadekar said. Raising concerns, some members wanted to know why the UGC is going to be replaced. The minister said there would be two commissionsone for providing grants and the other for carrying out regulatory functions. "That is the whole idea," Javadekar said during the Question Hour. According to Javadekar, the grant disbursal function to universities and colleges is now proposed to be located in an entity that works in a transparent, merit-based approach through a platform enabled by information and communication technology (ICT). Making it clear that rights of states would not be affected with the creation of the new body, Javadekar also said there would not be any change at all in existing reservations for OBC, SC and others. "The proposed Higher Education Commission of India will focus largely on promoting the quality of academic instruction, maintenance of academic standards and grant of autonomy for higher educational institutions," Javadekar said. The ministry was in the process of finalisation of the draft Higher Education Commission of India Bill, 2018 based on suggestions/comments received from various stakeholders, Javadekar said. The draft bill now proposes to enable the Higher Education Commission to perform its role effectively in attaining standards and enhancing quality of higher education, Javadekar added. Responding to concerns raised by members, Javadekar said the draft bill has been amended and that would go to the Cabinet for approval. Around 10,000 suggestions were received on the draft. Some members raised the issue of the yet-to-be-established Jio Institute being selected as a institution of eminence. Javadekar said it was selected from 11 private proposals under the greenfield institutions category. To a query on why no state-run university found a place in the institution of eminence list, Javadekar expressed hope that public universities would be there in the next list. The intention is to have 20 world-class institutions in the next 10 years, he added. During the question hour, TDP members stood at their seats with some placards kept on their desks as they sought to raise demands for various facilities for Andhra Pradesh. On Friday, the no-confidence motion moved by the TDP was defeated in the House. In a possible signal to the Shiv Sena, a meeting between BJP chief Amit Shah and senior party leaders in Mumbai on Sunday discussed the possibility of the saffron party going it alone in the coming Lok Sabha elections. Shah who landed in the city on Sunday afternoon, spent the entire day at the BJP headquarters of 'Vasant Smruti' in south-central Mumbai. Shah laid down a 23-point working strategy and discussed issues such as increasing the party strength and addressing new voters' groups based on their profession and gender. "The national president plainly stated that the strategy has to be implemented in all the Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in the state. At present, the BJP shares its political space with the Shiv Sena and a couple of smaller allies. It is a message that says 'prepare for contesting elections alone'. We will have to rush as the general elections are now less than a year away," said a senior BJP minister who attended the meeting with Shah. Apart from meeting the 'vistaraks' of the party whose mandate is to increase the network of the BJP in different geographies, Shah also interacted with the members of the 'Lok Sabha Toli', a group that consists of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, state unit chief Raosaheb Danve, Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe and ministers Sudhir Mungantiwar, Chandrakant Patil and Pankaja Munde and Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar. "The mandate of the group is to identify weaknesses of the party in certain areas, (ways) to overcome them and the current key issues related to the people of Maharashtra. The candidates who had contested and won the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and the current image of the candidates in the same constituency was also discussed at the general level in this meeting," the BJP official said. He said the BJP was also mulling over holding some events with a view to demonstrate its strength and communicate with the people. "It could be in the form of discussions, holding bike rallies as well as some innovative ways of reaching out to certain groups of people," the official said, without elaborating. After attending the meetings, Shah met melody queen Lata Mangeshkar at her home in south Mumbai as part of the party's "contact for support" campaign. The BJP chief was scheduled to meet Mangeshkar on June 6, but the visit was cancelled as she was down with food poisoning. Shah was accompanied by Fadnavis, Danve and Shelar to Mangeshkar's house. Two high-level committees have been constituted by the central government to suggest ways and legal framework to effectively deal with incidents of mob violence and lynching, the Home Ministry said on Monday. One of the committees is being headed by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and the other by Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba. The move came a week after the Supreme Court asked the central government to enact a law to deal with incidents of lynching and take action on mob violence. The government respects the recent directions of the Supreme Court on the issue of mob violence and has issued an advisory to state governments urging them to take effective measures to prevent incidents of mob violence and lynching, and take stringent action as per the law, a Home Ministry spokesperson said. In order to formulate appropriate measures to address the situation, the government has set up a high-level committee chaired by Union Home Secretary Gauba to deliberate upon the matter and make recommendations. The secretaries of the justice, legal affairs, legislative, and social justice and empowerment departments are members of the committee. The committee will submit its recommendations to the government within four weeks. The government has also decided to constitute a Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Home Minister Singh to consider the recommendations of the high-level committee of the secretaries, the spokesperson said. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot are members of the GoM. The GoM will submit its recommendations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Referring to the incidents of the mob violence and lynching, the ministry spokesperson said the Centre is concerned over incidents of violence by mobs in some parts of the country. The government has already condemned such incidents and made its stand clear in Parliament that it is committed to uphold the rule of law and adopt effective measures to curb such incidents. 'Police' and 'Public Order' are state subjects as per the Constitutional scheme and state governments are responsible for controlling crime, maintaining law and order, and protecting the life and property of the citizens, the spokesperson said. They are empowered to enact and enforce laws to curb crime in their jurisdiction. Accordingly, the Ministry of Home Affairs has, from time to time, issued advisories to states and Union Territories for maintenance of public order and prevention of crime in their areas of jurisdiction. An advisory on addressing the issue of lynching on suspicion of child lifting was issued on July 4, 2018. Earlier, an advisory was issued on August 9, 2016, on disturbances by miscreants in the name of protection of cow. State governments have been advised to implement the directions issued in the matter by the Supreme Court on July 17, 2018. Condemning the rise in incidents of lynching, the Supreme Court had on Tuesday asked the government to enact a law to deal such cases. The apex court also made the Centre and the state governments accountable for mob violence and lynching, and asked them to take steps to curb and stop dissemination of irresponsible and explosive messages and videos on social media platforms which incite such incidents. Taking a dig at the Narendra Modi government over incidents of mob lynching, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said cows were safer than women in the country. "We are a part of the government, but if something is wrong, we [Shiv Sena] will definitely talk about it. We are friends of the Bharatiya Janata, not of any party," Thackeray said, taking a dig at the BJP's name. Shiv Sena is BJP's alliance partner in Maharashtra and the Centre. On incidents of mob lynching in the country, the Shiv Sena chief said BJP's idea of Hindutva was fake, and criticised the Modi government for failing to check cow vigilantism. "In this country, cows are safe, but women are not," Thackeray said in an interview to Sena mouthpiece Saamana. "In the name of saving the cow, if you are shifting focus to whether someone is eating beef or not, then it is a sham. This is not Hindutva. I do not accept the idea of Hindutva that is being adhered to in the country. Our women are unsafe and you are protecting cows," Thackeray said. "We (Shiv Sena) never said cows should be slaughtered. But while protecting cows, India has become the most unsafe country for women. One should be ashamed of it. You want to save gaumata (cow), but what about mata (mother)," Thackeray said. Targeting the BJP over the debate on nationalism, Thackeray said the BJP had no right to decide who was a nationalist and who was anti-national. "Anyone criticising the government does not become anti-national. Members of Parliament are representatives of people and have the right to raise questions," Thackeray said. Thackeray said his party has opposed only those decisions that appeared not to be protecting the interests of the poor. "I criticise the government if it is taking any wrong steps. I cannot take the appeasement route to woo them [BJP]. The previous [UPA] regime was defeated by people and there were big expectations from this NDA government. But this government is also functioning like the previous one," Thackeray added. The passing of the nation-state bill last week by the Israeli Knesset has stirred a hornets nest of controversy and will further worsen the Israel-Palestine conflict. The law, which has quasi-constitutional status (Israel is yet to formally adopt a formal, written constitution; it instead has an unwritten constitution called the basic laws, which are periodically enacted) declares Israel to be a homeland of the Jewish people and exclusively grants the right to exercise national self-determination in the state of Israel to the Jewish people. The law declares that Jewish settlement is a national value and promises to encourage and advance settlement efforts. It also declares that Hebrew is the official language and Arabic will be downgraded to having special status. (Previously both Arabic and Hebrew enjoyed the status of official language under Israeli law.) The law is largely symbolic and declaratory, but could have incendiary consequences later on. The law has generated bitter criticism in Israel and among the Jewish diaspora in America. The move to enact it has been condemned among the Israeli left, Israeli Arabs, civil rights activists and liberal Jews abroad. They regard the laws as discriminatory, racist and believe it enshrines inequality in law for non-Jews. The new law does not permit infringement of individual rights of Israeli Arabs. Civil equality, regardless of ethnicity, race and gender is enshrined in Israels basic laws and will continue unchanged. It could, however, tip the scales in favour of Jews in matters of housing, land settlement and state aid and will give the Jews as a community a more privileged status. As Avi Dichetr, the Israeli lawmaker who first proposed a version of the law in 2011 said to the Arabs, The most you can do is to live among us as a national minority that enjoys equal individual rights, but not equality as a national minority. The most immediate consequences of the law will probably lie in the thorny question of Jewish settlements, especially in the West Bank. Palestinians have frequently moved the Israeli courts for relief in cases of expropriation of land, illegal Israeli outposts or in property, water and road access disputes in the West Bank territories. The declaration could cause Israeli courts to weigh ever more heavily in a broad swathe of such cases. Already there are moves in the Israeli Knesset to pass a measure to restrict the right of Palestinians to move the Israeli higher courts. As a symbol, however, the new law will come as a body blow to the aspirations of Israeli Arabs and Palestinians. Collectively, they are reeling from multiple reverses on the political and diplomatic front. Israels warming ties with Arab states who give diplomatic, political and economic support to Palestinian movement will have an impact. Though far from being orphaned politically by the Arab states, the Palestinian Arabs will be wary of their brethren states and their declarations of support. Nor is Israel likely to offer even token gestures to an agonised, defeated people. The right-wing in Israel is firmly entrenched in power and in no mood to make any concessions, even modest ones. The settler movement and the ultra-orthodox now cartelise state power, under the present political dispensation. There is no Israeli peace camp to speak off. Since the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, no Israeli leader has been willing to expend political capital to achieve a lasting settlement of the problem. Any outreach to the Palestinian Arabs has come from civil rights organisations or some of the numerous NGOs, who now constitute the peace movement in Israel. But they are politically minnows and can effect little change in the Israeli states attitude. Even if some miracle were to occur that would raise Palestinian hopes of greater normalcy, the Palestinian statehood has now definitely become geographically unviable. According to an American estimate, when totalled, the land occupied by Israeli settlements, illegal outposts and land off limits to Palestinians constitute about 60 per cent of the land of a future Palestinian state. Over 5,20,000 Israeli settlers now live in the 150 settlements and 100 outposts in the West Bank territories alongside 2.7 million Palestinians. To protect these settlers from Palestinian attacks, there is heavy Israeli security presence in the form of military bases, check posts, frequent patrols and an imposing security barrier. Palestinian population centres are now systematically cut off from one another. For a future state to be even viable, there must be at least geographically contiguous authority over which it may exercise jurisdiction. There are no parts of the West Bank where such a scenario might even possibly rise. The brutal geographical realities now no longer offer Palestinians even a deceptive mirage for consolation. Ghettoised in every sense of the word, it is anyones guess to what they will turn to for political salvation. The situation has now become febrile as the population numbers create their own political and security dynamic. Just under 13 million people live between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean sea. That is 6.34 million Jews and 6.56 million non-Jews. Non Jews, majority Muslim Arabs, Arab Christians, Druze and others now outnumber the chosen people in the Holy Land. Israeli Arabs are now 21 per cent of the total population of Israel, according to census figures. The demographic threat from the Arab minority has created real fears among Israeli politicians. The wider Arab world is plunged in civil war and ethnic and messianic bloodletting. If the political stalemate continues, then it may only be a matter of time before a defeated Arab population in the Holy Land turn to some diabolical new faith with ugly consequences for Israel. Will Brexit undermine Londons position as a global centre of dispute resolution? Businesses closely monitoring progress in Brexit negotiations over future legal regime Lack of progress could result in more businesses choosing courts outside the UK LONDON The UKs decision to leave the EU may result in a substantial minority of businesses changing from having their contractual disputes heard in the UK to being heard in EU courts suggests research from Thomson Reuters Legal business, the worlds leading source of intelligent information. 35% of businesses surveyed by Thomson Reuters Legal business said they have already changed contracts so that disputes are heard in EU courts rather than in the UK. Thomson Reuters says that although London has historically been a global centre for dispute resolution, Brexit could weaken this position. Uncertainty over whether the UK will continue to from a regime for mutual recognition of court judgments between the UK and EU Member States has caused concern amongst some businesses. The research found that of the 35% of businesses surveyed changing dispute resolution clauses in their contracts, over half (51%) have chosen for disputes to be heard in EU courts, such as those in France or Germany, rather than in the UK. Businesses monitoring Brexit negotiations for clarity over future legal regime Although 65% of businesses surveyed have not made any changes to contracts as yet, two fifths of those (39%) say they intend to review contracts if there is no significant progress in negotiations before March 2019 on the future regime that will apply after Brexit for the mutual recognition of court judgments. Of this group, over a third are considering selecting different jurisdictions or choice of law clauses in their contracts and 20% indicated that they are looking at arbitration instead. Arbitration is an alternative form of dispute resolution that resolves disputes outside of courts, judgments from which are enforceable under the New York Convention, which is not affected by Brexit. The number of businesses conducting a contract review may increase even further in the lead up to March 2019 if no progress is made in negotiations. Many businesses may be adopting a wait and see approach for now before deciding on whether to review contracts nearer the time. On 3 July 2018, ISDA (International Securities and Derivatives Association) announced that it had introduced Irish and French law versions of the ISDA Master Agreement to offer its EU/EEA members both common law and civil law solutions to address this risk associated with its English Law version. Thomson Reuters adds that there is likely to be more appetite amongst businesses to change the approach to future contracts than to revise existing arrangements given the administrative burden this would place on in-house legal teams. Jim Leason, VP, Market Development and Strategy in the Legal UK & Ireland business of Thomson Reuters, says: Brexit uncertainty is causing concern as businesses want clarity over their trading arrangements for the future. The English legal system and professions that support it are major contributors to the UK economy. Selecting English law and the English courts has long been the preference for international commercial arrangements. The fact that a third of businesses are revising dispute resolution clauses away from the English courts should be a concern for the UKs legal profession. It is this initial selection in a contract that drives an entire industry of legal advice that supports transactional work, ongoing contract management and dispute resolution. If nothing concrete comes from Brexit negotiations soon or if there is a no-deal Brexit scenario, then more and more businesses will consider taking legal disputes elsewhere. London has a long-standing reputation as a global legal centre. However, a poor outcome from Brexit could result in work and talent pivoting away from the UK legal services sector. All the respondents in the research stated that their business includes contracts with an international aspect and 40% said that over half of their business is currently international. To access a copy of the report, please visit: The impact of Brexit on dispute resolution clauses. Thomson Reuters Thomson Reuters is the worlds leading source of news and information for professional markets. Our customers rely on us to deliver the intelligence, technology and expertise they need to find trusted answers. The business has operated in more than 100 countries for more than 100 years. For more information, visit www.thomsonreuters.com. CONTACT Paul Sandell Manager, PR & Communications Tel: +(44)20 7542 8616 paul.sandell@thomsonreuters.com LONDON / NEW YORK Financial firms intend to rapidly increase their investment in public cloud to exploit the benefits of the cloud in managing the financial data that powers their business decisions, according to a new global survey of senior technologists and market data managers in the financial services sector. In the survey from the Financial & Risk business of Thomson Reuters, respondents said their firms would be increasing investment in public cloud by over a half, from 30% of IT budgets in 2017 to 47% in 2019. Over 90% of firms surveyed say they will use public cloud for the majority of their market data needs in less than four years. A quarter (24%) expect to use public cloud for the majority of their market data needs within just one year. Financial firms are fuelled by data, whether to discover profitable new insights or to help them automate their reporting processes and manage costs at a time of intense regulatory pressure. The cloud offers a powerful set of tools for the financial community to manage their data needs, and opens up new opportunities to combine public and proprietary data at massive scale with tools like AI and machine learning to solve any number of problems, says Brennan Carley, Global Head of Enterprise Proposition & Product for the Financial & Risk business at Thomson Reuters. Financial firms of all sizes can be more agile and innovative using the cloud, as they test investment strategies and enter new markets more quickly. Given the sensitive nature of many of their data requirements and the regulatory pressures they face, financial firms have been quite cautious about exploiting public cloud compared to other industries, but these findings show that financial firms are accelerating the cloud plans. The adoption curve may differ depending on whether its a small hedge fund or a large bank and whether they are using the data to make trading decisions in real-time or back-testing research hypotheses, but the end point is clear. Financial firms say they are starting to leverage the cloud across their market data infrastructure to help them move faster, grow their business, reduce their costs, and better manage their risks. Thomson Reuters Financial & Risk recently announced plans to deliver all its financial data and tools in the cloud. Methodology The survey consisted of telephone interviews with 250 senior figures across buy- and sell-side financial institutions, in the roles of Chief Technology Officers, Chief Information Officers, Chief Data Officers and Heads of Market Data. It was a global survey, with respondents split equally between North America, Europe and APAC. Thomson Reuters Thomson Reuters is the worlds leading source of news and information for professional markets. Our customers rely on us to deliver the intelligence, technology and expertise they need to find trusted answers. The business has operated in more than 100 countries for more than 100 years. Thomson Reuters shares are listed on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges. For more information, visit www.thomsonreuters.com. CONTACT Louis Auty External Communications Manager for Technology Platforms Office +44 (0) 207 914 3267 Mobile +44 (0) 7880 078828 louis.auty@thomsonreuters.com USG Corporation, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells building materials worldwide. The company's Gypsum division manufactures and markets gypsum and related products to construct walls and ceilings of residential, nonresidential, and institutional buildings; and agricultural and industrial customers. This segment offers gypsum wallboards and compound portfolios, as well as corner beads, joint tapes, and plasters under the USG Sheetrock brand; glass mat sheathing portfolios under the Securock brand; construction plaster products under the Red Top, Imperial, Diamond, and Supremo brands; and lightweight gypsum panels under the USG Sheetrock brand, as well as ultralight panels, USG Sheetrock brand ecosmart panels, and industrial gypsum. Its Performance Materials division manufactures and markets products for interior and exterior building applications of residential and nonresidential buildings, as well as industrial applications. This segment provides cement boards, backer boards, shower systems, performance floorings, air barrier systems, roof board portfolios, and structural panels under the USG Durock, Fiberock, Levelrock, Securock, ExoAir, Securock, and USG brands. The company's Ceilings division manufactures and markets ceiling tiles under the Radar, Eclipse, Mars, and Halcyon brands; ceiling grids under the Donn, DX, Fineline, Centricitee, and Identitee DXI brands; specialty ceilings under the Curvatura, Compasso, Radians, Illusions, Multiples, Runways, Barz, Planx, Mirra, Corniche, Wallforms, and Parti brands; and acoustical drywall ceilings under the Ensemble brand. Its USG Boral Building Products division manufactures, distributes, and sells building products, mines raw gypsum, and sells natural and synthetic gypsum under the USG Boral Sheetrock, USG Boral NextGen, Elephant, Jayaboard, Durock, and Donn DX brands. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Read More ALBANY Taxpayers will have to serve up $325,000 to cover the legal bills of a controversially named food truck that prevailed in a federal lawsuit prompted by a state agency's decision to ban it from selling its wares on the Empire State Plaza. The Wandering Dago won its case in January at the end of a years-long legal battle with top officials at the state Office of General Services, which in 2013 rejected the truck's application to take part in the plaza's summer lunch program. The stipulation covering legal fees and costs was signed July 6 by the truck's attorney, George Carpinello of Boies Schiller Flexner, and lawyers from Attorney General Barbara Underwood's office, which represented the Cuomo administration in the suit. U.S. District Judge Mae D'Agostino approved it on July 10. The state has four months to pay up. "We are pleased to conclude this action, but wish we did not have to bring a lawsuit to begin with. It has cost everyone, including the taxpayers, a lot of time, money and aggravation," Carpinello said in an email. The Wandering Dago, owned by Andrea Loguidice, filed suit in August 2013 against several OGS officials, including Commissioner RoAnn Destito and Executive Deputy Commissioner Joe Rabito, as well as the New York Racing Association, which ejected the truck from the Saratoga Race Course in July of that year. NYRA, which at the time of the Wandering Dago's ouster was under state control, quietly reached a $68,500 settlement with the truck's owners in 2015. While "dago" is an anti-Italian slur, Loguidice has said she chose the truck's name as a tribute to her ancestors, laborers who were paid "as the day goes." After the suit was filed, Gov. Andrew Cuomo called the truck's moniker "obviously offensive" and praised the decision to ban it from the plaza. The January decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit concluded that D'Agostino's initial decision had erred in granting summary judgment to the OGS defendants. Instead, the three-judge panel said summary judgment should have gone to the Wandering Dago. "It is undisputed that defendants denied WD's applications solely because of its ethnic slur branding," the court said in a 32-page decision that called the state's action unconstitutional "viewpoint discrimination." The Second Circuit's action was based in large part on the U.S. Supreme Court's June 2017 decision in Matal v. Tam, in which the leader of an Asian-American rock group called The Slants was denied the chance to register the band's name with the U.S. Trademark Office due to its ironic use of a similarly offensive epithet. The top court concluded that the federal office's decision amounted to unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination. The Wandering Dago dropped its claim seeking damages from the state, but still demanded payment of its legal bills. An OGS spokeswoman did not respond Sunday to a request for comment. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. Loguidice, who now operates the truck as part of her Rogue Hospitality catering business, filed a separate lawsuit in late 2014, claiming that she was fired from her job as an attorney for the state Department of Environmental Conservation due to her connection to the truck. DEC officials terminated her after it came to light that the truck had been hired by a General Electric contractor to cater an event on GE's Niskayuna campus; agency officials said DEC's work on GE's PCB dredging project on the Hudson should have raised a red flag for Loguidice. The DEC-Loguidice suit is currently bogged down in legal wrangling about the scope of the questions state attorneys are obligated to answer in depositions. Carpinello said the state's actions against the truck were "continuing because Andrea is still fighting for her job after being fired from DEC for all of this." After her legal victory in the case against the OGS defendants, Loguidice applied to take part in this year's summer lunch program. Five years after its rejection, the Wandering Dago began doing business on the Empire State Plaza last month. cseiler@timesunion.com - 518-454-5619 - @CaseySeiler Colonie American Airlines Group's Piedmont Airlines will open a maintenance base at Albany International Airport to service its growing fleet of Embraer 145 regional jets. Piedmont expects to begin hiring to fill more than 50 positions at the base next month. The Piedmont operation will be the second airline base at the airport dedicated to the 50-seat Embraer 145s. United Express carrier CommutAir already occupies two hangars where it maintains its own Embraer 145 fleet and employs about 100 people. Experienced aircraft mechanics can expect to earn $60,000 or more annually. "We selected Albany based on a number of factors, including its attractive facilities and proximity to many of the cities we serve out of Philadelphia," said Bill Arndt, vice president, maintenance and engineering. "We look forward to growing our Piedmont family and the American Eagle brand in Albany and the great state of New York." Aircraft maintenance technicians hired by Piedmont will be eligible for a $2,500 signing bonus. The timing of Piedmont's arrival may be fortuitous for employees of Premier Aviation Overhaul Center at the former Rome Air Force base outside Utica. Premier in May notified the state Labor Department that it was ending operations there later this summer, eliminating the jobs of 127 aviation mechanics, technicians and others. That likely would provide a number of experienced candidates for the positions Piedmont seeks to fill. Airport CEO John O'Donnell said late Monday that he'd like to host a job fair for the Premier Aviation workers to meet with Piedmont recruiters at the airport. American has a major international hub at Philadelphia, which it acquired in its merger with US Airways. American had ended service at Albany in November 2008 after eight decades of service here, dating from the earliest days of air travel. It returned with the US Airways merger seven years later. On Monday, Piedmont already was recruiting for the new Albany jobs. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. "I would encourage anyone with an aircraft maintenance background in and around Albany to take a look at Piedmont," said Kevin Dallaire, maintenance recruiter. "This is a company that has been around for a long time, and has the financial backing of American Airlines. Piedmont is a growing, stable company offering great opportunities." American and its Eagle regional carrier operate 15 daily departures, with three of those by Piedmont. Commutair, meanwhile, operates six of United's 12 daily departures. American Eagle previously occupied one of the two hangars where Commutair is located. Piedmont is expected to move into the former Eclipse Aviation hangar on the other side of the airport by early next year. The airport board on Monday morning approved a contract to install a larger door on the Eclipse hangar, one that would accommodate commercial aircraft. O'Donnell said the new door has been ordered and should be installed sometime in September. And while he couldn't immediately provide a figure, O'Donnell said Piedmont will "pay us full rent" for the former Eclipse hangar. Lake George Remi, a mixed breed black Labrador retriever, quietly sat down in the street after sniffing around a storm grate near iconic Million Dollar Beach. That was the signal to her handler, Karen Reynolds, that the dog's powerful nose had detected the odor of human sewage bacteria. Remi and another specially trained dog, a hound/shepherd mix named Kai, were working around the beach in Lake George last weekend to help officials find the mysterious source of recurring bacteria readings that have repeatedly forced the beach's closure during the last two years. Reynolds is a co-owner of Canine Environmental Services, a Maine-based company that she believes is first in the world to use dogs, which have nearly 50 times the olfactory sensors of humans, to help track potential sewage spills. For years, dogs have been used to sniff out minute chemical traces of drugs and explosives, as well as to locate missing people or accident victims. Able to detect chemicals at levels down to one part per trillion, dogs have even been shown to be able to detect certain types of cancer in humans. "We felt that we got some pretty good leads for further study. We are going to try to narrow this down," said Randy Rath, the project manager for the not-for-profit Lake George Association, which hired the canine detectives to track bacteria leaks that have so far eluded human efforts. Since bacteria were first found in beach water, officials in Lake George have been combing a maze of underground sewage and stormwater systems, trying to find and plug the source of leaks, so far to no avail. Million Dollar Beach has been closed one day so far this year, and was closed several times in 2017, as well as for an entire week at the end of the 2016 summer season. Excessive bacteria levels are a health threat to swimmers. Reynolds, who founded the company in Michigan nine years ago with her husband, Scott Reynolds, said the business has grown so much that they moved to set up an East Coast operation in Maine. There is also now a third office in California. The couple does not want the dogs to fly on airlines, so the team gets to all their assignments by driving. It took about 18 months to train Remi, who came to the couple as a stray that was picked in Michigan by a friend who found the puppy sitting alone on the porch of a vacant house, said Reynolds. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. The couple gets untreated sewage influent from plant operations, and train the dogs to "hit" on the smell of it through the use of a treat or other reward. Kai, who at three years old still has some rambunctious puppy in him, does a "simultaneous jump-bark" when he hits on sewage bacteria, said Reynolds. The couple has worked for more than two decades as dog trainers and handlers, and both worked in search and rescue teams in Oklahoma. Their teams have been called to sniff out sewage problems in states, including Hawaii, Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, New Hampshire, Maryland, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia. Now, Remi is taking on a new mission. Reynolds has trained her to detect the odor of bumblebees, which live deep underground, as part of efforts by conservation groups to locate and protect the pollinators, which are now in decline. While in Lake George, Remi and Kai visited about three dozen places at or near Million Dollar Beach, said Lake George Association Executive Director Walt Lender. His group paid $8,000 to bring Environmental Canine Services to town. The dogs hit some areas that will warrant further testing, including West Park, on the site of the former Gaslight Village near the beach. Other locations that drew the dogs' attention included the Bloody Pond Road and Route 9L intersection; Bloody Pond Road and Mockingbird Hill; Joe Green Field; and Cedar Lane and Beatty Road. "This is not solved yet," he said. "We are going to do some water tests, go into some of these places with cameras, and will probably open up some systems ... We need to find the answer." Albany A $2 million fine appears to have done nothing to quell the war of words between New York state utility regulators and Charter Communications, the owner of Spectrum cable TV. John Rhodes, the chairman of the Public Service Commission, now says that Charter is "gaslighting" its customers when it claims it has been living up to promises it has with the state to build out its high-speed internet network to under-served areas of the state. "Charter's claims are simply false and the commission will not stand idly by while Charter deceives the public and its shareholders," Rhodes said. "Charter's own data shows a gaping hole between its commitments and its performance. New York will not tolerate Charter's gaslighting its own customers into believing it is meeting its promises." Charter spokesman Andrew Russell once again defended the company and its Spectrum service from criticism from the PSC and Rhodes, who have claimed that many of the additional lines that it built in the state are duplicates or are in areas of the state not covered under the agreement. "The fact is that Spectrum has built out our broadband network to more than 61,000 unserved or underserved homes since the merger," Russell said. "We find it baffling that the PSC thinks that some New Yorkers count and others don't, given their belief that access to broadband is essential for economic development and social equity." Charter's CEO is cable TV pioneer Thomas Rutledge. Gaslighting is when someone manipulates people by repeatedly sowing self-doubt until they question their own reality. The term came about after a 1944 movie called Gaslight that starred Ingrid Bergman and Angela Lansbury about a man trying to slowly make his wife think she is going insane. Gaslighting has become a popular term among cable TV pundits who have accused President Donald Trump of "gaslighting" his Twitter followers amid the Russia investigation and other controversies. A book called "Gaslighting America: Why We Love It When Trump Lies to Us" was also published by conservative pundit Amanda Carpenter. Rhodes had only recently announced it was levying a $2 million fine against Charter, which operates its TV, internet and phone service under the Spectrum name. Charter countered that it had indeed met its obligations. The firm acquired Time Warner Cable in 2016 in a $56 billion deal that was approved by New York and other states where Charter acquired customers, as well as the federal government. As part of New York's OK of the deal, Charter agreed to build out its network to 145,000 new potential customers that otherwise wouldn't get access to high-speed internet service. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. Charter almost immediately fell behind in the build-out and agreed to a settlement with the state that put potential fines for non-compliance at $12 million. The PSC has already fined Charter $2 million, saying Charter did not meet its initial goals of the build-out. Charter has denied failing to meet the goals, and now it appears that the case could end up in the courts. "Not only has the company failed to meet its obligations to build out its cable system as required, it continues to make patently false and misleading claims to consumers that it has met those obligations without in any way acknowledging the findings of the Public Service Commission to the contrary," Rhodes said. "Our patience with Charter has come to an end and now we must move to take much stronger actions." The PSC could take a variety of measures against Charter, ranging from more penalties to court action or "revocation of Spectrum's ability to operate in New York state," Rhodes said. A year ago, Charter's Rutledge visited the White House where Trump recognized him for committing to invest $25 billion in expanding the company's network and call center operations. "We're going to spend $25 billion," Rutledge told Trump during the March 2017 visit. "We're committed to spending that predicated on the kind of regulatory consistency and efficiency that we expect as a country. And so we're looking forward to the opportunity to create these jobs and to build this infrastructure." Nashville, Tenn. At Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field this June, Kenny Chesney flew in a large group of VIP guests to visit with him before performing for 55,000 fans. They weren't music industry bigwigs. They were schoolchildren and teachers from the U.S. Virgin Islands, where Hurricane Irma made landfall last year and caused massive destruction. And they also happened to be his neighbors on the island of St. John. "I've spent the majority of my adult life walking those beaches and hanging out in those bars and writing songs," Chesney, 50, recalled later in his manager's office in Nashville, Tenn. "All of a sudden, it was a place that was very beautiful and that was very broken." St. John was among several Caribbean islands hit last September by the most powerful hurricane to develop over the open Atlantic. Throughout the Caribbean, the Category 5 storm knocked out power and cell phone towers for weeks or months, damaged roads, airports and hospitals and smashed up boats, businesses and homes. Chesney was not on the island, but he opened his home there to friends and neighbors so they could ride out the storm. They survived, but his home was destroyed. "I could hear the anxiety and the stress on everyone," Chesney said. "The people that actually rode the storm out in the bottom of my home, I was able to get them off the island a couple of weeks after the storm. And you know when they got to my home, they were wearing the same clothes they had on that morning (of the storm)." Immediately after the storm hit, he wrote the title track of his new album, "Songs for the Saints," out Friday. "I was writing the songs as a lot of the destruction and devastation was happening," Chesney said. "I've never made a record like that in the middle of such anxiety." Although born in landlocked East Tennessee, Chesney has become an islander at heart. On St. John, he made friends and enjoyed the peace and isolation away from the demands of his superstar life. There were years where he'd step off a tour bus and head straight for a boat. "The people that I met there didn't care what I did," Chesney said. "They had no idea. It was great." He turned that island lifestyle into his brand and the loyal No Shoes Nation that pack out stadiums. The island had fed his human spirit and his creative side as a songwriter, but now he had his chance to give back. Within days, Chesney set up a foundation called Love for Love City, also the title of the second song he wrote after the storm. He helped bring in medical supplies and equipment, had crews clear out debris and rescue pets and bought new musical instruments for the St. John School of the Arts. "Not many people know what Kenny has done and is still doing for the rebuilding efforts in the Virgin Islands," said his friend and country star Eric Church. "It's a place that is a part of his DNA, of his story. It tells you the kind of person he is and how big his heart is to see him helping in this way." The album has already produced Chesney's 30th No. 1 single, "Get Along," making him the artist with the most songs to top Billboard's Country Airplay chart, surpassing Tim McGraw, Alan Jackson and George Strait. On the title track, Chesney's vocals take center stage at the beginning with an acoustic guitar and a single drum beat, as he sings that "God lifted these islands from the ocean." On "Love for Love City," Chesney adds delicate steel drums and Ziggy Marley to the loping, reggae-inspired song in which he promises to be a part of the island's encore. New York By almost every metric, Drake's fifth LP, "Scorpion," is a blockbuster. In the first three days after its release June 29, it logged enough streams (435 million) to beat a record set by Post Malone over a full week. After two weeks, it reached rarefied territory in today's music industry: more than 1 million equivalent album sales. But can you find a physical copy in New York City? The answer: Not so easily. Copies of "Scorpion" CDs only for now; plans for a vinyl release have not yet been announced became available July 13. That means the bulk of "Scorpion" consumption has taken place on streaming services, where 1,250 paid streams and 3,750 free streams equal one album; the rest were downloads. Its CDs haven't registered on the charts yet, and according to Nielsen, which tracks music-industry data, "Scorpion" sold 8,000 physical copies from July 13 through 17 a relatively microscopic figure that's a powerful reminder of how little some artists need physical sales to drive their success. CD sales have continued to slide as streaming booms, particularly for rap artists, who constantly set and break records and dominate playlists on services including Spotify and Apple Music. Several Top 10 albums on Billboard's chart this year never received a physical release at all, including Cardi B's "Invasion of Privacy" and XXXTentacion's "?"; for Migos and the Carters (Beyonce and Jay-Z), physical copies were an afterthought, arriving weeks after their albums hit the charts. And an attempt to track down copies of the year's biggest LP in 16 stores that sell new music in the city proved challenging. Only six stores had them, and prices ranged from $17.99 to $20.99. (A monthly subscription to Spotify, Apple Music or Tidal costs $9.99.) Representatives from the stores said they had sold around 16 to 18 total copies. Several salespeople said they had received some sort of inquiry about a physical copy, either CD or vinyl, of Drake's "Scorpion" before its release, which they deemed unusual. "One person asked, which in this day and age, is kind of a lot," said Chris Woldt, a manager at a Barnes & Noble in Brooklyn Heights. An FYE in Queens received more requests: "Before we had them, people kept asking, 'Do you have it, do you have it?'" said Michael Jacob, an assistant manager. And multiple customers called Record Mart Times Square and Target at Albee Square in Brooklyn requesting the album, sales associates said. In the stores, Drake's fiercest competition has been the K-pop boy band BTS. ALBANY Over a recent three-year period, 10,117 vulnerable New Yorkers died while in state care or the care of a program overseen by the state. They were loved ones with intellectual or physical disabilities, forgotten souls battling addiction, troubled children and teens, and adults who bore the weight of mental illness.F In 287 of those deaths, an allegation of abuse or neglect at the hand of a caretaker, employee or authority figure was reported and subsequently investigated. In at least 140 of those, the state Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs determined abuse or neglect likely occurred. Not a single criminal charge was brought in response. It's this track record documented in annual reports to the governor and legislature from 2015 to 2017 that has kept lawmakers and advocates questioning the investigative agency's willingness to hold wrongdoers accountable over the five years since it was created. "Justice? That's just a false promise," said Assemblyman Thomas Abinanti, a Democrat who sponsored a bill last year to disband the center. "This agency is a false promise to families who want quality care and justice for their loved ones." The Justice Center was created by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and legislators following a series of New York Times exposes on widespread abuse and neglect at state-run and certified facilities for the disabled. It became operational on June 30, 2013, and was charged with investigating and prosecuting acts of wrongdoing committed against any of the 1 million vulnerable adults and children living in or receiving services from state-operated, certified or licensed facilities and programs. In a five-year progress report posted on its website this month, the agency contends it has met its mission of making New York a safer place for its most vulnerable citizens. Since its inception, the report notes, the agency has investigated 46,000 cases of abuse and neglect, prosecuted 550 of them, barred 450 people from the workforce who were found to have committed serious wrongdoing, run 439,000 criminal background checks and trained 3,300 investigators on the intricacies of working with vulnerable populations. "My position, unequivocally, is that the Justice Center has ensured that people with special needs are safer today than they were five years ago," Denise Miranda, executive director of the agency, told the Times Union. She noted the significant changes the center brought to New York: It was the first independent oversight agency in the nation with the sole job of protecting and advocating for the disabled; it standardized definitions of abuse and neglect across various service settings; it made virtually everyone in a care setting a mandated reporter of suspected or observed abuse; it established a blacklist of wrongdoers who are barred statewide from working around vulnerable populations; and it created an Office of the Special Prosecutor who could pursue criminal, not just administrative, charges against accused persons. This last point is central to most lingering debates about the Justice Center. Critics of the agency maintain it's much more interested in protecting the due process rights of state employees than it is in pursuing criminal justice for victims. Critics note that since it began, there have been only two known cases in which the center pursued criminal charges following the death of a vulnerable person: one in 2014 when a disabled man with breathing difficulties didn't get enough oxygen after his nurse fell asleep on the job; another in 2017 when a 35-year-old disabled woman suffered internal bleeding and broken ribs after being slammed on the ground by staff. One reason that death-related prosecutions are so rare, an agency official said, is that so few deaths involve allegations of wrongdoing in the first place. Among those that do, few are able to be substantiated and even fewer rise to the level of criminal neglect or abuse, the official said. Before pursuing any disciplinary action or criminal charges, the center must substantiate an allegation of wrongdoing first. To do so, it must prove that an alleged instance of abuse was more likely to have occurred than not to have occurred a standard of proof known as "preponderance of the evidence." Meeting this standard is enough to pursue disciplinary action against an employee, but not to bring criminal charges. To do that, prosecutors must prove an alleged act "beyond a reasonable doubt." This higher standard prevents prosecutors from pursuing every substantiated case of abuse or neglect in criminal court, the spokesperson said. But in Abinanti's view, the lack of prosecutions for serious incidents more likely stems from an inherent conflict of interest at the agency's core: It's a state agency overseeing state agencies. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. "They seem to encourage reporting of the most insignificant incidents and insist on a finding of substantiation to boost their numbers," the lawmaker said. "Yet for actually serious criminal conduct, they are less than helpful." Disability Rights New York, a nonprofit advocacy group that was tapped to serve as an independent watchdog over the agency, similarly argues the center lacks the necessary independence to effectively investigate and remedy abuse and neglect at state-licensed and operated facilities. According to its five-year progress report, the Justice Center boasts an 85 percent conviction rate for the 550 prosecutions it has pursued in the past five years. But other information such as how many of those were for the most serious offenses (Category 1 or 2) was not available. "Any state agency can release any numbers, but backing them up is another matter," said Michael Carey, who became a vocal advocate for the disabled after his 13-year-old autistic son, Jonathan, was smothered to death by a care worker. More Information F See More Collapse In one example shared in the report, two staff members pleaded guilty to a felony charge of endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person after the center found they had failed to seek medical care or alert anyone after an elderly, non-verbal man fell and broke two ribs. In another example, a staff member pleaded guilty to the same charge after the center found the employee had left a person with an intellectual disability alone in a car while visiting an inmate at a correctional facility. Later, the worker was found to have bought and smoked marijuana in the car while the patient remained in the back seat. Another concern that has emerged during the agency's first five years of operation is whether it has the right to prosecute cases at all. State Supreme Court judges in Albany County threw out at least three Justice Center convictions in 2017, stating that the agency lacked the legal authority to prosecute them in the first place because the state constitution requires criminal prosecutors to be elected. The agency is appealing those rulings, Miranda said, adding that downstate courts have ruled in favor of the center's prosecutorial authority. "We are a new agency," she said. "It's only been five years. This is an agency that doesn't exist anywhere else in this country. There was no template for the Justice Center. We were charged with building the plane and flying it at the same time. "Within the five years we have made progress, established efficiencies and ongoing collaborations," she said. "We have been engaging with the public in a way that's unprecedented. I stand by the work this agency does. It's very important and critical work." ALBANY Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Monday pardoned seven immigrants facing deportation or other penalties due to minor criminal convictions. Cuomo said that the pardons were issued in recognition of their rehabilitative efforts and to remove the barriers that their criminal records present to their immigration status. These pardons come after Cuomo announced a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's policy of forced family separation on the U.S. southern border. The governor has issued executive orders to prohibit U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from making arrests in state facilities without a warrant and to prohibit state agencies and officers from inquiring about immigration status. The individuals pardoned include Tamar Samuda, a 35-year-old who left the U.S. to travel to Jamaica for a family funeral, and upon return was detained by ICE as a result of convictions from 17 years ago. She was released on immigration parole in February 2018, and continues to fight her deportation. Carlos Suarez, 41, from the Dominican Republic, was told he was ineligible for citizenship as he was about to go to his swearing-in ceremony in September 2017. Instead of becoming a citizen, he was told to check in with ICE monthly, which he has been doing. Frank Barker, 43, of Barbados was convicted of criminal possession of stolen property and controlled substances and identity theft from a short-term period of criminal activity resulting from drug addiction, Cuomo's office said. He has been sober for eight years and works as a coordinator at an HIV/AIDS supportive housing provider in New York City, is a certified substance abuse counselor and a community advocate in the Bronx. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. Three of the other four who received pardons were from the Dominican Republic. The seventh is Marino Soto, 43, from Colombia, who owns a software company in Connecticut and volunteers with humanitarian organizations. He was convicted of criminal possession of a controlled substance. "At a time when President (Donald J.) Trump and the Federal government are waging a war on our immigrant communities, New York stands firm in our belief that our diversity is our greatest strength," Cuomo said in a statement. It is the third time the governor has used his pardon authority to protect immigrants. Since taking office, Cuomo has issued 34 pardons, 12 commutations and 140 conditional youth pardons. It's relatively easy to tell if a driver is drunk thanks to technology like Breathalyzers. Figuring out whether a driver is impaired by other drugs, legal or not, is a different matter. For the past 30 years, police departments in New York have relied on drug recognition experts, officers with special training to help them determine whether a driver is under the influence of marijuana or narcotics. There are now more than 250 such experts in New York. With the states battling the scourge of opioid addiction and weighing the possibility of legaling recreational marijuana, these officers are likely be in more demand. Perhaps the most experienced expert in the state is State Police Technical Sergeant Doug Paquette. Hes been in the drug recognition field since the drug recogniztion program was developed in the 1980s by two Los Angeles officers frustrated by the inability to quickly tell if a driver was impaired by drugs and what kind. We know the drug impaired drivers are out there, he said. Theres a lot of (drug users) that think we cant pick up on them if theyre high on drugs and theres going to be a steep learning curve for them because we can. He says hes been doing it so long that he can tell if someone is under the influence drugs, just by staring at their pupils. The muscles in your eyes are some of the most sensitive in your body, he said. First to be affected, usually the last to be unaffected. What size are the eyes? They tell me so much. Not every department in the state has a drug recognition expert. Officers must volunteer for special training that Paquette compared to cramming a full-semester college course into just a few weeks. It involves learning about pharmacology, toxicology and more. In the end, theyre supposed to be able to form an opinion on whether a driver is impaired using a 12-step evaluation that typically last about 30 minutes. You have to know what the body does normally so that you can understand what happens to the body when you add these substances, Paquette said. Unless they happen to make the stop, drug recognition expert or DREs are usually the second officer a suspected impaired driver will see. Unlike refusing to take a breath test in a drunk driving case, there is no penalty for refusing to undergo a DRE evaluation. That means officers must develop the ability to establish a trust with driver. But most drivers consent, Paquette said. DREs will ask the driver about medical history, food intake and other questions to rule out possible injuries or medical conditions that could impact the driver. Theyll examine the drivers eyes, muscle tone and put the driver through several tests that examine how their eyes respond to movement, light and see how well the driver moves and responds to basic commands. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. The DRE eventually forms an opinion on what category of drugs the driver may be on and requests a blood or urine sample to confirm it. The mere fact that it shows up in your system isnt enough, Paquette said. I need to show that youre impaired. DRE gives you that skillset. Niskayuna Police Sgt. Beth McGuire, the Capital Regions coordinator for the DRE program, said she thinks that if the state decides to legalize recreational marijuana there will be an initial increase in drugged driving crashes and arrests. I think were going to see a spike, she said. I think were going to see a spike in crashes and drug arrests because of legalization. Data from Colorado and Washington, where recreational marijuana has been legal for several years, suggests that to a degree. A 2017 Denver Post analysis of coroner reports showed that the number of drivers involved in fatal crashes in Colorado who tested positive for marijuana had doubled since 2013. The data was incomplete however because not all coroners in the state tested for marijuana. Washington has seen the number of fatal crashes involving marijuana increase since legalization as well. Defense attorney Peter Gerstenzang said he isnt so sure that legalization of marijuana will cause a spike in high drivers. A former prosecutor, Gerstenzang has also worked with departments on training officers as DREs. If anything, training more officers as DREs and increasing an emphasis on impaired driving enforcement will create the increase, he said. I would be surprised if (legalization) had much of an impact, he said. The people who use marijuana and drive now, will still use marijuana and drive. This past week, forest rangers helped four injured or disoriented outdoor adventurists in the Capital Region and rescued a Schenectady couple stranded in the Adirondacks, the Department of Environmental Conservation said Monday. On Thursday, July 19, a 28-year-old woman from Holbrook, Suffolk County, fell on the the Kaaterskill Falls Trail in Hunter, Greene County, and was unable to walk back to her car. Three forest rangers and local first responders treated and carried the woman to a waiting ambulance. She was then taken to a hospital for treatment, the DEC said. Later Thursday, at 6 p.m., a 42-year-old man and 43-year-old woman, both of Nassau County, called Warren County 911 to report they had become disoriented while hiking in the Shelving Rock Area along the eastern shore of Lake George. A forest ranger boarded a Lake George Park Commission Patrol Boat, and together they found the pair along the shoreline. "With a few simple directions, the two were able to walk back to their vehicle," the DEC said. The hikers called the ranger at 8:45 p.m. to confirm they were safely back at their car and headed home. On Saturday, July 21, someone called Greene County 911 to report a 32-year-0ld Earlton woman had hit her head on a beam inside the Elm Ridge Lean-to in Windham and was semi-conscious. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. Local first responders and three forest rangers carried the woman to a waiting medical helicopter, which flew her to a hospital in Albany, the DEC said. At 11:40 a.m. the next day Saturday, July 22 a man and woman from Schenectady called Franklin County 911 to say they were stranded by severe winds near near Hungry Bay on Middle Saranac Lake and were unable to safely canoe back to South Inlet. As two forest rangers set out to search for the couple in a motorboat, a second pair of canoers from Philadelphia called 911 to say they were also stranded in the same area. The rangers found both couples and took them all safely back to South Inlet, before retrieving their gear and boats. By 4 p.m., the couples were safely at their cars with their boats and equipment. Bridgewater, N.J. President Donald Trump asserted without evidence Sunday that newly released documents relating to the wiretapping of his onetime campaign adviser Carter Page "confirm with little doubt" that intelligence agencies misled the court that approved the warrant. But lawmakers from both political parties said that the documents don't show wrongdoing and that they even appear to undermine some previous claims made by top Republicans about the basis for obtaining a warrant against Page. Visible portions of the heavily redacted documents, released Saturday under the Freedom of Information Act, show the FBI telling the court that Page "has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government." The agency also told the court that "the FBI believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government." The documents were part of officials' application for a warrant to the secretive foreign intelligence surveillance court, which signed off on surveilling Page. Trump tweeted Sunday on the documents: "As usual they are ridiculously heavily redacted but confirm with little doubt that the Department of 'Justice' and FBI misled the courts. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam!" The release appears to undercut some of the contentions in a memo prepared by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes earlier this year. Nunes, R-Calif., and other Republicans had said that anti-Trump research in a dossier prepared by former British intelligence agent Christopher Steele and paid for by Democrats was used inappropriately to obtain the warrant on Page. While the documents confirm that the FBI relied, in part, on information from Steele to obtain the initial warrant, they also show how the FBI informed the court of his likely motivation. A page-long footnote in the warrant application lays out the FBI's assessment of Steele's history and the likely interest of his backer, adding that despite the political concern, the bureau believed at least some of his report to be "credible." Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California, a ranking member on the House Intelligence Committee, said the documents detail "just why the FBI was so concerned that Carter Page might be acting as an agent of a foreign power." "It was a solid application and renewals signed by four different judges appointed by three different Republican presidents," Schiff said on ABC's "This Week." Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida also broke with Trump, saying he didn't think the FBI did anything wrong in obtaining warrants against Page. "I have a different view on this issue than the president and the White House," Rubio said Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation." "They did not spy on the campaign from anything and everything that I have seen. You have an individual here who has openly bragged about his ties to Russia and Russians." On Sunday, Page said on CNN's "State of the Union": "I've never been the agent of a foreign power." In a 2013 letter, Page had described himself as an "informal adviser' to the Kremlin but now said "it's really spin" to call him an adviser. Page has not been charged with a crime, but he has been interviewed by the FBI and congressional investigators about his ties to Russia. White House officials have argued that Page, announced by the president in early 2016 as a foreign policy adviser, played only a minor role in the Trump campaign. ALBANY Schools are generally off-limits for sex offenders, but not when it comes time to vote. A carveout in the state's criminal trespass laws allows sex offenders to enter a school for the specific purpose of voting, including school district votes and other government elections, where the school is the polling site. The issue has jumped into the public's consciousness as the result of outcry by some Republicans about conditional pardons recently issued by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo that could speed up the restoration of voting rights for sex offenders on parole. "Registered sex offenders who have been released are allowed to vote," Albany County Board of Elections Republican Commissioner Rachel Bledi said. "Obviously you have a problem when the polling place is at a school. ... We've never really had this issue raised." A fact sheet from the state School Boards Association explains that level two and three sex offenders, who are deemed to be a moderate or high risk of offending again, are eligible to vote at a school if they're no longer on parole, probation or conditional discharge. "They have to go in and out just to vote," NYSSBA general counsel Jay Worona said. In most cases, school districts officials could be in the dark about who is voting at their schools because state law doesn't require law enforcement to notify district officials when a sex offender is in the area, according to Worona. A district interested in knowing whether sex offenders were voting at its schools would have to proactively research the state's sex offender registry and compare the results to the local voter enrollment files. Sex offender parolees granted a conditional pardon by Cuomo's executive order would need to alert their parole officer of their intention to vote and disclose if their polling site is a school, according to the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. If the parolee's polling location is a school, the conditional pardon requires they receive written permission from their parole officer and school officials to vote there. Additionally, DOCCS said the parolee can't enter the school grounds to vote until after 7 p.m. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. The conditional pardon doesn't allow for the parolee to vote via absentee ballot, which can only be issued under specific criteria set by state election law. A voter can obtain an absentee ballot if they'll be out of the county on Election Day, are too ill to access the polls, are detained in jail for an offense other than a felony, or are a resident of a Veterans Health Administration hospital, according to the state Board of Elections. Despite the restrictions, Bledi said, "I would absolutely issue an absentee ballot to a registered sex offender." She expressed skepticism that a candidate for political office would challenge the issuance of an absentee ballot to a sex offender who would otherwise be voting at a school. David.Lombardo@timesunion.com - 518.454.5427 - @poozer87 Warren County Sheriff's Office LAKE GEORGE - A South Carolina man was arrested on Sunday for allegedly brandishing a large knife and causing a disturbance outside of a bar on Canada Street, Warren County Sheriff's Office said. James J. Williams, 36, of Columbia, surrendered the knife when confronted by deputies, officials said. ALBANY Democratic candidate for New York attorney general Zephyr Teachout on Monday joined a group of former legislative staffers who have lodged sexual harassment complaints against state lawmakers, calling for a series of public hearings to improve workplace anti-harassment laws particularly in state government. In their first public appearance at the state Capitol, four out of seven members of the "sexual harassment working group," which formed in March, described how their reports of sexual harassment in the state Legislature were mishandled, and outlined how the laws passed during this year's budget negotiations would not have aided them. "What was passed in April was a step in the right direction, but there is so much more to be done," said Erica Vladimir, who alleged in January that her former boss, Sen. Jeff Klein, forcibly kissed her in 2015. Klein has denied the allegation. Vladimir was joined by three victims of alleged harassment or worse: Elizabeth Crothers, who in 2001 accused Michael Boxley, then chief counsel to ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, of sexual assault (Boxley later pleaded guilty in another case in which he was accused of rape); and Rita Pasarell and Leah Hebert, who both spoke out about the serial harassment of staffers by Assemblyman Vito Lopez, who was forced from the chamber in 2013 and died two years later. They accused Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and legislative leaders of pushing through a series of bills during budget negotiations over their objections. The women have put out a white paper critiquing the bills and offering recommendations for changes to the law. Legislation passed in the budget does prohibit the use of nondisclosure clauses in settlements relating to claims of sexual harassment unless it is the preference of the complainant, and prohibits mandatory arbitration clauses for claims of workplace sexual harassment. It also requires employers to distribute written anti-harassment policies in the workplace and require annual anti-harassment training for all employees, as well as extending protections to contractors. Additionally, the state's Division of Human Rights and Department of Labor have been tasked with producing a model sexual harassment policy by Oct. 1. Teachout, a constitutional law profession at Fordham Law School, said the state Joint Commission on Public Ethics has mishandled past investigations and must be overhauled. She said the panel's executive director, former Cuomo attorney Seth Agata, should be fired. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. Teachout is also calling for the governor to grant the attorney general's office a permanent referral to investigate criminal and civil matters in state government, which would include sexual harassment. Cuomo pushed for such a blanket referral when he served as attorney general from 2007 through 2010, but after becoming governor decided it would be unconstitutional. "It's unacceptable that legislation designed to protect women got cobbled together behind closed doors by a group of mostly men, while one of those men was under investigation for harassment," Teachout said in a statement, referring to Klein. "As an independent Attorney General, I won't shy from investigating the old boy's club in Albany." All four Democratic candidates for attorney general were invited to Monday's press conference; Teachout said she was asking them to join the call for hearings on sexual harassment. They are seeking to replace former Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who resigned in May amid domestic abuse allegations. RICHMONDVILLE Troopers searching for a 16-year-old girl who has been missing from Schoharie County since March are asking the public for help in finding her. Amanda Putorti was last seen on March 1, the day her parents discovered the teen missing from her Richmondville bedroom. A ladder was still propped against her window and items, including some of her medications, had been packed, Technical Sgt. Mark Cepiel said shortly after her disappearance. Saratoga Springs D. Wayne Lukas know his way around the Travers Stakes, the marquee race of the Saratoga Race Course season. The Midsummer Derby is still more than a month away but the Hall of Fame trainer is already plotting his strategy of the $1.25 million race. Lukas, who will celebrate his 83rd birthday in September, has won the Travers three times. He brings a 3-year-old to the Travers when he thinks he has a chance to win it. That's the only way. The last time the Spa saw Lukas in the Travers was in 2013. He won it with Will Take Charge. This year, the Midsummer Derby could get a double dose of Lukas as he is hoping to run a pair of horses in the Aug. 25 race. First though, a different race for each. As the 3-year-old season kicks off its second half, Lukas will be running his two best in major races this weekend. Bravazo, one of just two horses to compete in all three legs of the Triple Crown (of course Justify, the winner of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont, is the other), heads out of town to run in the Grade I, $1 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park on the Jersey Shore on Sunday. The day before, Lukas will be here, putting the saddle on Sporting Chance in the Grade II, $600,000 Jim Dandy. A good showing there and he will be on his way to the Travers. But Bravazo is a definite no matter what he does at Monmouth. "Our schedule right now is the Haskell and the Travers," Lukas said in his office at the Oklahoma Training Track. "I think he is one of the horses that can handle that." Bravazo, a son of Awesome Again, is a throwback to a different era when horses ran all the time and never took a break from training. Lukas says his colt has not had a break from training and has come out of the grueling Triple Crown in great shape. Bravazo's shining moment in the Triple Crown came in the Preakness when he made Justify sweat. He only lost by a half length. But there would be a little disappointment in the Belmont when he and jockey Luis Saez were never a factor, finishing sixth behind the historic run of Justify. Lukas hopes that Bravazo, who worked a half-mile in 48.77 on the Oklahoma on Sunday, will follow the same route that Will Take Charge did in 2013. Will Take Charge finished off the board in all three Triple Crown races but won the Travers, Pennsylvania Derby, was second in the Breeders' Cup Classic and then won the Clark Handicap and was voted that year's 3-year-old champion. "Most of these horses after the Triple Crown are either tired, used up or need a little rest because that is a hard series," Lukas said. "But, some of them flourish and get stronger, and (Bravazo) is one of them. He's a very tough horse." Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter. When asked what Bravazo has to do in the Haskell to earn a ticket to the Travers, Lukas smiled. "I don't think he has to do anything," Lukas said, "We're going to run. The boss (Brad Kelley, of Calumet Farm) wants to run." Among the horses that Lukas will have to contend with in the Haskell is the Chad Brown-trained Good Magic, who was second in the Kentucky Derby and fourth in the Preakness. Lukas said Bravazo will ship to New Jersey on Saturday and he will head down after the races at the Spa. He wants to see how Sporting Chance does in the Jim Dandy. Lukas knows he likes it here because both of his career wins came at the Spa last year. Sporting Chance broke his maiden and then won the Grade I Hopeful. The 3-year-old campaign hasn't been so good. He hasn't finished better than third in his five starts and was a well beaten 19th in the Preakness. He will be ridden by Luis Contreras in the Jim Dandy. "If Sporting Chance shows up wth his best race, he is going to be very tough in the Jim Dandy," Lukas said. "But he has to bring his 'A' game." twilkin@timesunion.com 518-454-5415 @tjwilkin Fine Gael General Election Candidate Garret Ahearn has announced that Three Schools in County Tipperary are to teach a new Leaving Cert Physical Education subject. Rockwell College, The Abbey School Tipperary Town and Borrisokane Community College have been chosen as part of 64 Schools nationally to receive a grant to support them in implementing the new subject from September 2018. The Minister for Education and Skills, Richard Bruton T.D. today announced that 40 schools will take part in Phase 1 of the new Leaving Certificate Computer Science subject and 64 schools will take part in Phase 1 of the new Leaving Certificate Physical Education subject. Garret Ahearn said, Todays announcement underlines Fine Gaels commitment to the introduction of Computer Science and Physical Education as Leaving Certificate subjects. I welcome that three schools in county Tipperary have been chosen. We know how important it is to be physically active and engage in sports. The introduction of Physical Education as a full examinable Leaving Certificate subject reflects the priority this government puts on promoting healthy lifestyles and choices. Minister Bruton said The introduction of Computer Science as a Leaving Certificate subject is part of our ambition to make Ireland a STEM leader among our European colleagues. The grants being issued to schools, from this September will complement other recent grants given to schools to support them in embedding digital technology in teaching and learning - 30m in ICT grants was provided to all schools recently, building on the 30m which we issued last year. We have committed to a 150m investment in ICT infrastructure over the next 3 years. The 40 schools who will offer Computer Science for Leaving Certificate for September will each receive 3,000 towards the purchase of connector devices, totalling 120,000 in grants for these schools. Schools offering Leaving Certificate Physical Education will receive a grant towards the purchase of digital devices for use by students in completing the course assessment components and for hardware required for central uploading of material. A grant of 350 per digital device will be payable, with one device for every two students commencing the subject in September 2018. A payment of 750 per school will be made for the uploading hardware. The total amount of grant payments for the subject will be approximately 330,000 across the 64 schools. The Minister said, With these additional grants, and the comprehensive teacher professional development we are providing, the teachers and schools offering these new subjects from this September will be fully prepared to deliver these new subjects over the next two years. The 450,000 in grant payments is being made this year on a once-off basis to assist the Phase 1 schools preparations for the introduction of the new subjects from this September. Schools wishing to introduce these new subjects from September 2020 as part of their national rollout should ensure they have the required ICT equipment in time. They can in this regard deploy some of the ICT Infrastructure grants paid to schools under the Digital Strategy for Schools towards this purpose. Details on the specifications of the ICT devices required will be communicated to schools. For the first time in its history, Saint Patricks College, Maynooth with Thurles priest Professor Michael Mullaney at the helm, will this week host the General Assembly of the International Federation of Catholic Universities. For the first time in its history Saint Patricks College, Maynooth, will this week host the General Assembly of the International Federation of Catholic Universities. This, the 26th General Assembly, will take place from today until 27 July in Saint Patricks College on the theme Catholic Universities, Working in Solidarity as Responsible Agents from the Local to the Global. As host, the President of the College, Thurles man Reverend Professor Michael Mullaney, will welcome over 200 university presidents, vice-presidents and international development officers. The Assembly will seek to bring Pope Francis Encyclical Letter of 2015, Laudato Si on care for our common home, into the very heart of this global network of third level institutions by addressing issues linked to the social responsibility of Catholic universities. Mass to open the General Assembly will be celebrated this afternoon in the College Chapel (built between 1875 and 1891) of Saint Patricks College. Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi, Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, will preside at the Mass and Archbishop Eamon Martin, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, will preach the homily. The General Assembly will provide an opportunity for the heads of third-level institutions in Ireland to meet and forge links with academic leaders from around the world. Many of the universities represented are among the premier universities in their respective countries. Ahead of the opening of the General Assembly Professor Mullaney said, It is a great honour that Saint Patricks College has been chosen to host this four day event. This is a major academic conference and will be reported on throughout the world. Our deliberations will seek to explain how the cause of the human person is truly served if knowledge is joined to conscience. This unity of knowledge and conscience is what drives Catholic universities. Our shared task is to be responsible and ethical actors in addressing the contemporary challenges to human dignity, justice, environment, climate change, migration, economy and politics to create a more humane world and protecting our shared planet. Professor Mullaney continued, the complexities of globalisation and the global problems of poverty, the ecological crisis and climate change, require sophisticated analysis for ethical solutions. Catholic universities must play an increasing role in the development of these solutions and in equipping graduates to take their place in the promotion of the human dignity of every person and the common good of all. [July 22, 2018] Connectivity Global launches AI email security solution in Singapore SINGAPORE, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Singapore-based company Connectivity Global Pte. Ltd., has launched Receive GUARD, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled email security solution in Singapore. Connectivity Global has partnered with Microsoft distributor Innovix, which has 5,500 resellers across Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong. Receive GUARD is hosted on Microsoft Azure platform and is compatible with Microsoft Office 365. Receive GUARD was previously deployed as an on-premises solution in South Korea through Kiwontecha member company of the K-ICT Born2Global Centre. By leveraging on key features such as AI-enabled machine learning, multiple virtual areas, and image conversion, this AI enabled security system solution that Connectivity Global Pte. Ltd. is bringing to the regional market will provide comprehensive protection against business email attacks. Specifically, the solution will help users filter against any spam emails, phishing emails, and malware including yet-to-be-identified viruses that they will receive in their inboxes. This includes falsified emails that many other email security solutions are unable to detect. Additionally, if the email text body contains any malicious links, it will be converted into an image. This will alleviate the risk of users unintentionally opening the document or clicking on the links that contain any malicious code. By offering Receive GUARD as a cloud solution, Connectivity Global Pte. Ltd. aims to make Receive GUARD accessible to small medium enterprises (SME) in Singapore. They plan to launch in several Southeast Asian countries within the next few months. For more detailed information on Connectivity Global, visit www.c-globe.com CONTACT Eugene Lee Business Development Director of Connectivity Global Pte. Ltd. info@c-globe.com Jina Lee PR Manager of K-ICT Born2Global Centre jlee@born2global.com Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20180719/2191268-1 SOURCE K-ICT Born2Global Centre [July 22, 2018] Is Your Region Ready for a Next Generation Hyperloop? Arrivo Announces US $1 Billion of Project Financing. LOS ANGELES, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Arrivo announced today a strategic partnership with Genertec America, Inc. ("GTA"), an affiliate of China National Technical Imp. & Exp. Corp. ("CNTIC"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of China General Technology (Group) Holding Co., Ltd ("GENERTEC"). As part of the agreement, GTA will make available to a qualifying project owner a US$1 Billion line of credit to fund the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of a project which utilizes Arrivo's products. This US$1 Billion line of credit is available for projects worldwide. "Arrivo provides a unique solution for regional mobility and a great complement to high speed rail and airports. We are excited to be an early partner in the deployment of mobility systems utilizing Arrivo's transformative technology," says Yalin Li, President of Genertec America, Inc. "We look forward to many opportunities to build this new mode of transportation in regions around the world." Arrivo has projects advancing in many regions. "The demand for urban mobility is increasing, and technologies such as autonomous vehicles will only increase demand," notes Arrivo CEO Brogan BamBrogan. "We expand the supply side of this equation with our high-throughput corridors. We are extremely excited to have Genertec as a partner to help bring commercially viable, high-speed, and zero emissions transportation to markets around the world." Arrivo is dedicated to increasing the capacity of available vehicle miles traveled (VMT) of urban regions while at the same time eiminating traffic congestion. Arrivo guideways are capable of 10 times the vehicle throughput of ordinary highways and can operate multiple product types, including public transit and package delivery vehicles. To minimize deployment cost, the technology can utilize existing transportation corridors. "Arrivo is focused on commercializing the core technology and working with strategic partners to achieve external goals such as financing and the delivery of transportation projects," added Andrew Liu, President of Arrivo. "The Genertec Group has become a global leader in developing, financing, and constructing innovative transportation, energy, and infrastructure projects. This partnership will provide project owners public or private, domestic or international an available source of financing to fund construction and purchase of Arrivo products." About GENERTEC Genertec, a Fortune Global 500 company with more than $22 billion in revenue in 2017, is a state-owned enterprise based in Beijing and one of six directly affiliated enterprises of the former Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation. The Genertec Group has numerous domestic and international operating subsidiaries, including three listed companies, and core businesses that include trade, engineering, construction, technical service consulting and advanced manufacturing. It has delivered dozens of infrastructure projects ranging from high speed rail and highways to power plants and stadiums, in China and many other countries. About CNTIC CNTIC is a large scale state-owned enterprise with main businesses in technology trade, project contracting and project management integrated service. In 1998, the company became a wholly-owned subsidiary of China General Technology (Group) Holding Ltd. In the past 60 years, CNTIC has cumulatively completed over 7,000 projects with total contract value of more than USD $110 Billion covering the areas of energy, transportation, communication, petrochemical, metallurgy, building materials, machinery, electronics, pharmaceuticals, agricultures, forestry and education etc. CNTIC has strong ability in the fields of marketing, business integration, project management, project engineering, investing and financing. CNTIC has strategic partnership agreements with various cities in China to facilitate the introduction of new technologies into the local markets. About Arrivo: Arrivo is an engineering-led technology company building the first commercially viable, hyperloop-inspired technology to eliminate traffic. With Arrivo's system, passengers and goods can seamlessly reach their destinations in a short amount of time with no complicated transfers. To learn more about Arrivo, please visit www.arrivo-loop.com or follow @ArrivoLoop. Media Contact: media@arrivo-loop.com SOURCE Arrivo [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 22, 2018] Digital Marketing Leaders Summit is returning to Singapore on September 12 & 13 SINGAPORE, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Digital Marketing Leaders Summit, hosted by Forward Leading Ltd., is returning to Singapore on September 12 & 13, at the spectacular Marina Bay Sands, Singapore's landmark 5-star hotel. This Summit has been successfully hosted in Sydney, Boston and Singapore during the past year. The 2018 Singapore edition will gather 100 of the most influential, knowledgeable and innovative digital marketing leaders across the globe. The speakers are hand-picked for their expertise, experience and influence in digital marketing and strategy. Confirmed speakers are from the likes of Coca-Cola, Google, HSBC, Singtel, Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft, LEGO, DHL, Intel, WWF, Zalora and Facebook. With input from previous attendees and industry experts, the summit agenda of this year features: Content Marketing Companies are aware that the customer journey has changed and is likely to keep changing. More than ever before, it includes more touch points via different channels. Therefore, it is important to focus on content that work for your customers and goals depending on the content they need at each possible stage in their overall journey. Akshay Trivedi, the APAC Head, Digital for Consumer Healthcare Businesses from Johnson & Johnson will present why a content strategy is in a way different for each buyer persona and ultimately each business. Rushit Jhaveri, the Vice President, Advertising Digital from A + E Networks will discuss how successful brands using photo, video and campaign to stand out from their competitors. Social Media Marketing 78% of businesses now have dedicated teams for their social media. This demonstrates that increasingly, organisations are acknowledging the power of social media to attract and engage customers. Singtel's Regional Marketing & Country Operations Head (Sandeep Raj) will demonstrate the ins and outs of how to develop a successful marketing strategy to engage customers. Customer Experience DHL eCommerce, a division of the world's leading logistics company Deutsche Post DHL Group, will share how they have built their marketing plans through understanding their customer journeys and employing various touch-points to engage them: digital, social, email, media etc. AI & Chatbots in Marketing Recently, HSBC has vastly invested in improving its Artificial Intelligence and digital capabilities around the global. Raul Abreu, the Head of Conversational Intelligence, HSBC will showcase how marketers are leveraging messaging apps and platforms by using chatbots and conversational AI to market their brand. He will also join a Fireside Chat session along with digital leaders from Intel and Talenta Group, to discuss the AI application in real life and the future of digital. The agenda also features case studies of budgeting (how to spend the right amount, at the right time, at the right platform), and WWF's 360-degree campaign for Earth Hour 2018. To view the full agenda, please visit website: https://forwardleading.co.uk/summits/digital-marketing-leaders-singapore-2018 PR Newswire is the Official News Release Distribution Partner of Digital Marketing Leaders Summit Singapore 2018. For more information For Marketing Cooperation: Johanna Wong Marketing & Strategy Manager marketing@forwardleading.co.uk For Sponsorship and Delegate Registration: Allan Ma Event Manager allan@forwardleading.co.uk About Forward Leading Ltd. Forward Leading Ltd. is a knowledge sharing & networking community bringing together the most influential business leaders, to break the barriers between business functions, industries and regions. We specialise in delivering world-class business conferences for motivated and driven individuals - offering unrivalled access to the best teaching, mentoring and professional networking opportunities you'll find anywhere. Our mission is to meet the learning, development and networking objectives of senior business leaders and assist them within developing leadership growth via bringing impeccable quality to both the offline meetings and the online content experience. SOURCE Forward Leading Ltd. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] MDxHealth (R): Medicare Establishes Final Positive Local Coverage Determination for Use of ConfirmMDx for Prostate Cancer NEWS RELEASE Providing Nationwide Coverage for Medicare Patients IRVINE, CA, and HERSTAL, BELGIUM - 07:00 CEST, July 23, 2018 - MDxHealth SA (Euronext: MDXH.BR), today announced that Palmetto GBA, a Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) that assesses molecular diagnostic technologies, has issued a positive final Local Coverage Determination (LCD) to expand Medicare coverage of the ConfirmMDx for Prostate Cancer test. The final LCD, which expands Medicare coverage to all providers, becomes effective on September 3, 2018. The prior LCD, first established in 2014, limited coverage to only those providers enrolled in a certification and training registry program (CTR). In addition, the new LCD removes other conditions to continuing Medicare coverage by deleting references to the Pascual clinical study, removing patient number limitations, and eliminating certain other conditions associated with the former MolDX coverage with data development (CDD) program. "The expanded Medicare coverage of ConfirmMDx demonstrates the clinical value of our test to reduce unnecessary invasive clinical procedures," said Dr. Jan Groen, CEO of MDxHealth. "With this streamlined LCD, we can now broaden the impact of ConfirmMDx, facilitating access for all men covered by Medicare." Details on the LCD are posted to the Medicare Coverage Database on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) website (ConfirmMDx L35632). LCDs are subject to annual review by MACs. MDxHealth will continue to generate scientific data and publications to demonstrate enhanced clinical utility of the ConfirmMDx test. About ConfirmMDx for Prostate Cancer ConfirmMDx for Prostate Cancer is the first epigenetic, and only tissue-based test in the 2018 NCCN and EAU guidelines for early detection of prostate cancer which addresses false negative biopsy concerns. It is the only molecular diagnostic test that provides a very high negative predictive value (NPV) of 96% for clinically significant prostate cancers, and 90% NPV for all prostate cancers, as well as prostate mapping of the test results to help guide rpeat biopsies. Each year, more than 1 million American men undergo an invasive prostate biopsy with a negative result, however approximately 30% of those men have prostate cancer. The current standard of care for prostate biopsy procedures samples less than 1% of the prostate, leaving men at risk for undetected cancer and leading to a high rate of repeat biopsies, even on cancer-free men. ConfirmMDx for Prostate Cancer helps urologists identify low-risk men who may forego an unnecessary repeat biopsy and high-risk men who may benefit from intervention. ConfirmMDx has qualified for Medicare reimbursement and covered by numerous private health insurance plans. About MDxHealth MDxHealth is a multinational healthcare company that provides actionable molecular diagnostic information to personalize the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The company's tests are based on proprietary genetic, epigenetic (methylation) and other molecular technologies and assist physicians with the diagnosis of urologic cancers, prognosis of recurrence risk, and prediction of response to a specific therapy. The Company's European headquarters are in Herstal, Belgium, with laboratory operations in Nijmegen, The Netherlands, and US headquarters and laboratory operations based in Irvine, California. For more information, visit mdxhealth.com and follow us on social media at: twitter.com/mdxhealth, facebook.com/mdxhealth and linkedin.com/company/mdxhealth. For more information: MDxHealth Dr. Jan Groen, CEO US: +1 949 812 6979 BE: +32 4 364 20 70 info@mdxhealth.com LifeSpring LifeSciences Communication, Leon Melens NL: +31 6 538 16 427 lmelens@lifespring.nl Consilium Strategic Communications Amber Fennell, Chris Welsh & Hendrik Thys UK: +44 20 3709 5701 mdxhealth@consilium-comms.com This press release contains forward-looking statements and estimates with respect to the anticipated future performance of MDxHealth and the market in which it operates. Such statements and estimates are based on assumptions and assessments of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which were deemed reasonable but may not prove to be correct. Actual events are difficult to predict, may depend upon factors that are beyond the company's control, and may turn out to be materially different. MDxHealth expressly disclaims any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements in this release to reflect any change in its expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based unless required by law or regulation. This press release does not constitute an offer or invitation for the sale or purchase of securities or assets of MDxHealth in any jurisdiction. No securities of MDxHealth may be offered or sold within the United States without registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or in compliance with an exemption therefrom, and in accordance with any applicable U.S. securities laws. NOTE: The MDxHealth logo, MDxHealth, ConfirmMDx, SelectMDx, AssureMDx, PredictMDx and UrNCollect are trademarks or registered trademarks of MDxHealth SA. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners. Attachment Click here for.pdf [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] As Part of the Upcoming Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2019, iCreate Invites Applications for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018 AHMEDABAD, India, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Applications for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018 have commenced and deadline for entry submission is August 26, 2018 As a build-up towards the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2019, the International Centre for Entrepreneurship and Technology (iCreate) is working closely with the Government of Gujarat as one of the Knowledge Partners for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018, as well as the lead organiser for Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018. The Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018 will take place from October 11-13, 2018. This is supported by organizations like Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), Industrial Extension Bureau (iNDEXTb), Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Gujarat Electronics & Software Industries Association (GESIA). The 3-day event is aimed to provide an excellent opportunity for collaborations and propel investments towards the startup and IT ecosystems. It will also bring in experts to discuss NextGen sectors like AI, IoT, Blockchain and Big Data. The Summit will see an expected footfall of over 10,000 attendees ranging from startups, students, startup enthusiasts, investors, service providers, young professionals, incubators and government officials and will comprise various workshops, seminars, networking opportunities, etc. As part of this Summit, iCreate, among other organizations like Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), SkyQuest, Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE), LJ and Kadi Sarva Vidhyalaya Kelavani Mandal will be leading the national-level Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge. iCreate will also host Road Shows in 8 out of the 30 identified Indian cities i.e. Surat, Mehsana, Rajkot, Shimla, Kochi, Patna, Bhubaneswar and Visakhapatnam, to spread the message of Vibrant Gujarat 2019, the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit in October 2018 and the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018. About Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge 2018: This year's StartUp Grand Challenge focuses on 8 areas: AgriTech, HealthTech, FinTech, Manufacturing 4.0, Smart and Shared Mobility, Women-Centric Solutions, Maritime and Military Intelligence and Governace 2030. Applications : In English, Gujarati and Hindi are invited for 3 levels of startup stages to win attractive prize monies of up to INR 3 Cr, the highest amount thus far as prize money for any startup challenge in India . : In English, Gujarati and Hindi are invited for 3 levels of startup stages to win attractive prize monies of up to INR 3 Cr, the highest amount thus far as prize money for any startup challenge in . Eligibility criteria: The Grand Challenge is open to people of all nationalities, age groups and qualifications. Only startups registered/incubated in India will be eligible to compete for Grand Challenge Prize Money, whereas all foreign applications that are selected will have an opportunity to be featured in 'Empowered by Innovation' publications of UN ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Innovation task force, global profiling on www.sdgsolvers.org as well as Coffee Table book on startups to be released during Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018. The Grand Challenge is open to people of all nationalities, age groups and qualifications. Only startups registered/incubated in will be eligible to compete for Grand Challenge Prize Money, whereas all foreign applications that are selected will have an opportunity to be featured in 'Empowered by Innovation' publications of UN ESCAP Sustainable Business Network Innovation task force, global profiling on www.sdgsolvers.org as well as Coffee Table book on startups to be released during Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018. Evaluation criteria: Based on the following: thoroughness of entry, innovation, practicality, tech-feasibility, business feasibility, scalability and team competency. A total of 44 winners will be selected for prizes are categorized as follows: For Level 1: Idea Stage - 25 prizes of INR 10,000 each For Level 2: Blooming Stage - Total 3 prizes: 1st prize of INR 3 lakh, 2nd prize of INR 2 lakh and 3rd prize of INR 1 lakh For Level 3: Scale-up Stage - Total 16 prizes, comprising of Four Super Jury Prizes: 1st prize - INR 30 lakhs, 2nd prize - INR 27 lakhs, 3rd prize - INR 25 lakhs, 4th prize - INR 22 lakhs, and 12 consolation prizes of INR 12 lakhs each Winners of the Idea and Blooming Stage and shortlisted entries for Scale-Up Stage will be informed in September 2018 via email, followed by 2 rounds of pitching to juries and Super Juries for the ultimate 16 Scale-Up Stage winners. The winners will be awarded and facilitated during the 3-day Vibrant Gujarat StartUp & Technology Summit in October 2018. Incubation Support will be given to all top 100 startups under the StartUp support policies of Government of Gujarat. Mr. Anupam Jalote, CEO of iCreate, said, "The upcoming Vibrant Gujarat Summit is going to be bigger, better and wider. If you have an innovative or revolutionary business or even just an idea, we welcome you to share your thoughts with us. With various renowned business leaders, investors, sector experts and industry bodies associated with the Grand Challenge, we can certainly identify and build successful companies that are able to address the challenges faced by our country. The Grand Challenge is our endeavour towards building a cohesive ecosystem that is at par with the best in the world." For more information and to apply for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp Grand Challenge, please visit: http://vgstartup.com/grandchallenge; you can also email at connect@icreate.org.in. To register for the Vibrant Gujarat StartUp and Technology Summit 2018, please visit: http://vgstartup.com/registrations About iCreate: iCreate is an initiative of GFEE (Gujarat Foundation for Entrepreneurial Excellence), a Section 25, now a section 8 Company, and is a 50:50 Public Private Partnership between GMDC Ltd. (Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation) and GEVPF (Gujarat Entrepreneurship and Venture Promotion Foundation). iCreate is governed by a statutory Board, with members from GMDC and GEVPF. Since its inception, iCreate has been supported by a strong Advisory Board with 12 leading stalwarts from India as well as abroad, initially chaired by Shri Narayana Murthy, Co-founder, Infosys and is now led by Chairman Shri Dilip Shanghvi, Founder & MD, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. For more details, please visit: icreate.org.in. Media contacts: Manisha Dalal +91-9833448457 manisha@bdcc.in Bhakti Dalal +91-9819118807 bhakti@bdcc.in Vijay Nair +91-9819118807 vijay.nair@icreate.org.in Manager International Centre for Entrepreneurship and Technology (iCreate) [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] re:source Apparel Sourcing Software Set to Take Apparel Industry by Storm LONDON, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Apparel industry website just-style.com today launched re:source, an online planning tool designed to help those in apparel sourcing create smarter strategic sourcing plans. (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/720806/resource__online_planning_tool.jpg ) re:source is split into three major components; apparel tariffs and trade agreements, apparel trade data, and sourcing country profiles. For the first time professional buyers and sellers can find new apparel sourcing destinations, assess trade flows, track price changes and manage tariffs from within a single tool. Leonie Barrie, just-style managing editor said: "just-style work with the world's biggest brands, retailers and manufacturers. They tell us how tough it is to find reliable data and intelligence on which to base their sourcing decisions and formulate future strategies. re:source isour solution to that problem." re:source is the result of five years of research and development, including 18 months of testing involving hundreds of apparel companies worldwide. It covers over 90 trade agreements, rates countries against 15 key sourcing metrics, and contains trade data and tariffs down to 6-digit HS code. Richard Jackson, CEO of Aroq Limited who owns just-style said: "With USD $3 trillion spent on retail apparel every year, the opportunity to drive efficiencies through more intelligent sourcing is huge. We're confident that re:source offers a step-change in both the quality of sourcing intelligence available, and ease of use." A free and open demonstration version of the software has also been made available today. For more information or to purchase a license please visit the re:source website or call Account Manager James Jordan direct on +44(0)1527-563-618. About re:source re:source is an apparel sourcing planning suite that helps sourcing professionals decide where they should source products from. It uses data and intelligence to help sourcing professionals save time, shrink costs and manage supply chain risk. About just-style just-style.com is the site run for apparel sourcing people. Our mission is to connect the dots on global apparel supply chain issues, and in doing so, help those in sourcing to build strategies for the future. just-style is published by Aroq Limited, the business to business online publisher. SOURCE re:source by just-style [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Global Media Gateway Market Analysis, Trends & Industry Forecast to 2027 - ResearchAndMarkets.com The "Global Media Gateway Market Analysis & Trends - Industry Forecast to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The Global Media Gateway (News - Alert) Market is poised to grow strong during the forecast period 2017 to 2027. Some of the prominent trends that the market is witnessing include wide adoption of 4G technology and the emergence of 5G and need for high-quality communication over disparate networks. This industry report analyzes the market estimates and forecasts of all the given segments on global as well as regional levels presented in the research scope. The study provides historical market data for 2015, 2016 revenue estimations are presented for 2017 and forecasts from 2018 till 2027. The study focuses on market trends, leading players, supply chain trends, technological innovations, key developments, and future strategies. With comprehensive market assessment across the major geographies such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Latin America and Rst of the world the report is a valuable asset for the existing players, new entrants and the future investors. The study presents detailed market analysis with inputs derived from industry professionals across the value chain. The market data is gathered from extensive primary interviews and secondary research. The market size is calculated based on the revenue generated through sales from all the given segments and sub segments in the research scope. The market sizing analysis includes both top-down and bottom-up approaches for data validation and accuracy measures. Companies Mentioned Dialogic (News - Alert) Ribbon Communications Audiocodes Nokia Corporation Huawei Technologies Cisco Systems (News - Alert) Ericsson Synway Information Engineering ZTE Corporation Avaya Shenzhen Dinstar Aculab (News - Alert) Mitel Networks Grandstream Networks Matrix Comsec Patton Electronics Metaswitch Networks Telcobridges Yeastar (News - Alert) Information Technology Squire Technologies Key Topics Covered: 1 Market Outline 2 Executive Summary 3 Market Overview 4 Media Gateway Market, By Technology 5 Media Gateway Market, By End User 6 Media Gateway Market, By Type 7 Media Gateway Market, By Geography 8 Key Player Activities 9 Leading Companies For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/2x5w26/global_media?w=4 View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005277/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Arista Any Cloud Extends to Google Cloud Platform Google (News - Alert) Cloud Next 2018, Booth 1404 -- Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) today announced its Any Cloud hybrid cloud networking platform, which reduces operational costs and complexity for enterprises migrating workloads to the public cloud from their on-premises datacenters, is now available on Google Cloud Platform. The new virtualized offering, Arista vEOS Router combined with CloudVision with Cloud Tracer functionality, provides consistent operations, orchestration, security, and telemetry across multi-cloud environments. "We are proud to be participating in the Google Cloud Partner Program and the ecosystem of Google technology partners that are helping to expand the cloud platform globally," said Manuel Rivelo, Senior Vice President and Chief Sales Officer. "The combined solution of Arista Any Cloud and the Google Cloud Platform will deliver new capabilities and value to our hybrid and public cloud customers." Google Cloud Principles to the Enterprise Arista EOS (Extensible Operating System), is the center of Arista's Any Cloud solution. With vEOS Router, Arista EOS is now supported across multiple public cloud and hypervisor deployment platforms. As the same proven single EOS software image that runs across all of Arista's products, vEOS Router extends a consistent operational model of the customer's existing Arista datacenter network deployments. The vEOS Router leverages a cloud-grade routing stack and IPsec VPN tunnels to reliably and securely interconnect workloads across multi-cloud deployments. In addition, vEOS Router is integrated with Google Cloud provider APIs to enable easy deployment, automation, analytics, and end-to-end visibility. Arista CloudVision provides advanced visibility and automation, extending the cloud networking model of Arista on-premises cloud network platforms to Google Cloud Platform. Enablig Multiple Cloud Environments Arista's hybrid cloud platform is designed to support any public cloud environment, with cloud platform-specific images available now for Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, Microsoft Azure Cloud, Microsoft (News - Alert) Azure Stack on-premise Cloud, and common on-premises hypervisor platforms. Support in each environment is coupled with validation and registration of these solutions in the cloud marketplace infrastructure provided by each cloud provider, thus making deployment simple for enterprise customers. With Arista's hybrid cloud solution with Google Cloud and others, enterprise customers can now deploy a reliable, connected and secure multi-cloud experience with a common Universal Cloud Network approach across all of the places in the cloud. This enables IT organizations to harness dispersed cloud resources anywhere for better availability of services and applications across any cloud, any workload, and any location. Pricing and Availability Arista vEOS Router is now generally available in the Google Cloud Platform Marketplace. CloudVision support for vEOS Router in GCP is also available now. vEOS Router is available as a monthly software subscription. Arista will be demonstrating its new hybrid cloud capabilities at Google Cloud Next 2018, July 24-26, in San Francisco's Moscone Center, booth number 1404. About Arista Networks Arista Networks pioneered software-driven, cognitive cloud networking for large-scale datacenter and campus environments. Arista's award-winning platforms redefine and deliver availability, agility, automation, analytics and security. Arista has shipped more than fifteen million cloud networking ports worldwide with CloudVision and EOS, an advanced network operating system. Committed to open standards across private, public and hybrid cloud solutions, Arista products are supported worldwide directly and through partners. ARISTA, EOS, and CloudVision are among the registered and unregistered trademarks of Arista Networks, Inc. in jurisdictions around the world. Other company names or product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Additional information and resources can be found at www.arista.com. This press release contains forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, statements regarding the benefits in the implementation of Arista's EOS and CloudVision software and Any Cloud hybrid cloud networking platform and the enablement of cost savings, performance, security and efficiency. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements including: our limited operating history and experience with developing and releasing new products; product, support or service quality problems; rapidly evolving changes in technology, customer requirements and industry standards as well as other risks stated in our filings with the SEC (News - Alert) available on Arista's website at www.arista.com and the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Arista disclaims any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made. Ref: Next 2018 Partner PR Guidelines, Partner Release Intake Form or email release to gpartners@nectarpr.com Also see: Guest BLOG on Google Cloud, Product Presentation, Launcher listing, etc. Social Media: use hashtag #GoogleNext18, official channel @GoogleCloud View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005156/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] mCube 2018 to Award Enterprises and Professionals who Have Exemplified Modern Marketing MUMBAI, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Masters of Modern Marketing (mCube) Awards is an eclectic concept that acknowledges exemplary work done by enterprises, agencies and professionals in the marketing domain while providing a platform where leaders discuss critical aspects of the industry. Marketing, as a profession and as a discipline, has perhaps seen more transformation in the last decade than in the entire history of its existence. Much of this can be attributed to the proliferation of new-age media, technological evolution, rise of digital platforms that are real-time, and shareable content formats. Marketing has advanced from being a support function to a key business faculty that not only promotes the ideas of brands but also helps engage with the market in an impactful and sustainable fashion. The modern idea of marketing relies on the concept of real time engagement with consumers for their demands and grievances. In this hyper connected era, marketing and advertising have evolved from inflated, self-proclamations to fact-based, transparent conversations with the consumers at a place and time of their choice, thereby building trust and credibility. Marketing today, has become more interactive, measurable, analytical, consumer-focused, and intelligent, all thanks to the modern marketer who has integrated technological prowess along with creativity and communication expertise. Therefore, it becomes important to encourage the brands' real heroes who have immensely contributed to the development of the marketing industry for the benefit of advertisers as well as the consumers. It is with this view that Inkspell Solutions is organizing the second annual Masters of Modern Marketing Conference and Awards on August 23, 2018 in Mumbai. "It is a unique program wherein we are providing an exclusive platform for enterprises, agencies and professionals to discuss the key trends, opportunities nd challenges of the marketing industry in India while also rewarding outstanding work in the advertising domain," said Chitra Surana, Head of Alliances at Inkspell Solutions. Vipul Tiwari who heads the marketing efforts at Inkspell gave us some details of the program. "At the Masters of Modern Marketing Conference, we shall have a mix of veteran industry professionals along with young and dynamic marketers who have redefined the way marketing is performed across different media channels. These eminent leaders hailing from diverse professional backgrounds will come together to talk about and discuss the best practices and the future of marketing. These discussions shall happen in several formats including keynote addresses and panel sessions. Some of the renowned speakers at the event are Uday Sodhi (Sony Pictures), Soumini Sridhara Paul (Hungama), Srinivas Jain (SBI Funds), Priyanka Sehgal (Network 18), Manav Sethi (ALTBalaji), Madhavi Irani (Nykaa), L. Ramakrishnan (ABP News), Gagan Singla (Angel Broking), Ashish Tiwari (Hero Cycles), Ganesh Iyer (Radio Mirchi), Aditi Shrivastava (Filtercopy), Shradha Agarwal (Grapes Digital), and Vikas Mehta (Mullenlowe Lintas Group)", Vipul added. On the Awards aspect of the event, Arun Malkhani - Chief Marketing Officer at IIFL who has been part of the jury for 2017 and 2018 editions of the program, said that the supreme quality of entries that have been submitted for the contest made it really challenging for him to assess and distinguish between various nominations in terms of the marking scheme. "The mCube awards by Inkspell is a great forum to look at and evaluate marketing work and best practices across multiple categories. The evaluation methodology is sharp and objective, hence good work stands out creatively as well as performance-wise. Overall, the judging process as well as the awards event is well planned and thought through and I am happy to be associated with them this year as well." exclaimed Arun. About Masters of Modern Awards (mCube) Masters of Modern Marketing Awards , popularly known as the mCube or M3 Awards, is the premier marketing program in India or one can say the best digital marketing awards in India. The initiative has been designed and developed with the idea of providing an industry platform to acknowledge the exemplary work being done in the marketing space by advertising agencies, brands across sectors, startup enterprises as well as individual leaders and professionals. Masters of Modern Marketing Awards will also serve as a forum where marketing veterans as well as young turks from India Inc. will come together to discuss the key trends in the industry along with advanced technologies and methodologies being adopted to disrupt the traditional ecosystem. After the resounding success of Masters of Modern Marketing Awards 2017 in New Delhi, where we got love and respect from the industry biggies that we are on the right path to be the best b2b | marketing | digital | content | mobile and media awards, the program is well poised to enthral the Indian Marketing fraternity with the 2018 edition in the city of Mumbai. The nominations are open for the Masters of Modern Marketing Awards 2018 and entries can be made on the website: http://www.mcubeawards.com Media Contact: Chitra Surana chitra@inkspell.co.in +91-9953546490 Inkspell [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Intelligent Waves Nominated for Two Distinguished Service Awards by Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce Intelligent Waves LLC (IW) was excited to be finalists in two categories of Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce's 2018 Distinguished Service Awards. IW was nominated for both the Veteran Business Mentorship Award and the Veteran Owned Business Award for Established Business. IW was recognized at the awards ceremony on Wednesday, July 18, 2018, at the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner. The Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce's Distinguished Service Awards honor individuals, companies and non-profit organizations for their service to veterans in the Greater Washington business community. The Awards are presented in recognition of community stewardship and business leadership through support and mentorship of veterans. "We are truly honored to be recognized by the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce for our work in supporting and enabling U.S. military veterans," said Jared Shepard, President and CEO of IW. "Transition can be one of the most difficult things a veteran can face. We hope that our support helps veterans have a successful transition into a new career within our community." Shepard founded IW more than a decade ago as an information technology service provider to the U.S. government - a way to continue service to his country after his military career. Since its formation, IW has continuously extended its services beyond technical solutions through its commitment to veterans, from donating more than 5% of annual profits to building a workforce comprised of military veterans greater than 50% of the entire organization. Shepard also founded Warriors Ethos as another way to give back. Warriors Ethos is non-profit that assists wounded and disabled veterans with career planning, professional development and job placement. The partnership between IW and Warriors Ethos empowers wounded service members, veterans and their families to become independent, self-sustaining and well equipped for civilian life. Their efforts have played a significant role in reducing the number of unemployed wounded veterans in Northern Virginia. For more information on Intelligent Waves, visit http://www.intelligentwaves.com. For more information on the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce 2018 Distinguished Service Awards, visit http://www.novachamber.org/distinguished-service-awards.html. About Intelligent Waves Founded in 2006, Intelligent Waves LLC is a professional services company, providing mission-critical solutions in technology, communications and operations. Committed to delivering unmatched experience, excellent service and next generation technologies, Intelligent Waves combines business and technical expertise to drive innovation across the federal government. As a certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Intelligent Waves is dedicated to the care of veterans and active duty service members through work supporting the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005082/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Global Computer Vision Market Segmented By Product, Component, Application, End User & Geography - Analysis, Trends & Industry Forecast to 2027 - ResearchAndMarkets.com The "Global Computer Vision Market Analysis & Trends - Industry Forecast to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The Global Computer Vision Market is poised to grow strong during the forecast period 2017 to 2027. Some of the prominent trends that the market is witnessing include increasing need for quality inspection and automation and rising adoption of computer vision systems in uavs. Based on Product, the market is categorized into Smart Cameras-Based Computer Vision Systems and PC-Based Computer Vision Systems. By application, the market is divided into Positioning & Guidance, Quality Assurance & Inspection, Identification, Predictive Maintenance and Measurement. Based on End User, the market is classified into Non-Industrial Vertical and Industrial Vertical. In addition, the Non-Industrial is further divided into Postal and Logistics, Security and Surveillance, Intelligent Transportation Systems, Consumer Electronics, Healthcare, Autonomous and Semi Auonomous Vehicles, Retail and Agriculture. Industrial Vertical is categorize into Automotive, Consumer Electronics, Wood and Paper, Electronics and Semiconductor, Pharmaceuticals, Glass, Metals, Food and Packaging, Printing, Machinery, Rubber and Plastics, Solar Panel Manufacturing and Textiles. This industry report analyzes the market estimates and forecasts of all the given segments on global as well as regional levels presented in the research scope. The study provides historical market data for 2015, 2016 revenue estimations are presented for 2017 and forecasts from 2018 to 2027. The study focuses on market trends, leading players, supply chain trends, technological innovations, key developments, and future strategies. With comprehensive market assessment across the major geographies such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Latin America and Rest of the world the report is a valuable asset for the existing players, new entrants and the future investors. Companies Mentioned Basler Baumer Optronic Cadence Design Systems (News - Alert) Ceva Cognex Intel Isra Vision Jai A/S Keyence Mediatek Mvtec Software National Instruments (News - Alert) Omron Sick Sony Teledyne Technologies Texas Instruments Key Topics Covered: 1 Market Outline 2 Executive Summary 3 Market Overview 4 Computer Vision Market, By Product 5 Computer Vision Market, By Component 6 Computer Vision Market, By Application 7 Computer Vision Market, By End User 8 Computer Vision Market, By Geography 9 Key Player Activities 10 Leading Companies For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/nb28sx/global_computer?w=4 View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005351/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Sumo Logic Unveils Set of Integrations Built for Google Cloud Platform and TensorFlow to Deliver Real-time Machine Data Analytics for Modern Applications REDWOOD CITY, Calif., July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sumo Logic, the leading cloud-native, machine data analytics platform that delivers continuous intelligence, today announced the release of 11 new Google Cloud Platform (GCP) applications as well as an integration with Google Clouds open source machine learning library, TensorFlow, at Google Cloud Next 2018 to provide customers with flexible and scalable enterprise-grade cloud choices that deliver real-time business, operational and security insights into modern applications and infrastructure. Sumo Logic is one of the first in the industry to release a comprehensive set of applications for GCP that enable real-time collection and analytics of machine data emitted by all major GCP services. Sumo Logic will also leverage TensorFlow machine learning libraries to augment existing machine learning analytics to enable customers to perform powerful analytics and apply advanced machine learning to data generated by their modern applications to improve operational, security and business outcomes. According to findings in the 451 Research Voice of the Enterprise: Cloud Transformation report, 69 percent of enterprises will have multi-cloud or hybrid environments by 2019, and 60 percent of workloads will be expected to run in some form of hosted cloud environment, meaning vendor flexibility and support across multiple cloud platforms will become a key selling point moving forward. As todays modern businesses continue to look for ways to differentiate themselves and deliver a seamless experience to their customers, the demand for secure, customizable solutions that support multiple cloud platforms is growing, said Bruno Kurtic, founding VP of product and strategy, Sumo Logic. The Sumo Logic platform is purpose-built to provide flexible and scalable enterprise-class support for all major cloud platforms including AWS, Azure and GCP to detect, troubleshoot and help rapidly investigate operational and security incidents to give users real-time actionable intelligence. This latest release further reinforces our longstanding commitment to deliver continuous intelligence for our customers businesses, regardless of where their modern applications and infrastructure data reside. The new GCP apps are now available via the Sumo Logic App Catalog, and include support for: Google App Engine: Understand platform activity, incoming requests, applications, HTTP status codes, and latency and rsponse times in your App Engine to get ahead of serious issues before they affect users. Understand platform activity, incoming requests, applications, HTTP status codes, and latency and rsponse times in your App Engine to get ahead of serious issues before they affect users. Google BigQuery: Proactively manage and troubleshoot your Google BigQuery data warehouse for deep operation insights, query optimization and enhanced user activity. Proactively manage and troubleshoot your Google BigQuery data warehouse for deep operation insights, query optimization and enhanced user activity. Google Cloud Audit: Empower your audit and compliance needs by monitoring and tracking user, administrative and authentication activity for a real-time analysis of all audit streams across GCP. Empower your audit and compliance needs by monitoring and tracking user, administrative and authentication activity for a real-time analysis of all audit streams across GCP. Google Cloud Functions: Leverage pre-configured dashboards and searches for deeper visibility into the overall usage, executions, operations, latency, errors, outliers and failures of your Google Cloud Functions environment. Leverage pre-configured dashboards and searches for deeper visibility into the overall usage, executions, operations, latency, errors, outliers and failures of your Google Cloud Functions environment. Google Cloud Identity & Access Management (IAM): Monitor Google Cloud IAM project activities, operations, role activities, role and policy changes, and IAM messages to analyze changes, share critical data and secure your environment. Monitor Google Cloud IAM project activities, operations, role activities, role and policy changes, and IAM messages to analyze changes, share critical data and secure your environment. Google Cloud Load Balancing: Use pre-configured dashboards to monitor load balancing activity and get full insight into request locations and volume, response codes, and request and response data by load balancer. Use pre-configured dashboards to monitor load balancing activity and get full insight into request locations and volume, response codes, and request and response data by load balancer. Google Cloud SQL: Easy-to-deploy pre-configured Sumo Logic dashboards provide insight into created and deleted resources, messages, authorization failures, user activities and error logs for all Google Cloud SQL activity. Easy-to-deploy pre-configured Sumo Logic dashboards provide insight into created and deleted resources, messages, authorization failures, user activities and error logs for all Google Cloud SQL activity. Google Cloud Storage: Continuously monitor and troubleshoot activity in Google Cloud Storage for insights into request locations, bucket and object operations, user activities, errors, and bucket statistics. Continuously monitor and troubleshoot activity in Google Cloud Storage for insights into request locations, bucket and object operations, user activities, errors, and bucket statistics. Google Compute Engine: Monitor your infrastructure to visualize the activities, users, and message severity of your Google Compute Engine, the Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) component of Google Cloud Platform. Monitor your infrastructure to visualize the activities, users, and message severity of your Google Compute Engine, the Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) component of Google Cloud Platform. Google Kubernetes Engine: Gain node-level and pod-level monitoring information for deeper operational insights, container optimization, and security and compliance of your Kubernetes environment to better manage potential risks and threats. Gain node-level and pod-level monitoring information for deeper operational insights, container optimization, and security and compliance of your Kubernetes environment to better manage potential risks and threats. Google Virtual Private Cloud (VPC): Leverage interactive, customizable dashboards with outlier detection to trace unusual traffic patterns and suspicious activity for VPC flows and gain real-time insights and analytics into network activity for GCP-generated log data. With expanded GCP support, Sumo Logic enables GCP customers to improve monitoring, detection and alerting on operational issues, accelerate troubleshooting and root cause analysis, help with compliance regulations such as PCI, HIPAA, SOX, GDPR, and deliver real-time, threat-aware security analytics that facilitate powerful security incident investigations for their applications and GCP infrastructure all with the goal of improving operational and security visibility to deliver the ultimate customer experience. With more than 125 million people a month visiting our consumer products, we needed deep visibility to our infrastructure running on Google Cloud Platform (GCP), said Erik Bursch, VP Product Technology, USA TODAY NETWORK. Sumo Logic provides us key insights into our platform, allowing us to find the root cause of issues faster than ever before, Bursch said. The addition of Google Clouds open source TensorFlow libraries to Sumo Logics powerful machine learning engine enables customers to deploy more custom machine learning algorithms directly to their data. This allows customers to gain deeper insights from their machine data, a critical data set for companies focused on improving how they serve their customers, understanding user behavior and leveraging all data sets to differentiate from competition. The GCP apps and TensorFlow integration are available now to Sumo Logic customers. To learn more about how the Sumo Logic platform supports multiple enterprise-grade cloud vendors to offer the most flexible solutions to customers, stop by our booth (W1625) at Google Cloud Next this week in San Francisco from July 24-26. Additional Resources Read the GCP apps blog Visit the Sumo Logic GCP Solutions page Sign up for Sumo Logic for free About Sumo Logic Sumo Logic is a secure, cloud-native, machine data analytics service, delivering real-time, continuous intelligence from structured, semi-structured and unstructured data across the entire application lifecycle and stack. More than 1,600 customers around the globe rely on Sumo Logic for the analytics and insights to build, run and secure their modern applications and cloud infrastructures. With Sumo Logic, customers gain a multi-tenant, service-model advantage to accelerate their shift to continuous innovation, increasing competitive advantage, business value and growth. Founded in 2010, Sumo Logic is a privately held company based in Redwood City, Calif. and is backed by Accel Partners, DFJ, Greylock Partners, IVP, Sapphire Ventures, Sequoia Capital and Sutter Hill Ventures. For more information, visit www.sumologic.com. Media Contacts Melissa Liton Sumo Logic mliton@sumologic.com (650) 814-3882 Danielle Salvato-Earl Offleash for Sumo Logic sumo@offleashpr.com [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Rackspace Launches Customer Reliability Engineering and Managed Security Services for Google Cloud Platform SAN ANTONIO, July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rackspace today announced that it has broadened its portfolio of services for Google Cloud Platform (GCP) customers with the launch of its new Customer Reliability Engineering (CRE) program and Rackspace Managed Security (RMS) Proactive Detection and Response, and RMS Compliance Assistance for GCP. Rackspace is focused on delivering digital transformation as a service across applications, data, security and infrastructure. As part of Rackspaces evolving relationship with Google Cloud and its ongoing investment in building services and support solutions for GCP, the new CRE and RMS offerings will provide increased resiliency and security for customers business-critical applications. Navigating the complexities of a digital transformation and understanding the impact it has on a business is challenging, so were focused on being the trusted advisor for customers to help guide them through each phase of this journey, said Patrick Lee, vice president of Rackspace Managed Services for Google Cloud Platform. Our new CRE offering provides a way for companies to pinpoint which applications matter most from a business perspective and then systematically measure and improve upon that. And with RMS and compliance assistance, were helping to ensure their data, applications and infrastructure are protected every step of the way. These offerings, paired with Rackspace and Google Clouds combined technical expertise, will make these applications more reliable and secure, and ultimately help drive greater business value. Rackspace CRE, one of many services in the companys growing portfolio of GCP solutions, is ideal for customers running business critical applications that require high levels of performance and reliability. The CRE offering leverages the same principles and processes pioneered by Google Cloud, and will allow Rackspace to work with customers to assess their objectives, design, implementation and operational procedures of business-critical applications to help improve overall reliability and resiliency. As Google Clouds first CRE managed service partner, the Rackspace CRE team was hand-selected by Google Cloud and has undergone extensive training with senior Google Cloud site reliability engineers (SREs). This program, along with Rackspaces first-hand experience in operating the worlds largest clouds, allows Rackspace CREs to lead a series of workshops designed to guide customers on how to implement SRE principles, improve the reliability of critical applications, address tradeoff among performance, reliability and cost, and to solve key application issues. The specific content of these workshops focuses on: Understanding Site Reliability Engineering Provides a detailed explanation of the SRE framework, while discussing real world examples of how SRE can be applied and the value it delivers to organizations. Provides a detailed explanation of the SRE framework, while discussing real world examples of how SRE can be applied and the value it delivers to organizations. Identifying and Measuring Service Level Objects Discusses fundamental concepts and techniques required to build a successful SRE team, why a well-defined and measured SLO is crucial to the SRE approach and where organizations should have SLOs defined. It also trains customers how to incorporate error budgeting and risk analysis into developers day-to-day workloads. Discusses fundamental concepts and techniques required to build a successful SRE team, why a well-defined and measured SLO is crucial to the SRE approach and where organizations should have SLOs defined. It also trains customers how to incorporate error budgeting and risk analysis into developers day-to-day workloads. Applying Operational Best Practices Educates customers on the best way to apply processes and procedures to help ensure that their team can scale with their services by reducing toil, dealing with interrupts, being on-call, conducting incident response management and fostering a postmortem culture. Educates customers on the best way to apply processes and procedures to help ensure that their team can scale with their services by reducing toil, dealing with interrupts, being on-call, conducting incident response management and fostering a postmortem culture. Assessing Application Reliability Conducts an in-depth review of how to best prioritize and implement agreed upon SLOs in areas such as software and platform architecture, capacity and scaling, development and release engineering, failures and outages, security and risk assessments, among others. During our recent CRE workshop, Rackspace brought a high-level of knowledge and experience to the table based on numerous retail and e-commerce engagements, said John Anthony, CIO of Spiraledge, a leading internet retailer and healthy living company, and Rackspace customer. We worked with Rackspace to seamlessly migrate our SwimOutlet.com brand to Google Cloud. This site is critical to the overall success of our business and Rackspaces CRE experts have now given us the training and skills needed to ensure this site maintains an optimal level of performance and reliability. In addition to CRE, Rackspace announced the launch of its new RMS Proactive Detection and Response, and Compliance Assistance for GCP offerings. Together, these offerings deliver swift breach detection and remediation, helping to minimize the time cyber criminals spend in an environment and to limit overall impact to the business. With RMS, businesses can layer additional active security on GCP to detect and respond to advanced cyber threats. Rackspace utilizes pre-approved actions to promptly remediate security incidents. This level of security strengthens customers environments beyond the operational network and infrastructure security provided by most cloud providers. It also complements the strategic planning, architectural guidance and 24x7x365 operational support available through Managed Services for Google Cloud Platform. Our collaboration with Rackspace has continued to evolve over the past year and together we are driving some exciting innovations that will deliver more value to our customers, said Choon Aun Quek Head of Cloud Platform, North Central & Canada, Google. The CRE and managed security and compliance assistance offerings for GCP ensure customers applications are high performing, reliable and secure. We look forward to ongoing collaboration. Rackspace became Google Clouds first Managed Service Provider partner in March 2017. Since that time, Rackspace has expanded the depth of its expertise and technical capabilities to include hundreds of Google Cloud experts to deliver managed support for GCP customers. In June 2017, Rackspace become Googles first CRE partner, and in March 2018, Rackspace became Googles first Managed Security Services Provider partner. This quickly evolving collaboration reflects Rackspace and Google Clouds shared commitment to delivering rapid innovation, high quality support and increased value to the growing number of enterprise GCP customers worldwide. Rackspace CRE and Rackspace Managed Security Services for GCP are now available in general availability for customers worldwide. For additional information on Rackspace CRE for GCP, please contact GoogleSales@Rackspace.com or call 1-844-568-0157. For additional information on Rackspace Managed Security, please visit www.rackspace.com/security. About Rackspace Rackspace is modernizing IT in todays multi-cloud world. By delivering IT as a service, we help customers of all industries, sizes and locations, across private and public sectors, realize the power of digital transformation without the complexity and expense of managing it on their own. Our comprehensive portfolio of managed services across applications, data, security and infrastructure on the worlds leading public and private cloud platforms enables us to provide unbiased expertise. Rackspace has been honored by Fortune, Forbes, Glassdoor and others as one of the best places to work. Learn more at www.rackspace.com Media Contact: Brandon Brunson 210-312-1357 brandon.brunson@rackspace.com [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Corelight Earns FIPS 140-2 Certification for Full Portfolio of Network Sensors SAN FRANCISCO, July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Corelight, providers of the most powerful network visibility solution for cybersecurity, today announced its products have been verified to comply with the Federal Information Processing Standard 140-2 (FIPS 140-2) security certification from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). FIPS 140-2 is a computer security standard that specifies the requirements for cryptographic modules -- including both hardware and software components -- used within a security system to protect sensitive, but unclassified information. This certification ensures that organizations deploying Corelight Sensors can trust that their data is protected, whether at rest or in transit. FIPS certification is an expression of our companys unwavering commitment to supporting federal agencies and missions, said Greg Bell, CEO of Corelight. Corelight understands mission organizations because we are one, with many team members coming from the federal environment. This independent FIPS certification demonstrates our ongoing commitment to delivering highly secure technology that greatly accelerates the work of incident response, threat hunting, and forensics. Corelight has achieved FIPS 140-2 certification for its full portfolio of network sensors including: Corelight AP 200 Sensor Corelight AP 1000 Sensor Corelight AP 3000 Sensor Corelight was founded by Dr. ern Paxson (a Professor of Computer Science at UC Berkeley and Chief Scientist at Corelight), Robin Sommer (CTO) and Seth Hall (Chief Evangelist) to deliver network visibility solutions for cybersecurity built on an open source framework called Bro. Paxson began developing Bro in 1995 when he was working at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL); the name refers to George Orwell's "Big Brother" as it signals the need for operators of network monitoring to remain mindful of their users' rights and privacy. Corelight Sensors also offer features and support designed for public sector organizations, including: Streaming data export, including direct integration with Splunk, Elasticsearch, Kafka and more Partnerships with resellers under preferred government contracts and schedules including: GSA NASA SEWP DHS Eagle CHESS Support for air-gapped environments Traffic shunting for high volume traffic analysis Restful API for flexible integration Optimized file extraction Highly flexible log export and filtering options FIPS 140-2 validation is required by U.S. law when information systems use cryptography to protect sensitive government information. In order to achieve FIPS 140-2 certification, cryptographic modules are subject to rigorous testing by independent Cryptographic and Security Testing Laboratories, accredited by NIST. The validation for Corelights implementation of cryptographic modules (certifications 2398 and 2657) was performed by Acumen Security, an end-to-end security certification solutions provider in Rockville, MD. About Corelight Corelight delivers the most powerful network visibility solutions for information security professionals, helping them understand network traffic and defend their organizations more effectively. Corelight solutions are built on a foundation of Bro, the powerful and widely-used open source network analysis framework that generates actionable, real-time data for thousands of security teams worldwide. Its first product, the Corelight Sensor, is a high-performance, turn-key appliance with numerous integrations and capabilities enterprises need for deployment at scale. The Bro project was initially developed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), and has been supported by the US Department of Energy (DOE), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the International Computer Science Institute (ICSI). Corelight is based in San Francisco, Calif. For more information, visit https://www.corelight.com or follow @corelight_inc. Media and Analyst Contact: Kylie Heintz KMH Communications for Corelight kylie@corelight.com [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] VonageFlow, an All-in-One Workstream Collaboration Solution, Now Available with Vonage Business Cloud HOLMDEL, N.J., July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Vonage (NYSE: VG), a business cloud communications leader, has expanded Vonage Business Cloud (VBC) platform capabilities with VonageFlow, its proprietary workstream collaboration solution. Now, VBC users can leverage team messaging, file sharing, SMS and voice, available across any device, and can integrate directly with the capabilities of Business Inbox, including social messaging via Facebook, available in beta. Unlike most workstream collaboration solutions, VonageFlow is a fully-integrated solution enabled by the cloud-based architecture of the Vonage Business Cloud platform. Users can leverage voice, messaging, and SMS within one single interface, enabling streamlined communications and greater productivity. With VonageFlow, users enjoy seamless interoperability across VBC's mobile app, new desktop app and upgraded web app. By incorporating VonageFlow team messaging, social, and collaboration capabilities directly into the VBC platform, Vonage continues to demonstrate the value of VBC's open architecture built from its microservice-based platform. "With the launch of VonageFlow, Vonage is providing customers with a better omnichannel customer experience, and bringinga richer collaborative set of capabilities to our VBC customers," said Ron Maayan, VP Product at Vonage. According to Gartner, by 2022, 70% of teams will rely on workstream collaboration as the primary means of communicating, coordinating and sharing information between team members, displacing email1. As enterprise communications shift from email to include SMS, chat, file sharing, video, and social media, it will become critical for businesses to provide a reliable, omnichannel collaboration platform to support today's team-based work environments. "VonageFlow allows SMS and social messages to be routed directly into a team messaging environment. For instance, when customers contact a company with an issue via SMS or Social Messaging, all team members associated with that extension or business inbox would receive the message in real-time, no matter their location. This allows for more immediate recognition of customer issues and more efficient resolution," said Brian Gilman, VP Product Marketing at Vonage. Mr. Gilman continued, "The team then has the ability to quickly collaborate to resolve the issue by sharing digital content; looping in additional colleagues as needed; and replying back to the customer, all within one simple platform." Watch a demo of VonageFlow here. 1Gartner, Embrace Workstream Collaboration to Transform Team Coordination and Performance, May 12, 2017 About Vonage Vonage (NYSE:VG) is redefining business communications. True to our roots as a technology disruptor, we've embraced technology to transform how companies communicate to create better business outcomes. Our unique cloud communications platform brings together a robust unified communications solution with the agility of embedded, contextual communications APIs. This powerful combination enables businesses to collaborate more productively and engage their customers more effectively across messaging, chat, social media, video and voice. The Company also provides a robust suite of feature-rich residential communication solutions. Vonage Holdings Corp. is headquartered in Holmdel, New Jersey, with offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and Israel. Vonage is a registered trademark of Vonage Marketing LLC, owned by Vonage America Inc. (vg-a) View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vonageflow-an-all-in-one-workstream-collaboration-solution-now-available-with-vonage-business-cloud-300684735.html SOURCE Vonage [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Kentik Recognized as CRN 2018 Emerging Vendor SAN FRANCISCO, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Kentik, the leader in network analytics, today announced that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has named Kentik to its 2018 Emerging Vendors List in the Networking category. CRN's list recognizes recently founded, up-and-coming technology suppliers who are shaping the future of the IT channel through unique technological innovations. "Today's digital organizations are building networks that are increasingly complex and internet-dependent. Yet, they still can't answer basic questions about their networks' performance, security, and user experience," said Jim Frey, Vice President of Channel at Kentik. "We created Kentik to address the network visibility challenge. Our record year-over-year growth, expanding channel program, and industry accolades, including making CRN's list, reflect our commitment to delivering the modern approach that modern networks require." Kentik was recognized on CRN's 2018 Emerging Vendors List for Kentik Detect, its powerful network analytics SaaS platform. Built on a patented big data engine, Kentik Detect uses real-time flow analysis, uniquely enriched with business context and internet profiles to help large enterprises and service providers protect their revenue and reputation. With Kentik, organization can proactively identify and quickly analyze performance issues, traffic anomalies and attacks, and drive automated resolution. At the same time, they have the depth and richness of network activity insights to plan and optimize their networks for maximum cost and performance efficiency. Kentik goes even further, adding business and service context for translating network intelligence into business and service intelligence. "The technology suppliers on CRN's 2018 Emerging Vendors list are creating a bright future for the IT channel, aggressively developing products to meet complex IT market demands, while positively impacting the bottom line of solution providers," said Bob Skelley, CEO of The Channel Company. "The array of leading-edge products delivered by these organizations will have a lasting impact on the channel for years to come." For more information on CRN's 2018 Emerging Vendors List, visit www.crn.com/emergingvendors. To see a demo of Kentik Detect, visit www.kentik.com. About Kentik Easily the world's most powerful network analytics, Kentik uses real-time flow analysis, uniquely enriched with business and internet context to help enterprises and service providers protect their revenue and reputation. Kentik's SaaS platform is built on a patented big data engine to deliver modern network analytics that is both powerful and easy to use. Kentik is based in San Francisco - learn more at kentik.com. About The Channel Company The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequaled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelco.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kentik-recognized-as-crn-2018-emerging-vendor-300684496.html SOURCE Kentik [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] WISP Members Score Big at Security Innovation CMD+CTRL Cyber Range Training Wilmington, MA, July 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Security Innovation, a pioneer in software security assessment and training, announced that as part of its sponsorship of Women in Security and Privacy (WISP), dozens of women from the security industry took part in a pre-DEFCON CMD+CTRL cyber range training in San Francisco last week. As the only cyber range focused exclusively on Web application security, CMD+CTRL enabled the attendees to put on their hacker hats in order to gain a deeper understanding of how cyber-attackers find and exploit vulnerabilities in insecure software applications. Click here for a free trial of Security Innovations CMD+CTRL cyber range. The CTF provided by Security Innovation had a tremendously positive impact on the WISP community. This is empirical evidence we have gathered from comments from the attendees, said Mel Masterson, WISP Events Committee Lead. This is our third CTF with Security Innovation and we hope to bring more resources for beginners next year. On behalf of WISP and our growing community, I want to express gratitude towards Security Innovation and look foward to our continued partnership. Margaret Ho, a Security Engineer from Security Innovation ran the WISP CMD+CTRL training using the fully functional Shred Retail ecommerce application. Leveraging cheat sheets and other easy to understand tips, participants of all skill levels were able to gain insight into how hackers: buy items in an unintended way tamper with other users functionality crack passwords elevate privileges Each player vied to attain the maximum number of points available. The top scorer earned 3,395 points, the second 2,880 points, followed by the third at 2,145 points. Our mission is to provide cutting edge solutions that improve cybersecurity readiness for organizations across the globe. We built CMD+CTRL as part of that commitment, and it has become an exceptional way to give developers and security professionals the skills necessary to meet todays changing threat and attack landscape, said Lisa Parcella, VP of Product Management and Marketing at Security Innovation. It was a fantastic evening and also very rewarding to watch such a capable cadre of women in our industry do exceedingly well throughout the workshop. Unique in the industry, CMD+CTRL consists of authentic applications in each available vertical that participants can attack to discover flaws. It provides the type of training needed to overcome the security skills gap that most organizations face. Security Innovation has conducted CMD+CTRL cyber range trainings around the globe for thousands of players at the worlds leading brands and industry conferences including FS-ISAC, DEF CON, OWASP AppSec California and others. Click here to learn why Security Innovation is the worldwide leader in software security training and assessment services. About Security Innovation Since 2002, organizations have relied on Security Innovation for our unique software security expertise to help secure and protect sensitive data in the most challenging environments - automobiles, desktops, web applications, mobile devices and in the cloud. A best in class security training, assessment and consulting provider, Security Innovation has been named to the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Security Awareness Training for four consecutive years. Security Innovation is privately held and headquartered in Wilmington, MA USA. For more information, visit www.securityinnovation.com or connect with us on LinkedIn or Twitter. ### Security Innovation Media Contact: Derek Beckwith dbeckwith@securityinnovation.com, +1-617-331-3567 [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] DFLabs to Discuss How to Overcome Shortage of Skilled Security Operations Staff at SANS SOC Summit DFLabs, the pioneer in Security Orchestration, Automation and Response (SOAR), today announced that Mike Fowler, Vice President of Professional Services will present a session on improving incident response capabilities at the SANS Security Operations Center Summit on July 30, 2018. WHO: Mike Fowler, CISSP EnCE, an expert in cyber security investigations and forensics, has trained foreign and domestic forensic investigators for the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Secret Service and the FBI's Cyber Division. Mike has worked in law enforcement and the private sector, performing cyber investigations with the Security Operations Center for MCI/Worldcom. He currently helps organizations implement security incident response programs as Vice President of Professional Services for DFLabs. WHAT: The shortage of skilled Security Operations Center (SOC) personnel worldwide is only getting worse. With increasing workloads, inexperienced security analysts need to be brought up to speed quickly so they can contribute effectively to SOC Operations. In this session, "Leveraging Orchestration to Facilitate Knowledge Transfer in Security Operations," Mike will present a framework that combines traditional and new knowledge transfer techniques with orchestration to enable under-resourced SOCs to achieve new levels incident response efficiency and productivity. WHEN: Monday, July 30, 2018 at 12 PM noon CDT (News - Alert) WHERE: SANS Security Operations Summit, New Orleans Downtown Marriott at the Convention Center, 859 Convention Center Blvd., New Orleans, Louisiana. HOW: To schedule an in-person meeting at the conference or a phone conversation with Mike Fowler, contact Marc Gendron at marc@mgpr.net or +1 781.237.0341. For more information, visit: https://www.sans.org/event/security-operations-summit-2018/ About the SANS Security Operations Summit The SANS Security Operations Summit brings together prominent security practitioners for two days of in-depth talks and panel discussions around building, operating, and maturing a successful security operations program. Speakers will share their latest strategies and methods for achieving impactful operational functions, including network monitoring, incident response, threat intelligence, forensics, self-assessment, and the command center. The SANS Institute (News - Alert) was established in 1989 as a cooperative research and education organization. Its programs now reach more than 165,000 security professionals around the world. For more information, visit https://www.sans.org/about/. About DFLabs DFLabs is an award-winning and recognized global leader in security orchestration, automation and response (SOAR) technology. The company's management team has helped shape the cyber security industry, which includes co-editing several industry standards such as ISO 27043 and ISO 30121. Its flagship product, IncMan SOAR, has been adopted by Fortune 500 and Global 2000 organizations worldwide. DFLabs has operations in Europe, North America, and EMEA. For more information, visit www.dflabs.com or connect with us on Twitter (News - Alert) @DFLabs. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005020/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Skyfire Consulting Offers Drone Christmas Tree Ornament ATLANTA, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Skyfire Consulting, a public safety drone consulting company, has teamed up with Sporty's Pilot Shop to develop a drone Christmas tree ornament. Made from hard resin, Skyfire's drone ornament is modeled after a consumer-style drone. "We have hundreds of clients who are enthusiastic drone pilots, and we want to give them a way to celebrate their passion on their Christmas trees," said Matt Sloane, CEO of Skyfire Consulting. "We looked and looked to try to find an existing drone ornament, but we couldn't find one anywhere, so that's when we called Sporty's." Sporty's Pilot Shop, the world's largest online retailers for pilot supplies, currently carries a selection of Christmas tree ornaments depicting a variety of airplanes. "With thousands of drone pilots, offering an ornament just for them is a natural addition to our line of Christmas tree ornaments," said Sporty's Doug Ranly. "With the crossover between airplane pilots and drone pilots, we think this drone ornament will be a popular item this holiday season." Ornaments will be available for pre-sale in July n SkyfireConsulting.com for $29.99, and proceeds will be donated to public safety charities. The ornament will also be available on Sportys.com or by calling 1-800-SPORTYS. About Skyfire Consulting Founded by public safety professionals, Skyfire Consulting believes that America's First Responders are the backbone upon which this great nation was built. Skyfire supports organizations in all 50 states with cutting-edge firefighting and police drone technology, and industry-leading expertise in certification, regulations, and training. Skyfire is the leading public safety-specific sUAS company in the country, and offer the equipment, flight training and ground courses, grant assistance, and FAA consultation necessary to not only acquire a blanket and jurisdictional COA but to fly safely and effectively while minimizing liability. About Sporty's Pilot Shop Now in its 57th year, Sporty's has grown from a one-man operation launched by Hal Shevers to the world's largest pilot shop and an iconic general aviation brand. Sporty's operations extend to airport management, avionics installation and repair, aircraft maintenance, a residential airport community, new aircraft sales, aircraft charter services and flight training, including for the University of Cincinnati's professional pilot program. Located at Clermont County/Sporty's Airport (I69), Sporty's is philanthropically dedicated to expanding the general aviation community with both pilots and skilled technicians. View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/skyfire-consulting-offers-drone-christmas-tree-ornament-300684567.html SOURCE Skyfire Consulting [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Illusive Networks Recognized on 2018 Emerging Security Vendors List NEW YORK and TEL AVIV, Israel, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Illusive Networks, the leader in deception-based cyber defense, announced today that CRN , a brand of The Channel Company, has named Illusive to its 2018 Emerging Vendors List in the Security category. This list recognizes recently founded, up-and-coming technology suppliers who are shaping the future of the IT channel through unique technological innovations. In addition to celebrating these notable companies, the Emerging Vendors list serves as a valuable resource for solution providers looking to expand their portfolios with cutting-edge technology. Illusive's deception-based technology preeempts attacks by depriving attackers of hidden keys they need to reach critical assets, detects attacks in their earliest stages, and enables security teams to quickly respond with actionable, real-time forensics. Enterprise customers are rapidly adopting Illusive's breakthrough platform to protect against insider threats, exfiltration of intellectual property, personal identity information, financial cybercrime, and other critical cyber related business risk. Frost and Sullivan, recognizing Illusive with a 2018 New Product Innovation Award stated, "Illusive Networks' deception-based cybersecurity technology offers a new approach to post-breach solutions, one that catches attackers early on in the kill-chain by neutralizing targeted attacks and APTs to risk-sensitive and business-critical digital assets." Illusive is a 100% channel-committed company, selling exclusively through value added resellers (VARs), managed security service providers (MSSP), and managed detection and response (MDR) partners around the world. "The technology suppliers on CRN's 2018 Emerging Vendors list are creating a bright future for the IT channe, aggressively developing products to meet complex IT market demands, while positively impacting the bottom line of solution providers," said Bob Skelley, CEO, The Channel Company. "The array of leading-edge products delivered by these organizations will have a lasting impact on the channel for years to come." "By continually enhancing our unique, pre-emptive approach to cybersecurity, Illusive enables enterprises to stay one step ahead of attackers," said Tracy Pallas, Illusive's vp of channel sales strategy. "Our channel-led sales model is driving rapid adoption across all verticals in both mid-enterprise and Fortune 500 firms. Illusive and our partners are delighted that CRN continues to recognize and commend our efforts." The complete Emerging Vendors list will be featured online at www.crn.com/emergingvendors. Follow The Channel Company: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook Tweet This: @TheChannelCo names @illusivenw to @CRN 2018 Emerging Vendors list #CRNEV www.crn.com/emergingvendors About Illusive Networks Illusive Networks is a pioneer of deception technology, empowering security teams to take informed action against advanced, targeted attacks by preempting, detecting, and disrupting attackers early in the attack life cycle. Agentless and driven by intelligent automation, Illusive enables organizations to proactively defend critical information assets with minimal operational overhead. Conceived by cybersecurity experts with decades of combined experience in cyber warfare and cyber intelligence, Illusive helps customers avoid significant operational disruption and business risk, while operating with greater confidence in today's complex, hyper-connected world. For more information, visit us at www.illusivenetworks.com, contact us at info@illusivenetworks.com or follow on LinkedIn, @Illusivenw on Twitter and Facebook. About The Channel Company The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequaled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelco.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/illusive-networks-recognized-on-2018-emerging-security-vendors-list-300684677.html SOURCE Illusive Networks [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Quantum Computing to Hit US$15 Billion in 2028 due to Advanced AI, R&D, Cyber Security and Chemicals/Materials Design Demands SINGAPORE, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Total revenues generated from quantum computing services will exceed US$15 billion by 2028, forecasts ABI research, a market-foresight advisory firm providing strategic guidance on the most compelling transformative technologies. The demand for quantum computing services will be driven by some process hungry research and development projects as well as by the emergence of several applications including advanced artificial intelligence algorithms, next-generation cyber security encryption, traffic routing and scheduling, protein synthesis, and/or the design of advanced chemicals and materials. These applications require a new processing paradigm that classical computers, bound by Moore's law, cannot cope with. However, one should not expect quantum computers to displace their classical counterparts anytime soon. Unlike classical computers, based on sequential processing principles, quantum computers leverage their strengths from two fundamental characteristics inspired from quantum physics, namely entanglement and superposition, which make them super powerful for undertaking certain tasks, notably inter-correlated events that need to be executed in parallel. "Classical computing is not dead, even in the post-Moore's law era," said Lian Jye Su, Principal Analyst at ABI Research. "These machines will remain the ultimate processing power for executing traditional tasks such as text, video, speech processing, and signal processing, but will be potentially challenged by quantum machines when it comes executing algorithms that require massive parallel processing." Quantum computing is, however, still in its embryonic stage of development and is not ready for large-scale commercial deployment anytime in the near to mid-term. Scalability, technology stability, reliability, and cost efficiency are the major factors the industry should address before seeing quantum computers moving beyond lab projects or very restricted and constrained commercial deployment. The attempts to create quantum computers that are stable and have low error rate require heavy investment in infrastructure, software development, and human expertise. Operation is currently performed under extreme low-temperature, high magnetic field, and in a vacuum or sterile environment, making the technology extremely difficult to scale and expensive to operate. It is therefore not surprising that quantum computing is unlikely to achieve the distribution level of classical computers anytime within the next 10 years. The technology will remain concentrated in the cloud domain for many years to come. D-Wave Systems, IBM, and Rigetti Computing are few of the vendors that have commercial quantum computing systems. Based on adiabatic quantum computation, D-Wave System's quantum computer has been sold to government agencies, aerospace, and cybersecurity vendors. However, this type of system is constrained in terms of computational capabilities as compared to the rest of its counterparts. IBM, Rigetti Computing and other cloud computing giants such as Alibaba, Google, Intel, and Microsoft are opting for a quantum computing system based on the quantum gate model. "While the industry explores various hardware implementation methods by exploiting different quantum physics phenomena, they all face the harsh reality of tradeoffs, having to find the right balance between maintaining long coherence time, reducing error rates, minimizing cost, and developing scalable products," said Su. Therefore, excessive cost and extremely restrictive physical implementation will limit quantum computing technology to government, public, and military agencies as well as major enterprises and cloud computing giants. The technology will be made available to the public via an as-a-service business model. "The future of cloud computing will increasingly rely on parallelism as new types of sophisticated applications and algorithms emerge. These algorithms will need more than Moore's law for their execution and the industry will need to deploy more efforts to accelerate the development of quantum computers as alternatives to their classical computer counterparts," concluded Su. These findings are from ABI Research's Quantum Computing: Core Technologies, Development, and Use Cases report. This report is part of the company's AI & Machine Learning research service, which includes research, data, and Executive Foresights. About ABI Research ABI Research provides strategic guidance for visionaries needing market foresight on the most compelling transformative technologies, which reshape workforces, identify holes in a market, create new business models and drive new revenue streams. ABI's own research visionaries take stances early on those technologies, publishing groundbreaking studies often years ahead of other technology advisory firms. ABI analysts deliver their conclusions and recommendations in easily and quickly absorbed formats to ensure proper context. Our analysts strategically guide visionaries to take action now and inspire their business to realize a bigger picture. For more information about ABI Research's forecasting, consulting and teardown services, visionaries can contact us at +1.516.624.2500 in the Americas, +44.203.326.0140 in Europe, +65.6592.0290 in Asia-Pacific or visit www.abiresearch.com. Contact Info: Global Deborah Petrara Christopher Leary Tel: +1.516.624.2558 Tel: +1.516.624.2544 pr@abiresearch.com leary@abiresearch.com View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/quantum-computing-to-hit-us15-billion-in-2028-due-to-advanced-ai-rd-cyber-security-and-chemicalsmaterials-design-demands-300684789.html SOURCE ABI Research [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Madaket Health Closes $10 Million in Series B Funding to Accelerate Growth, Expand Platform Solutions for Payer-Provider Ecosystem Madaket Health, a cloud-based, healthcare SaaS (News - Alert) platform solution that simplifies administrative data exchange between payers and providers, announced today that it has closed $10 million in Series B funding. The round was led by Qiming Venture Partners, with additional investor participation from Experian Ventures, The PNC (News - Alert) Financial Services Group, and Salesforce Ventures. The funding will allow Madaket to rapidly extend its platform solution deeper into the administrative inefficiencies in the payer-provider ecosystem. Madaket's first two offerings-EDI Enrollment and Payer Enrollment/Credentialing-automate the manual, error-prone and redundant processes in common payer-provider transactions. EDI Enrollment streamlines Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), Electronic Remittance Advice (ERA) and Electronic Data Interchange for Claims (EDI) on behalf of providers. To date, Madaket has processed more than 1.5 million EDI enrollments for customers who have 1.3 million providers under contract to be enrolled on the platform. Madaket's Payer Enrollment solution automates and simplifies the process of credentialing providers with payers. "Our platform is a game-changer as it eliminates administrative burdens placed on providers, enabling them to focus on delivering high-quality, patient-centric care," said Madaket co-founder and CEO, Jim Dougherty. "We brought our proven track record of removing waste, error, and frustration to an industry-healthcare-that spends $130 billion on unnecessary administrative tasks. Our investment partners believe in our mission to become the de facto standard for all administrative data transactions between providers and payers and want to support our growth to meet the increasing demand and accelerate product innovation." "When it comes to improving the healthcare industry, we know not all the solutions come from within," said Gary Rieschel, Founding Partner, Qiming Venture Partners. "We invested in Madaket because they were founded by a team of proven SaaS leaders who know how to bring automation to complex, multi-sided markets. They bring a fresh perspective to reducing waste and friction in the healthcare industry, and they have a consistent track record of creating significant shareholder value. Their early successes are tangible and we are excited about the dynamic group of new strategic investors who will fuel the company's next phase of innovation and growth." To learn more about Madaket, contact Balaji Gandhi at balaji@madakethealth.com. About Madaket Health Madaket Health streamlines healthcare's payer-provider enrollment and payment processes, among other transactions. With its SaaS-based solution, Madaket ensures that enrollments are processed more efficiently and effectively than the manual, error-prone processes commonly used in the industry. Madaket's technology targets the billions of dollars in administrative waste in order to reinvest in care delivery. Founded in the shared Harvard Square workspace of, and supported by, Koa Labs in 2012, Madaket is led by a team of innovative entrepreneurs, technologists, and healthcare professionals with a proven track record of reducing waste and improving processes. To learn more, visit madakethealth.com. About Qiming Venture Partners The Qiming U.S. Healthcare Fund, LP is a new $121 million US healthcare venture fund headquartered in Seattle, WA with offices in Cambridge, MA and Palo Alto (News - Alert) , CA. As part of a broader family of Qiming Venture Partners funds, this new fund seeks to invest in US-based private human healthcare companies with potential market opportunities in China. Focused areas of interest are bio-therapeutics, medtech and digital health technologies, with equity investments of up to $12 million. For more information, visit www.qimingvc.com. About Salesforce Ventures Salesforce Ventures-Salesforce's corporate investment group-invests in the next generation of enterprise technology to help companies connect with their customers in entirely new ways. Portfolio companies receive funding as well as access to the world's largest cloud ecosystem and the guidance of Salesforce's innovators and executives. With Salesforce Ventures, portfolio companies can also leverage Salesforce's expertise in corporate philanthropy by joining Pledge 1% to make giving back part of their business model. Salesforce has invested in more than 150 enterprise cloud startups since 2009. For more information, visit www.salesforce.com/ventures. About The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. is one of the largest diversified financial services institutions in the United States, organized around its customers and communities for strong relationships and local delivery of retail and business banking including a full range of lending products; specialized services for corporations and government entities, including corporate banking, real estate finance and asset-based lending; wealth management and asset management. For more information, visit www.pnc.com. About Experian and Experian Ventures Experian is the world's leading global information services company. During life's big moments - from buying a home or a car, to sending a child to college, to growing a business by connecting with new customers - we empower consumers and our clients to manage their data with confidence. We help individuals to take financial control and access financial services, businesses to make smarter decisions and thrive, lenders to lend more responsibly, and organizations to prevent identity fraud and crime. We have 16,500 people operating across 39 countries and every day we're investing in new technologies, talented people and innovation to help all our clients maximize every opportunity. Experian Ventures, located in Silicon Valley, Singapore, London, and Brazil, invests globally in startups developing innovative consumer and business solutions for data creation, analytics and machine learning and information security. Experian is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Learn more at www.experianplc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005385/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] AmWINS Transportation Underwriters Announces Protective Insurance as New Carrier for Environmental Transportation Program AmWINS Transportation Underwriters ("ATU") today announced a partnership with Protective Insurance to provide insurance solutions for ATU's Environmental Transportation program, which is available for both trucking and business auto risks. "We're excited to partner with Protective Insurance on this proprietary program," said Drew Easton, Executive Vice President of AmWINS Transportation Underwriters. "Protective's commitment to the transportation space provides the ideal support and continuity for our current, future and legacy partners - motor carriers and retailers." For more than 20 years, the ATU Environmental Transportation program has afforded class-leading and consistent auto-related coverages and products. The specific appetite, which focuses solely on haulers of hazardous materials and non-hazardous environmental commodities, makes this program unique. The program is available nationally and written on an admitted basis by Protective, which is rated A+ (Superior) by A.M. Best Company. Enhancements to the ATU Environmental Transportation program as a result of the new partnership with Protective include: Consideration of all radii - Local to Long-Haul Consideration of all Hazardous Materials classes EXCEPT Class 7 - Radioactive Materials "For over 80 years, we have been diligently acting on our mission to create and deliver the highest quality, customized insurance products for the transportation industry," said Randy Birchfield, President and Chief Executive Officer of Protective Insurance. "This exciting partnership with ATU's Environmental Transportaion program will provide their partners with products backed by the advantage of nearly a century's worth of experience and commitment to the transportation industry." AmWINS Transportation Underwriters is a managing general agency within the Underwriting division of AmWINS Group, Inc. ("AmWINS"), a global distributor of specialty insurance products and services. About AmWINS Transportation Underwriters AmWINS Transportation Underwriters (ATU) is a managing general agency and wholesale insurance broker that specializes in the trucking and transportation industry. ATU's skilled underwriters provide comprehensive insurance solutions in partnership with reputable and financially sound carriers. With six offices around the country, ATU handles more than $75M in premium placements annually. To learn more, visit www.amwins.com/atu. About AmWINS Group, Inc. AmWINS Group, Inc. is the largest independent wholesale distributor of specialty insurance products in the United States, dedicated to serving retail insurance agents by providing property and casualty products, specialty group benefit products and administrative services. Based in Charlotte, N.C., the company operates through more than 100 offices globally and handles premium placements in excess of $14 billion dollars annually. To learn more, visit www.amwins.com. About Protective Insurance Protective Insurance is a property-casualty insurer specializing in transportation and workers' compensation through its underwriting companies, Protective Insurance Company and Sagamore Insurance Company. With an 85-year tradition of delivering the highest-quality, customized insurance products, Protective offers coverages for trucking fleets, workers' compensation, public transportation fleets and independent contractors through its retail distribution channels and program businesses. Protective Insurance Company is based in Carmel, Indiana and has a financial rating of A+ (Superior) by A.M. Best. For more information, visit www.protectiveinsurance.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005419/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Lockheed Martin Meets 1,800 Employee Hiring Commitment; Plans to Add 400 More Jobs in Fort Worth FORT WORTH, Texas, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) announced today that it has hired more than 1,800 new employees in support of the F-35 program, meeting a commitment made in January 2017 by Chairman, President and CEO Marillyn Hewson. The company also announced that it plans to create an additional 400 jobs at its Fort Worth, Texas, facility to support increased production on the program. The announcement was made in conjunction with the Trump Administration's second Made in America day, which showcased a full-scale F-35 model on the South Lawn of the White House. "The F-35 is an iconic product that represents the best of U.S. innovation, technology leadership, and advanced manufacturing," said Marillyn Hewson. "The program supports 194,000 direct and indirect jobs nationwide, and as we ramp up production we are creating even more opportunities for American workers. The men and women who participate in the F-35 program take pride in delivering unmatched, fifth-generation capabilities to the U.S. military and our allies around the world." With stealth technology, supersonic speed, advanced sensors, enhanced weapons capacity and superior range, the F-35 is the most advanced fighter aircraft ever built, enabling men and women in uniform to execute their mission and return home sfe. More than a fighter jet, the F-35's ability to collect, analyze and share data is a powerful force multiplier that enhances all airborne, surface and ground-based assets in the battlespace. Lockheed Martin will host its hiring event in Fort Worth, Texas on July 30, with a goal of recruiting 400 new employees with expertise in the following areas: avionics technicians, milling machinist, low observable coaters, structural assemblers, aircraft mechanics, field and service mechanics, and electrical assemblers. Additional details on the event can be found, here. Increasing Production, Reducing Costs About 310 F-35s have been delivered to date, and the current program of record calls for more than 3,000 aircraft. The F-35 enterprise has significantly increased production volume year-over-year to meet demand. Lockheed Martin met its 2017 delivery target of 66 aircraft, representing more than a 40 percent increase from 2016. In 2018, the company is on track to deliver 91 aircraft and is preparing to increase production volume year-over-year to hit a rate of approximately 160 aircraft per year in 2023. As production volume increases and Lockheed Martin implements cost savings initiatives, the company has significantly reduced costs. In fact, F-35 unit costs have declined by more than 60 percent since the first production lot. The enterprise is on track to reduce the cost of an F-35A to $80 million by 2020, which is equal to or less than legacy fourth generation aircraft, while providing a transformational leap in capability. The F-35 is built by thousands of men and women in America and around the world. With more than 1,500 suppliers in 46 states and Puerto Rico, the F-35 program supports more than 194,000 direct and indirect jobs in the U.S. alone. About Lockheed Martin Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 100,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. This year the company received three Edison Awards for ground-breaking innovations in autonomy, satellite technology and directed energy. View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lockheed-martin-meets-1-800-employee-hiring-commitment-plans-to-add-400-more-jobs-in-fort-worth-300684799.html SOURCE Lockheed Martin [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Mouser Electronics and Grant Imahara Present New "Generation Robot" E-Book Focused on Service Robots Mouser Electronics, Inc. announces the release of a new e-book titled Service Robots, the most recent offering in the Generation Robot series, part of Mouser's Empowering Innovation Together program. Featuring a foreword by celebrity engineer and Mouser spokesperson Grant Imahara, Service Robots provides examples of how service robots differ from collaborative robots, presenting familiar robot forms we already see around us, as well as emerging trends in service robotics. Topics in the e-book include anatomy of a service robot, a companion robot for the International Space Station, and the challenges of creating an appendage with the dexterity of the human hand. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005450/en/ Mouser Electronics announces the release of a new e-book titled Service Robots, the most recent offering in the Generation Robot series, part of Mouser's Empowering Innovation Together program. (Photo: Business Wire) "In this new e-book, Mouser's engineering experts give readers a sense of what to expect from service robots, with articles that appeal to engineers and non-engineers alike," said Kevin Hess, Senior Vice President, Marketing at Mouser Electronics. "Previously in the Generation Robot series, Mouser and Grant investigated therise of collaborative robots: robots that work side by side with humans. In this e-book, we see what happens when those robots are more autonomous." The Generation Robot series, hosted by Imahara, features five videos filmed in locations around the world, highlighting the people, companies and machines that are changing how we view and interact with robots. The series showcases everything from robotic theory to real-world robotic use cases that seem like science fiction but are, in reality, a glimpse at how we will navigate in an equally human and robot world. The Generation Robot series is supported by Mouser's valued suppliers Analog Devices, Intel, Microchip Technology and Molex. Since 2015, Mouser's Empowering Innovation Together program has been one of the most visible and recognized programs in the electronic component industry, featuring projects ranging from 3D printing objects in space to the amazing benefits of technologies that are Shaping Smarter Cities. For 2018, Mouser's goal is to reach even more innovators around the globe with the Empowering Innovation Together program through the focus of how robots impact humanity. To read the e-book, go to http://mou.sr/2ulmYYg. To learn more about Mouser's Empowering Innovation Together series, visit www.mouser.com/empowering-innovation and follow Mouser on Facebook and Twitter. About Mouser Electronics Mouser Electronics, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is an award-winning, authorized semiconductor and electronic component distributor focused on rapid New Product Introductions from its manufacturing partners for electronic design engineers and buyers. The global distributor's website, Mouser.com, is available in multiple languages and currencies and features more than 5 million products from over 700 manufacturers. Mouser offers 23 support locations around the world to provide best-in-class customer service and ships globally to over 600,000 customers in more than 220 countries/territories from its 750,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art facility south of Dallas, Texas. For more information, visit www.mouser.com. About Grant Imahara Well known in the engineering community, Grant Imahara has paired his engineering expertise with a successful TV and film career. In addition to his roles on MythBusters and BattleBots, Imahara has worked on many famous robotic characters, including R2-D2 from Star Wars, the talking robot skeleton sidekick Geoff Peterson from The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and the Energizer (News - Alert) Bunny. Trademarks Mouser and Mouser Electronics are registered trademarks of Mouser Electronics, Inc. All other products, logos, and company names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. Intel (News - Alert) is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation in the United States and other countries. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005450/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Brenton Point Celebrates One Year Anniversary and Opening of Westport, Connecticut Office, Led by Larry Rollins, Its Newest Advisor Brenton Point Wealth Advisors LLC ("Brenton Point"), an independent SEC (News - Alert) registered investment advisory firm affiliated with investment manager, Zweig-DiMenna, today announced the expansion of its wealth advisory team with the addition of Larry Rollins, who will lead their new Westport, Connecticut office as Private Wealth Advisor. Mr. Rollins joins Brenton Point from Fidelity Investments where he most recently served as a Vice President and Financial Consultant in their Greenwich, CT Private Client Group. Mr. Rollins has over 22 years of experience and he has, since 2011, received Fidelity Investments' President's Circle Award* five times, a prestigious honor that recognizes the top 5% of Fidelity's financial consultants nationally. Larry is joined by Lisa Cassidy, who has over 25 years of financial services experience and will serve as a Senior Client Manager at Brenton Point. "We are excited to welcome Larry and Lisa to our team. As we continue to expand the firm's reach, we are pleased that successful advisors have recognized the potential of our firm's unique model and want to participate in the firm's growth," said Paul Michalowski, Co-President and COO of Brenton Point. Over the past twelve months, Brenton Point has established itself in the wealth management space by combining the knowledge of institutional investment professionals with experienced senior wealth advisors. Brenton Point's mission is to provide private investors, families, endowments and foundations with consistent, ongoing access to data and advice traditionally reserved for the institutional investment community. Brenton Point's custom advice and investment solutions are guided by the firm's proprietary macro-economic research process, led by Michael Schaus, Director of Market Research for both Brenton Point and Zweig-DiMenna, an investment management firm with a 34-year legacy. Joseph DiMenna, Founder and Head Portfolio Manager of Zweig-DiMenna, views Brenton Point as a timely strategic venture that builds upon the firm's research focus and market experience. The macro research process was originally developed under the leadership of Dr. Martin Zweig, a renowned macro-economist and author, who is credited with predicting the 1987 market crash and is known for his exhaustive data studies. Mr. Schaus worked with Dr. Zweig for 20 years before assuming responsibility for the group. Brenton Point is headquartered in New York and is led by an experienced leadership team of investment professionals. Kevin Cannon, CEO, brings over 30 years of management experience and has been the CEO of Zweig-DiMenna for more than 20 years. Paul Michalowski, Co-President & COO of Brenton Point, has over 20 years of senior level institutional and wealth management experience ranging from hedge funds to global wealth management firms including Merrill Lynch. Patrick Gingras, Co-President and Private Wealth Advisor, brings 25 years of wealth management experience. Prior to co-founding the firm, Gingras served as Senior Vice President and Board Member of Essex Financial Services, Inc. Joseph DiMenna, Founder of Zweig-DiMenna and Chief Market Strategist of Brenton Point, said, "I am proud of our unique financial advisory firm, delivering a more comprehensive range of advisory solutions to an expanded customer base. Adding Larry Rollins is wonderful news for our clients and our firm. As we grow our firm, we look forward to continuing to partner with advisors who share our dedication to clients, our passion for quality research and our desire to provide superior advice. I am thrilled to see all that we have achieved in our first year." About Brenton Point Wealth Advisors LLC Brenton Point Wealth Advisors LLC is an independent investment advisory firm with offices in New York and Connecticut. The firm's senior officers possess extensive institutional experience across capital markets, research, asset allocation, portfolio construction, risk management, tax, wealth management, financial and estate planning with a mission of providing investors comprehensive advisory solutions. For more information, see www.brentonpoint.com. Brenton Point Wealth Advisors, LLC Offices: 301 Riverside Avenue 64 Wall Street 900 Third Avenue Westport, CT 06880 Madison, CT 06443 New York, NY 10022 (212) 451-1400 (203) 318-9310 (212) 451-1400 info@brentonpoint.com *The President's Circle Award selection criteria are based on an advisor's success in client loyalty (satisfaction) scores, client retention, client acquisition and leadership. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005594/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] Global 3D NAND Flash Memory Market Analysis & Trends 2015-2017 & Industry Forecast 2018-2027 - ResearchAndMarkets.com The "Global 3D NAND Flash Memory Market Analysis & Trends - Industry Forecast to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The Global 3D NAND Flash Memory Market is poised to grow strong during the forecast period 2017 to 2027. Some of the prominent trends that the market is witnessing include increasing demand for solid state drives (SSD) and rising demand for high-performance computers used in programming, monitoring, gaming, and various critical areas. This industry report analyzes the market estimates and forecasts of all the given segments on global as well as regional levels presented in the research scope. The study provides historical market data for 2015, 2016 revenue estimations are presented for 2017 and forecasts from 2018 till 2027. The study focuses on market trends, leading players, supply chain trends, technological innovations, key developments, and futre strategies for existing players, new entrants and the future investors. Scope of the Report Based on product, market is classified into smartphones & tablets, laptops & PCs and cameras. Depending on the type, market is divided into triple level cell (TLC), multi level cell (MLC), single level cell (SLC). On the basis of application, market is segmented into telecommunications, mass storage, industrial, healthcare, aerospace and defense, consumer electronics, automotive and other applications. Key Topics Covered: 1 Market Outline 2 Executive Summary 3 Market Overview 4 3D NAND Flash Memory Market, By Product 5 3D NAND Flash Memory Market, By Type 6 3D NAND Flash Memory Market, By Application 7 3D NAND Flash Memory Market, By Geography 8 Key Player Activities 9 Leading Companies Micron Technology (News - Alert) Inc. SK Hynix Inc Apple Inc. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd SanDisk Corp Toshiba Corp Intel (News - Alert) Corp For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/z6trg4/global_3d_nand?w=4 Did you know that we also offer Custom Research? Visit our Custom Research page to learn more and schedule a meeting with our Custom Research Manager. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005613/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] MakerMinded Celebrates Ohio Schools for Inspiring Students in STEM Four Ohio schools will be recognized in a ceremony tonight for their work inspiring students to study STEM fields including careers in advanced manufacturing. MakerMinded launched in 2017 in Ohio as a new online STEM learning and competition platform that provides transformational STEM learning experiences setting students on track toward 21st century manufacturing careers. It provides access to a diverse range of STEM and advanced manufacturing programs, including manufacturing facility tours, gaming activities, project-based learning, and competitions. MakerMinded was created by LIFT-Lightweight Innovations For Tomorrow, a Manufacturing USA institute. Tennessee Tech University iCube center supports the program's continuing growth. Battelle recruits students and teachers for the effort through the Ohio STEM Learning Network. The network was founded in 2008 and today represents 55 STEM schools across the state. Battelle manages the Ohio STEM Learning Network as part of the company's commitment to preparing the next generation of innovators. The following four schools in Ohio are being recognized for excellence in advanced manufacturing and STEM learning through their participation in MakerMinded: Dayton Regional STEM School - Dayton, Ohio Alliance Middle School - Alliance, Ohio Graham Middle School - St. Paris, Ohio Woodward Park Middle School - Columbus, Ohio "We are so proud of these students as well as every school that participated in MakerMinded," said Aimee Kennedy, Senior Vice President of Philanthropy and Education at Battelle. "The future of innovation relies on a new generation of leaders grounded in quality STEM learning opportunities. Today, we recognize four schools that are doing their part through MakerMinded to make STEM accessible for every student in Ohio." Eric Burkland, President CEO of Ohio Manufacturers' Association, said, "With over 12,000 manufacturing firms that employ over 680,000 people, Ohio is relying on STEM students to help grow and lead our manufacturing base. We are proud to support and recognize MakerMinded students as they pursue advanced manufacturing learning and prepare for great careers in our industry." These schools will be celebrated July 23 at the Connections to Education Conference in Columbus, Ohio. Each winning school will take home an Oculus Rift virtual reality system to experience STEM and advanced manufacturing learning in their classrooms. The prizes are made possible through support from Battelle and Making Ohio, the state's manufacturing careers campaign. "The impact of MakerMinded is powerful evidence of the magic that happens when you inspire young people," said Emily DeRocco, LIFT's Education and Workforce Director. "This year, over 1,300 students and teachers from 94 middle and high schools across Ohio completed thousands of STEM programs, gaining foundational technical and employability skills that will prepare them for success in the high-tech manufacturing industry. This impact is exactly the reason LIFT invested in and launched MakerMinded, which is now active in Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, and Michigan. Three more states will launch the program in the 2018-19 school year." The 2018-2019 MakerMinded competition in Ohio will begin in August 2018. About LIFT - Lightweight Innovations for Tomorrow LIFT, operated by the American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute (ALMMII), is a Detroit-based, public-private partnership committed to the development and deployment of advanced lightweight metal manufacturing technologies, and implementing education and training initiatives to better prepare the workforce today and in the future. LIFT is one of the founding institutes of Manufacturing USA, and is funded in part by the Department of Defense with management through the Office of Naval Research. Visit www.lift.technology or follow on Twitter (News - Alert) @NewsFromLIFT to learn more. About Battelle Every day, the people of Battelle apply science and technology to solving what matters most. At major technology centers and national laboratories around the world, Battelle conducts research and development, designs and manufactures products, and delivers critical services for government and commercial customers. Battelle also manages a range of successful projects bringing quality STEM education to students including the Ohio STEM Learning Network, Tennessee STEM Innovation Network, and the national STEMx network. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio since its founding in 1929, Battelle serves the national security, health and life sciences, and energy and environmental industries. For more information, visit www.battelle.org. About iCube Tennessee Tech University's iCube is a place where students and faculty Imagine, Inspire, and Innovate. We are a leader in advancing collaborative solutions with extensive experience in public policy marketing campaigns and virtual reality development. To learn more about our center, please visit www.ttuicube.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005704/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] RDC Announces New CEO Tom Walsh Regulatory DataCorp, Inc. (RDC), the global leader in compliance screening, announced that Tom Walsh will be its new Chief Executive Officer, effective this week. Walsh takes over from Thomas M. Obermaier, who served as RDC's CEO since 2009. Obermaier will continue with RDC in the role of Senior Board Advisor. Walsh brings more than 25 years of experience in enterprise software to RDC, having served in a variety of B2B global and domestic customer markets. Prior to joining RDC, Walsh served as CEO of the Software Division at Kaufman Hall & Associates, where he helped establish and scale an enterprise software business that doubled in revenue growth during his tenure. He led the innovation and market introduction of new data analytic solutions to compliment enterprise software workflow solutions. Prior to Kaufman Hall, Walsh held numerous software executive roles with Thomson Reuters (News - Alert) in both the U.S. and abroad where he led several global enterprise software businesses through various stages of maturity including rapid growth, SaaS (News - Alert) development and migration, business re-sets, and acquisition integration. "I'm very proud to be joining RDC," said Tom Walsh. "RDC offers compelling and innovative solutions to combat financial crime within the Governance, Risk, and Compliance sector and is well-positioned, with its incredible talent and technology resources, to capitalize on the growth of the sector and lead in customer service. I look forward to meeting and partnering with RDC's customers globally to ensure we are providing world class software and solutions to assist with their evolving needs." "Over the past nine years Tom Obermaier has helped create a culture of growth and customer service at RDC, a brand that has becom a global leader in one of the fastest-growing sectors in the tech industry," said Rob Rogers, Vista Principal and Co-head of Vista Foundation Fund. "Tom Walsh's strong track record and vision will help RDC drive its next phase of growth and expand globally. He has shown throughout his career a unique ability to engage with customers, putting their experience first and using their input to help bring about innovations that improve products, strengthen customer relations, and grow businesses. We look forward to partnering with Tom and the entire RDC leadership team." RDC is a portfolio company of Vista Equity Partners ("Vista"), a private equity firm that specializes in enterprise software. Vista acquired RDC in 2016. About RDC Regulatory DataCorp, Inc.(RDC), the Smarter ScreeningTM company prevents criminal infiltration of the world's financial systems by delivering automated, intelligent customer screening and decision-ready intelligence. RDC supports more than 35,000 compliance professionals across more than 100 countries in strengthening their KYC/AML, fraud and Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) protection, ensuring sanctions and watchlist compliance, protecting their brand and reputation and managing supply chain and vendor risks. RDC uniquely combines the world's largest risk-relevant database together with an advanced machine learning-driven, SaaS-based screening platform, capable of supporting the largest and most complex global organizations. Founded by 20 of the world's leading financial institutions, today RDC is a Vista Equity Partners portfolio company. Learn more about RDC by emailing info@rdc.com or visiting www.rdc.com. About Vista Equity Partners Vista Equity Partners, a U.S.-based investment firm with offices in Austin, San Francisco, Chicago, and Oakland with more than $31 billion in cumulative capital commitments, currently invests in software, data and technology-enabled organizations led by world-class management teams with long-term perspectives. Vista is a value-added investor, contributing professional expertise and multi-level support towards companies' realization of their full potential. Vista's investment approach is anchored by a sizable long-term capital base, experience in structuring technology-oriented transactions, and proven management techniques that yield flexibility and opportunity in private equity investing. For more information, please visit www.vistaequitypartners.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180723005463/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [July 23, 2018] University of Phoenix Survey Reveals U.S. Adults' Familiarity with Data Security Jobs PHOENIX, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- University of Phoenix today announced findings from a new survey that examined U.S. adults' perceptions of aspects of cybersecurity, including career familiarity, gender disparity and workplace readiness. The survey gauged U.S. adults' awareness of 11 jobs in the industry amid a rise in cyber-attacks and uncovered that only about one in 10 survey respondents are very familiar with the cybersecurity job titles queried in the survey and 20 percent or more had never heard of them. U.S. Adults' familiarity with cybersecurity job titles: Job Title Never Heard of It Very Familiar Penetration tester 52% 10% "White hat" ethical hacker 51% 9% Computer security incident responder 46% 8% Security architect 44% 8% Security auditor 39% 12% Security engineer 32% 8% Chief information security officer 29% 12% Computer forensics expert 26% 11% Security consultant 23% 11% Security analyst 20% 9% Security software developer 19% 13% As part of the University-developed Enterprise Security Competency model, cybersecurity is defined as the practice of protecting physical and electronic information from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction. This Enterprise Security Model was adopted by the U.S. Department of Labor and has become the standard by which the security profession measures education and career development.1 University graduates who earn undergraduate and graduate degrees with certificates in cybersecurity are prepared to help protect computer systems and online data from infiltration.2 These professionals are vital to organizational operations as cyber-attacks reached record highs last year, with a reported 5,207 total breaches and 7.89 billion information records compromised, according to Risk Based Security's Data Breach QuickView Report for yearend 2017.3 However, only 20 percent of respondents said that they had considered a career in cybersecurity. When asked why they had never considered a career in cybersecurity, nearly a quarter of respondents (24 percent) said that they do not have the proper skills to become a cybersecurity professional. Important information to have in their decision-making process when considering a career in the field included: the education needed for a career in cybersecurity (50 percent), how to get started (43 percent) and what a cybersecurity professional does (41 percent). "U.S. adults who are interested in a cybersecurity career could tap into some of the skills they already possess. More than a quarter of survey respondents said that they, in fact, possess some of the IT skills taught in the University's cybersecurity-focused programs, such as programming (33 percent), data analytics (26 percent) and coding and web development (both 31 percent)," said Dennis Bonilla, executive dean for the College of Information Systems and Technology, School of Business and College of Criminal Justice at University of Phoenix. "University of Phoenix provides the educational foundation to obtain or sharpen skills and gain an understanding of roles and responsibilities related to cybersecurity." University of Phoenix offers a Bachelor's of Information Technology with an Advanced Cyber Security Certificate and a Master's of Information Systems with a Graduate Cyber Security Certificate. These programs help people gain the knowledge and skills, both technical and soft skills, to arm them with the necessary education. For more information on University of Phoenix cybersecurity offerings, visit phoenix.edu/cybersecurity. Additional findings from the survey include: Women continue to be underrepresented in the cybersecurity industry More than four in 10 women (44 percent) have experienced a personal security breach in the past three years, yet females continue to be underrepresented in the U.S. cybersecurity workforce. Women comprise just 14 percent of the industry 4 and 89 percent said that they have never considered a career in cybersecurity, emphasizing the need for gender balance to improve national security.5 Most would require improved understanding of the necessary education (54 percent) and job requirements (46 percent) to consider a career. Only a third (37 percent) of respondents believe that their company is very prepared for a cyber-attack According to the survey, two in five employed adults said that their company has one specific cybersecurity policy and 63 percent said that they always follow the policies. However, only a third are confident that their company is prepared to combat hackers. Of the respondents who do not believe their company is prepared for a cyber-attack, a quarter (26 percent) said that it is because they do not have an expert on staff. To access the full survey, visit https://www.phoenix.edu/about_us/media-center/news/uopx-survey-perceptions-cybersecurity.html. Survey Methodology This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of University of Phoenix between April 26 and May 10, 2018, among 2,000 US adults aged 18 and older, who work full-time, part-time, are self-employed, are unemployed looking for work, students, or homemakers, of which 859 have been hacked in the past three years. Figures for number of employees were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Cooper Nelson at cooper.nelson@phoenix.edu. About University of Phoenix University of Phoenix is innovating to help working adults move efficiently from education to careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant and engaging courses, and interactive learning can help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. University of Phoenix serves a diverse student population, offering associate, bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs from campuses and learning centers across the U.S. as well as online throughout the world. For more information, visit phoenix.edu. 1 https://www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel/blockModel.aspx?tier_id=4&block_id=1233&es=Y 2 https://www.phoenix.edu/colleges/college-of-information-systems-technology/cybersecurity-security-operations.html 3 https://www.rpsins.com/media/2884/mc_0000634a-yearendreport.pdf 4 https://iamcybersafe.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/WomensReport.pdf 5 https://www.pwc.com/us/en/services/consulting/cybersecurity/women-in-cybersecurity.html View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/university-of-phoenix-survey-reveals-us-adults-familiarity-with-data-security-jobs-300685105.html SOURCE University of Phoenix [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] By the time the Galaxy Note 9 launches next month, there likely wont be any secrets left for Samsung to keep. And the latest news about the upcoming phablet focuses on the size of its battery. (Image credit: Shaun Lucas/Tom's Guide) According to a document from Brazilian telecommunication certification body Anatel, Samsung is preparing a new 4,000 mAh battery for a phone, with the part number EB-BN965ABC. While the Note 9 has been rumored to incorporate a design mostly unchanged from its predecessor, its been previously reported by multiple sources that the devices battery will slot in at or close to 4,000 mAh. That would be good for a 700-mAh increase over the power pack in the Galaxy Note 8. Not surprisingly, much of the press is treating Anatels document, which originally surfaced on SlashLeaks, as confirmation that the Note 9 will see this battery. The only problem with that is that no model number related to the Note 9 appears anywhere on the sheet. Of course thats standard practice for regulatory approval processes, where companies must comply with the law but also dont want to spill any secrets about soon-to-be-released products. But its a stipulation that should be made nevertheless. While it isnt surprising that Samsung may have decided to increase the size of the Note 9s battery, its a little surprising that the company chose to make it quite so large given the Galaxy Note 7 catastrophe in 2016, when that phone's battery caused Samsung all sorts of problems. It will be interesting to observe how Samsung decides to market the longer-lasting battery, especially considering the dimensions of the Note 9 appear to be the same as its predecessors, despite the greatly improved capacity. MORE: Everything We Know About the Galaxy Note 9 At the same time, Samsung desperately needs to do something to differentiate its Note offerings from the more popular Galaxy S line, which has been drawing closer to the companys phablets over the years in terms of features as well as design. It's a problem that has led the tech giant to consider axing the Note brand completely, according the Korean publication The Bell. You needn't look further than the Galaxy S9+ for examples of how homogeneous Samsung's two flagship brands have become over the years. The Galaxy S9+ has a display just one tenth of an inch smaller than the Note 8s, but its battery is actually larger: 3,500 mAh, versus the older phones 3,300 mAh. Add to that the fact that the Galaxy S9+ also now has a dual-lens camera a feature previously exclusive to the Note line and its obvious Samsung must find a way to stop its cheaper devices from cannibalizing sales of its most expensive flagship. A big battery increase is one potential solution. Fortunately, we wont have to wait very long to find out what Samsung has in store for the Note 9. The next Galaxy Unpacked event is scheduled for August 9 at 11 a.m. Eastern time. Until then, remember to keep an eye on our roundup for everything we know about the highly-anticipated phone. Nvidia could be lining up back-to-back monthly launches for the upcoming 11-series GeForce cards, according to an alleged leaked email. Gamer Meld on YouTube shared an email from an add-in board (AIB) partner that indicates that GTX 1180 cards will be available in late August, with subsequent launches of the GTX 1170 in September and the GTX 1160 in October. Gamer Meld did not reveal its source, but the YouTube channel said that it received a redacted copy of an email from an undisclosed AIB that was allegedly sent to retailers that would be selling the upcoming cards. We have no way of verifying the veracity of the email, but if its real, it includes previously unknown information about Nvidias 11-series launch plans. The cadence of the email suggests that retailers were probably expecting an earlier launch date. The message explains that Nvidia delayed the launch of the 11-series cards because the companys partners and their manufacturers had an abundance of unfinished or unsold 10xx GPUs in inventory. The AIB that sent the message stated that it had already shifted its manufacturing efforts to 11-series cards before Nvidia pushed the launch back; however, the company switched back to 10-series production to clear out its remaining inventory, per Nvidias suggestion. More Inventory, Lower Prices The final batch of 10-series cards should be hitting store shelves soon, and there should be some good deals to be had. The reported email indicated that the AIB would lower the costof the final batchof 10-series cards to help rapidly move units to make way for the next-generation 11-series cards. No July Reveal? Rumors about Nvidias next-generations graphics cards have been circulating for several months now. In May, we reported that Nvidia would be attending Hot Chips in August, and Stuart Oberman, the companys Vice President of ASIC engineering, would discuss the companys next mainstream GPU. Hot Chips isnt a great setting to launch a consumer product, so we took that as a hint that the 11-series GPUs would already be on the market before the August 20 event. Two weeks later, SemiAccurate reported that Nvidias presentation was no longer on the Hot Chips schedule, which was an early sign of the 11-series delay. However, our sources led us to believe that Nvidia would take the lid off the GeForce GTX 1180 at the end of July. The email that Gamer Meld got hold of indicates that the launch is now scheduled for the end of August. However, it could also reinforce the rumor of the July 30 reveal. In mid-June, industry sources suggested that Nvidias partners would have cards on the market in September. A one-month lead for a Founders Edition card from Nvidia is within the realm of possibility. Trickle-Down Releases According to the leaked email, the third-party GeForce GTX 1180 cards should hit the market on August 30, followed by the GTX 1170 in September. Nvidia usually releases the xx80 and xx70 cards within a few weeks of each other, but we normally must wait several months for the new technology to trickle down to budget-friendly price points. If the leaked email is true, the more affordable GTX 1160 should be available by the end of October. GTX 1180+? The leaked email also alludes to a fourth graphics card, the GTX 1180+, which would launch alongside the GTX 1170 in September. We dont know what the plus symbol denotes, but we suspect it indicates memory capacity. In April, Wccftech reported that the upcoming GTX 1180 would be available in 8GB and 16GB variants. A Grain of Salt The above information should be taken with a grain of salt. Gamer Meld didnt give any clue as to which OEM the information came from, so we cant begin to verify the details within. Tune into this terrestrial radio scare tactic against a form of media that's killing their numbers . . . The Kansas City Agenda This Week Another Look At Missouri Tribute Stretch Duck 7 to be raised from Table Rock Lake BRANSON, Mo. -- The Coast Guard will oversee salvage operations, coordinated by Ride the Ducks, of the sunken duck boat Stretch Duck 7. Salvage equipment that will be used in the operation was being moved into place on Sunday. Stretch Duck 7 remains at the bottom of Table Rock Lake, off of the stern of the Showboat Branson Belle. Kansas City Artsy Hotel Redux 21c Museum Hotel Kansas City now open - Hospitality Net In the early 1900s, the Savoy Hotel and Grill was a luxury destination for travelers who arrived in Kansas City by train. Now, after two years and $50 million in renovations, it's a contemporary art museum, boutique hotel and chef-driven restaurant three blocks from the KC Streetcar. Local Health Reporting How Soon Is Soon Enough To Learn You Have Alzheimer's? Jose Belardo of Lansing, Kansas, spent most of his career in the U.S. Public Health Service. He worked on the frontlines of disasters in places like Haiti, Colombia, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. At home with his three kids and wife, Elaine, he'd always been unfailingly reliable, so when he forgot their wedding anniversary two years in a row, they both started to worry. The Kansas City Forecast Areas of fog possible Monday morning Rain and storm chances creep in later this week. Raising More Questions Lee's Summit Underwater Rescue Team talks about challenges divers face Recovering the duck boat lost at Table Rock Lake could take longer than expected. An underwater rescue team out of Lee's Summit talked to KCTV5 News about the challenges the crews in Branson could face. The Big Bubba Question Kansas City Royals: What to do with Bubba Starling now The Kansas City Royals have found themselves in an interesting situation. The teams former 5th overall pick in 2011 has been a letdown. He has had one of the most frustrating professional careers a player could have. Not because of performance, but because of health. First, a peek at the state of panties . . .Closer to home, these local news links we're pulling down are also worth a glimpse:is the song of the day and this is thefor right now . . . Daily Mail: Lais Ribeiro receives tattoo in honor of son and reveals he was diagnosed with autism five years ago Kansas City Theft Hard Times Stolen scooter: woman with health issues can't leave home KANSAS CITY, Mo. If you have mobility issues, a scooter or wheelchair may be the vessel connecting you to the outside world. That's certainly true for 71-year-old Rose Smoot, who lives at Temple Heights Manor in Kansas City. Show-Me Today's Tribute Victims of boat duck tragedy remembered at memorial service Family, friends and residents packed into a chapel Sunday at the College of the Ozarks as the community remembered the 17 lives lost in this week's tragic boat duck sinking at Table Rock Lake. People said they wanted to come out because the visitors are now forever family. KC Vandal Fire Hazzard Vandalized hydrants make putting out KCMO house fire difficult, firefighters say KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A fire burned through an empty house near 30th and Chelsea Avenue Thursday morning but crews weren't able to use the fire hydrants because someone vandalized them. Three fire hydrants along the street were missing pieces causing firefighters to change their tactics in combating the fire. Kansas City Sweep!!! Twins Swept In Kansas City After 5-3 Loss KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Drew Butera hit a tiebreaking, three-run inside-the-park home run when center fielder Jake Cave failed in his attempt to make a diving catch in the seventh inning, and the Kansas City Royals beat Minnesota 5-3 on Sunday to take three in a row from the Twins and complete their first series sweep in a year. KCMO Fight Night Aftermath Invicta FC 30 results: Jinh Yu Frey wins atomweight title over Minna Grusander Jinh Yu Frey had the Invicta FC atomweight title in her sights. She was in a very competitive fight with Ayaka Hamasaki - some had her winning - at Invicta FC 19 in September 2016. But, late in the second round, Hamasaki opened up a nasty cut near Yu Frey's left and the doctor's stopped the bout. Local Trading Day Kansas City Royals: Another trade with the Washington Nationals It was announced Sunday morning that the Kansas City Royals had engaged in a trade with the Washington Nationals once again. This time, they traded away Jacob Condra-Bogan. Jacob Condra-Bogan is a right handed reliever who spent most of his time with the Lexington Legends, but also the Wilmington Blue Rocks in 2018. EXCELLENT MUST SEE KC PIX The Garden In July Photography Blog Hottie tribute is rather touching and reveals an even softer side:Closer to home, here's a look at some of the local news worth sharing right now . . .And this is thefor right now . . . Tragic Kansas City Sunday Crash KCPD: One person killed in crash off of NE Chouteau and N Cleveland The Kansas City Police Department is investigating a fatal crash in the Northland. Police said that crash was reported around 5:04 p.m. near NE Chouteau Trafficway and N Cleveland Avenue. At least one person was killed. No word yet on what caused this crash, or the number of vehicles involved. Kansas Summertime Bites Half of Kansas at risk for West Nile Virus, KDHE says The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has issued a high-risk warning for West Nile virus infections (WNV) for northcentral, southcentral, and southwest Kansas. Northeast, southeast, and northwest Kansas are at moderate risk for WNV infections. Demanding The End Of An Era Former NTSB Chairman calls for duck boat ban A former National Transportation Safety Board chairman is calling for the permanent ban of duck boats as amusement rides, just days after 17 people died on a duck boat in Table Rock Lake in Branson. Jim Hall, who served as NTSB chairman from 1993 to 2001, spoke to KMBC 9 News Sunday afternoon, saying the amphibious vehicles are very dangerous. Show-Me Partisan Economic Chatter Why The National Media Are Excited About A Missouri Nail Company - The Sentinel Looking for any opening in which to attack the economic program of President Donald Trump, local and national media, not to mention the Claire McCaskill campaign, are paying an inordinate amount of attention to the Mid Continent Nail Corporation in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. The reason why they are paying attention is painfully obvious. Bold Kansas City Future Statements Here's what Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes said at training camp Sunday Note: The Kansas City Chiefs' press conferences are provided by the team's public relations department. OPENING STATEMENT: "Welcome back. It's great to be here in St. Joseph, Missouri Western State University. We love the hospitality here all the way from the president on down. For the overnight and our shift worker pals staring the week ahead of everyone else, here's a glimpse at the local illicit sporting life which allows us a glimpse at people not so concerned with Kansas City rules . . .And then, here are a few news items that might be worth a click for our most dedicated news junkies who like a late night hit of local life. Take a look:As always, thanks for reading this Sunday and this is thefor tonight . . . Hopefully more for the morning update . . . Theres certainly been no shortage of drama in the world of Elon Musk lately. The billionaire CEO of Tesla had a few choice words for a diver involved in the recent Thai cave incident after he criticized Musks plan to use a submarine to rescue the stranded children. Musk eventually apologized, but Teslas stock took a plunge all the same. Now, a raft of Tesla haters have revealed a stockpile of freshly minted Model 3s parked in California, leading to a host of unfounded accusations thrown at the EV producer. The Full Story The vehicles were spotted at facilities around Lathrop, where Tesla intends to expand its production to reach 500,000 vehicles annually. The latest news comes from recently released images that depict large parking lots in and around California filled to capacity with Model 3 vehicles, as revealed in a recent report posted by our friends at electrek. The vehicles were spotted at facilities around Lathrop, where Tesla intends to expand its production capacity to help reach its stated goal of 500,000 vehicles created annually. Its estimated that roughly 2,000 Model 3s are parked in Lathrop, with another facility in Burbank housing an additional 4,000 Model 3s. Unsurprisingly, the Tesla haters are coming out of the woodwork to throw some shade Teslas way. Some have suggested that demand for the compact all-electric is in free-fall, leading to a backlog of vehicles, while others suggest Tesla is trying to defraud investors by producing more cars than whats currently on the order books. Some are even going so far as to scout out the parking lots and post images and video to social media. For example, Twitter user @Paul91701736 went so far as to take aerial photos of the parked Teslas in Lathrop, posting the images on Thursday because he didnt want to make people wait any longer to see the big picture. Some are even going so far as to scout out the parking lots and post images and video on social media. Its believed some of the speculation stems from traders looking to short on TSLA stock. Either way, the posts have lead to rumors that canceled Model 3 reservations are now outpacing new orders, which Elon Musk and Tesla have both denied. Musk took to Twitter to denounce the reports, saying that an additional 5,000 Model 3 orders were collected in just the past week. All in all, these accusations against Tesla seem pretty weak. Its well established that there are thousands upon thousands of Tesla customers still waiting for their cars, and the most-likely scenario is that the cars pictured here are simply awaiting delivery. Essentially, what were looking at here is a logistics issue. Essentially, what were looking at here is a logistics issue. In the past 6 months, Teslas production rates have skyrocketed, and are now up to a whopping 5,000 Model 3s per week - as Musk laid out prior. The choke point is clearly in the delivery process, but that doesnt stop some from taking it as an opportunity to make a quick buck. Unfortunately, Teslas stock took a hit all the same. Further Reading Read our full review on the 2018 Tesla Model 3. Check out everything weve got on Elon Musk Read more Tesla news. Source: via Electrek By moving it to June, automakers can design more dynamic debuts, offer rides, and even showcase autonomous driving systems around the Cobo Center. Truck manufacturers can also host off-road challenges, and Detroit organizers are also thinking about including some of the citys highlights, like Hart Plaza, the RiverWalk, and Woodward Avenue in the event. The Detroit Auto Dealers Association quoted a few reasons for changing the date. First up is that Detroit wants to embrace the changes that the auto industry is going through. Vehicle unveilings have become more dynamic in recent years, and the fact that the show was organized in January restricted Detroit to indoor events due to the cold weather. Rumors about the Detroit Auto Show being moved from January to June have been going around for quite some time. And it finally happened. The organizers just announced that the car show will take place in June starting 2020. Cutting Costs The June show will also see the move-in time reduced from eight to only three weeks by simplifying exhibits Besides being able to unveil vehicles in a more dynamic fashion, automakers can also reduce the increasingly higher costs associated with auto shows. Detroit was particularly expensive due to its January dates, which meant that carmakers had to cope with overtime labor during the holidays. The June show will also see the move-in time reduced from eight to only three weeks by simplifying exhibits. This will also reduce costs for the carmakers, which will have to pay less for extra workers and overtime labor. A More Relaxing Venue With ideal summer weather in June, Detroit will expand around Cobo Center, and this could help reduce the hustle The Detroit Auto Show tends to get pretty crowded. Not only is it the first major event of the year, but its also the place where lots of important cars are shown. The event attracts close to a million people, and things get pretty crowded during both the media and public days. Seeing the cars up close becomes a struggle, especially during the first days of the show. With ideal summer weather in June, Detroit will expand around Cobo Center, and this could help reduce the hustle. And with events spread throughout the city, visitors may find it easier and more relaxing to attend all booths. Whats more, an auto show with events and products in various areas of Detroit will finally enable Motor City to live up to its potential as the heart of Americas automobile industry. A More Exciting Calendar A June-set Detroit will definitely make things more interesting during the hot season. While its a cool thing to start the year with a big event, a January-set Detroit Auto Show means that the summer is pretty much boring when it comes to new cars. Sure, we do have various car events like Pebble Beach and the Goodwood Festival of Speed and carmakers unveil new products over the summer, but theres no major auto show between April and September. A June-set Detroit will definitely make things more interesting during the hot season. Moving the event is also a good idea with the Consumer Electronics Show now larger than ever and far more appealing to automakers. Weve seen several companies skip Detroit to showcase new cars and technologies at CES and in 2018 it felt like the two events overlapped, forcing some carmakers to skip one to attend the other. This will also enable CES to grow even bigger on the automobile side and automakers to be able to focus more on the event and on showcasing new technology more. 2020 Calendar Heres how the auto show calendar will look from 2020, assuming that all the other events will keep their respective dates. January Consumer Electronics Show February Chicago Auto Show March Geneva Motor Show April New York Auto Show April Shanghai/Beijing Auto Show June Detroit Auto Show August Pebble Beach Concours dElegance September Frankfurt/Paris Motor Show October Tokyo Motor Show October SEMA Auto Show November Los Angeles Auto Show Further reading Read more Detroit Auto Show news. Kenya has been granted a two-year extension possibly the last of the sugar safeguards by the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), until February 2021. The decision, which offers relief to Kenyan millers who face competition from cheap imports, was arrived at during the 20th Comesa summit in Lusaka. Kenya had requested an extension of the safeguard for a maximum of two years, a request that some countries supported while others felt that the possibility of extension be first considered by the Trade and Customs Committee, whose next meeting is scheduled for mid-August in Nairobi, after experts have looked into the matter. The Trade and Customs Committee can still discuss this matter, notwithstanding the Councils decision to extend the safeguard, said a statement from the meeting. The committee will discuss and make recommendations on whether the extension should be the very last one. The Council noted the recommendation to establish a monitoring committee made up of sugar exporting member states, the member state implementing the safeguard, and the Secretariat as an appropriate technical framework for overseeing the implementation of the safeguard. Protect farmers The Comesa Council of Ministers decision extends Kenyas decade-long quest to protect sugar farmers with high tariffs as it seeks more time to open up fully its market to imports. The decision will also now see a joint committee to monitor the implementation of safeguards and report back to the business bloc on the progress. We have successfully negotiated for a safeguard and we have been given two years extension to implement the required conditions. We hope that we shall have met all the requirements by the end of two years, Kenyas Trade Principal Secretary Dr Chris Kiptoo said. Kenyas sugar deficit is estimated to have increased from 210 tonnes to 250 tonnes which will increase the shares of sugar exporting Comesa member states. The Kenyan delegation led by Foreign Affairs Chief administrative officer Ababu Namwamba and Dr Kiptoo presented a report on implementation of the sugar safeguard that highlighted the history, performance and importance of the countrys sugar sector. On the implementation of the conditions for the current safeguard agreed on in February 2017, Kenya argued that it had achieved several key conditions, including amalgamation, adopting a formula and forming a Safeguard Committee. Privatisation is ongoing, though there are legal challenges, which have more or less been resolved,said the Kenyan delegation. However, stakeholder consultations are required under the Constitution of the Kenya and these are being undertaken. Co-generation and adoption of an energy policy has been substantially implemented through a number of legislations and policies adopted. Nairobi also said that the Sugar Research Institute has released 21 cane varieties since 2002; with testing in all the 11 operating units. Kenya further reported that exports from Comesa states had been allowed in, and the member states had exceeded their allocated quotas in a number of cases. Some of the outstanding challenges include privatisation, introduction of more cane varieties and cane testing units, the delegation said. Last weekends Council of Ministers meeting pointed out that weather challenges in 2017 resulted in a huge sugar deficit on the market, and Kenya put in place measures to import significant amounts of sugar from the global market on duty- and quota-free basis. The meeting noted that the 2017 influx of third-country sugar in Kenya impacted the Comesa sugar industry. Monitoring The Inter-Governmental Committee said that the safeguard has helped Kenya, but the exemptions are not in perpetuity and come with timelines. It is our view that the tariff rate quarter should continue and tonnage be increased. The sugar safeguard formula should continue, but administration should improve, the committee said. The team agreed that monitoring should be inclusive, through establishment of a monitoring sub-committee comprising sugar-exporting countries, the member state using the safeguard and the Secretariat. Customs duties should be maintained on sugar from third countries when imported into Kenya, the committee said. But Kenyas claim that the increase in domestic sugar production over the years is one of the key milestones of the safeguards could not be further from the truth. In 2017, Kenya imported more sugar than it produced, a time when production was at its lowest. The 2018 Economic Survey shows that Kenyas imports almost tripled to 989,600 tonnes in 2017, compared with 376,100 tonnes in 2016. The total domestic sugar production declined by 41.2 per cent, from 639,700 tonnes in 2016, to 376100 tonnes in 2017. The same year, the area under cane reduced to 191,200 hectares, compared with 220,800 hectares in 2016. In 2013, 22,705 hectares were under cane. Banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck will host a one-of-a-kind concert at Brevard Music Center, featuring himself and four of today's greatest banjo players, on Saturday, Aug. 18. The concert will be the culmination of the first Blue Ridge Banjo Camp and will include performances by Fleck and the four other world-renowned banjo players who are instructors at the camp, as well as camp participants and members of the Steep Canyon Rangers. "Bela is considered by many to be the world's greatest banjo player," said Woody Platt, guitarist and vocalist for the Steep Canyon Rangers and co-founder of event... A delay in funding from the state government prompted the Transylvania County Board of Education last Monday evening to take $126,950 from its fund balance to pay for trauma kits and training. The battle-field type trauma kits would be used in an active shooter incident such as the one that occurred in Parkland, Fla., in February. As part of a pilot program, the school system is supposed to receive a grant of $126,950 from the state to pay for the training, but the state thus far has not delivered the funds. Norris Barger, head of business services and plant operations for the school sy... The life of a dog in a shelter is stressful and lonely, which is why Joleen Brannigan is seeking approval for a "Doggy Day Out" program, which would allow for dogs to leave the county shelter for a day. "It would be a win on several levels," said Brannigan, a volunteer and rescue coordinator for the Transylvania County Animal Shelter. "A lot of people aren't able to adopt a dog, and for dogs in the shelter, they aren't able to get the exercise and socialization they need, so it would benefit them, the shelter staff, the county and people who can't have a dog who would like to get the dog... At the July 16 Board of Education meeting, board member Alice Wellborn said she was uncomfortable with having to spend money for quasi-battlefield trauma kits that supposedly will be paid for by the state. Her discomfort was based on having to make a rushed decision and that the school system is having to pay the money upfront for a grant without knowing when it will be reimbursed. People tend to make bad decisions when they are rushed, and in this instance the school board was rushed. Blue Spear Resolution, the company that will provide the trauma kits and training, said it needed t... Today, experts are equally enthralled with solar eclipses, which provide an opportunity to gather information about the sun in relation to the Earth and produce some amazing photos. To coincide with the "ring of fire" eclipse on May 20, weve gathered eight outstanding images of solar eclipses from across the globe. Pictured here is a partial solar eclipse taken on Jan. 4, 2011, from Borne, Netherlands. "The sun has perished out of heaven, and an evil mist has overspread the world," wrote Homer in the Odyssey. Homer was referring to a great solar eclipse that occurred on April 16, 1178 B.C. , according to National Geographic. Solar eclipses have had a significant influence on humanity, traditionally seen as a sign of impending doom. The ancient Chinese , for example, thought a solar eclipse meant that a dragon was trying to eat the sun. The Incas had a similar theory that a creature was trying to destroy our star. 1 of 7 Total eclipse of the sun NASA/ESA. Strictly defined, a solar eclipse is what happens when the moon comes between the sun and the Earth, blocking part or all of the light from the sun. (A lunar eclipse happens when the Earth passes between the moon and the sun.) A solar eclipse can be total, partial or annular, and it can be seen only for a short period of time from a certain part of Earth. A total eclipse, which happens once every year or two, occurs when the moon entirely blocks out the sun. Pictured here is a total eclipse that happened on Dec. 3, 2002, as seen from Australia the first solar eclipse for that country since 1976. According to NASA, "... people in Australia received a rare 32-second celestial show as the moon completely obscured the sun, creating a ring of light. ... This image combines a photograph of the solar eclipse (showing the halo-like corona) with data taken by the Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope instrument aboard SOHO (showing the green inner regions)." 2 of 7 Partial solar eclipse from Italy David Paleino /Flickr. This is a view of a partial solar eclipse taken on Jan. 4, 2011, in Italy. It looks like this image was captured at night, but solar eclipses can occur only during the day. A partial solar eclipse happens when the moon blocks out a portion of the sun. In all, 2011 was a banner year for both solar and lunar eclipses. 2011 has a rare combination of four partial solar eclipses and two total lunar eclipses, writes Space.com. This particular solar eclipse was visible from the Middle East, Northern Africa, and much of Europe. 3 of 7 Annular solar eclipse from Indonesia a_seph /Flickr. When solar eclipses induce blood-red skies and crescent suns, its no wonder that ancient people considered them a sign of impending doom. Here is a view of an annular solar eclipse as seen from Jakarta, Indonesia, on Jan. 26, 2009. An annular solar eclipse happens when the moon is at its farthest point in orbit from the Earth. On Jan. 15, 2010, the longest annular eclipse since 1992 was visible from central Africa, the Indian Ocean and eastern Asia. At 11 minutes and eight seconds, it is expected to hold that record until Dec. 23, 3043. 4 of 7 Total solar eclipse via SOHO NASA. Pictured here is a solar eclipse as seen from space and land on March 29, 2006. A solar eclipse offers a good opportunity to study the corona, or outer atmosphere, of the sun. NASA combines the vantage point of the space-based Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) with the image of the corona as recorded by the Williams College Eclipse Expedition to Kastelorizo Island, Greece. It is only during a solar eclipse that people on Earth can see the corona of the sun, which is highlighted here. SOHO was launched in 1995 as part of an international collaboration to study the sun. 5 of 7 Total solar eclipse from space NASA. Pictured here is another view of the March 29, 2006, solar eclipse. NASA describes the image this way: The shadow of the moon falls on Earth as seen from the International Space Station, 230 miles above the planet, during a total solar eclipse at about 4:50 a.m. CST Wednesday, March 29. The Mediterranean Sea can be viewed just outside the shadow. The image was taken by Expedition 12 crew, including Commander Bill McArthur and Flight Engineer Valery Tokarev. From Earth, this solar eclipse was visible along a narrow section from eastern Brazil through Africa to Southwest Asia. 6 of 7 Solar eclipse or diamond ring? NASA/The Exploratorium. NASA dubbed this image a diamond ring eclipse the key moment when the moon is almost completely covered by the sun. It can be dangerous to watch a solar eclipse from Earth. NASA says the solar radiation that reaches the Earth ranges from ultraviolet (UV) radiation at wavelengths longer than 290 nm to radio waves in the meter range. The tissues of the human eye transmit a substantial portion of that radiation to the light-sensitive retina at the back of the eye. Overexposure to this radiation can result in retinal burns. During a partial or annular eclipse, or even when 99 percent of the sun is covered, enough radiation is still entering the eye to cause significant damage. The sun should only be observed through special filters. pardeepdhull@gmail.com Lucknow, July 23 US retail major Walmart will open 20 wholesale cash-and-carry stores in India in the next three years, a top company official said on Monday. Besides, the company, which opened its second fulfilment centre here, is also in the process of opening more such centres to cater to online business-to-business (B2B) customers to tap the fast growing e-commerce in India. We will launch two stores this year and eight stores next year and 10 stores a year after that, said Walmart India President and CEO Krish Iyer. Walmart has plans to add 50 stores in next five to seven years, he added. The company operates 21 cash-and-carry stores under the Best Price brand in 9 states across India. It has signed MoU with the Uttar Pradesh government to have 15 stores in next few years in the state, lyer said. We have already finalised three sites and six more are in the pipeline he added. Walmart plans to set up its Best Price stores at various locations in the state, including Kanpur Muradabad, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Sharanpur, Lucknow, and Ghaziabad. Walmart India, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Walmart Inc today opened its second business-to-business (B2B) fulfilment centre (FC) in Lucknow. Through the FCs, the company caters to its online B2B customers out-of-stores sales while also taking care of sales via associates who take orders from its members and call centres. The FC will contribute to the state and local economies by creating over 1,500 direct and indirect local jobs, developing SME suppliers, and empowering local communities, Iyer said. Besides, with this initiative Walmart is taking another step towards building an impactful distribution eco-system by working with partners, he added. This is the companys second such centre in India. Walmart had opened its first FC in November last year in Mumbai. Walmart India is now getting nearly half of its business through non-store or out-of-store sales channels, which include B2B e-commerce, associates driven sales and call centres. The rest half of its business still comes from in-store walk-ins. PTI ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Chandigarh, July 22 A 25-year-old youth was killed while another one was injured when they met with an accident near the Hallo Majra light point while being chased by a PCR vehicle on Sunday night. It is being alleged that their motorcycle was hit by the PCR vehicle after which the motorcycle rider lost control, leading to the accident. Sources said the motorcyclists, who were heading towards Chandigarh, allegedly jumped the red light at the old Airport light point after which the PCR vehicle chased them and tried to stop them. Both motorcycle riders were injured after which they were rushed to the PGI where Ashok Kumar, a resident of Phase II, Ram Darbar, was declared brought dead. Local residents staged a protest against the police at the accident spot. Police teams reached the spot and initiated an investigation. Police officials claimed that the PCR vehicle was on patrolling when the youth riding the motorcycle rammed it into the left rear door of the PCR vehicle after which the motorcycle hit a pole and the duo fell. The police claimed that the victims were not wearing helmets at the time of the incident. ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Rajinder S Nagarkoti Tribune News Service Panchkula, July 22 While the Morni gang rape victim and her husband are yet to overcome the trauma of the horrific incident, the owner of the house they live in has asked them to vacate the house and search for a new rented accommodation. Sharing his pain with Chandigarh Tribune on the telephone, the victims husband said as a number of policemen and journalists were visiting their house daily, the house owner, who lives in the opposite lane in Mani Majra, had asked them to vacate the house. The house owner had given them some time to search for a new rented accommodation, he said. The victim and her husband are living in a one-room set in Mani Majra. They had shifted here around four months ago and were paying Rs 3,000 as monthly rent. The victims husband even requested policemen, who visited his house in uniform, and journalists, especially the electronic media, not to visit their house. With policemen and journalists coming to our house, everybody in the locality will come to know about the gang rape of my wife. We are already suffering and it will be difficult for us to search for a new house, he said. 7 more accused in police net Seven more persons were arrested in the gang rape case on Sunday. The SIT arrested Raipur Rani resident Sahib Singh. He was the driver of the main accused, Sunny. The police said his duty was to bring women to Lovely Guest House in Morni. They are investigating whether besides the victim, there were more women in the guest house. The accused was produced in the Panchkula court, which remanded him in two-day police custody. Later, six more accused, Sukhwinder Singh, Karan Sharma, Manjit Singh, Vikash, alias Vicky, Shadi Ram and Ajay Kumar, all residents of Ambala district, were arrested in the case. They will be produced in the Panchkula court on Monday. So far, nine accused have been arrested in the case, two by the UT police and seven by the Panchkula police. Still in pain, says victim The victim said she was still in pain and was not able to walk properly. My husband had to take me to the toilet. There is swelling in different parts of my body and it pains a lot. Victim not well, husband cant go for work As the victim is not medically fit, her husband has not been able to go for work. I have a temporary job of a tailor. Since July 18, I have not been able to go for my work as my wife is not well. I have to take her to the hospital for a medical examination daily. There is no financial support from anyone, he said. No security cover for couple No security cover has been provided to the victim and her husband. The victims husband takes her to the hospital on his second-hand motorcycle daily. Sources close to family suspect a threat to the life of the couple as they have named cops as accused in the case. ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Ramkrishan Upadhyay Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 22 Over 50 hospitals and schools are on the radar of the Fire Department after inspection teams found lack of the mandatory fire safety arrangements in the buildings. Sources said the department had now started sending notices to them to remove the shortcomings or face action as per law. Anil Kumar Garg, Chief Fire Officer of the MC, said the hospital and school authorities had been asked to complete the fire safety arrangements on their premises at the earliest. Fire brigade officials would inspect the site again to check whether the arrangements were in place or not. In case it was found that the arrangements had not been made, action, including sealing of the buildings, would be taken against the defaulters. He said teams had inspected 21 hospitals, both government and private. Besides, 31 government schools were also checked in a drive concluded recently. The hospitals which were checked included the GMCH, Sector 32, the Civil Hospital, Sector 22, and the civil dispensaries at Ram Darbar, Sector 49, Sector 45, Sarangpur, Sector 29, Sector 46, Sector 47 and Sector 11. The private hospitals which were checked included Mukut Hospital, Dogra Nursing Home, Santokh Hospital, Sector 38, Healing Hospital, Sector 34, and Arya Hospital, Mani Majra. The schools which were checked included all government high and senior secondary schools, Aurobindo School, Sector 27, Guru Teg Bahadur Public School, Sector 15, RIMT World School, Mani Majra and Gyandeep Smart School, Sector 20. Among the major shortcomings found in the buildings were lack of proper ramps, emergency doors, safe zones, fire hydrants and water storage system. At Gyandeep Smart School, the inspection team found that the hose reel installed in the building was not working and exit signboards were not found illuminated. Similarly, at the government school in Khuda Ali Sher, the hose reel, fire alarm system and emergency exit system were not found working. Seven shortcomings, including missing first aid, hose reel, fire alarm system and pumping machinery, were found at the dispensary in Sarnagpur. Schools inspected All government high and senior secondary schools Aurobindo School, Sector 27 Guru Teg Bahadur Public School, Sector 15 RIMT World School, Mani Majra Gyandeep Smart School, Sector 20 Hospitals checked GMCH, Sector 32 Civil Hospital, Sector 22 Civil dispensaries at Ram Darbar, Sector 49, Sector 45, Sarangpur, Sector 29, Sector 46, Sector 47 and Sector 11 Private ones editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Panchkula, July 23 Three motorcycle-borne masked robbers allegedly looted Rs 35,000 at gunpoint from employees of a petrol pump situated on the Pinjore-Nalagarh road in the wee hours of Monday. The three robbers came on a black motorcycle and asked the petrol pump employees to fill fuel of Rs 400. One of the employees, Shashi, filled the bike tank with petrol. However, all of a sudden, two robbers pointed country-made pistols at Shashi, while the third one pointed a pistol at another employee, Pappu. They robbed Rs 12,000 from Shashi and Rs 23,000 from Pappu. The robbers ransacked the entire office and then fled towards the Pinjore side on their bike. The accused had pasted a blue tape on the number plate of the bike. Before fleeing, the robbers took out the SIM cards and batteries from the mobile phones of the petrol pump employees. The police have lodged an FIR against unknown persons on a complaint of the petrol pump staff. Second robbery in month This is the second such robbery this month. On the intervening night of July 12 and 13, an amount of Rs 15,000 was looted at gunpoint from a petrol pump, located at a distance of just a kilometre from this petrol pump. Act caught in CCTV As the robbers were checking the office, their act was recorded in CCTV cameras installed inside the office. editorial@tribune.com Rajinder S Nagarkoti Tribune News Service Panchkula, July 23 A day after the Morni gang rape victim and her husband were told to vacate their rented accommodation, the Haryana State Commission for Women and NGOs offered help to the victims family. Haryana State Commission for Women chairperson Pratibha Suman on Monday visited the victims house and assured them of every possible help in searching for a new house. The matter was highlighted in these columns on Monday. Panchkula DCP Rajender Kumar Meena said NGOs were in touch with the family and would offer help if a new accommodation was required. The Chandigarh and Panchkula police also provided security to the victims family after it was reported in these columns that there was no security cover for the family. The Panchkula and UT police have provided two cops each, including a woman constable each, in civvies outside the victims house in Mani Majra. Contraceptives, syringes found at guest house A team of the Haryana State Commission for Women raided hotels in the Morni hills, including the guest house where the woman was gangraped. Pratibha Suman, chairperson of the commission, took suo motu notice of the incident on Monday. During a raid, the team recovered contraceptives, syringes, liquor bottles, besides other objectionable material from Lovely Guest House. These shady properties were reportedly being used for prostitution. G Parthasarathy G Parthasarathy IN an unusual and courageous interview in the BBCs Hard Talk programme, Hameed Haroon, CEO of Pakistans highly respected Dawn newspaper, recently lashed out at Pakistans military. Haroon accused the ISI of intimidating the Press across Pakistan, while seeking to undermine the freedom of the media through threats, intimidation and even going to the extent of threatening distributors across the country to stop the distribution of papers like Dawn. He suggested that the larger aim of the military was to discredit and divide the PML (N), led by Nawaz Sharif, indicating that the military favoured the Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to lead a weak coalition, which would play second fiddle to the army. Haroon made it clear, as head of the All Pakistan Newspaper Society apex body of Pakistans media organisations that he was voicing the deep concerns in Pakistan about the military undermining democratic freedom in the country. Interestingly, Haroon observed that the elections supervised by the election commission would enable people to vote for candidates of their choice. But the prevailing intimidation and fear had destabilised the political process by splitting parties, while discrediting and/or arresting those the military sought to eliminate, through a flawed process of accountability. He also drew attention to the ham-handed efforts by the army to intimidate media organisations to not cover or report the activities of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM). The PTM has been demonstrating across the country against the atrocities and human rights violations of the army in its much-touted Zarb-e-Azb operations. Artillery and air power were ruthlessly used by the military, severely damaging Pashtun-dominated towns and villages in tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. Activists of the PTM have been hounded and arrested by the paramilitary Rangers. Nothing has changed in the armys involvement in internal affairs over the past three decades. It has claimed to be the guardian of both the territorial and ideological frontiers of Pakistan. Ever since he became Prime Minister for the third time in 2013, Nawaz Sharif was at the receiving end of internal and external conspiracies by the ISI. This was, among other reasons, because of his propensity to act independently on relations with India. The army even sought to veto his visit to India for the swearing in of Prime Minister Modi. Modis visit to Lahore for a family wedding, at the invitation of Nawaz Sharif, was followed by a terrorist attack on the Pathankot air base. It is no secret that in the recent past there has been a meeting of minds between the judiciary and the army in getting rid of Sharif by having him arrested and tried for his ownership of properties in London for two decades now. No similar actions have been taken against Generals Musharraf and Kayani, who possess properties in London, Dubai and Sydney. Army actions to undermine democratic processes have also been exposed by two of Pakistans most highly respected journalists, Ahmed Rashid and Najam Sethi. Rashid avers: The crackdown by Pakistans army and judiciary has extended to civil society activists, but the primary target has been media outlets. He draws attention to disappearances of those critical of the militarys actions. He states: Censorship and self-censorship on issues that cast the military in a negative light have become pervasive. Many TV stations, for example, are refusing to cover a new protest movement by young Pashtuns that accuses the military and others of rights abuses against members of their ethnic group, who live mainly on the border with Afghanistan. At the same time, candidates of moderate/secular parties like the Awami National Party in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and in Balochistan have been mercilessly targeted and even killed. In 2013, Sharifs PML (N) virtually swept the polls in the Punjab province, becoming the largest single party in parliament, winning 116 seats out of 342 in the national assembly. Its main rival, the PPP, won 42 seats, with the army-backed Imran Khans PTI winning merely 35 seats. While the PML (N) swept the populous and influential Punjab province, the PTI formed the provincial government in the neighbouring Pashtun-dominated Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The PPP, based largely in rural Sind, formed the government in Sind, with a weak PML (N)-led coalition assuming office in Balochistan. After Sharifs arrest and disqualification from the elections, the army moved swiftly to further weaken the PML (N) in Punjab by engineering defections and dissent by influential leaders, like Sharifs interior (home) minister Chaudhry Nissar Ali Khan. The army also got PTI leaders like former foreign minister Shah Mohammed Qureishi to engineer defections in the Seraiki-speaking southern Punjab. Moreover, Imran Khan is also being helped to form alliances with banned radical Islamic groups like the Al Qaeda-affiliated Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, headed by Maulana Fazlur Rehman Khalil. Sharifs vote base in Punjab will also be eroded by the Lashkar-e-Taibas political front, the Milli Muslim League, which will contest around 200 seats. These developments will further weaken the base of the PML (N), even as the PTI is being helped to emerge as the largest single party, which will be in a position to form a coalition government with support from Islamist parties. The Peoples Party has been weakened in its base in rural Sind while facing challenges from the army-backed Pir of Pagaro and the Karachi-based MQM is deeply split. Moreover, gatherings of moderate parties like the Awami National Party have been attacked, most notably when its leader Haroon Bilour perished in a bomb blast. Imran Khan is known for his anti-India and pro-Taliban views on foreign policy. His main foreign policy advisers, Shah Mehmood Qureishi and Shireen Mazari, are strongly anti-India. Pakistans army will emerge further strengthened in shaping national politics to prop up a weak government which will not go against its wishes, as Sharif was inclined to do periodically. New Delhi will have to think afresh on how to deal with the emerging situation across its western borders. A former diplomat sanjiv@tribunemail.com The action of the Canadian immigration authorities in refusing entry to two AAP MLAs Kultar Singh Sandhwan (Faridkot) and Amarjit Singh Sandoa (Ropar) is likely to be interpreted in many ways, but one thing is clear, Canadians have taken a stand against foreign nationals political activities on their land. In 2016, Capt Amarinder Singh too was asked by Ottawa not to attend programmes hosted by Canadian citizens of Indian origin, as a result of which many planned rallies were cancelled, and his plan to visit Canada aborted. Canada does not allow foreign governments to conduct election campaigns on its soil. It also bars foreign political parties and movements. However, its interpretation of these objectives is inconsistent, and various separatist movements from the Indian subcontinent have managed to find fertile ground there. Indeed, there is concern in India about the country not curtailing activities like Referendum 2020 and various other pro-Khalistan moves that promote secessionism. Expats retain their umblical chord with the motherland, and indeed, many provide positive direction and support in multiple spheres. Even a degree of political activity is tolerated, but secessionist or terrorist activities cross the line. The right to free speech should not be allowed to be misused. While Canada is free to pursue action dictated by its laws and internal security requirements, it too must enable India to do the same, and not cry wolf when the police and other agencies look askance at Canadian citizens of Indian origin. India has in recent decades faced various onslaughts from groups of people who have been given sanctuary abroad and have adopted causes that undermine the political process in their home country. Indeed, there has also been concern over the funding of various political parties from across the shores. Even as the government has increased its vigilance, political parties in India too must be careful in ensuring transparency in their sources of funding, especially when it comes from foreign shores. Their credibility also is at stake. The deportation highlights how new norms are governing the conduct of individuals and political leaders, who would be well-advised to be mindful of the requirements of the host country before embarking on a tour. sanjiv@tribunemail.com Last week saw another chilling rerun of a mob setting upon a couple of hapless cattle traders. And this took place days after the Supreme Court hauled the government over the coals for the horrendous acts of mobocracy [that] cannot be allowed to become a new norm. For a government that rates itself highly on being action-oriented, the tepidity of its response may make for clever politics. But the unabated instances of lynching do not just erode the majesty of the law. When mobs take the enforcement of law into their own hands, they gradually become a law unto themselves. The neighbouring case of Pakistan is a vivid example of what happens when violent sentiments professedly being expressed on behalf of a majority are allowed to spill over unchecked into the streets. Just over a year back, the Prime Minister had termed gau rakshaks as mercantilists who had opened shops in the name of cow protection; adding, as if to underline that mob lynching was no panacea, that more cows died of eating plastic waste than in slaughterhouses. But his words have been water over the bhakts back. Lynchings have preceded and followed his words of caution. The perception of political impunity among cow protection vigilantes was further strengthened when a Union Minister felicitated convicted lynchers. Ironically their indictment was the sole bright spot in depressing reruns of police indifference and witness intimidation in most cases of mob lynching. The Supreme Court has now left the Centre with no option. A month from now, it will take up the matter of Parliament creating a special law for organised lynching. It will also hear the Rajasthan Government on a contempt petition alleging that lynching was taking place despite the apex courts directions. This is an opportunity for the political executive to redeem itself with earnest action and concrete steps. The states inability to demonstrate credibility and sincerity in cracking down on vigilantism has repercussions that go beyond community and the state. As the apex court has observed, the recurrent pattern of violence cannot be allowed to become the new normal. editorial@tribune.com Pradeep Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 23 More than nine years after it was supposed to be completed, the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway, the 136-km green and smart expressway intended to bypass Delhi on its western border, is set to be completed by August-end. Work on the expressway is in the final stage and set to be completed by August-end. Efforts are being made to complete the expressway by August 15, said Public Works Minister Rao Narbir Singh on Monday. The original deadline for the 136-km KMP Expressway was July 2009, but the project continued to hang fire in the wake of controversies and litigation. It was only when the BJP came to power in Haryana in 2014 that litigation came to an end and work was put on the fast track. Work on the 83-km section of the Kundli-Manesar section was being executed at a cost of Rs1,863 crore. The 53-km Palwal-Manesar stretch was opened to traffic in April 2016. The Palwal-Manesar stretch was completed at a cost of Rs457.81 crore. The two expressways the Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal (Eastern Peripheral Expressway) and the KMP (Western Peripheral Expressway) were dubbed as the first smart and green highways in India. These highways had intelligent highway traffic management system, video incident detection system, solar panel electrification and faster electronic toll collection system. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the KGP Expressway on May 27. The KGP Expressway bypasses Delhi on the eastern side, while the KMP Expressway outlines its western border. The entire peripheral project will form a ring road around Delhi with a length of 270 km. Officials said the expressway project was expected to help ease traffic flow, especially of heavy vehicles, through the national capital. It would pass through five districts in Haryana Sonepat, Jhajjar, Gurugram, Nuh and Palwal. Once opened to traffic, the KMP Expressway would connect four major national highways NH-1 (Delhi-Ambala-Amritsar), NH-2 (Delhi-Agra-Varanasi-Dankuni), NH-8 (Delhi-Jaipur-Ahmedabad-Mumbai) and NH-10 (Delhi-Hisar-Fazilka-Indo-Pak border). July 2009: The original deadline for 136-km KMP Expressway Once opened to traffic, the KMP Expressway will connect four major national highways rchopra@tribunemail.com New Delhi, July 23 Realty firm Amila group will invest about Rs 700 crore over the next eight years to develop a luxury housing project in Shimla. Tata Housing is also developing a luxury housing project in Kasauli in a joint venture with Impact Projects. The JV is developing 102 villas on 22 acres of land with an investment of about Rs 200 crore and estimated revenue potential of Rs 450 crore. With demand for housing rising in the hills, Amila group has acquired 54 acre land at the northern ridge of Shimla to build 250 villas and 150 studio apartments besides a 5-star hotel and high-street retail. We launched the project Amila Hills last month. The construction work has already started, the companys MD Yash Pal Agnihotri said. On prices, he said it would range from Rs 1 crore to Rs 8 crore. Agnihotri said the project is registered with the real estate regulatory authority (RERA) as well as the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC). The company would deliver the first phase in the next three years but it would take at least eight years to develop the entire project because of hilly terrain, he said. Asked about the investment, Agnihotri said the total project is estimated to be around Rs 700 crore. The funding would be through internal accruals, bank loans and advances from customers. The company would soon tie up with domestic or global hospitality firm to manage its hotel. PTI editorial@tribune.com Rajesh Sharma Una, July 23 The Himachal Pradesh State Pollution Control Board (HPSPCB) has found the presence of high concentrations of sodium and raised levels of chloride in the groundwater of six southern panchayats of Una district located on the Punjab border. Punjab Alkalies and Chemicals Ltd (PACL), a unit owned by the Punjab Government in Nangal, a few km from here, is reported to be the main source of pollution. The matter came to light when villagers from the Binewal, Poona, Ajauli, Malukpur, Sanoli and Majara panchayats reported stunted crop growth and wilting of vegetation irrigated by private sources. The HPSPCB immediately swung into action. Set up in 1984, the PACL manufactures caustic soda, liquid chlorine, hydrochloric acid, sodium hypochlorite and hydrogen gas. Environmental Engineer, Una Pollution Control Board, SK Dhiman said the matter regarding the contamination of groundwater, allegedly because of effluents from the PACL, was brought to the notice of his office by the Una Zila Parishad in March. He said following the reports, four water samples were taken from the area and sent for testing to the HPSPCBs regional laboratory in Dari village, near Dharamsala. He said the reports of the samples confirmed the presence of sodium concentration ranging from 56.76 to 111 milligram per litre, which was much beyond the permissible limit of 20 milligram per litre. The concentration of chloride, ranging from 139.2 to 271.2 milligrams per litre, was also on the higher side, he added. He said while two water samples were taken from Malukpur village, the other two were drawn from Binewa village. Harpreet Singh and Pritam Singh, farmers from Malukpur village, said relatives visiting them would often complain of health issues after consuming water. They said in the due course of time, crops also started showing decreased yield. The production of wheat, which was nearly two quintal per kanal about a decade ago, fell around 60 kg per kanal in the last season, they added. Dhiman, while denying the contamination of drinking or irrigation water being supplied by the IPH Department, said while shallow water table could be contaminated, drinking water being supplied to the area was being drawn from deep underground aquifers. He added that the quality of piped water was good and was regularly monitored. Dhiman, however, admitted that there were some water quality issues in one of the old drinking water tubewells in the area, which had been closed by the department. He further said the matter had been brought to the notice of the Member Secretary of the HPSPCB. The Punjab and Central pollution control board Authorities had also been informed. He said the residents of these villages had been advised against using water from private shallow sources for human or animal consumption. Cause for concern amansharma@tribunemail.com Tribune news Service Dharamsala, July 23 A government doctor from Hamirpur pursuing post graduation in Anaesthesia department of Tanda medical college was found dead in his hostel room under mysterious circumstances. Kangra SP Santosh Patial told The Tribune that the principal of Government Medical College, Tanda, informed police that the body of Dr Dheeraj Soni (40), a resident of Nagrota Gajian village in Hamirpur, was found a room of Satluj Hostel. Dr Neeraj was a student of MS second-year (Anaesthesia). On receipt of the information, Additional SP, DSP and other police personnel and forensic team were immediately sent to the spot. On spot inspection, the deceased was found lying in supine position on the bed. A half-filled bottle of liquor, meat, wrapper of Atracurium Besylate injection (used for anaesthesia), painkiller tablets and an empty bottle of normal saline (glucose) with syringe cannula inside the vein were found in the room. The family of the deceased has been informed and is being associated, the police said, adding that the post mortem examination will be conducted tomorrow. The college principal has been requested to get the post mortem examination conducted by a team of forensic medicine experts, the SP added. monicakchauhan@gmail.com Dipender Manta Tribune News service Mandi, July 23 At least five people, including three woman, one child and a man, were charred to death when a house caught fire at Ner Chowk in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi district in wee hours on Monday. The fire broke out around 5 am, when the people were asleep after a 'baraat' (wedding procession) returned with the bridegroom and the bride late in the night The deceased were identified as the parents of the bridegroom, Narender Soni (66) and Veena Soni (62); the sister of Narender, Sudesh (70); her daughter-in-law, Mona (40); and her 12-year-old son, Sai Sohel, the family sources said. The tragedy has shaken the people of Ner Chowk and relatives of deceased, who were inconsolable. According to eye witnesses, they were sleeping in the morning, where the fire broke out. The cause of incident is stated to be short circuit. Superintendent of Police Mandi Gurdev Chand Sharma said that police and fire brigade rushed to the spot to douse the fire, but could not save lives. There was smoke all around and the deaths may have occurred due to suffocation also. The fire has been doused, he said. The state government has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident, an official said. Mandi Deputy Commissioner Rugved Thakur said Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Rajiv Kumar would probe the incident. The ADM will inquire all the aspects, including the cause of the fire and allegations of fire-fighters arriving late at the spot. The ADM will submit the report within seven days, he said. Expressing heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family members, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur assured that the cause of the fire would be probed and every possible help would be provided to the victims kin. With PTI monicakchauhan@gmail.com Majid Jahangir Tribune News Service Srinagar, July 23 Facing criticism, Sartaj Madni has resigned as the Peoples Democratic Party vice-president on Monday. Madni, maternal uncle of Mehbooba Mufti and the party second in command said that he resigned for "unity and strengthening" the party. Yes, I resigned as vice-president. I resigned to ensure that party gets more strengthen and stays united, Madni told the Tribune. The resignation came days ahead of the partys foundation day, which is being observed on July 28. The party is planning a grand show on its foundation day and is holding a public rally at Srinagar. After the fall of the PDP-BJP government, the Kashmir centric PDP is facing revolt within the party ranks as at least five lawmakers including a former minister has hit out at Mehbooba Mufti for promoting family raj. The lawmakers have publically spoken against the party leadership.Mehbooba after the dissent within party has been trying to reach out to the party leaders and workers. She even warned New Delhi of serious repercussion in case they try to split her party. editorial@tribune.com Majid Jahangir Tribune News Service Srinagar, July 23 Fearing a split in the Peoples Democratic Party, all six office-bearers of the party, including its vice-president and Mehbooba Mufti's maternal uncle Sartaj Madni, have put in their papers in a bid to silence the rebels and save the organisation from falling apart. The resignations come almost three weeks after dissension erupted in the Kashmir-centric PDP after many party leaders, including a former minister, accused Mehbooba Mufti of promoting family raj. Many of these rebel MLAs had their reservations about the functioning of Madni. Yes, I have submitted my resignation as the vice-president. I resigned to ensure that the party gets more strength and stays united, Madni told The Tribune. PDP chief spokesman Rafi Mir said that all office-bearers, including Madni, four general secretaries and a treasurer, had submitted their resignation. They have submitted their resignations before party president Mehbooba Mufti. These resignations are aimed at reorganising the party, Mir said. There is a possibility that Mehbooba may restructure the PDP shortly after the partys foundation day on July 28. While the resignation of all office-bearers is significant, the resignation of Madni is seen as a first major attempt by the party to quell the brewing dissent. It is learnt that Mehbooba had asked Madni and general secretary Mansoor Hussain to resign in the wake of resentment expressed against them by party lawmakers and leaders during the recent interactions with the former Chief Minister. After the fall of the PDP-BJP government, at least five party MLAs Imran Ansari, his uncle Abid Ansari, Abbas Wani, Javaid Baig and Abdul Majeed Paddar and two MLCs Yasir Reshi and Saifudin Bhat have spoken against the party leadership and the alleged nepotism. Some of the rebels even fired salvos against senior PDP leader and former minister Naeem Akhtar and Mehboobas brother Tassaduq Mufti. While Mehbooba has tried to reach out to party leaders after the dissent, the rebels have not come forward to meet her. The PDP rebels, however, are in touch with Peoples Conference leader Sajad Lone, triggering speculations about the government formation. Perturbed over these developments, Mehbooba had recently warned New Delhi of serious repercussions in case it attempted to split her party. Mehbooba last week also met senior party leader and Member of Parliament Muzaffar Baig and the two discussed the political situation and the ways to come out of the present crisis. Meanwhile, rebel MLA Javaid Baig said he never had any issues with Madni. I have issues with Mehboobaji, and I have made those public, Javaid said. Another rebel MLA Majeed Paddar termed the resignation of Madni as a drama. There will be no benefit from his resignation. He should have been thrown out of the party, Paddar said. Party revamp likely after July 28 There is a possibility that Mehbooba may restructure the PDP shortly after the partys foundation day on July 28 While the resignation of all office-bearers is significant, the resignation of Madni is seen as a first major attempt by the party to quell the brewing dissent It is learnt that Mehbooba had asked Madni and general secretary Mansoor Hussain to resign in the wake of resentment expressed against them by party leaders monicakchauhan@gmail.com Muzaffarpur (Bihar), July 23 A girl at a government-funded shelter home here has alleged that an inmate was beaten to death and buried in the premises and several other girls were raped, prompting the Bihar police to dig up the ground to look for the body. Sexual exploitation of girls lodged at the shelter home in Bihar had come to light in a social audit by a Mumbai-based institute, following which the state social welfare department lodged an FIR in this connection last month and 10 people were arrested. The police are, however, yet to find the body after digging up the ground. The opposition RJD raised the issue in both the Legislative Assembly and the Council demanding a CBI inquiry into the allegations and claimed that the scandal involved many well-connected people whom the Nitish Kumar government was trying to shield. Muzaffarpur SSP Harpreet Kaur told reporters, We are carrying out the excavation based on the statement given by one of the girls. The spot has been identified by her. Nothing has so far been found from the site during the excavation. However, the area of excavation might be enlarged after further examination of the girl who had alleged in her testimony that one of the inmates had been beaten to death, the officer said. More than 40 girls had been lodged at the shelter home and medical reports suggest that over half of them may have had sexual intercourse at some point of time, she said, adding, Altogether 10 people, including the district child protection officer, women staff members of the shelter home have been arrested so far. The NGO running the shelter home has been blacklisted, she said adding, all the girls have been shifted to shelter homes in other districts while the premises here have been sealed. The incident drew sharp criticism from political parties in the state with the opposition RJD demanding a CBI inquiry into the allegations of sexual exploitation of girls at the shelter home. Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Tejashwi Yadav alleged that the scandal involved many well-connected people whom the Nitish Kumar government was trying to shield. Opposition leader in the Legislative Council Rabri Devi too raised the issue in the Upper House. Speaking to reporters outside the House, both Tejashwi Yadav and Rabri Devi alleged, Many safedposh (white-collared) people are involved in the Muzaffarpur scandal and they enjoy proximity to the ruling dispensation. A CBI inquiry should be ordered so that the accused are not able to influence the investigation. Yadav said the Muzaffarpur incident will be highlighted by his party as one of the many failures of the Nitish Kumar government, during the state-wide cycle yatra scheduled to commence later this week. This regime has failed on all frontsbe it law and order or relief to drought-affected farmers, he said. PTI rchopra@tribunemail.com Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 The Congress on Monday accused the ruling BJP of misleading the country on the Rafale fighter jet deal and termed the purchase of 36 planes for Rs 59,000 crore by the Modi government as a scam, asking the ruling party not to hide behind the cloak of secrecy. Senior Congress leader AK Antony, who was Defence Minister (October 2006 to May 2014) and Anand Sharma, a former foreign affairs minister, on Monday addressing a press conference raised questions on price of the fighter jet and said Rs 41,000 crore loss to the public money had been caused. Antony said Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was misleading the country. She had said in the Lok Sabha that there was a secret clause signed with France in 2008 not to reveal the Rafale price, Antony said, adding, I dont know how she made the statement, its totally wrong. There was no Rafale deal in 2008. Rafale was selected among six competitors in December 2012. Antony was referring to the tender floated in 2007 which was finally scrapped in 2015. Sharma said the party is mulling filing a privilege motion, however, a final decision is yet to be taken. Looks like a case of breach of privilege, however, the partys Lok Sabha MPs would take a decision on it, Sharma said. Sharma said the agreement between India and France on protection of classified information and material in the field of defence did not mention that commercial cost could not be revealed. It only extends to tactical and technical details of weaponry relating to the capability of the platform, and its performance and tactics in combat and does not include commercial details and costs, he said. The French company Dassault, which makes Rafale, had already disclosed the price in its companys filing in its home country, he added. He said revealing of price is mandatory under the Constitution. It had to be revealed to the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and also to the Public Accounts Committee of the Parliament. The Defence Minister is deliberately mis-leading Parliament and the Prime Minister was backing her, Sharma claimed. If the French company and the French President have no objection in telling the price, what is the problem in Modi or Nirmala telling the price, said partys communication department incharge Randeep Surjewala. In April 2015, the Modi government had decided to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets off-the-shelf from French major Dassault. Arriving at the Rs 41,000 crore loss, Antony and Sharma said in a statement that the Rafale bid opened on December 12, 2012, during the UPA government was for Rs 526.10 crore that is Rs 18,940 crore for 36 aircraft. The Modi government purchased 36 Rafale aircraft for euro 7.5 billion (Rs 1,670.70 crore per aircraft), the BJP needed to explain the extra amount of Rs 41,205 crore paid from the public money, they said. They said Egypt and Qatar purchased Rafale in 2015 for Rs 1,319.80 crore per aircraft. editorial@tribune.com Our Correspondent Patna, July 23 Two years after stringent liquor prohibition laws were introduced in Bihar, the state Assembly on Monday passed amendments aimed at cracking down on misuse even as the RJD-led Opposition walked out of the House. Speaking on the need for the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Act, 2018, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar informed the House that the government did not want innocent people implicated or punished in the dry state. If one drinks or is found with a bottle of liquor in house, all adult members were held responsible for violating liquor laws and the house was seized. After the amendment, only those in inebriated state would be held accountable, said the Chief Minister. Also, the law earlier provided for a five-year prison term, in addition to Rs 1 lakh fine for those consuming liquor or caught in an inebriated state. After amendments, first-time offenders will face Rs 50,000 fine or three-month jail, while subsequent offences will attract Rs 1 lakh fine or one-year jail. The Chief Minister said the 16 amendments were aimed at safeguarding innocent people. The government had incurred a loss of Rs 5,000 crore on account of prohibition in the first year, but the figures had declined to Rs 1,000 crore now, he said. Under the liquor laws, 62 per cent of those arrested were found guilty of drinking. The RJD-led Opposition walked out of the House, calling the new amendment anti-poor and pro-rich. editorial@tribune.com Jitendra K Shrivastava Patna, July 23 Acting on court orders, the Bihar Police on Monday dug up a ground on the premises of a Muzaffarpur shelter home run by an NGO in search of the body of an inmate who was allegedly murdered after sexual assault. The excavation work ended as no body could be found. The matter came to light after a social audit report of the TISS (Tata Institute of Social Sciences) claimed that 42 girl inmates of the Muzaffarpur Balika Grih had allegedly been sexually assaulted. The inmates were allegedly beaten up or drugged before being sexually abused. One of the victims alleged that those who resisted rape were killed. A girl was beaten up and killed and her body was buried on the stay home premises, she had alleged. The court ordered excavation to exhume her body in presence of magistrate Sheela Kumari. On courts permission, the excavation was carried out at the stay home run by NGO Seva Sankalp and Vikas Samiti on Monday with the help of sniffer dogs but nothing was found. Further probe is on to ascertain the veracity of the allegations, said Muzaffarpur SSP Harpreet Kaur. One of the inmates had alleged that staff members often assaulted girl inmates and one of them had died in the process. We dug up the spot on the premises to verify her claims, she said. A special investigation team (SIT) had been formed. The police have arrested 10 persons in connection with the Muzaffarpur stay home incident, while raids are on to nab other accused, said the SSP. The girl inmates were shifted from Muzaffarpur to other homes, while medical tests were carried out to ascertain rape. At least 16 of the 21 medical reports submitted to the officials concerned had confirmed rape, while other reports are yet to come, said sources, adding some other girls had disappeared in the past and the matter was under investigation. At least 30 traumatised rape survivors were under medical observation at various hospitals. Madhepura MP Papu Yadav had demanded a CBI probe into the incident. rchopra@tribunemail.com New Delhi, July 23 The Delhi High Court on Monday granted interim protection from arrest to the in-laws of an airhostess who fell to her death from her south Delhi home. Last week, Delhi Police arrested deceased Anissia Batras husband Mayank Singhvi. Justice Mukta Gupta granted interim protection to Mayank Singhvis parents RS Singhvi and wife Sushma till August 2, the next date of hearing. The court also asked the police to file a status report on the plea of the Singhvi couple seeking anticipatory bail. Anissia Batras family has alleged that it was a case of murder even as police registered a suicide case on July 15. The 39-year-old had fallen off the terrace of her home in Panchsheel Park in Hauz Khas area on July 13. The FIR said the woman was assaulted ever since her marriage in February 2016. IANS sanjiv@tribunemail.com Jaipur, July 23 The Rajasthan Police on Monday suspended an Assistant Sub-Inspector and sent three constables to Police Lines for delay in taking Rakbar, alias Akbar Khan, who was allegedly lynched by a mob on suspicion of cow smuggling, to a hospital, officials said. The action came after a video showing ASI Mohan Singh (posted at the Ramgarh police station) admitting to his mistake went viral. A five-member committee to look into the delay in taking Khan to the hospital, suspended the ASI and shifted three other constables to Police Lines, Special DGP (Law and Order) NRK Reddy said in Alwar. There was an error in judgment while responding to the situation. The preliminary investigation suggested there was an error in prioritising the situation, Reddy said. The inquiry is in addition to the overall probe that has been assigned to an Additional SP-rank officer. While two persons, Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh, were arrested on Saturday, a third accused, Naresh Singh, was nabbed on Sunday and they are in five-day police custody. There are charges that the police had beaten up Khan and delayed taking him to hospital, which are being looked into, the SP (Alwar) said. The ASIs video surfaced hours after charges that the police delayed by three hours the shifting of Khan to the Ramgarh community healthcare centre. The incident was reported to the police at 12.41 am on Saturday. The police reached there at 1.15 am, but they reached the hospital (4 km away from crime scene) with Khan at 4 am, where he was declared brought dead. TNS/PTI uttara@tribuneindia.com Sumedha Sharma Tribune News Service Gurugram, July 23 A high-level departmental inquiry has found Ramgarh police guilty of error of judgement, and has suspended an assistant sub-inspector and transferred three constables to traffic lines, three days after a man was allegedly lynched on suspicion of having smuggled cows. The suspended ASI has been identified as Mohan Singh. Rajasthan Police however denied reports that said that Alwar Police assaulted the victim, Akbar Khan alias Rakbar. Briefing the press after the daylong inquiry concluded, Director General of Police (Law & Order) NRK Reddy claimed the policemen had their priorities wrong and their miscalculation cost the victim his life. The deceased was never taken to police station or beat. The delay to take him to a hospital was not intentional but a miscalculation. The cops could not prioritise their line of action, which lead to this prima facie lapse, Reddy said. However, according to police sources, the inquiry committee found a CCTV clip showing an empty truck followed by a police jeep, probably driving towards the police station at 3:47 am. A woman who claimed to be an eyewitness said she saw police beating and abusing a man in the vehicle. Akbar Khan was declared dead on arrival 13 minutes later. The team conducting the inquiry, comprising of Additional DGP (CID-Crime Branch) PK Singh, Inspector General of Police (Jaipur Range) Hemant Priyadarshi, are still investigating the allegations, Reddy said. Reddy said senior officer of the police station or district had been informed of the incident until 4 am. So far we have found this team guilty of lack of coordination with seniors. However, if lapse is found on party of any senior cop, we will take similar action, he said. Local MLA Gyandev Ahuja disputed the committees findings, insisting that the victim was beaten at a police station, which he claimed was where he died. We are against cow smuggling and have helped police in nabbing hundreds of smugglers since last few years but we never hit or killed anyone. Since the past year that police have adopted a policy of terming custodial brutalities lynching by Gau Rakshaks. We want a judicial probe in this matter, Ahuja said. Local resident Naval Kishore Sharma, the person who police named informer in the case, also insisted that the victim had died in police custody and claimed those who have been arrested so far were being framed. He claimed police called them to register a case for cow smuggling, instead arresting them for murder. I informed the police on basis of information given by Dharmendra Yadav and Paramjeet Singh. I went with police and we found one man injured lying in the mud. Dharmendra and Paramjeet were there, as I told them (police). We helped police in washing him and even got clothes for him. Police placed him in the jeep and took him to the thana (police station). Dharmendra and Paramjeet took the cows to cow shelter and when we were called after two hours the man had died in police lock up. They caught hold of them both (policemen) and told them they had murdered him, Kishore said. Mohan Singh, the now suspended ASI, said he didnt think Khan would die. He seemed perfectly fine, so we decided to complete all spot formalities before taking him to a hospital. Yes, that was wrong judgement, a mistake that I cant change. Hang me for it if you want but please dont accuse me of torturing him in custody, Singh said. Holes in police story? What has brought local polices role in the incident under scanner is a statement by Dr Hasan Ali Khan, the person in charge at Ramgarh CHC. In addition to highlighting the delay in having brought the victim to the medical centre, Dr Khan has cited in his autopsy report broken ribs and punctured lungs as the reason behind Akbars collapse. According to sources, Dr Khan, on being shown pictures of Akbar that ASI Mohan Singhs team claimed they had clicked after having rescued him, insisted that the body brought to him looked very differentfar more bruised. The pictures showed a man who was nowhere near death and whose body bore fewer marks and scars. The body brought (to the centre) had was bruised, with broken ribs and punctured lungs, which collapsed due to fluid retention, Dr. Khan said. monicakchauhan@gmail.com Vibha Sharma Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 Congress chief Rahul Gandhi on Monday said hatred had replaced humanity in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "brutal" 'New India', which claimed that policemen in Alwar took three hours to take a dying victim of a lynch mob to a hospital as they took a tea-break en route. "Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute," Gandhi said on Twitter, criticising the delay by the policemen in taking the victim to hospital. "This is Modi's brutal 'New India' where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die," he said. Policemen in #Alwar took 3 hrs to get a dying Rakbar Khan, the victim of a lynch mob, to a hospital just 6 KM away. Why? They took a tea-break enroute. This is Modis brutal New India where humanity is replaced with hatred and people are crushed and left to die. https://t.co/sNdzX6eVSU Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 23, 2018 Soon the BJP leaders hit back at Rahul Gandhi after the latter blamed the Prime Minister brutal New India for the lynching in Alwar. Smriti Irani was quick to tweet, Rahul Gandhis family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. Rahul Gandhis family presided over the worst form of hate in 1984, Bhagalpur & Nellie & many other instances. It is shameful that he is doing the same through VULTURE POLITICS. Not a single instance goes by where he doesn't attempt to rupture social bonds for electoral gains. https://t.co/kpX3n1Kcc0 Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) July 23, 2018 In defence of the PM, senior minister Piyush Goyal, wrote, Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE. Stop jumping with joy every time a crime happens, Mr Rahul Gandhi. The state has already assured strict & prompt action. You divide the society in every manner possible for electoral gains & then shed crocodile tears. Enough is Enough. You are a MERCHANT OF HATE. https://t.co/4thsyNL3nx Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 23, 2018 This is not the first case in lynching in Rajasthan, where the role of police is also under scanner. Earlier, too, a video of lynching of a dairy farmer, Pehlu Khan, had shocked the nation. The 28-year-old victim was allegedly lynched in Rajasthan's Alwar district Friday night by a group of people who accused him of smuggling cows. The attack came days after the Supreme Court strongly condemned the lawlessness perpetuated by lynch mobs across the country under the guise of cow protection and urged Parliament to make a special law to curb such attacks. While the government seems to be in no hurry to formulate such a law, the attack demonstrates the law and order situation in the state reports suggest that the police took almost four hours to take a bleeding Khan to hospital. On the way, the policemen allegedly stopped for tea and took the cows to a shelter before taking Khan to the hospital. Three people have been arrested. amansharma@tribunemail.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on August 28 petitions seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against Rajasthan government officials in a recent case of mob lynching in which a cattle trader was killed at Alwar. The contempt petitions filed by Tushar Gandhi and Congress leader Tehseen Poonawala were mentioned before a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra which said the matter would be taken up on August 28 along with the main case. A contempt petition earlier filed by Tushar Gandhi accused Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments of not complying with the top court's September 6 order. Alleging that mob lynching and vigilantism incidents were happening despite the court's directions to curb such violence, they demanded contempt action against the Rajasthan government. The petitioners said the court's verdict has to be implemented in letter and spirit. The top court had on July 17 asked the Parliament to consider enacting a new law to effectively deal with incidents of mob lynching, saying "horrendous acts of mobocracy" cannot be allowed to become a new norm. On July 21, a man was allegedly lynched by a group of people on suspicion that he was smuggling cows in Alwar district of Rajasthan. The incident took place a little more than a year after Pehlu Khan, a dairy farmer, was lynched by cow vigilantes in Alwar when he was transporting cattle to his village in Haryana on April 1, 2017. The mob suspected that Khan was smuggling cows. He died on April 3, two days after the incident. In November last year, Umar Khan, 35, was found dead near railway tracks and his family members had alleged that he was killed by cow vigilantes. In the last one year, several such attacks have happened in Alwar city of Rajasthan, where vigilante groups have targeted people transporting cattle. On September 6 last year, the court had asked all states to take stern measures to stop violence in the name of cow protection, including appointment of senior police officers as nodal officers in every district within a week and acting promptly to check the cow vigilantes from behaving like they were "law unto themselves". uttara@tribuneindia.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 The central government on Monday introduced The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2018, in Lok Sabha. The proposed law provides for stringent punishment including death penalty for those convicted of raping girls below the age of 12 years. The proposed legislation, once passed by Parliament, will replace the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance promulgated on April 21, following an outcry over the rape and murder of a minor girl in Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir and the rape of another woman in Unnao in Uttar Pradesh. Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Kiren Rijiju, while introducing the Bill said the recent incidents of rape and gangrape of women under the age of 16 years and 12 years have shaken the conscience of the entire nation. So such cases required effective deterrence through legal provisions of more stringent punishment, he added. Some of the incidents in recent years have been marked by increased brutality and violence perpetrated on minor girls. This has fuelled demands from various sections of the society to make penal provisions more stringent and effective, immediate arrest of the accused and ensure speedy trial in such cases, Rijiju said. The Bill stipulates stringent punishment for perpetrators of rape, particularly of girls below 12 years. Death sentence has been provided for convicted rapists of girls below 12 years of age. As per the provisions of the Bill the minimum punishment in case of rape of women has also been increased from rigorous imprisonment of seven years to 10 years, extendable to life imprisonment. According to the Bill, in case of rape of a girl under 16 years, the minimum punishment has been increased from 10 years to 20 years, extendable to imprisonment for rest of life, which means jail term till the convicts natural life. The punishment for gangrape of a girl below 16 years will invariably be imprisonment for the rest of life of the convict. The proposed law also provides for speedy investigations and trial. The time limit for investigation of all cases of rape has been prescribed, which has to be completed within two months. The deadline for the completion of trial in all rape cases will be two months. A six-month time limit for the disposal of appeals in rape cases has also been prescribed. There will also be no provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of rape or gangrape of a girl below 16 years. editorial@tribune.com New Delhi, July 23 With four BJP MPs submitting a privilege notice in Lok Sabha against Congress chief Rahul Gandhi accusing him of misleading the House by making false allegations against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said she would look into it. The MPs who gave the privilege notice included Nishikant Dubey, Anurag Thakur, Dushyant Singh and Prahlad Joshi. As soon as the question hour got over, Dubey said a privilege motion had been moved by his party. Whenever Rahul Gandhi speaks, it only helps in increasing the votes of BJP, he said amid protest by Congress members. As the House became unruly, Mahajan, while trying to calm down the situation, said: I will look into it and then let you know. The charges relate to Gandhis speech during the debate on the no-trust motion on Friday in which he had raised the issue of a secrecy clause in the Rafale deal. The BJP MPs also objected to his comments regarding betraying the Army in Doklam. TNS monicakchauhan@gmail.com Shiv Kumar Tribune News Service Mumbai, July 23 Indicating that his Shiv Sena's ties with the BJP were strained, Uddhav Thackeray said his loyalties lay with the voters rather than Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I am fighting for the common man's dream, not for Modi's dream, Thackeray said in an interview to party mouthpiece Saamna. The Shiv Sena's three-party interview with the newspaper just days after the party's MPs abstained from the no-confidence motion against the government in parliament is seen here as a major attempt to galvanise the rank and file against the BJP though both parties are part of the state and central governments. We had supported Modi openly in the past, and now we are also opposing him openly," Thackeray added. The Shiv Sena chief also indicated his party was in no hurry to pull out of the Maharashtra and the central governments despite his criticism of Modi. In the wide-ranging interview, Thackeray hit out at the BJP and its commitment to Hindutva among other issues. I don't accept the Hindutva that is being practiced in the country over the last three to four years. This is not our idea of Hindutva....Our women are unsafe today but you are protecting cows. You should not be targeting people for their choice of food," Thackeray said. The Shiv Sena chief added that law and order had broken down with cow vigilantes running lose in the country and the BJP government has failed to control them. Thackeray also accused the Narendra Modi government of failing to fulfil the promises it made before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The government has failed the people, Thackeray said and raised the issues of demonetisation and the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax. The Shiv Sena chief also indicated that his party would continue to oppose projects like the proposed West Coast oil refinery at Nanar in Ratnagiri and the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train. Thackerays interview comes a day after BJP president Amit Shah asked his party workers to prepare for contesting the 2019 elections on its own. uttara@tribuneindia.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 The mob lynching case in Rajasthans Alwar district on Saturday, where a man was allegedly killed by gau-rakshak (cow protectors) rocked Lok Sabha as Congress MP Karan Singh Yadav raised the issue during Zero Hour. The Congress MP while raising the issue claimed that it was the fourth such incident in the state and is going on unabated. Those who claimed to be gau-rakshak (cow protectors) are behind this murder, Yadav said amid protests by some BJP members. He also attacked the police for wasting time in taking the victim to hospital and thus the victim succumbed to death. The deceased 28-year-old Akbar was thrashed by a group of people on suspicion of being a cow smuggler in Lalawandi village in Alwar on Saturday last. Meanwhile, before Yadav raising the mob lynching case, the House witnessed a clash between Congress and BJP members, as Jyotiraditya Scindia raised the Kathua rape and murder case besides other incidents of rape in the country. Targeting the BJP, Scindia said its leaders, who were ministers in the Jammu and Kashmir government, came out in support of the accused while the saffron partys MLA is an accused in the Unnao rape case. The Congress MP also raised the issue of rape of a child in Madhya Pradeshs Mandsaur district but Speaker Sumitra Mahajan cut him off midway saying: Dont do politics over everything. I am woman. sanjiv@tribunemail.com London, July 23 Britains strong Sikh community is all set to be listed in the 2021 census as a distinct ethnicity rather than only as a religion, the UK Statistics Authority has said, a major step that will give the community a fair access to all public services in the country. Last year, over 100 British MPs, including Indian-origin lawmakers, had asked the authority to include Sikh as a separate ethnic box for the 2021 census. The 2021 census is set to list Sikhism as a distinct ethnicity rather than only as a religion, The Sunday Times reported. In the most recent census in 2011, more than 83,000 Sikhs refused to tick any of the choices in the question on ethnicity, rejecting options such as Indian in order to write Sikh in the space for any other ethnic group, it said. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is considering the inclusion of Sikhism as an ethnicity on the 2021 form, but had raised concerns over the issue of public acceptability and whether the move would have backing across Britains 430,000-strong Sikh community, the report said. The all-party parliamentary group for British Sikhs offered to write to gurdwaras to assist the ONS with its public consultation, it added. Sikhs are a legally recognised ethnic group under the UKs Race Relations Act 1976 and campaigners for the change believe this gives them a right to be able to identify themselves separately from current census options, such as Indian or British Indian. In preparation for the 2021 census, the ONS ran a test version of the census in 2017 with Sikh included as an option under ethnicity. It found that almost a quarter of those who specified Sikhism as their religion also chose Sikh as their ethnicity. PTI What it could mean for community rajivbhatia82@gmail.com New Delhi, July 23 The in-laws of flight attendant Anissia Batra, who allegedly committed suicide last week, were questioned by the police today. The couple was questioned for one-and-a-half-hour at the Hauz Khas police station today, they added. They had sought exemption from joining the probe on health grounds last week. Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court today granted interim protection from arrest to the couple. Anissia (39) allegedly jumped from the terrace of her residence in south Delhi's Panchsheel Park on July 14 following which her husband, Mayank Singhvi, was arrested on the charges of dowry death on July 16. Her family has been demanding the arrest of Mayank's parents. They have accused Mayank of physically abusing her. - PTI rchopra@tribunemail.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 Attorney General KK Venugopal on Monday told the Supreme Court that live-streaming of court proceedings should start on trial basis from the CJIs court and only in Consitution Bench matters. He said response should be gauged for three months before proceeding further in the matter. Venugopal said constitutional matters for live-streaming should be selected by the CJI. Our guidelines are there in our affidavit. We shall sit with senior advocate Indira Jaising and formulate the guidelines, the AG told the top court. Jaising also submitted her written submissions to the Supreme Court. rchopra@tribunemail.com New Delhi, July 23 The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on August 28 the pleas seeking contempt action against the Rajasthan government in the recent mob lynching case at Alwar. In the contempt pleas filed by Tushar Gandhi and Congress leader Tehseen Poonawala, they alleged that incidents of mob lynching and vigilantism were taking place despite a verdict by the apex court in this regard. A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra said it would hear the petitions on August 28. Presenting their case in front of the bench, also comprising Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud, Gandhi and Poonawala sought contempt actions against the Rajasthan government. The petitioners urged that directions should be issued to follow the apex court verdict in letter and spirit. The bench said it would take up the matter along with the main case on August 28. The apex court had on July 17 asked Parliament to consider enacting a new law to effectively deal with incidents of mob lynching, saying horrendous acts of mobocracy could not be allowed to become a new norm. On July 21, a man was allegedly lynched by a group of people on suspicion that he was smuggling cows in Alwar district of Rajasthan. PTI rajivbhatia82@gmail.com Kigali, July 23 Prime Minister Narendra Modi today arrived in Rwanda on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour as part of India's outreach to the resource-rich continent, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country. The Prime Minister's aircraft landed at the Kigali International Airport where he was received by President of Rwanda Paul Kagame. He was accorded a red carpet welcome at the airport. "A historic visit starts with a special gesture. President @PaulKagame personally welcomed PM @narendramodi to Rwanda," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted. His two-day state visit to Rwanda -- one of Africa's fastest growing economies -- assumes significance as this is the first by an Indian premier. "A special gesture by a close friend and a strategic partner! Prime Minister @narenderamodi personally received by Rwandan President @PaulKagame at #Kigali International Airport on the first leg of his three-nation tour. First-ever visit by an Indian PM to Rwanda," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. Later, Prime Minister Modi held one-on-one talks with President Kagame. He will also meet the business leaders and the Indian communities here. He will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda initiated by Kagame. A defence cooperation agreement is also expected to be signed between India and Rwanda during the visit, T S Tirumurti, secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said in New Delhi last week. India will also be opening a mission in Rwanda very soon, Tirumurti said. "During this visit, we expect to conclude two lines of credit -- one of USD 100 million for development of industrial parks and Kigali special economic zone (SEZ), and another one for USD 100 million for agriculture and irrigation," he said. An important element of the programme would be the prime minister's visit to Rweru Model Village where he will gift 200 cows as a contribution from India to the 'Girinka' scheme of Rwanda, Tirumurti said. Under 'Girinka', a social protection scheme of the Rwandan government personally overseen by President Kagame, poorest families are gifted dairy cows by the government and the first female calf born to the cow is gifted to the neighbour, thus promoting brotherhood and solidarity. The cows to be gifted by India would be sourced from Rawanda. "We expect agreements to be concluded in the areas of defence, dairy cooperation, leather, agriculture, and culture," he said. Modi's visit comes days after Chinese President Xi Jinping's trip to Rwanda. Modi would proceed to Uganda tomorrow for a two-day visit, the first bilateral visit by an Indian prime minister since 1997. "Rwanda is an important gateway to Eastern Africa and we have elevated our bilateral relations with Rwanda to the level of a strategic partnership in January 2017," a senior External Affairs Ministry official said in New Delhi. The President of Rwanda is the current Chair of the African Union. Modi will attend the 10th edition of the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa during which the grouping's leaders are expected to deliberate on global hot-spot issues, international peace and security, global governance and trade issues among others. - PTI sanjiv@tribunemail.com New Delhi, July 23 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday arrived in Rwandas capital Kigali on the first leg of his three-nation Africa tour, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the East African country, one of continents fastest growing economies. PM Modi held one-on-one talks with President Paul Kagame. The two sides later signed eight MoUs and documents on cooperation in capacity building, defence, industry, science and technology. India agreed to extend two lines of credit $100 million for development of industrial parks and expansion of Kigali SEZs and $100 million for agriculture irrigation scheme in Rwanda and a trade cooperation framework. PM Modis visit to Rwanda, Uganda en route to South Africa for the BRICS summit is seen as an outreach to vie for influence in Africa where China has deepened its foothold. Chinese President Xi Jinping will be attending the summit where he is likely to hold a bilateral with PM Modi, three months after the informal summit at Wuhan. TNS pardeepdhull@gmail.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 The Supreme Court on Monday said there cannot be a complete ban on holding protests and sit-ins at Jantar Mantar and Boat Club here, and asked the Centre to frame guidelines for according sanctions to such events. A Bench comprising Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan said there was a need for striking a balance between conflicting rights such as right to protest and right of citizens to live peacefully. There cannot be a complete ban on holding protests at places like Jantar Mantar and Boat Club (near India Gate), the bench said while directing the Centre to frame guidelines on the matter. The verdict came on a batch of petitions, including the one filed by Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sanghtan, challenging the decision of the National Green Tribunal, which had banned all kinds of protests at these (Jantar Mantar, Boat Club) places. With PTI rchopra@tribunemail.com Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 The ongoing tug of war between the BJP and Congress over Rafale fighter jet deal is all set to become intense with the Lok Sabha Speaker on Monday saying she had received a notice of privilege against Rahul Gandhi and will look into it. I have received a notice and will look into it, the Speaker told reporters both inside and outside the Lok Sabha. The notice has been moved by BJP members Nishikant Dubey, Anurag Thakur, Dushyant Singh and Prahlad Joshi. The allegation against Gandhi is that he misled the House on Rafale deal during the debate on no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha. The notice also says that Gandhi levelled unsubstantiated allegations against both the PM and Defence Minister and must produce evidence for what he said or face privilege for lying. Gandhi had claimed in the lok Sabha that the French President personally told him that there was no secrecy deal around Rafale. The privilege notice against Gandhi accusing him of misleading the House on the jet deal was anticipated as Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar had hinted to that on Friday. uttara@tribuneindia.com Anup Dutta Bhopal, July 23 Twelve people were arrested after a destitute woman was lynched by an incensed mob over rumours of child abduction that circulated on messaging application Whatsapp in Singrauli district, police said on Monday. As in several other cases in the recent past, the womanaged 30 and reportedly mentally illwas attacked by people of Badgad village on Saturday after rumours of prowling child abductors in the area spread on Whatsapp. The mob that surrounded her beat her up when she couldnt reply to their questions. She was attacked until she fell down and stopped breathing, police said. Police found her dead body in a forest nursery on Sunday. Locals assaulted her presuming her to be a child lifter. We have taken nine people in custody and are questioning them, Riyaz Ahmed, Sigrauli district superintendent of police said. The woman has yet to be identified. A police officer said several villagers had stopped going out at night due to the viral forwards. In similar incidents, a mob attacked a nat (traditional dancer) and a forest official on suspicion of being abductors in two separate cases in Singrauli recently. Villagers in Balaghat district beat up two constables and two local youths on suspicion of being organ smugglers. The development comes as the central and state governments and police administration continue to grapple with viral messages on social media platform. In a series of measures after coming under pressure from the central government, messaging platform Whatsapp first announced they would highlight forwarded messages and then, as lynching reports continued to trickle in, restricted message forwarding to five chat groups. sanjiv@tribunemail.com Satya Prakash Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 Having supported the idea of live streaming of court proceedings, the Centre on Monday sought to qualify its stand, with Attorney General KK Venugopal telling the Supreme Court that it should be done only in constitutional matters. Venugopal told a three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra that live streaming should start in important cases on an experimental basis from the CJIs court. The government is taking this very seriously. My recommendation is that this may be initially restricted to only cases involving constitutional issues, which the Chief Justice decides, and no other matters, to see the reactions and the responses. Then a decision may be taken one way or the other, Venugopal said during hearing of a PIL seeking live streaming of court proceedings. The impact of live streaming on lawyers, judges and the public could be assessed within two-three months, he added. The Bench said any such initiative had to be tested for its technological stability before it was implemented. Earlier, it had asked the Centre to prepare holistic guidelines to make it possible. Petitioner Indira Jaising said nobody should be able to take clips of live streaming of court proceedings and use these for commercial gains. The Bench asked the Attorney General to look into Jaisings suggestions by August 3. On the last hearing, Venugopal had supported live streaming of court proceedings on the ground that it would bring in more transparency; benefit litigants and reduce crowd in courts. uttara@tribuneindia.com Ravi S.Singh Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 Top leaders of five Left parties will participate in a dharna in the national capital on Monday to protest against Mamata Banerjees Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal, raising serious doubts regarding formation of a cohesive anti-BJP front for the 2019 General Elections. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and former Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarka are scheduled to participate, sending a strong signal from the Left of its disgust against the developments in the two states. The five left partiesthe Communist Party of India (Marxists), Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist)-Liberation, Revolutionary Socialist Party and the All India Forward Blockhave given a call for a nationwide protest against the murder of democracy in West-Bengal, and BJP government in Tripura. While Lefts red-flag to its ideological opposed BJP is par for the course, its high-voltage protest against the Trinamool will be significant in the context of opposition parties effort to stitch up a front against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP for the next parliamentary elections. Banerjee has been trying to project herself as main crusader against Modi, and a lead player in formation of a front of opposition parties against him. She has been touch with opposition leaders to make the coming Lok Sabha election one-versus-one against the BJP in the states. With regard West-Bengal, the CPI (M) said: In West-Bengal, the Trinamool regime has been maintaining its reign of terror and fascist attacks directed against the Left Front. Trinamool cadres resorted to forcibly capture the Panchyat Samitis and Gram Panchayat and municipal bodies where the Left Front had a majority, it added. While the Left has signalled its opposition to Trinamool, Banerjee has dampened spirits in the Congress camp by unilaterally announcing at her partys July 20-rally in Kolkata it will win all the 42 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Developments in other states too have underlined uncertainty with regard a possible anti-BJP front. There are reports of growing bonhomie between Telangana Rashtriya Samiti (TRS) headed by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao and the BJP. Rao had earlier flown down to Kolkata to meet Banerjee to build constitute anti-BJP front. TRSs Janardhan Reddys lauded Modi in Lok Sabha for Centres help to Telengana on Monday, fuelling speculations. In Odhisa, the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) reportedly considers Congress as its competitor. On Friday AIADMK voted against the Opposition supported no-confidence motion that was moved by the TDP, BJPs former southern ally from Andhra Pradesh. amansharma@tribunemail.com Shahira Naim Tribune News Service Lucknow, July 23 An undertrial imprisoned in Baghpat jail has been referred a Meerut hospital after he was brutally beaten up by two convicts and a jail guard inside Baghpat jail. The fresh incident in the same jail where high-profile sharp shooter Munna Bajrangi was shot by another prisoner, Sunil Rathi, on July 9 demonstrates the state of affairs inside Uttar Pradesh prisons. According to sources, a resident of Loni in Ghaziabad, Rizwan was arrested on May 31 under the Narcotic Drug and Psychotropic Substances Act. He had a court appearance on July 20 when he had a minor conflict over drinking water with another convict on the court premises. The clash turned violent though the accompanying policemen pacified them. Later, both Rizwan and the convict were summoned by the jail authorities. While the convict was spared after two slaps by the jail authorities, Rizwan was allegedly brutally beaten up by a jail guard and two convicts till he fell unconscious. In a serious condition, he was rushed to the jail hospital that immediately referred him to Meerut district hospital. However, IG (Prisons) Chander Prakash played down the incident saying that he has no information of any jail staff being involved in the beating. He said it was a fight between prisoners after which one of them was first taken to the jail hospital and then to Meerut. Days after Sunil Rathi shot Munna Bajrangi inside Baghpat jail, he was transferred to Fatehgarh central jail in Farukhabad district. Rathi had reportedly told the police that if he is allowed to stay in any jail for 90 days, his rule inside the jail will start from the 91st day. Higher officials are now contemplating changing the rules so that no criminal is kept in any jail for more than six months. Following the custodial murder of Munna Bajrangi the Yogi Adityanath government had formed a three-member committee under former UP DGP Sulkhan Singh. The committee which is expected to submit its report within two months would review and suggest measures to strengthen the existing system of prisons across the state. editorial@tribune.com Rachna Khaira Tribune News Service Jalandhar, July 22 The countrys top public sector undertakings (PSUs) in the oil sector have put their dealers on slippery ground. In a recent communication, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd have sought information on the caste and religion, among other personal details, of over 10 lakh workers at various retail filling stations and LPG agencies in India. From lorry drivers to mechanics, they have been asked to fill forms that also ask for the parliamentary constituency each employee belongs to. The form, prepared by the Hydrocarbon Sector Skill Council set up by the Ministry of Petroleum, seeks to know the Aadhaar number, name of the bank seeded with it, Aadhaar enrolment number and Aadhaar verification status. On completion of the exercise, each worker will get skill certification and Rs 500 will be deposited in his or her bank account. That the information was mandatory dawned on petroleum retailers when the supply of products to their outlets was allegedly stopped. In a letter to each of the three companies, Paramjit Singh Doaba, president, Petrol Pump Dealers Association, Punjab, has written: This is a serious breach of our rights as well as the rights of our employees. The information sought is a direct affront to the privacy and dignity of our employees where their religion, caste and annual household income are sought. Only the GoI and its agencies through government notification are authorised to collect this information, and we are neither authorised nor in a position to ask for such information from our employees as this would directly affect their right to privacy under the Fundamental Right of Freedom. Gurmeet Monty Sehgal, spokesperson for the Petrol Pump Dealers Association (PPDA), Punjab, added that workers were employees of dealers. Hence, oil PSUs had no right to seek their personal details. He asked: Are they mapping our employees for a poll database? We as employers are only responsible to the state Labour Department, the ESI and EPF Department. He alleged the matter was raised two days ago when the supply to a filling station in Chowki Mann in Ludhiana was held up and was resumed on the intervention of the association. Indian Oil Company Limited Chief General Manager, Punjab, Sandeep Jain, said he was not aware of any such move. But RN Dubey, Chief Manager, Corporate Communications (Planning and Coordination), also the nodal agency for all oil PSUs in Punjab, said the data was being collected on behalf of the Hydrocarbon Sector Skill Council, which in collaboration with the National Skill Development Corporation and the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, intended to provide training and certification to the workforce at retail outlets. Most of the employees have been working for years. Even as they are highly skilled as they deal with inflammable material, they do not have any certification. We will be providing certification under the Prior Learning Programme of the HSSC, Dubey explained. This certification under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana will improve employee motivation and upgrade skills, he added. Asked about the need for information on caste, constituency and IFSC code, he had no answer. Skill programme editorial@tribune.com Jupinderjit Singh Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 23 Aam Aadmi Party MLAs Kultar Singh Sandhwan from Kotkapura and Amarjit Singh Sandoa from Ropar, who were refused entry into Canada on Sunday, claimed that the Canadian Immigration had cleared them, but the Border Security Organisation, a federal agency, was not convinced with their reply on schedule of meetings and rallies in the country. Sandhwan said the Canadian officials were courteous, but "they want advance and detailed information about the visit of political representatives". "They did not deport us. They have not stamped 'deported' on our passports. The Canadian officials gave us the return ticket. We had the option to appeal against it, but we chose not to. The officials told us we were welcome to apply for visa again, but it should have full details," he said. Sandoa, who has been the centre of the controversy owing to a case of alleged molestation against him, said the case was not even discussed. "They asked me about our proposed meetings or political rallies in Canada. We did not have a set schedule. But they insisted that we had to inform them about the scheduled political meetings or rallies as they had to make security arrangements accordingly," he claimed. Ex-member claims hand A former AAP Intellectual and Environment Wing (Ludhiana) head and former member of the party's anti-corruption wing, Dr Amandeep Singh Bains, claimed that he had asked the Canadian authorities to deny entry to Sandoa due to molestation charges against him. Bains told The Tribune that under the Canadian rules, a man accused of molestation or violence could be barred from entering into the country. Bains and some other members had quit AAP before the Assembly elections in protest against Sandoa's candidature from Ropar. They claimed that Sandoa had helped one of his friends in an alleged case of sodomy. The SAD has demanded a CBI inquiry into the allegations against Sandoa. editorial@tribune.com Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service Jalandhar, July 23 Foreign dreams being nurtured by Punjabi youth is having an adverse impact on admission trends in universities and colleges of the state. Almost all universities, including private, have been getting affected with many of them claiming that the fall in admissions this time is up to 20 per cent. Even colleges, which have been most sought after till the last few years, are seeing a drop in admissions and had more intake this time of students from other states, including Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar and Jharkhand. Though admissions with late fee will go on till August 31, most universities and colleges have been ruing about slow admission and poor response. Dr NP Singh, Dean, IK Gujral Punjab Technical University, said there had been a fall of up to 25 per cent admission in various undergraduate and postgraduate engineering and management courses being offered on the campus. We had about 590 seats last time and we increased it this time, going by the previous trend. But students somehow seem to be more inclined on going to Canada after Class XII. We have been trying to tap such students too by collaborating specifically with Canadian universities, he said. Dean of regional campus of Guru Nanak Dev University at Jalandhar Dr Jotish Malhotra said, Owing to more students making a beeline to Canada, we had to depend on more intake from other states, including Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar and Jharkhand this time. Principal Dr Sucharita of Apeejay College of Fine Arts too is disappointed with the admission trends. We have two more days for admission without late fee, but I am not seeing any good sign. Even if students have applied with us, they are still awaiting their chance to go to a Canadian university. They are still holding their admission. They are making a complete mess of their career. They are not ready to take a three-year degree course here and instead want to opt for a one-year diploma course in Canada. But with students queuing up there, the Canadian Government is surely going to be more stringent. Ultimately, our Punjabi students will be losers. Dr Rohit Mehra of Dr BR Ambedkar National Institute of Technology said, There is some fall in cut off percentages in admission to the courses. Anshu Kataria, president, Punjab Unaided Colleges Association and chairman of Aryans group, said, The admission trends are good with degrees related to pharmacy, nursing and agriculture, perhaps because these course offer a good scope to students wanting to move to Canada. Engineering courses are seeing a huge drop and colleges of Punjab have become more dependent on students from other states. A new trend is intake of Nepali students this time. He added that the trend of increasing queues of students wanting to move to Canada could bounce back any day, which could be detrimental towards Punjabi youth who already had shown a tendency to take to drugs and crime. Kamal Bhumla, chairman of the Association of Consultants for Overseas Studies, said, "About 90,000 students from Punjab had moved abroad last year. This time the Canadian Government has listed 200 colleges for admission. So the rush has increased. The current year figures will come later. The State Drug Administration has launched an investigation of Changchun Changsheng Bio-tech Co, which was found to have fabricated production records for freeze-dried rabies vaccines for human use. The cases of those suspected of violating laws will be transferred to public security departments, the authority said on Sunday. Premier Li Keqiang said in an instruction that the vaccine case has crossed a moral line, and the nation deserves a clear explanation, the State Council said on its website on Sunday. The State Council should immediately send a group to investigate to uncover the truth as soon as possible, and any wrongdoing will be severely punished regardless of who is involved, Li said. Xu Jinghe, deputy head of the drug administration, said the company was found to have fabricated production and inspection records. Such activities are in violation of the countrys drug management law and related regulations on drug production, Xu said. In a notification on July 15, the drug administration ordered the company to stop producing the human rabies vaccine. It said no products involved in the inspection were currently being sold and all the vaccine involved had been removed. The administration has also revoked the companys certificate that is needed for production and sales of the vaccine. The administration confirmed that the company's other vaccines now available on the market have been tested and no quality problems were found. The administration also launched further tests on the vaccine samples kept by the company. Its remarks came amid public concerns about vaccine safety in China over the weekend, after it was also revealed that Changsheng Bio-tech was linked to a substandard adsorbed diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus, or ADPT, vaccine for infants. On Friday, the Jilin Provincial Drug Administration announced a penalty regarding Changchun Changsheng Bio-tech Co's substandard ADPT vaccine. The company was fined 2.58 million yuan ($282,000), and 859,000 yuan in assets from sales of the vaccine were confiscated. The case was under investigation last year. A child is vaccinated in hospital in Southwest China's Kunming on April 25, 2018. [Photo/VCG] Changsheng Bio-tech Co, parent company of Changchun Changsheng Bio-tech Co, revealed in November that 252,600 doses of the substandard ADPT vaccine that couldn't meet the standard of immunity results were all sold to Shandong province and had been recalled. The substandard ADPT vaccine wont post safety threats to peoples health, but will reduce the expected immune effects, Dingxiangyuan, a professional medical website, said in an online reply to public concerns about the vaccines safety. The state drug administration confirmed on Sunday that it was discovered in October that one batch of Changshengs ADPT vaccine was substandard, and its production of ADPT has been suspended since then. A plan for reinoculation of those affected was worked out in February. Several state media called for severe punishment and stricter supervision of vaccines. Peoples Daily released a commentary on Sunday saying that drugmakers should stick to moral principles and make life their priority rather than profits. In a news report released on Sunday, the Procuratorate Daily, a publication of the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate, called for stronger supervision of vaccine production and tougher penalties for violators. The Shenzhen Stock Exchange announced that it sent letters to Changsheng Bio-tech Co on Sunday, calling for early disclosure of the two cases to the public. We will maintain strict supervision over the listed companys information disclosure responsibility according to the law and guarantee legal rights of investors, it said in the online announcement. The Shenzhen Stock Exchange posted a reply from Changsheng Bio-tech Co later in the afternoon on its website. It says, We feel very remorseful and guilty about what has happened, and we apologize to all those vaccinated and investors. The company added that it will learn a lesson. The company is also designing its communication campaign to highlight the privacy features offered by BlackBerry phones. Optiemus Infracom, which makes BlackBerry phones for the Indian market, plans to line up new devices across various price points in the coming months as it looks to regain lost ground against rivals like Samsung, Xiaomi and others. New Delhi: Optiemus Infracom, which makes BlackBerry phones for the Indian market, plans to line up new devices across various price points in the coming months as it looks to regain lost ground against rivals like Samsung, Xiaomi and others. The company is also designing its communication campaign to highlight the privacy features offered by BlackBerry phones as it attempts to woo customers amid growing concerns around privacy and security of personal data. "We are looking at unveiling (new) models across various price points and we are trying to make them more competitive (price-wise). We have a long-view here," Optiemus Infracom Executive Director Hardip Singh told PTI. BSE-listed Optiemus Infracom has a manufacturing and distribution tie-up with BlackBerry for India and neighbouring markets. "The relevance of a Blackberry is much, much more today than it was 10 years back because today you are doing more than just communicate -- you use phones for social networking, banking, personal data, photographs. The need to keep all this data private and secure is much more now," Singh said. He added that the company's campaign is going to focus on privacy and security of data because "that is what makes a Blackberry stand out". Once a dominant player in the smartphone category, BlackBerry struggled to compete against global competitors like Samsung and Apple. It, then, agreed to license its brand to handset manufacturer, TCL and Optiemus. BlackBerry has taken a number of steps, including adopting the Android platform for powering its phones in attempts to re-capture its position. India is one of largest smartphone markets globally. Samsung and Xiaomi dominate the Indian market, while players like vivo and Oppo have strong market share. Optiemus has launched 'BlackBerry KEY2' today for the Indian market at Rs 42,990. The device, which will be available from July 31, is powered by Android Oreo operating system and Qualcomm chipset. Featuring a 4.5-inch screen and a keypad, KEY2 has 6G RAM, 64GB internal memory (expandable up to 256GB), 12MP rear dual camera and 8MP front camera and 3,500 mAh battery. "In the wake of current data breaches across the globe and here in India, consumers are increasingly concerned about the safety of their information, especially on mobile. KEY2 has the best of BlackBerry's software and security. BlackBerry is the most secure Android device available today," he said. editorial@tribune.com Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 23 Presenting itself as the biggest victim of Pakistan-sponsored narcotics terrorism, Punjab has approached the Centre for special category status under the National Health Protection Scheme that guarantees financial cover up to Rs 5 lakh to 10 crore vulnerable families listed in the socio-economic caste census. In a letter to Health Minister JP Nadda (The Tribune has accessed a copy), Punjab Health Minister Brahm Mohindra has sought special status citing chronic drug problem in the state and Pakistans hand in it. The drug menace has gripped different sections of Punjabs society irrespective of caste, creed, religion and economic status. The drug abuse prevails more in border districts like Ferozepur, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur and Amritsar. The Punjab youth who are the future of the state are becoming victims of narco-terrorism, which is impacting the economic growth of the state. Punjab has emerged as the biggest victim of a proxy war waged against it by Pakistan, for which Pakistan has used drugs as its silent weapon, Mohindra says, demanding special status that will enhance central funding for the state under the scheme. Special category states such as Jammu and Kashmir, hilly and northeastern states get 90 per cent Union Government funding in central schemes as against 60 per cent for general category states. The same applies to NHPS. Punjab has said yes to joining the scheme, but has not yet signed a related MoU with the Centre to operationalise it. Asked if signing of the NHPS MoU was conditional to grant of special category status to Punjab, Mohindra told The Tribune today, No, it is not conditional. We have decided to sign the MoU on NHPS and will go ahead with the process once our ground work is laid. The proposal for NHPS has been submitted to the Finance Department. Demand for special status for Punjab is genuine and natural considering grave consequences of terrorism we have faced coupled with the new challenge of Pakistan-sponsored narco terror. Punjab is also in the process of setting up a state health agency to run the NHPS and notifying the state health governing council for the same. Special vs general category Special category states such as J&K, hilly and northeastern states, get 90 per cent Union Government funding in central schemes as against 60 per cent for general category states. The same applies to National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS). Punjab is yet to sign the MoU with the Centre to operationalise the NHPS. 10 states yet to join NHPS The following states are yet to sign NHPS MoUs with the Centre: Punjab, Odisha, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Goa, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Delhi. pardeepdhull@gmail.com July 23 US President Donald Trump warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday not to threaten the United States or face the consequences, hours after Rouhani told Trump that hostile policies toward Tehran could lead to the mother of all wars. In a late night Twitter message directed at Rouhani, Trump wrote: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! The escalation in rhetoric came as the Trump administration has launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear program and its support of militant groups, according to US officials familiar with the matter. Iran has faced increased US pressure and looming sanctions following Trumps decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Irans nuclear program. Tehran has said its nuclear work is just for electricity generation and other peaceful projects. In a speech late on Sunday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo denounced Irans leaders as a mafia and promised unspecified backing for Iranians unhappy with their government. Addressing a gathering of Iranian diplomats earlier on Sunday, Rouhani said: Mr Trump, dont play with the lions tail, this would only lead to regret, according to a report by the state news agency IRNA. America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars, Rouhani said, leaving open the possibility of peace between the two countries, at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Rouhani also scoffed at Trumps threat to halt Iranian oil exports and said Iran has a dominant position in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping waterway. Rouhanis apparent threat earlier this month to disrupt oil shipments from neighbouring countries came in reaction to efforts by Washington to force all countries to stop buying Iranian oil. Washington initially planned to shut Iran out of global oil markets completely after Trump abandoned the deal that limited Irans nuclear ambitions, demanding all other countries stop buying Iranian crude by November. But the United States has somewhat eased its stance, saying it may grant sanction waivers to some allies that are particularly reliant on Iranian supplies. Reuters singhking99@yahoo.com Los Angeles, July 22 A man shot his grandmother and girlfriend and then led the police on a car chase that ended when he crashed into a pole and ran inside a busy supermarket as bullets from officers shattered the front doors. About three hours after he took hostages in the store, the suspect surrendered. One woman was killed inside the supermarket, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said. Officers with riot gear, armed with rifles, stood along the side of the Trader Joes in the Silver Lake area yesterday afternoon and used mirrors to try to look inside as hostages periodically came out the front door with the hands raised. At least one person was injured but expected to survive. The suspect walked out with a cluster of four hostages and appeared to be already handcuffed as the group emerged through the front door. The police immediately surrounded the suspect, searched him and then brought him to a waiting ambulance. The man appeared to have blood on his left arm. Investigators believe the suspect, whose name hasnt been released, had shot his grandmother and girlfriend in South Los Angeles and then fled in a 2015 Toyota Camry, Sgt. Barry Montgomery, a Los Angeles police spokesman, said. Officers spotted the suspects car near Hollywood and tried to pull him over, but the man refused to stop and led officers on a pursuit, he said. During the chase, the suspect shot multiple rounds at officers, though no officers were struck by the gunfire, he said. The suspect eventually crashed his car outside of the Trader Joes supermarket and then ran into the store. PTI singhking99@yahoo.com Johannesburg, July 22 South African police say gunmen have opened fire on a minibus carrying members of a taxi drivers association, killing 11 persons and critically wounding four others. Police Brig. Jay Naicker says the victims of yesterdays night attack had attended the funeral of a colleague and were returning home when the ambush occurred. He says the attack happened between the towns of Colenso and Weenen in KwaZulu-Natal province and the victims were from Gauteng province. The vehicle was ambushed. There were 11 fatalities and four were seriously injured and are in hospital, he told reporters. There has been a lot of taxi violence in the area but we are still investigating who the perpetrators were. Tensions between groups of taxi drivers vying for the same routes sometimes spill into deadly violence in South Africa. South African media reported the deaths of 10 persons in violence related to rivalries among minibus taxi drivers in Cape Town over one weekend in May. Minibus taxis are the most popular form of transportation among South Africas population of 55 million. AP gspannu7@gmail.com Gile (Mozambique), July 23 From a distance, the Gile National Reserve in northern Mozambique is a vast, dense ocean of green that reaches as far as the horizon. Bigger than Luxembourg, the 2,800-square-kilometre (1,080-square-mile) forest seems to be reassuringly preserved, its hardwood treasure placed by Mozambique under legal protection. Close up though, the forest bears deep scars from bouts of rampant logging and relentless population growth a testimony to the real-life challenge of how to shield this jewel. Logs line the path leading into the reserve, while further along, trucks piled high with wood shavings, seized by the authorities, stand idle, rusting in the weeds. Illegal logging was a huge problem between 2014 and 2016, said reserve manager Jose Mohamede Dias. The other challenge is the bushfires used in hunting and agriculture which feed local people. Such blazes are the main reason for the forests shrinkage in recent years, he explained. Local people burn down swathes of forest to open up arable land. Once the fields become exhausted, the farmers burn down more trees, and so on. The reserves population, currently more than 10,000, has shot up in recent years, putting immense pressure on the ecosystem. Some seven million hectares (17 million acres) of tropical forests go up in smoke every year worldwide, according to a UN estimate. In a bid to stop the ravaging of the forest, French environmental group Nitidae is offering practical, low-tech help to small farmers on how to use the land more in a sustainable way. One beneficiary is Alexandre Soares, who enrolled a year ago in a training scheme on how to cope with drought and retain soil fertility. They explained that I should leave certain trees in place to balance the ecosystem. Their leaves decompose and fertilise the soil for the next season, he said, wearing a white hat as he tended his plot under the baking sun. Nitidae specialist Dinis Augusto looked at Soares mix of crops, which include corn, cassava and beans. Mixing these plants allows us to guarantee the viability of the soil so the farmers can spend more time on the plot and wont need to find new land, he said. The advice from the pilot project has slowly spread through surrounding communities and improved crop yields a powerful inducement for others to follow the tips. As well as logging and man-made bushfires, the reserve has also been targeted for the manufacture of charcoal the main heat source in many homes in the region. Luis Aghostino set up a basic charcoal oven, digging at the ground barefoot and wearing blue overalls beside several tightly stacked logs, covered in straw and earth. With simple modifications like improved ventilation, the oven is capable of making more charcoal of higher quality and requiring less wood. It doesnt cost any more, the materials are exactly the same and it doesnt take any more time, said Nitidaes Alexandre Tregoures. With this amount of wood, we can produce seven bags of charcoal whereas we were only able to produce two or three before, added Aghostino. Between 10 and 15 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide come through deforestation, which releases carbon, locked in the soil for millennia, into the atmosphere. Forests, on the other hand, are carbon sinksin growing, they take carbon dioxide out of the air and sequestrate it. The Gile reserve is hoping to cash in on its conservation efforts by offering carbon credits under a UN-supported programme called REDD+, for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation, which seeks to tackle forest loss and combat global warming at the same time. The local scheme is financed by the French Fund for the World Environment (FFEM) in collaboration with the Mozambican government. Satellite imaging and forest inventories mean it is possible to monitor the rate at which the forest is shrinking. Between 2010 and 2016, we witnessed a decrease in deforestation in the reserves buffer zonegreenhouse gas emissions were avoided, said Nitidaes country manager, Jean-Baptiste Roelens. The scheme has reduced carbon emissions by 3,00,000 tonnes over five years, with each tonne saved credited at a rate of between USD 5 (4.30 euros) and USD 8 a tonne on the international market for carbon dioxide (CO2). The credits will net the reserve between USD 2 million and USD 3 millionthe windfall will be reinvested locally, to finance sustainable development and support environmental projects, said Roelens. AFP. pardeepdhull@gmail.com Jerusalem, July 23 Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian teenager during a raid in the occupied West Bank on Monday, the Palestinian health ministry said. The Israeli military said its forces responded with live fire in Dheishe refugee camp, near Bethlehem, after Palestinians attacked them with rocks, fire-bombs and grenades. The military statement made no mention of any casualties among the troops. The Palestinian health minister said the dead youth was 15 years old and suffered a chest wound. The Israeli military said that during the raid it detained two Palestinians suspected of attacks and uncovered a weapons manufacturing warehouse. Reuters rchopra@tribunemail.com Islamabad, July 23 Jailed former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif is on the verge of a kidney failure and doctors have recommended to shift him to a hospital immediately, according to a media report. Sharif , 68, is serving a 10-year jail term in a corruption case over his familys purchase of luxury apartments in London. He has been lodged in the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi since July 13. A team of doctors from Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology (RIC), headed by its Chief Executive Major General Dr Azhar Mehmood Kayani (retd), visited the prison and compiled a report after carrying out a detailed medical check-up. The report has now been sent to the Punjab Health secretary. The findings in the report suggest that Sharif be shifted to a hospital immediately, The Express Tribune reported. Although his personal physician Dr Adnan had seen him twice in recent days, the jail administration called doctors from RIC to be sure of what had happened. The team spent about one-and-a-half hour inspecting his condition. According to the medical board, his bodys water levels are very low, which has made his heartbeat erratic now. The amount of urea in his blood has also become very high, which could even lead to kidney failure, the report said. The boards findings suggested that Sharif be shifted to hospital immediately, it added. Sharif had complained about his health on Saturday and the Punjab health secretary constituted a medical board to examine him. The Punjab Prisons sources told Daily Express that they are waiting for the Punjab home departments orders about shifting Sharif to the hospital. Caretaker provincial ministers Shaukat Javed and Ahmed Waqas Riaz said the jail superintendent had been informed in writing about Sharifs health issues and the home department had formed a medical board which would perform another checkup on Monday to decide on whether to shift him to a hospital, the report said. They confirmed that Sharifs medical tests suggested he had kidney issues. The caretaker government is in touch with jail authorities and Nawaz Sharif is getting better medical facilities, they added. PTI gspannu7@gmail.com Islamabad, July 23 A two-month-long campaign by candidates and political parties for Pakistans general election on Wednesday will come to an end at midnight tonight amid low voter enthusiasm and a tense security situation. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said as per rules the campaign must end at midnight so that voters can relax and prepare for the July 25 polls. No candidate or party leader will address gatherings or corner meetings or take out processions after the deadline. According to an ECP official, electronic and print media would also avoid telecasting or publishing political advertisements. Anyone who contravenes ECP guidelines will be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years or with a Rs 100,000 fine. The election campaign has generally been seen as low-key and has failed to enthuse voters as in previous polls. There was also a sense of uncertainty due to court cases against leading politicians, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader and ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was convicted and sent to jail for corruption. The tactics by anti-corruption watchdog National Accountability Bureau have also hampered the campaign. Similarly actions by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) against former president Asif Ali Zardari have also been questioned due to their timing. A sudden spike in suicide attacks by militants has also affected the campaign. About 180 people, including three candidates, were killed in these attacks in the past two weeks. But the contestants and leaders are making last ditch efforts to woo voters before the end of the deadline. PML-N chief Shahbaz Sharif will address rallies in Dera Ghazi Khan and Rawalpindi in Punjab while his son Hamza will organise a rally in Lahore. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan will address gatherings in Lahore, capital of Punjab and the chief battleground for ascendency to power in Pakistan. Separately, Pakistan Peoples Party leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will speak at gatherings in Jacobabad and Shikarpur, the two areas in Sindh, which is a PPP stronghold. The religious alliance of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Sirajul Haq will also make a show of power in capital Islamabad. PTI singhking99@yahoo.com Islamabad, July 22 Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Shehbaz Sharif has said that people can change his name if he does not take Pakistan ahead of India after coming into power, according to a media report today. Sharif, the PML-N prime ministerial candidate, made the remarks while addressing a rally in Sargodha district in Punjab province yesterday. He said that people can change his name if he does not take Pakistan ahead of India after coming into power, The Express Tribune reported. They (Indians) will come to Wahga Border and call Pakistanis their master, 65-year-old Sharif was quoted as saying by the paper. The former Punjab chief minister said that he would bring Pakistan at par with Malaysia and Turkey. He added that he would visit Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to learn from them and make Pakistan a great nation again. He said that Pakistan cannot become a great nation by voting leaders like Imran Khan who have made false promises to our nation. The U-turn signs should be removed from roads and should be replaced by the picture of Imran Khan, he said, adding that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chiefs politics is based on baseless allegations and false promises. Khan alleged corruption against the Punjab government but not a single penny has been proved against me, the PML-N president said. He was the chief minister of Punjab province from June 2013 to June 2018. He was elected as PML-N president in March after his elder brother Nawaz Sharif was disqualified as the party president following a Supreme Court verdict in the Elections Act 2017 case. PTI PTI candidate killed in suicide blast A former provincial minister and senior leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf was on Sunday killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up near his car in the troubled Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province Ikramullah Gandapur, a candidate for the provincial assembly seat from PK-99 constituency, was on his way to an election meeting when the bomber targeted his vehicle in Dera Ismail Khan district Around the same time that Gandapur came under attack, Jamiat-Ulema-Islam-Fazl leader Akram Khan Durrani, a former Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister, also survived a second assassination attempt in less than 10 days Islamist parties in fray Milli Muslim League (MML) Leader: Saifullah Khalid, supported by Hafiz Saeed Saifullah Khalid, supported by Hafiz Saeed Legal status: Banned in Pakistan for its association with Hafiz Saeed, who is on a UN terror list in connection with 2008 Mumbai attacks Banned in Pakistan for its association with Hafiz Saeed, who is on a UN terror list in connection with 2008 Mumbai attacks Election status: Candidates registered under the name Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek are campaigning with Saeeds image on their posters and election materials Candidates registered under the name Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek are campaigning with Saeeds image on their posters and election materials Candidates: 260 (73 for National Assembly and the rest for provincial assemblies) Ahl-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) Leader: Maulana Mohammad Ahmad Ludhianvi Maulana Mohammad Ahmad Ludhianvi Legal status: Banned for being the political wing of sectarian militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which has been allied with Al-Qaida and Islamic State. ASWJ is another name for the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, founded in 1985, which belongs to Deobandi school of Islam Banned for being the political wing of sectarian militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which has been allied with Al-Qaida and Islamic State. ASWJ is another name for the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, founded in 1985, which belongs to Deobandi school of Islam Election status: Candidates are running under the name of Pakistan Rah-e-Haq party, or as independents. Candidates are running under the name of Pakistan Rah-e-Haq party, or as independents. Candidates: More than 150 Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) Leader: Khadim Rizvi Khadim Rizvi Legal status: Registered with Election Commission. The party emerged out of a protest movement in 2016 against the states execution of Mumtaz Qadri, a bodyguard of the Punjab Governor who gunned down his boss in 2011 Registered with Election Commission. The party emerged out of a protest movement in 2016 against the states execution of Mumtaz Qadri, a bodyguard of the Punjab Governor who gunned down his boss in 2011 Election status: Candidates contesting under the TLP banner Candidates contesting under the TLP banner Candidates: 566 (178 of for National Assembly, the rest for provincial assemblies) Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) gspannu7@gmail.com London, July 23 Campaigners and human rights groups in the UK have expressed alarm as it emerged that the UK had bypassed its official policy against the death penalty, which could see two Islamic State recruits face execution in the US. The so-called ISIS Beatles, in reference to their British origin, were captured by American-backed Kurdish forces in Syria in January. Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, from west London, are believed to be two terror suspects out of a foursome that had joined the terrorist network after being radicalised in the UK. In a letter to US attorney general Jeff Sessions last month, leaked to The Daily Telegraph, UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid said Britain will seek no assurances that the pair will not be executed. I am of the view that there are strong reasons for not requiring a death penalty assurance in this specific case, so no such assurances will be sought, Javid said. All assistance and material will be provided on the condition that it may only be used for the purpose sought in that request, namely a federal criminal investigation or prosecution, the letter notes. Shami Chakrabarti, Labours shadow attorney general, said the home secretary had secretly and unilaterally abandoned Britains opposition to the death penalty and appeared to be encouraging this grave human rights abuse. This is a unilateral change of policy without any consultation and I would be amazed if this had been approved explicitly by the prime minister, added Lord Carlile, a former independent reviewer of terrorism legislation. Downing Street said British Prime Minister Theresa May was aware of the letter and discussions with the US on this issue were continuing. The decision was taken by the home secretary and the former foreign secretary following the advice of lawyers and officials. The prime minister was made aware of the decision, a Downing Street spokesperson said. We are continuing to engage with the US on this issue, the spokesperson said. Human rights group Amnesty International called Javids decision a deeply worrying development. Kotey and Elsheikh were members of the ISIS cell with two others from west London Mohammed Emwazi, nicknamed Jihadi John, and Aine Davis. They became associated with the execution of Western hostages. Emwazi, who was the alleged ringleader and appeared in videos showing hostages being beheaded, was killed in a drone strike in 2015 and Davis was convicted of being a senior ISIS member and jailed in Turkey last year. In an interview released earlier this year, Kotey and Elsheikh complained about their British citizenship being revoked. There has since been some uncertainty over whether they should be returned to the UK for trial or face justice in another jurisdiction. The leaked letter by Javid indicates that US courts were better placed to handle foreign fighter cases. The UK Home Office refused to comment on the leaked document. We continue to engage with the US government on this issue, as we do on a range of national security issues and in the context of our joint determination to tackle international terrorism and combat violent extremism, a spokesperson said. PTI According to the interim finance minister Piyush Goyal, the revenue loss will be negligible. The decision of GST rate cut would result in loss of income to the government to an extent of Rs 15,000 crore annually. Mumbai: The GST Council meeting held on 21st July, chaired by Interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal has reduced GST rate on various commodities. The decision of GST rate cut would result in loss of income to the government to an extent of Rs 15,000 crore annually, as per report by Mint. The GST Council in its meeting has decided to cut levies on 50 products comprising of washing machines, lithium-ion batteries, vacuum cleaners, food grinders, mixers, storage water heaters, head dryers, hand dryers, paint, varnishes, water cooler, milk cooler, ice cream coolers, perfumes, toilet sprays and other toiletries has been slashed from 28 per cent to 18 per cent. The GST on handbags, jewellery box, wooden box for paintings, glass art ware, ornamental framed mirrors, handmade lamps, wax, natural gum, iron and brass products have been reduced from 18 per cent to 12 per cent. The GST on some commodities has been slashed from 18 per cent to five per cent, including ethanol, and solid bio-fuel pellets, as per report from ANI. The changes made in the GST rate will come into effect from 27 July. According to the interim finance minister Piyush Goyal, the revenue loss will be negligible. However, according to the officials, in the report, the revenue loss is estimated to be as high as 1 per cent of the tax budget. Currently, the government is not in a position to let go such revenue, as it has in the pipe line many projects for public welfare and the rising crude oil prices can widen the fiscal deficit. The next GST Council meeting is scheduled to be held on 4 August. The main agenda of the meeting would be to address the issues faced by small businesses under the GST regime. (With Inputs from Agencies) gspannu7@gmail.com Dhaka, July 23 Police in Bangladesh have pressed charges against eight militants over the 2016 Dhaka cafe attack that killed 20 people, including an Indian girl, the worst terror attack in the countrys history. The chargesheet was placed before a Dhaka court this morning, more than two years after the gruesome attack on the Gulshans Holey Artisan Bakery (cafe) in Dhakas posh diplomatic area, claimed by the Islamic State terror group. The delay in filing the chargesheet was attributed to the complexities in obtaining information as those involved directly with the operation were killed on the spot, The Daily star quoted chief of Bangladeshs Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit Monirul Islam as saying. Police, however, claimed that the homegrown terror group Neo-Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB), which is close to the ISIS, was behind the attack. Monirul said that police have pressed charges against eight militants over the attack, where 20 people, mostly foreigners, were killed after being taken as hostages. Prof Hasnat Karim, a former teacher of North South University was dropped from the chargesheet as investigation could not relate him with the militant activity, he said. The charges brought against the accused are based on 75 pieces of evidence and 211 witnesses to the incident. Those made accused are: Neo-Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh operatives Rakibul Islam Regan, Hadisur Rahman Sagor, Jahangir Hossain Rajeeb alias Rajeeb Gandhi, Aslam Hossain Rashed alias Rash, Abdus Sabur Khan alias Sohel Mahfuj, Mizanur Rahman alias Baro Mizan, and Mamunur Rashid alias Ripon and Shariful Islam Khaled, a former student of the English department at Rajshahi University. Of them, the first six Neo-JMB operatives are now in jail while the two others are on the run. Twenty people, mostly foreigners, were killed in the brutal late-night attack on July 1 after the attackers took diners and restaurant staff hostage. The Indian girl, Tarishi Jain, was a student of the University of California in Berkeley. She was in Dhaka for vacations. Next morning, a joint commando force stormed the bakery, killing all the attackers and rescuing the captives, ending the terror siege of nearly 11 hours. PTI Thanks -- yes, understand that the weather will be very hot in May. Hopefully there will be lighter tourist crowds, however. Because of the heat, we probably will want to think twice about riding a bike around Ninh Binh. Neither of us has ridden a motorbike before, so renting 2 of them for us isn't really an option either. I have read that you can hire motorbike guides. How does that work? Do they drive like a tuk-tuk thing where we can sit "in the back"; or is the concept of a guide more that s/he's on one motorbike, and me and my friend are on two separate bikes and we follow the guide who stops and describes things to us? Sorry if this question is silly.... I have read online that there it is possible to rent a car with guide for the day, so that is an option as well (although more expensive for sure). The heat shouldn't be too much of an impact on Halong Bay as we will mostly be relaxing on the boat (kayaking and swimming will hopefully allow us to cool off). I assume the boats have a/c -- something to check on. And in Hue/Hoi An we will mostly be taking it easy and slowly wandering around the towns (maybe some time at a beach). Although I'm sure visiting My Son or the Hue sites would be best done early in the AM or later in the day to avoid the worst of the heat. Thanks -:- 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. First many thanks to all who have been answering my questions you are all amazing. So in one of my first posts I was saying 10 days in Osaka. Now after a lot of reading & your suggestions my new plans are: 14 days in Japan, fly in & out of Osaka. Osaka ? days, eating, drinking, sightseeing, shopping & day trips. The day trips I am thinking of are Hiroshima & Kobe. Then train to Tokyo ? days sightseeing, shopping, eating, day trip to Hakone (getting the 2 day pass even tho I'm only going for the day, just can't be bothered checking in & out of hotels) & hopefully a Sumo Wrestling & Kabuki show & see what other types of shows are on. Train to Kyoto ? days same as Tokyo & Osaka with day trip to Nara. I assume the JR pass is the best way to go. I was going to book with agents the majority of my sightseeing & day tours but now I feel I am confident enough to do it alone, plus there are a lot of Itineraries out there for me to read. Any suggestions of anything that is a MUST see or do? Onsens are out because I have a small Tattoo on each thigh, one on my foot & one between my shoulder blades. Oh & Universal Studios also out because Roller Coasters....just no, no way, never ever.......ever. A big thank you to the contributor who convinced go to Tokyo telling me it would be like eating Sushi without wasabi, that made me smile & convinced me Tokyo is now a yes for me. Would recommend you spend some time at Travelfish.org to find which places are most likely to suit your interests and preferences. No mention of those in your post, so can't offer suggestions. We all have our differing preferences, so your choice must be what's likely to interest you. I agree with others in suggesting that you stay in Jackson Heights for its enormous diversity of different nationalities and cultures living side by side. The good people on this site will help you with present day NYC, as there is familiarity with many of the neighborhoods throughout the City. My own personal interest is NYC history and you should start by reading up on some history before you arrive. The 2 best encyclopedic histories of the City are Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898 (by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace) and Greater Gotham a History of New York City from 1898 to 1919 (by Mike Wallace) A 3rd volume (from 1919 on) is due out within the next year or so. You also should check out "World of Our Fathers" by Irving Howe and books of photographs by the 2 great photographic documenters of the immigrant experience (Lewis Hine and Jacob Riis). They capture the flavor of the period. Regarding the first European immigrants (the Dutch), I would strongly recommend The Island at the Center of the World (by Russell Shorto) who argues that much of the character of NY and its multi-ethnicity (as well as the United States) was initiated during the short Dutch Colonial period. I note you are planning on visiting Ellis Island, as well as the Tenement Museum, both of which are important for you. Regarding the Tenement Museum, I would try to hit every one of the tours and exhibitions and do some prior exploration from home. It would take a certain amount of advance planning and logistics to organize and schedule tours. I suggest a family membership which will help you to do this. You should contact the Museum in advance and tell them of your plans in order for you to get them to help you. (A warning: Because you will be here in the summer you need to know that the re-created apartments are not air-conditioned. So, on a hot day it can be quite a slog up flights of stairs and within the apartments. But that also mirrors the immigrant and 2nd generation experiences. I cannot forget the terribly hot days and nights in my Bronx apartment when I was growing up during pre-A/C days in the 1940s.) I also suggest trips to 2 Museums (Museum of the City of New York and the New York Historical Society & Library) early in your trip. View the multimedia video presentation of NYC history in each of these museums. How do I get from the airport (JFK, LGA, or EWR) to Manhattan? What To Do During Layovers? Vacation Apartment Rentals Violate NYC Laws Hotels: Kitchenettes and kitchens in 100+ Manhattan Hotels Hotels: Two queen beds plus a kitchen/kitchenette Hotels: Guests under 21 years old (but at least 18) Hotels: Which ones charge an additional Resort or Facilities Fee Hotels: When is the best time to go for cheaper rates? What are the Must-See's and Must-Do's? How Do I Ride the Subway (UPDATED)? Tips, Hint and Suggestions for First Timers SCAMS to avoid in NYC What Will the Weather Be Like During My Trip? Any Good Websites for Researching My Trip? How Safe is New York? Where to Eat in NYC Where to eat in NYC - Part 2 Celiac in the City? (gluten free) Which Area Should I Stay In? Is There Cheaper Lodging Outside Manhattan? How Much Do I Tip People? Are the New York Pass, Explorer Pass or CityPass worth it? How Do I Hail a Taxi? Public restrooms/toilets. Where do you go when you GOTTA GO? Where are the best areas for shopping? How do I find Discount Tickets for Broadway Shows? What are the NYC Halloween events for 2021? Thanksgiving 2021 in NYC: What to Do & Where to Eat Christmastime in NYC 2021: Dates for the Trees-Windows-Markets-Ice Skating+MORE! Christmas Day 2021 in NYC: What to Do & Where to Eat What Should I Do on New Year's Eve? How Will I Survive the Cold Weather? Where are the Farmers Markets and Street Fairs? What is there to see and do near WTC/SOL/Brooklyn Bridge/SI ferry? What should I know about visiting the 9/11 Memorial and Museum? What Is There to See and Do in Brooklyn? How Do I Get to the Brooklyn Bridge? What Is There to See and Do in Queens? Exploring neighborhoods - where should I go and what should I see? Which is the best? ESB or TOTR or OWO? Which are the significant churches in Manhattan? Hidden Gems in the city - not so touristy How do I get from NYC to the Meadowlands and back? I'm Getting Married in NYC...what do I need to do? Should I Buy Knock-Off Purses? What to Do with Kids and How to Do It? What should we do at night -- especially with kids or under 21's? Places to eat (and drink) with a view Where is the Old FAQ? Trip Reports: Families with Young Kids - Add yours! Trip Reports: Groups of Friends - Add yours! Trip Reports: Couples - Add yours! Trip Reports: Families with Teenagers - Add yours! Trip Reports: Solo Travelers - Add yours! Trip Reports: Families of Adults - Add yours! Hmm, it looks like at least an hour and a half drive from LGA to Flanders and the drive is through some fairly congested areas. (Triboro and GWB toll bridges) I'd wonder about traffic at whatever time you intend to return LGA Not sure if the current state of construction at LGA is a reason to avoid it - or what different projects might be in progress in November. You do have to take a shuttle to the car rental places. Edited: 3 years ago - The MP has claimed that Murkomen was afraid of the ongoing war on corruption hence his "reckless" remarks - Murkomen had earlier claimed that calls for lifestyle audit were unlawful and not enshrined in the constitution - Mbadi wants Uhuru to heighten the war on graft as ODM legislators had thrown their weight behind him South Suba MP John Mbadi has castigated Senate Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomen for what he termed as diverting the nations attention from the ongoing war on corruption. This follows remarks by Murkomen on Thursday, July 19, where he claimed that Mau evictions were a result of the pact between President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens. READ ALSO: Wakenya wamkashifu Bahati kuhusiana na kipindi chake kipya katika NTV Murkomen on Thursday, July 19, claimed that Mau evictions were a result of the pact between President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga. Facebook Source: UGC READ ALSO: Njuri Ncheke elders perform rituals, curse those behind student unrest There are some people who recently joined the government through the back door and are working with some government officials to remove people from Mau, Murkomen claimed. The ODM Chairman further took issue with Murkomen among other allies of Deputy President William Ruto stating that their recent utterances are a cue that they have developed cold feet due to the purge against graft. He termed their sentiments as reckless, careless and immature. Murkomen has been on record to be against President Uhurus calls for lifestyle audit stating that it was not anchored with the frameworks of the constitution. Photo: Facebook/Uhuru Source: UGC READ ALSO: Telco giant Safaricom moves to crack the whip amid storm over SIM card scam involving its staff Murkomen has been on record to be against Uhurus calls for lifestyle audit stating that it was not anchored with the frameworks of the constitution. Someone like Murkomen, because they fear lifestyle audit, are the ones who want to divert our attention that Raila is the one evicting people from Mau. Who is this foolish Kenyan who can believe that Raila, a private citizen of this country can evict anybody from anywhere? stated Mbadi. Subsequently, the Suba South legislators affirmed that ODM legislators were in tandem with the President's intiative to expunge graft from government systems. He said they will protect the President from any impeachment motions brought to Parliament by Jubilee MP's who were not supporting the war on corruption Lords. 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. How street Women In Kenya Deal With Periods | Tuko TV Source: Tuko News - Murkomen claimed Raila pushed for the Mau evictions through an MoU with Uhuru - Mbadi wanted to know which MoU the senator was referring to if not the handshake deal - The ODM party official demanded that Murkomen accept he was wrong and apologise - Murkomen's remarks on the ongoing Mau evictions also angered members of his own party The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party chairman John Mbadi has dismissed sensational claims by Elgeyo Marakwet senator Kipchumba Murkomen that the ODM party boss, Raila Odinga, initiated the fresh round of chaotic Mau evictions. Mbadi pressed Murkomen to explain what he meant when he said "people who recently joined the government through the window" and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with President Uhuru Kenyatta were behind the Mau evictions. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Wakenya wamkashifu Bahati kuhusiana na kipindi chake kipya katika NTV ODM party chairman John Mbadi (L) on Sunday demanded that Senator Kipchumba Murkomen (R) apologise for accusing Raila Oodinga of being behind the Mau evictions. Source: UGC READ ALSO: If Ruto becomes president, Kenyans will think all Kalenjins are thieves - Alfred Keter Appearing on KTN News on Sunday, July 22, Mbadi and Murkomen also lectured each other on the roles of both the government and the opposition in the ongoing Mau impasse with the ODM chairman questioning what the March 9 handshake had to do with the water tower issue. "When you said people who have joined government recently through the window and signed an MoU, which MoU were you referring to? If it was about the plight of the people of Mau, the senator would not have brought in the issue of the handshake," Mbadi argued. Senator Kipchumba Murkomen vowed to continue fighting tooth and nail for the poor who were evicted from the Mau forest and their homes destroyed. Source: UGC READ ALSO: Two Jubilee MPs risk losing seats for campaigning for William Ruto's 2022 presidential bid In response, Murkomen downplayed the claims of Raila's involvement in the thorny Mau evictions and instead challenged Mbadi to explain whether his party ODM had joined the government or was still in the opposition. "Is Mbadi trying to tell me that ODM is now in government and therefore we do not have an Opposition? the senator posed. READ ALSO: Raila says Mau forest evictions denied him Rift support As was earlier reported by TUKO.co.ke, the Elgeyo Marakwet senator had accused Raila of being responsible for the fresh Mau evictions claiming it was one of the issues the ODM party leader pushed for during the March 9 peace agreement with Uhuru. The accusations were met with backlash from both sides of the political divide with Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja accusing Murkomen of undermining the president and the Jubilee party. "The claims by Murkomen that part of the memorandum of the handshake between Uhuru and Raila includes eviction of Kenyans from the Mau forest is disingenuous, underhand and disrespectful to the president," Sakaja said. 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. Tuko Reactions: Maasai React to Western Snacks - On Tuko TV Source: Kenya Breaking News Today The star daughters acting debut made headlines, but wont be seen across media platforms anymore. Amitabh Bachchan and Shweta Bachchan Nanda in a still from the advertisement. Kochi: A leading jewellery chain on Sunday withdrew a one-and-a-half minute long advertisement featuring Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan and his daughter Shweta after it came under attack from a bank union which said it was aimed at creating 'distrust' in the banking system. "We sincerely regret the inadvertent hurt caused and withdraw the advertisement from all media with immediate effect," Executive Director of Kalyan Jewellers, Ramesh Kalyanaraman said in a statement here. He said, "We understand that the advertisement has hurt sentiments of some people including members of our esteemed banking community. Any such hurtful interpretation being drawn is unintended." "We state that the creative advertisement was a work of fiction and not a reflection of banking employees at large. Along with crores of Indians, we acknowledge the valuable contribution of the banking community to our country," the statement said. All India Bank Officers' Confederation, an organisation claiming to have membership of around 3,20,000 officers, last week threatened to sue Kalyan Jewellers accusing it of "casting aspersion and hurting the sentiments of millions of personnel" through the advertisement. AIBOC general secretary Soumya Datta had alleged that the theme, tone and tenor of the ad were "disgusting, derogatory, to say the least and is aimed to create distrust in the banking system, for pure commercial gain." However, Kalyan Jewellers had rejected the allegation, saying it was "pure fiction." The advertisement features Bachchan as an old man and Shweta Bachchan Nanda as his daughter. In the ad, Bachchan, depicted as a person with integrity and honesty, is seen visiting a bank branch along with his daughter to return the extra money credited in his pension account and his bitter encounter with bank employees in the process. "The advertisement portrays banks in bad light, casting aspersion, hurting the sentiment of millions of personnel, stakeholders and is a direct attempt to ruin the trust and confidence of billions of citizenries in banks," Datta had said. Bachchan had tweeted the video of the ad, saying "Emotional moment for me.. tears welling up every time I see it.. daughters are the best !!" Popular Malayalam actress Manju Warrier acted as his daughter in the advertisement's Malayalam version. AIBOC had said in the ad, Bachchan tried to exhibit his honesty by drumming around that "Honesty doesn't mean when everyone is watching, rather it is about being honest when nobody is looking at you. But, Mr Bachchan perhaps was unaware that in the process of doing so on screen, he has made a mockery of the entire bankers' community in the ad which is deplorable and culpable." Datta had said, "We express our strong resentment against the management of Kalyan Jewellers and Mr Bachchan who have manifested a negative and false image of the Banks in the ad for their personal aggrandisement." "We deem it as a case of defamation to all the banks as a whole," it had said. Demanding an unconditional apology from the jewellery group, the AIBOC had said if the advertisement was not withdrawn, suitable "organisational action, including dharnas and litigation" would be initiated. - The fire was reported at round 8pm on Sunday, July 22 - No student was reported to have been injured in the incident - School principal Alex Maina said the cause of the fire was yet to be established At least 63 students spent the night in the cold after a mysterious fire razed down their dormitory on the night of Sunday, July 22, at Friends School Kamusinga in Bungoma County. The fire started when the students were in class during evening studies. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Mbunge wa Gatundu Moses Kuria apokelewa kama mfalme Kisumu Firefighters battle the fire that destroyed students' property at Kamusinga Boys' High School. Photo: Titus Oteba. Source: Original READ ALSO: Grandmother's body stuck in mortuary for 10 years amidst family inheritance row No injuries were reported but no property was salvaged as the students watched helplessly as Jamhuri dormitory was licked by the flames. According to the school principal Alex Maina, the cause of the fire was yet to be established. "We are yet to establish if it was an electric fault or an arson attack but the investigating officers are on the ground doing their work," Maina told TUKO.co.ke. He said officers from the housing department would camp in the school to help them figure out how much money was lost during the fire incident. Flames consume a dormitory at Kamusinga Boys' High School. Photo: Titus Oteba. Source: Original READ ALSO: If Ruto becomes president, Kenyans will think all Kalenjins are thieves - Alfred Keter Efforts by the county fire fighters could not succeed as they arrived when the fire had alredy caused massive destruction. Kamusinga is the latest school to be affected in Bungoma County after a fire gutted down a dormitory at Kapsokwony boys in Mt Elgon Sub-county. Kamusinga is one of the best performing national schools and it has produced some of the prominent people in the country including Bungoma senator Moses Wetang'ula and Kiminini MP Chris Wamalwa among others. Story by Titus Oteba, TUKO Correspondent - Bungoma County 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. Kenya's Sewage Food All You Need to Know About It - on Tuko TV Source: Tuko - High chemical contents in Kenya's fresh produce has eaten into its export revenue to UK - Tanzania, Rwanda, Ethiopia and Cote D'Ivore have triumphed over Kenya in exports - Black tea exports fell by 0.9% as Rwandas surged to 20.6% - Ethiopias exports in fresh cut roses increased to 88.7% while Kenya's dropped by 2.3% Horticulture exports from the country to the Unite Kingdom have for the past five years sharply nose dived by 13.2% following non-compliance to international food safety requirements. This came to the fore in a report on UK-Kenya investment relation which showed Tanzania, Rwanda and Ethiopia have overtaken Kenya in fresh produce exports. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens. READ ALSO: Ruto akaidi amri ya Uhuru kuhusu miradi ya serikali? Kenya's black tea exports fell by 0.9% as Rwandas surged to 20.6%. Photo: Citizen TV/Facebook Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Telco giant Safaricom moves to crack the whip amid storm over SIM card scam involving its staff. Lack of product diversification was also blamed for the erosion in the Kenyan exports and ailing market competitiveness, the People Daily reported on Monday, July 23. This has given rise to significant competition from other African countries, namely Rwanda, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Cote DIvoire, all which have gradually eaten into the market share, the report read. Kenya has been unable to comply with EU maximum residue levels of pesticides in, for instance, beans. Photo: Farmlink Kenya /Facebook Source: Facebook READ ALSO: I will take responsibility if I get information police frustrated probe into Solai dam tragedy - Matiang'i The report said Cote DIvoire had extensive marketing systems which gave it an edge to compete in the front which Kenya had taken lead for decades. In some cases, Kenya is unable to comply with EU maximum residue levels of pesticides in, for instance, beans, the report indicated. READ ALSO: Kipchumba Murkomen in hot soup over Mau outbursts Export shares to the UK stood at 26.7% in 2001 but have since dropped to 13.5% since 2016. Increased export competition from Rwanda, Ethiopia and Tanzania to the UK has significantly reduced Kenyas export to the country by almost half in the last one decade, the report continued to note. To increase the countrys shares in the trade, the report recommended that a competitive marketing system is adopted and also foster product diversification. READ ALSO: SIM swapping: The new trick fraudsters are using to steal from mobile phone users Among the countrys main exports include fresh roses, black tea and vegetables which are key foreign currency earners. Despite the decline in the exports, Kenya registered a 45% increase in preserved pineapples beating Germany which had 21.3% 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. Kenya's Sewage Food All You Need to Know About It - on Tuko TV Source: Tuko.co.ke - Members of the Senate accused Nakuru County commissioner of interfering with investigations into the Solai tragedy - The ad-hoc committee directed Matiang'i to suspend the officer alongside others but that did not happen - The committee was investigating the Solai Dam tragedy that claimed 48 lives and is expected to present a report Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i has said he will take full responsibility if officers working under him will be found to have bungled or interfered with the investigations into the horrific Solai Dam tragedy that killed 48 Kenyans. The CS previously locked horns with members of the Senate ad-hoc committee probing the Solai Dam tragedy over accusations police officers assigned to investigate owners of the killer dam were not doing their job. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: I am not saying officers working under me are angels, but they must be respected - CS Matiangi Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i (R) on Monday, July 23, appeared before Senate Committee probing the Solai dam tragedy. Source: UGC READ ALSO: Wakenya wamkashifu Bahati kuhusiana na kipindi chake kipya katika NTV Appearing before the Senate committee chaired by Makueni senator Mutula Kilonzo Junior on Monday, July 23, Matiang'i said he was not in any way running away from responsibility. "I will not walk away from responsibility. If we get information that our officers were involved or did what they were not supposed to do, then there is a clear procedure for disciplining people," he told the Committee members. READ ALSO: Im not intimidated by ignorant fools - Jubilee Senator fires at MP over Solai Dam tragedy As was previously reported by TUKO.co.ke, Matiang'i had expressed disappointment over the manner in which the national government administration officers were treated when they were summoned before the Senate committee to respond to queries on the Solai Dam issue. Speaking to residents of Nyamira County on July 15, the Interior CS accused the Senate members investigating the tragedy of disrespecting security officers who appeared before them. I am not saying the officers working under me are angels. I am saying they need to be respected by our leaders, he said. READ ALSO: Two families fight over body of baby who perished in Nakuru's Solai Dam tragedy Members of the committee had accused Nakuru County commissioner, Joshua Nkanatha, and his officers of interfering with the investigations and directed Matiang'i to suspend them. Senator Kilonzo alleged the county commissioner was working with the owner of the killer dam to frustrate investigations. 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. Matiangi Talks Tough as He Burns Gambling Machines - On Tuko TV Source: Tuko.co.ke - The deputy president said he will not stop launching new projects across the country - Ruto argued the projects were meant to help Kenyans thus there was a need to have many of them launched - President Uhuru issued a directive that no new projects should be launched until old ones were completed Deputy President William Ruto has said he will not stop launching new projects across the country despite a directive by President Uhuru Kenyatta stopping such activities. Uhuru issued a directive freezing all new development projects until all old ones are completed. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Jinsi simu ya Rais Uhuru ilivyomwokoa Kipchumba Murkomen Deputy President William Ruto shares a light moment with some politicians from Coast during a public event in Kilifi County. Photo: Onesmus Baraka. Source: Original READ ALSO: Mysterious fire razes Kamusinga Boys dormitory as student unrest raises alarm However, Ruto who was speaking in Kilifi during a funds drive said the projects were there to be launched and contribute to the countrys growth. You remember we came here with President Uhuru Kenyatta and launched the Mavueni-Marikani-Kaloleni road, which I believe is now ready and even being used, said Ruto. We will not stop from delivering to Kenyans what they ask. I heard there's an issue on the Mtwapa road, its too congested, and we shall build a dual bridge to ease traffic, he promised. Ruto also used the chance to slam his critics who he said have taken to recording his trips to the coastal region for political reasons saying he would not stop. READ ALSO: If Ruto becomes president, Kenyans will think all Kalenjins are thieves - Alfred Keter I know some keep on counting and keeping records of how many times I have been in this region, if you think by doing so youre pleasing your gods and be paid well, go on and keep more records, he said. But always remember I have nobody to ask for permission whenever I want to visit any place in this country, I am the DP, and I was elected to serve my people, remarked Ruto. Some of the ODM rebel MPs who accompanied the DP to the function assured him of their support in his 2022 presidential bid. READ ALSO: William Ruto is intelligent but surrounded by fools and greedy people - Alfred Keter Kaloleni MP Paul Katana and his Kilifi North counterpart Owen Baya called upon coast residents to reward the DP for what he has been doing for them by supporting his 2022 dream. If Raila Odinga our party leader in ODM jumped over the walls that ODM had built not to associate with any Jubilee leader, and shook hands with President Uhuru Kenyatta, why not us as MPs here? Open up your eyes and lets support the DP for presidency, said Katana. Story by Onesmus Baraka, 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. Kenya's Sewage Food All You Need to Know About It - on Tuko TV Source: Tuko News - Ali Abdi said the former prime minister deserved the coveted prize because of his peace initiatives - He cited the handshake and ongoing peace talks in South Sudan as indicators of Raila's commitment to peace - He also pointed out the ODM party leader had played an instrumental role in building Kenya's democracy A petition to have Kenya's opposition chief Raila Odinga nominated for the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize has been sent to the Nobel Peace Committee. The petition filed by one Ali Abdi, a Kenyan citizen living in the United Kingdom, under the change.org grabbed the attention of thousands of Kenyans on social media including politicians most of who welcomed the move. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Ruto akaidi amri ya Uhuru kuhusu miradi ya serikali? President Uhuru Kenyatta and Opposition leader Raila Odinga moved handshake to hug. Photo: ODM Source: Twitter READ ALSO: Handshake looms in South Sudan after Raila meets Riek Machar and Salva Kiir In the petition seen by TUKO.co.ke on Monday, July 23, Abdi heaped praise on the former prime ministry, citing the March 9 peace agreement with President Uhuru Kenyatta to end a deadly political deadlock and talks with warring South Sudan leaders, Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, as clear indicators of Raila's commitment to promoting peace. "Raila Odinga has played important role and pioneered peace initiatives not only in Kenya but African continent. The recent hand shake with President Kenyatta like the previous with President Kibaki, saved Kenya from turning into bloody civil war. Raila Odinga deserves Nobel Peace Prize," the petitioner argued. Opposition leader and former prime minister Raila Odinga met South Sudan's former vice president Riek Machar in South Africa.Photo: ODM party/ Twitter. Source: Twitter READ ALSO: South Sudan rivals Kiir and Machar meet for peace talks days after Raila visited them Abdi added the ODM party leader had also played an instrumental role in building Kenya's democracy and promoting good governance. "He (Raila) has transformed the lives of millions of Kenyans by sacrificing his freedom in exchange for transformation from totalitarianism, tyranny, dictatorial norms and draconian dark day single party democratic monopoly to multi party democracy creating opportunity for people to exercise their rights to elect persons of their choice," he argued. READ ALSO: These are the priceless fruits of Uhuru-Raila handshake Kenyans are enjoying As of July 23, some 1,870 Kenyans had signed the petition. The Nobel Peace Prize was created by the Swedish inventor, Alfred Nobel, through his last will in which he declared the whole of his remaining fortune to be invested in safe securities and should constitute a fund in the form of prizes to those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind. Some of African leaders who have bagged the top prize include the late anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela in 1993, South Africa's liberation cleric Desmond Tutu who was awarded the prize in 1984 and Kenya's iconic environmentalist, the late Wangari Maathai in 2004. 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. Raila Odinga Is a Project Employed Under Uhuru Kenyatta - Nazlin Umar - On Tuko TV Source: Kenyan Breaking News - Senate Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomen found himself in trouble for linking Raila to Mau evictions - Murkomen said Raila had joined hands with some Jubilee leaders to evict locals from the water tower - ODM MPs hit back at Murkomen telling him to respect their party leader - Some MPs led by Saboti legislator are planning how to remove Murkomen from his senate leadership position Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomens is still feeling the heat that came with his recent outburst on the Mau evictions as ODM legislators now want to impeach him. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens Saboti Member of Parliament Caleb Hamisi on Sunday, July 23, threatened to table a motion in Parliament to oust the outspoken Senate Majority leader. READ ALSO: Jinsi simu ya Rais Uhuru ilivyomwokoa Kipchumba Murkomen Caleb Amisi revealed plans to oust Murkomen as Senate Majority leader. Photo: Reuben Ollita Source: UGC READ ALSO: Ruto defies Uhuru, says he will continue launching projects Speaking during a funds drive in aid of the completion of the Madende Catholic Church, Amisi alongside Busia Women Representative Florence Mutua and her Kiambu counterpart Gathoni Wamuchomba expressed their intentions to impeach Murkomen for allegedly trying to instigate ethic wrangles in the country once again. I will move a motion in Parliament to the effect that Murkomen doesnt deserve to be a leader. I will also move a motion that no elected leader should be arrested over whatever charges but should present themselves before courts of law, Amisi said. As TUKO.co.ke reported earlier, Murkomen divided opinion in the middle within the Jubilee camp following his reaction towards the governments decision to evict squatters in the Mau forest, Narok county. Murkomen's statements on Mau evictions caused an outrage among leaders. Source: UGC READ ALSO: Mau forest evictions will not stop - Jubilee party insists While openly challenging president Uhuru Kenyatta to personally hand the evictees a lasting solution, Murkomen also alleged ODM party leader Raila Odinga had a hand in the evictions. His sentiments were predictably met with heavy criticism, with a section of leaders claiming he had thoroughly disrespected the president and the overall intentions of the famous handshake in March. Wamuchomba concurred with Amisis sentiments adding that Murkomens comments were distasteful especially since the country was slowly healing from a period of political turmoil. Wamuchomba concurred with Amisis sentiments, adding that Murkomens comments were distasteful especially since the country was slowly healing from a period of political turmoil. Photo: Reuben Ollita Source: UGC READ ALSO: We will not tolerate Mau eviction - Gideon Moi On the issue of the evictions, the government remained adamant that families living in the Mau forest would have to vacate the area. 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. Tuko Reactions: Maasai React to Western Snacks | Tuko TV Source: Tuko Breaking News Latest - Senator Aaron Cheruiyot said locals have been tortured enough by ongoing evictions - He asked Jubilee Party Secretary General Raphael Tuju to apologise for saying the evictions would not stop - Cheruiyiot insisted Kalenjin leaders's stand on emerging issues should be respected - He said the land residents were being evicted from was not part of the forest saying Uhuru campaigned there The heated debate surrounding the Mau forest evictions has taken a fresh twist after a section of Rift Valley leaders demanded an apology from Jubilee party Secretary General Raphael Tuju. Kericho Senator Aaron Cheruiyot came out strongly to condemn Tuju following his announcement the government would continue pursuing the Mau evictions despite public outcry. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Jinsi simu ya Rais Uhuru ilivyomwokoa Kipchumba Murkomen In a scathing attack, Cheruiyot echoed his Elgeyo Marakwet counterpart Kipchumba Murkomens sentiments that it was unfair for the government to evict squatters from the vast water tower. Tuju owes Kenyans living in Mau Narok an apology for appearing to sanitise what is obviously a gross violation of human rights. Police brutality will never be condoned, he said. READ ALSO: Kipchumba Murkomen in hot soup over Mau outbursts The senator also took a slight jab at the president by citing that Uhuru Kenyatta at some point during the presidential campaigns in 2017 toured the Mau forest region to seek votes, only for the government to evict the inhabitants months later. Cheruiyot made the remarks on Monday, July 23 a day after he joined Mau settlers for a prayer session the previous day. Kerocho Senator Cheruiyot wants Jubiee Secretary General Raphael Tuju to apologise for the presser he had on Sunday, July 22 Source: Twitter READ ALSO: Stop undermining President Uhuru - Sakaja warns Murkomen He, alongside Murkomen are among a growing number of leaders within Jubilee and beyond who are openly against evicting settlers in Mau forest. While the government through Tuju maintained the evictions would continue, Cheruiyot faulted the move saying it was an attempt to "sanitise the abuse of rights". He further challenged Tuju to tour the Mau region himself to get a grip of what was really happening on the ground. "Tuju should get out of his air conditioned office and visit Mau to get the feeling on the ground," the Senator went on. 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. Tuko Reactions: Maasai React to Western Snacks | Tuko TV: Source: Tuko - Kenyans took to Twitter to vent their anger after Ben Chumo appeared before MPs for vetting - The former Kenya Power boss is facing economic crimes charges in a court of law - Kenyans expressed shock that MPs went ahead to grill Chumo even as the war on graft seems to be heightened Kenyans were on Monday, July 23, up in arms after it emerged the under-fire former Kenya Power CEO Ben Chumo was still being lined up for a plum job despite damaging corruption allegations against him. Chumo and two Kenya Power managers, Peter Mwicigi and Beatrice Meso, allegedly conspired to commit economic crimes, ranging from flouting of procurement laws to blatant abuse of office. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Ruto akaidi amri ya Uhuru kuhusu miradi ya serikali? But the former KPLC boss, despite his tainted reputation, still appeared before the Parliamentary Finance Committee for grilling seeking to become the chairperson of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC). Having been handpicked by President Uhuru Kenyatta for the SRC job, Kenyans felt Chumos chances of getting the job were all but finished following the KPLC scandal which saw up to KSh 4.6 billion lost in the purchase of faulty transformers. But a bold Chumo who has a doctorate degree in human resource management, is still very well poised to land the job as he appeared unfazed during the vetting. Here are some of the reactions from Kenyans as seen by TUKO.co.ke: READ ALSO: Uhuru picks ex-Kenya Power boss to head Salaries Remuneration Commission as Serem exits office READ ALSO: Former Kenya Power CEO Ben Chumo, two managers arrested over economic crimes In his defence, Chumo, during the vetting process, maintained his innocence, saying he was not part of the procurement team at the time of the purchase of sub-standard transformers. 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. Tuko Reactions: Maasai React to Western Snacks | Tuko TV: Source: Kenyan Breaking News - The residents demonstrated in support of evictions of those encroaching Mau forest - Kipchumba Murkomen is on the spot for asking government to stop the Mau evictions - The sentiments from Murkomen elicited a hot debate that threatened to break Jubilee party Narok residents took to the streets of Narok town on Monday, July 23, to protest against Senate Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomens take on the Mau evictions. The more than 200 demonstrators carried placards calling on the Elgeyo Marakwet senator to stop politicising and inciting people against the governments move to evict those encroaching the Mau forest. Send News to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Ruto akaidi amri ya Uhuru kuhusu miradi ya serikali? Narok residents hold demo condemning Murkomen for resisting Mau evictions. Photo: Mmeza Mate/Facebook Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Mbadi, Murkomen lecture each other on alleged involvement of Raila in fresh Mau evictions On Monday, July 23, Narok Senetar Ledama Olekina asked Murkomen to stop divisive politics. "We warned Murkomen not to politicise everything. The great people of Narok are now on the streets. Kindly stop divisive politics," said Olekina in his tweet seen by TUKO.co.ke. On Thursday, July 19, the Elgeyo Marakwet senator called on the government to stop Mau evictions citing they were to be done based on the Jubilees tea zone cutline that was issued in 2015. READ ALSO: Ruto milked Mau Forest to get his deputy president position - Tiaty MP William Kamket says He questioned why the government was using the 2008 Hassan Noor Mau Task Force Report to evict the residents contrary to the directive that had been issued on the use of the 2015 cutline for the Mau boundary. The debate has elicited divisions in the ruling Jubilee with one side of the party demanding the government to reconsider the manner in which the evictions were being done and the other strongly supporting the transfers. Jubilee Secretary General Raphael Tuju clarified the Mau evictions would continue despite opposition from some party members. 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 Tuko Reactions: Maasai React to Western Snacks | Tuko TV Source: Tuko - Some projects remain incomplete despite being under construction for decades and costing taxpayers billions of shillings - New Mitihani House building in Nairobis South B has been under construction for 28 years, and still requires more funds - Uhuru directed public officials to complete all ongoing projects before embarking on new ones Picture this. A child is born while a construction of a seven-storey building kicks off in Nairobis South B suburb. Some 28 years down the line, the child is now an adult who graduated from university, married and even got children. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens. READ ALSO: Jinsi simu ya Rais Uhuru ilivyomwokoa Kipchumba Murkomen baada ya matamshi yake kuhusu Mau President Uhuru Kenyatta presiding over the opening of a road in the Coast region. Most mega projects started during his first tenure are still uncompleted. Photo:Uhuru/Facebook Source: Facebook READ ALSO: Kenyans erupt as MPs vet graft-ridden ex-Kenya Power boss Ben Chumo for plum job But the building is still a shell that is just over 50% complete and continues to receive a budgetary allocation every financial year, yet estimates indicate it still requires billions of shillings to complete. This is the story of the New Mitihani House building in Nairobi, one of the dozens of stalled national projects across the country that continue to rot away despite costing the taxpayer billions of shillings over the years. President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday, July 20 decreed that all pending projects must be finished before embarking on new ones.Photo: Uhuru/Facebook Source: Facebook READ ALSO: ODM MPs plot how to impeach Murkomen over Mau slur against Raila It is such projects that prompted the decree to all public officials by President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday, July 20, that they must unconditionally complete all ongoing projects before embarking on new ones. New Mitihani House building, which belongs to the Kenya National Examination Council, was only 54% complete in 2016. Auditor General Edward Ouko said it required an estimated extra KSh 2.6 billion to complete. Yet, Kenyans can feel lucky that KNEC at least has a physical shell to show for its efforts or lack of. Oukos reports have exposed projects that cost up to KSh 10 billion in taxpayers money but never took off. An example is a fertiliser factory in Mombasa that was never built despite being allocated KSh 6.3 billion. READ ALSO: Narok residents hold demo, condemn Kipchumba Murkomen for resisting Mau evictions Below are more examples of grounded projects that have cost the taxpayer additional money and which could have triggered the presidents wrath; Irrigation schemes In the 2015/16 report, the Auditor General raised questions about a KSh 20 billion allocation to the National Irrigation Board for various irrigation schemes that could not be accounted for. He questioned why the agency wanted an extra KSh 15 billion to complete 21 irrigation projects initiated in 2012 for KSh 880 million but stalled. The stalled irrigation schemes include Kagaari Gaturi (KSh 333.9 million), Komo (KSh12 million), Lokubae (KSh36 million), Kieni (KSh 24.7 KSh) and Lower Nzoia (KSh 7 million). others were Maugo (KSh 1.4 million), Rachuonyo (KSh 6.96 million), Rahole (KSh 1.71 million), Bura (KSh 45.8 million), Rapsu (KSh 32.62 million) and Sio (KSh 10.78 million). The Auditor General also raaised the red flag on irrigations projects like Siso (KSh 13.39 million), Suba Clusters Irrigation project (KSh 1.4 million), Subukia (KSh 2.4 million), Tunyo (KSh 9,500 million ), Elelea (KSh 4.4 million), Hola (KSh7.2 million), Kibwezi (KSh 1.1 million) and Usueni (KSh 1.3 million). READ ALSO: Narok residents hold demo, condemn Kipchumba Murkomen for resisting Mau evictions Military housing units Construction of 144 three bedroom houses for military officers at Kenyatta Barracks in Gilgil has been pending for 13 years. The Ministry of Defence in 2005 contracted Capital Construction Company to put up the houses within two years, a period that was later varied by an extra two years at a cost of KSh 346 million. When the project was half complete and KSh 295 million already paid to the contractor, the tender was cancelled and a fresh contract awarded, the project cost was revised upwards by an extra KSh 660 million. READ ALSO: Kenyans erupt as MPs vet graft-ridden ex-Kenya Power boss Ben Chumo for plum job Another KSh 316 million contract to construct houses at Embakasi Garrison was awarded in 2013. The project was to be completed within one year but two years later and with KSh 265 million already sunk into the project, it was yet to be delivered. Tree-planting Initiative In 2009, President Mwai Kibaki kicked off a project dubbed Miti Mingi, Maisha Bora, to be implemented by the Kenya Forest Service. The project was meant to increase forest cover in arid and semi-arid areas to promote consistent rainfall and create an environment for sustainable logging. At the time of its termination in December 2015, the project had a budget of KSh 2.4 billion. It had by then exhausted KSh 1.4 billion or 55% of the total amount received, with KSh 131 million remaining as unspent cash in the project account. READ ALSO: Telco giant Safaricom moves to crack the whip amid storm over SIM card scam involving its staff As a result, Ouko said the programme may not be able to utilise the remaining KSh 1.08 billion as the project already closed, adding that consequently, the programmes goals and outcomes may not have been realised. Markets and other infrastructural facilities In 2009, Kibaki launched countrywide projects, mainly markets in urban areas, as part of the Economic Stimulus Programme. The programme had an initial funding of KSh 22 billion. Others were to be funded under the Constituency Development Fund. Nine years down the line, some of the key projects under the programme are lying idle, having inexplicably stalled. 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. How street Women In Kenya Deal With Periods | Tuko TV Source: Tuko Page Not Found! It seems that the page you are looking for does not exist or has been removed. Opposition members say they will begin to rally support for their declaration of an October revolution. Speaking at their weekly media briefing this morning, Senator Wade Mark said they will be calling on the population to stand up against the government following its handling of the police service commission imbroglio. A Canadian arms manufacturing company has signed a contract for the supply of modern sniper rifles to Ukraine. A deputy from the opposition Conservative Party of Canada, James Bezan, said this in an interview with the International Broadcasting Multimedia Platform of Ukraine UATV. "There's one contract [between Ukraine and Canada] that's already been signed for sniper rifles. We're just waiting for the Government of Canada to sign the export permits so those rifles can be shipped to Ukraine and would greatly enhance the capability of the Ukrainian forces in deterring aggression from Russian soldiers and Russian proxies," Bezan said. He emphasized that these deliveries would be commercial, without specifying who will act as a seller and who as a buyer. In his opinion, it should be an "automatic process" for Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland to sign the export permit, since there are no legislative barriers to the supply of arms to Ukraine. Bezan added that there will be little time between the completion of all formal procedures and the beginning of the delivery of weapons to Ukraine. If the export permit is signed, then the supplies will start once the weapons are made, he said. According to him, several Canadian companies engaged in the production of special equipment are considering entering the Ukrainian market. "I know that there are other equipment manufacturers here that make machineguns, light armored vehicles, and they are all looking at the potential of working with Ukrainian companies and the Ukrainian military to better equip Ukrainian soldiers," Bezan said. As reported, last year Canada included Ukraine in the so-called Automatic Firearms Country Control List, thus in fact lifting an arms embargo on Ukraine. op Over five months of 2018, Ukraine exported 50,138 tons of poultry meat to the EU countries. As Priamyi Ukrainian TV channel reports with reference to Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, Ukraine is third largest poultry meat supplier to the European Union. In addition, the exports increased by 90% compared with the same period in 2017. Ukraine follows Thailand (123,894 tons since the beginning of the year) and Brazil (110,763 tons). At the same time, the Thailands poultry meat exports to the EU grew by 13.2%, while the Brazils exports shrinked by 41.9%. Since the beginning of the year, the EU member states have imported more than 320,000 tons of poultry meat, having reduced deliveries by 8% compared to January-May last year. ol The Finance Ministry of Ukraine launches its official page on the Bloomberg Terminal. Ukrainian Acting Finance Minister Oksana Markarova announced this during a working visit to the UK, the press service of the Ministry reports. The page is a generally available resource for investors to learn about financial instruments offered by Ukraine. Informing foreign investors about Ukrainian sovereign financial instruments will help expand the base of foreign investors in securities issued by Ukraine, the Finance Ministry assures. As noted, from today, the Finance Ministrys domestic government bonds auction calendar, auction announcements and results, as well as list of primary dealers and general information can be accessed by any Bloomberg subscriber. There is also information related to outstanding domestic government bonds and Eurobonds on official page of the Finance Ministry of Ukraine. Bloomberg subscribers can access the official page of the Finance Ministry of Ukraine through the function MFU. ol Ukrainian Acting Finance Minister Oksana Markarova has signed on behalf of Ukraine the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting. "July 23, in London, Ukrainian Acting Finance Minister Oksana Markarova signed the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (MLI)," the press service of the Finance Ministry of Ukraine reports. As Markarova explained, signing the MLI enables to amend the existing international treaties on avoidance of double taxation between Ukraine and other states. "The implementation of the Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting will foster harmonization of international tax regulations with more than 70 world countries and create a more transparent tax environment," she said. Now the Convention should be ratified by the parliament. ol In the old tweets, the 51-year-old director cracked crude jokes dealing with pedophilia and rape. The development came a day after a series of old offensive tweets made by the filmmaker resurfaced on social media. Thousands have signed an online petition asking Walt Disney Co to rehire "Guardians of the Galaxy" writer-director James Gunn, who was fired from the threequel. The development came a day after a series of old offensive tweets made by the filmmaker resurfaced on social media. In the old tweets, screenshots of which are available online, the 51-year-old director cracked crude jokes dealing with pedophilia and rape. The screenshots of Gunn's tweets, which ranged from 2009 through 2012, were shared by a conservative website The Daily Caller. The petition, titled 'RE-HIRE JAMES GUNN' on website change.org was started by a Chandler Edwards, has gained over 30,000 signatures in Gunn's support. Edwards writes he agrees that the studio had "full right" to sack the director from the job but the argument does not hold water as Gunn was not working for Disney when he had shared those tweets. "I agree on the point that if people say a bunch of stupid shit while working for a studio, the studio has full right to fire him over the possible controversy. This situation is very different though as he made these jokes years before he was working for Disney and also the fact that they were jokes," the petition read. Fellow director Joe Carnahan ("The Grey", "Smokin' Aces") also shared the petition on Twitter. After being sacked, Gunn, who has been quite vocal in his criticism of US President Donald Trump, issued an apology on Twitter and claimed that he has changed over the years. "It's not to say I'm better, but I am very, very different than I was a few years ago; today I try to root my work in love and connection and less in anger. My days saying something just because it's shocking and trying to get a reaction are over," he said in another tweet. The filmmaker also issued a statement where he "regretted" the tweets and stressed that "they don't reflect the person I am today". Actor Dave Bautista, who plays Drax the Destroyer in the "Guardians of the Galaxy" franchise, took to Twitter to defend the director. "I will have more to say but for right now all I will say is this..@JamesGunn is one of the most loving, caring, good natured people I have ever met. "He's gentle and kind and cares deeply for people and animals. He's made mistakes. We all have. I'm not ok with what's happening to him," Bautista said. David Dastmalchian, who played Kurt in "Ant Man" and its sequel, also came out in support of the filmmaker, calling Gunn "one of the most amazing people I've known". "Guardians of the Galaxy" lead Chris Pratt, however, evaded questions related to Gunn during a Q&A session round for "The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part" at San Diego Comic-Con. Gunn was in the middle of writing the script for the third film, which was scheduled to begin shooting in Atlanta in the fall for a 2020 release date. Deputies of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the Moldovan parliament have held a meeting of the Ukraine-Moldova inter-parliamentary friendship group in Odesa, during which they discussed information security, electoral reform, implementation of the law on education, as well as the situation on the Moldovan-Ukrainian border. Ukrinform's correspondent in Moldova learned this from the press service of the Moldovan parliament. "While signing the next eight protocols on the introduction of joint control at Moldovan-Ukrainian checkpoints (at the Transdniestrian section of the border), we hope for the support of our Ukrainian colleagues," Moldovan MP Eugeniu Nichiforciuc said. Ukrainian MP Pavlo Unhurian drew the attention of Moldovan colleagues to Ukraine's experience in countering the information war and Russian propaganda. Ukrainian deputies, in turn, expressed hope that Moldova's transition to a mixed system of parliamentary elections would help establish closer contacts between deputies and voters. Moldovan MP Violeta Ivanov thanked the Ukrainian side for Moldova's support in adopting a UN resolution on the unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops from the Transdniestrian region. Regarding the implementation of the Ukrainian law on education, Ukrainian MPs assured their Moldovan colleagues that the rights of national minorities residing in Ukraine would be respected in strict conformity with international standards. The next meeting of the Ukraine-Moldova inter-parliamentary friendship group will be held this autumn. op Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has said that autocephaly for Ukraine has not been guaranteed yet and that it is necessary to pray and fight for it. He wrote this on Twitter and posted a video. "Autocephaly is a matter of our independence and our national security, and this is why such a fierce resistance comes from Moscow and its fifth column in Ukraine," Poroshenko said at a meeting with the Greek Catholics, which took place in Ternopil region on July 15. At the same time, he stressed that in order to receive a Tomos, it is necessary to pray and fight. "We do not have to believe that Tomos is in our pocket. We should pray and fight for it," Poroshenko said. As reported, President Poroshenko said on April 17 that he had prepared an appeal to the Ecumenical Patriarch with the request to issue a Tomos about autocephaly for the Orthodox Church in Ukraine. On April 18, the head of state officially accepted from the hierarchs of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Kyiv Patriarchate) and the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church a relevant appeal for transfer to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, with the signatures of all the bishops who supported this decision. On April 19, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a resolution to support the president's appeal to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to establish a single local Ukrainian Orthodox Church. On April 22, Poroshenko reported the transfer of relevant appeals to the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the beginning of the procedures needed to grant autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The president also expressed hope for a positive decision of the Synod on issuing a Tomos to Ukraine ahead of the 1030th anniversary of the Christianization of the Kyivan Rus, that is before July 28. The Russian Orthodox Church, in turn, strongly opposed such an initiative by Ukraine. op The panel of judges of the North Caucasus Military District Court in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don has returned the indictment against Ukrainian Pavlo Hryb to prosecutors for revision. Presiding judge Sergei Gorelov drew attention to the fact that the indictment refers to the old version of Article 205 of the Criminal Code of Russia. The article provides for eight years in prison, but is no longer in force. The prosecutor said that was a mistake and he meant the new version of the article, according to which the defendant faces up to 10 years in prison, Hromadske reports. Lawyer Marina Dubrovina stated that toughening of punishment contradicted the Russian Constitution. The panel of judges returned the indictment to the prosecutor. Pavlo Hryb said at the hearing that he did not admit his guilt, Radio Liberty reported. As reported, Pavlo Hryb disappeared on August 24, 2017 in Belarus, where he went to the city of Gostomel to date a girl with whom he communicated on social networking sites. In September, it became known that Pavlo Hryb was in a detention center in Krasnodar (Russia), charged with terrorism. At the same time, his lawyer said that Pavlo had been kidnapped by FSB officers. ol According to Zahorodniy, political figures normally topping certain polls, Petro Poroshenko and Yulia Tymoshenko, are not overly popular among average voters. Political and economic expert Taras Zahorodniy claims that the recent polls showing possible winners of the upcoming presidential race are unrepresentative. The expert stresses about 70% of the population still have not decided on their favorite candidate, Glavred reports. "No matter how many candidates, including Yulia Tymoshenko, insist that they will become president today or tomorrow, it's just a sociology war. In fact, it will be possible to argue about chances only three months before the election. You always need to take into account the figures that are shown, what was the sample, the period of the study, and how many people said they were undecided (now it's nearly 70%)," he said. According to Zahorodniy, political figures traditionally topping the polls, Petro Poroshenko and Yulia Tymoshenko, are not overly popular among average voters. Read alsoSociologists name favorites in elections to Ukraine's parliament "Yulia Volodymyrivna, like Petro Oleksiiovych, has a very significant anti-rating. It's very difficult for them to gain votes: no matter what these candidates say, they are simply not being heard. For example, even if everything in the Ukrainian economy turns great, still no one will vote for Petro Oleksiiovych, because people can't hear him since his too high of an anti-rating. The real 'ceiling' of support for Yulia Volodymyrivna is about 12%. This is the core that has not yet gone anywhere. In big cities, Yulia Volodymyrivna enjoys only very modest support. Mr. Liashko is shaking her [political] field, so they have a significant volatility of votes. In any case, 12% is not enough to get to the second round," the expert said. Read alsoRockstar Vakarchuk, actor Zelensky outrun Poroshenko in latest polls The analyst added head of the Opposition Bloc's Yuriy Boyko is the rival of the president and leader of the Batkivshchyna Party, as he may become "the only candidate for the southeast of the country." We have only three candidates who employ systems able to win presidential elections Poroshenko, Boyko, and Tymoshenko. All other candidates can only either steal votes or be technical candidates who can somehow influence access of the above-mentioned three candidates to the second round," he said. The expert believes Putin will not resort to resolving the issue by force as he is now "dreaming to free Russia from sanctions." Russian political analyst and publicist Andrei Piontkovsky says the initiative of Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the referendum in Donbas bears no threats for Ukraine, since "the most dangerous period for Ukraine was in 2015-2016, when the French and Germans came to Kyiv, putting pressure on the [Verkhovna] Rada, the government and the president to amend the constitution and set up federalization of Ukraine." Back then, "Putin actively used his interpretation of the Minsk agreements. His idea was to put these occupied territories as a cancerous tumor back into Ukraine's body to make it decompose from within. But the efforts has also failed," Piontkovsky told the Ukrainian news outlet Apostrophe. Read alsoEx-U.S. Ambassador Herbst: Kremlin has no right to offer Donbas referendum amid Russian aggression The expert believes Putin will not resort to resolving the issue by force as he is now "dreaming to free Russia from sanctions," and as long as he harbors hope for their withdrawal, he will not go for any military aggravation. "Moreover, it seems to him that it is possible to achieve his goals in Ukraine in a less risky way, namely by active participation in the election campaign and supporting the candidates who are ready to compromise, which in fact is to surrender Ukrainian independence," Piontkovsky said. As UNIAN reported earlier, the White House said Donald Trump did not consider supporting Putin's idea on the Donbas referendum. Gerashchenko said Ukrainians released from militant captivity returned home with severe PTSD, requiring psychological rehabilitation. Ukraine's Representative in the humanitarian subgroup of the Tripartite Contact Group for the Donbas settlement, First Deputy Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Iryna Gerashchenko has said all Ukrainians who were released from the captivity of Russia-controlled militants in Donbas, had suffered head injuries and some complained they had been sodomized by captors. "I saw medical certificates all released had craniocerebral traumas. They had been tortured, beaten on the head. A dozen of them revealed they had been sodomized," she said in an interview with Ukrayinska Pravda. According to Gerashchenko, after the release, former prisoners are undergoing medical examination and a vetting by special services. Read alsoUkraine official: "no referendum" to be held in occupied Donbas "That's not just because they might be suspected of something, no. In fact, it's from these conversations that we gather information on people the militants are still keeping hostage," she said. Gerashchenko said all Ukrainians released had returned with severe PTSD, therefore they were undergoing psychological rehabilitation. "Captivity is a terrible test. The first breath of freedom is not easy either. That's why I think it's important we create a Ministry for Veterans Affairs. The issue concerns not only the hostages, but also those guys have gone to war, saw death, and killed the enemy," she said. Putin never wanted Donbas, he sought to take control over the whole of Ukraine, Piontkovsky said. Russian political analyst and publicist Andrei Piontkovsky says the efforts by Russian President Vladimir Putin to support pro-Moscow candidates in the upcoming elections in Ukraine will be his "final stake." "The first two failed. The first one, may I remind you, was 'Novorossia,' that is, an attempt to stir up unrest in 12 regions in order to dismember Ukraine," Piontkovaky told Apostrophe, a Ukrainian news outlet. "When this failed, he came up with the idea of pushing the so-called 'LPR' [self-proclaimed 'Luhansk and Donetsk People's Republics'] into Ukraine. This hasn't been achieved, either. And now there will be a third attempt to grab control over the entire Ukraine through the election campaign," Piontkovsky said. Read alsoRussian political analyst: Putin's idea of referendum in Donbas "already dead" The political expert added that Putin had never wanted Donbas as such but rather sought to enjoy control over the whole of Ukraine. "This is the nature of his aggression. Therefore, one should be wary of [the Kremlin's] active participation in the campaign, including in support, in all senses, of certain candidates, rather than its initiatives on Donbas," the political analyst said. The ambassador was invited to the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in connection with the Italian interior minister's unacceptable statements. Ambassador of Italy to Ukraine Davide La Cecilia assures his country consistently supports Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Italian ambassador was invited to Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs for explanations in connection with unacceptable statements by Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini regarding Ukraine, the Ukrainian ministry's press service told UNIAN. Read alsoMFA Ukraine to summon Italian Ambassador over Minister Salvini recognizing Crimea annexation "Italy's stance on supporting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine is clear and consistent, as was officially announced by Italy at all international platforms, including recent events that took place as part of the EU, NATO and the G7," La Cecilia said at a meeting with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on European Integration Lana Zerkal. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry says that Ukraine expects that Italy will continue contributing to the European Union's united position supporting Ukraine in the fight against Russian aggression. As UNIAN reported, Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister of Italy Salvini on July 20 said in an interview to The Washington Post that Russia had a right to annex Ukraine's Crimea in 2014 and the Revolution of Dignity in Ukraine was fake and a "pseudo-revolution." He also spoke in favor of lifting sanctions against the Russian Federation. A Russian court in August 2015 sentenced Sentsov to 20 years in prison. Nataliya Kaplan, the cousin of Ukrainian film director from Crimea Oleh Sentsov, who has been on hunger strike in a Russian colony since May 14, says he is on the edge of life and death. "We don't know how long his body will keep going, but we've been told he's in a pre-death state," she told The Independent. "It's a miracle he has lasted this long." As a compromise "he agreed to take two to three spoonfuls of nutritional mix to support his heart." "After 68 days of starvation, he needs much more than this," she said. Read alsoSentsov's lawyer to visit his client in August As reported earlier, Sentsov's state of health has deteriorated significantly, he has virtually lost orientation in time. Russia's FSB operatives detained Sentsov in Russian-occupied Crimea in the spring of 2014. He was transferred to Russia, where he was tried on trumped-up charges of organizing terror attacks and setting fire to the offices of political parties. The Russian court in August 2015 sentenced Sentsov to 20 years in prison. The Ukrainian film director is being held in a colony in the distant Arctic town of Labytnangi. On May 14, 2018, Sentsov went on hunger strike demanding the release of all Ukrainian political prisoners. Ukrainian Ombudsperson, Liudmyla Denisova, was denied access to Sentsov. Sentsov's mother, Liudmyla, appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 22, 2018, asking to pardon her son. Within the framework of the meeting there will be a discussion of the situation around the supposedly "uncanonical process" of granting autocephaly to the Ukrainian Local Orthodox Church, Information Resistance learned. The Russian Embassy in Ukraine, together with the Russia-controlled Moscow Patriarchate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, has invited for a meeting to be held the day following mass events in Kyiv a number of foreign ambassadors and representatives of foreign Orthodox churches, according to Information Resistance OSINT community leader, MP Dmytro Tymchuk. The deputy in a Facebook posting says he believes the effort aims at expanding the channels of communication for spreading key messages of Russian propaganda in relation to Ukraine's aspirations to get for its church an autocephalous status, that is to ensure its independence of the Russian influence. One of the messages to be channeled is the "massive" group of Ukrainian admirers of the Moscow Patriarchate and the other possible thing is "provocations" by someone under the guise of "fascists and nationalists" that may be carried out during the religious procession in honor of the 1030th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus. Read alsoRussia launches yet another fake story targeting Ukraine church independence aspirations "On the initiative of [Moscow Patriarchate's] Metropolitan Onufriy, the day after the Crusade, on July 28, representatives of the following foreign embassies in Ukraine are scheduled to meet in the territory of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra: Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Georgia, Greece, Cyprus, Serbia, Macedonia , Bulgaria and Romania. "In addition, the Exarchate of the ROC in Ukraine (UOC-MP), on instructions from Moscow, separately invited representatives of the Serbian, Macedonian, Bulgarian, Georgian and Belarusian Orthodox Churches, as well as representatives of the American Orthodox Church," Tymchuk wrote. Within the framework of the meeting there will be a discussion of the situation around the supposedly "uncanonical process" of granting autocephaly to the Ukrainian Local Orthodox Church, Information Resistance learned. Using the messages crafted in Moscow, against the 'necessary' background formed during the Orthodox procession in Kyiv, the attendees will be warned of the threats of such developments ("the split of world Orthodoxy", "bloody confrontation in Ukraine on religious grounds," etc), according to Tymchuk. Read alsoRussia plotting provocations: pro-Moscow churches, clerics in Ukraine could be "attacked" NGO The main thesis by Russia will be to promote a call for unity so that "by common efforts to preserve peace on Ukrainian soil, "which, to put it mildly, sounds awkward under conditions of ongoing occupation and aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. "Let's hope that the diplomats invited to the meeting, as well as the representatives of the world Orthodox community, have enough understanding and common sense not to dance to the FSB tune in this propaganda show," Tymchuk concludes. The body bore severe torture marks indicating that he was brutally tortured to death by the militants, a police spokesman said. Constable Mohammad Saleem Shah, who was on leave, was abducted by militants from his residence in Mutalhama area of Kulgam in south Kashmir on Friday. (Photo: PTI/Representational image) Srinagar: Three militants, including a Pakistani, involved in the abduction and killing of a police constable were killed by security forces in an encounter in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, the police said. Constable Mohammad Saleem Shah, who was on leave, was abducted by militants from his residence in Mutalhama area of Kulgam in south Kashmir on Friday. His body was recovered from a nursery near village Redwani Payeen on Saturday. The body bore severe torture marks indicating that he was brutally tortured to death by the militants, a police spokesman said. The spokesman said a joint patrol of security forces launched searches at Redwani area in Kulgam district in south Kashmir this morning after receiving credible inputs about the presence of the militants in a cluster of houses. As the security forces advanced, hiding terrorists fired resulting in a brief encounter in which three terrorists were killed. No collateral damage occurred during the encounter, the spokesman said. Concerted efforts of the security forces resulted in the elimination of the prime accused involved in yesterdays abduction and killing of Constable Saleem Shah at Kulgam, a police spokesman said. He said on the basis of the incriminating materials seized, the killed militants were identified as Muawiya, a foreigner of Pakistani origin, Suhail Ahmad Dar, a resident of Redwani Balaa and Mudassar alias Rehaan of Katarsoo. All of them were involved in the killing of Constable Saleem. As per police records, the terrorists were affiliated with the proscribed terror outfit LeT (Lashkar-e-Toiba) and HM (Hizbul Mujahideen), the spokesman said. He said Muawiyas involvement was established in a number of civilian killings. Suhail, who was working as a labourer earlier after he had dropped out from school. Sentsov was previously a regular attendee and presented his films at the festival. Ukrainian film director Oleh Sentsov illegally imprisoned in Russia obbviously could not attend the Odesa International Film Festival this year. But at every film screening in Odesa, organizers reserved a spot for him. That empty seat became a symbol of Ukraine's support for Sentsov and hope for his release, as reported by Kyiv Post. Both the Ukrainian and international film communities have joined together in support of Sentsov, and visitors to the Odesa film festival are no exception. Read alsoSentsov asks not to spread false rumors about his force-feeding or death Sentsov was previously a regular attendee and presented his films at the festival. Alik Shpilyuk, the program advisor of the festival, describes Sentsov as a friend of the event. The law allows broadcasting in any language. Starting in October, Ukrainian media outlets that broadcast in the territories of the annexed Crimea, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions, will raise to 75% the share of content in Ukrainian, according to Crimea.Realities. Nowadays, the law allows broadcasting in any language. The most important is that it should be Ukrainian broadcasts, a national product, European product, there is a quota on the European product," said Serhii Kostynskyi, member of the National Council of Television and Radio Broadcasting of Ukraine, according to UA.TV. "Starting from October, 75% of broadcasts will be in Ukrainian," Kostynskyi said. He stressed the fact that it is about broadcasting on "territories that Russia stole from Ukraine." "And the Ukrainian language is not a problem, I'm telling you this as a Crimea native. If you get access to high-quality journalism, language does not matter, the official said. Read alsoPoroshenko launches system of counteracting anti-Ukrainian broadcast in Donbas The National Council of Television and Radio Broadcasting of Ukraine reported that Russia had seized 503 Ukrainian television and radio frequencies in Crimea and Sevastopol. In 2014, the total losses of Ukraine, broadcasting companies and providers of software services amounted to at least $9.2 million, that's according to preliminary estimates. As of March 2018, the state budget underreceived approximately $730,000 from license fees. Earlier, UATV opened a correspondent station in the area of the Joint Forces Operation in the city of Sievierodonetsk 20 kilometers from the demarcation line. Denisova urges Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic to join hands for the release of Ukrainian sailors from Greek prisons. Ukrainian Parliament's Commissioner for Human Rights Liudmyla Denisova says 112 Ukrainian citizens are now imprisoned in Greece on charges of smuggling of migrants. "According to available information, there are 161 Ukrainians in prisons in Greece, 112 of them are imprisoned on charges of transporting illegal migrants," the ombudswoman said on Facebook. "There are many Ukrainians in Greek prisons. Our citizens are being deceived into working on cruise liners and yachts, and then are forced, under penalty of death, to smuggle illegal migrants across the sea to Europe. That is why hundreds of Ukrainian sailors have been detained by Greek law enforcement agencies," she wrote. According to her, criminal groups recruit low-income Ukrainians for such illegal work. "Sailors are promised official employment, work under a contract. Very quickly, just a few months after, they find themselves in Greek prisons ... And someone makes huge money on this," she said. She says Ukrainian detainees' rights are violated in prisons. Translators who are hired for citizens of Ukraine do not speak Ukrainian or Russian at a sufficient level. "That is, legal assistance is not provided in full, as without good translation, detainees cannot provide proof of their innocence, communicate with a lawyer and find out details of their case," she said. "What is more, the court does not take into account circumstances mitigating their guilt and sailors' testimony, and the conditions of their detention do not meet the minimum standard requirements for the treatment of prisoners," she said. According to the sailors' relatives, conditions in prisons are terrible, medical treatment is not provided. Read alsoTwo Ukrainians imprisoned in Greece for 180 years for smuggling of migrants Denisova notes that Ukraine and the Hellenic Republic are states that have joined the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. "Article 26 of the Convention provides for exemption from punishment if the crime was committed under duress, that is, as in most cases of detained Ukrainian sailors," the commissioner said. Taking this into consideration, Denisova calls on Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic for cooperation and hopes that they will be able to jointly return the Ukrainian citizens home. A statement by the U.S. State Department Spokesperson following the phone conversation holds no mention of the issue. Russias foreign minister told his U.S. counterpart on Saturday that a woman arrested in the United States on accusations she was a Russian agent had been detained on fabricated charges and should be released. On Wednesday, a U.S. judge ordered the woman in question, Mariia Butina, 29, jailed until her trial after U.S. prosecutors argued she has ties to Russian intelligence and could flee the United States, according to Reuters. Butina has been accused of working with a high-powered Russian official and two unidentified U.S. citizens, trying to infiltrate a pro-gun rights organization in the United States and influence the United States foreign policy toward Russia. Read alsoReuters Exclusive: Accused Russian agent Butina met with U.S. Treasury, Fed officials Lavrov said the actions of the American authorities, who arrested Butina on the basis of fabricated charges, were unacceptable and called for her release as soon as possible. At the same time, U.S. State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert in her statement following the phone conversation did not mention the issue. "Among the topics discussed was the fact that Russia had violated its commitment in southwest Syria," reads the statement. Pompeo and Lavrov talked a broad range of issues, some of which were following up from the meeting between President Trump and President Putin, according to the spokesperson. Read alsoU.S. State Department: Russia "without a doubt responsible" for shooting down MH17 "The two also discussed how to implement ideas on counterterrorism process coordination and the mutual goal of establishing business-to-business dialogue between private, non-governmentally controlled entities in each of our two countries," Nauert said. The discussion also touched upon the "need for Russia to provide equal diplomatic access to the United States, at a level that is fair and reciprocal." Despite the publicity from the U.S. investigation and greater awareness across the West of Russias influence operations, Estonian intelligence officials assert Moscow has not been deterred. For the past several months, intelligence and security officials in the U.S. government and private sector have cautiously marveled at the seemingly slow pace of Russian cyberattacks and influence operations using social media. Some have suggested the slowdown is the result of better preparation and better cyber tools that have allowed social media companies to thwart Russian efforts. But among Western intelligence agencies, there is also concern that Russia may not be relying on bots and trolls because they have real people who can do the work instead, Voice of America reports. We [Estonian intelligence] have detected a network of politicians, journalists, diplomats, business people who are actually Russian influence agents and who are doing what they are told to do, Mikk Marran, the director general of Estonias Foreign Intelligence Service said Friday, speaking of Moscows efforts in the West. We see clearly that those people are pushing Russia's agenda, Marran told an audience at the annual Aspen Security Forum in Aspen, Colorado. Read alsoRFE/RL: Estonia says Russian plane again violates airspace Despite the publicity from the U.S. investigation and greater awareness across the West of Russias influence operations, Estonian intelligence officials assert Moscow has not been deterred. Instead they say the Kremlin has ratcheted up efforts to make use of influence agents, many of whom Moscow has been cultivating for years. Politicians that have been in the margins of local politics some years ago are actually right now in national parliaments or national governments, Marran said. They have made some bad investments but they have also made some very good investments. Read alsoRussia meddled in U.S. elections via Facebook, Zuckerberg confirms What they [the Russians] have provided to those people is media support, political support. They have proposed or provided some exclusive business opportunities, he added. In some occasions we have also seen that they have provided financial aid. Marran declined to name any politicians, diplomats or journalists suspected of being in Moscows pocket. And while it is not the first time that Estonia, a U.S. ally and a NATO member, has warned of Russia's cultivation of influence agents in Western Europe, there are growing concerns that such operations have taken hold in the United States. Foreign minister Nikos Kotzias is determined to protect a recent accord with Macedonia. Mounting tensions between Athens and Moscow have exacerbated growing friction on NATOs south-eastern flank, with the two traditional allies locked in an increasingly hostile war of words. As evidence accumulates of the extraordinary lengths the Kremlin is willing to go to in order to thwart NATOs expansion in the Balkans, the Greek foreign minister, Nikos Kotzias, used two interviews at the weekend to publicly rebuke Russia. Russia must realize that it cannot disrespect the national interests of another state because it feels it is stronger, Kotzias told the Syntakton newspaper, according to the Guardian. Asked whether he was concerned about the abrupt souring in relations between the two countries following Athenss announcement in July that it would expel two Russian diplomats for attempting to undermine the landmark accord settling the 27-year-old name row between Greece and Macedonia, Kotzias insisted on Sunday that national interests came first. Greece has decided to send a message to the east and the west, towards all its friends and others, that regardless of who is violating the principles of national sovereignty and respect toward us, measures will be taken, he told the state-run Athens news agency. The time when turning a blind eye was considered diplomacy has passed. Read alsoGreece decides to expel Russian diplomats media The rebuke came 11 days after prime minister Alexis Tsiprass leftist-led coalition announced it would expel the Russian envoys and bar two others from re-entering the country for activities it said violated Greek law. Early last week, Athens declared that it considered the matter closed. Greek fury had focused on Russian efforts to sabotage the historic agreement signed between Athens and Skopje on the banks of Lake Prespa in June. Within days of the deal being reached, the former Yugoslav republic was invited to join NATO, an offer zealously accepted by the prime minister, Zoran Zaev, on the grounds that membership would bring security and economic growth to the tiny, multi-ethnic state. However, Russia, which has long regarded the region as falling into its own orbit of influence, was angered. Moscow is determined to stop the further expansion of NATO in south-east Europe, said James Ker-Lindsay, a Balkan specialist and visiting fellow at the London School of Economics. However, most observers thought it would concentrate its efforts on Macedonia, rather than Greece. On both sides of the border, reports have mounted up of the increasingly audacious methods Moscow is prepared to use to prevent Balkan nations being embraced by the west. Read alsoRFE/RL: Macedonian lawmakers ratify 'historic' name deal with Greece Last week, Zaev accused Greek-Russian businessmen of funding resistance to the accord by whipping up nationalist and anti-NATO fury among hardliners staging violent demonstrations. Macedonian officials, he said, had discovered local pro-Russian businessmen being paid up to EUR 300,000 to foment acts of violence in the runup to a referendum his social democrat government is expected to hold on the name deal in the autumn. The allegations followed an explosive report by the investigatory journalism body the Organised Crime and Corruption project that detailed the strong subversive propaganda and intelligence activity Macedonia has been subjected to by a Kremlin that also sees the strategic state as crucial to its European gas pipelines. And in Greece, Russian agents bent on penetrating the countrys intelligence and armed forces have also been accused of bribery. (@ChaudhryMAli88) The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) announced, today, that the ADNOC Technical Academy (ATA) will be hosting an Open Day event on Saturday, July 28, from 9.00 to 14.00, at its Al Shawamekh campus. ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 24th Jul, 2018) The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) announced, today, that the ADNOC Technical academy (ATA) will be hosting an Open Day event on Saturday, July 28, from 9.00 to 14.00, at its Al Shawamekh campus. Prospective students and their parents are invited to attend the Open Day to learn about ATAs academic curriculum and training program, as well as the application and enrolment process. The Academy is open for 17- to 25-year olds who are UAE nationals, or are the son of a UAE mother, and have finished Grade 12 and UAE military service. Established in 1978, the ATA has provided education and technical training to more than 5,000 UAE nationals, who, upon graduation, joined ADNOCs workforce. The ATAs classroom, workshop and simulated trainings are designed to equip students with the wide range of operational, mechanical, electrical and instrumental skills needed to control oil and gas industry processes. Its 2.5-year academic program combines a year of classroom learning, followed by a year and half of onsite on-the-job training. Its curriculum integrates the latest technological advancements to ensure ATA graduates are well-prepared to work in ADNOCs modern and innovative operational environments. Based in Al Shawamekh, Abu Dhabi, the ADNOC Technical Academy is a large purpose-built campus with educational, technical and recreational facilities, in addition to a hostel that houses more than 500 students. It employs best-in-class educators and instructors from around the globe to ensure that students receive high-level general education and technical training before entering ADNOCs workforce. DUBAI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 23rd Jul, 2018) During its visit to Albania and Kosovo, a specialist humanitarian team from the Dar Al Ber Society discussed ways of supporting its charity and humanitarian projects in the two countries, as well as their development mechanisms. The delegation included Omran Mohammed Abdullah, Head of the Charitable Projects Sector, and Abdulkarim Jaafar Al Hassan, Director of the Asia and Europe Projects Administration of the Association. Abdullah said that the societys charitable and development projects, which number 14 in Albania and 29 in Kosovo, includes the construction of mosques and the digging of wells. He added that the visit aims to assess the societys partners in Kosovo and Albania, as well as to explore the nature of the two countries, to enable the society to draft an appropriate charity plan and overcome its administrative hurdles, to facilitate its charity work. He noted that the delegation visited the societys projects in both countries, to assess quality of construction and attention to detail while noting that they will perform regular visits, to learn about the obstacles faced by the societys projects and how to monitor contractors. Al Hassan said that the team discussed the performance and timelines of the societys projects, as well as its response to relevant correspondence and communication. At the end of its mission, the delegation considered the demands of the societys partner authorities from both countries, especially those that are working on Islamic centre projects while highlighting the need for projects to help vulnerable and poor families, as well as the necessity of supporting development projects and maintaining agricultural land, to increase the income of families. The Emirates Red Crescent has organised a Henna contest for 10 entrants from different districts in Zanzibar, Abyan, including professionals and amateurs. ABYAN, Yemen, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 24th Jul, 2018) The Emirates Red Crescent has organised a Henna contest for 10 entrants from different districts in Zanzibar, Abyan, including professionals and amateurs. The competition comes as part of the ERC's efforts to preserve the Yemeni heritage and encourage those interested in promoting different aspects of the country's national folklore and culture. The contestants came up with impressive henna tattoos that reflected the quintessential beauty of the Arabian and Indian heritage. Henna is a small flowering shrub that has many uses. The fragrant flowers are used to create perfume, and the leaves are dried and then turned into a fine powder thats used for dying clothes, hair and temporarily dying the skin hence henna tattooing. The plant has even been known to treat skin conditions. The participants, who all were financially rewarded at the end of the contest, appreciated the ERC's initiative and interest in reviving the country's cultural legacy. The Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology, ESMA, and the Emirates National Accreditation System, ENAS, have signed three Memorandums of Understanding, MoU, with the Belarusian State Centre for Accreditation, BSCA, on technical cooperation related to halal accreditation, as well as on the accreditation system of relevant authorities and the exchange of specialist technical expertise. ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 23rd Jul, 2018) The Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology, ESMA, and the Emirates National Accreditation System, ENAS, have signed three Memorandums of Understanding, MoU, with the Belarusian State Centre for Accreditation, BSCA, on technical cooperation related to halal accreditation, as well as on the accreditation system of relevant authorities and the exchange of specialist technical expertise. The MoUs, which were signed in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, by Abdulla Abdul Qader Al Maeeni, Director-General of ESMA, and Dr. Rehab Al Ameri, Director of ENAS, include the implementation of the Emirati system for monitoring and training halal products, as well as the training of Belarusian authorities on the UAEs halal accreditation requirements. Al Maeeni said that ESMA aims to comply with the directives of the wise leadership to develop the Islamic economic sector while noting that the country has already adopted an integrated global system for halal products. He added that the UAE has launched many key international initiatives and has signed MoUs to promote the halal sector, as well as the standardisation and metrology sectors, to achieve the authoritys goals and make the countrys national halal system the basis of an international halal system. Al Maeeni noted the UAEs efforts to promote the halal sector and regulate halal products, as well as to train international authorities that grant halal certificates, with the aim of improving the accuracy of its investigations and scrutinising the quality of products and their compliance with the Islamic Sharia. The MoUs will also benefit authorities that grant halal certificates in countries neighbouring Belarus, he added. He further added that the MoUs aim to improve the halal accreditation of the food and makeup industries, as well as to develop the standardisation, metrology and quality system of Belarus, in line with Emirati standards. He also praised the halal accreditation system adopted by the UAE Cabinet, which guarantees the compliance of halal products and services with the Islamic Sharia while noting that the MoUs will benefit Belarus, by providing technical cooperation and exchanging information and technologies. The signing of the MoUs was attended by Ahmed Mohammed Manqoosh Alteneiji, UAE Ambassador to Belarus, and Roman Golovashchenko, Ambassador of Belarus to the UAE, as well as government officials from Belarus. It has also been alleged that victim was taken to police station first where cops thrashed him which led to his death. On Sunday, the investigation in the case was handed over to an additional SP-rank officer by the Inspector General of Jaipur range. (Photo: File | Twitter) Alwar: Shocking details have emerged in the case of a Muslim man beaten to death by a mob in Alwars Ramgarh over suspected cow smuggling as eyewitnesses have alleged foul play by the police. One of the eyewitnesses told news agency ANI that the police stopped outside his house and thrashed the victim. It has also been reportedly said that the police delayed in taking the victim to the hospital. According to a report in NDTV, the victim was in police custody for three hours 45 minutes before he was taken to a hospital early on Saturday. The two cows recovered from the victim were seemed to be the polices priority. Instead of taking the man, identified as Akbar Khan, to the hospital, the police took the two cows to a cow shelter 10 km away a good one hour before Khan was brought to the health centre, dead, a report in The Times of India said. According to a First Information Report (FIR), the police received a call about the incident at around 12:41 am from a right-wing supporter Naval Kishore. The police reportedly reached the spot at 1:15 or 1: 20 am. While arrangements were being made for vehicles to ferry the cows to the shelter, the policemen headed out for refreshments. With the injured man complaining of pain, the policemen drank cups of tea from a nearby stall, NDTV report further said. Naval Kishore has also alleged that Khan was taken to the police station first where the cops thrashed him which led to his death. He was later taken to Ramgarh community health centre at 4 am where doctors declared him dead on arrival, a report in Hindustan Times said. On Sunday, the investigation in the case was handed over to an additional SP-rank officer by the Inspector General of Jaipur range, news agency PTI reported. A third arrest was also made on Sunday. "Naresh Singh, a resident of Lalawandi village, was arrested today. Police are on the lookout for another accused," SHO, Ramgarh Police Station, Subhash Sharma said. Two persons were nabbed by the police on Saturday. Read: Third suspect arrested in Alwar after man killed for cow smuggling Akbar Khan, a resident of Kolgaon in Haryana, and his friend were allegedly attacked when they were taking two cows to their village through a forest area near Lalawandi village in Alwar last night. A profusely bleeding Akbar was taken to hospital but doctors declared him brought dead. Meanwhile, his friend managed to escape from the location. Akbars father, Suleiman, also sought justice and demanded a swift probe in the case. We want justice. The culprits should be arrested soon, he said. Also Read: Want justice: Father of man lynched in Alwar on suspicion of cow smuggling Earlier, Gyandev Ahuja, a state MLA, has also said the man died not because of beating by crowds but in police custody, to which home minister Gulab Chand Kataria has said the guilty will be punished. The incident comes over a year after a dairy farmer in his 50s, Pehlu Khan, was thrashed to death by a group of alleged cow vigilantes in Alwar. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) welcomes the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 23rd July 2018 in regards to Qatars request for Provisional Measures under the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination. ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 23rd Jul, 2018) The United Arab Emirates (UAE) welcomes the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 23rd July 2018 in regards to Qatars request for Provisional Measures under the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination. The ICJ refused to grant any of the Provisional Measures specifically requested by Qatar. By a very narrow margin, the Court indicated certain measures with which the UAE is already in compliance. The ICJs decision reflects that Provisional Measures sought by Qatar are without a valid basis and were unsupported by the evidence. Instead of these unproductive maneuvers, Qatar should be engaging with the legitimate concerns of the UAE and the other three States that have ended relations with Qatar regarding its continuing support for terrorism and its efforts to destabilize the region. In a statement today, the UAE reiterated its position that its actions are directed at the Qatari government and not towards the Qatari people. Contrary to Qatars false allegations, thousands of Qataris continue to reside in and visit the UAE. Qatari visitors may enter the UAE with prior entry permission issued through the telephone hotline announced on June 11, 2017. "We urge Qatar to constructively engage on the requests made by the UAE and other countries for Qatar to comply with its international obligations. The UAE reiterates that it will continue to welcome Qatari citizens into its territory, as affirmed in the statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation on July 5th, 2018," the statement added. (@rukhshanmir) Saudi Arabia recently launched the Makkah Road Initiative in Indonesia and Malaysia in order to facilitate the journey of pilgrims. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Saudi Arabia recently launched the Makkah Road Initiative in Indonesia and Malaysia in order to facilitate the journey of pilgrims. The Kingdom will provide the service to pilgrims from any country "wishing to benefit from it", the Center for International Communication (CIC) quoted Maj. Gen. Sulaiman Abdulaziz Al-Yahya, Director General of Passports and head of the Makkah Road initiative, as saying. The service will offer pre-clearance of immigration for pilgrims at their respective points of embarkation. Saudi and Indonesian officials attended the launch of the initiative at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta after the service was launched in Malaysia last week, Saudi Gazette reported. The officials were briefed on the implementation and operation of the system. They also met the first batch of Indonesian and Malaysian pilgrims who experienced the unified electronic system. The decision to introduce the service in Malaysia and Indonesia was made on the basis of the large numbers of pilgrims coming from those two countries. However, with some 1.75 million pilgrims arriving from abroad last year, Saudi authorities are considering extending the service to other countries in the coming years. Maj. Gen. Al-Yahya said in a statement: "The first journey for Indonesian pilgrims benefiting from the Makkah Route service has started. Before that, the first two journeys for Malaysian pilgrims were launched from the Kuala Lumpur airport." "The Makkah Road initiative will be implemented in any country wishing to benefit from it," he added. The Makkah Road initiative was formally launched at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Saturday, from where the first two flights carrying pilgrims who completed their entry procedures for the Kingdom left. In Jakarta, the launch was attended by Maj. Gen. Al-Yahya and Ossama Mohammad Al-Shuaibi, the ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Indonesia. The initiative is overseen by a Saudi team from the Ministry of Interior. The head of the Saudi delegation said that the Ministry of Interior developed the service as part of the National Transformation Program 2020 and to achieve the goals and objectives of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 that aims to improve Haj services. Deputy Minister of Haj and Umrah Dr. Hussein Al-Sharif said the initiative "will continue to be implemented" for the benefit of the pilgrims. The government agencies in Saudi Arabia providing the services to pilgrims within the Kingdom include the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Haj and Umrah, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Health, the General Authority of Civil Aviation, Saudi Customs, and the National Information Center The services include issuance of visas, customs and passport procedures, facilitating health requirements, as well as sorting luggage according to transportation and housing arrangements in Saudi Arabia. These pre-departure services will not only ease the arrival of pilgrims in the Kingdom, but will also allow them to head directly to their accommodations in Makkah and Madinah without having to deal with time-consuming procedures. Luggage is handled by agencies that transport baggage directly to the visitors' accommodation. Saudi Arabia is also facilitating access for pilgrims from Qatar by allowing them to register via an online platform. Haj officially begins on the 8th of Dhul-Hijjah and ends on the 13th day of the same Islamic month, corresponding to August 19-24. More than 2.35 million pilgrims performed Haj last year, about three-quarters of whom came from outside the Kingdom. On official visit to Maldives, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi has called on President of the Republic of Maldives, Abdulla Yameen Abdul Garoom at President's office at Male. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :On official visit to Maldives, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi has called on President of the Republic of Maldives, Abdulla Yameen Abdul Garoom at President's office at Male. During the meeting, matters of mutual interests were dilated upon, said a press release issued here on Monday by directorate of general public relations of Pakistan Navy. Admiral Zafar highlighted Pakistan's commitment and performance in the fight against terrorism including Pakistan Navy's contributions towards regional maritime security, in pursuance of government of Pakistan's policies, to ensure peace and stability in the Indian Ocean Region. While stressing upon the constructive engagements between Pakistan Navy and Maldives National Defence Force Coast Guard to deal with the contemporary challenges, Admiral Zafar announced gifting of a Landing Craft Mechanized to Maldives which will assist Maldivian Coast Guard in its efforts to contribute towards regional peace and security. President of the Republic of Maldives acknowledged Pakistan Navy's strenuous efforts for maintaining maritime security in the region and thanked Chief of the Naval Staff for gifting of a Landing Craft Mechanized. The President also expressed satisfaction over the historical bonds and defence collaboration between Pakistan and Maldives in various avenues including training, reciprocal visits, port calls and looked forward to further increase in defence ties and bilateral relations. The Admiral reiterated Pakistan's continued support to Maldives Armed Forces in the field of training, provision of equipment, technical manpower and expertise. Earlier, Chief of the Naval Staff met Maldives' Defence and National Security, Adam Shareef Umar and Chief of Defence Forces, Major General Ahmed Shiyam. Upon arrival at Maldives National Defence Forces Headquarters, a smartly turned-out contingent of Maldives Armed Forces presented him the guard of honour. During the meetings, discussions on professional matters including bilateral defence collaboration and security environment in Indian Ocean Region were held. Various avenues of cooperation between the two Navies were also focused. Pakistan and Maldives enjoy cordial relations founded on the common principles of brotherhood, friendship and sovereign equality. Being littoral states of Indian Ocean Region, both countries share common maritime challenges. As an extension of Government's foreign policy, Pakistan Navy continues proactive endeavors to enhance maritime collaboration with the Indian Ocean littoral states. It is expected that recent visit of Naval Chief will enhance collaboration between the two countries in general and navies in particular in the diverse defence related avenues. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Caretaker Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Justice (Retd) Dost Muhammad Khan has said that any obstruction in the smooth process of polling on the polling day will be a punishable offence and no-one can deny the women of their right to cast their votes. PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Caretaker Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Justice (Retd) Dost Muhammad Khan has said that any obstruction in the smooth process of polling on the polling day will be a punishable offence and no-one can deny the women of their right to cast their votes. This he stated during a visit to the Emergency Control Room at Chief Minster Secretariat Peshawar for the general election-2018. Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Muhammad Akbar Khan gave a detailed briefing to the Caretaker Chief Minister during his visit to the Emergency Control Room. The Caretaker Chief Minister made a number of queries and gave certain directions for the constant interaction with different departments and agencies responsible for services and facilitation during the elections. Justice (Retd) Dost Muhammad Khan directed to communicate to the heads of PESCO and TESCO for uninterrupted supply of electricity on the elections day throughout the province. They should also ensure back up support and generators in functional condition to facilitate uninterrupted electricity in all the polling stations and other sensitive places on the elections day. Caretaker Chief Minister directed the officials in the Emergency Control Room to collect and monitor complaints of the voters and entertain their genuine complaints within 24 hours. The Emergency Control room should constantly look at the obstructions and problems in the whole election process and take immediate measures to resolve them. He said that the basic aim behind the establishment of Emergency Control Room is to ensure the peaceful, neutral and transparent holding of elections throughout the province adding that anything and any move restricting the women to cast their votes would be a punishable offence. Justice (Retd) Dost Muhammad Khan directed the quarter concerned to ensure wheel chairs in election polling booths for the aged and disabled persons in order to facilitate them in casting their votes. He ordered to ensure the presence of all government officials on their duty places. There would be no off and all government officials should be present in their places of duties adding that their failure will trigger disciplinary action against them. He directed the Emergency Control Room to establish constant and uninterrupted liaison andcoordinate with all public sector entities delivering yeoman services in theelections 2018. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Pakistan's High Commissioner to Mauritius, Dr. Syed Rizwan Ahmed presented Letter of Credence to Acting President of Mauritius Paramasivum Pillay Vyapoory at State House, Reduit, a message received here from Mauritius on Monday said. After the presentation of Credentials, the high commissioner had a meeting with the president of Mauritius and conveyed greetings of President Mamnoon Hussain. The president of Mauritius while expressing gratitude for the message of goodwill from President Mamnoon Hussain, expressed his desire to consolidate the bilateral relations especially in the fields of trade, investment, agriculture, tourism and education. The high commissioner discussed the ways and means to further strengthen the already existing friendly and cordial relations. Some specific areas such as information technology, and narcotics control were identified for particular focus. Both sides expressed satisfaction at the existing level of cooperation between the two countries at regional and international level. President Vyapoory praised the gesture of goodwill by the team of doctors (Ophthalmologists), headed by Professor Dr. Wajid Ali Khan, Chief consultant / Dean, Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital, who visits Mauritius annually for cornea transplant and vitreo retina surgeries. Zahid Ahmad Khan Jatoi, Deputy High Commissioner and Faisal Idris, Education Attache were also present on the occasion. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Inomata says Japan and Pakistan have traditionally enjoyed good relations which will further strengthen with the passage of time. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Japanese ambassador Hiroshi Inomata says Japan and Pakistan have traditionally enjoyed good relations which will further strengthen with the passage of time. He said this in an exclusive interview with Radio Pakistan's news and Current Affairs Channel in Islamabad on Tuesday. He said the existing level of trade between the two countries is around 2 billion Dollars which needs to be enhanced. He said Japanese investors have already invested in automobiles, motorcycles, pharmaceuticals and other important sectors in Pakistan. Hiroshi Inomata said many Japanese companies are interested in cooperation in energy sector in Pakistan. He said in the past Japan extended assistance to Pakistan in hydro-energy and now it is cooperating in clean energy production projects and alternative energy. About Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) funded projects at the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation, he said Japan is assisting PBC in its transition from analogue to digital technology. He said the project will be completed by September this year and will benefit a large number of people especially in FATA and Gilgit-Baltistan in receiving clear and better broadcasts. The ambassador said Pak-Japan Business Forum with offices in Karachi and Lahore is very much committed to expanding bilateral trade and business ties. He said there will be a meeting of the Forum later this year. To a question, he said during 2009-2011 Japan extended assistance to Pakistan for projects relating to sewerage, food, medical and disaster relief. Japanese ambassador said 5,000 Pakistanis have trained in Japan under JICA programmes. Replying to a question, he said since 9/11 Pakistan has been bravely confronting the menace of terrorism and has offered many sacrifices in the fight against terrorism. (@rukhshanmir) Pakistan on Monday strongly condemned the terrorist attack at the Hamid Karzai International airport in Kabul resulting in loss of several innocent lives and injuring many others. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Pakistan on Monday strongly condemned the terrorist attack at the Hamid Karzai International airport in Kabul resulting in loss of several innocent lives and injuring many others. "We express our deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives and pray to Almighty Allah for early recovery of the injured," a statement released by the Foreign Office said. "We express our support and solidarity with the people and Government of Afghanistan in this hour of grief," the spokesman said in a statement. "Pakistan reiterates its condemnation of terrorism in all forms and manifestations and the resolve to eliminate this menace," he added. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Federal Minister for Information, Broadcasting, National History and Literary Heritage Barrister Syed Ali Zafar on Monday expressed the hope that people all across the country would exercise their right to vote freely and without any fear. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Federal Minister for Information, Broadcasting, National History and Literary Heritage Barrister Syed Ali Zafar on Monday expressed the hope that people all across the country would exercise their right to vote freely and without any fear. Speaking at the inauguration of Election City 2018 of Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC) here, he said all the stakeholders including the previous Parliament and Election Commission of Pakistan played their role for a transparent and impartial election. He said the caretaker government was completely impartial and it had nothing to do with who would win or lose the election or which party would emerge successful. The fate and progress of the country was in hands of the people who would have the opportunity to cast their vote thoughtfully and without any fear, he added. The minister said in the past, results from Presiding Officers were sent with delay which created doubts but now the method was completely changed. The Election Commission had prepared software through which results from the Returning Officers would be received directly by ECP and through a link would also be received by Pakistan Television, he informed. He said if there would be any interruption at any time in the software of Election Commission then hard copy could be acquired from the Returning Officer. The minister said Radio Pakistan was a prized possession of Pakistan and it was not only listened in far flung areas of Pakistan but also across the border. It was the only media outlet which reached 80 percent areas of the country and 95 percent of the total population. Ali Zafar appreciated that Radio Pakistan had hundreds of thousands of followers on social media platforms Twitter and Facebook and the number was increasing with every passing day. He congratulated the management of Radio Pakistan for setting up Election City. To a question, he said according to schedule of Election Commission the election campaign would end on July 23. He said the candidates fully participated in the election campaign and strengthened democracy and now people had to decide who would win or lose. To another question, he said Pakistan was fighting the war against terrorism for a long time and success was achieved to a large extent. The anti-state elements wanted to delay or sabotage the elections, he noted, adding that the aim of the recent terror incidents was to harm democracy but the nation remained united and political activities continued normally in the country. He said the caretaker government would arrange for foolproof security for the election on July 25. Ali Zafar told that 450,000 police personnel and more than 300,000 army jawans were deployed, adding never before such a large number of security personnel were put on duty. To a question, he said security would be tight due to safety concerns and Close Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV) would be installed at sensitive polling stations so that the whole process could be kept transparent and clear. He said the credit for transparent election went to Election Commission and the last Parliament which enacted Election Act 2017. He said present Election Commission was far more powerful than the previous election bodies. Responding to a question, the minister said after the election of 2013, 55 different complaints were received from observers as well as from media and civil society, adding the last Parliament worked for three years and enacted a comprehensive Election Act so that previous complaints should not arise. Ali Zafar informed that after the detailed code of conduct and SOPs of the Election Commission, the election process had been improved so that there were no complaints. Director General Radio Pakistan Shafqat Jalil and senior officials of Radio Pakistan were present on the occasion. Shafqat Jalil assured that according to the policy of caretaker government, timely and certified election results would be delivered to the people. He said during the special transmission of Election City,people would listen to the analysis and reports of experts. If people would have any complaint in any constituency they could approach the regional offices or headquarters of the Election Commission. Earlier, the Information Minister visited current affairs section, news room, FM 92 Dhanak, desk for translation of regional languages and web desk of Radio Pakistan. (@ChaudhryMAli88) ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Pakistan Muslin League-Nawaz (PML-N) Chairman, Central Media Committee Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed has said that his party is committed to promote, preserve and protect democracy to ensure sanctity of ballot and supremacy of parliament. Briefing a 20-member Commonwealth Election Observers delegation, Hussain Sayed presented three documents to the Commonwealth Election Observers delegation which is headed by the former President of Nigeria, said a press release on Monday. Accompanied by Senator Chairperson, PML-N Women's Wing, Nuzhat Sadiq, Senator Mushahid also briefed the Commonwealth Election Observers on the Anti-Rigging System (ARS) formulated by PML-N to prevent rigging so as to ensure a free, fair and transparent poll. During the hour long meeting, which took place in a local hotel, the Commonwealth Election Observers expressed keen interest in the ARS terming it a unique system that a political party had formulated for the first time ever. Mushahid said PML-N has no doubt that if the elections are free, fair and transparent, the people of Pakistan will repose their confidence in PML-N which has delivered on combating terrorism, eliminating load shedding, building infrastructure plus health and education and launching of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is the biggest developmental project in the history of Pakistan. Senators Mushahid and Nuzhat Sadiq thanked Commonwealth Election Observers delegation for their keen interest in promoting democracy in Pakistan and ensuring a transparent electoral process leading up to a vote on July 25 in a free and fair manner. Deputy Commissioner Mudassir Riaz Malik Monday sent a reference to the Election Commission of Pakistan against PML-N candidate from NA-157 Abdul Ghaffar Dogar on holding a public meeting without prior permission from the district administration. MULTAN, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Deputy Commissioner Mudassir Riaz Malik Monday sent a reference to the Election Commission of Pakistan against PML-N candidate from NA-157 Abdul Ghaffar Dogar on holding a public meeting without prior permission from the district administration. The DC also imposed Rs 40,000 fine on PML-N district president Bilal Butt on the same violation, said an official release. The DC had issued a show-cause notice to both PML-N leaders after taking notice that the PML-N public meeting, addressed by party president Shehbaz Sharif, in Multan was organized at another venue instead of Qasim Bagh stadium for which they were granted permission. Bilal Butt and Abdul Ghaffar Dogar appeared before the deputy commissioner and submitted reply following which Rs 40,000 fine was imposed on Bilal Butt. The decision regarding Abdul Ghaffar Dogar was put off till evening. The DC later decided to send reference against Abdul Ghaffar Dogar to the ECP for proceedings under article 234. Mudassir Riaz Malik observed that the local PML-N leaders put the life of their party president in danger by changing the venue of the public meeting. He said that according to the ECP code of conduct all political parties were bound to inform the district government before holding public meetings and rallies. The local PML-N leaders organized the event at an insecure venue, he added. It may be noted that PML-N candidate Abdul Ghaffar Dogar had also faced fine last week on a violation of election code of conduct and reference against him was referred to the ECP on second violation today. Justice Madan B Lokur, chairman of SC Juvenile Justice Committee, said judgement in such cases had to be delivered on the basis of evidence. 'Just because the person happens to be 17 years old or close to 18 years old, commits a heinous crime - therefore he must get the death penalty, it cannot be like that. You have to still work on the basis of evidence and come to some conclusion,' Justice Lokur said. (Photo: PTI) Indore: Justice Madan B Lokur, the chairman of the Supreme Court Juvenile Justice Committee, has said that juvenile convicts cannot be handed down capital punishment in every case pertaining to heinous crimes such as rape and murder. He said judgement in such cases had to be delivered on the basis of evidence. "It is not that for every murder, for every rape, the only penalty is death penalty. I mean, we are not savages in this country," the Supreme Court judge said. "Just because the person happens to be 17 years old or close to 18 years old, commits a heinous crime - therefore he must get the death penalty, it cannot be like that. You have to still work on the basis of evidence and come to some conclusion," Justice Lokur said. He was speaking on Saturday at the Fourth Western Regional Consultation on Effective Implementation of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 held in Indore. On Protection of Children from Sexual Offences courts, Justice Lokur said studies reveal that "perhaps" these courts were "not functioning as well as they should". "Are the POCSO courts functioning well? Are they not functioning well? You know, studies have been done (which) indicate that perhaps the POCSO courts are not functioning as well as they should. What are the reasons? What are the challenges?" he asked. He stressed the importance of sensitisation of special courts hearing cases related to children and juveniles. Justice Lokur said that the Child Rights Protection Commission, states and the Centre should work together to tackle the huge number of cases of missing children as well as those related to child labour and child trafficking. Among those present at the function were Supreme Court Judge Dipak Gupta, Madhya Pradesh High Court Chief Justice Hemant Gupta and other legal luminaries. (@rukhshanmir) Chairman Senate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani strongly condemned bomb attack on Election office of Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) at Dalbandin, (Balochistan). ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Chairman Senate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani strongly condemned bomb attack on Election office of Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) at Dalbandin, (Balochistan). In a statement, he said terrorists wanted to sabotage the progress, development and democracy. He asked political parties to forge unity among their ranks for promoting democracy and frustrating the nefarious plans of terrorists. The Chairman Senate prayed early recovery of injured and asked Balochistan government to provide best medical facilities to the injured. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader, Shah Mehmood Qureshi Monday claimed that his party would clinch the general election with two-third majority. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader, Shah Mehmood Qureshi Monday claimed that his party would clinch the general election with two-third majority. PTI was most popular political party among the masses, he said while talking to a private news channel. Now, the PTI was a political reality in the country, he added. He said after winning the 2018 election, the PTI chief Imran Khan would decide about making alliance with any political party. He expressed the hope that general election would be held in free, fair and transparent manner. Shah Mehmood Qureshi said people of Sindh wanted political change in the province, adding that the PPP could not streamline the system in this area, during its ten year period of stay in two last governments. The former foreign minister said that masses of Sindh province were looking towards PTI and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) but not focusing on PPP. He added both PTI and GDA would work for the welfare and progress of the province. The PTI leader alleged that PPP was completely wiped out from Punjab areas and claimed that PPP had not nominated its candidates on 104 Constituencies of the Punjab. He also alleged that PPP was eliminated from Punjab due to corruption charges of its leaders. A traffic warden Monday killed by robbers, when he resisted a robbery bid in Dheri Hassanabad. RAWALPINDI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :A traffic warden Monday killed by robbers, when he resisted a robbery bid in Dheri Hassanabad. According to details, a traffic cop namely Asghar Butt, after offering Fajar prayer went to take milk from a shop in area, Dheri Hassanabad, when four dacoits entered into the shop and make the owner hostage on gunpoint. The police man showed resistance and tried to nab the dacoits. The daoits opened indiscriminate firing, due to which the cop was seriously injured and shifted to District Hospital, later he was pronounced dead. City Police Officer (CPO) Ahsan Abbas, Chief Traffic Officer(CTO) Muhmmad Ashraf Bin and other officials attended his funeral prayer. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Cambodian authorities are investigating former opposition officials after accusing them of encouraging a boycott of controversial elections, one of the officials said Monday. Phnom Penh, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Cambodian authorities are investigating former opposition officials after accusing them of encouraging a boycott of controversial elections, one of the officials said Monday. The Supreme Court dissolved the main opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) late last year, setting up an easy poll victory this coming Sunday for Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has ruled the country for 33 years. The dissolution was accompanied by a crackdown on party members, many of whom fled the country. But in the lead-up to the poll some are pushing back by calling for a "clean-finger" campaign, referring to the ink used to mark voters. Voting is not compulsory but officials have said urging others to boycott the poll is a crime and vowed to prosecute. The first known complaint was filed against ex-CNRP officials who appeared in a photo on Facebook displaying a clean finger. Chea Chiv, former head of the opposition party in Battambang province, told AFP the photo comes from an informal gathering which he and his wife hosted on Thursday with around 30 former CNRP officials. "I showed the clean finger because I won't go to vote when there is no party that I love," he said. "They sued me for obstructing and inciting people not to go to vote." He and others described the complaint as intimidation and said they were not part of a wider campaign but wanted to express their personal preference. Several said they had also been monitored by plainclothes police. "They are trying to silence people," said Kruy Kimsaing, 44, a former district councillor who also appeared in the picture. Hang Puthea, a spokesman for the National election Committee, told AFP that local election officials in Battambang received five complaints. He said the accused could face up to $5,000 in fines if found guilty after an investigation by election officials. But it is unclear whether they will face immediate action. Interior Minister Sar Kheng said in a speech streamed on his official Facebook page that the former officials should not be arrested. "Now calm down, let legal officers work on the case," he said. Analysts say Hun Sen fears a low turnout that could further damage the credibility of the election. Both the US and the EU have withdrawn funding for it but countries including China and Japan have offered support. At least 23 people have been killed and dozens wounded in a gold rush in northern Guinea that has led to hundreds of shooting incidents, according to hospital and security sources. Conakry, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :At least 23 people have been killed and dozens wounded in a gold rush in northern Guinea that has led to hundreds of shooting incidents, according to hospital and security sources. "Our services recorded 313 shootings from January 1 to June 30, in which about 20 people died and dozens of others were wounded," a senior state official said. State hospital sources in Siguiri, a town on the Niger river near the border with Mali, said on Friday that at least 23 people had been killed since the start of the year. "The number of casualties may be higher because some of the wounded are being treated in private clinics and there are also corpses which are still lying on the ground," the head of emergency services at the regional hospital, Balla Moussa Keita, told AFP. "The Siguiri region has abundant deposits of gold -- it is the most dangerous part of the country," the state official told AFP. The violence is due "not only to the riches beneath the soil, which attract gangsters, but also due to repeated clashes between villagers over land rights, as well as the influx of clandestine diggers from every neighbouring country," he added. "The villagers are armed, the clandestine arrivals are armed and the mining zones are over-crowded," he warned. Guinea has gold, diamonds, bauxite and prodigious reserves of iron ore. In Kouremale, about 100 kilometres (60 miles) from Siguiri, clashes erupted during a wedding procession by Malians in Guinean territory, leaving one person dead and numerous injured, according to the Guinean authorities. A violent dispute between gold diggers in November last year at the mining site of Niaouleni, another border area, left at least six dead. Neighbouring Mali has recently been affected by armed jihadist activity, while Liberia and Sierra Leone to the south both endured long civil wars that lasted into the early years of the 21st century and left the region awash with weapons. An international conference on Mongolian culture kicked off here Monday, with the aim to promote Mongolia's heritage globally. ULAN BATOR, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :An international conference on Mongolian culture kicked off here Monday, with the aim to promote Mongolia's heritage globally. The conference is themed "Culture World of the Mongols: Heritage, Values and Arts. " The conference aims to discuss how scholars from home and abroad can inject new impetus into Mongolian studies, explore the depths of Mongolian spiritual life through enhanced cultural and art research and nurture young experts in Mongolian studies for the future, said Erdenetsogt Sonintogos, director of the Mongolian State University of Arts and Culture, at the opening ceremony. The two-day event is co-organized by the university and the International Association for Mongol Studies. Scholars from 12 countries including Mongolia, China, Russia, Poland, Turkey and Austria are participating. (@FahadShabbir) Dublin, July 19 (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Jul, 2018 ) :Ireland's economy shrank 0.6 percent in the first quarter, hit by a slide in industrial output, official data showed Thursday, as the eurozone nation prepares for Britain's EU withdrawal. Data for the January-March period compared with gross domestic product growth of 2.8 percent in the final quarter of 2017, the Central Statistics Office said in a statement. Ireland's industrial output slumped almost 10 percent in the first quarter, the CSO added. A major concern for Ireland surrounds final terms of the Brexit deal being negotiated by key trading partner Britain. Dublin is waiting to see how the border between British province Northern Ireland and Ireland will be managed after Britain's formal exit from the European Union due in March. Ireland's economy meanwhile expanded by a huge 7.2 percent last year, albeit down on a previous estimate of 7.8 percent, the CSO added Thursday. Irish overall GDP output has recovered at a strong pace since Dublin required a huge international bailout following the global financial crisis of a decade ago. IT can become a breakthrough area of cooperation for Belarus and Latvia, Belarus Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei said in an interview to the ONT TV channel on 22 July. MINSK, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :IT can become a breakthrough area of cooperation for Belarus and Latvia, Belarus Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei said in an interview to the ONT tv channel on 22 July. According to the minister, Latvian Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis paid a visit to Belarus in February 2018. A number of agreements were reached during the visit. The plan on their implementation in the midterm has been adopted and coordinated with Latvian partners. The plan covers trade, economic, humanitarian and political areas of cooperation. The parties are also set to develop cooperation in transport, transit, logistics, and IT. This sector, according to the minister, ?can become a breakthrough area of bilateral cooperation.? The plan also envisages the development of contacts between businessmen, and also the setting up of joint companies in Belarus and Latvia. Earlier, on 19-20 July Belarus Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei paid a working visit to Latvia. He held talks with Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs Edgars Rinkevics and Latvian Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis. (@FahadShabbir) Alian troops killed 11 jihadists who had ambushed them in the centre of the country, in clashes that also left one soldier dead, the defence ministry said. Bamako, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Malian troops killed 11 jihadists who had ambushed them in the centre of the country, in clashes that also left one soldier dead, the defence ministry said. Armed Tuareg groups supporting the government also reported assailants executed more than 20 people on Friday in a village in the northeast. The attacks highlighted the fragile security situation in the West African nation as it prepares to hold elections on July 29, in which President Ibrahim Boubacar Keta is seeking a second term. A army patrol was ambushed by "terrorists" on Sunday morning in a forest in the central region of Segou, the ministry said in a statement. The patrol suffered "one dead and one wounded. On the enemy side, we counted 11 dead". In a separate incident on Friday, "armed men" attacked the village of Tindinbawen, near the border with Niger, according to a joint statement from the Imghad and Allies Tuareg Self-Defence Force (Gatia) and the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA). The two mainly Tuareg groups support the French and Malian forces. The "attackers proceeded to summarily execute more than 20 people including elderly people and at the same time some members of the security post of the coalition", the statement said. Mali's unrest stems from a 2012 ethnic Touareg separatist uprising, which was exploited by jihadists in order to take over key cities in the north. The extremists were largely driven out in a French-led military operation launched in January 2013. But large stretches of the country remain outside of the control of the foreign and Malian forces, which are frequent targets of attacks, despite a peace accord signed with Tuareg leaders in 2015 aimed at isolating the jihadists. The violence has also spilled over into both Burkina Faso and Niger. On Monday, the 23rd of July 2018, the Sultanate of Oman will celebrate the start of its modern renaissance (Oman Renaissance Day) under the leadership of Sultan Qaboos Bin Said MUSCAT (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News 23rd July, 2018) On Monday, the 23rd of July 2018, the Sultanate of Oman will celebrate the start of its modern renaissance (Oman Renaissance Day) under the leadership of Sultan Qaboos Bin Said. Way back in 1970, a new dawn shone on Oman, marking an era of development, progress and prosperity in all fields. Sultan Qaboos has met with great success in building a modern state capable of reviving the countrys past glory and the leading role of Oman in the region and the world at large. This has been achieved with a deep involvement of Omani citizens, based on the principle of citizenship, equality and rule of law as stated in the Basic Law of the State promulgated by Royal decree in 1996. While the 23rd of July 1970 constituted the beginning of a new glorious era with the prime aim of providing a better life for Omani citizens all over the country, Sultan Qaboos made it clear, since the first day, that the Omani citizen himself would be the maker, guardian and beneficiary of the renaissance. Therefore, extensive efforts have been undertaken at all levels to develop the skills of citizens, with special emphasis on youth, to instill confidence in them and help them shoulder the responsibility of nation building. From this point of view, it is no coincidence that the Omani citizen became the very focus of all development efforts, plans and programmes over the past 48 years of the Omani renaissance. Therefore, the country rallied all its energies and resources, both human and material, for building qualified national cadres. Omani women have enjoyed equal status within this process of development. Women have had access to all levels of education, healthcare, social care and training in a highly unprecedented manner. The resulta formidable push forward in economic and social welfare that laid down a solid foundation for unity and the growth of an ideal state that was the dream Omani people made true at the hands of Sultan Qaboos Bin Said. Over the past 48 years, and, despite critical conditions during the start of the Omani renaissance, Sultan Qabooss determination, his astute leadership and his deep love for Oman and its peoplecoupled with intensive rallying and allegiance by his own people and their passionate devotion for their leadergave rise to a formidable march that yielded fruit in all governorates and wilayats. It is highly significant that, in spite of the tumultuous waves of instability and wars whose price is paid by brotherly people in this region, the wise leadership of Oman espoused a clear-cut stance that guaranteed the countrys safety and made it an oasis of peace, security and stability that has earned the respect of all nations. The Sultanate has made extensive efforts to end the wars and revive a climate of peace to the countries in the Gulf, the Arab world and the region at large. Objective Foreign Policy: Since he assumed power in 1970, Sultan Qaboos laid down strong foundations for a frank foreign policy based on principles of justice, peace, cooperation, tolerance and equal treatment of brotherly and friendly countries. In particular, the Omani foreign policy advocates dialogue and the settlement of conflicts through peaceful means and in a manner that achieves the common interests of all parties, besides mutual respect for law and the international charter. The principles of Omani foreign policy also seek to improve relations among neighboring states and the solution of all Arab and regional disputes as a means of paving the way for development and progress. These policies have had a tangible positive impact on Oman and its status worldwide, as the country has gained reputation as a bridge-builder. The meeting of Sultan Qaboos and Chinese President Xi Jingpingon May 25 this year came as a further confirmation of this open-mined Omani foreign policy. The two countries have established strategic partnership to achieve the aspirations of both the Omani and Chinese people. Thanks to this prudent policy, Omanis continue to reap success after success, locally and abroad. They enjoy respect wherever they might be. Whenever conditions require resorting to a country reliable to all regional and international partiesa country that can bring conflicting sides to the negotiation table to seek a peaceful settlement, Oman is the country to select as a trusted mediator. AMONG RECENT RENAISSANCE PROGRAMMES: Security and Stability A Pre-requisite to Development: On the domestic front, the development of the Sultans Armed Forces (SAF) was among the priorities of the Omani renaissance. Sultan Qabooshad a conviction that the establishment of security and stability was a prerequisite to any nation building, progress and prosperity. As part of the Sultans ongoing attention to upgrade all institutions of the state as one body, a training drill code-named Joint Effort-10 was conducted last May with the participation of Omani military, security and civil sectors. The drill covered all strategic, operational and mobility levels. It was an activation of all economic, military, intelligence and diplomatic lines in preparation for a greater national exercise named AshShumookh 2 (grandeur), to be carried out next October, to be followed by a joint Omani-British military exercise, Safe Saree 3 (or swift sabre). Last May also witnessed the opening of Omans first-of-its-kind light ammunition production factory in the Wilayat of Samayil. Good Rates of Growth: In his follow-up of the countrys comprehensive development, Sultan Qaboos presided over a Council of Ministers meeting last February during which he expressed satisfaction with the governments efforts which helped achieve good growth rates that took account of economic and social dimensions and maintained the standard of basic services rendered to citizens, besides focusing the full force of investments on mega projects supporting economic diversification. Within the context of social welfare, a fuel subsidy system was implementedto support various segments of Omani society last year and this year. Initially, the Council of Ministers offered the fuel subsidy to recipients of monthly salary of RO 600 in 2017, but decided to expand the subsidy base to cover recipients of monthly salaries of RO 950 by August 1 this year. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Manpower managed to provide 33,230 jobs for citizens in private sector establishments between December 3, 2017 and July 11, 2018an increase of 32% over the target number of 25,000 jobs. Economic Diversification: The 9th 5-year development plan (2016-2020) accords priority to sectors that help achieve diversification of sources of income, including the role of the private sector in improving work conditions, the speedy implementation of privatization programmes and the development of small and medium enterprises. Specific sectors have been selected as promising sectors in the economic diversification drive, and these are the sectors of converting industries, tourism, fisheries and mining. The National Economic Diversification Programme has been a pillar of implementation of the 9th Five Year Plan. The implementation and follow-up unit of this programme, in its 2017 annual report, specified the projects carried out last year. An important economic landmark launched this year was Muscat International Airport. Operations in the new airport started on March 20, 2018. The airport constitutes one of the pillars of development as it gives strong impetus to the growth of the tourism sector and the logistics sector, in particular, and activates the national economy in general. Muscat International Airport has a capacity of 12 million passengers a year. Democratic practice: Since the dawn of the Omani renaissance, the citizens participation in decision making was one of the interests of Sultan Qaboos, who was keen to let Oman have its unique experience in the field of Shura, an Islamic form of democracy. The Shura process met with many stages of success over the past decades of the Omani renaissance. Since the Shura practice has fostered the value of partnership and plurality of opinions, it has thus enhanced the development march and contributed to the establishment of the State of Institutions. Within this concept of partnership, a joint meeting was held recently between the Council of Ministers (the government) and the Council of Oman, a bicameral institution which comprises popular bodies of Shura Council and State Council (upper house and lower house). The Shura Council and State Council also held joint sessions in June and July this year to discuss areas of disparity of views over different issues, including the Law on Mineral Wealth and Water Resources. Royal Salute to The People of Oman: In a recent observation, Sultan Qaboos hailed the role of citizens in achieving progress on the land of Oman. He said, The accomplishments of the Blessed Omani Renaissance would not have existed on the land of Oman, if it had not been for the concerted efforts of the Omani citizens. Hail the working hands which made the dream of renaissance come true. Many sincere wishes for everlasting growth, in ever-expanding horizons, for the achievement of the greatest and noblest objectives. The march of Omani renaissance enters its 49th year in full confidence and strong aspiration for a brighter future. Indeed, on the occasion of this July 23 Anniversary, every Omani citizen and institution finds pride in hailing the leader of the nation, Qaboos Bin Said expressing gratitude to him and wishing him continued good health and a long life. Reports said the victim was in police custody for 3 hours 45 minutes before being taken to a hospital. The two cows recovered from the victim were seemed to be the polices priority. (Photo ;PTI | Representational) New Delhi: The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday sought a report from the Rajasthan government on lynching of a 28-year-old man over suspicion of cow smuggling. Akbar Khan, a resident of Kolgaon in Haryana, and his friend were allegedly attacked when they were taking two cows to their village through a forest area near Lalawandi village in Alwar late on Friday night. A profusely bleeding Akbar was taken to hospital but doctors declared him brought dead. However, his friend managed to escape from the location. Three people have so far been arrested in connection with the case. Meanwhile, eyewitnesses have alleged a foul play by the police in the lynching incident. One of the eyewitnesses said that the police stopped outside his house and thrashed the victim. According to reports, police delayed in taking the victim to the hospital and he was in police custody for 3 hours 45 minutes before being taken to a hospital. Read: Cops took cows to shelter, had tea before taking Alwar victim to hospital The two cows recovered from the victim were seemed to be the polices priority. Instead of taking the victim to hospital, the police took the two cows to a cow shelter 10 km away a good one hour before Khan was brought to the health centre, dead. The incident raised questions over the government that has earlier held the state governments responsible for the lynching incidents. Congress president Rahul Gandhi slammed the BJP government after the reports of delay in police action. Read: Rahul Gandhi slams PM Modi over Alwar mob killing, calls it brutal 'New India' Taking to Twitter, the Congress chief said that humanity has been replaced with hatred in Prime Minister Narendra Modis brutal New India citing a media report. Heavily-armed Al-Shabaab fighters on Monday stormed a military base in southern Somalia, leaving several dead, a local army official and witnesses said. Mogadishu, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jul, 2018 ) :Heavily-armed Al-Shabaab fighters on Monday stormed a military base in southern Somalia, leaving several dead, a local army official and witnesses said. Military sources in the region said the attack targeted the Bar-sanguni military base which lies some 40 kilometres (24 miles) north of the regional capital Kismayo. The attackers rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a checkpoint before gunmen attacked the base, exchanging gunfire with soldiers for over an hour. "Al-Shabaab terrorists attacked Bar-sanguni military base early this morning and there was heavy fighting. The Somali armed forces have repelled the attackers but there were casualties inflicted on the both sides during the armed confrontation," Mohamed Bile, a military commander in a nearby village said by phone. "We don't have the exact number of the dead so far but there it could be more than ten," he added. Several witnesses in nearby villages reported a heavy blast followed by sustained gunfire. The Al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab claimed in a statement they had killed 27 soldiers in the attack on a base "which the Americans built for the apostate militias."The Shabaab has been fighting to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu for over a decade. Despite losing towns and territory in recent years the group continues to carry out regular bombings and armed raids on government, security and civilian targets in the capital and elsewhere. (@rukhshanmir) Washington, July 19 (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Jul, 2018 ) :President Donald Trump lashed out Thursday after Brussels hit US tech giant Google with a record fine, and warned he would no longer allow Europe to take "advantage" of the United States. "I told you so! The European Union just slapped a Five Billion Dollar fine on one of our great companies, Google," Trump tweeted in reaction to the 4.34 billion euro penalty slapped on Google for abusing the dominance of its mobile operating system. "They truly have taken advantage of the U.S., but not for long!" he said. Members of the pan Amazonian ecclesial network have released a statement in which they support the rights of uncontacted indigenous tribes living in the Amazon. By Francesca Merlo The Pan Amazonian Ecclesial Network (REPAM), along with indigenous Amazonian organisations and communities have been working together in order to promote the rights of indigenous tribes living in voluntary isolation. These groups have just held their second meeting (5-8 July) in Puerto Maldonado, Peru. It involved specialists getting together to discuss and tackle the protection of those indigenous tribes who have chosen to live a life in the Amazon unaware of the other societies that surround them. Tribes who have chosen to live a life in total isolation, an act which should automatically protect them from their surroundings. The objective of the meeting was to make progress regarding the protection of the rights of these tribes. The meeting resulted in a Statement being published in defense of indigenous peoples living in voluntary isolation. Amongst the specialists involved were experts in Amazonian indigenous people, anthropologists and University Professors people who have studied past and present changes in indigenous peoples and the effect that the outside world has had and can have on them. Pope Francis visited Puerto Maldonado in January, having returned stating that the Amazon is a cultural reserve under threat of new colonialism. Maintaining rights for those few remaining tribes REPAM stated that we are now aware of approximately 150 tribes that have little to no connection with those surrounding them - these 150 are a very small percentage of those that used to be. REPAMs aim is to save the remaining 150, and any others that we have not discovered, from dispersing and disappearing as a result of what might be defined as harassment from the outside world. Threats REPAM tell us that the members of these tribes are under constant threat of having their land invaded in order to benefit external economic growth, through the rapid gentrification of remote lands. Acts such as cutting down trees, mining, exploiting oil and gas resources, drug trafficking and deforestation, as well as modernization through motorways and railways are silently threatening peoples homes, lives and ancestries. All of these activities are extremely harmful in terms of care for our common home, as well as being harmful to the indigenous peoples: mentally, physically, culturally and often also spiritually. The urge to implement human rights globally Ahead of the 2019 Synod, amongst other recommendations, REPAM urge National States to exercise the unimpeachable obligations they have towards guaranteeing and implementing isolated indigenous peoples rights in their constitutional framework. PM Modi will first arrive at Rwanda, marking the first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister. Prime Minister Modi will proceed to Uganda after visiting Rwanda, which will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over 20 years. (Photo: File) New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will undertake a state visit to three African countries, namely Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa, over five days, starting on July 23. The Prime Minister will first arrive at Rwanda, marking the first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister, a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. Thereafter, Prime Minister Modi will proceed to Uganda, where he will undertake engagements from July 24 to 25. The visit will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in over 20 years. Finally, Prime Minister Modi will pay a visit to South Africa from July 25 to 27 to attend the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit. Prime Minister Modi's official engagement in Rwanda and Uganda will include bilateral meetings with the presidents of both the nations, delegation-level talks and meetings with the business and the Indian communities respectively, the MEA statement added. In Rwanda, the Prime Minister will visit the Genocide Memorial and participate in an event on "Girinka" (one cow per family), a national social protection scheme of Rwanda, which is personally initiated by Rwandan President Paul Kagame. In Uganda, Prime Minister Modi will deliver a keynote address at the Parliament of Uganda, a first for any Indian Prime Minister. In South Africa, Prime Minister Modi will have a bilateral meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and will attend the BRICS summit and other BRICS-related meetings. Also, bilateral meetings with participating countries on the sidelines of BRICS meetings are planned, the statement continued. Various issues such as - inclusive growth, health and vaccines, peacekeeping, and sustainable development will be the core agenda during the BRICS summit. The MEA statement said, "India shares close, warm and friendly relations with Africa which are cemented by robust development partnership and a large presence of the Indian diaspora. A number of agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, trade, culture, agriculture and dairy cooperation are scheduled to be signed during the visit." "Africa has been the top priority of India's Foreign Policy. The visit of the Prime Minister to Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa will further strengthen our relations with the African continent," it added. Over the last few years, there has been a significant intensification of India's engagement in various fields with African countries and there have been as many as 23 outgoing visits to Africa at the level of President, Vice President and Prime Minister in the last four years. Volunteers cleaning a home in Kurashiki, following the recent floods that hit south-west Japan. (AFP or licensors) Caritas Japan said that the Shakyo bases have been opened in many municipalities inviting volunteers to join in flood relief operations, which is rendered difficult by the current heat wave. Caritas Japan, the charity arm of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Japan (CBCJ), is appealing for volunteers to come forward to give a helping hand in the relief and rehabilitation programme in the aftermath of massive floods and the current heat wave in the country. Floods followed by unprecedented heat wave Heavy rains in southwestern Japan from late June through mid-July caused the worst floods and mudflows in over 3 decades, killing more than 200 people and disrupting transport and water supplies. This has been followed by the current heat wave that has hit a large part of the country, killing at least 44 people, with many more hospitalized. Kumagaya, a city some 65 kilometers northwest of Tokyo, on Monday registered 41.1 degrees Celsius, the highest ever recorded in Japan since the previous high of 41C recorded in Ekawasaki in 2013. Earlier on July 9, Pope Francis expressed his sadness over the loss of life and those injured in the flooding. Hiroshima and Takamatsu Dioceses Aine Ono, an official of Caritas Japan said that the volunteer bases of the Shakyo social welfare council have been opened in many municipalities. The affected dioceses of Hiroshima and Takamatsu are encouraging people to join the volunteer work. The volunteer work needed now is mainly mud and debris removal, which is quite difficult for both rescue workers and the volunteers in the unusual temperatures these days", Ono told the Vaticans Fides news agency. In the diocese of Hiroshima, that include Hiroshima and Okayama Prefectures, information is being collected from each parish. The diocesan staff is joining coordination meetings with local leaders organized by the Okayama prefecture. The diocese has set up a base to receive volunteers to help clean up the houses. Caritas Japan has planned a nation-wide fundraising campaign this week to support the relief activities. Based on the information collected on the most urgent needs, Hiroshima Diocese is concentrating its efforts in three worst affected areas. The diocese of Takamatsu is also encouraging young parishioners to join the volunteer work through Shakyo. Water, heat crisis The Ministry of Health estimates that 103,400 households in west Japan are without running water and are struggling to stay cool under searing temperatures. According to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, 4,500 people find themselves in evacuation centers, where access to water remains limited. In Ehime and Okayama Prefectures alone, 3,600 volunteers worked on day one of a three day weekend to clear sand, mud and debris in high temperatures. (Source: Fides) The President of the Nicaraguan Bishops' Conference denounces the government that, he says, is persecuting the Church By Linda Bordoni The Bishops of Nicaragua are meeting to decide whether to continue mediating the National Dialogue Process amid a worsening political and social crisis. In a dramatic statement on Sunday, a top Nicaraguan Cardinal said the Catholic Church in his country is being persecuted by the regime of President Daniel Ortega. Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes Solorzano, President of the Nicaraguan Bishops Conference and of the Commission for National Dialogue, said that the Church is currently being persecuted in different parts of the world, including Nicaragua. His condemnation came on the day in which the entire Latin American continent united to pray for peace in Nicaragua where political unrest and violence has killed over 360 people since mid-April and led to the detention of scores more. Bishops deciding whether to continue mediating Noting that the Church has always suffered persecution and therefore We are no strangers" to this fact, Brenes said that he and his fellow bishops are currently debating whether to continue to participate in the National Dialogue Process, notwithstanding the countrys Presidents statements accusing the bishops of behaving like coup plotters. Since what began as peaceful rallies led by students to oppose punishing social welfare reforms spiraled into full blown clashes with paramiiltary and police forces shooting live ammunition, there have been at least seven episodes of desecration in churches and several attacks on bishops and church representatives. The attacks against the Catholic Church started after the episcopate asked Ortega to anticipate elections scheduled for 2021 to March 2019 to put an end to the social and political crisis. Popes appeal for Nicaragua Pope Francis expressed his preoccupation for the situation in the country saying he joins the country's bishops in their concerns. Speaking after the Angelus Prayer on 3 June, the Pope called for an end to all violence and prayed for the victims and their families. The Church, he said, is always in favor of dialogue but it requires active engagement in respect for freedom and, above all, life. Prisons places of torture The Nicaraguan Association for Human Rights meanwhile has accused supporters of the Nicaraguan government of being insensitive to pain. It claims that the mothers of imprisoned protesters in the Jail of El Chipote in Managua are being intimidated while the prisoners themselves are tortured. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has also denounced murders, extrajudicial killings, mistreatment, torture and arbitrary detention perpetrated against the majority of the country's young population. The Nicaraguan government rejects the charges. The protests against Ortega and his wife, Vice-President Rosario Murillo, began on 18 April because of the failure of the social security reforms and have become a call for the resignation of the President, after eleven years of power, on charges of abuse and corruption. Bishop Donal McKeown of Derry, the city in Northern Ireland that has been rocked by violent clashes in the past weeks, speaks of how important it is for the spiritual leaders of the city to offer pastoral support and to participate in the civil life of the community "at a time when the politicians are not sitting round the one table and do not take part in the Parliament in Belfast." By Linda Bordoni The Catholic and Anglican bishops of Northern Ireland have condemned the violence that erupted in Derry during the so-called Twelfth week that marks a Protestant celebration held on 12 July. They offered support to all those affected and released a statement in which they encourage political representatives to do their utmost to end the stalemate which, they say, has paralysed politics in Northern Ireland. For six successive nights, riots took place in Derry, and although no one was killed or seriously hurt, the street violence was punctuated by at least two separate attempts by alleged dissident republicans who attacked officers of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and targeted former Sinn Fein leaders. After the Derry attacks, which targeted a small Protestant community as well as sheltered housing nearby, the Church of Ireland Bishop of Derry, Reverend Ken Good, and his Catholic counterpart, Bishop Donal McKeown, visited the affected areas and spoke with community leaders and residents. Bishop McKeown told Vatican Radio about how important it is that the Church leaders continue to remain very visible and present at a time when the politicians are not sitting round the one table and do not take part in the Parliament in Belfast: Bishop Donal McKeown explained that what the two Church leaders in the city have tried to do is two-fold: Listen to Bishop Donal McKeown of Derry Pastoral approach On the one hand the Church of Ireland and myself emphasized the importance of a pastoral outreach to all those who felt very uneasy and unhappy and worried because of the violence that exploded in our midst he said, revealing that they both undertook pastoral visits to different communities in Derry. He stressed his deep belief that it is important the Church remains visible and present at a time when the politicians are not sitting round the one table and do not take part in the Parliament in Belfast. Participation in civil life Secondly, Bishop McKeown said, as Churches we try to work with all the elements in the civil life of the city. He spoke of their desire to participate in many different ways relating and interacting with all civil leaders, with tourists, political parties, the chamber of commerce, trade unions, health authorities and police. Bishop McKeown expressed his joy at the fact that the Churches were were very much included at the gathering of the city, and I was happy to be asked to speak at that. It is important that the Churches have their own pastoral role but it is also important that we act as part of the civil life of our city and it is wonderful that we are welcomed among all the different parties of the city because it is recognized we have a particular contribution to make he said. We happily do that, the bishop explained, through our own non-political perspective he said. We try to speak the message of the Good Shepherd, bishop McKeown said, and we also try to offer leadership and support to those who are working for peace. Nicaragua's crisis, which started due to benefits, has been transformed into a power struggle with the ruling Sandinistas, who are determined to maintain their 39-year hold on power. By James Blears Until April 18th, Nicaragua was the most peaceful country in Central America with a rate of eight homicides per 100,000 people. That has changed due to a row over taxes which increased them, but slashed benefits, particularly pensions. It then developed into a call from the Opposition for President Daniel Ortega and Wife Rosario Murillo, who is Vice President, to resign and elections to be held without delay. The demonstrations which have brought a hard line response from authorities have resulted in more than 300 dead, more than 2,000 injured and hundreds detained. More protests over this last weekend with the Sandinista National Liberation Front on one side and the Opposition Civic Alliance on the other. The situation is one likely topic of the Pacific Alliance Summit in Mexico's Puerto Vallarta, where hosts have been joined by Southern neighbours Chile, Colombia, Peru, Argentina and Brazil. Congratulations Daryl Morey. You've finally gotten Carmelo Anthony, a player you've been seeking for God knows how long. And with that, you shut all the haters up saying that you were a horrible general manager that couldn't get a star this offseason. Actually, this deal couldn't be better. 1 year, $2.4 million. Both of those numbers are important, the former because he will not hurt the team long term if he doesn't click with the roster; the latter because they can still afford Clint Capela without paying a bunch due to the luxury tax. More good news: the Houston Rockets get to keep their mid-level exception for another addition. Replacing an aging Trevor Ariza and a now ineffective Luc Mbah a Moute with a young James Ennis and now Melo? That's pretty good. This is how ecstatic Houston Rockets' fans are looking after the team added Carmelo Anthony on a deal so good, it seems like highway robbery. Photo Credit: Rick Bowmer/AP Photo. The deal won't become official until later, as the trade sending Anthony to the Atlanta Hawks hasn't gone through yet. It's been agreed on, however, the teams are waiting for the Philadelphia 76ers (the third team in the trade) to complete another move before processing it. The move is looking to be a trade for Kyle Korver. After Melo joins the Hawks, the team will waive him and he'll have to wait two days to clear waivers. Only then can he sign with the Rockets. The fact that he's being waived is important because the Hawks will pay him the remaining $27.9 million of his contract. This was key because without all this money, Anthony would probably not accept a contract as minimal as the one the Rockets are offering him. Lucky you, this article isn't going to be immensely long. If you would like an analysis of the move, click here. It's a great read, I highly recommend (shameless self-promo). Knowing Morey, there are more moves to come, especially as the team still has a mid-level exception, Capela hasn't agreed to a contract yet, and there are rumors of Ryan Anderson being traded to the Sacramento Kings. Even if nothing is done (scratch that, nothing other than Capela being resigned), this would be a successful offseason for a team that had to deal with DeMarcus Cousins joining the Golden State Warriors. El Dorado Cantina, an authentic Mexican restaurant and bar close to the Las Vegas Strip invites patrons to celebrate National Tequila Day with drink specials and prize giveaways, Tuesday, July 24. In addition to offering its ongoing Tuesday special, $5 1942 Don Julio tequila shots, guests can also enjoy: Half off El Dorado house margaritas ($6 all day, normally priced $12) Prize giveaways Happy Hour is available 2 to 6 p.m. and again from midnight to 4 a.m. daily, featuring half off well and domestic beer, $7 food menu and $3.50 street tacos. El Dorado Cantina offers $5 1942 Don Julio tequila shots (valued at $35) every Tuesday. The bar offers over 100 tequilas such as AsomBroso Vintage 11-Year aged and Clase Azul Ultra, delicious white, red and sparkling Sangrias house made with fresh fruits, assorted domestic, import beers, specialty craft beers including Samuel Pure Brewed Organic Lager and Eel River IPA, wines, champagne and bottle service. The drink menu features refreshing, house-made fresh juices, including tamarind, hibiscus, pineapple, and seasonal watermelon and mango. Hours of operation are 24 hours a day. For more information, visit www.ElDoradoVegas.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. As Cambodia and China celebrated 60 years of diplomatic relations this month, the countries top leaders exchanged letters of congratulations. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang said they were confident that the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party could secure victory in the general election on Sunday. Political analysts have mixed views over the state of Cambodia-China relations as the Southeast Asian nation approaches what could be a pivotal election period in the absence of the main opposition party, which was banned by the Supreme Court in November. Meas Nee, a political analyst in Cambodia, said China was becoming very close to Cambodia to advance its political and economic interests in the region, while the Cambodian leadership had more limited ambitions: staying in power. He added that China had poured more than a billion dollars into Cambodia over the past decade aimed in part at propping up Hun Sens government. Up until now it seems to be clear that the election in a week will be a victory for the ruling party, he said, and so there is no doubt that any party can compete and what people are looking to see is whether the smaller parties can win some seats. Chheang Vannarith, a regional affairs analyst, said the letter exchanged showed that strategic trust between the two countries was at an all-time high. The leaders pointed to the One Belt, One Road initiative, a Chinese initiative that will connect the economies of Southeast Asia with large infrastructure projects. The mutual support partnership is being continuously enriched, bringing real and positive benefits to the people of both countries, an unofficial translation of one of the letters reads. Local and international civil society groups operating in Cambodia face government-imposed restrictions on their operations and have been significantly hindered in their work in the lead up to Sundays general election, according to a recent report by a U.S.-based think tank. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in its report, titled Cambodia Civil Society at a Critical Juncture, found that the Cambodian courts were the main tool used by the authorities to clamp down on civil society groups the authorities saw as challenging. Other tactics used by the government of Prime Minister Hun Sen included arbitrary arrests of activists, violent responses to peaceful civil society activities, and pressure leading to the closure of several independent media outlets. Much of the government crackdown was framed around the Law on Associations and NGOs (LANGO), passed by the government in 2015. The government claimed that the LANGO protected the rights of civil society groups, but the CSIS report argues that the law provided legal justification for coercion of civil society groups. Sok Eysan, a ruling CPP spokesman, dismissed the CSIS report, saying the findings did not reflect the situation on the ground in Cambodia. Every report that does not portray the social reality in Cambodia, we [the government] do not accept it, Sok Eysan said. Our country is peaceful, politically stable and moving forward. But CSIS says the legal framework is weaponized to defeat the CPPs enemies. In addition to the LANGO, a new lese-majeste law was passed and new laws on fake news have been suggested, which the CSIS believes will further narrow the space for civil society and independent freedom of expression. In late 2017 and early 2018, the CSIS notes that the situation had worsened as international organizations were forced to leave the country and local NGOs closed, while independent media outlets and radio stations have closed or have had their licenses revoked. But Sok Eysan said that civil society had applauded and welcomed the LANGO and only about 10 percent were concerned by its implementation. He did not provide a source for his assertion. Soeung Saroeun, executive director of the Cooperation Committee for Cambodia (CCC), an umbrella group representing some 170 NGOs in Cambodia, said the CSIS report was generally an accurate presentation of the situation in Cambodia. Cambodia ranked 132 out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index in 2017. Lauren Mooney, co-author of the report and a CSIS researcher, said the report was based on in-depth interviews with a wide variety of stakeholders, including many civil society representatives. My sense is that the government may disregard the findings, Mooney told VOA by phone. The [government] emphasizes that true democracy is built on economic stability instead of political and civil rights or an open space for civil society, said Mooney. Human rights groups have reported at least 38 politically motivated, arbitrary arrests of rights workers in recent years in Cambodia, with the real number likely higher. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, in 2017 Hun Sens government was considered authoritarian, with the country ranked 124 out of 167 countries included in its Democracy Index. Soeung Saroeun of the CCC said its members organizations would continue to work to promote human rights, democracy, and social progress, serving Cambodian citizens. A leading Cambodian businessman accused by NGO Global Witness of profiting from Prime Minister Hun Sens rule has hit back at the anti-corruption groups call for sanctions to be imposed on a small group of politically connected tycoons. On Friday, Global Witness called on Washington to impose sanctions on four tycoons with close ties to the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party over evidence they have been involved in corruption, environmental destruction, and human rights abuses. The four tycoons identified by Global Witness are Mong Reththy, Ly Yong Phat, Try Pheap and Lao Meng Khin. As the US deliberates sanctions against Cambodian officials, Global Witness is calling for the inclusion of these individuals on any sanctions lists for their role in the demise of Cambodian democracy, and the gross human rights abuses carried out on behalf of their companies, Global Witness said in a statement. Yong Phat, a CPP senator, declined to comment. Try Pheap, a logging baron, and Meng Khin, also a former CPP senator, could not be reached on Monday. Reththy, chairman of the Mong Reththy Group and a CPP senator, denied statements made by Global Witness that accused him of involvement in illegal logging, adding that he did not care about their call for sanctions. I dont know why I was accused of cutting and destroying the forest. The question is where did it happen? It would be much better to meet face-to-face somewhere to ask questions, he said. Global Witness and other NGOs and journalists have for years cataloged illegal forest clearance by companies owned by the four tycoons mentioned in the Global Witness campaign, including Reththy. Reththy, however, points to his companys tree-planting activities as evidence that he did not condone forest destruction. For Cambodians throughout the country, everyone knows that I plant 10,000 trees annually, he said. But Emma Burnett, Global Witness campaigner, said in a statement: For decades, Cambodians have been robbed of their land, robbed of their countrys natural wealth, and robbed of their voice. Now they are being robbed of their vote. This is a betrayal not just of Cambodians, but of all of the countries that have together contributed billions of aid dollars to helping Cambodians build a democratic system from the devastation of the Khmer Rouge genocide one that respects the rule of law and basic human rights. The corrupt elite who have taken that from them must finally be held to account. The U.S. Embassy declined to comment. Israel has evacuated volunteers of White Helmets civil defense group from a war zone in southwestern Syria at the request of U.S., Canada and European nations. Hundreds of volunteers and their family members have been transferred to Jordan through the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The volunteers had become trapped in an area near the border with the Golan Heights after an offensive by the Syrian military, which is on the path to recapture rebel-held areas. VOA's Zlatica Hoke reports. China will continue to maintain the policy of sincerity, affinity and good faith, uphold justice and pursue shared interests, to bring China-Africa relations to a higher level, Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan said Monday. Wang made the remarks during a speech at the opening ceremony of the Fifth China-Africa People's Forum in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu. Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan speaks at the opening ceremony of the Fifth China-Africa People's Forum in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu, July 23, 2018. [Photo: Xinhua] "Chinese people and African people are as close as family members sharing fortune and hardships and are natural allies," said Wang, adding that since the Johannesburg summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2015, China-Africa cooperation has yielded abundant fruits and China-Africa relations have entered a new era. "After all, state-to-state relations must be implemented by people and people-to-people exchanges between China and Africa have a broad prospect in building a closer community with a shared future for China and Africa," Wang said. He called on social organizations and personnel from China and Africa to promote political mutual trust, work for mutual benefit in economy, learn from each other's cultures, and coordinate in multilateral interaction. Wang also met with Vincent Meriton, president of Parti Lepep and vice president of Seychelles and Clement Mouamba, prime minister of the Republic of Congo, respectively. During his meeting with Meriton, Wang said leaders of China and African countries would develop a blueprint for closer China-Africa relations during the Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, which will be held in September. He said China stands ready to work with Seychelles to deepen mutual trust, enhance experience exchanges on governance, implement a policy of sincerity, affinity and good faith, and cooperate on the construction of the Belt and Road, to benefit the people as soon as possible. Meriton said cooperation between the two countries, as well as Africa and China, has established an example for an equal, fair, and reasonable global order by adhering to the idea of equality, respect, and win-win cooperation and Seychelles hopes to cement the people-to-people friendship with China. During his meeting with Mouamba, Wang said China supports the Republic of Congo's efforts to achieve prosperity and hopes the two sides can make joint efforts to push forward people-to-people cooperation between the two countries as well as China and Africa. Mouamba said the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and other relevant meetings have unveiled the traits of Africa-China cooperation which are sincerity, unity, pragmatism, and win-win result. The Republic of Congo is grateful for the aid China has provided and stands ready to forge pragmatic cooperation in various fields, to make progress on the Belt and Road Initiative and build a community with a shared future for China and Africa, he said. The high level committee will submit its recommendations to the Government within four weeks. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh will head a high level committee of group of ministers who will suggest laws against lynching and mob violence. (Photo: File | PTI) New Delhi: Ripped open by the Opposition and schooled by the Supreme Court, the Centre on Monday set up a panel of four group of ministers and a committee of secretaries who will suggest laws against lynching and ways to put an end to incidents of mob violence that have sparked nationwide outrage. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh will head the ministerial panel to Prime Minister Narendra Modi based on the recommendations of a high-level committee led by Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba. The four-member led by the Union Home Secretary will have - secretaries of justice, department of legal affairs, legislative department and social justice and empowerment. The committee will submit its recommendations to the government within four weeks. The move comes amid growing incidents of lynching and mob violence across India. The latest one to provoke widespread outrage was in Rajasthan's Alwar where a 28-year-old man was lynched over suspicion of cattle smuggling. The incidents have also fuelled sharp attacks by the opposition on the government in parliament. The Supreme Court last week had urged the government to enact laws separate to those against murder to act as a deterrent against lynchings, following a series of attacks in which mobs have beaten people to death. "We think it appropriate to recommend ... to parliament to create a separate offence for lynching and provide adequate punishment for the same... A special law in this field would instil a sense of fear," the court said in its judgment. Read: Mobocracy can't be allowed, act to curb cow violence: SC to Centre, states The court was hearing a petition filed by an activist to stop violence by vigilante groups, who are against the slaughter of cows. "The horrendous acts of 'mobocracy' cannot be permitted to inundate the law of the land," the judgment said. President Donald Trump is mischaracterizing newly released FBI documents on the agency's wiretapping of Carter Page, a onetime campaign adviser. Among his false claims is that the FBI relied on a politically tainted source and withheld that aspect from the court. The documents, available online after media outlets sued for their release, actually suggest the opposite. Here's a look at how Trump's tweets Monday run counter to the truth: TRUMP: "Carter Page wasn't a spy, wasn't an agent of the Russians - he would have cooperated with the FBI. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump." THE FACTS: Trump is quoting conservative activist Tom Fitton, who appeared on Fox News early Monday. But this assertion flatly contradicts the FBI's characterization of Page as "an agent of a foreign power." Page denied this description over the weekend. However, according to the FBI, Page "has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian Government" and Russia's goal was "to undermine and improperly and illegally influence the 2016 U.S. Presidential election." The documents state "the FBI believes that the Russian Government's efforts are being coordinated with Page and perhaps other individuals associated with" Trump's campaign. TRUMP, on how he thinks the FBI persuaded a court to approve a wiretap of Page: "Source (hash)1 was the major source. Avoided talking about it being the Clinton campaign behind it. Misled the Court to provide a pretext to SPY on the Trump Team. Not about Carter Page .. was all about getting Trump....." THE FACTS: Again, Trump appears to be quoting Fitton. And again, the claims directly contradict findings by the FBI and what was known previously about the Russia probe. "Source #1" is widely believed to refer to Christopher Steele, a former British spy with extensive Russia connections. As a private consultant, Steele was hired to investigate Trump's ties to Russia as part of opposition research funded by Democrats. The result of that research was the now-famous "dossier" that provided a detailed narrative of how the Russian government supposedly collaborated with Trump's Republican campaign in an elaborate operation to tilt the 2016 presidential race in his favor. Trump and his supporters wrongly suggest that the FBI covered up the link between Steele's work and its Democratic funding, and they argue Steele can't be taken seriously because of those connections. The latest documents, however, plainly note the possible political motive behind hiring Steele: "The FBI speculates that the identified U.S. person was likely looking for information that could be used to discredit" Trump's campaign. Still, the FBI told the court, it has found Steele's "previous reporting history with the FBI" to be "reliable" and "credible." Trump's laser focus on Steele ignores other facts as well, including that Page had previously lived in Russia and was on the FBI's radar as early as 2013, when it suspected Russian intelligence agents were trying to recruit Americans. Also, by the time the FBI requested the wiretap on Page in October 2016, the agency's Russia probe was already in full swing. The investigation was initiated in July 2016, the same month Page went to Russia, where the FBI says he met "with at least two Russian officials during this trip." TRUMP: "It was classified to cover up misconduct by the FBI and the Justice Department in misleading the Court by using this Dossier in a dishonest way to gain a warrant to target the Trump Team. This is a Clinton Campaign document. It was a fraud and a hoax designed to target Trump ...." THE FACTS: Wiretap requests are routinely classified to protect sources and methods, not to cover up misconduct by the FBI or Justice Department. Multiple news organizations, including The Associated Press, requested that the government release the documents under the Freedom of Information Act. The New York Times and others sued for its release, resulting in the documents being posted to the FBI's website. It's also not correct to call the Steele dossier a "Clinton Campaign document." Steele was hired by Fusion GPS, a private research firm that in turn was hired by a law firm that represented the Democratic campaign. But Clinton's closest aides said they didn't learn about the research until after the election, which is probable considering they never raised the allegations publicly. Find more AP Fact Checks. The President of Bosnia's autonomous Serb Republic Milorad Dodik pushed on Monday to reopen debate over the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, less than three months before the country votes in elections. Dodik launched a procedure demanding that parliament revoke a 2004 report issued by a previous government which established that Bosnian Serb forces killed about 8,000 Muslims in and around the town during the country's 1992-95 war. Critics accused Dodik of trying to use the issue of Europe's worst atrocity since World War Two to win the votes of hardline Bosnian Serbs in the October 7 general election. Dodik has always rejected rulings by two war crimes courts - The U.N. International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and The International Court of Justice - that the atrocity qualified as genocide. Though acknowledging the crime occurred, Dodik said the numbers of those killed had been exaggerated in the 2004 report. A special session of parliament to debate the report will be held on August 14, a parliamentary panel, which convened at Dodik's request, said on Monday. Dodik said earlier that the report had been manipulated to harm the Serbs and that he wanted it overturned. Before this, Srebrenica survivors sent to German authorities a list of Serbs alleged to have participated in the massacre, many of whom are still at large. Many Bosnians settled in Germany after the war, one of a series of conflicts as Yugoslavia broke up. Bosnian Serb forces, led by General Ratko Mladic, took over the U.N.-protected enclave of Srebrenica on July 11, 1995. They separated men from women, detained them and killed them en masse in the following days. Last year, the ICTY convicted Mladic of genocide and crimes against humanity, including at Srebrenica, and jailed him for life. Bosnian Muslim deputies in the Serb Republic parliament condemned Dodik's initiative. "The initiative ... is shameful when even the birds in the trees know what happened in Srebrenica. Dodik has no such eraser that can overturn the local and international rulings related to Srebrenica," one of them, Mujo Hadziomerovic, said. Dodik, who seeks the secession of the Serb Republic from Bosnia, will run for the Serb seat in the country's inter-ethnic presidency in October. Political analyst Tanja Topic said Bosnian parties in general were using such issues to win support. "This is a well-tried political recipe that the ruling parties have been using in their election campaign to mobilize voters around the nationalist agenda on the one side and to discredit their political opponents on the other," she told Reuters. After the war, Bosnia was split into the Serb Republic and a federation of Muslim Bosniaks and Roman Catholic Croats, linked via a weak central government. A report in a British newspaper says the British government has "secretly abandoned its blanket opposition to the death penalty and Guantanamo Bay" so that two jihadists -- members of the so-called Beatles group of Islamic State terrorists -- can face criminal prosecution in the United States. In a report posted on The Telegraph's website late Sunday, the paper said it had seen documents that the government is willing to hand over Alexanda Kotey and Shafee El-Sheikh to the U.S. without any "assurances" that they will not be executed. British law does not allow for the death penalty. The paper said it had seen documents detailing the conditions of the plan, including a letter from British Home Secretary Sajid Javid to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions that said Britain was not asking for "assurances" that the two men would not be executed. The report said the Home Secretary was concerned that British law "may not be robust enough to ensure a successful prosecution." According to The Telegraph, in the letter dated June 22, 2018, Javid wrote, ". . . it is the long held position of the UK to seek death penalty assurances, and our decision in this case does not reflect a change in our policy on assistance in US death penalty cases generally, nor the UK Government's stance on the global abolition of the death penalty." The paper said, however, that a senior Home Office source had "insisted" Saturday night that the U.S. had been "verbally warned" against sending the men to Guantanamo Bay. The anonymous source said that the U.K. "made it clear" that the British government would hand over the men "for the purposes of a criminal trial," but not for detention at Guantanamo Bay. Kotey and El-Sheikh were captured in Syria in January. The Telegraph says they are being held in Syria by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. Both held British citizenship. The Telegraph says, however, "... it has been widely reported that this has been secretly revoked by ministers." Kotey and El-Sheikh were part of a four-member terrorist cell dubbed "The Beatles" because all four had British accents. A third member of the group, nicknamed "Jihadi John," was killed by a drone strike in Syria in 2015. The fourth member, Aine Lesley Davis, is being held in a Turkish prison. The cell was responsible for the beheadings of U.S. journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, U.S. humanitarian worker Peter Kassig, and British aid workers David Haines and Alan Henning. Amid escalating trade friction with the United States, China appears to be courting Europe to fill the gaps in providing opportunities for technology transfers. Analysts, however, are urging Europe to be wary in its dealings with China. They say it will be political and economically unwise for Europe to take advantage of the Sino-U.S. dispute and allow China to continue unfair trade practices that include forced tech transfers and intellectual property theft. The U.S. has accused China of using state-led efforts to force, strong-arm and even steal U.S. technology and intellectual property. Rob Atkinson, who heads the Washington, D.C.-based Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF), says Europe should stop cutting deals with China that he says will offset the Trump administrations efforts to punish Beijing. In early July, the U.S. launched a first round of tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese goods. China's tariffs on $34 billion of U.S. imports, including soybeans, also took effect at the same time. U.S. President Donald Trump last week vowed to impose tariffs on all $505 billion worth of Chinese imports. China has vowed to retaliate if the U.S. slaps more tariffs on Chinese goods in the coming months. The U.S. and China are the world's two biggest economies. Made in China 2025 Chinas tech ambition, unveiled in its Made in China 2025 program, is believed to be at the core of its trade war with the U.S. To avoid upsetting Washington, China has downplayed the initiative, which was first introduced in 2015 with the goal of comprehensively upgrading China's high-tech industries at home. A recent official report, however, concluded that China is still far from being a global tech leader. According to the South China Morning Post, Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recently learned that 30 of the countrys largest conglomerates rely heavily on imported components used in industries that produce rockets, large aircraft and even automobiles. Exaggerated tech prowess The Chinese leadership wants to have it both ways. They want to tell their domestic population that they are [tech] leaders and they want to tell the rest of the world that they are not because they are afraid that, if they are seen as really big technology leaders or close to leaders, other countries will more actively push back against its unfair trade practices," ITIFs Atkinson said. Chris Dong, director of China research at market intelligence firm IDC, called the tech gaps between the two economies significant in not only components, but also innovation competency, fundamental engineering and business-sector transformations. Dong says China focuses its IT spending on hardware and infrastructure buildouts while the U.S. spends mostly on software and service in transforming digital technology. The prosperity of Chinas Internet economy, fueled by vast consumer technology adoptions, abundant capitals, and governments policy and financial support, should not mislead domestic perception away from the true fact that China has an overall growing but weak technology strength, Dong said in an email to VOA. Forced tech transfer to continue The U.S. boycott, however, is unlikely to stop China from advancing technological developments, according to an industry insider. China for sure will continue its technology development regardless, if [the U.S.] has turned hostile. We still hope to seek cooperation, whether it is cooperation between China and the U.S. or Europe. Collaboration will lead to a win-win situation, the insider said on condition of anonymity. China still keeps a certain level of R&D capacity. [The trade dispute] will only slow down its pace of catching up. The U.S. is unfriendly now. But Europe still looks friendly. China may turn to Europe for [coveted] tech transfer as long as Europe isnt as hostile as the U.S., said Kuo-yuan Liang, president of Taiwan-based Yuanta-Polaris Research Institute. The economist said he expects China to continue its forced technology transfer practices from foreign investors to Chinese operations, using its market access as an incentive to achieve its technological goal. Recent statistics released by the Baker McKenzie and Rhodium Groups also supported the trend. Chinas pivot to Europe The firms research found that the value of Chinas merger and acquisition activities in Europe reached $22 billion in the first half of this year nine times of that in North America during the same period. Adam Dunnett, secretary-general of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, believed the sharp ratio has more to do with a decrease in capital flows to the U.S. than an increase into the EU. He added that investment intended to acquire technology isnt problematic, but that what is at issue is the degree of state involvement and the true motivation behind certain investments. If these decisions are demonstrably driven by market forces, then Europe welcomes them; however, due to the lack of transparency of many Chinese investments, even perfectly legitimate capital flows are increasingly being scrutinized, Dunnett wrote in an email to VOA. He added that European businesses shared similar concerns with the U.S. about Chinas market-distorting actions including forced tech transfer and infringements of intellectual property rights. China has taken some action to improve the situation, but the overall actual impact has been very limited. Tensions will remain, and potentially worsen, until results are felt by international firms on the ground, he concluded. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has called for an investigation of a domestic drug manufacturer accused of violating regulations in making a rabies vaccine. Changsheng Biotechnology has been ordered to stop production and recall the vaccine after the China Food and Drug Administration discovered it had been falsifying production and inspection records. Premier Li issued a statement Sunday denouncing Changsheng for crossing a moral line, and promised to "resolutely crack down" on any actions that endangers public safety. There have no reports of injuries from the vaccine, but the news led to a wave of criticism on social media. Changsheng Biotechnology was forced to stop production of a vaccine for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis last year after regulators found the vaccine to be defective. China has been working to restore confidence in its food and drug industries, both at home and abroad, after a series of scandals over the last decade over shoddy and tainted products, the most notorious in 2008, when 300,000 children were sickened when they were given milk powder contaminated with the chemical melamine. Six of the children died. Too few people with signs of mental decline or dementia are getting checked during routine medical visits or told when a problem is found, says a panel of Alzheimer's disease experts who offered new guidance Sunday. The idea is to get help sooner for people whose minds are slipping -- even if there's no cure. Though mental decline can be an uncomfortable topic for patients and their doctors, the panel says family physicians should do a thorough evaluation when concerning symptoms arise and share the diagnosis candidly. Patients and family members should push for an evaluation if they're worried that symptoms might not be normal aging - the difference between occasionally misplacing keys versus putting them in the freezer or being confused about their function. "By the time you forget what the keys are for, you're too far gone to participate in your own care. We've lost probably a decade" that could have been spent planning, said the panel's leader, Dr. Alireza Atri, a neurologist at Banner Sun Health Research Institute in Arizona. It's not just memory that can suffer when mental decline starts, Atri said. "It's actually people's judgment being off, their character and personality being off," sometimes years before dementia is diagnosed, he said. The need About 50 million people worldwide have dementia; Alzheimer's is the most common form. In the United States, nearly 6 million have Alzheimer's and almost 12 million have mild cognitive impairment, a frequent precursor. In 2015, Alzheimer's Association research using Medicare records suggested that only about half of people who were being treated for Alzheimer's had been told by their health care provider that they had been diagnosed with the disease. "All too often, physicians will hear of some symptoms or memory complaints from patients or their spouse and say, `you know, you seem OK to me today,"' so check back in six months, said James Hendrix, an Alzheimer's Association science specialist who worked with the panel. Meantime, the patient may end up hospitalized for problems such as forgetting to take a diabetes medicine because their mental impairment wasn't caught. "We hear stories all the time of people taking years to get an accurate diagnosis," said Nina Silverberg, a psychologist who runs Alzheimer's programs at the National Institute on Aging, which had no role in the guidelines. Medicare recently started covering mental assessments as part of the annual wellness visit, but doctors aren't required to do it and there was no guidance on how to do it, she said. In some cases, it might be as cursory as asking "how's your memory?" The panel was appointed by the Alzheimer's Association and included primary care doctors, aging specialists, nurses and a psychiatrist. Broad guidelines were released on Sunday at the group's international conference in Chicago; details will be published later this year. The guidelines do not recommend screening everyone. They outline what health workers should do if people describe worrisome symptoms. That includes: checking for risk factors that may contribute to dementia or other brain diseases, including family history, heart disease and head injuries; pen-and-pencil memory tests; imaging tests to detect small strokes or brain injuries that could be causing memory problems. Tough topic Dr. Michael Sitorius, family medicine chairman at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, said dealing with mental decline adds to the challenge of caring for often frail elderly patients. It's a tough diagnosis to make for many doctors, he said, because medical training focuses on "trying to cure people and Alzheimer's and dementia are not curable." He said he gives his older patients mental tests at their annual checkups but that sometimes patients or loved ones don't want to hear the results. In those cases, Sitorius still addresses related issues including depression, safeguarding medication, nutrition and whether patients should continue driving. He said the new guidelines are a welcome reminder for family doctors to tackle these issues earlier. "Clearly ... we could do better," he said. A diagnosis should never be withheld out of fear of making the patient depressed, Atri said. "We strongly encourage a full disclosure," including diagnosis, stage and prognosis, he said. Patient's story At her daughter's urging, Anne Hunt visited her family doctor in 2011 because of increasing forgetfulness. Hunt, 81, who once ran a Chicago cooking school, recalls struggling with memory tests involving letters and numbers that her doctor had her perform. "I thought, `OK, this is it, I'm a vegetable,"' Hunt said. But the test results were inconclusive and there was no diagnosis. "We didn't do much about it," said Bruce Hunt, Anne's husband, until five years later, when her behavior was clearly worsening more memory lapses, repeating herself and forgetting where to put things. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's after an imaging test showed brain changes often seen with the disease. Imaging tests are sometimes used along with mental tests to diagnose the disease or rule out other conditions. Is it good to know? "There's no pill they can take to make it go away, so some people think there's no point to getting a diagnosis," but that's not true, the National Institute of Aging's Silverberg said. "It really does offer an opportunity to plan." Alzheimer's medicines such as Aricept and Namenda can ease symptoms but aren't a cure. Experts say other benefits include a chance to join experiments testing treatments, resolve finances, find caregivers, make homes safer and use memory aids and calendars to promote independent living. The Hunts joined support groups and a singing ensemble, hoping that trying new things would help them both cope. They were better prepared than some. Long before her diagnosis, they converted a vintage Chicago apartment building into two spacious homes so they could "age in place" with help from one of their daughters and her family. Anne Hunt said she had wanted to know the truth about her diagnosis. "Not to know is to wonder why things are happening to you and you don't understand them," she said. "I would rather know and have somebody help me figure out how can I control this to the best of my ability." Thirty-two former U.S. diplomats and 11 aid groups on Monday urged U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo not to eliminate a key State Department refugee bureau, warning that the move would be "an error of grave proportion." In a letter to Pompeo, the former diplomats and national security advisers who served in both Democratic and Republican administrations said eliminating the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) office would impact the U.S. ability to influence global refugee policy. The letter comes barely a year after 58 U.S. policy experts warned Rex Tillerson, the former secretary of state, against such a move. "We believe this would be an error of grave proportion, and we would urge close consultation with the U.S. Congress before such a critically important measure is even considered," the former officials and aid groups wrote. Since taking office in January last year, the Trump administration has cut the number of refugees it admits into the country, introduced stricter vetting rules and quit negotiations on a voluntary pact to deal with global migration. "We are convinced that the elimination of PRM's assistance functions would have profound and negative implications for the Secretary of State's capacity to influence policy issues of key concern to the United States," the groups wrote. "It would also be ironic, as this is one of the bureaus at State that has enjoyed strong bipartisan support over many years." The State Department did not respond to questions about the possible removal of the refugee office. Those signing the letter included William Burns, former deputy secretary of state; Rand Beers, former deputy assistant to the president for homeland security; Nicholas Burns, former under secretary of state for political affairs; Ryan Crocker, former ambassador to Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait and Lebanon; Ellen Laipson, former vice chair of the U.S. National Intelligence Council; Anne Richard, former assistant secretary of state for PRM; and Frederick Barton, a former U.N. deputy high commissioner for refugees. Among the aid groups that signed the letter was Scott Arbeiter, president of World Relief; David Miliband, president of International Rescue Committee; Eric Schwartz, president of Refugees International and former assistant secretary of state for population, refugees and migration; Wendy Young, president of Kids in Need of Defense; and Neal Keny-Guyer, CEO of Mercy Corps. Former Donald Trump political strategist Steve Bannon and a top associate have created a Brussels-based political organization intended to undermine, and ultimately paralyze, the European Union, Bannon and the associate told Reuters. In an interview and email conversations, Bannon and Raheem Kassam, a former chief aide to British anti-EU leader Nigel Farage who now serves as a Bannon lieutenant, said the group, known as The Movement, is already operating and hiring. "The Movement will be our clearing house for the populist, nationalist movement in Europe. We're focusing attention on assisting individuals or groups concerned with the matters of sovereignty, border control, jobs, amongst other things," Kassam said. "We decided to headquarter out of Brussels because it is the heart of the European Union the most pernicious force against nation state democracy in the West today. "The organization is already a structured foundation with a significant annual budget and we have started to staff up," he said. Kassam declined to give further details about the foundation. Bannon, who during a London visit last week met Farage and Louis Aliot, a close associate of French far-right politician Marine Le Pen, described the organization he was creating as a "populist project" intended to touch off a "tectonic plate shift in Europe. "Next year's European parliamentary elections are going to be a major test for both Eurosceptics and reformers alike, and The Movement is where those two causes dovetail," Kassam said. "The political establishment has worked with the assistance of innumerable NGOs for decades, one hand washing the other. We felt like it was time there was an organization on the side of ordinary people, instead of the vested, big business lobbying interests in Europe," he added. The European Union traces its origins back to the aftermath of the Second World War, meant as a way of fostering economic cooperation and curbing national rivalries. Today it is the largest economic bloc in the world and has expanded its political powers. Its "goals and values" state that it promotes peace, offers freedom, security and justice without internal borders and enhances solidarity among member states. Proponents say it defends European interests, whether against global powers such as China and the United States or against multinational companies seeking monopolistic footholds. Targeting elections Bannon and Kassam said their plan was to use their new movement to organize a major turnout of nationalist and populist voters in European Parliament elections which take place in all EU member states next May. Voter turnout in European Parliament elections historically is low, and Bannon said he and his organization hope that by mobilizing local anti-EU groups they can elect a large enough group of Members of the European Parliament to disrupt and even shut down the Parliament and the European Commission. Asked about Bannon's plans on Monday, the Commission's chief spokesman told reporters that the EU executive noted them but declined further comment. Senior EU officials gearing up for the 2019 election acknowledge that parties hostile to the Union could do well, but few expect them to have enough seats to disrupt the functioning of the institutions. Parliament in itself is the weakest of the three main political bodies in Brussels, after the Council of member states and the Commission. It cannot propose legislation and would need a majority to block laws and budgets. Right-wing, anti-EU groups have about 100 seats in the current 751-seat assembly. With Britain's departure next March, Farage and 18 other UK Independence Party members will lose their seats in what will be a 705-seat chamber. Irrespective of the EU election results, new deals to form transnational party groups in the parliament after the vote will also be key to the strength of any anti-EU bloc. Some experts on Europe's far-right parties and movements question the extent to which Bannon and his associates will be able to unite enlarged right-wing European Parliamentary factions. After the 2014 election, efforts to unite the far-right failed, leaving Farage and France's Marine Le Pen leading rival groups and Farage accusing the French of being anti-Semitic. Israel launched its newest air defense system on Monday on the Syrian frontier, where Damascus's Russian-backed forces have been routing rebels, as Moscow sent envoys for what it called "urgent" talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu planned to meet Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and its armed forces chief, General Valery Gerasimov, later in the day, a visit the Israeli leader said was arranged last week at the request of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Israel has been on high alert as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regains ground from southern rebels, bringing his forces close to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. In a sign of high tensions, Israel launched two David's Sling interceptor missiles at rockets which the Israeli military later said fell inside Syrian territory and were part of the internal fighting there. It was Israel's first published operational use of the mid-range missiles, which are jointly manufactured by U.S. firm Raytheon Co. The incident triggered sirens in northern Israel and on the Golan. The military did not immediately elaborate on whether the targets were shot down by David's Sling. Israel deployed the system last year to complement its short-range Iron Dome and long-range Arrow interceptors. Netanyahu held talks with Putin in Moscow on July 11 amid Israeli concern that Assad, an old foe, may defy a 1974 demilitarisation deal on the Golan or allow his Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah allies to deploy there. Russia, whose foreign ministry confirmed Lavrov's visit, has said it wants to see the separation of forces on the frontier preserved. Lavrov's deputy, Grigory Karasin, told Russian media the foreign minister's trip was "urgent and important." Netanyahu, in broadcast remarks, said he would tell the envoys that "Israel insists on the separation of forces agreement between us and Syria being honored, as they were honored for decades until the civil war in Syria broke out." He also reaffirmed "Israel will continue to act against any attempt by Iran and its proxies to entrench militarily in Syria." Syrian state television said on Sunday an Israeli air strike hit a military post in the city of Misyaf in Syria's Hama province but caused only material damage. An Israeli military spokeswoman said it does not comment on foreign reports. Also on Sunday, hundreds of Syrian "White Helmet" rescue workers and their families fled advancing government forces and slipped over the border into Jordan with the help of Israeli soldiers and Western powers. A Tunisian boat carrying around 40 African migrants has been stranded off the country's coast without aid for more than a week after authorities refused to let them disembark there, the Red Crescent said on Monday. Monji Slim, an official of the Tunisian Red Crescent, said the authorities had argued that Malta or Italy should accept the migrants. The Tunisian interior ministry declined to comment. Slim told Reuters the boat was stuck 12 miles off the coast. "The African migrants at sea are in a bad condition after the vessel's captain refused to receive aid to pressure the Tunisian authorities to receive them, but no solution has been reached after 11 days at sea." It was not clear from where the migrants had originally set off before they were rescued by the Tunisian vessel. The new Italian government has closed its ports to charity ships operating in the Mediterranean, saying the European Union must share the burden of accepting the hundreds of migrants who are plucked from waters each month, mostly off the Libyan coast. Rome called this month for migrant centers to be set up in Africa to stop a tide of asylum-seekers fleeing toward western Europe. Tunisia has rejected this proposal. At least 80 migrants died when their boat sank off the Tunisian coast last month, one of the worst migrant boat accidents in the North African country of recent years. Human traffickers are increasingly using Tunisia as a launch pad for migrants heading to Europe as the Libyan coast guard, aided by armed groups, has tightened controls. Karti Chidambaram has been allowed to visit the United Kingdom, France and the US for business purposes. Karti Chidambaram is out on bail in the corruption case. (Photo: File) New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday allowed Karti Chidambaram, son of senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, to travel abroad from July 23 to 31. Karti, who is out on bail in the corruption case, has been allowed to visit the United Kingdom, France and the US for business purposes. Earlier in June, the CBI moved to the apex court challenging a Delhi High Court order granting bail to Karti in the INX Media case. The CBI had claimed that it was "impermissible" for the high court to entertain the bail plea filed by Karti when an application seeking similar relief was pending before the trial court. Karti Chidambaram has been accused of getting government clearance for foreign investment of around Rs 300 crore for INX Media, a television company then owned by Peter and Indrani Mukerjea, in exchange for bribes. According to the investigators, Karti used the influence of his father, who was the Union Finance Minister in the UPA government at the time. He was arrested after Peter and Indrani Mukerjea made a series of allegations linking him and P Chidambaram to the bribes they claimed they gave. The couple is currently in jail, accused of being involved in the murder of Indrani Mukerjea's daughter Sheena Bora. Hundreds of women whose children have been killed or are missing as a result of the separatist war in Cameroon marched in the capital Sunday. The women called for a cease-fire between the government and the armed groups demanding independence for Cameroon's English-speaking regions. These are women who have escaped to Yaounde from the English-speaking regions of Cameroon, where a war has raged between the military and separatists for the past year. The women are praying and singing for peace to return to the central African state. Among them is Gladys Arrey. She says her 24-year-old son has been missing since March, after she says the military destroyed his motorcycle to get revenge for the killing of a policeman in the southwestern town of Mutengene. She says she came out to add her voice to the protest. "We could not miss this opportunity to come and say enough is enough," she said. Last November, President Paul Biya declared war on people he called secessionists after armed men attacked and killed two policemen in English-speaking southwestern Cameroon. The government of Cameroon reports that about 200 civilians and more than a hundred soldiers and policemen have been killed since then. Ernestine Mbah, who fled from the northwestern town of Batibo, says she has lost her husband and two children in the war. She says she is taking part in the march to let the government know that when the military burns houses and businesses, youths are radicalized and escape to the bushes where they join armed fighters. "In old times that I was a child, we used to live in peace, we used to share together, we used to talk," she said. "What is happening? Whatsoever thing, whatsoever devil that is coming into their hearts please let us stop and make peace. If we humble ourselves God is going to give us our heart desires. I plead for peace, I plead for love." In June, rights group Amnesty International accused Cameroon's government of using unnecessary and excessive force that frequently placed civilians in the path of violence. The government said the report was biased and denied using excessive force. The crisis in Cameroon's two English speaking regions started out as a protest against marginalization by French speakers who constitute a majority in central African country. Some French-speaking Cameroonians joined in on Sunday's march. Marie Menanga, a Yaounde resident who is housing three people displaced by the fighting, says she wants the government to declare a ceasefire and stop what she describes as a senseless war. She says armed separatists should also drop their weapons. She says no woman who is normal and who kept a pregnancy for nine months and went through labor pains will want to see her child or children killed in a senseless war. She says every one should drop their weapons and come out of the bushes because the best gift of live is love and peace. The United Nations reports that about 200,000 people have been internally displaced and tens of thousands have fled across to Nigeria for safety since the fighting began. Depending on who you talk to a second Brexit referendum is either the only way to break months of deadlock in Britains House of Commons or a beguiling idea that would worsen deep political divisions. Either way, the odds are increasing on Britain holding a second plebiscite on whether it should remain in the European Union or exit, with or without a trade deal. A survey published Sunday by the YouGov polling agency suggests that the 2016 referendum result would likely be overturned in a second plebiscite. In the survey 54 percent said they would vote to stay in the EU to 46 percent backing Brexit. Thanks to a House of Commons unable to reach agreement on any specific form of Brexit, and a government equally at odds with itself, Britain is drifting towards crashing out of the bloc next March without any withdrawal or trade deal, a prospect thats terrifying British businessmen. Without a deal there would be no arrangements for air travel between Britain and the European continent, no agreement on the status of three-and-half million EU citizens living in Britain or a million-and-half Britons living in the EU. Production at major car and aircraft factories in Europe and Britain could grind to a halt because of disruption to supply chains; and financial services and the pharmaceuticals industry could be impacted gravely on both sides of the English Channel. Last week, the European Commission said it is ramping up preparations to try to mitigate the impact on the Continent of a no-deal Brexit. Independent economists and analysts warn there would be as serious consequences for parts of Europe notably Ireland, France, the Netherlands and Belgium as the 2008 financial crash. The EC has issued warning notes to businesses outlining how to prepare for it. The impact would be greater in Britain, which the International Monetary Fund estimates could see four percent shaved off economic output owing to trade disruption alone. Dominic Grieve, a former attorney general, told Sky News Sunday that a no deal would be absolutely catastrophic. He added: We will be in a state of emergency. Some basic services which we take for granted might not be available. It would not, for example, be possible for someone to fly to Rome because the over-flying rights over the other EU countries are regulated by EU law.And there would be difficulty in getting foods into this country because of the number of regulatory checks that would take place. The head of Amazons British subsidiary, Doug Gurr, told ministers at a summit Friday that his company was factoring in social unrest in its contingency planning in the event theres no withdrawal agreement. Britains beleaguered Prime Minister, Theresa May, has also started to put the country on a no-deal Brexit war footing. Starting this week, consumers and companies will be given detailed advice in regular bundles on how to prepare for a disorderly Brexit. The advice is likely to include the need to stockpile some foods and medicines. John Manzoni, a senior civil servant, told lawmakers last week: Actually we dont want this to happen but we have to prepare just in case it does. But some key players indeed do want it to happen. Hardline Brexiters in the Conservative party, estimated to number from 60 to 100 lawmakers, dismiss the doleful forecasts, arguing either theyre exaggerated, or, alternatively, they arent, but damage is the price Britain has to pay for a rebirth. Boris Johnson, the former foreign minister who resigned earlier this month in protest at Prime Minister Mays latest plan to shape a softer Brexit with a free trade deal in goods with the EU, says the gloom is overblown. Johnson says Mays plan would see Britain having to abide by EU rules and European judges decisions and it would make Britain a vassal state by blocking free trade deals being negotiated with other non-EU countries, including the U.S. That concern was fanned by U.S. President Donald Trump during his trip to Britain earlier this month. He warned a trade deal with the EU would imperil Britain being able to strike one with Washington. His former strategic adviser Steve Bannon, who says he still talks with aides in the White House, was in London last week encouraging the formation of a new hard right Brexit party. Chequers Agreement Mays plan, known as the Chequers Agreement, a reference to the Prime Ministers country residence, Chequers, where it was unveiled, has so far prompted more than half-a-dozen ministerial resignations. The deal, though, is all but dead. Amendments introduced by hardcore Brexit lawmakers have gutted it and EU officials have said in its present cherry-picking form it is unacceptable. The mood in Brussels hasnt been improved by Mays new Brexit minister backtracking Sunday on some divorce terms agreed to months ago, saying now the British government will refuse to pay $52 billion to cover financial obligations London entered into before the Brexit referendum unless the EU strikes a free trade deal. Hence the increasing calls for another referendum as the clock ticks and it becomes ever clearer theres no Commons majority for either a no-deal Brexit or a so-called soft Brexit which would keep Britain still aligned with the EU. The knot in many ways has been tightened by the Labor Partys Jeremy Corbyn, the most far-left leader the party has had since the 1930s. At heart a Brexiter himself, he has left his party on the sidle-lines watching but not seriously exploiting the internecine war raging in Conservative ranks. Retired top politicians, including Labor prime minister Tony Blair, have been calling for months for another plebiscite. They have now been joined by a growing chorus of currently serving politicians, including Justine Greening, a former Conservative education minister and a potential pro-Remain challenger to May, if a party leadership contest is triggered, which seems likely in the autumn. That in turn could prompt a snap general election. Greening is the most high-profile serving Conservative lawmaker to endorse a second plebiscite. The only solution is to take the final Brexit decision out of the hands of deadlocked politicians, she says, by letting voters choose from three options:Mays now virtually dead offer, departure without any kind of deal or remaining in the EU. Theresa May has adamantly ruled out another vote. Former Conservative leader, William Hague, is also opposed to holding another vote. He fears revisiting the 2016 vote would enrage those who backed Brexit in the first place, adding to the toxicity of British politics. And poison is flowing freely especially in the very public battles raging in the House of Commons between Conservative Brexiters and Remainers. They have been hurling insults at each other with a disdain normally reserved for opponents in the Labor Party and other opposition factions. Winston Churchills grandson and Conservative lawmaker Nicholas Soames has bemoaned the fratricide. I dont think in my 35 years as an MP that I have ever known such a truly unpleasant and deeply uncertain time in the House, he said. Soames says he wishes Brexit would just be blown up. Officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo are expected to declare the country Ebola-free this Wednesday. A recent outbreak first detected in April in the northwestern part of the DRC killed 32 people; another 21 people were infected, but survived. However, it's been more than five weeks since a new case of the viral disease was identified in the country. The 2014 Ebola outbreak in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone infected more than 28,000 people, and killed 11,000. Florent Del Pinto, the head of Congo's Ebola response team, said health workers used the lessons from the 2014 outbreak to contain this one. "In West Africa, around 20 percent new contamination was due to unsafe burials, so we have been very active in ensuring all the suspected cases were benefited, dignified and safe burials to limit the risk of contamination," Del Pinto said. "Community engagement is also something very important to be able to sensitize the people on what is Ebola and how to prevent someone from getting Ebola and what should be done when signs and symptoms are detected." Meanwhile, the World Health Organization has given an experimental vaccine to people who came in contact with those infected with the virus. The U.N. agency has vaccinated 3,330 people. The vaccinations were conducted by WHO and Medecins Sans Frontieres teams. Del Pinto warns the deadly virus could re-emerge. "The challenges are important here because, first of all, its endemic, meaning that Ebola will reappear in the future here in DRC. So, one of the challenges is to get ready for the next one and try to increase our capacity, increase our readiness to be able to be ready when it comes," Del Pinto said. The DRC has seen a total of nine Ebola outbreaks since the viral disease was first detected in Congo in 1976. An earlier version of this story erroneously listed the number of WHO vaccinations. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday vowed to sustain the momentum of his bloody war on drugs, telling the nation in an annual address that the fight would be as "relentless and chilling" as during his first two years in power. Duterte told a joint session of Congress the anti-narcotics campaign, which has earned him international notoriety, was "far from over", taking a swipe at activists and political opponents who seek to bring him to book for thousands of killings. "Your concern is human rights, mine is human lives" he said, adding that his fierce campaign aimed to protect the public from illicit drugs, as the "lives of our youth are being wasted" and families destroyed. Since Duterte came to power, police have killed more than 4,500 people they say were suspected drug pushers who resisted arrest. Police say several thousand other deaths are believed to be drug related, and at the hands of vigilantes or rival gang members. Human rights groups alarmed by the bloodshed say many of the killings were summary executions by police who were systematically exterminating drug users in the poorest communities. Police vigorously rebut those allegations. Duterte reiterated that his foreign policy would not ally with any one power, but that ties with historic foe China had been "re-energized", bringing unprecedented cooperation in the battle on transnational crime and dismantling clandestine drug laboratories. But those warmer relations would not come at the expense of the Philippines' territorial integrity and economic interests in the South China Sea, he added. Duterte read his prepared 50-minute speech in full, unlike his two previous addresses, when he eventually ditched his script to improvise and ramble. He asked Congress to pass a law to give proper labor contracts to millions of people in short-term employment, to protect the environment and grant the Muslim minority the right to self-rule. Thousands of women, students, left-wing activists, and church-based groups gathered outside Congress to denounce what they said were Duterte's anti-poor policies and widespread human rights abuses. More than half of Germans think Europe can defend itself without military backing from the United States, a poll showed on Monday, less than two weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump said he could withdraw support. Only 37 percent of respondents said they believed Europe depended on U.S. military help, the Forsa poll showed. The survey found no significant difference between eastern German regions and western areas, which have stronger historical ties to the United States. In the east, 60 percent thought Europe did not need Washington, and in the west, 55 percent. Trump gave an ultimatum to European allies on July 12, warning a NATO summit the United States could withdraw its support if Europe did not share more of what he called an unfair burden on U.S. taxpayers in funding the alliance. In a rebuke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, he also called Germany a "captive" of Moscow because, he said, Berlin supported a Baltic Sea gas pipeline from Russia. About 84 percent of respondents said Trump's comments about Russia controlling Germany were "completely absurd", according to the poll which surveyed 1,004 Germans. Even more 92 percent said they suspected that Trump's motive for making the comments was primarily to promote the sale of U.S. liquefied gas in Europe and Germany. Two thirds said they supported the construction of the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline because it would help provide Germany with a more reliable supply of natural gas. Eleven South African taxi drivers were killed and four others critically wounded when gunmen opened fire on their minibus. Police Brigadier Jay Naicker said the victims were returning to Johannesburg from a colleague's funeral when they were ambushed between the towns of Colenso and Weenen in KwaZulu-Natal province. Two people among the 17 on the bus were unscathed. Police are investigating possible motives, but rivalry between groups of taxi drivers vying for the same routes has led to violence in the past. South African media reported the deaths of 10 people in violence related to rivalries among minibus taxi drivers in Cape Town over one weekend in May. Minibus taxis are an essential mode of transportation in South Africa. A prominent South Korean lawmaker under investigation in a corruption scandal has committed suicide. Yonhap news agency says Representative Roh Hoe-chan, a leader of the left-leaning Justice Party, was found dead near the entrance of an apartment building in central Seoul early Monday morning. Yonhap says the 61-year-old, three-term lawmaker jumped to his death. Roh was under investigation over allegations he received over $44,000 from a blogger at the center of an online opinion-rigging scandal. Yonhap says Roh left a suicide note in his apartment admitting to accepting money, but denying any wrongdoing. He also apologized to his family in the note. Independent counsel Huh Ik-bum expressed his condolences about the tragedy in a press conference just hours after Roh's suicide. South Korea has one of the world's highest suicide rates.Victims include disgraced politicians and business executives. One of the most prominent figures in recent years to commit suicide was former President Roh Moo-hyun, who jumped to his death in 2009 over a corruption scandal. The South Sudan government on Monday criticized a White House statement that condemned South Sudans move to extend the governments mandate by another three years and demanded the countrys leaders be sincere as they negotiate a peace agreement. In a statement released Sunday by White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the U.S. called on South Sudanese leaders to commit to negotiations that include civil society, church, women and other groups that have been excluded. The statement said a narrow agreement between elites will only sow the seeds of another cycle of conflict. The White House statement said President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar have not shown the leadership required to bring genuine peace to the country, and that the U.S. would not be a guarantor, a funder or an advocate for additional U.N. resources to support the transitional government if the leaders do not show a commitment to peace, good governance and financial accountability. Sanders also warned in her statement that additional sanctions are on the table for persons engaged in corrupt activity or for those who threaten the countrys peace. The South Sudan government Monday criticized the White House statement, saying it is the kind rebuke that should never be directed to a U.S. ally like South Sudan. In an exclusive interview with "South Sudan In Focus," South Sudan Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Mawien Makol described the statement as unhelpful and harsh. We need the language which is supporting this kind of commitment and I think this is what the U.S. should be doing, urging us to really continue to doing what we are really doing, but it will not derail us from our commitment, Makol said. Makol strongly denied that South Sudans negotiators meeting in Khartoum, Sudan, were preparing to sign a peace-sharing agreement that is not inclusive. They have to come in here with details about the lack of commitment they are talking about, because we are seeing these men are sitting together, laughing together and demonstrating that they can work together, so what else can you say about this kind of commitment? Makol told South Sudan in Focus. Makol said the Kiir administration is well aware of the suffering the conflict has caused on innocent civilians and will work with the rebels and other opposition groups to restore peace and stability. But he said the White House statement has tarnished the image of his government. It shows to the world that the government is not committed, when you are committed to do something then somebody comes and say that if you dont do it then you will face this and that. That doesnt help in the diplomatic arena, Makol told VOA. Violence broke out in South Sudan in late 2013 amid a political power struggle between President Kiir and Machar, who fled the country in 2015 when a fresh wave of fighting erupted in the capital Juba between government forces and Machars bodyguards. Last week, the U.S. pushed for and received a U.N. Security Council arms embargo. Juba condemned the resolution authorizing the embargo. Suspected Boko Haram militants killed 18 farmers and kidnapped nine women in western Chad, authorities said, part of a wave of violence that has spread from neighboring Nigeria across the region. The attackers came into the village of Mayerom in Lake Chad region after dark on Thursday last week and slit the farmers' throats, governor Mahamat Abali Saleh told Reuters. The fighters took nine women, but one had since escaped, he said. "The farmers went beyond the area marked by security services while searching for new land to farm. This is why they were attacked," he added. Boko Haram has been fighting for at least nine years to carve an Islamist caliphate out of northeast Nigeria, and carried out raids across the border into Chad, Niger and Cameroon. The violence has killed more than 30,000 people and displaced about 2.7 million. Chad, which has not suffered as many attacks as its neighbors, sent 2,000 troops to Niger in 2016 to bolster security after 32 Nigerien soldiers were killed during an assault. Those troops were withdrawn in October last year, raising renewed concern about security in the region. The URL has been copied to your clipboard The code has been copied to your clipboard. Some groups or individuals linked to terrorism are openly campaigning in Pakistan's general elections scheduled for July 25th. Members of mainstream political parties are worried about the impact if these individuals get elected to parliament. VOAs Ayesha Tanzeem reports from capital Islamabad. During his speech on Friday, the Congress chief had also accused the Prime Minister of favouring one industrialist in the Rafale deal. Congress president Rahul Gandhi with Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his speech in the Lok Sabha on the no-confidence motion during the Monsoon Session of Parliament. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: The BJP and the Congress have resorted to a war of privilege notices over the Rafale fighter jet deal that was raised by Congress president Rahul Gandhi during the debate on the no-confidence motion on Friday. Both the parties have accused the rivals ministers and leaders of misleading the Lok Sabha. On Monday when four BJP members submitted a privilege notice against Mr Gandhi to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, and Opposition Congress decided to soon pay back the ruling BJP in the same coin by pressing a privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman for misleading the House. We are talking to lawyers on whether a privilege motion can be moved against the PM. Once that is clear we will move the motion, a Congress leader said. Speaker Ms Mahajan, meanwhile, has said that she will examine the privilege notice against Mr Gandhi received from four BJP MPs Nishik-ant Dubey, Anurag Thakur, Dushyant Singh and Prahlad Joshi who have accused the Congress president of misleading Parliament by making false allegations against Mr Modi and Ms Sitharaman. During the debate on the no-confidence motion, Mr Gandhi had taken the Modi government head-on, claiming that French President Emmanuel Macron had told him in a meeting that the Indian government was free to divulge details on the Rafael deal despite a secrecy clause between the two countries. During his speech on Friday, the Congress chief had also accused the Prime Minister of favouring one industrialist in the Rafale deal. On Monday, Congress MP and former defence minister A.K. Antony dismissed the BJPs claim that a secrecy clause with France was forcing the government to not reveal the jets price. He claimed that there was no clause in the 2008 pact between India and France that prevents the government from divulging price details of the Rafale deal. Mr Antony said that the government cannot hide the price details of the Rafael jets as the deal has to be scrutinised by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) as well as Parliaments Public Accounts Committee (PAC). The Congress claimed that the price of 36 Rafale jets, as per an international bid in 2012 during the UPA government, came to Rs 18,940 crore. However, the Modi government purchased the same number of aircraft for Rs 60,145 crore and asked the BJP to explain the extra amount of Rs 41,000 crore paid from public money. This price is apparent from the Annual Report, 2016 of Dassault Aviation, said a Congress leader. Mr Antony alleged the government owes Parliament an explanation on why Mr Modi and Ms Sitharaman misled the nation on the price issue. He maintained that the French government had no objection in revealing the price of the Rafale aircraft and this was conveyed by the French President to Mr Gandhi. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala added that the stand taken by the defence minister in Lok Sabha is clearly a matter of breach of privilege. The BJP countered by claiming that according to rules of the House, Mr Gandhi should have given prior notice before making any allegations against any member. He should have given substantiating material to the Speaker, said parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar. Law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad cited replies made in Parliament by then UPA government on defence purchases and other issues in which its defence minister, first Pranab Mukherjee and then Mr Antony, had declined to share price details on defence purchases and other information on the ground of national security. President Donald Trump continues to defend his recent summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump said Monday on Twitter that he made no concessions to Putin in their meeting last week. The presidents performance got a negative review in the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll, which found that 50 percent of Americans disapproved of his handling of the summit, compared to 33 percent who approved. Trump has been on the defensive over the summit since returning from Helsinki, especially during a key moment when he was asked about Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election as Putin stood beside him. My people came to me, [Director of National Intelligence] Dan Coats came to me and some others; they said they think its Russia, Trump said at his joint news conference with Putin. I have President Putin; he just said its not Russia. Gave up nothing In offering his defense on Twitter, Trump wrote that he gave up nothing in his meeting with Putin and talked about future benefits for both countries. Trump also renewed his attacks on the Russia probe in a tweet Sunday, describing it as a big hoax. In recent days, both Democrats and Republicans have criticized Trump's Helsinki performance. President Trump obviously seemed frightened in the presence of Putin, said House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of California. What was he afraid of? What is President Putin blackmailing President Trump with? A larger than normal chorus of Republicans also expressed dismay about the Putin meeting - including one of Trumps few regular Republican critics, Arizona Senator Jeff Flake. We have indulged myths and fabrications and pretended that it wasnt so bad, and our indulgence got us the capitulation in Helsinki, Flake said in a speech on the Senate floor. Trump defenders spoke up as well, including 2016 Republican rival and Texas Senator Ted Cruz. I think we are also seeing a lot of folks on the political left trying to take advantage of it, hyperventilating and using extreme rhetoric, using words like treason, which is ridiculous, Cruz told reporters. It was a mistake. He shouldnt have said what he said. Tougher stance After several days of criticism, Trump issued a stronger statement on the threat of Russian interference in this years midterm congressional elections. Unlike previous administrations, my administration has and will continue to move aggressively to repeal any efforts and repel. We will repel it. Any efforts to interfere in our elections, Trump told his Cabinet last week. Trumps summit drew strong reactions from voters around the country as well. Putin is almost like an evil genius in a way. He is very manipulative and he knows what he is doing and I think Trump really got played, said one Trump critic interviewed by VOAs Russian Service in New York City. Trump supporters were quick to jump to his defense. I think it all boils down to, point blank, a sore loser. And they are just grasping at straws, said a woman, interviewed by Associated Press Television, outside a coffee shop in Mississippi. Lasting damage? Analysts continue to debate whether Trump has hurt himself politically. I think it is lasting political damage, but more importantly, it is lasting damage to his presidency, said Elaine Kamarck, a political expert with the Brookings Institution in Washington. It raises very, very serious questions about either his competence or his integrity, and neither one is something you want to question in a president. Kamarck argued the summit could have an impact on both Trump critics and supporters. There are people who have been suspicious of the president from the beginning who are outraged at his behavior with Russia, she said. And there are people who have wanted to believe him and are for him, and many of them are mystified. WATCH: Trump-Putin poll Given Trumps loyal political base, will many of them be swayed? John Fortier of the Bipartisan Policy Center is not so sure. The average Republican voter is with Donald Trump," he said. "The elites of the Republican Party are very split on him, but the average Republican voter believes in him. In addition to the recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, a survey by CBS News found only 29 percent approved of Trumps handling of the summit, while 56 percent disapproved. Among Republicans in the CBS survey, 68 percent approved compared to only 21 percent who disapproved. In the latest Wall Street Journal-NBC News poll, 45 percent of those surveyed felt Trumps relationship with Putin was too friendly, while 29 percent disagreed and 26 percent had no opinion. So it remains an open question as to whether the summit will actually move voters in one direction or another, or simply be added to the long list of issues for them to sift through before midterm congressional elections in November. Capping a week of drama, back-tracking and blistering statements from allies about his attitude toward Russian election interference, President Donald Trump on Monday returned to familiar rhetoric, referring to the special counsel's Russia probe as a "hoax" and "Witch Hunt." Trump spent last week trying to reassure the country that he accepts that the longtime foe interfered in the 2016 election, despite his public undermining of U.S. intelligence agencies in Helsinki while standing alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin. But Trump cast doubt once again in a Sunday tweet, diminishing at least the significance, if not the existence, of the interference and the U.S. investigation into Russia's actions. "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election," Trump tweeted. "Why didn't he do something about it? Why didn't he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, that's why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!" White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Monday that Trump was "obviously" referring to allegations of collusion between his presidential campaign and Russian agents. U.S. intelligence agencies unanimously concurred that Russia interfered in the 2016 campaign. Trump only reluctantly accepted their assessment amid the firestorm of last week's reaction to his comments at a summit news conference with Putin. "Obviously the president is talking about the collusion with his campaign," Sanders said. "He's been very clear that there wasn't any. I think he's said it about 1,000 times." On Monday, Trump again mischaracterized documents released by the FBI this weekend related to the agency's wiretapping of Carter Page, a onetime campaign adviser. Trump is claiming without evidence that the FBI inappropriately used political research by British spy Christopher Steele to mislead the court into granting a wiretap order, then classified the documents to "cover up misconduct." He was quoting a conservative activist on Fox News. That's not what the documents show, though. Released online Saturday under the Freedom of Information Act, the documents note the political ties to Steele's work but said it still believed some of his report to be "credible." The FBI said it suspected Page had been "collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government." Visible portions of the heavily redacted documents, released Saturday under the Freedom of Information Act, show the FBI telling the court that Page "has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government." The agency also told the court that "the FBI believes Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government." Page denies being a foreign agent. Special Counsel Robert Mueller is investigating potential collusion between Russia and Trump's campaign. Two Trump associates, former national security adviser Mike Flynn and campaign foreign policy aide George Papadopoulos, pleaded guilty last year to charges brought by Mueller alleging they had lied to the FBI about their Russia contacts. Trump tweeted Monday: "They should drop the discredited Mueller Witch Hunt now!" The documents were part of officials' application for a warrant to the secretive foreign intelligence surveillance court, which signed off on surveilling Page. Trump tweeted Sunday on the documents: "As usual they are ridiculously heavily redacted but confirm with little doubt that the Department of 'Justice' and FBI misled the courts. Witch Hunt Rigged, a Scam!" The release appears to undercut some of the contentions in a memo prepared by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes earlier this year. Nunes, R-Calif., and other Republicans had said that anti-Trump research in a dossier prepared by former British intelligence agent Christopher Steele and paid for by Democrats was used inappropriately to obtain the warrant on Page. While the documents confirm that the FBI relied, in part, on information from Steele to obtain the initial warrant, they also show how the FBI informed the court of his likely motivation. A page-long footnote in the warrant application lays out the FBI's assessment of Steele's history and the likely interest of his backer, adding that despite the political concern, the bureau believed at least some of his report to be "credible." Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California, a ranking member on the House Intelligence Committee, said the documents detail "just why the FBI was so concerned that Carter Page might be acting as an agent of a foreign power." "It was a solid application and renewals signed by four different judges appointed by three different Republican presidents," Schiff said on ABC's "This Week." Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida also broke with Trump, saying he didn't think the FBI did anything wrong in obtaining warrants against Page. "I have a different view on this issue than the president and the White House," Rubio said Sunday on CBS' Face the Nation. "They did not spy on the campaign from anything and everything that I have seen. You have an individual here who has openly bragged about his ties to Russia and Russians." In a 2013 letter, Page had described himself as an "informal adviser" to the Kremlin but now said "it's really spin" to call him an adviser. Page has not been charged with a crime, but he has been interviewed by the FBI and congressional investigators about his ties to Russia. White House officials have argued that Page, announced by the president in early 2016 as a foreign policy adviser, played only a minor role in the Trump campaign. The documents released Saturday include the FBI's October 2016 request to surveil Page and several renewal applications. It marks the first time in the more than 40-year history of the highly secretive court that underlying documents for a warrant have been released. U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that he "gave up nothing" to Russian President Vladimir Putin at last week's summit in Helsinki, but details of their one-on-one meeting remained elusive. "We merely talked about future benefits for both countries," Trump said on Twitter. "Also, we got along very well, which is a good thing except for the Corrupt Media!" He blamed the mainstream news media, "Fake News" as he called it again, for "talking negatively" about his meeting with Putin. Trump and Putin met behind closed doors for more than two hours with only their translators in the room with them. At various times since then, Trump has said that the two leaders talked about Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, stopping global terrorism, security for Israel, the need to curb a nuclear arms race between their countries, Moscow's 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula, cyberattacks, trade, Middle East peace, North Korea's nuclear weapons and more. But details of what Trump and Putin may have decided have not emerged. Trump late last week invited Putin to visit the White House in a few months for a second summit. Criticism of Helsinki performance Back home from the first one, the U.S. leader drew widespread criticism - from Trump's fellow Republicans and opposition Democrats alike - for his performance at the joint news conference he had with Putin, where Trump embraced Putin's "extremely strong and powerful" denial that Russia had meddled in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, rather than defending the U.S. intelligence community's conclusion that Moscow had interfered. On Monday, top Democratic lawmakers introduced a resolution denouncing Trumps foreign policy actions, including his attacks on Americas NATO allies as well as his comments in Helsinki in which he appeared to side with Russian President Vladimir Putin over U.S. law enforcement officials' assessment that Russia meddled in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. This is a very important and pivotal moment for our country, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told reporters Monday at the Capitol. We cannot appear to endorse what the president is doing by our silence. Representative Adam Schiff, the senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said, The Helsinki summit really brought to a head an entirely new and destructive direction that Donald Trump will bring this country. A direction in which we shun fellow democracies, in which we castigate our NATO allies, in which we make common cause with authoritarian governments around the world, and in which we embrace a Russia which has intervened in our own election and effectively invite them to intervene again." Trump has voiced a mix of comments since Helsinki, saying he accepted the U.S. intelligence finding of Russian election interference, while coupling it with continued denials that his campaign colluded with Russia. By Sunday night, however, Trump was calling the Russian interference story "all a big hoax," and blaming former president Barack Obama for not intervening to stop it because Obama thought Democrat Hillary Clinton would defeat Trump in the election two years ago. "So President Obama knew about Russia before the Election," Trump tweeted. "Why didnt he do something about it? Why didnt he tell our campaign? Because it is all a big hoax, thats why, and he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win!!!" Mueller probe On Monday, Trump railed against special counsel Robert Mueller's 14-month investigation of whether Trump's campaign worked directly with Moscow to help him win and whether he obstructed justice by firing Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey last year at a time when Comey was leading the agency's Russia probe before Mueller was appointed to take it over. The U.S. leader attacked the FBI for four times winning approval from a surveillance court to wiretap Carter Page, one of his former advisers, about his suspected ties to Russia, one of the underpinnings of the Mueller probe. Page has not been charged and on Sunday told CNN the allegations that he was conscripted by Russia are "ridiculous" and not true. Trump called the Mueller probe "a disgrace to America. They should drop the discredited Mueller Witch Hunt now!" Products from every one of the 50 states - from candy to crab pots to horseshoes and space suits - will be on display at the White House for Monday's "Made in America Product Showcase." The White House says President Donald Trump wants to show his administration's "commitment to ensuring more products are made in America." Some of the companies invited to set up their products inside the White House say they were both surprised and honored to have been asked to participate. They include such iconic American brands as Campbell Soup and Lockheed-Martin - which will have a model F-35 fighter jet on the White House lawn - to obscure manufacturers who make wine, brooms, horseshoes and animal feed. Trump had declared July 16-22 "Made in America Week," celebrating "craftsmen, innovators and producers." He promised to protect U.S. workers and promote American industry after threatening to impose another $500 billion in tariffs on Chinese exports - a move expected to bring more Chinese retaliation against U.S. goods. U.S. President Donald Trump declared Monday that he is very happy with the pace of ongoing negotiations with North Korea to end Pyongyangs nuclear weapons program, rebuffing news accounts to the contrary. A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy, Trump said on Twitter. But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy! Later Monday, the U.S.-based North Korea monitoring group 38 North said recent satellite images show North Korea has begun dismantling key facilities at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station on the country's northwest coast. The satellite images show the dismantling of a rail-mounted processing building, where space launch vehicles are assembled before being moved to the launch pad, and the nearby rocket engine test stand, where liquid-fuel engines are developed for ballistic missiles and space launch vehicles, 38 North said. 38 North analyst Joseph Bermudez called the move an "important first step towards fulfilling a commitment" made by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his summit with Trump in Singapore. A day after the summit last month Trump said in a tweet, There is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea. But their agreement contained no details about when or how North Korea would abandon its nuclear weapons program or shut down its existing nuclear facilities. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met in Pyongyang recently with North Korean officials to try advance discussions, but there appeared to be little progress. Some diplomats say the North Koreans have canceled meetings and failed to maintain basic communications with the U.S. As he did Monday, Trump has publicly professed satisfaction at the pace of negotiations with North Korea, saying last week there was no rush in completing talks with Pyongyang because U.S. and United Nations economic sanctions against North Korea remain in place. On Monday, the U.S. State, Treasury and Homeland Security departments said, The international community cannot let up on pressure until North Korea ends its nuclear weapons program. Trump said last week that U.S. relations with North Korea are very good and the process is moving along. He said that with eventual denuclearization, there would be big benefits and exciting future for North Korea at end of process! But several news outlets have reported in recent days that behind the scenes at the White House Trump has voiced his displeasure to aides at the pace of talks in pushing North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program. Foreign donors must come forward to support Ethiopia and Eritrea after the long-time arch rivals ended a war which spanned two decades and hampered efforts to improve the lives of millions of people, a top United Nations official said on Monday. Ahunna Eziakonwa, head of the U.N. in Ethiopia, said moves taken by the two east African neighbors to normalize ties in recent weeks had "sown seeds of hope" but added that many challenges lay ahead on their road to recovery. The two poor nations will have to remove landmines and rebuild infrastructure, especially along their border, where the conflict was concentrated. They will also need to stimulate their economies and create jobs for the youth, say experts. "I hope the international community will come forward to support these two countries. It is very important not just for these two nations, but for regional peace and security," Eziakonwa told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in an interview. "It makes strategic sense not just from the humanitarian perspective, but also from a security perspective - to rally behind this peace initiative and invest in a peace building process in a way that it touches on development transformation." Triggered by a border dispute in 1998, the conflict killed more than 80,000 people. At least 350,000 people living along the border on both sides were uprooted and forced to flee. Meagre resources meant to reduce poverty and improve basic services such as health and education were diverted to fund the conflict while schools, hospitals, power and water supplies were destroyed by shelling and artillery fire. Reward for peace The two nations signed a peace deal in 2000 but Ethiopia refused to implement it. Both armies have since been facing off across their border in a frozen stalemate. Abiy Ahmed, who became Ethiopia's prime minister in April, agreed to implement the deal, and there has been a rapid thaw in relations since the war was declared over on July 9. Ahmed and Eritrean President Isias Afewerki have visited one another's capitals to be welcomed by thousands of cheering crowds. Embassies have reopened, phone lines between both nations are restored and flights have resumed. But other obstacles lie ahead. Millions of dollars will be required to support Ethiopia and Eritrea, which are among the world's 47 least developed countries, according to the U.N. Eziakonwa said this included removing thousands of landmines along the 1,000-km (620-mile) border and rebuilding roads and other infrastructure for easy cross-border trade and movement. Thousands of young people in both nations are expected to be demobilized and there will be an urgent need to provide them with jobs, she said. "One of the biggest challenges is how to engage the youth in both countries in gainful employment and we need partners such as the international community and private sector to rally behind this new opportunity," said Eziakonwa. "Obviously, you don't want a whole lot of idle youth. They need to see the dividends of peace and that will largely be born out when we see the kinds of investments that integrate them into the economy." Eziakonwa said neither Addis Ababa nor Asmara had requested international assistance so far, but the U.N. was ready to assist in areas ranging from de-mining to helping to foster social cohesion and reconciliation. "It's an initiative that is home-grown brought by the leaders concerned - and this is very rare," said Eziakonwa. "We need to reward these gestures and show them as an example of what can be achieved." U.S. President Donald Trump sharply warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to "never threaten the United States," or the Islamic Republic would suffer historical consequences. He appeared to be responding to reports earlier in the day quoting Rouhani warning Trump, "Don't play with the lion's tail. This would only lead to regret." "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Rouhani said. Gen. Gholam Hossein Gheibparvar, a senior officer in Iran's Revolutionary Guard, dismissed Trump's statement as "psychological warfare" and said Trump would not take action against Iran. Trump's national security adviser John Bolton said he had spoken to Trump "over the last several days" and said the president "told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before." Asked if Trump ran the risk of inciting a war with his tweet, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said,"Look, the president is responding to Iran, and he's not going to allow them to continue to make threats against America. If anybody is inciting anything, look no further than to Iran." WATCH: White House Press Secretary Sanders on Trump's Tweet Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told an audience at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California that the government in Iran has become a nightmare for the Iranian people. The top U.S. diplomat said the United States is not afraid to pressure the Iranian government at its highest level, as he urged all U.S. allies to join in financially to suppress the government. "This especially goes for our allies in the Middle East and Europe, people who have themselves been terrorized by the violent regime's activity for decades," Pompeo said. He said the Trump administration will not stay silent against what he calls the numerous crimes and abuses of the Iranian government. This includes kleptocracy, with Pompeo saying those at the top have squandered the people's wealth on terrorism and theft and a zeal to spread the Islamic revolution to other nations. Pompeo said the Iranian economy is "going great," but only for the elite, accusing the ayatollahs and senior leaders of lining their pockets with billions of dollars while a third of Iranians live in poverty. "Judging by their vast wealth, they seem more concerned with riches than religion," he said. "These hypocritical holy men have devised all kinds of crooked schemes to become some of the wealthiest men on Earth while their people suffer." While Pompeo was speaking about the lack of free speech in Iran, he was interrupted by a heckler. The secretary stood by calmly before remarking that Iranians should have the same kind of freedom of expression. Pompeo also announced that the Broadcasting Board of Governors, which oversees the Voice of America, is taking new steps to help Iranians get around internet censorship. The BBG is also launching a new 24/7 Farsi-language channel across television, radio, digital and social media formats. He said the goal of the United States is to see Iranians inside their own country live the same kind of life Iranians in the United States enjoy. U.S. President Donald Trump says he's "not at all" worried his Sunday night tweet threatening Iran with unspecified but severe consequences for its hard-line rhetoric will provoke the Iranian government. The president replied to a reporter on the White House South Lawn on Monday afternoon when asked about his all-capital-letters tweet in which he sharply warned Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to "never threaten the United States" or the Islamic Republic would suffer historical consequences. National Security Adviser John Bolton said he had spoken to Trump "over the last several days," and the president "told me that if Iran does anything at all to the negative, they will pay a price like few countries have ever paid before." "He has a lot of bad news he's trying to distract from," Barbara Slavin, director of the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council, said of Trump's tweet. "It was kind of disproportionate. But, no, it didn't surprise me." Iran dismissed Trump's tweet, with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif saying in his own Twitter post, "Color us unimpressed." Trump appeared to be responding to Rouhani warning him: "Don't play with the lion's tail. This would only lead to regret." "America must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Rouhani said. Both Trump and Rouhani find themselves facing internal pressure over their foreign policies. Rouhani confronts additional economic discontent. Some analysts question whether the two presidents are pursuing hard-line rhetoric to merely marshal domestic support, or whether Trump is reapplying his high-stakes North Korea model raising tension with tough talk that justifies going to the negotiating table. "That none of the parties seems inclined to make the first move towards rapprochement is at best a recipe for an ongoing dangerous standoff, at worst for direct confrontation," Ali Vaez, the Iran Project director at the Crisis Group, tells VOA. WATCH: US-Iran relations Slavin tells VOA she does not see any realistic possibility of Trump initiating such an armed conflict, but added "the U.S. is already conducting an economic war against Iran, which is frankly very, very damaging for ordinary Iranians." Noting Trump has made clear he has does not want U.S. forces on the ground in the Middle East "and he doesn't even want to keep troops in Syria," Slavin asserted that a U.S. military move on Iran "seems out of the question." Iran weapons, strategy Except for Israel and Saudi Arabia, much of the international community would likely not support a U.S. attack, as they would assert Iran has curbed its nuclear programs and remains in compliance with the international nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Iran currently "does not have a single nuclear weapon," noted Joshua Pollack, a senior research associate at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Monterey, California. It does, however, possess short- and medium-range ballistic missiles with conventional warheads and a formidable number of anti-ship missiles. Pollack, who is also editor of The Nonproliferation Review, added that Iran, if attacked or provoked, has other response options, including trying to close the Strait of Hormuz a strategic chokepoint for transit of oil from the Middle East. In addition, "they have state-sponsored terrorists and local allies who could be disruptive," Pollack told VOA. "They also have hackers" who have conducted successful cyberattacks on Saudi Aramco and other targets in the Saudi kingdom, which is the archrival to Iran for influence in the region. Financial pressure In a speech Sunday night, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged all U.S. allies to collectively suppress Iran through financial pressure. "This especially goes for our allies in the Middle East and Europe, people who have themselves been terrorized by the violent regime's activity for decades," Pompeo said. The Trump administration still appears to have no firm commitments from the top buyers of Iranian oil to significantly drop their imports to comply with sanctions Washington is reinstating as part of the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA. Pompeo is also accusing Iran's government of numerous crimes and abuses, including kleptocracy, alleging its top leaders have squandered the people's wealth on terrorism and theft and a zeal to spread the Islamic revolution to other nations. "Judging by their vast wealth, they seem more concerned with riches than religion," he said. "These hypocritical holy men have devised all kinds of crooked schemes to become some of the wealthiest men on Earth while their people suffer." Based on the president's statements about Iran, his national security adviser, and top diplomat, VOA asked White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Monday what is stopping the Trump administration from just openly advocating regime change in Tehran. "Our focus is on stopping Iran from having nuclear weapons regardless of who is there," Sanders replied. "That's what our priority is." Yemen is close to famine after a 25 percent increase in levels of severe hunger this year and an offensive on the main port city of Hodeida, a lifeline for millions, humanitarian organizations warned Monday. Thousands more people have been displaced by the conflict and many are having to skip meals and beg on the streets, they said, with an estimated 8.4 million people already on the verge of starvation. "We perceive the country to be sitting on a knife edge in terms of famine it could tip at any time really," Suze van Meegen, spokeswoman for the Norwegian Refugee Council, told Reuters by phone from the capital, Sanaa. "The desperation we are seeing is becoming greater more people are begging in the streets." The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) said four in every 10 children younger than five were now acutely malnourished, and put the number of people displaced since the Hodeida offensive began at 200,000. "Averting famine in Yemen will be contingent on the ability of WFP and other humanity agencies to reach the populations in need to sustain humanitarian assistance," said Stephen Anderson, Yemen country director for the WFP, by phone from Sanaa. The United Nations said last year there were "famine-like" conditions in parts of Yemen, but that not all the criteria had been met. For famine to be declared, more than 20 percent of the population must be unable to feed themselves, with 30 percent or more of children younger than five suffering acute malnutrition and doubling in the rate of mortality, the U.N. said at the time. The offensive on Hodeida was led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and launched the largest battle in a conflict that has killed more than 10,000 people. The war has caused the world's most urgent humanitarian crisis, with 22 million Yemenis dependent on aid. Van Meegen said it was calm in Hodeida city, but heavy fighting south of the city was causing civilian deaths and driving people from their homes. The Saudi-led military coalition fighting the Iran-backed Houthi movement had previously closed the port, the country's main entry point for food, fuel and humanitarian supplies. In June, WFP was able to bring in three ships containing enough food for six million people for one month. Anderson said the prospect of the ports closing again was a "major concern." Zimbabwe's electoral commission said Monday that all votes cast during the July 30 general election will count and be secret. Past elections in Zimbabwe have been marred by accusations of rigging to favor the ruling ZANU-PF party. The deputy chair of the commission, Emmanuel Magade, spoke to journalists, diplomats and observers Monday as part of a credibility-building exercise. My assurance to this audience is that the secrecy of the vote will not be compromised. My own personal opinion is that the question of the secrecy of the vote is non-negotiable. That is the assurance that I am giving to the international community and that is the assurance that I am giving to the good people of Zimbabwe, Magade said. The promise came as the main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change Alliance (MDC), said it would launch mass demonstrations Tuesday, should the commission fail to meet MDC demands to ensure that every vote counts. The MDC says the electoral body is trying to rig the vote in favor of the ruling ZANU-PF party, just as it allegedly did for the party during the rule of former president Robert Mugabe. MDC and commission officials are expected to meet to discuss the presidential ballot, which the opposition says was designed by the electoral panel to give an unfair advantage to President Emmanuel Mnangagwa. The MDC is also seeking the nullification of votes by some police officers who were forced to cast ballots in front of their superiors. The opposition has already approached Zimbabwes Electoral Court with urgent applications over the same issue and to order the elections body to release the actual voter rolls to be used in the elections. The opposition says it wants to check for voter fraud, which it said occurred under Mugabes 37-year rule. He was forced to resign last November. Mnangagwa, who succeeded Mugabe, maintained last week that the election would be free, fair, credible and transparent. He challenged the opposition to approach the courts if it doubted the electoral commissions professionalism. Ultrasound waves, applied to the whole brain, improve cognitive dysfunction in mice with conditions simulating vascular dementia. Ultrasound waves, applied to the whole brain, improve cognitive dysfunction in mice with conditions simulating vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease. (Photo: Pixabay) Patients suffering from dementia can now be treated with the ultrasound applied to the brain. Ultrasound waves, applied to the whole brain, improve cognitive dysfunction in mice with conditions simulating vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease. The research, conducted by scientists at Tohoku University in Japan, suggested that this type of therapy may also benefit humans. Led by cardiologist Hiroaki Shimokawa, the team found that applying low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) to the whole brain of the mice improved blood vessel formation and nerve cell regeneration without having obvious side effects. "The LIPUS therapy is a non-invasive physiotherapy that could apply to high-risk elderly patients without the need for surgery or anesthesia, and could be used repeatedly," said Shimokawa. Dementia affects about 50 million people worldwide, with 10 million new cases occurring every year. Shimokawa and his team had conducted previous studies showing that LIPUS improved blood vessel formation in pigs with myocardial ischemia, a condition where there is reduced blood flow to the heart. The researchers conclude that their study has provided the first experimental evidence that whole-brain LIPUS therapy markedly improves cognitive dysfunctions without serious side effects by enhancing specific cells related to dementia's pathology. The full findings are published in the journal - Brain Stimulation. In a video on social media posted after his arrest, Furtado called the womans death a fatal accident. He claims to have performed 9000 such procedures and has gained celebrity status (Photo: AFP) A lot of people want to enhance the appearance of their body be it through exercise or by use of surgical methods. But sometimes this quest for a quick fix through plastic surgery can prove damaging to the extent of being fatal. Authorities in Brazil have arrested a plastic surgeon also known as Dr Butt after one of his patients died from buttock enlargement injections. The hospital reported that the woman arrived with an abnormally fast heart rate after silicone was injected in buttock. In a video on social media posted after his arrest, Furtado called the womans death a fatal accident. He claimed to have performed 9000 such procedures which are legal in Brazil. He has gained celebrity status in the country due to his work with over 645000 followers on Instagram and a similar following on other social media platforms. Jitesh Patel, 42, was arrested at his residence and charged with murder, burglary while armed and possession of a firearm while in the commission of a felony. Police said Patel is being held in Howard County, Md., pending extradition to Virginia. Will this red-flag law stop all future shooters? Of course not the hard truth is that no one law can. But we cannot stop there, Hogan wrote. Maryland already has the toughest gun laws in the country, but it is clear to me that an effective, nationwide, universal background check system to keep firearms out of the hands of criminals and the dangerously mentally ill is a tool police need to stop more shooters. Thats just common sense and it is something I will continue to support. Todays Headlines The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. Email address By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Lawyers on both sides Monday sought to limit the evidence presented at the Virginia trial. Prosecutor Greg Andres said the special counsel planned to be discreet in raising related charges Manafort faces in District federal court, the work he did in Ukraine that is at the center of both cases, and the president himself. People are sick and tired of the subject, but feel more liberated than they did in the past to talk about it, said Russell Shaw, a longtime spokesman for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and author of several books about the priesthood and American Catholicism. That said, even after the crisis that began nearly two decades ago, Shaw said, many Catholics still want to continue to believe in the priesthood and its impermeability toward this kind of corruption. A lot of ordinary Catholics continue to hang on to their instinctive trust longer than facts warranted. Opponents say the building would be too big, generate too much traffic, leave too little public gathering space and attract upscale stores and restaurants where many residents couldnt afford to shop or dine. They say theyre also concerned that the project would drive up commercial rents in the area, force out the local businesses that give the D.C. suburb its unique vibe, and complicate deliveries for the Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-op, a natural-food store and local institution next door. According to reports, the Delhi police officer felt 'stressed' and therefore decided to give 'energy healing' a shot. n the viral-picture, the officer is seen in his uniform with his eyes shut as the saffron-robed Namita Acharya, who calls herself a sadhvi, is seen standing behind him in a gesture of blessing. (Photo: Twitter | ANI) New Delhi: A Delhi Police officer had to face the brunt of taking "blessings" from a self-styled godwoman while on duty. The station house officer (SHO) of Janakpuri in West Delhi has paid dearly after the photo of him went viral where he can be seen taking "blessing" of godwoman Namita Acharya while wearing his uniform. The officer has now been transferred to an insignificant post and a vigilance inquiry has been initiated against him. In the viral-picture, the officer is seen in his uniform with his eyes shut as the saffron-robed Namita Acharya, who calls herself a sadhvi, is seen standing behind him in a gesture of blessing. The photo appears to have been taken in his office. According to reports, the officer felt "stressed" and therefore decided to give "energy healing" a shot. Namita Acharya is reported to be a high-profile godwoman who has previously been seen with many civil servants and IPS officers. In October last year, a group of policemen landed into trouble after another self-styled godwoman Radhe Maa was given a special treatment at a different police station in Delhi. The station house officer of the Vivek Vihar police station had offered his seat to Radhe Maa and had also worn her chunari to offer his respect to the godwoman. Read: Radhe Maa sits on SHO chair, dances with Delhi Police Policemen were also seen singing and dancing with her on video. The policemen were suspended and transferred. Radhe Maa was apparently on her way to a Ram Lila event when she decided to stop at a police station to use the washroom. A widely-shared video showed a group of policemen grooving with Radhe Maa to patriotic songs. The latest study highlights the fact that we are just starting to understand the epidemiology and clinical course of Ebola virus infection, said Anne Rimoin, an infectious disease expert at UCLA and longtime researcher on Ebola who was not involved in the study. It also highlights the need for continued monitoring and study of Ebola virus survivors and their close contacts, long after an outbreak is declared over. We still have a lot to learn about the nature of these persistent infections and what drives them. Some supporters of the rollbacks said that although they appreciated having a chance to weigh in on the process, it does not appear to have had an effect. On May 11, 2017, for example, Oregon Farm Bureau officials wrote to Zinke to thank him for taking time out of your evening to meet with their delegation at the Trump International Hotel and hear ranchers objections to the Cascade-Siskiyou expansion. Father stabs, throws away son: A Utah man is in jail on suspicion of stabbing his infant son multiple times and then putting the boy's bloody body in a garbage can, authorities said. Alex Hidalgo, 37, of Ogden was being held without bond at the Weber County jail on suspicion of felony charges of aggravated murder, abuse or desecration of a dead human body, and obstruction of justice. It was unclear whether he had a lawyer. Ogden police said Alex Hidalgo Jr., 10 months, was found unresponsive and covered in blood Friday. The boy was pronounced dead at a hospital. In 1787, when the Constitutional Convention and an infant republic hung by a thread, two imaginative New Englanders solved the problem and saved the day. Roger Sherman and Oliver Ellsworth, both representing Connecticut, proposed a bicameral legislature made up of one house representing population and the other giving each state an equal voice. The Connecticut Compromise designed as a safeguard against the domination of smaller states by the more populous neighbors entered history as perhaps the most crucial of all the bargains that enabled a new nation to be welded together out of the ramshackle Articles of Confederation. The terrible tragedy in Branson, Mo., was preventable. While DUK-W boats have been a popular tourist attraction for many years in the United States and Europe, there have been too many accidents to justify their continued acceptance. Regrettably, the many needless deaths onboard these vessel/vehicles, either of World War II vintage or more modern advent, have not led to a serious consideration of their inherent risks. In 1999, 11 people perished on the Miss Majestic on Lake Hamilton in Arkansas. In 2010, two people died when a stalled duck boat was overrun by a tug/barge on the Delaware River in Philadelphia. Five young people died in Seattle in 2015 in a traffic accident because of the poor view afforded the operator due to the design of the vessel. Similar accidents and fires occurred on duck boats in England in 2013. These vessels arent safe and cant be reasonably made safe. The Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board have been steadfast in their inspection and safety overview of these vessels but lack the authority to ban their use. Its time for Congress to step up and do the right thing. Delhi CM made these remarks after inaugurating the work for replacing water supply lines at Mubarakpur road in Kirari assembly constituency. Though, Kejriwal did not name the Centre or the L-G Anil Baijal, he and his colleagues in the AAP dispensation have been accusing them of stalling several of the city government's projects. (Photo: PTI | File) New Delhi: In an apparent attack on the Centre and the Delhi Lieutenant Governor, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said that those creating hurdles in building government schools were "traitors" while the one who is constructing educational institutions is a "patriot". He made these remarks after inaugurating the work for replacing water supply lines at Mubarakpur road in Kirari assembly constituency which was a cause of contamination of water in the area. Though, Kejriwal did not name the Centre or the L-G Anil Baijal, he and his colleagues in the AAP dispensation have been accusing them of stalling several of the city government's projects. "There will be 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' when there is work for imparting quality education to children," he said. "Those who are creating hurdles in building schools are traitors and the one who is building schools is a patriot," he added. Kejriwal claimed that condition of government-run schools have improved since the AAP dispensation has come to power. "There would be no 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' when people's works were prevented. It would be so only when hospitals and schools were built," he said. There are a total of 104 unauthorised colonies in Kirari and water supply network are laid in all of them. In 85 unauthorised colonies, the existing water line has outlived its utility, frequently causing leakage and contamination of water in the area. Due to this, the Delhi government has decided to replace the existing water supply line from Kirari underground reservoir to Mubarakpur village. The total cost of the project is Rs 10.07 crore and it would be completed within a year. "After the project is completed, it will address the problems affecting the people," Kejriwal said. The project is estimated to benefit over 2.50 lakh people. Kejriwal announced that soon 20 mohalla clinics would be opened in Kirari. The chief minister reiterated that Baijal has not been following the order of the Supreme Court on division of power in the Union Territory. Trumps foreign policy doctrine has been staring us in the face so plainly that weve overlooked it. Heres my unifying theory: He didnt get out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Paris climate accord and the Iran nuclear deal because he disagreed with this or that detail of the agreements. He hasnt started up deals with Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin and sought to force Xi Jinping to the bargaining table because he has refined views of what he seeks. He got out of the former deals because they were multilateral; hes working on the latter deals because they are bilateral. All that requires GOP candidates to do is sell out whats left of their partys principles. If these candidates lose, they will have sold out for nothing but at least will have recovered the chance for some independence from Trump. If Republicans win well, they will be President Trumps political lackeys, and their party will be Trumpisms ideological vehicle. HC asked who is responsible for repair of Mumbai-Goa road. Mumbai: The Bombay high court has said that not just people using the Mumbai-Goa highway during the Ganesh festival but that people using it throughout the year are entitled to pothole-free roads. The court has asked the state government and the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) to file an affidavit stating what steps have been taken to fill up potholes on the Mumbai-Goa highway. A division bench of Justice Abay Oka and Justice Riyaz Chagla was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by lawyer Owais Pechkar, informing the court that the stretch between Panvel and Goa on national highway 66 had been damaged due to heavy rain this year. The petition said that the stretch was riddled with potholes and posed a threat to the lives of countless commuters each day. The petition said that more people were likely to use the stretch in the coming months when they travelled to their hometowns and villages in Konkan during the upcoming Ganesh festival. The court on Friday directed the state government to clarify who was responsible for the maintenance and repair work of the Mumbai-Goa national highway. Accordingly, assistant government pleader Nisha Mehara submitted the report of the national highway division, Pen and Raigad (NHD) and public works department (PWD). The state cleared that the 84km stretch between Palaspe near Pen and Indapur fell under the NHAI. And, the stretch from 84km to 450km fell under the state government. After perusing the report, the court expressed surprise and said that on the 121km of road, the actual pothole length was only 7.50 km. However, the petitioner told the court that only a week ago when he travelled along the Mumbai-Goa highway, he found there were many more potholes than the number mentioned by the state government in its report. The court also expressed surprise after reading the remark made by the PWD department in the report saying, The percentage of potholes is very much low and traffic is moving smoothly. The court has kept the petition for further hearing next Tuesday. Hes weak on Putin, and he wants to prove hes tough on Rouhani, Hoyer said in an interview with The Washington Post. Its a distraction. Its a distraction from the problems that hes having both with the awful, essentially un-American performance that he had in Helsinki, and I think this is just a way to sort of turn and beat his chest and say, I can be really tough on people, and Rouhani and Iran are an easy target. It is unclear whether Hill and McFaul have a specific agenda for the meeting or if the Trump administration is considering taking further steps to reassure McFaul that he is not at risk of being sent to Russia as part of any future agreement with Putin, the people said. The White House announced last week that the president had invited Putin to visit Washington this fall. When you have someone with their knowledge and experience, he said of the former officials, regardless of whether you agree with them or not, you typically want them to have access in the event that they need to be called back for something critical. The move by Lee sets up a race that reflects the heated national debate among Democrats over whether their party needs a new generation of leadership. It also will not be the first time Sanchez and Lee have faced off: In 2016, Sanchez eked out a two-vote win over Lee in the race for the partys No. 5 spot. Wilkie, an Air Force reservist and the son of an Army artillery commander who was severely wounded in Vietnam, is now in charge of military personnel policy for the Trump administration. He has spent three decades working in Washington on military and national security issues, developing deep connections on Capitol Hill and in the White House. He has worked for some of the most polarizing political figures in Washington, including the late senator Jesse Helms (R-N.C.), but his past embrace of some divisive cultural views did not deter his path to confirmation. Wrong again, Mr. President, no matter how many times you repeat it, Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, wrote on Twitter. Investigation began when the FBI learned one of your other foreign policy advisors, George Papadopoulos, had been informed Russians had stolen emails and were prepared to help your campaign by releasing them. Its not clear what Trump meant by gone crazy against me, though he was critical in a separate tweet Monday of media coverage of his efforts to rid North Korea of nuclear weapons. The Post reported over the weekend that Trump has privately fumed about a lack of progress even as he has publicly touted his administrations efforts. Demand that Fadnavis apologise even as agitation enters its sixth day with protests across the state. Mumbai: The Maratha reservation stir entered its sixth day on Monday. By now, the agitation has fanned out to various cities in Marathwada and western Maharashtra. The Marathas activists have called a mega morcha in Kolhapur on August 9 against the government. Meanwhile, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who had recused himself from visiting the famous temple town of Pandharpur on Sunday, performed his annual puja of Lord Vitthal at his official residence in Mumbai along with his mother and wife Amruta and posted pictures on Twitter. On Monday, the Maratha Kranti Morcha members held a protest in almost all districts of the state. Protesters tried to disrupt the speech of CM Fadnavis in Pimpri, Pune. When he rose to speak, a woman volunteer began sloganeering against the government and had to be escorted out of the hall. There were raasta roko agitations in Hingloli, Nanded, Parali, Beed, Osmanabad, Latur, Aurangabad and Sangali districts of Marathawada and western Maharashtra. The Maratha Kranti Morcha activists have also planned marches to various tehsil offices in the state. The organisation has also declared that it wont hold any protest in Solapur district as nearly 10 lakh pilgrims have reached Pandharpur. The Maratha Kranti Morcha organisers declared their next mega agitation, which will be held in Kolhapur on August 9. They are expected to gather 3 lakh members of the community on that day, said the press release. Meanwhile, opposition leaders slammed the state government for increasing tension and spreading the agitation in state. The Maratha community peacefully held almost 60 mammoth marches in state. The discipline of those marches was appreciated by the entire nation. For the chief minister to call them criminal and anti-social elements is outrageous, said Congress leader Ashok Chavan. Maratha leaders too have slammed the CM for calling protesters names. Warkari and kids of Marathas who are demanding reservations are the same. To accuse them of creating law and order problem during Wari is humiliating Warkaris and Marathas. Hence, the Chief Minister, who has accused them as per intelligence reports indicating law and order problem, should apologise to the Maratha Kranti Morcha. Marathas have never created issues for Warkari or Wari, said Pravin Gaikwad, state co-ordinator for Maratha Kranti Morcha and state chief of Sambhaji Brigade on Monday in Pune. Until recently, the primary path taken by migrants to Europe looked something like this: Traffickers launched migrants from the Libyan coast. When the flimsy boats ran into trouble and they inevitably did the migrants were typically rescued by humanitarian groups or by European Union or Italian patrol boats. Then, with scant debate, they were taken to Italy. The route had plenty of dangers the central Mediterranean has long been the deadliest area on the planet for migrants. And sometimes the journey was thwarted by Libyas coast guard. But the vast majority who started from Libya made it to Europe. Between 2015 and 2017, according to United Nations data analyzed by The Washington Post, about 95 percent of migrants taking the so-called central Mediterranean route ended up on this continents shores. Prerna Jain, a parent of a general category student, felt that it is unfair for the open-category students. Not more than 40 to 50 seats are vacant in the general category of the popular colleges. MUMBAI: Students who still havent got admissions anywhere are worried about missing out on their desired colleges as not more than 40 to 50 seats are vacant in the general category of the popular colleges. Prerna Jain, a parent of a general category student, felt that it is unfair for the open-category students. She said, We are termed open category for the namesake as there is no good for us whatsoever. I checked the vacant seats in South Bombay colleges and every college does not have more than 10 seats in the Commerce stream in which my son is interested. My friends who managed to get admissions in minority colleges because several of them were Sindhi, Gujarathi and Tamil. However, me, even after scoring 81.39 per cent, I am seatless, Prateek Chawda, a student said. It is not clear what impact Javids letter to Sessions has had on Trump administration deliberations over how to handle the militants. Although career prosecutors think they can win at trial, Sessions personally favors sending the men to Guantanamo. And the position of the State and Defense departments has been that Britain, as the militants country of origin, should take them for prosecution. We dont know the right moment, he said. We dont know the day that the behavior of the regime will change. But we do know the things that the world is obligated to do, so that when the right time comes, when the right moment comes, that opportunity is even more likely to find its fulfillment. Gokal says they have not really noticed the cut-backs, such as eating out less and she is no longer missing her daily cup of hot chocolate. Uncomfortable with money Loading About one in three of more than 2000 people surveyed at the end of last year by comparison site Canstar said they were uncomfortable with their financial position. About one in three say they save nothing, with a further one in four saving less than 10 per cent of their after-tax income. Jacqueline Park, a qualified financial planner and the co-founder of Honest Money, is developing an online "money action plan" to help people build financial capability, focused on developing skills and achieving goals. Ultimately, the foundation of your financial health and freedom comes down to getting into good habits," Park says. "We have a pragmatic view of things as we know that budgeting is really challenging for most people. You start with a spreadsheet or with a budgeting app and then you fall off the wagon. Her business is pitched at younger people for whom saving is often an uphill battle. "It's undeniable that people see their Instagram feeds and it is all about people living these unrealistic, idealised lives that involves unrealistic consumption and that feeds into what you start thinking is normal," Park says. "The thing we ask our customers to think about first is their mind set. It'a really about what wealth means to them and what will make them happy, enduring happiness rather than momentary pleasure." Women face uphill battle Loading While both men and women could profit from learning more about money, there is strong evidence that women face a tougher battle than men in achieving financial security. For women, there are the well-known factors of unequal pay, longer lives to fund in retirement and more women than men taking time out of the paid workforce to raise children. And it seems women are more stressed than men over money. A survey of 1000 Millennials by micro-investment app Raiz Invest (formerly known as Acorns) suggests more than two out of five women are often or always feeling financially stressed, compared to just 28 per cent of men. Women felt this stress impacting their wellbeing. Among those women saying they were often or always financially stressed, nearly two out of three said they experience sleepless nights, roughly the same number experience depression and 45 per cent illness. Paridhi Jain, the founder of SkilledSmart, the course undertaken by Sandy Golka, says there are lots of structural reasons why women are financially disadvantaged. "But being under-educated means they cannot maximise opportunities within their control either," she says. "As a result, not only are women worse off financially, they're also more vulnerable. With more women living alone longer, financial capability is critical for the achievement of financial independence and resilience." Finance language masculine Bronwyn Bruce, who is studying for a research master's degree on barriers women face in engaging with the investment services industry, says industry needs to better cater to the needs of women, starting from the way superannuation and investment products are marketed. Bruce, who writes a blog, Miss Money Box, says even the language of the finance industry tends to be masculine and does not connect with women. "Check any news site or television finance segment and youll see that the people writing or talking about finance are pretty much middle-aged white men," she says. "The finance industry thrives on the use of jargon and acronyms which do more to exclude, rather than include," she says. Where to seek help There are several good sources of information and courses to get better educated on personal finances. Reading the Money section in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age is a good start! Websites The best place to find general information at no cost is the MoneySmart website run by the financial services regulator, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. As well as having helpful tips for everything from credit cards to retirement the site has a range of calculators where you can, for example, put in the numbers and see how much you will likely have in retirement income. There are other sites that provide lots of free, high-quality information, such as Financy, which has an emphasis on helping women becoming better money managers. The Miss Money Box, by Bronwyn Bruce, is aimed at younger women and has a lot of good information that demystifies finance. Courses Money Mentor Way is the website of Fairfax Media money columnist Nicole Pederson McKinnon, with free content and a fee-paying 12-Step Prosperity Plan interactive e-Book, with Step 1 provided free. SkilledSmart has a six week fee-paying course Get Money Smart described as a money school for adults' taught by taught by an experienced financial adviser. The site recently launched a virtual classroom for those who cannot attend classes in person. What caucus giveth, caucus can also taketh away. Bill Shorten will not need reminding of this baleful detail as the countdown begins this week for what are, arguably, the most consequential byelections since Labor lost the seat of Bass in Tasmania in 1975, heralding the beginning of the end of the Whitlam government. Bill Shorten in campaign mode. Credit:AAP More than a generation later, another Labor leader is facing a similarly testing byelection moment not from government, but from opposition. Byelections should benefit oppositions since they provide an opportunity for voters to register a protest without actually changing a government (the average byelection swing against the government since 1901 has been 3.8 per cent); but in this case pressure is not on the government of the day but on the opposition. This is largely because of the peculiar circumstances under which these five byelections are being held after High Court rulings on the ineligibility of sitting members under Section 44 of the Constitution. Four of the byelections are in seats won by Labor in 2016, and one by an independent. Labor seats are Fremantle, margin 7.5 per cent; Perth, 3.3 per cent; Braddon, 2.2 per cent; and Longman, 0.8 percent. Dubai: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has cautioned US President Donald Trump about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying "America should know ... war with Iran is the mother of all wars," the state new agency IRNA reported. Iran faces increased US pressure and looming sanctions after Trump's decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Iran's nuclear program. Addressing a gathering of Iranian diplomats, Rouhani said: "Mr Trump, don't play with the lion's tail, this would only lead to regret," IRNA reported. "America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Rouhani said. Local TV station showing images of multiple ambulances, first responders, several people being treated by paramedics at the scene. According to some media reports, the shooting took place outside a restaurant while a birthday party was underway. (Photo Toronto: One woman died and at least 14 people, including a young girl, were injured after a gunman opened fire at Torontos Greektown neighbourhood in Canada. According to the Toronto police, the shooter is dead. According to some media reports, the shooting took place outside a restaurant while a birthday party was underway. The police also asked appealed the eyewitnesses to provide any information about the incident. A tweet posted by Toronto police said, "Toronto Police Chief Saunders has updated media from scene. 14 victims were shot with a handgun. 1 female adult has died. 1 young girl in critical condition. Suspect is dead (not included in 14 victim total) Witnesses call 416-808-2222 Anonymous tips 1-800-222-8477." Toronto Police Chief Saunders has updated media from scene. 14 victims were shot with a handgun. 1 female adult has died. 1 young girl in critical condition. Suspect is dead (not included in 14 victim total) Witnesses call 416-808-2222 Anonymous tips 1-800-222-8477 #GO1341286 ^sm Toronto Police (@TorontoPolice) July 23, 2018 The injured were rushed to hospitals nearby where they are currently undergoing treatment. Local television station CP24 is showing images of multiple ambulances and other first responders at the scene, with several people being treated by paramedics, an AP report said. Further details are awaited. TRUMBULL One person was injured after a crash on Daniels Farm Road on Saturday. The Trumbull Volunteer Fire Company assisted with the crash, which occurred just after 2 p.m. near the Route 25 on ramp, according to the companys Facebook page. Photos from the crash show the front end of the car was completely smashed. Trumbull Emergency Medical Services treated one patient. The police department also responded. GLOBAL political and trade uncertainties have likely not altered Canadian spending habits during the second quarter of this year as much as that cold April weather did. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. GLOBAL political and trade uncertainties have likely not altered Canadian spending habits during the second quarter of this year as much as that cold April weather did. In its report for the quarter, Moneris, Canadas online and in-store electronic payments processor, recorded the 15th consecutive quarterly increase in spending in Canada. However, the 3.3 per cent growth over the same period last year was the lowest quarterly growth in nearly four years as tracked by Moneris in tabulating the one in three total transactions it is responsible for processing. In Manitoba, the increase was only 1.6 per cent year-over-year compared with 4.6 per cent in British Columbia. Jeff Guthrie, Moneriss chief sales and marketing officer, said despite the lower rate of growth, it shows that Canadians continue to be cautiously optimistic. "It shows continued confidence," he said. "Canadians are not going crazy or exhibiting huge variations in spending, but were not hunkering down either. We are out spending." There was stronger growth in B.C. and Alberta this year but, for instance, the Moneris report from July 2017 had Manitoba with a 4.5 per cent increase in spending. Maureen Atkinson, senior partner with the global retail advisory firm, J.C. Williams Group, said that while there might be a little softening in spending, the fact that the Moneris report showed the lowest increase in almost four years was likely more of an indication of the strength in the market last year. "Last year was a very strong year," she said. "Not to say that is the whole answer, but how do you make those same numbers every year?" 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. Not that it puts any more money in anyones pockets, but Canadians continue to embrace the whole concept of "tapping" their payment cards in contactless transactions. In Manitoba, that usage was up almost 40 per cent in the quarter and nationally it is expected to reach 50 per cent by the end of the year. That statistic also includes the use of smartphone apps such as Google Pay, which had its one-year anniversary in Canada during the quarter. Canadians have embraced contactless payment technology for purchases under $100 to a much greater degree than Americans, for instance, where the percentage of total transactions undertaken that way is only about one per cent. The Moneris analysis is able to drill down to categories and the big winner during the quarter included theatrical productions which were up 17.4 per cent, tourist attractions up 9.9 per cent and bakeries up 5.5 per cent. Guthrie said rather than concerns about tariffs and trade wars, Canadians spending is more weather-related. "Those big categories during the quarter are discretionary spending," Guthrie said. "We come out of the winter months and start enjoying ourselves on things like live theatre. We spend on ourselves." martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca Response came after Rouhani issued warning to US leader not to 'play with lion's tail,' saying conflict would be 'mother of all wars'. Trump has made Iran a favourite target since his unexpected rapprochement with nuclear-armed North Korea. (Photo: File/AP) Washington: President Donald Trump on Sunday warned Iran of consequences "the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered," if it threatens the United States. In a direct message to Iranian President Rouhani on Twitter, Trump wrote: To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 The entire tweet was written in capital letters. The response came after Rouhani earlier Sunday issued his own warning to the US leader not to "play with the lion's tail," saying that conflict with Iran would be the "mother of all wars". The high-stakes verbal sparring is reminiscent of the exchanges Trump had last year with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before tensions eased and the two leaders met this year in a historic summit. Trump has made Iran a favourite target since his unexpected rapprochement with nuclear-armed North Korea. Less than three months since the opening of the last fully serviced industrial park, another one is coming on the market in CentrePort. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Less than three months since the opening of the last fully serviced industrial park, another one is coming on the market in CentrePort. Winnipeg-based Whiteland Developers has started marketing an 80-acre industrial park called BrookPort Business Park, which is located on the west of Brookside Boulevard, north of Inkster Boulevard and just south of the planned Chief Peguis Trail extension. Construction will start on sewer, water and roadways in August. The development of the citys newest industrial park comes on the heels of Crystal Properties successful Brookside Industrial Park Phase III, which fronts the south side of CentrePort Canada Way that is already about 70 per cent sold after only nine weeks on the market. Satpal Sidhu, president of Whiteland, said there has been strong early demand for the new project, which will feature the possibility of smaller lot sizes a minimum of 11/2 acres with the possibility of assembling contiguous lots as large as 23 acres. "We just put the signs up and started pre-selling. Everything is now aligned," Sidhu said. "Weve already had multiple offers, multiple calls. We are getting great response." After several years of struggling with a very low inventory of serviced industrial land in the city, the recently completed plan for proper sewer and water infrastructure in that eastern side of the 20,000-acre CentrePort footprint is making new development possible. "Now that the servicing infrastructure and the backbone of that infrastructure is in place, we are seeing the private development response," said Diane Gray, CEO of CentrePort. CentrePort has been instrumental, along with the Rural Municipality of Rosser, in organizing the complex servicing requirements. "We had the Crystal Properties industrial park announced nine weeks ago, and now we have Whiteland Developers with their park. Were really excited about this." The establishment of a servicing agreement with the RM of Rosser is encouraging for future developments on the CentrePort footprint and Gray, for one, is a big fan of the work the RM of Rosser has done. "The RM is fabulous," Gray said. "The reeve and the chief administrative officer and council... they understand how important CentrePort is not only to their own tax base, but to the economy of Manitoba. They are an excellent support network. They get it." While this is the first Winnipeg development for Whiteland, the company has owned property in the area and has undertaken several commercial and industrial developments in Saskatchewan as well as in India before Sidhu and his business partner Amritpal Jhand immigrated to Canada 12 years ago. The property will be configured into smaller lots with roadways that wont have any cul-de-sacs or dead ends, and will be designed to allow easy access for transportation companies with double-trailer rigs. It is located directly north of the 150-acre Brookside Business Park, which is sold-out and its northern property line is along the route of the proposed extension of Chief Peguis Trail. Ian Corbett, a broker with Shindico Realty, will be handling the marketing of the properties, which are being sold for between $365,000 to $395,000 per acre. "The timing is good," he said. "There is good demand in the area. The development to the south is fully occupied and there has been a limited supply of serviced industrial land in the city in general, especially in this quadrant." 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. Sidhu said they closed the acquisition of the 80 acres as well as another 80 acres of contiguous land that Whiteland plans to bring on to the market in another year after about a years negotiation. The land is already zoned for general industrial uses, including manufacturing, distribution, warehousing, logistics and transportation-related businesses, and will be serviced with water and waste-water servicing and all lots will have Hydro, gas, telephone and internet at the lot line along paved roads. Even with land priced at levels that would have been unheard of in Winnipeg five years ago, Corbett is optimistic about the marketing process. "Weve had lots of inquiries. There are a number of people who want to do something on it," he said. "We will be in touch with those people and we expect to have a number of offers inked in the next 30 days." martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca Former 92.1 CITI FM morning radio host Dave Wheeler was back behind a microphone Monday morning, less than a week after he was axed from Winnipeg airwaves for making controversial comments about transgender people on air and in widely circulated private messages early last week. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Former 92.1 CITI FM morning radio host Dave Wheeler was back behind a microphone Monday morning, less than a week after he was axed from Winnipeg airwaves for making controversial comments about transgender people on air and in widely circulated private messages early last week. But this time, the studio is in his basement. He launched a new podcast with his wife, Wheeler in the Morning with Dave and Candace Rae out of their new home business Safety Net Studio. He didn't address the comments that got him fired, in which in part he compared transgender people to people pretending to be dogs in private messages. Rather he focused on standard morning-show fare local news, sports, weather and pop culture. "I'm not going to get into what you want me to get into. I can't not yet," he said in the opening minutes of the 34-minute podcast, implying he might address the topic in the future. Although he didn't speak on his comments about transgender people, he did play a local musician's parody of Lola by The Kinks, a 1971 rock song about an interaction between a man and a transgender woman. "Boys will be girls and girls will be boys, it's a mixed-up, overly sensitive world for my Wheeler," musician Grant Leutschaft sings in the parody. 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. Wheeler didn't address the comments he made on-air last week about actress Scarlett Johansson dropping the role of a trans man in an upcoming film after an outcry from the transgender community he compared transgender people to actors playing a role but he did promote an appearance by the actress on his Monday podcast. It was a stunt. It appears he cut audio clips from movies and interviews with the actress into a faux-conversation, mostly focused on her appearance and her role in Marvel's The Avengers and sequels. At one point, he made a joke about losing weight and taking off his shirt, before singing Weezer's Island in the Sun, with the noise of a shower laid over top of his vocals and a clip of Johansson singing an unrelated song about islands. Wheeler said he plans to record and publish the podcast Monday to Friday. It's unclear if the show is making any revenue. As of noon Monday, the podcast had over 3,000 listens. Wheeler was fired by Rogers Media last Tuesday after calls for boycotts of 92.1 CITI FM's advertisers circulated Monday. erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca The Manitoba government is putting out an initial call for more legal cannabis retailers -- even though the four winners of its first retail marijuana request for proposal haven't even opened their stores yet. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The Manitoba government is putting out an initial call for more legal cannabis retailers -- even though the four winners of its first retail marijuana request for proposal haven't even opened their stores yet. In a "request for pre-qualifications" document posted online Monday, the province said it wants to evaluate potential retailers who could open more cannabis stores, should the province need them. Aspiring cannabis retailers have until Aug. 21 to apply to join the list of pre-qualified candidates, which is scheduled for completion Oct. 1 and will be valid for one year, with the possibility of an additional two-year extension. The list of pre-qualified candidates "will allow Manitoba to expedite the licensing process for a potential cannabis retailer if a community is identified as being under-serviced and is prepared to entertain the operation of a cannabis store within the municipality," the document says. "We feel we're on track here, we're working with the four retailers that we initially approved, and now we're gathering in more retailers," Growth, Enterprise and Trade Minister Blaine Pedersen said in an interview. The province is anticipating some rural areas of Manitoba might be underserved in terms of access to legal cannabis stores at the outset of legalization, Pedersen 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. "When the original (RFP for cannabis retailers) came out, there were some who felt they weren't able to qualify on the first round... This is going to open it up to a lot more," he said. "We'll make sure that we've got that access to the market, right across the province." Within two years of legalization, Pedersen said, the provincial government aims to have legal cannabis stores within a 30-minute drive for 90 per cent of Manitoba's population. The four initial retailers are also planning to operate online stores to sell cannabis by mail. If more cannabis stores are needed in Manitoba, store operators on the pre-qualified list "will be selected through a lottery process based on geographic preference," according to the RFPQ document. Potential retailers would still need to formally sign an agreement with the province and apply for a cannabis store licence from the Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba. Applicants will have to show they have enough capital to open and operate a cannabis store, including access to $300,000 cash and the ability to obtain a letter of credit worth $50,000. Respondents must also show they have experience in retail operations and management. Manitoba's original RFP for cannabis retailers was issued in November 2017, and received more than 100 applications. The four winning companies were announced in February, and are currently working on stores that will open Oct. 17, the date federal legalization of non-medical cannabis comes into effect. solomon.israel@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @sol_israel It was not the most important moment to come from last weeks Council of the Federation meeting, but it was still a pretty positive sign for Premier Brian Pallister. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion It was not the most important moment to come from last weeks Council of the Federation meeting, but it was still a pretty positive sign for Premier Brian Pallister. Late in the three-day gathering of Canadas premiers in Saint Andrews, N.B., Pallister appeared on CBC television to discuss his efforts to encourage the council to adopt freer interprovincial trade rules. To illustrate his point, he took along a case of 24 cans of Farmery beer, a micro-brew from Manitoba well known to the fans of malted beverages. "My staff brought 24 of these beers to give as gifts to my colleagues," Pallister said, brandishing a single can of Farmery beer. "If this had been the 25th (can), and I had brought this beer, I could be fined up to $5,000 on a second offence. "Its this kind of antiquity we shouldnt have to face in Canada." It was hardly a seminal event in the coverage of the summit meeting. However, it was an informative and entertaining moment for a premier who had generated few positive headlines from his previous interactions with other provincial leaders. During the past two years, Pallister and many of his ministers largely served as the designated contrarians for the Council of the Federation and other federal-provincial summit meetings. Whether it was health-care funding, carbon tax, cannabis or Canada Pension Plan rules, Manitoba was sure to stand in opposition to someone on something. On one level, it appeared that the willingness to drop the gloves was Pallisters way of announcing there was a new sheriff in Manitoba. It was also clearly a strategy to pander to Manitoba voters. Given that he leads a province with a chronic inferiority complex and a hypersensitivity to criticism from anyone other than those born and bred here, Pallisters bare-knuckle approach to interprovincial and intergovernmental relations seemed to be an obvious bid to curry favour back home. However, outside Manitoba, it was never clear that Pallister or his province derived anything positive from the fist-pounding and fretting. For the most part, Pallister appeared to be disagreeable for the sake of being disagreeable, a posture that does not win friends or influence peers in critical political summit meetings. Thankfully, Pallister has been able to pass the mantle of the designated contrarian to Ontarios newly elected Premier Doug Ford, who, like Pallister two years ago, seems destined to oppose the federal government with extreme prejudice at every turn. Fords first flashpoint is the carbon tax. The former Liberal government of Ontario was committed to a cap-and-trade regime to meet the climate-change demands laid out by the federal Liberal government. Ford also said Ontario would support Saskatchewan on a constitutional long-shot challenge to Ottawas threat to impose a carbon tax on any province that does not come up with a comparable program. Oddly, Pallister becomes one of the greatest beneficiaries of Fords war on the carbon tax. First and foremost, Fords bombast allowed Pallister to appear more reasonable and statesman-like, and thats never a bad look for a first minister. And second, it showed that Pallister had put aside his indiscriminate anger and matured into a viable player on the national stage. That maturity was on display when Ontario pulled the trigger on a misleading tweet that put Manitoba in an awkward position. It started when the Ontario delegation announced via Twitter that Pallister was joining the carbon tax court challenge. The original tweet showed a photograph of Pallister and Ford shaking hands. It went on to congratulate Pallister for "his governments commitment to working together to ensure that no carbon tax plan is ever imposed on the people of our great provinces." Manitoba has produced its own carbon tax plan, one that falls short of the upper limits of the federal tax. Abandoning that plan in favour of a tenuous legal challenge would have been a huge story. Except that it wasnt true. The tweet from Ontario was taken down shortly after it was posted. When asked about the erroneous tweet, Pallister was the picture of cool and calm. "What you have to do there is give Premier Ford a break," Pallister said during the TV interview. "I wouldnt make a big deal out of it, I would simply ask for you to give consideration to a fact that this (is) a brand new team of people, just come together, and theyre doing the best they can with the learning curve we all go through in life." Well played. Pallister set the record straight without a disparaging word sent in Ontarios direction. Dan Lett | Not for Attribution A weekly look at politics close to home and around the world that is sent every Tuesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. That may seem like a simple matter, but this is a premier who has rarely travelled the easy route on any issue during his first two years in office. The premiers propensity to blurt out controversial things, start fights when they dont need to be started and run into difficulty handling some of the more nuanced aspects of his job generated way too much of the oppositions ammunition. For this brief moment, he seems like a new man, as evidenced by his beer-inspired performance art. An earlier iteration of Pallister might have taken that 25th beer to New Brunswick and dared the local constabulary to get him. The new-and-improved Pallister knew enough to stop at 24. And thats not a small accomplishment. dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca A Winnipeg accountant with a gambling problem who spent seven years defrauding his employer of almost $2 million has been sentenced to six years in prison. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A Winnipeg accountant with a gambling problem who spent seven years defrauding his employer of almost $2 million has been sentenced to six years in prison. Maximilian Panzo has 31 months left to serve after Court of Queen's Bench Justice Sadie Bond imposed the sentence Monday. Panzo pleaded guilty to fraud over $5,000 after stealing $1,978,289.78 from Fineline Communications Ltd. between 2008 and 2015. "The crime that Mr. Panzo has committed was premeditated, sophisticated and ongoing. It was not impulsive. It was calculated and purposeful," Bond said. By the time his fraud was discovered, Panzo had worked for the company for 25 years, and was seen as a trusted advisor. The certified general accountant had worked his way up to become chief financial officer and executive vice-president for the corporation, which offered fundraising support to non-profit organizations. Panzo had sole access to the executive payroll system, so he was able to increase his own paycheque and create fraudulent payroll entries. He also increased the income-tax deductions he reported to the Canada Revenue Agency and had them credited to his own account, expensing the company rather than having them deducted from his salary. In 2015, the company was about to be sold, and the purchaser wanted access to the payroll documents. Panzo tried to keep his fraud hidden by removing computers from the company office and concealing certain documents. The police were called to investigate and an accounting firm conducted a forensic audit that revealed the extent of Panzo's deceit. Even after he pleaded guilty and expressed remorse for the fraud, Panzo told the writer of his pre-sentence report he deserved an annual royalty from the company because he had helped increase its value before it was sold. He was arrested in April 2016, and has been in custody since that time. He was stripped of his accounting certification in December 2016, although the disciplinary panel for the Chartered Professional Accountants of Manitoba only looked into allegations dating to 2010. The CPA ordered him to pay $10,000 in costs as part of its decision in addition to a civil-court judgment ordering him to repay more than a million dollars to his former employer. None of that has been repaid. 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. On Monday, Bond made a restitution order for $143,533.90, but she noted it's unlikely Panzo will ever be able to pay back the money he stole in anything but "a minimal or symbolic way." Panzo had a gambling habit and used some of the money he stole at casinos and online gambling websites, but Bond said that didn't make much difference to her decision on his prison sentence. "There is no expert evidence before me that he was in the grips of an addiction that he could not control, and no evidence that in desperation, he turned to crime to save himself and his family from financial ruin," she said. Crown prosecutors had asked for a seven-year sentence, while Panzo's defence lawyer had sought 5 1/2 years. katie.may@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @thatkatiemay Ontarios newly elected government has dismissed a plan to revise the provinces social studies and history curriculums to add Indigenous content. There was no reason offered for Premier Doug Fords decision. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion Ontarios newly elected government has dismissed a plan to revise the provinces social studies and history curriculums to add Indigenous content. There was no reason offered for Premier Doug Fords decision. I was part of the group rewriting the curriculum. I am not annoyed at the Ontario governments decision for partisan reasons, or for the fact that so many taxpayer dollars that had been spent on rewriting curriculum are now wasted. As an educator who teaches aspiring teachers, I am aghast because the need to Indigenize curriculum in Canada is not up for debate. The calls from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission are not suggestions. When Canadians are called, we must respond. Every single call is formidable, and ignored at our peril. The commission asks all levels of government to consult with survivors, educators and Indigenous peoples on a mandatory curriculum that includes Indigenous history, including the legacy of residential schools. Other provincial governments have undertaken those revisions. Having the privilege and responsibility to revise curriculum in social studies and history for Ontario meant that I would have had the opportunity to support future teachers work in ways that I was not supported as a new teacher. Learned a lot about European explorers Let me explain. A few years ago, as a classroom teacher in Toronto, I was assigned a Grade 6 class. We had three themes in that years curriculum: Canada and the World, European Explorers and Native Studies. As a student years earlier, I couldnt remember learning about the first and third themes, but I certainly remembered hearing all about the European explorers. Distinctly: Samuel de Champlain founded Quebec City in 1608. Before him, Jacques Cartier founded Montreal. Others, mostly French, founded many things. Henry Hudson has a corporation, a bay and a river named in his honour. It was interesting to learn about the exploits of people who were apparently so intrepid and brave. Later, I learned that none of this actually happened the way it had been taught to us in school. It was one narrative drawing on particular sources and claims to truth. I was an unlearned student, and later on, an unlearned teacher. I taught as I learned, repeating narratives passed down to me. Contemplating knowledge, and how we know things, matters. Knowledge is often constructed. This means that we do not inherit narratives, but instead we construct them. Therefore we must question them. In that vein, Ontarios social studies and history curriculums have increasingly asked students to inquire about the past, not just to memorize it. There is a big distinction, after all, between repeating a narrative and building a plausible one based on evidence. History education in Ontario is certainly better than it used to be and has been applauded by historians. New narratives needed But what evidence and what narratives do we ask students to consider? Thats the question at hand. The calls of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission mean that we can no longer simply repeat the stories that we have heard and memorized. We must rewrite them with dignity and respect for the peoples that lived in Canada for centuries before the European explorers showed up, colonized and planted the seeds for further colonization. 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. In our 151st year as a country, social studies and history must be areas of study in which our students explore and question the events that have shaped our past, and what may shape our future. We must question how those events are talked about and taught. If thats not considered important to Doug Ford and the government of Ontario, I am at a total loss as an educator. Ontarios move to dismiss the addition of new Indigenous content as it revises its history curriculum is dangerous. We now have a very narrow idea of what our history is, and we continue to tell students a narrative that is demonstrably and woefully incomplete. Ontarios social studies and history students, even as they are encouraged to ask questions about the past, are also taught past one-sided narratives that have gone unchallenged in history books since the foundation of the provinces public school system. There is now, in Ontario, a missed opportunity to tell the full and complicated story of what Canada was, is and can be. There is less space for constructing knowledge. Memorizing and repeating colonial narratives amounts to the most dangerously dishonest, not to mention boring, history education imaginable. Theodore Christou is an associate professor of social studies and history education at Queen's University. This article was first published at The Conversation Canada: theconversation.com/ca. With the fall of Deraa earlier this month, the end of Syrias civil war is within sight. What will Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his ruling Baath Party do with their victory? Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/7/2018 (1190 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion With the fall of Deraa earlier this month, the end of Syrias civil war is within sight. What will Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his ruling Baath Party do with their victory? Polishing off the last rebel-held areas in the south, right up against the Israeli border, wont take long now that Israel has agreed that Syrian government troops can re-occupy those territories so long as Iranian and Hezbollah militias dont accompany them. Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Thursday. Recovering the thinly populated eastern quarter of the country, currently held by U.S.-backed Kurdish forces, is a tricky diplomatic issue, but it will be accomplished in due course. Reconquering the one province still held by Islamist rebels, Idlib, may take longer, but its not going to stop "reconstruction" in the rest of Syria. And that is going to change things a lot. Syrias demography shaped the seven-year civil war, in the sense that all the rebels were Sunni Muslims. Lots of Sunnis supported the regime and even fought for it, but 70 per cent of the entire Syrian population are Sunnis and a majority of them, especially in rural areas and the big-city slums, backed the rebellion. Hardly any non-Sunnis supported it. The pro-regime non-Sunni minorities were Shia Muslims (including the Alawite sect that is the backbone of the regime), Christians and the Druze, who all feared that a Sunni victory would mean at best oppression, or maybe exile or death for them. This was mainly because the Islamist fighters who dominated the later stages of the revolt were all Sunni extremists whose language made those fears plausible. So, how could the regime make itself safer from another rebellion? Get rid of as many as possible of the poorer Sunnis and particularly those who lived in the cities. The present situation presents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do just that, because more than half of the pre-war population of 23 million are now out of their homes: six million as refugees abroad and another six million internally displaced. They are almost all Sunnis and the Assad regime sees them as "bad" Sunnis, so heres what it is going to do. Syrias new Law No. 10 requires property owners in parts of the country devastated by the war to produce their ownership documents within 30 days. If they dont, they will have no further claim to their home or the land it once stood on. It sounds quite straightforward, but heres the trick. The devastated areas where most buildings were damaged or destroyed are, of course, those that fell into the hands of the rebels and were smashed up by government bombs and shell-fire. Assads regime assumes (probably correctly) that most of the people in those areas, mainly on the outskirts of the big cities, backed the rebels. Many of those people are now refugees outside the country and most of the rest are internally displaced persons. Their documents may have been destroyed, or they may never have had deeds (if they lived in informal settlements). In either case, they will be very reluctant to come home and put themselves in the hands of the regime, so they lose their land. And then, the regime thinks, they will never come home at all which is the point of the whole exercise. When these areas are eventually rebuilt, the homes will go to people who backed the regime, or at least stayed neutral: "good" Sunnis and the minorities. Meanwhile, the war will go on for a while here and there at a lower pace, but the Kurdish-controlled areas will probably soon be back under government control. 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. Rather than wait to be betrayed by the Americans (who will not protect them from Turkey in the long run), the Kurds will make a deal with Assad that gives them an autonomous Kurdish regional government and protects them from Turkish President Tayyip Erdogans anger. Idlib, the last opposition-held area, will take longer. The provinces population has doubled to two million and a great many of the newcomers are hard-line Islamists who were sent there after the negotiated surrenders in Aleppo, Eastern Ghouta or Deraa in the past 18 months. Assad doesnt actually want them back and the Turks (whose troops are already in Idlib province) might fight to protect them. He may just leave them there, safely quarantined, until some opportunity arises to get rid of them. But in the meantime, he is reshaping the population to guarantee the regimes long-term future. The cities may be a bit smaller than before, but they will be reliably regime-friendly. The country as a whole will still have a Sunni majority, but probably a less overwhelming one and the most hostile elements will be living in exile. It is demographic engineering on a very large scale and nobody can stop it. To the victor go the spoils. Gwynne Dyers new book is Growing Pains: The Future of Democracy (and Work). by Melani Manel Perera Two protests refocus attention on children and husbands who went missing during the civil war. Protesters present a petition requesting the release of prisoners. Silent protest shows the love and concern of Tamil mothers who demand truth and justice. Colombo (AsiaNews) Dozens of Tamil mothers have been protesting peacefully for 500 days demanding the Sri Lankan government tell them what happened to their missing children and relatives. For years the women have been waiting to see what had happened to their loved ones whose fate remains unknown since the end of the civil war. Several Christian leaders joined the protest last week, including Catholics. Together they took part in two sit-ins after which they presented an official petition to the authorities. The first protest took place on 12 and 13 July and saw the participation of activists supporting the mothers who occupy part of Vihara Maha Devi Park. The women represent other desperate mothers who live in Vavuniya, Mullaithivu, Kilinochchi and Trincomalee. "We have organised this silent protest to show the love and concern of Tamil mothers who demand truth and justice, Sampath Samarakoon, one of the organisers, told AsiaNews. "We are all part of the same human family, said Rohan Silva, former provincial superior of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. It does not matter what our ethnicity, religion or language is. We experience great pain and frustration for these Tamil families. We want the government to do the right thing soon." For Sister Deepa Fernando of the Holy Family, "Even people living in the south must feel compassion for the unhappy situation [of those who live in the north] and wait to know the fate of their loved ones. These disappearances cannot be compared to any other situation. If someone dies, we know that that person is no longer in this world. But if someone disappears, nothing gives comfort." At the end of the protests, activists and Catholics presented a document to the authorities, government offices, the military, the UN mission and diplomatic missions, showing the concern of 241 individuals and 39 organisations. The petition calls for the publication of a list of the people who survived the fight with the armed forces in the final stages of the war and the release of all prisoners. The second sit-it was held on 15 and 16 July in Kilinochchi, Vavuniya and Mullaithivu. Participants reiterated that "it is not just a matter of disappearances, but of enforced disappearances, because we know well where, how and at the hands of whom our children and husbands have disappeared. How can the government say that it does not know anything about it?" Sister Rasika Peiris notes that "The theology of reincarnation implies a theology of practice with which we try to build the Kingdom of God working with and for others who are the poorest of the poor of society. "Being a nun who works for the people affected by war both theoretically and practically, I believe that [these mothers] are among the poorest of the poor, exploited by oppressive structures. They want to find a new way to deal with the situation and build a new way of life, while fighting for full liberation and self-determination." DeNA Co., Ltd. engages in the development and operation of mobile and online services including games, e-commerce and entertainment content distribution. It operates through the following segments: Games, Electronic Commerce (EC), Sports, Automotive, Healthcare, and New Businesses and Others. The Games segment offers mobile games such as DeNA games, mobage, and AndApp. The EC segment provides e-commerce services such as Mobaoku. The Sports segment handles Yokohama DeNA Baystars, Yokohma DeNA Running Club, and Kawasaki Brave Thunders. The Automotive segment manages transportation applications such as MOV, Anyca, SOMPO DE NORU, Easy Ride, and Robot Shuttle. The Healthcare segment deals with digital healthcare services such as DeNa Healthcare, MYCODE, kencom, and Aruite Otoku. The New Businesses and Others segment includes products such as Strategic Investment Office and Delight Ventures. The company was founded by Tomoko Namba and Masayuki Watanabe on March 4, 1999 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Read More The government suspended the spread of the diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus vaccine produced by Changchun Changsheng Biotech. Some parents in the province said they had lost confidence in vaccines made in China and that they will have their children vaccinated in Hong Kong and Macao in the future. Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Another scandal is enveloping Chinese health care. The Jilin Food and Drug Administration revealed on its website that the second-largest drug manufacturer in China provided defective vaccines for newborns. Changchun Changsheng Biotech, based in Jilin, is charged with having sold 252,600 vaccines to the Shandong Prevention and Control Center. Immunoprophylaxis concerns diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus (Dpt). In November 2017, 650,000 vials of the same type had been withdrawn because they were ineffective. During the same period, the control authorities had investigated the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products for selling 400,520 ineffective vaccines in the Chongqing and Hebei provinces. Again, a week ago, the health control office discovered that the anti-rabies produced by Changchun Changsheng Biotech also did not work. Given the continuing scandals involving the pharmaceutical company, the State Drug Administration revoked the company's license. The authorities condemned the Changsheng Biotech to pay 3.4 million yuan ($ 502,200). According to experts, however, the amount of the fine is negligible: last year the company invoiced 566 million yuan and received 48.3 million yuan of government subsidies. At the moment the authorities say that the vaccines are only ineffective; it is still unknown if they are harmful to health. The Dpt vaccine is given to newborn babies across the country. The first administration takes place three months after birth. Some parents in the province of Guandong said they had lost confidence in vaccines made in China and that in the future they would like to have their children vaccinated in Hong Kong and Macao. One woman states: "Vaccines directly affect children's health. This scandal really saddens me. Can we guarantee the health of our children only if we give them imported food and imported medicines? ". Yesterday, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang called for severe punishment for those involved. In a note published on the website of the government said: "We will pursue criminal and illegal acts that endanger the safety of people's lives, punish the transgressors and those who have failed in their duties in supervision". Wall Street analysts have given Invesco Emerging Markets Sovereign Debt 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 Invesco Emerging Markets Sovereign Debt 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 Avery Dennison: ADC PHILIPPINES INC., ADESPAN S.R.L., ADHIPRESS BANGLADESH LTD., AVERY CORP., AVERY DE MEXICO SRL DE CV, AVERY DENNISON (ASIA) HOLDINGS LIMITED, AVERY DENNISON (CHANGZHOU) FILMS TECHNOLOGY CO. 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The dividend payout ratio of The Bank of New York Mellon is 33.92%. This payout ratio is at a healthy, sustainable level, below 75%. Based on earnings estimates, The Bank of New York Mellon will have a dividend payout ratio of 29.44% next year. This indicates that The Bank of New York Mellon will be able to sustain or increase its dividend. View The Bank of New York Mellon's dividend history. Wall Street analysts have given BlackRock Municipal Income Investment Trust 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 BlackRock Municipal Income Investment Trust wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. American Consumer News, LLC dba MarketBeat 2010-2021. 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North Koreas tragedy is much more about lost freedom through the brutal suppression of human potential than missiles. Perth (AsiaNews/Agencies) North Korea ranks first in the world in modern slavery, with one out of every 10 citizens its victim, this according to Global Slavery Index by the Walk Free Foundation. The Australia-based organisation is dedicated to monitoring and ending various forms of slavery in the world. Its Global Slavery Index found that outside North Korea, the countries with the worst prevalence of slavery are Eritrea, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Afghanistan, Mauritania, South Sudan, Pakistan, Cambodia and Iran. More than 2.6 million out of 25 million of Kim's subjects live under modern slavery, the highest proportion of slaves in the world. In a new report, the Foundation argues that the North Korean government had the weakest response to slavery out of all the countries surveyed, as it is itself involved in forced labour. The report defines modern slavery as slavery itself, as well as human trafficking, forced labour, debt bondage, forced or servile marriage, and the sale and exploitation of children. With respect to recent diplomatic negotiations between North Korea and the United States and South Korea, Theres a strong focus on bombs and missiles, but the North Korean tragedy is much more about lost freedom through the brutal suppression of human potential, said Andrew Forrest, founder of the Walk Free Foundation. During the research, 50 North Korean defectors were interviewed. All but one said they had been subjected to conditions that met the international legal definition of forced labour. You cannot refuse. If the work unit leader orders you to go to work, you have to do it. If you dont, then your food rations are cut off, said one defector. Interviewees reported that compulsory unpaid work is agriculture, construction and road building. Even children are often mobilised by the state. North Korea is essentially a slave state that uses its own citizens for the Kim regimes benefit, said Amanda Mortwedt Oh, of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea. The picture that emerges is as disturbing as it is unique, says the report. While gaining access to a wider sample of workers across North Korea itself is simply not possible, there is no reason to doubt that the first-hand experiences related [by] this group reflect the brutal reality of modern slavery perpetrated by the state." North Korea recently announced an amnesty from 1st August for people convicted of the crimes against the country and people to mark the 70th anniversary of the regimes foundation. Human rights groups have cautioned that such announcements have been made in the past but that it was not clear if a significant number of people were actually released. The Global Slavery Index also noted that other countries have indirectly become complicit in the exploitation of slavery through the importation of goods produced through forced labour, with the United States importing the most at-risk goods of any nations, at US4 billion a year. Cheap labour also falls within the modern definition of slave labour. About 55 per cent of the new slaves are in Asia, where no cost labour in manufacturing sector is widespread. At the top of the ranking, after North Korea, we find Cambodia, India and Qatar. In absolute terms, India has a record 7.98 million slaves, followed by Pakistan with 3.18 million, China with 3.86 million and Iran 1.28 million. The following companies are subsidiares of Exxon Mobil: AKG Marketing Company Limited, Aera Energy LLC, Al-Jubail Petrochemical Company, Ampolex (Cepu) Pte Ltd, Ancon Insurance Company Inc., Barnett Gathering LLC, Barzan Gas Company Limited, Caspian Pipeline Consortium, Celtic Exploration Ltd., Coral FLNG S.A., Cross Timbers Energy LLC, Ellora Energy Inc., Esmeroon Oil Transporta Imperial Oil Limited, Esso (Thailand) Public Company Limited, Esso Australia Resources Pty Ltd, Esso Deutschland GmbH, Esso Erdgas Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Esso Exploration Angola (Block 15) Limited, Esso Exploration Angola (Block 17) Limited, Esso Exploration and Production Angola (Overseas) Limited, Esso Exploration and Production Chad Inc., Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited, Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Deepwater) Limited, Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Offshore East) Limited, Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited, Esso Exploration and Production UK Limited, Esso Global Investments Ltd., Esso Italiana S.r.l., Esso Nederland B.V., Esso Norge AS, Esso Petroleum Company Limited, Esso Raffinage, Esso Societe Anonyme Francaise, Exxo Holdings Inc., Exxon Azerbaijan Limited, Exxon Chemical Arabia Inc., Exxon International Finance Company, Exxon Luxembourg Holdings LLC, Exxon Mobile Bay Limited Partnership, Exxon Neftegas Limited, Exxon Overseas Corporation, Exxon Overseas Investment Corporation, ExxonMobil (China) Investment Co. Ltd., ExxonMobil (Taicang) Petroleum Co. Ltd., ExxonMobil Abu Dhabi Offshore Petroleum Company Limited, ExxonMobil Alaska Production Inc., ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., ExxonMobil Australia Pty Ltd, ExxonMobil B Resources Company, ExxonMobil Capital Finance Company, ExxonMobil Capital Netherlands B.V., ExxonMobil Central Europe Holding GmbH, ExxonMobil Cepu Limited, ExxonMobil Chemical France, ExxonMobil Chemical Gulf Coast Investments LLC, ExxonMobil Chemical Holland B.V., ExxonMobil Chemical Services (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., ExxonMobil China Petroleum & Petrochemical Company Limited, ExxonMobil Development Africa B.V., ExxonMobil Development Company, ExxonMobil Egypt (S.A.E.), ExxonMobil Exploracao Brasil Ltda., ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Malaysia Inc., ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Norway AS, ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Romania Limited, ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Tanzania Limited, ExxonMobil Finance Company Limited, ExxonMobil Financial Investment Company Limited, ExxonMobil France Holding SAS, ExxonMobil Gas Marketing Europe Limited, ExxonMobil General Finance Company, ExxonMobil Global Services Company, ExxonMobil Golden Pass Surety LLC, ExxonMobil Holding Company Holland LLC, ExxonMobil Holding Norway AS, ExxonMobil Hong Kong Limited, ExxonMobil International Services SARL, ExxonMobil Iraq Limited, ExxonMobil Italiana Gas S.r.l., ExxonMobil Kazakhstan Inc., ExxonMobil Kazakhstan Ventures Inc., ExxonMobil LNG Services B.V., ExxonMobil Lubricants Trading Company, ExxonMobil Oil Corporation, ExxonMobil PNG Limited, ExxonMobil Petroleum & Chemical BVBA, ExxonMobil Petroleum & Chemical Holdings Inc., ExxonMobil Pipeline Company, ExxonMobil Production Deutschland GmbH, ExxonMobil Production Norway Inc., ExxonMobil Qatargas (II) Limited, ExxonMobil Qatargas Inc., ExxonMobil Ras Laffan (III) Limited, ExxonMobil Rasgas Inc., ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company, ExxonMobil Russia Kara Sea Holdings B.V., ExxonMobil Sales and Supply LLC, ExxonMobil Technology Finance Company, ExxonMobil Ventures Finance Company, ExxonMobil Ventures Funding Ltd., Fujian Refining & Petrochemical Co. Ltd., Golden Pass LNG Terminal Investments LLC, Golden Pass LNG Terminal LLC, Gulf Coast Growth Ventures LLC, Imperial Oil Limited, Imperial Oil Resources Limited, Imperial Oil Resources N.W.T. Limited, Imperial Oil/Petroliere Imperiale, Infineum Italia s.r.I., Infineum Singapore Pte. Ltd., InterOil Corporation, Jurong Aromatics Corporation Pte Ltd, MPM Lubricants, Marine Well Containment Company LLC, Mobil Australia Resources Company Pty Limited, Mobil California Exploration & Producing Asset Company, Mobil Caspian Pipeline Company, Mobil Chemical Products International Inc., Mobil Corporation, Mobil Equatorial Guinea Inc., Mobil Erdgas Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, Mobil Exploration & Producing Australia Pty Ltd, Mobil International Petroleum Corporation, Mobil Oil Australia Pty Ltd, Mobil Oil Exploration & Producing Southeast Inc., Mobil Oil New Zealand Limited, Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited, Mobil Producing Texas & New Mexico Inc., Mobil SerLimited, Mobil Venezolana De Petroleos Inc., Mobil Yanbu Petrochemical Company Inc., Mobil Yanbu Refining Company Inc., Mountain Gathering LLC, Mozambique Rovuma Venture S.p.A., Palmetto Transoceanic LLC, Papua New Guinea Liquefied Natural Gas Global Company LDC, Permian Express Partners LLC, Phillips Exploration LLC, Qatar Liquefied Gas Company Limited, Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company Limited, Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company Limited (II), SPI Limited, Saudi Aramco Mobil Refinery Company Ltd., Saudi Yanbu Petrochemical Co., SeaRiver Maritime Inc., South Hook LNG Terminal Company Limited, Tengizchevroil LLP, Terminale GNL Adriatico S.r.l, Trend Gathering & Treating LLC, Wolverine Pipe Line Company, XH LLC, XTO Delaware Basin LLC, XTO Energy Canada, XTO Energy Inc., and XTO Holdings LLC. Fortis Inc. operates as an electric and gas utility company in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean countries. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 433,000 retail customers in southeastern Arizona; and 98,000 retail customers in Arizona's Mohave and Santa Cruz counties with an aggregate capacity of 3,233 megawatts (MW), including 59 MW of solar capacity. The company also sells wholesale electricity to other entities in the western United States; owns gas-fired and hydroelectric generating capacity totaling 65 MW; and distributes natural gas to approximately 1,048,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers in British Columbia, Canada. In addition, it owns and operates the electricity distribution system that serves approximately 572,000 customers in southern and central Alberta; owns 4 hydroelectric generating facilities with a combined capacity of 225 MW; and provides operation, maintenance, and management services to five hydroelectric generating facilities. Further, the company distributes electricity in the island portion of Newfoundland and Labrador with an installed generating capacity of 143 MW; and on Prince Edward Island with a generating capacity of 130 MW. Additionally, it provides integrated electric utility service to approximately 67,000 customers in Ontario; approximately 270,000 customers in Newfoundland and Labrador; approximately 31,000 customers on Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands; and approximately 15,000 customers on certain islands in Turks and Caicos. The company also holds long-term contracted generation assets in Belize consisting of 3 hydroelectric generating facilities with a combined capacity of 51 MW; and the Aitken Creek natural gas storage facility. It also owns and operates approximately 91,000 circuit Kilometers (km) of distribution lines; and approximately 49,500 km of natural gas pipelines. Fortis Inc. was founded in 1885 and is headquartered in St. John's, Canada. Read More The cardinal has labeled the law as "ignoble, anti-democratic and anti-pluralist". An appeal to the UN to guarantee the rights of Palestinians according to international decisions. Beirut (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The law voted by the Knesset, which defines Israel as "the nation-state of the Jewish people" is "inadmissible because it excludes the two Christian religions (Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant) and Muslim". This is what the Maronite Patriarch Card. Beshara Rai said yesterday, during a mass dedicated to the hermit St. Charbel at Faraya (Kesruan). The law, passed last July 19 by 62 votes in favor and 55 against, immediately found opposition from Palestinian parliamentarians in the Knesset. The patriarch's comment is the first official comment by a Catholic personality. Cardinal Rai denounced the law as "ignoble, anti-democratic and anti-pluralist", linked to the previous decision of the Israeli parliament to proclaim Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The patriarch pointed out that "in this land [Israel and occupied territories] we have episcopates, parishes, institutions and a people. The Jewish people - and the states that support them - do not have the right to push their aggressions and their acts of exclusion further and further." The Cardinal said he wanted to address "an appeal to the UN and the Security Council to take a decision to annul the Knesset law on the basis of previous international decisions relating to" Palestinian rights. The law has been accepted amid the silence of many Arab countries. So far, only Palestinians and Arab parliamentarians in Israel have criticized it as legalized "racism" and "apartheid". Several groups of Israeli activists have stood against the law because it undermines minority rights. The European Union, expressing its concern, also called for the rights of minorities to be respected. Lloyds Banking Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of banking and financial services in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail; Commercial Banking; and Insurance and Wealth. The Retail segment offers a range of financial service products, including current accounts, savings accounts, mortgages, motor finance, unsecured loans, leasing solutions, credit cards, and other financial services to personal and small business customers. The Commercial Banking segment provides lending, transactional banking, working capital management, risk management, and debt capital market services to small and medium-sized entities, corporates, and financial institutions. The Insurance and Wealth segment offers life, home, and car insurance products; and pension, investment, and wealth management products and services. It also provides digital and mobile banking, and telephone services, as well as advisory services for savings, investments, and planning for retirement. The company offers its products and services under the Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland, Scottish Widows, MBNA, Schroders Personal Wealth, Black Horse, Lex Autolease, Birmingham Midshires, LDC, IWeb, and Agricultural Mortgage Corporation brands. Lloyds Banking Group plc was founded in 1695 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom. Read More Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA engages in the traditional banking businesses of retail banking, asset management, private banking, and wholesale banking. It operates through the following segments: Spain, the United States, Mexico, Turkey, South America, and Rest of Eurasia. The Spain segment includes mainly the banking and insurance business that the group carries out in Spain. The United States segment consists of the financial business activity of BBVA USA in the country and the activity of the branch of BBVA SA in New York. The Mexico segment refers to banking and insurance businesses in this country as well as the activity of its branch in Houston. The Turkey segment reports the activity of Garanti BBVA group that is mainly carried out in this country and, to a lesser extent, in Romania and the Netherlands. The South America segment comprises of operations in n Argentina, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. The Rest of Eurasia segment includes the banking business activity carried out by the group in Europe and Asia, excluding Spain. The company was founded in 1857 and is headquartered in Madrid, Spain. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Ecolab: AO Ecolab, Abednego Environmental Services, Abednego Environmental Services LLC, Abednego Mexico Holdings LLC, Abednego de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Alcide Corp., Anios America S.A., Anios Diffusion SAS, Anios Manufacturing SAS, Bioquell, Bioquell Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Bioquell Global Logistics (Ireland) Ltd., Bioquell Holding SAS, Bioquell Inc., Bioquell Limited, Bioquell SAS, Bioquell Technology (Shenzhen) Ltd., Bioquell Technology Canada Ltd., Bioquell UK Limited, Bioxyquell Limited, CALGON EUROPE LIMITED, CALGON LLC, CID LINES HOLDING NV, CID LINES INVEST NV, CID LINES NV, CID Lines, CID Lines Beijing Animal Hygiene Co Ltd., CID Lines France Sarl, CID Lines Iberica SL, CID Lines LLC, CID Lines Mexico S.A. DE C.V., CID Lines R&D NV, CID Lines Sp. z o. o., CORPAK MedSystems, Cascade Water Services, Champion Technologies, Chamtech L.L.C., Chemlawn, Chemstaff Inc., Chemstar Corporation, Cirlam BVBA, Copal Holding NV, Copal Invest NV, DERYPOL SA, DMD, E&M Bio-Chemicals LLC, ECOLAB NL 10 B.V., ECOLAB PEST FRANCE SAS, Ecolab (Antigua) Ltd., Ecolab (Aruba) N.V., Ecolab (Barbados) Limited, Ecolab (China) Investment Co. Ltd, Ecolab (Fiji) Pty Limited, Ecolab (GZ) Chemicals Limited, Ecolab (Guam) LLC, Ecolab (Proprietary) Limited, Ecolab (Schweiz) GmbH, Ecolab (St. Lucia) Limited, Ecolab (Taicang) Technology Co. Ltd., Ecolab (Trinidad and Tobago) Unlimited, Ecolab (U.K.) Holdings Limited, Ecolab A.E.B.E., Ecolab AB, Ecolab AP Holdings LLC, Ecolab AT 2 GmbH, Ecolab AU2 Pty Ltd, Ecolab Acquisition LLC, Ecolab ApS, Ecolab Argentina S.R.L., Ecolab Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Ecolab B.V., Ecolab B.V.B.A./S.P.R.L., Ecolab Bahrain S.P.C., Ecolab CDN 2 Co., Ecolab CDN 4 ULC, Ecolab CH 1 GmbH, Ecolab CH 2 GmbH, Ecolab CH 3 GmbH, Ecolab CH 5 GmbH, Ecolab CH 6 GmbH, Ecolab Chemicals Limited, Ecolab Co., Ecolab Colombia S. A., Ecolab DE 1 GmbH, Ecolab Deutschland GmbH, Ecolab EOOD, Ecolab East Africa (Kenya) Limited, Ecolab East Africa (Tanzania) Limited, Ecolab East Africa (Uganda) Limited, Ecolab Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Ecolab Engineering GmbH, Ecolab Europe GmbH, Ecolab Export GmbH, Ecolab FR 1 SAS, Ecolab FR 4 SAS, Ecolab Finance Company Designated Activity Company, Ecolab Food Safety & Hygiene Solutions Private Limited, Ecolab G.K., Ecolab Global Business Services LLC, Ecolab GmbH, Ecolab Gulf FZE, Ecolab HK 1 Limited, Ecolab HK 2 Limited, Ecolab Hispano-Portuguesa S.L., Ecolab Holding Italy S.r.l., Ecolab Holdings (Europe) LLC, Ecolab Holdings Inc., Ecolab Holdings Mexico S. de R. L. de C. V., Ecolab Hygiene Kft., Ecolab Hygiene d.o.o., Ecolab Israel Holdings LLC, Ecolab JVZ Limited, Ecolab Korea Ltd., Ecolab LLC, Ecolab LUX & Co Holdings S.C.A., Ecolab LUX 1 Sarl, Ecolab LUX 2 Sarl, Ecolab LUX 4 Sarl, Ecolab LUX 7 Sarl, Ecolab LUX Sarl, Ecolab Limited, Ecolab Ltd., Ecolab Lux 10 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 12 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 13 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 14 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 15 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 9 S.a.r.l., Ecolab Lux Partner LLC, Ecolab MT Holdings LLC, Ecolab MT Limited, Ecolab Malta 1 Limited, Ecolab Malta 2 Limited, Ecolab Malta GPS, Ecolab Manufacturing IE Limited, Ecolab Manufacturing Inc., Ecolab Manufacturing UK Limited, Ecolab Maroc Societe a Responsabilite Limitee, Ecolab NL 11 B.V., Ecolab NL 15 BV, Ecolab NL 16 B.V., Ecolab NL 23 B.V., Ecolab NL 3 BV, Ecolab NL 4 BV, Ecolab Name Holding Limited, Ecolab New Zealand, Ecolab Peru Holdings S.R.L., Ecolab Pest Deutschland GmbH, Ecolab Philippines Inc., Ecolab Production Belgium B.V.B.A., Ecolab Production France SAS, Ecolab Production Italy Srl, Ecolab Production LLC, Ecolab Production Netherlands B.V., Ecolab Production Poland sp. z o.o., Ecolab Pte. Ltd., Ecolab Pty Ltd., Ecolab Quimica Ltda., Ecolab S. de R.L. de C.V., Ecolab S.A., Ecolab S.A. de C.V., Ecolab SAS, Ecolab SIA, Ecolab SNC, Ecolab SRL, Ecolab Sdn Bhd, Ecolab Services Argentina S.R.L., Ecolab Services Poland Sp. z o o, Ecolab Sociedad Anonima, Ecolab Sp. z o o, Ecolab Spain Services S.L.U., Ecolab Temizleme Sistemleri Limited Sirketi, Ecolab U.S. 2 Inc., Ecolab U.S. 6 LLC, Ecolab U.S. 7 LLC, Ecolab US 1 GP, Ecolab USA Inc., Ecolab Viet Nam Company Limited, Ecolab Water Holding LImited, Ecolab a.s., Ecolab d.o.o., Ecolab s.r.l., Ecolab s.r.o., Ecolab y Compania Colectiva de Responsabilidad Limitada, Ecolab-Importacao E. Exportacao Limitada, Ecolabone B.V., Ecolabtwo B.V., Endoclear Equipamentos Medicos Hospitalares Ltda., Enviroflo Engineering Limited, Food Protection Services, GCS Service, Gallay Medical & Scientific Pty Ltd, Gallay Medical & Scientific Pty Ltd., GallayTrac Pty. Ltd., Georgia-Pacific - Paper Chemicals Business, Gibson Chemical Industries, Green Harbour Mainland Holdings Ltd, Guangzhou Green Harbour Environmental Operation Ltd., HYDROSAN LIMITED, Henkel-Ecolab, Hicopla SL, Holchem Laboratories, Huntington Laboratories, Hydenet SAS, INDUSTRIAL) UNIPESSOAL LDA, INTERNATIONAL WATER CONSULTANT B.V., Immobiliare R.E.O.P.A. SRL, Instrunet Hospital SLU, Jianghai Environmental Protection Co., Jianghai Environmental Protection Co. Ltd., KATAYAMA NALCO INC., Kay BVBA, Kay Chemical Company, LHS (UK) Limited, Laboratoires Anios, Laboratoires Anios-Distribution SAS, Les Produits Chimiques ERPAC Inc., Lobster Ink, Lobster Ink Africa (Pty.) Ltd., Lobster International S.A., London & General Packaging Ltd, MALAYSIA SDN. BHD, MANUFACTURING S.R.L., MOBOTEC AB LLC, Master Chemicals OOO, Meratech Rus Group LLC, Microtek Dominicana S.A., Microtek Italy S.R.L., Microtek Medical B.V., Microtek Medical Europe Limited, Microtek Medical Holdings, Microtek Medical Holdings Inc., Microtek Medical Inc., Microtek Medical Malta Holding Limited, Microtek Medical Malta Limited, Midland Research Laboratories, Midland Research Laboratories UK Limited, NALCO (SHANGHAI) TRADING CO. LTD., NALCO AB, NALCO ACQUISITION ONE, NALCO ACQUISITION TWO LIMITED, NALCO AFRICA (PTY.) LTD., NALCO ASIA HOLDING COMPANY PTE. LTD., NALCO BELGIUM BVBA, NALCO CHINA HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO COMPANY OOO, NALCO DANMARK APS, NALCO DE MEXICO S. de R. L. de C.V., NALCO DELAWARE COMPANY, NALCO DEUTSCHLAND GMBH, NALCO DEUTSCHLAND MANUFACTURING GMBH UND CO. KG, NALCO DUTCH HOLDINGS B.V., NALCO EGYPT LTD., NALCO EGYPT TRADING, NALCO ESPANOLA MANUFACTURING S.L.U., NALCO ESPANOLA S.L., NALCO EUROPE B.V., NALCO FINLAND MANUFACTURING OY, NALCO FINLAND OY, NALCO FRANCE, NALCO FRANCE SNC, NALCO GLOBAL HOLDINGS B.V., NALCO GLOBAL HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO HOLDING B.V., NALCO HOLDING COMPANY, NALCO HOLDINGS G.m.b.H., NALCO HOLDINGS UK LIMITED, NALCO HONG KONG LIMITED, NALCO INDUSTRIAL OUTSOURCING COMPANY, NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES, NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (NANJING) CO. LTD., NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (SUZHOU) CO. LTD., NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (THAILAND) CO. LTD., NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES CHILE LIMITADA, NALCO INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS B.V., NALCO INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO INVESTMENTS U.K. LIMITED, NALCO ISRAEL INDUSTRIAL SERVICES LTD, NALCO ITALIANA, NALCO ITALIANA HOLDINGS S.R.L., NALCO ITALIANA SrL, NALCO KOREA LIMITED, NALCO LIMITED, NALCO LUXEMBOURG HOLDINGS SARL, NALCO MANUFACTURING BETEILIGUNGS GMBH, NALCO MANUFACTURING LTD., NALCO NETHERLANDS B.V., NALCO NORTH AFRICA LIMITED, NALCO OSTERREICH Ges m.b.H., NALCO OVERSEAS HOLDING B.V., NALCO PAKISTAN (PRIVATE) LIMITED, NALCO PHILIPPINES INC., NALCO PORTUGUESA (QUIMICA, NALCO PWS INC., NALCO SAUDI CO. LTD., NALCO TAIWAN CO. LTD., NALCO TWO INC., NALCO U.S. HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO UNIVERSAL HOLDINGS BV, NALCO WORLDWIDE HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO ZAO, NALFLOC LIMITED, NALTECH INC., NANOSPECIALTIES LLC, NLC PROCESS AND WATER SERVICES SARL, Nalco (BN) SDN BHD, Nalco (China) Environmental Solution Co. Ltd., Nalco Anadolu Kimya Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Nalco Canada ULC, Nalco Company LLC, Nalco Contract Operations LLC, Nalco Grundbesitz GmbH & Co. KG, Nalco Gulf Response Corp., Nalco Japan G.K., Nalco Libya, Nalco Middle East FZE, Nalco Polska Sp. z o. o., Nalco Production LLC, Nalco Real Estate GmbH, Nalco Schweiz GmbH, Nalco US 1 LLC, Nalco Wastewater Contract Operations Inc., Nalco Water India Limited, Nalco Water Pretreatment Solutions LLC, Nalco Worldwide Holdings S.a.r.l./B.V., Nigiko, Nuova Farmec S.r.l., Oksa Kimya Sanayi A.S., Oy Ecolab AB, PT Ecolab International Indonesia, PT Ecolab Technologies and Services, Purate business - AkzoNobel, Quantum Technical Services LLC, Quimicas Ecolab S.A. de C.V., Quimiproductos S.A. de C.V, RP Adam Ltd, Research Fumigation Co., Royal Pest Solutions, Shield Holdings Limited, Shield Medicare Limited, Shield Salvage Associates Limited, Soluscope International Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Soluscope SAS, Swisher Hygiene, Technical Textile Services Limited, Techtex Holdings Limited, Terminix, Ultrafab, Wabasha Leasing LLC, and vanBaerle Hygiene AG. Wall Street analysts have given iShares Core MSCI Europe 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 Core MSCI Europe ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Wall Street analysts have given iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond 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 iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. At least 422 people, volunteers and their families, have been transferred to Jordan via the Israeli-occupied Golan area. Hence the fugitives will be relocated to several Western countries: Germany, Great Britain, Canada. The White Helmets are trained and supported by the United States and other Western countries. In 2016, they were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. But Syria and Russia accuse them of being supporters of the rebels and of also having ties with the jihadist groups. Beirut (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Israeli army has carried out a "humanitarian" operation helping the escape of a group of white helmets from the Syrian area of Quneitra, in the south-west of the country. At least 422 people, volunteers and their families, have been transferred to Jordan via the Israeli-occupied Golan area. From here the fugitives will be relocated to several Western countries: Germany, Great Britain, Canada,... The White Helmets define themselves as a group of volunteers who act to save people in the war zones in Syria. They claim to be neutral and to help everyone. But in reality they only work in the rebel controlled areas. Syria and Russia accuse them of being supporters of the rebels and of also having ties with the jihadist groups. In 2016, the volunteers were nominated to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. But Damascus and Moscow accused them of sometimes staging the rescue of children and bogus chemical attacks to blame Assad. The rescue of the group by the Israeli army is an exceptional event. The Israeli army and Prime Minister Benjiamin Netanyahu declared that they acted at the request of the United States, Britain and other European nations and that this gesture does not undermine Israel's neutrality towards the war in Syria. In fact, Tel Aviv aircraft have often intervened in Syria to target Syrian and Hezbollah military bases. The Jordanian government has confirmed that it has authorized "authorised the United Nations to organise the passage of 800 Syrian citizens through Jordan to be resettled in Western countries". "Britain, Germany and Canada made a legally binding undertaking to resettle them within a specified period of time due to 'a risk to their lives'." The White Helmets have always received support and training from the United States and other Western countries. They are about 3 thousand volunteers and claim to have saved the lives of at least 100 thousand people during the Syrian war. At least 200 of them died in service. Syrian state TV al-Ikhbariya called the evacuation a scandal. The State News Agency SANA said the secret of the group had been revealed and their role as an agent ended". MAXIMUS, Inc. engages in the operation of government and human services programs. It operates through the following segments: U.S. Services; U.S. Federal Services; and Outside the U.S. The U.S. Services segment offers a variety of business process services, and appeals and assessments for state, provincial and national government programs. The U.S. Federal Services segment includes process solutions, program management, as well as system and software development, and maintenance services for various United States federal civilian programs. The Outside the U.S segment comprises of national, state, and county human services agencies with a variety of business process services, and related consulting services for welfare-to-work, child support, higher education institutions, and other human services programs. The company was founded by David V. Mastran in 1975 and is headquartered in Reston, VA. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Archer-Daniels-Midland: ADM (Shanghai) Management Co. LTD, ADM (Thailand) Ltd, ADM Ag Holdings Ltd, ADM Agri-Industries Company, ADM Agriculture Limited, ADM Agro Iberica S. L. U., ADM Agro Indust Latur and Vizag Pvt Ltd, ADM Agro Industries India Private Limited, ADM Agro Industries KOTA and AKOLA Pvt. Ltd., ADM Agro SRL, ADM Agroinvestimentos LTDA, ADM Alliance Nutrition of Puerto Rico LLC, ADM Americas S de RL, ADM Andina Peru SRL, ADM Antwerp NV, ADM Arkady Ireland Limited, ADM Asia-Pacific Trading Pte. Ltd., ADM Australia Holdings I PTY Limited, ADM Bio Science And Technology (Tianjin) Co Ltd, ADM Bioproductos SA DE CV, ADM CZERNIN SA, ADM Caribbean Inc, ADM Chile Comercial LTDA, ADM Clinton Bioprocessing Inc, ADM DO Brasil LTDA, ADM Direct Polska SP. ZO.O, ADM Dominican Holdings Inc., ADM Dominicana SA, ADM Edible Bean Specialties Inc, ADM Europe HoldCo SL, ADM European Holdings LLC, ADM European Management Holding GMBH, ADM Export Co, ADM Food Technology (Beijing) Co. Ltd., ADM France, ADM Germany GmbH, ADM Grain River System Inc., ADM Hamburg Aktiengesesllschaft, ADM Holding (Thailand) LTD, ADM Holdings LLC, ADM Hungary Agro Trading LLC, ADM Industries Centers Ltd, ADM International Holdings Inc, ADM International SARL, ADM Interoceanic LTD, ADM Investments LTD, ADM Investor Services Inc, ADM Investor Services International LTD, ADM Ireland Receivables Company Limited, ADM Israel, ADM Japan Ltd, ADM MALBORK SA, ADM Mainz GMBH, ADM Medsofts Sarl, ADM Mexico Inc, ADM Mexico SA DE CV, ADM Milling Co, ADM Milling LTD, ADM New Zealand Limited, ADM Olomouc S.R.O., ADM Paraguay SRL, ADM Protexin Limited, ADM Pura Limited, ADM Receivables LLC, ADM Rice Inc, ADM Ringaskiddy Unlimited Company, ADM Romania Logistics SRL, ADM Romania Trading SRL, ADM Specialty Ingredients - Europe BV, ADM Spyck GMBH, ADM Szamotuly SP Z O.O, ADM Trading Australia Pty. Ltd., ADM Trading Co, ADM Transportation Company, ADM Trucking Inc, ADM Vietnam CO. LTD, ADM WILD Europe GmbH and Co. KG, ADM WILD Ingredients GmbH, ADM WILD Nauen GmbH, ADM WILD Valencia S.A., ADM Wild Netherlands BV, ADM Worldwide Holdings LP, ADMIS Holding Co Inc., ADMIS Hong Kong LTD, ADMIS Singapore Pte Limited, AOR, AT Holdings II Company, Agri Port Services Investments Ltd., Agri Port Services LLC, Agricolas Madagascar SARLU, Agrinational Insurance Co, Agriserve, Agrograin LTD, Alfrebro LLC, Alfred C Toepfer International Netherlands BV, Alimenta USA, American River Transportation Company LLC, Ameriseed, Amylum Bulgaria EAD, Amylum Nisasta Sanayi Ve Ticarek Anonim Sirketi, Archer Daniels Midland (UK) Limited, Archer Daniels Midland Asia Pacific Ltd., Archer Daniels Midland Erith LTD, Archer Daniels Midland Europe BV, Archer Daniels Midland Europoort BV, Archer Daniels Midland Nederland BV, Archer Daniels Midland Singapore PTE LTD, Arinos Unlimited, Aston Foods & Food Ingredients, Balanceados Nova SA Balnova, Barbados Mills Limited, Bela Vista Bio Etanol Participacoes LTDA, Bern Aqua, BioPolis SL, Biopolis, Campa Sued GmbH & Co KG, Cattleman's Choice Loomix LLC, Chamtor, Ci ADM Colombia Ltda., Controladora ADM Sa De Cv, Crosswind Petfoods Inc., Daavision BV, Eaststarch, Eatem Corporation, Eatem Foods, Elstar Oils, English River Pellets Inc., Epicore Bionetworks INC, Epicore Networks (USA) INC, Erich Ziegler GmbH, Evialis France, Fasco Mills Co., Filozoo SRL, Florida Chemical, Florida Chemical Company LLC, GP Blanching Inc., Global Cocoa Holdings LTD, Golden Peanut Company LLC, Golden Peanut and Tree Nut Seed SA (PTY) LTD, Golden Peanut and Tree Nuts SA, Group Lysac, Guyomarc'h - VCN Company Limited, Guyomarc'h Vietnam CO LTD, HFR Shipping Company Ltd, HRA Shipping Company Ltd, HTI Shipping Company Ltd, Harvest Innovations, Hilltop Grain and Feed, Holding P and A Asia Company Limited, Hubei Meiweiyuan Biotechnology, Ilitchevskiy Maslo Extractionniy Zavod (IMEZ), Invivo NSA Asia PTE LTD, Invivo NSA Philippines Inc, Jamaica Flour Mills Limited, Julius Meijer-Alpharma BV, LLC ADM Ukraine, Liquid Feed Commodities, Malta Industries SA de CV, Malta-Texo De Mexico SA de CV, Master Mix of Trinidad LTD, Medsofts Investment Co, Medsofts L.L.C., Medsofts Trading Co, Mepla Comercio e Navegacao Ltda, NRG Inc, Naviera Chaco SRL, Neovia, Neovia Latina SL, Neovia Nutricao E Saude Animal LTDA, North Star Shipping S.R.L., P and A Marketing SA, PJSC ADM Illichivsk, PT Wirifa Sakti, Pancosma (Shanghai) Feed Additives CO LTD, Pancosma France SAS, Pancosma SA, Premiere Agri Technologies of Mexico Inc, Pura Foods LTD, Rodelle Inc., Schokinag-Schokolade-Industrie Herrmann, Sermix, Setna Nutricion SA, Societe Industrielle Des Oleagineux, Southern Cellulose Products Inc, Soy Investors LLC, Specialty Commodities, Specialty Commodities LLC, Sul Mineira Alimentos LTDA, SzSzV Kft, Toepfer International, Toepfer International Trading (Shanghai) Co. LTD., Vantage Corn Processors LLC, WILD Amazon Flavors Ltda, WILD Flavors, Wild Flavors Inc., Wild Flavors International GmbH, Wild Flavors Singapore Pte. Ltd., Wild Intermare GmbH, Wild Russia LLC, and Wisium SA (PTY) LTD. The following companies are subsidiares of Accenture: 2nd Road, 2nd Road Pty Ltd., ?What If!, ?What If! China Holdings Ltd, ?What If! Holdings Limited, ?What If! Innovation Singapore Holdings Pte, ?What If! Limited, ?What If! Shanghai Co. Ltd, ?What If! USA LLC, ACN Consulting Co Ltd, AD Dialeto Agencia de Publicidade SA, AD.Dialeto (Digital Agency acquired by Accenture), AGS Business and Technology Services Limited, ASM Research Inc., ASM Research LLC, ATAN, Accenture (Beijing) Mobile Technology Co Ltd, Accenture (Botswana) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (China) Co Ltd, Accenture (Shenzhen) Technology Co. Ltd., Accenture (South Africa) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (South Africa) Pty Limited, Accenture (UK) Ltd, Accenture 2 Business Process Services S.A., Accenture 2 LLC, Accenture A/S, Accenture AB, Accenture AG, Accenture AS, Accenture Africa Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Holding B.V., Accenture Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Azerbaijan Ltd, Accenture BPM Operations Support Services S.A., Accenture BPM S.C.R.L., Accenture BV, Accenture Branch Holdings B.V., Accenture Bulgaria EOOD, Accenture Business Services for Utilities Inc, Accenture Business Services of British Columbia Limited Partnership, Accenture Business and Technology Services LLC, Accenture C.A, Accenture CAS GmbH, Accenture Canada Holdings Inc., Accenture Capital DAC, Accenture Capital Inc, Accenture Central Europe B.V., Accenture Chile Asesorias y Servicios Ltda, Accenture Cloud Services GmbH, Accenture Cloud Software Solutions Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions LLC, Accenture Cloud Solutions Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd., Accenture Communications Infrastructure Solutions Ltd, Accenture Company Ltd, Accenture Consulting Services Ltd Tanzania, Accenture Consultores de Gestao S.A., Accenture Consultoria de Industria e Consumo Ltda, Accenture Consultoria de Recursos Naturais Ltda, Accenture Credit Services LLC, Accenture Customer Services Distribution SAS, Accenture Customer Services Limited, Accenture Danismanlik Limited Sirketi, Accenture Defined Benefit Pension Plan Trustees Ltd, Accenture Defined Contribution Pension Plan Trustees Ltd, Accenture Delivery Poland sp. z o.o., Accenture Dienstleistungen GmbH, Accenture Digital France Holdings SA, Accenture Digital Holdings GmbH, Accenture East Africa Limited, Accenture Ecuador S.A., Accenture Egypt LLC, Accenture Enterprise Development (Shanghai) Co Ltd., Accenture Federal Services LLC, Accenture Finance (Gibraltar) III Ltd, Accenture Finance GmbH, Accenture Finance GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Finance II GmbH, Accenture Finance II GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Finance II Ltd, Accenture Finance Limited, Accenture Finance and Accounting BPO Services S.p.A., Accenture Finance and Accounting Services Srl, Accenture Flex LLC, Accenture GP LLC, Accenture Ghana Limited, Accenture Global Holdings Ltd., Accenture Global Services Ltd, Accenture Global Solutions Ltd, Accenture GmbH, Accenture HR Services Ltd, Accenture HR Services S.p.A., Accenture Healthcare Processing Inc., Accenture Holding GmbH, Accenture Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Accenture Holding GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Holdings (Iberia) S.L., Accenture Holdings B.V., Accenture Holdings France SAS, Accenture Holdings plc, Accenture Hungary Holdings Kft, Accenture Inc, Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company (Accenture Endustriyel Yazylym Cozumleri Limited irketi), Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company (Accenture Endustriyel Yazlm Cozumleri Limited Sirketi), Accenture Industrial Software Solutions Kft, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions SA, Accenture Insurance Services LLC, Accenture Insurance Services SAS, Accenture Insurance Services SpA, Accenture International BV, Accenture International Capital SCA, Accenture International LLC, Accenture International Limited, Accenture International Sarl, Accenture Japan Ltd, Accenture Korea BV, Accenture LLC, Accenture LLP, Accenture Lanka (Private) Ltd, Accenture Limited, Accenture Ltd, Accenture Ltda, Accenture Maghreb S.a.r.l., Accenture Managed Services SRL, Accenture Managed Services SpA, Accenture Management GmbH, Accenture Middle East B.V, Accenture Middle East BV, Accenture Minority I BV, Accenture Minority III Ltd, Accenture Mozambique Limitada, Accenture Mzansi (Pty) Ltd, Accenture NV/SA, Accenture NZ Limited, Accenture Newco LLC, Accenture Nova Scotia Unlimited Liability Co., Accenture OOO, Accenture Operations Sp. z o.o., Accenture Outsourcing SRL, Accenture Outsourcing Services, Accenture Outsourcing Services S.A., Accenture Oy, Accenture Panama Inc, Accenture Participations BV, Accenture Participations II Limited, Accenture Peru S.R.L, Accenture Peru S.R.L., Accenture Post Trade Processing SAS, Accenture Post-Trade Processing Limited, Accenture Process Ltd, Accenture Product Lifecycle Services, Accenture Properties, Accenture Pte Ltd, Accenture Puerto Rico LLC, Accenture S.A., Accenture S.C., Accenture S.L., Accenture S.R.L., Accenture SAS, Accenture SG Services Pte Ltd, Accenture SRL, Accenture Saudi Arabia Limited, Accenture Sendirian Berhad, Accenture Service Center SRL, Accenture Services (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Services AB, Accenture Services AG, Accenture Services AS, Accenture Services GmbH, Accenture Services Ltd, Accenture Services Morocco SA, Accenture Services Oy, Accenture Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Services S.r.l., Accenture Services SRL, Accenture Services Sp. z o.o., Accenture Services Sp. z.o.o., Accenture Services and Technology Srl, Accenture Services fur Kreditinstitute GmbH, Accenture Services s.r.o., Accenture Servicos Administrativos Ltda, Accenture Servicos de Suporte de Negocios Ltda, Accenture Solutions Co Ltd, Accenture Solutions Private Limited, Accenture Solutions Pte Ltd, Accenture Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Solutions Sdn Bhd, Accenture Sp. z o.o., Accenture Sp. z.o.o., Accenture SpA, Accenture State Healthcare Services LLC, Accenture Sub II Inc., Accenture Sub Inc, Accenture Sub LLC, Accenture Systems Integration Limited, Accenture Sarl, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag KFT, Accenture Technologia, Accenture Technologia Consultoria e Outsourcing S.A., Accenture Technology Infrastructure Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions (Dalian) Co Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions (HK) Co. Ltd., Accenture Technology Solutions (Thailand) Co. Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions - Solucoes Informaticas Integradas, Accenture Technology Solutions - Solucoes Informaticas Integradas S.A., Accenture Technology Solutions GmbH, Accenture Technology Solutions Oy, Accenture Technology Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions S.A. de C.V., Accenture Technology Solutions SAS, Accenture Technology Solutions SRL, Accenture Technology Solutions Sdn. Bhd., Accenture Technology Solutions Slovakia s.r.o., Accenture Technology Ventures BV, Accenture Technology Ventures S.P.R.L., Accenture Uruguay SRL, Accenture Vietnam Co., Accenture Vietnam Co. LTD, Accenture Zambia Limited, Accenture do Brasil Limitada, Accenture plc, Accenture s.r.o., Acceria, Acquity Customer Insight Limited, Acquity Group, Adaptly LLC, Adaptly UK Limited, AddVal Technology, Adqptly, Advantium Inc., Agave Consultants Limited, Agilex Technologies Inc., Allen International, Allen International Consulting Group Ltd, Alnova Technologies Corporation S.L., AlphaBeta Advisors, Altima, Altima Asia Ltd., Altima SAS, Altitude, Altitude LLC, Analytics 8 LP, Analytics 8 Pty Ltd, Analytics8, Aorui Advertising (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Apis, Appaloosa Technology SAS, Arca, Ariba - BPO, Arismore, Aspiro Solutions (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Avanade, Avanade (Guangzhou) Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd., Avanade (Thailand) Co Ltd, Avanade Asia Pte Ltd, Avanade Australia Pty Ltd, Avanade Belgium SPRL, Avanade Canada Inc., Avanade Denmark A/S, Avanade Denmark ApS, Avanade Deutschland GmbH, Avanade Europe Holdings Ltd, Avanade Europe Services Ltd, Avanade Federal Services LLC, Avanade Finland Oy, Avanade France SAS, Avanade GZ Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd. (SH), Avanade Guangzhou, Avanade Holdings LLC, Avanade Hong Kong Ltd, Avanade International Corporation, Avanade Ireland Limited, Avanade Italy SRL, Avanade KK, Avanade Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avanade Netherlands BV, Avanade Norway AS, Avanade Poland Sp. z o.o., Avanade Poland Sp. z.o.o., Avanade Schweiz GmbH, Avanade South Africa, Avanade South Africa Pty Ltd, Avanade Spain SL, Avanade Sweden AB, Avanade UK Ltd, Avanade do Brasil Limitada, Avanade Osterreich GmbH, AvantBiz Consulting Limited, Avenai, Axia Ltd., BABCN LLC, BCT Solutions, BCT Solutions Pty Ltd, BPO Servicos Administrativos Ltda, BRIDGE Energy Group, Beacon Consulting Group Inc., Beijing Genesis Interactive Technology Co. Ltd., Benext, Bionic, Blue Horseshoe, Boomerang Pharmaceutical Communications, Boomerang Pharmaceuticals Communications Ireland Limited, Bow & Arrow, Brand Learning, Brand Learning Group Limited, Brand Learning LLC, Brand Learning Ltd, Brand Learning Partners Limited, Brand Learning Pte Limited, Bridge Energy Group LLC, Brightstep AB, Byte Prophecy, CAS, CRMWaypoint, CadenceQuest Inc., Capable Marketer Limited, Capgemini - North American health practice, Capital Consultancy Services Inc., Certus Solutions Consulting Services Ltd, Certus Solutions Ltd, ChangeTrack Research Pty Ltd., Chaotic Moon Studios, Chengdu Mensa Advertising Co. Ltd., Cimation, Cimation UK Limited, Cirruseo, Cirruseo SAS, Clarity Insights, Clearhead, Clearhead Group, Clearhead Group LLC, ClientHouse GmbH, Cloud Sherpas, Cloud Sherpas (GA) LLC, Cloud Sherpas (SN) (PTE.) Limited, Cloud Sherpas New Zealand Ltd., Cloud Talent Limited, Cloudsherpas, Cloudsherpas Inc., Cloudworks, Codagenic Pty. Ltd., Computer Research and Telecommunications LLC, Concrete Desenvolvimento de Sistemas Ltda., Concrete Solutions, Concrete Solutions Ltda., Context Information Security, Coritel S.A., Corliant Inc., CreativeDrive, CustomerWorks Europe SL, Cutting Edge Solutions Ltd, D5 Global Holdings LLC, DAZ Systems Inc, DAZ Systems LLC, DAZSI Systems (India) Pvt. Ltd., DMA Solutions Limited, Davies Consulting, DayNine Consulting, DayNine Consulting (Australia) PTY LTD, DayNine Consulting (Deutschland) GmbH, DayNine Consulting (New Zealand) Limited, DayNine Consulting France SAS, DayNine Consulting Japan K.K., DayNine Consulting LLC, Declarative Holdings, Declarative Holdings LLC, Defense Point Security, Deja vu Security, Design Strategy and Research de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Designaffairs LLC, Digiplug S.A.S., Digiplug SAS, Digital Consulting & Software Services LLC, Droga5, Droga5 LLC, Droga5 Studios LLC, Droga5 UK Ltd., Duck Creek Technologies, Duck Creek Technologies LLC, Deja Vu Security LLC, ESR Labs, Elcurator SAS, Enaxis Consulting, Enaxis Consulting L.P., End-to-End Analytics, Energuia Web, Energuia Web S.A., Energy Management Brokers Ltd., Energy Quote Private Ltd., EnergyQuote JHA, EnergyQuote JHA Ltd., EnergyQuote Trading Ltd., Enimbos, Enkitec, Enterprise System Partners, Enterprise System Partners B.V. , Enterprise System Partners Bilisim Danismanlik Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Enterprise System Partners Global Corporation, Enterprise System Partners Limited, Enterprise System Partners PR LLC, Enterprise System Partners S.A.S., Entropia, Epylon, Ethica Consulting Group, Evopro Group, Exactside Limited, Exton Consulting, Fairway Technologies Inc, Fairway Technologies LLC, Filmproduction ApS, First Annapolis Consulting, First Annapolis Consulting Inc., First Annapolis Consulting LLC, First Annapolis International, Fjord, Focus Group Europe, Focus Group Europe Limited, Formicary, Formicary Holdings Limited, Formicary Limited, FusionX, FutureMove Automotive, Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda., Genfour, Genfour Limited, George Group Consulting L.P., Gestalt LLC, Gestion Altima Canada Inc., Gevity, Global Public Firm S.L., GlobalView SAS, GoodFilm GmbH Filmproduktion Stuttgart, H.B. Maynard and Co. Inc., HRC Retail Advisory, Hagberg Consulting Group, Hangzhou Aiyunzhe Technology Co. Ltd., Happen, Hjaltelin Stahl, Hjaltelin Stahl K/S, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Hytracc Consulting UK Limited, Hytracc Holding AS, I-Faber S.p.A., IBB Consulting, IMJ Corp, IMJ Corporation, INCAD, INSITUM, IT One Company Limited, ITBS Servicios Bancarios de Tecnologia de la Informacion SL, Icon Integration, Imagine Broadband (USA) Ltd, Imagine Broadband USA LLC, Imaginea Inc, Industrie&Co, Infoman AG, Infoman Schweiz AG, Informatica de Euskadi S.L., Infusion Development Inc., Infusion Development UK Limited, InfusionDev LLC, Innoveer Solutions India Pvt Ltd, Insitum Consultoria Argentina SRL, Insitum Consultoria Brasil LTDA, Insitum Consultoria Colombia SAS, Insitum Consultoria Europa SL, Insitum Consultoria Peru SAC, Insitum Consultoria S.A. de C.V., Intrepid, Intrigo Systems Inc, Intrigo Systems India Pvt. Limited, Intrigo Systems LLC, Inventor Advertisement (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Inventor Technology Limited, InvestTech, Investtech Systems Consulting LLC, Javelin Group, Javelin Group (Bulgaria) EOOD, Javelin Group Limited (UK), Javelin Group SASU, K Comms Group Limited, KCS.net AG, KCS.net AG West, KCS.net Deutschland GmbH, KCS.net Holding AG, KCS.net Osterreich GmbH, Kaper Communications Limited, Karma Communications Debtco Limited, Karma Communications Group Limited, Karma Communications Holdings Limited, Karmarama, Karmarama Comms Limited, Karmarama Limited, Knowledge Rules Inc., Knowledgent, Knowledgent Group LLC, Kogentix, Kogentix LLC, Kogentix Ltd, Kogentix Singapore Pte. Ltd, Kogentix Technologies Private Limited, Kolle Rebbe, Kolle Rebbe GmbH, Kream Comms Limited, Kunstmaan, Kunstmaan NV, Kurt Salmon, Kurt Salmon Canada LTD, Kurt Salmon UKI, Kurt Salmon UKI Ltd., Kurt Salmon US LLC, LEXTA, LINKBYNET, LabAnswer, LabAnswer Government, LemonXL Limited, Logistics Market Place Limited (UK), Loud & Clear Creative Pty Ltd, MAXIM Systems Inc., MCG US Holdings LLC, Mackevision CG Technology and Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Mackevision Corporation, Mackevision Japan Co. Ltd., Mackevision Korea Ltd, Mackevision Medien Design, Mackevision Medien Design GmbH, Mackevision Singapore Pte. Ltd., Mackevision UK Ltd, Maglan, Maglan Information Defense Technologies Research Ltd., Maihiro, Matter, Matter Llc, Maud Corp Pty Limited, Maxamine International, Media Audits Ltd., Media Hive, Mediasenz Pty Ltd., Meredith Specialty LLC, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing Corporation, Meridian Informed Purchasing Ltd., Mindtribe, Mindtribe Product Engineering LLC, MobGen, MobGen Technology S.L, Moonrise NV, Mortgage Cadence, Mortgage Cadence an Accenture Company, Most Champion Ltd, Mudano, N3 LLC, NBS Marketing Inc., NYTEC, Nanjing Demeng Advertising Co. Ltd., Nashco Consulting, NaviSys Inc., NellArmonia, Neo Metrics Analytics S.L., Neo Metrics Chile, Neo Metrics Chile S.A., New Content, New Content Chile SpA, New Content Editora e Produtora Ltda., New Energy Aborda, New Energy Associates Ltd, New Energy Group, New Energy S.r.l., NewsPage, NewsPage (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, NewsPage China Ltd., NewsPage Pte Ltd, Nice Agency Limited, Northstream, Northstream AB, Northstream Holding AB, OCTO Technology, OPS Rules Management Consultants, Octagon Research Solutions Inc., Octo Technology LTDA, Octo Technology Pty Ltd, Octo Technology SA, Octo Technology SPRL, Octoman SAS, Odgaard ApS, Olikka, Openmind, Openminded, Operaciones Accenture S.A. de C.V., OpusLine, Orbium, Orbium Consulting Ltd, Orbium GmbH, Orbium Holding AG, Orbium Inc., Orbium International AG, Orbium International sp. z o.o., Orbium Licences AG, Orbium Limited, Orbium Pte. Ltd., Orbium Pty Ltd, Orbium Services sp. z o.o., Orbium Sarl, Origin Digital, PCO Innovation, PCO Innovation Canada Inc., PCO Innovation EURL, PIXO PUNCH Limited, PLM Systems S.r.l, POC Holdings, PRION GmbH, PT Accenture, PT Asta Catur Indra, PT Kogentix Teknologi Indonesia, Pach Invest SARL, Pach Invest SAS, PacificLink Group, PacificLink iMedia Ltd., Paja Finanssipalvelut Oy, Parker Fitzgerald Inc, Parker Fitzgerald Inc., Parker Fitzgerald International Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Limited, Parker Fitzgerald PTY Ltd, Parker Fitzgerald Services Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Solutions Limited, Partners Technology Mexico Holdings BV, Pecaso Ltd., Pegasus Production K/S, Perseroan Terbatas. Accenture, Phase One Consulting Group, Pillar Technology, Pollux, Pragsis Bidoop, Pragsis Bidoop UK Ltd, Pragsis Technologies S.L, PrimeQ, PrimeQ Australia Pty Ltd, PrimeQ Ltd, PrimeQ NZ Pty Ltd, Procurian Germany GmbH, Procurian Inc., Procurian International I LLC, Procurian International II LLC, Procurian LLC, Procurian Singapore Pte. Ltd., Procurian Switzerland GmbH, Procurian USA LLC, Proquire LLC, PureApps Ltd., Qi Jie Beijing Information Technologies Co Ltd, Radiant Services, Radiant Services LLC, Random Walk Computing Inc., Reactive Media Limited, Reactive Media Pty Ltd., Real Protect, Realworld OO Systems Ltd., Redcore, Redcore (Asia) Pte Ltd, Redcore (India) Private Limited (India), Redcore (New Zealand) Limited, Redcore Group Holdings Pty Ltd, Redcore Pty Ltd, Renacentis IT Services, Revolutionary Security, RiskControl, Rothco, Rothco Holdings Designated Activity Company, Rothco Unlimited Company, S.C. EnergyQuote S.r.l., S3 TV Technology Limited, S3 TV Technology Ltd., SEC Servizi, SEC Servizi S.p.A., SOPIA Corp., Sagacious Consultants, Sagacious Consultants LLC, Salt Solutions, Sanchez Capital Services Pvt Ltd, Schlumberger Business Consulting, Seabury Airline Planning Group, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace (UK) Limited, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace Asia (Hong Kong) Limited, Seabury Aviation Consulting LLC, Seabury Cargo Advisory B.V., Seabury Consulting, Seabury Corporate Advisors LLC, Seabury Human Capital LLC, Seabury Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Seabury Structured Finance LLC, Search Technologies BPO, Search Technologies BPO Inc., Search Technologies GmbH, Search Technologies International LLC, Search Technologies LATAM, Search Technologies LATAM S.A., Search Technologies LLC, Search Technologies Limited, Sente Partners LLC, Sentelis, Servicios Tecnicos de Programacion Accenture S.C., Shackleton, Shackleton Barcelona S.L., Shackleton Chile S.A., Shackleton Madrid S.L., Shackleton S.A., Shanghai Baiyue Advertising Co. Ltd., Shun Zhe Technology Development Co. Ltd., Silveo, Simian Pty Limited, SinnerSchrader AG, SinnerSchrader Commerce GmbH, SinnerSchrader Content GmbH, SinnerSchrader Deutschland GmbH, SinnerSchrader Praha s.r.o., SinnerSchrader Swipe GmbH, Sinnerschrader, Sistemes Consulting S.L., Solutions IQ, Solutions IQ LLC, SolutionsIQ, SolutionsIQ India Consulting Services Private Limited, Storm Digital, Storm Digital B.V., Structure Consulting Group, Structure Consulting Group LLC, Sutter Mills, Systor AG, TQuila Limited (UK), Tadata Creative Unlimited Company, Tara Insurance DAC, Tara Risk DAC, TargetST8, TargetST8 Consulting LLC, Tech - Avanade Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Tecnilogica Ecosistemas S.A., Tecnilogica Ltd., Tecnilogica, The Brand Learning Partners Limited, The Callisto Integration Corporation, The Monkeys, The Monkeys Pty Limited, The Myrtle Group, Total Logistics, Total Logistics Supply Chain Consultants Limited, Tquila, Trivadis AG, Troop Studios Pty Ltd, VanBerlo, Verax Solutions, Verax Solutions Corporation, Vertical Retail Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd., Vertical Retail Consulting Hong Kong, Vertical Retail Consulting Hong Kong Ltd., Vertical Retail Consulting Ltd., Vivere Brasil Servicos e Solucoes SA, Vivere Brasil Solucoes De Credito Ltda., Wabion GmbH, Weblinc Pty Ltd, Wire Stone, Wire Stone LLC, Wire Stone Sarl, Wolox, Workforce Insight Inc, Yesler, Zag, Zenta, Zenta Global Philippines, Zenta Global Philippines Inc., Zenta Mortgage Services LLC, Zenta Recoveries Inc, Zenta US Holdings Inc., Zielpuls, Zielpuls (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zielpuls GmbH, avVenta, designaffairs, designaffairs Business Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., designaffairs GmbH, designaffairs group China Co. Ltd., dgroup, i4C Analytics, iDefense, and solid-serVision.com GmbH. 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. Red Hat, Inc. provides open source software solutions to develop and offer operating system, virtualization, management, middleware, cloud, mobile, and storage technologies to various enterprises worldwide. It offers infrastructure-related solutions, such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux, an operating system platform that runs on hardware for use in hybrid cloud environments; Red Hat Satellite, a system management offering that helps to deploy, scale, and manage in hybrid cloud environments; and Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization, a software solution that allows customers to utilize and manage a common hardware infrastructure to run multiple operating systems and applications. The company offers application development-related and other technology solutions, such as Red Hat JBoss Middleware, a solution for developing, deploying, and managing applications; integrating applications, data, and devices; and automating business processes in hybrid cloud environments; The company's application development-related and other technology solutions also includes Red Hat cloud offerings, a software solution that enables customers to build and manage various cloud computing environments; Red Hat Mobile, a software development platform that enables customers to develop, integrate, deploy, and manage mobile applications for enterprises; and Red Hat Storage, a software solution that enables customers to manage large, unstructured, or semi-structured data in hybrid cloud environments. It also provides consulting, support, and training services; and realtime operating system, distributed computing, directory services, and user authentication. Red Hat, Inc. has collaboration with Juniper Networks Expand to provide a unified solution for enterprises designed to manage and run applications and services. The company was formerly known as Red Hat Software, Inc. and changed its name to Red Hat, Inc. in June 1999. Red Hat, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. 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 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. The following companies are subsidiares of Thermo Fisher Scientific: 236 Perinton Parkway LLC, 27 Forge Parkway LLC, ABR--Affinity BioReagents, ACI Holdings Inc., ARG Services LLC, ASPEX Corporation, Abgene Inc., Abgene Limited, Acoustic Cytometry Systems Inc., AcroMetrix LLC, Acros Organics B.V.B.A., Advanced Biotechnologies Limited, Advanced Scientifics (ASI), Advanced Scientifics Inc., Advanced Scientifics International Inc., Affymetrix Biotech Participacoes Ltda., Affymetrix Biotech Shanghai Ltd, Affymetrix Inc, Affymetrix Japan K.K., Affymetrix Pte Ltd, Affymetrix UK Ltd, Afora S.A.U., Ahura Scientific, Alchematrix Inc., Alchematrix LLC, Alfa Aesar, Alfa Aesar (China) Chemical Co. Ltd., Alfa Aesar (Hong Kong) Limited, Allergon AB, Alphine Mountain Limited, Ambion Inc., Apogent Denmark ApS, Apogent Finance Company, Apogent Holding Company, Apogent Technologies Inc., Apogent Transition Corp., Apogent U.K. Limited, App-Tek International Pty Ltd, Applied Biosystems B.V., Applied Biosystems Finance B.V., Applied Biosystems International Inc., Applied Biosystems LLC, Applied Biosystems Taiwan LLC, Applied Biosystems Trading (Shanghai) Company Ltd., Applied Biosystems de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Applied Scientific Corporation, Avances Cientificos de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Avocado Research Chemicals Limited, B.R.A.H.M.S. Biotech GmbH, B.R.A.H.M.S. GmbH, B.R.A.H.M.S. UK Ltd, BAC BV, BAC IP BV, Barnstead Thermolyne LLC, Beijing Phadia Diagnostics Co Ltd, Bender MedSystems GmbH, BioTrove Corporation, BioTrove International Inc., Bioanalysis Labsystems S.A., Biochemical Sciences LLC, Biolab, BmT GmbH Laborprodukte, Bonsai Tecnologies - Sistemas para Biotecnologia e Industria Unipessoal Lda, Brammer Bio, Bumi-Sans Sendirian Berhad, CAC Limited, CB Diagnostics AB, CB Diagnostics Holding AB, CEPH International Corporation, CHK Holdings Inc., CRS Robotics, CTPS LLC, Capitol Scientific Products Inc., Capitol Vial Inc., Cellomics Inc., CellzDirect Inc., Cenduit GmbH, Cenduit LLC, Cezanne S.A.S., Chase Scientific Glass Inc., Chromacol Limited, Clintrak, Clintrak Clinical Labeling Services LLC, Clintrak Pharmaceutical Services LLC, Cohesive Technologies (UK) Limited, Cohesive Technologies Inc., Columbia Diagnostics Inc., Compendia Bioscience Inc., Comtest Limited, Consolidated Technologies Inc., Consultores Fisher Scientific Chile Ltd, Core Informatics, Core Informatics LLC, Core Informatics UK Ltd., D-finitive Technologies Inc., DCG Systems B.V., DCG Systems C.V., DCG Systems G.K., DCG Systems GmbH, DCG Systems Korea Ltd., DCG Systems LLC, DPI Newco LLC, DSM Pharmaceutical Products Inc., Dharmacon, Diagnostix Ltd., Dionex (China) Analytical Ltd, Dionex (Switzerland) AG, Dionex (UK) Limited, Dionex Austria GmbH, Dionex Benelux B.V., Dionex Brasil Instrumentos Cientificos Ltda, Dionex Canada Ltd., Dionex China Limited, Dionex Corporation, Dionex Denmark A/S, Dionex Holding GmbH, Dionex I LLC, Dionex Pty Ltd., Dionex S.A., Dionex S.p.A., Dionex Singapore Pte Ltd., Dionex Softron GmbH, Dionex Sweden AB, Distribution Solutions International Inc., Doe & Ingalls Investors Inc., Doe & Ingalls Limited, Doe & Ingalls Management LLC, Doe & Ingalls Properties II LLC, Doe & Ingalls Properties LLC, Doe & Ingalls of California Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of Florida Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of Maryland Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of Massachusetts Operating LLC, Doe & Ingalls of North Carolina Operating LLC, Doublecape Holding Limited, Doublecape Limited, Drakeside Real Estate Holding Company LLC, Duke Scientific Corporation, Dynal Biotech Beijing Limited, EGS Gauging Ltd., EGS Gauging Technical Services Company, EP Scientific Products LLC, Ecochem N.V., EnviroEquip Pty Ltd, Epsom Glass Industries Limited, Equibio Limited, Erie Electroverre S.A., Erie Finance Limited, Erie LP Holding LLC, Erie Scientific Company of Puerto Rico, Erie Scientific Hungary Kft, Erie Scientific LLC, Erie U.K. Limited, Erie UK 1 Limited, Erie UK 2 Limited, Erie UK Holding Company, Erie UK Senior Holding Limited, European Laboratory Holdings Limited, Eutech Instruments Europe B.V., Eutech Instruments Pte Ltd., Eutech Instruments Sdn Bhd, Ever Ready Thermometer Co. Inc., FEI Asia Pacific Co. Ltd., FEI Australia Pty Ltd, FEI CPD B.V., FEI Company, FEI Company Japan Ltd., FEI Company of USA (S.E.A.) Pte Ltd., FEI Czech Republic s.r.o., FEI Deutschland GmbH, FEI EFA Inc., FEI EFA International Pte. Ltd., FEI Electron Optics B.V., FEI Electron Optics International B.V., FEI Europe B.V., FEI France SAS, FEI Global Holdings C.V., FEI Hong Kong Company Limited, FEI Houston Inc., FEI Italia Srl, FEI Korea Ltd., FEI Melbourne Pty Ltd., FEI Microscopy Solutions Ltd, FEI Munich GmbH, FEI Norway Holding AS, FEI SAS, FEI Saudi Arabia LLC, FEI Servicos de Nanotecnologia Ltda., FEI Technologies Inc., FEI Technology de Mexico S.A. de C.V., FEI Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., FEI Trondheim AS, FEI UK Ltd., FHP LLC, FRC Holding Inc. V, FS (Barbados) Capital Holdings Ltd., FS Casa Rocas Holdings LLC, FS Mexicana Holdings LLC, FSI Receivables Company LLC, FSII Sweden Holdings AB, FSII Sweden Holdings I AB, FSIR Holdings (UK) Limited, FSIR Holdings (US) Inc., FSUK Holdings Limited, FSWH Company LLC, FSWH II C.V., FSWH International Holdings LLC, Fermentas China Co. Ltd, Fermentas Inc., Fermentas International, Fermentas Sweden AB, Fermentas UK Limited, Fiberlite Centrifuge LLC, Finesse Scientific Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Finesse Solutions AG, Finesse Solutions Inc., Finnzymes Oy, Fisher Alder S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Asia Manufacturing Ventures Inc., Fisher Bermuda Holdings Limited, Fisher BioImage ApS, Fisher BioPharma Services (India) Private Limited, Fisher BioSciences Japan G.K., Fisher BioServices Inc., Fisher Bioblock Holding II SNC, Fisher CLP Holding Limited Partnership, Fisher Canada Holding ULC 1, Fisher Canada Holding ULC 2, Fisher Canada Holding ULC 3, Fisher Canada Limited Partnership, Fisher Chimica BVBA, Fisher Clinical Logistics LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Fisher Clinical Services (Bristol) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Colombia) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Korea) Co. Ltd, Fisher Clinical Services (Mexico) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Peru) LLC, Fisher Clinical Services (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Fisher Clinical Services Colombia S.A.S., Fisher Clinical Services GmbH, Fisher Clinical Services Inc., Fisher Clinical Services Japan K.K., Fisher Clinical Services Latin America S.R.L., Fisher Clinical Services Limited Liability Company, Fisher Clinical Services Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Clinical Services Peru S.R.L, Fisher Clinical Services Pte Ltd., Fisher Clinical Services U.K. Limited, Fisher Emergo B.V., Fisher Germany Holdings GmbH, Fisher Hamilton China Inc., Fisher Hamilton Mexico LLC, Fisher Holdings ApS, Fisher Internet Minority Holdings L.L.C., Fisher Laboratory Products Manufacturing (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Fisher Luxembourg Danish Holdings SARL, Fisher Manufacturing (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Fisher Maybridge Holdings Limited, Fisher Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Scientific (Austria) GmbH, Fisher Scientific (Hong Kong) Limited, Fisher Scientific (M) Sdn Bhd, Fisher Scientific (SEA) Pte. Ltd., Fisher Scientific A/S, Fisher Scientific AG, Fisher Scientific Australia Pty Limited, Fisher Scientific Biotech Line ApS, Fisher Scientific Brazil Inc., Fisher Scientific Central America Inc., Fisher Scientific Chile Inc., Fisher Scientific Colombia Inc., Fisher Scientific Company, Fisher Scientific Company L.L.C., Fisher Scientific Costa Rica Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Fisher Scientific Europe Holdings B.V., Fisher Scientific GTF AB, Fisher Scientific Germany Beteiligungs GmbH, Fisher Scientific GmbH, Fisher Scientific Holding Company LLC, Fisher Scientific Holding HK Limited, Fisher Scientific Holding U.K. Limited, Fisher Scientific Holdings (M) Sdn Bhd, Fisher Scientific Holdings (S) Pte Ltd, Fisher Scientific International LLC, Fisher Scientific Investments (Cayman) Ltd., Fisher Scientific Ireland Investments Unlimited, Fisher Scientific Ireland Limited, Fisher Scientific Japan Ltd., Fisher Scientific Jersey Island Limited, Fisher Scientific Korea Ltd, Fisher Scientific Latin America Inc., Fisher Scientific Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Fisher Scientific Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Fisher Scientific Mexico Inc., Fisher Scientific Middle East and Africa Inc., Fisher Scientific Norway AS, Fisher Scientific Operating Company, Fisher Scientific Oxoid Holdings Ltd., Fisher Scientific Oy, Fisher Scientific Pte. Ltd., Fisher Scientific S.A.S., Fisher Scientific S.L., Fisher Scientific SPRL, Fisher Scientific The Hague I B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague II B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague III B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague IV B.V., Fisher Scientific The Hague V B.V., Fisher Scientific U.K. Limited, Fisher Scientific UK Holding Company 2, Fisher Scientific UK Holding Company Limited, Fisher Scientific Unipessoal Lda., Fisher Scientific Venezuela Inc., Fisher Scientific Worldwide (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Fisher Scientific Worldwide Holdings I C.V., Fisher Scientific Worldwide Inc., Fisher Scientific de Mexico S.A., Fisher Scientific of the Netherlands B.V., Fisher Scientific spol. S.r.o, Fisher Servicios Clinicos (Chile) LLC, Fisher Servicios Clinicos Chile Ltda, Fisher WWD Holding L.L.C., Fisher Worldwide Distribution SPV, Fisher Worldwide Gene Distribution SPV, Flux Instruments, Fuji Partnership, G & M Procter Limited, G V Instruments Limited, GV Instruments Canada Ltd., GV Instruments Inc, Gatan Inc, General Scientific Company Sdn Bhd (M), Genomed molekularbiologische und diagnostische Produkte GmbH, Gerhard Menzel B.V. & Co. KG, Gold Cattle Standard Testing Labs Inc., Golden West Indemnity Company Limited, Goring Kerr Detection Limited, Greenville Service Company Inc., HENO GmbH i.L., Hangar 215 Inc., Helmet Securities Limited, Henogen, HighChem, HyClone International Trade (Tianjin) Co. Ltd, Hybaid Limited, I.Q. (BIO) Limited, IDnostics AG, ILS Laboratories Scandinavia AB, Inel Inc., Inel SAS, InnaPhase Inc., InnaPhase Limited, IntegenX, Intrinsic BioProbes Inc., Intrinsic Bioprobes Inc., Invitrogen (Shanghai) Investment Co. Ltd., Invitrogen Argentina SA, Invitrogen BioServices India Private Limited, Invitrogen Europe Limited, Invitrogen Finance Corp., Invitrogen Holdings LLC, Invitrogen Holdings Ltd., Invitrogen Hong Kong Limited, Invitrogen IP Holdings Inc., Invitrogen Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ion Torrent Systems Inc., Ionalytics Corporation, JSC Thermo Fisher Scientific, Jouan LLC, Jouan Limited, Jouan SA, Kendro Containment & Services Limited, Kendro Laboratory Products Ltd, Kettlebrook Insurance Co. ltd., Keystone Scientific, KonTEM GmbH, Kyle Jordan Investments LLC, LIFE TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION, LTC Tech South Africa PTY Ltd., La-Pha-Pack GmbH, Lab Vision (UK) Limited, Lab Vision Corporation, Lab-Chrom-Pack LLC, Lab-Line Instruments Inc., Labomex MBP S. de R. L. De C.V., Laboratoire Service International - L.S.I, Laboratory Management Systems Inc., Laboratory Specialties Proprietary Ltd., LambTrack Limited, Laser Analytical Systems Inc., Liberty Lane Investment LLC, Liberty Lane Real Estate Holding Company LLC, Life Sciences International (Poland) SP z O.O, Life Sciences International Holdings BV, Life Sciences International LLC, Life Sciences International Limited, Life Technologies AS, Life Technologies Australia PTY Ltd., Life Technologies BPD AB, Life Technologies BPD UK Limited, Life Technologies Brasil Comercio e Industria de Produtos para Biotecnologia Ltda, Life Technologies Chile SpA, Life Technologies Clinical Services Lab Inc., Life Technologies Co. Ltd., Life Technologies Czech Republic s.r.o., Life Technologies DaAn Diagnostic (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Life Technologies Europe B.V., Life Technologies Finance Ltd., Life Technologies Finland Oy, Life Technologies GmbH, Life Technologies Holdings PTE Ltd., Life Technologies Inc., Life Technologies International B.V., Life Technologies Japan Ltd., Life Technologies Korea LLC, Life Technologies Limited, Life Technologies Magyarorszag Kft, Life Technologies New Zealand Ltd., Life Technologies Norway Investments US LLC, Life Technologies Polska Sp z.o.o., Life Technologies SA, Life Technologies SAS, Life Technologies s.r.o, Linkage Biosciences Inc., Linkage Biosciences S.a.r.l., Loftus Furnace Company, Lomb Scientific, Lomb Scientific (Aust) Pty Limited, MTI-GlobalStem, Marketbase International Limited, Matrix MicroScience Inc., Matrix MicroScience Ltd., Matrix Technologies Corporation Limited, Matrix Technologies LLC, Maybridge Chemical Company Limited, Maybridge Chemical Holdings Limited, Maybridge Limited, Medical Analysis Systems Inc., Medical Analysis Systems International Inc., Medical Diagnostics Systems Inc., Metavac LLC, Microgenics Corporation, Microgenics Diagnostics Pty Limited, Microgenics GmbH, Microm International GmbH, Microm Laborgerate S.L.U, Molecular BioProducts Inc., Molecular Probes Inc., Molecular Transfer Inc., NAPCO Inc., NERL Diagnostics LLC, NOVODIRECT GmbH Labor- und Industrie- Megerate, Nalge (Europe) Limited, Nalge Nunc International (Monterrey) LLC, Nalge Nunc International Corporation, Nanjing WeiKangLe Trading Industrial Co Ltd, NanoDrop Technologies LLC, National Scientific Company, Navaho Acquisition Corp., Neomarkers Inc., New FS Holdings Inc., NewcoGen PE LLC, Nihon Dynal K.K., Niton Asia Limited, NovaWave Technologies Inc., Nunc A/S, ONIX Systems Inc., OXOID CZ s.r.o., Odyssey Holdings Corporation, Odyssey Luxembourg Holdings S.a r.l., Odyssey Luxembourg IP Holdings 1 S.a r.l., Odyssey Luxembourg IP Holdings 2 S.a r.l., Odyssey Venture Corporation, Omega Data Systems, One Lambda Inc, Onix Holdings Limited, Orme Scientific Limited, Owl Separation Systems LLC, Oxoid (ELY) Limited, Oxoid 2000 Limited, Oxoid AS, Oxoid Australia Pty. Limited, Oxoid Company, Oxoid Deutschland GmbH, Oxoid Holding SAS, Oxoid Holdings Limited, Oxoid Inc., Oxoid International Limited, Oxoid Investments GmbH, Oxoid Limited, Oxoid N.V., Oxoid New Zealand Limited, Oxoid Pension Trustees Limited, Oxoid Senior Holdings Limited, Oxoid UKH LLC, PAX - DSI Acquisition LLC, PE AG, Pacific Rim Far East Industries LLC, Pacific Rim Investment LLC, Panomics L.L.C., Panomics S.R.L., Patheon, Patheon API Inc., Patheon API Manufacturing Inc., Patheon API Services Inc., Patheon Austria GmbH & Co KG, Patheon B.V., Patheon Banner U.S. Holdings Inc., Patheon Biologics (NJ) LLC, Patheon Biologics Australia Pty Ltd, Patheon Biologics B.V., Patheon Biologics LLC, Patheon Calculus Merger LLC, Patheon Cooperatief U.A., Patheon Development Services Inc., Patheon Finance LLC, Patheon France SAS, Patheon Holdings B.V., Patheon Holdings I B.V., Patheon Holdings II B.V., Patheon Holdings SAS, Patheon I B.V., Patheon I Holding GmbH, Patheon Inc., Patheon International AG, Patheon Italia S.p.A., Patheon KK, Patheon Life Science Products International GmbH, Patheon Manufacturing Services LLC, Patheon Pharmaceuticals Inc., Patheon Pharmaceuticals Services Inc., Patheon Puerto Rico Acquisitions Corporation, Patheon Puerto Rico Inc., Patheon Regensburg GmbH, Patheon Softgels B.V., Patheon Softgels Inc., Patheon U.S. Holdings Inc., Patheon U.S. Holdings LLC, Patheon UK Limited, Patheon UK Pension Trustees Limited, Pelican Acquisition Corporation, Perbio Science (Canada) Company, Perbio Science AB, Perbio Science BVBA, Perbio Science France SAS, Perbio Science Inc., Perbio Science International Netherlands B.V., Perbio Science Invest AB, Perbio Science Nederland B.V., Perbio Science Projekt AB, Perbio Science Sweden Holdings AB, Perbio Science Switzerland SA, Perbio Science UK Limited, Phadia AB, Phadia Diagnosticos Ltda, Phadia GmbH, Phadia Holding AB, Phadia International Holdings C.V., Phadia Korea Co. Ltd, Phadia Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., Phadia Malta Holdings Limited, Phadia Oy, Phadia Real Property AB, Phadia Sweden AB, Phadia Taiwan Inc., Phadia US Inc., Phadia s.r.o., Pharmacaps Mexicana SA de CV, Phenom-World B.V., Phenom-World Holding B.V, Phenom-World Innovations B.V., Phinotex, Pierce Biotechnology Inc., Pierce Milwaukee Holding Corp., Pierce Milwaukee Inc., Polychromix, Power Sweden Holdings I AB, Power Sweden Holdings II AB, Power Sweden Holdings III Aktiebolag, Princeton Gamma-Tech Instruments LLC, Princeton Security Technologies, Prionics AG, Prionics Asia Ltd., Prionics Deutschland GmbH, Prionics France SAS, Prionics Italia S.r.l., Prionics Lelystad B.V., Prionics USA Inc., Priority Air Express LLC, Priority Air Express Pte. Ltd., Priority Air Express UK Limited, Priority Air Holdings Corp, Priority Solutions International, Promedica Pty Limited, Proxeon, Proxeon Biosystems ApS, Qiagen, REP GBP I-B Blocker Inc., Raymond A Lamb Limited, Remel Europe Limited, Remel Inc., Richard-Allan Scientific Company, Robbins Scientific LLC, Robocon Labor- und Industrieroboter Gesellschaft m.b.H, Rupprecht and Patashnick, Rupprecht and Patashnick (R&P), Russell pH Limited, S.C.I. du 10 rue Dugay Trouin, SCI Inno 92, STC Bio Manufacturing Inc., Samco Scientific (Monterrey) LLC, Samco Scientific LLC, Saroph Sweden AB, Schantz Road LLC, Seradyn Inc., Shanghai Life Technologies Biotechnology Co. Limited, Shanghai Thermo Fisher (C-I) Trading Co. Ltd, Shanghai Thermo Fisher (S) Trading Co. Ltd, Southern Trials (Pty) Ltd., Specialty (SMI) Inc., Spectra-Physics AB, Spectra-Physics Holdings Limited, Spectra-Physics Holdings USA LLC, Spectronex, Staten Island Cogeneration Corporation, Sterilin Limited, Stokes Bio Ltd., Sweden DIA (Sweden) AB, SwissAnalytic Group GmbH, Systems Manufacturing Corporation, TFLP LLC, TFS Breda B.V., TFS LLC, TFS Singapore HK Limited, TFSL Financing GP LLC, TFSL Senior GP Holdings 2 LLC, TK Partnership, TKA Wasseraufbereitungssysteme, TMOI Inc., TPI Real Estate Holdings LLC, TSP Holdings I LLC, TWX LLC, Technology Design Solutions Pty Ltd, Thermedics Detection de Argentina S.R.L, Thermo Allen Coding Limited, Thermo Asset Management Services Inc., Thermo BioAnalysis LLC, Thermo BioAnalysis Limited, Thermo BioSciences Holdings LLC, Thermo CIDTEC, Thermo CRS Holdings Ltd., Thermo CRS Ltd., Thermo Cambridge Limited, Thermo Cayman Holdings Ltd., Thermo Corporation, Thermo DMA Inc., Thermo Detection de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Thermo Dutch Holdings Limited Partnership, Thermo EGS Gauging LLC, Thermo Eberline Holdings I LLC, Thermo Eberline Holdings II LLC, Thermo Eberline LLC, Thermo Electron (Calgary) Limited, Thermo Electron (Chile) S.p.A., Thermo Electron (Karlsruhe) GmbH, Thermo Electron (Management Services) Limited, Thermo Electron (Proprietary) Limited, Thermo Electron A/S, Thermo Electron Australia Pty Limited, Thermo Electron Export Inc., Thermo Electron Holdings SAS, Thermo Electron Industries, Thermo Electron LED GmbH, Thermo Electron LED S.A.S., Thermo Electron Limited, Thermo Electron Manufacturing Limited, Thermo Electron Metallurgical Services Inc., Thermo Electron North America LLC, Thermo Electron Pension Trust GmbH, Thermo Electron Puerto Rico Inc., Thermo Electron SAS, Thermo Electron Scientific Instruments LLC, Thermo Electron Sweden AB, Thermo Electron Sweden Forvaltning AB, Thermo Electron Weighing & Inspection Limited, Thermo Elemental Limited, Thermo Environmental Instruments LLC, Thermo Fast U.K. Limited, Thermo Finland Holdings LLC, Thermo Finland Holdings MT1 B.V., Thermo Finland Holdings MT2 B.V., Thermo Finnigan LLC, Thermo Finnigan Limited, Thermo Fisher (CN) Luxembourg Holding S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher (CN) Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher (CN) Malta Holdings Limited, Thermo Fisher (CN-I) Luxembourg LLC, Thermo Fisher (CN-II) Luxembourg LLC, Thermo Fisher (Cayman) Holdings I Ltd., Thermo Fisher (Cayman) Holdings II Ltd., Thermo Fisher (Finland Holdings 2) LLC, Thermo Fisher (Finland Holdings) Limited Partnership, Thermo Fisher (Gibraltar) II Limited, Thermo Fisher (Gibraltar) Limited, Thermo Fisher (Heysham) Limited, Thermo Fisher (Kandel) GmbH, Thermo Fisher CHK Holding LLC, Thermo Fisher China Business Trust, Thermo Fisher China Business Trust II, Thermo Fisher Costa Rica Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Thermo Fisher Cyprus Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Detection Mexico LLC, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics (Ireland) Limited, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics AB, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics AG, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics AS, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Aps, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Austria GmbH, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics B.V., Thermo Fisher Diagnostics GmbH, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics K.K., Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Limited, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics NV, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics S.L.U., Thermo Fisher Diagnostics S.p.A. , Thermo Fisher Diagnostics SAS, Thermo Fisher Diagnostics Sociedade Unipessoal Lda, Thermo Fisher Eurobonds Ltd., Thermo Fisher Financial Services Inc., Thermo Fisher GP LLC, Thermo Fisher German Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Germany B.V., Thermo Fisher India Divestco Private Limited, Thermo Fisher India Holding B.V., Thermo Fisher Insurance Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Insurance Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Investments (Cayman) Ltd., Thermo Fisher Israel Ltd., Thermo Fisher Production et Services SAS, Thermo Fisher Project Cyprus LLC, Thermo Fisher Re Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Asheville) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Australia) C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Barbados) Holdings Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Breda) Holding BV, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Bremen) GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific (CN) Limited Partnership, Thermo Fisher Scientific (China) Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (China) Holding Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (China-HK) Holding Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (DE) Holding S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Ecublens) SARL, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance I) B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance I) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance II) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance III) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Finance III) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Fuji) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Holding II) B.V. & Co. KG, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Hong Kong) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (IVGN) B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (IVGN) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Johannesburg) (Proprietary) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Mexico City) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Milwaukee) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Mississauga) Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Monterrey) S. De R.L. De C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (NK) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN) Austria Holding GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN) UK LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN) UK Limited Partnership, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN-I) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN-II) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific (PN1) UK Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Panama) B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Panama) Dutch LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Praha) s.r.o., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Real Estate 1) GmbH & Co. KG, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Real Estate 1) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Schweiz) AG, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Shanghai) Instruments Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific (Suzhou) Instruments Co. Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific AL-1 LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific AU C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific AU II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific AU LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific AU Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Africa Proprietary Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Aquasensors LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Australia Pty Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific B.V.B.A., Thermo Fisher Scientific BHK (I) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific BHK (II) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Baltics UAB, Thermo Fisher Scientific Beteiligungsverwaltungs GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Biosciences Corp., Thermo Fisher Scientific Brahms LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Brasil Instrumentos de Processo Ltda., Thermo Fisher Scientific Brasil Servicos de Logistica Ltda, Thermo Fisher Scientific C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cayman Investments LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Chemicals Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific China (C-I) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific China (S) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings I B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings II B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings III B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific China Holdings IV B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Chromatography Holdings Aps, Thermo Fisher Scientific Chromatography Holdings S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus I C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus I Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus II Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus III C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus III Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus IV C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Cyprus V C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Denmark Senior Holdings ApS, Thermo Fisher Scientific Erie 1 Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Erie Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Erie Financing S.a r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Europe GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC Finance C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC II B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific FLC LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific FSIR Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific FSIR Financing S.a.r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific FSUKHCO Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Falcon Senior Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Finance Company BV, Thermo Fisher Scientific GENEART GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Germany BV & Co. KG, Thermo Fisher Scientific GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific HR Services Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Holdings (Cayman) I, Thermo Fisher Scientific Holdings (Cayman) II , Thermo Fisher Scientific Holdings Europe Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific IT Services GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific India Holding LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific India Pvt Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Luxembourg) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Malta) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Sweden) LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments (Sweden) S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Investments Malta (Sweden Financing) Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Invitrogen Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Japan Holdings I B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Japan Holdings II B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Japan Holdings III B.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific K.K., Thermo Fisher Scientific Korea Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific LSI Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life CV GP Holdings II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life CV GP Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Enterprises C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Enterprises GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing (Cayman), Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Financing Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings I C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings III C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Holdings Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life International GP Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life International Holdings I C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life International Holdings II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments I S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments II S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments III S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments IV S.a.r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta Holding I LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta Holding II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta I Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments Malta II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments US Financing I LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Investments US Financing II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life NL Holdings GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Netherlands Holding C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior GP Holdings II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior GP Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior Holdings C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior Holdings II C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Senior Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Switzerland Holdings GP LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Tech Korea Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Enterprise Holding Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment I LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment II LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment UK I Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investment UK II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Investments Holding LP, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Israel Investment I Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Israel Investment II Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Life Technologies Luxembourg Holding LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Enterprise Holdings S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg German Holdings S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Life Technologies UK Holding S.a r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Sweden Holdings I S.a r.l, Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Sweden Holdings II S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Venture Holdings I S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Luxembourg Venture Holdings II S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Thermo Fisher Scientific Malta Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Messtechnik GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Mexico City S. de R.L. de C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific Middle East Holdings Inc., Thermo Fisher Scientific Milano Srl, Thermo Fisher Scientific NHK Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific New Zealand Holdings, Thermo Fisher Scientific New Zealand Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Norway Holdings AS, Thermo Fisher Scientific Norway US Investments LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Odyssey Financing (Barbados) SRL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Odyssey Holdings Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Operating Company LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Oy, Thermo Fisher Scientific PN2 C.V, Thermo Fisher Scientific PN2 LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific PRB LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific PRB Malta Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific PRB S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Panama I Cayman Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific Peru S.R.L., Thermo Fisher Scientific Pte. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific Re Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific SL, Thermo Fisher Scientific Senior Financing LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Senior Holdings Australia LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific South Africa Proprietary Ltd, Thermo Fisher Scientific SpA, Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra Malta Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra S.a.r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra-Physics Holdings Luxembourg I S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra-Physics Holdings Luxembourg II S.a r.l., Thermo Fisher Scientific Spectra-Physics Investments Malta Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Switzerland Holdings C.V., Thermo Fisher Scientific TR Limited, Thermo Fisher Scientific Taiwan Co. Ltd., Thermo Fisher Scientific Vermogensverwaltungs GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific West Palm Holdings LLC, Thermo Fisher Scientific Wissenschaftliche Gerate GmbH, Thermo Fisher Scientific Worldwide Investments (Cayman), Thermo Fisher Scientific eCommerce Solutions LLC , Thermo Fisher Senior Canada Holdings LLC, Thermo Foundation Inc., Thermo Gamma-Metrics Holdings Pty Ltd., Thermo Gamma-Metrics LLC, Thermo Gamma-Metrics Pty Ltd, Thermo Holding European Operations LLC, Thermo Hypersil Ltd, Thermo Hypersil-Keystone LLC, Thermo Informatics Asia Pacific Pty Ltd., Thermo Instrument Controls de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Thermo Kevex X-Ray LLC, Thermo Keytek LLC, Thermo LabSystems Inc., Thermo LabSystems S.A., Thermo Life Science International Trading (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Thermo Life Sciences AB, Thermo Luxembourg Holding S.a.r.l., Thermo Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Thermo MF Physics LLC, Thermo Measurement Ltd, Thermo Measuretech Canada Inc., Thermo Neslab LLC, Thermo Nicolet Limited, Thermo Onix Limited, Thermo Optek (Australia) Pty Ltd., Thermo Optek Limited, Thermo Optek S.A., Thermo Orion Inc., Thermo Portable Holdings LLC, Thermo Power Corporation, Thermo Process Instruments GP LLC, Thermo Process Instruments L.P., Thermo Projects Limited, Thermo Quest S.A., Thermo Radiometrie Limited, Thermo Ramsey Italia S.r.l., Thermo Ramsey LLC, Thermo Ramsey S.A., Thermo Re Ltd., Thermo Scientific Microbiology Pte Ltd., Thermo Scientific Microbiology Sdn Bhd, Thermo Scientific Portable Analytical Instruments Inc., Thermo Scientific Services Inc., Thermo Securities Corporation, Thermo Sentron Canada Inc., Thermo Sentron Limited, Thermo Shandon Inc., Thermo Shandon Limited, Thermo Suomi Holding B.V., Thermo TLH (UK) Limited, Thermo TLH L.P., Thermo Trace Pty Ltd., Thermo-Fisher Biochemical Product (Beijing) Co. Ltd., ThermoLase LLC, ThermoSpectra Limited, Trek Diagnostic Systems LLC, Trek Diagnostic Systems Ltd., Trek Holding Company II Ltd., Trek Holding Company Ltd., Trex Medical Corporation, USB Corporation, Union Lab Supplies Limited, United Diagnostics Inc., VG Systems Limited, Westover Scientific Inc., ZAO PE Biosystems, eBioscience GmbH, eBioscience Ltd, eBioscience SAS, and picoSpin LLC. The following companies are subsidiares of Vodafone Group: 360 Connect S.A., [email protected] Telecom, A-ccelerator B.V., A-ccelerator Holding B.V, AAA (Euro) Limited, AAA (MCR) Limited, AAA (UK) Limited, Acorn Communications Limited, Africonnect (Zambia) Limited, Ag Mercantile Company Private Limited, Al-Amin Investments Limited, Amsterdamse Beheer- en Consultingmaatschappij B.V., Apollo Submarine Cable System Limited, Array Holdings Limited, Asian Telecommunication Investments (Mauritius) Limited, Aspective Limited, Astec Communications Limited, Autoconnex Limited, Aztec Limited, BelCompany BV, Bluefish Apac Communications Pte. Ltd, Bluefish Communications, Bluefish Communications Limited, Business Serve Limited, C&W Worldwide Nigeria Limited, C.S.P. Solutions Limited, CCII (Mauritius) Inc., CGP India Investments Ltd., CGP Investments (Holdings) Limited, COOP Mobil s.r.o, CT Networks Limited, CWGNL S.A., CWW Operations Limited, Cable & Wireless Access Limited, Cable & Wireless Americas Systems Inc., Cable & Wireless Aspac Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless CIS Services Limited, Cable & Wireless CIS Svyaz LLC, Cable & Wireless Capital Limited , Cable & Wireless Communications Data Network Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Communications Starclass Limited, Cable & Wireless Communications Technical Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd (Beijing Branch), Cable & Wireless Europe Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless GN Limited, Cable & Wireless Global (India) Private Limited, Cable & Wireless Global Business Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Global Holding Limited, Cable & Wireless Global Telecommunication Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Holdco Limited, Cable & Wireless Networks India Private Limited, Cable & Wireless Trade Mark Management Limited, Cable & Wireless UK Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless UK Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Waterside Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Pension Trustee Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Voice Messaging Limited, Cable & Wireless a-Services Inc, Cable & Wireless a-Services Limited, Cable and Wireless (India) Limited, Cable and Wireless (India) Limited Indian Branch Office, Cable and Wireless Nominee Limited, Cable and Wireless Worldwide South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Cavalry Holdings Ltd, Celfocus Solucoes Informaticas Para Telecomunicacoes S.A, Cellops Limited, Cellular Operations Limited, Central Communications Group Limited, Central Telecom (Northern) Limited, Centurion GSM Limited, Chelys Limited, City Cable (Holdings) Limited, Cobra do Brasil Servicos de Telematica ltda., Commnet Cellular Inc., Complete Network Technology, Connect (India) Mobile Technologies Private Limited, Cornerstone Telecommunications Infrastructure Limited, Dataroam Limited , Device Insight, Digital Island (UK) Ltd, Digital Mobile Spectrum Limited, East Africa Investment (Mauritius) Limited, Emtel Europe Limited, Energis (Ireland) Limited, Energis Communications Limited, Energis Holdings Limited, Energis Local Access Limited, Energis Management Limited, Energis Squared Limited, Erudite Systems Limited, Esprit Telecom B.V., Eudokia Limited, Euro Pacific Securities Ltd., Eurocall Holdings Limited, Europolitan Holdings AB (now Europolitan Vodafone AB), FB Holdings Limited, FM Associates (UK) Limited, FinCo Partner 1 B.V., FireFly Networks Limited, Flexphone Limited, GS Telecom (Pty) Limited, Gateway Communications Africa (UK) Limited, Gateway Communications Tanzania Limited, General Mobile Corporation, Generation Telecom Limited, Ghana Telecommunications, Ghana Telecommunications Company Limited, Global Cellular Rental Limited, Globe Limited, GrandCentrix GmbH, Grupo Corporativo ONO S.A.U., H3ga Properties (No 3) Pty Limited, HBO Nederland Cooperatief U.A., HBO Netherlands Channels sro, HBO Netherlands Distribution B.V., Hellas Online, How2 Telecom Limited, Hutchison Essar Ltd, Indus Towers Limited, Intercell Communications Limited, Internet Network Services Limited, Invitation Digital Limited, Ipergy Communications NV, Isis Telecommunications Management Limited, Jaguar Communications Limited, Jaykay Finholding (India) Private Limited, Jupicol (Proprietary) Limited, KABELCOM Braunschweig Gesellschaft Fur BreitbandkabelKommunikation Mit Beschrankter Haftung, KABELCOM Wolfsburg Gesellschaft Fur BreitbandkabelKommunikation Mit Beschrankter Haftung, Kabel Deutschland, Kabel Deutschland Holding, Kabel Deutschland Holding Erste Beteiligungs GmbH, Kabel Deutschland Holding Zweite Beteilgungs GmbH, Kabel Deutschland Neunte Beteiligungs GmbH, Kabel Deutschland Siebte Beteiligungs GmbH, Kabelfernsehen Munchen Servicenter GmbH & Co. KG, LG Financing Partnership, LGE HoldCo V B.V., LGE HoldCo VI B.V., LGE HoldCo VIII B.V., LGE Holdco VII B.V., LLC Vodafone Enterprise Ukraine, Le Bunt Holdings Limited, Legend Communications Limited, Liberty Global, Liberty Global Content Netherlands B.V., London Hydraulic Power Company, M-PESA Foundation, M-PESA Holding Co. Limited, ML Integration Group Limited, ML Integration Limited, ML Integration Services Limited, MV Healthcare Services Private Limited, Mannesmann AG, MetroHoldings Limited, Mezzanine Ware Proprietary Limited (RF), Mirambo Limited, Misrfone Trading Company LLC, MobiFon S.A., Mobile Commerce Solutions Limited, Mobile Phone Centre Limited, Mobile Wallet VM1, Mobile Wallet VM2, Mobile by Sainsburys Limited, Mobiles 4 Business.com Limited, Mobileworld Communications Pty Limited, Mobileworld Operating Pty Ltd, Mobilvest, Motifpros 1 (Proprietary) Limited, Multi Risk Indemnity Company Limited, Multi Risk Limited, ND Callus Info Services Private Limited, Nadal Trading Company Private Limited, Nat Comm Air Limited, National Communications Backbone Company Limited, Navtrak Ltd, Netforce Group Limited, Netgrid Telecom SRL, Number Portability Company (Proprietary) Limited, ONO, Omega Telecom Holdings Private Limited, Oni Way Infocomunicacoes S.A, Oskar Mobil S.R.O., Oxygen Solutions Limited, P.C.P. (North West) Limited, PPL Pty Limited, PT Network Services Limited, PTI Telecom Limited, Peoples Phone Limited, Pinnacle Cellular Group Limited, Pinnacle Cellular Limited, Plex Limited, Plustech Mercantile Company Private Limited, Prime Metals Ltd., Project Telecom Holdings Limited, Quickcomm Software Solutions, Radio Opt GmbH, Rian Mobile Limited, SBC SMART CITY 1517 B.V., SMMS Investments Pvt Limited, Safaricom Limited, Safenet N.P A., Sarmady Communications, Scarlet Ibis Investments 23 (Pty) Limited, Scorpios Beverages Pvt. Ltd, Silver Stream Investments Limited, Singlepoint (4U) Limited, Singlepoint (4U) Ltd., Singlepoint Payment Services Limited, Siro Limited, Spar Aerospace (Nigeria) Limited, Sport TV Portugal S.A, Starnet, Stentor Communications Limited, Stentor Limited, Storage Technology Services (Pty) Limited, T.W. Telecom Limited, T3 Telecommunications Limited, TKS Telepost Kabel-Service Kaiserslautern Beteiligungs GmbH, TKS Telepost Kabel-Service Kaiserslautern GmbH & Co. KG, TNAS Limited, TSM NZ Limited, Talkland Airtime Services Limited, Talkland Australia Pty Limited, Talkland Communications Limited, Talkland International Limited, Talkland Midlands Limited, Talkmobile Limited, Tele2 Italia SPA, Tele2 Spain, Telecom Investments India Private Limited, Telecommunications Europe Limited, Ternhill Communications Limited, The Cobra Group, The Eastern Leasing Company Limited, The Old Telecom Sales Co. Limited, Thus Group Holdings Limited, Thus Group Limited, Thus Limited, Thus Profit Sharing Trustees Limited, TnT Expense Management LLC, Tomorrow Street GP S.a r.l., Tomorrow Street SCA, Torenspits II B.V., Townley Communications Limited, Trans Crystal Ltd., UMT Investments Limited, UPC Nederland Holding I B.V., UPC Nederland Holding II B.V., UPC Nederland Holding III B.V., Unified Communications, Uniqueair Limited, Urbana Teleunion Rostock GmbH & Co.KG, Usha Martin Telematics Limited, VAPL No. 2 Pty Limited, VBA (Mauritius) Limited, VBA Holdings Limited, VBA International (SL) Limited, VBA International Limited, VEI S.r.l., VM SA, VND S.p.A, VSSB Vodafone Shared Services Budapest Private Limited Company, Verwaltung Urbana Teleunion Rostock GmbH, Victus Networks S.A., Vizzavi Finance Limited, Vizzavi Limited, Voda Limited, Vodacall Limited, Vodacash s.p.r.l., Vodacom (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Business (Angola) Limitada, Vodacom Business (Ghana) Limited, Vodacom Business (Kenya) Limited, Vodacom Business Africa (Nigeria) Limited, Vodacom Business Africa Group (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Business Africa Group Services Limited, Vodacom Business Cameroon SA, Vodacom Business Cote Divoire S.A.R.L., Vodacom Congo (RDC) SA, Vodacom Financial Services (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Group Limited, Vodacom Insurance Administration Company (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Insurance Company (RF) Limited, Vodacom International Holdings (Pty) Limited, Vodacom International Limited, Vodacom Lesotho (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Life Assurance Company (RF) Limited, Vodacom Payment Services (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Properties No 1 (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Properties No.2 (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Tanzania Limited Zanzibar, Vodacom Tanzania Public Limited Company, Vodacom UK Limited, Vodafone (NI) Limited, Vodafone (New Zealand) Hedging Limited, Vodafone (Scotland) Limited, Vodafone 2, Vodafone 4 UK, Vodafone 5 Limited, Vodafone 5 UK, Vodafone 6 UK, Vodafone Albania Sh.A, Vodafone Alternatif Telekom Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Americas 4, Vodafone Americas Virginia Inc., Vodafone And Qatar Foundation L.L.C, Vodafone Asset Management Services S.a r.l., Vodafone Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Automotive Deutschland GmbH, Vodafone Automotive Electronic Systems S.r.L, Vodafone Automotive France S.A.S, Vodafone Automotive Iberia S.L, Vodafone Automotive Italia S.p.A, Vodafone Automotive Japan K.K, Vodafone Automotive Korea Limited, Vodafone Automotive SpA, Vodafone Automotive Technologies (Beijing) Co Ltd, Vodafone Automotive Telematics Development S.A.S, Vodafone Automotive Telematics S.A, Vodafone Automotive UK Limited, Vodafone Belgium SA/NV, Vodafone Benelux Limited, Vodafone Bilgi Ve Iletisim Hizmetleri AS, Vodafone Business Services Limited, Vodafone Business Solutions Limited, Vodafone Canada Inc, Vodafone Cellular Limited, Vodafone Central Services Limited, Vodafone China Limited (China), Vodafone China Limited (Hong Kong), Vodafone Connect 2 Limited, Vodafone Connect Limited, Vodafone Consolidated Holdings Limited, Vodafone Corporate Limited, Vodafone Corporate Secretaries Limited, Vodafone Czech Republic A.S., Vodafone DC Pension Trustee Company Limited, Vodafone Dagitim Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Data, Vodafone Distribution Holdings Limited, Vodafone Egypt Telecommunications S.A.E., Vodafone Elektronik Para Ve Odeme Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Empresa Brasil Telecomunicacoes Ltda, Vodafone Empresa Mexico S.de R.L. de C.V., Vodafone Enabler Espana S.L., Vodafone Enterprise Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Austria GmbH, Vodafone Enterprise Bahrain W.L.L., Vodafone Enterprise Bulgaria EOOD, Vodafone Enterprise Chile SA, Vodafone Enterprise Communications Technical Services (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Corporate Secretaries Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Denmark A/S, Vodafone Enterprise Equipment Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Europe (UK) Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Europe (UK) Limited Czech Branch, Vodafone Enterprise Europe (UK) Limited DubaiI Branch, Vodafone Enterprise Finland OY, Vodafone Enterprise France SAS, Vodafone Enterprise Germany GmbH, Vodafone Enterprise Global Businesses S.a r.l., Vodafone Enterprise Global Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Global Network HK Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Global Network Pte. Ltd., Vodafone Enterprise Hong Kong Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Italy S.r.L, Vodafone Enterprise Korea Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Luxembourg S.A., Vodafone Enterprise Netherlands BV, Vodafone Enterprise Norway AS, Vodafone Enterprise Regional Business Singapore Pte.Ltd., Vodafone Enterprise Singapore Pte.Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Spain S.L.U. Portugal Branch, Vodafone Enterprise Spain SLU, Vodafone Enterprise Sweden AB, Vodafone Enterprise Switzerland AG, Vodafone Erste Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Vodafone Espana S.A.U., Vodafone Euro Hedging Limited, Vodafone Euro Hedging Two, Vodafone Europe B.V., Vodafone Europe UK, Vodafone European Investments, Vodafone European Portal Limited, Vodafone Finance Limited, Vodafone Finance Luxembourg Limited, Vodafone Finance Sweden, Vodafone Finance UK Limited, Vodafone Financial Operations, Vodafone Financial Services B.V., Vodafone Fixed Ltd, Vodafone Foundation, Vodafone Foundation Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Gestioni S.p.A, Vodafone Ghana Mobile Financial Services Limited, Vodafone Global Content Services Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise (Hong Kong) Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise (Italy) S.R.L., Vodafone Global Enterprise (Japan) K.K., Vodafone Global Enterprise (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Vodafone Global Enterprise Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise Russia LLC, Vodafone Global Enterprise Taiwan Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise Telecommunications (Hellas) A.E., Vodafone Global Network Limited, Vodafone Global Network Limited Slovakia Branch, Vodafone Global Services Private Limited, Vodafone GmbH, Vodafone Group (Directors) Trustee Limited, Vodafone Group Pension Trustee Limited, Vodafone Group Services GmbH, Vodafone Group Services Ireland Limited, Vodafone Group Services Limited, Vodafone Group Services No.2 Limited, Vodafone Group Share Trustee Limited, Vodafone Hire Limited, Vodafone Holding A.S., Vodafone Holdings (Jersey) Limited, Vodafone Holdings (SA) Proprietary Limited, Vodafone Holdings Europe S.L.U., Vodafone Holdings Luxembourg Limited, Vodafone Hutchison Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Hutchison Finance Pty Limited, Vodafone Hutchison Receivables Pty Limited, Vodafone IP Licensing Limited, Vodafone India Digital Limited, Vodafone India Limited, Vodafone India Services Private Limited, Vodafone India Ventures Limited, Vodafone Institut fur Gesellschaft und Kommunikation GmbH, Vodafone Intermediate Enterprises Limited, Vodafone International 1 S.a.r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone International 1 S.a r.l., Vodafone International 2 Limited, Vodafone International Holdings B.V., Vodafone International Holdings Limited, Vodafone International M S.a r.l., Vodafone International Operations Limited, Vodafone International Services LLC, Vodafone Investment UK, Vodafone Investments (SA) Proprietary Limited, Vodafone Investments Australia Limited, Vodafone Investments Limited, Vodafone Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l., Vodafone Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone Ireland Distribution Limited, Vodafone Ireland Ltd., Vodafone Ireland Marketing Limited, Vodafone Ireland Property Holdings Limited, Vodafone Ireland Retail Limited, Vodafone Italia S.p.A., Vodafone Jersey Dollar Holdings Limited, Vodafone Jersey Finance, Vodafone Jersey Yen Holdings Unlimited, Vodafone Kabel Deutschland Field Services GmbH, Vodafone Kabel Deutschland GmbH, Vodafone Kabel Deutschland Kundenbetreuung GmbH, Vodafone Kenya Limited, Vodafone Leasing Limited, Vodafone Libertel B.V., Vodafone Limited, Vodafone Luxembourg 5 S.a r.l., Vodafone Luxembourg 5 S.a r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone Luxembourg S.a r.l., Vodafone Luxembourg S.a r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone M-PESA SH.P.K., Vodafone M-Pesa S.A, Vodafone M.C. Mobile Services Limited , Vodafone Magyarorszag Mobile Tavkozlesi Zartkoruen Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, Vodafone Malta Limited, Vodafone Marketing UK , Vodafone Maroc SARL, Vodafone Mauritius Ltd., Vodafone Mobile Commerce Limited, Vodafone Mobile Communications Limited, Vodafone Mobile Enterprises Limited, Vodafone Mobile NZ Limited, Vodafone Mobile Network Limited, Vodafone Mobile Operations Limited, Vodafone Mobile Services Limited, Vodafone Multimedia Limited, Vodafone Nederland Holding I B.V., Vodafone Nederland Holding II B.V., Vodafone Nederland Holding III B.V., Vodafone Net Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Network Pty Limited, Vodafone New Zealand Foundation Limited, Vodafone New Zealand Limited, Vodafone Next Generation Services Limited, Vodafone Nominees Limited1, Vodafone ONO S.A.U., Vodafone Oceania Limited, Vodafone Old Show Ground Site Management Limited, Vodafone Overseas Finance Limited, Vodafone Overseas Holdings Limited, Vodafone Panafon International Holdings B.V., Vodafone Panafon UK, Vodafone Partner Services Limited, Vodafone Payment Solutions S.a r.l., Vodafone Portugal Comunicacoes Pessoais S.A., Vodafone Procurement Company S.a r.l., Vodafone Property Investments Limited, Vodafone Pty Limited, Vodafone Qatar Q.S.C., Vodafone Retail (Holdings) Limited , Vodafone Retail Limited, Vodafone Roaming Services S.a r.l., Vodafone Romania S.A, Vodafone Romania M - Payments SRL, Vodafone Romania Technologies SRL, Vodafone Sales & Services Limited, Vodafone Satellite Services Limited, Vodafone Servicios SL.U, Vodafone Servizi E Tecnologie S.R.L, Vodafone Servicos Empresariais Brasil Ltda., Vodafone Shared Services Romania SRL, Vodafone Specialist Communications Limited, Vodafone Stiftung Deutschland Gemeinnutzige GmbH, Vodafone Technology Solutions Limited, Vodafone Teknoloji Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Tele-Services (India) Holdings Limited, Vodafone Telecel-Comunicates Pessoais S.A., Vodafone Telecommunications (India) Limited, Vodafone Telekomunikasyon A.S, Vodafone Towers Limited, Vodafone UK Content Services Limited, Vodafone UK Investments Limited , Vodafone UK Limited1 , Vodafone US Inc, Vodafone Ventures Limited1 , Vodafone Vierte Verwaltungs AG, Vodafone Worldwide Holdings Limited, Vodafone Yen Finance Limited , Vodafone m-pesa Limited, Vodafone-Central Limited Vodaphone Limited, Vodafone-Panafon Hellenic Telecommunications Company S.A., VodafoneZiggo Group Holding B.V, Vodata Limited , Vouchercloud SA (Pty) Ltd, Wataneya Telecommunications S.A.E, Waterberg Lodge (Proprietary) Limited, Wayfinder, Wheatfields Investments 276 (Proprietary) Limited, Wireless Interactions & NFC Accelerator 2013 B.V., Woodend Cellular Limited, Woodend Communications Limited, Woodend Group Limited, Woodend Holdings Limited, XB Facilities B.V, XLink Communications (Proprietary) Limited, Your Communications Group Limited, ZUM B.V., ZYB, Zelitron S.A., Zesko B.V., Ziggo B.V., Ziggo Bond Company B.V., Ziggo Deelnemingen B.V., Ziggo Finance 2 B.V., Ziggo Financing Partnership, Ziggo Holding B.V., Ziggo Netwerk B.V., Ziggo Netwerk II B.V., Ziggo Services B.V., Ziggo Services Employment B.V., Ziggo Services Netwerk 2 B.V., Ziggo Zakelijk Services B.V., and Zoranet Connectivity Services B.V.. The following companies are subsidiares of Prudential Financial: 210-220 E. 22nd Street SSGA Owner LLC, AIG Edison, AIG Star, AREF Cayman Co Ltd., AREF GP II Pte. Ltd., AREF GP Ltd., ASPF II - Feeder Fund GmbH, ASPF II - Verwaltungs - GmbH & Co. KG, ASPF II Management GmbH, ASPF III (Scots) L.P., ASSURANCE, AST Investment Services Inc., Adlerwerke CB Investment LLC, Administradora de Fondos de Pensiones Habitat S.A., Administradora de Inversiones Previsionales SpA, Aoba Life Insurance Company, Asia Property Fund III GP S.a.r.l., Assurance IQ LLC, Assurance Intelligence LLC, BSC CP LP, Braeloch Holdings Inc., Braeloch Successor Corporation, Brazilian Capital Fund GP Limited, Broad Street Global Advisors LLC, Broome Street Holdings LLC, CB German Retail LLC, CLIS Co. Ltd., COLICO INC., Campus Drive LLC, Capital Agricultural Property Services Inc., Chadwick Boulevard Investment Holdings Co. LLC, Cibecue LLC, Coconino LLC, Colico II Inc., Columbus Drive Partners L.P., Commerce Street Holdings LLC, Commerce Street Investments LLC, Coolidge LLC, Coral Reef GP, Coral Reef L.P., Coral Reef Unit Trust, Cottage Street Investments LLC, Cottage Street Orbit Acquisition LLC, DHFL PRAMERICA LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED, DICKENS AVENUE HOLDINGS VI LLC, DICKENS AVENUE PARTNERS VI (Ireland) L.P., DICKENS AVENUE PARTNERS VI (US) L.P., Don Cesar Investor LLC, Dryden Arizona Reinsurance Term Company, Dryden Finance II LLC, EVP II GP S.a r.l., EVP II Sweden Resi I GP S.a r.l., Edison Place Senior Note LLC, Essex LLC, EuroCore GP S.a r.l., European Value Partners GP S.a.r.l., Everbright PGIM Fund Management Co. Ltd., Flagstaff LLC, GA 1600 Commons LLC, GA 333 Hennepin Investor LLC, GA BV LLC, GA Bay Area GP LLC, GA Bay Area Investor LLC, GA Belden LLC, GA CLARENDON LLC, GA Cal Crossings LLC, GA Collins LLC, GA E. 22nd Street Apartments Holdings LLC, GA East 86 Street LLC, GA JHCII LLC, GA MENLO PARK INVESTOR LLC, GA Manor at Harbour Island LLC, GA Metro LLC, GA Mission LLC, GA TRITON INVESTOR LLC, GA W Paces LLC, GA/MDI 333 Hennepin Associates LLC, GIBRALTAR BSN HOLDINGS SDN BHD, GIBRALTAR INDIA SOLUTIONS LLP, Gateway Holdings II LLC, Gateway Holdings LLC, German Retail Income CP LP, Gibraltar BSN Life Berhad, Gibraltar International Insurance Services Company Inc., Gibraltar International Service LLC, Gibraltar Reinsurance Company Ltd., Gibraltar Universal Life Reinsurance Company, Glenealy International Limited, Global Portfolio Strategies Inc., Gold GP Limited, Gold II L.P., Gold L.P., Graham Resources Inc., Graham Royalty Ltd., Green Tree GP, Green Tree L.P., Greenlee LLC, Halsey Street Investments LLC, Hirakata LLC, IVP Fund GP LLC, Impact Investments Bridges UK S.a.r.l, Inter-Atlantic G Fund L.P., Inversiones Previsionales Chile SpA, Inversiones Previsionales Dos SpA, Ironbound Fund LLC, Jennison Associates LLC, Kyarra S.a r.l., Kyoei Annuity Home Co. Ltd., LINEUP LLC, Lake Street Partners IV L.P., MC GA COLLINS HOLDINGS LLC, MC GA COLLINS REALTY LLC, MC Insurance Agency Services LLC, Manor at Harbour Island LLC, Marble Canyon LLC, Maricopa LLC, Market Street Holdings IV LLC, Morenci LLC, Mulberry Street Holdings LLC, Mulberry Street Investment L.P., Mulberry Street Partners LLC, Mullin TBG Insurance Agency Services LLC, MullinTBG Insurance Agency Services, National Family Assurance Group LLC, New Savanna, Orchard Street Acres Inc., PAI Bay Farm LLC, PAI Bayrock Groves LLC, PAI Belvidere Farms LLC, PAI Big Cypress Farm LLC, PAI Corcoran 640 Ranch LLC, PAI DeKalb Farm LLC, PAI Delano 1500 Ranches LLC, PAI Flicker Orchard LLC, PAI Good Hope Farm LLC, PAI Hawk Creek Ranch LLC, PAI Hills Valley Ranches LLC, PAI Holly Hill Groves LLC, PAI Hunt Farm LLC, PAI Jackson Bayou Farm LLC, PAI Lake Placid Groves LLC, PAI Wallula Gap Vineyard LLC, PCP V Cayman AIV GP L.P., PEREF II Co-Invest 1 GP S.a r.l., PEREF II GP S.a r.l., PEREF II PV S.r.l, PFI EM-Tech Fund I LLC, PG Business Service Co. Ltd, PG Collection Service Co. Ltd., PGA Asian Retail Limited, PGA European Limited, PGI Co. Ltd, PGIM (Australia) Pty Ltd, PGIM (Hong Kong) Ltd., PGIM (Scots) Limited, PGIM (Shanghai) Company Ltd., PGIM (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., PGIM AVP IV GP S.a r.l., PGIM Advisory (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PGIM Agricultural Investments GP LLC, PGIM Agricultural Investors LP, PGIM Broad Market High Yield Bond Fund L.P., PGIM Broad Market High Yield Bond Partners LLC, PGIM Capital Partners Management (Feeder) VI LLC, PGIM Capital Partners Management Fund VI L.P., PGIM European Financing Limited, PGIM European Services Limited, PGIM Financial Limited, PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives Fund II L.P., PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives Fund L.P., PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives GP LLC, PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives II GP LLC, PGIM Foreign Investments Inc., PGIM Holding Company LLC, PGIM INDIA ASSET MANAGEMENT PRIVATE LIMITED, PGIM INDIA TRUSTEES PRIVATE LIMITED, PGIM Inc., PGIM International Financing Inc., PGIM Investments LLC, PGIM Japan Co. Ltd., PGIM Korea Inc., PGIM LTIF Berlin GP S.a r.l., PGIM LTIF Berlin MLP S.ar.l., PGIM LTIF GP S.a.r.l., PGIM Limited, PGIM Loan Originator Manager Limited, PGIM M Campus GP S.a r.l., PGIM Management Partner Limited, PGIM MetaProp Investor LP LLC, PGIM Netherlands B.V., PGIM Overseas Investment Fund Management (Shanghai) Company Ltd, PGIM Private Capital (Ireland) Limited, PGIM Private Capital Limited, PGIM Private Placement Investors Inc., PGIM Private Placement Investors L.P., PGIM REF EUROPE SCSp, PGIM REF Europe GP S.a r.l., PGIM REF Europe Member LLC, PGIM REF Intermediary Services Inc., PGIM Real Estate (Japan) Ltd., PGIM Real Estate (UK) Limited, PGIM Real Estate CD S.a.r.l., PGIM Real Estate Capital VII GP S.a r.l., PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest GP LLC, PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest GP S.a r.l., PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest L.P., PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest SCSp, PGIM Real Estate Co-Invest Holdings LLC, PGIM Real Estate Debt GmbH, PGIM Real Estate Finance Holding Company, PGIM Real Estate Finance LLC, PGIM Real Estate France SAS, PGIM Real Estate Germany AG, PGIM Real Estate Global Debt GP LLC, PGIM Real Estate Inmuebles S. de R.L. de C.V, PGIM Real Estate Italy S.r.l., PGIM Real Estate Loan Services Inc., PGIM Real Estate Luxembourg S.A., PGIM Real Estate MVP Administradora IV S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate MVP Administradora V S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate MVP Inmuebles IV S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate MVP Inmuebles V S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate Management Luxembourg S.a.r.l., PGIM Real Estate Mexico S.C., PGIM Real Estate S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate U.S. Debt Fund GP LLC, PGIM Senior Loan Opportunities Management (Feeder) I LLC, PGIM Senior Loan Opportunities Management Fund I L.P., PGIM Strategic Financing LLC, PGIM Strategic Investments Inc., PGIM USPF VI Manager LLC, PGIM Warehouse Inc., PGLH of Delaware Inc., PIFM Holdco LLC, PIIC Limited, PIISC Holdings (UK) Limited, PIM KF Blocker Holdings LLC, PIM KF Blocker V Holdings LLC, PIM USPF V Manager LLC, PLA Administradora Industrial SRL, PLA Administradora LLC, PLA Administradora S. de R.L. de C.V., PLA Asesoria Profesional II S. de R.L. de C.V., PLA Asesoria Profesional S.de R.L. de C.V., PLA Co-Investor LLC, PLA Mexico Industrial Manager I LLC, PLA Mexico Industrial Manager II LLC, PLA Mexico Residential Manager I LLC, PLA Residential Fund III Aggregating Manager LLC, PLA Residential Fund III Limited Manager LLC, PLA Residential Fund III Manager LLC, PLA Residential Fund IV Aggregating Manager LLC, PLA Residential Fund IV Manager LLC, PLA Retail Fund I Blue LP, PLA Retail Fund I LP, PLA Retail Fund I Manager LLC, PLA Retail Fund I Red LP, PLA Retail Fund II Aggregating Manager LLC, PLA Retail Fund II LLC, PLA Retail Fund II LP, PLA Retail Fund II Manager LLC, PLA Retail Fund II U.S. Carry/Co-Invest LP, PLA Services Manager Mexico LLC, PLAI Limited, PMCF Holdings LLC, PMCF Properties LLC, PPPF General Partner LLP, PR GA SCP Apartments LLC, PRAMERICA PRECAP VI GP (SCOTS FEEDER) LLP, PRAMERICA PRECAP VI GP LLP, PRECO ACCOUNT III LLC, PRECO ACCOUNT PARTNERSHIP III LP, PRECO Account IV LLC, PRECO Account Partnership IV LP, PRECO III GP LLP, PREFG Hanwha Manager LLC, PREI Acquisition I Inc., PREI Acquisition II Inc., PREI Acquisition LLC, PREI HYDG LLC, PREI International Inc., PRIAC Property Acquisitions LLC, PRICOA Management Partner Limited, PRISA Fund Manager LLC, PRISA II Fund Manager LLC, PRISA II Pooled Manager LLC, PRISA III Fund GP LLC, PRISA III Fund PIM LLC, PRREF II Fund Manager LLC, PRU 3XSquare LLC, PRUCO LLC, PRUDENTIAL CAPITAL ENERGY PARTNERS MANAGEMENT (FEEDER) LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP MEMBER LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP REIT LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP VENTURE 2 LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP VENTURE LLC, PT PFI Mega Life Insurance, Passaic Fund LLC, Pine Tree GP, Pine Tree L.P., Platinum GP Limited, Platinum II L.P., Platinum L.P., Pramerica (Hong Kong) Holdings Limited, Pramerica (Luxembourg) CP GP S.a.r.l., Pramerica (Scots) CP GP LLP, Pramerica Business Consulting (Shanghai) Company Limited, Pramerica EVP CP LP, Pramerica Financial Asia Headquarters Pte. Ltd., Pramerica Financial Asia Limited, Pramerica Fixed Income Funds Management Limited, Pramerica Fosun Life Insurance Co. Ltd., Pramerica General Partner LLP, Pramerica Holdings Ltd, Pramerica Insurance Agency (China) Company Ltd., Pramerica PRECAP I GP LLP, Pramerica PRECAP II GP LLP, Pramerica PRECAP III GP LLP, Pramerica PRECAP IV GP LLP, Pramerica Pan European Real Estate (Scots) LP, Pramerica Property Partners Fund (Scotland) Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital I (Scotland) Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital I GP (Scots Feeder) LLP, Pramerica Real Estate Capital II (Scots) Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital III (Scots) Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital IV (Scots) Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital IV GP (Scots Feeder) LLP, Pramerica Real Estate Capital IV GP Limited, Pramerica Real Estate Capital V (Netherlands) GP LLP, Pramerica Real Estate Capital V (Scots) Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital VI (Scots) Limited Partnership, Pramerica SGR S.p.A, Pramerica Systems Ireland Limited, Preco III (Scotland) Limited Partnership, Pru 101 Wood LLC, Pru Alpha Partners I LLC, Pru Fixed Income Emerging Markets Partners I LLC, PruVen Capital Partners Fund I L.P., Pruco Assignment Corporation, Pruco Life Insurance Company, Pruco Life Insurance Company of New Jersey, Pruco Securities LLC, Prudential 900 Aviation Boulevard LLC, Prudential Affordable Mortgage Company LLC, Prudential Agricultural Property Holding Company LLC, Prudential Annuities Distributors Inc., Prudential Annuities Holding Company Inc., Prudential Annuities Inc., Prudential Annuities Information Services & Technology Corporation, Prudential Annuities Life Assurance Corporation, Prudential Arizona Reinsurance Captive Company, Prudential Arizona Reinsurance Term Company, Prudential Arizona Reinsurance Universal Company, Prudential Bank & Trust FSB, Prudential Capital Energy Opportunity Fund L.P., Prudential Capital Energy Partners L.P., Prudential Capital Energy Partners Management Fund L.P., Prudential Capital Partners Management Fund IV L.P., Prudential Capital and Investment Services LLC, Prudential Chile II SpA, Prudential Chile SpA, Prudential Commercial Property Holding Company LLC, Prudential Customer Solutions LLC, Prudential Equity Group LLC, Prudential Financial Securities Investment Trust Enterprise, Prudential Fixed Income Global Liquidity Relative Value Partners LLC, Prudential Fixed Income U.S. Relative Value Partners LLC, Prudential Funding LLC, Prudential General Services of Japan Y.K., Prudential Gibraltar Agency Co. Ltd., Prudential Global Funding LLC, Prudential Holdings of Japan Inc., Prudential Huntoon Paige Associates LLC, Prudential IBH Holdco Inc., Prudential Impact Investments Mortgage Loans LLC, Prudential Impact Investments Private Debt LLC, Prudential Impact Investments Private Equity LLC, Prudential Industrial Properties LLC, Prudential Insurance Agency LLC, Prudential International Insurance Holdings Ltd., Prudential International Insurance Service Company L.L.C., Prudential International Investments Advisers LLC, Prudential International Investments Company LLC, Prudential International Investments LLC, Prudential Investment Management Services LLC, Prudential Japan Holdings LLC, Prudential Legacy Insurance Company of New Jersey, Prudential Life Insurance Company of Taiwan Inc., Prudential Mortgage Asset Holdings 1 Japan Investment Business Limited Partnership, Prudential Mortgage Asset Holdings 2 Japan Investment Business Limited Partnership, Prudential Mortgage Capital Asset Holding Company LLC, Prudential Mortgage Capital Funding LLC, Prudential Mortgage Capital Holdings LLC, Prudential Multifamily Mortgage LLC, Prudential Mutual Fund Services LLC, Prudential Newark Realty LLC, Prudential QOZ Investment Fund 1 LLC, Prudential Realty Securities Inc., Prudential Retirement Financial Services Holding LLC, Prudential Retirement Holdings LLC, Prudential Retirement Insurance and Annuity Company, Prudential Securities Secured Financing Corporation, Prudential Securities Structured Assets Inc., Prudential Seguros Mexico S.A. de C.V., Prudential Seguros S.A., Prudential Servicios S. de R.L. de C.V., Prudential Structured Settlement Company, Prudential Systems Japan Limited, Prudential Term Reinsurance Company, Prudential Trust Co. Ltd., Prudential Trust Company, Prudential Universal Reinsurance Company, Prudential Workplace Solutions Group Services LLC, Prudential do Brasil Seguros de Vida S.A., Prudential do Brasil Vida em Grupo S.A., Prudential/TMW Real Estate Group LLC, Pruservicos Participacoes Ltda., QMA JP EM All Cap Equity Partners LLC, QMA LLC, QMA Wadhwani LLP, Quartzsite LLC, Residential Services Corporation of America LLC, Rio CP LP, Rock European Real Estate Holdings S.ar.l., Rock Global Real Estate LLC, Rock Kensington Limited, Rock Marty GP S.a r.l., Rock Oxford S.a r.l., Rock UK Real Estate Holdings S.ar.l., Rock UK Real Estate II S.a.r.l., Rockstone Co. Ltd., Rosado Grande LLC, Ross Avenue Energy Fund Holdings LLC, Ross Avenue Minerals 2012 LLC, SCP Apartments LLC, SENIOR HOUSING PARTNERS VI GP LLC, SENIOR HOUSING PARTNERSHIP FUND VI GP LLC, SHP IV Carried Interest LP, SHP V Carried Interest L.P., SMP Holdings Inc., SVIIT Holdings Inc., Sanei Collection Service Co. Ltd. (Kabushiki Kaisha Sanei Shuuno Service), Senior Housing Partners IV L.L.C., Senior Housing Partners V LLC, Senior Housing Partnership Fund IV L.L.C., Senior Housing Partnership Fund V LLC, Sterling Private Placement Management LLP, Stetson Street Partners L.P., Strand Investments Limited, TBG Insurance Services Corporation, TENSATOR HOLDINGS LTD, TF Proveedora S.C., TMW ASPF I Verwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG, TMW ASPF Management GmbH, TMW Management LLC, TMW Real Estate Group LLC, TMW Realty Advisors LLC, TMW USPF Verwaltungs GmbH, TRGOAG Company Inc., The Gibraltar Life Insurance Co. Ltd., The Keynes Dynamic Beta Strategy (US) Fund GP LLC, The Prudential Assigned Settlement Services Corp., The Prudential Brazilian Capital Fund LP, The Prudential Gibraltar Financial Life Insurance Co. Ltd., The Prudential Home Mortgage Company Inc., The Prudential Insurance Company of America, The Prudential Life Insurance Company Ltd., The Prudential Real Estate Financial Services of America Inc., The WMF Group, Thurloe Commercial Guernsey Limited, Times Square Center Associates, USPF V - Verwaltungs - GmbH & Co. KG, USPF V Carry LLC, USPF V Co-Invest LLC, USPF V Investment LP, United States Property Fund VI GP S.a r.l., Vailsburg Fund LLC, Vantage Casualty Insurance Company, Wabash Avenue Holdings V LLC, Wabash Avenue Partners V L.P., Wadhwani Capital Limited, Waveland Avenue Holdings I LLC, Waveland Avenue Partners I (Ireland) L.P., Waveland Avenue Partners I (US) L.P., Wellness Services Ecossistema De Bem Estar Ltda., Wellness Services SRL, Yamato Life, and Yavapai LLC. Credible reports indicate that Ecuadors government is about to renege on the political asylum it granted to WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange and hand him over to British police, possibly within days. The reports also indicate that Assange would be subjected to lengthy imprisonment by the British authorities, perhaps for two years or more, pending extradition to the US, where he could face the death penalty on espionage and conspiracy charges. These developments underscore the necessity to deepen the fight for a powerful international working-class movement for his freedom and for the defence of all basic democratic rights. Urgent protests are being organised in many countries to respond when Assange is evicted from Ecuadors London embassy. Click here for details. The WSWS endorses such demonstrations and urges its readers to participate. Such action, however, will be the beginning of a protracted campaign to defend Assange and oppose the increasing attack and censorship on critical voices and independent media on the Internet. This weeks visit to London by Ecuadors President Lenin Moreno, ostensibly to deliver a speech at the 2018 Global Disability Summit, is likely to rubberstamp a conspiracy involving the Ecuadorian, British, US and Australian governments to incarcerate Assange, an Australian citizen. The WikiLeaks editor has already spent more than six years effectively trapped in Ecuadors embassy, and been cut off all communications with the outside world since March 28. Assange has not been charged with a single crime. He is being incarcerated because the ruling elites fear the impact of his media organisations ongoing, and invaluable, efforts to expose the mass surveillance, anti-democratic machinations and war crimes being conducted by governments and corporations, particularly the US and its allies. The conspiracy to silence Assange and WikiLeaks has intensified in blatant defiance of rulings by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights calling for his protection. This repudiation of the international law of asylum underscores the anxiety in ruling circles about the work of WikiLeaks and other progressive web sites, particularly under conditions of an international upsurge in working-class struggles and deep popular hostility to the US-led drive to trade war and war. In an Intercept article on July 21, journalist Glenn Greenwald reported: A source close to the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry and the Presidents office, unauthorized to speak publicly, has confirmed to the Intercept that Moreno is close to finalizing, if he has not already finalized, an agreement to hand over Assange to the UK within the next several weeks. The withdrawal of asylum and physical ejection of Assange could come as early as this week. Based on a discussion with one of Assanges lawyers, Jennifer Robinson, Greenwald explained the pseudo-legal concoction being prepared by the British and US authorities to lock Assange away for many years. The only publicly announced criminal proceeding Assange faces is a 2012 arrest warrant for failure to surrender. This minor bail violation charge arose when Assange obtained asylum from Ecuador after exhausting all his legal appeals against being extradited to Sweden to face a trumped-up investigation into sexual assault allegations and almost certain removal to the US. The bail charge carries a maximum prison term of three months, and his lawyers would argue that his time already spent in a British jail should be counted against any such sentence. In 2010, on the basis of the European arrest warrant to answer questions in Sweden, Assange was imprisoned for 10 days, then placed under house arrest for 550 days. Beyond the minor charge for breaching bail, however, British prosecutors are expected to claim that Assanges alleged failure to surrender amounted to contempt of court, which carries a prison term of up to two years. This more lengthy detention would not only extend the silencing of Assange. It would permit the US authorities ample time to bring extradition proceedings, which could take up to three years alone. Even before removal to the US, Assange would thus end up having spent more than a decade in prison or effective detention despite never having been charged with, let alone convicted of, any crime. Ecuadors moves to terminate Assanges political asylum are the result of intensive pressure on the Moreno government by the Trump administration, which has escalated the Obama White Houses machinations to get its hands on Assange. US Vice President Mike Pence visited Ecuador earlier this month to ramp up Washingtons demands on Moreno, who has shifted the countrys government sharply to the right to try to win favour from the US and the financial markets. Leading figures in the Trump administration, including Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have publicly declared their intent to see Assange arrested and imprisoned. Sessions last year said putting Assange on trial was a US priority and Pompeo, who was then the CIA director, branded WikiLeaks a non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors like Russia. Pompeo explicitly rejected any defence of Assange under the First Amendment in the US Constitution guaranteeing free speech. WikiLeaks, he said, pretended that Americas First Amendment freedoms shield them from justice but they are wrong. The US threats against Assange escalated after March 2017, when WikiLeaks began publishing a massive leak of CIA documents. The Vault 7 files reveal that the CIA is hacking into the phones, PCs, servers, smart televisions and vehicle computer systems of millions of people in the US and internationally. The Trump administrations determination to put Assange on trial exposes the fraud of the propaganda campaign, spearheaded by the US Democratic Party, to slander Assange as a tool of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Assange supposedly helped elect Trump by publishing revealing emails about Hillary Clintons presidential bid. The Democratic National Committee has already shredded the First Amendment by suing Assange and WikiLeaks for publishing the emails. The emails showed that the committee, on Clintons behalf, sought to sabotage Bernie Sanders campaign for the 2016 presidential nomination and that Clinton gave secret speeches to Wall Street financiers assuring them that she would protect their interests, regardless of any false promises she made on the campaign trail. Swedish authorities finally dropped their investigation into Assange in May 2017, thus cancelling the European Arrest Warrant against him. However, Prime Minister Theresa Mays government and the British courts still refused to cancel their own arrest warrant against him, nominally for absconding on bail. The danger Assange faces was highlighted on July 20 by comments by UK Foreign Affairs Secretary Jeremy Hunt and Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, who was in Britain for ministerial talks. Hunt boasted that Assange faces serious charges and will receive a warm welcome from the British police once he leaves the embassy. Bishop, in effect, washed her governments hands of Assanges plight, saying it was a matter for British law enforcement authorities. Her contemptuous remark signalled a defiance of a globally broadcast rally conducted by the Socialist Equality Party of Australia, with the support of well-known investigative journalist John Pilger, in Sydneys Town Hall Square on June 17. That rally demanded that the Australian government secure Assanges right to return to Australia, if he so wishes, with guarantees that he not be extradited to the US. As all these experiences demonstrate, Assanges fate cannot be left up to capitalist governments and courts. We urge workers and young people everywhere to demand his immediate freedom, as a critical part of the fight to defend fundamental democratic rights. The vast social power of the international working class must be mobilised for his defence, independent of all the pro-imperialist parties, trade unions and media organisations that have lined up with the ruling class against him. The author also recommends: The Turnbull government must act to repatriate Australian citizen Julian Assange to Australia [19 June 2018] The Campaign to Free Julian Assange The rates of black lung disease among coal miners in the central Appalachia states in the US are now at their highest levels in a quarter century, according to a new report by government researchers. More than one in five miners with more than 25 years experience live with the fatal and incurable condition known officially as coal workers pneumoconiosis (CWP), which is caused by irreparable damage to the lungs through long-term exposure to coal dust. The deadly disease continues to ruin more lives in West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia. Because black lung develops over time and can take years before victims begin to exhibit symptoms, the researchers warn that their findings actually underestimate the true extent of the disease among active miners. What you see now in active miners is what youll see later in former miners, and potentially greater disease and more progression, coauthor Cara Halldin told National Public Radio (NPR). And so, this is probably an underestimate of what well see in the future. The authors did not mince words in their report, commenting that [w]e can think of no other industry or workplace in the United States in which this [level of workplace-caused illness] would be considered acceptable. Until the late 1990s, black lung disease had fallen by more than 90 percent over the course of nearly three decades, after a series of miners strikes and mass protests forced the passage of 1969 federal legislation and later regulations recognizing black lung as an occupational illness and limiting exposure to coal dust. Since the late 1990s, however, the disease has made a rapid and dramatic comeback. Earlier this year, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) announced that it had identified the largest cluster of patients diagnosed with black lung ever recorded, with 416 cases diagnosed at three clinics between 2013 and 2017. A social worker told NPR that they now see as many cases in two weeks as they used to see in a year, and that they have had 154 new cases since the end of the governments study. The growing number of black lung cases is all the more remarkable given the steep decline in the number of active miners in the region, as decades of mine closures have left the total workforce at a small fraction of its postwar height of nearly 500,000. The previous decline in rates of black lung was the product of significant, protracted struggles by coal miners for access to healthcare and safer working conditions over the course of many decades. A three-week wildcat strike in February 1969 forced the passage of the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act, the first federal legislation on black lung. The law enforced limits on exposure to coal dust, created a compensation program for miners with black lung, and created a voluntary x-ray monitoring program to help track the prevalence of the disease. Federal regulations, however, were always inadequate to completely eradicate black lung and sick miners were often put through tests aimed at denying them benefits. Mass protests organized by retirees and widows erupted in the early 1970s, culminating in the 111-day strike in 1977-78 where miners defied both the United Mine Workers leadership and the back-to-work order by President Jimmy Carter. After his election in 1982, UMW President Richard Trumka sabotaged one struggle after another. In place of the nationwide strikes, which had been common in earlier times, Trumka introduced the disastrous selective strike policy, isolating miners at individual mines and ensuring their defeat. The union also did nothing to defend militant miners who were framed up and jailed or even murdered by company thugs. The cozy relationship between the UMW and the coal bosses was exemplified by its endorsement of billionaire coal magnate Jim Justice for governor of West Virginia. Both Trumka, now the president of the AFL-CIO, and the UMW under current president Cecil Roberts have endorsed Trumps trade war policies, under the bogus pretext that they will protect American jobs. Trumps Commerce Secretary, billionaire investor Wilbur Ross, was the owner of the Sago Mine in 2006, when an explosion resulted in the deaths of 12 miners. Since the 1990s, recommendations from NIOSH to cut maximum coal dust exposure limits in half have been simply ignored. Moreover, existing limits on exposure have often been flouted. Earlier this month, federal prosecutors indicted executives from Armstrong Energy in western Kentucky for falsifying coal dust samples in its reporting to the federal government. Later this year, a 55 percent reduction in production taxes on coal operators, which funds the federal Black Lung Benefits Program is scheduled to go into effect. The Government Accountability Office estimates that as a result of the tax cuts, the fund, which is already $4 billion in debt, will see this deficit quadruple over the next thirty years. Kentucky lawmakers have recently passed legislation that will ban pulmonologists who are federally certified to read black lung x-rays from working in state workers compensation claims. The new state requirements leaves only 7 pulmonologists in the entire state who will be allowed to work on these claims. Most of these have previously done work on behalf of the coal and insurance companies, numerous media outlets have reported. The resurgence of black lung disease is only the most dramatic expression of the dramatic reversals in living standards in the Appalachian coalfields. Decades of mine closures and the destruction of what had been one of the only decent-paying jobs in one of the poorest regions of the country has created a massive social crisis. Appalachia is one of the centers of the opioid epidemic and has the second-lowest life expectancy in the country. There are growing signs, however, that the period in which the UMW and other unions could suppress the class struggle is coming to an end. It is significant that the mining areas of southern West Virginia, which have been hardest hit by the resurgence of black lung, were also the centers of the West Virginia teachers strike earlier this year, where a central demand was full funding for the public employee healthcare program. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders appeared on the CBS interview program Face the Nation Sunday and fully embraced the anti-Russia campaign of the US military-intelligence apparatus, backed by the Democratic Party and much of the media. In response to a question from CBS host Margaret Brennan, Sanders unleashed a torrent of denunciations of Trumps meeting and press conference in Helsinki with Russian President Vladimir Putin. A preliminary transcript reads: SANDERS: I will tell you that I was absolutely outraged by his behavior in Helsinki, where he really sold the American people out. And it makes me think that either Trump doesnt understand what Russia has done, not only to our elections, but through cyber attacks against all parts of our infrastructure, either he doesnt understand it, or perhaps he is being blackmailed by Russia, because they may have compromising information about him. Or perhaps also you have a president who really does have strong authoritarian tendencies. And maybe he admires the kind of government that Putin is running in Russia. And I think all of that is a disgrace and a disservice to the American people. And we have got to make sure that Russia does not interfere, not only in our elections, but in other aspects of our lives. These comments, which echo remarks he gave at a rally in Kansas late last week, signal Sanders full embrace of the right-wing campaign launched by the Democrats and backed by dominant sections of the military-intelligence apparatus. Their opposition to Trump is centered on issues of foreign policy, based on the concern that Trump, due to his own America First brand of imperialist strategy, has run afoul of geostrategic imperatives that are considered inviolablein particular, the conflict with Russia. Sanders did not use his time on a national television program to condemn Trumps persecution of immigrants and the separation of children from their parents, or to denounce his naming of ultra-right jurist Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, or to attack the White House declaration last week that the war on poverty had ended victoriouslyin order to justify the destruction of social programs for impoverished working people. Nor did he seek to advance his supposedly left-wing program on domestic issues like health care, jobs and education. Sanders embrace of the anti-Russia campaign is not surprising, but it is instructive. This is, after all, an individual who presented himself as left-wing, even a socialist. During the 2016 election campaign, he won the support of millions of people attracted to his call for a political revolution against the billionaire class. For Sanders, who has a long history of opportunist and pro-imperialist politics in the orbit of the Democratic Party, the aim of the campaign was always to direct social discontent into establishment channels, culminating in his endorsement of the campaign of Hillary Clinton. Sanders's support for the anti-Russia and anti-Wikileaks campaign is all the more telling because he was himself the victim of efforts by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic Party leadership to block his 2016 campaign. In June and July 2016, Wikileaks published internal Democratic emails in which officials ridiculed the Sanders campaign, forcing the DNC to issue a public apology: "On behalf of everyone at the DNC, we want to offer a deep and sincere apology to Senator Sanders, his supporters, and the entire Democratic Party for the inexcusable remarks made over email." In the aftermath of his election campaign, Sanders was elevated into a top-level position in the Democratic Party caucus in the US Senate. His first response to the inauguration of Trump was to declare his willingness to work with the president, closely tracking remarks of Obama that the election of Trump was part of an intramural scrimmage in which all sides were on the same team. As the campaign of the military-intelligence agencies intensifies, however, Sanders is toeing the line. The experience is instructive not only in relation to Sanders, but to an entire social milieu and the political perspective with which it is associated. This is what it means to work within the Democratic Party. The Sanders campaign did not push the Democrats to the left, but rather the state apparatus of the ruling class brought Sanders in to give a left veneer to a thoroughly right-wing party. New political figures, many associated with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are being brought in for the same purpose. As Sanders gave his anti-Russia rant, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez sat next to him nodding her agreement. The 28-year-old member of the DSA last month won the Democratic nomination in New Yorks 14th Congressional District, unseating the Democratic incumbent, Joseph Crowley, the fourth-ranking member of the Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives. Since then, Ocasio-Cortez has been given massive and largely uncritical publicity by the corporate media, summed up in an editorial puff piece by the New York Times that described her as a bright light in the Democratic Party who has brought desperately needed energy back to New York politics Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders were jointly interviewed from Kansas, where the two appeared Friday at a campaign rally for James Thompson, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the US House of Representatives from the Fourth Congressional District, based in Wichita, in an August 7 primary election. Thompson might appear to be an unusual ally for the socialist Sanders and the DSA member Ocasio-Cortez. His campaign celebrates his role as an Army veteran, and his website opens under the slogan Join the Thompson Army, followed by pledges that the candidate will Fight for America. In an interview with the Associated Press, Thompson indicated that despite his support for Sanders call for Medicare for all, and his own endorsement by the DSA, he was wary of any association with socialism. I dont like the term socialist, because people do associate that with bad things in history, he said. Such anticommunism fits right in with the anti-Russian campaign, which is the principal theme of the Democratic Party in the 2018 elections. As the World Socialist Web Site has pointed out for many months, the real thrust of the Democratic Party campaign is demonstrated by its recruitment as congressional candidates of dozens of former CIA and military intelligence agents, combat commanders from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and war planners from the Pentagon, State Department and White House. There is no contradiction between the influx of military-intelligence candidates into the Democratic Party and the Democrats making use of the services of Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez to give the party a left cover. Both the CIA Democrats and their pseudo-left comrades agree on the most important questions: the defense of the global interests of American imperialism and a more aggressive intervention in the Syrian civil war and other areas where Washington and Moscow are in conflict. During last years mass protests against former President Park Geun-hye, South Koreas military planned to enforce martial law, according to a report leaked to the public on July 5. The Defense Security Command (DSC), a military intelligence agency, finalized the plans in March last year, shortly before the countrys Constitutional Court removed Park from office on corruption charges. Lawmaker Rhee Cheol-hee of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) released the document, entitled Wartime Martial Law and Joint Action Plan. Supposedly, the document was not reported to Defense Minister Song Yeong-mu until this March 16. Song subsequently kept it hidden from President Moon Jae-in, also of the DPK, until June 28. On Friday, President Moons spokesman Kim Eui-gyeom tried to play down the revelation and claim that such plans had since been modified. He told a press conference: Usually, the military renews its martial law plans every two years. Cheongwadae [the Blue House or presidential office] has confirmed the submitted documents are completely different from the existing plans. In the event that last years protests did not subside after Parks trial, the plans called for mobilizing 200 tanks, 550 armoured vehicles, 4,800 soldiers, and 1,400 special warfare command troops. Brigades would seize the presidential offices, the Constitutional Court and the National Assembly, as well as other government offices. The DSC would censor the media to prevent the public from learning what was taking place. The military also intended to arrest opposition lawmakers who took part in the anti-Park protests, while banning rallies and anti-state activities. The DSC denounced the millions of protesters who took part in the demonstrations as North Korea followers, a common slander long used against opponents of the South Korean regime to justify the brutal suppression of democratic rights. The Military Human Rights Center for Korea, a civic group allied with the DPK, stated on July 6 that the DSC document is clearly a coup detat plan and all involved in this are believed to have committed the crime of conspiracy to commit rebellion. However, Moons administration responded in a muted tone. The president ordered an investigation into the DSC on July 10, almost two weeks after he supposedly was made aware of the document. When questioned on the slow response, the presidential office claimed that officials only gradually began to understand the significance of the document. An anonymous presidential official told the media the presidential palace would respond responsibly and needs time to look into the issue in a serious manner. For a country that endured nearly three decades of military dictatorship, the seriousness of a military threat to seize power is obvious. However, no arrests have been made. Moon waited until July 16 to demand the Defense Ministry hand over documents on the martial law plans. Defense Minister Song also tried to justify not reporting the document to the president earlier. I judged that this document needed legal analysis, and thought at the same time that regarding the issue of whether to disclose it, there should be a political consideration, he said. This is a marked contrast to the Democrats reaction to the arrest of a group of Unified Progressive Party members, including a lawmaker, in 2013 on trumped-up charges of conspiring to aid North Korea. The Democratic Party backed the arrests and accepted the phoney basis of the charges. Now, confronted with a genuine state conspiracy, its leaders offer nothing more than mild criticisms. There are deeper political issues involved in the leaking of this document. Different factions of the South Korean bourgeoisie are struggling to gain the upper hand as the global capitalist crisis continues to deepen. Rhee declined to state how he came by the report. However, the DPK is now using it to further discredit the conservative main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP), which was known as the Saenuri Party when Park was in office. In particular, the LKP has opposed the Democrats stance on North Korea, instead pushing a hardline position toward Pyongyang. While both parties agree on turning the North into a platform for exploitation by South Korean big business, they differ over the method of bringing Pyongyang under Seouls control. DPK leader Chu Mi-ae recently sought to deflect criticism from Moon over the DSC document, while distancing himself from high-ranking members of Parks administration: The probe must investigate thoroughly not only former head of the DSC Jo Han-cheon but former Defense Minister Han Min-gu, former national security office chief Kim Kwan-jin, former prime minister Hwang Gyo-an who served as acting president, and of course, former president Park Geun-hye. The governments campaign against former Park administration officials is also meant to redirect growing working class anger away from Moon. Last years mass demonstrations were not just the result of Parks personal corruption. Hostility toward the ruling capitalist class has built up over years of attacks on working and living conditions carried out by all the major parties. The bourgeoisie recognizes that as Moons anti-working class agenda becomes clearer, public anger could be directed at the political establishment as a whole, including the Democrats, the pseudo-left and the trade unions. The supposedly militant Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and pseudo-left organizations claimed last year that Parks removal and the election of a Democrat could somehow complete the democratization process left unfinished since the end of the military dictatorship in 1987. Moons accommodation to United States imperialism in foreign policy and big business at home demonstrate the fraud of this pro-capitalist conception. The leaked document makes clear that the danger of martial law or a military dictatorship is not relegated to the past. For all the talk of democratization, the framework of the police state continues to exist, supported by the entire bourgeoisie. In secret, behind locked gates, our Nation's Oldest City dumped a landfill in a lake (Old City Reservoir), while emitting sewage in our rivers and salt marsh. Organized citizens exposed and defeated pollution, racism and cronyism. We elected a new Mayor. We're transforming our City -- advanced citizenship. Ask questions. Make disclosures. Demand answers. Be involved. Expect democracy. Report and expose corruption. Smile! Help enact a St. Augustine National Park and Seashore. We shall overcome! Israeli troops, with the backing of Washington and other major NATO powers, carried out an operation over the weekend to evacuate some 800 operatives of the so-called White Helmets organization from southern Syria, where government forces have staged a major offensive to retake areas previously held by Western-backed Islamist militias. The White Helmets, ostensibly a civil defense group dedicated to rescuing civilians caught in the fighting in Syria, has been heavily funded by the US and European powers. It has operated solely in areas controlled by the so-called rebels, who are armed and funded by the US and its NATO allies, together with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commented on the operation Sunday, stating: Several days ago President Trump contacted me, as did Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau and others, and requested that we assist in evacuating hundreds of White Helmets from Syria. These are people who have saved lives and whose lives were in danger. The Israel Defense Forces reportedly opened up border crossings in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and provided a heavily armed escort for the White Helmets, who were loaded on buses and taken to Jordan. The IDF issued a statement describing its actions as an exceptional humanitarian gesture. The Jordanian Foreign Ministry acknowledged in a press release the role played by Amman in the operation in allowing the US-backed operatives to pass through its territory. The [Jordanian] government allowed the UN to organize passage of about 800 Syrian citizens through Jordan for their naturalization in Western states after the three Western states, namely the United Kingdom, Germany and Canada, proposed in writing to undertake their resettlement for a certain period of time due to the threat to their lives. British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt said on Sunday that the UK had to evacuate the White Helmets to ensure their "immediate protection. CNN reported last week that the evacuation of some 1,000 White Helmets and their families from Syria had been discussed during the recent NATO summit in response to the advances made by Syrian government forces. Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said that she had called for global leadership to support and help these heroes during a meeting of foreign ministers at the NATO summit in Brussels a week ago. Both the Israeli and Jordanian governments, while joining in the rescue of the White Helmets, have sealed their borders to the tens of thousands of refugees fleeing the fighting in Syrias Daraa and Quneitra provinces. Israel has allowed in no refugees since the war for regime change was initiated in Syria seven years ago. It has, however, provided arms, supplies and medical care to Islamist rebels fighting the Syrian government. This weekends extraordinary operation, transferring Syrians across Israel into Jordan for resettlement in Europe and Canada, was not a humanitarian intervention, but rather the salvaging of individuals who have served as assets in the Western-backed campaign to topple the government of President Bashar al-Assad and replace it with a pliant stooge regime The White Helmets were created in 2013 principally by the US and UK governments, with additional funding from the German, Dutch and Danish governments. The principal figure involved in the groups founding was the former British army officer and MI6 agent James Le Mesurier, who went on to work as a mercenary for Gulf oil monarchies in conjunction with a company linked to the infamous former US military contractor, Blackwater. Le Mesurier trained Syrians in Turkey and then sent them back into Syria to function as a logistical support and propaganda arm of the Western-backed rebels. Operating principally in zones controlled by the Al Nusra Front, the Syrian affiliate of Al Qaeda, and its allies, the White Helmets filmed staged rescues in areas hit by bombs dropped by government and Russian warplanes, passing on the videos to the Western corporate media, which aired them without any questions. The group has been accused of fabricating both attacks and rescues, most infamously in the case of an alleged gas attack in the city of Douma on April 7. While film of the attacks supposed aftermath was broadcast in the US and throughout Europe, residents and doctors at the facility where the White Helmets filmed themselves yelling gas and hosing down children with water came forward to say that there had been no attack. The patent aim of the fabricated incident, as with similar cases previously, was to provoke a US-NATO intervention. The US, the UK and France responded by launching more than 100 missiles on multiple targets in Syria a week later. Representatives of the White Helmets have been among the most vocal in calling on the US and its allies to impose a no-fly zone in Syria, a tactic that would require a massive military occupation of the country and that would heighten the danger of a military confrontation between the worlds two major nuclear powers, the US and Russia. Videos have surfaced showing members of the White Helmets carrying weapons with Al Nusra forces and participating in atrocities against Syrian government troops. The White Helmets have enjoyed massive funding. Much of the money has been channeled through private contractors working for the US and British governments. The US funds have flowed through Chemonics, a Washington, D.C.-based contractor that has also been active in Afghanistan and Libya. USAID awarded the company $128.5 million in January 2013 to support a peaceful transition to a democratic and stable Syria. It is estimated that at least $32 million of this money had been funneled into the White Helmets. Mayday Rescue, a UK-based company, has funneled tens of millions more to the civil defense group. Germany, Canada, and the UK have all reportedly agreed to accept the White Helmets members as refugees, while closing the door to other Syrians fleeing the war. Washington, however, has made no such offer. While pouring tens of millions of dollars into the organization, it barred its chief, Raed Saleh, from entering the country when he flew to Washington in April 2016 to receive an award for his contributions to humanitarian relief. The State Department explained that he had been sent back to Turkey because of suspected extremist connections. Tronc swung the ax hard on the New York Daily News cutting half the newspapers editorial staff, including editor-in-chief Jim Rich and managing editor Kristen Lee. Tronc, in an announcement sent Monday to employees of the 99-year-old tabloid, said the massive cutbacks will include refocusing the papers coverage on breaking news. We are fundamentally restructuring the Daily News, the company said in the memo. We are reducing today the size of the editorial team by approximately 50% and re-focusing much of our talent on breaking news especially in areas of crime, civil justice and public responsibility. Over the last few years, the tabloids newsroom staff has declined from several hundred to between about 75-100 people, the New York Times reported. Tronc has named Robert York, previously publisher and editor-in-chief of the companys Morning Call newspaper in Allentown, Pa., to head the NY Daily News as of next Monday (July 30). Prior to joining the Morning Call in 2016, York had worked for 20 years at Troncs San Diego Union-Tribune, most recently as VP of strategy and operations. In a tweet early Monday, departing NY Daily News editor-in-chief Rich wrote, If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you. Richs Twitter profile currently reads, Just a guy sitting at home watching journalism being choked into extinction. If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you. Jim Rich (@therealjimrich) July 23, 2018 Tronc bought the NY Daily News last fall for a token $1 and the assumption of operational costs and pension liabilities from real-estate magnate Mortimer Zuckerman, who had owned the tabloid since 1993. Zuckerman originally purchased the Daily News for $36 million, and had previously engaged in sporadic attempts to sell the tabloid in recent years. Story continues Its been a year of upheaval for Tronc, the Chicago-based publishing business of the company formerly known as Tribune Co. Earlier this year, Tronc sold the Los Angeles Times, along with the San Diego Union-Tribune and other titles in Southern California to investor and biotech entrepreneur Patrick Soon-Shiong for $500 million and the assumption of $90 million pension liabilities. In March, Michael Ferro, the former Tronc chairman, stepped down from the companys board just prior to a report from Fortune detailing allegations of sexual advances by two women who were doing business with him. Currently, Tronc owns and operates publications in 10, including the Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News, the Baltimore Sun, Orlando Sentinel, South Floridas Sun-Sentinel, Virginias Daily Press, and The Virginian-Pilot, the Morning Call and the Hartford Courant. Pictured above: A newsstand displays copies of the New York Daily News Sept. 5, 2017, edition, after the tabloid was acquired by Tronc Related stories Tronc Lays Off Former L.A. Times Editor-in-Chief, Dozens of Others Tronc Chairman Michael Ferro Steps Down Hours Before Report Detailing Unwanted Sexual Advances Los Angeles Times Owner in Talks to Sell Newspaper Subscribe to Variety Newsletters and Email Alerts! Three people were killed, including a gunman, and more than a dozen others were injured in a shooting Sunday night in Torontos Danforth neighborhood, authorities said. Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders said an assailant opened fire with a handgun around 10 p.m. local time in the popular Greektown area, shooting 15 people before exchanging gunfire with police officers. The suspect later died. The fatalities include an 18-year-old female and a 10-year-old girl. The ages of the victims, 13 of which have been hospitalized, are between 10 to 59 years old, Toronto police said Monday afternoon. Their injuries range from minor to serious in nature, Saunders said at an afternoon press conference that provided few new details about the case, including the identities of the victims and suspect. Police previously said that 14 people were injured. Police are seen near the scene of a mass shooting in Toronto, Canada, on Sunday. (Photo: Chris Helgren / Reuters) Saunders said there was no known motive for the attack, but authorities are still investigating. Im looking at absolutely every single possible motive here, the police chief said during an earlier press briefing. When you have this many people struck by gunfire, its a grave concern. Saunders also issued a public plea for help from those who may have witnessed the shooting or may have video of it. We know that there is a lot more evidence that needs to be captured and I know that there is a lot more, and Im hoping that those people who have that information, no matter how small, contact the police in any way, shape or form, he said. A gunman, identified as 29 years old, killed two people and injured more than a dozen others in Torontos Danforth neighborhood, authorities said. (Photo: Chris Helgren / Reuters) The gunman, only described as 29 years old, was found dead in a nearby alley following an exchange of gunfire with police. It wasnt clear how he was shot, the Globe and Mail reported. Officials said many of the victims had been transported to area hospitals. Their conditions are not known. Witness reported hearing as many as 15 to 20 gunshots in the Danforth and Logan area, which hosts several popular bars and restaurants. Several witnesses posted videos taken near the scene to social media, including audio of shots ringing out through the neighborhood. Story continues While our city will always be resilient in the face of such attacks, it does not mean such a cowardly act committed against our residents is any less painful this is an attack against innocent families and our entire city. John Tory (@TorontosMayor) July 23, 2018 Toronto Mayor John Tory issued a call for help from citizens that were in the area, asking any bystanders to share information from the evening to help authorities determine what happened. He also urged the city to avoid drawing any conclusions and to wait for the police to do their jobs. People should not reach any conclusions because the police themselves have not yet drawn any conclusions, the mayor said at a news briefing. Every little bit of information is going to help the police to do their job. Tory said the night reflected the citys ongoing gun problem and said firearms were too readily available to too many people. There are too many people carrying around guns and using them in whatever matter they are using them, he said. We have a gun problem. Doug Ford, the premier of Ontario, said late Sunday his heart goes out to the victims and loved ones of the horrific act of gun violence. Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also expressed support and condolences to those affected by the violence in a statement posted to Twitter on Monday. Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. My thoughts are with everyone affected by the terrible tragedy on the Danforth last night in Toronto, and may the injured make a full recovery. The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave - and well be there to support you through this difficult time. Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) July 23, 2018 The people of Toronto are strong, resilient and brave - and well be there to support you through this difficult time, Trudeau wrote. This article has been updated to include the latest casualty figures and new details about the shooting. Related... Parkland Shooting Survivors Dad Escaped Earlier Las Vegas Shooting George H.W. Bush's Former Doctor Shot And Killed While Riding Bike 1 Killed In Hostage Situation At Los Angeles Trader Joes Dad Of Brother And Sister Parkland Survivors Fatally Shot In Robbery This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Zachary Keck Security, Middle East As in 4 killer weapons... 4 Ways Iran Could Wage a Deadly War Against America Submarines would be invaluable for Iran were it to try and close the Strait of Hormuz. As the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has explained, In the confined and shallow waters of the Arabian Gulf, the ability to deploy submarines effectively threatens surface vessels that are channeled into narrow Sea Lines of Communication. These narrow SLOCs force military and commercial ships to travel predictable routes, making them easy prey for submarines. With the possible exception of North Korea, no country in the postCold War era has sought to challenge the United States as much as Iran. From the Middle East to Central Asia to Latin America, Tehran has never missed an opportunity to antagonize the U.S. and limit its influence. This is an inherently risky strategy. Not only has the U.S. encircled Iran with military bases on all sides, but Americas military spending in recent years has been twice the size of Irans entire GDP. In any conventional military conflict, Iran wouldnt stand a chance against the U.S. armed forces. To compensate, Iran pursues a deterrent-based military doctrine premised on three types of capabilities: an expansive ballistic missile arsenal, asymmetric naval warfare (particularly the threat of closing down the Strait of Hormuz), and ties to non-state militant groups. Although many weapon systems go into implementing this doctrine, five capabilities are particularly crucial: (Recommended: 5 U.S. Weapons of War Iran Should Fear) Sejjil Missile The most blunt instrument in Irans military doctrine is its large inventory of ballistic missiles. Of these, the Shahab family of ballistic missiles, which are based on North Korean designs, are the best known. (This first appeared in 2015.) The Sejjil-1 (and its successor, the Sejjil-2) should be the most feared, however. The Sejjil-1 is a two-stage, medium range surface-to-surface ballistic missile that Iran first tested in 2008. Unlike the Shahab missiles, the Sejjil-1 missile is solid-fueled, greatly reducing its launch time while enhancing its mobility. Story continues In Congressional testimony in November 2009, then U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that the The [Sejjil] missile will have a range of approximately 2,000 to 2,500 kilometers. This is consistent with the ranges given by Iranian officials like Defense Minister Brigadier General Mustafa Mohammad. At this range, the Sejjil-1 can deliver a 750 kg payload to Israel and even parts of southeastern Europe. It is widely believed that this could someday be a nuclear payload. (Recommended: 5 Chinese Weapons of War America Should Fear) The Sejjil-2 was first tested in 2009 and is likely still under development. According to Global Security, The Sejjil-2 has an demonstrated range capability of 2,510 kilometers with its 650 kilogram tri-conic warhead re-entry vehicle design. It can also carry a 1,000 kilogram warhead to 2,000 kilometers. The Sejjil-2s biggest advancement is in accuracy, something Iranian ballistic missiles have traditionally lacked. Iranian defense officials have said that compared with the Sejjil-1, the Sejjil-2 is equipped with a new navigation system as well as precise and sophisticated sensors. Ghadir-class midget submarines Perhaps Irans greatest deterrent threat is its ability to threaten oil shipments in the Strait of Hormuz, which roughly 20 percent of global oil supplies must transverse on their way to markets. Indeed, according to some estimates, the U.S. has spent some $8 trillion protecting the Strait of the Hormuz since 1976. Submarines would be invaluable for Iran were it to try and close the Strait of Hormuz. As the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has explained, In the confined and shallow waters of the Arabian Gulf, the ability to deploy submarines effectively threatens surface vessels that are channeled into narrow Sea Lines of Communication. These narrow SLOCs force military and commercial ships to travel predictable routes, making them easy prey for submarines. (Recommended: 5 Russian Weapons of War America Should Fear) Iran has a number of different types of submarines, but its growing fleet of 150-ton Ghadir-class (Qadir/Khadir) midget submarines would be especially deadly in any conflict. A variant of the North Korean Yugo and Sango-class submarines, the small size and acoustic signature of the Ghadir-class make them especially hard to detect and track. Each sub packs two 533-mm tubes for firing torpedoes, is capable of laying mines and, according to Iranian media outlets, could be used to transport and insert special forces into enemy territory. (Recommended: 5 Indian Weapons of War China Should Fear) The subs are not of particularly high quality, but, as is often the case with Iranian naval capabilities, quantity matters. Iran has at least twenty Ghadir-class subs compared to less than a handful of its other types of submarines. These numbers are crucial for how Iran would use the Ghadir-class subs in any conflict. As Chris Harmer, an expert on Irans military at the ISW, explained to me in 2013, The quietest submarine in the world is one that rests on a sandy seabed. That is how the Iranians would use the Ghadirget it out of port, sink to the bottom of the shallow Persian Gulf, rest on the sandy bottom, and wait for a target to come to it. Khalij-e Fars Missile The Khalij-e Fars anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) is another valuable component of Irans asymmetric naval capabilities. Often called Irans carrier-killer, the Khalij-e Fars (Persian Gulf) is a is a solid-fuel, supersonic Anti-Ship Ballistic Missile (ASBM) with a range of 300 km when carrying a 650-kg payload. It is based on the Fateh-110, a single-stage solid-propellant, surface-to-surface missile that Iran first tested in 2002 (The Fateh-100 is based off of the China-made DF-11A). Iranian media outlets have described the Khalij-e Fars as the most advanced and most important missile of the IRGC Navy and said, the distinctive feature of the missile lies in its supersonic speed and trajectory. While other missiles mostly traverse at subsonic speeds and in cruise style, the Persian Gulf moves vertically after launch, traverses at supersonic speeds, finds the target through a smart program, locks on the target and hit it. The Khalij-e Fars was first tested in 2011 and has been tested regularly ever since. Iran claimed that the second test of the ASBM in July 2012 hit a moving vessel with a 30-meter precision rate. The following year, Brigadier General Amir-Ali Hajizadeh, Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Division, claimed that Iran had increased the missiles precision from 30 meters to 8.5 meters. (Recommended: 5 Israeli Weapons of War ISIS Should Fear) Many foreign experts have been skeptical of these claims. Chris Harmer, the Iran military expert at ISW, told me at the time of Hajizadehs announcement that We do not know, in open source, the exact performance specifications of Iranian missiles. This applies equally to ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and anti-ship missiles, of both the ballistic and cruise missile varieties. Irans intentions with its carrier-killer are more transparent; Fars News Agency, which is close to the IRGC, bluntly stated the missile is designed to destroy targets and hostile forces at sea. Deputy Defense Minister General Majid Bokayee similarly boasted that we witnessed the US naval fleets' retreat in the Persian Gulf after the first test on the missile. Hezbollah At the time, the decision to send IRGC officials to Lebanon in the early 1980s to help foment resistance to Israels occupation reeked of revolutionary fanaticism. Not only had Iran not traditionally exercised influence in Lebanon, but it was locked in a life and death struggle with Saddam Husseins Iraq. Domestically, the country was also still reeling from the aftermath of the 1979 revolution. With the benefit of hindsight, the decision to infiltrate Lebanon seems like pure strategic genius, as Hezbollah has been the gift that just keeps giving for Iran. Time and again Hezbollah has proven to be the most versatile and usable weapon of war in Irans arsenal. And it isnt even close. (Recommended: 5 Reasons ISIS Is a Threat to the American Homeland) Oftentimes, Iran has used Hezbollah to carry out traditional terrorist attacks like the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which killed eighty-five people and injured scores of others. Indeed, Hezbollahs greatest value to Iran may be its operational reach. Whereas Tehrans Qud Forces have often struggled to execute attacks outside of the Middle East, Hezbollah has shown no such limitations. For example, in early 2012, Iranian operatives working for the Qud Forces tried to attack Israeli targets in places like India, Georgia, Thailand and Kenya in retaliation for Israels suspected assassinations of Iranian scientists. In each case, the Iranian operatives botched the attacks, sometimes embarrassing themselves in the process (Irans alleged attempt to assassinate the Saudi Ambassador to the United States was also a comical failure.) Following the Quds Forces botched attempts, Iran turned to Hezbollah, which successfully attacked Israeli tourists in Bulgaria. Hezbollahs utility to Iran has increasingly gone beyond traditional terrorist attacks. Following the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, Iran used Hezbollah to train Iraqi Shia militant groups. There have also been reports that Hezbollah militants have helped train Houthi rebels in Yemen, who have overrun most of the capital city of Sanaa in recent weeks. Most notably, Hezbollah has been indispensable in propping up the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria since 2011. Zachary Keck is the former managing editor of the National Interest. Read full article The Daily Beast New York State Sex Offender Registry via APA Georgia man has filed a lawsuit against Jeffrey Epsteins estate, claiming the late sex-trafficker sold him a Gulfstream jet in the weeks before his 2019 arrest without disclosing that the aircraft was used in a criminal enterprise.Thomas Huff claims that JEGE LLC, the company Epstein once controlled and which owns the plane, has been damaged by the stigma connected to sex offender.JEGEs customers, some of which are very well known to the public By Ed Stoddard JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Diamond producer De Beers said on Monday it was relocating 200 elephants from its private reserve in South Africa to neighboring Mozambique, part of wider efforts to restore wildlife populations ravaged by conflict there. The Anglo American unit said its 32,000-hectare (80,000-acre) Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve could support around 60 elephants but now had 270, causing "extensive damage to an ecosystem that must sustain a diverse wildlife population." The world's largest land mammals have a jumbo-sized impact on their terrain and in many South African parks, which are fenced to contain them, populations have reached levels where the vegetation cannot support their numbers. De Beers said the elephants would be moved 1,500 km (1,000 miles) to Mozambique's Zinave National Park, which has over 400,000 hectares and an elephant population of only 60. Mozambique's wildlife numbers were badly hit by a 15-year civil war that ended in 1992. In more recent years, its remaining elephant populations have been targeted by ivory poachers. The operation is being conducted with the Peace Parks Foundation (PPF) conservation group, and De Beers said it was providing it with $500,000 to support anti-poaching efforts. "Ecosystems require a range of fauna and flora to stay balanced. If you remove one species, such as elephant, it has a ripple effect on the whole system," said Werner Myburgh, the chief executive of the PPF. "The reintroduction of elephants to Mozambique will bring us one step closer to achieving our dream of restoring the landscape." Elephants are extremely social animals and family groups will be kept together for the translocation, a huge logistical undertaking that will include darting operations and the movement of tranquilized animals over long distances by road. (Editing by James Macharia and Robin Pomeroy) By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) - An elderly worshipper had a close call on Monday when a 100-kg (220 lb) stone suddenly fell from Jerusalem's Western Wall and crashed at her feet. The Israel Antiquities Authority said the boulder may have been dislodged by erosion caused by vegetation or moisture in the biblical wall, the holiest place where Jews are permitted to pray. "I didn't hear or feel anything until it landed right at my feet," Daniella Goldberg, a 79-year-old Jerusalem resident who had gone to the wall in the early morning to worship, told Reuters. A security camera captured the rare occurrence at the site revered by Jews as a remnant of the compound of the Second Temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. One of Islam's holiest sites, the Noble Sanctuary, where al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock stand, lies above. The footage showed the stone falling from a height of about seven meters (23 feet) in a nearly vacant section of the wall adjacent to its picture-postcard main plaza, where Jewish worshippers traditionally cram written prayers into crevices. Just a day earlier, worshippers had flocked to the holy site for Tisha B'Av, an annual Jewish day of mourning that marks the destruction of the two Biblical temples in Jerusalem. "A great miracle occurred when a stone weighing about 100 kilos fell near the worshipper and did not hurt her," Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said in a statement. The Jerusalem municipality temporarily closed the section for a safety inspection. It is built near piles of boulders believed to date to the time of the Second Temple. The main Western Wall esplanade remained open. A 2014 study by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem charted erosion in the different kinds of limestone that make up the Western Wall and said it a problem for engineers concerned about its stability. (Editing by Ros Russell) Harry J. Kazianis Security, Asia No one including myself wants to ever see a great power war between the United States and China. The ramifications are too horrific to imagine. Yet, the possibility is there for all of us to see. China's Shock and Awe Strategy to Crush America in a War As Mr. Miyagi put it best, If man cant see, he cant fight . The same can be said of a modern nation state fielding state of the art weapons of war Beijing could simply try to blind America before it knows it is under attack. This is a simple enough concept and one most scholars assume China would utilize in a conflict. America loves its command and control (C2) systems combined with state of the art C4ISR to destroy its enemies. Think the 1991 Gulf War and every other conflict America has fought since then. Modern C2 and C4ISR systems control the ability of U.S. war fighters to wage conflict with all military services fighting evermore jointly. This allows the sharing of information concerning enemy positions and capabilities in real time across the services and with allies, dropping smart bombs on target, and many other capabilities that give Washington what might just be its ultimate advantage. We all know that the chances of a U.S.-Sino war in Asia are remote thank God. With hundreds of billions of dollars in bilateral trade, the strong possibility that such a conflict would draw in most of Asias big geopolitical players, as well as the very real eventuality that such a conflict could go global (and nuclear), is enough to shut down such apocalyptic thoughts. However, as I discussed last week , there is enough pressure points between the two superpowers that sudden tensions could spark a crisis a crisis that could spiral out of control if cooler heads dont prevail. The purpose of this article is straightforward and scary enough: what if Beijing found itself in a situation where it felt war was inevitable with Washington (a crisis over Taiwan, a crisis in the East or South China Seas etc.) how would it procede? While there are many different ways China could strike America many of which would be non-kinetic and could even deny like a cyberstrike from a third party country or actor Beijing has the means to do incredible damage to U.S. interests and alliance networks throughout Asia and even in the wider Indo-Pacific. Much of Washingtons pivot or rebalance is certainly based on such a fact: a realization that U.S. military primacy is no longer guaranteed thanks to a slick Chinese counter-intervention based military modernization ( despite what others may think ). Story continues (This first appeared in 2015.) Setting the Scene for War: Before one can set the course for war, we need to get some housekeeping items out of the way. Let us assume for the purposes of this article China has decided to strike kinetically and decisively. Let us also assume Beijings goal is to limit the ability of U.S. forces along with their allies the capability to strike back conventionally. China in this scenario has also decided it will not use nuclear weapons and limit its war aims to the Asia-Pacific theatre. So, knowing all that, how would China go to war against America? Here is what I would do if I was a China: (Recommended: Are Submarines About to Become Obsolete) Step #1: Blind America As Mr. Miyagi put it best, If man cant see, he cant fight . The same can be said of a modern nation state fielding state of the art weapons of war Beijing could simply try to blind America before it knows it is under attack. This is a simple enough concept and one most scholars assume China would utilize in a conflict. America loves its command and control (C2) systems combined with state of the art C4ISR to destroy its enemies. Think the 1991 Gulf War and every other conflict America has fought since then. Modern C2 and C4ISR systems control the ability of U.S. war fighters to wage conflict with all military services fighting evermore jointly. This allows the sharing of information concerning enemy positions and capabilities in real time across the services and with allies, dropping smart bombs on target, and many other capabilities that give Washington what might just be its ultimate advantage. What if Beijing simply degraded and destroyed the ability of U.S. forces to have those advanced eyes and ears and brought back an old foe of U.S. forces the much hated fog of war? If that was the goal, a Chinese military campaign might just begin in cyberspace. Beijing might launch massive cyber strikes against U.S. command and control centers around the world trying to blind America and disrupt the ability of U.S. warfighters from seeing the coming battlefield in real time. Such strikes, at least if I was in charge in Beijing, would come from third party countries (or at least look like it thanks to proxy servers). America would know its systems were under attack, but it might not be clear from who at least not right away. China would have the advantage, at least for now. (Recommended: Five Chinese Weapons of War America Should Fear) The next blow would come before America could ascertain who was striking at the heart of its best military capabilities and this one would have Chinas fingerprints all over them. Beijing would begin to attack American satellites in orbit, attempting to destroy Washingtons massive intelligence gathering machine and communications systems. At this point, war has definitely started and there is no mistake who is behind it. Saturation Strikes: Think Chinese Shock and Awe With Lots of Missiles First China blinds its enemy, than it drops the hammer. A large body of recent Western literature assumes China would leverage the large amounts of cruise and ballistic weapons it has developed and deployed over the last several decades in any conflict with America and its allies. This includes mostly accurate short, medium, and long-range weapons and the much ballyhooed anti-ship ballistic missile or carrier-killer. (Recommended: Take Note, America: 5 Weapons of War China Should Build Now) After Beijing is assured Washington and its allies are in C2 and C4ISR hell, the Chinese version of shock and awe would be on full display. Beijing at least if I was at the helm would launch a massive barrage of cruise and ballistic missiles from the land, air, and sea. The likely targets: U.S. and possibly allied air bases with many of their advanced aircraft on the tarmac like sitting ducks, physical command and control centers, and U.S. naval vessels around the Pacific. China would attempt to do as much damage in one massive blow, and hope that it was strong enough to would induce either a meager U.S. and allied response or possibly none at all. Could America and its Allies Take the Heat? Broadly speaking, the above scenario (which has been greatly simplified for reasons of time and space) is one that U.S. and allied planners have been thinking about since at least the mid 2000s. While things like the operational concept formerly known as Air-Sea Battle and efforts to disperse forces throughout the Pacific attempt to negate these possibilities, how would U.S. forces fair under the fire in the above? What About Missile Defense? For years I worshipped at the altar of missile defense, and I still do in many situations (think a North Korean or Iranian single or small missile strike against the U.S. or an ally), however, this is not one of them. And while I do feel missile defense has role to play in the above scenario, it would only slow Chinese saturation strikes not stop them. The challenge here is as simple as math itself. If China launched a massive missile strike against allied forces across the Pacific, there would simply not be enough interceptors, even assuming a 100% hit-to-kill ratio, to make a dent in the problem. You say make more interceptors? These are extremely expensive and China could simply make even more missiles to counter them, exacerbating the problem. Consider the below when we apply the Chinese missile threat to just naval assets and get a little creative: if Beijing was really slick it could fire off older missiles that were not as accurate towards allied naval vessels almost like decoys just to shrink the number of available interceptors : Think about it could we someday see a scenario where American forces at sea with a fixed amount of defensive countermeasures facing an enemy with large numbers of cruise and ballistic weapons that have the potential to simply overwhelm them? Could a potential adversary fire off older weapons that are not as accurate, causing a defensive response that exhausts all available missile interceptors so more advanced weapons with better accuracy can deliver the crushing blow? What About Base Hardening? Another great (and expensive) idea with its own unique set of challenges. Could U.S. and Allied bases be turned into massive bunkers that have the capability to absorb a Chinese missile barrage and attacks by other means and fire back? Is it practical? In an interview with John Stillion, a Senior Fellow at CSBA, I asked How expensive is it to effectively harden a base? Sources have told me in the past that if the U.S. Department of Defense properly hardened just one large base in the Pacific it would cost "billions and billions of dollars." Stillion replied that : It depends on how effective and extensive you want the hardening to be. In general, bases within range of enemy fighter-bombers attacks would likely be subject to barrage attacks using ballistic missiles armed with submunitions. These would destroy any unsheltered aircraft and spread millions of sharp metal fragments across the runways and taxiways. This would also prevent any aircraft inside shelters from leaving until a path was cleared through the debris (known as FODForeign Object Damage). This could be a time-consuming and laborious process. In the meantime, the enemy might conduct follow-on attacks using cruise missiles and manned aircraft with precision-guided weapons to target fuel storage, runways and aircraft in their shelters, rendering the base unusable until extensive repairs were undertaken. Parting Thoughts: Due to limitations of time and space, this is just one of many possible scenarios when it comes to Chinese calculations of war and peace and what types of strikes Chinese planners would consider if they decided to make the ultimate choice. While the above description does sound bleak, there is cause for optimism for the U.S. First, one must consider that America is a global superpower with powerful forces spread out all over the planet and not just in Asia. Simply put, the U.S. could quickly begin to amass large amounts of forces around the world after China has used large amounts of ballistic and cruise missiles and begin the counterattack. And keep this mind: if China struck first dont discount global public opinion and allied contributions to aid Americas counter blow. Also, as Stillion explained, there are a few ways to blunt such Chinese tactics , but with a caveat: The key to operating effectively in the face of a credible precision-strike threat is to find a combination of hardening, dispersal, rapid repair capability, active defenses (like Patriot and THAAD) and distance from the threat that allows sustained, efficient operation of the sortie factory. Range is key, because the closer one is to the threat, the greater the weight of fire the adversary can deliver and the harder and more heavily defended the base must be. At some point, if an adversary is capable and competent enough, and the base is close enough, it may not be possible to operate efficiently no matter how hard and heavily defended the base may be. No one including myself wants to ever see a great power war between the United States and China. The ramifications are too horrific to imagine. Yet, the possibility is there for all of us to see. Walking through an exercise like the above thinking through what such a calamity would be like makes the risks all too clear. All the more reason for the Washington and Beijing to find any all mechanisms to lessen the pressure points between them. Harry J. Kazianis is Executive Editor for The National Interest. This first appeared in 2015. Read full article (Reuters) - The U.S. Coast Guard used a floating crane on Monday to raise the "duck boat" that sank beneath storm-whipped waves in a Missouri lake last week, drowning 17 people in one of the deadliest tourist accidents in the United States in years. Workers in hard hats spent an hour or so helping divers connect slings to the World War Two-style amphibious vessel some 80 feet (24 meters) below the water's surface before raising it and dragging it, dripping but apparently intact, to dry land. The Coast Guard said it will load the boat onto a trailer to hand it over to federal investigators. The boat's black box, which contains video and other data, was recovered last week and has already been taken to a Washington laboratory for analysis, the National Transportation Safety Board said. Thirty-one people were aboard the Ride the Ducks boat last Thursday when a sudden, intense storm struck, with winds just shy of hurricane strength churning the lake's waters. Fewer than half survived the accident and officials are looking into what the boat's operators knew about the weather forecast before setting out. Among the dead were the boat's driver and nine members of a single family from Indiana. Tia Coleman, one of only two members of that family aboard the boat to survive, said in a hospital bed interview with local media that the captain had told passengers there was no need to put on life jackets. The captain is among the survivors. He has not yet been interviewed by investigators from the NTSB, said Keith Holloway, a spokesman for the federal agency, although other Ride the Ducks staff have. More than three dozen people have died in incidents involving duck boat vehicles in the United States over the past two decades, both on water and land. Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley has said the state is contemplating whether to bring criminal charges. Ripley Entertainment, which owns the duck boat ride, has said the boats should not have been out in such bad weather and that the intensity of the storm was unexpected. The NTSB, which will determine the causes of the accident, will look into what the boat operators knew about the weather forecast before taking the boat out. (Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York and Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Scott Malone and Steve Orlofsky) Daily Digit is the story behind the numbers that make the world turn. With a new school year on the horizon, were looking at how public school teachers are paid in the U.S. According to the National Education Association, public school teachers made an average of $58,950 during the 2017-18 academic year, which is about $2,700 less than they earned in 2010 when adjusted for inflation. No other public professional group has seen wages decrease to this degree. As state and local taxes cover most public school funding, however, where you live makes a huge difference in how much your teachers get paid. On the high end is New York state, where teachers make an average of $79,638 annually; on the low end theres South Dakota, where they make $42,668. The cost of living also plays a major role in determining teacher salaries. BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian government on Monday condemned the evacuation of hundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers and their families with the help of Israeli soldiers, calling it a "criminal operation" undertaken by "Israel and its tools". The rescue workers and their families crossed out of Syria into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights before arriving in Jordan over the weekend, fleeing an offensive by Syria and its Russian ally to take control of southwest Syria from rebels. Israel said it had helped with the evacuation at the request of U.S. President Donald Trump and other leaders - and there had been fears that the rescue workers' lives were at risk. The Syrian government has accused the White Helmets, also known as Syria Civil Defence, of being a Western-sponsored terrorist organization. President Bashar al-Assad has called the White Helmets part of al Qaeda in Syria. The White Helmets was established as a rescue service in rebel-held areas of the country, where its volunteers have often worked to save people trapped under the rubble of government bombardment. Syrian state news agency SANA, citing a foreign ministry official, said the evacuation "exposed the true nature of the organization known as the White Helmets", calling it a risk to stability and security "because of its terrorist nature". The group said its people and buildings have been specifically targeted by the Syrian government and its allies throughout the more than seven-year-old war. In a statement on Monday the group said during the southwest campaign four of its volunteers were killed and dozens injured, four White Helmet centers were hit and rescue vehicles were destroyed by Syrian government bombardment. "Since our formation, 251 volunteers have been killed in the line of duty, the majority from 'double-tap strikes'," the group said. The White Helmets said 98 male and female volunteers and 324 family members were now in Jordan, having traveled through the occupied Golan Heights. As Assad has won back areas such as eastern Aleppo and Ghouta, the rescue workers have left on buses to rebel-held areas of the north as part of agreed surrender deals, along with fighters and civilians who fear a return of government rule. In the southwestern campaign, however, the White Helmets said the deals agreed "did not include any guarantees of safe passage for displaced humanitarian workers to other areas of Syria", making the international evacuation necessary. "It was the only alternative for our trapped volunteers who would otherwise have faced detention or death at the hands of the Syrian regime and its ally Russia," it said. A Jordanian government source said the evacuees will be kept in a "closed" location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months. A second non-Jordanian source said the original plan had been to evacuate 800 people, but only 422 made it out as operations were hampered by government checkpoints and the expansion of Islamic State in the area. (Writing by Tom Perry and Lisa Barrington; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Ros Russell) A deadly heat wave blistering across Japan has claimed more than 40 lives this month, with little relief in sight as record temperatures are expected to persist until later this week. The country logged its highest-ever temperature at 106 degrees Fahrenheit (41.1C) in Kumagaya, near Tokyo on Monday afternoon, according to Japans Kyodo news agency. Eleven people, mostly senior citizens, died of suspected heatstroke on Saturday alone, the Japan Times reports. The searing heat has also seen a surge in distress calls, with an estimated 10,000 people hospitalized for heat-related conditions since the heat wave began on July 9. Temperatures reached 105 degrees Fahrenheit (40.7C) in central Japans Tajimi city, Gifu Prefecture earlier this week, the highest in the country for five years. While in Kyoto, temperatures peaked at 103F (39.8C) after seven consecutive days of being above 100F a first since records began. The countrys meteorological agency on Sunday issued active heat warnings in 39 of Japans 47 prefectures, and has broadcast calls for residents in affected areas to drink water and use air conditioners, Japans Yomiuri Shobun reports. On Saturday, the Tokyo fire department dispatched more than 3,000 ambulances on Saturday, the most active day in the departments history. The heat has also added complications to rescue and rehabilitation efforts in western Japan, which is still reeling from widespread flooding and landslides that claimed more than 200 lives this month. An estimated 4,500 people displaced from their homes are still living in emergency shelters, according to ABC. Paris (AFP) - French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb told lawmakers on Monday that he did not inform Emmanuel Macron about a video showing one of the president's security aides striking a young man during a protest last May. Collomb said his staff told him about the video on May 2, the day after Alexandre Benalla beat the man during a police operation to clear protesters from a Paris square. But Collomb said it was not his role to inform prosecutors about the alleged assault. "They said they had already informed the police and alerted the president's cabinet, which was appropriate because it's up to the proper hierarchy to take all necessary measures, whether administrative or legal," he told a parliamentary commission. Since then Collomb said he had not spoken about the alleged assault by Benalla with Macron until French daily Le Monde published a video last Wednesday showing him striking a protester during the May 1 demonstrator. "I never mentioned during our meetings with the president the Benalla case," he said. In the video Benalla is seen wearing a police helmet and armband as he strikes the young man while riot police officers look on. Collomb said that Benalla was supposed to assist the operation only as an observer, and that he was accompanied by an officer who was supposed to ensure he did not participate. On Sunday Benalla was charged with assault with an accomplice and impersonating a police officer. Paris police chief Michel Delpuech is scheduled to appear before the parliamentary panel later Monday. Gunman opens fire on Toronto street, injuring over a dozen people People light candles and leave photos of 18-year-old victim Reese Fallon at a memorial remembering the victims of Sundays shooting in Toronto on Monday, July 23, 2018. (Photo: Mark Blinch/The Canadian Press via AP) Investigators are digging into the life of a 29-year-old man trying to explain what prompted him to fire a handgun into restaurants and cafes in a lively Toronto neighborhood, killing a 10-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman and wounding 13 others. The family of Faisal Hussain, who died during an exchange of gunfire with police, said Monday that he had long suffered from psychosis and depression but they never imagined this would be his fate. It was not immediately clear whether he took his own life or was killed by police during the rampage Sunday night. The mass shooting in the Greektown district came just three months after a man used a van to plow over pedestrians on a sidewalk in another Toronto district, killing 10 people and injuring 14 in an attack apparently aimed at women. (AP) See more news-related photo galleries and follow us on Yahoo News Photo Twitter and Tumblr. New Delhi (AFP) - Indian police Monday began an inquiry into officers alleged to have taken a tea break instead of rushing a critically injured lynching victim to hospital. Akbar Khan, 28, died of his injuries after being attacked by a gang of Hindu "cow vigilantes" in the district of Alwar in Rajasthan state on Friday. Cows are considered sacred in Hindu-majority India, where squads of vigilantes often roam highways inspecting livestock trucks. The murder stoked tension in the area amid media reports police stopped to have a tea break and wasted crucial time instead of taking Khan to hospital. Police also allegedly cared for the cows first, transporting them to a bovine shelter much farther away. "Doubts have been cast on the initial response of the local police," state police chief O.P. Galhotra said in a written order seen by AFP on Monday. "A team has been constituted to look into the circumstances leading to the alleged delay and connected issues." India's right-wing government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been accused of turning a blind eye to a rising number of vigilante attacks on minority Muslims in the name of cow protection. Rights groups say Hindu mobs have been emboldened under the Hindu nationalist party, which stormed to power in 2014. The government Monday sought a report from state authorities on the latest lynching and "steps taken to restore peace" in the area. It also set up a panel to suggest legal measures to curb mob violence. The panel has been asked to report in the next four weeks. Slaughtering cows is illegal in many Indian states and some also require a licence for transporting them across state borders. In two prominent cases last year, a dairy farmer was killed on a roadside for transporting cows and a Muslim teenager accused of carrying beef was stabbed to death on a crowded train. India has also been rocked by a separate spate of lynchings, with 23 people killed in the last two months after being accused of child kidnapping in viral messages circulated wildly on WhatsApp. If you follow Will Smith on Instagram, youre probably up to speed on his famous familys summer vacation exploits. Theres been scuba diving. Theres been bonding. Theres been annoyance as dad tries to document every moment. Jada Pinkett Smiths bikini selfie is turning heads. (Photo: Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Universal Pictures) The actor and rappers latest Instagram post shows him pestering his loved ones for good content, joking that itll get him more followers. Daughter Willow ignores him, while wife Jada Pinkett Smith winces and looks ticked off that shes on camera as her hair blows in the wind. #QualityTime A post shared by Will Smith (@willsmith) on Jul 22, 2018 at 1:53pm PDT You need to delete that Instagram, she tells Smith, who responds with a placating Your hair is perfect. Never mind her hair lets talk about those curves. Following her husbands Daddy Dearest post, the 46-year-old Girls Trip star decided to give fans a more glamorous take on her off-duty vacation style. Pinkett Smith has since posted a bikini selfie with nary a sweater or leave-me-alone-til-Ive-had-my-coffee expression in sight. If Pinkett Smith wanted her counter programming and mustard yellow bikini to wipe out all memory of Smiths video, it worked. Fans including singers Kelly Rowland and SZA were quick to gush about the mom of twos toned figure. Get it gorgeous! commented another famous follower, Khloe Kardashian, who knows a thing or two about revenge bodies. Forget Smith and his camera who wants a Girls Trip sequel with these two? Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle: Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. (TEL AVIV, Israel) Tens of thousands of Israeli LGBT advocates and their supporters went on strike across the country Sunday, protesting the exclusion of gay men from a recently passed surrogacy law. The community is outraged that after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to pass legislation supporting surrogacy for gay fathers, he then voted against it, apparently under pressure from his ultra-Orthodox Jewish coalition partners. Protesters marched in Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities on Sunday, waving rainbow flags and briefly blocking a major highway. Tel Avivs central Rabin Square was packed with tens of thousands of people for the main demonstration Sunday night. Although Israel has a very liberal image concerning gays its not the case when you look at the Israeli law, said former Israeli lawmaker Nitzan Horowitz at the protest, who called for law amendments to ensure equal treatment for the LGBT community. Hundreds protested near Netanyahus residence in Jerusalem. Eyal Lurie Pardes, a protester draped in a rainbow flag, chanted: We will not remain silent! Look me in the eyes and tell me I dont deserve to be a father! he said. Footage aired on Israeli TV later showed police pushing him into a police car. Israeli police said two people were detained and then released. The protest has grown into a general call for equality, following other recent controversial legislation that appeared to target Israeli liberalism. The protest has generated widespread support and hundreds of employers said they would allow employees to observe the strike without penalty. Israel has emerged as one of the worlds most gay-friendly travel destinations in recent years, in sharp contrast to the rest of the Middle East where gays are persecuted and even killed. In Israel, homosexuals serve openly in Israels military and parliament, and many popular artists and entertainers are homosexual. However, leaders of the gay community say Israel still has far to go in promoting equality. By Luc Cohen and David Lawder BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - The finance ministers for Mexico and Canada on Sunday said they were optimistic about NAFTA talks with the United States, even as trade tensions spurred by U.S. tariffs dominated the G20 meeting of world economic leaders in Argentina. Mexico Finance Minister Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya said there were still several chapters of NAFTA that had not yet been closed, but that the renegotiation could be completed before incoming President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador takes office on Dec. 1 after his landslide victory in this month's election. "There exists a possibility that we can arrive at some type of arrangement," Gonzalez Anaya told Reuters in an interview, adding that he discussed the talks to modernize the 24-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement during a bilateral meeting with his Canadian counterpart, Finance Minister Bill Morneau. "It has always existed, and we hope that it stays on track." The long-running renegotiation, launched by U.S. President Donald Trump last year, has taken on a renewed sense of urgency since Lopez Obrador's victory. The leftist former mayor of Mexico City has said he plans to maintain NAFTA, and his allies have said the transition team will take part in talks. Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminum imports were still casting a shadow on NAFTA talks, Morneau said. Ire over the measures from the European Union, Japan and others have isolated U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin at the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors. Morneau said that he sensed "optimism" from Mnuchin about moving forward on NAFTA, and that Mnuchin had assured him that the administration was committed to a trilateral deal despite Trump's suggestion that the United States could move forward with separate bilateral deals. "That change in Mexico presents us with the opportunity to restart those discussions. We're going to do that in earnest," Morneau told reporters. We're going to work towards trying to get to an agreement in the time frame that we've got in the next few months." Story continues Morneau said he plans to travel to Mexico next week to meet with the incoming administration. Gonzalez Anaya added that he had a "very good chat" during an informal meeting last week with Carlos Urzua, who Lopez Obrador has tapped for the finance minister's role. "I have a very good impression of him," Gonzalez Anaya said. (Reporting by Luc Cohen; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) Miami (AFP) - A little boy named Jose who braved the dangerous trek through Mexico to the United States with his mother is confused and upset. He has not seen his mom for months. She promised him a Spiderman pinata for his 4th birthday, but it came and went without her. She is supposed to come and get him. She said she would. But she hasn't. She's lying, says Jose. Unbeknownst to him the mother is actually in US custody. She is the adoptive mother of Jose, and did not have the right papers when they crossed over. Children who made the trip through Mexico, most of them Central Americans, do not suffer just the perils of people who are fleeing: crime, domestic violence, poverty, lack of education and health care. Rather, once their trip ends, they become vulnerable for more intangible reasons: lack of documents, disinformation and scarce legal representation, which makes it hard for them to navigate a bureaucracy that can seem byzantine. Such is the case of Jose, whose real name and those of his relatives have been withheld in this story at their request because they fear retaliation. Jose is the adoptive son of a 51-year-old Honduran woman who was detained when she asked for asylum in McAllen, Texas on December 29. "My mommy is lying. She is not coming. She is not coming," the boy says angrily into a phone, to a human rights lawyer helping them. Does he want to see his mom? "Yes. Very much," Jose says. Jose was held in a shelter for nearly a month until he was handed over to his 30-year-old sister -- named E. for the purposes of this article -- in Texas. "My mother came here because if she had remained in Honduras another month she would have been killed," E. said. "There was a man who beat her. If it were not for the neighbors he would have killed her with a machete." A federal court ordered last month that thousands of children separated from their parents or guardians at the border be reunited with them by July 26. Story continues The deadline for 103 of them aged five or under has already passed. But the government could only return 57. The rest were classified as ineligible -- either because their parents had been deported or had criminal records or other problems that the government cited as grounds to keep them from their parents. - A piece of paper - Jose turned four last month. No pinata. His sister said her mother met a girl in Honduras who was pregnant and did not want the baby. The day it was born, she gave it to E.'s mother. "All the neighbors signed as witnesses. They all know, because the girl always said she was going to give the baby away," said E. But that was not enough for the US government. The immigration lawyer who is handling Jose's case, Sara Ramey, has collected photos, witness accounts and medical records to show how the adoptive mother has taken care of the boy. "Many Central American societies, including Honduras, have an informal, community-based approach to arranging matters, like child custody," Ramey, who is executive director of the Migrant Center for Human Rights in San Antonio, Texas, told AFP. "We want our government to be verifying relationships," she said. "We want them to confirm what the relationship is, and that that is a healthy and safe relationship for the child." The authorities did that in this case and no one questions whether the mother is a good caregiver. "The only thing that's holding her case up is this piece of paper, this formal document," said Ramey, referring to an adoption certificate. Immigrants can lack papers for reasons that are out of their control, said Maureen Meyer, director for Mexico and Migrant Rights at the Washington Office on Latin America, an advocacy group. For instance, she said, "in mountainous areas of Guatemala, there are indigenous people who may never have registered the birth of their children." - Goodbye, mom - Another boy, Pedro, age 3, has not been reunited with his mother either. She is his biological mother but had already been deported once before when she asked for asylum in April. Now his 25-year-old mother, call her V., is detained in Texas and Pedro was sent to the home of a great-aunt. The boy spent a month in a shelter until the authorities turned him over to the older woman. "He was so sad," she said. Speaking to his mother on the phone, all he said was, "mommy" and then "bye." Some immigrants such as V. are unaware of the consequences of trying to enter the United States when they have already been deported once. In many other cases, kids cross the border on their own because of a bogus rumor in Central America that children who cross over without adults automatically get residency. People traffickers known as "coyotes" encourage such rumors so as to persuade families to send their kids on the trip, which can cost from 5,000 to 15,000 dollars. If they make it into the country, kids who speak no English can end up going before a judge all by themselves. Still, no matter what they go through in America, it's better than staying home in destitute, gang-ridden and ultra violent countries like Honduras, Guatemala or El Salvador, says Eric Olson, with the Latin American Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center. "Their margin for survival, for having a decent life, even a poor one, is almost zero," he said. Compared to what is going on back home, "the situation on the US border will never be worse." Monday, July 23, 2018 What to watch today In the week ahead, second quarter earnings season will kick into high gear as three of the four members of FANG will report results. Netflix last week reported earnings that disappointed and shares of the streaming platform fell sharply, and this week all eyes will be on Google parent company Alphabet (reporting Monday), Facebook (reporting Wednesday), and Amazon (reporting Thursday). All three companies will release their results after the market close. Outside of the FANGs, there will be plenty of earnings action 174 S&P 500 members are set to report results this week. Read More Top news (Iranian Presidency Office via AP) Trump warns Iran to Never, Ever Threaten the US: In a Twitter post late Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump launched a new broadside against Iran, warning of unspecified consequences if counterpart Hassan Rouhani continues threatening America. The threat risks leading to a speedy escalation if neither side backs down. Traders appeared to take the news in stride. [Bloomberg] Tesla asks suppliers for cash back: Tesla Inc. (TSLA) has asked some suppliers to refund a portion of what the electric-car company has spent previously, an appeal that reflects the auto makers urgency to sustain operations during a critical production period. [The Wall Street Journal] Theranos settles investor suit: Theranos Inc., running on financial fumes, settled a suit filed by investors who had alleged they were defrauded by the blood-testing firm. The pact ends a civil case brought by Robert Colman, a former Silicon Valley investment banker, and other plaintiffs who made indirect investments in Theranos, court records filed Friday show. They alleged that Theranos made false and misleading statements about its technology. [The Wall Street Journal] Papa Johns adopts rights plan to limit founders stake: Papa Johns International Inc. (PZZA) on Sunday adopted a shareholder rights plan, or a poison pill, with a 15% trigger to deter existing stockholders from amassing a controlling stake in the company. The company also declared a dividend of one right for each outstanding common share. [Reuters] Story continues China wont devalue yuan amid trade war: China has no desire to boost its exports through competitive devaluation while the nations sound economic fundamentals are providing support to the currency, a spokesman said on Monday as U.S. President Donald Trump took issue with the yuans month-long losing streak. [Bloomberg] For more of the latest news, go to Yahoo Finance At the 147th Open Championship in Carnoustie, Britain on July 22, 2018 Tiger Woods of the U.S. reacts during the final round. Woods finished tied for sixth place. REUTERS/Jason Cairnduff Yahoo Finance Originals This week in Trumponomics: A welcome pivot to the digital economy China thinks long-term on financial stability so should we Weve got 3 more years in this bull market but theres a catch A peek inside the lucrative life of high-end charity auctioneers The highest-paid CEOs in the U.S. banking industry Like what you just read? Get the Morning Brief sent directly to your inbox every Monday to Friday by 6:30 a.m. ET. And feel free to share it with a friend! The Morning Brief provides a quick rundown on what to watch in the markets, top news stories, and the best of Yahoo Finance Originals. Tokyo (AFP) - Japanese officials issued new warnings Monday as a deadly heatwave blankets the country, producing record high temperatures in Tokyo just two years before the city hosts the 2020 Summer Olympics. Officials said last week that the heatwave had killed at least 15 people and forced the hospitalisation of over 12,000 others in the first two weeks of July. But the death toll may be more than double that, with Kyodo News agency reporting 11 people died on Saturday alone across Japan. An updated official toll is expected later this week. The heatwave has toppled temperature records across the country, with Kumagaya in Saitama outside Tokyo setting a new nationwide record on Monday with temperatures hitting 41.1 Celsius (106 degrees Fahrenheit). And in western Tokyo's Ome, temperatures hit 40.3 degrees Celsius, the first time temperatures over 40 have been recorded in Tokyo's metro area. Records fell at 13 other observation stations across the country, with more than a dozen cities and towns seeing temperatures around 40 degrees, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. "People in areas where temperatures are as high as 35 degrees or higher should be extremely careful" to avoid heatstroke, meteorological agency official Minako Sakurai told AFP. "And even at lower temperatures, the heat can be dangerous for small children and elderly people, and depending on the environment and activities you are doing," she warned. "People should be all the more careful as many people must be exhausted after days of cruelly hot weather," she added. Yoshihide Suga, top government spokesman, warned that extremely hot days "are expected to continue until early August." Japan's disaster management agency has urged people to use air conditioning, drink sufficient water and rest often while at work. The heatwave follows record rainfall that devastated parts of western and central Japan with floods and landslides that killed over 220 people. Story continues Japan's summers are notoriously hot and humid, and hundreds of people die each year from heatstroke, particularly the elderly in the country's ageing society. But this year's record temperatures have surprised residents and officials alike, and revived concerns about the 2020 Summer Olympics, which will be held in July and August in Tokyo. Olympic officials and Tokyo's local government are touting measures from solar-blocking paint on roads to mobile misting stations to tackle the heat. Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike acknowledged Monday that the recent heatwave was "exactly like living in a sauna". "For the athletes, they're trained but for spectators who are cheering on the road, we may not necessarily be able to say the same," she said at a Monday press conference. "Countermeasures against heat is one of the major pillars for the success of the 2020 Olympics." Eight years after his recruitment to Texas A&M, it appears Johnny Manziel could play under Mike Sherman. (Getty Images) The Johnny Manziel era of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats is reportedly over. The final stats: zero passing yards, zero rushing yards and five games spent firmly on the bench. Manziels time in Hamilton, Ontario came to an end Sunday when the former NFL first-rounder was traded to the Montreal Alouettes. The deal involves four other players, as well as two first-round draft picks going to the Tiger-Cats. The Alouettes did not hesitate to use their new most notable player for ticket sales. BIG NEWS Welcome to the Alouettes @JManziel2! Dont miss his very first game on Thursday, July 26 at McGill Stadium! https://t.co/RkeijUBtsj Learn more about the transaction https://t.co/PqJKfVmO4T pic.twitter.com/ojRAJg7YH0 #AlsMTL (@MTLAlouettes) July 22, 2018 The trade will reunite Manziel with Alouettes head coach Mike Sherman, who recruited Manziel to Texas A&M in 2011 when Sherman was the head coach of the Aggies. Could Johnny Manziel see playing time? Given the large price the Alouettes are paying for Manziel and his two teammates, its likely that Manziel is going to be seeing a lot more time on the field than he did in Hamilton. Even though Hamilton has opened the CFL season with a 2-3 record, starting quarterback Jeremy Masoli ranks second in the CFL with 1,562 passing yards and hasnt opened much room for Manziel to get a shot. Thats despite the Tiger-Cats head coach saying Manziel should reach the NFL within two years. Meanwhile, the Alouettes are 1-4 and rank last in the CFL in points scored and have already tried out three different quarterbacks under center, with none showing much in the way of efficiency. Between a team desperate for offense and a coach who is already familiar with him, it appears Manziel might have a path to legitimate playing time in the CFL. More from Yahoo Sports: Longtime NFL coach Tony Sparano dies at 56 Fan yells during Tiger Woods swing at British Open, angering everyone Noah Syndergaards unusual illness gives Mets yet another odd injury Golfer somehow shot a 67 while hungover at the Open By Marja Novak LJUBLJANA (Reuters) - Slovenian President Borut Pahor told parliament on Monday he would not nominate a candidate for prime minister as no party held majority support in parliament. The anti-immigrant Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) won a June 3 election but lacks willing coalition partners to form a government in a highly fragmented parliament. "In talks with parliamentary groups I established that no one enjoys sufficient support to be elected as prime minister," Pahor told parliament in a letter. Parliament is expected to convene on Friday when it will set another 14-day period during which members can nominate candidates for prime minister. Any candidate would need the support of an absolute majority of lawmakers to be elected - at least 46 out of 90 votes. If no candidate is elected, lawmakers are given a further two days to nominate candidates before another round of voting in which only a majority of those present is needed. If no candidate is elected then the president must call an election, which would take place in September or October. But analysts said they expect a successful candidate to emerge in the last round of voting, in mid to late August. They said Marjan Sarec, head of the second largest party the center-left List of Marjan Sarec (LMS), is likely to form a six-party coalition, securing a fragile majority that may not survive the whole four-year mandate. Sarec has broadly agreed a coalition with four center-left parties, the Social Democrats, the Party of Modern Centre, the Party of Alenka Bratusek and pensioners' party Desus, but the five parties together only hold 43 of 90 parliamentary seats. He hopes to attract also the leftist party The Left or the conservative New Slovenia, which have 9 and 7 parliamentary seats respectively. Most parties have rejected a coalition with the center-right SDS, led by a former two-time prime minister Janez Jansa. Slovenia's Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Monday urged parties to form an effective government to deal with challenges including pension reform and reduction of public debt that reached 73.6 percent of GDP last year. "High economic growth over the past years masked the fact that Slovenia did not do anything in the development area - it did not modernize the health system, the public sector nor undertake pension reform," the chamber's head, Sonja Smuc, said in a statement. "We need an efficient government that will ... prepare Slovenia for challenges ahead," she added. Slovenia narrowly avoided an international bailout for its banks in 2013 returned to growth a year later. The outgoing government forecast the economy to expand by 5.1 percent this year, boosted by exports, investments and household spending, versus 5 percent in 2017. (Reporting By Marja Novak; editing by John Stonestreet and Ros Russell) MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Al Shabaab fighters detonated a suicide car bomb before storming a military base in the south of Somalia on Monday and killing 27 soldiers, the militant group said, its second strike on the base in as many months. Fighting broke out between al Shabaab and the national army shortly afterwards, resulting in the army killing 87 militants, assistant information minister Aden Isak Ali told a state news agency SONNA on Monday. The attack, whose blast was heard by residents of a nearby town, follows a strike last month by al Shabaab on the base in Baar Sanguni, about 50 km (31 miles) from the port city of Kismayu, that wounded seven soldiers. The group is battling to topple the central government and impose its rule based on its own strict interpretation of Islam's sharia law. It has killed thousands of Somalis and hundreds of civilians across East Africa in a decade-long insurgency. "We first attacked the base with a suicide car bomb and then stormed," said Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaab's spokesman for military operations. "We killed 27 soldiers and took the base. Some soldiers fled into the jungles." The military sent reinforcements to the base following the reports of an explosion and heavy fighting after the rebel attack. "The national army defended itself and killed 87 militants," Ali said, adding the army pursued other militants into the jungles nearby. Residents of the town of Jamame, 70 km (44 miles) away from Kismayu, said they heard the blast, followed by gunfire. "We heard a huge blast after early morning prayers. Then heavy exchange of gunfire followed. It was in the direction of Baar Sanguni," Osman Abdullahi told Reuters. (Reporting by Feisal Omar and Abdi Sheikh; Editing by George Obulutsa, Clarence Fernandez, William Maclean) BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Lebanese army killed a suspected drug dealer and seven others during a raid in northeast Lebanon on Monday, the army said. During the raid, which took place near the town of Brital, not far from the border with Syria, soldiers were fired at by armed groups, an army statement said. "Army members were forced to retaliate, leading to the killing of eight armed people and the arrest of 41 people," it said. The army said 16 of those arrested were Lebanese and 25 were Syrian. The man wanted on suspicion of drugs offences was called Ali Zaid Ismail. Weapons and drugs were seized as a result of the raid, the army said. (Reporting by Lisa Barrington; editing by Ros Russell) Washington (AFP) - Elon Musk has reached an agreement with a US potter who accused him of using his farting unicorn design on Tesla products without permission. Tom Edwards, of Evergreen, Colorado, wrote on his website on Friday that the issue had been resolved "in a way that everyone feels good about!" while Musk tweeted a screenshot of the same statement. The story began last year after the billionaire founder of the electric car firm and SpaceX tweeted a picture of Edwards' colorful mug, which depicts a crudely drawn unicorn against a rainbow, with smiley-face emojis in the background. The mythical creature is seen passing wind into a funnel that is connected to a car. "Electric cars are good for the environment because electricity comes from magic," reads the back. Musk called it "maybe my favorite mug ever" and the publicity led to a slight bump in sales for Edwards, who was happy that the South African-born entrepreneur, often hailed as a leading tech innovator and visionary, was a fan of his work. But Edwards' admiration turned to disappointment when he found out the image had made its way into Tesla's promotional materials and even its operating system, for which he had not received compensation. That prompted a bitter exchange on Twitter where Edwards' daughter Lisa Prank wrote that Musk had "ripped off my dad's art! this is a true story! what do you have to say for yourself @elonmusk ??" Musk initially credited the work to another artist and described the row as "kinda lame," adding that Edwards should be happy it had boosted his mug sales. The news came days after Musk apologized for calling a British diver who helped rescue 12 Thai boys from a cave a "pedo" (short for "pedophile"). His initial comment drew widespread outrage and briefly sent Tesla shares tumbling. The tirade raised concerns over the entrepreneur's stability and leadership, coming after a series of previous social media attacks on Wall Street analysts, journalists and employees. Story continues Edwards, for his part, was magnanimous in his response. "It's clear there were some misunderstandings that led to this escalating, but I'm just glad that everything has been cleared up," wrote the 61-year-old, a self-described "ceramics geek" who began working in pottery in the late 1970s after dropping out of graduate school. "I've always been a Tesla fan, and I'm looking forward to getting back to making pots and selling them in my online store," he added. Police have arrested three men in in connection with a suspected acid attack on a three-year-old boy in Worcester. The suspects, aged 22, 25 and 26, were detained in London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm, West Mercia Police said. A 39-year-old man from Wolverhampton arrested on Sunday on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm remains in custody, the force said. Three men have been arrested in connection with a suspected acid attack on a three-year-old boy (PA) The toddler was in a pushchair with his family in Home Bargains in Worcester when a corrosive substance was thrown or sprayed over him (PA) Police said the long-term implications of the boys injuries are uncertain (SWNS) The toddler was in a pushchair with his family in the Home Bargains store in Shrub Hill Retail Park in Tallow Hill when a corrosive substance was thrown or sprayed over him on Saturday afternoon, according to West Mercia Police. He was treated in hospital for burns to his face and one arm before being released on Sunday afternoon. Police said the long-term implications of his injuries are uncertain. MORE: Toronto shooting: One dead, 13 injured after gunman dressed in black opens fire outside restaurant MORE: Missouri duck boat survivor says captain told passengers not to worry about life jackets Chief Superintendent Mark Travis said the boy is recovering at home with his family, who are being supported by specialist officers. He told Sky News: A young family were out shopping and a substance appears to either have been thrown or sprayed towards a three-year-old child who was in a pushchair. He added: We are uncertain about the long-term implications of those burns, but we do hope that these wont be life-changing injuries. Police have urged anyone with information to get in touch (SWNS) The suspects, aged 22, 25 and 26, were detained in London on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm (SWNS) Worcester City Council leader Marc Bayliss described the attack as absolutely pure evil. Worcester MP Robin Walker said the attack was horrific, and that the shock will be universal. Police are continuing to appeal for information over the incident at Home Bargains in Tallow Hill. The boy has been discharged from hospital following the incident (PA) Detective Inspector Tony Garner said: Wed like to thank everyone who shared our appeal over the weekend and contacted us with information; all of this is helping us to build up a better picture of this incident. Were continuing to urge anyone else with information to contact us. Anyone with information that could help police with their enquiries was asked to call 101 quoting incident 442s of 21 July 2018. Alternatively, information can be provided anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Toronto (Canada) (AFP) - The 29-year-old man who opened fire on restaurant goers and pedestrians on a Toronto street overnight, killing two people and wounding 13, had "severe" mental health issues, his family said Monday. Police identified the gunman as Faisal Hussain of Toronto. He was found dead near the scene of the shooting after an exchange of gunfire with police. Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders said an 18-year-old woman and a 10-year-old girl were killed in the shooting rampage and 13 people -- aged 10 to 59 -- wounded, some seriously. The authorities have not yet determined a motive for the attack that took place in Toronto's bustling Greektown neighborhood around 10:00 pm Sunday. Hussain's family, in a statement to CBC News, denounced his "horrific actions" and said he was suffering from mental problems. "Our son had severe mental health challenges, struggling with psychosis and depression his entire life," the family statement said. "The interventions of professionals were unsuccessful," it said. "Medications and therapy were unable to treat him. "While we did our best to seek help for him throughout his life of struggle and pain, we could never imagine that this would be his devastating and destructive end," the family said. Video footage posted by Canadian media showed Hussain, clad all in black, walking on a sidewalk and suddenly pulling out a handgun and shooting into a restaurant. Just hours after the shooting rampage in Toronto, police arrested a man who tried to stab a member of the ceremonial guard outside parliament in Ottawa. The man was quickly arrested and no one was injured in the incident, the Canadian defense ministry said. - 'Unfolded very quickly' - There was no immediate explanation for the knife attack and police were also seeking a motive for Hussain's overnight shooting spree in Toronto. "At this stage of the investigation, we do not know why this has happened yet," said Saunders, the police chief. Story continues "It's way too early to rule out anything," he said. "Absolutely everything is open right now." Witnesses said the shooting rampage lasted just a few minutes and sparked panic in the popular neighborhood of bars and restaurants. "It was a very rapid and fluid incident that unfolded very quickly," said Detective Sergeant Terry Browne. Andrew Mantzios told The Globe and Mail newspaper that he was having coffee with friends when shots rang out around 10:00 pm. Mantzios said he saw a man with a "horrible expression on his face" shooting at a crowd of people waiting to cross the street. "And then a lady tried to run and she fell down," he said. "He turned around and shot her point blank, two or three times." "Believe me, I've never seen anything like that," he said. "I am still in shock." - Revives gun control debate - "Our entire city has been shocked by this cowardly act of violence," Toronto Mayor John Tory said. "Gun violence in any part of our city is horrible and completely unacceptable." "I promise all of the people of Toronto, but most importantly those directly affected by this tragedy, that we will all be relentless in getting answers about why this senseless attack happened," Tory said. Witnesses reported hearing at least 20 shots during the rampage on Danforth Avenue, Greektown's main drag. "There must've been 20, 30 shots, altogether. It was a lot. We just ran," John Tulloch, a resident who was out for a walk at the time, told The Globe and Mail. Jody Steinhauer told CBC she was at a restaurant with her family when she heard what sounded like 10 to 15 blasts of firecrackers. She said she was told to run to the back of the restaurant. "We started to hear people scream out front," Steinhauer told the broadcaster. Ontario's new Premier Doug Ford called it a "horrific act of gun violence" and said his heart went out to the victims. The shooting rampage comes amid concern over a surge of shootings in Canada's largest metropolis. Canada traditionally has relatively low levels of gun violence, particularly compared with the neighboring United States. Tory, the mayor, called the shooting "evidence of a gun problem" in Toronto. "That leads to another discussion, 'Why does anyone in this city need to have guns at all?'" he said. According to police figures, as of July 14 there were 220 shootings in Toronto this year with 27 fatalities. There were 196 shootings with 17 deaths in 2017. Last week, Toronto police began implementing a "gun violence reduction plan." That includes having 200 extra officers on shifts in specific neighborhoods between the hours of 7:00 pm and 3:00 am -- when most shootings occur. The Greektown shooting comes three months after the city was shaken by the deaths of 10 people killed by a man with an apparent grudge against women who drove into pedestrians on a street in Toronto's north end. Nicosia (AFP) - A United Nations envoy on Monday began contacts with Cypriot leaders to gauge whether the time is ripe to revive talks on reunifying the island a year after they collapsed. Jane Holl Lute, a former US deputy secretary for homeland security, has been tasked with conducting consultations with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders. On Monday she met Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades for nearly three hours and made no comment afterwards. Later she is scheduled to cross the UN-patrolled ceasefire line to go north to hold talks with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci. Lute is due to depart for New York on Tuesday and return to Europe once dates are confirmed for her consultations in Athens, Ankara, London and Brussels, the Cyprus News Agency said. She is expected to compile a report on her findings for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who appointed Lute to see if the sides had narrowed their difference since the failure of a Swiss summit in July 2017. The last talks aimed at reunifying the island as a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation collapsed in Switzerland a year ago after the UN chief failed to get the parties to agree on a post-settlement security arrangement for Cyprus. It was the first time Cyprus talks involved the guarantor powers of Britain, Greece and Turkey. Under the 1960 treaty of independence, the three countries secured intervention rights to safeguard the island's sovereignty, but the Greek Cypriots want these scrapped while the Turkish Cypriots are reluctant to do so. The other stumbling block is that Anastasiades wants all Turkish troops to leave the island after a solution is reached, while Akinci is opposed to this idea. Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third in response to a coup sponsored by the military junta then ruling Greece. Rival Cypriot leaders failed to revive their island's moribund peace process after an UN-backed informal dinner date in April -- their only meeting since the failed summit. Tensions in the region heightened after Nicosia stepped up its search for natural gas reserves, a move opposed by Ankara. The EU -- of which Cyprus is a member state while Turkey is not -- condemned Turkey's actions in the eastern Mediterranean in trying to block oil and gas exploration in Cyprus' maritime zone. Three MKs, including two from from the coalition, filed a petition with the High Court of Justice on Sunday against the Nationality Law, which critics have described as discriminatory but which is described by its main proponents as a reaffirmation of Israels status as the homeland of the Jewish people. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The move was initiated by MKs Hamad Amar (Yisrael Beytenu), Akram Hasson (Kulanu) and Saleh Saad (Zionist Union). The petition was submitted as part of a cross-party move and was drafted by the Druze lawyers on behalf of the Druze MKs, the Forum of the Druze Authority Heads and the Druze community. "For the Druze community, which sacrifices its blood and its sons for the sake of the State of Israel, the Nationality Bill is an equivalent of spitting in our faces," said Sa'ad. "We have joined forces in a cross-party move because this is a radical piece of legislation promoted by the government against Arab speakers and a continuation of the discrimination against Druze and minority communities, which is now anchored in law, he vented. Prime Minister Netanyahu and MKs after the vote (Photo: Amit Shaabi) The law, which was passed last Thursday, states that only Jews have the right of self-determination in the country, something which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed as the realization of Zionism's vision but which has stoked anger among critics who argue it is racist. Knesset members Benny Begin (Likud) and Orly Levy-Abekasis abstained in the 120-member Knesset after months of political tussling, while Arab lawmakers, who say the law is racist and verges on a codification of apratheid, shouted and ripped up papers after the vote, prompting Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein to remove the Arab MKs from the plenum. One of the main controversial sticking points of the law was article 7 which defined the development of the Jewish settlement as a national value, and enabled to exclude populations from new communities. However, after a warning from the Knesset legal advisor, the article was altered. The bill also strips Arabic of its designation as an official language alongside Hebrew, downgrading it to a "special status" that enables its continued use within Israeli institutions. Israel's Arabs number some 1.8 million, about 20 percent of the 9 million population. Early drafts of the legislation went further in what critics at home and abroad saw as discrimination towards Israel's Arabs. Clauses that were dropped in last-minute political wranglingand after objections by Israel's president and attorney generalwould have enshrined in law the establishment of Jewish-only communities, and instructed courts to rule according to Jewish ritual law when there were no relevant legal precedents. Instead, a more vaguely-worded version was approved, which says: "The state views the development of Jewish settlement as a national value and will act to encourage and promote its establishment." US envoy to the Middle East Jason Greenblatt praised Israel for its daring White Helmets activists evacuation operation. "Following a request from the US and other allied leaders, last night Israel conducted a daring humanitarian rescue from Syria of hundreds of White Helmets personnel and their families and transferred them safely to Jordan," Greenblatt wrote. "The Israel Defense Forces deserve special commendation for this they managed to pull this operation together quickly and were focused on saving as many people as possible. Thank you as well to the Government of Jordan for their efforts," the US envoy added. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo launched a rhetorical assault on Iran's leaders on Sunday, comparing them to a "mafia" and promising unspecified backing for Iranians unhappy with their government. Pompeo, in a California speech to a largely Iranian-American audience, dismissed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, who negotiated a nuclear deal with the United States and five other countries, as "merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry." US President Donald Trump withdrew in May from the 2015 nuclear accord designed to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Tehran has said its nuclear work is just for electricity generation and other peaceful projects. US President Donald Trump has issued a warning on Twitter to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that he will face dire consequences for threatening the United States, a day after the Iranian leader cautioned Trump about pursuing hostile policies against Tehran, saying an American war with Iran would be "the mother of all wars." Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Trump tweeted early Monday about the dangers to Iran of making hostile threats. "American must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars," Rouhani said, leaving open the possibility of peace between the two countries which have been at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. President Rouhani and President Trump (Photo: AP, MCT) "You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests," Rouhani said, in an apparent reference to reported efforts by Washington to destabilize Iran's Islamic government. Trump responded early Monday with a tweet that warned: "NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Trump's tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing an all-capitalized message. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!," he wrote. In Washington, US officials familiar with the matter told Reuters that the Trump administration has launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear program and its support of militant groups. To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 More than half a dozen current and former officials said the campaign, supported by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and national security adviser John Bolton, is meant to work in concert with Trump's push to economically throttle Iran by re-imposing tough sanctions. The drive has intensified since Trump withdrew on May 8 from a 2015 seven-nation deal to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to Trump's tweet, saying that he "would like to praise US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's firm stance against the aggression of Iran's regime. "The powers have indulged Iran's regime over the years and it's good to see the US is changing this wrong equation," the premier concluded. Trump earlier this year pulled the United States out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions. Rouhani warned Trump Sunday to stop "playing with the lion's tail" and threatening Iran, "or else you will regret it." Trump has suggested Iranian leaders are "going to call me and say 'let's make a deal'" but Iran has rejected talks. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (Photo: Getty Images) Rouhani has previously lashed out against Trump for threatening to re-impose the sanctions, as well as for moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem and banning travel to the US from certain Muslim-majority countries. The Palestinian Health Ministry said Monday that a 15-year-old Palestinian was shot dead and another wounded from live fire to his leg during violent clashes with the IDF near Bethlehem. The ministry says another person was wounded by live fire in his leg. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The boy was identified as Arkan Mezher, who was said to have been shot in the chest. The IDF says troops were carrying out an arrest raid in the Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem overnight Sunday when a "violent riot" began. It says Palestinians hurled firebombs and grenades at soldiers, prompting it to respond by firing live rounds selectively. While tensions have flared over recent months between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the West Bank has been relatively calm. (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) The IDF said that in an extensive series of raids to arrest wanted suspects, violent riots took place including hurling Molotov cocktails, stones and improvised explosive devices at the IDF forces. The IDF force responded with crowd-dispersal methods and live rounds at the riot's main instigators. There were no casualties among the IDF soldiers. (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) IDF, Shin Bet and Border Police forces detained overnight Sunday eight wanted suspects believed to be involved in terror activities and violent rioting against Israeli citizens and security forces. The detainees were taken into questioning. As part of the raid operation conducted by the Etzion Regional Brigade, two Palestinians suspected of involvement in terror and criminal activities were arrested in the refugee camp. IDF conducts arrests in Dheisheh refugee camp (Photo: IDF's Spokesperson's Unit ) In addition, a weapons manufacturing lathe was discovered during the raids. Israel's launched its "David's Sling" air defence system for its first ever operational mission on Monday as a precauation against rockets fired within neighboring Syria, setting off sirens in northern Israeli communities, the IDF said. The rockets fell inside Syrian territory and were part of internal fighting, a military statement said. It did not elaborate on whether whether they had been shot down by the two interceptors launched by David's Sling, a mid-range Israeli system jointly manufactured by US firm Raytheon. David's Sling goes into action in northern Israel (: ) X A number of Code Red alert sirens were blasted across northern Israel, triggering the launch by the David's Sling system, which was originally reported to be a Patriot missile. A first wave of alerts was sounded at 10:04 in Safed, Katzrin, the Merom HaGalil Regional Council, the upper Galilee, the Golan Regional Council and the Mevo'ot HaHermon Regional Council. They were followed by a second wave of sirens mere minutes later in the same locations, while Israeli fighter jets circled the area during the incident. Israel has been on high alert as Syrian President Bashar Assad's Russian-backed army advances against southern rebels, bringing it close to the Israeli side of the Golan Heights. Israeli leaders have said they worry that Assad may try to defy a 1974 demilitarization deal on the Golan or allow his Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah allies to deploy there. Within half an hour of the first siren, the Katzrin Council announced that residents could resume their daily business. Only one siren was sounded in Katzrin and residents were asked to stay alert. In Safed, authorities began opening bomb shelters in a local effort to calm the city's residents. David's Sling missile launched in Safed (Photo: Adir Zadah) Ten days ago, Israel fired a Patriot missile at a UAV approaching its border from Syria, making it the second such an incident in one week. The Patriot was launched from Safed and a witness on the Syrian side of the frontier said the drone had been brought down. "A Patriot missile of the IDF's (Israel Defense Forces) aerial defense system was launched towards a Syrian UAV flying over the demilitarized zone. The UAV was most likely intercepted," the military said in a statement. The army said the drone was intercepted over the buffer zone between the two countries. The IDF said it will "operate against attempts to violate the 1974 Separation of Forces Agreement, threats to Israeli sovereignty and any attempt to harm Israeli civilians." On Sunday evening, the Syrian news agency SANA reported that an Israeli air strike had hit a military post in the city of Misyaf in Syria's Hama province. The Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen network reported that the alleged targets were scientific research centers for chemical arms production. A Syrian military source said that "one of the military sites near Misyaf was attacked by the Israeli Air Force (IAF)," according to the SANA news agency. The source added that only damage to property was caused, and no casualties were immediately reported. However, Syrian opposition members reported that Iran's Revolutionary Guards as well as Hezbollah's members were killed in the alleged the strike. An IDF aircraft struck Sunday a cell of terrorists launching incendiary balloons from northern Gaza into Israel. No casualties were reported in the incident. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter After a situation assessment in the Kerem Shalom border crossing Sunday morning, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman addressed the Palestinians on Sunday, and said the key to opening the border to transfers of goods is the continued quiet in the region. Incendiary kite terrorism (Photo: AFP) Lieberman said that Saturday was the area's most quiet day since March 30th, and stressed Hamas's responsibility for recent events, and conditioned the opening of the crossing on "zero incendiary balloons, zero friction on the fence, zero rockets." "We have completed a situation assessment regarding the passage of goods in Kerem Shalom, and the residents of Gaza must understand that as long as incendiary balloons keep landing on our side and causing fires, on both sides of the fence, life will not go back to normal," the defense minister explained. "My message to the residents of Gaza is take responsibility, the key, among others, is pressure. You, Gaza residents, will put pressure on teh Hamas leadership. If Saturday's quiet continues, then life will return to normal the day after tomorrow. But the key is quiet, calm, zero incendiary balloons, zero friction of the fence, zero rockets, or god forbid, shootings. Let's hope the next couple of days will be calm," Lieberman asserted. Lieberman added that "despite the complicated situation, and the fires we have seen on our side, the transfer of food and medicines to Gaza continues. We cannot do more, and as I said, the exports of goods, agriculture, textiles, and all these things will resume once the quiet in our side of the fence continues. No balloons, no kites and no provocations," he elaborated. Lieberman at the Kerem Shalom border crossing (: , ) "At the moment, there is no intention of bringing Palestinian workers to Israel. We are far from it, and as I said, it all depends on the other side," Lieberman concluded. Lieberman, who was accompanied by Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Maj. Gen. Kamil Abu Rokon, also noted that 140 trucks go through the crossing per day. "The maximum was about 1,000 trucks a day, so that's all the difference, and everyone on the other side will do his calculations," Lieberman stated. . After a ceasefire was reached with Hamas following serious escalations on the Gaza border, a senior political source said on Saturday that "Hamas has suffered a hard blow, and asked for a ceasefire through Egypt, while committing to stop the fire terrorism and terrorism on the fence. We have the Egyptians' guarantee." Situation assessment in the Kerem Shalom border crossing (Photo: Ariel Hermoni, Ministry of Defense) "In any case," the source added, "the actions on the ground will determine the next move, and if Hamas violates this, he will pay an even heavier price." The Home Front Command announced on Saturday that life is returning to normal in all the communities surrounding the Gaza Strip. The southern Zikim Beach reopened to the public. The IDF announcement made it clear that "there are no special restrictions on the home front." However, shortly after that, the IDF attacked a Hamas position in the northern Gaza Strip. The IDF Spokesperson's said that the attack was a response to the infiltration of several Palestinians suspects who crossed the border fence. It was reported that the suspects had returned to the Gaza Strip. Overnight threats by President Donald Trump against Iran amount to "psychological warfare", and Tehran will continue to resists its enemies, a senior commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards was quoted as saying on Monday. "We will never abandon our revolutionary beliefs ... we will resist pressure from enemies... America wants nothing less than (to) destroy Iran ... (but) Trump cannot do a damn thing against Iran," Iranian Students News Agency ISNA reported. Gholamhossein Gheybparvar as saying. Trump told President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday to stop threatening the United States or face the consequences, hours after Rouhani told Trump that hostile policies toward Tehran could lead to "the mother of all wars." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the beginning of the government meeting Monday that he is to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to discuss the situation in Syria. Netanyahu added that he "would like to praise US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's firm stance against the aggression of Iran's regime. "The powers have indulged Iran's regime over the years and it's good to see the US is changing this wrong equation," the premier concluded. Sakhnin's residents clashed Monday with police forces amid the demolition of one of the residents' homes, with five of them being lightly and moderately wounded. The police have used grenades and tear gas. In the wake of the incident, security officers advised some of Misgav Regional Council's residents to avoid passing through the city of Sakhnin. However, the police have stressed it had not issued such an instruction. Iranians on Monday shrugged off the possibility that a bellicose exchange of words between President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart could escalate into military conflict, but expressed growing concern America's stepped-up sanctions could damage their fragile economy. In his latest salvo, Trump tweeted late on Sunday that hostile threats from Iran could bring dire consequences. This was after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani remarked earlier in the day that "American must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." A large stone detached from the Western Wall early Monday, shattering in the egalitarian prayer area, only a few meters away from one of the women praying there. No one was hurt. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter In the wake of the unusual incident, the mixed-gender prayer area was closed, and Israel Antiquities Authority personnel were called to the scene to assess the situation. Video: Stone falls of the Western Wall (: ) X The egalitarian prayer area, called the "Ezrat Yisrael" plaza, is located south of the main prayer plaza. The area was established for Conservative and Reform Jews who wish to pray without the segregation of men and women. Over the past few years, the Ezrat Yisrael plaza has been in the center of controversy over a plan to expand the egalitarian prayer area to cater for the holy sites more liberal visitors. Only a few weeks ago, the members of the ministerial committee tasked with authorizing the plaza's renovations, submitted their resignation one by one. Rock detaches from Western Wall The massive rock fell just hours after the evening prayer that concluded the Tisha B'Av fast, when the Western Wall is particularly crowded with worshipers. Security cameras at the site captured a woman praying late at night when one of the Wall's rocks smashed several meters from her. The frightened woman immediately escaped the scene. "A big disaster was prevented," said Yizhar Hess, the executive director and CEO of the Conservative Movement in Israel. "The Western Wall, which has been standing with Israel for many generations, has reminded us that it too has to go through routine engineering inspections. The professionals are already there." Hess noted that while the prayer balcony adjacent to the Western Wall will be closed until further notice, the egalitarian prayer area itself will remain open. "Both of the Kotel's sections should be inspected in order to prevent, God forbid, a grave disaster in the future," he concluded. In an Ynet interview, Hess added that "If, God forbid, a stone detached a day earlier, worshipers would have gotten hurt." The Western Wall (Photo: TPS) "The Israel Antiquities Authority is looking into the matter right now. Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, as well as the district police chief and the district's archeologist, also arrived at the scene," Hess went on to say. According to Hess, "This is not something common and has not happened in the past. It could be because of fatigue. The Western wall is the object of our prayers and a memory of the Temple. However, it is also a 2,000-year-old retaining wall, and it should be examined from an engineering point of view." "I admit I'm more anxious about the more well-known segment of the Western Wall, since there the prayer is longer, hence if a rock is to detach from it, the disaster might be much graver," he said. "I hope that at the next inquiry committee, no one asks why the Western Wall was not inspected after the first rock had fallen from it. In my opinion, this should be the top priority this morning," Hess asserted. Photo: Western Wall requires inspection after stone detaches (Photo: TPS) Western Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch said that "It's an extremely unusual and rare incident, which has not occurred for many years. "The fact such powerful incident happened after the Tisha BAv fast, during which we mourned the destruction of the First and Second Temples, triggers questions too complex for the human soul to contain and requires soul searching." In a statement, the Jerusalem municipality said that "After the fall of the stone in the Ezrat Yisrael plaza, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, the city's engineer and members of the department of hazardous structures arrived at the scene. "The city's engineer issued a hazardous structures' order and the area was fenced off to preventing entry until the Israel Antiquities Authority looks into the matter. "In the upcoming days, the Antiquities Authority will map the stones, aiming to preserve them and eliminate any danger," the statement concluded. The Syrian government on Monday condemned the evacuation of hundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers, calling it a "criminal operation" undertaken by "Israel and its tools". The rescue workers and their families crossed out of Syria into the Israeli Golan Heights before arriving in Jordan over the weekend. Israel said it had helped with the evacuation at the request of US President Donald Trump and other leadersand there had been fears that the workers' lives were at risk. The Syrian government has accused the White Helmets, also known as Syria Civil Defence, of being a Western-sponsored terrorist organisation. President Bashar Assad has called the White Helmets part of al Qaeda in Syria. The Syrian government on Monday condemned the evacuation of hundreds of Syrian White Helmet rescue workers, calling it a "criminal operation" undertaken by "Israel and its tools." Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The rescue workers and their families crossed out of Syria into the Israeli Golan Heights before arriving in Jordan over the weekend. Israel said it had helped with the evacuation at the request of US President Donald Trump and other leaders since there had been fears that the workers' lives were at risk. IDF rescue mission (: BILD) X The Syrian government has accused the White Helmets, also known as Syria Civil Defense, of being a Western-sponsored terrorist organization. President Bashar Assad has called the White Helmets part of al Qaeda in Syria. The White Helmets was established as a rescue service in rebel-held areas of the country, where its volunteers have often worked to save people trapped under the rubble of government bombardment. State news agency SANA, citing a foreign ministry official, said the evacuation "exposed the true nature of the organization known as the White Helmets," calling it a risk to stability and security "because of its terrorist nature." White Helmets activists (Photo: AFP) As Assad has won back areas such as eastern Aleppo and Ghouta, the rescue workers have left on buses to rebel-held areas of the north along with fighters and civilians who fear a return of government rule. A Jordanian government source said 422 people were brought from Syria, over the Israeli Golan Heights frontier and into Jordan, down from a figure of 800 announced earlier by the foreign ministry in Amman. White Helmets activist rescuing a child in Idlib The evacuees will be kept in a "closed" location in Jordan and resettled in Britain, Germany and Canada within three months, the source said. A second non-Jordanian source familiar with the agreement said the original plan had been to evacuate 800 people, but only 422 made it out as operations were hampered by government checkpoints and the expansion of Islamic State in the area. Britain hailed the evacuation, saying it and other allies had requested it. "Fantastic news that weUK and friendshave secured evacuation of White Helmets and their families. thank you Israel and Jordan for acting so quickly on our request," tweeted British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt. European Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement that The EU recognizes the essential efforts of Israel and Jordan, and of all othersincluding several EU Member Stateswho contributed to bringing the White Helmets and their families to safety. Iranians on Monday shrugged off the possibility that a bellicose exchange of words between President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart could escalate into military conflict, but expressed growing concern America's stepped-up sanctions could damage their fragile economy. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter In his latest salvo, Trump tweeted late on Sunday that hostile threats from Iran could bring dire consequences. This was after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani remarked earlier in the day that "American must understand well that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace and war with Iran is the mother of all wars." Trump tweeted: "NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE." Within hours, Iran's state-owned news agency IRNA dismissed the tweet, describing it as a "passive reaction" to Rouhani's remarks. President Rouhani and President Trump (Photo: AP, Reuters) On Tehran streets, residents took the exchange in stride. "Both America and Iran have threatened one another in different ways for several years," shrugged Mohsen Taheri, a 58-year-old publisher. A headline on a local newspaper quoted Rouhani as saying: "Mr. Trump, do not play with the lion's tail." Prominent Iranian political analyst Seed Leilaz downplayed the war of words, saying it was in his opinion "the storm before the calm." Leilaz said he was not "worried about the remarks and tweets," and that "neither Iran, nor any other country is interested in escalating tensions in the region." Citing harsh words the United States and North Korea had exchanged before the high-profile summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Leilaz said Trump and Kim got "closer" despite the warring words. Trump's eruption on Twitter came after a week of heavy controversy about Russian meddling in the US 2016 election, following the Helsinki summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, the tweet was reverberating across the Mideast. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the US president's "strong stance" after years in which the Iranian "regime was pampered by world powers." Trump earlier this year pulled the US out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon and ordered increased American sanctions, as well as threatening penalties for companies from other countries that continue to do business with Iran. With the economic pressure, Trump said earlier this month that "at a certain point they're going to call me and say 'let's make a deal,' and we'll make a deal." Iran has rejected talks with the US, and Rouhani has accused the US of stoking an "economic war." Rouhani also suggested Iran could immediately ramp up its production of uranium in response to US pressure. Potentially that would escalate the very situation the nuclear deal sought to avoidan Iran with a stockpile of enriched uranium that could lead to making atomic bombs. Trump's tweet suggested he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using exceptionally strong language and writing the all-capitalized tweet. "WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!," he wrote. Another Tehran resident, Mehdi Naderi, fretted that the US measures and his own government's policies are damaging the lives of the average Iranian. "America is threatening the Iranian people with its sanctions and our government is doing the same with its incompetence and mismanagement," said the self-employed 35-year-old. Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the US. In the case of North Korea, the public war of words cooled quickly and gradually led to the high profile summit and denuclearization talks. There has been little tangible progress in a global push to rid North Korea of its nuclear weapons program since the historic Trump-Kim summit on June 12. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew to Pyongyang for follow-up talks earlier this month, but the two sides showed conflicting accounts of the talks. North's Foreign Ministry accused the United States of making "gangster-like" demands for its unilateral disarmament. Some experts say Kim is using diplomacy as a way to win outside concessions and weaken US-led international sanctions. Many in Iran have expressed frustration that Trump has seemed willing to engage with North Korea, which has openly boasted of producing nuclear weapons, but not Iran, which signed the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (Photo: Getty Images) Since Trump pulled out of the deal , other nations involvedGermany, Britain, France, Russia and China as well as the European Unionhave reaffirmed their support for the deal and have been working to try and keep Iran on board. "Iran is angry since Trump responded to Tehran's engagement diplomacy by pulling the US out of the nuclear deal," Iranian lawmaker Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh said. He added, however, the war of words between the two presidents was to be expected, since official diplomatic relations between the two countries have been frozen for decades. "They express themselves through speeches since diplomatic channels are closed," said Falahatpisheh who heads the influential parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy. On Sunday in California, Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran, calling its religious leaders "hypocritical holy men" who amassed vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer. In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum, Pompeo castigated Iran's political, judicial and military leaders, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said the government has "heartlessly repressed its own people's human rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms." He said despite poor treatment by their leaders, "the proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their government's many abuses," Pompeo said. "And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent either." Alon Eizenberg, the attorney of Yonatan Heilo who was convicted in 2010 of the manslaughter of the man who raped him, welcomed the decision to grant Heilo an early release. "After seven years of struggle full of suffering and despair Yonatan begins a new life. This case represents hope to many of those fighting to prove their innocence and their truth in the courts day by day," Eizenberg said. Rocket alert sirens were triggered Monday morning after one of the two David's Sling interceptors, which was launched to destroy two large Syrian missiles, had to be destroyed in midair, with the army fearing shrapnel from the interceptor will fall inside communities and endanger the residents, according to an initial investigation conducted after the incident. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter David's Sling, a mid-range Israeli missile defense system jointly manufactured with US firm Raytheon, identified the missiles immediately upon their launch as ballistic missiles that were about to hit deep inside Israel, and so it went on the alert. The commander of the Davids Sling then made the decision within a few seconds to fire the interceptor for the first time in a real operation. David's Sling (Photo: Roee Idan) Some 25 seconds after one of the interceptors had been dispatched by the IDF, a decision was taken to destroy one of them, which is what triggered a number of rocket alert sirens in northern Israel. A second interceptor continued toward the target, two Syrian surface-to-surface SS-21 missiles carrying half-ton warheads, and it is unclear whether it destroyed them. In the end, IAF official estimate the missiles hit inside Syrian territory, some one kilometer from the Israeli border, after their final impact point changed mid-flight. Nevertheless, the IAF is examining whether David's Sling was able to intercept one of the missiles. The system, dubbed David's Sling, is meant to counter the type of medium-range missiles that the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah militants have. It completed Israel's multi-layer aerial defense system when it became operational in 2017. The rocket alert sirens were activated amid fears that shrapnel from the original interceptor that was destroyed while in the air could fall on the civilian population below. While the risk of wounding civilians is low, pieces of the missiles have fallen on communities and towns on more than one occasion, with the self-destruction of Iron Dome missiles and the remnants of interceptor missiles. According to the initial investigation carried out by the Israel Air Force, the two missiles that were fired in the morning from southeast Syria toward Israel were errant launches as part of the internal fighting Syrian President Bashar Assad and rebel forces. The surface-to-surface SS-21 missiles have high maneuverability capabilities and the Syrian army uses them often. Their range is some 100 km, while their flight time is between 1-1.5 minutes. Associated Press contributed to this report. An IDF aircraft struck Monday afternoon a cell of terrorists launching incendiary balloons from northern Gaza into Israel. There were no casualties reported. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter A similar incident occurred yesterday when another IDF fighter jet attacked a cell launching flammable balloons from Gaza. On Saturday, the IDF attacked a Hamas position in the northern Gaza Strip. The IDF Spokesperson's said that the attack was a response to the infiltration of several Palestinians suspects who crossed the border fence. It was reported that the suspects had returned to the Gaza Strip. After a situation assessment in the Kerem Shalom border crossing Sunday morning, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman addressed the Palestinians on Sunday, and said the key to opening the border to transfers of goods is the continued quiet in the region. Incendiary Balloon (Photo: AFP) Lieberman said that Saturday was the area's most quiet day since March 30th, and stressed Hamas's responsibility for recent events, and conditioned the opening of the crossing on "zero incendiary balloons, zero friction on the fence, zero rockets." "We have completed a situation assessment regarding the passage of goods in Kerem Shalom, and the residents of Gaza must understand that as long as incendiary balloons keep landing on our side and causing fires, on both sides of the fence, life will not go back to normal," the defense minister explained. "My message to the residents of Gaza is take responsibility, the key, among others, is pressure. You, Gaza residents, will put pressure on teh Hamas leadership. If Saturday's quiet continues, then life will return to normal the day after tomorrow. But the key is quiet, calm, zero incendiary balloons, zero friction of the fence, zero rockets, or god forbid, shootings. Let's hope the next couple of days will be calm," Lieberman asserted. Hamas announced early Saturday it had agreed to a ceasefire with Israel, after another round of hostilities Friday, during which Palestinian snipers killed an IDF soldiers and Israel responded with extensive strikes across the Gaza Strip. "Hamas has taken a hard pounding Friday evening, which led it to ask for to a truce with Israel, while committing to halt the fire terrorism and the Gaza border violence," a senior official said. "The actions on the ground would determine what happens next. If Hamas breaks (the ceasefire), it would pay even a more severe price," the official warned. Dealing with the fallout from two summits at once, President Donald Trump says he's "very happy" with the pace of North Korea's denuclearization, despite Kim Jong Un having taken no major steps toward that aim since their summit in Singapore last month. Trump is denying reports that he's angry with the pace of progress on the Korean Peninsula. That's at the same time he's facing criticism for the outcome of his summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin last week. Trump tweets: "A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy." "But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy," Trump added. US President Donald Trump wrote in his Twitter account Monday that he "gave up NOTHING" at his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week. According to Trump, they "merely talked about future benefits for both countries. Also, (they) got along very well, which is a good thing, except for the Corrupt Media." Maria Butina, accused in the United States of spying for Russia, met with economist Stanley Fischer, who served as the governor of the Bank of Israel and later as the vice chairman of the US Federal Reserve. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter According to several people familiar with the sessions and a report prepared by a Washington think tank that arranged them, Butina took part in 2015 meetings between a visiting Russian official and two senior US officialsFischer, at the time the Federal Reserve vice chairman, and Nathan Sheets, then Treasury undersecretary for international affairs. Butina traveled to the United States in April 2015 with Alexander Torshin, then the Russian Central Bank deputy governor, and they took part in separate meetings with Fischer and Sheets to discuss US-Russian economic relations during Democratic former President Barack Obamas administration. Stanley Fischer (Photo: Birthright Israel Excel) The two meetings, which have not been previously reported, reveal a wider circle of high-powered connections that Butina sought with American political leaders and special interest groups. Butinas lawyer, Robert Driscoll, did not have any details about her participation in meetings with Treasury and Federal Reserve officials when asked about them on Friday. Torshin did not answer calls to his cellphone on Monday. A spokeswoman for the Russian central bank said Torshin declined to comment on the subject. The meetings with Fischer and Sheets were arranged by the Center for the National Interest, a Washington foreign policy think tank that is supportive of efforts to improve US-Russia relations. Paul Saunders, its executive director, in December 2016 urged then President-elect Donald Trump to ease tensions with Russia. In articles in its magazine, The National Interest, members of the think tank have also warned of the costs to the United States of confronting Russia or getting involved in Eurasian conflicts. The meetings were documented in a Center for the National Interest report seen by Reuters that outlined its Russia-related activities from 2013 to 2015. The report described the meetings as helping bring together leading figures from the financial institutions of the United States and Russia. A judge last week ordered Butina, 29, jailed until her trial after US prosecutors argued she has ties to Russian intelligence and could flee the United States. Butina has pleaded not guilty to charges she acted as a foreign agent for Russia. She is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday for a status conference in her case. Maria Butina Russias foreign minister told the US Secretary of State on Saturday that Butina had been detained on fabricated charges and should be released. Butina worked for Torshin, who has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and served as his interpreter at various Washington events. Fischer, an in email to Reuters, confirmed he met with Torshin and his interpreter. While he could not recall details or whether the interpreter was Butina, Fischer said the conversation involved the state of the Russian economy and Torshins new role as deputy central bank governor. Another person familiar with the meeting, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it occurred on April 7, 2015, and confirmed Butina attended. Saunders, the think tanks executive director, said Torshin spoke at an April 2015 event about the Russian banking system and Butina attended as Torshins interpreter. Saunders said people at the organization cannot recall details of Torshins presentation. We were unaware of any charges or suspicions of illegal or inappropriate conduct or of any connections to Russian intelligence services, Saunders said in an email. Federal prosecutors have accused Butina of conspiring with two American citizens and a top Russian official to influence US policy toward Russia and infiltrate a gun rights group believed to be the National Rifle Association. The NRA is an influential pro-gun lobby with close ties to Republican politicians including President Donald Trump. Questions relating to Russia have cast a cloud over Trumps presidency. 'Advance the interests' The description of the top Russian official mentioned in the indictment matches Torshin. The indictment said that beginning in about 2015 Butina and the official conspired to advance the interests of the Russian Federation. Torshin could not be reached for comment on this article. I recall Mr. Torshin mentioning, as an aside, that he planned to attend a meeting of the National Rifle Association, a fact that I considered irrelevant to our conversation, Fischer wrote to Reuters. Sheets declined to comment through Ted Smith, a spokesman for asset management firm PGIM, where Sheets currently works. Fischer and Sheets met with many international banking officials as part of their official duties. The Treasury Department in April imposed sanctions on Torshin and a number of other Russian businessmen and government officials in Putins inner circle. The think tanks magazine hosted Trump at an event at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington in April 2016 also attended by Sergei Kislyak, Russias ambassador to Washington at the time. Maria Butina The April 2015 visit by Butina and Torshin came about a year after Obamas administration imposed sanctions on Russia for its annexation of Ukraines Crimea region. Two months earlier, in February 2015, the magazines Russian-born publisher and the centers primary Russia expert, Dimitri Simes, traveled to Moscow, where he met with Putin and other Russian officials, the organizations report showed. During the same April 2015 trip, Torshin and Butina also participated in a private off the record discussion at the center about the Russian financial situation and its impact on Russian politics, according to people familiar with the meeting and the think tanks report. That event was moderated by the groups chairman emeritus, former AIG CEO Maurice Hank Greenberg, the report showed. Greenberg did not return calls for comment. Among the think tanks board members is David Keene, a former NRA president and former chairman of the American Conservative Union. Keene has previously been photographed alongside Butina at events. Reuters was unable to reach him for comment. Prosecutors said the think tanks magazine published an article by Butina in June 2015 in which she said certain US politicians and Russians share many common interests. Randy Weber, a Republican US congressman from Texas, also met with Torshin during the April trip, according to the think tanks documents. A spokeswoman for Weber did not respond to multiple calls or emails seeking comment. President Reuven Rivlin paid a condolences visit Monday to the Levi family, whose son Staff Sgt. Aviv Levi was killed by Palestinian sniper fire on the Gaza border on Friday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter "Your son protected us all. Our entire security is based on these young soldiers who carry the burden of the protection of our land," Rivlin told the bereaved parents. "Thanks to them, we are developing our country. This is our strength, and it is also our pain." Rivlin met with Levi's parents and siblings, members of his extended family, and his girlfriend Shahar Erez. Rivlin comforts Sgt. Aviv Levi's parents (Photo: Avi Kanner/GPO) Aviv's uncle told Rivlin about the support the family has been receiving from all over the country. "We're being embraced completely. The entire nation has come to our aid. The morning after (the news of Levi's death broke), a box with bread and vegetables was left outside the door, without the name of the sender. That's what the people of Israel are like." "I hope Aviv will be the last fallen soldier," his mother Perla said in pain. "That no mother feels this pain, that no mother loses her child." Aviv's father Yaakov told the president about the moment the family received the terrible news while on vacation abroad. "I would like to note the warm treatment we received in the hardest 24 hours of our lives from the Foreign Ministry's team and the military attache in Italy. They did their job gently and in a way that inspires appreciation," Yaakov said. Rivlin visits the Levi family (Photo: Avi Kanner/GPO) "There is no comfort for your pain," Rivlin said, turning to the extended family. "Your pain including yours, the siblings, and yours, dear grandmothers. Grandchildren are our heart, and the loss is hard to bear. I hope and wish you only good news in the future, and may we get to join you in your happy times. The entire nation embraces you at this difficult hour." Speaking to Aviv's girlfriend Shahar Erez, the president told her the people of Israel were moved by the goodbye message she posted on her Facebook page after Aviv was killed, and warmly embraced her. Hateful comments by Palestinian users Erez also received hateful comments to that post by Palestinian users, including: "The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade (are there) only to kill the swine," "May you spend your days at grave sites," and "Death to you and your family." Shahar Erez's goodbye post to her boyfriend, Sgt. Aviv Levi Many users tagged Facebook's management to draw their attention to the hateful comments, leading to hateful comments being made on Facebook officials' posts against Jews, Israelis and IDF soldiers. Several hours later, the Facebook post was removedapparently by the girlfriend herselfbut the Instagram version remained online. Facebook said in response: "We're handling the matter. This is a violation of our community rules. Facebook is working to protect the safety of its users." More than 600 health care employees signed a letter to Prime Minister and Minister of Health Benjamin Netanyahu calling for a change in the ministry's policy, including putting an end to offensive legislation against the LGBT community. The letter was signed by doctors, chief physicians, senior nurses, chief psychologists, and chairmen of unions in the Israel Medicine Association. The letter also accuses Deputy Minister of Health, Yaakov Litzman, for promoting a policy that harms the health of the entire gay community. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday in talks focusing on the Iranian presence in Syria. Netanyahu announced earlier at a Cabinet meeting that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a few days ago requested the meeting with the high level delegation that includes Russia's chief of the military's General Staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov. Netanyahu said they will discuss regional developments with "the situation in Syria being first and foremost." He said he will reiterate Israel's position that it expects Syrian President Bashar Assad and his Iranian-backed allies to honor the 1974 agreement which sets out a demilitarized zone along their shared frontier, and that Israel will continue to act to stop its archenemy Iran from establishing a permanent military presence in Syria. Israel's main concern is to keep Iran, that is fighting alongside the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad, as far away from its border as possible -- along with its proxy, the Lebanese Hezbollah and other militia. Russia, a key Assad ally, has warned it would be unrealistic to expect Iran to fully withdraw from the country. Monday's meeting comes about two weeks after Netanyahu and Putin discussed Syria and Iran in Moscow. Hours before the meeting Israel intercepted rockets from the fighting in Syria it believed were heading its way. The incident came after Israel earlier this month, twice in the same week, fired a Patriot missile at an unmanned aircraft that approached the country's border from Syria. In June, Israel fired a missile at a drone that approached its airspace near the Syrian frontier. Israel on Monday rebuffed a Russian offer to keep Iranian forces in Syria at least 100 kilometers from the Golan Heights ceasefire line, an Israeli official said on Monday. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the issue came up during a meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a visiting Russian delegation led by Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov. The official said that Netanyahu told Lavrov "we will not allow the Iranians to establish themselves even 100 kilometers from the border." Israel rebuffed on Monday a new Russian offer to keep Iranian forces in Syria away from the Golan Heights ceasefire line, an Israeli official said, complicating Moscow's bid to stabilize the country amid a waning civil war. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the issue came up during a meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a visiting Russian delegation led by Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov. Netanyahu said a Russian offer to keep Iranian forces 100 km (62 miles) from the border was not enough, telling Lavrov "we will not allow the Iranians to establish themselves even 100 kilometers from the border." Netanyahu meets with Lavrov (Photo: Haim Zach/GPO) "The Russians are speaking about (the 100-km buffer zone) and are committed to it, but we said there are also long-range weapons beyond this zone, and all those forces must leave Syria," the official said. Israel had previously turned down a proposal by Russia, the big-power backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad, that Iranian forces be kept 80 km from the frontier, according to Israeli officials. The Russian embassy in Israel tweeted that Lavrov and armed forces chief General Valery Gerasimov discussed with Netanyahu Assad's advance in southwest Syria and "issues related to Israel border security." Another Israeli official described the meeting, which lasted for over two hours, as "an important meeting at a significant time in which we discussed the details of Iranian presence and activity in Syria, while presenting maps and intelligence materials, as we explained our policy to push Iran out of Syria." The official said Israel will maintain full freedom of operations for the IDF, and detailed what the removal of Iran from Syria should entail: "First of all, all the long-range weapons must be removed from Syria; precise weapons production must be stopped; other strategic weapons, such as air defense, must be removed as well; the border crossings that allow the smuggling of these weapons must be closed, including on the Syrian-Lebanese border where weapons are smuggled into Lebanon, and the Iraqi-Syrian border through which weapons are smuggled from Iran into Syria itself." PM Netanyahu, Defense Minister Lieberman, IDF Chief Eisenkot and other officials meet with the Russian delegation (Photo: Haim Zach/GPO) Netanyahu announced earlier at a Cabinet meeting that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a few days ago requested the meeting with the high level delegation that also includes Russia's chief of the military's General Staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov. Netanyahu said they will discuss regional developments with "the situation in Syria being first and foremost." He said he will reiterate Israel's position that it expects Syrian President Bashar Assad and his Iranian-backed allies to honor the 1974 agreement which sets out a demilitarized zone along their shared frontier, and that Israel will continue to act to stop its archenemy Iran from establishing a permanent military presence in Syria. Israel's main concern is to keep Iran, which is fighting alongside Assad's forces, as far away from its border as possiblealong with its proxy, the Lebanese Hezbollah and other militia. Russia has warned it would be unrealistic to expect Iran to fully withdraw from the country. However, Moscow has said it wants to see the separation of forces on the frontier preserved. Lavrov's deputy, Grigory Karasin, told Russian media the foreign minister's trip was "urgent and important." Monday's meeting comes about two weeks after Netanyahu and Putin discussed Syria and Iran in Moscow. Hours before the meeting, Israel activated a missile defense system against rockets from the fighting in Syria it believed were heading its way. The incident came after Israel earlier this month, twice in the same week, fired a Patriot missile at an unmanned aircraft that approached the country's border from Syria. In June, Israel fired a missile at a drone that approached its airspace near the Syrian frontier. Six people were wounded Monday morning in clashes between police and Sakhnin residents who were trying to stop the court-ordered demolition of a house. Two were arrested. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter An 28-year-old man and a 60-year-old woman, who were moderately hurt, were airlifted to the Ramban Medical Center in Haifa. The other four wounded were taken to a hospital in Nahariya in light condition. A police force arrived in Sakhnin along with representatives of the Finance Ministry's district planning and construction committee to demolish under a court order a house built and populated illegally in the city's municipal area. Clashes in Sakhnin X The two-story structure was built on farmland not allocated for construction and without its obtaining the proper building permits. The police was entrusted with securing the demolition, which was supervised by Finance Ministry inspectors and carried out by a contractor. After the demolition, some 200 Sakhnin residents arrived at the site, and some of them began rioting and throwing stones at police forces. The policemen used crowd dispersal measures. "A young man on an ATV tried to break through a roadblock set up by the Israel Police," the police said. Ali, a resident of Sakhnin, complained that "the police only want to demolish our homes without dealing with the housing crisis. Where can be build, while no progress is being made on the outline plan?" "We're not construction criminals, but we have nothing left to do but to build on our lands," Ali went on to say. "We will continue our struggle without being afraid and without answering to anyone. The police won't deter us." A woman from Sakhnin said that "Once we knew about the intention to demolish a house, we dropped everything and arrived at the scene to protect the house with our bodies. We're willing to sacrifice our lives for the houses and the families." "The police and the government must understand that demolishing the homes will lead to an explosion. Because of the Nationality Law, they'll probably go more and more wild and allow themselves to hurt us in the most outrageous ways there are," she added. Over the past month, several houses have been demolished in Arab communities, including in Qalansawe, Jaljulia, Manshiya Zabda, Umm al-Fahm, 'Ara and Lod. The police said that they will "continue acting with determination against violent lawbreakers, whoever they may be, using arrests and crowd dispersal measures , among other things. On the other hand, we will continue allowing the freedom of expression and protest under the law, but we will not allow disturbing the public order, violence against police officers or civilians, rioting on main roads and hurting the daily life of Israeli citizens." The David's Sling missile defense system failed its first attempt to intercept two Syrian missiles on Monday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Inquiry teams made up of representatives from the manufacturer Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, the Defense Ministry's Missile Defense Organization (MDO) and the Israel Air Force have launched an investigation into the incident Monday morning over the Golan Heights. David's Sling, which is part of Israels multi-layered missile defense program, operates in the layer above the Iron Dome and below the Arrow systems. David's Sling (file photo) (Photo: Defense Ministry) Meaning, it is designed to intercept tactical ballistic missiles and medium- to long-range rockets and cruise missiles fired from distances of 40-300km. Monday morning's incident was the first time David's Sling was used against enemy projectiles since it was declared operational in March 2017. The defense establishment is expected to be able to point to the reason the interception failed within the next two or three days. The cause of the failure is likely technological in nature, and not related to the Air Force operators of the system, who made a reasonable decision to launch the two interceptor missiles from the David's Sling permanent site in the north. David's Sling fires interceptor missiles (: ) X Unlike the Iron Dome system, David's Sling is not mobile. But much like the Arrow systems, David's Sling provides coverage from its stationary location to the entire country. It is possible that the decision to destroy one of the interceptor missiles in midair near the Kinneret will found to be the wrong decision, as in hindsight the interceptor could have continued its flight until possibly hitting the large target coming from the southeast. David's Sling is meant to be able to take on the two Soviet-made surface-to-surface SS-21 missiles, which were fired Monday morning by the Syrian army against the rebels. The missiles, which are called SS-21 by NATO, are called "Tochka" in Russian, meaning "dot"an indication of their precision. The SS-21 missiles were developing in the 1970s by the Soviet Union and sold to the Syrian army. The missile's range is 14-70 kilometers. It weighs 2.5 ton, 480 kilograms of which make up the warhead, which scatters a lot of spray as it hits its target. Its diameter is 65 centimeters. The SS-21 is fired from a single launcher, such as a truck, and is directed in air by wingtip devices. Soviet SS-21 missiles (Photo: Wikimedia Commons) The Israeli detection systems are meant to identify and catalog itbased on all of its familiar attributesrelatively fast, within seconds, and act accordingly. The initial investigation found that the predicted impact point of the two Syrian missiles, which were in the air for 1-1.5 minutes, was deep in Israel's northern region. Therefore, the decision to launch the interceptor missiles was justified, though it might not have been economically justified, since the cost of each missile is $1 million. But the fact that the chief contractor of the system, Rafael, is based in Israel, as opposed to the US's army's Patriot, will help understand what went wrong quicker, and if necessary, draw the necessary conclusions for the next incident. At the same time, the David Sling system has proven to be an advantageous system of great importance: it knows how to provide a broad response and defense coverage. Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman postponed his decision to open the Kerem Shalom border crossing to Tuesday. According to The Ministry of Defense, the decision would be made in accordance with the situation on the ground and the security assessment. I was going to write a piece titled "Not so terrible" or "Not the end of democracy" in the wake of the downpour of legislation last week. That is also what I told the editors of the opinion pages. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter After all, these laws are really not a disaster. The Nationality Law underwent changes in the wake of public criticism. The most poisonous of its articles was removed. This is proof of the effect democratic discourse could have. So was the law to regulate surrogacy , which is under contention in most democratic nations. There is not general consensus that this is even an appropriate procedurebecause of the exploitation of womenand there is no basic right for gays to be able to use a surrogate mother to become parents. Coalition celebrates passing of Nationality Law with a selfie (Photo: Amit Shaabi) Breaking the Silence Law . Is there a right granted to every organization to enter schools? After all, the Education Ministry revoked the budget of a yeshiva after one of its heads expressed ignorant views. It is allowed to set red lines. Not everything that is allowed to be said should also be said to schoolchildren. However, I must admit, that the more I delved into the condemnations from the international community, particularly with regards to the Nationality Law, the more my views changed. Israel is a Jewish state. It appears 29 times, no less, in the UN Partition Plan. When US President Obama visited Ramallah, he included in his speechto the shock and outrage of Abbas and his aidesthe demand for the Palestinians to recognize Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people. In those very words. Arab MKs protest Nationality Law in the Knesset (: ) It's true that there's a loud post-Zionist and anti-Zionist minority that rejects the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state. But there are already Basic Laws that include Israel's character as "a Jewish and democratic state." So why exactly did we need this law? Well, we didn't. And the more days that pass, the more it appears the damage is much bigger than first believed. Hundreds of media bodies around the world have published condemnation articles in recent days. Many times, these articles included the words "racist legislation." It's true, many of the condemnations are coming from Israel's regular haters; they take advantage of any opportunity to denounce Israel. Israel's Knesset, in a foolish move, gave them another opportunity, as well as more fuel to their propaganda fire, according to which a state cannot be both Jewish and democratic. The damage is greater, far greater, to Israel's relations with its friends in the world. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released a statement expressing concern. The most representative body for British Jews also released a statement saying the law constitutes a withdrawal from Israel's democratic commitments. US Jews are mostly Reform and Conservative. The heads of these bodies released statements critical of the law. The American Jewish Committee (AJC), one of the most important Jewish and pro-Israeli bodies there is, also released a condemnation. These bodies are strong supporters of the Zionist idea and the definition of Israel as a Jewish state. But the Nationality Law, even in its amended version, is making Israelin their eyesless democratic. There's no need to agree with every word in the different statements. But it appears Israel's parliament scored an own goal. The Nationality Law has one more dubious achievement: it undermines the very important relationship between the Jewish majority and the Druze in Israel. Brig. Gen. (res.) Amal Asad sent a letter to the prime minister four years ago, stressing that the legislation offends all members of the Druze community. There is no one who represents the close bond between the Druze and the Jewish state like Asad. But Netanyahu never bothered answering. The Druze never disputed the determination that Israel is a Jewish state. But not just Jewish, it's also a state that grants full rights to its non-Jewish citizens. Now, Asad and many other Druze like him feel like Israel is rejecting them. They already announced their intentions to petition the High Court of Justice against the law. It's not simple. After all, this is a Basic Law. It has no discrimination, but it does have a defiant tone, unnecessarily so. Why did we need this? The Nationality Law is a Basic Law, and there is no chance of changing it under the current coalition. The High Court won't rush to pull the chestnuts out of the fire, either. And only one thing is clear beyond any doubt. A week ago, there was consensus about Israel being a Jewish and democratic state. This week, this consensus is far less stable. The rescue organization "The White Helmets" referred to the rescue operation of its activists from Syria and said that "we thank the governments of all the countries that took part in the success of the operation," in which Israel participated. The organization called on governments to help "the hundreds of thousands of Syrians still in danger." Expert Advice with Simon Pressley 23/07/2018 If you thought that Australian property markets were all doom and gloom, think again. Double-digit price growth was produced for one in every eight locations across Australia over the last 12 months. Our research shows that the median house price increased by 10 per cent or better in 12 per cent of Australia over the year ending April 2018. The property markets of 550 city councils spread across our 8 states and territories is akin to the stock exchange for Australias property markets. 67 out of 550 had double-digit growth. The property markets of 16 out of Greater-Melbournes 31 city councils produced double-digit price growth. These were predominantly in the outer parts of Melbourne where housing is more affordable. Hume (25%), Whittlesea (23%), Cardinia (21%), Nillumbik and Casey (both 19 per cent) were the biggest winners. Interestingly, 45 of the 67 locations that produced double-digit price growth are located outside of Australias 8 capital cities. 24 of the 27 locations in New South Wales where the median house price grew by more than 10 per cent last year are in the regions. The median house price in Uralla in regional New South Wales increased by 24.1 per cent last year. A typical house in the New England region is still an affordable $367,000. Weve been saying for quite some time that the outlook for many parts of regional Australia is increasingly better than most capital city markets. Employment growth in some of Australias regions is strong, especially in tourism, health, agriculture and specialised manufacturing. The mining sector is also showing a strong recovery. Victoria had the biggest representation of double-digit price growth with 28 locations, of which 12 were regional locations. Tasmania had 7 locations; 4 of these are within Greater-Hobart, currently Australias hottest property market. South Australia was also well represented with 3 of its 4 locations also in the regions. The median house price in Roebourne (Karratha) in Western Australia increased by 13.5 per cent while Queensland didnt have any locations on the list of double-digit growth. Locations dont produce double-digit growth very often. Several capital cities still havent seen it since before the GFC. The strongest growth cycle unfolding right now is in strategically-chosen regional locations. The Asian Century is real, its having a positive impact in key industries and this is flowing through to certain property markets, including regional Australia. The opportunities are significant, and we are only nineteen years in to it. Local confidence and job growth increases demand for housing. Our buyers agents have already seen the positivity within regional communities flow through to property prices. The research also shows that 45 of the 67 city councils with double-digit price growth still have a median house price below $600,000. Regional Australia has housing affordability in spades. The median house price is still under $350,000 in strong growth locations such as Berri, Cooma-Monaro, Coffs Harbour, Forbes, Lithgow, Launceston, and Muswellbrook. Double-Digit Price Growth [YE April 2018] Hume VIC * $ 566,000 25.0% Newcastle NSW $ 640,000 12.6% Uralla NSW $ 367,000 24.1% Glenelg VIC $ 195,000 12.5% Whittlesea VIC * $ 625,000 23.0% Wentworth NSW $ 272,500 12.5% Cardinia VIC * $ 535,000 20.9% Berri & Barmera SA $ 191,500 12.3% Dorset TAS $ 220,000 20.0% Eurobodalla NSW $ 510,000 12.2% Nillumbik VIC * $ 780,000 19.3% Launceston TAS $ 307,000 12.0% Casey VIC * $ 620,000 19.0% Kyogle NSW $ 300,000 11.8% Snowy River NSW $ 495,000 18.9% Bega Valley NSW $ 470,000 11.8% Melton VIC * $ 505,000 18.4% Burnside SA * $ 960,000 11.7% Cooma-Monaro NSW $ 320,500 18.4% Lithgow NSW $ 342,000 11.7% Grant SA $ 275,000 18.0% Glamorgan TAS $ 411,000 11.6% Berrigan NSW $ 238,750 17.7% Port Augusta SA $ 195,000 11.4% Glenorchy TAS * $ 376,000 17.3% Bass Coast VIC $ 418,000 11.3% Wyndham VIC * $ 560,000 17.2% Macedon Ranges VIC $ 550,000 11.2% Mitchell VIC $ 430,000 15.9% Mornington Peninsula VIC * $ 781,000 11.2% Kingborough TAS * $ 576,600 15.7% Golden Plains VIC $ 445,000 11.2% Palerang NSW $ 727,500 15.6% Queanbeyan NSW $ 665,000 11.2% Gloucester NSW $ 286,000 15.5% Knox VIC * $ 801,000 11.1% Dungog NSW $ 420,000 15.5% Tweed NSW $ 650,000 11.1% Wellington NSW $ 193,750 15.4% Dandenong VIC * $ 700,000 11.1% Auburn NSW * $ 985,000 15.0% Murrindindi VIC $ 980,000 11.0% Forbes NSW $ 260,000 14.8% Coffs Harbour NSW $ 342,500 11.1% Sorrell TAS * $ 357,500 14.8% Inverell NSW $ 270,000 11.0% Moreland VIC * $ 887,500 14.7% Colac-Otway VIC $ 325,000 10.9% Baw Baw VIC $ 405,500 14.7% Darebin VIC * $ 997,500 10.9% Melbourne VIC * $1,180,000 14.6% Muswellbrook NSW $ 300,000 10.7% Yarra Ranges VIC * $ 685,227 14.2% Indigo NSW $ 307,000 10.5% Brimbank VIC * $ 654,000 14.1% Moorabool VIC $ 432,250 10.5% Frankston VIC * $ 625,000 13.9% Taree NSW $ 396,000 10.5% Roebourne WA $ 353,000 13.5% Wyong NSW * $ 590,000 10.2% Hobart TAS * $ 690,000 13.3% Strathbogie VIC $ 307,500 10.1% Shoalhaven NSW $ 575,000 13.2% Corangamite VIC $ 191,250 10.1% Kiama NSW $ 991,000 13.1% Gosford NSW * $ 800,000 10.0% Geelong VIC $ 522,000 13.0% SOURCE : CoreLogic. Analysis of Australias 550 city councils as at end of April 2018 (more than 100 dwellings sold over 12 months) Propertyology research shows that, in addition to significantly improved economic conditions, regional locations are attracting migration from people moving away from capital cities. The population of regional Australia increased by 7,740 people over the 2017 financial year. Thats comparable to a city the size of Port Macquarie - Australias 29th largest city in just one year. In addition to the 67 city councils where the median house price increased by at least 10 per cent, another 64 locations increased by 7.2 per cent or more. 7.2 per cent is the average growth rate required for an asset to double in value over 10 years. ...................................................................... Simon Pressley is Head of Property Market Research and Managing Director at Propertyology. Propertyology is a national property market researcher and buyers agency, helping everyday people to invest in strategically-chosen locations all over Australia. The multi-award-winning firms success includes being a finalist in the 2017 Telstra Business Awards and 2018 winner of Buyers Agency of the Year in REIQ Awards For Excellence. Disclaimer: while due care is taken, the viewpoints expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Your Investment Property. News Tempe, Arizona - Kimberly Scott, ASU professor of women and gender studies and founding director of Arizona State University's Center for Gender Equity in Science and Technology, has been appointed to a new National Science Foundation panel focused on innovation in science, technology, engineering and math education. The NSF STEM Education Advisory Panel was created in consultation with the U.S. Department of Education, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In total, 18 appointees joined the panel from nonprofit, business, academic and educational organizations. I am excited to work with other committed individuals who have a demonstrated history of exploring ways we can collectively change the face of STEM, Scott said. This opportunity is integral to informing policy at the highest level. I am honored to be part of such a prestigious group. Trained as a sociologist of education and childhoods, Scotts interdisciplinary work examines the social and academic development of girls of color in informal spaces and their technosocial innovations. Scott previously worked as an urban educator with international and national institutions including a center for girls in Chiang Mai, Thailand; the Educational Law Center in Newark, New Jersey; and the Smithsonian Institutions National Museum of African Art. Congress authorized creation of the panel to advise a group of federal organizations called the Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education, or CoSTEM, on matters related to STEM education. In particular, Congress authorized the panel to identify opportunities to update that 2013-2018 Federal STEM Education 5-Year Strategic Plan, which CoSTEM developed to improve the efficiency, coordination and impact of federally supported STEM investments. This new panel has an opportunity to bring fresh eyes and novel approaches to CoSTEMs next five-year strategic plan, which will help enhance the nations STEM ecosystem, said NSF Director France Cordova, who co-chairs CoSTEM. NSF continues to generate benefits for society through STEM research. To fulfill that mission, we and our federal partners need to make strategic investments to create new generations of discoverers. News Cambridge, Massachusetts - The universe should be a predictably symmetrical place, according to a cornerstone of Einsteins theory of special relativity, known as Lorentz symmetry. This principle states that any scientist should observe the same laws of physics, in any direction, and regardless of ones frame of reference, as long as that object is moving at a constant speed. For instance, as a consequence of Lorentz symmetry, you should observe the same speed of light 300 million meters per second whether you are an astronaut traveling through space or a molecule moving through the bloodstream. But for infinitesimally small objects that operate at incredibly high energies, and over vast, universe-spanning distances, the same rules of physics may not apply. At these extreme scales, there may exist a violation to Lorentz symmetry, or Lorentz violation, in which a mysterious, unknown field warps the behavior of these objects in a way that Einstein would not predict. The hunt has been on to find evidence of Lorentz violation in various phenomena, from photons to gravity, with no definitive results. Physicists believe that if Lorentz violation exists, it might also be seen in neutrinos, the lightest known particles in the universe, which can travel over vast distances and are produced by cataclysmic high-energy astrophysical phenomena. Any confirmation that Lorentz violation exists would point to completely new physics that cannot be explained by Einsteins theory. Now MIT scientists and their colleagues on the IceCube Experiment have led the most thorough search yet of Lorentz violation in neutrinos. They analyzed two years of data collected by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory, a massive neutrino detector buried in the Antarctic ice. The team searched for variations in the normal oscillation of neutrinos that could be caused by a Lorentz-violating field. According to their analysis, no such abnormalities were observed in the data, which comprises the highest-energy atmospheric neutrinos that any experiment has collected. The teams results, published today in Nature Physics, rule out the possibility of Lorentz violation in neutrinos within the high energy range that the researchers analyzed. The results establish the most stringent limits to date on the existence of Lorentz violation in neutrinos. They also provide evidence that neutrinos behave just as Einsteins theory predicts. People love tests of Einsteins theory, says Janet Conrad, professor of physics at MIT and a lead author on the paper. I cant tell if people are cheering for him to be right or wrong, but he wins in this one, and thats kind of great. To be able to come up with as versatile a theory as he has done is an incredible thing. Conrads co-authors at MIT, who also led the search for Lorentz violation, are postdoc Carlos Arguelles and graduate student Gabriel Collin, who collaborated closely with Teppei Katori, a former postdoc in Conrads group who is now a lecturer in particle physics at Queen Mary University of London. Their co-authors on the paper include the entire IceCube Collaboration, comprising more than 300 researchers from 49 institutions in 12 countries. Flavor change Neutrinos exist in three main varieties, or as particle physicists like to call them, flavors: electron, muon, and tau. As a neutrino travels through space, its flavor can oscillate, or morph into any other flavor. The way neutrinos oscillate typically depends on a neutrinos mass or the distance that it has traveled. But if a Lorentz-violating field exists somewhere in the universe, it could interact with neutrinos passing through that field, and affect their oscillations. To test whether Lorentz violation can be found in neutrinos, the researchers looked to data gathered by the IceCube Observatory. IceCube is a 1-gigaton particle-detector designed to observe high-energy neutrinos produced from the most violent astrophysical sources in the universe. The detector is composed of 5,160 digital optical modules, or light sensors, each of which are attached to vertical strings that are frozen into 86 boreholes arrayed over a cubic kilometer of Antarctic ice. Neutrinos streaming through space and the Earth can interact with the ice that comprises the detector or the bedrock below it. This interaction produces muons charged particles that are heavier than electrons. Muons emit light as they go through the ice, producing long tracks that can go through the entire detector. Based on the recorded light, scientists can track the trajectory and estimate the energy of a muon, which they can use to back-calculate the energy and expected oscillation of the original neutrino. The team, led by Arguelles and Katori, decided to look for Lorentz violation in the highest-energy neutrinos that are produced in the Earths atmosphere. Neutrino oscillations are a natural interferometer, explains Katori. Neutrino oscillations observed with IceCube act as the biggest interferometer in the world to look for the tiniest effects such as a space-time deficit. The team looked through two years of data gathered by IceCube, which comprised more than 35,000 interactions between a muon neutrino and the detector. If a Lorentz-violating field exists, the researchers theorized that it should produce an abnormal pattern of oscillations from neutrinos arriving at the detector from a particular direction, which should become more relevant as the energy increases. Such an abnormal oscillation pattern should correspond to a similarly abnormal energy spectrum for the muons. The researchers calculated the deviation in the energy spectrum that they would expect to see if Lorentz violation existed, and compared this spectrum to the actual energy spectrum IceCube observed, for the highest-energy neutrinos from the atmosphere. We are looking for a deficit of muon neutrinos along the direction that traverses large fractions of the Earth, Arguelles says. This Lorentz violation-induced disappearance should increase with increasing energy. If Lorentz violation exists, physicists believe it should have a more obvious effect on objects at extremely high energies. The atmospheric neutrino dataset analyzed by the team is the highest-energy neutrino data collected by any experiment. We were looking to see if a Lorentz violation caused a deviation, and we didnt see it, Conrad says. This closes the book on the possibility of Lorentz violation for a range of high-energy neutrinos, for a very long time. A violating limit This is a difficult analysis and takes into account effects that had not been considered before, says Andre Luiz De Gouvea, a physics professor at Northwestern University, who was not involved in the research. It is, as of right now, the most powerful result of its kind. The teams results set the most stringent limit yet on how strongly neutrinos may be affected by a Lorentz-violating field. The researchers calculated, based on IceCube data, that a violating field with an associated energy greater than 10-36 GeV-2 should not affect a neutrinos oscillations. Thats .01 with 35 more zeros preceding the 1, of one-billionth an electronvolt squared an extremely small force that is far weaker than neutrinos normally weak interactions with the rest of matter, which is at the level of 10-5 GeV-2. We were able to set limits on this hypothetical field that are much, much better than any that have been produced before, Conrad says. This was an attempt to go out and look at new territory we hadnt looked at before and see if there are any problems in that space, and there arent. But that doesnt stop us from looking further. To that point, the group plans to look for Lorentz violation in even higher-energy neutrinos that are produced from astrophysical sources. IceCube does record astrophysical neutrinos, along with atmospheric ones, but scientists dont have a complete understanding of their behavior, such as their normal oscillations. Once they can better model these interactions, Conrad says the team will have a better chance of looking for patterns that deviate from the norm. Every paper that comes out of particle physics assumes that Einstein is right, and all the rest of our work builds on that, Conrad says. And to a very good approximation, hes correct. It is a fundamental fabric of our theory. So trying to understand whether there are any deviations to it is a really important thing to do. This research was supported, in part, by National Science Foundation. News Oshkosh, Wisconsin - Visitors to AirVenture Oshkosh 2018 can get a close look at the latest in NASA aerospace technology during the Experimental Aircraft Associations annual airshow Monday, July 23, through Sunday, July 29, at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The NASA Exhibit Pavilion, located in Aviation Gateway Park, will be packed with exciting interactive simulators, models, displays, exhibits and videos that highlight the truly groundbreaking work happening at NASA centers across the country. Aerospace experts will be there to discuss the exhibits and answer questions about their role working with NASAs research and technology. Visitors can learn about NASAs all-electric X-57 Maxwell and the recently-announced supersonic X-59 QueSST aircraft, and have a chance to meet NASA test pilots who will fly these aircraft. The X-57 takes to the skies in 2019 to demonstrate how electric propulsion can be 500 percent more efficient than conventional aircraft. The X-59 will fly in 2023 and demonstrate how the latest technology can reduce the loud sonic boom typically associated with supersonic flight to a soft thump. Visitors also will have the opportunity to try their hand flying the same simulators that NASA pilots and engineers use as they train to fly these X-planes. Among these will be a newly-integrated simulator for the Improved Ground Collision Avoidance System. This simulator features a system based on the highly successful Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto-GCAS) that was integrated into many F-16s flown today and is credited with saving several pilots and aircraft. Also available are exhibits showcasing NASAs work with unmanned aerial vehicles and aircraft icing research, as well as its Space Launch System and Earth science missions. NASAs Glenn Research Center will display the last S-3B Viking to fly that the agency used for research into engine icing, communications systems development for unmanned aircraft systems in the national airspace ,and algae bloom monitoring on Lake Erie. On Thursday, July 26, NASAs Armstrong Flight Research Center will display an F-18, flown primarily to support the agencys Commercial Supersonic Technology project. The aircraft will be deployed to Galveston, Texas, in November to help engineers better prepare for X-59 testing. Engineers, pilots and project managers also will give forum talks throughout the week on the exciting work taking place across the agency. For a full rundown of these forum talks, visit https://go.nasa.gov/2zT54Bl and enter the filter word NASA. News Washington, DC - A former business partner of a U.S. military contractor pleaded guilty last Monday to one count of bribery for his role in a years-long scheme to bribe U.S. Army contracting officials stationed at a U.S. military base in Kuwait, announced Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Departments Criminal Division. According to the plea filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Finbar Charles, 62, a citizen of Saint Lucia most recently residing in Baguio City, Philippines, was a business partner of a former U.S. military contractor, Terry Hall. As Halls business partner, Charles facilitated Hall and others in providing millions of dollars in bribes in approximately 2005 to 2007 to various U.S. Army officials in exchange for preferential treatment for Halls companies in connection with Department of Defense (DOD) contracts to deliver bottled water and construct security fencing to support U.S. troops stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. As part of his role in this criminal conspiracy, Charles managed bank accounts in Kuwait and the Philippines that he used to receive DOD payments and transfer illegal bribes to various U.S. Army contracting officials, including Majors Eddie Pressley, John Cockerham, James Momon, and Chris Murray. All of those individuals, as well as at least 10 other coconspirators, have pleaded guilty or been convicted of crimes relating to this scheme. Charles admitted that he personally received over $228,000 in illicit gains as a result of his participation. The sentencing is set for Nov. 26. This case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, the FBI, and the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Peter N. Halpern and Robert J. Heberle of the Criminal Divisions Public Integrity Section. Arizona News Eugene, Oregon - The Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) honored conservation professionals from several western states with awards commending their work to conserve fish and wildlife resources at an awards ceremony July 16 at the organizations annual conference in Eugene, Oregon. Julie Meka Carter, the Arizona Game and Fish Departments statewide native aquatic program supervisor, was recognized with the WAFWA Contributor of the Year Award along with Jon Sjoberg and Therese Thompson for their work with the Western Native Trout Initiative. The group revised the Western Native Trout Initiatives strategic plan to more effectively target western native trout conservation. Tom Mackin was honored with WAFWAs 2018 Special Recognition Award for his volunteer service to the Arizona Game and Fish Department. Mackin is an avid outdoorsman and conservationist, and he has gone above and beyond as a volunteer since 1990, providing more than 800 hours of service annually during the last few years. Edward Pat Madden, former chairman of the Arizona Game and Fish Commission, was awarded with a WAFWA lifetime membership for his career accomplishments and service to the commission. For more information about WAFWA and to review a complete list of awardees, visit www.wafwa.org. Arizona News Alpine, Arizona - The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) is collaborating with the White Mountain Lakes Foundation and the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest to address chronic and long-term water-quality issues at Luna Lake near Alpine. The ongoing project could eventually include other lakes located on the national forest: Carnero Lake, Lee Valley Lake and Crescent Lake. AZGFD plans to install the first aeration system at Luna Lake during the spring of 2019. If the concept and approach prove successful at Luna, funding for installation of aerators at the other three lakes will be pursued. Once started, installation of the aeration system at Luna should be finished in only a few months, said Dave Weedman, AZGFD Aquatic Habitat Program Manager. Luna Lake is the most cost-effective option because it is more easily accessible during the winter for maintenance than the other three lakes, and we have numerous partners in the area that will assist in the maintenance and upkeep of the facility. Successful project implementation will require collaboration between the AZGFD and Alpine Ranger District on the environmental compliance (NEPA) for beginning construction on the infrastructure. Both agencies have committed to begin the NEPA process immediately. AZGFD biologists are monitoring water quality at all four lakes in an attempt to identify the causes for the water quality problems. Each of these lakes has periodically suffered from winter or summer fish die-offs as a result of poor water quality, low dissolved oxygen (DO) in the winter or excessively high pH in the summer. AZGFD has already solicited plans for installation of aerators to address low oxygen during the winters, and is pursuing the needed environmental clearances to pave the way for installation and operation of the equipment. Each of these lakes is different and will require a multi-faceted approach to address the water quality causes for the fish die-offs. For example: Crescent Lake receives an elevated level of nutrients from the watershed that contributes to excessive plant and algae growth. During the winter, as the lake ices over, transfer of oxygen from the air to the water is cut off, as is production of oxygen through photosynthesis by the plants and algae, while decomposing plant matter under the ice burns up all the oxygen, leaving none to keep fish alive. Aeration, in combination with nutrient control, may prove to resolve this issue. Luna Lake suffers from a similar condition during the winter, as well as an elevated pH and low oxygen problem during the summer as excessive plant growth and blue-green algae absorb carbon dioxide, causing the pH to rise during the day. At night, when photosynthesis shuts down, the production of oxygen also shuts down. Respiration by zooplankton and decomposition by bacteria consume oxygen, causing a daily low DO condition that may stress and/or kill fish. AZGFD thanks numerous partners for their local and vocal support: Arizona Sportsmen for Wildlife Conservation, Alpine Alliance, Trout Unlimited, Arizona Flycasters Club, The Desert Fly Casters of Chandler, White Mountain Fly Fishing Club, Friends of Luna Lake and the White Mountain Lakes Foundation. Arizona News Tucson, Arizona - The University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center and Banner University Medical Center Tucson welcomed Rupa Bala, MD, to the cardiovascular medicine team. Dr. Bala, board certified in clinical cardiac electrophysiology and cardiovascular disease, joined the University of Arizona College of Medicine Tucson, Division of Cardiology as an associate professor and cardiac electrophysiology specialist. She specializes in the management of complex heart arrhythmias, including atrial fibrillation, ventricular tachycardia and premature ventricular contractions. Dr. Bala also will serve as director of the Cardiac Electrophysiology Laboratory at Banner University Medical Center Tucson. Dr. Balas clinical and research interests are focused on the ablation of complex arrhythmias, including ventricular tachycardia in structural heart disease and idiopathic premature ventricular contractions, a condition in which the heart skips a beat and may cause a fluttering sensation. She has authored or co-authored more than 60 research publications. Dr. Bala comes to the University of Arizona from Oregon Health and Sciences University where she was an associate professor of medicine and director of complex ablation in the Department of Electrophysiology in the Knight Cardiovascular Institute. Prior to this position, she served as an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine for eight years. She completed her medical degree at Georgetown University School of Medicine and her medical residency at University of Chicago Medical Center. Dr. Bala completed her cardiology and electrophysiology fellowships at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. In addition to Dr. Balas expertise in electrophysiology, she adds her talent to our educational and research efforts as we focus on growing cardiovascular medicine services to address the approaching heart disease epidemic as the last-born of the baby boomers approach age 65, said Nancy K. Sweitzer, MD, PhD, director of the UA Sarver Heart Center and chief of cardiology. (Read more about UA Sarver Heart Centers plans.) Arizona News Tempe, Arizona - Tess Neal, assistant professor of psychology, and Nicholas Schweitzer, associate professor with the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, both in Arizona State University's New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, have been awarded $14,772 in supplemental REU funding from the National Science Foundation to hire and mentor undergraduate research assistants. This funding supplements their grant, "Calibration in Court: Jurors' Use of Scientific Information." To assess the issue of interpretation of scientific evidence in court, this project uses an experimental approach to examine jurors' ability to interpret and act on scientific evidence. The project includes two jury simulation experiments designed to test whether fuzzy trace theory, a well-developed theory in cognitive science, applies in the context of jury research, particularly when compared to other safeguards for jury decision making with respect to scientific evidence. This multidisciplinary, multi-method research will examine when and how jurors' inferences are appropriately calibrated to the strength of scientific information, whether a safeguard derived from decision-making theory can improve that calibration, and how various measures relevant to the processing of scientific information are related to one another. The project addresses fundamental questions about how humans reason with and make inferences and decisions based on the quality of relevant scientific data. Principal investigator Tess Neal and co-principal investigator Nicholas Schweitzer are two of the founding faculty members of ASU's Program on Law and Behavioral Science. Arizona News Tucson, Arizona - Tuesday, Robert Lad Solfisburg, 34, of Tucson, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Cindy K. Jorgenson to 150 months prison. Solfisburg had previously pleaded guilty to four counts of bank robbery. From December 2016 until March 2017, Solfisburg robbed four U.S. Banks while wearing disguises. He robbed three in Tucson and a fourth in Tempe, Arizona. Solfisburg would approach bank tellers while holding a plastic bag and demanding that money be placed inside the bag. Anywhere from $2,338 to $4,080 was taken per robbery. Solfisburg successfully robbed all four banks until further investigation revealed his identity and he was apprehended. Solfisburg was on federal supervision at the time for having committed two prior bank robberies in Phoenix and California. The investigation in this case was conducted by the Pima County Sheriffs Department, Tucson Police Department, Tempe Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution was handled by Raquel Arellano, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Tucson. Health News Tucson, Arizona - Dr. Schultz will teach graduate counseling courses in the Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling Program in the UA College of Education. As the research director for the Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities, he will conduct research on current programs, as well as develop new research and programming initiatives. Jared Schultz, PhD, a noted leader in disabilities education and research, has joined the UA College of Education as a professor in the Department of Disability and Psychoeducational Studies and the UA Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities as the director of research. The Sonoran Center is housed within the UA Department of Family and Community Medicine, where Dr. Schultz also will have a joint appointment. At the UA College of Education, Dr. Schultz will teach graduate counseling courses in the Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling Program and conduct research related to disability issues and counseling. We are very excited about this new collaboration between the College of Education and the College of Medicine Tucson, said Bruce Johnson, PhD, professor and dean, UA College of Education. Both of our colleges have long been committed to research that has direct impact on peoples lives. Dr. Schultz has exactly the expertise and experience needed to ensure a very productive partnership. As the research director for the UA Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities, Dr. Schultz will conduct research on current programs, as well as develop new research and programming initiatives. His focus will be primarily in the area of transition services for adolescents and competitive community-based employment. I am so excited for this opportunity to work with the Sonoran Center and the College of Education, said Dr. Schultz. This opportunity enables me to get back to doing the things I love to do: being engaged with the community and helping individuals with disabilities realize their potential. Dr. Schultzs areas of research and demonstrated expertise in working with individuals with disabilities is a perfect fit for the Sonoran Center as we work hard to improve the lives of individuals with disabilitiesin Tucson and beyond, said Leslie J. Cohen, JD, director of the UA Sonoran Center. Dr. Schultz previously worked at Utah State University, where he served as the chair for the Rehabilitation Counseling Program. Prior to that, he worked at Texas Tech University Health Science Center and Oregon Health Sciences University. Dr. Schultzs work in disability began when he completed his undergraduate degree in psychology at Brigham Young University. He worked in a community mental health program in Oregon for individuals with severe and persistent mental illness. While there, Dr. Schultz completed a masters degree in counseling and psychology from George Fox University and then attended the University of Northern Colorado where he completed his PhD in rehabilitation and counseling. His work has focused primarily in the area of community-based competitive employment, and transition services for youth with disabilities. For example, at Utah State University, Dr. Schultz was involved in establishing the Employability Clinica program established to work with consumers of the public vocational rehabilitation program who were on the verge of being deemed unemployable, and a residential-based post-secondary program for college students with developmental and intellectual disabilities. I enjoy doing applied research focused on finding the best way to help people in real-life situations, Dr. Schultz said. Mostly, I believe in the power of community to transform individuals and families, and I look forward to being a part of the Arizona disability community. About the UA College of Education The UA College of Education is at the forefront of research on the global challenges that confront education today. Through our research, instruction, and outreach, we generate new knowledge about education, teach the next generation of educators and leaders, and engage educational and community groups in discovery and improvement. Not only are we are responsible for the vast majority of teacher education on campus, we collaborate across education and business sectors and with government and nonprofit agencies to leverage resources to make a difference in the lives of many. An education degree can serve as the foundation for a career in law, nursing, writing, and so much more just ask our alumni! About the UA Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities The UA Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities works to ensure that individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities have the support they need to fully take part in the life of our community. Established in 2006, the center focuses on the issues of health, wellness and competent treatment for adults with developmental disabilities; concern of aging caregivers and people with developmental disabilities as they age; employment barriers for youth and young adults with developmental disabilities; and the complex questions of support and services in the Arizona-Mexico border region. About the UA Department of Family and Community Medicine The UA Department of Family and Community Medicine at the UA College of Medicine Tucson is one of the top-ranking family medicine programs in the country. The department is known for outstanding pre- and post-doctoral education, ground-breaking research, and innovative community outreach programs designed to improve the health of individuals, families and communities in the region and beyond. The department places strong emphasis on research, particularly in the fields of tobacco cessation, substance abuse, obesity and related diseases, cancer survivorship, behavioral health and disabilities. In collaboration with the UA Department of Psychiatry, the department opened the Banner University Medicine Whole Health Clinic, an integrative care clinic for patients living with serious mental illness, putting the department at the forefront of behavioral health care. Health News Tucson, Arizona - Steve Goldman, MD, professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine Tucson, was named to fill the prestigious C. Leonard Pfeiffer Chair in Cardiovascular Medicine at the UA Sarver Heart Center. Dr. Goldmans commitment to advance translational research that bridges basic science to clinical care, mentor young scientists and educate medical students, residents and fellows makes him an outstanding choice for the Pfeiffer Chair, said Nancy K. Sweitzer, MD, PhD, director of the UA Sarver Heart Center, chief of cardiology and professor of medicine at the UA College of Medicine Tucson. The support from the C. Leonard Pfeiffer Chair will allow us to continue our research in regenerative medicine and to support young investigators at the University of Arizona, Dr. Goldman said. We are very proud of the collaborative atmosphere in our laboratory, where senior scientists and young students work side-by-side, sharing ideas and doing experiments. For the past 40 years, the Goldman laboratory has focused research on heart failure (HF), its causes and development of new treatments. As a result, we now have a new way to treat heart failure using cardiomyocytes (heart muscle cells) derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), he said. The cells are adult cells that can be reprogrammed to become stem cells capable of being differentiated into any specific cell-type, no matter what type they were when the process began. The technology was developed by John Gurdon, DPhil, DSc, and Shinya Yamanaka, MD, PhD, who were awarded the Nobel Prize in 2012 for creating iPSCs. Using this technology, we have shown that we can effectively treat heart failure in laboratory models of disease by creating a tissue-engineered cardiac graft composed of specialized cells grown on a matrix, Dr. Goldman said. In 2014, Dr. Goldman collaborated with Jordan Lancaster, PhD, to launch a UA biotech spin-off company called Avery Therapeutics to commercialize this work. The company is transferring technology developed in his lab at the UA Sarver Heart Center for commercial use in patients. His research laboratory has received funding from the UA Sarver Heart Center, Tech Launch Arizona, the Veterans Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the American Heart Association, the Arizona Biomedical Research Commission, the biotechnology industry and private foundations. His laboratory has supported the development of several young investigators. A native of Ohio, Dr. Goldman received his undergraduate education at Cornell University and his medical degree from The University of Cincinnati Medical School. He completed his residency training at the University of Illinois, the University of Chicago and Stanford University and his cardiology training at Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. In 1975, he came to the UA and the Southern Arizona VA Health Care System, where he was chief of cardiology for 35 years. In 1972, the C. Leonard Pfeiffer Chair in Cardiovascular Medicine was the first endowed chair established in the UA College of Medicine Tucson. The Pfeiffer Research Foundation established the chair in memory of C. Leonard Pfeiffer, who earned his bachelors degree in 1940 and his masters degree in 1948 at the UA. In 1974, Eugene Morkin, MD, a cardiologist and renowned heart-muscle scientist, who was a co-founder of what now is the UA Sarver Heart Center, was the first faculty member named to the Pfeiffer Chair. - Akua Donkor has argued that the assaulted woman at Midlands deserves her predicament - The controversial politician believes the woman broke protocol - The woman who was attacked has won the hearts of Ghanaians who are currently donating to her In spite of the kind words of sympathy and massive donations made to the elderly woman who got assaulted by a police officer at the Midlands Savings and Loans office in Accra, former presidential candidate, Akua Donkor, thinks she is a thief who deserved to be beaten. According to the founder of the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), the assaulted woman broke security protocol hence she deserving that treatment. READ ALSO: I was the first to see crime scene of JB Danquah - Kennedy Agyapong The beatings they gave her were not enough, they should have beaten her even more because she is a thief. Thats what the ladies do now and I have evidence to back it. I dont know either of the two people; the policeman nor the woman but Im telling you the facts on the ground. They plan, get to the targeted location, wait till there are just a few persons and then they execute their plans, she argued in an interview with Ghanaweb. The argument of Akua Donkor could be frowned against by a large majority of Ghanaians including the president who has spoken publicly against such act of brutality. Nana Addo, reacting to the assault on a 36-year-old woman at the Midland Savings and Loans in Accra, said he was very saddened by the act of the police officer. The president cautioned police authorities to ensure that all police officers are made to understand what it means to be a police official. So far, the policeman, Fredrick Amanor, has been arrested to aid with investigations. The assaulted nursing mother has been approached by several lawyers to file a suit against the police as well as the management of Midland Savings and Loans. Several civil society organizations have condemned the police officer for the action taken as they press for justice. Meanwhile, the family of the policeman has asked Ghanaians for forgiveness. READ ALSO: Photos of celebs who were present at Sarkodie's white wedding YEN.com.gh has learned that several contributions have been made to support the woman and her children. Funds from UTV alone amounts to about 40,000 cedis as CEO of Despite Group of Companies has pledged a decent apartment and shopping space for the petty trader. Watch: Yenkasa: How Bad is the Healthcare in Ghana? | Yen.com.gh: Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page. Source: Yen.com.gh Ace broadcaster Nana Aba Anamoah has joked that despite all the beauty possessed by her colleague Sandra Ankobiah, she remains single. Sandra Ankobiah is one of the most successful ladies in the country, having built a career as a lawyer and media personality. However, despite her stunning looks and enviable career, she is part of a long-list of successful ladies who are yet to tie the knot and settle down. READ ALSO: Photos of celebs who were present at Sarkodie's white wedding In what appeared like a joke, GH One TV presenter Nana Aba said it is surprising that a beautiful lady with a voluptuous body like Sandra Ankobiah remains single. In an Instagram post, Nana Aba shared a photo of Sandra Ankobiah and wrote in Twi: Just take a look at such a beautiful lady but she has no boyfriend! Akonam rebel. Shes been dating her curve TV. Sandra Ankobiah, born May 18, 1983 in Accra, Ghana is a Ghanaian lawyer, TV host, entrepreneur and philanthropist. Born and raised in Ghanas capital city, Accra, she emerged onto the fashion and celebrity scene in 2002 at the age of 19. Sandra Ankobiah is the third of four children to Naval Captain IK Ankobiah (Rtd) and his wife Mrs Rita Ankobiah. Watch: Yenkasa: How Bad is the Healthcare in Ghana? READ ALSO: Assaulted nursing mother gets support from Ghanaians Have national and human interest issues to discuss? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page. Source: Yen News - Nana Addo has urged the clergy to provide him spiritual support - The president has ended his 3-day tour of the Northern Region - Some fallout from the tour include the call for a referendum to determine the creation of new regions President of the republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, is calling on Ghana's spiritual leaders to remember him in their prayers. The president said the pressure to deliver the promises made to Ghanaians is intense and could only take prayers to fully deliver them. These words by the president were made when he worshiped at the Ola Catholic Cathedral in Tamale as during his three-day working tour of the Northern Region. READ ALSO: 6 kinds of people who ran away from falling in love "I am here to worship and to ask for more prayers to be able to fulfill his numerous campaign promises. The regional tours offered me the opportunity to interact with the grassroots whose concerns will enable me to readjust and deliver on my mandate," Nana Addo stated. Meanwhile, the Archbishop for the Tamale Archdiocese, Most Rev Philip Naameh, tasked the president to make time and commune with God for directions on how best to lead the country. Delivering his homily at the Our Lady of Annunciation Catholic church in Tamale, Naameh challenged the president and his team to draw inspirations from the Bible and also make time to reflect on their mode of governance to make the necessary amendments. Creation of 6 new regions Meanwhile, fallout from the president's tour have been a directive given to the electoral commission to prepare for a referendum in 2018 to determine whether to create new districts or not. Nana Addo believes there was a growing demand for the creation of new regions when he assumed an office which he referred such demands to the Council of State to look into. These regions, the president suggests, will be the Western North which will be carved out of the Western region, Bono East and Ahafo to be created out of the Brong Ahafo region, North East and Savannah as well as the Oti region be separated from the Northern and the Volta regions. READ ALSO: Nursing mother assaulted by police deserves more beatings - Akua Donkor Recounting the historical background surrounding the creation of regions in Ghana, President Akufo-Addo noted that, in 1952, the Western and Eastern Regions were created, bringing the total number of regions in Ghana to four (4). The Plebiscite of 1956 ensured that Trans-Volta became the countrys 5th Region. Watch: Yenkasa: How Bad is the Healthcare in Ghana? | Yen.com.gh: Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page. Source: Yen - A woman claiming to be ex-wife of Justice Atuguba has testified in a viral video that Obinim delivered her from bedwetting - 56-year-old Deborah Adam revealed that she had been wetting her bed for four years YEN.com.gh has sighted a new video of the founder and leader of the International Godsway Church (IGWC), Bishop Daniel Obinim which is fast going viral. In the video, a fully grown woman who claimed to have two children with the former Justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana, Justice William Atuguba, is heard testifying in Obinim's church that she had been delivered from bedwetting. According to Deborah Adam, who said she was 56 years, she had been wetting her bed some four years before Obinim's prayer on TV helped 'heal' her. READ ALSO: More photos of celebs who were present at Sarkodie's white wedding Narrating her story, she stated that she travelled to New Jersey in the United States to visit one of her sons and only woke up the next day to see urine all over the bed. She continued that her sons wife noticed her embarrassment but she could not gather the courage to ask her. This act which she deemed as embarrassing continued the next day till she decided to see a doctor All efforts were made by the doctor to cure her but to no avail. READ ALSO: Shatta Wale breaks silence on policeman's attack on a lady at a bank and fans are at his throat She returned to Ghana and still, the bedwetting continued until she tuned in to a television to pray with Obinim. She continued to watch Angel Obinim with faith and prayed with him. To test if indeed, she has been delivered, she travelled again to the States, slept at where she slept at her sons house but luckily for her she did not wet the bed. And for three years now, she has not been bedwetting. This is the second viral video coming from the stables of the controversial pastor within the past one week. READ ALSO: Rapper Sarkodie and Tracy's splendid white wedding in Accra It will be recalled that YEN.com.gh reported that Obinim played and danced to a secular song in church when service was ongoing. It was no other song than Captain Planet's 'Obinim Stickers' which features Pope Skinny and Trigmatic. In the video, Obinim is seen dancing his heart out as the congregation cheered him on while he shouted show your sticker as the song blasted. His congregants obliged and joined him in dancing. Some church members obviously surprised by Obinim's dance moves were spraying some cash on him. Watch: Yenkasa: How Bad is the Healthcare in Ghana? | Yen.com.gh: Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish on YEN.com.gh? Please contact us on Facebook or Instagram now! Source: Yen - A joint police and fire service rescue team forced down a man who climbed an MTN mast in the Eastern Region - The man, dressed in a military attire, had warned onlookers against any attempt to bring him down - The deranged man is reported to have been high on Tramadol A man believed to be in his thirties climbed up an MTN Telecom mast and acting in an unusual way which reportedly shows he had abused some tablets of Tramadol. Identified as Solomon Tetteh, the man, dressed in a military uniform threatened to crush anyone who attempted to rescue him from the mast. His entire demeanor sent shock waves through the spines of some residents and onlookers at Odumase-Krobo in the Eastern Region who feared he could lose his life. READ ALSO: I need your prayers to survive - Nana Addo urges clergy It took the intervention of the police and fire service to forcibly bring down the man who reportedly looked high on some drug suspected to be Tramadol. What we have been told is that he is mentally challenged and also this was his second attempt climbing to the top of the network towers in the area. He has been dressing like a military personnel, it is not clear if he was a soldier, an eyewitness recounted to Starr FM. The menace of Tramadol use in the country seems to be affecting all strands of society including prostitutes. Already, the unapproved use of this drug coupled with its attendant effects has seen the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) embark on an intensified campaign against the smuggling of the drug. Checks show that the approved dosage for a patch of Tramadol is 50 milligrams but developments recorded show Ghanaians are taking in 100 to 250 milligrams of the drug. The reason(s) for taking these unapproved drugs are diverse. READ ALSO: 6 kinds of people who ran away from falling in love Interactions by GHone with some Tramadol users show that whereas some of them take the drug to give them strength to work extra hours, others also feel the drug helps them have fun for prolonged hours with their partners. Ghana News: Problems with WAEC, BBC Denies Partnering with Anas | Yen.com.gh Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page. Source: Yen - Sarkodies customary marriage reportedly took place on July 17 - Blurred photos taken with mobile photos got leaked on the internet with many people blaming the musician for hiding the real photos - Sarkodie has now shared beautiful photos from the ceremony and he said they are the priceless moments of his life Africas Highest rapper Sarkodie has finally shared lovely photos from his wedding ceremony which took place over the weekend on July 21, 2018. Prior to the white wedding, there was the customary wedding which took place on July 17, 2018, which was strictly by invitation. However, even after the ceremony, Sarkodie did not release the pictures, and impatient as Ghanaians can be in that circumstance, photos taken with mobile phones were leaked all over the internet. READ ALSO: Latest video of John Dumelos wife proves she is heavily pregnant This led to many people wondering why Sarkodie would keep his photos from the public, with some drawing conclusions that he was hiding something. However, YEN.com.gh has sighted four new photos released by Sarkodie himself. He shared the photos on his twitter and captioned them: As intimate as I want it , My fans deserve to see these priceless moments in my Life Thank You @SarkNativesGH @SarkNation1 @SarkoholicsGH @SarkoholicsTM @TeamSarkodie @Sark_Daily this is for you . READ ALSO: Stephen Appiah flaunts beautiful daughter in latest photo One of the photos has Sarkodie and Tracy clad in beautiful Kente cloth, and smiling at each other while Tracy displays her engagement ring. Another photo also has Sarkodie sitting like the king he calls himself, dressed in a beautifully designed agbada. It was a happy moment for the newly wedding who displayed beautiful dance moves at their wedding. READ ALSO: Fante men are the best in bedmatics - Afia Schwarzenegger Many dignitaries and celebrities graced the occasion, including Peter of P-Square fame who came all the way from Nigeria. Sarkodie and Tracy reportedly dated for twelve-thirteen years before their marriage. They already have a beautiful daughter, Adalyn Owusu Addo, affectionately called Titi. READ ALSO: Akufo-Addo names Jean Mensa as new EC Chairperson Yenkasa: How Bad is the Healthcare in Ghana? | Yen.com.gh READ ALSO: Ghanaians donate GHC12,000 to woman brutalized by police officer Have national and human interest issues to discuss? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page Source: Yen - Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings said the NPP government needs time to fix the "mess" NDC created in eight years - Her comments have not gone down well with some Ghanaians - Some people have said that she is supporting the government because she fears persecution YEN.com.gh reported the story of former First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings, jabbing the NDC over the NPP. According to Nana Konadu, the Akufo-Addo-led NPP government needs time to fix the mess which the NDC created in eight years. Her comments came on the heels of the NDC accusing the government of various misconducts including the alleged increase of VAT which never saw the light of the day. READ ALSO: Sarkodie finally shares awesome photos of his favorite moments from his wedding Apart from that the former first lady has often lambasted the NDC for various reasons, however, some Ghanaians on social media have called Nana Konadu names for supporting the NPP. According to some of them, she is openly supporting the NPP because she is a hypocrite. Many others claim Konadu has skeletons in her cupboard and fears prosecution for which reason she is supporting the NPP. READ ALSO: Stephen Appiah flaunts beautiful daughter in latest photo Read some of the comments here. Godfred believes Mrs. Rawlings fears being persecuted if she should ever speak against the NPP Seth thinks the former first lady is simply a disgrace. Ohene also added that Konadu is pampering the NPP because of Skeletons in her cupboard. Atika claims Konadu is a greedy woman. READ ALSO: Latest video of John Dumelos wife proves she is heavily pregnant Paalo wondered why a woman like Konadu wants to rule Ghana. Lagbo also pitied Rawlings himself for the kind of wife he has. Haruna believes Konadu is a bad woman for her action. READ ALSO: Fante men are the best in bedmatics - Afia Schwarzenegger There are many comments from the social media users which show that they are indeed not happy with Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings for always speaking ill about the NDC. She is also the leader and founder of the National Democratic Party (NDP), which she founded in 2012 during the tenure of the late former President Evans Mills. Nana Konadu has said the NDC was corrupt and she was in now way going to support it. READ ALSO: Ghanaians donate GHC12,000 to woman brutalized by police officer Yenkasa: How Bad is the Healthcare in Ghana? | Yen.com.gh READ ALSO: Akufo-Addo names Jean Mensa as new EC Chairperson Have national and human interest issues to discuss? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page Source: Yen.com.gh News Story not available This story has been published on: 2021-10-25. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. This story is no longer available on our site. Uh-oh! It could be you, or it could be us, but there's no page here. 190 UN states have approved the final text of a new international agreement that outlines a range of measures for tackling xenophobia. Members of Stop Funding Hate were invited to the United Nations in Geneva to talk about the role of business in tackling xenophobia. Stop Funding Hate Facebook What does this mean? Stop Funding Hate campaign Last year we were pleased to highlight the excellent work of @slpng_giants at a UN conference in Geneva. Now #westandtogether with them as they face down violent threats simply for exercising their rights to peaceful protest & freedom of expression https://t.co/htimgCTdvC pic.twitter.com/ynge7GG7mR Stop Funding Hate (@StopFundingHate) July 20, 2018 What happens next? What is the wider significance of this? The agreement outlines a range of measures for tackling xenophobia, including:Investing in ethical reporting standards and advertising and stopping allocation of public funding or material support to media outlets that systematically promote intolerance, xenophobia, racism and other forms of discrimination towards migrants, in full respect for the freedom of the media.UN member states have recognised that an ethical approach to advertising has a key role in tackling xenophobia and promoting evidence-based public discourse around migration. By endorsing plans to end public funding for media outlets that promote xenophobia and racism, 190 out of 193 governments have agreed in principle to stop funding hate.In May 2017, the Stop Funding Hate campaign spoke on a panel at the United Nations in Geneva during the first informal thematic session of member states negotiating the UN Global Compact on Migration.The campaign had been invited to put forward ideas for ways that UN member states could tackle xenophobia. They made the case that:If we want to tackle xenophobia effectively then we have to talk to advertisers and encourage them to switch their advertising away from publications that demonise migrants UN Member States can lead by example by publicly committing to the principle of ethical advertising and ensuring that any government advertising campaigns are not channelled through media that have a track record of inciting hatred.This proposal received strong backing from member states during the meeting with both Estonia and Belgium publicly expressing support.Stop Funding Hate was subsequently invited to talk more about the idea at the November 2017 United Nations Global Forum on Business and Human Rights.That month, Stop Funding Hate also gave a presentation at the International Parliamentary Unions Migration Conference in Malta, where their proposition on ethical advertising was warmly endorsed by parliamentarians from several UN member states.UN member states are due to meet in Morocco on 10-11 December on the 70th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights to formally adopt the Global Compact for Migration and discuss its implementation.The basic principle behind Stop Funding Hate, Sleeping Giants and other consumer-driven anti-hate campaigns has been formally recognised and endorsed within a United Nations global agreement.The UN Global Compact for Migration draws on - and will now become part of - the international framework of global agreements and treaties which follow from the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.UN member states have clearly recognised that there is no contradiction between respecting media freedom and ensuring that media outlets who fuel racism and xenophobia are not actively given public funds.The commitment from UN member states will set a precedent for businesses, charities and NGOs to follow. This is another major step towards a world where media hate is no longer profitable. Simon Mabhunu Sabela Awards: Winners announced After going through over 300 entries from the industry, the Simon "Mabhunu" Sabela Film and Television Awards winners were announced on Saturday, 21 July 2018, during the 6th Annual Simon Sabela Film and Television Awards, held at The Playhouse in Durban. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 22) Protesters in Mendiola Manila condemned the violent dispersal of a group of rallyists outside the U.S. Embassy on Saturday, saying the incident is a reflection of the administration's brutality on the poor. On Saturday afternoon, tensions heated up between police forces and members of Lakbayan ng Timog Katagalugan outside the embassy which led to a violent dispersal, with the police even using water cannons. Seventeen protesters were reportedly injured. Rogelio Mahistrado, leader of the group in Mendiola, said the incident was a preview of the aggression that they may experience during their mass demonstrations tomorrow for President Rodrigo Duterte's third State of the Nation Address. "Kung sa pisikal pong lakas wala kaming lakas na itatapat sa kanila para makipagtulakan at makipag-balyahan, pero gaya nga ng sinasabi ko kung ang hanay ng sektor ng lipunan kanilang dadahasin, wala po kaming pagpipilian kundi ipagtanggol ang aming hanay sa ano lang paraan," he said. [Translation: We may not have the physical strength to fight with them, but as I said if they show cruelty, we have no choice but to defend our group by any means.] The group, mostly composed of employees from big companies calling for their regularization, has been in Mendiola for five days now. They have also been enduring non-stop rains, with only makeshift tents made from tarpaulins as their shelter. "Kami po ay isang linggo na ring nag-kakampuhan, naglalakbayan. Kami po ay talagang gutom, pagod, at wala kaming ibang bitbit kundi ang aming prinsipyo, determinasyon at pagkakaisa," Mahistrado said. [Translation: We have been camping for a week now. We are really hungry, tired, and we only have our principle, determination and unity with us.] The workers said they can endure the rains, exhaustion, hunger, and inconvenience of living away from home just as long as the government heeds their call for regularization. They also asserted that they will stand against any violence thrown their way. Meanwhile, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) released today a "report card" assessing Duterte's first two years in the office. The group gave the President a failing mark, highlighting what they said are his anti-poor policies like the TRAIN law. ACT also criticized Duterte's tirades against God and the Church, saying his statements do not set a good example to young people. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez believes Constitutional provisions on term limits of lawmakers should be reconsidered, in order for political dynasties to stop. "I think what triggered political dynasty, itong term limits. Kasi kung hindi na nga makatakbo 'yung official, so andyan na 'yung mga anak, 'yung asawa, kaya nag-evolve 'yung dynasty," said Alvarez in a one-on-one interview with CNN Philippines Chief Correspondent Pia Hontiveros. [Translation: Term limits triggered political dynasties, I think. If an official cannot run, the children and the wives will. That's how a dynasty evolved.] Under the proposed federal charter from the Consultative Committee (ConCom) tasked to review the Constitution, lawmakers have a four-year term limit a year longer than what is mandated under the 1987 charter. The proposed charter provides that a senator or House representative is disallowed to serve for more than two consecutive terms. While Alvarez saw the pros of having a provision against political dynasties, he questioned term limits. "'Yung term limits, bakit? Anong masama doon? (what's wrong with term limits?)" he asked. The House Speaker earlier drew flak from senators due to his push for a 'no-election' scenario in the 2019 midterm polls. Sen. Panfilo Lacson, in particular, said attempts to extend lawmakers' current terms are self-serving. ConCom chair and former Chief Justice Reynato Puno had earlier warned of near-sovereign powers if the provision against dynasties is removed from the charter. Congress will use the ConCom's proposed charter in the shift to a federal form of government when they convene into a constituent assembly. Puno said if that provision was removed, it would spell the end of federalism. A pending supermajority issue Alvarez hopes that both Houses of Congress will agree to vote jointly on amending the charter. "Para sa akin naman, mas maganda 'yung mag-usap 'yung both Houses," he said. [Translation: For me, both Houses should just iron it out.] The House Speaker claims the Constitution does not specify if the Houses will vote separately or jointly, as in the case of the decision to extend martial law in Mindanao. Section 1, Article XVII of the 1987 Constitution reads: "Any amendment to, or revision of, this Constitution may be proposed by:(1) The Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its Members; or(2) A constitutional convention." "So pag sinabing mong of all its members, so it refers to Congress, as a whole. Both Houses yan. 'Yung nag-eespouse ng voting separately, syempre sasabihin nila [of course they will say], of all its members, individual. May House, may Senate," Alvarez explained. The shift to federalism is one of President Rodrigo Duterte's campaign promises to help improve regional economies. Duterte enjoys the support of the House supermajority. Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC) is today (July 23) hosting a Business Forum for a business delegation China led by the China Council for Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) at Gaborone International Convention Centre (GICC)). The business forum comes at a time when trade value between Botswana and China is at all time low. According to Li Hongbing, the First Secretary in the Economic and Commercial Counsellor's Office at the Embassy of the Peoples Republic of China in Botswana, the trade value between China and Botswana was US$ 266 million. Chinese statistics show that in the same period, the outflow of foreign direct investment from China to Botswana dropped 77 percent year-on-year to US$ 18.78 million, while the amount of FDI from China to SADC was US$ 1.07 billion. These figures belie the expanse of Chinas commodity exports to Botswana, which include among others, motor, electrical, audiovisual equipment and its accessories; vehicle parts, clothing and accessories; mechanical equipment and parts; rubber and its products; chemical fiber; steel and products and others.Meanwhile Chinas main imports from Botswana were jewellery, precious metals and their products, mineral sand and ash; oil seed kernels, clothing and accessories. Li Hongbing explained Botswana Guardian that China-Botswana economic cooperation was underpinned by a trade agreement signed in 1986. Sadly the agreement on promotion and protection of investment between the two nations signed in June 2000 has not entered into force owing to legal issues, which she did not enunciate. According to BTCL director for corporate communications, Kutlo Moagi, CCPIT, which is led its Chairman, Jiang Zengwei at this business forum, is a duly sanctioned state entity in China vested with both chamber of commerce mandate as well as outbound investment promotion. Li Hongbing told Botswana Guardian that Jiang Zengwei and President of Business Botswana, Gobusamang Keebine would also sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during the business forum. Moagi wrote in a statement to the press Friday that the focus of CCPIT on Botswana is to establish wide connections and cooperation with relevant international organisations, trade and investment promotion agencies, commercial associations and the local business communities. It is also committed to enhancing services for companies and making positive contributions to develop bilateral and multilateral trade relationships and the promotion of world economic prosperity. The sectors of focus for the Business Forum include Infrastructure Development, Manufacturing, Financial Services, Energy, Mining, Trading, Agribusiness and Information Communications Technology (ICT). The business forum, which is officially opened by Assistant Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, Moiseraele Goya, coincides with Chinese President Xi Jinpings visit to four African countries this week, during which he will also attend the BRICS summit in South Africa on Wednesday. Li Hongbing cobfirmed that this years Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit will take place in Beijing in early September 2018. Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) could find itself in court over the Constitution that has been filed at Registrar of Societies.The new Constitution was filed last week Friday. According to information gathered by this publication one of the contracting partners, Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) is contesting the submitted Constitution. The new Constitution has incorporated amendments tabled during the February Congress that was held at Boipuso Hall. The congress wanted the constitution to be amended by removing the provision that catered for two vice presidents and replace it with one vice president to align it to the republican constitution. The new constitution now caters for one vice president and has given powers to the National Congress instead of the National Executive Committee (NEC). It also gives UDC powers to suspend and or expel a contracting member. The constitution recognises Botswana Congress Party (BCP) as a member of the UDC. Members of the NEC are President, Vice President, National Chairperson, Treasurer General, Secretary for Communication and Publicity, Secretary for Legal Affairs, Secretary for Labour Affairs, Secretary for Gender Affairs, Secretary for International Affairs, Secretary for Youth Affairs and one member from each of the contracting parties. The NEC shall hold office for a period of four (4) years until the next election. During its conference in Rakops this past weekend, one of the contracting members, Botswana National Front (BNF) resolved that having noted that the new UDC Constitution has been filed with the Registrar of Societies, the BNF should ensure that the process is concluded within twenty one (21) days. It has emerged that once the constitution has been adopted the NEC might call a special congress for adoption of the constitution. The BMD is contemplating contesting the Constitution in court because that is the wrong constitution. It is unfair to have registered a constitution which we do not know. The correct constitution has provision for two vice presidents and not one, said a source. BCP President told journalists in Bobonong after the partys conference that the submitted constitution provides for one vice president. Sources have however indicated that the BMD would humiliate itself if they try to challenge the constitution. It is alleged that the BCP and BNF believe that the incorporated amendments from the February Congress are the voice of the people and the constitution should reflect as such. That was a political solution and it would be wrong to go against the will of the people. The February congress was a decisive congress and nothing would change that. The argument by BMD that the congress was not decisive cannot be entertained. We cannot be taking our members for granted and expect them to gather around and not take decisions, said another source. The BMD has for long maintained that the February congress was not decisive and nothing that came out of that conference was binding. BMD Spokesperson Winfred Rasina said as the BMD they know nothing about the submitted Constitution. He said as far as they know the Constitution that was agreed by the UDC structure being NEC, caters for two vice presidents. He said the one which has been submitted at Registrar of Societies is not a UDC Constitution. We have decided that we should give our colleagues who submitted the constitution to go and recall it. We take it that what they did was just a mistake and we are hopeful that the mistake would be corrected. The constitution accommodating two vice presidents was agreed by all the four parties and the one with one vice president is not for UDC, said Rasina in an interview after BMD National Working Committee held a meeting on Wednesday. According to Rasina, the submitted Constitution would be the one where BCP is not a member. He said BCP is the one that suggested two vice presidents. He said the BCP had also suggested for UDC+ which was rejected. That Constitution which you say was submitted according to us does not exist, he said. Rasina could not be drawn into discussing their next move should the constitution be recalled. The constitution is said to have been filed by UDC leader Advocate Duma Boko and Saleshando who is also one of the UDC vice presidents. Interestingly the constitution under suspension or expulsion states, at Article 21.1.1 that the National Congress and/or the National Executive Committee may by resolution suspend or expel a group member for acting against the interests of the Umbrella; failing to attend more than two (2) consecutive meetings of the National Executive Committee without an apology acceptable to the National Executive Committee; or failing to pay its group membership fees. BMD might also face expulsion should it not agree to one of the resolutions taken by both BCP and BNF that there should be primary elections in all the BMD constituencies and wards except where the BMD is incumbent. The UDC has not notified us of any new constitution. Naturally so we are not a part of any new constitution. We thus cannot be talking about something we are not a part of. We are only aware and a part of a constitution that accommodated the BCP into the UDC. And that is the constitution that exists. Any new instrument, or suggestion may be taken up with the UDC NEC and such a structure, comprising of four contracting parties may agree on way forward. It is not for any individual party to decide or resolve anything on behalf of the UDC. Such will be an anomaly that in politics, the view being national governance, will communicate something against the view, pointed out Rasina. Ministry of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs owes its officers overtime amounting to P26 million.This was revealed by Minister Dorcas Makgato when addressing the media in Gaborone recently. Makgato said the workers are owed overtime of as far back as 2013. She revealed that her ministry is one of those whose budget has been low over the years. She said it is time they go back to the drawing boards when drafting their budget. According to Makgato most of the employees owed are those deployed at border posts around the country. The minister revealed that in the current financial year her ministry got P375 million.Out of that P200 million goes to salaries and I am only left with P175 million to cover for operations. This is a worrying concern for me as the minister. It is always difficult to avoid overtime for employees at border post because we want to give service to our customers, said Makgato. She explained that when they do budgeting in November this year she will ensure that everything is started from zero. The minister revealed that the workers have pleaded with her that as she asks for money to improve service delivery at the ministry she should not forget that they are being owed overtime. Makgato indicated that her wish is for the overtime to be paid to those that are owed. She would not want service to be compromised because people are owed overtime that they have worked for. I need my officers to be motivated in the work. This is a very crucial ministry in our country. So the work force should not be demolarised to give service. As our tagline speaks for itself, we do not want to be the ones frustrating their customers but rather be facilitators. That is what I would love to see happen and we can achieve that if our officers are motivated. I am happy that so far even though they are owed they have not failed to give service to our customers, she said. Government has decided to cut its overtime bill by ensuring that not every public servant benefit from overtime. Ministries have been given the responsibilities of managing the overtime bill to ensure that the overtime bill does not become a burden to government. Botswana Federation of Public Private and Parastatal Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU) has expressed concern at the rate at which government deals with the matter of overtime for public servants. The federation has argued that some public servants are cheated for hours that they have worked and others are being given off days instead of being paid. Botswana National Front President Advocate Duma Boko says this week he is expecting a team of experts who will do a survey for his party regarding next years general election. Advocate Boko stated that this is part of his strategy as leader of Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) to topple ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) from government. He revealed that he recently engaged experts to do a study for UDC on what should be done to win the 2019 general election. They have given me a report. According to their report 34 percent of electorates are aligned with the UDC. Most of these people are the youth. Next year is for regime change and if we cannot change government then we are wasting our time. The report has recommended that we should target this group of people and ensure that the message we are going to craft for general election speaks to them. They would be here to do thorough analysis, said Advocate Boko who accepted that there are problems in the UDC. He said the UDC contracting partners need each other desperately. He said the UDC would engage in precision marketing in order to win the general election. He said challenges at UDC are unique and resolving them needs to be approached with care. The UDC leader told BNF conference in Rakops during President Holidays that as a collective they have to identify problems at UDC. He explained that after identifying the problems then they have to come up with diagnostic treatment. I have been under attack for refusing the kicking out of Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) from the UDC. I was not refusing just because I wanted to. I told you that to do such we would be creating more problems in the UDC. I told you that it would be unlawful to do that. I said we should find another way of dealing with the matter. I accept all the insults that were hurled at me by you, he said. He said as the party the BNF needs to have vibrant constituencies, wards and regions. Advocate Boko revealed that the ten regions would be coordinating the 2019 general election. The UDC leader pointed out that the BNF has to decide if they want to be considered the backbone of the UDC or the belly of the movement. If you want to be regarded as the backbone of the UDC, then you would have to act like one, he said. Advocate Boko stated that they have to face the challenges bedeviling the UDC. BNF is currently at loggerheads with BMD over constituencies. The BNF conference sent a strong message to the BMD when it resolved that there should be primary elections in all BMD constituencies and wards except constituencies where BMD is incumbent. Out of the 13 constituencies, BMD is only incumbent in two constituencies being Molepolole South and Mochudi West. The BMD however has already chosen candidates for most of its constituencies and wards. BNF conference resolved that noting that after several and consistent requests BNF made to have a bilateral with BMD to address the representation issues, BMD has consistently not been responsive. We therefore resolve that there should be joint primary elections under the UDC in all the parliamentary and council seats allocated to the BMD in 2014, except where it holds incumbency. If this fails, then the BNF should assume the leadership of these constituencies and wards. The UDC Congress would be the final arbiter if the above two do not succeed. BMD has in the past indicated that it would only have bilateral talks with their colleagues if any party interested in some of its constituencies should be prepared to swap. Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), a coalition between four Botswana opposition parties, is on the brink of collapse following key resolutions made by two of the main contracting parties over the weekend.UDC president, Duma Boko is now facing mounting pressure to either let the coalition collapse and let his party, the Botswana National Front initiate talks with Botswana Congress Party (BCP) or unite the warring parties within the umbrella partiesa union dubbed the Peoples Project. UDC is an alliance between the Botswana National Front (BNF), BCP, Botswana Peoples Party (BCP) and the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD). However it has not been a smooth ride for the contracting parties as they constantly fought about the adoption of an amended constitution and allocation of constituencies.BCP president, Dumelang Saleshando said at the weekend in Bobobong that, there is no denying that the UDC is broken and needs to be fixed. He was addressing his partys 10th National Conference. The BCP president, who is also the vice president of UDC, told his party members that a new UDC constitution was submitted last Friday to the Department of Civil and National Registration, claims which the BMD and BPP said they were not aware of. Saleshando said the new constitution was signed by him and Boko. The question that this conference has to address is how the UDC can be fixed? said the BCP leader on Saturday. By Monday the conference had given Saleshando all the answers to his questions. The conference resolved that the BCP should remain in the UDC, but directed that due to limited time before registration for the general election, all outstanding matters within the UDC should be resolved by mid-August 2018.The conference also resolved that all constituencies and wards allocated to the BMD except those currently held by their Members of Parliament and councillors should be returned to the UDC for redistribution, a matter which also does not bode well with the BMD. The partys spokesperson Winfred Rasina told the Botswana Guardian this week that the BMD has already given away constituencies and they are not willing to give anymore. The BCP argues that UDC has to accept that there has been a split within the BMD following the formation of the Alliance for Progressives (AP) and thus the BMD is now weak hence the issue of constituency allocation should be re-looked at and re-allocated to the BNF or BCP.Even though he was of the view that resolutions made by the BCP and the BNF over the weekend need to be tabled before the UDC for further discussion, Rasina said the BCP should also be willing to forfeit some of its constituencies otherwise they will be defeating the purpose of unity and working together. The BNF has resolved that primary elections should be held in some of the constituencies allocated to the BMD. Regarding the constitution submitted on Friday last week Rasina said the BMD was not party to it. Our hope is that they have submitted the right constitution, said Rasina. According to him the right constitution has a provision for two vice presidents within the UDC. However, Saleshando told journalists in Bobonong that the amended constitution has a provision for only one vice president. Then they submitted the wrong constitution, maybe it was a mistake from their part, said Rasina in response to the developments. The BMD spokesperson said the partys National Working Committee will meet on Wednesday to discuss the matter and make appropriate decisions. According to sources, the UDC constitutional congress which was held in February this year resolved that there be only one vice president instead of two. They excluded themselves (BMD). They walked out of a meeting that was reviewing the final document because they said they dont recognise the congress (February UDC congress) resolutions, said a UDC insider. The source confided to this publication that during the period between 17th May and 20th June UDC made four attempts to meet, but in all these it was only the BCP and BNF representatives who attended. Although BPP expressed willingness to attend for some unknown reasons they did not pitch up.The one and only meeting attended by the BMD was on the 25th June 2018 at the offices of the BNF. However the BMD representatives had three objections to the meeting proceeding, he said. Apparently the BMD argued that the meeting ought to have been convened by the UDC president with clear terms of reference. As a result they will not participate; that the constitution that was discussed at the February congress is not the proper constitution, as the proper constitution is the one produced by the constitutional stream and that they do not recognise the congress as it was meant to humiliate the BMD and it could not lawfully take the resolutions it took. Said an insider, We then advised the BMD that we will proceed in terms of the mandate and as we understand it. The BMD team then left the meeting. Reached for comment BPP President, Motlatsi Molapisi claimed to be in the dark regarding the constitution submitted last week. Molapisi, who maintained that his party has never missed a UDC meeting, said the issue of the constitution was supposed to be finalised at a retreat which was supposed to be held on the 1st to the 3rd of June, but the retreat was never held. Molapisi could not be drawn into discussing resolutions by the BCP and BNFthe two parties with the largest following within the contracting partners in the UDC. What is clear now is that there are major differences between the political parties forming the UDC. Saleshando said this week that even though they will try to fix the UDC problems within a month, his party will start direct talks with the BNF forthwith to try to reconfigure and rethink opposition cooperation.We are first going to focus on fixing the UDC, if we cant fix the UDC, conference has resolved that we must engage the BNF on finding a new formula for 2019, he said. The BCP is of the view that the opposition votes that the UDC hopes to attract in 2019 are concentrated around the BNF and BCP and thus the two parties have more to lose by not going into 2019 election as a single unit. The Minister of Infrastructure and Housing Development, Vincent Seretse has directed BHC to work on fresh rental fees, a move that, once approved by cabinet will see the corporation hiking rental fees for their apartments and houses in a long time. BHC has not increased rental for the last 15 years. Its a total unacceptable anomaly. Something must happen, an increase of sort must happen, said Seretse. The minister told media last week that he has instructed BHC to start the process on hiking the rentals, as he intends to take the numbers to cabinet before year-end for approval.Seretse further bemoaned the current rental fees charged for BHC houses, saying they cannot meet the maintenance cost the parastatal incurs. Properties are like human beings, they need good health, said Seretse, adding that tear and wear costs are high.The minister further said BHCs inability to adjust rentals has killed the Corporations rent to buy scheme. He said most individuals shy away from paying a mortgage at current market rate and opt to continue renting houses from BHC. He said the trend is also pushing Batswana away from an opportunity to invest in property and BHC to replicate the different housing scheme it offers, as the level of house purchasing is low. Meanwhile minister Seretse plans to engage the Ministry of Lands and Sanitation, so that they can be an alignment between where serviced land for BHC is found and the demand. Currently BHC knows where demand for housing is but cannot find serviced land within the said areas. BHC recently launched 72 housing units in the mining town of Jwaneng where accommodation is a headache for the miners. Indications are that rentals are high in Jwaneng, due to shortage of houses and a snap survey indicates that rental charges are between P10 000.00 to 11 000.00 for a three bed-roomed house while a small house (two and half rooms) rental cost is pegged at P3000.00. The Corporation recently developed a six -year strategy from 2018 to 2023, under which the social housing aspect is expected to deliver an average of 1500 social housing projects and 1800 commercial housing projects per annum. Fintech has changed and will continue to alter the way financial services operate in the process tilting scales in favour of consumers as far as service fees for banking are concerned. Nonetheless, there has to be tight regulations and collaborations between central banks and traditional financial service providers which in the end will be important to protect the ultimate beneficiary-- the consumer. This was the general message expressed by various speakers at a two-day conference on fintech, payments and financial inclusion organised by Bank of Botswana (BoB), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Bank of Canada (Boc) in Gaborone recently. Fintech: The new normal of banking services Fintech is generally defined as new technology and new innovations that are aimed at competing with traditional financial methods in the delivery of financial services. Fintech brings cheaper and more efficient financial services, opined Scott Hendry who is a special director-fintech at BoC. In Botswana, some commercial banks have joined hands with mobile telecommunications service providers in the provision of e-money services such as Orange Money and Myzaka. The two services do not need a bank account to use, and they are critical in financial inclusion. Fintech is critical especially to the unbanked people, said Henry. In Botswana, nearly 40 percent of the adult population remains unbanked. With fintech comes reduced banking fees, which in Botswana have been a concern. The concern has also been in the form of those engaged in business regionally and internationally. More and more locals are engaged in cross-border payments for various services. Cross border payments come with charges which vary due to a number of factors such as value and destinations. According to Dong He, Deputy Director at IMFs monetary and capital markets division, cross border payments are probably high because of traditional forms of service delivery which are often slow because they involve too many players who are also paid. The Hong Kong born stated that fintech companies provide reasonably affordable services which also deliver services on real time, a plus for customers and suppliers. Disruptors of old financial delivery model Even the transport and communications minister Kitso Mokaila concurs with the two experts that, fintech, although they have been labeled as disruptors in the financial services by traditionalists, are an important tool especially as far as financial inclusion and inclusive growth are concerned. Financial technology, commonly referred to as fintech, continues to transform the conduct and delivery of financial services, while embodying great potential to broaden the scope for financial inclusion and ultimately inclusive growth. There is no escaping the fact that financial technology is pervasive in all areas of economic and social activity; as well as modern day global interaction, stressed Mokaila whose ministry also regulates mobile telecommunications companies through BOCRA. The Canadian-born Hendry told the gathering which included top officials from private and public space that, fintech will go a long way in revolutionising the financial services sector, especially at a time when consumer demands are changing on daily basis. Fintech is a global phenomenon right now. Look at M-Pesa, he said. M-Pesa (M for mobile, pesa is Mobile banking"mobile phone-based money transfer, financing and micro financing service, launched in 2007 by Vodacom, the largest mobile network operators inTanzania"Tanzania. It has over 40 million accounts in Africa. He added that through fintech, banks can be in a position to be able to get the full credit worthiness at their fingertips, enabling consumers to be helped in a record time. Henry added that, there has been a lot of development in the fintech space in Africa in the past decade, but a lot can still be done. Fintech space also allows for more startups in the field which can create the much needed jobs and opportunities especially for Africas young population. Some of Africas top fintech companies include Rainfin, 22 seven, Bankymoon, Lendico and Paga. In Botswana, government-owned Botswana Innovation Hub has launched a P12 million innovation fund for those fields such as mining technologies, information technologies, business services among others. According to forecasts, Africas fintech space will be in the value of around $3 billion by 2020. Fintech companies cut monopoly, increase competition Various presenters at the conference stated that, fintech can help reduce monopolistic tendencies by existing players in the financial services space. In cutting monopolies, more and more players especially in the remittance space can be formed and this will be a plus to customers as far as fees are concerned. We need to make our payments system more efficient and this explains why fintechs are important, said He who was presenting on the topic Fintech and cross border payments. Even BoB, who regulates banks, appears to be warming up to fintechs as another channel of financial services delivery. In a recent report, Botswanas central bank which is headed by Moses Pelaelo noted that, Fintech is undoubtedly accelerating the evolution of the financial sector, resulting in increased access to financial services and promoting financial inclusion. A few months ago, ABSAs Managing Executive: Alternative Business Model and group innovation, Oupa Monyatsi told a conference in Gaborone that, Fintechs can help deliver innovative solutions which can result in more accessible product, improved products efficiency among others. He said that every year, ABSA, which rebranded from Barclays Africa, last week, invites applications from all over Africa, looking for those with innovative fintech solutions which are either sponsored or bought by the group. Monyatsi is former acting MD for Barclays Botswana. Regulations need to be tight for fintechs As much as fintechs are important and will continue to revolutioniise the way banking is done, there is call for tight regulations which can help protect consumers against risks, as fintech will be acting as third party service providers. Since fintechs will be having access to consumers personal data, cyber crime occurrences cannot be ruled out, said Kenya Central Bank Chairman, Mohammed Nyaonga. The professional lawyer stated that central banks need to play an even bigger role in regulation of fintechs. Regulatory perimeters must change in tandem with innovation, said Nyaonga. In Botswana, the central bank has not come up with any regulatory guidlines for fintech, but they have admitted fintechs are important. Mokaila disclosed that government is in the process of enacting Electronic Payments Services Providers Regulations. The aim is to facilitate orderly application of Fintech in financial services and payments. As we harness opportunities, we should recognise and mitigate the risks such as disruption and losses arising from system failure, cybercrime, misconduct and criminality, generally, he told the meeting. Members of Botswana Defence Force (BDF) Retired Members Association (RMA) are scheduled to converge at Madiba Senior School in Mahalapye for their Annual General Meeting tomorrow (Saturday) The AGM is hosted by Mahalapye Branch. The meeting comes at a time when some of the retired senior officers are putting together a case against their former employer over a Report which is held by the Defence Council. The Report which is yet to be taken to cabinet talks about the former army men pensions. The former BDF officers have for long been complaining about their welfare and pension. They have argued that they are being taken for granted after having served the country for a long time. They also argue that government through Minister of Defence Justice and Security Shaw Kgathi has promised to resolve their problems but nothing fruitful has been realised. The BDF RMA Chairperson, Major General Bakwena Oitsile last week addressed Mahalapye regional members who aired their dissatisfaction at the way government is handling their grievances. Maj Gen Oitsile told the meeting that the matter would be discussed again this Saturday where Minister Kgathi is expected to address the members. He said his committee is working around the clock with government in an attempt to address the former officers welfare and pension issues.It is yet to be seen if government would move swiftly to address the matter before the officers bring their case to court. This publication has learnt that some of the senior officers have identified a lawyer who has made the first consultation with them on the case they want to bring against their former employer. The former army men have indicated that they are impoverished because of the way their pension has been handled. Recently in Parliament Kgathi stated that he is not aware that members of the BDF retire into poverty because of inadequate pension paid to them. He was responding to a question from Member of Parliament for Selibe Phikwe West Dithapelo Keorapetse. Keorapetse had asked the minister if he is aware that BDF soldiers retire into poverty because of inadequate pension paid to them, and that the recent amendments to the BDF Act will do little to address this problem. Kgathi stated that in 2001, the Government moved from a Defined Benefit Scheme to Defined Contribution Scheme. Unfortunately, the Defined Benefit Scheme was modelled on a civil servant who retires at 60 years and not on soldiers; some of whom retire at the age of 45 years considerably disadvantaging members of the BDF. I have amended the BDF Act and it was recently passed by this Parliament as the BDF Act, 2018. The effect of the amendment led to the raising of the retirement ages in the BDF except for the ranks of Private and Lance Corporal, which were retained at the age of 45 and 47 respectfully. The raising of the retirement age in the BDF was on consideration of the fact that the increase of retirement ages will consequentially lead to a longer period of defined contributions with a net effect of 10-15 per cent increase in the Net Replacement Ratio (NRR), Kgathi told Parliament. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) Hours before President Rodrigo Duterte's third State of the Nation Address on Monday, the Senate ratified the proposed Bangsamoro Organic Law, which creates the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. The House of Representatives has yet to do the same. Duterte, the first President who hails from Mindanao, earlier certified the bill as urgent, prompting Congress to fast-track its passage. The bicameral conference committee approved the final version of the bill on July 18. Officials said the President may sign the Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (OLBARMM) before his SONA. He may even sign it during his speech, becoming the first President to pass a law during the annual address. The OLBARMM will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) established in 1989 through Republic Act 6734. The ARMM groups the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. According to the OLBARMM, a plebiscite will be held within three to five months after the President signs it into law. The plebiscite will determine if 39 barangays in North Cotabato, six municipalities in Lanao del Norte, and the cities of Cotabato in Maguindanao and Isabela in Basilan will be included in the proposed Bangsamoro territory. The OLBARMM is the result of peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The proposed law institutionalizes provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro, the 2014 peace agreement signed with the MILF. The Bangsamoro government will be parliamentary-democratic in form, a first in the country's political history. It will be headed by a regional leader called Chief Minister, who will preside over an 80-member parliament. Some adult community learning courses look set to be reinstated in Burnham-On-Sea after a major funding boost this week, however the towns adult learning centre will not be re-opening. Somerset Skills & Learning (SS&L) has regained funding for adult and community education following a successful bid to the Education & Skills Funding Agency. The 2.7 million which the adult education provider has secured will go towards educational and community projects in Somerset to promote skills, health and wellbeing. We are delighted to have won these funds back for Somerset, SS&L Chief Executive, Susie Simon-Norris, told Burnham-On-Sea.com. We can now start delivering much needed local education and community projects again. We suffered a devastating blow last year when funds were decreased dramatically which meant closing some of our centres and losing many long standing team members but we have worked tirelessly to have these vital funds reinstated. We are so pleased that people in Somerset, some of them the most vulnerable and isolated, will get the same opportunity to participate in projects that people in other counties do, she said. Mrs Simon-Norris paid credit to the SS&L staff who she said had been amazing at a very difficult and unstable time and also to their learners who had remained loyal and patient throughout the year. I think the lesson from this is to never give up, Mrs Simon-Norris said. We fought hard for the Somerset community and weve triumphed, so were now working with our partners to plan great new projects and initiatives starting in September. Speaking to Burnham-On-Sea.com, a spokesperson added that there are no plans to re-open the adult learning centre in Burnham-On-Seas Princess Street, which closed last year. However, she added that the funds mean that we can start delivering more community projects again, both directly and through partners, and hopefully Burnham will also benefit from that. CAMEROUN :: Cameroon: Letter from a deserter soldier to his comrades in the disputed area of SW and NW. Hello comrades! Today I resolved to abandon my silence to give you the reasons for my desertion. We have all signed for honor and fidelity to our homeland. I can tell you that it is this honor and loyalty that guided my decision. Since the beginning of this dirty war, we have only obeyed orders sheepishly. "If you are asked to kill, then you kill," the instructors told us in Koutaba. And we ended up integrating this unhealthy and torturous philosophy, this annihilating philosophy that makes us wild beasts tamed by a group of "rational" beings who use us to achieve their ways and to protect their power. We ended up believing that our role was to kill and that we were finally good at it. No! Our role is not to kill, but to protect the integrity of our territory and the people who live there by all means, including the killing. That's what we did in the far north. This is what we were supposed to do in these two regions of our English-speaking West. But what did we do instead? Violent comrades of young civilian girls, looting families, executing men, setting fire to their homes, burning their grandparents, setting villages on fire, torturing mothers of children in mud and dirt, all under the direct orders of the superiors. Look, for those comrades who have gone up to the Far North at least once, how many villages have we burned there? How many civilians did we kill and how many women did we rape? These horrendous massacres that we are being executed are tinged with political calculations motivated by selfishness and the egocentrism of the small group that directs us. Why should we fire on fellow citizens who decide to invade the streets to show their anger, their indignation at the contempt of this government that privatizes their wealth? Why do we have to rape a poor student who decides to say no to university corruption? Why murder his father and burn his grandmother just because they tell you they do not know any terrorist? To motivate us in these drifts they told us that lawyers, teachers, students were manipulated by Western countries eager for oil. But dear comrades, let's wake up !! Where are the revenues from the exploitation of this oil going for more than 20 years? And those of gas? President Paul Biya and entourage have done it. They do not report to anyone. Do you find normal that a head of state exploits on his own account the riches of the subsoil of a region? And moreover without ever building schools, drinking water points? Without offering employment to children in this region? There is no external manipulation. These people are fighting for their well-being, and for yours too. Look at you!! Look at your living conditions !! Your premiums are withheld by selfish and inhuman superiors, your equipment is defective. Your days you spend them in the mud, the cold, the vermin in permanent contact with blood and death, always death. How many of our comrades have fallen these days? And why? This wars against the civilians is a genocide. That's why I deserted! Because I understood that this war did not serve the integrity of our territory or even protect the populations of terrorists. Orders are given to erase them from the map, their villages with. These people are not terrorists. In 2008 we were already killing nearly 200 Cameroonians because they had dared to be indignant at the excessive increase in food prices. They were not terrorists either. It is thanks to this people that we eat in our families. It is with his money that this government buys the weapons with which we fight it; so who are the real terrorists? The people are taken hostage. Our task and release it. We have to act! Comrades, we can stop this madness; if we are numerous; if the ministers, the generals, the military commissions, the prosecutors and the judges in the pay of the state can not scare us. Refuse to become cannon fodder, do not agree to go humbly to the barracks to be killed or, even worse, to kill yourself. Do not participate any more in the military crimes of this regime: neither as executioners at the front nor, behind, as accomplices. They can scare us, they can threaten us, they can violate laws and the Constitution, they can even put us in jail. But one thing they can never do is force us to serve them and become their accomplices. Their famous "strength" comes from our uncertainty, our fear, our indifference. We are stronger than them because they need us to exist. Accept to react and act for the people. It is these people that counts. Do like me, desert! And we will together form a block to fight against these terrorists in suits that mishandle the people. Council Agents closing shops W. Musa The Mayor of Buea, Patrick Ekema Esunge has sealed shops around Clerk Quarters, in Buea Subdivision Monday July 23, 2018. The move by Ekema came after all shops in his area of command respected ghost town, a form of civil disobedience instituted by Anglophone Activists. Accompanied by combat ready soldiers, Patrick Ekema and Council agents sealed one shop after another. On the seal note, owners were reminded on penalties that await them such as imprisonment from 6 months to 2 years and a fine between fifty thousand and five hundredth thousand francs. The shops sealed in Clerk Quarters and Buea Town are closer to the council and surrounded by Military , Gendarmerie and Penitentiary stations , but the Mayor could not move to Mile 17, where Separatist fighters could have imposed a gun battle. Mr Ekema had in an outing on July 20, 2018 sent out a release warning shop owners against closing their shops on Mondays, promising hell on them. But the owners are now caught in a web, wherein Ambazonia fighters impose a ghost town and force them to respect and the Mayor pressurizes them to open their shops. Critics have held that the Mayor is setting confusion on the issue, by forcing the shop owners whereas the council will not provide security when need be. Massive Ghost Town in Other Areas Denizens in Limbe, Mutengene, Kumba, Kumba, and other major Anglophone towns respected the civil disobedience. In Bamenda, the entire City was calm but Soldiers were seen checking ID cards of locals, especially those who dared to go out. There was also control of Identity cards in Limbe and other Fako towns. However no major incident was recorded on Monay July 23, 2018 in the South West region unlike other days where security officers and civilians were murdered in clod blood. Police camerounaise Archives A 17 year old teenager has been allegedly raped by a Police Officer in Bamenda, North West region Monday July 23, 2018. The incident which happened at Veterinary junction in Bamenda has now spread to the whole world in just few minutes. The girl could be seen crying in the video while narrating her ordeal. In her own words My mother sent me to get watermelon from her story. They took me down behind the petrol station. You know today is ghost town and places are deserted. The police officers asked for my ID card and I told them I didnt have it on me, she said amidst uncontrollable tears. When I moved across to them, I was directed to their big man who was standing beside the road. He asked me to meet two of his colleagues the other way. They sent me to meet the patron who asked to see my ID Card. I told him I did not have an ID card. He asked how old I am and I said 17. He asked what I was doing for the moment and I told him I wasnt doing anything for the moment. He said so I am walking along the road without an ID card? I said yes. The other one left and talked with someone in a car. He came back and the big man ordered me to stand where those who dont have ID Cards stand. I knelt down and beg but they insisted, saying that I am not the one commanding them. I was begging the police officers and they would not let me go. One of them dragged me and entered inside that petrol station. They said that is where those who dont have ID cards are made to stand. There was nobody there. As he dragged me inside, he ordered me to take off my clothes. I told him I am a nursing and breastfeeding mother. He warned that I should not shout at him. He forcefully took off my clothes and raped me. When he finished, he tried to give me transport fare. The survivor narrated to an amateur cameraman who was later threatened by Security forces for sending the video to Social Media. Cameroonians have condemned the act and called on the government to take appropriate measures to bring to justice the said Police Officer. | BY Ricki Green | To inject a fresh energy into the home loan category, and get New Zealanders excited and feeling confident about progressing with every aspect of their home buying journey, WiTH Collective, Linked by Isobar, has worked with ASB to launch a new platform to help Kiwis Own That Home. The new positioning from WiTH Collective for ASB, Own It, highlights the experience of everyday people going through the ups and downs of buying property, aiming to actively encourage and support those at any stage of the process through targeted online content, bespoke customer comms, social promotion and OOH. WiTH Collective, Linked by Isobar, developed the campaign creative based on the insight that confidence is often low when consumers are considering buying property. The resulting creative directs customers to ASBs tips, tools, guidance and advice to help them feel empowered to progress with the next step in their home-buying journey. Says John Marshall, client services director at WiTH Collective: Its coming up a year since we opened our doors here in New Zealand and this campaign is just another example of the big, bold type of work, both we and ASB want to be doing. Says Simon Fowler, creative director, WiTH Collective: Theres a lot of negativity around buying a home the process is considered daunting, stressful and confusing. Were excited to have worked with ASB on a campaign that fills New Zealanders with confidence, and celebrates the hard yards you have to put in. The work feels unique and brings a fresh, positive perspective to the home loan category. Says Shane Evans, general manager of marketing, ASB: At ASB were focused on helping Kiwis achieve their home ownership dream. Were pleased Own it will help customers do just that, by empowering them to confidently take steps towards owning their own home. Weve enjoyed developing our home lending Own it creative platform alongside the WiTH Collective team. Theyre great story tellers with a fresh and bold vision. The campaign launched yesterday across TV, OOH, Digital, Radio, Social and ASBs owned assets. Client ASB Shane Evans General Manager Marketing Vanessa Morris Head of Retail Marketing Emma Lynch Marketing Manager Emily Harder Associate Marketing Manager Megan Cairns Marketing Assistant Emma-Rose Forrester Brand Campaigns Manager Beth Te Raki Portfolio Manager Aimee Storey Product Manager Creative Agency WiTH Collective Steve Coll Chief Creative Officer Nicole Hetherington Creative Director Simon Fowler Creative Director Alex Roper Group Planning Director Hally Lara Senior Strategist John Marshall Client Services Director Kate Syms Account Manager Lydia Sleeman Bailey Account Executive Iain Todd Head of Production Content Producer Alex Mills Media Agency Carat Ryan Jordan Strategy Director Mireille Cope Business Director Lauren Daly Business Executive Nicholas Cornwell Implementation Coordinator Josh Reiri-Allen Senior Digital Manager Skipper Lomiwes Senior Programmatic Account Manager Film Production Company Rabbit Content Director Loren Taylor Executive producer Alexandra Hay Producer Rita Gagliardi Post Production Butchery & Blockhead Audio Post Big Pop Stills Production Company Photoplay Photographer Mark Clinton Executive Producer Alison Lydiard Producer Ross Colebatch | BY Ricki Green | Australia Post has unveiled a heart-warming campaign, Everyone Matters that reflects what Australia Post stands for in the community: putting people first. Created by The Monkeys, part of Accenture Interactive, the integrated campaign is the first from Australia Post since Christine Holgate was appointed as new CEO. This campaign illustrates what Australia Post does for our customers every single day: we focus on how everyone matters, said Australia Post head of enterprise marketing Anne Stout. The campaign centres on what drives us to make a difference in peoples lives; whether thats making more flexible delivery choices or helping small businesses to expand into international markets, or being such an integral part of local communities that our delivery people would recognise, recover and deliver safely home a little boys stranded stuffed toy. Directed by Derin Seale of FINCH, Everyone Matters features five stories of everyday Australians and the many and varied ways Australia Post is a part of their lives. The spots range from a honey producer in Tasmania, to a sugar cane farmer in Queensland, to Bruce from Braidwood who has run his local post office for more than 20 years. The print component of the campaign also features portraits of everyday Australians captured around the country by photographer Cory White. The campaign will roll out this week across broadcast, out of home advertising, digital, radio and press, and will also run on Australia Post social channels. Says Ant Keogh, CCO, The Monkeys: We wanted to tell stories at a human scale, showing Australia Posts role in the lives of all Australians, day to day. The films are humble and understated but we think thats where their power lies. Client: Australia Post General Manager, Marketing and Community: Andrea Pearman Head of Enterprise Marketing: Anne Stout Senior Marketing Manager Enterprise and Community: Corrina Brazel Senior Manager Brand and Advertising: Cathie Connors Marketing Manager Enterprise and Community: Allison Leech Agency: The Monkeys CCO: Ant Keogh Creative Director: Wayne Ching Art Director: Joe Sibley Writer: Hugh Gurney Head of Strategy: Mike Derepas Planning Director: Gareth Evans Business Director: Kat Kelly Group Content Director: Jaimee Kerr Content Director: Louise Rutherford Head of Production: Romanca Jasinski Senior Producer: Lucy Trengove Media Agency: Dentsu X Head of Client Solutions: Michelle OBrien Group Client Partner: Charlie Stroud Investment Manager: Angie Alexis Production Co: FINCH Director: Derin Seale Executive Producer: Corey Esse Producer: Cath Anderson DOP:Tim Tregoning Editor: Drew Thompson ARC EDIT Grade: Edel Rafferty -The Editors Online: Nakatomi Sound: Paul Le Couteur Nylon Photography: The Kitchen Photographer: Cory White Producer: Chelsea Claydon Talent Researcher: Rosey Karaula | BY Kim Shaw | LIA Creative LIAisons was started in 2012 as a way to give back to the global creative community. It is this program that sets LIA apart from the other awards shows in the industry. Annually, LIA invites and pays for about 100 attendees from around the globe (including Australia) to attend Creative LIAisons, which runs concurrently with LIA judging in Las Vegas. The program consists of networking, seminars and the privilege to sit in on statue deliberations. Access to the judging room from the beginning of statue discussions through to the final metal decisions is an experience no other awards show offers. It provides invaluable insight and comments as to what makes a piece of work an award winner. Attendees are given the opportunity to mingle and have one-on-one discussions with the top creative talent in advertising, design, digital, production and technology. Creative LIAisons has become one of the most sought after programs in the industry. SDWM, Melbourne creative directors James Orr and Elle Bullen Creative Liaisons 2012 In 2012, we struck gold at an award show. And we didnt even win a trophy. We were invited to attend LIAs Creative LIAisons in Vegas. At the time, the promise of a trip to sin city on the clock was so exciting that we didnt think about what the experience might hold beyond the blackjack table. But what we learned when we got there, besides dont take Wesley Snipes advice and Always bet on black (1992 film Passenger 57), has stuck with us to this day. Those three days of creativity and conversations with people from all over the world made us think about our roles and the industry in a new way. Wed always been the competitive types, competing for everything from uni placements, to a foot in the door at agencies, on briefs and against other agencies for business. It seems to go hand in hand with this business. But ironically enough, it was a competitive Award Show that helped us see beyond competition, to concentrate on creativity. While most award shows pit young creative minds against each other, this one brought them together. Folks we once saw as our creative nemeses became collaborators and contacts. We learned that no matter what country youre from; we all share the same pressures and passion. There were no briefs, just the best work in the world to learn from. We got to see judging in action, and understand why that work was considered the best. We had open access to brilliant and inspiring minds. And we witnessed firsthand what watching 82 three-minute case study films in succession can do the human mind. All things that didnt stay in Vegas, but came back with us to shape how we approach briefs, identify opportunities and ruthlessly edit our case studies. It was a once in a life time opportunity usually reserved for the ECDs and CCOs of the world, which made it invaluable for a couple of rookie creatives who until then had only ever judged their own work. The chance to go behind the scenes and be exposed to this culture of creativity doesnt come along every day. So if youre lucky enough to be under 30 and offered that chance, grab it. | BY Kim Shaw | When Robin Walters (right) started his first job as a runner in London, the producer, who came with a formidable reputation, warned him that hed be fired if she caught him reading a newspaper on set. 12 months later he married her. 25 years later Robin and Sam (left) set up Tutu Films. The pair worked together as director/producer team in London and Europe for 4 years before returning to New Zealand. Robin joined Black Stump Films and later Curious Film and Robbers Dog. He has since gained a reputation as one of the most original and perceptive directors working in the entire Asia Pacific region. Known for both comedy and drama, Robins work has been commended throughout the industry as some of the most honest and funniest to come out of Australasia in recent years. Meanwhile Sam stepped away from producing to pursue her passion of photography and returned to study gaining a degree in Visual Arts at AUT. The next few years she lectured in photography and sculpture at MITs Dip. Visual Arts programme and travelled the length of New Zealand co-writing the award-winning book Marae with Robin. Weve been on this journey together for 25 years, lived in 4 different countries, raised 3 Orsum sons and written a book now its time for new adventure were very excited about working together again starting Tutu Films. | BY Lynchy | Ad Stars has unveiled this years program, which will feature some of the worlds most inspiring creative, production and technology experts over three days from 23rd to 25th August in Busan, South Korea. The is divided into three streams: the Creativity stage will feature some of the worlds most brilliant creative minds; the AD tech stage will feature ground breaking technologists; while the Open Stage is open to the general public to encourage people outside the advertising industry to learn more about the business of creativity. Some of this years flagship Creativity speakers include: Ari Halper, Chief Creative Officer at FCB New York (pictured above left) Halper is presenting a session titled, The Future of Advertising Lies in Our Creativity, but Not How You Think. Advertising is changing so rapidly, its bound to make your head spin faster than a DJ on meth. It feels like the threats to our industry are coming from all sides. But take a long look in the mirror. Lets face it. The greatest threat to our industry has actually been our propensity toward distraction. Distracted by profit margins, awards, scopes, technology and the competition. Losing sight of the very thing that got us all in this business in the first place: creativity, says Halper, whose session will help creative professionals put themselves back on the right course. Matty Burton, Creative Chief, Google Zoo Asia Pacific (pictured above right) For the last 20 years, Burton has worked at some of the worlds most renowned creative agencies including Saatchi & Saatchi NZ, Droga5 NYC and TBWA Australia. He co-founded Special Group Australia before joining Google Zoo, where he is Creative Chief. At Ad Stars, delegates will enjoy a glimpse of Mattys unique perspective on creativity as someone who is now leading a specialised team of creatives, technologists, producers and strategists working across Asia Pacific on Googles most valuable and strategic partnerships. Laura Swinton, Global Editor, Little Black Book One of the worlds most insightful advertising reporters, Swinton, will moderate a session about Diversity and Equity in Workplace. Featuring fearless creative leaders including Anna Qvennerstedt of Forsman & Bodenfors in Sweden, Vasudha Misra, Executive Creative Director of BBH India, and Satoko Takada, Creative Director of McCann in Japan, this session is not to be missed. Toby Talbot, Chief Creative Officer at Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand (pictured left) Talbot will tackle the question our industry has been grappling with over the past year: What is the True Value of Awards? Are awards healthy or are they a narcissistic blight, invented purely to make us feel good about what we do? Because, lets face it, in the real world nobody else feels good about what we do. Doesnt everyone yourself included actively avoid advertising? So are awards there to paper over the ever-widening cracks of a largely irrelevant industry? Or is quite the opposite true? asks Toby. His session might not provide all the answers, but he certainly has some provocative questions. Tay Guan Hin, Global Executive Creative Director at J. Walter Thompson Singapore (pictured above right) It seems every other topic at advertising conferences these days is about data-driven creativity, technology, AI, VR, disruption or transformation, according to Tay Guan Hin, whose session at Ad Stars 2018 will instead deal with something different, yet familiar. Titled, Re-ignite The Gung Ho, Tay will argue were losing our passion for exceptional creativity in a data-obsessed world. Cindy Chen, Partner & Chief Strategy Officer at Focus Media Group in China (pictured left) Chen joined Focus Media Group as Chief Strategy Officer in 2005, which is the largest lifestyle media group in China. She is an expert in media, market and consumer insights. At Ad Stars 2018, shell provide fascinating insights into Chinas rapidly evolving media landscape. Andreas Krasser, Chief Strategy Officer at DDB Group Hong Kong (pictured above right) In my talk, I want to make the case for why planners and creatives need to work together more closely especially in Asia where this relationship is still is in its infancy compared to its counterparts in Europe and America, explains Krasser. When Strategy & Creative are in tune, thats when the magic happens. Christian Mix-Linzer, CEO of Tracks and Fields in Berlin Christian Mix-Linzer will talk about making music decisions based on the music identity of a brand. Music is a very important driver of brand identity and an integral part of any audio-visual content, but most of the time the process to select music for advertising is based on gut feeling and done at the last minute. The aim of my session is to help people learn how to think about music and how to make music decisions less random, he explains. Emma Wilkie, Managing Director, Gunn Report Emma started her career in the Creative Department of DDB London before creating The Gunn Report company with Donald Gunn in 2007. As the person who researches and creates the new Gunn 100 and oversees its production and publication as well as Gunn Media 100 and WARC 100, Emma is an expert on creative ideas that change the world, and shell share her insights with the audience at Ad Stars 2018. | BY Lynchy | Bonsey Jaden has recently been selected to lead Prudential Assurance Malaysia Berhad (PAMB)s latest campaign to launch PRUcancer X an insurance plan that provides high cancer protection for Malaysians. The campaign titled UNSUAY takes on a lighter and quirkier approach to the sensitive subject to entice more young Malaysians to start talking about cancer and the importance of insurance. With over 100,000 Malaysians reported to be diagnosed with cancer each year, the topic remains unaddressed due to its taboo nature. Gestures such as touch wood or exclaiming choi are some of the words Malaysians use when they hear the word cancer. With this in mind, Prudential together with Bonsey Jaden, kicked off UNSUAY as a conversation starter with a relatable tagline, Superstition cant cover you. In early July, UNSUAY was launched as a spurious brand with original products that undo the suayness of cancer. Would you buy the Touch Wood Wood or Slap the suayness away with the Suay Slapper? Resembling typical reactions such as a block of wood, Choi badges, and Suay slappers, the products were targeted at millennials through an e-commerce Facebook page and supported with unbranded Facebook, Instagram and YouTube advertisements that lead to the UNSUAY campaign page. From there, users are faced with the hard truth of how superstition only provides temporary comfort and peace. PRUcancer X is then revealed as the real solution from the woe of cancer. We realized that most millennials are still uninsured despite knowing the increasing number of young Malaysians being affected by cancer. This is bigger than insurance; it is a conversation of getting Malaysians to be empowered enough to talk about cancer and exercise control so that they can continue to be free and independent even when the unexpected big C strikes. Therefore, we are excited to work with Bonsey Jaden as they had the most engaging idea that would resonate with Malaysians. It was extremely crucial for this campaign to stand out from the wide amount of internet information most users face every day, said Natasha Sebastian, Head of Digital Marketing, Prudential Assurance Malaysia Berhad. Adam Chan, Regional Executive Creative Director of Bonsey Jaden explained, The campaign started with a simple local truth when in a tight spot, Malaysians turn to superstitions. Someone said the C-word? Touch wood! Someone mentions death? We ward off the bad juju by saying choi. But superstition cant cover you. We tapped into this insight to get more youths to start talking about cancer and, ultimately, get them protected before it is too late. The launch of the UNSUAY campaign is to introduce PRUcancer X, an insurance solution providing high cancer protection. The benefits payable can help individuals pay for cancer treatments and recovery cost, as well as compensate for the loss of income. The plan provides high coverage options of up to RM2 million for the best care, affordable premium, easy enrolment, early-stage cancer coverage, and compassionate benefit. Credits- Executive Creative Director: Adam Chan Creative Group Head: Abby Tai, Jeremy Ng KT Copywriters: Audrey Lee, Jeremy Ng KT, Alicia Hew Art Director: Abby Tai Digital Designer: Ilisa Izhar Creative Services Manager: Ashley Lai Strategic Director: Taryn Mook Strategic Planner: Melantha Tan Senior Digital Project Manager: Joanne Ng Social Media: Brendon Lee Group Account Director: Chin Han Yu Senior Account Manager: Zoe Chua Account Executive: Eugene Ng Producer: Riza Johari Client: Prudential Assurance Malaysia (PAMB) Head of Digital Marketing: Natasha Sebastian Digital Marketing Manager : Yap E-Foong Production Company: The Tankers Sdn Bhd Film Director: Naoto Mitake Exec. Producer: Pete Singh, Pat Singh DOP: Julian Oh Producer: Gray Loi Production Coordinator: Zax, Jun Production Assistant: Marion, Jiong Zheng Art Department: Seni Lab Editor: Dave Singh Post Production: Spot VFX Photo: lifeplanningtoday.com Let me tell you the story about Fred, the worlds worst investor. He quite possibly has the worst market timing of any investor in the world. But even with the worst timing possible, Fred has likely done better than many of you. When Fred entered the workforce in 1970, he decided that he was going to put away $2,000 per year and that he would increase his contribution amount by another $2,000/year each decade until he retires (so $4,000/year in the 80s, $6,000/year in the 90s, etc). The first couple of years, Fred put aside the $2,000 in his bank account and then at the end of 1972, he took the $6,000 he had accumulated and put the full amount in an S&P 500 index fund. Over the course of the next two years, the stock market dropped nearly 50 per cent and Fred saw half his investments disappear," at least on paper. The one thing Fred had going for him was that he decided to stick to his plan and not sell what was left after such a big drop. Fear had, however, made Fred much more leery about the stock markets now so for the next 15 years, he just let the $2,000 (and after 1980, $4,000) per year build up in his bank account. In August 1987, after watching many years of steady growth in the markets, he finally decided to put the $46,000 that had built up into the S&P 500 index fund as well. Shortly thereafter, the next big market crash saw his account value drop by 34 per cent Although poor Fred had again invested right at the peak, he stuck to his investment plan and did not sell his index fund. He again became very fearful about the markets and let his new investments build in his bank account. In December 1999, he had built up another $68,000 and finally decided to make another purchase. Fred put this money into his index fund right before the tech bubble burst. This time, the market took a 50 per cent downturn that lasted until 2002. After investing at three of the worst possible times, he decided to give it one more go. In Oct 2007, Fred put the $64,000 that had accumulated since his last purchase to work and shortly thereafter saw another 50 per cent crash occur. Fred finally decided to retire in 2013 after 43 years on the job. Every penny hed invested over these years had never been moved out of the same S&P 500 index that he first started buying in 1972. He had managed to only put money in at the worst possible times of the preceding four decades yet fortunately hed stuck to his plan and not allowed fear to sway him off course. After investing a total of $184,000, Freds account at retirement sat at $1.1 million. Although Fred quite possibly had the worst market timing ever, his diligent savings plan and unwavering commitment to his goals allowed him to earn great returns over the course of his career and have a significant retirement nest egg built in the process. Had Fred dollar cost averaged into the market each year instead of waiting to buy at specific points, his portfolio would have been a full $2.3 million when he retired. So, what can you learn from Fred? Long-term investing is about staying the course and sticking to your plan. Short-term dips and losses are part of investing and the psychological pain that you may have to endure will pay off in the end. How you react to those losses will be one of the biggest determinants of your investment performance. I dont know when the next market crash is going to occur, but I can tell you that it is not too far away now. You just need to remember that its time in the market, not timing the market, which will lead to long term growth. Chantelle Deacon Hot rods of all kinds graced the streets of Vernon over the weekend and made their final debut in Polson Park on Sunday. The annual 'Sun Valley Cruise-in' brought out more vehicles than they've ever seen before. "The whole weekend has gone fantastic," said Andy Freeland, Sun Valley Cruise-in, manager. "The weather has really cooperated. We started off on Friday night with the movie, Saturday night downtown the most cars we've ever has downtown, it was full, packed and overflow." Old school car owners and fans from all over the province and even as far as California made their way to Vernon for the big event. On Sunday, Polson Park was completely packed with more than 400 hot rods and even a few newer model supercars showed up. "I'm fond of the muscle car era, so I'll just leave it at that," laughed Freeland. "Mustangs, Corvettes, Camaros, that era." Freeland says the event will be back in action next July. Photo: Karen Sloan UPDATE: 9:10 p.m. Due to a police investigation, the northbound lane of Highway 5 between Merritt and Hope is expected to remain closed until at least 10 p.m. UPDATE: 8:05 p.m. BC Emergency Health Services had paramedics responding to the scenes of one of two Coquihalla crashes Sunday evening. One patient was transported to hospital in critical condition by air ambulance from the incident south of Merritt. Four others were taken by ground ambulance, in stable condition. No major medical help was needed at the crash north of Merritt. UPDATE: 7:45 p.m. Single-lane traffic is now open nine kilometres north of Merritt at the scene of a semi truck incident. UPDATE: 6:30 p.m. Highway 5 between Hope and Merritt is now closed in both directions at Exit 238, which is the Juliet exit, according to DriveBC. A helicopter and multiple emergency vehicles are on the scene, according to Castanet readers. No detour is available, though alternate routes include highways 1 and 8. An update is expected at 7:30 p.m. Another accident, the two semis described by a Castanet reader earlier, has closed the highway nine kilometres north of Merritt. Detours for southbound traffic are available via Highway 97D to Highway 97C. An update will be provided at 7 p.m., as an estimated time of re-opening is being calculated. ORIGINAL: 5:50 p.m. A Castanet reader has sent in photos of two semis which were involved in some sort of collision just minutes ago on Highway 5, just north of Merritt. The reader did not witness a collision, but drove past the two large vehicles just as emergency crews were arriving at the scene from the opposite direction. DriveBC has no information on its website at this time. Castanet will have more if road closures or traffic delays come into play. Photo: Contributed A man shot near Oliver Tuesday night has been identified. Christopher Glenn Haacke, who according to the Oliver Daily News may have been 54 years old rather than 58 as the original RCMP report suggested, was shot outside his Wilson Mountain Road residence. Though RCMP did not release the man's name, a woman posted in the public Oliver Loop Facebook group Thursday claiming the man was the father of her children, and other posts on the same thread mentioned him by name. An Ever Here obituary website was set up for Christopher Haacke of Oliver, B.C. on Wednesday, which also states his age as being 54, as well as a brief notice of death saying he "died suddenly" on a local funeral services website. An investigation into the death is ongoing, and the preliminary findings indicate Haacke and those involved with the shooting were known to each other. Alanna Kelly Trained pilots were tasked with intentionally setting fire to a 150-hectare space between two wildfires in Peachland. A planned ignition by the BC Wildfire Service had many residents concerned another fire had ignited, but it was the joining of the Mount Eneas and Munro Lake wildfires. Incident commander Glen Burgess says the space between the two would have burned eventually, but this way they could control the burn. We use an ignition device called plastic spherical dispensor, basically dropping round balls, similar to ping pong balls, filled with a chemical, he said. A hopper is filled inside the helicopter, which is then filled with the balls and as they roll, they get injected with glycol. Burgess said based on the amount of glycol that gets injected, they can control the length of time before the chemical reaction occurs in the balls. Its not on fire when it leaves the machine, it will hit the ground, the chemical reaction occurs and then it bursts into flames, said Burgess. This practice is common with fighting wildfires and the cost is relative when a risk assessment is conducted. All things being equal they're actually surprisingly cheap, he said. A fixed wing air tanker was used to place retardant along the top of the burn area, which was quite costly. But Burgess says it isnt something they get concerned about. When you factor in human life and property, we sort of dont get worried about the cost if we are protecting those kinds of values, he said. It wont be a shocking amount, he said. Due to firefighters' diligent work, no structures have been lost from the fires currently burning. "There is a lot of fire there now, but it is fire we initiated," he said. "We took a lot of precautions, we dont make those decision lightly and at the end of the day we hope there will be less smoke." Burgess said his biggest concern at this point is an unexpected wind event. We still have a lot of fire out there in a variety of places that is not contained and if we had an unexpected wind event that would cause us problems for sure, he said. Photo: Wayne Moore Five police cars and an ambulance are blocking the entrance of the Best Western Hotel off Carrington Road in West Kelowna Sunday evening. Castanet's reporter on the scene Wayne Moore says police have taped off the entrance to the plaza of Vintage View Centre mall, as well as the neighbouring Dominos Pizza. He says they have been at the scene for about two hours. Castanet has reached out to RCMP, but they say no update or information will be available until the incident is completed, which may not be until tomorrow. More to come as Castanet finds out additional information. Photo: Alanna Kelly Alanna Kelly speaks one on one with Glen Burgess UPDATE 7:03 a.m. Environment Canada meteorologist Michel Gelinas tells Castanet, " We could see some isolated thunderstorms over the northern part of the Okanagan today. We have gusty northerly winds today even without the thunderstorms we think the thunderstorms could produce wind gusts from 60 to 70 Km/h." Temperatures are expected to hold steady for the next couple of days before trending up to the mid 30's next weekend. Smoke is causing poor air quality and reducing visibility in the Okanagan as well. However, it has improved, markedly since last week when the fires first broke out. Still Environment Canada's Special Air Quality Statement remains in place. Conditions are much improved in the north Okanagan, as of 6 a.m. the rating on a scale of 1-10 is a 1 and it is only expected to rise to 2 later this afternoon. A similiar story in the central and south Okanagan as well, 1 as of 6 a.m. and only anticipated to rise to 3 this afternoon. ORIGINAL 6:19 a.m. So far the weather has been co-operating to help firefighters get a handle on some of the fires burning in our region. The BC Wildfire service has stepped up their game. Moving the command centre to West Kelowna over the weekend and dropping fireballs on the Mount Eneas fire to make it larger but also easier to handle according to BC Wildfire Service Incident commander Glen Burgess. Unfortunately the Environment Canada forecast this week is calling for hotter temperatures and there is a 30 per cent chance of thundershowers which include the possibility of lightning. Not good news for Burgess, "obviously dry lightning is the worst case scenario for us. So with it being in the forecast, we begin to elevate our alert status and put more units on stand-by. We're here fully committed to but if there are new starts we are prepared to help out in our fire centre." Burgess says all you have to do is look to last Tuesday night to see what can happen when lightning strikes. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) President Rodrigo Duterte committed to signing the Bangsamoro Organic Law within two days during his third State of the Nation Address on Monday. "When the approved version was transmitted and received by my office, the law has been passed and I intend to Give me 48 hours to sign it and ratify the law," Duterte said. Duterte also said in jest that he still needs to read the final version approved by the congressional bicameral conference committee as there might be unfavorable provisions added. The President's pronouncement was met with applause from the lawmakers who attended the annual affair at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City. "I make the solemn commitment that this administration will never deny our Muslim brothers and sisters the basic legal tools to chart their own destiny within the constitutional framework of our country," Duterte added. He said peace must be promoted in Mindanao, citing the five-month siege in Marawi City amid gunfights between ISIS-inspired Maute rebels and government troopers. "To me, war is not an option. We have been through the catastrophe in Marawi. We have seen the horror, the devastation, the human toll, and the displacement of both Christians and Muslims alike," Duterte said. "I have made a pledge that ISIS tourists or groups or its allies will never regain foothold in our country," he added. Duterte added he wants to see "the promise of Mindanao fulfilled" before the end of his term, saying his administration is working on "significant increases" in the budget for the South. Before the President could sign the Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (OLBARMM) into law, the Senate and House of Representatives need to ratify it first. READ: Senate ratifies bill on Bangsamoro Organic Law The Senate has ratified the proposed measure earlier on Monday, but the House failed to do the same due to changes in leadership. READ: House failure to ratify proposed Bangsamoro Organic Law a 'temporary setback' - Palace The Malacanang said Duterte was supposed to sign the OLBARMM during his SONA, but the delay prevented him from doing so. Duterte, the first Philippine President who hails from Mindanao, earlier certified the bill as urgent, prompting Congress to fast-track the passage of the draft measure. The bicameral conference committee approved the final version of the bill on July 18. The historic law abolishes the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) established in 1989 through Republic Act No. 6734. The ARMM groups the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. The ARMM will then be replaced by the the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. The OLBARMM is the result of decades-long peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in Mindanao (MILF). The law institutionalizes provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro, the 2014 peace agreement signed by the government and the MILF that ended decades-long armed conflict in Mindanao. The Bangsamoro government will be parliamentary-democratic in form, a first in the country's political history. It will be headed by the regional leader called Chief Minister, who will preside over an 80-member parliament. Photo: RDOS Five properties along Highway 97 just north of Summerland are no longer under evacuation order. The Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen announced Monday morning that residents are allowed to return home to the following properties: 660 Hwy 97 625 Hwy 97 619 Hwy 97 608 Hwy 97 567 Hwy 97 The properties are still under evacuation alert, meaning residents returning home still need to be prepared to leave again at a moment's notice. The RDOS asks those returning home to walk around the perimeter before entering and note any potential damage related to fire prevention, note any potential sewage and water damage and take pictures and keep receipts for any cleanup expenses accrued. Photo: Contributed The search for Vernon Secondary School math teacher John Keeley will continue today. Keeley, 58, was last seen at his home the afternoon of July 18 preparing for a kayaking trip to Mabel Lake and was reported missing when he didn't arrive home for dinner. The search was suspended two days later on July 20 after an extensive search of the lakeshore was conducted. Search crews did locate his vehicle on Mabel Lake forest service road and his abandoned kayak. The RCMP dive team is expected to be on scene searching the lake today. If the well-known local math teacher is not found by the end of the day, then the RCMP helicopter and search and rescue are expected to pick up the search along the beaches and in the water on Wednesday. The family of Keeley are asking for privacy at this time while the search continues. Last week, a donkey was rescued in a brutal condition after being beaten up during a political rally in Pakistan. The donkey was beaten and bruised by supporters of a political party has passed away earlier today. In a post on social media, ACF Animal Rescue wrote, "Hero should never have suffered for even a moment in life. Hero was the epitome of purity and innocence. Shame on us for doing this to him and not being able to curtail this menace of torture and abuse of animals and human beings alike." The animal had become a target of violence, on July 16, by supporters of a political party who wrote the name of a political rival on the donkey's body to elude to him. Also Read: Pakistan Election: Donkey torture continues in Karachi A shocking incident has occurred with the two MLA of Aam Aadmi Party who went to Canada but refused to enter the country and sent back to India shortly. Yes, the two MLA of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal s i.e. Kotkapura MLA Kultar Singh Sandhwan and Ropar MLA Amarjit Singh Sandoa returned back to India after they landed to Canada and also questioned for a long time at the Ottawa airport on Sunday. As per the reports of TOI, Canadian immigration authorities have refused the entry to Punjab Punjab MLA Amarjit Singh Sandoa over the molestation, assault and criminal intimidation charges on him. Earlier on Friday, Ropar court had imposed the charges (, criminal intimidation, outraging the modesty of a woman, uttering obscene words, and voluntarily causing hurt) on the MLA Amarjit. The case has been registered against Amarjit by the Ropar police in July 2017 after the complaint filed by Tarminder Kaur, who had rented her house to the MLA in October 2016. However, Canada immigration authorities detained them and also questioned their purpose of visit to the country. According to the reports, they were detained at around 9 am (IST) and later they were sent to India via Air Canada flight to Delhi. Reportedly, the two AAP MLA has travelled to Canada for a private visit. As they had gone to visit their latters sister, who lives in Ottawa. As per the reports, the AAPs Toronto unit had also lined up a few programmes for the two Punjab legislators. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) President Rodrigo Duterte remains confident the people will rally behind his plan to shift the government from a unitary form to a federal one. "I am confident that the Filipino people will stand behind us as we introduce this new fundamental law that will not only strengthen democratic institutions but will also create an environment where every Filipino...will have an equal opportunity to grow and create a future," Duterte said during his third State of the Nation Address on Monday. A recent survey released by Pulse Asia, however, stated that only 18 percent of Filipinos believe the Constitution should be amended right away. It added that 37 percent said the Constitution should not be amended at all, while 30 percent said they are open to the idea of a charter change in the future. The survey was conducted from June 15 to 21 among 1,800 registered voters nationwide. Meanwhile, the President reiterated he will not extend his term beyond what is mandated by the Constitution, or even the proposed Federal Constitution should it be enacted. Duterte also thanked the 22 members of the panel he created to review the 1987 Constitution and propose amendments to guide the shift to a federal government. "I therefore consider it a distinct honor and privilege to have received earlier from the Consultative Committee that I created the Federal Constitution that will truly embody that ideal aspirations of all the Filipino people," he said. Under the current Constitution, Duterte's presidency will end after serving a six-year term. The proposed Federal Constitution, however, states that he should step down within six months from its ratification to give way for a transition president. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) President Rodrigo Duterte has urged the Congress to prioritize the passage of the Universal Healthcare Bill during his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday. During his speech, Duterte said there is much room for improvement in the country's healthcare system. He cited a disparity in outcomes between individuals who can and cannot afford the current healthcare services. "Much is needed to be done to improve our healthcare system, which remains highly fragmented resulting in disparity in health outcomes between the rich and the poor, in the urban areas and rural areas," Duterte said. The President also noted how 'several policies and operational bottlenecks' have constrained universal healthcare for this country. He added that the administration aims to 'ensure that every Filipino gets the appropriate affordable and quality health services in appropriate facilities,' and that citizens will also be 'protected from financial burden due to sickness.' Duterte, through his spokesperson Harry Roque, had earlier marked as urgent the passage of the said bill. The House version of the Universal Healthcare Bill, which was passed September last year, states all Filipinos will be covered by a national health insurance. It also mentions that the current PhilHealth will be changed into Philippine Health Security Corporation, which would pay for medical fees and products. A counterpart measure meanwhile is pending before the Senate. A new form of solar-powered supercapacitor could help make future wearable technologies lighter and more energy-efficient, scientists say. Researchers from the University of Glasgows Bendable Electronics and Sensing Technologies (BEST) group describe how they have developed a promising new type of graphene supercapacitor, which could be used in the next generation of wearable health sensors. Currently, wearable systems generally rely on relatively heavy, inflexible batteries, which can be uncomfortable for long-term users. The BEST team, led by Professor Ravinder Dahiya, have built on their previous success in developing flexible sensors by developing a supercapacitor which could power health sensors capable of conforming to wearers bodies, offering more comfort and a more consistent contact with skin to better collect health data. Their new supercapacitor uses layers of flexible, three-dimensional porous foam formed from graphene and silver to produce a device capable of storing and releasing around three times more power than any similar flexible supercapacitor. The team demonstrated the durability of the supercapacitor, showing that it provided power consistently across 25,000 charging and discharging cycles. They have also found a way to charge the system by integrating it with flexible solar powered skin already developed by the BEST group, effectively creating an entirely self-charging system, as well as a pH sensor which uses wearers sweat to monitor their health. Professor Dahiya said: Were very pleased by the progress this new form of solar-powered supercapacitor represents. A flexible, wearable health monitoring system which only requires exposure to sunlight to charge has a lot of obvious commercial appeal, but the underlying technology has a great deal of additional potential. This research could take the wearable systems for health monitoring to remote parts of the world where solar power is often the most reliable source of energy, and it could also increase the efficiency of hybrid electric vehicles. Were already looking at further integrating the technology into flexible synthetic skin which were developing for use in advanced prosthetics. Facebooks decision to double down on Chicago with new jobs and investment is a testament to the talent of our residents and the incredible strength of our fast-growing tech sector, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement. For businesses looking to innovate and invest in the jobs of the 21st century, Chicago is the future. I look forward to seeing Facebook continue to grow and thrive in their new home in the city of Chicago. In its report, the GAO said that further delays in the program could "disrupt access to" the space station - which would be an enormous embarrassment for NASA. The space agency has been counting on Boeing and SpaceX to fly astronauts there. But the GAO said the delays could mean their spacecraft are not certified before the last flights NASA has secured for its astronauts on Russian rockets, which would keep an American presence on the station through early 2020. "In terms of prep, there is some skill involved; you kind of have to know what you're doing," says Sarah Stegner, chef and partner of Prairie Grass Cafe in Northbrook. "But that's what makes it fun." Stegner will feature rabbit saddle with mustard sauce and braised leg with sauteed spinach as part of a game dinner Feb. 21 but says rabbit also shows up other times of the year. Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty ImagesOffset is back home with wife Cardi B after he was arrested Friday afternoon on firearms and drug possession charges. In a photo posted on Cardi B's Instagram story, the couple is seen back together, captioned with the single word, "home." The rapper, born Kiari Kendrell Cephus, has been released on bond after posting $17,000 bail, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports. According to Atlanta ABC affilitate WSB, Offset and his bodyguard, Senay Gezahgn, were pulled over in Jonesboro, Georgia, Friday for an illegal lane change. When Clayton County police searched his 2014 Porsche 911 Carrera, they found three guns, less than one ounce of marijuana and over $107,000 in cash. Offset, 26, was charged with making an improper lane change, possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of a weapon during a crime, and possession of less than one ounce of marijuana, according to jail records. Gezahgn, 27, was charged with possession of less than one ounce of marijuana and possession of a weapon during a crime, records show. Offsets lawyer Drew Findling told People that the rapper is very concerned about his family after the arrest. He is concerned, very concerned, about [Cardi B], Findling said. Of course his new baby is his top priority as well as his other children. Offset married Bronx-born rapper Cardi B in September 2017, and the two had their first child, Kulture Kiari Cephus, earlier this month. Offset has three other children from previous relationships. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) President Rodrigo Duterte's war against illegal drugs is far from over despite criticisms from human rights advocates. During his third State of the Nation Address on Monday, he said his administration will continue its unrelenting fight to eradicate illegal drugs. "The war against illegal drugs is far from over. This is why the illegal drugs war will not be sidelined. Instead, it will be as relentless and chilling, if you will, as on the day it began," he said. Over 102,000 anti-drug operations were conducted during the first two years of the fight against illegal drugs one of his campaign promises. A total of 147,000 drug personalities were arrested, while P14.66 billion worth of illegal drugs were seized, according to government records. With this success, there is also a downside: 4,354 drug personalities died during anti-drug operations July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2018, official data showed. Almost 23,000 other suspected drug-related deaths are still being investigated. The President also slammed human rights activists who criticize the drug war, calling their efforts "misdirected." A number of human rights groups and critics of Duterte have flagged the anti-drug campaign as bloody and violent. "If you think that I can be dissuaded from continuing this fight because of [your] demonstrations, your protests, which I find, by the way, misdirected, then you got it all wrong. Your concern is human rights, mine is human lives," he said. Vice President Leni Robredo's legal counsel Barry Gutierrez said Duterte is launching a war against human rights, adding there can be no human lives if there is no respect for human rights. The president, in his speech, said the human rights groups and church leaders should instead focus their attention on the drug lords and drug pushers who are violating laws. "When illegal drug operations turn nasty and bloody, advocates of human rights lash at and pillory our law enforcers and this administration no end. Sadly, I have yet to hear really howls of protest from the human rights advocates and church leaders against drug-lordism, drug dealing, and drug pushing," Duterte said. Majority of Filipinos believe the war on drugs is the Duterte administration's most important achievement since President Rodrigo Duterte took office in July 2016, according to a Pulse Asia survey conducted in June. Related: Filipinos see drug war as Duterte's biggest achievement survey Lost Lake is so proud to be a neighborhood bar that is run, in majority, by women, people of color and queer folks, she said in her acceptance speech. We are so excited to be the winner of this category in a year when an institution like Tales of the Cocktail, this big cruise ship we are all on, is changing course. It feels really exciting to be a part of it. Because it was our anniversary, we looked back to our founding documents as an institution, said Sara Bloomfield, the museums director. Its always a good time to think about what your founders thought. And in this (founding) report that was prepared by the President's Commission on the Holocaust chaired by Elie Wiesel, it made a very strong point that since this is an American institution and sits on this magnificent piece of real estate, which I would call kind of our civic landscape, that it should also talk about America's role, for better or for worse. I am honored and thrilled to bring new energy to a program that is so important to our listeners and to our station, Moore said in a statement. Im looking forward to putting my own stamp on it, and I feel privileged to be a part of such a special time of day for the WFMT audience. In a statement Monday, Spencer apologized for the "ridiculously ugly episode," but he refused to step down from office. He also said he has received death threats in the past and thought the techniques in the Showtime segment would prevent "what I believed was an inevitable attack." But if there's a recurring theme here, it could be summed up as "be careful what you wish for." One character literally digs up the girl of his dreams, only to find his life complicated as she becomes a supermodel, while another finds himself radically changed by his elaborate scheme to wreak vengeance on the doctor he blames for his child's death. A brilliant but disgraced architect tries to overcome loneliness with a made-to-order woman of his dreams, only to learn she'll need a made-to-order companion herself as he remains buried in his work. A woman undergoes gene therapy in order to safely become pregnant, but with an ironic reversal worthy of O. Henry. Blumlein's sophisticated, clinical understanding of biological themes is always balanced by his deep compassion toward his troubled characters. (At aSweatLife), we want to support women, wherever they are in their careers especially young, bright women with big ideas to do the things they want to do to change the world, said Anderson Cohen. What I found so powerful is that this group of women was able to visualize it, say what they wanted to change about the world and then take an action. Its something so small as just visually seeing women empowered to run at night, but even something like that can make a difference. Like the Boundary Waters, Sylvania is real wilderness. For the first two days of the trip, my two high school-aged sons and their friend shared the lakes with only the loons, bald eagles and me. On our last day in the wilderness, we exited through Crooked Lake, which has a public boat landing and is a main entry point to Sylvania. We ran into more people there because its the only lake in Sylvania Wilderness where its legal to use boat motors, although their use is heavily restricted. During the rest of the expedition, the sole human sound we heard for hours, even days, was the faint buzz of distant airplanes, noticeable because it was so rare. Supporters of the project, which include construction companies, say the extension would bring jobs and relieve congestion in a growing region. Environmental groups and some suburban officials have opposed it, noting the extensions projected $2.65 billion cost and potential negative impact to wetlands. The environmental study is expected to take three to five years; there already have been three previous studies. None of the 29 passengers or two crew members on board was wearing a life jacket, according to an incident report released Saturday by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The Associated Press reported that state and federal investigators were trying to determine what caused the vessel, originally built for military use in World War II, to sink. An initial assessment blamed thunderstorms and winds that approached hurricane strength, but it wasnt clear why the amphibious vehicle even ventured into the water because the weather was forecast hours before the boat left shore. Livingston would not say if the group plans to get into Wrigley Field, but more details are set to be released about the protest at a news conference Tuesday. He would not say what route the group plans to take, and he did not yet have an estimate of how many people could take part in the demonstration. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) Malacanang remained optimistic about the proposed Bangsamoro Organic Law despite the failure of the House of Representatives to ratify the bill on Monday. "We consider this as a temporary setback in the administration's goal of laying the foundation for a more genuine and lasting peace in Mindanap," the Office of the Presidential Spokesperson said in a statement. "We, however, remain confident that President Rodrigo Roa Duterte will sign the Bangsamoro Organic Law as soon as both houses of Congress finally ratify the bill," it added. Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said they hope the law would be signed into law within the week. While the Senate ratified the bill earlier on Monday, the House of Representatives failed to do so due to talks of a possible leadership change. READ: Senate ratifies bill on Bangsamoro Organic Law Roque said President Rodrigo Duterte was supposed to sign the Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (OLBARMM) during his third State of the Nation Address (SONA). However, both the Senate and House of Representatives need to ratify it first. "Definitely, walang mapipirmahan si President ngayong araw na ito kasi walang ratification from the House," said Akbayan Party-list Rep. Tom Villarin. [Translation: Definitely, the President will not be signing the bill today, because there is no ratification from the House.] The House was adjourned until Duterte's SONA in the afternoon, despite objections from some lawmakers. They did not tackle the ratification of the OLBARMM. Villarin explained the abrupt adjournment. "There are talks declaring the post of speaker vacant. There were discussion among different political parties," Villarin said. Some lawmakers confirmed to CNN Philippines there is a move to oust House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez from his post. He was supposed to be replaced by Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. READ: Alvarez stays as House Speaker as session adjourns without BOL ratification Senate Majority Leader Miguel Zubiri remains hopeful for the OLBARMM despite the delay. "Its not the end for BOL, its just a temp setback you're looking maybe at one day," Zubiri said. He added while the Senate wanted the signing of the Bangsamoro bill highlighted in the SONA, they "respect" the political power-play in the House of Representatives. Duterte, the first Philippine President who hails from Mindanao, earlier certified the bill as urgent, prompting Congress to fast-track the passage of the draft measure. The bicameral conference committee approved the final version of the bill on July 18. The historic law abolishes the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) established in 1989 through Republic Act No. 6734. The ARMM groups the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. The ARMM will then be replaced by the the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. According to the OLBARMM, a plebiscite will be held within three to five months after the President signed it into law. The plebiscite will determine if 39 barangays in North Cotabato, six municipalities in Lanao del Norte, and the cities of Cotabato in Maguindanao and Isabela in Basilan will be included in the Bangsamoro territory. The OLBARMM is the result of decades-long peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in Mindanao (MILF). The law institutionalizes provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro, the 2014 peace agreement signed by the government and the MILF that ended decades-long armed conflict in Mindanao. The Bangsamoro government will be parliamentary-democratic in form, a first in the country's political history. It will be headed by the regional leader called Chief Minister, who will preside over an 80-member parliament. Andre Charleston, 56, was standing outside in the 300 block of East 130th Street in the Eden Green neighborhood on the Far South Side when he got into an argument with someone who shot him around 10:50 p.m. Sunday, police said. "I don't know what led to the interaction, but it sure as heck looks to me like you have the individual attempting to pull a gun out," said David Klinger, a professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of Missouri at St. Louis and an expert on use of force. "And when someone is trying to draw a gun in a street confrontation, then police officers have the absolute right to use deadly force." Tracy S. Kuykendoll, 33, was driving a Mitsubishi sedan north in the 7500 block of South Morgan Street in the Gresham neighborhood when the sedan crashed into several parked cars around 3 a.m. I hope it never happens ever again, Field said of the sinking boat that 17 people died trying to escape. Unfortunately when you get in your car, when you get on an airplane, when you get on a train, it's a numbers game. *On the Sunday Spin: Tribune reporter Rick Pearsons guests were Tim Caveney, president and CEO of South Shore Hospital, on safety-net hospital funding; David Yepsen, host of Iowa Press on Iowa Public Television and former director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University; and Baise. The Sunday Spin airs from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on WGN-AM 720. Listen to the full show here. The flip side is, weve got to be careful with tariffs and a tariff war because tariffs can dramatically harm our farmers in Illinois and many of our manufacturers in Illinois, he said. And Ive been working with members of the White House, the administration, and in Congress to make sure that we fight for fair trade. I support the effort to change our trade agreements. But I do not support us getting into a trade war. As Pompeo noted in his speech to Iranian-Americans and others in California on Sunday, the centerpiece will be the re-imposition of U.S. economic sanctions; the first batch will go back into force on Aug. 4 targeting the Iranian automotive sector and trade in gold and other metals. A more significant set of sanctions that will hit Iran's oil industry and central bank by punishing countries and companies that do business with them will resume on Nov. 4. Since Trump pulled out of the deal, other nations involved Germany, Britain, France, Russia and China as well as the European Union have reaffirmed their support for the deal and have been working to try and keep Iran on board. He said government agencies should move to ban or severely restrict the use of such applications before they become commonplace. He already has obtained during the litigation a training slide that repeatedly instructed members of Greitens' staff to never send text messages on government cellphones, an apparent suggestion to do such business only on personal phones. "Maybe there needs to be a job called, like, Platform Editor, where someone works to not only stop manipulation but also works across the security team and the content team and in between the different business verticals to ensure the quality and integrity of the platform," suggested Jonathan Albright, a leading thinker on tech issues, in a Nieman Lab interview early this year. It is not easy to argue that a performance at a press conference, standing by itself, can be counted as a high crime or misdemeanor in the constitutional sense. But Brennan was right to be alarmed by Trump's shifting, ambivalent reactions to the findings of his own intelligence community; by his apparent deference to Russias President Vladimir Putin; by his obvious reluctance to condemn foreign interference in American elections by Russia. Here in Texas, lets forget about the inconvenient fact that I disagree with the vast majority of Democrats policy prescriptions, most of which seem focused on spreading the left-leaning dysfunction of California: Beto ORourke for Senate it is! Oh, and for Texas governor, instead of voting for Republican Greg Abbott, Ill vote for Lupe Valdez, a Democrat who earned the following glowing review from the Dallas Morning News: We were disappointed by her gross unfamiliarity with state issues . . . particularly an almost incoherent attempt to discuss state financing. At one point, Valdez, 70, volunteered that she didn't know whether the state was spending $8 million or $8 billion on border control. To defend their ordinance, city officials cited an array of data as if anyone believes in that stuff showing: fewer than 40 percent of gun owners in Washington store their guns unloaded and locked up; in 2015, on average, a child under the age of 17 was killed by gunfire in Washington every nine days; and at least 250 guns were reported stolen in Seattle in 2017. For example, one of the biggest national education initiatives today is coming from Chicago with Mayor Rahm Emanuels plan for universal full-day pre-kindergarten. Though the policy impacts small kids, its a huge idea. Seven years ago, Chicago didnt even have full-day kindergarten for every child, now the mayor has outlined a four-year phase-in plan for quality full-day pre-K. How big is this idea? Big enough that leading education news site, The 74, recognized Chicago as being at the forefront of education investment in children. Also big enough for this papers editorial board to have published a response. What about the mayors initiative for post-high school education planning for all Chicago public school students? In the field of education, this, in itself, is revolutionary and rises to Daniel Burnhams vision to make no little plans. I knew I got hit in the head, Poncedeleon told the Tribunes Dan Wiederer in March. I just didnt think it was that bad. I told our trainer I should get up and walk to the locker room. Candace Parker not only lived up to the winning standard set by Michael Jordan and the 1990s Bulls teams she idolized growing up she reminded Chicagoans that standard is alive and well as long as she plays for the WNBA champion Sky. I was completely transparent with the board except for their names, Kownick said. I explained that I was trying to protect the integrity of the couple. (They) wanted to make a contribution to the community that they feel has been so good to them, but did not want their name mentioned. They felt it was better for their safety and security. The board unanimously approved the program for the Fairmont neighborhood Thursday, allowing the county to use Community Development Block Grant funds to provide housing for residents who are in an uninhabitable homes, which they will turn over to the county to demolish and sell the site for redevelopment, said Kathy Pecora, program manager with the countys community development division. If youve been meaning to return a phone call or email from a friend or loved one but never get around to doing it, dont put it off any longer. More than once someone close to me has died unexpectedly. Most recently a friend in Las Vegas had left me a few voice mails but I never could carve out the time to call her back because I anticipated being on the phone for an hour or more. Her daughter recently called to inform me that my friend had died from complications due to diabetes. Now, I can never return that phone call. You never know how much you miss someone until youre not able to talk with them anymore. Not only has there been little fluctuation in the value of homes over the last 12 months, but the same is true for the number of homes sold and how long they have been on the market. Born and raised in Oak Brook, Crement graduated from Hinsdale Central High School, after which she earned a bachelors of humanities and arts from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, two masters degrees from Concordia University, one in reading education and one in educational leadership, and a doctorate in educational leadership from National Louis University. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) Director Chief Supt. Guillermo Eleazar said Monday there are no known threats to President Rodrigo Duterte's third State of the Nation Address (SONA). Despite this, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has ordered a temporary cut in all network services during the President's speech on the request of the Presidential Security Group. In an interview with CNN Philippines New Day, Eleazar mentioned that the police have not received any specific threat, as they go on full alert status ahead of this year's SONA. "We are coordinating with the appropriate agencies, as well as the intelligence community, to monitor these things, so that we can do something about this with the proper intervention," the police chief said. Eleazar added that about 10,000 protesters are expected to gather ahead of the President's speech. He said he is also confident that the security officials will be able to handle their assigned areas, as they are expecting 'peaceful' protests this year. Eleazar said the police had a dialogue with the protesters to agree on some guidelines. "Kung meron kasing pag-uusap, chances are may kasunduan or agreement just like what has happened here (for SONA). And since there is an agreement, nakapaglatag tayo ng guidelines for everybody to follow," the NCRPO chief said. [Translation: If there is a conversation, chances are there will be an agreement just like what has happened here. And since there is an agreement, we were able to set guidelines for everybody to follow.] Unlike the past two years, police said militant groups can only assemble up to the Commonwealth area. While Duterte earlier said that he will not meet with the protesters this year, Eleazar noted the national police will still be ready if the President changes his mind. "Based on our assessment, there is a small probability that the President will come out again and talk to protesters, whether those are members of militant groups or supporters of the administration," Eleazar said. "Just the same, we coordinated with security groups and other security forces na pwede makatulong (who can help)," he added. The national police said they are deploying at least 7,000 uniformed personnel ahead of the SONA. Meanwhile, the NTC order is for telecommunication companies to temporarily cut off all network services in Quezon City and neighboring areas during the speech. Globe subscribers, particularly those situated at the Batasan Complex, Commonwealth Avenue, and Culiat, Quezon City will experience temporary loss of mobile telecom services from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Customers of Smart Communications will also experience the same signal loss one hour before the scheduled speech until 7 p.m. In a public advisory, Smart also noted that the particular security measure may also affect services in areas that are at some distance from the Batasang Pambansa Complex, such as parts of Rizal and other areas of Metro Manila. According to the statement, the parents filed a motion in court in February 2011 for return of their children to their custody, and the foster care agency managing the cases reported the parents had completed all services required of them as a condition for reunification of the family, had appropriate housing, and had been visiting with their children, including unsupervised overnight visits in the parents' home. I dont believe anyone is suggesting illegal immigration is legal, or that we should turn a blind eye as some readers on Talk of the County are suggesting. We all know and support the laws, and those laws that deport illegals. The problem is that, unlike past administrations who deported families in tact, the new administration with its no tolerance policy are separating the families. This practice is inhumane and is not making America great in any way, shape or form. In fact, we are quickly losing clout and whatever respect we may have left under this administration. Our true leader, the good Lord, is lowering and shaking his head in shame at anyone supporting this travesty. He never turned his back on any of you. Ever. Remember that the next time your sitting in your hypocritical church pew with your family sitting comfortably next to you. Everyone in Chicago and in the United States of America realizes that Kyle Schwarber, the catcher, outfielder, slugger for the Chicago Cubs was the winner in the Home Run Derby against the Washington Nationals Bryce Harper. Bryce was afforded the luxury of being paired with the two lowest hitters before him, so he didnt have to even go to the two-minute time for swinging home runs. The new rules should say that you cannot stop hitting home runs in a session until your full two minutes are up so that you are equally as tired as everybody else in the Home Run Derby. Bryce Harper was the beneficiary of luck in Nationals park because the person he beat in the first round hit 12 home runs, so Bryce only had to hit 13. In the second round, his adversary hit 13, so he only had to hit 14 to win. Kyle Schwarber hit 17 in the first round, 20 in the second and 18 in the third. So if you add that all up, Kyle Schwarber hit 10 more home runs than Bryce Harper, although I realize Bryce Harper still had like 18 seconds left, but I doubt he could have hit 10 home runs in 18 seconds. So, on behalf of all the Chicagoans and proud Cubs fans, we salute Kyle Schwarber, the winner of the 2018 Home Run Derby, and I dont want to hear any garbage from you Sox fans. Im very impressed with the ideas that she has, and for a number of reasons, Phillips said. First of all, I think the projects are really useful. They are resources that people need. But also, she recognized that a key part of getting children to read is making it enjoyable. In this case, staff has confirmed that its at least been three years since someone has been in that building, said McNellis. I can tell you in my two-and-a-half years in the village, weve had only one party look at the property. According to staff, the old-fashioned parking meters will remain $1-per-hour, and will carry a three-hour time limit until they can be replaced. Parking spaces that have pay stations will also be $1-per-hour for the first three hours, but will allow people to park for additional time at $3-per-hour. Police said a man handed the bank teller a note, which demanded all the money from the register. Information provided by the FBI indicated that the man was wearing a yellow construction hat and yellow work vest over a gray sweatshirt. The Lake County Coroner's Office pronounced Davita J. Ward, 39, of the 4600 block of W. 21st. Avenue, dead at 3:35 p.m., according to a release. Jim Harper, of Valparaiso, said the Indiana needs to do more to secure its elections, and has taken no action to use federal funds to protect voters ballots in a Monday press conference outside the Lake County Government Center in Crown Point. Harper is challenging Republican Secretary of State Connie Lawson. What a lot of them said to us is they dont have to go to Chicago anymore, she said. This is close to their hometown. If we dont do anything else, we keep people home where they are comfortable close to their friends and their families. So that is the biggest blessing for us. The acquisition of the third home allowed developers to increase the number of units and parking spaces from its initial proposal. The larger lot also allowed developers to reduce the height of the north and south ends of the building to three stories, or about 40 feet tall. The middle of the building would remain four stories tall, and it would top out at about 68 feet along Harlem Avenue. The community of Skokie is a very mature community and people enjoy living here, and they have owned their homes for many years, Brandt said. If someone hasnt sold their home, and theyve lived in their house for lets say 10, 20, 30 years or more, we might not have been in their house to identify a hazard. We might not have been in their house to even identify their smoke detector. The turnout was a testament to the memory of Kelli OLaughlin, a 14-year-old Indian Head Park girl who was killed during a home invasion in 2011. Since her death, her friends and classmates had held regular car washes to benefit the Kelli OLaughlin Foundation, a nonprofit her parents started in her honor. The hip cafe is an offshoot of the Homeboy Industries social enterprises founded by Jesuit priest Greg Boyle. After working in one of the city's poorest and most gang-plagued regions, he quickly found out that businesses wouldn't hire former gang members and inmates, even when they had marketable skills. So, he formed nonprofit businesses aimed at giving jobs and training to the "least of these," as the poor and vulnerable are described in Scripture. By law, employees in China are allowed at least one day off per week. Additionally, statutory annual leave exists for qualified employees. The amount of statutory annual leave is generally based on an employees work experience/tenure. Employers may extend paid annual leave as a benefit to their employees, but they need to specify the additional days in HR documentation, such as the employee handbook. Here, we introduce Chinas paid annual leave and rest day system, as well as the rules for carrying over untaken annual leave to the next year. What is the statutory minimum annual leave? Paid annual leave for employees (including dispatched employees) in China is typically regulated in the Regulations on Paid Annual Leave of Employees (State Council Order No.514) and its implementation measures. Employees who have worked at a company for one continuous year are entitled to five days annual leave. Thus, employers do not have to give leave to employees who have not yet worked for one full year. Its important to note that the work tenure is not limited to the length of time an employee has worked for their current employer, but rather refers to their cumulative work experience with all previous and current employers. Employers can calculate annual leave for newly hired employees as follows: The amount of annual leave = (The number of days he/she will be working for the current employer in that year 365) x His/her total annual leave in the same year In addition, paid annual leave does not include the countrys statutory rest days, public holidays and other additional holidays (e.g. maternity leave and annual visits to family). Based on Chinese Labor Law, employees are entitled to at least one rest day per calendar week, which can be any day of the week. Saturdays and Sundays are generally rest days in China. However, employers may arrange rest days according to their operation and production plan. Employees may not take paid annual leave under the following circumstances: Where an employee is legally entitled to a summer and/or winter holiday that is longer than their annual leave; Where an employee takes at least 20 days of personal affairs leave and the salary is not deducted according to the regulations of the employer; Where an employee whose accumulated working time is more than one year, but less than 10 years, takes sick leave of at least two months; Where an employee whose accumulated working time is more than 10 years, but less than 20 years, takes sick leave of at least three months; and Where an employee whose accumulated working time is at least 20 years takes sick leave of at least four months. How to deal with employees untaken annual leave In the case where an employee has not taken all of their paid annual leave in that year, and does not agree to carry over the untaken leave to the next year, the employer must compensate this employee with 200 percent of the employees average daily wage for each day of unused annual leave, in addition to their regular daily wage. Employers can calculate an employees daily wage as follows: Employees daily wage = Employees average monthly salary 21.75 days Note that the average monthly salary does not include overtime payments. Many foreign companies in China provide additional annual leave for their employees as a benefit. As this part of annual leave is not specified in Chinese labor laws, employers have the right to make internal HR rules regarding compensation schemes. In practice, employees are generally required to use up their leftover annual leave from the previous year before a specific deadline set by the companys internal rules. If employees volunteer not to take the leftover annual leaves, they are usually required to sign a written agreement. Employers are advised to write down these rules in the employment contract or the employee handbook to avoid any possible future labor disputes. The amount of annual leave= (the number of days he/she will be working for the current employer in that year 365) his/her total annual leave in the same year This article was originally published on February 3, 2016 and has been updated with the latest regulatory changes. Currently based in Beijing, James Lalonde has co-founded two companies in China in the last five years. His first startup company, Yodo1, has become a leading private publisher of mobile phone games in China. An American previously based in Silicon Valley, Lalonde started his career at Microsoft in 1990 and since then has held a number of executive roles in several software companies, such as McAfee and Brocade Communications Systems. In an interview with Xinhua on Saturday, he said China's huge market potential for mobile phone games attracted him to start businesses in the country. "I think it's the best place to do a startup in the world," Lalonde said. "China has the largest market, the fastest growth and the productive people." He was attending the launching ceremony of the International Talent Innovation Accelerator (ITIA), a new innovation hub aimed at supporting overseas startups in Beijing. Located in Beijing's Chaoyang District, the ITIA was jointly built by local authorities and the innovation departments of the several foreign embassies in China, including of France, Ireland, Switzerland, Singapore, Australia, and the Netherlands. "Entrepreneurs all over the world are welcomed in China and the business environment is very vibrant here," Lalonde said. Over 500 entrepreneurs and startup owners from all over the world attended the ceremony on Saturday. Besides Lalonde, many other entrepreneurs were also keen to pursue their business ambitions in the Chinese capital. Among them is Jonas Wolf, a 29-year-old German business owner and the China director of Angelhack, an international IT consulting firm. "It is a great platform to share capital, experience and information," Wolf told Xinhua, adding that China's preferential policies are favorable for entrepreneurs to start their businesses. "I also want to realize my dream here by means of building my own brand," said Wolf. The Chinese government is committed to providing support and convenience for global companies to establish businesses in China. Many government-backed programs have helped foreign entrepreneurs to enter the Chinese domestic market. "Actually, Chinese consumers are getting more sophisticated," said Jan Smejkal from the Czech Republic. Smejkal is the China and Asia Pacific director of Startup Grind, a startup community aimed at educating, inspiring and connecting entrepreneurs. "The spending power of the (Chinese) middle class is really high, which makes the Chinese market quite competitive," he added. According to Smejkal, here in China, Startup Grind's main focus is on the innovation sector. Describing China as one of the innovation hubs in Asia, Smejkal said China is now a leader of innovation in the region. "There are a lot of things happening in terms of innovation and entrepreneurship, providing a model for the other regions in Asia," he said. The BTS railway construction project in Thailand may become the first project that Japan will be involved in for China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, according to Japan's Asahi Shimbun report on Friday. The project will extend the railway track about 50km to suburban airports. The current railway track connects Phaya Thai station in the center of Bangkok with Suvarnabhumi International airport. According to Asahi Shimbun, Shinzo Abe intends to improve the relationship between China and Japan, and believes that cooperation with China on the Belt and Road Initiative is beneficial to both countries. The Japanese government is negotiating with China to work on the Belt and Road Initiative in a third country, the report stated. Spokesperson Geng Shuang from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on June 14, China has an open attitude toward Japan's involvement in the Belt and Road Initiative. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) President Rodrigo Duterte emphasized the importance of preserving the environment in his third Station of the Nation Address (SONA) with an appeal to the Senate to fast-track the signing of a new land use policy. In his third SONA Monday, the President cited the recent effort of the government to rehabilitate the island of Boracay as an indication of the urgent need to protect the country's natural resources. "I urge the Senate to urgently pass the National Land Use Act to put in place a national land use policy that will address our competing land requirements for food, housing business, and environmental conservation," he said. "We need to do this now." "What has happened to Boracay is an indication of the need to rationalize [in a] holistic, sustainable manner, the utilization, management and development of our lands," the President added. The government temporarily closed Boracay earlier this year to give way to its rehabilitation. It is expected to reopen on October 27, six months after its closure. Duterte earlier called the world-famous tourist destination "a cesspool," and threatened to shut it down permanently if its pollution problem went unsolved. He put an emphasis on the government's priority to protect the environment in its efforts to improve the lives of Filipinos. He hinted that other tourist destinations in the country may also undergo rehabilitation. "Environmental protection and ensuring the health of our people cannot be over-emphasized. Thus our actions in Boracay mark the beginning of a new national effort...For the other tourists destination needing rehabilitation and enforcement of environmental and other laws shall soon follow," he said. The President reminded local government units to strictly discharge their duty to enforce environmental laws. "Do not wait for us to swoop down on your areas, just to do your duty and work," Duterte said. During his second SONA in 2017, Duterte briefly mentioned the National Land Use Act, calling for a rational and sustainable use of land and physical resources. The House of Representatives crafted several versions of the National Land Use Act during the 17th Congress' first session in March 2017. Congress approved House Bill 5240, or "An act instituting a national land use and management policy providing the implementing mechanisms therefor, and for other purposes," in substitution of other proposed house bills tackling land use. The Senate filed a counter bill in July 2017, authored by Senator Migz Zubiri, for the "rational, holistic and just allocation, utilization, management and development of our land resources." China's shadow banking has declined sharply since the beginning of the year due to stricter supervision. "At the beginning of the year, authorities made it clear that the risks from shadow banking and cross-industry financial businesses will be included in this year's main subjects for rectification," said Sheng Songcheng, an advisor to the People's Bank of China (PBOC). Sheng said the amount of entrusted loans has been dropping since January. PBOC data showed that entrusted loans in the first half of the year dropped more than 800 billion yuan (118 billion U.S. dollars). Shadow banking, substandard financial business that is hard to supervise, has grown rapidly in the past few years, with some of the funds having gone to local governments and the property market. China has heavily regulated investment and financing activities by local governments and state-owned enterprises since 2017. In April, new guidelines unified rules covering asset management products issued by all types of financial institutions to curb risks and reduce leverage. Prevention of financial risk is key for China in what policy-makers called the "three tough battles": controlling risk, reducing poverty and tackling pollution. China's ambitious bid to boost electric vehicles toward a battery-powered future can dramatically drive up demand for metals like lithium, cobalt, copper and nickel, industry insiders said. "The rising EV (electric vehicle) market has driven up demand for some metals ... We expect the trend to continue," said Zhu Yi, senior analyst of metals and mining at Bloomberg Intelligence In 2015, China overtook the United States to become the world's biggest market for electric cars, providing a huge domestic market for batterymakers. "The market has priced in the booming demand from EVs at a pretty early stage. We expect the real commissioning of EVs (to meet the projected demand) may happen in another 5-10 years, once the mass production of EVs starts," Zhu said. Many international mining firms like BHP and Vale are looking to redraw their global layout to grab market share. "China's efforts to reduce pollution will drive the growth of new energy vehicles, the production and sales of which are expected to reach 15 million units in 2030," said Fabio Schvartsman, CEO of Vale SA, a Brazilian mining behemoth. "This will positively affect our base metal business, since the majority of our nickel products are very well suited to electric vehicles. We also produce cobalt and copper, which are also critical elements for the electric vehicle and battery production process." Agreed Vicky Binns, vice-president of marketing for minerals with BHP. Copper, she said, is expected to be a big winner from the electrification of the light duty vehicle fleet as the Chinese economy will likely boost demand for the red metal. "The reason we like EVs is that an EV contains on average of around four times as much copper as a conventional medium-size car, around 80 kg versus around 20 kg," she said. Among the range of possibilities, BHP's mid-case estimate is the electric vehicle fleet will rise toward 230 million in 2035 and to around three-quarters of a billion in 2050. With the world's largest number of electric vehicle manufacturers and the largest network of charging points, China has set a goal of selling 2 million new energy cars a year by 2020. Eurasian Resources Group, the international metals and mining company, also believes in the opportunities presented by China's policy to promote manufacture and use of new energy cars. The company's major products such as ferrochrome, cobalt and copper, can support the emerging industry. "We believe that the cobalt market still has a fantastic potential. We expect to see a strong primary uptrend in the next few years," said Benedikt Sobotka, chief executive officer of ERG. Besides expanding its sales footprint in China, ERG is forging partnerships with Chinese companies. ERG's affiliate Metalkol SA has recently signed a contract with China Nonferrous Metal Industry's Foreign Engineering and Construction Co Ltd for capacity expansion of ERG's mine project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. At full capacity, the project will be able to supply up to 20,000 metric tons of cobalt annually to the global market. "This is enough to build 2.6 million electric vehicles," said Sobotka. China's drug regulator said on Sunday that it has ordered Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences Limited to stop production and launched an investigation into the company over illegal production of rabies vaccines for human use. An official with China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) said it found that the company had fabricated production records and product inspection records, arbitrarily changed process parameters and equipment during its production of freeze-dried human rabies vaccines. The CFDA had revoked the company's drug GMP certificate following its serious violations of relevant law and regulations, and demanded a recall of unused vaccines, according to the official. The administration and the food and drug bureau of northeast China's Jilin Province have launched an investigation into the company and those criminal suspects would be transfered to the public security department, said the official. The CFDA and Jilin provincial food and drug bureau launched an unannounced inspection of the company on July 5 upon tip-off. On July 15, CFDA made an announcement on the company's illegal production of freeze-dried human rabies vaccines after a comprehensive investigation on the same day. The administration has launched further tests on samples kept by the company to ascertain the effectiveness of its vaccines. All vaccines shall be subject to safety checks and a certain proportion of them shall undergo examinations on their effectiveness by the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control before going on sale. In October 2017, a batch of DPT vaccine produced by the company were found to be defective and the production of the vaccine was suspended since then. The CFDA official said that all vaccine producers in China would be subject to unannounced inspection and any violations of law and regulations would be dealt with seriously. China's rabies incidence rate has dropped gradually in recent years, data from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed. You are here: China Preparations for this year's International Army Games in China are complete, military sources said Sunday. The sites in Korla, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and in Quanzhou, east China's Fujian Province, are ready, according to a statement of the training management department of the Central Military Commission. All foreign participants and their equipment have arrived at the sites for the competitions, which will start on July 28. This year's International Army Games, with 28 competitions, will be co-organized by China, Russia, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Iran, with four of the competitions held in China. Chinese armed forces will attend some competitions overseas. Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory message to the fifth China-Africa People's Forum, which opened in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province on Monday morning. By adhering to the three principles for China-Africa people-to-people friendship -- "enhancing people-to-people friendship, promoting practical cooperation and furthering world peace," Xi said the forum serves as "an important bridge" between the Chinese and African people, which has played an active role in promoting people-to-people exchanges between the two sides since 2011. The China-Africa People's Forum were previously held in Nairobi, Kenya in 2011, Suzhou, China in 2012, Khartoum, Sudan in 2014 and Yiwu, China in 2015. "It is my hope that this forum provides an opportunity for all of you to share ideas and experiences, build consensus and to contribute your insights and suggestions on friendly people-to-people cooperation between China and Africa," Xi said. Song Tao, head of the International Liaison Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, read Xi's congratulatory letter at the forum's opening ceremony. Xi is currently abroad on a new round of state visits to African countries including Senegal, Rwanda, South Africa and Mauritius. Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan called China and Africa "natural allies" through the years bearing similar historical experiences, similar struggles and the same development goals. "We should be promoters for political mutual trust, we should be pushers for economic mutual benefit, we should be practitioners to learn from and reflect on each other's civilizations, we should be watchers for security mutual aid, and we should be collaborators for multilateral interactions," said Wang outlining his vision during his keynote speech. Clement Mouamba, prime minister of the Republic of the Congo, also spoke at the opening of the forum, praising China-Congo cooperation as a model under the comprehensive strategic partnership formed between two countries, "We don't agree with those groundless accusations against China-Africa cooperation. Congolese people have their say on this." He encouraged other African leaders to explore and implement China's Belt and Road Initiative in the future, which can not only bring benefits to Chinese and African people who strive to eliminate poverty, but also enlarge the framework of the forum on China-Africa Cooperation. Vincent Meriton, vice president of the Seychelles and Party president of the People's Party, said China is gradually becoming a global leader in pushing forward the construction of a fairer globalization, "Africa has suffered a lot in the past. We have been slaves, we have been colonies, and our resources have been robbed, but now Africa has turned the page and looks forward to becoming a land of hope in the future. With such an ally and friend as China, we can build new partnerships, find new solutions, and reach new deals to achieve win-win." Meriton said that Seychellois people can also join the Belt and Road Initiative soon and believed that the forum can provide more opportunities for African non-governmental organizations to develop and play greater roles in pushing forward social progress and improving people's welfare. The fifth China-Africa People's Forum, under the theme of "pooling strength from the people for stronger China-Africa friendship and mutual trust," is jointly hosted by the China NGO Network for International Exchanges and Sichuan provincial government, and serves as a warm-up for the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation to be held in September. The forum will explore how NGOs can utilize their unique advantages and play an important role in promoting China-Africa friendship and cooperation, and to push forward the building of a community with shared future for China and Africa. It will also issue a plan to initiate 30 cooperative programs for the Chinese side to implement in Africa in civil areas over the next three years. More than 190 guests and representatives from China and 30 African countries will attend the meeting held from July 23 - 24. Local governments in China have entrusted more pension funds for investment as the country faces the challenge of an aging population, a human resource official said Monday. By the end of June, 14 provincial-level regions including Beijing and Shanghai had signed contracts to entrust a total of 585 billion yuan (about 87 billion U.S. dollars) in pension funds to the National Council for Social Security Fund (NCSSF), according to Lu Aihong, spokesperson with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. Of the total, 371.65 billion yuan is already in place and has been invested, Lu told a press conference. The ministry will continue to encourage more regions to put pension fund into investment and at the same time strengthen risk management to secure long-term and stable investment return, he said. As a significant part of the pension reform, pension fund investment aims to tackle the challenge of an aging society and facilitate a fair and sustainable pension scheme. Between January and June this year, the revenue of China's pension, unemployment and occupational injury funds totaled 2.65 trillion yuan, up 19 percent year-on-year, while the total expenses stood at 2.15 trillion yuan, up 18 percent. Against the background of an increasing unpredictable U.S. economic, political and military posture, Chinese President Xi Jinping has embarked on a five-nation tour, starting in the United Arab Emirates and ending in Mauritius, with stops in Senegal, Rwanda, South Africa for the BRICS Summit. Although the scheduled BRICS Summit in South Africa has been planned long in advance and part of a celebration with old friends, Xi's visit has taken on new significance. Old friends On the surface, according to China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "The visits will promote the further deepening of political mutual trust, mutual development assistance, mutual learning on each other's concepts between China and Africa and the building of a closer China-Africa community of common destiny." Xi will reaffirm old partnerships and friendships, as China looks for stable trade and diplomatic relationships with its longstanding African partners, part of the shared vision for a "community of common destiny." This will probably include new initiatives, like a plan to spur a "new industrial revolution among the BRICS countries." Xi's message will be consistent with longstanding Chinese policies on trade without ideology, but with a renewed sense of urgency, as it seeks to shore up traditional trade areas and old friendships. Economic links between China and Africa have increased dramatically over the past 20 years. Trade has risen more than 40-fold since the mid-1990s, and China is now sub-Saharan Africa's largest trading partner. China became Africa's largest trading partner in 2009, replacing the U.S. China's interest in Africa is long standing, both because of resources and past political support in institutions like the U.N. But while trade was focused mostly on raw materials in the past, China's current economic development strategy stresses using infrastructure projects, like the Belt and Road Initiative, AIIB, BRICS and the Chinese Exim Bank, to connect economic development zones and markets, where local manufacturing and services can grow; create industries, jobs, disposable income and a sustainable balance of trade. It is a simple approach, but one which China has used very successfully in its own development. New realities Today the world is experiencing new tensions, where developing and emerging countries seem to be drawing closer together as the developed nations pull further away. The larger realities driving these changes are part economic, part timing and part ideological. Economics Donald Trump's argument is that U.S. jobs and prosperity were stolen by developing and emerging countries under the WTO. In terms of jobs, he cites the loss of manufacturing jobs in developed countries, like the U.S., with the growth of jobs in developing regions, like Africa, and emerging areas, like Asia. On the surface the jobs figures back this up, the United Nations reports that the number of manufacturing jobs in industrialized economies declined from 107 million in 1991 to 78 million in 2016; at the same time the number of manufacturing jobs in developing and emerging industrial economies rose from 215 million in 1991 to 279 million in 2016. In terms of prosperity, Trump points to the lower growth rates over the last 18 years of the developed countries vs. the emerging and developing nations. As can be seen in the World Bank Data Charts below, the U.S. and EU's growth rate lagged behind the world as a whole between 2000 and 2017. As also can be seen during this period, Africa outpaced the U.S. by a margin of almost 5 to 1. What is not shown in these charts is that while the number of jobs for ordinary Americans decreased and real income stagnated, corporations and elites became vastly richer. A siren song of lower labor, land, construction and operational costs, offered by countries outside the U.S., has resulted in the relocation of mostly low paid labor-intensive industries and jobs overseas. The reality: Profits made U.S. companies that moved their businesses overseas rich, resulting in a wealthier 1 percent, while American jobs and real earnings declined. Timing In terms of timing: The arrival of emerging and developing countries, as economic and political powers, has been perceived as threats to the U.S.'s political, economic and military hegemony, and its desire to lead the world towards a universal Liberal Democratic Capitalist order. The difficultly is that the world is not ideologically homogenized and today the fast-growing markets of emerging and developing nations are an economic necessity for the future growth of developed nations, like the U.S., whose growth has stagnated. Therefore, despite having 30 percent of the World's wealth and only 4 percent of its population, which in the past allowed nations like the U.S., to dictate economic, political and military terms, the U.S. may find itself in the curious position of having to negotiate, on a more equal footing, with emerging and developing nations, who represent 89 percent of the World's population and its fastest growing economies, as shown below. Ideology Trump's ideology is simply "America First." How he pursues it is often harder to follow, but the reaction to it in developing areas like Africa, is clearer, as noted in a report by noted professor for the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA). Drawing on polling data from the Pew Research Center, Stremlau charted the dramatic decline in African confidence in the U.S. President "doing the right thing," country by country. For Africans, the president's economic nationalism, hostility to multilateralism, rejection of the Paris accords on climate change, and what many Africans see as discomfort with democratic values, make him an unattractive, even hostile, figure. These notions are not limited to just developing and emerging areas, neighbors, allies and what Trump has termed "strategic competitors" share the opinion that the U.S. has become a playground bully, intent on tearing down the multilateral world and replacing it with an American hegemony. The developing and emerging nations that benefited from the multilateral trade regimes like the WTO, having seen the glimmer of economic hope, will not willingly standby and revert to a system which treats them as economic vassals. More likely, as this African trip of Xi will demonstrate, they will band together to protect their futures. Colonialism was a tragic reality, not a wistful memory, and those who think that it is time to revert to the "good old days" will not find willing takers. Einar Tangen is a political and economic affairs commentator, author and columnist. Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn. Flash Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Senegalese counterpart, Macky Sall, attended in Dakar on Sunday a handover ceremony of the National Wrestling Arena built with Chinese aid. Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, were received by Sall and his wife Marieme at the arena in the suburb of the Senegalese capital of Dakar, where a large picture of Xi and Sall standing side by side was hung at the entrance. The two couples saw a photo exhibition of the project before appearing at the arena to a cheering crowd waving the national flags of China and Senegal. Banners celebrating China-Africa relations and China-Senegal friendship were seen hanging at the arena. At the ceremony, the Chinese president handed over to Sall the "golden key" of the project. Afterwards, they watched a show of traditional Senegalese wrestling. The National Wrestling Arena is a vivid reflection of the profound friendship between the Chinese and the Senegalese, Xi said. Hailing Senegal as a country of culture, Xi said China is ready to work with Senegal in committing itself to preserving and carrying forward traditional cultures so as to promote cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two sides. Noting that wrestling is the national treasure of Senegal, Sall extended heartfelt thanks to China for helping build such a modern and multi-functional arena for his country. The arena is a new emblem of Senegal-China friendship, he added. The arena, the first modern one in Africa, is the largest aid project China has carried out in Senegal. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 23) Despite improved relations with China, President Rodrigo Duterte said the country will not stop to defend its claim over disputed areas in the West Philippine Sea. The President said this in his third State of the Nation Address Monday at the Batasang Pambansa. The Philippines' commitment to protect its interests in disputed waters is behind the country's effort to engage China through "bilateral and multilateral platforms such as the ASEAN-China and the Philippines-China Bilateral Consultation Mechanism," the President added. Duterte said it was this open line of communication, as well as amicable management, which led to positive developments between both countries. The development included Filipino fishermen being allowed back to disputed waters. "Participation in the ASEAN-China dialogue has also resulted to the draft framework for the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea which intends to resolve disputes by peaceful means," Duterte said. The President said the country "shall continue to assert and pursue an independent foreign policy. Our long-term national development and national security goals come first," and that good relations would not stop as long as foreign nations "wish us well." RELATED: Survey: 73% of Filipinos want Duterte to assert rights in West PH Sea Chinese Amabssador Zhao Jianhua said the President's comments were "fairly objective" and "good." "What he said reflects the facts. Despite the differences we have over the South China Sea, we have made tentative progress in the areas of cooperation particularly in terms of trade, tourism, infrastucture. And I think the Filipino people have already benefitted from the cooperation that have been carried out by China and the Philippines," Zhao said after the SONA. Zhao said he believes Filipinos cherished the "traditional friendship" with the Chinese. The topic of the West Philippine Sea remains controversial among Filipinos. Despite the President's popularity, two surveys showed majority of Filipinos want the government to be more aggressive in asserting its claim in the West Philippine Sea. On July 13, Pulse Asia released a survey saying 73 percent of Filipinos agreed to the statement that the government must assert the 2016 ruling of a tribunal at The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration that invalidated China's sweeping claims over the disputed waters, including the West Philippine Sea. A day later, a Social Weather Stations survey said around 80 percent of Filipinos are not satisfied with how the administration handles the territorial dispute with China in the South China Sea. Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio, who told CNN Philippines in February that China's continued militarization in disputed islands in the South China Sea was a national threat, said he was hoping for President Duterte to elaborate on how the government would assert sovereign rights over the West Philippine Sea. CNN Philippines Pia Garcia, Luchi de Guzman, and Regine Cabato contributed to this report. Flash Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Kigali on Sunday for a state visit to Rwanda, the first by a Chinese head of state to the African country. Upon their arrival, Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, were warmly received by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and his wife Jeannette Kagame. At the airport, a group of local people in colorful clothes with distinctive ethnic features performed dances and beat drums to greet the honored Chinese guests. In his cordial talks with Kagame, Xi sent sincere greetings and good wishes to the Rwandan government and the Rwandan people on behalf of the Chinese government and the Chinese people. Noting that he is the first Chinese head of state to pay a visit to Rwanda, Xi said he has felt the friendship of the Rwandan government and the people towards the Chinese people soon as he set foot on the country's soil. Since the establishment of their diplomatic relations 47 years ago, China and Rwanda have treated each other as equals with sincerity and friendship, Xi said, adding that bilateral ties have undergone healthy and steady development. Xi recalled that during Kagame's visit to China in March 2017, they had an in-depth exchange of views on advancing bilateral ties and cooperation of mutual benefits, adding that their consensus has seen comprehensive implementation. The fact that the two heads of state have visited each other's country within slightly more than a year indicates the great importance both sides have attached to deepening their ties, Xi said. The Chinese president said he expects to have deep discussions with Kagame, who is also the rotating chairman of the African Union, on China-Rwanda ties, China-Africa cooperation and other regional and international issues of common concern. Xi said he believes the upcoming visit will deliver fruitful results so as to benefit the two peoples. Kagame extended warm welcome to Xi on behalf of the Rwandan government and the people. He believed Xi's visit to Rwanda will further push forward the two countries' friendly cooperation. The Chinese president arrived in Kigali after finishing his state visit to Senegal. Senegalese President Macky Sall and his wife Marieme saw Xi and his wife off at the airport. Xi said upon departure that the visit to Senegal is very successful, efficient and pragmatic, and will further promote the development of China-Senegal ties. Sall said Xi's visit is a complete success, and has achieved fruitful results. He also expressed the hope to meet with Xi on a frequent basis. Rwanda is the third stop of Xi's first overseas trip after being re-elected Chinese president in March, which has already taken him to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Senegal. Xi will also pay a state visit to South Africa where he is scheduled to attend the 10th BRICS summit, and visit Mauritius during a stopover. (CNN) Hillary Clinton on Saturday criticized President Donald Trump over his recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying that "hardly anybody who believes in freedom gets along with" the Russian leader and that Trump "wants to be friends with Putin for reasons that we're all still trying to figure out." Nearly a week after Trump met with Putin in Helsinki, Finland, the White House is continuing to grapple with the fallout after the US President shocked the world and provoked a rebuke from some top Republicans, as well as Democrats, in Congress by not endorsing the conclusion of the US intelligence community that Russia interfered in the 2016 election over Putin's denial. Since then, Trump has said he misspoke and that he holds Putin responsible for election interference. Speaking at Ozy Fest, a festival in New York City, Clinton called Russian interference in the 2016 election "a direct attack on our democracy," and said, "the great mystery is why the President has not spoken up for our country. We saw that most clearly in this recent meeting with Putin." Clinton said "it's no surprise" that she and Putin "did not exactly get along," but added, "to be fair, hardly anybody who believes in freedom gets along with him because he is always trying to dominate, intimidate and direct how people and nations behave." Clinton also warned that the US is still "very vulnerable" to potential future election interference from Russia. "Several of the intelligence professionals, including Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence, have said the Russians are still at it," Clinton said. "They are still looking for ways to steal information about voter registration, for example." Clinton added, "there are some tech experts in Silicon Valley with whom I have met who say that maybe what they'll do this next time is to really disrupt the actual election -- shut down the servers that you send results to, interfere with the operation of voting machines because still too many of them are linked to the internet. We are still very vulnerable and we don't have leadership from the administration." This story was first published on CNN.com, "Clinton criticizes Trump, saying 'hardly anybody who believes in freedom gets along with' Putin."